US2164589A - Refrigerator cabinet - Google Patents

Description

July 4, 1939. R. MONEY REFRIGERATOR CABINET Filed Jan. 18, 1936 INVENTOR. ROLAND h! MONEY.

ATTORNEYS Patented July 4, 1939 UNITED STATES REFRIGERATOR CABINET Roland H. Money, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to The Crosley Corporation,

Ohio

Claims.

My invention relates to refrigerator cabinets for domestic use in which the refrigeration unit is installed at the upper part of the cabinet.

There are two difliculties in connection with 5 refrigeration units installed within continuations of the walls of the cabinet proper, although this mode of installation has now become fairly regular practice in domestic refrigerator structures. One of these is that it is difficult to gain full access to the mechanical parts of the unit without removing it entirely from the refrigerator cabinet. Another is that no very effective air currents can be set up through the space in which the unit is mounted. I

My invention relates to means for curing both of these defects. To that end I have provided for a cabinet open front-and back above the refrigeration chamber proper, and provide a cover to fit over the top and front of this upper por- 20 tion of the cabinet which fits in with the design of the cabinet as a whole, and is detachable in a single piece, thus giving access at the front of the unit, and indeed at all sides but the ends thereof, without removing it from the cabinet at 25 all. Also in connection with this cover I am able to provide ventilation openings to the front of the cabinet, while maintaining them out of sight, so that air currents can be set up from front to back of the space in which the unit is installed.

I have illustrated my invention in connection with a particular design of refrigerator cabinet and certain of the structural details are naturally incident to this design. This will be apparent to the person familiar with the art, and I make reference to the appended claims for the novelty inherent in my device, of which but one example is shown and described.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the upper portion of a domestic refrigerator.

Fig. 2 is a like view showing'the cover device removed from position.

Fig. 3 is a detail section taken on the line 33 45 Of Fig. 1.-

Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of the ventilation openings in the cover piece.

Fig. 5 is a detail on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a detail on the line 66 of Fig. 3.

Fig. '7 is a detail taken on the line I-I of Fig. 6.

I have not illustrated the entire refrigerator cabinet, since the lower portion thereof forms no essential part of my invention. The cabinet. is

a corporation of Application January 18, 1936, Serial No. 59,725

ably in one piece from the lower portion of the cabinet to the top thereof. The cabinet also has a cross member 2, which extends across above the door opening for the refrigeration compartment la.- The back panel 3 extends throughout 5 the back of the cabinet up to the same height, preferably as the front cross member. A door 4 closes the opening in the front of the cabinet, abutting at the top against the cross member 2. In the particular form shown a front panel does 10 not surround the door opening, since this opening is defined by the cross member 2, thesides of the cabinet, and a panel across between the sides below the door opening. This detail is a non-essential. Neither is it essential that a single door is. shown, since two doors closing against a central pillar would not alter the novel features of my device.

The refrigeration unit indicated generally at 5, is arranged to rest on suitable frame pieces housed in the front cross member and the back panel, with a frame 6, formed in the top liner sheet of the refrigeration compartment, defining the opening through which the evaporator element I depends. Suitable gaskets are provided as indicated at 8 toseal this frame against air leakage.

The closure member or cover, is formed of a sheet bent to form a top 9 and a front II] for the cabinet portion in which the refrigeration unit is housed. In the form illustrated, this cover is flanged around at the sides, as indicated at II, and then turned in to provide a ledge which rests on the upper portion of the sides of the cabinet and also engages against the front edges of the sides.

As constructed the front face of the cover member corresponds with the exterior face of the door, so that a continuous design extends across the front of the refrigerator. However, the lower edge of the cover member is spaced away somewhat from the top edge of the door. This leaves a small amount of the front panel or cross bar exposed, and also leaves an air passage up through the overhang of the cover member.

Instead of turning in a flange at the lower front edge of the cover member I may either omit any inwardly extending flange at this point or may secure a plate I2 across the overhang of the cover. This plate I2 will then have air holes I3 formed 50 therein.

The air can pass through the space between the top of the door and the overhanging portion of the cover, up through the holes and out into the space where the unit is housed.

