US2955441A - Freezing tray and ice storage container arrangement for refrigerators - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 11, 1960 J. A. DAHLGREN ETAL 2,955,441 FREEZING TRAY AND ICE STORAGE comma ARRANGEMENT FOR REFRIGERATORS- Filed March 2, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS JOHN A. DAHLGREN sGEORfiE W- ANDRIOT BY m I THEIR ATTORNEY 1 J. A. DAHLGREN ETAL 2,955,441

FREEZING TRAY AND ICE STORAGE CONTAINER ARRANGEMENT FOR REFRIGERATORS Filed March 2, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR-S 70m A. DAHLGREN &GEORGE W. ANDRIOT THEIR ATTORNEY United StatesPatent FREEZING TRAY AND ICE STORAGE CONTAINER GEMENT FOR REFRIGERATORS John A. Dahlgren and George W. Andriot, Ky., assignors to General Electric Compan ration of New York Filed Mar. 2, 1959, Ser. No. 796,590 -4 Claims. c1. 62-344) Louisville, 7 3 1" The present invention relates to household refrigerators and ismore particularly concerned with a freezing tray and storage container arrangement slidably supported within a refrigerator storage compartment. ,The present invention is an improvement overthe in vention of the .copending application of Albert V. Melikian, Serial No. 796,589 filed concurrently herewith which is to be'reg'arded as 2,955,441 Patented Oct l 1,

2 tended to positions in which the tray can be pivoted about its support on the frame to a discharge position above: the receptacle. In its preferred form, the invention :forms part of a freezer compartment including a drawer assembly and the shelf carrying the receptacle is adapted'to be supported and operated in part by the drawer. U n For a betterunderstanding of the invention reference maybe had to the accompanying drawings in which: f f

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of a refrigerator cabinet including the ice tray and storage receptacle arrangement of the present invention; I

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary front view taken along line 2.-2 of Fig. 1; '7" Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view similar to Fig. 1 but showing the receptacle in its accessible position;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view illustrating the operational features of one type of freezing tray suitable for. use 'in the practice of thepresent invention; and v Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 illustrating the position of the tray during the ice harvesting operation. Referringto Fig. lof the drawing, there is showna counterrheight cabinet including an inner liner 1 form:- ing afreezer compartment 2 for the storage of frozen foods; While this compartment is shown in an under counter freezer, it is to be understood that it could also comprise the lower part of a combination refrigeratorfreezer. In either case, as it is below what may be termed normal counter level, access to the contents therefor the. freezing trays from the standpoint of freedom {from contamination is adjacent the nient above the remaining contents shelf arrangement suitable for this purpose is described and shown in the aforementioned Melikian' application ascomprising a sliding shelf-supporting'both an. ice storage receptacle and one or more freezingtrays'in such a manner, that the receptacle'and trays become accessible when the shelf is extended. The present invention is directed to, and has as anobject the'provi'sioniof; an improved structure so designed that the trays can be left top'oflthe compartof the compartment.

in the compartment while the ice receptacle, alone is slid forwardly.' j v I Another object of the invention is to providelan improvedice supply means comprising an assembly ineluding means for separately and slidably supporting a It'rays in such a manner that while access'to the receptacle canjbe obtained without disturbing the freezing tray, when the entire assembly is in its extended positi'on, the trays are so positioned that ice blocks can be harvested Further objects-and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the following description proceeds and the features of novelty which characterize the invention will be pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this specification.

In carrying out the objects. of thepresent'invent-ion, there is provided an assembly having means forslidably supporting an ice storage receptacle and at least one removable ice block receptacle and one or more freezing -into"t he receptacle and the freezing tray refilled with Water without removal from theirsupporting structure.

freezing tray for independent movement out of the com- 'partment in such a manner that whilethe receptacle can he slid to an accessible position withoutdisturbing the freezing tray, the ice blocks can also beharvested from-the 'tray into the receptacle withoutremoval of either from the assembly. For this purpose, there are r provided a sliding shelf for supporting theice receptacle and a sliding frame for supportingone or more trays in such ama'nnerthat the shelf can be moved to an .extndd: positionindependently ofthe framefor access, to

