Washer Heater Bracket Geometry for Mis-Assembly Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing laundry treating apparatuses face challenges with mis-assembly detection of electric heaters and increased material consumption in the bracket design, where the support piece is bent at the upper center, making it difficult to detect mis-assembly and requiring excessive material.
Innovation Solution
A bracket design with a sensing portion protruding upward from the center of the electric heater receiving portion, allowing the electric heater to be supported unilaterally and inclined when mis-assembled, facilitating easy detection of mis-assembly while reducing material consumption by applying a compressive force to deform the receiving portion and decreasing its width.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a support piece is bent at the upper center of the heater receiving portion to prevent mis-assembly, then the electric heater is supported, but a relatively large amount of material is consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The sensing portion is extracted as a separate functional element from the main bracket structure. It protrudes upward from the upper surface of the bracket body at a specific position, allowing mis-assembly detection without requiring a large bent support piece that consumes excessive material
Solution Approach 2:
The sensing portion is pre-positioned to protrude upward from the bracket, creating a preliminary geometric constraint that guides the electric heater into the correct horizontal position during assembly, preventing mis-assembly before it occurs
2Reliability
If the support piece is disposed at the upper center of the heater receiving portion, then the electric heater is supported, but mis-assembly is not easily detected
Solution Approach 1:
The sensing portion is positioned asymmetrically at a specific location on the upper surface of the bracket body, not at the center. This asymmetric positioning creates a detectable geometric feature that makes mis-assembly obvious, as the electric heater will clearly be in the wrong position when it does not align properly with the sensing portion
3Ease of operation
If the electric heater is inserted at the upper side of the heater receiving portion, then assembly is simple, but interference occurs and mis-assembly cannot be detected
Solution Approach 1:
The sensing portion acts as an intermediary geometric feature between the bracket and the electric heater. It provides a detectable reference that mediates the assembly process, allowing operators to verify correct positioning without adding complex detection mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The sensing portion is pre-configured to protrude upward, creating a preliminary geometric constraint that guides proper insertion of the electric heater. This preliminary action prevents mis-assembly from occurring in the first place, maintaining assembly simplicity while eliminating interference issues
Data Source
AI summary
A laundry treating apparatus includes: a cabinet; a tub provided inside the cabinet; a drum provided inside the tub; an electric heater coupled to a bottom portion of the tub to heat wash water inside the tub; and a bracket provided at the tub to support the electric heater to be spaced apart from the bottom. The bracket includes an electric heater receiving portion in which the electric heater is received therein, and a sensing portion protruding upward at an upper one side of the electric heater receiving portion to sense the mis-assembly of the electric heater. As a result, the mis-assembly of the electric heater may be quickly recognized.