EP3176305B1 - Storage container and metering device - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a storage container and a metering device for metering a detergent or a washing or rinsing additive in a water-bearing household appliance.

Dosing devices in washing machines allow precise dosing of the detergent, which can be automatically adapted to the size and type of laundry load and, if necessary, also to the degree of soiling, depending on the washing program set. The user of a washing machine equipped with such a metering device only needs to place one or more storage containers in a receiving device of the washing machine and no longer needs to worry about the metering.

The EP 2 003 237 A1 describes a stop device with which the detergent drawer can be fixed in the open position.

An embodiment for a metering device is shown in EP 2 479 335 A1 disclosed. The metering device described there comprises a receiving device arranged in the washing machine, into which two storage containers with detergent can be inserted. The storage containers are either pushed into the receiving device like a drawer or inserted into a drawer-like compartment, which is then pushed into the receiving device. Furthermore, a coupling device is provided which consists of a hollow mandrel on the device side and a piston on the container side. When the storage container is pushed into the receiving device, the hollow mandrel is pushed into a tubular opening in the storage container and pushes the piston back in order to provide a flow for the detergent from the storage container into the washing machine.

The disadvantage of such an arrangement is that the storage container is either not held securely enough in the receiving device or is too tight and can only be pulled out with difficulty. The former can lead to the storage container being inadvertently transported partially out of the receiving device, for example due to vibrations during a spin cycle. This can lead to detergent flowing out of the storage container and permanently contaminating the coupling device.

The invention thus poses the problem of providing a storage container and a metering device which ensure reliable coupling between the storage container in a water-carrying household appliance. At the same time, easy removal of the storage container should be made possible.

According to the invention, this problem is solved by a storage container with the features of patent claim 1 and by a metering device with the features of patent claim 14. Advantageous refinements and developments of the invention emerge from the following subclaims.

The storage container according to the invention has a housing in which a liquid such as detergent or washing or rinsing additive is or can be filled. So it forms a kind of cartridge for holding the liquid. The housing is designed such that it can be moved in an insertion direction in order to insert it into a receiving device of a water-bearing household appliance. The water-carrying household appliance can in particular be a dishwasher or a washing machine. A latching element is also provided on the housing, which is designed to form a latching connection when the housing is pushed into the receiving device with a counter-locking element of the household appliance arranged in the receiving device, which detachably fixes the housing in the receiving device.

The latching element is preferably an elevation which engages in a recess serving as a latching counter element in a wall of the receiving device in order to produce the latching connection. To release the latching connection, a pressure actuator can be provided in a preferred embodiment which releases the elevation when a pressure force is exerted, for example in that the wall or a wall section with the recess is bent by the pressure force.

In addition, a container-side coupling element is provided on the housing of the storage container, which is designed to be coupled to a coupling device with the domestic appliance with a receptacle-side coupling element arranged in the receiving device in such a way that the additive can flow into the domestic appliance via the coupling device. The coupling device is thus formed from the container-side coupling element and the receiving-side coupling element after the housing of the storage container has been pushed into the receiving device and the latching connection has been formed.

This is preferably done in such a way that the container-side coupling element has a piston and the receiving-side coupling element has a hollow mandrel. When the coupling device is formed, the piston rests on the hollow mandrel and is moved into the Housing pressed. So the piston moves from a closed position to an open position. The piston is arranged in a raw section of the housing. When it is in the open position, a flow of the liquid from the housing through the raw section to the household appliance is opened. The flow is preferably formed by slots or depressions formed on an inner wall of the raw section. In any case, the liquid preferably flows through the hollow mandrel. In the closed position, the piston closes the flow of liquid out of the housing. When the housing is removed from the receiving device again, the piston moves back into the closed position, for example due to a pretensioned spring, so that the flow is closed again.

The piston is therefore preferably connected in the housing to a spring or another suitable return element which presses the piston from the open position into the closed position. The coupling element on the container side preferably also has an annular seal which, in the closed position of the piston, additionally seals the flow of liquid out of the housing.

