CN109312978B

CN109312978B - Beverage supply device and door structure

Info

Publication number: CN109312978B
Application number: CN201780011410.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 和田悟; 片冈博明; 马场盛司
Original assignee: Sharp Corp
Current assignee: Sharp Corp
Priority date: 2016-07-01
Filing date: 2017-02-27
Publication date: 2021-07-20
Anticipated expiration: 2037-02-27
Also published as: WO2018003170A1; MY192432A; CN109312978A

Abstract

The beverage supply device (10) is built in the refrigerator (1). The beverage supply device (10) is disposed on a refrigerating chamber door (2) having a heat insulating material (40) therein. The beverage supply device (10) has a water supply tank (20), a water supply pipe (23), a water injection rod (12), and a lock mechanism (24). The water supply tank (20) is disposed on the rear side of the refrigerating chamber door (2). The water supply pipe (23) and the water injection rod (12) are disposed below the water supply tank (20) and discharge the beverage in the water supply tank (20). The locking mechanism (24) fixes the water supply tank (20) in a state of being mounted on the refrigerating chamber door (2), and limits the movement of the mounting direction of the water supply tank (20).

Description

Beverage supply device and door structure

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a beverage supply device for supplying a beverage such as water. The present invention relates to a beverage supply device mounted on a door of a storage room such as a refrigerator. The present invention also relates to a door structure of a power opening/closing type.

Background

Conventionally, a beverage supply device (also referred to as a water dispenser) for supplying a beverage such as water is known. Further, the following structure is also proposed: the beverage supply device is arranged in the refrigerator, so that cold water can be taken out from a cold water tank arranged in the refrigerator without opening the refrigerator door.

For example, patent document 1 discloses a refrigerator having: a cooling box for storing water cooled by cold air in the refrigerating chamber; and a water supply plug for supplying water in the cold water tank to the water supply target member. In the refrigerator of patent document 1, an opening and a small door for opening and closing the opening are provided in a refrigerator door, and a cold water tank and a water supply plug are disposed at positions corresponding to the opening. Patent document 2 discloses a refrigerator in which a door is provided with a distribution portion for supplying cold water.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese unexamined patent publication Hei 10-132456

Patent document 2: japanese unexamined patent application publication No. 2010-65962

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem to be solved by the invention

In the refrigerator described in patent document 1, a cold water tank 3 is disposed so as to penetrate through a refrigerating chamber door 1 and protrude toward the rear surface side of the refrigerating chamber door 1 (see fig. 3 and the like of patent document 1). The hydrant 4 is integrally provided at a lower portion of the cold water tank 3. The cold water tank 3 is mounted on a tank frame 6 provided inside the refrigerating chamber door 1.

However, the above-described structure has a problem in that the cold water tank mounted on the tank rack is unstable. In particular, when the amount of water in the cold water tank 3 remains small, the degree of instability further increases.

Further, for example, if the hydrant is integrally mounted on the lower portion of the cold water tank and the hydrant is fixed to the cold water tank, the cold water tank may be detached from the tank frame if the user strongly pushes the hydrant to apply a force to the hydrant. This problem is more pronounced when the amount of water in the cold water tank is low.

Accordingly, an object of one aspect of the present invention is to provide a structure for holding a water supply tank in a more stable state in a beverage supply device provided on a wall surface.

In addition, in a structure in which a small door for a beverage supply device and for taking out small articles is provided in a storage room such as a refrigerator, it is studied to adopt a method in which the small door is automatically (i.e., electrically) opened and closed in order to improve user convenience. However, when the door is configured to be automatically opened and closed, if a person accidentally touches the door, the door may be opened unintentionally. This is because, in the automatically opening and closing type door structure, a mechanism that can be opened and closed even when the door is in a closed state is attached to the main body device.

Therefore, another object of the present invention is to provide a structure capable of suppressing inadvertent erroneous opening of a door in a power-operated door structure.

Means for solving the problems

A beverage supply device according to an aspect of the present invention is a beverage supply device disposed on a wall surface having heat insulation properties. The beverage supply device comprises: a water supply tank disposed on the rear surface side of the wall surface; a discharge unit disposed below the water supply tank and discharging the beverage in the water supply tank; and a locking mechanism for fixing the water supply tank in a state of being mounted on the device and limiting the movement of the water supply tank in the mounting direction.

In the beverage supply device according to the aspect of the present invention, the discharge portion may include a water supply pipe connected to the water supply tank and extending obliquely downward from the water supply tank, and an extending direction of the water supply pipe may be substantially parallel to an attachment direction of the water supply tank.

In the beverage supplying apparatus according to the aspect of the present invention, the locking mechanism may be a rotary locking mechanism provided on the water supply tank. The rotary lock mechanism may include a rotary lock and a rail member, and may restrict movement in the installation direction of the water supply tank by engaging a hook portion of the rotary lock with the rail member in a state where a protrusion provided on the wall surface side is accommodated in the rail member.

In the beverage supplying apparatus having the rotary lock mechanism, the water supply tank may have a lid, and the rotary lock may be disposed on the lid of the water supply tank.

In the beverage supplying apparatus in the aspect of the invention, the locking mechanism may be a spring-type locking mechanism. In the spring-type lock mechanism, the spring of the lock mechanism is engaged with a projection provided on the wall surface side, so that the movement of the water supply tank in the mounting direction is restricted.

A door construction in another aspect of the invention has: a door; a control unit for controlling the opening and closing of the door; and a locking mechanism for maintaining the closed state of the door when the door is in the closed state. The control unit locks the lock mechanism to maintain the door in the closed state after the door is in the closed state, and starts the opening operation of the door after the lock mechanism is in the unlocked state.

In the door construction in another aspect of the present invention, the door may be a swing door, and the locking mechanism may switch the locked state and the unlocked state by moving in a direction of a rotation axis of the door.

In the door structure in another aspect of the present invention, the door may be a swing door, and the locking mechanism may lock an outer circumferential portion of the door.

In the door structure in another aspect of the present invention, the lock mechanism may be disposed on a side that moves rearward in an actuating operation of the door.

In the door structure according to the another aspect of the present invention, a driving unit may be further provided to drive the opening and closing operation of the door, and the locking operation of the lock mechanism may be driven by the driving unit.

Effects of the invention

As described above, the beverage supply device according to the aspect of the present invention is provided with the locking mechanism for fixing the water supply tank in the state of being attached to the device. Therefore, the beverage supply device provided on the wall surface of the refrigerating chamber such as the door can hold the water supply tank in a more stable state.

As described above, the door structure according to another aspect of the present invention is provided with the lock mechanism that maintains the closed state of the door when the door is in the closed state. Therefore, in the automatically opening and closing type door structure, the door can be prevented from being opened by mistake.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a front view showing an appearance of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a front view showing a state in use of the beverage supply apparatus provided on a refrigerating chamber door on the left side of the refrigerator shown in fig. 1 or 15.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing a state in use of the beverage supply device shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a side view of a refrigerating chamber door on the left side of the refrigerator shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a rear view of a refrigerating chamber door on the left side of the refrigerator shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along line a-a of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view of the refrigerating chamber door shown in fig. 5 taken along line B-B.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the structure of a water supply tank of the beverage supply device shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 9(a) and (b) are enlarged perspective views of a broken-line frame portion IX of the water supply tank shown in fig. 8. (a) The drawings show the lock mechanism in a locked state (locked state). (b) The drawings show the lock mechanism in an unlocked state (unlocked state).

Fig. 10(a) and (b) are schematic views showing a locking mechanism of a water supply tank of a beverage supply device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. (a) The drawings show the lock mechanism in an unlocked state (unlocked state). (b) The drawings show the lock mechanism in a locked state (locked state).

Fig. 11(a) and (b) are schematic views showing a locking mechanism of a water supply tank of a beverage supply device according to a third embodiment of the present invention. (a) The drawings show the lock mechanism in an unlocked state (unlocked state). (b) The drawings show the lock mechanism in a locked state (locked state).

Fig. 12(a) and (b) are schematic views showing modifications of the locking mechanism of the water supply tank in the third embodiment. (a) The drawings show the lock mechanism in an unlocked state (unlocked state). (b) The drawings show the lock mechanism in a locked state (locked state).

Fig. 13 is a front view showing an external appearance of a beverage supply device according to the fourth and ninth embodiments of the present invention.

Fig. 14 is a front view showing a state in use of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in fig. 13.

Fig. 15 is a front view showing an external appearance of a refrigerator in a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16(a)

(c) Is a schematic view showing an example of a method of using the beverage supply device shown in fig. 15.

Fig. 17 is a perspective view showing an internal structure of the beverage supply device shown in fig. 15.

Fig. 18 is a perspective view showing an internal structure of the beverage supply device shown in fig. 15.

Fig. 19 is an exploded perspective view of the beverage supply device shown in fig. 18.

Fig. 20 is an exploded perspective view showing the components constituting the rotary drive unit of the beverage supply device shown in fig. 15.

Fig. 21 is a sectional view showing an internal structure of a rotary drive unit constituting the beverage supply device shown in fig. 15.

Fig. 22(a) and (b) are plan views showing the internal structure of the cam housing portion constituting the beverage supply device shown in fig. 15. (a) Indicating that the revolving door is in an open state. (b) Indicating that the revolving door is in a closed state.

Fig. 23(a) is a view corresponding to fig. 22(a), and is a plan view showing a state in which the slide cam is removed from fig. 22 (a). (b) Fig. 22(b) is a plan view corresponding to fig. 22(b), showing a state in which the slide cam is removed from fig. 22 (b).

Fig. 24(a) is a side view showing the lock mechanism in a locked state. (b) Is a side view showing the locking mechanism in an unlocked state.

Fig. 25(a) is a plan view showing an internal structure of a beverage supply device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. (b) Is a front view showing the configuration of a beverage supply device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 26(a) is a plan view showing an internal structure of a beverage supply device according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention. (b) Is a front view showing the configuration of a beverage supply device according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention. These figures show the situation in which the revolving door of the beverage supply device is in an open state.

Fig. 27 is a front view showing a state where the revolving door is closed in the beverage supplying apparatus shown in fig. 26 (b).

Fig. 28 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of a beverage supply device according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 29(a) is a plan view showing the configuration of a beverage supply device according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention. (b) Is a left side view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). (c) Is a front view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). (d) Is a right side view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). These figures show the case where the revolving door of the beverage supply device is in an open state (the lock mechanism is in an unlocked state).

Fig. 30(a) is a plan view showing the configuration of a beverage supply device according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention. (b) Is a left side view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). (c) Is a front view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). (d) Is a right side view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). These figures show a state in which the revolving door of the beverage supply device is in a closed state (the lock mechanism is in an unlocked state).

Fig. 31(a) is a plan view showing the configuration of a beverage supply device according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention. (b) Is a left side view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). (c) Is a front view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). (d) Is a right side view of the beverage supplying apparatus shown in (a). These figures show a case where the lock mechanism is in a locked state after the revolving door of the beverage supply device is in a closed state.

Fig. 32 is a flowchart showing a flow of door opening/closing control in the beverage supply device shown in fig. 28. This figure shows a flow of control when the revolving door is switched from the open state to the closed state.

Fig. 33 is a flowchart showing a flow of door opening/closing control in the beverage supply device shown in fig. 28. This figure shows a flow of control when the revolving door is switched from the closed state to the open state.

Fig. 34 is a front view showing an external appearance of a refrigerator according to another embodiment.

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals. Their names and functions are also the same. Therefore, detailed description of the same parts will not be repeated.

< first embodiment >

< overview of refrigerator >

In the present embodiment, an example of a configuration in which the beverage supply device of the present invention is incorporated in a refrigerator will be described. However, the beverage supply apparatus of the present invention may not necessarily be built in the refrigerator. First, an outline of the refrigerator 1 mounted on the beverage supply device 10 in the present embodiment will be described. Fig. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator 1 on which a beverage supply device 10 according to the present embodiment is mounted.

As shown in fig. 1, the refrigerator 1 has 4 doors. The refrigerator 1 in the present embodiment has a refrigerating chamber mounted in an upper portion thereof and a freezing chamber mounted in a lower portion thereof. Handles 3 are provided on the respective doors of the refrigerator. A beverage supply device 10 is mounted on a left refrigerating chamber door (wall surface having heat insulation properties) 2 viewed from the front of the refrigerator 1. However, in the present invention, the arrangement position of the beverage supply device 10 is not limited to this. For example, the beverage supply device 10 may be mounted on the right refrigerating chamber door 2 as viewed from the front.

However, the refrigerator 1 in which the beverage supply device 10 is mounted may have less than 4 doors or more than 4 doors, and the refrigerating chamber may be disposed at a lower portion or a middle portion.

Fig. 1 shows a state of the beverage supply device 10 when not in use. As shown in fig. 1, in a state of non-use, the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply apparatus 10 is located on the front side of the refrigerator 1. That is, the water supply mechanism (discharge portion) of the beverage supply device 10 is positioned on the back side of the rotary door 11 and is not visible.

In the beverage supply device 10 of the present embodiment, the revolving door 11 is an electric revolving door. That is, an opening/closing switch (not shown) for opening/closing the swing door 11 is provided near the swing door 11. When the user of the beverage supply device 10 presses the open/close switch, the drive motor connected to the rotary door 11 is operated, and the rotary door 11 starts to rotate. Thus, the user of the beverage supply device 10 can easily open and close the swing door 11 without manually opening and closing the door.

The opening and closing of the swing door 11 may be performed using an object sensor, for example. The object sensing sensor senses that a user's hand or the like of the beverage supplying apparatus 10 approaches its surroundings or that the user's hand touches the sensor. When the body-sensing sensor senses the hand of the user, the rotary door 11 of the beverage supply device 10 may be rotated in the horizontal direction to present the water supply mechanism on the front.

