GB2298673A

GB2298673A - Domestic appliance with decorative front panel

Info

Publication number: GB2298673A
Application number: GB9604565A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Giuseppe Rivolta; Mariano Rubulotta
Original assignee: Electrolux Zanussi Elettrodomestici SpA
Current assignee: Electrolux Zanussi Elettrodomestici SpA
Priority date: 1995-03-09
Filing date: 1996-03-04
Publication date: 1996-09-11
Anticipated expiration: 2016-03-04
Also published as: ITPN950015V0; ES1033413U; GB2298673B; FR2731339B3; IT238841Y1; DE29603458U1; ES1033413Y; GB9604565D0; FR2731339A1; ITPN950015U1

Description

DOMESTIC ELECTRICAL APPLIANCE WITH DECORATIVE FRONT PANEL The present invention relates to a domestic electrical appliance such as a dishwashing machine having a front panel for the purposes of matching the machine to the aesthetics of adjacent units.

Such a decorative panel can be fixed to the door in various ways, preferably by way of latching means which make it possible for the panel to be perfectly aligned in position prior to definitive fixing thereof to the door of the machine. It is known for example to fix to the panel shaped brackets which are capable of coming into latching engagement in complicated support blocks which are mounted in the door of the machine which is provided with side openings, by way of which the blocks are accessible with a tool for adjusting the position of the panel. That construction is undesirably complicated and expensive and also permits adjustment of the panel only if the domestic electrical appliance is in a projecting position with respect to the adjacent units so that it is possible to operate at the side using a screwdriver or the like.Accordingly alignment of the decorative panel cannot be effected in the optimum manner and it may be absolutely impossible when the machine is disposed adjacent to a wall.

In order to permit more convenient alignment of the panel, it has been proposed that the panel can be latched to the door of the machine by means of quick-release fixing plugs which permit adjustment of the position of the panel prior to definitive fixing thereof by means of screws which can be inserted from the inside wall of the door. The fixing plugs however involve geometrical limits which do not always permit precise alignment of the decorative panel.

The aim of the present invention is that of providing a domestic electrical appliance having a front decorative panel which is capable of being correctly fixed in position in a fast, accurate and convenient fashion.

According to the present invention, there is provided a domestic electrical appliance comprising a door substantially covered by a decorative front panel from the inside surface of which projects at least one fixing pin, wherein said pin passes loosely through an opening provided on a support member fixed with respect to the panel and defining a cavity in which a catch element which is fixed with respect to the pin is transversely movably accommodated, the pin having a free end which is inserted into a corresponding hole provided in the door of the machine and which is provided with an axial hole capable of being engaged by a corresponding screw or other elongate securing element which is inserted through the inside surface of the door in such a way as axially to clamp the catch element against the edge of said opening and thus the panel against the outside surface of the door.

The features and advantages of the invention will be clearly apparent from the following description given solely by way of non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a diagrammatic exploded view of a domestic electrical appliance with a decorative front panel according to the invention; Figure 2 is a view in section of a detail on an enlarged scale of the domestic electrical appliance, with the decorative panel latched to the door; and Figure 3 is a view in section of another detail on an enlarged scale of the domestic electrical appliance, prior to fitting of the decorative panel.

With reference to the drawings the domestic electrical appliance is for example a dishwashing machine comprising a casing 1 on which a front door 2 is hinged.

A conventional control panel 3 for control and actuating devices can be provided on the top of the door 2.

Alternatively the control panel can be arranged in a different position; for example it may be accommodated in the interior of the door so as to be accessible from the upper edge of the door itself, as described in GB-A-2269002.

In any case the outside surface of the door 2 is substantially covered by a rigidly fixed decorative panel 4.

In per se known manner, fixed to the inside surface of the panel 4 by means of screws or the like are latching means comprising for example a pair of shaped brackets 5 which are disposed side-by-side and which project downwardly and which are capable of being inserted into corresponding openings 6 provided on the door 2.

