EP1321559A1 - Machine à laver à chargement frontal - Google Patents

Machine à laver à chargement frontal Download PDF

Info

Publication number
EP1321559A1
EP1321559A1 EP02425373A EP02425373A EP1321559A1 EP 1321559 A1 EP1321559 A1 EP 1321559A1 EP 02425373 A EP02425373 A EP 02425373A EP 02425373 A EP02425373 A EP 02425373A EP 1321559 A1 EP1321559 A1 EP 1321559A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
aperture
washing machine
machine according
loading
clothes
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP02425373A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP1321559B1 (fr
Inventor
Silvano Fumagalli
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Candy SpA
Original Assignee
Candy SpA
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from EP01830785A external-priority patent/EP1321558A1/fr
Application filed by Candy SpA filed Critical Candy SpA
Priority to EP20020425373 priority Critical patent/EP1321559B1/fr
Publication of EP1321559A1 publication Critical patent/EP1321559A1/fr
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP1321559B1 publication Critical patent/EP1321559B1/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Fee Related legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
    • D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • D06F—LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILE ARTICLES
    • D06F37/00—Details specific to washing machines covered by groups D06F21/00 - D06F25/00
    • D06F37/26—Casings; Tubs
    • D06F37/266—Gaskets mounted between tub and casing around the loading opening

