Patent Application
20250127372
The disclosure relates to a dishwasher, and more particularly, to a sealing member of a dishwasher.
In general, a dishwasher is an appliance that sprays water at high pressure to wash and then dry dishware stored therein. The dishwasher operates by spraying water into a tub in which dishware is stored, and contacting the dishware with the sprayed water to clean foreign substances, such as food residues on a surface of the dishware.
The dishwasher may include a main body, a tub disposed within the main body to form a washing space, a door positioned in front of the tub to open or close the tub, a sump for supplying, collecting, circulating, and draining water, and a sprayer for spraying water into the tub.
An aspect of the present disclosure provides a sealing member that prevents leakage between a tub and a door.
Further, an aspect of the present disclosure provides a sealing member that is more durable.
Technical tasks to be achieved in this document are not limited to the technical tasks mentioned above, and other technical tasks not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a dishwasher includes a tub forming a washing chamber, a door configured to open or close the tub, and a sealing member configured to seal a gap between the tub and the door. The sealing member includes a fixed body coupleable to the tub and a sealing body extending from the fixed body toward the door. The sealing body includes a contact portion configured to be in contact with the door, a support portion to connect the fixed body and the contact portion, and a bend portion bent toward the fixed body while the door is pressing the contact portion. The bend portion includes a bending end connected to the support portion.
The fixed body may include a seat portion arranged to face the bend portion, and the bend portion may be configured to be in contact with the seat portion.
The bend portion may further include a support protrusion extending toward the seat portion.
The door may press against the contact portion along a direction, the support protrusion may include an end along the direction, and the seat portion may include a seating surface having a shape corresponding to the end of the support protrusion to thereby allow the seating surface and the end of the support protrusion to be in contact with each other.
The seating surface may be arranged to be inclined toward the direction where the seating surface approaches the center of the tub.
The end of the support protrusion may include a plane.
The support protrusion may include a first support protrusion, and a second support protrusion disposed between the bending end and the first support protrusion.
The bend portion may further include an extension extending between the support protrusion and the bending end, and a thickness of the extension may increase as the extension approaches the bending end.
The thickness of the bending end may be set to be greater than the thickness of the support protrusion.
The thickness of the bending end may be set to be greater than a spacing distance between the bending end and the seat portion.
The thickness of the support portion may decrease from the bending end toward the contact portion.
The tub may include a coupling groove formed by a first coupling wall adjacent to the washing chamber and a second coupling wall facing the first coupling wall to allow the fixed body to be coupled thereto, and the bend portion may be arranged such that the bending end faces the second coupling wall.
The seat portion may include a seating protrusion extending toward the bend portion.
The sealing body may include a through hole, and the through hole may have a closed loop shape.
The through hole may be spaced apart from the seat portion.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a dishwasher includes a tub forming a washing chamber, a door configured to open or close the tub, and a sealing member configured to seal a gap between the tub and the door. The sealing member includes a fixed body coupleable to the tub and a sealing body extending from the fixed body toward the door. The fixed body may include a seat portion arranged to face the door. The sealing body includes a contact portion configured to be able to contact with the door, a support portion connecting the fixed body and the contact portion, and a bend portion supported on the seat portion. The bend portion includes a bending end to be connected to the support portion. The bend portion includes a support protrusion extending toward the seat portion.
The seat portion may include a seating surface in contact with the support projection, and the seating surface may be formed to be inclined.
The bend portion may further include an extension extending between the support protrusion and the bending end, and the thickness of the extension may increase as the extension approaches the bending end.
The thickness of the bending end may be set to be greater than the thickness of the support protrusion.
The sealing body may include a through hole, and the through hole may be spaced apart from the seat portion.
According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the dishwasher with improved leakage prevention between the tub and the door can be provided.
Further, according to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the dishwasher with improved durability of the sealing member can be provided.
The effects that may be obtained from the present disclosure are not limited to those mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be apparent to those of skilled in the art to which the present disclosure belongs from the following description.
