LAUNDRY TREATING APPARATUS

Description

CROSS REFERENCE

This application is based upon and claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202422663350.8, entitled “LAUNDRY TREATING APPARATUS”, filed on Oct. 31, 2024, and Chinese Patent Application No. 202423096411.3, entitled “LAUNDRY TREATING APPARATUS”, filed on Dec. 13, 2024. The entire contents of both priority applications are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to the technical field of household appliances and, more particularly, to a laundry treating apparatus.

BACKGROUND

With the rising living standards, demands for laundry treating apparatuses have grown increasingly sophisticated. In the related art, a dual-drum laundry treating apparatus has been designed to meet diverse usage requirements. However, vibration produced during operation of the drum can be hardly avoided. In order to suppress such vibration, the drum is usually equipped with a vibration-reducing structure for vibration reduction. Given the need to accommodate two drums simultaneously in a limited space, the vibration-reducing structure has to be arranged in a rational manner.

SUMMARY

To overcome the problems in the related art, the present disclosure provides a laundry treating apparatus.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, a laundry treating apparatus is provided, including: a cabinet; and a first drum and a second drum, disposed inside the cabinet respectively, wherein the second drum is located diagonally above the first drum, wherein at least a part of a vibration-reducing structure of the second drum is connected to a proximal wall of the cabinet, and the proximal wall is configured as a side wall of the cabinet adjacent to the second drum.

Optionally, the entire vibration-reducing structure of the second drum is connected to the proximal wall of the cabinet.

Optionally, the vibration-reducing structure includes a first buffer member directly connected between the proximal wall and the second drum.

Optionally, the proximal wall is provided with a first reinforcing member at a position corresponding to the first buffer member.

Optionally, the vibration-reducing structure includes a support beam connected between the proximal wall and the second drum.

Optionally, the vibration-reducing structure further includes a second buffer member, through which the support beam is connected to the second drum.

Optionally, the support beam is directly connected between the proximal wall and the second drum.

Optionally, the first buffer member includes a damper and/or a suspension spring, the damper supports the second drum obliquely from below, and the suspension spring lifts the second drum obliquely from above.

Optionally, the vibration-reducing structure includes a first buffer member and a support beam, the first buffer member is directly connected between the proximal wall and the second drum, and the support beam is connected between the proximal wall and the second drum.

Optionally, the vibration-reducing structure further includes a second buffer member, through which the support beam is connected to the second drum.

Optionally, the support beam is directly connected between the proximal wall and the second drum.

Optionally, the second drum is directly connected to the proximal wall.

Optionally, the proximal wall is provided with a third reinforcing member, and the second drum is directly connected to the third reinforcing member.

Optionally, the vibration-reducing structure is connected between the proximal wall and a first side portion of the second drum facing the proximal wall; and the laundry treating apparatus further includes a balance structure for maintaining balance of the second drum, and the balance structure is connected between a balance fixing member and a second side portion of the second drum, wherein the second side portion faces away from the first side portion.

Optionally, the balance fixing member includes at least one of: the first drum, a counterweight block of the first drum, a top wall of the cabinet, a bottom wall of the cabinet, a front wall of the cabinet, a rear wall of the cabinet, and a distal wall of the cabinet opposite to the proximal wall.

Optionally, the balance structure includes a first balance member directly connected between the balance fixing member and the second side portion.

Optionally, the balance fixing member is provided with a second reinforcing member at a position corresponding to the first balance member.

Optionally, the balance structure includes a balance beam, and an end of the balance beam is connected to the balance fixing member.

Optionally, the other end of the balance beam is a cantilevered end, or the other end of the balance beam is connected to the balance fixing member.

Optionally, the balance structure further includes a second balance member, through which the balance beam is connected to the second side portion.

Optionally, the balance beam is directly connected to the second side portion.

Optionally, the balance beam is provided with an avoidance structure to avoid the first drum.

The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure may have the following beneficial effects. For a known laundry treating apparatus, a second drum is above one side of a vertical plane where a central axis of a first drum is located, and after two drums are arranged in place, space left between the second drum and a proximal wall of a cabinet is typically insufficient to accommodate other components, and vibrations from a lateral side of the second drum are mainly small-scale vibrations. Consequently, in the laundry treating apparatus provided by the present disclosure, the vibration-reducing structure is at least partially connected between the second drum and the proximal wall of the cabinet, which may fully utilize the limited space between the second drum and the proximal wall while satisfying the vibration-reducing requirement of the second drum.

