JP7636864B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a refrigerator .

In refrigerators with automatic ice-making functions, a water tank is installed inside the refrigerator compartment, and water from this water tank is supplied to the ice tray to make ice. In such refrigerators, the water tank may be removed and installed in an inclined state depending on the layout inside the refrigerator compartment. Conventionally, therefore, the lid is attached to the container body using a fixing member that compresses a sealing material provided between the container body and the lid to prevent water from leaking out from the container body (for example, see Patent Document 1 below).

Water tanks are often placed on the bottom of the refrigerator compartment, and in the case of water tanks in which the lid is attached to the container body using a fixing member as described above, the fixing member is placed in a conspicuous position inside the refrigerator.

JP 2006-189193 A

The embodiment of the present invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to improve the design of a refrigerator equipped with a water tank in which a lid is attached to a container body using a fixing member.

In one embodiment, a refrigerator has a storage compartment with a water supply tank that stores water to supply to an ice tray, the water supply tank comprising a container body having an open top, a lid body that closes the top of the container body, a front container engaging portion provided on the front side of the container body, a front fixing member provided on the lid body and having a front lid engaging portion that engages with the front container engaging portion, and a front protrusion that covers the front fixing member from the front, and a rear fixing member is provided at a rear portion of the lid body and engages with the container body by rotating it from top to bottom, the front protrusion has a handle portion, and a connection portion between the front protrusion and the container body is located above the handle portion, and a portion of the front protrusion above the connection portion covers the front fixing member from the front.

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a front view showing a main part of the refrigerator compartment of FIG. AA cross-sectional view of FIG. Perspective view of the water tank Perspective view of the water tank Exploded perspective view of the water tank Cross-section of the water tank FIG. 11 is a front view showing a main part of a refrigerator according to a second embodiment of the present invention. BB cross-sectional view of FIG.

First Embodiment
Hereinafter, a refrigerator 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(1) Configuration of Refrigerator 1 As shown in Fig. 1, refrigerator 1 includes refrigerator body 2 that opens at the front. Refrigerator body 2 is configured with insulation material such as vacuum insulation material or foam insulation material in insulation space 5 formed between outer box 3 made of steel plate and inner box 4 made of synthetic resin. Refrigerator body 2 has a plurality of storage spaces provided inside inner box 4, and specifically, from the top, refrigerator compartment 6 and vegetable compartment 7 are provided, below which, ice-making compartment 8 and small freezer compartment (not shown) are provided side by side on the left and right, and below these, freezer compartment 10 is provided.

The refrigerator compartment 6 and the vegetable compartment 7 are both storage compartments that are cooled to a refrigeration temperature range (for example, 1 to 4°C), and are divided vertically by a partition plate 11 made of synthetic resin. As shown in FIG. 2, the space divided vertically by the partition plate 11 and the lowest shelf board 12 is divided in the refrigerator width direction by a vertical partition wall 13 arranged against one side wall (left side wall) of the refrigerator compartment 6. A water supply tank 30 and a water supply device 31 are provided in the space (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the tank room) between the left side wall of the refrigerator compartment 6 and the vertical partition wall 13. The water supply tank 30 is stored in a predetermined position in the front-rear direction by a positioning part (not shown) provided on the partition plate 11. In addition, a storage container 14 is stored in the space (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the chilled room) between the vertical partition wall 13 and the other side wall (right side wall) of the refrigerator compartment 6. As shown in FIG. 2, the vertical partition wall 13 is positioned so that it is hidden behind the front part of the storage container 14.

The ice-making compartment 8, small freezer compartment, and freezer compartment 10 are all storage compartments that are cooled to a freezing temperature range (e.g., -10 to -20°C). The ice-making compartment 8 is equipped with an ice-making device 32 that includes an ice-making tray 33 and an ice-release mechanism 34, and an ice storage box 9 that stores the ice made by the ice-making device 32. The ice-making device 32, together with a water supply tank 30 and a water supply device 31 provided in the refrigerator compartment 6, constitutes an automatic ice-making device, and the water in the water supply tank 30 drawn up by the water supply device 31 is supplied to the ice-making tray 33.

A refrigeration cooler 20 for cooling the refrigeration temperature range storage compartments (refrigeration compartment 6 and vegetable compartment 7) of the refrigerator body 2 is provided at the back. A refrigeration fan 21 is provided above the refrigeration cooler 20 to blow the cold air generated by the refrigeration cooler 20 into the refrigerated space.

