Washing machine

A washing machine mechanism adaptable for installation in the wash facilities of homes occupied by low income families of developing countries and particularly adaptable for installation in the wash tub units of Central and South America. The mechanism incorporates a propeller which mounts in a bearing in the drain of a wash sink with a motor unit mounted above the propeller and joined by a vertical shaft to the propeller and by a horizontal shaft to a pair of rollers mounted above an adjacent drain area. The propeller rotates in a bushing cup, slidably mounted in the sink drain, with a lever joined to the bushing to move the bushing into a first position in which the drain is plugged or a second position in which the drain is open.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
My invention is a washing machine mechanism adaptable for installation in 
the wash facilities of homes occupied by low income families of developing 
countries and particularly adaptable for installation in the wash tub 
units of Central and South America. 
The mechanism incorporates a propeller which mounts in a bearing in the 
drain of a wash sink with a motor unit mounted above the propeller and 
joined by a vertical shaft to the propeller and by a horizontal shaft to a 
pair of rollers mounted above an adjacent drain area. 
The propeller rotates in a bushing cup, slidably mounted in the sink drain, 
with a lever joined to the bushing to move the bushing into a first 
position in which the drain is plugged or a second position in which the 
drain is open.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar reference 
characters denote similar elements throughout the several views, FIG. 1 
illustrates a conventional wash unit 10 of the type conventionally 
employed in low income family homes of the developing countries and 
particularly found in Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean 
area. 
FIGS. 2-4 illustrate the washing machine 20 of the invention which may be 
readily installed in such wash units 10. 
The wash unit 10 is generally mounted against a tile wall 11 and consists 
of an open concrete or brick housing 12, in one side of which a sink 13 is 
joined to a vertical drain pipe 14, with the other side fitted with a 
drain board 15 mounted over an open area 37, with drain board 15 fitted 
with drainage means (not shown) joined to sink 13. A faucet 16 controlled 
by a valve 17 may be mounted above sink 13. 
As shown in FIGS. 2-3, the washing machine 20 consists of a gear motor unit 
21 housed in an enclosure 22 slidably suspended by spaced ribs 23 fixed to 
the ceiling 24, with the enclosure 22 formed with shaped flanges 25 that 
slidably engage ribs 23. Ribs 23 are oriented along lines parallel to the 
transverse axis of the wash unit 10. 
Gear motor 21 is fitted with a vertical output shaft 26 which is detachably 
joined at its lower end 28 to the top 84 of a propeller 29 located in the 
sink 13, with propeller 29 concentrically fitted at its lower end 31 with 
a shaft 32 which rides in a bushing cup 34. A horizontal output shaft 27 
may be detachably fitted to gear motor 21 for powering a drain roller unit 
35 that may be suitably suspended over drain board 15. 
Cabinet doors 38 and 39 may be pivotably mounted flush in the vertical 
openings of the drain area 37 and the vertical opening 36 below the sink 
13 respectively. 
As shown in FIG. 4, the drain opening 41 in the bottom 44 of sink 13 is 
fitted with an attachable vertical tube 42 that extends above the bottom 
44 of the sink and is formed with a tapered internal lip 45 along its top 
rim 46 and fitted with an external flange 47 about rim 46 for sealing to 
the periphery of drain opening 41. 
Bushing cup 34 is shaped with a blind internal cylindrical hole 51 along 
the vertical axis Y--Y of cup 34 of an internal diameter to rotatably 
engage shaft 32 of propeller 29, with hole 51 open to the top of bushing 
cup 34. The lower section of cup 34 is of an outer diameter to freely fit 
inside of tube 42 and internal lip 45, with cup 34 fitted with an external 
tapered flange 52 of a size to mate with internal lip 45 of tube 42 when 
cup 34 is seated on lip 45, so as to seal the drain opening 41. 
A blind threaded hole 55 extends along vertical axis Y--Y from the bottom 
of cup 34, of a size to engage the male thread 56 of rod 57 which is 
mounted inside of tube 42 and inside of drain pipe 58 joined to the bottom 
of drain opening 41. 
The shaft 32 of propeller 29 is slidably suspended in bushing cup 34 by 
vertical motor output shaft 26 to permit free vertical motion of bushing 
cup 34 from a first seated position to a second unseated position about 
lip 45 of tube 42 in response to vertical motion of rod 57. 
A lever 60 is pivotably bolted to rod 57 and pivotably bolted to a clamp 
support arm 61 fitting about drain pipe 58, with lever 60 extending 
through a side opening in drain pipe 58 which is sealed by a flexible 
gasket 63 so that rotation of lever 60 serves to seat or unseat bushing 
cup 34 about drain opening 41. 
As described, my invention may be readily installed in an existing sink to 
provide both motorized agitation of wash water in the sink and rolling of 
washed material through motorized rollers. 
Motor 21 may be fitted with gear mechanism to provide reciprocal motion of 
propeller 29 and uniform motion of the rollers of roller unit 35. 
Since obvious changes may be made in the specific embodiment of the 
invention described herein, such modifications being within the spirit and 
scope of the invention claimed, it is indicated that all matter contained 
herein is intended as illustrative and not as limiting in scope.