Patent Description:
Generally, a laundry treating apparatus includes various types of laundry treating apparatuses such as a washing machine for washing clothes, a drying machine for drying purpose, and a refresher for refreshing purposes.

In the laundry treating apparatus, a washing cycle refers to a process of removing contaminants from clothes by using water and detergent and using mechanical action. A drying cycle refers to the process of removing moisture from wet laundry.

During the washing process, when washing with high-temperature washing water is carried out, more detergent can be dissolved so that contaminants on the laundry can be more easily removed therefrom and at the same time, the laundry can be sterilized. Thus, it is preferable to wash the clothes by raising the temperature of the washing water within a range such that heat does not permanently deform (for example, shrinkage, twisting, waterproof function loss, etc.) the laundry.

Conventionally, in order to increase the temperature of the washing water in contact with laundry, it was common that hot water is supplied from the outside of the laundry treating apparatus or that the washing water contacts a heating wire installed inside the laundry treating apparatus and the heated water is supplied to the tub.

When receiving the hot water from the outside, there is a problem that energy is wasted because an external boiler must be operated separately. Further, the method of using the heating wire installed inside the laundry treating apparatus requires that the heating wire should be kept immersed in the washing water. Thus, there is a structural limitation that a separate flow path must be provided under the tub.

Further, in the drying process, it is general to use a hot air based drying method in which laundry is dried by heating air circulating through the conventional tub and an external circulation channel. Further, a method has been used in which a heating wire is disposed on a flow path through which air circulates to heat the air.

In order to use the hot air drying method as described above, a gas heater or an electric heater capable of heating a heating wire is required. However, the gas heater may have problems with safety and exhaust gases. Further, in the electric heaters, foreign substances such as scales may be accumulated thereon and excessive energy may be consumed.

Further, in addition to the hot air drying method as described above, there is a low temperature dehumidifying drying method using a heat pump. The heat pump uses the cooling cycle of the air conditioner in a reverse manner. Thus, the heat pump requires an evaporator, a condenser, an expansion valve and a compressor. A condenser may be used in an indoor unit to cool indoor air in an air conditioner. However, In the heat pump based drying machine, the air is heated in the evaporator to dry the clothes. However, the heat pump has a bulky structure, a complicated structure, and a high production cost as compared with other hot air supply structures.

Further, another problem of the hot air drying method and the low temperature dehumidifying drying method is that since those methods are an indirect drying method using air, there is a disadvantage that the drying time may be prolonged when the laundry is entangled or twisted with each other or contains a large amount of water.

These various laundry treating apparatuses have advantages and disadvantages derived from the electric heaters, gas heaters and heat pumps as heating means. As new heating means that can further employ the above merits of the conventional heating means and compensate for the disadvantages thereof, induction heating means is set forth. The laundry treating apparatus using the induction heating have been provided from Japanese Patent Number <CIT> and Korean Patent Number <CIT>.

These prior arts, however, only disclose basic concepts of induction heating in the washing machine. In those prior arts, there is no specific suggestion or disclosing of detailed components of the induction heating module, the connection relationship and operations thereof with the basic components of the laundry treating apparatus, approaches for securing the efficiency and safety of the induction heating, etc..

A coil is wound around an induction heating module provided in the laundry treating apparatus such as a washing machine and a drying machine. Then, the heat can be transferred to a to be heated object (drum of the washing machine) via an induction current generated by applying a current to the coil.

When the laundry treating apparatus is driven, the to-be-heated object (the drum of the washing machine) rotates and performs washing and drying of laundry stored in the drum. At this time, due to the vibration generated by the rotation of the drum, the components constituting the induction heating module can be removed therefrom. In particular, when the coil as wound is removed therefrom, various problems such as a decrease in efficiency of the induction heating module and a deterioration of the coil may occur.

Therefore, it is necessary to provide a variety of specific technical ideas for enhancing efficiency and ensuring safety and for stably winding and fixing the coil in the laundry treating apparatus employing the induction heating principle.

<CIT> relates to a prior art clothes processing apparatus, and more particularly to a clothes processing apparatus for directly heating a drum accommodating clothes.

One purpose of the present invention is to provide a laundry treating apparatus which can prevent the coil from being removed therefrom via vibration by increasing the heat-fused amount of the coil wound on the induction heating module.

Another purpose of the present invention is to provide a laundry care apparatus that allows the coil to be coiled onto a coil base at an uniform density to perform uniform heating of the drum.

Another purpose of the present invention is to provide a laundry treating apparatus which ensures that the coil is stably installed in the induction heating device so that the coil is not removed therefrom via the vibration of the washing machine.

Another purpose of the present invention is to provide a laundry treating apparatus with an induction heating module having a stable coiled relationship between the coil and a component around which the coil is wound.

According to the present invention, there is provided a laundry treating apparatus comprising: a cabinet; a drum made of a metal material and disposed into the cabinet, wherein the drum accommodates laundry therein; and an induction module spaced apart from an outer circumferential face of the drum by a predetermined spacing, wherein the induction module has a coil formed by turns of a wire, wherein the induction module inductively heats the drum using a magnetic field generated by applying a current to the coil, wherein the induction module includes a rectangular shaped base housing for accommodating the coil, wherein the base housing has straight sections and corner sections, wherein the induction module includes a permanent magnet disposed on a top face of the coil, wherein the base housing includes ribs protruding upwards from the base housing to define a slot for accommodating the coil therein, wherein a thickness of each of the ribs in each corner section of the base housing is greater than a thickness of each of the ribs in each of the ribs in each straight section in order to be positioned in the spacings between neighbouring wires at the corner sections and at the straight sections, respectively.

In one implementation, the straight sections includes: transverse straight portions including a front straight portion adjacent to a front of the outer circumferential face of the drum and a rear straight portion adjacent to a rear of the outer circumferential face of the drum; and longitudinal straight portions extending perpendicularly to the transverse straight portions, wherein each corner section includes a curved section extending between each of the transverse straight portions and each of the longitudinal straight portions.

In one implementation, a length of an outermost wire of each longitudinal straight portion is larger than a length of an outermost wire of each transverse straight portion.

In one implementation, an outermost wire of the front straight portion and an outermost wire of the rear straight portion are respectively spaced apart from a frontmost portion of the drum and a rearmost portion of the drum at a predetermined spacing.

In one implementation of the second aspect, the predetermined spacing is in a range of <NUM> to <NUM>.

In one implementation, the base housing includes base fastening portion extending outwardly from both sides of the base housing to fix the base housing to the outer circumferential face of the drum such that a predetermined spacing is maintained therebetween.

In one implementation, each of the base fastening portions protrudes outwardly from each of both sides of the base housing, wherein each base fastening portion has a base fastening hole into which a fastener is inserted.

