CN111534976A - Household appliances with switching elements - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a household appliance (100) having an appliance housing (101) which delimits an appliance interior (103) from an appliance exterior (105), the appliance housing (101) having an operating panel (113) on an appliance front side (107), the operating panel (113) having at least one panel opening (137) which is delimited by an opening region (139), and a switching element (117) which is fastened to the operating panel (113), the switching element (117) having a switching region (123) which can be actuated from the appliance exterior (105), the switching element (117) having a shaft region (131) which is connected to the switching region (123), the shaft region (131) extending through the panel opening (137), the shaft region (131) being connected in a locking manner to the opening region (139) of the operating panel (113), for fixing the switching element (117) on the operating panel (113).

Description

Household appliances with switching elements

technical field

The invention relates to a household appliance with a switching element.

Background technique

In common household appliances, switching elements, in particular rotary selector switches, are fastened on the operating panel of the household appliance, so that the user is offered the possibility to select certain operating programs or operating parameters of the household appliance. Such conventional switching elements usually have the disadvantage that they have to be fixed on the panel inner side of the operating panel in a complicated manner with increased assembly effort.

DE 10 2014 113 877 A1 discloses a rotary selection device for an operating panel of a domestic appliance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object on which the present invention is based is to provide a household appliance with a switching element which can be fastened to an operating panel of the household appliance with low assembly effort.

This task is solved by the subject matter having the features according to the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims, the description and the drawings.

According to one aspect, the object according to the invention is solved by a domestic appliance having an appliance housing and a switching element, the appliance housing delimiting the appliance interior from the appliance exterior, wherein the appliance housing is in front of the appliance The side has an operating panel, wherein the operating panel has at least one panel opening, the panel opening is bounded by an opening area, and the switching element is fixed on the operating panel, wherein the switching element has a an outer space-operated switching area, wherein the switching element has a shaft area, the shaft area is connected to the switching area, wherein the shaft area extends through the panel opening, wherein the shaft area is connected to the switching area The opening area of the operating panel is connected in a locking manner for fixing the switching element on the operating panel.

This achieves the technical advantage that a particularly simple connection between the switching element and the operating panel can be provided by means of the locking connection of the shaft region of the switching element with the opening region of the operating panel.

When the switching element is mounted on the operating panel, the shaft region of the switching element is moved from the outside of the appliance through the panel opening of the operating panel into the interior of the appliance and the interface between the axial region of the switching element and the operating panel can advantageously be obtained. A stop connection between the opening areas of the opening.

This makes it possible to dispense with fixing means normally used on the inside of the panel, so that the assembly effort can be reduced.

Furthermore, the operating panel can be produced before the switching element is introduced, in particular the operating panel can be printed digitally (especially by laser or inkjet printing methods) during the decoration process before the switching element is introduced. After printing the operating panel, the switching element only has to be moved from the outside of the appliance through the panel opening and locked with the operating panel.

"Household appliance" is understood to mean appliances used for housekeeping. This can be a large household appliance such as a washing machine, washer dryer, dishwasher, stove, oven or refrigerator. But this could also be a small household appliance such as a water heater, fully automatic coffee maker, food processor or carpet cleaner.

In an advantageous embodiment of the household appliance, the switching element is configured as a rotary selector switch, wherein the switching region is configured as a switching region rotatable about an axis of rotation of the rotary selector switch, wherein the switching element is configured as a rotary selector switch. The area-connected shaft area is configured as a shaft area that can be rotated about an axis of rotation of the rotary selector switch, wherein the shaft area of the rotary selector switch extends in particular along the axis of rotation.

This achieves the technical advantage that the user can advantageously switch the household appliance by rotating the rotary selector switch, in particular the rotation of the switching region of the rotary selector selector, about the axis of rotation. Here, when the switching area is rotated, the shaft area of the rotary selector switch connected to the switching area is rotated along with it.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the switching region of the switching element has a switching region outside facing the space outside the appliance, which can be manipulated, in particular rotatable, from the space outside the appliance, and the switching region of the switching element has a switching region facing the outside of the appliance. The inner side of the switching region of the appliance interior, wherein the inner side of the switching region is connected, in particular connected in a rotationally fixed manner, to the shaft region of the switching element.

