Article holder and holder elements constituting the same
Symmetrical holder elements with clips on refrigerator shelves address the inefficiency of existing storage by securely organizing small items across varying sizes and spaces.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- JP2025002970U
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Utility models
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-08-29
- Publication Date
- 2025-10-24
- Estimated Expiration
- 2035-08-29
AI Technical Summary
Existing refrigerator storage solutions fail to efficiently utilize the space above shelves for storing small items of varying sizes, leading to disorganization and difficulty in retrieval.
A pair of symmetrical box-like holder elements with clips that attach to the underside of refrigerator shelves, allowing adjustable width and closure/reinforcement to securely hold items of various sizes.
The holder elements efficiently utilize the space above shelves, providing organized storage for small items by adjusting to fit different sizes and preventing items from falling out.
Smart Images
Figure 0003253396000001_ABST
Abstract
Description
[Technical Field]
[0001] This invention relates to an article holder that is attached to the underside of a shelf in a household refrigerator to store and keep refrigerated items. The article holder of this invention is composed of a pair of box-like elements that are approximately rectangular, one shaped like the Japanese character "U" in cross section, and the other shaped like an inverted "U." The opposing inner sides of these box-like elements are open, and each box-like element is attached to the underside of the shelf in the refrigerator with a clip so that it can slide laterally. [Background technology]
[0002] Refrigerators are common electrical appliances in most homes and are used as a place to store food on a daily basis. As a result, food tends to be stored in the refrigerator in a haphazard and disorganized manner, resulting in poor space utilization and making it difficult to retrieve food when needed.
[0003] Therefore, various products are commercially available for organizing and storing food in a refrigerator, and several small item storage devices have been disclosed that utilize the often-overlooked space in a refrigerator. As examples of such conventional small item storage devices, design registrations Nos. 1769876 and 1771055 disclose small item storage devices that can be attached to shelves inside a refrigerator to store various food ingredients, tube seasonings, etc. Design registration No. 1788300 also discloses a storage device that can be attached to a refrigerator partition or hung vertically on the edge of a pocket to store small items such as food. Although such small item storage devices can effectively utilize the space that tends to be located above each shelf of a refrigerator, their dimensions cannot necessarily accommodate a variety of foods, and the space above each shelf is not fully utilized. DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION [Problem to be solved by the invention]
[0004] To provide an under-shelf article holder with a simple structure that can store small foods of various sizes in a refrigerator and efficiently utilizes the upper space of each shelf of the refrigerator for arranging and storing them. [Means for solving the problem]
[0005] (1) The first invention of the present application is an article holder that is composed of the following left holder element (i) and right holder element (ii) with their recesses facing each other and cooperating to hold an article. (i) A left holder element comprising three surface members, namely, an upper member 11 and a lower member 12, which are rectangular and arranged parallel to one another, and a side member 13 connecting one long side of the upper and lower members, and a storage section 10 having an opening side 15, a front side 16, and a rear side 17 facing the side member 13, and a vertical cross section from the front that is left-right reversed and shaped like the Japanese character "U"; and a clip 20 provided on the front part of the upper surface of the upper member 11, which can grip an external shelf board and move vertically relative to the surface of the side member 13. (ii) A right holder element having a plane symmetrical shape to the left holder element with respect to the opening side surface 15 of the left holder element 1.
[0006] (2) The second invention of the present application provides a closed article holder by providing a rear side member on the rear side of the left and right holder elements described above in (1), which are open. This rear side member may be completely closed, or the article holder may be partially open.
[0007] (3) The third invention of the present application provides an article holder in which ribs for reinforcing the upper member, lower member and side member are provided on the rear side openings of the left and right holder elements of (1) above.
