EP2676087B1 - Door handle for a domestic appliance door - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a household appliance with a door handle according to the preamble of claim 1.

To open or close a door of a household appliance, this has a door handle, which can be attached as a design element on the door front of the appliance door and multi-part composed of plastic and / or metal elements edge. From the US 4 922 576 A is a household appliance according to the preamble of claim 1 known. From the DE 20 2007 013 032 U1 is a generic household appliance known whose appliance door has such a door handle. The door handle consists of a vertically arranged hollow cylindrical handle tube, which is inserted at its upper and lower end faces between handle holders, which are mounted on the door. Each of the handle holder has a directly in contact with the door front, solid body, which is extended with a narrow mounting leg in the Bautiefenrichtung backwards, which engages around the outer edge of the door side. The clamped between the mounting leg and the main body of the handle holder inner angle range is contoured fit in close contact with the outer panel of the door. The handle holder is also on its mounting leg with the door side edge in a tight screw connection.

Due to component and manufacturing tolerances, there is a risk that a visually disadvantageous gap between the base body of the handle holder and the door front of the appliance door results due to tolerances, whereby a post-processing of this component assembly is required. In addition, in a subsequent stop change, in which the Anlenkseite the door is changed, the problem that remain in the outer panel of the door optically disadvantageous impression spots in the outer panel of the door, resulting from the handle holder.

The object of the invention is to provide a household appliance with a door whose door handle, despite component and manufacturing tolerances optically flawless and easy to install.

The object is solved by the features of claim 1. Preferred embodiments of the invention are disclosed in the subclaims.

The invention is based on a door handle for a household appliance door, which has a handle which is mounted on at least one handle holder on the visible outer wall of the appliance door. According to the characterizing part of claim 1, a compensating material or a compensating element is arranged between the handle holder and the appliance door outer wall, which closes a tolerance formed gap formed between the appliance door outer wall and the handle holder. Optically disadvantageous visual joints or gaps between the outer door panel and the handle holder are thus filled by the compensating element. In order for the compensating element to fit in shape and to fit gap-free between the appliance door outer wall and the handle holder, the compensating element should have a component rigidity which is greatly reduced compared to the handle holder.

The domestic appliance according to the invention is used for housekeeping and can be, for example, a refrigerator, such as a refrigerator, a freezer, a freezer, a wine storage cabinet or a fridge freezer.

It is preferred if the compensating element has a reduced inherent rigidity compared to the component-rigid structure of the handle holder. In this way, during the assembly of the handle holder on the appliance door, the compensating element under deformation to fill a tolerance caused gap. It is particularly favorable when the compensating element is made elastically yielding, for example as a rubber-like plastic material. With its help, a gap can be reliably closed, the gap width varies due to external actuation forces in the course of the service life of the refrigerator.

With the compensation element according to the invention also pressure points can be avoided in the door panel. Such pressure points arise when the handle holder is pressed with too high mounting forces against the door panel. As already mentioned in connection with the assessment of the prior art, such pressure points are visible in particular in a subsequent stop change on the door. to Avoiding such pressure points, at least a portion of the assembly forces can be absorbed by deformation of the compensation element during assembly of the handle holder with the door, whereby a deformation of the door outer panel is prevented.

In order to achieve a joint-free abutment of the compensating element on the outer wall of the door, the compensating element may have at least one partially circumferential edge sealing lip. This is reinforced in the assembly position in sealing contact with the door outer wall.

The compensating element can be arranged in any desired manner between the handle holder and the outer wall of the appliance door. However, it is preferred in terms of component reduction if the compensation element together with the handle holder forms a pre-assembly unit. For this purpose, the compensation element can be preassembled as a separate component on the handle holder. Alternatively, the compensation element can be integrated in the same material and / or in one piece on the grip holder.

In order to ensure a full-surface stable installation of the handle holder on the door, it is advantageous if the compensating element is designed plate-shaped. In this case, the compensation element can cover the entire surface of the device door outer wall facing side of the handle holder.

