Sealing structure of outer barrel notch and washing machine adopting outer barrel

Abstract

According to the sealing structure of the notch of the outer barrel and the washing machine adopting the outer barrel, the notch is formed in at least one side of the outer barrel in the horizontal width direction of a machine shell of the washing machine, a flexible sealing piece capable of sealing the notch is arranged on the notch of the outer barrel, and the outer barrel and an inner barrel form a barrel assembly. The washing machine is characterized in that the flexible sealing piece is an elastic end cover which is integrally closed and is installed independently of the machine shell, the flexible sealing piece has elastic restoring force enabling the end face to make contact with the machine shell of the washing machine all the time in the assembly completion state, and the flexible sealing piece is pressed and fixed to the notch of the outer barrel through the annular pressing plate. Compared with the prior art, the utility model has the advantages that the outer barrel is sealed by the flexible sealing element directly connected to the notch, on one hand, the assembly convenience can be greatly improved, on the other hand, the top end surface of the flexible sealing element can be prevented from being attracted to rub with the inner barrel to cause damage, the risk of damage of the flexible sealing element can be greatly reduced, and the service life is prolonged. And the service life of the flexible sealing element is prolonged.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to a sealing structure for an outer barrel cutout, in particular to a sealing structure for an outer barrel cutout and a washing machine using the outer barrel. Background Art

[0002] In the prior art, the larger the inner drum diameter of a drum washing machine is, the larger the space for clothes to expand and the better the drying effect is. However, the size of drum washing machines is currently limited by the installation environment. How to obtain a larger inner drum diameter without changing the size of the washing machine has always been a research direction in the washing machine industry.

[0003] At present, the common practice of increasing the capacity of the inner drum is to improve the shock absorption system, such as by increasing the number of shock absorbers, thereby reducing the safety gap between the washing machine casing and the outer drum, thereby increasing the diameter of the inner drum; or by increasing the strength of the inner drum and the outer drum to reduce the safety gap between the outer drum and the inner drum, thereby increasing the diameter of the inner drum. However, the above existing methods of reducing the safety gap have limited effect on increasing the diameter of the inner drum, and it is difficult to achieve a breakthrough improvement.

[0004] To this end, the Chinese utility model "A washing machine outer drum and a drum washing machine using the outer drum" with patent number 202222649579.7 previously applied by the applicant adopts a method of cutting an incision on each side of the outer drum, so that the size of the outer drum in the width direction of the casing can be expanded to be equal to the width of the casing, thereby effectively increasing the size of the inner drum along the width direction of the casing; however, in this patent, because the outer drum needs to be effectively sealed after the incision is made, in the outer drum sealing scheme of this patent, one end of the flexible seal is fixed to the incision of the outer drum, and the other end is fixed to the side panel, which is fixedly connected to the box body. This will cause the flexible seal to be constantly pulled during the operation of the machine, thereby increasing the risk of damage and leakage, and the assembly process is complicated.

[0005] In summary, further improvements and perfection are still needed to address the strength and service life issues of the washing machine with this type of outer drum cutout in the above-mentioned patent. Utility Model Content

[0006] The first technical problem to be solved by the utility model is to provide a sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout with a simpler structure and assembly in view of the above-mentioned existing technical status, and the sealing structure can effectively avoid pulling on the seal when the equipment is working, thereby extending the service life of the seal.

[0007] The second technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a washing machine which adopts the outer drum of the above-mentioned cutout sealing structure to realize operation in view of the above-mentioned existing technical status.

[0008] The technical solution adopted by the utility model to solve the above-mentioned first technical problem is: a sealing structure of an outer barrel cutout, the outer barrel is provided with a cutout on at least one side along the horizontal width direction of the washing machine casing, a flexible seal that can close the cutout is arranged on the cutout of the outer barrel, the outer barrel and the inner drum form a barrel assembly, characterized in that: the flexible seal is an integrally closed elastic end cover that is independently installed from the casing, and in the assembled state, the flexible seal has an elastic restoring force that keeps the end face in contact with the casing of the washing machine at all times, and the flexible seal is pressed and fixed to the cutout of the outer barrel by an annular pressure plate.

