JP7541453B2 - Partitions and refrigerators - Google Patents

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a partition plate and a refrigerator.

It is known that a storage section for storing items is provided with a partition plate that divides the internal space. There are cases where it is preferable to divide the space in multiple directions with the partition plate or to change the position of the partition plate.

Utility Model Publication No. 63-110892

The problem that this invention aims to solve is to provide a partition plate and refrigerator that can divide the storage area in multiple directions and whose position can be changed.

The partition plate of the embodiment has a first partition portion that divides the inside of the storage portion in which the articles are stored in a first direction, and is provided in the storage portion so as to be movable in the first direction, and a second partition portion that is provided in the first partition portion so as to be openable and closable and that divides the inside of the storage portion in a second direction intersecting the first direction when in an open position . The second partition portion can be opened and closed on both sides of the first direction relative to the first partition portion. The second partition portion has a restricting protrusion that abuts against the first partition portion when open on both sides of the first direction to restrict rotation.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a part of a left refrigerator compartment door of the refrigerator according to the embodiment. FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a partition plate according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a part of a first partition portion of the partition plate according to the embodiment. Cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI in Figure 4. Cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII in FIG. 4 .

The partition plate and refrigerator of the embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, components having the same or similar functions will be given the same reference numerals. Furthermore, duplicate descriptions of those components may be omitted.

In this specification, left and right are defined based on the direction in which the refrigerator is viewed from a user standing in front of the refrigerator. Additionally, the side closer to the user standing in front of the refrigerator as viewed from the refrigerator is defined as the "front", and the side further away is defined as the "rear". In this specification, the "width direction" refers to the left-right direction as defined above. In this specification, the "depth direction" refers to the front-to-rear direction as defined above. In the drawings, the +X direction is the right direction, the -X direction is the left direction, the +Y direction is the rear direction, the -Y direction is the front direction, the +Z direction is the up direction, and the -Z direction is the down direction.

Figure 1 is a front view of a refrigerator 1 according to an embodiment. As shown in Figure 1, the refrigerator 1 has, for example, a housing 10, multiple doors 11, multiple shelves (not shown), multiple containers (not shown), a flow path forming component (not shown), a cooling unit (not shown), and a control board (not shown). However, the refrigerator 1 does not need to have all of the above, and some components may be omitted as appropriate.

The housing 10 has an upper wall 12, a lower wall 13, left and right side walls 14, 15, and a rear wall (not shown). The upper wall 12 and the lower wall 13 are disposed substantially horizontally. The left and right side walls 14, 15 stand substantially vertically between the left and right ends of the lower wall 13 and the left and right ends of the upper wall 12. The rear wall stands substantially vertically between the rear end of the lower wall 13 and the rear end of the upper wall 12.

A plurality of storage compartments 16 are provided inside the housing 10. The plurality of storage compartments 16 include, for example, a refrigerator compartment 16A, a freezer compartment 16B, and a vegetable compartment 16C. In this embodiment, the refrigerator compartment 16A is located at the top, the freezer compartment 16B is located below the refrigerator compartment 16A, and the vegetable compartment 16C is located below the freezer compartment 16B. However, the arrangement of the storage compartments 16 is not limited to the above example, and for example, the vegetable compartment 16C may be located below the refrigerator compartment 16A, and the freezer compartment 16B may be located below the vegetable compartment 16C. The housing 10 has an opening on the front side of each storage compartment 16 that allows food to be put in and taken out of each storage compartment 16.

The openings of the multiple storage compartments 16 are closed by multiple doors 11 in an openable and closable manner. The multiple doors 11 include, for example, left and right refrigerator compartment doors 11Aa and 11Ab that close the opening of the refrigerator compartment 16A, a freezer compartment door 16B that closes the opening of the freezer compartment 16B, and a vegetable compartment door 11C that closes the opening of the vegetable compartment 16C.

The left and right refrigerator compartment doors 11Aa, 11Ab are, for example, double-door doors. The left and right refrigerator compartment doors 11Aa, 11Ab are rotatably supported on the housing 10 by hinges (not shown) provided at both ends of the housing 10 in the width direction. In this embodiment, the width of the right refrigerator compartment door 11Ab in the width direction is greater than the width of the left refrigerator compartment door 11Aa in the width direction.

