JPH0445382A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable a case for pulling out only the first drawing container and another case for pulling out the second container concurrently to be selected by a method wherein a drawing type door is provided with an engaging mechanism having an operating member for operating an engaging member selectively engaged with a pulling type engaging receptacle for the second drawing container. CONSTITUTION:An engaging member 17 so keeps by a force of spring 20 that a pulling type engaging receptacle 16 arranged at the second drawing container front surface edge may not be engaged with a claw 18 of the engaging member 17. Accordingly, in the event that a food stored in the first drawing container 11 is to be taken out, a hand is hung only at a knob 10 not contacting with a lever 21 to pull out a drawing door 9, thereby the first drawing container 1 is moved along the first guide rail 14 and then it pulled out toward an operator. In addition, in the event that if the food stored in the second drawing container 12 is taken out, the lever 21 and the knob 10 are held by the hand to cause the second drawing container 12 to be moved along the second guide rail 15, resulting in that the container can be pulled out toward the operator together with the first drawing container 11 and then a double trouble- some operation can be eliminated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to a refrigerator having a pull-out door. More particularly, the present invention relates to a refrigerator having a selective pull-out mechanism for the drawers of a refrigerator having a plurality of drawers inside a pull-out door.

[Prior Art] In recent years, with the diversification of dietary habits, an increasing number of refrigerators have separate compartments for different foods and storage temperatures. For example, a configuration as shown in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 59-41768 was common.

An example of the conventional refrigerator mentioned above will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of a conventional refrigerator, Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a portion of the same refrigerator that has a large drawer door and is generally called a vegetable compartment, and Figs. 8 and 9 are sectional views of the same vegetable compartment. It is something.

Reference numeral 1 denotes a refrigerator main body, which is composed of a freezer compartment 2, a refrigerator compartment 3, and a vegetable compartment 4. 5 is a cooler, 6 is a blower,
It constitutes a predetermined freezing or cooling cycle. Also 7
8 is a refrigerator compartment door; 9 is a large drawer door provided at the front of the vegetable compartment 4, and has a handle 10 on the top.

A first drawer container 11 is provided in the vegetable compartment 4 and has an open top. 12 is the first drawer container 1
a second drawer container placed on top of 1 and having an open top surface;
3 is a frame that fixes and holds the first drawer container 11 and is integrally attached to the large drawer door 9. A frame 14 supports the frame 13, guides the frame 13 when the large drawer door 9, the frame 13, and the first drawer container 11 held by the frame 13 are pulled out as a unit, and holds the frame 13 slidably. This is a first guide rail for the drawer, and is provided on the side wall of the refrigerator main body 1. A second guide rail 15 holds the second drawer container 12 in a drawable manner and guides the second drawer container 12 when the second drawer container 12 is pulled out, and is provided on the side wall of the refrigerator main body 1. There is.

The operation of the refrigerator configured as described above will be explained below.

The freezer compartment 2, refrigerator compartment 3, and vegetable compartment 4 are equipped with a cooler 5 and a blower 6.
The temperature is controlled to a predetermined temperature by the operation of a damper thermostat (not shown). Each room stores foods suitable for different purposes.

Here, to explain the operation focusing on the vegetable compartment 4 having a drawer container, when trying to take out vegetables and fruits stored in the first drawer container 11, by pulling the handle 10 of the large drawer door 9 toward you, The first drawer container 11 held by a frame 13 integrally attached to the large drawer door 9 is pulled out to the front, and the desired food can be taken out. On the other hand, when taking out the food stored in the second drawer container 12, pull out the first drawer container 11 by pulling the handle 10 toward you, then pull the second drawer container 12 toward you, and then remove the food stored in the second drawer container 12. You will have to take out the food.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, with the above configuration, even if you want to take out only the food stored in the second drawer container 12, you have to pull the handle 10 toward you and pull out the first drawer container. After that, the second drawer container must be pulled out, resulting in the problem of having to do the work twice.

Requiring the drawer to be drawn out twice is not only troublesome, but also undesirable in terms of maintaining the temperature inside the refrigerator.

In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides the following steps when pulling out the large drawer door 9:
- A refrigerator having a mechanism that allows selection between pulling out only the first drawer container and pulling out the first drawer container and the second drawer container at the same time, preferably by operating the handle 10. This is what we provide.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has the following configuration.

