U.S. patent application number 13/170638 was filed with the patent office on 2013-01-03 for laundry treating appliance with method to reduce drum excursions.
This patent application is currently assigned to WHIRLPOOL CORPORATION. Invention is credited to CHRISTOPH J. MILLER, BRADLEY D. MORROW.
Application Number | 20130000053 13/170638 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 46317242 |
Filed Date | 2013-01-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130000053 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
MILLER; CHRISTOPH J. ; et
al. |
January 3, 2013 |
LAUNDRY TREATING APPLIANCE WITH METHOD TO REDUCE DRUM
EXCURSIONS
Abstract
A laundry treating appliance and method for reducing drum
excursions associated with the forming a liquid inertial mass in
the tub prior to an extraction phase during a cycle of
operation.
Inventors: |
MILLER; CHRISTOPH J.; (SAINT
JOSEPH, MI) ; MORROW; BRADLEY D.; (STEVENSVILLE,
MI) |
Assignee: |
WHIRLPOOL CORPORATION
BENTON HARBOR
MI
|
Family ID: |
46317242 |
Appl. No.: |
13/170638 |
Filed: |
June 28, 2011 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
8/137 ;
68/23R |
Current CPC
Class: |
D06F 35/007 20130101;
D06F 37/245 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
8/137 ;
68/23.R |
International
Class: |
D06F 35/00 20060101
D06F035/00; D06L 1/00 20060101 D06L001/00 |
Claims
1. A method of operating a laundry treating appliance according to
a cycle of operation, with the laundry treating appliance having a
tub and a rotatable drum located within the tub, the method
comprising: forming a liquid inertial mass in the tub by providing
a predetermined amount of liquid to the tub; and executing an
extraction phase by accelerating rotational speed of the drum
toward an extraction speed while the liquid inertial mass is in the
tub at least for a portion of the extraction phase.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the providing a predetermined
amount of liquid to the tub comprises at least one of supplying
liquid to or draining liquid from liquid already present in the tub
until the predetermined amount is reached.
3. The method of claim 2 wherein the predetermined amount of liquid
to the tub comprises a predetermined level in the tub.
4. The method of claim 3 wherein the predetermined level is below a
level in the tub where rotation of the drum during the extraction
phase would generate sufficient suds to cause suds lock.
5. The method of claim 3 wherein the predetermined level is below a
level in the tub where rotation of the drum during the extraction
phase would generate a water ring about the drum.
6. The method of claim 3 wherein the predetermined level is below
the drum.
7. The method of claim 2 wherein the liquid already present in the
tub comprises at least one of wash liquid and rinse liquid.
8. The method of claim 7 further comprising a wash phase preceding
the extraction phase and the wash liquid is provided during the
wash phase.
9. The method of claim 7 further comprising a rinse phase preceding
the extraction phase and the rinse liquid is provided during the
rinse phase.
10. The method of claim 1 wherein the liquid inertial mass is
present in the tub when the rotational speed of the drum reaches a
natural frequency of the drum during the extraction phase.
11. The method of claim 10 wherein the natural frequency
corresponds to a pendulum mode of the drum.
12. The method of claim 11 further comprising removing the liquid
inertial mass from the tub after the natural frequency
corresponding to the pendulum mode of the drum and prior to the
rotational speed of the drum reaching a natural frequency
corresponding to a vertical travel mode of the drum during the
extraction phase.
13. The method of claim 1 further comprising removing the liquid
inertial mass from the tub prior to the rotational speed of the
drum reaching a natural frequency corresponding to a vertical
travel mode of the drum during the extraction phase.
14. The method of claim 13 wherein the liquid inertial mass is
removed by draining the liquid inertial mass from the tub.
15. A laundry treating appliance comprising: a chassis defining an
interior; a tub for holding liquid and located within the chassis
interior; a drum defining a laundry treating chamber, located
within the tub, and rotatable about an axis of rotation; a motor
operably coupled to the drum to effect the rotation of the drum; a
suspension system coupling the tub to the chassis; a liquid supply
fluidly coupled to at least one of the tub and drum; a liquid
remover fluidly coupled to the tub; and a controller operably
coupled to and controlling the motor, liquid supply, and liquid
remover to effect the formation of a liquid inertial mass in the
tub by providing a predetermined amount of liquid to the tub, and
accelerating rotational speed of the drum toward an extraction
speed while the liquid inertial mass is in the tub.