On the other hand, the freezer door 11B and the vegetable compartment door 11C are, for example, pull-out type doors, and are supported by rails (not shown) that are provided at both ends of the width direction of the housing 10 and extend in the depth direction so that they can be pulled out from the housing 10.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing a part of the left refrigerator door 11Aa of the refrigerator. As shown in Figure 2, the left refrigerator door 11Aa has an outer casing member 21 and a gasket 22. The outer casing member 21 is formed in a box shape. In this specification, "box shape" also includes a flat box shape. The gasket 22 is attached to the outer casing member 21 in a frame shape on all four sides. The right refrigerator door 11Ab has a similar configuration to the left refrigerator door 11Aa, but with the left and right sides reversed.

The outer casing member 21 is provided with door pockets (storage sections) 24. The door pockets 24 are provided, for example, in two locations spaced apart in the vertical direction. The number of door pockets 24 provided is not limited to two.

The door pocket 24 is box-shaped and opens at the top. Items such as tubes are stored inside the door pocket 24.

The door pocket 24 has, for example, a bottom plate portion (bottom portion) 24a, a rear plate portion 24b, a locking plate portion (standing wall portion) 24c, and side plate portions 24d on both the left and right sides. The bottom plate portion 24a is disposed approximately horizontally. The rear plate portion 24b stands approximately vertically from the front end portion of the bottom plate portion 24a (when the left refrigerator compartment door 11Aa is closed). The locking plate portion 24c stands approximately vertically from the rear end portion of the bottom plate portion 24a (when the left refrigerator compartment door 11Aa is closed). The left and right side plate portions 24d stand approximately vertically between the left and right ends of the rear plate portion 24b and the left and right ends of the locking plate portion 24c. A partition plate 3 is provided on the locking plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the partition plate 3. Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the partition plate 3, with the door pocket 24 indicated by a two-dot chain line. As shown in Figure 3, the partition plate 3 has a first partition portion 30 and a second partition portion 40. The first partition portion 30 has a plate-shaped portion 31 and an engagement hook 33. The partition plate 3 may be formed of, for example, acrylic resin, PS resin, ABS resin, etc. The partition plate 3 may be described based on the orientation when attached to the door pocket 24.

The plate-shaped portion 31 is formed in a plate shape. When the partition plate 3 is attached to the door pocket 24, the plate surface of the plate-shaped portion 31 faces the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 4, the end portion 31a (rear end portion when the left refrigerator door 11Aa is closed) of the plate-shaped portion 31 abuts against the latched plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24. The lower end portion 31d of the plate-shaped portion 31 abuts against the bottom plate portion 24a of the door pocket 24. The end portion 31b (front end portion when the left refrigerator door 11Aa is closed) of the plate-shaped portion 31 (see FIG. 3) abuts against the rear plate portion 24b (see FIG. 2) of the door pocket 24.

As shown in FIG. 3, the plate-shaped portion 31 has mounting openings 32 formed therein, penetrating the plate-shaped portion 31 in the plate thickness direction. The mounting openings 32 are formed at four locations spaced apart in the front-rear direction (second direction) of the plate-shaped portion 31. The number of mounting openings 32 formed is not limited to four, and may be one or more.

The mounting opening 32 is formed in the upper part of the plate-shaped part 31. Specifically, the mounting opening 32 is formed in the upper half of the plate-shaped part 31 in the vertical direction. The position where the mounting opening 32 is formed is not limited to the upper part of the plate-shaped part 31, but may be formed in the lower part of the plate-shaped part 31 or in a region slightly shorter than the vertical length of the plate-shaped part 31.

As shown in FIG. 4, the engagement hook (engagement portion) 33 is provided at the upper end of the end 31a of the plate-shaped portion 31. The engagement hook 33 is engaged with the upper part of the locked plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24. The engagement hook 33 has a shape in which the middle part in the vertical direction is bent. The bent part 33a of the engagement hook 33 is engaged with the upper part of the locked plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24. The bent part 33a of the engagement hook 33 and the end 31a of the plate-shaped portion 31 sandwich the locked plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24. The engagement hook 33 is slidable in the left-right direction (first direction) relative to the locked plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24.

