US2690949A - Dishwasher apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Dot. 5, 1954 J. H. REIFENBERG DISHWASHER APPARATUS FIG.E.

WITNESSES:

INVENTOR JOSEPH H.REIFENBERG 1954 J. H. REIFENBERG DISHWASHER APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 24, 1952 INVENTOR JOSEPH -H. REIFENBERG ATTORNEY J. H. REIFENBERG 2,690,949

DISHWASHER APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR ATTORNEY JOSEPH H.REIFENBERG HII YIIIHHHHHIIHII Filed June 24, 1952 ..I m\:' WITNESSES:

Patented Oct. 5, 1954 DISHWASHER APPARATUS Joseph H. Reifenberg, Mansfield, Ohio, assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application June 24, 1952, Serial No. 295,155

2 Claims.

This invention relates generally to a frame structure having a vat or container for liquids disposed therein and adapted to be moved into and out of the frame through an access opening provided at the front of the frame. More specifically, the invention relates to a structure of the above type, in which the vat is open at the top and the frame is provided with a cover which is movable to close the opening in the vat when the vat is within the frame, and movable to clear the vat to permit movement of the vat toward its position out of the frame.

Although specifically not limited thereto, the invention is especially suited for a washing machine of the type described in E. K. Clark U. S. patent application Serial No. 118,961, filed September 30, 1949, and contemplates mechanism accessible from within the frame to adjust the closing position of the cover in an expedient manner.

In washing apparatus of the type described in the above Clark patent application, the washing machine is usually installed beneath an unbroken top panel or work surface of a kitchen sink. Although the closed position of the cover is initially set during manufacture, after extended usage, the seal between the cover and the vat may become impaired, necessitating further adjustment of the cover to restore the fit between the cover and the vat.

In view of the above, it is an object of the invention to provide, in a structure of the character described, mechanism accessible from within the frame for adjusting the closed position of the cover, said mechanism being further accessible externally of the frame prior to installation of the structure beneath a fixed top panel or the like.

The foregoing and other objects are effected by my invention as will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, in which:

Fig. '1 shows a side elevation of a dishwasher incorporating my invention, the vat being shown in partially retracted position and the cover being elevated with respect to the vat;

Fig. 2 is a plan of the dishwasher shown in Fig. 1, with portions cut away for clarity, the vat being shown in the operative position;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the upper portion of the dishwasher taken on line III-III of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the upper portion of the dishwasher taken on the line IVIV of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view showing, on a larger scale, the cover adjusting mechanism.

Referring to the drawings in detail, especially Figs. 1 and 2, there is shown a dishwashing machine, generally indicated lii, supported by and movable horizontally into and out of a frame H. The washing machine comprises a vat l2 to which hot water is supplied by means of a flexible hose [3 having one end connected to a fixed conduit I l and its other end connected to the vat. A motor 15 is supported by the lower portion of the vat and serves to drive an impeller (not shown) disposed within the vat for driving the water upwardly and otherwise agitating the water in the vat as well understood in the art. A pump I6 for exhausting spent water from the vat is also supported by the. vat adjacent the motor [5 in a manner to be driven thereby. The pump l6 has its outlet connected to a drain conduit H.

The vat 12 has a vertically disposed tubular wall [9 defining a large opening at the top of the vat indicated by the numeral 20, and permitting access to the vat for loading the same with dishes, silverware, etc. The opening 20 is encompassed by a resilient gasket 2| for a purpose which will subsequently be described.

For the sake of clarity of illustration, the frame II has been shown as comprising a generally rectangular base 23, a pair of front vertical corner members 24 and a pair of rear vertical corner members 25 connected to the base 23 at their lower ends. It will be understood, however, that the frame ll may comprise vertical side panels connected to or integral with the base 23. The upper ends of the corner members 24 and 25 are connected by an upper rectangular frame member 26.

The vat I2 is movably supported in the frame I l by a track and roller assembly in any well known manner. For example, I have shown a pair of movable horizontal rails 21 fastened to the vat and having journalled at their rear ends a pair of rollers 28. The frame H has a pair of stationary horizontal tracks 29 fastened at their front ends to the corner members 2% and at their rear ends to the corner members 25. A pair of rollers 30 are journalled to the stationary tracks 29 adjacent the front ends thereof. Thus, the rollers 28 are supported on the stationary tracks 29 while the movable rails 27 are supported by the rollers 30, permitting the vat to be moved in and out of the frame I l with a rolling action. A pair of stops 3| carried by the movable rails 21 and cooperating with a pair of abutments 32 formed in the stationary track 29 serve to limit the outward travel of the vat.

