KR100356541B1 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cold water supply apparatus of a refrigerator installed at the front of a refrigerator door to enable supply of cold water to the outside.

The cold water supply apparatus of the refrigerator according to the present invention includes a flow path switching means for selectively supplying the cold water supplied to the water supply pipe to any one of the plurality of outlet pipes through different flow paths. Through the flow path switching means and the blowout pipe to be able to receive cold water inside the cold water storage unit as well as outside the cold water storage unit, the user can receive the cold water even in a large container that does not enter the cold water storage unit.

Description

Refrigerator {refrigerator}

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a cold water supply device installed in the front of the door to supply cold water.

In general, the refrigerator is provided with components of the refrigeration cycle therein, the cold air generated therefrom is supplied to the storage compartment to maintain the freshness of various foods for a long time.

The refrigerator is provided with a storage compartment having an open front in a main body, and the storage compartment is formed such that a freezer compartment for storing frozen food and a refrigerator compartment for storing refrigerated food are partitioned. In addition, the freezing chamber door and the refrigerating chamber door are installed on the open front surfaces of the freezing compartment and the refrigerating compartment. In addition, the inside of the freezer compartment and the refrigerating compartment and the door that opens and closes them is provided with a multi-stage shelf to easily store and store food or drink.

However, in recent years, not only the storage capacity of the refrigerator has been enlarged, but also a variety of convenience devices are added to the refrigerator in addition to the basic function of cold storage.

As one of such convenience devices, a conventional refrigerator has a cold water supply device installed in front of a freezer compartment or a refrigerator compartment door so that a user can receive cool water from the outside without opening a door.

1 shows a conventional cold water supply device 6, which is provided in a cold water storage unit 2 provided to be recessed inwardly from the front surface of the freezing chamber door 1. The cold water supply device 6 includes a discharge pipe 3a, an operating lever 4, and a detection sensor 5. The discharge pipe 3a is provided at an end of the water supply pipe 3 extending from the water tank (not shown) provided inside the main body to the cold water storage unit 2 side, and is installed to be fixed to the upper surface of the cold water storage unit 2 inside. . The operating lever 4 functions to open and close the cold water supplied to the discharge pipe 3a, and is installed on the inner wall of the front side of the cold water storage unit 2, and the rear side of the operating lever 4 A detection sensor 5 for detecting a motion is provided. And as the cold water supply is finished between the operating lever 4 and the sensor 5 is provided with a spring (not shown) to return the operating lever (4).

Let's look at the operation of the conventional cold water supply device 6 configured as described above. First, when the user presses the operating lever 4, the operating lever 4 is in contact with the detection sensor 5, the detection sensor 5 detects this. The detected signal is transmitted to the water supply valve (not shown) through the control unit to open the water supply pipe 3 of the cold water supply device. When the water supply pipe 3 is opened, the cold water is discharged through the discharge pipe 3a communicating with the water supply pipe 3. Cold water is supplied to the payment part 2. When the user releases the operating lever 4, the operating lever 4 is spaced apart from the detection sensor 5 by a spring (not shown) behind the operation lever 4, and the detection sensor 5 detects this again. The water supply valve (not shown) is closed, thereby stopping the supply of cold water.

By the way, in such a cold water supply apparatus 6, the discharge pipe 3a is provided so that cold water may be supplied to the inside of the cold water storage part 2, and the cold water storage part 2 is formed by the thickness of the door 1 with the cup. There is some limitation in the inside width or left and right space to receive water in the same small container.

Therefore, when a user wants to receive a large amount of cold water in a large container instead of a cup, a problem arises in that the container does not enter the cold water storage unit 2 and thus cannot receive cold water.

The present invention is to solve such a problem, an object of the present invention is to improve the structure of the cold water supply unit installed in the cold water storage unit on the front of the refrigerator door, so that the user can receive cold water from outside the cold water storage unit, It is to provide a refrigerator equipped with a cold water supply device that can receive a large amount of cold water at once even a large container that does not enter the cold water storage unit.

1 is a perspective view showing a cold water supply apparatus of a conventional refrigerator.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the overall configuration of a refrigerator equipped with a cold water supply apparatus according to the present invention.

3 is a perspective view showing a cold water supply device of a refrigerator according to the present invention.

Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view showing a rotating body and the discharge pipe of the cold water supply apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken from the arrow direction after cutting of FIG. 4 by the cutting line A-A. FIG.

