Patent Publication Number: US-2005138836-A1

Title: Cabinet for home appliance

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
      This application claims the benefit of Korean Application Nos. P2003-100045, and P2003-100046 both filed on Dec. 30, 2003, which are hereby incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of the Invention  
      The present invention relates to cabinets, exteriors of home appliances, and more particularly, to a cabinet of a home appliance having a reinforced structure.  
      2. Discussion of the Related Art  
      In general, the cabinet of a home appliance forms an exterior of a washing machine, or a laundry dryer, and protects various components held therein. A related art laundry dryer having a related art cabinet for a home appliance applied thereto will be described.  
      In general, the laundry dryer supplies hot air to a drying object, such as washed wet laundry, for drying the drying object. The related art laundry dryer is provided with a cabinet, an exterior of the laundry dryer, and a drum rotatably mounted in the cabinet for holding a drying object.  
      The cabinet of the laundry dryer is provided with a base, a front panel, a front of the cabinet, having a bottom edge joined to a front edge of the base, side panels joined to opposite edges of the base, to form sides of the cabinet, a rear panel having a bottom edge joined to a rear edge of the base, to form a rear of the cabinet, and a top panel joined to top edges of the front panel, the side panels, and the rear panel, to form a top of the cabinet.  
      The front panel has a control panel at an upper portion, for operating the laundry dryer, an opening at a center portion for introduction of the drying object, and a door secured to one side of the opening.  
      The drum is connected to an air supply duct assembly for supplying hot air to an inside of the drum, and an exhaust duct assembly for guiding exhaust air from the drum after drying the drying object, for drying the drying object.  
      In the meantime, the base supports loads of the front panel, the side panels, the rear panel, and components in the cabinet, such as drum, and so on, and has vibration occurred by rotation of drum transmitted thereto.  
      Because of this, the base is liable to bend, or deform, so as to seat the laundry dryer on a floor in an unstable state, leading the cabinet to rock in front/rear, or left/right directions during operation of the laundry dryer, to produce noise.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a cabinet for a home appliance that substantially obviates one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.  
      An object of the present invention is to provide a cabinet for a home appliance, having a base of which strength is improved for preventing deformation or damage to the base caused by a load or vibration.  
      Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.  
      To achieve these objects and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, a cabinet for a home appliance includes a front panel, side panels, and a base, wherein the base includes at least one reinforcing projection at a predetermined portion of the base for improving strength of the base.  
      The at least one reinforcing projection includes a reinforcing bead at an edge of the base. The reinforcing bead is projected upward.  
      Alternatively, the at least one reinforcing projection may include a leg mounting portion projected to one side of the base for mounting a leg thereto.  
      The at least one reinforcing projection may further include a reinforcing beat at an edge of the base, and preferably, the leg mounting portion is formed projected in a direction opposite to a direction of projection of the reinforcing bead.  
      In more detail, the leg mounting portion is formed projected downward.  
      Preferably, the base may further include a leg mounting member mounted to the leg mounting portion for improving strength of the base, the leg mounting member having a leg mounting hole passed through in an up/down direction.  
      The leg mounting member is mounted on an underside of the leg mounting portion, and supports at least one of the front panel, and the side panel.  
      The leg mounting member includes a fixing projection inserted in a bottom edge of the front panel, for fixing the front panel.  
      The leg mounting member includes an align member for aligning the leg mounting member with a predetermined position of the base.  
      The align member includes an align projection to be inserted in a slot in a predetermined position of the base.  
      The align member may further include a holding projection formed as one body with the align projection for being held at an upper surface of the base.  
      The leg mounting member may include a leg anti-loosening hole extended from the leg mounting hole in a radial direction, and has one side edge, and the other side edge respectively having heights different from each other.  
      The leg mounting member may include a supplementary bead for improving strength of the leg mounting member.  
      In another aspect of the present invention, a cabinet for a home appliance includes a front panel, side panels, and a base, wherein the base includes reinforcing beads at edges of the base for improving strength of the base, and a leg mounting portion projected downward from a corner of the base for mounting a leg thereto.  
      Preferably, the reinforcing bead is projected upward, and the leg mounting portion is projected downward.  
      The base further includes a leg mounting member on an underside of the leg mounting portion for improving strength of the base, the leg mounting member having a leg mounting hole passed in an up/down direction.  
