Textiles: ironing or smoothing – Smoothing implements – Flatirons
Patent
1999-09-22
2000-11-28
Izaguirre, Ismael
Textiles: ironing or smoothing
Smoothing implements
Flatirons
277627, D06F 7518
Patent
active
061518158
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to the technical field of steam irons. The present invention concerns more particularly steam irons of a type comprising a steam chamber as well as a reservoir intended to receive and store water before it is injected by different known means such as needles, taps or pumps into said steam chamber in order to be vaporized therein.
PRIOR ART
In known steam irons of the above-cited type, the water reservoir is generally made according to one of the following arrangements.
The water reservoir can constitute a stand-alone assembly. The iron then comprises a sole plate surmounted by a heating body in which a steam chamber is arranged, a thermal screen disposed above the heating body, the water reservoir then being disposed above said screen. The water reservoir is in this case most often constructed by means of two half-shells assembled together in a manner to form a hollow body. This hollow body can contain elements intended for various functions such as for example to guide the water in order to supply the pumps, or even to contain elements such as resins for treatment of the water. The hollow body is designed in a manner to leave at least one filling opening for the water. In an advantageous manner, this hollow body is made of polypropylene, the two half-shells being assembled by welding.
Such a form of construction presents the drawback of being relatively costly. The reservoir being made in an independent manner, it is necessary to mold each of the component pieces, then to assemble by welding and finally to verify at this stage good water tightness of the assembly.
Such a form of construction presents equally the drawback of multiplying the risk of failure by water leakage, whether this occurs immediately after construction of the reservoir, or after a certain period of use. In effect it is difficult to assure and to maintain water tightness between the polypropylene reservoir bottom and the steam chamber because of the relative softness of the polypropylene at temperatures close to its operating limit.
The water reservoir can also be obtained by assembling a half-shell forming an upper part of the reservoir with a piece playing at the same time the role of lower part of the reservoir and of thermal screen.
In this latter case there is presented the problem of producing this assembly in a manner that is durably water tight and at a competitive cost with respect to other solutions. The thermal screen, as regards its function, is preferably made of a thermally isolating material which has a good temperature resistance such as a phenolic resin or polyester. The upper part of the reservoir being made most often of a thermoplastic material, preferably transparent, it is then not possible to create the connection with the lower part by welding. The known solutions consist then in providing a peripheral groove, generally in the thermal screen, interposing in said groove a liquid resin or silicone, or even solid seals of the silicone or rubber type, these latters being able to be obtained by molding or extrusion. The document FR2 747 404 describes such a solution. The assembly can be equally completed by one or several screws. None of these solutions permits obtaining a simple and economical assembly.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to alleviate the above-cited drawbacks and to achieve the assembly of an upper reservoir part with a lower reservoir part forming a thermal screen in a simple, reliable and economical manner.
This object is achieved with a steam iron reservoir comprising a lower half-shell composed of at least one annular conformation and an upper half-shell comprising at least one annular conformation provided to interlock in and/or around the corresponding annular conformation of the lower half-shell, characterized in that at least one of these conformations is made with a covering fixed in a non-reversible manner and serving as a seal.
The reservoir obtained presents a high reliability with respect to water tightnes
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Blanchon Pierre
Cuzel Alain
Izaguirre Ismael
Seb S.A.
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