U.S. patent application number 14/590169 was filed with the patent office on 2015-10-08 for laundry dryer.
This patent application is currently assigned to ELECTROLUX HOME PRODUCTS CORPORATION N.V.. The applicant listed for this patent is ELECTROLUX HOME PRODUCTS CORPORATION N.V.. Invention is credited to Calum Armstrong, Alberto Bison, Kim Michel, Nicola Reid, Giuseppe Rossi.
Application Number | 20150284897 14/590169 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 48699035 |
Filed Date | 2015-10-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150284897 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Reid; Nicola ; et
al. |
October 8, 2015 |
Laundry Dryer
Abstract
Laundry dryer (1) comprising an outer casing (2) having a front
wall (2a) provided with a laundry loading/unloading pass-through
opening, and an air-filtering cartridge (15) which is fitted in
removable manner into an air-vent (10) which is passed through by a
laundry drying airflow (f). the air-filtering cartridge (15)
comprises a first substantially bag- or pocket-shaped,
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120) which is dimensioned for
being inserted/plugged into said air-vent (10) and is structured to
restrain the fluff and/or lint particles in suspension into the
airflow (f); the air-filtering cartridge (15) furthermore
comprising a second substantially bag- or pocket-shaped,
air-filtering shell or vessel (30, 130) which is fitted/recessed
into said first air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120) so as to be
crossed by substantially the same airflow (f) that crosses the
first air-filtering shell or vessel (20 120), is structured to
restrain the fluff and/or lint particles in suspension into the
airflow (f), and is mechanically coupled to said first
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120) in sliding manner.
Inventors: |
Reid; Nicola; (Budoia (PN),
IT) ; Bison; Alberto; (Pordenone, IT) ; Rossi;
Giuseppe; (Porcia, IT) ; Armstrong; Calum;
(Montereale Valcellina (PN), IT) ; Michel; Kim;
(Porcia, IT) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
ELECTROLUX HOME PRODUCTS CORPORATION N.V. |
Brussels |
|
BE |
|
|
Assignee: |
ELECTROLUX HOME PRODUCTS
CORPORATION N.V.
Brussels
BE
|
Family ID: |
48699035 |
Appl. No.: |
14/590169 |
Filed: |
June 25, 2013 |
PCT Filed: |
June 25, 2013 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/EP2013/063297 |
371 Date: |
January 6, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
34/82 |
Current CPC
Class: |
D06F 58/22 20130101;
D06F 58/04 20130101 |
International
Class: |
D06F 58/22 20060101
D06F058/22 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jul 6, 2012 |
EP |
12175287.7 |
Claims
1. Laundry dryer (1) comprising an outer casing (2) having a front
wall (2a) provided with a laundry loading/unloading pass-through
opening, and an air-filtering cartridge (15) which is fitted in
removable manner into an air-vent (10) which is passed through by a
laundry drying airflow (f), said air-filtering cartridge (15)
comprising a first substantially bag- or pocket-shaped,
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120, 220) which is dimensioned
for being inserted/plugged into said air-vent (10) and is
structured to restrain fluff and/or lint particles in suspension
into the airflow (f); the laundry dryer being characterized in that
the air-filtering cartridge (15) further comprises a second
substantially bag- or pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel
(30, 130, 230) which is fitted/recessed into said first
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120, 220) so as to be crossed by
substantially the same airflow (f) that crosses the first
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120, 220), is structured to
restrain the fluff and/or lint particles in suspension into the
airflow (f); and is mechanically coupled to said first
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120) in sliding manner.
2. Laundry dryer (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that
the first and the second air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 30;
120, 130; 220, 230) comprise permeable-to-air sidewalls (21, 31;
121, 131; 221, 231) structured for restraining fluff and/or lint
particles in suspension into the airflow (f) and further comprise
guiding surfaces (34, 34a; 134, 134a; 234, 234a) reciprocally
coupled in a sliding manner such that one between the first and the
second air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 30, 120, 130; 220, 230)
is slidably movable relative to the other air-filtering shell or
vessel (30, 20, 130, 120; 230, 220) between a first position
wherein a permeable-to-air sidewall (21, 121, 221) of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120, 220) is facing and
superimposed to a permeable-to-air sidewall (31, 131, 231) of the
second air-filtering shell or vessel (30, 130, 230), and a second
position wherein the superimposition of the permeable-to-air
sidewalls (21, 31; 121, 131; 221, 231) of the first and second
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 30, 120, 130, 220, 230) is
removed.
3. Laundry dryer according to any one of the foregoing claims,
characterized in that the air-filtering cartridge (15) additionally
comprises a permeable-to-air, upper lid (22, 122, 222) which is
rigidly associated/fixed to either the first (20, 220) or to the
second air-filtering shell or vessel (130), so as to close the
upper mouth of said first (20, 220) or second air-filtering shell
or vessel (130).
4. Laundry dryer according to claim 3, characterized in that said
permeable-to-air upper lid (22, 122, 222) is divided into two
complementary pieces (25, 125, 225) which are selectively separable
to one another, and each of which is permanently rigidly fixed to a
respective valve-like piece (23, 132, 223) either of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 220) or of second air-filtering
shell or vessel (130), so as to allow said first (20, 220) or
second air-filtering shell or vessel (130) to open in a book-like
manner.
5. Laundry dryer according to claim 4, characterized in that the
two complementary pieces (25, 125, 225) of the permeable-to-air
upper lid (22, 122, 222) incorporate a manually-operable snap-on
locking mechanism (26, 126, 226) which is structured for
selectively rigidly anchoring the two complementary pieces (25,
125, 225) to one another when they are reciprocally coupled to
form/compose the permeable-to-air upper lid (22, 122, 222).
6. Laundry dryer (1) according to any one of the foregoing claims,
characterized in that the first and the second air-filtering shell
or vessel (20, 30; 120, 130; 220, 230) are divided into two
complementary valve-like pieces (23, 123, 223; 32, 132, 232) which
are separable to one another, the valve-like pieces of the first
and/or the second air filtering shell or vessel (20, 30; 120, 130;
220, 230) being hinged to one another to rotate about a rotational
axis (A, A', B) so that the first and/or the second air-filtering
shell or vessel (20, 30; 120, 130; 220, 230) are openable in a
book-like manner.
7. Laundry dryer according to claim 6, characterized in that each
valve-like piece (32, 132, 232) of the second air-filtering shell
or vessel (30, 130, 230) is shaped/structured so to mechanically
couple with a respective valve-like piece (23, 123, 223) of the
first air-filtering shell or vessel (20, 120, 220), so as to be
able to slide one (32, 132, 223) relative to the other (23, 123,
232).
8. Laundry dryer according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that
the two valve-like pieces (32) of the second air-filtering shell or
vessel (30) are laterally hinged to one another to rotate along a
rotational axis (B) which is substantially perpendicular or
parallel to said rotational axis (A) so that the second
air-filtering shell or vessel (20) is openable in a book-like
manner.
