Inner Door Refrigerator Drawer for Accessible High-Capacity Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Refrigerators with inner doors have limited storage capacity and user convenience due to stationary baskets and large securing structures, which hinder efficient space utilization and easy access to stored items.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator design featuring a pivotably rotatable inner door with a movable drawer system, including a basket part and a frame unit that allows for separable seating, enabling forward and rearward movement, and multiple drawers at different heights for enhanced storage and accessibility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If a stationary basket is installed on the inner door, then the storage capacity is increased, but the user convenience deteriorates due to difficulty in retrieving food
Solution Approach 1:
The basket is transformed from a stationary structure to a movable drawer that can be pulled out forward and pushed back. The drawer assembly includes the basket part, frame unit, and coupling member that work together to enable smooth movement along the inner door, allowing users to easily access stored food while maintaining storage capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The basket structure is divided into separable components: the basket part (receiving container), frame unit (support structure), and coupling member (connection element). This segmentation allows the basket to be easily detached and reattached, enhancing user convenience while preserving storage functionality.
2Reliability
If a large structure is used to secure the basket on the inner door, then the basket stability is improved, but the storage capacity of the basket is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The securing structure is segmented into a compact coupling member that attaches to the inner door and a separate frame unit that supports the basket. This segmentation minimizes the space occupied by the securing mechanism while maintaining stability, thereby maximizing the basket's storage capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling member and frame unit are designed with thin-walled structures that provide sufficient mechanical strength and stability for securing the basket, while occupying minimal space. The thin-walled design ensures the basket remains stable during use without reducing its storage volume.
3Device complexity
If the basket is made stationary on the inner door, then the structure is simplified, but the accessibility of stored items deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The basket is designed as a movable drawer that can be easily pulled out and pushed back along the inner door. This dynamic design maintains structural simplicity while dramatically improving accessibility, allowing users to reach stored items without opening the entire refrigerator door.
Solution Approach 2:
The drawer mechanism is designed to move smoothly under its own weight with minimal user effort. The coupling member and frame unit work together to enable the basket to glide easily along the inner door, providing self-service functionality that enhances accessibility without adding complex mechanisms.
Data Source
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AI summary
Disclosed is a refrigerator. The refrigerator includes a cabinet having a first storage compartment, an inner door pivotably rotatably installed to the cabinet, the inner door having a second storage compartment, an outer door configured to open or close the second storage compartment, and a drawer installed in the second storage compartment, the drawer being movable forward and rearward. The drawer includes a basket part (120) configured to receive food therein and a frame unit (140) configured to allow the basket part (120) to be separably seated thereon.