EP1771287A1 - Method of manufacturing assemblies for delivering water to the cleansing agent drawers of washing household appliances - Google Patents

Method of manufacturing assemblies for delivering water to the cleansing agent drawers of washing household appliances

Info

Publication number
EP1771287A1
EP1771287A1 EP05769390A EP05769390A EP1771287A1 EP 1771287 A1 EP1771287 A1 EP 1771287A1 EP 05769390 A EP05769390 A EP 05769390A EP 05769390 A EP05769390 A EP 05769390A EP 1771287 A1 EP1771287 A1 EP 1771287A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
components
assembly
countercover
welding
cover
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.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP05769390A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Inventor
Vincenzo Iavarone
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.)
Acroplastica Srl
Original Assignee
Acroplastica Srl
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
Application filed by Acroplastica Srl filed Critical Acroplastica Srl
Publication of EP1771287A1 publication Critical patent/EP1771287A1/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
    • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
    • B29C45/00—Injection moulding, i.e. forcing the required volume of moulding material through a nozzle into a closed mould; Apparatus therefor
    • B29C45/0053—Injection moulding, i.e. forcing the required volume of moulding material through a nozzle into a closed mould; Apparatus therefor combined with a final operation, e.g. shaping
    • B29C45/006—Joining parts moulded in separate cavities
    • B29C45/0062—Joined by injection moulding
    • 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
    • D06F39/00—Details of washing machines not specific to a single type of machines covered by groups D06F9/00 - D06F27/00 
    • D06F39/02—Devices for adding soap or other washing agents
    • D06F39/028—Arrangements for selectively supplying water to detergent compartments

Definitions

  • the washing household appliances especially washing machines and dishwashers follow similar operating principles.
  • a cycle divided into three main steps could be considered for all of such appliances: water charging, washing, and water discharging.
  • first charging step water is charged into the household appliance through a pipe connected to a water supply, a portion of such water being conveyed into the chamber containing the cleansing agent (the so-called drawer); thus, water flowing into the washing tank contains an amount of cleansing agent according to the program selected.
  • second washing step the household appliance performs a series of- mechanical operations for the washing of the objects inside the tank.
  • This step is different for each type of household appliance and is a feature of the various washing systems consisting of several repeated cycles.
  • the tank is emptied of the residual water by performing the discharging step by means of a pump sucking water from the tank and conveying the same to the outlet pipes.
  • the charging step a portion of the washing water is dispensed to the drawer containing the cleansing agent and is supplied to the objects contained in the tank to remove dirt therefrom.
  • the system for dispensing water consists of several assembled components that could be summarized by four different components as shown in Fig. 1 of Table 1/4.
  • the distributor consisting of cover 1, countercover 2, drawer 3 and compartment 4.
  • Compartment 4 is essentially a container for receiving drawer 3; all of the water added with the cleansing agent and flowing through the drawer after the charging step passes through such compartment.
  • the compartment is provided with holes, some of which used for the attachment of electrical valves, and some other used for connecting the assembly to the washing tank.
  • Drawer 3 is a multicompartment room into which the user put the various type of cleansing agents and where the pre-mixing of the two additives (water- detergent) necessary for the washing takes place.
  • the distributor (the assembly of cover 1 and countercover 2) which is the object of the method of the invention is the water conveying and distribution system to the several compartments of the drawer.
  • the distributor is similar to a shower system that increases the pressure of the water by means of water feeding channels and then allows the drawer to be filled like a shower through a lot of holes positioned at its base, thus distributing water uniformly.
  • Such distributor is made watertight by welding together cover and countercover, thus forming a liquid-tight system which closes the compartment of the chamber.
  • the object of the present industrial invention is the whole distributor consisting of the assembly of cover 1 and countercover 2 (Fig. 1 of Table 1/4) .
  • This hermetically sealed system has inside a set of channels with different, separated layouts joined to one another only at the input.
  • the channel system allows a controlled flow of water and at the same time a correct selection of the distribution point.
  • the current distributors used for washing household appliances are made of plastic material by moulding separately both the cover and the countercover and then by welding the same to each other.
  • the present invention seeks to provide a new method of production of the assembly mentioned above having a lot of significant advantages in terms of reduction of operating steps and time.
  • Hitherto used systems for the production of the whole assembly including also the compartment can be summarized by the following steps: moulding the cover, moulding the countercover, assembling cover and countercover, welding the cover-countercover assembly, assembling the cover-countercover assembly together with the compartment.
  • the present system of manufacturing the assembly consists of the injection moulding of the two components that can be performed both in two separate moulds and in only one mould provided with both forms .
  • the assembling of the two components takes place in the following step; this step can be performed by an operator or an automated system for coupling the two components and for keeping the same together during the following welding step can be provided.
  • this step both the sealing of the peripheral edge of the assembly and the sealing of the water pipes are carried out, the latter being hermetically sealed to avoid unsuitable water waste inside the household appliance.
  • Another method of making the distributor assembly is the joint assembling system. In this system, however, the risk of overflowing at the channel sealing portions is very high. All of the systems of production disclosed have a sequence of more or less long steps requiring very quick checks repeatedly that are more stringent in the last washing steps; in fact, in case the sealing is not perfectly watertight, the assembly should be scraped as it cannot be used.
  • the object of the present industrial invention is to provide an industrial method able to produce cover and countercover in a more reliable, effective, economic, environment-respectful manner than the systems of the prior art characterized by only one production step.
  • the solution proposed consists of the production of the assembly by so-called double-injection moulding and overmoulding.
  • the equipments necessary for this method are a double- injection press and a mould provided with devices for the rotation of the shaped forms.
  • the mould is so designed as to have two separate injection channels, one for providing the material for moulding and forming the two components (cover and countercover) the other for providing the material for sealing the grooves formed in the two components and to guarantee the welding of the labyrinth and the outside periphery, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of Table 2/4.
  • the injection of the material into the channel for shaping the forms is carried out; after the rotation and the overlapping of the housings, the forms are assembled and welded by the second injection.
  • the countercover has a set of inside, completely separated channels of different shapes, as can be seen in Fig. 3 of Table 2/4. They have raised shoulders 5 separated by a few millimetres from one another along the walls of the channels, as shown in the section of Fig. 4 of Table
  • the shoulders helps the sealing of the whole assembly as the material injected to weld the two components is of the same type as that used to mould them and then it is injected into the channels able to receive it and also melts a portion of the shoulders, thus allowing an hermetic and more uniform sealing thereof without overflowing into pipes and the peripheral portions.
  • the melted material does not enter the channels because the shoulders seal the underlying passage upon melting and provide a sealing plane of the assembly.
  • a hermetically sealed, geometrically precise system is obtained by this method using only one moulding cycle, the system being also ready for use in any water distribution system of the washing household appliances (Fig. 6 of Table 4/4) .
  • the invention allows the production cycle of the component to be reduced by avoiding both the assembling and the welding steps, thus providing a component of complex geometry that can be moulded completely and reliably without flashes and inside occlusions so as to be ready for use (Fig. 6 of Table 4/4) . Furthermore, the overmoulding of the same material as that used for the moulding of the components makes the system completely recyclable without any disassembling.
  • the method can be modified within the scope of the same inventive concept which is defined by the following claims.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Textile Engineering (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Injection Moulding Of Plastics Or The Like (AREA)

