Laundry machine

Abstract

A laundry machine includes a cabinet, a tub, a basket, and a suspension system. The cabinet defines a first internal cavity. The tub is disposed within the first internal cavity and defines a second internal cavity. The basket is disposed within the second internal cavity, is rotatably secured to the tub, and defines a treating chamber therein. The suspension system is operable to facilitate relative movement between the tub and the cabinet. The suspension system includes a skate plate, a skate ring, and ramped or curved surfaces. The skate plate is disposed within a lower region of the first internal cavity. The skate ring has a bottom end engaging a top surface of the skate plate. The ramped or curved surfaces extend downward from the tub and engage a top end of the skate ring.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A laundry machine comprising:
 a cabinet defining a first internal cavity;   a tub disposed within the first internal cavity and defining a second internal cavity;   a basket disposed within the second internal cavity, rotatably secured to the tub, and defining a treating chamber therein; and   a suspension system operable to facilitate relative movement between the tub and the cabinet, the suspension system comprising,
 a skate plate disposed within a lower region of the first internal cavity, 
 a skate ring having a bottom end engaging a top surface of the skate plate, and 
 ramped or curved surfaces extending downward from the tub and engaging a top end of the skate ring, wherein (i) engagement between the bottom end of the skate ring and the top surface of the skate plate facilitates movement of the tub relative to the cabinet linearly in a first horizontal direction, linearly in a second horizontal direction, and rotationally relative to a vertical direction, and (ii) engagement between the ramped or curved surfaces and the top end of the skate ring facilitates movement of the tub relative to the cabinet rotationally relative to the first horizontal direction, rotationally relative to the second horizontal direction, and rotationally relative to the vertical direction. 
   
     
     
         2 . The laundry machine of  claim 1 , wherein the suspension system does not facilitate movement of the tub relative to the cabinet linearly in the vertical direction. 
     
     
         3 . The laundry machine of  claim 1 , wherein the top surface of the skate plate is ramped. 
     
     
         4 . The laundry machine of  claim 1 , wherein the top surface of the skate plate is curved such that engagement between the bottom end of the skate ring and the top surface of the skate plate forms a ball joint. 
     
     
         5 . The laundry machine of  claim 1 , wherein the bottom end of the skate ring is curved to reduce friction between the bottom end of the skate ring and the top surface of the skate plate. 
     
     
         6 . The laundry machine of  claim 1  further comprising spaced-apart blocks disposed along a lower end of the tub, wherein spaced-apart blocks define the ramped or curved surfaces. 
     
     
         7 . The laundry machine of  claim 1 , wherein the suspension system further comprises dampers disposed between the cabinet and the tub. 
     
     
         8 . The laundry machine of  claim 1 , wherein the suspension system further comprises springs disposed between the cabinet and the tub. 
     
     
         9 . A laundry machine comprising:
 a cabinet;   a tub disposed within the cabinet and having a lower region defining ramped surfaces;   a friction plate disposed below the tub; and   a ring disposed between the lower region of the tub and an upper region of the friction plate, wherein (i) a bottom of the ring engages the upper region of the friction plate to facilitate movement of the tub relative to the cabinet in a horizontal direction and rotation of the tub relative to the cabinet about a vertical axis and (ii) the ramped surfaces engage a top of the ring to facilitate rotation of the tub relative to the cabinet about a horizontal axis and the vertical axis.   
     
     
         10 . The laundry machine of  claim 9 , wherein the engagement between the bottom of the ring and the upper region of the friction plate restricts linear movement of the tub relative to the cabinet along the vertical axis. 
     
     
         11 . The laundry machine of  claim 9 , wherein the upper region of the friction plate is ramped. 
     
     
         12 . The laundry machine of  claim 9 , wherein the upper region of the friction plate is curved such that engagement between the bottom of the ring and the upper region of the friction plate forms a ball joint. 
     
     
         13 . The laundry machine of  claim 9 , wherein the bottom of the ring is curved to reduce friction between the bottom of the ring and the upper region of the friction plate. 
     
     
         14 . The laundry machine of  claim 9  further comprising spaced-apart blocks disposed along the lower region of the tub, wherein the spaced-apart blocks define the ramped surfaces. 
     
     
         15 . A laundry machine comprising:
 a tub having a lower region defining ramped surfaces;   a drum rotatably disposed within the tub; and   a suspension system operable to facilitate relative movement between the tub and a cabinet in response to rotation of the drum, the suspension system comprising,
 a friction plate disposed below the tub, and 
 a friction ring disposed between the ramped surfaces and the friction plate, wherein (i) the friction ring slidably engages the friction plate to facilitate linear movement of the tub relative to the cabinet along a first axis and rotation of the tub relative to the cabinet about a second axis and (ii) the ramped surfaces slidably engage friction ring to facilitate rotation of the tub relative to the cabinet about the first axis and the second axis. 
   
     
     
         16 . The laundry machine of  claim 15 , wherein a region of the friction plate that engages the friction ring is ramped. 
     
     
         17 . The laundry machine of  claim 15 , wherein a region of the friction plate that engages the friction ring is curved such that engagement between the friction ring and the friction plate forms a ball joint. 
     
     
         18 . The laundry machine of  claim 15 , wherein a region of the friction ring that engages the friction plate is curved to reduce friction between the friction ring and the friction plate. 
     
     
         19 . The laundry machine of  claim 15  further comprising spaced-apart blocks disposed along the lower region of the tub, wherein the spaced-apart blocks define the ramped surfaces. 
     
     
         20 . The laundry machine of  claim 15 , wherein the engagement between the friction ring and the friction plate restricts linear movement of the tub relative to the cabinet along the second axis.