Figure 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the rotating body and the discharge pipe of the cold water supply apparatus according to the present invention, the rotating body is rotated to the other side.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along arrow line B-B of FIG. 6.

* Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings *

40: water supply pipe 43: discharge pipe

44: water supply outlet 45: guide projection

60: rotating body 61: insertion hole

64: first entry to the euro 66: first outlet

67: Information Home 70: 2nd Exit

In the refrigerator according to the present invention to achieve the object of the present invention, in the refrigerator having a water supply pipe provided to supply cold water to the cold water storage unit on the front of the door,

The water supply pipe is connected to a first extraction pipe capable of supplying cold water into the cold water storage part and a second extraction pipe capable of supplying cold water to the outside of the cold water storage part, and between the first and second extraction pipes and the water supply pipe. A flow path switching means for selectively discharging the cold water discharged from the water supply pipe to any one of the two discharge pipes is provided.

The flow path switching means is integrally formed with the first and second outlet pipes and is connected to the outlet side of the water supply pipe so as to be rotatable, and selectively communicates with the outlet of the water supply pipe when the body is rotated. And a plurality of flow paths formed in the rotating body so as to be connected to the first and second extraction pipes.

In addition, the first extraction pipe is provided in the lower portion of the rotation body and the second extraction pipe is provided on the side of the rotation body, when the cold water is supplied to the first extraction pipe by the rotation of the rotation body 2, the outlet pipe is characterized in that it is provided to be located inside the cold water storage.

In addition, the second extraction pipe is elongated to supply cold water to the outside of the cold water storage portion, characterized in that it extends smaller than the interval between the side of the rotating body and the cold water storage side.

In addition, the outlet of the water supply pipe is provided on the lower side of the water supply pipe extending into the cold water storage unit, the bottom surface of the water supply pipe is formed to be blocked, the rotating body is part of the water supply pipe including the outlet of the water supply pipe An insertion hole is inserted, and an inner surface of the insertion hole is formed such that the plurality of flow path inlets communicating with the outlet of the water supply pipe are perpendicular to each other.

In addition, one side outer circumferential surface of the water supply pipe is provided with a guide protrusion protruding toward the insertion hole side, one side of the inner surface of the insertion hole accommodates the guide protrusion and the both ends of the guide projection is caught in the rotation range of the plurality of It is characterized in that the guide groove is provided between the passage inlet.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings a preferred embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail.

Refrigerator to which the cold water supply apparatus according to the present invention is applied is provided with components of a refrigeration cycle therein to supply the cold air generated from the storage compartment to maintain the freshness of various foods for a long time.

As shown in FIG. 2, the refrigerator body 10 includes a storage compartment (not shown) having an open front surface, and the storage compartment (not shown) includes a freezing compartment (not shown) for storing frozen products and a refrigerating compartment for storing refrigerated products ( (Not shown). The front of the freezer compartment (not shown) and the refrigerating chamber (not shown) is provided with a freezer compartment door 20 and a refrigerating compartment door 30 to open and close each opening.

In such a refrigerator, the cold water supply device 100 is installed at the front portion of the freezing chamber door 20 having relatively few opening and closing times, and the cold water storage tank 33 is supplied to the main body 10 so that cold water is supplied to the cold water supply device 100. ) Is installed.

The cold water storage tank 33 is connected to an external faucet 31 and a water supply valve 32 is installed between the faucet 31 and the cold water storage tank 33 to control water supply. The cold water storage tank 33 and the cold water supply device 100 are connected by a water supply pipe 40, and the water supply pipe 40 is connected from the cold water storage tank 33 to the front side of the main body 10 through the bottom surface of the refrigerating compartment. do. The water supply pipe 40 extending to the front of the main body 10 is again connected to the inside of the freezer compartment 20 through the hinge portion of the freezer compartment 20, and connected to the cold water supply device via the inside of the freezer compartment 20. do.

As shown in FIG. 3, the cold water supply device 100 is installed in the cold water storage unit 50 recessed inwardly from the front surface of the freezing chamber door 20. Cold water supply device 100 is fixed to the upper surface of the cold water storage unit 50, the discharge pipe 43 extending from the water supply pipe 40, and installed so as to be rotatable outside the discharge pipe 43 and two inside Flow paths 62 and 63 are provided to rotate the body 60 selectively supplying the cold water supplied from the discharge pipe 43 through the two flow paths 62 and 63, and the flow path 62 in the rotation body 60, And a first blowout pipe 66 and a second blowout pipe 70 extending in communication with 63). In addition, the cold water supply device 100 is installed on the inner surface of the cold water storage unit 50, the operating lever 41 for opening and closing the water supply pipe 40, the detection sensor 42 provided in the rear of the operating lever 41, And a spring (not shown) spaced apart from the operating lever 41 and the sensing sensor 42 when the operating lever 41 is depressed.

