US2896641A - Dishwasher with cover latching mechanism - Google Patents

Description

July 28; 1959 M. R. KAUFFMAN ETAL 2,

DISHWASHER WITH COVER LATCHING MECHANISM Filer; July 24, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet l FlG.l

INVENTORS MELVIN 1!.KAUFF'MAN Bron-n4 A- manna rs.

THEIR ATTORNY Jul 28, 1959 M. R. KAUFFMAN ET AL DISHWASHER WITH COVER LATCHING MECHANISM Filed m 24, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 a u/m fi 33 o INVENTORS 34 MELVIN a. KAUFFMAN 5 J'Ol-IN A. DICKEN J'R.

Tuzm. ATTOR NtY Patented July 2%, 1959 hine i 59 H DISHWASHER WITH COVER LATCHIIN G Melvin R. Kaufrman and John A. Dicken, Jr-i Louisville,

Ky., assignors to General Electric Company, a corporation of ewYorh This invention relates to dishwashing apparatus and more particularly to cover locking and control mechanisms for such apparatus, I I p A principal object of the present inventionis to provide a dishwasherhaving improved cover latching and control mechanism arranged to complete the power circuit of the dishwasher when the cover is closed and to automatically unlatch the cover at the end of each dishwashing cycle. o o i Another object-of this invention is to provide improved cover latching and control mechanism. for ahishwasher having automatic means for unlatching the cover of athe dishwasher at the end of each d-ishwashing cycle and manually operable. means for temporarily interrupting the washing cycle and. unlatching the cover.

Further. objects and advantagesof theinvention will become apparent as the following desorip tio n proceeds, and the features of novelty which characterize the invention Will be pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this specification. a i

Briefly stated, in accordance withone aspect of our invention, we provide a dishwasher having a cover latoh which. is held locked position during washingoperations by latching mechanism including an interlock switch in the power circuit, a latch member biased to unlocked position by spring meansand arranged to be pivoted to locked .positionas the cover; is closed, and retained in locked position bytrigger means arranged to control actuation of. the interlock switch and to re tain the latch member inlocked position and a sequence timer control arranged so as to open the switch and release the latoh member at the end of each dishwashing cycle. V

For a better understanding of this invention reference may be made to the following description and the accompanying drawing in which. 7 M

Fig. l is a front elevation view of a dishwasher includingour invention, some of the parts being broken away to show details of construction. I o

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary front elevation view ofthe cover latching and control mechanism incorporated in the dishwasher shownin Fig. l. I r 1 Fig. 3 is similar to Fig. 2 but shows the parts in a difierentposition. n j h 1 Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view taken along the line 4-4inFig.3. h n U Fig. 5 is a fragmentary rear elevation view of the mechanism shown in Figs. 2 and 3. p

Fig. 6 is similar to Fig. 5, but shows the parts in a difierent position. q-

Referring to Fig; 1 ofthe drawing, there is shown a dishwasher generally designated by the vnumeral lhhaving an enclosed washing compartment, formed. by tub wall 2, of generally rectangular configuration havinga top access opening closed by. a hinged cover 3. Sup ported within tub 2 are an upper rack 4 and a lower 2 rack S arranged to support dishes and the like during Washing operations .Dishwasher 1 is provided with a waterinlet, valve 6 adapted to be'connected to a water supply system; a waierinlet conduit 7 and a fill funnel 8 communicating with the interior of tub; 2. Located at the bottom of the tub and arranged to circulate washing fluid'throughout the washing compartment is a rotary impeller 9. A drain pump '10 having an inlet communicating with tub 2 and an outlet connected to drain conduit 11 is supportedbeneaththe tub, the housingof pump 10 being arranged to support an electric motor 12 which drives the impeller 9 so as to circulate fluid in the tub when rotating in one'direction, and to operate pump 10 so as to discharge fluid through conduit 11 when driven inthe other direction. Automatic operation of dishwasher 1 is effected by a timer control assembly U generally designated by the numeral 13 arranged to control the energization of inlet valve 6, motor 12, and the opening of cover 3 at the end of each dishwashing operation. I

Typically, a dishwasher of the type illustrated in Fig. 1

is arranged to proyide a plurality of washing steps, in

each of which a measured quantity of water is admitted to tub 2, circulated for a predetermined period of time and then discharged from the tub in preparation for the nextwashing step. At the end of the complete washing operation the dishes in the washing compartment u ng t ry n y are dried, preferably by circulation of heated air, a heating unit such asl sheathed heating element 14 being useful for this, purpose, It is also very desirable that the cover of the washing compartment be partially open and in accordance with the present invention we have provided a cover locking and control mechanism. particularly suited to perform this as well as other functions,

In the presently preferred embodiment of our invention wehave provided a base plate 15 having integral mounting brackets l6 and 17 arranged to be supported on . tub Z screws 18 and 19, for example. Supported on base plate 15 for pivotal movement about a pin 25) is a latch member 21 mounted adjacent compartment 2 a for pivotal movement from locked position to an unlocked position as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, respectively.

