refrigerator

Abstract

To provide a refrigerator with a shared drawer type door.SOLUTION: A refrigerator 1 comprises a first door 5a comprising a first door attaching part 53 and attached to a first door receiving part 52, and a second door 6a comprising a second door attaching part 63 and attached to a second door receiving part 62. The first door attaching part 53 can be attached to the second door receiving part 62, and the second door attaching part 63 can be attached to the first door receiving part 52.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1B

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a refrigerator. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a refrigerator equipped with a left refrigerator door, a right refrigerator door, an ice maker door, a quick freezer door, a freezer door, and a vegetable compartment door on the front side of the housing (paragraph 0017 and Figure 1). The ice maker door, quick freezer door, freezer door, and vegetable compartment door are each provided with drawer rails extending in the front-to-rear direction, and can be pulled out forward via the drawer rails (paragraph 0018 and Figure 1). The ice maker door has a vacuum insulation material provided in the internal space formed by the front panel, top panel, bottom panel, back panel, left panel, and right panel (paragraph 0039 and Figure 5). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-60159 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The refrigerator in Patent Document 1 has four drawer-type doors: an ice-making compartment door, a quick-freezing compartment door, a freezer compartment door, and a vegetable compartment door, but Patent Document 1 does not consider the possibility of sharing these four drawer-type doors.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator in which a drawer-type door is shared. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, the refrigerator of the present invention comprises: a first door having a first door mounting portion and attached to the first door receiving portion; a second door having a second door mounting portion and attached to the second door receiving portion; the first door mounting portion and the second door mounting portion are each a movable rail, The first door receiving portion and the second door receiving portion are each a fixed rail, the inner plate of the first door comprises a first set of first fixing portions that fix the movable rail, and a second set of first fixing portions that are arranged so that even when the inner plate is rotated half a turn around the axis of the drawing direction, the movable rail can be fixed at substantially the same position as the first set of first fixing portions before the half turn; the inner plate of the second door comprises a first set of second fixing portions that fix the movable rail, and a second set of second fixing portions that are arranged so that even when the inner plate is rotated half a turn around the axis in the drawing direction, the movable rail can be fixed at substantially the same position as the first set of second fixing portions before the half turn; The first door mounting portion is capable of being mounted to the second door receiving portion, The second door mounting portion is capable of being mounted to the first door receiving portion. In order to achieve the above object, the refrigerator of the present invention comprises: a first door having a first door mounting portion and attached to the first door receiving portion; a second door having a second door mounting portion and attached to the second door receiving portion; The first door is disposed above the second door, the first door mounting portion and the second door mounting portion are each a movable rail, The first door receiving portion and the second door receiving portion are each a fixed rail, a first storage chamber corresponding to the first door receiving portion is disposed above a second storage chamber corresponding to the second door receiving portion; a depth of a lower side of an interior of the second storage chamber is shorter than a depth of a lower side of an interior of the first storage chamber; The inner plate of the first door includes a first set of first fixing portions for attaching the movable rail at a height corresponding to the first door receiving portion, and a second set of first fixing portions for attaching the movable rail at a height corresponding to the second door receiving portion, The inner plate of the second door includes a first set of second fixing portions for attaching the movable rail at a height corresponding to the second door receiving portion, and a second set of second fixing portions for attaching the movable rail at a height corresponding to the first door receiving portion, The first door mounting portion is capable of being mounted to the second door receiving portion, The second door mounting portion is capable of being mounted to the first door receiving portion, The thickness of the vacuum insulation material arranged on the first door and the thickness of the vacuum insulation material arranged on the second door are approximately equal, A third storage compartment in a refrigerated temperature range and a third door provided in the third storage compartment and having a vacuum insulation material therein, At least one of the first storage chamber corresponding to the first door receiving portion and the second storage chamber corresponding to the second door receiving portion is a storage chamber that is set or can be set to a freezing temperature range, The thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material disposed on the first door and the thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material disposed on the second door are greater than the thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material disposed on the third door. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a refrigerator in which a drawer-type door is shared. Problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1A] 1 is a front view showing the appearance of a refrigerator according to the present invention; [Figure 1B] 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section along the vertical direction of a refrigerator according to the present invention. [Figure 2] 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a heat-insulating box in a refrigerator according to the present invention; [Figure 3]FIG. 2 is a plan view of the ice-making compartment and upper freezer compartment of the refrigerator according to the present invention, viewed from above. [Figure 4] 3. FIG. 4 is a plan view of FIG. 3 with the ice maker removed. [Figure 5] 1 is a perspective view of the ice-making compartment door of a refrigerator according to the present invention, seen from the back (rear) side with a movable rail attached. [Figure 6] 1 is a perspective view of an upper freezer compartment door of a refrigerator according to the present invention, seen from the back (rear) side, with a movable rail attached. [Figure 7] 1 is a plan view of the ice-making compartment door and the upper freezer compartment door of a refrigerator according to the present invention, viewed from the rear side with the movable rails removed. FIG. [Figure 8] 1 is a perspective view of an ice making compartment container provided in an ice making compartment of a refrigerator according to the present invention; [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a plan view illustrating a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of the ice-making chamber container. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of the ice-making chamber container. [Figure 11] 1 is a plan view illustrating a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of an upper freezer container provided in an upper freezer compartment of a refrigerator according to the present invention. FIG. [Figure 12] 1 is a side view illustrating a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of an upper freezer container provided in an upper freezer compartment of a refrigerator according to the present invention. FIG. [Figure 13] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing features of the fixed portions of the movable rails for the ice-making compartment door and the upper freezer compartment door of the refrigerator according to the present invention. [Figure 14] 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of a lower freezer compartment and a vegetable compartment of a refrigerator according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 12. The up-down direction, front-rear direction, and left-right direction are defined as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The up-down direction corresponds to the vertical direction when refrigerator 1 is installed on a horizontal surface. The front-rear direction is parallel to the horizontal surface and is sometimes called the depth direction. The left-right direction is parallel to the horizontal surface and perpendicular to the front-rear direction, and corresponds to the width direction of refrigerator 1.

