Adjustable Refrigerator Shelf Assembly for Faster Height Changes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional refrigerators require cumbersome processes to adjust shelf heights, involving the removal and reinstallation of shelves and food items, leading to inconvenient and inefficient use of space, especially when accommodating items of varying heights.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator with a height-adjustable shelf assembly that allows for manual adjustment without electric components, featuring a panel with movable protrusions, a guide for ascending and descending, and a height adjusting unit using a shaft, pulley system, and rotary handle, enabling precise adjustment of shelf height without removing food items.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the shelf height is adjusted by separating and re-installing the shelf, then the shelf height can be changed, but the process becomes cumbersome and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The shelf support portion is designed to be movable between a locked position (engaged with the guide) and an unlocked position (disengaged from the guide). By making the support portion dynamically adjustable rather than fixed, the shelf can be easily moved to different heights along the guide without complete disassembly, resolving the contradiction between adaptability and ease of operation
Solution Approach 2:
The shelf assembly is divided into separate components: the shelf panel, the support portions (protrusions), and the guide structure. This segmentation allows the support portions to be independently moved along the guide while the shelf panel remains in place, enabling height adjustment without removing food items or completely disassembling the shelf
2Adaptability or versatility
If the shelf is separated from the support portion for height adjustment, then the height can be changed, but food items must be removed and returned
Solution Approach 1:
The support portion can be dynamically repositioned along the guide while the shelf and food items remain undisturbed. This dynamic adjustment mechanism eliminates the need to remove and return food items, significantly reducing the time loss associated with shelf height adjustment
3Ease of manufacture
If fixed door baskets are used, then the structure is simple, but space utilization is inefficient for items of varying heights
Solution Approach 1:
The door basket support portions are designed to be movable along vertical guides, allowing the baskets to be adjusted to different heights. This dynamic adjustment capability enables efficient space utilization for items of varying heights while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure, resolving the contradiction between structural simplicity and adaptability
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Facilitates easy and precise adjustment of shelf height, optimizing space utilization, reducing manual effort, and enhancing the convenience of storing items of different sizes without the need for electric components, thus improving user experience and operational efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a height adjusting unit for adjusting the height of the panel, wherein the height adjusting unit includes a shaft disposed at both ends of the panel in a width direction of the panel, a power transmission unit for transmitting power generated by rotating the shaft to the slider, and a rotary handle for rotating the shaft
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigerator includes: a refrigerator main body having a cooling chamber; a cooling chamber door for opening and closing the cooling chamber; a shelf assembly provided within the cooling chamber such that a height thereof is adjustable; and a basket provided in any one of the refrigerator main body and the cooling chamber door such that a height thereof is adjustable. A space of the refrigerator main body or the cooling chamber door can be utilized to facilitate receiving and keeping food items.