This achieves the technical advantage that the outside of the switching area is easily accessible to the user and can be easily manipulated. Due to the connection, in particular the torsion-resistant connection, between the switching region and the shaft region, when the switching region is switched, in particular rotated, the shaft region follows the movement, in particular the rotation.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the opening area of the operating panel has an inner side of the opening area facing the interior of the appliance, wherein, in particular, on the inside of the opening area a panel opening is arranged which surrounds an inner wall at least in sections, the inner wall delimiting for The receiving opening of the shaft region is received, wherein the shaft region is connected in a locking manner to the inside, in particular the inner wall, of the opening region of the operating panel.

This achieves the technical advantage that effective locking between the switching element and the operating panel in the appliance interior of the domestic appliance is ensured by the locking connection between the shaft region of the switching element and the inside of the opening region of the operating panel. In particular, the inner wall, which is arranged inside the opening region, surrounds the panel opening at least in sections and thus ensures a spatially effective delimitation of the panel opening.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the operating panel has an inner region which at least in sections surrounds an opening region, in particular an inner wall, of the operating panel, wherein in particular the inner region has an extension in the direction of the interior of the appliance The thickness of the first region is greater than the thickness of the second region of the opening region extending in the direction of the interior space of the appliance.

This achieves the technical advantage that the inner region ensures mechanical stability of the opening region. In this case, the inner region is arranged radially outside the opening region and (at least in sections) surrounds the opening region, in particular the inner wall of the opening region. Since the inner region in particular has a first region thickness that is greater than the second region thickness of the opening region, the inner region can receive forces acting on the inner region particularly efficiently.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, at least one retaining means, in particular a retaining arm, is arranged on the opening region of the operating panel, in particular on the inner wall, which is engaged in a locking manner on the shaft of the switching element. The locking projections on the regions, in particular on the shaft regions, serve for the locking connection of the shaft regions with the opening regions.

This achieves the technical advantage that a particularly effective fixation of the shaft region on the opening region is ensured by the locking means. The at least one retaining means, in particular the retaining arm, can in particular comprise a plurality of retaining means, in particular retaining arms, wherein the plurality of retaining means, in particular retaining arms, are arranged in particular symmetrical to one another.

Here, in particular, by moving the shaft region into the panel opening bounded by the opening region, the locking means arranged on the opening region can be pressed outwards, and the locking means can then snap onto the shaft region, in particular the shaft region. On the stop protrusion, it is used to stoply connect the shaft area with the opening area.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, at least one further locking means, in particular a further locking projection, is arranged on the shaft region of the switching element, which is engaged in a locking manner on the surface of the operating panel. On the opening region, in particular on the inner wall, the shaft region is connected in a locking manner to the opening region.

This achieves the technical advantage that a particularly effective fixation of the shaft region on the opening region is ensured by the additional locking means. The at least one further retaining means, in particular the further retaining projections, can in particular comprise a plurality of further retaining means, in particular a plurality of further retaining projections, wherein the plurality of further retaining means, in particular further retaining projections In particular, they are arranged symmetrically to each other.

In this case, in particular by moving the shaft region into the panel opening bounded by the opening region, further locking means arranged on the opening region can be pressed inwards, in particular into the shaft region grooves arranged on the shaft region middle. The further locking means can then engage in a locking manner on the opening region of the operating panel, in particular on the inner wall, for the locking connection of the shaft region with the opening region.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the operating panel has at least one electronics fixing element for fixing electronic components to the operating panel, wherein the electronics fixing element is arranged on a surface of the operating panel facing the interior of the appliance. The inside of the panel, in which, in particular, the electronics holding element is arranged on the inner region of the operating panel.

This achieves the technical advantage that the electronic component can be effectively fixed on the operating panel by means of the electronic component fixing element.

In an advantageous embodiment of the household appliance, the switching region of the switching element, in particular outside the switching region, has at least one light-emitting element, which is designed for use in the space outside the lighting device, wherein the switching region, in particular the outside of the switching region, is formed for the light-emitting element.

This achieves the technical advantage that efficient lighting of the space outside the appliance is ensured by means of the light-emitting elements of the switching area. Either the light-emitting element can be arranged on the switching region of the switching element, or the switching region itself can be designed as a light-emitting element.

