DE29800477U1 - Basket for dishwasher with movable holding elements - Google Patents

Description

I-IFPPMANNI - TPFMTFPOHI european patent & tt«<oemhrk atoweys«fwent- & Attorneys at Law

BIG BOCKHORNI ^{MUNICH HERNE LEIPZIG ALICANTE}

& PARTNER

GbR

Dipl.-Ing. W. Herrmann-Trentepohl, Herne Dipl.-Ing. Wolfgang Grosse, Munich
Dipl.-Ing. Josef Bockhorni, Munich
Dr. Christian Thiel, Dipl.-Chem., Herne
Florian Sögel, lawyer, Munich
Dipl.-Phys. Peter Specht, Munich
Dipl.-Ing. Johannes Dieterle, Leipzig

ZanUSSi S.p.A E-Mail: potecpro@t-onllne.de

Via Giardini Cattaneo 3
IT 33170 Pordenone

Munich
January 8, 1998
B 72393 DE (GSfLG)

Dishwasher basket with movable holding elements

This innovation concerns a dishwasher basket that is suitable for holding items that need to be cleaned, such as plates, glasses, cups, etc.

As is known, baskets for holding objects of this type consist in principle of a frame made of plastic and/or plastic-coated metal rods and normally have a large lower loading area for plates and glasses and at least one upper loading area, which is smaller than the lower one, for cups and other objects which take up little space horizontally.

The upper loading surface can be firmly connected to the basket, as described for example in Italian utility model No. 204 320, whereby a corresponding area of the lower loading surface is at least partially limited in terms of height or the objects that can be accommodated there.

In order to avoid this disadvantage, it is therefore preferable to design the upper loading surface of the basket with movable elements that are hinged to the sides of the basket and can be folded back and forth between a normal operating position in which they can carry cups or similar items and a rest position in which they do not essentially restrict the filling space of the lower loading surface.

20, 25041 Bad Ischl, Germany.

D - 81476 Munich D- 44623 Herne D - 041 09 Leipzig ES - 03002 Alicante

Tel.+49 089-745541-0 Tel.+49 02323-95440 Tel.+49 0341-2113818 Tel.+49 089-745541-0

Fax+49 089 - 7593869 Fax+49 02323 - 12232 Fax +49 0341 - 2113818 Fax +49 089 - 7593869

PO Box 71 05 20

D-81455 Munich

Deutsche Bank,Herne (bank code 430 700 61) Account number: 6 145 510
Bayerische Vereinsbank Munich (bank code 700 202 70) Account number: 46 505 999 Postal check Munich (bank code 700 100 80) Account number: 227 662 -

-2,

In particular, in the operating position, the movable elements form a comb-shaped structure that projects into the interior of the basket, while in the rest position they extend essentially vertically and adjoin a side surface of the basket.

However, when the moving elements are in the rest position, the plates placed on the lower loading surface may become unstable when the basket is moved and these plates may be undesirably knocked or fall down, which may cause them to break.

Furthermore, when the moving elements are in the rest position and extend upwards, they increase the vertical space required by the basket and can therefore make it impossible to position it at the correct height in the dishwasher's wash tank.

The purpose of this innovation is to create a dishwasher basket with movable holding elements that is particularly simple, convenient, versatile and can provide a secure hold for the plates arranged in this basket.

A further purpose of this innovation is to produce a basket of the type mentioned, the vertical space requirement of which is advantageously reduced under all operating conditions.

According to the invention, these objects are achieved with a dishwasher basket with movable holding elements, which has the features of the appended claims.

The characteristics and advantages of the innovation will become clearer from the following description, given purely by way of non-limiting example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

- Fig. 1 is a schematic front view of a preferred embodiment

of the new basket, and

- Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the basket along the line H-II of Fig. 1

shows.

With reference to the figures, the dishwasher basket consists in principle of a frame 3, made for example from plastic-coated metal rods, and constructed in such a way that it forms a lower loading surface 4 for the objects to be cleaned, such as plates 5, glasses 6 and the like. In particular, the plates are held in a substantially vertical position by means of several crossbars 7, known per se, arranged on the base of the basket.

In a manner also known, movable holding elements 8 are hinged to at least one side wall 10 of the frame 3 above the lower loading area, which can be optionally folded back and forth between a normal operating position (in Fig. 1 on the left) and a rest position (in Fig. 1 on the right).

The movable holding elements 8 can be hinged to the basket frame individually or in groups, as shown in Fig. 2. In any case, the elements 8, when in the operating position, protrude into the interior of the basket so that they form a corresponding upper loading surface with a comb-like shape for cups 9 or similar. By appropriately dimensioning the components, it can be achieved that the elements 8 in the operating position are also suitable for contributing to the lateral support of the plates 5.

In the rest position, the elements 8 are directed upwards and border on the side wall 10 of the basket.

Preferably, the movable elements 8 are slidably hinged to the respective side wall 10 of the basket by means of pin and eye means 11, 12. For example, all or some of the movable elements 8 have eye openings 12 which extend substantially in the longitudinal direction of these elements and engage with pins 11 fixed to the frame.

According to one aspect of the innovation, the movable elements 8 each have projections 13 which preferably extend from one end of the elements 8 at a right angle thereto and have a shorter length than these, and which in the said operating position essentially abut the side wall 10 and in the said rest position protrude into the interior of the basket.

In particular, the projections 13 are capable, in the operating position, of coming substantially into abutment with the side wall 10 of the basket, e.g. with a recess 14 which engages with an associated lifting end 15 in order to produce the alignment of the movable holding elements 8 in such a way that the corresponding upper loading surface is formed.

In order to fold the movable elements into the rest position, they simply have to be rotated around the pins 11, which slide from one end to the other in the eyelets 12 and thus allow the elements 8 to descend towards the lower loading surface. Advantageously, the vertical space requirement of the elements 8 therefore remains essentially unchanged and the projections 13, although they have a limited horizontal space requirement, can effectively contribute to the lateral support of the plates 5.

All in all, the basket according to the invention is simple, convenient and versatile in use, and the plates 5 can be securely held by means of the elements 8 or the projections 13 in any operating state of the basket, in particular when the elements 8 are in the rest position.

Of course, the dishwasher basket described may undergo any modifications that fall within the scope of the innovation as defined in the appended claims.

Claims (4)

Expectations 1. Dishwasher basket, comprising a frame with a lower loading surface for holding plates or similar in a substantially vertical position, with movable holding elements hinged to at least one side wall of the frame, which can be optionally folded back and forth between a normal operating position in which they protrude into the interior of the basket so as to form an upper loading surface with a comb-like shape, and a rest position in which the movable elements are directed upwards and adjoin the said side wall, characterized in that said movable elements (8) which are in the operating position each have projections (13) which in said operating position substantially abut against the side wall (10) and in said rest position project into the interior of the basket so that they contribute to the lateral support of the plates (5). 2. Dishwasher basket according to claim 1, characterized in that said projections (13) have a shorter length than said movable holding elements (8), from which they extend at an angle to the latter. 3. Dishwasher basket according to claim 1, characterized in that said movable support elements (8) are slidably hinged to said side wall (10) by means of pin and eyelet means (11, 12), the eyelet means (12) extending substantially in the longitudinal direction of the movable elements so as to enable the latter to move towards the lower loading surface (4) when they are folded from the operating position to the rest position. 4. Dishwasher basket according to claim 1, characterized in that said projections (13) are suitable for abutting against the side wall (10) of the basket so as to determine the orientation of the movable holding elements (8) in said operating position.