CN117580990A

CN117580990A - Interface and laundry treatment apparatus having the same

Info

Publication number: CN117580990A
Application number: CN202280046579.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李炫昇; 李揆喆; 慎重佚; 金韩率
Original assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Current assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Priority date: 2021-06-28
Filing date: 2022-06-28
Publication date: 2024-02-20
Also published as: WO2023277527A1; EP4363653A1; KR20230001284A; AU2022300775A1

Abstract

Disclosed is a laundry treating apparatus, wherein a control panel for manipulating the laundry treating apparatus is directly coupled to a rear surface of a front panel defining a front surface of a cabinet to prevent other components than an input part from being exposed to the front surface of the cabinet.

Description

Interface and laundry treatment apparatus having the same

Technical Field

The present application relates to an interface (interface device) and a laundry treating apparatus having the interface.

Background

An input/output device (interface) through which a user inputs a control command to an electronic device is indispensable in the electronic device including a laundry treatment apparatus capable of washing, drying, and washing and drying laundry (a generic name of an article to be washed or an article to be dried).

The conventional interface is designed such that the following parts are located in spaces separated from each other: the display interface is used for displaying control commands which can be selected by a user; a search interface allowing a user to search for a control command displayed on the display interface; a selection section that allows a user to select a control command displayed on the display interface; and an input device that requests execution of a control command selected by a user (publication No. 10-2014-0023986).

That is, in the conventional interface, a display (LCD, LED panel, etc.) on which control commands are displayed, a knob or button (button) for searching for control commands by allowing control commands executable by the corresponding electronic device to be displayed on the display, a button for inputting control commands to select control commands displayed on the display, a button for inputting control commands to request execution of the selected control commands, etc. are located in separate spaces from each other. This arrangement is a factor in determining an interface design (design of a control panel) located on a front surface of an electronic device such as a laundry treatment apparatus.

In the conventional interface having the above-described structure, since the devices including the display have to be arranged dispersedly along the width direction of the electronic device or distributed along the height direction of the electronic device, a large amount of space is required to install the interface.

In the case where the conventional laundry treating apparatus includes a knob, the course and options are selected by rotating the knob. When the knob is rotated, a course and an option corresponding to the knob may be sequentially selected, and when the knob is placed in a course and an option desired by the user, the laundry treating apparatus may not be operated until the user presses the execution button.

The conventional laundry treating apparatus has a mounting panel on which an interface is mounted. The mounting panel has a problem in that the exposed surface is formed of plastic, so that durability is reduced.

Further, the mounting panel is provided to be accommodated above the front panel of the cabinet formed of metal. Accordingly, since the mounting panel and the front panel are disposed in different materials, there is a problem in that a unity and an aesthetic property are reduced with respect to the front of the cabinet.

In order to form the front of the cabinet, there are fundamental limitations in that not only the front panel but also an additional mounting panel needs to be manufactured, and there is a problem in that a separate structure for accommodating the mounting panel on the front panel needs to be designed and manufactured.

The conventional laundry treating apparatus has a limitation in that the front of the cabinet is formed of a single metal plate, and any structure or suggestion of fixing the interface to the rear surface of the front panel formed of the metal plate cannot be suggested.

In particular, there is a limitation that, when the interface is fixed to the rear surface of the front panel, a proposal for preventing the possibility of the fixing member from being exposed cannot be given.

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a laundry treating apparatus to fix an interface to a rear surface of a front panel of a cabinet.

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a laundry treating apparatus capable of omitting a process or structure of installing a separate control member, wherein an interface is installed on the control member and above a front panel of a cabinet.

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a laundry treating apparatus to directly couple and fix an interface formed of a plastic material to a rear surface of a front panel formed of a metal material.

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a laundry treating apparatus to prevent exposure of a part for coupling an interface to an exposed surface of a front panel formed of a metal material.

Technical proposal

In order to achieve the object of the present invention, the laundry treating apparatus may directly couple the control panel to a rear surface of the front panel defining the front surface of the cabinet.

The control panel may be coupled to the cabinet to prevent components other than the manipulation part and the input part from being exposed to the front surface of the front panel.

The control panel may be directly coupled without a separate member of the front panel, and even if the control panel is coupled through the coupler, the coupler may be prevented from being exposed to the front surface of the front panel.

The manipulation portion exposed to the front surface of the cabinet in the control panel may have a diameter larger than that of the panel through-hole included in the cabinet, and may have an area larger than an entire area of the coupler provided to couple the control panel to the cabinet.

In other words, the manipulation portion may be provided to shield all components such as the coupling hole, the coupling member, and the coupling rib for coupling the housing to the case.

In other words, all the components of the coupling may be disposed on the rear surface of the manipulating portion, and may not be exposed to the front side.

The front panel may include: a panel through hole through which a portion of the manipulation portion of the control panel passes; and a plurality of coupling holes through which coupling members spaced apart from the panel through-holes and coupled to the housing pass.

When the manipulation portion is coupled to the front panel, the plurality of coupling holes may be prevented from being exposed to the front side of the front panel.

The maximum interval of the plurality of coupling holes may be set smaller than the diameter of the manipulation portion.

The interval between the panel through-hole and the plurality of coupling holes may be set to be smaller than the radius of the manipulation portion.

The plurality of coupling holes may be provided to face the rear surface of the manipulation portion.

To achieve the object of the present invention, a laundry treating apparatus includes: a casing: a drum rotatably disposed within the cabinet and configured to accommodate laundry; a manipulation part rotatably provided at a front of the cabinet and configured to receive a selection command for selecting an arbitrary course of rotating the drum; and a housing in which the encoder is mounted and coupled to the manipulation part, and configured to receive the selection command, and which is fixed to a rear surface of the cabinet.

The casing may include: a panel through hole through which at least a portion of one of the manipulation portion or the encoder passes; and a coupler extending from or spaced apart from the panel through hole by a predetermined distance to fix the housing to the cabinet.

The manipulation part may be disposed at a front of the coupler to prevent the coupler from being exposed to a front side of the cabinet.

The housing may be a metal sheet formed of a metal material.

The coupling may include a coupling hole through which a coupling member passing through the cabinet to fix the housing passes.

The coupling hole may be spaced apart from the panel through hole, and may be disposed to face the rear surface of the manipulation portion.

The coupling holes may be spaced apart from the panel through-holes and may be provided in plurality, and the maximum spacing of the coupling holes may be smaller than the diameter of the manipulation portion.

The interval between the coupling hole and the panel through hole may be smaller than the radius of the manipulation portion.

The cabinet may be provided with a metal sheet formed of a metal material, and the coupler may include a coupling rib extending from an inner circumferential portion of the panel through-hole to fix the case.

The housing may include: a body portion configured to accommodate the encoder and provided at a rear surface of the cabinet; and a detachable portion extending from the body portion and detachably provided to the coupling rib.

The case may be formed of synthetic resin.

The detachable portion may extend from the body portion to receive at least a portion of the coupling rib and couple to the portion of the coupling rib.

The coupling rib may include a through hole into or through which one surface facing the body part is recessed, and the detachable part may further include a hook extending from the body part to be received in the through hole.

The coupling ribs may extend from upper and lower portions of the panel through-holes or from both side surfaces to support the housing.

The coupling holes may extend from upper and lower portions of the panel through-holes or from both side surfaces to support the housing, and the coupling ribs may extend from upper and lower portions of the panel through-holes.

The casing may further include: a first button mounting part spaced apart from any one of the coupling holes in a direction away from the panel through hole and penetrating the casing; and a second button mounting part spaced apart from the other one of the coupling holes in a direction away from the panel through hole and penetrating the cabinet.

The coupling may further include coupling ribs extending from an inner peripheral portion of the first button mounting portion and an inner peripheral portion of the second button mounting portion to fix the housing.

The area of the manipulation portion may be larger than the area of the panel through hole.

The manipulation portion may include: a shaft coupled to the encoder and configured to rotate the encoder; a base portion extending from one end of the shaft and provided to be larger than a diameter of the shaft; and a handle coupled to the base and configured to rotate the shaft and the encoder, wherein a diameter of the base may be greater than a diameter of the panel through hole.

The base may extend from an end of the shaft to face the panel through hole.

The handle may be coupled to an outer peripheral portion of the base, and a diameter of the handle may be greater than a width of the panel through hole.

The coupler may be disposed on a rear surface of the base to prevent exposure to the front side.

The panel through-hole and the plurality of coupling holes may be disposed on a rear surface of the base.

The coupler may include a plurality of coupling holes through which the coupling member passing through the cabinet to fix the housing passes, and the panel through-hole and the plurality of coupling holes may be placed inside as compared to an outer circumferential portion of the handle.

The encoder may have a diameter smaller than the width of the panel through hole.

The outer peripheral portion of the manipulation portion may have a larger diameter than the outer peripheral portion of the encoder to prevent the coupler from being exposed to the front side of the cabinet.

All of the coupling holes may be provided to face the rear surface of the base. The coupling hole may be provided inside as compared to an outer peripheral portion of the handle.

Advantageous effects

According to the present disclosure, when a display interface including a liquid crystal part is installed in a rotation manipulation part, the liquid crystal part may be positioned at the center of the manipulation part.

According to the present disclosure, the wire harness coupled to one surface of the liquid crystal portion may be disposed in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the manipulation portion.

According to the present disclosure, the presence of the wire harness can be compensated by placing the display interface including the liquid crystal portion to be inclined to one side in the manipulation portion.

According to the present disclosure, the area of the rectangular liquid crystal portion can be maximized within the circular manipulation portion.

Drawings

Fig. 1 illustrates a home appliance system and an online system in which a laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure is disposed.

Fig. 2 shows an embodiment of the internal structure of the laundry appliance 10 and the mini-appliance 60.

Fig. 3 illustrates a structure of a laundry drying apparatus provided in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4 shows a detailed structure of the water collecting portion 37, the heat exchanger 4, the scrubber 6, and the like.

Fig. 5 illustrates an embodiment of an internal structure of the laundry drying apparatus 20 of the present disclosure.

Fig. 6 shows a structure in which, when the laundry treating apparatus includes the laundry washing apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the auxiliary apparatus 60, these apparatuses can communicate with each other.

Fig. 7 illustrates an embodiment of a control panel P that may be applied to the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure.

Fig. 8 shows a structure in which a control panel is coupled to a front panel.

Fig. 9 shows an internal structure of the control panel.

Fig. 10 shows the structure of an encoder.

Fig. 11 shows a structure of the manipulation section and the display interface.

Fig. 12 shows a detailed structure of the manipulating portion P7.

Fig. 13 illustrates an embodiment of the use of a control panel.

Fig. 14 is a schematic view showing a structure in which a control panel is directly coupled to a front panel.

Fig. 15 is a schematic view showing a coupling structure of the front panel and the control panel.

Fig. 16 is a schematic view showing a method of attaching and detaching the front panel and the control panel.

Fig. 17 is a schematic view showing a structure of fixing a front panel and a control panel using separate members.

Fig. 18 is a schematic view showing a structure of preventing the coupling member from being exposed to the outside.

Detailed Description

Embodiments disclosed in the present specification will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification, the same and similar reference numerals denote the same and similar components even in different embodiments, and the description thereof is replaced by the first description. As used herein, singular forms "a", "an" and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Further, in describing the embodiments disclosed herein, when it is determined that detailed descriptions of related known techniques may obscure the gist of the embodiments disclosed herein, such detailed descriptions will be omitted. Furthermore, the drawings are only for the purpose of facilitating understanding of the embodiments disclosed in the present specification, and it should be noted that the technical ideas disclosed in the present specification should not be construed as being limited by the drawings.

Fig. 1 illustrates a home appliance system and an on-line system in which the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure is provided.

The laundry treatment apparatus of the present disclosure may include: a laundry washing appliance 10 which performs any washing course or washing option which performs a washing cycle for removing foreign matter from laundry using water and detergent; and a mini device 60 which is provided near or below the laundry washing appliance and performs this arbitrary washing course or washing option which performs a washing cycle for removing foreign matter from laundry using water and detergent.

The laundry washing appliance 10 may be a front loading type in which laundry is put into the laundry washing appliance 10 from its front surface, while the small appliance 60 may be a top loading type in which laundry is put into the small appliance 60 from its top surface.

As shown, the mini-device 60 may be disposed below the laundry washing appliance 10 to increase the vertical height of the laundry inlet of the laundry washing appliance 10. In this case, the small-sized device 60 may be a drawer extending forward so as to expose a laundry inlet into which laundry is put.

Further, the small appliance 60 may be provided on top of the laundry washing appliance 10. Thus, the user can easily access the small-sized device 60.

In one example, the laundry treatment apparatus of the present disclosure may include a laundry drying apparatus (laundry dry apparatus, laundry drying apparatus) 20 that performs any drying sequence or drying option of drying laundry containing moisture after washing is completed in the laundry washing apparatus 10 or mini-apparatus 60.

The user may arrange the laundry apparatus 10 and the laundry drying apparatus 20 together in the room in the laundry treatment apparatus of the present disclosure, and may include all components of the laundry treatment apparatus by additionally including the small-sized apparatus 60.

Accordingly, the small-sized device 60 can wash laundry such as underwear and infant laundry, which has a relatively small volume and is frequently washed. In addition, the laundry washing apparatus 10 can wash laundry such as jeans and quilts, which have a relatively large volume and are frequently washed.

In one example, at least one of the laundry device 10, the laundry drying device 20, and the small device 60 may access the internet network via the router (AP) 30. At least one of the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the small-sized apparatus 60 may have a communication module so as to be connected to the router, and the server 50 provided by the manufacturer that produces the laundry processing apparatus may identify the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the small-sized apparatus 60 via port information of the router 30, and register and control the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the small-sized apparatus 60.

When the user has the external terminal 40 (such as a smart phone) equipped with the communication module, the user can access the server 50 through the internet network by means of the external terminal 40 so as to control at least one of the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the small-sized apparatus 60.

Further, the user may register at least one of the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the small-sized apparatus 60 with the server 50 via the external terminal 40.

Further, when there is notification information or update of progress or option for at least one of the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the small-sized apparatus 60, the server 50 may notify the user through the external terminal 40.

In one example, the laundry device 10, the laundry drying device 20 and the mini-device 60 may be configured to communicate with each other.

One of the laundry appliance 10, the laundry drying appliance 20 and the mini-appliance 60 may be configured to communicate with the other two via the router 30 and the server 50. To this end, each of the laundry washing appliance 10, the laundry drying appliance 20 and the mini-appliance 60 may comprise a communication module such as WIFI.

