AU2024205212A1

AU2024205212A1 - Refrigerator

Info

Publication number: AU2024205212A1
Application number: AU2024205212A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Seung Eon Lim; Seong Jin Na; Seung Jin Oh; Jin Ho Son; Chang Woan Yang
Original assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Current assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Priority date: 2019-11-13
Filing date: 2024-07-30
Publication date: 2024-09-19
Also published as: EP4060262A4; AU2020382671A1; AU2020382671B2; US20220397336A1; WO2021096300A1; EP4060262A1

Abstract

Disclosed is a refrigerator. The refrigerator may comprise a cabinet (100) having a storage space (121), and a 5 machine room (201) disposed below the storage space (121). The machine room (201) may comprise a compressor (610), a condenser (620), and a heat dissipation fan (611) to implement a cooling system, and have an inlet (225a) and an outlet (225b) formed on a front surface thereof. In addition, the 10 compressor (610) and the heat dissipation fan (611) are disposed at the rear of the machine room (201), and the compressor (610) may be disposed in a space partitioned from a space in which the condenser (620) is disposed.

Description

REFRIGERATOR

Technical Field

[1] The present disclosure relates generally to

refrigerator. More particularly, the present disclosure

relates to a refrigerator in which a machine room module in

which a compressor and a condenser are installed is installed

on a lower part of the refrigerator.

Background

[2] Generally, a refrigerator is a home appliance which can

store food at a low temperature in an internal storage space

which is covered by a door. To this end, the refrigerator is

configured to store food in an optimal state by cooling the

inside of a storage space by using cold air generated through

heat exchange with a refrigerant circulating in a

refrigeration cycle.

[3] Recently, a refrigerator is gradually becoming

multifunctional according to changes in diet and the trend of

product enhancement, and a refrigerator equipped with various

structures and convenience devices for user convenience and

efficient use of internal space has been released.

Particularly, a refrigerator suitable for storage according

to the type of alcoholic beverage due to the increase of consumption and preferences of alcoholic beverages such as wine and champagne, and a refrigerator for storing aged foods such as kimchi for a long time are being developed.

[4] In addition, recently, the exterior of a refrigerator

is designed to harmonize with furniture in the space for

installing the refrigerator. For example, a built-in

refrigerator is attracting attention in terms of interior

design since an exposed part thereof is minimized. This

serves to assist an existing refrigerator such that frequently

used foods can be stored inside kitchen furniture, thereby

improving the convenience of use.

[5] However, in the case of such a built-in refrigerator,

the remaining parts of the refrigerator except for the front

surface of the refrigerator are often blocked, so an efficient

air flow is difficult. Accordingly, various technologies are

being developed to facilitate the flow of air for cooling a

condenser and a compressor installed inside a machine room of

the refrigerator. Among the various technologies, there are

technologies in which an inlet through which air is introduced

into the machine room and an outlet through which the internal

air of the machine room is discharged to the outside are all

disposed on the front of the refrigerator.

[6] For examples concerning these, there are Japanese Patent

Application Publication No. 2017-141975 (prior art 1), Korean

Patent Application Publication No. 2011-0019076 (prior art 2),

US Patent No. US 5,881,567 (prior art 3), and Japanese Patent

No. 5033563 (prior art 4), etc.

[7] However, in prior art 1, a cooling fan is in close

contact with one side of a condenser and thus the size of the

cooling fan is limited to the height of the surroundings of

the condenser, and a compressor and the condenser are disposed

to partially overlap each other in width directions thereof,

and thus air may not efficiently flow to the compressor. In

addition, in prior art 2, a condenser and a cooling fan are

installed in upright directions and the entire height of the

machine room increases, and in prior art 3, a cooling fan is

disposed behind a condenser and a compressor and the cooling

fan is located far away from an inlet, so efficient

introduction of air is difficult. In prior art 4, a condenser

is installed in an upright direction, and the height of the

machine room increases, and an air flow path connected to the

compressor is not clearly defined, so an efficient air flow

is difficult.

[8] That is, in prior arts 1 to 4, due to the installation

directions or overall height of the condenser and the cooling

fan, the machine room has a limit to be miniaturized, or an

air flow path inside the machine room is not clearly defined,

so the flow of air by the cooling fan is not efficient.

Particularly, in a small refrigerator having a limited size, the amount of air introduced into or discharged out of the machine room is unavoidably decreased.

[9] Of course, reducing the size of the condenser or a heat

dissipation fan allows the volume of the machine room to be

decreased, but in this case, heat dissipation performance

decreases, and consequently, the efficiency of a refrigeration

cycle decreases.

[10] Particularly, a built-in type refrigerator may be used

even in a kitchen island, which has been widely applied

recently, and island-type kitchen furniture, which is a

workbench independent of a sink, has high convenience but has

a low overall height, so the built-in type refrigerator is

difficult to be applied to the island-type kitchen furniture.

[11] In addition, a small refrigerator disposed on a floor

has a limited height, and thus increasing the volume of the

machine room of the refrigerator causes the volume of storage

space to be unavoidably decreased.

[12] It is desired to address or ameliorate one or more

disadvantages or limitations associated with the prior art,

provide a refrigerator, or to at least provide the public with

a useful alternative

Sumary

[13] According to a first aspect, the present disclosure may

broadly provide a refrigerator in which a condenser, a compressor, a heat dissipation fan are efficiently disposed inside a machine room such that the overall volume of the machine room can be reduced and heat dissipation performance of the condenser and the compressor can be secured.

[14] According to another aspect, the present disclosure may

broadly provide a refrigerator in which even without reducing

the size (a diameter) of the heat dissipation fan, the overall

volume of the machine room is reduced such that a storage

space of the refrigerator can be secured relatively larger.

[15] According to another aspect, the present disclosure may

broadly provide a refrigerator in which the amount of air

introduced into and discharged from space of the machine room

can be effectively increased even in a small refrigerator

having a low height.

[16] According to another aspect, the present disclosure may

broadly provide a refrigerator in which condensers are

distributed at various positions inside the refrigerator so

as to increase heat dissipation performance.

[17] According to another aspect, the present disclosure may

broadly provide a refrigerator in which a control module and

a door opening device are installed inside the machine room

so as to decrease the overall size of the refrigerator.

[18] According to another aspect, the present disclosure may

broadly provide refrigerator in which parts constituting the machine room are arranged to maximize the volume of the storage space.

[19] According to another aspect, the present disclosure may

broadly provide a refrigerator comprising a cabinet having a

storage space, and a machine room disposed under the storage

space. The machine room may comprise a compressor, a

condenser, and a heat dissipation fan so as to implement a

cooling system, and may have an inlet and an outlet formed on

a front surface of the machine room. Furthermore, the

compressor and the heat dissipation fan may be disposed at

the rear of the machine room. The compressor may be disposed

in space partitioned from space in which the condenser is

disposed.

[20] According to another aspect, the present disclosure may

broadly provide a refrigerator comprising: a cabinet having a

storage space and a door assembly configured to open and close

the storage space, and a machine room disposed under the

storage space and comprising a compressor, a condenser, and a

heat dissipation fan for implementing a cooling system, the

machine room having an inlet and an outlet formed on a front

surface thereof, wherein the compressor and the condenser are

disposed respectively in spaces partitioned from each other,

and the heat dissipation fan is disposed in a rear portion of

the machine room relative to the inlet, and the compressor is disposed in a rear portion of the machine room relative to the outlet.

[21] The heat dissipation fan may be disposed at the rear of

the machine room relative to the inlet, and the compressor

may be disposed at the rear of the machine room relative to

the outlet. Accordingly, the compressor and the heat

dissipation fan may be installed inside the machine room so

as to be located far away from the inlet/outlet. Accordingly,

parts taller than other parts may be clustered in the rear of

the machine room, and remaining parts may be installed in the

front thereof, so the height of the front of the machine room

may be decreased.

[22] Additionally, the condenser may be installed in the

machine room such the condenser is adjacent to the inlet to

face the inlet. In this case, the compressor may be disposed

in space partitioned from space in which the condenser is

installed in the machine room, and may be installed at a

position closer to a rear plate than the condenser.

Accordingly, air introduced through the inlet may effectively

dissipate heat of the condenser, and the compressor being high

in height may be installed to be spaced apart from the

condenser, so the height of the front of the machine room may

be decreased.

[23] In addition, the compressor and the heat dissipation fan

may be disposed side by side along a direction parallel with the rear plate. When the compressor and the heat dissipation fan are disposed in parallel with the rear plate, the heat dissipation fan may be made at least as high as the compressor, and accordingly, an air flow through the heat dissipation fan may be further facilitated.

[24] Furthermore, the heat dissipation fan may be spaced

apart from the side plate of a machine room frame, and an air

flow space connected to the inlet may be defined between the

heat dissipation fan and the side plate, and the heat

dissipation fan may be installed to face the side plate.

Accordingly, the air flow space may be secured from the inlet

to the heat dissipation fan.

[25] Additionally, a separation wall may be installed in the

machine room such that an end of the separation wall extends

between the inlet and the outlet, and may divide the inside

of the machine room into two sides. The opposite end of the

separation wall may be connected to the heat dissipation fan,

and the heat dissipation fan may block space between the

separation wall and the rear plate. Accordingly, the inside

of the machine room may be divided by the separation wall such

that an introduction path through which outside air is

introduced and a discharge path through which air passing

through the inside of the machine room is discharged are

separated from each other. Air may flow along a predetermined

path inside the machine room, that is, along the sequence of the condenser, the heat dissipation fan, and the compressor, so air circulation may be facilitated.

[26] In addition, an introduction space of the machine room

defined between the inlet and the heat dissipation fan may be

blocked by the bottom plate, side plate, and rear plate of

the machine room frame. Simultaneously, in a discharge space

of the machine room defined between the heat dissipation fan

and the outlet, at least a portion of the bottom plate, side

plate, and rear plate may be open, so the discharge space may

communicate with the outside. Accordingly, the initial

introduction of outside air may be limited to a specific

direction (the condenser), but after the outside air

dissipates heat of the condenser and the compressor, the

outside air may be discharged in various directions, so heat

dissipation performance of the machine room may be increased.

[27] In addition, a defrost water tray may be installed on

the bottom of the machine room between the inlet and the heat

dissipation fan, and a flow guide surface may be formed on

the defrost water tray by inclining toward the heat

dissipation fan. Accordingly, a dead space may be prevented

from being formed between the lower end of the heat

dissipation fan and the defrost water tray, so a flow space

may be sufficiently secured.

[28] Furthermore, a control module may be installed in space

between the compressor and the outlet in the machine room.

The control module may be spaced apart upward from the bottom

surface of the machine room, and thus an air flow path may be

formed between the lower surface of the control module and

the bottom surface of the machine room. Accordingly, in the

machine room, the control module as well as devices for the

implementation of a refrigerant cycle and may be installed

and thus space utilization rate may be increased. In this

case, the control module may be installed at a position close

to the entrance of the machine room, and thus may be removed

from the front of the machine room.

[29] In addition, the machine room frame may comprise the

bottom plate on which the compressor, the condenser, and the

separation wall are provided, wherein the bottom plate may

comprise an additional inlet through which outside air is

introduced by passing through the introduction space defined

by the separation wall, and an additional outlet through which

air of the machine room is discharged by passing through the

discharge space defined by the separation wall. Accordingly,

even in a small refrigerator having a low height, in addition

to the amount of air introduced/discharged from a front cover

thereof into/out of the machine room, the amount of air

introduced or discharged additionally may be secured.

[30] Furthermore, a reinforcement part may be formed on the

bottom plate by extending in a direction intersecting with

the separation wall. The reinforcement part may be disposed between the additional inlet and the additional outlet. Such a reinforcement part may prevent the bottom plate from sagging downward due to the weight of parts installed in the machine room.

[31] In addition, the machine room frame may be provided with

a pair of side parts coupled to the bottom plate and the side

plate constituting the machine room frame. Each of the side

parts may be configured to be open in a lower surface thereof

such that a support module supporting the machine room frame

is provided inside the side part. Such a support module may

allow the horizontality of the refrigerator to be adjusted.

[32] Furthermore, the open upper surface of the machine room

may be covered by a cover plate having a plate shape, and the

cover plate may be provided with a compressor cover receiving

the upper end of the compressor. The compressor cover may be

located at a position corresponding to the upper surface of

the compressor and may protrude more than the upper surface

of the cover plate. Accordingly, the heights of parts other

than the compressor may be minimized to decrease space

occupied by the machine room.

[33] In addition, an open cut part may be formed in the rear

end of the cover plate such that the upper end of the

compressor is exposed to the outside of the cover plate, and

the compressor cover may be disposed to cover the cut part.

[34] Additionally, the compressor cover may be open in a rear

surface thereof, and the open rear surface may be covered by

a rear plate constituting the rear surface of the machine

room. Accordingly, in a state in which the rear plate is

removed from the machine room, the rear surface of the machine

room may be sufficiently exposed to the outside, so the

mounting and service work of the compressor and a control

valve may be facilitated.

[35] The refrigerator of the present disclosure described

above may have the following effects.

[36] Although the refrigerator of the present disclosure has

a sealed structure, the refrigerator may be configured such

that air can be introduced and discharged through the front

surface of the machine room, and thus air circulation may be

facilitated although the refrigerator is installed in narrow

and small space in a built-in method, thereby improving the

cooling performance and efficiency of the refrigerator.

[37] In addition, according to the present disclosure, the

compressor and the heat dissipation fan may be installed on

the inner side of the machine room located far away from the

inlet/outlet. That is, parts taller than other parts may be

clustered in the rear of the machine room, and remaining parts

may be installed in the front thereof, and thus the height of

the front of the machine room may be decreased, and the storage

space of the refrigerator may be increased by the decreased height of the front of the machine room. Accordingly, the space utilization rate of the refrigerator may be improved.

[38] Furthermore, according to the present disclosure, the

compressor and the condenser may be disposed in divided

spaces, respectively, and the heat dissipation fan may be

installed to be located between the compressor and the

condenser such that the compressor and the condenser are

blocked from each other. Accordingly, the impact of heat of

high-temperature generated by the compressor on the condenser

may be reduced, and the heat dissipation of the condenser may

be more effectively performed.

[39] Particularly, according to the present disclosure, the

heat dissipation fan installed between the compressor and the

condenser may function as a kind of partitioning wall, and

thus the heat of the compressor may be more effectively

prevented from being transferred to the condenser, thereby

improving the cooling efficiency of the condenser and the

energy efficiency of the refrigerator.

[40] In addition, according to the present disclosure, the

compressor and the heat dissipation fan having high heights

may be disposed side by side to overlap each other in at least

a portion thereof in a direction orthogonal to each of the

open directions of the inlet and the outlet, that is, along a

left-to-right direction in the rear of the machine room.

Accordingly, a heat dissipation fan as high as the height of the compressor may be installed, and accordingly, heat dissipation of the inside of the machine room may be more effectively performed.

[41] Particularly, according to the present disclosure, the

heat dissipation fan may face the compressor such that the

extending direction of a rotating shaft thereof is directed

to the compressor, and thus the heat dissipation fan having a

sufficiently large diameter in correspondence to the size of

the compressor may be installed in the machine room, thereby

improving heat dissipation performance of both the condenser

and the compressor.

[42] Additionally, according to the present disclosure, the

inlet of the machine room may be wider than the outlet. The

area of the inlet may be secured as large as possible so as

to more facilitate the cooling of the condenser adjacent to

the inlet, and the side of the outlet after passing through a

section in which the condenser is installed may be formed to

be relatively wide again. Accordingly, without interfering

with the installation of the compressor and the heat

dissipation fan, the heat dissipation function of the

condenser may be performed as effectively as possible.

[43] Particularly, in order to cool the condenser which is

more important in increasing the efficiency of a refrigeration

cycle, the condenser may be installed close to the inlet, and

the left-to-right width of the inlet may be larger than the left-to-right with of the condenser, so the condenser may meet a sufficiently large amount of outside air to dissipate heat.

[44] Meanwhile, according to the present disclosure, the

inside of the machine room may be divided by the separation

wall such that the introduction path through which outside

air is introduced and the discharge path through which air

passing through the inside of the machine room is discharged

are separated from each other. Accordingly, according to the

present disclosure, air may flow along a predetermined path

in the machine room, that is, through the condenser, the heat

dissipation fan, and the compressor, so air circulation may

be facilitated.

[45] In addition, according to the present disclosure, the

heat dissipation fan may be installed to be connected to the

separation wall. Accordingly, the heat dissipation fan may

be a kind of separation wall. Accordingly, air may flow to

the compressor only through the heat dissipation fan.

Particularly, air may be moved to the compressor by the heat

dissipation fan, so high-temperature heat generated by the

compressor may be more reliably prevented from affecting the

condenser.

[46] In addition, according to the present disclosure, the

inner space of the machine room defined between the inlet and

the heat dissipation fan may be blocked and thus introduced

air may flow through the condenser only toward the heat dissipation fan, but the inner space of the machine room defined between the heat dissipation fan and the outlet may be open in the bottom, side surface, or rear surface thereof and thus may communicate with the outside. Accordingly, the initial introduction of outside air may be limited to a specific direction (toward the condenser), but after the outside air dissipates heat of the condenser and the compressor, the outside air may be discharged in various directions, thereby further improving heat dissipation performance of the machine room.

[47] Furthermore, according to the present disclosure, the

condenser may comprise a main condenser installed inside the

machine room, and a side condensing tube mounted in the side

surface of the cabinet along the side surface. By assisting

the main condenser, the side condensing tube, which assists

the main condenser, and the main condenser may condense

refrigerant, thereby making the size of the main condenser

relatively small and reducing the size of a machine room

module.

[48] In addition, the side condensing tube may be mounted in

the side surface of the cabinet so as to increase temperature

of the side surface of the refrigerator, and accordingly, it

is possible to prevent the formation of dew on the outer

surface of the refrigerator due to temperature difference

between the inside and outside of the refrigerator.

[49] At the same time, an inclined surface (the flow guide

surface) may be formed on a part of the defrost water tray

adjacent to the lower end of the heat dissipation fan by

inclining downward toward the heat dissipation fan, and thus

a dead space may be prevented from being formed between the

lower end of the heat dissipation fan and the defrost water

tray, and a flow space may be sufficiently secured.

Accordingly, air introduction by the heat dissipation fan may

be efficiently performed even in the side of the lower end of

the heat dissipation fan.

[50] In addition, in the machine room, the control module as

well as devices for implementing a refrigerant cycle may be

installed, and thus space utilization rate may be increased.

