REFRIGERATOR AND STORAGE SYSTEM FOR A REFRIGERATOR

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to an appliance such as a refrigerator.

BACKGROUND

In order to keep food fresh, a low temperature must be maintained within a refrigerator to reduce the reproduction rate of harmful bacteria. Refrigerators circulate refrigerant and change the refrigerant from a liquid state to a gas state by an evaporation process in order cool the air within the refrigerator. During the evaporation process, heat is transferred to the refrigerant. After evaporating, a compressor increases the pressure, and in turn, the temperature of the refrigerant. The gas refrigerant is then condensed into a liquid and the excess heat is rejected to the ambient surroundings. The process then repeats.

SUMMARY

A storage receptacle for a refrigerator appliance includes a front wall, a rear wall, a partition wall, and a pair of guides. The front wall defines a pair of slots. The rear wall is spaced-apart from the front wall and has a protrusion extending outward therefrom. The partition wall extends between the front and rear walls, has a hook extending outward therefrom, and defines a pair of orifices along an edge of the partition wall on an opposing side of the partition wall relative to the hook. The hook engages the protrusion to facilitate sliding the partition wall along the front and rear walls and restrict vertical movement of the partition wall. The pair of guides each have a base region and a protruding region. The protruding region of each guide extends through one of the slots of the pair of slots and into one of the orifices of the pair of orifices such that each protruding region engages the partition wall within one of the orifices of the pair of orifices and each base region engages the front wall on an opposing side of the front wall relative to the partition wall to facilitate sliding the partition wall along the front and rear walls, restrict vertical movement of the partition wall, and restrict movement of the partition wall in a direction extending between the front and rear walls.

A storage drawer for a refrigerator appliance includes a first wall, a second wall, a partition, and a guide. The first wall defines a slot. The second wall is spaced-apart from the first wall, has an upper edge, and has a lip extending outward therefrom along the upper edge. The partition extends between the first and second walls, is slidable along the first and second walls in a first direction, has a hook extending outward therefrom, and defines orifice on an opposing side of the partition relative to the hook. The hook engages the lip to facilitate movement of the partition in the first direction and restrict movement of the partition in a second direction. The guide has a base region and a keyed region extending from the base region. The keyed region extends through the slot and into the orifice such that the keyed region engages the partition within the orifice and the base region engages the first wall on an opposing side of the first wall relative to the partition to facilitate movement of the partition in the first direction, restrict movement of the partition in the second direction, and restrict movement of the partition in a third direction.

A storage basket for a refrigerated cavity includes a front wall, a rear wall, a first side wall, a second side wall, a bottom wall, a divider wall, and at least one guide. The rear wall is spaced-apart from the front wall, has a top edge, and has a ridge protruding rearward from the top edge. The first and second side walls are spaced-apart from each other and extend between the front and rear walls. The front wall defines at least one slot extending between the first and second side walls. The bottom wall is interconnected with the front wall, rear wall, first side wall, and second side wall such that the front wall, rear wall, first side wall, second side wall, and bottom wall define a storage space. The divider wall is disposed within the storage space, is configured slide between the first and second side walls, has a hook extending outward along a rear side of the divider wall, and defines at least one orifice along a front edge of the divider wall. The hook extends over the top edge of the rear wall, along a rear side of the ridge, and below a lower side of the ridge such that engagement between the hook and the ridge facilitates movement of the divider wall between the first and second side walls and restricts vertical movement of the divider wall along the rear side of the divider wall. The at least one guide has at least one base plate and at least one protruding region extending from the at least one base plate. The at least one protruding region extends through the at least one slot, engages the front wall within the at least one slot, extends into the at least one orifice, and engages the divider wall within the at least one orifice, and the at least one base plate engages the front wall on an opposing side of the front wall relative to the divider wall such that engagement between the at least one protruding region and the front wall, engagement between the at least one protruding region and the divider wall, and engagement between the at least one base plate and the front wall facilitates movement of the divider wall between the first and second side walls, restricts movement of the divider wall between the front and rear walls, and restricts vertical movement of the divider wall along a front side of the divider wall.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an elevated front view of a French-Door Bottom Mount type refrigerator appliance;

FIG. 2 is an elevated front view of a French-Door Bottom Mount type refrigerator with the refrigerator compartment doors open;

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of a storage receptacle for the refrigerator appliance;

