Laundry treating apparatus

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a laundry treating apparatus capable of sufficiently wetting laundry in a drum by spraying wash water in a tub on the laundry, without a motor. The laundry treating apparatus includes a tub configured to accommodate wash water, a drum rotatably disposed in the tub, and configured to accommodate laundry, and a lifter disposed in the drum, to tumble the laundry using rotary power of the drum, wherein the drum has a drum hole communicating with an inner space of the lifter, and the lifter has a lifter hole through which the wash water, introduced into the inner space from the tub through the drum hole, is sprayed on the laundry at a predetermined position to which the drum rotates.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A laundry treating apparatus comprising:
 a tub to accommodate wash water;   a drum, rotatably disposed in the tub, to accommodate laundry; and   a lifter disposed in the drum, to tumble the laundry as the drum rotates,   wherein the drum has a drum hole communicating with an inner space of the lifter, and the lifter has a plurality of lifter holes through which wash water, introduced into the inner space from the tub through the drum hole, is sprayed on the laundry at a predetermined rotation position of the drum.   
     
     
         2 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the drum further comprises:
 a scoop formed at one side of the drum hole so as to guide the wash water in the tub to the drum hole.   
     
     
         3 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the scoop has a shape that is concave at an outside of the drum and is convex at an inside thereof. 
     
     
         4 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the scoop guides the wash water to the drum hole when the drum rotates in one direction. 
     
     
         5 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the lifter hole is formed in a direction perpendicular to a tangent line of the drum. 
     
     
         6 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the lifter comprises:
 a round surface protruding maximally inward from the drum, 
 a first inclined surface disposed at one side of the round surface in one direction of rotation of the drum, and 
 a second inclined surface disposed at the other side of the round surface in the other direction of rotation of the drum; and 
   the plurality of lifter holes are formed in the round surface and the first inclined surface.   
     
     
         7 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the plurality of lifter holes comprise lifter holes spaced apart from each other at regular intervals throughout the first inclined surface, and lifter holes formed in a portion of the round surface so as to corresponding to the lifter holes formed in the first inclined surface. 
     
     
         8 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the plurality of lifter holes comprise lifter holes formed so as to be spaced apart from each other at regular intervals throughout the round surface and the first inclined surface. 
     
     
         9 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the lifter comprises:
 a round surface protruding maximally inward from the drum, 
 a first inclined surface disposed at one side of the round surface in one direction of rotation of the drum, and 
 a second inclined surface disposed at the other side of the round surface in the other direction of rotation of the drum; and 
   the plurality of lifter holes are formed in the first inclined surface.   
     
     
         10 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the plurality of lifter holes comprise lifter holes formed so as to be spaced apart from each other at regular intervals throughout the first inclined surface. 
     
     
         11 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the first inclined surface has an axially asymmetrical shape. 
     
     
         12 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the lifter comprises:   
       a round surface protruding maximally inward from the drum, 
       a first inclined surface disposed at one side of the round surface in one direction of rotation of the drum, and 
       a second inclined surface disposed at the other side of the round surface in the other direction of rotation of the drum; and
 the plurality of lifter holes are formed in the round surface. 
 
     
     
         13 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the lifter comprises:
 a round surface protruding maximally inward from the drum, 
 a first inclined surface disposed at one side of the round surface in one direction of rotation of the drum, and 
 a second inclined surface disposed at the other side of the round surface in the other direction of rotation of the drum; and 
   the first inclined surface is formed such that an inner angle between the first inclined surface and an inner surface of the drum is a first angle, and the second inclined surface is formed such that an inner angle between the second inclined surface and the inner surface of the drum is a second angle larger than the first angle.   
     
     
         14 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the drum further comprises:
 a first sliding hole in communication with the inner space of the lifter;   a second sliding hole extending from the first sliding hole and spaced apart from the drum hole in one direction, the second sliding hole having a width perpendicular to an axial direction thereof, the width being smaller than that of the first sliding hole; and   a fastening hole spaced apart from the drum hole in a direction opposite to the one direction, and   wherein the lifter further comprises:   a sliding protrusion coupled to the drum by sliding to the second sliding hole from the first sliding hole; and   a fastening portion into which a fastening member is inserted and fastened through the fastening hole.   
     
     
         15 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the drum further comprises:
 a first sliding hole in communication with the inner space of the lifter;   a second sliding hole extending from the first sliding hole and spaced apart from the drum hole in one direction, the second sliding hole having a width perpendicular to an axial direction thereof, the width being smaller than that of the first sliding hole;   a third sliding hole; and   a fourth sliding hole extending from the third sliding hole and spaced apart from the drum hole in a direction opposite to the one direction, the fourth sliding hole having a width perpendicular to an axial direction thereof, the width being smaller than that of the third sliding hole, and   wherein the lifter further comprises:   a first sliding protrusion coupled to the drum by sliding to the second sliding hole from the first sliding hole;   a second sliding protrusion coupled to the drum by sliding to the fourth sliding hole from the third sliding hole; and   a shield wall for shielding the third sliding hole when the second sliding protrusion is located in the fourth sliding hole.   
     
     
         16 . The laundry treating apparatus of  claim 15 , wherein:
 the drum further comprises a fastening hole; and   the lifter further comprises a fastening portion into which a fastening member is inserted and fastened through the fastening hole.