Laundry treating appliance lint filter

• US 10,364,525 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2017
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Original Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Inventors: Kehl, Dennis, Leitert, Andrew, Richman, Lonnie J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Perrin, Joseph L.
• Application Number:
  US15/638,561
• Publication Number:
  US 20170298561A1
• Time in Patent Office: 760 Days
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2103/02 Characteristics of laundry or load
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 25/00 Washing machines with receptacles, e.g. perforated, having a rotary movement, e.g. oscillatory movement, the receptacle serving both for washing and for centrifugally separating water from the laundry and having further drying means, e.g. using hot air control of washing or of washing and drying D06F33/00, D06F34/00; domestic laundry dryers D06F58/00
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 33/32 Control of operational steps, e.g. optimisation or improvement of operational steps depending on the condition of the laundry
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 34/18 Condition of the laundry, e.g. nature or weight
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 34/26 Condition of the drying air, e.g. air humidity or temperature
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 34/28 Arrangements for program selection, e.g. control panels therefor; Arrangements for indicating program parameters, e.g. the selected program or its progress
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 39/022 in a liquid state D06F39/024 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 58/22 Lint collecting arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 58/36 Control of operational steps, e.g. for optimisation or improvement of operational steps depending on the condition of the laundry

Abstract

A method of removing lint from drying air in a laundry treating appliance having a treating chamber for holding clothes for treatment according to a cycle of operation, a treating chemistry dispenser fluidly coupled to the treating chamber, and an air supply having an inlet and outlet fluidly coupled to the treating chamber is disclosed. The method includes a laundry treating phase including supplying treating chemistry from the treating chemistry dispenser to the treating chamber and leaving a portion of the treating chemistry within the treating chamber to form a bath of treating chemistry, a laundry drying phase including supplying air to the treating chamber through the inlet and exhausting the supplied air from the treating chamber.

Claims

1. A method of removing lint from drying air in a laundry treating appliance having a treating chamber for holding clothes for treatment according to a cycle of operation, a treating chemistry dispenser having a housing with a port fluidly coupled to the treating chamber, a lint filter comprising a bath tub located within the treating chemistry dispenser, the lint filter defined by a portion of the housing and a retaining wall and fluidly coupled with the port, and an air supply having an inlet and outlet fluidly coupled to the treating chamber, the method comprising:

a laundry treating phase comprising supplying treating chemistry from the treating chemistry dispenser to the treating chamber and leaving a portion of the treating chemistry within the bath tub to form a bath of treating chemistry;

a laundry drying phase comprising;

supplying air to the treating chamber through the inlet;

exhausting the supplied air from the treating chamber; and

directing the exhausted air to the lint filter within the treating chemistry dispenser to flow over the bath of treating chemistry to remove lint contained within the exhausted air.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the laundry treating phase and the laundry drying phase are part of the same cycle of operation.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising removing the bath of treating chemistry from the treating chemistry dispenser.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the removing the bath of treating chemistry occurs after a predetermined number of laundry drying phases.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the removing the bath of treating chemistry from the treating chemistry dispenser comprises flushing the treating chemistry dispenser with liquid.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising draining the flushed liquid prior to a future laundry treating phase.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the future laundry treating phase is the next laundry treating phase.

8. The method of claim 5 further comprising draining the flushed treating chemistry from the laundry treating appliance.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the draining of the flushed treating chemistry occurs during the laundry treating phase.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the directing the exhausted air to the treating chemistry dispenser to flow over the bath of treating chemistry forms a standing wave on the bath of treating chemistry.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the directing the exhausted air to the lint filter within the treating chemistry dispenser to flow over the bath of treating chemistry comprises directing the exhausted air between 14 ft/s and 42 ft/s over the bath of treating chemistry.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein directing the exhausted air to the treating chemistry dispenser comprises directing the exhausted air into the housing of the treating chemistry dispenser.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein directing the exhausted air into the housing comprises directing the exhausted air into the housing at a location away from a treating chemistry dispensing drawer slidably received within the housing.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the exhausted air is directed into the housing below the drawer.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the treating chemistry comprises at least water.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein the laundry drying phase further comprises directing the exhausted air to the lint filter to flow over and impinge on the bath of treating chemistry to remove lint contained within the exhausted air.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein the laundry drying phase further comprises directing the exhausted air to the lint filter such that the flow is deflected onto the bath of treating chemistry to remove lint contained within the exhausted air.

18. The method of claim 1 wherein the flow of the exhausted air over the bath of treating chemistry induces laden lint contained within the exhausted air to be deposited in the bath of treating chemistry.