FIG. 4 is a front perspective exploded view of the storage receptacle;

FIG. 5 is a side view of a guide element for the storage receptacle;

FIG. 6 is a top view of the guide element;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 7-7 in FIG. 3; and

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line 8-8 in FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure are described herein. It is to be understood, however, that the disclosed embodiments are merely examples and other embodiments may take various and alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale; some features could be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the embodiments. As those of ordinary skill in the art will understand, various features illustrated and described with reference to any one of the figures may be combined with features illustrated in one or more other figures to produce embodiments that are not explicitly illustrated or described. The combinations of features illustrated provide representative embodiments for typical applications. Various combinations and modifications of the features consistent with the teachings of this disclosure, however, could be desired for particular applications or implementations.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, generally a refrigerator 10 of the French-Door Bottom Mount type is illustrated. However, it should be understood that this disclosure could apply to any type of refrigerator, such as a side-by-side, two-door bottom mount, or a top-mount type. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the refrigerator 10 may have a first internal storage chamber or fresh food compartment 12 configured to refrigerate and not freeze consumables within the fresh food compartment 12, and a second internal storage chamber or a freezer compartment 14 configured to freeze consumables within the freezer compartment 14 during normal use. The refrigerator 10 includes panels or walls 13 that form a housing and define the fresh food compartment 12 and the freezer compartment 14. The walls 13 may more specifically form an internal liner of the refrigerator 10. The walls 13 may include a rear or back wall, a top wall, a bottom wall, and two side walls.

One or more shelves 15 may be secured to the walls 13 within the fresh food compartment 12. One or more drawers 17 may be slidably secured to the shelves 15 or the walls within the fresh food compartment 12. More specifically, the drawers 17 may be slidably secured to the shelves 15 or the walls within the fresh food compartment 12 via tracks or rails. One or more of the drawers 17 may be either a pantry drawer 19 or a crisper drawer 21. Crisper drawer 21 may more specifically be drawers defining a storage space that is kept at a desired humidity that may be different from the remainder of the fresh food compartment 12, but that is optimal for maintaining freshness of fruits and vegetables.

The refrigerator 10 may have one or more doors 16, 18 that provide selective access to the interior volume of the refrigerator 10 where consumables may be stored. As shown, the fresh food compartment doors are designated 16, and the freezer door is designated 18. It may also be shown that the fresh food compartment 12 may only have one door 16. The doors 16 may be rotatably secured to the walls 13 by one or more hinges.

It is generally known that the freezer compartment 14 is typically kept at a temperature below the freezing point of water, and the fresh food compartment 12 is typically kept at a temperature above the freezing point of water and generally below a temperature of from about 35° F. to about 50° F., more typically below about 38° F.

The doors 16 may each include an exterior panel 20 and an interior panel 22 that is disposed on an internal side of the respective exterior panel 20 of each door 16. The interior panels 22 may be configured to face the fresh food compartment 12 when the doors 16 are in closed positions (See FIG. 1). The interior panel 22 may more specifically be a door liner. An insulating material, such as an insulating foam, may be disposed between the exterior panel 20 and interior panel 22 of each door 16 in order reduce the heat transfer from the ambient surroundings and increase the efficiency of the refrigerator.

The refrigerator 10 may also have a water inlet that is fastened to and in fluid communication with a household water supply of potable water. Typically, the household water supply connects to a municipal water source or a well. The water inlet may be fluidly engaged with one or more of a water filter, a water reservoir, and a refrigerator water supply line. The refrigerator water supply line may include one or more nozzles and one or more valves. The refrigerator water supply line may supply water to one or more water outlets; typically one outlet for water is in the dispensing area and another to an ice tray. The refrigerator 10 may also have a control board or controller that sends electrical signals to the one or more valves when prompted by a user that water is desired or if an ice making cycle is required.

Such a controller may be part of a larger control system and may be controlled by various other controllers throughout the refrigerator 10, and one or more other controllers can collectively be referred to as a “controller” that controls various functions of the refrigerator 10 in response to inputs or signals to control functions of the refrigerator 10. The controller may include a microprocessor or central processing unit (CPU) in communication with various types of computer readable storage devices or media. Computer readable storage devices or media may include volatile and nonvolatile storage in read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), and keep-alive memory (KAM), for example. KAM is a persistent or non-volatile memory that may be used to store various operating variables while the CPU is powered down. Computer-readable storage devices or media may be implemented using any of a number of known memory devices such as PROMs (programmable read-only memory), EPROMs (electrically PROM), EEPROMs (electrically erasable PROM), flash memory, or any other electric, magnetic, optical, or combination memory devices capable of storing data, some of which represent executable instructions, used by the controller in controlling the refrigerator 10.

