JP7326124B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to refrigerators.

A refrigerator is used in which the mounting position of the door pocket can be changed. By the way, there are cases where it is desirable for a refrigerator to be able to change the attachment position of the door pocket more easily.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-185628

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a refrigerator in which the attachment position of the door pocket can be easily changed.

A refrigerator according to an embodiment includes a housing including a storage chamber, a door that opens and closes the storage chamber, a door container, and an elevating mechanism that is provided on the door and lifts and lowers the door container. The elevating mechanism includes a rotating mechanism having a first roller and a second roller, and a belt stretched between the first roller and the second roller, and the door container is attached to the belt. there is

The perspective view of the refrigerator which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the right cold storage door of the same refrigerator. The front view which looked at the right refrigerating-compartment door from the refrigerating compartment. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the right refrigerating compartment door shown in FIG. 2 taken along line AA. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the right refrigerating compartment door shown in FIG. 3 taken along line CC. Sectional drawing of the right cold storage door of the refrigerator which concerns on 2nd Embodiment.

Hereinafter, refrigerators according to embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals are given to components having the same or similar functions. Duplicate descriptions of these configurations may be omitted.

In this specification, left and right are defined with reference to the direction of viewing the refrigerator from a user standing in front of the refrigerator. In addition, the side closer to the user standing in front of the refrigerator as viewed from the refrigerator is defined as "front", and the side farther from the refrigerator is defined as "back". As used herein, the term "horizontal direction" means the left-right direction as defined above. As used herein, the term "depth direction" means the front-back direction in the above definition. In the drawing, the +X direction is the right direction, the -X direction is the left direction, the +Y direction is the rearward direction, the -Y direction is the forward direction, the +Z direction is the upward direction, and the -Z direction is the downward direction.

(First embodiment)
[1. Overall configuration of the refrigerator]
A refrigerator 1 according to a first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. FIG. First, the overall configuration of the refrigerator 1 will be described. However, the refrigerator 1 does not need to have all of the configurations described below, and some configurations may be omitted as appropriate.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a refrigerator 1. FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, the refrigerator 1 includes, for example, a housing 10, a plurality of doors 11, a plurality of shelves (not shown), a plurality of containers (not shown), flow path forming parts (not shown), and a cooling unit ( (not shown), and a control board (not shown). In this embodiment, the refrigerator main body 5 is formed with the above-described configuration other than the plurality of doors 11 .

As shown in FIG. 1 , the housing 10 has an upper wall 21 , a lower wall 22 , left and right side walls 23 and 24 and a rear wall 25 . The upper wall 21 and the lower wall 22 extend substantially horizontally. The left and right side walls 23 and 24 rise upward from the left and right ends of the lower wall 22 and connect to the left and right ends of the upper wall 21 . The rear wall 25 rises upward from the rear end of the lower wall 22 and connects to the rear end of the upper wall 21 .

A plurality of storage chambers 27 are provided inside the housing 10 . The multiple storage compartments 27 include, for example, a refrigerator compartment 27A, a vegetable compartment 27B, an ice making compartment 27C, a small freezer compartment 27D, and a main freezer compartment 27E. In this embodiment, the refrigerator compartment 27A is arranged at the top, the vegetable compartment 27B is arranged below the refrigerator compartment 27A, the ice making compartment 27C and the small freezer compartment 27D are arranged below the vegetable compartment 27B, and the ice making compartment 27C and the small freezer compartment 27D are arranged below the vegetable compartment 27B. A main freezer compartment 27E is arranged below the small freezer compartment 27D. However, the arrangement of the storage compartment 27 is not limited to the above example. 27E may be arranged, and the vegetable compartment 27B may be arranged below the main freezer compartment 27E. The housing 10 has an opening on the front side of each storage chamber 27 that allows food to be taken in and out of each storage chamber 27 .

