CLOTHES CARE APPARATUS AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF

Abstract

A clothes care apparatus includes a chamber, an upper fan, a lower fan, a first motor, a second motor, a filter, and a controller. The upper fan is positioned above the chamber and configured to move air in a down direction while the lower fan is positioned below the chamber and configured to move air in an up direction, The first motor is configured to rotate the upper fan and the second motor is configured to rotate the lower fan. The filter is configured to collect dust from the air within the chamber. The controller is configured to control the first motor and the second motor in a plurality of time sections. The plurality of time sections include a first time section for driving any one of the first motor and the second motor and a second time section for driving both the first motor and the second motor.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based on and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2018-0096963, filed on Aug. 20, 2018 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Field

The disclosure relates to a clothes care apparatus for removing dust gathered on clothes or the smell of the clothes.

2. Description of the Related Art

A clothes care apparatus is equipment for clothes care, such as drying wet clothes, removing dust gathered on clothes or smell permeated in clothes, and smoothing out the wrinkles of clothes.

SUMMARY

Therefore, it is an aspect of the disclosure to provide a clothes care apparatus for controlling a plurality of blowers installed on various sides of a chamber provided in a main body to remove dust gathered on clothes and collecting dust existing in the inside air of the chamber by using a dust collecting filter; and a control method of the clothes care apparatus.

Additional aspects of the disclosure will be set forth in part in the description which follows and may be learned by practice of the disclosure.

According to an aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a clothes care apparatus including: a chamber; an upper fan positioned above the chamber and configured to move air in a down direction of the chamber; a lower fan positioned below the chamber and configured to move air in an up direction of the chamber; a first motor configured to rotate the upper fan; a second motor configured to rotate the lower fan; a filter configured to collect dust included in inside air of the chamber; and a controller configured to control the first motor and the second motor in a plurality of time sections, wherein the plurality of time sections include at least one first time section in which any one of the first motor and the second motor is driven and at least one second time section in which both the first motor and the second motor are driven.

The clothes care apparatus may further include an inputter figured to receive information about an execution course from a user, wherein, when the information about the execution course indicates a dust removal course, the controller controls the first motor and the second motor in the plurality of time sections.

The controller may control the first motor and the second motor such that the at least one first time section and the at least one second time section appear alternately in the plurality of time sections.

The controller may drive the first motor in the first tune section, drive both the first motor and the second motor in the second time section after the first time section, and drive the first motor in a third time section after the second time section.

The clothes care apparatus may further include: an upper heater configured to heat air moving by the upper fan; and a lower heat exchanger configured to exchange air moving by the lower fan with heat, wherein the controller drives at least one of the upper heater and the lower heat exchanger in a least one time section among the plurality of time sections.

The clothes care apparatus may further include a storage device storing driving information including information about whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections and information about rpms of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections, wherein the controller determines whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections and changes rpms of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections, based on the driving information.

The controller may control the first motor and the second motor such that the first motor and the second motor are periodically turned on and off in the first time section and the first motor or the second motor is periodically turned on and off in the second time section.

The controller may change rpm of at least one of the first motor and the second motor when a time section changes.

The clothes care apparatus may further include: an outlet guiding air moving by the upper fan in the down direction of the chamber; and a hanger positioned in the inside of the chamber, wherein clothes are hung on the hanger, wherein the hanger comprises a connection hole connected to the outlet to receive air, and an inner outlet discharging air to the inside of the clothes, and wherein the outlet comprises an outer outlet discharging air to the outside of the clothes.

The controller may determine whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections and change rpms of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections, based on a type of clothes.

The clothes care apparatus may further include a communicator configured to receive information about a type of the clothes from an external communicator, wherein the controller determines a type of the clothes located in the inside of the chamber based on the information about the type of the clothes.

The clothes care apparatus may further include a dust measuring sensor positioned in the inside of the chamber and configured to measure an amount of dust included in inside air of the chamber, wherein the controller changes an execution time of each of the plurality of time sections based on the amount of dust measured by the dust measuring sensor.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a control method of a clothes care apparatus, the clothes care apparatus including a chamber, an upper fan positioned above the chamber, a lower fan positioned below the chamber, and a filter configured to collect dust included in inside air of the chamber, the control method including: driving any one of a first motor and a second motor in at least one first time section among the plurality of time sections, the first motor rotating the upper fan to move air in a down direction of the chamber, the second motor rotating the lower fan to move air in an up direction of the chamber; and driving both the first motor and the second motor in at least one second time section among the plurality of time sections.

The control method may further include: receiving information about an execution course from a user; and controlling, when the information about the execution course indicates a dust removal course, the first motor and the second motor in the plurality of time sections.

The control method may further include: controlling the first motor and the second motor such that the at least one first time section and the at least one second time section appear alternately in the plurality of time sections.

The control method may further include driving at least one of an upper heater for heating air moving by the upper fan and a lower heat exchanger for exchanging air moving by the lower fan with heat, in at least one time section among the plurality of time sections.

The control method may further include determining whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections and changing rpms of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections, based on driving information including information about whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections and information about rpms of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections.

The control method may further include determining whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections and changing rpms of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections, based on a type of clothes.

The control method may further include: measuring an amount of dust included in inside air of the chamber by using a dust measuring sensor positioned in the inside of the chamber, and changing an execution time of each of the plurality of time sections based on the amount of dust measured by the dust measuring sensor.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a clothes care apparatus including: a chamber; an upper fan positioned above the chamber and configured to move air in a down direction of the chamber; a lower fan positioned below the chamber and configured to move air in an up direction of the chamber; a first motor configured to rotate the upper fan; a second motor configured to rotate the lower fan; a filter configured to collect dust included in air moving in the inside of the chamber; and a controller configured to perform controls including a first time section in which the first motor is driven to move air in the down direction of the chamber, a second time section in which the first motor and the second motor are driven to move air in the up and down directions of the chamber, and a third time section in which the first motor is driven to move air in the down direction of the chamber.

Before undertaking the DETAILED DESCRIPTION below, it may be advantageous to set forth definitions of certain words and phrases used throughout this patent document: the terms “include” and “comprise,” as well as derivatives thereof, mean inclusion without limitation; the term “or,” is inclusive, meaning and/or; the phrases “associated with” and “associated therewith,” as well as derivatives thereof, may mean to include, be included within, interconnect with, contain, be contained within, connect to or with, couple to or with, be communicable with, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate to, be bound to or with, have, have a property of, or the like; and the term “controller” means any device, system or part thereof that controls at least one operation, such a device may be implemented in hardware, firmware or software, or some combination of at least two of the same. It should be noted that the functionality associated with any particular controller may be centralized or distributed, whether locally or remotely.

Moreover, various functions described below can be implemented or supported by one or more computer programs, each of which is formed from computer readable program code and embodied in a computer readable medium. The terms “application” and “program” refer to one or more computer programs, software components, sets of instructions, procedures, functions, objects, classes, instances, related data, or a portion thereof adapted for implementation in a suitable computer readable program code. The phrase “computer readable program code” includes any type of computer code, including source code, object code, and executable code. The phrase “computer readable medium” includes any type of medium capable of being accessed by a computer, such as read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), a hard disk drive, a compact disc (CD), a digital video disc (DVD), or any other type of memory. A “non-transitory” computer readable medium excludes wired, wireless, optical, or other communication links that transport transitory electrical or other signals. A non-transitory computer readable medium includes media where data can be permanently stored and media where data can be stored and later overwritten, such as a rewritable optical disc or an erasable memory device.

Definitions for certain words and phrases are provided throughout this patent document, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that in many, if not most instances, such definitions apply to prior, as well as future uses of such defined words and phrases.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other aspects of the disclosure will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates an exploded perspective view of a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 3 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 4 illustrates a control block diagram of a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates dust removal rates according to driving of an upper blower and a lower blower in a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates driving information of an upper blower and a lower blower in a dust removal course of a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 7A illustrates a dust distribution when no dust collecting filter exists in a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 7B illustrates a dust distribution when a dust collecting filter exists in a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 8 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of a clothes care apparatus according to another embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 9 illustrates a flowchart showing a process of controlling an upper blower and a lower blower in a control method of a clothes care apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 10 illustrates a flowchart showing a process of controlling an upper blower and a lower blower in a control method of a clothes care apparatus according to another embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 11 illustrates a flowchart showing a process of determining a type of clothes accommodated in a chamber to control an upper blower and a lower blower, in a control method of a clothes care apparatus according to another embodiment of the disclosure; and

FIG. 12 illustrates a flowchart showing a process of adjusting an execution time of a dust removal course of a clothes care apparatus, in a control method of a clothes care apparatus according to another embodiment of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1 through 12, discussed below, and the various embodiments used to describe the principles of the present disclosure in this patent document are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the disclosure. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented in any suitably arranged system or device.

