US2879655A - Washing and extracting machine - Google Patents

Description

March 31, 1959 F. H. MCCORMICK wAsH'iNG AND EXTRACTING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 10, 1954 INVENTOR.

Franc/s H McCormick BY His Attorney Fig: l

7 March 31, 1.959 F. H. MCCORMICK 2,879,555

WASHING AND EXTRACTING MACHINE Filed March 10, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig. 2

ENTOR. Franc/s H. McCormick Y B MW His Attorney March 31, 1959 F. H. MCCORMICK WASHING AND EXTRACTING MACHINE S Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 10, 1954 TIMING SEQUENCE TIMER MOTOR WATER MOTOR FORWARD MOTOR REVERSE BRAKE z'm j 268 w m m m Fr ncl's H. McCormick His A fforney United States Patent WASHING AND EXTRACTING MACHINE Francis H. McCormick, Dayton, Ohio, assignor to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaware Application March 10, 1954, Serial No. 415,190

4 Claims. (Cl. (58-23) This invention relates to a domestic appliance and more particularly to an automatic combined washing and centrifuging machine.

It is an object of my invention to provide a more simple trifugal tub with an independent reciprocating agitator therein in which the weight, size and number of reciprocating parts are kept at a minimum to reduce stress and make possible a lighter, less expensive, more durable mechanism.

These and other objects are attained by providing a resiliently mounted tubular support rotatably supporting a tub and having a driving motor and pump at its lower end connected to a vertical drive shaft. A wound spring clutch is provided for connecting the vertical drive shaft with the tub in one direction of rotation for centrifuging. An axial cam upon the drive shaft is rotated within the tub directly beneath the agitator for reciprocating the agitator. An electrically operated brake is located immediately beneath the tub for holding the tub stationary during the agitation period and for slowing down the rotation of the tub at the completion of the centrifuging.

Further objects and advantages of the presentinvention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred form of the present invention is clearly shown.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view, partly diagrammatic, of a washing machine incorporating one form of my invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the lines 2-2 of Figure 1 of an agitator and associated parts of the tub and mechanism;

Figure 3 is a sectional view reduced in size taken along the lines 33 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 44 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a view of the timing control and wiring system; and

Figure 6 is a chart illustrating the operation of the timing control.

Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to Figure 1 there is shown a washing machine including a base 20 provided with adjustable feet 22. Extending upwardly from the base 28 are inner supporting members 24 which support the cylindrical walled tank 26. The cylindrical walled tank 26 includes a transverse bulkhead 28 provided at its central portion with a cone-shaped resilient mounting 30. The cabinet is also provided with outer ornamental box-shaped walls 32 and a top which includes the lid 34. The lid 34 opens to provide access to thetub 36. The cone-shaped mount- Patented Mar. 31, 1959 ing 30 at its upper end is provided with a reinforcing member 40. This reinforcing member is clamped to the upper end of a tubular housing 42 provided with a clamping shoulder 44 and a clamping nut 46 threaded onto the upper end of the housing 42.

The housing 42 extends downwardly through the central opening 48 in the bulkhead 28. At its lower end the housing 42 has an electric motor 50. This motor preferably is reversible and normally operates at a speed of about 1750 r.p.m. The motor 50 on its lower end is connected directly to a pump 52 having its inlet connected by a flexible tube 54 to the outlet connection 56 of the bulkhead 28. The outlet of the pump 52 is connected by a flexible tube 58 to the outside of the box-shaped wall 32 for connection with a suitable drain. Beneath the pump 52 is a snubber plate 60 held by the spring 62 in frictional engagement with the bottom face of the housing of the pump 52 so as to act as a snubber to the oscillations and vibrations of the housing 42.

To provide a drive of the proper speed and torque, the motor 58 is provided with a planetary speed redutcion. The motor shaft is connected to the sun gear 64 which drives the planet pinions 66 which are rotatably mounted on bearings fixed to the motor housing. The planet pinions 66 serve as idlers to drive the ring gear 68. The ring gear 68 connects to the vertical drive shaft 70 rotatably mounted upon the lower and upper bearings 72 and 74 on the housing 42. The shaft 70 is hollow and carries a supply of lubricant for the upper mechanism. The upper end of the shaft 70 is provided with an extension 76 providing a shoulder 78for supporting the inner race of a ball bearing 80. The outer race of the ball bearing 80 fits into the shoulder 82 provided in the hub casting 84 of the tub 36. The top of the hub casting 84 is provided with a threaded member 88 which holds the outer race of an upper ball bearing 90 between it and the upper threaded neck of the hub casting 84. The inner race of the ball bearing 90 fits the cylindrical surface of the extension 76.