      The leg mounting member includes a front panel supporting portion having a fixing projection inserted in a bottom edge of the front panel, for supporting the front panel.  
      The leg mounting member may include a side panel supporting portion for supporting the side panel.  
      The leg mounting member includes an align projection to be inserted in a slot in a predetermined position of the base for aligning the leg mounting member with a predetermined position of the base.  
      The leg mounting member preferably includes a holding projection formed at a top of the align projection as one body with the align projection, for being held at an upper surface of the base.  
      The leg mounting member may include a leg anti-loosening hole extended from the leg mounting hole in a radial direction, and has one side edge, and the other side edge respectively having heights different from each other, or a supplementary bead projected downward for improving strength of the leg mounting member.  
      It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principle of the invention. In the drawings;  
       FIG. 1  illustrates a perspective view of a laundry dryer having a cabinet in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 2  illustrates a perspective view of a first embodiment base of a cabinet present invention;  
       FIG. 3  illustrates a section of the base across a line I-I in  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 4  illustrates a section of the base across a line II-II in  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 5  illustrates a section of a joint portion of a base and a rear panel;  
       FIGS. 6A and 6B  illustrate the steps of a process for joining a base to a rear panel with Tox round joint;  
       FIG. 7  illustrates a perspective view of a second embodiment base of a cabinet of the present invention;  
       FIG. 8  illustrates a perspective view of a corner of an underside of a base having one embodiment of a leg mounting member to be provided to a cabinet of the present invention secured thereto;  
       FIG. 9  illustrates a perspective view of one embodiment of the leg mounting member in  FIG. 8 ; and  
       FIG. 10  illustrates an exploded perspective view of the leg mounting member separated from the cabinet in  FIG. 9 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
      Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Whenever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.  
      A laundry dryer having a cabinet for a home appliance in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention applied thereto, and a first embodiment base applied to the cabinet will be described, with reference to  FIGS. 2 and 3 .  
      Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the laundry dryer includes a cabinet  100  forming an exterior of the laundry dryer, and a drum (not shown) in the cabinet for holding a drying object.  
      The cabinet  100  of the laundry dryer includes a base  110 , a front panel  120 , a front of the cabinet  100 , having a bottom edge joined to a front edge of the base  110 , side panels  130  joined to opposite edges of the base  110 , to form sides of the cabinet  100 , a rear panel not shown) having a bottom edge joined to a rear edge of the base  110 , to form a rear of the cabinet, and a top panel  140  joined to top edges of the front panel  120 , the side panels, and the rear panel, to form a top of the cabinet  100 .  
      The front panel  120  has a control panel  121  at an upper portion, for operating the laundry dryer, an opening (not shown) at a center portion for introduction of the drying object, such as laundry, and a door  122  rotatably secured to one side of the opening, for opening/closing the opening.  
      The drum is configured to rotate by a belt connected to a driving motor (not shown) provided to a lower space of the cabinet  100 . For this, the drum has a belt groove (not shown) in an outside circumference for placing the belt therein.  
      The drum is connected to an air exhaust duct assembly for guiding exhaust air from the drum to an outside of the cabinet. In a passage of the exhaust duct assembly, there is a fan for forcing air to flow.  
      A first embodiment base  110  to be provided to the cabinet for a home appliance, i.e., a cabinet for a laundry dryer, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.  2  to  4 .  
       FIG. 2  illustrates a perspective view of a first embodiment base of a cabinet of the present invention,  FIG. 3  illustrates a section of the base across a line I-I in  FIG. 2 , and  FIG. 4  illustrates a section of the base across a line II-II in  FIG. 2 .  
      Referring to FIGS.  2  to  4 , the first embodiment base  110  includes at least one reinforcing projection from a predetermined portion of the base  110 , for improving a strength of the base. At a front edge of the base  110 , there is a flange  111  bent upward of a predetermined height for joining to the front panel  120 .  
      The at least one reinforcing projection includes reinforcing beads  112  at edges of the base  110 . If the base is square like the embodiment, the reinforcing beads  112  project upward along the edges of the base  110 .  
      All of the reinforcing beads  112  may be connected to form a square line, or the reinforcing beads  112  may be formed along the edges excluding four corners of the base  110 . it is preferable that the reinforcing bead  112  has a round cross section.  
