Patent Application
20150345067
Laundry treating appliances, such as a washing machine, may implement cycles of operation in which a drum defining a treating chamber for receiving a laundry load is rotated at high speeds, such as a spin or water extraction phase. For example, to extract the water from the laundry load, the drum is typically spun at high speeds. If a sufficiently large enough load imbalance is present, the laundry treating appliance may experience undesirable vibrations and movements when the drum is rotated at high speeds during the spin phase.
In one aspect, a laundry treating appliance includes a rotatable drum for receiving a laundry load wherein the rotatable drum includes a cylindrical body with a cylindrical wall about a longitudinal axis, and a metal cover at one end thereof, wherein the metal cover has an annular groove formed by a first wall adjacent to the cylindrical wall, a second wall spaced from the first wall, a third wall extending between the first and second walls, and a fourth wall having at least a portion thereof extending from the second wall generally normal to the longitudinal axis. The laundry treating appliance also includes an enclosed non-metal annular housing having an outer radial wall, an inner radial wall, a top wall, and a bottom wall defining a hollow annular raceway, and a mass disposed in the hollow annular raceway and movable therein. The top wall abuts the third wall opposite the annular groove and the outer radial wall abuts the cylindrical wall, and fasteners extend from one of the third wall or the cylindrical wall into the respective top wall or outer radial wall to secure the non-metal annular housing to the rotatable drum.
The laundry treating appliance of
The laundry holding system comprises a tub 14 supported within the cabinet 12 by a suitable suspension system and a rotatable drum 16 provided within the tub 14, the rotatable drum 16 defining at least a portion of a laundry treating chamber 18 having a longitudinal axis 21. The longitudinal axis 21 of the rotatable drum 16 is preferably coincident with a horizontal or non-vertical axis of rotation of the drum 16, though it is within the scope of the invention to accommodate a rotatable drum on a vertical axis of rotation. See, for example, an embodiment of a vertical axis washing machine according to another embodiment of the invention in
The rotatable drum 16 has a front side 17 and a rear side 19, respectively, at each end. The front side 17 includes a front cover 30 with an opening 32 therein to accommodate receiving a laundry load. The rear side 19 also has a rear cover 34. The covers 30, 34 thus form part of the drum 16.
The laundry holding system may further include a door 24 which may be movably mounted to the cabinet 12 to selectively close both the tub 14 and the drum 16. A bellows 26 may couple an open face of the tub 14 with the cabinet 12, with the door 24 sealing against the bellows 26 when the door 24 closes the tub 14.
The washing machine 10 may further include a suspension system 28 for dynamically suspending the laundry holding system within the structural support system.
The washing machine 10 may further include a liquid supply system for supplying water to the washing machine 10 for use in treating laundry during a cycle of operation. The liquid supply system may include a source of water, such as a household water supply 40, which may include separate valves 42 and 44 for controlling the flow of hot and cold water, respectively. Water may be supplied through an inlet conduit 46 directly to the tub 14 by controlling first and second diverter mechanisms 48 and 50, respectively. The diverter mechanisms 48, 50 may be a diverter valve having two outlets such that the diverter mechanisms 48, 50 may selectively direct a flow of liquid to one or both of two flow paths. Water from the household water supply 40 may flow through the inlet conduit 46 to the first diverter mechanism 48 which may direct the flow of liquid to a supply conduit 52. The second diverter mechanism 50 on the supply conduit 52 may direct the flow of liquid to a tub outlet conduit 54 which may be provided with a spray nozzle 56 configured to spray the flow of liquid into the tub 14. In this manner, water from the household water supply 40 may be supplied directly to the tub 14.
The washing machine 10 may also be provided with a dispensing system for dispensing treating chemistry to the treating chamber 18 for use in treating the laundry according to a cycle of operation. The dispensing system may include a dispenser 62 which may be a single use dispenser, a bulk dispenser or a combination of a single use and a bulk dispenser. Non-limiting examples of suitable dispensers are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,196,441 to Hendrickson et al., filed Jul. 1, 2008, entitled “Household Cleaning Appliance with a Dispensing System Operable Between a Single Use Dispensing System and a Bulk Dispensing System,” U.S. Pat. No. 8,388,695 to Hendrickson et al., filed Jul. 1, 2008, entitled “Apparatus and Method for Controlling Laundering Cycle by Sensing Wash Aid Concentration,” U.S. Pat. No. 8,397,328 to Hendrickson et al., filed Jul. 1, 2008, entitled “Apparatus and Method for Controlling Concentration of Wash Aid in Wash Liquid,” U.S. Pub. No. 2010/0000581 to Doyle et al., filed Jul. 1, 2008, entitled “Water Flow Paths in a Household Cleaning Appliance with Single Use and Bulk Dispensing,” U.S. Pub. No. 2010/0000264 to Luckman et al., filed Jul. 1, 2008, entitled “Method for Converting a Household Cleaning Appliance with a Non-Bulk Dispensing System to a Household Cleaning Appliance with a Bulk Dispensing System,” U.S. Pat. No. 8,397,544 to Hendrickson, filed Jun. 23, 2009, entitled “Household Cleaning Appliance with a Single Water Flow Path for Both Non-Bulk and Bulk Dispensing,” and U.S. Pat No. 8,438,881 to Ihne et al., filed Apr. 25, 2011, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Dispensing Treating Chemistry in a Laundry Treating Appliance,” which are herein incorporated by reference in full.