The compensating element can preferably be manufactured as a separate component independently of the grip holder and only then assembled with the grip holder to a pre-assembly. For this purpose, it is advantageous if the compensating element has on its side remote from the appliance door outer wall side an insertion contour which can be inserted into a corresponding guide of the base body. So that the compensation element remains secure in position in the main body guide, a securing element can be provided, with which the installation position of the compensating element is secured. For this purpose, the securing element may have a stop portion which prevents slipping out of the compensating element from the main body guide.

The securing element can be mounted by way of example on the handle holder, in particular in a non-detachable latching connection. For securing the securing element, a base body of the handle holder may be hollow with an inside mounting space, are arranged in the fastening elements, in particular locking elements for mounting the securing element on the base body.

For attachment, the securing element may comprise elastically resilient latching tabs, for example, which are deformable upon insertion into the mounting space with the construction of an elastic restoring force and can snap into the recesses provided in the mounting space upon reaching the construction position of the securing element.

By way of example, the securing element may be a plate-shaped wall element which completely covers the access opening to the mounting space of the main body of the handle holder in the installed position, whereby the mounting space of the handle holder is sealed from the outside.

The manually exerted during opening and closing the door actuating forces are introduced via the handle on the at least one grip holder and further into the door. A permanently play-free door handle holder is of great relevance for a perfect door operation. Against this background, a particularly component-rigid design of the handle holder is preferred. In a technical realization of the grip holder may have a patch on the door front of the door base body which is extended in the Bautiefenrichtung with a mounting leg, which is mounted on the side narrow door side edge. The mounting leg of the handle holder can be tightened by a fixed screw on the door edge, which can result in particular in the context of large-scale production in the Bautiefenrichtung y manufacturing tolerances that lead to a gap between the body and the door. In order to save material in the design of the handle holder despite high component stiffness, the base body may be hollow with an inside mounting space. The main body may be exemplary box-shaped, with horizontal in the installed position cover and bottom walls and vertical side walls. Within the mounting space of the main body can preferably view protected fasteners, in particular locking elements, be arranged, on which the securing element can be mounted.

The compensating element extends into the inner corner region between the base body and the mounting leg. In the assembly position, therefore, the compensation element comprises the door outer edge between the door front and the door side edge.

In order to achieve a stable door handle structure, the handle holder and the handle can be brought into a plug connection to each other, in which a plug-in projection is inserted into a socket. Thus, the existing between the handle holder and the handle connector reliably maintained, it is advantageous to additionally secure them, for example, by pressing forces between the socket and the plug-in approach. If the pressing forces are too high, however, the radially outer plug-in receptacle can rupture or break. Against this background, it is advantageous if it is dispensed with excessive pressing forces in the region of the clamping connection. Rather, according to the invention, the existing securing element can be formed with an additional locking tab, which engages positively with a built-fuse element in a corresponding recess of the handle and thereby blocks detachment of the handle from the handle holder.

According to a further embodiment, the appliance door outer wall may have an embossing, on the embossing floor of the handle holder is supported with the interposition of the compensating element. The embossing depth of the embossing is preferably dimensioned such that the compensating element is immersed in the embossing substantially protected from sight. In addition, the circumferential embossing edge of the outer contour of the compensating element follow contour-matched. In this way, the compensating element is arranged in the assembly position almost protected from the outside. Such a view-protected arrangement of the compensation element is particularly advantageous when the grip holder is painted. In this case, it is not necessary to color the light-proof compensating element with this color. A painting of the compensation element would prohibit anyway, since the paint would flake off again when squeezing the compensation element.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the invention with reference to the accompanying figures will be described.

Fig. 1

in einer perspektivischen Vorderansicht den an einer Gerätetür montierten Türgriff;

Fig. 2

in einer vergrößerten Ansicht von oben den oberen Griffstückhalter;

Fig. 3

in einer vergrößerten perspektivischen Darstellung den oberen Griffstückhalter des Türgriffs mit darin eingestecktem Griffrohr;

Fig. 4

in einer Explosionsdarstellung den oberen Griffstückhalter und das Griffstück mit entferntem Sicherungselement sowie entferntem Ausgleichselement;

Fig. 5

den mit dem Griffstück zusammengebauten Griffstückhalter mit entferntem Sicherungselement;

Fig. 6

eine Ansicht entsprechend der Fig. 4, in der der Einbau des Sicherungselements veranschaulicht ist; und

Fig. 7

in einer schematischen Seitenschnittdarstellung ein weiteres Ausführungsbeispiel.

