US3529881A - Stabilizing panel for an appliance - Google Patents

Description

H. J. KALDENBERG 3,529,881

STABILIZING PANEL FOR AN APPLIANCE Sept. 22, 1970 2 Shets-She et 2 V Filed Nov. 4, 1968 INVENTOR.

/7 H5112 J A444 0N5R6 BY 7 4 mi? fleas/r United States Patent 3,529,881 STABILIZING PANEL FOR AN APPLIANCE Henry J. Kaldenberg, Des Moines, Iowa, assignor to The Maytag Company, Newton, Iowa, a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 4, 1968, Ser. No. 773,098 Int. Cl. A47b 81/04 U.S. Cl. 312-276 14 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The stabilizing panel of the invention is preferably molded of pliable and bendable plastic material with three grooves formed in the same to provide integral hinges for the sections of the panel. The panel is secured at its top end to the top portion of a front opening door of a portable home appliance. The bottom of the panel is secured to the front wall of the appliance below the horizontal pivot axis for the front opening door. One groove is formed in the stabilizing panel adjacent the top securing means and a second groove is formed in the stabilizing panel adjacent the bottom securing means. A third V-shaped groove is formed in the panel intermediate and parallel to the other grooves. When the door is opened, a stabilizing leg is provided since that section of the panel between the first groove and the intermediate third groove will depend vertically downward and the same may be reinforced by metal channel members secured to the rear surface of the panel.

The invention relates to stabilizing means for home appliances having a bottom-hinged door and has reference more particularly to a stabilizing panel for securement to the front wall of a portable home appliance having a bottom-hinged door for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis as found, for example, in portable dishwashers.

An object of the invention is to provide the hinged door of a portable home appliance with stabilizing means which will prevent the appliance from tipping forward When an unbalancing force is applied to the outer end of the open door.

Another object resides in the provision of a molded stabilizing panel for securement to the front wall of a portable home appliance, which will provide a safety leg to prevent tipping of the appliance when the door is fully open and which will retain polyurethane or similar sound deadening insulation for effectively concealing and insulating the open space between the door and the stabilizing panel.

Another object of the invention is to provide a stabilizing panel of the character and for the purposes described and which in addition may be molded with special texture or with a special design whereby the panel will provide novel and unique means for decorating the front of the home appliance.

Another object is to provide a stabilizing panel for a portable dishwasher wherein one end of the panel is secured to the top portion of the front opening door and the other end of the panel secured to the front wall below the horizontal hinge for the front opening door.

With these and various other objects in view, the invention may consist of certain novel features of construction and operation, as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the specification, drawings and claims appended thereto.

In the drawings which illustrate an embodiment of the device and wherein like reference characters are used to designate like parts:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a portable home Patented Sept. 22, 1970 "ice appliance showing the stabilizing panel of the invention applied to the front wall of the appliance;

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on line 22 of FIG. 1 and showing on an enlarged scale the construction of the molded stabilizing panel and the manner of attaching the same to the front wall of the appliance;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on line 3-3 of FIG. 1 and showing on an enlarged scale the reinforcing rib and metal channel construction of the leg portion of the stabilizing panel;

FIG. 4 is a detail sectional view illustrating the securing members for attaching the stabilizing panel to the front wall of the appliance;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view showing the door of the home appliance of FIG. 1 in open position and illustrating the stabilizing action of the panel of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary view showing an alternate construction for the stabilizing panel.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 5 of the drawings, the intion is disclosed as applied to a portable appliance such as a dishwasher 10 having a front opening door 11 which is bottom hinged for pivotal movement on a horizontal axis to and from open and closed positions as will be fully understood from FIG. 5. The door essentially consists of the front wall 12, sidewalls such as 13 and a rear portion 14 which carries a resilient sealing strip 15 for sealing the door with respect to the washing chamber when the door is closed. A combination handle-control panel 16 is provided as a unitary part of the door and which is grasped by the operator for opening and closing the door. The number 17, FIGS. 2 and 5, indicates the lower front wall of the appliance below the bottom hinge 18 of the door and which in combination with the door forms the front of the appliance. The stabilizing panel generally indicated by the numeral 20 is secured at its upper end to the door 11 and at its base end to the said part 17 all in a manner as hereinafter described.

In accordance with the invention the stabilizing panel 20 is preferably molded of any suitable material such as a pliable or bendable plastic and the length and width of the panel is such as to fully cover the front of the appliance. The front of the panel is flat and uninterrupted except for a V-shaped groove 21 in the top portion of the panel and a similar V-shaped groove 22 in the bottom portion of the panel. The grooves provide the necessary hinges for the panel when the door 11 is opened as in FIG. 5. In a preferred embodiment, the stabilizing panel is formed of polypropylene with the material providing long life integral hinges at the grooves 21 and 22. In this specification, grooves 21 and 22 will be used interchangeably with hinges 21 and 22 which are in fact formed by the grooves.

