Laundry treatment apparatus and method of controlling the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12559883-B2
Application number	US-202118259933-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 30, 2021
Priority date	Dec 31, 2020
Publication date	Feb 24, 2026
Grant date	Feb 24, 2026

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a laundry treatment apparatus including a cabinet having an entrance formed in one surface thereof, a first chamber, which is positioned in the cabinet and receives laundry therein through the entrance, a second chamber, which is positioned below the first chamber and defines a space isolated from the first chamber, a door having a mount space defined therein and rotatably coupled to the cabinet so as to open and close the entrance, a door inner plate facing the entrance, and a roller-type press unit, which is coupled to the door inner plate so as to press suspended pants and removes wrinkles from the pants, wherein power is supplied to the press unit through the interior space of the door.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1 . A laundry treatment apparatus comprising:
a cabinet having an entrance defined at one surface thereof; a first chamber defined in the cabinet and configured to receive laundry therein through the entrance; a second chamber that is defined below the first chamber and is a space isolated from the first chamber; a door having a mount space defined therein, the door being rotatably coupled to the cabinet and configured to open and close the entrance; a door inner plate facing the entrance; a laundry hanger support that is provided on the door inner plate and is configured to support pants hung thereon; a base plate that is coupled to the door inner plate and configured to support the pants hung on the laundry hanger support; a guide hole oriented parallel to the base plate in a vertical direction of the door and defined through the door inner plate in a direction perpendicular to the vertical direction and to a width direction of the door; a rotating shaft that is parallel to the width direction of the door; a roller configured to rotate about the rotating shaft and configured to press the pants; a moving unit that supports the rotating shaft and is configured to move in the vertical direction of the door based on the roller being rotated; and a power supply that is disposed along and parallel to the guide hole and is accommodated in the mount space, the power supply being configured to supply power to the roller, wherein the moving unit comprises:
a moving mount that is partially inserted into the guide hole and electrically connected to the power supply, the moving mount being configured to move in the vertical direction of the door, and
a moving support that is coupled to the moving mount and supports the rotating shaft.

2 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the power supply is electrically connected to the moving unit and configured to supply the power to the roller even when the moving unit is moved along the guide hole by rotation of the roller.

3 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 2 ,
wherein the door inner plate has a rear surface facing an outside of the entrance, and wherein the door comprises a door outer plate that is coupled to the rear surface of the door inner plate and defines the mount space.

4 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the moving mount includes a moving contact electrically connected to the power supply.

5 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the moving unit includes a wheel that is provided in the width direction of the door and coupled to a side of the moving mount that is inserted into the guide hole, the wheel being configured to prevent the moving unit from being separated from the guide hole and configured to guide the moving unit in the vertical direction of the door.

6 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the moving contact is coupled to the side of the moving mount on which the wheel is positioned.

7 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the power supply includes a wire disposed along the guide hole in the vertical direction of the door.

8 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the power supply includes a wire disposed on the rear surface of the door inner plate along the guide hole in the vertical direction of the door.

9 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 8 , wherein a part of the wire is wrapped by a coating member made of an insulation material, and
wherein another part of the wire is not wrapped by the coating member and is configured to contact the moving contact.

10 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the rotating shaft includes a first rotating shaft and a second rotating shaft that are coupled to two ends of the roller,
wherein the moving unit includes a first transfer portion and a second transfer portion that are respectively coupled to the first rotating shaft and the second rotating shaft at the two ends of the roller, wherein the guide hole comprises:
a first guide hole into which the first transfer portion is inserted, and
a second guide hole into which the second transfer portion is inserted, and
wherein the first guide hole and the second guide hole are respectively defined in two side surfaces of the door inner plate and extend in the vertical direction of the door.

11 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 10 , wherein a distance between the first guide hole and the second guide hole is greater than a width of the base plate.

12 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the power supply comprises:
a first wire electrically connected to the first transfer portion; and a second wire electrically connected to the second transfer portion, the first wire and the second wire being respectively disposed along the first guide hole and the second guide hole.

13 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the first transfer portion includes a first contact to be electrically connected to the first wire, and the second transfer portion includes a second contact to be electrically connected to the second wire.

14 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the power supply includes a battery configured to supply power required to rotate the roller.

15 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the power supply further includes a battery-charging portion configured to charge the battery.

16 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 15 ,
wherein the door inner plate has a rear surface facing an outside of the entrance, wherein the door further comprises a door outer plate that is coupled to the rear surface of the door inner plate and defines the mount space, and wherein the battery-charging portion is positioned on the rear surface of the door inner plate along the guide hole.

17 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the battery-charging portion includes a first charging portion positioned at an upper portion of the guide hole.

18 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the roller comprises:
a first cylindrical press positioned close to one end of the roller and configured to press the pants; a second cylindrical press positioned close to another end of the roller and configured to press the pants; and a cylindrical water supply that is positioned between the first cylindrical press and the second cylindrical press and connects the first cylindrical press and the second cylindrical press to each other, the cylindrical water supply being configured to provide moisture to the pants.

19 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 18 , wherein a diameter of the cylindrical water supply is smaller than a diameter of the first cylindrical press and the second cylindrical press.

20 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the roller comprises:
a first heater disposed in the first cylindrical press and configured to heat the first cylindrical press; and a second heater disposed in the second cylindrical press and configured to heat the second cylindrical press.

21 . The laundry treatment apparatus of claim 20 , wherein the power supply is configured to, based on supplying the power to the roller, (i) rotate the roller, (ii) generate steam from the cylindrical water supply, and (iii) heat an outer circumferential surface of the roller by the first heater and the second heater.

22 . The l

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Jang Semin
• Kim Jaehyung

Classifications

• D06F71/34

  Heating arrangements; Arrangements for supplying or removing steam or other gases · CPC title

• D06F71/29

  Trousers · CPC title

• D06F67/02

  Rollers; Heating arrangements therefor · CPC title

• D06F67/005

  Stands or cabinets · CPC title

• D06F34/10

  Power supply arrangements, e.g. stand-by circuits · CPC title