Dishwasher, especially household dishwasher

Abstract

Dishwasher, in particular a household dishwasher, with a washing container (2) providing a washing chamber, which has a loading opening for loading the washing chamber with items to be cleaned, a washing chamber door (3) pivotably mounted about a horizontally extending pivot axis (9) for fluid-tight closure of the loading opening, and a panel (4), in particular a decorative panel, arranged at the front of the washing chamber door (3), wherein the panel (4) is designed to be pivotable about a horizontally extending pivot axis (10) relative to the washing compartment door (3), characterized in that the panel (4) is hinged to the wash cabinet door hinge (16), and that when the panel (4) is pivoted into the open position, user access is permitted to operating elements or operating units arranged on the outside of the washing compartment door (3), in particular to a dosing unit and / or storage compartments.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to an automatic dishwasher, in particular in the form of a household dishwasher, with a washing container providing a washing chamber, which has a loading opening for loading the washing chamber with items to be cleaned, with a washing chamber door pivotably mounted about a horizontally extending pivot axis for fluid-tight closure of the loading opening, and with a panel, in particular a decorative panel, arranged at the front of the washing chamber door.

[0002] Dishwashing machines of the type mentioned above are well known in the state of the art, which is why there is no need for separate printed documentation at this point.

[0003] Previously known dishwashers typically have a wash tub that provides a wash chamber. When used as intended, the wash chamber holds the items to be cleaned. A loading opening provided by the wash tub is provided for loading the wash chamber with items to be cleaned. This opening can be sealed fluid-tight by means of a wash chamber door, which is preferably pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis.

[0004] Rotatable spray arms within the wash tub are used to apply wash liquor to the items to be cleaned. These are typically supplied with wash liquor via a circulation pump. Depending on the dishwasher's design, two, three, or more spray arms may be provided.

[0005] For user-side operation, a dishwasher of this type is equipped with a control unit. This control unit is usually located on the wash cabinet door. Depending on the design of the dishwasher, this control unit can be located either on the front of the dishwasher, at the upper edge, or on the outside of the dishwasher door. The arrangement of the control unit on the front of the dishwasher door, at the upper edge, is particularly common in so-called fully integrated dishwashers, i.e., dishwashers that are integrated into a kitchen unit and equipped with a decorative panel on the front of the dishwasher door.

[0006] The decorative panel is typically plate-shaped and provides a decorative finish on the front, which can be customized according to user specifications. The decorative panel is typically screwed, glued, or otherwise connected to the dishwasher door.

[0007] From DE 33 04 142 C2 a dishwasher is known in which the decorative panel is pivoted about a horizontal pivot axis relative to the dishwasher door when the dishwasher door is opened.

[0008] From EP 1 875 850 A1 a dishwasher is known in which the decorative panel slides along the washing compartment door when it is opened, orthogonally to the pivot axis of the washing compartment door,

[0009] Although dishwashers of the type mentioned above have proven themselves in everyday practical use, there is still room for improvement, particularly with regard to simplified and / or improved handling. Therefore, the object of the invention is to further develop a dishwasher of the type mentioned above in such a way that simplified and / or improved handling is possible for the user.

[0010] To achieve this object, the invention proposes a dishwasher having the features of claim 1.

[0011] The dishwasher according to the invention has a panel arranged at the front of the wash cabinet door, which is designed to pivot relative to the wash cabinet door about a pivot axis that runs horizontally when the dishwasher is properly installed at the installation location. The panel is thus pivotable about a pivot axis that runs parallel to the pivot axis about which the wash cabinet door pivots.

[0012] When the panel is not pivoted in its position relative to the wash cabinet door, the wash cabinet door can pivot in a manner known per se. In this case, the wash cabinet door and the panel form a common pivoting unit, i.e. the panel pivots together with the wash cabinet door. When unlocked, the panel can be pivoted relative to the wash cabinet door by the user, preferably by an opening angle predetermined by the manufacturer. The opening angle is selected, particularly depending on the design of the wash cabinet door hinge, such that unintentional opening of the wash cabinet door due to the effect of weight simply does not occur. Therefore, even when the panel is fully pivoted, the wash cabinet door cannot be unintentionally moved from its basic position. This opening angle can, for example, be between 25° and 35°, more preferably between 26° and 30°, most preferably 28°.

[0013] The pivotable arrangement of the panel offers the advantage that when the panel is pivoted, i.e. when it is in the open position, the user has access to the outside of the wash cabinet door. The design according to the invention therefore makes it easy to grant a user access to the outside of the wash cabinet door when the panel is in the open position. When the panel is in the closed position, the outside of the wash cabinet door is covered by the panel, thus creating a visual closure and concealing the accessibility of the wash cabinet door from the outside. As a result of this design, it is possible to arrange operating elements and units that were previously provided on the inside of the door on the outside of the wash cabinet door.This allows the user to have easier access to operating elements and units, which simplifies and thus improves the handling of the dishwasher according to the invention in contrast to the prior art.