[0010] Fig. 1A is a front view showing the appearance of a refrigerator 1 according to the present invention, and Fig. 1B is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section along the vertical direction of the refrigerator according to the present invention. Refrigerator 1 according to this embodiment has storage compartments arranged in this order from above: refrigerator compartment 2, ice-making compartment 3, upper freezer compartment 4, lower freezer compartment 5, and vegetable compartment 6, which are arranged side by side on the left and right. Refrigerator 1 is equipped with doors that open and close the openings of each storage compartment. These doors consist of rotating refrigerator compartment doors 2a and 2b divided into left and right sections that open and close the opening of refrigerator compartment 2, and drawer-type ice-making compartment door 3a, upper freezer compartment door 4a, lower freezer compartment door 5a, and vegetable compartment door 6a that open and close the openings of ice-making compartment 3, upper freezer compartment 4, lower freezer compartment 5, and vegetable compartment 6, respectively.

[0011] The ice-making compartment door 3a and the upper freezer compartment door 4a are arranged adjacent to each other on the left and right. The lower freezer compartment 5 and the vegetable compartment door 6a are arranged adjacent to each other on the top and bottom, and in this embodiment, the lower freezer compartment 5 is arranged above the vegetable compartment door 6a.

[0012] In this embodiment, a refrigerator having six doors will be described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to a six-door refrigerator.

[0013] Refrigerator compartment 2 is a refrigerated storage compartment whose interior temperature is kept within the refrigeration temperature range, for example, at an average of about 4°C. Ice-making compartment 3, upper freezer compartment 4, and lower freezer compartment 5 are refrigerated storage compartments whose interior temperature is kept within the refrigeration temperature range, for example, at an average of about -18°C. Vegetable compartment 6 is a refrigerated storage compartment whose interior temperature is kept within the refrigeration temperature range, for example, at an average of about 6°C, and is a refrigerated storage compartment that prevents food from drying out through indirect cooling.

[0014] The shelf ribs 13 (see Figure 2) arranged on both sides of the refrigerator compartment 2 have their front ends located away from the front end of the refrigerator 1 and extend rearward from there. Shelves on which food can be placed are placed on the shelf ribs 13, and in this embodiment, multiple shelf ribs 13 are lined up one above the other.

[0015] Each drawer door is provided with a storage container capable of storing food and a door-side rail (movable rail) extending forward and backward, and is, for example, slidable on a rail (fixed rail) on the inner box 8 (see FIG. 2) side of the refrigerator 1. That is, the door-side rail connected to the drawer door is connected to the rail on the inner box 8 side, and the drawer door is supported by the inner box 8. The storage container is attached to the drawer door or the door-side rail, and moves together with the drawer door.

[0016] Specifically, ice making compartment door 3a is provided with ice making compartment container 32, which is a storage container, and movable rails 37, and ice making compartment door 3a is slidable on fixed rails 39. Additionally, upper freezer compartment door 4a is provided with upper freezer compartment container 42, which is a storage container, and movable rails 43, and upper freezer compartment door 4a is slidable on fixed rails 49. Additionally, lower freezer compartment door 5a is provided with lower freezer compartment container 51, which is a storage container, and movable rails 53, and lower freezer compartment door 5a is slidable on fixed rails 52. Additionally, vegetable compartment door 6a is provided with vegetable compartment container 61, which is a storage container, and movable rails 63, and vegetable compartment door 6a is slidable on fixed rails 62.

[0017] A cooler chamber 14 is provided behind the lower freezer chamber 5, and a cooler 15 for cooling the interior of each storage compartment is disposed in the cooler chamber 14. A machine chamber 16 is provided behind the lower part of the vegetable compartment 6, and a compressor 17 is disposed in the machine chamber 16. The cooler 15 and compressor 17, together with a condenser and capillary tube (not shown), form a refrigeration cycle. A blower 18 is disposed above the cooler 15 to circulate the cooled air cooled by the cooler 15, and an outlet is formed downstream of the blower 18 to discharge the cooled air into the storage compartment. Note that multiple coolers 15 may be provided, and their location is not limited to behind the lower freezer chamber 5, but may also be behind the refrigerator chamber 2.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the heat-insulating box body of the refrigerator 1 according to the present invention. The insulated box has a box-like shape and is made up of a top, bottom, both sides, and a back, with an open front. The insulated box also includes a metal outer box 7 (see Figure 1) and a synthetic resin inner box 8. The internal space of the insulated box formed by the outer box 7 and inner box 8 is filled with foam insulation material 9 such as rigid urethane foam using a so-called foam-in-place method, insulating the storage chamber from the outside.

