Machine for washing and/or drying laundry having an improved structure

Abstract

 A machine for washing and/or drying laundry has a support structure (4,10,11) to which side walls (2a-2d) of an outer cabinet (2) are associated in a removable manner. The support structure (4,10,11) comprises a base (4) to which there are fastened lower support means (5) for a tank (7), in which a laundry basket (9) is rotatably mounted. According to the invention, the support structure (4,10,11) further comprises an upper structural body (10) supported by a plurality of upright elements (11) being internal to the cabinet (2) and mechanically connected to the base (4). In the preferred embodiment, the same cabinet component (3) forms three of the side walls (2a-2c) of the cabinet (2).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a machine for washing and/or drying laundry, in particular of the top-loading type.

[0002] Laundry washing machines are usually equipped with an outer cabinet having four substantially vertical side walls, and an upper wall or "top". In the case of top-loading machines the above-said upper wall can be at least partly turned, so as to embody a top-loading door. In some solutions the above-said side walls are shaped as independent panels, whereas in other solutions a single cabinet component forms more than one side wall, for instance two walls orthogonal to one another, or a first whole wall and limited portions of two further walls of the cabinet, which are orthogonal to the first one. In many of these known solutions the cabinet components are fastened in their lower portion to a structural base, to which there are also associated some inner components of the machine, such as for instance shock absorbers supporting the so-called oscillating assembly, comprising at least the washing tank of the machine, the laundry basket, the counterweights and the motor for driving the basket.

[0003] An example of the prior art is EP-A-168593. In this solution there are provided for two basically C-shaped cabinet components, which are both associated to a same base supporting operating components of the machine. Each component forms both a whole side wall of the cabinet and two respective portions of the walls orthogonal to the first one. To the base there are fastened the lower ends of shock-absorbing means supporting the washing tank of the machine, inside which the laundry basket is housed. In this solution the cabinet forms a relevant part of the support structure of the machine, since to the above-said cabinet components coupled with one another there are associated fastening brackets for upper shock-absorbing elements of the washing tank. In other known solutions, conversely, the suspension elements are fastened to respective side walls of the cabinet, for instance to the upper edges thereof, which are shaped so as to define suitable seats.

[0004] The fact that in the known solutions the cabinet is part of the support structure of the machine involves some drawbacks, related above all to the difficult access to the inside of the machine for maintenance or repair. As a matter of fact, under such circumstances, a number of cabinet walls have to be removed for the access to given inner components of the machine. Such operation is often complex, especially when means for supporting the oscillating assembly of the machine are associated to the walls. Such operation is even more complex when - as is the case of EP-A-168593- the above-said means for supporting the oscillating assembly are associated to brackets fastened between two different cabinet components. The fact that the outer cabinet is an integral and substantial part of the support structure further implies that the walls are reinforced, made of metal and shaped so as to define hooking points for the upper suspension means of the oscillating assembly.

[0005] In general terms, the present invention aims at carrying out a machine for washing and/or drying laundry that is improved with respect to the prior art, as far as its support structure and its outer cabinet are concerned, especially with the purpose of simplifying maintenance and/or repair operations involving the removal of one or more side walls of the cabinet. A further aim of the present invention is to carry out such a machine whose cabinet can be made in an economically advantageous manner with respect to the prior art.

[0006] These and other aims, which shall be more apparent in the following, are achieved according to the present invention by means of machine for washing and/or drying laundry having the features of the appended claims. The claims are an integral and substantial part of the technical teaching here given in connection with the invention.

[0007] Briefly, the invention relates to a machine as referred to, to the support structure of which there are removably associated side walls of the outer cabinet, wherein such a structure comprises a base to which there are anchored lower support means of the so-called oscillating assembly, and wherein the support structure further comprises an upper structural component, which is supported by means of a plurality of connecting upright elements, the latter extending between the base and the upper component, to which they are mechanically fixed. In the embodiment at present deemed as preferred, four upright elements are provided, whose respective ends are fastened at or near the corner region of the base and of the upper structural body. The support structure of the machine is thus practically independent, from the structural point of view, from the outer cabinet, the components of the latter being very easily removable and mountable in case of maintenance/repair.

