Rotating filter for a dishwashing machine

• US 9,364,131 B2
• Filed: 04/03/2013
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Original Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Inventors: Fountain, Jordan R., Jozwiak, Todd M., Rappette, Antony M., Welch, Rodney M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chaudhry, Saeed T
• Application Number:
  US13/855,770
• Publication Number:
  US 20130186438A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,168 Days
• Field of Search: 134/104.4, 134/104.1, 134/11, 134/110, 134/201
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 15/4206 Tubular filters
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 15/4208 Arrangements to prevent clogging of the filters, e.g. self-cleaning
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 15/4219 Water recirculation A47L15/0078 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 15/4225 Arrangements or adaption of recirculation or discharge pumps

Abstract

A dishwasher with a tub at least partially defining a washing chamber, a liquid spraying system for spraying liquid into the washing chamber, a liquid recirculation system defining a recirculation flow path from the washing chamber to the spraying system, and a liquid filtering system. The liquid filtering system includes a rotating filter disposed in the recirculation flow path to filter the liquid.

Claims

1. A dishwasher comprising:

a tub at least partially defining a washing chamber;

a liquid spraying system supplying a spray of liquid to the washing chamber;

a liquid recirculation system comprising a recirculation pump with a rotatable impeller for recirculating sprayed liquid from the washing chamber to the liquid spraying system to define a recirculation flow path; and

a cylindrical rotating filter enclosing a hollow interior, the cylindrical rotating filter having a first filter element forming an outer upstream surface and a second filter element forming an inner downstream surface that defines the hollow interior and located in the recirculation flow path such that the recirculation flow path passes through the filter from the upstream surface to the downstream surface to effect a filtering of the sprayed liquid and the cylindrical rotating filter fluidly divides the recirculation flow path into a first part that contains filtered soil particles and a second part that excludes filtered soil particles and where the cylindrical rotating filter is operably coupled to the rotatable impeller of the recirculation pump to effect rotation of the cylindrical rotating filter; and

wherein the first filter element is more resistant to foreign object damage than the second filter element.

2. The dishwasher of claim 1 wherein the first filter element and the second filter element are affixed to each other.

3. The dishwasher of claim 1 wherein the first filter element is structurally stronger than the second filter element.

4. The dishwasher of claim 1 wherein the first filter element is a courser filter than the second filter element.

5. The dishwasher of claim 1 wherein the first filter element is a cylinder and the second filter element is a cylinder received within the first filter element.

6. The dishwasher of claim 1 wherein the first and second filter elements are perforated, with the perforations of the first filter element different from the perforations of the second filter element to render the first filter element more resistant to foreign object damage.

7. The dishwasher of claim 6 wherein the perforations of the first filter element leave more non-perforated areas than the second filter element.

8. The dishwasher of claim 6 wherein the perforations of the first filter element form less open space per unit area than the perforations of the second filter element.