[0014] Operating elements and units in the aforementioned sense relate in particular to dosing units for, for example, detergent, salt and / or rinse aid, but also to storage compartments and / or the like. These are currently only accessible when the dishwasher door is open, which, moreover, presupposes that the dishwasher is not in its intended use.

[0015] A particular advantage of the inventive design is that the panel can be pivoted relative to the wash cabinet door not about a vertical, but about a horizontal pivot axis. This minimizes the torque acting on the wash cabinet door when the panel is open; according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is even reduced to zero. This prevents the wash cabinet door from swinging open unintentionally due to the weight force acting when the panel is open.

[0016] According to the invention, the panel is hinged to the dishwasher door hinge. The panel is therefore not mounted directly on the dishwasher door itself, but rather on the hinge for the dishwasher door. This design provides the advantage of a stable and robust construction. Force is thus transmitted directly via the hinge assembly into the dishwasher frame, thus preventing deformation of the door.

[0017] According to a further feature of the invention, the pivot axis of the panel is aligned at a distance from the pivot axis of the wash cabinet door, with the pivot axis of the panel preferably being located behind the pivot axis of the wash cabinet door when viewed toward the dishwasher. During normal operation, torques generated by pivoting the panel thus do not act as an opening force for the wash cabinet door. This allows for safe operation and, by design, prevents the wash cabinet door from pivoting inadvertently when the panel is pivoted.

[0018] The wash cabinet door is hinged to the dishwasher's upright. According to a further feature of the invention, the upright has a guide contour for a guide element provided by the panel. This guide element can be, for example, a guide block. In its intended use, this rests against the guide contour. When the wash cabinet door and / or the panel are pivoted, the guide element slides along the guide contour, thus providing a structurally positive guide.

[0019] According to a further feature of the invention, the guide contour has a notch providing an undercut for receiving the guide means. The guide means engages this notch when the panel is pivoted. The guide means can only engage the notch when the guide means assumes a structurally predetermined starting position relative to the guide contour. The guide contour and the guide means interact in this respect and only allow the panel to pivot relative to the wash cabinet door when the wash cabinet door is in a predetermined rotational position.

[0020] According to a further feature of the invention, in this context, a pivoting movement in the opening direction of both the wash cabinet door and the panel is blocked when the guide means is inserted into the notch. This ensures that when the panel is pivoted, i.e., when the panel is in the open position, neither further pivoting of the panel beyond the open position nor pivoting of the wash cabinet door is possible. This pivoting block primarily serves a safety purpose and ensures that neither the wash cabinet door nor the panel can be accidentally pivoted downwards beyond the open position.

[0021] The interaction between the guide contour on the one hand and the guide means on the other hand is preferably coordinated as follows. When the wash cabinet door is pivoted as intended, the panel hinged to the wash cabinet door hinge pivots with it. The guide means of the panel slides along the guide contour provided by the machine stand. As soon as the wash cabinet door assumes a certain opening angle of e.g. 4°, the guide means of the panel moves into a position opposite the notch of the guide contour. Only in this position, i.e. at this opening angle of the wash cabinet door, is it possible for the guide means to engage the notch. As a result, a pivoting movement of the panel relative to the wash cabinet door can only be carried out in this position of the wash cabinet door.If the panel is pivoted relative to the wash cabinet door, the guide element engages the notch of the guide contour until it rests within the notch. In this position, the panel is pivoted by a specific opening angle relative to the wash cabinet door, for example, by an angle of 28°. In this position, further pivoting of either the wash cabinet door or the panel is not possible, as the guide element is fully engaged in the notch of the guide contour and is thus fixed in position relative to the machine stand.

[0022] When the aperture is pivoted back into the closed position, the guide means moves out of the notch again and is completely guided out of it as soon as the aperture has reached its closed position, ie has been pivoted back completely.

[0023] As soon as the opening angle of the wash cabinet door is exceeded when pivoting the panel relative to the wash cabinet door, the guide element is no longer positioned opposite the notch provided by the guide contour, so that the guide element can no longer engage the notch and thus pivot the panel relative to the wash cabinet door. Therefore, pivoting the panel relative to the wash cabinet door is only possible at a very specific opening angle of the wash cabinet door. This opening angle can be specified structurally by the design of the guide contour in relation to the position of the guide element.

