WO2014081993A1 - Ice storage bin with improved door - Google Patents

Abstract

An ice storage bin having a front wall, two side walls, a rear wall and a bottom wall. The front wall defines a top opening of the ice storage bin. The front wall and the side walls adapted to allow the door to be in an angled position with respect to vertical when in a closed position. The door is attached to the front wall of the ice storage bin at a bottom edge of the door. When the door is opened, it is lowered downwardly. When the door is in the completely open position, it hangs downwardly in a position that is generally parallel to the front wall of the ice storage bin. The door may optionally be attached by a plurality of discrete hinge, by a living hinge formed by the door or by a piano hinge attached at the bottom edge of the door.

Description

ICE STORAGE BIN WITH IMPROVED DOOR

The present invention claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent

Application No. 61/729,215, filed November 21, 2012.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to ice makers generally and in particular to a door construction for use on an ice storage bin.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Ice making units in general make relatively large amounts of ice, only a portion of which is used at any one time. The unused portion is kept in an accessible storage bin located below the refrigeration and ice making apparatus. Referring to Figs. 1A-B, a swinging door 10 is typically located above the storage bin 12 that allows access to the stored ice. The swinging door 10 is hinged along a top edge 14 and swings upwardly when opened in order to provide access to the storage bin 12. The door 10 swings past its vertically orientation (Fig. IB) such that it rests in the open position against a cabinet 16 that contains ice making and refrigeration apparatus. This configuration has long been the standard configuration for providing access through an access door 10 to an ice storage bin 12.

Alternative configurations have provided for a sliding arrangement of the door 10 within a track 18 (see Fig. 2). This allows the door 10 to slide to a position parallel and just beneath a top 20 of the ice maker. The configuration of Fig. 2 is used in situations where the refrigeration equipment is located beneath the door and the top of the ice machine. In the configuration of Fig. 1 where the refrigeration equipment is located above the top of ice machine and door, the opened door of Fig. 2 will impede ice falling from the refrigeration equipment.

However, both of these configurations are lacking in that the door can be accidentally set in motion such that it will land on and strike a person who is accessing the opening to retrieve ice from the ice bin. The consequences of being struck with an ice bin door can range from annoying and mildly painful to causing an injury requiring medical attention.

To avoid the situation of falling doors manufacturers have resorted to increased complication. Some manufacturers of ice bins use friction-type hinges to help hold the door open. While this helps, it also introduces several unwanted issues. Friction-type hinges tend to lose friction over time and cease to serve their purpose. Thus, friction hinges lose their ability to hold the door open as the bin ages. Second, friction-type hinges are considerably more expensive than standard hinges. Third, friction-type hinges often use materials that are not designed for use with water, such as iron or steel. Because of this, over time if the hinge gets wet, it may rust. The rust will inevitably fall from the hinge and contaminate the ice.

Obviously, there exists a need in the art for an effective solution to reduce or eliminate situations where individuals retrieving ice from ice bins are struck by ice bin doors. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises an ice storage bin comprising a front wall, two side walls, a rear wall and a bottom wall. The front wall defines a top opening of the ice storage bin. The front wall and the side walls adapted to allow the door to be in an angled position with respect to vertical when in a closed position. The door is attached to the front wall of the ice storage bin at a bottom edge of the door. When the door is opened, it is lowered downwardly. When the door is in the completely open position it hangs downwardly in a position that is generally parallel to the front wall of the ice storage bin. The door may optionally be attached by a plurality of discrete hinge, by a living hinge formed by the door or by a piano hinge attached at the bottom edge of the door.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an ice maker and bin with its door in the closed position according to the prior art;

FIG. IB is a perspective view of an ice maker and bin with its door in the open position according to the prior art;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an ice maker/bin with an upwardly lifting sliding door according to the prior art;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an ice storage bin according to the present invention with its door in the open position; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an ice storage bin according to the present invention with its door in the closed position. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broad aspect of the invention to the embodiment illustrated.

Referring to Figs. 3-4, the ice storage bin 32 comprises right, left and rear sides, 34 as well as a front side 36 that defines an opening 38. A door 40 is attached to the front side 36 along a bottom edge 42 thereof. The door swings from an open position (Fig. 3) to a closed position (Fig. 4). In the open position (Fig. 3), gravity holds the door 40 in place such that it cannot fall and strike a person accessing ice through the opening 38 of the ice storage bin 32.

A hinge mechanism attaches the door to the ice storage bin 32 along a bottom edge 42. The hinge mechanism may consist of hinges on the outer edges of the door or may comprise a plurality of discrete hinges along edge 42 or a living hinge.

The above example shows that the invention, as will be defined by the claims, has far ranging application and should not be limited merely to the embodiment shown and described in detail. Instead the invention should be limited only to the explicit words of the claims, and the claims should not be arbitrarily limited to the embodiment shown in the specification. The scope of protection is only limited by the scope of the accompanying claims, and the Examiner should examine the application only on that basis.

Claims

We claim:

1. An ice storage bin comprising:

a front wall, two side walls, a rear wall and a bottom wall, the front wall defining a top opening, the front wall and the side walls adapted to allow a door to be in an angled position with respect to vertical when in a closed position;

the door attached to the front wall of the ice storage bin at a bottom edge of the door such that the door is opened by lowering the door downwardly and such that the door is a position that is generally parallel to the front wall of the ice storage bin.

2. The ice storage bin of claim 1 wherein the door is attached to the front wall by a plurality of discrete hinges attached to the front wall and the door at spaced-apart locations along the bottom edge of the door.

3. The ice storage bin of claim 1 wherein the door is attached to the front wall by a living hinge formed in the door and attached to the front wall along the bottom edge of the door.

4. The ice storage bin of claim 1 wherein the door is attached to the front wall by a piano hinge attached to the front wall and the door along the bottom edge of the door.