Height adjustment mechanism for rack assemblies for appliances
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorWilliam Nathan Garnett
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A rack assembly for an appliance is provided. The rack assembly includes a sidewall and a block that defines a series of holes. A shaft extends between the block and an actuating mechanism. The actuating mechanism selectively retracts the shaft from the series of holes of the block in order to permit the sidewall to move vertically.
Claims18
A rack assembly for an appliance, the rack assembly defining a vertical direction and a transverse direction, the vertical and transverse directions being perpendicular, the rack assembly comprising:
- a sidewall;
- a block positioned adjacent said sidewall and defining a series of holes, each hole of the series of holes being oriented along the transverse direction, the series of holes being spaced apart from one another along the vertical direction;
- and
- a rack adjustment assembly mounted to said sidewall, said rack adjustment assembly comprising:
- a shaft that extends longitudinally between a first end portion and a second end portion along the transverse direction, the first end portion of said shaft received within one of the series of holes of said block;
- and
- an actuating mechanism, the second end portion of said shaft coupled to said actuating mechanism, said actuating mechanism configured for selectively sliding said shaft along the transverse direction in order to remove the first end portion of said shaft from the series of holes of said block;
- wherein said sidewall is moveable along the vertical direction relative to said block when the first end portion of said shaft is removed from the series of holes of said block.
A dishwasher appliance, the dishwasher appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction, the vertical, lateral, and transverse directions being mutually perpendicular, the dishwasher appliance comprising:
- a tub that defines a wash chamber;
- and
- a rack assembly for receipt of articles for washing, said rack assembly having opposing sidewalls that are spaced apart along the lateral direction;
- a pair of slides mounted to said rack assembly at the opposing sidewalls of said rack assembly, said pair of slides configured for sliding movement of said rack assembly within the wash chamber of said tub;
- a plurality of blocks, said plurality of blocks mounted to said pair of slides, each block of said plurality of blocks defining a series of holes facing the transverse direction, the series of holes spaced apart along the vertical direction;
- and
- a pair of rack adjustment assemblies mounted to said rack assembly at the opposing sidewalls of said rack assembly, each rack adjustment assembly comprising:
- a shaft extending longitudinally between a first end portion and a second end portion along the transverse direction, the first end portion of said shaft received within a respective one of the series of holes of said plurality of blocks;
- and
- an actuating mechanism carried by said sidewall, the second end portion of said shaft coupled to said actuating mechanism, said actuating mechanism configured for selectively sliding said shaft along the transverse direction in order to remove the first end portion of said shaft from the series of holes of said block;
- wherein said rack assembly is moveable along the vertical direction relative to said pair of slides when the first end portion of said shaft is removed from the series of holes of said plurality of blocks.
A rack assembly for an appliance, the rack assembly defining a vertical direction and a transverse direction, the vertical and transverse directions being perpendicular, the rack assembly comprising:
- a sidewall;
- a block positioned adjacent said sidewall and defining a series of holes that is oriented along the transverse direction and distributed along the vertical direction;
- and
- a rack adjustment assembly mounted to said sidewall, said rack adjustment assembly comprising:
- a shaft that extends longitudinally between a first end portion and a second end portion along the transverse direction, said shaft configured for selectively shifting between a first position and a second position;
- and
- an actuating mechanism, the second end portion of said shaft coupled to said actuating mechanism, said actuating mechanism configured for selectively shifting said shaft between the first and second positions;
- wherein the first end portion of said shaft is received within one of the series of holes of said block when said shaft is in the first position in order to hinder said sidewall from moving along the vertical direction relative to said block, the first end portion of said shaft is positioned outside of the series of holes of said block when said shaft is in the second position in order to permit said sidewall to move along the vertical direction relative to said block.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.