Fabric treatment appliance with steam backflow device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9732957-B2
Application number	US-201313944027-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 17, 2013
Priority date	Aug 31, 2007
Publication date	Aug 15, 2017
Grant date	Aug 15, 2017

Abstract

A fabric treatment appliance according to one embodiment of the invention comprises a receptacle defining a fabric treatment chamber for receiving laundry, a steam generator having an inlet for receiving water from a water supply and an outlet for supplying steam to the fabric treatment chamber, and a liquid trap upstream from the steam generation chamber blocking backflow of steam from the steam generation chamber to the water supply conduit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An in-line steam generator assembly for use in a laundry treating appliance, comprising:
a steam generator having a horizontal steam generation tube with an inlet at a first end and an outlet at a second end, defining a horizontal steam generation chamber configured to convert liquid to steam as the liquid flows horizontally through the horizontal steam generation tube from the first end towards the second end;
a reservoir fluidly coupled with the inlet of steam generation tube and having a portion extending above the steam generator inlet;
a water supply conduit having a water supply conduit outlet coupled with the reservoir; and
a baffle fluidly separating at least a portion of the horizontal steam generation chamber and the reservoir to retard a flow of deposits entrained in water in the horizontal steam generation chamber to the reservoir.

2. The in-line steam generator assembly of claim 1 wherein the inlet and outlet of the horizontal steam generation tube are axially aligned.

3. The in-line steam generator assembly of claim 1 wherein the steam generator further comprises a heat source positioned to provide heat to the horizontal steam generation chamber.

4. The in-line steam generator assembly of claim 3 wherein the heat source is a resistive heater.

5. The in-line steam generator assembly of claim 4 wherein the resistive heater is coiled around the horizontal steam generation tube.

6. The in-line steam generator assembly of claim 4 wherein the resistive heater is in a generally central location relative to the inlet and the outlet.

7. The in-line steam generator assembly of claim 1 wherein the reservoir creates a liquid trap.

8. The in-line steam generator assembly of claim 7 wherein the baffle is located in the liquid trap.

Assignees

• Whirlpool Co

Inventors

• Beck Markus
• Pinkowski Robert J
• Vaidhyanathan Raveedran
• Vallejo Noriega Alvaro
• Wong Nyik S

Classifications

• D06F39/008

  Textiles & Paper · mapped topic

• F22B1/28 Primary

  in boilers heated electrically · CPC title

• D06F39/40 Primary

  Steam generating arrangements · CPC title