KR100657496B1 - Apparatus for opening and closing door apparatus and device for separating door of refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus for opening and closing a door of a refrigerator and a spacer thereof are provided to maintain a cam member in contact with a cam contact lever to prevent interference between doors. An apparatus for opening and closing a door of a refrigerator includes a plurality of doors(35R), a spacer mechanism(60), a cam contact lever(65), a cam member(61), and a shock absorption member(90). The plurality of doors opens and closes a main body of the refrigerator. The spacer mechanism spaces the one door from the other door. The cam contact lever is connected to any one of the main body and the doors. The cam member is connected to the main body and the other door of the doors. The shock absorption member provides a resilient force to the cam member or the cam contact lever.

Description

Apparatus for opening and closing door apparatus and device for separating door of refrigerator}

1 is a perspective view showing a refrigerator having a conventional door opening and closing device

Figure 2 is a plan view of the main part showing a door closed state of a conventional refrigerator

Figure 3 is a plan view of the main part showing the gasket separation state when the door is closed when the conventional refrigerator

Figure 4 is a plan view of the main part showing a shock occurrence state when the door is closed in the refrigerator of the prior art

5 is a plan view showing a mis-assembled state of the refrigerator spacer according to the prior art

6 is a perspective view of a refrigerator having a door opening and closing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 7 is an exploded perspective view showing a door spacer according to the first embodiment of the present invention

8 is a plan view of main parts of the door opening and closing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

9 is a plan view of an essential part showing a door closed state according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

10 is a plan view showing the open state of the door according to the invention

11 is a plan view showing a closed state of the door according to the present invention

12 is an exploded perspective view showing a door spacer according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

13 is a plan view of the main part of the door opening and closing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

35, 35R, 35L: Door 37: Gasket

39: door bracket 40: refrigerator body

46: hinge bracket 50: gasket assembly

51: Gasket Holder 53: Gasket

55: magnetic material 60: spacer

61 cam member 62 cam surface

63: Cam Guide 64: Lever Guide

65 cam contact lever 66 lever

67 roller 70 upper hinge mechanism

72: hinge link 72a: bracket hinge axis

72b: door hinge shaft 74: elastic member

80: lower hinge mechanism 90: buffer member

101: cam member 102: hole

103: stopper 105: cam contact lever

106: hole 107: stopper

The present invention relates to a door opening and closing device of the refrigerator, and more particularly, the cam contact lever and the cam member of the spacer are installed by a cushioning member installed in the spacer for moving the door laterally when the door is opened and closed. It relates to a door opening and closing device of the refrigerator to be in close contact.

1 is a perspective view showing a refrigerator having a conventional door opening and closing device.

As shown in the refrigerator, a refrigerating chamber 1 is positioned at an upper side and a freezing chamber 2 is positioned at a lower side thereof. In particular, the refrigerating chamber is a French-type refrigerator in which a partition wall separating the interior is not formed.

The refrigerating chamber (2) has a door (3) for opening and closing the structure of the two-door open type, the circumferential surface of each door (3) is provided with a gasket (10) in close contact with the refrigerator main body (5) so that cold air does not leak out do.

In particular, the gasket 11 is installed so that cold air does not leak even in a portion where the doors 3 meet each other. In general, a refrigerator of a French type is provided with a filler at one door so that the gaskets of both doors are in close contact with each other. It has a structure or a fillerless structure in which the gaskets 11 of both doors 3 are in close contact with each other without a filler.

The refrigerator shown in FIG. 1 shows a pillarless type, and side gaskets 11 provided on both doors are in close contact with each other while the doors 3 are closed to seal the gap between the doors 3.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of an essential part showing a state in which the side gaskets 11 are in close contact with each other when both the doors are closed.

The gasket 11 is provided with a magnetic body 14 to maintain the mutual adhesion therein, the adhesion of the two gaskets 11 causes a problem that the other door is also opened when one door 3 is opened. .

Due to this problem, the French type refrigerator has a door separation structure that separates the door that is opened so that the two gaskets 11 are separated from each other when the door 3 is initially opened and when the door 3 is almost closed. It is provided.