[0019] The outer box 7 is configured in a box shape with a top panel and left and right side panels formed by bending a thin steel plate into a gate shape, a back panel made of a separate material, and a bottom panel made of a separate material. On the other hand, the inner box 8 is formed in a box shape by molding a synthetic resin plate. The top panel and the left and right side panels may be separate pieces.

[0020] Furthermore, refrigerator compartment 2 is separated from ice-making compartment 3 and upper freezer compartment 4 by a heat-insulating partition 10 arranged as a substantially horizontal surface. Furthermore, lower freezer compartment 5 is located below (directly below) ice-making compartment 3 and upper freezer compartment 4, and lower freezer compartment 5 is separated from vegetable compartment 6 by a heat-insulating partition 11 arranged as a substantially horizontal surface. These heat-insulating partitions 10, 11 are provided in the sections that separate storage compartments of different temperature ranges, and serve to prevent the inside of the refrigerator temperature zone compartment from being too cold due to the cold air from the freezer temperature zone compartment, or to prevent the inside of the freezer temperature zone compartment from being overheated by the cold air from the refrigerator temperature zone compartment.

[0021] Furthermore, in addition to foam insulation 9, vacuum insulation 19, which has a lower thermal conductivity than foam insulation 9, is installed between outer box 7 and inner box 8, improving insulation performance without reducing food storage capacity. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 1B, vacuum insulation is also installed on lower freezer door 5a and vegetable door 6a. Specifically, vacuum insulation 5b is installed on lower freezer door 5a, and vacuum insulation 6b is installed on vegetable door 6a.

[0022] To ensure gas barrier properties, the vacuum insulation material is constructed by wrapping a core material such as glass wool in an outer packaging material formed of a metal layer such as aluminum. The vacuum insulation material is attached to the inner wall surfaces of the outer box 7, i.e., the inner wall surfaces of the top panel, side panels, back panel, and bottom panel, using double-sided tape, hot melt adhesive, or other adhesive on part or all of the vacuum insulation material.

[0023] Ice making compartment 3 and upper freezer compartment 4 will be described with reference to Figures 3 and 4. Figure 3 is a plan view of ice making compartment 3 and upper freezer compartment 4 of refrigerator 1 according to the present invention as seen from above. Figure 4 is a plan view with ice maker 31 removed from Figure 3.

[0024] Ice making compartment 3 is provided with ice maker 31 having an ice tray, ice making compartment container 32 arranged below ice maker 31, and cold air duct (cold air duct or duct) 33 that guides cold air generated by cooler 15 (see FIG. 1B) to ice maker 31 and ice making compartment container 32. Duct 33 is arranged rearward relative to ice making compartment 3 and upper freezer compartment 4.

[0025] Ice making chamber container 32 comprises first container portion 321, second container portion 322, and scoop rest portion 323. First container portion 321 and second container portion 322 are configured as container portions (storage portions) adjacent to each other in the left-right direction and are separated by partition wall 324. First container portion 321 and second container portion 322 are formed as a single container (ice making chamber container 32). Scoop rest portion 323 is located in one section of first container portion 321.

[0026] First container section 321 is disposed in a range including the area directly below ice maker 31. First container section 321 serves as an ice storage section (ice storage container section) that stores ice made by ice maker 31. The ice made by ice maker 31 falls from ice maker 31 into ice storage section 321 and is automatically stored in ice storage section 321.

[0027] Second container section 322 is disposed in a range offset in the left-right direction from directly below ice maker 31. Second container section 322 is separated from ice storage section (first container section) 321 by partition wall 323, and can be used as a small item storage section (small item storage section) for storing items other than ice produced in ice maker 31.

[0028] Ice storage section 321 is arranged closer to the outside in the left-right direction of refrigerator 1, and accessory storage section 322 is arranged closer to the inside in the left-right direction of refrigerator 1.

[0029] Scoop rest 323 is disposed in front of ice maker 31, and has a floor surface (bottom surface) that is higher than the floor surface (bottom surface) of ice storage unit 321. In this case, a portion of the floor surface of ice storage unit 321 is disposed below scoop rest 323. By making the floor surface of scoop rest 323 higher than the floor surface of the ice storage unit, it is possible to prevent the user's hands from touching the ice when picking up the scoop. Furthermore, by disposing a portion of the floor surface of ice storage unit 321 below scoop rest 323, ice can also be stored below scoop rest 323, and the volume of ice storage unit 321 can be increased.

[0030] Upper freezer container 41 is provided in upper freezer compartment 4. In this embodiment, ice-making container 32 has a width dimension W32 that allows it to be inserted into upper freezer compartment 4, and upper freezer container 42 has a width dimension W42 that allows it to be inserted into ice-making compartment 3. For this reason, it is necessary to prevent ice-making container 32 from being mistakenly assembled into upper freezer compartment 4, or upper freezer container 42 from being mistakenly assembled into ice-making compartment 3.

[0031] Ice making compartment door 3a and upper freezer compartment door 4a will be described with reference to Figures 5 and 6. Figure 5 is a perspective view of ice making compartment door 3a of refrigerator 1 according to the present invention, seen from the back (rear) side, with movable rail 37 attached. Figure 6 is a perspective view of upper freezer compartment door 4a of refrigerator 1 according to the present invention, seen from the back (rear) side, with movable rail 43 attached.

