Patent ID: 7490491

Claim:
A washing machine comprising: a rotary drum for accommodating laundry; a water supply unit for supplying liquid water; a steam generating unit which generates steam; a first port for supplying steam from the steam generating unit; a second port for supplying liquid water from the water supply unit; a water level detector for detecting the level of water in the rotary drum; an input unit for setting a type of laundry to be washed, indicative of a heat resistance of the laundry to be washed; and a controller which controls a washing operation, wherein the controller sets a first level of liquid water necessary to wet the laundry and controls the water supply unit to supply the first amount liquid water; the controller controls the steam generating unit to simultaneously supply steam and liquid water into the rotary drum to wash the laundry; and if the laundry has poor heat resistance, the controller raises the level of liquid water in the rotary drum to a second level of liquid water that is higher than the first level of liquid water.