Refrigeration appliance

Abstract

A refrigeration appliance, including: a housing defining at least one storage compartment; a door movably connected to the front of the housing to open or close at least a part of the storage compartment, the door including a front wall defining a front surface of the refrigeration appliance and a first side wall always located between the front wall and the storage compartment during opening and closing of the door; and a hinge fixed to the housing and including a hinge shaft extending towards the door, the door being movably connected to the housing by using the hinge shaft; where when the door is in a state of closing the storage compartment, a first end of the first side wall close to the housing has a first spacing to the housing, the first spacing being less than or equal to a second distance from an axis of the hinge shaft to the front wall, and the second distance being less than a third distance, the third distance being a vertical distance between the axis of the hinge shaft and the first end in a thickness direction of the door. By using the design of the hinge in the solution of the present disclosure, interference between the door and a cabinet during the opening can be reduced.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the technical field of refrigeration appliances, and in particular, to a refrigeration appliance.BACKGROUND

[0002] Refrigeration appliances are widely used in people's daily life and work for storing and preserving items. Typically, a refrigeration appliance uses a housing to form a storage compartment, and closes the storage compartment by using a door. The door is connected to the housing by using a hinge. For example, the door is provided with a receiving groove, a hinge is installed on the housing, a shaft of the hinge extends into the receiving groove, and the shaft rotates relatively within the receiving groove during opening and closing of the door.

[0003] With the development of home decoration, integration of refrigeration appliances with home decoration is a current mainstream trend. The refrigeration appliance is embedded into a cabinet, requiring a very small gap between the door of the refrigeration appliance and the cabinet and also requiring that the door of the refrigeration appliance can be opened to at least 90°, which poses a new challenge to the hinge.SUMMARY

[0004] An objective of embodiments of the present disclosure is to provide an improved refrigeration appliance.

[0005] Therefore, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a refrigeration appliance, including: a housing defining at least one storage compartment; a door movably connected to the front of the housing to open or close at least a part of the storage compartment, the door including a front wall defining a front surface of the refrigeration appliance and a first side wall always located between the front wall and the storage compartment during opening and closing of the door; and a hinge fixed to the housing and including a hinge shaft extending towards the door, the door being movably connected to the housing by using the hinge shaft; where when the door is in a state of closing the storage compartment, a first end of the first side wall close to the housing has a first spacing to the housing, the first spacing being less than or equal to a second distance from an axis of the hinge shaft to the front wall, and the second distance being less than a third distance, the third distance being a vertical distance between the axis of the hinge shaft and the first end in a thickness direction of the door.

[0006] In this implementation solution, by limiting that a distance from the hinge shaft to the front wall of the door, a distance to a rear end of the first side wall, and a door-to-cabinet spacing when the door closes the storage compartment satisfy certain constraints, interference between the door and the cabinet during the opening is reduced, and interference between a side edge of the door and the housing during the opening of the door is also reduced, concurrently meeting a requirement for built-in installation and protecting the refrigeration appliance from bumping. The side edge is specifically a junction between the front wall and the first side wall. Further, the hinge in this implementation solution is improved on the basis of a conventional single-axis hinge to meet the requirement for built-in installation, which does not require a disruptive structural change and has strong compatibility with existing refrigeration appliances. Further, the hinge in this implementation solution is a single-axis hinge, and during opening and closing of the door, no track-changing movement is required. An overall movement stroke is stable, and a situation where a door opening trajectory is uncontrollable may not occur. Smooth door opening and closing is ensured, and noise is not easily generated.

[0007] Further, the distance from the hinge shaft to the front wall of the door is no less than the door-to-cabinet spacing, which can provide sufficient space for the arrangement of the door liner seal installed on a side of the door facing the housing, preventing an influence on a thermal insulation effect of the refrigeration appliance due to damage caused by extrusion to the door liner seal during the opening of the door.

[0008] Optionally, a fourth distance from the axis of the hinge shaft to the first side wall is greater than the second distance. Therefore, on the premise of satisfying a constraint that the first spacing ≤ the second distance < the third distance, a setting position of the hinge shaft on the door is closer to the front wall than the first side wall, to further ensure that the side edge of the door may not collide with the cabinet during the opening and closing of the door.

[0009] Optionally, a difference between the second distance and the fourth distance satisfies the following condition: 0<|L2-L4|≤7 mm, where L2 denotes the second distance, and L4 denotes the fourth distance. The difference obtained by subtracting the fourth distance from the second distance characterizes a distance at which the door is recessed in a width direction of the refrigeration appliance away from the cabinet during the opening of the door from 0° to 90°. If the door is more recessed inwards during the opening, more pulling-out and usage space of a drawer inside the storage compartment is occupied. Therefore, by reasonably setting the second distance and the fourth distance, no interference with a cabinet wall can be ensured during the opening of the door, and the door is as close as possible to the cabinet wall when opened to 90°, thereby allowing the drawer to be made wider, which helps to increase an actual usable volume for a user.

[0010] Optionally, a value range of the fourth distance is from 13 to 18 mm. Therefore, the fourth distance is made as small as possible on the basis of ensuring that it is greater than the second distance, to ensure no interference with the cabinet wall during the opening of the door and make the door as close as possible to the cabinet wall when opened to 90°, thereby allowing the drawer to be made wider, which helps to increase the actual usable volume for the user.

[0011] Optionally, the hinge includes a hinge plate fixed to the housing and extending towards the door, the hinge shaft is disposed on the hinge plate, and when the door is in a closed state, a side of the hinge plate facing the first side wall is recessed inwards to form a groove. Therefore, application to various different doors, such as a metal door and a glass door, can be achieved. Specifically, a first side wall of the metal door, at a position close to the side edge, protrudes upwards to form a side protrusion structure, and the groove provided in the hinge plate is configured to avoid the side protrusion structure during the movement of the door. As for the glass door, the design of the groove is also retained in the hinge plate. Therefore, the glass door and the metal door can reuse the hinge plate of a same model, thereby reducing models of parts and facilitating factory management and production.

[0012] Optionally, a value of a diameter of the hinge shaft is taken from a range of 6 to 8 mm. Therefore, on the premise of ensuring structural strength to provide reliable support for the door, a thin shaft is adopted so that the hinge shaft can be disposed closer to the front wall of the door, meeting the requirement for built-in installation.

[0013] Optionally, the first spacing is no greater than 11 mm. By reasonably controlling a maximum value of the door-to-cabinet spacing when the door closes the storage compartment, it is beneficial to meet the requirement for built-in installation and also reduce the interference between the first end of the first side wall and the housing during the opening of the door, thereby preventing damage to a shell of the refrigeration appliance due to dumping.

[0014] Optionally, a value range of the second distance is 8.5 to 12 mm. The value of the second distance should not be too large in order to meet the requirement for built-in installation, and the value of the second distance should not be too small in order to prevent the interference between the first end and the housing when the door is opened.