[0008] Preferably, to the support structure including the base, the uprights and the upper components, at least one cabinet component forming more than one side wall of said cabinet is associated. In the preferred embodiment, said cabinet component forms three side walls, whereas the remaining side wall is formed by an independent panel. The base and the upper structural body are advantageously configured so as to receive slidingly, during mounting and dismounting operations, the above-said cabinet component, which is suitably prearranged to this purpose.

[0009] Moreover, in the machine according to the invention, the upper structural component is advantageously designed to support elastic means, by way of which the oscillating assembly is supported and dampened from above, inside the cabinet.

[0010] The invention applies in a particularly advantageous manner to top-loading laundry washing and/or drying machines, in which case the upper structural body includes at least one frame element and also supports a door of the machine.

[0011] Further aims, characteristics and advantages of the invention shall be evident from the following detailed description of a possible, non-limiting embodiment thereof, given with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

• Figure 1 a schematic perspective view of a machine for washing and/or drying laundry according to the present invention;
• Figure 2 is a perspective view of a support structure and of a cabinet component of the machine of Figure 1, to the support structure there being associated some functional elements of the machine;
• Figures 3 and 4 are schematic perspective views of the structure and of the component of Figure 2, under different coupling conditions;
• Figure 5 is a schematic partial perspective view of an upper portion of the support structure of the machine, from the inside thereof, with some upper support components of the corresponding oscillating assembly;
• Figure 6 is a magnified schematic perspective view of a component of Figure 5.

[0012] In Figure 1, reference 1 designates as a whole a machine for washing and/or drying laundry carried out according to the present invention. In the case shown by way of example, the machine 1 is a top-loading machine and is designed for washing laundry only; however, the invention should be construed as being applicable also to front-loading machines as well as to the so-called washing-drying machines and drying machines.

[0013] The machine 1 comprises an outer cabinet, globally designated by 2, and a support structure, whose essential components can be seen in Figure 2. In the example shown here, three of the side walls of the cabinet, indicated by 2a, 2b and 2c in Figure 1, are formed by a same components, indicated as a whole with 3. The fourth side wall of the cabinet, designated by 2d in Figure 1, consists of an independent panel. As can be seen, the cabinet component 3 has a substantially C-shaped section and wholly defines the walls 2a, 2b and 2c.

[0014] The support structure of the machine 1 comprise a lower base, indicated as a whole with 4, having a basically rectangular plan. The lower ends of two telescopic shock absorbers, indicated by 5, are fastened to the base 4. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, each shock absorber 5 is associated, at the lower end thereof, to a joint 6, preferably being fork-shaped, having a base to which there is associated at least one shock-absorbing plate made of resilient material, such as an elastomer. The shock absorbers 6 are connected, at the upper end thereof, to opposed areas of the lower region of a washing tank of the machine, indicated as a whole with 7.

[0015] The tank 7, preferably though not necessarily made of plastic material, comprises a peripheral wall 7a and two side walls, one of which is designated by 7b, shaped and arranged such that the tank has an upper access opening indicated with 7c. Each side wall 7b of the tank 7 is equipped with a hub, one of which is indicated with 8, for rotatably supporting a laundry basket, indicated as a whole with 9. In the embodiment of the invention shown here, the basket 9 can rotate around a substantially horizontal axis and has a door 9a of known type, on the circumferential wall thereof.

[0016] It should be noted that various functional components of the machine are not represented in the figures, such as for instance the basket drive motor and the relevant transmission, the loading solenoid valve, the draining pump, the hydraulic and electric connections, as well as other components lying inside the cabinet that are not specifically relevant for the understanding of the invention.