Various embodiments of the present document and terms used therein are not intended to limit the technical features described in this document to specific embodiments, and should be understood to include various modifications, equivalents, or substitutes of the corresponding embodiments.
In addition, the same reference numerals or signs shown in the drawings of the disclosure indicate elements or components performing substantially the same function.
Also, the terms used herein are used to describe the embodiments and are not intended to limit and/or restrict the disclosure. The singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this disclosure, the terms “including”, “having”, and the like are used to specify features, figures, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more of the features, figures, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof.
It will be understood that, although the terms “first”, “second”, “primary”, “secondary”, etc., may be used herein to describe various elements, but elements are not limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. For example, without departing from the scope of the disclosure, a first element may be termed as a second element, and a second element may be termed as a first element. The term of “and/or” includes a plurality of combinations of relevant items or any one item among a plurality of relevant items.
Further, as used in the disclosure, the terms “front”, “rear”, “top”, “bottom”, “side”, “left”, “right”, “upper”, “lower”, and the like are defined with reference to the drawings, and are not intended to limit the shape and position of any element.
Hereinafter, various embodiments according to the disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
The dishwasher 1 may include a tub 12 disposed within the main body 10. The tub 12 may be provided in an approximate box shape. One side of the tub 12 may be open. In other words, the tub 12 may have an opening 12a. In an example, a front surface of the tub 12 may be open.
The tub 12 may include an upper surface 12c, a lower surface 12b, and a rear surface 12f opposite to the opening 12a. The tub 12 may include a first side 12d connecting the upper surface 12c and the lower surface 12b and a second side 12e opposite to the first side 12d. The first side 12d and/or the second side 12e may be connected to the rear surface 12f.
The dishwasher 1 may further include a storage container provided within the tub 12 to store dishware, such as dishes, utensils, and the like. The storage container may include a plurality of baskets 51, 52 and 53.
The storage container may include an intermediate basket 52 positioned at the center in a height direction of the dishwasher 1 and a lower basket 51 positioned at the lower portion in the height direction of the dishwasher 1. The intermediate basket 52 may be arranged to be supported on an intermediate guide rack 13b. The lower basket 51 may be arranged to be supported on a lower guide rack 13a. The intermediate guide rack 13b and the lower guide rack 13a may be installed on the sides 12d and 12e of the tub 12 so as to be slidable toward the opening 12a of the tub 12.
The plurality of baskets 51, 52 and 53 may store relatively bulky tableware. However, the types of tableware stored in the plurality of baskets 51, 52 and 53 are not limited to relatively bulky tableware. In other words, the plurality of baskets 51, 52 and 53 may store relatively bulky tableware as well as relatively small tableware.
The storage container may include an upper basket 53 positioned at the upper portion in the height direction of the dishwasher 1. The upper basket 53 may be formed in the shape of a rack assembly to allow relatively small volume tableware to be stored. For example, the upper basket 53 may store cooking utensils, such as ladles, knives, flippers, and the like, or cutlery. In addition, the rack assembly may also store small cups, such as espresso mugs. However, the types of tableware stored in the upper basket 53 are not limited to the examples described above.
The upper basket 53 may be arranged to be supported on an upper guide rack 13c. The upper guide rack 13c may be installed on the side 12d of the tub 12. For example, the upper basket 53 may be slidably movable by the upper guide rack 13c and may be moved into or out of a washing chamber C.
The dishwasher 1 may include the washing chamber C, which is a space formed in the tub 12. The washing chamber C may be defined as an inner space of the tub 12. The washing chamber C may refer to a space in which the dishware loaded in the baskets 51, 52 and 53 may be washed and dried by water.
The dishwasher 1 may include a sprayer 40 configured to spray water. The sprayer 40 may receive water from a sump assembly 70, which will be described later. The sprayer 40 may include a plurality of spray units 41, 42 and 43.