In an advantageous embodiment of the household appliance, the household appliance has a light source for emitting light, the light source being arranged in the interior of the appliance, and the shaft region has a light-guiding element, which is designed for the The light emitted by the light source is coupled into the light guide element, guided by the light guide element and output from the light guide element, so that the output light is then supplied to the light emitting element for the space outside the lighting fixture.

This achieves the technical advantage that the light-emitting element ensures a light-coupling-technical connection between the light source arranged in the domestic appliance and the switching region of the switching element, which is arranged on the operating panel and has the light-emitting element. The light-guiding element here extends through the axial region of the switching element and thus guides the light emitted by the light source to the light-emitting element on the operating panel.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the shaft region has a contact region, in particular a pin-shaped contact region, which is arranged in the introduction region of the domestic appliance, wherein the contact region is designed to couple the light emitted by the light source to the In the contact region, wherein the shaft region is designed such that light coupled into the contact region is guided through the contact region and through the shaft region and is output from the shaft region, so that the output light is then supplied to the light-emitting element , for the exterior space of lighting fixtures.

This achieves the technical advantage that an efficient optical-coupling-technical connection between the shaft region and the light source is achieved by means of the contact region of the shaft region of the switching element. In this case, a particularly peg-shaped contact area is introduced into the introduction area of the household appliance. In this case, the shape of the particularly pin-shaped contact region is adapted in particular to the shape of the lead-in region. In this case, the light source of the household appliance is arranged in particular on this lead-in area, so that the transmission of the emitted light to the contact area of the shaft area is ensured.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the switching region is arranged on the outer side of the operating panel facing the outside of the appliance, wherein the switching region is designed as a light-emitting element, wherein the switching region, in particular, is designed as a light-emitting element A hollow cylindrical toggle area.

The following technical advantages are achieved in this way: the switching area arranged on the outside of the panel and configured as a light-emitting element is advantageously operated and also the outside of the lighting fixture can be effectively operated.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the shaft region of the switching element has a shaft outer section, which is arranged on the outer side of the panel of the operating panel facing the space outside the appliance and is designed as the switching region of the light-emitting element There is a receiving groove, in which the shaft outer section is received, so that the light-guiding element of the shaft region is optically coupled to the light-emitting element.

This achieves the technical advantage that light guided by the light-guiding elements of the shaft region on the outside of the panel can advantageously be guided into the outer-shaft section of the shaft region. By receiving the shaft outer section in the receiving groove of the switching area, the light output by the shaft outer section is advantageously coupled into the switching area, so that the switching area configured as a light-emitting element can advantageously emit light.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the shaft region of the switching element has a corresponding section which rests on a stop of the operating panel, so that the introduction movement of the switching element into the panel opening is limited, wherein, In particular, the counter section has a spring element which rests on the stop and is designed to provide tolerance compensation between the stop and the shaft region.

This achieves the technical advantage that the corresponding section provides an advantageous tolerance compensation between the stop and the shaft region. If the shaft region of the switching element is introduced through the panel opening, the corresponding section, in particular the spring element, can be deformed until, in particular, the corresponding locking means snap into place, thereby ensuring an advantageous fixation of the switching element on the operating panel.

In an advantageous embodiment of the domestic appliance, the shaft region has a segment opening which is delimited by a segment opening edge, wherein the spring element is in particular connected to the segment opening edge and extends into the segment opening , wherein the spring element is designed, in particular, as a meander-shapedly curved spring element, which has an abutment section facing the stop.

This achieves the technical advantage that, when moving into the shaft region, in particular the meanderingly curved spring element can be bent until a stop between the shaft region and the operating panel is ensured.

Description of drawings

Embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in the drawings and described in detail below.

The attached figure shows:

1 is a schematic view of a domestic appliance with switching elements fastened to an operating panel;

2 is a schematic view of a switching element on the outer side of the panel of the operating panel of the domestic appliance;

3 is a schematic view of the switching element according to the first embodiment on the inner side of the panel of the operating panel of the domestic appliance;

Fig. 4 is a schematic view of the switching element according to the second embodiment on the inner side of the panel of the operating panel of the domestic appliance; and

5 is a schematic representation of a corresponding section of the switching element according to the first or second embodiment on the operating panel of the domestic appliance in a sectional view.

