CN118103653A - Refrigerator with a refrigerator body - Google Patents

Abstract

A refrigerator includes an inner case, an outer case, and a heat insulating material. The refrigerator includes a first door for opening and closing at least another portion of a storage compartment, a second door rotatable with respect to the first door or the second door to cover a gap between the first door and the second door when the first door and the second door are closed, a rotating lever coupleable to the inner case to guide the rotating lever when the rotating lever rotates according to the opening and closing of the first door or the second door, and a rotating guide. The inner case is formed to cover a front portion of the rotation guide such that the rotation guide is not exposed to a front side of the inner case.

Description

Refrigerator with a refrigerator body

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator including a rotating lever.

Background

A refrigerator is an electric appliance composed of a main body including a storage chamber, a cool air supply device configured to supply cool air to the storage chamber, and a door configured to open and close the storage chamber to keep food fresh.

Generally, a front surface of the storage compartment is opened to insert and remove food, and the opened front surface of the storage compartment is closed by a door. In response to the door being opened, cool air in the storage compartment may flow out, and warm air outside the storage compartment may flow into the interior of the storage compartment, thereby increasing the temperature of the storage compartment.

The temperature of the storage chamber needs to be maintained within a certain range to keep food fresh, and if the temperature of the storage chamber is increased, it may be difficult to keep food fresh and additional energy may be required to reduce the temperature in the storage chamber to a normal level.

A french door refrigerator (hereinafter, FDR refrigerator) may include a rotating lever rotatably coupled to a left door or a right door to prevent cool air from leaking through a gap between the left door and the right door.

The body of the FDR refrigerator may be provided with a rotation guide to guide rotation of the rotating lever to allow the rotating lever to rotate according to opening and closing of the door.

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem to be solved

An aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a refrigerator having improved appearance quality by preventing a rotation guide from being exposed to a front of an inner case.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is a refrigerator having improved appearance quality by including a flange member of an inner case without a parting line.

Technical proposal

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a refrigerator includes: an inner case forming a storage chamber; an outer case capable of being coupled to an outer side of the inner case to form an exterior of the refrigerator; a thermal insulation material disposed between the inner and outer shells when the outer shell is coupled to the inner shell; a first door rotatably coupleable to the housing to open and close at least a portion of the storage compartment; a second door located at one side of the first door and rotatably coupled to the housing to open and close at least another portion of the storage compartment; a rotating lever configured to rotate relative to the first door or the second door such that the rotating lever covers a gap between the first door and the second door when the first door and the second door are closed; and a rotation guide couplable to the inner case to guide the rotation lever when the rotation lever rotates according to the opening or closing of the first door or according to the opening or closing of the second door. The inner case is formed to cover a front member of the rotary guide such that the front member of the rotary guide is not exposed to a front side of the inner case.

The inner shell may include a flange member forming a front edge of the inner shell.

The flange member may include a guide cover having a shape corresponding to a shape of a front member of the rotary guide such that the front member of the rotary guide is not exposed to a front side of the inner case.

The inner case may include an upper plate, a lower plate, a left plate, a right plate, and a rear plate formed by injection molding.

The upper plate may include an upper plate flange forming at least a portion of the flange member.

The guide cover may be disposed on the upper plate flange.

The upper plate flange may be formed as a unitary piece without a parting line.

The guide cover may include a first protrusion formed to protrude downward from the upper plate flange, a second protrusion formed to protrude downward from the upper plate flange, and a guide opening provided between the first protrusion and the second protrusion, the second protrusion being laterally spaced apart from the first protrusion.

The rotation guide may include a guide groove configured to guide the rotation of the rotation lever.

The front end of the guide groove, and the guide opening may be provided in shapes corresponding to each other.

The refrigerator may further include: a heating duct located between the inner and outer shells and along a front edge of the inner shell; and a heat conduction plate for transferring heat from the heating duct to the rotary guide while the heat conduction plate is in contact with the heating duct and the rotary guide.

The upper plate may include a duct receiving groove at a rear side of the guide cover, and the duct receiving groove is configured to receive the heating duct.

The heat conductive plate may be disposed to contact the heating pipe from an outside of the pipe receiving groove.

The heat conductive plate may include a pipe receiving member that can be inserted into the pipe receiving groove to receive and contact the heating pipe.

The upper plate may include a guide mounting groove below the pipe receiving groove and at a rear side of the guide cover to allow the rotary guide to be inserted into the guide mounting groove.

The heat conductive plate may include a guide contact member capable of being mounted to the guide mounting groove, and an extension member formed to extend upward from one end of the guide contact member toward the heating pipe.