That is, the hinge mechanism 15 connecting the refrigerator main body 5 and the door 3 is formed of a hinge link 17 to allow horizontal movement, that is, translational movement of the door when the door is opened and closed. 17 is connected to the hinge bracket 16 and the door 3 installed in the refrigerator main body 5 so as to be relatively rotatable.

The hinge mechanism 15 is provided with an elastic member 18 to provide an elastic force in the direction in which the door 3 is in close contact with the mating door.

And the cam member 21 is installed in the refrigerator main body 5, and the cam 3 which contacts the cam member 21 in the refrigerator main body 5 so that an open door can be moved by the method of mutually pushing when a door opens and closes. The contact lever 25 is installed. Here, the cam contact lever 25 is provided with a roller 26 so as to make a rolling contact with the cam member 21.

Therefore, when the user opens the door (3), the door is opened while rotating around the door hinge shaft (17a), wherein the roller 26 of the cam contact lever 25 according to the displacement of the door (3) is opened It moves along the cam surface of the cam member 21. When the roller 26 reaches the apex 21a of the cam surface, as shown in FIG. 3, the gaskets 11 are spaced apart from each other while the door 3 is pushed to the right about the main body hinge shaft 17b. It rotates and the door opens.

On the contrary, even when the door 3 is closed, the roller 26 of the cam contact lever 25 moves on the curved surface of the cam member 21, so that the door is closed in a state where both gaskets 11 are separated.

However, when the assembly state of the main body 5 and the door 3, the machining tolerances, the assembly tolerances and the assembly failure of the components constituting the separation mechanism occurs, the cam contact lever 25 as shown in FIG. And there is a problem that the gap between the roller 26 is assembled.

Thus, as shown in FIG. 5, when the cam contact lever 25 and the roller 26 are assembled apart from each other, the distance from which the door opened in the process of opening and closing the door 3 is spaced apart from the relative door is reduced as well. When the opening and closing of (3), there is a problem that the noise and impact is more generated by the collision of the cam contact lever 25 and the roller 26.

In addition, there is a problem that the user's sensitivity is reduced by the impact noise of the cam contact lever 25 and the roller 26.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, the cam member and the cam causing interference when the door is opened or closed even if a problem occurs in processing or assembly by installing a shock absorbing mechanism in the separation mechanism that separates the open door from the counterpart door It is an object of the present invention to provide a door opening and closing device and a spacer of the refrigerator to keep the contact lever always in contact.

The door opening and closing device of the refrigerator according to the first aspect of the present invention for realizing the above object and a plurality of doors for opening and closing the body of the refrigerator; A hinge mechanism connecting the door and the main body to form a center of rotation of the door; And a spacer provided between the door and the refrigerator main body to allow the doors to be spaced apart from each other when the door is opened and closed from each other, wherein the spacer is connected to any one of the main body or the door. A contact lever; A cam member connected to the other of the main body or the door and interfering with the cam contact lever so that the door moves laterally when the door is opened and closed; It characterized in that it comprises a buffer member for providing an elastic force to each of the cam member or the cam contact lever to move the cam member or the cam contact lever before / after.

A spacer of the refrigerator according to the second aspect of the present invention includes a cam contact lever connected to any one of a main body and a door of the refrigerator; A cam member connected to the other of the main body or the door and interfering with the cam contact lever so that the door moves laterally when the door is opened and closed; It characterized in that it comprises a buffer member for providing an elastic force to each of the cam member or the cam contact lever to move the cam member or the cam contact lever before / after.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the French type refrigerator that can be opened in the left and right direction is provided with a double door type in one refrigerator compartment.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a refrigerator having a door opening and closing device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, Figure 7 is an exploded perspective view showing a door spacer according to the first embodiment of the present invention, Figure 8 is a view of the present invention 9 is a plan view of a main part of the door opening and closing apparatus according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a plan view of the main part of the door closing state according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 6, in the refrigerator according to the present invention, a freezing compartment 31 is positioned at a lower side thereof, and a refrigerating chamber 32 having double doors 35L and 35R is positioned at an upper side thereof, and both doors 35L and 35R are positioned at the upper side thereof. ) Is connected to the hinge mechanism (70) (80) to the refrigerator main body 40 is configured to open and close the refrigerating chamber (32) in a case opening manner.

