GB2089842A - Detergent distributor for washing machines - Google Patents

Abstract

A detergent distributor for e.g. clothes washing machines comprises a drawer 6 having detergent compartments and which is displaceable within a space provided in the front wall of the machine. The drawer 6 and a front panel 7 are connected together by a pivoted lever assembly 20, 28, 29 and by a pivot- and-slot connecting means 11, 38, 19. Resilient means 34 actuable by means of pressure on the front panel 7 are arranged to displace said front panel thereby to move it into a position of projecting from the front wall of the machine to permit the drawer 6 to be pulled out. The pivoted lever assembly comprises a shaped and transverse rigid wire 20, and two lateral levers 28, 29 pivoted at two shaped side portions 21, 23 of the wire 20, said wire 20 and said levers 28, 29 being pivoted to the inside surface 15 of said front panel 7 and the front wall portion 9 of the drawer 6. The pivot-and-slot connecting means comprises a horizontal arm 11 pivoted at one end to the front wall portion 8 of said drawer 6 and provided at the other end with a vertical pin member 38 co-operating with a labyrinth-type slot 19 fixed on the inside surface 15 of said front panel 7. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Detergent distributor for washing machines The invention relates to a detergent distributor for washing machines, particularly but not exclusively clothes washing machines, which can be easily introduced into and extended from the front part of the machine.

Conventional clothes washing machines are provided with a detergent distributor comprising a drawer having a plurality of compartments for containing the respective detergents required in the washing cycle, the detergent distributor being disposed in the upper part of the casing of the machine and being movable within a space provided in the front part of the machine casing.

In order to be able to extend the abovementioned drawer from the casing of the machine, to place the detergent in the respective compartments, the drawer is normally provided with a front handle which can be actuated by the user and which is formed integrally with the drawer itself.

The drawer can also be operated in various ways, for example by providing the drawer with at least one compression spring co-operating with a catch member connected to a pushbutton disposed in tne front part of the machine casing.

In such a case, when the drawer is moved into its operative position in which it is completely introduced into the space provided therefore, the above-mentioned spring is loaded and, by coming into engagement with the catch member, holds the drawer in the above-mentioned position.

When the pushbutton is operated, the catch member is disengaged from the spring which, returning to its original position, thrusts the drawer outwardly to a sufficient degree to permit it to be pulled out manually by the user of the machine.

According to the present invention, there is provided a detergent distributor for a washing machine, comprising a drawer which, in use, is displaceable within a space provided in the front wall of the machine and provided with a plurality of compartments and a front cover panel, the drawer and the front panel being connected together by a pivoted lever assembly and by a pivot-and-slot connecting means, resilient means actuable by means of pressure on the front panel being arranged to displace said front panel thereby to move it into a position of projecting from the front wall of the machine to permit the drawer to be pulled out.

As will become apparent from the following description, the present invention can provide a detergent distributor which is devoid of handles or external actuating means, which is therefore more convenient to use and which has a front portion which may be aesthetically adapted to that of the clothes washing machine. The distributor is provided with actuating means which are disposed between the front portion thereof and the drawer of the distributor consequently being moved into two different positions in which it is respectively introduced into and extended from the casing of the clothes washing machine.

The features and advantages of the invention will be more clearly apparent from the following description, given solely by way of non-limiting example, of a preferred embodiment, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows a side view in partial section of the detergent distributor according to the invention, in its first operative position, Figure 2 shows a view in partial section of the distributor of Figure 1, in a second operative position, and Figures 3 and 4 show two different design details of the distributor shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 shows a detergent distributor 5 in accordance with the invention, which can be introduced into a space (not shown) provided in the front side of a domestic electrical appliance, in particular a clothes washing machine, and which comprises a drawer 6 provided with a plurality of compartments (not shown) for containing the respective detergents, and a front cover panel 7.

The drawer 6 has a front wall portion 8, to the outside surface of which an intermediate wall portion 9 is secured by a hooking or clipping action. The intermediate wall portion 9 is provided with a central groove 10 in which there is engaged the end of an arm 11 which oscillates in a horizontal plane, and is also provided with two pairs of mountings 12 and 13, the functions of which will be described hereinafter.

It should be noted that the wall portion 9 may also be formed integrally with the front wall portion 8 of the drawer 6.

In turn, the front panel 7 is provided with an outside surface 14 which is aesthetically adapted to the front wall member of the casing of the machine and which is aligned therewith, and an inside surface 15 which faces towards the drawer 6 and on which a projecting portion 16 and two pairs of mountings 17 and 18 are integrally provided (see also Figure 3).

The projecting portion 16 is of a suitably shaped labyrinth-type configuration 19 (see Figure 4) and is disposed in such a position as to cooperate with a peg or pin 38 on the arm 11 when the front panel 7 is connected to the intermediate wall portion 9. This operation is performed by using a rigid wire 20 which is of such a configuration as to provide three straight portions 21,22 and 23 which are bent relative to each other, and two short end portions 24 and 25, the straight portions 21 and 23 being provided with respective levers 28 and 29 are pivoted for oscillating movement.

