CN111981745A

CN111981745A - Storage device and refrigerator with same

Info

Publication number: CN111981745A
Application number: CN202010854292.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 王莉娟; 李宗照; 陶裕文
Original assignee: Gree Electric Appliances Inc of Zhuhai
Current assignee: Gree Electric Appliances Inc of Zhuhai
Priority date: 2020-08-24
Filing date: 2020-08-24
Publication date: 2020-11-24

Abstract

The invention relates to a storage device and a refrigerator with the same, wherein the storage device comprises: the main shell comprises a mounting cavity, a first opening and a second opening, wherein the first opening and the second opening are used for communicating the mounting cavity with the external environment; a storage assembly mounted to the main housing, the storage assembly defining a storage cavity, the storage assembly being configured to be movable relative to the main housing in a first direction such that the storage cavity extends at least partially out of the mounting cavity or is fully received into the mounting cavity; the opening and closing assembly is arranged at the second opening of the main shell and is switched between a first state of communicating the storage cavity with the external environment and a second state of blocking the storage cavity from the external environment. Above-mentioned storage device, the user both accessible push-and-pull storage subassembly take the food in the storage chamber, also can take the food in the storage chamber through the subassembly that opens and shuts to the convenience of use of refrigerator has been improved.

Description

Storage device and refrigerator with same

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of refrigeration equipment, in particular to a storage device and a refrigerator with the same.

Background

Along with the improvement of science and technology and the improvement of living standard, the refrigerator effectively prolongs the storage time of food as the essential household appliance in people's daily life, and brings great convenience for people's life. With the increasing demand of people on household appliances, the demand on the fresh-keeping function of the refrigerator is higher and higher.

Because the fruits and vegetables have the characteristics of high water content, living bodies after picking, easy decay and deterioration and the like, in order to better preserve the fruits and vegetables, an independent pull-type fruit and vegetable storage drawer is usually arranged in a refrigerating chamber of a refrigerator in the market at present, and a user can pull out the fruit and vegetable storage drawer to take the fruits and vegetables. However, when the fruits and vegetables in the fruit and vegetable storage drawer are too much and heavy, the difficulty of pulling out the drawer is increased, so that the fruits and vegetables are inconvenient to take.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a storage device convenient to take and a refrigerator with the same, aiming at the problem that fruits and vegetables in a fruit and vegetable storage drawer are inconvenient to take.

A storage device, the storage device comprising:

the main shell comprises a mounting cavity, a first opening and a second opening, wherein the first opening and the second opening are communicated with the mounting cavity and the external environment, the first opening and the second opening are independent from each other, the central axis of the first opening extends along a first direction, and the central axis of the second opening extends along a second direction intersecting with the first direction;

a storage assembly mounted to the main housing, the storage assembly defining a storage cavity having an opening, the storage cavity having an open end facing the second opening, the storage assembly being configured to be movable relative to the main housing in the first direction such that the open end of the storage cavity at least partially extends out of the mounting cavity or is fully received within the mounting cavity; and

an opening and closing assembly installed at the second opening of the main housing, the opening and closing assembly being configured to be switchable between a first state of communicating the open end of the storage chamber with an external environment and a second state of blocking the open end of the storage chamber from the external environment.

In one embodiment, the first direction and the second direction are perpendicular to each other.

In one embodiment, the opening and closing assembly includes a push-pull cover plate movable in a plane perpendicular to the second direction to open or close the second opening.

In one embodiment, the push-pull cover plate can move back and forth along the first direction to open or close the second opening.

In one embodiment, the opening and closing assembly comprises at least two push-pull cover plates, at least two push-pull cover plates are arranged in a stacked mode in the second direction, and at least one push-pull cover plate can move relative to the other push-pull cover plates in a plane perpendicular to the second direction.

In one embodiment, the opening and closing assembly comprises two push-pull cover plates, wherein one push-pull cover plate is fixed relative to the main shell and closes one end of the second opening, and the other push-pull cover plate can move relative to the main shell to open or close the second opening.

In one embodiment, the edge of the second opening is provided with a limiting groove, and the edge of the push-pull cover plate is limited in the limiting groove and can slide along the limiting groove.

