GB2313039A

GB2313039A - Shelf for a refrigerator

Info

Publication number: GB2313039A
Application number: GB9717808A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Gun Jun Si; Sang Yuol Lee
Original assignee: Gold Star Co Ltd
Current assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Priority date: 1993-07-28
Filing date: 1993-07-28
Publication date: 1997-11-19
Anticipated expiration: 2013-07-28
Also published as: GB9717811D0; GB2313039B; GB9717808D0; GB2313040A; GB2313040B

Abstract

A refrigerator shelf assembly 13c is mounted for sliding on a channelled rail 22 on the rear wall of the refrigerator compartment. The shelf is narrower than the compartment which allows it to be slid horizontally to accommodate articles of different sizes. The shelf carries support bars 28 each having a pair of rollers 30 which run on the inside of the channel. A lower protrusion 22a integral with the rail acts as a sliding support surface for protrusion 24a on the shelf.

Description

SHELF DEVICE FOR A REERIGERATOR BACKG20UND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to a shelf device for a refrigerator, and oore particularly a shelf device for a refrigerator, which comprises a shelf assembly mounted in a refrigerating chamber of the refrigerator to be movable horizontally so that a user can horizontally oove it depending upon a size of a foodstuff to be stored, thereby efficiently utilizing the internal space of the refrigerator.

2. Description of the Prior Art There have been heretofore proposed shelf devices of various forays and designs, a typical example of which is of the type shovn in Figs.l and 2 of the accompanying dravings, which comprises a pair of support bars 1 each formed vith a rov of vertically spaced, elongated holes la and vertically fixed to a back vall surface of a refrigerating chamber of a refrigerator, and a shelf assembly 3 including a shelf frame 2 formed vith tvo pairs of downwardly bent hooks 2a which are engaged vith the elongated holes la of the support bars 1.

This prior shelf device is however disadvantageous in that while the device allows foodstuffs to be stored in the refrigerating chamber through slight adjustment of the level of each shelf assembly 3 in the range of the elongated holes la formed in the support bars 1, larger objects such as a larger container, a bulky vateraelon and the like., for example, must be stored in the chamber vith any of the shelf assemblies 3 removed, requiring complicated removal vork and custody of the removed shelf assembly, thereby giving inconvenience to a user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION with the foregoing problen of the prior art device in view, it is an object of the present invention to provide a shelf device for a refrigerator, which comprises a shelf assembly constructed to be novable horizontally, not vertically, so that a user can horizontally move it depending upon a storage state of a bulky foodstuff in the refrigerator.

To achieve the above object, there is provided according one form of the present invention a shelf device for a refrigerator conprising a bracket horizontally mounted on a back wall of a refrigerating chamber ; a plurality of engaging holes forked in the bracket in equally spaced relation to one another ; and a shelf assembly having a length less than the vidth of the refrigerating chamber and provided vith hooks engaged vith the engaging holes ; whereby a user can horizontally nove the shelf assembly depending upon a size of an object to be stored.

According to another forn of the present invention, there is provided a shelf device for a refrigerator comprising a box type bracket having an upwardly projecting piece and horizontally counted on a back wall of a refrigerating chamber ; and a shelf assembly provided vith an engaging piece hooked on the projecting piece of the bracket and a guide groove brought into contact vith the bracket; whereby the shelf assembly can be slidingly displaced vithout being dissounted frown the bracket.

According to further another fori of the present invention, there is provided a shelf device for a refrigerator comprising a guide rail horizontally counted on a back vall of a refrigerating chamber; sliders movable along the guide rail; and a shelf assembly connected to the sliders to be horizontally movable therewith along the guide rail and having a length less than the vidth of the refrigerating chamber; whereby a user can displace nore conveniently the shelf assembly through smooth slide movement thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the accompanying dravings Fig. 1 is a front viev of a refrigerating chamber of a refrigerator vith shelf devices according to the prior art counted therein Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of area A in Fig. 1 Fig. 3 is a front view of the refrigerating chamber vith shelf devices according to the present invention nounted therein ; Fig. 4 is an exploded perspective vicv shovinq the important parts of the shelf device according to one embodiment of the present invention Fig. S is a cross-sectional viev showing the parts of Pig. 4 in an assembled state Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the shelf device according to another embodiment of the present invention ; Fig. 7 is a fragmentary perspective viev of the shelf device according to further another embodiment of the present invention ; Fig. 8 is a front viev.of the refrigerating chamber vith the shelf devices according to still further another embodiment of the present invention mounted therein ; Fig. 9 is a fragmentary perspective viev of area B in Fig.8; and Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional viev of the shelf device shown in Fig. 9.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The invention vill now be described in nore detail vith reference to Figs. 3 to 10 of the accompanying dravings, which illustrate preferred embodiments thereof.

