Abstract:
An apparatus and method for an improved washing machine having a tilt-out laundry assembly. The tilt-out action is achieved by a tiltable joint between the side of the laundry assembly and front standing struts. The tiltable joint permits a laundry assembly to rotate about the front standing struts once rear struts are removed from the rear side of the laundry assembly. In use, the service person removes the rear struts, tilts the laundry assembly about the front standing struts, and then removes the laundry assembly from the cabinet.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     Top loading washing machines have a laundry assembly that may be occasionally serviced. During service, the laundry assembly which is usually suspended within the washing machine is removed. Typically, the suspended laundry assembly is removed by a service person who must lift the entire suspended laundry assembly upward vertically approximately 4 inches to clear all of the other components in the washing machine and then, while the laundry assembly is still elevated, the operator must pull it forward, maneuver it past the cabinet brackets, and out of the cabinet and then placed upon the floor. This servicing is awkward because the person must lean over the top of the machine with his/her feet off of the base frame to insure that no damage occurs to the base frame. In addition, the laundry assembly is 77 pounds in weight and difficult to move without proper leveraging. In addition, the prior art position may be alleviated upon using ergonomic industrial design considerations.  
         [0002]     Therefore, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved washing machine that facilitates ergonomic removal of suspended laundry assemblies. A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a tilting feature and method of using same which moves the laundry assembly from an upright operate position to a tilt remove position to facilitate removal of the laundry assembly without the risk of damage to the washing machine from incorrect removal, accidental droppings, or the service person accidentally stepping upon the base frame.  
         [0003]     A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a ball and socket joint between the laundry assembly and struts supporting the laundry assembly to provide for proper tilting of the laundry assembly.  
         [0004]     A further objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved washing machine with tilt-out laundry assembly which is economical to manufacture, durable in use and efficient in operation.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0005]     The foregoing objectives may be achieved by an improved washing machine with a cabinet with a laundry assembly suspended within. The laundry assembly is suspended by front standing struts having an upper end attached to the laundry assembly and a lower end attached to a base of the cabinet. The laundry assembly is also suspended by removable rear struts having one end attached to the cabinet and a second end attached to the rear side of the laundry assembly. A tiltable joint is provided between the front standing struts upper end and the side of the laundry assembly that permits the laundry assembly to move between an upright position to a tilt remove position.  
         [0006]     According to another feature of the present invention the tiltable joint is a ball and socket joint. This ball and socket joint has a recess in the socket that permits the laundry assembly to move from the upright position to the tilt position. The recess prevents a rod of the front standing strut from interfering with the rotation of the ball within the socket.  
         [0007]     According to another feature of the present invention a corresponding recess is placed within the support molding of the front side of the laundry assembly and a recess provided in a cushion that engages the front standing strut. These additional recesses also prevent the rod from interfering with the rotation of the ball within the socket and permit the laundry assembly to tilt from an operational position to a remove position. The foregoing objectives may also be achieved by a method of servicing an improved washing machine with a tilt-out laundry assembly as described including removing the rear struts from the rear side of the laundry assembly, tilting the laundry assembly about the front standing struts, and removing the laundry assembly from the cabinet. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]      FIG. 1  is a perspective of an improved top loading, vertical axis washing machine in an upright operate position.  
         [0009]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the washing machine of  FIG. 1  in a tilt remove position.  
         [0010]      FIG. 3  is an exploded view showing the interconnection between the laundry assembly and the ball and socket joint.  
         [0011]      FIG. 4  is a front view of the ball and socket joint connecting the front arm of the laundry assembly to the front strut with the laundry assembly in an upright position.  
         [0012]      FIG. 5  is a bottom view of the ball and socket joint joining the front arm and the front standing strut with the front arm tilted about the front standing strut when the laundry assembly is in a tilted position. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0013]     Referring to  FIG. 1 , a washing machine  10  includes a cabinet  12  having a base  14  and base frame  16 . The cabinet  12  also has side panels  18 , rear panel  20  and a removable front cover (not shown). The side panels  18  and rear panel  20  are attached to the base and are designed to be load bearing. The cabinet  12  has a lift up top  22  that provides easy access to the laundry assembly  24 .  
         [0014]     The present invention is directed towards the tilt-out laundry assembly  24 . The laundry assembly  24  has a front side  26  and a rear side  28 . Upon the front side  20  are a pair of front arms  30  and upon the rear side  28  are a pair of rear arms  32 . The laundry assembly  24  is suspended within the cabinet  12  by front standing struts  34  and removable rear struts  36 . The front standing struts  34  have an upper end  38  operably attached to the front arm  30  on the front side  26  of the laundry assembly  24 . In addition, the front standing struts  34  have a lower end  40  that is attached to the base  14 . The front standing strut  34  has a cylinder  42  with an extensible rod assembly  44  connected thereto. The cylinder  42  may have a spring or compressible fluid which provides dampening to the rod assembly  44  in response to vibrations which may come from the laundry assembly  24 .  
