Door lock assembly

Abstract

To provide a door lock assembly allowing a user to open and close a door not only by a push-push method from the outside of the door but also by a push-pull method.SOLUTION: A cam can rotate in a clockwise or anticlockwise direction around a cam shaft. When the cam rotates in the clockwise or anticlockwise direction, a slider is fitted to and engaged with the cam so that the slider reciprocates in a longitudinal direction of the slider in conjunction with the rotation of the cam. The slider has a moving guide groove to define a conventional moving path including a first segment of the conventional moving path and a second segment of the conventional moving path. The moving guide groove further defines an alternative moving path. An end of a pin assembly can move with respect to the slider in conjunction with reciprocating movement of the slider on the alternative moving path defined by the first segment of the conventional moving path and the moving guide groove, but does not move on the second segment of the conventional moving path.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1D

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a door lock assembly, and more particularly, to a door lock assembly for opening the door of an electrical appliance in various ways.

Background Art

[0002] A door lock assembly can be used to lock or open the door of an electrical appliance (such as a dryer, washing machine, or dishwasher). In order to operate properly, an electrical appliance has many requirements for the door lock assembly of the appliance. For example, it is necessary to provide users with various convenient ways to open the door of the electrical appliance while ensuring reliable operation of the electrical appliance in various states.

Summary of the Invention

[0003] The present disclosure provides a door lock assembly that allows a user to open and close the door not only by a push-push method from the outside of the door but also by a push-pull method. In the closed (locked) state of the door, the door can also be opened by pushing from the inside of the door.

[0004] A door lock assembly is provided according to a first aspect of this disclosure. A door lock assembly configured to lock the door of an electrical appliance comprises a cam, a slider, and a pin assembly, wherein the cam is configured to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise around a camshaft, the slider is configured to fit and engage with the cam so that the slider can reciprocate along the length of the slider as the cam rotates clockwise or counterclockwise, the slider has a travel guide groove that defines a conventional travel path, the conventional travel path includes a first segment of the conventional travel path and a second segment of the conventional travel path, these segments being connected to each other, the pin assembly is configured such that the end of the pin assembly can move relative to the slider along the conventional travel path defined by the travel guide groove as the slider reciprocates, the travel guide groove further defines an alternative travel path, and the pin assembly is further configured such that the end of the pin assembly can move relative to the slider along the slider along the first segment of the conventional travel path and the alternative travel path defined by the travel guide groove, but not in the second segment of the conventional travel path.

[0005] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the moving guide groove is a heart-shaped guide groove, the conventional moving path is a heart-shaped moving path, and the heart-shaped moving path is provided with four path points, including, in order, a heart-shaped bottom intersection A, a heart-shaped first side path vertex B, a heart-shaped upper intersection C, and a heart-shaped second side path vertex D. The alternative movement path is located between the heart-shaped upper intersection C and the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, thereby allowing the pin assembly to move directly from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A without passing through the heart-shaped second side path vertex D.

[0006] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the first segment of the conventional travel path is a heart-shaped first side path, and the second segment of the conventional travel path is a heart-shaped second side path. The first lateral path of the heart shape is formed from the bottom intersection A of the heart shape, through the vertex B of the first lateral path of the heart shape, to the top intersection C of the heart shape. The second lateral path of the heart shape (CDA) is formed from the upper intersection C of the heart shape, through the vertex D of the second lateral path of the heart shape, to the bottom intersection A of the heart shape. The first heart-shaped lateral path and the second heart-shaped lateral path (CDA) are protruding movement paths, and vertex B of the first heart-shaped lateral path and vertex D of the second heart-shaped lateral path are the highest protruding points of the first heart-shaped lateral path and the second heart-shaped lateral path (CDA), respectively. A concave path is formed from the first side path vertex B of the heart shape to the upper intersection C of the heart shape, and from the upper intersection C of the heart shape to the second side path vertex D of the heart shape.

[0007] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the heart-shaped movement path is a unidirectional movement path, and movement along the heart-shaped movement path passes through the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, the heart-shaped first side path vertex B, the heart-shaped top intersection C, and the heart-shaped second side path vertex D in order, and finally returns to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A.

[0008] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, when the door is in the open position, the pin assembly is located at the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, When the door is in the closed position, the pin assembly is located at the upper heart-shaped intersection C. When the door hook of the door is in its maximum insertion position, the pin assembly is located at either the first side path vertex B of the heart shape or the second side path vertex D of the heart shape. When the door is subjected to a first inward force in the open position, the pin assembly moves from the upper bottom intersection A to the vertex B of the heart-shaped first side path, and the door hook moves to the maximum insertion position. After the first inward force is removed, the pin assembly moves from the first side path vertex B of the heart shape to the upper intersection C of the heart shape, and the door moves to the closed position. When the door is subjected to a second inward force in the closed position, the pin assembly moves from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped second side path vertex D, and the door hook moves again to the maximum insertion position. After the second inward force is removed, the pin assembly moves from the vertex D of the second side path of the heart shape back to the intersection A of the bottom of the heart shape, and the door returns to the open position.

[0009] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the alternative movement path is a release guide groove provided on the slider.

[0010] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the diameter of the end of the pin assembly is greater than the groove width of the release guide groove. When the door is in the closed position and subjected to an outward force, the pin assembly is configured to apply a pressing force to the two side walls of the release guide groove, thereby expanding the release guide groove in the groove width direction, allowing the pin assembly to move within the release guide groove from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A.

[0011] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, when the door is in the closed position and subjected to an outward force, a door hook of the door pulls a cam outward, causing the cam to tend to rotate counterclockwise, thereby driving the slider to tend to move in a first direction, thereby allowing the pin assembly to press the release guide groove of the slider toward the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, thereby transmitting a pressing force toward the two side walls of the release guide groove, which presses the groove width of the release guide groove to be sufficient to accommodate the end of the pin assembly, thereby allowing the slider to move toward the pin assembly in a first direction without hindering the counterclockwise rotation of the cam, ultimately enabling the door to open, and simultaneously allowing the pin assembly to move through the release guide groove of the slider from the heart-shaped top intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A.

[0012] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the release guide groove is a hollow groove or a non-hollow groove.

[0013] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the release guide groove is a straight guide groove.

[0014] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the release guide groove is provided with a baffle near the heart-shaped upper intersection C, and the pin assembly is configured to apply force to the baffle. When the force applied to the baffle exceeds the threshold that the baffle can withstand, the baffle breaks, thereby allowing the pin assembly to move through the release guide groove from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A.

[0015] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, the door lock assembly further comprises a housing, wherein a cam, slider, and pin assembly are disposed inside the housing.

