WO2016119871A1

WO2016119871A1 - Laundry dryer for use with a drying rack

Info

Publication number: WO2016119871A1
Application number: PCT/EP2015/051887
Authority: WO
Inventors: Onur MUHIDDIN; Umit Gulbay; Aykun ACIL; Volkan CERKEZ
Original assignee: Arcelik Anonim Sirketi
Priority date: 2015-01-30
Filing date: 2015-01-30
Publication date: 2016-08-04

Abstract

The present invention relates to a laundry dryer (1) which is suitable for use with a drying rack (2). The laundry dryer (1) comprises a main body (3) which includes a drum for receiving the laundry, a bearing (4) for rotatably supporting the drum; a motor for rotating the drum and a retainer (5) for immovably deploying the drying rack (2) into the drum. The laundry dryer of the present invention comprises a stowage chamber (6) for releasably stowing the drying rack (2). The stowage chamber (6) is disposed within the main body (3) into a space that is located outside the drum. The present invention also provides a drying rack (2) which is adapted for being received by the stowage chamber (6).

Description

LAUNDRY DRYER FOR USE WITH A DRYING RACK

The present invention relates to a laundry dryer, in particular a laundry dryer for domestic use .The present invention more particularly relates to a laundry dryer which is adapted for use with a drying rack.

Several techniques have been devised for drying wet laundry. In particular, ventless laundry dryers such as heat-pump type laundry dryers and condenser type laundry dryers are commonly known. In such laundry dryers, the clothes are generally dried by conveying hot process air through the rotating drum. A drawback of such drying technique is that the delicate laundry is generally subjected to excessive wear and tear as they are rotated inside the drum. For overcoming such drawbacks, a laundry dryer is usually provided with a drying rack which can be releasably and immovably deployed into the rotating drum. A prior art drying rack generally includes a perforated basket which allows the hot process air to flow through and dry the laundry therein.

WO2012/110319 A2 discloses a laundry dryer which is equipped with a releasable drying rack for holding the laundry inside the drum. This prior art drying rack can be releasably and immovably deployed into the drum of the laundry dryer so that it does not rotate during the drying process.

In general, the user deploys the drying rack immovably into the drum and subsequently loads the drying rack with the delicate laundry to be dried. When the drying process is terminated, the user takes the delicate laundry out of the drum. If there is no further laundry to be dried, the user usually leaves the drying rack inside the drum. However, if the user intends to dry laundry without using the drying rack, then the drying rack must be released and stowed outside the drum, for instance in the laundry room where it occupies useful space and becomes a serious obstacle.

An objective of the present invention is to provide a laundry dryer and a drying rack which overcomes the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art in a cost effective way and which enables an improved usability.

This objective has been achieved by the laundry dryer as defined in claim 1 and the drying rack as defined in claim 7. Further achievements have been attained by the subject-matters respectively defined in the dependent claims.

The laundry dryer of the present invention comprises a stowage chamber for releasably stowing the drying rack. The stowage chamber is disposed into a space within the main body that is located outside the drum.

With the present invention, the user has been enabled to easily stow the drying rack either inside the drum or inside the stowage chamber in the main body. Thereby, the drying rack can be prevented from getting lost and becoming a serious obstacle in the laundry room and unnecessarily occupying useful space. Thus, the utilizable space of the laundry room can be efficiently increased. With the present invention, particularly by virtue of the stowage chamber, the user has been enabled to quickly and easily access the drying rack in case of need and deploy the same into the drum. Thereby, the user can be also relieved from searching for the drying rack in the laundry room. With the present invention, the consumer satisfaction can be increased.

In an embodiment, the stowage chamber is openable/closable by means of a protective cover that is easily accessible to the user.

In another embodiment, the stowage chamber and the protective cover are located on the lower front side of the main body.

In another embodiment, the laundry dryer is provided as a heat-pump type laundry dryer. In this embodiment, the stowage chamber is disposed below the heat exchangers.

In an alternative embodiment, the stowage chamber is alternatively disposed below the drum motor.