Further, the laundry washing appliance 10, the laundry drying appliance 20 and the mini-appliance 60 may be configured not to communicate with each other via the server 50. For example, the laundry washing appliance 10, the laundry drying appliance 20 and the small appliance 60 may be configured to communicate with each other via a Bluetooth (Bluetooth) communication module.

The laundry washing appliance 10, the laundry drying appliance 20 and the mini-appliance 60 may be configured to communicate with each other to share their status with each other and to display each other's status.

For example, the user may identify the status of the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the small-sized apparatus 60 via the laundry washing apparatus 10. Therefore, even if the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the small-sized apparatus 60 are provided to be spaced apart from the laundry washing apparatus 10 or provided at a position where the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the small-sized apparatus 60 are not visible when the user views the laundry washing apparatus 10, the user can display the state of the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the small-sized apparatus 60 via the laundry washing apparatus 10.

The laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the mini-apparatus 60 may be configured to share the names of their courses or options, the selected states of their courses or options, the execution states of their courses or options, the completion states of their courses or options, and the error or notification states thereof with each other, or display the names and states of the courses or options with each other, and the error or notification states.

Further, one of the laundry device 10, the laundry drying device 20 and the small-sized device 60 may be configured to manipulate the other two with its manipulation portion for receiving commands.

The laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the mini-apparatus 60 may mutually transmit and receive control commands via their respective communication modules or servers 50.

Therefore, even if the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the small-sized apparatus 60 are spaced apart from each other, the user can control one device with another device, thereby improving convenience.

Unlike the drawings, the laundry washing appliance 10 and the mini-appliance 60 can be independently constructed to be separated from each other.

The laundry washing appliance 10 may comprise: a cabinet 1 forming an external appearance of the laundry apparatus; an outer tub 2 which is accommodated in the cabinet 1 and stores water therein; a drum 3 rotatably provided in the tub 2 and storing water therein; a driver 32 coupled to the tub 2 to rotate the drum 3; a water supply part 23 configured to supply water to the outer tub 2; and a drain portion 25 configured to drain the outer tub 2.

The tub 2 and the drum 3 may each have a laundry inlet in a front surface thereof for putting laundry into the laundry washing appliance, and the cabinet 1 may further include a door 132 to open and close the laundry inlet.

The driver 32 may include: a stator 321 coupled to a rear surface of the tub 2; a rotor 322 rotated by the stator 321; and a rotation shaft 323 coupled to the rotor 322 to rotate the drum 3.

The water supply part 23 may include: a water supply pipe 231 allowing the external water supply source and the tub 2 to communicate with each other; and a water supply valve 232 which opens and closes the water supply pipe 231.

In one example, the water supply part 23 may further include: a detergent box capable of extending toward the front of the cabinet 1 and configured to put detergent into the tub 2; and a water supply pipe 231 which may be in communication with the detergent box.

The drain portion 25 may include: a drain pipe 251 provided below the outer tub 2; and a drain pump 252 coupled to the drain pipe 252 to power the drain.

The laundry washing appliance 10 may further comprise: a support 22 supporting the tub 2 to the cabinet 1; and a heater H1 that heats water in the outer tub 2.

In addition, the laundry washing apparatus 10 may further comprise a hot air supply part Ha configured to supply hot air to the tub 2.

In one example, the laundry washing appliance 10 may comprise a control panel P or washing controller which receives commands for displaying or controlling the state of the laundry washing appliance 10. The control panel P may be provided to be coupled to the cabinet 1.

Further, the control panel P may operate at least one of the driver 32, the water supply valve 232, the drain pump 252, the heater H1, and the hot air supply part Ha in order to perform any washing course or washing option for removing foreign matter from laundry. The wash program or wash option may consist of a series of control methods that are capable of performing all of the wash cycle, the rinse cycle and the spin cycle.

The small device 60 may include: a small-sized casing 1C forming an external appearance of the small-sized casing; a small tub 2C which is accommodated in the small cabinet 1C and stores water therein; a small drum 3C rotatably provided in the small tub 2C and storing water therein; a small-sized driver 32C coupled to the small-sized tub 2C to rotate the small-sized drum 3C; a small-sized water supply part 23C configured to supply water to the small-sized tub 2C; and a small-sized drain portion 25C configured to drain the small-sized tub 2C.

A small-sized casing 1C may be provided under the casing 1 so as to support the casing 1. It is not excluded to place a small cabinet on top of the cabinet 1.

The small-sized casing may be integrally formed with the casing 1.

Each of the small tub 2C and the small drum 3C may have a laundry inlet opening at a top surface thereof to put laundry into the small apparatus, and the small laundry case 1C may further include a small door 132C for opening and closing the laundry inlet opening.

The mini-drive 32C may include: a small stator 321C coupled to a bottom surface of the small tub 2C; a small rotor 322C rotated by the small stator 321C; and a small-sized rotation shaft 323C coupled to the small-sized rotor 322C to rotate the small-sized drum 3C.

The small water supply part 23C may include: a small-sized water supply pipe 231C allowing an external water source and the small-sized tub 2C to communicate with each other; and a small-sized water supply valve 232C which opens and closes the small-sized water supply pipe 231C.

In one example, the small water supply part 23C may further include a small detergent box which is extendable toward the front of the cabinet 1 and configured to put detergent into the small tub 2C, and the small water supply pipe 231C may communicate with the detergent box.

The small drain portion 25C may include: a small drain pipe 251C provided below the small outer tub 2C; and a small drain pump 252C coupled to the small drain pipe 252C to provide drain power.

The small form factor device 60 may further include: a small-sized support 22C that supports the small-sized tub 2C to the small-sized casing 1C; and a small-sized heater H2 that heats water in the small-sized tub 2C.

Further, the small-sized apparatus 60 may further include a hot air supply part Hb configured to supply hot air to the small-sized tub 2C.

In one example, the small device 60 may include a small control panel PC or a small controller and receive commands for displaying or controlling the state of the small device 60. The small-sized control panel PC may be provided to be coupled to the small-sized casing 1C.

Further, the small-sized control panel PC may operate at least one of the small-sized driver 32C, the small-sized water supply valve 232C, the small-sized drain pump 252C, the small-sized heater H2, and the small-sized hot air supply part HaC to perform any washing course or washing option for removing foreign matter from laundry. The wash program or wash option may consist of a series of control methods that are capable of performing all of the wash cycle, the rinse cycle and the spin cycle.

The small-sized apparatus 60 may further include a drawer D which can extend in front of the small-sized casing 1C and accommodate the small-sized tub 2C therein. The drawer D may include a front cover DC at a front surface thereof to open and close an inlet through which the drawer D extends from the small cabinet 1C.

The small-sized control panel PC may be provided on the front cover DC.

Fig. 3 shows a structure of a laundry drying apparatus 20 of the laundry treatment apparatus of the present disclosure.

The laundry drying apparatus 20 may comprise: a dryer casing 1A; a drying drum 2A rotatably provided within the drying cabinet to provide a space for storing laundry; a circulation flow path 3A forming a flow path for re-supplying the air discharged from the drying drum 2 to the drying drum 2A; and a heat exchanger 4 that dehumidifies and heats the air introduced into the circulation flow path 3A and then supplies the dehumidified and heated air to the drying drum 2A.

When the drying drum 2A is formed as a cylindrical drum body 21A having open front and rear surfaces, a first support 17 rotatably supporting the front surface of the drying drum 2A and a second support 19A rotatably supporting the rear surface of the drying drum 2A may be provided within the cabinet 1A.

The first support 17 may include: a first fixing body 171 fixed in the dryer casing 1A; a drum laundry inlet 173 defined to extend through the first fixed body to allow the laundry inlet 111 and the inside of the drum body 21A to communicate with each other; and a first supporter body 175 provided on the first fixing body 171 and inserted into a front surface (first opening surface) of the drum body 21A.

The first fixing body 171 may be any shape as long as the drum laundry inlet 173 and the first supporter body 175 can be provided. The first supporter body 175 may be formed in a tubular shape protruding from the first fixing body 171 toward the drying drum body 21A. The diameter of the first supporter body 175 may be greater than the diameter of the drum laundry inlet 173, and may be smaller than the diameter of the front surface of the drying drum body 21A. In this case, the drum laundry inlet 173 will be located in the space defined by the first supporter body 175.

The first supporter 17 may further include a connection body 177 connecting the laundry inlet 111 and the drum laundry inlet 173 to each other. The connection body 177 may be formed in a tubular shape extending from the drum laundry inlet 173 toward the laundry inlet 111. The connection body 177 may have an air outlet 178 communicating with the circulation flow path 3A.

The air outlet 178, which is a passage allowing the air in the drying drum body 21A to flow to the circulation flow path 3, may be defined as a through hole defined to extend through the connection body 177.

The second support 19A may include: a second fixing body 191 fixed in the cabinet 1A; and a second supporter body 195 provided on the second fixing body 191 and inserted into a rear surface (second opening surface) of the drum body 21A. The second support 19 includes an air inlet 198 defined to extend through the second fixing body 191 to allow the inside of the drum body 21 and the inside of the dryer cabinet 1A to communicate with each other. In this case, the duct 3A may be configured to interconnect the air outlet 178 and the air inlet 198.

The cylindrical drum body 21A having a hollow interior may be rotated by various types of drying drives. As an example, there is shown a case where the drying drivers 82, 83, 85 include a motor 82 fixed in the drying cabinet 1A, a wheel 85 rotated by the motor, and a belt 83 interconnecting the peripheral surface (circumferential face, circumferential surface) of the wheel 85 and the peripheral surface of the drum body 21A.

In one example, a drying driver may be provided on the rear surface of the drying drum 2A to directly rotate the drum 2A. The rotation shafts of the drying drives 82, 83, 85 may be directly coupled to the drum 2A to rotate the drying drum 2A.

In this case, the second support 19A may support the drying drivers 82, 83, 85 to be located at the center or on the rear surface of the drying drum 2A.

In one example, a separate decelerator may be provided between the drying drives 82, 83, 85 and the drying drum 2A. In this case, the rotation shaft from the decelerator may be directly coupled to the center of the rear surface of the drum 2A, and the decelerator may be coupled to the second support 19 and supported by the second support 19.

In this respect, the drying drives 82, 83, 85 can freely change the rotational speed and rotational direction of the drum 2A.

The first support 17 may have a first roller 179 rotatably supporting the circumferential surface of the drum body 21A, and the second support 19 may have a second roller 199 rotatably supporting the circumferential surface of the drum body.

The circulation flow path 3A may include a conduit communicating with the drum 2. The duct 3A may communicate with the drying drum 2A, so that the duct 3A may be considered to form a circulation flow path through which air discharged from the drying drum passes the heat exchanger 4 and is reintroduced into the drum 2A.

The catheter 3A may include: a discharge conduit 31A connected to the air outlet 178; a supply conduit 33A connected to the air inlet 198; and a connection duct 35A interconnecting the discharge duct and the supply duct.

The heat exchanger 4 may be formed as various devices as long as dehumidification and heating of the air introduced into the duct 3A can be sequentially performed. For example, the heat exchanger 4 may be formed as a heat pump system.

The heat exchanger 4 may include: a fan 49 which allows air to flow along the duct 3A; a first heat exchanger (heat absorber) 41 that removes moisture from the air introduced into the duct 3A; and a second heat exchanger (heater) 43 provided in the duct 3A so as to heat the air passing through the first heat exchanger 41.

The heat absorber 41 may be formed as an evaporator that absorbs heat, and the heater 43 may be formed as a condenser that emits heat.

The fan 49 may include an impeller 491 provided in the duct 3A and an impeller motor 493 (see fig. 4) that rotates the impeller 491. The impeller 491 may be provided in any one of the discharge conduit 31A, the connection conduit 35A, and the supply conduit 33A. An impeller 491 may be provided in the supply conduit 33A.

The heat absorber 41 is formed of a plurality of metal plates provided along the width direction (Y-axis direction) of the connection duct 35A or the height direction (Z-axis direction) of the connection duct, and the heater 43 may be formed of a plurality of metal plates provided along the width direction of the connection duct or the height direction of the connection duct. The heat absorber 41 and the heater 43 are disposed in the connection duct 35A in order in a direction from the discharge duct 31A toward the supply duct 33A, and are connected to each other via a refrigerant pipe 48 forming a circulation flow path of the refrigerant.

The refrigerant is moved along the refrigerant pipe 48 by the compressor 45 located outside the conduit 3A, and the refrigerant pipe 48 has a pressure regulator 47 that regulates the pressure of the refrigerant having passed through the heater 43.

The heat absorber 41 is a device that cools air and evaporates the refrigerant by transferring heat of the air introduced into the discharge duct 31A to the refrigerant. The heater 43 is a device that heats air and condenses the refrigerant by transferring heat of the refrigerant having passed through the compressor 45 to the air. In this case, moisture contained in the air will be collected on the bottom surface of the connection duct 35A along the surface of the heat absorber 41 when passing through the heat absorber 41.

In order to collect water removed from the air passing through the heat absorber 41, the laundry drying apparatus 20 has a water collecting portion.

The water collected in the water collecting portion may be collected in the water storage portion 7 and then discharged at one time. The water storage part 7 may include: a water storage tank 72 detachably provided in the cabinet 1 to provide a space for storing water; and an inlet 722 defined to extend through the water storage tank 72 to introduce water discharged from the water storage part supply pipe 633 into the water storage tank 72.

The water storage tank 72 may be formed as a drawer-type tank that can protrude from the cabinet 1. In this case, the front panel 11A of the cabinet must have a water storage portion mounting hole or tank hole into which the water storage tank 72 is inserted. The water storage section panel 71 is fixed to the front surface of the water storage tank 72. The water reservoir panel 71 may be detachably coupled to the water reservoir mounting hole or tank hole 115 to form a part of the front panel 11A.

The water storage part panel 71 may further include a groove 711 into which a user's hand is inserted. In this case, the water storage section panel 71 will also perform the function of a handle that extends or retracts the water storage tank 72 from or into the housing.

The inlet 722 may be defined to receive water discharged from a nozzle 722a fixed to the dryer housing 1A. Nozzle 722a may be secured to top panel 13 of the housing such that it is positioned over inlet 722 when storage body 72 is inserted into housing 1.

In the water storage part 7 having the above structure, the user can pour out the water in the water storage tank 72 by extending the water storage tank 72 from the cabinet 1 and then inverting or tilting the water storage tank 72 in the direction in which the inlet 722 is directed. A communication hole 721 defined to extend through the top surface of the storage body 72 may be further defined such that water in the storage tank 72 is easily discharged through the inlet 722.