The guide mounting groove may include a first fastening hole.

The rotation guide may include a second fastening hole corresponding to the first fastening hole.

The heat conductive plate may include an opening provided to correspond to the first fastening hole and formed to be larger than the first fastening hole.

The rotation guide may be coupled to the guide mounting groove using a fastening member passing through the second fastening hole and the opening of the heat conductive plate to be fastened to the first fastening hole.

Advantageous effects

According to the present disclosure, the refrigerator may improve its appearance quality by preventing the rotary guide from being exposed to the front of the inner case.

According to the present disclosure, the refrigerator may improve its appearance quality by including the flange member of the inner case without the parting line.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, illustrating a state in which a door is opened;

fig. 2 is a schematic side cross-sectional view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 3 is a view illustrating a state in which a first inner case and a second inner case are separated from each other in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 4 is a view illustrating a state in which a first inner case and a second inner case are coupled to each other in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 5 is a view illustrating a state in which a first inner case is disassembled in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 6 is a view illustrating a state in which a second inner case is disassembled in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of portion A of FIG. 1;

fig. 8 is a view illustrating fig. 7 when viewed from another angle;

Fig. 9 is a view illustrating a state in which a rotation guide is detached from an inner case in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional perspective view taken along line B-B' of FIG. 7 in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional perspective view illustrating a heat conductive plate including a duct receiving member in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

The embodiments described in the present disclosure and the configurations shown in the drawings are merely examples of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and may be modified in various ways to replace the embodiments of the present disclosure and the drawings when submitting the present application.

Moreover, like reference numerals or symbols shown in the drawings of the present disclosure indicate elements or components that perform substantially the same function.

Furthermore, the terminology used herein is used to describe embodiments and is not intended to limit and/or restrict the present disclosure. The singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this disclosure, the terms "comprises," "comprising," and the like are used to specify the presence of stated features, elements, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more of the stated features, elements, steps, operations, elements, components, or groups thereof.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. For example, a first element could be termed a second element, and a second element could be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The term "and/or" includes a plurality of combinations of related items or any of a plurality of related items.

The present disclosure will be described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, illustrating a state in which a door is opened. Fig. 2 is a schematic side cross-sectional view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

In the specification, up, down, left, right, front, and rear are defined based on directions illustrated in fig. 1.

As illustrated in fig. 1 and 2, the refrigerator may include a main body 10, a storage chamber 20 partitioned in a vertical direction within the main body 10, a door 30 configured to open and close the storage chamber 20, and a cold air supply device (not shown) configured to supply cold air to the storage chamber 20.

The main body 10 may include an inner case 100 forming the storage chamber 20, an outer case 140 coupled to an outer side of the inner case 100 to form an exterior, and a heat insulating material 150 foamed between the inner case 100 and the outer case 140 to insulate the storage chamber 20.

A machine room 27 in which a compressor C configured to compress a refrigerant and a condenser (not shown) configured to condense the refrigerant compressed by the compressor C are installed may be provided at a rear lower portion of the main body 10.

The cold air supply device may include a compressor C configured to compress a refrigerant, a condenser (not shown) configured to condense the refrigerant, an expansion valve (not shown) configured to expand the refrigerant, and an evaporator E configured to evaporate the refrigerant.

The storage chamber 20 may be divided into a plurality by the partition 15, and a plurality of partitions 25 and storage containers 26 may be provided in the storage chamber 20 to store food or the like.

The storage compartment 20 may be divided into a plurality of storage compartments 22, 23 and 24 by the partition 15, and the partition 15 may include a first partition 17 horizontally coupled to an inner side of the storage compartment 20 to divide the storage compartment 20 into a first storage compartment 22 and second storage compartments 23 and 24, and a second partition 19 vertically coupled to an inner side of the second storage compartments 23 and 24 to divide the second storage compartments 23 and 24 into a first lower storage compartment 23 and a second lower storage compartment 24.

The partition 15 including the T-shape formed by the first and second partitions 17 and 19 coupled to each other may divide the storage chamber 20 into three spaces. Among the first storage chamber 22 and the second storage chambers 23 and 24 partitioned by the first partition 17, the first storage chamber 22 may serve as a cooling chamber, and the second storage chambers 23 and 24 may serve as a freezing chamber.

All the second storage compartments 23 and 24 may be used as the freezing compartments. Alternatively, the first lower storage chamber 23 may serve as a freezing chamber, and the second lower storage chamber 24 may serve as a refrigerating chamber. Alternatively, the first lower storage chamber 23 may serve as a freezing chamber, and the second lower storage chamber 24 may serve as a freezing chamber and a refrigerating chamber.

