WO2010100114A1

WO2010100114A1 - Sealing mechanism and household appliance provided with the sealing mechanism

Info

Publication number: WO2010100114A1
Application number: PCT/EP2010/052555
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jihao Li
Original assignee: BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH
Priority date: 2009-03-02
Filing date: 2010-03-01
Publication date: 2010-09-10
Also published as: CN201354846Y

Abstract

The present invention relates to a sealing mechanism, comprising a first component (2) and a second component (3), wherein at least one of the first component (2) and the second component (3) comprises a receiving groove (52, 53), wherein a sealing strip (4) is at least partially located in the receiving groove (52, 53) and forms a space having at least one side sealed together with the first component (2) and the second component (3), and wherein at least one notch (8a-d) is disposed inside the receiving groove (52, 53) and correspondingly, at least one boss (9a-d) is disposed at the sealing strip (4). The present invention also relates to a household appliance (10) that is provided with the inventive sealing mechanism.

Description

SEALING MECHANISM AND HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE

PROVIDED WITH THE SEALING MECHANISM

The present invention relates to a sealing mechanism, comprising a first component and a second component. At least one of the first component and the second component com- prises a receiving groove. A sealing strip is at least partially located in the receiving groove and forms a space having at least one side sealed together with the first component and the second component. The present invention further relates to a household appliance provided with the sealing mechanism.

In many mechanical industries, the sealing strip is a simple, effective part that is widely applied in all kinds of sealing mechanisms. For example, mechanisms that require sealing in dryers, refrigerators, dishwashers, and other household appliances often make use of sealing strips.

To take dryers as an example, conventional laundry drying equipment generally dries laundry by heating air. The heating of the air often takes place in a drying passage composed of a base and a cover. To ensure the seal of the drying passage side walls, sealing strips are mounted on the edges where the base and the cover make contact with each other.

Conventional sealing strips are smooth and uniform, and they match positioning grooves that are likewise smooth and uniform. Such sealing strips are not easy to position, and they tend to become separated from the positioning groove during the installation process. In addition, after they are installed, they might become separated during use, as might happen in the case of some single-side-mounted sealing strips. In addition, some linear sealing strips with two unsealed ends might develop gaps at both ends as a result of axial contraction of the strip itself. These defects have an impact on the seals of sealing mechanisms. In the case of dryers, high-temperature air tends to leak when the seal where the base and cover are joined is not tight and consequently tends to damage other parts and components in the machine. At the same time, the leakage of high-temperature air can also affect the drying efficiency of the equipment and can waste energy. An object of the present invention is to provide a sealing mechanism that provides a good seal.

The present invention achieves the object described above as follows: A sealing mechanism, comprising a first component and a second component, wherein at least one of the first component and the second component comprises a receiving groove, a sealing strip is at least partially located in the receiving groove and forms a space having at least one side sealed together with the first component and the second component, at least one notch is disposed inside the receiving groove, and correspondingly, at least one boss is disposed at the sealing strip.

In accordance with the invention, the design of the boss and the notch on the one hand prevents seal deterioration or loss that results from contraction of the sealing strip itself. On the other hand, it effectively prevents mispositioning during the assembly process. It also allows the sealing strip to be secured segment by segment and thereby facilitates installation.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the sealing strip has two unsealed end portions. The bosses are respectively disposed at the two end portions of the sealing strip or at positions adjacent to the two end portions, and the notches are disposed at corresponding positions in the receiving grooves. Thus, contraction of the sealing strip end portions can be avoided or minimized, and the seal of the sealing mechanism can be ensured.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the sealing strip has an asymmetrical cross-section. The asymmetrical cross-section can effectively prevent twisting of the sealing strip during assembly and makes incorrect installation difficult.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a cross-section of the sealing strip is formed by a rectangular first portion and a semicircular second portion. The semicircular second portion can more easily be put into the receiving groove and, when compressed, can undergo greater vertical deformation. Thus, it can achieve a better seal under relatively little pressing force. The rectangular first portion increases the contact surface of the seal with the first component or the second component and thereby improves the seal at the junction between the first component and the second component.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a right angle of the top half of the cross-section of the sealing strip is filleted. Therefore, at the same time as providing a better seal and saving on materials, it permits said sealing strip to undergo a greater degree of elastic deformation.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inside of the receiving groove is provided with a plurality of notches, and, correspondingly, the sealing strip is provided with a plurality of bosses. The boss-and-notch design easily prevents erroneous insertion and thereby simplifies the assembly process.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved household appliance. Said household appliance includes a sealing mechanism that has a good seal. Accordingly, the inventive household appliance comprises the sealing mechanism described above. The design of the above sealing mechanism effectively ensures the air- tightness of the sealing mechanism.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the household appliance comprises a rotary drum contained within an outer drum, wherein the sealing mechanism is a drying pas-sage and is connected to the outer drum, a heating device is disposed in the drying passage, and a condensing device is respectively connected to the outer drum and the drying pas-sage. Because the drying passage has the structural design described above, it has good air-tightness and to a greater extent prevents the leakage of hot air. It thus provides house-hold appliance drying efficiency.

