JP2011110329A - Iron - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an iron which is inexpensive and can keep the whole compact, and the appearance improved. <P>SOLUTION: This iron includes: a base 3 which has an evaporation chamber 6; a cover 8 which is set on the base 3; and a handle cover 43 which is located behind the cover 8, and forms a power feeding terminal 45 which is a power feeding section. The handle cover 43 is formed into a shape which is tapered in from the upper side to the lower side, and a fitting section 46 is provided which makes the cover 8 and the handle cover 43 spigot-joint-fitted. Thus, the fitting section 46 is located in a vicinity of the center of the side surface of the iron body 1, and the formation of the shape of the handle cover 43 which is tapered in from the upper side to the lower side is made possible. Since the cover 8 can be molded by a die which has the pulling direction in the vertical direction, the inexpensive and compact iron can be provided. Also, the handle cover 43 is vertically regulated by the spigot-joint-fitting, the iron having a good appearance without gap can be provided. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an iron provided with a cover on a base.

  In the conventional iron, the cover located on the base has a shape that spreads from the top to the bottom (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2000-288299 A

  However, the conventional configuration has a problem that the cover cannot be made compact because the cover extends from the top to the bottom. In addition, the cover and the handle cover use heat-resistant resin, so that there is a disadvantage that deformation becomes large.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an iron that can solve the above-described problems and make the entire iron compact and improve the appearance.

  In the iron of the first aspect of the present invention, the iron is provided with a cover installed on the base and a handle cover that is located behind the cover and forms a power feeding portion, and the handle cover is narrowed from above to below, A fitting portion is provided in which the cover and the handle cover are fitted with an inlay.

  In the iron according to a second aspect of the present invention, the fitting portion has a mold structure that can be removed vertically.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the handle cover can be formed in a shape that narrows from the upper side to the lower side, and a compact iron can be provided. An iron with a good appearance can be provided.

  According to invention of Claim 2, since there is no additional structure in a fitting part, an inexpensive iron can be provided.

It is a side view of the iron main body in 1st Example of this invention. It is a top view of an iron main body same as the above. It is AA sectional drawing in FIG. 1 same as the above. It is BB sectional drawing in FIG. 1 same as the above. It is a back view of an iron main body same as the above. It is CC sectional drawing in FIG. 2 same as the above. It is DD sectional drawing in FIG. 2 same as the above. It is EE sectional drawing in FIG. 7 same as the above. It is sectional drawing of the iron main body in 2nd Example of this invention. It is sectional drawing of the iron main body in 3rd Example of this invention.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the iron according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that, in each of these embodiments, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description of the common portions is duplicated and is omitted as much as possible.

  1 to 8 show a first embodiment of the present invention, in which 1 is an iron body, and this iron body 1 is provided with a base 3 in which a heater 2 as a heating means is embedded at the bottom.

  The hooking surface 4 of the base 3 is provided with a sliding coating with a sliding agent 5 such as a fluororesin that has excellent sliding properties to reduce friction with clothes.

  Inside the base 3, a steam chamber, that is, a vaporizing chamber 6 is formed in the vicinity of the heater 2, and an ejection hole 7 communicating with the vaporizing chamber 6 is provided on the lower surface of the base 3.

  The vaporization chamber 6 may not be formed in the base 3 but may be a separate body.

  Reference numeral 8 denotes a cover provided on the upper portion of the base 3, 9 denotes a handle provided above the cover 8, and a cassette tank 10, which is a container corresponding to a water tank, is provided in front of the handle 9. 1 is detachably provided.

  The cassette tank 10 is made of, for example, synthetic resin, and has a substantially U shape when viewed from the upper surface. The cassette tank 10 is disposed so that both sides of the cassette tank 10 extend from the front end side of the handle 9 to both ends of the rear end side.

  Reference numeral 11 denotes an openable / closable water inlet lid provided at the front portion of the cassette tank 10, from which water can be accommodated in the cassette tank 10 and unnecessary water in the cassette tank 10 can be discarded.

  Further, the cassette tank 10 has a lock mechanism that is slightly protruded from one side surface of the cassette tank 10 and is provided with a tank lock button 12. An elevator 13 that moves up and down by operating the tank lock button 12 is an elastic member. The spring 14 is always biased upward by the barrel spring 14.

  And the lock part 15 which protruded from the upper part of the raising / lowering body 13 becomes a structure which latches to the hole 16 formed in the front surface of the handle | steering-wheel 9. As shown in FIG.

  A valve device 17 is provided inside the cassette tank 10, and a water passage joint 18 serving as a water conduit that communicates with the vaporizing chamber 6 is provided below the valve device 17.

