KR20090119534A - Cloth treating apparutus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A laundry treating device is provided to reduce the number of components and facilitate assembly by using a coupling member formed in a weight balance and a drum. CONSTITUTION: A laundry treating device comprises a main body, a drum(20), a weight balance(80), and a coupling member(100). The drum is installed inside the main body to be rotated. The weight balance corrects the eccentric rotation of the drum. The coupling member presses the weight balance to the front side of the drum and is installed at one side of the weight balance.

Description

Clothes Treating Apparatus {Cloth Treating Apparutus}

The present invention relates to a laundry treatment apparatus, and more particularly, to a laundry treatment apparatus including a weight balance for correcting the eccentric rotation of the drum.

In general, the clothes treating apparatus means an apparatus for washing or drying clothes. Such a clothes processing apparatus forms a space for accommodating clothes therein and injects clothes, and then performs an operation for washing or drying clothes using various components mounted therein.

Here, the clothes treating apparatus includes a drum for accommodating clothes accommodated therein, and the drum rotates by a driving unit while driving the clothes while raising and falling the clothes stored therein.

At this time, when the clothing is biased at a predetermined position inside the drum, the drum may be transferred in an eccentric state. Thus, in order to compensate for the eccentric rotation of the drum, products having a weight balance in front of the drum have been provided. At this time, in fastening the weight balance to the drum, it was common to install the fastening member in the direction of the rotation axis from the outside of the drum after engaging the side of the drum in front of the drum.

However, a vibration occurs in the drum and the weight balance due to the rotation of the drum, causing a problem that the fastening state of the weight balance is loosened. This is because centrifugal force is generated in the circumferential outward direction by the rotation of the drum, and the weight balance impinges on the outward direction by the centrifugal force during vibration, thereby gradually loosening the engagement state of the fastening member.

In particular, as the fastening state of the weight balance becomes loose, it causes a problem of further increasing the amount of eccentricity during drum rotation.

The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the prior art, to provide a clothes treatment apparatus that the weight balance is firmly coupled even if vibration occurs when the drum rotates.

The object of the present invention as described above, the main body; A drum rotatably installed in the main body; A weight balance for correcting the eccentric rotation of the drum; And a fastening member installed on one surface of the weight balancer to press the weight balance toward the front of the drum to achieve a fitting engagement.

Here, the front of the drum is provided with a seating groove formed along the circumferential direction, the fastening member may be fitted so that the weight balance is seated in the seating groove.

The fixing member may include a plurality of hooks protruding in a circumferential direction on one surface of the weight balance.

Specifically, the drum has a flange extending forward along the outer circumferential surface, and the weight balance is preferably seated inside the flange by fitting.

In addition, the flange is preferably formed in the circumferential direction a plurality of fastening holes for the hook is fitted.

On the other hand, the hook is formed of an extension portion extending to the rear of the weight balance and the head portion is formed at the end of the extension portion is fitted to the drum, the flange is formed with a protrusion protruding along the inner peripheral surface of the hook The head portion may be fitted while pressing the protrusion.

In addition, the protrusion may be formed such that the portion in contact with the head portion is inclined so that the hook is easily fastened, and the weight balance is fixed at the rear of the head portion so that it is difficult to remove the hook after the hook is fastened. Do.

The hook may further include ribs formed along both sides of the extension part so as to limit movement in the left and right directions of the protrusion after being fastened.

On the other hand, the protrusion may be made by bending the lancing portion inward along the circumferential direction of the flange.

Further, after the weight balance is fixed to the drum by the fastening member, it is also possible to couple the weight balance to the drum using a separate screw member.

According to the present invention, even when vibration is generated by the rotation of the drum during the operation of the clothes treating apparatus, it is possible to effectively correct the eccentric rotation of the drum while maintaining the tightly engaged state of the weight balance.