In the beverage supply device of the present invention, the swing door may be opened and closed manually without using a motor or the like. Further, the beverage supply device of the present invention may be configured without a revolving door. In this case, the water supply mechanism of the beverage supply device is configured to be always exposed to the front of the refrigerator 1

< construction of beverage supply apparatus >

Next, the structure of the beverage supply device 10 according to the present embodiment will be described. Fig. 2 shows a structure of the surface 2a side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 on the left side. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the structure of the surface 2a side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 on the left side. Fig. 2 and 3 show a state of the beverage supply device 10 in use. The water supply tank 20 of the beverage supply device 10 is disposed on the back side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 and is not visible from the front side (the front surface 2a side), and the water supply tank 20 is shown by a broken line in fig. 2 for convenience.

As described below, the refrigerating chamber door 2 has heat insulation by having a heat insulator 40 (see fig. 7) inside. Therefore, the back side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 can be maintained at substantially the same temperature as that in the refrigerating chamber. Thereby, the beverage in the water service box 20 can be cooled down to the refrigerating temperature.

As described above, the beverage supply device 10 is configured such that, when the user presses the open/close switch of the swing door 11, the swing door 11 is horizontally rotated to present the water supply mechanism on the front. That is, when the rotary door 11 is rotated, the water supply chamber 10a of the beverage supply device 10 is exposed to the front as shown in fig. 2 and 3. The water supply chamber 10a includes a water injection rod (discharge portion) 12 constituting a water supply mechanism, and a back plate 13, a side plate 14, a bottom portion 15 (water receiving portion), and the like, which form an inner wall of the water supply chamber 10 a. The rotary door 11 is disposed to overlap the rear plate 13 of the water supply chamber 10 a. When the beverage supply apparatus 10 is in a non-use state, the surface of the rotary door 11 is located on the front surface of the refrigerator 1 (refer to fig. 1).

In the present embodiment, for example, a user presses the water pouring lever 12 toward the back plate 13 using a container such as glass, so that the water pouring port attached to the water pouring lever 12 is opened, and water is supplied from the water pouring port into the glass. That is, the water filling port of the water filling lever 12 is connected to the water supply tank 20 disposed above the water supply chamber 10a, and when the user manipulates the water filling lever 12, water in the water supply tank 20 is discharged from the water filling port through a water supply pipe (discharge portion) 23 (see fig. 6). The water supply tank 20 is located in the refrigerating chamber, and the water in the water supply tank 20 maintains the refrigerating temperature.

Fig. 4 shows a side structure of the refrigerating chamber door 2. Fig. 5 shows a structure of the rear surface 2b side of the refrigerating chamber door 2. Fig. 6 and 7 show a sectional structure of the refrigerating chamber door 2. Fig. 6 shows a sectional structure of the refrigerating chamber door 2 shown in fig. 2 along line a-a. Fig. 7 shows a sectional structure of the refrigerating chamber door 2 shown in fig. 5 on the line B-B.

The beverage supply device 10 is disposed in an opening formed by digging through a part of the refrigerating chamber door 2. That is, the beverage supply device 10 is disposed to penetrate the refrigerating chamber door 2 (see fig. 6). The beverage supply device 10 is mainly composed of a water supply chamber 10a, a water supply tank 20, and a refrigerator door (wall surface having heat insulation) 2 to which these components are attached.

As shown in fig. 4 and 5,

side walls

2c and 2d protruding from the rear surface 2b of the refrigerating compartment door 2 are disposed along the end portions in the vicinity of the left and right end portions of the rear surface 2 b. The water supply tank 20 and the storage container 4 are attached to the rear surface 2b of the refrigerating chamber door 2. The water supply tank 20 and the storage container 4 are attached to the back surface 2b so as to be fitted between the left and

right side walls

2c and 2 d.

The storage container 4 is disposed below the rear surface 2b of the refrigerating chamber door 2. The storage container 4 is provided with a recess or the like to be fitted to projections formed on the rear surface 2b and the

side walls

2c and 2d of the refrigerating chamber door 2. Thereby, the storage container 4 is fixedly disposed on the rear surface 2b of the refrigerating chamber door 2. The storage container 4 can store beverages, seasonings, and the like in the form of plastic bottles, paper bags, bottles, and the like.

The water supply tank 20 is located at an upper portion of the beverage supplying apparatus 10. More specifically, water supply tank 20 is located obliquely upward (specifically, obliquely upward toward the rear of refrigerator 1) with respect to water supply chamber 10a (see fig. 6). The water supply tank 20 can accommodate therein a beverage such as a beverage water or a refreshing beverage discharged from the water supply mechanism of the beverage supply device 10. As shown in fig. 5, the lateral width of the water supply tank 20 spans from one side wall 2c to the other side wall 2d of the rear surface 2b of the refrigerating compartment door 2. However, this is an example of the present invention, and the size of water supply tank 20 may be changed as appropriate according to the required tank capacity.

The water supply tank 20 is detachable from the rear surface 2b of the refrigerating chamber door 2. When there is no beverage or a small amount of beverage left in the water service box 20, the user can remove the water service box 20 from the refrigerating chamber door 2 and supply the beverage to the water service box 20. The outer shape of the water supply tank 20 is mainly formed by a tank body 21 and an upper cover (lid) 22. The upper cover 22 is configured to be detachable from the box body 21.

The water supply chamber 10a is located below the water supply tank 20. In the present embodiment, the water supply chamber 10a is disposed on the substantially right side near the refrigerating chamber door 2. That is, the water supply chamber 10a is disposed on the side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 close to the handle 3. However, in the present invention, the position of the water supply chamber is not limited to this.

Next, a more specific configuration of the beverage supply device 10 will be described with reference to fig. 6 and 7. Fig. 6 and 7 show a state in which the water supply chamber 10a is exposed to the front of the refrigerator 1. As shown in fig. 6, the beverage supply device 10 is configured to penetrate the refrigerating chamber door 2.

The interior of the refrigerating chamber door 2 (between the front surface 2a and the rear surface 2 b) is filled with a heat insulating material 40 (see fig. 7). This can maintain the heat insulation property in the refrigerating chamber. The periphery of the rear surface side of the water supply chamber 10a of the beverage supply device 10 is covered with a heat insulator 40a (see fig. 6).

Water supply tank 20 located above the rear side of water supply chamber 10a is disposed so as to be mounted on heat insulator 40 a. By covering the periphery of the rear surface side of the water supply chamber 10a with the heat insulating material 40a in this way, the escape of cold air in the refrigerating chamber to the outside of the refrigerating chamber through the water supply chamber 10a can be suppressed.

The water supply tank 20 is mounted in a state of being fixed to the refrigerating chamber door 2 by a locking mechanism 24. Specifically, as shown in fig. 7, the water supply tank 20 is fixed to the refrigerating chamber door 2 by engaging the locking mechanism 24 with the projections 5 provided on the inner surfaces of the

side walls

2c and 2d of the refrigerating chamber door 2 (projections provided on the wall surface side).

The water supply chamber 10a includes a water injection lever 12, a back plate 13 forming an inner wall of the water supply chamber 10a, a side plate 14, a bottom 15 (water receiving portion), and the like. The water supply pipe (discharge portion) 23 provided in the water supply tank 20 is connected to the water injection rod 12.

The bottom 15 of the water supply chamber 10a is connected to a rotary shaft 16. The rotary shaft 16 is relatively rotatably mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2. An upper portion of water supply chamber 10a is connected to an upper rotary shaft (not shown). The upper rotary shaft is connected to a drive motor for driving the rotation of the water supply chamber 10 a. Thus, for example, when the user operates an open/close switch or the like, the water supply chamber 10a can be automatically rotated.

Next, a more specific structure of the water supply tank 20 provided in the beverage supply device 10 will be described with reference to fig. 6 to 8. Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the water supply tank 20. Fig. 8 shows a state of the water supply tank 20 as viewed from the side surface side (i.e., the right side surface) where the water supply pipe 23 is provided.

For convenience of explanation, the side surface of the water supply tank 20 opposite to the rear surface 2b of the refrigerating chamber door 2 is referred to as the front surface of the water supply tank 20. The surface on the side opposite to the front surface of water supply tank 20 is referred to as the rear surface of water supply tank 20. The side surface of water supply tank 20 located on the front side in fig. 8 is referred to as the right side surface of water supply tank 20. The side surface of water supply tank 20 located on the rear side in fig. 8 is referred to as the left side surface of water supply tank 20.

The main components of the water supply tank 20 include a tank body 21, an upper cover 22, a water supply pipe 23, and a lock mechanism 24.

The box body 21 has a substantially box shape, and contains a beverage therein. The upper surface of the case main body 21 is opened. Further, recesses 21a are formed below the front surface and the right side surface of the box body 21. A water supply pipe 23 is provided in a front portion of the recess 21 a. The water supply pipe 23 protrudes to extend obliquely downward (in the direction of arrow a) from the box body 21. The water supply pipe 23 has a distal end connected to a water inlet of the water injection rod 12.

In this way, in the beverage supply device 10 of the present embodiment, the water supply pipe 23 is disposed below the water supply tank 20 and extends obliquely downward from the water supply tank 20. This allows the beverage in water supply tank 20 disposed on the rear surface 2b side of refrigerating chamber door 2 to be introduced into water injection rod 12 disposed on the front surface 2a side of refrigerating chamber door 2.

In addition, in a state where the water supply tank 20 is mounted on the refrigerating chamber door 2, the heat insulating material 40b is filled in the recess 21a (see fig. 6). Accordingly, the space outside the refrigerator 1 is insulated from the inside of the box body 21 and the water supply pipe 23, and the beverage W in the water supply tank 20 can be kept in a refrigerated state.

Rail members 26 are provided on the right and left side surfaces of the box body 21. The rail member 26 constitutes the lock mechanism 24 together with the rotation lock 25 provided on the upper cover 22.

The upper cover 22 is disposed to cover the upper surface of the box body 21. The upper cover 22 is detachable from the case body 21. A plurality of stoppers 27 are provided on the front surface and both left and right side surfaces of the upper cover 22. The upper cover 22 is fixed to the case body 21 by the stopper 27. The upper cover 22 is provided with rotation locks 25 on the right and left side surfaces thereof, respectively. The rotary lock 25 constitutes the locking mechanism 24.

< locking mechanism for water supply tank >

The locking mechanism 24 is described in more detail below. The locking mechanism 24 is provided to restrict movement in the direction of installation of the water supply tank 20. Here, the installation direction of the water supply tank 20 is substantially the same as the extending direction of the water supply pipe 23 provided below the water supply tank 20. This is for inserting the water supply pipe 23 between the

heat insulating materials

40a and 40b disposed so as to surround the water supply pipe 23 when the water supply tank 20 is attached (see fig. 6).

As shown in fig. 6, the water supply pipe 23 inserted between the

heat insulators

40a and 40b has its tip connected to the water injection rod 12. When the beverage supply device 10 is used, the user presses the water pouring lever 12 rearward in order to pour the beverage W such as water into the container. At this time, the tank body 21 of the water supply tank 20 receives a force directed obliquely upward along the extending direction of the water supply pipe 23 (i.e., the direction of arrow a in fig. 8). In a state where a relatively large amount of beverage W enters water supply tank 20, the gravity of beverage W is greater than the obliquely upward force, and therefore water supply tank 20 is likely to be stably held by refrigerating chamber door 2.

However, in a state where a small amount of beverage W remains in water supply tank 20, the total weight of water supply tank 20 containing beverage W becomes light. The water supply tank 20 is usually formed of a resin material such as plastic. Therefore, the water service box 20 itself is light in weight (e.g., on the order of several hundred grams). Therefore, when the user pushes the water pouring lever 12 in a state where a small amount of the beverage W remains in the water supply tank 20, the force acting obliquely upward in the extending direction of the water supply pipe 23 (see arrow a) is larger than the weight of the water supply tank 20 containing the beverage W. Therefore, the water supply tank 20 may be shaken or separated from the installation position of the refrigerating chamber door 2 during the water filling operation of the beverage supply apparatus 10.

Therefore, the water supply tank 20 of the present embodiment is provided with the lock mechanism 24 as described above. By providing the water supply tank 20 of the beverage supply device 10 of the present embodiment with the lock mechanism 24, the movement of the water supply tank 20 in the direction of the arrow a shown in fig. 8, which is the direction of attachment of the water supply tank, is restricted. This reduces the risk of the water supply tank 20 shaking or falling off during the water filling operation.

Next, a method of mounting the water supply tank 20 to the refrigerating chamber door 2 will be described with reference to fig. 7 and 9. Fig. 9(a) and (b) show the operation of the locking mechanism 24 when the water supply tank 20 is mounted on the refrigerating chamber door 2.

As shown in fig. 9(a) and (b), the lock mechanism 24 of the present embodiment is composed of a rotary lock 25 attached to the upper cover 22 and a rail member 26 formed on the side surface of the box body 21. The rotary lock 25 includes a rotary shaft 25a, a grip 25b, a hook 25c, and the like.

The rotation shaft 25a serves as a rotation center of the rotation lock 25. The grip portion 25b serves as a handle to be gripped by a user when the rotation lock 25 is rotated. When the lock mechanism 24 is in the locked state, the hooking portion 25c is hooked to the distal end engaging portion 26c of the rail member 26.

Here, the locked state of the locking mechanism 24 is a state in which the water supply tank 20 is fixed to the cooling chamber door 2. The unlocked state of the lock mechanism 24 is a state when the water supply tank 20 is removed from the refrigerating chamber door 2. That is, the state shown in fig. 9(a) is the locked state, and the state shown in fig. 9(b) is the unlocked state.

