EP0611929B1 - Cooling or freezing apparatus with a thermally insulated housing - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a refrigerator or freezer with a heat-insulating housing, which has a door opening that can be closed by a door and inside which there are drawer-like frozen goods containers that can be removed on handle elements, and on the bottom of which melt water that results during a defrosting process collects and is fed to an outlet over which it flows into a collecting container.

From DE-PS 26 38 568 an arrangement for removing the melt water resulting from a defrosting process of the evaporators of a refrigerator or freezer is known from the interior thereof, the melt water collecting at the bottom of the interior due to a slope incorporated into this bottom trained as a collecting basin, arranged in the area of the door opening and extending almost across the width of the interior trough. Approximately in the middle of the trough, a depression is formed transversely to the trough, which serves to receive an outlet channel formed from an inner part and an outer part.

The inner and the outer part of the outlet channel are connected to each other by a hinge-like joint, which is intended to significantly reduce the length of the unused drain channel by pivoting the outer part into the inner part. In order to be able to introduce the outer part into the inner part of the drainage channel, it is necessary that the pivoted-in outer part is adaptable to the channel contour of the inner part. For this purpose, the outer part is equipped with a material weakening at the apex of its V-shaped cross section, which allows adaptation to the channel contour of the inner part.

In addition to a complex construction, such a drainage channel has the disadvantage that the material weakening required for handling the channel at the connection point of the outer to the inner part and along the apex of the outer part due to the relatively frequent handling of the channel, in particular, however the influence of the low temperatures prevailing in the cold room is subject to premature wear in the form of breakage, so that the drainage channel may have to be replaced several times over the life of the refrigerator or freezer in order to guarantee a perfect water flow.

DE-GM 77 03 184 shows a refrigerator that is equipped with a water drain device for the disposal of the melt water that occurs during the defrosting process, which is essentially formed by a recess set back from the door opening and penetrating the bottom of the refrigerator which is followed by a telescopic pull-out gutter equipped with a knee and extending in the area of the door with a slope. The In its retracted rest position, the telescopic tube is closed with a stopper which is flush with the front of the device and is equipped with drivers which serve to pull out the telescopic part. Due to the variable length of the telescopic tube serving as an outlet channel, such a solution enables a collecting container for the melt water to be conveniently parked. However, the complex construction and the sealing means necessary for sealing between the pipes arranged one above the other are to be regarded as disadvantageous.

The invention has for its object to provide a structurally simple disposal line for the melt water resulting from the defrosting of an evaporator, which allows easy disposal of the melt water from the cold interior of a refrigerator or freezer into a collection container by simple handling.

The object is achieved according to the invention in that a channel which can be brought up to the outlet and through which the melt water is fed to the frozen goods container is arranged on a frozen goods container serving as a collecting container.

The solution according to the invention is characterized above all by the fact that the channel for the disposal of the melt water is not exposed to the temperatures prevailing in the refrigerator or freezer compartment, which mostly have a negative effect on the material properties, and that no complex measures in the form of internals or indentations are made on the refrigerator or freezer must be taken to safely dispose of the melt water.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the object of the invention, it is provided that the outlet is designed as a fixed channel element in the region of the door opening.

This solution is characterized in that on the one hand the outlet is more accessible and on the other hand the length of the trough on the frozen goods container can be shortened, so that its handling is significantly improved and its arrangement is considerably cheaper.

The gutter element and the gutter are particularly well and quickly brought together to form a continuous gutter line carrying melt water if, according to a further preferred embodiment of the object of the invention, it is provided that the gutter element and the gutter are arranged one above the other.

According to its next preferred embodiment of the object of the invention, it is provided that the channel assigned to the frozen goods container can be pivoted about a horizontal axis from a sunken rest position into its operating position, in which a part of the channel is arranged inside and a part outside the container space, both of which Parts of the gutter are equipped with a wall that serves to guide water.

An advantage of this solution can be seen in the fact that the channel does not hinder the handling of the frozen goods container when storing refrigerated goods. Another advantage is that the channel is protected from damage in its retracted rest position. In addition, the solution ensures that the melt water without the formation of dripping water is safely transferred into the container space at the side gutter edges.

