Drawer Type Pan Washing Machine

Abstract

An automatic washing machine for food handling pans having drawers that are interconnected whereby when one drawer is extended out of the housing the other is retracted into the housing. The housing is sealed by the fully extended drawer and by the fully retracted drawer. The drawers are mounted in the housing in a side-by-side relationship facing an assembly of washing and rinsing nozzles. The machine also has a hinged cover permitting insertion of a rack therein for washing other objects.

Description

The present invention relates to a washer especially adapted for washing pans. The washer has drawers into which pans to be washed are placed. When one drawer is inserted within the housing for the washing operation the other drawer is withdrawn from the housing for the loading operation.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a washing machine of the commercial type particularly adapted for washing pans, in which side-by-side drawers are connected by a cable reeved over a pulley so that as one drawer is inserted within the washing machine housing the other is withdrawn.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a pan washer housing construction which is sealed at all times, even though the drawers are movable into and out of the washer housing, the washer also being adapted to wash other forms of objects with the drawers withdrawn from the housing.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a pan washer in which any drawer thereof that is fully inserted in the housing will activate a switch in order to initiate the pan washing cycle.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a fresh water rinse arrangement for said pan washer utilizing rinse spray nozzles that operate sequentially with the rotary wash spray pipe.

The invention will now be further described by detailed reference to specific embodiments which are illustrated in the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a part sectional and a part elevational drawer type pan washer mechanism constructed according to the teachings of the present invention and taken along the lines 1--1 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 1a is a detail of construction of FIG. 1 shown in cross-section, and on an enlarged scale;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the pan washer mechanism taken along the lines 2--2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 2a is a partial sectional view of the rear panel of a drawer utilized with the present pan washer mechanism, in sealed position with respect to the housing;

FIG. 2b is a partial sectional view of the front panel of a drawer utilized in the present pan washer mechanism, in sealed position;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the pan washer mechanism taken along the lines 3--3 of FIG. 1a;

FIG. 3a is an enlarged view of a portion of construction shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a drawer of the type used in the present mechanism;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the housing, track arrangement and openings for the side-by-side pan drawers of the present machine;

FIG. 6 is a part sectional and a part elevational view of a drawer-type pan washer mechanism of the form illustrated in FIG. 1, in which both drawers are withdrawn for placement in the housing of another form of washing tray, taken along the line 6--6 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the washer mechanism taken along the line 7--7 of FIG. 6, and illustrating the positions of typical bowls in the washing tray;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the washing tray taken along the line 8--8 of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the washing tray inserted in the washing mechanism of FIGS. 6 and 7.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Referring now to FIGS. 1-5, a washing machine referred to generally by the numeral 10 is provided with at least two side-by-side drawers 12 and 12' that are adapted to be selectively inserted or withdrawn from the washer housing 14. The two drawers 12 and 12' are substantially identical, and thus to simplify description of the structure, the same numerals will be employed with respect to each drawer, the components of the latter being distinguished by prime marks. The housing 14 has a front housing extension 16. As seen in FIG. 1, pulley wheels 18 and 19 are mounted on the housing extension 16 in front of the drawers 12 and 12' respectively and a cable 20 is reeved thereabout. One end of the cable 20 is attached to an L-shaped bracket 22 on the front panel 24 of drawer 12 while the other end of the cable is secured to the L-shaped bracket 22' on the front panel 24' of the drawer 12'. As seen in FIG. 1, in normal use of the mechanism while washing pans, when drawer 12' is in its fully extended position, the drawer 12 is in its fully retracted position and vice versa. Thus, in FIG. 1 the drawer 12, which is sealed within the confines of the washer housing 14, is subject to the washing cycle whereas the fully extended drawer 12' is in position for loading therein of pans to be washed.

The washer housing is provided with a pair of rotary washing devices 30, each having a plurality of nozzles 31, as clearly seen in FIGS. 1-3, which are supplied with a washing liquid supply from pump 32 by way of suitable pipes 33. Located behind the rotary washing devices 30 on each side of the housing are rinse spray nozzles 34 that are connected to a rinse spray pipe 36. The rinse water supply to the pipe 36 is controlled by means of a manually operated valve 38, connected to a suitable source of rinse water (not shown), as seen in FIG. 1.