In a preferred embodiment it is provided that the housing has a cross-sectional outline in a cross-sectional plane parallel to the insertion direction, the container-side coupling element and the latching element being arranged on the cross-sectional outline in the same cross-sectional plane on the housing. This cross-sectional plane preferably also runs parallel to a vertical or horizontal outer housing wall of the housing. So if you look at the housing in the insertion direction, then the container-side coupling element and the latching element are arranged on a common horizontal or vertical, the mentioned orientations are based on the installation of the household appliance in a room. The direction of insertion is preferably aligned parallel to a direction of longitudinal extent of the housing.

In an advantageous development it is provided that the coupling element and the latching element are arranged essentially on a diagonal or on opposite ends of a diagonal of the cross-sectional outline on the housing. In other words, these two elements are as far apart as possible along the cross-sectional outline. The diagonal runs preferably at an angle or transversely to the direction of insertion. If the coupling element on the receiving side exerts a force on the housing against the insertion direction, this force, in cooperation with the locking element, results in a torque acting on the housing. This torque leads to the latching element being pressed further in the direction of latching with the latching counter-element, so that the latching connection is improved. This is particularly useful when there are vibrations, for example during a spin cycle in a washing machine, for a secure fixation of the housing in the receiving device.

According to an expedient embodiment, it is provided that the cross-sectional outline of the housing in the cross-sectional plane parallel to the insertion direction is essentially rectangular or square. Preferably, a side surface of the housing extending in the insertion direction is essentially rectangular or square. In an expedient development it is further provided that the housing has a substantially rectangular or square cross section perpendicular to the insertion direction. The housing as a whole is preferably essentially cuboid or cube-shaped. A rectangular or square cross section along a plane has the advantage that the housing can be safely stacked along this plane. In addition, such a housing saves space when two or more storage containers of this type are to be arranged in a receiving device.

In an expedient embodiment it is provided that a guide elevation is arranged on a guide surface of the housing which is designed to engage in a guide groove of the receiving device when the housing is pushed into the receiving device for safe guidance of the housing. The raised guide serves to ensure that the housing can be safely inserted into the receiving device. When inserting the housing, the user can initially orientate himself on the guide surface of the housing and ensure that this guide surface is placed on an edge or an inner surface of the receiving device. Next, he has to place the raised guide in the guide groove and then push the housing into the receiving device as far as it will go. The guide elevation thus serves to ensure an optimal position and, if necessary, also the orientation of the housing when it is pushed into the receiving device.

The guide elevation is therefore preferably an elevation made up of an otherwise planar or flat guide surface of the housing (that is, apart from further guide or adjustment elements, if applicable). At least in the immediate vicinity of the guide elevation, the guide surface is preferably planar or flat. In preferred embodiments, the guide elevation can protrude essentially perpendicularly from the guide surface in the shape of a pin or a connector. Alternatively, the guide elevation can also be stretched along the guide surface in order to also specify the orientation of the housing when the housing is inserted into the receiving device.

In an advantageous embodiment it is provided that the guide elevation on the housing is adjacent to the container-side coupling element or together with the container-side Coupling element is arranged in the same cross-sectional plane parallel to the insertion direction. This cross-sectional plane can preferably run parallel to a side wall of the housing. If the guide elevation on the housing is arranged adjacent to the container-side coupling element, then the guide groove of the receiving device must also be arranged adjacent to the receiving-side coupling element or run towards the receiving-side coupling element. This has the advantage that, with the aid of the guide elevation guided in the guide groove, the container-side coupling element is fed to the receptacle-side coupling element in order to connect the two coupling elements to form the coupling device.

According to a preferred development it is provided that the locking element is arranged on a side of the housing opposite the guide surface. In this way, the guide surface and in particular the guide elevation can support the housing against an inner wall or against the guide groove in order to secure the latching connection.

In the latter case, the guide elevation and the guide groove form a defined fit for the housing with little tolerance, so that the locking connection is not accidentally released. As an alternative or in addition, adjustment knobs for engaging in adjustment grooves in the receiving device can also be provided for this purpose. It is advantageously provided that the adjustment knobs are arranged on the guide surface on the housing essentially in a common cross-sectional plane arranged perpendicular to the insertion direction. These adjusting knobs ensure that the locking element is and remains optimally positioned for the locking connection.

