EP2649230B1 - Washing machine with a sealing gasket - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a washing machine with a sealing collar, which is substantially hollow cylindrical and is provided to surround a loading and unloading of the washing machine at its periphery, and which is fixed by means of its first end directly or indirectly on a front housing wall of the washing machine, wherein the loading and unloading opening can be closed by a pivotable porthole-shaped door, wherein in the region of the first end to an inner jacket of the gasket a lip seal is provided, which bears in the closed state of the door sealingly on the outer circumferential surface, wherein the gasket at its second end a lye container is fixable, and wherein the lip seal has a first, radially inwardly facing portion, which adjoins at least a second portion which extends substantially in the axial direction of the sealing collar and in the direction of the second end thereof.

Washing machines, which are predominantly designed as front loaders, ie from the front side laundry items can be filled or removed from a washing or centrifugal drum, have for this purpose in their front housing wall on a loading and unloading, of which a in Direction of the washing or centrifugal drum extending gasket emanates. This gasket is predominantly hollow cylindrical, has to compensate for movements of another end with its associated tub bellows designed areas and bridges a distance between the filling opening and an opening provided in the tub. In this case, the gasket is fixed in the edge region of the opening provided in the tub, wherein it is also provided at this second end also with a sealing blade, which cooperates with the edge of a filling opening of the washing or centrifugal drum. The lamella is intended to prevent items of laundry from entering the tub during filling of the washing machine or during the washing or spinning process out of the drum or out of the interior of the sealing sleeve. The front-side filling opening is closed during the washing and spinning process by a pivotable porthole-shaped door, which is usually made of glass and usually has a frusto-conical outer contour. When closing this door dives frusto-conical outer contour with its smallest diameter in advance into the interior of the gasket, wherein an outgoing of the gasket lip seal sealingly abuts the outer surface of the frustoconical door.

A gasket of the type described above is from the document DE 10 2006 017 954 B4 known. Here, the front panel of the washing machine is provided at its edge surrounding the filling opening with a flange, which engages over the gasket with a correspondingly formed bead. At this first end, the gasket has a lip seal extending at an angle of approximately 100 ° to the cylindrical surface. If the porthole-shaped door, which has a frustoconical outer contour, closed, it displaces the sealing lip in the direction of the second end of the sealing sleeve, the sealing lip sealingly abuts the circumference of the lateral surface of the door. Due to the formation of this seal between the gasket and the outer periphery of the door, however, it happens relatively often that particular small items of laundry during the rotation of the laundry drum moves in the region of the lip seal and clamped between this and the lateral surface of the door. On the one hand, these items of laundry are only insufficiently cleaned and, on the other hand, they also do not take part in the subsequent spinning process, so that they are more moist than the rest of the laundry. In addition, large items of laundry can get under the lip seal and damaged in the clamped state, as they are twisted and wound by the rotational movement of the loaded washing drum. In addition, relatively often occurs the problem that the sealing lip is damaged by the trapped garments and thus subsequently can no longer fulfill their sealing function.

Furthermore, goes from the DE 10 2006 054 103 B3 a gasket of a washing machine projecting, which has a first end for fixing to a front housing wall of the washing machine and a second end for attachment to a tub. At its first end, the gasket is also provided with a lip seal which rests against an outer surface of a bullseye-shaped door in its closed state. In this case, the lip seal has a first, radially inwardly facing portion, to which at least a second portion connects, said second portion extends substantially in the axial direction of the sealing collar and in the direction of the second end thereof.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a washing machine with a seal between the aforementioned gasket and the door, by means of which a pinching and damage of the laundry items and damage to the seal during operation of the washing machine can be safely avoided.

This object is achieved on the basis of the preamble of the independent claim, in conjunction with its characterizing features. The following dependent claims are each advantageous embodiments of the invention again.

According to the characterizing part of the independent claim, the two portions of the lip seal should be designed such that in the closed state of the door, a portion of the first portion is applied flat against the outer surface of the door, while the second portion is angled relative to the first portion and on the inner shell the gasket extends to and in the direction of the second end thereof.

By means of this inventive extension of the lip seal underreaction of the sealing lip is prevented. Items of laundry which are conveyed outwards into this area by the rotating washing or centrifugal drum and by the items of laundry located therein are caught by the second portion running onto the inner lateral surface of the sealing collar and consequently can not enter the sealing area of the lip seal. Consequently, damage to both the laundry items and the lip seal can be avoided. As these items of laundry captured via the second section of the lip seal are not trapped, they return to the washing or centrifuging drum, ie they continue to be involved in the washing process and in the subsequent spinning process. The second section extending in the axial direction may also have a V-shaped profile, as viewed in longitudinal section through the lip seal, with a lamella extending in the direction of an inner circumferential surface of the sealing collar and a further lamella in the direction of an outer circumferential surface of the door.

