US2419226A - Clothes drier with collapsible supports - Google Patents

Description

April 22;1947. v A. L. PALMER 2,419,226

CLOTHES DRIER WITH COLLAPSIBLE SUPPORTS n Filed SepE. 27, 1941 Sheets-Sheet 1 gay INVENTOR nn L. 'PALMER ATT EY5 April 22, 1947; A. L. PALMER CLOTHES DRIER WITH, GOLLAPSIBLE SUPPORTS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 27, 1941 IINVENTOR ALVA LL PALMER ATT April 22, 1947. A. PALMER 2,419,226

CLOTHES DRIER WITH COLLAPSIBLE SUPPORTS Filed Sept. 27, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.

Patented Apr. 22, 1947 CLOTHES DRIER WITH COLLAPSIBLE SUPPORTS Alva L. Palmer, Bayside, N. Y.

Application September 27, 1941, Serial No. 412,613

Claims. 1

This invention relates to cookstoves and specifically to a cookstove clothes drier.

In general, it is an object of the invention to provide a device of the character described, which will efiiciently perform the purposes for which it is intended, which is simple and economical of construction, which can be expeditiously, conveniently and safely manipulated, and which can be readily manufactured and assembled.

Another object of the invention is to provide a motor, in the form of a cookstove, for moving large volumes of air whereby the entrained air,

to some extent in addition to the heat from the cookstove, dries clothes placed in the path of such air; to provide instrumentalities which may be removable from and/or operable on such stove for facilitating such operation of the stove; to provide a drier which is of such a shape that it can be placed in the very limited space of the modern small kitchen and particularly may be placed in what is now the only space in such a modern kitchen and can make eflicient use of that space; to provide a drier which uses as its fan an element already present in all kitchens; to provide a drier which needs no independent heating element other than one already in any kitchen; to provide a drier which includes a cookstove which may be used for cooking while the clothes are being dried; to provide a device which 7 creates large volumes of mildly heated air from a relatively high temperature source and which therefore operates at high speed without exposing fabrics to excessive temperatures; to provide a drier in which the air currents are controlled to obtain optimum drying; and to provide such a drier which may be quickly and easily assembled and disassembled.

Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises an article of manufacture possessing the features, properties, and the relation of elements which will be exemplified in the article hereinafter described and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference should be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in

which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a device embodying one form of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a cross-section, as viewed from the side, of the device shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a front view in elevation of a modification of the device shown in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a side view of the device shown in Fig. 3. I

Advances have been made heretofore in the art of cookstoves and ranges. They have had principally to do with increasing the efiiciency of the fuel or the efficiency of the use of the fuel or of the obtaining of the heat therefrom. The present invention contemplates a cookstove structure which extends the use thereof. It utilizes space which, at least in gas ranges, has rarely if ever been made useful-a space which is almost the last still to be vacant in kitchens. This is. the space extending vertically from the top of the stove.

There are clothes racks made which hang from the ceiling or stand on the floor. They tend to be unsightly and in the way.

The device below, comprises a motor for moving large quantities of mildly heated air past the clothes. That motor is the stove. The heating units, when operating, send up columns of prodnets of combustions. These columns draw in large amounts of air. A perforated bafile is provided in the path of the columns to spread them evenly over the complete area of the baffie. A multiplicity of columns rise through the perforations of the baffle. These rising columns entrain still further quantities of room air which mixes with those rising columns to give a final large total volume of mildly heated air which, rising, moves past articles of any kind-herein termed clothes-which are held on the supports.

In the drawing, ill denotes a cookstove which may be of any suitable kind, which has heating units E2 on the top. Positioned and spaced above the heating units is a baffle I l. Above the baflle are clothes-supports l6. Ihere may be a guard l8 positioned between the bafile and the clothessupports to catch any article which falls from a clothes-support to prevent itfrom falling directly onto the hot baffie. Means are provided for holding, and preferably removably holding, the balile supports and guard above the stove. Such means may take the form of a casing 2B. The latter, if desired, may be constructed like a cabinet, with doors which may be shut to enclose the beforementioned parts therein when they are not in use. The casing 25] is positioned above the back of the cookstove, which latter preferably is a gas stove and is usually so constructed that the container may be placed above the back of the stove without interfering with the use of the stove for cooking.

