Patent Publication Number: US-9408519-B2

Title: Dishwasher support structures to reduce rotation of a door crown

Description:
FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     This disclosure relates generally to dishwashers, and, more particularly, to support structures that reduce rotation of a door crown. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Dishwashers may have a configuration based on a tub that defines a treating chamber in which items are placed for cleaning and/or drying according to a cycle of operation. A dispensing system may be provided for dispensing a treating chemistry as part of the cycle of operation. A controller may be operably connected with the dispensing system and various other components of the dishwasher to execute the cycle of operation. The cycle of operation may be selected manually by the user or automatically based on one or more conditions determined by the controller. 
     SUMMARY 
     Support structures that reduce rotation of a door crown are disclosed. An example dishwasher for treating dishes according to a cycle of operation includes a tub defining a treating chamber with an opening, and a door movably mounted to the tub to selectively open and close the opening. The door may include a front panel, a pocket panel coupled to the front panel and defining an opening in the front panel to receive a hand, a crown attached to a top of the front panel, a pocket handle defined in the crown having a first support structure engaging a second support structure of the pocket panel to reduce a rotation of the crown. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic, side cross-sectional view of an example dishwasher. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic view of the controller of the example dishwasher of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is an isometric view of an example support structure for the example door of  FIG. 1  that reduces rotation of a door crown. 
         FIG. 4  is a side cross-sectional view of the example door of  FIG. 3  taken through the support structure of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 5  is a side cross-sectional view of the example door of  FIG. 3  taken through a clip of  FIG. 3 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In  FIG. 1 , an automated dishwasher  10  according to a disclosed embodiment is illustrated. The dishwasher  10  shares many features of a conventional automated dishwasher, which will not be described in detail herein except as necessary for a complete understanding of this disclosure. A chassis or frame  12  may define an interior of the dishwasher  10  and may include a frame, with or without panels mounted to the frame. An open-faced tub  14  may be provided within the chassis  12  and may at least partially define a treating chamber  16 , having an open face, for washing dishes. A door  18  may be movably (e.g., rotationally) mounted to the dishwasher  10  for movement between opened and closed positions to selectively open and close the open face of the tub  14 . Thus, the door  18  provides accessibility to the treating chamber  16  for the loading and unloading of dishes or other washable items. Example manners of implementing the door  18  are described below in connection with  FIGS. 3-5 . 
     It should be appreciated that the door  18  may be secured to the lower front edge of the chassis  12  or to the lower front edge of the tub  14  via a hinge assembly (not shown) configured to pivot the door  18 . When the door  18  is closed, user access to the treating chamber  16  may be prevented, whereas user access to the treating chamber  16  may be permitted when the door  18  is open. 
     Dish holders, illustrated in the form of upper and lower dish racks  26 ,  28 , are located within the treating chamber  16  and receive dishes or other items for washing and/or drying. The upper and lower racks  26 ,  28  may be mounted to dish rack mounts (not shown) via disk rack rails (not shown) for slidable movement in and out of the treating chamber  16  for ease of loading and unloading. Other dish holders may be provided, such as a silverware basket. As used in this disclosure, the term “dish(es)” is intended to be generic to any item, single or plural, that may be treated in the dishwasher  10 , including, without limitation, dishes, plates, pots, bowls, pans, glassware, utensils, and silverware. 
     A spray system is provided for spraying liquid in the treating chamber  16  and is provided in the form of a first lower spray assembly  34 , a second lower spray assembly  36 , a rotating mid-level spray arm assembly  38 , and/or an upper spray arm assembly  40 . Upper sprayer  40 , mid-level rotatable sprayer  38  and lower rotatable sprayer  34  are located, respectively, above the upper rack  26 , beneath the upper rack  26 , and beneath the lower rack  28  and are illustrated as rotating spray arms. The second lower spray assembly  36  is illustrated as being located adjacent the lower dish rack  28  toward the rear of the treating chamber  16 . The second lower spray assembly  36  is illustrated as including a vertically oriented distribution header or spray manifold  44 . Such a spray manifold is set forth in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 7,594,513, issued Sep. 29, 2009, and titled “Multiple Wash Zone Dishwasher,” which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     A recirculation system is provided for recirculating liquid from the treating chamber  16  to the spray system. The recirculation system may include a sump  30  and a pump assembly  31 . The sump  30  collects the liquid sprayed in the treating chamber  16  and may be formed by a sloped or recess portion of a bottom wall of the tub  14 . The pump assembly  31  may include both a drain pump  32  and a recirculation pump  33 . The drain pump  32  may draw liquid from the sump  30  and pump the liquid out of the dishwasher  10  to a household drain line (not shown). The recirculation pump  33  may draw liquid from the sump  30  and the liquid may be simultaneously or selectively pumped through a supply tube  42  to each of the assemblies  34 ,  36 ,  38 ,  40  for selective spraying. While not shown, a liquid supply system may include a water supply conduit coupled with a household water supply for supplying water to the treating chamber  16 . 
