Laundry treating apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9359710-B2
Application number	US-201414257638-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 21, 2014
Priority date	Apr 25, 2013
Publication date	Jun 7, 2016
Grant date	Jun 7, 2016

Abstract

A laundry treating apparatus is disclosed. The laundry treating apparatus includes a cabinet forming an external appearance of the laundry treating apparatus, a laundry accommodation portion arranged in the cabinet and providing a space to accommodate laundry, a machine chamber including at least one of an air supply unit to supply air to the laundry accommodation portion and a moisture supply unit to supply moisture to the laundry accommodation portion, the machine chamber being provided separately from the laundry accommodation portion, a laundry supporter to support a hanger having laundry placed thereon and to move the hanger such that a free end of the hanger forms an arc trajectory in the laundry accommodation portion.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A laundry treating apparatus comprising:
a cabinet that forms an external appearance of the laundry treating apparatus;
a laundry accommodation portion arranged in the cabinet that provides a space to accommodate laundry;
a machine chamber including at least one of an air supply unit to supply air to the laundry accommodation portion and a moisture supply unit to supply moisture to the laundry accommodation portion, the machine chamber being provided separately from the laundry accommodation portion; and
a laundry supporter to support a hanger having laundry placed thereon and to move the hanger such that a free end of the hanger forms an arc trajectory in the laundry accommodation portion, wherein the laundry supporter includes:
an adapter to allow the hanger to be detachably mounted thereto;
a support part positioned in the laundry accommodation portion to support the adapter; and
a drive unit to move the adapter such that the adapter reciprocates within a predetermined angular range and forms an arc trajectory,
wherein the support part includes a housing having an accommodation space therein; a housing support bar that connects the housing to the laundry supporter; and an adapter insertion hole that allows the accommodation space to communicate with an exterior of the housing and that allows the adapter to be inserted thereinto,
wherein the drive unit includes a driving bar configured to reciprocate within the accommodation space and connected to an end of the adapter, and
wherein the adapter includes an accommodation groove positioned over the adapter insertion hole that allows a hook provided to the hanger to be detachably accommodated therein.

2. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the support part further includes an adapter support surface inclined from a surface of the housing toward the adapter insertion hole to support a surface of the adapter.

3. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the support part further includes an inclined surface inclined from a surface of the accommodation space toward the adapter insertion hole to limit a range of reciprocation of the adapter.

4. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the drive unit further includes a driving bar supporter rotatably provided in the accommodation space to support the driving bar.

5. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the driving bar includes:
a driving bar body formed in a bar shape to reciprocate in the accommodation space; and
a lower guider arranged in a longitudinal direction of the driving bar body and provided at opposite ends of a lower surface of the driving bar body facing each other,
wherein the driving bar supporter includes a lower roller positioned in a space formed by the lower guider that contacts the driving bar body.

6. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the driving bar includes an upper guider arranged in the longitudinal direction of the driving bar body and provided at opposite ends of an upper surface of the driving bar body facing each other,
wherein the driving bar supporter includes an upper roller positioned in a space formed by the upper guider that contacts the driving bar body.

7. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the drive unit further includes a power supply unit to provide power such that the driving bar to reciprocates in the accommodation space.

8. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the power supply unit includes a motor provided with a rotation shaft and fixed to an exterior of the laundry accommodation portion; and a power conversion unit to convert rotation of the rotation shaft into rectilinear reciprocation,
wherein:
the support part further includes a connection bar through hole that penetrates the housing to allow the accommodation space to communicate with the exterior of the housing; and
the drive unit further includes a connection bar that connects the power conversion unit to the driving bar through the connection bar through hole.

9. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein a length of the connection bar through hole formed in a longitudinal direction of the housing is greater than a width of the connection bar formed in a longitudinal direction of the driving bar.

10. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the power conversion unit comprises:
a slot housing positioned in the laundry accommodation portion and arranged in a plane parallel with a plane having the accommodation space positioned, the connection bar being fixed to the slot housing;
a slot provided to the slot housing;
a rotating arm rotated by the motor; and
a slot insertion portion extending from the rotating arm and inserted into the slot,
wherein a length of the slot is greater than or equal to a diameter of an rotation trajectory formed by the slot insertion portion.

11. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 10 , wherein the power supply unit further includes a power transmission unit to transfer rotary power of the rotation shaft to the rotating arm,
wherein:
the power transmission unit includes a transmission shaft arranged to penetrate the laundry accommodation portion; a driven pulley provided to the transmission shaft, a drive pulley provided to the rotation shaft; and a belt to connect the drive pulley to the driven pulley, and
the power conversion unit further includes a shaft coupling portion to connect the transmission shaft to the rotating arm.

12. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the machine chamber is provided with a width smaller than a width of the laundry accommodation portion such that the space to accommodate the laundry placed on the laundry supporter is formed between an outer surface of the machine chamber and an inner surface of the laundry accommodation portion.

13. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 12 , further including an auxiliary accommodation portion provided in the space between the outer surface of the machine chamber and the inner surface of the laundry accommodation portion to provide a storage space,
wherein a height of the auxiliary accommodation portion is lower than a height of the machine chamber.

14. A laundry treating apparatus comprising:
a cabinet including a laundry accommodation space to accommodate laundry;
a machine chamber separated from the laundry accommodation space, the machine chamber including at least one of an air supply device to supply air to the laundry accommodation space and a moisture supply device to supply moisture to the laundry accommodation space; and
a laundry supporter to support at least one hanger and to move the hanger in the laundry accommodation space, wherein the laundry supporter includes:
a support bar having a plurality of openings,
a plurality of adapters provided in the plurality of openings, the adapters configured to accommodate an end of the hanger and to pivot toward a first direction and a second direction,
a support bar driver configured to move the support bar in the first and second directions, wherein when the support bar is moved in the first direction, the adapters pivot toward the second direction, and when the support bar is moved in the second direction, the adapters pivot toward the first direction.

15. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the support bar driver moves the adapters to pivot in the first and second directions such that ends of the adapters form an arc at a predete

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Lee Jungwan
• Lee Junghoon
• Hong Sogkie

Classifications

• D06F58/206

  Heat pump arrangements · CPC title

• D06F58/203

  Laundry conditioning arrangements · CPC title

• D06F73/02

  having one or more treatment chambers · CPC title

• D06F58/12 Primary

  having conveying means for moving clothes, e.g. along an endless track · CPC title

• D06F58/10 Primary

  Drying cabinets or drying chambers having heating or ventilating means · CPC title