At the back of the freezing temperature range storage compartments (ice making compartment 8, small freezer compartment, freezer compartment 10) of the refrigerator body 2, a freezing cooler 22 is provided to cool the freezing temperature range storage compartments. A freezing fan 23 is provided above the freezing cooler 22 to blow the cold air generated by the freezing cooler 22 into the refrigerated space.

The refrigeration cooler 20 and the freezer cooler 22 form a refrigeration cycle together with a compressor 25 and a condenser housed in a machine chamber 24 formed in the lower back of the refrigerator body 2, and are cooled by the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 25.

(2) Storage container 14
As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the storage container 14 stored in the chilled compartment sandwiched between the vertical partition wall 13 and the right side wall of the refrigerator compartment 6 includes a drawer-type upper container 70 and a lower container 71 stacked one on top of the other, and a lid body 72 rotatably attached to the front end of the bottom shelf 12.

The upper container 70 is a synthetic resin container with an approximately rectangular planar shape that opens at the top, and has a storage space formed inside for storing food and other stored items.

At the front end of the upper container 70, a front wall 73 is provided that rises upward from the bottom surface of the upper container 70 and defines the front end of the storage space. In front of the front wall 73, a container front portion 74 is provided across the entire width of the upper container 70, spaced a predetermined distance apart.

The front wall 73 is recessed backward in the widthwise center, forming a hand-holding portion 75 with a wider front-to-rear distance from the container front portion 74. The hand-holding portion 75 functions as a handle when the user inserts his/her fingers from below to insert or remove the upper container 70.

The upper end of the container front portion 74 is connected to the upper end of the front wall 73. The lower end of the container front portion 74 terminates at the same height as the bottom surface of the upper container 70 except in front of the upper hanging portion 75, and terminates above the bottom surface of the upper container 70 in front of the upper hanging portion 75. As a result, the container front portion 74 is provided with a notch 76 that opens the front of the upper hanging portion 75.

A band-shaped second emphasis portion 74a is provided across the entire width of the upper container 70 between the top end of the container front portion 74 and the top end of the cutout portion 76. The second emphasis portion 74a is an area that is visually distinguishable from other parts of the container front portion 74, and is, for example, an area that is made of a different material, color, pattern, material thickness, etc. It is preferable that this second emphasis portion 74a is an area that is less transparent than other parts due to coloring, surface treatment, metal deposition, etc.

An opening is formed above the container front portion 74 of the upper container 70 and between it and the underside of the shelf 12, and the opening is closed by the lid 72. As shown in FIG. 3, when the lid 72 closes the opening formed by the shelf 12 and the container front portion 74, it is preferable that the upper end of the container front portion 74 is located on an extension of the center line of the lid 72 in the thickness direction in a side view.

When stored in the chilled compartment, the upper container 70 is pulled forward while pushing up the lid 72 by sliding along rails (not shown), and food and other stored items can be inserted and removed through the top opening of the upper container 70.

The lower container 71 is a synthetic resin container with an opening at the top surface that is roughly rectangular in plan view, and has a storage space formed inside for storing food and other stored items. When the lower container 71 is stored in the chilled compartment, the opening at the top surface is closed by the bottom surface of the upper container 70 provided above. The front end of the lower container 71 is formed with a lower handle portion 78 that is recessed downward and allows hands to be inserted from above.

(3) Water supply tank 30
4 to 7, the water supply tank 30 includes a container body 36 that opens at the top, and a lid 38 that closes the top opening of the container body 36. The water supply tank 30 stores water (ice-making water) in the container body 36 to be supplied to the ice tray 33 via the water supply device 31, and the lid 38 prevents the ice-making water from spilling out of the container body 36.

The container body 36 is a synthetic resin container that is approximately rectangular and elongated in the front-to-rear direction, with the distance between the front peripheral wall 36a and the rear peripheral wall 36b being greater than the distance between the left and right peripheral walls. The container body 36 includes a front protrusion 40 that is provided over approximately the entire width of the container body 36 and protrudes forward and upward from the upper end of the front peripheral wall 36a, a front container locking portion 41 provided on the front peripheral wall 36a, a rear container locking portion 42 provided on the rear peripheral wall 36b, and a packing abutment portion 44 that protrudes outward from the periphery of the top opening (see FIG. 6).

