JP2001137588A - Ozone purification system for washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the usage of a detergent, an assistant and the like, the time of washing, the usage of water and the content of normal hexane extract substances in drainage, and bleach, clean, disinfect and deodorize wash, by using an ozone purification system for a washing machine in a business washing machine. SOLUTION: A distributing pipe 10 conveys water from the outside, in which ozone gas from an ozonizer 6 as well as a detergent, an assistant and the like pumped up by liquid pumps 8 from a detergent container 9 and an assistant container 9 are mixed via mixers 7. The mixture is agitated and pressurized in a conveying pump 5 that forces it via a conveying pipe 4 into a spray 3 disposed on a front door 2 of a washing machine 1. The spray 3 continuously scatters the mixture on wash 11. The wash is cleaned in a rotary cage 12 on a rubbing basis. When the water in an outer drum 13 reaches a set level for a main washing or rinsing step, a drain valve 14 is opened to drain the water out.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a shortening of a working time of a washing machine using water in a cleaning business for business use, a reduction in water consumption, an improvement in drainage, and an improvement in sanitary problems.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a water washing machine includes a two-stage washing process of pre-washing (also referred to as pre-washing) using a detergent, an auxiliary agent, etc. and water to remove stains on an object to be washed, and a main washing. It comprises a rinsing step for removing water and detergents, auxiliaries and the like remaining in the object to be washed, and a dehydrating step for removing last remaining water. When washing a large amount of sheets, yukata, etc., a continuous washing machine is used. However, the subject of the present invention is intended for washing with a box-type washing machine when there are many types and the number of washings at one time is relatively small. I do.

[0003] Box type washing machine (hereinafter referred to as washing machine)
In this case, an object to be washed is put into the internal rotating basket from the front door, and powdered detergent, auxiliary and the like are supplied at the time of pouring water from the upper detergent inlet, and are collected in the outer shell covering the rotating basket. Pre-washing and main washing are performed while maintaining the water temperature at 60 to 70 ° C, and rinsing is performed with water at 40 ° C to room temperature. It takes 1 hour to 1.5 to complete the entire process
It takes time and uses a lot of water. Further, the washing wastewater has a drawback that the content of the normal hexane extractables is contained, the cost of the wastewater treatment is high, and there is also a problem in that some hygiene problems are caused in the laundry.

[0004]

In the conventional washing method, a large amount of water is supplied at the start of the washing, and the article to be washed is first wetted with water, and the detergent and auxiliaries are accumulated in the outer shell and become uniform in concentration by stirring, so that the detergent is washed. Detergents, auxiliaries, etc. penetrate to the inside of the object to be washed by the action of surfactant as a component

[0005] Here, since the concentration of detergents and auxiliaries is proportional to the detergency, a relatively long mixing and washing time is required for an object to be washed saturated with water to obtain sufficient detergency. .
Generally, the pre-washing time is 10-20 minutes, and the main washing time is 15-
It takes 30 minutes.

In the rinsing step after the pre-washing and the main washing steps, the washing is repeated three or four times in order to remove detergents, auxiliaries, dirt and the like remaining on the article to be washed. At this time, a considerable amount of water is required to dissolve components such as detergents and auxiliaries contained in the fibers to the outside. If detergents and auxiliaries remain on the fibers, they cause yellowing and cause allergic diseases to the user.
Eight times the amount of wastewater and the cost is high. Water and sewage costs are second only to personnel costs.

[0007] The water used for washing includes a detergent containing dirt at the same time as the dirt on the object to be washed, and the content of normal hexane extractable substances in the wastewater is mainly derived from the detergent.
For washing of dirty laundry, in areas where normal hexane extractables content is increased to increase the concentration of detergent and effluent standards are severe, dilute with water or treat with large-scale drainage equipment etc. Means is required and costs a lot of money.

In recent years, the water temperature during washing has been gradually increased at a low temperature for the purpose of cost reduction. However, as the water temperature decreases, the sterilizing effect of the object to be washed has also decreased. Various types of dirt also contain a lot of bacteria and are used in restaurants, hospitals,
It is necessary to pay attention to hygiene issues.

