Patent Publication Number: US-7895770-B2

Title: Laundry machine

Description:
This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application Nos. 10-2006-0128475, filed on Dec. 15, 2006 and 10-2006-0129481, filed on Dec. 18, 2006, which are hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety as if fully set forth herein. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a laundry machine, and more particularly, to a steam laundry dryer including a steam generator which can prevent wrinkles or static electricity of laundry. 
     2. Discussion of the Related Art 
     Laundry dryers are typically electric appliances that dry washed laundry, mainly washed clothes, by using high temperature air. In general, a laundry dryer is configured of a drum, a driving source, heating means and a blower unit. Laundry is held in the drum, and the driving source drives the drum. The heating means heats air drawn into the drum. The blower unit sucks air into the drum, or discharges air outside the drum. 
     Laundry dryers may be categorized, based on a method of heating air, i.e., heating means, into electric type laundry dryers and gas type laundry dryers. In an electric type laundry dryer, air is heated by using electric resistance heat. In a gas type laundry dryer, air is heated by using heat generated from gas combustion. On the other hand, laundry dryers may be categorized into condensation type laundry dryers and exhaustion type laundry dryers. In a condensation type laundry dryer, air is heat-exchanged with laundry in the drum and the damp air is circulated without being discharged outside the laundry dryer, to be heat-exchanged with external air at an auxiliary condenser. At this time, condensed water is generated and discharged outside. In an exhaustion type laundry dryer, air is heat-exchanged with laundry in the drum and the damp air is directly discharged outside the laundry dryer. Further, laundry dryers may be categorized, based on a method of loading laundry, into top loading type laundry dryers and front loading type laundry dryers. In a top loading type laundry dryer, laundry is loaded into the drum through a top of the laundry dryer. In a front loading type laundry dryer, laundry is loaded into the drum through a front of the laundry dryer. 
     However, the above conventional laundry dryers have the following problems. 
     Commonly, the washed and dehydrated laundry is loaded and dried in the laundry dryer. In view of a principle of water washing, the washed laundry has wrinkles, and the wrinkles are not removed during a drying process in the laundry dryer. As a result, the conventional laundry dryer has a shortcoming that a user should iron out the dried laundry to remove the wrinkles. 
     Moreover, in case that clothes besides the washed laundry are kept and used, the clothes may have wrinkles, crumples and fold marks (hereinafter, commonly referred to as “wrinkles”). Accordingly, there have been demands for development of devices capable of also easily removing the wrinkles generated by the common usage and keeping of the clothes. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a steam laundry dryer that substantially obviates one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art. 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a steam laundry dryer that can prevent and/or remove wrinkles of laundry. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a steam laundry dryer that can facilitate mounting and demounting of a cartridge supplying water to a steam generator. 
     Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings. 
     To achieve these objects and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, a steam laundry dryer comprises: a drum rotatably mounted in a cabinet; a hot air heater to heat air to supply hot air into the drum; a steam generator to supply steam into the drum; a water supply source to supply water into the steam generator; and a container drawably mounted in a portion of the cabinet, the water supply source being detachably mounted in the container. 
     It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principle of the invention. In the drawings: 
         FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view illustrating a steam laundry dryer in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a longitudinal-sectional view of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a sectional view illustrating a steam generator shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic view illustrating a steam generator of a steam laundry dryer in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is an exploded perspective view illustrating an example of a water supply source shown in  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a sectional view schematically illustrating an example of a pump shown in  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a front view illustrating a state of mounting a nozzle shown in  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view illustrating a state of mounting components shown in  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view illustrating an example of a container mounted with the water supply source; 
         FIG. 10  is a plan view illustrating a state of mounting the water supply source with an exemplary fixing part to the container; 
         FIG. 11  is a partial sectional view when  FIG. 10  is viewed from the front; 
         FIG. 12  is a plan view illustrating a state of mounting the water supply source with another exemplary fixing part to the container; 
         FIG. 13  is a perspective view illustrating an example of a water collecting part provided at a container guide for guiding the drawing and inserting of the container; 
         FIG. 14  is a perspective view when viewing the container guide shown in  FIG. 13  from the rear; 
         FIG. 15  is a side view of  FIG. 14 ; and 
         FIG. 16  is a side view illustrating another example of a water collecting part provided at the container guide. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention associated with a steam laundry dryer, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. For convenience of explanation of a steam laundry dryer according to the present invention, a top loading type, electric type and condensation type laundry dryer will be exemplified. However, the present invention is not limited to the above example, and also can be applied to a front loading type, gas type and condensation type laundry dryer. 
       FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view illustrating a steam laundry dryer in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and  FIG. 2  is a longitudinal-sectional view of  FIG. 1 . 
     A steam laundry dryer according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 . 
