EP2866636B1 - Domestic appliance with locking device and door counterbalance system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a domestic appliance, in particular a domestic dishwasher, with a locking arrangement and a door counterbalancing system.

Unlocking and opening the door of a conventional dishwasher, for example a dishwasher with a pull lock, involves a certain amount of force on the part of the operator, which is sometimes felt to be uncomfortable. In addition, it has proven advantageous in the past to partially open the door of a dishwasher during the drying process with regard to complete drying. Furthermore, there is often a desire for handle-free device fronts.

Accordingly, dishwashing machines having a device for automatically opening the door have been developed in the recent past. Such a dishwasher is for example in EP 2 394 561 A2 described. In this case, the door can be opened automatically by at least one gap width by a motor-operated opening device in the form of a push-on unit, eg in the form of a push-on plunger. A magnetic coupling is provided, which ensures that the push-open unit and the door remain in a detachable coupling.

If the door of the household appliance can be pivoted about a horizontal axis of rotation, the sometimes high dead weight of the door means that manual closing requires considerable effort by the user. On the other hand, the door reaches a relatively high speed when opening, which is undesirable for safety and comfort reasons. For this reason, so-called door weight compensation systems have been known for a long time, which on the one hand support a closing movement of the door and on the other hand dampen the opening movement of the door. Such a door weight compensation system is for example in DE 296 15 527 U1 described.

From the DE 40 13 571 A1 discloses a door spring adjustment device for domestic dishwashers with an adjustable tension spring, in which the attachment point of the tension spring can be displaced on a hinge.

One object of the present invention is to provide a household appliance, in particular a household dishwasher, which has a locking arrangement and a door weight compensation system and is characterized by a particularly simple mechanism for automatically opening the door.

According to the invention, this object is achieved by a household appliance having the features according to patent claim 1 .

The invention is based on the basic idea of not providing any additional components such as push-buttons, opening springs or the like for the automatic or self-acting opening of the door, but essentially using only the weight of the door to generate the torque required for opening. Thus, the invention is distinguished by a particularly simple structural design, which can be implemented with little or no additional structural and assembly work. Depending on the embodiment of the household appliance, it is also possible for other appliance components that are already present, such as a door seal, to exert a force on the door, which additionally supports the automatic opening of the door. According to the invention, however, at least the essential part of the required torque should be caused by the weight of the door, which means that no additional components are provided, the primary purpose of which is to generate a torque for automatically opening the door.

In order to achieve automatic opening with the aid of the weight of the door, it is necessary for the torque in the opening direction, which results at least essentially from the weight in the opening direction - hereinafter referred to as the opening torque - to be greater than the counter-torque acting in the closing direction - hereinafter referred to as the closing torque designated. This closing moment is mainly caused by the door weight balancing system. However, parasitic forces such as frictional forces can also contribute to this closing moment.

According to the invention, it is sufficient to unlock the door in order to cause the door to open automatically, ie automatically. In order to make this possible, it is necessary for the required opening moment to already act on the door when the door is in the essentially vertical initial position at the time of unlocking. According to the invention, this is achieved in that the axis of rotation of the door is arranged behind the center of gravity of the door in the depth direction of the household appliance. The depth direction is the direction from the front of the device to the rear of the device.

The door and the door weight compensation system must therefore be designed and designed in such a way that when the door is in the upright starting position, there is initially an opening moment that is greater than the closing moment, and that when the desired partial opening position is reached on the door, there is a moment equilibrium between the opening and closing moments adjusts

According to an embodiment of the invention that is particularly simple in terms of construction, the door weight compensation system comprises, on the one hand, a tension spring device and, on the other hand, a traction cable and/or a door linkage.

From a visual and aesthetic point of view, there is often a desire to provide the door with a decorative panel, particularly in the case of built-in household appliances. In a further embodiment of the invention, the door can therefore also comprise a decorative panel attached thereto in addition to a door base body.