The division of the storage chamber 20 as described above is an example, and each of the storage chambers 22, 23, and 24 may be used differently from the above-described configuration.

The refrigerating compartment 22 and the freezing compartments 23 and 24 may be opened and closed, respectively, by a door 30 rotatably coupled to the main body 10.

The door 30 may include a pair of refrigerating chamber doors 31 rotatably coupled to the main body 10 to open and close the refrigerating chamber 22, and a pair of freezing chamber doors 33 rotatably coupled to the main body 10 to open and close the freezing chambers 23 and 24.

The pair of refrigerating chamber doors 31 may be opened and closed by a pair of refrigerating chamber door handles 32 including a first door handle 32a or a second door handle 32b, respectively. The refrigerating compartment 22 may be opened and closed by a pair of refrigerating compartment doors 31, and a rotating lever 35 may be installed on at least one of the pair of refrigerating compartment doors 31 so as to seal a gap between the pair of refrigerating compartment doors 31 in response to the closing of the refrigerating compartment doors. The rotating lever 35 may be rotatably coupled to at least one of the pair of refrigerating chamber doors 31. The rotating lever 35 may be guided by a rotation guide 250 (refer to fig. 8) formed on the inner case 100 to rotate according to the opening and closing of the refrigerating chamber door 31.

The pair of freezing compartment doors 33 may be opened and closed by the freezing compartment door handle 34, respectively. The sliding door may be applied to a door configured to open and close the freezing chambers 23 and 24.

Door shelves 31a and 33a storing foods may be provided on rear surfaces of the pair of refrigerating chamber doors 31 and rear surfaces of the pair of freezing chamber doors 33, respectively.

The door shelves 31a and 33a may include shelf supports 31b and 33b, respectively, the shelf supports 31b and 33b extending vertically from the doors 31 and 33 to support each of the door shelves 31a and 33a at left and right sides of each of the door shelves 31 and 33 a. Shelf supports 31b and 33b may extend from doors 31 and 33, respectively. The shelf supports 31b and 33b may be provided in a separate configuration to be detachably mounted on each of the doors 31 and 33.

Further, first gaskets 31c and 33c may be provided on rear edges of each of the doors 31 and 33 to seal a gap between the door and the main body 10 in response to the closing of the doors 31 and 33. The first gaskets 31c and 33c may be installed in a ring shape along edges on the rear surface of each of the doors 31 and 33, and magnets (not shown) may be included in the first gaskets 31c and 33 c.

A pair of refrigerating chamber doors 31 configured to open and close the refrigerating chamber 22 may be disposed at left and right sides. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, only the refrigerating chamber door 31 disposed at the left side of the drawing will be described, and the refrigerating chamber door 31 disposed at the left side of the drawing will be referred to as a refrigerating chamber door. However, the refrigerating chamber door 31 described below is not limited to the refrigerating chamber door 31 disposed at the left side of the drawing, but may also be applied to the refrigerating chamber door 31 disposed at the right side of the drawing, and to at least one of the pair of freezing chamber doors 33.

The refrigerating compartment door 31 may be provided as a double door including a first door 40 and a second door 50.

The first door 40 may be rotatably connected to the main body 10 by a first hinge 60, thereby opening and closing the refrigerating compartment 22. The above-described door bulkhead 31a, bulkhead support 31b, and first gasket 31c may be provided on the first door 40.

The first door 40 may include an opening 41, the opening 41 being formed to allow a user to access the door shelf 31a to insert or remove food when the first door 40 is closed. An opening 41 may be formed through the first door 40, and may be opened and closed by the second door 50.

The second door 50 may be disposed in front of the first door 40 to open and close the opening 41 in the first door 40, and the second door 50 may be rotatable in the same direction as the first door 40. Although the drawings illustrate that the second door 50 is rotatably supported by the second hinge 70 installed on the first door 40, and thus the second door 50 can rotate with respect to the first door 40, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Alternatively, since the second hinge 70 is mounted on the main body 10, the second door 50 may be rotated with respect to the main body 10.

The second door 50 may include a second gasket (not shown) for maintaining air tightness with the first door 40. A second gasket may be installed in a ring shape along an edge of a rear surface of the second door 50, and a magnet (not shown) may be included in the second gasket.