[0009]

According to the present invention, a sprayer is attached to a front door of a washing machine, and a mixed aqueous solution of water, a detergent, an auxiliary agent, etc., and ozone water are sprinkled with a spray to wash an object to be washed. As a result, it is possible to reduce the number of times of rinsing to one or two, and to reduce the number of times of rinsing to one or two while prewashing and main rinsing are performed only in main rinsing while maintaining the cleaning effect. It was possible to reduce the amount of water and the content of the normal hexane extractable substance in the wastewater, and to achieve bleaching, sterilization, and deodorization of the washing target.

The major difference of the present invention from the conventional method is that the conventional method uses a large amount of water at a time in a short period of time, so that the pre-washing and main washing time is increased. The present invention is a continuous water injection method aiming at shortening the main washing time by spraying water directly on an object to be washed immediately after the start.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention is characterized in that, in a main washing process, a detergent, an auxiliary agent, etc., is injected into a supply water by a mixer through a sprayer attached to a front door portion of an object to be washed in a washing machine, and further a pump. And pressurized to sprinkle water on the object to be washed in the rotating basket during operation.

At this time, since a mixture of detergents and auxiliaries having a high concentration is sprinkled on the object to be washed, it has a large penetrating power and is absorbed between the fibers in a very short time. The object to be washed, which has absorbed the mixed water of the detergent and the auxiliary agent, becomes heavier, and is replaced with a light, non-water-absorbing object by the forward / reverse rotation of the rotating basket, so that the detergent, the auxiliary agent, etc. are absorbed evenly throughout the whole. During this time, the object to be washed is washed by a washing effect of a detergent or an auxiliary having a high concentration and a kneading effect by rotation. When a mixture of detergents, auxiliaries, and the like spreads over the entire object to be washed, the surplus is gradually accumulated in the outer shell.

When the amount of water stored in the outer shell increases and reaches a certain water level, the water in the outer shell is drained by an automatic drain valve opened by a water level sensor attached to the washing machine. The supply time of the mixed water such as the detergent and the auxiliaries is set as a standard until the mixed water of the detergents and the auxiliaries spreads over the object to be washed. The water temperature is normal and does not require heating.

After draining, the automatic drain valve closes again. From this time, a rinsing step is started, and ozone gas is injected into the supply water by a mixer, mixed by a pump, pressurized, and sprinkled by a sprayer. Detergents, auxiliaries, and dirt components remaining on the object to be washed due to water spray are diluted with ozone water, and the detergent and dirt are decomposed by ozone. Since high-concentration ozone water is constantly sprinkled and excess water is rubbed out by a rotating basket, residual detergents, auxiliaries, and dirt are rapidly reduced. In this rinsing step, the amount of water used is the same as that of the main washing, and the number of times is 1 or 2
Water temperature is normal and does not require heating.

The washing end time according to the present invention is determined by the amount of spray water supplied. That is, the washing machine is programmed in advance so that when the set water level is reached, the main washing time and the rinsing time are counted, and when the set time elapses, the process automatically proceeds to the next step. The main washing time and the rinsing time according to the present invention are each set to about 1 minute. Washing end time can be greatly reduced as compared with the conventional case.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1. Water is supplied from the outside through a water pipe 10, ozone gas and a detergent from an ozone generator 6, and a detergent, an auxiliary agent and the like in an auxiliary container 9 are sent. Mixer 7 pumped by liquid pump 8
The water is then mixed and pressurized by a water supply pump 5, and the water is continuously sprayed to the object 11 to be washed through a water supply pipe 4 from a sprayer 3 attached to a front door 2 of the washing machine 1. The object to be washed is rubbed by the rotating basket 12 and the washing proceeds. When the water accumulated in the outer shell 13 reaches the respective set amounts in the main washing and rinsing steps, the drain valve 14 is opened and drained.

According to the present invention, water is sprinkled through the sprayer 3 by the water feed pump 5 at the same time as the operation of the water washing machine 1 is started.
After a certain time, the detergent and the auxiliary agent flow through the mixer 7, the liquid sending pump 8 stops, and only water is supplied. In the rinsing step, ozone gas from the ozone generator 6 is supplied as ozone water through the mixer 7. In the dehydration step, the ozone generator 6 and the water pump 5 are stopped.