In this case, the control module may be installed at a position

close to the entrance of the machine room and thus may be

removed forward from the machine room. Accordingly, for

maintenance of the control module, the rear of the

refrigerator may not be required to be opened, and the control

module may be removed from the front of the refrigerator to

be repaired or replaced, thereby improving the maintainability

of the control module.

[51] In addition, the additional inlet and the additional

outlet may be formed in the bottom plate constituting a

machine room frame, and thus even in a small refrigerator

having low height, in addition to the amount of air introduced/discharged from the front cover thereof into/out of the machine room, the amount of air introduced or discharged additionally may be secured.

[52] The reinforcement part may be provided on the bottom

plate of the refrigerator of the present disclosure by

intersecting with the separation wall dividing the space of

the machine room into an introduction space and a discharge

space. Accordingly, the bottom plate may be prevented from

sagging downward due to parts installed inside the machine

room.

[53] Furthermore, in the refrigerator of the present

disclosure, a rear leveling part provided on a rear of the

refrigerator may be adjusted by a power transmission part, so

an operator may easily level a refrigerator body even from

the front.

[54] In addition, the cover plate may cover the open upper

surface of the machine room and may not interfere with other

parts provided inside the machine room due to a bent structure

of the cover plate. Particularly, among parts of the machine

room, a part corresponding to the compressor having the

highest shape may be covered by the compressor cover formed

separately, thereby preventing the defining of unnecessary

space inside the machine room and having a dense structure.

[55] The term "comprising" as used in the specification and

claims means "consisting at least in part of." When interpreting each statement in this specification that includes the term "comprising," features other than that or those prefaced by the term may also be present. Related terms

"comprise" and "comprises" are to be interpreted in the same

manner.

[56] The reference in this specification to any prior

publication (or information derived from it), or to any matter

which is known, is not, and should not be taken as, an

acknowledgement or admission or any form of suggestion that

that prior publication (or information derived from it) or

known matter forms part of the common general knowledge in

the field of endeavour to which this specification relates.

Brief Description of Drawings

[57] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the exterior

of a refrigerator comprising a machine room module according

to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[58] FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a state in

which a door assembly is opened in the refrigerator of FIG.

1.

[59] FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the exploded

state of parts of the refrigerator comprising the machine room

module according to the present disclosure.

[60] FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the exploded

state of parts of a cabinet constituting the refrigerator comprising the machine room module according to the present disclosure.

[61] FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line I-I' of FIG.

1.

[62] FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating parts for

implementing a refrigeration cycle of the refrigerator

comprising the machine room module according to the embodiment

of the present disclosure.

[63] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating the machine

room module according to the embodiment of the present

disclosure.

[64] FIG. 8 is a top plan view illustrating the machine room

module according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[65] FIG. 9 is a side view illustrating the machine room

module according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[66] FIG. 10 is a front view illustrating the machine room

module according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[67] FIG. 11 is a bottom view illustrating the machine room

module according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[68] FIG. 12 is a perspective view illustrating only a

defrost water tray among parts constituting the machine room

module according to the present disclosure.

[69] FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating a state in

which a condenser and a heat dissipation fan are installed in the defrost water tray of the machine room module according to the present disclosure.

[70] FIG. 14 is a sectional view taken along line II-II' of

FIG. 13.

[71] FIG. 15 is a side view illustrating a state in which the

condenser is fixed to a condenser fixing part of the defrost

water tray of the machine room module according to the present

disclosure.

[72] FIG. 16 is a perspective view illustrating the exploded

state of a machine room module constituting the refrigerator

according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[73] FIG. 17 is a perspective view illustrating a state of

the refrigerator according to the embodiment of FIG. 16 when

viewed from a lower side thereof.

[74] FIG. 18 is a perspective view illustrating a bottom

plate constituting the refrigerator of the present disclosure.

[75] FIG. 19 is an enlarged view illustrated by enlarging an

A part of FIG. 17.

[76] FIG. 20 is a cross sectional view of a rear leveling

part of FIG. 19.

[77] FIG. 21 is a vertical sectional view of the rear leveling

part of FIG. 19.

[78] FIG. 22 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the

coupling structure of a machine room frame to a cover plate.

[79] FIG. 23 is a perspective view illustrating the coupled

state of the machine room frame to the cover plate when viewed

from the rear side.

[80] FIG. 24 is a rear view of the coupled state of the

machine room frame to the cover plate.

[81] FIG. 25 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a

state in which the cover plate, a compressor cover, and a main

control valve are exploded when viewed from below.

[82] FIG. 26 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a

state in which the cover plate, the compressor cover, and the

main control valve are exploded when viewed from above.

[83] FIG. 27 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the

coupling structure of the compressor cover to the main control

valve.

[84] FIG. 28 is a perspective view illustrating a state in

which an evaporator constituting the refrigerator of the

present disclosure is installed on a cooling compartment.

[85] FIG. 29 is a perspective view illustrating the

configuration of the evaporator constituting the refrigerator

of the present disclosure and a grille plate assembled with

the evaporator.

[86] FIG. 30 is a sectional view illustrating the internal

configuration of the cooling compartment comprising the

evaporator constituting the refrigerator of the present

disclosure according to the embodiment.

[87] FIG. 31 is a perspective view illustrating a state in

which a control module is removed from the refrigerator

comprising the machine room module of the present disclosure.

[88] FIG. 32 is a perspective view illustrating a state in

which the control module is installed in the machine room

module of the present disclosure.

[89] FIG. 33 is a perspective view illustrating a state in

which the control module of FIG. 32 is removed to the outside.

[90] FIG. 34 is a bottom view illustrating a state in which

a door opening device constituting the refrigerator is

installed on the cover plate according to the embodiment of

the present disclosure.

[91] FIG. 35 is a bottom view illustrated by enlarging the

configuration of the door opening device constituting the

refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present

disclosure.

[92] FIG. 36 is a perspective view illustrating a state in

which the door opening device constituting the refrigerator

is removed from the cover plate according to the embodiment

of the present disclosure.

[93] FIG. 37 is a conceptual diagram indicating the flow of

refrigerant in the refrigerator of the present disclosure.

[94] FIG. 38 is a sectional view illustrating the flow of air

inside the cooling compartment comprising the evaporator constituting the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[95] FIG. 39 is a top plan view illustrating the flow of air

inside the machine room module of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

[96] Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present disclosure

will be described in detail with reference to exemplary

drawings. In adding reference numerals to parts in each

drawing, it should be noted that the same parts are assigned

the same reference numerals as much as possible even though

they are indicated in different drawings. Furthermore, in

describing the embodiments of the present disclosure, when it

is determined that a detailed description of a related known

configuration or function interferes with an understanding of

the embodiments of the present disclosure, a detailed

description thereof will be omitted.

[97] An embodiment of a refrigerator of the present

disclosure (hereinafter, referred to as "a refrigerator") will

be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. For

reference, a built-in type refrigerator to which a machine

room module is applied has been described as an example below,

but the machine room module of the present disclosure may be

applied to various devices having a machine room module to

which a refrigeration cycle is applied such as a general refrigerator, a wine refrigerator, a kimchi refrigerator, a beverage store device, or a plant cultivation device.

[98] The refrigerator comprising a machine room assembly of

the present disclosure may largely comprise a cabinet 100,

the machine room module, beds 300a to 300d, a barrier 400,

and grille fan assemblies 500a and 500b. Among these, the

beds 300a to 300d, the barrier 400, and the grille fan

assemblies 500a and 500b may be installed in the cabinet 100,

and a door assembly 130 may be assembled with the front surface

of the cabinet 100. Additionally, the machine room module

may be assembled with the lower side of the cabinet 100.

[99] Referring to FIG. 1, the cabinet 100 may constitute the

exterior of the refrigerator, and as illustrated in the

drawing, may be configured to have a low overall height. The

refrigerator according to the embodiment is a built-in type

refrigerator installed inside an island table, etc., and has

a lower height than a general refrigerator. Accordingly, the

refrigerator may have a small internal capacity and a small

space in which each part can be installed. Accordingly, in

order to utilize a small and low installation space, parts

are required to be effectively arranged. To this end, in the

embodiment, parts comprising the compressor 610 are

effectively disposed, and a control module 700 is installed

inside the machine room module. Such a structure will be

described below.

[100] The cabinet 100 may be configured as a casing having an

open front surface, and may comprise multiple parts. The

cabinet 100 may largely comprise an outer casing 110

constituting an outer wall surface thereof, and an inner

casing 120 constituting an inner wall surface thereof. As

illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, the front surface of the cabinet

100 may be open, and may be selectively covered by the door

assembly 130. When the door assembly 130 is opened, a storage

space 121 may be open forward.

[101] In FIG. 4, parts constituting the cabinet 100 are

illustrated by being exploded. As illustrated in the drawing,

the outer casing 110 may have an approximately hexahedral

shape open forward, rearward, and downward, and the inner

casing 120 may be installed inside the outer casing 110 to be

spaced apart from the outer casing 110. Additionally, a back

plate 115 may be assembled with the rear surface of the outer

casing 110, a front frame 118 may be assembled with the front

surface of the outer casing 110, and a cover plate 250 may be

assembled with the lower surface of the outer casing 110.

[102] While each of the back plate 115, the front frame 118,

and the cover plate 250 is assembled with the outer casing

110 a state in which the inner casing 120 is located inside

the outer casing 110, a foam insulation material (not shown)

may be filled in space between the inner casing 120 and the

outer casing 110. In this case, a filling hole 116 may be formed through the back plate 115, and the foam insulation material may be injected into the space through the filling hole 116.

[103] Accordingly, when the foam insulation material is filled

in the space between the outer casing 110 and the inner casing

120, a portion of a wire harness (not shown) to be described

below, a side condensing tube L4 and L6 (see FIG. 6), and a

front condensing tube L8 may be mounted in a foam layer.

Accordingly, a portion of the wire harness and a side

condenser may be fixed naturally in the process of filling

the foam insulation material.

[104] The storage space 121 may be present in the cabinet 100.

The storage space 121 is space in which food is stored, and

the storage space 121 may be divided into multiple

compartments by the beds 300a to 300d. A guide rail 122 may

be provided on the inner wall surface of the storage space

121, and the beds 300a to 300d may be configured to move

forward/rearward under the guidance of the guide rail 122 such

that the beds can be taken out from or taken in the storage

space 121 in a drawer type.

[105] Referring to FIG. 5, the multiple beds 300 may be

provided in an upper storage space 121b and a lower storage

space 121a partitioned from each other. Each of the beds 300

may be configured to transversely divide the inside of the

storage space 121, and may provide a surface on which food can be seated. The bed 300 may be formed of multiple sticks or rods, and thus may have multiple open spaces defined such that cold air can pass through the spaces in a vertical direction. Additionally, the bed 300 may be configured to seat a bottle or a can thereon.

[106] The bed 300 may comprise multiple beds provided in the

upper storage space 121b and the lower storage space 121a,

and the multiple beds may be disposed up and down.

Furthermore, the bed 300 may be configured to be withdrawn

from the inside of the storage space 121. To this end, the

guide rail 122 may be provided on each of the opposite side

surfaces of the inner casing 120. The guide rail 122 may be

connected to each of the opposite side surfaces of the bed

300 and may be mounted such that the bed 300 can be withdrawn.

[107] In addition, the upper grille fan assembly 500b and the

lower grille fan assembly 500a may be provided in the upper

storage space 121b and the lower storage space 121a,

respectively, so as to cover an upper evaporator 630b and a

lower evaporator 630a, respectively.

[108] The evaporator 630a or 630b may be received into the

recessed rear surface of the inner casing 120, and may

comprise the upper evaporator 630b and the lower evaporator

630a. The upper evaporator 630b and the lower evaporator 630a

may be provided in the upper storage space 121b and the lower

storage space 121a, respectively.

[109] An avoidance part 123 may be provided on the bottom

surface of the storage space 121. The avoidance part 123 is

a part protruding upward from the bottom surface of the

storage space 121. The avoidance part 123 is intended to

avoid interference with the compressor 610 of the machine room

module to be described below. Due to the avoidance part 123,

a portion of the bottom of the storage space 121 may have a

stepped space.

[110] The door assembly 130 may be provided on the front

surface of the cabinet 100. Such a door assembly 130 is

intended to open and close the storage space 121 of the cabinet

100. In the embodiment, the door assembly 130 may be

configured to be opened and closed by rotating. More

precisely, the door assembly 130 may be in close contact with

the front frame 118 of the cabinet 100 so as to cover the

storage space 121, or may be moved away from the front frame

118 by rotating so as to open the storage space 121.

[111] That is, due to the door assembly 130 described above,

the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present

disclosure may have the sealed storage space 121.

Particularly, the sealed storage space 121 may store food

while maintaining a predetermined temperature without loss of

cold air due to the grille fan assemblies 500a and 500b and

an air conditioning module 600. In the embodiment, at least

a portion of the door assembly 130 may be made to have the structure of a transparent see-through window 142 such that the storage space 121 can be checked from the outside.

[112] In this case, the see-through window 142 is preferably

made of a material through which the inside of the storage

space can be seen, and for example, may be formed of glass.

When the see-through window 142 is formed of glass, a

protective film (not shown) may be attached to the glass. In

this case, the protective film is preferably made of a light

blocking (partially blocking) film which minimizes

penetrating of light in the storage space 121 into a room.

Of course, instead of the protective fi, the see-through

window 142 may be formed to have a dark color and may be

configured to minimize light penetration into the room.

[113] Next, the machine room module will be described. A

machine room frame 200 constituting the frame of the machine

room module is provided to constitute the lower structure of

the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present

disclosure. The air conditioning module 600 to be described

below may be installed in the machine room frame 200, and the

cabinet 100 described above may be coupled to the upper part

of the machine room frame 200.

[114] As illustrated in FIG. 1, such a machine room frame 200

may be installed on the lower side of the outer casing 110,

and as illustrated in FIG. 3, may have the shape of an

approximately rectangular frame. In the embodiment, the machine room frame 200 may be open in an upper part thereof and may have a machine room 201 therein, and at least a portion of the air conditioning module 600 may be installed therein.

Here, the machine room 201 is space separated from the storage

space 121, and the machine room frame 200 may be a portion of

the cabinet 100, or may be assembled with the cabinet 100.

[115] Referring to FIG. 7, the machine room frame 200 may

comprise a bottom plate 211 constituting a bottom thereof, a

side plate 212 constituting each of opposite side wall

surfaces thereof, and a rear plate 213 constituting a rear

surface thereof. Furthermore, the cover plate 250 (see FIG.

3) may be coupled to the upper part of the machine room frame

200 so as to cover the machine room 201 provided inside the

machine room frame. In the embodiment, the cover plate 250

may be assembled with the lower side of the cabinet 100 and

thus may be considered as a portion of the cabinet 100.

However, the cover plate 250 may constitute the upper part of

the machine room frame 200 and thus may be considered as a

portion of the machine room frame 200.

[116] Heat dissipation holes 211' and 214 may be formed in the

machine room frame 200. The heat dissipation holes 211' and

214 are parts, except for a front cover 220 of the front

surface of the machine room frame to be described below, which

connect the inner space of the machine room frame 200 with

the outside. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the heat dissipation hole 214 may be formed in the rear plate 213, and as illustrated in FIG. 11 which is a bottom view, the heat dissipation hole 211' may be formed even in the bottom plate

211. Additionally, although not shown, the heat dissipation

hole may be formed in the side plate 212.

[117] In this case, there is no heat dissipation hole in the

inner space (an introduction space I) of the machine room 201

defined between the inlet 225a and a heat dissipation fan 611

to be described below. That is, the introduction space I

defined between the inlet 225a and the heat dissipation fan

611 is blocked by the bottom plate 211, side plate 212, and

rear plate 213 of the machine room frame 200.

[118] Unlike this, in the inner space (a discharge space 0)

of the machine room 201 defined between the heat dissipation

fan 611 and an outlet 225b, at least a portion of the bottom

plate 211, the side plate 212, and the rear plate 213 of the

discharge space may be open through the heat dissipation holes

211' and 214 to the outside, so the discharge space may

communicate with the outside. Referring to FIG. 11, it can

be seen that the heat dissipation hole is formed in the bottom

plate 211, and there is no heat dissipation hole around the

introduction space I of the inlet of the front surface of the

machine room frame 200, but the heat dissipation holes 211'

and 214 are present around the discharge space 0.

[119] According to such a structure, the introduction space I

which is the inner space of the machine room 201 defined

between the inlet 225a and the heat dissipation fan 611 may

be blocked, and thus introduced outside air may be moved

through a main condenser 620 only to the heat dissipation fan

611, but in the discharge space 0 of the machine room 201

defined between the heat dissipation fan 611 and the outlet

225b, a portion of the bottom, the side surface, and rear

surface thereof may be open through the heat dissipation holes

211' and 214 to the outside, so the discharge space 0 may be

connected to the outside. Accordingly, initial introduction

of outside air is limited to a specific direction, that is,

to the main condenser 620, but after the outside air

dissipates heat of the main condenser 620 and the compressor

610, the outside air may be discharged in various directions,

so heat dissipation performance of the machine room may be

increased.

[120] Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, in the embodiment, the inlet

225a may be wider than the outlet 225b. However, the

introduction space I of the machine room 201 connected to the

inlet 225a may be defined to have a narrow width by a

separation wall 230 installed to partition the machine room

201 at an area after an area in which the main condenser 620

is installed.

[121] That is, the inlet 225a may be widened to increase the

amount of initially introduced air, and accordingly, the main

condenser 620 may be effectively cooled. In addition, an area

of the introduction space I after an area for cooling the main

condenser 620 may be decreased such that remaining space can

be used as space for installing the compressor 610, a heat

dissipation fan 611, and the control module 700.

[122] Referring to FIG. 10, a protection plate 213', a portion

of which protrudes more upward, may be provided on the rear

plate 213. The protection plate 213' may be formed to be

higher than the compressor 610 and may function to protect

the compressor 610.

[123] Meanwhile, the machine room frame 200 and the inner

casing 120 may be disposed to be spaced apart from each other,

and the side plates 212 and the rear plate 213 of the machine

room frame 200 may be configured to be connected to the

opposite side surfaces and rear surface of the outer casing

110, respectively.

[124] The machine room 201 (see FIG. 7) may be present in the

machine room frame 200. The machine room 201 is an empty

space which is a kind of installation space, and may have a

portion of a device constituting the air conditioning module

600 installed therein. The machine room 201 is a separate

space independent of the storage space 121 described above, and provides space in which the air conditioning module 600 is installed and operates.

[125] Although not shown, the inner casing 120 and the machine

room frame 200 may be configured as one part. In this case,

a separate partitioning wall may be provided between the

storage space 121 and the machine room 201 such that the

storage space 121 and the machine room 201 can be separated

from each other.

