Household Appliance Support Base

This application relates to and claims the benefit and priority to European Application No. EP24382577.5, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The present invention relates to household appliance rectangular support bases, in particular to rectangular support bases for medium or large-sized household appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines or the like.

Household appliance rectangular bases, in particular household appliance rectangular bases for medium to large household appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines or similar, must be capable of supporting heavy weights and must cushion the household appliance without permanently deforming it in the event of an impact.

Cardboard packaging is permanently deformed after an impact and is not able to recover its shape. Bubble film packaging does not have sufficient mechanical strength to support the weight of the household appliance on its own. For this reason, household appliance support bases usually comprise solid blocks of foamed polystyrene because of their high mechanical strength and ability to cushion and recover their shape to a large extent.

For example, CN114889988A discloses a household appliance rectangular support base comprising a solid block of foamed polystyrene. The block comprises a first solid support part in a first lateral half of the base proximate to one lateral side of the base and a second solid support part in a second lateral half of said base proximate to the other lateral side of said base, each of said support parts being configured to support at least part of an opposing side of the base of the household appliance.

Disclosed is a household appliance rectangular support base for supporting at least one household appliance, in particular a medium or large-sized household appliance.

The support base comprises an upper surface, a lower surface, a first lateral side, a second lateral side opposite the first lateral side, a front side, and a rear side opposite the front side.

A longitudinal first axis of the support base divides the support base into a first lateral half at one side of the first axis, that comprises the first lateral side parallel to the first axis, and a second lateral half at the other side of the first axis, that comprises the second lateral side parallel to the first axis. A second axis of the support base, which is transverse to the first axis, divides the support base into a front half at one side of the second axis comprising the front side parallel to the second axis, and a rear half at the other side of the second axis comprising the rear side parallel to the second axis.

The support base further comprises a first support part in the first lateral half of the support base, which is closer to the first lateral side of the support base than to the first axis, and which is delimited between the upper surface and the lower surface; and a second support part in the second lateral half of the support base, which is closer to the second lateral side than to the first axis, and which is delimited between the upper surface and the lower surface. Each of said support parts is configured to support at least part of an opposite side of the household appliance base.

Further, the support base comprises a plastic conformable upper sheet comprising the upper surface and a plastic conformable lower sheet comprising the lower surface, and comprises a plurality of reinforcement columns in each support part, each reinforcement column extending between the upper surface and the lower surface and the reinforcement columns of each support part being distributed along the corresponding lateral side and surrounded by air.

The support base further comprises an air chamber between the upper sheet and the lower sheet, the reinforcement columns of at least one support part being arranged in said air chamber.

The fact that the reinforcement columns are surrounded by air means that the support base is not solid, but that there is a gap between the sheets that form it, at least around the reinforcement columns. Nevertheless, the reinforcement columns of each support part strategically distributed along the corresponding lateral side distribute the vertical stresses and help to maintain the distance between the upper surface and the lower surface of the support part when the support base is supporting the weight of at least one household appliance, while at the same time cushioning the weight of said household appliance, so that the support base of the invention is capable of supporting the weight of at least one household appliance.

Prior art support bases that are at least partly made of solid blocks of foamed plastic such as foamed polystyrene (EPS), although they have a high capacity to cushion and recover their shape against possible impacts during transport and distribution of the household appliance, they have a significant environmental impact due to the fact that they are often made of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) that have high global warming potentials, require a large amount of energy to foam the plastic into the final shape and once they are foamed cannot be conformed, are difficult to recycle, occupy a high volume in relation to their weight and are therefore not very ecological for transport and collection, and are a contributor of microplastics. Although they have a very low environmental impact, cardboard support bases known from prior art are damaged by moisture and are not capable of recovering their shape after impact.

The support base of the invention, as it is made of plastic conformable sheets, is waterproof and has a greater elasticity or capacity to recover its shape than cardboard support bases, is more sustainable and makes it possible to obtain the support base with less environmental impact than support bases made at least in part of solid blocks of foamed plastic. The support base can be obtained with a reduced environmental impact through the conforming of the sheets which requires relatively little energy compared to the thermal expansion required to foam the plastic, acquiring with the sheets shapes as complex as the reinforcement columns surrounded by air and shapes adapted to the household appliance to be supported in each case, and once its useful life is over, the support base can be easily flattened to reduce the volume for transport and collection.

In this way, the support base of the invention is capable of supporting the weight of at least one household appliance and cushioning possible impacts, recovering to a large extent the shape after the impact and making it possible to obtain the support base with a lower environmental impact than the support bases of the state of the art.

These and other advantages and features of the invention will become apparent in view of the figures and the detailed description.

show a household appliance rectangular support basefor supporting at least one household appliance E, according to one embodiment.

The support baseof the invention is capable of supporting at least one household appliance E or several household appliances E stacked on top of each other. Although the household appliance E could be any household appliance, in particular the support baseis configured to support a medium or large household appliance E whose weight is greater thankilograms and which has a rectangular base, such as for example a washing machine, a refrigerator or the like. The support basewill have a rectangular shape equal to or larger than the base of the household appliance E it supports. The example support baseshown in the figures is a support base for supporting at least one washing machine.

