US3866330A

US3866330A - Laundry apparatus and method of laundering

Info

Publication number: US3866330A
Application number: US418992A
Authority: US
Inventors: Charles Ernest Hooper
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1952-07-10
Filing date: 1973-11-26
Publication date: 1975-02-18
Anticipated expiration: 1992-02-18
Also published as: CA1044910A; DE1006184B; US2866330A; FR1085892A

Abstract

In order in the laundering of articles of clothing to improve the draining of water therefrom and hence to enhance the damp drying of the articles of clothing the articles of clothing are operatively disposed within a perforated inner basket which is rotatably mounted within a pressurizable outer casing, the basket being rotated, with resultant extraction of water from the articles of clothing as the articles of clothing are urged outwardly against the walls of the basket under centrifugal force, by the action of atmospheric air directed by an air supply system against vanes presented by the basket, with this atmospheric air serving to increase the static pressure within the pressurizable casing and thereby forcibly expel water through a drain in the casing.

Description

United States Patent [191 Hooper 1 Feb. 18, 1975 LAUNDRY APPARATUS AND METHOD OF LAUNDERING [76] Inventor: Charles Ernest Hooper, 1353 Blackwell Rd., Sarnia, Ontario, Canada N7T 7H4 [22] Filed: Nov. 26, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 418,992

Primary Examiner-John J, Camby Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Ridout & Maybee [5 7] ABSTRACT In order in the laundering of articles of clothing to improve the draining of water therefrom and hence to enhance the damp drying of the articles of clothing the articles of clothing are operatively disposed within a perforated inner basket which is rotatably mounted within a pressurizable outer casing, the basket being rotated, with resultant extraction of water from the articles of clothing as the articles of clothing are urged outwardly against the walls of the basket under centrifugal force, by the action of atmospheric air directed by an air supply system against vanes presented by the basket, with this atmospheric air serving to increase the static pressure within the pressurizable casing and thereby forcibly expel water through a drain in the casing.

16 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTEDFEB '1 1915 SHEET 10F 3 FIG. 3

LAUNDRY APPARATUS AND METHOD OF LAUNDERING This invention is concerned with laundry apparatus, and more particularly with such apparatus by means of which articles such as, for example, articles of clothing may be damp dried after washing thereof. The present invention is also concerned with a method of laundering by which articles such as, for example, articles of clothing may be damp dried after washing thereof.

Apparatus according to the present invention is of the type in which there is provided a container at least a portion of which is rotatably mounted, with members which are presented by said portion of the container operatively causing rotation thereof under the influence of a supply of gas directed against the members by a gas supply system. Such rotation of said portion of the container causes the articles of clothing or the like, which are operatively disposed within said portion of the container, to be urged outwardly against the walls of said portion of the container under the influence of centrifugal force thereby to cause liquid which is entrained in the articles of clothing to be extracted therefrom for draining from the container. There are many prior patents disclosing apparatus of this type, reference in this connection being made to, for example, US. Pat. No. 2,201,685 which issued on May 21, 1940 to B. L. Lorenzen.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide laundry apparatus of the type hereinbefore referred to, and a method of laundering, in which the draining of the liquid from the container is improved and hence the damp drying of the articles of clothing or the like is enhanced.

Laundry apparatus according to the present invention comprises an enclosable pressurizable container which has a drain provided therein and at least a portion of which is rotatably mounted, members being presented by said portion of the container for causing rotation thereof under the influence of a gas directed against said members. There is also provided a source of gas external of the container, and a gas supply system for supplying gas from said source thereof against said members presented by said portion of the container to rotate said portion of the container, and for directing said gas from said members presented by said portion of the container into the pressurizable container to increase static pressure therewithin for expulsion of liquid from the container through the drain.

A method of laundering according to the present invention comprises supplying gas from a source thereof external of an enclosable, pressurizable container against members presented by at least a portion of the container to rotate said portion of the container, and directing said gas from said members presented by said portion of the container into the pressurizable container to increase static pressure therewithin for expulsion of liquid from the container through a drain provided therein.

