Clothing Treatment Apparatus

The present disclosure relates to an apparatus for treating laundry.

A laundry treating apparatus is a device for performing a treatment required for laundry, such as by putting laundry, a bedding, etc. into a drum and removing contamination on the laundry or drying the laundry.

When a laundry treating apparatus is provided to remove contamination of laundry, the laundry treating apparatus may perform processes of washing, rinsing, dehydrating, drying, etc. The laundry treating apparatus may include a cabinet forming an exterior thereof, a tub accommodated in the cabinet, a drum rotatably mounted in the tub to have laundry put therein, and a detergent supply device configured to supply detergent to the inside of the drum. When the drum is rotated by a motor in a state in which wash water is supplied to the laundry accommodated in the drum, dirt may be removed from the laundry by friction with the drum and the wash water.

When the laundry treating apparatus is provided to dry laundry, the laundry treating apparatus may remove moisture from the laundry by providing dry air to the laundry. The laundry treating apparatus may include a cabinet, a drum rotatably provided in the cabinet, and a heating unit configured to heat or dry air provided to the laundry. As the dry air is supplied to the laundry accommodated in the drum, the moisture present in the laundry may be removed by being evaporated by the dry air, and thus the moisture of the laundry may be removed.

The laid-open document 10-2005-0054201 Al (Prior Art 1) discloses a laundry treating apparatus. An exterior of the laundry treating apparatus is formed by a cabinet. The cabinet may include a front panel, a side panel, a rear panel, and a top panel. According to the related art, each panel has a structure directly coupled to each other.

One object of the present disclosure is to provide a structure capable of reducing vibration noise in coupling between panels of a cabinet forming an exterior of a laundry treating apparatus.

Another object of the present disclosure is to provide a structure capable of increasing assembly convenience of an assembly worker in a process of assembling a cabinet forming an exterior of a laundry treating apparatus.

Further object of the present disclosure is to provide a structure capable of adjusting the depth of a laundry treating apparatus as needed when manufacturing a laundry treating apparatus.

The technical tasks to be solved by the present disclosure are not limited thereto, and other technical tasks not mentioned may be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

The present disclosure provides a laundry treating apparatus. In one embodiment, the laundry treating apparatus may include a drum in which clothes are accommodated and a cabinet accommodating the drum, wherein the cabinet includes a front panel provided at a front side, a side panel provided at both lateral sides and having a rear bending portion having a rear side bent inward, a rear panel having a first bending portion provided at a rear side and having both ends facing the side panel to be bent forward, and a bracket including a first coupling portion having at least a portion facing the first bending portion and coupled to the first bending portion and a second coupling portion formed to be bent from the first coupling portion, wherein the rear panel and the side panel are coupled to each other through the bracket, wherein the first bending portion of the rear panel is coupled to the first coupling portion, and wherein the rear bending portion of the side panel is coupled to the second coupling portion.

In an embodiment, the second coupling portion may extend from the first coupling portion at a side adjacent to a rear plate forming a rear surface of the rear panel.

In an embodiment, the bracket may include a recessed portion recessed inward at least in part.

In an embodiment, a recessed portion that does not contact the first bending portion may be formed in at least a portion of the first coupling portion of the bracket.

In an embodiment, at least a portion of the second coupling portion of the bracket may have a recessed portion that is not in contact with the rear bending portion.

In an embodiment, a vertical length of the bracket may be shorter than a height of the rear panel.

In an embodiment, the first coupling portion may include a protrusion protruding toward the first bending portion, and a locking hole through which the protrusion passes may be formed at a position corresponding to the protrusion in the first bending portion.

In an embodiment, the protrusion may include a first hook portion extending in one direction along a vertical direction from an inner portion passing through the locking hole.

In an embodiment, the protrusion may further include a second hook portion extending in the other direction along the vertical direction from the inner portion passing through the locking hole.

In an embodiment, the bracket may be formed in a vertically symmetrical shape.

