Refrigerator

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing refrigerator designs with drawer-type doors often expose elevation mechanisms, leading to safety concerns, poor appearance, and difficulties in service and cleaning due to the exposure of components and instability during elevation, which can result in deformation and breakage.

Innovation Solution

A refrigerator design where the drawer-type door is elevatable, with a connection device that allows the front panel door part and drawer part to be separated and coupled without a separate mechanism, featuring a driving device and elevation device that are spaced apart and can receive power through a connection device and power transmission member, ensuring stable elevation and safety by hiding components during operation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If the drawer-type door is elevated to improve user convenience, then the basket or foods become easier to access, but the connection portion and electrical devices for elevation become exposed causing safety problems

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccessibility of basket or foodsVSAvoidexposure of connection portion and electrical devices

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The connection portion is nested within the drawer part structure, specifically housed in a connection portion receiving groove. The electrical devices are integrated into the door assembly rather than being externally exposed. This nesting approach allows the elevation function to be maintained while concealing the connection portion and electrical devices, thereby improving safety and appearance.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

2Ease of operation

If the drawer-type door is elevated to improve user convenience, then the basket becomes accessible, but the exposed constituents result in poor appearance

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccessibility of basketVSAvoidappearance of door structure

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSShape

Solution Approach 1:

The connection portion is nested within the drawer part structure, specifically housed in a connection portion receiving groove. This nesting approach allows the elevation function to be maintained while concealing the connection portion, thereby improving safety and appearance.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

3Ease of operation

If the elevation structure is added to the door to enable basket elevation, then the basket can be elevated, but the structure becomes difficult to separate and install making service and cleaning management difficult

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveelevation capability of basketVSAvoidseparability of elevation structure

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSEase of repair

Solution Approach 1:

The door assembly is segmented into separable components: the front panel door part and the drawer part. The connection portion is designed to be detachably coupled between these segments. This segmentation allows the drawer part with the elevation mechanism to be easily separated from the front panel for service, cleaning, or maintenance purposes, while maintaining the elevation function when assembled.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

4Ease of operation

If the entire basket is elevated during operation of the elevation structure, then the basket can be accessed, but when the food inside the basket is eccentric, it is difficult for the basket to vertically move stably and the basket may be severely deformed and damaged

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccessibility of basketVSAvoidvertical movement stability of basket

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The elevation function is extracted from the entire basket structure and applied only to the drawer part containing the basket. The drawer part is elevated while the basket remains within the elevated drawer, allowing stable support of the basket contents. This extraction approach prevents the instability and deformation issues that would occur if the entire basket structure were elevated as a single unit.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

5Object-affected harmful factors

If the drawer door is completely withdrawn to the outside of the cabinet for elevation, then safety and durability are improved, but the draw-out distance becomes relatively long

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesafety and durability during elevationVSAvoiddraw-out distance of drawer door

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSLength of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The drawer part is elevated when the door is in a partially withdrawn state, rather than requiring complete withdrawal. This partial action approach maintains the safety and durability benefits of elevation while reducing the excessive draw-out distance that would be required if complete withdrawal were necessary.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS10648727B2Refrigerator

Publication Date: 2020.05.12 LG ELECTRONICS INC

AI summary

A refrigerator includes a cabinet, a front panel door part, a drawer part located rearward of the front panel door part, and a connection device that is located at the front panel door part, that is configured to couple the front panel door part with the drawer part, and that is configured to transmit power from the front panel door part to the drawer part. The connection device includes an exposed portion that is exposed through the rear surface of the front panel door part and that allows a user to manipulate the connection device, and the connection device is configured to, based on a manipulation of the exposed portion of the connection device by the user, decouple the front panel door part from the drawer part.