Patent ID: 7578149

Claim:
A motor for the direct drive of a laundry treatment appliance having a tub with a rear wall, a bearing hole located through the rear wall of the tub or through a bearing spider attached to the rear wall of the tub, and a drum having a drum shaft with bearings accommodated in the bearing hole for mounting the drum rotatably in the bearing spider or in the rear wall of the tub, an inner face of the bearing hole being coaxial with the drum shaft, the motor comprising: a stator having a hole through which the drum shaft passes, said hole in said stator defining an edge having a protuberance, said protuberance extending into the bearing hole and directly contacting the coaxial inner face of the bearing hole to effect centering of the stator hole relative to the bearing hole, said stator having field coils fixed to the bearing spider or to the rear wall of the tub; and a rotor secured on one end of the drum shaft and separated from said stator by a narrow air gap, for transmitting a torque to the drum.