1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a clothes washing machine of the top loading type having a fixed tub that houses a rotatable basket mounted to a vertical drive shaft that passes through the bottom of the tub and is coupled to a motor unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
In clothes washing machines of the top loading type, the motor unit, which generally comprises an electric motor coupled to the drive shaft, may be provided under a support frame that is secured to the bottom wall of the tub. The assembly defined by the motor unit, vertical drive shaft and rotatable basket remains fixed to the tub. As a result, the vibration due to rotation of the basket during the washing and spinning operations, particularly upon spinning with an unbalanced clothes mass, is transmitted to the tub. In this typical construction, the tub vibrates concurrently with the basket and motor unit.
In this type of construction, the tub cannot directly touch the floor, since the tub moves during the machine operation. Thus, a need exists to provide a suspension system which is able to absorb or dissipate at least part of the vibratory energy transmitted to the tub.
A known solution to overcome this problem usually includes a cabinet surrounding both the tub and the motor unit and which is positioned directly on the floor. This arrangement also includes a suspension system generally in the form of springs or other elastic elements that are secured, at one end, to the tub and at the other end, to the cabinet.
This solution requires a cabinet to operate as a support structure for the washing machine and also as an aesthetic housing. In addition to increasing the number of components needed to assemble the washing machine, the cabinet increases the space required for the washing machine, since it must internally accommodate the suspension system, while providing a gap between the tub and the cabinet. This gap must be sufficient to prevent the tub from colliding with the cabinet during spinning operations with an unbalanced load of clothes.
Another known solution is described in the patent document PCT/AU97/00334. In this solution, the motor unit is attached at one end to the vertical drive shaft that passes through the bottom of the tub and at an opposite end to the support frame. The support frame is secured to a base structure that is suspended by a suspension system. In this solution, the tub is attached to the support frame and vibrates with the basket and motor unit during machine operation. The suspension system is provided under the support frame, allowing the height of the cabinet to be limited to the height of the support frame. However, this solution still requires a cabinet with sufficient height to surround the whole tub, in order to visually and operationally protect the tub during machine operation, since the tub vibrates concurrently with the basket and the motor unit.
An aspect of the present invention is to provide a clothes washing machine of the top loading type, having a tub that is able to define a portion of the cabinet and a base structure that is able to define a portion of the cabinet, thereby providing more options for the aesthetical design of the machine. Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a clothes washing machine which provides a suspension means with reduced dimensions and simple construction, disposed under the tub.
These and other aspects of the invention are achieved by a clothes washing machine of the top loading type having a base structure provided with at least one opening for housing other elements of the washing machine and a tub coupled with the base structure. The base structure and tub are aesthetically matched and when coupled, form an exterior of the washing machine, thereby eliminating the need for a cabinet enclosing the base structure and tub. The base structure may be a tubular body having a front wall portion, two lateral wall portions, and an upper wall portion. The tub may have a cylindrical wall, lateral wall portions, and a bottom wall for coupling the tub to the upper wall portion of the base structure.
The bottom wall of the tub may have a plurality of internally threaded projections to be aligned with bores provided in the upper wall portion of the base structure and through which are inserted screws for coupling the tub with the base structure. Alternatively, the tub and base structure may be formed as a single piece. The base structure may have ribs that are inserted into slots provided in the bottom wall of the tub to further facilitate coupling of the tub and base structure. The washing machine may further comprise at least one suspension mechanism disposed within an opening of the base structure for absorbing vibration transmitted to the tub during operation.
Another embodiment of the invention provides for a washing machine having a base structure provided with at least one opening, a tub coupled with the base structure, a support frame provided in the base structure, at least one suspension mechanism connecting the support frame to the base structure and disposed within an opening in the base structure, a motor unit attached to the support frame and supporting a rotatable drive shaft, and a rotatable basket disposed in the tub and selectively rotated by the drive shaft. The base structure functions as an exterior housing of at least a portion of the washing machine and the tub functions as an exterior housing of at least a portion of the washing machine.
The support frame may have radial arms angularly spaced from each other and each arm may be provided with a bore.
The suspension mechanism may include a rod having an upper end coupled with the base structure, a middle portion disposed through the bore in the support frame, and a lower end having a stop mechanism, and a support spring provided around the rod having an end connected to the stop mechanism and an opposite end connected to the support frame. There may be one suspension mechanism coupled with each arm of the support frame. The suspension mechanism may further include a dampening spring provided around the upper end of the rod to further absorb vibration. The upper end of the support spring may abut a pad provided in the radial arm of the support frame. Additionally, a spacer pad may be attached to the upper end of the rod.