9. Laundry dryer according to any claims 6 to 8, characterized in
that the second air-filtering shell or vessel (30) is
shaped/structured so as to be manually extractable in drawer-like
manner from the first air-filtering shell or vessel (20), through a
pass-through opening or slot (27) formed on a side of the same
first air-filtering shell or vessel (20), the second air-filtering
shell or vessel (30) being extractable in a direction (d) which is
parallel to the rotation axis (A) of the two valve-like pieces (23)
of the first air-filtering shell or vessel (20).
10. Laundry dryer according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that
the second air-filtering shell or vessel (30) is also provided with
a manually-operable, snap-on locking mechanism (35) which is
structured for selectively rigidly anchoring the second
air-filtering shell or vessel (30) to the first air-filtering shell
or vessel (20).
11. Laundry dryer according to claim 2 and any claims 8 to 10,
characterized in that in said first position a gap separates the
permeable-to-air sidewalls (21) of the first air-filtering shell or
vessel (20) from the permeable-to-air sidewalls (31) of the second
air-filtering shell or vessel (30).
12. Laundry dryer according to claim 7, characterized in that
valve-like pieces (123, 132; 223, 232) of the first and second
air-filtering shell or vessel (120, 130; 220, 230) are slidable
relative one another in a direction (d') which is substantially
perpendicular to the rotation axis (A').
13. Laundry dryer according to claim 12, characterized in that the
valve-like pieces (123, 132; 223, 232) of the first and second
air-filtering shell or vessel (120, 130; 220, 230) are slidable
relative one another between a first operating position in which a
permeable-to-air sidewall (131, 231) of a valve-like piece (132,
232) of the second air-filtering shell or vessel (130, 230) is
superimposed to a permeable-to-air sidewall (121, 221) of the
corresponding valve-like piece (123, 223) of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel (120, 220); and a second operating
position in which the superimposition of the permeable-to-air
sidewalls (121, 131; 221, 231) of the first and second
air-filtering shell or vessel (120, 130, 220, 230) is removed.
14. Laundry dryer according to claim 2 and claim 12 or 13,
characterized in that in said first position the permeable-to-air
sidewalls (121, 221) of the first air-filtering shell or vessel
(120, 220) mates the permeable-to-air sidewalls (131, 231) of the
second air-filtering shell or vessel (130, 230), so as to be
locally parallel thereto.
15. Laundry dryer according to any one of the foregoing claims,
characterized in that a heat pump system (18) is arranged in fluid
communication with the airflow (f) to remove moisture therefrom and
to release heat to said airflow (f).
Description
[0001] The present invention relates to a laundry dryer.
[0002] More in particular, the present invention relates to a
rotary-drum household laundry dryer to which the following
description refers purely by way of example without implying any
loss of generality.
[0003] As it is known, rotary-drum household laundry dryers
currently on the market generally comprise: a substantially
parallelepiped-shaped, outer boxlike casing structured for resting
on the floor; a substantially cylindrical rotatable drum which is
structured for housing the laundry to be dried and which is housed
in axially rotating manner inside the casing so to rotate about a
substantially horizontally-oriented longitudinal reference axis,
directly facing a laundry loading/unloading opening formed in the
front wall of the casing; a porthole door hinged to the front wall
of the casing to rotate to and from a closing position in which the
door rests completely against the front wall of the casing to close
the laundry loading/unloading opening and airtight seal the
rotatable drum; an electrically-powered motor assembly which is
housed inside the casing and is structured for driving into
rotation the rotatable drum about its longitudinal reference axis;
a closed-circuit, hot-air generator which is housed inside the
casing and is structured to circulate inside the rotatable drum a
stream of hot air which has a very low moisture content and flows
through the rotatable drum and over the laundry inside the drum to
rapidly dry the laundry; and finally an electronic central control
unit which controls both the motor assembly and the hot-air
generator to perform, on command, one of the user-selectable drying
cycles stored in the same central control unit.
[0004] In most of the rotary-drum household laundry dryers
currently on the market, the rotatable drum furthermore consists in
a substantially cylindrical, rigid tubular body which is generally
made of metal material and extends substantially horizontally
inside the boxlike casing, locally aligned to the laundry
loading/unloading opening. This rigid tubular body may be
furthermore structured for resting on a number of idle supporting
rollers which are arranged at the two axial ends of the tubular
body locally parallel to the drum longitudinal reference axis, and
are fixed to the boxlike casing in free revolving manner so as to
allow the tubular body to freely rotate about its
horizontally-oriented longitudinal reference axis. The circular
front rim of the tubular body surrounds the laundry
loading/unloading opening and is coupled in substantially airtight
and axially rotating manner to the front wall of the boxlike
casing; whereas the circular rear rim of the tubular body abuts
against the rear wall of the boxlike casing and is coupled in
substantially airtight and axially rotating manner directly to said
rear wall.
[0005] The closed-circuit, hot-air generator in turn comprises: an
air recirculating conduit which extends on the bottom of the
boxlike casing and has a first end directly connected to a first
air-vent realized in the rear wall of the boxlike casing, within
the perimeter of the rear rim of the tubular body, and a second end
directly connected to a second air-vent realized on the annular
frame that delimits the laundry loading/unloading opening on the
front wall of the casing; and an electrically-powered centrifugal
fan which is located along the air recirculating conduit and is
structured to produce an airflow which flows in closed loop through
the air recirculating conduit and the rotatable drum.
[0006] The stream of hot air produced by the hot-air generator
generally enters into the tubular body via the first air-vent
realized in the rear wall of the boxlike casing, flows inside the
tubular body for the entire length of the latter, and finally comes
out of the tubular body via the second air-vent realized on the
annular frame that delimits the laundry loading/unloading opening
on the front wall of the casing.
[0007] The closed-circuit, hot-air generator furthermore comprises:
an air-cooling device which is located along the air recirculating
conduit, and is structured to cool the moist air arriving from the
rotatable drum, so as to cause the condensation of the surplus
moisture inside the airflow; an air-heating device which is located
along the air recirculating conduit, downstream of the air-cooling
device, and which is structured for heating the dehumidified
airflow arriving from the air-cooling device and directed back to
the rotatable drum, so that the airflow directed back into the
rotatable drum is heated to a temperature preferably, though not
necessarily, higher than or equal to that of the moist air flowing
out of the same rotatable drum.
[0008] The closed-circuit, hot-air generator is finally provided
with an air-filtering member which is arranged along the air
recirculating conduit, upstream of the air-cooling device, to
prevent the fluff and/or lint particles from reaching and clogging
up the air-cooling device, the air-heating device and the
centrifugal fan.
[0009] In some of the rotary-drum household laundry dryers
currently on the market, the air-filtering member consists in a
substantially wedge-shaped filtering cartridge which is fitted in
removable manner into the air-vent realized on the annular frame
that delimits the laundry loading/unloading opening on the front
wall of the casing, so to cover/close the whole air-vent. Thus,
when the porthole door is in the wide-opened position, the user is
allowed to manually extract the wedge-shaped filtering cartridge
from the air-vent realized on the annular frame that delimits the
laundry loading/unloading opening for periodical cleaning.
