EP3021047B1 - Door for a household appliance and household appliance - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a door for a household appliance and a household appliance. The household appliance is preferably a household cooking appliance.

A household appliance, in particular a household cooking appliance, can have a cooking chamber and a door that is designed to close the cooking chamber. A handle can be arranged on the door.

the DE 10 2008 043 365 A1 describes a door for a household appliance with a handle that can be folded into and out of the door.

the DE 43 43 976 A1 describes a retractable door handle which can be swung out into a working position and can be reset into a recess in a door front in a rest position and which is latched in one position, it being possible to fix it in both positions, the door handle being pretensioned in the direction of the working position and has a locking means designed as a sliding pin, the sliding pin protruding into a closed groove track with a detent and being brought into engagement with the groove track by means of a spring element, the sliding pin being part of a movable holder and the spring element being held in operative connection with the holder and the holder is designed as a two-armed lever and the holder is movably mounted on the door front surrounding the door handle and the spring element acts on the lever of the holder opposite the lever with the sliding pin.

the EP 2 359 735 A2 describes a household appliance with a door which can be operated via a handle. The handle is reciprocable between a first and a second position such that a handle element of the handle is close to or in the door in the first position while it is spaced from the door in the second position.

the DE 10 2008 043 363 A1 describes a household appliance door with a door handle that can be at least partially retracted therein, the door handle having a handle bar and at least one curved bracket.

the DE 10 2010 063 209 A1 describes an oven door with a door body and a door handle unit, which has a handle which is movably connected to the door body by means of at least one holder such that the door handle unit can be pivoted between a first position and a second position. The at least one holder extends beyond an edge of the oven door in the first position and does not extend beyond an edge of the oven door in the second position.

the DE 20 2005 002 960 U1 describes a refrigerator and/or freezer door handle for opening a refrigerator or freezer compartment door with a handle that can be pivotally attached to the refrigerator or freezer compartment door by means of a pivot bearing and can be moved between an open and closed position, and with a resetting device for automatically resetting the handle from the open to the closed position, a movement damper being provided for damping the restoring movement of the handle from the open into the closed position and/or for damping the opening movement of the handle from the closed into the open position.

Against this background, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved door for a household appliance.

Accordingly, a door for a household appliance with a handle that can be pivoted from a first position, in which the handle is folded in between an inner wall and an outer wall of the door, into a second position, in which the handle is folded out, and a Pivoting device, which is set up to automatically pivot the handle into the second position when the handle is moved from the first position in the direction of the second position, is proposed. The pivoting device is set up to pivot the handle automatically into the first position when the handle is moved from the second position in the direction of the first position, with the pivoting device having a damping element which is set up to prevent a rotary movement of the handle when the same is pivoted from the first position to the second position or vice versa, and wherein the damping element is a rotary damper. The pivoting device has a spring element which is operatively connected to the handle in order to pivot it into the second position when moving from the first position in the direction of the second position with the aid of a spring force the handle is rotatably mounted on the door with the aid of a first axis of rotation, wherein the spring element is operatively connected to a second axis of rotation of the handle, and wherein the pivoting device has a coupling element which is coupled to the second axis of rotation of the handle and to the door and which is is set up to transmit the spring force of the spring element to the handle, the coupling element comprising a coupling sleeve and a coupling rod which is slidably accommodated in the coupling sleeve.

Because the door has the pivoting device, the handle can be automatically displaced into the second position when it is manually displaced from the first position in the direction of the second position. As a result, the handle only has to be moved manually over a certain distance and then folds out automatically.

The first position can be referred to as the folded position, the second position can be referred to as the unfolded position. The displacement from the first position in the direction of the second position is preferably carried out manually. The household appliance is in particular a household cooking appliance. In the first position, the handle is preferably at least partially located between the outer wall and the inner wall of the door. The outer panel and the inner panel are fixed to a base body of the door. The base body is preferably arranged between the inner wall and the outer wall. The inner wall or the outer wall can be referred to as inner glass or outer glass. The pivoting device and the handle are preferably attached to the base body. The door is preferably pivotably attached to a receiving space, for example a cooking space, of the household appliance.

The pivoting device is set up to automatically pivot the handle into the first position when the handle is displaced from the second position in the direction of the first position.

As a result, in order to fold the handle in, it is only necessary to move it in the direction of the folded position, as a result of which it is automatically pivoted into the first position with the aid of the pivoting device and is thus folded in.

The pivoting device has a damping element which is set up to dampen a rotational movement of the handle when it is pivoted from the first position into the second position or vice versa.

