This application claims the benefit of priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2019-0013925, filed on Feb. 1, 2019, and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2019-0130784, filed on Oct. 21, 2019, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure relates to a laundry treating apparatus having a rotary drum in which lifters are provided.
Korean Utility Model Registration No. 20-0358903 discloses a washing machine having a drum in which lifters are provided. A hook protrudes from one surface of the lifter, and a hook through-hole is formed in the drum such that the hook is caught by the hook through-hole.
The hook includes a neck extending from a lifter main body, and a head expanding from an end of the neck so as to have a larger width than the neck. The lifter is installed such that the head is caught by an outer surface of the drum in a state in which the neck is positioned in the hook through-hole.
However, in order to injection-mold the lifter having the hook as described above, a mold includes an upper mold configured to form an upper surface of the lifter main body, and a lower mold configured to form a lower surface of the lifter main body. However, there is a disadvantage in that undercutting occurs due to a part of the head vertically overlapping the lifter main body.
An aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a laundry treating apparatus in which a lifter provided in a drum includes a lifter frame coupled to the drum, and a lifter cover configured to cover the lifter frame, in which the lifter frame may be easily formed by injection molding.
Another aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a laundry treating apparatus in which there is no restriction in terms of installation direction during a process of installing a lifter in a drum, and the lifter may thus be more easily installed in the drum.
Still another aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a laundry treating apparatus capable of ensuring structural rigidity of a lifter installed in a drum and improving an aesthetic appearance of the interior of the drum by minimizing exposure of an unnecessary portion.
Aspects of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other aspects not mentioned above may be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.
In a laundry treating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a drum into which laundry has been inserted rotates about a predetermined rotation axis extending in a front-rear direction, and a lifter provided in the drum lifts up the laundry in the drum when the drum rotates.
The lifter includes a lifter frame and a lifter cover. An outer side of the lifter frame is covered by the lifter cover.
The lifter frame is made of synthetic resin and includes a frame base configured to adjoin an inner surface of the drum and having an opening portion, an insertion protrusion protruding from a bottom surface of the frame base, and a frame sidewall extending upward from the frame base and configured to cover at least a part of the opening portion.
A mounting slot is formed in the drum, and the insertion protrusion is inserted into the mounting slot. The insertion protrusion includes a vertical portion extending downward from the bottom surface of the frame base, and a catching portion bent toward the inside of the opening portion at a lower end of the vertical portion.
The lifter frame may have a catching protrusion protruding from an inner surface of the lifter frame and having a shape that is symmetrical based on a center in a plan view.
A planar shape of the frame cover may be formed to cover a region extending from the region in which any one of the mounting slots in a first group and the mounting slots in a second group is formed by a spacing distance between the mounting slots in the first group and the mounting slots in the second group.
The frame cover may be made of metal. The frame base may have a seating groove in which a lower end of the frame cover is seated. The seating groove may extend annularly along a circumference of the opening portion, and the catching portion may be disposed in an inner portion surrounded by the seating groove.
A coupling tab may be formed at the lower end of the frame cover, and a tab binding port through which the coupling tab passes may be formed in the seating groove.
The seating groove extends in the form of a closed curve along a circumference of the lifter frame, and a horizontal projection plane of the insertion protrusion may be positioned in the closed curve of the seating groove.
The mounting slot may include an insertion section S1 having a width W1 through which the catching portion passes, and a binding section S2 extending forward or rearward from the insertion section and having a width W2 smaller than a width of the catching portion.
The lifter frame may include a frame upper plate disposed at a position spaced apart from the frame base in a radial direction of the drum and connected to the frame base through the frame sidewall, and a fastening boss protruding from a bottom surface of the frame upper plate. The drum may have a fastening hole fastened to the fastening boss by means of a predetermined fastening member.
The pair of lifters may be spaced apart from each other in the front-rear direction of the drum.
The frame base may include left and right sides that extend in the front-rear direction and are formed to be parallel to each other. The tab binding port may be formed in at least one of the left side or the right side, and the coupling tab configured to be inserted into the tab binding port may be formed at the lower end of the lifter cover.
The insertion protrusions may be formed at the left side and the right side, respectively. The catching portion of the insertion protrusion formed at the left side may be bent rightward from the vertical portion, and the catching portion of the insertion protrusion formed at the right side may be bent leftward from the vertical portion.
According to the laundry treating apparatus of the present disclosure, in which the lifter includes the lifter frame coupled to the drum, and the lifter cover configured to cover the lifter frame, the catching protrusion is formed to be symmetrical in a plan view. Accordingly, the catching protrusion may be installed to come into contact with the catching tab in any direction, even when the front and rear positions of the lifter are changed during the process of installing the lifter in the drum.
