U.S. patent application number 12/936631 was filed with the patent office on 2011-02-03 for refrigerator having drawer cover.
Invention is credited to Jong-Wook An, Byeong-Gyu Kang, Jae-Youl Lee.
Application Number | 20110023530 12/936631 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41162354 |
Filed Date | 2011-02-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110023530 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
An; Jong-Wook ; et
al. |
February 3, 2011 |
REFRIGERATOR HAVING DRAWER COVER
Abstract
Disclosed is a refrigerator having a drawer cover, in which a
drawer cover is disposed above a drawer accommodated inside a
cooling chamber so as to be slidable in front and rear directions,
and a pressurizing unit is disposed for pressurizing the drawer and
the drawer cover so as to closely contact each other when the
drawer is accommodated, thereby preventing moisture evaporation
from food stored in the drawer, thus to keep food inside the drawer
in a fresh condition for a longer period of time.
Inventors: |
An; Jong-Wook;
(Gyeongsangnam-Do, KR) ; Kang; Byeong-Gyu;
(Gyeongsangnam-Do, KR) ; Lee; Jae-Youl;
(Gyeongsangnam-Do, KR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BIRCH STEWART KOLASCH & BIRCH
PO BOX 747
FALLS CHURCH
VA
22040-0747
US
|
Family ID: |
41162354 |
Appl. No.: |
12/936631 |
Filed: |
February 5, 2009 |
PCT Filed: |
February 5, 2009 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/KR09/00565 |
371 Date: |
October 6, 2010 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
62/449 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25D 25/025
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
62/449 |
International
Class: |
F25D 23/02 20060101
F25D023/02 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 7, 2008 |
KR |
10-2008-0032347 |
Claims
1. A refrigerator having a drawer cover, comprising: a refrigerator
main body having a cooling chamber; a drawer accommodated inside
the cooling chamber so as to be slidable in front and rear
directions; a drawer cover for closing an upper opening of the
drawer when the drawer is accommodated; and a pressurizing unit for
pressurizing the drawer and the drawer cover so as to closely
contact each other.
2. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the pressurizing unit
comprises a protrusion protruding from one of the drawer and the
drawer cover, and a guiding inclination surface disposed at the
other with an inclination to a moving direction of the protrusion
so as to contact the protrusion.
3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the drawer cover comprises
a blocking portion for blocking the upper opening of the drawer,
and side wall portions downwardly bent from both sides of the
blocking portion.
4. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the guiding inclination
surface is formed at the side wall portion.
5. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the drawer cover is fixed
to the cooling chamber.
6. The refrigerator of claim 5, further comprising: a gasket
disposed at an area where the drawer and the drawer cover contact
each other.
7. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein a plurality of protrusions
are spaced from each other in front and rear directions.
8. The refrigerator of claim 4, wherein a horizontal support
surface which extends horizontally is further disposed at one side
of the guiding inclination surface.
9. The refrigerator of claim 4, wherein a receiving hole is further
disposed at one side of the guiding inclination surface so as to
receive the protrusion therein.
10. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the drawer cover is formed
to rotate in up and down directions, and the pressurizing unit
includes a pressuring portion such that the drawer cover is
pressurized to rotate toward the drawer when the pressurizing unit
is contacted by the drawer cover.
11. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein the pressurizing unit
further includes a protruding portion for upwardly moving the
drawer when the drawer is accommodated.
12. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein the drawer cover includes
a contact pressurizing surface for contacting the pressurizing
portion so as to rotate the drawer cover toward the drawer, and a
contact maintaining surface for maintaining a state that the drawer
cover and the drawer closely contact each other.
13. The refrigerator of claim 12, wherein the contact maintaining
surface is disposed at an area higher than a minimum height of the
contact pressurizing surface.
14. The refrigerator of claim 12, wherein the pressuring portion
includes a protrusion, and the contact maintaining surface is
formed to correspond to a shape of the protrusion.
15. The refrigerator of claim 10, further comprising: an elastic
support portion for elastically supporting the drawer cover.