Using a laundry drying machine as an example of a household appliance, the following text is a detailed description of an embodiment of the present invention in view of the Figures comprised by the attached drawing. In the drawing,

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional, exploded view of a sealable drying passage;

FIG. 2 is a magnified view of the sealing strip of FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 3 is a magnified view of the base in FIG. 1 ; FIG. 4 is a diagram of a cross-section of the sealing strip of the drying passage as shown in FIG. 1 ; and

FIG. 5 is a diagram of the laundry drying machine of the drying passage shown in

FIG. 1.

With reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 5, the laundry drying machine 10 includes a rotatable rotary drum 1 1 in which the user can place laundry that he or she wants to wash or dry. The rotary drum 11 is contained within an outer drum 12. A heating assembly 13 is disposed on the top portion of the outer drum 12. It includes a heating device 14 for heating the air and a drying passage 1 that supplies air to the rotary drum 1 1. A condensing device 15 is disposed behind the outer drum 12. The outlet end of said heating assembly 13 is connected via said drying passage 1 to an air inlet 16 disposed on said outer drum 12. The inlet end of said condensing device 15 is connected to an air outlet 17 corresponding to said air inlet 16 and disposed on said outer drum 12. The inlet end of said heating assembly 13 is connected to the outlet end of said condensing device 15. When the drying procedure is initiated, the air first is heated by means of said heating device 14 and is then supplied via said drying pas-sage 1 into said rotary drum 11 , where it comes into extensive contact with damp clothes which were placed by the user in the rotary drum 11. The moisture contained in the laundry is thereby drawn off by the circulating air and is then discharged through the air outlet 17 on the outer drum 12 into said condensing device 15. Condensation is achieved by means of said condensing device 15.

As shown in Fig. 1 , said drying passage 1 includes a base 2 and a cover 3 that is joined to said base 2. Each edge of the base 2 and the cover 3 is provided with a receiving groove 52, 53 of a certain depth. The sealing strip 4 for sealing the junction of said base 2 and said cover 3 is received within the receiving grooves 52, 53. The sealing strip 4 is made of an elastic material. Under stress, it can undergo a certain amount of elastic deformation. During assembly, the base 2 and the cover 3 are pressed together, and the sealing strip 4 is de-formed under pressure. It thereby fully fills the gap between the base 2 and the cover 3 and achieves a seal.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, a cross-section of the sealing strip 4 includes a rectangular upper half 6 and a semicircular lower half 7, wherein the corners of the upper half 6 are filleted. Therefore, during assembly, the semicircular lower half 7 can more easily be set within the receiving groove 52, making assembly a simple, easy task. In addition, because the lower half 7 whose cross-section is semi-circular can undergo greater vertical deformation when compressed, it can achieve a better seal under relatively little pressing force. In addition, the rectangular upper half 6 with rounded corners has a greater area of contact with said cover 3 than do other cross-section shapes, such as semi-circular shapes. It thus further ensures the seal of the junction between the base 2 and the cover 3 and effectively prevents the circulation air circulating in the drying passage 1 from leaking from the junction between the base 2 and the cover 3. It thus further ensures the drying efficiency of the drying ma-chine. In addition, the asymmetrical cross-section shape of the upper half 6 and the lower half 7 imply that twisting errors during assembly are greatly reduced.