More particularly, the top groove or hinge 21 is located below the top edge of the panel and immediately below the fastening element 23 by means of which the top edge of the panel is secured to the top portion of the front opening door 11. In a similar manner, the bottom hinge 22 is located above the bottom edge of the panel 20 and immediately above the fastening element 24 which secures the bottom edge of the panel 20 to the front wall part 17 of the appliance.

The rear side of the panel 20 is reinforced by means of a plurality of ribs 25 integral with the panel and which extend longitudinally for substantially the length of the panel. Several of the reinforcing ribs 25 are additional'ly reinforced and strengthened by the metal channels 26 which are located within the upper portion of the channel spaces as formed by the ribs 25. The swaged integral rivets 27 or other suitable means may be employed to fixedly secure the metal channels 26 in place.

The spaces in the rear of the panel are preferably filled with a plastic foam 28 such as polyurethane and which may be foamed in place. Other sound deadening and insulating material may of course be used such as would be effective in concealing and insulating the open space bet-ween the door 11 and the panel 20.

The rear side of the panel is additionally shaped to provide a rear hinge formed by the V-shaped groove 30. The said groove extends horizontally across the width of the panel and parallel to the grooves 21 and 22 so that all three grooves or hinges of the panel are substantially horizontal and parallel. It will also be observed that the groove or hinge 30 is located immediately below the terminal end of the reinforcing metal channels 26 and that the groove which forms the hinge 30 intersects and thus interrupts the ribs 25. Thus, in accordance with the invention as stabilizing leg 32, as shown in FIG. 5, of the panel 20 is formed by that portion of the panel between the hinges 21 and 30 and which portion is suitably reinforced by the metal channel sections 26. A portion 33 extends between hinges 30 and 22.

The fastening members 23 and 24 may consist of extrusions having a shape in cross section simulating a T and which are fixedly secured in place by screws such as 31. In the formation of the stabilizing panel 20, the rear side is provided with open grooves or slots similar in shape to the fastening members 23 and 24. It is, therefore, relatively easy to apply the stabilizing panel 20 to the front of the appliance since the panel can be positioned with the slots aligned with the fastening elements 23, 24 and then by sliding the panel across the front of the appliance the same will be effectively assembled With the apparatus and securely locked in place.

The panel thus assembled will be maintained as shown in FIG. 2 with stabilizing panel flush against the front of the door 11 and the lower panel 17 when the door is in the fully closed position. When the door 11 is opened about its hinge 18, the effective distance between hinge 21 and hinge 22 will be reduced and the stabilizing panel 20 will fold about the hinges 21, 22, and to assume a position as shown in FIG. 5 with the upper portion providing a stabilizing leg such as 32 to prevent tilting of the appliance when an unbalancing force is applied to the open door. This stabilizing leg 32 permits the supporting of a fully loaded rack of dishes on the door as well as supporting other forces intentionally or accidentally applied to the outer end of the door 11 in the open position.

The panel 20 may also be used to provide a decorative panel for the front of the machine. This panel may be molded with special decorative effects to enhance the appearance of the appliance. It is clear that the panel may be easily assembled or removed and thus if the portable appliance is later converted to a built-in appliance the stabilizing panel 20 may be removed since the stabilizing requirement no longer exists.

Referring to FIG. 6, there is shown a fragmentary view of an alternate embodiment for the hinged construction of the stabilizing panel. In this view, a stabilizing panel 35 is formed with a notch or groove 36 on its rear side. As the door is opened, the sides of the groove move apart instead of closing on each other as with the V-shaped grooves formed on the front side of the stabilizing panel 20 shown in FIGS. 1 through 5. This alternate construction may be considered if a clean uninterrupted front for the stabilizing panel is required.

The invention is not to be limited to or by details of construction of the particular embodiment thereof illustrated by the drawings, as various other forms of the device will, of course, be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. A stabilizing panel for a home appliance having a door hinged for outward and downward pivotal movement about a horizontal axis, the combination comprising, a first panel means hingedly connected to the door above said horizontal axis, a second panel means hingedly connected to a lower portion of said appliance below said horizontal axis, and hinge means interposed and operatively connecting said first and second panel means, said first and second panel means being positioned substantially fiush to said door with the door in the closed position and hingedly movable with respect to each other to a door stabilizing position below said door upon movement of said door to a substantially horizontally open position.