In one implementation, the base housing has a curved shape corresponding to the outer circumferential face of the drum, wherein the wire is wound along the curved shape of the base housing.

In one implementation, the induction module includes a permanent magnet disposed on a top face of the coil, wherein the permanent magnet is oriented to be perpendicular to a length direction of the coil to concentrate direction of the magnetic field generated by the coil onto a direction toward the drum.

The permanent magnet includes a plurality of permanent magnets arranged to be spaced apart from each other in a length direction of the coil.

In one implementation, the plurality of permanent magnets include rod shaped magnets having the same length, wherein the coil includes: longitudinal ends including a front end adjacent to a front of the drum and a rear end adjacent to a rear of the drum; and a central portion located between the longitudinal ends, wherein an area of the central portion is larger than areas of the front and rear ends, wherein the plurality of permanent magnets are arranged such that a number of the permanent magnets in the front end or rear end is larger than or equal to a number of the permanent magnets in the central portion.

The features of each of the above-described embodiments may be implemented in combination in other embodiments as long as they are not contradictory to each other or exclusive in other embodiments.

One embodiment of the present invention provides an effect of using the geometry of the coil base corners to secure the thickness of the ribs such that the heat-fused amount of the coil can be increased to improve the installation stability.

Further, one embodiment of the present invention provides an effect of preventing the coil from being detached from the coil base due to vibration generated when the laundry treating apparatus is operated.

Further, one embodiment of the present invention provides an effect of carrying out the heat fusion at the corner portion of the base to prevent the coil from being spaced therefrom and of carrying out the heat fusion of the coil inwardly of the ferrite slot mounted on the corner thereof to secure the heat-fused amount of the coil sufficiently.

Examples of various embodiments are illustrated and described further below. It will be understood that the description herein is not intended to limit the claims to the specific embodiments described.

Further, the configuration as described below are for the purpose of illustrating an embodiment of the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

It will be further understood that the terms "comprises", "comprising", "includes", and "including" when used in this specification, specify the presence of the stated features, integers, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, operations, elements, components, and/or portions thereof. It will be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being "connected to", or "coupled to" another element or layer, it can be directly on, connected to, or coupled to the other element or layer, or one or more intervening elements or layers may be present.

Referring to <FIG> and <FIG>, a preferred embodiment of the laundry treating apparatus according to the present invention is described. First, the overall configuration of the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> will be described.

The laundry treatment apparatus of the present embodiment may include a cabinet <NUM> forming an outer appearance, a tub <NUM> installed inside the cabinet, and a drum <NUM> rotatably installed inside the tub <NUM> and accommodating laundry therein. The illustrated embodiment relates to a washing machine, in which washing water is stored in the tub <NUM>, and washing may be performed using a drum installed in the tub <NUM>.

When the laundry treating apparatus of this embodiment is applied to the drying machine, laundry may be accommodated inside the drum and thus the tub may be omitted.

<FIG> shows the overall configuration of the laundry treating apparatus.

The laundry treating apparatus <NUM> includes a cabinet <NUM> forming an appearance of the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> and having a laundry inlet <NUM> defined therein, a tub <NUM> located in the cabinet <NUM> and having an opening <NUM> communicating with the laundry inlet <NUM>, a drum <NUM> installed inside the tub <NUM> and made of metal and accommodating laundry therein, a door <NUM> hinge-coupled to the cabinet <NUM> to allow entry and withdrawal of laundry, and an induction module <NUM> to heat the drum <NUM> with a magnetic field.

The tub <NUM> may be located inside the cabinet <NUM> by means of a spring provided on the top face inside the cabinet <NUM> and a damper <NUM> provided on the bottom face inside the cabinet <NUM> as shown in <FIG>.

Alternatively, the tub <NUM> may be fixed to the bottom face inside the cabinet <NUM> via a rear support portion (not shown) which is bent and extended downwardly of the tub <NUM> and in rear of the tub <NUM>, and a suspension (not shown) connected to the rear support portion and having a spring and a damper. In this case, the rear portion of the tub <NUM> may be inclined at a predetermined angle in the cabinet <NUM>.

The drum <NUM> is provided to rotate within the tub <NUM>. In this connection, a driver <NUM> for rotating the drum <NUM> may be installed behind the tub <NUM>. When the drum <NUM> rotates and moves inside the tub <NUM>, vibration is transmitted to the tub <NUM>. Therefore, the structures mounted on the tub <NUM> also vibrate together. A detailed description of the problems caused by the vibration, and solutions to the problems will be given later.

Further, the tub <NUM> may have a water supply pipe <NUM> therein when washing water is supplied thereto. The water supply pipe <NUM> may be constructed to communicate with the tub <NUM> through a detergent box D provided in the cabinet <NUM>. Using this configuration, the detergent used in the washing process during the washing water supplying may be supplied to the tub <NUM>.

Further, the tub <NUM> may further include a water discharge pipe <NUM> for discharging wash-water stored therein. When the drainage starts, the washing-water is drained from the bottom of the tub and drained out of the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> via the water discharge pipe <NUM> by a drain pump (not shown).

In the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> having a washing function, the washing water may need to be hot in the washing water temperature range that the heating does not cause permanent damage of the laundry (for example, shrinkage, twisting, waterproofing loss, etc.). To this end, a heating structure is needed to increase the washing-water temperature.

Further, both the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> having both a washing function and the drying function and the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> having only a drying function need a heating structure for drying laundry.

Thus, the laundry treating apparatus is provided with the induction module <NUM>, which may be used for heating the washing-water or for drying.

Referring to <FIG>, the principle of heating the drum <NUM> using the induction module <NUM> is described.

The induction module <NUM> is mounted on the outer surface of the tub <NUM>. The induction module may heat the circumferential surface of the drum <NUM> using a magnetic field generated by applying current to a coil <NUM> as turns of a wire <NUM>. A shape of the wire and coil is shown in <FIG>.

However, as described above, in the drying machine in which washing with water is not performed, the tub may be omitted. Thus, in the induction module in the drying machine, a frame or bracket for mounting the induction module thereto may replace the role of the tub. The frame or bracket may be a component that spaces the induction module apart from the drum by a predetermined distance.

The wire <NUM> may include a core and a coating surrounding the core. The core may be a single core. In another example, a plurality of cores may be twisted to form a single core. Therefore, it may be said that the thickness or the wire diameter of the wire <NUM> is determined by the thickness of the core and the thickness of the coating.

Hereinafter, how the coil <NUM> heats the drum <NUM> will be set forth. An AC current having change in the phase of the current flows to the coil <NUM> located outside the circumferential surface of the drum. According to the Ampere circuit law, the coil <NUM> generates a radial alternating magnetic field.

