Retainer for use in the door latch assembly of a household appliance

Abstract

The present invention relates to a retainer for use in a household appliance which comprises: a main body; a striker which is engaged to the main body; and a door which has a latch for engaging/disengaging the striker upon closing/opening of the door. In the household appliance of the present invention the main body has one or more snap-in holes, and the striker has one or more snap-in hooks for releasably engaging with the respective snap-in hole. Furthermore, the retainer is provided with one or more blocking members each for blocking sideways movement of the respective snap-in hook relative to the respective snap-in hole and an attachment means for detachably attaching each blocking member to the main body.

1 . A retainer for use in a household appliance, in particular a dishwasher comprising: a main body which has one or more snap-in holes; a striker which has one or more snap-in hooks each for releasably engaging with the respective snap-in hole; and a door which has a latch for engaging/disengaging the striker upon closing/opening of the door, the retainer being characterized in that one or more blocking members each for blocking sideways movement of the respective snap-in hook relative to the respective snap-in hole and an attachment means for detachably attaching each blocking member to the main body. 
     
     
         2 . The retainer according to  claim 1 , wherein the striker has two snap-in hooks which are adapted to temporarily flex towards each other when being snapped into the respective snap-in holes, and the retainer being characterized in that two blocking members which are located, in the attached state, between the two snap-in hooks and adapted to block sideways movement of the two snap-in hooks towards each other. 
     
     
         3 . The retainer according to  claim 1 , characterized in that one or more lower abutments each for abutting against the respective snap-in hook from below. 
     
     
         4 . The retainer according to  claim 1 , wherein the main body has one or more snap-in apertures, the retainer being characterized in that the attachment means comprises one or more snap-in claws each for releasably engaging with respective the snap-in apertures. 
     
     
         5 . The retainer according to  claim 1 , wherein the household appliance has a cover plate for covering at least part of the upper surface of the appliance, the retainer being characterized in that one or more upper abutments each for abutting against the cover plate from below. 
     
     
         6 . The retainer according to  claim 5 , characterized in that one or more upper abutments are each further adapted to abut against the front section of the cover plate from below. 
     
     
         7 . The retainer according to  claim 6 , characterized in that a base which supports the blocking members and the attachment means, wherein the upper abutments extends upwards from the base. 
     
     
         8 . The retainer according to  claim 1 , characterized in that the retainer is moulded from a resilient plastic material as a single piece. 
     
     
         9 . A household appliance, in particular a dishwasher comprising a main body, a striker which is engaged to the main body and a door which has a latch for engaging/disengaging the striker upon closing/opening of the door, the household appliance being characterized in that the retainer as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the main body has one or more snap-in holes, and wherein the striker has one or more snap-in hooks for releasably engaging with the respective snap-in hole. 
     
     
         10 . The household appliance according to  claim 9 , characterized in that the striker has a latching hole for releasably engaging with the latch. 
     
     
         11 . The household appliance according to  claim 9 , characterized in that the main body has a mounting passage for receiving the striker, wherein the striker has a stop which abuts onto the periphery of the mounting passage so as to prevent inward movement of the striker. 
     
     
         12 . The household appliance according to  claim 11 , characterized in that the main body has a cross member, wherein the snap-in holes and the snap-in apertures and the mounting passage are formed into the cross beam. 
     
     
         13 . The household appliance according to  claim 9 , characterized in that the household appliance is provided as a dishwasher, wherein the dishwasher comprises a tub, and wherein the door is disposed onto the main body so as to open/close the tub.