In one example, the heat exchanger 4 is configured to condense moisture in the air circulating in the heat absorber 41. Therefore, even when air circulates in the drum 2A, moisture is removed through the heat absorber 41, so that laundry within the drum 2A can be continuously dried.

The moisture condensed in the heat absorber 41 may be first collected in the water collecting portion 37A and then secondarily collected in the water storage portion 7. The water collecting portion 37A may be located within the connection duct 35, and may be separately disposed in a space spaced apart from the connection duct 35.

Fig. 4 shows a detailed structure of the water collecting portion 37A, the heat exchanger 4, and the scrubber (washer) 6.

The water collecting portion 37A may be formed as a water collecting body 371A which is fixed to the bottom surface of the connection duct 35A and communicates with the inside of the connection duct. The heat exchanger support 372A may be further provided within the water collection body 371A such that the heat absorber 41 and the heater 43 do not come into contact with water (condensed water) stored in the water collection body 371A. The heat exchanger support 372A may include: a support plate 373A in contact with the heat absorber 41 and the heater 43; a spacer 375A to maintain a gap between the support plate 373 and the bottom surface of the water collection body 371A; and a support plate through hole 376A defined to extend through the support plate 373A.

Among the spaces provided by the support plates 373A, the support plate through holes 376A may be defined only within the space supporting the heat absorber 41, and may be defined in each of the space supporting the heat absorber and the space supporting the heater. When the support plate through-holes 376A are also defined in the bottom surface of the heater 43, water flowing along the support plate 373A to the heater 43 may be discharged to the water collecting portion 371A (so as to prevent a decrease in heat transfer efficiency that occurs when the heater is in contact with water).

In order to minimize foreign matters accumulated in the heat absorber 41 and the heater 43 (accumulated in the heat absorber 41 and the heater 43) discharged from the drying drum body 21A, the laundry drying apparatus 20 may further include a filtering device for filtering air.

The second filtering means 8 may be formed as means for filtering the air introduced into the exhaust duct 31A from the drying drum body 21A, and the first filtering means 5 may be located between the second filtering means 8 and the heat absorber 41, and formed as means for filtering the air having passed through the second filtering means. The diameter of the filter holes defined in the first filter means 5 may be set smaller than the diameter of the filter holes defined in the second filter means 8.

The second filtering means 8 may comprise: a frame 81 detachably inserted into the discharge duct 31A through the air outlet 178; and a filter (fourth filter) 83 provided in the frame to filter air.

The first filter device 5 may be detachably arranged in the connecting duct 35. In this case, the front panel 11 of the cabinet may have a filter mounting hole through which the first filter device 5 is drawn out, and a mounting hole door which opens and closes the filter mounting hole, and the duct 3A may have a duct through hole 34 (see fig. 3) through which the first filter device 5 is inserted. Accordingly, the user can remove the foreign matter remaining in the first filtering device 5, and wash the first filtering device 5 after separating the first filtering device 5 from the laundry treating apparatus as needed.

The first filtering means 5 may comprise: filter device bodies 51, 53, and 55 inserted into the filter mounting hole and the duct through hole 34 and positioned between the second filter device 8 and the heat absorber 41; and filters 531, 551, and 571 provided in the filtering device body to filter the fluid (air and water) flowing to the heat absorber 41 and the water collecting portion 371A.

The filter body may be formed in various forms according to the cross-sectional (Y-Z and X-Z planes) shape of the connection duct 35A. Fig. 1 shows an example of a case where the filter body is formed like a hexahedron shape.

In this case, the filter device body may include: a front surface 51 formed in a shape capable of closing the conduit through hole 34; a rear surface 53 positioned between the front surface and the heat sink 41; a bottom surface 55 configured to interconnect the front and rear surfaces; and first and second side surfaces 57 and 58 forming left and right side surfaces of the filter device body.

The front surface 51 may have a locking portion 511 movably coupled to a locking fastening portion 16 provided in the cabinet. The locking part 511 may be formed as a rod rotatably coupled to the front surface 51 of the filter device body, and the locking fastening part may define a groove accommodating a free end of the rod. Preferably, the plurality of locking parts 511 are provided at opposite sides of the front surface 51, respectively, and the locking fastening parts 16 are provided at opposite sides of the filter mounting hole, respectively.

To facilitate insertion of the filter device body into the connecting conduit 35A, or removal of the filter device from the connecting conduit 35A, the front surface 51 may further include a handle 511.

The rear surface 53 and the bottom surface 55 may have a first filter 531 and a second filter 551, respectively, for filtering fluid (air and water) introduced into the body of the filtering device. The rear surface 53 has a rear surface through-hole defined therein so as to allow the inside of the filter device body and the inside space of the duct 3A to communicate with each other, and the first filter 531 is provided in the rear surface through-hole. The bottom surface 55 has a bottom surface through hole for allowing the inside of the filter device body and the inside space of the duct 3A to communicate with each other, and the second filter 551 is provided in the bottom surface through hole. Therefore, the first filter 531 is a means for filtering the fluid (air and water) supplied to the heat absorber 41, and the second filter 551 is a means for filtering the fluid supplied to the water collecting portion 371A.

The first side surface 57 and the second side surface 58 may be configured to connect the front surface 51, the rear surface 53, and the bottom surface 55 to each other.

The first filtering device 5 having the above-described structure may communicate with the discharge duct 31A through the second side surface 58 or the top surface of the filtering device body. As an example, fig. 1 shows a case where the first filter device 5 is connected to the drain conduit 31A by a top surface through hole defined to extend through the top surface of the filter device body and a side surface through hole defined to extend through the second side surface 58.

The first filter 531 may be inclined at an angle ranging from 90 degrees to 100 degrees based on the bottom surface 55 of the filter unit body toward the front surface of the heat sink 41. This allows foreign substances remaining in the first filter to easily move to the bottom surface 55 when water is sprayed into the first filter 531 by the scrubber 6 to be described later.

The second filter 551 may be inclined downward from the front surface 51 toward the first filter 531 at an angle ranging from 10 degrees to 20 degrees (the second filter may be inclined upward at an angle ranging from 10 degrees to 20 degrees in a direction from the lower end of the first filter to the filter installation hole). When the second filter 551 is inclined downward toward the first filter 531, since the connection point of the first filter 531 and the second filter 551 will be the lowest point in the space provided by the first filter device, the foreign substances of the first filter device 5 can be concentrated at the connection point of the first filter 531 and the second filter 551. When the foreign matter is concentrated at the connection point of the first filter 531 and the second filter 551, the user will be able to remove the foreign matter inside the first filter device 5 more easily.

However, when the foreign matter is concentrated at the connection point of the first filter 531 and the second filter 551, there may be a case where it takes a long time to spray water through the scrubber 6 to discharge the foreign matter to the water collecting portion 371. To solve this problem, a bypass hole allowing the inside of the first filtering device 5 and the water collecting portion 371 to communicate with each other, and a third filter 571 disposed in the bypass hole may be further provided.

The bypass hole and the third filter 571 may be defined at a position higher than the uppermost end of the second filter 551 and lower than the uppermost end of the first filter 531. Therefore, the laundry treating apparatus may minimize the phenomenon that water sprayed to the first filtering device 5 cannot be recovered at the water collecting portion 371 by the foreign substances remaining in the first filtering device 5.

In one example, the laundry drying apparatus 20 may further comprise a washer 6 which washes the first filtering device 5 using the water stored in the water collecting portion 371A. That is, the water stored in the water collecting portion 371A may be collected separately into the water storage part 7, or may selectively flow to the washer 6.

The scrubber 6 may be formed as a means for washing at least one of the first filter 531, the second filter 551, the third filter 571, and the heat absorber 41 by spraying the water stored in the water collecting portion 371A to the first filtering means 5. The scrubber 6 may include: a spraying part 65 provided in the duct 3A to supply water to the first filtering means 5; and a washing pump 61 allowing water stored in the water collecting portion 371A to flow toward the spraying part 65.

The washing pump 61 may be connected to the water collecting portion 371A via a first connection pipe 611, and may be connected to the spraying part 65 via a second connection pipe 613. When the laundry treating apparatus is constructed to allow water of the water collecting portion 371A to flow to the spraying portion 65 and the water storage portion 7 only by one washing pump 61, the laundry drying apparatus 20 may further include a flow path switching portion 63. In this case, the flow path switching part 63 may be connected to the washing pump 61 via the second connection pipe 613, the spraying part 65 may be connected to the flow path switching part 63 via the spraying part supply pipe 631, and the water storage part 7 may be connected to the flow path switching part 63 via the water storage part supply pipe 633.

In this case, the water storage part supply pipe 633 should interconnect the nozzle 722a and the flow path switching part 63.

The flow path switching part 63 includes a valve for controlling the opening and closing of the spraying part supply pipe 631 and the opening and closing of the water storage part supply pipe 633. Therefore, the laundry drying apparatus 20 may control the valve provided in the flow path switching part 63 to supply the water stored in the water collecting part 371A to the spraying part 65 or the water storage part 7.

As an example, the case where the spraying part 65 includes: a conduit through hole 651 defined to extend through the connection conduit 35, and to which the spraying portion supply tube 631 is connected; a first guide 653 that guides the water supplied from the duct through hole to the first filter 531; and a second guide 655 that guides at least a portion of the water supplied through the first guide 653 to the front surface of the heat sink 41. In this case, the second guide 655 may be provided as means for allowing water to be supplied to the front surface of the heat sink 41 via the first filter 531. That is, when the first filtering device 5 is fixed to the connection duct 35A, the first filter 531 may be disposed between the first guide 653 and the second guide 655, and the second guide 655 may be formed as an inclined surface inclined downward from the top surface of the connection duct 35 toward the first filter 531.

The first guide 653 may further include a guide through hole 654. The guide through hole 654, as a hole defined to extend through the first guide 653, may allow water introduced into the guide through hole 651 to be supplied to the front region of the heat sink 41 through the guide through hole 654. The front region of the heat sink refers to a region facing one side of the first filter 531 based on a vertical line passing through the center of the heat sink 41.

In one example, it is preferable that the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure includes a water collecting portion water level sensing device 92 that measures a water level of the water collecting portion 371A and transmits the water level to the controller. When the water collecting portion water level sensing means 92 is provided, the laundry treating apparatus may determine a point of time when the water stored in the water collecting portion 371A is allowed to flow to the storage body 72. Therefore, the water of the water collecting portion 371A can be prevented from flowing back into the connection duct 35A.

The water collecting portion water level sensing means 92 may be formed as any means capable of sensing the water level within the water collecting portion 371A. As an example, fig. 3 shows a sensor having a plurality of electrodes (electrically connected electrodes based on water level) of different lengths.

The laundry drying appliance 20 may have dryness sensing means in order to determine the point in time when the operation of the heat exchanger 4 is stopped by determining the dryness of the laundry. The dryness sensing device may be formed as at least one of an electrode sensor 95 configured to be in contact with the laundry so as to measure the amount of moisture contained in the laundry, and a humidity sensor for measuring the humidity of the air introduced from the drum 3 to the duct 3A.

The electrode sensor may include a first electrode 951 and a second electrode 953, which may be fixed to the first fixing body 171 and may be in contact with laundry within the drum body 21A. As the dryness increases, the amount of moisture contained in the laundry will decrease (the resistance of the laundry will increase), so that the laundry drying apparatus 20 can determine the dryness of the laundry by observing the resistance measured when the two electrodes 951 and 953 are connected to each other via the laundry. In one example, as the dryness of the laundry increases, the amount of moisture contained in the air introduced into the duct 3A will decrease, so that the laundry drying apparatus 20 may determine the dryness of the laundry by observing the humidity of the air introduced into the duct 3A via the humidity sensor.

In addition, the laundry drying apparatus 20 may further comprise temperature sensing means 96 for measuring the temperature of the air introduced into the duct 3A. A temperature sensing device 96 may be fixed to the top surface of the connection duct 35A and positioned between the first filter 531 and the second filter 551.

The driver 28 may be directly fastened to the rear surface of the drying drum 2A. A drying drive 28 may be provided on the second support 19 for directly rotating the drying drum 2A.

The drying driver 28 may include a stator supported by the second support 19, a rotor rotated by the stator, and a rotation shaft.

The drying driver 28 may be separately coupled to the decelerator 28A, and the decelerator 28A may be coupled to the center (rotation center) of the rear surface of the drying drum 2A to rotate the drying drum 2A.

Therefore, the speed reducer 28A can increase the torque while reducing the RPM of the rotating shaft.

The steaming device 200 may be provided as a first supporter fixed to the front panel 11 or the support drum 2 for space utilization. Further, the steaming device 200 may be disposed adjacent to a corner of the cabinet 1.

The internal supply part 400 may include: a water tank 420 for storing water; a water pump 430 for supplying power to supply water stored in the water tank 420 to the steaming device 200; and a tank case 410 providing a space in which the water supply pump 430 and the water tank 420 are installed.

The tank case 410 may be formed in a box shape having an open top surface, and may extend in the front-rear direction of the cabinet 1, so that the water tank 420 may be disposed in a front portion of the cabinet 1, and the water pump 430 may be disposed in a rear portion of the cabinet 1.

The box housing 410 may include: a tank mounting portion 411 in which the water tank 420 is detachably mounted; and a pump mounting portion 412 in which the water pump 430 may be mounted. The tank mounting part 411 and the pump mounting part 412 may be formed in an inward concave shape so as to prevent water leaked from the water tank 420 or the water pump 430 from leaking to the drying drum 2A.

Further, the tank case 410 may further include a partition wall 413 separating the tank mounting part 411 and the pump mounting part 412 from each other. Accordingly, the water tank 420 can be easily installed into or removed from the tank case 410. The partition wall 413 may also be used to collect the residual water in the tank mounting portion 411 or the residual water in the pump mounting portion 412 so that the residual water does not flow to other places.

An extension pipe 416 allowing the water tank 420 and the water pump 430 to communicate with each other may be installed in the partition 413. A valve structure may be installed on the extension pipe 416 to prevent water leakage even when the water tank 420 is removed from the tank installation part 411.

The extension pipe 416 may extend from the partition 413 toward the water pump 430 or toward the water tank 420.

In one example, the tank case 410 may be formed such that the pump mounting portion 412 is disposed closer to the steaming device 200 than the tank mounting portion 411. Accordingly, the flow path from the water tank 420 to the steaming device 200 can be simplified.

The tank case 410 may be formed such that the tank mounting part 411 and the pump mounting part 412 are arranged along the front-rear direction of the cabinet.