The doors 16 may also include storage bins 24 that are able to hold food items or containers. The storage bins 24 may be secured to the interior panels 22 of each door 16. Alternatively, the storage bins 24 may integrally formed within or defined by the interior panels 22 of each door 16. In yet another alternative, a portion of the storage bins 24 may be secured to the interior panels 22 of each door 16, while another portion of the storage bins 24 may be integrally formed within or defined by the interior panels 22 of each door 16. The storage bins 24 may include shelves (e.g., a lower surface upon, which a food item or container may rest upon) that extend from back and/or side surfaces of the interior panels 22 of each door 16.

One or more storage bins, baskets, drawers, or receptacles 26 may be disposed within the freezer compartment 14. Alternatively, the one or more storage receptacles 26 may be disposed within the fresh food compartment 12. The one or more storage receptacles 26 may have an open top. The one or more storage receptacles 26 may be slidably secured to the internal walls (e.g., walls 13) within the freezer compartment 14 or alternatively within the fresh food compartment 12. More specifically, the one or more storage receptacles 26 may be secured to the internal walls via linear guides or rails 27 such that the one or more storage receptacles 26 may slide forward and rearward relative to the refrigerator 10. The one or more storage receptacles 26 may slide forward and rearward relative to the refrigerator 10 independent from or in conjunction with the door 18.

Referring to FIGS. 3-8, one of the storage receptacles 26 is illustrated in further detail. The storage receptacle 26 includes a front wall 28, a rear wall 30, a first side wall 32, a second side wall 34, and a lower or bottom wall 36. The front wall 28, rear wall 30, first side wall 32, second side wall 34, and lower or bottom wall 36 may be referred to as the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth walls in any order. The rear wall 30 is spaced-apart from the front wall 28. The first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34 are spaced-apart from each other and extend between the front wall 28 and the rear wall 30 (e.g., the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34 each extend from the front wall 28 to the rear wall 30 and are each connected to the front wall 28 and the rear wall 30).

The front wall 28 may be substantially parallel to the rear wall 30. The first side wall 32 may be substantially parallel to the second side wall 34. The front wall 28 and the rear wall 30, may each be substantially perpendicular to each of the first side wall 32 and second side wall 34.

As used herein, substantially parallel refers to any incremental angle that is between exactly parallel and 15° or less from exactly parallel (e.g., 12.5° or less from exactly parallel, 10° or less from exactly parallel, 5° or less from exactly parallel, or 1° or less from exactly parallel). As used herein, substantially perpendicular refers to any incremental angle that is between exactly perpendicular and 15° or less from exactly perpendicular (e.g., 12.5° or less from exactly perpendicular, 10° or less from exactly perpendicular, 5° or less from exactly perpendicular, or 1° or less from exactly perpendicular).

The bottom wall 36 is interconnected with the front wall 28, the rear wall 30, the first side wall 32, and second side wall 34 such that the front wall 28, rear wall 30, first side wall 32, second side wall 34, and bottom wall 36 define the storage space 38 of the storage receptacle 26. More specifically, the bottom wall 36 may be secured to lower ends of the front wall 28, the rear wall 30, the first side wall 32, and second side wall 34. The bottom wall 36 may be substantially perpendicular to each of the front wall 28, rear wall 30, first side wall 32, and second side wall 34.

The front wall 28 defines at least one slot 40. More specifically, the at least one slot 40 may include a pair of slots 40. The pair of slots 40 may be arranged in a stacked configuration (e.g., one of the slots 40 of the pair of slots 40 is disposed above the other of the slots 40 of the pair of slots 40 along a vertical direction 42). The at least one slot 40 may extend in a lateral direction 44 between the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34. The rear wall 30 has a top or upper edge 46 and a protrusion, lip, or ridge 48 extending or protruding outward and rearward from the rear wall 30 along the upper edge 46 (e.g., rearward and away from the front wall 28 along forward/rearward direction 50). The lateral direction 44, forward/rearward direction 50, and vertical direction 42, may correspond to X, Y, and Z directions on Cartesian coordinate system. The lateral direction 44, forward/rearward direction 50, and vertical direction 42 may be referred to as first, second, and third directions in any order.

