Washing machine and drying machine

摘要

A washing machine includes a vibration damping device located in an outer casing for damping vibration of a tub using a cylinder enclosing an operating fluid including a functional fluid such as a magnetic viscous fluid changing a viscosity when an electrical energy is applied to the fluid. The vibration damping device includes the cylinder, a shaft inserted into the cylinder, a coil disposed in the cylinder, two yokes disposed between the cylinder and the shaft so as to be located at both axial sides of the coil respectively, the yokes forming a magnetic circuit together with the shaft and cylinder, a sealing member disposed axially outside one of the yokes in the cylinder to seal the operating fluid, and two bearings located axially outside the respective yokes in the cylinder to support the shaft so that the shaft is axially reciprocable.

主权项

1. A washing machine comprising:
an outer casing; a tub mounted in the outer casing; a rotating tub rotatably mounted in the tub; a vibration damping device provided in the outer casing for damping vibration of the tub using a cylinder enclosing a magnetic viscous fluid which changes a viscosity when an electric energy is applied thereto, the vibration damping device including:
the cylinder;a shaft inserted into the cylinder;a coil disposed in a the cylinder and extending the shafttwo yokes disposed between the cylinder and the shaft located at both axial sides of the coil in the cylinder respectively, the yokes forming a magnetic circuit together with the shaft and the cylinder, the shaft and the coil defining a first gap, one of the yokes and the shaft defining a second gap, the other yoke and the shaft defining a third gap, all the gaps being filled with the magnetic viscous fluid;a sealing member disposed axially outside one of the yokes in the cylinder to seal the magnetic viscous fluid to prevent leaking of the magnetic viscous fluid; andtwo bearings located axially outside the respective yokes in the cylinder to support the shaft so that the shaft is axially reciprocable relative to the yokes, the bearings, and the sealing member; and a control unit configured to execute an energizing control of the coil to change the viscosity of the magnetic viscous fluid according to rotation of the rotating tub in a dehydration step, thereby varying a damping force of the vibration damping device.