It will be noted that the aforementioned patent to Lorenzen discloses means for increasing the static pressure within the base compartment 3 in order to expel water from this compartment. However, according to the teaching of Lorenzen the airflow which causes'this increase in static pressure within the base compartment 3 is a different airflow from that which causes rotation of the structure corresponding to said portion of the pressurizable container of the present invention.

Preferably the laundry apparatus, and the method of laundering, according to the present invention provide for washing of the articles of clothing or the like in an operational cycle which is separate and distinct from the operational cycle in which the aforedescribed damp drying of the articles of clothing or the like is performed.

In order that the invention may be more clearly understood and more readily carried into effect the same will now, by way of example, be more fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which FIG. 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic side view of laundry apparatus according to a first preferred embodiment of the invention, portions of the apparatus being shown, for clarity, in section;

FIG. 2 is a view corresponding to FIG. 1 of laundry apparatus according to a second preferred embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 3 is a top plan view, partially broken away for clarity, of the laundry apparatus shown in FIG. 2, the view being taken on the line 3-3 in FIG. 2.

Referring to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1 thereof, 10 denotes generallya pressurizable container which comprises an outer casing l l and an inner basket 12 provided with perforations 13. The basket 12 is open at the top end 14 thereof, while the outer casing 11 has a removable cover lid 15 by means of which the top end of the casing 11 may be closed in a substantially fluid-type manner. The outer rim portion of the cover lid 15 is provided with an annular sealing gasket 16 formed of a resiliently deformable material, such as rubber, clamps 17 being provided for urging this outer rim portion of the cover lid 15 downwardly as viewed in FIG. 1 thereby to cause the cover lid 15 to enter into substantially fluid-tight sealing engagement with the top end of the casing 11 and thus render the container 10 in a pressurizable condition. 18 denotes a handle which is presented by the cover lid 15 and by means of which the lid l5 may be removed to permit articles such as, for example, articles of clothing (not shown) to be disposed within and removed from the basket 12 when the clamps 17 are loosened and removed.

The bottom wall 19 of the casing 11 presents a support member 20 which is of conical form, the bottom wall of the basket 12 presenting a bearing block 21 having a conical recess within which the apex portion of the support member 20 is disposed so that the basket 12 is thus mounted for free rotation thereof within the casing 11 about the substantially vertical axis 22 containing the apex of the support member 20. Guide rollers 23 are freely rotatably mounted on the wall of the basket 12 adjacent to the top end 14 thereof, these guide rollers 23 being substantially in contact with the inner surface of the wall of the casing 11 thereby to In the preferred embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1 there is provided a first gas supply system comprising a first control valve 25, a gas blower 26 which is operatively driven by any suitable prime mover such as, for example, an electric motor (not shown), and a second control valve 27, the outlet of the first control valve 25 being connected by a duct 28 to the inlet of the gas blower 26 and the outlet of the gas blower 26 being connected by a duct 29 to the inlet of the second control valve 27. The first gas supply system also comprises a duct 30 one end of which is connected to the upper portion of the interior of the container 10, and more particularly to the upper portion of the interior of the casing 11, and the other end of which is selectively connectible to the inlet of the first control valve 25. In addition, the first gas supply system comprisesa duct 31 one end of which is selectively connectible to the outlet of the second control valve 27 and the other end of which is connected to the lower portion of the interior of the container 10, and more particulary to the lower portion of the interior of the casing 11.

The support member 20 is provided with apertures 32 through which gas, and more particulary air, may operatively be supplied to the body of liquid 33 within the container 10, this air passing through the perforations 13 in the bottom wall of the basket 12 into the interior of the basket 12 and thence bubbling upwards through the body of liquid 33 to the space above this body of liquid 33 at the upper portion of the interior of the casing 11.