Fig. 3 is a view illustrating a state in which a first inner case and a second inner case are separated from each other in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 4 is a view illustrating a state in which a first inner case and a second inner case are coupled to each other in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 3 and 4, the refrigerator according to the present disclosure may include a first inner case 100a and a second inner case 100b. The first and second inner casings 100a and 100b may be provided to be coupled to each other. The first and second inner casings 100a and 100b may be coupled to each other to form the inner casing 100.

The first and second inner casings 100a and 100b may be coupled to each other without separate fastening members (e.g., screws). The first and second inner casings 100a and 100b may be provided to be inseparable after being coupled to each other.

Fig. 5 is a view illustrating a state in which a first inner case is disassembled in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 6 is a view illustrating a state in which a second inner case is disassembled in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 5 and 6, the inner case 100 may include a first inner case 100a forming the refrigerating chamber 22 located in an upper portion of the inner case 100, and a second inner case 100b forming the freezing chambers 23 and 24 located under the refrigerating chamber 22. The first and second inner casings 100a and 100b may be coupled by the same coupling structure (in which only the shapes are partially different).

Referring to fig. 5, the first inner case 100a according to the embodiment may include a plurality of first plates 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105. The first inner case 100a may be formed by coupling a plurality of first plates 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105. The plurality of first plates 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105 may be coupled to each other without separate fastening members. That is, each of the plurality of first plates 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105 may include a coupling integrally formed for coupling with each other.

The plurality of first plates 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105 may be formed of a resin material by an injection molding method. Each of the plurality of first plates 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105 may include four edges. The plurality of first plates 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105 may include a first upper plate 101, a first lower plate 102, a first left plate 103, a first right plate 104, and a first rear plate 105.

The first upper plate 101 may form an upper surface of the first storage chamber 22. The first lower plate 102 may form a lower surface of the first storage chamber 22. The first left panel 103 may form a left surface of the first storage chamber 22. The first right plate 104 may form a right surface of the first storage chamber 22. The first rear plate 105 may form a rear surface of the first storage chamber 22.

The shapes of the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 are not limited to a flat shape without a bent portion. Alternatively, the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 may include curved portions. Accordingly, the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 may include various shapes as long as the upper surface, the lower surface, the left surface, the right surface, and the rear surface of the first storage chamber 22 are formed.

Further, unlike this embodiment, at least two or more plates adjacent to each other among the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 may be integrally formed with each other.

That is, unlike this embodiment, the first inner case 100a may be formed of a plurality of parts less than five parts corresponding to the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105.

For example, the first upper plate 101 and the first right plate 104 may be integrally injection molded, and the first lower plate 102 and the first left plate 103 may be integrally injection molded. Alternatively, the first upper plate 101 and the first left plate 103 may be integrally injection molded, and the first lower plate 102 and the first right plate 104 may be integrally injection molded.

As described above, even when the first inner case 100a is formed of a plurality of parts less than five parts corresponding to the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105, the following description may be equally applicable.

The first inner case 100a may include a first upper plate 101, a first lower plate 102, a first left plate 103, a first right plate 104, and a first rear plate 105. A first upper plate 101, a first lower plate 102, a first left plate 103, a first right plate 104, and a first rear plate 105 may be provided separately from each other. The first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 may be injection molded. The first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105, which are provided in a separate manner, may be assembled to form the first inner case 100a. Because the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 are injection molded, the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 may be molded to have various patterns (not shown) without additional post-processing. Further, the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 may be molded to have various colors. That is, the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 may have different patterns or different colors for each purpose of the storage compartment 20. Further, the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105 may all have different patterns or different colors. Therefore, for user selection in the refrigerator, the selection range can be widened.

The first flange members 110 and 110a forming a part of the front flange may be integrally formed on the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, and the first right plate 104. The flange members 110 and 110a may refer to flat portions provided along the front edge of the first inner case 100 a. According to an embodiment, the first flange members 110 and 110a may be integrally formed with the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, and the first right plate 104 based on injection molding of the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, and the first right plate 104. Hereinafter, the first flange member 110a of the first upper plate 101 is referred to as an upper plate flange 110a.

The rotation guide 250 may be coupled to a lower surface of the first upper plate 101, the rotation guide 250 being provided to guide rotation of the rotation lever 35 rotatably coupled to the pair of refrigerating chamber doors 31.

The lamp housing 107 in which Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) (L: refer to fig. 1) are arranged may be integrally injection molded with the first left plate 103 and the first right plate 104.

The guide rail 106, in which the storage container 26 is supported to slidably move, may be integrally injection-molded with the first left plate 103 and the first right plate 104.

The first rear plate 105 is injected as a thin film to be competitive in material cost, and for this, a plurality of gates (not shown) may be required. The first rear plate 105 may include a drain hole 105a, the drain hole 105a being provided to drain condensed water or defrost water falling from the evaporator E.

