Refrigerator

Abstract

The purpose of this invention is to provide a refrigerator with an insulated door that improves recyclability. The refrigerator of this invention includes an insulated body and an insulated door. The insulated door has an outer panel on its surface and a frame extending rearward from the periphery of the outer panel. The frame has a flange on the rear surface of the outer panel and a locking portion covering a portion of the front surface of the outer panel. The outer panel is held in place by an elastic body on the front surface of the flange and the locking portion.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to refrigerators. Background Technology

[0002] From a design perspective, the refrigerator door is mainly made of glass for the front panel (outer panel). For example, Patent Document 1 describes that "a spacing adjustment portion 34 is formed protrudingly on the inner surface of the front surface forming portion 32. The spacing adjustment portion 34 can be applied to front panels 20 of various thicknesses."

[0003] Existing technical documents

[0004] Patent documents

[0005] Patent Document 1: Chinese Patent No. 101131288 Specification Summary of the Invention

[0006] The problem that the invention aims to solve

[0007] The refrigerator door described in Patent Document 1 is made of foamed material, which makes it difficult to separate the outer panel from the foamed insulation material when recycling the refrigerator, so the entire door needs to be discarded.

[0008] The purpose of this invention is to provide a refrigerator with an insulated door that improves recyclability.

[0009] Solution for solving the problem

[0010] In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a refrigerator having an insulated cabinet and an insulated door, wherein the insulated door has: an outer panel located on the surface; and a frame extending rearward from the periphery of the outer panel, wherein the frame has: a flange located on the rear surface of the outer panel; and a locking portion covering a portion of the front surface side of the outer panel, wherein the outer panel is clamped by an elastomer located on the front surface of the flange and the locking portion.

[0011] Invention Effects

[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a refrigerator with an insulated door that improves recyclability. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is a front view of the refrigerator according to this embodiment.

[0014] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 AA sectional view.

[0015] Figure 3 This is a front perspective view of the refrigerator door in Example 1.

[0016] Figure 4 yes Figure 3 BB sectional view (top sectional view of the refrigerator door).

[0017] Figure 5 This is an enlarged front-view perspective of the lower part of the refrigerator door before the outer panels are assembled.

[0018] Figure 6 This is an enlarged front view of the lower part of the refrigerator door after the outer panels have been assembled.

[0019] Figure 7 yes Figure 6 CC section view.

[0020] Figure 8A This is a front-view perspective view showing the first step in assembling the refrigerator door.

[0021] Figure 8B This is a front perspective view showing the second step in assembling the refrigerator door.

[0022] Figure 8C This is a front-view perspective view showing the third step in assembling the refrigerator door.

[0023] Figure 9 This is a top sectional view of the refrigerator door in variation 1.

[0024] Figure 10 This is a top sectional view of the refrigerator door in variation 2.

[0025] Figure 11 This is an enlarged front view of the lower part of the refrigerator door in Example 2.

[0026] Figure 12 yes Figure 11 DD sectional view. Detailed Implementation

[0027] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0028] First, the overall structure of the refrigerator 1 in this embodiment will be described. Figure 1 This is a front view of the refrigerator according to this embodiment. Figure 2 yes Figure 1 AA sectional view. For example... Figure 1 as well as Figure 2 As shown, refrigerator 1 has storage compartments arranged from top to bottom in the following order: refrigerator compartment 2, ice maker compartment 3, upper freezer compartment 4, lower freezer compartment 5, and vegetable compartment 6. Each compartment has an insulated door at its front surface opening for opening and closing. The configuration of the storage compartments is not limited to this.

[0029] The insulation door consists of rotating refrigerator doors 2a and 2b that rotate around a hinge (not shown), a drawer-type ice maker door 3a, an upper freezer door 4a, a lower freezer door 5a, and a vegetable compartment door 6a. Additionally, each insulation door is filled with a rigid polyurethane foam or other foamed insulation material 13.

