US3391550A - Drycleaning machine - Google Patents

Description

July 9, 1968 D. R. WILLIAMS DRYCLEANING MACHINE Filed May 28. 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 July 9, 1968 D. R. WILLIAMS DRYCLEANING MACHINE 5 Shee'ts-Sheet 2 Filed May 28, 1962 NhN mmm

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July 9, 1968 D. R. WILLIAMS DRYCLEANING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 28, 1962 mdr* INVENTOR. David R. Williams NNN h ab j? wf QMWWM A Arm/ways Unted States Patent O 3,391,550 DRYCLEANING MACHINE David R. Williams, Dallas, TeX., assigner, by mesne assignments, to L. T. Industries, Inc., Dallas, Tex., a corporation of Delaware Filed May 28, 1962, Ser. No. 198,200 13 Claims. (Cl. 68-12) This invention relates to a cleaning apparatus and more particularly to a drycleaning appartus employing a solvent which must be recovered upon the completion of each cycle of operation of the drycleaning apparatus.

An object of this invention is to provide a new and irnproved dry cleaning apparatus for cleaning garments and the like having means for recovering a maximum amount of the solvent from the cleaned garments upon the cornpletion of the cleaning operation.

Another object is to provide a drycleaning apparatus wherein the garments to be cleaned are placed in a rotatable tumbler or drum in a closed tub through which the solvent is continuously circulated to dissolve and extract the foreign substances, such as dirt, grease and the like from the garments and having means for extracting the foreign substances from the solvent prior to its recirculation through the tub.

Still anolher object is to provide a drycleaning apparatus of the type described wherein the solvent is drained from the tub upon the completion of the cleaning operation and heated air is circulated through the tub and the garmens contained therein and past a condensing means for condensing the solvent vapors carried by the air.

A further object is to provide a drycleaning apparatus of the type described having means for establishing, upon the completion of the cleaning operation, a closed airflow path through the tub and past a cooling means for condensing the solvent vapors from the air moving from the tub and a heating means for heating the air cooled due to the condensation of the solvent vapors therefrom prior to its movement back to the tub.

A still further object is to provide a drycleaning apparatus having a solvent reservoir disposed below a tub and a refrigerant system wherein the refrigerant system has cooling coils disposed in the reservoir and also cooling coils disposed in the closed air path and control means for selectively directing the refrigerant gases to either set of the coils, whereby the full capacity of the refrigerant system is utilized to condense the solvent vapors circulated in the closed air path.

A still further object is to provide a drycleaning apparatus which sequentially causes washing or immersion of the garments to be cleaned in the solvent as the solvent is circulated continuously through the tub and through dirt and grease extraction or filtering apparatus and the reclamation of the solvent absorbed by the garments after the completion of the Washing or cleaning operati-on.

Another object is to provide a control system for the drycleaning apparatus which cannot be accidentally interrupted by a premature or inadvertent opening of the door of the tub.

Sfill another ohiect is to provide a drycleaning apparatus having means for preventing any escape of solvent vapors or fumes through the door opening of the tub.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent from the reading of the following description ot' a device constructed in accordance with the invention, and reference to the accompanying drawings thereof, wherein:

FIGURE l is a schematic view of the drycleaning apparatus embodying the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a schematic perspective view of a timer motor and cam control means for the switches of the electric control system of the drycleaning apparatus;

3,39l,55l)' Patented `Iuly 9, 1968 ICC FIGURE 3 is a schematic illustration of the electric control circuit of the drycleaning apparatus;

FIGURE 4 is a time chart showing the sequence of operation of the various switches of the electric control system of the drycleaning apparatus;

FIGURE 5 is a view of the door lock control mechanism of the drycleaning apparatus;

FIGURE 5A is a view taken on line SA-SA of FIG- URE 5;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary view of the apparatus showing the drive means for the tumbler or the rotatable drum of the drycleaning apparatus;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary side view taken on line 7-7 of FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the drycleaning apparatus;

FIGURE 9 is a view of the back of the apparatus with some parts removed; and,

FIGURE l() is a side view .of the apparatus with some parts removed.

Referring now particularly to the drawings, the drycleaning apparatus 2G includes a tub 21 in which a rotatable tumbler or drum 22 is disposed into which the garments to be cleaned may be inserted through the door 24 on the front side of the cabinet 25 in which the tub is mounted. The tumbler is rotated by a suitable motor 27 by means of the two speed transmission 28.

A solvent reservoir 30 is disposed below the tub and has an outlet 31 connected to the inlet of a pump 32 whose outlet is connected to the conduit 33 which opens into the tub 21 adjacent the upper end thereof. A valve 35 operated by a solenoid 36 is provided for closing the conduit.

The tub has a drain or outlet conduit 38 provided with the valve 39 which is operated by the solenoid 40. An overfiow duct or conduit 41 connects the drain conduit 33 downstream of the valve 39 with the duct 42 which communicates with the interior of the tub, The overflow duct is provided with a check valve `43. It will vbe apparent that whenever the level of the solvent within the tub tends to rise above a predetermined level, the fluid flows out through the overflow duct 41 and to the drain conduit 38, the check valve preventing reverse flow of fluid into the tub through the overflow conduit. The drain conduit opens into a trap 44 which prevents movement of the large objects, such as buttons and the like, to the drain pump 45 whose inlet is connected to the outlet of the trap by the conduit 46 and whose outlet, in turn, is connected by conduit 47 to the inlet of a mechanical filter 50, provided with a suitable cartridge having a porous ymaterial which filters out all particles of dirt and debris from the solvent passing through the filter. A check valve 48 is Iprovided in the conduit 47 to prevent reverse flow of fluids therethrough.

A suitable pressure gauge 51 is connected to the filter to indicate the pressure therein. The filter 50 is provided with a cover 52 which may be removed to remove or replace the mechanical porous filtering cartridge disposed therein. The outlet duct 53 of the lter 5i) is connected to the inlet of the absorbent filter 55 by a conduit 56, A cartridge of activated -charcoal or similar absorbent substance is disposed within the filter 55. The activated carbon of the lfilter 55 absorbs the fatty acids or other compounds into which the solvent converts the greases, fats and other substances removed from the garments so that clean solvent flows from the outlet of the filter 55 into the inlet conduit 58 which opens into the upper portion of the reservoir 30. The lter 5S may also be provided with a gauge 59 to show the upstream fiuid pressure therein and a blowofi or `bleed valve 6i) for obtaining fiuid samples and for relieving the pressure therein before the cover 61 of the `filter 55 is removed for removal or replacement of the adsorbent substance or cartridge of the filter. The outlet conduit 53 of the rnechanieal filter 50 is also connected to the inlet conduit 58 of the reservoir 30. A valve 63 downstream of the point at which the duct 56 communicates with the outlet duct 53 controls ow of solvent through the outlet Conduit 53 into the inlet conduit 58. The valve 63 may be opened when it is 'desired to drain the mechanical filter of the solvent preparatory to removal or replacement of the mechanical filter cartridge therein.

The duct 42 extends upwardly at one side of the tub and opens into a housing 66 in which is disposed a lint trap or screen 68, the cooling coils 69, and the heating coils 70. The housing has an outlet 72 connected to the inlet of a blower 73 whose outlet 75 opens into an air valve housing 77 having a pair of valves 78 and 79. The valves 78 and 79 are moved to the full line positions illustrated in FIGURE 1 wherein they close the inlet and outlet duets 80 and 81 of the valve housing when the solenoids 82 and 83 which operate the valves are energized. The inlet -duct 80 may be provided with a screen 85a while the outlet duct 81 may open to the atmosphere exteriorly of the building in which the dry cleaning apparatus is located. The valves, when solenoids 82 and 83 are de-energized, are moved by suitable springs (not shown) such as the usual wellknown hinge springs associated with the hinges or pivots 78a and 79a by means of which the valves are hingedly or pivotally secured to the air valve housing, to the broken line positions illustrated in FIGURE l wherein they close the aperture or passage 84 in the diagonally extending partition 85 of the housing and open the inlet and outlet ducts 80 and 81. When the valves 78 and 79 are in the full line positions illustrated in FIGURE l, and the blower is operating, air may be circulated by the blower through the closed ow path or passage which includes the tub, the duct 42, the housing 66, the 4blower 73, the air valve housing 77 and back to the tub. When the valves are in their broken line positions illustrated in FIGURE l, closing the passage 84 of the partition 85, and the blower is operating, air is drawn into the tub through the inlet duct 80, or through the door opening of the tub if the door is open, and expelled from the tub through the duct 42, the housing 66, the blower 73', the air valve housing 77 and the outlet or exhaust duct 81. The -blower 73 is driven by any suitable motor 92.

The housing 66 is provided with a sump 9S below the cooling coils 69 into which flows the solvent condensed by the cooling coils 69. The drain conduit 97 connects the sump 95 to the reservoir 30 and is provided with a valve 98 operated by the solenoid 99.