  The valve device 17 includes a steam opening / closing rod 20 that is supported upright and slidably by a support 19, a packing 21 provided on the bottom surface of the recess of the support 19, and the packing 21 that is always supported by the support 19. And a spring 22 as an urging member that protects the close contact state, and an elastic valve element 23 formed at the lower end of the steam opening / closing rod 20 is provided on the bottom surface of the cassette tank 10. It is provided facing the center of the formed outflow hole 24.

  Further, a heat shield plate 25 that blocks heat from the base 3 is interposed between the water flow joint 18 and the base 3.

  A lid 26 is provided below the heat shield plate 25 so as to cover the upper opening of the vaporizing chamber 6.

  Reference numeral 27 denotes a nozzle provided in the middle of the water passage joint 18, and an on-off valve 28 for opening and closing the nozzle 27 is formed on the base from an opening 29 provided in common to the heat shield plate 25 and the lid body 26. 3 protrudes downward toward the recess 30.

  An inversion-type bimetal 31 corresponding to a heat sensitive body is accommodated in the concave portion 30 of the base 3, and when the vaporizing chamber 6 near the concave portion 30 reaches a predetermined temperature, the bimetal 31 is placed inside the concave portion 30. And the nozzle 27 is opened by pushing up the on-off valve 27 against the bias of the spring 32.

  In addition to the handle portion 33 corresponding to the grip portion, the handle 9 forms a cavity 35 for inserting a hand between the abdomen 34 and the handle portion 33 of the iron body 1 located below the handle portion 33. It is.

  Here, the abdomen 34 refers to a flat central upper surface portion of the iron body 1 facing the handle portion 33 excluding both sides of the cassette tank 10.

  A setting button 36 for changing the set temperature of the base 3 is disposed at the upper part of the handle 9, and the base 3 is kept at a predetermined temperature by appropriately turning off the heater 2 inside the handle 9. A temperature control device 37 for controlling the temperature is provided.

  Specifically, the temperature control device 37 stores a current set temperature in addition to the switch unit 38 of the setting button 36 and a plurality of light emitting diodes, that is, LEDs 39, and allows the setting button 36 to be received. A power storage device 40 such as the above is mounted on the upper surface of the substrate 41. The light from the LED 39 is transmitted through the temperature display nameplate 42 attached to the handle 33 and displays the current set temperature.

  The characteristic part of the iron of the present embodiment will be described below. A handle cover 43 forms a rear outline of the iron body 1, and power is supplied to the iron body 1 in a recess 44 formed on the lower side of the handle cover 43. A pair of power supply terminals 45 are attached in a protruding form.

  The fitting portion 46 between the handle cover 43 and the cover 8 is arranged near the center of the side surface of the iron body 1, and an inlay fitting structure in which the rib 47 of the handle cover 43 is inserted into the square hole 48 of the cover 8. Accordingly, the front end portion 50 of the side wall 49 of the handle cover 43 and the rear end portion of the side wall 51 of the cover 8 that divide the substantially side surface center of the iron body 1 in the front-rear direction of the iron body 1, that is, in the direction parallel to the hanging surface 4 of the base 3. 52 is fitted and fixed without a gap.

  The rib 47 is formed by projecting the inner part of the front end portion 50 forward of the iron body 1 in the front-rear direction of the iron body 1 so as to be fitted into the side wall 51 of the cover 8. In addition to a positioning engagement protrusion 53 protruding in a substantially prismatic shape, a lower end of the rib 47 is cut out continuously from the lower surface of the engagement protrusion 53.

  The square hole 48 is formed substantially parallel to the side wall 51 with a predetermined interval slightly larger than the thickness of the rib 47 on the inner side 51 a of the side wall 51 of the cover 8 and on the inner side of the side wall 51, and the side wall 49 of the handle cover 43. The outer surface 55a of the inner wall 55 capable of abutting and supporting the inner side surface 49a, the lower portion of the side wall 49 and the lower portion of the inner wall 55 are connected to each other, and the front end lower portion of the side wall 49 of the handle cover 43 is cut out. The upper and lower surfaces 56a of the connecting portion 56 that can be engaged with the left and right sides and the lower side are surrounded by the rear end portion 52 of the side wall 51 of the cover 8 when viewed from the rear in the front-rear direction of the iron body 1. In the recess 58 formed by being surrounded by a lower surface 57a of the upper corresponding cutout portion 57 formed by cutting out the rectangular hole 48 and the lower portion of the rear end portion 52, the gap 58 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape. Above-mentioned staff Protrusions 53 are formed to be engageable.