[126] The front cover 220 may be provided on the open front

surface of the machine room frame 200 which is the front of

the machine room 201. The front cover 220 may function to

guide the flow of air introduced into the machine room 201

from the outside thereof or air discharged to the outside of

the machine room 201 from the inside thereof, and to cover

the open front surface of the machine room 201. Accordingly,

the front cover 220 may be considered as a front cover of the

machine room 201.

[127] In addition, the inlet 225a and the outlet 225b may be

formed in the front cover 220 described above. In this case,

the inlet 225a and the outlet 225b may be provided at positions

separated from each other by the separation wall 230 to be

described later. In the embodiment of the present disclosure,

when viewed from the front side, the inlet 225a is provided

at the left side and the outlet 225b is provided at the right,

but the inlet 225a may be provided at the right side and the outlet 225b may be provided at the left side. For reference, referring to FIG. 6 in which the front cover 220 is removed from the machine room frame 200, the inlet of the introduction space I and the outlet of the discharge space 0 are exposed to the entrance of the front surface of the machine room frame

200.

[128] Referring to FIG. 8, the main condenser 620 and a defrost

water tray 240 are installed in the introduction space I of

the machine room frame 200, and the compressor 610 and the

control module 700 are installed in the discharge space 0.

Additionally, the heat dissipation fan 611 is present between

the introduction space I and the discharge space 0. The heat

dissipation fan 611 may function as a kind of partitioning

wall, and more precisely, may divide the inner space of the

machine room 201, together with the separation wall 230.

[129] Looking at the separation wall 230, the separation wall

230 which divides the machine room 201 into two spaces is

provided in the machine room frame 200. That is, a flow path

through which air is introduced into the machine room 201 and

a flow path through which air is discharged may be separated

from each other by the separation wall 230. The flow path

through which air is introduced into the machine room 201 may

start from the inlet 225a of the front cover 220, and the flow

path through which air is discharged from the inside of the machine room 201 may end at the outlet 225b of the front cover

220.

[130] In addition, the left and right spaces of the inside of

the machine room 201 separated from each other by the

separation wall 230 may be connected to each other at the rear

of the machine room 201, that is, at a position close to the

rear plate 213. That is, the rear end portion of the

separation wall 230 may be configured to be spaced apart from

the rear plate 213 so as not to reach the rear plate 213, so

a part at which the left and right spaces are connected to

each other may be generated. Of course, although not shown,

the rear end portion of the separation wall 230 may be in

contact with the rear plate 213, and may have an opening (not

shown) formed therein such that the inner opposite sides of

the machine room 201 communicate with each other.

[131] In addition, the rear end portion of the separation wall

230 may be spaced apart from the rear plate 213 so as not to

reach the rear plate 213, and the heat dissipation fan 611

may be installed in the part at which the left and right

spaces are connected to each other, so the heat dissipation

fan 611 may be a portion of a kind of separation wall 230.

Of course, the heat dissipation fan 611 may be open, and thus

the introduction space I and the discharge space 0 may be

connected to each other relative to the heat dissipation fan

611, but when the heat dissipation fan 611 operates, air may flow from the introduction space I to the discharge space 0, so it is difficult that air flows in a direction opposite to the direction of the air flow. Accordingly, the heat of the compressor 610 may be effectively prevented from being transmitted to the main condenser 620, so the cooling efficiency of the main condenser 620 and the operating efficiency of the refrigerator may be increased.

[132] The separation wall 230 may be formed in a straight

line, but may be formed to have an inclined or bent structure.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the separation

wall 230 is configured to have a bent structure. That is, a

portion of the separation wall 230 may be formed to be bent,

so space in which the main condenser 620 to be described later

is installed may be secured as much as possible.

[133] The separation wall 230 may comprise a first wall 231

extending toward the inside of the machine room 201 between

the inlet 225a and the outlet 225b, and a second wall 232

extending from the first wall 231 in an inclined direction.

In FIGS. 6 to 8, although the first wall 231 is not seen due

to the control module 700, the second wall 232 is illustrated.

In FIG. 9, the first wall 231 is illustrated, and as

illustrated in FIG. 9, the main condenser 620 is disposed in

space divided by the first wall 231.

[134] Referring to FIG. 11 which is the bottom view of the

machine room frame 200, the installation positions of the first wall 231, the second wall 232 extending from the first wall 231 in an inclining direction, and the heat dissipation fan 611 connected to the second wall 232 can be seen. As illustrated in the drawing, the first wall 231, the second wall 232, and the heat dissipation fan 611 may be continuously connected to each other, and may constitute one separation wall. Of course, the second wall 232 and the heat dissipation fan 611 may have a predetermined interval therebetween, but may be disposed very close to each other, and thus the escaping of air to the interval therebetween may be minimized.

[135] Referring to FIG. 9, the height H3 of the first wall 231

may be greater than or equal to the height of the main

condenser 620. Additionally, the second wall 232 may be

connected from an end of the first wall 231 to an end of the

heat dissipation fan 611 to be described below. Accordingly,

the second wall 232 may prevent introduced air from flowing

directly toward the compressor 610 without passing through

the heat dissipation fan 611. Such first wall 231 and second

wall 232 may be configured as one part or as separate parts.

[136] The defrost water tray 240 may be provided in the machine

room 201 of the machine room frame 200. In this case, the

defrost water tray 240 described above may be located on the

bottom of a side to which air is introduced through the inlet

225a in the machine room 201, and may function to collect

defrost water falling down from the evaporator 630 described later and to fix the main condenser 620 in the machine room

201.

[137] Referring to FIG. 13, the main condenser 620 may be

installed on the front of the defrost water tray 240 directed

toward the inlet 225a, and an evaporation tube L2 may be

installed at the bottom surface 241' of the defrost water tray

240. The evaporation tube L2 may be disposed close to the

bottom surface 241' of the defrost water tray 240, and thus

may function to evaporate defrost water collected in the

defrost water tray 240. The evaporation tube L2 will be

described again below.

[138] In addition, the heat dissipation fan 611 may be

disposed at one side of the defrost water tray 240. The heat

dissipation fan 611 may not installed inside the defrost water

tray 240, but may be installed at the rear of the defrost

water tray 240 to be adjacent to the defrost water tray 240.

The heat dissipation fan 611 may introduce air through the

inlet 225a into the machine room 201, and may discharge air

passing through the condenser 620 and the compressor 610 to

the outlet of the front surface of the machine room, that is,

the outlet 225b. The installation structure of the defrost

water tray 240 and the heat dissipation fan 611 will be

described again below.

[139] Referring to FIG. 12, the frame of the defrost water

tray 240 may be constituted by a tray body 241 having the shape of an approximately rectangular frame, and a defrost water space Sa and Sb may be defined inside tray body 241 by a dividing fence 242 provided along the edge of the tray body

241. The dividing fence 242 may protrude by a predetermined

length from the bottom surface 241' of the tray body 241, and

defrost water generated and fallen from the evaporator 630

may be collected in the defrost water space Sa and Sb.

[140] The defrost water space Sa and Sb may have a width

narrowing gradually rearward, and an inclined fence 242' may

be provided at one side of the dividing fence 242 so as to

decrease the width of the defrost water space Sa and Sb. The

inclined fence 242' may correspond to the second wall 232

extending in an inclined direction in the separation wall 230

described above. The second wall 232 may be located to be

adjacent to the inclined fence 242'. Accordingly, the

inclined fence 242' may be considered to constitute a part of

the separation wall, together with the second wall 232.

[141] Accordingly, the defrost water space Sa and Sb may be

decreased in width, and thus may be divided into a first

defrost water space Sa having a relatively wide width and a

second defrost water space Sb having a relatively narrow

width. Since the heat dissipation fan 611 is installed beside

the second defrost water space Sb, it may be considered that

the second defrost water space Sb is configured to be

relatively narrow so as to provide the installation space of the heat dissipation fan 611. However, the first defrost water space Sa may be wide by having the same width as the width of a condenser seating plate 246 on which the main condenser 620 is seated, so the defrost water space Sa and Sb may have a sufficiently large storage capacity.

[142] Meanwhile, the dividing fence 242 may have a fixing clip

244. The fixing clip 244 may protrude from the dividing fence

242 toward the defrost water space Sa and Sb, and may have

the shape of elastic tongs. The fixing clip 244 may be a part

which holds and fixes a portion of a defrost water pipe 590

(see FIG. 30) transmitting defrost water generated from the

evaporator 630. In the embodiment, the fixing clip 244 may

comprise two fixing clips provided at a side of the second

defrost water space Sb, and the position and number thereof

may change. In the embodiment, the fixing clip 244 may be

provided at the side of the second defrost water space Sb

relatively close to the evaporator 630.

[143] The condenser seating plate 246 may be provided at one

side of the tray body 241. The condenser seating plate 246

may be formed to have the shape of a thin plate, and may

extend further from the tray body 241 toward the inlet 225a.

The condenser seating plate 246 may not have the dividing

fence 242 unlike the tray body 241 and may be configured to

have the same height as the height of the bottom surface 241'

of the tray body 241.

[144] A flow inclined surface 245' may be formed between the

tray body 241 and the condenser seating plate 246 by inclining

downward toward the condenser seating plate 246. The flow

inclined surface 245' may prevent air introduced into the

inlet 225a from being prevented from naturally flowing by

being blocked by the dividing fence 242. To this end, the

flow inclined surface 245' may be formed on the front surface

of the front surface of the dividing fence 242 directed toward

the condenser seating plate 246 in the dividing fence 242.

[145] The main condenser 620 may be installed on the condenser

seating plate 246. A condenser fixing part 247 may protrude

on the condenser seating plate 246 and may hold and fix a

portion of the side surface of the main condenser 620. The

condenser fixing part 247 may comprise a fixing body

protruding from the condenser seating plate 246, and a holding

part 248 protruding from the fixing body toward the main

condenser 620. The condenser fixing part 247 may comprise a

pair of condenser fixing parts spaced apart at a predetermined

interval from each other, and the main condenser 620 may be

seated between the pair of condenser fixing parts 247.

[146] Referring to FIG. 15, the main condenser 620 can be seen

to be disposed between the condenser fixing parts 247. In

the embodiment, a distance between the pair of condenser

fixing parts 247 may correspond to the width of the main

condenser 620. Accordingly, the holding part 248 may be in close contact with the side surface of the main condenser 620, and may not deform the side surface of the main condenser 620 while the main condenser 620 is fitted between the pair of condenser fixing parts 247. Particularly, in the embodiment, the surface of the holding part 248 is covered with an elastic forming part so as to prevent the surface of the main condenser

620 from being scratched.

[147] Accordingly, the main condenser 620 may be connected

directly to the defrost water tray 240 by the condenser fixing

parts 247 without a separate fastener. Accordingly, parts or

soldering processes for fixing the main condenser 620 may be

omitted, and the condenser fixing parts 247 may securely fix

the side surfaces of the main condenser 620. Particularly,

although it is difficult to install the main condenser 620

inside the machine room 201 which is narrow, in the

embodiment, the main condenser 620 may be fixed only by

seating the main condenser 620 on the condenser seating plate

246.

[148] Meanwhile, the defrost water tray 240 may have a flow

guide surface 245. The flow guide surface 245 may be formed

by inclining at least a portion of the dividing fence 242

downward toward the lower end of the heat dissipation fan 611.

Referring to FIGS. 12 and 13, the dividing fence 242 of the

defrost water tray 240 may protrude up to a position higher

than the lower end of the heat dissipation fan 611, and the heat dissipation fan 611 may be located very close to the dividing fence 242, and thus a dead space may be defined in front of the lower end of the heat dissipation fan 611, so the flow of air may not be facilitated. However, the flow guide surface 245 may secure a flow space Sc between the lower end of the heat dissipation fan 611 and the defrost water tray

240 such that air introduction to the heat dissipation fan

611 can be more facilitated.

[149] Referring to FIG. 14, the flow of air on the flow guide

surface 245 can be seen. The flow guide surface 245 may guide

the natural flow of introduced air to the heat dissipation

fan 611 by using a downward inclined surface. The end part

of such a flow guide surface 245 may extend up to the lower

end of the heat dissipation fan 611, and the flow guide surface

245 may be formed in a section of the dividing fence 242

facing the heat dissipation fan 611.

[150] Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 3, the rear portion of the

cover plate 250 constituting the upper surface of the machine

room frame 200 may protrude upward from other portions of the

cover plate, and the rear portion of the inside of the machine

room 201 may be configured to be higher than other portions

thereof. That is, in consideration of the protruding heights

of the heat dissipation fan 611 and the compressor 610

installed in the machine room 201, the rear portion of the

cover plate may be configured to be higher than the other portions thereof. Particularly, in the embodiment, since the compressor 610 has the highest height, a compressor cover 280 may be provided in the cover plate 250 in correspondence to the height of the compressor 610.

[151] The cover plate 250 may be formed of a metal material

having a plate shape and may be bent to form an overall shape

thereof. In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the cover

plate 250 may comprise a first cover part 251 and a second

cover part 252. In addition, the cover plate 250 may further

comprise a compressor cover 280.

[152] The first cover part 251 may be formed on the front half

part of the cover plate 250. In addition, the first cover

part 251 may constitute the lowest part of the cover plate

250, and may be formed to have a preset height Hi (see FIG.

9). The first cover part 251 may be configured to have height

Hi corresponding to the height Hi of each of the condenser

620 and the separation wall 230. The height of first cover

part 251 may correspond to the height of each of the side

plates 212. That is, the lower surface of the first cover

part 251 may be in contact with the upper surface of the

condenser 620, the upper end of the separation wall, and the

upper end of the side plate 212, and may constitute the front

half part of the upper surface of the machine room 201.

[153] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the first cover part 251 may

comprise the front half part of the upper surface of the machine room 201 and may further comprise a portion of the rear half part of the upper surface of the machine room 201.

That is, the first cover part 251 may be formed by extending

from the front end of the machine room 201 to the front end

of the heat dissipation fan 611.

[154] In addition, an auto door installation part 253 in which

the door opening device 900 is installed may be provided on

the front end of the first cover part 251. The auto door

installation part 253 may be provided on the front side of

the first cover part toward the front of the cover plate 250,

that is, the door assembly 130, and may be formed by protruding

upward. In addition, the lower surface of the auto door

installation part 253 may be open, and the center portion of

the cover plate 250 corresponding to the auto door

installation part 253 may be formed by being cut. In

addition, a harness cover 257 of which the harness of the

control module 700 is moved in and out may be provided on a

side of the first cover part 251 corresponding to the control

module 700.

[155] For reference, in FIG. 2, a push rod 950 constituting a

door opening device 900 is illustrated by protruding

therefrom. The push rod 950 may protrude from the door

opening device 900 and may push a contact part B provided on

the inner surface of the door assembly 130.

[156] Meanwhile, a vertical connection part 254 may be formed

on the rear end of the first cover part 251 by extending

vertically, and the upper end of the vertical connection part

254 may comprise the second cover part 252 extending rearward.

[157] The vertical connection part 254 may be in contact with

the front end of the heat dissipation fan 611, and may extend

from a first side end of the cover plate 250 to a second side

end thereof. In addition, the height H2 of the vertical

connection part 254 may correspond to the height of the heat

dissipation fan 611. In addition, the second cover part 252

extending rearward from the vertical connection part 254 may

also be formed to have the same height H2 as the height of

the vertical connection part 254.

[158] That is, the second cover part 252 may be configured to

have the height H2 corresponding to the upper end of the heat

dissipation fan 611, and may protrude upward and have a

stepped shape, compared to the first cover part 251.

[159] In this case, the side plate 212 constituting the side

surface of the machine room 201, and an outer plate 212a

coupled to the side plate 212 and constituting the outermost

side surface of the machine room 201 may be configured to have

the same heights from the front of the machine room 201 to a

rear thereof. In contrast, the second cover part 252 may be

configured to be higher than the side plate 212 or the outer

plate 212a.

[160] In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the side surface

of the outer casing 110 constituting the cabinet 100, and the

surface of the outer plate 212a disposed on the outer side of

the side surface of the machine room 201 may constitute a same

plane continuous to each other. Through this, a unified

beauty of the refrigerator may be provided.

[161] Meanwhile, in the machine room 201, the compressor 610

may protrude upward from the discharge space 0, and may have

a preset height H2. In this case, the compressor 610 may be

configured to have height H2 higher than the height H3 of the

second cover part 252 and thus may protrude more upward than

the surface of the second cover part 252.

[162] In this case, one side of the cover plate 250 at which

the compressor 610 is disposed may have an opening, and the

compressor cover 280 for covering the protruding upper surface

of the compressor 610 may be formed on the opening.

[163] The compressor cover 280 may be configured to

effectively receive the upper end of the compressor having a

three-dimensional shape. That is, the compressor cover 280

may be recessed such that a compressor receiving space 281

for receiving the upper end of the compressor 610 is formed

inside the compressor cover, and the internal upper surface

of the compressor receiving space may have a preset height

H4.

[164] Accordingly, in the second cover part 252, the

compressor cover 280 may be provided at a position

corresponding to the upper surface of the compressor 610. In

addition, the compressor cover 280 may protrude more upward

from the second cover part 252.

[165] The cover plate 250 may be provided with the harness

cover 257. The harness cover 257 is a part in which the wire

harness extending from the control module 700 to be described

below is mounted, and may function to guide the extending

direction of the wire harness. Specifically, the harness

cover 257 may guide the wire harness extending upward from

the control module 700 located thereunder to the rear side,

that is, toward the rear plate 213.

[166] Meanwhile, the bottom plate constituting the bottom of

the machine room of the refrigerator of the present disclosure

will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 16 to 21

according to the present disclosure. For reference, the same

reference numerals will be given to the same parts as in the

previous embodiment and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[167] As illustrated in FIG. 16, unlike the previous

embodiment, the front cover 220 may be configured as a grille

part 225 which is one part. The grille part 225 may comprise

multiple openings passing through the front cover 220, and

may allow air to be introduced into the machine room 201 and allow the internal air of the machine room 201 to be discharged to the outside.

[168] In addition, the front cover 220 may comprise an

introduction part 220a and a discharge part 220b formed

therein. In this case, the introduction part 220a may be

wider than the discharge part 220b. However, after an area

in which the condenser 620 is installed, the introduction

space I of the machine room 201 connected to the introduction

part 220a may be configured to have a width decreased by the

separation wall 230 installed to partition the machine room

201.

[169] The bottom plate 211 may constitute the bottom surface

of the machine room 201. The rear end of the bottom plate

211 and the rear surface of the cover plate 250 may be spaced

apart from each other, and the rear surface of the machine

room 201 may be open. In addition, the rear surface of the

machine room 201 may be covered by the rear plate 213.