[0024] According to a further feature of the invention, a locking mechanism is provided for the panel, which secures the panel in its position relative to the wash cabinet door when the panel is in the non-pivoted, closed position. This locking mechanism locks the panel relative to the wash cabinet door. Only when the locking mechanism is released is the locking mechanism released, allowing the panel to pivot relative to the wash cabinet door.

[0025] The locking mechanism is preferably manually operated. A corresponding control button can be provided on the wash cabinet door for this purpose. In a fully integrated dishwasher, for example, this control button is located at the front of the upper edge of the wash cabinet door. Access to this front edge is only possible when the wash cabinet door is open, so to unlock the panel by releasing the locking mechanism, the wash cabinet door must first be opened to a certain angle, allowing the operator access to the control button for activating the locking mechanism.

[0026] According to a further feature of the invention, the wash cabinet door has a dosing unit that is accessible from the outside when the panel is in the open position. The dosing unit can thus be loaded by the operator from the outside, specifically when the panel is in the open position. The dosing unit is preferably used to store process chemicals, for example, cleaning agents and / or rinse aid.

[0027] The dishwasher according to the invention proposes a design characterized by the fact that the pivot points of both the dishwasher door and the panel are located at the most stable point of the dishwasher, namely the machine frame. A further advantage is that it is a mechanically robust solution consisting essentially of easy-to-manufacture components, which is particularly advantageous for cost reasons. The invention enables a simple door lock, which is much simpler in its design than the door locks known from the prior art.

[0028] Further advantages and features of the invention will become apparent from the following description with reference to the figures. Fig. 1 shows a schematic perspective view of a dishwasher according to the invention; Fig. 2 shows a schematic perspective view of a dishwasher according to the invention according to a preferred embodiment; Fig. 3 in schematic side view the hinge position of the dishwasher according to Fig. 2; Fig. 4 shows a schematic perspective view of the dishwasher according to Fig. 2, with the dishwasher door open; Fig. 5 in schematic side view the door hinge position of the dishwasher according to Fig. 4; Fig. 6 shows a schematic perspective view of the dishwasher according to Fig. 2, with the aperture in the open position; Fig. 7 in a side view the door hinge position of the dishwasher according to Fig. 6 and Fig. 8 shows a schematic diagram of the operation of the door hinge of the dishwasher according to the invention.

[0029] Fig. Figure 1 shows a schematic diagram of a dishwasher 1 according to the invention. This dishwasher has a housing (not shown in more detail) that accommodates a washing tub 2, which in turn provides a washing chamber (not shown in more detail). The washing chamber is accessible via a loading opening. A washing chamber door 3 is provided for fluid-tight closure of the loading opening, which is pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis.

[0030] The wash cabinet door 3 provides an inside door on the one hand and an outside door on the other. A control unit 7 and a panel 4 are arranged on the outside of the wash cabinet door 3. The panel 4 is designed like a plate, similar to a door leaf, and is pivotably mounted about a horizontal pivot axis 10 in accordance with arrow 11.

[0031] Fig. 1 shows the panel 4 in the open position, according to which the user is permitted access to a dosing unit 12 provided by the washing cabinet door 3, which in the embodiment shown has three compartments 13, 14 and 15, wherein, for example, the compartment 13 serves to hold detergent, the compartment 14 holds salt and the compartment 15 holds rinse aid.

[0032] How Fig. As can be seen from Figure 1, not only is the wash cabinet door pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis, but according to the invention, so too is the panel formed on the front side of the wash cabinet door 3. The panel 4 is pivotable about the horizontal pivot axis 10 relative to the wash cabinet door 3.

[0033] The other Fig. Figures 2 to 8 show the dishwasher 1 according to the invention in the form of a so-called fully integrated appliance. In this embodiment, the washing tub 2 has a cover 5 on its top, for example, a kitchen countertop. The panel 4 is designed as a decorative panel and provides a handle 6 for user operation.

[0034] As a summary of the Fig. 2 and Fig. As can be seen in Figure 3, the wash cabinet door 3 is pivotably mounted on the stand 8 of the dishwasher 1 by means of a door hinge 16. The wash cabinet door 3 pivots about the pivot axis 9.

[0035] The panel 4 is designed to be pivotable relative to the wash cabinet door 3. For this purpose, a panel hinge 17 is provided, which is pivotably mounted on the door hinge 16, specifically about the pivot axis 10. The panel hinge 17 provides a guide means 18 in the form of a guide block. This guide block interacts with a guide contour 20 provided by a guide plate 19 of the support 8. This guide contour 20 provides a notch 21 into which the guide block 18 engages when the panel 4 pivots.