16. The laundry treating appliance of claim 15 wherein the
controller controls the liquid supply and liquid remover to ensure
the presence of the liquid inertial mass when the rotational speed
of the drum reaches a natural frequency of the drum corresponding
to a pendulum mode of the drum.
17. The laundry treating appliance of claim 16 wherein the
controller controls the liquid remover to remove the liquid
inertial mass from the tub after the natural frequency
corresponding to the pendulum mode of the drum and prior to the
rotational speed of the drum reaching a natural frequency
corresponding to a vertical travel mode of the drum during an
extraction phase.
18. The laundry treating appliance of claim 17 further comprising a
liquid level sensor operably coupled to the controller and the
controller effects the providing of the predetermined amount of
liquid to the tub by controlling the liquid supply and liquid
remover until the liquid reaches a predetermined level in the tub
as sensed by the liquid level sensor.
19. The laundry treating appliance of claim 16 wherein the axis of
rotation is a vertical axis of rotation, and the suspension
comprises multiple struts extending from the chassis to the tub.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] Laundry treating appliances, such as a washing machine, may
have a rotatable drum in which laundry may be placed for treatment.
The rotatable drum, defining a treating chamber, resides within a
liquid holding tub, which may be mounted by a suspension system to
a cabinet. In such a configuration, the tub and drum, including any
contents, form a suspended mass subject to the damping forces of
the suspension. In cases where the laundry is non-uniformly
distributed in the rotating drum, the rotating drum may be in the
imbalance condition, which may lead to movement of the suspended
mass, especially at higher rotational speeds and/or at rotational
speeds corresponding to known dynamic modes of the appliance, such
as pendulum mode, where the suspended mass tends to swing back and
forth like a pendulum, which may cause the appliance to rock, and a
vertically rocking/bouncing mode, where the appliance essentially
jumps up and down. The rocking and jumping modes typically make
undesirable noise and are not desired by the consumer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The invention relates to a laundry treating appliance and
method for forming a liquid inertial mass in the tub by providing a
predetermined amount of liquid to the tub, and executing an
extraction phase by accelerating the rotational speed of the drum
toward an extraction speed while the liquid inertial mass is in the
tub at least for a portion of the extraction phase.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0003] In the drawings:
[0004] FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a laundry
treating appliance according to one embodiment of the
invention.
[0005] FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of a controller for
controlling the operation of one or more components of the laundry
treating appliance of FIG. 1.
[0006] FIG. 3 schematically illustrates the presence of the liquid
inertial mass within the tub, according to one embodiment of the
invention.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
[0007] FIG. 1 illustrates a laundry treating appliance in the form
of a washing machine 10 according to one embodiment of the
invention. The laundry treating appliance may be any machine that
treats articles such as clothing or fabrics. Non-limiting examples
of the laundry treating appliance may include a top
loading/vertical axis washing machine; a front loading/horizontal
washing machine; a combination washing machine and dryer; and a
refreshing/revitalizing machine. The washing machine 10 described
herein shares many features of a traditional automatic washing
machine, which will not be described in detail except as necessary
for a complete understanding of the invention.
[0008] Washing machines are typically categorized as either a
vertical axis washing machine or a horizontal axis washing machine.
As used herein, the "vertical axis" washing machine refers to a
washing machine having a rotatable drum, perforate or imperforate,
that holds fabric items and a clothes mover, such as an agitator,
impeller, nutator, and the like within the drum. The clothes mover
moves within the drum to impart mechanical energy directly to the
clothes or indirectly through liquid in the drum. The liquid may
include one of wash liquid and rinse liquid. The wash liquid may
have at least one of water and a wash aid. Similarly, the rinse
liquid may have at least one of water and a wash aid. The clothes
mover may typically be moved in a reciprocating rotational
movement. In some vertical axis washing machines, the drum rotates
about a vertical axis generally perpendicular to a surface that
supports the washing machine. However, the rotational axis need not
be vertical. The drum may rotate about an axis inclined relative to
the vertical axis. As used herein, the "horizontal axis" washing
machine refers to a washing machine having a rotatable drum,
perforate or imperforate, that holds fabric items and washes the
fabric items by the fabric items rubbing against one another as the
drum rotates. In some horizontal axis washing machines, the drum
rotates about a horizontal axis generally parallel to a surface
that supports the washing machine. However, the rotational axis
need not be horizontal. The drum may rotate about an axis inclined
relative to the horizontal axis. In horizontal axis washing
machines, the clothes are lifted by the rotating drum and then fall
in response to gravity to form a tumbling action. Mechanical energy
is imparted to the clothes by the tumbling action formed by the
repeated lifting and dropping of the clothes. Vertical axis and
horizontal axis machines are best differentiated by the manner in
which they impart mechanical energy to the fabric articles. The
illustrated exemplary washing machine of FIG. 1 is a vertical axis
washing machine.
