CN110906638B

CN110906638B - Door opening and closing device and refrigerator with same

Info

Publication number: CN110906638B
Application number: CN201910782433.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 崔宰馨
Original assignee: Scd Co ltd
Current assignee: Scd Co ltd
Priority date: 2018-09-18
Filing date: 2019-08-23
Publication date: 2021-07-27
Anticipated expiration: 2039-08-23
Also published as: CN110906638A

Abstract

The present invention relates to a door opening and closing device. A door opening and closing apparatus according to an embodiment includes: a housing; a driving motor internally disposed in the housing; a driving gear fixed to a driving shaft of the driving motor to rotate; a two-stage gear including an upper gear engaged with the driving gear and a lower gear coaxially rotating with the upper gear; a friction gear including a friction lower gear engaged with the lower gear and a friction upper gear coaxially rotating with the friction lower gear; and an output gear that meshes with the friction upper gear and includes a shaft coupling portion that protrudes upward from a rotational center portion. An insertion opening into which the shaft coupling portion is rotatably inserted is formed in the housing so that the shaft coupling portion can be exposed to the outside of the housing.

Description

Door opening and closing device and refrigerator with same

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a device for opening and closing a duct door (duct door) at an ice discharge port and a refrigerator having the same.

Background

As the size of the refrigerator is increased, a refrigerator having an ice maker (ice maker) separately installed therein has been introduced. The refrigerator generally includes: an ice bin (ice tank) capable of storing ice pieces produced by the ice making device together with the ice making device; and a dispenser (dispenser) that can take out the ice cubes stored in the ice bin to the outside by a user's operation. The ice bin arranged on the refrigerator door is connected with the distributor through a conduit, and the conduit forming the ice taking port is provided with: a door (hereinafter referred to as a "duct door") for opening and closing the ice-taking opening; and an ice box (ice shutter) for opening and closing the duct door.

In connection with this, as an example of a conventional ice container, there is known an electromagnetic (solenoid) type door opening and closing device having a metal operating lever that moves along a straight line. This type of door opening and closing device opens and closes the ice discharge opening by pushing or pulling a portion constituting a rotary shaft of a duct door provided in the ice discharge opening (hereinafter referred to as "a rotary portion of the duct door") with a metal operating lever.

However, in the case of the conventional electromagnetic door opening/closing device, since the linear movement direction of the metal operating lever is different from the rotation direction of the duct door, the metal operating lever cannot be coupled to the rotation portion of the duct door, and the metal operating lever must be spaced apart from the rotation portion of the duct door at the time of installation in order to secure a space in which the metal operating lever can move linearly. Therefore, there is a design constraint in installing the door opening and closing device inside the refrigerator door. In addition, in the case of the conventional electromagnetic door opening and closing device, since the metal operating lever is rapidly moved by a magnetic field formed in the coil through which the current flows and is stopped by collision with the housing of the door opening and closing device, a loud noise (e.g., collision sound) is generated every time the door opening and closing device is operated, thereby giving a user a sense of discomfort.

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem to be solved

An embodiment of the present invention is directed to solve the problems of the related art described above, and an object of the present invention is to provide a door opening and closing device having a structure that is coupled to a duct door for opening and closing an ice discharge opening on the same rotation axis and that is capable of rotating the coupled duct door, and a refrigerator having the same.

Means for solving the problems

Embodiments according to an aspect of the invention relate to a door opening and closing device. The door opening and closing apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment includes: a housing (housing); a driving motor internally disposed in the housing; a driving gear (driving gear) fixed to a driving shaft of the driving motor to rotate; a two-stage gear including an upper gear engaged with the driving gear and a lower gear coaxially rotating with the upper gear; a friction gear including a friction lower gear engaged with the lower gear and a friction upper gear coaxially rotating with the friction lower gear; and an output gear that is meshed with the friction upper gear and has a shaft coupling portion extending upward from a rotation center. An insertion opening into which the shaft coupling portion is rotatably inserted is formed in the housing such that the shaft coupling portion is exposed to the outside of the housing.

In one embodiment, the output gear is a sector gear (sector gear) provided on the housing in such a manner that the shaft coupling portion is located at a side corner portion of the housing.

In one embodiment, the housing comprises: a case (case) opened at the upper side; and a cover (cover) coupled to or decoupled from the housing to open and close an open upper side of the housing. The housing includes a bottom wall to which the two-stage gear, the friction gear, and the output gear are rotatably attached, and the cover includes a top wall that faces the bottom wall and rotatably supports the two-stage gear, the friction gear, and the output gear. In this embodiment, the insertion opening is provided on the top wall.

In one embodiment, the output gear further includes a tooth portion protruding in a fan shape from a lower-side outer circumferential surface of the shaft coupling portion. The tooth portion includes a stopper (stopper) protruding from an upper surface of the tooth portion and extending in a circumferential direction of the tooth portion.

In one embodiment, a coupling port opened upward is formed on the shaft coupling portion of the output gear. The shaft coupling portion includes a deformation portion formed to protrude toward an inner side of the coupling port.

In one embodiment, the case has a lower sidewall surrounding the bottom wall, and the cover has an upper sidewall surrounding the top wall, the lower sidewall being formed to have a step so that the lower sidewall is in contact with a lower surface of the upper sidewall and an inner side surface of the upper sidewall.