[0009] In order to prevent the shaking of the inner drum and the vibration of the outer drum from being transmitted to the casing through the flexible seal, preferably, the minimum gap between the casing of the washing machine and the inner drum of the washing machine is A, and in a natural state, the maximum distance between the flexible seal and the inner drum of the washing machine is B, wherein B>A; during the dehydration process, the maximum upward vibration of the barrel assembly along the width of the casing is S, and the following conditions need to be met: BA>S.

[0010] In order to facilitate installation and disassembly, as a further preferred embodiment, the flexible sealing member is formed with a frame along the circumferential direction which can correspond to and be connected and fixed to the annular pressure plate.

[0011] In order to maintain the softness of the flexible seal while enhancing its elastic restoring force, as one of the preferred embodiments, the cross-section of the flexible seal is arched, and the frame of the flexible seal is circumferentially provided with a first mounting hole that can be connected to the cutout of the outer barrel.

[0012] In order to improve the reliability of the connection and enhance the strength of the incision connection, it is further preferred that the cross-section of the annular pressure plate is U-shaped, and the annular pressure plate is provided with second mounting holes spaced apart along the circumference and corresponding one-to-one with the first mounting holes respectively.

[0013] As a further preference, in order to facilitate assembly, the edge of the cutout of the outer barrel is provided with third mounting holes spaced apart along the circumferential direction, which can correspond one-to-one with the first mounting holes respectively.

[0014] In order to facilitate drilling and ensure the strength of the edge of the outer barrel cutout, preferably, the edge of the outer barrel cutout is provided with bosses spaced along the circumference, and the third mounting hole is provided on the corresponding bosses.

[0015] In order to increase the contact area between the end face of the flexible seal and the casing and improve the tightness of the fit between the two, as another preferred embodiment, the cross-section of the flexible seal is in the shape of a bald cap, and the circumferential surface of the bald cap where the flexible seal is connected to the frame is an elastic portion with a C-shaped cross-section.

[0016] In order to increase the elastic restoring force of the flexible seal and prevent the negative pressure generated by the gap between the inner and outer cylinders from causing the top surface of the flexible seal to be attracted and rubbed against the inner cylinder and caused damage, preferably, the flexible seal is further formed with an annular groove on the inner side of the end cover of the bald cover, in which an elastic support member can be embedded so that the outer side of the end cover of the bald cover is always in contact with the casing.

[0017] The technical solution adopted by the utility model to solve the above-mentioned second technical problem is: a washing machine, including an outer barrel and an inner barrel, wherein the inner barrel is rotatably arranged in the outer barrel, and is characterized in that: a cutout is opened on at least one side of the outer barrel along the horizontal width direction of the casing, and the outer barrel adopts the outer barrel cutout sealing structure as described above.

[0018] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of the utility model are: the outer barrel is sealed by a flexible seal directly connected to the incision. Since the flexible seal is always in contact with the casing but not fixed, on the one hand, the convenience of assembly can be greatly improved. On the other hand, it can avoid the negative pressure generated by the gap between the inner and outer cylinders during high-speed dehydration, which makes the top surface of the flexible seal be attracted to the inner cylinder and cause friction and damage, which can greatly reduce the risk of damage to the flexible seal and extend the service life of the flexible seal. In addition, since the flexible seal is always in contact with the casing, the gap between the flexible seal and the casing is zero, which can further increase the capacity of the inner cylinder, and the flexible material can also effectively prevent the vibration of the barrel assembly from being transmitted to the casing. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] Figure 1 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the outer barrel and inner barrel assembly structure of the first embodiment of the utility model.

[0020] Figure 2 This is a partial three-dimensional exploded view of the outer barrel and inner barrel assembly structure of the first embodiment of the utility model.

[0021] Figure 3 This is a partial cross-sectional enlarged view of the sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout of the first embodiment of the utility model.

[0022] Figure 4 This is a partial cross-sectional enlarged view of the sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout of the second embodiment of the utility model.

[0023] Figure 5 This is one of the three-dimensional schematic diagrams of the flexible sealing member of the second embodiment of the utility model.

[0024] Figure 6 This is the second stereoscopic schematic diagram of the flexible sealing member of the second embodiment of the utility model. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The present invention will be described in further detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0026] The present application discloses a washing machine, which includes an outer barrel 1 and an inner barrel 2 rotatably arranged in the outer barrel 1, wherein the outer barrel 1 and the inner barrel 2 constitute a barrel assembly, wherein the outer barrel 1 is provided with a cutout 11 on both sides along the horizontal width direction of the housing 56 of the washing machine.