The support basecomprises an upper surface S, a lower surface S, and four sides corresponding to a first lateral side L, a second lateral side Lopposite the first lateral side L, a front side L, and a rear side LA opposite the front side L. Preferably, each side L, L, Land LA of the support baseis configured to coincide with the corresponding lateral, front or rear side of the supported household appliance E, as shown in the.

However, in another embodiment (not shown in the figures) each side of the support base could be configured to coincide with any of the sides of the supported household appliance.

The upper surface Sof the support baseis a surface configured to be in contact with the base of the household appliance E, and the lower surface Sof the support baseis a surface opposite the upper surface S.

A longitudinal first axis Y of the support basedivides the support baseinto a first lateral half at one side of the first Y axis, comprising the first lateral side Lparallel to the first axis Y, and a second lateral half at the other side of the first Y axis, comprising the second lateral side Lparallel to the Y first axis. A second axis X of the support base, which is transverse to the first axis Y, divides the support baseinto a front half at one side of the second axis X, comprising the front side Lparallel to the second axis X, and a rear half at the other side of the second axis X, comprising the rear side LA parallel to the second axis X.

The support basecomprises a first support partin the first lateral half and a second support partin the second lateral half. The first support partis delimited between the upper surface Sand the lower surface Sand is closer to the first lateral side Lof the support basethan to the first axis Y. Similarly, the second support partis delimited between the upper surface Sand the lower surface Sand is closer to the second lateral side Lthan to the first axis Y. Each of said support partsandis configured to support at least part of an opposite side of the base of the household appliance E. In this way, a straightened seating of the household appliance E on the first and second support partsandis achieved (see).

Further, the support baseis formed by a plastic conformable upper sheetcomprising the upper surface Sand a plastic conformable lower sheetcomprising the lower surface S, and comprises a plurality of reinforcement columnsin each support partand. Each reinforcement columnextends between the upper surface Sand the lower surface S, and the reinforcement columnsof each support partandare distributed along the corresponding lateral side Lor Land are surrounded by air. Thus, the reinforcement columns, as well as the entire support base, are formed by the two sheetsand.

In the context of the invention, a reinforcement columnis a support with a height preferably greater than its cross-section S, the outer contour of the cross-section S delimiting an enclosed area, to help withstand vertical stresses, whether static such as the weight of the household appliance E or dynamic such as those due to impacts.

The reinforcement columnis preferably vertical and its cross-section S is circular.

A plastic conformable sheet in the context of the invention is a sheet capable of conforming and of plastic material of a certain thickness greater than that of a bubble packaging film and therefore of a non-foamed plastic material or with very small percentages of air.

In this way, as previously explained, the support baseof the invention is capable of supporting the weight of at least one household appliance E and cushioning impacts, recovering to a large extent the shape after the impact and making it possible to obtain the support basewith a lower environmental impact than the support bases of the prior art.

In one embodiment, the first support partand the second support partare close to, but separate from the corresponding Lor Lside of the support base, and therefore the reinforcement columnsof each support partandare internal to the support base.

According to one embodiment the support partsandare elongated and identical to each other and are arranged parallel and symmetrically with respect to the first Y-axis, as shown in. This ensures a balanced distribution of the weight of the household appliance E between the first and second support partsand.

Preferably the support basecomprises at least one additional support partorwhich is arranged in the front half or in the rear half. The additional support partoris arranged closer to the side Lor Lof the support basecorresponding to said half than to the second axis X, is delimited between the upper surface Sand the lower surface S, and is configured to support at least part of a front half or a rear half of the base of the household appliance E. Additionally, the support basecomprises a plurality of reinforcement columnsin said additional support partor.

In this way, supporting on three reinforced support parts each with reinforcement columns, a more secure upright seating of the household appliance E and a better distribution of the vertical forces to better support the weight of the household appliance E is achieved.

According to one embodiment the support basecomprises a first additional support partwhich is arranged in the front half and a second additional support partwhich is arranged in the rear half, as shown in the. Thus, the support basecomprises four support parts,,andeach reinforced with a plurality of reinforcement columnsdistributed along each side L, L, Land L. In this way, it is ensured that all sides of the base of the household appliance E are supported on support parts,,andreinforced with said reinforcement columns.

The support basemay comprise depressions R, R, Rand Rin the upper surface Sconfigured to accommodate legs of the household appliance E and protrusions M, M, Mand Mdefining at least in part a frame configured to fit the base of the household appliance E, each protrusion M, M, Mand Mbeing arranged along each side L, L, Land Lof the support baseoutside an area of the upper surface Sbelow the base of the household appliance E.

Each support part,,andmay be arranged between a pair of depressions R, R, Rand Rclose to the ends of the corresponding side L, L, Lor Lof the support base, as shown in. In this way, a good positioning of the household appliance base E on the support parts,,andis achieved.

Alternatively or additionally, in order to achieve a good positioning of the household appliance base E on the support parts,,and, each support part,,andmay be adjacent to the protrusion M, M, Mand Marranged along the corresponding side L, L, Land Lof the support base, as shown in the.