A front panel 33 attached to the vat 12 in any desirable fashion, for example, at its lower portion by means of a bracket 36; disposed at the lower end of the vat l2 and at its upper portion to the movable rails 21, serves to close the large opening at the front of the frame I i.

In order to close the top access opening 20 of the vat during operation of the dishwasher, a cover member 35, carried by the frame ll, engages the gasket 2|. This cover member 35 is suspended from the upper portion of the frame II, and is movably supported by a plurality of links 37 disposed at each side of the machine and pivotally connected at their lower ends to downwardly extending flanges 39, formed on the opposite sides of the cover 35, by means of studs 40. The studs 40 are secured to the flanges 39 as by means of headed screws 4|.

As best shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4, one pair of links supports the left-hand side of the cover, while the other pair of links supports the righthand side of the cover. Since the left-hand pair of links is mounted in the same manner as the right-hand pair of links, only the left-hand side of the adjusting and supporting mechanism for the cover will be described. The upper ends of the links 31 are pivotally supported at the ends of a horizontally disposed intermediate support member 42 in a manner to swingably support the cover 35 therefrom. The intermediate member 42 has a horizontally disposed flange 43 provided with a pair of openings through each of which extends an elongated threaded screw 54. As clearly shown in Fig. 5, the screw 44 is threadedly engaged in a T-nut 45 which is welded or otherwise fastened to the upper frame member 26. The screw 54 is further provided with an enlarged non-circular portion 46 which has been shown as square in cross section. The flange 43 of the intermediate member 4?. is held between the square portion 66 of the screw and a spring lock ring 4'! (see Fig. 4) seated in a groove provided in the screw immediately below flange 43. Thus, the intermediate member 42 may be raised or lowered relative to the frame member 26 by rotation of the screw M. For example, if the screws 46 are rotated in a direction to move the same upwardly in the T-nuts 45, the intermediate member 42 and the cover 35 suspended therefrom will also be moved upwardly. Similarly, the member 42 and cover 33 will be lowered when the screws are turned in the opposite direction.

The lower end of each of the screws 44 may be supported by means of a bearing lug 48 formed by a punched-out portion of the stationary track 29. To facilitate adjustment of screws 44, the upper frame member 26 is provided with an opening 43 in registry with the T-nut #35, and the screw M has a slot 55} at its upper end to permit rotation of the screw from a point externally of the frame I i. The lower end of the screw 44 is similarly provided with a slot or other tool engaging means 54 to permit rotation of the screw from within the frame H.

As best shown in Fig. 5, a spring detent member 52, formed of sheet spring metal, is interposed between the square portion ii-3 of the screw and the flange 23 of the intermediate member. The spring detent member has one end bent back to provide an active portion 53 which is biased against the square portion 58 and serves to restrain rotational movement of the screw 44 except by the application of a positive force. To prevent rotation of the spring detent 52, the detent is made of sufficiently wide material to permit abutment of its edge 54 against the vertical portion of the intermediate member 42.

The cover 35 is biased upwardly at all times by a pair of tension springs 55 secured at their upper ends to the frame member 28 and at their lower ends to a pair of respective arms 56 which extend downwardly from the rear end of the cover 35 into the path of movement of the rollers 28.

During a movement of the washing machine [0 to its operating position within the frame II, as shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4, the rollers 28 em gage the arms 56 and move them rearwardly to effect downward and rearward swinging movement of the cover 35, as provided by the links 37. During this movement, the cover engages the gasket 2! and compresses the latter to seal the access opening 20 in the vat. The position of the intermediate member 42, as determined by the adjusting screws M, serves to limit the maximum downward throw of the links 37, and thereby determines the amount of compression of the gasket 2|.

When movement of the vat 42 to its retracted or loading position is initiated, the rollers 28 permit the springs 55 and arms 56 to move the cover 35 upwardly out of engagement with the gasket 2!, thereby permitting the vat to be freely moved to the position shown in Fig. 1, or beyond, by means of the track and roller assembly previously described.

As will now appear, the cover 35 may be adjusted vertically at four spaced peripheral points thereon by means of the four screws 44. The adjustment of the member 42 and the cover at the factory may be readily effected with the vat in the operating position, by rotating the screws 64. The upper slots 58 of the screws may be engaged by a screw driver inserted in the appropriate openings 39 in the upper frame member 26. At this time, the uniformity of the seating action may be observed visually, since the frame I l, as illustrated, is open on all sides. If, on the other hand, the frame comprises side panels, the uniformity of the seating action may be checked by means of appropriate factory test fixtures. It will be noted that the adjustment is effective to tilt the cover in any direction as well as to move the cover in parallel horizontal planes.