For example, the plurality of spray units 41, 42 and 43 may include a first spray unit 41 disposed at a lower portion of the lower basket 51 in the height direction of the dishwasher 1, a second spray unit 42 disposed at a lower portion of the intermediate basket 52 in the height direction of the dishwasher 1, and a third spray unit 43 disposed at an upper portion of the upper basket 53 in the height direction of the dishwasher 1.
Each of the plurality of spray units 41, 42 and 43 may be configured to spray water while rotating. Each of the first spray unit 41, the second spray unit 42, and the third spray unit 43 may be arranged to spray water while rotating.
The dishwasher 1 may include an auxiliary sprayer 30. The auxiliary sprayer 30 may be disposed on a side of a lower portion of the washing chamber C to spray water to a predetermined area. The auxiliary sprayer 30 may be designed to spray water at a relatively high pressure compared to the sprayer 40, so that heavily contaminated dishes may be intensively washed.
The dishwasher 1 may include the sump assembly 70. The sump assembly 70 may be configured to receive water. The sump assembly 70 may collect water from the washing chamber C.
For example, to facilitate water collection of the sump assembly 70, the lower surface 12b of the tub 12 may be arranged to be inclined downwardly toward the sump assembly 70. Water from the washing chamber C may flow down along the slope of the lower surface 12b of the tub 12 and smoothly into the sump assembly 70.
The sump assembly 70 may include a circulation pump 72 that pumps water stored in the sump assembly 70 to the sprayer 40. The sump assembly 70 may include a drain pump 81 that drains water and foreign substances (e.g., food residue, etc.) remaining in the sump assembly 70.
The sump assembly 70 may pump the collected water and provide the collected water to the sprayer 40. The sump assembly 70 may include a connection port 90 connected to the sprayer 40 to supply water to the sprayer 40.
The connection port 90 may include a first connection port 91 connected to the first spray unit 41, a second connection port 92 connected to the second spray 42, a third connection port 93 connected to the third spray unit 43, and a fourth connection port 94 connected to the auxiliary sprayer 30.
The dishwasher 1 may include a filter assembly 60. The filter assembly 60 may be configured to filter out foreign substances contained in the water entering the sump assembly 70. The filter assembly 60 may be detachably mounted to the sump assembly 70.
The filter assembly 60 may include at least one filter. For example, the filter assembly 60 may include a fine filter 61, a coarse filter (not shown), and a micro filter (not shown).
The fine filter 61 may be detachably mounted to the lower surface 12b of the tub 12. For example, the fine filter 61 may include a horizontal plate shape.
The water filtered through the filter assembly 60 may be pumped by the circulation pump 500 and supplied to the sprayer 40. As a result, clean water from which foreign substances have been removed may be sprayed into the washing chamber C via the sprayer 40.
The dishwasher 1 may include a machine room L which is a space arranged below the tub 12. The machine room L may be a place where a configuration for circulating water is arranged.
For example, at least a portion of the sump assembly 70 may be disposed in the machine room L. The majority of the sump assembly 70 may be disposed in the machine room L. In other words, among the sump assembly 70, an area of the sump assembly 70 that is located in the washing chamber C may be smaller than an area of the sump assembly 70 that is located in the machine room L. By reducing the area of the sump assembly 70 occupying the washing chamber C, the area of the washing chamber C may be secured. As a result, the capacity of the washing chamber C may be increased, thereby improving the storage of dishware.
The dishwasher 1 may include a door 20 configured to open or close the opening 12a of the tub 12. The door 20 may be installed on the main body 10 to open or close the opening 12a of the tub 12. The door 20 may be installed on the main body 10 so as to be rotatable. The door 20 may be detachably mounted to the main body 10.
The door 20 may include an outer door 21 forming the front exterior of the dishwasher 1 and an inner door 22 arranged to face the tub 12. The inner door 22 may be arranged to be positioned on the inside of the tub 12 when the door 20 closes the tub 12.
The outer door 21 and the inner door 22 may be coupled. The inner door 22 may be coupled to an inner surface of the outer door 21. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the outer door 21 and the inner door 22 may be integrally formed.
