Clothes dryer

• US 4,974,339 A
• Filed: 04/27/1989
• Issued: 12/04/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sanyo Electric Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sanyo Electric Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Tanaka, Kouichi, Aoki, Yoshiaki, Hirota, Tatsuya, Kawamura, Tamotsu, Kawamura, Yozo, Fujikawa, Kiyokazu
• Primary Examiner(s): BENNETT, HENRY A
• Application Number:
  US07/344,316
• Time in Patent Office: 586 Days
• Field of Search: 34/130, 34/133, 34/242, 34/131, 34/73, 34/76, 34/77, 34/78
• US Class Current: 34/73
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 58/24 Condensing arrangements

Abstract

A clothes dryer having a body with heater therein and a rotatable drying chamber is provided with a dual side rotating bladed heat exchange type fan having in its outer portion a group of grooves; and a partition member having an opening whose inner surface is opposed to the outer surface of said dual side bladed fan for separating paths of heated air and cooling air together with said dual side bladed fan in said body; the partition member has a group of fixed grooves interleaved with the fan rotating grooves to form a labyrinth seal; the fixed grooves extend from a base or the partition member and have a rising portion extending in the heated air path to inhibit the leakage of heated air from the heated air path to the cooling air path and have an opening to provide communication between the heated air and the cooling air.

Claims

1. A clothes dryer comprising:

a clothes dryer body having a heater therein;

a rotatable drying chamber in said body for drying clothes therein;

a rotatable dual side bladed heat exchange type fan opposed to said drying chamber in said body, said fan having a circulation surface for circulating heated air through said heater in said drying chamber and a cooling surface at the back of said circulation surface for taking cooling air in and out of said body for exchanging heat between circulating heated air and the cooling air therein;

said rotating dual side bladed fan having in its outer portion a group of spaced arcuate grooves which are concentric and and whose openings portions are in communication with the heated air path; and

a partition member in said body having an opening within which said dual side blade fan rotates for separating paths of said heated air and said cooling air together with said dual side bladed fan;

said partition member having on its inner portion surrounding the opening a base from which extend a group of fixed arcuate grooves which are concentric and whose openings are opposed to said cooling air path, said partition fixed grooves interleaving with clearance with said rotating fan grooves to form a labyrinth seal;

said partition member having an inclined rising portion extending from said base for the fixed grooves in said heated air path;

said rising portion having a passage through which said fixed grooves opposed to the cooling path are connected with said heated air path at the end in a direction of air flow.

2. A clothes dryer according to claim 1, wherein said rotating grooves of the fan and fixed grooves are the same in number, between 2 to 4.

3. A clothes dryer according to claim 1, wherein said rising portion inclines to gradually spread out toward the rotational direction of said rotating grooves of the fan.

4. A clothes dryer according to claim 1, wherein a said inclined rising portion is disposed at a position in the range of approximately 300°

-360°

from the lowermost position of the rotating drum in the direction of its rotation.

5. A clothes dryer according to claim 4, wherein said body has a box shape and said drying chamber has an opening at the front of said box, said hated air path being located at lower left part of said body when said drying chamber and said rotating grooves of the fan rotate clockwise as seen relative to the front of the body and at the lower right part of said body with said drying chamber and rotating grooves of the fan rotating counterclockwise.

6. A clothes dryer according to claim 1, wherein said fixed grooves have a rib formed on the peripheral surface closest to the rotation center of said dual side bladed fan and projecting toward the inner surface of said opposite rotating grooves, for inhibiting intrusion of water drops.

7. A clothes dryer according to claim 1, wherein said surrounding wall is adapted to have a gradual increase in diameter along the rotational direction of said dual side bladed fan.

10. A clothes dryer according to claim 1, further comprising a wall in said dryer body in the cooling air path surrounding at least a part of said labyrinth seal;

said surrounding wall having a section decreasing in diameter to decrease the cooling air path volume fan, said surrounding wall also having a ventilation hole located above said section of decreasing diameter in the direction of rotation of the drying chamber for dividing cooling air flow.

11. A clothes dryer according to claim 1, wherein a hole is provided at the lowermost portion relative to said dryer body of said fixed grooves of said partition member for discharging water produced by condensation in said heated air path, and further comprising a generally arcuate wall in the cooling air path surrounding at least a part of said labyrinth seal, said wall having a section decreasing in diameter in the area of said water discharge hole of said partition member fixed grooves, said wall having a ventilation opening located above said section of decreasing diameter for dividing the flow of cooling air.

8. A clothes dryer comprising:

a clothes dryer body having a heater therein;

a rotatable drying chamber in said body for drying clothes therein;

a rotatable dual side bladed centrifugal type fan opposed to said drying chamber in said body, said fan having a circulation surface for circulating heated air through said heater in said drying chamber and a cooling surface at the back of said circulation surface for taking cooling air in and out of said body for exchanging heat between the circulating heated air and the cooling air therein;

said rotating dual side bladed fan having in the outer portion a group of arcuate grooves; and

a partition member having an opening whose inner surface is opposed to the outer surface of said dual side bladed fan, for separating paths of said heated air and said cooling air together with said dual side bladed fan in said body;

said partition member having a group of fixed arcuate grooves which interleave with clearance with the rotating fan grooves to form a labyrinth;

said fixed grooves of said partition member provided with a hole at the lowermost portion relative to said dryer body for discharging water produced by condensation in said heated air path, and a generally arcuate wall in said body in the cooling air path surrounding at least a part of said labyrinth seal, said wall having a section decreasing in diameter in the area of said water discharge hole of said partition member fixed grooves, said wall having a ventilation opening located above said section of decreasing diameter for dividing the flow of cooling air.

9. A clothes dryer according to claim 8, wherein said surrounding wall is adapted to have a gradual increase in diameter along the rotational direction of said dual side bladed fan.