[0017] The support structure of the machine further comprises an upper structural body, globally indicated with 10 in Figure 2. The structural body 10 is substantially frame-shaped and is provided with a corresponding through opening, indicated with 10'. As can be seen, also the structural body has an essentially rectangular shape in plan view, with outer dimensions substantially similar to the base 4.

[0018] The base 4 and the upper body 10 have, in the corner regions thereof, connections or seats, designated by 4a, 4b and 10a, 10b,respectively, into which the ends of connecting uprights, indicated with 11, are designed to be inserted or engaged. As can be seen, the connections 4a, 4b and 10a, 10b comprise vertical portions of the base 4 and of the body 10, protruding upwards and downwards, respectively. The ends of the uprights 11 are secured into the corresponding connections 4a, 4b and 10a, 10b through means being known per se, such as screws.

[0019] In the case shown by way of example in Figure 2, the connections 4a, 10a are located substantially at the corners of the base 4 and of the upper body 10, on the longer sides thereof. Also the connections 4b and 10b are on the longer sides of the base 4 and of the body 10, though slightly spaced apart from the corner areas thereof, which are rounded here: with such a solution, also the corners between the wall 2a and the parallel walls 2b, 2c of the component 3 can be rounded, as can be seen in Figure 2.

[0020] The upper structural body 10 can be conveniently made of injection-molded plastic material. The angular uprights 11 can be made of metal, although reinforced plastic is not excluded. Also the base 4 can be made of plastic material, as one piece or in at least two parts assembled together, as in the case shown here.

[0021] In a preferred embodiment, the tank 7 is connected in its upper portion to the support structure, and in particular to the structural body 10. Such an upper elastic connection is made on at least two opposed sides of the machine and, preferably, comprises on each side a pair of elastic means. In particular, as is shown in Figure 5, a first elastic means 13 consists of a helical spring, arranged to be substantially aligned with the inner face of the wall 2a (or 2d) of the cabinet 2, whose opposed ends are anchored, respectively, to the body 10 on one side, and to the tank (not shown in Figure 5) on the opposite side. The first elastic means 13 is combined with the second elastic means, indicated with 14, which also consists in the example of a helical spring, arranged radially according to a substantially orthogonal direction with respect to the spring 13. The spring 13 has an upper extension 13 a developing in a substantially rectilinear direction and is guided into a seat or recess made longitudinally on an anchoring and guiding shaped member or block 15, made of rubber or plastic for instance, secured with screws or equivalent means to the body 10. Between the portion of the block 15 protruding under the body 10 and the wall 2a (or 2d) of the cabinet, a shock-absorbing pad 16 is arranged, made for instance of medium-density elastomeric material. The pad 16 is fastened to the corresponding wall of the cabinet, for instance with an adhesive, or is supported directly by the block 15.

[0022] The second elastic means or spring 14 is fastened, at an end thereof, to the pad 16. To this purpose, within the material making up the pad 16, a pin element can be conveniently integrated, to which an end eye of the spring 14, not visible, is engaged. This end of the spring 14 could be fastened also to the block 15. The opposite end of the spring 14 is substantially free and oriented towards the tank 7.

[0023] The combined effect of the springs 13 and 14, with their corresponding blocks 15 and pads 16, leads to a substantial reduction both of the diametral and longitudinal travel of the tank 7 during operation of th emachine 1, and especially during the steps for attaining the spinning speed. It should be noted that, according to a possible variant embodiment, the body of the block 15 can be made of elastomer or other resilient material, and configured so as to perform the same functions as the pad 16.