[0008] (4) The fourth invention of the present application provides the left holder element (i) of (1) above. The left holder element (i) is composed of three surface members: an upper member 11 and a lower member 12, which are rectangular and positioned parallel to one another, and a side member 13 connecting one of the long sides of the upper and lower members; an open side 15, a front side 16, and a rear side 17 facing the side member 13, and a storage section 10 shaped like the Japanese character "U" whose vertical cross-sectional shape from the front is reversed left to right; and a clip 20 provided on the front part of the upper surface of the upper member 11, which can grip an external shelf and move vertically relative to the surface of the side member 13. (5) The fourth invention of the present application also provides the right holder element (ii) of (1) above. The right holder element (ii) has a shape that is plane-symmetrical to the left holder element (4) with respect to the opening side surface 15 of the left holder element 1. The left holder element (i) of (4) above and the right holder element (ii) described here constitute an article holder in which the recesses face each other and cooperate to hold an article.
[0009] In addition, the device of the present application may further include a rear side member that closes the rear side of the left and right holder elements in part or in whole. In another embodiment, the rear side may be provided with a rib that reinforces the upper member, lower member, and side member. [Effects of the Invention]
[0010] The item holder of this invention has a simple structure and can be easily installed by clamping it to the refrigerator shelf with its clip. Because it is a separate type with left and right halves, the width can be freely adjusted to fit the items being stored, making it useful for organizing food and other items by effectively utilizing the dead space above the shelves in the refrigerator. [Brief explanation of the drawings]
[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of an article holder according to the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the article holder of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of a left holder element in the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the left holder element of the present invention. [Figure 5] 1 is a reference explanatory diagram showing the state in which the article holder of the present invention is attached to a shelf of a refrigerator. [Figure 6] 1 is a reference explanatory diagram showing the state in which food is stored in the article holder of the present invention. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
[0012] The present invention will now be described in more detail by way of example with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 shows one example of the article holder of the present invention. In this example, the article holder of the present invention is composed of a left holder element 1 and a right holder element 2 that are symmetrical to the left holder element 1, with their recesses facing each other and working together to form the article holder. The left holder element 1 comprises a storage section 10 and a clip 20. The storage section 10 is composed of three surface members: an upper member 11, a lower member 12, and a side member 13, which are identically shaped and positioned parallel to one another. Each of these three surface members may have an opening in a portion thereof. Thus, the opening side 15, front side 16, and rear side 17 of the storage section 10, which face the side member 13, are open, forming a recessed portion with a vertical cross-sectional shape from the front that is inverted left-right, resembling the Japanese character "U." A clip 20 is provided at the front portion of the top surface of the upper member 11, which can grip a shelf of the refrigerator and move horizontally, i.e., vertically relative to the surface of the side member 13. The clip may be any clip mechanism known in the art that can be attached to a horizontal surface in a resiliently slidable manner. On the other hand, the right holder element 2 has a shape symmetrical to the left holder element 1 with respect to the opening side surface 15 of the left holder element 1. The article holder of the present invention is arranged under a shelf of a refrigerator with the recesses of the left and right holder elements, which are mirror images of each other, facing each other while adjusting the horizontal spacing, to store various foods in the space under the shelf (Figs. 5 and 6).
[0013] This invention includes both the left holder element 1 and the right holder element 2, which has a symmetrical structure. The left holder element 1 and the right holder element 2, which are mirror images of each other, are placed under the shelves of a refrigerator with their recesses facing each other and the horizontal spacing adjusted to store various foods in the space under the shelves.
[0014] Figure 2 shows another example of an article holder according to the present invention. In this example, the storage structure 1 has a storage compartment 10 with a vertical cross-sectional shape from the front that is a left-right inverted U-shaped recess. The rear side of the storage compartment 10 is closed by a rear side member 18, leaving only the front side 16 and the open side 15 in the sliding direction open. By closing the rear side, the molded shape of the article holder is stabilized and stored food and other items are prevented from falling out.