[0032] As shown in Fig. 5, ice-making compartment door 3a includes outer panel 35 exposed to the outside of the refrigerator, inner panel 36 provided on the inside of the refrigerator, foam insulation (not shown) provided between outer panel 35 and inner panel 36, and movable rail (door mounting portion) 37 attached to inner panel 36. Movable rail 37 of ice-making compartment door 3a is attached to and fixed in fixed portion 361 of ice-making compartment door 3a. Ice-making compartment door 3a is attached via movable rail (door mounting portion) 37 to fixed rail (door receiving portion) 39 attached to the side of inner box 8 of refrigerator 1.

[0033] 6, upper freezer compartment door 4a includes outer plate 45 exposed to the outside of the refrigerator, inner plate 46 provided on the inside of the refrigerator, foam insulation material (not shown) provided between outer plate 45 and inner plate 46, and movable rail (door mounting portion) 47 attached to inner plate 46. Movable rail 47 of upper freezer compartment door 4a is attached to and fixed on fixed portion 461 of upper freezer compartment door 4a. Upper freezer compartment door 4a is attached to fixed rail (door receiving portion) 49 attached to the inner box 8 side of refrigerator 1 via movable rail (door mounting portion) 47.

[0034] In this embodiment, movable rail (door mounting portion) 37 of ice making compartment door 3a and movable rail (door mounting portion) 47 of upper freezer compartment door 4a are formed to have the same shape and size. Therefore, movable rail 37 of ice making compartment door 3a can be attached to fixed rail (door receiving portion) 49, and movable rail (door mounting portion) 47 of upper freezer compartment door 4a can be attached to fixed rail (door receiving portion) 39.

[0035] In other words, when the ice-making compartment door 3a is the first door and the upper freezer compartment door 4a is the second door, the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment has the first door 3a which has the first door mounting portion 37 and is attached to the first door receiving portion 39, and the second door 4a which has the second door mounting portion 47 and is attached to the second door receiving portion 49, and the first door mounting portion 37 can be attached to the second door receiving portion 49, and the second door mounting portion 47 can be attached to the first door receiving portion 39.

[0036] In this embodiment, outer plate 35 and inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a and outer plate 45 and inner plate 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a are formed to have the same shape and size. At least inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a and inner plate 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a are shared.

[0037] The inner plates 36, 46 of ice making compartment door 3a and upper freezer compartment door 4a will be described with reference to Figure 7. Figure 7 is a plan view of ice making compartment door 3a and upper freezer compartment door 4a of refrigerator 1 according to the present invention, seen from the back side with movable rails 37, 47 removed.

[0038] The inner plate 36 of the ice making compartment door 3a has a first set of first fixing portions 361 that fix the movable rails 37 (see Figure 5), and a second set of first fixing portions 461 that are arranged so that when the inner plate 36 is rotated half a turn around the axis of the pull-out direction, the movable rails 47 can be fixed in approximately the same position as the first set of first fixing portions 361 before the half turn.

[0039] The inner plate 46 of the upper freezer compartment door 4a is provided with a first set of second fixing portions 461 for fixing the movable rails 47 (see Figure 6), and a second set of second fixing portions 361 arranged so that, when rotated half a turn around the pull-out direction as an axis, the movable rails 37 can be fixed in approximately the same position as the first set of second fixing portions 461 before the half turn.

[0040] Here, "substantially the same position" means that a degree of positional deviation is permitted between ice-making compartment door 3a and upper freezer compartment door 4a that allows inner panels 36, 46 to be shared.

[0041] That is, in refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, if ice-making compartment door 3a is the first door and upper freezer compartment door 4a is the second door, movable rail 37 of ice-making compartment door 3a becomes the first door mounting portion, and movable rail 47 of upper freezer compartment door 4a becomes the second door mounting portion. Also, fixed rail 39 that receives movable rail 37 of ice-making compartment door 3a becomes the first door receiving portion, and fixed rail 49 that receives movable rail 47 of upper freezer compartment door 4a becomes the second door receiving portion. In this case, first door receiving portion 39 is located in ice-making compartment 3 that houses ice-maker 31, and second door receiving portion 49 is located in another storage compartment (upper freezer compartment door 4a) different from ice-making compartment 3.

[0042] In the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, the inner plate 36 of the first door (ice-making compartment door) 3a includes a first set of first fixing portions 361 that fix the movable rails 37, and a second set of first fixing portions 461 that are arranged so that even when the inner plate 36 is rotated half a turn around the axis of the pull-out direction, the movable rails 47 can be fixed in approximately the same position as the first set of first fixing portions 361 before the half turn.

[0043] The inner plate 46 of the second door (upper freezer compartment door) 4a is provided with a first set of second fixing portions 461 for fixing the movable rails 47, and a second set of second fixing portions 361 arranged so that even when the movable rails 37 are rotated half a turn around the axis of the pull-out direction, they can be fixed in approximately the same position as the first set of second fixing portions 461 before the half turn.

[0044] Furthermore, in the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, the first door (ice-making compartment door) 3a and the second door (upper freezer compartment door) 4a are arranged adjacent to each other on the left and right, and each inner panel 36, 46 has different uneven shapes 363, 364, 463, 464 on one side and the other side.