      Of course, the reinforcing beads  112  may be formed at some of the edges of the base  110 , but it is preferable that the bead  112  is formed at every edge of the base  110  extended along the edge for minimizing bending and distortion liable to occur at the base  110 .  
      The reinforcing beads  112  prevent bending or distortion of the base  110  caused by loads on the base  110 , when the side panels  130 , and the rear panel are joined to the base  110 , and various components, such as the drum, are mounted in the cabinet.  
      Different from this, at least one of the reinforcing projection may include a leg mounting portion  113  projected from one side of the base  110 , for mounting a leg  150  for supporting the cabinet  100 . It is preferable that the leg mounting portion  113  is provided to every corner of the base  110 .  
      In more detail, the leg mounting portion  113  has one side recessed compared to an adjacent region, and the other side projected compared to an adjacent region. The leg mounting portion  113  has a leg mounting hole  113   a  for mounting the leg  150 .  
      The leg mounting portion  113  prevents the base  110  from being bent or suffering from damage even if there is a load concentrated on the corner of the base  110  to which the leg  150  is mounted.  
      Of course, the first embodiment base  110  includes all of the leg mounting portions  113  at corners of the base  110  respectively, and the reinforcing beads  112  extended along the edges of the base  110 , respectively.  
      It is preferable that the reinforcing bead  112  and the leg mounting portion  113  are projected to opposite directions. In more detail, the reinforcing bead  112  is projected upward, and the leg mounting portion  113  is projected downward. In other word, the leg mounting portion  113  is formed to project toward the ground.  
      The leg mounting portion  113  is projected in a direction opposite to the direction of projection of the reinforcing bead  112 , because, if the leg mounting portion  113  is projected in a direction the same with the projection direction of the reinforcing bead  112 , there will be wrinkles formed in the base  110 .  
      Accordingly, it is preferable that the leg mounting portion  113  is projected in a direction opposite to the direction of projection of the reinforcing bead  112 , for preventing formation of the wrinkles in formation of the base  110 .  
      Of course, the reinforcing bead  112  and the leg mounting portion  113  of the base may be formed by a variety of methods, such as injection molding, or the like.  
      In the meantime, the base  110  may include a reinforcing rib (not shown) instead of the reinforcing bead  112 .  
      A method for joining the first embodiment base  110  to the rear panel will be described with reference to  FIGS. 5, 6A , and  6 B.  
      Referring to  FIG. 5 , the base  110  is joined to a bottom flange  160  of the rear panel with by a Tox round joint method. The Tox round joint method joins two plates, easily.  
      The Tox round joint method will be described with reference to  FIGS. 6A and 6B . There is press die D having one side provided with a truncated conical press punch P, and the other side provided with a substantially circular recess  10 .  
      The recess  10  in the press die D has a diameter greater than a diameter of the press punch P, with a bottom thereof having an edge lower than a center.  
      Therefore, after overlapping, and placing two plates  110 , and  160 , i.e., the bottom flange  160  of the rear panel and the rear edge of the base  110  intended to join on the press die D, if the press punch P presses down the overlapped two plates  110 , and  160  toward the press die D, the two plates  110 , and  160  are pushed into the recess  10  of the press die D, and joined together.  
      The Tox round joint method is applicable to joining of the side panel  130  to the base  110 , and joining of the side panel  130  to the rear panel.  
      Of course, though the rear panel can be join to the base  110  by other methods, such as screw fastening, or curling of plates, because the Tox round joint method is simple, and requires components less than other joining methods, the Tox round joint method can shorten an assembly time period of the cabinet  100 , and prevents the problem of accumulation of tolerances that occurs in fabrication of components.  
      In the meantime, the base  110  of the cabinet of the present invention does not require to include all of the reinforcing beads  112 , and the leg mounting portions  113 , necessarily.  
       FIG. 7  illustrates a perspective view of a second embodiment base of a cabinet of the present invention. The second embodiment base  210  includes no reinforcing beads  112  at the edges, and other parts identical to the part of the first embodiment base  210 , of which description will be omitted.  
      Alike the foregoing embodiments, the base  210  may have the reinforcing beads  112  and/or the leg mounting portions  113  for improving strength, for preventing bending and distortion of the base  210 .  
      Next, a third embodiment base of a cabinet for a home appliance, having a leg mounting member  300  of the present invention will be described, with reference to FIGS.  8  to  10 .  
