U.S. patent application number 12/071714 was filed with the patent office on 2008-08-28 for refrigerator.
This patent application is currently assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Jae Hoon Lim, So Hyun Min, Myung Ju Sim.
Application Number | 20080203875 12/071714 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39715073 |
Filed Date | 2008-08-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080203875 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lim; Jae Hoon ; et
al. |
August 28, 2008 |
Refrigerator
Abstract
A refrigerator includes a lower box which moves forward or
backward in a storage chamber and an upper box which is prepared
above the lower box to move in the forward or backward direction.
The refrigerator includes a sliding rail unit guiding forward and
backward movement of the upper box, a bracket which is prepared
between the upper box and the sliding rail unit to combine the
upper box and the sliding rail unit, and a release-lock member,
which includes a handle on an upper surface and an inclined surface
at one side of a lower surface. The release-lock member is inserted
into insert holes formed in the upper box and the bracket to fix
the bracket to the upper box, thereby preventing the upper box from
being separated from the sliding rail unit when the upper box moves
forward or backward.
Inventors: |
Lim; Jae Hoon; (Suwon-si,
KR) ; Min; So Hyun; (Gwangju, KR) ; Sim; Myung
Ju; (Gwangju, KR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
STAAS & HALSEY LLP
SUITE 700, 1201 NEW YORK AVENUE, N.W.
WASHINGTON
DC
20005
US
|
Assignee: |
Samsung Electronics Co.,
Ltd.
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
39715073 |
Appl. No.: |
12/071714 |
Filed: |
February 25, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
312/404 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25D 23/021 20130101;
F25D 25/025 20130101; A47B 88/75 20170101 |
Class at
Publication: |
312/404 |
International
Class: |
A47B 96/04 20060101
A47B096/04 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Feb 26, 2007 |
KR |
10-2007-0019190 |
Claims
1. A refrigerator comprising: a body forming an external appearance
of the refrigerator; a storage chamber which is formed in the body,
a front of the storage chamber being opened; a storage box
accommodated in the storage chamber to move forward and backward in
the storage chamber; a sliding rail unit which is installed between
the storage box and side walls of the storage chamber to allow the
storage box to move forward or backward relative to the body while
guiding the storage box; and a release-lock member which prevents
the storage box from being separated from the sliding rail unit
when the storage box moves forward or backward along the sliding
rail unit.
2. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the storage
chamber comprises a door and the storage box includes a lower box
connected to the door of the storage chamber and an upper box above
the lower box.
3. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a
bracket, between the upper box and the sliding rail unit to fix the
upper box to the sliding rail unit.
4. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 3, wherein the release-lock
member fixes the upper box to the bracket, and includes a head
portion rested on the upper box and an insert portion downwardly
extending from the head portion to be inserted into the upper box
and the bracket.
5. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 4, wherein the upper box
has a fixing groove on which the head portion is rested, and a
first insert hole is formed in a middle of the fixing groove to
receive the insert portion.
6. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 5, further comprising a
second insert hole formed on an upper surface of the bracket to
communicate with the first insert hole, and the insert portion
passing through the first insert hole is inserted into the second
insert hole.
7. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 6, further comprising a
handle to protrude upward from an upper surface of the insert
portion such that the release-lock member is separated from the
insert hole.
8. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 4, further comprising a
locking protrusion formed at one side of the insert portion, and a
locking hole formed at one side of the bracket so as to be locked
with the locking protrusion when the release-lock member is
inserted.
9. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 4, further comprising an
inclined surface formed at one side of a lower end portion of the
insert portion of the release-lock member.
10. A refrigerator comprising: a body forming an external
appearance of the refrigerator; a storage chamber which is formed
in the body, a front of the storage chamber being opened; a storage
box accommodated in the storage chamber to move forward and
backward in the storage chamber; a sliding rail unit which is
installed between the storage box and side walls of the storage
chamber to allows the storage box to move forward or backward
relative to the body while guiding the storage box; a bracket,
between the storage box and the sliding rail unit to fix the
storage box to the sliding rail unit; and a release-lock member
which prevents the storage box from being separated from the
sliding rail unit when the storage box moves forward or backward
along the sliding rail unit and includes a head portion rested on
the storage box and an insert portion downwardly extending from the
head portion to be inserted into the storage box and the
bracket.
11. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 10, wherein the storage
chamber comprises a door and the storage box includes a lower box
connected to the door of the storage chamber and an upper box above
the lower box.
12. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 11, wherein the bracket is
installed between the upper box and the sliding rail unit.
13. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 12, wherein the upper box
has a fixing groove on which the head portion is rested, and a
first insert hole is formed in a middle of the fixing groove to
receive the insert portion.
14. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 13, further comprising a
second insert hole formed on an upper surface of the bracket to
communicate with the first insert hole, and the insert portion
passing through the first insert hole is inserted into the second
insert hole.
15. A refrigerator comprising: a storage box to move in first and
second directions; a sliding rail unit, the storage box moving in
the first and second directions along the sliding rail unit; a
bracket, between the storage box and the sliding rail unit to fix
the storage box to the sliding rail unit, and a release-lock member
to selectively attach/detach the storage box to/from the sliding
rail unit and to include a head portion rested on the storage box
and an insert portion downwardly extending from the head portion to
be inserted into the storage box and the bracket.
16. A refrigerator comprising: a storage box to move in first and
second directions; a sliding rail unit, the storage box moving in
the first and second directions along the sliding rail unit; and a
release-lock member to selectively attach/detach the storage box
to/from the sliding rail unit.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent
Application No. 10-2007-0019190, filed on Feb. 26, 2007 in the
Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is
incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field
[0003] The present invention relates to a refrigerator. More
particularly, the present invention relates to a refrigerator
including a drawer type storage box provided at a lower portion of
a body and an upper box provided at an upper portion of the storage
box.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] In general, a refrigerator includes a compressor, a
condenser, an expansion valve and an evaporator to generate cool
air by using heat exchange according to the phase change of
refrigerant and provides the cool air through a predetermined
passage to a storage chamber, in which foodstuffs are stored,
thereby keeping the various foodstuffs fresh for a long period of
time.
[0006] Such a refrigerator includes a body forming an external
appearance of the refrigerator, in which a storage chamber divided
into a freezing chamber and a cooling chamber is provided.
Recently, for the convenience of the user, a refrigerator including
a storage chamber, in which a cooling chamber storing beverages and
foodstuffs for a short period of time is provided at the upper
portion of the storage chamber, and a freezing chamber provided at
the lower portion of the storage chamber, has become more
common.
[0007] The freezing chamber of the refrigerator described above
includes a storage box containing foodstuffs, and a drawer type
door is installed at the front of the storage box such that the
storage box can be easily withdrawn/received from/into the
refrigerator. In addition, an additional storage box is provided
above the storage box in the freezing chamber to contain foodstuffs
separately from the storage box.
[0008] The storage box described above can come in/out by a sliding
rail unit installed between the upper box and sidewalls of the
freezing chamber. The storage box is fixed to the sliding rail unit
to prevent the upper box from being separated from the sliding rail
when the upper box comes out.
[0009] Meanwhile, when the refrigerator has been used for a long
period of time, the storage box may be contaminated by the
foodstuffs or may be broken. In this case, the user must wash or
repair the storage box by disassembling the upper box from the
sliding rail unit. However, according to the refrigerator of the
related art, the storage box cannot be easily disassembled from the
sliding rail unit, causing inconvenience to the user.
SUMMARY
[0010] Accordingly, it is an aspect of the present invention to
provide a refrigerator capable of preventing a storage box, which
is provided in the freezing chamber, from being separated from the
freezing chamber when the storage box comes in/out, while allowing
the storage box to be easily disassembled from the freezing
chamber.
[0011] Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will
be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part,
will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by
practice of the invention.
[0012] The foregoing and/or other aspects of the present invention
are achieved by providing a refrigerator comprising a body forming
an external appearance of the refrigerator; a storage chamber which
is formed in the body, a front of the storage chamber being opened;
a storage box prepared to move in forward and backward directions
in the storage chamber; a sliding rail unit which is installed
between the storage box and side walls of the storage chamber to
allow the storage box to forward or backward move relative to the
body while guiding the storage box; and a release-lock member which
prevents the storage box from being separated from the sliding rail
unit when the storage box moves forwardly or backward along the
sliding rail unit.
[0013] According to an aspect of the present invention, the storage
box includes a lower box connected to a door of the storage chamber
and an upper box above the lower box.
[0014] According to an aspect of the present invention, a bracket
is between the upper box and the sliding rail unit to fix the upper
box to the sliding rail unit.
[0015] According to an aspect of the present invention, the
release-lock member fixes the upper box to the bracket, and
includes a head portion resting on the upper box and an insert
portion downwardly extending from the head portion to be inserted
into the upper box and the bracket.
