Bracket for Household Appliance and Method for Use

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application 63/567,078, filed Mar. 19, 2024, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

This disclosure relates to an appliance, such as a household appliance like a dishwashing appliance, and more particularly, to mounting the appliance to a structure such as a cabinet.

Contemporary automatic dish treating appliances for use in a typical household include a chassis mounted within a cabinet and having an access opening and a tub that can have an open front and at least partially defines a treating chamber into which items, such as kitchenware, glassware, and the like, can be placed to undergo a treating operation, such as washing. At least one rack or basket, generally referred to as a dish rack, for supporting soiled dishes can be provided within the tub. A silverware or utensil basket for holding utensils, silverware, cutlery, and the like, may also be provided and is generally removably mounted to the door or within the dish rack.

In one aspect, the disclosure relates to a bracket for coupling an appliance to a cabinet. The bracket has a body having an appliance attachment portion and a cabinet attachment portion and an offset and connecting the appliance attachment portion to the cabinet attachment portion. The offset formed in the body has a pair of right angles, such that a plane defined along the appliance attachment portion is spaced from and parallel with a plane defined along the cabinet attachment portion.

In another aspect, the disclosure relates to a method of coupling an appliance having an opening in a sidewall of the appliance to a cabinet with a bracket having a cabinet attachment portion and an appliance attachment portion. The method comprises inserting the appliance attachment portion into the opening of the cabinet, rotating the bracket approximately 90 degrees to secure the appliance attachment portion to the appliance, and securing the cabinet attachment portion to a base cabinet

As may be appreciated, based on the disclosure, there exists a need in the art for simple means for securing a housing or a chassis for an appliance to a nearby or surrounding cabinet. Spacing between the chassis for the appliance and the nearby cabinet can be small, making it difficult to secure the appliance within the cabinet due to the limited space. The mounting bracket as described herein provides for a simplified means for connecting to the chassis.

shows an appliance provided as a household appliance, and more specifically, as a dishwashercapable of implementing an automatic cycle of operation to treat dishes or other items. As illustrated, the dishwasherhas a built-in dishwasher implementation, which is designed for mounting within a cabinet. As shown the cabinethas an open top to show the dishwasherwithin the cabinet, while other features, such as a countertop, can be provided on the cabinetabove the dishwasher. It should be understood that this description is applicable to other dishwasher implementations such as a drawer-type or a sink-type, or other household appliances, such as washing machines, ovens, or stoves which can be mounted within surrounding cabinets or under a countertop, or otherwise requires mounting to an adjacent structure.

The dishwasherhas a housing, generally, which houses or includes a chassis. The housingmay include panels or other exterior walls forming, surrounding, or encasing the chassis. The housing, for example, can include a base structure, a top structure, a rear panel, and opposing side panels, while any housing, panel, or chassis configuration is contemplated.

The dishwasherincludes a door assemblyincluding a doorshown in an opened position. The dishwasherhas a variety of systems, some of which are controllable, to implement the automatic cycle of operation. The chassisis provided to support the variety of systems needed to implement the automatic cycle of operation. As illustrated, for a built-in implementation, the chassissupports an open-faced tub, which at least partially defines a treating chamber, for receiving the dishes or other items for treating. The dooris pivotally mounted to the chassisfor movement between opened and closed positions to selectively open and close the tub. Thus, the door assemblyprovides selective accessibility to the treating chamberfor the loading and unloading of dishes or other items.

The chassis, as in the case of the built-in dishwasher implementation, can be formed by other parts of the dishwasher, like the tuband the door assembly, in addition to a dedicated frame structure, collectively forming a frame to which the variety of systems are supported. In other implementations, like the drawer-type dishwasher, the chassiscan be a tub that is slidable relative to a frame, with the closure being a part of the chassisor the countertop of the surrounding cabinetry. In a sink-type implementation, the sink forms the tub and the cover closing the open top of the sink forms the closure.