The channel can be positioned on the frozen goods container particularly conveniently to the channel element serving as an outlet if, according to a further advantageous embodiment of the object of the invention, it is provided that the horizontal axis is arranged eccentrically to the length of the channel, the shorter one resulting from the position of the axis Part of the gutter protrudes into the container space through a recess in the container wall after it has pivoted into the operating position, while the longer part can be coupled to the gutter element at the opening edge of the door. It also ensures that the melt water is safely supplied to the tank space. In addition, the channel element can be made shorter.

In a simple manner, a particularly safe water supply is formed on the shorter part of the channel, although a further preferred embodiment of the object of the invention provides that the wall used for water supply is made higher on the shorter part of the channel than on its longer part.

The channel is particularly inconspicuous and can be attached close to the container if, according to a further preferred embodiment of the object of the invention, it is provided that the horizontal axis is arranged in a plane parallel to one of the container walls.

According to a next preferred embodiment of the subject matter of the invention, it is provided that the horizontal axis is two, opposite one another in alignment, on the channel Arranged bearing journals are used, which are detachably connected to bearing shells arranged on the container wall opposite the grip element.

This solution is characterized on the one hand by its stable yet space-saving storage, and on the other hand by the advantage that the gutter can easily be replaced by the user in the event of damage.

According to a further advantageous embodiment of the object of the invention it is provided that the channel on the frozen goods container is sunk in its rest position in a receptacle on the container wall, the opening arranged therein is arranged in a closing manner and is locked in its recessed position on this container wall.

This solution ensures that the trough is not inadvertently pivoted from its rest position into the operating position and, as a result, either the trough or the frozen goods container or both is damaged when the container is inserted into the refrigerator or freezer. In addition, the locking of the channel ensures that the opening in the frozen goods container is securely closed, so that it is ensured that small-sized frozen goods cannot fall out of the container interior through this opening.

The channel element is kept stable and inconspicuous at the opening edge of the door and the melt water is guided particularly securely in the channel element if, according to a further advantageous embodiment of the object of the invention, it is provided that the channel element arranged at the opening edge of the door is detachably connected to one on the floor of the interior arranged Recess is connected, the melt water is guided from the bottom to the channel element through the connection to the depression.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the subject matter of the invention, it is provided that the channel and the channel element have different lengths, the channel element being shorter and immersed in an indentation provided there with an uncut length when the door of the refrigerator or freezer is closed.

Due to the shortened design of the channel element, it is possible to arrange it fixedly at the opening edge of the door without affecting the loading of the refrigerator or freezer or having to take care to protect this channel element to a particular extent from damage. Furthermore, the short design of the channel element ensures that the bulge provided for receiving it when the door is closed can be made with a shallow depth, so that the thermal insulation of the door is not significantly impaired.

Fig. 1

in raumbildlicher Darstellung von vorne einen Haushalts-Gefrierschrank mit geöffneter Tür und mit aus dessen Innenraum entnommenen und vor seiner Türöffnung abgestellten Gefriergutbehälter, der eine Rinne aufweist, die an ein an der Türöffnung angeordnetes Rinnenelement angekoppelt ist,

Fig. 2

in einem gegenüber Fig. 1 vergrößertem Maßstab ausschnittsweise den Gefrierschrank bei geschlossener Tür in seinem der Tür zugewandten Bodenabschnitt,

Fig. 3

in einem gegenüber Fig. 1 vergrößertem Maßstab den Gefriergutbehälter in Schrägansicht auf dessen Rückwand, die mit einer Aufnahme für die im abgezogenen Zustand von der Aufnahme dargestellten Rinne ausgestattet ist,

Fig. 4

die Rinne in Schrägansicht von oben, etwa in natürlichem Maßstab und

Fig. 5

in etwa in natürlichem Maßstab ausschnittsweise die Rückwand des Gefriergutbehälters in Seitenansicht und geschnitten gemäß der Schnittlinie V-V.

