Refrigeration – With means preventing or handling atmospheric condensate... – Means utilizing heat developed by refrigeration producer
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-28
2001-07-31
Bennett, Henry (Department: 3744)
Refrigeration
With means preventing or handling atmospheric condensate...
Means utilizing heat developed by refrigeration producer
C312S406000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06266970
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a side-by-side type refrigerator, and more specifically to a vertical partition cover assembly of a side-by-side type refrigerator which is mounted on the front of a vertical partition to hold hot tubes for preventing condensation of moisture adjacent the front doors.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In general, a refrigerator is an appliance which is utilized to keep various foods in a fresh state by supplying refrigerant generated from an evaporator to food storing compartments. Recently, there is increasing a demand for large-sized refrigerators for the convenience thereof.
Most domestic large-sized refrigerators are of a side-by-side type which has a vertical partition by which the cabinet forming the framework of a refrigerator is divided lengthwise into refrigerating and freezing compartments. Accordingly, the doors which are mounted on the fronts of each compartment are also arranged side by side. The doors are swung by hinges which are mounted at the front corners of the cabinet.
On the inner surfaces of the doors are provided gaskets of a rubber material to seal the compartments from the outside air. The gaskets are attached to the edge of each door's inner surface which contacts the front surface of the cabinet so that when the doors are closed, the gaskets keep the front surface of the cabinet airtight so that the cool air in the compartments does not leak outside. In the gaskets there are mounted permanent magnets to closely adhere the doors to the front metal surface. Further, hot tubes are laid in the front surface of the cabinet to prevent condensation of moisture due to the temperature difference between the compartments and the outside air.
FIG. 1
shows a front portion of a vertical partition of a side-by-side type refrigerator according to a prior art, in which a hot tube is mounted. The vertical partition
2
, by which a storing space is divided into the right and left compartments
1
, includes a heat-insulation wall
2
e
which is made by foaming urethane liquid, liners
2
a
,
2
b
of a plastic material disposed at both sides of the heat-insulation wall
2
e
, and a cover
3
joining the front ends of the liners
2
a
,
2
b.
The front ends of the liners
2
a
,
2
b
are bent so as to face each other and have fixing grooves
2
c
,
2
d
of a semi-circle shape, respectively, to fix a pair of hot tubes
5
. The cover
3
includes a flat sealing surface
3
c
forming a front of the cover
3
and pocket portions
3
a
,
3
b
which extend inward from both the ends of the sealing surface
3
c
and open toward the side direction. The fixing grooves
2
c
,
2
d
with the hot tube
5
therein are inserted into the respective pocket portions
3
a
,
3
b
, so that the cover
3
is mounted on the vertical partition
2
.
At the front of the vertical partition
2
are disposed doors
4
L,
4
R to close and open the storing compartments
1
. In order to adhere the doors
4
L,
4
R closely to the vertical partition
3
when the doors
4
L,
4
R are closed, gaskets
4
a
are attached to the edge portions of the inner surfaces of the doors
4
L,
4
R in contact with the vertical partition
2
. In the gaskets
4
a
are mounted permanent magnets
4
b
to further reinforce the sealing of the doors
4
L,
4
R to the sealing surface
3
c
of a metal material.
The prior art vertical partition
2
is assembled according to the following process: the hot tubes
5
are inserted into the respective fixing grooves
2
c
,
2
d
which are provided at the front ends of the left and right liners
2
a
,
2
b
, and then the fixing grooves
2
c
,
2
d
are inserted into both the pocket portions
3
a
,
3
b
to thereby couple the cover
3
to the front ends of the liners
2
a
,
2
b
. In this state, if urethane is foamed inside of the space formed by the liners
2
a
,
2
b
and the cover
3
, the heat-insulation wall
2
e
is formed and the cover
3
is fixed firmly.
In a conventional side-by-side type refrigerator having the aforementioned vertical partition
2
and cover
3
, when the doors
4
L,
4
R are closed, the gaskets
4
a
, which are mounted on their inner surfaces, are adhered airtightly to the sealing surface
3
c
of the cover
3
by the permanent magnets
4
b
. In this state, because heat from the hot tubes S is radiated outside through the sealing surface
3
c
of the cover
3
, condensate moisture at the front surface of the vertical partition
2
is prevented due to the temperature difference between the compartments
1
and the outside air.
However, such a conventional structure of the vertical partition and cover of a side-by-side type refrigerator can not effectively prevent condensation of moisture because the two hot tubes which are arranged side by side are structurally separated from the sealing surface of the cover so that the heat from the hot tubes is not efficiently transmitted to the sealing surface.
Further, the conventional structure has disadvantages in that its manufacturing cost and process are increased because it requires the two hot tubes which are arranged side by side.
Furthermore, the cover may be deformed by a sudden closing of the doors or an external impact because the pocket portions of the cover can not be filled with the urethane foam so that structurally the rigidity of the cover is relatively weak.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made in an effort to solve the above problems. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a vertical partition cover assembly of a side-by-side type refrigerator which has a further improved cover structure by which condensation of moisture is more effectively prevented, manufacture and assembly are simplified, and rigidity thereof is increased.
To achieve the above object, the vertical partition cover assembly according to a first embodiment of this invention comprises a cover which is coupled to the front surface of a vertical partition and a fixing means or discrete fixing member for fixing a hot tube to the inside of the cover.
The cover includes a sealing surface forming a plane to contact gaskets, and a mechanism which holds the sealing surface to the front ends of the liners. Preferably, the mechanism includes connecting portions extending inward from both ends of the sealing surface, and a pair of pocket portions formed at each end of the connecting portions and opened outward to hold the front ends of liners of the vertical partition. The fixing member is mounted by being inserted between the pocket portions. Each pocket portion has a clip section for grasping the front end of the liner elastically.
The fixing member includes a concave portion for holding the hot tube in such a manner that the tube is in contact with the sealing surface, and a pair of elastic portions extending to the inside of the vertical partition from both ends of the concave portion to be fitted elastically to the inner ends of the respective pocket portions. A number of holes are formed in the fixing member to allow the space between the pocket portions and the sealing surface to be filled with urethane foam when forming the heat-insulation wall.
As another embodiment of this invention, the fixing member is a porous block having a plurality of through holes thereon which is inserted laterally between both of the pocket portions to allow the hot tube to contact the sealing surface closely, and to allow the space between the pocket portions and the sealing surface to be filled with the urethane foam.
As still another embodiment of this invention, the cover assembly comprises a cover which is fitted to the front of the vertical partition to hold the hot tube, and the cover includes a flat sealing plate which makes contact with the gaskets.
The cover of the still another embodiment also includes fitting clip sections or slots formed at both sides of the cover to hold the front ends of the respective liners and a fixing concavity formed at the front surface of the cover to hold the hot tube. The sealing plate is of a magnetic material and the front edge of
Jang Suk-Ho
Nam Jeong-Man
Oh Jae-Sek
Bennett Henry
Jiang Chen-Wen
Larson & Taylor PLC
Samsung Electronics Co,. Ltd.
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