Patent GB-927105-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to washing machines
IPC: D06F37/22
Filed: 1961-11-29
Abstract: 927,105. Washing and drying machines. WHIRLPOOL CORPORATION. Nov. 29, 1961 [Nov. 29, 1960], No. 42774/61. Class 138 (2). [Also in Groups XIII and XXIV] In a washing and spin drying machine of the rotary drum type, the drum-speed is controlled by a clutch 130, 129a in the transmission unit 26 (Fig. 6), vibrations of the drum, due to rotation of unbalanced loads at spin-drying speeds, slipping the clutch 130, 129a to maintain the drum speed approximately constant and activating a balancing mechanism which reduces the vibrations. It may be arranged that greater vibratory amplitudes are required to slip the clutch 130, 129a than to activate the balancing mechanism. A hot air blower is provided. A presettable sequential control means 33 (Fig. 2, not shown) is provided to control the whole wash-rinse-dry sequence. Transmission unit (Fig. 6).-A pulley 27 driving the clothes drum is fixed on a sleeve 125 which is freely rotatable about the main shaft 115 of the transmission unit 26. A friction clutch plate 130 is rotatable on and with the shaft 115 but can be moved along it by a lever 135 responding via a piston 140 to changes of air presure in a cylinder 141. When the clutch 130, 129a is engaged (high air pressure), it drives the sleeve 125 at the (high) speed of the shaft 115 via members 129, 127 fixed to the sleeve 125. This disengages a one-way roller clutch 126, 127, 128 linking the sleeve 125 to a gear 124 freely mounted on the sleeve 125. Otherwise the roller clutch is engaged, the sleeve 125 being driven at the (low) speed of the gear 124, which is driven from the shaft 115 by stepdown gearing 118, 119, 123, partly on a shaft 120. Speed control.-The air pressure in the chamber 141, which controls the clutch 130, 129a is controlled by a solenoid valve means 72 (Fig. 5), a chamber 82 in which is supplied with air from a compressor 73 (which is driven by the gear 124) via a pipe 74 and inlet port 75. The pressure in the chamber 82 is communicated to the " clutch " chamber 141 via an outlet port 71 and pipe 70. The pressure is reduced to atmospheric (thereby slipping the clutch 130, 129a to reduce the drum speed) either via a passage 84a if absence of current in the solenoid 88 allows the spring-loaded solenoid armature 87 to raise a member 86 thereby unblocking the passage 84a, or via an outlet port 76, pipe 77 and doubleacting bleed-off valve 78 if the latter is actuated by drum vibrations (see below). Vibration-sensitive means and balancing mechanism.-The clothes drum, water tub 18, motor 25 &c. are mounted on a base frame 13 by supports 14, 19 and 17 (Fig. 2, not shown), which allow movement relative to an A-frame 51 fixed to the base 13, such movement actuating, via a yoke-shaped member 105, the doubleacting bleed-off valve 78 mounted on the A- frame 51. Such movement also rolls a pin 60, held between two surfaces, one of them spring- loaded and attached to the A-frame 51, the other fixed to the water tube 18. A flag member 66 (Fig. 3, not shown), fixed to the pin 60, is thereby moved to allow water from a pipe 68 to enter receptacles 39 peripherally spaced around the clothes drum, via inlet segments 45a, 45b, 45c, for balancing purposes. Specification 927,106 is referred to.