GB2066055A - Dishwasher - Google Patents

Abstract

A dishwasher adapted to be operably connected to a domestic hot water supply, and which requires no auxiliary power, relying solely upon water pressure for operation, comprises a rotatable rack 15 mounted within housing 14, a water jet system 16, 94, 103 arranged to rotate the rack and to wash dishes therein, and a dosing device 17 for adding detergent to the water flowing into the water jet system. The speed of rotation of the rack is regulated by regulating the flow of water to the water jet system by means of an appropriate valve element operated by lever 34. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Dishwasher The present invention relates generally to dishwashers and more particularly to a self-contained portable dishwasher unit adapted to be removably interconnected with a domestic hot water supply.

Portable dishwashers operable solely by water pressure are not new. Several such units have been manufactured and sold in recent years. A common drawback of such units, however, has been their inability to rapidly and effectively clean dishes and cookware.

Many of the prior art units are cheaply constructed and have been sold more as a novelty item than as a bona fide, high performance dishwashing device.

Generally, the washing action in such units is attempted by one or more rapidly rotating emitters located beneath or along side a rack holding the dishes. These emitters, which operate in much the same manner as lawn sprinklers have proven ineffective in the removal of most troublsome types of food residue on the dishes. Other types of emitters have from time to time been tried, but for the most part have also proven to be ineffective.

The apparatus of the present invention is not a toy, or a novelty item, but rather is a carefully engineered, high performance device adapted to rapidly and efficiently remove even the most difficult food residue from dishes and cookware. The uniquely designed and strategically positioned water jet means of the unit directs a multiplicity of high velocity water jets at the articles to be washed while they are rotated within the unit at an optimum rate of speed. These water jets impinge upon all the surfaces of the dishes supported within the rotating rack and create a unique scrubbing type of action which loosens and dislodges even the most difficult of residues. A unique dosing chamber precisely mixes an emulsifier, such as liquid soap, with the water upstream of the water jets thereby enhancing the cleaning efficiency of the device.

At the heart of the present invention is the uniquely configured water jet means. This means comprises a first collimated jet means adapted to initiate rotation of the rotatable rack which supports the dirty dishes, and a second spray jet means which accomplishes the scrubbing action and sustains the rotation of the rack. Control means are associated with the jet means whereby the rotational speed of the rack can be regulated to obtain maximum effectiveness. The spray jet means is strategically located with respect to the rack so that a multiplicity of fine, very high velocity water jets bombard the dishes from all angles from above, from below and from the sides.No prior art unit known to the present inventor utilizes this novel, unique and superior arrangement and accordingly no prior art device can equal or even approximate the cleaning efficiency of the device of the present invention.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a free standing, self-contained rotatable dishwasher for washing dishes, cookwarevand the like which is operated solely by domestic water pressure and can be directly connected to a hot water faucet of the type typically provided in kitchens and bathrooms of houses and apartments.

It is another object of the invention to provide a dishwasher of the aforementioned character in which in operation a multiplicity of very fine high velocity jets of water are directed at the articles to be washed from a multiplicity of directions, said jets being of such force as to quickly and efficiently dislodge and thoroughly clean even the most stubborn of food residues and greases.

It is another object of the invention to provide a dishwasher of the character described in which means are provided for uniformly and controllably mixing a soap or detergent with the high velocity water jets. This novel means is adapted to precisely meter the emulsifier into the water stream so as to economically use only the minimum amount of emulsifier necessary to effectively clean the dishes.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a dishwasher of the type described in the preceeding paragraphs in which the articles to be washed are strategically held in position upon a uniquely configured rotating rack adapted to orient the articles with respect to the high velocity water jets so as to achieve a novel scrubbing type of action to enable maximum cleaning in a minimum time.