The baflie may be attached to the casing 2'!) in any convenient fashion, so that it lies, when in operative position, above the heating units of the stove. It may be pivoted to the casing, as at 22, so that it may be swung, when not in use, into a vertical, inoperative position in the casing (see Fig. 2). Various means may be used to hold the bafiie in operative position. For example, there may be lugs 24 attached to the inside of casing doors 26 near the bottom thereof, so that when the doors are opened, the bailie may be swung down to rest on the lugs. As shown, the guard I8 is positioned at a considerable height above its normal position above the baffle and supported on lugs 28 attached at the insides of the doors. This position, shown for clarity in Figs. 1 and is that used when delicate articles are placed directly upon the guard for drying. Normally, the guard is removably attached to the bafile and is disposed closely above it. Apron 32' may depend from the front of the guard to hide the baflle from view. This apron may be hinged to swing around to lie fiat against the guard when the latter is in upright, inoperative position. In some instances a better control of air flow is obtained by having the apron stand upright above the guard. There are vertical skirts 33 depending from each end of the bafile which keep the hot columns of air from escaping out past the ends of the bafile.

The clothes-supports may be of any desired kind and shape; those shown are a plurality of narrow elements 34 which are rotatable upon a horizontal axle 36. Catches 38, or other fixing means, are provided to hold the supports so that they extend horizontally outward when they are in supporting position. 1

A plurality of openings which preferably take the shape of slots 40 extend preferably from side to side of the bafile. The forward slots may be wider. Other shapes may be used. Plates 42 may be used to give additional control to the heat and drafts provided by the one or more heating units of the cookstove. These plates are movable over the surface of the baffie, and ordinarily are positioned substantially directly above the heating units.

The essential elements of the device are the stove heaters, or equivalent devices for giving a flow of heated air, the baflle and the clothes-supports. It will be noted that there is no cover extending over the supports when'they are in raised position. Such a cover is not necessary, although it may be provided for other purposes. The casing doors, when they extend out over the stove, are used principally as supports for the bafile and guard. It has been found that, with certain forms of the present device, better control of the upward moving air may be obtained by providing additional room air at the rear of the baffle. There may be an opening 44 in the bottom of the casing for this purpose. A screen element 45 may be placed in that opening if desired.

When the heating units are turned on, even slightly, there is a large movement of air upward through the bafiie and the guard and past the clothes-supports. Additional volumes of air are drawn into the clothes-drying space above the baflle. The drying is induced through the movement of large volumes of moderately heated air.

These volumes of air, furthermore, have sufiicient current to cause motion of suspended .clothes, which is advantageous in that it tends to'leave the dried fabrics soft and pliable. The position of the bafile may be sufiiciently high above the heating units of the cookstove to permit the latter to function as drier elements simultaneously with the cooking of foods.

In Figs. 3 and 4 there is shown a modification of the device described above. The device in Figs. 3 and 4 includes a baflie I4 which sits on the stove H3 in any convenient fashion. It may have collapsable legs 58 of sufficient length to permit cooking vessels to sit on the heating'units under the baiile. The clothes-supports, preferably removable, may be of any desired form. Those shown in Figs. 3 and 4 are attached to a plate 54 and extend radially therefrom. They are also pivoted to the plate, as at 56, whereby they may be caused either to lie vertically in the casing 20 or to extend outwardly from the casing over the heatin units, baflie and guard. Any convenient means, not shown, may be used to secure the supports in operative position. The plate 54.

is provided with extensions 58, which ride in the side of the casing. A cord 56, which may be tied on element 62, passes over pulley 64 and is used to move the plate and attached supports up and down in the casing to give the supports any desired height above the top of the cookstove. When the device is not in operation, the supports may be lowered into the casing 213. The bafile and guard may be stored in a utility compartment or oven of the stove. The legs for the baflie may be attached to trunnions on the stove, so that the bafie, when not in use, may be swung down to a position behind the stove or into a compartment at the rear of the stove.

The drier described herein, comprising the stove, bafile and the supports, allows the use of heat which would otherwise go to waste but which is made available by the arrangement of parts described above as a motor for blowing air against the clothes to be dried. The operation of the device is rapid, and does not interfere with the other functions of the heating units. The entire combination may be quickly disassembled, so that the supports and baille may be removed or they may be left as in Fig. 2, in the vacant space above the back of the stove.