[0045] Inner panels 36, 46 have an uneven shape to prevent cold air from leaking from storage compartments 3, 4, but the suitable shape differs between the left and right outer sides and the partition side between ice-making compartment door 3a and upper freezer compartment door 4a. Ice-making compartment door 3a requires uneven shapes 363, 364, but only sections A and B of uneven shape 364 are necessary, with section C of uneven shape 364 not required. Meanwhile, upper freezer compartment door 4a requires uneven shapes 463, 464, but only sections A and B of uneven shape 464 are necessary, with section C of uneven shape 464 not required.

[0046] Portion C of uneven shape 364 and portion C of uneven shape 464 are provided to allow inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a and inner plate 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a to be shared by both. Also, uneven shape 463 is not necessary on inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a, but uneven shape 463 is provided on inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a to allow inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a and inner plate 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a to be shared by both. Similarly, uneven shape 363 is not necessary on inner plate 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a, but uneven shape 363 is provided on inner plate 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a to allow inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a and inner plate 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a to be shared by both.

[0047] In addition, inner panel 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a and inner panel 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a are equipped with display 362 in a positive orientation (the left, right, top, and bottom of the letters match the left, right, top, and bottom when installed) that indicates or suggests the name of the storage compartment corresponding to ice-making compartment door 3a when used as inner panel 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a, and display 462 in a positive orientation (the left, right, top, and bottom of the letters match the left, right, top, and bottom when installed) that indicates or suggests the name of the storage compartment corresponding to upper freezer compartment door 4a when used as inner panel 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a.

[0048] This allows the user to correctly identify whether the door is ice-making compartment door 3a or upper freezer compartment door 4a from the indications 362, 462, which can be read in the correct orientation when the door is held upright.

[0049] Next, a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of ice-making compartment container 32 will be described with reference to Figures 8 to 10. Figure 8 is a perspective view of ice-making compartment container 32 provided in ice-making compartment 3 of refrigerator 1 according to the present invention. Figure 9 is a plan view illustrating a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of ice-making compartment container 32. Figure 10 is a perspective view illustrating a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of ice-making compartment container 32.

[0050] Since the ice-making compartment door 3a and the upper freezer compartment door 4a share parts such as inner panels 36, 46 and movable rails 37, 47, it is possible that the ice-making compartment container 32 may be mistakenly attached to the fixed rail 49 of the upper freezer compartment 4.

[0051] To prevent such incorrect assembly, ice making chamber container 32 has protrusions (ribs) 325a that protrude rearward on side portions 325 located on the left and right outer sides. When ice making chamber container 32 is housed in upper freezer compartment 4, protrusions 325a abut against the back wall of upper freezer compartment 4 or against objects placed in upper freezer compartment 4, preventing ice making chamber door 3a from closing completely. In this embodiment, duct component 33, which is located rearward of ice making chamber 3 and upper freezer compartment 4, is provided with abutment portion 332 that abuts against protrusions 325a. When ice making chamber container 32 is housed in upper freezer compartment 4, protrusions 325a abut against abutment portion 332, preventing upper freezer chamber door 4a from closing completely.

[0052] Furthermore, protrusion (rib) 325a closes a gap formed at the rear side of ice storage section 321 of ice-making chamber container 32, and has the effect of preventing ice from falling downward through this gap.

[0053] A structure for preventing incorrect assembly of upper freezer container 32 will be described with reference to Figures 11 and 12. Figure 11 is a plan view illustrating a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of upper freezer container 42 provided in upper freezer compartment 4 of refrigerator 1 according to the present invention. Figure 12 is a side view illustrating a structure for preventing incorrect assembly of upper freezer container 42 provided in upper freezer compartment 4 of refrigerator 1 according to the present invention.

[0054] Since the ice-making compartment door 3a and the upper freezer compartment door 4a share parts such as inner panels 36, 46 and movable rails 37, 47, it is possible that the upper freezer compartment container 42 may be mistakenly attached to the fixed rail 39 of the ice-making compartment 3.

[0055] To prevent such incorrect assembly, when attempting to assemble upper freezer container 42 to ice-making compartment 3, rear end 421 of upper freezer container 42 abuts against ice-making machine 31, preventing upper freezer door 4a from closing completely. For this reason, the top of rear end 421 of upper freezer container 42 is positioned higher than the bottom of ice-making machine 31.

[0056] Fixing portions (mounting portions) 361, 461 that fix movable rails 37, 47 (see FIGS. 5 and 6) will be described with reference to Fig. 13. Fig. 13 is a diagram showing features of fixing portions 361, 461 of movable rails 37, 47 for ice-making compartment door 3a and upper freezer compartment door 4a of refrigerator 1 according to the present invention.

[0057] In this embodiment, inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a and inner plate 46 of upper freezer compartment door 4a are shared. In this case, when used as inner plate 36 of ice-making compartment door 3a, fixing portion 461 that fixes movable rail 47 (see FIGS. 5 and 6) on inner plate 36 is not used. When movable rails 37, 47 are fastened to inner plates 36, 46 with screws, if unused screw holes penetrate inner plates 36, 46, this would result in communication between the front and back sides of inner plates 36, 46, which is not desirable.

[0058] In this embodiment, the fixing portions 361, 461 are made convex, and screw holes are formed in these convex portions so that the screw holes do not penetrate through the front and back sides of the inner plates 36, 46. This makes it possible to prevent communication between the front and back sides of the inner plates 36, 46 through unused screw holes.