The invention is explained in the following description with reference to a household freezer shown in simplified form in the drawing. Show it:

Fig. 1

in a spatial representation from the front a household freezer with an open door and with a freezer container removed from its interior and placed in front of its door opening, which has a channel which is coupled to a channel element arranged at the door opening,

Fig. 2

1 on a larger scale than in FIG. 1 the freezer with the door closed in its bottom section facing the door,

Fig. 3

in an enlarged scale compared to FIG. 1, the frozen goods container in an oblique view on its rear wall, which is equipped with a receptacle for the channel shown in the detached state from the receptacle,

Fig. 4

the channel in an oblique view from above, approximately on a natural scale and

Fig. 5

approximately on a natural scale, the rear wall of the frozen goods container in a side view and cut according to the section line VV.

1, a household freezer 10 designed as a free-standing device is shown, which has a heat-insulating housing 11 which is provided with an opening 12 framed with cheeks. Above the edge of the opening 12 in the ceiling area of the housing 11 is a table top 13 attached to the outside of the ceiling thereof, the front surface of which is directed away from the opening 12 and is equipped with roughly indicated display and operating elements in alignment with the front surface of one in the floor area of the Housing 11 projecting base 14 is located. Both the table top 13 and the base 14 serve to accommodate bearing elements (not specified) of a door 15 which is arranged on the side edge of the opening 12. With the door 15 is surrounded by the heat-insulated walls of the housing 11, accessible through the opening 12, serving as a cooling space Interior 16 can be closed, wherein when the door 15 is closed, the front of the door 15 facing away from the opening 12 lies in one plane with the front surfaces of the base 14 and the table top 13 also facing away from the opening 12.

The interior 16 is delimited in the present case by a plastic blank deformed in a deep-drawing process to form a refrigerated goods container for heat insulation of the housing 11 and is equipped with a bottom 17 inclined towards the opening 12, the inclination of which is oriented such that it guides water to the center of the width the opening 12 forms. The water flow formed by the surface of the base 17 is matched to the water inlet of a channel element 19 which is fixedly arranged in a recess 18 in the cheek-like surround of the opening 12 on the base 17 and which is arranged with a slope beyond the edge of the opening 12. but jumps back with respect to the base 14. The channel element 19 releasably fastened in the recess 18 with sealing means, not shown, plunges into a bulge 20 molded into its thermal insulation when the door 15 is closed, the channel element 19 not having to be shortened in terms of its length before the door is closed (see FIG. 2) .

Above the inclined floor 17 are arranged in the interior 16 at regular intervals one above the other as evaporators serving evaporators 21 (only one of which is fully visible), which are held on the side walls of the interior 16 with fastening means, not shown. The evaporator shelves 21 have, in a serpentine arrangement, pipes running between the side walls of the interior 16, which are used to guide the refrigerant conveyed by a refrigerant compressor (not shown) serve and which are bordered with a frame 22 to increase their stability and their torsional rigidity.

In addition to generating cold in the interior 16, the evaporator shelves 21 also serve as a guide and as a storage level for drawer-like frozen goods containers 23 which have a container space formed by their walls and their bottom. The frozen goods containers 23 are provided on their front wall 24 facing the opening 12 with a handle element 25, which is averaged to the container width and is arranged close to the opening edge of the frozen goods container 23 and is integrated in a rim 26 arranged circumferentially at the opening edge of the frozen goods container 23. The grip element 25, which is used to pull the frozen goods containers 23 out of the interior 16, has a recessed grip molded into the front wall 24, which makes it considerably easier to grip the grip of the grip element 25 with the fingers of one hand.

As can be seen in particular from FIG. 3, the frozen goods container 23 has on its rear wall 27 opposite the front wall 24, specifically on the outside facing away from the container space, a receptacle 28 which is averaged approximately to the width of the rear wall 27 and from the free edge of the frozen goods container 23 starting, a part of the rim 26 runs freely in the direction of the container bottom. The receptacle 28 is essentially formed from an enclosure 29 having a rectangular contour, the legs 30 and 31 of which serve as its walls are also integrally formed on the rear wall 27. The shorter of the legs 30 describing the rectangular contour run parallel to the rim 26 encircling the free edge of the frozen goods container 23, the upper edge, the opening edge of the container 22 assigned shorter leg 30 forms part of the rim 26 and is arranged offset in height from this. Furthermore, the upper leg 30 is provided approximately in the middle of its length with a cutout 32, in which a locking lug 33 is arranged with its nose tip directed towards the free edges of the casing 29 (see FIG. 5).

