US3252253A

US3252253A - Refrigerator door assembly

Info

Publication number: US3252253A
Application number: US355832A
Authority: US
Inventors: Garland E Sanders; Edward A Zak; Ernest E Sanders
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1964-03-30
Filing date: 1964-03-30
Publication date: 1966-05-24
Anticipated expiration: 1983-05-24

Description

y 1966 G. E. SANDERS ETAL 3,252,253

REFRIGERATOR DOOR ASSEMBLY Filed March 30, 1964 N E mm on m? INVENTORS. GARLAND E. SANDERS EDWARD A. ZAK

ERNEST E- SANDERS @1444 United States Patent 3,252,253 REFRIGERATOR DOOR ASSEMBLYv Garland E. Sanders, Detroit, Edward A. Zak, Hamtrarnck, and Ernest E. Sanders, Detroit, Mich, assignors of twenty-five percent each to Garland E. Sanders and Edward Zak, and fifty percent to Ernest E. Sanders Filed Mar. 30, 1964, Ser. No. 355,832 4 Claims. (Cl. 49-120).

The present invention relates to refrigerating units and more particularly to an improved door assembly for commercial refrigerating units and the like.

The trend in merchandising, refrigerated items such as beverages or the like has been to provide refrigerating or cooling units which are constructed to permit the customer to make his own selection. The problem with such self-service refrigerator units is that the customer will not always close the door of the unit properly after he has made his selection so that operation costs are high and the merchandise being refrigerated may become too warm or even spoiled.

Further, heretofore known door assemblies for such refrigerating units have usually comprised a pair of horizontally slidable doormembers in which double tracks are provided and in which to open the unit one door is slid in front of or behind theother door. Such an assembly has the disadvantage that only half of the refrigerating unit is accessible to the customer at a time and if merchandise is desired from the closed half, both doors must be moved to the opposite side of the unit. 7

The present invention provides an improved refrigerator unit especially suitable for self-service type merchandising and which is provided with an improved door assembly having means retaining vertically slidable doors in an open position but being operable to close completely upon being started towards a closed position. In this way it is impossible for the customer to leave the door slightly ajar. Further, the doors slide on a single track and move together toward and away from a closed position. The particular construction of the door assembly makes accessible the entire contents of the unit upon opening the doors.

It is an object of the present invention to improve self-service type refrigerating units and the like by providing'a door assembly for such units having means for retaining the doors in a fully open position and means automatically moving the doors to a completely closed position upon movement of the doors slightly from the fully open position.

It is another object of the present invention to reduce the costs of producing commercial refrigerator apparatus by providing a door assembly for such apparatus having door members slidable on a single track.

It is still another object of the present invention to make merchandise being stored in refrigerator units more readily accessible by providing a door assembly for such apparatus comprising a pair of vertically slidable door members and means moving said door members simultaneously from an abutting closed position to a separated and opened position.

Still further objects and advantages will readily occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention pertains u pon reference to the following drawings and in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views and in which- FIG. 1 is a perspective view of .a refrigerator unit incorporating the door assembly of the present invention and showing the door members in a closed position.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary cross sectional view taken substantially on line 22 of FIG. 1 but showing the doors in an open position.

Patented May 24, 1966 FIG. 3 is a fragmentary cross sectional view taken substantially on line 33 of FIG. 2, and

Description Now referring to the drawings for a more detailed description of the present invention, a preferred refrigerating unit 10 is illustrated as comprising spaced side walls 12. As can best be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, each of the side walls 12 is provided with a vertically positioned channel member 14 or similar member defining the forward edge of the side wall 12. The channel members 14 each have a forward vertical flange 16 and a rearward vertical flange 18 defining a vertically elongated recess 20 disposed to face the corresponding recess 28 of the opposite channel member 14.

Each of the side walls 12 is provided with an outer covering of a suitable material which may if desired be integral with the material covering the other side wall 12. Thus, the side walls 12 and the rear (not shown) of the unit 10 may be covered by a single sheet 22 of a suitably bent material.

A top sheet 24 of material is bent over the front of the unit '10 to form an upper front panel 26. A bottom sheet 28 of material is bent upwardly over the front of the unit 10 to form a lower front panel 30.

