Week 1: 14th may to 20th may Introduction

Introduction to the company Information about Whirlpool corporation by a ppt. presentation Meeting with whirlpool officials Assignment to the fabric-care department Rules & regulations explained Introduction to the Fabric Care department Introduced to fabric care head : Mr. Abhijeet ghanu. Introduced to department team heads Informed about the objectives of the department Given instructions about our work there Washing machines & Dryers Developed understanding about the functioning of washers & dryers Tried to analyze the possible problem areas in the devices Observed different types of washers & dryers available in the whirlpool laboratory Studied in detail the engineering processes employed during the manufacturing of both products Went through the complaints of consumers about washers & dryers to identify the key areas to focus our attention at Generated ideas related to washing machines (& not driers since they are not popular in South-Asian regions). The list of ideas is given on the next page

Ideas related to washing machines

Using the drained out water as a counterweight for the rotor Customers generally complained about the odor that was coming from their washing machine after its use for 5-6 hours. This is most frequently due to the lack of ambient air in the washing machine tub. Usually to counteract this customers are advised to open their washing machine opening for 2-3 hours after washing and then close it. But to avoid this wastage of time, we can introduce an intake and exhaust tub (preferably at outer stationary tub) so that when the machine rotates, the rotation sucks in the ambient air and throws out the air with the odor. This can be done in the running time as well after its use for 2-3 minutes. Most of the noise generated in the washing machine is due to the vibration of the body during drainage. We can detach the drainage port from the rear end of the washing machine and connect the drainage pipe to it. This causes the main body to have minimum amount of vibrations. One common complaint about the front loader washing machines was related to the inability of the customer to be able to add detergents /water while the machine is functioning. As a solution, we can provide a siphoning device on the door that can be used to add detergents/water while the machine is functioning. Another customer complaint is related to the jamming of the agitator when the clothiers get clogged in the space between the agitator bottom and the inner tub. This can be removed by either sealing the gap (if thats possible economically) or providing a sort of barrier at the bottom which can check the jamming of clothes. Most people find laundry a boring thing to do. For the comfort of the consumer, we can install a melody generating device in which he can download melodies/tunes/songs and connect it to the washing machine so that these different melodies can be played out for different operations that are occurring in the machine. That way the consumer will be having the comfort of washing simultaneously knowing about what operation is going on inside the machine. Another cause of noise generation in the washing machine is due to pump starvation. For such washing machines, we can have a microphone in connection with an electric controller to sense this condition and alter the state of the machine accordingly. To balance the rotor in a horizontal axis machine, we can provide perforations in the tub and allow a fluid (water/compressed air) to flow through the perforations at pressure to balance the rotor. Most often, it will need a sensor to detect the unbalance. In places with supply of hard water, we can install a water softening device which can reduce scalping of pipes as well as increase the efficiency of the detergent. Two types of water softeners are commonly used: 1. Ion exchanger type (has a large volume, so maybe inappropriate to use in a washing machine) 2. Capacitive deionization type (has a smaller volume but is more expensive and thus is fit for public laundries.)