Above the lower, shorter leg 30, on the inside of the longer legs 31, which are arranged perpendicular to the shelf 26, are arranged in their wall thickness, opposing recesses of the same contour. These are formed in a first section, starting from the free end of the legs 31, as insertion bevels 34, which serve as a feed for the bearing shells 35, which follow the insertion bevels 34 in the second section of the recess and are made in the form of blind holes. The bearing shells 35 arranged close to the outside of the rear wall 27, with their openings opposite one another, jump back in relation to the depth of the insertion bevels 34 in the wall thickness of the legs 31, as a result of which an undercut forming a catch with respect to the insertion bevels 34 is produced.

Adjoining the bearing shells 35, the rear wall 27 has an opening 36 arranged inside the casing 29, which essentially takes up the entire width of the rear wall section lying within the casing 29 and extends to the lower, shorter leg 30 of the casing 29. At a short distance above the center describing the height of the bearing shells 35 on the two longer legs 31, there are projections directly adjacent to the inside of the legs 31, directed towards the lower, shorter leg 30 and projecting into the opening 36 37 arranged, which are part of the rear wall and whose free end facing the lower shorter leg 27 serves as a stop 38 (see FIG. 5).

As can be seen from both FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, each of the bearing shells 35 serves to receive bearing journals 41 belonging to a groove 40, which are arranged on the longer rectangular sides of the groove 40, which has a substantially rectangular contour, and can be releasably latched to the bearing shells 35 are. The gutter 40 is equipped with a gutter bottom 42, on the surface of which serves as the gutter sole and faces the rear wall 27 in the installed position of the gutter 40, a board-like wall 43 that surrounds the gutter bottom 42 to form a gutter bed. This is in particular carried out continuously along the longer side of the rectangle of the channel 40 in order to achieve a defined water flow, while it is interrupted on the short sides of the rectangle, but extends up to the interruptions. The interruption on the rectangle side lying lower in the installed position of the channel 40 is designed as an outlet 44 and has a slope serving as a drip edge 45 on the channel bottom. On the shorter side of the rectangle, which is higher in the installed position, the wall section making up the interruption of the wall 43 is arranged offset in height from it and designed as a resilient latching hook 46. Furthermore, the wall 43 on both sides of the outlet 44 up to the bearing pins 41 is designed to be higher than the height of the remaining part of the wall 43 in order in particular in the region of the outlet 44 to reliably avoid the water guided in the channel 40 from being crossed. The transition from the raised wall sections to the height level of the remaining part of the wall 43 is produced with bevels serving as counter stops 47 for the stops 38.

The change in level of the wall height caused by the bevels is carried out approximately at the height of the bearing journals arranged on the wall 43, which are arranged on the longer rectangular sides of the channel 40 having a rectangular contour, eccentrically to their length on the outside facing away from the channel bed of the channel 40 and are aligned with each other. The aligned opposite journal 41 serve, in the installed position of the channel 40 on the rear wall 27 as a horizontal axis lying in a plane parallel to the rear wall 27, which is rotatably mounted in the bearing shells 35 and by their position on the channel 40 a shorter and a longer gutter part is formed.

In the installed position, the channel 40 is arranged on the rear wall 27, in the receptacle 28 provided therefor, its bearing journals 41 being locked in place with the bearing shells 35. The positioning of the bearing pins 41 with respect to the bearing shells 35 and the latching of the bearing pins 41 in the bearing shells 35 is made significantly easier by these upstream insertion bevels 44. In the locked state, the groove 40 can be pivoted about the bearing pins 41, which serve as an axis and are arranged horizontally in a plane parallel to the rear wall 27 (indicated by an arrow in FIG. 4).

The swivel angle of the trough 40 is limited in the unfolded state, pivoted from the rest position into the operating position (shown in broken lines in FIG. 4), by the interaction of the stops 38 with the counter-stops 47, in this position by the position of the bearing journal 41 Shaped formed formed axis and provided with raised wall 43 gutter part protrudes through the opening 36 in the container space.