In one embodiment, the cover is further provided with a cushioning sidewall inside the upper sidewall. In this embodiment, when the case is coupled to the cover, the inner side surface of the lower side wall is in contact with the outer side surface of the buffer side wall. In addition, when the tooth-shaped part is contacted with the inner side surface of the lower side wall through the rotation of the output gear, the stopper is contacted with the inner side surface of the buffer side wall.

In one embodiment, a plurality of catching protrusions are formed at an outer side surface of the lower sidewall, and a plurality of catching rings are formed at an outer side surface of the upper sidewall, the plurality of catching rings respectively corresponding to and respectively catching-coupled with the plurality of catching protrusions. Further, each of the engaging protrusions may include a guide protrusion protruding further toward an outer surface of the lower side wall than the engaging protrusion and the engaging ring engaged with the engaging protrusion.

In one embodiment, the housing is provided with a pair of lower lugs (lug) and the cover is provided with a pair of upper lugs corresponding to the pair of lower lugs. In this embodiment, when the cover body is coupled to the housing, the upper lug and the lower lug, which are connected to each other, are coupled by a screw.

In one embodiment, the bottom wall includes a pair of lower through portions, the top wall includes a pair of upper through portions corresponding to the pair of lower through portions, and the housing has a vertically penetrating mounting opening formed therethrough.

In one embodiment, the drive motor is a dc motor.

In one embodiment, the door opening and closing device further includes a power cord having one end connected to the driving motor and the other end led out to the outside of the housing and connected to a connector.

In one embodiment, the drive gear is a worm gear and the upper gear is a helical gear.

Embodiments in accordance with another aspect of the invention relate to a refrigerator. The refrigerator according to an exemplary embodiment includes: an ice making device; a duct door for opening and closing an ice taking-out opening for taking out the ice pieces made by the ice making device; and a door opening and closing device which is the door opening and closing device according to the foregoing embodiment, and a door opening and closing device which is combined with the duct door to rotate the duct door. The catheter gate includes: a partition for partitioning the ice intake; and a rotating part which is combined with the partition part and supports the partition part in a rotatable manner. One end in the longitudinal direction of the rotating portion is coupled to a shaft coupling portion of an output gear provided in the door opening/closing device on the same rotational axis, and the duct door is rotated by the rotation of the output gear with the longitudinal direction of the rotating portion as the rotational axis direction.

In one embodiment, the refrigerator further includes a torsion spring (torsion spring) coupled to the other end of the rotation part in the length direction.

In one embodiment, the rotating portion includes, at one end in a longitudinal direction of the rotating portion: a pin (pin) portion having a circular cross-section; and a protrusion having a fan-shaped cross section protruding from an outer peripheral surface of the pin portion. A coupling opening into which one end of the rotation part in a longitudinal direction is inserted is formed in the shaft coupling part, and when the output gear rotates, the protrusion part is pushed by a deformation part provided to protrude toward an inner side of the coupling opening in the shaft coupling part, thereby rotating the rotation part.

In one embodiment, the protrusion and the deforming part are arranged to have a no-load rotation angle of the output gear centering on a rotation axis of the rotating part at an initial position of the rotating part where the ice taking port is closed by the guide door.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF INVENTION

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the rotating part of the duct door for opening and closing the ice-taking opening of the refrigerator can be combined with the output gear of the door opening and closing device on the same rotating axis. Therefore, the door opening and closing device can be easily installed on the door of the refrigerator without being separated from the duct door, and thus, the door opening and closing device can be easily installed on the door of the refrigerator without being restricted by design and space. In addition, since the door opening/closing device adopts an assembly structure of the motor and the gear, when the duct door is opened/closed, the generation of noise which gives a user a sense of discomfort can be remarkably reduced.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a door opening and closing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 is a plan view illustrating a door opening and closing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the door opening/closing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 with a cover removed;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a two-stage gear according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a friction gear according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating an output gear according to one embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a perspective view showing a housing according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a cover according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing the door opening and closing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention with a cover removed;

fig. 10 is a schematic view showing a part of a door opening and closing apparatus that cuts off a part of a housing according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 11 is a schematic view schematically showing a part of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 12 is a perspective view illustrating a door opening and closing apparatus coupled to a duct door according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view showing one end portion of a rotating portion of a catheter door in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 14 is a sectional view of a coupling portion of an output gear of the door opening and closing apparatus and a rotation portion of the duct door according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The reference numerals are explained below:

1000: door opening and closing device, 1100: housing, 1200: drive motor, 1300: driving gear, 1400: two-stage gear, 1500: friction gear, 1600: output gear, 1700: power supply line, 2000: refrigerator, 2100: ice making device, 2200: ice bin, 2300: distributor, 2400: duct gate, 2500: a torsion spring.

Detailed Description

The purpose of the embodiments of the present invention is to explain the technical idea of the present invention. The following examples or specific descriptions thereof do not limit the scope of the present invention.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. All terms used in the present invention are selected for the purpose of more clearly explaining the present invention, and are not selected for the purpose of limiting the scope of the claims of the present invention.

Unless otherwise mentioned in a phrase or sentence including a related expression, the expressions "including", "having", and the like used in the present invention should be understood as open-ended terms (open-ended terms) including the possibility of other embodiments unless otherwise defined in the sentence or article including the expression.

The singular forms "a", "an" and "the" in the present invention may include plural referents unless otherwise specified, and may also be applied to the singular forms as set forth in the following claims.