Fig. 3 is a front view of refrigerating chamber of a refrigerator vith shelf devices according to the present invention mounted therein, Fig. 4 shovn in exploded perspective viev the important parts of the shelf device according to one embodiment of the present invention, and Fig.S shovs in section the parts of Fig. 4 in an assembled state.

The shelf device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a bracket 11 horizontally fixed to the back vall of the refrigerating chamber and having a plurality of horizontally spaced, rectangular engaging holes 12 formed therein in two rovs, and a shelf assembly 13 having two pairs of downwardly bent hooks 14 provided one pair at each of both ends of its rear side to be engaged vith the engaging holes 12 of the bracket 11 at a desired mounting position.

As shovn in Fig. 3, a plurality of such brackets 11 are horizontally mounted on the back all of the refrigerating chamber in vertically spaced relation to one another, diffenently from support bars of the prior art vertically mounted in a laterally spaced relation to one another, and the shelf assembly 13 is mounted on each bracket 11 at a desired position through engagement of the hooks 14 with the selected holes of the engaging holes 12 of the bracket in such a manner that the shelf assembly may be varied in position depending upon a storage state of a foodstuff in the refrigerator.

As shown in Fig. 4, the shelf assembly 13 may be selectively positioned by engaging too pairs of the hooks 14 formed at both ends of the rear side of the assembly vith tvo pairs of the upper and lover engaging holes 12 of the bracket 11. The engaged state of the hooks of the shelf assembly vith the holes of the bracket is shovn in section in Fig. 5. Preferably, the shelf assembly 13 has an appropriate length less than the vidth of the refrigerating chamber.

With this construction, an optimal storage state in the chamber may be simply and conveniently accomplished depending upon a desired storage condition, so that larger objects may be conveniently stored in the refrigerating chamber simply by displacing horizontally any of the shelf assemblies according to a size of the object to be stored, vithout removing and separately keeping the shelf assembly as in the prior art.

According to another embodiment of the present invention shovn in Fig. 6, the shelf device comprises a bracket ila having a plurality of equally spaced engaging holes 12a formed therein in a rov, instead of two upper and lover rovs as in the embodiment shovn in Fig.4, and a shelf assembly 13a provided at each end of its rear side vith only one hook 14a engaged vith one of the holes 12a of the single rov and a support surface is projectingly formed below the book 14a to be brought into contact vith the solid surface of the bracket lla.

The provision for the single hook 14a engaged vith one hole 12a of the bracket ila facilitates displacement of the shelf assembly 13a as compared vith the embodiment shovn in Fig.S. In an assembled state, the shelf assembly of this embodiment can be kept in place by ovn gravity and weight of the supported object vithout playing.

According to further another embodiment of the present invention, the bracket comprises engaging means permitting a change in position of the shelf assembly to be easily carried out, instead of the engaging holes as in the previous embodiments. As shown in Pig.7, the shelf device of this embodiment comprises a bracket lib of a generally square tube configuration horizontally counted on the back vall of the refrigerating chamber and having a projecting piece 16 protruding upwardly from its upper surface, and a shelf assembly 13b provided vith an engaging piece 17 hooked on the projecting piece 16 and a guide groove 18 formed longitudinally in the rear side thereof.

With this construction, the shelf assembly 13b can be displaced simply by sliding it to a desired position along the bracket lib vithout separating it from the bracket. In this casc, preferably, the guide groove 18 may be formed vith a projecting surface 18a serving to ensure smooth sliding movement of the assembly 13b on the bracket lib and support load of the supported objects through its contact vith the front surface of the bracket lib.

Still further another embodiment of the present invention, in which the shelf assembly is constructed to be capable of being slid easily even when the objects are supported thereon, vill nov be explained vith reference to Figs. 8 to 10.

Referring to Fig.8 shoving a front view of the refrigerating chamber vith the shelf device according to this embodiment mounted therein, the shelf device comprises a guide rail 22 horizontally fixed on the back vall 21 of the chamber and a shelf assembly 13e connected to the guide rail 22 to be movable along the rail. The shelf assembly 13c includes a shelf frame 24 and a glass plate 26 supported by support rods 25 caulked in the shelf frame and a rear cover 27. The glass plate may be replaced by a plate of any other material or a vire qrid.

Each of sliders for slidingly connecting the shelf assembly to the guide rail comprises, as shovn in Figs. 9 and 10, a support bar 28 secured to the rear end portion of the shelf frame 24 by means of a bolt 29, and a pair of rollers 30 rotatably mounted at one end of the support bar 28 via a support shaft 31 and disposed to come into rolling contact with the inner surface of the guide rail 22, whereby the shelf assembly 13c can be moved along the guide rail.

In addition, the guide rail 22 has an integral connection piece 22a depending dovnvardly from its underside, and the shelf frame 24 has a horizontally projecting piece 24a formed at the lover portion of its rear side. Therefore, at a rest position, the shelf assembly 13 may be horizontally kept by engagement of the projecting piece 24a vith the connection piece 22a. The reason for forming the connection piece 22a integral vith the guide rail 22 is to help the protruding piece 24a to support load applied to the shelf assembly by the foodstuffs placed thereon.