The systems supported by the chassis, while essentially limitless, can include dish holding system, spray system, recirculation system, drain system, water supply system, drying system, heating system, and filter system. These systems are used to implement one or more treating cycles of operation for the dishes, for which there are many, and one of which includes a traditional automatic wash cycle. A controller can also be included in the dishwasherand operably couples with and controls the various components of the dishwasherto implement the cycle of operation.

Exemplary dish holders are illustrated in the form of an upper dish rackand a lower dish rack, commonly referred to as “racks”, which are located within the treating chamber. The upper dish rackand the lower dish rackare typically mounted for slidable movement in and out of the treating chamberfor ease of loading and unloading. Drawer guides/slides/rails are typically used to slidably mount the upper dish rackto the tub. The lower dish racktypically has wheels or rollers that roll along rails formed in sidewalls of the tuband onto the door assembly, when the door assemblyis in the opened position.

A bracketis provided for coupling the dishwasherto the surrounding cabinet. More specifically, at least one of the housing, the chassis, or one of the panels, such as one of the opposing side panelsas shown, can be coupled to the surrounding cabinet. A fastener, such as by way of non-limiting example a screw, can be used to secure the bracketto the cabinet, while a remainder of the bracketcouples to the dishwasher.

Referring to, the bracketis shown exploded from one of the opposing side panelsbeing positioned adjacent the cabinet. An openingis provided in the one of the opposing side panelsand includes a rounded or circular central portionwith extensionson either end. The extensionsof the openingextending from opposite sides of the central portionand are illustrated, in a non-limiting example, as squared ends. The bracketincludes a bodyhaving an appliance attachment portionand a cabinet attachment portion. The appliance attachment portionis offset from the cabinet attachment portionby an offsetformed in the bodyas a pair of right angles, such that a plane defined along the appliance attachment portionis spaced from and parallel with a plane defined along the cabinet attachment portion.

The appliance attachment portionincludes a pair of aperturesspaced by a bridgeextending between the pair of apertures. A pair of ridgesextend from the appliance attachment portionon opposite sides of the pair of apertures. The pair of ridgesextend towards the cabinet attachment portion. A pair of fingersextend from opposite sides of the bridgesuch that one of the pair of fingersoverlie a respective one of the pair of apertures. The pair of fingerscan extend away from the remainder of the appliance attachment portionsuch that the pair of fingersdo not position within the pair of apertures. Each finger of the pair of fingersincludes a protrusionthat extends from the pair of fingerstoward the pair of apertures. The protrusioncan be sized such that it does not extend into the respective one of the pair of apertures. The pair of fingerscan be a pair of spring fingers configured to impart a spring force when bent or moved away from an initial position.

The cabinet attachment portionincludes a set of openingsprovided as a first opening, a second opening, and a third opening. An extensionis visually separated from the remainder of the cabinet attachment portionby a channeland the second and third openings,are provided within the extensionalthough that need not be the case. The first openingand the second openingcan be equally spaced from the channelin a non-limiting example.

shows a portion of the bracketpositioned within the openingin an unrotated position. The openingis partially shown in broken line hidden behind the bracket. More specifically, the pair of fingersare positioned within the extensionsof the opening. The central portion(shown in broken line) and the extensionscan be sized such that the pair of fingersmust be inserted into the openingthrough the extensions, while the central portionis too small to accommodate the pair of fingers. The appliance attachment portioncan position against and contacting one of the opposing side panelssuch that the pair of fingersextend through the opening. In this manner, the profile of the bracketand the openinglimit the orientation in which the openingcan receive the portion of the bracket.

Referring to, in order to secure the bracketto the one of the opposing side panels, the bracketis rotated ninety degrees (90°) to a rotated position with the cabinet attachment portionpositioned along the cabinet. As a result of the rotation, the pair of fingersrotate from the extensions(shown in broken line) of the opening to opposite sides of the central portionunoccupied by the extensions. Due to the smaller size of the central portionrelative to the extensions, the pair of fingersposition on an interior surface of the one of the opposing side panels, while the remainder of the bracketremains exterior of the side paneladjacent an exterior surfaceof the one of the opposing side panels. More specifically, referring toshowing a view of an interior surfaceof the side panel, opposite of that of, it can be appreciated that the pair of fingersposition against an interior surfaceof the one of the opposing side panels, while being rotated away from the extensionsof the opening. The remainder of the appliance attachment portionis illustrated in broken line behind the side panel.