[0024] Obviously, an arrangement similar to the one that can be seen in Figure 5 is present also on the opposite side 2d of the cabinet 2. Figure 6 shows a possible embodiment of the support 15, which is preferably made of plastic material and whose body has stiffening or reinforcing front parts 15a, preferably cantilevered and parallel to one another, between which the aforesaid guiding recess is defined, designated by 15b and which is longitudinally extended. In the example, parts 15a have a generally prismatic shape and define each a plurality of hollow sectors 15a. In the upper edge of the body of the support 15 a recess 15c is formed, substantially aligned with the longitudinal recess 15b, arranged for the hooking of the curved upper extension 13a of the spring 13. In its upper portion, the body of the support 15 has a pair of through holes 15d, for the fastening - for instance through screws - to the structural body 10, so that the recess 15c in correspondence with a respective seat 10c - shown in Figure 5 only - formed in the body 10.

[0025] It should be pointed out that, in a possible embodiment, the supports 15 can be made as one piece with the upper structural body 10.

[0026] Going back to Figures 2-4, it can be noted that on opposite faces of the base 4, corresponding to the longer sides, seats or guides are defined, one of which is indicated with 20, designed to slidingly receive the lower end - suitably shaped - of the opposed walls 2b, 2c formed by the cabinet component 3. Seats having a similar functions, one of which is designated by 21, are provided on opposed sides of the upper structural body 10.

[0027] As can be inferred from Figures 2-4, by means of such an arrangement, the cabinet component 3 can be mounted slidingly onto the support structure made up of the base 4 and of the body 10, mechanically connected to one another by way of the angular upright elements 11. The fact that the likely upper suspension elements of the tank - of the type shown in Figures 5 and 6 for instance - are associated to the upper structural component 10 enables an easy removal both of the cabinet component 3 and of the panel making up the wall 2d, if necessary. In the example shown here, the panel making up the wall 2d is secured into the component 3 in correspondence of holes 23 (see Figure 2) which are near the vertical edge of the walls 2b, 2c, such an edge being shaped so as to be coupled with the wall 2d.

[0028] It should further be pointed out that, in the embodiment disclosed here, to the upper structural body 10 there is associated a covering guard, indicated with 24 in Figure 1, defining a respective opening 24a for the access into the tank 7. The structural body 10 further supports an upper door of the machine, indicated with 25 in Figure 1, by means of hinges of a per se known type, associated to the aforesaid guard 24 or to the body 10. In the case shown by way of example, the door 25 - which bears the controls and indicator lights of the machine 1, globally designated by 26 - can be tilted about an axis parallel to the wall 2b; in another version the door 25 can also be tilted about an axis parallel to the wall 2d, the wall 2a making up the front face of the cabinet 2.

[0029] As mentioned above, the arrangement described here enables an easy and complete access to the machine 1, if maintenance or repair has to be carried out. To this purpose it is indeed only necessary to remove the screws connecting the panel making up the wall 2d to the cabinet component 3. Said panel can now be removed and the component 3 can be taken off the base and the upper structural body. It is thus possible to obtain a complete access to the inner components of the machine, without the need for other parts to be removed or for the upper suspension elements of the tank to be uncoupled, as is the case of EP-A-168593 mentioned above. The fact that the outer cabinet 2 of the machine is not a part of the support structure of the machine enables to simplify the manufacturing of the cabinet, which can be made of a comparatively thinner metal sheet than prior-art machines and without critical shapes. For the same reasons, the component 3 and the panel making up the wall 2d could possibly be made of plastic.

[0030] The support structure of the machine as described here is advantageous also from the point of view of assembling the machine during manufacturing. As a matter of fact, the support structure of the machine can be manufactured in an initial step by associating to the base 4 the various components that are usually fastened to the base itself, including the shock absorbers 5. To the base 4 can then be fastened the uprights 11 and onto the uprights the upper structural body 10 is then fastened. Now, the oscillating assembly, at least partially pre-assembled, can be introduced from above into the support structure, through the opening 10' of the upper body 10, for fastening the shock absorbers 5 to the tank 7. To the upper structural body 10 can then be associated the upper suspension means, which are then secured on their other end to the upper region of the tank 7. To the body 10 can then be associated the guard 24 and the door 25. After completing electric and hydraulic connections, the cabinet component 3 is slidingly fitted onto the support structure, as described above, and the panel making up the side wall 2d is fastened thereto.