In an embodiment, the first bending portion of the rear panel, the first coupling portion of the bracket, the rear bending portion of the side panel, and the second coupling portion of the bracket may be coupled by a fastening member.

In an embodiment, a raised portion raised toward the rear bending portion may be formed in the second coupling portion of the bracket. The raised portion may be formed around a through-hole through which a fastening member for coupling with the rear bending portion passes and may be in contact with the rear bending portion.

In an embodiment, the raised portion may be formed in a ring shape surrounding the through-hole.

In an embodiment, the first bending portion of the rear panel and the rear bending portion of the side panel may be provided to be coupled to each other.

In an embodiment, the rear panel may further include a second bending portion bent outward from the first bending portion, and the second coupling portion may extend to be at least partially parallel to the second bending portion.

In an embodiment, the apparatus may further include a rigidity reinforcing portion extending forward from the second coupling portion on the opposite side of the side on which the first coupling portion is formed.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, vibration noise during operation may be reduced from a coupling structure between panels of a cabinet forming an exterior of a laundry treating apparatus.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the assembly convenience of an assembly worker may be increased in the process of assembling a cabinet forming an exterior of a laundry treating apparatus.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a depth of a laundry treating apparatus may be adjusted as necessary in the course of manufacturing a laundry treating apparatus.

Effects of the present disclosure are not limited to the above-described effects, and effects not mentioned may be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the present specification and the accompanying drawings.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains may easily implement the present disclosure.

However, the present disclosure may be implemented in various different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. In the drawings, parts irrelevant to the description have been omitted in order to clearly describe the present disclosure, and similar parts are denoted by similar reference numbers s throughout the specification.

In the present specification, redundant descriptions of the same components will be omitted.

Further, in the present specification, when one component is referred to as being ‘connected’ or ‘accessed’ to another component, it should be understood that the component may be directly connected or accessed to the corresponding component, but there may be other components in the middle. On the other hand, in the present specification, it should be understood that when one component is referred to as being “directly connected with/to” or “directly accessed” another component, there are no intervening components present.

Furthermore, the terms used herein are used only to describe a particular embodiment and are not intended to limit the present disclosure.

In addition, in the present specification, a singular expression may include a plural expression unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

It will be further understood that the terms “include”, “have”, and the like when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof.

Also, in the present specification, the term “and/or” includes a combination of a plurality of listed items or any one of a plurality of listed items. In the present specification, ‘a or b’ may include ‘a’, ‘b’, or ‘both a and b’.

illustrates a laundry treating apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the laundry treating apparatusincludes a first treating apparatus, a second treating apparatus, and a control panel.

In the description of the present disclosure, all definitions of a forward direction (+X), a backward direction (−X), a first lateral direction (+Y), a second lateral direction (−Y), an upward direction (+Z), and a downward direction (−Z) for each component may be defined as the same terms. For example, a front-rear direction (+X, −X) of the first treating apparatusmay be defined to be the same as a front-rear direction of the second treating apparatus, the control panel, and the like, and a lateral direction (Y) and a top-bottom direction (Z) may also be defined in the same manner.

The first treating apparatusand the second treating apparatusmay be provided as various types for treating laundry such as a washing machine for washing laundry, a dryer for drying laundry, and/or the like. The first treating apparatusmay be a washing machine, and the second treating apparatusmay be a dryer. Both the first treating apparatusand the second treating apparatusmay be washing machines or dryers, the first treating apparatusmay be a dryer, the second treating apparatusmay be a washing machine, or the first treating apparatusand the second treating apparatusmay include various apparatuses for treating other laundry.

In an embodiment, the first treating apparatuslocated at a lower side may correspond to a washing machine for washing laundry. A first drumand a tub, in which laundry is accommodated, may be provided in the first treating apparatus. The first druminside the first treating apparatusmay be rotatably provided inside the tub. The second treating apparatusis located above the first treating apparatus. The first treating apparatussupports the second treating apparatus. The second treating apparatusmay correspond to a dryer for drying laundry. The second treating apparatusmay include a first drumand a tubin which laundry are accommodated.