Configurations illustrated in the embodiments and the drawings described in the present specification are only the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, and thus it is to be understood that various modified examples, which may replace the embodiments and the drawings described in the present specification, are possible when filing the present application.

It will be understood that when a component is referred to as being “connected” to another component, it can be directly or indirectly connected to the other component. When a component is indirectly connected to another component, it may be connected to the other component through a wireless communication network.

The terms used in the present specification are merely used to describe particular embodiments, and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. An expression used in the singular encompasses the expression of the plural, unless it has a clearly different meaning in the context. In the present specification, it is to be understood that the terms such as “including” or “having”, etc., are intended to indicate the existence of the features, numbers, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof disclosed in the specification, and are not intended to preclude the possibility that one or more other features, numbers, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof may exist or may be added.

It will be understood that, although the terms “first”, “second”, etc., may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. The above terms are used only to distinguish one component from another. For example, a first component discussed below could be termed a second component, and similarly, a second component may be termed a first component without departing from the teachings of this disclosure.

In addition, the terms “portion”, “device”, “block”, “member”, and “module” used herein refer to a unit for processing at least one function or operation. For example, the terms may mean at least one process that may be processed by at least one hardware such as field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or at least one software or processor stored in a memory.

Reference numerals used in operations are provided to identify the operations, without describing the order of the operations, and the operations can be executed in a different order from the stated order unless a specific order is definitely specified in the context.

The clothes care apparatus includes a main body having a chamber in which clothes are accommodated and managed, and a door for opening or closing the chamber. In the inside of the main body, a compressor and a heat exchanger for supplying dry air to clothes and a steam generator for supplying a steam to the clothes are installed.

Accordingly, the clothes care apparatus performs a function of supplying air or hot air generated by a blower to clothes to remove dust gathered on the clothes or smell permeated in the clothes, and a function of spraying a steam generated by the steam generator to smooth out wrinkles from the clothes.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Hereinafter, an upper motor may indicate a first motor, and a lower motor may indicate a second motor.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure, and FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the clothes care apparatus 1 may include a main body 10, a chamber 12a provided in the inside of the main body 10 to accommodate and care clothes, a door 20 rotatably coupled with the main body 10 and opening or closing the chamber 12a, and a hanger 30 provided in the inside of the chamber 12a to hang clothes thereon.

The main body 10 may include an outer frame 11, an inner frame 12 installed in the inside of the outer frame 11, and upper ducts 13 and 14 positioned between the outer frame 11 and the inner frame 12 to guide air to circulate.

The outer frame 11 may be in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped that opens at the front side to form an inside space 11a.

The inner frame 12 may be positioned in the inside space 11a of the outer frame 11. The inner frame 12 may be positioned in the inside space 11a to partition a machine room 11b. The inner frame 12 may include a chamber 12a that opens at the front side to accommodate clothes.

The machine room 11b may be an area of the inside space 11a and may be partitioned from the chamber 12a by the inner frame 12. The machine room 11b may be positioned below the chamber 12a.

As shown in FIG. 3, the machine room 11b may include a lower heat exchanger 180 constituting a cooling cycle. The lower heat exchanger 180 may accommodate a compressor 181, a condenser 182 and an evaporator 183, and an expansion valve (not shown). The lower heat exchangers 180 may include a condenser 182 and an evaporator 183.

Also, the machine room 11b may include a lower blower 150 for inhaling air to the inside of the machine room 11b and causing air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a.

The lower blower 150 may include a lower motor 151 for generating a rotatory force, and a lower fan 152 rotating by the lower motor 151.

Also, the machine room 11b may accommodate lower ducts 55 and 56 (also, referred to as a first lower duct 55 and a second lower duct 56) for guiding air inhaled by the lower fan 152, and also accommodate a steam generator 57 for generating a steam.

The lower fan 152 may be a centrifugal fan for inhaling air in an axial direction and discharging air outward in a radial direction, although not limited thereto.

Also, a single lower fan 152 may be shown, however, a plurality of lower fans may be provided according to design.

Also, air flowing through the lower fan 152 may be dried through the lower heat exchanger 180, and therefore, clothes located in the chamber 12a may receive the dried air from below the chamber 12a. This will be described in detail, later.

The door 20 may be rotatably installed on one side of a front portion of the main body 10, and the door 20 may rotate to open or close the chamber 12a.

The door 20 may include an inputter 110 for enabling a user to select an operation of the clothes care apparatus 1. The inputter 110 may be positioned on a front surface of the door 20. The inputter 110 may include a button 110a to enable the user to select an operation of the clothes care apparatus 1 by touching or pushing the button 110a, and a display 110b displaying an operation state, etc. of the clothes care apparatus 1. In contrast, the inputter 110 may be implemented as a display capable of receiving touch inputs, instead of being divided to a button and a display.

The inner frame 12 may include the chamber 12a opening at the front portion, an upper cover 12b positioned on a top of the chamber 12a and forming a space in which an upper blower 140 is accommodated, and a lower cover 12c extending downward from a front lower end of the chamber 12a and covering the machine room 11b at the front portion.

That is, the upper blower 140 may be provided above the chamber 12a and positioned behind the upper cover 12b. The upper blower 140 may include an upper motor 141 for generating a rotatory force, a pair of upper fans 142 rotating by the upper motor 141, and a pair of fan cases 143 accommodating the pair of upper fans 142.

The upper motor 141 may have a shaft protruding in both side directions, and both ends of the shaft may be respectively coupled with the upper fans 142. Through the structure, the pair of upper fans 142 may rotate by the single driving motor 141.

The pair of upper fans 142 may be a centrifugal fan for inhaling air in an axial direction and discharging air outward in a radial direction, although not limited thereto.

Also, the pair of upper fans 142 may be shown, however, a plurality of upper fans may be provided according to design.

The pair of fan cases 143 may include an inlet (not shown) at both sides and an outlet (not shown) in a front direction to guide air inhaled from the both sides toward the front direction.

In the lower cover 12c, a water supply bucket 58 and a water drain bucket 59 may be removably installed. The water supply bucket 58 and the water drain bucket 59 may be individually separated from the lower cover 12c. The water supply bucket 58 and the water drain bucket 59 may be coupled with the lower cover 12c. The water supply bucket 58 may supply water to the steam generator 57. The water drain bucket 59 may store water condensed when humid air passes through a cooling cycle. The water supply bucket 58 and the water drain bucket 59 may be installed at different positions.

Referring to FIG. 3, in a rear portion of the chamber 12a, a first inlet 12d may be formed to cause inside air of the chamber 12a to enter the upper ducts 13 and 14. In a front or rear area of the first inlet 12d, a dust collecting filter 12e for collecting foreign materials such as dust may be installed. The dust collecting filter 12e may be a high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter, although not limited thereto.

Also, the dust collecting filter 12e according to an embodiment may be made of polypropylene. Accordingly, the dust collecting filter 12e may collect dust existing in inside air of the chamber 12a without being deformed even in a high-temperature and high-humidity environment.

Also, the dust collecting filter 12e according to an embodiment may have a bent structure to reduce pressure loss.

In an upper portion of the chamber 12a, a first outlet 12f for discharging inside air of the upper ducts 13 and 14 to the chamber 12a may be provided.

When the upper fans 142 rotate, inside air of the chamber 12a may enter the first upper duct 13 through the first inlet 12d. When the inside air of the chamber 12a enters the first upper duct 13, the dust collecting filter 12e may remove foreign materials such as fine dust existing in the inside air of the chamber 12a.

The air entered the first upper duct 13 may move upward along the first upper duct 13 to be inhaled in the upper fan 142. Air discharged from the upper fan 142 may move along the second upper duct 14, and enter the inside of the chamber 12a through the first outlet 12f provided in the upper portion of the chamber 12a.

That is, a lower end of the first upper duct 13 may be connected to a rear, lower portion of the chamber 12a, and an upper end of the first upper duct 13 may cover the upper blower 140. A rear end of the second upper duct 14 may be connected to the upper blower 140, and a front end of the second upper duct 14 may cover the outer, upper surface of the chamber 12a to be connected to the first outlet 12f.

The first outlet 12f according to an embodiment may include a first inner outlet (not shown) for discharging air to the inside of the hanger 30, and a first outer outlet (not shown) positioned at both sides of the first inner outlet (not shown) to discharge air to both sides of clothes hung on the hanger 30.

A single hanger 30 may be shown, however, a plurality of hangers 30 may be provided according to design. The first outlet 12f may include a plurality of first inner outlets for discharging air to the insides of the individual hangers, and a plurality of first outer outlets positioned between the first inner outlets and at both sides of the first inner outlets to discharge air to both sides of clothes hung on the individual hangers.