This allows the handle to be pivoted slowly and without jerking. This increases the ease of use.

The damping element is a rotary damper.

The rotary damper can preferably be provided on a first axis of rotation of the handle. With the aid of the first axis of rotation, the handle is preferably pivotably arranged on the base body of the door. Alternatively, the damping element can be a linear damper that is set up to damp a linear movement.

The pivoting device has a spring element which is operatively connected to the handle in order to pivot it into the second position with the aid of a spring force when moving from the first position in the direction of the second position.

The spring element is preferably a cylinder spring. In particular, the spring element is a compression spring. The spring element is preferably coupled to the handle in such a way that a torque is exerted on the handle with the aid of the spring force. The spring element is preferably also set up to pivot the handle into the first position with the aid of a spring force during manual displacement from the second position in the direction of the first position.

The handle is rotatably mounted on the door with the aid of a first axis of rotation and the spring element is operatively connected to a second axis of rotation of the handle.

The axes of rotation are preferably arranged at a distance from one another. In particular, in the first position of the handle, the axes of rotation are offset from one another with respect to a horizontal line.

According to a further embodiment, the axes of rotation are positioned relative to one another such that in the first position of the handle the spring force of the spring element prestresses the handle in the direction of the first position.

The axes of rotation are preferably positioned relative to one another in such a way that the spring force acts on the handle with the aid of a lever arm in such a way that a torque is applied to it. The torque preferably acts on the handle so that it is biased toward the first position.

According to a further embodiment, the axes of rotation are positioned relative to one another such that in the second position of the handle the spring force of the spring element prestresses the handle in the direction of the second position.

In the second position of the handle, the axes of rotation are preferably arranged next to one another with respect to a horizontal line.

According to a further embodiment, the axes of rotation are positioned relative to one another such that when the handle is moved from the first position in the direction of the second position from an intermediate position, the handle can be pivoted into the second position with the aid of the spring force of the spring element.

Furthermore, in particular when the handle is displaced from the second position in the direction of the first position, the handle can be pivoted from the intermediate position into the first position with the aid of the spring force of the spring device. The intermediate position is located between the first position and the second position. In the intermediate position, the spring force of the spring device preferably acts in such a way that both axes of rotation are arranged in one direction of action of the spring force. This means that in the intermediate position no torque is acting on the handle. The intermediate position is preferably unstable. That is, the handle does not stop in the intermediate position. By slightly displacing the handle from the intermediate position in the direction of the first position or in the direction of the second position, the handle is pivoted into the first position or into the second position with the aid of the spring force.

According to a further embodiment, the handle can be displaced into the intermediate position against the spring force of the spring element.

The handle can preferably be displaced from the first position or from the second position into the intermediate position against the spring force of the spring element.

The pivoting device has a coupling element which is coupled to the second axis of rotation of the handle and to the door and which is set up to transfer the spring force of the spring element to the handle.

The coupling member is coupled to the door by means of a pivot provided on the base body of the door.

The coupler includes a coupler sleeve and a coupler rod slidably received in the coupler sleeve, with the spring member being disposed between the coupler sleeve and the coupler rod.

Preferably, the link rod has a head pivotally connected to the second pivot axis of the handle. In particular, the spring element is arranged between the head and the coupling sleeve. In the first position of the handle, the coupling rod is pushed into the coupling sleeve. In the second position of the handle, the coupling rod is almost completely pulled out of the coupling sleeve.

According to a further embodiment, in the first position of the handle, a front side thereof is arranged flush with a front side of the door.

In particular, in the first position of the handle, its front side is arranged flush with a front side of the outer wall of the door. In the present case, "flush" means that the front of the handle and the front of the door are arranged in a common plane.

According to a further embodiment, in the second position of the handle, a front side thereof is arranged perpendicular to a front side of the door.

In the present case, “perpendicular” means an angle of 90°±10°, more preferably 90°±5°, more preferably 90°±3°, more preferably 90°±1°, more preferably exactly 90° .

Furthermore, a household appliance, in particular a household cooking appliance, is proposed with such a door.

The household appliance can be, for example, an oven, a steam cooker, a microwave oven, an oven with a microwave function or the like. Alternatively, the household appliance can be a dishwasher, a refrigerator and/or freezer, a washing machine, a tumble dryer or the like.

Further possible implementations of the door and/or of the household appliance also include combinations of features or embodiments described above or below with regard to the exemplary embodiments that are not explicitly mentioned. The person skilled in the art will also add individual aspects as improvements or additions to the respective basic shape of the door and/or the household appliance.