The term air herein includes air which may or may not have mixed with it products of combustion.

Since certain changes may be made in the above article and difierent embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A clothes drier comprising, in combination with a heating device having localized heating units associated with the top thereof each adapted to give a rapidly rising column of high temperature gaseous medium of a relatively small cross-sectional area as compared to the area of the top of said device for entrainment of relatively large quantities of room air, of aconcealing cabinet supported at the back of said device with the front thereof located behind a vertical plane substantially to the rear of said units, door means for closing the front of said cabinet, a

tially throughout the area defined by said baffie thereabove, means removably supporting said baffle in such position above said units, exposed clothes-supports positioned above said baflie defining together with said baflie the cross section of a column of space extending upwardly from said baffle past said supports in front of said cabinet, the column of space between said bafile and said clothes-supports on at least two opposed sides thereof being substantially free of definition by any wall structure and having substantially free communication with room air on at least those two opposed sides for free entrainment thereof and the column of space above said clothes-support being substantially completely unobstructed, and means removably supporting said clothes-supports from said cabinet in such positions above said bafiie while permitting them to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said door means when not in use.

2. A clothes drier comprising, in combination with a heating device having localized heating units associated with the top thereof each adapted to give a rapidly rising column of high ternperature gaseous medium of a relatively small cross-sectional area as compared to the area of the top of said device for entrainment of relatively large quantities of room air, of a concealing cabinet supported at the back of said device with the front thereof located behind a vertical plane substantially to the rear of said units, door means for closing the front of said cab-inet, a perforated bafile of appreciable area positioned subsubstantially to the rear of said units, door means for closing the front of said cabinet, a perforated baflie of appreciable area positioned substantially horizontally at an appreciable distance above said units and covering the same to give in operation a substantially uniform flow of gaseous medium including entrained air substantially throughout the area defined by said bafile thereabove, means removably supporting said bafile in such position above said units, exposed clothes-supports positioned abovesaid bafiie defining together with said baffle the cross section of a column of space extending upwardly fromsaid stantially horizontally at an appreciable distance above said units and covering the same to give in operation a substantially uniform flow of gaseous medium including entrained air substantially throughout the area defined by said baffle thereabove, means removably supporting said baffle in such position above said units, exposed clothessupports positioned above said baiiie defining together with said bafiie the cross section of a column of space extending upwardly from said b-aflie past said supports in front of said cabinet, the column of space between said baflie and said clothes-supports on at least the front and back sides thereof being substantially free of definition by any wall structure and having substantially free communication with room air on at least the front side with the back side thereof having free communication with room air through a space to the rear of said baffle for free entrainment of room air and the column of space above .said clothes-support being substantially completely unobstructed, and means removably supporting said clothes-supports from. said cabinet in such positions above said bafile while permitting them to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said door means when not in use.

3. A clothes drier comprising, in combination with a heating device having localized heating units associated with the top thereof each adapted to give a rapidly rising column'of high temperature gaseous medium of a relatively small cross-sectional area as compared to the area of the top of said device for entrainment of relatively large quantities of room air, of a concealing cabinet supported atthe back of said device with the front thereof located behind a vertical plane bafile past said supports in front of said cabinet, the column of space between said baiile and said clothes-supports on at least the front and back sides thereof being substantially free of definition by any wall structure and having substantially free communication with room air on at least the front side with the back side thereof having free communication with room air through a space to the rear of said baffle for free entrainment of room air and the column of space above said clothes-sup port being substantially completely unobstructed, the communicating space being provided by an opening in the bottom of said cabinet, and means removably supporting said clothes-supports from said cabinet in such positions above said baffle while permitting themto be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said door means when not in use. i

4. A clothes drier comprising, in combination with a heating device having localized heating units associated with the top thereof each adapted to give a rapidly rising column of high temperature gaseous medium of a relatively small cross-sectional area as compared to the area of the top of said device for entrainment of relatively large quantities of room air, of a concealing cabinet supported at the back of said device with the front thereof located behind a vertical plane in operation 'a substantially uniform flow of gaseous medium including entrained air substantially throughout the area defined b said baiiie thereabove, means removably supporting said bafile from said cabinet in such position above said units while permitting it to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said door means when not in use, exposed clothessupports positioned above said baflie defining together with said baflie the cross section of a column of space extending upwardly from said bailie past said supports in front of said cabinet, the column of space between said baffle and said clothes-supports on at least two opposed sides thereof being substantially free of definition by any wall structure and having substantially free communication with room air on at least those two opposed sides for free entrainment thereof and the column of space above said clothes-support being substantially completely unobstructed, and means removably supporting said clothessupports from said cabinet in such positions above said baffle while permitting them to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said door means when not in use.