As shown in FIG. 2, when the engaging hook 33 of the partition plate 3 is engaged with the latched plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24, the first partition portion 30 divides the inside of the door pocket 24 in the left-right direction. In FIG. 2, one partition plate 3 is provided for each door pocket 24, but multiple partition plates 3 can also be installed in one door pocket 24, spaced apart in the left-right direction.

As shown in FIG. 3, the second partition 40 is provided in each of the mounting openings 32 of the first partition 30 so as to be openable and closable. The second partition 40 has a pivot shaft 41 and a partition body 46.

As shown in FIG. 4, shaft support recesses 34u, 34d are formed at the upper and lower ends of the front end of the mounting opening 32 of the plate-shaped portion 31 of the first partition portion 30. The upper shaft support recess 34u penetrates to the upper end of the plate-shaped portion 31 of the first partition portion 30. The lower shaft support recess 34d is concave downward. The rotating shaft 41 extends in the vertical direction. The upper and lower ends of the rotating shaft 41 are supported by the shaft support recesses 34u, 34d, and the rotating shaft 41 is rotatable around the axial direction, with the vertical direction being the axial direction. As shown in FIG. 3, the rotating shaft 41 is rotatable on both the left and right sides.

Figure 5 is a perspective view showing the lower part of the first partitioning portion 30 of the partition plate 3, with the second partitioning portion 40 removed. Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI in Figure 4. Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII in Figure 4. As shown in Figure 5, the lower shaft support recess 34d has a shape that penetrates one side of the plate-shaped portion 31 in the plate thickness direction (the +X side in this embodiment). When attaching the second partitioning portion 40 to the first partitioning portion 30, the upper end of the rotating shaft 41 is fitted into the upper shaft support recess 34u, and then the lower end of the rotating shaft 41 is inserted from the penetrating side of the lower shaft support recess 34d and attached.

As shown in FIG. 3, the partition body 46 is integral with the pivot shaft 41. The partition body 46 is formed in a plate shape. When the partition body 46 is closed in the mounting opening 32 of the first partition section 30, the plate surface of the partition body 46 faces the left-right direction. When the partition body 46 is closed in the mounting opening 32 of the first partition section 30, the partition body 46 divides the inside of the door pocket 24 in the left-right direction.

As shown in FIG. 7, the upper and lower ends of the front end of the partition body 46 are provided with restricting protrusions 47 that protrude on both sides in the thickness direction of the partition body 46. The plate-shaped portion 31 is provided with abutment protrusions 35 that protrude on both sides in the thickness direction at the front end of the mounting opening 32. When the partition body 46 is opened about 90°, the restricting protrusions 47 abut against the abutment protrusions 35, restricting the rotation of the partition body 46. When the partition body 46 is opened about 90° at the mounting opening 32 of the first partition portion 30, the partition body 46 divides the inside of the door pocket 24 in the front-rear direction (second direction).

As shown in FIG. 2, a user can attach a partition plate 3 to the door pocket 24 and divide the items in the door pocket 24 in the left-right direction with the first partition 30. By opening the second partition 40, an item t1 such as a tube can be divided in the front-rear direction.

According to the embodiment described above, the inside of the door pocket 24 is divided in the left-right direction by the first partition portion 30 of the partition plate 3, and in the front-rear direction by the second partition portion 40. Therefore, the inside of the door pocket 24 can be divided in multiple directions.

According to the above embodiment, the engagement hook 33 of the partition plate 3 can slide left and right relative to the latched plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24. Therefore, the user can change the position of the partition plate 3 by moving the engagement hook 33 left and right.

According to the above embodiment, the second partition 40 of the partition plate 3 can be opened and closed on both the left and right sides relative to the first partition 30. Therefore, depending on the storage status of items, the space inside the door pocket 24 can be divided in the front-rear direction into either the left or right side of the second partition 40.

According to the above embodiment, the second partitions 40 of the partition plate 3 are provided in the first partition 30 at intervals in the front-rear direction. Therefore, the space inside the door pocket 24 can be divided finely in the front-rear direction.

According to the above embodiment, the engagement hook 33 of the partition plate 3 is engaged with the upper part of the retained plate portion 24c of the door pocket 24. Therefore, the engagement hook 33 can be engaged with the retained plate portion 24c from above, making it easy to remove and install the partition plate 3.

