CORTES PEREZ, Elena (C/Fuendejalón nº8 2ºA, Zaragoza, E-50014, ES)
LOPEZ PALACIOS, Carlos (Camino de las Torres, 34-3º, Zaragoza, E-50008, ES)
ROMEO CARNICERO, Alberto (Avenida de los Álamos, 5-2ºA, Zaragoza, E-50012, ES)
CAUDEVILLA DE SOLA, Angel (Vicente Berdusan, 44-5ºA, Zaragoza, E-50010, ES)
CORTES PEREZ, Elena (C/Fuendejalón nº8 2ºA, Zaragoza, E-50014, ES)
LOPEZ PALACIOS, Carlos (Camino de las Torres, 34-3º, Zaragoza, E-50008, ES)
ROMEO CARNICERO, Alberto (Avenida de los Álamos, 5-2ºA, Zaragoza, E-50012, ES)
| CLAIMS Door of a front-loading washing machine comprising a door frame (2), a concave element (3) with an edge (31 ) connected with the door frame, and a lenticular element (4), which closes the concavity formed by the concave element, thereby forming a hollow (5) on the door (1 ), characterized in that the door frame (2), the concave element (3) and the lenticular element (4) are made in a piece of plastic injected by means of a gas injection process. Door of a front-loading washing machine according to claim 1 , characterized in that inserts (62) of another material may be embedded into the plastic of the door. Door of a front-loading washing machine according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the door frame (2), on its front face (21 ), has a frontal recess (24) to assemble a handle-set (6) and/or, on its rear face (22), a rear recess to assemble the element hinge (7). Door of a front-loading washing machine according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the hollow (5) extends at least over a part of the interior of the door frame (2). Door of a front-loading washing machine according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a handle (61 ) is made in one piece with the door (1 ). Door of a front-loading washing machine according to claim 5, characterized in that an insert (62) made as a latch is embedded projecting from the rear face (22) of the door frame (2). Door of a front-loading washing machine according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the plastic is a transparent plastic. 8. Door of a front-loading washing machine according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least part of the front face (21 ) of the door frame (2) is coated by a scratch-proof and/or chemical-resistant protecting element (8). 9. Door of a front-loading washing machine according to claim 8, characterized in that the protecting element (8) is of ABS plastic. 10. Front-loading washing machine with a door (1 ) comprising a door frame (2), a concave element (3) with an edge (31 ) connected with the door frame, and a lenticular element (4), which closes the concavity formed by the concave element, thereby forming a hollow (5) on the door (1 ), characterized in that the door frame (2), the concave element (3) and the lenticular element (4) are made in a piece of plastic injected by means of a gas injection process. |
MACHINE WITH SAID DOOR
The invention relates to the field front-loading washing machine doors that have a door frame, a concave element with an edge connected to the door frame, and a lenticular element that closes the concavity formed by the concave element forming a hollow in the door, and to the field of front-loading washing machines that are closed with doors according to the invention.
Document WO 2009/1 1251 1 A1 describes a front-loading washer door that has a door frame, a glass concave element with an edge connected to the door frame, and a lenticular element that closes the concavity formed by the concave element forming a hollow in the door.
Document ES 223520 Y describes a door for front-loading washing machines formed as a single piece of one kind of transparent material. The door has an annular portion located on the outside of the machine chassis and a concave zone that projects toward the inside of the machine. Once the door has been manufactured, the annular zone undergoes surface etching on one or both sides of said zone to conceal the mechanical parts that support and lock the circular door. The case of said model also mentions the possibility of leaving the assembly transparent so that technical components are visible from the outside, thereby achieving a certain "mechanical" effect that could be esthetically pleasing. Therefore, we see this door, like the one proposed by the search term, as having neither a frame nor a molding, and optionally completely transparent. The door is formed integrally with the closure element and the element for fastening the hinge.
A door for washers of simplified construction similar to the previous one is the one described in document GB 941 134 A. Said door is made from a single piece of transparent plastic and afterward the outer ring undergoes a treatment that makes it opaque so that only the central circle remains transparent. In this case, both the hinge and the handle are molded integrally with the door in the fabrication process.
Document ES 1015460 U describes a door for washers and dryers in which the frame is omitted with the door consisting solely of a transparent cupped element, which can be of glass or plastic, and a molding (referred to in the case as a decorative frame) of a plastic material that encircles the edge of the cupped element along its entire perimeter. This element can be molded directly straddling the edge of the cup-shaped element, or be molded separately and subsequently fastened to the edge. It is noted that said molding would be comparable to anti-shock molding to avoid sharp edges and protect the glass. Nothing is mentioned in ES 1015460 U about the type of connection of said window to the hinge and catch elements.
The object of the invention is to provide a door for front-loading washing machines with the characteristics of improved energy efficiency, simple manufacture, and reduced costs, and a front-loading washing machine with a door having said characteristics.
This object is achieved as defined in the independent claims attached. Preferred embodiments of the invention are apparent from dependent claims or the subsequent disclosure.
