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
  • D06F29/00—Combinations of a washing machine with other separate apparatus in a common frame or the like, e.g. with rinsing apparatus
  • D06F29/005—Combinations of a washing machine with other separate apparatus in a common frame or the like, e.g. with rinsing apparatus the other separate apparatus being a drying appliance
• • 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 
  • D06F39/12—Casings; Tubs
  • D06F39/125—Supporting arrangements for the casing, e.g. rollers or legs
• • 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
  • D06F95/00—Laundry systems or arrangements of apparatus or machines; Mobile laundries 
  • D06F95/002—Baskets or bags specially adapted for holding or transporting laundry; Supports therefor

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a stacking kit for stacking two laundry treatment appliances, in particular a laundry dryer and a laundry washer, one above the other.
• Laundry treatment appliances such as laundry washers and laundry dryers are commonly known in the art.
• the laundry washers are also made available with a drying function respectively.
• Such a laundry washer/dryer has the advantage that the user can save valuable floor space and thus increase the utilizable floor space in the laundry at home.
• the customer may also opt for two separate appliances. In such cases, the laundry washer and the laundry dryer will together occupy a comparatively larger floor space when these are installed side-by-side.
• the household-appliance manufacturers usually provide stacking kits which allow to securely stack two laundry treatment appliances one above the other. Such stacking kits are commonly known in the art.
• a stacking kit generally comprises an attachment means for securely attaching the laundry dryer on the top of the laundry washer in the state where the laundry washer bears the entire weight of the laundry dryer.
• the attachment means of the stacking kit generally safeguards the upper laundry treatment appliance, i.e., usually the laundry dryer, against moving and tilting.
• a stacking kit which is suitable for stacking two laundry treatment appliances one above the other is known from WO2014101966 (A1).
• the user brings the articles to be washed in the laundry basket or the like into the laundry, and subsequently places the laundry basket onto the floor or, where available, onto the countertop, and then loads the articles into the laundry washer.
• the laundry is relatively small and has limited floor place for placing the laundry basket.
• the laundry basket occupies useful floor space and becomes a serious obstacle also for the other occupants.
• the user transfers the clean articles into the laundry dryer which is usually located next to or on top of the laundry washer.
• the user removes the dry articles from the drum and puts them again into laundry basket.
• the tasks of transferring/removing the articles are laborious, in particular for the elderly users.
• the tasks of transferring/removing the articles causes inconvenience, in particular when the laundry is relatively small and has limited floor place.
• An objective of the present invention is to provide a stacking kit and an article holder which solves the aforementioned problems of the prior art in a cost effective way and which simplifies the task of loading/unloading the laundry, allows the user to save useful floor space, and enables an improved usability.
• the stacking kit of the present invention further comprises a holding means adapted to hold an article holder which is suitable for holding articles of clothing or a household article such as a laundry basket or other small items.
• the present invention also provides an article holder for use with the stacking kit of the present invention.
• the article holder of the present invention comprises a counterpart holding means adapted to engage with the holding means of the stacking kit.
• a major advantageous effect of the present invention is that the user is enabled to easily load/unload the laundry treatment appliances by using the article holder of the staking kit. For instance, when loading/unloading the laundry, the user can either solely utilize the article holder which is held by the stacking kit according the present invention or utilize a conventional laundry basket which is held by the article holder according the present invention. Thereby, the user is prevented from repeatedly bending down and standing up.
• Another major advantageous effect of the present invention is that the floor space in front of the laundry treatment appliances needs not to be unnecessarily occupied by the conventional laundry basket or any other article such as a detergent bottle or the like, and thus the user can gain more easily access to the floor space in front of the stacked laundry treatment appliances.
• the stacking kit of the present invention is particularly advantageous when the laundry has a limited floor space with a narrow passage.