[0059] In the above embodiment, the ice making compartment door 3a and the upper freezer compartment door 4a are described as being adjacent in the left-right direction, but the present invention can also be applied to the lower freezer compartment door 5a and the vegetable compartment door 6a which are adjacent in the up-down direction. For example, if the ice making compartment door 3a is the lower freezer compartment door 5a and the upper freezer compartment door 4a is the vegetable compartment door 6a, the configuration described for the ice making compartment door 3a and the upper freezer compartment door 4a can be applied to the lower freezer compartment door 5a and the vegetable compartment door 6a. In this case, the left-right direction for the ice making compartment door 3a and the upper freezer compartment door 4a must be replaced with the up-down direction for the lower freezer compartment door 5a and the vegetable compartment door 6a.

[0060] The lower freezer door 5a and the vegetable compartment door 6a will be described with reference to Fig. 14. Fig. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of the lower freezer and vegetable compartment of the refrigerator according to the present invention. Below, the lower freezer door 5a will be described as the first door, and the vegetable compartment door 6a will be described as the second door.

[0061] The first door (lower freezer door) 5a has a first door mounting portion 53 and is mounted to the first door receiving portion 52 (see FIG. 1B). The second door (vegetable compartment door) 6a has a second door mounting portion 63 and is mounted to the second door receiving portion 62 (see FIG. 1B). The first door mounting portion 53 can be mounted to the second door receiving portion 62, and the second door mounting portion 63 can be mounted to the first door receiving portion 52.

[0062] Furthermore, the inner plate 56 of the first door 5a includes a first set of first fixing portions 561 that fix the movable rails 53, and a second set of first fixing portions 661 that are arranged so that even when the inner plate 56 is rotated half a turn around the axis in the drawing direction, the movable rails 63 can be fixed in approximately the same position as the first set of first fixing portions 561 before the half turn. The inner plate 66 of the second door 6a includes a first set of second fixing portions 661 that fix the movable rails 63, and a second set of second fixing portions 561 that are arranged so that even when the inner plate 66 is rotated half a turn around the axis in the drawing direction, the movable rails 53 can be fixed in approximately the same position as the first set of second fixing portions 661 before the half turn.

[0063] The first door 5a is disposed above the second door 6a. The first door mounting portion 53 and the second door mounting portion 63 are each movable rails, and the first door receiving portion 52 and the second door receiving portion 62 are each fixed rails. The first storage compartment (lower freezer compartment) 5 corresponding to the first door receiving portion 52 is disposed above the second storage compartment (vegetable compartment) 6 corresponding to the second door receiving portion 63, and the depth D6 of the lower interior of the second storage compartment 6 is shorter than the depth D5 of the lower interior of the first storage compartment 5.

[0064] The inner plate 56 of the first door 5a includes a first set of first fixing portions 561 for attaching the movable rails 53 at a height h1 (see FIG. 1) corresponding to the first door receiving portion 52, and a second set of first fixing portions 661 for attaching the movable rails 63 at a height h2 (see FIG. 1) corresponding to the second door receiving portion 62. The inner plate 66 of the second door includes a first set of second fixing portions 661 for attaching the movable rails 63 at a height h2 (see FIG. 1) corresponding to the second door receiving portion 62, and a second set of second fixing portions 561 for attaching the movable rails 53 at a height h1 (see FIG. 1) corresponding to the first door receiving portion 52.

[0065] Vacuum insulation material 5b is disposed on first door 5a, and vacuum insulation material 6b is disposed on second door 6a. The thickness T5b of vacuum insulation material 5b and the thickness T6b of vacuum insulation material 6b are approximately equal. In this case, "approximately equal" means that the thickness T5b of vacuum insulation material 5b and the thickness T6b of vacuum insulation material 6b may include manufacturing errors.

[0066] In Figure 14, the second set of first fixing portions 661 and the second set of second fixing portions 661 are not shown, but as in Figures 5 to 7, it is assumed that a first set of first fixing portions 561 and a first set of second fixing portions 661 are provided.

[0067] At least one of the first storage compartment 5 corresponding to the first door receiving portion 52 and the second storage compartment 6 corresponding to the second door receiving portion 62 is set or can be set to the freezing temperature range. The thicknesses T5b and T6b of the vacuum insulation material 5b on the first door (lower freezer compartment door) 5a and the vacuum insulation material 6b on the second door (vegetable compartment door) 6a are thicker than the thickness T2b (see FIG. 1B ) of the vacuum insulation material 2b on the refrigerator compartment door 2, which is the door of the storage compartment set to the freezing temperature range. To enable the first door 5a and the second door 6a to be used in both the freezing and refrigerating temperature ranges, the specifications of the vacuum insulation materials 5b and 6b are preferably matched to the specifications of the freezing temperature range. For this reason, in this embodiment, the thicknesses T5b and T6b of the vacuum insulation materials 5b and 6b are made larger than the thickness T2b of the vacuum insulation material 2b.

[0068] The refrigerator 1 according to the present invention described above has the following features. (1) Refrigerator 1 is First doors (3a, 5a) each having a first door mounting portion (37, 53) and attached to a first door receiving portion (39, 52); The second door 4a, 6a has a second door mounting portion 47, 63 and is attached to the second door receiving portion 49, 62, The first door mounting portion 37, 53 can be mounted to the second door receiving portion 49, 62, The second door mounting portion 39,63 can be attached to the first door receiving portion 39,52.