The upper end of the extension 76 is keyed to a cylindrical cam 92 provided with the square walled cam groove 94. This cam groove 94 extends helically downwardly through 180 and thence helically upward through the next 180 to its starting point to complete the groove. A cam roller 96 fits Within this groove and is rotatably mounted upon a pin 98 fastened to the inverted metal cup member 121. The skirt of this invertedcup member 121 is provided with a vertical slot 123 into which fits thevertical pin 125 screwed into the threaded member 88. This pin 125 and the slot 123 prevent the rotation of the inverted cup 121 relative to the tub 36 and limits it to vertical reciprocation relative to the tub 36. The cup rests upon a shoulder of the agitator pin, 127 having sliding fit into a bore in the upper end of the cam 92.

Also fitted on top of the inverted cup member 121 is a bellows supporting disc 129 as well as the upper end portion 131 of a bellows 133 of rubber-like material. Fitted on top of the end 131 is the bell-shaped portion 135 of the agitator 137. This bell-shaped portion 135 has a central metal reinforced portion' and a flared skirt 139 of resilient rubber. This bell-shaped portion is connected to the inverted cup 121 by a threaded member 141 which is threaded onto the upper end of the agitator pin 127. The agitator iscompleted by the thin metal tubular pilot 143 fastened in place by a long screw 145 which is threaded into the upper portion of the threaded member 141. The tub 36 includes a cone-shaped centralportion having a curled neck 147. The lower end of the bellows 133 is fastened to this neck 147 by a wire clamp 149.

The. neck 147 is sealed to the casting 84. and the:

threaded member 88 by a rubber gasket 151 which seals hesitate within the bellows 133. The oil flows upwardly through the central oil passage 153 in the extension 76. The oil flows t em-the passage 153 through the keyway 155 in the a ial can; 92 to the oil hole 157 which feeds the oil into the square groove 94. The oil flows out of the bellows chamber through the ball bearings 90 and 80 and back through the bearing 74 into the h us Within the hub 84 between the ball bearings 80 and 90 is a wound spring one way overrunning type self-engaging clutch 161. This clutch is wrapped around the distension 76 sufficiently tight to lightly grip the surface of t he extension 76. The lower end of the wound spring is provided with an outward extension 163 held by a notch in the hub 84. When the drive shaft 70 is rotated in a direction to unwind the wound spring clutch 161, the cam 92 through its keyed connection with the extension 76 will be rotated to reciprocate the agitator 137 which is guided vertically by the pins 127 and 125. When the shaft 70 is turned in the opposite direction to wind up the wound spring clutch 161,. this wound spring clutch will grip the cylindrical surface of the extension 76 and connect the extension 76 to the hub 84 to spin the tub 36. The hub 84 is also provided with a running seal 165 making sealing engagement with the large nut 46 to prevent the escape of lubricant from the space between the bearings 74 and 80.

' While my washer will function without the use of a brake for the tubs, a brake is useful to more quickly slow down the tub following the centrifuging operation and to prevent any rotation during agitation. As one ex-. ample of such a brake there is clamped between the nut 46 :andthe top of the resilient cone-shaped mounting 30 a hrake mounting plate 167. This brake mounting plate provided with a fixed pin 169. The brake mechanism is of the two shoe type self-energizing in both directions of rotation (see Figure 3). The shoes 171 and 173 are substantially rigid and are provided with suitable friction facing 175 and 177. The shoes are provided with end-projections 179 and 181 which terminate in sockets fitting on opposite sides of the pin 169. These projece tions are held against the pin 169 by the tension coil springs 183 and 185. The opposite ends of the shoes 171 and 173 are held in spaced relation by a threaded adjustable spacer 187. These opposite ends are held in contact with the spacer 187 at all times by a tension coil spring 189 connecting the adjacent ends of the shoes 171 and 173. The brake is applied by two solenoids I having their stationary coils 191 and 193 fixed to the mounting plate 167 by screws 195 These solenoids are provided with operating plungers 197 and 199 which when energized provide a yielding force to separate the adjacent ends of the shoes 171 and 173. If the rotation is clockwise as shown in Figure 3 the projection 181 will be carried by the rotation into contact with the pin 169. The frictional engagement of the friction material 175 and 177 will tend to carry the shoes 171 in a clockwise direction to assist in applying the brake and overcoming the tension of the spring 183 to provide self-energizing action in a well known manner. If the rotation is counterclockwise, the same action will take place in the reverse di i n- The machine may be provided witha Water supply including a hot water supply 220 and a mixed or tempered water supply 222. A solenoid valve 224 is provided for controlling the hot water supply and a solenoid valve 226 is provided for controlling the mixed or tempered water supply. The outlets of these valves are connected to a water conduit 228 terminating in a spout 230 which discharges into the tub 36.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 5 and 6, there is shown a timing control including a dial knob 232 provided upon a timer shaft 234 adapted to be {stated by a synchronous clock timer motor 236. The

