KR20060025806A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a refrigerator. The refrigerator of the present invention includes a refrigerator body in which a plurality of cooling chambers are partitioned therein; A door installed to be slidable in the refrigerator main body to open and close a front opening of the refrigerator main body; A basket installed on a rear surface of the door; A pair of first guide members installed in both front and rear directions of the main body to guide the sliding movement of the door; A pair of second guide members installed on both sides of the door to move along the first guide member; It characterized in that it comprises a drive device for sliding the door along the first guide member in accordance with an electrical signal applied from the outside.

Therefore, there is an advantage in that the user's convenience is improved because the basket is automatically pulled out and retracted from the main body while the door is automatically moved by the driving device.

Refrigerator, door, basket, automatic opening and closing

Description

Refrigerator {refrigerator}

1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a conventional refrigerator

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating main parts of the refrigerator of FIG. 1.

Figure 3 is a side longitudinal cross-sectional view schematically showing the structure of a first embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention;

4 is a front longitudinal cross-sectional view of the refrigerator of FIG.

5 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a lift device for lifting the basket of the refrigerator of FIG.

Figure 6 is a side longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a basket open state of the refrigerator of Figure 3

7 is a side longitudinal cross-sectional view illustrating a basket rising state of the refrigerator of FIG. 3;

8 is a side longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the structure of a second embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention;

9 is a schematic plan view illustrating a basket open state of the refrigerator of FIG. 8;

10 is a side longitudinal cross-sectional view illustrating a basket open state of the refrigerator of FIG. 8;

11 is a side longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the structure of a third embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention;

12 is a schematic plan view of the refrigerator of FIG.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the invention

11: body 111: fixed plate

112: fixing plate 33: lower door

35: basket 37a: first guide rail

37b: second guide rail 41: geared motor

43: rotation axis 45: pinion gear

47: rack gear 48a, 48b: position detection sensor

51: lift 52: lifting guide rail

54: drive motor 55: gear part

56 drive shaft 57 drive arm

57a: roller 58a: lift detection sensor

58b: descent sensor

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator which can automatically open and close a basket to and from outside and inside the refrigerator main body.

1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings shows a conventional refrigerator, a conventional refrigerator has a plurality of upper cooling chamber (21) with a partition 17 formed along the horizontal direction in the interior of the main body (11) And a lower cooling chamber 31. An upper door 23 and a lower door 33 for opening and closing each chamber are installed at each front portion of the upper cooling chamber 21 and the lower cooling chamber 31. In the lower region of the main body 11, a machine room 13 in which a compressor 15 or the like is installed is formed.

The upper door 23 for opening and closing the front opening of the upper cooling chamber 21 is composed of a pair of left and right sides, each of which is configured to be rotatable with respect to the main body.

On the other hand, the upper side of the lower cooling chamber 31 is provided with a plurality of drawers 38, the upper surface is open to accommodate food therein.

In addition, the lower door 33 is configured to open and close the lower cooling chamber 31 while sliding along the front and rear directions of the main body 11. In order to slide the lower door 33, the guide rails 37 are installed on both sides of the lower part of the main body 11 and the rear part of the lower door 33 so as to be movable in the front and rear directions.

The lower door 33 is provided with a box-shaped basket 35 having an upper surface open to accommodate food. The basket 35 is opened and closed while sliding forward and backward integrally with the lower door 33.

However, the conventional refrigerator as described above has the following problems.

First, in order to withdraw the basket to the outside, the user is inconvenient because the user should bend the waist and grab the handle of the lower door by hand and slide it. In particular, because the position of the lower door is low, if the person with an uncomfortable or abnormal waist or other parts of the body pulls out the lower door, it places a heavy burden on the user.

In addition, when a lot of food is stored in the basket because the weight is a lot of weak children or elderly people had a lot of effort to open and close the lower door.

Second, when the basket is installed in the lower part of the main body, the basket has a low position, and after the basket is withdrawn, the user has to lower or lower the posture such as bending or squatting to store or withdraw food. In particular, since it is necessary to find and withdraw the desired food from among various foods while bending the waist, the time for bending the waist is long and the user's back health has not been beneficial.

