Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Description
Title of Invention: LAUNDRY MACHINE WITH REDUCED DRUM VIBRATION
Technical Field
[1] The present invention relates to a laundry machine to process laundry.
[2] In general, examples of laundry machines may include washing machines
and drying
machines. Washing machines may be classified into pulsator type washing
machines
and drum washing machines. Some of these washing machines may be combined
washing and drying machines, which are capable of performing a drying
operation,
rather than performing only a washing operation.
[3] Drying machines may be one kind of laundry machines to dry wet laundry
using, for
example, hot air.
Background Art
[4] Drum washing machines may be configured in such a way that a tub may be
hori-
zontally arranged and in turn, a drum may also be horizontally arranged in the
tub.
= Laundry may be accommodated within the drum, so as to be tumbled and
washed
during rotation of the drum.
[5] The tub may serve to receive wash water therein, and the
drum may accommodate
= laundry to enable laundry washing.
[6] The drum may be rotatably installed within the tub.
[7] A rotation shaft may be connected to a rear wall of the drum and may
receive
rotation power from a motor. Accordingly, the rotation power of the motor may
be
transmitted to the drum through the rotation shaft via rotation of the motor,
causing
rotation of the drum.
[8] The drum may be rotated during a washing operation, a rinsing
operation, and a de-
hydrating (drying) operation. This rotation, however, may entail vibration of
the drum.
[9] The rotation shaft may penetrate through a rear wall of the tub, thus
protruding out of
the tub. Some conventional washing machines may include a bearing housing
insert-
molded to the rear wall of the tub. Alternatively, a bearing housing may be
pre-
fabricated and fastened to the rear wall of the tub.
[10] The bearing housing may serve to support the rotation shaft.
Rotational vibration of
the drum may be transmitted to the bearing housing and the tub through the
rotation
shaft.
[11] Accordingly, the tub may be vibrated along with the drum. To alleviate
the vibration,
a damping supporting member may be connected to the tub.
[12] In conventional washing machines, the vibration of the drum may be
directly
transmitted to the tub and the damping supporting member connected to the tub
may
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act to support the transmitted vibration.
Disclosure of Invention
Technical Problem
[13] In conventional laundry machines in which a tub is vibrated along with
a drum, it
may be necessary to provide predetermined gaps between the tub and the drum
and
between the tub and a cabinet, in order to prevent interference therebetween
upon
vibration. The provision of the predetermined gaps may make it difficult to
increase
sizes of the tub and the drum.
[14] In one embodied laundry machine, a tub may be isolated from vibration
of a drum,
thus ensuring an increased size of the tub and an increased volume of the
drum,
whereby an increased capacity of the laundry machine may be accomplished.
[15] It is noted that the greater the size of a tub, the smaller the volume
of a space between
a cabinet and the tub and this may cause problematic installation of relevant
con-
stituent elements. The present invention may accomplish a compact interior
structure
of the laundry machine via effective installation of those constituent
elements.
Solution to Problem
[16] A laundry machine may include a tub to hold water therein, a drum
rotatably placed
in the tub, a drive assembly to rotate the drum, and a suspension unit to
reduce
vibration the drum.
[17] The tub may have a water supply hole and at least one hole for
supplying steam or
water circulated by a circulation pump.
[18] The water supply hole and the at least one hole may be provided in a
front upper
portion of the tub.
[19] A water supply hose may be connected to the water supply hole and a
steam hose or
a circulation hose may be connected to the at least one hole.
[20] The suspension unit may comprise an axial bracket and a radial
bracket.
[21] The radial bracket is configured to extend in a radial direction with
respect to a ro-
tational axis of the shaft.
[22] The axial bracket is configured to extend in the axis direction.
= [23] The laundry machine may comprise means for adding mass to the
vibration system in
which the drum is a vibrating object.
[24] The means may be a single weight or a plurality of weights.
[25] The weight may be attached to or integrally made with the radial
bracket.
[26] The front surface of the tub may include a forwardly extending rim
portion so as to
define the front opening, and the fluid supply unit may include a water supply
hose
connected to an upper position of the rim portion.
= [27] A fluid supply unit may include a circulation water
hose or a steam hose connected
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to an upper position of the rim portion.
[28] Although the increased size of the tub may reduce a space between
the tub and a
cabinet, the tilted front surface of the tub may ensure a sufficient space
between the
= front surface of the tub and an upper portion of a front wall of the
cabinet. The fluid
supply unit may be connected to the tub via this space.
[29] The water supply hose may be connected to the rim portion at a left
position or a
right position on the basis of a vertical center axis of the rim portion, and
the cir-
culation water hose or the steam hose may be connected to the rim portion at
an
opposite side of the water supply hose.
[30] The suspension unit may include a first weight(a first radial bracket
integrally made
with a weight) and a second weight(a second radial bracket integrally made
with a
weight) connected respectively to left and right sides of the bearing housing,
and the
suspension unit may include a first axial bracket and a second axial bracket
connected
respectively to the first weight and the second weight.
[31] The tilted rear surface of the tub may ensure a sufficient lower space
between the rear
= surface of the tub and a rear wall of the cabinet, and the weight member
may be
located in this lower space.
[32] The suspension unit may further include a third bracket
provided in the rear of the
= lower portion of the rear surface of the tub and connected to the center
of a lower
portion of the bearing housing. With the tilted posture of the tub, a space
may be
defined between the lower portion of the rear surface of the tub and the rear
wall of the
cabinet, and the third bracket may be located in this space.
[33] In the laundry machine, the tub may be fixedly supported, or be
supported by a
flexible support structure, such as the suspension unit.
[34] Further, the tub may be supported in an interim state between the
fixed support and
the flexible support.