It should be understood that the above general description and the subsequent detailed description are only exemplary and explanatory and cannot limit the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are incorporated into the specification and form a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments in accordance with the present disclosure and are used together with the specification to explain principles of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a first laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a second laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a third laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a fourth laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a fifth laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a sixth laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a seventh laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 is an exemplary schematic diagram of an eighth laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a ninth laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a tenth laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 is an exemplary schematic diagram of an eleventh laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a twelfth laundry treating apparatus according to the present disclosure.

REFERENCE NUMERALS

• • 1—cabinet; 11—proximal wall; 12—top wall; 13—bottom wall; 14—distal wall; 2—first drum; 3—second drum; 31—first side portion; 32—second side portion; 4—vibration—reducing structure; 41—first buffer member; 42—support beam; 43—second buffer member; 51—first reinforcing member; 52—second reinforcing member; 53—third reinforcing member; 6—balance structure; 61—first balance member; 62—balance beam; 621—avoidance structure; 63—second balance member.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Exemplary embodiments will now be described in detail, with examples shown in the accompanying drawings. When the following description refers to the accompanying drawings, unless otherwise indicated, the same numbers in different drawings denote the same or similar elements. The embodiments described in the following exemplary embodiments do not represent all embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. Rather, they are merely examples of devices and methods consistent with some aspects of the present disclosure as detailed in the appended claims.

Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure provide various laundry treating apparatuses, which may be a dual-drum laundry machine, a dual-drum dryer, a dual-drum washer-dryer combo or etc. Referring to FIGS. 1 to 7, a laundry treating apparatus provided by the present disclosure includes a cabinet 1 as well as a first drum 2 and a second drum 3 that are both arranged within the cabinet 1, in which the second drum 3 is diagonally above the first drum 2. At least a part of a vibration-reducing structure 4 for the second drum 3 is connected to a proximal wall 11 of the cabinet 1, and the proximal wall 11 is configured as a side wall of the cabinet 1 adjacent to the second drum 3. Here, it should be explained that a vertical plane where a central axis of the second drum 3 is located may divide the second drum 3 into two parts that are symmetrical in a left-right direction, in which one portion facing the proximal wall 11 is referred to as a first side portion 31 and the other portion is referred to as a second side portion 32 described below. The above phrase “the second drum 3 is diagonally above the first drum 2” means that a majority of a drum body of the second drum 3 is above one side of the vertical plane where the central axis of the first drum 2 is located; that is, the second drum 3 may span both sides of the vertical plane, as long as the majority of the second drum is located on one side of the vertical plane. In addition, the term “above” here means that the majority of the drum body of the second drum 3 is on an upper side of a horizontal plane where the central axis of the first drum 2 is located; that is, the second drum 3 may span both sides of the horizontal plane, as long as the majority of the second drum is located on the upper side of the horizontal plane.

It should be explained that the above phrase “at least a part of a vibration-reducing structure 4 for the second drum 3 is connected to the proximal wall 11 of the cabinet 1” indicates that the second drum 3 may have a plurality of vibration-reducing structures 4, as long as at least one of the plurality of vibration-reducing structures 4 is connected to the proximal wall 11. When there is only one vibration-reducing structure 4, it needs to be connected to the proximal wall 11.

The first drum 2 and the second drum 3 in the present disclosure may be, for example, outer drums of a laundry machine. A drum structure of the laundry machine typically includes an outer drum and an inner drum located inside the outer drum. Laundry to be washed is placed in the inner drum and washed by actions such as rotation of the inner drum. The outer drum remains stationary and serves to support and secure the inner drum. The first drum 2 and the second drum 3 may have identical outer diameters or different outer diameters. For example, the outer diameter of the first drum 2 ranges from 500 mm to 545 mm, and the outer diameter of the second drum 3 ranges from 150 mm to 200 mm.

Unlike a single-drum laundry machine, the dual-drum laundry machine has a more complex structure due to the addition of one drum and the vibration-reducing structure equipped for the additional drum. Due to spatial avoidance and other requirements, there is space left between the first drum 2 and the second drum 3. However, constrained by limited arrangement space, although some space exists between the second drum 3 and the proximal wall 11, this space is typically not enough to accommodate other components with large volumes. Moreover, vibrations from a lateral side of the second drum 3 are mainly small-scale vibrations. Considering the above technical problems, for the laundry treating apparatus provided in the present disclosure, at least a part of the vibration-reducing structure of the second drum 3 is connected between the second drum 3 and the proximal wall 11 of the cabinet 1, which may meet the vibration-reducing requirement of the second drum 3 and at the same time fully utilize the limited space between the second drum 3 and the proximal wall 11.