[0027] After the outer barrel 1 is provided with the cutouts 11 on both sides, the capacity of the inner barrel 2 is improved to a certain extent, but the strength of the outer barrel 1 will be reduced. After strength simulation, the maximum stress of the outer barrel 1 after the cutout 11 is 21.12MPa, while the maximum stress of the complete outer barrel 1 is only 13MPa; therefore, it is necessary to add a certain reinforcement structure at the cutout 11 while sealing the cutout 11 of the outer barrel 1, so as to enhance the strength of the outer barrel 1.

[0028] The following embodiment 1 and embodiment 2 are two different sealing structures of the incision 11 of the outer barrel 1 provided behind the incision 11 .

[0029] Embodiment 1, as Figure 1 to Figure 3 As shown:

[0030] The flexible sealing member 3 in the first embodiment is an integrally closed elastic end cover installed independently of the housing 5. Figure 3 As shown by the middle arrow 31, the cross section of the flexible seal 3 is arched, and the arched structure can not only maintain the softness of the flexible seal 3, but also enhance the elastic restoring force of the flexible seal 3; in the assembled state, see Figure 3 As shown by the middle arrow 32 , the flexible seal 3 has an elastic restoring force so that the end surface is always in contact with the housing 5 of the washing machine, and the flexible seal 3 is pressed and fixed to the cutout 11 of the outer tub through the annular pressing plate 4 .

[0031] In order to facilitate installation and disassembly, the flexible seal 3 is formed with a frame 30 along the circumference that can correspond to and be connected and fixed with the annular pressure plate 4. The frame 30 of the flexible seal 3 is circumferentially provided with a first installation hole 301 that can be connected to the cutout of the outer barrel.

[0032] In order to improve the reliability of the connection and enhance the strength of the connection of the cutout 11 , the cross section of the annular pressure plate 4 is U-shaped. The annular pressure plate 4 is provided with second mounting holes 41 spaced apart along the circumference and corresponding to the first mounting holes 301 one by one.

[0033] In order to facilitate assembly, the edge of the cutout 11 of the outer barrel 1 is provided with bosses 12 at intervals along the circumferential direction, and each boss 12 is provided with a third mounting hole 121 , which corresponds one-to-one to the first mounting hole 301 .

[0034] During the dehydration process of the washing machine, the vibration amount of the barrel assembly in the left and right directions shows a trend of first increasing, then decreasing, and then basically unchanged. The minimum gap between the washing machine casing 5 and the inner drum of the washing machine is set to A. In the natural state, the maximum distance between the flexible seal 3 and the inner drum of the washing machine is B, where B>A. Therefore, during the dehydration process, the maximum vibration amount of the barrel assembly along the width of the casing 5 is set to S. In order to prevent the shaking of the inner drum and the vibration of the outer drum from being transmitted to the casing 5 through the flexible seal 3, the following conditions need to be met: BA>S.

[0035] This embodiment seals by directly connecting the flexible seal 3 to the incision 11, and makes the flexible seal 3 always in contact with the casing 5, but the two are not fixedly connected. On the one hand, the convenience of assembly can be greatly improved. On the other hand, it can avoid the negative pressure generated by the gap between the inner and outer cylinders during high-speed dehydration, which makes the top surface of the flexible seal 3 be attracted to the inner cylinder and rub against it to cause damage, which can greatly reduce the risk of damage to the flexible seal 3, thereby extending the service life of the flexible seal 3.

[0036] Embodiment 2, as Figures 4 to 6 As shown:

[0037] The difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment is that: in order to increase the contact area between the end face of the flexible seal 3 and the housing 5 and improve the tightness of the fit between the two, the cross-section of the flexible seal 3 in this embodiment is in the shape of a bald cap, and the circumferential surface of the bald cap connecting the flexible seal 3 and the frame 30 is an elastic part 33 with a C-shaped cross-section.