The water supply part 300 may include a coupling portion capable of fixing the tank case 410 to at least one of one side surface of the cabinet and the support bar 440.

The rotary drying drum 2A is provided inside the drying cabinet 1. Therefore, the components disposed within the cabinet 1 need to be spaced apart from the drying drum 2A. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent the water supply part 300 and the steaming device 200 from coming into contact with the drum 2. For example, it is necessary to prevent the steam guide pipe 230 for supplying steam from the steaming device 200 to the drum 2, the straight water pipe (direct water pipe) 510 for supplying water to the steaming device 200, etc. from coming into contact with the drying drum 2A.

Not only the water tank 420 and the water pump 430 but also the water load accommodated in the water tank 420 need to be supported.

Accordingly, the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure may include a support bar 440 for supporting the steam apparatus 200 and the water supply part 300 to prevent the steam apparatus 200 and the water supply part 300 from coming into contact with the drum, and for supporting the steam apparatus 200 and the water supply part 300 within the dryer cabinet.

The support pole 440 may be configured to support at least a portion of the steaming device 200 or at least a portion of the water supply 300. In addition, the support bars 440 may fix or support the cabinet housing 410 to the dryer housing.

The support bars 440 may be formed in a bar shape, both ends of which are coupled to the drying front panel 11 and the drying rear panel 12, respectively. Accordingly, the support bars 440 can support the load of the box housing 410, and fix the drying front panel 11 and the drying rear panel 12. The support bars 440 may be spaced apart from the dry side panel 14 by a predetermined distance and coupled to the dry front panel 11 and the dry rear panel 12. In one example, both ends of the support bar 440 may be coupled to the cabinet 1, but the remaining portion thereof may be disposed at a lower position than an upper portion of the side surface of the cabinet 1. Accordingly, the support bars 440 may be spaced apart from the top panel 13 so as to prevent interference with the top panel 13. Further, a space capable of supporting some components of the water supply part 300 and the steaming device 200 may be defined between the support bars 440 and the top panel 13.

The excessive extension of the width of the box cover 410 may be prevented by the support bars 440.

In one example, although not shown, the tank case 410 may further include a mounting sensor capable of sensing that the water tank 420 is mounted on an inner surface thereof. The mounting sensor may be formed as a weight sensor and may be configured to distinguish whether the weight is small or large.

The installation sensor may be connected to the drying control panel PA to transmit information of whether the water tank 420 is installed and the amount of water contained in the water tank 420.

The internal supply 400 may include a pump discharge pipe 433 to discharge water from the pump housing 430 to the steaming device 200.

The external supply part 500 may include: a straight water valve (direct water valve) 520, which is disposed on the second support 19A or the drying rear panel 12; and a straight water pipe 510 configured to supply water from the straight water valve 520 to the steaming device 200.

The straight water pipe 510 may extend from the drying rear panel 12 to the steaming device 200, and the straight water valve 520 may be configured to open and close the straight water pipe 510. The straight water pipe 510 may extend from the straight water valve 520 across the support pole 440 to the steam generator 210. In this regard, at least a portion of the straight water pipe 510 may be supported by the support bars 440 to prevent contact with the drying drum 2A.

The support bar 440 may be disposed between the straight water valve 520 and the water tank 430.

Further, the straight water valve 520 may be disposed on the drying rear panel 12 or the second support 19A so as to be exposed to the outside, and the straight water pipe 510 may extend from the straight water valve 520 toward the steaming device 200. Accordingly, the external supply part 500 may supply water to the steam appliance 200 in a direct water supply scheme from an external water supply source.

The steaming device 200 may receive water from each of the external supply part 500 and the internal supply part 400. However, when the steaming device 200 is configured to receive water through the corresponding tube, the steaming device 200 of a separate shape must be manufactured, thereby possibly complicating a flow path and a control method.

To this end, the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure may further include a coupling part 600 for coupling the straight water pipe 510 and the pump discharge pipe 433. The combining part 600 may be configured such that both water stored in the internal supply part 400 and water supplied in a direct water supply scheme from the external supply part 500 are collected.

Further, the combining part 600 may be configured to deliver the supplied water to the steaming device 200. The coupling portion 600 may be formed as a three-way valve, or may be formed in the shape of a combined pipe coupling three pipes to each other.

When the coupling portion 600 is formed in a tubular shape, a check valve may be provided in each of the external supply portion 500 and the internal supply portion 400 to prevent backflow. In particular, a straight water check valve 511 for opening the straight water pipe 510 in one direction may be installed on the straight water pipe 510, and the pump discharge pipe 433 may have a discharge check valve 434 for opening the pump discharge pipe 433 in one direction.

Further, check valves may be provided on the pump discharge pipe 433 and the straight water pipe 510, respectively. The external supply 500 may include an external check valve and the internal supply 400 may include an internal check valve.

Accordingly, the water supplied to the straight water pipe 510 can be prevented from flowing back to the water pump 430, and the water supplied to the pump discharge pipe 433 can be prevented from flowing back to the straight water valve 510.

In one example, the coupling portion 600 has a large weight when formed as a valve or a coupling tube. In addition, a considerable weight may be applied to the coupling part 600 when water passes through the coupling part 600.

Accordingly, the coupling portion 600 may be seated on the support pole 440.

The coupling portion 600 and the support bar 400 may be coupled to each other using separate fixing members to prevent the coupling portion 600 from being separated from the support bar 400. Since the coupling portion 600 is seated on the support bar 400, the positions of the straight water pipe 510 and the pump discharge pipe 433 can also be stably fixed.

In one example, the steaming device 200 may include: a water guide pipe 220 connected to the combining part 600 to receive water from the water supply part 300; a steam generator 210 receiving water from the water guide pipe 220 to generate steam; and a steam guide pipe 230 capable of guiding the steam generated by the steam generator 210 to the drying drum 2A or the guide pipe 3A.

The steam generator 210 may be disposed under the drying drum 2A to stably receive water from the water supply part 300 by gravity, and the generated steam may stably move to the drying drum 2A by a density difference.

The steam guide pipe 230 may be configured to communicate with a gasket or a first support provided on the front surface of the drying drum 2A. Accordingly, the steam guide pipe 230 may stably supply steam into the drying drum 2A without contacting the drying drum 2A.

In one example, the tank case 410 may have a mounting sensor capable of sensing whether the water tank 420 is mounted. For example, the mounting sensor may be formed as a pressure sensor or the like.

In addition, a water level sensor capable of sensing the water level of the water tank 420 may be further provided. For example, the water level sensor may be formed as a weight sensor. The installed sensor or water level sensor may also be controlled by the control panel 820 and may be configured to transmit a signal to the control panel 820.

In one example, the control panel P may indirectly identify the water level of the water tank 420 by temporarily driving the water pump 430 to sense a load applied to the water pump 430.

The water storage tank 72 may have a significantly larger volume than the water tank 430 and may be disposed spaced apart from the water tank 430 so as to prevent a user from confusing the water storage tank 72 and the water tank 430.

The water tank 430 and the steam appliance 200 may be disposed between the support pole 440 and one side surface of the cabinet, and the water storage tank 72 may be disposed between the support pole 440 and the other side surface of the cabinet.

Since the water tank 430 is coupled to the tank mounting portion 411, it can be seen that the tank mounting portion 411 is also disposed between the support bar 440 and one side surface of the cabinet.

As a result, the support rod 440 may be disposed between the water storage tank 72 and the steam generator 210, and may be disposed between the water storage tank 72 and the water tank 430.

Fig. 6 illustrates a structure in which the laundry treating apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the mini-or mini-sized apparatus 60 may communicate with each other when the laundry treating apparatus includes the laundry washing apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the mini-sized apparatus 60.

The laundry washing appliance 10 may comprise a washing control panel P configured to display information and to receive commands from a user.

The washing control panel P may include: a display portion P8 capable of displaying a state of the laundry washing appliance 10; an input device P9 capable of inputting commands to the laundry washing appliance 10; and a washing speaker K1 capable of outputting a notification generated by the laundry washing apparatus 10 outwards. The laundry washing appliance 10 may comprise a controller M1 which may perform a washing course and options including a driver, a water supply part, a water drain part, etc. of the laundry washing appliance 10, and may comprise a memory S1 which transmits information to the controller M1 or stores a program to be used by the controller M1.

The input device P9 may be a concept including all components configured to receive a user command of the laundry apparatus 10, such as a manipulation part P47, a power supply switch P46, an execution part P47, a setting part P2, and the like, which will be described later.

Further, the laundry washing appliance 10 may comprise a washing communication module T1. The washing communication module T1 may include: wash communication modem T11, which includes a communication device such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth; a washing communication controller T12 configured to control the communication modem; and a washing communication memory T13 which may transmit the received information to the controller M1, or may store a program for controlling the washing communication controller T12 when the power supply of the washing controller M1 is cut off.

The washing communication module T1 may be configured to continuously receive power even in a state in which power supply to the control panel P of the laundry apparatus 10 is cut off, and may be configured to maintain a state of communication with the external terminal 40 and the server 50.

Further, the washing communication module T1 may be configured to be directly paired with a dry communication module T2 and a small communication module T31, which will be described later, to maintain a communication state.

Further, when the washing communication module T1 receives a power supply command to supply power to the control panel P, the power supplied to the control panel P may be controlled.

The laundry drying apparatus 20 may include a drying control panel PA configured to display information and receive commands from a user.

The drying control panel PA may include a drying display portion P8A capable of displaying a state of the laundry drying apparatus 20, a drying input device P9A capable of inputting a command to the laundry drying apparatus 20, and a drying speaker K2 capable of outputting a notification generated by the laundry drying apparatus 20 to the outside. The laundry drying apparatus 20 may include a drying controller M2, which may perform a drying course and options of operating a driver or the like, and may include a drying memory S2, which transmits information to the drying controller M1, or stores a program to be used by the drying controller M1.

The drying input device P9A may be a concept including all components configured to receive a user command of the laundry apparatus 10, such as a manipulation part P47A, a power supply switch P46A, an execution part P47A, a setting part P2A, and the like, which will be described later.

Further, the laundry drying apparatus 20 may include a drying communication module T2. The dry communication module T2 may include: a dry communications modem T21 comprising a communications device such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth; a dry communication controller T22 configured to control the communication modem; and a dry communication memory T23 that may transmit the received information to the dry controller M2, or may store a program that controls the dry communication controller T22 when power supply to the dry controller M2 is cut off.

The drying communication module T2 may be configured to continuously receive power even in a state in which the power supply of the drying control panel PA of the laundry drying apparatus 20 is cut off, and may be configured to maintain a state of communication with the external terminal 40 and the server 50.

Further, the dry communication module T2 may be configured to be directly paired with a communication module T1 and a small communication module T31 to be described later to maintain a communication state.

Further, when the drying communication module T2 receives a power supply command to supply power to the drying control panel PA, the power supplied to the drying control panel PA may be controlled.

The small device 60 may include a small control panel PC configured to display information and receive commands from a user.

The small-sized control panel PC may include a small-sized display portion P8C capable of displaying the state of the small-sized device 60, a small-sized input means P9C capable of inputting a command to the small-sized device 60, and a small-sized speaker K3 capable of outputting a notification generated by the small-sized device 60 to the outside. The small-sized device 60 may include a small-sized controller M3 that may perform a washing course and options of operating a driver, a water supply part, a drain part, etc. of the small-sized device 60, and may include a small-sized memory S3 that transmits information to the small-sized controller M3 or stores a program to be used by the small-sized controller M3.

The small input device P9C may be a concept including all components configured to receive a command of a user of the laundry apparatus 10, such as a manipulation part P47C, a power supply switch P46C, an execution part P4C, a setting part P2C, and the like, which will be described later.

Further, the small device 60 may include a small communication module T3. The small-sized communication module T3 may include: a small communications modem T31 comprising a communications device such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth; a small-sized communication controller T32 configured to control the small-sized communication modem; and a small-sized communication memory T33 that may transmit the received information to the small-sized controller M3, or may store a program that controls the small-sized communication controller T32 when the power supply to the small-sized controller M3 is cut off.

The small-sized communication module T3 may be configured to continuously receive power even in a state where power supply of the small-sized control panel PC of the small-sized device 60 is cut off, and may be configured to maintain a state of communication with the external terminal 40 and the server 50.

Further, the small-sized communication module T3 may be configured to be directly paired with a communication module T1 and a dry communication module T2, which will be described later, to maintain a communication state.

Further, when the small communication module T3 receives a power supply command to supply power to the small control panel PC, the power supplied to the small control panel PC can be controlled.

In one example, the external terminal 40 may include: a short-range communication module 40b configured to directly communicate with the laundry washing appliance 10, the laundry drying appliance 20 and the mini-appliance 60; and a remote communication module 40a configured to communicate with the server 50.

In addition, the external terminal 40 may further include: a terminal display section 42 for displaying information received from the communication module; a terminal input device 44 transmitting a command to a home appliance such as the laundry apparatus 10 or to the server 50; and a terminal controller 46 for controlling the terminal display portion 42, the terminal input device 44, and the communication module. The external terminal 40 may further include a terminal memory 48 to store information received from the communication module or to store a program for controlling the terminal controller 46.

The server 50 may include: communication means T5 capable of communicating with the external terminal 40, the laundry washing appliance 10, the laundry drying appliance 20 and the small-sized appliance 60; an arithmetic processor 52 that calculates information received or transmitted to the external terminal 40, the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20, and the small-sized apparatus 60; and a storage device 54 in which information received from the external terminal 40, the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the small-sized apparatus 60 may be stored, or any course or option in which the laundry apparatus 10, the laundry drying apparatus 20 and the small-sized apparatus 60 may be operated may be stored.

Hereinafter, description will be made based on the control panel P provided in the laundry apparatus 10, but the control panel P may be applied to the laundry apparatus 10 and the laundry drying apparatus 20 having the same structure, and may also be applied to the small-sized apparatus 60.

In other words, the control panel P, the drying control panel PA, and the small-sized control panel PC may have the same structure.

The laundry washing appliance 10 comprises a cabinet 1 and a control panel P provided on the cabinet 1.

The control panel P refers to a device capable of communicating between a user and the laundry treatment apparatus (including other electronic apparatuses other than the laundry treatment apparatus). The communication between the user and the laundry treating apparatus refers to a process in which the user inputs a control command to the laundry treating apparatus and a process in which the laundry treating apparatus transmits information to the user.