Gaskets 37 are installed at both the upper and lower left and right sides of the doors 35L and 35R to be in close contact with the refrigerator main body 40 to prevent the cool air inside the refrigerator from leaking to the outside.

Particularly, since the partition wall or the refrigerator main body 40 does not exist in a portion where the two doors 35L and 35R face each other, the side gasket assembly 50 closes to the counter door and seals the gap between the doors 35L and 35R. (Hereinafter referred to as 'gasket assembly') is installed.

As shown in FIG. 9, the gasket assembly 50 is provided with a gasket holder 51 installed on the side surfaces of the doors 35L and 35R, and is provided in front of the gasket holder 51 to form a gasket of the mating door. A gasket 53 in close contact with the gasket 53 and a magnetic body 55 provided in the gasket 53 to generate magnetism to be in close contact with the gasket 53 of the mating doors 35L and 35R.

In the present invention, when the doors are opened and closed in order to minimize the phenomenon that the doors 35L and 35R are opened in a state in which both gasket assemblies 50 are in close contact with each other, both gaskets are horizontally moved laterally. Spacer 60 is installed to space the assembly 50 apart from each other.

As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the spacer 60 is a cam guide 63 fixed to the hinge bracket 46 of the refrigerator body 40 and a door mounted to the cam guide 63. A cam member 61 having a cam surface 62 formed thereon so as to be spaced apart from both doors when the door is opened or closed, and the cam guide 63 and the cam member 61 are moved in the front / rear direction of the 35. A buffer member 90 for buffering the cam member 61 interposed therebetween and a lever guide 64 fixed to the door bracket 39 of the door 35; In addition to being installed in the lever guide 64, the cam contact lever 65 to move the left and right along the cam surface 62 of the cam member 61 when the door is opened and closed, and to separate the door, and the lever guide ( A buffer member 90 interposed between the cam contact lever 65 and the cam contact lever 65 to cushion the cam contact lever 65. .

Wherein the cam member 61 is installed on the upper surface of the refrigerator body 40, it is preferable that the front portion is installed at a position that does not protrude forward of the refrigerator body (40). In addition, the cam contact lever 65 is preferably formed to protrude in the direction of the cam member 61 from the upper portion of the door 35.

And the cam guide 63 is formed with a groove (63a) for guiding the movement direction of the cam member 61, the cam member 61 is seated in the groove (63a) is moved before / after.

In order to prevent the cam member 61 from projecting forward over a predetermined distance, the cam guide 63 and the cam member 61 are provided with protrusions 61b and 63b serving as stoppers, respectively.

In particular, in the present embodiment, the protrusion 61b formed on the cam member 61 protrudes toward the side wall of the cam guide 63, and the protrusion 63b formed on the cam guide 63 is the cam member 61. Is formed to protrude toward the projection (61b) of the cam, 61, the projection (61b) of the cam member 61 is located behind the projection (63b) of the cam guide 63, the advance distance of the cam member 61 Is limited.

In addition, the cam contact lever 65 and the lever guide 64 are provided with projections 64b and 65b as stoppers for limiting the movement distance of the cam contact lever 65, respectively, and the projections 61b and 63b. The same principle of operation

On the other hand, the spring which is the buffer member 90 is installed in the grooves (63a, 64a) of the cam guide 63 or the lever guide 64, respectively, by the elastic force of the buffer member 90 the cam member 61 and the cam contact lever 65 are supported.

In addition, the cam contact lever 65 is provided at the end of the lever 66 and the lever 66 which slides forward / backward along the lever guide 64, and is rolled on the cam member 61. It consists of the rollers 67 which contact.

Although not shown here, the cam guide 63 and the lever guide 64 for guiding the moving direction of the cam member 61 and the cam contact lever 65 may be connected to the hinge bracket 46 and the door bracket 39. It may be formed integrally. In addition, the cam guide 63 and the lever guide 64 may be formed directly on the main body 40 or the door 35.