The expressions "1 st", "2 nd", etc. used in the present invention are used to distinguish a plurality of constituent elements from each other, and do not limit the order or importance of the constituent elements concerned.

In the present invention, if a certain component is referred to as being "connected" or "linked" to another component, it is to be understood that the certain component may be directly connected or linked to the other component or may be connected or linked via a new other component.

In order to explain the present invention with reference to the drawings, a spatial rectangular coordinate system formed by X, Y and Z axes crossing each other at right angles will be explained. That is, the respective configurations of the embodiments can be explained on XYZ rectangular coordinates. The respective axis directions (X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, Z-axis direction) refer to two directions in which the respective axes extend. The plus of "+" sign (+ X-axis direction, + Y-axis direction, + Z-axis direction) in front of each axis direction means a positive direction which is either one of two directions in which each axis extends. The addition of a "-" sign (the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction) to the front of each axis direction means a negative direction which is the other of the two directions in which each axis extends. This is merely a standard for explaining so as to clearly understand the present invention, and it is needless to say that each direction may be defined differently depending on where the reference is placed.

As used herein, "XZ plane" refers to a plane parallel to the X axis and the Z axis, "YZ plane" refers to a plane parallel to the Y axis and the Z axis, and "XY plane" refers to a plane parallel to the X axis and the Y axis.

As used herein, directional indicators such as "up" and "up" refer to the + Z-axis direction, directional indicators such as "down" and "down" refer to the-Z-axis direction, and directional indicators such as "up-down" refer to the Z-axis direction. The directional indicator such as "side" used in the present invention means a direction perpendicular to the Z-axis direction, and may include the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction. This is merely a standard for clearly understanding the present invention, and the upper, lower, and side portions may be defined differently depending on where the reference is placed.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding components are denoted by the same reference numerals. In the following description of the embodiments, the same or corresponding components may not be described repeatedly. However, even if the explanation of the constituent elements is omitted, it is not intended that such constituent elements are not included in a certain embodiment.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a door opening and closing apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 2 is a plan view of the door opening and closing apparatus 1000 shown in fig. 1. In fig. 1 and 2, the door opening/closing device 1000 is located on the XY plane.

Referring to fig. 1 and 2, the door opening and closing apparatus 1000 includes a hollow type housing 1100. The housing 1100 may be made of an insulating material such as a plastic material in order to prevent electric shock due to leakage, because the door opening/closing device 1000 is easily exposed to moisture due to the characteristics of the installation place (for example, the inside of the refrigerator door).

The casing 1100 according to one embodiment includes a case 1110 and a cover 1120, and a structure for coupling and decoupling the cover 1120 is provided above the case 1110 (+ Z-axis direction). The case 1110 and the cover 1120 are respectively provided with a lower wall 1111 and an upper wall 1121 facing in a direction intersecting the Z-axis direction, and when the case 1110 and the cover 1120 are coupled, the lower wall 1111 and the upper wall 1121 form a side wall of the casing 1100.

The housing 1110 and the cover 1120 are combined by a dual combination method, for example, by a hook and loop method and a screw locking method. In order to couple the case 1110 and the cover 1120 by a snap-fit method, a plurality of snap protrusions 1112 are provided on an outer surface (a side surface opposite to a side surface facing the inside of the housing) of the lower side wall 1111, and a plurality of snap rings 1122 corresponding to the plurality of snap protrusions 1112 are provided on an outer surface (a side surface opposite to a side surface facing the inside of the housing) of the upper side wall 1121. The catch protrusions 1112 have a wedge shape forming a catch table, and the catch ring 1122 has a substantially U-shaped ring shape that can be inserted into the catch table and caught. When the housing 1110 is coupled with the cover 1120, the snap protrusions 1112 are snap-coupled with the corresponding snap rings 1122.

In one embodiment, the guide protrusion 1113 of the reinforcing structure is provided at one side or both sides of the catch protrusion 1112, which can both guide the catch protrusion 1112 to be smoothly caught on the catch ring 1122 and protect the housing 1100 from external impact. The guide protrusion 1113 has a height H that is higher than the height H of the catch ring 1122 and the catch protrusion 1112 that are snap-coupled to the catch protrusion 1112, with reference to the outer surface of the lower side wall 1111. Even if an unexpected external impact (for example, an impact caused by dropping the door opening/closing device 1000 or an impact caused by collision of the door opening/closing device 1000 with an external object) is applied to the door opening/closing device 1000 during storage, transportation, installation, or the like of the door opening/closing device 1000, the guide protrusion 1113 prevents the external impact from being directly applied to the coupling portion between the catch protrusion 1112 and the catch ring 1122, and thus damage or breakage of the door opening/closing device 1000 can be minimized. In one embodiment, although the guide protrusion 1113 protrudes from the lower sidewall 1111, in other embodiments, the guide protrusion 1113 may also protrude from the upper sidewall 1121.

In order to screw-fasten the case 1110 and the cover 1120 together, the case 1110 includes a pair of lower lugs 1114, and the cover 1120 includes a pair of upper lugs 1124 corresponding to the pair of lower lugs 1114. When the cover 1120 is coupled to the housing 1110, the upper lugs 1124 abut the lower lugs 1114. Fastening holes penetrating vertically (Z-axis direction) are provided in the lower boss 1114 and the upper boss 1124 which are vertically (Z-axis direction) abutted against each other, so that the screws 1130 can be coupled.

