Laundry treating appliance with vent

Abstract

A laundry treating appliance includes a ventilation system for reducing buildup of odor. The ventilation system can be configured to periodically evacuate air from the treating chamber to refresh the air within the treating chamber. Fresh air can be pumped from an entrance in the bottom of the cabinet and can exit an opening in the washing machine.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A laundry treating appliance comprising:
 a cabinet defining an interior with an access opening and at least a partially open bottom;   a lid selectively closing the access opening;   a rotatable basket located within the cabinet interior and defining a treating chamber;   a motor rotationally driving the basket;   a selectively actuatable vent located in at least one of the cabinet or the lid at a location above the at least partially open bottom;   a moisture sensor providing a sensor output indicative of an amount of humidity in the treating chamber; and   a controller operably coupled to the vent, motor, and sensor and configured to open the vent and energize the motor to rotate the basket in response to the amount of humidity indicated by the moisture sensor output to draw air into the at least partially open bottom, through the treating chamber, and out the vent.   
     
     
         2 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 1  wherein the access opening is opposite the partially open bottom. 
     
     
         3 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 2  wherein the basket rotates about a vertical axis. 
     
     
         4 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 3  wherein the vent is located in the lid. 
     
     
         5 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 4  further comprising a lid status sensor providing a lid status signal indicative of the open/close status of the lid to the controller. 
     
     
         6 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 5  wherein the moisture sensor is a timer and the controller is configured to open the vent and energize the motor after the passing of a predetermined time, as indicated by the timer, after the closing of the door, as indicated by the lid status signal. 
     
     
         7 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 4  wherein the sensor comprises a humidity sensor providing a humidity output signal and the controller is configured to open the vent and energize the motor in response to the humidity output signal. 
     
     
         8 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 1  wherein the vent is located on the lid. 
     
     
         9 . A laundry treating appliance comprising:
 a cabinet defining an interior with an access opening;   a closure selectively closing the access opening;   a rotatable basket located within the cabinet interior and defining a treating chamber;   a motor rotationally driving the basket;   a vent located in at least one of the cabinet or the closure at a location above the at least partially open bottom;   a moisture sensor providing a sensor output indicative of an amount of humidity in the treating chamber; and   a controller operably coupled to the motor and sensor and configured to energize the motor to rotate the basket in response to the amount of humidity indicated by the moisture sensor output to draw air into the at least partially open bottom, through the treating chamber, and out the vent.   
     
     
         10 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 1  wherein the vent is selectively actuatable by the controller to open/close the vent. 
     
     
         11 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 1  wherein the basket is rotatable about at least one of a generally horizontal or generally vertical axis. 
     
     
         12 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 1  wherein the access opening is opposite the partially open bottom. 
     
     
         13 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 1  wherein the vent is located in the lid. 
     
     
         14 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 1  further comprising a lid status sensor providing a lid status signal indicative of the open/close status of the lid to the controller. 
     
     
         15 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 1  wherein the moisture sensor is at least one of a timer or a humidity sensor. 
     
     
         16 . A method of controlling the operation of a laundry treating appliance having a cabinet with an access opening selectively closed by a lid and a rotatable basket defining a treating chamber located within the cabinet, the method comprising:
 upon the determination of a predetermined degree of humidity within the treating chamber, after the completion of a cycle of operation by the laundry treating appliance, rotating the rotatable basket to effect a drawing of air into an open bottom of the cabinet, through the treating chamber, and out a vent located in at least one of the cabinet an lid.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16  wherein the determination of the predetermined degree of humidity is a predetermined time after the cycle of operation is completed. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17  wherein the predetermined time after the cycle of operation is completed further comprises a predetermined time since the lid was opened. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 16  wherein the determination of the predetermined degree of humidity comprises sensing a humidity level within the treating chamber. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 16  wherein the determination of the predetermined degree of humidity comprises sensing a moisture content of laundry within the chamber.