Of particular advantage for the sealing of the gasket against the door and for catching the laundry entering this area is when the second section has a curved course. This can be very effectively prevented the penetration of laundry in the sealing area. The generally very elastic trained second portion of the lip seal can deform for trapping and rejecting laundry and thereby perform in the region in which it is angled to the first section, a pivoting movement. Advantageously, the second portion of the lip seal may be made softer compared to the first portion.

In a further development of the invention, the lip seal should be formed in the region of the planar contact of the first section and over its second section with substantially the same wall thickness. This allows the lip seal in the manufacture of the gasket in a simple injection process produced. Alternatively, of course, there is the possibility of forming the second section of the lip seal with a thinner wall than the first section in order to make this area particularly flexible and thus to improve the catching or rejecting of the items of laundry.

Finally, the inner jacket of the gasket, the radially inwardly facing first portion and the second on the inner jacket tapered portion include an annular cavity. Associated with the elastic design of the second section very good conditions are created to avoid pinching the laundry and to supply them instead the washing process and the subsequent spin process.

The invention is not limited to the specified combination of the features of the main claim and the dependent claims. It also results in ways to combine individual features, even if they emerge from the claims, the following description of the embodiments or directly from the drawing. The reference of the claims to the drawing through the use of reference numerals is not intended to limit the scope of the claims.

Figur 1

einen Längsschnitt durch eine Teilansicht einer Waschmaschine, der durch einen oberen Bereich einer bullaugenförmigen Tür und einer Dichtungsmanschette verläuft und

Figur 2

eine vergrößerte Darstellung einer im Wesentlichen nach Figur 1 ausgebildeten Dichtungsmanschette im Bereich ihrer an einer Außenmantelfläche der Tür anliegenden Lippendichtung.

Further advantageous embodiments of the invention are explained below with reference to the figures of the drawing. Show it:

FIG. 1

a longitudinal section through a partial view of a washing machine, which passes through an upper portion of a porthole-shaped door and a sealing sleeve and

FIG. 2

an enlarged view of a substantially after FIG. 1 formed sealing sleeve in the region of their abutting on an outer surface of the door lip seal.

In the FIG. 1 is denoted by 1 a substantially hollow cylindrical gasket, which encloses a loading and unloading 2 radially. In this case, the gasket 1 is fixed at a first end 3 to a front housing wall 4 of a washing machine and at a second end 5 to a storage container 6. For this purpose, the front housing wall 4 on a flanging 7, which is encompassed by a first circumferential bead 8. In an adjoining region, the sealing sleeve 1 has a cylindrical course and finally merges into a bellows 9.

By this bellows 9, the gasket 1 is designed so flexible that it can compensate for the movements of the tub 6 with respect to the front housing wall 4 occurring during washing or during the spin process at large amounts of laundry. Finally, a second bead 11 is provided at the second end 5 of the gasket 1, with which the gasket 1 is fixed to peripheral edges 10 and 12 of the tub 6.

Within the tub 6 is a rotating during a washing process or spin washing drum 13, which takes over the function of a centrifugal drum during a spin cycle and is charged from one end face arranged. From the second bead 11 extends in the longitudinal direction of the arrangement extending sealing blade 14 and extends to a flanged edge 15 of the washing drum 13. This is to prevent small items of laundry, which are enclosed in the interior of the washing drum 13 or in the seal sleeve Are located in the outside of the washing drum 13 lying area of the tub 6 can.

The in the FIG. 1 illustrated washing machine also has a bullseye-shaped door 16, which, as not shown in detail, articulated on one side via a hinge on the front housing wall 4 pivotally and on its opposite side against the front housing wall 4 can be locked. The door 16 is preferably made of transparent glass. In this case, the door 16 has a frustoconical shell 17 and a circular bottom 18. At the first end 3 of the gasket 1, as continue the FIG. 1 can be removed, a lip seal 19 is provided. This lip seal 19 is in this case essentially inwardly from the first bead 8 in the radial direction and, when the door 16 is closed, is in sealing contact with an outer circumferential surface 21 of the door 16 with a flat annular bearing 20.