The rail member 26 has a shape in which the plate-like member is curved so as to have a shape of a numeral "7" when viewed from the side. In the inner space 24a of the rail member 26 obtained by this shape, the protruding portion 5 of the refrigerating chamber door 2 is housed when the rail member is to be attached to the refrigerating chamber door 2. The rail member 26 has a lower inclined portion 26a, a projection receiving portion 26b, a tip end engaging portion 26c, and the like.

The lower inclined portion 26a extends obliquely downward from the internal space 24 a. Preferably, the lower inclined portion 26a is inclined substantially parallel to the extending direction of the water supply pipe 23 (the direction of arrow a in fig. 8). Thus, when the water supply tank 20 is mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2, the water supply tank 20 can be slid while guiding the water supply tank 20 in the same direction as the extending direction of the water supply pipe 23.

The projection receiving portion 26b has an inverted "L" shape, and forms an internal space 24 a. The distal end engagement portion 26c projects forward from the projection receiving portion 26 b. In the locked state of the lock mechanism 24, and in the state in which the protruding portion 5 of the refrigerating chamber door 2 is accommodated in the internal space 24a, the hook portion 25c of the rotary lock 25 engages with the distal end engaging portion 26 c. This restricts the movement of the protrusion 5 housed in the internal space 24a, and restricts the movement of the water supply tank 20 (particularly, the movement in the direction of arrow a in fig. 8).

In the locking mechanism 24 having the above-described structure, when the refrigerating chamber door 2 is to be attached to the water supply tank 20, as shown in fig. 9(B), the grip portion 25B of the rotary lock 25 is rotated in the arrow B1 direction. Thereby, the engagement between the hook portion 25c and the distal end engagement portion 26c is released, and the internal space 24a is largely opened downward. Then, the water supply tank 20 is slid in the arrow B2 direction.

Here, the arrow B2 direction is substantially the same as the inclination direction of the lower inclined portion 26 a. In this case, if the inclination direction of the lower inclined portion 26a is substantially parallel to the extending direction (the direction of arrow a in fig. 8) of the water supply pipe 23, the water supply pipe 23 can be smoothly guided between the

heat insulating materials

40a and 40 b. That is, the direction of the track member 26 formed by the lower inclined portion 26a and the like is preferably substantially parallel to the mounting direction of the water supply tank 20 (in the present embodiment, the direction of arrow a in fig. 8).

Thereafter, the rotary lock 25 is rotated in a state where the protruding portion 5 of the refrigerating chamber door 2 is completely accommodated in the internal space 24a, and the hook portion 25c is engaged with the distal end engaging portion 26c as shown in fig. 9 (a). Thereby, the lock mechanism 24 becomes the locked state. In the locked state, the hooking portion 25c enters the internal space 24a, whereby the movement of the protrusion 5 is restricted. In particular, the movement of the mounting direction of the projection 5 (i.e., the arrow B2 direction) is restricted.

By providing the rotary lock 25 of the lock mechanism 24 to the water supply tank 20 together with the rail member 26 in this way, the mutual positional displacement of the hook portion 25c of the rotary lock 25 and the distal end engagement portion 26c of the rail member 26 can be reduced. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the locking mechanism 24 from being locked and released or from being locked due to the hook portion 25c not being accurately engaged with the distal end engaging portion 26 c.

More preferably, the rail member 26 of the lock mechanism 24 is disposed on an extension of the position where the water supply pipe 23 is disposed (the position of the axis of the water supply pipe 23). This can more reliably suppress the fluctuation of the water supply tank 20 during the water supply operation.

As described above, in the beverage supply device 10 according to the present embodiment, the water supply tank 20 can be stably installed on the wall surface of the refrigerating chamber door 2 or the like. In addition, the water supply tank 20 can be prevented from shaking when the remaining amount of the beverage in the water supply tank 20 is small.

In the first embodiment, the example in which the rotary lock mechanism 24 is constituted by the rotary lock 25 and the rail member 26 has been described. However, in the beverage supplying apparatus of the present invention, the locking mechanism is not limited to the rotary locking mechanism.

In the first embodiment, the rotary lock 25 is attached to the upper cover 22 of the water supply tank 20, and the rail member 26 is provided on the tank body 21. With this structure, even when the lock mechanism 24 is in the locked state, the lock between the upper cover 22 and the box body 21 can be achieved at the same time. However, in the present invention, it is not limited to this structure. That is, the rotary lock 25 and the rail member 26 constituting the lock mechanism 24 may be hooked to the box body 21 together. The number and mounting positions of the locking mechanisms are not limited to the above-described configurations.

< second embodiment >

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment, the structure in which the locking mechanism is provided to the water supply tank of the beverage supply device has been described. However, in the beverage supplying apparatus of the present invention, the locking mechanism may be provided on the wall surface side instead of the water supply tank side. Therefore, in the second embodiment, a configuration example in which the lock mechanism is provided on the wall surface side (i.e., the refrigerating compartment door side) will be described.

Fig. 10(a) and (b) show the structure around the water supply tank 420 of the beverage supply device 410 provided in the refrigerator 1 according to the present embodiment. The beverage supply device 410 according to the present embodiment is incorporated in the refrigerator 1 as in the first embodiment. Specifically, the beverage supply device 410 is built in the refrigerating chamber door 2. As for the structure of the refrigerating chamber door 2 to which the beverage supplying device 410 is mounted, substantially the same structure as that of the first embodiment can be applied. However, the second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the structure in which the water supply tank 420 is mounted on the rear surface of the refrigerating chamber door 2. Hereinafter, only the structure different from the first embodiment will be described.

In the first embodiment, the water supply tank 20 is fixed to the refrigerating chamber door 2 by engaging the protrusion 5 provided on the inner surface of the

side walls

2c and 2d of the refrigerating chamber door 2 with the locking mechanism 24 of the water supply tank 20. In contrast, in the second embodiment, the lock mechanism 404 is provided on the inner surfaces of the

side walls

2c and 2d of the refrigerating chamber door 2. Further, on both left and right side surfaces of the water supply tank 420, projections 425 (see fig. 10(a) and (b)) to be engaged with the lock mechanism 404 are provided.

As shown in fig. 10a, main components of water supply tank 420 include a tank body 21, an upper cover (not shown), a water supply pipe 423, and a protrusion 425. The outer shape of the case main body 421, the upper cover, and the water supply pipe 423 can be configured substantially as in the first embodiment.

The protruding portions 425 are formed to protrude from the right and left side surfaces of the case main body 421. The protrusion 425 is formed at a position corresponding to the locking mechanism 404 on the side of the refrigerating chamber door 2. The protrusion 425 may be formed of the same material as the plastic material or the like forming the case body 421. The cross-sectional shape of the protrusion 425 may be rectangular as shown in fig. 10(a), for example.

The locking mechanism 404 is provided on the inner side surfaces of the

side walls

2c and 2d of the refrigerating chamber door 2. The locking mechanism 404 is comprised of a rotating lock 405 and a rail member 406.

The rotary lock 405 includes a rotary shaft 405a, a catch 405b, a hook 405c, and the like. The rotation shaft 405a becomes a rotation center of the rotation lock 405. The grip 405b becomes a handle for a user to grip when the rotation lock 405 is to be rotated. When the lock mechanism 404 is in the locked state, the hook portion 405c is hooked to the distal end engagement portion 406c of the rail member 406.

The rail member 406 has a shape in which the plate-like member is bent like the rail member 26 of the first embodiment so as to have a shape like the numeral "7" when viewed from the side. However, the rail member 406 is disposed in a positional relationship such that the rail member 26 is rotated by about 180 degrees when the water supply tank 420 is attached. When the water service box 420 is mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2, the protrusion 425 of the water service box 120 is accommodated in the inner space 404a of the rail member 406 formed by the shape. The rail member 406 includes an upper inclined portion 406a, a projection receiving portion 406b, a tip end engaging portion 406c, and the like.

The upper inclined portion 406a extends obliquely upward from the internal space 404 a. Preferably, the upper inclined portion 406a is inclined substantially in parallel with the extending direction of the water supply pipe 423 (the direction of an arrow a1 in fig. 10 a). Thus, when the water supply tank 420 is mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2, the water supply tank 420 can be slid in the same direction a2 as the extending direction 1 of the water supply pipe 423.

The protrusion receiving portion 406b has a curved shape, and forms an internal space 404 a. In the locked state of the lock mechanism 404, as shown in fig. 10(B), the rotary lock 405 is rotated in the direction of arrow B1 in a state where the protrusion 425 of the water supply tank 420 is accommodated in the internal space 404 a. Thereby, the internal space 404a is covered by the grip portion 405b of the rotary lock 405.

In the locked state of the lock mechanism 404, and in the state where the protruding portion 425 of the refrigerating compartment door 2 is accommodated in the internal space 404a, the hook portion 405c of the rotary lock 405 engages with the distal end engaging portion 406c, and is fixed to each other. This restricts the movement of the protrusion 425 in the internal space 404a, and consequently, the movement of the water supply tank 420 (particularly, the movement obliquely upward).

Fig. 10(a) shows a case where the lock mechanism 404 is in the unlocked state. When the water supply tank 420 is mounted or dismounted with respect to the refrigerating chamber door 2, as shown in fig. 10(a), the rotation lock 405 is rotated in the arrow B2 direction. Thereby, the internal space 404a is opened to the upper right.

For example, when the water supply tank 420 is to be mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2, the water supply tank 420 is slid in the extending direction a1 of the water supply pipe 423. At this time, if the upper inclined portion 406a of the rail member 406 is disposed in a direction substantially parallel to the extending direction a1 of the water supply pipe 423, the protrusion portion 425 of the water supply tank 420 can be guided in the direction a2 substantially parallel to the extending direction a 1. Thereby, the water supply tank 420 can be more easily mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2.

< third embodiment >

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first and second embodiments, the structure in which the rotary lock mechanism is used as the lock mechanism for fixing the water supply tank is described. However, in the beverage supplying apparatus of the present invention, the locking mechanism is not limited to the rotary locking mechanism. Therefore, in the third embodiment, a configuration example using a spring type locking mechanism will be described.

Fig. 11(a) and (b) show the structure around the water supply tank 520 of the beverage supply device 510 provided in the refrigerator 1 according to the present embodiment. The beverage supply device 510 in the present embodiment is incorporated in the refrigerator 1 as in the first embodiment. Specifically, the beverage supply device 510 is built in the refrigerating chamber door 2. As for the structure of the refrigerating chamber door 2 to which the beverage supply device 510 is mounted, substantially the same structure as that of the first embodiment can be applied.

However, in the third embodiment, the shape of the protrusion (protrusion provided on the wall surface side) 505 provided on the inner surface of the

side walls

2c, 2d of the refrigerating compartment door 2 is different from the protrusion 5 of the first embodiment. In the third embodiment, the lock mechanism 524 provided in the water supply tank 520 is different from the lock mechanism 24 of the first embodiment. Hereinafter, only the structure different from the first embodiment will be described.

As shown in fig. 11(a), the main components of the water supply tank 520 include a tank body 521, an upper cover (not shown), a water supply pipe 523, and a lock mechanism 524. The outer shape of the case body 521, the upper cover, and the water supply pipe 523 can be configured in the same manner as in the first embodiment. In the third embodiment, the water supply tank 520 is fixed to the refrigerating chamber door 2 by engaging the protrusion 505 provided on the inner surface of the

side walls

2c and 2d of the refrigerating chamber door 2 with the lock mechanism 524, as in the first embodiment.

The locking mechanisms 524 are provided on the left and right side surfaces of the water supply tank 520. The main components of the locking mechanism 524 include a rail member 525 and a leaf spring 526.

The rail member 525 has substantially the same shape as the rail member 26 of the first embodiment. However, the rail member 525 is provided with a leaf spring receiving portion 525a instead of the distal end engaging portion 26 c. When the refrigerator compartment door 2 is to be attached, the protruding portion 505 of the refrigerator compartment door 2 is housed in the internal space 524a of the rail member 525 obtained by this shape (see fig. 11 (b)).

The rail member 525 has a leaf spring receiving portion 525a and a lower inclined portion 525 b. The leaf spring 526 is accommodated in the leaf spring accommodating portion 525 a. The lower inclined portion 525b extends obliquely downward from the internal space 524 a. The lower inclined portion 525b is preferably inclined substantially parallel to the extending direction of the water supply pipe 523 (the direction of arrow a1 in fig. 11 a). Thus, when the water supply tank 520 is to be attached to the refrigerating chamber door 2, the water supply tank 520 can be slid while being guided in the same direction a2 as the extending direction of the water supply pipe 523. That is, the direction of the rail member 525 is substantially the same as the sliding direction (mounting direction) when the water supply tank 520 is mounted, and therefore, the water supply tank 520 can be easily mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2.

The leaf spring 526 is disposed in a leaf spring receiving portion 525a provided above the rail member 525. The central portion 526a of the leaf spring 526 is exposed from the leaf spring receiving portion 525a toward the internal space 524 a. A concave portion 525c is formed in the lower inclined portion 525b at a position facing the central portion 526a of the leaf spring 526.