• Fig. 1 zeigt eine schematische perspektivische Ansicht einer Ausführungsform eines Haushaltsgeräts;
• Fig. 2 zeigt eine schematische perspektivische Ansicht einer Ausführungsform einer Tür für das Haushaltsgerät gemäß der Fig. 1;
• Fig. 3 zeigt eine weitere schematische perspektivische Ansicht der Tür gemäß der Fig. 2;
• Fig. 4 zeigt eine schematische Schnittansicht der Tür gemäß der Fig. 2;
• Fig. 5 zeigt eine weitere schematische Schnittansicht der Tür gemäß der Fig. 2; und
• Fig. 6 zeigt eine weitere schematische Schnittansicht der Tür gemäß der Fig. 2.

Further advantageous configurations and aspects of the door and/or the household appliance are the subject of the dependent claims and the exemplary embodiments of the door and/or the household appliance described below. The door and/or the household appliance are explained in more detail below on the basis of preferred embodiments with reference to the enclosed figures.

• 1 shows a schematic perspective view of an embodiment of a household appliance;
• 2 shows a schematic perspective view of an embodiment of a door for the household appliance according to FIG 1 ;
• 3 shows a further schematic perspective view of the door according to FIG 2 ;
• 4 shows a schematic sectional view of the door according to FIG 2 ;
• figure 5 shows a further schematic sectional view of the door according to FIG 2 ; and
• 6 shows a further schematic sectional view of the door according to FIG 2 .

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

the 1 shows a schematic perspective view of a household appliance 1. The household appliance 1 is, for example, a household cooking appliance. In particular, the household appliance 1 can be an oven, a microwave oven, a steam cooker, an oven with a microwave function or the like. Furthermore, the household appliance 1 can be a dishwasher, a refrigerator and/or freezer, a washing machine, a tumble dryer or the like.

The household appliance 1 has a receiving space 2 which can be closed using a door 3 . The receiving space 2 can be arranged inside a housing of the household appliance 1 . The receiving space 2 can, for example, a cooking chamber or a be muffle of a household cooking appliance. Door 3 is in the 1 shown in their closed position. The door 3 can be closed or opened by pivoting about a pivot axis provided at a lower end of the door 3 . Alternatively, the door 3 can be attached laterally to the receiving space 2 . Furthermore, the door 3 can be arranged on a baking trolley that can be pulled out of the receiving space 2 . A handle 4 may be provided at an upper portion of the door 3 . The handle 4 can, as in the 1 shown, extend over the entire width of the door 3 or only over part of the width of the door 3.

The receiving space 2 has a floor 5, a ceiling 6 arranged opposite the floor 5, a rear wall 7 arranged opposite the door 3 and two side walls 8, 9 arranged opposite one another. The receiving space 2 is preferably cuboid or cube-shaped. The receiving space 2 can be made from a metal material, in particular from sheet steel.

the 2 and 3 show an embodiment of a door 3 each in a schematic perspective view. The handle 4 is of one in the 2 shown first position in which the handle 4 is folded into a in the 3 shown second position, in which the handle 4 is folded out, pivotable. The door 3 has an outer wall 10 and an inner wall 11 arranged at a distance from the outer wall 10 . The outer wall 10 and the inner wall 11 can be made of glass or a glass ceramic. In particular, the outer wall 10 can be referred to as outer glass and the inner wall 11 as inner glass. The inner wall 11 and the outer wall 10 are preferably transparent at least in sections.

A base body 12 or a so-called chassis of the door 3 is arranged between the outer wall 10 and the inner wall 11 . The outer wall 10 and the inner wall 11 are firmly connected to the base body 12 . Furthermore, the door 3 has an end strip 13 provided at an upper end of the door 3 . The end strip 13 is connected to the base body 12 . In the first position, the handle 4 rests against a contact surface 14 of the end strip 13 .

The handle 4 comprises a strip-shaped gripping section 15 and two fastening arms 16, 17 arranged laterally on the gripping section 15. The gripping section 15 can have a have a rectangular cross section. The fastening arms 16, 17 are arranged perpendicularly to the gripping section 15. With the aid of the fastening arms 16, 17, the handle 4 is fastened to the door 3 in a pivotable manner. The gripping section 15 can be gripped by a user to open or close the door 3 . As the 2 and 3 show, the handle 4 can extend over the entire width of the door 3. The handle 4 or the fastening arms 16 , 17 are rotatably fastened to the door 3 with a first axis of rotation 18 of the handle 4 .

