摘要 |
A laundry machine braking mechanism including a pair of spaced plates adapted to be moved axially relative to one another to frictionally compress one or more brake pads positioned therebetween. A conical spring is positioned under the bottom plate, and in normal operation, the outer periphery of the conical spring urges the bottom plate upwardly so as to exert a braking force. The conical spring acts on an integrally formed retainer that has an annular rim contacting the underside of the conical spring, and a plurality of posts that extend up and connect to the top plate thereby fixing the spacing therebetween. The braking mechanism is released by exerting an upward force on the inner periphery of the conical spring thereby deflecting the outer periphery downwardly. An annular flange integrally formed as part of the top plate extends downwardly and acts as an annular fulcrum for the deflection.
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