Washing machine comprising a drawer for loading washing agent

• US 9,074,312 B2
• Filed: 06/09/2009
• Issued: 07/07/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/24/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Whirlpool EMEA SpA (Whirlpool Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Indesit Company SPA (Whirlpool Corporation)
• Inventors: Bombardieri, Giovanni, Mariotti, Constantino, D'Andrea, Luca, Pierucci, Gianluca, Baldini, Maurizio
• Primary Examiner(s): Barr, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): ADHLAKHA, RITA P
• Application Number:
  US13/054,989
• Publication Number:
  US 20130263631A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,219 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 39/02 Devices for adding soap or other washing agents

Abstract

A washing machine, in particular a laundry washing or washing/drying machine, has at least one wash tub, one tank for a washing agent, and one drawer for loading washing agents, in which machine the drawer can be moved to at least a first position, wherein at least a portion of the drawer is in fluid communication with the tub, and a second position, wherein at least a portion of the drawer is in fluid communication with the tank.

Claims

1. A washing machine, comprising:

at least one wash tub;

one tank for a washing agent; and

one drawer for loading the washing agent, the drawer configured to be moved to a first position to put at least a portion of the drawer in fluid communication with only the tub, and the drawer further configured to move to a second position to put the at least a portion of the drawer in fluid communication with only the tank, wherein the first position is different than the second position.

2. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the first position corresponds to a partial extracted condition of the drawer and the second position corresponds to a full extracted condition of the drawer.

3. The washing machine according to claim 1, wherein the drawer comprises at least two open-top chambers accessible from an outside of the washing machine in both the first position and the second position.

4. The washing machine according to claim 3, wherein the drawer has a front wall and the at least two open-top chambers extend longitudinally from the front wall of the drawer to a rear region of the drawer, where a housing seat of the drawer includes an aperture for discharging the washing agent supplied into the at least two open-top chambers.

5. The washing machine according to claim 3, wherein the drawer has a floor, wherein the drawer includes a housing seat that is fixed with respect to the drawer and surrounds the drawer at least underneath the floor, the housing seat having a bottom with two drain apertures, the two drain apertures in fluid communication with said tank, said two drain apertures being closed by the floor of the drawer when the drawer is in a partial extracted condition, and the two drain apertures being open when the drawer is in a full extracted condition.

6. The washing machine according to claim 5, wherein the housing seat comprises a drain afferent to the tub, which opens in a proximity of a rear wall of the housing seat, so that the washing agent supplied into the at least two open-top chambers is conveyed towards the tub when the drawer is in the partial extracted condition or retracted.

7. The washing machine according to claim 5, wherein the housing seat also comprises a partition wall adjacent to the drain apertures and extending on the side of the drain apertures that faces a rear wall, and a floor including an inclined portion sloping down towards the rear wall, so that the washing agent is conveyed towards the drain apertures by gravity.

8. The washing machine according to claim 5, wherein the drawer comprises one oscillating door for each chamber of the at least two open-top chambers arranged in a rear portion of the chamber, and wherein the oscillating door extends downwards to a certain distance from the floor.

9. The washing machine according to claim 5, further comprising a fixed top arranged on the drawer and fixed with respect to the drawer, the fixed top including an edge beyond which the at least two open-top chambers of the drawer protrude partially or fully in the partial extracted condition or the full extracted condition, respectively.

10. The washing machine according to claim 3, wherein the drawer comprises at least one feedbox for loading the washing agent into the tank, and wherein the at least two open-top chambers are separated from the at least one feedbox for the purpose of containing the washing agent to be discharged into the tub.

11. A washing machine, comprising:

at least one wash tub;

one tank for a washing agent; and

one drawer for loading the washing agent, the drawer configured to be moved to a first position to put at least a portion of the drawer in fluid communication with the tub where the at least a portion of the drawer is not in fluid communication with the tank when the drawer is in the first position, and the drawer further configured to move to a second position to put the at least a portion of the drawer in fluid communication with the tank where the at least a portion of the drawer is not in fluid communication with the tub when the drawer is in the second position, wherein the first position is different than the second position.

12. The washing machine according to claim 11, wherein the first position corresponds to a partial extracted condition of the drawer and the second position corresponds to a full extracted condition of the drawer.

13. The washing machine according to claim 11, wherein the drawer comprises at least two open-top chambers accessible from an outside of the washing machine in both the first position and the second position.

14. The washing machine according to claim 13, wherein the drawer has a front wall and the at least two open-top chambers extend longitudinally from the front wall of the drawer to a rear region of the drawer, where a housing seat of the drawer includes an aperture for discharging the washing agent supplied into the at least two open-top chambers.

15. The washing machine according to claim 13, wherein the drawer has a floor, wherein the drawer includes a housing seat that is fixed with respect to the drawer and surrounds the drawer at least underneath the floor, the housing seat having a bottom with two drain apertures, the two drain apertures in fluid communication with said tank, said two drain apertures being closed by the floor of the drawer when the drawer is in a partial extracted condition, and the two drain apertures being open when the drawer is in a full extracted condition.

16. The washing machine according to claim 15, wherein the housing seat comprises a drain afferent to the tub, which opens in a proximity of a rear wall of the housing seat, so that the washing agent supplied into the at least two open-top chambers is conveyed towards the tub when the drawer is in the partial extracted condition or retracted.

17. The washing machine according to claim 15, wherein the housing seat further comprises a partition wall adjacent to the drain apertures and extending on the side of the drain apertures that faces a rear wall, and a floor including an inclined portion sloping down towards the rear wall, so that the washing agent is conveyed towards the drain apertures by gravity.

18. The washing machine according to claim 15, wherein the drawer comprises one oscillating door for each chamber of the at least two open-top chambers arranged in a rear portion of the chamber, and wherein the oscillating door extends downwards to a certain distance from the floor.

19. The washing machine according to claim 15, further comprising a fixed top arranged on the drawer and fixed with respect to the drawer, the fixed top including an edge beyond which the at least two open-top chambers of the drawer protrude partially or fully in the partial extracted condition or the full extracted condition, respectively.

20. The washing machine according to claim 13, wherein the drawer comprises at least one feedbox for loading the washing agents into the tank, and wherein the at least two open-top chambers are separated from the at least one feedbox for the purpose of containing the washing agent to be discharged into the tub.