(1) A large drawer door located at the front of the refrigerator, a first drawer container having an opening on the top surface, a frame that is integrally attached to the large drawer door and holds the first drawer container, and a frame that is integrally attached to the large drawer door and holds the first drawer container; a first guide rail for slidably holding the frame, which is provided on a side wall of the refrigerator body so that the first drawer container, the large drawer door, and the frame can be pulled out together; and the first drawer container. A refrigerator having a plurality of drawer containers including a second drawer container arranged above and having an opening on the upper surface, and a second guide rail provided on a side wall of the refrigerator main body that holds the second drawer container so that the second drawer container can be drawn out. In the second drawer container, the second drawer container has a drawer engagement receiving part, and the large drawer door has the second drawer container.
The present invention includes an engagement mechanism that includes an engagement member that can be selectively engaged with a drawer engagement receiving portion of the drawer container, and an operation member that operates the engagement member to an engagement position or an engagement release position. Features a refrigerator.

(2) The refrigerator according to item (1) above, wherein the engaging member is attached to the back side of the door so as to be rotatable to a position where the engagement occurs by operating an operating member provided on the front side of the drawer type door.

(3) The operating member is a lever that is rotatably provided near the back side of the handle of the large drawer door, and the lever and the engaging member are operatively connected by a connecting member, and the lever is placed in front of the refrigerator. 2, further comprising an engagement mechanism for rotating the engagement member to a position where the engagement member engages with the drawer engagement receiving portion of the second drawer container via the connecting member.
Refrigerators listed in section.

[Function] With the above-described configuration, the present invention allows selection of a case in which only the first drawer container is pulled out or a case in which the first drawer container and the second drawer container are pulled out simultaneously when the drawer type door is pulled out. The food stored in the first drawer container or the second drawer container can be taken out in one operation.

[Example] Hereinafter, a refrigerator according to an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Incidentally, the same components as those in the prior art are given the same numbers and detailed explanation thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a refrigerator in an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
The figure is a partially enlarged sectional view showing the state before opening the large drawer door when the engaging mechanism of the refrigerator in the embodiment of the present invention is not activated, and FIG. 3 is the engaging mechanism of the refrigerator in the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged sectional view showing the state before the large drawer door is opened when the large drawer door is activated, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a partial enlarged sectional view showing the state after the large drawer door is opened when the engaging mechanism of the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention is activated. .

In FIGS. 2 to 5, reference numeral 16 indicates a drawer engagement receiving portion provided on the front edge of the second drawer container and having the shape of, for example, a U-shaped claw with a downward cross section; This is an engagement member that constitutes an engagement mechanism, and includes a fulcrum 19 rotatably attached to the back side of the large drawer door 9 and an engagement claw 18 that protrudes to one side from the base surface at the end opposite to the fulcrum 19. and a locking portion 24 of the connecting member 23 that protrudes in the same direction as the claw 18 and is provided between the fulcrum 19 and the engagement claw 18.
A spring locking portion 25, which is located between the engagement claw 18 and the locking portion 24 and protrudes from the base surface to the opposite side, and the back side of the large drawer door 9 have their respective ends. It consists of a spring 20 that is locked.

21 is an operating member (lever in this example) provided near the back side of the handle 10 provided on the front side of the large drawer door 9; 22 is a fulcrum of the lever 21 attached to rotatably support the lever 21; 23 is a connecting member that connects the engaging member 17 and the lever 21 with locking portions 24 and 26, respectively.

The spring 20 rotates the engaging member 17 clockwise around the fulcrum 19 as seen in FIGS. 2
It is installed so that a force is generated to rotate it counterclockwise around point 2.

Regarding the refrigerator configured as above, the following are Nos. 1 to 5.
The operation will be explained using figures.

First, FIGS. 2 and 4 show the state in which only the first drawer container 11 is pulled out. The engagement member 17 maintains a state in which the claw 18 of the engagement member 17 does not engage with the drawer engagement receiving portion 16 provided on the front edge of the second drawer container by the force of the spring 20. Therefore, when trying to take out food stored in the first drawer container 11, the lever 21
By pulling out the large drawer door 9 without touching the handle 10, the first drawer container 11 moves along the first guide rail 14 and is pulled out toward the front.