[170] The front end of the bottom plate 211 and the front

surface of the cover plate 250 may be spaced apart from each

other, and the front surface of the machine room 201 may be

open. In addition, the front surface of the machine room 201

may be covered by the front cover 220.

[171] In the introduction space I, the bottom plate 211 may

comprise an additional inlet 22 vertically formed

therethrough. That is, together with the amount of air introduced through the grille part 225 provided in the front cover 220, the amount of air introduced through the additional inlet 22 into the machine room 201 may be secured additionally.

[172] The additional inlet 22 may be located at the front end

of the introduction space I, that is, in front of the condenser

620. That is, the front cover may be located in front of the

additional inlet 22, and the condenser 620 may be located

behind the additional inlet 22.

[173] The additional inlet 22 may extend horizontally in the

introduction space I relative to the front cover 220 and may

be configured to have a shape of a longitudinal hole, and may

comprise a plurality of additional inlets formed by being

spaced apart from each other in a front-to-rear direction.

[174] The bottom plate 211 may comprise an additional outlet

20a or 20b formed vertically therethrough in the discharge

space 0. This is intended to secure an additional discharge

area in correspondence to the amount of air additionally

secured through the additional inlet 22.

[175] The additional outlet 20a or 20b may comprise a

plurality of additional outlets formed vertically through one

side of the bottom plate 211. That is, in addition to the

grille part 225 provided in the front cover, even through the

additional outlets 20a and 20b, the internal air of the

machine room 201 may be discharged to the outside, and thus a discharge area in which the internal air of the machine room

201 can be discharged to the outside may be additionally

secured.

[176] The additional outlet 20a or 20b may comprise a

plurality of through holes formed vertically, and the through

holes may be configured to be arranged in lines within a

predetermined area. The additional outlets 20a and 20b may be

provided in the rear end of the bottom plate 211. That is,

the additional outlets 20a and 20b may be located at a side

behind the additional inlet 22.

[177] The additional outlet 20a or 20b may comprise a first

outlet 20a provided at a position corresponding to a position

at which the compressor 610 is disposed. The first outlet

20a may be located under the compressor such that the internal

air of the discharge space 0 is efficiently discharged to the

outside.

[178] In addition, the additional outlet 20a or 20b may

further comprise a second outlet 20b located in front of the

first outlet 20a and formed vertically through the bottom

plate. The second outlet 20b may be formed at the rear end

part of the control module 700. Accordingly, the control

module 700 may be cooled by air flowing along the discharge

space 0, and may be rapidly discharged through the second

outlet 20b.

[179] The second outlet 20b may be formed in front of the

first outlet 20a. In addition, the second outlet 20b may be

located behind a first reinforcement part 24a and a third

reinforcement part 24c to be descried later and may be located

in front of a second reinforcement part 24b.

[180] The bottom plate 211 may comprise a reinforcement part

24 formed by crossing the introduction space I and the

discharge space 0 so as to reinforce the rigidity of the

bottom plate 211. For example, the reinforcement part 24 may

be formed by extending from a first end of the bottom plate

211 to a second end of the bottom plate 211. That is, the

reinforcement part 24 may extend in a horizontal direction

relative to the front cover 220 and may allow the bottom plate

211 to securely support weights of the condenser 620 provided

in the introduction space I and the compressor 610 provided

in the discharge space 0.

[181] The machine room 201 is configured such that the

condenser 620 is provided in the front side of the

introduction space I, and the compressor 610 is provided in

the rear side of the discharge space 0, so weight applied to

the bottom plate 211 may not evenly be distributed, but be

unavoidably biased.

[182] That is, the compressor 610 provided in an area in which

the additional outlet 20a or 20b is formed is greater in

weight than other parts installed in the machine room 201 such as the condenser 620 and the defrost water tray 240, and thus weight may be continuously biased to the bottom plate 211 of the side of the discharge space 0 in which the compressor 610 is located, so the bottom plate 211 may be depressed to one side. When the compressor and the condenser 620 are installed in the machine room 201, the reinforcement part may allow the bottom plate 211 to more securely support the associated parts.

[183] The reinforcement part 24 may be depressed from an upper

side to a lower side relative to the bottom plate 211, and

may comprise a plurality of reinforcement parts formed by

being spaced apart from each other. That is, the

reinforcement part 24 may have a depressed structure formed

on the upper surface of the bottom plate 211 and may not

interfere with the compressor 610 and the condenser 620

installed horizontally.

[184] Furthermore, for example, the reinforcement part 24 may

comprise the first reinforcement part 24a formed at the side

of the rear end part of the condenser 620 or behind the

condenser. That is, the first reinforcement part 24a may be

formed behind the additional inlet 22 to be spaced apart

therefrom. Additionally, the first reinforcement part 24a

may be formed between the additional inlet 22 and the second

outlet 20b.

[185] In addition, the reinforcement part 24 may comprise the

second reinforcement part 24b formed at the side of the front

end part of the compressor 610 or in front of the compressor

610. That is, the second reinforcement part 24b may be formed

between the first outlet 20a and the second outlet 20b.

[186] The first reinforcement part 24a and the second

reinforcement part 24b may be formed in the bottom plate 211

by being spaced apart from the additional inlet 22 or the

first and second outlets 20a and 20b in a front-to-rear

direction so as not to interfere therewith.

[187] Furthermore, the reinforcement part 24 may comprise the

third reinforcement part 24c formed between the first

reinforcement part 24a and the first outlet 20a. The third

reinforcement part 24c may be formed between the first

reinforcement part 24a and the second reinforcement part 24b.

That is, the third reinforcement part may be formed between

the first reinforcement part 24a and the second outlet 20b.

[188] The reinforcement part may allow the bottom plate 211

to more securely support parts installed in the machine room

201.

[189] A side connection part 25 may be formed on each of the

opposite sides of the bottom plate 211 by bending upward and

extending to be coupled to a side part 1251 to be described

later. The side connection part 25 may comprise a plurality

of through holes 25a through which fastening members pass.

[190] A first side surface of the side part 1251 may be coupled

to the bottom plate 211, and a second side surface thereof

may be connected to the side plate 212. That is, the side

end of the bottom plate 211 may be installed to be spaced

apart from the side surface of the side plate 212, and the

side part 1251 may be installed between the bottom plate 211

and the side plate 212.

[191] The side part 1251 may be formed by bending multiple

times and extending along the side end of the bottom plate

211.

[192] The side part 1251 may be formed by extending along the

side end of the bottom plate 211, and may comprise a first

part 1251a coupled to the bottom plate 211, a second part

1251b formed by bending and extending from the first part

1251a to the outside of the machine room 201, and a third part

1251c bending and extending upward from the second part 1251b

and coupled to the side plate 212.

[193] The first part 1251a may comprise a plurality of through

holes through which fastening members pass such that the first

part can be connected to the bottom plate 211.

[194] The second part 1251b may be formed by bending and

extending to one side from the first part 1251a, and the lower

part of the second part 1251b may be connected to a support

module 1900 to be described later.

[195] In addition, the center portion of the second part 1251b

may comprise a side discharge hole 26 through which the

internal air of the machine room 201 can be discharged to the

outside.

[196] It is possible to increase an area in which air can be

discharged to the outside through the side discharge hole 26

in addition to the additional outlet 20a or 20b provided in

the bottom plate 211. Since the introduction part 220a is

formed to be wider than the discharge part 220b in the front

cover 220, the introduction space I may be formed to be

relatively large at the front part, and thus the amount of

air introduced through the front cover 220 may be larger than

the amount of discharged air. Accordingly, the side discharge

hole 26 may be provided to increase the amount of discharged

air.

[197] The side discharge hole 26 may be formed vertically

through the second part 1251b in a left-to-right direction

thereof. Additionally, the side discharge hole 26 may

comprise a plurality of side discharge holes formed by being

spaced apart from each other in a front-to-rear direction of

the second part 1251b.

[198] The side discharge hole 26 may be formed in the side

part 1251 disposed at a position adjacent to the discharge

space of the bottom plate 211.

[199] That is, as illustrated in FIG. 17, the side part 1251

may comprise a first side part 1253 provided at a position

adjacent to the discharge space 0 in the opposite side ends

of the bottom plate 211, and a second side part 1252 provided

at a position adjacent to the introduction space I. Here,

the side discharge hole 26 is preferably provided only in the

first side part 1253. This is intended such that air of the

discharge space 0 is efficiently discharged to the outside

and air of the introduction space I is only introduced into

the machine room 201.

[200] The third part 1251c may be formed by bending and

extending upward from a side end of the second part 1251b.

The third part 1251c may be coupled to the side plate 212 by

fastening members passing through the third part.

[201] When the side part 1251 is coupled to the bottom plate

211 and the side plate 212, the third part 1251c may be in

contact with the side plate 212.

[202] In addition, the side part 1251 may further comprise a

fourth part 1251d formed by bending and extending from the

third part 1251c to the inside of the machine room 201. The

fourth part 1251d may be formed to be parallel to the side

end of the bottom plate 211. The fourth part 1251d may be

coupled to the cover plate 250.

[203] Hereinafter, the compressor cover 280 will be described

in more detail with reference to FIGS. 22 to 27. As illustrated in the drawings, the second cover part 252 of the cover plate 250 may be provided with the compressor cover 280.

In addition, the compressor cover 280 may secure space in

which the upper end part of the compressor 610 can be received,

and at the same time, may provide space in which a control

valve 290 is mounted.

[204] A cut part 255 may be formed in the rear end of the

second cover part 252. The cut part 255 may be formed at the

upper side of the compressor 610 by corresponding to the

compressor 610. In addition, the cut part 255 may be formed

to have a shape corresponding to the upper part of the

compressor such that the upper part of the compressor 610 can

protrude upward by passing through the cut part 255.

[205] In addition, a coupling part bent vertically to the

outside along the rear end of the second cover part 252 may

be formed. The coupling part 256 may be configured to be

coupled to the rear plate 213, and may be formed along the

remaining rear end of the second cover part 252 except for an

area in which the cut part 255 is formed.

[206] The compressor cover 280 may be injection-formed of a

plastic material. The upper surface of the compressor 610

may be configured to have a shape like a curved surface, and

the compressor cover 280 may be configured to have a three

dimensional shape so as to receive the compressor 610 and the

control valve 290.

[207] That is, the three-dimensional shape of the compressor

cover 280 may not be realized with the cover plate 250 having

the shape of a metal plate, and thus the compressor cover 280

may be formed of a plastic material. At least a portion of

the inner side surface of the compressor cover 280 may

comprise a curved surface corresponding to the shape of the

curved surface of the upper surface of the compressor 610.

[208] The compressor cover 280 may have open shapes in lower

and rear surfaces as a whole, and may have a recessed inside

shape. In addition, the compressor cover 280 may be mounted

to the upper surface of the second cover part 252 and may have

a shape protruding upward. In this case, the open lower

surface of the compressor cover may match the cut part 255.

In addition, the rear surface of the compressor cover 280 may

match the rear end of the cut part 255, that is, the coupling

part 256.

[209] In addition, the compressor cover 280 may comprise a

cover body 284 protruding upward, a side edge 282 formed along

the periphery of each of the opposite end surfaces of the

peripheries of the cover body 284, a front edge 285 formed

along the front end of the cover body 284, and a rear edge

283 formed along the rear end of the cover body 284.

[210] A reinforcement rib 284a may be provided to have a grid

shape on the upper surface of the cover body 284 by protruding

upward therefrom. The rigidity of the compressor cover 280 formed of a plastic material may be reinforced by the reinforcement rib 284a. That is, foam liquid may be injected into the cabinet 100 to form an insulation material inside the cabinet 100, so even if pressure is applied to the cabinet

100, the deformation or removal of the compressor cover 280

may be prevented and a mounted state thereof may be

maintained.

[211] In addition, a body inclined part 284b which is formed

slantingly may be formed on the front end of the cover body

284. The body inclined part 284b may have inclination

directed upward gradually toward the rear of the cover body

from the front end thereof. Accordingly, pressure applied to

the compressor cover 280 may be distributed and an insulation

material may be prevented from being unfilled.

[212] Meanwhile, the compressor receiving space 281 may be

defined inside the cover body 284, that is, on a lower surface

thereof. The compressor receiving space 281 may be defined

at a position facing the upper surface of the compressor 610.

In a state in which the compressor cover 280 is mounted, the

height of the compressor receiving space 281, that is, the

height H4 of the cover body may be slightly higher than the

upper end of the compressor 610 as illustrated in FIG. 24.

The compressor receiving space 281 may be defined to have a

shape corresponding to the shape of the exterior of the compressor 610, and may be defined to have a size to receive the upper surface of the compressor.

[213] In addition, a valve receiving space 281a may be defined

at a side of the compressor receiving space 281 by being

further recessed laterally, and a recessed valve mounting part

286 may be formed in the rear end of the valve receiving space

281a, that is, on an edge of the rear end of the cover body

284.

[214] The side edge 282 may be formed along each of the

opposite side surfaces of the compressor cover 280, and may

constitute a surface horizontal to the cover plate 250 to be

in contact with each of the opposite side surfaces of the cut

part 255. The side edge 282 may be in close contact with the

upper surface of the cover plate 250 corresponding to the

opposite sides of the cut part 255. In addition, the side

edge 282 and the cover plate 250 may be securely coupled to

each other by riveting, or the coupling, bonding or joining

of fastening members.

[215] In this case, a guide rib 287 may be formed downward

along the open peripheral surface of the cover body 284. That

is, the guide rib 287 may protrude downward along the inner

side end of each of the side edge 282 and the front edge 285,

and may be in contact with the end part of the cut part 255.

[216] When the compressor cover 280 is mounted to the cover

plate 250, the guide rib 287 and the cut part 255 may be in close contact with each other such that the guide rib 287 and the cut part 255 can be moved to precise coupling positions.

Accordingly, the open lower surface of the cover body 284 may

be coupled to the cut part 255 such that the cover body 284

and the cut part 255 are accurately maintained to match each

other.

[217] The front edge 285 may be connected to the front end of

the side edge 282, and may constitute a surface horizontal to

the cover plate 250 along the front end of the cover body 284.

Meanwhile, the front end of the front edge 285 may bend

vertically downward, and may be in close contact with the

front surface of the vertical connection part 254. That is,

the front edge 285 may be seated on a stepped part between

the front end of the second cover part 252 and the vertical

connection part 254, and may be fixedly mounted over the

second cover part 252 and the vertical connection part 254

such that the compressor cover 280 can be more securely fixed

to the cover plate 250.

[218] The rear edge 283 may bend vertically from the rear

surface of the cover body 284. In addition, the rear edge

may be in surface contact with the rear plate 213, and may be

coupled to the rear plate 213 while the rear edge and the rear

plate 213 are in contact with each other. In a state in which

the rear plate 213 is coupled, the rear plate 213 may cover the rear surface of the machine room 201, and may cover even the open rear surface of the compressor cover 280.

[219] Meanwhile, the valve receiving space 281a and the valve

mounting part 286 may be formed in the cover body 284. The

valve receiving space 281a may be defined by protruding

laterally from a side surface of the cover body 284, and may

be configured as a portion of the compressor receiving space

281. That is, the open lower surface of the cover body 284

may be formed to have a recessed shape as a whole, and a main

portion thereof may constitute the compressor receiving space

281 and a lateral partial space thereof may constitute the

valve receiving space 281a.

[220] In addition, the valve mounting part 286 which is

stepped may be formed in the open rear end part of the valve

receiving space 281a. The valve mounting part 286 may be

exposed to the open rear surface of the compressor cover 280.

Accordingly, in a state in which the rear surface of the

machine room 201 is exposed to the outside after the removal

of the rear plate 213, the valve mounting part 286 may be

exposed to the rear side of the machine room, and access to

the valve mounting part 286 and the mounting of the control

valve 290 may be facilitated.

[221] Meanwhile, the control valve 290 may comprise a valve

body 291 connected to a refrigerant tube which connects the

compressor 610 with the condenser 620, and a valve bracket

292 to which the valve body 291 is mounted. While the valve

body 291 of the control valve 290 is first mounted to the

valve bracket 292, the valve bracket 292 may be mounted to

the valve mounting part 286.

[222] The valve bracket 292 may comprise a bracket horizontal

part 292b to which the valve body 291 is mounted by passing

therethrough, a bracket vertical part 292c extending upward

from the rear end of the bracket horizontal part 292b, and a

bracket fixing part 292a stepped from the bracket vertical

part 292c and fixedly mounted to the valve mounting part 286.

[223] The bracket fixing part 292a may have a structure

stepped rearward from the bracket vertical part 292c, and may

have a shape to be seated on the stepped valve mounting part

286. In addition, the bracket horizontal part 292b may extend

toward the inside of the machine room 201 opposite to the

direction of the bracket fixing part 292a.

[224] Accordingly, the bracket fixing part 292a located on the

upper end of the rear of the control valve 290 may be easily

fastened to the valve mounting part 286. In addition, the

control valve 290 may be located inside of the valve receiving

space 281a of the compressor cover 280 rather than the inside

of the machine room 201, so even if the rear plate 213 is

closed, the control valve 290 may not interfere with the rear

plate 213.

[225] Accordingly, in the inner space of the machine room 201,

a rear half part in which the compressor 610 is provided may

secure sufficient space, and particularly, the mounting of

the compressor 610, the mounting of the control valve 290,

and welding of a tube may be effectively performed even in

the compact machine room 201.

[226] Next, the grille plate 270 and the grille fan assembly

500 of the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the

present disclosure will be described in detail with reference

to FIGS. 28 to 30. The grille plate 270 may be installed

inside the storage space 121. The grille plate 270 may be

configured as a rectangular wall body, and may be a part on

which the grille fan assembly 500 is installed.

[227] A main grille fixing end 271 may be formed on each of

the left and right sides of the center of the rear surface of

the grille plate 270. The main grille fixing end 271 may be

formed to have a hook shape, and may be formed on each of the

left and right sides of the center of the rear surface of the

grille plate 270 by protruding rearward therefrom. The main

grille fixing end 271 may be fixed to the inside of the storage

space 121 such that the grille plate 270 can be securely fixed

in the storage space 121.

[228] Referring to FIG. 30, an air introduction hole 275 and

a discharge part (not shown) may be formed in the front surface

270a of the grille plate 270. The air introduction hole 275 is a part through which air of the storage space 121 is introduced into a cooling compartment 125, and contrarily, the discharge part is a part through which air of the cooling compartment 125 is discharged to the storage space 121.

[229] An air introduction part 272 may be formed on the lower

part of the front surface 270a of the grille plate 270. The

air introduction part 272 may be configured as a wall body to

be long from side to side, and may protrude in a direction

toward the storage space 121. That is, the air introduction

part 272 may be recessed from the inner casing 120 in a

direction away from an inner surface 124 (see FIG. 30) facing

the grille plate 270. Accordingly, the air introduction part

272 may be away from the evaporator 630, and space may be

defined between the air introduction part 272 and the

evaporator 630.