[0009] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the laundry treating appliance 10
may include a housing 14, which may be a cabinet or a chassis
and/or a frame to which decorative panels may or may not be
mounted. The cabinet may be defined by a front wall 16, a rear wall
18, and a pair of side walls 20 supporting a top wall 22. A user
interface 24 may be included on the housing 14 and may have one or
more knobs, switches, displays, and the like for communicating with
the user, such as to receive input and provide output. A door or
lid 28 may be operably coupled with the housing 14 and may be
selectively moveable between opened and closed positions to close
an opening in a top wall 22 of the housing 14, which provides
access to the interior of the housing 14.
[0010] A rotatable drum 30 having an open top may be disposed
within the interior of the housing 14 and may define a treating
chamber 32 for treating laundry. An imperforate tub 34 may also be
positioned within the housing 14 and may define an interior within
which the drum 30 may be positioned. The tub 34 may be supported
within the cabinet by a suitable suspension system 35. The
suspension system 35 may include multiple strut assemblies 36
extending from the housing 14 to the tub 34. The drum 30 may
include a plurality of perforations 37 such that liquid may flow
between the tub 34 and the drum 30 through the perforations 37.
While the illustrated laundry treating appliance 10 includes both
the tub 34 and the drum 30, with the drum 30 defining the laundry
treatment chamber 32, it is within the scope of the invention for
the laundry treating appliance to include only one receptacle, with
the receptacle defining the laundry treatment chamber for receiving
the load to be treated.
[0011] A clothes mover 38 may be located in the drum 30 to impart
mechanical agitation to a load of laundry placed in the drum 30.
The drum 30 and the clothes mover 38 may be driven by an electrical
motor 40 operably coupled with the drum 30 and clothes mover 38. A
clutch assembly 41 may be provided to selectively operably couple
the motor 40 with either the drum 30 and/or the clothes mover 38.
The clothes mover 38 may be oscillated or rotated about its axis of
rotation during a cycle of operation in order to produce high water
turbulence effective to wash the load contained within the treating
chamber 32. The motor 40 may rotate the drum 30 at various speeds
in either rotational direction about an axis of rotation.
[0012] A liquid supply system may be provided to liquid, such as
water or a combination of water and one or more wash aids, such as
detergent, into the treating chamber 32. The liquid supply system
may include a water supply configured to supply hot or cold water.
The water supply may include a hot water inlet 44 and a cold water
inlet 46, a valve assembly, which may include a hot water valve 48,
a cold water valve 50, and a diverter valve 55, and various
conduits 52, 56, 58. The valves 48, 50 are selectively openable to
provide water, such as from a household water supply to the conduit
52. The valves 48, 50 may be opened individually or together to
provide a mix of hot and cold water at a selected temperature.
While the valves 48, 50 and conduit 52 are illustrated exteriorly
of the housing 14, it may be understood that these components may
be internal to the housing 14.
[0013] As illustrated, a detergent dispenser 54 may be fluidly
coupled with the conduit 52 through a diverter valve 55 and a first
water conduit 56. The detergent dispenser 54 may include means for
supplying or mixing detergent to or with water from the first water
conduit 56 and may supply such treating liquid to the tub 34. It
has been contemplated that water from the first water conduit 56
may also be supplied to the tub 34 through the detergent dispenser
54 without the addition of a detergent. A second water conduit,
illustrated as a separate water inlet 58, may also be fluidly
coupled with the conduit 52 through the diverter valve 55 such that
water may be supplied directly to the treating chamber 32 through
the open top of the drum 30. Additionally, the liquid supply system
may differ from the configuration shown, such as by inclusion of
other valves, conduits, wash aid dispensers, heaters, sensors such
as a liquid level sensor, a weight sensor, a motor torque sensor, a
temperature sensor, a transducer such as potentiometer, and the
like, to control the flow of treating liquid through the laundry
treating appliance 10 and for the introduction of more than one
type of detergent/wash aid.