Each bracket 5 is preferably made of plastics material and comprises in one piece a tongue 7 which projects towards the panel 4. By way of the associated opening 6 in the door 2, each bracket 5 can be easily inserted loosely, as shown in figure 2, into a support seat 8 provided on the frame structure of the machine, for example at a position corresponding to the hinges (not shown) of the door 2. The panel 4 is thus latched adjustably to the door 2 which supports it effectively even if it is opened towards the horizontal position.

Above the brackets 5, fixed to the inside surface of the panel 4 by means of screws or the like there is also at least one concave support member 9 provided with an annular opening 10 which extends therethrough and which communicates with an annular cavity 11 of larger crosssection. The cavity 11 is defined by virtue of the hollow member 9 being connected to the inside surface of the door 4, possibly with the interposition of one or more corresponding spacers 12, as is shown in Figure 3.

Accommodated in the cavity 11 is a catch element 13 of an axial length substantially corresponding to that of the cavity, while however being movable with respect thereto in a plane which is transverse to the axis. In addition the element 13 is dimensioned and/or shaped in such a way as to interfere axially with the edge of the opening 10.

The element 13 which is preferably made of plastics material is integrally provided with a pin 14 which passes loosely through the opening 10 and which projects to the outside of the element in such a way as to be inserted axially into a corresponding hole 19 provided in the door 2 of the domestic electrical appliance. More precisely the hole 19 is provided in the door 2 as a prolongation of a front recess 16 for accommodating the hollow member 9. In addition the hole 19 communicates with a further hole 17 which is preferably flared and which is of smaller diameter, passing through the inside surface 18 of the door 2. The free end of the pin 14 has a coaxial blind hole 15 into which can be engaged a suitable screw 20.The latter is preferably self-tapping and is inserted from the inside of the machine, through the inside surface 18 of the door 2, in such a way as axially to clamp the catch element 13 against the edge of the opening 10 of the member 9. The decorative panel 4 is thus rigidly fixed against the outline surface of the door 2.

As shown in Figure 1, two support members 9 which are disposed in side-by-side relationship are preferably fixed on the panel 4, with associated components 10-15.

The panel 4 can be quickly adjusted with precision by loosening the screws 20 to permit forced displacement of the pin 14 within the limits of the opening 10 in a plane which is transverse to the axis thereof.

Advantageously alignment of the panel 14 with the adjacent units can be correctly effected with the domestic electrical appliance in the installed position and with the door 2 closed, while definitive fixing thereof by means of the screws 20 requires the door to be opened. During the movements of opening the door however, by virtue of the latching means 5 described hereinbefore, the panel 4 is held in a condition of bearing against the door itself even when the screws 20 are slackened, thereby preventing undesirable accidental movements of the panel prior to definitive fixing thereof.

It will be appreciated that the domestic electrical appliance described may be the subject of numerous modifications which fall within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A domestic electrical appliance comprising a door substantially covered by a decorative front panel from the inside surface of which projects at least one fixing pin, wherein said pin passes loosely through an opening provided on a support member fixed with respect to the panel and defining a cavity in which a catch element which is fixed with respect to the pin is transversely movably accommodated, the pin having a free end which is inserted into a corresponding hole provided in the door of the machine and which is provided with an axial hole capable of being engaged by a corresponding screw or other elongate securing element which is inserted through the inside surface of the door in such a way as axially to clamp the catch element against the edge of said opening and thus the panel against the outside surface of the door.

2. A domestic electrical appliance according to claim 1, wherein fixed to the inside surface of the panel is a pair of shaped brackets capable of being loosely fitted into corresponding openings of the door in such a way as to support the panel in position adjustably when said screw is loosened.

3. A domestic electrical appliance according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said hole is provided in the door as a prolongation of a front recess capable of accommodating said support member.

4. A domestic electrical appliance according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said support member is fixed to the inside surface of the panel with the interposition of at least one corresponding spacer.

5. A domestic electrical appliance constructed and arranged to operate substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.