5. A clothes drier comprising, in combination with a heating device having localized heating units associated with the top thereof each adapted to give a'rapidly rising column of high temperature gaseous medium of a relatively small cross-sectional area as compared to the area of the top of said device for entrainment of relatively large quantities of room air, of a concealing cabinet supported at the back of said device with the front thereof located behind a vertical plane substantially to the rear of said units, door means for closing the front of said cabinet, a perforated baflie of appreciable area positioned substantially horizontally at an apprecibale distance above said units and covering the same to give in operation a substantially uniform flow of gaseous medium including entrained air substantially throughout the area defined by said bafiie thereabove, means removably supporting said baflle from said cabinet in such position above said units while permitting it to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said door means when not in use, exposed clothes-supports positioned above said bafile defining together with said baffle the cross section of a column of space extending upwardly from said baffle past said supports in front of said cabinet, the column of space between said ballle and said clothes-supports on at least the front and back sides thereof being substantially free of definition by'any wall structure and having substantially free communication with room' air on at least the front side with the back side thereof having free communication with room air through a space to the rear of said baffle for free entrainment of room air and the column of space above said clothes-supports being substantially completely unobstructed, the

communicating space being provided by an opening in the bottom of said cabinet, and means removably supporting said clothes-supports from said cabinet in such positions above said baflle while permitting them to be folded up into' said cabinet for concealment behind said door means front thereof located behind a vertical plane substantially to the rear of said units, said cabinet having a relatively large opening in the bottom thereof, a pair of doors each hinged to said cabinet substantially at an end thereof to cooperate in closing the front of the cabinet, said doors projecting forward in substantially parallel relation to define a column of space therebetween above said units in front of said cabinet which is substantially completely unobstructed thereabove and exposed at the front side thereof, a perforated baffle of appreciable area positioned substantially horizontally at an appreciable distance above said units'in the column of space defined thereabove by said doors to give in operation a substantially uniform fiow of gaseous medium including entrained air substantially throughout the area defined by said baffle, means removably supporting said bafile on said cabinet in such position between said doors permitting it to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said doors when not in use, the rear of said bafiie beingspaced forwardly from the back wall of said cabinet for free communication between room air and the column of space through the opening in the bottom of said cabinet, exposed clothes-supports positioned above said baffie into the column of space between said doors, and means removably supporting said clothes-supports from said cabinet in such positions above said baflie while permitting them to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment. behind said doors when not in use.

7. A clothes drier comprising, in combination with a heating device having localized heating units associated with the top thereof each adapted to give a rapidly rising column of high temperature gaseous medium of a relatively small cross-sectional area as compared to the area of the top of said device for entrainment of relatively large quantities of room air, of a concealing cabinet supported at the back of said device with the front thereof located behind a vertical plane substantially to the rear of said units, said cabinet having a relatively large opening in the bottom thereof, a pair of doors each hinged to said cabinet substantially at an end thereof to cooperate in closing the front of the cabinet, said doors projecting forward in substantially parallel relation to define a column of space therebetween above said units in front of said cabinet which is substantially completely unobstructed thereabove and exposed at the front side thereof, a, perforated baiile of appreciable area positioned substantially horizontally at an appreciable distance above said units in the column of space defined thereabove by said doors to give in operation a substantially uniform flow of gaseous medium including entrained air substantially throughout the area defined by said baffle, means removably supporting said baffle on said cabinet in such position between said doors permitting it to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said doors when not in use, said means including elements mounted on said doors for at least in part supporting said baflie in such position, the rear of said baffie being spaced forwardly from the back wall of said cabinet for free communication between room air and the column of space through the opening in the bottom of said cabinet, exposed clothes-supports positioned above said baiiie into the column of space between said doors, and means removably supporting said clothes-supports from within said cabinet in such positions above said baffle while permitting them to be folded up into said cabinet for concealment behind said doors when not in use.