Show it:

Fig. 1

in a perspective front view of the mounted on a door door handle;

Fig. 2

in an enlarged view from above the upper handle holder;

Fig. 3

in an enlarged perspective view of the upper handle holder of the door handle with it inserted Griffrohr;

Fig. 4

in an exploded view, the upper handle holder and the handle with removed fuse element and remote compensation element;

Fig. 5

the assembled with the handle grip holder with removed fuse element;

Fig. 6

a view corresponding to the Fig. 4 in which the installation of the securing element is illustrated; and

Fig. 7

in a schematic side sectional view of another embodiment.

In the Fig. 1 is shown in a partial view from the front a refrigeration device with a about a vertical pivot axis S laterally hinged to the device body of the refrigerator appliance door 1. The appliance door 1 has in the device side direction x opposite to the pivot axis S a door handle 3. The door handle 3 is constructed in several parts of an upper and a lower handle holder 5 and an intermediate handle 7, which is a hollow cylindrical handle tube made of plastic material in the present embodiment. The handle tube 7 has according to the figures in an approximately semi-circular cross-section.

Like from the Fig. 1 further shows, the two upper and lower handle holder 5 are designed with a comparatively massive box-shaped body 9, the on the door front 11 of the appliance door 1 is placed and in the depth direction y protrudes forward from the door front 11. This results between the handle tube 7 and the door front 11 a Durchgriffsbereich for actuating the door handle. The main body 9 of the handle holder 5 is extended in the depth direction y to the rear with a mounting leg 13, which is in the threaded connection 17 with the narrow door side edge 15 and the vertical outer edge 16 of the door 1 surrounds form-fitting contour-matched. The screw head of this screw 17 is in the Fig. 1 covered by a plastic lid 18.

In the Fig. 2 and 3 In each case, enlarged perspective views of the upper handle holder 5 are shown. In the Fig. 3 the upper handle holder 5 is shown in a simplifying the understanding of the invention, in which the upper handle holder 5 compared to Fig. 2 rotated by about 90 °. Consequently, in the Fig. 3 the door pivot axis S facing side of the handle holder 5 shown, wherein for easier orientation, the outer edge 16 between the narrow door side edge 15 and the door front 11 is indicated by a vertical contour line. The lower, not shown handle holder 5 is constructed mirror-symmetrical about a horizontal mirror axis to the upper handle holder 5.

Like from the Fig. 2 shows, the box-shaped base body 9 of the handle holder 3 at its, the door front 11 facing side 4 (Fig. Fig. 3 ) an elastically flexible soft compensation element 19, which according to the Fig. 2 extends over the entire base body side 4 to the inner corner region 20 between the base body 9 and the mounting leg 13. The compensating element 19 serves to accommodate component or assembly tolerances, whereby a joint-free contact of the base body 9 is always ensured on the door front 11 of the door 1. The compensation element 19 is in accordance with Fig. 2 and 3 prefabricated as a separate component and via a dovetail tongue-and-groove connection on one of the door front 11 facing mounting wall 21 (FIG. Fig. 3 and 4 ) of the main body 9 attached. For this purpose, the compensation element 19 on its side facing away from the door front 11 guide ribs 23, which the trapezoidally shaped guide grooves 22 (FIG. Fig. 3 ) of the mounting wall 21 engage behind a positive fit. In addition, a rectangular opening 24 in the mounting wall 21 is provided approximately in the center, which can be engaged by a T-shaped guide pin 30 of the compensating element 19. In addition, a joint-free system of To achieve compensation element 19 on the door front 11, the plate-shaped compensating element 19 edge only one in the Fig. 3 shown circumferential sealing lip 14 which reinforces the sealing contact with the door front 11 in the assembly position.

Like from the Fig. 3 shows, the box-shaped base body 9 of the handle holder 5 is hollow with an inside mounting space 25 is formed. The mounting space 25 has at its, the device door pivot axis S side facing an access opening 26.