     A cabinet  10  defines an exterior appearance of the steam laundry dryer according to the present invention, and houses components described below. Inside the cabinet  10  are mounted a rotatable drum  20 , and a motor  70  and a belt  68  to drive the drum  20 . A heater  90  (hereinafter, referred to as “hot air heater”) is mounted in a predetermined portion of the cabinet  10  to create air of a high temperature (hereinafter, referred to as “hot air”) by heating the air. A hot air supply duct  44  is mounted in a predetermined portion of the cabinet  10  to supply the hot air generated from the hot air heater  90  into the drum  20 . Also, there are provided an exhaustion duct  80  and a blower unit  60  in the cabinet  10 . The damp air heat-exchanged with the laundry in the drum  20  is discharged outside the drum  20  through the exhaustion duct  80 , and the damp air is sucked by the blower unit  60 . A steam generator  200  is mounted in a predetermined portion of the cabinet  10  to generate steam of a high temperature. 
     For convenience of explanation, this embodiment shows and describes an indirect drive type such that the drum  20  is rotated by the motor  70  and the belt  68 , however the present invention is not limited thereto. In other words, the present invention also can be applied to a direct drive type such that the drum  20  is directly rotated by directly connecting the motor to a rear surface of the drum  20 . 
     The aforesaid components will now be explained in detail. 
     The cabinet  10  defining the exterior appearance of the laundry dryer includes a base  12  forming a bottom surface, a pair of side covers  14  vertically mounted to the base  12 , a front cover  16  mounted to front surfaces of the side covers  14 , a rear cover  18  mounted to rear surfaces of the side covers  14 , and a top cover  17  mounted to top surfaces of the side covers  14 . A control panel  19  having various operational switches is positioned on the top cover  17  or the front cover  16 , and a door  164  is coupled to the front cover  16 . An air inlet  182  and an air outlet  184  are provided at the rear cover  18 . External air is drawn through the air inlet  182 , and the air in the drum  20  is discharged outside through the air outlet  184  that is a final path to the outside. 
     An inner space of the drum  20  is employed as a drying chamber for drying the laundry. It is preferred that a lifter  22  is installed in the drum  20  to lift and drop the laundry, so that the laundry is turned over to enhance drying efficiency. 
     A front supporter  30  and a rear supporter  40  are provided between the drum  20  and the cabinet  10 . More particularly, the front supporter  30  is provided between the drum  20  and the front cover  16 , and the rear supporter  40  is provided between the drum  20  and the rear cover  18 . The drum  20  is rotatably mounted between the front supporter  30  and the rear supporter  40 , and sealing members (not shown) for preventing water leakage are provided between the front supporter  30  and the drum  20  and between the drum  20  and the rear supporter  40 . The front supporter  30  and the rear supporter  40  shield a front surface and a rear surface of the drum  20 , respectively, to form the drying chamber and support a front end and a rear end of the drum  20 . 
     An opening is formed at the front supporter  30  to communicate the drum  20  with the outside of the laundry dryer. The opening is selectively opened and closed by the door  164 . A lint duct  50 , through which the air in the drum  20  flows outside, is connected to the front supporter  30 , and a lint filter  52  is installed at the lint duct  50 . 
     A portion of the blower unit  60  is connected to the lint duct  50 , and an opposite portion of the blower unit  60  is connected to the exhaustion duct  80 . The exhaustion duct  80  is in communication with the air outlet  184  provided at the rear cover  18 . 
     Accordingly, if the blower unit  60  operates, the air in the drum  20  flows through the lint duct  50 , the exhaustion duct  80  and the air outlet  184  in order, and is discharged outside. At this time, foreign substances including lint are filtered by the lint filter  52 . The blower unit  60  typically consists of a blower  62  and a blower housing  64 . The blower  62  is commonly connected to the motor  70  for driving the drum  20 . 
     An opening portion  42  including a plurality of through-holes is formed at the rear supporter  40 , and the hot air supply duct  44  is connected to the opening portion  42 . The hot air supply duct  44  is in communication with the drum  20 , and is employed as a path for supplying hot air into the drum  20 . For this, the hot air heater  90  is mounted in a predetermined portion of the hot air supply duct  44 . 
     The steam generator  200  is mounted in a predetermined portion of the cabinet  10  to generate steam and supply the steam into the drum  20 . 
       FIG. 3  is a sectional view illustrating the steam generator shown in  FIG. 1 . The steam generator  200  will now be explained in detail with reference to  FIG. 3 . 
     The steam generator  200  includes a water tank  210  to store water therein, a heater  240  mounted in the water tank  210 , a water level sensor  260  to detect a water level in the steam generator  200 , and a temperature sensor  270  to detect a temperature of the steam generator  200 . The water level sensor  260  includes a common electrode  262 , a low water level electrode  264  and a high water level electrode  266 . A high water level is sensed based on whether an electric current is applied between the common electrode  262  and the high water level electrode  266 , and a low water level is sensed based on whether an electric current is applied between the common electrode  262  and the low water level electrode  264 . 