[35] That is, the tub may be flexibly supported by the suspension unit or
be rigidly
supported. For example, the tub may be supported by the suspensions, be
supported by
rubber bushings to provide less flexible movement than when supported by the
sus-
pensions, or be fixedly supported by being fixed somewhere by screws or so.
[36] For another instance, the cases where the tub is supported more
rigidly than when
supported by the suspension unit are as follows.
[37] Firstly, the tub may be made intergrally with the cabinet.
[38] Next, the tub may be supported by being fastened by screws, ribets,
rubber bushings,
etc. Also, the tub may be welded or bonded to the cabinet. In this cases, the
supporting
or fastening members have larger stiffnesses than a stiffness of the
suspension unit
with respect to the main direction of the vibration of the drum.
[39] The tub may be expanded within the limits of a space in which the tub
is placed. That
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is, the tub may be expanded until the circumferential surface thereof
reaches(or almost
reaches) a side wall or a side frame (for example, a left or right plate of a
cabinet) re-
stricting the size of the space at least in the lateral direction (the
direction laterally per-
pendicular to the axial direction of the rotary shaft when the rotary shaft is
horizontally
placed). The tub may be made intergally with the lateral side walls of the
cabinet.
[40] The tub may be formed to be closer in the lateral direction to the
wall or the frame
than the drum. For example, the tub may be spaced away from the wall or the
frame by
an interval of less than 1.5 times an interval with the drum. Under the
condition that
the tub is enlarged in the lateral direction, the drum may also be enlarged in
the lateral
direction. Further, if the lateral interval between the tub and drum is
reduced, the drum
may be expanded in the lateral direction in direct proportion. When the
lateral interval
between the tub and the drum is reduced, the vibration of the drum in the
lateral
direction may be considered. The weaker the vibration of the drum in the
lateral
direction, the more expanded is the diameter of the drum. Therefore, the
suspension
unit to reduce the vibration of the drum may be designed such that rigidity of
the
suspension unit in the lateral direction is greater than rigidities of the
suspension unit in
other directions. For example, the suspension unit may be designed such that
rigidity
of the suspension unit against displacement in the lateral direction is
greatest compared
with rigidities of the suspension unit against displacements in other
directions.
[41] Further, the suspension unit may be directly connected to the bearing
housing
supporting the rotary shaft. That is, the bearing housing comprises a
supporting portion
to rotatably support the shaft and an extended portion extended from the
supporting
portion, and the suspension unit is attached to the supporting portion of the
bearing
housing or the extended portion of the bearing housing.
[42] The suspension unit may include brackets extended in the axial
direction. In a front
loading type laundry machine, the brackets may be extended forward, namely
towards
a door.
[43] The suspension unit may comprises at least two suspensions which are
arranged
distant from each other in the axial direction of the shaft.
[44] The suspension unit may comprise suspensions placed below the shaft
for standing
support. The supported object(for example, the drum) is supported by the
suspensions
to stand alone.
[45] Alternately, the suspension unit may comprise suspensions placed over
the shaft for
hanging support. In this case, the supported object is supported to be hung.
[46] The mass center of the vibrating object(for example, a combination of
the drum, the
shaft, the bearing housing, and the motor) may be located, with respect to the
center of
the longitudinal length of the drum, at a side where the motor is located. In
a front
loading type laundry machine, the mass center may be located behind the
longitudinal
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center of the drum. In this case, at least one suspension may be placed in
front of or behind
the mass center. One suspension may be placed in front of the mass center and
another
suspension behind the mass center.
[47] The tub may be provided with an opening at a rear portion
thereof. The drive
assembly may be connected to the tub by a flexible member. The flexible member
may seal
between the tub and the drive assembly to prevent water from leaking through
the opening of
the rear portion of the tub, and allow the drive assembly to move relatively
to the tub. The
flexible member may be made of a flexible material which can do the sealing,
for example, a
gasket material like a front gasket. In this case, the flexible member may be
referred to as a
rear gasket for convenience. The rear gasket may be connected to the drive
assembly under
the condition that the rotation of the rear gasket at least in the rotational
direction of the rotary
shaft is constrained. In one embodiment, the flexible material may be directly
connected to
the shaft. In another embodiment, the flexible material may be connected to a
portion of the
bearing housing.
[48] Further, a portion of the drive assembly, which is located radially
inside the
rear gasket and thus is likely to be exposed to the water in the tub, may be
made so as not to
be corroded by the water. For example, the portion of the drive assembly may
be coated, or
be surrounded with a separate member made of plastic such as the tub back
(which will be
described below). In a case where the portion of the drive assembly is made of
metal, the
portion may not be directly exposed to water by the coating or the separate
plastic member,
and thus corrosion of the portion may be prevented.
[49] Further, the cabinet may not be necessary. For example, in a
built-in laundry
machine, the laundry machine without the cabinet may be installed within a
space of a wall
structure. However, even in this case, a front plate forming the front face of
the laundry
machine may be required.
[49a] There may also be provided a laundry machine comprising: a
cabinet; a tub
fixed to the cabinet to hold water therein, the tub having at a front upper
portion thereof a
water supply hole and at least one hole for supplying steam or water
circulated by a
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circulation pump, the front portion of the tub including a forwardly extending
a rim portion
and the holes being provided in the rim portion; a drum rotatably placed in
the tub; a drive
assembly having a rotation shaft connected to the drum, a bearing housing to
rotatably support
the rotation shaft, and a motor connected to the rotation shaft; a suspension
unit attached to
the bearing housing behind the tub to reduce vibration of the drum and the
drive assembly; a
flexible material to prevent the water inside the tub from leaking toward the
drive assembly
and allow the drum and the drive assembly to move relatively to the tub; a
base having a base
front frame extending upward from a front end of the base; and a controller is
mounted below
a front side of the tub to the base front frame, wherein the tub is tilted so
that a front end
thereof is moved upward, and wherein a bottom of the front portion of the tub
located above
the controller defines a flat portion.