[0030] The refrigerator 1 has an insulated casing consisting of a steel outer box and a synthetic resin inner box 8. An insulation layer is installed in the space formed by the outer box and the inner box 8 to insulate the various storage compartments inside the insulated casing from the outside. The outer box consists of a top panel 7a, left and right side panels (in... Figure 1 , 2 The top panel 7a and the side panel are formed by integral bending, and the back panel 7d and the bottom panel 7e are fixed to the top panel 7a and the side panel and integrated by post-installation.

[0031] As described above, the insulation layer of the insulated box is filled with foamed insulation material 13, but vacuum insulation material can also be used. Furthermore, the first insulation partition 9 divides the refrigerator compartment 2 and the ice-making compartment 3, as well as the upper freezer compartment 4, and the second insulation partition 10 divides the lower freezer compartment 5 and the vegetable compartment 6. These insulation partitions are also made of foamed insulation material and vacuum insulation material.

[0032] Furthermore, the refrigerator 1 is equipped with a cooler for cooling each storage compartment to a predetermined temperature range. In this embodiment, a first cooler 11a for cooling the refrigerator compartment 2 and a second cooler 11b for cooling the ice-making compartment 3, the upper freezer compartment 4, the lower freezer compartment 5, and the vegetable compartment 6 are provided, but the number of coolers and the storage compartments to be cooled are not limited to this. Moreover, a refrigeration cycle is formed by connecting a compressor 12 that compresses the refrigerant, a heat dissipation mechanism (condenser and heat dissipation pipes not shown) that dissipates heat from the refrigerant supplied from the compressor 12, a pressure reduction mechanism (capillary tube not shown) that reduces the pressure of the refrigerant supplied from the heat dissipation mechanism, and a cooler (evaporator) that cools the air by evaporating the refrigerant supplied from the pressure reduction mechanism. In addition, the compressor 12 and condenser, which are located at the lower rear of the insulated cabinet, are high-heat-generating components, so vacuum insulation material is also provided on the inside of the bottom panel 7e to prevent heat from entering the cabinet.

[0033] Here, the door insulation of this embodiment has a structure that makes it easy to peel the outer panel 20 from the foamed insulation material 13 when recycling the refrigerator 1. Hereinafter, the structure of the door insulation will be described in detail based on the embodiment.

[0034] Example 1

[0035] Embodiment 1 relates to a door with a display / operation unit 30, see reference Figures 3 to 8CThis will be explained. Here, we take the refrigerator door 2b, which uses a steel sheet outer panel 20, as an example, but it can also be applied to insulation doors using other materials such as glass outer panels 20, and insulation doors other than refrigerator door 2b. However, since glass is not a high-value raw material for recycling, it is particularly effective to use valuable raw materials such as steel sheets for the outer panel 20. Environmentally friendly raw materials other than steel sheets include aluminum.

[0036] Figure 3 This is a front perspective view of the refrigerator door in Example 1. Figure 4 yes Figure 3 A sectional view of the refrigerator door (top sectional view). Figure 3 as well as Figure 4 As shown, the refrigerator door 2b includes: an outer steel plate 20 on its surface; a frame extending rearward (towards the refrigerator side) from the periphery of the outer plate 20; an inner plate 25 separately disposed behind the outer plate 20 and with the frame fixed to its periphery; and a foamed insulation material 13 filling the space between the frame and the inner plate 25 surrounding the sides and rear. Alternatively, a vacuum insulation material may be provided in front of the foamed insulation material 13. Furthermore, the frame is constructed by combining an upper frame member 21 positioned along the upper edge of the outer plate 20, a lower frame member 22 positioned along the lower edge of the outer plate 20, a left frame member 23 positioned along the left side edge of the outer plate 20, and a right frame member 24 positioned along the right side edge of the outer plate 20.