  Further, since both the cover 8 and the handle cover 43 are formed by a molding die having a punching direction in the vertical direction of the iron body 1, that is, the direction orthogonal to the hanging surface 4 of the base 3, as shown in FIG. Further, the connecting portion 56 and the upper corresponding cutout portion 57 of the handle cover 43 are formed so as to be shifted in the front-rear direction of the iron body 1.

  Further, the iron body 1 is placed on a placing table (not shown). The mounting table is provided with a leaf spring-shaped power contact corresponding to the power supply terminal 45. When the iron body 1 is mounted on the mounting table, the power supply terminal 45 contacts the power contact and is connected to the outlet. Power is supplied from the power cord into the iron body 1 as necessary.

  Next, the operation of the steam iron having the above configuration will be described. When water is previously stored in the cassette tank 10 from the water inlet lid 11 and the cassette tank 10 is inserted from the front portion of the handle 9, the upper surface of the cassette tank 10 pushes down the lock portion 15 against the spring 14, and finally The cassette tank 10 is set at a predetermined position of the iron body 1 by locking the lock portion in the hole portion 16.

  Next, when the power cord is inserted into the outlet while the iron body 1 is placed on the placing table, power is supplied to the temperature control device 37 and the power storage device 40 in the iron body 1 from the power contact of the placing table. In the temperature control device 37, the off mode setting mode is first set as the initial state, and the LED 39 corresponding to “off” on the operation panel (not shown) is turned on. In this cut-off state, the heater 2 is not energized for safety. Thereafter, when the setting button 36 is pushed, the setting mode is switched from “OFF” to “LOW”, “Middle”, and “HIGH” in order, and the corresponding LED 39 is lit. When the setting mode is switched to a mode other than “OFF”, the temperature control device 37 energizes the heater 2.

  The temperature control device 37 detects whether the iron body 1 is being placed on the placing table or is being detached by an iron placing detection means (not shown). In a state where the iron body 1 is continuously placed on the placing table, the heater 3 is heated to the base 3 until the base 3 reaches a temperature set by a temperature setting means (not shown). At this time, the temperature control device 37 determines whether or not the base 3 is within an appropriate temperature range close to the set temperature based on a detection output from a temperature detection means (not shown). When the temperature of the base 3 is out of the appropriate temperature range, the LED of the temperature display nameplate 42 corresponding to the set temperature is made to blink, and notification by a buzzer (not shown) is not performed. Inform the user that the temperature is not appropriate. On the other hand, when the temperature of the base 3 is within the appropriate temperature range, the LED 39 on the temperature display nameplate 42 corresponding to the set temperature is turned on, and a buzzer (not shown) is sounded for a certain period of time to iron the user. Inform that it is possible. And as long as the iron main body 1 is mounted on the mounting table, the temperature control device 37 controls the interruption of the heater 2 so that the temperature of the base 3 is maintained within the appropriate temperature range. Regardless of whether the temperature is appropriate or inappropriate, the procedure returns to the above.

  Thereafter, when the iron body 1 is detached from the mounting table for ironing, the power supply from the mounting table to the iron body 1 side is cut off, and the heater 2 is turned off. The temperature control device 37 continues to operate by power supply from the power storage device 40, but is switched to a higher temperature than before when the temperature of the base 3 falls below the appropriate temperature range or by operating the setting button 36. When using the LED 39, the power supply notification or display for prompting the iron body 1 to be placed on the placing table is performed using the LED 39.

  When performing ironing, after inserting a hand from the cavity 35 of the iron body 1, the handle portion 33 of the handle 9 is gripped as if held by a palm. At this time, the width of the rear end portion of the handle portion 35 is approximately from the central portion. While gradually spreading and lowering the height, the iron body 1 is prevented from coming out of the hand during ironing. Further, in order to improve the visual observation of the tip portion of the base 3, the front end surface of the cassette tank 10 is inclined so as to fall relatively greatly toward the rear side of the iron body 1, but the cassette in the present embodiment. Since both sides of the tank 10 have a height sufficient to accommodate a sufficient amount of water, it becomes possible to eliminate the conventional capacity shortage of the water tank.

  When ironing, the user switches between the steam state and the spray state according to the wrinkle state of the cloth. That is, when using as a normal steam iron, the steam opening / closing rod 20 is raised, the water in the cassette tank 10 is supplied to the vaporizing chamber 6, and ironing is performed while always ejecting steam. Also, when trying to stretch out the gun, operate the operation button (not shown) to spout strong steam, or operate the operation button (not shown) to spray mist on the cloth. Absorb moisture and iron.