The dishwasher 1 may further include a sealing member 100 disposed between the tub 12 and the door 20 to prevent leakage of water. The sealing member 100 may block a gap between the tub 12 and the door 20.
The sealing member 100 may be formed of an elastic material. For example, the sealing member 100 may be formed of rubber, silicone, or the like.
The sealing member 100 may extend along the first side 12d, the upper surface 12c, and the second side 12e of the tub 12.
The sealing member 100 may be coupled to the tub 12. The tub 12 may include a coupling groove 17 provided to couple the sealing member 100. The coupling groove 17 may be formed by a first coupling wall 15 and a second coupling wall 16.
The coupling groove 17 may be formed by being recessed in a direction toward the rear surface 12f from the opening 12a of the tub 12. The coupling groove 17 may be recessed in one direction X in which the door 20 presses against the sealing member 100.
The first coupling wall 15 may be a tub bracket. The tub bracket 15 may be fastened to the upper surface 12c and/or the side surfaces 12d and 12e of the tub 12. The tub bracket 15 may extend along the side surfaces 12d and 12e of the tub 12 and may be bent to face the upper surface 12c.
The second coupling wall 16 may be the upper surface 12c and/or the side surfaces 12d and 12e of the tub 12. The second coupling wall 16 may be disposed adjacent to the door 20.
The first coupling wall 15 may be disposed adjacent to the washing chamber C. The first coupling wall 15 may be disposed to face the inside of the tub 12 more than the second coupling wall 16.
The sealing member 100 may be coupled to the coupling groove 17. The sealing member 100 may extend in one direction X.
The sealing member 100 may include a fixed body 160 coupled to the tub 12. The fixed body 160 may be coupled to the coupling groove 17. The fixed body 160 may be secured to the tub 12. The fixed body 160 may be in contact with the first coupling wall 15 and/or the second coupling wall 16.
The sealing member 100 may include a sealing body 110 extending from the fixed body 160 toward the door 20. The sealing body 110 may protrude toward the door 20 and may be in contact with the door 20. The fixed body 160 may be disposed facing in one direction X from the sealing body 110. The inner door 22 may press against the sealing body 110 in one direction X.
The sealing body 110 may be disposed to protrude from the coupling groove 17. The sealing body 110 may protrude from the first coupling wall 15 toward the door 20.
The fixed body 160 may include an insertion portion 170 inserted into the coupling groove 17. The insertion portion 170 may be in contact with the first coupling wall 15 and/or the second coupling wall 16.
The insertion portion 170 may have an approximately rectangular shape. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the insertion portion 170 may have a variety of shapes, such as circular, polygonal, or the like.
The insertion portion 170 may include an insertion protrusion 171 extending toward the first coupling wall 15 and/or the second coupling wall 16. The insertion protrusions 171 may be provided in a plurality. The insertion protrusions 171 may be arranged to be able to contact with the first coupling wall 15 and/or the second coupling wall 16.
The fixed body 160 may include a seat portion 180 disposed to face the door 20. The seat portion 180 may be disposed at an end of the insertion portion 170. The seat portion 180 may be positioned on the opposite side of a lower surface of the insertion portion 170 inserted into the coupling groove 17.
The sealing body 110 may include a contact portion 120 that may come into contact with the door 20. The contact portion 120 may be disposed adjacent to the door 20. The contact portion 120 may be disposed at an end of the sealing body 110 and may be pressed by the door 20.
The contact portion 120 may include a contact surface 121 in contact with the door 20. The door 20 may press against the contact surface 121 in one direction. The contact surface 121 may be inclined to face the door 20 as it approaches the first coupling wall 15. The contact surface 121 may be inclined downwardly to face one direction X as it approaches the second coupling wall 16.
The contact surface 121 may include a protrusion 122 protruding toward the door 20. The protrusion 122 may be formed at an end of the contact surface 121 facing the inside of the tub 12.
The sealing body 110 may include a support portion 130 connecting the contact portion 120 and the fixed body 160. The support portion 130 may be arranged such that the contact portion 120 is supported on the fixed body 160. The support portion 130 may extend between the contact portion and the seat portion 180.
