KR20020006203A - The lower cover installation structure of refrigerators - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: Connecting structure of a lower cover for a refrigerator is provided to reduce cost required to use connectors and to form inserting members, and to improve workability through simple connecting structure by mounting a lower cover simply without using additional connectors or complex structure of inserting members. CONSTITUTION: An inlet port(110) is formed at the front lower end of a refrigerator body(100) to take out a defrost water dish. A mounting part(120) is formed on the inlet port by cutting a part of an outer plate. A lower cover(200) for opening/closing the inlet port is connected to the front surface of the body. The lower cover is a bar-shaped member having length corresponding to the width of the refrigerator body and thickness corresponding to the thickness of a refrigerator door. The lower cover has a rib(210) protruded to the lower part. The rib is inserted into the mounting part. The lower cover is connected to the front lower end of the refrigerator body as a worker fits the rib of the lower cover into the mounting part of the refrigerator body. Thereby, the connecting structure does not need additional connectors.

Description

{The lower cover installation structure of refrigerators}

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a fastening structure of a bottom cover provided at the bottom of the main body of the refrigerator.

The refrigerator is a product designed to keep the inside of the refrigerator at a temperature below a predetermined temperature in order to keep fresh food brought into the refrigerator. The refrigerator is configured to supply cold air generated by an evaporator installed inside the main body to a storage compartment, thereby maintaining foods stored in the storage chamber at a low temperature and maintaining freshness.

In the heat exchange process with air to generate cold air, the evaporator generates frost on the surface due to moisture contained in the air. Since the heat exchange efficiency of the evaporator is deteriorated in such a castle, a heater installed in the evaporator is usually removed through a defrosting process that generates heat. Defrost water formed by melting frost in the defrost process is collected in the defrost dish installed in the machine room under the refrigerator through a separate discharge path.

The defrost water collected at the defrost dish is discharged to the outside by the user drawing the defrost dish to the outside, and an inlet and outlet for entering the defrost dish is formed at the lower end of the refrigerator main body. By the way, in the state in which the entrance and exit opening is open, the noise generated in the machine room is transmitted to the outside as it is, and further impairs the aesthetics of the product, resulting in poor product quality. Therefore, in order to compensate for these disadvantages, by fastening the bottom cover, which is a kind of finishing material, to the lower end of the main body in which the inlet and outlet are formed, it is configured to open and close the inlet and outlet as necessary.

1A and 1B show a conventional bottom cover fastening structure. As shown, the inlet and outlet 11 for taking out the defrosting dish is formed in the front lower end of the refrigerator body 10, the lower cover (20, 20 ') is fastened in front of the inlet and outlet (11).

The lower covers 20 and 20 'are rod-shaped members having a length corresponding to the width of the refrigerator body 10 and a thickness corresponding to the thickness of the refrigerator door 30, and are usually manufactured by injection molding of synthetic resin material. . The lower covers 20 and 20 'are configured to be fastened to the front of the main body by a fastener 40 or a fitting member 21' formed integrally with the lower cover.

Looking at the fastening structure of the lower cover (20, 20 '), first when the fastener 40 is configured to use, as shown in Figure 1a, the lower cover 20 is in close contact with the front of the main body Two protruding ribs 21 are formed. A fastening hole 22 is formed in the rib 21 to fasten the fastener 40, and the coupling hole 12 is located at a position corresponding to the fastening hole 22 of the rib 21 on the front of the main body. Is formed. Therefore, by fastening or disassembling the fasteners 40 such as screws through the fastening hole 22 and the coupling hole 12, the lower cover 20 is fixed or separated on the front of the main body.

And in the case of fastening using the fitting material 21 ', as shown in Figure 1b, the lower cover 20' is provided with a fitting material 21 'protruding toward the front of the main body. Although not shown, the fitting member 21 'is usually provided in a pair. The fitting member 21 'is composed of an upper portion and a lower portion spaced apart from each other, and one side of the upper and lower portions are formed with protrusions 22' protruding outwardly. The insertion hole 12 'is formed at a position corresponding to the fitting member 21' on the front surface of the main body.

Therefore, when the fitting member 21 'is placed in the insertion hole 12' and the lower cover 20 'is press-fitted, the gap between the protrusions 22' of the fitting member 21 'is narrowed and the insertion is performed. It will be inserted into the ball 12 '. In the inserted state, the gap between the upper and lower portions of the fitting member 21 'is restored by elasticity, so that the protrusions 22' formed on each of them are not caught inside the insertion hole 12 '.

However, the conventional bottom cover fastening structure as described above has the following disadvantages.

In the case of the fastening structure using the fastener 40, since the lower cover 20 must be fixed using a separate fastener 40, there is a problem in that additional material costs are generated due to the fastener 40 used. have.

In addition, the fastening position of the lower cover 20 is the lower end of the refrigerator main body 10, the position is very inconvenient for the operator. Therefore, the fastening operation using the fastener 40 of a small size is not only troublesome and inconvenient, but also takes a lot of time.

And since the fastener 40 is attached and detached, a tool such as a screwdriver is used, and thus, the coating of the refrigerator main body 10 may be peeled off or the scratches may occur on the lower cover 20 by the tool as described above. There is a problem that is damaged.

On the other hand, in the case of the fastening structure using the fitting member 21 ', the fitting member 21' must be integrally formed on the lower cover 20 ', so that the lower cover 20' which is only a finishing material is used for its function. It can be seen that it is very complicated. Such a complicated structure causes the manufacturing cost of the lower cover 20 'to rise.

In addition, when the fastened bottom cover 20 'is to be removed, the bottom cover 20' must be pulled with a force that can overcome the elastic force of the fitting material 21 '. Therefore, the user inevitably must use the power, the user feels uncomfortable and unsatisfactory in use.