[0069] (2) In (1), The first door mounting portions 37, 53 and the second door mounting portions 47, 63 are movable rails, The first door receiving portions 39, 52 and the second door receiving portions 49, 62 are fixed rails, The inner plates 36, 56 of the first doors 3a, 5a include a first set of first fixing portions 361, 561 that fix the movable rails 37, 53, and a second set of first fixing portions 461, 661 that are arranged so that, even when the inner plates 36, 56 are rotated half a turn around the axis in the drawing direction, the movable rails 47, 63 can be fixed at substantially the same positions as the first set of first fixing portions 361, 561 before the half turn, The inner plates 46, 66 of the second doors 4a, 6a are provided with a first set of second fixing portions 461, 661 that fix the movable rails 47, 63, and a second set of second fixing portions 361, 561 that are arranged so that even when the inner plates 46, 66 are rotated half a turn around the axis of the pull-out direction, the movable rails 37, 53 can be fixed in approximately the same position as the first set of second fixing portions 461, 661 before the half turn.

[0070] In (2), The first door 3a and the second door 4a are arranged adjacent to each other on the left and right, The inner plates 36, 46 of the first door 3a and the second door 4a respectively have different concave and convex shapes 363, 364, 463, 464 on one side and the other side.

[0071] (4)(2) The first door 3a and the second door 4a are arranged adjacent to each other on the left and right, The first door 3a and the second door 4a are a positive-facing indicator 362 that indicates or suggests the name of the storage compartment 3 corresponding to the first door 3a when attached to the first door receiving portion 39; and a positive-facing indicator 462 that, when attached to the second door receiving portion 49, indicates or suggests the name of the storage compartment 4 that corresponds to the second door 4a.

[0072] (5)(2) The first door 3a and the second door 4a are arranged adjacent to each other on the left and right, The first door receiving portion 39 is disposed in the ice making chamber 3 that houses the ice making machine 31, The second door receiving portion 49 is arranged in another storage compartment 4 different from the ice making compartment 3, Ice making chamber container 32 housed in ice making chamber 3 has protrusions 325a protruding rearward on the left and right outer sides, When the ice-making chamber container 32 is stored in another storage chamber 4, the protrusion 325a abuts against the rear wall of the other storage chamber 4 or an object 33 placed in the other storage chamber, preventing the door 3a attached to the second door receiving portion 49 from closing completely.

[0073] (6)(5) The ice making chamber container 32 includes an ice storage section 321 and a small item storage section 322. Ice storage section 321 and accessory compartment section 322 are arranged such that ice storage section 321 is disposed closer to the outside in the left-right direction of refrigerator 1, and accessory compartment section 322 is disposed closer to the inside in the left-right direction of refrigerator 1.

[0074] (7)(5) Ice making chamber container 32 includes ice storage section 321 for storing ice, and scoop rest section 323 having a floor surface higher than the floor surface of ice storage section 321.

[0075] (8)(7) A part of the floor surface of the ice storage section 321 is arranged below the scoop holder 323.

[0076] (9)(1) The first door 5a is disposed above the second door 6a. The first door mounting portion 53 and the second door mounting portion 63 are each a movable rail, The first door receiving portion 52 and the second door receiving portion 62 are each a fixed rail, The first storage chamber 5 corresponding to the first door receiving portion 52 is disposed above the second storage chamber 6 corresponding to the second door receiving portion 62, The depth D6 of the lower side of the interior of the second storage chamber 6 is shorter than the depth D5 of the lower side of the interior of the first storage chamber 5, The inner plate 56 of the first door 5a includes a first set of first fixing portions 561 for attaching the movable rail 53 at a height corresponding to the first door receiving portion 52, and a second set of first fixing portions 661 for attaching the movable rail 63 at a height corresponding to the second door receiving portion 62, The inner panel 66 of the second door 6a has a first set of second fixing portions 661 for attaching the movable rail 63 at a height corresponding to the second door receiving portion 62, and a second set of second fixing portions 561 for attaching the movable rail 63 at a height corresponding to the first door receiving portion 52.

[0077] (10)(9) The thicknesses T5b, T6b of the vacuum heat insulating material 5b arranged on the first door 5a and the vacuum heat insulating material 6b arranged on the second door 6a are substantially equal.

[0078] (11)In (10), The refrigerator includes a third storage compartment 2 in a refrigerated temperature range, and a third door 2a provided in the third storage compartment 2 and having a vacuum heat insulating material 2b disposed therein. At least one of the first storage chamber 5 corresponding to the first door receiving portion 52 and the second storage chamber 6 corresponding to the second door receiving portion 62 is a storage chamber that is set or can be set to a freezing temperature range, The thicknesses T5b, T6b of the vacuum insulation material 5b arranged on the first door 5a and the vacuum insulation material 6b arranged on the second door 6a are thicker than the thickness T2b of the vacuum insulation material 2b arranged on the third door 2a.