This alternating magnetic field is concentrated on the drum <NUM> as a conductor with a high magnetic permeability. In this connection, the permeability refers to a degree at which a medium is magnetized based on a given magnetic field. In this connection, according to Faraday's law regarding the induction, eddy current is formed on the drum <NUM>. This eddy current flows in the drum <NUM> made of a conductor and is converted into a Joule heat due to the resistance of the drum <NUM> itself. As a result, the inner wall of the drum <NUM> is directly heated.

When the inner wall of the drum <NUM> is directly heated, the air temperature inside the drum <NUM> and the temperature of the laundry contacting the inner wall of the drum <NUM> increase. As a result, the laundry may be heated directly, which makes it possible to dry more quickly the laundry than in the indirect heating type hot air drying method or the low temperature dehumidifying drying method.

In addition, in the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> having the washing machine function, the washing-water can be heated without having a separate heating line and a flow path. The washing-water may continuously contact the outer wall of the drum <NUM>. Therefore, it is possible to heat the washing-water faster than in the method of forming a separate channel and a heat line beneath the tub.

Referring to <FIG> and <FIG>, a preferred embodiment of a shape of the coil is described.

<FIG> shows a top face of the coil <NUM> as the wire <NUM> wound on the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>. <FIG> shows various coil shapes.

The coil <NUM> may be formed by coiling the wire <NUM> around the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>, for example, in a concentric circle, ellipse, or track shape. The shape of the coil may not be limited to the specific shape. Depending on the winding pattern, the intensity of heating of the drum <NUM> may vary.

When the curvature radius of the curved portion is constructed such that the inner coil and the outer coil have the different curvature radii as shown in <FIG>, the amount of the magnetic field transmitted to the center of the drum <NUM> and the amount of the magnetic field transmitted to the front and rear region of the drum <NUM> may be different significantly from each other.

In other words, since the area of the coil corresponding to the front and rear regions of the drum <NUM> is small, the amount of the magnetic field transmitted to the front region of the circumferential surface of the drum <NUM> is relatively small. Since the area of the coil corresponding to the central region A of the drum <NUM> is large, the amount of the magnetic field transmitted to the center region of the circumferential surface of the drum <NUM> is relatively large. Therefore, it is difficult to uniformly heat the drum <NUM>.

Thus, the coil <NUM> is constructed such that the wire <NUM> is wound along the straight portions <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> and the curved portions <NUM>, as may be seen in <FIG>. It is preferable that the radius of curvature of the wire <NUM> forming the curved portion <NUM> is the same between the inner coil and the outer coil.

The area of the coil at each of the corners of the coil in <FIG> and the area of the coil at each of the corners of the coil in <FIG> may be significantly different from each other.

When describing in more detail the relationship between the straight portions <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> and the curved portions <NUM>, the straight portions <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> may include transverse straight portions <NUM> and <NUM> including a front straight portion <NUM> provided in a front region of the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM> and a rear straight portion <NUM> provided in a rear region of the outer circumferential face of tub <NUM>, and a longitudinal straight portion <NUM> extending perpendicularly to the transverse straight portions <NUM> and <NUM>. Each of the curved portions <NUM> may be formed at the point where the transverse straight portions <NUM> and <NUM> and the longitudinal straight portion <NUM> meet with each other.

That is, the coil is composed of the front straight portion <NUM>, the rear straight portion <NUM>, the both longitudinal portions <NUM>, and the four curved portions <NUM> formed between the straight portions <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> and having the same radius of curvature.

According to the configuration as described above, the transverse dimensions of the coil longitudinal ends B1 and B2 including the coil front end adjacent to the front of the tub <NUM> and the coil rear end adjacent to the rear of the tub, and the transverse dimension of the coil central region A located between the coil longitudinal ends B1 and B2 may be the same.

As a result, the amount of magnetic field radiated from the longitudinal ends B1 and B2 of the coil to the front and back of the circumference of drum <NUM>, and the amount of magnetic field radiated from the central region A of the coil to the center of the circumference of the drum <NUM> may be substantially equal to each other.

Therefore, the effect that the drum <NUM> may be uniformly heated in both the center region and the front and rear region of the circumferential surface thereof can be obtained.

<FIG> shows the temperature distribution based on the location of the drum according to the coil shape.

<FIG> shows coils <NUM> with different longitudinal lengths and the temperature distributions of the circumferential face of the drum <NUM> based on the longitudinal dimension of the coil <NUM>.

In the graph, the vertical axis represents the position of the drum. '<NUM>' indicates a rear region of the outer circumferential face of the drum. '<NUM>' represents the front region of the outer circumferential face of the drum <NUM>, and '<NUM> to <NUM>' represents the regions therebetween. Further, the horizontal axis represents the temperature rise rate of drum <NUM>.

The longitudinal dimensions of the coil <NUM> and the temperature rise rates of the drum <NUM> as described below are based on the coils <NUM> shown in <FIG> and will be compared with each other. <FIG> shows the case where the drum is heated using the coil with the largest longitudinal dimension. <FIG> shows the case where the drum is heated using a coil with a medium dimension of the longitudinal dimension. <FIG> shows the case where the drum is heated using the coil with the smallest longitudinal dimension.

<FIG> shows a uniform temperature rise rate between the front and rear and center regions of drum <NUM> as compared to other coils. In <FIG>, the difference in the temperature rise rate between the front and rear regions and the central region of drum <NUM> may be significant. The coil of <FIG> has a relatively large temperature rise rate difference therebetween.

That is, assuming that the transverse dimensions of the coils <NUM> are the same, it may be seen that as the longitudinal dimension of the coil <NUM> increases, the front and rear regions and the central region of the drum <NUM> may be heated more uniformly. That is, it is preferable that a long axis of the coil of the ellipse or track shape extends in the front and rear direction of the tub.

This may be applied to a case where the coil <NUM> is provided on the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>. In this case, as the longitudinal ends B1 and B2 of the coil <NUM> are closer to the front and rear regions of the tub <NUM> respectively, the circumferential face of the drum <NUM> inside the tub <NUM> may heated more uniformly.

Further, when the outermost wire of the transverse straight portions <NUM> and <NUM> extends to the front and rear regions of the tub <NUM>, the drum <NUM> may be heated more uniformly. However, in this case, the magnetic field will extend too far into the front and rear regions of the tub <NUM> to heat other components of the laundry treating apparatus, such as the driver <NUM> or door <NUM>. There arises a problem of damaging the laundry treating apparatus <NUM>.