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a front-loading clothes washing machine as defined in the preamble of Claim 1.
  • a front-loading clothes washing machine shown schematically in Figure 1, has a supporting and containing structure 10 with a front wall in which an aperture 11 allows the clothes to be loaded and unloaded.
  • a tub 12 is mounted inside the structure on suitable supporting and suspension means 13 and can contain a washing solution 14.
  • a perforated drum 15 rotates inside the tub.
  • the drum and the tub have respective apertures 16, 17 substantially aligned with the aperture 11 of the front wall so that the washing can be inserted into the loading space within the drum 15.
  • An electric motor 18 drives suitable mechanisms 19 which turn the drum with the washing in the washing solution in accordance with preset speeds, times and directions of rotation.
  • a connecting duct 20, typically a bellows-like annular elastic joint, is mounted between the aperture 17 of the tub 12 and the loading aperture 11.
  • the loading aperture is sealed shut by a door 21 hinged to the front wall.
  • the door 21 is shaped in such a way that its inside surface delimits the loading space inside the drum 15. More precisely, it forms a re-entrance which, when the door is shut, closes practically the entire aperture of the tub, preventing the clothes from coming out of the loading space during washing and coming into contact with the joint. If this were not the case, friction between the moving clothes and the joint would cause rapid wear of the joint, which is usually made of rubber or other elastomeric material having very good elasticity but poor abrasion resistance.
  • the chief object of the present invention is to provide a clothes washing machine with a larger loading space.
  • Another object of the invention is to produce the said loading space in such a way as to improve the efficiency of the washing action.
  • FIG 2 shows only certain parts of a clothes washing machine according to the invention. Parts not illustrated are of known type, for instance exactly like the corresponding parts of the known machine shown in Figure 1.
  • the connecting duct 120 between the aperture 117 of the washing tub 112 and the aperture 111 of the front wall of the container consists not just of a bellows-like elastic joint 120a as in the known machine, but comprise also an annular band 120b of a substantially stiff material that is resistant to abrasion and to the action of water and detergents, e.g. polycarbonate or polypropylene, with surfaces of appropriate roughness, i.e. smooth, which covers the elastic joint 120a, protecting it from the inside of the duct.
  • the band 120b is fixed to a limb 120c of the elastic joint located near the rim 16 of the drum 15 and near the rim of the aperture 117 of the tub 112.
  • the aperture in the front wall of the container is closed by a door 121 made of for example moulded glass with a steel frame.
  • the door 121 has an inside surface presenting a central concave part 121a that joins a peripheral convex part 121b.
  • the annular band 120b in this example has a width, that is a dimension in the direction of the horizontal axis of the tub, which is constant; however, its width could be greater at the bottom, where contact with clothes during washing is continuous, and less at the top, where there is no or very sporadic contact with the clothes.
  • the band 120b has an interruption at the top where the clothes do not touch the elastic joint.
  • the band 120b curves away at the bottom to form a part 120e sloping towards the aperture of the washing tub 112 in order to encourage the clothes to slide down towards the loading drum 15.
  • This slope may vary circumferentially, e.g. reducing to diameter at the top.
  • the annular band 120b and the inside surface of the door 121 delimit, when the door is shut, a space that represents an extension of the loading space formed by the drum 15. With a rotating drum of given volume, therefore, the load of clothing to be washed can be greater than with a machine of known type.
  • the band 120b efficiently protects the elastic joint 120a, preventing the clothes from contacting the joint itself and, owing to its smooth and resistant surface, gives the clothes a low-friction bearing surface during washing.
  • the protection of the elastic joint 120a is supplemented, in the embodiment of the invention shown in Figure 2, by the convexity of the peripheral part 121b of the inside surface of the door 121.
  • This convexity also contributes to hermetic sealing of the door, which can be easily ensured by giving the elastic joint an annular lip 120d which is in firm contact with the door when the door is closed.
  • the annular band 120b has an essentially cylindrical uniform inside surface. However, in other embodiments of the invention it may have at least one radial projection at the bottom. For instance, good results have been obtained with two projections separated by 40-60° from each other symmetrically on either side of the vertical plane passing through the axis.
  • the projection or projections 340 There are two reasons for the projection or projections 340, firstly to encourage the clothes to move back into the drum and secondly to induce a secondary local rotation of the clothes about an axis along the direction of the projection. To fulfil these purposes as well as possible, the projections may be shaped and positioned in a variety of different ways.
  • they may substantially be in the shape of a suitably attached isosceles triangle whose height and base decrease towards the interior, that is towards the aperture of the tub, and may extend in the axial direction, as shown in cross section and in plan in Figures 3a and 3b, respectively, or may extend at a sloping angle relative to the axial direction, as shown in Figures 4a and 4b, or may be shaped like straight or curved fins with asymmetrical leading and trailing edges.
  • One embodiment with curved fins that are asymmetrical with reference both to the radial direction and to the axial direction is shown in cross section and in plan in Figures 5a and 5b, respectively.
  • any combination of projections with different profiles is possible. If using asymmetrical and/or curved fintype projections, these are arranged on the band in such a way that their interference with the clothes during rotation of the loading drum is such as to encourage them to slide inwards into the drum and give them a local secondary rotation.
  • a central projection is arranged centrally in the lower portion of the annular band and two lateral projections, smaller than the central projection, are arranged on each side of the central projection at an angle of about 60°.
  • annular bands there are two annular bands, one marked 320b, similar to the band 120b of Figure 2 and fixed in the same way, but narrower than the latter, and another, marked 320e, fixed to the front wall of the container 10, specifically to the rim of the loading aperture.
  • This latter annular band may be made of the same smooth, anti-wear material as the band 320b and may be fixed by a restrained joint, as shown in the drawing, but may also be made of stainless steel and fixed to the wall by welding or other means of fixing.
  • the elastic joint here marked 320a, is fixed on the one hand to the rim of the aperture of the washing tub, as in the example of Figure 2, and on the other to the free edge of the band 320e.
  • Both bands may have continuous cylindrical surfaces or may have projections similar to those described above in relation to Figures 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a and 5b.
  • each of the two bands includes at least one projection, lower on band 320b, marked 320f, and higher on band 320e, marked 320g, the profiles of which connect up with each other and with the profile of the concave part 321a of the inside surface of the door 321.
  • An elastomeric annular insert 330 is applied to the band 320e to ensure sealed closure of the door.
  • the embodiment indicated in Figure 6a is particularly advantageous because it provides a continuous elastic seal between the inside surface of the door 321 and the tub 112, the seal extending without interruption underneath the band 320e.
  • the annular band in the form of a low-friction coating applied directly to the seal.
  • the seal would have to be stiff enough to resist the mechanical stresses to which it would be subject.
  • the features of the invention are easily applicable to many clothes washing machines of known type with few and simple modifications.
  • the invention can therefore be carried out without requiring expensive modification to the production lines.
  • a load container 22 for the clothes that are to be washed comprises, within the most general meaning of the invention, at least one first containment portion 23 and one second containment portion 24 communicating with each other via an interface aperture 25 for the clothes, in which at least one of the containment portions 23, 24 can be driven by suitable drive means to set up a preferably rotary relative movement between the said containment portions 23, 24.
  • the first containment portion 23 is formed by the loading drum 15 and the second containment portion 24 is formed by the protective band 120b and by the window 121.
  • the containment portions 23 and 24 are advantageously, but not necessarily, of an approximately cylindrical shape and, to greater advantage, are coaxial with respect to the axis of relative rotation.
  • the first containment portion 23, and more specifically the loading drum 15, and the second containment portion 24, and more specifically the annular band 120b are of different diameters, in order to locate the effect of agitation created by the relative movement in an area of limited tangential velocity of the washing, that is to say outside of the periphery of the larger-diameter containment portion.
  • the projections 26 placed on the annular band 120b and optionally also on the inside surface of the window act as static agitators, while the known propelling projections 27 on the inside surface of the cylindrical wall of the loading drum 15 act as dynamic agitators that agitate and propel the washing during the relative movement of the contaiment portions 23 and 24.
  • the said axial movement of transition between the portions 23 and 24 encourages frequent immersion of the clothes in the central part of the portion 23, that is the drum 15, where the depth of water is relatively greater.
  • washing efficiency is improved, making it possible, for example, not only to save energy but also to achieve better standards of washing, without the need to make heavy modifications to the structure of the clothes washing machine.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Textile Engineering (AREA)
  • Main Body Construction Of Washing Machines And Laundry Dryers (AREA)
EP20020425373 2001-12-20 2002-06-07 Machine à laver à chargement frontal Expired - Fee Related EP1321559B1 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
EP20020425373 EP1321559B1 (fr) 2001-12-20 2002-06-07 Machine à laver à chargement frontal