In addition, according to the present invention, the fastening is performed by using the fastening member provided in the weight balance and the drum, rather than using a separate fastening member, thereby reducing the number of necessary parts and improving the assemblability. Have

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a first preferred embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment describes as an example a laundry treatment apparatus for washing clothes accommodated for convenience. However, this is only an example, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Of course, the present invention may be applied to any clothes treating apparatus in which rotation is performed including a drum accommodating clothes.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing the appearance of a laundry treatment apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

The clothes treating apparatus shown in FIG. 1 may include a main body 10 and a drum 20 rotatably installed in the main body 10. Here, a plurality of through-holes 21 may be formed on the outer circumferential surface of the drum 20 to allow the wash water to enter and exit.

And, the rear side of the drum 20 is provided with a driving unit 40 for rotating the drum 20, the front of the drum 20, the door for storing and collecting the clothes into the drum 20 in the front 11 may be provided.

And the outside of the drum 20 may include a tub 30 for receiving the wash water, the outside of the tub 30 for fixing the tub 30 to the inside of the main body 10 60 and the damper 70 may be provided on the upper and lower sides of the tub 30, respectively.

In addition, a gasket 50 may be provided to maintain an airtight state between the tub 30 and the door 11, and a drain hole () for draining the wash water may be provided below the tub 30. Can be.

Therefore, when clothing is introduced into the drum 20 through the door 11, the drum 20 may be driven while the drum 20 is rotated by the driving unit 40. In this case, the washing water accommodated in the tub 30 may be shared using the through hole 21 of the drum 20. In addition, when the drum 20 rotates, the garment may be washed using the property of repeating the rise and fall of the garment.

However, in this case, if the clothing is biased and distributed inside the drum 20, the drum 20 may perform an eccentric rotation during driving. As such, when the drum 20 is rotated eccentrically, not only noise increases and washing performance is lowered, but also the load on the driving unit 40 increases, which may be damaged.

Therefore, in this embodiment, it is preferable to include a weight balance 80 for correcting the eccentric rotation of the drum 20.

The weight balance 80 includes a material having a predetermined weight therein and is configured to include a path in which the material is movable along the circumferential direction. Therefore, when the load is biased on one side of the drum 20, the eccentric rotation of the drum 20 may be prevented while the inner material is biased and distributed to the opposite side of the place where the load is biased.

Here, the weight balance 80 may be made of a liquid balancer including a liquid having a predetermined weight therein, or may be made of a ball balancer including a ball having a predetermined weight.

Hereinafter, a structure in which the weight balance 80 is fastened will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 2.

2 is a cross-sectional view showing a cut surface of the front surface of the drum.

Here, the weight balance 80 may be fixed to be rotated together with the drum 20 to correct the eccentricity of the drum 20.

As shown in FIG. 2, the weight balance 80 of the present embodiment may be fixedly installed to form concentric circles on the front surface of the drum 20.

The drum 20 is rotated while being fixed to the driving unit 40 on the rear side. As the weight balance 80 is installed away from the driving unit 40, a large moment is generated even by a small weight movement of the weight balance 80. Eccentricity can be corrected. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the weight balance 80 is installed on the front of the drum 20 to improve efficiency, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and it is of course possible to install the rear side of the drum 20.

On the other hand, it is preferable to have a fastening member coupled to the drum 20 on one surface of the weight balance 80.

This has the effect of simplifying the assembly process by reducing the number of components required as compared to the fastening from the outside of the drum using a separate screw member, as in the prior art.

Therefore, the present invention preferably includes a fastening member 100 formed on one side of the weight balance 80 and fitted to the drum. That is, bar fitting is performed in the process of seating the weight balance 80 on the drum 20, and there is an advantage that the fastening is possible while setting the position of the weight balance 80.

In the present embodiment, the front of the drum 20 is formed with a flange 23 extending forward along the outer circumferential surface, the mounting groove 22 may be formed in the front of the drum 20 along the circumferential direction. In addition, the weight balance 80 may be seated in the seating groove 22 while being fitted by the fastening member 100.

3 is a cutaway perspective view of the fastened portion of FIG. 2.