[230] In addition, the air introduction hole 275 may be

disposed on the lower side of the air introduction part 272

such that water droplets can be prevented from being

introduced through the front side of the grille plate 270 into

the air introduction hole 275 to be described later. The air

introduction part 272 may protrude toward the storage space

121 and may function to prevent water droplets generated on

the front surface part of the grille plate 270 due to

temperature difference from falling downward and being

introduced into the air introduction hole 275.

[231] An evasion recession part 124' may be recessed on the

inner surface 124 of the inner casing 120 constituting the

cabinet 100 facing the grille fan assembly 500 such that a

distance between the inner surface 124 and the grille fan

assembly 500 is increased. The grille fan assembly 500 may

be installed to face the evasion recession part 124', and thus

an air flow space may be sufficiently secured therebetween.

For reference, in FIG. 28, reference numeral 124'' indicates

an installation recession part recessed in a part of the rear

side of an accumulator 639 in the inner surface 124 of the

inner casing 120.

[232] A shroud 510 of the grille fan assembly 500 may have a

guide wall body 520, and the guide wall body 520 may have a

shroud fixing part 522, so the grille fan assembly 500 may be

assembled with the rear surface 270b of the grille plate 270.

Additionally, a grille fan member 550 may be installed in the

shroud 510. Various grille fans may be applied to the grille

fan member 550, but here, a grille fan of an axial flow fan

type is applied.

[233] Next, the air conditioning module 600 will be described

with reference to FIGS. 6 to. 10. The air conditioning module

600 is a part which controls temperature of the inside of the

storage space 121 of the inner casing 120. Such an air

conditioning module 600 may be configured as an air

conditioning device comprising the compressor 610, the main condenser 620, and the evaporator 630. That is, temperature of air circulating in the storage space 121 may be controlled by the above air conditioning device.

[234] The compressor 610 and the condenser 620 may be provided

in the machine room 201 inside the machine room frame 200.

Here, the condenser 620 may refer to the main condenser 620.

The main condenser 620 may be located at a side at which air

is introduced among opposite sides formed by the separation

wall 230 in the machine room frame 200, that is, in the

introduction space I, and the compressor 610 may be located

in the discharge space 0 which is a part through which air

passing through the main condenser 620 passes.

[235] Such a structure is intended such that air introduced

into the machine room 201 of the machine room frame 200 can

first pass through the main condenser 620. That is, when it

is considered that the compressor 610 is a part that generates

a large amount of heat, heat exchange efficiency may decrease

when air exchanges heat with the main condenser 620 after

passing through the compressor 610. Accordingly, it is

preferable that air passes through the main condenser 620

before the compressor 610.

[236] In addition, the main condenser 620 may be located to

be adjacent to the inlet 225a provided in the front side of

the inside of the machine room 201, and the compressor 610

may be located in the rear side (a side adjacent to the rear plate 213) of the inside of the machine room 201. Such a structure may allow the compressor 610 and the main condenser

620 to be partitioned from each other as much as possible so

as to be spaced apart from each other such that the impact of

high-temperature heat of the compressor 610 on the main

condenser 620 can be reduced.

[237] More precisely, the compressor 610 and the main

condenser 620 may be disposed in spaces partitioned from each

other, respectively, and the heat dissipation fan 611 may be

disposed in the rear of the machine room 201 relative to the

inlet 225a, and the compressor 610 may be disposed in the rear

of the machine room 201 relative to the outlet 225b.

[238] Furthermore, the heat dissipation fan 611 may be

provided in the air introduction side of the compressor 610

so as to allow air to be introduced into and discharged out

of the machine room 201 and to dissipate heat of the compressor

610. Such a heat dissipation fan 611 may function to block

an air introduction side at which the main condenser 620 is

located from a part in which the compressor 610 is located,

so the impact of high-temperature heat of the compressor 610

on the main condenser 620 may be reduced. To this end, the

heat dissipation fan 611 may be installed to be continuo8usly

connected to the separation wall 230 described above.

[239] Accordingly, the compressor 610 and the heat dissipation

fan 611 may be spaced apart from the inner side of the machine room 201 so as to be installed in front of the rear plate 213.

In this case, parts higher than other parts may be clustered

in the rear side of the machine room 201, and remaining parts

may be installed in the front side thereof, and thus the

height of at least the front side of the machine room 201 may

be decreased.

[240] In addition, the storage space 121 of the refrigerator

may be increased by the decreased height of the machine room

201. Referring to FIG. 3, the avoidance part 123 may be

provided on the bottom surface of the storage space 121, and

the compressor 610 and the heat dissipation fan 611 may be

located under the avoidance part 123, and space of the front

side of the avoidance part 123 may be used.

[241] In this case, the compressor 610 and the heat

dissipation fan 611 may be disposed to overlap each other in

at least a portion thereof along a direction orthogonal to

each of the open directions of the inlet 225a and the outlet

225b. Referring to FIG. 8, both the compressor 610 and the

heat dissipation fan 611 are disposed close to the rear plate

213 and may be installed side by side in left and right

directions.

[242] In the embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 8, the

compressor 610 and the heat dissipation fan 611 may be

installed to face each other in front of the rear plate 213.

Particularly, the extending direction of the rotating shaft of the heat dissipation fan 611 may be directed to the compressor 610, so a major part of the heat dissipation fan

611 may be in a section overlapping the compressor 610.

According to such a structure, referring to FIG. 9, the heat

dissipation fan 611 covers a major part of the compressor 610

when viewed from the side. Accordingly, the compressor 610

and the heat dissipation fan 611 which are large in size may

be arranged on the same line inside the machine room 201, and

the front side thereof may be used as the storage space 121

or as space for installing other parts.

[243] In addition, referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, the heat

dissipation fan 611 may be spaced apart from the side plate

212 of the machine room frame 200 extending along one side of

the inlet 225a, and the air flow space connected to the inlet

225a may be defined between the heat dissipation fan 611 and

the side plate 212. Here, referring to FIG. 8, the air flow

space may be considered as the upper part of the defrost water

tray 240 of the left side of the flow guide surface 245

described above.

[244] In this case, the extending direction of the rotating

shaft of the heat dissipation fan 611 may be orthogonal to

the open direction of the inlet 225a. That is, the heat

dissipation fan 611 may directly face the compressor 610.

Accordingly, the air flow space may be relatively wide. When

the heat dissipation fan 611 faces the main condenser 620 or is installed slantingly, the width of the air flow space may be unavoidably decreased, and air may not efficiently flow.

[245] In addition, since the heat dissipation fan 611 faces

the compressor 610 directly, the heat dissipation fan 611 may

strongly discharge air to the compressor 610 and may

effectively cool the compressor 610.

[246] Due to the air introduction and discharge of the heat

dissipation fan 611, the heat dissipation fan 611 is a very

important part which performs a cooling function, and as the

size of the heat dissipation fan 611 increases, cooling

performance thereof may be improved. Referring to FIG. 9, in

the embodiment, the heat dissipation fan 611 and the

compressor 610 are arranged side by side, so the heat

dissipation fan 611 having height corresponding to the maximum

height of the compressor 610 may be applied. That is, the

height H2 of the heat dissipation fan 611 may be the same as

or smaller than the height Hi of the compressor 610.

[247] Meanwhile, the compressor 610 may be disposed in a path

to which the outlet 225b is open. Accordingly, air heated

through the compressor 610 may flow directly toward the outlet

225b and may be discharged to the outside. The entirety or

at least a portion of the compressor 610 may be disposed in

the path to which the outlet 225b is open.

[248] While refrigerant continuously flows through the inside

of each part constituting the air conditioning module 600, a refrigeration cycle may operate. In this case, each part may be connected to multiple refrigerant tubes, and the evaporation tube L2, the side condensing tube L4 and L6, and the front condensing tube L8 to be described below may be included in the refrigerant tubes.

[249] Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, first, the evaporation tube

L2 may be installed in the defrost water tray 240, and may be

located close to the bottom surface 241' of the defrost water

tray 240. The evaporation tube L2 may be installed to be

space apart by a predetermined distance from the bottom

surface 241' of the defrost water tray 240, and may be

connected in a zigzag direction to secure length as long as

possible as illustrated in FIG. 6. The evaporation tube L2

may be a path which is connected through a main control valve

625 to a refrigerant discharge pipe 610a (see FIG. 8) of the

compressor 610 such that high-pressure/high temperature

refrigerant passes through the path. The evaporation tube L2

may be disposed close to the bottom surface 241' of the defrost

water tray 240, and thus may function to evaporate defrost

water collected in the defrost water tray 240. Reference

numeral Li indicates a first connection tube which connects

the main control valve 625 with the evaporation tube L2.

[250] The evaporation tube L2 may be connected to the main

condenser 620, and a first side condensing tube L4 may be

connected to the main condenser 620. The first side condensing tube L4 may be provided on the left surface of the cabinet 100 relative to FIG. 6, and may be provided by bending multiple times. Referring to FIG. 8, a portion of a second connection tube L3 which connects the main condenser 620 with the first side condensing tube L4 is illustrated.

[251] The first side condensing tube L4 may be connected to a

second side condensing tube L6 by a third connection tube L5

(see FIG. 6) crossing the machine room 201. The second side

condensing tube L6 and the first side condensing tube L4 may

be paired with each other and may have the same shapes.

Referring to FIG. 6, the second side condensing tube L6 may

be provided on the right surface of the cabinet 100. Of

course, the second side condensing tube L6 may not be required

to have the same shape as the first side condensing tube L4.

[252] The second side condensing tube L6 may be connected to

the front condensing tube L8 by a fourth connection tube L7.

The front condensing tube L8 may be provided on the front

surface of the cabinet 100 and may be a refrigerant tube which

is bent multiple times. In FIG. 6, the front condensing tube

L8 may have an approximate rectangular shape, which is a shape

corresponding to the front frame 118 described above.

[253] Each of the first side condensing tube L4, the second

side condensing tube L6, and the front condensing tube L8 may,

together with the main condenser 620, perform the function of

condensing refrigerant, so even if a large main condenser 620 is not installed in the machine room 201 due to the small height and width of the machine room 201, this may be compensated. Accordingly, each of the first side condensing tube L4, the second side condensing tube L6, and the front condensing tube L8, together with the main condenser 620, may be considered as a part of a condenser.

[254] In addition, each of the first side condensing tube L4,

the second side condensing tube L6, and the front condensing

tube L8 may be configured to cover the exterior of the cabinet

100, and thus may function as a kind of heat line which

prevents the formation of dew on the surface of the cabinet

100 due to temperature difference between the inside and

outside of the refrigerator.

[255] When a foam insulation material is filled in space

between the inner casing 120 and the outer casing 110 as

described above, the first side condensing tube L4, the second

side condensing tube L6, and the front condensing tube L8 may

be inserted and fixed in the insulation material.

[256] Meanwhile, the second side condensing tube L6 may be

connected to the evaporator 630 by a fifth connection tube

L9. The evaporator 630 may be disposed in the rear space of

the grille fan assemblies 500a and 500b in each portion in

the inner casing 120. That is, during circulation of

discharging air to the inner upper side of the storage space

121 after the air is introduced into the storage space 121 from the inner lower side thereof due to the operation of the grille fan assemblies 500a and 500b, the air may exchange heat with the evaporator 630 while passing through the evaporator

630.

[257] Such an evaporator 630 may be configured as an

evaporator 630 having a plate shape, and may be stably

installed in front of a rear wall surface among the inner wall

surfaces of the inner casing 120 and may improve heat exchange

performance in a small space. Reference numeral L10 indicates

an evaporator connection tube which connects the evaporator

630 with the main control valve 625.

[258] Although not shown, a dryer and a capillary tube may be

installed between the front condensing tube L8 and the

evaporator 630. In this case, a refrigerant may pass

consecutively through the front condensing tube L8, the dryer,

the main control valve 625, the capillary tube, and the

evaporator 630. Here, the dryer may function to protect a

system by removing moisture and filtering foreign mater, and

the capillary tube may function to throttle as an expansion

valve.

[259] In addition, finally, a refrigerant passing through the

evaporator 630 may be introduced back to a refrigerant

introduction tube 610b (see FIG. 8) of the compressor 610 so

as to repeat a refrigeration cycle.

[260] Next, the evaporator 630 will be described with

reference to FIGS. 28 to 30. Refrigerant being in the state

of high temperature and high pressure while passing through

the compressor 610 and the main condenser 620 installed in

the machine room 201 may be liquid having pressure and

temperature reduced by the throttling of the capillary tube,

and, in this state, may be delivered to the evaporator 630.

Additionally, the evaporator 630 may receive the refrigerant

of the state of liquid having low temperature and low pressure

and may evaporate the refrigerant into gas, and may function

to lower the internal temperature of the storage space 121 by

using latent heat.

[261] The expansion valve may lower the pressure of

refrigerant gas having high temperature and high pressure

discharged from the main condenser 620 into liquid refrigerant

gas having low temperature and lower pressure such that the

refrigerant gas having high temperature and high pressure can

be easily evaporated in the evaporator 630, and may control

the flow rate of the refrigerant gas so as to discharge the

refrigerant gas to the evaporator 630. The expansion valve

for a refrigerating compartment may comprise the capillary

tube. The capillary tube may have a relatively small

diameter, and may act as a resistance to the flow of a

refrigerant in a process in which the refrigerant passes

through the capillary tube and may expand the refrigerant.

[262] In the embodiment, the evaporator 630 may be installed

in the cooling compartment 125, and more precisely, as

illustrated in FIG. 30, may be installed in the lower part of

the cooling compartment 125 formed between the inner surface

124 of the inner casing 120 and the grille plate 270.

Additionally, the grille fan assembly 500 described above may

be located above the evaporator 630, and may introduce the

internal air of the storage space 121 through the lower side,

that is, the air introduction hole 275 into the cooling

compartment, and may allow the air to pass through the

evaporator 630 and be discharged through the discharge part

located at the upper side back into the storage space 121.

[263] Looking at the configuration of the evaporator 630, the

evaporator 630 may comprise a cooling tube 638 in which

refrigerant flows, and cooling fins 650 through which the

cooling tube 638 passes. The cooling tube 638 may be

considered as a kind of long pipe, and may be connected to

the capillary tube (the expansion valve) described above so

as to receive a refrigerant, and may discharge a refrigerant

passing through the evaporator 630 again.

[264] To this end, the cooling tube 638 may comprise a pair

of cooling tubes. More precisely, the cooling tube 638 may

comprise a first cooling tube 638a and the second cooling tube

638b. Here, the first cooling tube 638a may be a part into

which a refrigerant supplied from the capillary tube (the expansion valve) is introduced, and may continuously pass through fin holes 653a or 653b of the cooling fins 650 to be described below and may pass through the outermost cooling fins 650.

[265] In addition, the second cooling tube 638b may be

connected to the first cooling tube 638a and may also

continuously pass through the fin holes 653a or 653b of the

cooling fins 650. The first cooling tube 638a and the second

cooling tube 638b may be connected to each other by changing

directions from the outside of a cooling fin 650 disposed at

the outermost position among the multiple cooling fins 650.

That is, the first cooling tube 638a and the second cooling

tube 638b may not be configured as separate parts, but may be

continuously connected to each other as one tube and may be

considered to change a direction thereof in the middle of the

one tube.

[266] The accumulator 639 may be installed in the center of

the second cooling tube 638b. A refrigerant which has

absorbed surrounding heat by passing through the second

cooling tube 638b may be delivered to the accumulator 639.

The accumulator 639 may separate a liquid refrigerant which

is not vaporized from the delivered refrigerant such that the

liquid refrigerant is not transferred to the compressor 610.

[267] Looking at the configuration of the cooling fins 650,

the cooling fins 650 may be configured in a row in the rear of the storage space 121, that is, inside the cooling compartment 125. The multiple cooling fins 650 may be disposed side by side to constitute the evaporator 630. These cooling fins 650 may not be configured in multiple rows by having different heights. In the embodiment, the multiple cooling fins 650 may be configured only in one row to enable the miniaturization of the refrigerator. Furthermore, in the embodiment, since the refrigerator is a refrigerator for storing alcoholic beverages such as wine, the refrigerator may not be required to have a freezing function and may have the narrow range of refrigeration set temperature, so cooling fins 650 configured in multiple rows may not be required. Of course, unlike this, the cooling fins 650 may be configured in two rows or more.

[268] Each of the cooling fins 650 may be made to have the

shape of thin metal plate. The cooling fin may comprise

multiple cooling fins to facilitate heat exchange with ambient

air. Additionally, the cooling fins 650 may be spaced apart

from each other such that air flows therebetween.

[269] The fin hole 653a or 653b (see FIG. 30) may be formed

in the cooling fins 650, and the fin hole 653a or 653b may

comprise a pair of fin holes such that the first cooling tube

638a and the second cooling tube 638b constituting the cooling

tube 638 pass through the fin holes, respectively. More

precisely, the fin holes 653a and 653b may be disposed on the cooling fins 650 in a vertical direction. As a result, the cooling tube 638 may be arranged in two rows while passing through the upper and lower parts of each of the cooling fins

650, respectively.

[270] Unlike this, at least three fin holes 653a or 653b may

be formed in each of the cooling fins 650, and the cooling

tube 638 may pass through the fin holes 653a or 653b in a

zigzag fashion. Alternatively, only one fin hole 653a or 653b

may be formed in each of the cooling fins 650. In this case,

when the cooling tube 638 returns to the opposite direction

after passing through the one fin hole 653a, the cooling tube

638 may not pass through the fin hole. In this case, the

cooling fins 650 may be rotated, so it is preferable that at

least two fin holes 653a or 653b are provided. Additionally,

two fin holes 653a and 653b are generally formed in each of

the cooling fins 650, so existing cooling fins 650 may be

used.

[271] In the embodiment, each of the cooling fins 650 may be

installed in an upright direction. That is, the cooling fin

650 may be disposed in an upright direction such that a height

thereof is larger than a width thereof. Here, the width of

the cooling fin 650 indicates a left-to-right length, and the

height of the cooling fin 650 indicates a vertical length

relative to FIG. 30. In this case, a left-to-right width

occupied by the cooling fins 650 in the cooling compartment

125 may be small, compared to cooling fins 650 installed in a

lying state. Accordingly, the entire left-to-right width of

the cooling compartment 125 may be decreased, and contrarily,

the storage space 121 may be further increased.