[0037] The upper frame component 21 and the lower frame component 22 have flange portions 21a and 22a that face the rear surface of the outer panel 20 and extend vertically in a generally parallel manner to the outer panel 20. Foamed thermal insulation material 13 fills the rear area from these flange portions 21a and 22a and is fixed to the inner surface of the frame and the inner panel 25. Additionally, spring-loaded screws 28 (see reference) are used on the front surface of the flange portions 21a and 22a near the edge. Figure 5 The leaf spring 26 is fixed as an elastic body. In addition, since the leaf spring 26 is used as an elastic body in this embodiment, it is fixed with screws. However, if other components are used as elastic bodies, other methods such as adhesives can also be used for fixing.

[0038] Furthermore, first locking portions 21b and 22b are formed at the front ends of the upper frame member 21 and the lower frame member 22 to lock the upper or lower edge of the outer plate 20. These first locking portions 21b and 22b have a covering structure that covers a portion of the front surface of the upper or lower edge of the outer plate 20, allowing the outer plate 20 to be clamped by the covering surface and the leaf spring 26. Therefore, even when the thickness of the outer plate 20 is different, the outer plate 20 can be pressed against the first locking portions 21b and 22b by the elastic force of the leaf spring 26, supporting the outer plate 20. In addition, in this embodiment, the extension dimension from the edge of the covering surface of the upper frame member 21 (the upper end of the outer plate 20) is smaller than the extension dimension from the edge of the leaf spring 26 (the upper end of the outer plate 20), thus reducing the area of ​​the first locking portion 21b covering the front surface of the outer plate 20 and improving design flexibility. Furthermore, this structure of the upper frame member 21 can also be applied to the lower frame member 22.

[0039] On the other hand, although the illustration is omitted, the left frame member 23 is not provided with a leaf spring 26 to prevent jamming when the outer plate 20 is inserted. Furthermore, a second locking portion is formed at the front end of the left frame member 23 to lock the left side edge of the outer plate 20. This second locking portion can be a covering structure that covers a portion of the front surface of the outer plate 20, or it can be a support structure that does not cover the front surface of the outer plate 20 but protrudes from the rear end of the outer plate 20 (including both cases where it protrudes from the front end and cases where it does not protrude).

[0040] Similar to the left frame component 23, the upper frame component 21, and the lower frame component 22, the right frame component 24 is assembled from the inner right frame component 24A (see reference 13) before the foaming and filling of the foamed thermal insulation material 13. Figure 8A The outer right frame component 24B is formed after the foam filling is completed and the outer panel 20 is inserted into it, and is then fixed in place. A second locking portion for locking the right edge of the outer panel 20 is also formed at the front end of the outer right frame component 24B. However, this second locking portion can have the same structure as the second locking portion of the left frame component 23, or it can have a different structure. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the right frame component 24 is configured as a double structure for inserting the outer panel 20 from the right, but the left frame component 23 can also be configured as a double structure when inserting the outer panel 20 from the left.

[0041] Figure 5 This is an enlarged front perspective view of the lower part of the refrigerator door before the outer panels are assembled. For example... Figure 5As shown, multiple leaf springs 26 are arranged along the left-right direction on the front surface side of the flange portion 22a of the lower frame component 22. Each leaf spring 26 is elongated in the left-right direction, but is fixed by a spring-fixing screw 28 on the right side, which is the side into which the outer panel 20 is inserted. Therefore, it will not get stuck when the outer panel 20 is inserted, improving the ease of door assembly. In addition, each leaf spring 26 has a convex shape with a roughly central bulge in the left-right direction, which presses against the rear surface of the outer panel.

[0042] Figure 6 This is an enlarged front view of the lower part of the refrigerator door after the outer panel is assembled. In this embodiment, the outer panel 20 of the refrigerator door 2b is made of steel plate. Therefore, even if an LED is installed behind the outer panel 20, light will not pass through to the front of the outer panel 20. Even if an electrode is installed behind the outer panel 20, it is difficult to detect changes in the electrostatic capacitance of the outer panel 20 surface. Therefore, the display / operation unit 30 of the mechanism for automatically opening the refrigerator door 2b is installed in a recess (cutout) formed in a part of the lower frame member 22 on the lower side of the outer panel 20.

[0043] Figure 7 yes Figure 6 CC sectional view (sectional view of the display section located at the bottom of the refrigerator compartment door).