Regardless of the type of dispenser used, the dispenser 62 may be configured to dispense a treating chemistry directly to the tub 14 or mixed with water from the liquid supply system through a dispensing outlet conduit 64. The dispensing outlet conduit 64 may include a dispensing nozzle 66 configured to dispense the treating chemistry into the tub 14 in a desired pattern and under a desired amount of pressure. For example, the dispensing nozzle 66 may be configured to dispense a flow or stream of treating chemistry into the tub 14 by gravity, i.e. a non-pressurized stream. Water may be supplied to the dispenser 62 from the supply conduit 52 by directing the diverter mechanism 50 to direct the flow of water to a dispensing supply conduit 68.
Non-limiting examples of treating chemistries that may be dispensed by the dispensing system during a cycle of operation include one or more of the following: water, enzymes, fragrances, stiffness/sizing agents, wrinkle releasers/reducers, softeners, antistatic or electrostatic agents, stain repellants, water repellants, energy reduction/extraction aids, antibacterial agents, medicinal agents, vitamins, moisturizers, shrinkage inhibitors, and color fidelity agents, and combinations thereof.
The washing machine 10 may also include a recirculation and drain system for recirculating liquid within the laundry holding system and draining liquid from the washing machine 10. Liquid supplied to the tub 14 through the tub outlet conduit 54 and/or the dispensing supply conduit 68 typically enters a space between the tub 14 and the drum 16 and may flow by gravity to a sump 70 formed in part by a lower portion of the tub 14. The sump 70 may also be formed by a sump conduit 72 that may fluidly couple the lower portion of the tub 14 to a pump 74. The pump 74 may direct liquid to a drain conduit 76, which may drain the liquid from the washing machine 10, or to a recirculation conduit 78, which may terminate at a recirculation inlet 80. The recirculation inlet 80 may direct the liquid from the recirculation conduit 78 into the drum 16. The recirculation inlet 80 may introduce the liquid into the drum 16 in any suitable manner, such as by spraying, dripping, or providing a steady flow of liquid. In this manner, liquid provided to the tub 14, with or without treating chemistry may be recirculated into the treating chamber 18 for treating the laundry within.
The liquid supply and/or recirculation and drain system may be provided with a heating system which may include one or more devices for heating laundry and/or liquid supplied to the tub 14, such as a steam generator 82 and/or a sump heater 84. Liquid from the household water supply 40 may be provided to the steam generator 82 through the inlet conduit 46 by controlling the first diverter mechanism 48 to direct the flow of liquid to a steam supply conduit 86. Steam generated by the steam generator 82 may be supplied to the tub 14 through a steam outlet conduit 87. The steam generator 82 may be any suitable type of steam generator such as a flow through steam generator or a tank-type steam generator. Alternatively, the sump heater 84 may be used to generate steam in place of or in addition to the steam generator 82. In addition or alternatively to generating steam, the steam generator 82 and/or sump heater 84 may be used to heat the laundry and/or liquid within the tub 14 as part of a cycle of operation.
Additionally, the liquid supply and recirculation and drain system may differ from the configuration shown in
The washing machine 10 also includes a drive system for rotating the drum 16 within the tub 14. The drive system may include a motor 88, which may be directly coupled with the rotatable drum 16 through a drive shaft 90 at or about the rear cover 34 to rotate the drum 16 about a rotational axis during a cycle of operation. The motor 88 may be a brushless permanent magnet (BPM) motor having a stator 92 and a rotor 94. Alternately, the motor 88 may be coupled to the drum 16 through a belt and a drive shaft to rotate the rotatable drum 16, as is known in the art. Other motors, such as an induction motor or a permanent split capacitor (PSC) motor, may also be used. The motor 88 may rotate the drum 16 at various speeds in either rotational direction.
