U.S. patent application number 13/137392 was filed with the patent office on 2012-02-23 for refrigerator.
This patent application is currently assigned to SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.. Invention is credited to Sang Woon Jeon, Yun Ho Yang.
Application Number | 20120043338 13/137392 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 44658618 |
Filed Date | 2012-02-23 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120043338 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Yang; Yun Ho ; et
al. |
February 23, 2012 |
Refrigerator
Abstract
A refrigerator including a shelf having a step between shelf
portions at different heights, light devices to illuminate the
interior of a storage chamber, and support ribs to support the
shelf and having grooves to receive the light devices. The inner
space of the refrigerating chamber is partitioned using the shelves
according to the tastes of a user. The interior of the
refrigerating chamber is illuminated by light emitted from the
support ribs and shelves, thereby providing the interior of the
refrigerating chamber with an aesthetically pleasing
appearance.
Inventors: |
Yang; Yun Ho; (Yongin-si,
KR) ; Jeon; Sang Woon; (Namyangju-si, KR) |
Assignee: |
SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO.,
LTD.
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
44658618 |
Appl. No.: |
13/137392 |
Filed: |
August 10, 2011 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/592.02 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25D 23/067 20130101;
F25D 25/02 20130101; F25D 2325/022 20130101; F25D 27/00
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
220/592.02 |
International
Class: |
F25D 11/00 20060101
F25D011/00; F25D 27/00 20060101 F25D027/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Aug 19, 2010 |
KR |
10-2010-0080065 |
Claims
1. A refrigerator having a storage chamber, and a door to open and
close the storage chamber, the refrigerator comprising: at least
one shelf having a step, to partition a space of the storage
chamber into upper and lower spaces having varying heights and at
least one pair of support ribs provided at opposite sides of the
storage chamber to support the shelf, wherein the shelf on the
support ribs is rearranged to change how the storage chamber is
partitioned.
2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the shelf
comprises a first shelf part, a second shelf part and an inclined
part connected between the first shelf part and the second shelf
part.
3. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the shelf is
rearranged by being turned upside down and detachably mounted at
the support ribs.
4. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the shelf is made
of transparent tempered glass or reinforced plastic.
5. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the shelf is
provided at an edge thereof with a water overflow preventing
protrusion extending upward and downward.
6. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the shelf is
formed by injection molding.
7. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising at
least one pair of lighting devices provided at the sides of the
storage chamber to illuminate an interior of the storage chamber,
wherein each of the support ribs has a lighting device receiving
groove to receive a corresponding one of the lighting devices.
8. The refrigerator according to claim 7, wherein each of the
support ribs extends in a forward and backward direction of the
refrigerator and comprises a flat support plane to support the
shelf and a coupling plane attached to a corresponding side of the
storage chamber, and the lighting device receiving groove is formed
in the coupling plane.
9. The refrigerator according to claim 7, wherein each of the
support ribs is made of a transparent material transmitting light
emitted from a corresponding one of the lighting devices.
10. The refrigerator according to claim 7, wherein each of the
lighting devices comprises a plurality of light emitting diodes
arranged at predetermined intervals.
11. A refrigerator, comprising: a storage chamber; at least one
shelf, bent so that the shelf has two shelf parts forming a step,
to partition an inner space of the storage chamber; and at least
one pair of support ribs provided at opposite sides of the storage
chamber to support the shelf, wherein the shelf is turned upside
down and detachably mounted at the support ribs to change how the
storage chamber is partitioned.
12. The refrigerator according to claim 11, further comprising at
least one pair of lighting devices provided at the sides of the
storage chamber to illuminate an interior of the storage chamber,
wherein the lighting devices are received in the respective support
ribs.
13. The refrigerator according to claim 11, wherein the shelf is
provided at an edge thereof with a water overflow preventing
protrusion extending upward and downward.
14. The refrigerator according to claim 11, wherein the shelf is
made of transparent tempered glass or reinforced plastic.
15. The refrigerator according to claim 11, wherein each of the
lighting devices comprises a plurality of light emitting diodes,
and light emitted from the light emitting diodes illuminates an
interior of the storage chamber via a corresponding one of the
support ribs.
16. A refrigerator having a storage chamber, the refrigerator
comprising: a first reversible shelf having a step, and a support
provided at a side of the storage chamber to detachably support the
shelf, wherein the shelf is reversible between a first position
partitioning a space of the storage chamber into upper and lower
spaces having varying heights, and a second inverted position
partitioning the space of the storage chamber into upper and lower
spaces with different, respective heights.
17. The refrigerator according to claim 16, wherein the shelf
comprises a first shelf part, a second shelf part parallel to the
first shelf part and an inclined part connecting the first shelf
part and the second shelf part.
