WO2002012810A1

WO2002012810A1 - Refrigerator storage assembly

Info

Publication number: WO2002012810A1
Application number: PCT/ZA2001/000114
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lester Chadwick; Paul Christopher Bremner
Original assignee: Chadwick, Marc; Chadwick, Belinda
Priority date: 2000-08-10
Filing date: 2001-08-10
Publication date: 2002-02-14
Also published as: AU2001293313A1

Abstract

Mounting structure (40) for a refrigerator storage assembly (10) which includes a bracket (42) with a base (50), a side member (52) which extends from the base in a first direction, at least one support formation (54, 56) on a surface of the side member which defines a slide aperture (58), and at least one fixing formation (70) on the base (50), a locking member (44) which is engageable with the fixing formation (70), a slide member (46) which is slidingly engaged with the said slide aperture (58), and at least one stop member (48) which prevents the slide member (46) from being disengaged from the slide aperture (58).

Description

REFRIGERATOR STORAGE ASSEMBLY

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a storage assembly for use in a refrigerator.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The invention provides a storage assembly for use in a refrigerator which includes at least one bracket, at least one support formation on the bracket, at least one slide member slidably engaged with the support formation, and a tray which is mounted to the slide member and which is slidable relatively thereto.

Preferably the assembly includes two of the brackets which are at spaced locations relatively to each other and a respective slide member is engaged with each bracket.

The tray may include mounting formations which are slidably engaged with the respective slide members.

Each bracket may take on any appropriate form depending on the nature of the installation. For example it may be appropriate to mount each bracket to suitable supporting structure inside a refrigerator using any appropriate technique. In one example of the invention it is intended to support the storage assembly on a shelf in the refrigerator. This may be done in any appropriate way and for example the bracket may be attachable or securable to the shelf using any suitable means.

If the shelf, for example, is made of glass or a similar sheet material then the bracket may be fixed to the sheet material adhesively. The invention is not restricted in this regard. The shelf may however be made from thin wires or rods and have a grid-like structure.

With this form of the invention the bracket may be frictionally secured to the grid-like structure. In one example of the invention the bracket includes at least one formation which extends from a body between two of the grid members and a locking member is engaged with the formation to sandwich the grid members between the locking member and the bracket.

The invention also provides a mounting structure for a refrigerator storage assembly which includes:

(a) a bracket with a base, a side member which extends from the base in a first direction, at least one support formation on a surface of the side member which

defines a slide aperture and at least one projection on the base which extends from the base in a second direction which is opposite to the first direction;

(b) a locking member which is engageable with the projection;

(c) a slide member which is slidingly engaged with the said slide aperture; and

(d) at least one stop member which prevents the slide member from being disengaged from the slide aperture.

The mounting structure may be provided in combination with a refrigerator shelf wherein the locking member is adhesively secured to the shelf.

In a variation the refrigerator shelf has a plurality of grid members and the said projection on the base extends between two of the grid members and, with the base on one side of the grid members, the locking member is engageable with the said projection on an opposing side of the grid members.

It is possible for the said side member to include two or more of the said support formations each of which defines a respective slide aperture, with the slide apertures being spaced apart from each other in the said first direction. Two of the said slide members are then slidingly engaged with the respective slide apertures.

The invention further extends to a storage assembly for use in a refrigerator which includes two mounting structures, each of the aforementioned kind, and a tray which is located between, and which is slidingly mounted to, the respective slide members.

Preferably the tray, on opposed sides, has mounting formations which project laterally from the tray and which are slidingly engaged with the respective slide members.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention is further described by way of examples with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an exploded view of a storage assembly according to the invention,

Figure 2 shows the storage assembly of Figure 1 partly engaged with a refrigerator shelf,

Figure 3 illustrates the underside of the shelf of Figure 2 with two brackets of the storage assembly engaged with the shelf,

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a refrigerator tray according to another form of the invention,

Figure 5 is a perspective view from the bottom of the refrigerator tray of Figure 4,

Figure 6 is a view of the front of the refrigerator tray of Figure 4,

Figure 7 is a view of the rear of the refrigerator tray of Figure 4,

Figure 8 is a side view of the refrigerator tray of Figure 4,

Figures 9 and 10 are plan and side views respectively of an intermediate member used when a tray is attached to a refrigerator shelf which does not have grid members, Figure 11 shows two brackets which are engaged with a different form of the intermediate member, and

Figure 12 shows an intermediate member which is formed integrally with two brackets.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings illustrate a storage assembly 10 according to a first form of the invention which can be engaged with a shelf 12 of a refrigerator as is shown in Figures 2 and 3.

The storage assembly is preferably made from a plurality of separately moulded plastics components. It includes a tray 14 which has a number of rectangular apertures 16 each of which can receive a storage receptacle 18 which is inserted into the respective aperture with a peripheral ledge 20 resting on a rim 22 of an aperture. A removable transparent lid 24 is engagable with the receptacle 18.

The tray has a front flange 26 with a central handle formation 28.