[0014] A liquid recirculation system may be provided for
recirculating liquid from the tub 34 into the treating chamber 32.
More specifically, a sump 60 may be located in the bottom of the
tub 34 and the liquid recirculation system may be configured to
recirculate treating liquid from the sump 60 onto the top of a
laundry load located in the treating chamber 32. A liquid remover
in the form of a pump 62 may be housed below the tub 34 and may
have an inlet fluidly coupled with the sump 60 and an outlet
configured to fluidly couple to either or both a household drain 64
or a recirculation conduit 66. In this configuration, the pump 62
may be used to drain or recirculate wash water in the sump 60. As
illustrated, the recirculation conduit 66 may be fluidly coupled
with the treating chamber 32 such that it supplies liquid into the
open top of the drum 30. The liquid recirculation system may
include other types of recirculation systems.
[0015] The laundry treating appliance 10 may further include a
controller 70 coupled with various working components of the
laundry treating appliance 10 to control the operation of the
working components. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the controller 70 may
be provided with a memory 72 and a central processing unit (CPU)
74. The memory 72 may be used for storing the control software that
may be executed by the CPU 74 in completing a cycle of operation
using the laundry treating appliance 10 and any additional
software. The memory 72 may also be used to store information, such
as a database or table, and to store data received from the one or
more components of the laundry treating appliance 10 that may be
communicably coupled with the controller 70.
[0016] The controller 70 may be operably coupled with one or more
components of the laundry treating appliance 10 for communicating
with and/or controlling the operation of the components to complete
a cycle of operation. For example, the controller 70 may be coupled
with the hot water valve 48, the cold water valve 50, diverter
valve 55, and the detergent dispenser 54 for controlling the
temperature and flow rate of treating liquid into the treating
chamber 32; the pump 62 for controlling the amount of treating
liquid in the treating chamber 32 or sump 60; the motor 40 and
clutch 41 for controlling the direction and speed of rotation of
the drum 30 and/or the clothes mover 38; and the user interface 24
for receiving user selected inputs and communicating information to
the user. The controller 70 may also receive input from the liquid
level sensor 76, which may be operably coupled to the tub 34 to
detect the liquid level in the tub 34 and transmit the signal to
the controller 70 such that the amount of liquid may be selectively
controlled in the tub 34 during a cycle of operation. The
controller 70 may also receive input from various additional
sensors 78, which are known in the art and not shown for
simplicity. Non-limiting examples of additional sensors 78 that may
be communicably coupled with the controller 70 include: weight
sensors, motor torque sensors, temperature sensors, and transducers
such as a potentiometers.
[0017] The laundry treating appliance 10 may perform one or more
manual or automatic treating cycles or cycle of operation. A common
cycle of operation includes a wash phase, a rinse phase, and a spin
extraction phase. Other phases for cycles of operation include, but
are not limited to, intermediate extraction phases, such as between
the wash and rinse phases, and a pre-wash phase preceding the wash
phase, and some cycles of operation include only a selected one or
more of these exemplary phases.
[0018] The drum 30, tub 34, clothes mover 38, motor 40 and any
liquid or laundry in the treating chamber 32 and tub 34 may be
thought of as a mass that is suspended from the housing 14 by the
suspension system 35, which is illustrated by the struts 36. The
suspension system 35 will have various dynamic modes that may
change depending on the rotational speed of the drum, especially
when laundry resides within the treating chamber 32, and more
especially when the laundry is non-uniformly distributed relative
to the rotational axis and forms an imbalance.
[0019] During an operation of the laundry treating appliance, the
drum may rotate in accordance with a cycle of operation. In case
the laundry is non-uniformly distributed in the drum 30, the
laundry imbalance during the rotation of the drum 30 may induce the
drum 30 to deviate off an anticipated rotational orbit and move the
drum 30 in a side-to-side direction, which may be referred to as
the pendulum mode because the suspended mass is essentially
swinging back and forth on the struts 34 within the housing 14.
Such back and forth swinging may result in laundry treating
appliance 10 "walking" on the floor on which the laundry treating
appliance is located and/or the drum 30 may collide with the
surrounding tub 34 and/or housing 14 to generate uncomfortable
noise or even incur physical damage such as wear to the tub 34
and/or cabinet dents.