Further, in the the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> in which the rear region of the tub <NUM> is inclined inside the cabinet <NUM>, the tub <NUM> oscillates up and down, thereby causing interference between the front upper corner of the induction module <NUM> and the top face of the cabinet <NUM>. Thus, the induction module <NUM> and cabinet <NUM> may be damaged. To prevent this situation, the height of the cabinet <NUM> may increase. However, in this case, there occurs limitation that the compact structure of the laundry treating apparatus cannot be realized.

Accordingly, the outermost wire of the front straight portion <NUM> is spaced apart from the frontmost region of the tub <NUM> by a predetermined distance. The outermost wire of the rear straight portion <NUM> is spaced a predetermined distance from the rearmost region of the tub <NUM>. The predetermined spacing may be preferably in a range of <NUM> to <NUM>.

The above-described configuration prevents the components other than the drum <NUM> from being unnecessarily heated, or prevents interference between the induction module <NUM> and the top face of the cabinet <NUM> while uniformly heating the outer circumferential face of the drum <NUM>.

Further, the length of the outermost wire of the longitudinal straight portion <NUM> of the coil <NUM> is preferably larger than the length of the outermost wire of each of the transverse straight portions <NUM> and <NUM>.

This prevents the magnetic field from being radiated to an excessive distance in the circumferential direction of the drum <NUM> so as not to heat the components other than the drum <NUM>, and secures a space for arranging a spring or other structures that may be provided on the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>.

In this connection, a face on which the wire <NUM> may be wound to form the coil <NUM> may be a curved face corresponding to the circumferential face of the drum <NUM>. In this case, the flux density of the magnetic field toward the drum <NUM> can be further increased.

Further, when the induction module <NUM> is operated, it is preferable to rotate the drum <NUM> to uniformly heat the circumferential face of the drum <NUM>.

Further, the magnetic field generated by the coil <NUM> is radiated toward the drum <NUM> having a high permeability, while the magnetic field is also partially emitted in the opposite direction to the direction toward the drum <NUM>, to the front and rear regions thereof and to the left and right sides to the coil <NUM>.

Therefore, it is necessary to concentrate the magnetic field generated by the coil <NUM> only in the direction toward the drum <NUM>. For this purpose, the induction module <NUM> may include a permanent magnet <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, an embodiment of the permanent magnet and the arrangement of the permanent magnet will be described.

The permanent magnet <NUM> acts as a blocking member to prevent the other components than the drum <NUM> from being heated. The magnetic field generated by the coil <NUM> is concentrated only in the direction toward the drum <NUM> to increase the heating efficiency.

As shown in <FIG>, the permanent magnet <NUM> may be embodied as a bar magnet. It may be preferable that the permanent magnet <NUM> is disposed on the coil <NUM> and is oriented in a perpendicular manner to the longitudinal direction of the coil <NUM>. This is intended to cover the inner and outer coils at the same time.

The permanent magnet <NUM> may have a plurality of bar magnets of the same size. The plurality of permanent magnets <NUM> may be spaced apart from each other along the longitudinal direction of the coil <NUM>.

This is because when a permanent magnet <NUM> is placed only at a specific position, the amount of the magnetic field radiated to the drum <NUM> may vary between the parts of the circumferential face of the drum <NUM>, thereby making it difficult to uniformly heat the drum. Therefore, in order to uniformly direct the magnetic field generated in the coil <NUM> in the direction toward the drum <NUM>, it may be preferable that the plurality of the permanent magnets <NUM> are arranged to be spaced apart from each other along the circumference of the coil <NUM>.

Further, when the number of permanent magnets <NUM> is fixed, it may be preferable to concentratively arrange the permanent magnets <NUM> in the front and rear portions of the tub <NUM> and on the coil <NUM>.

Specifically, as shown in <FIG>, the coil <NUM> may be divided into the coil longitudinal ends B1 and B2 including the coil front end B1 adjacent to the front region of the tub <NUM> and the coil rear end B2 adjacent to the rear region of tub <NUM>, and the coil central region A located between the front end B1 and the rear end B2 and having an area larger than that of each of the coil front end B1 and the coil rear end B2. The permanent magnets <NUM> may be arranged such that the number of the permanent magnets <NUM> on the coil front end B1 or coil rear end B2 may be equal to or larger than the number of the permanent magnets <NUM> on the coil central region A.

In the coil central region A, the magnetic field is radiated to extend to the left and right sides to the coil <NUM>. In this case, a width dimension of the drum <NUM> is much larger than the transverse dimension of the coil central region A. Thus, it is possible to uniformly heat the drum <NUM> in the transverse direction without arranging a large number of permanent magnets.

On the other hand, in the coil front end B1 and the coil rear end B2, the magnetic field is radiated to extend to the left and right sides to the coil <NUM>. Further, in the coil front end B1, the field is emitted to the front region of the drum <NUM>. In the coil rear end B2, the field is emitted to the rear region of the drum <NUM>.

Further, in the coil front end B1 and coil rear end B2, the coil density is relatively small. That is, due to the round shape of the corner portion, the density of the coil must be reduced at the longitudinal ends thereof. This is because the coil cannot extend theoretically linearly at the corner thereof.

Therefore, when the number of permanent magnets is fixed and the permanent magnets are arranged in the coil front end B1, the coil rear end B2, and the coil central region A, respectively, the nonuniform heating problem in the longitudinal direction of the drum <NUM> may occur.

Therefore, when the number of permanent magnets <NUM> is fixed, it is more desirable to concentrate the arrangement of the permanent magnets <NUM> on the longitudinal ends B1 and B2 rather than on the central region A of the coil. That is, it is also possible to uniformly heat the front and rear region of the drum. That is, in the embodiment shown in <FIG>, the drum may be heated more uniformly to improve heating efficiency than in the embodiment shown in <FIG>.

In other words, the magnetic flux density of the coil longitudinal ends B1 and B2 is increased via the concentration of the arrangement of the permanent magnets thereon. As a result, the drum <NUM> is uniformly heated in the longitudinal direction thereof.

Specifically, the embodiment shown in <FIG> may be more efficient than the embodiment shown in <FIG> under the same conditions. Further, when the number of permanent magnets <NUM> is fixed, it may be efficient that the permanent magnet <NUM> on the central region A is displaced onto the longitudinal ends B1 and B2. Therefore, when the total magnetic flux density based on the arrangement of the permanent magnets is determined, it is desirable that the magnetic flux density on the longitudinal ends B1 and B2 be greater than the magnetic flux density on the central region A.

The embodiment of the winding pattern of the coil <NUM> and the embodiment of the arrangement of the permanent magnets <NUM> as described above are not contradictory to each other but may be implemented in the combined manner in a single laundry treating apparatus <NUM>. In this case, the drum <NUM> may be more uniformly heated than in the laundry treating apparatus <NUM> in which only each of the embodiment of the winding pattern of the coil <NUM> and the embodiment of the arrangement of the permanent magnets <NUM> as described above is implemented.