As can best be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, an elongated track member 32 is mounted within the recess 20 of each of the channel members 14. The track members 32 are positioned adjacent the forward flange 16 of the channel members 14 as shown. Each of the track members 32 carries an upper lateral extension 34 and a lower lateral extension 36. The

extensions

34 and 36 are disposed intermediate the track members 32 and the rearward flange 18 of the channel members 14 and each carry a

roller

34A and 36A respectively.

An upper door 37 comprises a rectangular frame 38 encompassing and retaining a glass member 40. A lower door 41 comprises a rectangular frame 42 encompassing and retaining a glass member 44. Handles 46 are provided on the

frames

38 and 42 to open the

doors

37 and 41.

The

doors

37 and 41 extend across the front of the unit 10 and the vertically extending portions of the

frames

38 and 42 are disposed within the recesses 20 of the channel members 14. Track members 48 similar in construction to the track members 32 but facing in the opposite direction are carried on the vertical portions of the

frames

38 and 42. The rollers 34A engage in the track members 48 carried on the upper door 37 and the rollers 36A engage in the track members 48 carried on the lower door 41.

Each of the track members 48 is provided with laterally extending portions 48A which carry an assembly 50 disposed to engage in the track members 32. In this way the upper door 37 and lower door 41 are each vertically slidable in the track members 32 and on the rollers 50. A stop plate 52 limits downward movement of the lower door 41.

As can best be seen in FIG. 2, a pulley 54 is mounted near the top of each of the recesses 20. A cable 56 has one end secured to the track member 48 of the upper door 37 and extends over the pulley 54 as shown, with its other end secured to the track member 48 of the lower door 41.

The upper horizontally extending portion of the frame 38 is provided with a weighted member 58 as shown in FIG. 1. The unit 10 is provided with horizontally extending

cross pieces

60 and 62 which are positioned to coincide with the upper horizontal portion of frame 42 of the lower door 41 and with the lower horizontal portion of the frame 38 of the upper door 37 respectively. Horizontally stantially the half way point.

extending

resilient seals

64 and 66 are provided on the forward edges of the

cross pieces

60 and 62 respectively. A resilient seal member 68 is provided on one of the

frames

38 and 42 in a position intermediate the

doors

37 and 41.

The weighted member 58 tends to urge the upper door 37 to slide downwardly in the

track members

32 and 48 along the

rollers

30 and 34A respectively. As the upper door 37 slides downwardly, the cable 56 tends to urge the lower door 41 to slide upwardly on the

track members

32 and 48 and along the

rollers

50 and 36A respectively to meet the upper door 37. The length of the cable 56 is preferably such that the

doors

37 and 41 will meet at sub- When it is desired to open the

doors

37 and 41 the lower door 41 is urged downwardly, bringing the upper door 37 upwardly until the lower horizontal member of the frame 38 and the upper horizontal member of the frame 42 engage the

resilient seals

64 and 66 respectively. This engagement will cause the doors 3741 to remain open until they are moved slightly to disengage from the

resilient members

64 and 66 and thus the

resilient members

64 and 66 perform the dual function of sealing the

doors

37 and 41 in the closed position and frictionally retaining them in the open position. Once the

doors

37 and 41 have been started towards a closed position to bring the horizontal members of the

frames

38 and 42 out of frictional engagement with the

members

64 and 66 the weighted member 58 will cause the

doors

37 and 41 to continue to move until they are completely closed.

It is apparent that the door assembly of the present invention substantially minimizes the problems caused by self-service refrigerator units being left open by the customer. The customer will usually make an effort to close such units, but he just will not always be sure that the doors are closed completely. With the door assembly of the present invention, once the doors have been started toward a closed position, they will continue to a closed posititon without further help. i

The particular door assembly of the present invention permits access to the entire unit upon opening of the doors.

door member mounted in a position over said lower door member, said door members movable intermediate a closed position in which said door members engage one another and a separated open position, and said weighted upper door member tending to move toward said closed position;

(c) means connecting said door members and cooperating with the movement of said upper door member to move said door members together intermediate said closed position and said open position;

(d) each of said door members comprising a rectangular frame having upper and lower horizontally extending members; and

(e) at least two horizontally disposed resilient members longitudinally extending across opposed sides of 7 said opening and secured to said unit, said resilient members being less in length than the width of said door members and being adapted to respectively engage the upper horizontally extending member. of said lower door member and the lower horizontally extending member of said upper door member when said door members are in the open position so that said door members are yieldingly and frictionally "retained in said open position, and to respectively and sealingly engage the upper horizontally extending member of said upper door member and the lower horizontally extending member of said lower door member when said door members are in the closed position.