[272] In the embodiment, the cooling fin 650 stands vertically

along the direction of gravity, but is not necessarily limited

thereto. The cooling fin 650 may be erected to be inclined

so as to have a predetermined angle. Of course, when

considering the left-to-right width of the cooling compartment

125, it is more preferable that the cooling fin 650 stands

vertically as illustrated in FIG. 30.

[273] The fin hole 653a or 653b may be formed in each of the

cooling fins 650. In the embodiment, the fin holes 653a or

653b may comprise a pair of upper fin holes 653a and lower

fin holes 653b. These upper fin holes 653a and lower fin

holes 653b may be formed in the cooling fins 650 by having

different heights, and the one cooling tube 638 may pass

through the pair of fin holes 653a and 653b.

[274] In this case, in the multiple cooling fins 650, the fin

holes 653a and 653b of one cooling fin and fin holes 653a and

653b of other cooling fins 650 adjacent thereto may be

disposed side by side to have the same heights. Accordingly,

the one cooling tube 638 may continuously pass through the

fin holes 653a and 653b having the same heights, and the

cooling tube 638 passing through the fin hole 653a or 653b of a cooling fin 650 located at the outermost side may change a direction thereof and may pass through another fin hole 653a or 653b located at a different height to extend.

[275] For example, the first cooling tube 638a of the cooling

tube 638 may continuously pass through the upper fin holes

653a, and then may change a direction thereof at a position

adjacent to the fin hole 653a or 653b of the cooling fin 650

located at the outermost side to be the second cooling tube

638b, and may pass through the lower fin holes 653b. In this

case, the first cooling tube 638a and the second cooling tube

638b may be connected to each other at a position adjacent to

the cooling fin 650 located at the outermost side by a joining part 660 bent in an approximately U shape.

[276] Accordingly, the first cooling tube 638a and the second

cooling tube 638b may be located at different heights and may

pass through the cooling fins 650. Accordingly, the cooling

fins 650 may maintain a stable standing state without rotating

arbitrarily. That is, the cooling tube 638 may constitute a

kind of structure of fixing the evaporator 630 together with

an evaporator holder 640 to be described below.

[277] In this case, the first cooling tube 638a may pass

through the upper fin holes 653a, and the second cooling tube

638b may pass through the lower fin holes 653b. In this case,

the cooling tube 638 may first pass through the upper side of

each of the cooling fins 650 which is relative low in temperature, and then may pass through the lower side thereof.

Accordingly, it is possible to effectively reduce the

occurrence of frost in the lower part of the cooling fin 650

which is relatively more in contact with high-humidity air

delivered from the storage space 121.

[278] Meanwhile, second cooling fins 652 of a section of the

evaporator 630 may be disposed to have a larger interval

therebetween than an interval between first cooling fins 651

of another section. Referring to FIG. 28, among the multiple

cooling fins 650 constituting the evaporator 630, the second

cooling fins 652 connected to the first part of the first

cooling tube 638a may be disposed to have a wider interval

therebetween. This is intended to widen an interval between

the second cooling fins 652 of a section in which residual

ice or defrost water mainly falls such that the residual ice

or defrost water can flow downward.

[279] Meanwhile, the evaporator holder 640 may be provided on

each of the opposite ends of the evaporator 630. The

evaporator holder 640 may stand in the same direction as the

cooling fin 650 and may fix the evaporator 630 to the inner

surface 124 of the inner casing 120.

[280] Specifically, the frame of the evaporator holder 640 may

be constituted by a holder body standing in parallel to the

cooling fin 650. The holder body may have an approximately

thin plate shape and may be made of a metal material. The holder body may stand side by side with the cooling fin 650, and may have a larger area than the cooling fin 650.

Accordingly, the evaporator holders 640 may protect the

cooling fins 650 on the left and right side surfaces of the

evaporator 630, respectively.

[281] The holder body may comprise a rigidity reinforcement

rib 642. The rigidity reinforcement rib 642 may be formed by

bending from the holder body. The rigidity reinforcement rib

642 of the evaporator holder 640 may extend along the

longitudinal direction of the evaporator holder 640. That

is, the rigidity reinforcement rib 642 may be provided along

a relatively long part and may reinforce the rigidity of the

evaporator holder 640. The evaporator holder 640 may be made

of a thin plate and thus may be easily deformed or bent by an

external force. Such a rigidity reinforcement rib 642 may

prevent the evaporator holder 640 from being bent.

[282] In this case, the rigidity reinforcement rib 642 of the

evaporator holder 640 may extend on each of the opposite ends

of the evaporator holder 640 along a longitudinal direction

of the evaporator holder 640 in which the evaporator holder

640 stands. That is, the rigidity reinforcement ribs 642 may

extend in parallel to each other on the opposite ends of the

evaporator holder 640, and may be formed in the standing

direction of the evaporator holder 640. Through such a structure, the durability of the evaporator holder 640 may be further increased.

[283] The evaporator holder 640 may comprise a pair of

evaporator holders formed on the opposite sides of the

evaporator 630, respectively, and the pair of evaporator

holders may have the same structures. As illustrated in FIG.

29, the pair of evaporator holders 640 may have the same

heights, and the protruding directions of the rigidity

reinforcement ribs 642 thereof may be the same. Accordingly,

a distance between the pair of rigidity reinforcement ribs

642 may be larger than the width of the cooling fin 650, so

the evaporator holder 640 and the cooling fin 650 may not

interfere with each other. Furthermore, the pair of

evaporator holders 640 may have the same shapes, and parts

and process for manufacturing the evaporator holder 640 may

be unified.

[284] The holder body may comprise a fixing hook 645. The

fixing hook 645 is a part protruding in a hook shape, and

extends from the holder body and is hooked and fixed to the

inner casing 120 of the cabinet 100. As illustrated in FIG.

28, the inner surface 124 of the inner casing 120 may have a

fixing groove part 129 to which the fixing hook 645 is hooked,

and the fixing hook 645 may be hooked to the fixing groove

part 129.

[285] Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 30, the air introduction

part 272 through which air of the storage space 121 is

introduced may be provided in a lower part of the grille plate

270 on which the grille fan assembly 500 is installed. The

air introduction part 272 may be configured to have a height

to overlap the cooling fin 650 of the evaporator 630 in at

least a portion of the air introduction part.

[286] In this case, the air introduction part 272 may protrude

in a direction toward the storage space 121 to be away from

the evaporator 630, that is, in a direction away from the

inner surface 124 of the inner casing 120, so an empty space

may naturally be defined between the air introduction part

272 and the evaporator 630. Accordingly, air may be

efficiently introduced through the air introduction hole 275

formed in the air introduction part 272.

[287] Particularly, the air introduction hole 275 of the air

introduction part 272 may be formed slantingly toward the

cooling fins 650. More precisely, the air introduction hole

275 may be inclined upward to face the cooling fins 650, so

air of the storage space 121 may be accurately supplied toward

the evaporator 630.

[288] In addition, in the inner casing 120, the inner surface

124 facing the grille fan assembly 500 may have the evasion

recession part 124' formed by being recessed therefrom so as

to be away from the grille fan assembly 500, and the evaporator

630 may be installed under the evasion recession part 124'.

Accordingly, air may efficiently flow consecutively through

the air introduction hole 275, the evaporator 630, the evasion

recession part 124', and the grille fan assembly 500.

[289] Next, the control module 700 will be described with

reference to FIGS. 31 to 33. The control module 700 may be

installed in the machine room 201. The control module 700 is

intended to control various functions of the refrigerator,

and may control various functions such as the temperature

control of the storage space 121, communication, and the

display of information through a display module 800. Such a

control module 700 may be installed inside the machine room

201 to save the inner space of the cabinet 100.

[290] Looking at the installation structure of the control

module 700 prior to the description of the control module 700,

in the embodiment, the control module 700 may be installed on

the lower surface of the cover plate 250. A casing guide 260

may be provided on the lower surface of the cover plate 250

in a direction parallel to the open direction of the outlet

225b such that the control module 700 can be moved inside and

outside of the outlet 225b along the casing guide 260. In

FIG. 31, a state in which the control module 700 is completely

removed to the outside of the machine room 201 is illustrated.

Unlike this, the casing guide 260 may be installed at the side

of the inlet 225a in parallel to the open direction of the inlet 225a, but is preferably installed at the side of the outlet 225b so as not to prevent the flow of air introduced into the inlet 225a.

[291] Referring to FIG. 33, the casing guide 260 may comprise

a pair of casing guides provided by being spaced apart from

each other such that the casing guides are coupled to the

opposite side surfaces of the control module 700 and extend

in parallel to each other. The control module 700 may be

assembled slidably between the pair of casing guides 260.

Relative to the drawing, in the pair of casing guides 260, a

left casing guide 260 is identified as a first rail 260a, and

a right casing guide 260 is identified as a second rail 260b.

[292] In this case, the first rail 260a may be installed on

the lower surface of the cover plate 250 covering the upper

part of the machine room frame 200, and the second rail 260b

may be installed on the lower surface of the cover plate 250

in a direction parallel to the first rail 260a. That is, in

FIGS. 32 and 33, the first rail 260a and the second rail 260b

are illustrated independently, but in reality, the first rail

260a and the second rail 260b are installed on the lower

surface of the cover plate 250. However, the cover plate 250

is omitted from the drawings such that the first rail 260a

and the second rail 260b are seen clearly.

[293] Looking at the structure of the first rail 260a, the

first rail 260a may comprise a first fixed frame 262 and the first guide frame 264. The first fixed frame 262 is a part fixed to the lower surface of the cover plate 250 such that the first rail 260a can be securely fixed to the cover plate

250. Additionally, a first guide channel Hi to which a

portion of the side surface of the control module 700 is

fitted may be formed in the first guide frame 264. The first

fixed frame 262 and the first guide frame 264 may be connected

orthogonally to each other to have an approximate "L" shape.

Of course, the first guide frame 264 may also be fixed to the

lower surface of the cover plate 250 by a fastener.

[294] Looking at an enlarged part of FIG. 33, the first guide

channel Hi is formed in the first guide frame 264. The first

guide channel Hi may be open in a front thereof such that an

edge of a side surface of a receiving casing 710 constituting

the control module 700 can be fitted into the first guide

channel Hi. In the first guide frame 264, an upper surface

part 264a, a side surface part 264b, and a lower end fixing

part 264c are connected to each other to have a "U" shape,

and the first guide channel Hi is defined therebetween.

[295] Meanwhile, looking at the structure of the second rail

260b, the second rail 260b may comprise a second fixed frame

265 and a second guide frame 267 like the first rail 260a.

The second fixed frame 265 is a part fixed to the lower surface

of the cover plate 250 such that the second rail 260b can be

securely fixed to the cover plate 250. Additionally, a second guide channel H2 to which a portion of the side surface of the control module 700 is fitted may be formed in the second guide frame 267. The second fixed frame 265 and the second guide frame 267 may be connected orthogonally to each other to have an approximate "L" shape. Of course, the second guide frame 267 may also be fixed to the lower surface of the cover plate 250 by a fastener.

[296] Looking at the enlarged part of FIG. 33, the second

guide channel H2 may be formed in the second guide frame 267.

The second guide channel H2 may be formed to face the first

guide channel Hi and may be open in a front thereof such that

an edge of a side surface of the receiving casing 710

constituting the control module 700 can be fitted into the

second guide channel H2. In the second guide frame 267, an

upper surface part 267a, a side surface part 267b, and a lower

end fixing part 267c are connected to each other to have a

"U" shape, and the first guide channel Hi is defined

therebetween.

[297] Accordingly, in the embodiment, the casing guides 260

may be configured as two rails separated from each other, and

may be assembled independently of each other. Accordingly,

errors occurring during the manufacturing process of the

casing guides 260 may be compensated to some extent during an

installation process thereof.

[298] The first fixed frame 262 and the second fixed frame 265

may be located at complementary positions to each other, so

the first rail 260a and the second rail 260b may form a

rectangular shape as a whole. Of course, alternatively, the

first rail 260a and the second rail 260b may be connected to

each other, and the casing guide 260 may be configured as one

part. Alternatively, at least one of the first rail 260a and

the second rail 260b of the casing guide 260 may be made to

be integrated with the lower surface of the cover plate 250.

[299] Looking at the control module 700, the opposite side

surfaces of the control module 700 may be assembled slidably

with the first rail 260a and the second rail 260b,

respectively. Additionally, as illustrated in FIG. 31, when

the front cover 220 of the machine room frame 200 is removed

from the front surface of the machine room frame 200, the

front part of the control module 700 may be exposed to the

front side of the machine room frame 200. In FIG. 2, S

indicates a part in which the control module 700 is installed.

[300] Accordingly, in the embodiment, the control module 700

may be installed in the machine room 201, and may be disposed

to be adjacent to the front surface of the machine room 201

so as to face the inlet 225a or the outlet 225b. More

precisely, the control module 700 may be installed in the

upper part of the machine room 201 adjacent to the outlet

225b, and when the control module 700 is installed in the machine room 201, the discharge space 0 may be defined between the lower surface of the control module 700 and the bottom surface of the machine room frame 200. Accordingly, the control module 700 may be installed at a position close to the entrance of the machine room 201 and thus may be removed forward from the machine room 201.

[301] Particularly, for maintenance of the control module 700,

the rear of the refrigerator may not be required to be opened,

and the control module 700 may be removed from the front of

the refrigerator to be repaired or replaced, and when the

machine room module of the present disclosure is applied to a

built-in refrigerator, the repair or replacement work may be

performed in front of the refrigerator without taking the

entirety of the refrigerator out of an installation place

thereof.

[302] While the control module 700 faces the upper surface of

the machine room frame 200 corresponding to the ceiling of

the machine room 201, that is, the lower surface of the cover

plate 250, the control module 700 may be installed parallel

to the upper surface of the machine room frame 200. In other

words, as illustrated in FIG. 31, the control module 700 may

be installed inside the machine room 201 while in a lying

state. Accordingly, in a horizontal lying state, a main

control board constituting the control module 700 may be

stored inside the receiving casing 710, which is a kind of drawer structure, and thus may be stably stored therein even if the main control board is not fastened with a separate fastener. Of course, the main control board may be fastened to the receiving casing 710 by using a separate fastener such as a bolt.

[303] Accordingly, since the control module 700 is installed

on the cover plate 250 covering the upper part of the machine

room 201, vibration generated by a device such as the

compressor 610 installed on the bottom surface of the machine

room 201 may be prevented from being transmitted directly to

the control module 700. In order to enhance such a function,

separate damper (not shown) may be installed between the

casing guide 260 and the control module 700, or between the

casing guide 260 and the cover plate 250.

[304] In addition, since the control module 700 is received

in the machine room 201 horizontally by lying in the width

direction of the machine room 201 rather than the height

direction thereof, at least a left-to-right installation

interval of the control module corresponding to the width

direction of the outlet 225b may be secured. Accordingly,

the area of the main control board constituting the control

module 700 may be sufficiently increased. Referring to FIG.

8, it can be seen that the control module 700 occupies most

of a remaining area except for an installed part of the

compressor 610 at the side of the outlet 225b.

[305] As for the detailed structure of such a control module

700, the control module 700 may comprise the receiving casing

710 and the main control board (not shown). The receiving

casing 710 may be assembled removably with the upper part of

the machine room 201, that is, with the casing guide 260, and

may have a receiving space 701 in the center of the receiving

casing 710. Referring to FIG. 32, the receiving casing 710

may have an approximately rectangular frame structure and be

open upward such that the receiving space 701 is exposed.

[306] The receiving casing 710 may have a width smaller than

or equal to the width of the outlet 225b such that the

receiving casing 710 can be moved inside and outside of the

outlet 225b. In addition, to avoid excessively reducing the

height of the outlet 225b, it is preferable that the receiving

casing 710 has height less than a half of the height of the

outlet 225b which is removed.

[307] Referring to FIG. 32, the receiving casing 710 may be

provided with a protection wall 712 and 713. The protection

wall 712 and 713 may protrude along the edge of the receiving

casing 710 so as to cover the receiving space 701, and the

height of the protection wall 712 and 713 may be the height

of the receiving casing 710.

[308] The protection wall 712 and 713 may comprise a rear wall

712 directed toward the inside of the machine room 201 and a

front wall 713 directed toward the outside of the machine room, and a guide end 715 may be provided along each of the side surfaces of the machine room. The guide end 715 may be a part assembled with the casing guide 260 and may extend long along the side surface of the receiving casing 710 such that the guide end 715 is fitted to each of the first guide channel

Hi and the second guide channel H2 of the casing guide 260.

[309] Of course, a structure in which the receiving casing 710

is assembled inside the machine room 201 is not necessarily

limited to this structure. For example, the receiving casing

710 may not be assembled with the machine room 201 by sliding

in a front-to-rear direction relative to the front surface of

the machine room 201, but a fixing structure in which after

the receiving casing 710 is inserted into the machine room

201, the receiving casing 710 may be pushed in a direction

orthogonal to an inserting direction of the receiving casing

710 to be fixed may be applied to the machine room 201.

[310] The guide end 715 may be provided on an upper end of the

side surface of the receiving casing 710 closest to the lower

surface of the cover plate 250 covering the machine room 201.

That is, the guide end 715 may be provided along the upper

end of the side surface of the receiving casing 710, and may

protrude outward from the upper end of the side surface.

Since the guide end 715 is provided on the upper end of the

side surface, the receiving casing 710 may be installed to be

in close contact with the lower surface of the cover plate

250. In this case, without a separate cover, the upper

surface of the receiving space 701 may be covered by the cover

plate 250, and introduction of foreign matter into the

receiving space 701 may be prevented.

[311] A partitioning wall 720 may be provided inside the

protection wall 712 and 713 of the receiving casing 710. The

receiving space 701 in which the main control board is

received may be defined in the center of the receiving casing

710 of the control module 700, and the partitioning wall 720

may partition the receiving space 701. More precisely, the

partitioning wall 720 may define a wire connection space 702

outside of the receiving space 701 by surrounding the

receiving space 701. That is, the wire connection space 702

may be defined between the partitioning wall 720 and the

protection walls 712 and 713.

[312] The wire harness (not shown) connected to the main

control board may be seated on the wire connection space 702.

The wire connection space 702 may be space independent of the

receiving space 701, and thus the wire harness may be easily

organized therein. Particularly, inside the small machine

room 201, multiple strands of wire harnesses may be twisted

or interfere with peripheral parts comprising a part of the

main control board, but may be organized through the wire

connection space 702. In the embodiment, the wire connection

space 702 may have an approximately "L"-shaped path, and alternatively, the wire connection space 702 may be defined so as to surround the entirety of the outside of the receiving space 701.

[313] Accordingly, the partitioning wall 720, together with

the protection walls 712 and 713, may act as a kind of double

wall. Accordingly, the partitioning wall 720 may filer out

foreign matter being introduced into the main control board.