A washing test in which the ozone purification system for a washing machine having the above mechanism was attached to a commercial washing machine was used as a test section, while a washing test was performed using a conventional washing machine as an object section. The two washing machines used in the test were of the same make and model, and were for 35 kg of items to be washed. A comparative test was conducted by introducing a prescribed amount of a cock coat, a work clothes, and a shirt as washing articles, respectively.

The conventional operating conditions in the target area are as follows:
Minutes, main washing time 20 minutes, rinsing time 3 minutes, rinsing frequency 3 times, pre-washing, water temperature 60 ° C, first rinsing 40 minutes
The second and third times were at room temperature. On the other hand, the target area is the main washing time 1
Minutes, 1 minute of rinsing, 2 times of rinsing, the water temperature was fully washed, and the rinsing was at room temperature. Table 1 below lists the test setting conditions in comparison.

[Table 1]

As a result of the test, both the washing time and the amount of water used in the test plot were significantly reduced as compared with those in the test plot. Table 2 shows the results of the comparative test.
Summarized in

[Table 2] The difference between the set time and the time until the end of the washing is because the dehydration step time is about 13 minutes and the time required to reach each set condition is added.

In order to compare the detergency, a washing test was conducted by mixing a standard contaminated cloth with the object to be washed in the above test. The evaluation was carried out together with the measurement with a color difference chromaticity meter and the visual evaluation. Except for carbon stains, sebum stains, wine stains, and blood stains showed better results in the test plots than in the control plots. For carbon stains, the physical kneading effect proportional to the washing time determines the detergency, so the results for the target plots seem to be superior to the test plots. However, it is desired to shorten the rubbing time as much as possible in order to promote fiber fatigue of the article to be washed.

The content of the normal hexane extract in the waste water was measured, and the results are summarized in Table 3.

[Table 3] Unit: mg / L The reason why the content of the normal hexane extract in the test plot was significantly reduced was that the amount of detergent used in the main washing process was smaller than that of the target plot (reduced by 40%) and that a detergent with a low content of the normal hexane extract was used. is there. In the rinsing step, it is considered that the cleaning effect of the previous step is good and that the detergent component is significantly degraded due to decomposition by ozone.

[0023]

As described above, according to the present invention, the amount of detergents and auxiliaries, the amount of washing time, the amount of water used for washing, the content of normal hexane extractable substances in waste water, and the like, in a commercial washing machine, are reduced. It is possible to reduce the amount and to bleach, sterilize, and deodorize the items to be washed. Therefore, reduction of working time, reduction of water and materials,
It can be expected to reduce energy costs, reduce drainage costs, and improve sanitation.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a work process diagram of an ozone purification system for a washing machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Washing machine 8 ... Liquid pump 2 ... Front door 9 ... Water distribution pipe 3 ... Sprayer 10 ... Container containing detergent and auxiliary agent 4 ... Water transmission pipe 11 ...・ Washing object 5 ・ ・ ・ Water supply pump 12 ・ ・ ・ Rotary basket 6 ・ ・ ・ Ozone generator 13 ・ ・ ・ Outer body 7 ・ ・ ・ Mixer 14 ・ ・ ・ Drain valve

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A sprayer is attached to a front door of a washing machine,
An ozone purifying system for a washing machine, wherein an ozone water is sprinkled with water, a mixture of detergents and auxiliaries, and ozone water to wash an object to be washed. 2. The ozone purifying system for a washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the water supplied by using the pump is pressurized and sprinkled. 3. An ozone purification system for a washing machine according to claim 1, further comprising a mixer for previously dissolving a detergent, an auxiliary agent and the like and ozone gas in water. 4. An ozone purifying system for a washing machine according to claim 1, wherein a detergent, an auxiliary agent, etc. and ozone gas are supplied according to the washing state of the washing machine. 5. An ozone purifying system for a washing machine, wherein the pump used in claim 2 is installed after a mixer of a detergent, an auxiliary agent and the like and ozone gas.