Abstract

A method of manufacturing the water distribution, assembly for the drawers or compartments of the cleansing agents of washing household appliances such as washing machines and dishwashers for industrial and domestic uses is disclosed. This method develops through only one moulding step during which the assembling of the upper part (1) with the lower part (2) is carried out. The method consists of the simultaneous production of the two components (1, 2) of the distribution assembly by injection moulding into a multishaped mould designed to receive two injections of melted material, the first one to form the (upper and lower) components (1, 2), the second one to assemble and to seal hermetically the system. During the step disclosed above the assembling of the two components is obtained. By this method a moulded assembly is provided through only one double-injection moulding step.

Description

Method of manufacturing assemblies for delivering water to the cleansing agent drawers of washing household appliances
The washing household appliances, especially washing machines and dishwashers follow similar operating principles.
In fact, a cycle divided into three main steps could be considered for all of such appliances: water charging, washing, and water discharging. In the first charging step, water is charged into the household appliance through a pipe connected to a water supply, a portion of such water being conveyed into the chamber containing the cleansing agent (the so-called drawer); thus, water flowing into the washing tank contains an amount of cleansing agent according to the program selected. In the second washing step, the household appliance performs a series of- mechanical operations for the washing of the objects inside the tank.
This step is different for each type of household appliance and is a feature of the various washing systems consisting of several repeated cycles. After the end of the washing operation according to the program selected, the tank is emptied of the residual water by performing the discharging step by means of a pump sucking water from the tank and conveying the same to the outlet pipes. In the charging step a portion of the washing water is dispensed to the drawer containing the cleansing agent and is supplied to the objects contained in the tank to remove dirt therefrom.
The system for dispensing water consists of several assembled components that could be summarized by four different components as shown in Fig. 1 of Table 1/4.
The distributor consisting of cover 1, countercover 2, drawer 3 and compartment 4.
Compartment 4 is essentially a container for receiving drawer 3; all of the water added with the cleansing agent and flowing through the drawer after the charging step passes through such compartment. The compartment is provided with holes, some of which used for the attachment of electrical valves, and some other used for connecting the assembly to the washing tank.
Drawer 3 is a multicompartment room into which the user put the various type of cleansing agents and where the pre-mixing of the two additives (water- detergent) necessary for the washing takes place. The distributor (the assembly of cover 1 and countercover 2) which is the object of the method of the invention is the water conveying and distribution system to the several compartments of the drawer. The distributor is similar to a shower system that increases the pressure of the water by means of water feeding channels and then allows the drawer to be filled like a shower through a lot of holes positioned at its base, thus distributing water uniformly. Such distributor is made watertight by welding together cover and countercover, thus forming a liquid-tight system which closes the compartment of the chamber.
The object of the present industrial invention is the whole distributor consisting of the assembly of cover 1 and countercover 2 (Fig. 1 of Table 1/4) .
This hermetically sealed system has inside a set of channels with different, separated layouts joined to one another only at the input. The channel system allows a controlled flow of water and at the same time a correct selection of the distribution point.
The feature of this device can be summarized as follows: a perfect water tightness at specific temperatures both on the outside walls and in the channels; this prevents water from flowing accidentally into the channels that are not involved in the selected program.
The current distributors used for washing household appliances are made of plastic material by moulding separately both the cover and the countercover and then by welding the same to each other.
The present invention seeks to provide a new method of production of the assembly mentioned above having a lot of significant advantages in terms of reduction of operating steps and time.
Hitherto used systems for the production of the whole assembly including also the compartment can be summarized by the following steps: moulding the cover, moulding the countercover, assembling cover and countercover, welding the cover-countercover assembly, assembling the cover-countercover assembly together with the compartment.