     A water supply hose  220  is connected to a portion of the steam generator  200  to supply water, and a steam hose  230  is connected to an opposite portion of the steam generator  200  to discharge steam. It is preferred that a nozzle  250  having a predetermined shape is provided at a front end of the steam hose  230 . An end of the water supply hose  220  is typically connected to an external water supply source such as a water tap. The front end of the steam hose  230  or the nozzle  250 , that is, a steam outlet is positioned at a predetermined portion of the drum  20  to spray steam into the drum  20 . 
     Although this embodiment shows and describes the steam generator  200  in which the heater  240  heats the water in the water tank  210  to generate steam (hereinafter, referred to as “tank heating type steam generator” for convenience of explanation), the present invention is not limited thereto. In other words, any device capable of generating steam may be used as the steam generator in the present invention. For example, a steam generator in which a heater is directly installed around a water supply hose to heat the water flowing through the water supply hose, without storing water in a predetermined space, (hereinafter, referred to as “pipe heating type steam generator” for convenience of explanation) may be applicable to the present invention. 
       FIG. 4  is a schematic view illustrating a steam generator of a steam laundry dryer in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. A steam laundry dryer according to another embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to  FIG. 4 . 
     In this embodiment, a water supply source for supplying water to the steam generator  200  is detachably mounted. The water supply source may be configured as a water tap as described in the previous embodiment. However, in such a case, the installation becomes complicated. This is because the laundry dryer does not commonly use water, if the water tap is used as the water supply source, various devices annexed thereto should be additionally installed. Accordingly, this embodiment using a detachable water supply source  300  is very convenient in use. In other words, the water supply source  300  is detached from the laundry dryer to be filled with water, and then the water supply source  300  filled with water is connected to a water supply passage of the steam generator  200 , i.e., the water supply hose  220 . 
     It is preferred that a pump  400  is provided between the water supply source  300  and the steam generator  200 . More preferably, the pump  400  can rotate in a forward direction and a reverse direction, so as to supply water into the steam generator  200  or collect residual water in the steam generator  200  as needed. 
     It also may be possible to supply water into the steam generator  200  by using a difference in water column heights between the water supply source  300  and the steam generator  200 , without using the pump  400 . However, because the components of the steam laundry dryer are typically standardized and designed compactly, a structural space is absolutely small. Therefore, if sizes of the components of the conventional laundry dryer are not changed, the water supply using the difference in water column heights is practically impossible. As a result, it is very useful to use the compact pump  400 , because the steam generator  200  can be installed without changing sizes of the components of the conventional laundry dryer. Here, the reason for collecting residual water in the steam generator  200  is that if the steam generator  200  is not used for a long period, the heater may be damaged by the residual water or rotten water may be used in the following operation. 
     While the previous embodiment is configured such that the water supply and the steam exhaustion are achieved through the upper portion of the steam generator  200 , this embodiment is configured such that water is supplied through the lower portion of the steam generator  200  and steam is exhausted through the upper portion of the steam generator  200 . Such a configuration of this embodiment is effective to collect residual water in the steam generator  200 . Also, it is preferred that a safety valve  500  is provided at a steam passage for discharging steam from the steam generator  200 , i.e., the steam hose  230 . 
     Hereinafter, the respective components will be explained in detail with reference to the drawings. 
     First, the detachable water supply source  300  (hereinafter, referred to as “cartridge” for convenience of explanation) will be explained in detail with reference to  FIG. 5 . 
     The cartridge  300  includes a lower housing  310  to substantially store water therein, and an upper housing  320  detachably coupled to the lower housing  310 . If the cartridge  300  is composed by the lower housing  310  and the upper housing  320 , it is easy to clean out dirt of water in the cartridge  300  and to dismantle filters  330  and  340  and a water softening member  350  (which will be described later) to clean and reuse them. 
     It is preferred that a first filter  330  is mounted to the upper housing  320 . In other words, the first filter  330  is mounted to a water inlet  322  of the upper housing  320 , to firstly filter the water supplied into the cartridge  300 . 
     An opening/closing member  360  (refer to  FIG. 4 ) is provided at the lower housing  310  to selectively supply water in the cartridge  300  to the outside. When the cartridge  300  is detached, the opening/closing member  360  blocks the water from being discharged outside the cartridge  300 . When the cartridge  300  is installed, the opening/closing member  360  permits the water to be discharged outside the cartridge  300 . It is also preferred that a second filter  340  for filtering water is connected to the opening/closing member  360 . It is more preferred that the second filter  340  is detachably provided. 
     By using the first filter  330  and the second filter  340 , impurities, such as micro dust, contained in water can be filtered off twice. It is preferable to use the first filter  330  having about 50 mesh nets and the second filter  340  having about 60 mesh nets. Here, the 50 mesh nets refer to that the number of mesh per a predetermined area is 50. Accordingly, since a size of an air hole composing the mesh of the first filter  330  is larger than a size of an air hole composing the mesh of the second filter  340 , the relatively large foreign substances are firstly filtered off by the first filter  330 , and the relatively small foreign substances are secondarily filtered off by the second filter  340 . 