According to a preferred embodiment, it is provided that the latching element, the container-side coupling element and / or the guide elevation is / are arranged essentially horizontally in the center, viewed perpendicular to an end face or face of the housing. This means that these elements are arranged along a vertical line when looking at the face. Alternatively, the elements mentioned can also be arranged essentially vertically in the center. Here, too, the stated orientations relate horizontally and vertically to the position of the household appliance in a room. The end face or end face is preferably formed essentially perpendicular to the insertion direction. In the case of a cuboid housing, it is preferably the narrow side, which is expediently square. A horizontally or vertically central arrangement has the advantage that the distribution of forces when holding the housing in the receiving device is symmetrical. Furthermore, the housing can be threaded into the receiving device more easily because, for example, the user when inserting the housing into the receiving device, the housing can be held in such a way that the counter-locking element appears centrally over the end face of the housing.

It is preferably provided that the housing has a length between approximately 100 mm and 500 mm, a width between approximately 50 mm to 150 mm and / or a height between approximately 50 mm to 150 mm. Such dimensions allow simple and safe handling of the housing and guarantee a secure locking connection with low requirements on the materials from which the locking element and counter-locking element are formed.

The storage container described here can already be filled at the factory and / or provided with a filling opening on the housing in order to fill it for the first time or to refill it after use.

The storage container is part of a metering device for a water-bearing household appliance, in particular for a washing machine or for a dishwasher, which, in addition to the storage container, has a receiving device which is designed accordingly to receive and hold the housing.

Fig. 1

ein wasserführendes Haushaltsgerät, nämlich eine Waschmaschine, mit einer Dosiereinrichtung,

Fig. 2

eine Dosiereinrichtung mit zwei Vorratsbehältern,

Fig. 3

die Dosiereinrichtung aus Fig. 2 mit einem ausgezogenen Vorratsbehälter,

Fig. 4

die Dosiereinrichtung aus Fig. 2 mit einem eingesteckten und einem ausgezogenen Vorratsbehälter, und

Fig. 5

eine Querschnittsansicht der Dosiereinrichtung aus Fig. 2 mit Vorratsbehälter.

An embodiment of the invention is shown purely schematically in the drawings and is described in more detail below. It shows

Fig. 1

a water-bearing household appliance, namely a washing machine, with a metering device,

Fig. 2

a dosing device with two storage containers,

Fig. 3

the dosing device Fig. 2 with an extended storage container,

Fig. 4

the dosing device Fig. 2 with an inserted and an extended storage container, and

Fig. 5

a cross-sectional view of the metering device Fig. 2 with storage container.

In the Fig. 1 a water-conducting household appliance 1, namely a washing machine 1, is shown, in the lower region of which a receiving device 3 is provided. A storage container 2 and a further storage container 2 are arranged in the receiving device 3, the left-hand storage container 2 being pulled out somewhat. Together with the storage containers 2, the receiving device 3 forms a metering device for metering a liquid, in particular a detergent or a washing additive. For example, a detergent or a washing additive can be contained in the storage container 2, while another washing agent or another washing additive is present in the further storage container 2, or the further storage container 2 serves as a reserve container for the same detergent or for the same washing additive.

A detailed view of the dosing device is shown in the Fig. 2 shown. In the receiving device 3, the two essentially identical storage containers 2 are pushed in side by side and latched into place. The locking elements on the reservoirs 2 are in the Fig. 2 not visible because they are covered by the counter-locking elements 32. Each counter-locking element 32 is flexible and has a pressure actuator 322 which is designed as a recess. When pressure is exerted on the pressure actuator 322, the counter-locking element 32 is pressed upwards so that the locking connection that holds the storage container 2 is released. Each storage container 2 also has a handle element 24 with a finger opening 241 on its end face which is visible here. By inserting a finger or thumb into the finger opening 241, the grip element 24 can be gripped in order to pull the storage container 2 out of the receiving device 3. Thus, the storage container 2 can be released and pulled out with one hand, for example by the user pressing with his thumb against the pressure actuator 322 and releasing the locking connection and at the same time reaching into the finger opening 241 of the handle element 24 with his index finger and pulling the storage container 2 out.