       FIG. 8  illustrates a perspective view of a corner of an underside of a base having one embodiment of a leg mounting member to be provided to a cabinet of the present invention secured thereto, FIG . 9  illustrates a perspective view of one embodiment of the leg mounting member in  FIG. 8 , and  FIG. 10  illustrates an exploded perspective view of the leg mounting member separated from the cabinet in  FIG. 9 .  
      Referring to  FIG. 8  to  10 , the leg mounting member  300  is provided to the third embodiment base  400  for preventing deformation of the base  400 . The leg mounting member  300  may be joined to the leg mounting portion described in the different embodiment of bases  110 , and  210 .  
      Alike the leg mounting portion  113  at each of the corners of the base  110  or  210  in the first, or second embodiment, though it is preferable that the third embodiment base  400  includes the leg mounting portion projected downward, the projections like the bases  110  and  210  of the first and second embodiments are not required, necessarily.  
      In describing the third embodiment base  400 , parts identical to the parts of the first, or second base  110 , or  210  will be given the same reference symbols, and repetitive description of which will be omitted.  
      The leg mounting member  300  is mounted on an underside of the leg mounting portion  113 , for supporting the base  400 , and has a leg mounting hole  300   a  passed through the leg mounting member  300  in correspondence to the leg mounting hole  113   a.    
      It is preferable that the leg mounting member  300  is configured to support at least one of the front panel  120  or the side panel  130 .  
      In the embodiment, the leg mounting member  300  has one side for supporting the front panel  120 , and the other side for supporting the side panel  130 .  
      For this, at the bottom edge of the side panel  130  that forms a side of the cabinet  100 , there is a flange  131  bent inward vertically, and at the bottom edge of the front panel  120  that forms a front of the cabinet  100 , there is a flange  123  bent backward.  
      The leg mounting member  300  is mounted at each of front opposite corners of the base  400 , but the mounting positions are not limited to these.  
      The leg mounting member  300  will be described; in more detail. The leg mounting member  300  includes a base supporting portion  310  joined to the leg mounting portion for supporting the base  400 , a front panel supporting portion  320  for supporting the front panel  120 , and a side panel supporting portion  330  for supporting the side panel  130 .  
      The base supporting portion  310  has the leg mounting hole  330   a , and a plurality of screw fastening holes  311  in the vicinity of the leg mounting hole  330   a , particularly in a front portion of the base supporting portion  310  for fastening the leg mounting member  300  to the base  110  with screws S.  
      It is preferable that the base supporting portion  310  further has a leg anti-loosening hole  312  for preventing the leg from loosening.  
      The leg anti-loosening hole  312  is extended from the leg mounting hole  330   a  in a radial direction, and has one side edge  312   a , and the other side edge  312   b  respectively having heights different from each other, so as to serve as a washer.  
      According to this, once the leg  150  is mounted, a head  151  of the leg is brought into contact with the opposite edges  312   a  and  312   b  of the leg anti-loosening hole  312 , thereby preventing the leg  150  from loosening.  
      The front panel supporting portion  320 , at a front of the leg mounting member  300 , supports the lower edge of the front panel  120 , i.e., the flange  123  of the front panel.  
      At a front edge of the front panel supporting portion  320 , there is a fixing projection  321  bent upward from the front edge, for inserting in a fixing slot  123   a  in the flange  123  of the front panel, for fixing the bottom edge of the front panel  120 .  
      The front panel supporting portion  320  enables an easy joining of the front panel  120 , as well as supports a portion of a load of the front panel  120 , to reduce the load on the base  400 .  
      Next, the side panel supporting portion  330 , at a side of the leg mounting member, for supporting a bottom edge of the side panel  130 , i.e., the flange  131  of the side panel.  
      In the meantime, referring to  FIGS. 8 and 10 , in a case the bottom edges of the front panel  120  and the side panel  130  are lower than the bottom of the base  400 , particularly, a bottom of the leg mounting portion  113 , the front panel supporting portion  320  and the side panel supporting portion  330  are stepped so as to be lower than the base supporting portion  310 .  
      Particularly, if the leg mounting portion is projected downward to a predetermined height, a supplementary supporting portion  313  may be formed projected to form a step higher than the base supporting portion  310 , between the base supporting portion  310  and the side panel supporting portion  330 .  