In some embodiments, the entire vibration-reducing structure 4 for the second drum 3 is connected to the proximal wall 11 of the cabinet 1. In other words, in this embodiment, the entire vibration-reducing structure 4 for the second drum 3 is connected to the proximal wall 11 of the cabinet, and no vibration-reducing structure 4 for the second drum 3 is provided between other walls of the cabinet 1 and the second drum 3, which is conducive to further saving space. Alternatively, a balance structure to be described later or other components different from the vibration-reducing structure 4 may be connected to other walls of the cabinet 1 or the first drum 2, which is not elaborated here.

The present disclosure is not intended to limit the specific form of the vibration-reducing structure 4. Any structure capable of being connected between the first side portion 31 of the second drum 3 and the proximal wall 11 and capable of suppressing the vibration of the second drum 3 may be applied in the present disclosure.

In embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, the vibration-reducing structure 4 may include a first buffer member 41, which may be directly connected between the proximal wall 11 and the second drum 3. By directly connecting the first buffer member 41 between the proximal wall 11 and the second drum 3, the vibration of the second drum 3 may be suppressed, and this direct connection does not require additional structures, which may effectively simplify the vibration-reducing structure 4.

The present disclosure does not limit the first buffer member 41. For example, in embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 and 6, the first buffer member 41 may include a damper and/or a suspension spring; the damper may support the second drum 3 obliquely from below, and the suspension spring may lift the second drum 3 obliquely from above. Moreover, in an embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the first buffer member 41 may include only one damper, which may be horizontally arranged and directly supported between the second drum 3 and the proximal wall 11. In addition to providing vibration reduction, the damper may also have a support function.

Considering lightweight design, the wall of the cabinet 1 is not designed to be excessively thick, so its strength is limited. In order to enhance the connection strength between the first buffer member 41 and the cabinet 1, optionally, a first reinforcing member 51 may be provided at a position of the proximal wall 11 corresponding to the first buffer member 41. The first reinforcing member 51 may be, for example, a reinforced sheet metal. The sheet metal has a relatively small thickness, which may reduce the space occupation within the cabinet 1 and realize light mass while providing reliable connection for the first buffer member 41.

In an embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the vibration-reducing structure 4 may further include a support beam 42, which may be connected between the proximal wall 11 and the second drum 3. The support beam 42 may function to support the second drum 3, and the vibration of the second drum 3 may be transmitted to the support beam 42, so that the support beam 42 may share the vibration of the second drum 3. Here, it should be noted that in an embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the support beam 42 may be directly connected between the proximal wall 11 and the second drum 3. Alternatively, in some other embodiments, the support beam 42 may also be indirectly connected to the second drum 3, for example through a second buffer member 43 mentioned below.

Further, referring to FIG. 7, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the vibration-reducing structure 4 may further include the second buffer member 43, and the support beam 42 may be connected to the second drum 3 through the second buffer member 43. The second buffer member 43 may specifically include an elastic structure (such as a spring, etc.) or a damping structure (such as a damper, etc.). In this embodiment, the arrangement of the support beam 42 and the second buffer member 43 allows the second drum 3 to achieve a more reliable vibration-reducing effect, compared to direction connection with the second drum 3 through the support beam 42. In addition, the support beam 42 may also serve to support and secure the second drum 3, and related components of the second drum 3, such as a drying channel, may be fixed by means of the support beam 42.

Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, in some embodiments, the vibration-reducing structure 4 may include the first buffer member 41 and the support beam 42. The first buffer member may be directly connected between the proximal wall 11 and the second drum 3, and the support beam 42 may also be connected between the proximal wall 11 and the second drum 3. In this embodiment, the first buffer member 41 and the support beam 42 separately serve as the vibration-reducing structure 4 and may independently achieve a vibration-reducing function. Specifically, in an embodiment of FIG. 9, the vibration-reducing structure 4 may further include the second buffer member 43, and the support beam 42 may be connected to the second drum 3 through the second buffer member 43. In an embodiment shown in FIG. 10, the support beam 42 may be directly connected between the proximal wall 11 and the second drum 3.