The sealing strip 4 can be closed such that it forms a sealing ring. It can also be open. In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 through 3, the sealing strip 4 is open and has two end portions 20. A plurality of notches 8a-d is disposed inside the receiving groove 5. A plurality of bosses 9a-d is correspondingly disposed on the periphery of the sealing strip 4. During assembly, each boss 9a-d is received into a corresponding notch 8a-d. Preferably, bosses (not shown in figures) are respectively disposed at the two end portions 20 of the sealing strip 4 or at positions adjacent to the two end portions 20, and the notches (not shown in figures) are disposed at corresponding positions in the receiving groove 5. The matching of the bosses 9a-d on the sealing strip 4 with the notches 8a-d in the receiving groove 5 on the one hand prevents drying passage 1 seal deterioration or loss that results from contraction of the sealing strip 4 itself when it is open. On the other hand, by installing the bosses 9a-d in the corresponding notches 8a-d, mispositioning during assembly can be effectively prevented. It also allows the sealing strip 4 to be secured segment by segment and thereby facilitates installation. It is particularly helpful during installation of closed sealing strips 4.

The bosses 9a-d and the notches 8a-d corresponding thereto can be in any form, e.g., rectangular, round, etc. In addition, the direction of the bosses 9a-d and the notches 8a-d corresponding thereto may differ. For example, the notches 8a-d may be disposed on the sides of said receiving notch 5, e.g., notch 8c and notch 8d. They may also be disposed on the bottom of said receiving notch 5, e.g., notch 8a and notch 8b. Said bosses 9a-d may also be correspondingly disposed on the sides of said sealing strip 4, e.g. boss 9c and boss 9d. And they may be disposed at the bottom of said sealing strip 4, e.g. boss 9a and boss 9b.

A sealing strip and a sealing strip receiving notch with the same or similar structure may also be suitable for other laundry drying machine mechanisms that require sealing. In addition, they may be used in other household appliance mechanisms that require sealing.

Of course, the embodiment that was presented above is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The present invention permits many other embodiments. Equivalent changes made to the present invention by persons with ordinary skill in the art under the guidance of the present invention shall still be included within the scope asserted under the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. Sealing mechanism comprising a first component (2) and a second component (3), wherein at least one of the first component (2) and the second component (3) comprises a receiving groove (52, 53), wherein a sealing strip (4) is at least partially located in the receiving groove (52, 53) and forms a space having at least one side sealed together with the first component (2) and the second component (3), and wherein at least one notch (8a-d) is formed inside the receiving groove (52, 53) and correspondingly, at least one boss (9a-d) is disposed at the sealing strip (4).

2. Sealing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the sealing strip (4) has two unsealed end portions (20).

3. Sealing mechanism according to claim 2, wherein the bosses (9a-d) are respectively disposed at the two end portions (20) of the sealing strip (4) or at positions adjacent to the two end portions (20), and the notches (8a-d) are disposed at corresponding positions in the receiving grooves (52, 53).

4. Sealing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the sealing strip (4) has an asymmetrical cross-section.

5. Sealing mechanism according to claim 4, wherein the sealing strip (4) is formed by a rectangular first portion (6) and a semicircular second portion (7).

6. Sealing mechanism according to claim 5, wherein a right angle of the first portion (6) on the cross-section of the sealing strip (4) is filleted.

7. Household appliance (10), comprising a sealing mechanism comprising a first component (2) and a second component (3), wherein at least one of the first component (2) and the second component (3) comprises a receiving groove (52, 53), wherein a sealing strip (4) is at least partially located in the receiving groove

(52, 53) and forms a space having at least one side sealed together with the first component (2) and the second component (3), and wherein at least one notch (8a- d) is formed inside the receiving groove (52, 53) and correspondingly, at least one boss (9a-d) is disposed at the sealing strip (4).

8. Household appliance (10) according to claim 7, further comprising a rotary drum (11 ) received in an outer drum (12), wherein the sealing mechanism is a drying passage (1 ) and is connected to the outer drum (12), wherein a heating device (14) is disposed in the drying passage (1 ), and wherein a condensing device (15) is respectively connected to the outer drum (12) and the drying passage (1 ).