[0020] The rotational speed of the drum 30 at which the pendulum
mode is present is typically a function of the structure of the
specific machine. For the illustrated machine, the pendulum mode
occurs between 50-90 rpm as the drum 30 transitions to speeds where
the laundry tends to "satellize" with the drum 30. That is, the
centrifugal force applied to the laundry is sufficient for the
laundry to "stick" to the drum 30 and not move. The pendulum mode
tends to correspond to the first natural frequency of the suspended
mass.
[0021] A vertical travel mode is another dynamic mode that occurs
when the suspended mass starts reciprocating up and down, which in
severe cases may cause part of the suspended mass to contact the
cabinet, causing related movement laundry treating appliance
10.
[0022] The rotational speed of the drum 30 at which the vertical
travel mode occurs is also machine-dependent. For the illustrated
machine, the vertical travel mode occurs around 170-240 rpm. The
vertical travel mode tends to correspond to the second natural
frequency of the suspended mass.
[0023] Once at least one of these modes becomes significant during
a cycle of operation, the user generally may need to stop the
operation of the laundry treating appliance 10 to redistribute the
laundry in the drum 30 followed by re-starting the operation, which
may take an extended washing cycle time and results in a customer
unsatisfaction. Alternatively, the user may relieve a portion of
the laundry of the laundry treating appliance 10 to treat the
portion of the laundry next time.
[0024] The invention addresses the problems associated with these
different dynamic modes by creating a liquid inertial mass in the
tub 34 during the pendulum mode and removing the liquid inertial
mass, if present, prior to the vertical travel mode. The liquid
inertial mass tends to retard the movement of the tub during the
pendulum mode, but may exacerbate the vertical travel mode.
[0025] FIG. 3 schematically illustrates the presence of the liquid
inertial mass 63 within the tub 34. The liquid inertial mass 63 may
be used any time during the cycle of operation where the drum 30 is
to be rotated, especially at low speed ranges, for example, less
than 200 rpm. It is generally understood that some exemplary phases
such as the pre-wash phase, the wash phase and the rinse phase may
be followed by an extraction phase during which the liquid is
drained from the laundry or the tub 34. The extraction phase may be
generally conducted by centrifugally rotating the drum 30 about a
rotational axis to a predetermined spin speed for a predetermined
time period such that practically all of the liquid may be removed
out of the tub 34 according to a cycle of operation. The liquid
inertial mass 63 is particularly useful during an extraction phase,
especially where low drum rotational speeds are maintained.
[0026] The formation of the liquid inertial mass 63 may be done in
any suitable manner. Liquid can be supplied directly to the tub 34
whenever it is desired to form the liquid inertial mass 63. In
order to conserve liquid consumption, the liquid inertial mass 63
may be formed from liquid already present in the tub 34.
Advantageously, most extraction phases occur after liquid is
already provided in the tub 34 for the corresponding cycle of
operation. Therefore, the liquid already present in the tub 34 may
be used to form the liquid inertial mass 63. If the liquid present
is insufficient to form the desired liquid inertial mass 63, then
more liquid is added to the already present liquid. If too much
liquid is present for the liquid inertial mass 63, then some of the
present liquid is removed from the tub 34 until the desired amount
of liquid remains for the liquid inertial mass 63.
[0027] An illustrative example in the context of an extraction
phase in a wash cycle should prove useful in understanding the use
of the liquid inertial mass 63. When the wash phase is completed
for the laundry (not shown) in the tub 34, in many cases there will
be more liquid present in the tub 34 than is required for the
liquid inertial mass 63. This liquid is illustrated in FIG. 3 as
the wash level, WL. Thus, a portion of the wash liquid may be
removed from the tub 34 by activating the liquid remover such as
the pump 62 for a predetermined time. The amount of the residual
liquid may be monitored in terms of the liquid level using the
liquid level sensor 76. Alternatively, other sensors such as the
weight sensor may be used in conjunction with one or more control
software in calculating the amount of the residual liquid.
[0028] When the level of residual liquid goes down to the level,
LIM, suitable for the liquid inertial mass 63, the pump 62 may
deactivate, and the inlet and outlet of the pump 62 may be
configured to be closed to maintain the LIM. Then, the extraction
phase may begin by increasing the rotational spin speed of the drum
30 up to an intermediate spin speed, for example 30 rpm, for a
dwell for a predetermined time period, followed by increasing up to
a threshold spin speed, for example 100-125 rpm, for another dwell
for a predetermined time period. It may be understood that the spin
speed and/or dwell time for the intermediate spin step and the
threshold spin step may vary, depending on the configuration of the
laundry treating appliance 10.