The handle 4 has a front side 19 and a rear side 20 arranged opposite the front side 19 . When the handle 4 is in the first position, the rear side 20 rests against the contact surface 14 of the end strip 13 . As the 2 shows, in the first position of the handle 4, the front side 19 of the same is arranged flush with a front side 21 of the door 3, in particular the outer wall 10. As the 3 shows, in the second position of the handle 4 the front side 19 thereof is arranged perpendicularly to the front side 21 of the door 3 .

The door 3 further comprises a pivoting device 22 which is designed to, in particular manually, shifting the handle 4 from the in the 2 shown first position in the direction of in the 3 shown second position to pivot the handle 4 automatically in the second position. The pivoting device 22 includes a spring element 23. The spring element 23 is preferably a cylinder spring. In particular, the spring element 23 is a compression spring. The spring element 23 is operatively connected to the handle 4 in order to pivot it into the second position with the aid of a spring force when moving from the first position in the direction of the second position. The spring element 23 is operatively connected to a second axis of rotation 24 of the handle 4 .

The pivoting device 22 includes a coupling element 25 which is coupled to the second axis of rotation 24 of the handle 4 and to the door 3 and which is set up to transfer the spring force of the spring element 23 to the handle 4 . In particular, the coupling element 25 is operatively connected to the base body 12 of the door 3 . The pivoting device 22 also has a damping element 26 which is set up to dampen a rotational movement of the handle 4 when it is pivoted from the first position into the second position or vice versa. The damping element 26 can, as in the 2 and 3 shown to be a linear damper. Furthermore, the damping element 26 can be a rotary damper, which is arranged, for example, on the first axis of rotation 18 of the handle 4 .

the Figures 4 to 6 show the door 3 according to the 2 and 3 each in a schematic sectional view. the 4 shows the handle 4 in the first position. the 6 shows the handle 4 in the second position and the figure 5 shows the handle 4 in a position between the first and the second position. The following will refer to the Figures 4 to 6 referenced at the same time.

The coupling element 25 comprises a coupling rod 27 which is slidably received in a coupling sleeve 28 . The coupling sleeve 28 is fastened to the base body 12 so that it can pivot on a rotary axis 29 . As the 4 shows, in the first position of the handle 4 the coupling rod 27 is retracted into the coupling sleeve 28 over almost the entire length of the latter. As the 6 shows, the coupling rod 27 is at least partially pulled out of the coupling sleeve 28 in the second position of the handle 4 . The coupling rod 27 also has a head 30 which is pivotably attached to the second axis of rotation 24 of the handle 4 . The spring element 23 is arranged between the coupling sleeve 28 and the coupling rod 27 . In particular, the spring element 23 is positioned between the coupling sleeve 28 and the head 30 of the coupling rod 27 . In particular, the spring element 23 is slipped onto the coupling rod 27 . This means that the coupling rod 27 runs inside the spring element 23.

The functionality of the handle 4 is explained below. A spring force F of the spring element 23 acts in the direction of a central axis or axis of symmetry 31 of the coupling rod 27 or of the spring element 23. Like that 4 shows, in the first position of the handle 4, the axes of rotation 18, 24 are positioned relative to one another such that the spring force F causes a torque acting on the handle 4, which turns the handle 4 clockwise. The direction of rotation of the handle 4 is indicated by arrows 32,33. In particular, the spring element 23 prestresses the handle 4 in the direction of the first position. That is, the spring force F presses the handle 4 against the end strip 13, in particular against the contact surface 14. In the first position of the handle 4, the first axis of rotation 18 is arranged between the second axis of rotation 24 and the contact surface 14 of the end strip 13. The that is, in the orientation of 4 shows a direction of action of the spring force F to the left of the first axis of rotation 18.

When manually moving the handle 4 from the first position towards the second position shifts, as in FIG figure 5 shown, the second axis of rotation 24 relative to the first axis of rotation 18 that from an intermediate position the spring force F no longer rotates the handle 4 clockwise but counterclockwise and automatically shifts the handle 4 to the second position. the figure 5 shows the handle 4 pivoting from the intermediate position to the second position. In particular, in the intermediate position, the axes of rotation 18, 24 are positioned such that the direction of action of the spring force F runs through both axes of rotation 18, 24. In the intermediate position, both axes of rotation 18, 24 are arranged on the central axis 31. That is, in the intermediate position, manually displacing the handle 4 toward the first position or toward the second position results in the handle 4 automatically displacing toward the first or second position. The intermediate position is unstable, so the handle 4 does not stay in the intermediate position.