[0016] According to an aspect of the present invention, the upper
box has a fixing groove on which the head portion is rested, and a
first insert hole is formed in a middle of the fixing groove to
allow the insert portion to be inserted.
[0017] According to an aspect of the present invention, a second
insert hole is formed on an upper surface of the bracket to
communicate with the first insert hole, and the insert portion
passing through the first insert hole is inserted into the second
insert hole.
[0018] According to an aspect of the present invention, a handle
protrusion upwardly protrudes on an upper surface of the insert
portion such that the release-lock member is easily separated from
the insert hole.
[0019] According to an aspect of the present invention, a locking
protrusion is formed at one side of the insert portion, and a
locking hole is formed at one side of the bracket so as to be
locked with the locking protrusion when the release-lock member is
inserted.
[0020] According to an aspect of the present invention, an inclined
surface is formed at one side of a lower end portion of the insert
portion of the release-lock member.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0021] These and/or other aspects and advantages of the invention
will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the
following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with
the accompanying drawings of which:
[0022] FIG. 1 is a perspective view representing a refrigerator
according to an embodiment of the present invention;
[0023] FIG. 2 is a sectional view representing a refrigerator
according to an embodiment of the present invention;
[0024] FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view representing a
structure of a freezing chamber of the refrigerator according to an
embodiment of the present invention;
[0025] FIG. 4 is a sectional view representing a structure of a
freezing chamber of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of
the present invention; and
[0026] FIG. 5 is a side-sectional view for explaining separation of
a release-lock member from the refrigerator according to an
embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0027] Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of
the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the
like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below to
explain the present invention by referring to the figures.
[0028] FIG. 1 is a perspective view representing a refrigerator
according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a
sectional view representing a refrigerator according to the
embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is an exploded
perspective view representing a structure of a freezing chamber of
the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present
invention, FIG. 4 is a sectional view representing a structure of a
freezing chamber of the refrigerator according to the present
invention, and FIG. 5 is a side-sectional view for explaining
separation of a release-lock member from the refrigerator according
to the embodiment of the present invention.
[0029] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a refrigerator according to the
embodiment of the present invention includes a body 10 forming an
external appearance of the refrigerator, and a storage chamber is
provided in the body 10. The storage chamber is divided into an
upper part and a lower part by a partition 15, so that the upper
part of the storage chamber is used as a cooling chamber and the
lower part of the storage chamber is used as a freezing
chamber.
[0030] Doors 21 and 31 are installed on each front surface of the
storage chambers 20 and 30 so as to selectively open and close the
storage chambers 20 and 30. In this case, side by side doors 21,
which are rotatably opened/closed, are installed at both sides of
the front surface of the cooling chamber 20 and a drawer type door
31, which is forwardly and backwardly moved to be open/closed, is
installed on the front surface of the freezing chamber 30.
[0031] A plurality of shelves 22 are installed on a rear side of
the door 21 of the cooling chamber 20 in a multi-step structure so
as to conveniently load foodstuffs thereon. Similarly, a plurality
of shelves 23, and a drawer or a housing member having a basket
shape are installed in the cooling chamber 20.
[0032] Here, an evaporator 24 of a freezing cycle and a blowing fan
25 are installed at a rear side of the cooling chamber 20 in an
inner side of the body 10 to generate cool air and feed the cool
air into the cooling chamber 20. An evaporator 34 of a freezing
cycle and a blowing fan 35 are installed at a rear side of the
freezing chamber 30 in an inner side of the body 10 so as to
generate cool air and feed the cool air into the freezing chamber
30. In addition, a machine chamber 36 including a compressor and a
condenser is provided in the body 10 to compress refrigerant and
condense the refrigerant, and then feed the refrigerant into the
evaporator 34.
[0033] A storage box is prepared in the freezing chamber 30 so as
to store foodstuffs therein, and the storage box includes a lower
box 41 which is connected with the door 31 of the freezing chamber
30 and an upper box 50 which is prepared above the lower box
41.
[0034] Here, the lower box 41 is prepared to move forward and
backward when the door 31 of the freezing chamber 30 is withdrawn
by a user. To this end, a sliding rail unit 42 is prepared between
the lower box 41 and side walls of the freezing chamber 30 to guide
the lower box 41 when the lower box 41 moves forward and
backward.
