Door assembly for a laundry appliance

Abstract

A door assembly for a laundry appliance, the laundry appliance including a tub positioned within a cabinet and a basket rotatably mounted within the tub and defining a chamber for receiving of a load of clothes. The door assembly includes an outer door frame defining a first frame pin and a second frame pin that extend from an inner surface of the outer door frame and a reinforcement bracket positioned on the inner surface of the outer door frame, the reinforcement bracket defining a first pin aperture and a second pin aperture, wherein the first pin aperture is configured to receive the first frame pin and the second pin aperture is elongated along the vertical direction and configured to receive the second frame pin.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A laundry appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction, the laundry appliance comprising:
 a tub positioned within a cabinet;   a basket rotatably mounted within the tub and defining a chamber for receiving of a load of clothes; and   a door assembly rotatably mounted to the cabinet to provide selective access to the chamber, the door assembly comprising:
 an outer door frame defining a first frame pin and a second frame pin that extend from an inner surface of the outer door frame; and 
 a reinforcement bracket positioned on the inner surface of the outer door frame, the reinforcement bracket defining a first pin aperture and a second pin aperture, wherein the first pin aperture is configured to receive the first frame pin and the second pin aperture is elongated along the vertical direction and configured to receive the second frame pin. 
   
     
     
         2 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the second frame pin engages the second pin aperture to prevent relative movement between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the lateral direction. 
     
     
         3 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the first pin aperture is circular and the first frame pin engages the first pin aperture to prevent relative movement between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the lateral direction and the vertical direction. 
     
     
         4 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the first pin aperture elongated along the vertical direction, the outer door frame defines a third frame pin, and the reinforcement bracket defines a third pin aperture, the third pin aperture being configured to receive the third frame pin. 
     
     
         5 . The laundry appliance of  claim 4 , wherein the third pin aperture is elongated along the lateral direction. 
     
     
         6 . The laundry appliance of  claim 5 , wherein the third frame pin engages the third pin aperture to prevent relative movement between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the vertical direction. 
     
     
         7 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the outer door frame defines a first screw boss positioned adjacent the first frame pin and a second screw boss positioned adjacent the second frame pin. 
     
     
         8 . The laundry appliance of  claim 7 , wherein the door assembly further comprises:
 mechanical fasteners that are inserted through the reinforcement bracket into the first screw boss and the second screw boss to engage the outer door frame and prevent relative movement between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the transverse direction.   
     
     
         9 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the first frame pin and the second frame pin extend along the transverse direction. 
     
     
         10 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement bracket defines a mounting structure configured to receive a door handle or a door hinge assembly. 
     
     
         11 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the outer door frame further defines a fourth frame pin and a fifth frame pin that extend from the inner surface of the outer door frame on an opposite side of the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket is a first reinforcement bracket, the door assembly further comprising:
 a second reinforcement bracket positioned on the inner surface of the outer door frame, the second reinforcement bracket defining a fourth pin aperture and a fifth pin aperture, wherein the fourth pin aperture is configured to receive the fourth frame pin and the fifth pin aperture is elongated along the vertical direction and configured to receive the fifth frame pin.   
     
     
         12 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the door assembly further comprises:
 a window mounted within a central opening of the outer door frame, the window being positioned between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the transverse direction.   
     
     
         13 . The laundry appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the laundry appliance is a front load washing machine appliance or a front load dryer appliance. 
     
     
         14 . A door assembly for a laundry appliance, the laundry appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction, the laundry appliance comprising a tub positioned within a cabinet and a basket rotatably mounted within the tub and defining a chamber for receiving of a load of clothes, the door assembly comprising:
 an outer door frame defining a first frame pin and a second frame pin that extend from an inner surface of the outer door frame; and   a reinforcement bracket positioned on the inner surface of the outer door frame, the reinforcement bracket defining a first pin aperture and a second pin aperture, wherein the first pin aperture is configured to receive the first frame pin and the second pin aperture is elongated along the vertical direction and configured to receive the second frame pin.   
     
     
         15 . The door assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the second frame pin engages the second pin aperture to prevent relative movement between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the lateral direction. 
     
     
         16 . The door assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the first pin aperture is circular and the first frame pin engages the first pin aperture to prevent relative movement between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the lateral direction and the vertical direction. 
     
     
         17 . The door assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the first pin aperture elongated along the vertical direction, the outer door frame defines a third frame pin, and the reinforcement bracket defines a third pin aperture, the third pin aperture being configured to receive the third frame pin. 
     
     
         18 . The door assembly of  claim 17 , wherein the third pin aperture is elongated along the lateral direction. 
     
     
         19 . The door assembly of  claim 18 , wherein the third frame pin engages the third pin aperture to prevent relative movement between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the vertical direction. 
     
     
         20 . The door assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the outer door frame defines a first screw boss positioned adjacent the first frame pin and a second screw boss positioned adjacent the second frame pin, wherein mechanical fasteners are inserted through the reinforcement bracket into the first screw boss and the second screw boss to engage the outer door frame and prevent relative movement between the outer door frame and the reinforcement bracket along the transverse direction.