In addition, according to the laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure, the operation of assembling the drum and the lifter may be easily performed without considering the directionality of the lifter during the process of installing a plurality of lifters in the drum.
In addition, according to the laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure, the installation position of the lifter may be changed depending on the type of drum, an extra mounting slot for changing the installation position may be covered by the frame cover.
In addition, according to the laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure, the forming position of the insertion protrusion is disposed inward from the forming position of the coupling tab. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a particular portion from being structurally weakened and the insertion protrusion may be covered by the frame cover.
In addition, according to the laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure, the fastening boss is formed on the upper surface of the lifter frame that has relatively high rigidity. Accordingly, fastening force may be further increased when the fastening boss and the fastening hole are fastened by means of the fastening member.
The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from the detailed description of the following aspects in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Advantages and features of the present disclosure and methods for achieving them will become apparent from the descriptions of aspects herein below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the aspects disclosed herein but may be implemented in various different forms. The aspects are provided to make the description of the present disclosure thorough and to fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. It is to be noted that the scope of the present disclosure is defined only by the claims.
The shapes, sizes, ratios, angles, the number of elements given in the drawings are merely exemplary, and thus, the present disclosure is not limited to the illustrated details. Like reference numerals designate like elements throughout the specification.
In relation to describing the present disclosure, when the detailed description of the relevant known technology is determined to unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present disclosure, the detailed description may be omitted.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular example embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” may be intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “including,” and “having,” are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein are not to be construed as necessarily requiring their performance in the particular order discussed or illustrated, unless specifically identified as an order of performance. It is also to be understood that additional or alternative steps may be employed.
When an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “engaged to,” “connected to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly on, engaged, connected or coupled to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on,” “directly engaged to,” “directly connected to,” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there may be no intervening elements or layers present. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted in a like fashion (e.g., “between” versus “directly between,” “adjacent” versus “directly adjacent,” etc.). As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
The terms “connected” and “coupled” are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings, and can include electrical connections or couplings, whether direct or indirect. The connection can be such that the objects are permanently connected or releasably connected. The term “communicatively coupled” is defined as connected, either directly or indirectly through intervening components, and the connections are not necessarily limited to physical connections, but are connections that accommodate the transfer of data, fluids, or other matter between the so-described components.
Although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms may be only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Terms such as “first,” “second,” and other numerical terms when used herein do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the example embodiments.
Spatially relative terms, such as “inner,” “outer,” “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. Spatially relative terms may be intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the example term “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.
The term “or” as used herein is to be interpreted as an inclusive or meaning any one or any combination. Therefore, “A, B or C” means any of the following: “A; B; C; A and B; A and C; B and C; A, B and C”. An exception to this definition will occur only when a combination of elements, functions, steps or acts are in some way inherently mutually exclusive.
Hereinafter, a washing machine will be described as an example of a laundry treating apparatus, but the laundry treating apparatus is not limited to the washing machine. The laundry treating apparatus is an apparatus for treating laundry (or an object to be dried) such as clothes inputted into a drum 51 and may be a dryer or a washing-drying machine.
Referring to
A drum 51 may be rotated about a rotation axis O extending in a front-rear direction, and the drum 51 may constitute the washing tub 50. The rotation axis is approximately horizontal. However, the term “horizontal” does not mean “geometrically horizontal” in a strict sense. In a case in which an inclination is closer to a horizontal axis than a vertical axis even though the inclination is formed at a certain angle with respect to the horizontal axis as illustrated in
A laundry insertion port is formed in a front surface of the casing 13, and a door 21 configured to open or close the laundry insertion port may be rotatably provided on the casing 13. A tubular gasket 22 is provided such that the laundry insertion port and an inlet of the water storage tub 31 communicate with each other. The gasket 22 is made of a soft material (for example, rubber). A front end of the gasket 22 may be connected to a circumference of the laundry insertion port of the casing 13, and a rear end of the gasket 22 may be connected to a circumference of the inlet of the water storage tub 31.
A water supply valve 33, a water supply pipe 34, and a water supply hose 37 may be installed in the casing 13. When the water supply valve 33 is opened and the washing water is supplied, the washing water that has passed through the water supply pipe 34 may be mixed with detergent in a dispenser 35 that stores the detergent, and then the washing water may be supplied to the water storage tub 31 through the water supply hose 37.
An input port of a pump 24 is connected to the water storage tub 31 through the drain hose 17, and a discharge port of the pump 24 is connected to drain pipes 19. The water discharged from the water storage tub 31 through the drain hose 17 is pumped by the pump 24, flows through the drain pipes 19, and then is discharged to the outside of the laundry treating apparatus.