Latch member 21 comp-rises a pair of spaced sheet metal plates 21a and 21b fixedly secured in spaced relation by pins 22, 23, and 24. Pin 24 is preferably provided with a rotatable sleeve 25 located between plates 21a and 21b and arranged to cooperate with a catch member '26 fixedly secured to cover 3.

Catch 26 includes an inclined camming portion 27 shaped so as to provide a counterclockwise (as viewed in Figs. 2 and 3) force componentto latch member 21 as catch 26 engagesroller 25 when cover 3 is manually closed.

Latch member 21 is biased to the position shown in Fig. 3 (the unlocked position) by suitable spring means such as a coil spring 28 secured at one end to pin 22 of the latchmember at the other to a portion of base plate 15. In order to align sleeve 25 of the latch member with cam surface 27 of catch 2d, a stop member 29 integral with a bent out of the plane of base member 15 is provided to limit movement of latch member 21 under the influence of.spring 28. From the description thus far, it will be seen that latch member 21 is held in theposillOi'l shown in Fig. 5 when cover 3 is open, and isrotated to the position shown in Fig; 6 when the cover is manually closed, the cover being held in this position by engagement of a finger portion 349 on the catch andsl'eeve 25 on pin 24 of the latch member. The latchrnember 21 in turn'is releasably retained in theposition shown in Fig. 6 by atrigger member 31 pivotally mounted on base plate Ed by means of pin 32' and provided with a stop 3 element 33 located adjacent the lower portion of the latch member and engageable therewith to hold the latch member against the bias of spring 28. In order to provide means for adjusting the latching mechanism, stop element 33is preferably secured to a flange portion of trigger 31 by means of a screw 34 which extends through a slightly elongated opening in the flange member. Trigger 31 is biased in the clockwise direction (as viewed in Figs. 2 and 3) by means'of a leaf spring 35 secured at its fixed end to base plate 15 and arranged with its free end bearing against screw 34. Thus when the latch mechanism is in its unlocked position, stop element 33 is biased against the curved lower portion of latch member 21 and is biased so as to releasably retain the latch member in its locked position when cover 3 is moved to its closed position, as best shown in Fig. 6. Trigger member 31 also includes a flanged portion 36 which is arranged to engage push button 37 of interlock switch 38 so as to close the contacts of the switch when the trigger is in the position shown in Figs. 2 and 6. Switch 38 is preferably connected in the main power circuit of the dishwasher, and is secured to base plate 15 by suitable means such as screws 39. Thus it will be understood that when the cover 3 is in the open position as shown in Fig. 3 the power circuit of the dishwasher is interrupted inasmuch as trigger 31 is out of engagement with plunger 37 of the switch, and that when the cover is closed the switch contacts are closed so as to close the electrical circuit energizing the water inlet valve 6, the timer 13, the sheathed heater l4, and the motor 12. v

In order to provide means for opening the contacts of interlock switch 38 and also unlock the latching member 21 from catch 26 so as to permit cover 3 to open, a mechanical linkage is provided between the timer control assembly 13 and trigger 31. As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, an actuating lever 40 is pivotally mounted on base plate 15 by means of a pin 41. Lever 40 includes a camming surface 42 engageable with a projecting car 43 on trigger arm 31, the other end of the actuating arm 40 having a cam follower 14 which rides in a groove 45 formed by a pair of parallel walls 45a and 4511 on the rear surface of rotary control member 46. Control dial 46 is rotated at constant speed by timer control 13, and partially projects through an opening in inclined housing wall 46a so as to provide visual indication of the operating sequence, it being understood that suitable indicia may be provided on the peripheral surface of the dial for this purpose.

Thus it will be seen that as dial 46 rotates clockwise from the position shown in Fig. 2 to the position shown in Fig. 3 during each washing operation, cam follower 44 is lowered thus causing actuating lever 40 to pivot clockwise, and finally actuating trigger 31 in a counterclockwise direction so as to disengage stop element 33 from latch member 21. Spring 28 then rotates latch member 21 to the position shown in Figs. 3 and 5, and hence cover 3 is opened by upward force on catch 26 applied by latch member 21 to facilitate drying of the dishes in compartment 2.