As is more clearly seen in FIG. 5, the washer housing 14 is provided with the housing extension 16. The front wall of the housing is provided with a pair of side-by-side openings 40 into which the drawers 12 and 12' are adapted to slide on exterior tracks 42 on the extension 16 and on and on interior tracks 44 in the housing 16, a pair of interior tracks 44 and a pair of exterior tracks 42 being positioned at each opening.

As seen in FIG. 5, the top and side edges of each of the openings 40 is formed with an inwardly extending recess 41 defined by a flange 43 extending inwardly from the top and side edges of the openings, a recess bottom member 45 extending into the opening 40 from the inward edge of the lip 43 and parallel to the front of the housing 14, and a lip 47 extending outwardly from the inner edges of the bottom member 45. As will be described in more detail in the following paragraphs, the recess structure forms a seal in cooperation with the front and back panels of the drawers. The extension 16 on the front of the housing is formed of a bottom plate 49 that is slanted downwardly toward the housing for the drainage of liquids into the housing, and suitable upwardly extending flanges 51 and 53 on the sides and front respectively of the bottom plate 49. The bottom of the front of the housing 14 has an aperture 55 to permit drainage of liquids from the extension 16 into the housing, and the bottoms of the apertures 40 are open to the aperture 55. The fronts of the exterior tracks 42, as well as the pulley wheels 18 and 19 are suitably supported at the front of the extension 16.

The exterior tracks 42 extend generally horizontally into the openings 40, and are spaced below the bottoms of the recess forming members 43, 45 and 47 on the sides of the openings. The tracks 42 also have upwardly extending drawer guiding flanges 57 on the outward edges thereof with respect to each pair of tracks, to guide the edges of the respective drawer. The interior tracks 44 may be at the same horizontal level as the exterior tracks 42, but are preferably spaced further apart. The interior tracks 44 are also provided with upwardly extending flanges 59 on the outer edges thereof with respect to each pair of tracks for guiding the backs of the respective drawers.

A typical drawer 12 is shown in FIG. 4 for insertion in the opening 40 of the washer housing 16. The drawer 12 has a front panel 24 with a cable bracket 22 affixed thereto as above described. The drawer also has a back panel 50. The front and back panels are joined by a frame 52, which may for example be in the form of rigid wires shaped to receive and hold an object to be washed, such as a pan. The edges of the front panel are provided with flanges 54 extending toward the rear panel, similarly the edges of the rear panel 50 are provided with flanges 56 extending toward the front panel. The front panel 24 is of such a size that the flanges 54 enter the recesses 41 to form a water seal, with the front edge of the lip 47 engaging the back of the panel 24 as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 1a, 2 and 2b. Similarly, the back panel 50, which is slightly larger than the front panel, has a size so that the flanges 56 extend outwardly beyond the recess 41, to form a seal when the drawer is open, with the front of the rear panel 50 engaging the back of the member 45 as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 1a, 2 and 2a. In other words, the top and sides of the openings 40 are sealed by the front panel 24 when the drawer is within the housing, and by the rear panel 50 when the drawer is retracted from the housing.

The bottom of the front panel 24 is provided with a sliding shoe 58 for riding on the exterior track 42, and the bottom of the rear panel 50 is provided with a sliding shoe 60 for riding on the interior track 44. The shoes 58 and 60 may, for example, be of a suitable sliding material such as teflon. It is not necessary to provide a water tight seal at the bottoms of the drawers, in view of the provision of the extension 16 and since the water from the nozzles 31 and 34 is not directed primarily to the opening 55.

Referring again to FIG. 1, a wire rope 62 is provided affixed to the sides of the housing and extending thereacross at the rear of the housing. As illustrated in FIG. 2, a limit switch, such as microswitch 64, is mounted externally on the top of the housing, and has an actuating leaf 66 extending into the housing and engaging the rear of the wire 62. The switch 64 is electrically connected by means (not shown) to a suitable timer 68, which may be mounted on the side of the housing as illustrated in FIG. 3. The clock timer 68 is adapted to control the pump 32 during a wash cycle in the apparatus. The wire 62 is positioned so that when either of the drawers 12 or 12' is fully retracted into the washer housing 14, the rear panels 50 thereof engage the wire 62 and force it backwardly to effect the closing of the switch 64.