[0044] like Figure 7 As shown, below the outer panel 20, a surface component 30a with printed text faces forward, and a light-transmitting component 30b extending towards the first heat-insulating partition 9 on the heat-insulating housing side is integrally formed with the surface component 30a. The light-transmitting component 30b is fixed to the lower surface of the lower frame component 22 of the supporting leaf spring 26 via a flange portion 22a. On the other hand, a housing substrate 31 is disposed at the front of the first heat-insulating partition 9, and an LED 32 is mounted on the front surface of the housing substrate 31.

[0045] Therefore, when the refrigerator door 2b is closed, the rear end of the light-transmitting component 30b approaches the front surface of the LED 32 on the cabinet substrate 31, and the light irradiated from the LED 32 passes through the light-transmitting component 30b to reflect the printed characters on the surface component 30a.

[0046] Additionally, although not shown in the diagram, a mechanical operating button for automatic door opening is provided at the lower part of the refrigerator door 2b. This operating button extends toward the first heat-insulating partition 9 and is integrally formed with an operating plate that moves in the front-rear direction relative to the lower frame member 22. Moreover, when the operating button is pressed, the rear end of the operating plate connects with a switch contact formed on the front surface of the first heat-insulating partition 9, thereby activating the door opening mechanism (not shown).

[0047] In this embodiment, the display / operation unit 30 is not fixed to the outer panel 20 but is disposed on the heat insulation door, thus improving workability when recycling the outer panel 20. Furthermore, since the substrate for the display / operation unit 30 is disposed on the heat insulation enclosure side, it also has the advantage of eliminating the need for electrical wiring to the heat insulation door.

[0048] Figures 8A to 8C This is a front-view perspective view showing the assembly process of the refrigerator door, representing the first to the second process.

[0049] Firstly, in the first process, such as Figure 8A As shown, with the upper frame component 21, lower frame component 22, left frame component 23, and inner right frame component 24A installed on the inner panel 25, foam insulation material 13 is foamed to fill the frame structure. Furthermore, the leaf spring 26 is pre-fixed to the flange portions 21a and 22a of the upper frame component 21 and lower frame component 22 using spring fixing screws 28. Therefore, by covering and securing the rear of the flange portions 21a and 22a with the foam insulation material 13, the fixation of the leaf spring 26 is strengthened.

[0050] Next, in the second process, such as Figure 8B As shown, relative to the structure of the obtained frame, the outer plate 20 is inserted from the right side along the first locking portions 21b and 22b of the upper frame member 21 and the lower frame member 22. Here, the front end position of the inner right frame member 24A is further rearward than the front end positions of the upper frame member 21, the lower frame member 22, and the left frame member 23, so the outer plate 20 can be inserted. Furthermore, since the inner right frame member 24A does not form a design surface, it can also be made of a material different from that of the upper frame member 21, the lower frame member 22, and the left frame member 23.

[0051] Finally, in the third process, at the stage where the insertion of the outer panel 20 is completed, such as... Figure 8C As shown, the outer right frame component 24B is fixed relative to the inner right frame component 24A by frame fixing screws 27, thereby obtaining... Figure 3 Such a refrigerator door 2b. In order to form the design surface, the outer right frame member 24B can also be fixed to the inner right frame member 24A by means other than screws. Furthermore, the outer right frame member 24B is made of the same material as the left frame member 23, and like the left frame member 23, it does not have a leaf spring 26, but has a second locking part formed at its front end to lock the right edge of the outer panel 20.

[0052] It should be noted that when recycling refrigerator 1, the insulation is disassembled and the outer panel 20 is removed through the reverse process described above.

[0053] [Modification of Example 1]

[0054] refer to Figure 9 as well as Figure 10 A variation of Example 1 will be described.

[0055] Figure 9 This is a top sectional view of the refrigerator door in variation 1. Figure 9 The refrigerator door 2b of the modified example 1 shown is... Figure 4 Compared to the refrigerator door shown, the basic structure, such as the frame and the foamed insulation material 13, is the same, but the outer panel 20 is thicker. In the case of Modified Example 1, the leaf spring 26 is further compressed, and its front-to-back dimension becomes smaller, thereby absorbing the thickness of the outer panel 20.

