Washing machine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11499261-B2
Application number	US-201816235789-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 28, 2018
Priority date	Dec 28, 2017
Publication date	Nov 15, 2022
Grant date	Nov 15, 2022

Abstract

A washing machine includes a casing, a tub, a drum, a pump, a gasket that is arranged between a case opening and a tub opening and that includes first nozzles and second nozzles, and a water pipe assembly that includes: first nozzle ports affixed to the first nozzles, second nozzle ports affixed to the second nozzles, a first conduit, and a second conduit. The gasket further includes port insertion pipes into which the first and second nozzle ports are inserted. Each of the first and second nozzle ports includes at least one press-fit protrusion that is formed on an outer circumferential surface of the nozzle supply port and that is configured to, in a state in which the nozzle supply port is inserted into a corresponding port insertion pipe, maintain contact with an inner circumferential surface of the port insertion pipe.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A washing machine comprising:
a casing having a case opening defined at a front surface of the casing;
a tub disposed in the casing, the tub having a tub opening defined at a front surface of the tub;
a drum disposed in the tub;
a pump configured to circulate water within the washing machine;
a gasket arranged between the case opening and the tub opening, the gasket comprising an inner circumferential surface that communicates the case opening with the tub opening;
a first plurality of nozzles located at a first side of the inner circumferential surface of the gasket;
a first plurality of port insertion pipes that are defined at the gasket and that communicate with the first plurality of nozzles;
a balancer provided at the front surface of the tub and disposed outside of the gasket; and
a water pipe assembly that comprises:
an inlet hole connected to the pump,
a first conduit that is disposed radially between the gasket and the balancer along a radial direction of the drum such that the gasket, the first conduit, and the balancer are arranged along a line extending in the radial direction, the first conduit extending along a first outer surface of the gasket from the inlet hole, and
a first plurality of nozzle supply ports that protrude from the first conduit toward the gasket and that are inserted into the first plurality of port insertion pipes.

2. The washing machine of claim 1 , wherein each of the first plurality of nozzles comprises:
a nozzle inflow pipe that communicates with a corresponding port insertion pipe among the first plurality of port insertion pipes and that extends from an outer circumferential surface of the gasket to the inner circumferential surface of the gasket; and
a nozzle head that is connected to the nozzle inflow pipe and that forms an outlet for spraying water into the drum.

3. The washing machine of claim 2 , wherein the nozzle head comprises:
a collision surface disposed at the outlet of the nozzle head and configured to collide with water discharged from one of the first plurality of nozzle supply port.

4. The washing machine of claim 2 , wherein the nozzle inflow pipe comprises:
an inlet portion that extends a first length from an inlet of the corresponding port insertion pipe towards an interior of the gasket, and having a diameter corresponding to the inlet of the corresponding port insertion pipe; and
an outlet portion that connects the inlet portion and the nozzle head, and having a diameter that decreases in a direction from the inlet portion toward the nozzle head.

5. The washing machine of claim 1 , wherein the first plurality of nozzle supply ports are disposed at a first lateral side of the gasket, the first plurality of nozzle supply ports comprising a first upper nozzle supply port disposed below a closed end of the first conduit and a first lower nozzle supply port disposed below the first upper nozzle supply port.

6. The washing machine of claim 5 , wherein the first upper nozzle supply port is disposed between the balancer and the gasket.

7. The washing machine of claim 5 , wherein the first conduit has an uplifted portion thereof that protrudes in an outward direction away from an outer circumference of the gasket.

8. The washing machine of claim 1 , wherein the first plurality of nozzles are disposed at a first lateral side of the gasket, the first plurality of nozzles comprising a first upper nozzle disposed above a radial center of the gasket and a first lower nozzle disposed below the radial center of the gasket.

9. The washing machine of claim 1 , wherein each of the first plurality of port insertion pipes of the gasket protrudes outward from an outer circumferential surface of the gasket.

10. The washing machine of claim 1 , wherein the first outer surface of the gasket is a part of an outer circumferential surface of the gasket, and
wherein the first conduit extends along the outer circumferential surface of the gasket in a first circumferential direction of the gasket.

11. The washing machine of claim 2 , wherein the nozzle inflow pipe extends in a horizontal direction.

12. The washing machine of claim 9 , wherein the first plurality of port insertion pipes extend in a horizontal direction.

13. The washing machine of claim 1 , wherein one of the first plurality of port insertion pipes and another of the first plurality of port insertion pipes extend parallel to each other.

14. The washing machine of claim 1 , wherein each of the first plurality of nozzle supply ports comprises at least one press-fit protrusion that is disposed at an outer circumferential surface of the nozzle supply port.

15. The washing machine of claim 1 , wherein the first conduit includes a first portion that extends from one of the first plurality of nozzle supply ports to another of the first plurality of nozzle supply ports along the first outer surface of the gasket.

16. The washing machine of claim 15 , further comprising:
a second plurality of nozzles located at a second side of the inner circumferential surface of the gasket; and
a second plurality of port insertion pipes that are defined at the gasket and that communicate with the second plurality of nozzles,
wherein the water pipe assembly further comprises:
a second conduit that extends along a second outer surface of the gasket, and
a second plurality of nozzle supply ports that protrude from the second conduit toward the gasket and that are inserted into the second plurality of port insertion pipes, and

wherein the second conduit includes a second portion that extends from one of the second plurality of nozzle supply ports to another of the second plurality of nozzle supply ports along the second outer surface of the gasket.

17. The washing machine of claim 16 , wherein the balancer comprises:
a first balancer disposed outside of the first outer surface of the gasket; and
a second balancer disposed outside of the second outer surface of the gasket, and
wherein the first conduit is disposed between the first balancer and the first outer surface of the gasket, and the second conduit is disposed between the second balancer and the second outer surface of the gasket.

18. The washing machine of claim 17 , wherein the water pipe assembly further comprises a connection port that protrudes from a circumference of the inlet hole and that is disposed between the first balancer and the second balancer.

19. The washing machine of claim 18 , further comprising a circulation pipe that connects the pump and the connection port.

20. The washing machine of claim 18 , wherein the first conduit extends from the connection port in a first direction along the first outer surface of the gasket, and
wherein the second conduit extends from the connection port in a second direction along the second outer surface of the gasket.

21. The washing machine of claim 6 , wherein the balancer comprises a first separation preventing rib that protrudes from the balancer toward the first upper nozzle supply port, the first separation preventing rib being configured to prevent separation between the first upper nozzle supply port and one of the plurality of first port insertion pipes that receives the first upper nozzle supply port.

22. The washing machine of claim 7 , wherein the first lower nozzle supply port protrudes from the uplifted portion.

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Lee Junghoon
• Woo Kyungchul
• Kim Jaehyun
• Im Myunghun
• Jung Hwanjin

Classifications

• D06F39/088 Primary

  Liquid supply arrangements · CPC title

• D06F37/265

  Counterweights mounted to the tub; Mountings therefor · CPC title

• D06F37/266 Primary

  Gaskets mounted between tub and casing around the loading opening · CPC title

• D06F39/083 Primary

  Liquid discharge or recirculation arrangements · CPC title

• D06F39/085

  Arrangements or adaptations of pumps · CPC title