For this purpose, the straight portion 22 of the rigid wire 20 is introduced into the pair of mountings 17 on the front panel 7, while the end portions 24 and 25 of the rigid wire 20 are introduced into the pair of mountings 13 on the intermediate wall portion 9.

In turn, the oscillatory levers 28 and 29 are provided with respective bent ends 30,31 and 32, 33 which are arranged to engage on the one hand into the pairs of mountings 18 on the front panel 7 and on the other hand into the pair of mountings 12 on the intermediate wall portion 9. The connections in the mountings 13 and 18 are slack.

This assembly therefore provides a parallelogram structure adapted to connect the front panel 7 to the intermediate wall portion 9, in a position parallel thereto. It will be appreciated that the connection between the front panel 7 and the intermediate wall portion 9 may also be made in a different but equivalent manner which maintains the two parallel while permitting the front panel to move towards and away from the intermediate wall portion 9.

Also interposed between the front panel 7 and the intermediate wall portion 9 is a spring 34 of bow-like configuration, or similar resilient member, such that the central curved region 35 thereof bears against the inside surface 1 5 of the front panel 7, while the two ends 36 and 37 of the spring 34 butt against a respective raised edge (not shown) of the intermediate wall portion 9.

The spring 34 therefore acts against the front panel 7 and the intermediate wall portion 9 in the direction of moving them apart from each other (arrows A and B in Figure 2), and is compressed when the front panel 7 and the intermediate wall portion 9 are moved towards each other (see Figure 1).

The front panel 7 and the intermediate wall portion 9 are also connected together at their central region by virtue of the vertical pin member 38 which is provided at the other end of the arm 11 engaging into the labyrinth-type configuration 19 in the projecting portion 16. The configuration 19 is shown in detail in Figure 4 from which it will be seen that it comprises an entry portion 39 in which the pin member 38 is initially positioned, an inclined plane portion 40 arranged to guide the pin member 38 towards the seat 41 in which it remains engaged, and a further inclined plane portion 42 arranged to guide the pin member 38 again towards the entry portion 39 in the disengagement phase.

It will be assumed now that the illustrated detergent distributor according to the invention is introduced into the space in the machine and is to be pulled out in order to introduce detergents into the respective compartments.

In that case, the various components of the distributor are in the positions shown in Figure 1 in which the pin member 38 on the arm 11 is engaged in the seat 41.

The distributor is then actuated by applying a light pressure to the outside surface 14 of the front panel 7. The result of this is that the spring 34 is further compressed while the pin member 38 is disengaged from the seat 41 and diverted by the inclined surface 42.

When the pressure on the front panel 7 is released, the force of the spring 34 moves the front panel 7 away from the intermediate wall portion 9 (see Figure 2) and the pin member 38 is guided by the labyrinth-type configuration 19 to the entry portion 39, while the front panel 7 is moved into a position of slightly projecting from the casing of the machine, in which position the user can grasp the distributor itself and pull it out.

In order to introduce the distributor into the space provided therefore, it is necessary to press against the front panel 7 to move it into the above-described position in which the pin member 38 again engages into the seat 41, being diverted by the inclined surface 40 and the labyrinth-like configuration 19.

The above-described detergent distributor is therefore convenient to use and may be easily and safely operated, making it possible to eliminate the gripping handle and any actuating device outside the machine, and finally also making it possible for the frontal appearance of the distributor to be aesthetically adapted to that of the washing machine.

Claims (9)

1. A detergent distributor for a washing machine comprising a drawer which, in use, is displaceable within a space provided in the front wall of the machine and provided with a plurality of compartments and a front cover panel, the drawer and the front panel being connected together by a pivoted lever assembly and by a pivot-and-slot connecting means, resilient means actuable by means of pressure on the front panel being arranged to displace said front panel thereby to move it into a position of projecting from the front wall of the machine to permit the drawer to be pulled out.

2. A detergent distributor according to claim 1 wherein the front panel is mounted relative to a front wall portion of the drawer in manner permitting movement of the two towards and away from one another while maintaining them substantially parallel to one another.

3. A detergent distributor according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said pivoted lever assembly comprises a shaped and transverse rigid wire, and two lateral levers pivoted at two shaped side portions of the wire, said wire and said levers being pivoted to the inside surface of said front panel and to the front wall portion of the drawer.

4. A detergent distributor according to claims 1, 2 or 3, wherein said pivot-and-slot connecting means comprises a horizontal arm pivoted at one end to the front wall portion of said drawer and provided at the other end with a vertical pin member co-operating with a labyrinth-type slot fixed on the inside surface of said front panel.

5. A detergent distributor according to claim 4, wherein said labyrinth-type slot comprises an entry portion, a seat and two inclined plane portions adapted to guide said vertical pin member within said slot into two different positions, and respectively disposed in positions corresponding to said entry portion and said seat.

6. A detergent distributor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said resilient means comprise at least one spring of bow-like configuration, which is operative between the inside surface of said front panel and the front wall portion of the drawer.

7. A detergent distributor constructed and arranged substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

8. A washing machine incorporating a detergent distributor according to any one of the preceding claims.

9. A washing machine according to claim 8 and which is clothes washing machine.