In order to explain the operation of the above described mechanism, assume that the drawer 12 is fully retracted in the housing and carries a pan 70 and that the drawer 12' is fully extended and in loading position, as illustrated in FIG. 1. (The position of the pan 70 is illustrated in dashed lines 70 in FIG. 2, to permit the components of the apparatus behind the pan to be visible.) At this time it is noted that the openings 40 in the housing are sealed by the front panel 24 of the drawer 12 and the rear panel 50' of the drawer 12'. Further assume that the washing and rinsing cycle for the pan 70 has been completed. A new pan 71, as illustrated in dashed lines in FIG. 2, is inserted in the drawer 12', and the drawer 12' is then pushed into its fully retracted position in the housing. As a consequence, due to the interconnecting cable 20, the drawer 12 is thus withdrawn from the housing to permit unloading of the washed pan 70. When the openings 40 of the housing are thereby closed by the front panel 24' of the drawer 12' and the rear panel 50 of the drawer 12, the rear panel 50' of the drawer 12' engages the wire 62, thereby closing the limit switch 64 so that a new washing cycle for the pan 71 may be started, for example, by manually operating the timer. A new tray to be washed may then be inserted in the drawer 12. When the wash cycle is finished, the operator may manually operate the rinse valve 38 to rinse the pan. The sequence is then continued by pushing the tray 12 into its fully retracted position, so that the drawer 12' is withdrawn to the position indicated in FIG. 1. If desired, more than one pan may be inserted in the drawer for washing.

During the washing cycle, the pump 32 commences to operate, and the rotary washing devices 30 rotate on horizontal axes and spray washing fluid on any pan in the apparatus. The timing device 68 is operative to time the washing cycle and shut the mechanism off after a determined time. If desired, the apparatus may be provided with a plurality of tank heaters 72 to heat the washing fluid.

It will be noted from FIGS. 1 and 2 that the pans may be washed simultaneously from the front and the rear by means of the pairs of washing devices 30 and spray nozzles 34 that are located on opposite sides of the washer housing 16 with the pan therebetween.

As illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7, the apparatus according to the invention may also be employed for washing objects such as bowls, which are too large or are not readily adaptable to be positioned in the drawers. Referring to FIG. 7, the housing 14 is provided with a top cover 80, hinged preferably at the rear of the housing and having a handle 81, so that the cover 80 may be swung open, as illustrated by the dashed lines, to permit access to the entire central portion of the housing 14. In order to employ the washing apparatus for washing other articles, both of the drawers 12 and 12' are fully extended, as illustrated in FIG. 6, so that their back panels 50 and 50' respectively seal their respective openings 40. After the top cover 80 is opened, as shown in FIG. 7, a suitable tray 85 is lowered into position on the interior tracks 44. FIG. 7 illustrates the tray 85 also in dashed lines in position above the washing apparatus prior to insertion in the apparatus as shown in solid lines. Objects to be washed, such as bowls 86 are then placed in the tray 85, and the top cover closed. The timing clock is then manually actuated to start a washing cycle as above discussed, followed by a manually operated rinsing cycle. In the arrangement of FIGS. 6 and 7 it is to be noted that the limit switch does not serve any function, and a suitable switch may be provided to permit operation of the apparatus when both drawers are extended. If desired, a suitable limit switch may be operatively connected to the cover 90 by conventional technique to inhibit operation of the machine with the cover open. A form of tray which is preferably employed in the arrangement of FIGS. 6 and 7 is illustrated in greater detail in FIGS. 8 and 9. The tray has a base including vertically oriented side plates 90 extending between vertically oriented end plates 91, the center portions of the end plates 91 being recessed as shown at 92, so that the bottom of the tray is supported on both pairs of interior rails 44 between the flanges 59 as illustrated in FIG. 8. In order to permit support of different sizes of bowls in proper washing position, a wire rack 93 is affixed to the base members. The rack includes an upper wire frame 94 having a central rectangular opening of given size, a lower frame 95 having a smaller rectangular opening, and a central wire 96 extending between the end plates 91. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the upper and lower frames support the sides of bowls of different sizes, while as illustrated in FIG. 8, the upper frame can support the larger bowls from downward movement, while the wire 96 supports smaller bowls from downward movement. As further shown in FIG. 8, the lower frame is disposed slightly inwardly of the upper frame so that the tops of the bowls are supported against both frames in a slightly tilted position.