Detailed ways

FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of a domestic appliance 100 , for example configured as a washing machine. The domestic appliance 100 has an appliance housing 101 which delimits an appliance inner space 103 , which is only schematically shown in FIG. 1 , and an appliance outer space 105 .

The household appliance 100 , which is designed in particular as a washing machine, has, on the appliance front 107 of the appliance housing 101 , in particular a flushing housing 109 for introducing detergent and an appliance door 111 for introducing washing.

The household appliance 100 also has an operating panel 113 arranged on the front side 107 of the household appliance. On a panel outer side 115 of the operating panel 113 facing the appliance exterior 105 is arranged a switching element 117 via which the user of the household appliance 100 can operate the household appliance 100 .

The switching element 117 is designed in particular as a rotary selector switch, which can be rotated about an axis of rotation 119 of the rotary selector switch.

Even if not shown in FIG. 1 , the operating panel 113 can also have further switching elements, for example rotary selector switches, buttons and/or a touch screen, and/or the operating panel 113 can have at least one display element, in particular a display screen, with which for displaying at least one operating parameter of the household appliance 100 .

FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of the switching element on the outside of the panel of the operating panel of the domestic appliance. In the illustration shown in FIG. 2 , the operating panel 113 arranged on the appliance front 107 of the appliance housing 101 of the domestic appliance 100 is only shown in sections. The operation panel 113 has a panel outer side 115 facing the appliance outer space 105 and a panel inner side 121 facing the appliance inner space 103 .

A switching element 117 is arranged on the panel outer side 115 of the operating panel 113 , which switching element can be switched by the user of the domestic appliance 100 from the appliance exterior space 105 . In the illustration shown in FIG. 2 , the switching area 123 of the switching element 117 is shown, which can be manipulated from the appliance external space 105 .

In particular, the switch element 117 is designed as a rotary selector switch, wherein the switch region 123 of the switch element 117 is designed as a switch area 123 which can be rotated about a rotational axis 119 of the rotary selector switch. By rotating the switching area 123 about the axis of rotation 119 , the user can, for example, select an operating program of the domestic appliance 100 .

The switching region 123 shown in FIG. 2 is designed in particular as a hollow-cylindrical switching region 123 which delimits the switching region inner space 125 .

The cover of the switching element 117 , which in particular is mounted on the switching region 123 , which closes the switching region interior 125 and which can in particular have a graphic or alphanumeric designation, is not shown in FIG. 2 .

In the illustration shown in FIG. 2 , the switching element 117 is designed in particular as a light-emitting element, which is designed for the lighting fixture outer region 105 , so that it can be ensured even in lightly illuminated installation spaces of the domestic appliance 100 . Advantageous operation of the domestic appliance 100 , in particular the switching element 117 .

The light required for the illumination is guided here in particular from the light source of the domestic appliance 100 via the light guide element to the switching region 123 of the switching element 117 .

In this case, the switching region 123 , which is designed as a light-emitting element, has, in particular, a receiving groove 127 in which the axial outer section 129 of the switching element 117 is received, which includes the axial region 131 of the light-guiding element, so that the light-guiding element is connected to The switching regions 123 , which are designed as light-emitting elements, are connected using optical coupling technology.

Reference is made to the following figures for details relating to the switching element 117 .

FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of the switching element according to the first embodiment on the inside of the panel of the operating panel of the domestic appliance. The operation panel 113 has a panel outer side 115 facing the appliance outer space 105 and a panel inner side 121 facing the appliance inner space 103 .

The switching element 117 has a switching area 123 that can be actuated from the appliance exterior 105 , wherein the switching area outer side 133 of the switching area 123 facing the appliance exterior 105 is only shown in sections in the view shown in FIG. 3 . In the view shown in FIG. 3 , the inner side of the switching area of the switching area 123 facing the appliance interior space 103 is arranged in the operating panel 113 and is not visible.

The operation panel 113 has a panel opening 137 bounded by an opening area 139 of the operation panel 113 .