In the second position of the handle 4 is in the orientation 6 the second axis of rotation 24 is arranged to the right of the first axis of rotation 18, so that the spring force F spring-biases the handle 4 in the direction of the second position. In particular, the second axis of rotation 24 is arranged between the first axis of rotation 18 and the contact surface 14 of the end strip 13 in the second position. To move the handle 4 from the second position to the first position, the handle 4 is moved against the spring force F of the spring element 23 in the direction of the first position. From the intermediate position, ie when the axes of rotation 18, 24 are both arranged on the central axis 31 or on the direction of action of the force F, the spring force F acts in such a way that the handle 4 rotates clockwise. As a result, the handle 4 is pivoted into the first position. This means that the handle 4 can be moved into the intermediate position against the spring force F of the spring element 23 both starting from the first position and starting from the second position.

Although the present invention has been described using exemplary embodiments, it can be modified in many ways.

Reference signs used:

1

household appliance

2

recording room

3

door

4

handle

5

floor

6

ceiling

7

back panel

8th

Side wall

9

Side wall

10

outer wall

11

inner wall

12

base body

13

end bar

14

contact surface

15

gripping section

16

mounting arm

17

mounting arm

18

axis of rotation

19

front

20

back

21

front

22

pivoting device

23

spring element

24

axis of rotation

25

coupling element

26

damping element

27

coupling rod

28

coupling sleeve

29

axis of rotation

30

head

31

central axis

32

arrow

33

arrow

f

spring force

Claims (9)

1. Door (3) for a household appliance (1), with a handle (4), which can be pivoted from a first position, in which the handle (4) is folded in between an inner wall (11) and an outer wall (10) of the door (3), into a second position, in which the handle (4) is folded out, and a pivot facility (22), which is configured to automatically pivot the handle (4) into the second position when the handle (4) is displaced from the first position in the direction of the second position, wherein the pivot facility (22) is configured to automatically pivot the handle (4) into the first position when the handle (4) is displaced from the second position in the direction of the first position, wherein the pivot facility (22) has a spring element (23), which is actively connected to the handle (4), in order to pivot it into the second position with the aid of a spring force (F) when it is displaced from the first position in the direction of the second position, wherein the handle (4) is mounted on the door (3) such that it can rotate with the aid of a first axis of rotation (18), wherein the spring element (23) is actively connected to a second axis of rotation (24) of the handle (4),
   characterised in that the pivot facility (22) has a damping element (26), which is configured to damp a rotational movement of the handle (4) when the same is pivoted from the first position into the second position, or vice versa, and wherein the damping element (26) is a rotary damper, and the pivot facility (22) has a coupling element (25), which is coupled to the second axis of rotation (24) of the handle (4) and to the door (3) and which is configured to transfer the spring force (F) of the spring element (23) to the handle (4), wherein the coupling element (25) comprises a coupling sleeve (28) and a coupling rod (27) that is accommodated in the coupling sleeve (28) such that it can be shifted.
2. Door according to claim 1, characterised in that the axes of rotation (18, 24) are positioned in relation to one another such that, in the first position of the handle (4), the spring force (F) of the spring element (23) pretensions the handle (4) in the direction of the first position.
3. Door according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the axes of rotation (18, 24) are positioned in relation to one another such that, in the second position of the handle (4), the spring force (F) of the spring element (23) pretensions the handle (4) in the direction of the second position.
4. Door according to one of claims 1 - 3, characterised in that the axes of rotation (18, 24) are positioned in relation to one another such that, when the handle (4) is displaced from the first position in the direction of the second position, from an intermediate position, the handle (4) can be pivoted into the second position with the aid of the spring force (F) of the spring element (23).
5. Door according to claim 4, characterised in that the handle (4) can be displaced into the intermediate position counter to the spring force (F) of the spring element (23).
6. Door according to claim 5, characterised in that the coupling element (25) has a coupling sleeve (28) and a coupling rod (27), which is accommodated in the coupling sleeve (28) such that it can be shifted, and that the spring element (23) is arranged between the coupling sleeve (28) and the coupling rod (27).
7. Door according to one of claims 1 - 6, characterised in that, in the first position of the handle (4), a front side (19) of the same is arranged flush-mounted with a front side (21) of the door (3).
8. Door according to one of claims 1 - 7, characterised in that, in the second position of the handle (4), a front side (19) of the same is arranged perpendicularly to a front side (21) of the door (3).
9. Household appliance (1), in particular household cooking appliance, with a door (3) according to one of claims 1 - 8.

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