16. The refrigerator of claim 15, wherein the elastic support
portion is formed such that a lower portion of the drawer cover is
spaced from the upper end of the drawer.
17. The refrigerator of claim 10, further comprising: a gasket
disposed at an area where the drawer and the drawer cover contact
each other.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a refrigerator having a
drawing cover, and more particularly, to a refrigerator having a
drawer cover which can maintain freshness of foods by preventing
moisture evaporation when a drawer is accommodated.
BACKGROUND ART
[0002] In general, a refrigerator stores foods in a fresh
condition.
[0003] A refrigerator includes a refrigerator main body having
cooling chambers, doors for opening and closing the cooling
chambers, and a refrigeration cycle device for supplying cooling
air to the cooling chambers.
[0004] The refrigeration cycle device is generally implemented as a
vapor compression refrigeration cycle which is comprised of a
compressor for compressing a refrigerant, a condenser for radiating
the compressed refrigerant, an expansion unit for expanding the
refrigerant, and an evaporator in which the refrigerant absorbs
latent heat and thus to be evaporated.
[0005] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional refrigerator,
and FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of main parts in
FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 1, the refrigerator may include a
refrigerator main body 10 having a freezing chamber 20 and a
refrigerating chamber 30 therein, and a freezing chamber door 27
and a refrigerating chamber door 37 for respectively opening and
closing the freezing chamber 20 and the refrigerating chamber
30.
[0006] A plurality of shelves 22, 32 are upwardly and downwardly
disposed in the freezing chamber 20 and the refrigerating chamber
30 with intervals therebetween, and divide an inner space as well
as place foods thereon.
[0007] An ice making chamber 23 may be disposed at an upper region
of the freezing chamber 20 for making ice (ice pieces, ice cubes,
or the like). A dispenser 28 may be provided at the freezing
chamber door 27 to enable a user to draw out water or ice pieces
without opening the freezing chamber 20. A home bar 38 may be
installed at the refrigerating chamber door 37 to enable the user
to place or draw out foods without opening the refrigerating
chamber 30.
[0008] Meanwhile, a plurality of drawers 25, 35 upwardly opened and
formed in a cylindrical shape are provided inside the freezing
chamber 20 and the refrigerating chamber 30 for being slidable in
front and rear directions.
[0009] However, in this conventional refrigerator, as shown in FIG.
2, when each of the drawers 25, 35 is accommodated, upper openings
of each drawer 25, 35 are not completely blocked (closed). If food
placed inside the drawer 25 in the freezing chamber 20 is to be
quick-frozen, moisture in the food placed inside the drawer 25 is
evaporated before the food is frozen, thereby deteriorating the
freshness of the food inside the drawer 25.
[0010] In addition, if vegetables and/or fruits and the like are
stored in the drawer 35 in the refrigerating chamber 30, moisture
in the drawer 35 is evaporated, thus to rapidly wither the
vegetables and/or fruits.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
Technical Problem
[0011] Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to
provide a refrigerator having a drawer cover capable of preventing
moisture evaporation from food placed in the drawer.
[0012] It is another object of the present invention to provide a
refrigerator having a drawer cover capable of tightly blocking
(closing) an upper opening of a drawer, thus to prevent a
deterioration of food freshness.
Technical Solution
[0013] To achieve these objects, there is provided a refrigerator
having a drawing cover, including: a refrigerator main body having
a cooling chamber; a drawer accommodated inside the cooling chamber
so as to be slidable in front and rear directions; a drawer cover
for closing an upper opening of the drawer when the drawer is
accommodated; and a pressurizing unit for pressurizing the drawer
and the drawer cover so as to closely contact each other.
[0014] Here, the pressurizing unit comprises a protrusion
protruding from one of the drawer and the drawer cover, and a
guiding inclination surface disposed at the other with an
inclination to a moving direction of the protrusion so as to
contact the protrusion.
