Clothes dryer door

Abstract

The invention relates to a door for closing off a loading opening of a clothes dryer includes a holding device surrounding the edge of a non-opaque pane in a door frame, via a fixing element and/or a part of the holding element arranged on the housing side. A moisture escape-preventing elastic sealing element is mounted in the non-opaque pane area. In order to prevent fluff accumulation in the connection points between the frame and the non-opaque pane, the inventive sealing element is molded to the part of the holding element placed on the housing side and fits the shape of the internal surface of the non-opaque pane with the aid of a lip-shaped ring.

1 - 6 . (canceled) 
   
   
       7 . A door for a tumble dryer, the door comprising:
 a.) a non-opaque pane;   b.) a door frame, the door frame being movable between a closed position in which the door closes off a loading opening of a tumble dryer that is formed in a housing of the tumble dryer and that delimits a substantially vertical plane and an open position in which access can be had through the loading opening to an interior volume of the tumble dryer;   c.) a holding device for engaging an edge portion of the non-opaque pane to thereby aid in retaining the non-opaque pane at a predetermined location on the door frame in which the non-opaque pane is centered on a pane axis extending perpendicularly to the substantially vertical plane delimited by the loading opening of the tumble dryer; and   d.) a sealing element, the sealing element being formed of elastic material and performing a sealing function generally at the location at which the holding device and the non-opaque pane are in engagement with one another to resist thereat the outward passage of humid air from an interior volume of the tumble dryer, the sealing element having a radially outward section and a lip ring that is radially inwardly of the radially outward section of the sealing element as viewed relative to the pane axis and that substantially conforms to contours of certain portions of the non-opaque pane with which the lip ring is in sealing contact.   
   
   
       8 . The door as claimed in  claim 7 , wherein the door frame has exterior portions that face away from the housing of the tumble dryer in the closed position of the door frame and the holding device has a housing-facing portion that faces the housing of the tumble dryer in the closed position of the door frame and the radially outward section of the sealing element is compressively engaged between the housing-facing portion of the holding device and the edge portion of the non-opaque pane. 
   
   
       9 . The door as claimed in  claim 7 , wherein the radially innermost portion of the lip ring is defined by an annular edge formed at the intersection of two surfaces of the lip ring that are at an acute angle to each other such that a radial cross-section of the annular edge of the lip ring of the sealing element resembles an acute-angled triangle, 
   
   
       10 . The door as claimed in  claim 7 , wherein the sealing element is integrally connected to the housing-facing portion of the holding device. 
   
   
       11 . The door as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the radially outward section of the sealing element includes an annular step portion that abuts a radially inward surface of the housing-facing portion of the holding device. 
   
   
       12 . The door as claimed in  claim 11 , wherein the sealing element is formed via spraying of elastic material onto the housing-facing portion of the holding device.