The storage receptacle 26 further includes a divider wall, partition wall, or a partition 52 disposed within the storage space 38. The partition 52 extends between the front wall 28 and the rear wall 30. The partition 52 is configured move between the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34. For example, the partition 52 is configured to slide or is slidable along the front wall 28 and rear wall 30 between the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34 to increase and decrease the volume of the storage space 38 on opposing sides of the partition 52. It may be advantageous to increase the volume of the storage space 38 one side of the partition 52 to provide sufficient space for large items being stored within the storage receptacle 26.

The partition 52 includes a hooked region or a hook 54 extending outward therefrom. More specifically, the hook 54 may extend outward from the partition 52 along an upper side and/or rear side of the partition 52 in the forward/rearward direction 50 away from the front wall 28. The partition 52 defines at least one orifice 56 along a front edge 58 of the partition 52 (e.g., on an opposing side of the partition 52 relative to the hook 54). More specifically, the at least one orifice 56 may include a pair of orifices 56. The pair of orifices 56 may be arranged in a stacked configuration (e.g., one of the orifices 56 of the pair of orifices 56 is disposed above the other of the orifices 56 of the pair of orifices 56 along the vertical direction 42).

The hook 54 engages the ridge 48 to facilitate moving or sliding the partition 52 along the front wall 28 and the rear wall 30 (e.g., to facilitate moving or sliding the partition 52 in the lateral direction 44) and restrict vertical movement of the partition 52 (e.g., to restrict movement of the partition 52 in the vertical direction 42). More specifically, the hook 54 extends over the upper edge 46 of the rear wall 30, downward along a rear side 60 of the ridge 48, and below a lower side 62 of the ridge 48 such that engagement between the hook 54 and the ridge 48 facilitates movement of the partition 52 between the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34 (e.g., moving or sliding of the partition 52 in the lateral direction 44) and restricts vertical movement of the partition 52 along the rear side of the partition 52 (e.g., movement of the partition 52 in the vertical direction 42). The hook 54 may more specifically be configured to move or slide in the lateral direction 44 within a recessed region 55 along upper edge 46 of the rear wall 30. Edges 57 may engage the hook 54 to limit movement of the hook 54, and ultimately the partition 52, in the lateral direction 44 along the rear side of the partition 52.

The storage receptacle 26 further includes at least one guide 64 having at least one base plate or base region 66 and at least one keyed region or protruding region 68 extending from the at least one base region 66. More specifically, the at least one guide 64 may include a pair of guides 64. The pair of guides 64 may be arranged in a stacked configuration (e.g., one of the guides 64 of the pair of guides 64 is disposed above the other of the guides 64 of the pair of guides 64 along the vertical direction 42). Such a pair of guides 64 may be interlinked by a bridge region 70. The bridge region 70 is illustrated in phantom lines in FIG. 3. The bridge region 70 may increase the stiffness and stability of the guides 64.

Each protruding region 68 extends through one of the slots 40, engages the front wall 28 within one of the slots 40, and extends into one of the orifices 56 such that each protruding region 68 engages the partition 52 within one of the orifices 56 and each base region 66 engages the front wall 28 on an opposing side of the front wall 28 relative to the partition 52. This arrangement further facilitates moving or sliding the partition 52 along the front wall 28 and the rear wall 30 and between the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34 (e.g., moving or sliding the partition 52 in the lateral direction 44), restricting vertical movement of the partition 52 (e.g., movement of the partition 52 in the vertical direction 42), and restricting movement of the partition 52 in a direction extending between the front and rear walls (e.g., movement of the partition 52 in the forward/rearward direction 50).

More specifically, (i) each protruding region 68 engaging the partition 52 within one of the orifices 56 attaches the corresponding guide 64 to the partition 52, (ii) each protruding region 68 being slidable within one of slots 40 facilitates movement of both the corresponding guide 64 and the partition 52 in the lateral direction 44, (iii) each protruding region 68 engaging the front wall 28 along upper and lower bounds of the slots 40 restricts movement of both the corresponding guide 64 and the partition 52 in the vertical direction 42 (particularly along the front side of the partition 52), (iv) each base region 66 engaging the front wall 28 on an opposing side of the front wall 28 relative to the partition 52 restricts movement of both the corresponding guide 64 and the partition 52 in the forward/rearward direction 50.

