Commercial dishwasher with a drying module, method for operating such a dishwasher, and drying module for a dishwasher

Abstract

A commercial dishwasher includes a hood movable in a vertical direction between an open position and a closed position. The hood includes two opposing side walls and a front wall connecting the side walls. In the closed position, the side walls and the front wall bound a treatment chamber. In the open position, the side walls and the front wall are present above an upper wall and/or ceiling region, which bounds the treatment chamber upwardly and is fixedly connected to a rear wall of the treatment chamber, and there laterally bound a clear space at least partially or in regions. The dishwasher includes a drying module, which is arranged on the upper wall region of the dishwasher and is configured such that it is completely accommodated in the clear space, which is, in the open position of the hood, laterally bounded by the side walls and the front wall.

1 . A commercial dishwasher in the form of a hood-type dishwasher, wherein the dishwasher comprises a hood that is movable in a vertical direction between an open position and a closed position, in a linearly sliding manner, wherein the hood comprises two opposing side walls and a front wall connecting the side walls, wherein, in the closed position of the hood, the side walls and the front wall of the hood at least partially or in regions bound a treatment chamber of the dishwasher, and wherein, in the open position of the hood, the side walls and the front wall of the hood are present at least partially or in regions above an upper wall and/or ceiling region, which bounds the treatment chamber upwardly and is fixedly connected to a rear wall of the treatment chamber, and there laterally bound a clear space at least partially or in regions,
 wherein   the dishwasher comprises a drying module, which is arranged on the upper wall and/or ceiling region of the dishwasher and is configured such that it is completely accommodated in the clear space, which is, in the open position of the hood, laterally bounded by the side walls and the front wall of the hood.   
     
     
         2 . The dishwasher according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein the drying module is arranged such that an upper wall region of the drying module lies in a horizontal plane, which is spaced apart from the horizontal plane by a maximum of 30 cm in which horizontal plane, in the open position of the hood, there lies an upper edge region of the side walls and/or the front wall of the hood.   
     
     
         3 . The dishwasher according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein the upper wall and/or ceiling region bounding the treatment chamber upwardly and the rear wall of the treatment chamber are fixedly connected to a machine frame or a base frame of the dishwasher.   
     
     
         4 . The dishwasher according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein the drying module comprises a housing and a suction fan accommodated in the housing, wherein a fresh air inlet is provided in the housing via which fresh air can be sucked into the housing from the installation room of the dishwasher, wherein a drying air outlet, which is in fluid communication with a drying air inlet of the treatment chamber, is further provided in the housing, via which the fresh air sucked into the housing of the drying module with the aid of the suction fan can be supplied to the treatment chamber, wherein the drying air inlet of the treatment chamber matches the drying air outlet of the drying module.   
     
     
         5 . The dishwasher according to  claim 4 ,
 wherein an effective flow cross-section of the fresh air inlet provided in the housing is variably adjustable, with the aid of a ventilation slider associated with the fresh air inlet.   
     
     
         6 . The dishwasher according to  claim 4 ,
 wherein the drying air inlet of the treatment chamber in fluid communication with the drying air outlet of the drying module is formed in the upper wall and/or ceiling region of the treatment chamber bounding the treatment chamber upwardly.   
     
     
         7 . The dishwasher according to  claim 4 ,
 wherein the drying air outlet of the drying module or the drying air inlet of the treatment chamber in fluid communication with the drying air outlet of the drying module is associated with an air nozzle system having a plurality of adjustable air nozzles for orienting the drying air to be introduced into the treatment chamber.   
     
     
         8 . The dishwasher according to  claim 4 ,
 wherein the dishwasher comprises at least one air outlet for discharging the drying air introduced into the treatment chamber, wherein the at least one air outlet is formed at least partially or in regions in the upper wall and/or ceiling region of the treatment chamber delimiting the treatment chamber upwardly.   
     
     
         9 . The dishwasher according to  claim 8 ,
 wherein the dishwasher comprises a first air outlet for discharging at least a first portion of the drying air introduced into the treatment chamber into the installation room of the dishwasher, and wherein the dishwasher comprises a second air outlet for discharging at least a second portion of the drying air introduced into the treatment chamber, wherein the second air outlet is in fluid communication with an air inlet formed in the housing of the drying module.   
     
     
         10 . The dishwasher according to  claim 9 ,
 wherein the dishwasher is associated with a heat exchange system, to which at least a portion of the drying air discharged via the first air outlet of the dishwasher is supplied, before the drying air is output into the installation room of the dishwasher.   
     
     
         11 . The dishwasher according to  claim 9 ,
 wherein an effective flow cross-section of the first air outlet is variably adjustable, with the aid of a ventilation slider associated with the first air outlet; and/or   wherein an effective flow cross-section of the second air outlet and/or an effective flow cross-section of the air inlet of the drying module in fluid communication with the second air outlet is/are variably adjustable, with the aid of at least one ventilation slider.   
     
