Patent ID: 8376423

Claim:
A mechanism for locking a door of an household appliance, comprising: a housing, said housing having a through hole extending through a lower face of said housing, said through hole having a hindering edge formed by one end thereof; a slider slidably disposed within said housing; said slider having a body and a slider jaw pivotally hinged to said body; said slider jaw having a tooth disposed on a surface thereof and an opening finger at a surface opposite to said slider jaw tooth; a latch having a head and a second end, wherein said second end is attached to said door of said appliance, said latch thrusts said slider by closing and opening of the door of said household appliance, said latch head is engagable with said slider jaw tooth when said door of said household appliance is closed; a spring disposed within said housing and providing a bias against linear movement of said slider in a direction against a force of the spring on the slider during the closing of said door and in a direction of the force of the spring on the slider during opening of said door; a protrusion extending upwardly from the lower face of said housing, said protrusion engaging to lift and engage said slider jaw tooth with the latch head when said latch thrusts the slider within said housing against the force of said spring; wherein the slider jaw tooth engages or releases said head of said latch; and, wherein said opening finger slides within said through hole when said latch thrusts the slider within the housing against the force of the spring such that said opening finger engages with said hindering edge of said through hole to disengage said slider jaw tooth from said head of said latch.