The present invention also provides a drying rack for use with the laundry dryer. The stowage chamber has a size and shape which matches the drying rack.

In another embodiment, the drying rack is non-foldable. In an alternative embodiment, the drying rack is foldable into a collapsed state for stowage. In this alternative embodiment, the stowage chamber receives the drying rack exclusively in the collapsed state. In this alternative embodiment, the drying rack has been rendered collapsible so as to occupy a comparatively small stowage space. Thereby, the user can easily stow the drying rack either inside the drum or the stowage chamber in the main body.

In another embodiment, the foldable drying rack comprises at least three lattices for holding the articles to be dried such as clothes, shoes and the like. These lattices are serially and pivotably connected through a hinge mechanism. In addition, these lattices can be manually and selectively brought into either one of an unfolded state for laying the laundry flat on the lattices, a z-like folded state for deployment into the drum together with the folded laundry and a collapsed state for stowage. Thereby, the user has been enabled to lay the laundry to be dried flat onto the unfolded drying rack and to fold the drying rack concurrently with the laundry thereon into the z-like folded state and to deploy the drying rack together with the z-like folded laundry into the drum. Thus, the user has been enabled to bring the drying rack in a few actions in a folded state, namely a state which is ready for deployment into the drum while simultaneously folding the laundry. Thereby, also the burden on folding the laundry has been eased. With the foldable drying rack, the laundry can be prevented from developing wrinkles and creases during the drying process due to its orderly folded state. Thus, the user can be relieved from doing some additional ironing work to smooth out the resistant wrinkles and creases. In addition, the drying process of the laundry becomes shorter and the energy consumption is reduced due to the z-like folded state of the laundry which has an effectively larger drying surface that can be brought into contact with the hot process air. Thereby, the consumer satisfaction can be increased.

Additional advantages of the laundry dryer and the drying rack according to the present invention will now become apparent with the detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 – is a schematic partial perspective view of a laundry dryer which has a stowage chamber for stowing a drying rack according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the drying rack is in a z-like folded state and immovably deployed into the drum and wherein the folded laundry has been omitted for ease of illustration;

Figure 2 – is a schematic partial perspective view of the laundry dryer which has the stowage chamber for stowing a drying rack according to an embodiment of the present, wherein the drying rack is in the collapsed state and inserted into the stowage chamber;

Figure 3 – is a schematic partial perspective view of the laundry dryer which has the stowage chamber for stowing the drying rack according to an embodiment of the present, wherein the drying rack is in the collapsed state and partly pulled out of the stowage chamber;

Figure 4 – is a schematic perspective view of a drying rack according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the drying rack is in the z-like folded state which is ready for deployment into the drum and wherein the folded laundry has been omitted for ease of illustration;

Figure 5 – is a schematic perspective view of the drying rack according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the drying rack is in the unfolded state which is ready for laying the laundry such as a trouser or the like flat thereon and wherein the flat laid laundry has been omitted for ease of illustration;

Figure 6 – is a schematic perspective view of the drying rack according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the drying rack is in the collapsed state which is ready for stowage.

The reference signs appearing on the drawings relate to the following technical features.

Laundry dryer
Drying rack
Main body
Bearing
Retainer
Stowage chamber
Front section
Lattice
Lattice
Lattice

The laundry dryer (1) is suitable for use with a releasable drying rack (2).

The laundry dryer (1) comprises a main body (3) which includes a drum (not shown) for receiving the laundry (not shown); a bearing (4) for rotatably supporting the drum; an electric motor (not shown) for rotating the drum and a retainer (5) for releasably and immovably deploying the drying rack (2) into the drum. The drying rack (2) comprises means for releasably engaging with the retainer (5) and means for holding the articles to be dried (Fig. 1 to 6).

The laundry dryer (1) of the present invention comprises a stowage chamber (6) for releasably stowing the drying rack (2). The stowage chamber (6) is disposed into a space within the main body (3) that is located outside the drum.

