Combination lid and excursion switch and alarm for automatic washers

Claim 1

In an automatic washer having a cabinet housing a basket for containing clothes to be washed and centrifugally dried, a lid for the cabinet providing access to the basket, a motor and transmission means for washing the clothes in the basket and for spinning the basket to centrifugally dry the clothes, a sequential control means providing a sequence of operation of the washer through a clothes washing cycle, an alarm means for indicating a condition of the automatic washer, a source of power connectable to said automatic washer including said sequential control means, and an interruption control means for interrupting the sequence of operation of said automatic washer, said interruption means comprising: first switch means operable in a first state to disconnect power from said sequential control means during a portion of the washing cycle; second switch means operable in a first state to sound said alarm means, a lid and off-balance mechanism interconnecting both switch means comprising: a pivotable lever means, a depending pivotable finger means, a bracket lever means, and a spring actuator means, said mechanism interconnected to said lid by means of a protrusion from said lid overlying and pivoting said pivotable lever when said lid is closed, said mechanism interconnected to said basket through said finger which is caused to pivot during an off-balance condition of said basket, said bracket lever secured at a first end to said pivotable lever and being movable therewith, a second end of said bracket lever contacting and baising said second switch into a second state and having a releasable connection with said spring actuator, said spring actuator being held against and baising said first switch into a second state by said bracket lever when said lid is in a closed position, and being moved away from and releasing said first switch into said first state when said lid is in an open position, said finger having a portion engagable with said bracket lever when said finger is pivoted causing said second end of said bracket lever to move away from and release said second switch into said first state and to release its connection with said actuator spring thereby releasing said first switch to said first state, whereby, opening said lid causes a change of state of only said first switch and an off-balance condition causes a change of state of both said first and second switches.