According to the invention, a front-loading washing machine door comprises a door frame, a concave element with an edge connected to the door frame, and a lenticular element that closes the concavity formed by the concave element forming a hollow in the door, wherein the door frame, the concave element, and the lenticular element are formed as one piece of plastic injected by means of a gas injection process.
A door of this type offers an improved configuration with respect to the energy efficiency since the chamber formed by the hollow serves as thermal insulation during high-temperature washing processes. Moreover, in the gas-assisted plastic injection, especially with nitrogen, the gas is injected into the molten polymer mass at high pressure, hollows out the central part of the piece and presses the molten material against the mold surface. After the material solidifies, the nitrogen is evacuated from the mold cavity. The result is a door with better characteristics than those of a solid door. The door is lighter with practically the same strength, plastic material is conserved, production cycles are shorter due to faster cooling, the resulting door does not contain any marks due to shrinkage cavities in the locations where material accumulates, and greater precision in the door dimensions is obtained.
To fasten the door to the washing machine chassis, to fasten a handle set, or to incorporate any element into the door, it may have inserts of another material that are embedded in the plastic of the door. The inserts are preferably metal or ceramic and made so that the elements requiring them in order to function will fit thereon.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is possible to assemble a handle set directly onto the front face of the door frame, or in the frontal recess made for this purpose in the front face of the door frame, with a handle and with a catch that projects through the rear face of the door frame.
According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, a recess may likewise be formed in the rear face in which, for example, a hinge element of a hinge assembly can be inserted. One way to fasten the hinge assembly comprises locating the centerline of the hinge (the part corresponding to the knuckles) within the door frame and covering it afterward with a small cap. The rest of the hinge may be connected to the front panel of the washer.
According to an alternative preferred embodiment of the invention, another way to mount the hinge is by means of a hinge on both sides comprising a movable hinge leaf and a fixed hinge leaf connected by means of a hinge pin. The movable hinge leaf could be mounted on the door and the fixed one on the panel. A vertical hinge pin would be the connecting element, and at the same time the axis of rotation of the hinge assembly.
According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the hollow defined by the concave element and the lenticular element can also extend through at least part of the interior of the door frame, making it much lighter.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the handle is made integrally with the door during the same injection process, for which a catch or an insert formed as a catch is provided, embedded in and projecting from the rear face of the door frame. In this manner, the manufacture of the door is greatly simplified.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the door can be made from a transparent plastic to make the inside of the washer drum visible. To make it stronger or fit more attractively into the machine, provision is made for at least part of the front face of the door frame to be covered by means of a protecting element that is resistant to scratches and/or chemical products. Moreover, the protecting element can be formed as an ABS plastic ring that is glued, clipped, or welded to the front face of the door frame.
A principal advantage of the invention is the integration of several components into one. In this way, decreased door assembly complexity is achieved. Said decreased complexity leads to reduced material costs and, particularly, assembly costs. Consequently, the overall cost of the assembly is lower. An additional advantage is the decrease in both the total investment and in the time and tooling required for molding. Moreover, the energy consumption in the process is much lower.
Other advantages are brought out in the following description of the Figures of the attached drawing. A preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in the Figures. The Figures, the description and the claims contain combinations of numerous characteristics. Any person skilled in the art could advantageously also consider the characteristics individually and recombine them in other reasonable combinations without departing from the scope of the invention. In particular, the drawing shows:
Figure 1 a cross-section of a front-loading washer door, and
Figure 2 a schematic section of a handle set for a washer door.
Figure 1 shows a cross-section of a door 1 , which closes the loading door opening of a front-loading washer, formed from a piece of plastic with an interior hollow 5 enclosed by a concave element 3, a lenticular element and a door frame 2. With the door 1 in the closed position within the machine (not shown), the concave element 3 is introduced through the loading door opening of the machine seating against a rubber gasket of the loading door opening to seal it. The door frame 2 remains on the outside of the washing machine chassis.
The door 1 features a handle 61 on a front face 21 of the door frame 2 and an insert
62 that serves as a catch 62 embedded in the plastic of the door frame 2 projecting from the rear face 22 opposite the handle. The other side of the door 1 features a hinge element 7 fastened by screws to the door frame 2 through its rear face 22. The front face 21 of the door frame 2 is covered by an opaque protecting element 8 that conceals the mechanical elements of the door 1 and at the same time protects it from scratches and chemical attack from, for example, cleaning products used during the washing machine washing process.
Figure 2 shows a schematic cross-section of the door frame 2 covered with a protecting element 8 of a door 1 of the invention. On the front face 21 of the door frame 2 is formed a front recess 24 in which a handle set 6 is assembled. The handle set 6 has a handle 61 that projects from the perimeter of the door, and a catch hook 63 that projects through an opening in the rear face 22 of the door frame 2. The handle set 6 can rotate on a shaft connected to some tube-shaped inserts (not shown) embedded in the plastic of the door frame 2 in which it can rotate.
Reference Numerals
1 Door
2 Door frame
21 Front face
22 Rear face
24 Front recess
3 Concave element
31 Edge
4 Lenticular element
5 Hollow
6 Handle set
61 Handle
62 Inserts
63 Catch
7 Hinge element
8 Protecting element