The housing 1100 is provided with a pair of mounting

ports

1140 and 1150 penetrating vertically (in the Z-axis direction). When the door opening and closing device 1000 is attached or mounted to another device, a part of the other device can be inserted into the pair of mounting

openings

1140 and 1150, or a screw or the like can be fastened.

The door opening/closing apparatus 1000 includes an output gear 1600 exposed upward (+ Z axis direction) from one side corner of the housing 1100. Therefore, an insertion opening 1160 is formed in the housing 1100, and a part of the output gear 1600 can be rotatably inserted into the insertion opening 1160. The door opening/closing device 1000 can rotate a member (for example, a duct door described later) or a device coupled to the output gear 1600.

The door opening and closing apparatus 1000 includes a power line 1700 capable of supplying power to components (e.g., a driving motor) inwardly disposed in the housing 1100. A connector 1710 is connected to an outer end of the power cord 1700 drawn out from the housing 1100, so that the power cord 1700 can be easily connected to other devices and the like.

Fig. 3 is a schematic view of door opening/closing apparatus 1000 shown in fig. 1 with cover 1120 removed. Reference to

Fig. 3, a door opening and closing apparatus 1000 of an embodiment includes: a driving motor 1200, a driving gear 1300, a two-stage gear 1400, a friction gear 1500, and an output gear 1600 built in the housing 1100.

The drive motor 1200 is cylindrical, and includes a drive shaft (not shown) at one end and a pair of terminals 1210 at the other end on the opposite side. The drive motor 1200 is housed in the casing 1100 with the other end thereof facing the lower side wall 1111 of the case 1110, and the inner terminal of the power supply line 1700 is connected to the pair of terminals 1210. In one embodiment, the driving motor 1200 employs a direct current motor (DC motor), which is easy to perform rotation control in forward and reverse directions and has excellent output in comparison with a small size.

The drive gear 1300 is fixed to a drive shaft of the drive motor 1200 for rotation. The driving force generated by applying power to the driving motor 1200 is sequentially transmitted to the driving gear 1300, the two-stage gear 1400, the friction gear 1500, and the output gear 1600. In terms of transmission of the driving force from the driving motor 1200 to the output gear 1600, the two-stage gear 1400 and the friction gear 1500 may function as a reduction gear that increases the rotational force while reducing the rotational speed.

As shown in fig. 3, the two-stage gear 1400 and the friction gear 1500 are disposed so as to be able to mesh in the X-axis direction or in a direction inclined to the X-axis in the direction (Y-axis direction) in which the driving shaft of the driving motor 1200 faces, and the output gear 1600 is disposed so as to be able to mesh with the friction gear 1500 at one side corner inside the housing 1100 in the-Y-axis direction or in a direction inclined to the-Y-axis of the friction gear 1500. The output gear 1600 can transmit a driving force in a clockwise direction R (when viewed from the + Z axis direction) within a predetermined angular range₁Or in the counter-clockwise direction R₂And (4) rotating.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a two-stage gear 1400 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 4, the two-stage gear 1400 has a configuration in which 2 gears are combined into one on the same shaft. Namely, the two-stage gear 1400 includes: an upper gear 1410 engaged with the driving gear 1300; a lower gear 1420 which rotates coaxially with the upper gear 1410; and a two-stage gear rod 1430 coaxially connecting the upper gear 1410 and the lower gear 1420. In one embodiment, in order to efficiently arrange the built-in parts of the housing 1100 so that the door opening and closing apparatus 1000 has a compact size, the driving gear 1300 employs a worm gear (worm gear), and the upper gear 1410 of the two-stage gear 1400 engaged with such driving gear 1300 employs a helical gear (helical gear). The lower gear 1420 of the two-stage gear 1400 employs a spur gear (spur gear).

The two-stage gear 1400 further includes a circular spacer 1440 interposed between the upper gear 1410 and the lower gear 1420 to prevent the drive gear 1300 from meshing with the lower gear 1420.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a friction gear 1500 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 5, the friction gear 1500 includes: a friction lower gear 1510 that meshes with a lower gear 1420 of the two-stage gear 1400; a friction upper gear 1520 coaxially rotating with the friction lower gear 1510; and a friction gear rod 1530 coaxially connecting the friction lower gear 1510 and the friction upper gear 1520. The friction gear 1500 of one embodiment employs a structure capable of preventing breakage due to abnormal overload. That is, the friction plate (e.g., washer) 1540 is attached to the upper portion 1531 of the friction gear rod 1530 in a state where the friction plate (e.g., washer) 1540 is interposed between the friction lower gear 1510 and the friction upper gear 1520, and the friction plate (not shown) is also attached between the friction lower gear 1510 and the lower portion 1532 of the friction gear rod 1530. The upper portion 1531 and the lower portion 1532 of the friction gear bar 1530 are separable from each other, and the upper portion 1531 and the lower portion 1532 of the friction gear bar 1530 are assembled by a screw (not shown) tightened from below, so that when a rotational force exceeding a required value is generated, the friction plate 1540 is rotated and slid, and thus an excessive rotational load can be prevented from being applied.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view illustrating an output gear 1600 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 6, the output gear 1600 is a sector gear (sector gear) that intermittently reciprocates. The output gear 1600 includes a shaft coupling portion 1610 extending from a rotation center (a portion through which the rotation axis RA passes). The output gear 1600 includes a sector-shaped tooth 1620, and the tooth 1620 protrudes from the lower outer circumferential surface of the shaft coupling portion 1610 in a direction intersecting the extending direction of the shaft coupling portion 1610. A plurality of gear teeth 1621 are formed on the tooth 1620 along an edge portion. The tooth 1620 includes a stopper 1630 that protrudes upward from the upper surface 1622 of the tooth 1620 and extends in the circumferential direction of the tooth 1620.