[0029] In accelerating from 30 rpm to 100-125 rpm, the rotational
speed of the drum 30 passes through the speed range where the
suspended mass is subject to the pendulum mode. The liquid inertial
mass 63 in the form of the residual liquid in the tub 34 tends to
retard the movement of the suspended mass as it passes through the
pendulum mode because of the increased inertial of the suspended
mass. Another benefit of the liquid inertial mass 63, unlike solid
material, is that the liquid inertial mass 63 may not immediately
respond to an applied force. Instead, the liquid inertial mass 63
may lag behind to compensate for the tub/drum movements that may be
observed in the tub 34 that does not hold any residual liquid
during spinning. As a result, for the same degree of imbalance,
suspended mass will have less movement during the pendulum
mode.
[0030] After the dwell at 100-125 rpm, where imbalances are
typically detected, the drum 30 is normally accelerated to an
extraction speed, which is often greater than 500 rpm, and
necessarily passes through the vertical travel mode. When passing
through the vertical travel mode, the presence of the liquid
inertial mass 63 is not desired because the extra mass will make it
more likely that the suspension system 35 will reach its limit and
bottom out. Thus, prior to accelerating to speeds associated with
the vertical travel mode, the liquid inertial mass 63 may be
removed from the tub 34, such as by activating the pump 62 to drain
the liquid inertial mass 63 from the tub 34. The drum 30 may then
be accelerated through the speed range where the vertical travel
mode is encountered. It is contemplated that the liquid inertial
mass 63 will be drained during the dwell at 100-125 rpm so that the
presence of the liquid inertial mass 63 does not interfere with
imbalance detection.
[0031] While the LIM may be satisfied by removing a certain amount
of liquid that is initially supplied to the tub 34, it is also
noted that the LIM may be satisfied by adding liquid 63 to the tub
34 from outside the tub 34. For example, it may be understood that
the laundry may be sometimes treated in a recirculating wash phase,
where the liquid is recirculated from the sump 60 through the
recirculation circuit 66 to provide the liquid on top of the
laundry, and generally less amount of liquid may be consumed than
other wash phase such as a tumble wash phase where generally more
liquid is required for treating laundry. It may be understood that
the amount of liquid consumed for the recirculating wash phase may
be less than the amount of liquid that is required to form the
liquid inertial mass 63, and some amount of liquid may need to be
added to the tub 34 from outside the tub 34 to compensate for the
difference and to form the liquid inertial mass 63 to reduce drum
excursions during spin.
[0032] The amount of liquid required for the liquid inertial mass
63 may be determined by the geometrical and functional constraints
of the laundry treating appliance 10 which is in use for the
laundry treatment, and may be different from one appliance to
another. For example, the LIM may be determined to be below a level
where an overflow out of the tub 34 does not occur during a cycle
of operation. In another example, the LIM may be determined to be
below a level below where rotating of the drum 30 will not generate
sufficient suds that a suds lock may occur. In yet another example,
the LIM may be determined to be below a level where a water ring
may be generated between the drum 30 and tub 34 during an
extraction phase.
[0033] It may be understood that the invention described here may
not be limited to the wash phase in a cycle of operation. The
invention may be used in conjunction with any phase such as
pre-wash phase, wash phase, rinse phase, or other cycles of
operations including one or more of these exemplary phases, which
may followed by an extraction phase.
[0034] The invention described herein uses liquid inertial mass to
compensate for any non-uniformity of the laundry distributed
received in the drum of the laundry treating appliance, and
minimizes the excursions of the drum and cabinet hits during a
cycle of operation. As a result, the drum excursions and
side-to-side walk of the laundry treating appliance can be
prevented. The collision between the drum and the tub or housing
can be also prevented; therefore, the noise generation can be also
minimized. It is also noted that the invention may use liquid that
is already being used in a cycle of operation for the treatment of
the laundry, which incurs no additional cost.
[0035] While the invention has been specifically described in
connection with certain specific embodiments thereof, it is to be
understood that this is by way of illustration and not of
limitation. Reasonable variation and modification are possible
within the scope of the forgoing disclosure and drawings without
departing from the spirit of the invention which is defined in the
appended claims.
* * * * *