The washing tub 50 may include the drum 51, a front cover 52 coupled to a front end of the drum 51, and a rear cover 53 coupled to a rear end of the drum 51. The drum 51 may be formed in the form of a tubular (or cylindrical) body made by rolling up a metal plate (for example, made of stainless steel) having a plurality of through-holes 51h (see
An opening portion may be formed in the front cover 52 so that laundry may be inserted into the drum 51. The inlet of the water storage tub 31 communicates with the opening portion. The front cover 52 may be made of the same type of material as the drum 51.
The rear cover 53 closes an opened rear side of the drum 51, and a spider 26 connected to a driving shaft 25a of the motor 25 may be coupled to a rear surface of the rear cover 53. The spider 26 is configured to transmit rotational force of the driving shaft 25a to the washing tub 50, and the driving shaft 25a of the motor 25 may be coupled to a center of the spider 26.
A plurality of lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b are provided in the drum 51. When the drum 51 is rotated, the laundry is lifted up by the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b.
The multiple lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a include first and second lifters disposed in the front-rear direction of the drum 51. Hereinafter, an example in which the first lifters are front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a and the second lifters are rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b spaced rearward apart from the front lifters will be described. However, the first lifter may be the rear lifter and the second lifter may be the front lifter depending on the embodiment.
Referring to
Hereinafter, an example in which the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a and the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b have the same structure will be described, but the present disclosure is not necessarily limited thereto.
Referring to
The lifter frame 620 may be made of synthetic resin. The lifter frame 620 is preferably formed by injection molding, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
A lifter made of metal is not only excellent in strength, but also luxurious and hygienic. In order to couple the lifter directly to a drum made of metal, it is necessary to weld the lifter to a raw material cut out in a shape of the deployed drum, roll up the raw material in a cylindrical shape, and then weld together the ends of the raw material where they meet each other. However, raw material that was flat becomes curved during the process of rolling up the raw material, and as a result, there is a concern that stress may be applied to the welded portions between the lifter and the drum and cause the welded portions to separate.
In order to address this concern, the present disclosure proposes a configuration in which a frame cover 640 made of metal is fixed to the drum 51 by means of a lifter frame 620 made of synthetic resin.
Meanwhile, referring to
The frame base 621 is fixed to the inner circumferential surface of the drum 51. The frame base 621 may have a ring shape (or a closed shape formed by a single line) opened at a central portion thereof.
The frame upper plate 623 is spaced apart from the frame base 621 in the direction toward the inside of the drum 51 and connected to the frame base 621 by means of the frame sidewall 622. The frame sidewall 622 may be formed in the form of a tubular (or cylindrical) body, such that a lower end of the frame sidewall 622 is connected to the frame base 621, and an upper end of the frame sidewall 622 is connected to the frame upper plate 623.
The frame sidewall 622 is shaped such that a contour of a cross section thereof gradually decreases upward from the lower end connected to the frame base 621 (or in the radial direction of the drum 51) (or gradually decreases in a direction away from the inner circumferential surface of the drum 51), and the contour of the cross section is smallest at a portion that meets the frame upper plate 623.
One or more water flow inlet holes may be formed in the drum 51 so as to allow the washing water stored in the water storage tub 31 to be introduced to the inside of the frame cover 640. Any opening portion formed in a region covered by the frame cover 640 may be a water flow inlet hole. For example, some of the through-holes 51h, which are positioned inside the frame cover 640, may be water flow inlet holes. Furthermore, mounting slots 511a and 511b, fastening holes 513a and 513b, and opening portions 512a and 512b, which will be described below, may be water flow inlet holes.
One or more water flow through-holes 624 and 624a may be formed in the lifter frame 620. Any opening may be a water flow through-hole 624 as long as the opening is formed in the lifter frame 620 and allows the inside and the outside of the lifter frame 620 to communicate with each other.
The water flow through-hole 624 may be formed in the frame sidewall 622 and/or the frame upper plate 623. The washing water stored in the concave space of the lifter frame 620 may be discharged through the water flow through-hole 624.
One or more water flow discharge holes 646h may be formed in the frame cover 640 to discharge the washing water in the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b into the drum 51. The washing water in the concave space inside the lifter frame 620 may pass through the water flow through-hole 624, and then may be discharged into the drum 51 through the water flow discharge hole 646h.
An outer surface 640a of the frame cover 640, which is exposed to the inside of the drum 51 and comes into contact with the laundry, has a convex shape, and an inner surface of the frame cover 640 has a concave shape that corresponds to the convex outer surface 620a of the lifter frame 620. The frame cover 640 may be made of metal, preferably stainless steel, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The frame cover 640 may be formed by plastically processing (for example, pressing) a metal plate having a predetermined thickness.
The frame cover 640 may include a cover sidewall 645 extending upward from a lower end adjoining the frame base 621, and a cover upper plate 646 configured to cover an upper side of the cover sidewall 645. The cover upper plate 646 is approximately parallel to the frame upper plate 623. The plurality of water flow discharge holes 646h may be formed in the cover upper plate 646.