The valves 35 and 98 are normally closed so that no vapors or evaporated solvent from the reservoir may ow into the tub. These vaives are provided both to prevent loss of the solvent and also to prevent accumulation of vapors within the tub. In addition, the blower 73 is energized and the solenoids 82 and 83 are de-energized and the valves 78 and 79 moved to the broken line positions indicated in FIGURE 2 whenever the door 24 is opened so that air is drawn into the tub through the door opening and expelled from the tub whenever the door is open. The door, however, as wiil be explained below, can be opened only after the drycleaning cycle of operation of the apparatus is completed. This prevents any of the fumes or vapors of the solvent which may be present in the tub from -being breathed by the operator of the machine when he opens the door or released into the room in which the apparatus is located. This safeguard is desirable since the solvent vapor or fumes may be irritating or noxious.

The cooling coils 69 are connected to the inlet of a suitable compressor 103 by the conduit 104 and connected to the outlet 105 of the compressor through a conduit y107 having a valve 108 which is controlled by the solenoid 109, the heat dissipating coils 110, a receiver 112 into which the compressed and cooled refrigerant passes, the conduit 113, to which are connected a dryer 114 for the refrigerant and a sight glass 11'5, the conduit 117 having the valve 118 controlled by the solenoid 119 and the usual expansion valve 120.

It will be apparent that the compressor 103, the heat dissipating coils 110, the receiver 112, the dryer 114, the sight glass 115 and the expansion valve 120 constitute a conventional refrigeration system employing a gas which is rst compressed and cooled and then allowed to expand in the cooling coils to absorb heat.

A conduit 125 is also connected to the conduit 113 and supplies compressed refrigerant to the cooling coils 4126 disposed in the reservoir 30. The conduit 125 has a valve 128 controlled by the solenoid 129 and an expansion valve 130. The outlet of -the cooling coils 126 is connected by the conduits 131 and 104 to the inlet 102 of the compressor.

It will now be apparent that when the solenoid 119 is energized, refrigerant gas which has been compressed by the compressor 103 and cooled by the passage through the heat dissipating coils 110, flows through the cooling coils 69 to expand therein and to absorb heat from the air and solvent vapors which may be circulating through the housing 66.

One end of the heating coils is connected to the outlet of the compressor 103 by the conduit 107 and the conduit 133 which has a valve 134 controlled by the solenoid 135. The other end of the heating coils 70 is connected by the conduit 136 to the conduit 107 downstream of the valve 108. A check valve 137 in lthe conduit 136 prevents reverse ow through the conduit. It will be apparent that when the valve 108 is closed and the valve 134 is open the hot refrigerant gas from the compressor rst iiows through the heating coils 70 to heat the air passing through the housing 66 which has been cooled by passing past the cooling coils and by the condensation of the solvent vapors therefrom.

An additive tank 140, in which a reserve supply of the solvent is stored, is disposed above the reservoir 30. The tank has an outlet conduit 142 which opens into the reservoir 30 and has a valve 144 connected therein which is controlled by the solenoid 145 so that an additional amount of solvent may be added to the reservoir upon the completion of each cycle of operation of the apparatus to make up for any loss of the solvent during such cycle. The solvent used may be of the type commercially available under the name Valclene and may include some detergent in solution in the solvent.

At the initiation of a cycle `of operation of the apparatus, the tub is empty of the solvent and the valves 98 and 35 are closed. The solenoids 82 and 83 are now deenergized so that the valves 78 and 79 are in the broken line positions indicated in FIGURE 1 wherein they close the passage 84 of the partition 85. The valves 118 and 134 are now closed so the refrigerant is not flowing through either the cooling coil 69 or the heating coil 70 :of the reclairner housing 66. The valves 128 and 108, however, are open so that the refrigerant is circulating through the heat dissipating coils and the cooling coils 126 in the reservoir and is maintaining the temperature of the solvent within the' tank at a desired low temperature which is set by the usual thermostats 15011 which control the operation of the compressor 103.

When the door of `the tub is opened to permit placement of any load of soiled garments, or the like, into the drum, the motor 92 is immediately energized to operate the blower 73 so that air is now drawn in through the open door of the tub as well as through the inlet duct 80 and is moved through the duct 42, the reclaimer housing 66, the blower 73, the outlet 75, the air valve housing 77, and the vent duct 81 to the atmosphere. When the door is closed and the control circuit, which will be described in greater detail below, is energized by a coin operated switch 150, the drive motor 27 of the drum 22 is immediately energized and causes rotation of the drum at a low speed. Simultaneously, the solenoids 36 and 99 are energized to open the fill valve 35 and the condensate return valve 98. The solenoids 82 and 83 are also energized at this time to move the valves 78 and 79 to the positions where they close off the conduits 80 and 81 and open the aperture or passage 84 in the partition 85 of the air valve 77. The electric motor 152 which drives the lill pump 32 is also energized and pumps the solvent from the reservoir 30 into the tub 21. Since the valve 98 of the condensate return conduit 97 is open, the air displaced from the tub by the solvent being pumped into the tub may ow into the reservoir 30 and replace the solvent being pumped from the reservoir. After the lill pump has operated for a predetermined period of time sufficient to ll the tub to a level above the overflow conduit 41 so that the solvent passes through the check valve and lls the trap 44, the electric motor 156 which drives the drain pump 45 is energized and causes the drain pump to pump liquid from the trap 44 and back to the reservoir through the mechanical and adsorbent filters 50 and 55, respectively.

The motors of the ll and drain pumps 32 and 45 continue to operate for a predetermined period of time to cause circulation of the solvent through the tub and through the filters. During this circulation of the solvent, the dirt, oil, greases and other foreign matter are removed from the garments by the solvent, since the lower portion of the drum is now immersed in the solvent and the garments therein are tumbled and periodically immersed in the solvent as the drum rotates due to the vanes 154 and 155 of the drum. The oils and greases are dissolved by the solvent and changed into fatty acids. The dirt and the fatty acids are removed by the mechanical and adsorbent lters so that clean solvent is circulated back into the tub and the solvent carrying any foreign matter is moved from the tub during the operation of the till and drain pumps.

This circulation of the cleaning fluid through the tub, the filters and the reservoir continues for a predetermined period of time sufficiently long to extract all foreign matter from the soiled garments.

When this predetermined period of time elapses, the solenoid 36 of the valve 35 and the motor 152 which drives the fill pump are deenergized. As a result, no solvent may now flow into the tub. Simultaneously, the solenoid 40 of the drain valve 39 is energized to open the drain valve so that all solvent in the tub now drains into the trap 44 and, since the motor of the drain pump is still energized, will be pumped back into the reservoir 30. The drain pump and the drain valve remain energized for a predetermined period of time sufficiently long to drain all the solvent from the tub.

Toward the end of this period of energization of the drain pump and the drain valve, the solenoid 160 which controls the operation of the two speed transmission 28 is energized to increase the speed of rotation of the drum. The increased speed of rotation or spinning of the drum causes most of the liquid solvent to be thrown out by centrifugal force from the garments. The drum is spun or rotated at this increased speed of rotation for a predetermined period and then its rotation is stopped. The solenoid 160 is de-energized and the two speed transmission 28 reverts to its former condition causing the tumbler to rotate at the initial slow speed.

During the period of time that the transmission control solenoid is energized, the solenoid 145 of the valve 144 may also be energized to open the valve 144 so that a predetermined amount of solvent flows from the storage tank 140 into the reservoir 36. This amount of solvent is added to make up for any loss of the solvent during each cycle of operation of the apparatus.

At the end of the period of spinning or increased speed of rotation of the drum, the drain valve solenoid 40 and the drain pump motor 156 are dre-energized, the motor 92 of the blower 73 is energized and the solenoid 109 is cle-enerized so that the valve 108 closes while the solenoid 135 is energized to open the valve 134 so that the hot compressed refrigerant gas is now caused to ow through the heating coil 70 of the housing 66 prior to its passage to the heat dissipating coils 110. At the same time, the solenoid 129 is de-ene'rgized so that the valve 128 is closed while the solenoid 119 is energized to open the valve 11S. As a result, all of the compressed and cooled refrigerant gas now passes through the expansion valve 120 and into the cooling coils 69 to cool them and cause condensation of the solvent in gaseous state which is now moved past the cooling coils by the blower 73. The condensed solvent is of course received in the sump 95 and returned back to the reservoir 30 through the drain duct 97.