[0010] DE8437357U1 discloses a wedge-like filtering cartridge for
laundry driers which consists in a substantially bag- or
pocket-shaped rigid shell which has a V-shaped cross section and is
dimensioned for being inserted/plugged into the air-vent realized
on the annular frame that delimits the laundry loading/unloading
opening, so as to cover/close the whole air-vent. This bag-shaped
rigid shell is furthermore divided into two or four valve-like
pieces which are laterally hinged to one another, so that the rigid
shell is openable in a book-like or leaflet-like manner. The flat
central portion of each valve-like piece is provided with a large
throughout opening which is completely covered with a close-mesh
net capable to restrain the fluff and/or lint particles within the
bag-shaped rigid shell.
[0011] Unluckily, periodical cleaning of the DE8437357U1 wedge-like
filtering cartridge is particularly unpleasant to the user because
the particular structure of the filtering cartridge allows the
fluff and/or lint particles to accumulate on opposite faces of the
inner and outer valve-like pieces, creating several problems at
opening of the filtering cartridge.
[0012] Aim of the present invention is to provide a laundry dryer
having an air-filtering cartridge which is easier to clean.
[0013] In compliance with the above aims, according to the present
invention there is provided a laundry dryer having an air-filtering
cartridge as claimed in claim 1 and preferably, though not
necessarily, in any one of the dependent Claims.
[0014] A non-limiting embodiment of the present invention will now
be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying
drawings, in which:
[0015] FIG. 1 is a perspective view, with parts removed for
clarity, of a rotary-drum household laundry dryer realized in
accordance with the teachings of the present invention;
[0016] FIG. 2 is a section view of the FIG. 1 laundry dryer with
parts removed for clarity;
[0017] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the
air-filtering member of the FIG. 1 laundry dryer;
[0018] FIG. 4 is a section view of the FIG. 3 air-filtering
member;
[0019] FIGS. 5 and 6 show two partly-exploded perspective views of
the FIG. 3 air-filtering member;
[0020] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the
air-filtering member of the FIG. 1 laundry dryer;
[0021] FIG. 8 is a section view of the FIG. 7 air-filtering
member;
[0022] FIGS. 9 and 10 show two partly-exploded perspective views of
the FIG. 7 air-filtering member.
[0023] FIGS. 11 and 12 show two partly-exploded perspective views
of a third embodiment of the air-filtering member of the FIG. 1
laundry dryer;
[0024] With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, reference number 1
indicates as a whole a rotary-drum household laundry dryer which
comprises: a preferably, though not necessarily,
parallelepiped-shaped, outer boxlike casing 2 which is structured
for resting on the floor and is provided with reciprocally-faced,
substantially vertically-oriented, front and rear walls 2a and 2b;
a substantially cylindrical rotatable drum 3 which is structured
for housing the laundry to be dried, and is fixed in axially
rotating manner inside the boxlike casing 2 directly facing a
laundry loading/unloading pass-through opening formed on the front
wall 2a of casing 2; and a porthole door 4 hinged to the front wall
2a of casing 2 so to be able to rotate about a preferably, though
not necessarily, vertically-oriented reference axis, to and from a
closing position in which the porthole door 4 rests completely
against the front wall 2a to close the laundry loading/unloading
opening and substantially airtight seal the rotatable drum 3.
[0025] Inside the boxlike casing 2, the laundry dryer 1
additionally comprises an electrically-powered motor assembly 5
structured for driving into rotation the rotatable drum 3 about its
longitudinal reference axis; a closed-circuit, hot-air generator 6
which is structured to circulate through the rotatable drum 3 a
stream of hot air having a low moisture level, and which flows over
and rapidly dries the laundry located inside the drum 3; an
electronic central control unit (not shown in the drawing) controls
the motor assembly 5, the hot-air generator 6 to perform, on
command, one of the user-selectable drying cycles preferably,
though not necessarily, stored in the same central control unit, a
further control unit 7 may be provided for controlling the
operation of compressor 19.
[0026] With reference to FIG. 2, in particular, the rotatable drum
3 preferably consists in a substantially cylindrical-shaped, rigid
tubular body 3 which is preferably made of metal material and
extends inside the boxlike casing 2 coaxial to a preferably
substantially horizontally-oriented, longitudinal reference axis L
while remaining locally substantially aligned to the laundry
loading/unloading opening on the front wall 2a of the boxlike
casing 2. The substantially cylindrical-shaped, rigid tubular body
3 is furthermore preferably structured for resting on a number of
idle supporting rollers 8 which are arranged approximately at the
two axial ends of the tubular body 3 with their rotation axis
locally substantially parallel to the longitudinal reference axis L
of tubular body 3, and are fixed to the boxlike casing 2 in free
revolving manner so as to allow the tubular body 3 to freely rotate
about its longitudinal reference axis L inside the boxlike casing
2. Even if it is here described a drum supported by rotatable
rollers, it should be understood that the present invention covers
also an arrangement wherein the drum is supported by a shaft
mechanically connected to the drum rear wall, i.e. the wall
opposite to the drum front wall which is provided with an opening
for loading/unloading laundry into/from the drum. Said shaft is
also provided to rotate the drum.
[0027] The circular front rim 3f of tubular body 3 surrounds the
laundry loading/unloading opening realized on the front wall 2a of
boxlike casing 2 and is coupled in substantially airtight and
axially rotating manner to the front wall 2a, preferably with the
interposition of a first circular sealing gasket. The circular rear
rim 3r of tubular body 3 instead abuts against the rear wall 2b of
boxlike casing 2 and is coupled in substantially airtight and
axially rotating manner directly to said rear wall 2b with the
interposition of a second circular sealing gasket. Front and rear
circular sealing gaskets are therefore substantially coaxial to the
longitudinal reference axis L of tubular body 3.
[0028] The stream of hot air produced by the hot-air generator 6
preferably enters into tubular body 3 through the rear mouth of
tubular body 3, i.e. the mouth of tubular body 3 delimited by the
rear rim 3r, flows inside tubular body 3 for the entire length of
the latter, and finally comes out of tubular body 3 through the
front mouth of tubular body 3, i.e. the mouth of tubular body 3
delimited by the front rim 3f, or vice versa.
[0029] In other words, the stream of hot air produced by the
hot-air generator 6 preferably enters into tubular body 3 via a
first air-vent 9 which is incorporated in the rear wall 2b of
casing 2 locally aligned/faced to the rear mouth of tubular body 3,
i.e. within the perimeter of the rear rim 3r of tubular body 3, and
comes out of tubular body 3 via a second substantially slot-shaped,
air-vent 10 which is preferably incorporated in the annular frame
that, on front wall 2a, delimits the laundry loading/unloading
opening of boxlike casing 2.