[0016] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the pin assembly comprises a pin housing and a pin, the portion of which is housed in the pin housing and the bottom end of the pin protruding from the bottom of the pin housing. The pins are configured to move along a heart-shaped path.

[0017] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, the housing has a pin cavity in which a pin housing is housed, the pin cavity is configured to restrict the movement of the pin assembly within the pin cavity in the longitudinal direction of the slider, but to allow the movement of the pin assembly within the pin cavity in the width direction of the slider.

[0018] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, the cam comprises a locking hook configured to engage with a door hook to lock the door hook, the door hook being mounted on a door, The door hook is configured to engage with or disengage from the lock hook when the door is closed or opened, thereby allowing the cam to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise.

[0019] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, the housing includes a lock hole, and the door hook passes through the lock hole and engages with the lock hook.

[0020] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, the door lock assembly further includes a microswitch disposed in the housing. The microswitch is in an off state when the door is in the open position. During the process of closing the door, the pin moves along the first side path from the heart-shaped bottom intersection A to the heart-shaped upper intersection C, and the microswitch is turned on. During the process of opening the door, the pin moves along the second side path from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, and the microswitch is turned off.

[0021] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, the slider has a microswitch actuating part disposed at one end thereof. The clockwise rotation of the cam allows the slider to move in the second direction during the process of closing the door, thereby enabling the slider to move in the second direction and trigger the microswitch by the microswitch actuating part, thereby enabling the microswitch to be turned on, or The counterclockwise rotation of the cam drives the slider to move in the first direction during the process of opening the door, disengaging the microswitch actuating part from the microswitch, thereby enabling the microswitch to be turned off.

[0022] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, the door lock assembly includes a cam torsion spring configured to engage with a cam and provide a driving force to drive the cam to rotate counterclockwise, and a slider spring configured to engage with the slider and provide a driving force to drive the slider to move in the second direction. The door lock assembly further includes the above.

[0023] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, the electrical device is a dryer.

[0024] Some additional aspects and advantages of the present disclosure are described in the following description, some will become apparent from the following description, or will be learned by the implementation of the present disclosure.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0025] [Figure 1A] A perspective view of a door lock assembly according to the present disclosure. [Figure 1B] A perspective view of the door lock box of the door lock assembly shown in Figure 1A, with the upper cover of the door lock box omitted to show more components inside the door lock box. [Figure 1C] A cross-sectional view of the door lock assembly shown in Figure 1A in the M-M direction. [Figure 1D] An exploded view showing the assembly of the door lock assembly shown in Figure 1A. [Figure 2A] A perspective view of the slider in the door lock box. [Figure 2B] An enlarged view of part N of the slider shown in Figure 2A. [Figure 3A] A perspective view of the pin assembly in the door lock box. [Figure 3B] A longitudinal cross-sectional view of the pin assembly shown in Figure 3A. [Figure 4A] A diagram showing the positional relationship between the door hook and the door lock box when the door is in the open state. [Figure 4B] A diagram showing the positional relationship between the pin assembly and the slider when the door is in the open state. [Figure 5A] A diagram showing the positional relationship between the door hook and the door lock box when the door is about to be closed. [Figure 5B] A diagram showing the positional relationship between the pin assembly and the slider when the door is about to be closed. [Figure 6A]This diagram shows the positional relationship between the door hook and the door lock box when the door hook is in its maximum inserted state during the door closing process. [Figure 6B] This diagram shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly and the slider when the door hook is in its maximum insertion position during the door closing process. [Figure 7A] This diagram shows the relative positions of the door hook and the door lock box when the door is in the closed position. [Figure 7B] This diagram shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly and the slider when the door is in the closed position. [Figure 8A] This diagram shows the relative positions of the door hook and the door lock box when the door hook is in its maximum insertion position during the door opening process. [Figure 8B] This diagram shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly and the slider when the door hook is in its maximum insertion position during the door opening process. [Figure 9A] This diagram shows the relative positions of the door hook and the door lock box when a closed door is subjected to an outward force. [Figure 9B] This diagram shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly and the slider when a closed door is subjected to an outward force. [Figure 10A] A perspective view of a further embodiment of a slider in a door lock box. [Figure 10B] Figure 10A is an enlarged view of a portion O of a further embodiment of the slider shown. [Figure 11A] This is a perspective view of yet another embodiment of the slider in a door lock box. [Figure 11B] This is an enlarged view of a portion Q of yet another embodiment of the slider shown in Figure 11A. [Figure 12] This is a schematic diagram of a dryer equipped with the door lock assembly of the present disclosure when the door is in the open position. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0026] Various specific embodiments of this disclosure are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings which constitute part of this disclosure, but these embodiments do not limit the scope of this disclosure. In this disclosure, terms indicating direction, such as “up,” “down,” “left,” “right,” “front,” and “back,” are used to describe the orientation of various exemplary structural parts and elements in this disclosure, but it should be understood that the terms used herein are used solely for ease of explanation and are determined based on the exemplary orientations shown in the accompanying drawings. Since the embodiments disclosed in this disclosure may consist of various orientations, the terms indicating direction are merely illustrative and should not be considered limiting.

[0027] The terms “to include” and their derivatives mean to include without limitation. Unless otherwise specified and limited, the terms “to install,” “to assemble,” “to connect,” and “to connect,” and their variations, should be understood broadly. For example, this could be a mechanical or electrical connection, an internal communication between two elements, or a direct connection or an indirect connection via an intermediate medium. A person skilled in the art will be able to understand the specific meaning of the above terms depending on the particular case. Where possible, identical or similar reference numerals used in this disclosure refer to the same component.

[0028] To facilitate understanding of the description of this disclosure, the doors of electrical equipment (in particular, dryer doors) according to this disclosure have at least three positions: an open position (see the relative position between the door hook 101 and the door lock box shown in Figures 4A and 4B and Figures 5A and 5B); a closed position (see the relative position between the door hook 101 and the door lock box shown in Figures 7A and 7B and Figures 9A and 9B); and a maximum insertion position of the door hook (see the relative position between the door hook 101 and the door lock box shown in Figures 6A and 6B and Figures 8A and 8B). The open position of the door is the position of the door when the electrical equipment is in a non-operating state; the closed position of the door is the position of the door when the electrical equipment is in a normal operating state; and the maximum insertion position of the door hook is an intermediate position of the door hook or door during the process of opening or closing the door.

