Textiles: fluid treating apparatus – Machines – Combined
Reexamination Certificate
1999-01-21
2001-06-12
Stinson, Frankie L. (Department: 1743)
Textiles: fluid treating apparatus
Machines
Combined
C068S133000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06244079
ABSTRACT:
This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §§119 and/or 365 to Patent Application No. 98-16949 filed in Korea on May 12, 1998; and Patent Application No. 98-16951 filed in Korea on May 12, 1998; the entire content of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a brake assembly for use in a washing machine, and more particularly, to a brake assembly of a washing machine capable of amending an error of a braking operation caused by an assembly tolerance and/or an abrasion of a brake band.
2. Prior Art
FIG. 6
is a partial sectional view of a conventional washing machine, which shows a pulsator, a shaft assembly, and a driving motor, and
FIG. 7
is a partial enlarged transverse sectional view of
FIG. 6
, which shows a brake assembly.
A washing machine has an outer tub
101
suspended in a casing, a spin basket
103
rotatably installed in the outer tub
101
, and a pulsator
105
installed in the spin basket
103
. A driving motor
107
is installed under the outer tub
101
. Between the outer tub
101
and the driving motor
107
, a shaft assembly
109
for transmitting the driving force of the driving motor
107
to the pulsator
105
and the spin basket
103
, and a clutch assembly
111
for controlling the transmission of the driving force of the driving motor
107
to the shaft assembly
109
is installed.
The clutch assembly
111
is comprised of a lower clutch
115
into which a motor shaft
113
is inserted by force, an upper clutch
117
engaged with, or disengaged from, the lower clutch
115
, and a clutch guide device
119
for engaging the upper clutch
117
with, or disengaging the upper clutch
117
from the lower clutch
115
, by moving the upper clutch
117
along the motor shaft
113
.
The shaft assembly
109
is comprised of a hollow spin basket shaft
139
connected with the spin basket
103
, a pulsator shaft
137
disposed in the spin basket shaft
139
coaxially therewith and connected to the pulsator
105
, a gear assembly
141
for reducing the rotational velocity of the driving motor
107
and transmitting it to the pulsator
105
during a washing operation or a rinsing operation, an outer casing
142
for encompassing them, and a brake assembly
143
for controlling the rotation of the spin basket shaft
139
. The outer casing
142
is comprised of an upper casing
147
and a lower casing
149
.
The brake assembly
143
is comprised of a cylindrical brake drum
155
surrounding the outer area of the gear assembly
141
, a brake band
165
installed on an outer side of the brake drum
155
so as to control the rotation of the brake drum
155
, and a brake lever
133
for operating the brake band
165
so as to be contacted with, or distanced from, the periphery of the brake drum
155
.
A brake lever shaft
167
in parallel with the rotational axis of the brake drum
155
is installed on the brake lever
133
, and a brake link
169
is installed on the end of the brake lever
133
. A brake spring
171
for applying an elastic force to the brake lever
133
is installed on the brake lever shaft
167
.
During the washing and rinsing operations, the brake lever
133
pulls the brake band
165
with the elastic force of the brake spring
171
, and thereby the brake band
165
is contacted with the brake drum
155
. Therefore, the rotation of the brake drum
155
is braked by the brake band
165
. In this situation, the upper clutch
117
is disengaged from the lower clutch
115
.
As the driving motor
107
operates to rotate the motor shaft
113
, the rotational velocity of the motor shaft
113
is reduced by the gear assembly
141
and is then transmitted to the pulsator shaft
137
. The pulsator
105
is rotated by the rotation of the pulsator shaft
137
, whereby a vortex water-flow is generated in the spin basket
103
, and thereby, the washing and rinsing operations are performed.
During a dehydrating operation, the brake lever
133
is pulled out by a drain motor (not shown), and thereby the brake lever
133
pivots about the brake lever shaft
167
. Then, the brake band
165
is distanced from the brake drum
155
, and the brake drum
155
lies in a rotatable state. In this situation, the upper clutch
117
is moved down by the operation of the clutch guide device
119
, so as to be engaged with the lower clutch
115
.
As the driving motor
107
operates to rotate the motor shaft
113
, the upper clutch
117
engaged with the lower clutch
115
is rotated, and thereby, all of the brake drum
155
, the spin basket shaft
139
, and the pulsator shaft
137
are rotated. Therefore, the pulsator
105
and the spin basket
103
are rotated at the same speed as the rotational speed of the motor shaft
113
, and the laundry accommodated in the spin basket
103
is dehydrated by the centrifugal force generated in such a situation.
When the dehydrating operation ends, the driving motor
107
stops operating, and the brake lever
133
is returned to the original state by the brake spring
171
. Thus, the brake drum
155
is braked again by the brake band
165
. Furthermore, the upper clutch
117
is moved upward by the operation of the clutch guide device
119
so as to be disengaged from the lower clutch
115
.
However, in such a conventional washing machine, due to the assembly tolerance occurring while components of the brake assembly
143
are being assembled, the brake band
165
may not release the brake drum
155
properly when the brake lever
133
is driven by the drain motor. More specifically, due to the assembly tolerance, the brake lever
133
cannot be pulled out sufficiently even when the drain motor normally pulls the brake lever
133
, and in such a situation, the brake lever
133
is pivoted insufficiently. Therefore, the brake band
165
may remain contacted with the brake drum
155
, or the brake drum
155
may not be released normally.
Furthermore, even when the position of the brake lever
133
is changed by the abrasion of the brake band
165
, the brake lever
133
cannot be sufficiently pivoted by the drain motor, for which the brake drum
155
may not be released properly.
Meanwhile, since the brake spring
171
for elastically pushing the brake lever
133
is disposed between the brake lever
133
and the upper casing
147
of the shaft assembly
109
, the size of the shaft assembly
109
increases as much as the height of the brake spring
171
. Moreover, since one end of the brake spring
171
should be supported by the outer casing
142
of the shaft assembly
109
and the other end thereof should be supported by the brake lever
133
, it is not easy to assemble them.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been proposed to overcome the above-described problems in the prior art, and accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide a brake assembly of a washing machine capable of amending an error of a braking operation caused by an assembly tolerance occurring when the components thereof are assembled or by an abrasion of a brake band.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a brake assembly which is capable of reducing the size of a shaft assembly, and which is easy to be manufactured.
To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a brake assembly of a washing machine, comprising: a brake drum rotating together with a spin basket; a brake band disposed on an outer side of the brake drum; a brake lever of which one end is fixed to the brake band, the brake lever for driving the brake band so that the brake band is contacted with or distanced from the brake drum according to a pivoting position thereof; a brake spring for elastically pushing the brake lever in a pivoting direction thereof; a brake link installed on the other end of the brake lever so as to be capable of pivoting about a pivoting axis in parallel with a pivoting axis of the brake lever; and a means for adjusting a relative pivoting position of the brake link with respect to the brake lever.
Preferably, the adjusting means
Burns Doane Swecker & Mathis L.L.P.
Samsung Electronics Co,. Ltd.
Stinson Frankie L.
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