shaft 234 is provided with a motor forward earn 238, a motor reverse cam 240, a water control cam 242 and a brake cam 244. These cains have their contours shaped to perform the operations for the time and sequencm indicated in Figure 6. One terminal of the timer motor 236 is connected to the electrical supply conductor 246 while a second terminal is connected by a conductor 248 to a normally stationary contact 250. The cooperating contact 252 is adapted to be moved with the'cam 238 into engagement with the contact 250 by shoving in the dial knob 232. The contact 252 is connected by the conductor 254 to the second supply conductor 256. The earn 238 also controls and operates the contact 256 connected by the conductor 258 with the supply conductor 256. It cooperates with the contact 260 connected to the forward motor actuating coil 262 for the motor 50. This coil 262 is connected by the conductor 264 to the supply conductor 246.

The motor reverse cam 240 operates the contact 266 connected directly to the supply conductor 256. It cooperates with a contact 268 connected to the reverse niotor actuating coil 270 of the drive motor 50. The cam 242 operates the contact 272 connected to the supply conductor 256. It cooperates with a contact 274 connected by the conductor 276 to a double throw double pole selector switch 278. This switch 278 is adapted to connect to the adjacent terminal of either the hot water solenoid 224 or the cold water solenoid 226. The second terminals of these solenoids 224 and 226 are connected by the supply conductor 280 to the supply conductor 246. The brake earn 244 operates the contact 282 which is connected to the supply conductor 256. The contact 282 cooperates with the contact 284 connected by the conductor 286 to the brake solenoid coils 191 and 19 3. The second terminals of these solenoid coils 191 and 193 are connected by the conductor 288 to the supply c du t ,46-

In operation the washing machine is started by setting the dial knob 232 to the starting position and pushing it inwardly until the contacts 256 and 252 are engaged. This starts the operation of the timer motor 236 which rotates the shaft 234. The cam 242 has a contour shaped to close the contacts 272 and 274 according to the chart shown in Figure 6 so as to provide a fiow'of either hot g or tempered water through the spout 230 into the tub 36 according to the position of the double throw switch 278 which may connect to either of the solenoids 224 or 226 to obtain hot or tempered water. The valves 224 and 226 are kept open for a sufiicient period of time to fill the tub 36 to the proper level.

At the end of this period, as indicated by Figure 6, the contacts 272 and 274 are opened and the contacts 256 and 260 are closed to energize the motor in the forward direction. At the same time the cam 244, according to Figure 6, closes the contacts 282 and 284 to energize the brake solenoids 193 and 191 to apply the brake to prevent rotation of the tub 36. This causes the motor 50 to drive the shaft 70 at a little more than one-third the motor speed. The direction of rotation of the shaft 70 is such as to keep the wound spring clutch 161 disengaged. The rotation of the shaft 70 and cam 92 causes the roller 96, the inverted cup 121 and the agitator 137 to be vertically reciprocated at a rate of between about 580 and 750 strikes per minute in short strokes of about three-quarters of an inch. The number and weight of the reciprocating parts are low so that a relatively light weight inexpensive construction may be used since the inertia forces are kept low. The roller rides in the groove 94 and thereby reciprocates the agitator 137.

Toward the end of the agitating period, the cam 242 again closes the contacts 274 and 272 to admit more water to the tub 36.nntil it overflows to carry away the scum on top of the water or washing liquid. As indi: cated by Figure 6, the contacts 256, 260, 272 and 274 are opened to stop the motor 50 and the water flow into the tub. The cam 240 then closes the contacts 266 and 268 to operate the motor in the reverse direction. This causes the wound spring clutch 161 to engage the extension 78 of the shaft 70 and provides a connection between the shaft 70 and the hub 84 to rotate the tub 36 at the speed of the ring gear 68 between about 5 80 and 750 rpm. The upper rim of the tub 36 is weighted with lead shot 290 to minimize vibration. The tub is provided with a series of apertures 292 adjacent its greatest diameter to allow water, separated from the clothes in the tub by centrifuging, to be discharged into the tank 26 and collected by the bulkhead 28. The water or washing solution collected by the bulkhead 28 is drawn through the conduits 56 and 54 into the pump 52 and discharged through the flexible tube 58 to a suitable drain.