The air which has been cooled due to the evaporation of the liquid solvent from the garments, the condensation of the solvent from its gaseous state, and also by its passage over the cooling coils 69, is heated by the heat dissipated by the coils 70 so that the blower moves air back into the tub which is hot enough to cause further evaporation of the liquid solvent still in the garments, the air is now continuously circulated through the closed path which includes the cooling and heating coils for a predetermined period of time necessary to cause evaporation of all the liquid from the garments. At the end of this period of time, the solenoid is de-energized and the solenoid 109 is energized to close the valve 134 and open the valve 108. The heating coils 70 are then no longer supplied with hot compressed refrigerant gas. The air in the closed path is now only cooled so that all the air throughout the closed path is cooled to cool all wall surfaces thereof so that any additional remaining solvent in the gaseous state will condense on the walls of the tub and of the closed path and flow downwardly to the bottom of the tub. During a short interval of time toward the end of the period of time during which the refrigerant gas is passing through the cooling coils 69, the drain valve and the drain pump are again energized for a short period of time to cause pumping of such condensed solvent from the tub through the filters and back to the reservoir 30. The drain pump and the solenoid controlling the drain valve are now de-energized and simultaneously the valve solenoid 119 is de-energized and the valve solenoid 129 is energized to close the valve 118 and open the valve 128 so that the refrigerant gas will now circulate only through the cooling coils 126 in the reservoir 30 and the heat dissipating coils 119. The refrigerant system, therefore, is no longer operative to cool any air which might be moved past the cooling coils. The solenoids 82 and 83 are then deenergized so that the valves 78 and 79 take the broken line positions indicated in FIGURE 1 wherein they close the passage S4 in the partition 85 of the air valve 77, and the solenoid 99 is de-energized so that the condensate return valve is closed. The blower now operates for a predetermined period of time to circulate fresh air from the duct 80 through the tub and out to the atmosphere after which the motor 27 is de-energized to stop rotation of the tub.

The door may now be opened to permit removal of the now clean and dried garments from the tub. The blower of course will commence operation when the door is opened. The apparatus is now in condition for another cycle of operation.

It will now be apparent that a new and improved dry cleaning apparatus has been illustrated and described which includes a tumbler or drum 22 disposed in a closed tub through which solvent is continuously circulated during a dirt extraction stage of the cycle of operation of the apparatus to extract foreign matter, such as dirt, grease or the like, from the soiled garments and through filters which remove such foreign matter carried by the solvent from the tub prior to recirculation of the solvent back to the tub.

It will further be seen that the dryclcaning apparatus also includes a reservoir into which the filtered clean solvent is pumped and from which reservoir the solvent is pumped into the tub during the cleaning or foreign matter extracting stage of the cycle of operation of the drycleaning apparatus.

It will further be seen that the apparatus includes means such as the tub 22, the air valve housing 77, the duct 42, the housing 66 and the blower 73 for establishing a closed air path or passage through which air may be moved, and that the coolinty coils 69 and the heating coils 70 are disposed in such air path so that the air laden with the solvent in a gaseous state rst passes the cooling coils 69 which cause condensation of the solvent, the condensate being returned by a suitable condensate return conduit to the reservoir Si?, and then through the heating coils 70 to be re'heated prior to its circulation back into the tub so that the warm or hot air .vili cause evaporation of any liquid solvent absorbed in the clothing or still in the tub prior to the movement of the air again past the cooling coils.

It will further be seen that the air is heated prior to its recirculation back into the tub for a period of time long enough to insure that all of the solvent in liquid state has evaporated and that thereafter the heating coils itl are rendered ineffective in order that the air and all surfaces of the closed air path, which may be formed of suitable substances, such as metal, having a high coeicient of conductivity, are cooled to cause condensation of such solvent remaining in a gaseous state from the air circulating in such closed air path and its return in a liquid state back to the reservoir. Since the closed air path is formed of metallic structures having a relatively high coefficient of conductivity of heat and since the garments have a relatively low coeflicient of conductivity of heat, the various surfaces forming the closed air path are of course cooled more quickly than the garments so that solvent in the gaseous state will condense on the various walls which of Icourse offer a large area for condensation as well as on the cooling coils 69.

It will further be seen that the apparatus includes `means for closing or shutting olf the reservoir from the tub so that once the cycle of operation of the apparatus has been completed the solvent may not evaporate into the tub.

It will further be seen that the apparatus is provided with a refrigerant system having means for selectively passing hot compressed refrigerant gas to the heating coils and for permitting expansion and passage of the cooled compressed refrigerant selectively through the cooling coils 126 disposed in the reservoir tank and the cooling coils 69 disposed in the closed air path so that the full heating and cooling capacity of the refrigerant system may be used to selectively cool the air in the closed air path and then heat it, to cool only the air in the closed air path or to lcool only the solvent in the reservoir.

It will further be seen that a new and improved method for drycleaning garments and the like by the use of a solvent has been illustrated and described which includes the sequential steps of circulating the solvent in liquid form through a closed tub or chamber in which the soiled garments and the like are placed to extract foreign matter from the soiled garments, filtering `the solvent to remove such foreign matter from the solvent, cooling the solvent while it passes through a reservoir and then recirculating it through the tub; draining the liquid solvent from the closed chamber; establishing a closed path which includes the chamber and an air moving means, cooling the air moving from the chamber to condense the solvent in a gaseous state from the air being moved through the closed path and return the condensato to the reservoir and reheating the cooled air prior to its return to the chamber in order that it may be hot enough to cause evaporation of any liquid solvent remaining absorbed in the garments n the chamber for a predetermined period of time sulficiently long to insure that all of the liquid solvent has been evaporated into the air being moved through the closed air path; then cooling the air being circulated through the closed air path to cause condensation of all of the solvent in the gaseous statte; and draining the condensed solvent from the closed air path.

The door latch 178 may be of the usual construction havin-g a handle 179 pivotally mounted on a housing 18) which, when pivoted in a clockwise manner, as shown in FIGURE 5, pivots cam hook 182 in a clockwise manne-r by means of a suitable linkage therebetween. The cam hook is also pivotally mounted in the latch housing 180 by a suitable linking mechanism, not shown. The cam hook 182 is movable independently of the handle 179 so that as the door closes its cam edge 183 will engage the beveled or upper edge 184 of the striker hook 187 which is secured in the usual manner to the cabinet, so as the door moves toward closed position the cam hook 182 will move upwardly and downwardly to engage the hook surface 188 of the striker to thus hold it in `closed position until the handle 179 is pivoted in a clockwise manner to cause clockwise pivotal movement of the cam hook 182.

In order to prevent accidental opening of the door during the operation of the apparatus, the latch is provided wilh a lock mechanism 190 which includes a substantially channel shaped bracket 191 pivoted as at 192 to a vertical plate 193 of the housing 180 which extends between the flanges of the channel bracket. A spring biases the bracket in a clockwise direction about the pivot 192. The bracket has a roller 19S between its flanges which is adapted to engage the upper surface 199 of the cam hook when the bracket 191 is in the full line position illustrated in FIGURE 5. The vertical plate 193 has a pin 200 which extends into the aligned apertures 202 of the flanges of the channel bracket 191 to limit the pivotal movement of the bracket 191, the apertures 202 being of larger diameter than the pin 200.

The channel bracket has an outwardly extending lug 265 which is engageable by the lower end of the vertical link rod 269 slidably mounted in the cabinet with its upper end pivotally secured, as at 210, to a crank lever 212 pivotally mounted within and to the cabinet, as at 213. A horizontal link rod 214 has its end connected to the crank lever 212 as at 215, and extends through a suitable aperture in the flange 216 of a mounting bracket 217 secured to the cabinet in any suitable manner and housed within the control housing 218 mounted on top of the cabinet. The horizontal link rod is biased to the left as seen in FIGURE 5, by a spring 219 whose opposite ends engage the upwardly extending flange 216 of the support bracket 217 and the stop ring 223 rigidly secured to the horizontal link rod. The horizontal link rod is movable to the right by an operator lever 22S pivotally disposed between the side plates 227 and 228 which are mounted on the support bracket 217 and which are secured thereto in any suitable manner, as by welding. The lever 225 has a front arm 229 provided with a downwardly opening Slot 23) in which is received the horizontal link rod 214. The front arm engages the collar 232 rigidly secured to the horizontal link rod.

The operator lever is pivotally mounted adjacent its forward end to the side plates by the shaft 233 which extends through suitable apertures in the side plates. The operator lever is also provided with a rear arm 235 whose lower end is hook shaped to receive the lock roller 237 carried by a lever Zeil which is pivotally mounted at its upper forward portion on a shaft 241 which extends through suitable aligned apertures in the side plates 227 and 228. The lock lever has an upper horizontal web 242 and a pair of spaced sides 243 which extend on opposite sides 0f the operator lever. The lock roller 237 is rotatably mounted between the two sides 243 of the lock lever on a shaft 244 and is adapted to engage thc hook 249 of the operator lever to lock the lever in the position illustrated in FIGURE 5 wherein the operator lever holds the channel bracket in the position illustrated in 9 FIGURE with the roller 198 thereof engaging the cam hook and thus preventing unlocking of the door. The shaft 244 on which the roller 237 is mounted extends outwardly of the side plate and is adapted to engage the operator arm 250 of the switch 252 mounted on one of the side plates.

The operator lever 225 is movable to its locking position by the armature 254 of the solenoid 255 mounted on the upper lateral extensions 257 of the side plates while the lock lever 240 is rotatable in a counter-clockwise direction by the armature 258 of the solenoid 260 also mounted on the lateral extensions 257 of the side plates. The lock lever is yieldingly biased to the position illustrated in FIGURE 5 by the spring 263, one of whose ends is secured to the rear extensions 264 of the sides 243 of the lock lever by means of the pin 265 and whose other end is secured to the pin 266 carried by the side plates.