2. A door assembly for a refrigerator unit or the like as defined in claim 1, wherein said unit defines a rectangular door opening.

3. A door assembly .as defined in claim 1, wherein said resilient members disengage the horizontally extending members of said door members upon movement of said door members from the open and the closed positions.

It is also apparent that although we have described but I one embodiment of the present invention, many changes 4. A door assembly as defined in' claim 1 wherein said door member connecting means comprises:

(a) a pulley adapted to be fixed to said refrigeration unit, and (b) a cable having one end fixed to said upper door member, extending over said pulley and having the other end fixed to said lower door member.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,095,370 5/1914 Bardsley 20-19 X 2,463,250 3/1949 Curtiss 20l9 X 2,737,781 3/1956 Gelfand et al 2019 X 3,091,004 5/1963 Mays 20l9 HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Primary Examiner.

K. DOWNEY,v Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. A DOOR ASSEMBLY FOR A REFRIGERATOR UNIT OR THE LIKE HAVING A DOOR OPENING DEFINED THEREIN, COMPRISING: (A) A PAIR OF VERTICALLY EXTENDING TRACK MEMBERS SECURED ALONG OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID DOOR OPENING; (B) A WEIGHTED UPPER DOOR MEMBER, A LOWER DOOR MEMBER, MEANS VERTICALLY SLIDABLY MOUNTING SAID DOOR MEMBERS IN SAID TRACK MEMBERS WITH SAID UPPER DOOR MEMBER MOUNTED IN A POSITION OVER SAID LOWER DOOR MEMBER, SAID DOOR MEMBERS MOVABLE INTERMEDIATE A CLOSED POSITION IN WHICH SAID DOOR MEMBERS ENGAGE ONE ANOTHER AND A SEPARATED OPEN POSITION, AND SAID WEIGHTED UPPER DOOR MEMBER TENDING TO MOVE TOWARD SAID CLOSED POSITION; (C) MEANS CONNECTING SAID DOOR MEMBERS AND COOPERATING WITH THE MOVEMENT OF SAID UPPER DOOR MEMBER TO MOVE SAID DOOR MEMBERS TOGETHER INTERMEDIATE SAID CLOSED POSITION AND SAID OPEN POSITION; (D) EACH OF SAID DOOR MEMBERS COMPRISING A RECTANGULAR FRAME HAVING UPPER AND LOWER HORIZONTALLY EXTENDING MEMBERS; AND (E) AT LEAST TWO HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED RESILIENT MEMBERS LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING ACROSS OPPOSED SIDES OF SAID OPENINGS AND SECURED TO SAID UNIT, SAID RESILIENT MEMBERS BEING LESS IN LENGTH THAN THE WIDTH OF SAID DOOR MEMBERS AND BEING ADAPTED TO RESPECTIVELY ENGAGE THE UPPER HORIZONTALLY EXTENDING MEMBER OF SAID LOWER DOOR MEMBER AND THE LOWER HORIZONTALLY EXTENDING MEMBER OF SAID UPPER DOOR MEMBER WHEN SAID DOOR MEMBERS ARE IN THE OPEN POSITION SO THAT SAID DOOR MEMBERS ARE YIELDINGLY AND FRICTIONALLY RETAINED IN SAID OPEN POSITION, AND TO RESPECTIVELY AND SEALINGLY ENGAGE THE UPPER HORIZONTALLY EXTENDNG MEMBER OF SAID UPPER DOOR MEMBER AND THE LOWER HORIZONTALLY EXTENDING MEMBER OF SAID LOWER DOOR MEMBER WHEN SAID DOOR MEMBERS ARE IN THE CLOSED POSITION.