     A heating system including a heater  46  may be located within the sump  30  for heating the liquid contained in the sump  30 . 
     A controller  50  may also be included in the dishwasher  10 , which may be operably coupled with various components of the dishwasher  10  to implement a cycle of operation. The controller  50  may be located within the door  18  as illustrated, or it may alternatively be located somewhere within the chassis  12 . The controller  50  may also be operably coupled with a control panel or user interface  56  for receiving user-selected inputs and communicating information to the user. The user interface  56  may include operational controls such as dials, lights, switches, and displays enabling a user to input commands, such as a cycle of operation, to the controller  50  and receive information. In some examples, the controller  50  and the user interface  56  may be implemented in a crown of the door  18 . As used herein, the crown of a door is a member of a door that forms the top portion of the door. Generally, the crown of the door is attached to front and rear panels of the door during assembly/manufacture. 
     As illustrated schematically in  FIG. 2 , the controller  50  may be coupled with the heater  46  for heating the wash liquid during a cycle of operation, the drain pump  32  for draining liquid from the treating chamber  16 , and the recirculation pump  33  for recirculating the wash liquid during the cycle of operation. The controller  50  may be provided with a memory  52  and a central processing unit (CPU)  54 . The memory  52  may be used for storing control software that may be executed by the CPU  54  in completing a cycle of operation using the dishwasher  10  and any additional software. For example, the memory  52  may store one or more pre-programmed cycles of operation that may be selected by a user and completed by the dishwasher  10 . The controller  50  may also receive input from one or more sensors  58 . Non-limiting examples of sensors that may be communicably coupled with the controller  50  include a temperature sensor and turbidity sensor to determine the soil load associated with a selected grouping of dishes, such as the dishes associated with a particular area of the treating chamber. 
       FIG. 3  is an isometric view showing a crown  100  attached to a front panel  102  of the example door  18  of  FIG. 1 . In some examples, the crown  100  is formed of a plastic, and the front panel  102  is formed of a metal. In the example of  FIG. 3 , the example controller  50  and the user interface  56  are implemented in an electronics module  104 . 
     To allow a user to open and close the door  18 , the example crown  100  includes a pocket handle member  106 . As shown in the cross-section of  FIG. 4 , the pocket handle member  106  defines an opening, grip or handle into which a person may put their hand in order to pull or push the door  18  open or closed. 
     To enable a user to get their hand into the pocket handle  106 , the example front panel  102  includes a pocket panel member  108  that defines an opening in the front panel  102  into which they may place their hand. The pocket panel member  108  enables a person to place their fingers into the pocket handle member  106 . 
     When a user pulls on the pocket handle member  106 , the crown  100  may rotate relative to the front panel  102 . In particular, when the bottom of the pocket handle member  106  substantially corresponds to the bottom edge of the crown  100  (e.g., for aesthetic reasons), pulling on the pocket handle member  106  exerts a rotational force on the crown  100 . If the crown  100  rotates relative to the front panel  102 , the aesthetics of the door  18  and/or the dishwasher  10  may be diminished, and perceived quality and/or customer satisfaction may be negatively affected. Accordingly, it is desirable to prevent and/or reduce rotation of the crown  100 . 
     To reduce and/or prevent rotation of the crown  100 , the pocket handle member  106  includes support structures  110  and  112  that extend downward into corresponding support structures  114  and  116  of the pocket panel member  108 . The cross-sectional view of  FIG. 4  is taken through the support structures  110  and  114 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , the support structures  110  and  112  may be ribbed to increase strength. The support structures  110  and  112  extend downward through openings defined in the support structures  114  and  116 , which extend backward from the pocket panel member  108 . In some examples, the support structures  110  and  112  are slip fit into the support structures  114  and  116  to reduce the need for any additional fasteners and/or reduce complexity of manufacturing assembly. 
     When a user pulls on the pocket handle member  106 , any rotational force applied to the crown  100  will be substantially transferred to the pocket panel member  108  via the support structures  110 ,  112 ,  114  and  116 . Because a lip  118  (see  FIG. 4 ) of the pocket panel member  108  is behind the front panel  102 , the pocket panel member  108  substantially transfers the transferred rotation force to the front panel  102 , thereby reducing and/or substantially preventing rotation of the crown  100 . That is, the front panel  102  exerts a resistive force that counteracts the transferred force and, thus, the rotational force, thereby substantially preventing rotation of the crown  100 . 
     To reduce and/or prevent vertical separation of the crown  100  from the front panel  102 , the example door  18  of  FIGS. 1 and 3  includes clips (one of which is designated at reference numeral  120 ). In some examples, four clips are used.  FIG. 5  is a side cross-sectional view taken through the example clip  120 . As shown more clearly in  FIG. 5 , the clip  120  fixedly attaches a bottom lip  122  of the crown  100  to a top lip  124  of the front panel  102  to reduce a separation of the crown  100  from the front panel  102 . 
     Although certain example methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture have been described herein, the scope of coverage of this patent is not limited thereto. On the contrary, this patent covers all methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture fairly falling within the scope of the claims of this patent.