[0029] Figures 1A to 1D are schematic diagrams of the door lock assembly 100 of the present disclosure from various viewpoints. In these drawings, Figure 1B shows more internal components of the door lock box 102 by omitting the door hook 101 and the upper door lock box cover 104 in Figure 1A; Figure 1C is a cross-sectional view of the door lock assembly 100 in the MM direction of Figure 1A to show the configuration and mating relationship of the pin assembly 114 and pin cavity 142 inside the door lock box 102; and Figure 1D is an exploded view showing the assembly of the door lock assembly 100 shown in Figure 1A to show the assembly relationship between the components of the door lock assembly 100. In the following text, in order to clearly show the positional relationship between the door lock box 102 and its components, the length direction of the door lock box 102 is defined as the X direction, the width direction of the door lock box 102 is defined as the Y direction, and the height direction of the door lock box 102 is defined as the Z direction. Since the embodiments disclosed herein can be configured in various orientations, the terms X, Y, and Z indicating orientation are used for illustrative purposes only and should not be considered limiting.

[0030] As shown in Figure 1A, the door lock assembly 100 includes a door lock box 102. The door lock box 102 has a door lock box upper cover 104 and a door lock box base 106 connected to each other by a fixing device 110 (e.g., a latch). The door lock box upper cover 104 has a door lock hole 108 configured to accommodate a door hook 101 mounted on the door of the electrical equipment. The door hook 101 is located above the door lock hole 108. When the door hook 101 is inserted into the door lock assembly 100 through the door lock hole 108 in the door lock box 102, the door hook 101 engages with a cam inside the door lock assembly 100 (see cam 112 in Figure 1B). When the cam 112 is locked, the door of the electrical equipment is locked accordingly.

[0031] Specifically, the door hook 101 has a door hook base 105 and a door hook head 103. The door hook base 105 is mounted on the door of the electrical equipment, and the door hook head 103 has a door hook hole 107 configured to engage with a cam (see cam 112 in Figure 1B). When the cam 112 is locked, the door hook hole 107 in the door hook head 103 is locked by the cam 112. As a result, the door hook 101 becomes immobile, thereby locking the door of the electrical equipment.

[0032] As shown in Figures 1B and 1D, the following components are arranged inside the door lock box 102 in the longitudinal direction (X direction): a slider 116, a pin assembly 114, a cam 112, and a microswitch 118. The slider 116 is restricted to reciprocating in the longitudinal direction (X direction) inside the door lock box 102, but cannot move in the width direction (Y direction). The pin assembly 114 is restricted to reciprocating in the width direction (Y direction) inside the door lock box 102, but cannot move in the longitudinal direction (X direction). The cam 112 has a cam rotation shaft 124 positioned in the width direction (Y direction), allowing the cam 112 to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise around the cam rotation shaft 124.

[0033] As shown in Figure 1B, the cam 112 has a locking hook configured to engage with the door hook 101 and lock the door hook 101, and a slider actuation part 155 configured to actuate the slider 116. The locking hook has an upper locking hook 152, a lower locking hook 156, and a locking hook cavity 154. When the door is closed or open, the door hook 101 can engage with or disengage from the locking hook, thereby rotating the cam 112 clockwise or counterclockwise. Specifically, when the door is closed, the door hook head 103 of the door hook 101 strikes the lower locking hook 156 downward, rotating the cam 112 clockwise. Thus, the upper locking hook 152 can rotate into the door hook hole 107 of the door hook 101 and engage with the door hook 101, and at the same time, the lower end of the door hook 101 is positioned in the locking hook cavity 154 and engages with the cam 112. When the cam 112 is locked, the door hook hole 107 in the door hook head 103 is locked by the upper lock hook 152 of the cam 112, preventing the door hook 101 from moving and thus locking the door of the electrical equipment. When the door is open, the door hook head 103 of the door hook 101 pulls the upper lock hook 152 upward in the lock hook cavity 154, rotating the cam 112 counterclockwise and thereby releasing the door hook 101 from the lock hook cavity 154.

[0034] Continuing to refer to Figures 1B and 1D, the door lock box 102 is further equipped with a slider spring 122 and a cam torsion spring 120. The cam 112 and the cam torsion spring 120 are sleeve-connected to a torsion spring sleeve 126, which is configured coaxially with the cam rotating shaft 124, to ensure smooth rotation. The slider spring 122 is connected to the slider 116 at one end and to the left end of the door lock box base 106 at the other end. When the slider 116 moves to the right in the longitudinal direction of the door lock box 102 and pulls the slider spring 122, the slider spring 122 can provide the slider 116 with a pulling force (restoring force) of, for example, 2 Newtons to move the slider 116 to the left in the longitudinal direction of the door lock box 102.

[0035] The cam torsion spring 120 is connected at one end to the lower lock hook 156 of the cam 112 and fixed at the other end to the door lock box base 106. When the cam 112 rotates clockwise around the cam rotation shaft 124, driving the cam torsion spring 120 to rotate clockwise, the cam torsion spring 120 can provide a torsional force (restoring force) to rotate the cam 112 counterclockwise.

[0036] Figure 1C is a cross-sectional view of the door lock assembly 100 in the MM direction of Figure 1A, showing the configuration and mating relationship of the pin assembly 114 and pin cavity 142 inside the door lock box 102.

[0037] As shown in Figure 1C, a pin cavity 142 for housing the pin assembly 114 is provided inside the upper cover 104 of the door lock box. The pin cavity 142 restricts the movement of the pin assembly 114 within the pin cavity 142 in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the slider 116, but allows the pin assembly 114 to move within the pin cavity 142 in the width direction (Y direction) of the slider 116.

[0038] Specifically, since the slider 116 is equipped with a heart-shaped guide groove 202 (see Figures 2A and 2B), the pin assembly 114 can slide along the groove trajectory of the heart-shaped guide groove 202 relative to the slider 116. The groove trajectory of the heart-shaped guide groove 202 defines two directions of movement, X and Y. When the pin assembly 114 moves in the X direction relative to the slider 116 in the heart-shaped guide groove 202, the pin assembly 114 itself does not move in the X direction relative to the door lock box 102 (door lock box upper cover 104), but the slider 116 moves in the X direction relative to the door lock box 102 (door lock box upper cover 104), and thus this is recognized as the pin assembly 114 moving in the X direction relative to the slider 116.

[0039] Continuing to refer to Figures 1C and 1D, the microswitch 118 is configured to control the on and off of the electrical device and has a switch contact 128. When the slider 116 moves to the leftmost position in the longitudinal direction of the door lock box 102, the slider 116 can trigger the switch contact 128 to turn on the microswitch 118, thus turning on the power to the electrical device. When the slider 116 moves to the rightmost position in the longitudinal direction of the door lock box 102, the slider 116 disengages from the switch contact 128, turning off the microswitch 118, thus turning off the power to the electrical device.