In the second upper duct 14 according to an embodiment, an upper heater 170 may be installed to heat air. The upper heater 170 may heat air. When air flowing by the upper fan 142 passes through the upper heater 170, hot air may enter the inside of the chamber 12a through the first outlet 12f. In FIG. 3, only the upper heater 170 is shown, however, the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may include a heat exchanger (not shown) for removing moisture from air flowing by the upper fans 142, instead of the upper heater 170. In this case, the heat exchanger may include devices, such as a compressor, a condenser, and an evaporator.

The hanger 30 according to an embodiment may be provided in the inside of the chamber 12a to hang clothes thereon.

The hanger 30 may include a top hanger 31 for hanging a top thereon, and a bottom hanger 32 connected to a lower portion of the top hanger 31 to hang a bottom thereon. The hanger 30 according to an embodiment may include only the top hanger 31.

The top hanger 31 may be in the shape of substantially a triangle having a wider width at the lower portion, and include a top hanging portion 31a on which clothes are hung, and a connection tube 31b extending upward from an upper end of the top hanging portion 31a and connected to the first outlet 12f.

Also, an upper portion of the connection tube 31b may be connected to the first outlet 12f to form a connection hole (not shown) receiving air from the first outlet 12f, and a bottom portion of the top hanging portion 31a may include an inner outlet (not shown) for discharging air to the inside of a top hung on the top hanging portion 31a. Also, the top hanger 31 may include flow paths 31e and 31f formed in the inside to guide air transferred through the connection hole (not shown) to the inner outlet (not shown).

The flow paths 31e and 31f may include a first flow path 31e for guiding air to the inside of a body of a top hung on the top hanger 31, and a pair of second flow paths 31f inclined downward at both sides of the first flow path 31e to guide air to the insides of both arms of the top hung on the top hanger 31.

Accordingly, air may be distributed to the insides of the both arms of the top, as well as to the inside of the body of the top, through the first flow path 31e and the second flow paths 31f, thereby removing dust, smell and wrinkles of the both arms of the top, as well as those of the body of the top.

The bottom hanger 32 may include a bottom hanging portion 32a which extends in a horizontal direction and on which a bottom is hung, a filter accommodating portion 32b which is positioned below the bottom hanging portion 32a and in which various functional filters 33 are installed, and a connector 32c positioned above the bottom hanger 32a and connecting the bottom hanger 32 to the top hanger 31. Because the bottom hanger 32 is connected to the lower portion of the top hanger 31 as described above, the bottom hung on the bottom hanging portion 32a may be positioned in the inside of the top hung on the top hanging portion 31a.

Accordingly, when air discharged to the inside of the top through the second flow path 31f passes through the inside of the body of the top, the air may also pass through the bottom hung on the bottom hanging portion 32a to remove dust, smell, and wrinkles of the bottom.

The bottom hanging portion 32a may include two wires extending in the horizontal direction and spaced in parallel to each other. Accordingly, when a bottom is hung on the bottom hanging portion 32a, a space between the two wires may function as a flow path through which air passes.

The filter accommodating portion 32b may be connected to a lower portion of the bottom hanging portion 32a, and formed by wires, like the bottom hanging portion 32a. In the filter accommodating portion 32b, various kinds of functional filters 33, such as a deodorant or an air fresher, may be selectively put by a user.

Referring to FIG. 3, in an upper area of the machine room 11b, a second inlet 53 and a second outlet 54 may be positioned. The second inlet 53 may be positioned in a bottom front portion of the chamber 12a, and the second outlet 54 may be positioned in a bottom rear portion of the chamber 12a. However, the second inlet 53 and the second outlet 54 may be positioned at different locations.

Inside air of the chamber 12a may enter the first lower duct 55 through the second inlet 53. One end of the first lower duct 55 may be connected to the second inlet 53, and the other end of the first lower duct 55 may be connected to the lower fan 152 of the lower blower 150. Air entered the first lower duct 55 may move to the second lower duct 56 via the lower fan 152.

In the inside of the second lower duct 56, the evaporator 183 and the condenser 182 of the lower heat exchanger 180 may be positioned. The evaporator 183 may absorb heat from inside air of the second lower duct 56. Moisture in the air may pass through the evaporator 183 to be condensed to water, and the condensed water may be stored in the water drain bucket 59 via a predetermined path. Air passed through the condenser 182 may have low humidity.

The condenser 182 may be positioned downstream from the evaporator 183 on a flow path of air. Air with low humidity passed through the evaporator 183 may pass through the condenser 182 to be heated. Air passed through the evaporator 183 and the condenser 182 may become a high-temperature and low-humidity state. The high-temperature dry air may enter the chamber 12a through the second outlet 54.

That is, the lower heat exchanger 180 according to an embodiment may remove moisture from air flowing by the lower fan 152 by using the condenser 182 and the evaporator 183 installed in the second lower duct 56. Thereby, the high-temperature dry air may enter the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a.

As described above, inside air of the chamber 12a may enter the second inlet 53 to pass through a cooling cycle and then be discharged through the second outlet 54. Through the process, the inside of the chamber 12a may be dehumidified to dry clothes.

Also, the machine room 11b may accommodate the compressor 181 of the lower heat exchanger 180.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the compressor 181 may be an inverter compressor capable of changing revolutions per minute (rpm) or a compression capacity. The inverter compressor may change the compression capacity by controlling the rpm, and accordingly, control a heating value of the condenser 182.

Also, the machine room 11b may accommodate the steam generator 57. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the steam generator 57 may generate a steam that is to be supplied to the chamber 12a, and supply the generated steam to the chamber 12a to thereby remove wrinkles of clothes.

The steam generator 57 may include the water supply bucket 58 for storing water, a heater (not shown) for heating the water to generate a steam, etc. The water supply bucket 58 may be removably installed through the lower cover 12c described above. A steam generated by the steam generator 57 may be transferred to the lower blower 150 to be supplied to the chamber 12a through the lower blower 150.

FIG. 4 is a control block diagram of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 4, the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may include the inputter 110 for receiving a user's input, a communicator 120 for transmitting/receiving information to/from an external communicator, a storage device 130 for storing driving information of the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 of the clothes care apparatus 1, the upper motor 141 included in the upper blower 140 to rotate the upper fan 142 to rotate the upper fans 142 to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a, the lower motor 151 included in the lower blower 150 to rotate the lower fan 152 to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a, and a controller 160 for controlling driving and rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section of a dust removal course based on driving information.

Also, the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may include the upper heater 170 for heating air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142, and the lower heat exchanger 180 for exchanging heat with air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152 to remove moisture from the air.

The inputter 110 according to an embodiment may receive an input from a user. More specifically, the inputter 110 may receive a command for an execution course of the clothes care apparatus 1 from the user.

The clothes care apparatus 1 may have various courses for caring clothes. More specifically, the courses of the clothes care apparatus 1 may include a standard course for providing a steam to clothes to remove wrinkles of the clothes, to remove dust existing in the clothes, and to sterilize the clothes.

The standard course according to an embodiment may supply a steam generated by the steam generator 57 to the inside of the chamber 12a before air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a.

More specifically, the steam generated by the steam generator 57 may be supplied to the inside of the chamber 12a through the second outlet 54. That is, the clothes care apparatus 1 may provide a steam to clothes hung on the hanger 30 in the chamber 12a to remove wrinkles and smell of the clothes.

Also, after the steam is supplied, the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 of the clothes care apparatus 1 may be driven to remove dust existing in clothes hung on the hanger 30 in the chamber 12a. At this time, the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 may be driven so that dried air may enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a.

Thereby, the clothes hung on the hanger 30 in the chamber 12a may receive the dried air entered from above and below the chamber 12a to be dried. Accordingly, wrinkles and smell of the clothes may be removed and dust existing in the clothes may be removed.

Thereafter, the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 may change the rpms to remove dust existing in inside air of the chamber 12a. More specifically, the dust collecting filter 12e provided on the first upper duct 13 along which air flowing by the upper blower 140 moves may collect dust from the flowing air.

Also, the courses of the clothes care apparatus 1 may include a dust removal course for providing air to clothes to remove dust of the clothes. The clothes care apparatus 1 may have other various courses than the above-described courses.

The courses may be performed simultaneously or sequentially, and one of the courses may be performed alone by a user's selection.

The controller 160 which will be described later may control various devices of the clothes care apparatus 1 to perform an execution course based on information about the execution course input through the inputter 110. For example, when the controller 160 receives information about an execution course indicating the dust removal course through the inputter 110, the controller 160 may control at least one of the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, the upper heater 170, and the lower heat exchanger 180 to be driven to perform the dust removal course.