As a convenient mode of holding the cover in place I may provide a pair of latches one at each side in the form of resilient tongues M, with bends in them which will snap into notches formed in the inside plates of the sides of the cabinet. To hold the cover snugly down at the front I may provide headed screws it, set into the front panel or cross bar, at the ends thereof, and key hole slots in the inwardly extending flanges of the cover member as indicated at 36, which slots will engage over the heads of the screws and slide down over the shanks thereof. If desired to secure this key hole slot engagement against rattling, spring tongues it may be mounted on the said flange of the cover so as to engage under the heads of the screws, when the cover is in place.

As so constructed the cover appears to merge into the general design of the cabinet and to be part of the front as well as the top thereof. It is normally held gripped snugly in place but can be easily pushed upwardly and lifted away entirely exposing the unit for repairs or adjustment. Also a suitable air vent is provided at the front of the structure, which air vent is an improvement in and of itself whether the front element of the cover is fixed in place or not.

As already noted, there has been a particular design of cabinet to which my device is applied. In this design the door projects from the line of the sides leaving a chamber in its inner panel, as indicated at H! (Fig. 3). This facilitates the mounting of shelves (not shown) in the door, as described in the patent to Constance Lane West Reissue No. 19,008, dated November 21, 1933. Were the door to be more nearly flush with the face of the cabinet, it would still be practical to employ the cover member, but there would not be so great a space for an air vent unless it would be practical to work into the design of the box a greater projection of the upper front of the cabinet. Also less of the front of the unit compartment could be exposed by the cover with consequent sacrifice of availability of the unit when the cover is removed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a refrigerator cabinet, the combination with side walls extending upwardly beyond the refrigeration compartment portion thereof, to form a space for installing a refrigeration unit, and a cross member at the front of the cabinet, a door for the refrigeration compartment portion of the cabinet abutting said cross member, and

. a removable cover for the top and exposed front of the unit installation space, engaging said sides at the top and front, and overlapping at least in part the said cross member, and spaced from said refrigeration compartment portion thereof, to

form a space for installing a refrigeration unit, and a cross member at the front of the cabinet,

a door for the refrigeration compartment portion of the cabinet abutting said cross member, and a removable cover in one piece for the top and exposed front of the unit installation space, engaging said sides at the top and front, and extending to the said cross member, said cover member being formed of a front section and a top section with a flange bent around continuously from said sections and turned inwardly to rest on the exposed edges of the said side walls, said flange where it rests on said cross member being perforated to provide ventilation openings.

3. In a refrigerator cabinet, the combination with side walls extending upwardly beyond the refrigeration compartment portion thereof, to form a space for installing a refrigeration unit, and a cross member at the front of the cabinet,

a door for the refrigeration compartment portion of the cabinet abutting said cross member and extending forwardly beyond the front edges of said side walls, and a removable cover for the top and exposed front of the unit installation space, engaging said sides at the top and front, and overlapping at least in part the said cross member, said cover at the front being extended forwardly to match the door and being vertically spaced from the top of the door and having an opening in the bottom between the forwardly extended portion and said cross member to provide an air vent for the unit installation space.

4. In a refrigerator cabinet having a refrigeration compartment and a door for said compartment, said door extending outwardly somewhat from the front of said compartment, sides extending upwardly from the refrigeration compartment, providing space for mounting of a refrigeration unit above said compartment, and a removable cover formed in one piece to enclose the space left between the top and front edges of said sides, said cover arranged to extend outwardly at the front so as to form a continuation in effect of the door, but spaced upwardly from the top of the door, and an air vent in the cover in the space between the front of said compartment and the outwardly extended portion of said cover between the sides of the cabinet.

5. In a refrigerator cabinet, the combination with side walls-extending upwardly beyond the refrigeration compartment portion thereof, to

form a space for installing a refrigeration unit,

and a cross member at the front of the cabinet, a door for the refrigeration compartment portion of the cabinet abutting said cross member, and a removable cover for the top and exposed front of the unit installation space, engaging said sides at the top and front but the major portion thereof being spaced outwardly between its sides and overlapping at least in part the said cross member, and spaced from said door, to permit the flow of air between said cover and said cross member.

ROLAND H. MONEY.

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