In one embodiment, the opening and closing assembly further comprises a push-pull handle, and the push-pull handle is arranged on one side, away from the installation cavity, of the push-pull cover plate.

In one embodiment, the storage device further includes a humidity control unit mounted to the main housing, and the humidity control unit is configured to adjust the humidity inside the storage cavity.

A refrigerator comprises the storage device.

In one embodiment, the refrigerator comprises a refrigerator main body and a refrigerator door openably and closably installed on the refrigerator main body, the storage device is accommodated in the refrigerator main body, the first opening of the storage device faces to the top of the refrigerator main body, and the second opening of the storage device faces to the refrigerator door.

According to the storage device, when a user needs to take and place food, the storage component can be pulled out to open the storage cavity, and the opening and closing component can be switched to the first state to expose the storage cavity, so that the use convenience of the refrigerator with the storage device is improved, and particularly under the condition that the food in the storage component is too heavy and the pulling of the storage component is difficult, the food can be taken through the opening and closing component.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a storage device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the storage device of FIG. 1;

fig. 3 is a side view of the storage device of fig. 1.

Reference numerals:

100. a storage device; 20. a main housing; 21. a main housing top wall; 40. a storage assembly; 60. an opening and closing assembly; 61. pushing and pulling the cover plate; 63. a push-pull handle; 80. a humidity control unit.

Detailed Description

In order to make the aforementioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention comprehensible, embodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail below. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein.

In the description of the present invention, it is to be understood that the terms "central," "longitudinal," "lateral," "length," "width," "thickness," "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," "outer," "clockwise," "counterclockwise," "axial," "radial," "circumferential," and the like are used in the orientations and positional relationships indicated in the drawings for convenience in describing the invention and to simplify the description, and are not intended to indicate or imply that the referenced device or element must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and are not to be considered limiting of the invention.

Furthermore, the terms "first", "second" and "first" are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one such feature. In the description of the present invention, "a plurality" means at least two, e.g., two, three, etc., unless specifically limited otherwise.

In the present invention, unless otherwise expressly stated or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," "secured," and the like are to be construed broadly and can, for example, be fixedly connected, detachably connected, or integrally formed; can be mechanically or electrically connected; they may be directly connected or indirectly connected through intervening media, or they may be connected internally or in any other suitable relationship, unless expressly stated otherwise. The specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood by those skilled in the art according to specific situations.

In the present invention, unless otherwise expressly stated or limited, the first feature "on" or "under" the second feature may be directly contacting the first and second features or indirectly contacting the first and second features through an intermediate. Also, a first feature "on," "over," and "above" a second feature may be directly or diagonally above the second feature, or may simply indicate that the first feature is at a higher level than the second feature. A first feature being "under," "below," and "beneath" a second feature may be directly under or obliquely under the first feature, or may simply mean that the first feature is at a lesser elevation than the second feature.

It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being "secured to" or "disposed on" another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements may also be present. When an element is referred to as being "connected" to another element, it can be directly connected to the other element or intervening elements may also be present. The terms "vertical," "horizontal," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," and the like as used herein are for illustrative purposes only and do not denote a unique embodiment.

Referring to fig. 1 to 3, a refrigerator (not shown) according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a storage device 100 for storing food to be refrigerated (or other items to be refrigerated). The following embodiments are merely exemplary and do not limit the technical scope of the present application, and it should be understood that the storage device 100 may be applied to other refrigeration/freezing apparatuses in other embodiments, and is not limited thereto.

Referring to fig. 1 to 3, the refrigerator is a hollow cubic structure, and includes a refrigerator main body and a refrigerator door, the refrigerator door is openably and closably installed at a front side of the refrigerator main body, and the refrigerator main body and the refrigerator door enclose a refrigerating chamber for refrigerating food and a freezing chamber for freezing food. Wherein, the storage device 100 is arranged in the refrigerating chamber, the storage device 100 is used for forming an independent storage space for independently storing food, and the internal environment (such as temperature and humidity) of the storage space can be independently adjusted, thereby satisfying the storage requirements of different foods. In particular, the storage device 100 is used for storing vegetables and fruits with high water content which are not easy to preserve. It will be appreciated that the particular construction of the refrigerator is not limited and may be arranged as required to meet different requirements.