The discharge pipe 43 is provided to be fixed to the cold water storage unit 50, as shown in Figure 4, is inserted into the insertion hole 61 of the rotating body 60, the lower end is closed and the end side water supply outlet ( 44) is provided.

The rotation body 60 is provided with an insertion hole 61 to receive the discharge tube 43 in close contact with the insertion hole 61 is provided in a cylindrical shape in which the lower side is blocked and the upper side is open to correspond to the shape of the discharge tube 43. do. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the first flow path inlet 64 and the second flow path inlet 65 are vertically formed on the side surface of the insertion hole 61, and these flow path inlets 64 and 65 are vertically formed. The first passage 62 and the second passage 63 penetrate the pivot body 60 from the insertion hole 61 in the downward direction and the lateral direction, respectively. Therefore, when the water supply outlet 44 communicates with the first flow path inlet 64 by the rotation of the rotation body 60, the cold water is supplied to the first flow path 62 penetrating downwardly through the rotation body 60. When the water supply outlet 44 communicates with the second channel inlet 65, the cold water is supplied to the second channel 63 penetrating the rotation body 60 in the lateral direction. In addition, the rotation body 60 is provided with a first extraction pipe 66 and a second extraction pipe 70 in communication with each of the flow paths 62 and 63 and integrally formed with the rotation body 60. The first outlet pipe 66 communicating with the first passage 62 is formed at the lower portion of the pivot body 60, and the second outlet tube 70 communicating with the second passage 63 is the pivot body ( It is provided on the side of 60 to supply the cold water supplied to each of the flow paths 62 and 63 to the outside again.

On the other hand, as shown in Figure 5, the lower end of the water supply outlet 44 is provided with a guide projection 45 protruding from the outer peripheral surface of the discharge pipe 43, the lower end of the insertion hole 61 of the rotating body 60 A guide groove 67 is provided to receive the guide protrusion 45 in the circumferential direction and to engage the guide protrusion 45 to limit the range of rotation of the pivot body 60. The guide groove 67 is the end of the guide groove (45) receiving the guide projections 45 when the rotation of the rotational body 60 is caught by the guide projections 45 to the rotation range of the rotation body (60) Limited between the first flow path inlet 64 and the second flow path inlet 65, and the first flow path inlet 64 and the second flow path so that each of the flow path inlets 64 and 65 fit exactly to the water supply outlet 44. It is formed in the lower part between the inlets 65. On the other hand, the guide protrusion 45 enters inward by the elastic member 47 provided in the elastic member groove 46 of the bottom of the discharge pipe 43 when inserted into the insertion hole 61, the guide groove 67 After the fitting, the elastic member 47 comes out again, and the guide protrusion 45 is provided with a locking jaw 45a that is caught by the inlet of the elastic member groove 46, so that the guide protrusion 45 is outside. To prevent them from leaving.

The second outlet pipe 70 connected to the second flow path 63 extends long from the second flow path 63 to supply cold water to the outside of the cold water storage part 50, and the end is bent downward. When the first flow path inlet 64 and the water supply outlet 44 communicate with each other by the rotation of the rotation body 60, cold water is supplied to the first outlet pipe 66 to be positioned inside the cold water storage unit 50. . Therefore, the second outlet pipe 70 extends longer than the gap between the side of the rotation body 60 and the side of the cold water storage unit 50 in preparation for entering into the cold water storage unit 50. Is not extended. The second outlet pipe 70 rotates the pivot body 60 again to extend outside the cold water storage part 50 when the second flow path inlet 65 and the water supply outlet 44 communicate with each other. 50) Supply cold water to the outside.

As described above, the cold water supply device 100 uses the rotational body 60 and the flow paths 62 and 63 in the rotational body 60 as flow path switching means, so that the cold water supplied to the discharge pipe 43 is different from each other. (70) to allow for selective supply. Looking at the operation of the cold water supply,

When the user presses the operating lever 41, the operating lever 41 is in contact with the rear sensor 42, the detection sensor 42 detects this, the detected signal is transmitted to the water supply valve 32 through the control unit water supply pipe Open the 40, cold water is delivered to the discharge pipe (43). When the user releases the pressing of the operating lever 41 to stop the cold water supply, the operating lever 41 is spaced apart from the sensing sensor 42 by a spring (not shown) behind the operating lever 41 and the sensing sensor 42 ) Detects this again and causes the water supply valve 32 to be closed, thereby stopping the supply of cold water.