The washing machine 10 also includes a control system for controlling the operation of the washing machine 10 to implement one or more cycles of operation. The control system may include a controller 96 located within the cabinet 12 and a user interface 98 that is operably coupled with the controller 96. The user interface 98 may include one or more knobs, dials, switches, displays, touch screens and the like for communicating with the user, such as to receive input and provide output. The user may enter different types of information including, without limitation, cycle selection and cycle parameters, such as cycle options.
The controller 96 may include the machine controller and any additional controllers provided for controlling any of the components of the washing machine 10. For example, the controller 96 may include the machine controller and a motor controller. Many known types of controllers may be used for the controller 96. The specific type of controller is not germane to embodiments of the invention. It is contemplated that the controller is a microprocessor-based controller that implements control software and sends/receives one or more electrical signals to/from each of the various working components to effect the control software. As an example, proportional control (P), proportional integral control (PI), and proportional derivative control (PD), or a combination thereof, a proportional integral derivative control (PID control), may be used to control the various components.
As illustrated in
The controller 96 may be operably coupled with one or more components of the washing machine 10 for communicating with and controlling the operation of the component to complete a cycle of operation. For example, the controller 96 may be operably coupled with the motor 88, the pump 74, the dispenser 62, the steam generator 82 and the sump heater 84 to control the operation of these and other components to implement one or more of the cycles of operation.
The controller 96 may also be coupled with one or more sensors 104 provided in one or more of the systems of the washing machine 10 to receive input from the sensors, which are known in the art and not shown for simplicity. Non-limiting examples of sensors 104 that may be communicably coupled with the controller 96 include: a treating chamber temperature sensor, a moisture sensor, a weight sensor, a chemical sensor, a position sensor and a motor torque sensor, which may be used to determine a variety of system and laundry characteristics, such as laundry load inertia or mass.
The laundry treating appliance 10 may also include a dynamic balancer 100 at the front 17 and/or rear 19 side of the rotatable drum 16 which includes a moveable mass 170 to offset an imbalance that may occur in the treating chamber 18 during rotation of the rotatable drum 16 during a cycle of operation. In
During a cycle of operation in which the drum 16 is rotated, the moveable mass 170 may apply pressure to parts of the balancer 100 as a result of the centrifugal force applied to the moveable mass 170, especially when the moveable mass 170 includes spherical weights, such as steel balls. Metal is generally stiffer than plastic and thus may be less likely to be deformed or damaged as a result of the centrifugal force applied to the moveable mass 170. However, contact between the moveable mass 170 and metal components of the balancer 100 during rotation of the drum 16 may generate undesirable sound. The balancer 100 may be provided with a sound damping component or combination of sound damping components to reduce undesirable sound generated by the balancer 100. As used herein, sound damping refers to reducing undesirable sound by absorption and/or redirection of sound waves. The balancers described herein combine the strength properties of metal with the sound damping properties of plastic to provide a balancer which is less likely to be deformed or damaged in use while attenuating undesirable sounds that may be generated by movement of the mass within the balancer.
The balancer 100 includes an enclosed non-metal annular housing 140 having a first housing piece 144 and a second, cover housing piece 146. The annular non-metal housing 140 may be made from any suitable non-metal material, such as a polymeric material, which may be formed by a suitable molding process. The first housing piece 144 has a generally U-shaped cross-section defined by a first housing wall 148, a second housing wall 150, or a bottom wall, and a third housing wall 152. As used herein, reference to a radial wall, or radial circumferential wall, refers to a part or portion of a part which defines a radial circumferential limit of motion of the mass 170 during rotation of the drum 16 about the longitudinal axis 21. The outer radial circumferential wall may be formed by just the third housing wall 152 or a combination of the third housing wall 152 and adjacent portions of the housing 140, and the inner radial circumferential wall may be formed by just the first housing wall 148 or a combination of the first housing wall 148 and adjacent portions of the housing 140.
The second housing piece 146 may be joined with the first and third housing walls 148, 152 of the first housing piece 144 by any suitable mechanical and/or non-mechanical fasteners, non-limiting examples of which include a tongue and groove connection (shown), a weld, a snap-fit connection, an adhesive, screws, rivets, crimping, bolting, and bosses. In this sense, the second housing piece 146 may be joined with the first housing piece 144 to provide an enclosed hollow annular space defined by the first, second (bottom), and third walls of the first housing piece 144, with the second housing piece 146 defining a fourth (top) wall 153 of the enclosed annular space.