The support portion 130 may be disposed adjacent to the second coupling wall 16. The support portion 130 may be arranged to be brought into contact with the second coupling wall 16.
The sealing body 110 may include a bend portion 140. The bend portion 140 may be configured to bend when the door 20 presses against the contact portion 120. The bend portion 140 may be arranged to bend toward the fixed body 160. When the door 20 presses the sealing member 100 in one direction X, the bend portion 140 may bend in one direction X.
The bend portion 140 may be arranged to be able to contact with the seat portion 180. The bend portion 140 may be in contact with the seat portion 180 by the pressing of the door 20 and may be supported by the seat portion 180. The bend portion 140 may include a surface facing the seat portion 180.
The bend portion 140 may connect the contact portion 120 and the support portion 130. The bend portion 140 may extend between the contact portion 120 and the support portion 130.
The bend portion 140 may include a bending end 141 disposed at an end thereof. The bending end 141 may be one end of the bend portion 140. The bending end 141 may be a portion where the bend portion 140 is connected to the support portion 130.
The bending end 141 may be connected to the support portion 130. The bending end 141 may be arranged to be spaced apart from the fixed body 160. The bending end 141 may be spaced apart from the seat portion 180 and connected to the support portion 130.
When the door 20 presses the sealing member 100, the bend portion 140 may be bent in one direction X from the bending end 141. In this case, because the bending end 141 is connected to the support portion 130, the deformation applied to the bending end 141 may be reduced.
In particular, the force from the door 20 pressing on the sealing member 100 may be distributed over the bend portion 140. In other words, the deformation caused by the bending may be distributed to the entire bend portion 140. Accordingly, because the deformation applied to the entire bend portion 140, including the bending end 141, is reduced, the shape recoverability of the sealing member 100 may be improved. In other words, the durability of the sealing member 100 may be improved.
The bending end 141 may be disposed to face the second coupling wall 16. The bending end 141 may be connected to the support portion 130 adjacent to the second coupling wall 16.
The bend portion 140 may include a support protrusion 145. The support protrusion 145 may extend toward the seat portion 180. The support protrusion 145 may extend along one direction X in which the door 20 is pressing.
The support protrusion 145 may include an end 146 directed in one direction X. The end 146 of the support protrusion 145 may be in contact with the seat portion 180.
In response to the support protrusion 145 contacting the seat portion 180, the seat portion 180 may exert a force on the support protrusion 145. In other words, the sealing member 100 may exert a repulsive force in a direction opposite to the one direction X in which the door 20 presses. Accordingly, the sealing member 100 may exert a certain amount of repulsive force on the door 20 to maintain the sealing force of the door 20.
The end 146 of the support protrusion 145 may include a plane. The end 146 of the support protrusion 145 may extend along a straight line. Although the cross-section of the support protrusion 145 is shown in the drawings as having an approximately trapezoidal shape and the end 146 includes a plane, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the cross-section of the support protrusion 145 may have an approximately semicircular shape and the end 146 may include a curved surface.
The seat portion 180 may include a seating surface 181 that may come into contact with the bend portion 140. The seating surface 181 may be in contact with the support protrusion 145.
The seating surface 181 may be provided to have a shape corresponding to the end 146 of the support protrusion 145. The seating surface 181 may include a plane. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the seating surface 181 may include a curved surface.
The seating surface 181 may be configured to be inclined. The seating surface 181 may be arranged to be inclined toward one direction X in which the door 20 presses the contact portion 120 as it approaches the center of the tub 12. The seating surface 181 may be inclined toward the rear surface 12f of the tub 12 as it approaches the inside of the tub 12.
As the seating surface 181 is inclined, the bend portion 140 may be bent along a direction in which the seating surface 181 is inclined. In other words, a bending angle of the bend portion 140 may be increased. In particular, the support protrusion 145 may be moved toward the rear surface 12f of the tub 12.