There is also provided a second gas supply system which comprises the above-described first control valve 25, the gas blower 26, the second control valve 27 and the

ducts

28 and 29. This second gas supply system further comprises a duct 34 one end of which is connected to a source of gas external of the container and which, in the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG. I, is constituted by the atmosphere, and the other end of which is selectively connectible to the inlet of the first control valve 25. A further duct '35 is also provided, one end of this duct 35 being selectively connectible to the outlet of the second control valve 27 and the outer end of the duct 35 being connected to the container 10, and more particularly to the interior of the casing 11, such that gas, and more particularly air, operatively supplied through this duct 35 is directed against the vanes 24 thereby to cause rotation of the basket 12 about the axis 22.

A drain 36 is provided in the container 10 and more particulary in the casing 11, this drain 36 being constituted, in the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 1, by the end portion of the duct 31 which is connected to the lower portion of the interior of the casing 11. The drain 36 is connected by piping 37 to a suitable sump or sewer (not shown), a vent pipe 38 which is open to the atmosphere being connected to the piping 37. 39 denotes a sevice drain cock which is provided in the piping 37.

As will be appreciated, each of the first and

second control valves

25 and 27, respectively, is a two-position valve with these

valves

25 and 27 either being in the positions in which air may be supplied from the upper portion of the interior of the casing 11 through the first gas supply system to the lower portion of the interior of the casing 11, or in the positions in which air may be supplied from the atmosphere through the second gas supply system to the container 10 and against the vanes 24 thereby to cause rotation of the basket 12 about the axis 22. The

valves

25 and 27 may be constituted by, for example, solenoid operated vavles or by pneumatically operated valves.

Except as hereinafter described the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 corresponds to that hereinbefore described with reference to FIG. 1, and in FIGS. 2 and 3 elements corresponding to those described above with reference to FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals but with the addition of prime marks.

The embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 differs from that hereinbefore described with references to FIG. 1 in that the closure lid 15 is hingedly mounted at 40 to one side of the outer casing 11'. Furthermore, whereas in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 the vanes 24 are presented by the basket 12 adjacent to the bottom thereof and are located adjacent to the bottom of the casing 11, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 the vanes 24 are presented by the basket 12' adjacent to the top thereof and are located within an annular recessed portion 41' formed at the top of the casing 11', the end of the duct 35 remote from the second control valve 27 being, of course, so disposed that air supplied through this duct 35' is directed against the vanes 24 to cause rotation of the basket 12' about the axis 22.-

Instead of the support member 20 and the bearing block 21 shown in FIG. 1 the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 is provided with a socket member 42 which is secured to the bottom wall of the basket 12' with a vertical post 43' being disposed within the member 42 and being mounted on a deflector plate 44 which is secured over the appropriate end of the duct 31, spaced bearings 45 being disposed within the member 42' and around the post 43' thereby to permit free rotation of the member 42 and hence of the basket 12' relative to the post 43-about the axis 22'. A thrust block 46' is disposed within the upper end of the member 42 with a thrust ball 47' disposed between this block 46' and the upper end of the post 43. Apertures 48' are provided in the end of the duct 31 within the interior of the 'casing 11' and below the plate 44.

Referring to both the apparatus as hereinbefore described with reference to FIG. 1 and the apparatus as hereinbefore described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, when it is desired to use the apparatus the cover lid 15 or 15' is opened and the articles of clothing or the like which are to be laundered are disposed within the basket 12 or 12'. The body of liquid 33 or 33' is also disposed within the container 10 or 10', whereupon the closure lid 15 or 15' is closed and, with the first control valve 25 or 25' in the position in which the inlet thereof is connected to the

duct

30 or 30 and with the second control valve 27 or 27' in the position in which the outlet thereof is connected to the duct 31 or 31', the