18. The refrigerator according to claim 16, wherein the shelf is
provided at an edge thereof with a water overflow preventing
protrusion extending upward and downward.
19. The refrigerator according to claim 16, further comprising a
lighting device, wherein the support has a lighting device
receiving groove to receive the lighting device.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent
Application No. 2010-0080065, filed on Aug. 19, 2010 in the Korean
Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is
incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field
[0003] Embodiments of the present invention relate to a shelf of a
refrigerator and a lighting device to illuminate the interior of a
storage chamber of the refrigerator.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] A French door refrigerator (FDR) includes an upper storage
chamber and a lower storage chamber. The upper storage chamber is
used as a refrigerating chamber, and the lower storage chamber is
used as a freezing chamber.
[0006] The refrigerating chamber is opened and closed by a pair of
rotation type doors hinged to opposite sides of a refrigerator
body. A drawer type sliding door is mounted in the freezing chamber
to move in and out of the freezing chamber.
[0007] Door guards, in which small items of food are stored, are
provided at the rear of each of the left and right doors. A
dispenser is provided at one of the left and right doors so that a
user may take out beverages or ice without opening the doors.
[0008] Also, the refrigerator further includes an ice maker, a
filter to purify water supplied from an external water supply
source, and a water tank to store water and supply the water to the
dispenser according to user manipulation.
[0009] A pantry having a width corresponding to the refrigerating
chamber to store wide items of food is provided at the lower part
of the refrigerating chamber. A plurality of drawer type vegetable
containers is provided above the pantry.
[0010] Meanwhile, a plurality of cantilever shelves is mounted
above the drawer type vegetable containers. Rails to guide the
cantilever shelves are provided at the refrigerating chamber so
that a user may freely locate the cantilever shelves on the rails
as needed.
[0011] Generally, each of the cantilever shelves is manufactured by
attaching a frame to the edge of tempered glass and coupling a
metal cantilever to the frame.
SUMMARY
[0012] It is an aspect of the present invention to provide a
refrigerator having a shelf to variously partition the storage
space of a refrigerating chamber and a light device to provide the
interior of the refrigerating chamber with an aesthetically
pleasing appearance.
[0013] Additional aspects of the invention will be set forth in
part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious
from the description, or may be learned by practice of the
invention.
[0014] In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a
refrigerator, having a storage chamber open at the front thereof, a
rotary door to open and close a portion of the open front of the
storage chamber and another rotary door to open and close the
remaining portion of the open front of the storage chamber,
includes at least one shelf, bent so that the shelf has a step, to
partition the space of the storage chamber into upper and lower
spaces having varying heights and at least one pair of support ribs
provided at opposite inner liners of the storage chamber to support
the shelf, wherein the shelf on the support ribs is rearranged to
change how the storage chamber is partitioned.
[0015] The shelf may include a first shelf part, a second shelf
part and an inclined part connected between the first shelf part
and the second shelf part.
[0016] The shelf may be turned upside down and detachably mounted
at the support ribs to change how the storage chamber is
partitioned.
[0017] The shelf may be made of transparent tempered glass or
reinforced plastic.
[0018] The shelf may be provided at the edge thereof with a water
overflow preventing protrusion extending upward and downward.
[0019] The shelf may be formed by injection molding.
[0020] The refrigerator may further include at least one pair of
lighting devices provided at the opposite inner liners of the
storage chamber to illuminate the interior of the storage chamber,
and each of the support ribs has a lighting device receiving groove
to receive a corresponding one of the lighting devices.
[0021] Each of the support ribs may extend in the forward and
backward direction of the refrigerator and may include a flat
support plane to support the shelf and a coupling plane fixedly
coupled to a corresponding one of the inner liners of the
refrigerating chamber, and the lighting device receiving groove may
be formed by cutting out a corresponding one of the support ribs at
the coupling plane.
[0022] Each of the support ribs may be made of a transparent
material transmitting light emitted from a corresponding one of the
lighting devices.
[0023] Each of the lighting devices may include a plurality of
light emitting diodes arranged at predetermined intervals.
[0024] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention,
a refrigerator includes a storage chamber, at least one shelf, bent
so that the shelf has two shelf parts forming a step, to partition
the inner space of the storage chamber and at least one pair of
support ribs provided at opposite inner liners of the storage
chamber to support the shelf, wherein the shelf is turned upside
down and detachably mounted at the support ribs to change how the
storage chamber is partitioned.
[0025] The refrigerator may further include at least one pair of
lighting devices provided at the opposite inner liners of the
storage chamber to illuminate the interior of the storage chamber,
and the lighting devices may be received in the respective support
ribs.
[0026] The shelf may be provided at the edge thereof with a water
overflow preventing protrusion extending upward and downward.
[0027] The shelf may be made of transparent tempered glass or
reinforced plastic.
