US 12,114,826 B2
Pocket handle bend tab for an appliance
Aldo Vincent Kremmel, Palmyra, IN (US)
Assigned to Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc., Wilmington, DE (US)
Filed by Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc., Wilmington, DE (US)
Filed on Oct. 13, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/965,081.
Prior Publication US 2024/0122439 A1, Apr. 18, 2024
Int. Cl. A47L 15/42 (2006.01)
CPC A47L 15/4265 (2013.01) 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A household appliance comprising:
a cabinet defining a chamber;
a door assembly defining a vertical, lateral, and transverse direction, the door assembly being mounted on the cabinet to selectively restrict access to the chamber, the door assembly comprising:
a front panel defining a handle cavity;
a pocket handle received in the handle cavity, the pocket handle comprising a flange defining a plurality of tab passages; and
a plurality of bend tabs positioned around the handle cavity and extending from the front panel into a door cavity of the door assembly, the plurality of bend tabs being received through the plurality of tab passages in a first position and being deformable into a second position where the plurality of bend tabs engage the flange to secure the pocket handle to the front panel, each bend tab of the plurality of bend tabs comprises:
a post perpendicular to a rear surface of the front panel;
an arm perpendicular to the post and extending in one direction from the post, the post and the arm joined by a transition area; and
an edge geometry including at least an inclined edge between the post and a terminal end of the arm, the transition area defining a radius joining the post with the inclined edge.