[0056] Figure 10 This is a top sectional view of the refrigerator door in variation 2. Figure 10 The refrigerator door 2b of the modified example 2 shown is... Figure 4 Compared to the refrigerator door shown, the shape of the first locking portion 21b formed on the upper frame member 21 is different. Specifically, the extension dimension from the edge of the covering surface of the upper frame member 21 (the upper end of the outer plate 20) is larger than the extension dimension from the edge of the leaf spring 26 (the upper end of the outer plate 20). In this case, since the contact area between the covering surface of the first locking portion 21b and the outer plate 20 is large, the outer plate 20 can also be stably supported from the front surface side. Here, the structure of the upper frame member 21 has been described, but the same structure can also be applied to the lower frame member 22.

[0057] As described above, in this embodiment, the outer panel 20 is installed on the door after it has been integrally foamed and molded, making it easy to disassemble the outer panel 20 when recycling the refrigerator 1. Furthermore, even if the outer panel 20 has different thicknesses, the leaf spring 26 can absorb the thickness difference while providing support, thus allowing the structure before assembly of the outer panel 20 to be shared, thereby improving the efficiency of door manufacturing. In addition, Patent Document 1 also discloses an example of a refrigerator capable of handling outer panels of different thicknesses, but the technology described in that document cannot handle minute thickness differences below a predetermined spacing width.

[0058] Example 2

[0059] Example 2 is an insulated door with a display / operation panel 40, see reference. Figure 11 and Figure 12 Please provide an explanation. Figure 11 This is an enlarged front view of the lower part of the refrigerator door in Embodiment 2. The outer panel 20 of the refrigerator door 2b in this embodiment is also made of steel plate, therefore the display / operation panel 40 is installed on the lower side of the outer panel 20. However, unlike the display / operation unit 30 in Embodiment 1, the display / operation panel 40 in this embodiment can also display and operate functions such as temperature settings.

[0060] Figure 12 yes Figure 11 The DD sectional view (sectional view of the display section). For example... Figure 12 As shown, the light-transmitting surface component 40a faces forward, and a door base plate 41 is provided behind it at a position where its projection in the front-to-back direction does not overlap with the outer panel 20. On the front surface of this door base plate 41, in addition to the LED 32, electrodes (not shown) for detecting changes in the electrostatic capacitance of the surface component 40a are also installed. Furthermore, the refrigerator door 2b of this embodiment is a rotary door with a hinge, therefore, by using this hinge to install electrical wiring, the base plate can be placed on the door side instead of the insulated box side.

[0061] This invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and can be modified in various ways. For example, in embodiments 1 and 2, a leaf spring 26 is used as the elastic body that presses the outer panel 20 against the frame, but a spring ball can also be used. When using a spring ball, it has the advantages of reducing resistance when the outer panel 20 is slidably inserted and improving the ease of door assembly. The raw material for the elastic body can be metal, rubber, or resin. For example, a pre-foamed, separate insulating material can also be used as the elastic body. When using an insulating material, the entire rear surface of the outer panel 20 can be supported, thus improving stability and insulation.

[0062] Furthermore, the above embodiments are illustrative for the purpose of easily understanding and explaining the present invention, and are not limited to having all the described structures. Moreover, a portion of the structure of one embodiment may be replaced with the structure of another embodiment, or the structure of another embodiment may be added to the structure of one embodiment. Additionally, other structures may be added to, deleted from, or replaced in a portion of the structure of each embodiment.