The cover sidewall 645 is shaped such that a contour of a cross section thereof gradually decreases upward from the lower end (or in the radial direction of the drum 51) (or gradually decreases in the direction away from the inner circumferential surface of the drum 51), and the contour of the cross section is smallest at a portion that meets the cover upper plate 646.
The lifter frame 620 includes spacers 625 that protrude from the frame upper plate 623 and allow the frame cover 640 to be spaced apart from the frame upper plate 623. The spacer 625 protrudes from the frame upper plate 623 to the inner surface of the frame cover 640.
The inner surface of the frame cover 640 may be spaced apart from the frame upper plate 623 to a degree equal to or greater than a length (or height) of the spacer 625 protruding from the frame upper plate 623. The spacer 625 may be spaced apart from the inner surface of the frame cover 640 at a predetermined distance. In this case, the inner surface of the frame cover 640 is spaced apart from the frame upper plate 623 at a distance equal to a sum of the height of the spacer 625 and the interval between the spacer 625 and the inner surface of the frame cover 640. When the frame cover 640 is pressed by external force, the frame cover 640 comes into contact with the frame upper plate 623, such that the frame cover 640 is prevented from being deformed any further.
Alternatively, the spacer 625 may be configured to come into contact with the frame cover 640, depending on the embodiment. In this case, the spacer 625 protrudes from the outer surface 620a of the lifter frame 620 and adjoins the inner surface of the frame cover 640. Because the spacer 625 supports the inner surface of the frame cover 640 in the state in which the frame upper plate 623 is spaced apart from the frame cover 640, the state in which the frame cover 640 is spaced apart from the frame upper plate 623 may be maintained even though the frame cover 640 is pressed toward the lifter frame 620 by external force.
The spacer 625 may have a cross-shaped rib structure. Specifically, the spacer 625 may include a vertical rib 625a extending on the frame upper plate 623 in a longitudinal direction of the lifter frame 620 (or the front-rear direction), and a horizontal rib 625b extending while crossing the vertical rib 625a. The vertical rib 625a and the horizontal rib 625b may be orthogonal to each other.
Referring to
A separation space g2 may also be formed between the frame sidewall 622 and the cover sidewall 645. A seating groove 621r (see
The washing water introduced into each of the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b is introduced into the separation spaces g1 and g2, and water flows formed in the separation spaces g1 and g2 during the rotation of the washing tub 50 clean the outer surface of the lifter frame 620 and the inner surface of the frame cover 640. Foreign substances produced during the cleaning process may be discharged through the water flow discharge hole 646h formed in the frame cover 640 or through the water flow inlet hole formed in the drum 51. The flow paths are formed between the lifter frame 620 and the frame cover 640 by the separation spaces g1 and g2, and as a result, this configuration may be advantageous in maintaining the lifters 61a, 62a, 63a, 61b, 62b, and 63b in a clean state.
The frame cover 640 may have domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 formed at the positions corresponding to the spacers 625. That is, the spacers 625 may be disposed below the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644. In the case in which the plurality of spacers 625 are formed in the exemplary embodiment, the plurality of domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may be formed at the positions corresponding to the plurality of spacers 625, respectively.
The domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may be formed on the cover upper plate 646. An inner surface of each of the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644, which faces the spacer 625, may be concavely formed, and an outer surface of each of the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may be convexly formed. The concave inner surface of each of the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may come into contact with the spacer 625.
The domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 are convexly formed by pressing the cover upper plate 646, which is made of metal. The plurality of domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may be disposed in the longitudinal direction of the cover upper plate 646 (or the longitudinal direction of the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b). The one or more water flow discharge holes 646h may be formed between the adjacent domes 641, 642, 643, and 644.
The domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may include two or more domes of which the depth of the concave portion of the inner surfaces thereof is different from each other. In more detail, the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may include large domes 641 and 644, each of which have a concave portion of a first depth, and small domes 642 and 643, each of which have a concave portion of a second depth smaller than the first depth. The height of the spacers 625a and 625d corresponding to the large domes 641 and 644 may be greater than the height of the spacers 625b and 625c corresponding to the small domes 642 and 643.
The domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may include the two or more domes having different sizes. Each of the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 may have a circular shape, but the present disclosure is not necessarily limited thereto. Here, the ‘size’ may be determined based on the shape when the concave portion of the inner surface of each of the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 are viewed from above, and for example, the ‘size’ may be defined as a diameter of the concave portion. However, since the difference between the inner diameter and the outer diameter of each of the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644 is merely due to the thickness of the material, the size may be defined based on the outer diameter of each of the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644.