As shown in FIG. 3, the fastening member 100 may be formed of a hook 110 formed on one surface of the weight balance 80. In addition, the flange 23 is provided with a fastening hole 120 for fitting the hook 110, and the hook 110 may be fastened while being fitted into the fastening hole 120.

Here, the hook 110 may be formed to protrude directly on one surface of the weight balance 80, or may be configured to protrude after extending a predetermined length from one surface of the weight balance 80.

As such, when the weight balance 80 is fastened by fitting using the hook 110, it is possible to prevent the problem of loosening of the fastened state due to the centrifugal force when the drum 20 is rotated. In addition, since the hook 110 is formed integrally with the weight balance 80 without using a separate fastening member, it is possible to prevent a problem such as the conventional fastening member being removed.

On the other hand, the hook 110 is preferably formed in the inclined surface 111 in the fitting direction. Therefore, even when the hook 110 is protruded when the weight balance 80 is coupled, the weight balance 80 may be easily fitted into the fastening hole 120 while gradually pressing the flange 23 without a catch phenomenon.

In addition, the rear surface of the hook 110 is preferably formed to form a step () to prevent the removal to the front in a fastened state. Therefore, the hook 110 in the present embodiment is provided to form a cross section perpendicular to the outer wall of the weight balance while the rear surface 112 of the inclined surface 111 is bent at a right angle.

Accordingly, when the hook 110 is inserted into the fastening hole 120 by sliding using the inclined surface 111, the rear surface 112 of the hook 110 is caught by the rear edge of the fastening hole 120. Prevents removal from the front.

At this time, the weight balance 80 is preferably installed so that the flow is not made in the seated state is fitted to the front of the drum (20). Therefore, the rear side 112 of the hook 110 is preferably formed so as not to be spaced apart from the rear edge of the fastening hole 120 in a state in which the weight balance 80 is seated.

Figure 4 is a front view of the drum showing the position where the hook is installed on the front of the drum.

It is preferable that portions of the weight balance 80 fastened on the front surface of the drum 20 are formed to form symmetry with each other. If the symmetry is not configured to fit the hook 110 of the weight balance 80 to the fastening hole of the drum 20, the hook 110 and the fastening hole 120 must find a position corresponding only. On the contrary, when the symmetrical configuration is provided, a plurality of positions corresponding to the hook 110 and the fastening hole 120 are formed.

Therefore, in this embodiment, it is preferable to have six hooks 110 and fastening holes 120 at positions symmetrical along the circumferential direction as shown in FIG. 4. Further preferably, each hook 110 and fastening hole 120 may be disposed at intervals of 60 degrees to form the same distance along the circumference.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, after adjusting the hook 110 to be positioned at a position corresponding to the fastening hole 120 of the drum 20, the weight balancer () is inserted into the weight balance from the front to the rear. 80 can be tightened.

Hereinafter, a second preferred embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 5. However, the description similar to the first embodiment is omitted.

5 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section of a portion where the weight balance of the clothes treating apparatus according to the second embodiment is fastened.

In the first embodiment, when the weight balance 80 is fastened to the drum 20, the hooks 110 and the fastening holes 120 are provided one by one at intervals along the circumference. On the contrary, in the present embodiment, the weight balance 80 and the drum 20 may be provided with a plurality of hooks 110 and fastening holes 120 along a position parallel to the rotation axis in one circumferential direction.

That is, the hook 110 and the fastening hole 120 are formed along the circumference, and each of the positions has a plurality of hooks 110 and the fastening hole 120.

As shown in FIG. 5, the weight balance 80 in the present embodiment is a first hook 110a and a second hook which are continuously formed in a direction parallel to the rotation axis at a position engaged with the drum 20. 110b may be provided. In addition, the flange 23 of the drum 20 may include a first fastening hole 120a and a second fastening hole 120b at positions corresponding to the first and second hooks 110a and 110b, respectively. have.

Here, the shapes of the first and second hooks 110a and 110b may be formed to be extremely similar to those described in the first embodiment. In addition, the rear edges of the first and second fastening holes 120a and 120b may be in close contact with the rear side surfaces of the first and second hooks 110a and 110b. It can be formed so that it can be fixed.