Openings of the plurality of storage chambers 27 are closed by a plurality of doors 11 so as to be openable and closable. The plurality of doors 11 include, for example, left and right refrigerator compartment doors 11Aa and 11Ab that close the opening of the refrigerator compartment 27A, a vegetable compartment door 11B that closes the opening of the vegetable compartment 27B, an ice compartment door 11C that closes the opening of the ice compartment 27C, and a small freezer. It includes a small freezer compartment door 11D that closes the opening of compartment 27D and a main freezer compartment door 11E that closes the opening of main freezer compartment 27E.

Left and right refrigerator compartment doors 11Aa and 11Ab are, for example, double doors. Left and right refrigerator compartment doors 11Aa and 11Ab are rotatably supported by housing 10 by hinges 30 . In this embodiment, the width in the width direction of the right refrigerator compartment door 11Ab is larger than the width in the width direction of the left refrigerator compartment door 11Aa.

On the other hand, the vegetable compartment door 11B, the ice making compartment door 11C, the small freezer compartment door 11D, and the main freezer compartment door 11E are drawer-type doors, for example. Vegetable compartment door 11B, ice making compartment door 11C, small freezer compartment door 11D, and main freezer compartment door 11E are connected to housing 10 by rails 35 (only the left rail 35 is shown in vegetable compartment 27B and main freezer compartment 27E). supported so that it can be pulled out.

[2. Configuration of Right Refrigerating Compartment Door 11Ab]
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. FIG. 3 is a front view of right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab viewed from refrigerating compartment 27A. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab shown in FIG. 2 along line AA. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab shown in FIG. 3 along line CC.

The right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab includes an outer shell member 50 and a gasket 55 . The outer shell member 50 is formed in a box shape. The term "box-like" as used herein includes a flat box-like shape. The shell member 50 has a frame 51, a front plate 52, and a rear member 53, as shown in FIGS.

The frame body 51 is formed in a rectangular frame shape. The frame 51 includes an upper side member 51a, a lower side member 51b, a left side member 51c, and a right side member 51d, as shown in FIGS. The upper side member 51a has a plate shape along the width direction and the depth direction, and forms the upper surface of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The lower side member 51b has a plate shape along the width direction and the depth direction, and forms the lower surface of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The left side member 51c has a plate shape along the vertical direction and the depth direction, and forms the left side surface of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The right side member 51d has a plate shape along the vertical direction and the depth direction, and forms the right side surface of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The frame 51 is formed by combining the upper side member 51a, the lower side member 51b, the left side member 51c, and the right side member 51d. The frame 51 is made of synthetic resin, for example.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the front panel 52 is attached to the frame 51 and positioned at the front end of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The front plate 52 is a plate member extending in the vertical direction and the width direction, and forms the front surface of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The front plate 52 is made of, for example, synthetic resin, glass plate, or other material.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the rear surface member 53 is attached to the frame body 51 from the side opposite to the front plate 52 and positioned at the rear end of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The rear surface member 53 forms the rear surface of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The rear surface member 53 is made of synthetic resin, for example.

The rear surface member 53 has ribs 61 projecting rearward, as shown in FIG. The rib 61 protrudes from the rear surface member 53 toward the refrigerator compartment (storage compartment) 27A when the right refrigerator compartment door 11Ab is closed with respect to the housing 10 .

As shown in FIG. 2, the rib 61 is formed in an annular shape that is one size smaller than the outer shape of the frame 51 . The term “annular” as used in this specification is not limited to the case where the entire circumference is completely continuous, and includes the case where a notch or the like is provided and a portion is interrupted.

A gasket 55 is attached to the rear surface member 53 . Specifically, the gasket 55 is formed in an annular shape surrounding the outer peripheral side of the rib 61 .