     
         12 . The dishwasher according to  claim 9 ,
 wherein the housing of the drying module is divided into a first region, in which opens the fresh air inlet of the drying module and the air inlet in fluid communication with the second air outlet of the treatment chamber, and a second region, in which opens the drying air inlet of the treatment chamber, wherein the suction side of the suction fan is in fluid communication with the first region and the pressure side of the suction fan with the second region.   
     
     
         13 . The dishwasher according to  claim 12 ,
 wherein, in the second region of the housing of the drying module, a controllable or optionally switchable heating device is arranged for heating, as needed, of the air supplied via the suction fan to the second region of the housing of the drying module.   
     
     
         14 . The dishwasher according to  claim 13 ,
 wherein the heating device of the drying module comprises at least one electrically operated heating element, wherein the dishwasher further comprises at least one further electrically operated heating device for as-needed heating of the treatment liquid to be sprayed during operation of the dishwasher, and wherein a control device is provided, which is configured so as to control the electrical power consumption of the heating device of the drying module as a function of an electrical power consumption of the further electrically operated heating device.   
     
     
         15 . The dishwasher according to  claim 9 ,
 wherein the suction fan of the drying module is associated with a drying device for drying at least the air supplied to the housing of the drying module via the air inlet in fluid communication with the second air outlet of the treatment chamber and/or the fresh air sucked into the housing from the installation space of the dishwasher via the fresh air inlet.   
     
     
         16 . The dishwasher according to  claim 4 ,
 wherein the dishwasher comprises an air channel system, via which at least a portion of the fresh air sucked into the housing of the drying module with the aid of the suction fan can be supplied to the treatment chamber, laterally and/or from below.   
     
     
         17 . The dishwasher according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein the dishwasher comprises a washware detection device, which is configured so as to detect the type of washware received in the treatment chamber of the dishwasher, wherein the dishwasher further comprises a control device, which is configured so as to control the drying module as a function of the type of the washware detected, and in particular to adjust a temperature of the drying air supplied to the treatment chamber by the drying module, an amount of drying air supplied to the treatment chamber per unit of time, a timepoint for the activation of the drying module, and/or a duration of the activation of the drying module, all of the above as a function of the type of washware detected.   
     
     
         18 . A method for operating a dishwasher, wherein the dishwasher is a dishwasher according to  claim 1 , and wherein the method comprises the following method steps:
 (i) loading the treatment chamber of the dishwasher with washware to be cleaned, namely while the hood is in its open position;   (ii) transferring the hood into its closed position;   (iii) performing a washing process in which washing liquid is sprayed onto the washware in a recirculating manner; and   (iv) performing a rinsing process in which rinsing liquid is sprayed onto the washware,   wherein, upon completion of the rinsing process, the drying module is activated in order to expose the cleaned washware to heated drying air, within the closed treatment chamber.   
     
     
         19 . The method according to  claim 18 ,
 wherein, between the method step (iii) and the method step (iv), the drying module is activated for up to 15 seconds in order to expose the washed washware to air.   
     
     
         20 . A drying module, which is configured so as to be mounted on an upper wall and/or ceiling region of a commercial dishwasher embodied as a batch-type dishwasher, wherein the drying module comprises a housing and a suction fan accommodated in the housing, wherein a fresh air inlet is provided in the housing via which fresh air can be sucked into the housing, wherein a drying air outlet is further provided in the housing, via which the fresh air sucked into the housing of the drying module by means of the suction fan can be supplied to the treatment chamber of a dishwasher, wherein an effective flow cross-section of the fresh air inlet provided in the housing is variably adjustable, with the aid of a ventilation slider associated with the fresh air inlet. 
     
     
         21 . The drying module according to  claim 20 ,
 wherein an air outlet is configured in the housing of the drying module, via which air from the housing can be supplied to the treatment chamber of the dishwasher, wherein an effective flow cross-section of the air outlet of the drying module is variable adjustable, with the aid of a ventilation slider.   
     
     
         22 . The drying module according to  claim 21 ,
 wherein the housing of the drying module is divided into a first region, into which opens the fresh air inlet of the drying module and an air inlet that can be brought into fluid communication with the treatment chamber of the dishwasher, and a second region, in which the drying air outlet is provided, wherein the suction side of the suction fan is in fluid communication with the first region of the housing of the drying module and the pressure side of the suction fan is in fluid communication with the second region of the housing of the drying module, wherein, in the second region of the housing of the drying module, a controllable or optionally switchable heating device is arranged for heating, as needed, of the air supplied via the suction fan to the second region of the housing of the drying module; and/or   wherein a drying device is associated with the suction fan of the drying module for drying at least the air supplied to the housing of the drying module via the air inlet that can be brought into fluid communication with the treatment chamber of the dishwasher.