Referring to FIG. 11, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, the second drum 3 may be directly connected to the proximal wall 11. In this case, the proximal wall 11 may serve as the aforementioned vibration-reducing structure 4. It should be noted that the proximal wall 11 may have a connecting rib structure in order to be connectable with the second drum 3. Alternatively, in an embodiment shown in FIG. 12, the proximal wall 11 may be provided with a third reinforcing member 53; the second drum 3 may be directly connected to the third reinforcing member 53, and the third reinforcing member 53 may be, for example, a reinforced sheet metal. The sheet metal has a relatively small thickness, which may reduce the space occupation within the cabinet 1 and realize light mass while providing reliable connection for the second drum 3.

In order to make reasonable use of the internal space of the cabinet 1 and simplify the size and cost of the vibration-reducing structure 4, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the vibration-reducing structure 4 may be connected between the proximal wall 11 and the first side portion 31 of the second drum 3 facing the proximal wall 11. As the first side portion 31 faces the proximal wall 11, the arrangement of the vibration-reducing structure 4 between them may reduce the size and cost of the vibration-reducing structure 4. Due to the vibration-reducing structure 4 being connected with the first side portion 31 of the second drum 3, the stability of the second drum 3 may be insufficient. In the embodiments of the present disclosure, referring to FIGS. 1 to 7, the laundry treating apparatus may further include a balance structure 6 configured to maintain balance of the second drum 3, and the balance structure 6 may be connected between a balance fixing member and the second side portion 32 of the second drum 3, wherein the second side portion 32 faces away from the first side portion 31. The arrangement of the balance structure 6 may function to balance force acting on the second drum 3, thereby improving the stability of the laundry treating apparatus during use.

It should be noted that the balance structure 6 is different from the aforementioned vibration-reducing structure 4, the balance structure 6 functions to secure and balance the second drum 3. For example, the balance structure 6 may be a metal bracket which is not a buffer member. Furthermore, the balance structure 6 may be configured to possess a certain degree of elasticity, such as an elastic bracket, a damper, etc., which may share part of pressure of the vibration-reducing structure when the second drum 3 vibrates excessively.

The present disclosure does not limit the balance fixing member. In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the balance fixing member may include at least one of: the first drum 2, a counterweight block (not shown) of the first drum 2, a top wall 12 of the cabinet 1, a bottom wall 13 of the cabinet 1, a front wall of the cabinet 1, a rear wall of the cabinet 1, and a distal wall 14 of the cabinet 1 opposite to the proximal wall 11. The balance structure 6 may be connected only to the top wall 12 or only to the front wall, or may be connected to both the bottom wall 13 and the distal wall 14 at the same time. Specifically, for example, in an embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the balance structure 6 may be connected between the second side portion 32 and the first drum 2; in embodiments shown in FIGS. 2, 6 and 7, the balance structure 6 may be connected between the second side portion 32 and the distal wall 14 of the cabinet 1 opposite the proximal wall 11; in an embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the balance structure 6 may be connected between the second side portion 32 and the bottom wall 13 of the cabinet 1; in embodiments shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the balance structure 6 may be connected between the second side portion 32 and the top wall 12 of the cabinet 1. The present disclosure does not limit the specific connection position of the balance structure 6, which may be adaptively designed according to actual situations.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 7, in some embodiments, the balance structure 6 may include a first balance member 61, which may be directly connected between the balance fixing member and the second side portion 32. Specifically, the first balance member 61 may be directly connected between the cabinet 1 and the second side portion 32, or directly connected between the first drum body 2 and the second side portion 32. In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the first balance member 61 may be a damper and/or a spring.

Correspondingly, the balance fixing member may be provided with a second reinforcing member 52 (e.g., a reinforced sheet metal) at a position corresponding to the first balance member 61. The sheet metal has a relatively small thickness, which may reduce the space occupation within the cabinet 1 and realize light mass while providing reliable connection for the first balance member 61.