Further, when the drum <NUM> is rotated in the washing or drying process, vibration is transmitted to the tub <NUM>. Thus, the structures mounted on the tub <NUM> will also vibrate together with the drum. In the laundry treating apparatus <NUM>, problems such as increased noise or deteriorated durability may arise.

Further, when the tub <NUM> vibrates, the coil <NUM> installed on the tub <NUM> may vibrate, thereby causing the coil <NUM> to be removed therefrom or noise to be generated. Therefore, it is desirable that the coil <NUM> be firmly mounted on the tub <NUM> so that the above problem may be solved. For this purpose, the coil <NUM> is preferably installed on the tub <NUM> using an induction module <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, the induction module <NUM> is described.

The induction module <NUM> serves as a fixing member for fixing the coil <NUM> to the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>. The induction module <NUM> may include a base housing <NUM> mounted on the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM> to prevent the coil <NUM> from being removed from the tub <NUM> even when the tub <NUM> vibrates.

<FIG> shows a state in which the base housing <NUM> is mounted on the tub <NUM>. <FIG> shows a top face of the base housing <NUM>. <FIG> shows a bottom face of the base housing <NUM>.

First, referring to <FIG>, the base housing <NUM> will be described.

As shown in <FIG>, the base housing <NUM> has a coil slot <NUM> that is narrower than the diameter of the wire <NUM> such that the wire <NUM> of the coil <NUM> is press-fitted into the slot and thus is constrained therein. In this connection, the width dimension of the coil slot <NUM> may be set to be <NUM>% to <NUM>% of the wire diameter of the wire <NUM>.

When the wire <NUM> is press-fitted into and then constrained in the coil slot <NUM>, the wire <NUM> is fixed inside the coil slot <NUM> even when the tub <NUM> vibrates, so that the coil <NUM> does not move.

Therefore, the coil <NUM> is not removed from the coil slot <NUM> and the movement of the coil itself is suppressed. This may prevent noise which may be otherwise caused due to the presence of a clearance therebetween.

Further, the coil slot <NUM> is defined by a plurality of fixing ribs <NUM> protruding upwards from the base housing <NUM>. The height of the fixing rib <NUM> may be larger than the diameter of the coil <NUM>.

The height of the fixing rib <NUM> may be larger than the wire diameter of the coil <NUM> so that both side faces of the coil <NUM> sufficiently contact the inner wall of the fixing rib <NUM>. This feature is also related to a melting treatment of the top portion of the fixing rib <NUM> as described below.

Using the above-described feature, the fixing rib <NUM> may separate the adjacent wires <NUM> from each other to prevent electrical short. Thus, it is not necessary to apply a separate insulating film to the wire <NUM>. In an alternative, the thickness of the insulating film can be minimized, thereby reducing the production cost.

Further, the top of the fixing rib <NUM> may be constructed such that the wire <NUM> is inserted into the slot and then the top of the rib <NUM> is melted to cover the top of the coil <NUM>. That is, the top of the fixing rib <NUM> may be subjected to the melting treatment.

In this connection, the height of the fixing rib <NUM> is preferably <NUM> to <NUM> times as large as the wire diameter of the wire <NUM> so as to cover the top of the coil <NUM> upon the melting treatment of the rib.

Specifically, referring to <FIG>, after the wire is press-fitted in the slot, the fixing rib <NUM> may be melted while the top face thereof is pressed down. Then, as in <FIG>, a portion of the molten fixing rib <NUM> may collapse down to cover the tops of both wires <NUM>. In this connection, it is preferable that each fixing rib <NUM> between the adjacent wires <NUM> is melted to completely shield the top of the wire <NUM> in the coil slot <NUM>, or is melted to define a gap narrower than the wire diameter of the wire <NUM> on the top of the wire.

In another embodiment, the coil slot <NUM> may be melted to cover not both adjacent wires but only one wire <NUM>. In this case, each of all of the fixing ribs <NUM> may be melted to cover only an inner wire <NUM> among the both adjacent wires <NUM> or to cover only an outer wire <NUM> among the both adjacent wires <NUM>.

In addition to press-fitting the coil <NUM> into the coil slot <NUM>, the melting treatment of the top portion of the fixing rib <NUM> may be carried out. This is intended to physically block a path along which the wire <NUM> may move and to suppress the movement of the wire <NUM> to prevent noise which may be otherwise caused by the vibration of the tub <NUM> and to remove the clearance between the parts such that durability can be improved.

The coil slot <NUM> may be defined by a slot base <NUM> on which the coil <NUM> is seated. The fixing rib <NUM> extends upwards from the slot base.

The slot base <NUM> may extend in a continuous manner as described in <FIG>. The coil <NUM> is pressurized and fixed by the combination of the slot base <NUM> and the fixing rib <NUM> which is subjected to the melting treatment.

In another example, the slot base <NUM> may be partially open. In this connection, an opening defined in the slot base <NUM> may be referred to as a through-hole <NUM>.

In the above description, it is provided that the coil <NUM> is formed on the top face of the base housing <NUM>. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The fixing rib <NUM> may protrude downwards from the base housing <NUM> so that the coil <NUM> is disposed on the bottom face of the base housing <NUM>. In this case, even when a separate through-hole is not formed in the slot base <NUM>, the gap defined by the melting-treated fixing ribs <NUM> serves as the through-hole.

<FIG> shows the bottom face of the base housing <NUM>. As shown in the figure, the bottom face of the base housing <NUM> may have a through-hole <NUM> defined therein penetrating the top face thereof. The through-hole <NUM> has an open structure through which the coil <NUM> faces the outer circumferential face the tub <NUM>. Thus, the through-hole <NUM> may be formed along the winding pattern of the wire <NUM>.

When the wire <NUM> extends along a wound shape, it is also possible to increase the heating efficiency by radiating the magnetic field smoothly from the wire <NUM> to the drum <NUM>, and to allow air to flow along the opened face, to obtain the advantage that the overheated coil <NUM> may cool rapidly.

Further, as shown in <FIG>, a base supporting bar <NUM> extend to intersect the through-hole may be disposed on the bottom face of the base housing <NUM>. The base housing <NUM> may include the base supporting bar <NUM>.

The base supporting bar <NUM> may extend radially about each of both fixing points <NUM> around the central region A of the base housing <NUM> so as to enhance the adhesion between the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM> and the base housing <NUM>.

When a base fastening portion <NUM> disposed on each of both sides of the base housing <NUM> is fixed to a tub fastening portion <NUM> disposed on the outer circumferential face of the tub, the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM> is pressed by the base supporting bar <NUM>. Thus, the base housing may be more strongly supported than when an entirety of the bottom face of the base housing <NUM> contacts the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>. (See <FIG>). Accordingly, even when the tub <NUM> vibrates, the base housing <NUM> cannot easily move or detach from the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>.