Advantageous Effects of Invention
[50] A laundry machine according to an exemplary embodiment of the present
invention may be configured to substantially prevent vibration of a drum from
being
transmitted to a tub. This may ensure an increase in the size of the tub so
that the tub is
arranged close to an inner surface of a cabinet.
[51] Furthermore, it may be possible to accomplish a compact interior
structure of
the laundry machine by effectively acquiring a space between the increased
size of the tub and
the cabinet and utilizing the space for installation of relevant constituent
elements.
Brief Description of Drawings
[52] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further
understanding of the invention, illustrate embodiments of the invention and
together with the
description serve to explain the principle of the invention.
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[53] In the drawings:
[54] FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view illustrating a laundry machine
according to an
exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
[55] FIG. 2 is a side view of the laundry machine shown in FIG. 1.
[56] FIG. 3 is a front view of the laundry machine shown in FIG. 1.
[57] FIG. 4 is a rear view of the laundry machine shown in FIG. 1.
[58] FIGs. 5 and 6 are views illustrating a front tub constituting a part
of a tub.
[59] FIG. 7 is a view illustrating connected statuses of a water supply
hose, a steam hose,
and a circulation water hose, and an installed status of a main controller.
[60] FIGs. 8 to 12 are views illustrating installation of the main
controller.
[61] FIG. 13 is a view illustrating a connection relationship between, for
example, a
bearing housing and a weight member.
[62] FIG. 14 is a view illustrating connected statuses of a drying fan and
a drying duct.
Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention
[63] Reference will now be made in detail to the exemplary embodiments of
the present
invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
[64] FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view illustrating a laundry machine
according to an
exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and FIGs. 2 to 4 are
respectively a
side view, a front view, and a rear view of the laundry machine shown in FIG.
1. FIGs.
and 6 illustrate a front tub constituting a part of a tub. FIG. 7 is a view
illustrating
connected statuses of a water supply hose, a steam hose, and a circulation
water hose
and an installed status of a main controller. FIGs. 8 to 12 are views
illustrating in-
stallation of the main controller. FIG. 13 is a view illustrating a connection
relationship
between, for example, a bearing housing and a weight member. In addition, FIG.
14 is
a view illustrating connected statuses of a drying fan and a drying duct.
[65] The laundry machine is configured in such a way that a tub is fixed to
and supported
by a cabinet. The tub may include a front tub 100 defining a front part of the
tub and a
rear tub 120 defining a rear part of the tub. The front tub 100 and the rear
tub 120 may
be assembled to each other using screws and may define a drum accommodation
space
therein.
[66] The front tub 100 may have a forwardly extending rim portion 101
formed at a front
surface 101a thereof to define a front opening. When viewed from the lateral
side, a
horizontal width of the rim portion 101 may gradually decrease from the top to
the
bottom. The front opening may serve as a laundry entrance/exit.
[67] The rear tub 120 may have a rear surface 128 in which a rear opening
is perforated.
The rear opening may be substantially closed by a tub back plate 130 and a
rear gasket
250 that will be described hereinafter.
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[68] The rear gasket 250 may be made of a flexible material to prevent
vibration of the
tub back plate 130 from being transmitted to the rear tub 120.
[69] The rear gasket 250 may be connected to both the tub back plate 130
and the rear tub
120 respectively to seal gaps therebetween, thus serving to prevent leakage of
wash
water from the tub. The tub back plate 130 may be vibrated along with a drum
301,
which will be described hereinafter, during rotation of the drum 301. In this
case, the
tub back plate 130 may be spaced apart from the rear tub 120 by a sufficient
distance
so as not to interfere with the rear tub 120. The flexible rear gasket 250 may
allow the
tub back plate 130 to be moved relative to the rear tub 120 without
interference with
the rear tub 12. The rear gasket 250 may have a bellows-shaped portion 252,
which
may extend to a sufficient length to allow the relative motion of the tub back
plate 130.
[70] A foreign-substance anti-clogging member 200 may be connected to a
front end of
the front tub 100, to prevent foreign substances from entering a gap between
the tub
and the drum 301. The foreign-substance anti-clogging member 200 may be made
of a
flexible material and may be fixedly installed to the front tub 100. For
example, the
foreign-substance anti-clogging member 200 may be made of the same material as
that
of the rear gasket 250.
[71] The drum 301 may consist of, for example, a front drum part, a central
drum part,
and a drum back plate. Although not shown, balance balls may be installed to
front and
rear positions of the drum 301. The drum back plate may be connected to a
spider and
in turn, the spider may be connected to a rotation shaft. Accordingly, the
drum 301
may be rotated within the tub upon receiving rotation power transmitted
through the
rotation shaft.
[72] The rotation shaft may penetrate through the tub back plate 130 so as
to be directly
connected to a motor. More specifically, the rotation shaft may be directly
connected
to a rotor 70 of the motor. A bearing housing 400 may be coupled to a rear
surface of
= the tub back plate 130. The bearing housing 400 may serve to rotatably
support the
rotation shaft between the motor and the tub back plate 130.
[73] A stator (not shown) of the motor may be fixedly installed to the
bearing housing
400, and the rotor 70 may be located to surround the stator. As described
above, the
rotor 70 may be directly connected to the rotation shaft.