The storage device 100 includes a main housing 20 and a storage assembly 40 mounted to the main housing 20.

The main housing 20 is a hollow housing structure having a substantially cubic shape, and includes a main housing bottom wall, a main housing right side wall, a main housing left side wall, a main housing rear side wall, and a main housing top wall 21. The main casing body bottom wall is roughly rectangular, the main casing body right side wall and the main casing body left side wall are respectively located on the two opposite sides of the main casing body bottom wall in the length direction, and the main casing body rear side wall is located on one side, away from the refrigerator door, of the main casing body bottom wall in the width direction and is located between the main casing body right side wall and the main casing body left side wall. The main housing top wall 21 is spaced from the main housing bottom wall and is interconnected with the main housing right side wall, the main housing left side wall and the main housing rear side wall. Thus, the bottom wall of the main housing, the right side wall of the main housing, the left side wall of the main housing, and the top wall 21 of the main housing together enclose a mounting cavity with a first opening facing the refrigerator door and communicating the mounting cavity with the external environment, and the storage assembly 40 can be received into the main housing 20 through the first opening.

In the following embodiments, the width direction of the main housing bottom wall (i.e., the Y-axis direction in fig. 1) is a first direction, the thickness direction of the main housing bottom wall (i.e., the Z-axis direction in fig. 1) is a second direction, the length direction of the main housing bottom wall (i.e., the X-axis direction in fig. 1) is a third direction, and the first direction, the second direction, and the third direction are perpendicular to each other, and the central axis of the first opening extends in the first direction.

The storage module 40 is mounted to the main housing 20, and the storage module 40 is shaped as a hollow housing structure with an open top that matches the shape of the mounting cavity of the main housing 20, so that the storage module 40 can be completely received in the mounting cavity. Specifically, the storage assembly 40 includes a storage bottom wall having a substantially rectangular plate-shaped structure and a storage side wall extending from an edge of the storage bottom wall to the second direction, the storage side wall circumferentially surrounding the storage bottom wall to form a storage cavity with an opening together with the storage bottom wall for accommodating food.

Further, one side of the storage bottom wall of the storage assembly 40, which is away from the storage cavity, is provided with a roller assembly (not shown), the roller assembly comprises two sets of rollers which are arranged at intervals in the third direction, the main casing bottom wall of the main casing body 20 is provided with two guide rails which are arranged at intervals in the third direction, each guide rail extends along the first direction, and the two sets of rollers can be respectively supported on the corresponding guide rails and roll along the guide rails to draw and pull the storage assembly 40.

In this manner, the storage assembly 40 is movable in a first direction relative to the main housing 20 to at least partially extend out of the mounting cavity or fully retract into the mounting cavity. When the user needs to access the food, the storage assembly 40 can be withdrawn in a first direction to expose the storage cavity for easy access to the food. After the food is taken and placed, the storage assembly 40 can be pushed into the mounting cavity along the first direction to close the storage cavity.

In some embodiments, the side of the storage sidewall of the storage assembly 40 facing the refrigerator door is further provided with a pull handle, which a user can grasp to pull the storage assembly 40. It can be understood that the pull handle is not limited in configuration and can be configured in different shapes as required to meet different requirements.

As described in the background of the invention, the inventor found in the research process that when the food in the storage assembly 40 is too much and the weight is heavy, the drawn storage assembly 40 is difficult to draw under the action of gravity, and therefore, in order to facilitate the taking and placing of the food, the main housing top wall 21 of the main housing 20 is opened with a second opening independent from the first opening, the second opening faces the top of the refrigerator main body, the central axis of the second opening extends along the second direction, and the open end of the storage cavity of the storage assembly 40 faces the second opening. The storage device 100 further includes a switching assembly 60 installed at the second opening, the switching assembly 60 being configured to be switchable between a first state of communicating the storage chamber with the external environment and a second state of blocking the storage chamber from the external environment. When the user needs to take or put food, the opening and closing assembly 60 can be switched to the first state to connect the open end of the storage cavity with the external environment through the second opening. After the food is taken and placed, the opening and closing assembly 60 can be switched to the second state to close the storage cavity.