the receptacle or both the shelf and frame. can be .ex-

front 8 and the space between the drawer fronts-and the face of the cabinet is sealed by means of a gasket 6 extending around the peripheral edge of the drawer front 8'. p i The drawer front 8 is part of a drawer assemblyithat includesa pair of spaced slides connected together by front and rear cross members 10 to form an open cradle or--fr-amework for supporting' a removable storagepan 11 The drawer front 8 is suitably secured to the-for- 'ward end portionsof the drawer slides 9 ancltheidrawer structure- 3 is slidably supported within the compartment 2 by drawer supportsfllSv secured to the opposite side 'walls'12; a For most efficient usage, it is of course desirable that the depth of'a storage drawer or bin such as the bin 11* be kept within certain limits depending upon the material to be stored therein. In order to do this in a relatively high compartment such'as that shown in the drawing,'there is provided a second or upper storage bin '17-.which: is supported by the same framework as that supporting the lower pan 11 and which normally moves therewith when thedrawer is opened or closed, For access to the lower pan v11 when the drawer is in its open-position, this upper pan or bin 17 is so supported that; it .can be moved separately back into the storage compartment 2 thus exposing the contents of the lower pair 11. To accomplishthis result, the upper pan 17 is the form of indentations (not shown) provided in the V of the -frame workupper surface of the slide portion and which are adapted to receive provided on the legs 19.

'Whenthe drawer is movedto its open position, the feet 21 resting in the indentations cause the'pan 17 to move "forwardly with the remainder of'thedrawer assembly-thus exposing the contents of the upper pan. If access'is desired'to the lower pan, it is necessary merely to lift or move the forward edge of the pan 17 to a position in which the feet clear the indentations whereby the upper pan can be slid rearwardly. The particular drawer structure thus far described is more fully described in Patent 2,843,44l-Jewell, issued July 15, 1958, and assigned to the same assignee as the present invention and reference to that patent is made for a more complete description of the drawer and its mode of operation.

In accordance with the present invention, the stationary shelf provided in the freezer compartment shown in the Jewell patent for the storage of freezing trays is replaced with a sliding assembly which is an improvement over that of the aforementioned Melikian application and is so designed that the ice storage receptacle can be moved to an access position independently of the freezing trays.

With reference to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawi there is shown one embodiment of the present invention particularly adapted for use with the above-described drawer structure. The invention comprises a first shelf or framework 23 which extends substantially the full width of the compartment 2 and a second shelf or framework 24 which in the illustrated embodiment of the invention extends about half the width of the compartment 2. The shelf 23 is slidably supported at its rear corners by means of slides 25 which respectively ride on opposed guides 26 secured to the side walls of the compartment 2 above the drawer assembly while the forward edge of the shelf 23 is provided with a pair of legs 27 having pads 28 adapted to engage and ride on the side edges of the pan 17. By this arrangement the shelf 23 is slidably supported in both its open and closed positions by the guides 25 and the drawer assembly or more specifically the pan 17 forming part of that assembly. The left side of the shelf 23 as viewed in Fig. 2 of the drawing is in the form of an open frame designed to receive and position a removable ice storage receptacle 30 which extends about half the width of the shelf 23 and approximately the full depth thereof.

The second shelf or frame 24, which is in the form of 'a half shelf, overlies the right side of :the shelf 23. One side of this frame 24 is in the form of a slide 31 which vdisposed in a guide 32 provided along the mid section of :the shelf 23 while the remaining three sides of the frame 24 are formed of heavy guage wires 33 forming .acradle structure for receiving one or more freezing trays 34. The outer side or edge of the frame 24 is slidably supported at its forward end by a leg 35 slidably engaging the shelf 23 and at its rear end by means of an arm :36 having a roller 37 which rides on the adjacent guide 26 rearwardly of the slide 25 supporting the corresponding corner of the shelf 23.

To prevent forward movement of frame 24 whe'n'the shelf 23 is extended, there is provided a latch38 shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing in the form of a spring finger 'at the rear end of the guide 26 for engaging the roller '37 when the frame is in its recessed position. This latch is of a strength such that while it will normally prevent frame 24 from moving forwardly when'the shelf 23 carrying the receptacle 30 is moved to an access position, it can be released by a positive pull on the frame '24 so that the trays 34 can be moved to an accessible position outside the compartment 2 when it is desired to fill the trays with water or to harvest the ice blocks contained therein. In other words while the frame 24 is normally retained in the compartment 2 by means of 'thelatch' 38 -so that'the shelf 23 can be slid forwardly the feet or pads 21 I without disturbing the frame 24, once the shelf 23 is in -its-extended position, the shelf 24 can be moved forwardly by the application of sufiicient pressure to overcome the latching force of the latch 38. For the purpose of applying this opening pull, a handle 39 is provided on the frame 24.