[74] The bearing housing 400 may be supported on a cabinet base 600 using a
suspension
unit. The suspension unit may include three vertical suspensions and two longi-
tudinally oblique suspensions. One of these suspensions may be arranged
between a
rear lower portion of the tub and a rear wall 620 of the cabinet, and the
remaining four
suspensions may be arranged two by two at left and right sides. More
specifically,
when viewed from the front side, the four suspensions may be arranged two by
two in
left and right spaces between the bottom of an outer circumferential surface
of the tub
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and inner surfaces of the cabinet including inner surfaces of left and right
walls 630
and 640 of the cabinet and an inner surface of the cabinet base 600. In the
exemplary
embodiment of the present invention, since the tub is tilted, as will
described below, a
distance between the outer circumferential surface of the tub and the cabinet
base 600
may gradually increase toward the front side of the tub. Therefore, it may be
preferable
to position the vertical suspensions at front positions of the tub. More
specifically,
assuming that the two vertical suspensions are arranged respectively at left
and right
sides, positions of these vertical suspensions may be longitudinally displaced
forward
from the center of the cabinet base 600 or the tub. Consequently, the three
vertical sus-
pensions may be located in spaces defined by the tilted posture of the tub, so
that one
suspension is located in the space defined between the rear lower portion of
the tub and
the rear wall 620 of the cabinet and the remaining two suspensions are located
at front
left and right positions of the space defined between the outer
circumferential surface
of the tub and the inner surface of the cabinet base 600.
[75] The suspension unit may also serve to support the drum 301 by
alleviating vibration
of the drum 301. In practice, the tub and the drum 301 may have discrete
supporting
structures and the tub may not be vibrated even if the drum is vibrated.
[76] Hereinafter, the above described configuration will be described in
more detail on a
per part basis.
[77] The front surface 101a of the front tub 100 may take the form of a
doughnut-shaped
flat surface defined at a front end of a cylindrical sidewall (i.e. a
cylindrical outer cir-
cumferential surface) of the front tub 100. A rear end of the front tub 100 is
open, so as
to be coupled to a corresponding front end of the rear tub 120.
[78] The rim portion 101 may extend forward from the front surface 101a of
the front tub
100, and the width of the rim portion 101 may gradually decrease from the top
to the
bottom. In practice, no rim portion 101 may be present at the bottom of the
front
surface 101a.
[79] The rim portion 101 may be provided with, for example, a water supply
port 104, a
hot air inlet 103, a circulation water port 106, and a steam port 105. The
water supply
port 104 may serve to supply wash water into the tub, and the hot air inlet
103 may be
used assuming a drying function is provided. Also, wash water circulated by a
cir-
culation pump 60 may be introduced into the tub through the circulation water
port
106, and steam may be introduced into the tub through the steam port 105. In
the
laundry machine according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention
in
which the tub may have remarkably reduced vibration, for example, a water
supply
structure including a water supply hose 90, a drying structure including a
drying duct
40, a steam supply structure, and a circulation water supply structure may be
stably
connected to and supported by the tub.
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[80] The hot air inlet 103 may take the approximate form of a rectangular
opening
extending upward from the rim portion 101. Here, the hot air inlet 103 may be
necessary if the laundry machine is a combined washing and drying machine. In
other
words, in the case of a washing machine having no drying function, the hot air
inlet
103 may be omitted.
[81] In the exemplary embodiment, supply of wash water, etc. may be carried
out at the
front side of the tub because the water supply port 104, etc. may be located
in a front
region of the front tub 100.
[82] The water supply port 104, etc. may be located in front of a front end
of the drum
301 accommodated in the tub. Accordingly, for example, wash water may be
directly
introduced into the drum 301 through a drum opening for laundry entrance/exit.
[83] In addition, the water supply port 104, etc. may be located at an
upper position of the
rim portion 101. In the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the tub
is tilted
rearward so that upper portions of the front surface 101a and the rear surface
128 of the
tub are tilted to the rear. With this tilted posture of the tub, there may be
defined a
space between the upper portion of the front surface 101a and a front wall of
the
cabinet and a space between a lower portion of the rear surface 128 of the tub
and the
rear wall 620 of the cabinet. These resulting spaces may be used to
accommodate, for
example, the water supply port 104 and a weight member. In the present
exemplary
embodiment, as shown in the drawings, the front surface 101a and the rear
surface 128
of the tub may be tilted to the rear. With this tilting of the front surface
101a and the
rear surface 128 of the tub, even if the tub has a longitudinally increased
size, it may be
possible to effectively define spaces between the upper portion of the front
surface
101a of the tub and the front wall of the cabinet and between the lower
portion of the
rear surface 128 of the tub and the rear wall 620 of the cabinet.
[84] The rim portion 101 may be formed at a front end thereof with a
coupler for coupling
of the foreign-substance anti-clogging member 200. The coupler may extend
forward
from the front end of the rim portion 101 and may take the approximate form of
a
small diameter cylindrical ring. As the cylindrical ring-shaped coupler is
inserted into
the foreign-substance anti-clogging member 200, the foreign-substance anti-
clogging
member 200 may be coupled to the rim portion 101.
[85] The front tub 100 may be fixedly connected to the front wall of the
cabinet. To
realize this connection, for example, four fastening bosses 107 may be formed
at the
front surface 101 of the front tub 100 around the rim portion 101.
[86] A steam hose 96 may be connected to the steam port 105, and a
circulation water
hose 97 may be connected to the circulation water port 106. A steam generator
may be
located in the rear of a detergent box that will be described hereinafter, and
the steam
hose 96 may be connected to the steam generator. The circulation pump 60,
which is
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connected to the circulation water hose 97, may be located below the front tub
100 at a
front left position of the cabinet base 600. The circulation pump 60 may also
serve as a
drain pump according to a valve switching operation.
[87] A base coupler may be formed at the bottom of the front tub 100 so as
to fixedly
install the front tub 100 to the cabinet base 600.
