METHOD AND DRYING CLOSET FOR DRYING LAUNDRY AND THE LIKE

• US 3,811,198 A
• Filed: 05/22/1972
• Issued: 05/21/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/1971
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hans Baltes
• Original Assignee: Hans Baltes
• Inventors: Baltes, Hans
• Primary Examiner(s): Dority, Jr., Carroll B.
• Application Number:
  US05/255,832
• Time in Patent Office: 729 Days
• Field of Search: 34/23,24,34,233,240
• US Class Current: 34/466
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 58/10 Drying cabinets or drying chambers having heating or ventilating means

Abstract

A method and apparatus for drying laundry or the like is provided with a cross flow of heated air issuing generally parallel to the laundry from a first vertical wall in planes generally parallel to the hanger rods for the laundry. A plurality of vertically spaced hanger rods are provided with the heated air being discharged from the plurality of air discharge means located vertically at the level of the respective hanger rods to direct the air substantially parallel across the tops of the rods with the air outlet means being at the lower end of the opposite vertical wall for moving air from the enclosed interior of the closet. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the air is discharged from a back wall and the air is collected at the bottom of the front wall and then the collected air flows upwardly through a door of the closet to discharge at the top of the door. The hanger rods are preferably in the form of hanger grids which may be pivoted downwardly and which may be removed in order to provide space for large pieces of laundry hanging down from the uppermost hanger rods. Because of the large air throughput with the cross flow principle, the humidity of the exhausting air is kept sufficiently low to avoid annoyance to the environment surrounding the closet.

Claims

1. An apparatus for drying laundry or the like comprising closet means having at least a first pair of opposite parallel, vertically extending walls co-operating with another pair of side walls to define a hollow closet interior in which laundry may be hung, a plurality of rod means attached to one of said walls and projecting therefrom at vertically spaced levels and in substantially horizontal planes toward an opposite vertical wall, means providing an air intake opening for said closet means, filter means for filtering the air flowing through said air intake opening, means for heating said air, fan means for moving said heated air, hollow duct means for conveying said heated air moved by said fan means along a path upwardly along one of said pair of vertical walls, a plurality of air discharge means for deflecting and discharging the entire flow of heated air from said duct means in directions laterally across the tops of said rod means toward the opposite one of said vertical walls, each of said air discharge means being located vertically at the level of one of said rod means for directing the air substantially parallel to each of said rod means for movement across the top of the laundry thereon, and air outlet means at the lower end of said opposite vertical wall means for removing said air from said closet interior after the same has flowed laterally and then downwardly to said air outlet means.

2. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 in which each said rod means comprises a plurality of parallel rods constituting a hanger grid, means for pivoting said hanger grids for downward movement of the same and for allowing removal thereof from saId closet means to permit longer laundry to hang in said closet.

3. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 in which said duct means is in a rear wall of said closet means and in which said opposite wall is a front wall of said closet means.

4. An apparatus in accordance with claim 2 in which said front wall includes a door, said air outlet means located at the lower end of said door, an upwardly extending air passageway is provided in said door for conveying said discharging air upwardly to discharge the air adjacent the top of said door.

5. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 in which a bottom wall means is provided for said closet and has a drain opening therein, and a drip tray is provided beneath said bottom wall for receiving liquid through said drain opening.

6. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 in which clamping means are provided on said another pair of side walls, each of said clamping means comprising an upper bar having a slot of a predetermined width therein and a lower bar spaced from said upper bar, said rod means including a plurality of parallel rods and a pair of transversely extending members joined to said parallel rods, said transversely extending members being insertable through said slots and pivotal into interlocking relationship with said clamping means.

7. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 in which means are provided on said side walls for mounting said rod means for sliding movement outwardly of said closet interior for loading or unloading with laundry.

8. An apparatus in accordance with claim 7 in which said rod means includes rods having bolts at rear ends thereof, in which said slide means includes means having elongated apertures in which said bolts may slide.

9. A method for drying laundry or the like within a drying closet comprising the steps of taking ambient air into the apparatus through an inlet opening, filtering said air, compressing said air, and heating said air, directing said heated and compressed air vertically along a first one of the vertical walls of the closet through a vertically extending duct means, discharging the entire flow of air from said duct means at vertically spaced levels of said vertical walls from a plurality of vertically spaced discharge openings each being adjacent one of a plurality of horizontally extending rods for holding the laundry, directing the discharging heated air in parallel flow patterns in directions parallel to the hanging laundry and rods across the top of the laundry and said rods and toward the opposite vertical wall, causing the air to flow downwardly adjacent the opposite vertical wall toward the lower end thereof, exhausting the air from said closet at the lower end of said opposite vertical wall, and then injecting the exhausted air into the room in a manner to reduce discomfiture to persons in the room.