Further, in order to improve the fastening force between the base housing <NUM> and the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>, the base housing <NUM> may have a curved surface corresponding to the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>. Further, on the top face of the base housing <NUM> on which the wire <NUM> is wound, the curved portions of the fixing ribs <NUM> may have the same radius of curvature (see <FIG>) in a corresponding manner to a feature that the curvature radii of the coil curved portions <NUM> as described above are equal to each other.

Further, as shown in <FIG>, the induction module <NUM> may further include a cover <NUM> coupled with the base housing <NUM> to cover the coil slot <NUM>.

The cover <NUM> is constructed to be coupled to the top face of the base housing <NUM>, as shown in <FIG>. The cover acts to prevent the coil <NUM> and permanent magnet <NUM> to be removed from the induction module.

Specifically, the bottom face of the cover <NUM> may be in close contact with the top of the coil slot <NUM> of the base housing <NUM>. Accordingly, the movement of the cover <NUM> itself may be prevented.

Referring to <FIG>, the cover <NUM> is described in detail.

Referring to <FIG>, a plurality of reinforcing ribs <NUM> protruding downwards from the bottom face of the cover <NUM> may be provided. The reinforcing ribs <NUM> and the top of the coil slot <NUM> may be in close contact with each other.

When the bottom face of the reinforcing rib <NUM> is in close contact with the coil slot <NUM>, more concentrated pressure may be applied to a small area than when the entirety of the bottom face of the cover <NUM> is in close contact with the top of the coil slot <NUM>.

As a result, the cover <NUM> may be fixed more firmly to the outer face of the tub <NUM>. Thus, even when the vibration of the tub <NUM> occurs, this does not cause noise or component deviation due to the clearance.

The reinforcing rib <NUM> may include a plurality of reinforcing ribs arranged along the longitudinal direction of the coil <NUM>. Further, The reinforcing rib <NUM> may extend in a perpendicular direction to the longitudinal direction of the coil <NUM>. Therefore, the reinforcing ribs <NUM> may firmly fix the entire coil without pressing the entire coil.

In this connection, a spacing is required between the cover <NUM> and the coil <NUM> because it is desirable for air to flow therein for heat dissipation. Therefore, the reinforcing rib <NUM> fills a portion of the spacing. Therefore, the fixing of the coil may be achieved at the same time as the air flow space is secured.

Further, the reinforcing rib <NUM> is preferably integrally formed with the cover <NUM>. Thus, when the cover <NUM> is coupled with the base housing <NUM>, the reinforcing rib <NUM> presses the coil <NUM>. Therefore, separate means or steps for pressing the coil <NUM> becomes unnecessary.

Further, the permanent magnet <NUM> may be interposed between the base housing <NUM> and the cover <NUM>. The cover <NUM> may have a permanent magnet mount <NUM> into which the permanent magnet <NUM> is inserted. Accordingly, when the permanent magnet <NUM> is fixed to the cover <NUM>, the permanent magnet may be fixed to a top of the coil <NUM> as the cover <NUM> is coupled to the base housing <NUM>.

The permanent magnets <NUM> may be preferably disposed at specific locations on the top face of the coil <NUM> respectively to efficiently concentrate the direction of the magnetic field into the direction toward the drum <NUM>. Thus, when the permanent magnet <NUM> moves according to the vibration of the tub <NUM>, there may be a problem that not only the noise occurs but also the heating efficiency is lowered.

Thus, the permanent magnet mount <NUM> allows the permanent magnet <NUM> to be fixed in a position at which the permanent magnet <NUM> is initially disposed between the base housing <NUM> and the cover <NUM>. Thus, it is possible to prevent the problem that the heating efficiency is lowered.

More specifically, the permanent magnet mount <NUM> may have a bottom opening <NUM> defined therein. The bottom opening may be defined by both side walls projecting downwards from the bottom face of the cover <NUM> and facing away from each other. The bottom face of the permanent magnet <NUM> mounted in the permanent magnet mount <NUM> may communicate with one face of the coil <NUM> through the bottom opening <NUM>.

In this case, the left and right directional movement of the permanent magnet <NUM> may be suppressed by the two side walls. Due to the presence of the bottom opening <NUM>, the permanent magnet <NUM> may be closer to the top face of the coil <NUM>.

As the permanent magnet <NUM> is closer to the coil <NUM>, the magnetic field is guided towards drum <NUM> in a more concentrated manner. As a result, the stable and uniform heating of the drum <NUM> may be realized.

In addition, the permanent magnet mount <NUM> includes an inner wall <NUM> protruding downward from the bottom face of the cover <NUM> at one end of each of the two side walls. The permanent magnet mount <NUM> includes a stopper <NUM> to prevent the permanent magnet <NUM> from being removed from the cover <NUM>. An opening may be defined between the inner wall <NUM> and the stopper <NUM>. The permanent magnet <NUM> may not be separated from the cover <NUM> due to the stopper <NUM>.

The permanent magnet <NUM> may be prevented from front-rear movement due to the inner wall <NUM> and the stopper <NUM>. Thus, the stable and uniform heating of the drum <NUM> may be achieved. Further, when the temperature of the permanent magnet <NUM> is increased due to the overheated coil <NUM>, the heat from the permanent magnet <NUM> may be discharged through the opening.

In this connection, the base housing <NUM> may further include permanent magnet pressing means <NUM> protruding upwards in the bottom opening <NUM> to press the bottom face of the permanent magnet <NUM>. The permanent magnet pressing means <NUM> may be embodied as a leaf spring or rubber based protrusion.

When the vibration is transmitted to the permanent magnet <NUM> according to the vibration of the tub <NUM>, the permanent magnet <NUM> may generate noise due to the clearance that may be formed between the underlying coil slot <NUM> and the permanent magnet mount <NUM>.

Therefore, the permanent magnet pressing means <NUM> prevents the problem of generating the noise by buffering the vibration. Further, the permanent magnet pressing means <NUM> may remove the clearance to prevent the permanent magnet <NUM> and the permanent magnet mount <NUM> from being damaged due to the vibration.

Further, in order to improve the clamping force and to stably heat the drum <NUM>, the lower end of the permanent magnet mount <NUM> may be constructed to be in close contact with the top of the coil slot <NUM>.

In this case, since the bottom face of the permanent magnet <NUM> may be constructed closer to the coil <NUM> as described above, the drum <NUM> may be more uniformly heated. The bottom face of the permanent magnet <NUM> function as the reinforcing rib <NUM> to enhance the adhesion between the cover <NUM> and the base housing <NUM>.