The output gear 1600 is meshed with the friction upper gear 1520 of the friction gear 1500 through the teeth 1620. When the output gear 1600 is mounted to the housing 1100, the shaft coupling portion 1610 is inserted into an insertion hole 1160 formed in the housing 1100.

In the output gear 1600, a coupling port 1611 that opens upward is formed in the shaft coupling portion 1610. In addition, the shaft coupling portion 1610 includes a deformation portion 1612 formed to protrude inward of the coupling port 1611 so that the output gear 1600 can be prevented from idling relative to the coupled components.

The output gear 1600 includes a support portion 1640 protruding from a lower portion of the shaft coupling portion 1610, and thus can be rotatably mounted on the housing 1110.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a case 1110 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 7, the housing 1110 has a shape that is open upward (+ Z-axis direction). In the case 1110, the two-stage gear 1400, the friction gear 1500, and the output gear 1600 are attached to predetermined positions, and the case 1110 includes a bottom wall 1115 surrounded by the lower wall 1111.

To form a motor accommodating part S₁The bottom wall 1115 includes a portion having a semi-cylindrical shape or the like. In addition, in order to form the gear housing part S₂The bottom wall 1115 includes a portion having a local height difference. The case 1110 includes: divided motor housing S₁And a gear accommodating part S₂And a partition 1116 for supporting one end of the driving motor 1200; and a partition wall 1117 for supporting the other end of the driving motor 1200. When the other end of the driving motor 1200 is supported by the partition wall 1117, the pair of terminals 1210 provided at the other end of the driving motor 1200 is isolated from the lower side wall 1111 of the case 1110. Thus, the pair of terminals 1210 can be prevented from being deformed by contact with the lower side wall 111. In one embodiment, in the motor accommodating part S₁Lower lugs 1114 are formed on both sides, respectively.

In forming the gear housing part S₂The bottom wall 1115 has a groove 1115a into which the lower part of the two-stage gear rod 1430 can be inserted and a groove 1115b into which the lower part of the friction gear rod 1530 can be inserted. In addition, a gear housing part S is formed₂The bottom wall 1115 of the housing has a groove 1115c into which the support portion 1640 of the output gear 1600 can be inserted.

A pair of lower through portions 1118 are provided in a bottom wall 1115 of the case 1110. The pair of lower through-portions 1118 are located opposite to each other with respect to the portion where the friction gear 1500 is attached, and one of the pair of lower through-portions 1118 and the motor accommodating portion S are located opposite to each other₁Arranged adjacent to each other and the motor accommodating part S₁And (5) isolation setting. That is, the pair of lower through portions 1118 extend with respect to the case 1110 located on the XY planeThe X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction are arranged in an isolated way. The pair of lower through portions 1118 form parts of mounting

ports

1140 and 1150 that vertically penetrate the housing 1110.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a cover 1120 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 8, the cover 1120 has a shape capable of opening and closing the upper side of the case 1110. The cover 1120 is a portion surrounded by an upper wall 1121, and includes a top wall 1125 rotatably supporting the two-stage gear 1400, the friction gear 1500, and the output gear 1600, the top wall 1125 facing the bottom wall 1115 of the housing 1110.

To form a motor accommodating part S₁The top wall 1125 includes a portion having a semi-cylindrical shape or the like and a portion for forming a gear receiving portion S₂Part (c) of (a). The cover 1120 has

partition walls

1126, 1127 corresponding to the

partition walls

1116, 1117 provided in the case 1110. A motor receiving portion S is formed in the cover 1120₁Upper lugs 1124 are formed at both sides of the portion. When the cover 1120 is coupled to the case 1110, the upper protrusions 1124 of the cover 1120 and the lower protrusions 1114 of the case 1110, which are vertically opposite, form fastening openings to which the screws 1130 can be coupled.

In forming the gear housing part S₂The top wall 1125 is formed with a slot 1125a into which the upper part of the double gear rod 1430 can be inserted and a slot 1125b into which the upper part of the friction gear rod 1530 can be inserted. In addition, a gear housing part S is formed₂A portion of the top wall 1125 constituting one side corner of the housing 1100 is penetrated by an insertion hole 1160 into which the shaft coupling portion 1610 of the output gear 1600 can be inserted.

The top wall 1125 of the cover 1120 is provided with a pair of upper through-holes 1128 corresponding to the pair of lower through-holes 1118 of the case 1110. The pair of upper through portions 1128 constitute the remaining portions of the mounting

ports

1140 and 1150 that vertically penetrate the housing 1100. The door opening and closing apparatus 1000 is provided to the refrigerator in the following states: one mounting port 1140 of the pair of mounting

ports

1140 and 1150 is positioned below the output gear 1600, and the other mounting port 1150 is positioned on one side of the output gear 1600, that is, the output gear 1600 is disposed on the upper side of the drive motor 1200.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of the door opening and closing apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention, with the cover 1120 removed. In fig. 9, the output gear 1600 is located at the rotation start position.