[0030] With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the hot-air generator 6 in
turn is structured for gradually drawing air from rotatable drum 3;
cooling down the air arriving from rotatable drum 3 so to extract
and retain the surplus moisture in the air drawn from rotatable
drum 3; heating the dehumidified air to a predetermined
temperature, normally higher than the temperature of the air from
rotatable drum 3; and finally feeding the heated, dehumidified air
back into the rotatable drum 3, where it flows over, to rapidly
dry, the laundry inside the drum.
[0031] In other words, hot-air generator 6 provides for continually
dehumidifying and heating the air circulating inside rotatable drum
3 to rapidly dry the laundry inside the drum, and substantially
comprises: [0032] an air recirculating conduit 11 which has a first
end in direct communication with, i.e. fluidly connected to, the
air-vent 9 located in rear wall 2b of casing 2, and a second end in
direct communication with, i.e. fluidly connected to, the air-vent
10 preferably located in the annular frame that delimits the
laundry loading/unloading opening on front wall 2a; [0033] an
electrically-powered centrifugal fan 12 (part of its volute is
shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) or other type of air circulating pump,
which is located along recirculating conduit 11 to produce, inside
recirculating conduit 11, an airflow f which flows through
rotatable drum 3 and over the laundry inside drum 3; [0034]
air-cooling device 13 which is located along the air recirculating
conduit 11 preferably, though not necessarily, upstream of the
centrifugal fan 12, and is structured to cool the moist air
arriving from rotatable drum 3 so as to cause the quick
condensation of the surplus moisture inside the airflow f; and
[0035] air-heating device 14 which is located along the air
recirculating conduit 11, downstream of the air-cooling device 13
and preferably also upstream of the centrifugal fan 12, and which
is structured for heating the dehumidified airflow f arriving from
the air-cooling device 13 and directed back to rotatable drum 3, so
that the airflow f directed back into the rotatable drum 3 is
heated to a temperature preferably, though not necessarily, higher
than or equal to that of the moist air flowing out of the same
rotatable drum 3.
[0036] With reference to FIG. 2, the hot-air generator 6 lastly
comprises a preferably substantially wedge-shaped, air-filtering
cartridge 15 which is fitted in removable manner into the air-vent
10 preferably realized on the annular frame that delimits, on front
wall 2a, the laundry loading/unloading opening of casing 2. This
air-filtering cartridge 15 is dimensioned so as to cover/close the
whole air-vent 10, i.e. the entrance of air recirculating conduit
11, and it is structured to restrain the fluff and/or lint
particles in suspension into the airflow f so to prevent the same
fluff and/or lint particles from reaching and clogging up the
air-cooling device 13, the air-heating device 14 and the
centrifugal fan 12 located along the air recirculating conduit
11.
[0037] With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, in the example shown, in
particular, the outer boxlike casing 2 preferably, though not
necessarily, comprises a substantially parallelepiped-shaped lower
supporting basement 16 which is structured for resting on the
floor; and a substantially parallelepiped-shaped upper boxlike
cabinet 17 which is rigidly fixed to the top of the lower
supporting basement 16 and it is structured so as to house the
rotatable drum 3.
[0038] In other words, the rotatable drum 3 extends inside the
upper boxlike cabinet 17, immediately above the supporting basement
16; the laundry loading/unloading opening of boxlike casing 2 is
realized in the front wall of the upper boxlike cabinet 17; and the
porthole door 4 is hinged to the front wall of the same upper
boxlike cabinet 17.
[0039] The lower supporting basement 16, in turn, is preferably,
though not necessarily, structured for internally housing a
central/intermediate section of air recirculating conduit 11, and
the air-cooling device 13, the air-heating device 14 and the
centrifugal fan 12 of hot-air generator 6 are preferably located
inside said central/intermediate section of the air recirculating
conduit 11. Thus the lower supporting basement 16 is preferably,
though not necessarily, structured for internally housing part of
the hot-air generator 6.
[0040] Preferably, though not necessarily, the lower supporting
basement 16 is moreover structured to directly support the
drum-supporting rollers 8. In other words, the idle rollers 8 that
support in free revolving manner the tubular body 3 are preferably
fixed in axially rotating manner directly to the top of the lower
supporting basement 16.
[0041] With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the hot-air generator 6
preferably, though not necessarily, consists in a heat-pump type,
closed-circuit, hot-air generator 6, thus it is provided with a
heat-pump circuit 18 which comprises a first and a second
air/refrigerant heat exchanger, both located inside the air
recirculating conduit 11 preferably upstream of the centrifugal fan
12.
[0042] The first air/refrigerant heat exchanger, traditionally
referred to as the "evaporator" of the heat-pump circuit, is
located inside the air recirculating conduit 11, and it is
structured to remove/absorb heat from the airflow f arriving from
rotatable drum 3, thus forming the air-cooling device 13 of the
hot-air generator 6. The second air/refrigerant heat exchanger,
traditionally referred to as the "condenser" of the heat-pump
circuit, is instead located inside the air recirculating conduit 11
downstream of the first air/refrigerant heat exchanger 13, and it
is structured to release heat to the airflow f arriving from the
first air/refrigerant heat exchanger 13, thus forming the
air-heating device 14 of the hot-air generator 6.
[0043] In the example shown, in particular, the first and second
air/refrigerant heat exchangers 13 and 14 are arranged one after
the other along the section of air recirculating conduit 11 which
is integrated into the lower supporting basement 16 of boxlike
casing 2.
[0044] In addition to the above, the heat-pump circuit 18
furthermore comprises: an electrically-powered refrigerant
compressing device 19 which is interposed between the
refrigerant-outlet of air/refrigerant heat exchanger 13 and the
refrigerant-inlet of air/refrigerant heat exchanger 14, and it is
structured for compressing the gaseous-state refrigerant directed
towards heat exchanger 14 so that refrigerant pressure and
temperature are much higher at the refrigerant-inlet of heat
exchanger 14 than at the refrigerant-outlet of heat exchanger 13;
and an expansion valve or similar known passive/operated
refrigerant expansion device (for example a capillary tube, a
thermostatic valve or an electrically-controlled expansion valve)
which is interposed between the refrigerant-outlet of
air/refrigerant heat exchanger 14 and the refrigerant-inlet of
air/refrigerant heat exchanger 13, and it is structured so as to
cause a rapid expansion of the refrigerant directed towards the
air/refrigerant heat exchanger 13, so that refrigerant pressure and
temperature are much higher at the refrigerant-outlet of heat
exchanger 14 than at the refrigerant-inlet of air/refrigerant heat
exchanger 13.
[0045] According to a different embodiment not shown, the hot air
generator 6 may comprise an electric heater as air-heating device
14 and an air-air type heat exchanger as air-cooling device 13,
where the airflow f is cooled by air taken from and exhausted to
the environment surrounding the laundry machine. An appropriate air
pumping device is further arranged to pump ambient air through the
air-air type heat exchanger.