At respective sides 30 and 32 the tray has two spaced mounting formations 34 which project laterally from the body of the tray.

The storage assembly has two sets of mounting structure 40 for each respective side of the tray. Each set of mounting structure 40 includes a bracket 42, a locking plate 44, a slide member 46, and stop members 48.

The bracket 42 has a flat base 50 and a downwardly extending side member 52. On its inner surface the side member has two spaced support formations 54 and 56 respectively (see Figure 3) with each support formation having a slide aperture or gap 58 defined by side walls with overlying upper rims. The slide member 46 is channel-shaped in cross section and includes overlying rims 60 on its side walls which define an elongate slot 62. Outer sides of the rims have

elongate slots 63 are slidingly engageable with complementary projections (not shown) which are on inner surfaces of the support formations 54 and 56 and which extend into the gaps 58

Each slide member has a hole 66 at a respective end of the slide member and the stop

member 48 has an insert portion 68 which can be inserted into an end of the slide member and a projection 70 which can engage with a snapfit with the respective hole 66 (see Figure 1).

Referring again to the bracket 42 and particularly to Figure 3 it can be seen that an underside of the base 50 has four hook-shaped projections 70. These projections extend from the base in a direction which is opposite to the direction in which the side member extends from the base, and are dimensioned to fit between grid members 74 of the shelf 12 with the underside of the base 50 resting on an upper surface of the grid members. The locking member 44 is, in a broad sense, of an H-shape and has four flanges 78. With the bracket 42 held in the position shown in Figure 3 the locking plate 44 can be slid over the under surface of the shelf 12, as is shown in Figure 3, and the flanges 78 can thereby be brought into frictional engagement with the under surfaces of the hook-shaped projections 70. In this way the respective grid members 74 are

sandwiched between an under surface of the base 50 and an opposing upper surface of the locking plate 44. The H-shape of the locking plate can facilitate engaging the flanges with the projections. Opposing surfaces of the flanges and of the projections can have shallow complementary rib and groove formations which provide a degree of physical engagement of these components with each other quite apart from the frictional lock which is achieved by inserting the flanges below the projections.

Figure 2 illustrates an upper side of the shelf 12 with one bracket engaged with the shelf. The other bracket is shown displaced from the shelf. The side member 52

extends downwardly and it is possible to insert the slide member 46, with a sliding action, into the two spaced support formations 54 and 56. Thereafter the tray 14 is engaged with the respective slide members by guiding the mounting formations 34 into the elongate slot 62 in each slide member. When the mounting formations 34 are fully within the confines of the slot 62 the respective stop members 48 are inserted into the

respective ends of the slide member and are locked in position by engaging the respective projections 70 with a snap-action, with the holes 66. This prevents the mounting formations 34 from being retracted fully from the slide member.

The invention thus provides an inexpensive and simple way of mounting a tray to an

underside of a shelf inside a refrigerator. When the tray is withdrawn the mounting formations 34 slide inside the respective slide members 46 and the slide members can then slide relatively to the support formations 54 and 56. The slide members are prevented from being withdrawn from the support formations by the respective stop member 48 which abuts the respective support formation. The slide members abut an inner surface of the front flange 26 when the tray 14 is pushed under the shelf 12 and thus are also pushed under the shelf and do not project from the storage assembly when the tray is under the shelf.

It is apparent that the storage assembly of the invention can be installed without requiring any tools or skills. The arrangement is such that the tray 14 can be fully withdrawn so that easy access is provided to each of the receptacles. If a refrigerator does not have a grid-type shelf, as is shown in Figures 2 and 3 but, instead, a shelf which is made of glass or other sheet material then it is possible to fix the upper surface of the base 50 to the underside of the sheet material shelf using a suitable adhesive such as double-sided adhesive tape. This aspect is described further hereinafter with reference to Figures 9 to 12.

Figures 4 to 8 illustrate a different form of the invention. A refrigerator tray 110 is suspended from a refrigerator shelf 112 which is in the form of a metal grid, by means of supports 114A, 114B.

The tray 110 has a tray body 116 with a handle 118 and a plurality of apertures 120. A receptacle 122 is located in each respective aperture 120.

Edges of the shelf 112 are located in grooves 124 on inner side walls of a refrigerator.

Each of the supports 114A, 114B has a support body 126 from which two arms or connection members 128A, 128B extend. Each connection member 128 has a catch formation 130 which is attached to wires of the shelf 112. In an original installation the arms or members 128 can be spot welded to the wires of the shelf 112. In an original

or a retro-fit installation the connection members 128 could be threaded through the spaced wires of the shelf 112 or could be fixed to a catch (not shown) which is clipped to the shelf 112 between two of the wires.

Connected to each support body 126 is at least one rail guide 132. A rail or slide member 134 is engaged with the rail guide 132. Guide members or runners 131 on the tray 110 are slidingly engaged with channel formations 133 on each slide member. In use the supports 114 are first attached to the shelf 112 whereafter the rails 134 and tray 110 are connected to the supports 114. It is evident that the tray can slide relatively to the rails 134 which, in turn, can slide relatively to the guides 132.

