KR-20260066472-A - REFRIGERATOR

Abstract

A refrigerator is disclosed. The refrigerator comprises a refrigerator door consisting of a first door that opens and closes the storage compartment of a cabinet and a second door that opens and closes the opening of the first door. A door opening device is installed inside the second door. The door opening device includes a pusher that receives power from a drive unit and presses the first door; and a rotating wheel mounted on one side of the pusher so as to be in contact with the first door. While the rotating wheel is in contact with the first door, the pusher can press the first door. The second door can be opened by a reaction force to the pressing force of the pusher. Through this, the rotating wheel can prevent wear between the first door and the pusher of the door opening device.

Inventors

• 권성원
• 장진호

Assignees

• 엘지전자 주식회사

Dates

Publication Date

20260512

Application Date

20241104

Claims (20)

1. Cabinet equipped with a storage room; A first door rotatably mounted on the cabinet to open and close the storage room and having an opening; A second door rotatably mounted on the first door to open and close the above opening; and It includes a door opening device installed inside the second door and automatically opening the second door, The above door opening device is, case; A driving unit installed inside the above case; A pusher connected to the above-mentioned drive unit and receiving power from the above-mentioned drive unit to press the first door; and It includes a rotating wheel mounted on one side of the pusher so as to be able to contact the first door, and A refrigerator in which the above pusher presses the first door while in contact with the first door through the above rotating wheel, and the second door is opened by the repulsive force of the first door against the pressing force of the pusher.
2. In paragraph 1, The above-mentioned rotating wheel is formed in a shape that is one or more of a combination of cylindrical, spherical, and circular.
3. In paragraph 1, A refrigerator in which the center of the above-mentioned rotating wheel is rotatably supported on one side of the pusher by a central axis, and the outer surface of the above-mentioned rotating wheel makes rolling contact with the first door as the pusher rotates.
4. In paragraph 1, The above pusher is, A first link installed inside the case to enable simultaneous linear movement and rotation; and It includes a second link hinge-coupled to one end of the first link so as to be rotatable in conjunction with the first link, and A refrigerator in which the above-mentioned rotating wheel is rotatably mounted on one end of the above-mentioned second link by a central axis, and the above-mentioned first link and the above-mentioned second link rotate in opposite directions according to the operation of the above-mentioned driving unit when the above-mentioned second door is opened.
5. In paragraph 1, The above door opening device is, It includes a second rack capable of linear movement in both directions, and The above pusher is, A first link hinged to the second rack and simultaneously moves linearly and rotates in accordance with the movement of the second rack; and A refrigerator comprising a second link hinge-coupled to one end of the first link and rotating in the opposite direction to the rotation direction of the first link.
6. In paragraph 5, The above door opening device is, A refrigerator comprising a first rack installed inside the case to receive power from the above-mentioned drive unit and enable linear movement in both directions, and which transmits the power to the second rack.
7. In paragraph 1, The above pusher is, A first link rotatably mounted around a first connecting pin; and It includes a second link that is hinge-coupled to the first link via a second coupling pin and is mounted to rotate in the opposite direction to the rotation direction of the first link around a third coupling pin. A refrigerator in which the above-mentioned rotating wheel is rotatably mounted on one end of the second link in a direction opposite to the third connecting pin with respect to the second connecting pin.
8. In Paragraph 7, The above door opening device is, It includes a second rack capable of linear movement in both directions, and One end of the first link is hinge-coupled to the second rack by the first coupling pin, so as to be able to move linearly together with the second rack and rotate.
9. In paragraph 8, The above second link is, It includes a link receiving portion that accommodates a part of the first link, and A refrigerator in which the other end of the first link is received in the link receiving portion and hinge-coupled to the second link by the second connecting pin.
10. In paragraph 1, The second door and the first door are arranged in the front-rear direction of the cabinet, and The above door opening device is, A first rack that extends in the left-right direction and is mounted inside the case to reciprocate in the left-right direction by receiving power from the drive unit; A refrigerator comprising a second rack connected to the first rack and mounted to be movable in the left and right directions together with the first rack.
11. In Paragraph 10, The above drive unit is composed of a motor, and It further includes a power transmission unit that transmits power from the above-mentioned drive unit to the first rack, and The above power transmission unit is, A drive gear connected to the above drive unit; and A refrigerator comprising a driven gear coupled to mesh with the above-mentioned driving gear at a preset gear ratio.