The front protrusion 40 comprises a tank front portion 46 provided at a distance in front of the front peripheral wall 36a, and a peripheral surface portion 47 provided on both left and right ends of the tank front portion 46 and from the upper end to the rear, and the lower end of the peripheral surface portion 47 is connected to both sides of the upper end of the container body 36.

The front protrusion 40 has a tank handle 49 that opens downward between the tank front portion 46 and the front peripheral wall 36a (see FIG. 7). The tank handle 49 functions as a handle when the user inserts their fingers from below to insert or remove the water tank 30.

The tank front portion 46 constitutes the front portion of the water supply tank 30. The tank front portion 46 is inclined rearward as it goes upward, and the inclination angle is approximately the same as the inclination angle of the lid body 72 that constitutes the front portion of the storage container 14 and the container front portion 74 of the upper container 70, as shown in FIG. 3.

A first emphasis portion 46a is provided at the lower end of the tank front portion 46 as a strip extending in the left-right direction with a constant vertical dimension. The first emphasis portion 46a is an area that can be visually distinguished from other parts of the tank front portion 46, and is, for example, an area that is made of a different material, color, pattern, material thickness, etc. It is preferable that this first emphasis portion 46a is an area that is less transparent than other parts due to coloring, surface treatment, metal deposition, etc.

The lower end 46b of the first highlighting portion 46a is located at the lower end of the tank front portion 46, and is located at the same height as the lower end 74b of the second highlighting portion 74a of the upper container 70 stored in the chilled compartment. In addition, the upper end 46c of the first highlighting portion 46a is located at the same height as the upper end 74c of the second highlighting portion 74a of the upper container 70 stored in the chilled compartment.

The rear surface of the front protrusion 40 has a rear opening 48 above the packing abutment portion 44 of the container body 36, and is connected to a hollow tank handle portion 49 defined by the tank front portion 46, the peripheral portion 47, and the front peripheral wall 35a of the container body 36.

It is preferable that the front protrusion 40 has a tapered shape in which the dimension in the width direction (left-right direction) of the tank front portion 46 decreases the further upward. It is also preferable that the periphery of the tank handle portion 49 and the rear opening 48 provided on the front protrusion 40 have an arc-shaped cross section, and it is preferable that the radius of curvature of the periphery of the tank handle portion 49 is greater than the radius of curvature of the periphery of the rear opening 48.

The packing abutment portion 44 is a flange-shaped portion that protrudes outward from the periphery of the top opening of the container body 36. The upper surface of the packing abutment portion 44 abuts against the packing 61 provided on the lid body 38. A front container locking portion 41 that protrudes downward is provided on the underside of the packing abutment portion 44 that protrudes forward from the upper end of the front peripheral wall 36a. A rear container locking portion 42 that protrudes downward is provided on the underside of the packing abutment portion 44 that protrudes rearward from the upper end of the rear peripheral wall 36b.

The lid body 38 is a synthetic resin molded body including a lid body 50 that covers the top opening of the container body 36, a front fixing member 51 provided at the front end of the lid body 50, a rear fixing member 52 provided at the rear end of the lid body 50, and hanging walls 53, 54 provided on the bottom peripheral edge of the lid body 50.

The front fixing member 51 is rotatably supported by a pivot shaft 55 extending in the width direction provided at the front end of the lid body 50. The front fixing member 51 includes a front lid locking portion 56 that protrudes below the pivot shaft 55 toward the front peripheral wall 36a, and an operating portion 57 that extends upward from the pivot shaft 55.

When the user presses the front fixing member 51 forward to raise the operating part 57, the front lid locking part 56 locks into the front container locking part 41 as shown in FIG. 7, fixing the front side of the lid body 38 to the container body 36. With the front lid locking part 56 fixing the front side of the lid body 38 to the container body 36 in this way, the upper end (tip) of the operating part 57 is located lower than the upper end of the front protrusion 40 provided on the container body 36. In other words, when the lid body 38 is fixed to the container body 36, the front protrusion 40 provided on the container body 36 covers and hides the entire front fixing member 51 from the front.

