Cooling appliance having a top panel cover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Cooling appliances face manufacturing errors and increased labor and material costs due to complex top panel cover installations and multiple parts, which also compromise safety standards.
Innovation Solution
A top panel cover design featuring a threaded pin and cylindrical slot with projections for secure attachment, reducing the need for screws and nuts, and incorporating a switch seat for easy circuit completion, enhancing assembly efficiency and safety.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple parts and fasteners (screws, nuts, washers) are used to attach the top panel cover, then the attachment is secure, but the labor and material costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple fastening functions into a single integrated threaded pin component. The threaded pin integrates the attachment function that previously required separate screws, nuts, and washers, thereby reducing part count and assembly complexity while maintaining secure attachment of the top panel cover
Solution Approach 2:
The threaded pin serves multiple functions: it acts as both the attachment fastener and the positioning element for the top panel cover. The pin's threaded portion provides secure fastening while its insertion through the slot enables precise positioning, eliminating the need for separate positioning and fastening components
2Strength
If the top panel cover is attached with multiple fasteners, then the assembly is robust, but the number of parts and assembly complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple fastening components into a single threaded pin that performs both positioning and securing functions. This integration reduces the number of parts from multiple separate fasteners to one unified component, simplifying the overall assembly structure
3Ease of operation
If switches are placed behind the top panel, then the circuit control function is achieved, but manufacturing errors during injection molding can cause position shifts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates the switches into the top panel cover during its manufacturing process, positioning them in advance. The top panel cover is designed with pre-formed switch mounting positions that are integrated into the cover structure itself, ensuring precise positioning before final assembly onto the top panel
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the switches with the top panel cover as an integrated assembly. The switches are positioned and fixed within the top panel cover structure, creating a combined unit that maintains precise relative positioning between the switches and the cover, eliminating positioning errors that would occur with separate mounting
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 4~5
AI summary
A cooling appliance (1) comprising; a body (2), a compartment (3) inside the body (2) in the form of a rectangle and delimited by a top panel (4), a first side panel (5), a second side panel (6) and a bottom panel (7) wherein the articles to be cooled are placed, a door (8) having an opened position providing access inside the compartment (3) and a closed position preventing access inside the compartment (3) wherein the said panels (4, 5, 6, 7) are adjacent to the door (8) in the closed position. A threaded pim is horizontally inserted onto the top panel (4) from where a part of the threaded pim protrudes towards the front, a top panel cover (10) is placed onto the top panel (4) wherein the top panel cover (10) comprises a slot configured to coincide with the threaded pim.