The first lower plate 102 may include an extension 102a. The extension 102a may extend downward from the front end of the first lower plate 102. In response to coupling of the first and second inner casings 100a and 100b, the extension 102a may cover the front surface of the space formed between the first and second inner casings 100 and 100 b.

According to an embodiment, the refrigerator may further comprise a flange plate 270, the flange plate 270 being arranged to be coupled to the extension 102a to connect the first flange member 110 of the extension 102b to the second flange member 120 of the extension 102.

A plurality of assembly hooks 109a or a plurality of assembly holes 109b for assembly may be formed on the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, the first right plate 104, and the first rear plate 105. The first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, and the first right plate 104 may be assembled with each other by the remaining three edge surfaces except the front among the four edge surfaces. Accordingly, a plurality of assembly hooks 109a or a plurality of assembly holes 109b may be formed on the remaining three edge surfaces except the front among the four edge surfaces of the first upper plate 101, the first lower plate 102, the first left plate 103, and the first right plate 104. Further, a plurality of assembly hooks 109a or a plurality of assembly holes 109b may be formed on all four edge surfaces of the first rear plate 105. That is, when the assembly of the first upper plate 101 and the first right plate 104 is described as an example, a plurality of assembly hooks 109a may be formed on the right surface of the first upper plate 101, and a plurality of assembly holes 109b may be formed on the upper surface of the first right plate 104 assembled to the right surface of the first upper plate 104. Although it is shown in the drawings that the plurality of assembly hooks 109a are formed on the right surface of the first upper plate 101 and the plurality of assembly holes 109b are formed on the upper surface of the first right plate 104, the plurality of assembly holes 109b may be formed on the right surface of the first upper plate 101 and the plurality of assembly hooks 109a may be formed on the upper surface of the first right plate 104. For the first lower plate 102, a plurality of assembly hooks 109a may be formed on the lower sides of the three edge surfaces, and thus the plurality of assembly hooks 109a may not be shown in the drawing.

Referring to fig. 6, the second inner case 100b according to the embodiment may include a plurality of second plates 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115. The second inner case 100b may be formed by coupling a plurality of second plates 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115. The plurality of second plates 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115 may be coupled to one another without separate fastening members. That is, each of the plurality of second plates 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115 may include a coupling member integrally formed for coupling with each other.

Referring to fig. 6, the second inner case 100b according to the embodiment may include first and second partition plates 19b and 19c forming the second partition 19, and a partition cover 19a provided to cover front portions of the first and second partition plates 19b and 19 c.

The second partition 19 may partition the second storage chambers 23 and 24 left and right by being coupled to the second inner case 100 b.

The plurality of second plates 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115 may be formed of a resin material by an injection molding method. Each of the plurality of second plates 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115 may include four edges. The plurality of second plates 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115 may include a second upper plate 111, a second lower plate 112, a second left plate 113, a second right plate 114, and a second rear plate 115.

The second upper plate 111 may form upper surfaces of the second storage compartments 23 and 24. The second lower plate 112 may form a lower surface of the second storage compartments 23 and 24. The second left panel 113 may form left surfaces of the second storage compartments 23 and 24. The second right plate 114 may form the right surface of the second storage compartments 23 and 24. The second rear plate 115 may form rear surfaces of the second storage compartments 23 and 24.

The shapes of the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 104, and the second rear plate 115 are not limited to a flat shape without a bent portion. Alternatively, the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115 may include curved portions. Accordingly, the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 104, and the second rear plate 115 may include various shapes as long as the upper, lower, left, right, and rear surfaces of the second storage compartments 23 and 24 are formed.

Further, unlike this embodiment, at least two or more plates adjacent to each other among the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115 may be integrally formed with each other.

That is, unlike the embodiment, the second inner case 100b may be formed of a plurality of parts less than five parts corresponding to the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115.

For example, the second upper plate 111 and the second right plate 114 may be integrally injection molded, and the second lower plate 112 and the second left plate 113 may be integrally injection molded. Alternatively, the second upper plate 111 and the second left plate 113 may be integrally injection molded, and the second lower plate 112 and the second right plate 114 may be integrally injection molded.

As described above, even when the second inner case 100b is formed of a plurality of parts less than five parts corresponding to the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115, the following description may be equally applicable.