From this first portion 22 of the lip seal 19 is a second section 23, which is angled relative to the first portion 22. This second portion 23 is also curved in such a way that it extends to an inner circumferential surface 24 of the gasket 1 to and then parallel thereto. Due to this design of the lip seal 19, this closes against the inner circumferential surface 24 of the sealing sleeve 1 an annular cavity.

The formation of the sealing sleeve 1 in the region of its first end 3 and thus the design of the lip seal 19 is in FIG. 2 clarified. Consequently, in the FIG. 2 for the corresponding details, the same reference numerals as in FIG. 1 used.

The in the Figures 1 and 2 illustrated lip seal 19 is, as already stated, provided with the second curved portion having a portion 23, said second portion 23 near the inner circumferential surface 24 of the gasket 1 ends. In this state, the lip seal 19 is in its deformed by the door 16 state. However, when the door 16 is opened, the first portion 22 of the lip seal 19 extends substantially radially or obliquely, and the second portion 23 of the lip seal 19 extends from the inner circumferential surface 24 of FIG Gasket 1 spaced. Their function is to fulfill the lip seal 19 of course in the closed state of the door 16, including on the one hand the sealing of the interior of the gasket 1 and thus the interior of the washing drum 13 and the tub 6 belongs.

For this purpose, the lip seal 19 is by means of their system 20 sealingly against the outer circumferential surface 21 of the door made of glass. If the lip seal would end at this point, then laundry items could trapped between the system 20 and the outer lateral surface 21 during the washing process, these items would no longer participate in the actual washing process, they would be damaged and they would ultimately the corresponding seal the door 16 means damage the lip seal 19. According to the invention, however, the lip seal is provided with the outgoing from the first portion 22 second portion 23, which prevents due to its contour that the laundry items in the sealing area, so the system 20, arrive. These problems can be eliminated by the inventive design of the lip seal 19 consequently very effective. A corresponding shielding of the actual sealing region of the lip seal 19, ie of its planar contact 20, means that the items of laundry can no longer get into it. These advantages can be achieved with structurally simple means that are suitable for mass production.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1

gasket

2

Loading and unloading

3

first end of 1

4

housing wall

5

second end of 1

6

tub

7

Beading of 4

8th

first bead

9

bellow

10

circumferential edge of 6

11

second bead

12

circumferential edge of 6

13

washing drum

14

seal fin

15

Bordered edge

16

door

17

coat

18

ground

19

lip seal

20

Plant from 19 to 21

21

Outer lateral surface of 17

22

first section of 19

23

second section of 19

24

Inner lateral surface of 1

25

annular cavity

Claims (5)

1. Washing machine with a sealing sleeve (1), which is of substantially hollowcylindrical construction and which is provided in order to surround a loading and unloading opening (2) of the washing machine of the circumference thereof, and which is fixed by means of its first end (3) to a front housing wall (4) of the washing machine, wherein the loading and unloading opening (2) is closable by a pivotable bullseyeshaped door (16), wherein provided in the region of the first end (3) at an inner circumference of the sealing sleeve (1) is a lip seal (19) which in the closed state of the door (16) bears sealingly against the outer circumferential surface (21) thereof, wherein the sealing sleeve (1) is fixed at the second end (5) thereof to a solution container (6) and wherein the lip seal (19) has a first, radially inwardly facing section (22), at which at least one second section (23) adjoins, which extends substantially in the axial direction of the sealing sleeve (1) and in the direction of the second end (5) thereof, characterised in that the two sections (22 and 23) of the lip seal (19) are so constructed that in the closed state of the door (16) a region of the first section (22) bears over an area against the outer circumferential surface (21) of the door (16), whereas the second section (23) is angled relative to the first section (22) and extends towards an inner circumferential surface (24) of the sealing sleeve (21) and in the direction of the second end (5) thereof.
2. Washing machine according to claim 1, characterised in that the second section (23) has a curved course as seen in cross-section.
3. Washing machine according to claim 1, characterised in that the lip seal (19) is constructed with substantially the same wall thickness in the region of its area contact (20) of the first section (22) and over its second section (23).
4. Washing machine according to claim 1, characterised in that the inner circumferential surface (24) of the sealing sleeve (1), the radially inwardly facing first section (22) and the second section (23) running towards to the inner circumferential surface (24) enclose an annular cavity (25).
5. Washing machine according to claim 1, characterised in that the second section (23) is constructed to be softer by comparison with the first section (22).

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