[0028] Each of the lighting devices may include a plurality of
light emitting diodes, and light emitted from the light emitting
diodes may illuminate the interior of the storage chamber via a
corresponding one of the support ribs.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0029] These and/or other aspects 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:
[0030] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a refrigerator
according to an embodiment of the present invention;
[0031] FIG. 2 is a front view showing a door open state of the
refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present
invention;
[0032] FIG. 3 is a view showing a different disposition of shelves
in the refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present
invention;
[0033] FIG. 4 is an enlarged view showing shelves and support ribs
of the refrigerator of FIG. 2;
[0034] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a support rib of the
refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present
invention;
[0035] FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the support rib of the
refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention;
and
[0036] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing shelves each having a
water overflow preventing protrusion according to an embodiment of
the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0037] Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the
present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to
like elements throughout.
[0038] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a refrigerator
according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is
a front view showing a door open state of the refrigerator
according to the embodiment of the present invention.
[0039] FIG. 3 is a view showing a different disposition of shelves
in the refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present
invention, and FIG. 4 is an enlarged view showing shelves and
support ribs of the refrigerator of FIG. 2.
[0040] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a refrigerator according to an
embodiment of the present invention is, e.g., a French door
refrigerator. A refrigerator body 6 includes a top plate 1, a
bottom plate 2, side plates 3 and 4, and a rear plate 5. The
interior of the refrigerator body 6 is divided into storage
chambers 31 and 32, i.e. an upper refrigerating chamber 31 and a
lower freezing chamber 32, separated by a horizontal partition
7.
[0041] The refrigerating chamber 31 is open at the front thereof.
The refrigerating chamber 31 is opened and closed by left and right
doors 10 and 11 hingedly coupled to opposite sides of the
refrigerator body 6 by hinge members so that the doors 10 and 11
can rotate to open and close.
[0042] A dispenser 16 is provided at the left hinged rotation type
door 10 so that a user may take out beverages or ice without
opening the doors 10 and 11.
[0043] Door guards 22, in which small items of food are stored, are
provided at the rear of each of the doors 10 and 11.
[0044] A drawer type sliding door 12 is provided in the freezing
chamber 32 so that the sliding door 12 moves forward from the
freezing chamber 32 and backward into the freezing chamber 32.
[0045] An ice maker 15 is mounted at one side of the upper part of
the refrigerating chamber 31. A pantry 17 having a width
corresponding to the refrigerating chamber to store wide items of
food is provided at the lower part of the refrigerating chamber
31.
[0046] Drawer type vegetable containers 20 to store vegetables are
provided above the pantry 17.
[0047] The refrigerating chamber 31 includes shelves 40 and 41 on
which food is placed. The storage space in the refrigerating
chamber 31 is divided by the shelves 40 and 41.
[0048] The shelves 40 and 41 may be formed by injection molding
tempered glass or reinforced plastic. The shelves 40 and 41 may be
transparent or variously colored.
[0049] The shelf 40 is formed by bending a flat sheet. The shelf 40
includes a first shelf part 47, a second shelf part 48 and an
inclined part 49.
[0050] The first shelf part 47 and the second shelf part 48 have
flat planes on which food is placed. The sizes of the first shelf
part 47 and the second shelf part 48 may be different from each
other.
[0051] In this embodiment, the size of the first shelf part 47 is
smaller than that of the second shelf part 48.
[0052] The inclined part 49 is connected between the first shelf
part 47 and the second shelf part 48 which is parallel to the first
shelf part 47. The inclined part 49 has a predetermined height h
and tilt angle. The tilt angle may be a right angle or an oblique
angle, relative to the shelf parts.
[0053] Opposite ends 53 and 54 of the shelf 40 are placed on a pair
of support ribs 60 and 61 provided at opposite inner liners 33 and
34 of the refrigerating chamber 31 so that the shelf 40 is
supported by the support ribs 60 and 61.
[0054] The support ribs 60 and 61 are provided at the left and
right inner liners 33 and 34 of the refrigerating chamber 31 so
that the support ribs 60 and 61 have the same height h as the shelf
40.
[0055] The length of the shelf 40 is slightly smaller than the
distance between the opposite inner liners 33 and 34 so that the
opposite ends 53 and 54 of the shelf 40 may be placed on or removed
from the support ribs 60 and 61, and therefore, the shelf 40 is
easily detachably mounted in the refrigerating chamber 31.
[0056] As shown in FIG. 2, the shelf 40 may be mounted so that the
first shelf part 47 is located higher than the second shelf part
48. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, the shelf 40 may be
turned upside down so that the second shelf part 48 is located
higher than the first shelf part 47.
