WO2007023445A1

WO2007023445A1 - A cooling device

Info

Publication number: WO2007023445A1
Application number: PCT/IB2006/052885
Authority: WO
Inventors: Bogac Simsir
Original assignee: Arcelik Anonim Sirketi
Priority date: 2005-08-22
Filing date: 2006-08-21
Publication date: 2007-03-01
Also published as: CN101258372A; PL1917492T3; EP1917492B1; CN100554835C; RU2362950C1; EP1917492A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cooling device (1) comprising a door (3), the position of which can be adjusted on the body (2). In the said cooling device (1), the positioning of the door (3) is adjusted by moving together vertically the hinge (13) and the element (5) supporting the hinge (13) from inside the body (2).

Description

Description A COOLING DEVICE

[1] The present invention relates to a cooling device comprising a door whose position on the body can be adjusted .

[2] The cooling devices comprise a body that is kept at a lower temperature than the ambient temperature, in which the food items to be cooled are stored and a door that provides access into this body. It is important to properly assemble the door on the body for the purpose of insulating the inner volume of the body from the environment hence for the cooling performance and also for the external appearance of the cooling device.

[3] However, there is the possibility that the door cannot be assembled properly on the body due to reasons of production tolerances and the difficulty of assembly. Furthermore, even if the door is properly assembled on the body as it leaves the factory, the floor on which the cooling device stands may not be level which leads to a change in the positioning of the door. Especially in the side-by-side cooling devices, the height difference between the doors is a problem which can easily be perceived by the user, leading to customer dissatisfaction. Due to this and other similar reasons, the cooling device doors are preferably produced with a configuration such that their heights on the body can be adjusted.

[4] As is known, the hinges comprise a fixed part that is generally attached to the body and a pin housed inside, around the axis of which the door rotates. In some applications, the hinge comprises a fixed wing that is attached to the body and another movable one attached to the door, both of which are held together by a pin. In the current state-of-the-art, the modifications done on the hinges for the adjustment of the door height can be basically listed in two groups:

[5] In the hinges of the first group, the length of the pin that is inserted into the housing on the door is changed by means of various mechanisms. The inventions explicated in the patents no. US593472, US3114942, US3662493, US3683453, US4815162 and GB323148 may be evaluated under this group. The process of height adjustment is realized based on the principal of moving the said pin into or out of the housing by means of components such as a screw, a nut, a cam etc.

[6] In the hinges of the second group, the position of the door is adjusted by adjusting the height of the fixed part attached to the body. As an example of this type of applications, the invention explicated in the United States Patent no. US4070728 can be denoted. In the mentioned invention, an L shaped bracket attached to the cooling device is moved vertically up and down by means of a cam situated beneath it.

[7] In the invention explicated in the United States Patent no. US5666764, there is a hinge and a tap plate supporting from behind. The tap plate and the hinge are attached together by screws in enlarged screw receiving holes. The enlarged holes provide a movement space for the adjustment of positions of the hinge and the tap plate. After the door is factory adjusted in position, a supplemental mechanism is applied to fix the tap plate on the body in the factory position independent of the hinge screws. The fixing process is maintained by foaming in place or by screwing. The tap plate cannot be moved after its position is adjusted.

[8] In the cooling devices, the body on which the hinge is attached is produced by means of filling in with polyurethane between the specially formed thin inner and outer walls for the purpose of providing insulation. Since the structure of these walls are not sufficiently durable, the body is supported by various auxiliary parts from inside the wall at the portion to where the hinge is attached. Furthermore, an additional component that internally supports the hinge is used for carrying the door that becomes fairly heavy due to the bottles and food items stored on its shelves.

[9] In the state-of-the-art applications, especially in the second group of hinges, ovally bored holes to which the screws that attach the hinge to the body and the support means are fixed in order to adjust the position of the door, may lead to problems when this hole gets enlarged over time under the weight of the door and even the falling of the door due to the screw getting loose from this hole.

[10] Furthermore, as the position of the door is adjusted, the part where the hinge bears on the body, that is, the part to where force is applied changes. Yet the position of the element that is supposed to support the hinge internally is fixed. Therefore, in certain positions of the door, there is no support element behind where the hinge bears on the body; the support element cannot support the hinge and the door as is required. When the support element is made longer than the hinge in order to solve this problem, then more material is used.

[11] The aim of the present invention is the realization of a cooling device wherein the positioning of the door on the body is adjusted in a practical way.

[12] The cooling device realized in order to fulfill the objectives of the present invention is explicated in the attached claims.