[88] The front tub 100 may be coupled with the rear tub 120 to define a
drum accom-
modation space. In this case, the front tub 100 and the rear tub 120 may be
screwed to
each other. For this, a plurality of screw fastening holes may be
circumferentially
arranged at the rear end of the front tub 100. As described above, the tub may
be
installed on the cabinet base 600 such that the tub is tilted to allow the
front end of the
tub to be moved upward.
[89] The drum 301 may also be tilted to allow the front end of the tub to
be moved
upward.
[90] As described above, the rim portion 101 of the front rub 100 may be
gradually
reduced in width from the top to the bottom. With this shape of the rim
portion 101,
= the front opening of the tub, through which laundry is put into or taken
out of the drum
301, is oriented horizontally to face forward, rather than being tilted.
[91] The foreign-substance anti-clogging member 200 may serve to prevent
foreign
substances from entering the gap between the tub and the drum 301.
[92] In the laundry machine according to the exemplary embodiment of the
present
invention, it may be unnecessary to seal a gap between the front opening of
the tub and
the front wall of the cabinet differently from conventional laundry machines.
For this
reason, it may be possible to prevent foreign substances from entering the gap
between
the tub and the drum 301.
[93] The foreign-substance anti-clogging member 200 may be made of the same
material
as the rear gasket 250. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, the
foreign-
substance anti-clogging member 200 will be designated as a front gasket 200,
as
opposed to the rear gasket 250.
[94] The front gasket 200 may have a rim portion corresponding to the rim
portion 101 of
the front tub 100.
[95] A duct connecting portion 201 for connection of the drying duct 40 may
be formed at
the top of the rim portion of the front gasket 200. As the drying duct 40 is
partially
inserted into the duct connecting portion 201, hot air may be guided to the
hot air inlet
103. The hot air, passing through the drying duct 40, may be introduced into
the tub
through the duct connecting portion 201.
[96] When the present exemplary embodiment is not applied to the combined
washing
and drying machine, it may be unnecessary to provide the duct connecting
portion for
the drying duct 40. Particularly, if the front tub 100 provided with the hot
air inlet 103
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is still used, the duct connecting portion 201 may take the form of a blocked
portion
= rather than taking the form of a hollow. In this case, the hot air inlet
103 may be closed
at the stage of production. That is, the overall shape of the front gasket 200
may be
changed depending on the use of the combined washing and drying machine.
[97] The hot air inlet 103 may be located at the top center of the rim
portion 101 of the
tub. The drying duct 40 may be connected to the top center of the outer
circumferential
surface of the tub so as to communicate with the hot air inlet 103. For this,
one end of
the drying duct 40 may be connected to the hot air inlet 103 and the other end
of the
drying duct 40 may be connected to a drying fan 41. In such a connected state,
a
middle region of the drying duct 40 may be longitudinally arranged on the top
center
of the outer circumferential surface of the tub. The drying fan 41 may be
located above
an upper left portion of the outer circumferential surface of the tub, so as
to com-
municate with a hot air outlet 121 that will be described hereinafter.
[98] A door sealing member may be provided at a front end of the door
gasket 200 so as
to come into close contact with a door glass (not shown), thus serving to
prevent
leakage of water. When the door is closed, the door sealing member comes into
close
= contact with the door glass to seal a gap between the door glass and the
door gasket
200, thereby preventing leakage of water.
= [99] In the laundry machine according to the exemplary embodiment
of the present
invention, the tub may have remarkably low vibration and therefore, may have
no need
for a gap as a vibration margin gap. This may allow the outer surface of the
tub to be
located close to the cabinet as possible. Consequently, it may be possible to
increase
the size of the tub even without increasing the size of the cabinet and
consequently, it
may be possible to enhance the capacity of the laundry machine without
increasing the
overall size of the laundry machine. In the exemplary embodiment of the
present
invention, a distance between the left wall 630 or the right wall 640 of the
cabinet and
the tub may be only approximately 5 mm, although conventional laundry
machines, in
which a tub is vibrated along with a drum, may require a distance of
approximately 30
mm in order to prevent vibration of the tub from being transmitted to the
cabinet.
When converting this distance margin into a diameter of the tub, it will be
appreciated
that the diameter of the tub in the laundry machine according to the exemplary
em-
bodiment may be increased by 50 mm on the basis of the above conventional
laundry
machines. This may result in a remarkable improvement in that the capacity of
the
laundry machine can be upgraded one stage on the basis of the same external
size of
the laundry machine.
[100] In addition, when relevant constituent elements are appropriately
arranged under the
assumption that the size of the tub is increased to the maximum extent within
an
interior volume of the cabinet, the resulting laundry machine may achieve an
enhanced
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capacity on the basis of the same exterior size of the laundry machine while
ensuring a
compact interior structure.
[101] The water supply hose 90 may be connected to the detergent box95.
Also, the water
supply hose 90 may be inserted into the water supply port 104 of the front tub
100.
[102] The rear tub 120 may have a cylindrical shape to surround the drum
301. The rear
tub 20 may have the open front end and the doughnut-shaped rear surface 128.
The
open front end of the rear tub 120 may be coupled to the front tub 100 in a
sealing
manner, and the doughnut-shaped rear surface 128 may have a rear opening. An
inner
diameter of the rear opening may be sufficiently greater than an outer
diameter of the
tub back plate 130. Accordingly, the tub back plate 130 may be spaced apart
from the
rear surface 128 of the rear tub 120 by a sufficient distance to prevent
vibration of the
tub back plate 130 from being transmitted to the rear surface 128. The rear
gasket 250
may be provided in a gap between the rear surface 128 of the rear tub 120 and
the tub
back plate 130. The rear gasket 250 may serve to seal the gap between the rear
surface
128 of the rear tub 120 and the tub back plate 130. The rear gasket 250 may
have the
bellows-shaped portion 252, which has sufficient flexibility to prevent the
rear gasket
250 from interfering with vibration of the tub back plate 130.
