Pull-Down Refrigerator Shelf Design for Rear Item Accessibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
In conventional refrigerators, accessing items on the back of shelves is difficult due to obstruction from items on the front, requiring users to remove front items to view and retrieve items from the back, which is inconvenient.
Innovation Solution
A pull-down refrigerator shelf system with a rear shelf plate and a front shelf plate that can be selectively positioned on the same plane or below the rear plate, utilizing a sliding and lowering mechanism to allow the front plate to lower horizontally, enabling easier access to items on the rear shelf without removing items from the front.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a shelf is fixed inside the refrigerator main body, then the shelf structure is simple and stable, but it is difficult to access items on the back of the shelf due to obstruction from front items
Solution Approach 1:
The shelf transitions from a fixed structure to a movable structure with pull-down functionality. The front shelf plate can be pulled forward and lowered independently from the rear shelf plate, allowing dynamic adjustment of the front shelf position to improve accessibility to items on the back shelf without requiring complete shelf removal.
Solution Approach 2:
The shelf is divided into separate components: a front shelf plate and a rear shelf plate, connected by support brackets and sliding mechanisms. This segmentation allows the front shelf plate to move independently, enabling users to access rear items without moving all shelf contents, thus resolving the accessibility issue while maintaining structural organization.
2Ease of operation
If the front shelf plate is lowered to access rear items, then accessibility is improved, but the shelf structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
Support brackets and sliding rails act as intermediary mechanisms between the front and rear shelf plates. These intermediaries enable the front shelf plate to move forward and downward independently while maintaining structural support and connection to the rear shelf plate, simplifying the overall mechanism compared to a completely movable shelf.
Solution Approach 2:
The shelf system utilizes the user's pulling action on the front shelf plate to automatically activate the sliding and lowering mechanisms. The gravity-assisted lowering and spring-based shock absorbers provide self-regulating movement control, reducing the need for complex motorized or manually-controlled mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
A pull down refrigerator shelf for a storage compartment of a refrigerator, the pull down refrigerator shelf may include a rear shelf plate; a front shelf plate disposed in front of the rear shelf plate and configured to be selectively positioned on a same plane as the rear shelf plate or below the rear shelf plate; and a shelf sliding and lowering mechanism disposed under the rear shelf plate and the front shelf plate and configured to allow the rear shelf plate and the front shelf plate to slide integrally, the shelf sliding and lowering mechanism configured to allow the front shelf plate to lower relative to the rear shelf plate while maintaining a horizontal state.