The second inner case 100b may include a second upper plate 111, a second lower plate 112, a second left plate 113, a second right plate 114, and a second rear plate 115 in the same manner as the first inner case 100 a. A second upper plate 111, a second lower plate 112, a second left plate 113, a second right plate 114, and a second rear plate 115, which are separated from each other, may be provided. The second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115 may be injection molded. The second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115, which are provided in a separate manner, may be assembled to form the second inner case 100b. Because the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115 are injection molded, the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115 may be molded to have various patterns (not shown) without additional post-processing. Further, the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115 may be molded to have various colors. That is, the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115 may have different patterns or different colors for each purpose of the storage compartment 20. In addition, the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115 may all have different patterns or different colors. Therefore, for user selection in the refrigerator, the selection range can be widened.

The second flange member 120 forming a part of the front flange may be integrally formed on the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, and the second right plate 114. The front flange may refer to a flat portion provided along the front edge of the second inner case 100 b. According to an embodiment, the second flange member 120 may be integrally formed with the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, and the second right plate 114 based on injection molding of the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, and the second right plate 114. According to an embodiment, the second flange member 120 may not be provided in the second upper plate 111. This is because the second flange member 120 is disposed in the first lower plate 102.

A guide rail 113a (not shown) in which the storage container is supported to slidably move may be integrally injection-molded with the second left plate 113 and the second right plate 114.

The second back plate 115 is injected as a thin film to be competitive in material cost, and for this, a plurality of gates (not shown) may be required. The second rear plate 1154 may include a drain hole 115a, and the drain hole 115a is provided to drain condensed water or defrost water falling from the evaporator E.

According to an embodiment, a plurality of assembly hooks 119a or a plurality of assembly holes 119b for assembly may be formed on the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, the second right plate 114, and the second rear plate 115. The second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, and the second right plate 114 may be assembled with each other by the remaining three edge surfaces except the front among the four edge surfaces. Accordingly, a plurality of assembly hooks 119a or a plurality of assembly holes 119b may be formed on the remaining three edge surfaces except the front among the four edge surfaces of the second upper plate 111, the second lower plate 112, the second left plate 113, and the second right plate 114. Further, a plurality of assembly hooks 119a or a plurality of assembly holes 119b may be formed on all four edge surfaces of the second rear plate 115. That is, when the assembly of the second upper plate 111 and the second right plate 114 is described as an example, a plurality of assembly hooks 119a may be formed on the right surface of the second upper plate 111, and a plurality of assembly holes 119b may be formed on the upper surface of the second right plate 114 assembled to the right surface of the second upper plate 111. Although it is shown in the drawings that the plurality of assembly hooks 119a are formed on the right surface of the second upper plate 111 and the plurality of assembly holes 119b are formed on the upper surface of the second right plate 114, the plurality of assembly holes 119b may be formed on the right surface of the third upper plate 111 and the plurality of assembly hooks 119a may be formed on the upper surface of the second right plate 114. As for the second lower plate 112, a plurality of assembly hooks 119a may be formed on three edge surfaces.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged view of a portion a of fig. 1. Fig. 8 is a view illustrating fig. 7 when viewed from another angle.

Referring to fig. 7 and 8, a rotation guide 250 may be coupled to the first inner case 100a, the rotation guide 250 being provided to guide the rotation lever 35 to allow the rotation lever 35 to rotate according to the opening and closing of the refrigerating chamber doors 31, wherein the rotation lever 35 is installed between the pair of refrigerating chamber doors 31.

According to an embodiment, the first inner case 100a may be provided to cover a front member 253 (see fig. 9) of the rotation guide 250 to prevent the rotation guide 250a from being exposed to the front of the first inner case 100.

As mentioned above, the first inner case 100a may include the first upper plate 101, and the first upper plate 101a may include the upper plate flange 110a forming a part of the first flange members 110 and 110a.

The upper plate flange 110a may include a guide cover 200, the guide cover 200 having a shape corresponding to the front member 253 of the rotation guide 250 to prevent the rotation guide 250a from being exposed to the front of the upper plate flange 110.

The guide cover 200 may be disposed on one side of the upper plate flange 110 a. Alternatively, the guide cover 200 may be disposed at the center of the upper plate flange 110 a.

Referring to fig. 7 and 8, the guide cover 200 may include a first protrusion 210 protruding downward from the upper plate flange 110a, a second protrusion 220 protruding downward from the upper plate flange 110a and laterally spaced apart from the first protrusion 210, and a guide opening 230 disposed between the first protrusion 210 and the second protrusion 230.

The rotation guide 250 may include a guide groove 251 to guide the rotation of the rotation lever 35. The front end 251a of the guide groove 251 (see fig. 9) and the guide opening 230 may be provided in shapes corresponding to each other to prevent the rotary guide 250 from being exposed to the front of the guide cover 200. With this structure, the guide groove 251 can be connected from the guide opening 230.