[0035] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the upper box 50 is prepared
above the lower box 41. A rim 51 including an extension portion
51a, which outwardly extends from a body of the upper box 50, and a
bending portion 51b, which is bent downward from the extension
portion 51a, is formed on the upper box 50.
[0036] Bracket 60 is coupled to both lateral sides of the upper box
50. The bracket 60 is coupled to the side surface of the upper box
50 as described above, and an upper surface 60a of the bracket 60
makes contact with a lower side of the extension portion 51a of the
rim 51 of the upper box 50.
[0037] An additional sliding rail unit 70 is prepared between the
bracket 60 and sidewalls of the freezing chamber 30 so as to allow
the upper box 50 to move forward or backward while guiding the
upper box 50. In this case, the sliding rail unit 70 is prepared in
the form of triple rails such that the upper box 50 can easily move
forward or backward. That is, the sliding rail unit 70 includes a
first rail 70a fixed to both side surfaces of the upper box 50, a
third rail 70c fixed to the sidewalls of the freezing chamber 30
and a second rail 70b connecting the first rail 70a with the third
rail 70c.
[0038] In addition, according to the embodiment of the present
invention, a release-lock member 80 is prepared so as to prevent
the upper box 50 from being separated from the sliding rail unit
70, when the upper box 50 moves forward/backward by fixing the
upper box 50 to the bracket 60. The release-lock member 80 includes
a head portion 81 rested on the upper box 50 and an insert portion
83 inserted into the upper box 50 and the bracket 60. This will be
described later in detail.
[0039] First, in order to fix the upper box 50 using the
release-lock member 80, a predetermined part of the extension
portion 51a formed at the peripheral area of the upper box 50 is
downwardly recessed to form a fixing groove 56 on which the head
portion 81 is rested.
[0040] Then, a first insert hole 57 is formed at the center of the
fixing groove 56 of the upper box 50, and the insert portion 83
extending downward from the head portion 81 is inserted into the
first insert hole 57. In addition, a second insert hole 61
communicating with the first insert hole 57 is formed at the upper
surface of the bracket 60, and the insert portion 83, which is
inserted into the first insert hole 57, is inserted into the second
insert hole 61, thereby preventing the release-lock member 80 from
being separated from the first rail 70a of the sliding rail unit
70.
[0041] That is, according to the embodiment of the present
invention, due to the release-lock member 80 fixedly inserted into
the upper box 50 and the bracket 60, the upper box 50 is fixed to
the bracket 60 when the upper box 50 moves forward or backward,
thereby preventing the upper box 50 from being separated from the
sliding rail unit 70.
[0042] In addition, according to the embodiment of the present
invention, when the refrigerator has been used for a long time, the
upper box 50 may be contaminated by foodstuffs stored in the upper
box 50 or may be broken. In this case, the release-lock member 80,
which is fixed to the upper box 50 and the bracket 60, must be
separated to disassemble the upper box 50.
[0043] To this end, as shown in FIG. 5, a handle 86 is formed at an
upper surface of the head portion 81 of the release-lock member 80
such that the user can easily separate the release-lock member 80
from the upper box 50 and the bracket 60. An inclined surface 84 is
formed at a lower end of the insert portion 83 of the release-lock
member 80 such that the user can separate the release-lock member
80 by lifting the release-lock member 80 using the handle 86.
[0044] In addition, a locking protrusion 87 is formed at a side
surface of the insert portion 83 such that the release-lock member
80 is firmly fixed to the bracket 60. The locking protrusion 87 is
formed only at one side surface of the insert portion 83 such that
the release-lock member 80 can be easily separated. A locking hole
63 is formed in the bracket 60 such that the locking protrusion 87
can be inserted into the locking hole 63.
[0045] That is, according to the embodiment of the present
invention, in order to easily separate the release-lock member 80,
which prevents the upper box 50 from being separated by fixing the
upper box 50 to the bracket 60, the handle 86 is formed at the
upper surface of the release-lock member 80 and the inclined
surface 84 is formed at the lower surface release-lock member 80.
Therefore, according to the embodiment of the present invention,
the release-lock member 80 can be easily disassembled from the
upper box 50 and the bracket 60.
[0046] As described above, in the refrigerator according to the
present invention, the release-lock member prevents the upper box
from being separated from the sliding rail unit when the upper box
moves forward/backward, while allowing the upper box to be easily
dissembled.
[0047] Although an embodiment has been shown and described, it
would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may
be made in this embodiment without departing from the principles
and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the
claims and their equivalents.
* * * * *