The angle f at which the seating surface 181 is inclined may be approximately 20 to 40 degrees, and is shown herein as an example of approximately 30 degrees, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
The bend portion 140 may include an extension 148 extending between the support protrusion 145 and the bending end 141. A thickness e of the extension 148 may increase as it approaches the bending end 141. In other words, by providing a greater thickness a of the bending end 141, the bend portion 140 may be stably bent from the bending end 141.
The thickness a of the bending end 141 may be set to be greater than a thickness c of the support protrusion 145. For example, the thickness a of the bending end 141 may be about 1.0 to 2.5 mm. In the drawings, it is shown as an example of about 2.0 mm, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
The greater the thickness c of the support protrusion 145, the greater the repulsive force on the door 20 may be. The thickness c of the support protrusion 145 may be about 0.5 to 3.0 mm. In the drawings, it is shown as an example of about 1.5 mm, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
In the drawings, it is shown as an example that the length d of the end 146 of the bending end 141 is about 1 mm, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
The thickness of the support member 141 may decrease as it moves from the bending end 141 to the contact portion 120. In other words, the thickness of the bending end 141 may be set to be sufficiently large.
The thickness a of the bending end 141 may be set to be greater than the distance b by which the bending end 141 is spaced apart from the seat portion 180. In other words, a spacing distance b between the bending end 141 and the seat portion 180 may be set to be smaller than the thickness a of the bending end 141, so that the bend portion 140 may be stably bent from the bending end 141.
For example, the spacing distance b between the bending end 141 and the seat portion 180 may be 4.0 mm or less. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
The length W of the contact member 120 may be about 10.0 mm. The length L1 of the sealing body 110 may be about 8.5 mm. The length L2 of the sealing member 100 may be about 22.5 mm. The separation distance G between the bend portion 140 and the seat portion 180 may be about 2.5 mm. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
The bending portion 141 may be connected to the support portion 130 to form a through hole 111 in the sealing body 110. The sealing body 110 may prevent deformation due to the pressure of the door 20 by including the through hole 111. The sealing body 110 may be easily manufactured by including the through hole 111.
The through hole 111 may have a closed loop shape. Accordingly, this may prevent foreign substances from becoming trapped.
The through hole 111 may be spaced apart from the fixed body 160. The through hole 111 may be spaced apart from the seat portion 180 toward the door 20. In other words, the bend portion 148 arranged to form the through hole 111 is connected to the support portion 130 and the bend portion 148 is spaced apart from the seat portion 180, such that the through hole 111 may be spaced apart from the seat portion 180.
Redundant configurations of
The support protrusion 145 may include a first support protrusion 145a and a second support protrusion 145b spaced apart from the first support protrusion. The second support protrusion 145b may be disposed between the bending end 141 and the first support protrusion 145a.
The support protrusions 145a and 145b may be provided in a plurality to increase the repulsive force of the sealing member 100 against the door 20.
With respect to one direction X, the length of the first support protrusion 145a may be set to be greater than the length of the second support protrusion 145b.
The support protrusions 145 may be formed continuously. The support protrusions 145 may be provided continuously along the lower surface of the bend portion 140. The support protrusion 145 may be connected to the bending end 141.
The seat portion 180 may include a seating protrusion 182 extending toward the bend portion 140. The seating protrusion 182 may protrude from the seat portion 180 toward the door 20. The seating protrusion 182 may be in contact with the bend portion 140. The bend portion 140 may be supported by the seating protrusion 182 by the pressure of the door 20.
The embodiments of
While the present disclosure has been particularly described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it should be understood by those of skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2022-0080944 | Jun 2022 | KR | national |
| 10-2022-0136030 | Oct 2022 | KR | national |
This application is a continuation application, under 35 U.S.C. § 111 (a), of international application No. PCT/KR2023/008349, filed Jun. 16, 2023, which claims priority under 35 U. S. C. § 119 to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2022-0080944, filed Jun. 30, 2022, and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2022-0136030, filed Oct. 20, 2022, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/KR2023/008349 | Jun 2023 | WO |
| Child | 19000916 | US |