[13] In the cooling device of the present invention, the position of the door is adjusted by vertically moving together the hinge and the element that supports the hinge from inside the body . For this purpose, the housing inside which the screws that join the hinge and the support element move, is situated on the body but not on the hinge or the support element. By an adjustment mechanism, which is attached to the body, and on which the support element is seated, the hinge and the support element that can be moved off when desired are enabled to stay where they are situated after the door position is adjusted and to move again when required. The position of the hinge and the support element is changed by moving the adjustment mechanism. The hinge and the support element bear on the body wall from both sides of this gap. Accordingly, the force that the hinge applies on the body from one side is counterbalanced from the other side by the support element, no matter how high the door is adjusted.

[14] In an embodiment of the present invention, the adjustment mechanism comprises a hole situated on the place corresponding to below the support element on the body and a screw that is fitted into this hole from the outside, bearing on the support element from underneath it. As the screw is turned, it moves the support element and the hinge attached to it upwards. Consequently the door is elevated together with the hinge and adjusted in the required position.

[15] The cooling device realized in order to fulfill the objectives of the present invention is illustrated in the attached figures, where:

[16] Figure 1 - is the perspective view of a cooling device.

[17] Figure 2 - is the perspective view of detail A of the cooling device.

[18] Figure 3 - is the sectional view of detail A of the cooling device when the door is at the lowest position.

[19] Figure 4 - is the sectional view of detail A of the cooling device when the door is at the highest position.

[20] Elements shown in figures are numbered as follows:

[21] 1. Cooling device

[22] 2. Body

[23] 3. Door

[24] 4. Bracket

[25] 5. Support element

[26] 6. Fixing element

[27] 7. Housing

[28] 8. Adjustment mechanism

[29] 9. Hole

[30] 10. Screw

[31] 11. Arm

[32] 12. Partition

[33] 13. Hinge

[34] 14. Pin

[35] The cooling device (1) comprises,

[36] - a body (2) into which the food items to be cooled are stored,

[37] - at least one door (3) providing access into this body (2) from outside,

[38] - a hinge (13) having a bracket (4) fixed on the body (2) providing attachment of the door (3) to the body (2), and a pin (14) on the bracket (4), onto which the door (3) is rotatably fixed ,

[39] - a support element (5) situated at the interior of the body (2),

[40] - at least one fixing element (6) for attaching the bracket (4) to the support element

(5),

[41] - at least one housing (7) situated on the body (2), to one side of which the support element (5) and to the other side the bracket (4) is attached, through which the fixing element (6) is movably inserted, and

[42] - at least one adjustment mechanism (8) on which the support element (5) is seated, providing the support element (5) and the bracket (4) to stay at the desired position, and when required provides the adjustment of the position of the door (3) on the body (2) by moving together the support element (5) and the bracket (4) attached to it.

[43] The bracket (4) and the support element (5) are attached to each other by the fixing elements (6) inserted through the housing (7) such that the surface on which the housing (7) is situated is between them. The shape of the housing (7) that forms a movement gap for the fixing element (6) is oval or quadrilateral with rounded corners such that it allows only the vertical movement of the fixing element (6) joining the bracket (4) and the support element (5), on the other hand preventing its horizontal movement. The height of the housing (7) determines the distance between the highest and the lowest positions of the door (3) by limiting the movement of the fixing element (6).

[44] The fixing element (6) provides the support element (5) and the bracket (4) to rest against tightly, cheek to cheek on the body (2) from both sides of the housing (7). Loosening the fixing element (6) a little allows for the movement of the support element (5) and the bracket (4) together with the adjustment mechanism (8). The fixing element (6) is an element such as a screw or a bolt that can be tightened, loosened by tools such as a screwdriver, a wrench etc.. The fixing element (6) can be reached from outside of the cooling device (1).

[45] The adjustment mechanism (8) provides the desired positioning of the support element (5), fixing element (6) and the bracket (4) on two sides of the housing (7). Once this position is attained, together with the fixing element (6), the adjustment mechanism (8) aids them to stay fixed in position until the next adjustment.

[46] In this embodiment, for adjusting the height of the door (3), first the fixing element

(6) joining the support element (5) and the bracket (4) is loosened as much as to allow these components to move together but preventing the door (3) from falling. Afterwards, the adjustment mechanism (8) is moved, forcing the support element (5) that leans on it, to move together with itself. The fixing element (6) moves together with the support element (5) in the housing (7). The fixing element (6) transfers its movement to the bracket (4) on the other side of the housing (7) providing to change the position of the door (3) that is attached to the pin (14). After the height of the door (3) is adjusted, the fixing element (6) is tightened again, providing the support element (5) and the bracket (4) to completely bear on the body (2) from the inside and the outside. The frictional force applied on a wide area by the surfaces of the support element (5) and the bracket (4) that bear on the body (2), and the adjustment mechanism (8) that supports the support element (5) from the bottom is sufficient for carrying the weight of the door (3).