         [0015]     The removable rear struts  36  are operably attached to the cabinet  12  by bracket  46  and removably attached to the rear arms  32  by member  48 . The removable rear struts  36  typically use a continuous rod.  
         [0016]     As seen between  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the laundry assembly  24  may be tilted outward by pivoting between the front arms  30  and the front standing strut  34 . In order to move the laundry assembly  24  from the upright operate position as seen in  FIG. 1  to the tilt remove position as seen in  FIG. 2 , the user must remove the removable rear struts  36  from the rear side  28  of the laundry assembly  24 , tilt the laundry assembly  24  about the front standing struts  34 , and then remove the laundry assembly  24  from the cabinet  12 .  
         [0017]     As seen in  FIG. 2 , the laundry assembly may be tilted 90° from vertical such that the hand grip  52  is the same height off of the ground as an upper portion or rim  54  of the laundry assembly  24 . The user can then grip the hand grip  52  and the rim  54  and pull upward. The upward movement by the user disengages the front arms  30  from the front standing struts  34 . Alternatively, the upward movement by the user pulls the rod  44  from within the cylinder  42  so as to detach the laundry assembly  24  from the front standing struts cylinder  42 . The user is then free to place the laundry assembly  24  upon the ground either sideways or in an upright standing position. In order to access the laundry assembly  24  for tilting and removal a service person will remove a front panel (not shown) of the washing machine  10  and pivot the top panel  22  upward.  
         [0018]      FIG. 3  illustrates an exploded close-up view of the interconnection of the front side  26  of the laundry assembly  24  and the front strut  34 . As seen in  FIG. 5 , the interconnection is a tiltable joint specifically in the form of a ball and socket joint  56  having a ball  58  attached to the rod  50  of the front strut  34 . The socket  60  is formed in a removable piece  62  that may be secured to a female receptacle  64  in front arm  30  by male insert  65 .  
         [0019]     The socket  60  has a recess  66  that permits rotation of the laundry assembly  24  beyond a point where the rod  50  would strike a sidewall of the socket  60 .  
         [0020]     Attached and surrounding the socket is a cushion  68  which dampens vibrations from the laundry assembly  24  when the laundry assembly  24  is in use. The cushion  68  has a recess  70  in alignment with the socket recess  66  to permit rotation of the laundry assembly  24  past where the cushion would interfere with pivotal movement.  
         [0021]     The front arm  30  has support molding  72  that provides strength to the front arms  30 . The front arms  30  has a recess  74  in the support molding  72  to prevent travel of the rod  44  of the front standing strut  34  and permit the laundry assembly  24  to move from the upright position to the tilt position. Thus, the socket recess  66 , the cushion recess  70 , and the support molding recess  74  all work together to permit the laundry assembly  24  to move from the upright position to the tilt position.  
         [0022]      FIG. 4  shows the tiltable joint  56  when the laundry assembly is in the upright position. The ball  58  engages the socket  60 . In operation, the ball  58  can pivot within the socket  60  approximately 20° before the rod  44  strikes cushion  68 . Additionally, the rod  44  may slip inside the cylinder  42  so the combination of dampening between the cushion  68  and cylinder  42  reduce vibrations which may come from the laundry assembly  24 .  
         [0023]     As further seen in  FIG. 4 , the socket recess  66 , the cushion recess  70  and the support molding recess  74  are all in alignment such that the laundry assembly  24  may pivot from an upright position to a tilt position as seen in  FIG. 5 .  FIG. 5  is an illustration of the underside of the front arm  30  showing the laundry assembly  34  in a tilt position such that it strikes the rod  50  at a right angle. In this position, the rod  50  is placed within the socket recess  66 , the cushion recess  70  and the support molding recess  74 . As seen most clearly in  FIG. 1 , the tiltable joint  56  when used as a pair must be aligned such that tilting of the laundry assembly  24  places the rod  44  in alignment with the recesses  66 ,  70 ,  74 . In normal operation, there is no risk of the laundry assembly  24  from moving into the recesses because the recesses take only a small portion of the circumference of the socket  60  and cushion  68 , the laundry assembly must be moved in a tilting fashion towards the recesses as opposed to the random oscillation of the laundry assembly in use, and the removable rear struts  36  also prevent forward movement of the laundry assembly  24  past a point in which the rod  44  will be received by the recesses  66 ,  70 , and  74 .  
         [0024]     The angle of movement from the upright position to the tilt position should be between 45 to 90° to provide the service person with enough tilt to easily remove the laundry assembly. In the preferred embodiment the angle of movement from the tilt position is between 75 to 90°. Most often, the service person will rotate the laundry assembly  24  to a right angle position before lifting and removing the laundry assembly  24 .  
         [0025]     In an alternative embodiment, the invention may be employed in a horizontal axis washer. In this case, the axis of the laundry assembly  24  is horizontal in the upright operate position.  
         [0026]     In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention, and although specific terms are employed, these are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation. Changes in the form and the proportion of parts as well as in the substitution of equivalents are contemplated as circumstances may suggest or render expedient without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as further defined in the following claims.