[314] A connection hole 712' may be formed through the rear

of the receiving casing 710 of the control module 700 directed

toward the inside of the machine room 201. The connection

hole 712' may allow a portion of the wire harnesses connected

to the control module 700 to extend to the outside of the

receiving casing 710. In the embodiment, the connection hole

712' may be formed through the rear of the wire connection

space 702.

[315] Continuously, the door opening device 900 will be

described with reference to FIGS. 34 to 36. First, the door

opening device 900 may be installed in an installation space

253 recessed from the lower side of the cabinet 100 toward

the storage space 121. Here, the installation space 253 may

have a shape formed by recessing a portion of the lower part

of the cabinet 100. In the embodiment, the installation space

253 may be defined in the cover plate 250.

[316] That is, the cover plate 250 may be installed between

the upper part of the machine room frame and the lower part of the cabinet 100 so as to cover the machine room 201, and the door opening device 900 may be received in the installation space 253 recessed from the lower surface 251 of the cover plate 250 toward the lower part of the cabinet 100.

[317] In this case, the cover plate 250 may be spaced apart

from the inner casing 120 so as to define a foam space

therebetween, so a foam material may be filled on the cover

plate and an insulation part may be formed. Accordingly, the

installation space 253 may be recessed toward the space of

the insulation part, and may not interfere with other parts.

Additionally, the periphery of the cover plate 250 surrounding

the door opening device 900 may be filled with the insulation

part, and this insulation part may function as a sound

insulator which blocks the operation noise of a motor/gear

generated by the door opening device 900.

[318] Referring to FIG. 34, the installation space 253 may be

defined inside a part recessed from the cover plate 250 toward

the bottom of the inner casing. The installation space 253

may be located at the center portion of the cover plate 250.

A lower surface of the installation space 253 directed toward

the machine room and a front surface thereof directed toward

the door assembly are open.

[319] That is, the installation space 253 may be considered

as a space connected to the machine room 201, and accordingly,

when the machine room module is removed from the refrigerator, the installation space 253 and the door opening device 900 installed in the installation space 253 may be exposed to the outside, so the maintenance of the door opening device 900 may be easily performed. FIG. 34 illustrates the side of the bottom of the refrigerator by removing the machine room module of the refrigerator, and the installation space 253 and the door opening device 900 installed in the installation space

253 are exposed to the outside.

[320] In addition, the front surface of the installation space

253 directed toward the door assembly 130 may be open, and

referring to FIG. 36, the front entrance 253' of the

installation space 253 is exposed to the outside. In this

case, the front surface of the installation space 253 may be

covered by the front frame 118 constituting the cabinet 100,

and the front frame 118 may have a rod entry/exit hole 119

for the push rod 950 which protrudes from the door opening

device 900.

[321] Accordingly, the front surface of the installation space

253 may be covered by the front frame 118, and only a part of

the front frame through which the push rod 950 enters and

exits may be drilled in the form of a hole. Accordingly, in

a state in which the push rod 950 of the door opening device

900 does not protrude yet, a rod cap 952 of the push rod 950

may block the rod entry/exit hole 119 such that foreign matter can be prevented from being introduced into the installation space.

[322] Now, the structure of the door opening device 900 will

be described with reference to FIG. 36. The door opening

device 900 may be installed in a device casing 901

constituting the exterior of the door opening device. In the

device casing 901, a part close to the door assembly 130 may

be narrow in width, but a part located at the inner side of

the cover plate 250 may be relatively wide in width. This is

according to the arrangement of a drive motor 910 and a gear

assembly 920 installed in the device casing 901, which will

be described again below.

[323] The device casing 901 may be installed at the center of

the cover plate 250, and more precisely, the rod entry/exit

hole 119 through which the push rod 950 protrudes is

preferably located on the center line of the cover plate 250.

For reference, in FIG. 34, A indicates the center line of the

cover plate 250.

[324] Referring to FIG. 36, the device casing 901 may have

height corresponding to the installation space 253, and may

have a thin and wide plate structure. The device casing 901

may be composed of multiple parts. For example, an upper

casing (not shown) and a lower casing may constitute the

exteriors of the upper and lower parts of the door opening

device 900, respectively. In addition, the upper casing and the lower casing may be coupled to each other to provide space in which the drive motor 910 and the gear assembly 920 can be arranged. In the drawing, the upper casing is omitted such that the drive motor 910 and the gear assembly 920 are exposed to the outside. Of course, the upper casing may be omitted, and only the lower casing may constitute the device casing

901.

[325] Multiple installation rings 905 may be provided on the

outer side of the device casing 901. Each of the installation

ring 905 may be inserted into a ring mounting depression 904

depressed on the edge of the device casing 901. The

installation ring 905 may support the lower casing such that

the lower casing is seated on the ring mounting depression

904 of the device casing 901 and may be formed of a silicon

material. Accordingly, vibration generated during the

operation of the door opening device 900 may be reduced and

thus noise may be prevented.

[326] The drive motor 910 may be installed on the device casing

901. The drive motor 910 may be mounted to the lower surface

of the device casing 901. The drive motor 910 may use a BLDC

type motor capable of performing both forward and reverse

rotations. The drive motor 910 may count frequency generating

(FG) signals by using a BLDC type motor such that the speed

of the drive motor 910 can be variably controlled.

[327] Accordingly, by controlling the speed of the drive motor

during the operation of the door opening device 900, the

impact of the door assembly 130 may be alleviated when the

door assembly 130 is opened and closed. Furthermore, in an

emergency situation, the push rod 950 may be rapidly restored.

The drive motor 910 may be mounted to the lower surface of

the lower casing, and the rotating shaft of the drive motor

910 may pass through the inside of the lower casing.

[328] The drive motor 910 may be installed in the device casing

901, and a pinion gear 911 of the drive motor 910 may protrude

to be rotated by the drive motor 910. In addition, the pinion

gear 911 may be engaged with the gear assembly 920 to rotate

the gear assembly 920. Specifically, multiple gears may be

disposed on the device casing 901 to be engaged with each

other. The multiple gears may comprise reduction gears 921

and 923 and spacer gears 925 and 927. Here, the reduction

gears 921 and 923 may function to reduce the rotational speed

of the drive motor 910 through gear ratios, and the spacer

gears 925 and 927 may be connected to and engaged with the

reduction gears 921 and 923 and may function to fill empty

space between the push rod 950 and the reduction gears 921

and 923.

[329] A first reduction gear 921 may be connected to a second

reduction gear 923, and the second reduction gear 923 may be

connected to the spacer gears 925 and 927. Like general reduction gears 921 and 923, each of the reduction gears 921 and 923 may have a structure in which input and output sides thereof are arranged in two upper and lower steps, respectively, and the input and output sides thereof may be in contact with a neighboring gear such that the speed of the drive motor can be reduced.

[330] Through the combination of these multiple reduction

gears 921 and 923, the number of rotations thereof may be

adjusted, and a force transmitted to the push rod 950 may be

controlled by adjusting the number of rotations. Of course,

the number of the reduction gears 921 and 923 may be adjusted

as needed. In the embodiment, the reduction gears 921 and

923 may comprise a total of two reduction gears, but may

comprise at least three reduction gears. Reference numerals

921' and 923' indicate the rotating shafts of the first

reduction gear 921 and the second reduction gear 923,

respectively.

[331] A first spacer gear 925 may be disposed on the second

reduction gear 923, and the first spacer gear 925 and the push

rod 950 may be connected to each other by a second spacer gear

927. Each of the spacer gears 925 and 927 may have a shape

of a general spur gear and may simply transmit the force of

the second reduction gear 923 to the push rod 950, and may

adjust a contact distance with the push rod 950 such that the

maximum exiting distance of the push rod 950 can be secured.

To this end, the spacer gears 925 and 927 may comprise a

plurality of gears having different sizes.

[332] In addition, the position of a contact point between the

spacer gears 925 and 927 for transmitting power to the push

rod 950 and the push rod 950 is preferably arranged in the

exiting direction of the push rod 950 as much as possible,

and is required to be located at a position close to the rear

surface of the door assembly 130. To this end, the spacer

gears 925 and 927 may be disposed between the second reduction

gear 923 and the push rod 950. Reference numeral 925' and FIG.

927' indicate the rotating shafts of the first spacer gear

925 and the second spacer gear 927, respectively.

[333] Specifically, the reduction gears 921 and 923 and the

spacer gears 925 and 927 constituting the gear assembly 920

of the door opening device 900 may be disposed in different

directions. Referring to FIGS. 35 and 36, a direction X in

which the multiple reduction gears 921 and 923 extend from

the drive motor 910 of the door opening device 900 and a

direction Y in which the multiple spacer gears 925 and 927

extend from the reduction gears 921 and 923 may be different

from each other.

[334] In the embodiment, the direction X in which the multiple

reduction gears 921 and 923 constituting the gear assembly

920 of the door opening device 900 extend from the drive motor

910 of the door opening device are approximately orthogonal to a direction in which the push rod 950 of the door opening device enters and exits, and the direction Y in which the multiple spacer gears 925 and 927 extend from the reduction gears 921 and 923 is parallel to the direction in which the push rod 950 enters and exits.

[335] Accordingly, when the extending direction Y of the

spacer gears 925 and 927 is parallel to the entering/exiting

direction of the push rod 950, a contact point at which the

second spacer gear 927 is engaged with the push rod 950 may

be close to the rod entry/exit hole 119 as much as possible,

and accordingly, the maximum exiting distance of the push rod

950 may be secured. Simultaneously, the reduction gears 921

and 923 and the spacer gears 925 and 927 may be arranged in

different directions, and thus the gear assembly 920 may be

prevented from extending long only in one direction and

excessively increasing the overall length of the door opening

device 900.

[336] The push rod 950 may push the rear surface of the door

assembly 130 to open the door assembly 130. In addition, the

push rod 950 may be mounted inside the device casing 901, and

may have a rack gear formed on an outer surface thereof so as

to operate in engagement with the second spacer gear 927.

Accordingly, due to the rotation of the spacer gears 925 and

927, the rack gear may pass through the rod entry/exit hole

119 and protrude to the outside. Due to the position of the second spacer gear 927, at least a half of the rack gear may be moved to the outside of the device casing 901 when the push rod 950 is operated by the second spacer gear 927.

[337] In the embodiment, the push rod 950 may have an arc

shape having a predetermined curvature. Accordingly, even

when the door assembly 130 is rotated, the push rod 950 may

be maintained to be in contact with a predetermined point of

the rear surface of the door assembly 130, more precisely,

with the contact jaw B. Accordingly, even when the door

assembly 130 is rotated, the push rod 950 may open the door

assembly 130 by pushing one point of the door assembly 130

without slipping.

[338] The rod cap 952 may be provided in the front end of the

push rod 950. The rod cap 952 may be made of an elastic

material such as silicone or rubber and may be in contact with

the door assembly 130 to prevent noise and improve traction

during the contact of the push rod 950 with the door assembly

130 such that the pushing force of the push rod 950 can be

effectively transmitted to the door assembly 130.

[339] In the embodiment, the front surface of the rod cap 952

directed toward the rear surface of the door assembly 130 may

be wider than the end of the push rod 950, and thus may more

stably push the surface B' of the contact jaw B. The rod cap

952 may have an approximately rectangular front surface.

[340] In this case, in the embodiment, such a control module

700 may be located close to the door opening device 900. The

control module 700 may be installed on the lower surface 251

of the cover plate 250 and may be electrically connected to

the door opening device 900. That is, the control module 700

may be installed on the lower surface 251 of the cover plate

250 and may be located in the machine room when the cabinet

100 and the machine room frame are coupled to each other, so

the control module 700 may be disposed very close to the door

opening device 900.

[341] More specifically, the control module 700 may be located

toward the side surface of the machine room so as to be

adjacent to the outlet of the machine room, and the door

opening device 900 may be located at a higher position from

the bottom of the machine room than the control module 700.

This is because although the control module 700 is installed

on the lower surface 251 of the cover plate 250, the door

opening device 900 is installed in the installation space 253

recessed from the cover plate 250 toward the lower surface of

the cabinet 100. Of course, due to such a height difference,

the possibility of interference of the control module 700 with

the door opening device 900 may be more decreased.

[342] Finally, the support module 1900 will be described in

detail. FIG. 19 is an enlarged view illustrated by enlarging

an A part of FIG. 17. In addition, FIG. 20 is a cross sectional view of a rear leveling part of FIG. 19. In addition, FIG. 21 is a vertical sectional view of the rear leveling part of FIG. 19.

[343] The refrigerator according to the embodiment of the

present disclosure may comprise the support module 1900

provided at the lower side of the side part 1251. The support

module 1900 may be provided inside the side part 1251. In

addition, the support module 1900 may be configured to support

the refrigerator and may be configured to allow the

horizontality of the refrigerator 1 to be adjusted.

[344] For example, the support module 1900 may comprise a

power transmission part 1920 and the rear leveling part 1910.

The power transmission part 1920 may be rotated by

manipulation by a user and may be connected to the rear

leveling part 1910 so as to operate in cooperation therewith.

The rear leveling part 1910 may be configured to be movable

in a vertical direction such that the horizontality of the

cabinet can be adjusted. In addition, the rear leveling part

1910 may be configured to be moved in a vertical direction by

the manipulation of the power transmission part 1920. In

addition, as required, the support module 1900 may further

comprise a front leveling part 1930.

[345] More specifically, the power transmission part 1920 may

be provided inside the side part 1251, and may be formed in a

shaft shape extending in a front-to-rear direction. In addition, the power transmission part 1920 may comprise a handle part 1922 mounted rotatably to the side part 1251, and a first gear part 1924 provided at the rear half part of the handle part 1922 and rotating together with the handle part

1922, the first gear part 1924 being geared with the rear

leveling part 1910.

[346] The first gear part 1924 may rotate in engagement with

a second gear part 1914 to be described later. For example,

the first gear part 1924 may be formed in the shape of a worm

gear, and the second gear part 1914 may be formed in the shape

of a spur gear, so the first gear part 1924 and the second

gear part 1914 may be configured to transmit rotational force

therebetween even in a state intersecting with each other.

[347] That is, the rotating shaft of the first gear part 1924

and the rotating shaft of the second gear part 1914 may be

disposed in directions intersecting with each other, and thus

when a user rotates the handle part 1922 in front of the

refrigerator, the second gear part 1914 may be rotated to

vertically move the rear leveling part 1910.

[348] The rear leveling part 1910 may comprise the support

part 1912 in contact with a floor surface on which the

refrigerator is installed, a leveling part rotating shaft 1918

extending upward from the center part of the support part

1912, and the second gear part 1914 allowing the leveling part rotating shaft 1918 to pass therethrough and configured to rotate together with the leveling part rotating shaft 1918.

[349] The support part 1912 is a circular plate with a

predetermined thickness, and may be configured to be in

contact with the floor surface on which the refrigerator is

installed. In addition, the leveling part rotating shaft 1918

may be disposed on the center of the upper surface of the

support part 1912.

[350] The leveling part rotating shaft 1918 may be the

rotating shaft of the support part 1912, and may be formed by

extending vertically long to pass through a receiving member

1919 to be described later. In addition, a threaded part may

be formed on the outer circumferential surface of the leveling

part rotating shaft 1918. The threaded part may be screwed

to the inner circumferential surface of the receiving member

1919. Accordingly, when the leveling part rotating shaft 1918

rotates, the leveling part rotating shaft 1918 and the support

part 1912 may be moved vertically along the receiving member

1919.

[351] In addition, the second gear part 1914 may be mounted

to the leveling part rotating shaft 1918 such that the

leveling part rotating shaft 1918 passes through the second

gear part 1914. While the second gear part 1914 is received

inside the receiving member 1919, the second gear part 1914

may rotate, and may be configured to move vertically along the leveling part rotating shaft 1918. In addition, the second gear part 1914 and the leveling part rotating shaft

1918 may have flat surfaces in contact with each other such

that a rotational force is transmitted between the second gear

part 1914 and the leveling part rotating shaft 1918, so the

second gear part 1914 may transmit a rotational force to the

leveling part rotating shaft 1918 while moving vertically

along the leveling part rotating shaft 1918.

[352] Accordingly, when the second gear part 1914 is rotated

by the first gear part 1924, the second gear part 1914 may

rotate the leveling part rotating shaft 1918, and may move

vertically along the leveling part rotating shaft 1918.

[353] The receiving member 1919 may comprise a gear receiving

part 1919a and a rotating shaft receiving part 1919b. The

gear receiving part 1919a may be configured to receive the

second gear part 1914, and while the second gear part 1914 is

received in the gear receiving part 1919a, the second gear

part 1914 may rotate. In addition, the first gear part 1924

may be received in a side of the gear receiving part 1919a.

That is, in the gear receiving part 1919a, the first gear part

1924 and the second gear part 1914 may be maintained to be

engaged with each other, and accordingly, a rotational force

generated by the manipulation of the handle part may be

effectively transmitted to the rear leveling part.

[354] In addition, the rotating shaft receiving part 1919b may

extend upward from the upper surface of the gear receiving

part 1919a, and may be configured such that the leveling part

rotating shaft 1918 passes through the rotating shaft

receiving part 1919b. In addition, a thread may be formed on

the inner side of the gear receiving part 1919a, and may be

screwed to the threaded part of the leveling part rotating

shaft. Accordingly, when the leveling part rotating shaft

rotates, the leveling part rotating shaft may move vertically

along the gear receiving part.

[355] In addition, the rear leveling part 1910 may further

comprise a fixing bracket 1915 such that the support part 1912

and the receiving member 1919 can be fixed to the side part.

The fixing bracket 1915 may have a rectangular frame shape

having an open upper surface. The upper surface of the fixing

bracket 1915 may comprise an extension surface bending and

extending in a front-to-rear direction. A connection hole

may be formed in each of the opposite sides of the extension

surface such that the extension surface can be coupled to the

side part 1251 by using a fastening member.

[356] In addition, the lower surface of the fixing bracket

1915 may comprise a through hole such that the support part

1912 can pass downward through the lower surface of the fixing

bracket 1915. One side of the front surface of the fixing

bracket 1915 may comprise a through hole 1915a formed therethrough in a front-to-rear direction such that the power transmission part 1920 can pass through the through hole

1915a. That is, the first gear part 1924 of the power

transmission part 1920 may be inserted into the fixing bracket

1915 through the through hole 1915a of the front surface

thereof and may be fixed in a state in which the first gear

part 1924 is engaged with the second gear part 1914.

Additionally, the receiving member 1919 may be provided inside

the fixing bracket 1915.