[0015] Optionally, the third distance is greater than or equal to 33 mm. By reasonably controlling a minimum value of the third distance, the requirement for built-in installation is met, and the interference between the first end of the first side wall and the housing during the opening of the door is reduced, thereby preventing damage to the shell of the refrigeration appliance due to dumping.

[0016] Optionally, the refrigeration appliance further includes a rear wall that faces the housing when the door is closed, the rear wall being provided with a door liner seal, the door liner seal including a magnetic adsorption member adapted to be adsorbed onto the housing when the door closes the storage compartment, the magnetic adsorption member having an outer side end closer to the first side wall and an inner side end farther from the first side wall, and the axis of the hinge shaft is closer to the outer side end than to the inner side end. Therefore, the setting position of the axis of the hinge shaft on the door also considers deformation of the door liner seal during the opening and closing of the door. On the premise of satisfying the foregoing constraints, the setting position of the axis is closer to the outer side end to ensure that the door liner seal (especially the magnetic adsorption member) may not extrude the housing and cause damage when the door is opened.

[0017] Optionally, a degree of overlap between a circle with the axis of the hinge shaft as a center and a distance from the axis to the outer side end as a diameter and the housing is less than a first variation, the first variation being a variation in a vertical distance between the magnetic adsorption member and the first end along the thickness direction of the door when the door is in an open state compared to a vertical distance between the magnetic adsorption member and the first end along the thickness direction of the door when the door is in a closed state. An inappropriate setting position of the axis may cause too early adsorption of the magnetic adsorption member onto the housing when the door is closed. In this case, the door liner seal may extrude the housing and cause a flashing edge of the door liner seal to warp and expose an inner liner (i.e., the rear wall), and the door cannot be closed completely due to too early adsorption of the magnetic adsorption member onto the housing. In this implementation solution, in the design of the position of the axis, interference between the magnetic adsorption member and the housing during the opening and closing of the door caused by the distance from the axis to the outer side end is also considered, so that a moment at which the magnetic adsorption member is adsorbed onto the housing during the closing of the door can be as close as possible to a moment at which the door is closed. For example, the magnetic adsorption member is basically adsorbed onto the housing when the door is closed to 0°.

[0018] Optionally, the circle is tangent to the housing. Therefore, during the opening and closing of the door, a degree of interference between the outer side end of the magnetic adsorption member and the housing is the least, which meets the requirement for built-in installation and minimizes damage to the housing caused by bumping during the opening and closing of the door.

[0019] Optionally, the door is provided with a receiving groove, and a shaft sleeve is inserted into the receiving groove to receive the hinge shaft, where during the movement of the door, the hinge shaft, the shaft sleeve, and the door rotate relative to each other in pairs. Therefore, the shaft sleeve can have effects of connection and transition between the receiving groove and the hinge shaft, improving smoothness of the rotation during the opening and closing of the door.

[0020] Optionally, one of the hinge shaft and the shaft sleeve is provided with a limiting portion, the other is provided with a fitting portion, the limiting portion being configured to fit the fitting portion to restrict the relative rotation between the hinge shaft and the shaft sleeve during the movement of the door, and the shaft sleeve and the door rotate relative to each other during the movement of the door. Therefore, wear of the hinge shaft can be reduced, and the service life of the parts is prolonged.

[0021] Optionally, the shaft sleeve includes a flange lapping on an upper surface of the door, and a side of the flange facing the front wall is partially cut away to form an avoidance portion. Therefore, the hinge shaft can be disposed as close as possible to the front wall, ensuring that the second distance is sufficiently small within an allowable range.

[0022] Optionally, the hinge includes a hinge plate fixed to the housing and extending towards the door, and the hinge shaft is disposed on the hinge plate, where the hinge shaft and the hinge plate are integrally formed. The integrally formed hinge is conducive to reducing manufacturing complexity.

[0023] Optionally, the hinge plate includes a body fixed to the housing and a head extending from the body, the hinge shaft is closer to the head than to the body, and a fifth spacing from an outer contour of a projection of the hinge shaft along an axial direction onto the head to an outer contour of the head is less than 2 mm. Therefore, the hinge shaft can be disposed as close as possible to the front wall, ensuring that the second distance is sufficiently small within an allowable range.

[0024] Optionally, the axis is located on a front side of a center of gravity of the door in a front-rear direction of the door. Therefore, when the door is about to reach the closed state, the door has a tendency to move towards the housing, which is conducive to automatic closing of the door at a small angle and making it easier to keep the door at a closed position.

[0025] Optionally, the door includes a handle groove, and a projection of the axis of the hinge shaft along a width direction of the door overlaps with the handle groove. Therefore, a door opening force required by the user to open the door is smaller, the opening of the door is more effort-saving, and user experience is better.

[0026] Optionally, the door includes a handle groove, the handle groove including a front side wall defining a front boundary of the handle groove and a rear side wall defining a rear boundary of the handle groove, and along the thickness direction of the door, the axis of the hinge shaft is disposed closer to the front side wall than the rear side wall. Therefore, the door opening force is further saved.

[0027] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a refrigeration appliance, including a housing and a door, the housing defining at least one storage compartment, and the door being movably connected to the front of the housing by using a hinge, to open or close at least a part of the storage compartment, where the hinge includes a hinge shaft disposed on the door, and the door is rotatable around the hinge shaft; and the door includes a front wall defining a front surface of the refrigeration appliance and a first side wall always located between the front wall and the storage compartment during opening and closing of the door, and a difference between a maximum distance from an axis of the hinge shaft to a junction between the first side wall and the front wall and a fourth distance from the axis of the hinge shaft to the first side wall is less than 4 mm.

[0028] In this implementation solution, by limiting that a maximum distance from the hinge shaft to the side edge of the door and a distance to the first side wall satisfy certain constraints, interference between the door and the cabinet during the opening is reduced, and interference between the side edge of the door and the housing during the opening of the door is also reduced, concurrently meeting the requirement for built-in installation and protecting the refrigeration appliance from bumping. The side edge is specifically a junction between the front wall and the first side wall. Further, the hinge in this implementation solution only needs to be optimized and adjusted on the basis of a conventional single-axis hinge to meet the requirement for built-in installation, which does not require a disruptive structural change, is easier to promote and implement, and has strong compatibility with existing refrigeration appliances. Further, the hinge in this implementation solution is a single-axis hinge, and during opening and closing of the door, no track-changing movement is required, leading to a stable overall movement stroke and ensuring smooth door opening and closing.

[0029] Further, the distance from the hinge shaft to the front wall of the door is no less than the door-to-cabinet spacing, which can provide sufficient space for the arrangement of the door liner seal installed on a side of the door facing the housing, preventing an influence on a thermal insulation effect of the refrigeration appliance due to damage caused by extrusion to the door liner seal during the opening of the door.

[0030] Optionally, a relative position of the hinge shaft on the door satisfies the following condition: A 2 + B 2 − A < 4; where A denotes the fourth distance, and B denotes the second distance from the hinge shaft to the front wall.