[0031] From the above description the characteristics and advantages of the present invention are clear. It should further be pointed out that the presence of fork-shaped joints 6, equipped with shock-absorbing insert or plate, enables an effective reduction of oscillations and vibrations generated during the operation of the machine. In the preferred embodiment, the particular arrangement of the shock absorbers 5 and of the elastic means 13, 14 enables a substantial reduction of the oscillations of the tank 7 during operation, especially during spin-drying.

[0032] It is obvious that several changes can be made by the man skilled in the art to the machine for washing and/or drying laundry as described by way of example, without leaving the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A machine for washing and/or drying laundry, in particular of the top-loading type, having a support structure (4, 10, 11) to which side walls (2a-2d) of an outer cabinet (2) are associated in a separable manner, the cabinet (2) being adapted to contain operating components of the machine (1), among which a tank (7) inside which a basket (8) is mounted, that can rotate around a substantially horizontal axis, the support structure (4, 10, 11) comprising a base (4) to which lower support means (5) for the tank (7) are anchored, characterized in that the support structure (4, 10, 11) further comprises an upper structural body (10) supported by a plurality of upright elements (11) internal to the cabinet (2) and connected to the base (4).

2. The machine according to claim 1, wherein a single cabinet component (3) forms more than one of said side walls (2a-2c), particularly three side walls (2a-2c).

3. The machine according to claim 2, wherein the cabinet component (3) is adapted to be slidingly coupled with at least one of the base (4) and the upper structural body (10).

4. The machine according to claim 3, wherein the cabinet component (3) has respective end portions shaped to be slidingly coupled with the base (4) and/or with the upper structural body (10).

5. The machine according to claim 3 or 4, wherein at least one of the base (4) and the upper structural body (10) comprises, on respective opposite faces, longitudinally extended seats (20, 21) designed to receive end portions of the cabinet component (3).

6. The machine according to at least one of the preceding claims, wherein the upper structural body comprises at least one substantially frame-shaped element (10).

7. The machine according to at least one of the preceding claims, wherein four upright elements (11) are provided and/or the upright elements (11) are fastened at, or near, angular regions of the base (4) and of the upper structural body (10).

8. The machine according to claim 1, wherein upper shock-absorbing means (13, 14) for the tank (7) are fastened to the upper structural body (10).

9. The machine according to claim 8, wherein the upper shock-absorbing means comprise a first and a second elastic element (13, 14), in particular configured as helical springs, for each of two opposite side walls (2a, 2d) of the cabinet (2), and wherein the first elastic element (13) is supported on one side by way of the upper structural element (10) and on the other side on the upper region of the tank (7), and wherein the second elastic element (14) extends substantially in a transverse direction with respect to the first elastic element (13).

10. The machine according to claim 9, wherein:

- the first elastic element (13) has a substantially rectilinear upper extension (13a), being inserted in or guided at least partly by a longitudinal recess (15a) of a respective support (15) fastened to, or integral with, the upper structural body (10), said extension (13a) having an upper end anchored to the support (15), and

- the second elastic element (14) has an end anchored to said support (15) or to a shock-absorbing element thereof made of resilient material (16), the other end being free and facing a respective upper region of the tank (7), where in particular the support (15) has an upper edge in which a hooking seat (15c) is defined for the upper end of said extension (13a) of the first elastic element (13), said seat (15c) being substantially aligned with said longitudinal recess (15b).

11. The machine according to claim 1, wherein the lower support means comprise at least two telescopic shock absorber (5) connected, at the upper end thereof, to opposed areas of the lower region of the tank (7), wherein in particular each shock absorber (5) has at the lower end thereof a joint (6) for connection to the base (4), which includes a base element to which a damper element made of resilient material is associated.

12. The machine according to at least one of the preceding claims, wherein the upper structural body (10) supports at least one of a covering guard (24) and a door (25) of the machine.

Drawing