When the front fixing member 51 presses the operating part 57 backward from a state in which the front lid locking part 56 is locked to the front container locking part 41, the front lid locking part 56 disengages from the front container locking part 41, and the front side of the lid body 38 is released from the lock to the container body 36. At that time, the operating part 57 falls into the recess 62 provided at the front end part of the lid body 38.

The rear fixing member 52 has a similar structure to the front fixing member 51, except that the operating part 60 is disposed below the rotating shaft 58 and the rear lid locking part 59. In other words, the rear fixing member 52 is rotatably supported by a rotating shaft 58 extending in the width direction provided at the rear end of the lid body 50, the rear lid locking part 59 protrudes below the rotating shaft 58 toward the rear peripheral wall 36b, and the operating part 60 is provided further below the rear lid locking part 59. When the user rotates the operating part 60 so as to approach the rear peripheral wall 36b, the rear lid locking part 59 engages with the rear container locking part 42 to fix the rear side of the lid body 38 to the container body 36, and when the user rotates the operating part 60 so as to move away from the rear peripheral wall 36b, the rear lid locking part 59 disengages from the rear container locking part 42, and the rear side of the lid body 38 is released from the rear container locking part 42, and the fixation of the rear side of the lid body 38 to the container body 36 is released.

The hanging walls 53, 54 are annular members extending downward from the peripheral edge of the lid body 50. The hanging wall 53 is provided radially inward of the hanging wall 54 with a gap therebetween, and extends downward further than the hanging wall 54. An annular packing 61 is provided between the hanging walls 53, 54.

The packing 61 is disposed between the hanging walls 53, 54 and protrudes downward from the outer hanging wall 53. When the front fixing member 51 and the rear fixing member 52 are operated to fix the lid 38 to the container body 36, the front lid locking portion 56 and the rear lid locking portion 59 lock into the front container locking portion 41 and the rear container locking portion 42 while applying pressure to the packing 61, thereby sealing the gap between the container body 36 and the lid 38.

When such a water supply tank 30 is stored in the tank chamber between the left side wall of the refrigerator compartment 6 and the vertical partition wall 13 as shown in FIG. 2, the front part of the water supply tank 30 and the front part of the storage container 14 stored in the chilled compartment overlap in the left-right direction (the refrigerator width direction).

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, when the water supply tank 30 and the upper container 70 are stored in the tank chamber and the chilled chamber, respectively, the front-to-rear positions of the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the lid body 72 coincide with each other, and the front-to-rear positions of the first highlight portion 46a provided on the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the second highlight portion 74a provided on the container front portion 74 of the upper container 70 coincide with each other.

The tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 has approximately the same inclination angle as the lid body 72 of the storage container 14 and the container front portion 74 of the upper container 70, so that the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 overlaps in the left-right direction with the lid body 72 and container front portion 74 of the storage container 14 provided in the chilled compartment.

In addition, the lower end 46b and upper end 46c of the first emphasis portion 46a on the water supply tank 30 are arranged to coincide in the height direction with the lower end 74b and upper end 74c of the second emphasis portion 74a on the storage container 14, so that the first emphasis portion 46a overlaps with the second emphasis portion 74a in the left-right direction, forming a continuous pattern that continues in the left-right direction.

(4) Effect In the present embodiment as described above, the front protrusion 40 constituting the front surface of the water supply tank 30 covers from the front the front fixing member 51 that fixes the lid body 38 to the container body 36, making the fixing member less noticeable inside the refrigerator, thereby improving the design of the refrigerator.

In this embodiment, the front protrusion 40 protrudes upward from the container body 36, making it easier to cover and conceal the entire front fixing member 51.

In this embodiment, the front protrusion 40 is provided with a handle 49, which allows the front protrusion 40 to be used effectively, and the user supports the container body 36 when inserting or removing the water tank 30, preventing the lid 38 from accidentally coming off.

In this embodiment, the operating portion 57 of the front fixing member 51 extends upward from the front lid engaging portion 56, so that the front fixing member 51 can be operated from above the container body 36, providing excellent operability.

In this embodiment, the front protrusion 40 protrudes upward and forward from the container body 36, and a rear opening 48 is provided on the rear surface of the front protrusion 40, so that the operation of the front fixing member 51 is not hindered by the front protrusion 40, and the front fixing member 51 can be operated smoothly.

In addition, in this embodiment, when the periphery of the rear opening 48 has an arc-shaped cross section, it is possible to prevent the user from touching the periphery of the rear opening 48 and from being injured, and it is also possible to prevent the periphery of the rear opening 48 from being chipped.