The apparatus is usually mounted beneath a counter top 58 or the like, as indicated by dotand-dash lines in Figs. 1 and 2. The counter top 58 forms an upper wall for the upper frame portion 26 and obstructs the openings 49 therein which were utilized at the factory to adjust the closing position of the cover 35. After extended use it may be necessary to readjust the closing position of the cover 35 to reattain the original seal provided when the apparatus was first installed. In the event that the counter top 58 is fixed in position and is not readily removable, the cover adjustment may be effected from within the frame H with the washing machine It] removed from the frame.

To permit removal of the washing machine 15 from the frame, the stops 3! are mounted to the movable rail 21 in any desirable manner to permit ready removal therefrom. Since the stops 3| may be identical, only one stop will be described. As best illustrated in Fig. 1, the stop 3| is elongated horizontally and is fastened to the movable rail 2'? at its forward end by means of a nut-and-washer assembly 60 cooperating with a bolt inserted through an opening in the rail 21. The rear end of the stop has a keyhole-shaped opening 6|, the restricted portion of which is engaged by a headed rivet 63 rigidly fastened to the rail 21 and slidably supporting the stop member 3|. With the washing machine in a retracted position beyond that shown in Fig. 1, the nut-and-washer assembly 60 is carried for- Wardly of the frame II to a position in which it is readily accessible. The nut-and-washer assembly may be readily detached when in this position, after which the forward end of the stop 3| may be grasped and the stop moved in a rearward direction to disengage the rivet 63 from the restricted part of the keyhole opening 6|, whereby the stop 3| may be completely detached from the rail 21. With the stops 3| detached in the manner described, the washing machine may be removed from the frame rendering the adjusting screws 44 accessible from within the frame The adjusting screws are engaged at their lower slots by a screw driver and rotated as required to restore the seal.

The amount of adjustment necessary may be determined, approximately, by noting the condition of the gasket 2|, and since four adjusting screws 44 have been provided, a wide range of adjustment is available. The detent action of the spring detent 52 as the screw 44 is rotated will serve to indicate to the operator, the number of quarter turns which he has turned the screw. This indication will be perceptible both by sound and by feel as the spring detent is moved away from and into engagement with the flat sides of the square portion 46 of the adjusting screw. For example, if the screw 44 is turned a quarter turn, the spring detent will be moved outwardly and back once, whereas if the screw is turned a ful turn, the spring detent will be moved back and forth four times.

After the cover 35 has been adjusted in the manner described above, the washing machine may be reinserted in the frame II and the seal between the cover and vat may be checked for leakage by operating the washing machine as well understood in the art. If leakage is not detected at the end of the washing cycle, the stops 3| may be reassembled by reversing the detachment procedure described previously in connection therewith. Since the gasket 2| is highly compressible, the amount of adjustment of the screws 44 is not critical. Hence, one such adjustment should sufiice to restore the seal between the vat and the cover 35.

The counter top 58 may also be removably connected to the frame thereby, upon removal, facilitating adjustment of the cover 35 with the vat disposed within the frame, by rendering ac- 6 cessible the upper slots 50 of the adjusting screws.

While I have shown my invention in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof.

What I claim is:

1. In a structure of the class described, the combination of a frame having a pasage in its front side, a container having an opening in its top side, means supporting the container for lineal movement through said passage into and out of the frame, a cover for closing the opening in the container, a pair of supporting members disposed within the frame, means carried by the supporting members and suspending the cover for movement toward and away from the container, means responsive to movement of the container into the frame for actuating the cover downwardly into engagement with the container and closing the opening therein, means actuating the cover upwardly in response to movement of the container out of the frame, and means adjustably supported by the frame and connected to respective spaced portions of the supporting members for raising and lowering the same.

2. In a structure of the class described, the combination of a frame having a passage in its front side, a container having an opening in its top side, means supporting the container for lineal movement through said passage into and out of the frame, a cover for closing the opening in the container, a plurality of links pivotally connected to the cover for the support thereof, a pair of supporting members disposed within the frame, a plurality of pivots carried by the supporting members and carrying the respective links, said links affording rocking movement of the cover toward and away from the container, means responsive to movement of the container into the frame for actuating the cover downwardly into engagement with the container and. closing the opening therein, means for actuating the cover upwardly in response to movement of the container out of the frame and a plurality of screws adjustably threaded in the frame and having respective means carrying said supporting members.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,778,642 ONeil Oct. 14, 1930 2,287,645 Spencer June 23, 1942 2,455,182 La Vallee Nov. 30, 1948 2,537,363 Minor Jan. 9, 1951

Images