gas blower

26 or 26 is then energized to cause air to be withdrawn from the upper portion of the interior of the container 10 or 10', and more particularly the upper portion of the interior of the casing 11 or 11', through the first gas supply system to the lower portion of the interior of the container 10 or 10', and more particularly the lower portion of the interior of the casing 11 or 11' and hence to the lower portion of the interior of the basket 12 or 12'. The air in bubbling upwards through the body of liquid 33 or 33' in the basket 12 or 12' causes considerable agitation of this body of

liquid

33 or 33 with the result that the articles of clothing or the like disposed therein are thoroughly washed. It will be noted that during this washing operation the air which causes the agitation of the body of

liquid

33 or 33 is air which has been withdrawn from the upper portion of the interior of the casing 11 or 11', so that this air is therefore relatively warm and the body of

liquid

33 or 33 which will generally be a warm or hot liquid is not significantly cooled by the bubbling of the air therethrough.

Once this washing cycle has been completed the first control valve 25 or 25' is moved to the position in which the inlet thereof is connected to the

duct

34 or 34, and the

second control valve

27 or 27 is moved to the position in which the outlet thereof is connected to the duct 35 or 35'. Thereafter, operation of the

gas blower

26 or 26 causes atmosphereic air to be supplied through the second gas supply system to the container or 10' and against the

vanes

24 or 24 thereby to cause rotation of the

basket

12 or 12 about the

axis

22 or 22 with resultant urging of the articles of clothing or the like outwards against the walls of the basket 12 or 12' under the influence of centrifugal force so that liquid entrained in the articles or clothing or the like is extracted therefrom. This air which is supplied to the

container

10 or 10 accumulates within the upper portion of the interior of the casing 11 or 11' above the level of the body of

liquid

33 or 33. Since this upper portion of the interior of the

casing

11 or 11 is an enclosed space in that the closure lid or 15 is in the closed condition and the

first control valve

25 or 25 prevents the escape of air through the duct or 30' there is a resultant increase in the static pressure within this upper portion of the interior of the

casing

11 or 11, this increase in static pressure serving forcibly to expel the body of

liquid

33 or 33 through the drain 36 or 36' and the piping 37 or 37' to the sump or sewer (not shown).

The above-described forcible expulsion of the body of liquid 33 or 33' from the

container

10 or 10, which as hereinbefore described results automatically during the rotation of the basket 12 or 12' under the influence of atmospheric air directed by the second gas supply system against the

vanes

24 or 24, substantially increases the rate at which the liquid is removed from the articles of clothing or the like and thus substantially enhances this damp drying cycle. The body of liquid 33 or 33' is generally constituted by water containing a detergent com position. Thus, after the damp drying cycle the closure lid 15 or 15' may be opened, a further body of

liquid

33 or 33 constituted by clean water introduced, the closure lid 15 or 15' reclosed, and the damp drying cycle repeated. This procedure may be repeated as often as is desired in order to rinse any residue of the detergent composition from the articles of clothing or the like.

Since the required rate for supplying air through the first gas supply system during the washing cycle will generally be substantially less than the desired rate for supplying air through the second gas supply system during the damp drying cycle the gas blower 26 or 26' is preferably a twospeed blower with the

blower

26 or 26 being at the lower speed setting during the washing cycle and at the higher speed setting during the damp drying cycle.

In addition to the wash cycle and damp drying cycle as hereinbefore described apparatus according to the present invention may, if desired, have a drying cycle which would, of course, operatively follow the damp drying cycle. In such a drying cycle air is supplied from the atmosphere through the second gas supply system to the interior of the

casing

11 or 11 and hence to the interior of the basket 12 or 12' as in the case of the damp drying cycle hereinbefore described, but during this drying cycle an air heater (not shown) which would be incorporated in the second gas supply system, and preferably in the duct 34 or 34', is activated in order operatively to heat the air flowing therethrough.