The switching element 117 has an axis region 131 which is connected to the switching region 123 , wherein the axis region 131 extends through the panel opening 137 . The shaft region 131 is connected in a locking manner to the opening region 139 of the operating panel 113 , so that the switching element 117 is fastened to the operating panel 113 .

The opening area 139 of the operating panel 113 has an opening area inner side 141 facing the appliance interior 103 , wherein an inner wall 143 surrounding the panel opening 137 at least in sections is arranged on the opening area inner side 141 , the inner wall delimitation not being shown in FIG. 3 . The receiving opening for receiving the shaft region 131 is shown.

In this case, the shaft region 131 is connected in a locking manner to the inner side 141 of the opening region, in particular to the inner wall 143 .

Arranged on the opening area 139 of the operating panel 113 , in particular on the inner side 141 (especially the inner wall 143 ) of the opening area of the operating panel 113 , at least one locking means 145 , especially a locking arm, is arranged which engages in a locking manner on the On the shaft region 131 of the shifting element 117 , in particular on the locking projections 147 of the shaft region 131 , the shaft region 131 is connected with the opening region 139 in a locking manner.

In particular, the at least one retaining means 145 comprises a plurality, in particular four retaining means 145 , which in particular are arranged symmetrically around the shaft region 131 .

If the switching element 117 , in particular the shaft region 131 of the switching element 117 is moved in through the panel opening 137 , the locking means 145 , in particular the locking arm, is bent outwards by the shaft region 131 , in particular the locking projection 147 of the shaft region 131 , and then engages On the shaft region 131 or behind the locking projection 147 , the shaft region 131 is locked so that the switching element 117 can no longer be pulled out of the panel opening 137 without actuating the locking means 145 afterwards.

In particular, the switching element 117 is designed as a rotary selector switch, wherein the switching area 123 is designed as a switching area 123 which can be rotated about the axis of rotation 119 of the rotary selector switch, and the shaft area 131 connected to the switching area 123 is designed as a rotary selector The shaft region 131 of the rotation axis 119 of the switch, wherein the shaft region 131 of the rotary selector switch, in particular, extends along the rotation axis 119 .

Therefore, a rotation of the switching region 123 by the user about the axis of rotation 119 also causes a rotation of the shaft region 131 about the axis of rotation 119 .

The operating panel 113 has an inner area 149 which at least in sections surrounds the opening area 139 , in particular the inner side 141 of the opening area, in particular the inner wall 143 of the operating panel 113 . In this case, the inner region 149 is arranged in particular in the opening region 139 of the operating panel 113 , in particular on the inside 141 of the opening region, in particular radially outside the inner wall 143 .

In particular, the inner region 149 has a first region thickness 151 extending in the direction of the appliance interior 103 which is greater than a second region thickness 153 of the opening region 139 extending in the direction of the appliance interior 103 . In the view shown in FIG. 3 , the second region thickness 153 of the opening region 139 is only shown in sections.

In particular, the operating panel 113 has at least one electronic component securing element 155 for securing electronic components (not shown in FIG. 3 ) on the operating panel 113 . In particular, the at least one electronics fixing element 155 is designed as a positioning element for positioning electronic components (not shown in FIG. 3 ) on the operating panel 113 . Here, the at least one electronics fixing element 155 is arranged on the panel inner side 121 of the operating panel 113 facing the appliance interior 103 , wherein in particular the electronics fixing element 155 is arranged on the inner region 149 of the operating panel 113 .

To ensure effective illumination of the appliance exterior 105 , the switching region 123 of the switching element 117 arranged on the outer side 115 of the panel has at least one light-emitting element, or the switching region 123 of the switching element 117 is designed as a light-emitting element.

In this case, the domestic appliance 100 has, in particular, a light source, not shown in FIG. 3 , for emitting light, which is arranged in the appliance interior 103 . The axis region 131 here has a light-guiding element 157 , which is only shown schematically in FIG. 3 , which is designed such that the light emitted by the light source is coupled into the light-guiding element 157 , guided by the light-guiding element 157 and from the light-guiding element 157 . The light guide element 157 outputs such that the outputted light is then supplied to the light emitting elements of the switching area 123 for the lighting fixture external space 105 .