With the exclusion of the steps relative to the compartment that are not part of the present invention, the following description relates to the method of production of cover and countercover and their assembling.
The present system of manufacturing the assembly consists of the injection moulding of the two components that can be performed both in two separate moulds and in only one mould provided with both forms . The assembling of the two components takes place in the following step; this step can be performed by an operator or an automated system for coupling the two components and for keeping the same together during the following welding step can be provided. In this step both the sealing of the peripheral edge of the assembly and the sealing of the water pipes are carried out, the latter being hermetically sealed to avoid unsuitable water waste inside the household appliance.
In the latter step the methods of the prior art (hot- blade welding or vibration welding) have some drawbacks causing a partial loss of tightness in the assembly; moreover, the sealing joints cause the melted material to pass inside the channels, thus reducing their section.
Another method of making the distributor assembly is the joint assembling system. In this system, however, the risk of overflowing at the channel sealing portions is very high. All of the systems of production disclosed have a sequence of more or less long steps requiring very quick checks repeatedly that are more stringent in the last washing steps; in fact, in case the sealing is not perfectly watertight, the assembly should be scraped as it cannot be used.
The object of the present industrial invention is to provide an industrial method able to produce cover and countercover in a more reliable, effective, economic, environment-respectful manner than the systems of the prior art characterized by only one production step. The solution proposed consists of the production of the assembly by so-called double-injection moulding and overmoulding.
The equipments necessary for this method are a double- injection press and a mould provided with devices for the rotation of the shaped forms. The mould is so designed as to have two separate injection channels, one for providing the material for moulding and forming the two components (cover and countercover) the other for providing the material for sealing the grooves formed in the two components and to guarantee the welding of the labyrinth and the outside periphery, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of Table 2/4.
After the closure of the mould, the injection of the material into the channel for shaping the forms is carried out; after the rotation and the overlapping of the housings, the forms are assembled and welded by the second injection.
After the welding of the two portions, the forms are ejected and the cycle starts again.
During their displacement the parts are seamed by riveting the same to avoid their shifting, as shown in Fig. 5 of Table 4/4.
Having disclosed the operation of the equipments for the production of the distributor assembly formed of cover and countercover by the new method, the design of the two components such as to be effective for the new method is now described.
The countercover has a set of inside, completely separated channels of different shapes, as can be seen in Fig. 3 of Table 2/4. They have raised shoulders 5 separated by a few millimetres from one another along the walls of the channels, as shown in the section of Fig. 4 of Table
3/4; their function is to fit the other component
(cover) during the assembling. In fact, upon translation of the moulded components, i.e. upon joining the two plates after the rotation, the shoulders 5 allow countercover to be fitted into the slots 6 of the cover (Fig. 4 of Table 3/4) so that the mould is closed before the second junction injection.
In addition to the centring and fitting of the components, the shoulders helps the sealing of the whole assembly as the material injected to weld the two components is of the same type as that used to mould them and then it is injected into the channels able to receive it and also melts a portion of the shoulders, thus allowing an hermetic and more uniform sealing thereof without overflowing into pipes and the peripheral portions. In fact, the melted material does not enter the channels because the shoulders seal the underlying passage upon melting and provide a sealing plane of the assembly.
A hermetically sealed, geometrically precise system is obtained by this method using only one moulding cycle, the system being also ready for use in any water distribution system of the washing household appliances (Fig. 6 of Table 4/4) .
The invention allows the production cycle of the component to be reduced by avoiding both the assembling and the welding steps, thus providing a component of complex geometry that can be moulded completely and reliably without flashes and inside occlusions so as to be ready for use (Fig. 6 of Table 4/4) . Furthermore, the overmoulding of the same material as that used for the moulding of the components makes the system completely recyclable without any disassembling. The method can be modified within the scope of the same inventive concept which is defined by the following claims.