The user may input at least one of a power supply command to supply or cut off power to the laundry treating apparatus, a selection command to select any course or option to treat laundry, an execution command to perform the selected course or option, and a stop command to stop the ongoing course or option via the control panel P.

The treatment of the laundry may include a washing cycle for removing foreign matter of the laundry via water and detergent, or a drying cycle for drying the water remaining in the laundry.

The control panel P may display information of the operation state or progress or options of the laundry treating apparatus to the user.

For example, the control panel P may display a state in which at least one of a power supply command, a selection command, an execution command, an implementation command (performance command, a performance command), and a stop command is input. Further, the control panel P may display error information for displaying a problem situation occurring in the laundry treating apparatus, or guide information guiding the user to take an action.

The cabinet 1 may include a front panel 11 forming a front surface of the cabinet 1 and a top panel 13 coupled to a top surface of the front panel 11. The front panel 11 and the top panel 13 may be made of a metal material, and may have a steel plate shape.

The control panel P of the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure may be coupled to the front panel 11.

The control panel P may be coupled to the rear surface of the front panel 11, and may be partially exposed to the front surface of the front panel 11. The front panel 11 may be manufactured as a simple metal plate, and the control panel P may be simply coupled to the rear surface of the front panel 11 and fixed.

Accordingly, the front panel 11 may form the largest area of the front surface of the cabinet 1. As a result, the unity of the front panel 11 can be enhanced and the aesthetic feeling can be maximized. Further, the process of manufacturing the front panel 11 can be simplified, and the process of assembling or mounting the front panel 11 and the control panel P can be simplified. Further, a separate component for mounting the control panel P on the front panel 11, such as a frame, may be omitted.

The control panel P of the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure may include: a manipulation portion P7 rotatably coupled to the cabinet; and a display portion P8 provided in the manipulation portion P7 to display a state of the laundry treating apparatus.

The manipulation portion P7 may be formed in the shape of a rotary knob, and the display portion P8 may be formed as a display D including a liquid crystal portion or the like. It can be seen that a selection portion R and a display portion P8, which will be described later, are included in the manipulation portion P7.

The display portion P8 may be entirely formed as a touch panel, or may be at least partially formed as a touch panel.

The manipulation part P7 may be configured to rotate to select any course or option that can process laundry, and the display part P8 may be configured to display a corresponding course or option each time the manipulation part P7 rotates.

As a result, the control panel P of the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure may prevent any course or option (to be described later) capable of rotating the drum from being displayed as characters, guide phrases, etc. within a specific area.

Accordingly, the area or area ratio occupied by the control panel P in the front panel 11 can be greatly reduced, and the aesthetic sense can be maximized because no separate character or guide phrase is attached to the front panel 11.

The display P84 of the display portion P8 may include: a state display area D1 for displaying a state of the laundry treating apparatus; and a content display area D2 to display a state in which at least one of a power supply command, a selection command, an execution command, an implementation command, and a stop command of the laundry treating apparatus is input; error information; or guidance information (see fig. 11) that guides the user in taking action.

The status display area D1 may display a locking status D11 for explaining whether the door 132 is locked to the cabinet, an activation status D12 of the communication module T1, an execution status D13 of a process or option, and a notification status D14 indicating notification information to the user.

The content display area D2, as an area displayed in the largest area in the display portion P8, may display a selection state, an execution state, a stop state, and a completion state of a process or option, and may also display states of other home appliances to be described later.

Further, the control panel P may further include a selection portion R for a user to input a determination command for determining information displayed on the display portion P8. The selection portion R may be disposed within the manipulation portion P7 to further reduce the area occupied by the control panel P.

The selection portion R may be disposed within the display portion P8 and may be disposed to be spaced apart from the content display area D2. The selection portion R may be formed as a touch panel or a physical button for sensing contact of the user's body.

The display P84 of the display portion may include an input area D3, which may request input of the selection portion R at a point (location) corresponding to the selection portion R (see fig. 11).

The input region D3 may be configured to emit light when the selection portion R may be activated to receive a command from a user.

In one example, the manipulation portion P7 and the display portion P8 may operate only when power is supplied.

For this, the control panel P of the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure may further include a power switch (power switch) P46 for inputting a power supply command to the laundry treating apparatus, and a manipulation part P7 and a display part.

The user can activate the manipulating portion P7 by inputting the power supply switch P46.

The front panel 11 may include a power supply switch mounting portion 116 formed to mount the power supply switch P46.

In addition, the control panel P may further include an execution section P47 to which an execution command to execute or stop the selected process or option is input.

The executing portion P47 may be formed independently of the manipulating portion P7 and the display portion P8 to reflect the user's explicit presentation or stop intention. Further, the excessive functions of the manipulating portion P7 and the display portion P8 can be prevented.

The front panel 11 may include an execution part mounting part 117 formed to mount the execution part P47.

The control panel P may include a control box or housing P41 in which a power switch P46, an actuator P47, a manipulation portion P7, and a display portion P8 (see fig. 9) may be accommodated or mounted.

In one example, the control panel P may further include a setting part P2 that may add an option to a process or change an option to a process on the front panel 11. The user can set an option capable of changing the intensity, duration, and the like of the process via the setting section P2.

The setting portion P2 may be formed separately from the housing P41, and may be coupled to the front panel 11. The setting part P2 may include a separate liquid crystal part, and may include a touch panel or a physical button to input options.

The power supply switch P46, the executing portion P47, the manipulating portion P7, and the setting portion P2 may be collectively referred to as an input device P9.

In one example, the front panel 11 may have a laundry inlet 111 defined to communicate with the drum 2, and a door 132 pivotably coupled to the cabinet to open and close the laundry inlet 111.

The control panel P may be located above the door 132 in order to enhance accessibility of the user.

In one example, the front panel 11 may further include a locking device L for securing the door 132 to the front panel 11. The locking device L may lock the door 132 to the front panel 11 when the laundry treating apparatus is operated, such as when a drum of the laundry treating apparatus is rotated. Therefore, safety accidents can be prevented. When the operation of the laundry treating apparatus is completed, the locking device L may unlock the door 132.

The locking device L may be formed as any member as long as it can fix the door 132 to the cabinet 1. The locking means L may be formed as a fastener for fastening a hook protruding from the door, or may be formed as a solenoid valve for holding the hook.

The laundry treatment apparatus of the present disclosure may include a detergent box 243 in which a detergent for washing laundry is accommodated, and the front panel 11 may include a detergent hole P24 from which the detergent box 243 can extend.

The control panel P may be coupled to the front panel 11. As a result, the control panel P may include an input device P9 for receiving a control command from a user and a display portion P8 for outputting information such as a control command selectable by the user.

The main controller M1 may be installed to control a command to perform a drying operation of the laundry treating apparatus.

The input device P9 may include: a power supply requesting means P46 for requesting power supply to the laundry treating apparatus; a manipulation section P7 that enables a user to select a desired process among a plurality of processes; and an execution section P47 for requesting the start of a process selected by the user.

The display portion P8 may include at least one of a display panel capable of outputting text and graphics, and a speaker capable of outputting voice signals and sounds.

Fig. 8 shows a structure in which a control panel is coupled to a front panel.

As shown in the drawings, the laundry washing apparatus 10 may further comprise a detergent supply portion P24. The detergent supply part P24 may include: a detergent box housing 241 provided inside the cabinet 1; a connection pipe 242 for connecting the detergent box housing to the tub body 21; and a detergent box 243 which may extend from the detergent box housing 241 through a detergent box laundry inlet 133 defined in the front panel 11.

The detergent box 243 may include: a chamber 245 providing a space in which detergent is stored; and a discharge flow path 247 that discharges the detergent in the chamber to the detergent box housing 241. The drain flow path 247 may be formed as a water trap (siphon flow path, etc.), which allows the liquid to flow to the detergent box housing 241 when the level of the liquid stored in the chamber 245 exceeds a predetermined water level.

When the detergent supply part P24 is provided in the laundry treating apparatus 10, the water supply part 23 may further include a nozzle 232 for supplying water to the chamber 245. The nozzle 232 may be fixed to the cabinet 1 to form a top surface of the detergent box housing 241, and the water supply pipe 231 may connect the nozzle 232 and the water supply source to each other.

The detergent box panel 248 may be disposed on a front surface of the detergent box 243. The detergent box panel 248 may be formed in a shape to close the detergent box laundry inlet 133, and the detergent box panel 248 may have a detergent box handle.

The front panel 11 may be fixed to the cabinet 1 via a panel support 12. That is, the panel support 12 may be fixed to the cabinet 1, and the front panel 11 may be fixed to the panel support 12. The panel support 12 may have a detergent box through hole 121 through which the detergent box 243 passes.

The control panel P may be fixed to the cabinet 1 via a panel support 12. The panel support 12 may have an interface mounting slot in which the control panel P is secured.

The front panel 11 has a first button mounting portion 116 and a second button mounting portion 117. The first button 461 may be exposed to the outside of the casing 1 via the first button mounting portion 136, and the second button 471 may be exposed to the outside of the casing 1 via the second button mounting portion 117.

The first input device 46 and the second input device 47 may be disposed in the left and right spaces of the display part P8, respectively, may be disposed in the upper and lower spaces of the display part, respectively, or may be disposed vertically or horizontally in one of the left and right spaces of the display part.

The cabinet 1 has a panel through hole 134 defined to extend through the front panel 11. The shaft 71 may be inserted into the panel through hole 134.

When the laundry treating apparatus is formed as the laundry drying apparatus 20, other components may be the same except that the components related to the detergent box are changed to the water storage part 7.

Fig. 9 shows an internal structure of the control panel.

The control panel P includes: a circuit board (first circuit board) P4 fixed to the panel support 12 and positioned within the chassis 1; an encoder P5 fixed to the circuit board and located inside the casing 1; a manipulation portion P7 connected to the encoder P5 through the front panel 11; and a display portion P8 fixed to the encoder P5 or the first circuit board P4 through the front panel 11.

The first circuit board P4, which is a circuit board equipped with control circuits necessary for controlling (power supply control and operation control) at least one of the driver 32, the steaming device 200, and the water supply part 23, the discharge part 25, may be fixed to the panel support 12 via the housing P41. The housing P41 may have any shape as long as it can fix the first circuit board 4 to the panel support 12.

The housing P41 may be formed in a hexahedral shape with one side (a side facing the panel support) open.

A boss for setting the position of the first circuit board P4 may be provided in the housing P41. The boss may include a first boss 411 and a second boss 412.

In this case, the first circuit board P4 may have a board through hole P42 through which the first boss 411 passes, and a boss insertion hole P43 through which the second boss 412 passes. The second boss 412 may be disposed in each of the left and right side spaces of the first boss 411, or may be disposed in each of the upper and lower spaces of the first boss 411.

The wire 822 is connected to the display portion P8. The wire 822 may be formed as a power line for supplying power to the display portion, or may be formed as a communication line enabling the display portion P8 to communicate with a device including the first circuit board P4 in the casing.

The first boss 411 may have a first boss through-hole 413 defined therein, and the panel support 12 may have a wire through-hole P42 (see fig. 4) defined therein. In this case, the wire 822 may extend into the cabinet 1 by being inserted into the first boss through hole 413 and the wire through hole P42.

The first circuit board P4 may further include a power supply switch P46 and an execution portion P47. The laundry device P46 may be formed as a device for inputting a control command requesting to supply power to the laundry treating apparatus 100, and the executing part P47 may be formed as a device for inputting a command requesting to execute the control command displayed on the display part P8, or a command temporarily stopping the control command executed by the laundry treating apparatus 10.

The power supply switch P46 and the executing portion P47 may be configured to generate the control signal by sensing static electricity of the user's body.

The power supply switch P46 may include: a first button 461 exposed to the outside of the casing 1; a first detection sensor 469 fixed to the first circuit board P4; and a conductor (first touch spring) 463 for connecting the first button and the first detection sensor to each other. Similarly, the executing section P47 may include: a second button 471 exposed to the outside of the casing 1; a second detection sensor 474 fixed to the first circuit board P4; and a conductor (second touch spring) (not shown) for connecting the second button and the second detection sensor to each other.

The front panel 11 has a first button mounting portion 136 and a second button mounting portion 117. The first button 461 may be exposed to the outside of the casing 1 via the first button mounting portion 116, and the second button 471 may be exposed to the outside of the casing 1 via the second button mounting portion 117.

The power supply switch P46 and the executing portion P47 may be disposed in left and right spaces of the display portion P8, respectively, may be disposed in upper and lower spaces of the display portion, respectively, or may be disposed vertically or horizontally in one of the left and right spaces of the display portion.

The first and second touch springs 463 and 471 may be formed in coil shapes, which are intended to provide restoring forces to the first and second buttons 461 and 471. Also, in order to prevent the first button 461 and the second button 471 from deviating from the button mounting portions 116 and 117, respectively, the power switch 46 may have a first stopper 462 limiting the range of movement of the first button, and the actuator 47 may have a second stopper (not shown) limiting the range of movement of the second button.

The encoder P5 is a device that rotatably fixes the manipulation portion P7 to the first circuit board P4, and is a device that generates an electric signal during rotation of the manipulation portion P7 (or generates an electric signal at different settings based on the rotation angle of the actuator).

The drying control panel PA may have the same structure as the control panel P.

The small-sized control panel PC may have the same structure as the control panel P.

Fig. 10 shows the structure of an encoder.

The encoder P5 may include: a fixed portion (fixed portion) P51 fixed to the first circuit board P4, and to which the display portion P8 is fixed; a rotating portion P52 rotatably provided on the fixed portion P51, and to which the manipulating portion P7 is fixed; and a signal generator P54 for generating an electrical signal when the rotating part P52 rotates.

The fixing portion P51 may include: a fixing body P512 fixed to the first circuit board P4; a support body 511 extending from the fixed body 512 and rotatably fixing the rotating portion P52; and a body through hole 514 connected to the plate through hole P42 (connected to the first boss through hole) through the fixing body and the supporting body.

The fixing body 512 may be formed in a cylindrical shape. The board fastening portion 513 may be provided on the circumferential surface of the fixing body 512 or on one surface (a surface facing the first circuit board) of the fixing body. In this case, the first circuit board P4 may have an encoder fixing hole P44 defined therein into which the board fastening portion 513 is inserted.

The plate fastening portion 513 and the encoder fixing hole P44 may include a plurality of plate fastening portions and a plurality of encoder fixing holes, respectively, and the encoder fixing hole P44 may be disposed to surround the plate through hole P42.