The size of the spacer 625 may also vary depending on the size of each of the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644. That is, in the case in which there are the large domes 641 and 644 and the small domes 642 and 643 as illustrated in
The two small domes 643 and 644 may be positioned between the pair of large domes 641 and 642, and the water flow discharge holes 646h may be formed between the domes 641, 642, 643, and 644. The plurality of water flow discharge holes 646h may be arranged in a direction crossing the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b (or a direction orthogonal to the length of each of the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b).
The water stored in the water storage tub 31 is introduced into the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b through the opening portion. The lifter frame 620 is a structure having one or more of the water flow through-holes 624, and the water introduced into the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b may reach the water flow discharge holes 646h through the water flow through-holes 624.
The washing water introduced into the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b is raised by the rotation of the washing tub 50 in the state in which the washing water is in the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b, and the washing water is discharged (or sprayed) through the water flow discharge holes 646h in this process.
Referring to
Each of the washing protrusions 603 and 604 has a shape corresponding (or similar) to the contour of the cover sidewall 645, and preferably, the washing protrusion may protrude to a predetermined height from the cover sidewall 645. Since the contour of the cover sidewall 645 decreases upward, among the washing protrusions 603 and 604, the washing protrusion that is positioned at an upper side is smaller than the other washing protrusion.
A frictional force applied between the laundry and the washing protrusions 603 and 604 generates an effect of rubbing the laundry, thereby improving washing power. In addition, because the washing protrusions 603 and 604 assist in the operation of lifting up the laundry, physical force (for example, force for lifting up or striking the laundry) of a level as in the related art may be applied to the laundry even when the height of each of the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b is decreased to be smaller than that in the related art.
The frame cover 640 may be coupled to the lifter frame 620. Referring to
Referring to
Meanwhile, the seating groove 621r, which corresponds to the lower end of the frame cover 640, may be formed in the frame base 621 of the lifter frame 620. The lower end of the frame cover 640 may be inserted and seated in the seating groove 621r. In this case, the tab binding port 621h may be formed in the seating groove 621r.
Hereinafter, a structure in which the lifter frame 620 and the drum 51 are coupled to each other will be described.
Referring to
The mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1 and the mounting slots 511a2 in the second group G2 may include a number of the mounting slots 511a1(1) to 511a1(4) and 511a2(1) to 511a2(4) that corresponds to the number of the one or more insertion protrusions 627. That is, in the case in which the mounting slots in the first group G1 and the second group G2 are used to install the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a, the number of mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1 and the number of mounting slots 511a2 in the second group G2 may correspond to the number of insertion protrusions 627 provided on each of the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a.
Likewise, depending on the embodiment, in the case in which the mounting slots in the first group G1 and the second group G2 are used to install the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b, the number of mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1 and the number of mounting slots 511a2 in the second group G2 may correspond to the number of insertion protrusions 627 provided on each of the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b.
The one or more insertion protrusions 627 formed on each of the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a or the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b may be selectively fastened to the mounting slots 511a2 in the first group G1 or the second group G2. The position at which the lifter is installed may be determined depending on whether the one or more insertion protrusions 627 formed on each of the lifters 61a, 62a, 63a, 61b, 62b, and 63b are inserted into the mounting slots that constitute any one of the first group G1 or the second group G2.
Hereinafter, the example in which the mounting slots 511a, which constitute the first group G1 and the second group G2, are used to install the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a will be described, but the mounting slots may be formed in the same manner in order to install the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b.
The mounting slots 511a2 in the second group G2 are formed in a region shifted rearward within a range in which the mounting slots 511a2 in the second group G2 overlap the mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1. For reference, in
Referring to
The mounting slots 511a in the respective groups G1 and G2 may be disposed in rows in the front-rear direction. Particularly, the mounting slots 511a in each of the groups G1 and G2 are disposed in two rows. Further, when the entire configuration is viewed without distinguishing the groups, the mounting slots 511a may be arranged along common reference lines extending in the front-rear direction. Preferably, in the embodiment, the mounting slots are disposed on two straight lines parallel to each other.
In more detail, the mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1 may include two or more first mounting slots 511a1(1) and 511a1(2) arranged at a first interval T in a first row P1 extending in the front-rear direction. Furthermore, the mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1 may further include two or more first mounting slots 511a1(3) and 511a1(4) arranged at the first interval T in a second row P2 parallel to the first row P1.
The mounting slots 511a2 in the second group G2 may include two or more second mounting slots 511a2(1) and 511a2(2) arranged in the first row P1 at positions shifted, by a second interval D smaller than the first interval T, rearward from the mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1.
Furthermore, the mounting slots 511a2 in the second group G2 may further include two or more second mounting slots 511a2(3) and 511a2(4) arranged in the second row P2 at positions shifted, by the interval T, rearward from the mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1.