Another object of the invention is to provide a dishwasher as described in the previous paragraph in which, during the start-up mode, a first collimated water jet is directed at the rotatable racktoinitate rotation. Once the starting inertia of the rack is overcome, the first water jet is closed, or partially closed, and the full force of the water is directed toward a jet spray system which sustains the rotation of the rack and at the same time effectively-accomplishes the washing operation. By only partially closing the first water jet, the speed of rotation of the rack can be precisely regulated.

A further object of the invention is to provide a dishwasher of the class described which is compact, lightweight, easily portable, highly attractive and extremely simple to use and maintain.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a dishwasher of the aforementioned character which can be readily interconnected to domestic water out Jets without the use of special tools and which includes drain means for conveniently draining the unit into an existing kitchen or bathroom sink.

These and other objects of the invention are realized by a rotatable dishwasher comprising a housing, a rack rotatably mounted within the housing, the rack being adapted to support articles to be washed, jet means for directing a jet of water in the direction of said rack to impart rotational movement thereto, the jet means comprising a first collimated jet for emitting a collimated stream of water in the direction of the rack for initiating rotation thereof and a second spray jet for sustaining rotation of said rack, and The drawing(s) originally filed was/were informal and the print here reproduced is taken from a later filed formal copy.

dosing means adapted to cooperate with the second spray jet for dosing with soap water flowing through the second spray jet.

FIG. is an exploded generally perspective view of the apparatus of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-section view taken along lines 2-2 of Fig.1, with the basket removed.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of a portion of the jet means of the invention illustrating the construction and operation of the control means for controlling the first collimated jet means.

FIG. 4 is an elevational cross-sectional view taken along lines 4-4 of Fig. 3.

FIG. 5 is an elevational cross-sectional view of the dosing means of the invention showing the upper chamber adapted to receive the emulsifier and the cooperating lower chamber wherein the water and emulsifier is mixed.

FIG. 6 is a foreshortened plan view showing the uniquely apertured tubing which comprises the second spray jet means of the apparatus. In this view, the tubing is shown as it appears priorto being formed into the special configuration illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the dishwater of the present invention, generally designated by the numeral 12, includes a housing 14, a rack 15 mounted for rotation within housing 14, jet means 16 for directing a jet of water at rack 14to impart rotational movement thereto, and dosing means 17 adapted to cooperate with the jet means for dosing with an emulsifierwaterfiow- ing through the jet means.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings, the jet means 16 comprises a first collimated jet means for directing a collimated stream of water at said rack for initiating rotation thereof and a second spray jet means for sustaining rotation of the rack once the starting inertia of the rack has been overcome by the first jet. To control the rate of rotation of the rack, control means are provided. This control means is cooperatively associated with the first collimated jet means for controlling the rate of flow of the water thereth rough, whereby the speed of the rotation of the rack can be controllably regulated.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4, the jet means 16 of the invention can be seen to comprise a cylindrically shaped housing 18 defining a chamber20. Housing 18 has an inlet connection 22 (Fig. 1) leading into chamber 20 and an outlet connection 24 leading from chamber 20. Housing 18 is provided with a threaded cap 26 which serves to close chamber 20 and, in a manner presently to be described, also functions to interconnect housing 18 withthe floor of the dishwasher unit.

In the present form of the invention, the previously described first collimated jet means comprises an upwardly and outwardly inclined fluid passageway 28 extending through the wall of housing 18.

As best seen by referring to Fig. 3, a hole 30 is drilled in the wall of housing 18 so that it tangentially crosses passageway 28. Forming a part of the control means of the invention is a flow control needle 32 which is displaceable along the hole 30 in the direction indicated by the arrow A in Fig. 3. Movement of this flow control needle is effected by a lever 34 (Fig. 2) which is pivotally mounted at 36 on the floor of the dishwasher unit. Lever 34 protrudes through a slot 38 formed in the side wall of the unit.

By displacing lever 34 in the direction of the arrow A in Fig. 2, the position of the needle 32 in the hole or passageway 30 can be precisely adjusted relative to passageway 28 to completely or partially block the flow of fluid through said passageway.