On the other hand, a projection 505 that engages with the locking mechanism 524 is provided on the refrigerating chamber door 2 side. The protrusions 505 are formed on the inner surfaces of the

side walls

2c and 2d of the refrigerating chamber door 2, respectively. The shape of the protrusion 505 is different from the protrusion 5 of the first embodiment. For example, the cross-sectional shape of the protrusion 505 is substantially rectangular. As shown in fig. 11(b), the protrusion 505 is inclined substantially parallel to the extending direction a1 of the water supply pipe 523 so as to match the shape of the internal space 524a of the lock mechanism 524. A convex portion 505a is formed on the protrusion 505. The projection 505a is preferably formed at a position corresponding to the recess 525c of the rail member 525 when the projection 505 is accommodated in the internal space 524a of the lock mechanism 524.

Fig. 11(a) shows a state where the water service box 520 is detached from the refrigerating chamber door 2 (i.e., an unlocked state of the lock mechanism 524). When the water supply tank 520 is mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2 from this state, the water supply tank 520 is slid in the extending direction a1 of the water supply pipe 523. At this time, the protrusion 505 of the refrigerating compartment door 2 can be guided in the arrow a2 direction by inclining the lower inclined portion 525b in the arrow a2 direction (i.e., in a direction substantially parallel to the extending direction a1 of the water supply pipe 523). Thereby, the water supply tank 520 can be more easily mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2.

Fig. 11(b) shows a state in which the water supply tank 520 is mounted to the refrigerating chamber door 2 (i.e., a locked state of the locking mechanism 524). In this state, the protruding portion 505 of the refrigerating chamber door 2 is housed in the internal space 524 a. The central portion 526a of the leaf spring 526 is pressed by the projection 505 and is confined to the inside of the leaf spring housing portion 525 a. The convex portion 505a of the protrusion 505 is fitted in the concave portion 525c of the rail member 525.

As described above, in the locked state of the lock mechanism 524, the protrusion 505 is held in the internal space 524a of the rail member 525 by the elastic force of the leaf spring 526. That is, the movement of the installation direction of the water supply tank 520 is restricted. Thereby, the water supply tank 520 is fixed to the refrigerating chamber door 2. By providing the locking mechanism 524 in this manner, the water supply tank 520 can be held in a stable state by the refrigerating chamber door 2.

< modification example >

Next, a modification of the lock mechanism 524 according to the third embodiment will be described. Fig. 12(a) and (b) show a lock mechanism 524' according to a modification. In the lock mechanism 524', the shape of the protrusion 505' and the rail member 525 '(specifically, the lower inclined portion 525b') that engage with the lock mechanism 524 is different from the lock mechanism 524 in the third embodiment.

Specifically, no recess is formed in the lower inclined portion 525b 'of the rail member 525'. That is, the surface of the lower inclined portion 525b 'of the rail member 525' constituting the internal space 524a is flat.

The lower surface of the protrusion 505 '(the surface facing the lower inclined portion 525b') is not provided with a convex portion, and has a flat shape. On the other hand, a recess 505b 'is formed on the upper surface of the protrusion 505' (the surface facing the leaf spring 526). The recess 505b' is provided at a position facing the central portion 526a of the plate spring 526.

With the above configuration, in the locked state of the lock mechanism 524', the central portion 526a of the leaf spring 526 is fitted into the recess 505b ' of the projection 505', and the projection 505' is held in the internal space 524a of the rail member 525' by the elastic force of the leaf spring 526. That is, the movement of the installation direction of the water supply tank 520 is restricted. Thereby, the water supply tank 520 is fixed to the refrigerating chamber door 2. By providing the locking mechanism 524', the water supply tank 520 can be held in a stable state by the refrigerating chamber door 2.

< fourth embodiment >

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first to third embodiments, the example in which the beverage supply device is built in the refrigerator is explained. However, the beverage supply device of the present invention is not necessarily built in a refrigerator, and may be installed as a single body in facilities such as a gym, a sports facility, and a hospital. Therefore, in the present embodiment, only an example in which the beverage supply device is provided as a single body will be described.

Fig. 13 and 14 show an external configuration of a beverage supply device 610 according to the present embodiment. The internal structure of the beverage supply device 610 of the present embodiment can be configured in the same manner as the beverage supply device 10 of the first embodiment. Therefore, in the present embodiment, only the differences from the first embodiment will be described.

Fig. 13 shows an external appearance of a beverage supply device 610 according to the present embodiment. As shown in fig. 13, the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 610 is located on the front side of the device 610. The water supply mechanism of the beverage supply device 610 is disposed on the back side of the revolving door 11 and is hidden from view. The water supply tank 20 is disposed on the back side of the front wall 610a of the beverage supply device 610 and is hidden from view. In fig. 13, the water supply tank 20 is shown by a broken line for convenience.

Fig. 14 shows a state in which the beverage supply device 610 is used. The beverage supply device 610 is configured such that when a user presses an opening/closing switch (not shown) of the swing door 11, the swing door 11 is rotated in a horizontal direction to present the water supply mechanism on the front.

As described above, the beverage supply device 610 of the present embodiment includes the water supply chamber 10a that rotates in the horizontal direction. The beverage supply device 610 is configured such that the water supply portion is hidden on the rear surface of the rotary door 11 of the water supply chamber 10a in a non-use state, and the water supply chamber 10a is rotated to expose the water supply portion on the front surface in a use state.

In addition, the beverage supplying device 610 according to the fourth embodiment may be installed on a wall surface of a facility such as a gym, a sports facility, a hospital, or the like. In this case, a predetermined installation space is formed in the back of the wall where the beverage supply device 610 is installed. The beverage supply device 610 may be provided in the space.

At this time, the water supply tank 20 is provided on the back side of the front wall (wall surface) 610a of the beverage supply device 610. The front wall 610a has a door structure that can be opened and closed from either of the left and right ends, for example. In this door structure, a heat insulating material is provided, as in the case of the refrigerating chamber door 2 in the first embodiment. This can maintain the beverage in water supply tank 20 at a refrigerated temperature. The structure for attaching the water supply tank 20 to the rear surface of the front wall 610a can be the same as the locking mechanism of the beverage supply device according to the first to third embodiments.

< fifth embodiment >

< overview of refrigerator >

In this embodiment, an example of a refrigerator having a door structure according to an aspect of the present invention will be described. In the present embodiment, a revolving door provided in a beverage supply device will be described as an example of a door structure. However, the present invention is not limited to this structure. First, an outline of the refrigerator 1 mounted on the beverage supply device 10 in the present embodiment will be described. Fig. 15 is a front view of the refrigerator 1 on which the beverage supply device 10 according to the present embodiment is mounted.

As shown in fig. 15, the refrigerator 1 has 4 doors. The refrigerator 1 in the present embodiment has a refrigerating chamber mounted in an upper portion thereof and a freezing chamber mounted in a lower portion thereof. Handles 3 are provided on the respective doors of the refrigerator. The beverage supply device 10 is mounted on the refrigerating chamber door 2 on the left side as viewed from the front of the refrigerator 1.

However, in an aspect of the present invention, the arrangement position of the beverage supplying apparatus 10 is not limited thereto. That is, for example, as in a refrigerator 701 shown in fig. 34, the beverage supply device 10 may be mounted on the right refrigerating chamber door 2 as viewed from the front. In the refrigerator 701, the display panel 5 is disposed on the left refrigerating chamber door 2, but may be disposed on the right refrigerating chamber door 2 in the same manner as the beverage supply device 10.

However, the refrigerator 1 in which the beverage supply device 10 is mounted may have less than 4 doors or more than 4 doors, and the refrigerating chamber may be disposed in the lower stage or the middle stage.

Fig. 15 shows a state of the beverage supply device 10 when not in use. As shown in fig. 15, in the non-use state, the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply apparatus 10 is positioned on the front side of the refrigerator 1. That is, the water supply mechanism of the beverage supply device 10 is disposed on the back side of the revolving door 11 and is invisible.

Also, a display panel 5 is provided on the front surface of the refrigerator 1. The position of the display panel 5 is not particularly limited, and in the present embodiment, the display panel 5 is disposed on the surface 2a of the refrigerating chamber door 2. The display panel 5 is a touch panel display device, and may function as an operation panel (operation unit). In this case, the user can change the operation mode of the refrigerator 1, the operation mode of the beverage supply device 10, and the like through the operation panel.

In the beverage supply device 10 of the present embodiment, the revolving door 11 is an electric revolving door. That is, an opening/closing button for opening and closing the swing door 11 is provided near the swing door 11. The open/close button may be provided on the display panel 5, for example. When the user of the beverage supply device 10 presses the open/close button, the drive motor connected to the rotary door 11 is operated, and the rotary door 11 starts to rotate (see fig. 16(a) to (c)). Thus, the user of the beverage supply device 10 can easily open and close the swing door 11 without manually opening and closing the door.

< construction of beverage supply apparatus >

Next, the structure of the beverage supply device 10 according to the present embodiment will be described. Fig. 2 shows a structure of the surface 2a side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 on the left side. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the structure of the surface 2a side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 on the left side. In fig. 16, the case where the rotary door 11 is rotated to expose the water supply chamber 10a having the water supply mechanism when the beverage supply device 10 is used is shown in order from (a) to (c).

Fig. 2 and 3 show a state of the beverage supply device 10 in use. The water supply tank 20 of the beverage supply device 10 is disposed on the back side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 and is not visible from the front side (the front surface 2a side), and the water supply tank 20 is shown by a broken line in fig. 2 for convenience. In fig. 2 and 3, the display panel 5 is not shown.

As described below, the refrigerating chamber door 2 has a heat insulating material 40 inside thereof, thereby having heat insulation. Therefore, the back side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 can be maintained at substantially the same temperature as that in the refrigerating chamber. Thereby, the beverage in the water service box 20 can be cooled down to the refrigerating temperature.

As shown in fig. 16(a) to (b), the beverage supply device 10 is configured such that when the user presses the open/close button of the swing door 11 displayed on the display panel 5, the swing door 11 is rotated in the horizontal direction, and the water supply mechanism is presented to the front. The rotation direction of the swing door 11 shown in fig. 4 is an example, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

When the rotary door 11 is rotated, the water supply chamber 10a of the beverage supply device 10 is exposed to the front as shown in fig. 2 and 3. The water supply chamber 10a includes a water injection rod (discharge portion) 21 constituting a water supply mechanism, and

side plates

12 and 13, a bottom portion 15 (water receiving portion), a back plate 16, and the like forming an inner wall of the water supply chamber 10 a. The rotary door 11 is disposed to overlap the back plate 16 of the water supply chamber 10 a. When the beverage supply apparatus 10 is not in use, the surface of the rotary door 11 is positioned on the front surface of the refrigerator 1 (refer to fig. 15).

Then, water in the water supply tank 20 cooled in the refrigerating chamber is discharged from a water inlet (not shown) by the operation of the user. In the present embodiment, for example, a user presses the water pouring lever 21 toward the back plate 16 using a container G such as glass, thereby supplying water into the glass. The water supply mechanism of the beverage supply device 10 may be configured to automatically supply water by a sensor.

In the present embodiment, for example, a user presses the water pouring lever 21 toward the back panel 16 using a container such as glass, so that a water pouring port attached to the water pouring lever 21 is opened, and water is supplied from the water pouring port into the glass. That is, the water supply tank 20 disposed above the water supply chamber 10a is connected to a water filling port of the water filling lever 21, and when the user manipulates the water filling lever 21, water in the water supply tank 20 is discharged from the water filling port through a water supply pipe (not shown). The water supply tank 20 is located in the refrigerating chamber, and the water in the water supply tank 20 maintains the refrigerating temperature.

The water supply chamber 10a is located below the water supply tank 20. In the present embodiment, the water supply chamber 10a is disposed near substantially the right side of the refrigerating chamber door 2. That is, the water supply chamber 10a is disposed on the side of the refrigerating chamber door 2 close to the handle 3. However, the arrangement position of the beverage supply device 10 in the refrigerator 1 is an example of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

Next, the detailed structure of the interior of the beverage supply device 10 will be described with reference to fig. 6 and 17 to 21. Fig. 6 shows a sectional structure on the line a-a of the refrigerating chamber door 2 shown in fig. 2. Fig. 17 and 18 are perspective views showing the internal structure of the beverage supply device 10. Fig. 17 shows a state of use of the beverage supply device 10 (i.e., a state in which the water supply chamber 10a faces the front side). Fig. 18 shows a state when the beverage supply device 10 is not in use (i.e., a state where the revolving door 11 faces the front side). Fig. 17 and 18 each show a state in which the beverage supply device 10 is viewed from the back side. Fig. 19 is an exploded view of the water supply chamber 10a and the rotary drive unit 30 of the beverage supply device 10 shown in fig. 17. Fig. 20 shows the respective components of the rotation driving unit 30 in an exploded state. Fig. 21 shows a cross-sectional structure of the rotation driving unit 30.

The beverage supply device 10 is disposed in an opening formed by digging through a part of the refrigerating chamber door 2. That is, the beverage supply device 10 is disposed to penetrate the refrigerating chamber door 2 (see fig. 6). The beverage supply device 10 is mainly composed of a water supply chamber 10a, a water supply tank 20, and a rotation drive unit (drive unit) 30.

The outer shape of the water supply chamber 10a is formed by a rotary door 11, a right side plate 12, a left side plate 13, an upper plate 14, a bottom (water receiving portion) 15, and a back plate 16. The water supply chamber 10a accommodates water supply means such as a water filling port and a water filling rod 21. The swing door 11 and the back panel 16 are disposed so as to overlap each other. When the beverage supply device 10 is not in use, the rotary door 11 is positioned on the front (see fig. 18), and when the beverage supply device 10 is in use, the interior of the water supply chamber 10a including the back panel 16 and the like is exposed on the front (see fig. 17). The upper panel 14 is formed with a lock pin insertion hole 14a into which a lock pin 51 (see fig. 20) is inserted, and the lock pin 51 is used to maintain the revolving door 11 in a closed state. When the swing door 11 is in the closed state, the lock pin 51 is fitted into the lock pin insertion hole 14a (see fig. 18).

