US1404961A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

Patented Jan. 31, 1922.

,4 TTORNEYS rATN'r OFFICE.

WILLIAM L HUMMEL, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

REFRIGERATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 31, 1922.

Application ledrFebruary 26, 1921. Serial No. 448,187..

VTo all whom 'it may concern.'

tion. f

My invention relates to improvements in refrigerators, and it consists in the combinations, constructions and arrangements herein described and claimed.

An object of my invention is to provide a refrigerator having a plurality of compartments and provided with means operable to permit air to circulate freely from compartment to compartment when the compartments are closed and to prevent the passage of air fromV any compartment therein to the adjacent compartments when the door of that particular compartment is opened.

A further object of my inventiony is to provide a device of the type'described having means operated by the operation of a closure of a selected compartment to close the airpassages leading from the compartment. to the adjacent compartments. A. further object offmy invention is to provide a device of the vtype described that is rcl ati vely simple in construction an d :operation, not likely to get out'of order easily, and thoroughly practical commercially.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification, and the novel features of the invention will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming part of this application, in which-- Figure l is a. vertical Section, through a fragmentary portion of the casing of a. refrigerator embodying my invention along the line 1.-1 of Figure 2, a portion thereof being broken away and shown in section, and

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional view along the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

In carrying out my invention, I make use of a refrigerator casing 1 that may be of any approved construction and is provided with a plurality of horizontal shelves or partitions 2 supported in any suitable manner, as by means of brackets 3 to provide a plurality of compartments, such as denoted at 4 and 5. The casing 1 is fashioned to provide an opening 6 to` afford access to the Uintegral partof the casing 1.

. number compartment 4 and is formed with a similar opening 7 for' the compartment 5. A closure 8 is formed with a flange 9 hinged atlO to a common frame member 11 that may be an It is to be noted that the inner wall of the closure 8 is flush with the inner `wall ofthe frame member 11 when the closure' 8 is in closed position. ,A similar closure 12 for the open,

also flush. When in closed `position with' the inner wall of the frame member 11,

the closures may be each releasably maintained in closed .position by ycooperating catch members denoted by 14 and15, carried by the frame members and the closurerand which may be of any suitable construction..

The upper of the shelves or partitions 2 shown, is preferably arranged substantially liush with the upper wall of Vthe frame member 11. Each of the shelves'or partitions ,2 is fashioned with a pluralityvomf vertically extending spacedfapart openings 16 adapted to normally register with a like of correspondingly positioned openings 17 through .a slide or shutter 18 that is maintained in slidable contact with the under surface thereof by means of parallel guiding and retaining members 19-19. The latter are secured to the shelves or partitions 2 |by any suitable means, none being shown. j

l Each partition'is fashioned with a guide slot 2O intermediate its side edges in which works a double acting curved lever 2l that is intermediately pivoted at 22 to the shutter or Vslide 18.

F rom the foregoing description of the various parts of the device, the operation thereof may be readily understood. A compression spring 23 disposed between a `flange 24, that is integral with the shutter or slide 18 along its rear edge, and the adjacent bracket 3, tends to force the slide orl shutter 18`toward the kfront wall of the Vcasing 1 so that the openings 17 no longer register with the openings 16 and consequently the passage of a fluid, such as air, from one compartment to the adjacent compartment' is prevented when the closures 8 and.. l2 are in closed position, on account of the stress to which the double acting lever 2l is subjected at the opposite ends thereof. When the closures 8 and l2 are in closed position, air or like fluid can circulate freely'through the compartments as the openings 16 and 1.7 are then in registry. The curved lever 21 is substantially semi-elliptical in form and carries rollers 25 and 26 which, as hereinbefore stated, are normally maintained in constant contact with the inner surface of the closures 8 and l2 by the action of the spring 23. The frame member l1 is cut away at 27 along its lower inner edge to receive the adiacent portion of the lever 2l when the closure 12 is moved into open position.

lVhile l have illustrated an embodiment of my invention in which the compartments lof the refrigerator are formed by the provision of horizontal partitions and the closures are hinged at their lower edges to the casing, it is obvious that I may construct the device with vertical partitions therein and with closures hinged to the casing along side edges thereof withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention, as set Vforth in thek .foregoing disclosure and outlined inore particularly in the appended claims. l

The utility of the device is at once ap- Yparent, since it makes for economy. As

eachcompartmentis opened, the communieating passages leading from that coinpart nient to the adjacent compartments are partments containing ice or other means for lowering the temperature within the refrigerator is permitted to circulate freely through all the compartments.

I claim:

Vl. ln a refrigerator having a perforated partition arranged therein to divide the casing into compartments, each of said compartments having an opening in its front wall and aclosurefor said opening,a shutter arranged to slidably contact with said partition and forvmoveinent thereacross, said shutter being formed with a plurality of openings therethrough adapted to register with the openings through said partition when said shutter is in a certain position relative thereto, a spring arrangedfto engage said shutter to tend to move the latter toward the front wall of the casing, and a double acting lever iiiterinediately fulcrumed on the shutterand having its ends bearing against the closures when the latter are in closed positions, whereby movement of the shutter on account of the action of the spring is prevented when the closures are closed and permitted when the closures are opened.

2. A refrigerator comprising a perforated partition removably disposed therein, a door disposed above and below said partition, a perforated shutter slidably disposed below said partition, yieldable means yfor moving said shutter towards said doors, a lever ful ciuined to said shutter,rollers disposed at Veach end of said lever and beingadapted to engage said doors when said doors' are closed, the openings in said partition and said .shutter being disposed in alinement when said doors are closed and beingdisposed out of alineinent when either one of said doors is opened.

WILLIAM L. HUMMEL.

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