Referring to fig. 9, in the door opening and closing device 1000 before operation, the output gear 1600 is located at a position (rotation start position) where the tooth 1620 can contact the lower side wall 1111 of the housing 1110 facing the + X axis direction. When the door opening/closing device 1000 is operated, power is supplied to the driving motor 1200 through the power line 1700, and the driving shaft of the driving motor 1200 rotates. When the driving shaft of the driving motor 1200 rotates, the driving gear 1300 rotates together, the two-stage gear 1400 engaged with the driving gear 1300 and the friction gear 1500 engaged with the two-stage gear 1400 also rotate, and finally the output gear 1600 engaged with the friction gear 1500 also rotates. The output gear 1600 rotates until the tooth 1620 comes into contact with the lower side wall 1111 of the housing 1110 facing in the-Y axis direction (rotation end position). The maximum allowable angle θ of the output gear 1600 from the rotation start position to the rotation end position is related to a rotation angle when the duct door of the refrigerator described later moves from a position closing the ice taking opening to a position fully opening. The maximum allowable angle θ varies depending on the length of the tooth 1620 in the circumferential direction on the output gear 1600.

Fig. 10 is a schematic view illustrating a part of a door opening and closing apparatus 1000 that cuts off a part of a housing 1100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 10, in order to firmly couple the case body 1110 and the cover body 1120, the upper portion of the lower side wall 1111 of the case body 1110 is formed to have a step so that the lower side wall 1111 can be brought into contact with the lower surface 1121a and the inner surface 1121b of the upper side wall 1121 of the cover body 1120.

The cover 1120 further includes a buffer sidewall 1129 inside the upper sidewall 1121. When the case body 1110 is combined with the cover body 1120, the inner side surface 1111a of the lower side wall 1111 can be in contact with the outer side surface 1129a of such a cushioning side wall 1129. When the tooth 1620 of the rotating output gear 1600 contacts the lower side wall 1111 of the case body 1110, the buffer side wall 1129 serves as a side wall with which the stopper 1630 of the output gear 1600 contacts, and the buffer side wall 1129 buffers the impact force applied from the output gear 1600 to the lower side wall 1111 of the case body 1110, so that the damage or injury of the casing 1100 can be prevented, and the generation of loud noise can also be prevented.

Fig. 11 is a schematic view schematically showing a portion of a refrigerator 2000 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 11, a refrigerator 2000 according to an embodiment includes an ice making device 2100 capable of making ice cubes in a form similar to ice cubes. In addition, the refrigerator 2000 includes: an ice bin 2200 for storing ice cubes produced by the ice making device 2100; and a dispenser 2300 capable of taking out a certain amount of ice cubes stored in the ice bin 2200 to the outside of the refrigerator 2000. The ice making device 2100, the ice bin 2200, and the dispenser 2300 are disposed on a door 2010 of the refrigerator 2000. In fig. 11, reference numeral "2011" denotes an outer sidewall of the door 2010, and reference numeral "2012" denotes an inner sidewall of the door 2010. In the case where door 2010 of refrigerator 2000 is a door capable of opening and closing a freezing compartment, ice making device 2100 and ice bin 2200 are partially located in the freezing compartment when door 2010 is closed. The dispenser 2300 is provided on the door 2010 so that a front face 2310 provided with a display, a button, and the like is exposed to the outside of the door 2010 so as to be operable by a user.

The ice cubes produced by the ice making device 2100 are dropped downward and stored in the ice bin 2200. The ice bin 2200 is connected to the dispenser 2300 through a conduit 20 forming an ice pick-up 10. The duct 20 is provided with a duct door 2400 for opening and closing the ice intake 10. The door opening/closing device 1000 is coupled to the duct door 2400 to open and close the duct door 2400. When the ice taking-out opening 10 is closed by the duct door 2400 in the closed state, the ice cubes taken out of the ice bin 2200 cannot be discharged to the outside of the refrigerator 2000 through the dispenser 2300, and only when the duct door 2400 is in the opened state, the ice taking-out opening 10 is opened, and the ice cubes taken out of the ice bin 2200 can be discharged to the outside of the refrigerator 2000 through the dispenser 2300.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view illustrating a door opening and closing apparatus 1000 combined with a duct door 2400 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 12, a duct door 2400 of an embodiment opens and closes the ice taking port 10 formed by the duct 20 by rotating. The catheter door 2400 includes: a partition 2410 for partitioning the ice intake 10; and a rotation part 2420 coupled to the partition part 2410 to rotatably support the partition part 2410. In one embodiment, the partition 2410 is formed of a plate having a circular shape or the like, but is not limited thereto and varies according to the shape of the ice taking port 10 provided in the guide duct 20. In addition, the rotation part 2420 has a rod (bar) or a similar shape as a part constituting the rotation shaft of the partition 2410.

The door opening and closing device 1000 of one embodiment is coupled to one end of the rotation part 2420 of the catheter door 2400. At this time, one end of the rotating portion 2420 of the catheter door 2400 is inserted into and coupled to the shaft coupling portion 1610 of the output gear 1600 in the door opening and closing device 1000. That is, the rotary part 2420 is coupled to the shaft coupling part 1610 of the output gear 1600 on the same rotational axis. Therefore, the rotation portions 2420 of the catheter door 2400 are rotated in the same direction and speed by the rotation of the output gear 1600, and the blocking portion 2410 is rotated with the longitudinal direction of the rotation portions 2420 as the rotation axis direction.