Conventionally, the front member of the rotation guide is disposed in a space formed by cutting out a portion of the upper plate flange. That is, the front member of the rotation guide is exposed to the front of the inner case. Due to this structure, the upper plate flange cannot be smoothly connected, and thus the overall feeling in the inner case is low, and the appearance quality of the refrigerator is deteriorated.

According to the embodiment, since the guide cover 200 covers the front member 253 of the rotary guide 250, the rotary guide 25 is not exposed to the front of the first inner case 100 a. Further, since the upper plate flange 110a including the guide cover 200 is formed as a single piece without a parting line, the overall sense of the first inner case 100a can be improved. In addition, the appearance quality of the refrigerator can be improved.

Fig. 9 is a view illustrating a state in which a rotation guide is detached from an inner case in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 9, the rotation guide 250 may be coupled to the first upper plate 101 of the first inner case 100 a. In particular, the first upper plate 101 may include a guide mounting groove 240, the guide mounting groove 240 being provided to allow the rotation guide 250 to be inserted into the guide mounting groove 240. The guide mounting groove 240 may be provided on the rear side of the guide cover 200. The guide mounting groove 240 may be provided in a shape corresponding to the rotation guide 250. In response to the rotation guide 250 being mounted to the guide mounting groove 240, the position of the second fastening hole 252 of the rotation guide may correspond to the position of the first fastening hole 241 of the first upper plate 101.

The rotation guide 250 may be coupled to the first inner case 100a by a fastening member S. The first inner case 100 may include first fastening holes 241 formed in the guide mounting groove 240. The rotation guide 250 may include a second fastening hole 252 passing through the rotation guide.

The heat conductive plate 260, which will be described later, may include an opening 261, the opening 261 being provided at a position corresponding to the first fastening hole 241 and being formed to be larger than the first fastening hole 241.

When the fastening member S passes through the second fastening hole 252 and the opening 261 and is fastened to the first fastening hole 241, the fastening member S may couple the rotation guide 250 to the first upper plate 101.

As described above, in response to the coupling of the rotation guide 250 and the first upper plate 101, the front member 253 of the rotation guide may be covered by the guide cover 200 so as not to be exposed to the front of the upper plate flange 110 a.

Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional perspective view taken along line B-B' of fig. 7 in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 10, the refrigerator according to the embodiment may include a heating duct H disposed along a front edge of the first inner case 100 a. The heating duct H may be disposed between the first inner case 100a and the outer case 140. The heating duct H may be arranged to generate heat. The heating duct H may prevent dew formation on the first flange members 110a and 110a by reducing a temperature difference between the first flange members 110 and 110a of the first inner case 100a and the outside air.

The refrigerator according to the embodiment may include a heat conductive plate 260, the heat conductive plate 260 being disposed to transfer heat from the heating duct H to the rotary guide 250 by being in contact with the heating duct H and the rotary guide 250.

Referring to fig. 10, the first upper plate 101 may include a duct receiving groove 101a, the duct receiving groove 101a being disposed at a rear side of the guide cover 200 and configured to receive the heating duct H. The heating pipe H may be inserted into the pipe receiving groove 101. The pipe receiving groove 101a may be located above the guide mounting groove 240.

The heat conductive plate 260 may include a guide contact member 262 and an extension member 263, the guide contact member 262 being mounted to the guide mounting groove 240 and contacting the rotation guide 250, the extension member 263 extending upward from one end of the guide contact member 262 toward the heating duct H.

According to an embodiment, the heat conductive plate 260 may be disposed to contact the heating pipe H from the outside of the pipe receiving groove 101 a. In particular, at least a portion of the extension member 263 may be disposed to be in contact with the heating pipe H from the outside of the pipe receiving groove 101 a. In other words, at least a portion of the extension member 263 may be disposed to contact the front end of the heating pipe H.

The heat conductive plate 260 may be formed of a metal material having high heat conductivity. The heat conductive plate 260 may be in contact with the heating duct H to receive heat from the heating duct H, thereby transferring the heat to the rotary guide 250.

Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional perspective view illustrating a heat conductive plate including a duct receiving member in a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The configuration other than the heat conductive plate 260a is the same as that of fig. 1 to 10, and thus the same description will be omitted.

Referring to fig. 11, a heat conductive plate 260a according to an embodiment may include a pipe receiving member 264a.

The pipe receiving member 264a may be inserted into the pipe receiving groove 101 a. The pipe receiving member 264a may be disposed to contact the heating pipe H by receiving the heating pipe H.