Referring once again to Fig. 1, housing 14 of the unit, which can suitably be constructed of thin plastic or sheet metal, comprises a circularfloor40, a circular roof 42 and a side wall 44 having an access opening 46. Although the dishwasher unit shown in the drawings is cylindrical in shape, the side wall 44 may be polygonal, having a large number of facets, say about 6 per quarter of its circumference; it may be eliptical; or for certain applications, it may be substantially rectangular in cross-section.

In the present form of the invention, closure means is provided in the form of a semi-cylindrically shaped member 48 movement of which is guided by a semi-circular rail portion 50 located on the region of the access opening 46. Closure member, or door, 48 may be constructed of a transparent plastic material, a light guage sheet metal or any other suitable rigid composite material. To enable easy cleaning of the unit, the access opening 46 should be large enough to permit the rack 15 to be conveniently removed from the housing through the opening.

Floor40 of the invention is provided with a plurality of drain openings 52 leading into a basin 54 secured beneath the floor 40. Basin 54 is provided with an outlet (not shown) which may be connected with a hose leading to a suitable domestic waste water drain.

The rack 15 is preferably of coated steel wire construction, and is provided with specially configured support elements 58 adapted to carry and strategically position various items of crockery, cutlery, dishes, and cookware and the like which are to be washed. Provided at the top of rack 15 is a bearing housing 60 which is of inverted cup shape and has a stainless steel bearing insert 62 therein (Fig. 1). In use, rack 15 rests with the insert 62 bearing on a stainless steel ball 64 so that the rack 15 can freely rotate about a vertical axis. Steel ball 64 is rotatably a supported within a recess 65 provided at the top of a substantially vertically extending shaft 66 suitably interconnected to floor 40. Connected at the lower extremity of shaft 66 is a plastic ring 68 which is adapted to pressurally engage floor 40. The function of disc 68 is to take up and side thrusts imposed on shaft 66 resulting from asymmetrical loading of the rack 15. A centered aperture 70 is provided in floor 40 and is adapted to closely receive the lower end of shaft 66.

Provided at the bottom of the rack 15 is a plurality of radially extending vanes 72. Vanes 72 are strategically located so that as rack 15 rotates, they will be impacted by the collimated stream of water emitted in the direction of arrow C (Fig.3) by the first collimated jet means through the passageway 28 provided in the side wall of housing 18. As best seen by referring to Fig. 1, as rack 15 rotates about shaft 66, vanes 72 will be brought sequentially into a line with the collimated stream of water emitted through passageway 28. As previously mentioned, the force being exerted upon vanes 72 by this collimated stream of water can be controlled through operation of the needle valve 32 of the control means of the unit.

Also forming a part of the apparatus of the present invention is the previously mentioned dosing means 17 which is adapted to cooperate with the jet means for dosing with an emulsifier water flowing through the jet means. In the present form of the invention, the dosing means comprises a housing 74, having a wall 76 (Fig. 5) and first and second interior chambers 78 and 80 which are divided by a partition 82.

Chambers 78 and 80 are in communication with one another via two holes 84 extending through the partition 82. Chamber 80 is closed by an internally threaded cap 86 which also functions to secure the dosing means to the floor 40 of the unit. Cap 86 is provided with an inlet connection 88 leading toward chamber 80. An outlet connection 90 leads from the lower chamber 80 and is connected to the inlet connection 22 of housing 18 of the jet means. Chamber 78 is similarly closed by a removable, internally threaded cap 92.