The water supply tank 20 is located at an upper portion of the beverage supplying apparatus 10. Water supply tank 20 is located obliquely above water supply chamber 10a (specifically, obliquely above toward the rear of refrigerator 1) (see fig. 6). The water supply tank 20 can accommodate therein the beverage W such as the beverage water and the refreshing beverage discharged from the water supply mechanism of the beverage supply device 10. A water supply pipe 23 is disposed below the water supply tank 20. The water supply pipe 23 extends obliquely downward from the water supply tank 20. The water supply pipe 23 has a distal end connected to a water inlet of the water injection rod 21.

The interior (between the front surface 2a and the rear surface) of the refrigerating chamber door 2 is filled with a heat insulating material 40 (see fig. 6). This can maintain the heat insulation property in the refrigerating chamber. The periphery of the water supply chamber 10a of the beverage supply device 10 is covered with

heat insulators

40a and 40b (see fig. 6).

Bottom 15 of water supply chamber 10a is connected to lower rotary shaft 17. The lower rotation shaft 17 is rotatably mounted thereon with respect to the refrigerating chamber door 2. An upper part of the water supply chamber 10a is connected to an upper rotary shaft 18 (see fig. 17 and 18). The upper rotary shaft 18 is connected to a drive motor 41 (see fig. 20) for driving the rotation of the water supply chamber 10 a. Thus, for example, when the user operates an open/close button or the like, the water supply chamber 10a can be automatically rotated.

The swing driving unit 30 drives the automatically opening and closing swing door 11. As shown in fig. 17, the rotation driving unit 30 includes the upper rotation shaft 18, a motor cover 31, a cam receiving portion 32, a lock receiving portion 33, and the like.

The upper rotary shaft 18 is connected to the water supply chamber 10a, and transmits the rotational driving force of the driving motor 41 to the water supply chamber 10 a. The upper rotary shaft 18 is connected to the upper panel 14 of the water supply chamber 10 a. The upper part of the upper rotary shaft 18 is connected to a first shaft 44a of the slide arm 44. The connection part between the first stem 44a and the upper rotary shaft 18 is P1' (see fig. 19).

The driving force of the driving motor 41 (see fig. 20) is transmitted to the slide arm 44. Thereby, the first shaft 44a rotates around P1 as a rotation center. Further, the upper rotary shaft 18 connected to the first shaft lever 44a is rotated by 180 degrees as indicated by an arrow a in fig. 17. Thereby, the driving force of the driving motor 41 is also transmitted to the water supply chamber 10a connected to the upper rotary shaft 18, and the rotary door 11 is opened and closed.

As shown in fig. 20, a drive motor 41 and the like are disposed in the motor cover 31. The drive motor 41 drives the rotation of the revolving door 11. The drive motor 41 starts or stops operating in response to an instruction signal from a central processing unit (control unit) not shown. The door sensing switch 45 is disposed adjacent to the driving motor 41. The door sensing switch 45 is, for example, a contact switch, and senses that the revolving door 11 is in the closed state (the state shown in fig. 18). In the present embodiment, the door sensing switch 45 is pressed by the motor arm 43 to be in the locked state.

The cam housing portion 32 is composed of a cam base 34 and a cam cover 35. The cam base 34 is a box-shaped member that accommodates therein the slide cam 42 and the like. A moving rail 34a for moving the second shaft 44b of the slide arm 44, a moving rail 34b for moving the first shaft 44a of the slide arm 44, a lock pin corresponding hole 34c, and the like are formed on the bottom surface of the cam base 34. The cam cover 35 covers the upper surface of the cam housing portion 32. The drive motor 41 and the like are mounted on the cam cap 35.

The cam housing portion 32 houses a slide cam 42, a motor arm 43, a slide arm 44, a door sensing switch 47, and the like. As shown in fig. 20 and 21, the motor arm 43 is disposed on the upper side and the slide arm 44 is disposed on the lower side with the slide cam 42 as a space.

The slide cam 42 slides in the left-right direction in the cam receiving portion 32. A moving rail 42a for moving the second shaft 43b of the motor arm 43 and a moving rail 42b for moving the second shaft 44b of the slide arm 44 are formed on the slide cam 42.

The motor arm 43 has a first shaft 43a at one end and a second shaft 43b at the other end. The first shaft 43a is connected to a rotation shaft P0 of the drive motor 41 (see fig. 21). Thereby, the motor arm 43 rotates about the first shaft lever 43a as the rotation center P0 (see fig. 22). Then, the second shaft lever 43b moves in the direction indicated by the arrow R1 or R2 shown in fig. 22.

Further, the second shaft 43b is fitted into the moving rail 42a of the slide cam 42. Thus, when the motor arm 43 is rotated about the rotation center P0, the movement of the second shaft lever 43b is restricted by the movement rail 42 a. Therefore, the slide cam 42 can move in the left-right direction (the direction indicated by the arrow S1 or S2 in fig. 22). In addition, the second shaft lever 43b also has the following functions: when the swing door 11 is in the closed state, the tip end of the lock pin 51 protruding from the lock pin corresponding hole 34c (i.e., a function of locking the lock mechanism 50) is pressed (see fig. 21).

The slide arm 44 has a first shaft 44a at one end and a second shaft 44b at the other end. The first shaft 44a passes through a connecting portion P1' (see fig. 21) of the cam base 34 and the upper rotary shaft 18 in the moving track 34 b. The second shaft lever 44b is fitted into the moving rail 42b of the slide cam 42 at the upper side and fitted into the moving rail 34a of the cam base 34 at the lower side. Thus, when the slide cam 42 moves in the left-right direction, the movement of the second shaft lever 44b is restricted by the movement rail 42b and the movement rail 34 a. The slide arm 44 and the first shaft 44a are also moved in accordance with the movement of the second shaft 44b (see fig. 23).

The lock receiving portion 33 receives a lock mechanism 50 for maintaining the revolving door 11 in a closed state. The lock receiving portion 33 is disposed below the drive motor 41 with the cam receiving portion 32 as an interval (see fig. 17 and the like). The lock mechanism 50 includes a lock pin 51, lock

pin receiving portions

52a and 52b, a lock shaft 53, a lock pin cover 54, a lock spring 55, and the like.

The lock pin 51 moves up and down. When the lock pin 51 is positioned downward, the lock mechanism 50 is in the locked state (the state in which the revolving door 11 is fixed in the closed state). When the lock pin 51 is positioned upward, the lock mechanism 50 is in the unlocked state (unlocked state). When the lock mechanism 50 is in the unlocked state, the upper front end portion of the lock pin 51 is inserted into the lock pin corresponding hole 34c of the cam base 34.

The

lock pin receivers

52a and 52b support the lock pin 51 at the upper and lower portions thereof, respectively. The lock

pin receiving portions

52a and 52b are connected to the lock accommodating portion 33. The lock shaft 53 is a member that serves as a shaft of the lock pin 51. The latch cover 54 is a member that partially covers the latch 51. The lock spring 55 is disposed around the lock pin 51 and provides elasticity to the vertical movement of the lock pin 51. When the lock mechanism 50 is in the unlocked state, the lock spring 55 has an elastic force that pushes the lock pin 51 upward. Further, when the lock mechanism 50 is in the locked state, the front end of the lock pin 51 is pressed by the second shaft lever 43 b. The pressing force is larger than the elastic force of the lock spring 55, so that the lock pin 51 is pushed down.

< control of opening/closing of revolving door and control of locking mechanism >

Next, the opening and closing operation of the rotary door 11 in the beverage supply device 10 will be described. Further, the operation of the locking mechanism 50 of the swing door 11 will be described with reference to fig. 22 to 24.

Fig. 22(a) and (b) show the operation of each component in the cam housing 32 until the swing door 11 is closed from the open state. Fig. 22(a) shows the positions of the respective constituent members when the swing door 11 is in the open state. Fig. 22(b) shows the positions of the respective components when the swing door 11 is in the closed state. Fig. 23(a) and (b) are views corresponding to fig. 22(a) and (b), respectively, and show a state in which the slide cam 42 in the cam housing portion 32 is removed.

Fig. 24(a) shows the structure around the lock mechanism 50 when the lock mechanism 50 is in the locked state. Fig. 24(b) shows the configuration around the lock mechanism 50 when the lock mechanism 50 is in the unlocked state.

The operation of the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 10 when it is switched from the open state to the closed state will be described below. When the swing door 11 is in the open state, as shown in fig. 22(a), the slide cam 42 is located at one end portion (left end portion in fig. 22 (a)) within the cam base 34. At this time, the door sensing switch 47 provided in the cam base senses that the swing door 11 is in the open state (the state shown in fig. 17). The door sensing switch 47 is, for example, a contact switch. In the present embodiment, the door sensing switch 47 is pressed by the switch pressing portion 47a of the slide cam 42 to be in the locked state.

For example, when the user finishes using the beverage supply device 10 and presses an open/close button displayed on the display panel 5, an instruction signal for closing the door is transmitted from the central processing unit to the rotary drive unit 30. Then, the drive motor 41 in the rotational drive unit 30 starts rotational drive in a direction (i.e., in the direction of arrow R1) to close the door.

This rotational drive is transmitted to the motor arm 43 via the first shaft 43 a. Then, the motor arm 43 starts rotating in the direction of arrow R1 shown in fig. 22(a) with P0 as the rotation center. Thereby, the second shaft lever 43b draws the same trajectory as the arrow R1 and moves upward in the drawing. At this time, the second shaft lever 43b is fitted into the moving rail 42a of the slide cam 42, and therefore moves in the arrow direction in the moving rail 42 a. The slide cam 42 slides to the right (in the direction of arrow S1) in accordance with the movement of the second shaft lever 43 b.

When the slide cam 42 slides in the direction of the arrow S1, the slide arm 44 also slides to the right side (see fig. 23(a) and (b)). At this time, the movement of the second shaft 44b of the slide arm 44 is restricted by the respective moving

rails

42b, 34 a. That is, the second shaft 44b of the slide arm 44 moves in the direction of the arrow shown in fig. 22(a) in the respective moving

rails

42b and 34 a.

At this time, the movement of the first shaft 44a of the slide arm 44 is restricted by the movement rail 34b, and moves in the direction of the broken-line arrow shown in fig. 23(a) within the movement rail 34 b. As described above, the first shaft 44a of the sliding arm 44 is connected to the connection part P1' of the upper rotating shaft 18. Therefore, the upper rotary shaft 18 switches the rotary door 11 from the open state shown in fig. 17 to the closed state shown in fig. 18 in accordance with the movement of the first shaft 44 a.

When the first shaft 44a reaches the rightmost side of the moving rail 34b (i.e., the point a1), the revolving door 11 is completely closed. At this time, the second shaft rod 43b connected to the motor arm 43 of the drive motor 41 reaches the right end, but does not reach the uppermost end of the moving rail 42 a. Therefore, at this point, the door sensing switch 45 is not pressed by the motor arm 43, and the driving motor 41 does not stop driving.

Thereafter, the drive motor 41 continues to rotate, the second shaft 43b of the motor arm 43 rotates in the direction R1, and the second shaft 43b is guided to the uppermost end of the moving rail 42 a. In this operation, the front end of the second shaft rod 43b passes through the lock pin corresponding hole 34 c. Thereby, as shown in fig. 24(a), the upper end portion of the lock pin 51 protruding from the lock pin corresponding hole 34c is pressed by the second shaft 43 b. Then, the lock pin 51 is pressed downward (in the direction of the arrow in fig. 24 a), and the lower end portion of the lock pin 51 is inserted into the lock pin insertion hole 14a of the upper panel 14 of the water supply chamber 10 a. Thereby, the lock mechanism 50 is in the locked state. By bringing the lock mechanism 50 into the locked state, the revolving door 11 cannot be manually opened. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the rotation door 11 from rotating unexpectedly when the user of the refrigerator 1 touches the rotation door 11 by mistake, or the like.

In this operation, the second shaft 43b of the motor arm 43 moves in the left direction, which is rearward of the right end of the trajectory. However, the moving track 42a of the slide cam 42 is formed in the same direction as the moving direction of the second shaft lever 43b of the motor arm 43 (the direction extending from the lower right to the upper left in the drawing). Therefore, only the second shaft lever 43b of the motor arm 43 moves within the moving track 42a of the slide cam 42, and the slide cam 42 itself does not move. Therefore, the slide arm 44 does not move, and the swing door 11 is maintained in a completely closed state.

When the second shaft lever 43b of the motor arm 43 reaches the uppermost end of the moving rail 42a, the motor arm 43 presses the door sensing switch 45, stopping the driving motor 41.

As described above, according to the beverage supply apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the lock mechanism 50 can be brought into the locked state after the revolving door 11 is brought into the closed state. In the present embodiment, the central processing unit and the rotation driving unit 30 that control all operations in the beverage supply device 10 constitute a control unit that controls the automatic opening and closing of the revolving door 11.

Next, the operation of the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 10 when it is switched from the closed state to the open state will be described. When the rotary door 11 is in the closed state, as shown in fig. 22(b), the slide cam 42 is located at the other end portion (right end portion in fig. 22 (b)) within the cam base 34. At this time, the door sensing switch 45 provided in the cam base senses that the second shaft lever 43b of the motor arm 43 reaches the uppermost end of the moving rail 42 a. In the present embodiment, the door sensing switch 45 is pressed by the motor arm 43 to be in a locked state.