The shaft region 131 in particular has a contact region 159 , in particular a pin-shaped contact region 159 , which is arranged in a lead-in region of the household appliance 100 which is not shown in FIG. 3 . The contact region 159 is designed here so that light emitted by the light source is coupled into the contact region 159 , wherein the axis region 131 is designed such that light coupled into the contact region 159 is guided through the contact region 159 and through the axis region 131 to and from the contact region 159 . The shaft area 131 outputs such that the outputted light is then supplied to the light-emitting elements of the switching area 123 for the lighting fixture external space 105 .

It is thus possible to ensure that light is efficiently guided from the light source arranged in the domestic appliance 100 for emitting light via the light guide elements 157 arranged in the shaft region 131 to the light emitting elements of the switching region 123 , whereby an efficient use of the appliance outer space 105 can be achieved. illumination.

By integrating the light guide element 157 into the shaft region 131 of the switching element 117 , the number of components of the switching element 117 can be reduced, thereby reducing the assembly effort and thus also the assembly costs of the switching element 117 .

Furthermore, the assembly effort can be reduced by the locking connection between the switching element 117 and the operating panel 113 , since the switching element 117 , in particular the shaft region 131 , can only be easily introduced into the appliance interior 103 from the outside of the appliance 105 through the panel opening 137 and stop, whereby the commonly used fixing elements can be dispensed with on the panel inner side 121 of the operating panel 113 .

In addition, the decorating process of the panel 113 can be simplified, since the panel can advantageously be printed digitally, eg by inkjet or laser printing methods, during the manufacturing process of the panel 113 , and the switching element 117 can then be easily and advantageously fixed in place. on the printed panel 113.

FIG. 4 shows a schematic view of the switching element according to the second embodiment on the inner side of the panel of the operating panel of the domestic appliance.

The second embodiment shown in FIG. 4 corresponds to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3 , with the only difference being the locking connection between the shaft area 131 of the switching element 117 and the opening area 139 of the operating panel 113 .

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 , at least one further locking means 161 , in particular a further locking projection, is arranged on the shaft region 131 of the switching element 117 , which locking projection engages the operating panel 113 in a locking manner. On the opening area 139 of the opening, in particular on the inner wall 143 , so that the shaft area 131 is connected to the opening area 139 in a locking manner.

In particular, the at least one further retaining means 161 comprises a plurality of, in particular two, retaining means 161 which are arranged in particular symmetrically around the axis region 131 .

If the switching element 117 , in particular the shaft region 131 of the switching element 117 is moved in through the panel opening 137 , the further retaining means 161 , in particular the retaining projections, are bent inwards, in particular pressed through the opening region 139 , in particular the inner wall 143 of the opening region 139 . into the shaft area groove 163 of the shaft area 131 and then engage on the shaft area 131 or snap behind the opening area 139 , in particular the inner wall 143 of the opening area 139 , thereby locking the shaft area 131 so that no further manipulations are made afterwards. With the locking means 161 it is no longer possible to pull the switching element 117 out of the panel opening 137 .

FIG. 5 shows a schematic representation of a corresponding section of a switching element according to the first or second embodiment on an operating panel of a domestic appliance in a sectional view. Reference is made to FIGS. 1 , 2 , 3 and 4 for details of the switching element 117 fastened to the operating panel 113 of the household appliance 100 .

As shown in the sectional view shown in FIG. 5 , the switching area 123 , in particular the switching area outer side 133 of the switching element 117 is arranged on the panel outer side 115 of the operating panel 113 facing the appliance exterior 105 .

In the sectional view shown in FIG. 5 , the shaft region 131 of the switching element 117 is shown only in sections, which is connected to the switching region 123 and extends through the panel opening 137 .

Further locking means 161 , in particular further locking projections, arranged on the shaft region 131 of the switching element 117 engage in a locking manner on the opening region 139 of the boundary panel opening 137 of the operating panel 113 , in particular on the inner wall 143 . For the locking connection of the shaft region 131 to the opening region 139 .

The shaft region 131 also has a corresponding section 165 which bears against a stop 167 of the operating panel 113 and is intended to limit the insertion movement of the switching element 117 into the panel opening 137 . The corresponding section 165 of the shaft region 131 extends in particular radially outside the opening region 139 of the operating panel 113 , in particular the inner wall 143 .