[0031] Therefore, it is ensured that the refrigeration appliance can be embedded into the cabinet and the door can be opened to at least 90°.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a refrigeration appliance according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 2 is a partial enlarged diagram of a region A in FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the structure shown in FIG. 2 from another perspective; FIG. 4 to FIG. 7 are schematic diagrams of a door opening process in a typical application scenario according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a lower hinge region when a door is opened to an angle shown in FIG. 7; FIG. 9 is a sectional diagram taken along a direction B-B in FIG. 1; FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of the door according to a modified example of an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 11 is a partial enlarged diagram of a region C in FIG. 10; FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of fitting between the door shown in FIG. 10 in a state of closing a storage compartment and a hinge; FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of fitting between the door shown in FIG. 10 at a maximum opening angle and the hinge; FIG. 14 to FIG. 17 are schematic diagrams of equivalent models of a motion trajectory of the hinge region in FIG. 1 during opening of the door; FIG. 18 is an exploded diagram of the hinge and a shaft sleeve in FIG. 2; FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram of the door in FIG. 2 from another perspective; and FIG. 20 is an exploded diagram of a connection region between the hinge and the door according to a modified example of an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0033] In the drawings, 1: refrigeration appliance; 10: housing; 101: storage compartment; 11: door; 110: front wall; 111: first side wall; 111a: first end; 111b: second end; 1111: main body portion; 1112: side protrusion structure; 112: front panel; 113: rear wall; 114: upper edge clip; 115: recessed portion; 116: thermal insulation space; 117: lower edge clip; 118: second side wall; 12: door liner seal; 121: magnetic adsorption member; 121a: outer side end; 121b: inner side end; 122: airbag chamber; 13: receiving groove; 14: shaft sleeve; 141: flange; 142: avoidance portion; 2: hinge; 21: hinge shaft; 22: hinge plate; 221: groove; 222: body; 223: head; 224: stamped groove; 23: limit block; 26: door closer; 226: protrusion; 31: limiting portion; 32: fitting portion; 4: handle groove; 41: front side wall; 42: rear side wall; 5: cabinet wall; L1: first spacing; L2: second distance; L3: third distance; L4: fourth distance; L5: fifth spacing; L6: maximum distance; L7: spacing between a side wall of the refrigeration appliance and a cabinet wall of the cabinet; s1: motion trajectory of a side edge during opening of the door; s2: motion trajectory of the first end during opening of the door; x: width direction of the refrigeration appliance; y: depth direction of the refrigeration appliance; z: height direction of the refrigeration appliance. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] To make the foregoing objectives, features, and advantages of the present disclosure more comprehensible, specific embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0035] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a refrigeration appliance 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 2 is a partial enlarged diagram of a region A in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the structure shown in FIG. 2 from another perspective.

[0036] The refrigeration appliance 1 may be, for example, a refrigerator, a freezer, a wine cooler, or the like. In FIG. 1, a cross-door refrigerator is taken as an example for illustration. In practical applications, the relevant design of a hinge and a receiving groove fitting the hinge in this implementation solution is also applicable to various forms of refrigerators such as a side-by-side refrigerator, a multi-door refrigerator, a single-door refrigerator, and the like. In FIG. 1, to more clearly display an internal structure of the refrigeration appliance 1, one door 11 is omitted.

[0037] For ease of description, in this implementation solution, a width direction of the refrigeration appliance 1 is denoted as a direction x, a depth direction is denoted as a direction y, and a height direction is denoted as a direction z. In this implementation solution, a front-rear direction refers to the direction y and an opposite direction thereof. The front or a front side refers to a direction facing a user when the refrigeration appliance 1 is in use, and the rear or a rear side refers to a direction facing away from the user when the refrigeration appliance 1 is in use.

[0038] Specifically, referring to FIG. 1, the refrigeration appliance 1 may include a housing 10 and a door 11, the housing 10 defines at least one storage compartment 101, and the door 11 is movably connected to the front of the housing 10 to open or close at least a part of the storage compartment 101. The storage compartment 101 may be, for example, a freezer compartment, a refrigerator compartment, a convertible compartment, or the like.

[0039] The door 11 may include a thermal insulation space 116 filled with a thermal insulation material (as shown in FIG. 9). When the door 11 closes the storage compartment 101, a thermal insulation layer formed by the thermal insulation space 116 has an effect of heat insulation to ensure that the storage compartment 101 has a better refrigeration / freezing effect.

[0040] More specifically, referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, the door 11 may include a front panel 112, a rear wall 113 that faces the housing 10 when the door 11 is closed (as shown in FIG. 5), and a frame disposed along a periphery of the door 11.

[0041] The thermal insulation space 116 is located between the front panel 112 and the rear wall 113. A forward-facing surface of the front panel 112 is adapted to form a front wall 110 defining a front surface of the refrigeration appliance 1. In some embodiments, the front panel 112 forms at least a part of a front boundary of the thermal insulation space 116 so that the thermal insulation material contacts a rear side of the front panel 112. In some other embodiments, another door panel may be further disposed on the rear side of the front panel 112. The front panel 112 may be a metal door shell, a glass panel, or a ceramic panel. In the embodiments shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 9, a glass door (that is, the front panel 112 is a glass panel) is taken as an example for illustration. In the modified examples shown in FIG. 10 to FIG. 13, a metal door (that is, the front panel 112 is a metal door shell) is taken as an example for illustration.

[0042] Further, the door 11 may include an upper edge clip 114 and a lower edge clip 117 arranged opposite each other along the direction z (as shown in FIG. 8).

[0043] Further, the door 11 may include a first side wall 111 and a second side wall 118 arranged opposite each other along the direction x, both of which delimit the door 11 in the direction x. In other words, the first side wall 111 and the second side wall 118 may be outer surfaces of left and right frames of the door 11.

[0044] Further, referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, the door 11 may be movably connected to the housing 10 by using a hinge 2.

[0045] The hinge 2 may include a hinge plate 22 and a hinge shaft 21. The hinge plate 22 is fixed to the housing 10 and extends towards the door 11. The hinge shaft 21 is disposed on the hinge plate 22. The door 11 is movably connected to the housing 10 by using the hinge shaft 21. For example, the hinge plate 22 may be fixed to the housing 10 by using a fastener such as a screw.

[0046] Further, the hinge 2 may be disposed adjacent to the first side wall 111. Correspondingly, a side where the first side wall 111 is located may also be called a hinge side. Exemplarily, a door handle may be provided near the second side wall 118. Correspondingly, a side where the second side wall 118 is located may also be called a non-hinge side or a handle side.

[0047] Referring to FIG. 4 to FIG. 7, the door 11 rotates about the hinge shaft 21 of the hinge 2 to move between 0° and a maximum opening angle (for example, 115°) to open or close the storage compartment 101. Further, the first side wall 111 is always located between the front wall 110 and the storage compartment 101 during opening and closing of the door 11. The second side wall 118 is located between the front wall 110 and the storage compartment 101 when the door 11 is in the state of closing the storage compartment 101. When the door 11 is opened to 90° or a larger angle, the second side wall 118 is located on a side of the door 11 away from the storage compartment 101.