     It is also preferred that a water softening member  350  for softening water is provided in the cartridge  300 . It is more preferred that the water softening member  350  is detachably provided. 
     The reason for using the water softening member  350  is as follows. If hardness of water supplied into the steam generator  200  is high, when calcium hydrogen carbonate (Ca(HCO3)2) dissolved in water is heated, lime (calcium carbobate (CaCO3)) is educed, which may cause corrosion of the heater. Especially, such a phenomenon is accelerated in the European and American continents in which hard water having high hardness is used. Accordingly, it is preferable to prevent the eduction of the lime by using ion exchange resin to remove calcium and magnesium ions in advance. Because performance of the ion exchange resin is deteriorated as the water softening process is performed, the ion exchange resin is regenerated by salt (NaCl) and reused. The water softening process by the ion exchange resin is represented as follows: 2(R-SONa)+Ca2&lt;-&gt;(R-SO)Ca+2Na. The regenerating process is represented as follows: (R-SO)Ca+2NaCl&lt;-&gt;2(R-SONa)+CaCl. 
       FIG. 6  is a sectional view schematically illustrating an example of a pump according to the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , the pump  400  is employed to selectively supply water into the steam generator  200 . It is preferred that the pump  400  can rotate in a forward direction and a reverse direction, so as to supply water into the steam generator  200  or collect water from the steam generator  200  as needed. 
     The pump  400  may be configured as a gear type pump, a pulsating type pump, or a diaphragm type pump. The pulsating type pump and the diaphragm type pump can control the flow of fluid in a forward direction and a reverse direction by changing polarities of a circuit momentarily as needed. 
       FIG. 6  illustrates a gear type pump as an example of the pump  400 . The gear type pump  400  includes a case  410  and a pair of gears  420  provided in the case  410 . The case  410  is provided with an inlet port  430  and an outlet port  414 . According to a rotational direction of the gears  420 , the water flows from the inlet port  430  to the outlet port  414  or from the outlet port  414  to the inlet port  430 . 
       FIG. 7  is a front view illustrating the steam laundry dryer mounted with the nozzle shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , the nozzle  250  is mounted adjacent to the opening portion  42  for supplying hot air into the drum, so as to spray steam into the drum toward the front surface of the drum from the rear surface. The air is drawn into the drum through the opening portion  42  formed at the rear supporter  40  disposed at the rear of the drum, and then flows out to the lint duct  50  (refer to  FIG. 1 ) provided under the door  104  disposed at the front of the drum. Accordingly, the air flow passage is defined substantially from the opening portion  42  to the lint duct  50 . As a result, if the steam is sprayed toward the lower portion of the door  104  disposed at the front of the drum from the nozzle  250  mounted adjacent to the opening portion  42  disposed at the rear of the drum, the sprayed steam smoothly flows along the air flow passage, thereby evenly reaching the laundry in the drum. 
     The nozzle  250  explained in this embodiment can be applied to a laundry dryer without the detachable water supply source  300 . For example, the nozzle  250  can be applied to a laundry dryer in which an external water tap is used as the water supply source  300 . 
     The installation of the steam generator and other components of a steam line according to the present invention will now be explained with reference to  FIG. 8 . 
     A drawer type container  700  (hereinafter, referred to as “drawer”) is drawably inserted into a portion of the cabinet  10  (refer to  FIG. 1 ) forming the exterior appearance of the steam laundry dryer. Preferably, the cartridge  300  is detachably mounted in the drawer  700 . In such a case, it is preferable to mount the cartridge  300  in the drawer  700  and to indirectly connect/disconnect the cartridge  300  to/from the pump  400  by inserting/drawing the drawer  700 , rather than to directly connect the cartridge  300  to the pump  400 . 
     It is preferred that the drawer  700  is provided at the front surface of the steam laundry dryer, e.g., the control panel  19 . A supporter  820  is mounted at the rear of the control panel  19 . Particularly, the supporter  820  is mounted substantially parallel with a top frame  830 , and a drawer guide (or also referred to as “container guide”)  710  is mounted to the supporter  820  and the top frame  830  to support the drawer  700  and guide the drawing and inserting of the drawer  700 . Although it is not illustrated in the drawings, it is preferable to provide a top guide to cover an upper portion of the drawer guide  710 . The drawer guide  710  will be explained in detail later. 
     The cartridge  300  is formed with concave portions  301  at both side surfaces. The cartridge  300  is mounted/demounted by using the concave portions  301 . 
     It is preferable to provide a guide unit to guide the cartridge  300  to be located at a correct position in the drawer  700  when the cartridge  300  is mounted in the drawer  700 .  FIG. 9  is a perspective view illustrating the drawer  700  with the guide unit. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , the drawer  700  has an opened top surface, and has an inner space shaped corresponding to the cartridge  300  (refer to  FIG. 8 ) mounted therein. Preferably, as shown in the drawing, the drawer  700  is formed substantially in a hexahedral shape having the opened top surface, corresponding to the hexahedral-shaped cartridge  300 . In other words, the drawer  700  includes a base  720 , and side walls  722  extending vertically from the base  720 . The side walls  722  are formed along the edges of both side portions and a front portion of the base  720  (hereinafter, an end portion positioned at the direction of drawing the drawer  700  is defined as a front portion, and an opposite end portion is defined as a rear portion). A second guide part  732  (which will be described later) is formed at the rear portion of the drawer  700 . 