Thus, when a user needs to take or put food, the storage assembly 40 can be pulled out to open the storage cavity, and the opening and closing assembly 60 can be switched to the first state to expose the storage cavity, so that the convenience of the refrigerator with the storage device 100 is improved. Particularly in the case where it is difficult to pull the storage member 40 when the weight of the food in the storage member 40 is too heavy, the food can be taken through the opening and closing member 60.

Specifically, the opening and closing assembly 60 includes a push-pull cover plate 61, and the push-pull cover plate 61 is movable in a plane perpendicular to the second direction to open or close the second opening. Preferably, the push-pull cover plate 61 is reciprocally movable in the first direction to open or close the second opening. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments, the push-pull cover 61 may be pushed in other directions to open or close the second opening.

Further, the opening and closing assembly 60 includes at least two push-pull cover plates 61, the at least two push-pull cover plates 61 are stacked in the second direction, and at least one push-pull cover plate 61 is movable relative to the other push-pull cover plates 61 in a plane perpendicular to the second direction, so as to change the area of the overlapping area of the orthographic projection of the adjacent push-pull cover plates 61 on the plane perpendicular to the second direction. When the opening and closing assembly 60 is in the first state, the overlapping area of the orthographic projections of the at least two push-pull cover plates 61 on the plane perpendicular to the second direction has the maximum value, and the orthographic projection of the opening and closing assembly 60 on the bottom wall of the main shell has the minimum value; when the opening and closing assembly 60 is in the second state, the overlapping area of the orthographic projections of the at least two push-pull cover plates 61 on the plane perpendicular to the second direction has the minimum value, and the orthographic projection of the opening and closing assembly 60 on the bottom wall of the main housing has the maximum value.

Specifically, in some embodiments, the opening and closing assembly 60 includes two push-pull cover plates 61, each of the two push-pull cover plates 61 is rectangular, and each of the two push-pull cover plates 61 has an area approximately half of the cross-sectional area of the first opening. One of the push-pull cover plates 61 is fixed relative to the main housing 20 and covers an end of the second opening remote from the first opening, and the other push-pull cover plate 61 is movable relative to the main housing 20 to open or close the second opening. When the opening and closing assembly 60 is switched from the first state to the second state, the movable push-pull cover plate 61 moves towards one end of the first opening along the first direction until the second opening is covered and closed. When the opening and closing assembly 60 is switched from the second state to the first state, the movable push-pull cover plate 61 moves in the first direction toward the end away from the first opening until the movable push-pull cover plate almost completely overlaps with the push-pull cover plate 61 fixed with respect to the main housing 20 in the third direction, thereby exposing approximately one-half area of the second opening. It is to be understood that the number of the push-pull cover plates 61 is not limited thereto, and a different number of the push-pull cover plates 61 may be provided as needed.

In some embodiments, the edges of the two opposite ends of the second opening in the third direction are respectively provided with a limiting groove, each limiting groove extends along the first direction, and the edges of the two opposite sides of the push-pull cover plate 61 in the third direction are respectively limited in the limiting grooves and can slide along the limiting grooves.

In some embodiments, the push-pull cover plate 61 is formed of a transparent plastic or glass material so that a user can easily access food by viewing the food in the storage cavity through the push-pull cover plate 61.

In some embodiments, the opening and closing assembly 60 further comprises a push-pull handle 63, and the push-pull handle 63 is disposed on a side of the push-pull cover plate 61 facing away from the installation cavity, and is movable relative to the main housing 20. In this way, the user can push the push-pull cover plate 61 to move in the first direction by the push-pull handle 63. In one embodiment, the push-pull handle 63 protrudes from the side of the push-pull cover 61 near the first opening, so as to facilitate grasping by the user. It will be appreciated that the push-pull handle 63 is not limited in structure, and in some embodiments, the push-pull handle 63 may be formed by an inward recess in the surface of the push-pull cover 61.

In some embodiments, the storage device 100 further includes a humidity control unit 80, the humidity control unit 80 is mounted on the main housing top wall 21 of the main housing 20 with the second opening, and the humidity control unit 80 is configured to adjust the humidity inside the storage cavity, so that the humidity inside the storage cavity meets the requirement of food preservation.