Hereinafter, the mounting slots 511a1 and 511a2, which can be used to install the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a, are defined as being in a front lifter installation group, and the mounting slots 511b (see
The plurality of front or rear lifters 61a, 62a, 63a, 61b, 62b, and 63b may be disposed in a circumferential direction of the drum 51, such that the plurality of front lifter installation groups may be disposed in the circumferential direction, and likewise, the plurality of rear lifter installation groups may also be disposed in the circumferential direction.
Hereinafter, the mounting slot belonging to the front lifter installation group is referred to as the front mounting slot 511a, and the mounting slot belonging to the rear lifter installation group is referred to as the rear mounting slot 511b.
Referring to
As illustrated in
Specifically, the insertion protrusion 627(L) formed at the left side of the frame base 621 may include the catching portion 627b which is bent rightward. On the contrary, the insertion protrusion 627(R) formed at the right side of the frame base 621 may include the catching portion 627b which is bent leftward.
Referring to
Furthermore, as illustrated in
Meanwhile, referring to
Meanwhile, the seating groove 621r may extend in the form of a closed curve along a circumference of the lifter frame 620, and a horizontal projection plane of the insertion protrusion 627 may be positioned in the closed curve of the seating groove 621r.
That is, the insertion protrusion 627 may be positioned inward from the seating groove 621r. In the case in which the coupling tab 648 and the tab binding port 621h are formed on the seating groove 621r, the forming position of the insertion protrusion 627 and the forming positions of the coupling tab 648 and the tab binding port 621h may not overlap each other.
As described above, since the forming position of the insertion protrusion 627 is disposed inward from the forming positions of the coupling tab 648 and the tab binding port 621h, it is possible to prevent a particular portion from being structurally weakened, and the insertion protrusion 627 may be covered by the frame cover 640.
Therefore, it is possible to ensure structural rigidity of the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b installed in the drum 51, and improve an aesthetic appearance of the interior of the drum 51 by minimizing exposure of an unnecessary portion.
Meanwhile, referring to
The frame sidewall 622 may have a mold ejection port 624a formed at a position corresponding to the insertion protrusion 627 when the lifter frame 620 is viewed vertically downward from above. The mold ejection port 624a may be formed in at least one of the sidewall left portion 622L or the sidewall right portion 622R.
The lifter frame 620 may be formed by injection molding. In this case, the mold may include an upper mold that forms the upper surface of the lifter frame 620, and a lower mold that forms the lower surface of the lifter frame 620.
The upper surface of the insertion protrusion 627 may be formed by the upper mold. Since the insertion protrusion 627 is positioned at the lower side of the frame sidewall 622, an opening portion, through which a portion of the upper mold defining the upper surface of the insertion protrusion 627 may pass during the process of opening the mold, needs to be formed in a region that overlaps the insertion protrusion 627 in a direction in which the upper mold is opened on the frame sidewall 622 (or a vertically upward direction from the frame base 621) so that a mold portion of the upper mold, which forms the upper surface of the insertion protrusion 627 (particularly, the upper surface of the catching portion 627b), may be moved upward (or so that the upper mold may be withdrawn without undercutting during the process of opening the mold), and the mold ejection port 624a is the opening portion. For reference, PL in
As illustrated in
Referring to
Referring to
The catching protrusion 626 is selectively inserted into any one of the pair of opening portions 512a1 and 512a2 depending on whether the insertion protrusions 627 are inserted into the mounting slots 511a1 in the first group G1 or the mounting slot 511a2 in the second group G2.
Catching tabs 514a and 514b, which each come into contact with (or are caught by) the lower end of the catching protrusion 626, may be formed on rims of the opening portions 512a and 512b. The catching tabs 514a and 514b may come into contact with the lateral surfaces of the catching protrusions 626 in the opening portions 512a and 512b, thereby restricting lateral movement of the catching protrusions 626.
Meanwhile, the positions of the catching tabs 514a and 514b may be determined based on the relative positions of the mounting slots 511a and 511b with respect to the insertion section 51 of the binding section S2. That is, as illustrated in
On the contrary, like the mounting slot 511a illustrated in
The catching tabs 514a and 514b may be bent at a predetermined angle to the outside of the drum 51 based on the portion connected to the rims of the opening portions 512a and 512b.
The lateral surfaces of the catching protrusions 626 may come into contact with the catching tabs 514a and 514b even in the state in which the lower ends of the catching protrusions 626 are not inserted into the opening portions 512a and 512b. When the lifter frame 620 is about to move (that is, about to move in a direction opposite to a direction in which the lifter frame 620 is installed) such that the vertical portion 627a moves from the binding section S2 to the insertion section 51, the movement is restricted as the catching tabs 514a and 514b interfere with the lower ends of the catching protrusions 626.