According to the present embodiment, in order to couple the weight balance 80 to the drum 20, fitting may be performed in two stages. That is, when the weight balance 80 is pressed from the front to the rear, the first hook 110a is fitted into the second fastening hole 120b and the first fitting is made. When the pressure is additionally pressurized, the first hook 110a is first pressed. 1 is fastened to the fastening hole (120a), the second hook 110b is to be a second fit to the second fastening hole (120b).

In this case, the first hook 110a and the second hook 110b, and the first fastening hole 120a and the second fastening hole 120b are the same so that the first fitting and the second fitting may proceed sequentially. It is preferable that it is formed in a shape.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the weight balance 80 is fixed to the drum 20 in a two-stage fitted shape, so that it is possible to more firmly combine with the drum, and the possibility of being removed from the front is excellent. Can be reduced.

However, in the present embodiment has been described a configuration having two hooks (110a, 110b) and fastening holes (120a, 120b) in one position, it is also possible to provide a plurality in more than two. However, in consideration of the thickness of the outer circumferential surface of the weight balance 80 and the extension length of the flange 23, it may be appropriately adjusted.

Hereinafter, a third preferred embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. However, the description similar to the first and second embodiments will be omitted.

6 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section of a portion where the weight balance of the clothes treating apparatus according to the third embodiment is fastened.

In the first and second embodiments, a configuration of inserting the plurality of hooks 110 into the fastening holes 120 formed in the flange 23 to fix the weight balance 80 is used. On the contrary, in the present embodiment, the hook 110 of the weight balance 80 may be fitted while pressing the protrusion 130 formed at the front of the drum 20.

As shown in FIG. 6, the hook 110 is formed at an end portion of the extension portion 113 and the extension portion 113 extending rearward of the weight balance 80 and fitted to the drum 20. It may be made of a head portion 114 is made.

In addition, the flange 23 may be formed with protrusions 130 protruding at positions corresponding to the hooks 110 along the inner circumferential surface thereof. Therefore, the head portion 114 of the hook 110 may be fitted while pressing the protrusion 130.

In the above-described first and second embodiments, as the hook is inserted into the fastening hole 120 formed in the flange 23, a part of the hook is exposed to the outside of the drum. Therefore, the front of the drum 20 should be formed to be spaced apart from the adjacent tub 30 by a predetermined interval. On the other hand, when the size of the hook 110 is formed small in order to minimize the separation, the weight balance 80 may be easily removed due to vibration.

On the contrary, in the present embodiment, the hook 110 is not inserted into the fastening hole 120 but fixed to the protrusion 130 protruding in the direction of the inner circumferential surface of the drum 20. There is no need to create additional space.

The head portion 114 of the hook 110 according to the present embodiment may form an inclined surface to facilitate the fitting in the fitting direction as described above. After the fitting is made, the rear side surface of the head part 114 may have a stepped shape, such as a cross section that is vertically formed so as not to be easily removed.

At this time, the protrusion 130 is preferably formed such that the portion in contact with the head 114 when the hook 110 is fastened. That is, the protrusion 130 may be inclined in the same direction as the inclined surface of the head 114, it may be easy to fit.

On the other hand, the protrusion 130 is preferably fixed to the weight balance 80 at the rear side of the head portion 114 so that it is difficult to remove the front in the state in which the hook 110 is fastened. Therefore, as shown in the present embodiment, the rear side surface of the head portion 114 is formed of a cross section in the vertical direction to form a bent portion with the extension portion 113, and the protrusion portion 130 is the bent portion It can be extended to be configured to fix the hook (110). Here, it is also possible to form a bent portion having a cross section in which the rear side surface is inclined toward the head portion 114.

In this case, the protrusion 130 may be configured by lancing the flange 23 at a predetermined position along the circumferential direction, and then bending it inward. In this case, there is an advantage that can simplify the process of forming the protrusion 130 on the inner peripheral surface of the flange (23).