[357] Accordingly, to adjust the rear leveling part 1910 when

leveling the refrigerator, the power transmission part may be

held and rotated by a hand in front of the refrigerator without

lifting the end part of the refrigerator so as to simply

adjust the height and horizontality of the refrigerator.

[358] Additionally, the support module 1900 may comprise the

front leveling part 1930 which is provided on the front of

the side part 1251 and adjusts the horizontality of the

cabinet by rotating to move vertically.

[359] Referring to FIG. 16, while a refrigerator body is

supported on a floor, the front leveling part 1930 may adjust

the height and horizontality of the refrigerator body.

[360] For example, the front leveling part 1930 may comprise

a head 1932 supported on the foundation, and a screw bolt 1934

protruding upward from the head 1932 and fastened height

adjustably to the side part 1251. A threaded part may be formed on the outer circumferential surface of the screw bolt

1934, and as the height of the screw bolt fastened to the side

part 1251 changes, the height and horizontality of the

refrigerator body may be adjusted.

[361] The front leveling part 1930 may further comprise a

front fixing bracket 1936 such that the front leveling part

1930 is inserted into and fixed to the side part 1251.

[362] Furthermore, the support module 1900 may comprise a

roller assembly 1940 which is provided between the front

leveling part 1930 and the rear leveling part 1910 and

facilitates the movement of the cabinet 100.

[363] The roller assembly 1940 may be provided on the lower

surface of the refrigerator body and may allow the

refrigerator body which is relatively heavy to be moved more

easily and stably.

[364] The roller assembly 1940 may comprise a roller 1942, a

rotating shaft 1944, and a roller bracket 1946. The roller

1942 may roll in contact with the floor surface such that the

refrigerator can be moved, and may use a general wheel.

[365] The center part of the roller 1942 may be penetrated

laterally by the rotating shaft 1944 formed in a round bar

shape, and the rotating shaft 1944 may be the center of

rotation of the roller.

[366] In addition, the roller bracket 1946 may be mounted to

the roller such that the roller can roll, and may be formed in a shape having an open lower surface so as to cover the roller from the upper side. Accordingly, the roller may be received in the roller bracket 1946, and the rotating shaft

1944 passing through the roller may pass through and mounted

to the opposite side surfaces of the roller bracket 1946.

[367] Next, the operation of the refrigerator according to the

embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in more

detail.

[368] First, when the door assembly 130 is closed with food

stored in the storage space 121, the storage space 121 is a

sealed space. In this state, when the operation of the air

conditioning module 600 starts, the temperature control

function of the refrigerator starts. That is, the heat

dissipation fan 611, the compressor 610, the main condenser

620, and the evaporator 630 constituting the air conditioning

module 600 may operate and perform an air conditioning

operation.

[369] Referring to FIG. 37, a refrigerant of high temperature

and high temperature compressed by the compressor 610 may pass

through the evaporation tube L2. (the direction of an arrow

(1)) The evaporation tube L2 may be installed in the defrost

water tray 240 and may be connected in a zigzag direction to

secure length as long as possible as illustrated in FIG. 37.

The evaporation tube L2 may be connected through the main control valve 625 to the refrigerant discharge pipe 610a (see

FIG. 8) of the compressor 610 to be a path through which the

refrigerant of high pressure/high temperature passes, and may

be disposed close to the bottom surface 241' of the defrost

water tray 240, and may function to evaporate defrost water

accumulated in the defrost water tray 240.

[370] Continuously, a refrigerant may be delivered to the main

condenser 620 and condensed. (see02D) The main condenser 620

may be disposed close to the entrance of the introduction

space I, and after the refrigerant is condensed, the

refrigerant may be delivered to the expansion valve (the

capillary tube).

[371] In the embodiment, the first side condensing tube L4 may

be connected to the main condenser 620, and thus a refrigerant

may first pass through the first side condensing tube L4.(the

direction of an arrow Q1) In addition, the first side

condensing tube L4 may be connected to the second side

condensing tube L6 by the third connection tube L5 crossing

the machine room 201, and thus a refrigerant may be condensed

while passing through the second side condensing tube L6.(the

direction of an arrow (D) Accordingly, according to the

present disclosure, since there are the side condensing tubes

L5 and L6, the side condensing tubes L5 and L6 may condense a refrigerant by assisting the main condenser 620, and thus the size of the main condenser 620 may be decreased relatively.

[372] In addition, the side condensing tube L5 and L6 may be

mounted in the side surface of the cabinet 100 so as to

increase the temperature of the side surface of the

refrigerator, and accordingly, it is possible to prevent the

formation of dew on the outer surface of the refrigerator due

to temperature difference between the inside and outside of

the refrigerator.

[373] Meanwhile, the second side condensing tube L6 may be

connected to the front condensing tube L8 by the fourth

connection tube L7, so refrigerant may be condensed even in

the process of passing through the front condensing tube

L8(the direction of arrow ( )) . Accordingly, in the

embodiment, each of the first side condensing tube L4, the

second side condensing tube L6, and the front condensing tube

L8 may function to condense refrigerant, together with the

main condenser 620, and thus although a large main condenser

620 is not installed in the machine room 201 due to low height

and narrowness of the machine room 201, this may be

compensated.

[374] Refrigerant passing through the front condensing tube

L8 may be delivered through the fifth connection tube L9 to

the expansion valve, and refrigerant having decreased pressure and temperature in the expansion valve may be delivered to the evaporator 630. Although not shown, the dryer and the capillary tube may be installed between the front condensing tube L8 and the evaporator 630, and a refrigerant may pass consecutively through the front condensing tube L8, the dryer, the main control valve 625, the capillary tube, and the evaporator 630. Here, the dryer may function to protect a system by removing moisture and filtering foreign matter, and the capillary tube may function to throttle.

[375] Meanwhile, the evaporator 630 may be disposed in space

behind the grille fan assemblies 500a and 500b in each part

in the inner casing 120. That is, during a circulation in

which air is discharged to the upper side of the associated

storage space 121 after the air is sucked from the internal

lower side of the storage space 121 due to the operation of

the grille fan assemblies 500a and 500b, the air may exchange

heat with the evaporator 630 while passing therethrough.

[376] FIG. 38 illustrates a heat exchange process by the

evaporator 630. First, the cooling compartment 125

partitioned from the storage space 121 may be provided behind

the storage space 121 (a left space relative to FIG. 38), and

the evaporator 630 may be installed in the cooling compartment

125. In addition, the grille fan assembly 500 may be

installed inside the cooling compartment 125 located above

the evaporator 630 and may introduce air delivered from the storage space 121 through the evaporator 630 and may discharge the air back into the storage space 121.

[377] More specifically, when the grille fan assembly 500

operates, the grille fan assembly 500 may introduce air from

the lower side of the evaporator 630. That is, the internal

air of the storage space 121 may be introduced through the

air introduction hole 275 present in the air introduction part

272 of the grille plate 270 (the direction of an arrow ()

, and may flow upward through the evaporator 630 (the direction

of an arrow 2) .

[378] Here, in order to be away from the evaporator 630, the

air introduction part 272 may protrude in a direction toward

the storage space 121, that is, in a direction away from the

inner surface 124 of the inner casing 120, so an empty space

may be naturally defined between the air introduction part

272 and the evaporator 630. Accordingly, air may be

efficiently introduced through the air introduction hole 275

present in the air introduction part 272.

[379] In this case, air having high temperature and high

pressure passing through the cooling tube 638 of the

evaporator 630 may be changed into air having low temperature

and low pressure by being cooled by the cooling tube 638.

Particularly, air present in the lower portion of the cooling

tube 638 may have a flow rate increased while passing through the cooling fins 650, and as the flow rate increases, the pressure of air may be decreased. Accordingly, air passing through the cooling fins 650 may have pressure lower than the pressure of air before passing through the cooling fins 650.

[380] In addition, this cooled air may be discharged into the

storage space 121 by the grille fan assembly 500. (the

direction of an arrow (1)) In this process, to increase a

distance between the inner surface 124 of the inner casing

120 facing the grille fan assembly 500 and the grille fan

assembly 500, the evasion recession part 124' may be recessed

on the inner surface 124, and the evaporator 630 may be

installed under the evasion recession part 124'. Accordingly,

air may efficiently flow consecutively through the air

introduction hole 275, the evaporator 630, the evasion

recession part 124', and the grille fan assembly 500.

[381] Meanwhile, in such a cooling process by the evaporator

630, defrost water may be generated, and when the defrost

water freezes, the defrost water may become defrost ice. The

generated defrost water may flow downward along the direction

of gravity and flow downward through the defrost water

collector 126 located on the lower side of the inner surface

124 of the inner casing 120. Additionally, the defrost water

may be collected in the defrost water tray 240 provided in

the machine room 201 through the defrost water pipe 590.

[382] Such an evaporator 630 may be configured as a plate

shaped evaporator 630, and may be stably installed on the

front of a rear wall surface of the inner wall surface of the

inner casing 120, and may realize the improvement of heat

exchange performance in a narrow space. For reference, In

FIG. 37, reference numeral L10 indicates the evaporator

connection tube which connects the evaporator 630 with the

main control valve 625.

[383] In addition, finally, a refrigerant passing through the

evaporator 630 may be introduced back into the refrigerant

introduction tube 610b (see FIG. 8) of the compressor 610 to

repeat a refrigeration cycle.

[384] Meanwhile, in FIG. 39, an air flow inside the machine

room 201 is illustrated. In the process of the flow of

refrigerant described above, the temperature of the machine

room 201 may rise. Particularly, the temperatures of the

compressor 610 and the main condenser 620 may greatly rise,

and in the embodiment, this temperature rise may be suppressed

through an air flow inside the machine room 201.

[385] Specifically, first, when the heat dissipation fan 611

operates, the heat dissipation fan 611 may introduce outside

air into the introduction space. Here, when air of the

outside (a place in which the refrigerator is installed) is

introduced through the front cover 220 into the introduction space I (the direction of arrow )) , the air may immediately meet the main condenser 620. Particularly, in the embodiment, the inlet 225a which is the entrance of the introduction space

I may be wider than the outlet 225b which is the exit of the

discharge space 0. That is, the inlet 225a may be widened to

increase the amount of air introduced initially, and

accordingly, the main condenser 620 may be effectively cooled.

[386] In this case, since the introduction space I is blocked

except for the inlet 225a, introduced air may flow through

the main condenser 620 only toward the heat dissipation fan

611. Accordingly, the main condenser 620 may be more

effectively cooled.

[387] In addition, the introduced air may evaporate a portion

of defrost water while passing over the defrost water tray

240 (the direction of arrow) . In this case, the introduced

air may be guided by the separation wall 230. That is, the

introduced air may not flow to the discharge space 0

comprising the compressor 610, but may be guided to the heat

dissipation fan 611 along the separation wall 230. In this

case, the heat dissipation fan 611 may be installed on the

rear end portion of the separation wall 230, and the heat

dissipation fan 611 may be a part of a kind of separation wall

230.

[388] After the introduced air passes through the heat

dissipation fan 611 (the direction of arrow (1)), the air may

be discharged to the compressor 610 facing the heat

dissipation fan 611 and may cool the compressor 610. Since

the heat dissipation fan 611 is open, the introduction space

I and the discharge space 0 may be connected to each other

relative to the heat dissipation fan 611, but when the heat

dissipation fan 611 operates, air may flow from the

introduction space I to the discharge space 0, so it is

difficult that the air flows in a direction opposite to the

direction of the air flow. Accordingly, the heat of the

compressor 610 may be effectively prevented from being

transferred to the main condenser 620.

[389] In this case, the flow guide surface 245 may be present

between the defrost water tray 240 and the heat dissipation

fan 611, and thus may prevent the heat dissipation fan 611

from decreasing efficiency by being covered by the defrost

water tray 240. That is, introduced air may be naturally

guided toward the heat dissipation fan 611 through the

downward inclined surface of the flow guide surface 245. Such

a flow guide surface 245 may prevent the formation of dead

space, in which the flow of air is prevented or a vortex is

generated, between the defrost water tray 240 and the heat

dissipation fan 611.

[390] Air passing through the compressor 610 may pass through

the discharge space 0 (the direction of arrow @) . In this

case, since the control module 700 is located the upper side

of the discharge space 0, the discharge space 0 may be defined

between the lower surface of the control module 700 and the

bottom surface of the machine room frame 200, and the air

passing through the compressor may pass through this part.

In FIG. 39, a part in which air passes through the lower side

of the control module 700 is indicated by a dotted line.

[391] Finally, air which completes cooling may be discharged

through the outlet 225b to the outside (the direction of arrow

(5)). Accordingly, in the embodiment, introduced air may flow

only along a predetermined path, so it is possible to perform

effective cooling. Particularly, since the introduction

space I is blocked except for the inlet 225a, outside air may

flow through the main condenser 620 only toward the heat

dissipation fan 611, but after completing cooling, may be

discharged in various directions.

[392] That is, the bottom of the discharge space 0 of the

machine room 201 defined between the heat dissipation fan 611

and the outlet 225b may be connected to the outside since a

portion of the bottom, side surface, and rear surface of the

discharge space is open to the outside through the heat

dissipation holes 211' or 214, (see FIGS. 7 and 11).

Accordingly, the initial introduction of outside air may be

limited to a specific direction, that is, to the main

condenser 620, but after the outside air dissipates heat of

the main condenser 620 and the compressor 610, the outside

air may be discharged in various directions, so the heat

dissipation performance of the machine room may be improved.

[393] The above description is only to illustrate the

technical idea of the present disclosure, but those skilled

in the art to which the present disclosure pertains will be

able to make various modifications and variations without

departing from the essential characteristics of the present

invention. Accordingly, the embodiments disclosed in the

present disclosure is not intended to limit the technical

spirit of the present disclosure, but to explain it, and the

scope of the technical spirit of the present disclosure is

not limited to the embodiments. The scope of protection of

the present disclosure should be interpreted by the scope of

the claims below, and all technical spirits within the scope

equivalent thereto should be interpreted as being included in

the scope of the claims of the present disclosure.

[394] Although embodiments have been described with reference to a number of illustrative embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

[395] Many modifications will be apparent to those skilled in

the art without departing from the scope of the present

invention as herein described with reference to the

accompanying drawings.

Claims

1. A refrigerator comprising:

a cabinet having a storage space and a door assembly

configured to open and close the storage space, and

a machine room disposed under the storage space and

comprising a compressor, a condenser, and a heat dissipation

fan for implementing a cooling system, the machine room having

an inlet and an outlet formed on a front surface thereof,

wherein the compressor and the condenser are disposed

respectively in spaces partitioned from each other, and the

heat dissipation fan is disposed in a rear portion of the

machine room relative to the inlet, and the compressor is

disposed in a rear portion of the machine room relative to the

outlet, and

wherein an introduction space of the machine room is

confined by a bottom plate, a side plate, and a rear plate

constituting the machine room, and a discharge space of the

machine room has an additional outlet formed by openings at

least in a portion of the bottom plate, in the side plate, and

in the rear plate such that the discharge space communicates

with the outside.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the discharge

space is provided with a control module, and the additional outlet is formed at a position corresponding to at least a portion of areas of the compressor and the control module.

3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the bottom plate

has a reinforcement part extending in a direction intersecting

with a separation wall, wherein the reinforcement part is

disposed between the additional outlet and an additional inlet.

4. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein

a defrost water tray is disposed on a bottom of the machine

room corresponding to a position between the inlet and the heat

dissipation fan, and a flow guide surface is formed on the

defrost water tray and inclines toward the heat dissipation

fan.

5. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein

the additional outlet is formed vertically therethrough in the

discharge space.

6. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein

the additional outlet comprises a plurality of through holes

formed vertically, and

wherein the through holes are configured to be arranged

in lines within a predetermined area.

7. The refrigerator of claim 6, wherein the bottom plate

comprises an additional inlet vertically formed therethrough,

and

wherein the additional outlet is located at a side behind

the additional inlet.

8. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein

the additional outlet comprises:

a first outlet provided at a position corresponding to a

position at which the compressor is disposed; and

a second outlet located in front of the first outlet and

formed vertically through the bottom plate.

9. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein

a side part is coupled to the bottom plate, and

wherein the side part comprises a side discharge hole

through which the internal air of the machine room is discharged

to the outside.

10. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein

a lower surface of the cabinet is constituted by a cover plate,

and the cover plate is disposed on an upper part of the machine

room.

11. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein a cut part open to expose an upper end of the compressor to the outside is formed in a rear end of the cover plate, and a compressor cover is provided in the cover plate so as to cover the cut part.

12. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein the cover plate

comprises a first cover part and a second cover part, wherein

the second cover part is disposed above the compressor and the

heat dissipation fan, and is configured to be higher than the

first cover part which is disposed above the inlet and the

outlet.

13. The refrigerator of claim 12, wherein an outer plate

constituting a side surface of the machine room is configured

to have the same height from a front of the machine room to a

rear thereof, and the second cover part is configured to be

higher than the outer plate.

14. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein

the heat dissipation fan and a side surface of the machine room

are spaced apart from each other so as to define an air flow

space therebetween, and the heat dissipation fan is disposed

to face the side surface of the machine room.

15. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein

a separation wall is disposed between an introduction space of the machine room connected to the inlet and a discharge space of the machine room connected to the outlet such that an inside of the machine room is divided into opposite sides, the separation wall comprising a first wall and a second wall connected to each other.

16. The refrigerator of claim 15, wherein the first wall

is disposed between the inlet and the outlet, the second wall

is connected to the heat dissipation fan, and the heat

dissipation fan is disposed between the second wall and a rear

surface of the machine room.

17. The refrigerator of any one of claims 15 or 16, wherein

a cover plate comprises: a first cover part extending rearward

from a front end of the machine room at a constant height; a

second cover part extending rearward from a rear end of the

first cover part and having a height higher than the height of

the first cover part; and a vertical connection part which is

located between the first cover part and the second cover part

and vertically connects the first cover part with the second

cover part,

wherein the first cover part has the same height as a

height of each of the separation wall and the condenser.

18. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 17, wherein the machine room is provided with a pair of side parts coupled to a bottom plate and a side plate constituting the machine room, wherein each of the side parts is configured to provide an opening in a lower surface thereof such that a support module supporting the machine room is provided inside the side part.

19. The refrigerator of any one of claim 18, wherein the

support module comprises a power transmission part extending

from a front end of the side part along the inside of the side

part, and a rear leveling part which is coupled to a rear end

of the power transmission part and adjusts a horizontality of

the refrigerator.

20. The refrigerator of any one of claims 1 to 19, wherein

a defrost water tray is disposed on a bottom of the machine

room corresponding to a position between the inlet and the heat

dissipation fan,

wherein a portion of said defrost water tray extends to a

position facing the heat dissipation fan.