Referring to
At the lower end of the catching protrusion 626, the second concave portion 626b may be further formed at a side opposite to the first concave portion 626a. When the lifter frame 620 is installed in a state in which the front and rear sides of the lifter frame 620 are changed, the catching tabs 514a and 514b may be positioned in the second concave portion 626b.
In this case, the catching protrusion 626 may be formed to be symmetrical based on the center in a plan view of the lifter frame 620. That is, as illustrated in
In particular, the first concave portion 626a and the second concave portion 626b of the catching protrusion 626 may be formed to be symmetrical in both directions based on the longitudinal direction of the lifter frame 620.
Therefore, the catching protrusion 626 may be installed to come into contact with the catching tabs 514a and 514b in any direction, even when the front and rear positions of the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b are changed during the process of installing the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b in the drum 51.
Therefore, the installation operator may easily install the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b in the drum 51 without considering the directions in which the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b are installed.
Meanwhile, referring to
Referring to
Referring to
In the state in which the insertion protrusion 627 is inserted into the mounting slot 511a and the lifter frame 620 is temporarily assembled, the screw 98 passes through the fastening hole 513a from the outside of the drum 51 and is then fastened to the fastening boss 628, such that the lifter frame 620 may be completely installed.
In this case, the fastening boss 628 may protrude from the inner surface of the frame upper plate 623 in the direction toward the inner circumferential surface of the drum 51.
In the structure of the lifter frame 620, the frame upper plate 623 has relatively higher rigidity than the frame sidewall 622 having the plurality of holes.
Therefore, in order to more rigidly install the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b in the drum 51, the fastening boss 628 to be fastened, by means of the fastening member, to the fastening hole 513a of the drum 51 may be formed on the frame upper plate 623.
As described above, since the fastening boss 628 is formed on the upper surface of the lifter frame 620 that has relatively high rigidity, fastening force may be further increased when the fastening boss 628 is fastened to the fastening hole 513a by means of the fastening member.
Meanwhile, as described above, as illustrated in
In other words, in the state in which the at least one insertion protrusion 627 provided on each of the lifters 61a, 62a, 63a, 61b, 62b, and 63b is fastened to the mounting slot (for example, 511a1) in any one group (for example, G1) among the mounting slots 511a in the first group G1 and the second group G2, the mounting slot (for example, 511a2) in the other group (for example, G2) may be hidden inside the drum 51 by the lifter.
In more detail, in the state in which the at least one insertion protrusion 627 provided on each of the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a is inserted into the mounting slot in any one group (for example, G1) of the first group G1 and the second group G2, the front end of each of the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a may be positioned forward from the mounting slots 511a1(1) to 511a1(4) and 511a2(1) to 511a2(4) belonging to the first group G1 and the second group G2.
In addition, the rear end of each of the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a may be positioned rearward from any of the mounting slots 511a1(1) to 511a1(4) and 511a2(1) to 511a2(4) belonging to the first group G1 and the second group G2.
Since all of the mounting slots 511a1(1) to 511a1(4) and 511a2(1) to 511a2(4) used to install the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a are positioned between the front ends and the rear ends of the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a, the mounting slots may be hidden by being covered by the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a.
Manufacturers of laundry treating apparatuses sometimes produce various types of products having drums having different capacities. In this case, a metal plate having the mounting slots 511a and 511b, the opening portions 512a and 512b, the fastening holes 513a and 513b, and the like is cut out based on a predetermined standard, the raw material 51′ or 51″ (see
For example, as illustrated in
Therefore, extra mounting slots 511a are further formed in the drum 51 in order to adjust the installation position of at least one of the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a or the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b in the front-rear direction when the length of the drum is changed.
In the present exemplary embodiment, the extra mounting slots 511a are provided to adjust the installation positions of the front lifters 51a, 52a, and 53a, but the present disclosure is not necessarily limited thereto. Depending on exemplary embodiments, the extra mounting slots 511b may be provided to adjust the installation positions of the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b.
The extra mounting slots 511a may be formed in the lifter frame 620 such that the extra mounting slots 511a correspond in number to the mounting slots 511a (hereinafter, referred to as ‘installation slots’) into which the insertion protrusions 627 are inserted, and the extra mounting slots 511a may be formed at points spaced apart from the respective installation slots at a predetermined distance D in the frontward or rearward direction. The installation position of the lifter frame 620 may be changed by the distance D by separating the insertion protrusion 627 from the mounting slot (for example, 511a1) and then inserting the insertion protrusion 627 into the extra mounting slot (for example, 511a2).
Meanwhile, in the exemplary embodiment, the extra opening portions 512a are provided to adjust the installation positions of the front lifters 51a, 52a, and 53a, but the present disclosure is not necessarily limited thereto. Depending on the embodiment, the extra opening portions 512b may also be provided to adjust the installation positions of the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b.