[0015] 3 shows another embodiment of the present invention, in which an opening 14 is provided in the rear side member 18, leaving a portion of the rear side member 18 open. This opening in the rear side may have various shapes, even a lattice pattern. This shape of the rear side stabilizes the molded shapes of the left and right holder elements of the article holder and prevents food and other items from falling out. The left holder element 1 and the right holder element, which are symmetrical in shape with respect to the open side 15, have recesses facing each other and cooperate to form an article holder for storing food and other items.
[0016] Next, another specific example will be described with reference to Figure 4. In this specific example, reinforcing ribs 19 are provided on the rear side of the storage section 10. That is, ribs 19 are provided on the lower surface of the upper member 11, the inner surface of the side member 13, and the upper surface of the lower member 12. By providing ribs 19 on the rear side, the molded shape of the article holder is stabilized and stored food and other items are prevented from falling. A right holder element, which is shaped in a mirror image of the left holder element 1, forms a pair and cooperates to form an article holder for storing articles such as food.
[0017] (How to use the item holder) Next, we will explain how to use the article holder of this invention. As shown in Figure 5, the article holder, consisting of a pair of left and right holder elements 1, is placed with the recesses facing each other and attached to the shelf board by clamping it with each clip. The left and right positions of the article holder are adjusted appropriately as shown in (a) or (b) to fit the dimensions of the item to be stored, and both ends of the food are held and stored (Figure 6). [Industrial Applicability]
[0018] According to this invention, an article holder is provided that can be adjusted to fit the stored articles by simply clamping each of a pair of separate holder elements with a simple structure between the shelves of a refrigerator, thereby making effective use of dead space inside the refrigerator. [Explanation of symbols]
[0019] 1 left holder element 2 right holder element 10 storage section 11 Upper member 12 Lower member 13 Side member 14 Opening 15 Opening side 16 Front side 17 Rear side surface 18 Rear side surface member 19 Rib 20 clips
Claims
1. An article holder comprising the following left holder element (i) and right holder element (ii), with their recesses facing each other and cooperating to hold an article. (i) A left holder element comprising three surface members, namely, an upper member 11 and a lower member 12, which are rectangular and arranged parallel to one another, and a side member 13 connecting one long side of the upper and lower members, and a storage section 10 having an open side 15, a front side 16, and a rear side 17 facing the side member 13, and a vertical cross section from the front that is inverted from left to right, in the shape of a Japanese character "U", and a clip 20 provided on the front part of the upper surface of the upper member 11, which can grip an external shelf board and move perpendicularly to the surface of the side member 13. (ii) A right holder element having a plane symmetrical shape to the left holder element with respect to the opening side surface 15 of the left holder element 1.
2. 2. An article holder according to claim 1, wherein the left and right holder elements further include rear side members for closing a part or all of the rear side surfaces thereof.
3. 2. An article holder according to claim 1, wherein the left and right holder elements further have ribs (19) on the rear side (17) for reinforcing the upper member (11), the lower member (12) and the side member (13).
4. A left holder element (i) or a right holder element (ii) below: Holder elements that constitute an article holder in which the recesses face each other and cooperate to hold an article. (i) A left holder element 1, which is made up of three surface members, namely, an upper member 11 and a lower member 12, which are rectangular and arranged parallel to one another, and a side member 13 connecting one long side of the upper and lower members, and which has an open side 15, a front side 16, and a rear side 17 facing the side member 13, and is formed into a U-shaped storage section 10 whose vertical cross section from the front is inverted from left to right, and a clip 20, which is provided on the front part of the upper surface of the upper member 11 and can grip an external shelf board and move vertically relative to the surface of the side member 13. (ii) The right holder element 2 has a plane symmetrical shape with respect to the opening side surface 15 of the left holder element 1.
5. 5. The holder element according to claim 4, wherein the left and right holder elements further comprise rear side members for closing a part or all of the rear side surfaces thereof.
6. 5. A holder element according to claim 4, wherein the left and right holder elements further have ribs (19) on the rear side (17) for reinforcing the upper member (11), the lower member (12) and the side member (13).