[0048] The related structure of the hinge 2 in this implementation solution may be compatible with multiple types of doors. For example, the glass door shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 9 and the metal door shown in FIG. 10 to FIG. 13 are applicable to the hinge 2 in this implementation solution.

[0049] Next, unless otherwise specified, the specific structure of the hinge 2 and a setting position on the door 11 will be described in detail by taking the glass door as an example.

[0050] The hinge 2 may include an upper hinge and a lower hinge arranged opposite each other along the direction z. The upper hinge is disposed on the upper edge clip 114 of the door 11, as shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 7. The lower hinge is disposed on the lower edge clip 117 of the door 11, as shown in FIG. 8. Structures of the hinge shafts 21 of the upper hinge and the lower hinge and setting positions on the door 11 remain consistent. The hinge plates 22 of the upper hinge and the lower hinge are limited to slight differences in shape and construction.

[0051] In a specific implementation, referring to FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 9, and FIG. 14, when the door 11 is in the state of closing the storage compartment 101, a first spacing L1 exists between a first end 111a of the first side wall 111 close to the housing 10 and the housing 10. The first spacing L1 may exist due to the door liner seal 12 sandwiched between the door 11 and the housing 10.

[0052] Further, the first spacing L1 is less than or equal to a second distance L2 from an axis of the hinge shaft 21 to the front wall 110, and the second distance L2 is less than a third distance L3. The third distance L3 is a vertical distance between the axis of the hinge shaft 21 and the first end 111a in a thickness direction (e.g., the direction y) of the door 11. In the structure shown in FIG. 9, the door 11 (e.g., the upper edge clip 114) may be provided with a receiving groove 13 adapted to receive the hinge shaft 21. Therefore, the axis of the hinge shaft 21 may be equal to an axis of the receiving groove 13.

[0053] In other words, a specific setting position of the axis of the hinge shaft 21 on the door 11 needs to satisfy at least the following constraint: the first spacing L1 ≤ the second distance L2 < the third distance L3.

[0054] Referring to FIG. 14 to FIG. 17, a sum of the third distance L3 and the second distance L2 is equal to a thickness of the door 11 (i.e., a dimension along the direction y). When the thickness of the door 11 is determined, a smaller second distance L2 indicates a larger third distance L3. A motion trajectory s1 of a side edge (also called a corner, namely, a junction between the front wall 110 and the first side wall 111) of the door 11 during the opening of the door 11 is a circle drawn with the axis of the hinge shaft 21 as a center and a maximum distance L6 from the axis to the side edge as a radius. A smaller second distance L2 indicates a smaller degree to which the motion trajectory s1 of the side edge of the door 11 exceeds the first side wall 111 when the door 11 closes the storage compartment 101. Therefore, the third distance L3 is greater than the second distance L2 so that the axis of the hinge shaft 21 can be disposed as close as possible to the front wall 110, reducing interference between the door 11 and a cabinet wall 5 of the cabinet during the opening of the door.

[0055] A smaller second distance L2 indicates that the axis of the hinge shaft 21 is closer to the front wall 110. Referring to FIG. 15 to FIG. 17, a motion trajectory s2 of the first end 111a of the first side wall 111 during the opening of the door 11 is a circle drawn with the axis of the hinge shaft 21 as a center and a distance from the axis to the first end 111a as a radius. A smaller second distance L2 indicates a greater degree of interference between the motion trajectory s2 of the first end 111a and the housing 10. Therefore, the second distance L2 cannot be too small either, so as to reduce interference between the first end 111a and the housing 10 during the opening of the door.

[0056] Based on the above, by use of this implementation solution, by limiting that a distance from the hinge shaft 21 to the front wall 110 of the door 11 (i.e., the second distance L2), a distance to a rear end (i.e., the first end 111a) of the first side wall 111 (i.e., the third distance L3), and a door-to-cabinet spacing (i.e., the first spacing L1) when the door 11 closes the storage compartment 101 satisfy certain constraints, interference between the door 11 and the cabinet during the opening is reduced, and interference between the side edge of the door 11 and the housing 10 during the opening of the door is also reduced, concurrently meeting a requirement for built-in installation and protecting the refrigeration appliance 1 from bumping.

[0057] Further, the hinge 2 in this implementation solution is improved on the basis of a conventional single-axis hinge to meet the requirement for built-in installation, which does not require a disruptive structural change and has strong compatibility with existing refrigeration appliances. Further, the hinge 2 in this implementation solution is a single-axis hinge, and during opening and closing of the door 11, no track-changing movement is required. An overall movement stroke is stable and controllable, ensuring smoothness of opening and closing of the door 11. Moreover, noise is not easily generated during the opening and closing of the door.

[0058] Further, the distance from the hinge shaft 21 to the front wall 110 of the door 11 (i.e., the second distance L2) is no less than the door-to-cabinet spacing (i.e., the first spacing L), which can provide sufficient space for the arrangement of the door liner seal 12 installed on a side of the door 11 facing the housing 10, preventing an influence on a thermal insulation effect of the refrigeration appliance 1 due to damage caused by extrusion to the door liner seal 12 during the opening of the door 11.

[0059] In a specific implementation, the refrigeration appliance 1 may be embedded into the cabinet. Still referring to FIG. 9 and FIG. 14 to FIG. 17, the refrigeration appliance 1 adopting built-in installation (such as a built-in refrigerator, also called a zero-clearance refrigerator) needs to be able to be embedded into a matching built-in cabinet (such as a cabinet). After the embedding, a spacing L7 between the side wall 111 of the refrigeration appliance 1 and the cabinet wall 5 of the cabinet can be maintained within 4 millimeters (mm). Correspondingly, a difference between the maximum distance L6 from the axis of the hinge shaft 21 to the junction between the first side wall 111 and the front wall 110 and the fourth distance L4 from the axis of the hinge shaft 21 to the first side wall 111 is less than 4 mm. That is, L6-L4<4. Therefore, during the rotation of the door 11 open from the position of 0° about the hinge shaft 21, the maximum distance by which the motion trajectory s1 (i.e., the circle drawn with the axis of the hinge shaft 21 as a center and a diameter from the axis to the side edge as a radius in FIG. 14 to FIG. 17) of the side edge of the door 1 exceeds an outermost side (i.e., the first side wall 111) along the direction x when the door 11 is at the closed position may not exceed 4 mm, which ensures that the opening and closing of the door 11 may not bump into the cabinet wall 5 on the premise of making the spacing L7 meet the design requirement of not exceeding 4 mm.

[0060] Further, the maximum distance L6 from the axis of the hinge shaft 21 to the side edge may be equivalent to A 2 + B 2 , where A denotes the fourth distance L4, and B denotes the second distance L2 from the hinge shaft 21 to the front wall 110. Correspondingly, L6-L4<4 may be equivalent to a conditional formula (1): A 2 + B 2 − A < 4. By designing the relative position of the hinge shaft 21 on the door 11 to satisfy the above conditional expression, it can be ensured that the refrigeration appliance 1 can be embedded into the cabinet and the door 11 can be opened to at least 90°.