• the article holder which is held by the stacking kit of the present invention can also be used for other purposes, in particular for holding small items other than articles of clothing or the conventional laundry basket.
• such items could include a detergent bottle or an electrical device such as a handy or even a book.
• the stacking kit and article holder can be interrelated in various different configurations.
• the article holder is releasably held by the stacking kit. This embodiment is particularly advantageous as it allows the user to carry the articles of clothing or the other items to another location.
• the article holders of the present invention may have grips for facilitating the transportation and/or the manipulation thereof.
• the article holder is permanently held by the stacking kit in particular rigidly or flexibly through a respective rigid link or through a respective flexible link. This embodiment is particularly advantageous as it prevents the article holder from becoming lost. Thereby, the user can use the article holder only at the designated installation place of the stacked appliances.
• the stacking kit has a stowage for stowing the article holder.
• This embodiment is particularly advantageous as it prevents the article holder from unnecessarily occupying useful space.
• the user has been enabled to easily stow any of the flexibly linked article holder and the releasable article holder inside the stowage.
• the releasable article holder can be prevented from getting lost and becoming a serious obstacle in the laundry and unnecessarily occupying useful floor space.
• the utilizable space of the laundry can be efficiently increased.
• the users have been enabled to quickly and easily access the article holder in case of need. Thereby, the user can also be relieved from searching for the article holder in the laundry.
• the size and the shape of the stowage matches the size and shape of the article holder, where available, in the collapsed state such that the article holder must be collapsed for stowage. Thereby, the article holder occupies a comparatively small stowage space.
• the stowage can be located at any suitable location on the stacking kit. In another embodiment, the stowage is located in the space between the stacked appliances.
• the stowage is located on the left side or the right side of the stacked appliances.
• the stowage is openable and closable by means of a protective cover that is easily accessible to the user.
• the stacking kit can be provided without a stowage.
• the article holder is retractably held by the stacking kit.
• the article holder can be retractably stowed.
• the user can move the article holder into or out of the stowage.
• This embodiment is particularly advantageous as the user can easily move the article holder into the stowage with less effort.
• various retraction mechanisms can be used in which the article holder is moved into or out of the stowage for instance by way of pushing/pulling, rotating, lifting/lowering, folding/unfolding, telescopically driving or the like. Other mechanism known to those skilled in the art can be alternatively used.
• the stacking unit has sliding arms which retractably hold the article holder.
• the stacking kit is provided without a retraction mechanism such that the user releases and moves the article holder into or out of the stowage purely manually without the help of any retraction mechanism.
• This embodiment is particularly advantageous as it obviates the need for a retraction mechanism, and thus the number of parts can be reduced.
• the article holder can be provided in various forms and manufactured from various suitable materials.
• the article holder is provided as a basket, a tray, or a container respectively.
• the article holder is rendered foldable. This embodiment is particularly advantageous when transporting the article holder to another location and/or stowing the article holder in the stowage of the stacking kit or elsewhere thus occupying less space.
• the article holder is rendered non-foldable.
• Figure 1 – is a schematic perspective view of a stacking kit used for stacking a laundry dryer and a laundry washer one above the other according to an embodiment of the present invention
• Figure 2 – is a schematic enlarged view of the detail A of Fig. 1;
• Figure 3 – is a schematic perspective view of a stacking kit which retractably and releasably holds a portable and foldable basket according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the portable and foldable basket has been moved out of the stowage and has been brought from the collapsed state into the unfolded state;
• Figure 4 – is a schematic perspective view of a stacking kit which retractably holds a flexibly linked tray according to another embodiment of the present invention, wherein the tray has been moved out of the stowage;
• Figure 5 – is a schematic perspective view of a stacking kit which retractably holds a flexibly linked container, i.e., a drawer according to another embodiment of the present invention, wherein the drawer has been moved out of the stowage.