Also, the inputter 110 according to an embodiment may receive an input for a course execution time from the user, and also receive inputs for overall operations of the clothes care apparatus 1.

The communicator 120 according to an embodiment may transmit/receive information to/from an external communicator through wired/wireless communications. The external communicator may be a remote controller for receiving an input for an operation of the clothes care apparatus 1 from a user and transmitting the input to the communicator 120 of the clothes care apparatus 1. Also, the external communicator may be the user's mobile phone.

The wireless communication may use, as a cellular communication protocol, at least one of 5th generation mobile telecommunication (5G), long-term evolution (LTE), LTE advanced (LTE-A), code division multiple access (CDMA), wideband CDMA (WCDMA), universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), wireless broadband (WiBro), or global system for mobile communications (GSM). Also, the wireless communication may include, for example, a short-range communication. The short-range communication may include at least one of wireless fidelity (WiFi), Bluetooth, or near field communication (NFC).

The wired communication may include, for example, at least one of a universal serial bus (USB), a high definition multimedia interface (HDMI), recommended standard232 (RS-232), or a plain old telephone service (POTS).

The communicator 120 may receive information about an execution course of the clothes care apparatus 1 from the external communicator. More specifically, the user may input information about an execution course of the clothes care apparatus 1 through the external communicator, and the information about the execution course of the clothes care apparatus 1 may be transferred to the controller 160 through the communicator 120. The controller 160 which will be described later may perform a course indicated by the information based on the information about the execution course of the clothes care apparatus 1 transferred through the communicator 120. This will be described in detail, later.

The communicator 120 may receive information about a type of clothes located in the clothes care apparatus 1 from the external communicator. More specifically, a user may input information about a type of clothes located in the clothes care apparatus 1 to the external communicator, and the information about the type of the clothes may be transferred to the clothes care apparatus 1 from the external communicator through the communicator 120.

The controller 160 which will be described later may receive the information about the type of the clothes located in the clothes care apparatus 1 from the external communicator through the communicator 120, and control driving of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time segment of the dust removal course based on the information about the type of the clothes. This will be described in detail, later.

The clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may include, as described above, the upper blower 140 positioned above the chamber 12a to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a, and the lower blower 150 positioned below the chamber 12a to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a.

The upper blower 140 according to an embodiment may include the upper fans 142 positioned above the chamber 12a to move air in a down direction of the chamber 12a, and the upper motor 141 for rotating the upper fans 142 to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a.

The lower blower 150 according to an embodiment may include the lower fan 152 positioned below the chamber 12a to move air in an up direction of the chamber 12a, and the lower motor 151 for rotating the lower fan 152 to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a.

That is, the upper fans 142 may receive a rotatory force from the upper motor 141 to move air in the down direction of the chamber 12a, and the lower fan 152 may receive a rotatory force from the lower motor 151 to move air in the up direction of the chamber 12a.

The storage device 130 according to an embodiment may store driving information of the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 of the clothes care apparatus 1. More specifically, the storage device 130 may store driving information for the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in a plurality of time sections of the dust removal course.

The driving information stored in the storage device 130 may include information about whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections and rpm information of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections.

The plurality of time sections according to an embodiment may include at least one time section in which both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven, and at least one time section in which any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven.

Also, the driving information stored in the storage device 130 according to an embodiment may include information about whether to drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 in each of the plurality of time sections.

Also, the storage device 130 may store various information about the clothes care apparatus 1. To store the various information, the storage device 130 may be implemented as at least one among a non-volatile memory device, such as a cache, Read Only Memory (ROM), Programmable ROM (PROM), Erasable Programmable ROM (EPROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM (EEPROM), and flash memory, a volatile memory device such as Random Access Memory (RAM), or a storage medium, such as Hard Disk Drive (HDD) and CD-ROM, although not limited thereto.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, the upper heater 170, the lower heat exchanger 180, etc. to perform the dust removal course based on information about an execution course received through the inputter 110 or the communicator 120.

More specifically, the controller 160 may receive information about an execution course input by a user from at least one of the inputter 110 and the communicator 120. Also, the controller 160 may control the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, the upper heater 170, the lower heat exchanger 180, etc. to perform the execution course indicated by the information about the execution course, based on the information about the execution course input by the user.

For example, when the execution course indicated by the information about the execution course input by the user is the dust removal course, the controller 160 may control the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, the upper heater 170, the lower heat exchanger 180, etc. to remove dust of clothes located in the chamber 12a.

Hereinafter, a process in which the controller 160 controls the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, the upper heater 170, and the lower heat exchanger 180 to perform the dust removal course will be described in detail.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive at least one of the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 in a plurality of time sections, based on driving information stored in the storage device 130.

More specifically, the controller 160 may drive at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in a plurality of time sections based on driving information. Thereby, the controller 160 may rotate the upper fans 142 to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a, may rotate the lower fan 152 to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a, or may rotate both the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, in each of the plurality of time sections.

That is, the controller 160 may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to rotate all the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections, and may drive any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to rotate any one of the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections.

However, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive only the upper motor 141 to rotate only the upper fans 142 throughout the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, or may drive only the lower motor 151 to rotate only the lower fan 152 throughout the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to rotate all the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 throughout the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive only the upper motor 141 to rotate only the upper fans 142 in some time sections of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, and may drive only the lower motor 151 to rotate only the lower fan 152 in the other time sections of the plurality of time sections.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may change rpm of at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 when a time section changes, based on driving information.

That is, the controller 160 may set rpm of at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section, based on driving information.

As such, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 and rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, in each of the plurality of time sections, based on driving information.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 such that at least one time section in which both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven and at least one time section in which any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven appear alternately in the plurality of time sections.

Accordingly, the clothes care apparatus 1 may provide more various air flows in the dust removal course. For example, in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 may be driven so that air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, and in at least one time section, any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 may be driven so that air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above or below the chamber 12a.

That is, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a of the clothes care apparatus 1 may be provided various air flows according to the control of the controller 160, and therefore, dust existing in the clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may be more efficiently removed. This will be described in detail, later.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper motor 141 to be periodically turned on and off.

The controller 160 may control the clothes care apparatus 1 by driving the upper motor 141 for a predetermined time section of the plurality of time sections to rotate the upper fans 142 to thus cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a. That is, the controller 160 may control the clothes care apparatus 1 to move air in the down direction of the chamber 12a.

The controller 160 may control the upper motor 141 to be periodically turned on and off in a predetermined time section for which air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a.

More specifically, the controller 160 may control the upper motor 141 such that the rpm of the upper motor 141 rises and falls sharply by periodically turning on and off the upper motor 141. Therefore, air may enter the inside of the chamber 12a instantaneously from above the chamber 12a to apply a physical impact to clothes located in the chamber 12a.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the lower motor 151 to be periodically turned on and off, like the upper motor 141.

The controller 160 may control the lower motor 151 to be periodically turned on and off in a predetermined time section for which air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a.

More specifically, the controller 160 may control the lower motor 151 such that the rpm of the lower motor 151 rises and falls sharply by periodically turning on and off the lower motor 151. Therefore, air may enter the inside of the chamber 12a instantaneously from below the chamber 12a to apply a physical impact to clothes located in the chamber 12a.

That is, the clothes care apparatus 1 may provide a physical impact to clothes located in the chamber 12a through air entering instantaneously, thereby more efficiently removing dust existing in the clothes.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine a type of clothes located in the chamber 12a. The controller 160 may determine whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections and change rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections, based on the type of the clothes.

Also, the controller 160 may determine a type of clothes based on an output from at least one sensor installed in the chamber 12a or based on information about the type of the clothes received from an external communicator through the communicator 120. This will be described in detail, later.

According to driving of the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150, dust existing in clothes may be discharged into inside air of the chamber 12a.

The inside air including the discharged dust may flow by the upper fans 142 to enter the first upper duct 13, and the dust included in the inside air may be collected in the dust collecting filter 12e provided in the first upper duct 13.

Accordingly, the clothes care apparatus 1 may collect dust existing in the inside air of the chamber 12a according to driving of the upper blower 140.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a, and change an execution time for each of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course based on the determined amount of dust.

That is, when an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a is small, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may decrease an execution time of the dust removal course. Thereby, clothes of a low degree of contamination may be cared more quickly, and clothes of a high degree of contamination may be cared more satisfactorily. This will be described in detail, later.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper heater 170 for heating air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for exchanging air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152 with heat to remove moisture in the air.

More specifically, the controller 160 may drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 based on driving information stored in the storage device 130.

That is, the controller 160 may drive the upper heater 170 for heating air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, and may drive the lower heat exchanger 180 for exchanging air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152 with heat in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course.