7 is a perspective view illustrating a portion where the weight balance of FIG. 6 is fastened.

The hook 110 is fixed to the protrusion 130 after the fitting is made, while being prevented from being removed from the front, there is a risk of removing the rotation direction when the drum 20 is rotated.

Accordingly, the hook 110 may further include ribs 140 formed along both sides of the extension part 113 in order to prevent being detached from the protrusion 130 in the rotational direction.

And, more preferably, the interval between the both side ribs 140 is preferably formed to correspond to the width of the protrusion 130.

In this case, when the hook 110 is fitted, the protrusion 130 is sandwiched between the ribs 140 formed along both sides of the extension part 113 so that the weight balance 80 is connected to the drum 20. Removal can be prevented while rotating relatively.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, in addition to the coupling by the hook 110 as described above, it is possible to couple the weight balance 80 to the drum using a separate screw member (not shown).

That is, the position of the weight balance 80 is fixed while the first balance is made to the drum 20 by using the hook 110, and the second coupling is performed by using the screw member.

In this case, as compared with the case of using only the conventional screw member, the screw coupling is easy in the initial position is determined bar coupling is easy. In addition, it is a coupling method combining a screw coupling and a fitting coupling at the same time, it is possible to improve the fastening state compared to the prior art.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing the appearance of a laundry treatment apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a cross-sectional view showing a cut surface of the front of the drum in FIG.

3 is a perspective view of the fastening portion of the weight balance in FIG.

Figure 4 is a front view of the drum showing a position where the fastening member is installed in the front of the drum in Figure 1,

5 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section of a portion where the weight balance of the clothes treating apparatus according to the second embodiment is fastened;

6 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section of a portion where the weight balance of the clothes treating apparatus according to the third embodiment is fastened;

7 is a perspective view illustrating a portion where the weight balance of FIG. 6 is fastened.

Claims (12)

main body; A drum rotatably installed in the main body; A weight balance for correcting the eccentric rotation of the drum; And And a fastening member installed on one surface of the weight balancer to press the weight balance toward the front of the drum to fit the weight balance. The method of claim 1, The front of the drum is provided with a seating groove is formed along the circumferential direction, the fastening member is a clothes processing apparatus, characterized in that the weight balance is fitted to be seated in the seating groove. The method of claim 2, The fastening member is a clothes processing apparatus, characterized in that consisting of a plurality of hooks protruding along the circumferential direction on one surface of the weight balance. The method of claim 3, The drum has a flange extending forward along an outer circumferential surface, and the weight balance is mounted to the inside of the flange by fitting engagement. The method of claim 3, The flange is a clothes processing apparatus, characterized in that a plurality of fastening holes for fitting the hook along the circumferential direction is formed along the circumferential direction. The method of claim 5, The plurality of hooks and the plurality of fastening holes are each provided with a symmetrical shape along the circumferential direction. The method of claim 5, The weight balance is a two-stage fitting treatment so that the hook and the fastening hole is formed in each of two parallel to the axis of rotation so that it can be seated in the seating portion. The method of claim 3, The hook is formed of an extension part extending rearward of the weight balance and a head part formed at an end of the extension part and fitted to the drum, The flange is a clothes processing apparatus characterized in that the protrusion is formed along the inner circumferential surface is fitted while the head portion of the hook is pressed while pressing the protrusion. The method of claim 8, The protrusion is formed so that the portion in contact with the head portion is inclined when the hook is easy to fasten, and the weight balance is fixed to the rear of the head portion so that it is difficult to remove after the hook is fastened Processing unit. The method of claim 9, The hook is a laundry treatment apparatus further comprises a rib formed along both sides of the extension to prevent being removed from the projection in the rotational direction. The method of claim 10, The protrusion is a clothes processing apparatus, characterized in that the lancing portion is bent inward along the circumferential direction of the flange. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, And the weight balance is fixed to the drum by the fastening member, and then the weight balance is coupled to the drum using a separate screw member.

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