The present invention is to solve the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator that can improve the user's convenience by automatically sliding and opening and closing the basket of the refrigerator in an electro-mechanical manner.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator in which the basket is automatically lifted so that the user can store and take out food in the basket without bending.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a refrigerator main body having a plurality of cooling chambers defined therein; A door installed to be slidable in the refrigerator main body to open and close a front opening of the refrigerator main body; A basket installed on a rear surface of the door; A pair of first guide members installed in both front and rear directions of the main body to guide the sliding movement of the door; A pair of second guide members installed on both sides of the door to move along the first guide member; According to an electrical signal applied from the outside provides a refrigerator comprising a drive device for sliding the door along the first guide member.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a refrigerator body having a plurality of cooling chambers partitioned therein; A door installed to be slidable in the refrigerator main body to open and close a front opening of the refrigerator main body; A basket installed on a rear surface of the door; A pair of first guide members installed in both front and rear directions of the main body to guide the sliding movement of the door; A pair of second guide members installed on both sides of the door to move along the first guide member; A driving device for opening and closing the door by sliding the door along the first guide member according to an electrical signal applied from the outside; A lift supporting a basket relative to the door; According to an electrical signal applied from the outside, there is provided a refrigerator including a lifting device for elevating the lift up and down.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings preferred embodiments of the refrigerator according to the present invention that can specifically realize the above object will be described in detail.

For convenience of description, the same reference numerals and names as in the prior art are given to the same parts as in the prior art, and the detailed description thereof is omitted.

First, a first embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 7.

3 and 4, a lower cooling chamber 31 is provided below the refrigerator body 11, and a lower door 33 for opening and closing a front opening is provided on the front surface of the lower cooling chamber 31. Sliding in the front and rear direction is installed.

First guide rails 37a are installed in front and rear directions on both side surfaces of the main body 11, and second guide rails moving along the first guide rails 37a on both sides of the rear surface of the lower door 33. 37b) is installed.

In addition, a basket 35 having a box shape in which an upper portion is opened is provided at a rear portion of the lower door 33. The basket 35 is seated on the lift 51 installed under the rear part of the lower door 33 and moves together with the lower door 33. The lift 51 is configured to automatically move up and down by a separate lifting device when the lower door 33 is pulled out.

On the other hand, the fixed plate 111 is installed on the upper side of the lower cooling chamber 31 to be fixed to the main body 11, the geared motor 41 (geared motor) in which a reduction gear part (not shown) is built in the fixed plate 111. ) Is installed. The geared motor 41 rotates in the forward and reverse directions according to a control signal transmitted from a refrigerator main controller (not shown) or a separate geared motor driving PCB.

A pair of rotation shafts 43 are connected to opposite sides of the geared motor 41 in opposite directions, and pinion gears 45 are installed at ends of the rotation shafts 43.

In addition, the second guide rail 37b is provided with a rack gear 47 along the longitudinal direction on the upper surface. The rack gear 47 meshes with the pinion gear 45 to move back and forth by the rotation of the pinion gear 45.

In addition, the forward and backward positions of the lower door 33 are sensed at each of the rear end of the second guide rail 37b and the front and rear sides of the main body 11 so that the lower door 33 is pulled in and out. Position detection sensors 48a and 48b for controlling the position are preferably installed.

On the other hand, as shown in Figure 5, the lift 51 is formed in a substantially 'L' shape, a pair of lifting guide rails 52, the front end of which is provided in the vertical direction on the inner side of the lower door 33 Is coupled to the lifting movement along the lifting guide rail (52).

The elevating device for elevating the lift 51 up and down includes a driving arm 57 rotatably installed up and down on both lower sides of the lower door 33, and a driving motor 54 provided at the center of the lower end of the lower door 33. And a gear unit 55 axially coupled to the drive motor 54 to rotate, and connected to the gear unit 55 to rotate, and both ends are connected to the drive arm 57 to rotate the drive arm 57. It consists of a drive shaft 56. The drive motor 54 is also operated by the control of the main control unit (not shown) or a separate drive motor control PCB (not shown) of the refrigerator.