[0015] The drawer cover comprises a blocking portion for blocking
the upper opening of the drawer, and side wall portions downwardly
bent from both sides of the blocking portion.
[0016] The guiding inclination surface is formed at the side wall
portion.
[0017] The drawer cover is fixed to the cooling chamber.
[0018] The refrigerator further includes a gasket disposed at an
area where the drawer and the drawer cover contact each other.
[0019] A plurality of protrusions are spaced from each other in
front and rear directions.
[0020] A horizontal support surface which extends horizontally is
further disposed at one side of the guiding inclination
surface.
[0021] A receiving hole is further disposed at one side of the
guiding inclination surface so as to receive the protrusion
therein.
[0022] The drawer cover is formed to rotate in up and down
directions, and the pressurizing unit includes a pressuring portion
such that the drawer cover is pressurized to rotate toward the
drawer when the pressurizing unit is contacted by the drawer
cover.
[0023] The pressurizing unit further includes a protruding portion
for upwardly moving the drawer when the drawer is accommodated.
[0024] The drawer cover includes a contact pressurizing surface for
contacting the pressurizing portion so as to rotate the drawer
cover toward the drawer, and a contact maintaining surface for
maintaining a state that the drawer cover and the drawer closely
contact each other.
[0025] The contact maintaining surface is disposed at an area
higher than a minimum height of the contact pressurizing
surface.
[0026] The pressuring portion includes a protrusion, and the
contact maintaining surface is formed to correspond to a shape of
the protrusion.
[0027] The refrigerator further includes an elastic support portion
for elastically supporting the drawer cover.
[0028] The elastic support portion is formed such that a lower
portion of the drawer cover is spaced from the upper end of the
drawer.
[0029] The refrigerator further includes a gasket disposed at an
area where the drawer and the drawer cover contact each other.
Advantageous Effects
[0030] As so far described, the present invention is configured
such that the drawer cover is disposed to block the upper opening
of the drawer, and the pressurizing unit is disposed to pressurize
the drawer and the drawer cover for closely contacting each other
when the drawer is accommodated, thereby preventing the leakage of
moisture inside the drawer to the outside through the upper opening
of the drawer. Therefore, the freshness of food stored in the
drawer may be maintained for a longer period of time.
[0031] In addition, the gasket is further included in the contact
area of the drawer and the drawer cover. Accordingly, when the
drawer and the drawer cover are closely contacted by the
pressurizing unit, a degree of blocking the upper opening of the
drawer may be highly enhanced. Therefore, the leakage of moisture
inside the drawer may be more effectively prevented.
[0032] In addition, the drawer cover is rotatably installed and the
pressurizing unit is disposed to rotate the drawer cover toward the
drawer when the drawer is accommodated, thereby preventing the
leakage of moisture through the upper opening of the drawer as well
as facilitating a manufacturing process with a simple
structure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0033] In the drawings:
[0034] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a conventional
refrigerator;
[0035] FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of main parts in
FIG. 1;
[0036] FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a refrigerator having a
drawer cover according to one exemplary embodiment of the present
invention;
[0037] FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view showing the drawer
and the drawer cover in FIG. 3;
[0038] FIGS. 5 and 6 are respective perspective views showing a
pressurizing unit according to another exemplary embodiment of the
present invention;
[0039] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a coupled state of the
drawer and the drawer cover in FIG. 4;
[0040] FIG. 8 is a side sectional view showing the drawer and the
drawer cover in FIG. 4;
[0041] FIGS. 9 and 10 are respective views showing a modified
example of a protrusion in FIG. 4;
[0042] FIG. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing main
parts of a refrigerator having a drawer cover according to still
another exemplary embodiment of the present invention;
[0043] FIG. 12 is a plane view of the drawer in FIG. 11;
[0044] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view showing the drawer cover
taken along line XIII-XIII in FIG. 11;
[0045] FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing an operation of
the pressurizing unit in FIGS. 11; and
[0046] FIG. 15 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing main
parts of a refrigerator having a drawer cover according to still
another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
MODE FOR THE INVENTION
[0047] Reference will now be given in detail to a refrigerator
having a drawer cover according to the preferred embodiments of the
present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings.