[0046] With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the centrifugal fan 12 of
hot-air generator 6, in turn, is preferably, though not
necessarily, located on the back of the supporting basement 16,
i.e. on the rear wall 2b of the boxlike casing 2, and it is
structured so as to produce an airflow f that flows from the
central/intermediate section of the air recirculating conduit 11 to
the air-vent 9 located in rear wall 2b of casing 2.
[0047] In the example shown, the centrifugal fan 12 of the hot-air
generator 6 is preferably at least partly housed/recessed into the
lower supporting basement 16 of casing 2, i.e. into the rear wall
2b of the boxlike casing 2, roughly at the end of the
central/intermediate section of the air recirculating conduit 11,
and the outer volute or impeller housing of the centrifugal fan 12
is shaped/structured so as to directly communicate with, i.e. be
fluidly connected to, both the central/intermediate section of the
air recirculating conduit 11 and with the air-vent 9 integrated in
the rear wall 2b of casing 2.
[0048] With reference to FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6, the air-filtering
cartridge 15 in turn comprises: [0049] a first substantially bag-
or pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 20 which is
dimensioned for being inserted/plugged in manually extractable
manner into the air-vent 10 which is preferably realized on the
annular frame that delimits, on front wall 2a, the laundry
loading/unloading opening of casing 2, so as to substantially fill
up the whole clear section of the air-vent 10, and which is
provided with two preferably substantially flat,
reciprocally-faced, permeable-to-air sidewalls 21 which are
structured to restrain the fluff and/or lint particles in
suspension into the airflow f that enters into the air
recirculating conduit 11 through the air-vent 10; and preferably
also [0050] a permeable-to-air, preferably substantially plate
like-shaped, upper lid 22 which is rigidly associated/fixed to the
bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 20 so as to close the
upper mouth of the same bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel
20, and which is furthermore shaped/dimensioned so as to
close/cover the whole air-vent 10.
[0051] In the example shown, the air-filtering walls 21 of shell 20
are preferably, though not necessarily, substantially specularly
inclined to the center-plane M of the air-filtering shell or vessel
20, so that the air-filtering shell or vessel 20 has a
substantially V- or U-shaped cross section.
[0052] The substantially bag- or pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell
or vessel 20 is moreover divided into two complementary valve-like
pieces 23 which are selectively separable to one another, and each
valve-like piece 23 preferably incorporates a respective
permeable-to-air sidewall 21 of the air-filtering shell or vessel
20. Preferably the two valve-like pieces 23 are furthermore
laterally hinged to one another approximately at the bottom of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 20, i.e. opposite to the upper mouth
of the air-filtering shell or vessel 20, for reciprocal rotation
about a transversal reference axis A which is preferably
substantially parallel to the permeable-to-air sidewalls 21 of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 20, so that the whole air-filtering
shell or vessel 20 is openable in a book-like manner about
reference axis A.
[0053] In the example shown, the two valve-like pieces 23 of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 20 are preferably pivotally jointed
to one another via a pair of connecting hinges 24 which are aligned
to the reference axis A and are located approximately on the bottom
of the air-filtering shell or vessel 20, i.e. opposite to the upper
mouth of the air-filtering shell or vessel 20. Furthermore the
articulation axis of the two connecting hinges 24, i.e. the
rotation axis A of the two valve-like pieces 23, preferably
substantially lies on the center-plane M of the air-filtering shell
or vessel 20, and further preferably, it extends transversally
relative to the direction of the airflow f passing through the
air-filtering cartridge 15.
[0054] With reference to FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6, similarly to the
air-filtering shell or vessel 20, the permeable-to-air upper lid 22
of the air-filtering cartridge 15 is preferably divided into two
permeable-to-air complementary pieces 25 which are preferably
substantially plate-like shaped and selectively separable to one
another, and each of which is permanently rigidly fixed to a
respective valve-like piece 23 of the bag-shaped, air-filtering
shell or vessel 20, so as to allow the bag-shaped, air-filtering
shell or vessel 20 to open in a book-like manner.
[0055] Preferably, the two pieces 25 of the upper lid 22
furthermore incorporate a manually-operable snap-on locking
mechanism 26 which is structured for selectively rigidly anchoring
the two pieces 25 to one another when they are reciprocally coupled
to form/compose the permeable-to-air upper lid 22, thus preventing
any unintended opening of the first air-filtering shell or vessel
20.
[0056] In the example shown, each permeable-to-air, preferably
substantially plate-like-shaped piece 25 of the upper lid 22 is
preferably realized in one piece with a respective valve-like piece
23 of the bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 20. As an
alternative, the permeable-to-air upper lid 22 of the air-filtering
cartridge 15 may be permanently rigidly associated/fixed to one of
the two valve-like pieces 23 of the air-filtering shell or vessel
20, and be structured for selectively couple in a rigid and stable,
though easily releasable manner to the edge of the other valve-like
piece 23 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 20.
[0057] With reference to FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6, the air-filtering
cartridge 15 furthermore comprises a second substantially bag- or
pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 30 which is
fitted/recessed into the first substantially bag-shaped,
air-filtering shell or vessel 20, beneath the upper lid 22, so as
to be crossed by substantially the same airflow f that crosses the
filtering shell 20, and which is provided with two preferably
substantially flat, reciprocally-faced, permeable-to-air sidewalls
31, each of which is structured to restrain the fluff and/or lint
particles in suspension into the airflow f and is locally faced and
superimposed to a respective permeable-to-air sidewall 21 of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 20. According to the invention, the
airflow f, after having passed through the upper lid 22, passes
first through the second substantially bag- or pocket-shaped,
air-filtering shell or vessel 30 and then through the first bag- or
pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 20.
[0058] Preferably, though not necessarily, the permeable-to-air
sidewalls 31 of the second air-filtering shell or vessel 30 are
furthermore structured to restrain fluff and/or lint particles
having smaller dimensions than that restrained by the
permeable-to-air sidewalls 21 of the first air-filtering shell or
vessel 20.
[0059] Second air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is mechanically
slidingly coupled to the first air-filtering shell or vessel 20, so
that the permeable-to-air sidewalls 31 of the second air-filtering
shell or vessel 30 are able to slide sideways with respect to the
corresponding permeable-to-air sidewalls 21 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 20.
[0060] In other words, the second air-filtering shell or vessel 30
is mechanically coupled to the first air-filtering shell or vessel
20 in sliding manner, so that each permeable-to-air sidewall 31 of
the second air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is able to slide
sideways with respect to the corresponding permeable-to-air
sidewall 21 of the first air-filtering shell or vessel 20, in a
direction d which is substantially parallel to the same
permeable-to-air sidewall 21 of the first air-filtering shell or
vessel 20.
[0061] With reference to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, in the example shown,
the second air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is preferably
shaped/structured so as to be manually extractable in drawer-like
manner from the first air-filtering shell or vessel 20, though a
specific pass-through opening or slot 27 formed on a side of the
same first air-filtering shell or vessel 20.