[0063] Symbol Explanation

[0064] 1—Refrigerator; 2—Refrigerator compartment; 2a, 2b—Refrigerator compartment doors; 3—Ice maker compartment; 3a—Ice maker compartment door; 4—Upper freezer compartment; 4a—Upper freezer compartment door; 5—Lower freezer compartment; 5a—Lower freezer compartment door; 6—Vegetable compartment; 6a—Vegetable compartment door; 7a—Top panel; 7d—Back panel; 7e—Bottom panel; 8—Inner compartment; 9—First heat insulation partition; 10—Second heat insulation partition; 11a—First cooler; 11b—Second cooler; 12—Compressor; 13—Foamed heat insulation material; 20—Outer panel; 21—Upper frame component; 22—Lower frame component; 23—Left frame component; 24A—Inner right frame component; 24B—Outer right frame component; 25—Inner panel; 26—Leaf spring; 27—Frame fixing screw; 28—Spring fixing screw.

Claims

1. A refrigerator comprising an insulated cabinet and an insulated door, The refrigerator is characterized in that... The insulated door includes: an outer panel located on the surface; and a frame extending rearward from the periphery of the outer panel. The frame includes: a flange located on the rear surface of the outer panel; and a locking portion covering a portion of the front surface of the outer panel. The outer plate is held in place by an elastic body located on the front surface of the flange and the locking portion. The elastomer extends from the side inserted into the outer plate toward the side that is inserted into the outer plate, and is fixed to the flange on the side that is inserted into the outer plate, and becomes a raised convex shape on the side that is inserted into the outer plate.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, characterized in that, At least a portion of the frame that is rearward of the flange is fixed with foamed thermal insulation material, while the outer panel is not fixed with the foamed thermal insulation material.

3. The refrigerator according to claim 1, characterized in that, The elastomer is fixed to the flange portion, which is formed in a frame member parallel to the insertion direction of the outer plate.

4. The refrigerator according to claim 1, characterized in that, The insulation door is a rotary type. The frame includes: an upper frame component positioned along the upper edge of the outer panel; a lower frame component positioned along the lower edge of the outer panel; a left frame component positioned along the left edge of the outer panel; and a right frame component positioned along the right edge of the outer panel. The upper frame component and the lower frame component have flange portions and locking portions formed therein, and the outer plate is held by the elastic body and the locking portions. The left frame component has another locking part that locks the left edge of the outer panel in place. The right frame component has: an inner right frame component that is assembled before the foam insulation material is filled, similar to the left frame component, the upper frame component, and the lower frame component; and an outer right frame component that is fixed after the foam insulation material is filled and inserted into the outer panel. The outer right frame component is formed from the same raw material as the left frame component, the upper frame component, and the lower frame component.

5. The refrigerator according to claim 1, characterized in that, The insulation door is a rotary type. The frame includes: an upper frame component positioned along the upper edge of the outer panel; a lower frame component positioned along the lower edge of the outer panel; a left frame component positioned along the left edge of the outer panel; and a right frame component positioned along the right edge of the outer panel. The upper frame component and the lower frame component have flange portions and locking portions formed therein, and the outer plate is held by the elastic body and the locking portions. The right frame component has another locking part that locks the right edge of the outer panel in place. The left frame component has: an inner left frame component that is assembled before the foam insulation material is filled, similar to the right frame component, the upper frame component, and the lower frame component; and an outer left frame component that is fixed after the foam insulation material is filled and inserted into the outer panel. The outer left frame component is formed from the same raw material as the right frame component, the upper frame component, and the lower frame component.

6. The refrigerator according to claim 1, characterized in that, The extension dimension of the locking part from the edge of the covering surface is smaller than the extension dimension of the elastomer from the edge.

7. The refrigerator according to claim 1, characterized in that, The extension dimension of the locking part from the edge of the covering surface is larger than the extension dimension of the elastomer from the edge.

8. The refrigerator according to claim 1, characterized in that, The outer panel is made of steel plate. The insulation door has a display section or an operating section below the outer panel.

9. The refrigerator according to claim 8, characterized in that, The substrate of the display unit or the operation unit is disposed in the heat-insulating box.

10. The refrigerator according to claim 8, characterized in that, The insulated door is a revolving door. The substrate of the display unit or the operation unit is disposed inside the door at a position that does not overlap with the front-rear projection of the outer panel.

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