The balancer 100 may further comprise a groove 157 in the third housing wall 152 configured to receive a stiffening ring 159 configured to prevent distortion of the balancer 100 during rotation of the drum 16. The stiffening ring may be formed from a metallic or non-metallic material configured to oppose the centrifugal forces of the mass 170 as it rotates within the balancer 100. As shown, the groove 157 and stiffening ring 159 are positioned at the interface between the third housing wall 152 and the cylindrical wall 114; however alternative configurations may be included wherein, for example, the groove 157 and ring 159 are integrated into the first and/or second housing pieces 144, 146. Furthermore, while the stiffening ring 159 is illustrated having a substantially rectangular cross-section, alternative geometric configurations may be included wherein the geometric configuration affects the stiffening characteristics of the ring 159.
The walls 148, 150, 152, 153 defining the annular raceway 166 may further define a curvature 155 configured to direct the mass 170 toward the center of the third housing wall 152 during rotation of the drum 16. As shown, at least a portion of the third and fourth housing walls 152, include the curvature 155; however, additional, fewer, and/or alternative walls 148, 150, 152, 153 may include the curvature 155 described.
The first, second, third, and fourth walls 148, 150, 152, 153 enclosing the annular space define a hollow annular raceway 166 within which the mass 170 may move. The mass 170 may include a fluid, such as water, salt water, oil or other viscous fluid, for example, and optionally one or more moveable weights, such as spherical balls. The mass 170 may partially fill the raceway 166 and may distribute or collect unevenly to offset an unbalanced condition in the rotatable drum 16.
The balancer 100 may be positioned and/or located adjacent to the cylindrical wall 114 and the third annular groove wall 122 of the front cover 30, opposite the annular groove 118. Stated another way, the top wall 153 of the balancer 100 abuts the third annular groove wall 122 opposite the annular groove 118, and the third housing wall 152 of the balancer 100 abuts the cylindrical wall 114. The balancer 100 may be fixed in this position by mechanical fasteners, such as screws 130, or any other alternative or additional mechanical or non-mechanical fasteners, non-limiting examples of which include spring-clips, adhesives, welds, snap-fit connections, and tongue and groove connections. While the illustrated embodiment is shown fixed in the location by a screw 130 coupling the balancer 100 with the third annular groove wall 122 and a screw 130 coupling the balancer 100 with the cylindrical wall 114, embodiments of the invention may include additional or fewer fasteners, or alternatively placed fasteners. For example, embodiments of the invention may include fasteners extending from one of the third annular grove wall 122 or the cylindrical wall 114, into the respective fourth housing wall 153 or third housing wall 152 of the balancer 100, to secure the balancer 100 to the rotatable drum 16.
The laundry treating appliance 10 may be assembled by, for example, forming the front cover 30 having the annular groove 118 at a peripheral edge thereof, forming a sidewall wrapper of the drum 16 having a cylindrical wall 114, with, for example, a sidewall flange extending from the cylindrical wall 114, securing the balancer 100 to the third wall 122, opposite the annular groove 118. The sidewall wrapper may then be slid over the outer radial wall of the drum 16, and with the first wall 124 of the cover 30, until the sidewall flange meets the cover flange, and finally, for example, crimping the sidewall flange to the cover 30 flange. Alternatively the balancer 100 may be secured to the cylindrical wall 114, spaced from the sidewall flange, such that the sliding of the sidewall wrapper over the first wall until the sidewall flange meets the cover flange and the balancer 110 meets the cover 30 occurs, whereupon the sidewall flange may be crimped to the cover flange.
In yet another assembling configuration, the annular housing 140 may be assembled either before or after the annular housing 140 is coupled with the drum cover 30 and/or the cylindrical wall 114. In one example, the second housing piece 146 may be secured to the drum cover 30 prior to the joining of the first and second housing pieces 144, 146. In this instance, the balancer 100 may be fully assembled, and the drum cover 30 with balancer 100 may then be secured with the rotatable drum 16, and/or the balancer 100 may then be secured with the cylindrical wall 114. Alternatively, the first housing piece 144 may be secured to the cylindrical wall 114 prior to the joining of the first and second housing pieces 144, 146. In this instance, the balancer 100 may be fully assembled, and the rotatable drum 16 with balancer 100 may then be secured with the drum cover 30, and/or the balancer 100 may then be secured with the drum cover 30. In yet another example, the first and second housing pieces 144, 146 may be joined prior to the securing to either of the drum cover 30 and/or the cylindrical wall 114. In any assembling configuration, the stiffing ring 159 may be added to the third housing wall 152 prior to, for example, the sliding step, or prior to the securing of the balancer 100 to either the drum 16 or cover 30.