[0048] Referring to FIG. 3, the refrigerator having a drawer cover
includes a refrigerator main body 110 having cooling chambers 120,
130; drawers 125, 135 accommodated inside the respective cooling
chambers 120, 130 so as to be slidable in front and rear
directions; drawer covers 155 for closing upper openings of each
drawer 125, 135 when the drawers 125, 135 are accommodated; and
pressurizing units 165 for pressurizing the drawers 125, 135 and
the drawer covers 155 so as to closely contact each other. Here,
the cooling chamber generally refers to the freezing chamber and
the refrigerating chamber, but it may be comprised of any one of
the freezing chamber and the refrigerating chamber depending on the
configuration of a product. In this example, a so called
side-by-side type refrigerator is implemented in which the
refrigerator main body 110 is comprised of the freezing chamber 120
and the refrigerating chamber 130 side by side. The refrigerator
main body may be implemented as a top mount type refrigerator or a
bottom freezer type refrigerator in which a freezing chamber is
disposed above a refrigerating chamber and vice versa. The drawers
125, 135 may be installed at both the freezing chamber 120 and the
refrigerating chamber 130, or at only one of them. In addition, the
number of the drawers may be adjusted.
[0049] The refrigerator main body 110 may include a partition wall
112 vertically disposed between the freezing chamber 120 and the
refrigerating chamber 130. A freezing chamber door 127 and a
refrigerating chamber door 137 may be disposed at respective front
surfaces of the freezing chamber 120 and the refrigerating chamber
130 so as to open and close the freezing chamber 120 and the
refrigerating chamber 130. The freezing chamber door 127 and the
refrigerating chamber door 137 may be rotatably or slidably mounted
at the refrigerator main body 110.
[0050] A plurality of shelves 122, 132 may be disposed in the
freezing chamber 120 and the refrigerating chamber 130 with
intervals therebetween in up and down directions. Accordingly, the
inner spaces of the freezing chamber 120 and the refrigerating
chamber 130 are divided, thus to utilize the inner spaces and place
more foods thereon.
[0051] Meanwhile, a plurality of drawers 125, 135 are disposed at
lower portions of the freezing chamber 120 and the refrigerating
chamber 130 so as to be slidably drawn out in front and rear
directions. The drawers 125, 135 each installed at the freezing
chamber 120 and the refrigerating chamber 130 may have a very
similar configuration; thusly, the drawers 135 installed inside the
refrigerating chamber 130 will be explained.
[0052] As shown in FIG. 4, the drawer 135 may include an
accommodating portion 137 upwardly opened and formed in a
cylindrical shape, and a front surface portion 138 disposed at a
front surface of the accommodating portion 137. The front surface
portion 138 may include a flush drawer pull 139 to enable the user
to easily accommodate and draw out the drawer 135. Rails 142 may be
formed at side portions of the accommodating portion 137 to enable
a sliding motion in front and rear directions. The rails 142 may be
formed to outwardly protrude and extend in front and rear
directions.
[0053] Sliding support units (not shown) may be formed in the
freezing chamber 120 or the refrigerating chamber 130 so as to
slidably support the rails 142. Here, the rails 142 and the sliding
support units may be implemented as a 2-fold rail or 3-fold rail
for elasticity in a lengthwise direction.
[0054] A gasket 144 may be disposed at an upper portion of the
drawer 135, more specifically, an upper end of the accommodating
portion 137. The gasket 144 may be formed of an elastic member
(e.g., a rubber material) for an elastic deformation. The gasket
144 may be disposed over the upper end of the accommodating portion
137 and a rear surface of the front surface portion 138. The gasket
144 may have a loop shape.
[0055] Drawer covers 155 are disposed above the respective drawers
135 such that an upper opening of a corresponding drawer 135 is
closed when the drawer 135 is accommodated. The drawer covers 155
may be fixed at the cooling chamber, i.e., the freezing chamber 120
or the refrigerating chamber 130.