• a flexibly linked container i.e., a drawer according to another embodiment of the present invention, wherein the drawer has been moved out of the stowage.
• the stacking kit (1) is suitable for stacking two laundry treatment appliances one above the other, in particular a laundry washer (3) and a laundry dryer (2) respectively.
• the stacking kit (1) comprises an attachment means (4) for securely attaching the upper appliance such as laundry dryer (2) to the lower appliance such as laundry washer (3) in the state where the laundry washer (3) bears the entire weight of the laundry dryer (2) (Fig. 1 to 5).
• the stacking kit (1) of the present invention further comprises a holding means (5) which is adapted to hold an article holder (6, 7, 8) which is suitable for holding articles of clothing (not shown), or a household article such as laundry basket (9), or other small items (not shown).
• the present invention also provides an article holder (6, 7, 8) adapted for use with the stacking kit (1).
• the article holder (6, 7, 8) of the present invention comprises a counterpart holding means (23) which is adapted to engage with the holding means (5) of the stacking kit (1) (Fig. 1 to 5).
• the holding means (5) is further adapted to releasably hold the article holder (6).
• the article holder (6) is portable (Fig. 3).
• the stacking kit (1) further comprises a stowage (10) which is disposed in the space between the laundry dryer (2) and the laundry washer (3).
• the stowage (10) is adapted to stow the article holder (6, 7, 8).
• the article holder (6, 7, 8) is adapted to be stowed inside the stowage (10) (Fig. 1 to 5).
• the holding means (5) is further adapted to retractably hold the article holder (6, 7, 8).
• the article holder (6, 7, 8) can be moved into or out of the stowage (10).
• the holding means (5) comprises two sliding arms (11) which are adapted to hold the lateral parts (12) of the article holder (6, 7, 8) respectively (Fig. 1 to 5).
• the attachment means (4) comprises: two supports (13), one on each side, for interposing between the bottom (14) of the laundry dryer (2) and the top (15) of the laundry washer (3), four upper brackets (16), two on each side, for fixing the respective support (13) to the laundry dryer (2) and two lower brackets (17), one on each side, for fixing the respective support (13) to the laundry washer (3).
• each support (13) comprises a captive groove (18),); and three sliders (19, 21) which are disposed into the groove (18), wherein two of the sliders (19) each has a fixing means (20) for fixing the respective upper bracket (16), and the third slider (21) has a fixing means (22) for fixing the lower bracket (17) (Fig. 1 to 5).
• the article holder (6) comprises a basket (6a).
• the basket (6a) is attached to a rectangular shaped frame (6b) which has grips (6c) that are disposed onto the lateral parts (12) of the frame (6c) (Fig. 1 to 3).
• the basket (6a) is foldable.
• the foldable basket (6a) is further adapted to be stowed inside the stowage (10) exclusively in the collapsed state (Fig. 1 to 3).
• the article holder (6, 7, 8) comprises a tray (7a).
• the tray (7a) is flat and rectangular shaped (Fig. 1, 2 and 4).
• the article holder (6, 7, 8) comprises a container (8a).
• the container (8a) is provided as a rectangular shaped drawer (8a) with a handle (8b) that is disposed onto the front part thereof (Fig. 1, 2 and 5).
• the article holder (6, 7, 8) may take any other suitable form or shape and may be produced from any suitable material. Moreover, the aforementioned features which have been generically disclosed in respect of the article holder (6, 7, 8) also specifically apply to the basket (6), the tray (7) and the drawer (8) of the present invention. Thereby, the user convenience can be further increased.
• a major advantage of the present invention is that the stacking kit (1) is provided with an interrelated article holder (6, 7, 8) which serves as a means for directly holding the laundry, or for holding a conventional laundry basket (9), or other small items. Thereby, the user can easily load or unload the laundry treatment appliances (2, 3).
• the stacking kit (1) and the article holder (6, 7, 8) are particularly advantageous when the user has a small laundry with little floor space. Other advantageous effects of the article holder (6, 7, 8) and the stacking kit (1) can be taken from the aforementioned embodiments.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Textile Engineering (AREA)
• Detail Structures Of Washing Machines And Dryers (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (1)

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ID=52811116

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (2)

Cited By (1)

Families Citing this family (6)

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• 2015
  • 2015-03-31 EP EP15714199.5A patent/EP3277876A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2015-03-31 WO PCT/EP2015/057062 patent/WO2016155801A1/en active Application Filing

Non-Patent Citations (2)

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