[0061] In a specific implementation, still referring to FIG. 3, FIG. 9, and FIG. 14 to FIG. 17, the fourth distance L4 from the axis of the hinge shaft 21 to the first side wall 111 is greater than the second distance L2. That is, L4>L2. Specifically, in addition to satisfying the foregoing constraint L1≤L2<L3 and / or the foregoing conditional expression (1), the setting position of the hinge shaft 21 on the door 11 is closer to the front wall 110 relative to the first side wall 111. Therefore, it can be further ensured that the side edge of the door 11 may not collide with the cabinet wall 5 of the cabinet during the opening and closing of the door 11. Further, the position setting of the hinge shaft 21 that simultaneously satisfies the foregoing multiple constraints is also conducive to reducing extrusion to the door liner seal 12 during the opening and closing of the door.

[0062] In some embodiments, a difference between the second distance L2 and the fourth distance L4 may satisfy the following condition: 0<|L2-L4|≤7 mm. ∥ denotes an absolute value symbol.

[0063] Specifically, the difference obtained by subtracting the fourth distance L4 from the second distance L2 characterizes a distance at which the door 11 is recessed in a width direction (i.e., the direction x) of the refrigeration appliance 1 away from the cabinet during the opening of the door from 0° to 90°, as shown in FIG. 14. If the door 11 is more recessed inwards during the opening, more pulling-out and usage space of a drawer inside the storage compartment 101 is occupied. Therefore, by reasonably setting the second distance L2 and the fourth distance L4, no interference with the cabinet wall 5 can be ensured during the opening of the door 11, and the door 11 is as close as possible to the cabinet wall 5 when opened to 90°, thereby allowing the drawer to be made wider, which helps to increase an actual usable volume for the user.

[0064] For example, L2-L4=-2 mm. That is, when the door 11 is at the position of closing the storage compartment 101, the first side wall 111 is flush with a side surface of the housing 10. When the door 11 is opened to 90°, the front wall 110 is recessed by 2 mm relative to the side surface of the housing.

[0065] In some embodiments, a value range of the fourth distance L4 may be from 13 to 18 mm. Therefore, the fourth distance L4 is made as small as possible on the basis of ensuring that it is greater than the second distance L2, to ensure no interference with the cabinet wall 5 during the opening of the door 11 and make the door 11 as close as possible to the cabinet wall 5 when opened to 90°, thereby allowing the drawer to be made wider, which helps to increase the actual usable volume for the user.

[0066] In some embodiments, a value of a diameter of the hinge shaft 21 may be taken from a range of 6 to 8 mm. Compared to a conventional thick shaft with a diameter of 16 mm selected purely based on structural strength, in this embodiment, on the premise of ensuring structural strength to provide reliable support for the door 11, a thin shaft is adopted so that the axis of the hinge shaft 21 can be disposed closer to the front wall 110 of the door 11, meeting the requirement for built-in installation.

[0067] In some embodiments, the hinge shaft 21 may be a solid shaft to further improve the structural strength.

[0068] In some embodiments, a display panel (not shown) may be mounted on an outer surface of the door 11 (e.g., the front wall 110), for receiving or displaying control instructions for the refrigeration appliance 1. The display panel is coupled, by using a wiring harness, to a control module (not shown) disposed in the housing 10.

[0069] Further, the wiring harness may extend in the thermal insulation space 116 and extend to the housing 10 via the hinge 2.

[0070] For example, the wiring harness no longer passes through the inside of the hinge shaft 21, but instead, a groove may be provided in the hinge plate 22 for the wiring harness to pass through. The groove may be made into an oblong shape to provide a movement space for the wiring harness during the movement of the door 11. Therefore, in this case, the wiring harness is not located at a rotation center point and may perform circular motion around the axis of the hinge shaft 21.

[0071] In some embodiments, the first spacing L1 is no greater than 11 mm. For example, a value of the spacing L1 may be taken from a range of 8 to 11 mm. By reasonably controlling a maximum value (i.e., no more than 11 mm) of the door-to-cabinet spacing when the door 11 closes the storage compartment 101, it is beneficial to meet the requirement for built-in installation and also reduce the interference between the first end 111a of the first side wall 111 and the housing 10 during the opening of the door, thereby preventing damage to a shell of the refrigeration appliance 1 due to dumping.

[0072] In some embodiments, a value range of the second distance L2 may be 8.5 to 12 mm. For example, the second distance L2 may be 11.5 mm. The value of the second distance L2 should not be too large in order to meet the requirement for built-in installation, and the value of the second distance L2 should not be too small in order to prevent the interference between the first end 111a and the housing 10 when the door 11 is opened.

[0073] In some embodiments, the third distance L3 may be greater than or equal to 33 mm. For example, the thickness of the door 11 is typically taken from a range of 45 to 70 mm. Considering that the second distance L2 takes a maximum value of 12 mm, a minimum value of the third distance L3 may be determined as 45-12 = 33 mm. By reasonably designing a minimum value of the third distance L3, the requirement for built-in installation is met, and the interference between the first end 111a of the first side wall 111 and the housing 10 during the opening of the door is reduced, thereby preventing damage to the shell of the refrigeration appliance 1 due to dumping.

[0074] In a specific implementation, still referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 9, the door liner seal 12 may be disposed on the rear wall 113. When the door 11 closes the storage compartment 101, the door liner seal 12 is sandwiched between the rear wall 113 and the housing 10 to seal the storage compartment 101.

[0075] Specifically, referring to FIG. 14, the door liner seal 12 may include a magnetic adsorption member 121 adapted to be adsorbed onto the housing 10 when the door 11 closes the storage compartment 101. The door liner seal 12 may further include an airbag chamber 122 between the magnetic adsorption member 121 and the first side wall 111.

[0076] A non-zero gap may exist between the airbag chamber 122 and the first side wall 111, and / or, a non-zero gap may also exist between the airbag chamber 122 and the magnetic adsorption member 121, as shown in a region circled by the dashed line in FIG. 9. Further, a size of the foregoing gap changes when the door 11 is in the state of closing the storage compartment 101 compared to when it is in the state of opening the storage compartment 101. The change causes a vertical distance between the magnetic adsorption member 121 and the first end 111a of the first side wall 111 along the direction y to change. For example, after the door 11 moves from the open state to the state of closing the storage compartment 101, due to negative pressure in the storage compartment 101, the gap between the airbag chamber 122 and the first side wall 111 and / or between the airbag chamber 122 and the magnetic adsorption member 121 is reduced. For ease of description, a variation in a vertical distance between the magnetic adsorption member 121 and the first end 111a along the direction y when the door 11 is in an open state compared to a vertical distance between the magnetic adsorption member 121 and the first end 111a along the direction y when the door 11 is in a closed state is denoted as a first variation.