Reference Numeral 32 denotes screws for fastening the guide rail 22 to the back wall 21, and 33 denotes a reinforcing piece for improving fastened strength of the guide rail.

Operation and effect of the thus constructed device of this embodiment will now be explained. Pirst, vhen the shelf assembly 13c has been mounted on the guide rail 22, as shovn in Fig. 10, the shelf assembly is kept in a horizontal state by engagement of the projecting piecs 24a vith the connection piece 22a, so that foodstuffs can be placed on the assembly to be stored in the refrigerating chamber.

In this state, vhen it is desired to displace the shelf assembly 13c according to a size of a foodstuff to be put into the chamber, since it may be difficult to slide the shelf assembly due to tight engagement of the projecting piece 24a supporting load of the foodstuffs on the assembly vith the connection piece 22a, a user slightly lifts up the forvard end of the assembly to bring the projecting piece out of engagement vith the connection piece, and then slides the assembly to a desired position. At this time, the rollers 30 connected to the support bar 28 via the support shaft 31 execute rolling movement on the inner surface of the guide rail 22, so that the shelf assembly can be displaced easily along the guide rail.

Therefore, vhen storing a lengthy object in a vertically oriented posture, the object can be conveniently put into the refrigerating chamber by laterally displacting the shelf assembly in accordance vith the length of the object to secure a necessary space.

Pron the foregoing it will be appreciated that the present invention provides advantages over the prior art in that the shelf assembly can be adjusted in position depending upon the height of a foodstuff to be stored vithout removing and separately keeping the shelf assembly, so that the refrigerator can be used more conveniently, and in that the available space of the refrigerating chamber can be easily varied according to a desired storage state of the foodstuff, so the utility of the storage space may be maximized.

While the invention has been shovn and described vith particular reference to various embodiments thereof, it vill be understood that variations and modifications in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A shelf device for a refrigerator comprising: a guide rail for horizontally mounting on a back wall of a refrigerating chamber sliders movable along said guide rail ; and a shelf assembly connected to said sliders to be horizontally movable along said guide rail.

2. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in Claim 1, in which each said slider comprises a support bar fixed to a shelf frame of said shelf assembly and a pair of rollers rotatably mounted at one end of sai4 support bar.

3. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in Claim 1, in which said guide rail has a downwardly depending connection piece, and said shelf assembly is formed at its rear side with a horizontally projecting piece, whereby said shelf assembly may be maintained in a horizontal position by engagement of said projection piece with said connection piece.

4. A shelf device for a refrigerator comprising: a guide rail for horizontally mounting on a back wall of a refrigerating chamber, said guide rail having a downwardly depending connection piece formed as one piece with the guide rail, sliders movable along said guide rail; a shelf assembly connected to said sliders to be horizontally movable along said guide rail, wherein said shelf assembly is formed at its rear side with a horizontally projecting piece, whereby said shelf assembly is maintained in a horizontal position by engagement of said projecting piece with said connection piece.

5. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in claim 4, in which each of said sliders comprises a support bar fixed to a shelf frame of said shelf assembly and a pair of rollers rotatably mounted at one end of said support bar.

6. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in claim 5, wherein the rollers are configured to contact a vertical inner surface of the guide rail.

7. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in claim 4, wherein the connection piece is a flat plate with a front side flat surface and a rear side flat surface, with said rear side flat surface for fitting flush with the back wall of the refrigerator.

8. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in claim 4, wherein the projecting piece is a solid protrusion formed as one piece with the shelf assembly.

9. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in claim 8, wherein the solid protrusion extends across the length of the rear side of the shelf assembly.

10. A shelf device for a refrigerator comprising: a bracket horizontally mounted on a back wall of a refrigerating chamber a row of engaging holes formed in said bracket in equally spaced relation to one another ; and a shelf assembly having a length less than the width of said refrigerating chamber and provided with a pair of hooks engaged with said engaging holes and support surfaces brought into contact with said bracket to support load; whereby said shelf assembly can be displaced horizontally on side bracket depending upon a size of an object to be stored.

11. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in Claim 10, which further comprising an additional row of engaging holes formed below said row of the holes and an additional pair of hooks formed below said hooks to be engaged with said holes of said addition; row ; whereby supportability of the shelf device may be improved.

12. A shelf device for a refrigerator comprising: a bracket having a projecting piece protruding upwardly from its uppers surface and horizontally mounted on a back wall of a refrigerating chamber and a shelf assembly provided with an engaging piece hooked on said projecting piece and a guide groove brought into contact with said bracket, and slidable horizontally along said bracket.

13. A shelf device for a refrigerator as claimed in Claim 12, in which said guide groove is formed with a projection surface serving to ensure smooth sliding movement of said shelf assembly and brought into direct contact with said bracket.