In this embodiment, the tank handle 49 provided on the front protrusion 40 communicates with the rear opening 48, so the front protrusion 40 does not block the flow of cold air circulating through the refrigerator compartment 6. Furthermore, because the tank handle 49 communicates with the rear opening 48, a slide core structure can be used to mold the front protrusion 40 of the container body 36, reducing the risk of mold damage even if the front protrusion 40 has a hollow portion that is recessed vertically inside.

In addition, in this embodiment, the tank front portion 46 constituting the front portion of the water supply tank 30 overlaps in the left-right direction with the lid body 72 constituting the front portion of the storage container 14 and the container front portion 74 of the upper container 70, so that the designs of the water supply tank 30 and the storage container 14 are unified, improving the design of the refrigerator.

In addition, in this embodiment, the first emphasis portion 46a provided on the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the second emphasis portion 74a provided on the container front portion 74 of the storage container 14 overlap in the left-right direction, forming a continuous pattern that is continuous in the left-right direction, emphasizing the unity of the design of the water supply tank 30 and the storage container 14, and further improving the design of the refrigerator.

In addition, in this embodiment, in order to enhance the sense of unity in design between the water supply tank 30 and the storage container 14, it is preferable that the distance between the front protrusion 40 of the water supply tank 30 and the lid 72 or container front portion 74 of the storage container 14, which are arranged to overlap it in the left-right direction, and the distance between the front protrusion 40 and the shelf board 12, are small; for example, it is preferable that each distance is 4 mm or less.

In addition, in this embodiment, the front protrusion 40 is tapered so that the width (left-right) dimension of the tank front portion 46 decreases the further upward, which provides the following effects.

That is, when stored goods are stored in the storage container 14 arranged to the side of the water supply tank 30, the partition plate 11 supports the weight of the stored goods, and the partition plate 11 deforms so that the center in the left-right direction is slightly concave. Due to this deformation, the upper end of the water supply tank 30 placed on the partition plate 11 tilts slightly toward the center in the width direction of the refrigerator, and the distance between the upper end of the front protrusion 40 and the lid body 72 becomes smaller than the lower end of the front protrusion 40, which may cause discomfort to the user. Also, depending on the weight of the stored goods stored in the storage container 14, the deformation of the partition plate 11 may become so large that the water supply tank 30 and the lid body 72 may come into contact at their upper ends.

In this embodiment, the front protrusion 40 is tapered toward the top, which makes it difficult for the gap between the top end of the front protrusion 40 and the lid 72 to become narrow, reducing contact between the water supply tank 30 and the lid 72 and camouflaging the tilt of the water supply tank 30 to reduce the sense of discomfort felt by the user.

Second Embodiment
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 8 and 9, focusing on differences from the above-mentioned embodiment. Elements that are the same as or correspond to those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted.

In the first embodiment described above, the storage container 14 stored in the chilled compartment is composed of an upper container 70, a lower container 71, and a lid 72. In this embodiment, however, a single-tiered storage container 114 that is not divided into upper and lower parts is stored in the chilled compartment.

This storage container 114 is a roughly rectangular parallelepiped container with a front wall 114a, a rear wall, left and right side walls, and a bottom surface, and an opening on the top surface.

A container protrusion 115 that protrudes forward and upward from the front wall 114a is provided at the upper end of the front wall 114a. As shown in FIG. 9, the container protrusion 115 includes a container front portion 116 provided at a distance in front of the front wall 114a of the storage container 114, a connecting portion 117 that extends in the left-right direction connecting the container front portion 116 to the front wall 114a, and a side portion 118 that connects the left and right sides of the container front portion 116 and the connecting portion 117 to the front wall 114a.

The connecting portion 117 protrudes forward approximately horizontally from the upper portion of the front wall 114a and is connected to the lower portion of the container front portion 116. Below the connecting portion 117, a container handle portion 119 that opens downward is formed between the container front portion 116 and the front wall 114a. The container handle portion 119 functions as a handle when the user's fingers are inserted from below to insert or remove the storage container 114.

The container front portion 116 is provided across the entire width of the storage container 114 in the left-right direction and extends up-down from the same height as the lower end of the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 to the same height as the upper end of the tank front portion 46, blocking the gap formed between the shelf 12 and the front end of the top opening of the storage container 114 from the front.

