Home appliance

Abstract

A home appliance includes: a main body including an accommodation space therein; an inlet duct configured to guide a flow of air including water vapor from the accommodation space; a thermoelectric device including: a cooling portion configured to cool the flow of air guided by the inlet duct and thereby remove at least a portion of the water vapor from the clow of air as condensate, and a heating portion configured to heat the flow of air that is cooled by the cooling portion; an outlet duct configured to guide the flow of air heated by the heating portion to the accommodation space; a storage portion configured to collect the condensate removed from the flow of air by the cooling portion; and a pump configured to discharge the condensate collected in the storage portion from the storage portion.

1 . A home appliance comprising:
 a main body including an accommodation space therein;   an inlet duct configured to guide a flow of air including water vapor from the accommodation space;   a thermoelectric device including:
 a cooling portion configured to cool the flow of air guided by the inlet duct and thereby remove at least a portion of the water vapor from the flow of air as condensate, and 
 a heating portion configured to heat the flow of air that is cooled by the cooling portion; 
   an outlet duct configured to guide the flow of air heated by the heating portion to the accommodation space;   a storage portion configured to collect the condensate removed from the flow of air by the cooling portion; and   a pump configured to discharge the condensate collected in the storage portion from the storage portion.   
     
     
         2 . The home appliance of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a connecting duct connecting the inlet duct and the outlet duct, wherein the thermoelectric device is in the connecting duct.   
     
     
         3 . The home appliance according to  claim 2 , wherein
 the storage portion is recessed from a bottom surface of the connecting duct and below the thermoelectric device.   
     
     
         4 . The home appliance according to  claim 3 , wherein
 the connecting duct includes a discharge hole configured to allow the condensate collected in the storage portion to be discharged, and   the home appliance further includes a connecting hose connecting the pump and the discharge hole.   
     
     
         5 . The home appliance according to  claim 4 , wherein
 the discharge hole is at a low point of the storage portion, and   the bottom surface of the storage portion is inclined upward from the low point so that the condensate collected in the storage portion is guided by the bottom surface to the discharge hole.   
     
     
         6 . The home appliance according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the pump is configured to discharge the condensate collected in the storage portion into the accommodation space.   
     
     
         7 . The home appliance according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a water tank forming a storage space for storing water to be supplied to the accommodation space,   wherein the inlet duct and the outlet duct are inside the water tank.   
     
     
         8 . The home appliance according to  claim 7 , wherein
 the water tank includes:
 an inlet hole, 
 an air outlet configured to communicate with the accommodation space and the outlet duct, 
 a discharge channel connecting the inlet hole and the air outlet, and 
 the air outlet, the inlet hole, and the discharge channel are configured so that, with the condensate discharged from the storage portion by the pump, the condensate is introduced to the discharge channel through the inlet hole, flows through the discharge channel, and then flows through the air outlet to be discharged to the accommodation space, and 
   the home appliance further includes a connecting hose connecting the pump and the inlet hole.   
     
     
         9 . The home appliance according to  claim 8 , wherein
 the discharge channel is between the storage space and the outlet duct.   
     
     
         10 . The home appliance according to  claim 2 , wherein
 the thermoelectric device includes a thermoelectric element configured so that the cooling portion is on a first side of the thermoelectric element and the heating portion is on a second side of the thermoelectric element opposite the first side, and   the connecting duct includes:
 a duct body in which the thermoelectric element is mounted, 
 a first cover coupled to a first side of the duct body and configured to form a cooling flow path together with the duct body, the cooling flow path passing through the cooling portion so that the flow of air guided by the inlet duct is introduced into the connecting duct and is cooled along the cooling flow path by the cooling portion, and 
 a second cover coupled to a second side of the duct body and configured to form a heating flow path together with the duct body, the heating flow path passing through the heating portion so that the flow of air that is cooled along the cooling flow path by the cooling portion is heated along the heating flow path by the heating portion. 
   
     
     
         11 . The home appliance according to  claim 10 , wherein
 the cooling portion includes a plurality of cooling fins extending along a direction in which the cooling flow path extends, and   the heating portion includes a plurality of heating fins extending along a direction in which the heating flow path extends.   
     
     
         12 . The home appliance according to  claim 2 , wherein
 a circulating flow path along which the flow of air is circulated includes the inlet duct, the outlet duct, the connecting duct, and the accommodation space.   
     
     
         13 . The home appliance according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a controller configured to:
 perform a condensate discharge operation in which condensate collected in the storage portion is discharged from the storage portion by the pump before a washing process in which washing water is injected into the accommodation space is started. 
   
     
     
         14 . The home appliance according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a controller configured to:
 perform a plurality of washing processes in which the accommodation space is heated to a different temperature of a plurality of temperatures respectively corresponding to the plurality of washing processes, and 
 perform a condensate discharge operation in which the thermoelectric device is operated and condensate collected in the storage portion is discharged from the storage portion by the pump, based on a washing process of the plurality of washing processes in which the accommodation space is heated to a temperature less than or equal to a reference temperature of the plurality of temperatures having been performed. 
   
     
     
         15 . The home appliance according to  claim 3 , further comprising:
 a water level detection sensor configured to detect a water level of condensate collected in the storage portion and produce corresponding data; and   a controller configured to:
 operate the pump based on the data produced by the water level detection sensor indicating that the water level of condensate has reached a reference water level.