US2978891A - Washing and drying machine - Google Patents

Description

April 11, 1961 c. o. RAsMussEN wAsHING AND DRYING MACHINE Filed Sept. 15. 1958 A, UIN

United` States ,Patenti O "ice WASHING AND DRYING MACHINE Christian Oskar Rasmussen, 4 Edlevej,

Hellerup, Denmark Filed Sept. 15, 1958, Ser. No. 761,049 Claims priority, application Denmark Sept..25, 1957 6 Claims. (Cl. 68-23) It is known to manufacture washing and extracting machines having a drum with an agitator rotatably mounted in a fixed tub, the said drum and agitator neing moved selectively by a means placed beneath the drum and resiliently suspended in the bottom of the tub and consisting of an electric motor with axial-coupling, which is operable from outside to connect it with the drum.

'Ihe known washing and extracting machines of this kind havea comparatively slowly turning agitator which is kept in constant movement to and fro at a sinuous varying speed. Formoving the said agitator the machines have either a special gearbox which not only effects a considerable reduction of the speed, but also cons`tantly`reverses the direction of rotation. This mechanism is, however, very complicated and therefore means a considerable increase in the cost of the machine, so that these machines have not been adopted in practice to any large extent. The object of the present invention is to provide a substantial simplification of the transmission of the driving power from the motor to the agitator and the drum, and the invention consists in making `the agitator of one or more vane plates which are eccentrically supported and continuously rotatable in the bottom of the drum. By this design it is not only possible to dispense with the gear mechanism, but also with the reversing drive for the agitator. Furthermore, the result obtained is a more active and suitable mechanical movement of the washing, since the vane plates cause the laundry to perform a toric movement in the stationary drum which is filled with water during. the washing period, and the'vane plates do not have the same unfavorable tendency to become entangled in the laundry as the agitator mounted in the center of the drum has.

In a very suitable embodiment of the machine according to the invention the drum may, with a view to transmitting the movement of the rotator to the vane wheels, be designed with a hollow bottom accommodating a xed transmission between the rotator shaft end, which projects up into the cavity of the bottom, and each individual vane plate.

The said transmission between the rotator shaft end and each individual vane plate may, in a very simple design according to the invention, be effected by means of a planet wheel connected with each vane plate end meshing with a sun wheel which is mounted on the rotator shaft end, the said wheels being enclosed in the hollow bottom, if such a bottom is available.

Furthermore, according to the invention the bottom of the drum may have a raised part of the shape of a body of revolution the wall of which becomes increasingly steep upwards, whereby the aforesaid toric movement of the washing is facilitated.

For further simplification of the transmission parts the hub tube ot the drum may, according to the invention, have a downwardly extending end surrounded by a coupling coil spring which in tensioned condition engages a coupling sleeve attached to the rotator shaft,

2 in addition to which a detent which may be activated from outside may engage one end of the spring so as to extend the spring diameter, whereby disengagement is effected.

The drawing shows an embodiment of a washing and drying machine according to the invention.

Figure 1 is a vertical cross-section of the machine and Figure 2 is a horizontal section on the line II--II of Figure 1.

In the domed bottom 2 of an outer tub 1 a coupling housing 4 is suspended by means of resilient arms 3. The said coupling housing 4 carries at its lower end by means of electrically insulating blocks 5 an electric motor 6 which with an electrically insulating coupling 7 has its shaft 8 in fixed connection with a rotator shaft 9. Thevsaid shaft 9 is guided in a bearing 10 and in a sleeve 11 which, again, is guided in its bearing 12. At its upper end the shaft 9 carries a gear wheel 14 which constitutes the sun wheel of two planet wheels 15 each driving its vane plate 16 in the bottom of a drum 17.

The shafts 18 of the wheels 15 run in liquid-tight bearings 19 and at its upper end the sleeve 11 has a liquid-tight packing 13. To the shaft 9 a coupling member 20 of the same outside diameter as that of the lower end of the sleeve 11 is wedged. These two parts are coupled together by means of a coil. spring 21 which encloses both of them and rests against them at a certain tension. The sleeve 11 will therefore normally join in the rotation of the shaft 9, but when a detent 23 by means of an outside Bowden wire22 is caused to pass into the path of the lower outwardly extending spring end 24, the spring will be stopped and simultaneously expand its windings so much that it no longer forms any permanent coupling between the parts 20 and 11.