[0040] Figure 2A is a perspective view of the slider 116 in the door lock box 102, and Figure 2B is an enlarged view of part N of the slider 116 shown in Figure 2A.

[0041] As shown in Figures 2A and 2B, the slider 116 has an elongated shape and on its upper surface, it includes a heart-shaped guide groove 202, a cam contact portion 212, a microswitch actuation portion 208, and a spring fixing portion 210. As shown in Figure 2B, the heart-shaped guide groove 202 defines a unidirectional heart-shaped movement path ABCDA. The heart-shaped movement path ABCDA includes four path points, including the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, the heart-shaped top intersection C, the heart-shaped first side path vertex B, and the heart-shaped second side path vertex D. The heart-shaped movement path ABCDA includes the heart-shaped first side path ABC and the heart-shaped second side path CDA. The heart-shaped first side path ABC is formed from the heart-shaped bottom intersection A through the heart-shaped first side path vertex B to the heart-shaped top intersection C. The second heart-shaped lateral path CDA is formed from the upper heart-shaped intersection C through the vertex D of the second heart-shaped lateral path to the bottom heart-shaped intersection A. The first heart-shaped lateral path ABC and the second heart-shaped lateral path CDA are outwardly projecting paths, with the vertices B and D of the first and second heart-shaped lateral paths protruding, respectively, becoming the outermost points of the first and second heart-shaped lateral paths (ABC) and CDA, respectively. A concave path is formed from the vertex B of the first heart-shaped lateral path to the upper heart-shaped intersection C, and from the upper heart-shaped intersection C to the vertex D of the second heart-shaped lateral path.

[0042] To ensure that the heart-shaped movement path ABCDA is a unidirectional movement path, it should be noted that the vertex B of the first side path of the heart shape is positioned higher than the upper intersection C of the heart shape, thereby ensuring unidirectional movement of the pin assembly 114 from point B to point C when no external force is applied. During the movement of the pin assembly 114 along the heart-shaped movement path ABCDA, the pin assembly 114 passes through the bottom intersection A of the heart shape, the vertex B of the first side path of the heart shape, the upper intersection C of the heart shape, and the vertex D of the second side path of the heart shape in sequence, and finally returns to the bottom intersection A of the heart shape.

[0043] Continuing to refer to Figure 2B, an alternative movement path CA is further provided between the heart-shaped upper intersection C and the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, and functions as a release guide groove 204 provided in the slider 116. The diameter of the pin assembly 114 at its bottom end is greater than the width of the release guide groove 204, and therefore, unless there is a considerable pressing force between the pin assembly 114 and the release guide groove 204, the pin assembly 114 cannot move through the release guide groove 204. In other words, if there is not a considerable pressing force between the pin assembly 114 and the release guide groove 204, the alternative movement path CA is not a passable path. However, if the pressing force between the pin assembly 114 and the release guide groove 204 is greater than a predetermined threshold (for example, greater than 55 Newtons), the pin assembly 114 can apply pressing force to the two side walls of the release guide groove 204. This deforms the release guide groove 204 and expands it in the groove width direction, thereby allowing the pin assembly 114 to move directly through the release guide groove 204 from the upper heart-shaped intersection C to the bottom heart-shaped intersection A, without being restricted to moving through the heart-shaped movement path ABCDA. That is, if the pressing force between the pin assembly 114 and the release guide groove 204 is greater than a predetermined threshold, the pin assembly 114 can move through the alternative movement path CA.

[0044] Continuing to refer to Figures 2A and 1C, the cam contact portion 212 of the slider 116 can contact and engage with the slider actuation portion 155 of the cam 112. When the door is open, the cam 112 rotates counterclockwise. As the slider actuation portion 155 of the cam 112 contacts the cam contact portion 212 of the slider 116, the cam 112 pushes the slider 116 to the right, thereby pulling the slider spring 122 to the right. The microswitch actuation portion 208 of the slider 116 moves to disengage from contact with the switch contact 128, turning off the microswitch 118, and thus the power to the electrical equipment is turned off. When the door is closed, the cam 112 rotates clockwise. Thus, the slider actuation portion 155 of the cam 112 tends to disengage from contact with the cam contact portion 212 of the slider 116, thereby causing the slider 116 to move to the left under the action of the tensile force of the slider spring 122. The microswitch actuation portion 208 of the slider 116 can trigger the switch contact 128 to turn on the microswitch 118, thus turning on the power to the electrical device. Specifically, the slider spring 122 is fixed to the spring fixing portion 210 at the left end of the slider 116.

[0045] In embodiments of the present disclosure, the restoring force provided by the cam torsion spring 120 to drive the counterclockwise rotation of the cam 112 may be set to be greater than the restoring force of the slider spring 122 for pulling the slider 116 to the left. In this way, under the condition that the door lock assembly 100 of the present disclosure is not subjected to external forces and the slider 116 is not locked, the cam 112 tends to rotate counterclockwise, and thus the slider 116 tends to move to the right, turning off the power to the electrical equipment. Therefore, the door hook 101 tends to move upward, that is, the door of the electrical equipment tends to open. If the door of the electrical equipment needs to be closed, a force must be applied inward to the door, causing the door hook 101 to move downward. This force must overcome the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120 in order to rotate the cam 112 clockwise, thereby causing the slider 116 to move to the left under the action of the restoring force of the slider spring 122, and turning on the power to the electrical device.

[0046] Figure 3A is a perspective view of the pin assembly 114, and Figure 3B is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the pin assembly 114.

[0047] As shown in Figures 3A and 3B, the pin assembly 114 includes a pin housing 302 and a pin 304. The pin housing 302 is housed in a pin cavity 142. The upper end of the pin 304 is housed in the internal cavity of the pin housing 302, and the lower end of the pin 304 protrudes from the bottom of the pin housing 302. As the slider 116 moves back and forth, the pin 304 moves along the heart-shaped movement path ABCDA of the slider 116. However, the pin 304 is only movable up and down (in the Z direction) within the internal cavity of the pin housing 302 and cannot move in any other direction (e.g., the X or Y direction). The pin housing 302 further includes a pin spring 306 located between the upper wall of the internal cavity of the pin housing 302 and the upper end of the pin 304, and is configured to provide a biasing force that moves the pin 304 downward. Therefore, when pin 304 is not subjected to an external force, it tends to move downward. In the heart-shaped movement path ABCDA, the vertex B of the first side of the heart shape is higher than the upper intersection C of the heart shape. Therefore, when pin 304 is not subjected to an external force, it can only move from the higher vertex B of the first side of the heart shape to the lower upper intersection C of the heart shape, rather than moving in the reverse direction from the upper intersection C of the heart shape to the vertex B of the first side of the heart shape, thereby ensuring the one-way nature of the heart-shaped movement path ABCDA.