In the present embodiment of the invention, the previously identified second spray jet means is provided in the form of a specially configured hollow tubing 94 (Fig. 2). Tubin 94 has a first substantially horizontal extending leg portion 96 extending beneath rack 15, a substantially vertically extending leg portion 98 (Fig. 1) disposed proximate the periphery of rack 15, and a second substantially horizontally extending leg portion 99 disposed above rack 15. Tubing 94 may be constructed from copper, aluminum, plastic or other suitable durable material which can be bent into the configuration shown in Fig. 1 and 2. The first horizontally extending portion 56 of the tubing 94 is connected to the outlet connection 24 of housing 18 and the upper end 102 thereof is closed.

Referring to Fig. 6, it can be seen that a multiplicity of small holes 103 are drilled in a specific pattern in each of the leg portions as well as in the vertically extending portion of the tubing. The pattern of holes 103 is carefully engineered to create a three dimensional water spray pattern within housing 14 which sustains rotation of rack 15 and produces a unique scrubbing type of cleansing action on the dishes and cookware supported in rack 15. In Fig. 6 which shows the tubing 94 as it appears prior to being bet, the precise drilling hole pattern is clearly illustrated. For the reasons previously discussed, the position of these holes or apertures 103 is critical to the opera- tion of the device in that through each aperture there is directed a high velocity spray jet which impinges on the articles to be washed.The velocity of these jets coupled with the three-dimensional pattern thereof creates a highly novel and unique scrubbing action upon the articles supported within rack 15.

In using the dishwater of the invention, the articles to be washed are placed on the rack 15, a quantity of emulsifier such as liquid soap, detergent or other cleansing material is charged into the upper com partment 78 of the dosing means by removal of cap 92 and a household hot water supply is connected to the inlet connection to the unit 104 (Fig.1). Water enters the lower compartment 80 and leaves it again via the connection 90 from where it enters chamber 20 via connection 22. During the start-up mode, a portion of the water issues via the hole 28 in the form of a collimated stream or jet, which has previously been discussed, is directed at the vanes 72.The cor rect angular orientation of passageway 28 with respect to vanes 72 is fixed due to the manner in which housing 18 is secured to floor 40 by means of the threaded cap 26 (see Fig. 4). Impingement of the jet or collimated stream of water 105 (Fig. 2) against the surfaces of the vanes causes the rack 15 to rotate carrying the articles to be washed along with it. The remainder of the water enters tube 94 via connection 24 and issues from the apertures 103 in the form of a multiplicity of high velocity, multi-dimensional water sprays adapted to impinge upon the articles carried by the rack 15.

During the washing operation, the emulsifier con tained in the upper compartment 78 of the dosing means is precisely metered through the openings 84 of partition 82 into the lower compartment 80 where it is uniformly mixed with the water entering the inlet connection 90.

Once the at-rest inertia of the rack is overcome and rotation has commenced, the lever 34 may be adjusted to completely or partially close passageway 28 thereby either stopping, or, if desired, regulating, the force of the collimated stream of water emanat ing therefrom. In this way, the speed of the rack may be adjusted simply by adjusting the position of lever 34. It is to be understood, however, that event with passageway 28 completely closed, the rack will con tinue to rotate due to the force of the spray jets emanating from the tube 94. If, however, acceleration of rotation of the rack is desired for any purpose, this may be achieved through adjustment of the lever 34.

In operation, as the water sprays are emitted from tube 94 and impinge on the articles to be washed, the bottom portion ofthe unit will partially fill with water. In view ofthefact that the vanes 72 extend downwardly a substantial distance, the water build up in the base of the unit will tend to controllably impede the rotation of the rack as vanes 72 move through the water build-up. During normal operation, the arrangement of the unit and the size of drains 52 is such that the water level in the base of the unitwill stabilize at a point to maintain a suffi cient level of water within the base of the housing to dampen rotation of the rack 15 and prevent an unde sirably high speed of rotation thereof.

It if is desired to completely clean the unit, the rack 15 can be raised in the manner shown in Fig. 1 and removed through the access opening 46 in the hous ing 14. The interior of the housing as well as the rack can then bethroughly cleaned.