In embodiments shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, due to a relatively great distance between the balance fixing member and the second side portion 32, a larger-sized balance member has a high cost and poor effect. Consequently, in some embodiments, the balance structure 6 may include a balance beam 62, and an end of the balance beam 62 may be connected to the balance fixing member. The above problem of “a relatively great distance between the balance fixing member and the second side portion 32” may be effectively solved by the balance beam 62. It should be noted that the balance beam 62 may be directly connected to the second side portion 32, in which case the aforementioned balance function is realized through the elasticity of the balance beam 62 itself. Alternatively, in some other embodiments, the balance structure 6 may further include a second balance member 63, and the balance beam 62 may also be connected to the second side portion 32 through the second balance member 63. The second balance member 63 may be a damper and/or a spring. That the balance beam 62 is connected to the second side portion 32 through the second balance member 63 may have a better balance effect compared to direct connection to the second side portion 32. However, the direct connection between the balance beam 62 and the second side portion 32 may be beneficial for reducing the internal structural complexity and production cost of the cabinet 1.

The present disclosure does not limit the specific form of the balance beam 62. In the embodiments of the present disclosure, an end of the balance beam 62 may be connected to the balance fixing member, and the other end of the balance beam 62 may be a cantilevered end, that is, the other end is suspended in the air and has no connection relationship with other components. In addition, in some other embodiments, the other end of the balance beam 62 may also be connected to a balance fixing member. Specifically, both ends of the balance beam 62 may be connected to the same balance fixing member, for example, both being connected to the distal wall 14. In this case, the balance beam 62 may be configured as a bent shape, such as a U-shape. Furthermore, in some other embodiments, both ends of the balance beam 62 may also be connected to different balance fixing members, for example, the end is connected to the distal wall 14 and the other end is connected to the top wall, or alternatively, the end is connected to the top wall and the other end is connected to the bottom wall.

A specific structure of the balance beam 62 will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6. For example, in an embodiment of FIG. 3, an end of the balance beam 62 may be connected to the bottom wall 13, and the other end thereof may extend to a position close to the second drum 3 and be connected to the second side portion 32 through the second balance member 63. In order to avoid interference with the first drum 2, the balance beam 62 may be constructed as a folded beam having an avoidance structure 621. In embodiments shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the end of the balance beam 62 may be connected to the top wall 12, and the other end of the balance beam 62 may extend downwards to a lateral side of the second drum 3 and be connected to the second side portion 32 through the second balance member 63, wherein the balance beam 62 may be a straight beam. In an embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the end of the balance beam 62 may be connected to the distal wall 14, and the other end of the balance beam 62 may extend to a side close to the second side portion 32 and be connected to the second side portion 32 through the second balance member 63, wherein the balance beam 62 may be configured as a folded beam including a horizontal segment and a vertical segment. The vertical segment is positioned on a lateral side of the second drum 3 to facilitate installation of the second balance member 63.

In embodiments shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, the balance beam 62 is a cantilevered beam. In addition, in some other embodiments, the balance beam 62 may be a through beam, i.e., both ends are connected to different balance fixing members. Specifically, both ends of the balance beam 62 may extend to the proximal wall 11 and the top wall 12, respectively. Alternatively, both ends of the balance beam 62 may extend to the front wall and the rear wall of the cabinet 1, respectively. Alternatively, both ends of the balance beam 62 may extend to the top wall 12 and the bottom wall 13 of the cabinet 1, respectively. This through beam, with both ends connected to side panels of the cabinet respectively, has better installation stability and may provide more reliable support for the second drum 3. As described above, regardless of whether the balance beam 62 is a cantilevered beam or a through beam, it may be directly connected to the second side portion 32, or it may also be connected to the second side portion 32 through the second balance member 63. There may be a plurality of balance beams 62 or a single balance beam 62.

Further, considering a relatively small distance between the first drum 2 and the second drum 3 within a limited design space, referring to FIG. 3, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the balance beam 62 may be provided with the avoidance structure 621 to avoid the first drum 2. The avoidance structure 621 shown in FIG. 3 adopts a bent design, and such a bent beam may allow for bending according to components that need to be avoided, and may provide higher flexibility. In other embodiments, the avoidance structure 621 may be a recess on the balance beam 62 corresponding to a position of the first drum 2, which will not be limited in the present disclosure.

Other embodiments are easily conceivable for those skilled in the art after consideration of the specification and practicing the technical solutions disclosed herein. This application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptive changes of the present disclosure, which follow the general principles of the present disclosure and include common knowledge or conventional technical means in the art that are not disclosed herein. The specification and embodiments are merely exemplary, and the true scope and spirit of the present disclosure are indicated by the appended claims.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the precise structures described above and shown in the accompanying drawings, and various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope. The scope of the present disclosure is limited only by the appended claims.