According to an embodiment, the heat conductive plate 260a may include a guide contact member 262a mounted to the guide mounting groove 240, an extension member 263a extending upward from one end of the guide contact member 262a, and a pipe receiving member 264a disposed at one end of the extension member 263 a.

The heat conductive plate 260a may be in contact with the heating duct H through the duct receiving member 264 a. Since the pipe receiving member 264a is inserted into the pipe receiving groove 101a, the heat conductive plate 260a may be in contact with the heating pipe H from the inside of the pipe receiving groove 101 a. Further, the tube receiving member 264a may be in contact with the heating tube H at a plurality of points. Because the tube receiving member 264a contacts the heating tube H at a plurality of points, the heat conductive plate 260a may more effectively receive heat from the heating tube H. Accordingly, the heat transfer efficiency of the heat conductive plate 260a from the heating pipe H to the rotation guide 250 can be improved.

Although a few embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the disclosure, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.

Claims (15)

1. A refrigerator, comprising:

An inner case forming a storage chamber;

an outer case capable of being coupled to an outer side of the inner case to form an exterior of the refrigerator;

a thermal insulation material disposed between the inner and outer shells when the outer shell is coupled to the inner shell;

a first door rotatably coupleable to the housing to open and close at least a portion of the storage compartment;

A second door located at one side of the first door and rotatably coupled to the housing to open and close at least another portion of the storage compartment;

A rotating lever configured to rotate relative to the first door or the second door such that the rotating lever covers a gap between the first door and the second door when the first door and the second door are closed; and

A rotation guide capable of being coupled to the inner case to guide the rotation lever when the rotation lever rotates according to the opening or closing of the first door or according to the opening or closing of the second door,

Wherein the inner case is formed to cover a front member of the rotary guide such that the front member of the rotary guide is not exposed to a front side of the inner case.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the inner case includes a flange member forming a front edge of the inner case,

Wherein the flange member includes a guide cover having a shape corresponding to that of the front member of the rotary guide so that the front member of the rotary guide is not exposed to the front side of the flange member of the inner case.

3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein,

The inner case includes an upper plate, a lower plate, a left plate, a right plate, and a rear plate formed by injection molding.

4. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein,

The upper plate includes an upper plate flange forming at least a portion of the flange member,

Wherein the guide cover is disposed on the upper plate flange.

5. The refrigerator of claim 4, wherein,

The upper plate flange is formed as a unitary piece without a parting line.

6. The refrigerator of claim 4, wherein the guide cover comprises:

a first protrusion formed to protrude downward from the upper plate flange;

a second protrusion formed to protrude downward from the upper plate flange, the second protrusion being laterally spaced apart from the first protrusion; and

A guide opening between the first projection and the second projection.

7. The refrigerator of claim 6, wherein the rotation guide includes a guide groove for guiding the rotation of the rotating lever,

Wherein the leading end of the guide groove and the guide opening are provided in shapes corresponding to each other.

8. The refrigerator of claim 3, further comprising:

A heating duct located between the inner and outer shells and along a front edge of the inner shell; and

And a heat conductive plate for transferring heat from the heating duct to the rotary guide when the heat conductive plate is in contact with the heating duct and the rotary guide.

9. The refrigerator of claim 8, wherein,

The upper plate includes a duct receiving groove at a rear side of the guide cover for receiving the heating duct.

10. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein,

The heat conductive plate is disposed to be in contact with the heating pipe from the outside of the pipe receiving groove.

11. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein,

The heat conductive plate includes a pipe receiving member that can be inserted into the pipe receiving groove to receive and contact the heating pipe.

12. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein,

The upper plate includes a guide mounting groove below the pipe receiving groove and at a rear side of the guide cover to allow the rotary guide to be inserted into the guide mounting groove.

13. The refrigerator of claim 12, wherein the heat conductive plate comprises:

A guide contact member that can be mounted to the guide mounting groove; and

An extension member formed to extend upward from one end of the guide contact member toward the heating pipe.

14. The refrigerator of claim 12, wherein,

The guide mounting groove includes a first fastening hole; and

The rotation guide includes a second fastening hole corresponding to the first fastening hole,

Wherein the heat conductive plate includes an opening provided to correspond to the first fastening hole and formed larger than the first fastening hole.

15. The refrigerator of claim 14, wherein,

The rotation guide may be coupled to the guide mounting groove using a fastening member passing through the second fastening hole and the opening of the heat conductive plate to be fastened to the first fastening hole.