The container front portion 116 is disposed approximately parallel to the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30. In this embodiment, the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the container front portion 116 are inclined very slightly backward as they go upward from the vertical direction.

A container inclined portion 116d is formed at the upper end of the container front portion 116, which inclines rearward as it goes upward. In this embodiment, a tank inclined portion 46d is also formed at the upper end of the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30, which inclines rearward as it goes upward, approximately parallel to the container inclined portion 116d and at the same height.

A second emphasis portion 116a is provided at the lower end of the container front portion 116. The second emphasis portion 116a is a region that can be visually distinguished from other parts of the container front portion 116, and is, for example, a region that is made of a different material, color, pattern, material thickness, etc.

The lower end 116b of the second emphasis portion 116a is located at the lower end of the container front portion 116 and is positioned at the same height as the lower end 46b of the first emphasis portion 46a provided on the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30, and the upper end 116c of the second emphasis portion 116a is located in front of the connecting portion 117 and is positioned at the same height as the upper end 46c of the first emphasis portion 46a.

In the present embodiment described above, as shown in FIG. 9, when the water supply tank 30 and the storage container 114 are stored in the tank compartment and the chilled compartment, respectively, the tank front portion 46 constituting the front portion of the water supply tank 30 and the container front portion 116 constituting the front portion of the storage container 114 overlap in the left-right direction. Therefore, the designs of the water supply tank 30 and the storage container 114 are unified, improving the design of the refrigerator.

In particular, the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the container front portion 116 of the storage container 114 overlap in the left-right direction forward of the front peripheral wall 36a of the container body 36 and the front wall 114a of the storage container 114, which emphasizes the unity of the design and improves the design of the refrigerator.

In addition, in this embodiment, the upper and lower end positions of the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the container front portion 116 of the storage container 114 are at the same height, and the tank inclined portion 46d and the container inclined portion 116d provided at the upper ends of the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the container front portion 116 of the storage container 114 overlap in the left-right direction, and the first emphasis portion 46a overlaps with the second emphasis portion 116a in the left-right direction to form a continuous pattern that is continuous in the left-right direction, which makes it easier to emphasize the unity of the design and improves the design of the refrigerator.

In this embodiment, the tank front portion 46 constituting the upper front portion of the water supply tank 30 as the front portion of the water supply tank 30 and the container front portion 116 constituting the upper front portion of the storage container 114 as the front portion of the storage container 114 are described as overlapping in the left-right direction, but a part of the front portion of the water supply tank 30 and a part of the front portion of the storage container 114 may overlap in the left-right direction, such as the lower front portion of the water supply tank 30 and the lower front portion of the storage container 114 overlapping in the left-right direction.

9, the front peripheral wall 36a of the water supply tank 30 and the front wall 114a of the storage container 114 may be formed approximately parallel, and when the water supply tank 30 and the storage container 114 are stored in the tank compartment and the chilled compartment, respectively, the tank front portion 46 and the container front portion 116 overlap in the left-right direction, and the front peripheral wall 36a and the front wall 114a overlap in the left-right direction, so that the entire front portion of the water supply tank 30 and the entire front portion of the storage container 114 overlap in the left-right direction. When the entire front portion of the water supply tank 30 and the entire front portion of the storage container 114 overlap in the left-right direction, the designs of the water supply tank 30 and the storage container 114 are unified, and the design quality of the refrigerator can be further improved.
Other Embodiments
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, 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 spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims, as well as in the scope and gist of the invention.

For example, in the first and second embodiments described above, the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the container front portion 74, 116 of the storage container 14, 114 are provided with accented portions 46a, 74a, 116a, respectively. However, an accented portion may be provided on one of the tank front portion 46 of the water supply tank 30 and the container front portion 74, 116 of the storage container 14, 114, and no accented portion may be provided on the other, or an accented portion may be provided on one, and a striped pattern extending in the left-right direction at the same height as the upper end of the accented portion provided on one may be provided on the other.

In addition, in the first and second embodiments described above, the first highlighting portion 46a and the second highlighting portion 74a, 116a that are continuous in the left-right direction may be made of the same material, color, pattern, etc., or may be made of different materials, colors, patterns, etc.