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
EP01830785A EP1321558A1 (fr) 2001-12-20 2001-12-20 Soufflet pour machine à laver à chargement frontal
EP01830785 2001-12-20
EP20020425373 EP1321559B1 (fr) 2001-12-20 2002-06-07 Machine à laver à chargement frontal

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1321559A1 true EP1321559A1 (fr) 2003-06-25
EP1321559B1 EP1321559B1 (fr) 2008-12-03

Family

ID=26077494

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP20020425373 Expired - Fee Related EP1321559B1 (fr) 2001-12-20 2002-06-07 Machine à laver à chargement frontal

Country Status (1)

Country Link
EP (1) EP1321559B1 (fr)

Cited By (10)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1522623A1 (fr) * 2003-10-08 2005-04-13 CANDY S.p.A. Machine à laver à chargement frontal
KR100484837B1 (ko) * 2002-11-29 2005-04-22 엘지전자 주식회사 드럼세탁기의 개스킷
EP1544344A1 (fr) * 2003-12-15 2005-06-22 Miele & Cie. KG Machine à laver à chargement frontal et procédé pour la production d'une telle machine à laver
GB2382821B (en) * 2001-07-28 2005-07-27 John Herbert North Washing machine casing mounting
WO2008104420A1 (fr) * 2007-02-27 2008-09-04 BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH Dispositif de déviation de linge pour un appareil ménager destiné au soin du linge et appareil ménager
KR101010080B1 (ko) * 2008-06-03 2011-01-24 엘지전자 주식회사 건조기의 도어
EP2453053A1 (fr) * 2010-11-15 2012-05-16 Electrolux Home Products Corporation N.V. Machine à laver
US9869048B2 (en) 2014-11-20 2018-01-16 Whirlpool Corporation Laundry treating appliance with laundry deflector
WO2021014152A1 (fr) * 2019-07-22 2021-01-28 Xeros Limited Déflecteur destiné à être utilisé avec une machine de traitement
EP4276233A4 (fr) * 2021-01-08 2024-05-22 Qingdao Haier Drum Washing Machine Co., Ltd. Machine à laver à tambour

Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE9202138U1 (de) * 1992-02-19 1992-10-22 Licentia Patent-Verwaltungs-Gmbh, 6000 Frankfurt Waschmaschine o.dgl.
DE4220018A1 (de) * 1992-06-19 1993-12-23 Miele & Cie Trommelwaschmaschine mit einer Beleuchtungseinrichtung für den Trommelinnenraum
GB2296018A (en) * 1994-12-13 1996-06-19 Electrolux Zanussi Elettrodome Washing machines: sealing bellows
US5860300A (en) * 1996-09-24 1999-01-19 Electrolux Zanussi Elettrodomestici S.P.A. Clothes washing machine or a similar appliance having improved loading duct
EP1069228A2 (fr) * 1999-07-15 2001-01-17 CANDY S.p.A. Machine à laver à chargement frontal avec cuve basculable