[0056] The drawer cover 155 may include a plate-shaped blocking
portion 157 disposed above the drawer 135, and side wall portions
158 downwardly bent from both sides of the blocking portion 157.
The blocking portion 157 may be formed as a rectangular shape.
[0057] Here, the side wall portions 158 of the drawer cover 155 may
horizontally be coupled to respective side walls of the
accommodating portion 137 of the drawer 135 with a gap
therebetween. By this, the side wall portions 158 may guide the
front-and-rear sliding of the drawer 135.
[0058] If the drawer 135 is accommodated, front end portions of
each of the side wall portions 158 of the drawer cover 155 come in
contact with the rear surface of the front surface portion 138 of
the drawer 135. The blocking portion 157 may include a recess 159
upwardly recessed such that an upper end of the accommodating
portion 137 of the drawer 135 is inserted thereinto. Therefore, the
accommodating portion 137 and the blocking portion 157 have an
increasing contact area, thereby preventing a leakage of moisture
inside the drawer 135 to an outside.
[0059] The pressurizing unit 165 may include a protrusion 166
protruding from one of the drawer 135 and the drawer cover 155
toward the other, and a guiding inclination surface 168 disposed at
the other with an inclination to a moving direction of the
protrusion 166 so as to contact and guide the protrusion 166. With
this configuration, when the drawer 135 is accommodated, the drawer
135 and the drawer cover 155 perform a relative motion in a
direction in which they closely contact each other, thereby
preventing the occurrence of a gap between the drawer 135 and the
drawer cover 155.
[0060] The protrusions 166 may outwardly protrude from front side
wall portions of the accommodating portion 137. The guiding
inclination surface 168 may be disposed at the front side wall
portions of the drawer cover 155 so as to be upwardly inclined with
respect to the moving direction of the protrusion 166 when the
drawer 135 is accommodated.
[0061] Here, the guiding inclination surface 168 contacts the
protrusion 166 before the drawer 135 is positioned at an
accommodation position, and thereby upwardly move the drawer 135 in
a certain width H (e.g., several mm), thus to have a length and
inclination angle enough to press the gasket 144 not so as to
generate a gap between the drawer 135 and the drawer cover 155.
Front lower regions of the side wall portions 158 of the drawer
cover 155 may be cut for the relative motion of the protrusion
166.
[0062] Referring to FIG. 5, a horizontal support surface 169 may be
provided at one side of the guiding inclination surface 168 for
horizontally extending from the end of the guiding inclination
surface 168 toward the rear thereof. By this, when the drawer 135
is accommodated, a state that the drawer 153 is closely contacted
by the drawer cover 155 may stably be maintained.
[0063] Referring to FIG. 6, a receiving hole 170 may be provided at
one side of the guiding inclination surface 168 so as to mount the
protrusion 166 at a rear area of the guiding inclination surface
168. By this, when the drawer 135 is accommodated, a state that the
drawer 153 is closely contacted by the drawer cover 155 may stably
be maintained.
[0064] Referring to FIG. 9, a pressurizing unit 175 may be
configured such that plural pairs of protrusions 176, 177 are
spaced from each other at the drawer 135 in front and rear
directions, and plural pairs of guiding inclination surfaces 178,
179 are spaced from each other at the drawer cover 155 in front and
rear directions so as to correspond to the respective protrusions
176, 177.
[0065] Referring to FIG. 10, a pressurizing unit 185 may be
configured such that one or more protrusions 186 having upper and
lower flat surfaces 187a, 187b with a certain width therebetween
are formed, and two guiding inclination surfaces 188, 189 are
formed to respectively contact the upper and lower flat surfaces
187a, 187b of the protrusion 186. Accordingly, it may prevent the
drawer 135 from being dropped by gravity, thus to stably maintain
the state that the drawer 135 and the drawer cover 155 closely
contact each other. Here, a plurality of protrusions 186 may be
spaced from each other in front and rear directions of the drawer
135.