[0077] Further, along the direction x, the magnetic adsorption member 121 may have an outer side end 121a closer to the first side wall 111 and an inner side end 121b farther from the first side wall 111, and the axis of the hinge shaft 21 is closer to the outer side end 121a than to the inner side end 121b. In other words, a projection of the axis of the hinge shaft 21 along the direction y overlaps with the magnetic adsorption member 121, and an overlapping point deviates from a central axis of the magnetic adsorption member 121 in the direction x towards the outer side end 121a.

[0078] Therefore, the setting position of the axis of the hinge shaft 21 on the door 11 also considers deformation (e.g., the first variation) of the door liner seal 12 during the opening and closing of the door 11. On the premise of satisfying the foregoing constraints, the setting position of the axis is closer to the outer side end 121a to ensure that the door liner seal 12 (especially the magnetic adsorption member 121) may not extrude the housing 10 and cause damage when the door 11 is opened.

[0079] In some embodiments, the door liner seal 12 may further include a flashing edge (not shown) lapping on the first side wall 111. The design of the flashing edge is adapted to shield the rear wall 113 from a side surface of the refrigeration appliance 1 when the door 11 closes the storage compartment 101, making an appearance of the refrigeration appliance 1 more aesthetically pleasing. The airbag chamber 122 and the first side wall 111 may specifically be a gap between the airbag chamber 122 and the flashing edge.

[0080] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 14 to FIG. 17, a degree of overlapping between the circle with the axis of the hinge shaft 21 as a center and a distance from the axis to the outer side end 121a as a diameter and the housing 10 may be less than the first variation. Specifically, an inappropriate setting position of the axis may cause too early adsorption of the magnetic adsorption member 121 onto the housing 10 when the door 11 is closed. In this case, the door liner seal 12 may extrude the housing 10 and cause the flashing edge of the door liner seal 12 to warp and expose an inner liner (i.e., the rear wall 113), and the door 11 cannot be closed completely due to too early adsorption of the magnetic adsorption member 121 onto the housing 10. In this implementation solution, in the design of the position of the axis, interference between the magnetic adsorption member 121 and the housing 10 during the opening and closing of the door 11 caused by the distance from the axis to the outer side end 121a is also considered, so that a moment at which the magnetic adsorption member 121 is adsorbed onto the housing 10 during the closing of the door 11 can be as close as possible to a moment at which the door 11 is closed. For example, the magnetic adsorption member 121 is basically adsorbed onto the housing 10 when the door 11 is closed to 0°.

[0081] In some embodiments, the circle with the axis of the hinge shaft 21 as a center and the distance from the axis to the outer side end 121a as a diameter may be tangent to the housing 10. Therefore, during the opening and closing of the door 11, a degree of interference between the outer side end 121a of the magnetic adsorption member 121 and the housing 10 is the least. For example, when the door 11 is open or closed, the door liner seal 12 basically moves by grazing the housing 10 without excessive mutual extrusion, which meets the requirement for built-in installation and minimizes damage to the housing 10 caused by bumping during the opening and closing of the door 11.

[0082] In a specific implementation, referring to FIG. 2 to FIG. 7 and FIG. 9 to FIG. 13, the door 11 may be provided with a receiving groove 13, and a shaft sleeve 14 is inserted into the receiving groove 13 to receive the hinge shaft 21. Specifically, the shaft sleeve 14 may be provided with a through groove running from end to end, the receiving groove 13 may be a blind hole formed in the upper edge clip 114 (or the lower edge clip 117) to prevent foam leakage, and the shaft sleeve 14 is installed in the receiving groove 13.

[0083] Further, during the movement of the door 11, the hinge shaft 21, the shaft sleeve 14, and the door 11 may rotate relative to each other in pairs. In other words, during the rotation of the door 11 about the hinge shaft 21, the hinge shaft 21, the shaft sleeve 14, and the receiving groove 13 may rotate relative to each other.

[0084] For example, the hinge shaft 21 may be inserted into the shaft sleeve 14 and then extend, together with the shaft sleeve 14, into the receiving groove 13.

[0085] Dimensions of the hinge shaft 21, the shaft sleeve 14, and the receiving groove 13 may basically fit to reduce shaking during the movement of the door 11. Further, the shaft sleeve 14 may be made of a material such as polyoxymethylene resin which has a small friction coefficient and good self-lubricating properties, to ensure smoothness of movement of the hinge shaft 21 relative to the bushing shaft sleeve 14 and of the receiving groove 13 relative to the shaft sleeve 14.

[0086] Therefore, the shaft sleeve 14 can have effects of connection and transition between the receiving groove 13 and the hinge shaft 21, improving smoothness of the rotation during the opening and closing of the door 11.

[0087] In a modified example, referring to FIG. 19, during the movement of the door 11, only the shaft sleeve 14 and the door 11 may rotate relative to each other, while the shaft sleeve 14 and the hinge shaft 21 remain relatively stationary. In other words, the hinge shaft 21 is fixed to the housing 10 by using the hinge plate 22, the shaft sleeve 14 is wrapped outside the hinge shaft 21, and the door 11 rotates around the hinge shaft 21 and the shaft sleeve 14 to open or close the storage compartment 101.

[0088] Specifically, one of the hinge shaft 21 and the shaft sleeve 14 may be provided with a limiting portion 31, the other may be provided with a fitting portion 32, and the limiting portion 31 is configured to fit the fitting portion 32 to restrict the relative rotation between the hinge shaft 21 and the shaft sleeve 14 during the movement of the door 11. For example, compared to the hinge shaft 21 in a shape of a cylinder shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 10, the hinge shaft 21 in this modified example may be in a shape of a cuboid, a shape of an inner wall of the shaft sleeve 14 adapted to receive the hinge shaft 21 is also correspondingly designed as a cuboid, the hinge shaft 21 is in interference fit with the shaft sleeve 14, and four edges of the cuboid are all adapted to form the limiting portion 31 and the corresponding fitting portion 32. Further, a shape of an outer wall of the shaft sleeve 14 may be a cylinder to fit the receiving groove 13 in a shape of a cylinder, thereby ensuring that the door 11 can smoothly rotate around the hinge shaft 21 and the shaft sleeve 14.

[0089] Therefore, during the opening and closing of the door 11, friction occurs only between the outer wall of the shaft sleeve 14 and the receiving groove 13, which can reduce wear of the hinge shaft 21 and prolong the service life of the parts.

[0090] In a specific implementation, the hinge shaft 21 and the hinge plate 22 may be integrally formed. The integrally formed hinge 2 is conducive to reducing manufacturing complexity.

[0091] In a modified example, the hinge shaft 21 and the hinge plate 22 may be two separate members and be fixed together in a manner such as welding or riveting. Such a design can be compatible with conventional hinges, improving adaptability.

[0092] In a specific implementation, still referring to FIG. 2 to FIG. 7 and FIG. 18, the shaft sleeve 14 may include a flange 141 lapping on an upper surface of the door 11. Specifically, an end of the upper edge clip 114 close to the first side wall 111 may be recessed downwards to form a recessed portion 115, the recessed portion 115 is adapted to accommodate a part of the hinge 2 that protrudes from the housing 10. The front of the recessed portion 115 is shielded by the front wall 110, so that the front of the refrigeration appliance 1 is more concise and aesthetically pleasing. For example, the receiving groove 13 may be provided in the recessed portion 115, and the flange 141 may lap on an upward-facing surface of the recessed portion 115.