It will be apparent that when the solenoid 260 is energized to move the armature 258 downwardly, the lock lever is pivoted in a counter-clockwise direction about the pivot shaft 241 to move the roller 237 out of engagement with the hook 249 of the operator lever thus freeing the operator lever 225 for clockwise pivotal movement about its shaft 233. The operator lever of course is biased in this direction by the spring 219, As a result, when the solenoid 260 is energized, the horizontal link rod 214 moves to the left as seen in FIGURE 5, thus causing upward movement of the vertical link rod 209, thus permitting the channel bracket 191 to pivot in a clockwise direction to the broken line position wherein the roller 198 moves out of engagement with the upper surface 199 of the cam hook, thus unlocking the cam hook of the door latch for pivotal movement out of engagement with the hook of the striker when the handle 179 is pivoted downwardly in the usual manner.

When it is desired to lock the door, the solenoid 255 is energized whereupon its armature 254 pivots the operator lever 225 downwardly in a counter-clockwise direction moving the horizontal link rod 214 to the right and thus causing the vertical link rod 209 to move downwardly whereby the channel bracket causes the roller 198 to engage the upper surface 199 of the cam hook and thus prevent unlocking of the door. During such counterclockwise pivotal movement of the operator lever 225 the lower cam surface of hook 249 engages the roller 237 of the lock lever 240 and moves the lock lever in a counterclockwise manner about its pivot shaft 244 until the hook 249 moves downwardly beneath the roller whereupon the roller is moved into engagement with the hook and against the inner hook surface 267 thereof by the force of the spring 263 and thus locks the operator lever in its door locking position. The solenoid 255 may then be de-energized leaving the operator lever locked in the position illustrated in the drawing by the lock lever.

The motor 27 for rotating the drum 22 is mounted on top of the cabinet within the housing 218 by means of a mounting racket or plate 275 and its drive pulley 276 is connected by the belt 280 to a large pulley 277 rigidly mounted on a shaft 278. The shaft 278 is rotatably mounted in a suitable bearing block 282 secured to the top of the cabinet. The belt 280 is maintained under proper tension by a tension pulley 283 rotatably mounted on one end of the arm 284 whose opposite end is pivotally secured, as at 285, to the cabinet. The arm 284 is biased in a counter-clockwise direction as seen in FIGURE 6 by a spring 288 whose opposite ends are secured to the arm 284 and to the upper end of the support bracket 289 rigidly secured to the cabinet, in a suitable manner, as by welding. The shaft 278 has a small pulley 290 rigidly mounted thereon which is connected to the large pulley 291 of the clutch 292 by a belt 293. The clutch connects the large pulley to the shaft 294 which extends into the tub 21 and on which the drum 22 is mounted. The drum shaft extends through the wall 296 of the tub and is mounted thereon by a suitable bearing block 297. The low speed belt 293 is maintained under a predetermined tension by a tension pulley 299 mounted on one end of the arm 300 which is pivotally secured to the cabinet intermediate its ends as at 302. A spring 303, one of whose ends is secured to the lower end of the support bracket 289 and whose other end is secured to the end of the arm 300, biases the arm 300 in a clockwise direction as seen in FIGURE 6 so that the low speed belt 293 is maintained under a predetermined tension. A large pulley 307 also rigidly secured to the shaft 278 is connected to the smaller pulley 310 of the clutch by a high speed belt 311. The high speed belt is normally not under tension but may be placed under tension by the tension pulley 313 rotatably mounted on the lower end of the arm 314 pivotally secured to the cabinet on the same pivot 285 as the arm 284 and its upper end is securedto the armature 316 of the solenoid by a suitable rod 318 pivotally secured at its opposite ends to the arm 314 and to the armature.

When the solenoid 160 is energized an-d the armature 316 is moved to the left, as seen in FIGURE 6, the arm 314 is pivoted in a counter-clockwise manner about its pivot 283 and thus places the belt 311 under tension. The clutch 292 is of a conventional type and will not therefore lbe described in detail. The clutch, when the belt 311 is under tension, operatively connects the pulley 310 to the ydrum shaft 294. As a result, since the pulley 307 is larger than the pulley 310, -t-he drum will be rotated at a greater speed when the solenoid is energized than when it is wle-energized because the pulley 290 of the shaft 278 is of course much smaller than `the large pulley 291. When the solenoid 160 is not energized, the-refore, the -drurn shaft is rotated at a low speed. T-he clutch 292 permit-s over-riding of the large pulley 291 by the pulley 310 when the pulley 310 is rotated at a greater speed than the large pulley.

The base 320 of the cabinet extends rearwardly thereof on which the compressor 103, the heat dissipating coils 110, the trap 44 and the receiver 112 may be mounted. A horizon-tal platform 322 is supported on the rearward extension of the base 320 by the substantially rectangular frame 323 which may be formed of angle members. The lters 50 and 55, the starter or contactor 328 for the compressor motor, and the compressor relay 329 are mounted on the platform. A plurality of vertical standards 332 extend upwardly from the frame 323 `and supports the housing A66 and the upper platform 334. A portion of the housing 66 is also disposed on the upper platform i334. The blower 73 and -itsmotor 92 are also mounted on the vupper platform 334. The reservoir or additive tank 140 may be secured lto and below the upper platform 334, as may be the air valve housing 77.

The various ducts and the various conduits may be provided with flexible sections, as shown in the drawings for ease of manufacture and assembly. The other operative elements of the apparatus may be secured to the upper and lower platforms in any suitable manner.

In use, the cabinet of the drycleaning apparatus is 4disposed in one room on one side of a partition 340 while all the components of the apparatus mounted -on and above Ithe rearward extension of the base 320 are disposed on the other si-de of the partition 340 in a second room Where they are easily accessible for maintenance. -It will 4be noted that the inlet duct 80 of the air valve housing 77 opens into the second room and not into Ithe room in which the cabinet is disposed.

The control circuit for sequentially and properly energizing and de-energizing the Various solenoids and motors includes a main `timer motor 350 (FIGURE 2) on whose shaft 351 are mounted a plurality of switch cams 352A- 352L of the respective switches A-L. The switch cams may move their respective switches between two positions, in one of which the switch is moved to an upper open position, or an upper position engaging an upper stationary contact and a lower position wherein the switch engages a lower stationary contact or may move the associated switch between an upper position wherein the switch engages the -upper stationary contact, an intermediate position wherein the switch does not enga-ge any stationary contact anda lower position wherein the switch engages a lower contact. It will be apparen-t that in t-he latter case, the cam is provided with three peripheral segments, each of diterent radius than the other, and in the -former case is provided with only two peripheral segments of different radii. At the initiation of operation of the apparatus the switches A-L are in the positions illustrate-d in FIGURE 3.

The time chart of FIGURE 4 indicates by the upper and lower shaded areas the upper and lower positions of the various switches A-L. If a particular switch, such as for example the switch G, during the lirst six and onehalf minutes of operation of the timer motor is neither in its upper or lower position but in an intermediate position, neither the upper nor the lower areas of the chart indicating the position of 4the switch are shaded.

The timer motor 350 is initially energized at the initiation of ya cycle of operation of the machine when a suitable number of coins are deposited in the coin slot 354 of a suitable -coin rejecter mechanism which has a switch 150 which is moved from the -upper position illustrated in FIGURE 3 to the lower position where it engages the stationary contact 356 each time a coin ot proper denomination is inserted in the coin chute. When the switch 150 is momentarily moved to its lower position, the coil 358 of a conventional switch mechanism or stepper 359 is momentarily energized provided that the door switch 361 is in a lower position wherein it engages the lower stationary contact 362. The stepper may be of any suitable commercially available type, such as the type presently manufactured by H. Greenwald Company, Inc., Model 584210. The door switch 361 is mounted on the cabinet and is moved to the position wherein it eng-ages a stationary contact 362 whenever the door 24 to the tub is closed.

The coi-l 358 is then supplied with 110 volt current by being connected across the lines 363 and 364 by the conductors 365 and 366, the stationary contact 356, the switch 150, which is now momentarily in the lower position, the conductor 367, the upper stationary contact 368, t-he movable switch 369 of the stepper 359, the conductor 370, the stationary contact 362 of the door switch, the movable switch contact 361 and the conductors 372 and 373.

When the proper number of impulses have been transmitted to the coil 358 of the stepper, the mechanical linkage of the stepper actuated by the energization of the winding 358 moves the movable switch contact 369- of the stepper to its lower position wherein it engages its lower stationary contact 375. When this occurs, the door llock solenoid 255 is energized to lock the door 24 sin-ce it is now connected across the conductors 364 and 363 through the conduits 377, 378 and 379, the stationary contact 380, the switch D which is now in its upper position, `the conductor 381, stationary contact 375, the movable switch 369, the conductor 370, the stationary contact 362, the movable switch con-tact 361 of the door lock and the conductors 372 and 373. The solenoid 255 when energized of course .pivots the operator lever to cause the door latch lto be locked against opening movement and at the same time the switch -252 is closed due to the -movement of t-he shaft 244 carried by the lock lever 240.

