Laundry treating appliance with dynamic balancer

• US 9,708,742 B2
• Filed: 05/27/2014
• Issued: 07/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Original Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Inventors: Haslanger, Mark R., Rodriguez, Jaime E., Erickson, Donald E., Ostdiek, Stephen D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Barr, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): ADHLAKHA, RITA P
• Application Number:
  US14/287,596
• Publication Number:
  US 20150345067A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,148 Days
• Field of Search: 68 232
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 37/225 Damping vibrations by displacing, supplying or ejecting a material, e.g. liquid, into or from counterbalancing pockets
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 37/245 Damping vibrations by displacing, supplying or ejecting a material, e.g. liquid, into or from counterbalancing pockets
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49909 Securing cup or tube between axially extending concentric annuli

Abstract

A dynamic balancer device for mounting to and balancing a rotatable drum in a laundry treating appliance comprises an enclosed non-metal annular housing having a radial circumferential wall, an annular metal race within the non-metal annular housing disposed against the radial circumferential wall, and a mass disposed in the annular race and movable therein.

Claims

1. A laundry treating appliance comprising:

a rotatable drum for receiving a laundry load wherein the rotatable drum includes a cylindrical body with a cylindrical wall about a longitudinal axis, and a metal cover at one end thereof, wherein the metal cover has an open annular groove formed by a first wall adjacent to the cylindrical wall, a second wall spaced from the first wall, a third wall extending between the first and second walls, and a fourth wall having at least a portion thereof extending from the second wall generally toward and normal to the longitudinal axis;

an enclosed non-metal annular housing having an outer radial wall, an inner radial wall, a top wall, and a bottom wall defining a hollow annular raceway; and

a mass disposed in the hollow annular raceway and movable therein;

wherein the top wall abuts the third wall opposite the annular groove and the outer radial wall abuts the cylindrical wall, and fasteners extend from one of the third wall or the cylindrical wall into the respective top wall or outer radial wall to secure the non-metal annular housing to the rotatable drum.

2. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 wherein the hollow annular raceway has a curvature configured to direct the mass toward a center of the outer radial wall.

3. The laundry treating appliance of claim 2 wherein the curvature is in the outer radial wall.

4. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 further comprising a groove in the outer radial wall configured to receive a stiffening ring.

5. The laundry treating appliance of claim 4 further comprising a stiffening ring in the groove.

6. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 wherein the outer radial wall, the inner radial wall, and the bottom wall are one piece, and the top wall is a separate piece.

7. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 wherein the top wall and the outer radial wall are one piece, and the inner radial wall and the bottom wall are a separate piece.