In the Fig. 2 a device flap 34 is also visible, which closes the receiving device 3, so that the storage containers 2 are protected behind the device flap 34 and at the same time hidden. This device flap 34 is more visible in the perspective illustration of the metering device in FIG Fig. 3 . Here both storage containers 2 are removed from the receiving device 3. A storage container 2 is shown as it is being pushed into the receiving device 3.

The storage container 2 is pushed into the receiving device 3 in an insertion direction 4 illustrated by means of an arrow 4. The storage container 2 is designed in the form of a cuboid. At right angles to the direction of insertion 4, it has an essentially square cross section with rounded corners, while it is stretched along the direction of insertion 4 or has its largest dimension along the direction of insertion 4. The reservoir 2 is in the Fig. 3 positioned so that it only has to be moved in the insertion direction in order to be inserted into the receiving device 3. The same situation as in Fig. 3 with respect to the position of the storage container 2 is in the Fig. 4 shown from a different perspective, in which Fig. 4 In addition, a further storage container 2 is already arranged in the receiving device 3.

To insert the storage container 2 into the receiving device 3, the storage container 2 is arranged such that a guide elevation 231, which is formed on a guide surface 23 of the housing 20, engages in a guide groove 331. The on a lower receiving surface 33 of the receiving device 3 along the Guide groove 331 formed in the insertion direction 4 leads to a coupling element 31 on the receiving side. Since the guide elevation 231 is arranged on the container side directly adjacent to a coupling element on the container side, this guide aid comprising guide elevation 231 and guide groove 331 enables a simple and secure coupling to be formed. As soon as the housing 20 is completely pushed into the receiving device 3, a locking element 22 formed on a surface of the housing 20 opposite the guide surface 23 engages in a counter-locking element 32 in the receiving device 3 and thus forms a locking connection. In order to exert pressure on the locking element 22 and to press the locking element 22 further into the counter-locking element 32, two adjusting knobs 232 are also provided on the guide surface 23, which engage in adjusting grooves 332 on the receiving surface 33. The adjusting knobs 232 also ensure that the housing 20 is not tilted sideways. In the present embodiment, the adjusting knobs 232 and the latching element 22 are located in a common cross-sectional plane perpendicular to the insertion direction 4 or to an extension direction of the housing 20.

A cross-sectional view through the receiving device 3 with an inserted and latched storage container 2 is shown in FIG Fig. 5 shown. It is clearly visible here how the latching element 22 is inserted into the latching counter element 32. In addition, the coupling element 31 on the receiving side is pushed into a tubular opening of the housing 20 which contains a piston 211 with an annular seal 212. By means of the coupling element 31 on the receiving side, which here has the shape of a hollow mandrel, the piston 211 is pushed from a closed position, in which it closes a flow of liquid from the housing with the aid of the ring seal 212, against the insertion direction 4 into an open position. This opens the flow for the liquid, which can then be sucked through the hollow mandrel into the washing machine 1.

The piston 211 is preloaded against the housing 20 with a restoring element 213, namely a spring. Therefore, in this locked state, a pretensioning force is exerted on the container-side coupling element 21 in the opposite direction to the insertion direction 4 on the housing 20. Because the locking element 22 is arranged diagonally opposite to the coupling element 21 in the cross-sectional plane visible here, this prestressing force results in a torque which presses the locking element 22 against the counter-locking element 32. This makes it more difficult to loosen the locking connection, so that the housing 20 is securely held in the receiving device 3 even if the washing machine 1 is shaken, for example due to a spinning process in the washing machine 1, and the coupling connection between the the container-side coupling element 21 and the receptacle-side coupling element 31 are not released.