Within the body through-hole 514, a fastening body fixing portion (fastening body fixing portion) 531 for fastening the display portion P8 to the fixing portion 51, and a position setting groove 532 for preventing rotation of the display portion 8 (fixing the position of the display portion) when the display portion P8 is inserted into the body through-hole 514 may be provided.

The fastening body fixing portion 531 may be formed as a protrusion protruding from at least one of the support body 511 and the fixing body 512 toward the center of the body through hole 514. As an example, the drawing shows a case where the fastening body fixing portion 531 is provided on the support body 511.

The positioning groove 532 may be defined as a groove in which one surface of the fixing portion P51 defining the body through hole 514 is concavely curved. In this case, the positioning groove 532 may be defined along the longitudinal direction of the body through hole 514.

The rotating portion P52 may be formed to be rotatably coupled to the rotating body 521 of the support body 511. The rotating body 521 should have a rotating body through hole through which the supporting body 511 passes.

The rotating body 521 may have a shaft fastening portion 522 to which the manipulation portion P7 is fastened. The shaft fastening portion 522 may be formed as a fastening hole extending through the circumferential surface of the rotating body 521, or may be formed as a fastening groove defined by concavely bending the circumferential surface of the rotating body 521.

The signal generator P54 may include: a magnet fixed to the rotation body 521; a sensor disposed on the fixed body 512 or the support body 511 to sense a magnetic force; and terminals connecting the sensor and the first circuit board 4 to each other. The magnet may be formed of a plurality of permanent magnets arranged along the circumferential surface of the rotating body 521 at a distance from each other.

The first circuit board P4 to which the encoder P5 is assembled may be coated with an insulating material (insulating material, isolation material). This is to minimize the possibility of water being supplied to the first circuit board P4 and the circuit being shorted. When an insulating material is coated on one surface (front panel facing surface) of the first circuit board P4, the control panel P may further include an encoder cover P6 in order to prevent the rotation body 521 from being fixed to the support body 511 by the insulating material.

The encoder cover P6 may be formed in a tubular shape, which is fixed to the first circuit board P4 and surrounds the encoder P5. That is, as shown in the drawing, the encoder cover P6 may include: a fixing body cover P61 fixed to the first circuit board P4 and surrounding the fixing body 512; and a cover through hole P62 defined to extend through the fixed body cover P61, and into which the encoder 5 is inserted.

The fixing body cover P61 may have a plate fastening portion 611, and the first circuit board P4 may have an encoder cover fixing hole P45 to fix the plate fastening portion 611. The plate fastening portion 611 and the encoder cover fixing hole P45 may include a plurality of plate fastening portions and a plurality of encoder cover fixing holes, respectively, and the encoder cover fixing hole P45 may be disposed to surround the plate fastening portion 513.

In order to drain the water introduced into the stationary body cover P61, the cover outlet 612 may be further provided on the circumferential surface of the stationary body cover P61. The cover outlet 612 is preferably located at the lowermost end of the circumferential surface of the stationary body cover P61.

In one example, after both the encoder P5 and the encoder cover P6 are coupled to the first circuit board P4, the above-described insulating material is applied to the first circuit board P4, and the insulating material sprayed onto a partial area of the first circuit board P4 (an outer space of the encoder cover) flows into the encoder cover P6 through the cover outlet 612. In this process, in order to prevent the insulating material from being applied to the rotating body 521, the distance L1 from the first circuit board to the uppermost end of the fixed body 512 is preferably set to be equal to or greater than the distance L2 from the first circuit board to the uppermost end of the cover outlet 612.

The encoder cover P6 may further include a support body cover P63 extending from the fixed body cover P61 and surrounding the rotating body 521 (surrounding the support body). The support body cover P63 may restrict the movement of the manipulation portion P7 in the radial direction of the cover through hole 62, so that the support body cover P63 may prevent the manipulation portion P7 from being separated from the rotation body 521.

Fig. 11 shows the structures of the manipulation section and the display section.

The manipulation portion P7 may include: a shaft P71 fixed to the rotation body 521 through the front panel 11; and a handle P73 fixed to the shaft P71 and positioned outside the casing 1.

The cabinet 1 has a panel through hole 134 defined to extend through the front panel 11. The shaft P71 may be disposed to be inserted into the panel through hole 134.

The shaft P71 may be formed as a tube in which the shaft through-hole 711 is defined. The rotary body 521 provided in the encoder is inserted into the shaft through hole 711, and the rotary body fastening portion 712 provided at the peripheral surface of the shaft P71 and positioned within the shaft through hole 711 is coupled to the shaft fastening portion 522 provided on the rotary body. Accordingly, the shaft P71 is fixed to the rotating body 521 via the rotating body fastening portion 712 and the shaft fastening portion 522.

The handle P73 may be fixed to the shaft P71 so as to be located outside the casing 1, and a user may apply a force required to rotate the rotating body 521 to the shaft P71 via the handle P73.

The handle P73 may include: an accommodation space 731 defined in the handle to communicate with the shaft through hole 711; and a handle through hole 732 extending through one surface of the handle P73 to allow the receiving space 731 to communicate with the outside.

When the diameter of the handle P73 is set to be larger than the diameter of the shaft P71, the shaft P71 may further include a base 713 to which the handle P73 is fixed. The base 713 may be formed as a disc-shaped member fixed to the peripheral surface of the shaft P71.

The handle P73 and the base 713 may be coupled to each other via a base fastening portion 734 provided on the handle 73 and a handle fastening portion 714 provided on the base 713.

The base fastening portion 734 may be formed as a plurality of protrusions fixed to the handle so as to be located in the receiving space 731, and the handle fastening portion 714 may be formed as a groove defined in the base 713 and receiving the protrusions therein.

To facilitate coupling of the handle P73 and the base 713, the handle P73 may have a fastening guide 735 positioned between one base fastening portion 734 and the other base fastening portion 734, and the base 713 may have a guide groove 715 into which the fastening guide 735 is inserted. The guide groove 715 may be defined as a groove in which the circumferential surface of the base 713 is bent toward the shaft through hole 711.

The display portion P8 may include: a housing P81 fixed to the fixed body 512 of the encoder and located in the accommodation space 731 of the actuator; a display P84 which is fixed to the housing and displays information (information related to control, operation, etc. of the laundry treating apparatus); and a circuit board (second circuit board and display portion circuit board) P82 which is provided in the housing and has a circuit for controlling the display P84.

The housing P81 may include: a fastening body 81b fixed to the fixing body 512 by extending through the shaft through hole 711 and inserting into the body through hole 514; and an accommodation body 81a fixed to the fastening body 81b and positioned in the accommodation space 731.

The receiving body 81a may be formed in any shape as long as it can be inserted into the receiving space 731. As an example, a case where the accommodating body 81a is formed in a cylindrical shape is shown.

A mounting space 811 is defined in the accommodation body 81a, and the mounting space 811 communicates with an accommodation space 731 defined in the handle via an accommodation body through hole 812 (the accommodation body through hole is defined to communicate with the handle through hole). That is, the accommodating body through hole 812 is defined in a surface of the space provided by the accommodating body 81a directed in a direction in which the handle through hole 732 is located.

The fastening body 81b may be formed in any shape as long as it can be inserted into the shaft through hole 711 and the body through hole 514 of the encoder. As an example, a case where the fastening body 81b is formed in a cylindrical shape is shown. The fastening body 81b has a fastening body through hole 815 connected to the installation space 811.

The fixed body fastening part 816 may be provided on the circumferential surface of the fastening body 81 b. The fixing body fastening portion 816 is a means for fixing the housing P81 to the fastening body fixing portion 531 provided in the encoder.

Also, a plurality of position setting protrusions 817 may be further provided on the circumferential surface of the fastening body 81 b.

The position setting protrusion 817 is formed in a shape that can be inserted into the position setting groove 532 defined in the encoder, and the position setting protrusion 817 is disposed at a site corresponding to the position of the position setting groove 532. The position setting protrusion 817 and the position setting groove 532 are means (means for ensuring that the fixing body fastening portion and the fastening body fixing portion are coupled) for minimizing the risk that the fixing body fastening portion 816 is not coupled to the portion 531 when the fastening body 81b is inserted into the body through hole 514.

The second circuit board P82 may be inserted into the installation space 811, and the wires 822 connected to the second circuit board P82 may be drawn out to the outside of the housing P81 through the fastening body through holes 815. A plurality of lamps 821 may be disposed on the second circuit board P82.

The second circuit board P82 may control the display P84 to display preset information in response to an electrical signal generated by the signal generator 54 when the handle P73 is rotated.

In order to maintain a gap between the second circuit board P82 and the display P84 and to prevent damage to the lamp 821, a mounting portion P83 positioned between the display P84 and the second circuit board P82 may be provided in the mounting space 811.

The mounting portion P83 may be formed as a mounting body 831 fixed to the receiving body 81a and positioned in the mounting space 811. The mounting body 831 may have any shape as long as it can be inserted into the mounting space 811.

A seating groove 832 to which the display P84 is fixed is defined in one surface of the mounting body 831. The seating groove 832 may have a connector through hole 836. A connector 841 (flexible PCB, etc.) provided in the display P84 may be connected to the second circuit board P82 by being inserted into the connector through-hole 836.

The mounting body 831 may have a lamp through hole 835 into which the lamp 821 is inserted. Preferably, the number of the lamp through holes 835 is the same as the number of the lamps 821, and the positions of the lamp through holes 835 should be set to a space of the mounting body above the seating groove 832 or a space of the mounting body below the seating groove 832. This is to allow light emitted by the lamp 821 to be transmitted to the outside of the housing P81 through the lamp through hole 835.

The mounting portion P83 is fixed to the housing P81 via a mounting body fastening portion 813 provided on the receiving body 81a and a receiving body fastening portion 833 provided on the mounting body 831. The mounting body fastening portion 813 may be formed as a plurality of protrusions located in the mounting space 811, and the receiving body fastening portion 833 may be defined as a groove or the like defined in the circumferential surface of the mounting body 831 (one surface of the mounting body in contact with the receiving body) to which the mounting body fastening portion 813 is fixed.

The number of the mounting body fastening portions 813 and the number of the receiving body fastening portions 833 should be set to be the same, and the positions of the mounting body fastening portions 813 and the receiving body fastening portions 833 should be set to correspond to each other.

In order to increase the fastening force of the mounting body 831, the receiving body fastening portion 833 may include an upper fastening portion positioned higher than the seating surface 832 and a lower fastening portion positioned lower than the seating surface 832. Unlike the drawings, the receiving body fastening portion 833 may be disposed on each of the left and right sides of the seating surface.

The window P85 may be further provided on the receiving body 81a to prevent water and foreign matter from flowing into the display P84 and the second circuit board P82.

Preferably, the window P85 is fixed to at least one of the receiving body 81a and the mounting body 831 to close the receiving body through hole 812. The window P85 should be made of a material having transparency allowing information displayed on the display P84 and light emitted by the lamp 821 to be seen from the outside.

When the window P85 is fixed to the mounting body 831, the window P85 may have a cover fixing protrusion 851 protruding toward the mounting body 831, and the mounting body 831 may have a fixing protrusion fastening portion 834 coupling the cover fixing protrusion 851.

The second circuit board P82 may also be fixed to the mounting body 831. That is, the mounting portion P83 may have a protrusion protruding from the mounting body 831 toward the second circuit board 82, and the second circuit board 82 may have a protrusion through hole 823 into which the protrusion is inserted.

Further, the window P85 may further include a cover sheet 853 for reducing transparency of the cover. Preferably, the transparency of the cover sheet is set to a degree that it is difficult to observe the inside of the installation space 811 from the outside (the transparency of the cover sheet is set to be lower than that of the cover). The cover sheet 853 may be fixed to the surface of the window P85, and a letter or symbol H may be displayed in the region where the lamp through hole 835 of the cover sheet is projected thereto.

In one example, a lamp through hole 835 corresponding to the input region D3 among the lamp through holes 835 in the mounting portion P83 may provide a signal indicating that the user presses the input region D3.

The selection portion R may be disposed within the display portion P8. In particular, the selection portion R may be formed as a component of the display portion P8, and may be provided in the display portion P8 to be provided within the manipulation portion P7.

Thus, it can be seen that the display portion P8 includes a selection portion R that receives a determination command to determine the status information displayed on the display P84. Since the determination command determined by the selection portion R may be changed based on the state information, the selection portion R may correspond to a variable input device.

For example, when selection information of a process and an option is displayed on the display P84, the selection portion R may be configured to input a determination command to select or determine the process and the option. Further, when displaying the guidance on the display P84, the selection portion R may be configured to input a determination command to identify the guidance.

As a result, based on the type of control command displayed on the display 84, the selection portion R may be configured to receive a determination command of the user to identify or determine the corresponding control command.

The selection portion R may be configured to determine whether a control command displayed on the display P84 is selected by sensing whether the user's body is in contact with the window P85.

That is, the selecting portion R may include: a sensor R3 which is provided on the second circuit board 82 and senses static electricity of the user's body; and a conductor R2 or a physical button R1 for interconnecting the sensor R3 and the window P85.

The selection portion R may be composed of a receiver R1 attached to or coupled to the window P85, and a transmitter R2 having one end connected to the receiver R1 and the other end connected to the sensor R3. In this case, the mounting body 831 must have a conductor through hole 837 into which the emitter R2 is inserted.

The receiver R1 is a device that facilitates input of control commands by expanding an area that can be touched by a user. In the control panel P having the above-described structure, the display region D1 is formed in the upper space of the window P85, and the input region D3 is formed in the lower space of the window P85. Therefore, when the width of the receiver R1 is set to be large, the width of the input area D3 is expanded so that the user can more easily input the control command. The width of the receiver R1 is preferably set to be equal to or less than 1/4 to 1/2 of the width of the window P85.

The transmitter R2 and the receiver R1 may be formed as conductors. Therefore, when the user's body contacts the transmitter R2 and the receiver R1, the current of the user's body may be charged or transmitted so that the current may be transmitted to the sensor R3.

Further, the transmitter R2 and the receiver R1 may be formed as physical buttons. Therefore, when the user's body presses the receiver R1, the pressing of the body can be transmitted to the sensor R3.

The receiver R1 may be formed as a film printed or attached to the rear surface of the window P85, and may be made of a carbon-based material or the like.

In one example, the display portion P8 may include an inducing means 839 for guiding the user to press the selection portion R.

The induction means 839 may guide the user to the position of the selection part R to guide the user to press the selection part R.

The inductive device 839 may include a lamp 821 and a lamp throughbore 835 corresponding to the positioning of the receiver R1. In particular, the inducing means 839 may include a lamp through hole 835 defined below the display P84 and a lamp 821 installed in the lamp through hole 835.

