Household appliance with a stowable door and method for opening and closing a door of a household appliance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing household appliance designs face challenges in door movement guidance and efficient use of installation space, often resulting in the door bumping against components during opening and closing due to limited vertical distance, which restricts the usable volume of the storage space.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a guide device with a rotatably mounted bearing unit whose axis of rotation can be vertically displaced, allowing for increased vertical distance between the door and storage space components, preventing collisions and optimizing the installation space by adjusting the axis position before opening, thus enhancing movement guidance and reducing the risk of damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If the door is lowered into a storage space with a fixed bearing unit, then the door movement guidance is simplified, but the vertical distance between the door and storage space components is reduced causing collisions
Solution Approach 1:
The bearing unit is designed to be movable in the vertical direction rather than fixed, allowing the axis of rotation to be adjusted. This dynamic adjustment enables the system to optimize the vertical distance between the door and storage space components, preventing collisions while maintaining smooth door movement guidance.
Solution Approach 2:
The vertical position of the bearing unit's axis of rotation is changed as a adjustable parameter. By modifying this parameter, the system can increase the vertical distance between the door and storage space components, thereby preventing collisions during door operation.
2Reliability
If the vertical distance between door and storage space components is increased, then collision risk is reduced, but the installation space requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The movable bearing unit allows the system to dynamically adjust the vertical position, enabling optimal use of available installation space while maintaining sufficient clearance to prevent collisions.
Solution Approach 2:
The bearing unit's vertical position can be adjusted in advance before door operation begins, allowing the system to be pre-configured with optimal clearance distances that prevent collisions without requiring excessive installation space.
3Reliability
If the bearing unit is made adjustable in vertical position, then door movement guidance is improved and collision risk reduced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The bearing unit incorporates vertical adjustability directly into its structure, making it a dynamically adjustable component that improves door movement guidance and collision prevention without requiring separate complex adjustment mechanisms.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a household appliance (1) with a housing (2) surrounding a receiving space and with a door (3) with which a loading opening of the receiving space can be closed and which is arranged to pivot relative to the housing (2) and, in the open state, can be lowered into a storage space (14) in the housing (2), wherein the door (3) is coupled to a guide device (18) with which the movement into and out of the storage space (14) is guided, and the guide device (18) has at least one bearing unit (17) which is rotatably mounted about a pivot axis (A) and on which guide elements (19, 20) are arranged, wherein the guide device (18) is designed such that a pivot axis (A) of the bearing unit (17) is displaceable on a displacement path (30) in the vertical direction and thereby the height position of the pivot axis (A) relative to the storage space (14) can be changed.The invention also relates to a method for opening and closing a door (3).