[103] In the case of the combined washing and drying machine, the hot air
outlet 121 may
be formed at a left position on an outer circumferential surface of the rear
tub 120.
Also, a cooling water injection port may be formed to supply cooling water
into the
tub. Of course, it will be appreciated that the hot air outlet 121 and the
cooling water
injection port may be omitted if a laundry machine has only a washing function
and no
drying function.
[104] The rear tub 120 may have a coupler 123 to couple the rear tub 120 to
the rear wall
620 of the cabinet.
[105] The rear tub 120 may also be fixed to the cabinet base 600.
[106] The tub back plate 130 may be centrally perforated with a hole,
through which the
rotation shaft to rotate the drum 301 penetrates. The tub back plate 130 may
be coupled
to a front surface of the bearing housing 400.
[107] The bearing housing 400 may include a bearing supporting portion to
support a
bearing, and a stator fastening portion extending radially from the bearing
supporting
portion.
[108] The stator fastening portion may have six stator fastening bosses for
fastening of the
stator, and tub back plate fastening holes for fastening of the tub back plate
130.
[109] A first extension 406a and a second extension 406b may extend
radially from left and
right sides of the stator fastening portion. The first extension 406a and the
second
extension 406b may be connected respectively to a first connector 409a and a
second
connector 409b, which extend rearward perpendicular to the first and second ex-
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tensions 406a and 406b. In turn, a first weight fastening portion 410a and a
second
weight fastening portion 410b may radially extend respectively from the first
connector 409a and the second connector 409b.
[110] The stator may be located in the rear of the first extension 406a
and the second
extension 406b and in the front of the first and second connectors 409a and
409b. The
rotor 70, which is directly connected to the rotation shaft, may also be
located in the
front of the first connector 409a and the second connector 409b. Specifically,
the rotor
70 and the stator may be located in a space defined in the front of the first
connector
409a and the second connector 409b and in the rear of the first extension 406a
and the
second extension 406b.
= [111] The first extension 406a and the second extension 406b may
have fastening holes for
fastening of the tub back-plate 130.
[112] Upper surfaces of the first connector 409a and the second connector
409b may define
tub back plate seats to support the tub back-plate 130 thereon.
[113] The first extension 406a, the first connector 409a, and the first
weight fastening
portion 410a may respectively be symmetrical to the second extension 406b, the
second connector 409b, and the second weight fastening portion 410b.
[114] A third extension 408 may be provided between the first extension
406a and the
second extension 406b and in turn, a third connector 408a may extend rearward
per-
pendicular to the third extension 408. A third bracket 408b may extend from
the third
connector 408a. As will be described hereinafter, a third cylinder spring 500
may be
connected to the third bracket 408b. The third bracket 408b, as shown in the
drawings,
may be provided with a fastening bolt to fasten or unfasten the third cylinder
spring
500.
[115] The bearing housing 400 may have an approximately horizontally
symmetrical
shape.
[116] According to the above description, the space for installation of the
motor may be
defined in the front of the first connector 409a and the second connector 409b
(in a
longitudinal direction of the rotation shaft). Here, the bellows-shaped
portion 252 of
the rear gasket 250 may be located in the rear of the first connector 409a and
the
second connector 409b.
[117] The weight member may include a first weight 431 and a second weight
430. The
first weight 431 may be connected to the first weight fastening portion 410a,
and the
second weight 430 may be connected to the second weight fastening portion
410b. The '
first weight 431 and the second weight 430 may be arranged symmetrically to
each
other.
[118] In addition to serving as mass members, the first weight 431 and the
second weight
430 may serve to connect a first axial bracket 450 and a second axial bracket
440,
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which will be described hereinafter, to the bearing housing 400 respectively.
[119] =More specifically, the weights 430 and 431 may serve to prevent the
front end of the
drum 301 from being excessively lowered when laundry received in the drum is
moved
and gathered forward. Also, the weights 430 and 431 may serve as a balance
mass with
relation to a vibration system of the drum 301.
[120] The first weight 431 and the second weight 430 respectively may
consist of a radial
portion extending from the rotation shaft and a bracket connecting portion
extending
forward from a distal end of the radial portion. These weights 431 and 430 may
have
fastening holes perforated in upper ends thereof to allow the weights 431 and
430 to be
fastened to the respective weight fastening members 410a and 410b. For
example, each
weight may have four fastening holes.
[121] The first weight 431 and the second weight 430 may be connected
respectively to the
first axial bracket 450 and the second axial bracket 440 via the bracket
connecting
portions thereof. The bracket connecting portion may be heavier than the
remaining
portion, i.e. the radial portion. This ensures that the weight has a lower
center of
gravity, resulting in enhanced stability against vibration.
[122] The first weight 431 and the second weight 430 may be fabricated by
casting. Also,
the first weight 431 and the second weight 430 may be located in a lower
region of a
space between the rear surface 128 of the tub and an inner rear surface of the
cabinet.
More specifically, the first weight 431 and the second weight 430 may be
located in
the rear of a lower portion of the rear surface 128 of the tub. As the tub is
installed in a
tilted posture, the upper portion of the rear surface 128 of the tub may be
tilted to the
rear, whereby a space for installation of the weight member may be defined in
the rear
of the lower portion of the rear surface 128 of the tub.
[123] The suspension unit may include the vertical suspensions to dampen a
vertically
applied force and the oblique suspensions to dampen a horizontally applied
force. One
of the vertical suspensions may be located in the rear of the center of the
cabinet base
600, whereas the remaining two vertical suspensions may be located at left and
rear
positions in the front of the center of the cabinet base 600. The two oblique
sus-
pensions may be arranged at left and right positions respectively so as to be
inclined in
a longitudinal direction of the tub.