[0062] Preferably, the pass-through opening or slot 27 is delimited
by the peripheral borders of the two valve-like pieces 23 of the
first air-filtering shell or vessel 20.
[0063] The second air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is preferably
shaped/structured so as to be manually extractable in drawer-like
manner from the first air-filtering shell or vessel 20, in a
direction d which is substantially parallel to the rotation axis A
of the two valve-like pieces 23 of the air-filtering shell or
vessel 20.
[0064] The second, substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or
vessel 30, similarly to the first bag-shaped air-filtering shell or
vessel 20, is preferably divided into two complementary valve-like
pieces 32 which are selectively separable to one another, and each
of the two valve-like pieces 32 incorporates a respective
permeable-to-air sidewall 31 of the air-filtering shell or vessel
30. Furthermore the two valve-like pieces 32 of air-filtering shell
or vessel 30 are preferably laterally hinged to one another so that
the whole bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is openable
in a book-like manner.
[0065] With reference to FIG. 6, in the example shown, the two
valve-like pieces 32 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 30 are
pivotally jointed to one another via a pair of connecting hinges 33
which are located on a side edge of the air-filtering shell or
vessel 30. Furthermore, the reference axis of the two connecting
hinges 34, i.e. the rotation axis B of the two valve-like pieces
32, is substantially perpendicular to the rotation axis A of the
valve-like pieces 23 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 20. If
preferred, the pair of connecting hinges 33 and their rotational
axis B may be arranged parallel to the rotation axis A of the
valve-like pieces 23 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 20.
[0066] Preferably, each valve-like piece 32 of the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is furthermore shaped/structured
so to mechanically couple with a respective valve-like piece 23 of
the first air-filtering shell or vessel 20, so as to be able to
slide with respect to the same respective valve-like piece 23 in a
direction d which is both substantially parallel to the reference
laying plane of the same valve-like piece 23 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 20, and also substantially parallel
to the rotation axis A of the two valve-like pieces 23 of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 20.
[0067] With reference to FIGS. 4 and 6, each valve-like piece 32 of
the second air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is preferably provided
with at least one transversal drawer runner 34 which is shaped so
as to engage in axially sliding manner a corresponding rectilinear
groove 34a realized on the corresponding valve-like piece 23 of the
first air-filtering shell or vessel 20. The rectilinear groove 34a
extends parallel to the rotation axis A of the two valve-like
pieces 23 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 20. Guiding surfaces
34, 34a are coupled in a sliding manner such that the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is slidably movable relative to
the first air-filtering shell or vessel 20 between a first position
wherein a permeable-to-air sidewall 21 of the first air-filtering
shell or vessel 20 is facing and superimposed to a permeable-to-air
sidewall 31 of the second air-filtering shell or vessel 30, and a
second position wherein the superimposition of the permeable-to-air
sidewalls 21, 31 of the first and second air-filtering shell or
vessel 20, 30 is removed. In the second position, the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 30 is extracted from the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 20. In said first position a gap 40
separates the permeable-to-air sidewalls 21 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 20 from the permeable-to-air
sidewalls 31 of the second air-filtering shell or vessel 30.
[0068] The second, substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or
vessel 30 is preferably also provided with a manually-operated,
snap-on locking mechanism 35 which is structured for selectively
rigidly anchoring the second air-filtering shell or vessel 30 to
the first air-filtering shell or vessel 20, so to prevent any
unintended extraction of the second air-filtering shell or vessel
30 from the first air-filtering shell or vessel 20. The snap-on
locking mechanism 35 comprises one or more recesses 35a formed in
one or both valve-like piece 32 of the second air-filtering shell
or vessel 30 and one or more protrusions 35b correspondingly
located on one or both valve-like piece 23 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 20. Each protrusion 35b engages a
corresponding recess 35a when the second air-filtering shell or
vessel 30 is completely inserted into the first air-filtering shell
or vessel 20
[0069] With reference to FIGS. 7, 8, 9 and 10, according to an
alternative embodiment, the air-filtering cartridge 15 comprises:
[0070] a first substantially bag- or pocket-shaped, air-filtering
shell or vessel 120 which is dimensioned for being inserted/plugged
in manually extractable manner into the air-vent 10 preferably
realized on the annular frame that delimits, on front wall 2a, the
laundry loading/unloading opening of casing 2, so as to
substantially fill up the whole clear section of the air-vent 10,
and which is provided with two preferably substantially flat,
reciprocally-faced, permeable-to-air sidewalls 121 which are
structured to restrain the fluff and/or lint particles in
suspension into the airflow f that enters into the air
recirculating conduit 11 through the air-vent 10; [0071] a second
substantially bag- or pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel
130 which is fitted/recessed into the first substantially
bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 120, so as to be crossed
by substantially the same airflow f that crosses the filtering
shell 120, and which is provided with two preferably substantially
flat, reciprocally-faced, permeable-to-air sidewalls 131, each of
which is structured to restrain the fluff and/or lint particles in
suspension into the airflow f and is locally faced and superimposed
to a respective permeable-to-air sidewall 121 of the air-filtering
shell or vessel 120
[0072] The air filtering cartridge further comprises a
permeable-to-air upper lid 122 which is rigidly associated/fixed to
the second, substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel
130, so as to contemporaneously close the upper mouth of the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 130 and the upper mouth of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 120. According to the invention, the
airflow f, after having passed through the upper lid 122, passes
first through the second substantially bag- or pocket-shaped,
air-filtering shell or vessel 130 and then through the first bag-
or pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 120.
[0073] Again the second air-filtering shell or vessel 130 is
mechanically slidingly coupled to the first air-filtering shell or
vessel 120, so that the permeable-to-air sidewalls 131 of the
second air-filtering shell or vessel 130 are able to slide sideways
with respect to the corresponding permeable-to-air sidewalls 121 of
the first air-filtering shell or vessel 120.
[0074] The substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel
120 is divided into two complementary valve-like pieces 123 which
are selectively separable to one another, and each of the two
valve-like pieces 123 incorporates a respective permeable-to-air
sidewall 121 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 120. Furthermore
the two valve-like pieces 123 of air-filtering shell or vessel 120
are preferably laterally hinged to one another so that the whole
bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 120 is openable in a
book-like manner.
[0075] Similarly to the air-filtering shell or vessel 120, the
second, substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 130
is divided into two complementary valve-like pieces 132 which are
selectively separable to one another, and each of which
incorporates a respective permeable-to-air sidewall 131 of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 130.
[0076] Each of the two valve-like pieces 132 of the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 130 is furthermore mechanically
slidingly coupled to a respective valve-like piece 123 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 120, so as to be able to slide with
respect to the valve-like piece 123 in a direction d' which is both
substantially parallel to the reference laying plane of the
permeable-to-air sidewall 121 of the same valve-like piece 123, and
also substantially perpendicular to the permeable-to-air upper lid
122, i.e. substantially perpendicular to the upper mouth of the
first and second air-filtering shells or vessels 120 and 130.