In the door opening and closing device 1000 coupled to the rotation part 2420 of the duct door 2400, the connector 1710 of the power supply line 1700 is supplied with power by engaging with a part on the substrate 2320 provided inside the distributor 2300.

The refrigerator 2000 further includes a torsion spring 2500 coupled to the other end of the rotation part 2420 in the length direction. Torsion spring 2500 is elastically deformed as duct door 2400 rotates in a direction to open ice taking port 10, and elastically returns to rotate duct door 2400 in a direction to close ice taking port 10. That is, duct door 2400 is rotated from a position at which ice taking port 10 is opened to a position at which ice taking port 10 is closed by the elastic restoring force of torsion spring 2500.

Fig. 13 is a schematic view illustrating an end portion of the swivel part 2420 of the catheter door 2400 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 13, the rotating portion 2420 of the catheter door 2400 includes at one end in the longitudinal direction: a pin part 2421 having a circular cross section; and a protrusion 2422 having a fan-shaped cross section protruding from the outer peripheral surface of the pin part 2421.

When the door opening and closing device 1000 is coupled to the catheter door 2400, one end of the rotation part 2420 of the catheter door 2400 is inserted into the coupling opening 1611 formed at the shaft coupling part 1610 of the output gear 1600.

Fig. 14 is a sectional view of a coupling portion of the output gear 1600 of the door opening and closing device 1000 and the rotation part 2420 of the catheter door 2400 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 14, when the output gear 1600 rotates, the protrusion part 2422 provided at one end of the rotation part 2420 is pushed by the deformation part 1612 of the shaft coupling part 1610, and thus the rotation part 2420 rotates. That is, the partition 2410 of the duct door 2400 is rotated at the ice taking port 10 so as to be opened.

In order to allow the friction gear 1500 to rotate by itself (spin and slip) and to reduce the restriction of the driving motor 1200 and the gear shock, one end of the rotating part 2420 is inserted into the shaft coupling part 1610 of the output gear 1600 with a space left. That is, in the initial position of the rotation part 2420 in which the ice pick-up port 10 is closed by the duct door 2400, the protrusion part 2422 of the rotation part 2420 and the deformation part 1612 formed at the shaft coupling part 1610 of the output gear 1600 are arranged to have the no-load rotation angle α of the output gear centering on the rotation axis RA of the rotation part 2420.

In one embodiment, the maximum allowable angle θ of the output gear 1600 is 51 °, and the rotation angle required to open the duct door 2400 is 43 °. When power is supplied to the driving motor 1200 of the door opening and closing device 1000, driving force is transmitted to the driving motor 1200, the driving gear 1300, the two-stage gear 1400, the friction gear 1500, and the output gear 1600, and when the output gear 1600 starts to rotate, the deformation portion 1612 of the output gear 1600 pushes the protrusion portion 2422 of the rotating portion 2420 of the duct door 2400 after rotating by the unloaded rotation angle α, so that the duct door 2400 starts to open. As the output gear 1600 of the door opening and closing device 1000 rotates at an angle of 51 °, the ductal door 2400 rotates at an angle of 43 ° to open.

When power is supplied to the drive motor 1200 only during a time (for example, 1 second) set by a control unit (not shown) provided in the refrigerator 2000, the duct door 2400 ends its operation in a time (for example, 0.5 seconds) shorter than the time for which power is supplied to the drive motor 1200 because of the unloaded rotation angle α of the output gear. Further, the friction gear 1500 rotates by itself during a time period remaining after the time required for the duct gate 2400 to finish its operation is subtracted from the time of supplying power to the drive motor 1200, and the restraint of the drive motor 1200 and the impact of the gear can be alleviated. In one embodiment, although the no-load rotation angle α of the output gear is 8 °, it varies according to the time of supplying power to the driving motor 1200, the time required for the duct door 2400 to be fully opened, and the like.

When the power supply is cut off by the control unit provided in the refrigerator 2000, the driving gear 1300, which is a worm gear, of the door opening and closing device 1000 is engaged with the upper gear 1410, which is a helical gear, of the two-stage gear 1400, so that the duct door 2400 is maintained in an open state at an angle of 43 °. When the dispenser 2300 operated by the user finishes discharging the ice cubes, the control part of the refrigerator 2000 supplies a reverse power to the door opening and closing device 1000, thereby operating the duct door 2400 to return to the closed state. At this time, the door opening and closing device 1000 is restored to the initial position by the driving force of the driving motor 1200, and the duct door 2400 is more stably restored to the initial position by the elastic restoring force of the torsion spring 2500 mounted at the other end in the longitudinal direction of the rotating part 2420.

According to the foregoing embodiment, the rotation part 2420 of the duct door 2400 is positioned coaxially with the rotation center of the output gear 1600 of the door opening and closing device 1000. Therefore, the door opening and closing device 1000 can stably rotate the duct door 2400.

In addition, according to the aforementioned embodiment, the no-load rotation angle α of the output gear is set between the deformation portion 1612 of the shaft coupling portion 1610 of the output gear 1600 and the protrusion portion 2422 of the rotation portion 2420 of the duct door 2400, and thus, the duct door 2400 can be stably maintained in a closed state by the torsion spring 2500 at the initial position where the ice taking port 10 is closed by the duct door 2400. Further, since the no-load rotation angle α of the output gear is set, the rotation acceleration section of the rotor can be made a no-load section inside the drive motor 1200 of the door opening and closing device 1000, and the duct door 2400 can be opened more smoothly.