The cold water supplied to the water supply pipe 40 is the first flow path inlet when the water supply outlet 44 provided in the discharge pipe 43 communicates with the first flow path inlet 64 of the insertion hole 61 of the rotating body 60. 64 is supplied to the first passage 62, and is supplied into the cold water storage unit 50 through the first outlet pipe 66. When the container for receiving cold water is too large to allow the container to enter the cold water storage unit 50, as illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7, the user may rotate the rotating body 60 to the discharge pipe of the water supply pipe 40. 43) rotated by 90 ° by the guide protrusion 45 provided at the lower end and the guide groove 67 provided at the lower part of the insertion hole 61 of the rotating body 60. By the rotation of the rotational body 60, the second outlet pipe 70 comes out of the front of the cold water storage unit 50, and the second flow path inlet 65 is positioned at the first flow path inlet 64. The one flow path inlet 64 is closed by the outer circumferential surface of the discharge pipe 43. As a result, the water supply outlet 44 is connected to the second channel inlet 65, and the cold water is transmitted to the second channel 63, and the cold water is passed through the second outlet pipe 70 connected to the second channel 63. The payment 50 is delivered to the container outside. After receiving the cold water in the container to release the pressing of the operating lever (41) stops the cold water supply and rotates the rotating body 60 to the original position again to enter the second outlet pipe 70 into the cold water storage unit 50. . In this state, when the operating lever 41 is operated again to open the water supply pipe 40, the cold water is supplied into the cold water storage unit 50 through the first flow path 62.

As can be seen from the above operation description, the cold water supply apparatus according to the present invention is cold water in the cold water storage unit 50 as well as outside the cold water storage unit 50 by the rotating body 60 and the second outlet pipe (70). It can be supplied so that the cold water can be supplied to a large container that can not enter the cold water storage unit without limiting the size of the container to be supplied cold water.

As described in detail above, the cold water supply apparatus of the refrigerator according to the present invention is able to receive cold water from the outside of the cold water storage unit through the rotating body and the second outlet pipe connected to the rotating body to enable the switching of the flow path. In addition, there is an advantage that the cold water can be supplied to a large container without limiting the size of the container to be supplied with cold water.

Claims (6)

A refrigerator having a water supply pipe arranged to supply cold water to a cold water storage unit on a front surface of a door, The water supply pipe is connected to a first extraction pipe capable of supplying cold water into the cold water storage part and a second extraction pipe capable of supplying cold water to the outside of the cold water storage part, and between the first and second extraction pipes and the water supply pipe. And a flow path switching means for selectively discharging the cold water discharged from the water supply pipe to any one of the two blowout pipes. The method of claim 1, The flow path switching means is integrally formed with the first and second outlet pipes and is rotatably coupled to the outlet side of the water supply pipe, and selectively communicates with the outlet of the water supply pipe when the rotation body is rotated. And a plurality of flow paths formed in the rotating body to be connected to the first and second outlet pipes. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The first outlet pipe is provided under the rotating body and the second outlet tube is provided on the side of the rotating body, when the cold water is supplied to the first outlet by the rotation of the rotating body the second extraction pipe The tube is characterized in that the refrigerator is provided to be located inside the cold water storage. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The second extraction pipe is elongated to supply cold water to the outside of the cold water storage unit, the refrigerator characterized in that it extends less than the interval between the side of the rotating body and the cold water storage side. The method of claim 2, The outlet of the water supply pipe is provided on the lower side of the water supply pipe extending into the cold water storage unit, the bottom surface of the water supply pipe is formed to be blocked, and the part of the water supply pipe including the outlet of the water supply pipe is inserted into the rotating body. And an insertion hole is provided, and the inner surface of the insertion hole is formed such that the plurality of flow path inlets communicating with the outlet of the water supply pipe are perpendicular to each other. The method of claim 5, One side outer circumferential surface of the water supply pipe is provided with a guide protrusion protruding toward the insertion hole side, one side of the inner side of the insertion hole accommodates the guide protrusion and is hung on both ends of the guide protrusion so that the rotation range of the rotational body is the plurality of flow path inlets. Refrigerator, characterized in that provided with a guide groove to limit between.