[0079] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible. The above-described embodiments are provided as examples to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those having all of the described configurations. Furthermore, it is also possible to add, delete, or replace part of the configuration of the embodiments with other configurations. [Explanation of symbols]

[0080] 1...refrigerator, 3...ice maker, 3a...ice maker door (first door, standard door), 3b...vacuum insulation material, 4...upper freezer, 4a...upper freezer door (second door, standard door), 4b...vacuum insulation material, 5...lower freezer (first storage compartment), 5a...lower freezer door (first door), 5b...vacuum insulation material, 6...vegetable compartment (second storage compartment), 6a...vegetable compartment door (second door), 6b...vacuum insulation material, 31...ice maker, 32...ice maker container, 36...inner plate of first door 3a, 37...first door mounting portion (movable rail), 39...first door receiving portion (fixed rail), 46...inner plate of second door 4a, 47...second door mounting portion (movable rail), 49...second door receiving portion (fixed rail), 52...first door receiving portion (fixed fixed rail), 53...first door mounting portion (movable rail), 56...inner plate of first door 5a, 62...second door receiving portion (fixed rail), 63...second door mounting portion (movable rail), 66...inner plate of second door 6a, 321...ice storage section, 322...small item storage section, 323...shovel holder section, 325a...protrusion (rib), 361,561...first set of first fixing portions or second set of second fixing portions for fixing movable rails 37,53, 362,462...positive direction indication indicating or suggesting the name of the storage compartment, 363,364,463,464...concave and convex shape, 461,661...first set of second fixing portions or second set of first fixing portions for fixing movable rails 47,63.

Claims

1. a first door including a first door mounting portion and attached to the first door receiving portion; a second door having a second door mounting portion and attached to the second door receiving portion; the first door mounting portion and the second door mounting portion are each a movable rail, the first door receiving portion and the second door receiving portion are each a fixed rail, the inner plate of the first door includes a first set of first fixing portions that fix the movable rail, and a second set of first fixing portions that are arranged so that even when the inner plate is rotated half a turn around an axis in the drawing direction, the movable rail can be fixed at substantially the same position as the first set of first fixing portions before the half turn, the inner plate of the second door includes a first set of second fixing portions that fix the movable rail, and a second set of second fixing portions that are arranged so that even when the inner plate is rotated half a turn around the axis in the drawing direction, the movable rail can be fixed at substantially the same position as the first set of second fixing portions before the half turn, The first door mounting portion is mountable to the second door receiving portion, The second door mounting portion is capable of being mounted to the first door receiving portion.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, The first door and the second door are disposed adjacent to each other on the left and right, The inner panels of the first door and the second door each have a different concave-convex shape on one side and the other side.

3. The refrigerator according to claim 1, The first door and the second door are disposed adjacent to each other on the left and right, The first door and the second door each include: a positively oriented indicia that, when attached to the first door receiving portion, indicates or suggests the name of a storage compartment corresponding to the first door; a positive-facing display that, when attached to the second door receiving portion, indicates or suggests the name of a storage compartment corresponding to the second door.

4. The refrigerator according to claim 1, The first door and the second door are disposed adjacent to each other on the left and right, The first door receiving portion is disposed in an ice making chamber that houses an ice maker, The second door receiving portion is disposed in another storage compartment different from the ice making compartment, The ice making chamber container housed in the ice making chamber has protrusions protruding rearward on the left and right outer sides, When the ice-making compartment container is stored in the other storage compartment, the protrusion abuts against the back wall of the other storage compartment or an object placed in the other storage compartment, preventing the door attached to the second door receiving part from closing completely.

5. The refrigerator according to claim 4, The ice making chamber container includes an ice storage section and a small item storage section, The ice storage section and the accessory compartment section are arranged such that the ice storage section is positioned closer to the outside in the left-right direction of the refrigerator, and the accessory compartment section is positioned closer to the inside in the left-right direction of the refrigerator.

6. The refrigerator according to claim 4, The ice making compartment container is a refrigerator comprising an ice storage section for storing ice, and a scoop holder section having a floor surface higher than the floor surface of the ice storage section.

7. The refrigerator according to claim 6, A part of the floor surface of the ice storage section is disposed below the scoop rest section.

8. A first door having a first door mounting portion and attached to the first door receiving portion; a second door having a second door mounting portion and attached to the second door receiving portion; The first door is disposed above the second door, the first door mounting portion and the second door mounting portion are each a movable rail, the first door receiving portion and the second door receiving portion are each a fixed rail, a first storage chamber corresponding to the first door receiving portion is disposed above a second storage chamber corresponding to the second door receiving portion; a depth of a lower side of an interior of the second storage chamber is shorter than a depth of a lower side of an interior of the first storage chamber; The inner plate of the first door includes a first set of first fixing portions for attaching the movable rail at a height corresponding to the first door receiving portion, and a second set of first fixing portions for attaching the movable rail at a height corresponding to the second door receiving portion, The inner plate of the second door includes a first set of second fixing portions for attaching the movable rail at a height corresponding to the second door receiving portion, and a second set of second fixing portions for attaching the movable rail at a height corresponding to the first door receiving portion, The first door mounting portion is mountable to the second door receiving portion, The second door mounting portion is mountable to the first door receiving portion, The thickness of the vacuum insulation material arranged on the first door and the thickness of the vacuum insulation material arranged on the second door are approximately equal, a third storage compartment in a refrigerated temperature range; and a third door provided in the third storage compartment and having a vacuum heat insulating material therein; At least one of the first storage chamber corresponding to the first door receiving portion and the second storage chamber corresponding to the second door receiving portion is a storage chamber that is set or can be set to a freezing temperature range, A refrigerator in which the thickness of the vacuum insulation material arranged on the first door and the thickness of the vacuum insulation material arranged on the second door are thicker than the thickness of the vacuum insulation material arranged on the third door.

Images