The pair of fingersprovides a spring force against the interior surfaceof the one of the opposing side panelsin order to secure the bracketto the one of the opposing side panels. The spring force provided by the pair of fingerspulls the appliance attachment portionagainst the exterior surface() and squeezes the one of the opposing side panelsbetween the pair of fingersand the appliance attachment portion, thereby securing the bracketto the one of the opposing side panels. The spring force provided by the pair of fingerscan be great enough to maintain the bracketin the rotated position shown in. The protrusionsprovided on each finger of the pair of fingerscan be sized to further bend the pair of fingersaway from the one of the opposing side panelsin order to generate a sufficient spring force to maintain the rotated position for the bracket.

Referring to, showing a cross-sectional view oftaken along section VI-VI, the bracketcan be secured to the cabinet. The fastenercan be a screw, for example, which can secure the bracketto the cabinetthrough one or more of the set of openings. While shown with the fastenerpositioned in the first opening, one or more fastenerscan be provided any or all of the first opening, the second opening, and the third opening. The pair of fingerssecures the appliance attachment portion(partially shown in broken line) to the one of the opposing side panelsand the cabinet attachment portionsecures to the cabinetwith the fastener, thereby coupling the dishwasherto the cabinet. When the cabinet attachment portionis attached to the cabinet, the bracketis secured in the rotated position, securing the pair of fingersin a position away from the extensions() of the opening, preventing separation of the bracketfrom the one of the opposing side panels. Therefore, the spring force provided by the pair of fingerscan only be great enough to hold the bracketin the rotated position to permit attachment of the cabinet attachment portionto the cabinet, while not being too great that it is difficult for a user to rotate the bracketfrom the unrotated position into the rotated position by hand (i.e., rotated fromto).

Referring to, in another example, the cabinet attachment portioncan be bent 180 degrees (180°) along the channel, such that the extensionoverlays the remainder of the cabinet attachment portion. The equal spacing of the first and second openings,from the channelprovides that the second openingaligns with the first opening, permitting the fastenerto extend through both of the first and second openings,. Such bending of the extensioncan be utilized when the extensionextends beyond the cabinet. In a non-limiting example, the extensioncan be broken or separated from the remainder of the cabinet attachment portionalong the channel.

The bracketdescribed herein facilitates installation and connection of an appliance to a surrounding cabinetor similar environment. The rotation-style attachment of the bracketto the dishwasher() facilitates connecting of the bracketto the dishwasherand provides an improved user experience for a user installing an appliance within a cabinet. The spring force connection secures the bracketto the dishwasherand orients the bracketin a rotated position to facilitate attachment of the bracketto the adjacent cabinet. The use of the pair of fingersremoves the need for a traditional fastener type of connection, which can be difficult with limited space between the appliance and the surrounding cabinet, as well as having limited space within the appliance to accommodate other types of attachment methods.

The bracketcan further be utilized with existing appliances that have similar types of openings as the openingin the one of the opposing side panels. This permits retrofitting or replacing existing brackets with the bracketdescribed herein.

To the extent not already described, the different features and structures of the various aspects can be used in combination with each other as desired. That one feature cannot be illustrated in all of the aspects is not meant to be construed that it cannot be but is done for brevity of description. Thus, the various features of the different aspects can be mixed and matched as desired to form new aspects, whether or not the new aspects are expressly described. Combinations or permutations of features described herein are covered by this disclosure.

This written description uses examples to disclose aspects of the disclosure, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice aspects of the disclosure, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. While aspects of the disclosure have been specifically described in connection with certain specific details thereof, it is to be understood that this is by way of illustration and not of limitation. Reasonable variation and modification are possible within the scope of the forgoing disclosure and drawings without departing from the spirit of the disclosure, which is defined in the appended claims.