The connection members 128 can be engaged with the shelf 112 in different ways and can, for example, be integrally formed with the shelf 112 or can connect to the shelf 112 with a snap action.

Figure 2 illustrates a modification which can be made to the tray 14. The apertures 16 are defined by ribs 80 and each aperture receives a respective receptacle. According to requirement one or more transverse ribs 80A can be omitted, as is indicated by dotted lines 82, to define larger apertures 84 which can take larger receptacles or, as the case may be, a number of smaller receptacles.

In another modification, shown in dotted lines in Figure 1, the side wall structure 52, 54, 56 and 58 on the bracket 40 is repeated, in a downwards direction from the base 50 so that a staggered or tiered arrangement results which enables two or more trays to be secured to the same mounting structure, one below the other.

Figures 9 and 10 show a refrigerator shelf 90 which is made from glass, plastic or other sheet material. An intermediate member 92 is adhesively secured to an underside of the shelf. The member has two sets of fixing hook-formations 94 on its underside and a respective bracket 40A, similar to the bracket 40, is engageable with a set of the formations 94 by wedging the base of the bracket under the hook-formations. The formations pass through holes 95 in the base of the bracket. In this example the projections 70 on the bracket are omitted, or broken off, to facilitate the engagement of the bracket and the member 92. This arrangement allows the tray of the invention to be attached to a shelf which does not have the grid structure shown in Figures 1 to 8.

Figure 11 shows a different intermediate member 92A which is adhesively attached to an underside of a shelf (not shown) and which has hook-formations 94A which are longer than the formations 94 and which pass through holes 95 in the base of the

bracket 40B. The brackets are held to the member 92A by means of pins 96 which are wedged into the formations 94A on the underside of the base of the bracket.

Figure 12 shows a construction 99 wherein the intermediate member 92 is formed integrally with the brackets 40 and strips 100 of double side adhesive tape are provided to secure the construction to the underside of the shelf.

Claims

1. A storage assembly for use in a refrigerator which includes at least one bracket, at least one support formation on the bracket, at least one slide member slidably engaged with the support formation, and a tray which is mounted to the slide member and which is slidable relatively thereto.

2. A storage assembly according to claim 1 which includes two of the brackets which are at spaced locations relatively to each other and a respective slide member is engaged with each bracket.

3. A storage assembly according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the tray includes mounting formations which are slidably engaged with the respective slide members.

4. A storage assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 3 which includes at least one intermediate member, attachment means for securing the intermediate member to a refrigerator shelf, and each bracket extends from the intermediate member.

5. A storage assembly according to claim 4 wherein the intermediate member and each bracket are integrally formed.

6. A storage assembly according to claim 4 wherein the intermediate member includes securing formations and each bracket includes fixing formations which are engageable with the securing formations to fix each bracket to the intermediate member.

7. A storage assembly according to claim 4, 5 or 6 wherein the attachment means is adhesive for adhesively securing the intermediate members to the refrigerator shelf.

8. A storage assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein each bracket includes adhesive for adhesively securing the bracket to a refrigerator shelf.

9. A storage assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein each bracket includes a body, at least one formation which extends from the body, and a

locking member which is engageable with the formation and which is positioned between a surface of the formation and a surface of the body.

10. A storage assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 9 wherein the tray includes a plurality of apertures and each aperture can receive at least one storage receptacle.

11. Mounting structure for a refrigerator storage assembly which includes:

(a) a bracket with a base, a side member which extends from the base in a first direction, at least one support formation on a surface of the side member which defines a slide aperture, and at least one fixing formation on the base;

(b) a locking member which is engageable with the fixing formation;

(c) a slide member which is slidingly engaged with the said slide aperture; and

12. Mounting structure according to claim 11 wherein the fixing formation is a projection on the base which extends from the base in a second direction which is opposite to the first direction.

13. Mounting structure according to claim 11 wherein the fixing formation is a hole, and the locking member includes a formation which extends through the hole.

14. Mounting structure according to claim 11, 12 or 13 in combination with a refrigerator shelf wherein the locking member is adhesively secured to the shelf.

15. Mounting structure according to claim 11 or 12 in combination with a

refrigerator shelf which has a plurality of grid members and wherein the said fixing formation on the base extends between two of the grid members with the base on one side of the grid members and the locking member is engaged with the said projection on an opposing side of the grid members.

16. Mounting structure according to any one of claims 11 to 15 wherein the said side member includes at least two of the said support formations each of which defines a respective slide aperture and the slide apertures are spaced apart from each other in the said first direction, the mounting structure further including at least two of the said slide members which are slidingly engaged with the respective slide apertures.

17. A storage assembly for use in a refrigerator which includes two mounting structures, each mounting structure being according to any one of claims 11 to 15, and a tray which is located between, and which is slidingly mounted to, the respective slide members.

18. A storage assembly according to claim 17 in which the tray, on opposed sides, has mounting formations which project laterally from the tray and which are slidingly engaged with the respective slide members.