When the storage device 100 and the refrigerator provided with the same are used for taking and placing food, the storage assembly 40 can be pulled out from the first opening along the first direction to take the food from the storage cavity, and the push-pull cover plate 61 can also be pushed to open the second opening to take the food. Especially, when the weight of the food in the storage assembly 40 is too heavy and the storage assembly 40 is not convenient to be drawn out, the user can take the food by opening the opening and closing assembly 60, thereby improving the use convenience of the refrigerator and enhancing the user experience. In addition, the upper part of the push-pull cover plate 61 can also be used for placing food, so that the placing mode of the food is expanded.

The technical features of the embodiments described above may be arbitrarily combined, and for the sake of brevity, all possible combinations of the technical features in the embodiments described above are not described, but should be considered as being within the scope of the present specification as long as there is no contradiction between the combinations of the technical features.

The above-mentioned embodiments only express several embodiments of the present invention, and the description thereof is more specific and detailed, but not construed as limiting the scope of the invention. It should be noted that, for a person skilled in the art, several variations and modifications can be made without departing from the inventive concept, which falls within the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present patent shall be subject to the appended claims.

Claims

1. A storage device installed in a refrigerator, the storage device comprising:

the main shell (20) comprises an installation cavity, a first opening and a second opening, wherein the first opening and the second opening are communicated with the installation cavity and the external environment, the first opening and the second opening are independent from each other, the central axis of the first opening extends along a first direction, and the central axis of the second opening extends along a second direction intersecting with the first direction;

a storage assembly (40) mounted to the main housing (20), the storage assembly (40) defining a storage cavity having an opening, the storage cavity having an open end facing the second opening, the storage assembly (40) being configured to be movable relative to the main housing (20) in the first direction such that the storage cavity open end at least partially protrudes from or is fully received within the mounting cavity; and

an opening and closing member (60) mounted to the second opening of the main housing (20), the opening and closing member (60) being configured to be switchable between a first state in which the open end of the storage chamber is communicated with the external environment and a second state in which the open end of the storage chamber is blocked from the external environment.

2. The storage device of claim 1, wherein the first direction and the second direction are perpendicular to each other.

3. The storage device according to claim 1, wherein the opening and closing assembly (60) comprises a push-pull cover plate (61), the push-pull cover plate (61) being movable in a plane perpendicular to the second direction to open or close the second opening.

4. A storage device according to claim 3, wherein the push-pull cover plate (61) is reciprocally movable in the first direction to open or close the second opening.

5. A storage device according to claim 3, wherein said opening and closing assembly (60) comprises at least two said push-pull cover plates (61), at least two said push-pull cover plates (61) being stacked in said second direction, wherein at least one said push-pull cover plate (61) is movable relative to the remaining said push-pull cover plates (61) in a plane perpendicular to said second direction.

6. A storage device according to claim 5, wherein the opening and closing assembly (60) comprises two push-pull cover plates (61), one of the push-pull cover plates (61) being fixed relative to the main housing (20) and closing one end of the second opening, the other push-pull cover plate (61) being movable relative to the main housing (20) to open or close the second opening.

7. A storage device according to claim 3, wherein the edge of the second opening is provided with a limiting groove, and the edge of the push-pull cover plate (61) is limited in the limiting groove and can slide along the limiting groove.

8. A storage device according to claim 3, wherein the opening and closing assembly (60) further comprises a push-pull handle (63), and the push-pull handle (63) is arranged on a side of the push-pull cover plate (61) away from the mounting cavity.

9. The storage device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a humidity control unit (80), wherein the humidity control unit (80) is mounted to the main housing (20), and the humidity control unit (80) is used for adjusting the humidity inside the storage cavity.

10. A refrigerator characterized by comprising a storage device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein the refrigerator comprises a refrigerator main body and a refrigerator door openably and closably mounted on the refrigerator main body, the storage device is accommodated in the refrigerator main body, the first opening of the storage device faces the top of the refrigerator main body, and the second opening of the storage device faces the refrigerator door.