Once the door lock mechanism switch 252 is moved to its closed position, the coil 383 of the main relay 384 is connected across the lines 364 and 363 by the conductors 377, 385 and 386, the switch 252, the conductor 388, the stationary contact 375, the switch 369, the conductor 370, the stationary contact 362, the switch 361 of the door lock and the conductors 372 and 373.

When the relay winding 383 is energized, the timer motor 350 is connected across the lines 363 and 364 by the conductor 373, the contact 391 of the main relay 384, the conductor 392, the upper stationary contact 393 of the switch A, the conductor 394, the upper stationary contact 395 of the switch B, and the conductors 396 and 377. At the same time, the drum motor 27 is supplied with 220 volt current by being connected across the lines 363 and 460 by the conductor 373, the movable contact 391, the conductor 481, the switch F which now engages its stationary contact 402, the conductors 463 and 404, the contact 405, and the conductor 47. The drum is therefore rotated at the beginning of the operation of the timer motor 350.

The solenoid 36 is now energized as is the electric motor 152 of the ll pump 32 so that the solvent from the reservoir 30 will now be pumped into the tub 21. One side of the motor 152 and one side of the solenoid 36 are connected to the line 363 through the conduit 373, the contact 391, the conductors 392 and 410, the upper contact 411, the switch C, the conductor 412 which is directly connected to one side of the solenoid 36 and to the conductor 413 which connects the motor 152 to the conductor 412. The other sides of the solenoid 36 and the till pump motor 152 are connected to the line 364 by the conductors 415 and 416, respectively, and the conductor 377. An indicator light 418 mounted on the control housing 218 which is connected across the solenoid 36 by means of the conductors 419 and 42tl will now be lighted to indicate that the cleaning or dirt extracting stage of the cycle of operation of the dry cleaning is in progress.

The solenoids 82 and 83 of the air valves 78 and 79 and the solenoid 99 of the condensate drain valve 98 are energized simultaneously with the movement of the contact 391 to its closed position since one side of these solenoids are connected to one another by the conductors 420 and 421 and to the line 363 by the conductor 422, the sationary contact 423 of the switch E, the conductor 410, the conductor 392, the movable contact 391 and the conductor 373. The other sides of the solenoids 99, 83 and 82 are connected by the conductors 425, 426 and 427, respectively, to the conductor 377 and thence to the line 364. As a result, the valve 98 is opened to permit air to move into the reservoir 30 to replace the solvent being pumped into the tub and the air valves 78 and 79 moved to the full line positions indicated in FIG- URE 1.

The switch G which controls the operation of the solenoids 145, and 260 which control the solvent make up valve 144, the two speed transmission 28 and the door lock mechanism 190, respectively, are now therefore de-energized.

T he switch H which controls the operation of the blower motor 92 is now in its lower position engaging its lower stationary contact 432 but the blower is not energized since the conductor 433 connected to the lower stationary contact 432 is not connected to the line 363 since the door switch 361 is now in its lower position and does not engage its upper stationary contact 434.

The switch I is now in its intermediate position where it connects neither the light 435 nor the light 436 across the lines 363 and 364.

The switch I which is employed to render ineffective the usual thermostat switch 15051 which controls operation of the compressor of the refrigeration system to maintain the temperature of the solution in the reservoir 30 below a predetermined value is now in its open position. When in its closed position, the switch J short circuits the thermostat switch by means of the conductor 441, the stationary contact 442 and the conductor 443.

The switch K is now in its upper position wherein it contacts the stationary contact 446 and connects the solenoid 109 across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conductors 377, 447, and 488, the upper stationary contact 446, and conductors 449 and 450, the contact 452 of the compressor relay 329 and the conductor 453. The controls of the compressor relay 329 are normally in closed positions since its coil 455 is normally connected across 220 volt lines 363 and 400 by means of the conductors 453 and 457, the thermostat switch 150a when it is closed, the conductor 458, the high and low pressure switches 459 and 460, which sense the pressure in the inlet and outlet conduits 104 and 107 of the compressor 103 and stop the operation of the compressor motor 462 whenever the pressure in the outlet conduit 107 eX- ceeds a predetermined value or whenever the pressure within the return or inlet conduit 104 drops below a predetermined value and the conductor 464.

The compressor motor 462, which may be of the single phase capacitor start type, is energized by the usual contacter or starter 328 whenever the relay winding 455 of the compressor relay 329 is energized being then connected across the 220 volt lines 363 and 400 through the conductor 453, the movable contact 452, the conductor 462:1, the movable contact 463 and the conductor 464. It will thus be apparent that the compressor motor of the refrigerant system will operate in the usual manner as dictated by the settings of the thermostat switch 1:30a and the high and low pressure switches 459 and 460, respectively, unless the switch I is moved to its closed position.

At the initiation of the commencement of the operation, the switch L is in its upper raised position engaging its upper stationary contact 467 to energize the soleno-id 129 to open the valve 128, the solenoid 129 then 4being connected across the lines 363 and 364 by the conductor 453, the movable contact 452, the conductors 450 and 469, the switch L, the stationary contact 467 and the conductors 471, 472 and 377.

Thus at the time that the timer motor is energized, the solenoids 36 and 99 are energized to permit ow of solvent from the reservoir tank into the tub and to permit ow of air into the reservoir from the tub through the condensate return conduit 97 and the till pump motor 152 is energized to pump solvent from the reservoir into the tub.

Upon the completion of one minute of operation of the main timer motor 350, the cam controlling the operation of the switch D moves the switch D down to engage its lower stationary contact 475. The door lock solenoid is thus disconnected from the source of electric current but the door lock mechanism remains locked due to the engagement of the lo-ck roller 235 with the hook of the operator lever 225. Simultaneously the motor 156 of the drainpump is energized, now being connected across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conductors 373 and 372, the door switch 361 which is now in its lower position, the stationary contact 362 thereof, the conductor 370, the switch 369 which is now in its lower position, the stationary contact 375, the conductors 38S and 381, the switch D, the stationary contact 475, and the conductors 477, 478 and 377. During this initial minute of operation of the till pump, the tub has been filled with solvent to the level predetermined by the level of the overflow duct 41 and any excess of the solvent has frown into the trap 44. The motor of the drain pump now circulates the solvent through the lters and 55 back to the reservoir 3G from where it is pumped by the pump 32 back into the tub.

All of the switches A through L now remain in the same positions until the end of the fifth minute of operation of the main timer motor 350. At the end of the fth minute, the cam associated with the switch C moves the switch C downwardly out of engagement with its upper stationary contact 411 and into engagement with its lower stationary contact 430 so that the solenoid 36 of the ll valve 35 is deenergized. At the end of the iifth minute of operation of the timing motor the ll valve 35 is closed and the operation of the ll pump 32 is stopped. Simultaneously the solenoid 40 which controls the operation of the drain valve 39 is energized to open the drain valve 39 so that the solvent will drain from the bottom of the tub through the conduit 38 into the trap 44 and be pumped therefrom by the drain pump 45 back into the reservoir. The switch C when it moves to its lower position connects the solenoid 40 across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conductor 373, the movable contact 391, the conductors 392 and 410, the switch C, the lower stationary contact 480 thereof and the conductors 481, 482 and 377.

Also at the end of the fifth minute of operation of the main timer motor the switch I is moved to its upper position to energize the lamp 435, the lamp then being connected across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conductor 373, the contact 391, the conductors 392 and and 410, the switch I, the upper stationary contact 434 thereof, and the conductors 485, 486 and 377. The lamp 435 will now indicate that the apparatus is in the stage of extraction of the solvent from the garments in the drum and the lamp 418 is de-energized.

At the end of siX and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor, the switch G is moved lby its associated cam to its upper position wherein it engages its upper stationary contact 429 and connects the solenoids 145 and 160 across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conductors 373, 43S, 439, 490, switch G, the upper stationary contact 429 thereof, the conductor 492 which is connected to one side of the solenoid 160 and the conductor 493 which is connected to the conductor 492 and to one side of the solenoid 145, the other sides of the solenoids 145 and 160 being connected by means of the conductors 494 and 495 and 377. The valve 144 will be opened for a period of two minutes and during this time a predetermined quantity of solvent will flow from the tank into the reservoir 30 to make up for any solvent which may be lost during this particular cycle of operation of the dry cleaning apparatus.

Simultaneously the energization of the solenoid 160 which controls the operation of the two speed transmission 28 causes the drum to be rotated or spun at a very high speed so that liquid solvent is thrown off by centrifugal force during this period of two minutes.

At the end of eight and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor the switch C is moved out of engagement with its lower stationary contact 430 to an intermediate open position between its upper and lower stationary contacts 411 and 480. As a result the solenoid 40 is cle-energized and the drain valve 39 is closed. Also at the end of eight and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor the switch D moves to an intermediate open position between its upper and lower contacts thus deenergizing the motor 156 of the rain pump 45.