Both from the point of view of comfort, e.g. in the case of the automatic opening of a handle-less door, and taking into account the efficiency when opening the door to support drying, it has proven to be advantageous if the door is in the partially open position by 50 to 150 mm, in particular 90 to 110 mm, is open. The dimensions relate to a distance between the upper edge of the door and an upper edge of the opening in the body of the household appliance, which closes or opens the door. In general, however, a partially open position within the meaning of the application means any intermediate position of the door between its closed, essentially vertical position and its fully open, essentially horizontal position.

The invention and its advantageous training and developments and their advantages are explained in more detail below with reference to drawings.

Fig. 1

eine erfindungsgemäße Geschirrspülmaschine mit geschlossener Tür in Seitenansicht,

Fig. 2

eine Seitenansicht einer Ausführungsform eines Türgewichtsausgleichssystems der Geschirrspülmaschine gem. Figur 1,

Fig. 3

eine etwas detailliertere Seitenansicht des Türgewichtsausgleichssystems gemäß Figur 2,

Fig. 4

eine Schnittdarstellung einer Ausführungsform einer Verriegelungsanordnung der Geschirrspülmaschine gem. Figur 1 und

Fig. 5

eine erfindungsgemäße Geschirrspülmaschine mit teilweise geöffneter Tür in Seitenansicht.

They each show in a schematic principle sketch:

1

a dishwasher according to the invention with the door closed in side view,

2

a side view of an embodiment of a door weight compensation system of the dishwasher gem. figure 1 ,

3

a slightly more detailed side view of the door counterbalancing system according to FIG figure 2 ,

4

a sectional view of an embodiment of a locking arrangement of the dishwasher gem. figure 1 and

figure 5

a dishwasher according to the invention with a partially open door in side view.

Elements that are the same or have the same function have been provided with the same reference symbols in the figures, unless otherwise stated.

1 shows a domestic appliance 1 in the form of a dishwasher 1' in a schematic side view. This has a treatment space 2 in the form of a washing container 2' for receiving items to be washed. A door 3 is articulated on a body 4 accommodating the washing compartment 2 ′ by means of a joint (not shown) in such a way that the door 3 can be pivoted about a lower horizontal axis of rotation 5 . The closed position is illustrated in a solid line and the fully open position of the door 3 is illustrated in a dashed line. In the closed position, the door 3 assumes a substantially vertical position and can be pivoted forwards and downwards in the direction of the arrow A about the axis of rotation 5 in order to open it. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the door 3 is designed without a handle and has a decorative panel 3a which is fastened to a door base body 3b. However, the invention can also be used for doors with a handle and/or without a decorative panel. The dishwasher 1 ′ also has an unlocking module 6 and a locking arrangement 7 in the form of a door lock 7 ′, which are each arranged below an upper cover 11 of the body 4 .

The door lock 7 comprises an actuating element in the form of a locking element 12 (see FIG figure 4 ), which is designed according to the embodiment in the form of a hasp. Now returning to figure 1 , there is shown a recess 13 in the door 3, in which the locking element 12 engages in the closed position of the door 3 and pulls it in the direction of the washing compartment 2' against a seal (not shown). The seal is arranged around the opening of the washing container 2'. This achieves a gas-tight and liquid-tight closure of the washing compartment 2 ′ when the door 3 is in the closed position.

The door 3 is connected via a door weight compensation system 20, which comprises one or more spring unit(s) 20', to a non-moving - i.e. stationary - area 21 of the dishwasher 1', with the non-moving area 21 in the illustrated exemplary embodiment being connected by a base support 22 - often also referred to as a floor pan - is formed (cf. figures 2 and 3 ). Precisely one such spring unit 20' is preferably provided axially symmetrically on each transverse side of the dishwasher 1', ie on the left and right side of the dishwasher 1'. With the help of the door weight compensation system 20, on the one hand, an opening movement is damped and, on the other hand, a closing movement of the door 3 is supported.