The partition 52 may define apertures 72 that intersect the orifices 56. The apertures 72 may be arranged in pairs of aligned apertures 72, where the pairs of aligned apertures 72 are aligned along the lateral direction 44. The protruding region 68 of each guide 64 includes tabs, snaps, or clips 74. More specifically, each guide 64 may include a pair of tabs, snaps, or clips 74 that face opposing directions (e.g., clips 74 may face opposing directions along the lateral direction 44 once the guide 64 is secured to the partition 52). The clips 74 engage the partition 52. within the apertures 72 to secure the guides 64 to the partition 52.

The tabs, snaps, or clips 74 may be J-shaped. The tabs, snaps, or clips 74 may include barbed ends 76 that include ramped surfaces 78. The barbed ends 76 are disposed along flexible arms that operate as spring or biasing elements 80. During installation, while the ramped surfaces 78 are engaging the partition 52 within the orifices 56, the barbed ends 76 are displaced inward via the biasing elements 80 flexing inward. Once the barbed ends 76 reach the apertures 72, the stored energy in the biasing elements 80 forces barbed ends 76 outward and into the apertures 72. Flat or stopping surfaces 82 on the barbed ends 76 engage the partition 52 within the apertures 72 to prevent the protruding region 68 of each guide 64 from being pulled out from the corresponding orifice 56 so that the guide 64 remains secured to the partition 52.

The bottom wall 36 includes a guide rail 84. A lower edge of the partition 52 defines a recessed region 86. The guide rail 84 extends upward from the bottom wall 36 and into the recessed region 86 to further facilitate moving or sliding the partition 52 along the front wall 28 and rear wall 30 along the lateral direction 44 between the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34. Alternatively, the guide rail 84 may extend downward from the partition 52 and into a recess region defined along a top side of the bottom wall 36. The guide rail 84 may be substantially parallel to the front wall 28, rear wall 30, and bottom wall 36. The guide rail 84 may be substantially perpendicular to the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34.

A reinforcement bar 88 may be disposed on an opposing side of the bottom wall 36 relative to the guide rail 84. The reinforcement bar 88 may be disposed within a second recess region 90 defined along a bottom of the bottom wall 36. Fasteners 91 may secure the reinforcement bar 88 to the bottom wall 36.

The front wall 28 may define grooves 92 along the opposing side of the front wall 28 relative to the partition 52. Each guide 64 may include flanges 94 and a web 96. The flanges 94 may protrude from upper and lower regions of the guides 64, or more specifically from upper and lower regions of the web 96. The flanges 94 are disposed in and slidable within the grooves 92 to further facilitate moving or sliding the partition 52 along the front wall 28 and rear wall 30 in the lateral direction 44 between the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34. The flanges 94 engaging the front wall 28 within the grooves 92 may also operate to restrict vertical movement of the partition 52 in the vertical direction 42.

The flanges 94 and web 96 may also define one or more C-channel 98 while the front wall 28 includes projections 100 extending from the opposing side of the front wall 28 relative to the partition 52, where the projections 100 are disposed with the C-channel 98 to further facilitate moving or sliding the partition 52 along the front wall 28 and rear wall 30 in the lateral direction 44 between the first side wall 32 and the second side wall 34. The projections 100 may further engage the flanges 94 within the C-channel 98 to restrict vertical movement of the partition 52 in the vertical direction 42.

It should be understood that the designations of first, second, third, fourth, etc. for any component, state, or condition described herein may be rearranged in the claims so that they are in chronological order with respect to the claims. Furthermore, it should be understood that any component, state, or condition described herein that does not have a numerical designation may be given a designation of first, second, third, fourth, etc. in the claims if one or more of the specific component, state, or condition are claimed.

The words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. As previously described, the features of various embodiments may be combined to form further embodiments that may not be explicitly described or illustrated. While various embodiments could have been described as providing advantages or being preferred over other embodiments or prior art implementations with respect to one or more desired characteristics, those of ordinary skill in the art recognize that one or more features or characteristics may be compromised to achieve desired overall system attributes, which depend on the specific application and implementation. As such, embodiments described as less desirable than other embodiments or prior art implementations with respect to one or more characteristics are not outside the scope of the disclosure and may be desirable for particular applications.