And since the fitting material 21 'is a synthetic resin material of high strength, the elastic force is lowered or even damaged by fatigue when used repeatedly for a long time.

An object of the present invention is to provide a lower cover fastening structure of a refrigerator having a reduced cost to improve the above-mentioned conventional problems.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a bottom cover fastening structure of the refrigerator that is easily removable.

Figure 1a-1b is a partial perspective view showing a fastening structure of a conventional refrigerator bottom cover.

Figure 2 is a partial perspective view showing a preferred embodiment according to the present invention.

Figure 3 is a partial side cross-sectional view showing a fastening state of the bottom cover according to the embodiment of the present invention.

※ Explanation of code about main part of drawing ※

100: refrigerator body 110: entrance and exit

120: hook portion 200: lower cover

210: rib

Lower cover fastening structure of the refrigerator according to the present invention for achieving the above object, the refrigerator body is formed with a storage space opened and closed by the door; A bottom cover fastened to the refrigerator body and positioned under the door; It is composed of a coupling means for fastening the bottom cover to the refrigerator main body.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the coupling means is formed of a hook portion formed in the refrigerator main body, the upper side of which is opened, and a rib formed in the cover and inserted into the hook portion.

According to the configuration as described above, it is possible to fasten the lower cover even without a separate fastening or fitting material, there is an advantage that the lower cover is easily removable.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description process, the same parts as in the related art will be described with the same numbers.

Figure 2 is a partial perspective view showing a fastening structure of the bottom cover according to the present invention, Figure 3 is a partial side cross-sectional view showing a fastening state of the bottom cover according to the present invention. As shown, the entrance 110 is formed at the lower end of the front of the refrigerator body 100 to remove the defrost water dish.

The hook part 120 of the upper part is formed in the upper side of the entrance and exit 110 is formed. The hook portion 120 is formed by cutting a portion of the out plate of the main body 100 after cutting, and both ends are bent toward the inside of the hook portion, and are formed in a form in which the left and right are closed.

The lower cover 200 which opens and closes the entrance and exit 110 is fastened to the front of the main body corresponding to the entrance of the entrance and exit 110. The lower cover 200 is a rod-shaped member having a length corresponding to the width of the refrigerator main body 100 and a thickness corresponding to the thickness of the refrigerator door (not shown), and is an injection molded material of synthetic resin.

The lower cover 200 has a rib 210 protruding downward from the upper end of the portion that is in close contact with the front of the body when fastening. The rib 210 is inserted into the hook portion 120 and is formed to have a length corresponding to the length of the hook portion 120.

Referring to the drawings the operation of the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above is as follows.

First, the lower cover 200 is injection-molded in the same manner as in the prior art during manufacture, but since the structure thereof is simple, manufacturing cost is reduced and productivity is improved as compared with the conventional fitting material.

And when fastening the lower cover 200 manufactured in this way to the front lower end of the refrigerator body 100, as shown in Figure 3, the rib 210 formed on the lower cover 200 to the refrigerator body 100 Hook on the hook portion 120 formed. That is, the worker grabs the lower cover 200 and inserts the rib 210 into the hook part 120 to complete the work.

In this fastened state, the bottom cover 200 is fixed by the combination of the rib 210 and the hook portion 120, the left and right flow is restricted by the side end of the hook portion bent inward. Therefore, a separate fastener is not required, and thus the material cost is reduced, and thus the workability can be improved because the fastening work is also a simple work completed by simply hanging.

On the other hand, when the refrigerator operates, the defrost water generated in the evaporator (not shown) is collected in the defrost water dish (not shown) installed in the machine room formed under the refrigerator through a separate discharge path. When the user wants to withdraw the defrosting dish, the lower cover 200 is opened to open and close the inlet and outlet 110, and then the defrosting dish is drawn out through the inlet and outlet 110. At this time, the separation of the lower cover 200 will be easily separated by the user by slightly lifting and pulling the lower cover 200.

In addition, when the lower cover 200 is to be remounted, the rib 210 formed on the lower cover 200 may be easily inserted into the hook part 120 formed on the upper and lower openings 120. . Therefore, the user can easily attach and detach the lower cover 200 as necessary, and will feel satisfaction in use.

As described above, in the present invention, when the lower cover is fastened to the refrigerator main body, the lower cover is configured to be fixed and configured to be easily detachable.

Within the scope of the above, many other variations will be possible to one skilled in the art.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the hook portion 120 is formed above the entrance and exit port 110, but the hook portion 120 is formed at any position capable of supporting the bottom cover 200. You can, and you can't limit its location.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the hook portion 120 is formed by cutting the out plate of the body after bending, but it is also possible to provide a separate hook portion 120.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the hook part 120 is formed integrally with a long length. However, the hook part 120 is formed of a plurality of short lengths, and a plurality of ribs 210 inserted into the hook part 120 are also formed. It may also be configured to correspond to the hanger 120.

The present invention described above is configured so that the bottom cover can be simply installed by a hook without a separate fastener or a complex structure fitting. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the cost due to the use of fasteners and the formation of fittings, and can be expected to improve workability by a simple fastening structure.

In addition, the user is often detached to the lower cover while using the refrigerator, because it is formed in a simple fastening structure as described above, it is easy to work, it can provide a user convenience.

Claims (2)

A refrigerator body having a storage space opened and closed by a door; A bottom cover fastened to the refrigerator body and positioned under the door; Fastening structure of the bottom cover of the refrigerator comprising a coupling means for fastening the bottom cover to the refrigerator body. The lower cover fastening structure of the refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the coupling unit comprises a hook portion formed on the refrigerator body, an upper portion of which is opened, and a rib formed on the cover and inserted into the hook portion. .