  Here, the fitting portion 46 of the cover 8 and the handle cover 43 is positioned near the center of the side surface in front of the rear end of the iron body 1, so that the rear portion of the handle cover 43 extends from above to below as shown in FIG. By forming the cover 8 and the handle cover 43 with a molding die that has a pulling direction in the vertical direction, an inexpensive and compact iron can be provided.

  In addition, in order to fit the fitting portion 46 of the cover 8 and the handle cover 43, the rib 47 is inserted into the square hole 48, and the engaging projection 53 is further engaged with the recess 58, and the notch 54 is By engaging the connecting portion 56, the fitting portion 46 is fixed.

  In this case, the rib 47 inserted in the fitting portion 46 in a state where there is substantially no gap is sandwiched between the side wall 51 and the inner wall 55 of the square hole 48 and the movement in the left-right direction is restricted (see FIG. 6 and FIG. 7), the upward movement is restricted by the engaging convex part 53 engaged with the concave part 58 (see FIG. 8), and the downward movement is restricted by the notch part 54 engaged with the connecting part 56. (See FIGS. 6 and 8), the cover 8 is fitted with the handle cover being restricted in the vertical and horizontal movements, and is fitted from the left and right side appearances of the iron body 1 shown in FIGS. In the portion 46, the rear end portion 52 of the side wall 51 of the cover 8 and the front end portion 50 of the side wall 49 of the handle cover 43 are in close contact with each other without any gap, and an iron with a good appearance can be provided.

  Further, the square hole 48 is formed by shifting the connecting portion 56 and the upper corresponding cutout portion 57 in the front-rear direction of the iron body 1, thereby enabling molding with a mold structure that can be pulled out in the vertical direction of the iron body 1. To provide a low-cost iron by reducing the cost of the molding die by simplifying the molding die structure and eliminating the need for an additional mechanism such as a slide mechanism as in the conventional iron fitting part. Can do.

  As described above, the present embodiment corresponds to claim 1, and includes a base 3 having a vaporizing chamber 6, a cover 8 installed on the base 3, and a power feeding unit located behind the cover 8 and serving as a power feeding unit. A handle cover 43 that forms the terminal 45 is provided. The handle cover 43 has a shape narrowed from the upper side to the lower side, and a fitting portion 46 that fits the cover 8 and the handle cover 43 in an inlay is provided.

  In this case, the fitting portion 46 of the cover 8 and the handle cover 43 is set as an inlay fitting, and the fitting portion 46 is positioned forward and positioned near the center of the side surface of the iron body 1. The cover 8 can be formed into a shape that narrows from the top to the bottom, and the cover 8 can be molded from a mold that has a pulling direction in the vertical direction, so that the mold cost can be reduced and an inexpensive and compact iron can be provided. Since the handle cover 43 is regulated at the top and bottom, it is possible to provide an iron having a good appearance without a gap.

  Further, according to claim 2, the fitting portion 46 has a mold structure that can be removed vertically, and the cover 47 having the rib 47 and the square hole 48 that constitute the fitting portion 46, and the handle cover 43 are both in the vertical direction. Since there is no addition of a slide or the like to the fitting portion 46, the iron can be provided at a low cost with a reduced mold cost.

  Next, the iron in the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 9, and the configuration of the iron body 1 other than the one described below will be omitted because it overlaps with the first embodiment. In the iron body 1 of the present embodiment, a tank 70 is provided above the base 3 having the vaporizing chamber 6 so as to be detachable.

  As a supply device that feeds water in the tank 70 into the vaporizing chamber 6 from a bottom of the tank 70 through a joint tube (not shown) that is a water passage joint, a pulse motor (step motor or stepping motor) is provided in the drive unit such as a diaphragm pump. ) And the like, and is connected from the discharge port 71A of the electric pump 71 to the mist nozzle 72 by a joint tube (not shown).

  Further, the iron body 1 is provided with a mist button 73 such as a tact switch for switching on / off of the electric pump 71 and adjusting the drive current of the electric pump 71 at the upper part of the iron body 1.

  When ironing, when the mist is ejected at that time, the electric pump 71 is driven by pushing the mist button 73, the water in the tank 70 is fed from the discharge port 71A of the electric pump 71, and the joint tube is connected. It passes through and is sent to the mist nozzle 72. The water sent to the mist nozzle 72 is ejected as mist.

  In addition, by changing the drive power to the electric pump 71 by a predetermined operation of the mist button 73, the amount of water supplied to the mist nozzle 72 can be adjusted, and the mist amount can be adjusted by the setting stored in advance in the control means (not shown). be changed.