      In addition to this, the leg mounting member  300  further includes an align member for aligning the leg mounting member  300  with a predetermined position of the base  400 .  
      The align member includes an align projection  341  bent upward from a rear edge of the base supporting portion  310  for inserting in an align slot  410  in a predetermined position of the base  400 .  
      The align member may further include a holding projection  342  formed as one body at a top of the align projection  341  for being held at an upper surface of the base.  
      The holding projection  342  is perpendicular to the align projection  341 , and parallel to the base supporting portion  310 .  
      Accordingly, the holding projection  342  passes the align slot  410  before the align projection  341  in a process the leg mounting member  300  is joined to the leg mounting portion of the base  400 , and is held at the upper surface of the base  400  as an upper surface of the base supporting portion  310  is brought into close contact with the underside of the leg mounting portion, to prevent the leg mounting member  300  from loose, and to enable easy fastening of the screws S.  
      It is preferable that the align member further includes a supplementary align projection  343  projected upward from the base supporting portion  310 .  
      The supplementary align projection  343  is inserted in a supplementary align hole  420  in the leg mounting portion, for aligning a position of the leg mounting member  300 , and making mounting of the leg mounting member  300  easy.  
      Of course, the align member may include one of the align projection  341  and the supplementary align projection  343 .  
      In the meantime, in order to improve strength of the leg mounting member  300 , the leg mounting member  300  may further include a supplementary bead  350  on the base supporting portion  310 . It is preferable that the supplementary bead  350  is projected downward such that the leg mounting member  300  and the leg mounting portion are brought into close contact.  
      A process for assembling the cabinet for a home appliance, i.e., a cabinet for a laundry dryer, will be described.  
      After joining the side panel  130  to the base  400 , the leg mounting member  300  is attached to the leg mounting portion of the base  400 .  
      A process for assembling the leg mounting member  300  and the base  400  will be described in more detail.  
      At first, upon inserting the holding projection  342  and the align projection  341  on the leg mounting member  300  in the align slot in the base, and inserting the supplementary align projection in the supplementary align hole  420 , the leg mounting member  300  is properly positioned, without loosening of the leg mounting member  300 .  
      Then, screws S are fastened to the screw holes  311 , to fixedly secure the leg mounting member  300  to the leg mounting portion of the base  400 . According to this, the side panel supporting portion  330  of the leg mounting member  300  supports the flange  131  at the bottom edge of the side panel.  
      After completion of assembly of the base  400  and the leg mounting member  300 , for joining the front panel  120  to a front of the cabinet  100 , the fixing projection  321  on the front panel supporting portion is inserted in the fixing slot in the flange  123  of the front panel, falling off of the bottom edge of the front panel is prevented, and a portion of load of the front panel  120  is supported on the leg mounting member  300 . Then, the front panel  120  is fastened to the front of the cabinet with fastening devices, such as screws (not shown) or hooks (not shown).  
      The operation of the laundry dryer of the present invention, having a cabinet with the foregoing base will be described.  
      Upon putting a drying object, such as clothes, in a drum through the opening in the cabinet  100 , and closing the door  122 , the laundry dryer is put into operation by using the control panel  121 .  
      According to this, when the fan in the exhaust duct assembly rotates to draw air, external air is drawn into the cabinet  100  through the rear panel, heated by the heater, and introduced into the drum through the air supply duct assembly.  
      In this instance, for drying the drying object, the drum is rotated by the driving motor and the belt, the hot air introduced into the rotating drum extracts moisture from the drying object, and carries away through the exhaust duct.  
      The cabinet for a home appliance of the present invention has the following advantages.  
      First, the reinforcing projections from the base prevents the base from bending or distortion.  
      Second, the joining of the side panel and the rear panel to the base with Tox round joint makes assembly of the cabinet easy, and reduces a number of components.  
      Third, the leg mounting member mounted to the base prevents the base from deformation.  
      Fourth, the leg mounting member mounted to the base that can support loads of the front panel and the side panel prevents the base from deformation caused by a load from an upper side.  
      Fifth, the fixing projection on the leg mounting member enables easy joining of the front panel.  
      Sixth, the align member on the leg mounting member makes joining of the leg mounting member easy.  
      Seventh, the reinforcing bead on the leg mounting member for improving strength permits to prevent deformation of the leg mounting member and the base.  
      It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the inventions. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.