Top-Loading Washer Heater Installation and Vibration Support Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional top-loading laundry treatment apparatuses face challenges such as ineffective vibration prevention of the tub, limited space for heater installation, overheating, and damage from drum rotation, particularly in compact designs with minimal volume, where the heater is difficult to integrate and maintain.
Innovation Solution
The design includes a tub with a receiving portion for the heater between the drum and tub surfaces, supported by multiple connectors forming a right angle with the housing, allowing for easy heater installation and preventing overheating, while also using injection molding for both connectors and receiving portions using a single mold, and an ejection unit to remove impurities from the door.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the apparatus is designed with minimum volume, then the apparatus size is reduced, but the heater installation space becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The receiving portion extends in the vertical direction (downward from the bottom surface of the tub) to provide heater installation space, utilizing the third dimension rather than expanding horizontal footprint. This allows the heater to be installed in a compact vertical space between the drum and tub bottom surfaces.
2Device complexity
If the tub support unit is designed conventionally, then the structure is simple, but the tub vibration in the height direction cannot be effectively prevented
Solution Approach 1:
The support unit is divided into multiple independent support members (first support members on the cabinet and second support members on the tub) connected by connectors. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function while collectively providing effective vibration prevention through distributed support points.
Solution Approach 2:
The tub support unit merges the cabinet-mounted first support members, tub-mounted second support members, and connectors into an integrated system. This combination creates a rigid triangular support structure that effectively prevents tub vibration in the height direction while maintaining structural simplicity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the heater is installed on the bottom surface of the tub in a conventional top-loading apparatus, then the heater can be provided, but the space for the heater is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The receiving portion is nested within the tub structure, extending downward from the bottom surface into the space between the drum and tub bottom surfaces. This nesting approach allows the heater installation space to be utilized efficiently without adding external components or increasing overall apparatus volume.
4Ease of operation
If the connectors are designed to form right angles with the housing, then the heater installation is facilitated, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The connectors are merged with the receiving portion as a single integrated component formed by injection molding. This combination eliminates separate manufacturing steps for the connectors while maintaining the right-angle geometry that facilitates heater installation, as both components can be produced simultaneously in one molding process.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration enables efficient heater installation and operation in compact designs, prevents overheating and damage, controls tub vibration, and ensures effective washing by removing impurities from the door, enhancing the overall performance and reliability of the laundry treatment apparatus.
Implementation Method 1
a heater that is configured to heat water in the tub
Implementation Method 2
a drum that is configured to rotate, that is located inside the tub, and that is configured to receive laundry
Implementation Method 3
three or more first support members that are located at the housing; second support members that protrude from a circumferential surface of the tub... and a plurality of connectors that are each configured to connect a first support member and a second support member
Data Source
AI summary
A laundry treatment apparatus includes a housing. The laundry treatment apparatus further includes a tub. The laundry treatment apparatus further includes a drum. The laundry treatment apparatus further includes a heater. The laundry treatment apparatus further includes a tub through-portion formed in the tub so that the heater is inserted into a space located between a bottom surface of the drum and a bottom surface of the tub. The laundry treatment apparatus further includes three or more first support members. The laundry treatment apparatus further includes second support members that protrude from a circumferential surface of the tub, a number of the second support members being equal to a number of the three or more first support members. The laundry treatment apparatus further includes a plurality of connectors that are each configured to connect a first support member and a second support member.