     It is preferred that a cover part  724  is provided at the front portion of the drawer  700  to enable a user to easily grasp the drawer  700  when drawing or inserting the drawer  700 . 
     As described above, the drawer  700  is provided with the guide unit to guide the cartridge  300  to be located at a correct position in the inner space of the drawer  700  when the cartridge  300  is mounted in the drawer  700 . The guide unit includes a first guide part  730  and a second guide part  732  which are respectively formed inwardly at the front portion and the rear portion of the drawer  700 . The first guide part  730  is configured as a protruding part which protrudes inwardly from the front side wall  722 , and the second guide part  732  is configured as at least one guide member  732  formed at the rear portion of the drawer  700 . As shown in the drawing, the guide member  732  composing the second guide part  732  is formed in a rib shape extending inwardly of the drawer  700 , so as to guide the installation of the cartridge  300  and reinforce strength of the drawer  700 . 
     It is preferred that a distance between the first guide part  730  and the second guide part  732  is set corresponding to a length of the cartridge  300  mounted in the drawer  700 . As shown in  FIG. 9 , it is also preferred that the protruding part composing the first guide part  730  is formed such that an upper surface  731  is inclined downwardly and inwardly of the drawer  700 . It is also preferred that the guide member composing the second guide part  732  is formed such that an upper surface  733  is inclined downwardly and inwardly of the drawer  700 . 
     By the aforesaid first and second guide parts  730  and  732 , when mounting the cartridge  300  filled with water in the drawer  700 , a user can put the cartridge  300  on the correct position in the inner space of the drawer  700  although she/he does not put the cartridge  300  on the center portion of the base  720 . For example, if the cartridge  300  is put near the front portion of the drawer  700 , the front portion of the cartridge  300  slips by the inclination of the upper surface  731  of the first guide part  730  of the drawer  700 , and thus the cartridge  300  is positioned in the inner space of the drawer  700 , particularly, in the space between the protruding part  730  and the rib  732 . Similarly, if the cartridge  300  is put near the rear portion of the drawer  700 , the rear portion of the cartridge  300  slips by the inclination of the upper surface  733  of the second guide part  732 , and thus the cartridge  300  is positioned in the space between the first guide part  730  and the second guide part  732 . 
     Since the distance between the first guide part  730  and the second guide part  732  is set corresponding to the length of the cartridge  300  as described above, the first guide part  730  and the second guide part  732  perform a role of fixing the cartridge  300  so as not to rattle on the mounting position as well as guiding the movement of the cartridge  300  when mounting the same. 
     It is preferred that the second guide part  732  is not formed continuously at the rear portion of the drawer  700 , but is formed to have an opening portion  739  at a predetermined position as shown in  FIG. 9 . 
     The opening portion  739  performs a role of connecting the cartridge  300  and the pump  400  (refer to  FIG. 4 ). Particularly, when the cartridge  300  is mounted in the drawer  700 , the opening/closing member  360  (refer to  FIG. 4 ) of the cartridge  300  protrudes outside the drawer  700  through the opening portion  739 . Accordingly, when a user inserts the drawer  700  into the laundry dryer, the opening/closing member  360  protruding outside the drawer  700  is connected to the pump  400 , and thus the water in the cartridge  300  is supplied into the steam generator  200  via the pump  400 . 
     The drawer  700  of this embodiment may be further provided with a guide unit to guide the movement of the cartridge  300  by being selectively contacted with the side surfaces of the cartridge  300 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 9 , the guide unit of the present invention further includes a third guide part  734  and a fourth guide part  735  which are formed at both inner side surfaces of the drawer  700 , besides the first guide part  730  and the second guide part  732 . The third and fourth guide parts  734  and  735  are configured as guide members which are protrudingly formed at both the inner surfaces of the drawer  700 . Similarly to the second guide member  732 , it is preferred that each of the third and fourth guide parts  734  and  735  is formed in a rib shape. 
     Similarly to the second guide part  732 , it is also preferred that the third and fourth guide parts  734  and  735  are formed such that upper surfaces are inclined downwardly and inwardly of the drawer  700 . Accordingly, when the cartridge  300  is mounted in the drawer  700 , the cartridge  300  slips by the inclination of the upper surfaces of the third and fourth guide parts  734  and  735 , and is positioned in the inner space of the drawer  700 , in the same manner as the first and second guide parts  730  and  732 . A distance between the third guide part  734  and the fourth guide part  735  is set corresponding to a width of the cartridge  300 . Accordingly, when the cartridge  300  is mounted in the drawer  700 , the third and fourth guide parts  734  and  735  fix the cartridge  300  to prevent the rattling of the cartridge  300  in both the side directions. 