In addition, in the above-described first and second embodiments, a case has been described in which a front container locking portion 41 is provided on the front peripheral wall 36a of the container body 36 of the water supply tank 30, but a front container locking portion may be provided on the front side of the container body 36, such as on the left or right side wall of the container body 36, and a front lid locking portion may be provided on the lid body 38 so as to lock onto the front container locking portion.

1...refrigerator, 6...refrigerating compartment, 11...partition plate, 12...shelf, 14...storage container, 30...water supply tank, 36...container body, 36a...front peripheral wall, 36b...rear peripheral wall, 38...lid body, 40...front protrusion, 41...front container locking portion, 42...rear container locking portion, 44...packing abutment portion, 46...front portion, 46a...first accent portion, 46b...lower end of first accent portion, 46c...upper end of first accent portion, 47...periphery, 48...rear opening, 49...tank handle portion, 50...lid body, 51...front fixing member, 5 2...rear fixing member, 56...front lid locking portion, 57...operation portion, 59...rear lid locking portion, 60...operation portion, 61...packing, 62...recess, 70...upper container, 71...lower container, 72...lid body, 74...container front portion, 74a...second highlighting portion, 75...hand hanging portion, 114...storage container, 115...container protruding portion, 116...front portion, 116a...first highlighting portion, 116b...lower end of first highlighting portion, 116c...upper end of first highlighting portion, 116d...tank inclined portion, 117...connecting portion, 118...container handle

Claims (4)

In a refrigerator having a water supply tank in a storage compartment for storing water to be supplied to ice trays,
The water supply tank,
A container body having an open top;
A lid that closes the upper surface of the container body;
A front container locking portion provided on a front side of the container body;
a front fixing member provided on the lid body and having a front lid engaging portion that engages with the front container engaging portion;
a front protrusion that covers the front fixing member from the front,
a rear fixing member that is pivoted downwardly to be engaged with the container body is provided at a rear portion of the lid;
The front protrusion includes a handle portion,
A connection portion between the front protrusion and the container body is located above the handle, and a portion of the front protrusion above the connection portion covers the front fixing member from the front. In a refrigerator having a water supply tank in a storage compartment for storing water to be supplied to ice trays,
The water supply tank,
A container body having an open top;
A lid that closes the upper surface of the container body;
A front container locking portion provided on a front side of the container body;
a front fixing member provided on the lid body and having a front lid engaging portion that engages with the front container engaging portion;
a front protrusion that covers the front fixing member from the front,
a rear fixing member that is pivoted downwardly to be engaged with the container body is provided at a rear portion of the lid;
A refrigerator, wherein the front fixing member extends upward from the front lid engaging portion and includes an operating portion that moves the front lid engaging portion in response to operation by a user. In a refrigerator having a water supply tank in a storage compartment for storing water to be supplied to ice trays,
The water supply tank,
A container body having an open top;
A lid that closes the upper surface of the container body;
A front container locking portion provided on a front side of the container body;
a front fixing member provided on the lid body and having a front lid engaging portion that engages with the front container engaging portion;
a front protrusion that covers the front fixing member from the front,
a rear fixing member that is pivoted downwardly to be engaged with the container body is provided at a rear portion of the lid;
The front protrusion protrudes upward and forward from the container body, and an opening portion that opens toward the rear is provided on a rear surface of the front protrusion portion above the container body,
The periphery of the opening provided on the back surface of the front protrusion has an arc-shaped cross section,
The front protrusion includes a handle having a circumferential edge that is arcuate in cross section,
A refrigerator, wherein a radius of curvature of a periphery of the handle portion is larger than a radius of curvature of a periphery of the opening portion. In a refrigerator having a water supply tank in a storage compartment for storing water to be supplied to ice trays,
The water supply tank,
A container body having an open top;
A lid that closes the upper surface of the container body;
A front container locking portion provided on a front side of the container body;
a front fixing member provided on the lid body and having a front lid engaging portion that engages with the front container engaging portion;
a front protrusion that covers the front fixing member from the front,
a rear fixing member that is pivoted downwardly to be engaged with the container body is provided at a rear portion of the lid;
The front protrusion protrudes upward and forward from the container body, and an opening portion that opens toward the rear is provided on a rear surface of the front protrusion portion above the container body,
The front protrusion includes a handle portion,
The handle portion and the opening portion are in communication with each other.

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