The counter section 165 here has a spring element 169 which bears against the stop 167 and is designed to provide tolerance compensation between the stop 167 and the shaft region 131 .

In this case, the mating section 165 has in particular a section opening 171 which is delimited by a section opening edge 173 , wherein the spring element 169 is connected in particular with the section opening edge 173 and extends into the section opening 171 .

The spring element 169 is in particular designed as a meander-shaped spring element 169 which has an abutment section 175 facing the stop 167 in order to ensure effective tolerance compensation.

The spring element 169 can in particular ensure that the shifting element 117 is moved in such that the further locking means 161 , in particular the further locking projections, engage in a locking manner on the opening regions 139 of the boundary panel openings 137 of the operating panel 113 , wherein, At the same time it is ensured that the switching element 117 is effectively locked within the panel 131 .

All the features explained and illustrated in connection with the various embodiments of the invention can be presented in the subject matter according to the invention in different combinations in order to achieve their advantageous effects at the same time.

The scope of the invention is given by the claims, and is not limited by the features set forth in the description or shown in the drawings.

List of reference signs

100 Household Appliances

101 Appliance housing

103 Interior space of appliances

105 Space outside the appliance

107 Appliance front

109 Punch into the shell

111 Appliance doors

113 Operation panel

115 Outside the panel

117 Switching element

119 Rotation axis

121 Inside the panel

123 Switching area of switching element

125 Switch area interior space

127 Receiving slot

129 Shaft outer section of the shaft area of the switching element

131 Switch the axis area of the element

133 Outside the switching area of the switching area of the switching element

137 Panel cutout

139 Open area of the operator panel

141 Inside the opening area of the opening area of the operation panel

143 Inner wall of open area

145 Stops for open areas

147 Stop protrusions in the shaft area

149 Internal area of the operator panel

151 First area thickness of inner area

153 Second area thickness of open area

155 Electronic device fixing elements

157 Light guide element

159 Switch the contact area of the axis area of the element

161 Additional stops in the axis area

163 Axis area slot

Corresponding section of the 165 axis area

167 Stop for the operator panel

169 Spring elements for corresponding sections

171 Section opening for corresponding section

173 Section opening edge of the corresponding section

175 Abutment section of the spring element.

Claims (15)

1. A household appliance (100) having an appliance housing (101) which delimits an appliance interior space (103) from an appliance exterior space (105), and having a switching element (117), wherein the appliance housing (101) has an operating panel (113) on an appliance front side (107), wherein the operating panel (113) has at least one panel opening (137) which is delimited by an opening region (139), and wherein the switching element is fastened to the operating panel (113), characterized in that,

the switching element (117) has a switching region (123) that can be actuated from a space (105) outside the appliance, and

the switching element (117) has a shaft region (131) which is connected to the switching region (123), wherein the shaft region (131) extends through the panel opening (137),

wherein the shaft region (131) is connected in a locking manner to an opening region (139) of the operating panel (113) for fastening the switching element (117) to the operating panel (113).

2. The household appliance (100) according to claim 1, wherein the switching element (117) is configured as a rotary selector switch, wherein the switching region (123) is configured as a switching region (123) which is rotatable about a rotational axis (119) of the rotary selector switch, wherein a shaft region (131) which is connected to the switching region (123) is configured as a shaft region (131) which is rotatable about the rotational axis (119) of the rotary selector switch, wherein in particular the shaft region (131) of the rotary selector switch extends along the rotational axis (119).

3. The household appliance (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the switching region (123) of the switching element (117) has a switching region outer side (133) facing the appliance exterior space (105), which is manipulable, in particular rotatable, from the appliance exterior space (105), and

the switching region (123) of the switching element (117) has a switching region inner side facing the device interior (103), wherein the switching region inner side is connected, in particular torsionally fixed, to a shaft region (131) of the switching element (117).

4. The household appliance (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the opening region (139) of the operating panel (113) has an opening region inner side (141) facing the appliance interior space (103), wherein an inner wall (143) is arranged, in particular on the opening region inner side (141), which surrounds the panel opening (137) at least in sections and delimits a receiving opening for receiving the shaft region (131),

the shaft region (131) is connected in a locking manner to an opening region inner side (141) of the operating panel (113), in particular to an inner wall (143).