[0048] Referring to Figures 2A and 2B, the pin cavity 142 restricts the pin assembly 114 to move only in the width direction (Y direction) of the slider 116. Therefore, the movement of pin 304 in the pin assembly 114 from the heart-shaped bottom intersection A of the slider 116 to the heart-shaped first side path vertex B corresponds to the leftward movement of the slider 116 in the length direction (X direction) of the door lock box 102, and the movement of pin 304 from the heart-shaped first side path vertex B of the slider 116 to the heart-shaped top intersection C corresponds to the door lock box 102. The movement of the slider 116 to the right in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the lock box 102 corresponds to the movement of the slider 116 to the left in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the door lock box 102. The movement of the pin 304 from the vertex D of the second side path of the heart shape of the slider 116 to the bottom intersection A of the heart shape of the door lock box 102 corresponds to the movement of the slider 116 to the right in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the door lock box 102.

[0049] When the door of an electrical appliance in the open position is subjected to a force acting inward, the door hook 101 moves downward, overcoming the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120 and pushing the cam 112 to rotate clockwise. The clockwise rotation of the cam 112 allows the slider 116 to move leftward under the action of the restoring force of the slider spring 122. Due to the above correspondence between the movement of the pin 304 relative to the slider 116 and the movement of the slider 116 itself, the leftward movement of the cam 112 moves the pin 304 relative to the slider 116 from the heart-shaped bottom intersection A to the apex B of the heart-shaped first side path, thereby moving the door from the open position to the closed position. When the force acting inward on the door is removed, the cam 112 rotates counterclockwise under the action of the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120, pushing the slider 116 to move a certain distance to the right. The rightward movement of the slider 116 causes the pin 304 to move relative to the slider 116, under the guidance of the heart-shaped first side path ABC, from the vertex B of the heart-shaped far side path to the heart-shaped upper intersection C, to contact point C of the release guide groove 204, thereby keeping the door in the closed position.

[0050] When the door of an electrical appliance in the closed position is subjected to a force acting inward, the door hook 101 moves downward a certain distance, overcoming the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120 and pushing the cam 112 to rotate clockwise. The clockwise rotation of the cam 112 allows the slider 116 to move a certain distance to the left under the action of the restoring force of the slider spring 122. The leftward movement of the slider 116 moves the pin 304 relative to the slider 116 from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped second side path vertex D, thereby keeping the door in the closed position. After the force acting inward on the door is removed, the cam 112 rotates counterclockwise under the action of the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120, pushing the slider 116 to move to the right. The rightward movement of the slider 116 moves the pin 304 back from the vertex D of the second heart-shaped side path to the intersection A of the heart-shaped bottom, under the guidance of the second heart-shaped side path CDA relative to the slider 116, thereby moving the door from the closed position to the open position.

[0051] Figures 4A to 8B show the positional relationship between the door hook 101 and the door lock box 102, and the positional relationship between the pin assembly 114 and the slider 116, respectively, when the door of the electrical equipment is opened and closed normally. The upper cover 104 of the door lock box is omitted in the above figures to show more of the internal components of the door lock box 102.

[0052] Figure 4A shows the positional relationship between the door hook 101 and the door lock box 102 when the door is in the open position, and Figure 4B shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly 114 and the slider 116 when the door is in the open position. Figure 5A shows the positional relationship between the door hook 101 and the door lock box 102 when the door is about to be closed, and Figure 5B shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly 114 and the slider 116 when the door is about to be closed.

[0053] As shown in Figures 4A and 4B, when the door is in the open position, the door hook 101 is positioned above the door lock box 102, the cam 112 is held in an end position that can be reached by counterclockwise rotation under the action of the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120, the slider 116 is positioned at the far right end of the door lock box 102 by contact with the cam 112, and the pin assembly 114 is positioned at the heart-shaped bottom intersection A of the heart-shaped guide groove 202. The microswitch actuation part 208 of the slider 116 disengages from contact with the switch contact 128, turning off the microswitch 118, and thus the electrical equipment is powered off.

[0054] When a door in the open position is subjected to a force F acting inward, the door hook 101 moves downward. As shown in Figures 5A and 5B, when the door hook 101 moves to a position where it is about to contact the cam 112, the door is in the position to be closed. At this point, the positions of the cam 112 and slider 116 have not changed from the positions when the door is in the open position, and the pin assembly 114 is located at the heart-shaped bottom intersection A of the heart-shaped guide groove 202.

[0055] Figure 6A shows the positional relationship between the door hook 101 and the door lock box 102 when the door hook 101 is in its maximum insertion position during the door closing process, and Figure 6B shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly 114 and the slider 116 when the door hook 101 is in its maximum insertion position during the door closing process.

[0056] As shown in Figures 6A and 6B, when the door hook 101 is in contact with the cam 112, if the door hook 101 receives a sustained force F acting toward the inside of the door, the door hook 101 continues to move downward, overcoming the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120 and pushing the cam 112 to rotate clockwise. The clockwise rotation of the cam 112 allows the slider 116 to move to the left under the action of the restoring force of the slider spring 122, triggering the switch contact 128 and turning on the microswitch 118, thus turning on the power to the electrical device. At this point, the pin assembly 114 moves from the heart-shaped bottom intersection A relative to the slider 116 to reach the apex B of the first heart-shaped side path, the door moves from the open position to the closed position, and the door hook 101 is in its maximum insertion position.

[0057] Figure 7A shows the positional relationship between the door hook 101 and the door lock box 102 when the door is in the closed position, and Figure 7B shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly 114 and the slider 116 when the door is in the closed position.

[0058] As shown in Figures 7A and 7B, when the force F acting toward the inside of the door is removed while the door hook 101 is in the maximum insertion position as shown in Figures 6A and 6B, the cam 112 rotates counterclockwise under the action of the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120, pushing the slider 116 to the right by a certain distance (this distance is equal to the distance between points B and C along the length of the slider). The rightward movement of the slider moves the pin assembly 114 relative to the slider 116, under the guidance of the heart-shaped first side path ABC, from the apex B of the heart-shaped first side path to the heart-shaped upper intersection C, to contact point C of the release guide groove 204, thereby keeping the door in the closed position. In addition, the door hook 101 moves upward from the maximum insertion position to the normal insertion position under the drive of the cam 112. In this process, the distance the slider 116 moves to the right is not sufficient to allow the microswitch actuation part 208 of the slider 116 to move away from contact with the switch contact 128, and thus the electrical device remains powered on.

