Refrigerator Door Beverage Chamber With Auxiliary Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional refrigerators inconvenience users by requiring door opening for bottle or can access and result in cool air leakage during access, and tilting-type home bars are difficult to use and inspect.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator design featuring a rotatably mounted auxiliary door and a chamber formation part between the front panel and door liner, allowing beverage container access without opening the main door, with a damping mechanism to control rotation speed and minimize cool air loss.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a bottle accommodation unit is disposed on the inner surface of the door, then bottles can be stored in the refrigerator, but it is not possible to take bottles in or out before the door is opened, causing inconvenience for the user
Solution Approach 1:
The door is divided into two functional parts: the main door for general access and an auxiliary door specifically for beverage container access. The auxiliary door can be opened independently without opening the main door, allowing users to quickly access beverages without the inconvenience of opening the entire door. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by providing dedicated access functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The auxiliary door acts as an intermediary element between the user and the beverage containers stored in the accommodation unit. Instead of directly accessing containers through the main door, users interact with the auxiliary door as a mediator that provides simplified access to the beverage storage area, improving operational convenience.
2Ease of operation
If the main door is opened to access beverage containers, then bottles can be taken in or out, but cool air in the storage compartment is leaked to the outside
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the door access system into main door and auxiliary door, the invention enables selective access to beverage containers through the smaller auxiliary door opening. This reduces the volume of cool air that escapes to the outside compared to opening the entire main door, thereby minimizing energy loss while maintaining accessibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The auxiliary door provides localized access specifically for the beverage accommodation unit, allowing users to access beverages without exposing the entire storage compartment to ambient air. This local quality approach ensures that only a minimal portion of the refrigerated space is exposed during beverage access, reducing cool air leakage.
3Ease of operation
If a tilting-type home bar is used to store beverage containers, then bottles can be accessed without opening the door, but the user may put much force into the rotation of the home bar
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using a tilting mechanism that requires rotational force, the invention segments the door into a stationary main door and a movable auxiliary door that swings open on hinges. This segmentation replaces the tilting action with a simpler swinging motion that requires minimal force, improving ease of operation without demanding significant physical effort from the user.
4Ease of operation
If a tilting-type home bar is used, then beverage containers can be accessed without opening the door, but it may be difficult to easily check the inside of the home bar from the outside
Solution Approach 1:
The auxiliary door is designed to be transparent or translucent, allowing users to visually inspect the beverage containers stored in the accommodation unit without opening the door. This segmentation of the door into a visible auxiliary portion maintains both accessibility and detectability, resolving the contradiction between easy access and easy inspection.
Solution Approach 2:
The auxiliary door utilizes transparent or translucent materials that allow light to pass through, enabling users to see the contents of the beverage storage area from the outside. This optical property of the auxiliary door material provides visual access to stored items without requiring physical access, improving the ability to detect and measure storage contents.
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
Enables convenient access to beverage containers without opening the main door, reducing cool air leakage and allowing easy inspection of the container storage area while maintaining temperature integrity.
Implementation Method 1
a damping mechanism to control rotation speed and minimize cool air loss
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigerator includes a freezing compartment and a refrigerating compartment. A refrigerating compartment door opens and closes the access to the refrigerating compartment. A dispenser is disposed on a front surface of the refrigerating compartment door, and the dispenser has a cavity to dispense at least one of water and ice. An opening is defined in the front surface of the refrigerating compartment door, and the opening is disposed below the cavity. An accommodation chamber is defined in the refrigerating compartment door to communicate with the opening, and the accommodation chamber has a bottom surface inclined downward toward the opening to accommodate a plurality of beverage containers. An auxiliary door is opened and closed to allow access to the opening. An insertion hole, through which the beverage container is inserted, is provided in a rear side of the accommodation chamber, and a cover allows access to the insertion hole.