For example, when the user presses an open/close button displayed on the display panel 5 to use the beverage supply device 10, an instruction signal for opening the door is transmitted from the central processing unit to the rotation driving unit 30. Then, the drive motor 41 in the rotational drive unit 30 starts rotational drive in a direction (i.e., in the direction of arrow R2) to open the door.

This rotational drive is transmitted to the motor arm 43 via the first shaft 43 a. Then, the motor arm 43 starts rotating in the direction of arrow R2 shown in fig. 22(b) with P0 as the rotation center. Thereby, the second shaft lever 43b draws the same trajectory as the arrow R2 and moves downward.

Immediately after the drive motor 41 starts rotating, only the motor arm 43 starts rotating, and the slide arm 44 does not start sliding. That is, the second shaft lever 43b of the motor arm 43 starts moving in the arrow R2 direction. However, as described above, the moving track 42a of the slide cam 42 is formed in the same direction as the moving direction of the second shaft lever 43b of the motor arm 43. Therefore, only the second shaft lever 43b of the motor arm 43 moves within the moving track 42a of the slide cam 42, and the slide cam 42 itself does not move. Therefore, the first shaft 44a of the slide arm 44 does not move and stays at the point a 1. The second shaft 43b is moved to displace the tip of the second shaft 43b relative to the lock pin corresponding hole 34 c.

This releases the pressing of the upper end of the lock pin 51. As shown in fig. 24 b, the lock pin 51 is raised (in the direction of the arrow in fig. 24 b) by the elastic force of the lock spring 55, and the lower end of the lock pin 51 is disengaged from the lock pin insertion hole 14 a. Thereby, the lock mechanism 50 is in the unlocked state.

When the lock mechanism 50 is in the unlocked state, the drive motor 41 continues to rotate, and the second shaft lever 43b continues to rotate in the direction of the arrow R2. The slide cam 42 slides to the left (in the direction of arrow S2) in accordance with the movement of the second shaft lever 43 b.

When the slide cam 42 slides in the direction of the arrow S2, the slide arm 44 also slides to the left (see fig. 23(a) and (b)). At this time, the movement of the second shaft 44b of the slide arm 44 is restricted by the respective moving

rails

42b, 34 a. That is, the second shaft 44b of the slide arm 44 moves in the arrow direction shown in fig. 22(b) and 23(b) in the respective moving

rails

42b and 34 a.

At this time, the movement of the first shaft 44a of the slide arm 44 is restricted by the movement rail 34b, and moves in the direction of the broken-line arrow shown in fig. 23(b) within the movement rail 34 b. As described above, the first shaft 44a of the sliding arm 44 is connected to the connection part P1' of the upper rotating shaft 18. Therefore, the upper rotary shaft 18 switches the rotary door 11 from the closed state shown in fig. 18 to the open state shown in fig. 17 in accordance with the movement of the first shaft 44 a.

When the first shaft lever 44a reaches the leftmost side of the moving rail 34b (i.e., the point a2), the swing door 11 is fully opened. At this time, the door sensing switch 47 senses that the swing door 11 is in the open state (the state shown in fig. 17), and stops the drive motor 41. Further, the user can perform the water supply operation.

As described above, according to the beverage supply apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the opening operation of the swing door 11 can be started after the lock mechanism 50 is placed in the unlocked state.

< summary of fifth embodiment >

As described above, the beverage supply device 10 mounted on the refrigerator 1 according to the present embodiment is provided with the lock mechanism 50 for controlling the rotation of the swing door 11 when the swing door 11 is in the closed state. Therefore, when the swing door 11 is in the closed state, the closed state of the swing door 11 can be maintained. Therefore, the user can be inhibited from inadvertently opening (rotating) the revolving door.

In the beverage supply device 10 according to the present embodiment, depending on the configuration of the rotation driving unit 30, after the swing door 11 is closed, the lock mechanism 50 can be locked to maintain the swing door 11 in the closed state. Further, in the beverage supply device 10 according to the present embodiment, depending on the configuration of the rotation driving unit 30, when the lock mechanism 50 is set to the unlocked state, the opening operation of the swing door 11 can be started. Accordingly, in a situation where it is necessary to lock the lock mechanism 50 (that is, when the beverage supply apparatus 10 is not used), the closed state of the swing door 11 can be maintained more reliably, and interference of the lock mechanism 50 during the opening and closing operation of the swing door 11 can be prevented.

In addition, according to the present embodiment, the number of driving motors can be reduced by driving the swing door 11 and the lock mechanism 50 using the same driving unit (i.e., the driving motor 41). Further, when the swing door and the lock mechanism are driven by different drive motors, the order of the opening and closing operation of the swing door and the locking/unlocking operation of the lock mechanism may be reversed in case the drive motors are erroneously operated. In contrast, according to the structure of the present embodiment, since the revolving door and the lock mechanism are driven by one driving unit, even if the driving motor is operated by mistake, the order of the opening and closing operation of the revolving door and the locking/unlocking operation of the lock mechanism can be prevented from being reversed.

In the beverage supply device 10 of the present embodiment, the lock pin 51 constituting the lock mechanism 50 moves in the vertical direction to switch the lock/unlock of the lock mechanism 50. That is, the lock pin 51 moves in a direction along the rotation axis P1 of the swing door 11(a direction parallel to the rotation axis P1). Thus, the lock pin 51 and the like constituting the lock mechanism 50 move in a direction orthogonal to the opening/closing operation direction of the swing door 11 during the locking operation. Therefore, when the swing door 11 is manually forcibly opened, the lock mechanism 50 can be prevented from moving to the unlocked state. Therefore, the stress for holding the lock mechanism 50 can be reduced, and the lock mechanism can be miniaturized or power-saving.

In the present embodiment, a configuration example in which a lock mechanism is provided in a horizontally rotatable electric door is described. However, the door construction of the present invention is not limited to the horizontal rotary door. For example, the present invention is applicable without particular limitation as long as it is an electric (automatic opening and closing type) door structure. That is, the opening and closing method of the door structure of the present invention includes, for example, a rotary type, a slide type, and the like.

In the fifth embodiment, an example in which the door structure of the present invention is applied to the revolving door 11 of the beverage supplying apparatus 10 disposed in the refrigerating chamber door 2 of the refrigerator 1 is described. However, the door structure according to the aspect of the present invention may be applied to a small door disposed on a main body door of a storage box (e.g., an incubator, a food storage box, etc.) other than a refrigerator.

< sixth embodiment >

Next, a sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the sixth embodiment, an example of locking/unlocking a lock mechanism by a mechanism different from that of the fifth embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 25(a) and (b). In addition, the beverage supply apparatus 110 in the sixth embodiment is different from the fifth embodiment only in the structure of the rotational drive unit 130. Therefore, only the structure different from the fifth embodiment will be described below.

Fig. 25(a) shows a configuration of a rotation driving unit 130 provided in a beverage supply device 110 according to a sixth embodiment. Fig. 25(b) shows an internal configuration of a beverage supply device 110 according to the sixth embodiment. Fig. 25(b) shows a state of the beverage supply device 110 as viewed from the front side. Fig. 25(b) shows a state in which the revolving door 11 is in the closed state and the lock mechanism 150 is in the locked state.

The beverage supply device 110 is mainly composed of a water supply chamber 10a, a water supply tank 20, and a rotation drive unit (drive unit) 130. The water supply chamber 10a and the water supply tank 20 can be configured substantially the same as the beverage supply device 10 according to the fifth embodiment.

The swing driving unit 130 drives the automatically opening and closing swing door 11. The rotation driving unit 130 includes an upper rotating shaft 118, a driving motor 141, a first spur gear 131, a second spur gear 132, a locking mechanism 150, and the like.

The upper rotary shaft 118 is connected to the water supply chamber 10a, and transmits the rotational driving force of the driving motor 141 to the water supply chamber 10 a. The upper rotary shaft 118 is connected to the upper panel 14 of the water supply chamber 10 a. A second spur gear 132 is disposed above the upper rotary shaft 118. The upper rotary shaft 118 rotates starting from the rotary shaft P2 of the second pinion gear 132.

The driving motor 141 drives the rotation of the rotary door 11. The drive motor 141 starts or stops operating in response to an instruction signal from a central processing unit (control unit) not shown. The drive motor 141 rotates about a rotation axis P1. The drive motor 141 is disposed at a position where its rotation axis P1 and the rotation axis P2 of the upper rotation axis 118 overlap each other when viewed from the front.

The rotation shaft of the first spur gear 131 is connected to the rotation shaft P1 of the drive motor 141. As shown in fig. 25(a), a tooth pattern 131a is partially formed on the outer periphery of the first flat gear 131, and the tooth pattern 131a meshes with a tooth pattern of a second flat gear 132 or the like disposed adjacent to the first flat gear 131.

The second pinion gear 132 rotates about the rotation axis P2. A tooth profile is formed on the entire outer periphery of the second flat gear 132. When the second spur gear 132 meshes with the tooth 131a of the first spur gear 131 that rotates with the rotation of the drive motor 141, it rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the first spur gear 131.

The lock mechanism 150 is provided to maintain the revolving door 11 in a closed state. The locking mechanism 150 includes a lock pin 151, a first bevel gear 133, a second bevel gear 134, and the like.

The lock pin 151 has a rack gear (rack gear) and is movable in the up-and-down direction. The rack gear of the lock pin 151 meshes with a tooth profile formed on the outer periphery of the second bevel gear 134. Thereby, the lock pin 151 moves in the vertical direction in conjunction with the rotational movement of the second bevel gear 134.

When the lock pin 151 moves downward (in the direction of arrow a4 in fig. 25 b), the lower end thereof is inserted into the lock pin insertion hole 14a of the upper plate 14 of the water supply chamber 10 a. Thereby, the lock mechanism 150 becomes the locked state. Since the lock mechanism 150 is in the locked state, the revolving door 11 cannot be manually opened.

The first bevel gear 133 rotates about a rotation axis P3. The rotation axis P3 of the first bevel gear 133 is disposed at a position overlapping the rotation axis P1 of the drive motor 41 when the beverage supply device 110 is viewed from the side (front side). That is, the rotation axis P2 of the second pinion 132 and the rotation axis P3 of the first bevel gear 133 have a positional relationship in which they are located at 90 degrees with respect to the rotation axis P1 of the drive motor 41.

However, the aspects of the present invention are not limited to such positional relationship. The positional relationship of the gears may be changed depending on the size (or the number of teeth) of the gears. In one aspect of the present invention, the following positional relationship is possible: after the tooth 131a of the first flat gear 131 is engaged with the second flat gear 132 to rotate the rotary door 11 by 180 degrees, the tooth 131a of the first flat gear 131 is engaged with the first bevel gear 133.

A tooth profile is formed on the entire outer circumference of the first bevel gear 133. Accordingly, when the first bevel gear 133 is engaged with the tooth profile 131a of the first flat gear 131 that rotates with the rotation of the drive motor 141, it rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the first flat gear 131.

Also, an inclined tooth surface is formed on the lower surface of the first bevel gear 133. The inclined tooth face is configured to mesh with the inclined tooth face of the second bevel gear 134. Thereby, the second bevel gear 134 rotates in conjunction with the rotational movement of the first bevel gear 133.

The second bevel gear 134 rotates about a rotation axis P4. The rotational axis P4 is in a positional relationship perpendicular to the rotational axis P3 of the first bevel gear 133. The inclined tooth surface and the meshing inclined tooth surface of the first bevel gear 133 are formed on the side surface of the second bevel gear 134. A tooth profile is formed on the entire outer periphery of the second bevel gear 134. The tooth profile formed on the outer periphery of the second bevel gear 134 is engaged with the rack gear of the lock pin 151.

Next, the opening and closing operation of the revolving door 11 in the beverage supply device 110 will be described. Further, the operation of the lock mechanism 150 of the revolving door 11 will be described.

First, the operation of the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 110 when it is switched from the open state to the closed state will be described. For example, when the user finishes using the beverage supply device 110 and presses an open/close button displayed on the display panel 5, an instruction signal for closing the door is transmitted from the central processing unit to the rotary drive unit 130. Then, the drive motor 141 in the rotational drive unit 130 starts rotational drive in a direction (for example, the direction of arrow a1) in which the door is closed.

When the drive motor 141 rotates, the first spur gear 131 also rotates about the rotation axis P1. When the teeth 131a of the first spur gear 131 mesh with the teeth of the second spur gear 132 disposed adjacent to the first spur gear 131, the second spur gear 132 rotates about the rotation axis P2. In the present embodiment, the second pinion gear 132 rotates in the direction of arrow a 2. The upper rotary shaft 118 connected to the second spur gear 132 rotates about the rotary shaft P2 of the second spur gear 132. Thereby, the rotary door 11 rotates.

The tooth form 131a of the first flat gear 131 is designed to rotate the second flat gear 132 by 180 degrees. Therefore, the revolving door 11 is brought from the open state to the closed state by the meshing operation of the teeth 131a of the first flat gear 131 and the second flat gear 132.

Thereafter, when the first spur gear 131 continues to rotate in the direction a1, the engagement between the tooth profile 131a of the first spur gear 131 and the second spur gear 132 is released, and the tooth profile 131a of the first spur gear 131 engages with the tooth profile of the first bevel gear 133 disposed on the right side. Thereby, the first bevel gear 133 rotates about the rotation axis P3. In the present embodiment, the first bevel gear 133 rotates in the direction of arrow a 3.

Since the first bevel gear 133 rotates, the second bevel gear 134 having the inclined tooth surfaces engaged with each other also rotates about the rotation axis P4. Thereby, the lock pin 151 engaged with the teeth formed on the outer periphery of the second bevel gear 134 moves downward (in the direction of arrow a 4) in conjunction with the rotational movement of the second bevel gear 134. Thereby, the lock mechanism 150 becomes the locked state.