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE9202138U1 (de) * 1992-02-19 1992-10-22 Licentia Patent-Verwaltungs-Gmbh, 6000 Frankfurt Waschmaschine o.dgl.
DE4220018A1 (de) * 1992-06-19 1993-12-23 Miele & Cie Trommelwaschmaschine mit einer Beleuchtungseinrichtung für den Trommelinnenraum
GB2296018A (en) * 1994-12-13 1996-06-19 Electrolux Zanussi Elettrodome Washing machines: sealing bellows
US5860300A (en) * 1996-09-24 1999-01-19 Electrolux Zanussi Elettrodomestici S.P.A. Clothes washing machine or a similar appliance having improved loading duct
EP1069228A2 (fr) * 1999-07-15 2001-01-17 CANDY S.p.A. Machine à laver à chargement frontal avec cuve basculable

Cited By (23)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2382821B (en) * 2001-07-28 2005-07-27 John Herbert North Washing machine casing mounting
KR100484837B1 (ko) * 2002-11-29 2005-04-22 엘지전자 주식회사 드럼세탁기의 개스킷
EP1522623A1 (fr) * 2003-10-08 2005-04-13 CANDY S.p.A. Machine à laver à chargement frontal
EP1544344A1 (fr) * 2003-12-15 2005-06-22 Miele & Cie. KG Machine à laver à chargement frontal et procédé pour la production d'une telle machine à laver
US7263863B2 (en) 2003-12-15 2007-09-04 Miele & Cie. Kg. Front-loading washing machine
CN101622391B (zh) * 2007-02-27 2012-07-25 Bsh博世和西门子家用器具有限公司 用于护理衣物用的家用器具的衣物偏转装置及这种家用器具
EA015118B1 (ru) * 2007-02-27 2011-06-30 Бсх Бош Унд Сименс Хаусгерете Гмбх Дефлектор для белья для бытового прибора по уходу за бельем и бытовой прибор
DE102007009509B4 (de) * 2007-02-27 2016-06-02 BSH Hausgeräte GmbH Wäscheabweiservorrichtung für ein Hausgerät zur Pflege von Wäschestücken sowie ein derartiges Hausgerät
WO2008104420A1 (fr) * 2007-02-27 2008-09-04 BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH Dispositif de déviation de linge pour un appareil ménager destiné au soin du linge et appareil ménager
US8528223B2 (en) 2007-02-27 2013-09-10 Bsh Bosch Und Siemens Hausgeraete Gmbh Laundry deflector device for a household appliance for attending to items of laundry, and such a household appliance
US8607473B2 (en) 2008-06-03 2013-12-17 Lg Electronics Inc. Dryer door and dryer comprising the same
KR101010080B1 (ko) * 2008-06-03 2011-01-24 엘지전자 주식회사 건조기의 도어
AU2011331400B2 (en) * 2010-11-15 2015-01-29 Electrolux Home Products Corporation N.V. Laundry machine
CN103348054A (zh) * 2010-11-15 2013-10-09 伊莱克斯家用产品股份有限公司 洗衣机
WO2012065801A1 (fr) * 2010-11-15 2012-05-24 Electrolux Home Products Corporation N.V. Lave-linge
EP2453053A1 (fr) * 2010-11-15 2012-05-16 Electrolux Home Products Corporation N.V. Machine à laver
CN103348054B (zh) * 2010-11-15 2016-08-10 伊莱克斯家用产品股份有限公司 洗衣机
US9637855B2 (en) 2010-11-15 2017-05-02 Electrolux Home Products Corporation N.V. Front loading laundry machine having bellows
US9869048B2 (en) 2014-11-20 2018-01-16 Whirlpool Corporation Laundry treating appliance with laundry deflector
US10793989B2 (en) 2014-11-20 2020-10-06 Whirlpool Corporation Laundry treating appliance with laundry deflector
US11401646B2 (en) 2014-11-20 2022-08-02 Whirlpool Corporation Laundry treating appliance with laundry deflector
WO2021014152A1 (fr) * 2019-07-22 2021-01-28 Xeros Limited Déflecteur destiné à être utilisé avec une machine de traitement
EP4276233A4 (fr) * 2021-01-08 2024-05-22 Qingdao Haier Drum Washing Machine Co., Ltd. Machine à laver à tambour

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