The switch G is now moved by its associated cam back from its upper position to its intermediate open position thus de-energizing the solenoid and the solenoid 169 so that the makeup valve 144 now closes and the two way speed transmission 28 now returns to its original condition, the speed of rotation of the drum now being slowed to its original value. Also at the end of eight and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor the switch I moves to its lower position wherein it engages its lower stationary contact 500 to connect the lamp 436 across the lines 363 and 364 to indicate that the apparatus is now in the drying stage of its operation by means of the condoctor 373, contact 391, the conductors 392 and 410, switch I, the lower stationary contact 500 and the conductors 592, 503 and 377.

Also at the end of the period of eight and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor the switch I is moved to its lower position to short circuit the thermostat 1500 so that the compressor motor 462 may now operate regardless of the temperature of the solvent within the reservoir 30. This assures that the compressor will operate at all times, except as controlled by its high and low pressure switches 459 and 460, during the drying stage of the operation of the apparatus. Switch K at the end of seven and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor is now moved from its upper position thus de-energizing the solenoid 109 so that the Valve 108 now closes and into engagement with its lower stationary contact 567 to connect the solenoid 135 of the valve 134 across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conduit 453, the movable contact 452 of the compressor relay 329, the conductors 45t) and 449, the switch K, the stationary contact 507 and the conductors SGS, 569 and 377. As a result, all of the hot compressed refrigerant gas will now flow through the heating coils 70 prior to its movement to the heat dissipating coils 11). The switch K now also connects an auxiliary timer motor 510 across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conductor 453, contact 452, the conductors 450 and 449, the switch K, the lower stationary contact 507, the conductors 508 and 511, the upper stationary contact 513, the movable switch 514 and the conductors 514er, 515 and 377. The function of the auxiliary timer motor 510 will be set forth below.

The switch L at the end of eight and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor is moved out of engagement with its upper stationary contact, thus de-energizing the solenoid 129 so that the valve 128 closes and the cooled compressed refrigerant no longer can ow into the cooling coils 126 in the reservoir 30, and to its lower position wherein it engages its lower stationary contact 520 to energize the solenoid 119 which opens the valve 118 so that all of the cooled compressed and expanding refrigerant now flows through the cooling coils 69 in the housing 66. The solenoid 119, when the switch L is in its lower position, is connected across the lines 363 and 364 by the conductor 453, Contact 452, the conductors 450 and 469, the switch L, the stationary contact 520 and the conductors 522, 523 and 377.

At the end of eight and a half minutes of operation of the timing motor, the switch H is moved to its upper position wherein it engages its stationary contact 53) to connect the blower motor 92 across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conductor 373, the movable contact 391 of the main relay 384, the conductors 392 and 410, stationary contact 530, the switch H and the conductors 531, 532 and 377.

All of the hot compressed refrigerant gas now passes through the heating coils 70 and all of the compressed cooled and expanding refrigerant gas passes through the cooling coils 69. The entire capacity of the refrigeration system is now employed first to cool the vapor laden air and cause condensation of the solvent and then to heat the air. The blower 72 now moves the air in the closed flow path or passage which includes both the tub and the housing 66 so that the air warmed by the heating coils 70 and owing into the tub will cause evaporation of the liquid solvent still present in the tub or absorbed by the garments. The air cooled by this evaporation and carrying the solvent in gaseous state thus moves to the cooling coils where the solvent is condensed and allowed to drain back to the reservoir 30.

At the end of nine and a half minutes of operation of the timing motor the switch B is moved to its lower position wherein it engages its lower stationary contact 540. The main timer motor is now disconnected from the lines 363 and 364 and its drive shaft now stops rotating and the switches A through L remain in the positions described until the operation of the auxiliary timer motor 510 again causes energization of the main timer motor.

The auxiliary timer motor may be similar to the main timer motor 35@ and be provided with the switches 514, 542 and 543 which are moved between their upper and lower positions by three cams similar to the cams 352. The cam which actuates the switch 542 may be of such configuration that it will cause movement of the switch 542 to its upper position wherein it engages its contact 545 at the end of a short period of energization of the auxiliary timer motor, for example, six minutes. The cam which actuates switch 543 may be of such configuration trl that it will move the switch 543 to its upper position wherein it engages its stationary contact 546 at the end of a still longer period of time after the commencement of the operation of the auxiliary timer motor 510, for example, twelve minutes, and the cam which moves the switch 514 out of engagement with the upper stationary contact 513 and into engagement with its lower stationary contact 548 may be of such configuration as to cause the switch 514 to move downwardly a still longer period of time, say twelve and a half minutes after the commencement of the operation of the auxiliary timer motor 510` As a result when, after nine and a half minutes of operation of the main time motor, the switch B is moved to its lower position, and for example the manual switch 550 is in the upper position illustrated in FIGURE 3, the main timer motor remains inoperative and the drying stage of the cycle of operation of the apparatus during which the liquid solvent is being vaporized continues for an additional period of six minutes until the switch 542 is moved to its upper position where it engages the stationary contact 545. At this time the main timer motor 350 is again energized being then connected across the lines 363 and 364 by means of the conductors 373, 488, 560 and 561, the stationary contact 545, the switch 542, the conductor 562, the upper stationary contact 563 of the switch 559, the switch 550, the conductor 565, the stationary Contact 540, the switch B and the conductors 396 and 377. If it were desired to operate the motor to continue the drying cycle for an additional period of twelve minutes, the switch 550 would have been moved to its lower position where it engaged its stationary contact 568 so that the connection between the conductor 561 and the conductor 565 would have been made twelve lminutes after the commencement of operation of the auxiliary timer motor when the switch 543 is moved to its upper position to connect the conductors 561 and 565 through its stationary contact 546 and the conductor 569 which connects the switch 543 to the stationary contact 568.

At the end of one of these two preselected periods of time of operation of the auxiliary timer motor and after the main timer motor 350 has operated for another half minute, that is, when the main timer motor has operated for a full ten minutes, the switch B is again moved upwardly to its upper position where it engages its upper stationary contact 395 so that further operation of the main timer motor 350 for the remainder of the cycle of operation of the apparatus is independent of the operation of the auxiliary timer motor 510. Once the auxiliary motor 510 has commenced operation the cam which controls the movement of its switch 514 moves the switch to its lower position so that continued operation of the auxiliary timer motor 510 once it has been initiated by the movement of the switch K to its lower position is independent of the operation of the switch K. The auxiliary timer motor 510 is then connected across the lines 363 and 364 through the conductors 373, 488 and 560, the stationary contact 548, the switch 514, the conductor 514:1 and the conductors 515 and 377. The auxiliary timer motor then continues to operate for a period of time longer than twelve minutes and until the cams which control its switches 514, 542 and 543 again move these switches to the positions illustrated in FIGURE 3 and in condition for another cycle of operation of the cleaning apparatus. It will be noted that more than thirteen minutes must elapse after the energization of the auxiliary timer motor before another cycle of operation of the cleaning apparatus progresses to the point that switch K is again moved to its lower position.

After the tenth minute of operation of the main timer motor the switch B moves back to its upper position and the switch K moves back to its upper position to deenergize the solenoid in the manner previously described and thus close the valve 134 so that hot compressed rcfrigcrant gas no longer is permitted to flow through the heating coils 70 and at the same time to energize the solenoid 109 to open the valve 108 to permit the hot refrigerant gases from the compressor 103 to ow directly to the heat dissipating coils 110. As a result, the air moving through the closed flow path which includes the tub and the housing 66 is now only cooled and is not reheated since at this time all of the solvent is in its gaseous state. The temperature within the closed fiow path as it is lowered causes condensation of the gaseous solvent not only in the housing 66 as it passes over the cooling coils 69, but also on the various wall surfaces of the closed iow path since these tend to cool off more rapidly than the garments.

At the end of the ten and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor, the switch C is moved to its lower position to energize the solenoid 40 and to open the drain valve 39 and simultaneously the switch D is moved to its lower position to energize the motor 156 of the drain pump 45 so that any condensed solvent in the tub which drains into the trap 44 off the walls of the closed flow path is moved into the reservoir 30.

At the end of the eleventh minute of operation of the main timer motor, the switches C and D are again moved to their intermediate inoperative positions to cause the drain valve 39 to close and the motor of the drain pump 45 to stop operation. At the same time the switch I moves to its off position so that the thermostat switch 150fz is no longer short circuited and the operation of the compressor motor will then be independent of the temperature conditions within the reservoir 30.

The switch E at the end of eleven minutes of operation of the main timer motor is moved to its off position, deenergizing the solenoid 99 to cause the condensate drain valve 98 to close and de-energizing the solenoids 82 and 83 to cause the air valves 78 and 79 to close the passage 84 in the partition of the air valve housing and thus permit ventilation of the tub.

Also, at the end of the eleventh minute of the operation of the main timer motor, the switch L moves to its upper position to -open the valve 128 so that the compressed and cooled refrigerant gas now will iiow through the cooling coils 126 and the reservoir 30.