In addition, both the compression spring and the tension spring may be used as the buffer member 90 depending on the relationship between the cam member 61 and the cam contact lever 65.

Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIG. 6 or 7, the hinge mechanisms 70 and 80 include an upper hinge mechanism 70 and a lower hinge mechanism 80, and the hinge mechanisms 70 and 80 are It is installed at the upper and lower ends of the doors 35L and 35R to form a center of rotation of the doors 35L and 35R when the doors 35L and 35R are opened and closed.

Here, the hinge mechanisms 70 and 80 are hinge links 72 connected to the main body 40 and the doors 35L and 35R by hinge shafts 72a and 72b, respectively, and the doors 35L and 35R. It is configured to include an elastic member 74 to provide an elastic force in a direction that is in close contact with each other.

Referring to Figures 9 to 11 the operation of the door opening and closing apparatus of the refrigerator according to the present invention configured as described above are as follows.

10 is a plan view showing an open state of the door according to the first embodiment of the present invention, Figure 11 is a plan view showing a closed state of the door according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

First, the process of opening the door will be described, and here, for convenience, only the process of opening the right door 35R will be described.

In the state in which the doors 35L and 35R are closed as shown in FIG. 9, the spacer 60 is engaged, and the door 35R is applied to the elastic force of the elastic member 74 provided in the hinge mechanisms 70 and 80. Since it is in the state moved toward the mating door 35L, the gasket 53 of both doors 35L and 35R will be in close contact with each other.

When the user opens the door 35R in such a state, as shown in FIG. 10, as the door 35R opens, the roller 67 of the cam contact lever 65 moves to the cam member 61. The right door 35R is horizontally moved in the direction away from the left door 35L while moving along the contact cam surface 62a of the cam, and the roller 67 is the apex 62b of the cam surface of the cam member 61. When it reaches, it has the maximum displacement. At this time, the hinge mechanism 70 has the bracket hinge shaft 72a because the door 35R is pushed to the right by a force generated while the roller 67, the contact cam surface 62a and the vertex 62b are in contact with each other. The hinge link 72 rotates counterclockwise in the drawing while compressing the elastic member 49.

Therefore, the door 35R is opened while the door is quickly moved horizontally to the side by the action of the contact cam surface 62a of the cam member 61 which is formed relatively sharply, so that the gasket assemblies 50 which are in close contact with each other are fast. The door 35R can be opened in the separated state.

Thereafter, when the door 35R is further opened, the roller 67 of the cam contact lever 65 is separated from the cam member 61 while gradually moving away from the vertex 62b of the cam member 61. .

At this time, when the cam member 61 and the cam contact lever 65 are separated, the external force that rotates the hinge link 72 in the counterclockwise direction is removed, clockwise around the bracket hinge axis 72a. Rotates to its original position.

The hinge link 72 is returned to its original position, and the door 35L, which has been moved to the right side, is also moved to the left side by a predetermined interval to be opened.

Here, when the door 35L is closed, the positional relationship between the cam member 61 and the cam contact lever 65 will be described with reference to FIG. 9. The cam member 61 is caused by the elastic force of the shock absorbing member 90. The cam contact lever 65 is pulled backward by the elastic force of the shock absorbing member 90, and the roller 67 is in contact with the cam surface 62 of the cam member 61. Close contact.

As shown in FIG. 10, when the door 35L is opened, the cam contact lever 65 is pulled to the front side by the shock absorbing member 90 and thus the cam surface 62 of the cam member 61 is pulled out. Is moved along.

Here, when the user opens the door 35L, the cam contact lever 65 is buffered by the buffer member 90, and the cam contact after the gasket 37 and the main body 40 are separated. Since the lever 65 is moved along the cam member 61, the force used to open the door 35L is dispersed.

That is, in the related art, since the movement of the cam contact lever and the separation of the gasket are generated at the same time, the operating force of the user is used at the same time. Since the force to move) is used, the user's power is used less.

Next, a case in which the door is closed is performed in the reverse order when the door 35R is opened.