In any assembly method, the mass 170 may be provided within the annular raceway 166 prior to joining of the first and second housing pieces 144, 146. A fluid, such as oil, may be added to the annular raceway 166 through a port in at least one of the first and second housing pieces 144, 146 after joining the housing pieces 144, 146, or may be added to the raceway 166 prior to the joining of the housing pieces 144, 146. In yet another example, the moveable mass 170 may include a combination of balls and a fluid. The balls may be provided in the annular raceway 166 prior to the joining of the housing pieces 144, 146 and the fluid may be added through appropriate ports in at least one of the first and second housing pieces 144, 146. Alternatively, the moveable mass 170, either balls, fluid, or a combination of balls and fluid, may be added to the annular raceway 166 through appropriate sized port(s) provided in at least one of the first and second housing pieces 144, 146.
The first housing piece 244 includes an L-shaped cross-section piece formed by the first housing leg 248 and the second housing leg 250 that is joined with the second housing piece 246. The second housing piece 246 includes an L-shaped cross-section piece formed by the third housing leg 252 and the fourth housing leg 253 with the fourth housing leg 253 joined with the first housing leg 248 and the third housing wall leg 252 joined with the second housing leg 250 to form an enclosed annular raceway 266. The first and second housing pieces 244 and 246 may be joined by any suitable mechanical and/or non-mechanical fasteners, non-limiting examples of which include a tongue and groove connection, a weld, a snap-fit connection, an adhesive, screws, rivets, and bosses.
The balancer 200 may be provided on the drum 16 such that the first housing leg 248 forms the inner radial wall, the third housing leg 252 forms the outer radial wall, and the second and fourth housing legs 250, 253 form the bottom and top walls, with respect to the longitudinal axis 21 of the drum 16. In this sense, the second housing piece 246 may be joined with the first housing piece 244 to provide an enclosed hollow annular space defined by the first and second (bottom) legs of the first housing piece 244, with the second housing piece 246 defining the third and fourth (top) legs 252, 253 of the enclosed annular space.
Similar to the balancer 100 described above, the mass 170 may be provided within the raceway 266 before or after first and second housing pieces are joined. Additionally, while not shown, any of the housing legs 246, 248, 250, 252 may include an optional curvature 255, as described above.
It will be understood that more than one dynamic balancer 100, 200 may be disposed in a laundry treating device. For example, in a horizontal axis washing machine, there may be a dynamic balancer 100, 200 at both the front and rear sides 17, 19 of the rotatable drum 16. It will be further understood that the dynamic balancer 100, 200 may be coupled with the drum 16 anywhere on the covers 30, 34 or on the cylindrical wall 114. As well, the covers 30, 34 may or may not have an annular groove 118.
The dynamic balancers 100, 200 herein describe a non-metal housing to dampen sound generated by movement of the moveable mass 170 within the metal race. As discussed above, during a cycle of operation in which the drum 16 is rotated, the components of the balancers 100, 200 may experience centrifugal forces acting upon them by the moveable mass 170 therein, especially when the drum 16 is rotated at high speeds. During the rotation of the drum 16, the optional curvatures 155 may direct the mass 170 toward a center of the outer radial wall. When the moveable mass 170 is in the form of a metal ball, contact between the balls and plastic forming the annular raceway within which the mass 170 moves may deform or damage the plastic and may inhibit free rolling motion of the balls over time. The inclusion of the optional stiffening ring 159 may decrease the likelihood of deformation or damage of the raceway over time, while reducing the undesirable noise of the mass 170 movement within the raceway 166, 266.
The dynamic balancers 100, 200 described herein may provide a stiffening ring 159 along at least a portion of the outer radial circumferential wall of the non-metal housing to increase the stiffness of the portion of the raceway which experiences the majority of the centrifugal forces present during rotation of the drum 16. During rotation of the drum 16, the mass 170 experiences centrifugal forces which propels the mass 170 radially outward from the axis of rotation of the drum and therefore the portion of the balancer defining the radial circumferential limit of motion for the mass 170 experiences pressure from the centrifugal force of the mass 170. The portion of the balancer defining the radial circumferential limit of motion for the mass 170 may include a single wall or leg of the annular housing or a combination of multiple walls or legs.
To the extent not already described, the different features and structures of the various embodiments may be used in combination with each other as desired. That one feature may not be illustrated in all of the embodiments is not meant to be construed that it cannot be, but is done for brevity of description. Thus, the various features of the different embodiments may be mixed and matched as desired to form new embodiments, whether or not the new embodiments are expressly disclosed.
While the invention has been specifically described in connection with certain specific embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that this is by way of illustration and not of limitation. Reasonable variation and modification are possible within the scope of the forgoing disclosure and drawings without departing from the spirit of the invention which is defined in the appended claims.
