Laundry treating apparatus

• US 10,544,533 B2
• Filed: 07/07/2017
• Issued: 01/28/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 07/07/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kim, Wooseong, An, Kiyong, Park, Minho, Choi, Kihoon
• Primary Examiner(s): Perrin, Joseph L.
• Application Number:
  US15/643,662
• Publication Number:
  US 20180010281A1
• Time in Patent Office: 935 Days
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 37/04 adapted for rotation or oscillation about a horizontal or inclined axis
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 37/20 Mountings, e.g. resilient mountings, for the rotary receptacle, motor, tub or casing; Preventing or damping vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 37/22 in machines with a receptacle rotating or oscillating about a horizontal axis
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 37/24 in machines with a receptacle rotating or oscillating about a vertical axis
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 37/42 Safety arrangements, e.g. for stopping rotation of the receptacle upon opening of the casing door
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 39/12 Casings; Tubs
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 58/04 Details controlling or regulating devices D06F34/00
• CPC Class Codes: F16F 15/02 Suppression of vibrations of non-rotating, e.g. reciprocating systems; Suppression of vibrations of rotating systems by use of members not moving with the rotating systems F16F15/005 takes precedence ; layered products B32B; suppression of vibration in ships B63; relieving load on bearings, using magnetic means F16C39/06
• CPC Class Codes: F16F 15/28 Counterweights, i.e. additional weights counterbalancing inertia forces induced by the reciprocating movement of masses in the system, e.g. of pistons attached to an engine crankshaft rotating balancer shafts F16F15/264; correcting-weights for balancing rotating bodies F16F15/32; Attaching or mounting same
• CPC Class Codes: F16F 2222/04 Friction
• CPC Class Codes: F16F 7/08 with friction surfaces rectilinearly movable along each other F16F7/01 takes precedence ; one of the members being a spring F16F13/02
• CPC Class Codes: F16F 7/1028 the inertia-producing means being a constituent part of the system which is to be damped

Abstract

A laundry treating apparatus is provided. The laundry treating apparatus includes a cabinet, a drum accommodated in the cabinet, a tub accommodating the drum, and a dynamic absorber provided to absorb oscillation of the cabinet. The dynamic absorber includes a support plate coupled to the cabinet, a first moving mass movably provided on the support plate to absorb oscillation transmitted to the cabinet, and a second moving mass movably provided on the support plate to absorb oscillation transmitted to the cabinet. A support comes into line or point contact with a bottom surface of the first moving mass so that the first moving mass has reduced attenuation ratio in comparison to the second moving mass.

Claims

1. A laundry treating apparatus comprising:

a cabinet;

a drum accommodated in the cabinet;

a tub accommodating the drum;

a support plate provided on the cabinet, a left end of the support plate being positioned on a left upper end portion of the cabinet, and a right end of the support plate being positioned on a right upper end portion of the cabinet; and

a dynamic dampener provided on the support plate to dampen oscillation of the cabinet,

wherein the dynamic dampener includes;

a mass body movably provided with respect to the cabinet to dampen oscillations transmitted to the cabinet; and

a support provided at the support plate, wherein the support comes into contact with a bottom surface of the mass body to reduce an attenuation ratio indicative of an oscillation decay of the mass body, and

wherein the support includes;

a guide roller coming into line contact with the bottom surface of the mass body; and

a roller support body that includes a recess to receive the guide roller.

2. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide roller includes:

a roller that extends from the recess to contact a bottom surface of the mass body; and

a roller shaft passing through a center of the roller, wherein the roller shaft is rotatably coupled to the roller support body.

3. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the roller support body further includes:

a seating plate positioned on a top surface of the support plate;

a coupling hook extending from a bottom surface of the seating plate; and

a plurality of guide bosses protruding from a top surface of the seating plate, and

wherein the recess includes;

a roller accommodation groove to receive the roller, the roller accommodation groove extending in a lateral direction of the seating plate; and

a roller shaft accommodation hole to receive the roller shaft, the roller shaft accommodation shaft extending in a direction perpendicular to the roller accommodation hole.

4. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a hook hole into which the coupling hook is inserted is defined in the support plate, and

the coupling hook is inserted into the hook hole and hooked with a bottom surface of the support plate.

5. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the mass body includes a guide hole having an oblong shape that extends in a direction of the relative motion of the mass body, and wherein the guide hole receives one of the plurality of guide bosses.

6. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the support plate includes a roller hole to accommodate a portion of the guide roller when the roller support body is coupled to the support plate, and

wherein the roller support body further includes first ribs extending from the bottom surface of the seating plate at left and right ends of the roller accommodation hole, the first ribs contacting an interior surface of the roller hole.

7. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the roller support body further includes second ribs respectively extending from the bottom surface of the seating plate at left and right edges of the roller shaft accommodation hole.

8. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the support is one of a plurality of supports included in the laundry treating apparatus to contact the bottom surface of the mass body, and the plurality of supports are positioned in a line.

9. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an elastic damper provided on a side end of the mass body in a moving direction of the mass body.

10. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the elastic damper includes:

a side support part positioned to contact a side surface of the mass body during the relative motion of the mass body; and

a bottom support part that horizontally extends from the side support part to contact and support the bottom surface of the mass body.

11. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an additional mass body movably positioned on the support plate with respect to the cabinet to dampen other oscillations transmitted to the cabinet, wherein the additional mass body is provided at a position that is spaced apart from the mass body in a direction transverse to a moving direction of the mass body; and

a slider contacting a bottom surface of the additional mass body to apply a friction force during the motion of the additional mass body.

12. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising a second elastic damper provided on side ends of the additional mass body in a moving direction of the additional mass body.

13. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 11,

wherein the slider comprises:

an upper slider mounted on the additional mass body; and

a lower slider mounted on the support plate, wherein the upper slider is seated on the lower slider.

14. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the mass body has a greater mass than the additional mass body.

15. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 14, wherein:

the oscillations dampened by the mass body are generated when the drum rotates at a first range of rotational speeds,

the other oscillations dampened by the additional mass body are generated when the drum rotates at a second range of rotational speeds, and

at least a portion of the first range of rotational speeds is faster than any of the second range of rotational speeds.

16. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the oscillations dampened by the mass body are continuous oscillation, and

the other oscillations dampened by the additional mass body are transient oscillation.

17. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the support plate includes a partition wall that extends from a top surface of the support plate and is positioned between the mass body and the additional mass body.

18. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the support plate includes a rigidity reinforcement region that is recessed by a prescribed depth downward from a bottom surface of the support plate, and

wherein the support plate includes a roller hole provided in the rigidity reinforcement region and configured to accommodate a portion of the guide roller when the roller support body is coupled to the support plate.

19. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the support plate further includes:

a boundary wall that extends vertically from a top surface of the support plate, the mass body being received in a an area defined by the boundary wall; and

tabs that extend laterally from the boundary wall at the left end and the right end of the support plate, and are configured to be coupled to the left upper end portion of the cabinet the right upper end portion of the cabinet.

20. The laundry treating apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a buffer pin coupled to the first mass body, wherein the buffer pin includes;

a lower head that extends from the bottom surface of the mass body to space the bottom surface of the mass body from the top surface of the support plate, and

an upper head that extends from a top surface of the mass body to space the top surface of the mass body from an interior surface of the cabinet.