Harvesting of the ice from the freezing trays into the ice receptacle 30 is accomplished with both the shelf 23 and the frame 24 in their extended positions. For this purpose the freezing trays employed in the practice of the present invention are-of the type which include means for providing a relative movement between the ice blocks and the adjacent tray surfaces designed to break the bond between the iceand the adjacent surfaces and to discharge the ice blocks when the tray is moved from a normal or horizontal freezing position to an inverted position above the receptacle 30. One type of tray suitable for this purpose is illustrated more particularly in Figs. 4 and 5 of the drawing as comprising a rectangular pan 40 which is divided into a plurality of ice pockets by means of a movable wall grid that is preferably locked in the tray against detachment therefrom in such a mannerthat the grid and tray form a unitary structure. The grid structure includes a plurality of transverse dividers 42 and a longitudinal divider interlocked therewith and comprising a lower section 43 and an upper section 44. The longitudinal grid sections 43 and 44 are connected by means of a linkage generally indicated by the numeral 45 so that upon relative movement between a handle 46 and the tray, the two longitudinal divider sections are caused to move relative to one another causing tilting of the transverse dividers 42 and a release of ice blocks from the tray. As this type of tray structure is well known in the art, it is not believed necessary to describe further the detailed construction thereof. Furthermore, the present invention contemplates use of any freezing tray having means for releasing ice blocks contained therein when the tray is moved from an upright to an inverted position.

In order that the harvesting operation can be carried out without removing the tray from its supporting framework, the operating means such as the handle 46 is so designed that it normally rests in a slot 49 provided in the guide 31. With the handle thereby anchored in a fixed position, pivotal movement of the tray from its normal freezing position shown in Fig. 4 to its inverted position shown in Fig. 5 above the receptacle 30 causes the relative movement between the handle 46 and the .tray required to tilt the transverse dividers 42 and release the blocks in the receptacle 30 when the tray reaches its inverted position as shown in Fig. 5. After harvesting of the ice, the tray is returned to its normal position and refilled with water. The frame 24 carrying the tray can then be pushed back into the compartment 2 to a position in which the latch 38 engages the roller 37 and the framework 24 can be left in this position until the next batch of ice blocks is ready for harvesting.

For the purpose of preventing the legs 27 of the shelf .23 from riding off the side edgn of the pan 17, special track sections 50 maybe provided on these edges. These track sections, which'are secured to the side edges of the .pan, each have upwardly extending flanges 51 which limit sideways movement of the shelf relative to the pan 17. Further by turning up the front and rear ends of these track sections 50, the same sections may be em- .ployed to limit and control the forward and rearward travel of the shelf 23. For example, the turned up portion 53provided on the forward end of the track sections 50 will be engaged by the legs 27 to facilitate re- :turn of the shelf 23 to its normal or recessed position :asthe drawer'is closed. A similar turned up section 54 provided at the rear ends of the track sections 50 can be employed to limit the rearward travel of the shelf 23 relative 'to the'drawer assembly when thedrawer is in an open position.

lf it isdesired that the ice receptacle 30 move to an accessible position each time'the drawer is opened, indentations 55 may be provided at the forward ends of the track sections 50 which correspond to and have the same functions asthe indentations provided in the lower pan 11. In other. words with the legs 27or more spec iically the pads 28 in engagement with these indentatrons, the-shelf 23 will be pulled forwardly along with the-pan 1'] whenever the drawer is opened. Access to the pan l7 isthen obtained by disengaging the pads 28 from the indentations 55 andsliding' the shelf 23 to it's recessed position. On the other hand if itis desired that the receptacle 30 remain within the compartment 2 along with the freezing trays 34 except for when actual access thereto is desired, the indentations 55 can be omitted so that the shelf 23 will remain within the storage compartment 2 and the pads 28 will merely slide along the track sections 50 as the drawer is opened. In the event the frictional engagement of the shelf 23 with the guides 26 and with the frame 24 which is held in position within the compartment by the latch 38 is not sufficient to prevent forward movement of the shelf 23 during drawer opening, a spring latch similar to the latch 38 may be provided for engaging one or both of the slides 25 in their recessed positions.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that there has been provided in accordance with the present invention an ice freezing and storage arrangement in which the freezing trays 34 are adapted to remain in the compartment 2 during normal operation of the drawerassem'bly. In this position the contents of the freezing trays cannot become contaminated by particles dropping from the foodstuffs or their wrappings during loading or unloading of the pans 11 and 17 and the possibility of spilling water therefrom during drawer opening is eliminated. With the drawer in an open position, the trays can be slid forwardly to an accessible position either for filling or harvesting purposes. Upon closure of the drawer both the shelf 23 and the frame 24 respectively carrying the ice receptacle 30 and the tray 34 are returned to their normal position within the freezer by contact of the forward end of the track sections 50 with the legs 27 provided on the shelf 23 and the frictional engagement of the frame 24 with the shelf 23. If the frictional. engagement between the contacting portions of the shelf 23 and the frame 24 are not suflicient for this purpose, the slide 25 provided at the right rear edge of the shelf 23 will contact the roller 37 so that a positive closing action will be transmitted through the arm 36 to the frame 24.