  As shown in FIG. 9, when the iron of this embodiment is used as a cordless iron, a manganese dry battery, an alkaline manganese battery, a mercury battery, a silver oxide is used as a drive source for driving the electric pump 71 in the vicinity of the electric pump 71. A primary battery 74, a secondary battery, a capacitor, or the like that is disposable for a single discharge such as a battery, a lithium battery, or an air battery and that is not set to be rechargeable by another power source is accommodated.

  When ironing according to the present embodiment, the iron pump is removed from the table and ironed with an ironing board or the like. When the mist is ejected at that time, the electric pump 71 is driven by the dry battery 74 by pushing the mist button 73, and the electric motor 71 is electrically driven. Mist is ejected by the water fed by the pump 71. Mist can be ejected by supplying water with the electric pump 71.

  Further, the amount of water supply can be varied by the drive current of the electric pump 71 to adjust the mist amount.

  Furthermore, by installing the dry battery 74, the mist can be ejected by the electric pump 71 even as a cordless iron.

  As described above, as an effect of this embodiment, the base 3 having the vaporizing chamber 6, the tank 70 for storing water, and the electromagnetic pump 71 for supplying water from the tank 70 to the mist nozzle 72 are provided. Mist can be ejected by pumping water.

  Further, the electromagnetic pump 71 can adjust the water supply amount to the mist nozzle 72 by changing the drive current, so that the water supply amount of the electromagnetic pump 71 can be varied by the drive current of the electromagnetic pump 71 and the mist amount can be adjusted. it can.

  Furthermore, when using the iron of a present Example as a cordless iron, the mist can be ejected by the electromagnetic pump 71 also as a cordless iron by mounting the dry battery 74.

  Next, the iron in the third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. About the structure of the iron main body 1 other than what is described below, since it overlaps with the said 1st Example and 2nd Example, description is abbreviate | omitted. In the iron body 1 of the present embodiment, a tank 70 that is detachably attached to the upper side of the base 3 having the vaporizing chamber 6 is attached.

  The tank 70 is connected to the electric pump 71 from the bottom of the tank 70 by a water passage joint (not shown), and is connected from the discharge port 71A of the electric pump 71 to the vaporizing chamber 6 of the base 3 by a joint tube (not shown).

  A dry battery 74 for driving the electric pump 71 is accommodated in the vicinity of the electric pump 71.

  The iron body 1 is mounted on the mounting table 80. The mounting table 80 is provided with a leaf spring-like power contact corresponding to a power supply terminal (not shown) of the iron body 1, and when the iron body 1 is mounted on the mounting table 80, the power supply terminal becomes a power contact. The power is supplied to the iron body 1 from the power cord connected to the outlet as necessary.

  When ironing according to the present embodiment, the ironing is performed by removing from the mounting table 80 and ironing with an ironing board or the like. When spraying steam at that time, an electric pump is driven by a dry battery 74 by pressing a steam button (not shown). 71 is driven, water in the tank 70 is fed from the discharge port 71A of the electric pump 71, and fed to the vaporizing chamber 6 of the base 3 through a joint tube (not shown).

  The water sent to the vaporizing chamber 6 of the base 3 is instantaneously turned into steam by the heat of the base 3 supplied with power from the mounting table 80 and heated to about 200 ° C., and becomes steam from the steam hole 7 at the bottom of the base 3. Erupted.

  By forcibly supplying water to the vaporizing chamber 6 by the electric pump 71, ironing can be performed without reducing the amount of steam.

  As described above, as an effect of the present embodiment, the base 3 having the vaporizing chamber 6, the tank 70 for storing water, the electromagnetic pump 71 for supplying water from the tank 70 to the vaporizing chamber, and the iron body 1 are mounted. By providing the mounting table 80 as a mounting table that is energized when placed and mounted, the electromagnetic pump 71 forcibly supplies water to the vaporizing chamber 6 to reduce the amount of steam from the steam hole 7. Ironing is possible.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said Example, It can change in the range which does not deviate from the meaning of this invention. For example, it is not limited to the detachable cassette tank 10 and may be a fixed water tank not provided with the lock mechanism. Moreover, not only a cordless iron but an iron with a cord may be used.

1 Iron body 3 Base 6 Vaporization chamber 8 Cover 43 Handle cover 46 Fitting part

Claims (2)

A cover installed on the base; and a handle cover that is located behind the cover and forms a power feeding portion. The handle cover is narrowed from the top to the bottom, and the cover and the handle cover are fitted with an inlay An iron characterized by comprising a mating fitting portion. The iron according to claim 1, wherein the fitting portion has a mold structure that can be removed vertically.

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