Ice Storage Container Elastic Coupling for Stable Door Mounting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ice storage containers in refrigerators are not stably coupled to the inner wall of the freezing chamber door, leading to movement and potential abrasion and breakdown of components.
Innovation Solution
The mounting structure includes lock recesses on the mounting space to restrict forward movement, a guide rib and groove for alignment, and an elastic coupling system with levers and grooves to secure the ice storage container, allowing easy attachment and detachment while minimizing horizontal movement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the ice storage container is made detachable and attachable to the door, then ease of operation is improved, but stability of coupling deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting structure employs a dynamic coupling mechanism where elastic levers can flexibly engage and disengage from lock recesses. The elastic nature allows the container to be easily attached and detached while maintaining stable coupling when engaged, as the elastic deformation provides continuous contact force.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling system is divided into separate components: lock recesses on the mounting space, guide ribs on the container, and elastic levers with hook parts. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each component for both ease of operation and stable coupling.
2Reliability
If the ice storage container is securely fixed to prevent movement, then reliability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The elastic levers utilize elastic deformation as a parameter change mechanism. When the container is attached, the levers deform elastically to engage the lock recesses, providing secure fixation. When detached, the elastic recovery releases the locking, enabling easy removal.
3Reliability
If the mounting structure includes multiple locking and guiding components, then stability of coupling is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting structure merges multiple functions into integrated components. The elastic levers simultaneously provide locking (via hook parts engaging lock recesses), guiding (via interaction with guide ribs), and cushioning (via elastic deformation). This merging reduces the number of separate components while maintaining stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The elastic levers serve multiple functions: they act as locking mechanisms, guiding elements, and shock absorbers. This multi-functionality reduces overall system complexity while ensuring stable coupling and easy operation.
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
The solution ensures stable attachment and detachment of the ice storage container, reducing movement and preventing abrasion and breakdown, thereby enhancing the reliability and longevity of the refrigerator components.
Implementation Method 1
an elastic lever (120) to be elastically deformed
Data Source
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AI summary
A refrigerator includes an ice storage container (100) coupled to a mounting space of an inner wall of a freezing chamber door (14), and the ice storage container is attachable to and detachable from the mounting space by elastic lever units (120) to maintain and release locking of the ice storage container with the mounting space, and elastic coupling units (140,210) to maintain coupling of the ice storage container to the mounting space by elastic deformation and restrict movement of the ice storage container in the horizontal direction of the mounting space when the ice storage container is mounted on the mounting space, thereby preventing abrasion and breakdown of components due to user's ease in the assembly of the ice storage container and increase in the fixing force of the ice storage container.