As described above, according to the beverage supply apparatus 110 of the present embodiment, after the swing door 11 is closed, the lock mechanism 150 can be locked to maintain the swing door 11 in the closed state.

When the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 110 is switched from the closed state to the open state, the reverse operation of the switching operation from the open state to the closed state described above may be performed. Thus, according to the beverage supply device 110 of the present embodiment, the opening operation of the swing door 11 can be started after the lock mechanism 150 is placed in the unlocked state.

In the beverage supply device 110 according to the present embodiment, the lock mechanism 150 is disposed at a position close to the end in the left-right direction of the revolving door 11. That is, the lock mechanism 150 is configured to lock the vicinity of the outer periphery of the revolving door 11. Thus, when the lock mechanism 150 is in the locked state, the closed state of the swing door 11 can be maintained more strongly. Therefore, when the lock mechanism 150 is in the locked state, even if the swing door 11 is pushed with a greater force, the closed state of the swing door 11 can be stably maintained.

< seventh embodiment >

Next, a seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the seventh embodiment, the locking mechanism has a structure different from that of the sixth embodiment. Other configurations can be applied to the same configuration as the beverage supply device 110 according to the sixth embodiment. Therefore, only the structure different from the sixth embodiment will be described below.

Fig. 26(a) shows a configuration of a rotation driving unit 230 provided in a beverage supplying apparatus 210 according to a third embodiment. Fig. 26(b) shows an internal structure of a beverage supply device 210 according to the third embodiment. Fig. 26(b) shows a state of the beverage supply device 210 as viewed from the front side. Fig. 26(b) shows a state where the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 210 is opened. Fig. 26 shows a state in which the revolving door 11 is in the closed state and the lock mechanism 250 is in the locked state.

The beverage supply device 210 is mainly composed of a water supply chamber 10a, a water supply tank 20, and a rotation drive unit (drive unit) 230. The water supply chamber 10a and the water supply tank 20 can be configured substantially the same as the beverage supply device 10 according to the fifth embodiment.

The swing driving unit 230 drives the automatically opening and closing swing door 11. The rotation driving unit 230 includes an upper rotating shaft 218, a driving motor 241, a first flat gear 231, a second flat gear 232, a locking mechanism 250, and the like.

The upper rotary shaft 218 and the water supply chamber 10a transmit the rotational driving force of the driving motor 241 to the water supply chamber 10 a. The upper rotary shaft 218 is connected to the upper panel 14 of the water supply chamber 10 a. A second spur gear 232 is disposed above the upper rotary shaft 218. The upper rotary shaft 218 rotates with the rotary shaft P2 of the second pinion 232 as a starting point.

The driving motor 241 drives the rotation of the swing door 11. The drive motor 241 starts or stops operating in response to an instruction signal from a central processing unit (control unit) not shown. The drive motor 241 rotates about a rotation axis P1.

The rotation shaft of the first spur gear 231 is connected to the rotation shaft P1 of the drive motor 41. As shown in fig. 26(a), a tooth 231a is partially formed on the outer periphery of the first flat gear 231, and the tooth 231a meshes with a tooth of a second flat gear 232 or the like disposed adjacent to the first flat gear 231.

The second pinion 232 rotates about the rotation axis P2. The rotation axis P2 of the second pinion 232 is disposed at a position overlapping the rotation axis P1 of the drive motor 241 when the beverage supply device 210 is viewed from the side (front side). The entire outer periphery of the second flat gear 232 is formed with a tooth profile. When the second flat gear 232 is engaged with the teeth 231a of the first flat gear 231 that rotates with the rotation of the driving motor 241, it rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the first flat gear 231.

The lock mechanism 250 is provided to maintain the revolving door 11 in a closed state. The locking mechanism 250 includes a locking plate 251, a support shaft 252, a third flat gear 233, a fourth flat gear 234, and the like.

The locking plate 251 is a member for keeping the revolving door 11 in a closed state from rotating. As shown in fig. 27, in the beverage supply device 210 according to the present embodiment, the locking plate 251 is positioned on the side surface side of the revolving door 11. That is, the lock plate 251 is configured to be positioned at an outer peripheral portion of a trajectory of the horizontally rotating revolving door 11 when the lock mechanism 250 is in the locked state. In this way, the locking plate 251 is configured to lock the outer peripheral portion of the swing door 11, so that the closed state of the swing door 11 can be maintained more strongly when the lock mechanism 250 is in the locked state. Therefore, even if the rotary door 11 is pushed with a stronger force when the lock mechanism 250 is in the locked state, the closed state of the rotary door 11 can be stably maintained.

In the present embodiment, the locking plate 251 is disposed on the back surface side of the revolving door 11 (see fig. 27). Therefore, a notch is formed in the upper portion of the right side plate 12 of the water supply chamber 10a at a position corresponding to the operation range of the lock plate 251. In the present invention, the arrangement position of the lock plate is not limited to this. That is, the lock plate may be positioned on the front side of the revolving door 11. However, in order to maintain the aesthetic appearance of the refrigerator 1, it is preferable to dispose the locking plate 251 on the rear surface side of the swing door 11.

The upper end of the support shaft 252 is connected to the rotation shaft P4 of the fourth flat gear 234, and the lower end thereof is connected to the end of the lock plate 251. Thereby, the support shaft 252 rotates with the rotation of the fourth flat gear 234. The lock plate 251 is rotated about the support shaft 252.

The third pinion 233 rotates about the rotation shaft P3. The third flat gear 233 is disposed in front of and to the right of the driving motor 241. The entire outer circumference of the third flat gear 233 is formed with a tooth type. Accordingly, when the third flat gear 233 is engaged with the tooth 231a of the first flat gear 231 that rotates with the rotation of the driving motor 241, it rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the first flat gear 231.

The fourth flat gear 234 rotates about the rotation axis P4. The fourth flat gear 234 is disposed at the rear right side of the third flat gear 233. The entire outer periphery of the fourth flat gear 234 is formed with a tooth profile. The tooth pattern of the fourth flat gear 234 is configured to mesh with the tooth pattern of the third flat gear 233. Thereby, the fourth flat gear 234 rotates in conjunction with the rotational motion of the third flat gear 233. The support shaft 252 is connected to the rotation shaft P4 of the fourth flat gear 234.

Next, the opening and closing operation of the revolving door 11 in the beverage supply device 210 will be described. Further, the operation of the lock mechanism 250 of the swing door 11 will be described.

First, the operation of the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 210 when it is switched from the open state to the closed state will be described. For example, when the user finishes using the beverage supply device 210 and presses an open/close button displayed on the display panel 5, an instruction signal for closing the door is transmitted from the central processing unit to the rotation driving unit 230. Then, the drive motor 241 in the rotation drive unit 230 starts the rotation drive in the direction (for example, the arrow a1 direction) in which the door is closed.

When the driving motor 241 rotates, the first pinion 231 also rotates about the rotation axis P1. When the teeth 231a of the first flat gear 231 mesh with the teeth of the second flat gear 232 disposed adjacent to the first flat gear 231, the second flat gear 232 rotates about the rotation axis P2. In the present embodiment, the second pinion 232 rotates in the direction of arrow a 2. The upper rotary shaft 218 connected to the second pinion 232 rotates about the rotary shaft P2 of the second pinion 232. Thereby, the rotary door 11 rotates.

The tooth form 231a of the first flat gear 231 is designed to rotate the second flat gear 232 by 180 degrees. Therefore, the revolving door 11 is brought from the open state to the closed state by the meshing operation of the teeth 231a of the first flat gear 231 and the second flat gear 232.

Thereafter, when the first pinion 231 continues to rotate in the a1 direction, the teeth 231a of the first pinion 231 and the second pinion 232 are disengaged, and the teeth 231a of the first pinion 231 and the teeth of the third pinion 233 arranged on the right side are engaged with each other. Thereby, the third flat gear 233 rotates about the rotation shaft P3. In the present embodiment, the third pinion 233 rotates in the direction of arrow a 3.

Since the third flat gear 233 rotates, the fourth flat gear 234 having the tooth profile meshing with each other also rotates in the arrow a4 direction around the rotation axis P4. Thereby, the support shaft 252 connected to the rotation shaft P4 of the fourth flat gear 234 rotates. As the support shaft 252 rotates, the locking plate 251 moves in the direction of the arrow a 5. Thereby, as shown in fig. 27, the lock mechanism 150 is in the locked state.

As described above, according to the beverage supply apparatus 210 of the present embodiment, after the swing door 11 is closed, the lock mechanism 250 can be locked to maintain the swing door 11 in the closed state.

Next, the operation of the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 210 when it is switched from the closed state to the open state will be described. When the swing door 11 is in the closed state, as shown in fig. 27, the locking plate 251 is positioned on the rear side of the right side panel 12 of the water supply chamber 10 a.

For example, when the user presses an open/close button displayed on the display panel 5 to use the beverage supply device 210, an instruction signal for opening the door is transmitted from the central processing unit to the rotation driving unit 230. Then, the drive motor 241 in the rotation drive unit 230 starts the rotation drive in the direction to open the door (i.e., the direction opposite to the arrow a 1).

When the driving motor 241 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow a1, the teeth 231a of the first flat gear 231 first mesh with the third flat gear 233, and the third flat gear 233 rotates around the rotation shaft P3. By rotating the third flat gear 233, the fourth flat gear 234 having the tooth patterns meshing with each other is also rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow a4 around the rotation axis P4.

Thereby, the support shaft 252 connected to the rotation shaft P4 of the fourth flat gear 234 rotates. As the support shaft 252 rotates, the lock plate 251 moves in the direction of the arrow B1 (the direction opposite to the arrow a 5) (see fig. 27). Thereby, the lock mechanism 150 is in the unlocked state, and the lock of the swing door 11 is released.

Thereafter, when the first flat gear 231 continues to rotate, the engagement between the tooth 231a of the first flat gear 231 and the third flat gear 233 is released, and the tooth 231a of the first flat gear 231 engages with the tooth of the second flat gear 232 disposed on the left side. Thereby, the second pinion 232 rotates about the rotation shaft P2, and the swing door 11 rotates in the arrow B2 direction (the direction opposite to the arrow a 2).

Through the above series of operations, the opening operation of the swing door 11 can be started after the lock mechanism 250 is in the unlocked state. The lock mechanism 250 is preferably disposed on a side surface on a side which moves rearward when the swing door 11 is operated. That is, as in the beverage supply device 210 according to the third embodiment, when the swing door 11 is rotated in the direction of the arrow B2 during the operation of opening the swing door 11, the lock mechanism 250 is preferably disposed on the right side panel 12 of the water supply chamber 10 a. With this structure, the rotation restraining force of the lock mechanism 250 against the revolving door 11 can be further increased.

< eighth embodiment >

Next, an eighth embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the fifth to seventh embodiments, the description has been given of the configuration example in which the locking/unlocking of the lock mechanism is controlled by the drive motor that drives the rotational operation of the revolving door 11. However, in the door structure in one aspect of the present invention, the locking/unlocking of the lock mechanism may also be controlled by a drive portion different from that of the revolving door 11. Therefore, in the eighth embodiment, a configuration example in which the lock mechanism has a dedicated drive motor is described.

Fig. 28 and fig. 29(a) to (c) show the configuration of a beverage supply device 310 according to the eighth embodiment. Like the beverage supply device 10 of the fifth embodiment, the beverage supply device 310 of the present embodiment is incorporated in the refrigerator 1. The beverage supplying apparatus 310 is different from the fifth embodiment only in the structure of the rotational driving unit 330 and the locking mechanism 350. Therefore, only the structure different from the fifth embodiment will be described below.

The beverage supplying apparatus 310 mainly comprises a water supply chamber 10a, a water supply tank 20, a display panel 5, a rotation driving unit 330, a control part 340, and a locking mechanism 350. The water supply chamber 10a, the water supply tank 20, and the display panel 5 can be configured substantially the same as the beverage supply device 10 according to the fifth embodiment.

However, in the water supply chamber 10a, a protrusion 321 is formed on the right side plate 12. The projection 321 is provided to project from the outer surface of the right side panel 12 (see fig. 29(a), (c), and the like). A first contact member 322 (see fig. 29(a), (c), and the like) that contacts the projection 321 is provided on the left side of the water supply chamber 10a as viewed from the front. By providing the first contact member 322, the swing door 11 can be prevented from being rotated by 180 degrees or more in the operation of bringing the swing door 11 from the closed state to the open state.

Further, although not shown in fig. 29, a second contact member 323 (see fig. 30(a), (c), etc.) that contacts the projection 321 may be further provided on the right side of the water supply chamber 10a as viewed from the front. By providing the second contact member 323, the swing door 11 can be prevented from being rotated by 180 degrees or more in the operation of bringing the swing door 11 from the open state to the closed state.

The swing driving unit 330 drives the automatically opening and closing swing door 11. The rotation driving unit 330 includes a door rotation driving motor 331 (hereinafter, referred to as a door driving motor 331), an upper rotation shaft 318, a door opening/closing sensing switch 332, and the like.

The door drive motor 331 is connected to the upper rotary shaft 318 and drives the opening and closing operation of the rotary door 11. The upper rotary shaft 318 is connected to the water supply chamber 10a, and transmits the rotational driving force of the door driving motor 331 to the water supply chamber 10 a. The upper rotary shaft 318 is connected to the upper panel 14 of the water supply chamber 10 a.