[0093] Further, a side of the flange 141 facing the front wall 110 may be partially cut away to form an avoidance portion 142.

[0094] For example, the flange 141 may be disposed around an opening of the shaft sleeve 14 in a circle, and a dimension of a part of the flange 141 between the shaft sleeve 14 and the front wall 110 is less than dimensions of other parts. An outer contour of the avoidance portion 142 may be basically parallel to the front wall 110. Therefore, the hinge shaft 21 can be disposed as close as possible to the front wall 110, ensuring that the second distance L2 is sufficiently small within an allowable range.

[0095] In a specific implementation, still referring to FIG. 2 to FIG. 7, the hinge plate 22 may include a body 222 fixed to the housing 10 and a head 223 extending from the body 222, and the hinge shaft 21 is closer to the head 223 than to the body 222. Specifically, the hinge shaft 21 may be disposed as close as possible to an end of the head 223 away from the body 222.

[0096] Further, a fifth spacing L5 from an outer contour of a projection of the hinge shaft 21 along an axial direction (e.g., the direction z) on the head 223 to the outer contour of the head 223 may be less than 2 mm. Specifically, referring to FIG. 3, the head 223 extends forward slightly beyond the hinge shaft 21 along the direction y. An extent of the extension is the fifth spacing L5. Further, the fifth spacing L5 may be made as small as possible, so that the hinge shaft 21 can be disposed as close as possible to the front wall 110, ensuring that the second distance L2 is sufficiently small within an allowable range.

[0097] In some embodiments, considering universality of the hinge 2 on the glass door and the metal door and considering that the glass door panel is generally thicker than the metal door panel, the second distance L2 in this embodiment may be 11.2 mm in consideration of the thickness of the glass door panel.

[0098] In some embodiments, the head 223 may be in a shape of a tip that protrudes towards the first side wall 111. An arc diameter of the tip may be approximately 8 mm.

[0099] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 4, a projection of the head 223 along the direction z does not extend beyond the flange 141 in the direction x.

[0100] In a specific implementation, in the front-rear direction (e.g., the direction y) of the door 11, the axis of the hinge shaft 21 may be located on a front side of a center of gravity of the door 11. Therefore, when the door 11 is about to reach the closed state, the door 11 has a tendency to move towards the housing 10, which is conducive to automatic closing of the door 11 at a small angle and making it easier to keep the door 11 at a closed position.

[0101] Specifically, referring to FIG. 8, a door closer 26 may be provided near the lower hinge to automatically close the door 11 when the door 11 moves to a small angle. Specifically, when the door 11 rotates to a very small angle, the door closer 26 may move along a side edge of the hinge plate 22 until it passes over a protrusion 226 on the hinge plate 22. The door closer 26 and the protrusion 226 are hooked together, thereby keeping the door 11 at the closed position. By using this implementation solution, since the axis of the hinge shaft 21 is disposed close to the front wall 110, when the door 11 moves to a small angle, the center of gravity of the door 11 in the direction y is located behind the axis. Under its own gravity, the door 11 moves more easily in a direction of closing the storage compartment 101. Therefore, the door 11 is kept at the closed position under multiple actions of its own gravity, a suction force of the door liner seal 12, and the door closer 26. Since the gravity of the door 11 keeps the door 11 close to the housing 10, the suction force of the door liner seal 12 and a load on the door closer 26 are alleviated. Then, requirements for the door closer 26 and the magnetic adsorption member 121 of the door liner seal 12 can be reduced.

[0102] In a specific implementation, the door 11 may include a handle groove 4, and the handle groove 4 may be provided in the second side wall 118; or the handle groove 4 may be provided in the lower edge clip 117 of the door 11, as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 20.

[0103] Specifically, referring to FIG. 8 and FIG. 20, the handle groove 4 may include a front side wall 41 defining a front boundary of the handle groove 4 and a rear side wall 42 defining a rear boundary of the handle groove 4. The front side wall 41 is adapted to form a gripping portion for the user to grip.

[0104] Further, a projection of the axis of the hinge shaft 21 (coinciding with a center of the receiving groove 13) along the width direction (e.g., the direction x) of the door 11 may overlap with the handle groove 4. In other words, the projection of the axis of the hinge shaft 21 along the direction x is located between the front side wall 41 and the rear side wall 42 in the direction y.

[0105] Further, along the thickness direction (e.g., the direction y) of the door 11, the axis of the hinge shaft 21 is disposed closer to the front side wall 41 than to the rear side wall 42. Referring to FIG. 20, if the axis of the hinge shaft 21 is closer to the front wall 110, a force F1 acting on the door 11 when the user operates the handle groove 4 to open the door 11 is more perpendicular to a line connecting the front side wall 41 and the axis, and a force applied by the user is transmitted to the door 11 to complete a door opening action with less loss.

[0106] Therefore, a door opening force required by the user to open the door 11 is smaller, the opening of the door 11 is more effort-saving, and user experience is better.

[0107] In a specific implementation, referring to FIG. 10 to FIG. 13, when the door 11 is in the closed state, a side of the hinge plate 22 facing the first side wall 111 may be recessed inwards to form a groove 221.

[0108] Specifically, the first side wall 111 may include a main body portion 1111 extending from the rear wall 113 to the front wall 110 and flush with the upper surface of the door 11, and a side protrusion structure 1112 extending upwards from the main body portion 1111 to the front wall 110.

[0109] Further, the groove 221 is configured to avoid the side protrusion structure 1112 during the movement of the door 11. For example, referring to FIG. 13, when the door 11 is opened to a maximum angle, the side protrusion structure 1112 is located in the groove 221, thereby enabling the door 11 to be opened to the maximum angle without being interfered with by the side protrusion structure 1112. Generally, the side protrusion structure 1112 is commonly seen in metal doors. As for glass doors, the side protrusion structure 1112 may be directly omitted, as shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 7. However, the groove 221 may be retained in the hinge 2 applied to the glass door, so that the hinges 2 applied to the glass door and applied to the metal door may reuse a same hinge plate 22, there is no need to separately mold and manufacture the hinge plates 22 in different shapes for the two types of doors.

[0110] Therefore, application to various different doors, such as a metal door and a glass door, can be achieved. Specifically, the first side wall 111 of the metal door, at a position close to the side edge, protrudes upwards to form the side protrusion structure 1112, and the groove 221 provided in the hinge plate 22 is configured to avoid the side protrusion structure 1112 during the movement of the door 11. As for the glass door, the design of the groove 221 is also retained in the hinge plate 22. Therefore, the glass door and the metal door can reuse the hinge plate 22 of a same model, thereby reducing models of parts and facilitating factory management and production.