That is, the controller 160 may drive at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for at least one time section of the dust removal course to heat air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 or to remove moisture from air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152.

Accordingly, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may be supplied air from which moisture has been removed, and accordingly, an adhesive force between the clothes and dust due to moisture may be reduced, so that dust existing in the clothes may be more efficiently removed.

The controller 160 may include at least one memory storing a program for performing the above-described operations and operations which will be described later, and at least one processor for executing the stored program. When a plurality of memories and a plurality of processors are provided, the memories and processors may be integrated into a single chip or positioned at physically separated locations.

FIG. 5 shows dust removal rates according to driving of the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 in the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure, and FIG. 6 shows driving information of the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 in a dust removal course of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 5, a dust removal rate in a case of driving only the upper blower 140 so that air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a is compared with a dust removal rate in a case of driving both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 so that air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a.

Herein, the dust removal rate mean a removal rate of dust existing in clothes hung on the hanger 30 in the chamber 12a. That is, amounts of dust existing in clothes before and after the dust removal course is performed may be compared to acquire dust removal rates.

Referring to a graph shown in FIG. 5, it is seen that the dust removal rate in the case of driving only the upper blower 140 is lower than the dust removal rate in the case of driving both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150.

More specifically, when the rpm of the upper motor 141 is set to 2300 rpm, a dust removal rate in the case of driving only the upper blower 140 is 45.2%, whereas a dust removal rate in the case of driving both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 is 63.6%. Therefore, it is seen that the dust removal rate in the case of driving both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 is higher than the dust removal rate in the case of driving only the upper blower 140. At this time, the lower blower 150 may be driven at 1800 rpm of the lower motor 151.

The reason may be because clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a move more freely due to air flows when air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a rather than when air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a.

More specifically, when air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may be limited to left and right movements due to the flow of the air entered from above, whereas when air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may move in left, right, up, and down directions due to the flow of the air entered from above and below. As a result, the clothes may move more freely.

The dust removal rate in the case of driving both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 may be higher than the dust removal rate in the case of driving only the upper blower 140.

Also, it is confirmed from FIG. 5 that, when both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 are driven for air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, dust removal rates change depending on rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151.

The reason may be because, when air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, degrees of reinforcement and interference in flow of air entering from above the chamber 12a are different from those in flow of air entering from below the chamber 12a. Optimal rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 for dust removal may be set by an experiment. The rpm of the upper motor 141 may be set to be higher than that of the lower motor 151 in consideration of dust removal through the dust collecting filter 12e.

Accordingly, in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 may be driven.

That is, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to rotate all the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections, and the controller 160 may drive any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to rotate any one of the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may change the rpm of at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 when a time section changes, based on driving information. That is, the controller 160 may set the rpm of at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section based on driving information.

As such, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 and rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section of the plurality of time sections, based on driving information.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 such that at least one time section in which both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven and at least one time section in which any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven appear alternately.

However, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive only the upper motor 141 to rotate only the upper fans 142 throughout the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, or may drive only the lower motor 151 to rotate only the lower fan 152 throughout the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to rotate all the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 throughout the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive only the upper motor 141 to rotate only the upper fans 142 in some time sections of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, and may drive only the lower motor 151 to rotate only the lower fan 152 in the other time sections.

Accordingly, the clothes care apparatus 1 may provide various air flows in the dust removal course. For example, in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 may be driven so that air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, and in at least one time section, any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 may be driven so that air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above or below the chamber 12a.

That is, clothes located inside the chamber 12a of the clothes care apparatus 1 may be provided various air flows according to the control of the controller 160, and therefore, dust existing in the clothes located inside the chamber 12a may be more efficiently removed.

For the controller 160 to determine whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 and rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course based on driving information, the driving information may be stored in the storage device 130.

The driving information may be stored in the storage device 130 when the clothes care apparatus 1 is manufactured. The driving information may be received from an external communicator through the communicator 120 to be stored in the storage device 130.

The driving information stored in the storage device 130 may include information about the number of time sections included in the plurality of time sections, driving time information of each of the plurality of time sections, information about whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections, and information about rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151.

More specifically, the driving information may include information about the number of time sections included in the plurality of time sections that are performed in the dust removal course. That is, the driving information may include number information for time sections included in the plurality of time sections that are performed in the dust removal course. The plurality of time sections may include two or more time sections, and the number of the plurality of time sections is not limited.

Also, the driving information may include driving time information for each time section. The driving time information for each time section may be information about a duration time of the time section.

Also, the driving information may include information about whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections. Information about whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 for at least one time section may represent that both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven or that any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven.

Also, the driving information may include information about rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections.

Also, the driving information may include information about rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in at least one time section for which both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven, and information about rpm of the upper motor 141 or information about rpm of the lower motor 151 in at least one time section for which any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven.

Also, the driving information stored in the storage device 130 according to an embodiment may include information about whether to drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 in each of the plurality of time sections.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper heater 170 for heating air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for exchanging air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152 with heat to remove moisture in the air.

More specifically, the controller 160 may drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 based on the driving information stored in the storage device 130.

That is, the controller 160 may drive the upper heater 170 for heating air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, and drive the lower heat exchanger 180 for exchanging air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152 with heat to remove moisture in the air in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course.

That is, the controller 160 may drive at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for at least one time section of the dust removal course to heat air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 or to dry air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152.

Accordingly, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may be supplied air from which moisture has been removed, and accordingly, an adhesive force between the clothes and dust due to moisture may be reduced, so that dust existing in the clothes may be more efficiently removed.

Referring to FIG. 6, driving information 600 may include information about whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150, information about rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, and information about whether to drive the upper heater 170 and lower heat exchanger 180, for three time sections of the dust removal course.

More specifically, the driving information 600 may represent that the dust removal course includes three time sections and that the time sections appear for 5 minutes, 15 minutes, and 5 minutes, respectively.

Also, the driving information 600 may represent that, during a first time section, only the upper blower 140 is driven and the upper motor 141 rotates at 2300 rpm.

Also, the driving information 600 may represent that, during a second time section, both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 are driven, the upper motor 141 rotates at 2700 rpm, and the lower motor 151 rotates at 1700 rpm.

Also, the driving information 600 may represent that, during a third time section, only the upper blower 140 is driven and the upper motor 141 rotates at 2300 rpm.

Also, the driving information 600 may represent that neither the upper heater 170 nor the lower heat exchanger 180 are driven in the first time section, at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 is driven in the second time section, and neither the upper heater 170 nor the lower heat exchanger 180 are driven in the third time section.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive only the upper motor 141 during the first time section to rotate the upper motor 141 at 2300 rpm, drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 during the second time section to rotate the upper motor 141 at 2700 rpm and the lower motor 151 at 1700 rpm, and drive only the upper motor 141 during the third time section to rotate the upper motor 141 at 2300 rpm, based on the driving information 600.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive only the upper motor 141 to first remove dust existing in inside air of the chamber 12a, before driving both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to remove dust existing in clothes.

That is, the controller 160 may drive only the upper motor 141 during the first time section to remove dust existing in inside air of the chamber 12a through the dust collecting filter 12e provided in the first upper duct 13 through which air flowing by the upper fans 142 passes, according to the driving information 600.

The reason may be to first remove dust existing in the inside air of the chamber 12a, before both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a to remove dust existing in clothes, in order to more efficiently remove dust existing in the clothes.

Thereby, the clothes care apparatus 1 may prevent the clothes from being contaminated with dust existing in the inside air of the chamber 12a, before air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a to remove dust existing in the clothes.

Also, the controller 160 may drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in the second time section to remove dust existing in the clothes through air entered the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, and then again drive the upper motor 141 in the third time section to remove dust existing in the inside air of the chamber 12a through the dust collecting filter 12e after the dust existing in the clothes is removed.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive neither the upper heater 170 nor the lower heat exchanger 180 in the first time section, drive at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 in the second time section, and drive neither the upper heater 170 nor the lower heat exchanger 180 in the third time section, based on the driving information 600.

That is, the controller 160 may drive at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 in the second time section for which air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a to remove dust existing in the clothes, thereby drying the air entered the inside of the chamber 12a from above and/or below the chamber 12a.

That is, the controller 160 may drive at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for the second time section of the dust removal course to heat air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 or to dry air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152.

Accordingly, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may be supplied air from which moisture has been removed, and accordingly, an adhesive force between the clothes and dust due to moisture may be reduced, so that dust existing in the clothes may be more efficiently removed.

However, the driving information 600 shown in FIG. 6 is an example of driving information, and the number of time sections, a driving time of each time section, whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 for each time section, rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 for each time section, and whether to drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for each time section may be provided variously according to an experiment.