Here, the configurations of the left refrigerating compartment door 11Aa, the vegetable compartment door 11B, the ice making compartment door 11C, the small freezing compartment door 11D, and the main freezing compartment door 11E are the same as the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. That is, the configurations of the left refrigerating compartment door 11Aa, the vegetable compartment door 11B, the ice making compartment door 11C, the small freezer compartment door 11D, and the main freezing compartment door 11E are described in the above description of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. 11Ab" can be read as "left refrigerator compartment door 11Aa", "vegetable compartment door 11B", "ice making compartment door 11C", "small freezer compartment door 11D", or "main freezer compartment door 11E".

[3. lifting mechanism]
In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab incorporates an elevating mechanism 7. As shown in FIG. A door pocket (door container) 8 is attached to the lifting mechanism 7 .

The elevating mechanism 7 is a mechanism for elevating the door pocket 8, and is arranged along the rear surface of the front plate 52 of the outer shell member 50 in the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The elevating mechanism 7 includes a plate 70, a first elevating mechanism 7A, and a second elevating mechanism 7B. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the first lifting mechanism 7A and the second lifting mechanism 7B are provided side by side in the left-right direction of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. The elevating mechanism 7 may be composed of, for example, only the first elevating mechanism 7A.

The first elevating mechanism 7A includes a rotating mechanism 73, a belt 74, and a door container mounting portion 75. As shown in FIG. The second elevating mechanism 7B includes a rotating mechanism 73, a belt 74, and a door container mounting portion 75, like the first elevating mechanism 7A. Henceforth, 7 A of 1st raising/lowering mechanisms are demonstrated, and main description of the 2nd raising/lowering mechanism 7B is abbreviate|omitted.

The plate 70 is a flat plate made of metal or the like, and is arranged between the door pocket 8 and the belt 74 . The plate 70 is attached to the rear surface member 53 from the rear side. The plate 70 is attached to the rear surface member 53 with an adhesive or the like. It should be noted that the plate 70 may be attached to the rear surface member 53 in such a manner that it fits in a groove formed in the rear surface member 53 .

The plate 70 has a vertically extending groove 70a and a pair of plate-like projections 70b projecting forward from the front surface. The groove 70a penetrates the plate 70 in the front-rear direction. The groove 70a and the pair of projections 70b are provided separately for each of the first lifting mechanism 7A and the second lifting mechanism 7B.

The rotation mechanism 73 has a first roller 71 and a second roller 72 arranged vertically. The first roller 71 is arranged above the second roller 72 . As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the first rotation shaft 71a of the first roller 71 and the second rotation shaft 72a of the second roller 72 are arranged along the left-right direction of the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab. It is rotatably supported by support bearings 53b provided on the pair of protrusions 70b.

The rotating mechanism 73 may be driven by an electric motor. Specifically, the first rotating shaft 71a or the second rotating shaft 72a may be driven by an electric motor. In this case, the first rotating shaft 71a or the second rotating shaft 72a may be connected via an electric motor and a speed reduction mechanism.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, the first rotating shaft 71a of the first lifting mechanism 7A and the first rotating shaft 71a of the second lifting mechanism 7B are connected. Therefore, the first roller 71 of the first elevating mechanism 7A and the first roller 71 of the second elevating mechanism 7B operate in conjunction with each other. The first rotating shaft 71a of the first lifting mechanism 7A and the second rotating shaft 72a of the second lifting mechanism 7B may not be connected.

The first roller 71 and the second roller 72 are rollers made of rubber or the like having elastic surfaces. A locking mechanism (not shown) is attached to the first roller 71 . By enabling the lock mechanism of the rotation lock mechanism, the lock mechanism can lock the rotation of the first roller 71 with respect to the support bearing 53b.

The belt 74 is made of rubber or the like having elasticity, and is stretched over the first roller 71 and the second roller 72 without slack. The belt 74 generates a frictional force when it comes into contact with the first roller 71 and the second roller 72 whose surfaces are made of elastic rubber or the like.