The spring unit 20 'comprises at least one traction cable 23, which in cross section, for example, as a flat strip or - can be formed - for example, made of metal or a plastic such as polyester - as here as a round symmetrical cable. Alternatively, an embodiment would also be conceivable in which the traction cable 23 is partially or completely replaced by a linkage. In order to enable different forces to be applied to the door 3 depending on the door position, i.e. the degree of opening of the door 3, the traction cable 23 is guided over a slider 26 comprising at least two sliding surfaces 24, 25 with frictional torques that vary depending on the door position. The slider 26 forms a structural unit that is open at the side and that, even when it is mounted on the dishwasher 1', allows the pull cable 23 to be threaded in and out of a through-flow channel 27 located between the sliding surfaces 24, 25, and to be precise without one of the attachment ends 28 , 29 of the traction cable 23, but by laterally inserting a central area of the traction cable 23 into the through-flow channel 27. In particular, the slider 26 with its at least two, preferably fixed, sliding surfaces 24, 25 is open at the side in such a way that the traction cable 23 can be inserted approximately perpendicular to the respective side wall or to the respective lateral frame part of the base support 22 is made possible.

Due to the free accessibility of the slider 26 from the side, the traction cable 23 can advantageously be prefabricated and equipped at the front with a thickened first attachment end 28 that exceeds the clear width of the through-flow channel 27 of the slider 26 for directly or indirectly grasping one of the preferably only subsequently attached mounted door 3 associated pivot lever 30 may be provided. This first fastening end 28 can, for example, comprise a plastic body in which one end of the traction cable 23 is embedded, ie the plastic body is injection-molded onto the end section of the traction cable 23 on the door side. In contrast to an eyelet, this enables a non-rotatable connection to the pivoting lever 30 . In particular, this plastic body can be designed as a coupling element which can be attached to a parking position on the base support 22 , in particular on a hinge plate provided in the front edge region of the base support 22 . In this parking position, this coupling element engages with the associated pivoting lever 30 on the door 3 when the latter is mounted on the dishwasher 1'.

Likewise, the traction cable 23 - again prefabricated - can be provided on the back, i.e. on the tension spring device side, with a thickened second fastening end 29 that exceeds the clear width of the through-flow channel 27 of the slider 26 for direct or indirect connection with a tension spring device 31. In the exemplary embodiment shown, this comprises a continuous tension spring 31'. Alternatively, several springs connected in series and/or next to one another are also possible. With the help of the second attachment end 29, the traction cable 23 can be connected to the tension spring device 31 in a manner secured against twisting. As a result, undesired torsions of the traction cable 23 and/or the tension spring device 31 are largely avoided. This also prevents the windings of the tension spring device 31 from being able to become detached from the second fastening end 29 of the tension cable 23, which would lead to the door weight compensation system 20 failing.

As described above, the slider 26 comprises two or more sliding surfaces 24, 25 located opposite one another, which in the exemplary embodiment shown are designed in the form of guideways shaped like segments of a circle, on which the traction cable 23 rests with different frictional moments depending on the door opening position. The guide tracks are firmly connected to one another, specifically via a support unit 32 which adjoins the side wall of the base support 22 assigned to it.

In this case, the slider 26 can inexpensively form or comprise a total injection-molded part, of which both the support unit 32 and the sliding surfaces 24, 25 form one-piece components. If a slider 26 is provided on the left and right of a door 3, the two sliders 26 are provided axially symmetrically to one another and thus form separate structural units.

The following is based on figure 4 the structure of the door lock 7 explained in more detail.

The locking element 12 has a hook 40, which in the locking position of the locking element 12 in the recess 13 (see figure 1 ) grabs. The hook 40 forms one end of the locking element 12. The other end of the locking element 12 is held by two legs 87 (due to the section in figure 4 only one of the legs 41 can be seen). The legs 41 take a return spring 42 between them, which at one end 43 against a Section 44 is applied, which is fixed to a housing 45 of the door lock 7, and which acts with its other end 46 against the leg 41. The extreme ends of the legs 41 together form the end 47.

If an actuator 48, shown only schematically, of the unlocking module 6, which is also only shown schematically, acts directly or indirectly with a pressure surface 49 against the end 47 of the locking element 12, the locking element 12 is moved from its locked position to its unlocked position (in figure 4 indicated in dashed line) in the adjustment direction V along its adjustment axis 50 adjusted. The hook 40 is then moved on the one hand in the adjustment direction V and on the other hand in a direction K perpendicular to the E plane. The movement in the direction K is accomplished in that the door lock 7 has a step 51 . In the unlocked position (dashed in figure 4 ) of the locking element 12, the hook 40 engages in a form-fitting manner behind the step 51.

