Self-cleaning drawer-style dryer lint management system
This patent covers a clothes dryer (or similar laundry appliance) with a self-cleaning lint filter system built into the air exhaust path. As hot air exits the drum, it passes through a filter that catches lint and debris. An automatic cleaning mechanism scrapes the impurities off the filter and deposits them into a small removable drawer that the user can pull out and empty, similar to emptying a coffee pod tray. The key innovation is the physical arrangement: the storage drawer sits below the filter in a dedicated slot on the cabinet, keeping the airflow path clean without requiring the user to reach inside the machine.
What you could build
A consumer or commercial dryer with a tool-free, drawer-style lint collection system that auto-cleans the filter; targeted at appliance OEMs serving residential consumers and commercial laundry operators who want lower maintenance and improved safety compliance.
Who in Virginia should care
Appliance distributors, commercial laundry operators, and property management companies in Virginia would be natural customers; LG (the likely assignee) already has a US commercial presence that would handle licensing.
Readiness: Prototype likely
Concept — described but not yet demonstrated. Lab validated — supported by experimental results in the patent. Prototype likely — the text describes a built, working embodiment.
Readiness is inferred from the patent text, not from a lab visit.
The record
- Inventors
- Sangik LEE, Jeongyun KIM
- Granted
- February 21, 2017
- Status
- Granted patent
- Patent number
- 9574824
Ready to talk?
Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties handles licensing for this technology.
Prosim summaries are generated from public patent text and are not legal advice.