The lamp through hole 835 and the lamp 821 constituting the induction device 839 may be disposed below the display P84 at the center of the mounting portion 83.

Therefore, when the lamp 821 emits light in the induction device 839, the selection portion R or a region adjacent to the selection portion R may become bright.

Further, the lamp 821 of the induction device 830 may be formed as an LED element or the like to indicate individual characters or phrases.

The control panel P having the above structure enables display of control commands, search for control commands for display, and select control commands for display, and minimizes the space required for installation. However, the control panel P having the above structure requires a device that blocks inflow of water or foreign matter into the display portion P8 and the manipulation portion P7 or discharges the inflow water or foreign matter to the outside.

The control panel P having the above structure will display a preset control command on the display P84 every time the user rotates the handle P73 (every time the encoder generates an electrical signal) (searches for and changes the control command).

When a desired control command is displayed on the display P84, the user can select the displayed control command via the selection portion R, and when the user inputs an execution command via the execution portion P47, the control command selected via the selection portion R can be started.

In one example, the handle P73 is coupled to the first circuit board P4 to be capable of rotational movement, and the housing P81 of the display portion is fixed to the first circuit board P4, so that it is necessary to keep the gap between the handle P73 and the housing P81 constant. This is because the rotation of the handle 7P3 may be restricted when the gap between the handle P73 and the housing P81 is not maintained.

Fig. 12 shows a detailed configuration of the manipulation portion P7.

Shaft P71 may be coupled to the encoder to rotate the encoder. The base P713 may extend from the distal end of the shaft to have a larger diameter than the shaft. A handle P75 may be coupled to the base to rotate the shaft and encoder.

The diameter of the base 713 may be greater than the diameter of the panel through hole. The base 713 may extend from the distal end of the shaft to face the plate through hole.

The handle P73 may be coupled to an outer circumferential surface of the base P713, and the handle P75 may have a diameter larger than a width of the panel through hole.

The encoder P5 may have a diameter smaller than the width of the panel through hole.

The outer circumferential surface of the manipulation portion P7 may have a larger diameter than the outer circumferential surface of the encoder P5.

The shaft P71 may be formed as a tube having a shaft through hole 711 defined therein. The rotary body 521 provided in the encoder is inserted into the shaft through hole 711, and the rotary body fastening portion 712 provided on the circumferential surface of the shaft P71 and positioned within the shaft through hole 711 is coupled to the shaft fastening portion 522 provided in the rotary body. Accordingly, the shaft P71 is fixed to the rotating body 521 via the rotating body fastening portion 712 and the shaft fastening portion 522.

The handle P73 may be fixed to the shaft P71 so as to be located outside the casing 1, and a user may apply a force required to rotate the rotation body 521 to the shaft P71 via the handle P73.

The handle 7P3 may include: an accommodation space 731 defined in the handle to communicate with the shaft through hole 711; and a handle through hole 732 extending through one surface of the handle 73 to communicate the receiving space 731 with the outside.

When the diameter of the handle P73 is set to be larger than the diameter of the shaft P71, the shaft 71 may further include a base 713 to which the handle P73 is fixed. The base 713 may be formed as a disc-shaped member fixed to the peripheral surface of the shaft P71.

The handle P73 and the base 713 may be coupled to each other via a base fastening portion 734 provided in the handle 73 and a handle fastening portion 714 provided in the base 713.

The interface P having the above-described structure is capable of displaying control commands, searching for control commands for display, and selecting control commands for display, and minimizing the space required for installation. However, the interface P having the above-described structure requires a means for blocking water or foreign matter from flowing into the display portion P8 and the manipulation portion P7 or discharging the introduced water or foreign matter to the outside.

The manipulation portion P7 may have a means for discharging water or foreign matter flowing into the handle through hole 732 to the outside of the receiving space 731, and the display portion P8 may have a means for blocking foreign matter (external air, liquid, dust, etc.) from flowing into the housing 81.

As described above, the manipulation part P7 can discharge the water or foreign matter introduced into the receiving space 731 to the outside of the receiving space through the handle outlet P74 defined in the handle.

Fig. 13 illustrates the use of a control panel.

In the state display area D1 of the display portion P8, it is possible to present in the form of an icon: whether the door is locked; whether the communication module is activated; whether a process or option is operated; whether a guide phrase is generated; etc.

Further, in the state display area D1, the number of display contents that may occur when the manipulation portion P7 is rotated may be displayed. For example, a plurality of dots may be arranged spaced apart from each other, and when one of the plurality of dots is emitted, the number of contents displayed in the content display area D2 may be provided.

In the content display area D2, the content of a process and an option required by the user, the execution state of the process or the option, and the guide phrase may be displayed.

The content display area D2 may be larger than the status display area D1.

In the input area D3, light may be emitted to request input of the user, and a guide phrase indicating content that the user should input may be displayed.

The power supply switch P46 may be disposed at the left side of the display portion P8, and the executing portion P47 may be disposed at the right side of the display portion P8.

The manipulation portion P7 may be rotatably provided on the outer circumferential surface of the display portion P8, and may rotate the drum 3.

Any course may be a series of control methods for performing a washing cycle (drying cycle) for washing laundry.

When the manipulation portion P7 is rotated, and the name of the corresponding process and the name of the simple option may be displayed in the content display area D2 of the display portion P8 based on the set order, and the description of the process or the option may be displayed.

The option may be selected by the setting part P2. The setting part P2 may be configured to receive a selection command to select at least one of any options.

Any option may include setting additional conditions for the process.

For example, any option may be a set of algorithms or control methods for adjusting at least one of the number of repetitions of each cycle of the execution process, the intensity of each cycle being executed, the rotational speed of the drum when each cycle is executed, the water temperature, the water amount, and the duration of each cycle.

The setting part P2 may be formed as a touch display to select any option, and may have a plurality of lamps and a plurality of conductor switches capable of sensing the user's body.

For example, the setting portion P2 may include: an option selecting section B that receives a setting command to set a condition of a process; and an option display section B4 that displays option information corresponding to the option selection section B.

For example, the option selecting section B may include: a rinsing means (B1) for adjusting rinsing force related to a rotation speed and duration of the drum, an amount of water, and a number of rinsing times when the course performs a rinsing cycle; a dehydrating means part (dehydration means) B2 for adjusting a dehydrating force related to a rotation speed and a duration of the drum when the progress of the dehydrating cycle is performed; and a temperature device part (temperature means) B3 for adjusting the temperature of the water when the washing cycle is performed.

The option display part B4 may be configured to indicate rinsing force, dewatering force and temperature in an objective and uniform manner.

In one example, the setting part P2 may have a use device part (verifying means) C that receives a use command to use a function of the laundry treating apparatus.

For example, the using device C may include: a washing means section (washing means) C1 for inputting a specific washing cycle such as functional laundry, soft laundry, and tub washing; a reservation means part (reservation means) C2 for inputting a reservation command to perform a washing course at a specific time; a sterilizing device section (sterilizing means) C for promoting sterilization by adding steam to the laundry during the course cycle; and an additional function means (functions) C4 for using additional functions, such as pairing with other devices.

Further, the setting part P2 may include a switching part E to receive a connection command to communicate with the laundry drying apparatus 20 or the small-sized apparatus 60.

In one example, the setting section P2 allows a function usable at the current point in time or a function selected by the user to be turned on, and allows a function that cannot be executed or is not selected by the user to be turned off.

The setting section P2 can display all the contents via the auxiliary display P19.

Next, an embodiment and a control method for displaying and controlling the laundry drying apparatus 20 or the small-sized apparatus 60 using the control panel P of the laundry washing apparatus 10 will be described. However, this is only to omit duplicate description, and can be equally applied when the drying control panel PA is used to control the laundry washing appliance 10 or the small appliance 60.

Further, the same may apply when the laundry washing appliance 10 or the laundry drying appliance 20 is controlled using a small control panel PC.

The front panel 13 may include a coupler 140 to fix the housing P41 of the control panel P.

The front panel 13 may include a panel through hole 134 through which the encoder P5 or the manipulation portion P7 of the control panel P passes.

Since the front panel 13 is made of one steel plate, it is difficult to form a separate member from one surface of a flat plate or the front panel. In this way, the coupler 140 may extend from the panel through hole 134 defining the edge of the front panel, and the inner peripheral portions of the actuator mounting portion 117 and the power supply switch mounting portion 116.

The coupler 140 may include a first coupler 141 extending from the panel through-hole 134 and a second coupler 142 extending from the panel through-hole 134 to face the first coupler 141.

The first and second couplers 141 and 142 may be provided in a thin plate shape, and may have the same thickness as the front panel 13. In addition, the first and second couplers 141 and 142 may have a smaller width than the panel through-holes 134 and may extend to a length to support one surface of the housing P41.

The coupler 140 may include: a third coupling 143 extending from an inner peripheral portion of the power supply switch mounting portion 116; and a fourth coupler 144 extending from an inner peripheral portion of the actuator mounting portion 117.

Since the power supply switch mounting portion 116 and the actuator mounting portion 117 are provided with a smaller diameter than the panel through hole 134, the third and fourth couplers 143 and 144 may be provided with a smaller width than the first and second couplers 142. The third and fourth couplers 143 and 144 may be disposed to face each other.

The first and second couplers 141 and 142 may be disposed not to face the third and fourth couplers 143 and 144.

For example, the first and second couplers 141 and 142 may be disposed above and below the panel through hole 134, and the third and fourth couplers 143 and 144 may be disposed outside the power switch mounting portion 116 and the actuator mounting portion 117. In this way, the first, second, third and fourth couplers 141, 142, 143 and 144 may be provided to support all four surfaces of the housing P41.

The coupler 140 may include at least one of a first through hole 141a through the first coupler 141, a second through hole 142a through the second coupler 142, a third through hole 143a through the third coupler 143, or a fourth through hole 144a through the fourth coupler 144.

The through-hole provided in the coupler may prevent the housing P41 from being separated from the coupler 140 by fixing a hook protruding from the housing P41 to the through-hole.

The front surface of the opening of the housing P41 may expose the encoder P5 to the outside, and all other surfaces of the housing P41 may be shielded and provided in a rectangular parallelepiped shape accommodating the first circuit board P4 such as the encoder P5.

The housing P41 may include a detachable portion 410 configured to be coupled to the coupler 140.

The housing P41 may include a first detachable portion 414 coupled to the first coupler 141 and a second detachable portion 415 coupled to the second coupler 142. In this way, the housing P41 can be supported up and down by the first and second couplers without a separate fixing member.

The first detachable portion 414 may house the first coupler 141 and may be coupled thereto. In this way, the coupling force (cohesion) between the first coupling 141 and the first detachable portion 414 can be increased.

The first detachable portion 414 may extend from the housing P41 to the outside. In this way, even if the first coupling 141 does not penetrate into the inside of the housing P41, the first coupling 141 can support the housing P41.

The first detachable portion 414 may be provided in a ring shape to completely accommodate the first coupling 141. Further, as shown, the first detachable portion 414 may be provided to extend from both sides of the first coupling 141 to facilitate attachment.

The first detachable portion 414 may include: a first extension body 4141 extending from the housing P41 to accommodate both surfaces of the first coupling 141; a first shielding body 4142 extending from the first extension body 4141 to shield at least a portion of the exposed surface of the first coupler 141; and a first restricting body 4143 extending from the first shielding body 4142 toward the exposed surface of the first coupler 141 and supporting the first coupler 141 by contacting the first coupler 141.

The first detachable portion 414 may include a first hook 4144 protruding from the housing P41 so as to be inserted into the first through hole 141a.

In this way, the first coupler 141 may be inserted into the first extension body 4141 until the first hook 4144 is inserted into the first through hole 141a and may be supported by the first limiting body 4143. In this way, the first limiting body 4143 may prevent the first coupling 141 from being separated from the first hook 4144.

The first detachable portion 414 may further include an exposure space 4145 between the first shielding bodies 4142 at both sides. The width of the exposure space 4145 may also be set to be greater than the length of the first shutter body 4142.

The first shutter body 4142 may function as a cantilever having an exposed space 4145.

Even though the first restriction body 4143 is spaced apart from the first coupling 141, the height by which the first restriction body 4143 is spaced apart from the first coupling 141 may be smaller than the length of the first hook 4144. In this way, even if the first coupling 141 moves toward the first shielding body 4142 due to instantaneous vibration or the like, the first coupling 141 can be in contact with the first restricting body 4143 while being prevented from being separated from the first hook 4144.

The vibration transmitted to the first limiting body 4143 may be buffered by the first extension body 4141, and the vibration of the housing P41 may be rapidly damped.

The second detachable portion 415 may be provided to have the same shape as the first detachable portion 414.

The second detachable portion 415 may be provided in a ring shape to completely accommodate the second coupling 142. Further, as shown, the second detachable portion 415 may extend from both sides of the first coupling 141 to facilitate attachment.

The second detachable portion 415 may include: a second extension body 4151 extending from the housing P41 to accommodate both surfaces of the second coupling 142; a second shielding body 4152 extending from the second extension body 4151 to shield at least a portion of the exposed surface of the second coupler 142; and a second restricting body 4153 extending from the second shielding body 4152 toward the exposed surface of the second coupler 142 and contacting the second coupler 142 to support it.

The second detachable portion 415 may include a second hook 4154 protruding from the housing P41 to be inserted into the second through hole 142a.

In this way, the second coupling 142 may be inserted into the second extension body 4151 until the second hook 4154 is inserted into the second through hole 142a and may be supported by the second limiting body 4153. Accordingly, the second limiting body 4153 may prevent the second coupler 142 from being separated from the second hook 4154.

The second detachable portion 415 may further include a second exposure space 4155 between the second shielding bodies 4152 at both sides. The width of the second exposure space 4155 may also be set to be greater than the length of the second shutter body 4152.

The second shutter body 4152 may function as a cantilever having a second exposure space 4155.

Even though the second restricting body 4153 is spaced apart from the second coupler 142, the height by which the second restricting body 4153 is spaced apart from the second coupler 142 may be smaller than the length of the second hook 4154. In this way, even if the second coupling 142 moves toward the first shielding body 4142 due to instantaneous vibration or the like, the second coupling can contact the second restricting body 4153 to prevent the second hook 4154.

The vibration transmitted to the second limiting body 4153 may be buffered by the second extension body 4151, and the vibration of the housing P41 may be rapidly damped.

The housing P41 may include a third detachable portion 416 coupled to the third coupling 143 and a fourth detachable portion 417 coupled to the fourth coupling 144. In this way, the housing P41 can be supported left and right by the third coupling 143 and the four couplings 144 without requiring a separate fixing member.