The unlocking module 6, which is used to move the hook 40 in the adjustment direction K, is in figure 4 only indicated schematically and can be realized in many ways. Possible forms of realization of the unlocking module 6 are, for example, in the older German patent application 10 2011 007 538.0 and 10 2012 207 836.3 described.

The recess 13 (see figure 1 ) is released in the unlocked position of the locking element 12, so that the door 3 can be opened automatically. However, the door 3 should not be opened completely, but only partially. A partial opening is understood to mean any door position that does not correspond to the essentially vertical starting position in the closed position of the door 3 and not to the essentially horizontal position of the door 3 when the door is fully open. The door 3 should preferably be brought into a partially open position by the automatic opening, in which the door is opened by 50 to 150 mm, in particular 90 to 110 mm. The dimensions relate to a distance between the upper edge of the door 3 and an upper edge of the opening in the body 4 of the dishwasher 1 ′, which closes or opens the door 3 . figure 5 shows the in figure 1 shown dishwasher 1 'after the automatic opening of the door 3. The said distance between the upper edge of the door and the upper edge of the Opening in the body 4 is denoted by D. Such an automatic partial opening of the door 3 is achieved in that the door 3 and the door weight compensation system 20 are designed and set up in such a way that the door 3 assumes the said partial opening position in the unlocked state solely due to the weight G exerted by the door 3.

As in the figures 1 and 5 shown, the lower horizontal axis of rotation 5 of the door 3 is arranged behind the center of gravity S of the door 3 in the depth direction of the dishwasher 1 ′. As a result, immediately after the door 3 is unlocked, ie at a time when the door 3 is still in its essentially vertical starting position, an opening moment M_auf caused by the weight G of the door 3 acts on the door 3 . In order to now cause the door 3 to pivot open automatically about the axis of rotation 5 forwards and downwards in the direction of arrow A, the door weight compensation system 20 is designed and set up in such a way that the opening moment M_auf after the door 3 has been unlocked, i.e. after the Movement of the locking element 12 from its locked position to its unlocked position is initially greater than the sum of the counter-torques caused by the door weight compensation system 20 - hereinafter referred to as the closing torque M_zu. With an increasing opening angle of the door 3, the closing moment M_close increases and when the desired partial opening position (distance D) is reached, a moment balance finally occurs at the door 3, i.e. the opening moment M_open and the closing moment M_close are equal in magnitude. As a result, the door 3 remains in this partially open position.

The closing moment M_zu caused by the door weight compensation system 20 is essentially dependent on a spring force caused by the tension spring device 30 . This is directly influenced by the design and configuration of the tension spring device 30 itself. However, an indirect influence is also possible, for example, through the length of the traction cable 23 . However, it is not the absolute length of the traction cable 23 that is decisive here, but rather the ratio of an actual length to a minimum length which is required in order, with the door 3 closed, to achieve the essentially due to the arrangements and configurations of the tension spring device 31, the pivoted lever 30 and of the slider 26 predetermined path between the tension spring device 31 and the To bridge pivot lever 30. To put it simply, a specific excess length (actual length is greater than the minimum length) of the traction cable 23 can cause the spring force to become effective only from a predeterminable opening angle of the door 3 . The desired effect of an automatic partial opening of the door 3, which is brought about exclusively by the weight G of the door 3, can thus be achieved in a very simple manner by selecting a traction cable 23 with a suitable length. The length of the traction cable 23 is chosen such that exactly when the desired partial opening position of the door 3 is reached, a spring force acts which leads to a closing moment M_closed, the absolute value of which is equal to the opening moment M_open. As already mentioned above, it is not the absolute length (actual length) of the traction cable 23 that is decisive, but the ratio of the actual length to the minimum length that is required to cover the path between the tension spring device 31 and the pivoted lever 30 bridge. Consequently, the closing moment M_zu can be influenced not only by changing the length of the traction cable 23, but also alternatively or in support of a targeted change in the path length between the tension spring device 31 and the pivoting lever 30. This can be done, for example, by specifically influencing the starting position of the slider 26 take place as in the DE 196 11 050 A1 is described. In addition or as an alternative to the targeted lengthening of the traction cable 23 and/or the targeted displacement of the slider 26, the tension spring device 30 can of course also be designed and set up in such a way that the required closing moment M_closed is effected when the desired partial opening position of the door 3 is reached.