     It is preferred that the drawer  700  of this embodiment is further provided with a position determining unit to determine the position of the cartridge  300  mounted in the drawer  700 . The cartridge  300  mounted in the drawer  700  is put on the correct position of the center portion in the drawer  700  by the position determining unit. 
     Particularly, the position determining unit includes a coupling recess  721  formed at a predetermined portion of the base  720  of the drawer  700 , and a coupling protrusion (not shown) formed at the lower surface of the cartridge  300  correspondingly to the coupling recess  721 . The coupling protrusion and the coupling recess  721  perform a role of determining the position of the cartridge  300 . In other words, when the cartridge  300  is mounted in the drawer  700  such that the coupling protrusion formed at the lower surface of the cartridge  300  is inserted into the coupling recess  721  of the drawer  700 , a user can perceive that the cartridge  300  is located at the correct position. 
     The aforesaid guide unit for guiding the movement of the cartridge  300 , also performs a role of fixing the cartridge  300  to a certain degree. However, the main role of the guide unit is to guide the movement of the cartridge  300 , and the effect of fixing the cartridge  300  is practically insufficient. 
     Accordingly, it is preferred that the steam laundry dryer of the present invention is provided with a fixing member to fix the cartridge. 
     The reason for providing the fixing member will be explained in detail as follows. 
     As shown in  FIG. 8 , since the cartridge  300  is detachably mounted in the drawer  700 , a gap is formed between the outer surface of the cartridge  300  and the inner surface of the drawer  700 . If the cartridge  300  is not fixed due to the gap, vibration and noise may be generated due to the contact between the cartridge  300  and the drawer  700  during the operation of the steam laundry dryer. In other words, when the steam laundry dryer operates, the vibration generated from the motor  70  (refer to  FIG. 1 ) is transferred to the drawer  700  via the cabinet  10  (refer to  FIG. 1 ). At this time, if the cartridge  300  is not fixed to the drawer  700 , the cartridge  300  is contacted with the drawer  700 , thereby generating vibration and rattling noise. Further, when mounting the cartridge  300  in the drawer  700 , a user may feel that the cartridge  300  is loosely mounted in the drawer  700  due to the gap. 
     To this end, the steam laundry dryer of the present invention further includes the fixing member to fix the cartridge  300  in the drawer  700  when mounting the cartridge  300  in the drawer  700 . Preferably, the fixing member also performs a role of absorbing the vibration transferred from the drawer  700 . The fixing member will now be explained in detail with reference to the drawings. 
       FIG. 10  is a plan view illustrating a state of mounting the cartridge  300  with a first fixing part composing the fixing member in the drawer  700 , and  FIG. 11  is a partial sectional view when  FIG. 10  is viewed from the front. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 10 and 11 , at least one first fixing part  302  is protrudingly formed at the outer surface of the cartridge  300 , and has a shape capable of being point-contacted with the corresponding inner surface of the drawer  700 . In other words, the first fixing part  302  of the present invention is not surface-contacted nor line-contacted with the inner surface of the drawer  700 , but is formed so as to be point-contacted with the inner surface of the drawer  700 . Since the first fixing part  302  is point-contacted with the inner surface of the drawer  700 , the cartridge  300  can be fixed in the drawer  700 , and also can be more easily mounted and demounted. This is because the point-contacting structure can decrease a frictional force by reducing a contact area between the cartridge  300  and the drawer  700  when compared to the surface-contacting or line-contacting structure. 
     As shown in the drawings, it is preferred that a pair of first fixing parts  302  are protrudingly formed in a semispherical shape at both the outer side surfaces of the cartridge  300 . A top point of each of the semispherical-shaped first fixing parts  302  protruding from the cartridge  300  is point-contacted with the inner surface of the drawer  700 . When the cartridge  300  is mounted in the drawer  700 , both the side surfaces of the cartridge  300  are fixed by the first fixing parts  302 , and the front and rear portions of the cartridge  300  are fixed while being closely contacted with the inner surface of the drawer  700 . Further, when mounting the cartridge  300  in the drawer  700 , a user can feel that the cartridge  300  is tightly fixed in the drawer  700  by the first fixing parts  302 . 
     Although this embodiment has described that the fixing part is formed in a semispherical shape, the shape of the fixing part is not limited thereto. The fixing part can be formed in various shapes having a point-contacting structure. 
     It is preferred that the first fixing part  302  for fixing the cartridge  300  in the drawer  700  also performs a role of absorbing vibration transferred from the motor  70  (refer to  FIG. 1 ) to the cartridge  300  via the cabinet  10  (refer to  FIG. 1 ) and the drawer  700 . A material of the first fixing part  302  is not certainly limited. The first fixing part  302  may be made of a rigid material capable of fixing the cartridge  300 . Preferably, the first fixing part  302  is made of an elastic material capable of absorbing the vibration transferred from the drawer  700  to the cartridge  300 . 