[0059] Figure 8A shows the positional relationship between the door hook 101 and the door lock box 102 when the door hook 101 is in its maximum insertion position during the door opening process, and Figure 8B shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly 114 and the slider 116 when the door hook 101 is in its maximum insertion position during the door opening process.

[0060] As shown in Figures 8A and 8B, when the door of the electrical equipment is in the closed position, if the door of the electrical equipment is subjected to a force F acting again toward the inside of the door, the door hook 101 moves downward a certain distance under the action of force F (this distance is equal to the distance between points C and D in the longitudinal direction of the slider), overcoming the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120 and pushing the cam 112 to rotate clockwise. The clockwise rotation of the cam 112 allows the slider 116 to move a certain distance to the left under the action of the restoring force of the slider spring 122. The leftward movement of the slider 116 moves the pin assembly 114 from the upper heart-shaped intersection C relative to the slider 116 to reach the apex D of the second heart-shaped side path, thereby keeping the door in the closed position and moving the door hook 101 again from the normal insertion position to the maximum insertion position.

[0061] After the force F acting toward the inside of the door is removed, the cam 112 rotates counterclockwise under the action of the restoring force of the cam torsion spring 120, pushing the slider 116 to move to the right. Thus, the microswitch actuation part 208 of the slider 116 moves away from contact with the switch contact 128, turning off the microswitch 118, and thus the power to the electrical equipment is turned off. At this point, the pin assembly 114 moves relative to the slider 116, guided by the heart-shaped second side path CDA, from the apex D of the heart-shaped second side path to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, thereby moving the door from the closed position to the open position shown in Figures 5A and 5B.

[0062] Figure 9A shows the positional relationship between the door hook 101 and the door lock box 102 when the door in the closed position is subjected to an outward force, and Figure 9B shows the positional relationship between the pin assembly 114 and the slider 116 when the door in the closed position is subjected to an outward force.

[0063] In the prior art, the slider 116 of the door lock assembly has only a heart-shaped guide groove 202 defining a unidirectional heart-shaped movement path ABCDA, and does not have a release guide groove 204 defining an alternative movement path CA. Therefore, when the door is in the closed position, the pin assembly 114 is located at the heart-shaped upper intersection C. At this point, if the door is subjected to a force P0 acting outward (for example, an outward pushing force applied by a child in a dryer drum), the door hook 101 pulls the cam 112 outward, causing the cam 112 to tend to rotate counterclockwise, thus driving the slider 116 to tend to move to the right. The tendency of the slider 116 to move to the right causes the pin assembly 114 to press the slider 116 at the heart-shaped upper intersection C of the heart-shaped guide groove 202. At the heart-shaped upper intersection C, there is no additional space (path) for movement, so the pin assembly 114 is obstructed at the heart-shaped upper intersection C and cannot move relative to the slider 116. Thus, the slider 116 is locked, the cam 112 is locked by the slider 116, and the door hook 101 is locked by the cam 116, preventing it from being pulled out and preventing the door from being opened normally. Therefore, in the prior art, if a child accidentally enters the dryer and becomes trapped inside the dryer drum, the door cannot be opened by applying a pushing force from the inside, and the child may face the risk of suffocation.

[0064] In contrast, in this disclosure, as shown in Figures 9A and 9B, the slider 116 not only includes a heart-shaped guide groove 202 defining a unidirectional heart-shaped travel path ABCDA, but also includes a release guide groove 204 defining an alternative travel path CA. When the door is in the closed position, the pin assembly 114 is located at the heart-shaped upper intersection C. When the door is subjected to a force P0 acting outward (for example, an outward pushing force applied by a child in the dryer drum), the door hook 101 pulls the cam 112 outward, causing the cam 112 to tend to rotate counterclockwise, thereby driving the slider 116 to tend to move to the right. The tendency of the slider 116 to move to the right causes the pin assembly 114 to press against the release guide groove 204 of the slider 116 at the heart-shaped upper intersection C, and at this time the pin assembly 114 presses against the release guide groove 204 of the slider 116 toward the heart-shaped bottom intersection A. The pressing by the pin assembly 114 is transmitted as a pressing force P1 toward the two side walls of the release guide groove 204. If the pressing force is sufficiently large (e.g., 55 Newtons), the groove width of the release guide groove 204 may be widened to accommodate the end of the pin 304 of the pin assembly 114 (i.e., the groove width becomes larger than the diameter of the end of the pin 304), allowing the slider 116 to move to the right relative to the pin 304 of the pin assembly 114. After the slider 116 moves to the right, the contact between the cam contact portion 212 of the slider 116 and the slider actuation portion 155 of the cam 112 is released, thus freeing the counterclockwise rotation of the cam 112. The counterclockwise rotation of the cam 112 allows the door hook 101 to be released, and ultimately the door can be opened. During the above process, the pin assembly 114 moves through the release guide groove 204 of the slider 116 from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A. After the pin assembly 114 has moved through the release guide groove 204, the release guide groove 204 is released from the pressure, and the release guide groove 204 and its groove width can be elastically restored to their original size.

[0065] If a child accidentally enters a dryer equipped with the door lock assembly of this disclosure and becomes trapped inside the dryer drum, it will be found that the door can be pushed open by applying a pushing force from the inside of the door. The force required to push open the door (pushing force threshold) may be set or adjusted by the following means.

[0066] In embodiments of this disclosure, in order to allow the door to be pushed open more easily from the inside, the release guide groove 204 is designed as a hollow, straight guide groove that penetrates the slider 116, allowing the release guide groove 204 to deform more easily to allow passage through an alternative travel path CA. However, at least to those skilled in the art, the release guide groove 204 can also be designed as a non-hollow guide groove (see embodiments shown in Figures 11A and 11B), and by using appropriate materials, the release guide groove of the slider can be deformed under a given force.

[0067] Figure 10A is a perspective view of a further embodiment 1016 of the slider 116 in the door lock box 102, and Figure 10B is an enlarged view of a portion O of the further embodiment 1016 of the slider 116 shown in Figure 10A. The structure of the slider 1016 shown in Figures 10A and 10B is substantially the same as that of the slider 116 shown in Figures 2A and 2B, the only difference being the structural difference of the release guide groove, and the parts of the slider that have the same structure will not be described in detail.