The door opening and closing sensing switch 332 senses whether the rotary door 11 is in the opened state or the closed state. The door opening/closing sensing switches 332 are provided on the water supply chamber 10a and the refrigerating chamber door 2, respectively, for example. Whether the swing door 11 is in the open state or the closed state can be sensed according to whether the switches disposed at the respective positions are in the ON (locked) state. The door opening/closing sensing switch 332 may be disposed at, for example, the protrusion 321, the first abutting member 322, the second abutting member 323, and the like.

The control unit 340 controls the operations of the respective components in the beverage supply device 310. The control unit 340 includes a motor rotation control unit 341, a memory 343, and the like. The controller 340 is connected to a timer 344 that measures time.

The motor rotation control unit 341 controls a door drive motor 331 provided in the rotation drive unit 330 and a lock mechanism drive motor 352 provided in the lock mechanism 350 (hereinafter, simply referred to as drive motor 352).

The Memory 343 includes a ROM (read only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory). The memory 343 stores an operation program and setting data of the beverage supply device 310, and temporarily stores the calculation result of the control unit 340. The timer 344 measures, for example, the time between the opening and closing operation of the revolving door 11 and the locking/unlocking operation of the lock mechanism 350.

The lock mechanism 350 includes a housing 351, a driving motor 352, a rotary shaft 353, a lock pin 354, a lock ON/OFF (lock/unlock) sensor switch 355 (hereinafter, simply referred to as a lock sensor switch 355), and the like. The lock mechanism 350 is disposed on the right side of the beverage supplying apparatus 310 as viewed from the front (see fig. 29 a and the like). However, the arrangement position of the locking mechanism 350 is not limited thereto.

The housing 351 accommodates the components of the locking mechanism 350. The drive motor 352 is connected to a lock pin 354 via a rotary shaft 353. The rotation shaft 353 is rotated by the operation of the driving motor 352. The direction of the lock pin 354 connected to the rotation shaft 353 can be changed.

As shown in fig. 30(c) and 31(c), the lock pin 354 can change its direction by 90 degrees with the rotation shaft 353 as a starting point. As shown in fig. 31 c, when the lock pin 354 faces the water supply chamber 10a side, the lock mechanism 350 is in a locked state (a state in which the swing door 11 is fixed in a closed state). As shown in fig. 29 c and 30 c, when the lock pin 354 is directed downward, the lock mechanism 50 is in the unlocked state (unlocked state).

As shown in fig. 31(a), when the lock mechanism 350 is in the locked state, the lock pin 354 is located behind the protrusion 321 provided on the right side panel 12 of the water supply chamber 10 a. Therefore, for example, even if the right side of the swing door 11 is pressed, the rotation of the swing door 11 cannot be rotated because the lock pin 354 blocks the rotation. That is, the swing door 11 cannot be opened manually. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the rotation door 11 from rotating unexpectedly when the user of the refrigerator 1 touches the rotation door 11 by mistake, or the like.

Preferably, the lock mechanism 350 is disposed at a position facing a side surface on the side that moves rearward when the swing door 11 is actuated. That is, as in the beverage supply device 310 according to the eighth embodiment, when the swing door 11 is rotated in the direction of the arrow R1 in the operation of opening the swing door 11, the lock mechanism 350 is preferably disposed on the right side panel 12 of the water supply chamber 10 a. With this structure, the rotation restraining force of the lock mechanism 350 on the rotary door 11 can be further increased. Further, since the side surface having the engaging portion (the protrusion 321) on the side of the swing door 11 locked by the lock mechanism 350 is rotated rearward during the opening and closing operation of the swing door 11, the engaging portion (the protrusion 321) is not exposed to the front, and the appearance of the opening and closing operation of the swing door 11 is improved.

The lock sensing switch 355 senses whether the lock mechanism 350 is in the locked state or the unlocked state.

Next, the flow of the opening and closing operation of the revolving door 11 and the operation of the lock mechanism 350 of the revolving door 11 in the beverage supply device 310 will be described with reference to fig. 28 to 32.

Fig. 29 shows the beverage supplying apparatus 310 in the opened state of the swing door 11. Fig. 29(a) is a view of the beverage supply device 310 as viewed from above. Fig. 29(B) is a view of the beverage supplying apparatus 310 shown in fig. 29(a) as viewed from the arrow B side. Fig. 29(c) is a view of the beverage supplying apparatus 310 shown in fig. 29(a) as viewed from the arrow a side. Fig. 29(d) is a view of the beverage supplying apparatus 310 shown in fig. 29(a) as viewed from the arrow C side.

Fig. 30(a) to (d) show the beverage supplying apparatus 310 when the rotary door 11 is in the closed state and the lock mechanism is in the unlocked state. Fig. 31(a) to (d) show the beverage supplying apparatus 310 in the state where the rotary door 11 is closed and the lock mechanism is locked. Fig. 32 shows a flow of processing when the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 310 is switched from the open state to the closed state.

First, the operation of the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 310 when it is switched from the open state to the closed state will be described. For example, when the user finishes using the beverage supply device 310 and presses an open/close button displayed on the display panel 5, an instruction signal for closing the door is transmitted to the motor rotation control unit 341 in the control unit 340 (YES in step S11). Then, the motor rotation control unit 341 starts to rotate the door drive motor 331 in the rotation drive unit 330 (step S12).

The door drive motor 331 rotates about a rotation axis P1 in a direction (for example, in the direction of arrow R2 in fig. 29 a) in which the door is closed. When the swing door 11 is completely opened (see fig. 30 a), for example, the door opening/closing detection switch 332 disposed on the second contact member 323 detects that the swing door 11 is in the closed state (YES in step S13).

When sensing that the swing door 11 is in the closed state, the motor rotation control portion 341 stops the driving of the door driving motor 331 (step S14). Thereafter, the motor rotation control unit 341 starts to rotate the drive motor 352 of the lock mechanism 350. When the driving motor 352 starts driving, the lock pin 354 rotates in the direction of the arrow R3 shown in fig. 31(c) from the state shown in fig. 30 (c). Thereby, the lock mechanism 350 becomes the locked state (step S15).

Thereafter, when the lock sensing switch 355 senses the locked state of the lock mechanism 350 (YES in step S16), the motor rotation control portion 341 stops the driving of the driving motor 352 (step S17). Through the above series of processes, after the revolving door 11 is closed, the lock mechanism 350 is locked to maintain the revolving door 11 in the closed state.

Further, between the above-mentioned step S14 and step S15, the timer 344 may measure the time, and after a predetermined time has elapsed since the stop of the driving of the door driving motor 331, the lock mechanism 350 may be started to operate. This ensures a certain distance between the end of the operation of the swing door 11 and the start of the operation of the lock mechanism 250.

Next, the operation of the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 310 when it is switched from the closed state to the open state will be described with reference to fig. 28 to 31 and 33. Fig. 33 shows a flow of processing when the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 310 is switched from the closed state to the open state. When the swing door 11 is in the closed state, as shown in fig. 31, the lock pin 354 is positioned on the rear side of the right side plate 12 of the water supply chamber 10 a.

Then, for example, when the user presses an open/close button displayed on the display panel 5 in order to use the beverage supply device 310, an instruction signal for opening the door is transmitted to the motor rotation control unit 341 in the control unit 340 (YES in step S21). Then, the motor rotation control unit 341 starts the rotation driving of the drive motor 352 of the lock mechanism 350. After the drive motor 352 starts driving, the lock pin 354 rotates in the direction opposite to the arrow R3 from the state shown in fig. 31 (c). Thereby, the lock mechanism 350 becomes the unlocked state (step S22).

Thereafter, when the lock sensing switch 355 senses the unlocked state of the lock mechanism 350 (YES in step S23), the motor rotation control portion 341 stops the driving of the driving motor 352 (step S24). Thereafter, the motor rotation control unit 341 starts the rotation driving of the door drive motor 331 (step S25).

The door drive motor 331 rotates about a rotation axis P1 in a direction (for example, in the direction of arrow R1 in fig. 29 a) in which the door is opened. When the swing door 11 is fully opened, for example, the door opening/closing sensing switch 332 disposed on the first contact member 322 senses that the swing door 11 is opened (YES in step S26).

When sensing that the swing door 11 is in the open state, the motor rotation control portion 341 stops the driving of the door driving motor 331 (step S27). Through the above series of operations, the opening operation of the swing door 11 can be started after the lock mechanism 250 is brought into the unlocked state.

As described above, in the beverage supplying apparatus 310 of the present embodiment, the driving portion of the rotary door 11 and the driving portion of the lock mechanism 350 are configured by different mechanisms. Therefore, the configuration of the beverage supply device can be further simplified.

< ninth embodiment >

Next, a ninth embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the fifth to eighth embodiments, the example in which the refrigerator is provided with the beverage supply device and the beverage supply device is provided with the automatically opening and closing door is described. However, the door construction of the present invention is also applicable to an automatic rotary type beverage supplying apparatus. Therefore, in the present embodiment, an example of a beverage supply device having a door structure according to the present invention will be described.

Fig. 13 and 14 show an external appearance of the beverage supply device 610 according to the present embodiment. The internal structure of the beverage supply device 610 of the present embodiment can be applied to the same structure as the beverage supply device 10 of the fifth embodiment. Therefore, in the present embodiment, only the differences from the fifth embodiment will be described.

Fig. 13 shows an appearance of the beverage supply device 610 according to the present embodiment when it is not in use. As shown in fig. 13, the revolving door 11 of the beverage supply device 610 is located on the front side of the device 610. The water supply mechanism of the beverage supply device 610 is disposed on the back side of the revolving door 11 and is hidden from view. The water supply tank 20 is disposed on the back side of the front wall 610a of the beverage supply device 610 and is hidden from view. In fig. 13, the water supply tank 20 is shown by a broken line for convenience.

Fig. 14 shows a state in which the beverage supply device 610 is used. The beverage supply device 610 is configured such that when a user presses an opening/closing button (not shown) of the swing door 11, the swing door 11 is horizontally rotated to present the water supply mechanism on the front.

The water supply tank 20 is provided on the back side of a front wall (wall surface) 610a of the beverage supply device 610. The front wall 610a has a door structure that can be opened and closed from either of the left and right ends, for example. In this door structure, a lock mechanism for maintaining the revolving door 11 in a closed state is provided. This locks the swing door 11 in the closed state. The same structure as that of the locking mechanism of the beverage supplying apparatus of the fifth to eighth embodiments can be applied to the specific structure of the locking mechanism.

In the fifth to ninth embodiments, a revolving door of a beverage supply device is described as an example of an application example of the door structure according to the aspect of the present invention. However, the door configuration in one aspect of the present invention may also be applied to door configurations other than beverage supply apparatuses.

It should be understood that the embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative and not restrictive in all respects. The scope of the invention is indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are intended to be embraced therein. Further, a structure in which the structures in the different embodiments described in this specification are combined with each other also falls within the scope of the present invention.

Description of the reference numerals

1 refrigerator

2 refrigerating room door (wall)

10. 110, 210, 310, 410, 510, 610 beverage supply device

10a water supply chamber

11 revolving door

12 water injection rod

20. 120, 220 water supply tank

21. 121, 221 casing body

22 upper cover (cover)

23. 123, 223 Water supply pipe (discharge part)

24. 104 (rotary) locking mechanism

25. 105 rotating lock (locking mechanism)

26. 106 track parts (locking mechanism)

30. 130, 230, 330 Rotary drive Unit

50. 150, 250, 350 (door construction) locking mechanism

224 (spring type) locking mechanism

225 track component (locking mechanism)

226 plate spring (spring)

340 control part

Claims

1. A beverage supply device disposed on a wall surface having heat insulation properties, the beverage supply device comprising:

a water supply tank disposed on the rear surface side of the wall surface;

a discharge unit disposed below the water supply tank and discharging the beverage in the water supply tank; and

a locking mechanism for fixing the water supply tank in a state of being mounted on the device and limiting the movement of the water supply tank in the mounting direction;

the locking mechanism comprises a clamping part arranged on the water supply tank and a rail part;

the engaging portion is moved to engage with the rail member or the protrusion in a state where the protrusion provided on the wall surface side is accommodated in the rail member, thereby restricting movement in the mounting direction of the water supply tank.

2. The beverage supplying apparatus according to claim 1,

the discharge part has a water supply pipe connected to the water supply tank and extending obliquely downward from the water supply tank,

the water supply pipe extends in a direction substantially parallel to the installation direction of the water supply tank.

3. The beverage supplying apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,

the clamping part is a rotary lock,

and a hook portion of the rotary lock is engaged with the rail member in a state where the protrusion is accommodated in the rail member, thereby restricting movement in an installation direction of the water supply tank.

4. The beverage supplying apparatus according to claim 3,

the water supply tank is provided with a cover part,

the rotary lock is disposed at the cover portion of the water service box.

5. The beverage supplying apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,

the locking mechanism is a spring-type locking mechanism, and a spring of the locking mechanism is engaged with a protrusion provided on the wall surface side, so that the movement of the water supply tank in the installation direction is restricted.

6. A door structure provided in the beverage supply device according to claim 1, comprising:

a door;

a control unit for controlling the opening and closing of the door;

a driving unit for driving the opening and closing of the door; and

a locking mechanism that maintains the closed state of the door when the door is in the closed state;

the control unit locks the lock mechanism to maintain the door in the closed state after the door is closed,

the control unit starts the opening operation of the door after the locking mechanism is in the unlocked state;

the locking action of the locking mechanism is driven by the driving part.

7. The door construction of claim 6,

the door is a revolving door, and the locking mechanism switches between a locked state and an unlocked state by moving in a direction of a rotational axis of the door.

8. The door construction according to claim 6 or 7,

the door is a revolving door and the locking mechanism engages the outer periphery of the door.

9. The door construction of claim 8,

the locking mechanism is disposed on a side which moves rearward when the door is opened.