[0066] With such configurations, if a user holds the flush drawer
pull 139 of the drawer 135 and pushes the drawer 135 to a rear
direction to accommodate it, the drawer 135 is slid back by the
rail 142. Before the drawer 135 reaches the accommodation position,
the protrusion 166 comes in contact with the guiding inclination
surface 168, and is upwardly moved along the guiding inclination
surface 168, thus to be upwardly moved toward the drawer cover 155.
Here, by such upward movement of the drawer 135, the gasket 144 is
more closely contacted by the drawer cover 155, thereby preventing
an occurrence of any leakage. By this, the leakage of moisture
inside the drawer 135 may be effectively prevented.
[0067] Hereinafter, descriptions of another exemplary embodiment of
the present invention will be given with reference to FIGS. 11 to
15.
[0068] In addition, the same reference numerals will be given to
the same or similar components having the same or similar
functions, and for the sake of convenience in explanations,
detailed explanations therefore are omitted.
[0069] The refrigerator having a drawer cover may include a
refrigerator main body 110 having a freezing chamber 120 and a
refrigerating chamber 130; a drawer 135 accommodated inside the
freezing chamber 120 or the refrigerating chamber 130 so as to be
slidable in front and rear directions; a drawer cover 155 for
closing (blocking) an upper opening of the drawer 135 when the
drawer 135 is accommodated; and a pressurizing unit 235 for
pressurizing the drawer 135 and the drawer cover 155 so as to
closely contact each other. Here, the drawer and the drawer cover
installed in the freezing chamber and the refrigerating chamber may
have a similar configuration; thus, detailed explanations for the
drawer 135 and the drawer cover 155 in the refrigerating chamber
will be given.
[0070] Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, the drawer 135 includes an
accommodating portion 137 upwardly opened and formed in a
cylindrical shape, and a front surface portion 138 formed at a
front surface of the accommodating portion 137. Rails 142 outwardly
protruding and extending in front and rear directions may be
disposed at both sides of the accommodating portion 137. A gasket
144 may be provided at an upper end of the accommodating portion
137 of the drawer 135 so as to contact the drawer cover 155.
[0071] Meanwhile, the drawer cover 155 may be disposed above the
drawer 135 such that the upper opening of the drawer 135 is blocked
when it is accommodated. The drawer cover 155 includes a blocking
portion 157 disposed to block the upper opening of the drawer 135,
and side wall portions 158 downwardly bent from each side of the
blocking portion 157 and for guiding the front-and-rear sliding of
the side wall portions of the drawer 135. Here, the blocking
portion 157 may have a rectangular shape so as to correspond to the
shape of the drawer 135.
[0072] Rotation shafts 211 may be disposed at rear both sides of
the drawer cover 155. Support protrusions 221 may be formed at
front both sides of the drawer cover 155. The rotation shaft 211
may be rotatably supported by a shaft support portion 213 in the
refrigerating chamber 130. The support protrusions 221 may
respectively be received in slots 223 vertically formed in the
refrigerating chamber 130. By this, the support protrusions 221 may
move in up and down directions (vertically). Each slot 223 may have
an elastic support portion 225 so as to elastically support the
support protrusion 221.
[0073] The elastic support portion 225 may include a support piece
(flange) 227 movable along the slot 223 in up and down directions,
and a spring 228 upwardly pressing the support piece 227. Here, the
rotation shafts 211 and the support protrusions 221 may
respectively be disposed at the freezing chamber 120 or the
refrigerating chamber 130, and the shaft support portions 213 and
the slots 223 may be formed at the drawer cover 155.
[0074] In addition, the spring 228 may have a length enough for a
bottom of the drawer cover 155 to be spaced from the upper surface
of the drawer 135. More specifically, the spring 228 may have a
length enough to be contacted by the bottom of the drawer cover 155
without pressing the gasket 144.