While the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments, it will be obvious that many modifications and variations may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and it is intended in the following claims to cover all such modifications and variations.

Claims

I claim:

1. A drawer type washing machine comprising a machine housing, washing and spray units in said housing, a pair of drawers for holding objects to be washed and mounted side-by-side in said housing, and a pulley arrangement operatively connecting said drawers whereby only one of said drawers may be fully retracted in said housing at any time said washing and spray units being disposed to direct a washing liquid toward objects to be washed in said drawers.

2. A drawer type washing machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein separate, spaced washing and spray units are provided in each side of said housing and directed toward opposite sides of the drawers.

3. A drawer type washing machine as claimed in claim 2 wherein said washing and spray units are positioned to direct the washing and rinsing liquids laterally into the open sides of said drawers within said housing.

4. A drawer type washing machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein said housing is so constructed that it is sealed against leakage when said drawers are either extended from or retracted into said housing.

5. A washing machine apparatus comprising a housing, washing and spray units in said housing, a pair of drawers adapted to hold objects to be washed, said washing and spray units being disposed to direct a washing liquid towards objects held by said drawers, said housing having openings for receiving said drawers, means for moving said drawers into and out of said openings in side-by-side relationship, means interconnecting said drawers whereby retraction of either of said drawers into said housing effects the removal of the other of said drawers from said housing, and means for sealing said openings when said drawers are fully retracted into said housing and fully extended from said housing.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said drawers each have a front panel and a back panel, and said sealing means comprises recess means on said openings adapted to engage said front and rear panels in the retracted and extended positions of said drawers for sealing said openings.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said means for moving said drawers into and out of said housing comprises separate first track means within said housing for each of said drawers, and separate second track means outside of said housing for each of said drawers, each of said drawers having a front panel positioned to ride on the respective second track means, and a rear panel adapted to ride on the respective first track means.

8. A washing apparatus comprising a housing having a pair of side-by-side openings in one wall thereof, said housing having an extension projecting outwardly from said wall below said openings, interior track means in said housing aligned with each of said openings, exterior track means extending from said housing in alignment with each of said openings, washing and spray units in said housing, a pair of substantially identical drawers for holding objects to be washed, said units being disposed to direct a washing liquid towards objects held on said drawers, each of said drawers having open sides, said drawers being positioned in separate said openings and having front panels positioned to ride on separate exterior tracks and back panels adapted to ride on separate interior tracks, said front panels being shaped to form a water-tight seal of their respective openings when the respective drawer is retracted into said housing, said back panels being shaped to form a water-tight seal of the respective opening when the respective drawer is withdrawn from said housing.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 further comprising means interconnecting said drawers whereby retraction of each of said drawers into said housing effects the movement of the other of said drawers out of said housing.

10. The washing apparatus of claim 9 wherein said coupling means comprises pulley means affixed to said housing extension, and cable means passing around said pulley wheel means and having separate ends affixed to the front panels of separate said drawers.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the sides and tops of said openings have recesses, and said front panels have flanges on their edges extending toward said housing for engaging said recesses to form a water-tight seal when the respective drawer is retracted into said housing.

12. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein said housing has internally extending projections surrounding the tops and sides of each of said openings, and said back panels have edge flanges extending toward said wall, whereby said edge flanges surround said projections when the respective drawer is fully extended from said housing to form a watertight joint.

13. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein said housing encloses washing and rinsing means disposed in opposite sides of said housing for directing washing and rinsing fluids toward the open sides of a drawer retracted therein.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein said housing further includes limit switch means actuable upon the full retraction of each drawer into said housing, said limit switch means being connected to inhibit operation of said washing means unless a drawer is fully retracted in said housing.

15. The apparatus of claim 8 in which said housing further comprises a top cover that may be opened, both of said drawers being adapted to be fully extended from said housing to seal their respective openings, said apparatus further comprising a tray insertable through the top of said housing when said cover is open, and having a base adapted to rest on said interior tracks, whereby objects may be washed in said apparatus that are not adapted to fit said drawers.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein said tray comprises a base adapted to rest on said interior tracks, a first wire frame affixed to said base and defining a first rectangular opening for holding objects, and a second lower wire frame defining a smaller opening therein, whereby said wire frames are adapted to hold objects for washing.