Otherwise, the mounting space 25 is closed by side walls of the base body 9. The in the Fig. 3 shown bottom bottom wall 27 of the base body 9 serves as a support wall on which a plug-in projection 28 is formed. The plug-in projection 28 of the handle holder 5 is in assembly position in plug-in connection with the upper end piece 29 of the handle tube 7, which can positively surround the plug-in projection 28 of the handle holder 5 as a plug-in receptacle. The plug-in projection 27 and the plug-in receptacle 29 are matched to one another such that the plug-in projection 28 is inserted into the plug-in receptacle 29 while applying slight clamping forces in order to achieve a play-free mounting of the handle tube 7.

In the, in the Fig. 1 and 2 shown assembly position is the upper end piece or the plug-in receptacle 29 of the handle tube 7 with its horizontal peripheral edge 32 (FIG. Fig. 3 ) is pushed into abutment with the bottom wall 27 of the base body 9. The upper end piece 29 of the handle tube 7 also has a wall segment 31, which extends the handle tube 7 in the longitudinal direction and together with the peripheral edge 32 has an insertion opening 36 (FIG. Fig. 3 ) limited for the plug approach 28. In the assembly position, the wall segment 31 of the handle tube 7 surrounds a front end wall 33 (FIG. Fig. 4 ) of the base body 9, wherein the upper edge 34 of the wall segment 31 is protected by a roof section 35 of the handle holder 9 is covered.

The following is based on the Fig. 3 to 5 the assembly of the handle holder 5 with the handle tube 7 explained. So first, according to the Fig. 3 the upper end piece or the plug-in receptacle 29 in the arrow direction shown plugged onto the plug-in projection 28 of the handle holder 5. In addition, according to the Fig. 4 the Compensation element 19 is pushed in the arrow direction shown on the mounting wall 21 of the base body 9. In a following, in the Fig. 5 illustrated assembly step, the still open access opening 26 of the base body 9 by means of a securing element 37 is closed. With the installation of the securing element 37 at the same time the plug-in projection 28 of the handle holder 3 is secured against unintentional slipping out of the front end portion 29 of the handle 7. For this purpose, the securing element 37 in the Fig. 5 on the right side edge of a locking tab 38 which in the installed position ( Fig. 2 ) is in a positive connection with a corresponding recess 39 of the handle tube 7. In the figures, this recess 39 is incorporated in a vertical longitudinal edge 41 of the wall segment 31.

The fuse element 37 is according to the Fig. 5 initially inserted with its locking tab 38 in an Ansetzbewegung I obliquely into the recess 39 of the wall segment 31 of the handle tube 7, namely to form a pivot point A, by which the securing element 37 in a subsequent pivoting movement II in the construction position ( Fig. 2 ) is einschwenkbar.

The securing element 37, which is designed as a plate-shaped wall element, has on its side facing the mounting space 25 four projecting latching lugs with fixing pins 43 (FIG. Fig. 5 ) on. When swinging into the construction position, the locking tabs are deformed together with the fixing pins 43 slightly under construction of a restoring force, as shown in the Fig. 5 indicated by the double arrows. Upon reaching the construction position, the fixing pins 43 of the securing element 37 can snap into the provided inside recesses 47 of the mounting space 25, with simultaneous support of the outer edge of the securing element 37 on a 26 limiting the access opening abutment shoulder 45. In the construction position thus produced the access opening 26 of the mounting space 25 is completely closed. At the same time, the guide ribs 23 and the T-shaped pin 30 of the compensating element 19 are covered by a peripheral abutment portion 49 of the securing element 37, whereby the compensating element 19 is held securely in position in the insertion contour of the mounting wall 21.