At the end of each of the driving arms 57, rollers 57a for rolling along the bottom of the lift 51 are provided. In addition, a lowering stop 51b is formed on the lower surface of the lift 51 to prevent the lift 51 from descending when the driving arm 57 raises the lift.

In addition, each of the upper and lower portions of the lower door 33 is provided with a rising detection sensor 58a and a falling detection sensor 58b for limiting the lifting position of the lift 51.

On the other hand, although not shown in the drawings, the refrigerator main body 11 is provided with a control button for allowing the user to perform the opening and closing operation of the lower door 33 and the lifting operation of the lift 51 from the outside. desirable. The control button is electrically connected to the main control unit of the refrigerator or a separate geared motor driving PCB, and transmits a control signal to the main control unit according to the user's operation.

Referring to the operation of the embodiment of the refrigerator configured as described above are as follows.

As shown in FIG. 3, when the user operates a predetermined control button provided outside the main body 11 while the lower door 33 closes the inside of the main body 11, the main control unit of the refrigerator (not shown) Alternatively, as a control signal is applied to the geared motor 41 from a separate geared motor driving PCB (not shown), the geared motor 41 operates to rotate both rotation shafts 43.

At this time, the respective rotation shaft 43 is rotated synchronously by the geared motor (41). As each of the rotary shafts 43 rotates, the pinion gears 45 on both sides begin to rotate. Accordingly, the rack gear 47 and the second guide rail 37b meshed with the pinion gear 45 move forward along the first guide rail 37a as shown in FIG. 6, and the basket 35 ) Is drawn out to the outside of the main body 11 to be opened.

If the second guide rail 37b and the front position detection sensors 48a and 48b of the main body 11 are adjacent to each other while the lower door 33 is moving forward, the detection signal is driven by the main controller or the geared motor. Transmission to the PCB stops the operation of the geared motor 41, the movement of the lower door 33 is stopped.

After the lower door 33 is completely open, the user operates a control button (not shown) for lifting the lift, or when a predetermined time has elapsed after the lower door 33 is opened, the driving motor for lifting and lowering the lift 51. 54 (see Fig. 5) is activated.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the power of the drive motor 54 is transmitted to the drive shaft 56 through the gear unit 55, and the drive arm 57 is upward as the drive shaft 56 rotates. Will rotate. When the driving arm 57 is rotated upwards, the lift 51 moves up and down the guide rail 52 while the roller 57a provided at the end of the driving arm 57 moves along the lower surface of the lift 51. Will rise along.

When the lift 51 rises to the position of the lift sensor 58a, the lift sensor 58a sends a signal to the main controller to stop the operation of the driving motor 54 to stop the lift 51 from rising.

At this time, the roller 57a of the driving arm 57 is supported by the lowering barrier 51b while being positioned directly in front of the lowering barrier 51b past the gentle slope of the lowering barrier 51b. As a result, the driving arm 57 is prevented from rotating downward by the load of the basket 35.

On the other hand, when the user raises the basket 35 as described above to store or withdraw food in the basket 35, and the user operates the control button for the basket lowering, the drive motor 54 is reversed as described above In operation, the driving arm 57 rotates downward, and the lift 51 descends.

When the lift 51 is completely lowered, the main control unit sends a control signal to the geared motor 41, the geared motor 41 operates in reverse to the above-mentioned to rotate the rotating shaft 43 in reverse.

Accordingly, the pinion gear 45 rotates in the opposite direction to the above, and moves the rack gear 47 and the second guide rail 37b along the first guide rail 37a.

When the second guide rail 37b and the rear position detection sensors 48a and 48b of the main body 11 are adjacent to each other while the second guide rail 37b is backward, the detection signal is the main control unit or the geared motor. It is transmitted to the driving PCB to stop the operation of the geared motor 41, the movement of the lower door 33 is stopped. At this time, the lower door 33 completely closes the front opening of the main body 11.

Next, a second embodiment of the refrigerator of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 to 10.

The refrigerator of this second embodiment has the same basic configuration as that of the first embodiment. However, the refrigerator of the second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the configuration of the apparatus for moving the lower door 33 forward and backward.