The stops 38 and the counter-stops 47 cooperating with them are coordinated with one another in such a way that the channel 40 is arranged with a slope to the container space in the pivoted-out operating position. The pivoting angle from the operating position into the rest position, in which the channel 40 is located within the receptacle 28 formed by the casing 29, and the opening 36 is covered by the shorter channel part, is limited by the transition of the latching hook 46 into the latching nose 33, with the transition to this latching position, the groove 40 is also locked in its rest position.

In order to collect the melt water which results during a defrosting process of the evaporator stages 21 and which is fed to the channel element 19 via the slope incorporated in the bottom 17 of the interior 16, the frozen goods container 23 provided with the channel 40 is removed from the interior 16. Even before it is parked in front of the base 15, the channel 40 is pivoted from its rest position into its operating position. Subsequently, the container 23 must be parked in front of the base 15 in such a way that the channel 40 together with the channel element 19 results in a continuous water flow, the longer part of the channel 40 resulting from the position of the axis being coupled to the channel element 19 in order to achieve water guidance. In the coupled state, the channel 40 is arranged below the channel element 19, so that the melt water falls from the channel element 19 onto the channel bed of the channel 40.

Claims (11)

1. Freezer appliance (10) with a thermally insulating housing (11), which is closable by a door (15) and the interior space (16) of which is chargeable by coldness and has drawer-like frozen stock containers (23) arranged therein, which are extractable by handle elements (25), and at the base (17) of which the melt water collects, which by reason of the ice forming thereat results during a defrosting process of evaporators serving for the refrigeration in the interior space (16) and is led to an outlet (19), characterised thereby, that a chute (40), which is guidable to the outlet (19) and by way of which the melt water is fed to a frozen stock container (23) serving as collecting container, is arranged at that frozen stock container (23).
2. Freezer appliance according to claim 1, characterised thereby, that the outlet is executed as stationary chute element (19) in the region of the door opening (12).
3. Freezer appliance according to claim 2, characterised thereby, that the chute element (19) and the chute (40) are arranged one above the other during a defrosting process.
4. Freezer appliance according to claim 1, characterised thereby, that the chute (40) arranged at the frozen stock container (23) is pivotable about a horizontal axle from a recessed position into its operative position, in which a part of the chute (40) is arranged within and a part externally of the container space, wherein both parts of the chute (40) are equipped with a wall (43) serving to guide the water.
5. Freezer appliance according to claim 4, characterised thereby, that the horizontal axle is arranged eccentrically of the length of the chute (40), wherein the shorter part, that has arisen due to the position of the axle, of the chute (40) after its pivotation into the operative position projects through a passage (36) in the container wall into the container space, whilst the longer part is couplable to the chute element (19) at the opening rim of the door (15).
6. Freezer appliance according to claim 4 or 5, characterised thereby, that the wall (23) serving to guide the water is executed to be higher at the shorter part of the chute (40) than at its longer part.
7. Freezer appliance according to claim 4 or 5, characterised thereby, that the horizontal axle is arranged in a plane parallel to one of the container walls.
8. Freezer appliance according to claim 4, 5 or 6, characterised thereby, that the bearing spigots (41), which are arranged at the chute (40) and each lie opposite the other in alignment and which are detachably connected with bearing shells (35) arranged at the container wall (27) lying opposite the handle element (25), serve as horizontal axle.
9. Freezer appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterised thereby, that the chute (40) at the frozen stock container (23) is arranged in its rest position to be recessed in a receptacle (28) at the container wall (27) and closing the passage (36) arranged therein and in its recessed position is arrested at the container wall (27).
10. Freezer appliance according to claim 2 or 3, characterised thereby, that the chute element (19) arranged at the opening rim of the door (15) is detachably connected with a depression (18) arranged at the base (17) of the interior space (16), wherein the melt water guided by the connection with the depression (18) is led to the chute element (19).
11. Freezer appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterised thereby, that the chute (40) and the chute element (19) display different lengths, wherein the chute element (19) is executed to be shorter and, when the door is closed, enters with unshortened length into a concavity (20) provided there.

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