[124] The suspension unit may include a first cylinder spring 520, a second
cylinder spring
510, a third cylinder spring 500, a first cylinder damper 540, and a second
cylinder
damper 530.
[125] The respective cylinder springs may be configured in such a way that
a spring is
installed between a cylinder and a piston. This configuration using the
cylinder and the
piston may ensure stable length variation upon damping. The cylinder may be
connected to the corresponding axial bracket and the piston may be connected
to the
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cabinet base 600.
[126] The respective cylinder dampers may be configured to achieve damping
effects by
frictional resistance caused as a piston moves inside a cylinder.
[127] The first cylinder spring 520 may be connected between the first
axial bracket 450
and the base 600, and the second cylinder spring 510 may be connected between
the
second axial bracket 440 and the base 600.
[128] The third cylinder spring 500 may be directly connected between the
bearing housing
400 and the base 600.
[129] With use of the cylinder springs 520, 510 and 500, the tub may be
supported in a
damping manner at one rear position and two front left and right positions
thereof.
[130] The first cylinder damper 540 may extend obliquely between the first
axial bracket
450 and a rear end of the cabinet base 600, and the second cylinder damper 530
may
extend obliquely between the second axial bracket 440 and the rear end of the
cabinet
base 600.
[131] The third cylinder spring 500 may be located at a rear center
position of the cabinet
base 600, and the first and second cylinder springs 520 and 510 may be located
affront
left and right positions of the cabinet base 600. Also, the first cylinder
damper 540 and
the second cylinder damper 530 may be located between the rear position of the
third
cylinder spring 500 and the front positions of the first and second cylinder
springs 520
and 510. The first cylinder damper 540 and the second cylinder damper 530 may
be
horizontally symmetric to each other.
[132] All the cylinder springs 520, 510 and 500 may be connected to the
cabinet base 600
with rubber bushings interposed therebetween.
[133] The cylinder springs may be fabricated to exhibit damping force.
Similar to the
cylinder dampers, the cylinder springs may be fabricated to exhibit damping
effects by
frictional resistance caused as a piston slides along an inner wall of a
cylinder. The
cylinder damper may be provided with a spring. Similar to the cylinder
springs, the
cylinder dampers may be configured in such a way that a spring is connected
between
a piston and a cylinder to elastically support the piston, thus applying
spring elasticity
to the vibrating drum 301.
[134] The second axial bracket 440 may be symmetric to the first axial
bracket 450.
[135] The first axial bracket 450 may take the form of a U-shaped channel.
More
specifically, the axial bracket 450 may consist of an upper wall and a pair of
sidewalls
perpendicularly extending downward from left and right sides of the upper
wall. Also,
a width of the first axial bracket 450 may gradually decrease from the rear to
the front.
[1361 The first axial bracket 450 may have four fastening holes
perforated in a rear end
portion thereof for connection of the first weight 431. Once seated on the
first weight
431, the first axial bracket 450 may be bolted thereto.
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[137] The cabinet base 600 may include a base front frame 602
perpendicularly extending
upward from a front end of the base 600.
[138] The base front frame 602 may include a lower frame portion 602a for
installation of a
drain filter.
[139] Hereinafter, operation of the laundry machine having both washing and
drying
functions will be described in more detail.
[140] As shown in FIG. 14, the drying fan 41 may be installed above the hot
air outlet 121
of the rear tub 120, and the drying duct 40 may be connected to the duct
connecting
portion 201 of the front gasket 200. A heater to generate hot air may be
mounted in the
drying duct 40. Upon operation of the fan 41, interior air of the tub having
passed
through the hot air outlet 121 may be returned into the tub by passing through
the
drying duct 40 and the duct connecting portion 201.
[141] The hot air outlet 121 may be located closer to the rear surface 128
of the tub than a
middle position between the front surface 101a and the rear surface 128 of the
tub and
the drying fan may also be located at a corresponding position. With the
tilted posture
= of the tub, a space between the top of the outer circumferential surface
of the tub and
an inner ceiling surface of the cabinet may be gradually widened rearward. The
drying
fan may be located in a wider rear region of the space.
[142] The combined washing and drying machine may adopt a circulative
drying system
using circulation of hot air. In this case, a condensing duct, which has been
conven-
tionally installed above the tub, may be unnecessary. A space between the drum
and
the tub may serve as a condensing space. To enhance condensing effects, with
relation
to this condensing space, a metallic condensing plate may be installed to an
inner wall
surface of the tub.
[143] Hereinafter, installation of a main controller 650 will be described.
The main
controller 650 may control general operations of the laundry machine, such as,
e.g., a
drum driving operation, upon receiving a user command from a control panel.
Here,
the control panel may correspond to a user interface, serving to receive a
user
command.
[144] The main controller 650 may be located at a front left position on
the cabinet base
600 and thus, may be located below a front portion of the tub.
[145] The tilted posture of the tub may provide a space between the bottom
of the front
portion of the tub and the base 600, so that the main controller 650 may be
installed in
this space.
[146] The bottom of the front portion of the tub may have a flat portion
101c. Although the
outer circumferential surface of the tub has the approximately cylindrical
contour, the
flat portion 101c may define a flat plane. To form the flat portion 101c, a
lower end of
the front surface 101a of the front tub 100 may be cut to define a flat end
portion 101b.
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The front surface 101a may have approximately a circular contour except for
the flat
end portion 101b.
[147] In the tilted posture of the tub, the flat portion 101c may be tilted
so that a front end
thereof becomes higher than a rear end thereof. A heater may be mounted in the
tub at
a position in the rear of the flat portion 101c. For this, a heater insertion
space may be
defined in the bottom of the tub so as to extend downward from a rear end of
the flat
portion 101c. The heater insertion space may have an opening for insertion of
the
heater.