On the other hand, FIG. 3 and FIG. 5 show a state in which the first drawer container 11 and the second drawer container 12 are pulled out at the same time. In this case, by grasping the lever 21 toward the front at the same time as the handle 10, the lever 21 moves clockwise around the fulcrum 22, and this movement is caused by the action of pulling the locking portion 24 of the engaging member 17 toward the front of the refrigerator using the connecting member 23. As a result, the engaging member 17 rotates counterclockwise, and the claw 18 of the engaging member becomes engaged with the drawer engagement receiving portion 16 of the second drawer container 12. Therefore, when trying to take out the food stored in the second drawer container 12, by grasping the lever 21 and the handle 10, the second drawer container 12 moves along the second guide rail 15 and moves to the first drawer container 11. You can pull it out to the front together with the holder, saving you the trouble of having to do it twice.

In the embodiment, an engagement mechanism was described in which the engagement member 17 moves mechanically together with the lever 21, but it may also be a mechanism that operates electrically using a motor or other power. In the embodiment, the lever 21 provided on the back side of the handle is shown as the operating member, but it can also be a push button type provided on the front side of the large drawer door 9, a one-way rotating lever that rotates within the plane of the front side of the large drawer door 9, and others. An appropriate method may be used.

In addition, the lengths of the engaging member 17 and the drawer engaging receiving portion 16 of the second drawer container 12 in the left and right direction toward the front of the refrigerator are not particularly limited, and may be determined by considering material, strength, and design issues. You can select it as appropriate. The material of the engaging member is not limited to metal, and may be appropriately selected from plastic, ceramic, and other materials as long as it does not interfere with achieving the object of the present invention. It goes without saying that the connecting member 23 may be a metal wire, a plastic wire, a string, or a rod-like or block-like object made of an appropriate material such as metal, ceramic, or plastic.

Furthermore, if necessary, an openable and closable lid may be provided to close the top opening of the first or second drawer container.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, the present invention provides the large drawer door with an operating member of an engagement mechanism that makes it possible to select the drawing operation of the second drawer container, so that the first drawer can be pulled out with a simple operation. You can choose between pulling out only the container and pulling out the first drawer container and the second drawer container at the same time.
food stored in containers can be taken out.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a refrigerator in an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
The figure is a partially enlarged sectional view showing the state before the large drawer door is opened when the engaging mechanism of the refrigerator in the embodiment of the present invention is not activated, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing the state before the large drawer door is opened when the large drawer door is opened, and FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged sectional view showing the state after the large drawer door is opened when the engaging mechanism of the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention is activated; FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged sectional view of the conventional refrigerator. 7 is a perspective view of the main part of FIG. 6, FIG. 8 is a partial enlarged sectional view showing the state when the large drawer door of FIG. 6 is opened, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the main part of FIG. It is a partially enlarged sectional view showing a state in which the second drawer container is further pulled out. ... Refrigerator body ... Refrigerator room ... Cooler ... Freezer room door ... Large drawer door 1 ... First drawer container 2 ... Second drawer container 3 ... Frame 5... Second guide rail 6... Drawer engagement receiver 7... Engagement member 9... Fulcrum 1... Lever 3... Connecting member 5... Spring locking part 2 Freezer compartment 4 Vegetable compartment 6 Blower 8 Refrigerator door 10 Handle 14 First guide rail 18 Engagement claw 20 Spring 22 ...Fully point 24...Locking part 26...Locking part Fig. 5 Fig. 6

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) A pull-out door located on the front of the refrigerator, a first drawer container having an opening on the top surface, a frame integrally attached to the pull-out door and holding the first drawer container, and the first drawer container. a first guide rail for slidably holding the frame, which is provided on a side wall of the refrigerator main body so that the first drawer container, the drawer-type door, and the frame can be pulled out together; and the first drawer container. A refrigerator having a plurality of drawer containers including a second drawer container arranged above and having an opening on the upper surface, and a second guide rail provided on a side wall of the refrigerator main body that holds the second drawer container so that the second drawer container can be drawn out. In the above, the second drawer container has a drawer engagement receiving part, and the drawer type door has the second drawer container.
The present invention includes an engagement mechanism that includes an engagement member that can be selectively engaged with a drawer engagement receiving portion of the drawer container, and an operation member that operates the engagement member to an engagement position or an engagement release position. Features a refrigerator. (2) The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the engaging member is rotatably attached to the back side of the door to a position where the engagement occurs by operating an operating member provided on the front side of the drawer type door. (3) The operating member is a lever that is rotatably provided near the back side of the handle of the pull-out door, and the lever and the engaging member are operatively connected by a connecting member, and the lever is placed in front of the refrigerator. 3. An engagement mechanism for rotating the engagement member to a position where the engagement member engages with the drawer engagement receiving portion of the second drawer container via the connecting member. refrigerator.