5. The household appliance (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the operating panel (113) has an inner region (149) which at least partially surrounds an opening region (139), in particular an inner wall (143), of the operating panel (113), wherein in particular the inner region (149) has a first region thickness (151) which extends in the direction of the appliance interior space (103) and is greater than a second region thickness (153) of the opening region (139) which extends in the direction of the appliance interior space (103).

6. The household appliance (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one detent means (145), in particular a detent arm, is arranged on the opening region (139), in particular on the inner wall (143), of the operating panel (113), said detent arm fitting in a detent manner on a shaft region (131), in particular on a detent projection (147) of the shaft region (131), of the switching element (117) for connecting the shaft region (131) in a detent manner with the opening region (139).

7. The household appliance (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one further detent means (161), in particular a further detent projection, is arranged on the shaft region (131) of the switching element (117), which further detent projection fits with a detent on an opening region (139), in particular on an inner wall (143), of the operating panel (113) for detent connection of the shaft region (131) with the opening region (139).

8. The household appliance (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the operating panel (113) has at least one electronics fixing element (155) for fixing an electronic component on the operating panel (113), wherein the electronics fixing element (155) is arranged on a panel inner side (121) of the operating panel (113) facing the appliance interior space (103), wherein in particular the electronics fixing element (155) is arranged on an interior region (149) of the operating panel (113).

9. The household appliance (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a switching region (123), in particular a switching region outer side (133), of the switching element (117) has at least one light-emitting element, which is configured for illuminating the appliance exterior space (105), wherein in particular the switching region (123), in particular the switching region outer side (133), is configured as the light-emitting element.

10. The household appliance (100) according to claim 9, wherein the household appliance (100) has a light source for emitting light, which is arranged in the appliance interior space (103), and

the shaft region (131) has a light-guiding element (157) which is configured to couple light emitted by the light source into the light-guiding element (157), to be guided through the light-guiding element (157) and to be output from the light-guiding element (157), such that the output light is then fed to the light-emitting element for illuminating the fixture exterior space (105).

11. The household appliance (100) according to claim 10, wherein the shaft region (131) has a contact region (159), in particular a pin-shaped contact region (159), which is arranged in a lead-in region of the household appliance (100), wherein the contact region (159) is configured to couple light emitted by the light source into the contact region (159), wherein the shaft region (131) is configured to guide the light coupled into the contact region (159) through the contact region (159) and through the shaft region (131) and out of the shaft region (131), such that the output light is then conveyed to the light-emitting element for illuminating the appliance exterior space (105).

12. The household appliance (100) according to any of claims 9 to 11, characterized in that the switching region (123) is arranged on a panel outer side (115) of the operating panel (113) facing the appliance exterior space (105), wherein the switching region (123) is configured as the light-emitting element, wherein the switching region (123), in particular configured as a light-emitting element, is configured as a hollow-cylindrical switching region (123).

13. The household appliance (100) according to any of claims 10 to 12, characterized in that the shaft region (131) of the switching element (117) has a shaft outer section (129) which is arranged on a panel outer side (115) of the operating panel (113) facing the appliance outer space (105), and the switching region (123) which is configured as the light-emitting element has a receiving groove (127), wherein the shaft outer section (129) is received in the receiving groove (127) such that a light-guiding element (157) of the shaft region (131) is connected to the light-emitting element in an optically coupled manner.

14. The household appliance (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a shaft region (131) of the switch element (117) has a counter section (165) which bears against a stop (167) of the operating panel (113) for limiting an introduction movement of the switch element (117) into the panel opening (137), wherein the counter section (165) in particular has a spring element (169) which bears against the stop (167), the spring element being configured to provide tolerance compensation between the stop (167) and the shaft region (131).

15. The household appliance (100) according to claim 14, wherein the shaft region (131) has a segment opening (171) which is delimited by a segment opening edge (173), wherein the spring element (169) is connected to the segment opening edge (173) and extends into the segment opening (171), wherein the spring element (169) is in particular designed as a meander-shaped bent spring element (169) having an abutment segment (175) facing the stop (167).

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