While the technical spirit of the present invention has been described with reference to some embodiments and examples shown in the drawings, it should be understood that those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains can make various substitutions, modifications and changes without departing from the technical spirit and scope of the present invention. Further, it is intended that all such alterations, modifications and variations fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A door opening and closing device, comprising:

a housing;

a driving motor internally disposed in the housing;

a driving gear fixed to a driving shaft of the driving motor to rotate;

a two-stage gear including an upper gear engaged with the driving gear and a lower gear coaxially rotating with the upper gear;

a friction gear including a friction lower gear engaged with the lower gear and a friction upper gear coaxially rotating with the friction lower gear; and

an output gear engaged with the friction upper gear and having a shaft coupling portion protruding upward from a rotation center,

an insertion opening into which the shaft coupling portion is rotatably inserted is formed in the housing such that the shaft coupling portion is exposed to the outside of the housing,

a coupling port opened upward is formed at the shaft coupling portion of the output gear,

the shaft coupling portion includes a deformation portion formed to protrude toward an inner side of the coupling port.

2. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 1,

the output gear is a sector gear provided on the housing in such a manner that the shaft coupling portion is located at one side corner portion of the housing.

3. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 1,

the housing includes: a housing having an upper opening; and a cover body coupled to or uncoupled from the housing to open and close an upper side of the housing,

the housing includes a bottom wall on which the two-stage gear, the friction gear, and the output gear are rotatably mounted,

the cover body includes a top wall that faces the bottom wall and rotatably supports the two-stage gear, the friction gear, and the output gear,

the insertion opening is provided on the top wall.

4. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 3,

the output gear further includes a tooth portion protruding in a fan shape from a lower outer circumferential surface of the shaft coupling portion,

the tooth-shaped part comprises a stopper which protrudes upwards from the upper surface of the tooth-shaped part and extends along the circumferential direction of the tooth-shaped part.

5. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 4,

the housing has a lower side wall surrounding the bottom wall,

the lid body is provided with an upper side wall surrounding the top wall,

the lower sidewall is formed to have a step difference so that the lower sidewall is in contact with a lower surface of the upper sidewall and an inner side surface of the upper sidewall.

6. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 5,

the cover body is also provided with a buffer side wall at the inner side of the upper side wall,

when the shell is combined with the cover body, the inner side surface of the lower side wall is contacted with the outer side surface of the buffer side wall,

when the tooth-shaped part is contacted with the inner side surface of the lower side wall through the rotation of the output gear, the limiting stopper is contacted with the inner side surface of the buffering side wall.

7. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 5,

a plurality of buckling protrusions are formed on the outer side surface of the lower side wall,

a plurality of snap rings are formed on the outer side surface of the upper side wall, respectively correspond to the plurality of snap protrusions and are respectively snap-coupled with the plurality of snap protrusions,

each of the engaging protrusions includes a guide protrusion protruding further toward an outer surface of the lower side wall than the engaging protrusion and the engaging ring engaged with the engaging protrusion.

8. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 3,

the housing is provided with a pair of lower lugs,

the lid body is provided with a pair of upper lugs corresponding to the pair of lower lugs,

when the cover body is combined with the shell body, the upper lug and the lower lug which are connected with each other are combined through a screw.

9. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 3,

the bottom wall includes a pair of lower through portions,

the top wall includes a pair of upper through portions corresponding to the pair of lower through portions,

the housing is formed with a vertically penetrating mounting opening through the upper penetrating portion and the lower penetrating portion.

10. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 1,

the driving motor is a direct current motor.

11. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 1,

the power cord is connected with the driving motor at one end, and a connector is connected to the other end led out to the outer side of the shell.

12. The door opening and closing apparatus according to claim 1,

the driving gear is a worm gear, and the upper gear is a helical gear.

13. A refrigerator is characterized in that a refrigerator body is provided with a refrigerator door,

the refrigerator includes:

an ice making device;

a duct door for opening and closing an ice taking-out opening for taking out the ice pieces made by the ice making device; and

a door opening and closing device according to any one of claims 1 to 12, which is combined with the duct door to rotate the duct door,

the catheter gate includes: a partition for partitioning the ice intake; and a rotating part which is combined with the partition part and supports the partition part in a rotatable manner,

one end of the rotating part in the length direction is connected with a shaft connecting part of an output gear arranged on the door opening and closing device on the same rotating axis,

the duct door rotates by the rotation of the output gear with a longitudinal direction of the rotating portion as a rotation axis direction.

14. The refrigerator according to claim 13,

and a torsion spring coupled to the other end of the rotating portion in the longitudinal direction.

15. The refrigerator according to claim 13,

the rotating portion is provided with, at one end in the longitudinal direction of the rotating portion: a pin portion having a circular cross-section; and a protrusion having a fan-shaped cross section protruding from an outer peripheral surface of the pin portion,

a coupling opening into which one end of the rotating portion in the longitudinal direction is inserted is formed in the shaft coupling portion,

when the output gear rotates, the projection portion is pushed by a deformation portion provided on the shaft coupling portion so as to project to the inside of the coupling port, thereby rotating the rotating portion.

16. The refrigerator according to claim 15,

the protrusion and the deforming portion are arranged to have a no-load rotation angle of the output gear around a rotation axis of the rotating portion at an initial position of the rotating portion where the ice taking port is closed by the guide door.