Claims

Claims
1. A method of manufacturing assemblies for delivering water to the washing household appliances, characterized in that as members of the assembly two components formed of a cover (1) and a countercover (2) moulded concurrently in only one multishaped mould are used, wherein also the assembling and the welding of said two components are carried out in only step of production.
2. The method of the preceding claim, characterized in that the material used for welding the two components is the same as that used for their moulding.
3. The method of the preceding claims, characterized in that countercover (2) and cover (1) can be seamed together by riveting (7), thus avoiding that the assembly shifts its axis during the displacement.
4. The method of the preceding claims, characterized in that the shape of the two moulded components allows the use of sealing adhesives or mastic between the two components to be avoided.
5. The method of the preceding claims, characterized in that the two components can have a number of different sizes and weights having different geometric layouts as far as both the shape of the periphery and the inside channels is concerned.
6. The method of the preceding claims, characterized in that the two components of the assembly can be formed in different moulds and put into another mould where only the welding to each other takes place.
7. The method of the preceding claims, characterized in that in addition to the assembling of the two components (cover (1) and countercover (2)) of the distributor assembly, also the welding of compartment
(4) by a further injection moulding or a riveting (7) allowing the nailing of the whole system can be provided.
8. An assembly manufactured by the method of the preceding claims.
EP05769390A 2004-07-16 2005-07-13 Method of manufacturing assemblies for delivering water to the cleansing agent drawers of washing household appliances Withdrawn EP1771287A1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
IT000040A ITNA20040040A1 (en) 2004-07-16 2004-07-16 MANUFACTURING PROCEDURE FOR OBTAINING DISTRIBUTOR ASSEMBLIES SUITABLE FOR LOADING WATER IN THE DETERGENT COMPARTMENTS OF HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES USED FOR WASHING.
PCT/IT2005/000398 WO2006008773A1 (en) 2004-07-16 2005-07-13 Method of manufacturing assemblies for delivering water to the cleansing agent drawers of washing household appliances

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1771287A1 true EP1771287A1 (en) 2007-04-11

Family

ID=35115945

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP05769390A Withdrawn EP1771287A1 (en) 2004-07-16 2005-07-13 Method of manufacturing assemblies for delivering water to the cleansing agent drawers of washing household appliances

Country Status (3)

Country Link
EP (1) EP1771287A1 (en)
IT (1) ITNA20040040A1 (en)
WO (1) WO2006008773A1 (en)

Families Citing this family (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
ATE516399T1 (en) * 2008-01-14 2011-07-15 Electrolux Home Prod Corp HYDRAULIC SYSTEM FOR A WASHING MACHINE DETERGENT DISPENSER
PL2865801T3 (en) 2013-10-25 2017-07-31 Electrolux Appliances Aktiebolag Laundry washing machine comprising a detergent dispensing assembly
US9695540B2 (en) 2014-05-29 2017-07-04 Haier Us Appliance Solutions, Inc. Dispensing apparatus with labyrinth seal
IT201700052193A1 (en) * 2017-05-15 2018-11-15 Linea 3 S R L DEVICE FOR WASHING MACHINE FOR WATER SUPPLY TO AN UNDERLYING GROUP OF DETERGENT CONTAINERS

Family Cites Families (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
NL7016798A (en) * 1970-11-17 1972-05-19
DE3803196C2 (en) * 1988-02-03 1994-08-18 Bosch Siemens Hausgeraete Detergent dispenser
JPH0785904B2 (en) * 1990-02-03 1995-09-20 株式会社日本製鋼所 Synthetic resin tubular mold molding structure
FR2785915B1 (en) * 1998-11-17 2001-02-02 Seb Sa METHOD FOR OBTAINING A TWO-PART WATER RESERVOIR AND RESERVOIR ACCORDING TO THIS METHOD

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See references of WO2006008773A1 *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
WO2006008773A1 (en) 2006-01-26
ITNA20040040A1 (en) 2004-10-16

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