[0068] As shown in Figures 10A and 10B, the release guide groove 1004 of slider 1016 is wider than the release guide groove 204 of slider 116 shown in Figures 2A and 2B, and the release guide groove 1004 is wide enough to accommodate the pin 304. That is, the groove width of the release guide groove 1004 is greater than or equal to the diameter of the end of the pin 304. The release guide groove 1004 is equipped with a baffle 1006 near the heart-shaped upper intersection C. When the door is in the closed position and subjected to a force acting outward from the door, the pin 304 of the pin assembly 114 can apply a pressing force to the baffle 1006. When the pressing force exceeds a threshold that the baffle 1006 can withstand (e.g., 55 Newtons), the baffle 1006 breaks, thereby allowing the pin 304 to move through the release guide groove 1004 from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A. The threshold of the pressing force that the baffle 1006 can withstand may be set by setting an appropriate thickness for the baffle.

[0069] Figure 11A is a perspective view of yet another embodiment 1116 of the slider 116 in the door lock box 102, and Figure 11B is an enlarged view of a portion Q of yet another embodiment 1116 of the slider 116 shown in Figure 11A. The structure of the slider 1116 shown in Figures 11A and 11B is substantially the same as that of the slider 116 shown in Figures 2A and 2B, the only difference being that the release guide groove is a non-hollow groove, and the same structural parts of the slider will not be described in detail. Even though the release guide groove is a non-hollow groove, deformation of the release guide groove 1104 under a given force is achievable by using appropriate materials. Thus, the pin 304 can move within the release guide groove 1104 from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A.

[0070] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of a dryer 1200 equipped with the door lock assembly 100 of the present disclosure when the door is in the open position.

[0071] As shown in Figure 12, the dryer 1200 comprises a dryer body 1202, a door 1204, and a door lock assembly 100. A door hook 101 is located on the inside of the door 1204, and a door lock box 102 is located on the dryer body 1202 corresponding to the door hook 101. By closing the door 1204, the door hook 101 can pass through the door lock hole 108 and engage with the door lock box 102.

[0072] The dryer 1200 shown in Figure 12 is merely illustrative, and the door lock assembly 100 of this disclosure can be fitted to a variety of electrical appliances having a cavity and a door for closing the cavity, such as washing machines, dishwashers, and microwave ovens, and can also be fitted to other non-electric appliances.

[0073] The purpose of this disclosure is to at least partially resolve the aforementioned technical problems.

[0074] Compared to door locks in the prior art, the door lock assembly of this disclosure has at least the following beneficial technical effects.

[0075] In some commercial or household electrical appliances, door lock assemblies must be equipped with safety mechanisms to protect children. For example, with respect to door lock mechanisms for dryers with side-mounted doors, if a child accidentally enters the dryer drum, the closed or locked door should be able to be pushed open from the inside with relatively little force, allowing the child to easily get out of the dryer's rotating drum.

[0076] This disclosure provides a door lock assembly having a simple structure that does not include additional components compared to door lock assemblies in the prior art, nor does it alter the configuration of the internal components of a door lock box in the prior art. This disclosure enables the function of pushing the door open from the inside and provides advantageous technical effects by providing an additional release guide groove in the heart-shaped guide groove of the slider, without affecting the conventional functions of door lock assemblies in the prior art (including, but not limited to, opening and closing the door by applying a force to push the door open twice from the outside). By rationally setting the width of the release guide groove, rationally setting the thickness of the baffle, or selecting a material, the threshold of the force required to push the door open from the inside can be conveniently and quickly adjusted, making the manufacturing and machining of the slider easier.

[0077] While this disclosure is described in conjunction with the examples of embodiments outlined above, various alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements, and / or substantial equivalents that are known, existing, or soon to be anticipated will be apparent at least to those skilled in the art. Furthermore, the technical effects and / or technical problems described herein are illustrative, not restrictive. Accordingly, the descriptions disclosed herein may be used to solve other technical problems, and may have other technical effects and / or solve other technical problems. Accordingly, the examples of embodiments of this disclosure described above are intended to be illustrative, not restrictive. Various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of this disclosure. Accordingly, this disclosure is intended to include all known or previously developed alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements, and / or basic equivalents.

Claims

1. A door lock assembly (100) for locking the door of an electrical appliance, A cam (112) configured to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise around a camshaft (124), A slider (116) is configured to fit and engage with the cam (112) so that when the cam (112) rotates clockwise or counterclockwise, the slider (116) can reciprocate along the length of the slider (116) with respect to the slider (116), wherein the slider (116) includes a movement guide groove (202) defining a conventional movement path (ABCDA) including a first segment (ABC) of the conventional movement path and a second segment (CDA) of the conventional movement path, and the first segment (ABC) and the second segment (CDA) of the conventional movement path are connected to each other. A pin assembly (114) wherein the end of the pin assembly (114) is configured to move relative to the slider (116) in the conventional movement path (ABCDA) defined by the movement guide groove (202) as the slider (116) moves back and forth, Equipped with, A door lock assembly characterized in that the movement guide groove (202) further defines an alternative movement path (CA), and the pin assembly (114) is further configured such that, as the slider (116) moves back and forth, the end of the pin assembly (114) can move relative to the slider (116) in the alternative movement path (CA) defined by the first segment (ABC) of the conventional movement path and the movement guide groove (202), but does not move in the second segment (CDA) of the conventional movement path.

2. The aforementioned moving guide groove is a heart-shaped guide groove (202), and the aforementioned conventional moving path (ABCDA) is a heart-shaped moving path (ABCDA), and the heart-shaped moving path (ABCDA) is provided with four path points, including, in order, the intersection point A of the heart-shaped bottom, the vertex B of the first heart-shaped side path, the intersection point C of the heart-shaped top, and the vertex D of the second heart-shaped side path. The alternative movement path (CA) is positioned between the heart-shaped upper intersection C and the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, thereby allowing the pin assembly (114) to move directly from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A without passing through the heart-shaped second side path vertex D. The door lock assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that

3. The first segment (ABC) of the conventional travel path is a heart-shaped first side path (ABC), and the second segment (CDA) of the conventional travel path is a heart-shaped second side path (CDA). The first heart-shaped side path (ABC) is formed from the bottom intersection A of the heart shape, through the vertex B of the first heart-shaped side path, to the top intersection C of the heart shape. The heart-shaped second side path (CDA) is formed from the upper intersection C of the heart shape through the vertex D of the second side path of the heart shape to the bottom intersection A of the heart shape. The first heart-shaped side path (ABC) and the second heart-shaped side path (CDA) are protruding movement paths, and the vertex B of the first heart-shaped side path and the vertex D of the second heart-shaped side path are the highest protruding points of the first heart-shaped side path (ABC) and the second heart-shaped side path (CDA), respectively. A concave path is formed from the first side path vertex B of the heart shape to the upper intersection C of the heart shape, and from the upper intersection C of the heart shape to the second side path vertex D of the heart shape. The door lock assembly according to claim 2.