That is, the refrigerator of the second embodiment is coupled to the rear plate of the second guide rail 37b and the movable plate 142 for integrally connecting the two second guide rails 37b to the upper portion of the movable plate 142. The geared motor 141 is configured to be installed.

Both sides of the geared motor 141 is connected to a pair of rotation shaft 143 rotates synchronously with each other. The pinion gear 145 is installed at each end of the rotation shaft 143.

In addition, the fixing plate 112 is fixedly installed on the upper side of the main body 11, a pair of rack gear 147 meshing with the pinion gear 145 in the lower portion of the fixing plate 112 in the front and rear directions. Installed side by side.

The configuration and operation of the elevating device for elevating the lift 51 on which the basket 35 is mounted are the same as those of the above-described embodiment, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The refrigerator of this embodiment operates as follows.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the lower door 33 closes the inside of the main body 11, the user applies a control signal to the geared motor 141 by operating a control button (not shown) from the outside. As the geared motor 141 operates in the forward direction, the rotation shaft 143 and the pinion gear 145 rotate in one direction.

At this time, since the rack gear 147 is fixed to the fixed plate 112, the pinion gear 145 in the free state as shown in Figs. 9 and 10 is moved along the rack gear 147. Done. Therefore, the second guide rail 37b along with the movable plate 142 is advanced along the first guide rail 37a and the basket 35 is pulled out.

When the basket 35 is completely pulled out by the movement of the lower door 33, the basket 35 rises along the elevating guide rail 52 by the operation of the lift elevating device.

On the contrary, when the user operates the control button for closing the basket from the outside, the basket 35 is lowered along the elevating guide rail 52 by the operation of the lift elevating device, and the geared motor 141 operates in reverse to the above. The pinion gear 145 is rotated in reverse.

Accordingly, the pinion gear 145 moves backward along the rack gear 147, so that the movable plate 142 and the second guide rail 37b are reversed along the first guide rail 37a. As a result, the basket 35 is drawn into the main body 11 and closed.

11 and 12 show the structure of a third embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention. In the refrigerator of the third embodiment, a geared motor 241 is installed at the rear of the main body 11, and a pair of rotation shafts 243 are connected to both sides of the geared motor 241 so as to rotate synchronously. The driving pulley 245 is connected to each end of the 243.

In addition, a pair of driven pulleys 247 are rotatably installed at both front sides of the main body 11, and a power transmission belt 246 is tensioned at each of the drive pulleys 245 and driven pulleys 247. Tightly spanned and applied in the applied state. Here, the power transmission belt 246 may use a timing belt, for example.

In addition, each of the power transmission belt 246 is connected to the second guide rail 37b by a connecting piece 248.

Therefore, when an external control signal is applied to the geared motor 241 and the rotating shafts 243 connected to the geared motor 241 rotate in one direction, the driving pulley 245 rotates. Since the driving pulley 245 is connected to the driven pulley 247 through the power transmission belt 246, the power transmission belt 246 is moved by the rotation of the driving pulley 245.

When the power transmission belt 246 is in motion, the second guide rail 37b connected thereto moves along the first guide rail 37a to move the lower door 33 forward and backward to open and close the basket 35. It is to be made.

As described above, according to the present invention, the second guide rail 37b connected to the lower door 33 is automatically moved forward and backward along the first guide rail 37a by the user operating the control button from the outside. Therefore, it is possible to obtain the advantage that the basket 35 is automatically opened and closed.

On the other hand, in the above-described embodiment, a linear motion system using pinion gear and rack gear or pulley and belt is configured as a driving device for automatically moving the lower door 33 forward and backward. However, alternatively, the lower door 33 may be automatically moved forward and backward by connecting a pneumatic or hydraulic cylinder to the rear of the main body.

Although not shown in the drawing, in this case, it is preferable that the pneumatic or hydraulic cylinder has its cylinder body installed behind both sides of the refrigerator body, and the piston rod moving along the cylinder body is connected to the rear end of the second guide rail, respectively. something to do.