The first treating apparatusmay include a first cabinetforming an exterior of the first treating apparatus. The first cabinetmay be provided with a first front panelat a front side thereof. A laundry opening communicating with the first drummay be formed in the first front panel. The laundry opening may be opened and closed by a first cabinet door. The first drumof the first treating apparatusaccording to an embodiment has a rotation axis parallel to a front-rear direction (+X, −Y).

The first treating apparatusmay be provided with a first left panelin one direction (+Y). A first right panel(see) may be provided in the other lateral direction (−Y) of the first treating apparatus. A first rear panel (not shown) may be provided at a rear side of the first treating apparatus. A first upper panel (not shown) may be provided at an upper side of the first treating apparatus. A first lower panel(see) may be provided at a lower side of the first treating apparatus.

The first front panel, the first side panel, the first rear panel (not shown), the first upper panel, and the first lower panel (not shown) may be combined with each other to form the first cabinet, and may have a coupling relationship with each other. The first cabinetmay form a space in which internals of the first treating apparatussuch as the first drumare provided.

In the first treating apparatus, laundry and the like for treatment is put into the first cabinetthrough the laundry opening so as to be accommodated in the first drum, and thus, a treatment process by the first treating apparatusmay be performed.

A detergent opening is formed in the first front panel, and a detergent storage unitis provided by being inserted into the detergent opening. In the laundry treating apparatusaccording to an embodiment, the first treating apparatusmay be disposed on the ground, and the detergent storage unitmay be located above the laundry opening of the first treating apparatusso that the detergent storage unitmay be conveniently inserted and withdrawn. The detergent storage unitmay be located between the laundry opening of the first treating apparatusand the control panel. That is, the detergent storage unitmay be located above the laundry opening of the first treating apparatus, and may be located below the control panel. The detergent storage unitmay be inserted into or withdrawn from the first cabinetby a user. For example, the user may separate the detergent storage unitfrom the first cabinet, store the detergent in the detergent storage unit, and then insert the detergent storage unitinto the first cabinet.

In an embodiment, the first front panelhas a filter opening into which a filter unitfor collecting foreign substances from wash water is inserted, and the filter unitis inserted into the filter opening. The filter unitmay be provided at one side of a lower portion of the first front panel. The filter unitmay be inserted into the first cabinetthrough the filter opening, and may be connected to a passage of the wash water discharged from the tub. After the washing process is performed, the filter unitmay filter out foreign substances from the wash water discharged from the tub. Roles of the filter unitare not necessarily limited thereto, and may be provided to filter foreign substances from various objects as necessary. For example, the filter unitmay be provided to filter out foreign substances from the wash water for performing the washing process before the washing process is performed.

A user may insert/withdraw the filter unitinto/from the first cabinetthrough the filter opening. The withdrawn filter unitmay be reused or replaced after being washed. The filter unitmay have a relatively longer period of insertion and withdrawal in relation to the detergent storage unit, and accordingly, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the detergent opening in which the detergent storage unithaving a relatively short insertion and withdrawal period is introduced may be disposed at an upper portion side of the first front panel. In addition, the filter opening into which the filter unithaving a relatively long insertion and withdrawal period is inserted may be disposed at a lower portion side of the first front panelto improve convenience in use and may implement a structure of the first front panelhaving excellent space utilization.

Furthermore, a wash water discharge passage connected to the tubinside the first cabinetmay be located at a lower side within the first cabinetto facilitate the discharge of wash water, and in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the filter unitmay be provided at the lower side of the first cabinetto be efficiently connected to the wash water discharge passage.

The first treating apparatusmay be provided with a first device controller. The first device controlleris configured to control various devices constituting the first treating apparatus. The first device controlleris disposed inside the first cabinet. The first device controllermay include a circuit board and electrical components mounted on the circuit board. In an embodiment, the first device controllermay check information corresponding to a manipulation signal received from the control panelin the memory, and perform a device control corresponding to the manipulation signal. The first device controllermay transmit a state of the first treating apparatusto the control panel.