The present invention also provides a drying rack (2) for use with the laundry dryer (1). The drying rack (2) of the present invention is adapted for being received by the stowage chamber (6).

In an embodiment, the laundry dryer (1) comprises a protective cover (not shown) which is detachably attachable to the main body (3) for opening/closing the stowage chamber (6).

In another embodiment, the laundry dryer (1) is provided as a heat-pump type laundry dryer (1). In this embodiment, the laundry dryer (1) comprises a heat-pump unit for drying the laundry by process air. The heat-pump unit comprises heat exchangers (not shown). And the stowage chamber (6) is disposed into the space below the heat exchangers.

In an alternative embodiment, the stowage chamber (6) is disposed into the space below the motor.

In another embodiment, the retainer (5) is disposed into the front section (7) of the bearing (4).

In another embodiment, the drying rack (2) is foldable into a collapsed state for stowage in the stowage chamber (6). In this embodiment, the laundry dryer (1) is adapted for exclusively receiving the drying rack (2) in the collapsed state.

In another embodiment, the article holding means of the drying rack (2) comprises a leading lattice (8), an intermediate lattice (9) and an end lattice (10) which are serially and pivotably connected. These lattices (8, 9, 10) selectively assume an unfolded state for laying the laundry flat on the lattices (8, 9, 10), a z-like folded state for deployment into the drum together with the folded laundry and a collapsed state for stowage. In the unfolded state the lattices (8, 9, 10) are all horizontally side by side. In the z-like folded state the leading lattice (8) and the end lattice (10) are horizontal and the intermediate lattice (9) is inclined. In the collapsed state the lattices (8, 9, 10) are all horizontal one above the other. In this embodiment, the stowage chamber (6) is adapted for exclusively receiving the drying rack (2) in the collapsed state.

Claims

A laundry dryer (1) suitable for use with a releasable drying rack (2), the laundry dryer (1) comprising a main body (3) which includes a drum for receiving the laundry; a bearing (4) for rotatably supporting the drum; a motor for rotating the drum and a retainer (5) for releasably and immovably deploying the drying rack (2) into the drum, the laundry dryer (1) being characterized in that a stowage chamber (6) for releasably stowing the drying rack (2), wherein the stowage chamber (6) is disposed into a space within the main body (3) that is located outside the drum.
The laundry dryer (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that a protective cover which is detachably attachable to the main body (3) for opening/closing the stowage chamber (6).
The laundry dryer (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a heat-pump unit for drying the laundry by process air, wherein the heat-pump unit comprises heat exchangers and wherein the stowage chamber (6) is disposed into the space below the heat exchangers.
The laundry dryer (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the stowage chamber (6) is disposed into the space below the motor.
The laundry dryer (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the retainer (5) is disposed into the front section (7) of the bearing (4).
The laundry dryer (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the drying rack (2) is foldable into a collapsed state for stowage, the laundry dryer (1) being characterized in that the stowage chamber (6) is adapted for exclusively receiving the drying rack (2) in the collapsed state.
A drying rack (2) for use with the laundry dryer (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, the drying rack (2) comprising means for releasably engaging with the retainer (5) and means for holding the articles to be dried, characterized in that the drying rack (2) is adapted for being received by the stowage chamber (6).
The drying rack (2) according to claim 7, characterized in that the article holding means comprises a leading lattice (8), an intermediate lattice (9) and an end lattice (10) which are serially and pivotably connected, wherein the lattices (8, 9, 10) selectively assume an unfolded state for laying the laundry flat on the lattices (8, 9, 10), a z-like folded state for deployment into the drum together with the folded laundry and a collapsed state for stowage in the stowage chamber (6), wherein in the unfolded state the lattices (8, 9, 10) are all horizontally side by side, in the z-like folded state the leading lattice (8) and the end lattice (10) are horizontal and the intermediate lattice (9) is inclined and in the collapsed state the lattices (8, 9, 10) are all horizontal one above the other.
The laundry dryer (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the drying rack (2) as defined in claim 7 or 8.