Modular Insulating Panel Assembly for Refrigerator Body Manufacturing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for manufacturing refrigerator main bodies are costly, time-consuming, and require significant manpower, and they often result in a product that is difficult to disassemble and reassemble.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator is formed by assembling a plurality of insulating panels, with each panel featuring couplers that engage through specific directional movements, allowing for easy assembly and improved coupling strength.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the main body is manufactured by foaming and hardening a foaming liquid between an inner case and an outer case, then the structural integrity is improved, but the manufacturing cost, time, and manpower requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerator main body is divided into multiple separate insulating panels that can be manufactured independently and then assembled together. Each panel includes an inner case, outer case, and insulating layer as separate components that are pre-manufactured and then joined using coupling structures, replacing the traditional monolithic foaming process.
2Reliability
If the main body is manufactured by foaming and hardening a foaming liquid, then the thermal insulation performance is improved, but the ability to disassemble and reassemble the main body is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The main body is segmented into multiple insulating panels with coupling structures that enable easy assembly and disassembly. Each panel maintains its thermal insulation properties independently, and the coupling mechanisms allow these panels to be joined and separated without compromising the overall thermal performance of the refrigerator.
3Ease of operation
If multiple insulating panels are assembled together, then the ease of assembly is improved, but the coupling strength between panels may be insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
Coupling structures such as protrusions and recesses are pre-formed on the insulating panels during manufacturing. These preliminary coupling features guide the panels into proper alignment and provide strong mechanical interlocking when assembled, ensuring both ease of assembly and sufficient coupling strength.
4Reliability
If the refrigerator operates in a cold storage compartment environment, then the cooling function is achieved, but thermal deformation of the main body occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The insulating panels use composite structures combining inner cases, outer cases, and insulating layers with different thermal expansion coefficients. This composite construction compensates for thermal deformation by distributing stress across materials with complementary properties, maintaining structural integrity in cold environments.
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigerator may include a body including a first insulating panel having a first coupler and a second insulating panel having a second coupler, wherein the first coupler and second coupler are coupled together, a compartment inside the body, a door to open and close the compartment, and a cooling device to cool the compartment, wherein the first insulating panel, first coupler, second insulating panel, and second coupler are configured so that, to couple the first coupler and second coupler together, the first insulating panel and first coupler are movable in a first direction toward the second insulating panel and second coupler so that the first coupler and second coupler become engaged, and, after the first coupler and second coupler are engaged, the first insulating panel and first coupler are movable in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction so that the first coupler and second coupler become coupled.