4. The heart-shaped movement path (ABCDA) is a one-way movement path, and movement along the heart-shaped movement path passes through the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, the heart-shaped first side path vertex B, the heart-shaped top intersection C, and the heart-shaped second side path vertex D in order, and finally returns to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A. The door lock assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that

5. When the door is in the open position, the pin assembly (114) is located at the heart-shaped bottom intersection A. When the door is in the closed position, the pin assembly (114) is located at the heart-shaped upper intersection C. When the door hook (101) of the door is in its maximum insertion position, the pin assembly (114) is located at the vertex B of the first heart-shaped side path or the vertex D of the second heart-shaped side path. When the door is subjected to a first inward force in the open position, the pin assembly (114) moves from the heart-shaped bottom intersection A to the heart-shaped first side path vertex B, and the door hook (101) moves to the maximum insertion position. After the first inward force is removed, the pin assembly (114) moves from the first side path vertex B of the heart shape to the upper intersection C of the heart shape, and the door moves to the closed position. When the door receives a second inward force in the closed position, the pin assembly (114) moves from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped second side path vertex D, and the door hook (101) moves again to the maximum insertion position. After the second inward force is removed, the pin assembly (114) moves from the vertex D of the second heart-shaped side path back to the intersection A of the heart-shaped bottom, and the door returns to the open position. The door lock assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that

6. The alternative movement path (CA) is a release guide groove (204, 1004) provided on the slider (116). The door lock assembly according to claim 5, characterized in that

7. The diameter of the end of the pin assembly (114) is greater than the groove width of the release guide groove (204), When the door is in the closed position and subjected to an outward force, the pin assembly (114) applies a pressing force to the two side walls of the release guide groove (204), thereby expanding the release guide groove (204) in the groove width direction, so that the pin assembly (114) can move within the release guide groove (204) from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A. The door lock assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that

8. When the door is in the closed position and subjected to an outward force, the door hook (101) of the door pulls the cam (112) outward, causing the cam (112) to tend to rotate counterclockwise, thereby driving the slider (116) to tend to move in the first direction, thereby allowing the pin assembly (114) to press the release guide groove (204) of the slider (116) at the heart-shaped upper intersection C, thereby enabling the pin assembly (114) to press the release guide groove (204) of the slider (116) toward the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, thereby This is transmitted to the two side walls of the release guide groove (204), and the pressing force presses the groove width of the release guide groove (204) to expand sufficiently to accommodate the end of the pin assembly (114), thereby allowing the slider (116) to move in the first direction relative to the pin assembly (114) without hindering the counterclockwise rotation of the cam (112), ultimately enabling the door to open, and simultaneously allowing the pin assembly (114) to move through the release guide groove (204) of the slider (116) from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A. The door lock assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that

9. The aforementioned release guide groove (204) is either a hollow groove or a non-hollow groove. The door lock assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that

10. The aforementioned release guide groove (204) is a straight guide groove. The door lock assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that

11. The release guide groove (1004) is provided with a baffle (1006) near the heart-shaped upper intersection C, and the pin assembly (114) is configured to apply force to the baffle (1006). When the force applied to the baffle (1006) exceeds a threshold that the baffle (1006) can withstand, the baffle (1006) breaks, thereby allowing the pin assembly (114) to move through the release guide groove (1004) from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A. The door lock assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that

12. A housing (104, 106) wherein the cam (112), the slider (116), and the pin assembly (114) are arranged inside the housing (104, 106). The door lock assembly according to claim 11, further comprising the following:

13. The pin assembly (114) comprises a pin housing (302) and a pin (304), a portion of which the pin (304) is housed in the pin housing (302), and the bottom end of the pin (304) protrudes from the bottom of the pin housing (302). The pin (304) is configured to move along the heart-shaped movement path (ABCDA). The door lock assembly according to claim 12, characterized in that

14. The housings (104, 106) have a pin cavity (142) in which the pin housing (302) is housed, and the pin cavity (142) is configured to restrict the movement of the pin assembly (114) within the pin cavity (142) in the longitudinal direction of the slider (116), but to allow the movement of the pin assembly (114) within the pin cavity (142) in the width direction of the slider (116). The door lock assembly according to claim 13, characterized in that

15. The cam (112) includes lock hooks (152, 154, 156) configured to engage with the door hook (101) to lock the door hook (101), the door hook (101) being mounted on the door, The door hook (101) is configured to engage with or disengage from the lock hooks (152, 154, 156) when the door is closed or opened, thereby allowing the cam (112) to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise. The door lock assembly according to claim 14, characterized in that

16. The housing (104, 106) is provided with a locking hole (108) through which the door hook (101) passes and engages with the locking hooks (152, 154, 156). The door lock assembly according to claim 15, characterized in that

17. The housing (104, 106) further comprises a microswitch (118), The microswitch (118) is in the off state when the door is in the open position. During the process of closing the door, the pin (304) moves along the first segment (ABC) from the heart-shaped bottom intersection A to the heart-shaped top intersection C, and the microswitch (118) is turned on. During the process of opening the door, the pin (304) moves along the second segment (CDA) from the heart-shaped upper intersection C to the heart-shaped bottom intersection A, and the microswitch (118) is turned off. The door lock assembly according to claim 16, characterized in that

18. The slider (116) has a microswitch operating part (208) located at one end thereof. The clockwise rotation of the cam (112) prevents the movement of the slider (116) in the second direction from being obstructed during the process of closing the door, thereby allowing the slider (116) to move in the second direction, which in turn triggers the microswitch actuation unit (208) to activate the microswitch (118), thereby turning the microswitch (118) on, or The counterclockwise rotation of the cam (112) drives the slider (116) to move in the first direction during the door opening process, allowing the microswitch actuation unit (208) to disengage from the microswitch (118), thereby allowing the microswitch (118) to be turned off. The door lock assembly according to claim 17, characterized in that

19. A cam torsion spring (120) is configured to engage with the cam (112) and provide a driving force to drive the cam (112) to rotate counterclockwise, A slider spring (122) is configured to engage with the slider (116) and provide a driving force to drive the slider (116) to move in the second direction, The door lock assembly according to claim 18, further comprising the following:

20. The door lock assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the electrical equipment is a dryer.

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