In addition, in the above-described embodiments, the basket 35 is automatically raised and lowered by converting the rotational movement of the driving arm 57 into the linear movement of the lift 51. Alternatively, the lift and basket may be automatically lifted and lifted using a variety of known linear motion members such as a linear motor, or a pulley, a belt and a servomotor, or a ball screw and a servomotor.

Referring to the effect of the refrigerator of the present invention described above is as follows.

First, according to the present invention, as the lower door is automatically slid by the separate drive device, the basket is withdrawn and drawn out to the outside, thereby improving the convenience of the user.

Second, since the basket is automatically withdrawn to the outside and then automatically lifted up and down, the user can store or withdraw food in the basket very conveniently without bending or kneeling.

Claims (13)

A refrigerator body in which a plurality of cooling chambers are partitioned; A door installed to be slidable in the refrigerator main body to open and close a front opening of the refrigerator main body; A basket installed on a rear surface of the door; A pair of first guide members installed in both front and rear directions of the main body to guide the sliding movement of the door; A pair of second guide members installed on both sides of the door to move along the first guide member; And a driving device configured to slide the door along the first guide member to open and close the door according to an electrical signal applied from the outside. The method of claim 1, wherein the drive device, A motor installed in the refrigerator main body and operated by an electrical signal applied from the outside; And a power transmission unit connected to the motor and the second guide member to convert the rotational force of the motor into linear motion of the second guide member. 3. The power transmission unit of claim 2, wherein the power transmission unit is axially coupled to both sides of the motor in front of the refrigerator main body, and is installed to engage the pinion gear with each of the second guide members. A refrigerator comprising a pair of rack gears. According to claim 2, wherein the power transmission unit, the drive pulley which is installed in the front or rear of the refrigerator main body so as to be axially coupled to both sides of the motor to rotate synchronously, and the driven pulley which is installed opposite to the drive pulley, And a power transmission belt spanning the drive pulley and the driven pulley, and a connection member connecting the power transmission belt and the second guide member. The method of claim 1, wherein the drive device, A movable plate for fixedly connecting the rear of each of the second guide members; A motor fixed to the movable plate and operated by an external electrical signal; A pair of pinion gears pivotally coupled to both sides of the motor; And a pair of rack gears installed in the refrigerator main body side by side in the front-rear direction and configured to mesh with the pinion gear. The cylinder of claim 1, wherein the driving device comprises a cylinder body installed at both rear sides of the refrigerator body, and piston rods connected to the second guide member and moved forward and backward according to the pressure of the fluid applied to the cylinder body. Refrigerator characterized in that consisting of. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising a position sensor for sensing and limiting forward and backward positions of the door. A refrigerator body in which a plurality of cooling chambers are partitioned; A door installed to be slidable in the refrigerator main body to open and close a front opening of the refrigerator main body; A basket installed on a rear surface of the door; A pair of first guide members installed in both front and rear directions of the main body to guide the sliding movement of the door; A pair of second guide members installed on both sides of the door to move along the first guide member; A driving device for opening and closing the door by sliding the door along the first guide member according to an electrical signal applied from the outside; A lift supporting a basket relative to the door; And a lifting device for elevating the lift up and down according to an electrical signal applied from the outside. According to claim 8, The lifting device, A guide member installed on an inner side of the door in a vertical direction to guide a lifting movement of the lift; A motor operating according to an electrical signal applied from the outside; And a motion converting unit converting the rotational force of the motor into the lifting motion of the lift. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein the elevating device further comprises an elevating detector configured to detect and limit an up position and a down position of the lift. The method of claim 9, wherein the motion conversion unit, A gear unit axially coupled to the motor and rotating; A drive shaft connected to the gear unit and rotating; And at least one driving arm coupled to the driving shaft and rotating upward and downward from a lower side of the lift and installed to contact the bottom of the lift. The refrigerator according to claim 11, wherein the motion converting part further comprises a roller rotatably installed at an end of the driving arm and rolling along a bottom surface of the lift. The method of claim 9, wherein the motion conversion unit, A gear unit axially coupled to the motor and rotating; A linear motion member coupled to the gear part and linearly moving upward and downward in the door; And a connection member for connecting the linear motion member and the lift.

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