refrigerator
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing refrigerators face challenges in efficiently supplying cold air to baskets installed on doors, leading to reduced refrigerating efficiency and increased door thickness, which compromises storage capacity and aesthetic appeal.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator design featuring a double door structure with a main door and a sub door, connected by a hinge part with a single pivot shaft, allowing independent or simultaneous opening and closing without additional fixing devices, and incorporating a conducting wire for electric device operation, with hinges bent at the same angle and disposed in parallel to enhance aesthetics and prevent interference.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If a sub door is mounted on the main door to create a door-in-door structure, then storage space is efficiently configured and cold air supply to baskets is improved, but the door thickness increases and the refrigerator occupies excessive volume
Solution Approach 1:
The sub door is nested within the main door structure, with the sub door assembly positioned inside the thickness of the main door. The hinge connection allows the sub door to pivot independently while remaining contained within the overall door envelope, effectively nesting one door within another without increasing external dimensions.
Solution Approach 2:
The hinge connection is positioned at the edge of the main door, allowing the sub door to extend in a direction parallel to the main door surface rather than increasing thickness in the perpendicular direction. This dimensional repositioning enables the sub door to be mounted without proportionally increasing door thickness.
2Quantity of substance
If baskets are installed on both the main door and sub door to maximize storage, then storage capacity increases, but cold air supply becomes insufficient and baskets interfere with each other
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the door structure are assigned different functions: the main door basket is positioned to receive cold air from the main storeroom, while the sub door basket is positioned to receive cold air from the sub storeroom. This local differentiation ensures each basket has adequate cold air supply without interference from the other.
Solution Approach 2:
The door storage system is segmented into two independent zones: the main door basket connected to the main storeroom and the sub door basket connected to the sub storeroom. This segmentation allows independent cold air circulation paths, preventing interference between the two baskets while maximizing total storage capacity.
3Ease of operation
If the hinge structure is made complex to enable independent opening of sub door, then operational flexibility improves, but manufacturing complexity and aesthetic appeal deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge structure is designed as a single integrated component that performs multiple functions: it connects the sub door to the main door, enables independent pivoting of the sub door, and provides structural support. This merging of functions into one component reduces manufacturing complexity compared to using multiple separate mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The hinge connection serves multiple purposes: it acts as a pivot point for the sub door, provides structural attachment between the sub door and main door, and allows both doors to open independently. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for additional fixing devices or complex mechanisms.
Data Source
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AI summary
Refrigerator for efficiently configuring an internal space of a storeroom and opening and closing the internal space. The refrigerator includes a main door (100) rotatably provided in the cabinet (10) by a first hinge (461) to open and close the storeroom (11), and a sub door (400) disposed between the main door (100) and the storeroom (11), rotatably provided with respect to the main door (100) by a second hinge (462), and defining a storage space disposed inside the storeroom (11) in a closed state, and in this case, the first hinge (461) and the second hinge (462) are bent in a perpendicular direction to a pivot shat (465). At least a portion of a first bent portion (4611-3) and a second bent portion (4621-2) are disposed in an installation groove (102) formed in the main door (100).