     The first fixing part  302  can be formed at any position capable of fixing the cartridge  300 . Preferably, as shown in  FIGS. 10 and 11 , a pair of first fixing parts  302  are protrudingly formed at both the side surfaces of the cartridge  300 . Accordingly, the cartridge  300  can be fixedly mounted in the drawer  700  by the first fixing parts  302  which are protrudingly formed at both the side surfaces of the cartridge  300 . Further, if the first fixing part  302  is made of an elastic material, the first fixing part  302  can absorb the vibration transferred from the drawer  700  to both the side surfaces of the cartridge  300 . 
       FIG. 12  is a plan view illustrating a state of mounting the cartridge with another exemplary fixing member in the drawer. In comparison with the previous embodiment, the fixing member of this embodiment further includes second fixing parts  304  which are formed at the rear and front surfaces of the cartridge  300 . Such a feature of the fixing member of this embodiment distinguished over the previous embodiment will now be explained. 
     In the previous embodiment, the first fixing parts  302  formed at both the side surfaces of the cartridge  300  can fix both the side surfaces of the cartridge  300  and absorb the vibration transferred to both the side surfaces of the cartridge  300 . However, the previous embodiment has a shortcoming that it is difficult to fix the cartridge  300  in a length direction, i.e., in a direction of the pump  400  (refer to  FIG. 4 ) although the front and rear portions of the cartridge  300  are closely contacted with the inner surface of the drawer  700 . 
     To cope with this problem, the fixing member of this embodiment further includes the second fixing parts  304  which are formed at the rear and front surfaces of the cartridge  300 , so that the cartridge  300  can be more securely fixed in the all directions by the second fixing parts  304  as well as the first fixing parts  302 . Similarly to the first fixing part  302 , it is preferred that the second fixing part  304  is made of an elastic material, so as to absorb the vibration transferred from the drawer  700 . 
     Although it is not illustrated in the drawings, the fixing member may be separately mounted from the guide unit shown in  FIG. 9 , or may be mounted together with the guide unit. 
     Hereinafter, the drawer guide  710  for guiding the movement of the drawer  700  will be described with reference to the drawings. 
       FIG. 13  is a partial perspective view illustrating an example of the drawer guide  710 , and  FIG. 14  is a perspective view when  FIG. 13  is viewed from the rear. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 13 and 14 , the upper portion and one side surface (at a direction of the front surface of the steam laundry dryer) of the drawer guide  710  are opened. Particularly, the drawer guide  710  includes a base  712 , and a pair of side walls  714  extending vertically from both side surfaces of the base  712 . The drawer guide  710  is mounted to the front surface of the steam laundry dryer, and the drawer  700  is inserted into or drawn out of a space defined by the base  712  and the side walls  714 . 
     The pump  400 , which is connected to the cartridge  300  (refer to  FIG. 8 ), is mounted in the rear portion of the drawer guide  710 . Therefore, when the drawer  700  is inserted into the laundry dryer, the opening/closing member  360  of the cartridge  300  is connected to the pump  400 , and thus the water in the cartridge  300  is supplied into the steam generator  200  via the pump  400 . When the cartridge  300  is connected to or disconnected from the pump  400 , the opening/closing member  360  prevents the water leakage through the connecting portion between the cartridge  300  and the pump  400 . But, such a water leakage preventing effect of the opening/closing member  360  is not perfect, and a small amount of water may leak. The leaking water moves along the base  712  of the drawer guide  710  when the drawer  700  moves, which has a bad effect on aesthetics. 
     To cope with this problem, the drawer guide  710  of this embodiment is provided with a water collecting part to collect water leaking from the connecting portion between the cartridge  300  and the pump  400 , more particularly, from the connecting portion between the opening/closing member  360  and the pump  400 .  FIGS. 13 and 14  show an example of the water collecting part provided at the drawer guide  710 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 13 and 14 , a water collecting part  716  is configured as a concave part which is formed at the base  712  of the drawer guide  710 . The concave part  716  is formed at the base  712 , corresponding to a connecting portion between the opening/closing member  360  (refer to  FIG. 4 ) of the water supply source  300  and a connecting member  432  connected to the inlet port  430  of the pump  400 . Although water leaks from the connecting portion between the opening/closing member  360  of the water supply source  300  and the connecting member  432  of the pump  400 , the leaking water is collected in the concave part  716  without moving on the upper surface of the base  712  of the drawer guide  710 . The water collected in the concave part  716  evaporates as time passes. 
     Even when the leaking water is collected in the concave part  716 , it is preferred that the leaking water is invisible to a user. Accordingly, as shown in  FIG. 15 , the concave part  716  is inclined rearwardly of the drawer guide  710  at a predetermined angle, e.g., at 2 degrees. By the concave part  716  inclined rearwardly, the leaking water moves along the inclination of the concave part  716 , and gathers in the rear portion of the concave part  716  adjacent to the rear surface of the drawer guide  710 . Accordingly, even when a user draws the drawer  700  from the drawer guide  710 , the leaking water gathering in the rear portion of the concave part  716  is invisible to a user. 