8. A clothes drier comprising, in combination with a heating device having localized heating units associated with the top thereof each adapted to give a rapidly rising column of high temperature gaseous medium of a relatively small cross-sectional area as compared to the area of the top of said device for entrainment of relatively large quantities of room air, of a concealing cabinet supported at the back of said device with the front thereof located behind a vertical plane substantially to the rear of said units, said cabinet having a relatively large opening in the bottom thereof, a pair of doors each hinged to said cabinet substantially at an end thereof to cooperate in closing the front of the cabinet, said doors projecting forward in substantially parallel relation to define a column of space therebetween above said units in front of said cabinet which is substantially completely unobstructed thereabove and exposed at the front side thereof, a perforated baiile of appreciable area positioned substantially horizontally at an appreciable distance above said units in the column of space defin t er ab v by e ddg r iq i e n ope a i n a substantially uniform flow of gaseous medium including entrained air substantially throughout the area defined by said bafiie, means pivotally mounting the rear of said bafile Within said cabinet in spaced relation with respect to the back wall of said cabinet for free communication between room air and the column of space through the opening in the bottom of the cabinet, means on said doors limiting downward swinging movement of said bafile and cooperating with said pivot means in support of said baffle in such operative position, said balile being adapted to be swung upwardly into said cabinet for concealment behind said doors when not in use, exposed clothes-supports positioned above said baffle into the column of space between said doors, means pivotally mounting the rear portions of said clothes-supports in such operative positions adapted to release the latter to permit them to be swung downwardly into said cabinet for concealment behind said doors when not in use.

9. A clothes drier comprising, in combination, a cabinet having a pair of substantially medially meeting doors each substantially vertically hinged thereto along its edge nearest an end of the cabinet to close the front of the latter, said cabinet having a relatively large opening in the bottom thereof and being adapted to be supported above a cook stOVe having a plurality of localized heating units with the closed front of the former located behind a vertical plane substantially to the rear of the units, said doors when swung open being adapted to project forward in substantially parallel relation to define therebetween above the heating units a column of space which will be substantially completely unobstructed there above and exposed at the front side thereof, a perforated baflle of arTpreciable area removably concealed behind said doors to be moved outwardly between the latter transversely to extend substantially across the column of space to be defined by the open doors, means removably to support said baflle from said cabinet in such position between said doors and above the heating units with the rear of said bafile spaced forwardly from the back of said cabinet to permit free communication between room air and the column of space through the opening in the bottom of said cabinet, clothes-supports removably concealed behind said doors, and means removably to support said clothes-supports in the column of space above said baffle between said doors when the latter are opened and said baflle is supported therebetween.

10. A clothes drier comprising, in combination, a cabinet having a pair of substantially medially meeting doors each substantially vertically hinged thereto along 11,5 edge nearest an end of the cabinet to close the front of the latter, said cabinet having a relatively large opening in the bottom thereof and being adapted to be supported above a cook stove having a. plurality of 10 localized heating units with the closed front of the former located behind a vertical plane substantially to the rear of the units, said doors when swung open being adapted to project forward in substantially parallel relation to define therebetween above the heating units a column of pace which will be substantially completely unobstructed thereabove and exposed at the front side thereof, a perforated baflle of appreciable area removably concealed behind said doors to be moved outwardly between the latter transversely to extend substantially across the column of space to be defined by the open doors, means pivotally mounting the rear of said bafile in said cabinet on a substantially horizontal axis permitting said baffle to be swung out to between said doors when open with, the rear of said balile spaced forwardly from the back of said cabinet for free communication between room air and the column of space through the opening in the bottom of said cabinet to the rear of said bafile, means on said doors when open to limit swinging movement of said baflle and to cooperate with said pivot means in support of said bafiie when swung to its operative position, clothes-supports removably concealed behind said doors, and means removably to support said clothes-supports in the column of space above said baflie between said doors when the latter are opened and said bafile is supported therebetween.

ALVA L. PALMER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Britain June 28, 1923 Britain Mar. 12, 1937 France Apr. 10, 1928 Swiss Aug. 16, 1939 Australia Aug. 10, 1911 Number Number

Images