According to the above embodiment, the second partition 40 of the partition plate 3 is provided above the first partition 30. Therefore, even if a tall item leans against the second partition 40, it will not fall over.

According to the above embodiment, the pivot shaft 41 of the partition plate 3 is rotatable around the axial direction, with the vertical direction being the axial direction. As a result, when the inside of the door pocket 24 needs to be partitioned in the front-to-rear direction, the second partition 40 can be rotated to open, and when there is no need to partition the inside of the door pocket 24 in the front-to-rear direction, the second partition 40 can be rotated to close. Therefore, the second partition 40 is easy to operate.

According to the above embodiment, multiple first partitions 30 of the partition plate 3 can be provided in the left-right direction of the door pocket 24, so that the inside of the door pocket 24 can be divided into smaller sections in the left-right direction.

According to the above embodiment, the engagement hook 33 can be slid left and right while the second partition portion 40 of the partition plate 3 is left open, which is highly convenient.

In the above embodiment, the partition plate 3 is provided in the door pocket 24, but it may be provided in any storage section capable of storing items. For example, it may be provided in the freezer compartment 16B or vegetable compartment 16C of the refrigerator 1.

According to at least one of the embodiments described above, the partition plate divides the inside of the storage section in which the items are stored in a first direction, and has a first partition section that is provided in the storage section so as to be movable in the first direction, and a second partition section that is provided in the first partition section so as to be openable and closable, and that divides the inside of the storage section in a second direction that intersects with the first direction when in the open position, thereby dividing the inside of the storage section in multiple directions and making it possible to change its position.

Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are within the scope of the invention and its equivalents as set forth in the claims, as well as the scope and gist of the invention.

1...refrigerator, 3...partition plate, 10...casing, 11...door, 16...storage compartment, 3...partition plate, 24...door pocket (storage section), 24a...bottom plate (bottom), 24c...engagement plate (standing wall), 30...first partition, 40...second partition, 41...rotating shaft, 46...partition body, t1...item

Claims (5)

a first partition section that divides an interior of a storage section in which an article is stored in a first direction and is provided in the storage section so as to be movable in the first direction;
a second partition portion that is provided in the first partition portion so as to be openable and closable and that, when in an open position, divides the interior of the storage portion into a second direction that intersects with the first direction ;
The second partition portion is openable and closable on both sides in the first direction relative to the first partition portion,
The second partition portion is a partition plate having a restricting protrusion on each of both sides in the first direction, the restricting protrusion abutting against the first partition portion in an open state, so that rotation is restricted . a first partition section that divides an interior of a storage section in which an article is stored in a first direction and is provided in the storage section so as to be movable in the first direction;
a second partition portion that is provided in the first partition portion so as to be openable and closable and that, when in an open position, divides the interior of the storage portion into a second direction that intersects with the first direction;
The second partition portion is openable and closable on both sides in the first direction relative to the first partition portion,
The second partition portion is provided with a restricting protrusion protruding from both sides in the plate thickness direction,
A partition plate in which, when the second partition portion is open, the regulating projection abuts against an abutment protrusion provided on the first partition portion . a first partition section that divides an interior of a storage section in which an article is stored in a first direction and is provided in the storage section so as to be movable in the first direction;
a second partition portion that is provided in the first partition portion so as to be openable and closable and that, when in an open position, divides the interior of the storage portion into a second direction that intersects with the first direction;
The first partition portion has an engagement portion having a bent portion bent at a middle portion in a vertical direction,
The bent portion is engaged with an upper portion of the storage portion having a bottom portion and a standing wall portion standing on a peripheral edge portion of the bottom portion,
The bent portion and an end portion of the plate-shaped portion of the first partition portion sandwich an upper portion of the storage portion,
The second partition portion is openable and closable on both sides in the first direction relative to the first partition portion,
The second partition portion is provided with a restricting protrusion protruding from both sides in the plate thickness direction,
A partition plate in which, when the second partition portion is open, the regulating projection abuts against an abutment protrusion provided on the first partition portion . The partition plate according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the second partition portion is provided in a plurality of portions spaced apart in the second direction. a housing including a storage chamber;
A door provided on the housing in an openable and closable manner;
A storage section provided on the door in which an article is stored;
A refrigerator comprising: a partition plate according to any one of claims 1 to 4 provided in the storage section.

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