Steam Iron - Step 2: How does it work?

1. Schritt — General operating principle

When the Start button is pressed (item 1), a circuit is closed which powers, via a relay (item 2), the heating resistor placed in the soleplate of the iron (item 6). When the temperature is reached, a beep is heard (after about 2 minutes)

2. Schritt — Water pump operation

The device is made of several smaller bodies that we will look at seperately. We shall start with the water pump.

3. Schritt — Electronic Circuit Operation

The device has a printed circuit board (PCB) located in the base of the tank. The operation of the device is entrusted to a microcontroller (Fig. 15)(PIC16F1820). This manages the inputs-outputs of the device connected to the various elements, probe, sensor, pump and control panel in order to ensure proper heating of the iron.

4. Schritt — Electric circuit operation

The electrical circuit is made up of a power cord with 3 conductors: Phase (brown), Neutral (blue), and Ground (green/yellow). These three wires are connected to the electronic board. The ground wire is extended towards the iron through a protective sheath.

5. Schritt — Hydraulic circuit operation

The water circuit is as follows (red): the water is stored in the reservoir (Fig. 4) When the user requests steam by pressing the button placed in the handle of the iron (Fig. 5), the pump (Fig 3) is started. The water is then sucked up and sent through the tube (Fig. 10) to the sole of the iron (Fig. 6).