The third detachable portion 416 may extend from the housing P41 to completely accommodate the third coupling 143. The third detachable portion 416 may be provided in the form of a slot to fully accommodate the third coupling 143.

The third detachable portion 416 may include a third extension body 4161 extending from the housing P41 to accommodate both surfaces of the third coupling 143; a third shielding body 4162 configured to shield an exposed surface of the third coupling 143 in the third extension body 4161; and a third confinement body 4163 extending from the third shutter body 4162 and in contact with an exposed surface of the third coupler 143.

The third shielding body 4162 may be provided to connect the third extension body 4161 at both sides such that the third detachable portion 416 does not include an exposed space. In this way, the third coupling 143 having a small width can be prevented from being separated from the third detachable portion 416.

The third detachable portion 416 may further include a third hook 4164 to be inserted into the third through hole 143a of the third coupling 143. In this way, the third coupler 143 may be inserted into the third extension body 4161 until the third hook 4164 is inserted into the third through hole 143a and may be supported by the third limiting body 4163. In this way, the third limiting body 4163 can prevent the third coupler 143 from being separated from the third hook 4164.

The fourth detachable portion 417 may be configured to have the same configuration as the third detachable portion 416.

The fourth detachable portion 417 may extend from the housing P41 to fully house the fourth coupler 144. The fourth removable portion 417 may be provided in the form of a slot to fully receive the fourth coupler 144.

The fourth detachable portion 417 may include: a fourth extension body 4171 extending from the housing P41 to accommodate both surfaces of the fourth coupler 144; a fourth shielding body 4172 configured to shield an exposed surface of the fourth coupler 144 in the fourth extension body 4171; and a fourth confinement body 4173 extending from the fourth shutter body 4172 and contacting an exposed surface of the fourth coupler 144.

The fourth shielding body 4172 may be provided to connect the fourth extension body 4171 at both sides such that the fourth detachable portion 417 does not include an exposed space. In this way, the fourth coupling 144 having a small width can be prevented from being separated from the fourth detachable portion 417.

The fourth detachable portion 417 may further include a fourth hook 4174 to be inserted into the fourth through hole 144a of the fourth coupling 144. In this way, the fourth coupler 144 may be inserted into the fourth extension body 4171 until the fourth hook 4174 is inserted into the fourth through hole 144a and may be supported by the fourth limiting body 4173. In this way, the fourth limiting body 4173 may prevent the fourth coupler 144 from being separated from the fourth hook 4174.

In this way, in the case P41, since the coupler 140 integrally extends from the front panel 14, the positioning of the front panel 14 can be fixed without a separate member. The case P41 may not be exposed to the outside of the front panel 14, and the front surface of the front panel 14 formed of an integral steel plate may be exposed to improve the overall aesthetic appearance and unity of the cabinet 1.

A mounting panel for mounting the housing P41, and a separate member for forming the front surface of the cabinet 1 other than the front panel 14 may not be required, whereby manufacturing efficiency may be greatly improved.

Fig. 16 is a schematic view showing a structure in which the front panel and the control panel are detached.

Next, a method of attaching and detaching the first coupling and the first detachable portion will be described. However, this is for explanation only, and the present disclosure may be applied to the second coupling and the second detachable portion in the same manner. Further, the third coupling portion, the third detachable portion, the fourth coupling portion, and the fourth detachable portion may be applied in the same manner except for the exposed space.

Referring to fig. 16 (a), the first coupling 141 may be inserted and fixed to the first detachable portion 414. Accordingly, the first coupling 141 may prevent the housing P41 from moving outwardly with respect to the first coupling 141.

The first coupling 141 may be disposed between the first extension bodies 4141.

The first extension body 4141 may extend a length greater than the thickness of the first coupler 141, and the first coupler 141 may be placed in contact with or will be in contact with the first restraining body 4143.

The first hook 4144 may be inserted into the first through hole 141a of the first coupling 141 to prevent any separation of the first coupling 141 from the first detachable portion 414.

Referring to fig. 16 (b), when the user wants to separate the housing P41 from the front panel 13, the first coupling 141 may be lifted toward the outside of the housing P41.

The first coupling 141 is separated from the first hook 4144 while the user pushes the first shutter body 4142 using the user's body or the like. Then, the user can separate the housing P41 from the front panel 13 by pulling the housing P41 away from the front panel 13.

In this way, the housing P41 can be coupled or fixed to the front panel 13 without a separate coupling member or fixing member.

Fig. 17 is a schematic view showing an additional structure of fixing the front panel and the control panel using separate members.

The housing P41 may be sufficiently coupled and fixed to the front panel 13 by the coupler 140.

However, during the execution of the course and options, when vibration is generated, the housing P41 may shake based on the front panel 13, and there may be a risk that the encoder P5 or the manipulation portion P7 is distorted.

In other words, the housing P41 may be fixed to the mounting panel of the front panel 13 separately without providing a separate, and the housing P41 may be directly coupled to the front panel 13. Therefore, the housing P41 is firmly fixed to the front panel 13, and the front panel 13 needs to be fixed to the housing P41 by a coupling member such as a bolt so as not to move relative to the front panel 13.

Referring to fig. 17 (a), the laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure may further include: a coupling member coupled to the housing P41 through the front panel 13; and a front panel 13, which may include a plurality of coupling holes 145 through which the coupling members pass.

In this case, the first and second couplers 141 and 142 may support upper and lower portions of the housing P41, and the third and fourth couplers 143 and 144 may support both sides of the housing P41, and thus the coupling members may be inevitably coupled to inner portions of the housing P41 corresponding to the first, second, third and fourth couplers 141, 142, 143 and 144.

Accordingly, the coupling 140 may further include: a coupling member for coupling the housing P41 and the casing 1; and a coupling hole 145 spaced apart from the panel through-hole 134 and through which a coupling member coupled to the housing P41 passes.

The housing P41 may further include a boss 412 coupled to the coupling member through the coupling hole 145.

In this way, the housing P41 and the front panel 13 can be firmly coupled by the coupling member to prevent a relative position therebetween from being changed or from being independently vibrated.

The coupling holes 145 may be provided in plurality in order to distribute weight, vibration, and load, and may be symmetrically provided in the panel through-hole 134.

The coupling hole 145 may be provided to be larger than the diameter of the coupling member, and the boss 412 may be provided in any shape as long as the boss 412 is coupled to the free end of the coupling member.

The boss 412 may extend from the rear surface of the housing P41 toward the coupling hole 145, and may pass through the coupling hole 145 to expose the front surface of the front panel 13. Thus, the boss 412 can also distribute the load of the housing P41 to the front panel 13.

The boss 412 may be spaced apart from the rear surface of the manipulation portion P7, and may extend from the housing P41 without contacting the manipulation portion P7. In this way, the rotation of the manipulating portion P7 can be unobstructed.

The plurality of coupling holes 145 may include a first coupling hole 145a spaced apart from one side of the panel through-hole 134, and a second coupling hole 145b spaced apart from the other side of the panel through-hole 134.

The housing P41 may include: a body portion 411 which accommodates the encoder P5 and is placed on the rear surface of the panel through hole 134; a first boss 412a extending from the body portion 411 toward the first coupling hole 145a, through which the coupling member passes through the first coupling hole 145a; and a second boss 412b extending from the body portion toward the second coupling hole, and to which the coupling member is coupled.

The first coupling hole 145a and the second coupling hole 145b may be provided in a length direction or a width direction of the housing P41. The length of the housing P41 may be greater than the height thereof, whereby the vibration width may be increased.

As a result, the first and second couplers 141 and 142 may be disposed to prevent facing the first and second coupling holes 145a and 145b.

The first and second coupling holes 145a and 145b may be disposed at left and right sides with respect to the panel through-hole 134.

The first coupling hole 145a may be disposed between the panel through-hole 134 and the third coupler 143, and the second coupling hole 145b may be disposed between the panel through-hole 134 and the fourth coupler 144.

The coupling member and the coupling hole 145 may not be exposed to the front panel 13. This is because, when the coupling member and the coupling hole 145 are exposed to the front panel 13, the desired unity and aesthetic feeling in the front panel 13 may be drastically reduced, and there is a risk of damaging the user's body or clothing due to the coupling member.

In this way, the coupling member and the coupling hole 145 can be prevented from being exposed to the front surface of the electrical panel 13.

For this, a plurality of coupling holes 145 may be provided to the rear surface of the manipulation part P7. That is, the plurality of coupling holes 145 may be all provided on the rear surface of the manipulation part P7 to prevent the coupling member and the plurality of coupling holes 145 from being exposed.

The maximum interval of the plurality of coupling holes 145 may be smaller than the diameter of the manipulation portion P7. The interval between the panel through-hole 134 and the plurality of coupling holes 145 may be smaller than the radius of the manipulation portion P7.

The present disclosure may be modified and practiced in various forms, but the scope of the claims is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Therefore, when the modified embodiment includes the elements of the claims of the present disclosure, it is to be regarded as falling within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A laundry treatment apparatus comprising:

a housing;

a drum rotatably disposed within the cabinet and configured to accommodate laundry;

a manipulation part rotatably provided in front of the cabinet and configured to receive a selection command for selecting an arbitrary course of rotating the drum; and

a housing in which an encoder is mounted, the encoder being coupled to the manipulation portion and configured to receive the selection command, the housing being fixed to a rear surface of the casing,

Wherein the housing comprises:

a panel through hole through which a portion of at least one of the manipulation portion or the encoder passes; and

a coupler extending from the panel through hole or spaced a predetermined distance from the panel through hole to fix the housing to the casing, an

Wherein the manipulation portion is provided at a front of the coupler to prevent the coupler from being exposed to a front side of the cabinet.

2. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cabinet is provided with a metal sheet formed of a metal material; and wherein the coupler includes a coupling hole through which a coupling member passing through the casing to fix the casing passes.

3. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the coupling hole is spaced apart from the panel through hole and is provided to face a rear surface of the manipulation portion.

4. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 2, wherein the coupling hole is spaced apart from the panel through hole, and the coupling hole is provided in plurality; and also

Wherein the maximum interval of the coupling holes is smaller than the diameter of the manipulation portion.

5. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a space before the coupling hole and the panel through hole is smaller than a radius of the manipulation portion.

6. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cabinet is provided with a metal sheet formed of a metal material; and wherein the coupler includes a coupling rib extending from an inner peripheral portion of the panel through hole to fix the housing.

7. The laundry treating apparatus of claim 6, wherein the housing comprises:

a body portion configured to accommodate the encoder and provided on a rear surface of the casing; and

a detachable portion extends from the body portion and is detachably provided to the coupling rib.

8. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the housing is formed of synthetic resin; and also

Wherein the detachable portion extends from the body portion to receive at least a portion of the coupling rib and to couple to the portion of the coupling rib.

9. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the coupling rib includes a through hole through which one surface facing the body part is recessed or penetrated; and also

Wherein the detachable portion further includes a hook extending from the body portion to be received in the through hole.

10. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the coupling rib extends from upper and lower portions of the panel through hole or from both side surfaces to support the housing.

11. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 10, wherein the coupler further comprises a plurality of coupling holes through the cabinet;

wherein the coupling holes are formed from upper and lower portions of the panel through-holes or from both side surfaces to support the housing, and

wherein the coupling rib extends from upper and lower portions of the panel through hole.

12. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 2, wherein the cabinet further comprises:

a first button mounting portion spaced apart from any one of the plurality of coupling holes in a direction away from the panel through hole and penetrating the casing; and

a second button mounting part spaced apart from another one of the plurality of coupling holes in a direction away from the panel through hole and penetrating the casing, and

wherein the coupler further includes a coupling rib extending from an inner peripheral portion of the first button mounting portion and an inner peripheral portion of the second button mounting portion to fix the housing.

13. A laundry treatment apparatus comprising:

a housing;

a manipulation part rotatably provided at a front of the cabinet and configured to receive a selection command for selecting an arbitrary course of rotating the drum; and

wherein the housing includes a panel through-hole through which a portion of at least one of the manipulation portion or the encoder passes, an

Wherein the area of the manipulation portion is larger than the area of the panel through hole.

14. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the manipulation part includes:

a shaft coupled to the encoder and configured to rotate the encoder;

a base extending from one end of the shaft and configured to be larger than a diameter of the shaft; and

a handle coupled to the base and configured to rotate the shaft and the encoder,

wherein the diameter of the base is greater than the diameter of the panel through hole.

15. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 14, wherein the base extends from an end of the shaft to face the panel through hole.

16. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 14, wherein the handle is coupled to an outer peripheral portion of the base; and

wherein the diameter of the handle is larger than the width of the panel through hole.

17. The laundry treating apparatus of claim 14, wherein the cabinet extends from the panel through hole or is spaced a predetermined distance from the panel through hole to fix the housing to the cabinet; and also

Wherein the coupler is provided at a rear surface of the base, and the coupler is prevented from being exposed to a front side.

18. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 17, wherein the coupler comprises a plurality of coupling holes through which coupling members passing through the cabinet so as to fix the housing pass; and also

Wherein the panel through hole and the plurality of coupling holes are both provided on the rear surface of the base.

19. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 17, wherein the coupler comprises a plurality of coupling holes through which coupling members passing through the cabinet so as to fix the housing pass; and also

Wherein the panel through hole and the plurality of coupling holes are provided on an inner side than an outer peripheral portion of the handle.

20. The laundry treating apparatus of claim 13, wherein a diameter of the encoder is smaller than a width of the panel through hole.

21. A laundry treatment apparatus comprising:

a housing;

a housing in which an encoder is mounted, wherein the encoder is coupled to the manipulation portion and configured to receive the selection command, and the housing is fixed to a rear surface of the casing,

wherein the housing comprises:

Wherein the outer peripheral portion of the manipulation portion has a larger diameter than the outer peripheral portion of the encoder to prevent the coupler from being exposed to the front side of the cabinet.

22. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the coupler is provided to face a rear surface of the manipulation portion.

23. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 22, wherein the manipulation part includes:

a shaft coupled to the encoder and configured to rotate the encoder;

wherein the coupler is disposed to face a rear surface of the base.

24. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 23, wherein the coupler comprises at least one coupling hole through which a coupling member passing through the cabinet to fix the housing passes; and also

Wherein all of the coupling holes are provided to face the rear surface of the base.

25. The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 24, wherein the handle is coupled to an outer periphery of the base; and wherein the coupling hole is provided on the inner side than the outer peripheral portion of the handle.