However, when the door 35R is closed, the cam member 61 and the roller 67 generate a predetermined impact at the moment of contact with each other, and at the moment of contact between the roller 67 and the cam member 61, The cam member 61 compresses the shock absorbing member 90 while moving along the cam guide 63, and the cam member 61 moves backward to cushion the contact shock.

Thereafter, the cam contact lever 65 moves the door 35L in the lateral direction while moving on the cam surface 62c, and the gasket is in the process of overcoming the vertex 62b by the cam contact lever 65. When the assembly 50 is close to the main body 40 with a predetermined distance, the gasket assembly 50 forms a state in which the gasket assembly 50 is in close contact with each other after the vertex 62b is returned to its original position.

12 is an exploded perspective view showing the door spacer according to the second embodiment of the present invention, Figure 13 is a plan view of the main part of the door opening and closing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

The second embodiment according to the present invention has the same configuration and operation structure as the first embodiment except that the structure of the stopper is different in the first embodiment.

Here, the cam member 101 and the cam contact lever 105 according to the second embodiment have holes 102 and 106 formed therein, and stoppers 103 and 107 formed in the holes 102 and 106. It is inserted to limit the moving distance of the cam member 101,105.

In particular, the stoppers 103 and 107 are formed in the hinge bracket 46 or the door bracket 39.

Thus, the stoppers 103 and 107 move along the holes 102 and 106 when the cam member 101 and the cam contact lever 105 move, and the holes 102 and 106 move the The cam guide 63 and the lever guide 64 are formed to be elongated in the same direction as the grooves 63a and 64a.

Hereinafter, other components and operation processes are the same as in the first embodiment, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Since the door opening and closing device of the refrigerator according to the present invention configured and operated as described above closely installs a cushioning member to a space mechanism that causes the door to move laterally to close the door and closes the mutually interfering parts, There is an advantage of preventing the clearance of the separation mechanism caused by component tolerances, assembly tolerances and assembly failures.

In addition, the door opening and closing device of the refrigerator according to the present invention has the advantage of reducing the noise and shock generated when the door is opened and closed by installing the cam member and the cam contact lever, which is a spaced apart mechanism before and after each movement.

In addition, the door opening and closing device of the refrigerator according to the present invention because the cam contact lever and the cam member is in close contact by the cam contact lever and the cam member of the separation mechanism, the force that the door is in close contact with the body increases, This prevents the door from being spaced apart from the body.

Claims (6)

A plurality of doors for opening and closing the body of the refrigerator; A hinge mechanism connecting the door and the main body to form a center of rotation of the door; It is provided between the door and the refrigerator main body is configured to include a separation mechanism for the door to be spaced apart from each other when the door is opened to interfere with each other, The spacer includes a cam contact lever connected to any one of the main body or the door; A cam member connected to the other of the main body or the door and interfering with the cam contact lever so that the door moves laterally when the door is opened and closed; And a shock absorbing member for providing an elastic force to each of the cam members or the cam contact levers so that the cam members or the cam contact levers move forward / backward. The method according to claim 1, The spacer is configured to include a cam guide for guiding the movement direction of the cam member, the shock absorbing member door opening and closing device of the refrigerator, characterized in that for connecting the cam guide and the cam member. The method according to claim 2, The door opening and closing device of the refrigerator, characterized in that the stopper is provided between the cam guide and the cam member to limit the movement distance of the cam member. The method according to claim 1, The separation mechanism comprises a lever guide for guiding the movement direction of the cam contact lever, the buffer member is a door opening and closing device of the refrigerator, characterized in that for connecting the lever guide and the cam contact lever. The method according to claim 4, The door opening and closing device of the refrigerator, characterized in that the stopper is provided between the lever guide and the cam contact lever to limit the movement distance of the cam contact lever. A cam contact lever connected to either the main body or the door of the refrigerator; A cam member connected to the other of the main body or the door and interfering with the cam contact lever so that the door moves laterally when the door is opened and closed; And a shock absorbing member for providing an elastic force to each of the cam member or the cam contact lever so that the cam member or the cam contact lever is moved forward / backward.

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