[0077] With reference to FIGS. 9 and 10, each valve-like piece 132
of the second air-filtering shell or vessel 130 is preferably
permanently mechanically slidingly coupled by means of guiding
surfaces 134, 134a to a respective valve-like piece 123 of the
first air-filtering shell or vessel 120, so as to be able to slide
with respect to the valve-like piece 123 between a first operating
position (see FIGS. 7, 8 and 9) in which the permeable-to-air
sidewall 131 of the valve-like piece 132 is superimposed to the
permeable-to-air sidewall 121 of the corresponding valve-like piece
123; and a second operating position (see FIG. 10) in which the
permeable-to-air sidewall 131 of the valve-like piece 132 is
arranged beside the permeable-to-air sidewall 121 of the
corresponding valve-like piece 123. In said first position the
permeable-to-air sidewalls 121 of the first air-filtering shell or
vessel 120 mates the permeable-to-air sidewalls 131 of the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 130, so as to be locally parallel
thereto and preferably substantially adherent thereto. In said
second position the superimposition between the permeable-to-air
sidewalls 121, 131 of the first and second air-filtering shell or
vessel 120, 130 is removed.
[0078] With reference to FIGS. 7 to 10, in the example shown, the
two valve-like pieces 123 of the first air-filtering shell or
vessel 120 are pivotally jointed to one another by means of a pair
of connecting hinges 124 located approximately on the bottom of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 120, i.e. opposite to the upper lid
122. Furthermore the reference axis of the two connecting hinges
124, i.e. the rotation axis A' of the two valve-like pieces 123,
preferably substantially lies on the center-plane N of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 120.
[0079] The second, substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or
vessel 130, in turn, is divided into two complementary valve-like
pieces 132 each of which is mechanically slidingly coupled by means
of guiding surfaces 134, 134a to a respective valve-like piece 123
of the first air-filtering shell or vessel 120, so as to be able to
slide with respect to the valve-like piece 123 in a direction d'
which is substantially perpendicular to the rotation axis A' of the
two valve-like pieces 123 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 120.
Guiding surfaces 134, 134a are formed, respectively, on each
valve-like piece 132 of the second air-filtering shell or vessel
130 and on each valve-like piece 123 of the first air-filtering
shell or vessel 120.
[0080] With reference to FIGS. 7 and 8, in the example shown, the
air-filtering walls 121 of the first air-filtering shell or vessel
120 and the air-filtering walls 131 of second air-filtering shell
or vessel 130 are preferably substantially specularly inclined to
the center-plane N of the air-filtering shell or vessel 120, so
that the both air-filtering shells or vessels 120 and 130 has a
substantially V- or U-shaped cross section.
[0081] Preferably, though not necessarily, the permeable-to-air
sidewalls 131 of the second air-filtering shell or vessel 130 are
furthermore structured to restrain fluff and/or lint particles
having smaller dimensions than that restrained by the
permeable-to-air sidewalls 121 of the first air-filtering shell or
vessel 120.
[0082] With reference to FIGS. 7 to 10, similarly to the
air-filtering shells or vessels 120 and 130, the permeable-to-air
upper lid 122 of the air-filtering cartridge 15 is preferably
divided into two permeable-to-air, preferably substantially
plate-like-shaped, complementary pieces 125 which are selectively
separable to one another, and each of which is permanently rigidly
fixed to a respective valve-like piece 132 of the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 130, so as to allow the two
substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shells or vessels 120 and
130 to open in a book-like manner.
[0083] Preferably, the two pieces 125 of the upper lid 122
furthermore incorporate a manually-operable snap-on locking
mechanism 126 which is structured for selectively rigidly anchoring
the two pieces 125 to one another when they are reciprocally
coupled to form/compose the permeable-to-air upper lid 122, thus
preventing any unintended opening of both air-filtering shells or
vessels 120 and 130.
[0084] In the example shown, each permeable-to-air piece 125 of the
upper lid 122 is preferably realized in one piece with a respective
valve-like piece 132 of the second air-filtering shell or vessel
130.
[0085] As an alternative, the permeable-to-air upper lid 122 of the
air-filtering cartridge 15 may be permanently rigidly
associated/fixed to one of the two valve-like pieces 132 of the
second air-filtering shell or vessel 130, and be structured for
selectively coupling in a rigid and stable, though easily
releasable manner to the edge of the other valve-like piece 132 of
the air-filtering shell or vessel 130.
[0086] With reference to FIGS. 11 and 12, a third embodiment,
according to an alternative embodiment, the air-filtering cartridge
15 comprises: [0087] a first substantially bag- or pocket-shaped,
air-filtering shell or vessel 220 which is dimensioned for being
inserted/plugged in manually extractable manner into the air-vent
10 preferably realized on the annular frame that delimits, on front
wall 2a, the laundry loading/unloading opening of casing 2, so as
to substantially fill up the whole clear section of the air-vent
10, and which is provided with two preferably substantially flat,
reciprocally-faced, permeable-to-air sidewalls 221 which are
structured to restrain the fluff and/or lint particles in
suspension into the airflow f that enters into the air
recirculating conduit 11 through the air-vent 10; [0088] a second
substantially bag- or pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel
230 which is fitted/recessed into the first substantially
bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 220, so as to be crossed
by substantially the same airflow f that crosses the filtering
shell 220, and which is provided with two preferably substantially
flat, reciprocally-faced, permeable-to-air sidewalls 231, each of
which is structured to restrain the fluff and/or lint particles in
suspension into the airflow f and is locally faced and superimposed
to a respective permeable-to-air sidewall 221 of the air-filtering
shell or vessel 220
[0089] The air filtering cartridge further comprises a
permeable-to-air upper lid 222 which is rigidly associated/fixed to
the first, substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel
220, so as to contemporaneously close the upper mouth of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 220 and the upper mouth of the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 230. According to the invention, the
airflow f, after having passed through the upper lid 222, passes
first through the second substantially bag- or pocket-shaped,
air-filtering shell or vessel 230 and then through the first bag-
or pocket-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 220.
[0090] The first air-filtering shell or vessel 220 is mechanically
slidingly coupled to the second air-filtering shell or vessel 230,
so that the permeable-to-air sidewalls 221 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 220 are able to slide sideways with
respect to the corresponding permeable-to-air sidewalls 231 of the
second air-filtering shell or vessel 230.
[0091] The second substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or
vessel 230 is divided into two complementary valve-like pieces 232
which are selectively separable to one another, and each of the two
valve-like pieces 232 incorporates a respective permeable-to-air
sidewall 231 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 230. Furthermore
the two valve-like pieces 232 of air-filtering shell or vessel 230
are preferably laterally hinged to one another so that the whole
bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 230 is openable in a
book-like manner.
