Adjustable bumper design for home appliances

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11946309-B2
Application number	US-202016994755-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 17, 2020
Priority date	Aug 17, 2020
Publication date	Apr 2, 2024
Grant date	Apr 2, 2024

Abstract

A bumper assembly for an appliance may include a cabinet having a front panel, a door hingedly coupled with the cabinet and configured to selectively contact the front panel, and a bumper coupled to one of the door and front panel. The bumper may include a cap having an annular outer surface defining an interior, at least one flange coupled to the outer surface, the at least one flange extending along at least a portion of the annular outer surface, a through-hole in communication with the interior, and a fastener having an elastomeric cover. The fastener may be disposed within the interior and the through-hole when the bumper is in a mounted state.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A cooking appliance, comprising:
a cabinet having a front panel, wherein the front panel defines as access opening;
a door hingedly coupled with the cabinet and configured to selectively cover the access opening;
a bumper coupled to one of the door and front panel, the bumper comprising:
a cap defining an interior and including a disc-shaped upper portion at an end thereof;
at least one flange coupled to an annular outer sidewall of the cap, wherein the at least one flange lies in a first plane which intersects with a second plane defined by the disc-shaped upper portion of the cap, further wherein the at least one flange comprises a first end and a second end and the second end is spaced further from the disc-shaped upper portion of the cap than the first end;
a stop disposed at an end of the at least one flange, the stop extending from a body of the flange toward the disc-shaped upper portion;
a through-hole defined by the cap, the through-hole having a diameter less than a diameter of the interior; and
a fastener having a shaft and a head, the head having an elastomeric cover, wherein the shaft is disposed within the through-hole and the head is disposed within the interior when the bumper is in a mounted state.

2. The cooking appliance of claim 1 , further comprising:
at least one wedge depending from the disc-shaped upper portion of the cap adjacent the at least one flange.

3. The cooking appliance of claim 1 , wherein the at least one flange comprises a first flange and a second flange arranged in an opposing manner on the outer surface.

4. The cooking appliance of claim 3 , further comprising:
a first stop disposed on the first flange; and
a second stop disposed on the second flange, wherein the first stop and the second stop are arranged in a diametrically opposing manner on the annular outer sidewall of the cap.

5. The cooking appliance of claim 4 , further comprising:
include a first wedge depending from the disc-shaped upper portion of the cap adjacent the first flange; and
a second wedge depending from the disc-shaped upper portion of the cap adjacent the seconder flange and disposed in an opposing manner from the first wedge.

6. The cooking appliance of claim 5 , wherein the first wedge and the second wedge are disposed adjacent an outer edge of the cap.

Assignees

• Whirlpool Co

Inventors

• Gore Rohan Gajananrao
• Quante David Gregory

Classifications

• E05F5/06 Primary

  Buffers {or stops limiting opening of swinging wings, e.g. floor or wall stops}(E05F5/02 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F24C15/027

  located at bottom side of housing · CPC title

• E05Y2900/308

  for ovens · CPC title

• F24C15/00 Primary

  Details · CPC title

• E05Y2900/20

  for furniture, e.g. cabinets · CPC title