Patent ID: 9644307
Date: 2017-05-09
CPC Classifications: D06F

Claim:
1. A drawer structure for dispensing metered amounts of at least one washing agent in a washing machine, said structure comprising: a hollow shell fitted on a casing of said washing machine; a drawer defining at least one chamber for receiving a washing agent and mounted to move in said shell between an extracted position, in which said at least one chamber is accessible from outside of said structure and is ready to receive said washing agent, and a retracted position, in which said at least one chamber is closed by said shell and arranged for dispensing said washing agent to the outside of said structure; at least one passage which communicates, on one side, with said at least one chamber and, on an other side, with the outside of said structure; at least one pumping member arranged for driving a quantity of said washing agent from said at least one chamber through said passage; and at least one actuator or electric motor arranged for operating said at least one pumping member and for being connected to an electronic control unit of said washing machine; wherein said at least one actuator or motor is fixed on said shell and is separate from said drawer, and said at least one pumping member is able to assume: said structure further comprising: a plurality of said chambers, a plurality of said passages, each one of said passages being associated with a respective chamber, and a plurality of pumping members, each one of said pumping members being hydraulically coupled to a respective passage; said structure comprising a single actuator or motor which, in turn, comprises a plurality of output members and a transmission mechanism arranged for selectively controlling the power delivered by the output members to the respective pumping members; wherein said transmission mechanism is a clutch type mechanism and is fit for selectively activating said output members in an electrically controlled manner; and wherein said transmission mechanism comprises an oscillating lever which is elastically engageable with an output shaft with said single electric motor; said oscillating lever being adapted to be moved to engage an other output shaft due to action of an electromagnetic actuator, which is suited to be electrically supplied with power by said electronic control unit of the washing machine and is designed to push said oscillating lever.