[148] The heater may be located in the rear of the main controller 650. In
this case, a rear
surface of the main controller 650 may interfere with the heater if the main
controller
650 is pushed rearward upon installation thereof. In particular, since the
heater may be
provided at electric terminals at a front surface thereof and therefore, it
may be
necessary to protect the heater from interference with the Main controller
650. For this,
a stopper 101d may be provided at a lower surface of the flat portion 101c, to
prevent
the main controller 650 from being pushed rearward. The stopper 101d may take
the
form of a rib extending downward from the lower surface of the flat portion
101c.
[149] The base front frame 602 of the base 600 in the form of a front
flange may have a
heater mount. The heater mount may have a vertically extending coupling post
602e
provided at a left end of the base front frame 602. A distance between the
coupling
post 602e and the lower frame portion 602a provided at a right end of the base
front
frame 602 may be greater than a longitudinal length of the main controller
650, to
assure easy insertion of the main controller 650. A portion of the base front
frame 602
between the coupling post 602e and the lower frame portion 602a (hereinafter,
referred
to as a middle coupling portion) may have a lower height than those of the
coupling
post 602e and the lower frame portion 602a. Specifically, the height of the
middle
= coupling portion may be a half or one third or less the height of the
coupling post 602e.
This height may serve to allow the main controller 650 to be easily installed
below the
tub in a state wherein the tub was previously mounted on the base 600.
[150] The main controller 650 may have a plurality of hooks to be
caught by the base front
frame 602. The plurality of hooks may include a first hook 651c provided at a
left end
of the main controller 650 corresponding to the coupling post 602e, and a
second hook
651a and a third hook 65 lb arranged near a lower end of the main controller
650 with
a predetermined interval therebetween. The respective hooks may be shaped to
extend
= first forward from a front surface of the main controller 650 and then,
be bent leftward.
Of course, alternatively, the hooks may be bent rightward after extending
forward.
[151] To correspond to the hooks, the base front frame 602 may have
hook couplers to be
inserted between the bent portions of the respective hooks and the front
surface of the
main controller 650. As shown in FIG. 12, a first hook coupler 602d may be
formed at
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an upper end of the coupling post 602e. The first hook coupler 602d may be
formed by
cutting an upper portion of a right edge of the coupling post 602e, such that
a vertical
= right edge of the first hook coupler 602d may be displaced farther
leftward than the
right edge of the coupling post 602e. The first hook coupler 602d may be
inserted
between the bent portion of the first hook 651c and the front surface of the
main
controller 650, thereby being coupled with the first hook 651c.
[152] The middle coupling portion may be provided with a second hook
coupler 602c and a
third hook coupler 602b. The second hook coupler 602c or the third hook
coupler 602b
may be formed by cutting a vertical slit from an upper edge of the middle
coupling
portion by a predetermined length and a predetermined width and then, cutting
a
horizontal slit leftward from a lower end of the vertical slit. Accordingly,
the second
hook coupler 602c and the third hook coupler 602b may take the form of an ap-
proximately inverted L-shaped slit (when viewed from the rear).
[153] To couple the second hook 651a with the second hook coupler 602c, the
second hook
651a is inserted into the second hook coupler 602c so as to be first moved
downward
along the vertical slit and then, be moved leftward along the horizontal slit.
The
= coupling between the third hook 651b and the third hook coupler 602b may
be ac-
complished in the same manner.
[154] A second upright supporting rib 651d and a third upright supporting
rib 651e may
protrude forward from the front surface of the main controller 650, so as to
be located
respectively between the bent portions of the second hook 651a and the third
hook
65 lb and the front surface of the main controller 650. In a state wherein the
second and
third hooks 651a and 65 lb are coupled with the second and third hook couplers
602c
and 602b, front ends of the supporting ribs 651d and 651e may come into
contact with
a rear surface of the middle coupling portion. With use of the hooks and the
supporting
ribs, it may be possible to prevent the main controller 650 mounted on the
base 600
from being unintentionally rotated and separated forward or rearward.
[155] In addition, once coupled with the hook couplers, the hooks may come
into contact at
lower surfaces thereof with corresponding edges of the hook couplers, thus
serving to
support the main controller 650.
[156] With the above described coupling configuration, the main controller
650 may be
kept at a fixed position while being coupled to the base front frame 602.
= [157] The main controller 650 may be fixedly coupled to the
cabinet by screw fastening.
As shown in FIGs. 9 and 11, the main controller 650 may have a first boss 652a
formed at an upper left end thereof and a second boss 652b formed at a lower
right end
thereof. The first boss 652a may be screwed to the coupling post 602e of the
base front
frame 602, or may be screwed to a front flange of the left wall 630 of the
cabinet. The
second boss 652b may be screwed to the base front frame 602.
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[158] The main controller 650 may be spaced apart from the bottom of the
base 600 by a
predetermined distance. This may serve to prevent a lower surface of the main
controller 650 from coming into contact with the bottom of the base 600
because water
may be present on the bottom of the base 600.
Industrial Applicability
[159] The present invention provides a laundry machine, in which, as a
result of sub-
stantially preventing vibration of a drum from being transmitted to the tub,
the size of a
tub may be increased so that the tub is arranged close to an inner surface of
a cabinet.
Furthermore, it may be possible to accomplish a compact interior structure of
the
laundry machine by effectively acquiring a space between the increased size of
the tub
and the cabinet and utilizing the space for installation of relevant
constituent elements.
[160] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various
modifications and variations
can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope of the
invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover the
modifications and
variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the
appended
claims.
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