Having now described the invention in detail in accordance with the requirements of the patent sta tutes, those skilled in this art will have no difficulty in making changes and modifications in the individual parts or their relative assembly in order to meet specific requirements or conditions. Such changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention, as set forth in the following claims.

Claims (12)

1. A rotatable dishwasher, comprising: (a) a housing; (b) a rack rotatably mounted within said housing, said rack being adapted to support articles to be washed; (c) jet means for directing a jet of water at said rack to impart rotational movement thereto, said jet means including control means for controlling the speed of rotation of said rack; and (d) dosing means adapted to cooperate with said jet means for dosing with an emulsifierwaterflowing through said jet means.

2. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 1 in which said jet means comprises: (a) a first collimated jet means for directing a collimated stream of water at said rack for rotation thereof; and (b) a second spray jet means for sustaining rotation of said rack.

3. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 2 in which said control means is cooperatively associated with said first collimated jet means for controlling the rate of flow of water therethrough whereby the speed of rotation of said rack is controllably regulated.

4. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 2 in which said rack includes at least one vane located so as to be impacted by the collimated stream of water emitted by said first collimated jet means.

5. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 2 in which said second spray jet means comprises a conduit having a substantially vertically extending leg disposed proximate the periphery of said rack and a substantially horizontally extending leg disposed above said rack, said conduit being provided with a multiplicity of apertures located and arranged so that a multiplicity of fine jets of water will be simultaneously directed at said rack to sustain rotational movement thereof.

6. A rotatable dishwasher, comprising: (a) a housing; (b) a rack rotatably mounted within said housing, said rack being adapted to support articles to be washed; (c) jet means for directing a jet of water in the direction of said rack to impart rotational movement thereto, said jet means comprising: (1) a first collimated jet means for emitting a collimated stream of water in the direction of said rack for initiating rotation of said rack; and (2) a second spray jet means for sustaining rotation of said rack; and (d) dosing means adapted to cooperate with said second spray jet means for dosing with soap water flowing through said second spray jet means.

7. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 6 in which said rack is provided with a plurality of spaced apart vanes, said vanes being positioned so as to be impacted by the collimated stream of water emitted by said first jet means.

8. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 7 including means for providing a bath of water within which said vanes are at least partially immersible for dampening rotation of said rack.

9. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 6 in which said housing is substantially circular in crosssection at any point and comprises a floor, a roof and a side wall having a closable access opening.

10. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 6 in which said second spray jet means comprises a hollow tubing having a lower horizontal leg portion, a vertically extending portion and an upper horizontal leg portion, each of said leg portions and said vertically extending portion having a multiplicity of apertures therein adapted to emit water under pressure in a direction toward said rack.

11. A rotatable dishwasher, comprising: (a) a housing having a floor, a roof and a side wall providing an access opening therein; (b) closure means for closing the access opening; (c) a rack rotatably mounted within said housing, said rack being adapted to support articles to be washed and being provided with a plurality of spaced apart downwardly depending vanes; (d) jet means for directing a jet of water in the direction of said rack to impart rotational movement thereto, said jet means comprising: (1) a first collimated jet means for emitting a collimated stream of water in the direction of said vanes of said rackforinitiating rotation of said rack; (2) a second spray jet means for sustaining rotation of said rack; and (3) control means for adjusting said first collimated jet means to regulate the pressure of the collimated stream of water emitted therefrom, whereby the speed of rotation of said rack can be controlled; and (e) a dosing means adapted to cooperate with said second spray jet means for dosing with soap water flowing through said second spray jet means.

12. A rotatable dishwasher as defined in claim 11 in which said second spray jet means comprises a hollow tubing having a first substantially horizontally extending leg portion extending beneath said rack, a substantially vertically extending leg disposed proximate the periphery of said rack and a second substantially horizontally extending leg portion idsposed above said rack, said tubing being provided with a multiplicity of fine jets of water will be simultaneously directed at said rack to sustain rotational movement thereof.