In the Fig. 7 is roughly schematically shown a further embodiment of the invention, in which in the door front 11 an impression 51 is provided. The embossing edge 53 of the embossment 51 surrounds the outer edge of the compensating element 19 with a slight-shaped joint Fig. 7 is the main body 9 of the handle holder 5 with the interposition of the compensating element 19 pressed onto the embossing bottom 52 of the indentation 51. The compensating element 19 is compressed in the assembly position shown to a material thickness m. In addition, the embossing depth t is dimensioned such that it corresponds approximately to the material thickness m of the compensating element 19 compressed in the assembly position. In the assembly position, the compensating element 19 is thus immersed in the imprint 51, protected from view. The sight-protected compensating element 19 therefore plays no role in the appearance of the door handle, so that optical adjustments of the compensating element 19 to the color of the door front 11 and the handle holder 9 can be omitted. <B> LIST OF REFERENCES </ b> 1 door 38 locking tab 3 door handle 39 recess 5 Handle holder 41 longitudinal edge 7 grip 43 fixing pins 9 body 45 contact shoulder 11 front door 47 recesses 14 sealing lip 49 stop section 13 Mounting leg I ramming 15 Door side edge II pivotal movement 16 Outside edge of the appliance door 1 x Device side direction 17 screw y Bautiefenrichtung 18 cover A articulation 19 compensation element s gap 20 inner corner 21 mounting wall 22 guide 23 guide ribs 24 breakthrough 25 mounting space 26 access opening 27 bottom wall 28 plug-in projection 29 plug-in receptacle 30 T-shaped guide pin 31 wall segment 32 Peripheral edge of the handle 7 33 outer wall 34 top edge 35 roof section 36 insertion opening 37 fuse element

Claims (11)

1. Household appliance with a device door (1), the door handle (3) of which has a grip piece (7), which is mounted via at least one grip piece holder (5) on the visible-side outer wall (11, 15) of the device door (1), wherein the grip piece holder (5) has a base body (9) in contact with the door front (11) and an installation limb (13) able to be mounted on the narrow door side edge (15), characterised in that a compensation element (19) is disposed between the grip piece holder (5) and the device door outer wall (11, 15), which closes a gap (s) between the device door outer wall (11, 15) and the grip piece holder (5), that the compensation element (19) has a component stiffness reduced by comparison with the grip piece holder (5) and/or the grip piece holder (5) is able to be mounted on the device door outer wall by deforming the compensation element (19), and that the compensation element (19) is disposed at least on the side (4) of the base body (9) facing towards the door front (11), and the compensation element (19) is disposed in the inner corner area (20) between the mounting limb (13) and the base body (9) which surrounds an outer edge (16) of the device door (1).
2. Household appliance according to claim 1, characterised in that the compensation material (19) is able to be pre-installed as a separate component on the grip piece holder (5) or is integrated as uniform material and/or in one piece on the grip piece holder (5).
3. Household appliance according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the compensation element (19) is embodied in a plate shape, and/or covers the full surface of the side (4) of the grip piece holder (5) facing towards the outer wall.
4. Household appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the compensation element (19) has a sealing lip (14) running at least partly around the edge side.
5. Household appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the compensation element (19) has an insert contour (23, 30) which is able to be pushed into a guide (22) of the base body (9).
6. Household appliance according to claim 5, characterised in that a securing element (37) for securing the mounting position of the compensation element (19) is provided, and that especially the securing element (37) has a stop section (49) which blocks a movement of the compensation element (19) in the guide (22) of the base body (9).
7. Household appliance according to claim 6, characterised in that the securing element (37) is able to be mounted on the grip piece holder (5), especially in a non-releasable latched connection (43, 47).
8. Household appliance according to one of claims 6 or 7, characterised in that the base body (9) is embodied hollow with an inner-side installation space (25), in which fastening elements, especially latching elements (47), for installing the securing element (37) on the base body (9) are installed.
9. Household appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the grip piece holder (5) and the grip piece (7) make a plug-in connection with one another, in which a plug (28) is plugged into a socket (27), and that especially the securing element (37) secures the plug (28) against slipping out of the socket (27).
10. Household appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the device door outer wall (11, 15) has a recessed section (51), on the recessed floor (52) of which the grip piece holder (5) is supported with the compensation element (19) between the two.
11. Household appliance according to claim 10, characterised in that the depth (t) of the recess (51) is dimensioned so that the compensation element (19) is essentially disposed in the recess (51) hidden from sight.

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