While in the preferred embodiments of the invention as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings the

pressurizable container

10 or 10 comprises the outer casing l l or 1 l and the inner basket 12 or 12' so that the rotatably mounted

inner basket

12 or 12 thus constitutes only a portion of the container 10 or 10', it will be understood that in alternative embodiments (not shown) of the invention substantially the entirety of the container 10 or 10' may be rotatably mounted. Thus in such alternative embodiments the

basket

12 or 12 may be omitted with the casing 11 or 1 1' being rotatably mounted about the axis 22 or 22', in which case, of course, the end of the duct 30 or 30' remote from the

first control valve

25 or 25 is preferably coaxial with the axis 22 or 22' with the

casing

11 or 11 being rotatable relative thereto and relative to the end of the

duct

31 or 31 remote from the

second control valve

27 or 27. Furthermore, in such alternative embodiments the

duct

35 or 35 passes through the

casing

11 or 11 coaxially relative to the

axis

22 or 22 with the vanes 24 or 24' being presented by the

casing

11 or 11 internally thereof.

What I claim is:

1. Laundry apparatus comprising an enclosable, pressurizable container which has a drain provided therein and at least a portion of which is rotatably mounted, members presented by said portion of the container for causing rotation thereof under the influence of a gas directed against said members, a source of gas external of the container, and a gas supply system for supplying gas from said source thereof against said members presented by said portion of the container to rotate said portion of the container and for directing said gas from said members presented by said portion of the container into the pressurizable container to increase static pressure therewithin for expulsion of a body of liquid from the container through the drain.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pres surizable container comprises an outer casing in which the drain is provided, and an inner perforated basket which constitutes said portion of the container and which is rotatably mounted within the outer casing.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the I source of gas comprises the atmosphere.

4. Laundry apparatus comprising an enclosable, pressurizable container which has a drain provided therein and at least a portion of which is rotatably mounted, members presented by said portion of the container for causing rotation thereof under the influence of a gas directed against said members, a first gas supply system for supplying gas from the upper portion of the interior of the container to the lower portion of the interior of the container, a source of gas external of the container, and a second gas supply system for supplying gas from said source thereof against said members presented by said portion of the container to rotate said portion of the container, and for directing said gas from said members presented by said portion of the container into the pressurizable container to increase static pressure therewithin for expulsion of a body of liquid from the container through the drain.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the pressurizable container comprises an outer casing in which the drain is provided, and an inner perforated basket which constitutes said portion of the container and which is rotatably mounted within the outer casing, said lower portion of the interior of the container being constituted by the lower portion of the interior of the perforated basket.

6. Apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the first gas supply system comprises a gas blower, and the second gas supply system also comprises said gas blower, first and second control valves each of which has an inlet and an outlet being disposed upstream and downstream, respectively, of the gas blower with the inlet of the first control valve being selectively connectible to said upper portion of the interior of the container or to said source external of the container, and with the outlet of the second control valve being selectively connectible to said lower portion of the interior of the container or for the supply of gas against said members, and the gas blower being connected between the outlet of the first control valve and the-inlet of the second control valve.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the first and second control valves each comprises a twoposition, solenoid operable valve.

8. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said members presented by the basket are located adjacent to the bottom of the casing.

9. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said members presented by the basket are located adjacent to the top of the casing.

10. Laundry apparatus comprising an enclosable, pressurizable outer casing having a drain provided therein, an inner perforated basket which is rotatably mounted within the outer casing, vanes presented by the basket for causing rotation thereof under the influence of air directed against said vanes, a first air supply system for supplying air from the upper portion of the interior of the casing to the lower portion of the interior of the basket, and a second air supply system for directing atmospheric air against said vanes to rotate the basket, and for directing said atmospheric air from the vanes into the casing to increase static pressure therewithin for expulsion ofa body of liquid from the casing through the drain, the first air supply system comprising an air blower, the second air supply system also comprising said air blower, first and second control valves each of which has an inlet and an outlet being disposed upstream and downstream, respectively, of

the air blower with the inlet of the first control valve being selectively connectible to said upper portion of the interior ofthe casing or to the atmosphere. and with the outlet of the second control valve being selectively connectible to the said lower portion of the interior of the basket or for the supply of air against the vanes, and the air blower being connected between the outlet of the first control valve and the inlet of the second control valve.

