Laundry treating apparatus

Abstract

A laundry treating apparatus includes a treatment chamber, a laundry hanger support portion, a driver, a moisture removal module, and a controller. The laundry hanger support portion in the treatment chamber is configured to receive a laundry hanger. The controller is configured to control the driver to control a frequency of a reciprocating motion of the laundry hanger support portion. The controller is configured to, in a first motion mode, control the driver to maintain the frequency of the reciprocating motion at a reference frequency, and in a second motion mode, control the driver to vary the frequency of the reciprocating motion to be less than or equal to the reference frequency.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A laundry treating apparatus comprising:
 a treatment chamber that is defined within the laundry treating apparatus and that is configured to accommodate a laundry hanger, the laundry hanger being configured to hang laundry;   a laundry hanger support portion that is disposed at the treatment chamber and that is configured to receive the laundry hanger, wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to repeat a reciprocating motion between a first position and a second position;   a driver configured to provide driving force for the laundry hanger support portion;   a moisture removal module configured to remove moisture from air in the treatment chamber; and   a controller configured to control the driver to control a frequency of the reciprocating motion of the laundry hanger support portion,   wherein the controller is configured to:
 in a first motion mode, control the driver to maintain the frequency of the reciprocating motion at a reference frequency, and 
 in a second motion mode, control the driver to vary the frequency of the reciprocating motion to be less than or equal to the reference frequency. 
   
     
     
         2 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to operate in the second motion mode during a cycle that reduces a moisture content of the laundry hung on the laundry hanger. 
     
     
         3 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the reference frequency is selected from a frequency range that is predetermined based on a sample hung on the laundry hanger having (i) a first shape of a first waveform in a first state in which the sample is biased to a first side of the laundry hanger support portion and (ii) a second shape of a second waveform in a second state in which the sample is biased to a second side of the laundry hanger support portion, and
 wherein the frequency range is defined based on overlap points of the first waveform and the second waveform.   
     
     
         4 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein the sample comprises a cotton fabric having a width of 20 cm and a length of 90 cm and having a weight in a range of 140 g/m 2  to 160 g/m 2 . 
     
     
         5 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to, based on the laundry hanger support portion reciprocating between the first position and the second position, reciprocate ends of the laundry hanger along an arc with respect to a central axis of the laundry hanger. 
     
     
         6 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein the reference frequency is selected from a range of 200 rpm to 250 rpm. 
     
     
         7 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to, in the second motion mode, vary the frequency of the reciprocating motion to be (i) greater than or equal to a minimum frequency and (ii) less than or equal to the reference frequency. 
     
     
         8 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 7 , wherein the minimum frequency is greater than or equal to 40% of the reference frequency. 
     
     
         9 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to, in the second motion mode, vary the frequency over a period ranging from 20 seconds to 1 minute. 
     
     
         10 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein, during the period in the second motion mode, the controller is configured to vary the frequency among a first frequency, a second frequency, and a third frequency,
 wherein the first frequency is greater than or equal to a minimum frequency,   wherein the second frequency is greater than the first frequency,   wherein the third frequency is (i) greater than or equal to the second frequency and (ii) less than or equal to the reference frequency,   wherein the period includes a first sub-period and a second sub-period,   wherein controller is configured to, in the first sub-period, vary the frequency from the first frequency to the third frequency, and   wherein the controller is configured to, in the second sub-period, vary from the third frequency to the first frequency, and   wherein second sub-period is shorter than the first sub-period.   
     
     
         11 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to vary a shape of the laundry hung on the laundry hanger based on vibration of the laundry in response to the reciprocating motion of the laundry hanger support portion, the shape of the laundry defining (i) a first waveform in a first state in which the laundry is biased to a first side of the laundry hanger support portion and (ii) a second waveform in a second state in which the laundry is biased to a second side of the laundry hanger support portion, and
 wherein a position of an overlap point of the first waveform and the second waveform varies in the second motion mode.   
     
     
         12 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the laundry treating apparatus is configured to perform a drying cycle that reduces a moisture content of the laundry while the moisture removal module operates to remove moisture from air in the treatment chamber,
 wherein the laundry treating apparatus provides a plurality of laundry treatment courses that include the drying cycle,   wherein the plurality of laundry treatment courses include:
 a first treatment course of operating the laundry hanger support portion in the first motion mode while the drying cycle is being performed; and 
 a second treatment course of operating the laundry hanger support portion in the second motion mode while the drying cycle is being performed. 
   
     
     
         13 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 12 , further comprising a steam supply portion configured to generate steam and supply the steam to the treatment chamber,
 wherein the first treatment course further includes a steam cycle that is performed before the drying cycle,   wherein the steam cycle increases the moisture content by supplying steam to the laundry, and   wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to reciprocate at a frequency that is greater than the reference frequency while the steam cycle is being performed.   
     
     
         14 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 13 , wherein the controller is configured to, in a third motion mode, vary the frequency to be greater than or equal to the reference frequency,
 wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to operate in the third motion mode while the steam cycle is being performed in the first treatment course.   
     
     
         15 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 14 , wherein the controller is configured to, in the third motion mode, vary the frequency over a period ranging from 20 seconds to 1 minute,
 wherein, during the period in the third motion mode, the controller is configured to vary the frequency among a first frequency, a second frequency, and a third frequency,   wherein the first frequency is greater than or equal to the reference frequency,   wherein the second frequency is greater than the first frequency,   wherein the third frequency is (i) greater than the second frequency, and (ii) less than or equal to a maximum frequency corresponding to a frequency generated by a maximum output of the driver,   wherein the period includes a first sub-period and a second sub-period,   wherein the controller is configured to, in the first sub-period, vary the frequency from the first frequency to the third frequency, and   wherein the controller is configured to, in the second sub-period, vary the frequency from the third frequency to the first frequency, and   wherein the second sub-period is shorter than the first sub-period.   
     
     
         16 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to control the driver to maintain an amplitude of a displacement of the laundry hanger support portion based on the reciprocating motion of the laundry hanger support portion in the first motion mode and the second motion mode. 
     
     
         17 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising a steam supply portion configured to generate steam and to supply the steam to the treatment chamber,
 wherein the laundry treating apparatus is configured to perform a steam cycle to increase a moisture content of a laundry hung on the laundry hanger based on the steam supply portion supplying the steam to the treatment chamber and the laundry, and   wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to operate in the second motion mode after the steam supply portion stops supplying the steam.   
     
     
         18 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising a circulation fan that is configured to circulate air in the treatment chamber,
 wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to operate in the second motion mode while the air is being circulated in the treatment chamber by operating the circulation fan.   
     
     
         19 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 18 , further comprising a steam supply portion configured to generate steam and supply the steam to the treatment chamber,
 wherein the laundry treating apparatus is configured to perform a steam cycle to increase a moisture content of a laundry hung on the laundry hanger based on the steam supply portion supplying the steam to the treatment chamber and the laundry, and   wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to operate in the second motion mode while the air is being circulated in the treatment chamber by operating the circulation fan after the steam supply portion stops supplying the steam.   
     
     
         20 . A hanger module comprising:
 a laundry hanger support portion configured to receive a laundry hanger, wherein the laundry hanger support portion is configured to repeat a reciprocating motion between a first position and a second position;   a driver configured to provide driving force for the laundry hanger support portion; and   a controller configured to control the driver to control a frequency of the reciprocating motion of the laundry hanger support portion,   wherein the controller is configured to:
 in a first motion mode, control the driver to maintain the frequency of the reciprocating motion at a reference frequency, and 
 in a second motion mode, control the driver to vary the frequency of the reciprocating motion to be less than or equal to the reference frequency.