The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 12, 1978
Filed:
Oct. 06, 1977
Clark I Platt, St. Joseph, MI (US);
Whirlpool Corporation, Benton Harbor, MI (US);
Abstract
An agitator for a vertical-axis automatic clothes washing machine has a plurality of vanes extending upwardly from a skirt thereof. A corresponding plurality of crescent-shaped, lobe-like cams projects outwardly and upwardly from a periphery of the skirt between the pairs of agitator vanes. Each cam extends approximately 33.degree. upwardly from the horizontal and is geometrically defined by two edges forming a segment of the surface of a cone coaxial with the agitator. The inner edge of each cam has the radius of the circular perimeter of the agitator skirt with which the edge is colinear; the upper edge has a somewhat smaller radius. Lower vertical flat vane portions extend radially and upon impelling laundry liquid produce a low pressure pocket behind each vane. The cam edges impel the clothes upwardly as the agitator oscillates to and fro while the barriers provided by the vanes prevent laundry liquid from moving upwardly into the low pressure pocket, thereby promoting a successive movement of clothes downwardly, outwardly, upwardly, inwardly and downwardly again.