At the end of the eleven and a half minutes of operation of the main timer motor the switch A moves down to its lower position so that the timer motor 350 will now continue to operate independent of the position of the contact 391 of the main relay 384 since it is then connected across the lines 363 and 364 through the conductors 373 and 488 and 489, the lower stationary contact 570 of the switch A, the switch A, the conductor 394, the upper stationary contact 395 of the switch B, the switch B andthe conductors 396 and 377.

At the end of the twelfth minute of operation of the main timer motor, the switch B moves to its oif position wherein it engages neither its upper nor its lower stationary contact. At the end of the twelfth minute of operation of the main timer motor the switch F is moved to its upper open position thus de-energizing the drum motor 27 and the drum stops rotating. Simultaneously, at the end of the twelfth minute of operation of the main timer motor, the switch G moves to its lower position wherein it energizes the solenoid 260 which causes the door lock mechanism to become unl-ocked in the manner described previously, and also the switch G, when it moves to this lower position, actuates the reset mechanism 575 of the stepper 359 which causes its switch 369 to be moved to the upper position illustrated in FIGURE 3.

The switch H at the end of the twelfth minute of the cycle of operation of the main timer motor moves downwardly to engage its stationary contact 432 so that the blower motor is placed in condition to operate and blow any remaining solvent in gaseous state to the atm-osphere through the exhaust duct 81. Also at the end of the twelfth minute of operation the switch I is moved to its intermediate off position so that the lamp 436 is extinguished and thus indicates that the drying stage of the cycle of operation of the apparatus has been completed. When the switch G moves to its lower position at the end of the twelfth minute it causes the reset mechanism 575 of the stepper 359 to reset the switch 369 to the upper position illustrated in FIGURE 3 and out of contact with the stationary contact 375. The relay winding 383 of the main relay 384 is thus de-energized and the movable contacts 391 and 406 move to the upper open positions illustrated in FIGURE 3.

At the end of the twelfth minute of operation therefore the door may be opened and the 'blower will continue to operate. The timer motor 350, however, will continue to operate for another half minute, at the end of which time the switches A, B, C and D are moved to their upper positions, the switch E is moved to its lower position, the switch F is moved to its lower position, the switch G is moved to its intermediate open position, switch H is left in its lower position, switches I and I are left in their intermediate open positions and the switches K and L are left in their upper positions. At this time the apparatus is returned to its initial starting position with the exception of the auxiliary timer motor which, as was pointed out before, will continue to operate for -a period of 'time until it resets the switch contacts 542 and 543 to their open positions and thev switch contact 514 to its upper position at which time the motor 510 itself will cease operation since the switch K is now in its upper position. The a'bove cycle of operation can then again commence to clean a new load of soiled garments.

It will be noted that the switches K and L 4are connected across the lines 363 and 364 through the movable contact 452 of the compressor motor relay 329 so that the solenoids 109, 135, 129 and 119 will all be de-energized so the valves 108, 134, 128 and 118, which control the flow of refrigerant gas to and from the compressor, will be closed whenever the compressor motor stops operating either when the temperature within the reservoir 30 falls below the predetermined value or when either of the high and low pressure switches is opened.

The auxiliary timer motor 510 and the manual switch 550 4which is mounted on the control housing 218 provide the customer with a means for varying the length of the time during which the liquid solvent is evaporated from the garments, since some fabrics may absorb greater quantities of the solvent than others and since the -load itself of the garments which is placed in the drum may also vary, it being obvious that a shorter time will 'be needed to evaporate all liquid solvent from a light load of garments than from a heavy load of garments.

If desired, the length of the drying cycle of the apparatus may be controlled in other ways; for example, by a temperature sensing means responsive to the temperature differential in the closed air path between the inlet and the outlet of the tub which will close to restart operation of the motor 350 when such temperature differential drops when all liquid solvent has evaporated, since the cooling of the air iiowing through the air path due to the evaporation `of the liquid solvent will of course cease once all the liquid solvent has evaporated.

It will now be seen that the control circuit illustrated in FIGURE 3 will cause the cleaning apparatus to operate automatically in the manner described to clean the soiled garments by circulating a solvent, such as is commercially available under the name Valclene, through the soiled garments and through a filtering means for removing from the solvent the foreign matter extracted from the soiled garments, draining the tub of the apparatus of liquid solvent when the cleaning operation has been cornpleted, evaporating the liquid solvent from the garments and condensing the solvent in gaseous form from the air being circulated through the closed air path.

It will further be seen that the control circuit causes automatic ventilation of the tub prior to the opening thereof to exhaust all unreclaimed solvent to the atmosphere in order `that if the solvent has irritating or noxious qualities, the person opening the tub will not be exposed to the danger of inhalation thereof, that the circuit provides for the locking of the door to prevent its opening during the cycle of operation of the apparatus and that the circuit also provides for the automatic circulation of the air through the door opening and out to the atmosphere whenever the door is opened for the same purpose.

If desired, an additional solenoid controlled valve (not shown) may be connected in the outlet conduit 142 of the additive tank 140 above the valve 144. The additional valve would be opened when the valve 1414 is closed and would be closed by a suitable control 'before the valve 144 is opened. By this arrangement of the valves only a predetermined amount of solvent would how into the reservoir 30 each time the valve 144 opens regardless of the length of time the valve 144- remains open.

It will now be seen that a new and improved dry cleaning apparatus having automatic controls has been ilustrated and described which provides for a maximum recovery of the solvent and for the ethcient automatic dry cleaning of soiled garments.

The foregoing description of the invention is explanatory only, and changes in the details of the construction may be made by those skilled in the art, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. An apparatus for cleaning soiled garments and the like by use of a solvent including: means providing a closed chamber having an opening and a door for closing said opening; a drum rotatably mounted in said charnber whereby soiled garments and the like may be introduced into the drum through said opening when said door is open; a reservoir for solvent disposed below said chamber; conduit means 4connecting said reservoir to said chamber, said conduit means having irst pump means and valve means connected therein whereby uid may be moved from the reservoir into said chamber when said valve means is in open position and said pump means is energized; overflow conduit means connecting said chamber at a level intermediate its top and 'bottom to said reservoir; filter means and second pump means connected between said overflow conduit means and said reservoir whereby fluid flowing into said overflow conduit means is moved by said second pump means when said second pump means is energized through said filter means and back tok said reservoir; and drain conduit means connecting the -bottom of said chamber to said filter means and said second pump means and having drain valve means connected therein whereby all liquid in said chamber may flow to said second pump means when said -drain valve is open; air duct means connecting the lower portion of said chamber with the upper portion of said chamber including a heat exchanger housing, an air moving means and an air valve means connected in said air duct means; a vent duct, said vent duct being connected to said air duct and opening into the atmosphere at two spaced points, said air valve means when in one position and when said air moving means is operating causing the air to be drawing in through said vent duct at one of said points and moved into said chamber and carrying air to be exhausted from said chamber through said air duct means and said vent means to the atmosphere at the other of said points, said air valve means when in a second position establishing a closed air ow path which includes said chamber whereby said air moving means circulates air through said chamber and through said air duct and back to said chamber when said air valve means is in said second position; cooling and heating means disposed in said heat exchanger housing to first cool the air moving through said air duct from said chamber and then to heat the cooled air prior to its return to said chamber, and condensate return con- 2i) duit means connecting said heat exchanger housing and said reservoir for returning solvent condensed by said cooling means back to said reservoir, said condensate return conduit means having Valve means connected therein for closing said condensate return conduit.

2, The apparatus of claim 1, and means operatively associated with said door for energizing said air moving means each time said door is open to cause movement of the air into said chamber through said opening and out of said chamber through said vent duct.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, and means for causing simultaneous operation of said heating and cooling means for a period of time sufficiently long to cause evaporation of any liquid solvent in said closed air flow path when said air valve means is in said second position and then causing operation only of said cooling means to cause condensation of solvent is gaseous state present in the closed air flow path.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, and means operatively associated with said door for energizing said air moving means each time said door is open to cause movement of the air into said chamber through said opening and out of said chamber through said vent duct.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, and a refrigerant gas system including a compressor and said cooling means and said heating means; and means for selectively permitting circulation of compressed hot refrigerant gas Afrom said compressor through said heating means and of cooled and expanded refrigerant gas through said cooling means and back to said compressor to be compressed thereby; and means operatively associated with said refrigerant gas system for causing simultaneous circulation of gas through said heating means and said cooling lmeans for a period of time sufficiently long to cause evaporation of liquid solvent in said closed air tiow path when said air valve means is in said second position and then causing circulation of refrigerant gas only through said cooling means to cause condensation of solvent existing in gaseous state in said closed air path.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said refrigerant gas system includes a second cooling means disposed in said reservoir and a heat dissipating means; and means for selectively permitting circulation of compressed hot refrigerant gas from said compressor through said heat dissipating means and of cooled and expanded refrigerant gas through said second cooling means and back to said compressor to be compressed thereby, said means operatively associated with said refrigerant gas system preventing circulation of refrigerant gas through said second cooling -means when the refrigerant gas is being circulated through said cooling means in said heat exchanger housing.