While a specific embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it is not desired that the invention be limited to the particular construction shown and described and it is intended by the appended claims to cover all modifications within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What we claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A refrigerator including a freezer compartment having an access opening at the front thereof, a shelf therein having substantially the same width as said compartment and slidably supported therein for movement between a normal position within said compartment and an extended position, a frame of a width less than said shelf, said frame being slidably supported on said shelf, an ice receptacle carried by said shelf, a freezing tray carried by said frame, said receptacle and tray being arranged so that they are in side-by-side relationship when said shelf and said frame are in their extended positions, means for supporting said freezing tray for pivotal movement thereof between a freezingposition and a discharge position overlying said receptacle when said shelf and frame are in their extended positions, and releasable latching means 2'. A refrigerator including a freezer compartment having an access opening at the front thereof, a drawer slidably arranged in said compartment, a shelf having substantially the same width as said compartment and slidably supported above saiddrawer for movement between ainormal' position within said compartment and an extended position,.a frame of a width less than said shelf, 'said'frame being slidably supported on said shelf, an ice receptaclecarried by' said shelf, a'freezing tray carriedby said frame and including a handle operable upon movement relative to' said tray to discharge ice blocks from said tray, said receptacle and tray being arranged so that they are in side-by-side relationship when said shelf and said frames are in their extended positions, means for supporting the handle of said freezing tray on said frame for pivotal movement of said tray between a freezing position and a discharge position overlying said receptacle, releasable latching means for retaining said frame in said compartment when said shelf is moved to its extended position and means on said drawer for engaging said shelf and returning said shelf and frame from their extended to their released positions when said drawer is moved from its extended position to its recessed position.

. 3. A refrigerator including a freezer compartment, a sliding assembly for supporting an ice receptacle and a freezing tray Within said cabinet, said assembly including a first shelf extending the width of said compartment and slidably supported on guides mounted on the side walls of said compartment, an ice receptacle, said shelf including means on one side thereof for removably supporting said receptacle, a frame normally overlying the other side of said shelf and having one side edge slidably supported on said shelf adjacent said receptacle, the opposite edge of said frame including an arm slidably supported on the guide on the adjacent side wall of said compartment and a leg at the front end thereof slidably engaging said shelf, a freezing tray including side edges normally resting on said frame, said freezing tray comprising an elongated tray and a grid structure secured thereto for movement relative thereto, said grid structure including a plurality of transverse dividers dividing said tray into a plurality of sections and arranged for tilting movement relative to said tray to loosen ice blocks frozen in said sections, means for tilting said inclined dividers relative to said tray, said tilting means including an arm pivotally secured to said grid and extending downwardly along one end of said tray, said arm being anchored on said one side edge of said frame whereby tilting of said tray out of said frame to an inverted position over said receptacle causes said lever arm to actuate said dividers to discharge said ice blocks into said receptacle, and releasable latching means engaging said frame arm for retaining said frame and freezing tray within said compartment when said shelf is slid forwardly from said compartment.

4. A refrigerator including a freezer compartment, a drawer in said compartment, a sliding assembly for supporting an ice receptacle and a freezing tray within said cabinet above said drawer, said assembly including a first shelf extending the width of said compartment and slidably supported on guides mounted on the side walls of said compartment and on said drawer, an ice receptacle, said shelf including means on one side thereof for removably supporting said receptacle, a frame normally overlying the other side of said shelf and having one side edge slidably supported on said shelf adjacent said receptacle, the opposite edge of said frame including an arm slidably supported on one of said guides and a leg at the front end thereof slidably engaging said shelf, a freezing tray including side edges normally resting on said frame, said freezing tray comprising an elongated tray and a grid structure secured thereto for limited shelf is moved to its extended position.

movement relative thereto, said grid structure including a plurality of transverse dividers dividing-said tray into v wave,

a plurality of sections and arranged for tilting movement relative to said tray to loosen ice blocks frozen in, said sections, means for tilting said inclined, dividers relative to said tray, said tilting means including a'lever arm pivotally secured to. said grid and extending downwardly along one end of said tray, said lever aim being anchored on said one side edge of said frame whereby tilting of said tray out of said frame to an inverted position over said receptacle causes said lever arm to actuate said dividers to discharge said ice blocks into said receptacle, 10

and releasable latching means engaging said frame arm for retaining said frame and freezing tray within said compartment when said drawer and shelf are slid forwardly from said, compartment. 1

References Cited in the file of this Patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Devlin Nov. 4, 1958

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