Refrigerator Hinge Cable Routing to Prevent Fatigue Fractures
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Solution Overview
Problem
Cables used in household appliances, such as refrigerators and freezers, often suffer fatigue fractures due to repeated opening and closing movements, which can impede functionality and lead to premature failure.
Innovation Solution
The arrangement features a hinge system with holding parts designed to guide cables through grooves or clamps, allowing elastic deformations during movement, reducing the likelihood of fatigue fractures by accommodating cable length changes with the hinge's state, and ensuring the cable is not pinched or crushed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the cable is routed through a fixed hinge structure, then the cable routing is simple, but the cable is subjected to heavy loads and fatigue fractures during opening and closing movements
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge is divided into multiple parts (first hinge part, second hinge part, intermediate connecting elements) with separate cable holding parts. This segmentation allows the cable path to be independently optimized while maintaining overall hinge functionality, reducing cable stress during movement.
Solution Approach 2:
The cable holding parts are designed to move dynamically with the hinge during opening and closing movements. The intermediate connecting elements allow the cable route to adapt to the changing hinge configuration, preventing excessive tension and fatigue on the cable.
2Reliability
If the cable is held rigidly in the hinge, then the cable position is stable, but the cable cannot accommodate elastic deformations during movement
Solution Approach 1:
The cable holding parts incorporate flexible elements that can deform elastically during hinge movement. These flexible components accommodate cable length changes and positional variations while maintaining cable guidance, preventing rigid stress concentrations that lead to fatigue fractures.
Solution Approach 2:
The cable holding parts are designed to change their geometric parameters (position, orientation, shape) in response to hinge movement. This allows the cable path to dynamically adapt to movement-induced length changes, maintaining flexibility while preventing excessive deformation.
3Productivity
If the cable path is shortened between holding parts, then the cable routing efficiency is improved, but the cable may be pinched or crushed during movement
Solution Approach 1:
The cable holding parts are designed with nested or overlapping structures that guide the cable through protected pathways. The intermediate connecting elements create a protective envelope around the cable, preventing external compression and pinching while maintaining an efficient, compact cable route.
Solution Approach 2:
Intermediate connecting elements act as mediators between the cable holding parts, providing a protective interface that prevents direct contact between the cable and potential compression sources. These intermediaries maintain cable clearance while enabling efficient routing.
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
This design enables numerous opening and closing cycles without damaging the cables, ensuring reliable power and data supply to door-mounted displays while preventing fatigue fractures, and can be retrofitted to existing hinges.
Implementation Method 1
the cable is only subjected to elastic deformations during the opening or closing movement of the hinge
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to an arrangement for conducting a cable (100) from a body of a furniture element or device to a closing element that is pivotable relative to the body by means of a hinge and by means of which the body may be closed, wherein the arrangement comprises at least one first retaining part (30) and at least one second retaining part (40) for conducting the cable (100), wherein the first retaining part (30) is disposed on a first part (12) of the hinge and wherein the second retaining part (40) is disposed on a second part (20) of the hinge that is movable relative to the first part (12) of the hinge.