[47] In another embodiment of the present invention, the adjustment mechanism (8) comprises a hole (9) at the base of the body (2) on a point corresponding to the bottom of the support element (5) and a screw (10) that is inserted through this hole (9) and bears on the support element (5) from the bottom. The screw (10) by being turned in the hole (9), can change the position of the support element (5), the fixing element (6), the bracket (4), and the pin (14) which are situated on it and accordingly the door (3). In this embodiment, the adjustment mechanism (8) furthermore comprises an arm (11) that provides for easily reaching and turning the screw (10) from outside the body (2).

[48] In this embodiment, in order to adjust the position of the door (3), first the fixing element (6) joining the support element (5) and the bracket (4) is loosened as much as to allow these components to move but preventing the door (3) from falling. Afterwards, the screw (10) is turned by means of the arm (11) and moved upwards. As the screw (10) rises up in the hole (9), it forces the support element (5) under which it bears on, to go upwards together with itself. The fixing element (6) also rises up in the housing (7) together with the support element (5) and raises up the bracket (4) on the other side of the housing (7). After the height adjustment of the door (3) is completed, the fixing element (6) is tightened again, providing the support element (5) and the bracket (4) to bear on the body (2) tightly from the inside and the outside. When the door (3) is desired to be lowered, again first the fixing element (6) is loosened, then the screw (10) is turned this time to the opposite side by means of the arm (11) and lowered down. The support element (5) by the effect of the weight of itself and the door (3) is lowered down together with the support element (5), the bracket (4) and the screw (10). After attaining the desired position, the bracket (4) and the hinge (13) are prevented from moving further by tightening the fixing element (6).

[49] In another embodiment of the present invention, the cooling device (1) comprises a partition (12) inside the body (2) that provides a movement space for the support element (5) so that the movement of the support element (5) is not restricted by the polyurethane foam filled into the body (2). The partition (12) surrounds the support element (5). Accordingly, the polyurethane foam filled into the body (2) does not fill the space around the support element (5) and hence does not restrict its movement.

[50] In the cooling device (1) of the present invention, as the position of the door (3) on the body (2) is being adjusted, the support element (5) can support the body (2) at each positioning of the bracket (4) since the bracket (4) and the support element (5) move together. Furthermore, since the weight of the door (3) is transferred to the body (2) by the bearing surfaces of the bracket (4) and the support element (5), and the adjustment mechanism (8), a deformation is not formed on the relatively thin walls of the body (2).

Claims

[1] A cooling device (1) comprising

- a body (2) into which the food items to be cooled are stored,

- at least one door (3) providing access into this body (2) from the outside, and the position of which on the body (2) can be adjusted,

- a hinge (13) having a bracket (4) fixed on the body (2) providing attachment of the door (3) to the body (2) and a pin (14) on the bracket (4), onto which the door (3) is rotatably fixed,

- a support element (5) situated at the interior of the body (2),

- at least one fixing element (6) for attaching the bracket (4) to the support element (5),

- at least one housing (7) situated on the body (2), to one side of which the support element (5) and to the other side the bracket (4) is attached, through which the fixing element (6) is movably inserted, and characterized by

- at least one adjustment mechanism (8) on which the support element (5) is seated, providing the support element (5) and the bracket (4) to stay at the desired position, and when required provides the adjustment of the position of the door (3) on the body (2) by moving the support element (5) together with the bracket (4) attached to it.

[2] A cooling device (1) according to Claim 1, characterized by an adjustment mechanism (8) comprising a hole (9) at the base of the body (2) on a point corresponding to the bottom of the support element (5) and a screw (10) that is inserted through this hole (9) and bears on the support element (5) from the bottom, providing to change the position of the support element (5), and accordingly the fixing element (6), the bracket (4), and hence the door (3) as the screw (10) is turned in the hole (9).

[3] A cooling device (1) according to Claim 2, characterized by an adjustment mechanism (8) comprising an arm (11) that provides for reaching easily and turning the screw (10) from outside the body (2).

[4] A cooling device (1) according to any one of the above claims, characterized by a partition (12) inside the body (2) that provides a movement space for the support element (5) by surrounding the support element (5).