The door container mounting portion 75 is attached to a belt 74 and moves up and down as the belt 74 moves up and down as the first roller 71 and the second roller 72 rotate. A concave portion is formed in the door container attachment portion 75, and the hook 81 of the door pocket 8 is attached to and detached from the concave portion. The concave portion of the door container mounting portion 75 moves vertically along the groove 70a. The door container mounting portion 75 of the first lifting mechanism 7A and the door container mounting portion 75 of the second lifting mechanism 7B are arranged at the same height in the vertical direction.

The door pocket (door container) 8 is a pocket-shaped container that opens upward and is made of transparent or translucent plastic. The door pocket 8 is provided with two hooks 81 aligned in the left-right direction on the front side (-Y direction) and fitted with the concave portion of the door container mounting portion 75 . One hook 81 can be attached to and detached from the concave portion of the door container mounting portion 75 of the first lifting mechanism 7A. The other hook 81 is attachable to and detachable from the concave portion of the door container mounting portion 75 of the second lifting mechanism 7B. The door pocket 8 may be attached to the belt 74 in a non-removable manner.

According to the configuration described above, the elevating mechanism 7 raises and lowers the mounting position of the door pocket 8 when the user moves the door pocket 8 up and down. Therefore, the refrigerator 1 can easily change the attachment position of the door pocket 8 . In addition, the refrigerator 1 can steplessly move up and down the attachment position of the door pocket 8 . The user can arrange the door pocket 8 at a desired position within the movable range R of the door pocket 8 instead of a predetermined arrangement position of the door pocket 8 .

According to the configuration as described above, the first roller 71 has a locking mechanism, so that the door pocket 8 can be fixed at the arrangement position.

According to the configuration as described above, the plate 70 is arranged between the door pocket 8 and the belt 74 . Therefore, it is possible to preferably prevent the user's finger from being caught in the first roller 71 or the second roller 72 .

(Second embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment will be described. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in the positions of the first roller and the second roller. Configurations other than those described below are the same as those of the first embodiment. In the following description, the same reference numerals are given to the same configurations as those already described, and redundant descriptions will be omitted.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of right refrigerator compartment door 11AbB of refrigerator 1B according to the second embodiment.
The refrigerator 1B includes a right refrigerator compartment door 11AbB instead of the right refrigerator compartment door 11Ab of the refrigerator 1 of the first embodiment.

The right refrigerating compartment door 11AbB includes an outer shell member 50 and a gasket 55 . The outer shell member 50 is formed in a box shape.

A lifting mechanism 9 is incorporated in the right refrigerating compartment door 11AbB. A door pocket (door container) 8 is attached to the lifting mechanism 9 .

The elevating mechanism 9 is a mechanism for elevating the door pocket 8, and is arranged along the rear surface of the front plate 52 of the outer shell member 50 in the right refrigerating compartment door 11AbB. The elevating mechanism 9 includes a plate 70, a first elevating mechanism 9A, and a second elevating mechanism 9B. The first elevating mechanism 9A and the second elevating mechanism 9B are arranged side by side in the horizontal direction of the right refrigerating compartment door 11AbB, like the first elevating mechanism 7A and the second elevating mechanism 7B of the first embodiment. .

The first lifting mechanism 9A includes a rotating mechanism 73B, a belt 74, and a door container mounting portion 75. As shown in FIG. The second lifting mechanism 9B includes a rotating mechanism 73B, a belt 74, and a door container mounting portion 75, like the first lifting mechanism 9A. Henceforth, 9 A of 1st raising/lowering mechanisms are demonstrated, and main description of the 2nd raising/lowering mechanism 9B is abbreviate|omitted.

The rotation mechanism 73B has a first roller 71 and a second roller 72 arranged vertically. The first roller 71 is arranged above the second roller 72 . As shown in FIG. 6, the first rotation shaft 71a of the first roller 71 and the second rotation shaft 72a of the second roller 72 are arranged along the left-right direction of the right refrigerating compartment door 11AbB and provided on the rear surface member 53. It is rotatably supported by the supporting bearing 53b.