     As described above, the leaking water may be invisible to a user by the concave part  716  which is inclinedly formed. It is more preferred that the drawer guide  710  is provided with a shielding member to shield the rear portion of the concave part  716  so that even when the drawer  700  is drawn out, the rear portion of the concave part  716  is invisible from the front of the drawer guide  710 . In this embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 14 , the shielding member is configured as a shielding plate  711 . 
     The shielding plate  711  is provided at the drawer guide  710 , adjacent to the pump  400 . Particularly, when seen from the front of the drawer guide  710 , the shielding plate  711  is mounted across the concave part  716  so as to shield the rear portion of the concave part  716 . Accordingly, even when the drawer  700  is drawn out, the rear portion of the concave part  716  is invisible to a user by the shielding plate  711 . 
     The shielding plate  711  is formed with a hole (not shown), and a supporting bracket  713  is mounted around the hole. The inlet port  430  of the pump  400  and the connecting member  432  are connected to each other by the hole and the supporting bracket  713 . When water leaks between the opening/closing member  360  and the connecting member  432 , the leaking water drops on the concave part  716 . The water dropping on the concave part  716  flows below the shielding plate  711  by the inclination of the concave part  716 , and gathers in the rear portion of the concave part  716 . 
       FIG. 16  is a side view illustrating another example of the water collecting part. 
     Referring to  FIG. 16 , a water collecting part  916  of this embodiment is configured as a base  912  which is inclined rearwardly. In other words, the base  912  of the drawer guide  710  is inclined rearwardly overall at a predetermined angle, e.g., at 2 degrees. Accordingly, the water leaking between the opening/closing member  360  and the connecting member  432  flows along the inclined base  912 , and gathers in the rear portion of the drawer guide  710 . An overflow preventing wall  920  is provided at the rear end portion of the drawer guide  710  so as to prevent the collected water from overflowing the drawer guide  710 . The water flowing to the rear portion of the drawer guide  710  does not overflow outside by the overflow preventing wall  920 . 
     It is also preferred that the drawer guide  710  of this embodiment is provided with a shielding plate  911 . The shielding plate  911  is provided at a predetermined portion of the drawer guide  710  to shield the rear portion of the inclined base  912  to be invisible. Differently from the embodiment shown in  FIG. 13 , the shielding plate  911  of this embodiment is disposed at a predetermined gap from the base  912 . This is to enable the leaking water to flow through the gap between the shielding plate  911  and the base  912  and gather in the rear portion of the base  912 . Although it is not illustrated in the drawings, the shielding plate  911  may be mounted to be closely contacted with the base  912 . In such a case, so as for the water to flow to the rear portion of the drawer guide  710 , the shielding plate  911  is formed with at least one flow hole in contact with the base  912 . 
     Hereinafter, a process of supplying water into the cartridge  300  will be explained with reference to  FIG. 8 . 
     If a user draws out the drawer  700 , the cartridge  300  is also drawn out therewith. Then, the user dismantles the cartridge  300  from the drawer  700 . Water is supplied into the cartridge  300  through the water inlet  322  so that the cartridge  300  is filled with the water. The cartridge  300  filled with the water is mounted again in the drawer  700 , and the drawer  700  is pushed in. The opening/closing member  360  of the cartridge  300  is automatically connected to the pump  400 , and the water in the cartridge  300  flows to the pump  400 . 
     When the operation of the steam laundry dryer is completed, the cartridge  300  can be removed from the drawer  700 . Since the cartridge  300  is composed of the upper housing  320  and the lower housing  310 , it is easy to clean the removed cartridge  300 . 
     Experimental results by this inventor show that the steam laundry dryer according to the present invention has an effect of removing and preventing wrinkles of laundry, although there is a difference according to the kinds of laundry, e.g., the kinds of cloths, hygroscopic properties, and the like. The object to be dried by the steam laundry dryer is generally the laundry dehydrated by a washing machine, however this is not restricted thereto. For example, the steam laundry dryer according to the present invention can remove wrinkles of the clothes that a user has worn for one day or more, i.e., the already dried clothes having few wrinkles. In other words, the steam laundry dryer according to the present invention also can be used as a kind of wrinkle-removing apparatus. 
     The steam laundry dryer according to the present invention may have the following advantageous effects. 
     First, wrinkles or crumples generated on the dried laundry can be effectively prevented or removed. Further, sterilization and deodorization of the dried laundry can be achieved. 
     Second, wrinkles or crumples of the clothes that are in a dried state, can be effectively removed without additional ironing. 
     Third, although water leakage occurs in the steam laundry dryer, the leaking water is shielded to be invisible to a user. 
     Fourth, vibration of the water supply source during the operation of the steam laundry dryer can be prevented, thereby remarkably decreasing noise. 
     It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the inventions. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.