[0057] That is, since the shelf 40 is formed of a single material,
the shelf 40 may be turned upside down and placed on the support
ribs 60 and 61. Also, since the height h of the shelf 40 is equal
to those of the support ribs 60 and 61, the shelf 40 may be turned
about an axis perpendicular to the rear plate 5 and placed on the
support ribs 60 and 61. In this case, the second shelf part 48 is
located higher than the first shelf part 47.
[0058] At this time, the space partitioned by the shelf 40 may be
changed since the sizes of the first shelf part 47 and the second
shelf part 48 are different from each other.
[0059] In this embodiment, the refrigerator includes two shelves 40
and 41 supported by two respective pairs of support ribs 60, 61, 62
and 63. Alternatively, a greater number of shelves and support ribs
may be included.
[0060] Also, in a case in which a plurality of shelves is included,
the shelves may be configured so that the shelf parts have
different sizes and an inclined part has different heights. As a
result, a user may variously partition the space of the
refrigerating chamber 31 to taste.
[0061] Meanwhile, in this embodiment, a water overflow preventing
protrusion 80 may be formed at each of the shelves (see FIG.
7).
[0062] The water overflow preventing protrusion 80 extends upward
and downward from the edge of each of the shelves to approximately
the same height.
[0063] The water overflow preventing protrusion 80 prevents water
from overflowing each of the shelves while food is placed on each
of the shelves regardless of whether the shelves are in a first
upside position, or a second, upside down position.
[0064] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a support rib of the
refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention,
and FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the support rib of the
refrigerator according to this embodiment.
[0065] Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, the support rib 60 can be formed
in a triangular shape in section and extends in the forward and
backward direction of the refrigerator.
[0066] The support rib 60 includes a flat support plane 66 to
support the shelf 40 and a coupling plane 67, perpendicular to the
support plane 66, attached to the inner liner 33 of the
refrigerating chamber 31 in tight contact to couple the support rib
60 to the refrigerating chamber 31.
[0067] The support rib 60 is fixedly coupled to the refrigerating
chamber 31 to support the shelf 40 on which food is placed. The
support rib 60 may be coupled to the refrigerating chamber 31 in
various ways.
[0068] A predetermined portion of the support rib 60 can be cut out
inward at the coupling plane 67 to form a cutout plane 68. Between
the cutout plane 68 and the inner liner 33 of the refrigerating
chamber 31 is defined a lighting device receiving groove 65
extending in the forward and backward direction of the
refrigerator.
[0069] A lighting device 70 is received in the lighting device
receiving groove 65. Using this structure, i.e., incorporating the
lighting in a physical support, helps save space in the storage
chamber.
[0070] The lighting device 70 can include a circuit board 72 and a
plurality of light emitting diodes 71 arranged at the circuit board
72 in a line at predetermined intervals.
[0071] The circuit board 72 contacts and is fixed to the inner
liner 33 of the refrigerating chamber 31, and is received in the
lighting device receiving groove 65 of the support rib 60 together
with the light emitting diodes 71.
[0072] The support rib 60 is made of a transparent material
transmitting light emitted from the light emitting diodes 71.
[0073] Although not shown, the refrigerator further includes a
sensor to sense opening and closing of the doors 10 and 11 and a
controller to control the supply of electric current to the light
emitting diodes 71 upon opening of the doors 10 and 11 so that
light is generated from the light emitting diodes 71 and to
interrupt the supply of electric current upon closing of the doors
10 and 11.
[0074] Upon opening of the left door 10, the controller controls
electric current to the support ribs 60 and 62 provided at the left
inner liner 33. Upon opening of the right door 11, on the other
hand, the controller controls electric current to the support ribs
61 and 63 provided at the right inner liner 34.
[0075] That is, upon opening of one of the doors 10 and 11, only
the open region of the refrigerating chamber 31 may be illuminated,
thereby reducing energy consumption.
[0076] In this embodiment, the shelf 40 is made of transparent
tempered glass or reinforced plastic. Consequently, the shelf 40
functions as a light guide plate through which the interior of the
refrigerating chamber 31 is uniformly illuminated.
[0077] As is apparent from the above description, each of the
shelves can be made of a single material. Consequently, the shelves
are simply manufactured at low cost, and the interior of the
refrigerating chamber is neat, thereby providing the interior of
the refrigerating chamber with an aesthetically pleasing
appearance. Also, the shelves, which can be bent in a Z shape, may
be disposed at different positions in different directions, and
therefore, the storage space of the refrigerating chamber may be
partitioned in various ways.
[0078] The lighting device receiving space is provided in each of
the support ribs to support the shelves so that light emitted from
the lighting device projects onto the shelvesvia the support ribs,
thereby providing the interior of the refrigerating chamber with an
aesthetically pleasing appearance.
[0079] Although various embodiments of the present invention have
been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled
in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without
departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the
scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.
* * * * *