The rotating mechanism 73B may be driven by an electric motor. Specifically, the first rotating shaft 71a or the second rotating shaft 72a may be driven by an electric motor. In this case, the first rotating shaft 71a or the second rotating shaft 72a may be connected via an electric motor and a speed reduction mechanism.

The first roller 71 is provided at the upper end of the rear surface member 53 and arranged above the movable range R of the door pocket 8 . The second roller 72 is provided at the lower end of the rear surface member 53 and arranged below the movable range R of the door pocket 8 .

According to the refrigerator 1B according to the present embodiment, the refrigerator 1 can easily change the attachment position of the door pocket 8, and the attachment position of the door pocket 8 can be steplessly raised and lowered. The user can arrange the door pocket 8 at a desired position within the movable range R of the door pocket 8 instead of a predetermined arrangement position of the door pocket 8 . According to the refrigerator 1B according to the present embodiment, the degree of freedom in the installation location of the first roller 71 and the second roller 72 is high, and the degree of freedom in design is high.

(Modification 1)
In the above-described embodiment, the lifting mechanisms 7 and 9 are composed of the belt 74, the first roller 71 and the second roller 72, but the lifting mechanism is not limited to this. The elevating mechanism may be one that elevates the door container mounting portion 75 by an electric motor, a ball spline elevating mechanism, or the like, for example.

(Modification 2)
In the above-described embodiment, the lifting mechanisms 7 and 9 are housed in the right refrigerating compartment door 11Ab, but the installation mode of the lifting mechanisms 7 and 9 is not limited to this. The lifting mechanisms 7 and 9 may be housed in the left refrigerating compartment door 11Aa. Furthermore, the lifting mechanisms 7 and 9 may be housed in the vegetable compartment door 11B, the ice making compartment door 11C, the small freezer compartment door 11D, or the main freezer compartment door 11E.

According to at least one embodiment described above, it is possible to provide a refrigerator in which the attachment position of the door pocket can be easily changed.

While several embodiments of the invention have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as the scope of the invention described in the claims and equivalents thereof.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 1B... Refrigerator, 5... Refrigerator body, 10... Case, 11... Door, 11Aa... Left refrigerating compartment door, 11Ab, 11AbB... Right refrigerating compartment door, 27... Storage compartment, 27A... Refrigerating compartment, 52... Front panel , 7, 9... lifting mechanism, 7A, 9A... first lifting mechanism, 7B, 9B... second lifting mechanism, 8... door pocket (door container), 70... plate, 71... first roller, 71a... first rotation Axes 72 Second roller 72a Second rotating shaft 73, 73B Rotation mechanism 74 Belt 75 Door container mounting portion 81 Hook

Claims (7)

a housing containing a reservoir;
a door that openably closes the storage chamber;
a door container;
a lifting mechanism provided on the door for lifting and lowering the door container;
with
The lifting mechanism is
a rotating mechanism having a first roller and a second roller;
a belt stretched over the first roller and the second roller;
with
the door container is attached to the belt;
refrigerator. The first rotating shaft of the first roller and the second rotating shaft of the second roller are arranged along the lateral direction of the door, and are rotatably supported by support bearings provided on the door.
Refrigerator according to claim 1 . At least one of the first rotating shaft and the second rotating shaft has a lock mechanism that prevents rotation with respect to the support bearing,
The refrigerator according to claim 2 . wherein the rotating mechanism is driven by an electric motor;
The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 3 . A plate is provided between the door container and the belt,
The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4 . The elevating mechanism is provided side by side in the left-right direction of the door,
The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 5 . The elevating mechanism is provided side by side in the left-right direction of the door,
The two lifting mechanisms arranged in the left-right direction are connected to each other by the first rotation shafts of the first rollers,
The refrigerator according to claim 2 .

Images