[0111] In a specific implementation, referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 13, a stamped groove 224 may be formed in the hinge plate 22 by stamping, for enhancing strength of the hinge 2.

[0112] In a specific implementation, still referring to FIG. 8, the lower hinge may be further provided with a limit block 23, for limiting the maximum opening angle of the door 11.

[0113] Although specific implementation solutions have been described above, these implementation solutions are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure, even if only a single implementation solution is described with respect to a particular feature. Examples of features provided in the present disclosure are intended to be illustrative rather than restrictive, unless otherwise stated. In specific implementations, the technical features of one or more dependent claims may be combined with the technical features of the independent claims, and the technical features from the corresponding independent claims may be combined in any appropriate manner, rather than only in the specific combinations listed in the claims.

[0114] Although the present disclosure is disclosed above, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the protection scope of the present disclosure should be subject to the scope defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A refrigeration appliance, characterized by comprising: a housing (10) defining at least one storage compartment (101); a door (11) movably connected to the front of the housing (10) to open or close at least a part of the storage compartment (101), the door (11) comprising a front wall (110) defining a front surface of the refrigeration appliance and a first side wall (111) always located between the front wall (110) and the storage compartment (101) during opening and closing of the door (11); and a hinge (2) fixed to the housing (10) and comprising a hinge shaft (21) extending towards the door (11), the door (11) being movably connected to the housing (10) by using the hinge shaft (21); wherein when the door (11) is in a state of closing the storage compartment (101), a first end (111a) of the first side wall (111) close to the housing (10) has a first spacing (L1) to the housing (10), the first spacing (L1) being less than or equal to a second distance (L2) from an axis of the hinge shaft (21) to the front wall (110), and the second distance (L2) being less than a third distance (L3), the third distance (L3) being a vertical distance between the axis of the hinge shaft (21) and the first end (111a) in a thickness direction of the door (11).

2. The refrigeration appliance according to claim 1, characterized in that a fourth distance (L4) from the axis of the hinge shaft (21) to the first side wall (111) is greater than the second distance (L2).

3. The refrigeration appliance according to claim 2, characterized in that a difference between the second distance (L2) and the fourth distance (L4) satisfies the following condition: 0<|L2-L4|≤7 mm; and / or a value range of the fourth distance (L4) is from 13 to 18 mm.

4. The refrigeration appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the hinge (2) comprises a hinge plate (22) fixed to the housing (10) and extending towards the door (11), the hinge shaft (21) is disposed on the hinge plate (22), and when the door (11) is in a closed state, a side of the hinge plate (22) facing the first side wall (111) is recessed inwards to form a groove (221).

5. The refrigeration appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a value of a diameter of the hinge shaft (21) is taken from a range of 6 to 8 mm; and / or the first spacing (L1) is no greater than 11 mm; and / or a value range of the second distance (L2) is 8.5 to 12 mm; and / or the third distance (L3) is greater than or equal to 33 mm.

6. The refrigeration appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the refrigeration appliance further comprises a rear wall (113) that faces the housing (10) when the door (11) is closed, the rear wall (113) being provided with a door liner seal (12), the door liner seal (12) comprising a magnetic adsorption member (121) adapted to be adsorbed onto the housing (10) when the door (11) closes the storage compartment (101), the magnetic adsorption member (121) having an outer side end (121a) closer to the first side wall (111) and an inner side end (121b) farther from the first side wall (111), and the axis of the hinge shaft (21) is closer to the outer side end (121a) than to the inner side end (121b).

7. The refrigeration appliance according to claim 6, characterized in that a degree of overlap between a circle with the axis of the hinge shaft (21) as a center and a distance from the axis to the outer side end (121a) as a diameter and the housing (10) is less than a first variation, the first variation being a variation in a vertical distance between the magnetic adsorption member (121) and the first end (111a) along the thickness direction of the door (11) when the door (11) is in an open state compared to a vertical distance between the magnetic adsorption member (121) and the first end (111a) along the thickness direction of the door (11) when the door (11) is in a closed state; or the circle is tangent to the housing (10).

8. The refrigeration appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the door (11) is provided with a receiving groove (13), and a shaft sleeve (14) is inserted into the receiving groove (13) to receive the hinge shaft (21), wherein during the movement of the door (11), the hinge shaft (21), the shaft sleeve (14), and the door (11) rotate relative to each other in pairs; or one of the hinge shaft (21) and the shaft sleeve (14) is provided with a limiting portion (31), the other is provided with a fitting portion (32), the limiting portion (31) being configured to fit the fitting portion (32) to restrict the relative rotation between the hinge shaft (21) and the shaft sleeve (14) during the movement of the door (11), and the shaft sleeve (14) and the door (11) rotate relative to each other during the movement of the door (11).

9. The refrigeration appliance according to claim 8, characterized in that the shaft sleeve (14) comprises a flange (141) lapping on an upper surface of the door (11), and a side of the flange (141) facing the front wall (110) is partially cut away to form an avoidance portion (142).

10. The refrigeration appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the hinge (2) comprises a hinge plate (22) fixed to the housing (10) and extending towards the door (11), and the hinge shaft (21) is disposed on the hinge plate (22), wherein the hinge shaft (21) and the hinge plate (22) are integrally formed.

11. The refrigeration appliance according to claim 10, characterized in that the hinge plate (22) comprises a body (222) fixed to the housing (10) and a head (223) extending from the body (222), the hinge shaft (21) is closer to the head (223) than to the body 222, and a fifth spacing (L5) from an outer contour of a projection of the hinge shaft (21) along an axial direction onto the head (223) to an outer contour of the head (223) is less than 2 mm.

12. The refrigeration appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the axis is located on a front side of a center of gravity of the door (11) in a front-rear direction of the door (11).

13. The refrigeration appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the door (11) comprises a handle groove (4), and a projection of the axis of the hinge shaft (21) along a width direction of the door (11) overlaps with the handle groove (4).

14. The refrigeration appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the door (11) comprises a handle groove (4), the handle groove (4) comprising a front side wall (41) defining a front boundary of the handle groove (4) and a rear side wall (42) defining a rear boundary of the handle groove (4), and along the thickness direction of the door (11), the axis of the hinge shaft (21) is disposed closer to the front side wall (41) than the rear side wall (42).

15. A refrigeration appliance, comprising a housing (10) and a door (11), the housing (10) defining at least one storage compartment (101), and the door (11) being movably connected to the front of the housing (10) by using a hinge (2), to open or close at least a part of the storage compartment (101), characterized in that the hinge (2) comprises a hinge shaft (21) disposed on the door (11), and the door (11) is rotatable around the hinge shaft (21); and the door (11) comprises a front wall (110) defining a front surface of the refrigeration appliance and a first side wall (111) always located between the front wall (110) and the storage compartment (101) during opening and closing of the door (11), and a difference between a maximum distance (L6) from an axis of the hinge shaft (21) to a junction between the first side wall (111) and the front wall (110) and a fourth distance (L4) from the axis of the hinge shaft (21) to the first side wall (111) is less than 4 mm.

Images