2. A stabilizing panel for a home appliance as defined in claim 1 wherein said first and second panel means form a one-piece unitary member with said hinge means being formed as an integral hinge between said first and second panel means.

3. A stabilizing panel for a home appliance as defined in claim 2 and further including a hinge and panel mounting means at each end of the one-piece unitary member and integral therewith and wherein the entire stabilizing panel is molded of a plastic material.

4. A stabilizing panel for a home appliance having a front opening door hinged for outward and downward pivotal movement about a horizontal axis, comprising, an upper portion securable to the hinged door adjacent the top edge thereof, a lower portion seourable to the appliance below said horizontal axis, first means connected to said upper portion and defining a first horizontal hinge, second means connected to said lower portion and defining a second horizontal hinge, first and second panel means substantially covering the front of said appliance and connected to said first and second means respectively for hinged movement from the front of the appliance upon opening of the door, and third means interposed said first and second panel means defining a third horizontal hinge and operatively connecting said first and second panel means.

5. A stabilizing panel as defined in claim 4 wherein said stabilizing panel is formed as a one-piece polypropylene member with said first, second, and third means being formed as integral hinges.

6. A stabilizing panel as defined in claim 5 wherein said first and second hinges are formed as V-shaped grooves in the front of the stabilizing panel and wherein said third hinge is formed as a V-groove in the rear of the stabilizing panel.

7. A stabilizing panel as defined in claim 5 wherein said first panel means includes reinforcing, means and is operable as a substantially vertically extending stabilizing leg when the door of the appliance is fully opened.

8. In a home appliance having a door hinged for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis, in combination, a stabilizing panel for the appliance, means securing the top edge of the panel to the top portion of the door, other means securing the bottom edge of the panel to the bottom portion of the appliance below the horizontal axis, said stabilizing panel having three horizontal axes for hinging action as regards certain sections of the panel, the first of said horizontal axes being located adjacent the top securing mean-s for the panel, the second of said horizontal axes being located adjacent the bottom securing means for the panel, and the third of said horizontal axes being located intermediate the said first and second, whereby the panel provides a stabilizing leg when the door is fully opened to prevent tilting of the appliance when an unbalancing force is applied to the open end of the door.

9. A home appliance as defined by claim 8, wherein the stabilizing panel is formed of pliable material and wherein the first, second, and third horizontal axes for hinging action as regards certain sections of the panel are formed by integral hinges each comprising a horizontally extending thin wall at predetermined positions on said stabilizing panel.

10. A portable home appliance as defined by claim 8, wherein the stabilizing panel is formed of pliable material, wherein the first and second horizontal axes for hinging action as regards certain sections of the panel are formed by V-shaped grooves in the front surface of the panel, and wherein the third of said horizontal axes is formed by a V-shaped groove in the rear surface of the panel.

11. A portable home appliance as defined by claim 8, wherein the stabilizing panel is formed of a moldable pliable plastic, wherein the front surface of the panel is substantially flat, wherein a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs are formed on the rear surface of the panel, and wherein metal reinforcing means are fixed in the channels between certain ribs and extend from the first of said horizontal axes to the third of said horizontal axes.

12. A portable home appliance as defined by claim 8, wherein the stabilizing panel is formed of a moldable pliable plastic, wherein the front surface of the panel is substantially flat, wherein a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs are formed on the rear surface of the panel, and wherein sound deadening material is located in the channels between certain ribs.

13'. A portable home appliance as defined by claim 8, wherein the stabilizing panel is formed of a moldable pliable plastic, wherein the front surface of the panel is flat and uninterrupted except for two V-shaped grooves which form the said first and second horizontal axes, a plurality of reinforcing ribs formed on the rear surface of the panel and which extend longitudinally, a horizontal V-shaped groove also formed on the rear surface of 5 the panel and which intersects the ribs, the said V-shaped groove on the rear surface forming the third of said horizontal axes, and metal reinforcing means located in the channels between certain ribs and extending from the first of said horizontal axes to the third of said horizontal 10 axes.

14. A portable home appliance as defined by claim 13, wherein the channel spaces on the rear surface of the panel formed by the reinforcing ribs are filled with a sound deadening material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,886,394 5/1959 Snyder 312-138 X 2,953,419 9/1960 Ingolia 312 -276 3,150,904 9/1964 Kendt et a1. 312276 3,306,694 2/1967 Hauser 312- -314 X 3,322,480 5/1967 Barnstead et a1. 3l2276 3,393,950 7/1968 Dutcher 312276 JAMES T. McCALL, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 126190

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