[0036] The functionality of the hinge design results from a summary of the Fig. 2 to 7.

[0037] Fig. Figure 2 shows the dishwasher 1 according to the invention with the wash cabinet door 3 closed and the panel 4 in the closed position. In this position, the panel 4 is locked relative to the wash cabinet door 3 by means of a locking device. If the operator now grasps the handle 6 provided by the panel 4, a joint pivoting movement of the wash cabinet door 3 and panel 4 takes place, specifically about the pivot axis 9 of the wash cabinet door 3. In this locked position of the wash cabinet door 3 and panel 4, the loading opening can therefore be opened as intended to provide access to the wash cabinet provided by the wash tub 2.

[0038] The Fig. 4 and Fig. 5 show the wash cabinet door 3 in a position in which the operator has access to the control unit 7 arranged at the front of the wash cabinet door 3. The opening angle of the wash cabinet door 3 is, for example, 4°. In this position of the wash cabinet door, the guide block 18 provided by the panel hinge 17 is moved along the guide contour 20 into a position in which the guide block 18 can be inserted into the notch 21 provided by the guide contour 20, as shown in FIG. Fig. 5 shows. If the operator now unlocks the panel 4 and the wash cabinet door 3 via the operating unit 7, the panel 4 can be pivoted relative to the wash cabinet door 3 about the pivot axis 10, since in this position the guide block 18 is allowed to enter the notch 21. This shows a summary of the Fig. 6 and Fig. 7, after which the panel 4 is pivoted relative to the wash cabinet door 3, as a result of which the guide block 18 is immersed in the notch 21. Further pivoting of the wash cabinet door 3 or the panel 4 is not possible in this position, since the guide block 18 rests against the stop within the notch 21.

[0039] Fig.Figure 8 shows a schematic diagram of the door hinge arrangement. As can be seen from this, the guide block 18 is guided along a circular path 24 in the direction of arrow 22 during a joint pivoting movement of the wash cabinet door 3 and panel 4. However, if a pivoting movement of panel 4 occurs relative to the wash cabinet door 3, the guide block 18 is guided along the circular path 25 in the direction of arrow 23, namely not around the pivot axis 9, but around the pivot axis 10. The angle α between the two tangents 26 and 27 at the intersection of the circular paths 24 and 25 is preferably between 80° and 100°, more preferably 90°. Reference symbol 1 dishwasher 2 rinsing containers 3 Dishwasher door 4 aperture 5 Cover 6 Handle 7 Control unit 8 stands 9 Swivel axis of the wash cabinet door 10 Swivel axis aperture 11 Arrow 12 Dosing unit 13 compartments 14 compartments 15 compartments 16 Door hinge 17 Panel hinge 18 Guide stone 19 Guide plate 20 Guide contour 21 Notch 22 Arrow 23 Arrow 24 circular orbit 25 circular path 26 Tangent 27 Tangent α angle

Claims

[1] Dishwasher, in particular a household dishwasher, with a washing container (2) providing a washing chamber, which has a loading opening for loading the washing chamber with items to be cleaned, a washing chamber door (3) pivotably mounted about a horizontally extending pivot axis (9) for fluid-tight closure of the loading opening, and a panel (4), in particular a decorative panel, arranged at the front of the washing chamber door (3), wherein the panel (4) is designed to be pivotable about a horizontally extending pivot axis (10) relative to the washing compartment door (3), characterized by , that the panel (4) is hinged to the wash cabinet door hinge (16), and that when the panel (4) is pivoted into the open position, user access is permitted to operating elements or operating units arranged on the outside of the washing compartment door (3), in particular to a dosing unit and / or storage compartments. [2] Dishwasher according to claim 1, characterized by that the pivot axis (10) of the panel (4) is spaced from the pivot axis (9) of the washing compartment door (3). [3] Dishwasher according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the washing compartment door (3) is hinged to the stand (8) of the dishwasher (1), wherein the stand (8) has a guide contour (20) for a guide means provided by the panel (4), in particular a guide stone (18). [4] Dishwasher according to claim 3, characterized by that the guide contour (20) has a notch (21) providing an undercut for receiving the guide means. [5] Dishwasher according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that a pivoting movement in the opening direction of both the washing cabinet door (3) and the panel (4) is blocked when the guide means is immersed in the notch. [6] Dishwasher according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by a locking device for the panel (4), which secures the panel (4) in its relative position to the wash cabinet door (3) in the non-pivoted closed position. [7] Dishwasher according to claim 6, characterized by that the locking can be switched manually. [8] Dishwasher according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the washing chamber door (3) has a dosing unit (12) which is accessible from the outside when the panel (4) is in the open position.

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