[0092] Similarly to the air-filtering shell or vessel 230, the
first substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or vessel 220
is divided into two complementary valve-like pieces 223 which are
selectively separable to one another, and each of which
incorporates a respective permeable-to-air sidewall 221 of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 230.
[0093] Each of the two valve-like pieces 223 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 220 is furthermore mechanically
slidingly coupled to a respective valve-like piece 232 of the
second air-filtering shell or vessel 230, so as to be able to slide
with respect to the valve-like piece 232 in a direction d' which is
both substantially parallel to the reference laying plane of the
permeable-to-air sidewall 231 of the same valve-like piece 232, and
also substantially perpendicular to the permeable-to-air upper lid
222, i.e. substantially perpendicular to the upper mouth of the
first and second air-filtering shells or vessels 220 and 230.
[0094] With reference to FIGS. 11 and 12, each valve-like piece 223
of the first air-filtering shell or vessel 220 is preferably
permanently mechanically slidingly coupled by means of guiding
surfaces 234, 234a to a respective valve-like piece 232 of the
second air-filtering shell or vessel 230, so as to be able to slide
with respect to the valve-like piece 232 between a first operating
position (see FIG. 11) in which the permeable-to-air sidewall 221
of the valve-like piece 223 is superimposed to the permeable-to-air
sidewall 231 of the corresponding valve-like piece 232; and a
second operating position (see FIG. 12) in which the
permeable-to-air sidewall 221 of the valve-like piece 223 is
arranged beside the permeable-to-air sidewall 231 of the
corresponding valve-like piece 232. In said first position the
permeable-to-air sidewalls 221 of the first air-filtering shell or
vessel 230 mates the permeable-to-air sidewalls 231 of the second
air-filtering shell or vessel 230, so as to be locally parallel
thereto and preferably substantially adherent thereto. In said
second position the superimposition between the permeable-to-air
sidewalls 221, 231 of the first and second air-filtering shell or
vessel 220, 230 is removed.
[0095] With reference to FIGS. 11 and 12, in the example shown, the
two valve-like pieces 232 of the second air-filtering shell or
vessel 230 are pivotally jointed to one another by means of a pair
of connecting hinges 224 located approximately on the bottom of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 230, i.e. opposite to the upper lid
222. Furthermore the reference axis of the two connecting hinges
224, i.e. the rotation axis A' of the two valve-like pieces 232,
preferably substantially lies on the center-plane of the
air-filtering shell or vessel 220 as viewed in a cross section view
like that of FIG. 8.
[0096] The first, substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shell or
vessel 220, in turn, is divided into two complementary valve-like
pieces 223 each of which is mechanically slidingly coupled by means
of guiding surfaces 234, 234a to a respective valve-like piece 232
of the second air-filtering shell or vessel 230, so as to be able
to slide with respect to the valve-like piece 232 in a direction d'
which is substantially perpendicular to the rotation axis A' of the
two valve-like pieces 232 of the air-filtering shell or vessel 230.
Guiding surfaces 234, 234a are formed, respectively, on each
valve-like piece 232 of the second air-filtering shell or vessel
230 and on each valve-like piece 223 of the first air-filtering
shell or vessel 220.
[0097] With reference to FIGS. 11 and 12, in the example shown, the
air-filtering walls 221 of the first air-filtering shell or vessel
220 and the air-filtering walls 231 of second air-filtering shell
or vessel 230 are preferably substantially specularly inclined to
the center-plane of the air-filtering shell or vessel 220 as viewed
in a cross section view like that of FIG. 8, so that the both
air-filtering shells or vessels 220 and 230 has a substantially V-
or U-shaped cross section.
[0098] Preferably, though not necessarily, the permeable-to-air
sidewalls 231 of the second air-filtering shell or vessel 230 are
furthermore structured to restrain fluff and/or lint particles
having smaller dimensions than that restrained by the
permeable-to-air sidewalls 221 of the first air-filtering shell or
vessel 220.
[0099] With reference to FIGS. 11 and 12, similarly to the
air-filtering shells or vessels 220 and 230, the permeable-to-air
upper lid 222 of the air-filtering cartridge 15 is preferably
divided into two permeable-to-air, preferably substantially
plate-like-shaped, complementary pieces 225 which are selectively
separable to one another, and each of which is permanently rigidly
fixed to a respective valve-like piece 223 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 220, so as to allow the two
substantially bag-shaped, air-filtering shells or vessels 220 and
230 to open in a book-like manner.
[0100] Preferably, the two pieces 225 of the upper lid 222
furthermore incorporate a manually-operable snap-on locking
mechanism 226 which is structured for selectively rigidly anchoring
the two pieces 225 to one another when they are reciprocally
coupled to form/compose the permeable-to-air upper lid 222, thus
preventing any unintended opening of both air-filtering shells or
vessels 220 and 230.
[0101] In the example shown, each permeable-to-air piece 225 of the
upper lid 222 is preferably realized in one piece with a respective
valve-like piece 223 of the first air-filtering shell or vessel
220.
[0102] In the inner face side of one valve-like piece 232 of the
second air-filtering shell or vessel 230, a spacer 241 may be
provided to keep valve-like pieces 232 spaced one another at a
predetermined distance when the second air-filtering shell or
vessel 230 is in a closed position, i.e. the two valve-like pieces
232 are coupled. The spacer 241 allows the valve-like pieces 232 to
be pressed against the valve-like pieces 223 of the first
air-filtering shell or vessel 220 to eliminate or reduce the
possibility that the airflow f can flow between the first and
second air-filtering shells or vessels 220, 230 rather than through
the second air-filtering shell or vessel 230 first.
[0103] General operation of the rotary-drum household laundry drier
1 is clearly inferable from the above description, with no further
explanation required.
[0104] The advantages connected to the particular structure of the
substantially air-filtering cartridge 15 are large in number.
[0105] In the air-filtering cartridge 15, in fact, the fluff and/or
lint particles tends to accumulate/settle on the inner face of the
air-filtering walls 21, 31; 121, 131, 221, 231 of both
air-filtering shells or vessels 20, 120, 220 and 30, 130, 230 thus
the fluff and/or lint particles remains inside the air-filtering
shells or vessels 20, 120, 220 and 30, 130, 220 when the user
disassembles/opens the air-filtering cartridge 15 for periodical
cleaning.
[0106] Clearly, changes may be made to the rotary-drum household
laundry drier 1 as described herein without, however, departing
from the scope of the present invention.
[0107] For example, the air-cooling device 13 of hot-air generator
6 may comprise an air/air heat exchanger which is located inside
the air recirculating conduit 11, preferably upstream of the
centrifugal fan 12, and is structured for using the external fresh
air to cool down the airflow f arriving from rotatable drum 3;
whereas the air-heating device 14 of hot-air generator 6 may
consists in a resistor which is located inside the air
recirculating conduit 11, downstream of the air/air heat exchanger
and preferably also downstream of centrifugal fan 12.
* * * * *