After the motor is operated in the reverse direction for the periods indicated by Figure 6, the contacts 266 and 268 are opened by the cam 240 and the contacts 282 and 284 are closed to energize the brake solenoids 191 and 193 to stop the rotation of the tub 36. If desired a rinse cycle may be provided as indicated in Figure 6 providing a subsequent water supply period and subsequent motor forward, motor reverse and braking periods as required at the proper time according to Figure 6. As mentioned before, if desired, the brake as well as the brake cam 244 and the brake electrical circuit may be omitted.

While the form of embodiment of the invention as herein disclosed constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, as may come within the scope of the claims which follow.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. A washing and extracting machine including a cabinet provided with a vibration absorbing mounting, a support supported within said cabinet by said mounting, a vertical shaft means rotatably mounted in said support, a tub above said support within said cabinet rotatably mounted relative to said support and said shaft means, an agitator within said tub for agitating any clothes and washing liquid within said tub, a motion converting means located within said tub connecting said shaft means with said agitator to convert the rotary motion of the shaft means into agitating movement of said agitator, a reversible drive means at the lower portion of said support operably connected to said shaft means for rotating said shaft means in opposite directions, a one way overrunning self engaging clutch between and connecting said shaft means and said tub in one direction of rotation, and a friction brake located between the uppermost portion of said support and the bottom of the tub having means providing frictional contact between said support and said tub.

2. A washing and extracting machine including a cabinet provided with a vibration absorbing mounting, a bearing housing supported within said cabinet upon said mounting, said housing containing upper and lower bearings and an upright shaft means rotatably mounted in said bearings and having an upper portion above said bearings, a tub above said housing within said cabinet rotatably mounted relative to said shaft means and said housing, an agitator within said tub for agitating any clothes and washing liquid within said tub, a motion converting means within said tub connecting said upper shaft portion and said agitator for converting rotary motion of said upper shaft portion to a reciprocating motion of said agitator, a casing within said tub surrounding and enclosing said motion converting means, a reversible rotating drive means at the lower portion of said housing operably connected to said shaft means for rotating said shaft means in opposite directions, and a one-way overrunning self engaging clutch between and connecting said shaft means and tub in one direction of rotation.

3. A washing and extracting machine including a cabinet provided with a vibration absorbing mounting, a bearing housing supported within said cabinet upon said mounting, said housing containing upper and lower bearings and an upright shaft means rotatably mounted in said bearings and having an upper portion above said bearings, a tub above said housing within said cabinet rotatably mounted relative to said shaft means and said housing, an agitator within said tub for agitating any clothes and washing liquid within said tub, a motion converting means within said tub connecting said upper shaft portion and said agitator for converting rotary motion of said upper shaft portion to a reciprocating motion of said agitator, a casing within said tub surrounding and enclosing said motion converting means, a reversible rotating drive means at the lower portion of said housing operably connected to said shaft means for rotating said shaft means in opposite directions, and a one way overrunning self engaging clutch between and connecting said shaft means and tub in one direction of rotation the bottom of said tub being provided with an annular braking surface, and movable braking means supported by said housing and located outside said housing for engaging said braking surface to restrict the rotation of said tub.

4. A washing and extracting machine including a cabinet provided with a vibration absorbing mounting, a support supported within said cabinet by said mounting, a vertical shaft means rotatably mounted in said support, an upright tub within said cabinet rotatably mounted relative to said support and said shaft means, said support having its uppermost portion beneath and adjacent the bottom of the tub and extending downwardly therefrom, said upright shaft having a portion extending above said uppermost portion, a first bearing in the uppermost portion of said support for rotatably supporting said upright shaft in said support, a second bearing mounted on said upright shaft on said portion extending above said uppermost portion and extending into rotatable support relationship to said tub, an agitator within said tub, a motion converting means located above said first and second bearingsland the uppermost portion of said support, said motion converting means connecting said upright shaft to said agitator to convert the rotation of said shaft into agitating movement of said agitator, a drive means for rotating said upright shaft, and a clutch means having its clutching elements located above said first bearing for clutching said shaft to said tub.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,161,604 Watts June 6, 1939 2,269,190 Dunham Jan. 6, 1942 2,331,897 Dyer Oct. 19, 1943 2,346,152 Clark Apr. 11, 1944 2,384,903 Ferris Sept. 18, 1945 2,502,702 Castner Apr. 4, 1950 2,577,647 Clark Dec. 4, 1951 2,618,141 Clark Nov. 18, 1952

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