FIG. 7A shows a dust distribution when the dust collecting filter 12e does not exist in the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure, and FIG. 7B shows a dust distribution when the dust collecting filter 12e exists in the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in at least time section of the plurality of time sections. Accordingly, the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 may rotate so that air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a.

That is, the upper fans 142 may receive a rotatory force from the upper motor 141 to move air in the down direction of the chamber 12a, and the lower fan 152 may receive a rotatory force from the lower motor 151 to move air in the up direction of the chamber 12a.

Also, the controller 160 may drive any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections. Accordingly, the upper fans 142 or the lower fan 152 may rotate so that air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above or below the chamber 12a.

As air enters the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may move freely according to the flow of the air, and dust existing in the clothes may be removed according to the free movements of the clothes.

As the dust existing in the clothes is removed, inside air of the chamber 12a may be contaminated with the dust shook off from the clothes. Accordingly, when the dust existing in the inside air of the chamber 12a is not removed, the dust may be again gathered on the clothes.

Also, when the door 20 is opened, a user may be exposed to the dust existing in the inside air of the chamber 12a, and in this case, air of a space where the clothes care apparatus 1 is installed may be contaminated.

Accordingly, the clothes care apparatus 1 may include the dust collecting filter 12e for collecting dust existing in the inside air of the chamber 12a in the inside of the chamber 12a.

Referring to FIGS. 7A and 7B, it is confirmed that an amount of dust in the chamber 12a measured when the dust collecting filter 12e is installed in the inside of the clothes care apparatus 1 is lower than an amount of dust in the chamber 12a measured when the dust collecting filter 12e is not installed in the inside of the clothes care apparatus 1.

More specifically, FIG. 7A is a graph showing an amount of dust in the chamber 12a when the dust collecting filter 12e is not installed in the inside of the clothes care apparatus 1. Referring to FIG. 7A, it is confirmed that, when dust existing in clothes is removed by the flow of air, various sizes of dust may be generated to increase an amount of dust in the chamber 12a, and it takes a predetermined time to reduce the amount of dust in the chamber 12a.

FIG. 7B is a graph showing an amount of dust in the chamber 12a when the dust collecting filter 12e is installed in the inside of the clothes care apparatus 1. Referring to FIG. 7B, it is confirmed that, when dust is removed by the flow of air, an amount of dust in the chamber 12a is reduced as soon as it increases. That is, it is confirmed that a time taken for an amount of dust in the chamber 12a to be reduced when the dust collecting filter 12e is installed is not longer than that taken for an amount of dust in the chamber 12a to be reduced when the dust collecting filter 12e is not installed.

The dust collecting filter 12e may be positioned at the first inlet 12d of the first upper duct 13 through which air flowing by the upper fans 142 moves, and collect dust in the air passing through the first upper duct 13.

More specifically, in the rear portion of the chamber 12a, the first inlet 12d may be formed to cause inside air of the chamber 12a to enter the upper ducts 13 and 14. In the front or rear area of the first inlet 12d, the dust collecting filter 12e for collecting foreign materials such as dust may be installed.

Inside air of the chamber 12a including dust may flow by the upper fans 142 to enter the first upper duct 13, and dust in the air passing through the first upper duct 13 may be collected by the dust collecting filter 12e installed at the first inlet 12d.

That is, dust removed from clothes by air flow and included in the inside air of the chamber 12a may be collected by the dust collecting filter 12e and removed. Thereby, the inside air of the chamber 12a may be prevented from including a large amount of dust, and also, dust removed from clothes may be prevented from being again gathered on the clothes or from being discharged to the outside of the chamber 12a when the door 20 is opened.

FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to another embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 8, the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may further include a weight sensor 210 positioned in the inside of the chamber 12a to measure a weight of clothes hung on the hanger 30 located in the chamber 12a, and a camera 220 positioned in the inside of the chamber 12a to photograph the inside of the chamber 12a.

More specifically, the weight sensor 210 according to an embodiment may be positioned at the top hanging portion 31a of the hanger 30. Therefore, the weight sensor 210 may measure a weight of clothes hung on the hanger 30. However, the position of the weight sensor 210 is not limited to this, and the weight sensor 210 may be positioned at any other location at which a weight of clothes hung on the hanger 30 may be measured.

The camera 220 according to an embodiment may be positioned on one surface of the door 20 to photograph the inside of the chamber 12a. Therefore, the camera 220 may photograph clothes hung on the hanger 30 in the inside of the chamber 12a. However, the location of the camera 220 is not limited to this, and the camera 220 may be positioned at any other location at which it may photograph clothes hung on the hanger 30. Also, FIG. 8 shows a single camera, however, the clothes care apparatus 1 may include a plurality of cameras installed at different locations in the inside of the chamber 12a.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine a type of clothes based on an output from at least one of the weight sensor 210 and the camera 220.

More specifically, the controller 160 may determine at least one of a weight, length, and material of clothes hung on the hanger 30 based on an output from the weight sensor 210 and the camera 220.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may receive information about a type of clothes hung on the hanger 30 based on at least one of a weight, length, and material of the clothes, from an external communicator through the communicator 120.

That is, the communicator 120 according to an embodiment may receive information about a type of clothes located in the clothes care apparatus 1 from an external communicator. More specifically, a user may input information about a type of clothes put in the clothes care apparatus 1 to the external communicator, and the input information about the type of clothes may be transferred to the clothes care apparatus 1 from the external communicator through the communicator 120.

Accordingly, the controller 160 may determine a type of the clothes hung on the hanger 30 according to a weight, length, and material of the clothes based on the information about the type of the clothes received through the communicator 120.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 and change rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, in each of the plurality of time sections, based on the type of the clothes according to the weight, length, and material of the clothes.

For example, when the controller 160 determines that at least one of the weight and length of the clothes is greater than or equal to an upper limit, the controller 160 may increase the number of time sections from predetermined driving information and increase rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section.

Also, when the controller 160 determines that at least one of the weight and length of the clothes is less than a lower limit, the controller 160 may decrease the number of time section from the predetermined driving information and decrease the rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section.

However, the above-described example is an embodiment, and the controller 160 may determine whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 and change rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, in each of the plurality of time sections, based on a type of clothes according to a weight, length, and material of the clothes.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section based on the determination on whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 and the changed rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151. Therefore, the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may more efficiently remove dust existing in the clothes based on the type of the clothes.

Also, the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may further include a dust measuring sensor 230 positioned in the inside of the chamber 12a to measure an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a.

The dust measuring sensor 230 according to an embodiment may be positioned above the first inlet 12d through which inside air of the chamber 12a flows. However, the dust measuring sensor 230 may be positioned at any other location at which it may measure an amount of dust in the inside air of the chamber 12a.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a based on an output from the dust measuring sensor 230. That is, the controller 160 may determine an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a when the dust removal course is performed.

The controller 160 may change an execution time of each of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course based on the determined amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a.

When the amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a is reduced to a predetermined threshold value or less, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may reduce an execution time of the dust removal course. That is, the controller 160 may reduce an execution time of each of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course to thereby reduce the entire execution time of the dust removal course.

That is, in the case of clothes of a low degree of contamination, an amount of dust removed from the clothes when the dust removal course is performed may be small, and accordingly, an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a may also be small. In this case, the controller 160 may determine that an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a is less than the predetermined threshold value, and reduce an execution time of the dust removal course.

Therefore, clothes with a low degree of contamination may be cared more quickly, and clothes with a high degree of contamination may be cared more satisfactorily.

Also, the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may further include a side fan (not shown) located on a side surface of the chamber 12a and a side motor (not shown) for rotating the side fan (not shown) to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from the side of the chamber 12a.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive all of the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, and the side motor (not shown) for at least one time section of the plurality of time sections, and drive at least one of the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, and the side motor (not shown) for at least one time section of the plurality of time sections, based on driving information.

The driving information stored in the storage device 130 may include information about the number of time sections of the plurality of time sections, information about a driving time of each of the plurality of time sections, information about whether to drive the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, and the side motor (not shown) in each of the plurality of time sections, and information about rpms of the upper motor 141, the lower motor 151, and the side motor (not shown).

Because the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment includes the side fan (not shown) and the side motor (not shown), a flow of air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from the side of the chamber 12a, in addition of a flow of air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a by the upper fan 142 and the lower fan 152, may be provided to clothes.

Therefore, flows of air may be provided in various directions to clothes hung on the hanger 30 in the chamber 12a, and accordingly, the clothes may move freely. As a result, as the clothes move freely, dust existing in the clothes may be more efficiently removed.