Of course, all other forces, in particular frictional forces, for example in the area of the sliding surfaces 24 and 25, which also contribute to the closing moment M_to be taken into account in the design and configuration of the tension cable 23 and the tension spring device 30. Conversely, of course, parasitic forces that contribute to the opening moment M open must also be taken into account. For example, it is conceivable that the seal arranged all the way around the opening of the washing compartment 2' makes such a contribution. For the realization of the invention, however, it is crucial that all parasitic forces which lead to an increase in the opening moment M_auf are caused by components whose primary purpose is not the automatic opening of the door 3 .

The invention was explained using the example of a dishwasher, but can also be used without restrictions on other household appliances with a door that can be pivoted about a horizontal axis of rotation, a locking arrangement and a door weight compensation system. <b>List of reference characters:</b> 1 household appliance 31' tension spring 1' dishwasher 32 carrying unit 2 treatment room 40 hook 2' flush tank 41 leg 3 door 42 return spring 3a decorative panel 43 first end (of the return spring) 3b door body 44 section 4 body 45 housing (of the door lock) 5 axis of rotation 46 second end (of the return spring) 6 unlocking module 47 end (of locking element) 7 locking arrangement 48 actuator (of the unlocking module) 7' door lock 49 pressure surface (of the actuator) 11 cover (of the body) 50 adjustment axis 12 locking element 51 step 13 recess A Panning direction (when opening the 20 door weight balancing system Door) 20' spring unit D distance 21 stationary area E level 22 base carrier G weight (of the door) 23 pull rope S center of gravity (of the door) 24 sliding surface V direction of adjustment (des 25 sliding surface locking element) 26 glider K Direction (perpendicular to plane E) 27 flow channel 28 first attachment end (des pull rope) 29 second fastening end (des pull rope) 30 swing lever 31 tension spring device

Claims (5)

1. Household appliance (1), in particular a dishwasher (1'), having

   - a carcass (4)

   - a door (3) that can be pivoted about a horizontal axis of rotation (5), which in its closed position assumes a substantially vertical position and closes a treatment chamber (2),

   - an unlocking module and a locking arrangement (7), by means of which the door (3) can be locked in its closed position, in the form of a door lock (7'), which are each arranged below an upper covering (11) of the carcass (4), and

   - a door weight compensation system (20) for damping an opening movement and/or for assisting a closing movement of the door (3),

   wherein the axis of rotation (5) of the door (3) is arranged behind the centre of gravity (S) of the door (3) in the depthwise direction of the household appliance (1) and the door weight compensation system (20) is designed and set up in such a manner that in the unlocked state, without additional components, the primary purpose of which is to generate a torque for the automatic opening of the door, the door (3) assumes a partially open position, in which it is open to some degree, substantially on account of the weight-induced force (G) exerted by the door (3).
2. Household appliance according to claim 1, wherein the door (3) and the door weight compensation system (20) are designed and set up in such a manner that in the unlocked state the door (3) assumes a partially open position, in which it is open to some degree, solely on account of the weight-induced force (G) exerted by the door (3).
3. Household appliance according to one of claims 1 or 2, wherein the door weight compensation system (20) comprises

   - a tension spring facility (31) and

   - a tension cable (23) and/or door rod system.
4. Household appliance according to one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the door (3) comprises a door base body (3b) and a decorative plate (3a) fastened thereto.
5. Household appliance according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the door (3) is 50 to 150 mm, in particular 90 to 110 mm, open in the partially open position.

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