Additionally, when the base housing <NUM> have a curved surface conforming to the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>, the cover <NUM> may have a curved surface having the same curvature as that of the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM>.

In another embodiment, the permanent magnet mount <NUM> may be included in the base housing <NUM>.

The base housing <NUM> may be formed such that the permanent magnet mount <NUM> is disposed on a top face of the fixing rib <NUM>. In this connection, the permanent magnet pressing means <NUM> may be formed on the bottom face of the cover <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, a description is given of how the cover <NUM> and the base housing <NUM> are coupled to the tub <NUM>.

In <FIG>, the fastening configuration between the tub <NUM>, base housing <NUM> and cover <NUM> is disclosed. Referring to <FIG>, the tub <NUM> includes the tub fastening portion <NUM>. The base housing <NUM> includes the base fastening portion <NUM>. The cover <NUM> includes a cover fastening portion <NUM>.

The tub fastening portion <NUM> has a tub fastening hole. The base fastening portion <NUM> has a base fastening hole. The cover fastening portion <NUM> has a cover fastening hole. All of the fastening holes may have the same length diameter. Thus, a single screw may pass through the holes to fasten the tub <NUM>, base housing <NUM> and cover <NUM> with each other at the same time.

Therefore, it is possible to easily assemble the tub, the base housing and the cover in the manufacturing process and to reduce the production cost.

In addition, in order to secure the fastening space when the longitudinal ends B1 and B2 of the coil are adjacent to the front and rear regions of the tub <NUM>, the tub fastening portion <NUM>, the base fastening portion <NUM>, and the cover fastening portion <NUM> are positioned such that the fastening points are present at both sides to the coil <NUM>.

Further, as shown in <FIG>, the cover <NUM> may further include a cover mounting rib <NUM> protruding downward at both side edges of the cover. The rib <NUM> allows the cover <NUM> to be easily fitted into the base housing <NUM> and prevent the left and right directional movement of the cover <NUM>.

Further, as shown in <FIG>, the cover <NUM> may have a fan mount <NUM>. The fan mount <NUM> may be formed at the center of the cover <NUM>.

Air may be introduced into the cover <NUM>, that is, the induction module, through the fan mount. Since a space is formed between the cover <NUM> and the base housing <NUM> in the induction module, a flow space of air is formed. Further, a through-hole is formed in the base housing. Thus, the air may cool the coil <NUM> in the internal space and be discharged outside the induction module through the through-hole of the base housing.

Herein, the example in which the induction module <NUM> is formed on the outer circumferential face of the tub <NUM> has been discussed. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. It is not excluded that the induction module <NUM> is formed on the inner circumferential surface of the tub <NUM>. In an alternative, the induction module <NUM> may form a portion of the circumferential face of the outer wall of the tub <NUM>.

In this connection, the induction module <NUM> is preferably located as close as possible to the outer circumferential face of the drum <NUM>. That is, the magnetic field generated by the induction module <NUM> is significantly reduced as the distance between the drum and the coil increases.

Referring to <FIG>, another embodiment of the base housing <NUM> will be described as follows.

Vibrations occur during operation of the laundry treating apparatus. In particular, vibration occurs in washing and dehydration processes and these vibrations are transmitted to the tub. Therefore, vibration is transmitted to the coil installed on the tub. Therefore, it is desirable to prevent the coil from being detached from the induction module installed in the laundry treating apparatus by vibration. In this embodiment, the structure of the base housing <NUM>, which can effectively prevent the detachment of the coil, is proposed.

As described above, in order to uniformly heat the drum, the shape of the coil <NUM> is preferably quadrangle and more preferably rectangular or square. Further, the base housing <NUM> accommodating the coil <NUM> therein has preferably a shape corresponding to the shape of the coil <NUM>. That is, the shape of the base housing <NUM> is preferably rectangular.

A method by which the coil <NUM> is installed on the base housing <NUM> will be described.

Basically, the wire <NUM> is coiled in a rectangular shape on the base housing <NUM> to form the coil <NUM>. This coiling will be explained as follows.

The base housing <NUM> has an inlet <NUM> and an outlet <NUM>. The inlet <NUM> is constructed near the center of the base housing <NUM>, while the outlet <NUM> is disposed at the edge of the base housing <NUM>. The wire <NUM> is drawn into the inlet <NUM> of the base housing <NUM> and is sequentially wound in the direction toward the edge. The wire <NUM> is finally drawn out of the base housing <NUM> through the outlet <NUM> of the base housing <NUM>. Finally, the shape of the coil <NUM> composed of the turns of the wire <NUM> is approximately rectangular.

Further, as shown in <FIG>, in order to coil the wire <NUM> on the base housing <NUM>, the ribs <NUM> protruding upwards are arranged on the base housing <NUM> at a predetermined spacing. The slot <NUM> accommodates the wire <NUM>. The slot may be defined between the rib <NUM> and the neighboring rib.

Once the wire <NUM> has been wound, thermal-fusing of the top portion of the rib <NUM> may be carried out to prevent the wire <NUM> from being detached from the slot <NUM>. That is, when the top portion of the rib <NUM> is melted while being pressed, the top portion of the rib <NUM> collapses to be extended laterally to block all or part of the open top of the slot <NUM>. Thus, the molten portion of the rib <NUM> prevents the wire <NUM> from being detached from the slot <NUM>.

As described above, the top portion melted by the thermal-fusing of the rib <NUM> prevents the wire <NUM> from being detached from the slot. Therefore, it is preferable that the molten amount by the thermal-fusing of the rib <NUM> is large in view of preventing the deviation of the wire <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, the thermal-fusing will be described.

As described above, the wire <NUM> is wound on the quadrangular base housing <NUM>. The shape of the coil <NUM> defined as the winding of the wire has a rectangular shape. Further, when winding the wire <NUM>, it is desirable that the turn of the wire <NUM> has a constant curvature while the spacing between the adjacent wire <NUM> and wire <NUM> is kept constant.

In the straight section A1 of the base housing <NUM>, the wire <NUM> extends in a straight line. In a corner section A2 of the base housing <NUM>, the wire <NUM> is bent at an angle of about <NUM> degrees.

A principle by which the geometry of the windings of the wire is used to prevent the detachment of the coil will be described.

The diagonal dimension L2 of the corner section A2 of the base housing <NUM> is greater than the width L1 of the straight section A1. In this connection, substantially the same number of wires <NUM> are wound on between the corner section A2 of the base housing <NUM> and the straight section A1 thereof.

Thus, the spacing W2 between the wire <NUM> and the adjacent wire at the corner section A2 is greater than the spacing W1 between the wire <NUM> and the adjacent wire at the straight section A1. In this connection, the rib is positioned in the spacings W1 and W2 between the neighboring wires <NUM>.