In order to permit cover 3 of the dishwasher to be opened at any time during a washing cycle without disturbing the sequence of the washing steps, there is provided a manually operable arm 47 having a lower flanged portion 48 and a manually operable handle 49 so arranged and supported on base pate 15 that trigger 31 may be shifted to its unlocked position by upward movement on handle 49. Manually operable arm 47 is of course supported for vertical reciprocating movement and is independent of actuating lever 40, so that when the parts are in the closed position shown in Fig. 2 and handle 49 is lifted vertically the latch mechanism is unlocked without disturbing the setting of control dial 49. When the cover 3 is manually reclosed, the parts return to the position shown in Fig. 2, the interlock switch 38 is reclosed, and the washing cycle continues as if there had been no interruption. At the end of the drying cycle lever 46 is returned to its initial position in which camming surface 42 is disengaged from flange 43 on trigger 31, and hence the parts are prepared for another washing operation.

While we have shown and described a specific embodiment of our invention, we do not desire the invention to be limited to the particular construction disclosed and we intend by the appended claims to cover all modifications within the true spirit and scope of our invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A dishwasher comprising timer control means, a washing compartment, electrically energized means for circulating water therein, a cover for said compartment, a catch on said cover, an interlock switch for interrupting the circuit supplying energy to said water circulating means, a latch member mounted adjacent said compartment for pivotal movement from an unlocked position to a locked position in engagement with said catch, means for biasing said latch member to said unlocked position, cam means operatively connected with said catch for engaging and moving said latch member to its locked position as the cover is closed, trigger means for releasably retaining said latch member in said locked position, said trigger means including means for actuating said switch to closed circuit position only when said latch member is in said locked position, and means operated by said timer control means for actuating said trigger means so as to open said switch and release said latch member for movement to said unlocked position.

2. A dishwasher comprising timer control means, a washing compartment, electrically energized means for circulating water therein, a cover for said'compartment, a catch on said cover, an interlock switch for interrupting the circuit supplying energy to said water circulating means, a latch member mounted adjacent said compartment for pivotal movement from an unlocked position to a locked position in engagement with said catch, said latch member including a portion above the pivot axis thereof having a catch engaging element laterally ofiset with respect to said pivot axis and a portion below said pivot axis, means for biasing said latch member to said unlocked position, cam means operatively connected with said catch for engaging and moving said latch member to its locked position as the cover is closed, a trigger arm pivotally mounted adjacent said lower portion of said latch member, said trigger arm including a switch actuator engagable with said interlock switch and a stop ele ment engagable with said lower portion of said latch member for releasably retaining said latch member in said locked position, and means operated by said timer control means for actuating said trigger arm so as to open said switch and release said latch member for movement to said unlocked position.

3. A dishwasher as defined in claim 2 including a manually operable arm engagable with said trigger arm and movable independently of said timer control means for opening said switch and releasing said latch member for movement to said unlocked position.

4. A dishwasher comprising timer control means, a washing compartment, electrically energized means for circulating water therein, a cover for said compartment, a catch on said cover, an interlock switch for interrupting the circuit supplying energy to said water circulating means, a latch member mounted adjacent said compartment for pivotal movement from an unlocked position to a locked position in engagement with said catch, said latch member including a portion above the pivot axis thereof having a catch engaging element laterally oifset with respect to said pivot axis and a portion below said pivot axis, means for biasing said latch member to said unlocked position, cam means operatively connected with said catch for engaging and moving said latch member to its locked position as the cover is closed, a trigger arm pivotally mounted adjacent said lower portion of said latch member, said trigger arm including a switch actuator engagable with said interlock switch and a stop element engagable with said lower portion of said latch member for releasably retaining said latch member in said locked position, an actuating lever pivotally mounted adjacent said trigger arm and engagable with said trigger arm so as to open said switch and release said latch member for movement to said unlocked position, said actuating lever being provided with a cam follower at one end thereof, a rotary control member having a cam surface engagable with said cam follower and arranged to shift said actuating lever progressively into engagement with 6 said trigger arm, and a manually operable arm engagable with said trigger arm and movable independently'of said timer control means for opening said switch and releasing said latch member for movement to said unlocked position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,618,282 Stanitz et a1. Nov. 18, 1952 2,692,602 Stanitz et al. Oct. 26, 1954 2,713,345 Stanitz ct a1. July 19, 1955 2,759,485 Guth Aug. 21, 1956

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