11. Method of laundering comprising supplying gas from a source thereof external of an enclosable, pressurizable container against members presented by at least a portion of the container to rotate said portion of the container, and directing said gas from said members presented by said portion of the container into the pressurizable container to increase static pressure therewithin for expulsion of a body of liquid from the container through a drain provided therein.

12. Method according to claim 11, wherein the pressurizable container comprises an outer casing in which the drain is provided, and an inner perforated basket which constitutes said portion of the container and which is rotatably mounted within the outer casing.

13. Method according to claim 11, wherein the source of gas comprises the atmosphere.

14. Method of laundering comprising the steps of selectively supplying gas from the upper portion of the interior of an enclosable, pressurizable container to the lower portion of the interior of the container, or supplying gas from a source thereof external of the pressurizable container against members presented by at least a portion of the container to rotate said portion of the container, and directing said gas from said members presented by said portion of the container into the pressurizable container to increase static pressure therewithin for expulsion of a body of liquid from the container through a drain provided therein.

15. Method according to claim 14, wherein the pressurizable container comprises an outer casing in which the drain is provided, and an inner perforated basket which constitutes said portion of the container and which is rotatably mounted within the outer casing, said lower portion of the interior of the container being constituted by the lower portion of the interior of the perforated basket.

16. Method according to claim 14, wherein said supplying of gas from the upper portion of the interior of the container to the lower portion of the interior of the container comprises supplying gas from the upper portion of the interior of the container through a first control valve, a gas blower, and a second control valve to the lower portion of the interior of the container, and said supplying of gas from the source thereof against said members comprises supplying gas from the source thereof through said first control valve, said gas blower,

and said second control valve against said members.

Claims

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pressurizable container comprises an outer casing in which the drain is provided, and an inner perforated basket which constitutes said portion of the container and which is rotatably mounted within the outer casing.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the source of gas comprises the atmosphere.

6. Apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the first gas supply system comprises a gas blower, and the second gas supply system also comprises said gas blower, first and second control valves each of which has an inlet and an outlet being disposed upstream and downstream, respectively, of the gas blower with the inlet of the first control valve being selectively connectible to said upper portion of the interior of the container or to said source external of the container, and with the outlet of the second control valve being selectively connectible to said lower portion of the interior of the container or for the supply of gas against said members, and the gas blower being connected betwEen the outlet of the first control valve and the inlet of the second control valve.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the first and second control valves each comprises a two-position, solenoid operable valve.

10. Laundry apparatus comprising an enclosable, pressurizable outer casing having a drain provided therein, an inner perforated basket which is rotatably mounted within the outer casing, vanes presented by the basket for causing rotation thereof under the influence of air directed against said vanes, a first air supply system for supplying air from the upper portion of the interior of the casing to the lower portion of the interior of the basket, and a second air supply system for directing atmospheric air against said vanes to rotate the basket, and for directing said atmospheric air from the vanes into the casing to increase static pressure therewithin for expulsion of a body of liquid from the casing through the drain, the first air supply system comprising an air blower, the second air supply system also comprising said air blower, first and second control valves each of which has an inlet and an outlet being disposed upstream and downstream, respectively, of the air blower with the inlet of the first control valve being selectively connectible to said upper portion of the interior of the casing or to the atmosphere, and with the outlet of the second control valve being selectively connectible to the said lower portion of the interior of the basket or for the supply of air against the vanes, and the air blower being connected between the outlet of the first control valve and the inlet of the second control valve.

16. Method according to claim 14, wherein said supplying of gas from the upper portion of the interior of the container to the lower portion of the interior of the container comprises supplying gas from the upper poRtion of the interior of the container through a first control valve, a gas blower, and a second control valve to the lower portion of the interior of the container, and said supplying of gas from the source thereof against said members comprises supplying gas from the source thereof through said first control valve, said gas blower, and said second control valve against said members.