The wall portions of the base structure may be shaped to match the contour of the wall portions of the tub when the tub is coupled with the base structure.
The present invention allows the base structure to remains fixed, so that the tub of the clothes washing machine can be directly attached to the base structure, and remain coupled thereto while the moving assembly of the machine vibrates during operation. Since the tub is fixed and free of vibration and oscillation, it may be constructed so that it defines a portion of the cabinet. As a result, this solution simplifies the construction of the clothes washing machine, allowing the cabinet to be configured in different manners and increasing the options to define different ornamental plastic forms for the clothes washing machine. Additionally, since the suspension system only needs to maintain the support frame, the invention further allows utilization of simple suspension systems that take up a smaller amount of space within the washing machine.
The invention will be described with reference to the drawings, in which:
a is a partial sectional view of the machine base structure shown in
a is an enlarged detail of one element of the suspension system shown in
With reference to the drawings and initially to
The base structure 10 may further comprise a vertically disposed rear frame having end edges attached to the lateral wall portions 11b of the base structure 10 and also an upper edge affixed to the upper wall portion 12, which acts as further support for the base structure 10. Thus, the rear frame 13, as shown in
The front wall portion 11a and lateral wall portions 11b of the base structure 10 may be coupled with support plates 14, each provided with a generally threaded bore 14a for receiving a respective foot 15 of the machine, as illustrated in
As shown in
The machine further comprises a tub 20 which is constructed to be coupled with the base structure 10 and aesthetically matches the base structure 10. The tub 20 can be formed of various materials, such as sheet metal or injected plastic material. In the embodiment illustrated in
As shown in
It should be understood that the tub 20 may comprise a bottom wall 23 that is shaped to define an upper wall portion for the base structure 10. Additionally, the tub 20 and base structure 10 may be formed as a single piece so that the bottom wall 23 of the tub 20 is also the upper wall portion 12 of the base structure 10.
One advantage of the present invention is that it allows the tub 20 to be solidly incorporated with the base structure 10. Thus, the base structure 10 also functions as the cabinet of the washing machine and no additional housing is necessary. In the illustrated embodiment, the tub 20 presents a cross-section contour equal to that of the base structure 10, thus functioning as the top portion of the cabinet.
As illustrated in
As shown in detail in
The support plate 35 may be affixed to the support frame 30, or alternatively the support plate 35 and support frame 30 may be a single piece. The support plate 35 may have a bearing 37 which supports the lower end portion of a drive shaft 55 that extends upwardly through the tubular hub 31 of the support frame 30. The driven pulley 53 may be affixed to the lower end portion of the drive shaft 55, generally under the bearing 37.
The electric motor 51 may be directly coupled to the drive shaft 55, with or without an intermediate transmission defined by pulleys and belts or by other transmission mechanisms. The drive shaft 55 extends upwardly into the interior of the tub 20.
As shown in
Referring again to
In one embodiment of the invention, at least three suspension mechanisms 40 are provided, angularly spaced from each other around the motor unit 50. As shown in
Each suspension mechanism 40 may further comprise a dampening spring 44 disposed around the rod 41 and having one end connected through pad 44a to the support frame 30 and the opposite end connected through pad 44b to the upper wall portion 12 of the base structure 10. The dampening spring 44 allows both springs in the suspension mechanism 40 to work in opposite directions, with the dampening spring 44 constantly forcing the support frame 30 against the support spring 43. The use of two springs that work in opposite directions gives the suspension mechanism 40 a higher capacity to absorb vibration from the motor unit during the washing and spinning operations of the machine. The stop mechanism 42 of each suspension mechanism 40 has a cylindrical sleeve 45, and may be constructed of plastic material and designed to surround at least part of the longitudinal support spring 43 of each suspension mechanism 40.
The upper end 41a of each rod 41 is disposed through the bore 16a of a spherical recess 16 of the upper wall portion 12 of the base structure 10. Furthermore, a spacer pad 46 may be attached to the upper end 41a of each rod 41. The spacer pad 46 is preferably made of an anti-friction material and its lower portion may be attached to the interior of the semi-spherical recess 16, thereby coupling the upper end 41a of each rod 41 and the base structure 10.
Due to the windows 18 and the radial slots 17 in the upper wall portion 12 of the base structure 10, the spacer pad 46 can be attached to the upper end 41a of the rod 41 before being mounted to the semi-spherical recess 16, since the windows 18 present an area that is large enough to allow passage of the spacer pads 46.
As illustrated in
While only one possible way of carrying out the present clothes washing machine has been illustrated herein, it should be understood that alterations can be made in the form and arrangement of the different elements that constitute the equipment, without departing from the inventive concept defined in the claims that accompany the present disclosure.