Water supply device, water supply method, and washing machine having water supply device

• US 7,624,601 B2
• Filed: 06/15/2004
• Issued: 12/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Ohe, Hirokazu, Hiramoto, Rie, Yoshikawa, Hirofumi, Ikemizu, Mugihei, Tadano, Minoru
• Primary Examiner(s): Stinson; Frankie L
• Application Number:
  US10/564,692
• Publication Number:
  US 20060186222A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,995 Days
• Field of Search: 68/3.R, 68/17.R, 68/13.A
• US Class Current: 68/17.00R
• CPC Class Codes: A01N 25/24 containing ingredients to enhance the sticking of the active ingredients
• CPC Class Codes: A01N 59/16 Heavy metals; Compounds thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/4606 for producing oligodynamic substances to disinfect the water
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 35/003 using electrochemical cells

Abstract

A water feeding apparatus (300) has an ion eluter (100) and a shower emitter (200). The shower emitter (200) receives water via a coupling pipe (250) from the ion eluter (100), and sprays the water, in the form of a shower, onto laundry. Liquid droplets in the form of a shower are small and easy to dry, and thus produce crystals having smaller particles (with large surface areas), having more lattice defects, and easier to dissolve. With these crystals attached to the laundry, when the crystals make contact with moisture next time, the silver ion in the liquid droplets easily dissolves. Even when the laundry is made of water-repellent or hydrophobic cloth, the solution dries up on the surface of the cloth before water is repelled. Thus, even this type of laundry can benefit from the antimicrobial effect of the silver ion.

Claims

1. A water feeding apparatus for feeding water to a target to be fed with water, comprising:

an adder for adding a treatment substance to the water; and

a shower emitter for spraying, in a form of a shower, the water fed thereto via the adder onto the target,

wherein the adder is an ion eluter that elutes an antimicrobial and/or antifungal ion as the treatment substance and that adds the ion to the water passing therethrough,

wherein the ion eluter includes

an electrode from which a metallic ion is eluted and

a casing housing the electrodes and having an outflow port through which the water is fed to the shower emitter,

wherein the outflow port includes a first outflow port that is located in a position lower than a lower end of the electrode and a second outflow port that is located in a position higher than a higher end of the electrode, and

wherein at least part of the casing has a curved surface.

2. The water feeding apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the shower emitter repeatedly sprays the shower onto the target.

3. The water feeding apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the shower emitter is composed of a vibrator that atomizes by vibration the water fed thereto via the adder.

4. A method of feeding water whereby water in a form of a shower is sprayed onto a target to be fed with water by use of the water feeding apparatus of claim 1.

5. A washer comprising:

the water feeding apparatus of claim 1; and

a laundry tub in which laundry is put as the target to be fed with water.

6. The washer of claim 5, further comprising:

controlling means for controlling addition of the antimicrobial and/or antifungal ion to the water by the adder in such a way that either a first water containing the antimicrobial and/or antifungal ion or a second water not containing the antimicrobial and/or antifungal ion is sprayed onto the laundry earlier than is the second water or the first water, respectively.

7. The washer of claim 6,

wherein the controlling means performs control such that the shower emitter sprays the first water during at least one of a rinsing process, a spin-drying process, and a drying process.

8. The washer of claim 7,

wherein the controlling means performs control such that spraying of the first water by the shower emitter is turned on and off repeatedly during a drying process.

9. The washer of claim 6,

wherein the controlling means performs control such that the laundry is moved while the first water is being sprayed.

10. The washer of claim 9,

wherein the controlling means performs control such that the laundry tub is rotated while the first water is being sprayed.

11. The washer of claim 9,

wherein the controlling means performs control such that an agitating member for agitating the laundry is rotated while the first water is being sprayed.

12. The washer of claim 8,

wherein the controlling means performs control such that air is blown onto the laundry while the first water is being sprayed.

13. The washer of claim 8,

wherein the treatment substance is a metallic ion.

14. The washer of claim 13,

wherein the metallic ion is a silver ion, and

wherein an amount of metal that is attached to the laundry sprayed with the first water containing the silver ion is 0.1 mg or more per kilogram of laundry.

15. The washer of claim 13,

wherein the metallic ion is a silver ion, and

wherein an amount of metal that is attached to the laundry sprayed with the first water containing the silver ion is less than 19 mg per kilogram of laundry.

16. The washer of claim 13,

wherein the controlling means controls a drain valve for draining water inside the laundry tub in such a way that draining of water is suspended for a predetermined period of time after the shower emitter finishes spraying the water in the form of a shower.

17. The washer of claim 13,

wherein the controlling means performs control such that the laundry tub is rotated for a predetermined period of time after the shower emitter finishes spraying the water in the form of a shower.

18. The washer of claim 13, further comprising:

an input handler for accepting setting of a washing course; and

an operation controller for controlling operation of the washing course set via the input handler,

wherein the laundry tub is a holeless tub, and

wherein, when a tub cleaning course for cleaning the laundry tub is set as the washing course via the input handler, the operation controller controls operation of the tub cleaning course in such a way that the tub is cleaned with an amount of water sufficient to permit an agitating member for agitating the laundry put in the holeless tub to be immersed in the water.

19. The washer of claim 18,

wherein the operation controller controls the operation of the tub cleaning course in such a way that the tub is cleaned with water containing the metallic ion.

20. The washer of claim 13,

wherein the metallic ion is a silver ion, and

wherein an amount of metal that is attached to the laundry sprayed with the first water containing the metallic ion is 0.9 mg or more per kilogram of laundry.

21. The washer of claim 13,

wherein the metallic ion is a silver ion, and

wherein an amount of metal that is attached to the laundry sprayed with the first water containing the metallic ion is I mg or more per kilogram of laundry.

22. The washer of claim 13,

wherein the metallic ion is a silver ion, and

wherein an amount of metal that is attached to the laundry sprayed with the first water containing the metallic ion is 10 mg or less per kilogram of laundry.

23. The washer of claim 13,

wherein the metallic ion is a silver ion, and

wherein an amount of metal that is attached to the laundry sprayed with the first water containing the metallic ion is 0.1 mg or more and less than 19 mg per kilogram of laundry.

24. The water feeding apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the shower emitter includes shower emitters provided so as to correspond respectively to the first and second outflow ports, and

wherein the individual shower emitters are connected to the respective outflow ports via connection pipes with height differences left in between.

25. The water feeding apparatus of claim 24,

wherein, of the individual shower emitters, the shower emitter located in a lower position is located in a position lower than a lower end of the electrode of the ion eluter.

26. The water feeding apparatus of claim 1, wherein the casing is substantially cylindrical, elliptic, spherical or spheroidal in shape.

27. The water feeding apparatus of claim 1, wherein the ion eluter further includes terminals that penetrate the casing and by which a voltage is applied to the electrodes, and

wherein the terminals have a substantially circular cross section.