List of reference symbols

1

water-bearing household appliance (washing machine)

2

Storage container

20th

casing

21st

tank-side coupling element

211

piston

212

Ring seal

213

Reset element

22nd

Locking element

23

Guide surface

231

Leadership increase

232

Adjustment knobs

24

Handle element

241

Finger opening

3

Receiving facility

31

coupling element on the receiving side

32

Locking counter element

322

Push actuator

33

Recording surface

331

Guide groove

332

Adjustment grooves

34

Furnishing flap

4th

Direction of insertion

Claims (14)

1. Storage container (2) for receiving a liquid such as a detergent or a washing or rinsing additive, comprising:

   - a housing (20) which is designed to be inserted, in an insertion direction (4), into a receiving means (3) of a water-conducting domestic appliance (1), in particular a washing machine, and

   - a container-side coupling element (21) which is designed to be coupled to the domestic appliance (1) by means of a receiving-side coupling element (31) arranged in the receiving means (3), forming a coupling means, such that the liquid can flow via the coupling means into the domestic appliance (1),
   characterised by

   - a catch element (22) which is designed to form a catch connection together with a catch counter element (32) of the domestic appliance (1) arranged in the receiving means (3) when the housing (20) is inserted into the receiving means (3), which catch connection releasably fixes the housing (20) in the receiving means (3), and

   - a restoring element (213) by means of which a piston (211) of the container-side coupling element (21) is preloaded against the housing (20) such that, in the latched state, at the container-side coupling element (21), a preload force is applied onto the housing (20) in the opposite direction to the insertion direction (4).
2. Storage container (2) according to claim 1, characterised in that the housing (20) has a cross-sectional contour in a cross-sectional plane parallel to the insertion direction (4), the container-side coupling element (21) and the catch element (22) being arranged on the housing (20) on the cross-sectional contour in the same cross-sectional plane.
3. Storage container (2) according to claim 2, characterised in that the container-side coupling element (21) and the catch element (22) are arranged on the housing (20) on opposing ends of a diagonal of the cross-sectional contour.
4. Storage container (2) according to either claim 2 or claim 3, characterised in that the cross-sectional contour of the housing (20) is rectangular in the cross-sectional plane parallel to the insertion direction (4).
5. Storage container (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the housing (20) has a rectangular or square cross section perpendicularly to the insertion direction (4).
6. Storage container (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that a raised guide portion (231) is arranged on a guide surface (23) of the housing (20), which raised guide portion is designed to engage in a guide groove (331) of the receiving means (3) when the housing (20) is inserted into the receiving means (3), in order to securely guide the housing (20).
7. Storage container (2) according to claim 6, characterised in that the raised guide portion (231) is arranged on the housing (20) adjacently to the container-side coupling element (21) and/or together with the container-side coupling element (21) in the same cross-sectional plane parallel to the insertion direction (4).
8. Storage container (2) according to either claim 6 or claim 7, characterised in that the catch element (22) is arranged on a side of the housing (20) opposite the guide surface (23).
9. Storage container (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that adjustment nubs (232) for engaging in adjustment grooves (332) in the receiving means (3) are arranged on the guide surface (23) of the housing (20) in the same cross-sectional plane as the catch element (21), which plane is perpendicular to the insertion direction (4).
10. Storage container (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the piston (211) is arranged in a tube portion so as to be movable between an open position and a closed position, which tube portion is formed in the housing (20), the piston (211) leaving open a flow of the liquid from the housing (20) through the tube portion to the domestic appliance in the open position, and shutting off the flow of the liquid from the housing (20) in the closed position.
11. Storage container (2) according to claim 10, characterised in that the container-side coupling element (21) comprises a ring seal (212) that seals off the flow of the liquid from the housing (20) in the closed position of the piston (211).
12. Storage container (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the catch element (22), the container-side coupling element (21) and/or the raised guide portion (231) is/are arranged horizontally in the centre, viewed perpendicularly to an end face of the housing (20).
13. Storage container (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the housing (20) has a length of between 100 mm and 500 mm, a width of between 50 mm and 150 mm and/or a height of between 50 mm and 150 mm.
14. Dosing means for a water-conducting domestic appliance (1), in particular a washing machine, comprising a receiving means (3) and a storage container (2) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the housing (20) of the storage container (2) is designed to be inserted into the receiving means (3) in the insertion direction (4).

Images