Meanwhile, in the exemplary embodiment, the extra fastening holes 513a are provided to adjust the installation positions of the front lifters 51a, 52a, and 53a, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Depending on the embodiment, the extra fastening holes 513b may also be provided to adjust the installation positions of the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b.
In this regard, a planar shape of the frame cover 640 may be formed to cover a region extending from the region in which any one of the mounting slots 511a in the first group G1 and the second group G2 is formed by a spacing distance D between the mounting slots 511a1(1) to 511a1(4) in the first group and the mounting slots 511a2(1) to 511a2(4) in the second group.
Therefore, the installation positions of the lifters 61a, 61b, 62a, 62b, 63a, and 63b may be changed depending on the type of drum 51, and the extra mounting slots for changing the installation positions may be covered by the frame cover 640.
Meanwhile,
On the contrary, in order to separate the lifter frame 620 from the drum 51, the lifter frame 620 is pushed forward or rearward to move the catching portion 627b of the insertion protrusion 627 from the binding section S2 and align the catching portion 627b with the insertion section 51, and the lifter frame 620 is lifted up, such that the catching portion 627b passes through the insertion section 51, and the lifter frame 620 may be separated from the drum 51.
Each of the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a is disposed on the inner circumferential surface of the drum 51 and extending in the front-rear direction. The plurality of front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a are disposed based on the rotation axis O at equal angles.
The rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b are disposed on the inner circumferential surface of the drum 51 and positioned rearward from the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a. Like the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a, the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b are disposed based on the rotation axis O at equal angles.
The rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b are disposed to form a predetermined phase angle with the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a with respect to the rotation axis O. Here, the ‘phase angle’ is made by defining, as a rotation angle of the drum 51, a point in time at which the lifters 61a, 62a, 63a, 61b, 62b, and 63c reach a point on the circumference. Assuming that the drum 51 is rotated clockwise CW in the exemplary embodiment, the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b reach the same height prior to the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a by a degree corresponding to the phase angle Δθ.
As illustrated in
Referring to
Specifically, the no-lifter region SE passes between the two adjacent sets of lifters from the front end of the drum 51 and extends to the rear end of the drum 51. Specifically, the no-lifter region SE extends straight from the front end of the drum 51 to the rear end of the drum while passing between the two adjacent front lifters (for example, 61a and 62a) among the plurality of front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a and between the two rear lifters 61b and 62b that each form the phase angle Δθ with each of the two adjacent front lifters 61a and 62a.
Since the no-lifter region SE extends straight from the front end to the rear end of the drum 51, the laundry may be uniformly distributed to the front and rear regions of the drum 51 in the no-lifter region SE.
Typically, the washing machine detects eccentricity of the drum 51 before performing a spin-drying process, and when the detected eccentricity is within a reference value, the drum is accelerated such that the rotational speed of the drum 51 reaches a predetermined spin-drying speed (or spin-drying RPM). Otherwise, a fabric distribution is performed to change the position of fabrics in the drum 51. The fabric distribution is repeated if the detected eccentricity does not reach the reference value. When the number of times the fabric distribution is repeated reaches a predetermined number of times, it is determined that the fabric distribution has failed, and the spin-drying is stopped.
In the washing machine according to the present exemplary embodiment, a first fabric positioned at the rear side of the drum 51 (that is, the fabric to be lifted up by the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b) and a second fabric positioned at the front side of the drum 51 (that is, the fabric to be lifted up by the front lifters) flow with a time difference (or a phase difference) by the phase angle Δθ formed by the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a and the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b, and as a result, the fabric distribution may be more smoothly performed.
More specifically, referring to
Assuming that the fabrics roll (θ<π/2) and that a position P at which the fabric lifted up by the lifters 61a, 62a, 63a, 61b, 62b, and 63b falls is a position Pd, the first fabric lifted up by the rear lifters 61b, 62b, and 63b reaches the position (or height) Pd and falls first, and then the second fabric lifted up by the front lifters 61a, 62a, and 63a reaches the position Pd and falls.
The first fabric and the second fabric move with a time difference without forming lumps, and thus may be evenly distributed. As a result, it is possible to reduce the number of times the fabric distribution is repeated, reduce the instances of failure to enter the spin-drying stage, and reduce the overall washing time including the spin-drying time.
In addition, since the fabrics flow with a phase difference when the fabrics roll or tumble, friction or collision between the fabrics caused by the relative movement occurs more frequently, such that contamination may be more effectively removed by the washing operation (that is, washing power is improved).
Meanwhile,
While the invention has been explained in relation to its embodiments, it is to be understood that various modifications thereof will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the specification. Therefore, it is to be understood that the invention disclosed herein is intended to cover such modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
10-2019-0013925 | Feb 2019 | KR | national |
10-2019-0130784 | Oct 2019 | KR | national |