[0075] Meanwhile, the pressurizing unit 235 may include a
pressurizing portion 237 protruding from the rear of the drawer 135
so as to contact the drawer cover 155.
[0076] As shown in FIG. 12, the pressurizing portion 237 may
include a pair of protrusions 238 each protruding from rear corners
of the drawer 135, and protrusion support portions 239 for
supporting the protrusions 238. Each of the protrusions 238 may be
formed such that its upper area has an arc shaped cross section.
Each of the protrusions 238 may be formed to have a circular cross
section. With such configuration, each protrusion 238 and the
drawer cover 155 may have a smooth sliding contact. Here, the
protrusion 238 may be implemented as a roller (not shown) for a
rolling contact.
[0077] As shown in FIG. 13, a contact pressurizing surface 242 may
be formed at rear corners of the drawer cover 155 so as to contact
the protrusions 238 of the pressurizing portion 237. The contact
pressurizing surfaces 242 are downwardly inclined to the rear
direction. With such configuration, when the drawer 135 is
accommodated, the contact pressurizing surfaces 242 are contacted
and pressurized by each of the protrusions 238. Accordingly, the
front area of the drawer cover 155 is downwardly rotated centering
around the rotation shaft 211, thereby closely contacting the upper
opening of the drawer 135, thus to prevent the occurrence of the
gap of the drawer 135 as well as the leakage of moisture inside the
drawer to the outside.
[0078] A contact maintaining surface 244 may be upwardly recessed
at one side of the contact pressurizing surface 242 so as to
receive an upper region of the protrusion when the drawer 135 is
accommodated. By this, the drawer cover 155 may be rotated while
being closely contacted by the drawer 135. Here, the contact
maintaining surface 244 may be disposed at an area higher than a
minimum height of the contact pressurizing surface 242.
[0079] A protruding portion 140 may further be provided such that
the drawer 135 is upwardly moved when it is accommodated. The
protruding portion 140 may downwardly protrude from the lower end
of the front surface portion of the drawer 135. In addition, the
protruding portion 140 may protrude from a bottom surface of the
refrigerating chamber 130.
[0080] With such described configuration, if the drawer 135 is
pressured to be positioned to the accommodation position, the
drawer 135 is backwardly slid by the rails 142, and as shown in
FIG. 14, a pressurizing portion 237 is contacted by a contact
pressurizing surface 242 at a certain distance from the
accommodation position.
[0081] If the drawer 135 continues to backwardly move, the
pressurizing portion 237 is moved along the contact pressurizing
surface 242. Here, since a rear region of the drawer cover 155 is
upwardly pressurized, a front region thereof is downwardly rotated
centering around the rotation shaft 211. By this, the gasket 144 is
compressed by the drawer cover 155, thereby preventing the
occurrence of a gap as well as the leakage of the moisture inside
the drawer through such gap.
[0082] Meanwhile, if the drawer 135 is moved to the accommodation
position, the upper region of the pressurizing portion 237 is
received in the contact maintaining surface 244. This is to prevent
the drawer 135 from being abruptly moved in front and rear
directions, thus to stably maintain a state that the gasket 144 is
closely contacted by the drawer cover 155.
[0083] The above described examples have described the pressurizing
unit in which the protrusion is formed at the drawer and the
guiding inclination surface is formed at the drawer cover; however,
the guiding inclination surface may be formed at the drawer and the
protrusion may be formed at the drawer cover.
[0084] In addition, in the above described example, the same number
of the protrusions is equally formed at both sides, but such
described configuration is not meant to be limiting. For instance,
the protrusions may be formed at one side of the drawer and the
drawer cover so as to be spaced from each other, and only one
protrusion may be formed at a center of the other.
[0085] In addition, in the above described example, the gasket is
installed at the upper end of the accommodating portion. However,
the gasket may be installed at the drawer cover, or at the both the
drawer and the drawer cover.
[0086] It will also be apparent to those skilled in the art that
various modifications and variations can be made in the present
invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the
invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover
modifications and variations of this invention provided they come
within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.
* * * * *