Thus, using these geometric characteristics, the thickness of the rib in the corner section A2 is larger than that in the straight section A1. Thus, the spacing W1 between the adjacent wires <NUM> in the straight section A1 may be kept constant while the thickness W2 of each of the ribs in the corner section A2 is large.

Increasing the thickness W2 of each of the ribs in the corner section A2 increases the amount as molten by the thermal-fusing of the rib in the corner section A2. Therefore, the detachment of the wire <NUM> from the module is more effectively prevented.

Referring to <FIG>, a thermal-fused region will be set forth as follows.

The thermal-fused region of the rib <NUM> to effectively prevent the removal of the coil <NUM> from the base housing <NUM> will be described.

The base housing <NUM> has a rectangular shape. The base housing <NUM> is wound by the wire <NUM>. In the corner section A2, the wire <NUM> is bent around <NUM> degrees. Therefore, in the corner section A2, as the wire <NUM> is bent, the spacing between the wire <NUM> and the base housing may be larger in the corner section A2. It is therefore desirable to prevent the detachment of the wire <NUM> from the housing in the corner section A2.

The details of the prevention of the removal of the coil from the housing will be described below.

The base housing <NUM> includes the slot base <NUM> from which the rib <NUM> protrudes. Further, the base housing <NUM> preferably has the through-hole <NUM>. That is, the entirety of the base housing <NUM> may not define the slot base <NUM>. In other words, the portion of the base housing <NUM> may define the slot base <NUM>. Further, it is preferable that the through hole <NUM> is formed at portions of the base housing other than the slot base <NUM>.

The slot base <NUM> may preferably define a portion of the housing corresponding to a portion where the permanent magnet <NUM> is installed. Further, through the through-hole <NUM>, the heat generated from the coil <NUM> may flow out.

As described above, the coil may be most easily detached from the housing in the corner section A2 of the base housing <NUM>. Therefore, it is particularly desirable to thermally fuse the rib <NUM> in the corner section A2 of the base housing <NUM>. Further, in the corner section A2, it is more desirable to perform thermal-fusing of two rows of the ribs H radially extending from the center to the edge.

More specifically, in the corner section A2, a thermal-fusing line is defined along which that the thermal fusing means thermally fuses the rib <NUM>. The thermal-fusing line transverses the corner section A2. When the rib <NUM> is subjected to the thermal-fusing, the wire may be secured to the base housing <NUM>.

The thermal-fusing line may extend in a direction outwardly in the corner section A2. Preferably, the thermal-fusing line may extend in a direction radially and outwardly in the corner section A2.

Further, the corner section A2 is defined as a section connecting the transverse straight portions <NUM> and <NUM> and the longitudinal straight portion <NUM>. The corner section A2 has a start point as an end of one of the transverse straight portion <NUM>, and <NUM> and the longitudinal straight portion <NUM> and has an end point as an end of the other of the transverse straight portion <NUM>, and <NUM> and the longitudinal straight portion <NUM>.

The thermal-fusing line may extend between the start and end points of the corner section A2. That is, as the base housing <NUM> has the geometric shape having the corner, the coil detachment phenomenon occurs frequently in the corner section A2. Thus, forming the thermal-fusing line in the corner section A2 may allow the coil to be prevented from being raised up.

In one example, the permanent magnet <NUM> is located on the coil in the corner section A2 of the base housing <NUM>. It is more desirable to perform the thermal-fusing of the rib along the longitudinal direction of the permanent magnet <NUM> in the corner section A2 of the base housing <NUM>. It is further preferable to thermally-fuse the rib along the inner space of the permanent magnet mount <NUM>, that is, the bottom opening <NUM>. This is because the thermal-fusing in this way can ensure sufficient heat-fused amount of the rib <NUM> due to the large thickness of the rib in the corner section A2.

Further, even when the thermal-fusing is performed in the straight section A1 of the base housing <NUM>, the thermal-fusing is preferably performed along the longitudinal direction of the permanent magnet <NUM>. It is more preferable to perform the thermal-fusing of the rib along the inner space of the permanent magnet mount <NUM>.

The thermal-fusing may be performed by inserting the wire into the slot defined by the fixing ribs, melting the top portion of the rib to cover the top of the coil. For this reason, the base housing <NUM> including the fixing ribs may be formed via plastic injection molding.

Further, when the wire is inserted into the coil slot, the top of the fixing rib may protrude above the top of the wire. In this connection, pressing down the heating plate on the top of the fixing rib causes the molten part of the fixing rib to collapse in a spread manner to the left and right sides. The molten part may spread laterally to the left and right to the fixing rib to fix the coil.

Thus, the top part of the fixing rib melts and collapses to cover the top opening of the coil slot (the opening through which the wire is inserted). The top opening is completely blocked or partially open. When the opening is partially open, the partial open portion is much smaller than the wire diameter of the wire, so that the wire may be prevented from being removed from the opening.

Further, the direction of collapse of the top portion of the fixing rib may be determined based on the direction of movement of the heating plate. As described above, when the plate is pressed downward, the melted portion of one fixing rib collapses and spreads laterally to the right and left. Further, when the hot plate is moved to the left side while pressing downward the plate, the melted portion of the fixing rib may move to the left side and cover the top opening of the coil slot.

Claim 1:
A laundry treating apparatus (<NUM>) comprising:
a cabinet (<NUM>);
a drum (<NUM>) made of a metal material and disposed into the cabinet (<NUM>), wherein the drum (<NUM>) receives a laundry therein; and
an induction module (<NUM>) spaced apart from an outer circumferential face of the drum (<NUM>) by a predetermined spacing, wherein the induction module (<NUM>) has a coil (<NUM>) formed by turns of a wire (<NUM>), wherein the induction module (<NUM>) inductively heats the drum (<NUM>) using a magnetic field generated by applying a current to the coil (<NUM>),
wherein the induction module (<NUM>) includes a rectangular shaped base housing (<NUM>) for accommodates the coil (<NUM>), wherein the base housing (<NUM>) has straight sections (A1) and corner sections (A2),
wherein the base housing (<NUM>) includes ribs (<NUM>) protruding upwards from the base housing (<NUM>) and formed in the straight sections (A1) and the corner sections (A2) to define a slot (<NUM>) for accommodating the coil (<NUM>) therein,
characterized in that a thickness of each of the ribs (<NUM>) in each corner section (A2) is greater than a thickness of each of the ribs (<NUM>) in each straight section (A1) in order to be positioned in the spacings between neighbouring wires (<NUM>) at the corner sections (A2) and at the straight sections (A1), respectively.