The drum 17 may be braked and kept in its braked position by means of a pair of brake blocks 25 which are pivotable about a common pivot 26 and movable in relation to each other by means of another Bowden wire 27. The brake blocks may act by pressing directly on the spring 21. Y

When laundry is to be handled in the drum 17, the drum is filled with water, and the detent 23 is caused to engage the spring end 24, so that the spring does not bring the sleeve 11 into engagement. The said sleeve constitutes the hub tube for the drum 17 which will therefore not join in the rotation when the motor 6 is started. Meanwhile, the motor will turn the shaft 9 and the wheels 14 and 15, whereby the vane plates are caused to rotate so as to agitate the washing water and the laundry therein, the laundry moving along a toric path indicated by arrows 28. In order to facilitate this movement the drum bottom has a central raised section 29 of the form of a generally conical body of revolution.

After the washing operation has been finished, the drum 17 is emptied of water in a manner further described, the detent 23 is passed back to the position in dicated in Figure 1, and the motor 6 is started again. This time'the spring 21 will keep the drum coupled to the motor, and since both the wheels 14 and 15 and the drum 17 turn with the shaft 9 as a rigid unit, the vane plates 16 will not rotate in relation to the drum 17.

When a substantial part of the water has been hurled from the laundry out through the perforated wall of the drum 17, the extracting period is interrupted by the motor 6 being stopped, and the brake blocks 25 are caused to engage and grip the spring 21, after which the rotating parts are caused to stop. lf it is desired to keep the drum braked when not in operation, the brake blocks 25 may simply be left in their braking position.

- Patented Apr. 11, 1961.

Instead Vot' the brake described it is possible to use brake shoes cooperating with the upper end of the drum 17.

In the periphery of the drum 17 there may be a hole, sealed liquid-tightly .by screw 30. Water that may have penetrated into the hollow space 31 of the drum bottom may be hurled out at intervals =by removal of screw 30 and rotating drum 17;

Between the upper part of the coupling member 4 and the bottom 2 is liquid-tightly attached a rubber sleeve 32 which permits a certain amount of movement of the coupling housing in relation to the tub, withoutwater being allowed to pour out of same.

Whatl claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a washing and extracting machine, a vertical hollow rotatable shaft, a rotatable spinning basket securedl to said hollow shaft for rotation therewith, said spin ning basket being provided, eccentrically of said hollow shaft, with a plurality of Vshafts parallel to said hollow shaft and extending into said spinning basket, an agitat- 4ing impeller keyed to each said plurality of shafts, a drive shaft extending axially through said hollow shaft, drive means on said drive shaft, and driven means on each said plurality of shafts cooperating with said drive means whereby said agitating impellers may be positively rotated, and means to selectively drivingly cou ple or uncouple said drive shaft to said hollow shaft, whereby said spinning basket may be rotated to remove water from the contents of the spinning basket.

2, A washing and extracting machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the bottom of the rotatable spinning basket is hollow and accommodates said drive means on said drive shaft and said driven means on said plurality of shafts.

3. A washing and extracting machine as claimed in claim-2, characterized in that the drive means and driven means consist of sun and planet gears respectively, each said planet wheel being connected with one of said agitating impellers, said planett'wheels being in mesh with said sun wheel mounted on said drive shaft.

4. A washing and extracting machine as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that the bottom of said spinning basket has a raised section ofthe shape of a body of revolution Vwhose wall becomes increasingly steep upwardly.n i

5. A washing and extracting machine as claimed in claim 1, in which said means to drivingly couple said drive shaft and said hollow shaft comprises a coil spring which in its tensionedcondition engages the drive shaft and said hollow shaft, and in which a detent is provided adapted to be activated to engage one end of the spring so as to expand the spring diameter, whereby disengagement is effected.

Y6. The device of claim 1, including also brake means to prevent rotation of said spinner basket when said means to drivingly couple said drive shaft to said hollow shaft is uncoupled.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

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