Hereinafter, a control method of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment will be described. The control method of the clothes care apparatus 1 which will be described below may be applied to the clothes care apparatus 1 according to the above-described embodiment. Accordingly, descriptions given above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8 will also be applied in the same way to the control method of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment although specifically not stated.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a process of controlling the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 in a control method of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 9, the controller 160 of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may drive any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in a first time section based on stored driving information, in operation 910.

More specifically, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to rotate any one of the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 in the first time section which is at least one time section of a plurality of time sections.

Therefore, air may enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above or below the chamber 12a, and clothes hung on the hanger 30 may move by a flow of the air. As the clothes moves by the flow of the air, dust existing in the clothes may be removed, and the dust removed from the clothes may be collected by the dust collecting filter 12e on the first upper duct 13 through which air flowing by the upper fans 142 passes.

Also, when the first time section has elapsed (“YES” in operation 920), the controller 160 of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in a second time section based on the stored driving information, in operation 930. When the second time section has elapsed (“YES” in operation 940), the controller 160 may terminate a dust removal course.

More specifically, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 to rotate all the upper fans 142 and the lower fan 152 in the second time section which is at least one time section of the plurality of time sections.

Therefore, air may enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, and clothes hung on the hanger 30 may move by a flow of the air. As the clothes moves by the flow of the air, dust existing in the clothes may be removed, and the dust removed from the clothes may be collected by the dust collecting filter 12e on the first upper duct 13 through which air flowing by the upper fan 142 passes.

Also, when a time section changes based on driving information, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may change rpm of at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151. That is, the controller 160 may set rpm of at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section based on driving information.

As such, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 and rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections based on driving information.

Accordingly, the clothes care apparatus 1 may provide various flows of air in the dust removal course. For example, in at least one time section of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course, both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 may be driven to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a, and in at least one time section, any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 may be driven to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above or below the chamber 12a.

That is, clothes located in the inside of the chamber 12a of the clothes care apparatus 1 may be provided various flows of air according to the control of the controller 160, and therefore, dust existing in the clothes located in the inside of the chamber 12a may be more efficiently removed.

For the controller 160 to determine whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 and rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course based on driving information, the driving information may be stored in the storage device 130.

The driving information may be stored in the storage device 130 when the clothes care apparatus 1 is manufactured. The driving information may be received from an external communicator through the communicator 120 to be stored in the storage device 130.

The driving information stored in the storage device 130 may include information about the number of time sections included in the plurality of time sections, driving time information of each of the plurality of time sections, information about whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections, and information about rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151.

More specifically, the driving information may include information about the number of time sections included in the plurality of time sections that are performed in the dust removal course. That is, the driving information may include number information for time sections included in the plurality of time sections that are performed in the dust removal course. The plurality of time sections may include two or more time sections, and the number of the plurality of time sections is not limited.

Also, the driving information may include driving time information for each of the plurality of time sections. The driving time information for each of the plurality of time sections may be information about a time for which each of the plurality of time sections appears.

Also, the driving information may include information about whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections. Information about whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 for at least one time section may represent that both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven or that any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven.

Also, the driving information may include information about rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each of the plurality of time sections.

That is, the driving information may include information about rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in at least one time section for which both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven, and information about rpm of the upper motor 141 or information about rpm of the lower motor 151 in at least one time section for which any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven.

Also, the driving information stored in the storage device 130 according to an embodiment may include information about whether to drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 in each of the plurality of time sections.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper heater 170 for heating air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for exchanging heat with air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152 to remove moisture in the air.

More specifically, the controller 160 may drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 based on the driving information stored in the storage device 130.

That is, the controller 160 may drive at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for at least one time section of the dust removal course to heat air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 or to dry air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152.

Accordingly, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may be supplied air from which moisture has been removed, and accordingly, an adhesive force between the clothes and dust due to moisture may be reduced, so that dust existing in the clothes may be more efficiently removed.

In FIG. 9, a case in which the first time section for which any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven is earlier than the second time section for which both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven is shown. However, the second time section for which both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven may be earlier than the first time section for which any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven.

Also, in FIG. 9, a case in which the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course is configured with the first time section and the second time section is shown. However, the dust removal course may be configured with a plurality of time sections including two or more time sections in which different determinations on whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are made and the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are set to different rpms.

However, the plurality of time sections may include the first time section in which any one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 is driven and the second time section in which both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 are driven.

That is, the plurality of time sections may include at least one first time section in which any one of the upper motor 141 and the second motor 151 is driven and at least one second time section in which both the upper motor 141 and the second motor 151 are driven.

In this case, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 such that the at least one first time section and the at least one second time section appear alternately.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a process of controlling the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 in a control method of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to another embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 10, the controller 160 of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may control the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 based on the driving information 600 exemplified in FIG. 6.

The driving information 600 may include information about whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150, information about rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, and information about whether to drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180, for three time sections of a dust removal course.

More specifically, the driving information 600 may represent that the dust removal course includes three time sections and the time sections appear for 5 minutes, 15 minutes, and 5 minutes, respectively.

Also, the driving information 600 may represent that, during a first time section, only the upper blower 140 is driven and the upper motor 141 rotates at 2300 rpm.

Also, the driving information 600 may represent that, during a second time section, both the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 are driven, the upper motor 141 rotates at 2700 rpm, and the lower motor 151 rotates at 1700 rpm.

Also, the driving information 600 may represent that, during a third time section, only the upper blower 140 is driven and the upper motor 141 rotates at 2300 rpm.

Also, the driving information 600 may represent that neither the upper heater 170 nor the lower heat exchanger 180 are driven in the first time section, at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 is driven in the second time section, and neither the upper heater 170 nor the lower heat exchanger 180 are driven in the third time section.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive the upper motor 141 in the first time section based on the stored driving information 600, in operation 1010.

More specifically, the controller 160 may drive only the upper motor 141 such that the upper motor 141 rotates at 2300 rpm for an execution time of 5 minutes corresponding to the first time section.

When the first time section has elapsed (“YES” in operation 1020), the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180, in operation 1030.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in the second time section based on the stored driving information 600, in operation 1040.

More specifically, the controller 160 may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 for an execution time of 15 minutes corresponding to the second time section such that the upper motor 141 rotates at 2700 rpm and the lower motor 151 rotates at 1700 rpm.

That is, the controller 160 may drive both the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in the second time section of the dust removal course to cause air to enter the inside of the chamber 12a from above and below the chamber 12a.

Also, the controller 160 may drive at least one of the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for the second time section of the dust removal course to dry at least one of air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from above the chamber 12a by the upper fans 142 and air entering the inside of the chamber 12a from below the chamber 12a by the lower fan 152.

Therefore, clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a may be supplied air from which moisture has been removed, and accordingly, an adhesive force between the clothes and dust due to moisture may be reduced, so that dust existing in the clothes may be more efficiently removed.

When the second time section has elapsed (“YES” in operation 1050), the controller 160 according to an embodiment may control the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 to be not driven, in operation 1060.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive the upper motor 141 in the third time section based on the stored driving information 600, in operation 1070.

More specifically, the controller 160 may drive only the upper motor 141 for the third time section such that the upper motor 141 rotates at 2300 rpm.

When the third time section has elapsed (“YES” in operation 1080), the controller 160 may terminate the dust removal course.

However, the control method of the clothes care apparatus 1 based on the driving information 600, as shown in FIG. 10, is an example, and the number of time sections, a driving time of each time section, whether to drive the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150 for each time section, rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 for each time section, and whether to drive the upper heater 170 and the lower heat exchanger 180 for each time section may be provided variously according to an experiment.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a process of determining a type of clothes accommodated in the chamber 12a to control the upper blower 140 and the lower blower 150, in a control method of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to another embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 11, the controller 160 of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may determine a type of clothes inside the chamber 12a, in operation 1110.

More specifically, the controller 160 may determine a type of clothes hung on the hanger 30 inside the chamber 12a based on an output from at least one sensor provided inside the chamber 12a and information about the type of the clothes received from an external communicator through the communicator 120.

The clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may further include the weight sensor 210 positioned in the inside of the chamber 12a to measure a weight of clothes hung on the hanger 30 located in the chamber 12a, and the camera 220 positioned in the inside of the chamber 12a to photograph the inside of the chamber 12a.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine a type of clothes based on an output from at least one of the weight sensor 210 and the camera 220.

More specifically, the controller 160 may determine a weight, length, and material of clothes hung on the hanger 30 based on outputs from the weight sensor 210 and the camera 220.

Also, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may receive information about a type of the clothes based on a weight, length, and material of the clothes hung on the hanger 30, from an external communicator through the communicator 120.

That is, the communicator 120 according to an embodiment may receive information about a type of clothes located in the clothes care apparatus 1 from an external communicator. More specifically, a user may input information about a type of clothes put in the clothes care apparatus 1 to the external communicator, and the input information about the type of clothes may be transferred to the clothes care apparatus 1 from the external communicator through the communicator 120.