[0038] When the washing machine is working, when the inner drum 2 rotates at a high speed, an adsorption force is generated to attract the flexible seal 3 inward. In order to prevent the flexible seal 3 from being attracted and deformed, to increase the elastic restoring force of the flexible seal 3, and to prevent the negative pressure generated by the gap between the inner and outer drums from causing the top surface of the flexible seal 3 to be attracted and rubbed against the inner drum to cause damage, the flexible seal 3 is further formed with an annular groove 34 on the inner side of the end cover of the bald treasure cover, see Figure 6 An elastic support member can be embedded in the annular groove 34, and the elastic support member makes the outer side of the end cover of the bald treasure cover always contact with the casing 5, and the inner side of the flexible sealing member 3 is always away from the inner drum 2 of the washing machine.

[0039] In the specification and claims of the present invention, terms indicating directions, such as "front", "rear", "up", "down", "left", "right", "side", "top", "bottom", etc., are used to describe various exemplary structural parts and elements of the present invention, but these terms are used here only for the purpose of convenience of description and are determined based on the exemplary orientations shown in the accompanying drawings. Since the embodiments disclosed in the present invention can be arranged in different directions, these terms indicating directions are only used as explanations and should not be regarded as limitations. For example, "up" and "down" are not necessarily limited to directions opposite to or consistent with the direction of gravity.

Claims

1. A sealing structure for an outer barrel cutout, wherein the outer barrel (1) is provided with a cutout (11) on at least one side along the horizontal width direction of a washing machine casing (5), and a flexible sealing member (3) is provided on the cutout (11) of the outer barrel (1) for sealing the cutout (11), and the outer barrel (1) and the inner barrel (2) form a barrel assembly, characterized in that: The flexible seal (3) is an integrally closed elastic end cover installed independently of the housing (5); in the assembled state, the flexible seal (3) has an elastic restoring force that allows the end surface to always be in contact with the housing (5) of the washing machine; and the flexible seal (3) is pressed and fixed to the cutout (11) of the outer barrel by an annular pressure plate (4).

2. The sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout according to claim 1, characterized in that: The minimum gap between the casing (5) of the washing machine and the inner drum of the washing machine is A, and in a natural state, the maximum distance between the flexible seal (3) and the inner drum of the washing machine is B, wherein B>A; during the dehydration process, the maximum vibration amount of the barrel assembly along the width of the casing (5) upward is S, and the following condition needs to be satisfied: BA>S.

3. The sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible sealing member (3) is formed with a frame (30) along the circumferential direction and can correspond to and be connected and fixed to the annular pressing plate (4).

4. The sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout according to claim 3, characterized in that: The cross section of the flexible sealing member (3) is arched, and the frame (30) of the flexible sealing member (3) is provided with a first mounting hole (301) which can be connected to the cutout of the outer barrel along the circumferential direction.

5. The sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout according to claim 4, characterized in that: The cross section of the annular pressing plate (4) is U-shaped, and the annular pressing plate (4) is provided with second mounting holes (41) spaced apart along the circumferential direction and corresponding one-to-one with the first mounting holes (301), respectively.

6. The sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout according to claim 4, characterized in that: The edge of the outer barrel cutout is provided with third mounting holes (121) spaced apart along the circumferential direction and corresponding to the first mounting holes (301) one by one.

7. The sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout according to claim 6, characterized in that: The edge of the outer barrel cutout is provided with bosses (12) spaced apart along the circumference, and the third mounting holes (121) are formed on corresponding bosses (12).

8. The sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout according to claim 3, characterized in that: The cross section of the flexible sealing member (3) is in the shape of a bald cap, and the circumferential surface of the bald cap where the flexible sealing member (3) is connected to the frame (30) is an elastic portion (33) with a C-shaped cross section.

9. The sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout according to claim 8, characterized in that: The flexible sealing member (3) is also formed with an annular groove (34) on the inner side of the end cover of the bald cover, and an elastic supporting member can be embedded in the annular groove (34) so ​​that the outer side of the end cover of the bald cover is always in contact with the housing (5).

10. A washing machine, comprising an outer drum (1) and an inner drum (2), wherein the inner drum (2) is rotatably arranged in the outer drum (1), characterized in that: The outer barrel (1) is provided with a cutout (11) on at least one side along the horizontal width direction of the casing (5), and the outer barrel (1) adopts the sealing structure of the outer barrel cutout as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9.

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