Preferably each reinforcement columncomprises at least one depressionorin at least one of the surfaces Sand Sof the support base, both sheetsandbeing in contact with each other in each reinforcement column(at the base or top of the depression,). Thus, the reinforcement columnis hollow and the walls of the depressionandare the ones that support the vertical forces. Thus, very little plastic material is required to form the reinforcement columnand it is very easy to form the reinforcement columnswith the two sheetsand, it is sufficient for example to conform one of the sheetsorwith a depressionorthat comes into contact with the other sheetor.

According to one embodiment, each reinforcement columncomprises a first depressionextending from the upper surface Sand a second depressionfacing the first depressionand extending from the lower surface S, both depressions,extending until both sheetsandcontact with each other, as shown in the. In this way, it is easier to achieve a more rigid reinforcement column, for example, by conforming each sheetandwith a thicker and more uniform wall depressionandthan if only one of the two sheetsandis conformed with a depressionandto form the reinforcement column.

According to ne embodiment, the wall of each depressionandis shaped as a cylindrical or conical column to facilitate the conforming of the depressionand, both sheetsand, in addition to contacting with each other, are joined together to make the reinforcement columnmore rigid (preferably by heat sealing), and both depressionsandcomprise the same height (see).

However, in other embodiments (not shown in the figures) both sheetsandneed not be joined together, they may contact at any height of the support baseand the depression wallormay have another shape.

The support basecomprises between the upper sheetand the lower sheetan air chamber, the reinforcement columnsof at least one support part,,orbeing arranged in said air chamber. The air chamberis a chamber in which air is confined and is formed by the same two sheetsandthat form the rest of the support base, the air in said air chamberbeing the air surrounding each of said reinforcement columns, as shown in. In this way, the elasticity of the support parts,,andis improved and the support baseis able to better cushion the possible impacts caused during the transport and distribution of the household appliance E such as, for example, those caused in a free fall of the household appliance E from a height of about.meters by recovering the shape to a large extent.

Preferably, all the reinforcement columnsare arranged in the air chamber. This simplifies the manufacture of the support basewith a single main air chamberwith the reinforcement columnsthat is capable of better supporting and cushioning the vertical forces.

According to one embodiment, the air chamberis formed by joining the sheetsandin each side L, L, Land Lof the support base, as shown in the. In this way, the air confined between them surrounds each of the reinforcement columns.

Preferably, the reinforcement columnsof at least the first and second support partsandare aligned parallel to the corresponding side Lor Lof the support baseand spaced equidistantly from each other. In this way, the reinforcement columnsare advantageously arranged to achieve homogeneous vertical stress bearing along said sides.

According to one embodiment, in addition to the reinforcement columnsof the first and second support partand, the reinforcement columnsof the additional support partof the front half of the support baseare also arranged in the aforementioned advantageous manner, as shown in the.

Preferably, the support basecomprises four quadrants delimited by the first axis Y and the second axis X, each quadrant comprising a cushioning air chamberbetween the upper sheetand the lower sheet, as shown in. Both sheetsandare joined together around the contour of the cushioning air chamber(more preferably around the entire contour). Each cushioning air chamberis arranged symmetrically with respect to the cushioning air chamberof adjacent quadrants, and a partof the upper surface Sof each cushioning air chamberprotrudes from the rest of the upper surface Sof the corresponding quadrant that supports the household appliance E. Thus, the cushioning air chamberis airtight and the partof the upper surface Sof each cushioning air chamberprotrudes from the rest of the upper surface Sof the corresponding quadrant that supports the household appliance E, i.e. it also protrudes from the part of the upper surface Sof the support partsand. In this way, greater cushioning is achieved because in use the household appliance E first rests on the four sealed cushioning air chamberswhich deform by equally pressurizing the air in said cushioning air chambersin order to better cushion the dynamic vertical forces in case of impact and then rests on the support parts,supporting the static vertical forces thanks to the reinforcement columns.

Preferably, the partof each cushioning air chamberprotruding from the rest of the upper surface Sof the corresponding quadrant comprises a conical shape. In this way, said partworks like a disk spring and is more easily deformed when the household appliance E rests on it to pressurize the air in the cushioning air chamber.

In addition, a partof each cushioning air chamberthat does not protrude from the rest of the upper surface Sof the corresponding quadrant may comprise a cylindrical column shape to help support static vertical stresses, as is the case in the preferred embodiment.

The support basemay also comprise further auxiliary cushioning air chambersin another form and in another specific areas of the support base, around the contour of which both sheetsandare bonded together to achieve further cushioning in that area, as shown in the.

According to one embodiment, the cushioning air chambersand the auxiliary cushioning air chambersare surrounded by the air chamberin which the reinforcement columnsare arranged, i.e. they are surrounded by the main air chamber. The cushioning air chambersand, although being airtight, may comprise an orificecommunicating with the air chamberin which the reinforcement columnsare arranged to prevent an excessive pressurization due to a large impact may break the cushioning air chambersand, as shown in the.