Accordingly, the controller 160 may determine a type of the clothes hung on the hanger 30 according to a weight, length, and material of the clothes based on the information about the type of clothes received through the communicator 120.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 and change rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, in each of the plurality of time sections, based on the type of the clothes, in operation 1120.

That is, the controller 160 according to an embodiment may determine whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 and change rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, in each of the plurality of time sections, based on a type of clothes according to a weight, length, and material of the clothes.

For example, when the controller 160 determines that at least one of the weight and length of the clothes is greater than or equal to an upper limit, the controller 160 may increase the number of time sections from predetermined driving information and increase rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section.

Also, when the controller 160 determines that at least one of the weight and length of the clothes is less than a lower limit, the controller 160 may decrease the number of time sections from the predetermined driving information, and decrease the rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section.

However, the above-described example is an embodiment, and the controller 160 may determine whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 and change rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, in each of the plurality of time sections, based on a type of clothes according to a weight, length and material of the clothes.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, in each time section, based on the determination on whether to drive the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 and the changed rpms of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151, in operation 1130. Therefore, the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may more efficiently remove dust existing in the clothes based on the type of the clothes.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a process of adjusting an execution time of a dust removal course of the clothes care apparatus 1, in a control method of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to another embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 12, the controller 160 of the clothes care apparatus 1 according to an embodiment may determine an amount of dust in the chamber 12a, in operation 1210.

More specifically, the controller 160 may determine an amount of dust in the chamber 12a based on an output from the dust measuring sensor 230 positioned in the inside of the chamber 12a to measure an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a. That is, the controller 160 may determine an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a when the dust removal course is performed.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may change an execution time for each of the plurality of time sections based on the determined amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a, in operation 1220. That is, the controller 160 may change an execution time for each of the plurality of time sections of the dust removal course based on an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a.

More specifically, when the amount of dust in the inside air of the chamber 12a is reduced to a predetermined threshold value or less, the controller 160 may reduce an execution time of the dust removal course. That is, the controller 160 may reduce an execution time of each of the plurality of time section of the dust removal course to thereby reduce the entire execution time of the dust removal course.

That is, in the case of clothes of a low degree of contamination, an amount of dust removed from the clothes when the dust removal course is performed may be small, and accordingly, an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a may also be small. In this case, the controller 160 may determine that an amount of dust included in the inside air of the chamber 12a is less than the predetermined threshold value, and reduce an execution time of the dust removal course.

The controller 160 according to an embodiment may drive at least one of the upper motor 141 and the lower motor 151 in each time section based on the changed execution time, in operation 1230.

Therefore, clothes of a low degree of contamination may be cared more quickly, and clothes of a high degree of contamination may be cared more satisfactorily.

The clothes care apparatus and the control method thereof according to an aspect may remove dust gathered on clothes and collect dust existing in the inside air of the chamber.

Meanwhile, the disclosed embodiments may be implemented in the form of a recording medium that stores instructions executable by a computer. The instructions may be stored in the form of program codes, and when executed by a processor, the instructions may create a program module to perform operations of the disclosed embodiments. The recording medium may be implemented as a computer-readable recording medium.

The computer-readable recording medium may include all kinds of recording media storing instructions that can be interpreted by a computer. For example, the computer-readable recording medium may be ROM, RAM, a magnetic tape, a magnetic disc, a flash memory, an optical data storage device, etc.

Although a few embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the disclosure, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.

Although the present disclosure has been described with various embodiments, various changes and modifications may be suggested to one skilled in the art. It is intended that the present disclosure encompass such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims

Claims

1. A clothes care apparatus comprising:

a chamber;

an upper fan positioned above the chamber and configured to move air in a down direction of the chamber;

a lower fan positioned below the chamber and configured to move the air in an up direction of the chamber;

a first motor configured to rotate the upper fan;

a second motor configured to rotate the lower fan;

a filter configured to collect dust from the air within the chamber; and

a controller configured to control the first motor and the second motor in a plurality of time sections,

wherein the plurality of time sections include at least one first time section for driving any one of the first motor and the second motor and at least one second time section for driving both the first motor and the second motor.

2. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

an inputter configured to receive information about an execution course from a user,

wherein, when the information about the execution course indicates a dust removal course, the controller is configured to control the first motor and the second motor in the plurality of time sections.

3. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to control the first motor and the second motor such that the first time section and the second time section appear alternately in the plurality of time sections.

4. The clothes care apparatus of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to:

drive the first motor in the first time section,

drive both the first motor and the second motor in the second time section after the first time section, and

drive the first motor in a third section after the second time section.

5. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

an upper heater configured to heat air moving by the upper fan; and

a lower heat exchanger configured to exchange air moving by the lower fan with heat,

wherein the controller drives at least one of the upper heater and the lower heat exchanger in a least one time section among the plurality of time sections.

6. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a storage device configured to store driving information, wherein the driving information includes a first set of information indicating whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections and a second set of information indicating an rpm of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections,

wherein the controller is configured to: determine whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections, based on the driving information, and change the rpm of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections; based on the driving information.

7. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to:

periodically turn on and off the first motor and the second motor during the first time section, and

periodically turn on and off the first motor or the second motor is during the second time section.

8. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to change an rpm of at least one of the first motor and the second motor when a time section changes.

9. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

an outlet configured to guide the air that is moved in the down direction of the chamber by the upper fan; and

a hanger positioned in the inside of the chamber, wherein clothes are hung on the hanger,

wherein the hanger comprises a connection hole connected to the outlet, and an inner outlet, wherein the connection hole is configured to receive the air, and the inner outlet is configured to discharge the air to an internal surface of the clothes, and

wherein the outlet comprises an outer outlet is configured to discharge the air to an external surface of the clothes.

10. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, wherein, based on a type of clothes within the clothes care apparatus, the controller is configured to:

determine whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections, and

change an rpm of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections.

11. The clothes care apparatus of claim 10, further comprising a communicator configured to receive information indicating the type of the clothes from an external communicator,

wherein the controller is configured to determine the type of the clothes located in the inside of the chamber based on the information about the type of the clothes received from the external communicator.

12. The clothes care apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a dust measuring sensor positioned within the chamber and configured to measure an amount of dust included in the air within the chamber,

wherein the controller is configured to change an execution time of each of the plurality of time sections based on the amount of dust measured by the dust measuring sensor.

13. A control method of a clothes care apparatus, the clothes care apparatus including a chamber, an upper fan positioned above the chamber, a lower fan positioned below the chamber, and a filter, the control method comprising:

driving any one of a first motor and a second motor during at least one first time section among a plurality of time sections, the first motor rotating the upper fan to move air in a down direction of the chamber, the second motor rotating the lower fan to move the air in an up direction of the chamber; and

driving both the first motor and the second motor during at least one second time section among the plurality of time sections.

14. The control method of claim 13, further comprising:

receiving information about an execution course from a user; and

when the information about the execution course indicates a dust removal course, controlling the first motor and the second motor in the plurality of time sections.

15. The control method of claim 13, further comprising:

controlling the first motor and the second motor such that the first time section and the second time section appear alternately in the plurality of time sections.

16. The control method of claim 13, further comprising:

driving at least one of an upper heater for heating the air moved by the upper fan and a lower heat exchanger for exchanging heat of the air moving by the lower fan, in at least one time section among the plurality of time sections.

17. The control method of claim 13, further comprising:

determining whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality, of time sections, based on driving information, and

changing an rpm of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections, based on the driving information

wherein the driving information includes a first set of information indicating a driving state the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections and a second set of information indicating the rpm of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections.

18. The control method of claim 13, wherein based on a type of clothes within the chamber, further comprising:

determining whether to drive the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality, of time sections, and

changing an rpm of the first motor and the second motor in each of the plurality of time sections.

19. The control method of claim 13, further comprising:

measuring an amount of dust included in the air within the chamber by using a dust measuring sensor positioned within the chamber, and

changing an execution time of each of the plurality of time sections based on the amount of dust measured by the dust measuring sensor.

20. A clothes care apparatus comprising:

a chamber;

an upper fan positioned above the chamber and configured to move air in a down direction of the chamber;

a lower fan positioned below the chamber and configured to move the air in an up direction of the chamber;

a first motor configured to rotate the upper fan;

a second motor configured to rotate the lower fan;

a filter configured to collect dust from the air within the chamber; and

a controller configured to: drive the first motor to move the air in the down direction of the chamber during a first time section, drive both the first motor and the second motor to move the air in the up and down directions of the chamber during a second time section, and drive the first motor to move the air in the down direction of the chamber during a third time section.