7. An apparatus for reclaiming solvent absorbed in garments and the like, including: means providing a closed chamber having a closable opening through which garments and the like may be introduced into said chamber; means providing a closed air flow path including said chamber; vent means operatively associated with said last mentioned means; valve means for selectively connecting said chamber to said vent means and to said closed air flow path to cause said chamber to constitute a section of said closed ow path; means for moving air through said chamber; a first cooling means disposed in said means providing said closed air iiow path for cooling air flowing from the chamber through said closed air ow path; heating means for heating the air previously cooled by said cooling means and moving through said closed air flow path back into said chamber; means for removing solvent condensed by said cooling means from said closed air flow path; and means for causing simultaneous operation of said heating means and cooling means for a period of time suiciently long to cause evaporation of any liquid solvent in said closed air flow path and its condensation tor removal by said means for removing solvent and then causing operation only of said cooling means to cause condensation of any remaining solvent present in a gaseous state in the closed air llow path for removal by said means for removing solvent.

8. The apparatus of claim 7; and a refrigerant gas system, said refrigerant gas system including a compressor and said cooling means and said heating means; and means for selectively permitting circulation of Compressed hot refrigerant gas from said compressor through said heating means and of cooled and expanded refrigerant gas through said cooling means and back through said cornpressor to be compressed thereby.

9. An apparatus for reclaiming liquid solvent from garments and the like including: means providing a closed chamber having an opening and a door for closing said opening; air duct means connecting the lower portion of said chamber with the upper portion of said chamber including a heat exchanger housing, an air moving means and an air valve means connected in said air duct means; a Vent duct, said vent duct being connected to said air duct means and opening into the atmosphere at two spaced points, said air valve means when in one position and when said air moving means is operating causing the air to be drawn in through said vent duct at one of said points and moved into said chamber and carrying air to be exhausted from said chamber through said air duct means and said vent duct to the atmosphere at the other of said points, said air valve means when in a second position establishing a closed air ow path which includes said chamber whereby said air moving means circulates air through said chamber and said air duct means and back to said chamber when said air valve means is in said second position; cooling and heating means disposed in said heat exchanger housing to first cool the air moving through said air duct means from said chamber and then to heat the cooled air prior to its return to said chamber; and means connected to said heat exchanger housing for removing solvent condensed by said cooling means from said closed air ow path.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, and means operatively associated with said door for energizing said air moving means each time said door is opened to cause movement of air into said chamber through said opening and out of said chamber through said vent duct.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, and means for causing simultaneous operation of said heating means and cooling means for a period of time sufficiently long to cause evaporation and then condensation of any liquid solvent in said closed air flow path for removal by said means for removing said solvent when said air valve means is in said second position and then causing operation only o1 said cooling means to cause condensation of any solvent present in gaseous state in the closed air flow path for removal by said means for removing said solvent.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, and means operatively assocated with said door for energizing said air moving means each time said door is opened to cause movement of the air into said chamber through said opening and out of said chamber through said vent duct.

13. The apparatus of claim 9, and a refrigerant gas system including a compressor and said cooling means and said heating means; means for selectively permitting circulation of compressed hot refrigerant gas from said compressor through said heating means and of cooled and expanded refrigerant gas through said cooling means and back through said compressor to be compressed thereby; and means operatively associated with said refrigerant gas system for causing simultaneous circulation of gas through said heating means and said cooling means for a period of time suticiently long to cause evaporation of liquid solvent in said closed air flow path when said air valve means is in said second position and then causing circulation of refrigerant gas only through said cooling means to cause condensation of solvent existing in gaseous state in said closed air flow path.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,122,908 3/ 1964 Stanulis et al. 68--180 X 3,071,953 1/1963 Rand 68-209 X 3,066,519 12/1962 Boswinkle 68-18 X 3,065,619 11/ 1962 Coss 68-12 2,733,587 2/1956 McKendree 68-18 2,630,694 3/1953 Creswick 68-18 2,574,251 1 1/ 1951 Dinley 68-209 2,570,808 10/1951 Hermes 34-77 X 2,418,239 4/1947 Smith 34-77 2,310,680 2/1943 Dinley 34-77 X 2,303,541 12/ 1942 Gluckman 68-18 X 2,114,776 4/1938 Davis 68-18 119,187 9/ 1871 Simonin 8-142 1,615,897 2/1927 Aydelo'tte 8-142 2,070,204 2/ 1937 Hetzer 68-18 2,289,930 7/1942 Payen 68-18 WILLIAM I. PRICE, Primary Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. AN APPARATUS FOR CLEANING SOILED GARMENTS AND THE LIKE BY USE OF A SOLVENT INCLUDING: MEANS PROVIDING A CLOSED CHAMBER HAVING AN OPENING AND A DOOR FOR CLOSING SAID OPENING; A DRUM ROTATABLY MOUNTED IN SAID CHAMBER WHEREBY SOILED GARMENTS AND THE LIKE MAY BE INTRODUCED INTO THE DRUM THROUGH SAID OPENING WHEN SAID DOOR IS OPEN; A RESERVOIR FOR SOLVENT DISPOSED BELOW SAID CHAMBER; CONDUIT MEANS CONNECTING SAID RESERVOIR TO SAID CHAMBER, SAID CONDUIT MEANS HAVING FIRST PUMP MEANS AND VALVE MEANS CONNECTED THEREIN WHEREBY FLUID MAY BE MOVED FROM THE RESERVOIR INTO SAID CHAMBER WHEN SAID VALVE MEANS IS IN OPEN POSITION AND SAID PUMP MEANS IS ENERGIED; OVERFLOW CONDUIT MEANS CONNECTING SAID CHAMBER AT A LEVEL INTERMEDIATE ITS TOP AND BOTTOM TO SAID RESERVOIR; FILTER MEANS AND SECOND PUMP MEANS CONNECTED BETWEEN SAID OVERFLOW CONDUIT MEANS AND SAID RESERVOIR WHEREBY FLUID FLOWING INTO SAID OVERFLOW CONDUIT MEANS IS MOVED BY SAID SECOND PUMP MEANS WHEN SAID SECOND PUMP MEANS IS ENERGIZED THROUGH SAID FILTER MEANS AND BACK TO SAID RESERVOIR; AND DRAIN CONDUIT MEANS CONNECTING THE BOTTOM OF SAID CHAMBER TO SAID FILTER MEANS AND SAID SECOND PUMP MEANS AND HAVING DRAIN VALVE MEANS CONNECTED THEREIN WHEREBY ALL LIQUID IN SAID CHAMBER MAY FLOW TO SAID SECOND PUMP MEANS WHEN SAID DRAIN VALVE IS OPEN; AIR DUCT MEANS CONNECTING THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID CHAMBER WITH THE UPPER PORTION OF SAID CHAMBER INCLUDING A HEAT EXCHANGER HOUSING, AN AIR MOVING MEANS AND AN AIR VALVE MEANS CONNECTED IN SAID AIR DUCT MEANS; A VENT DUCT, SAID VENT DUCT BEING CONNECTED TO SAID AIR DUCT AND OPENING INTO THE ATMOSPHERE AT TWO SPACED POINTS, SAID AIR VALVE MEANS WHEN IN ONE POSITION AND WHEN SAID AIR MOVING MEANS IS OPERATING CAUSING THE AIR TO BE DRAWING IN THROUGH SAID VENT DUCT AT ONE OF SAID POINTS AND MOVED INTO SAID CHAMBER AND CARRYING AIR TO BE EXHAUSTED FROM SAID CHAMBER THROUGH SAID AIR DUCT MEANS AND SAID VENT MEANS TO THE ATMOSPHERE AT THE OTHER OF SAID POINTS, SAID AIR VALVE MEANS WHEN IN A SECOND POSITION ESTABLISHING A CLOSED AIR FLOW PATH WHICH INCLUDES SAID CHAMBER WHEREBY SAID AIR MOVING MEANS CIRCULATES AIR THROUGH SAID CHAMBER AND THROUGH SAID AIR DUCT AND BACK TO SAID CHAMBER WHEN SAID AIR VALVE MEANS IS IN SAID SECOND POSITION; COOLING AND HEATING MEANS DISPOSED IN SAID HEAT EXCHANGER HOUSING TO FIRST COOL THE AIR MOVING THROUGH SAID AIR DUCT FROM SAID CHAMBER AND THEN TO HEAT THE COOLED AIR PRIOR TO ITS RETURN TO SAID CHAMBER, AND CONDENSATE RETURN CONDUIT MEANS CONNECTING SAID HEAT EXCHANGER HOUSING AND SAID RESERVOIR FOR RETURNING SOLVENT CONDENSED BY SAID COOLING MEANS BACK TO SAID RESERVOIR, SAID CONDENSATE RETURN CONDUIT MEANS HAVING VALVE MEANS CONNECTED THEREIN FOR CLOSING SAID CONDENSTAE RETURN CONDUIT.

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