12. In Paragraph 11, The above-mentioned first rack is, A refrigerator comprising a rack gear that extends in the left-right direction and is coupled to mesh with the driven gear to convert the rotational power of the driven gear into linear power in the left-right direction.
13. In Paragraph 10, The above-mentioned first rack is, First contact projection; and It includes the first contact projection and the second contact projection spaced apart in the left and right directions, The above second rack is, A body extending in the left and right directions as described above; A refrigerator comprising an operating projection formed to protrude toward the first rack from one side of the body and disposed between the first contact projection and the second contact projection, which selectively contacts one of the first contact projection and the second contact projection according to a change in the position of the first rack to receive power from the first rack, wherein when the operating projection contacts the first contact projection, the second rack moves in one direction, and when the operating projection contacts the second contact projection, the second rack moves in the opposite direction to the one direction.
14. In Paragraph 13, The above-mentioned first rack is, It further includes a connecting projection that extends in the left-right direction between the first contact projection and the second contact projection and connects the first contact projection and the second contact projection. The above-mentioned operating projection is, A first portion extending in the above-mentioned front-rear direction and disposed between the first contact projection and the second contact projection, selectively contacting one of the first contact projection and the second contact projection; and A refrigerator comprising a second part extending in the left-right direction from one end of the first part.
15. In paragraph 1, It further includes a locking device provided inside the second door to lock or unlock the first door and the second door to each other, The above locking device is, A latch bar that extends in the vertical direction and is mounted to rotate in the forward and backward directions around a hinge pin; A latch protruding toward the first door from the bottom of the above latch bar; and A refrigerator comprising a latch hook protruding upward from the latch to engage with a catch provided on the first door.
16. In paragraph 15, The above locking device is, A refrigerator further comprising an operating part that protrudes toward the outside of the second door from the bottom of the latch bar so that a user can operate it.
17. In paragraph 15, The above door opening device is, A first rack that extends in the left-right direction inside the above case and is mounted to be able to move linearly in the left-right direction by receiving power from the above drive unit; It includes a cam provided at one end of the first rack and transmitting power from the first rack to the locking device to unlock the locking device when the second door is opened. The above cam is, A first contact surface formed at an angle in the interior of the above case, with respect to the front-rear direction, away from the locking device; and It includes a second contact surface extending in the left-right direction from the first contact surface, and The above locking device is, One end is coupled to the upper end of the latch bar, and the other end includes a rotating bar that extends in the left and right directions toward the first contact surface and contacts the first contact surface. A refrigerator in which, when the cam moves toward the rotating bar, the rotating bar rotates toward the first door along the first contact surface, thereby unlocking the locking device.
18. In Paragraph 17, A refrigerator in which the other end of the above-mentioned rotating bar is in the shape of a sphere or a hemisphere.
19. In paragraph 1, The above pusher is, A first link rotatably installed inside the above case; and It includes a second link hinge-coupled to one end of the first link so as to be rotatable in conjunction with the first link, and A refrigerator in which the first link and the second link are connected so as to be rotatable in opposite directions by a key.
20. In Paragraph 19, The above key is, An axis portion that performs the role of a rotation axis of the first link or the second link; and It includes a support member formed to protrude radially outward from one end of the shaft member and rotatably support the first link or the second link. A key receiving portion is provided in the first link or the second link, and The above key receiving part is, A shaft hole formed to penetrate in the vertical direction to accommodate the above shaft portion; A refrigerator comprising a support hole formed to be recessed radially outward from the shaft hole so as to allow the support member to pass through.

Description

Refrigerator The present invention relates to a refrigerator. Generally, a refrigerator may include a cabinet having a storage compartment and a door for opening and closing the storage compartment. The storage room is surrounded by insulating walls, maintaining an interior temperature lower than the outside temperature. Depending on the temperature range of the storage room, it can be classified as a refrigerator or a freezer. To put an object into the storage room or take it out of the storage room, the user opens the door. Generally, the door is rotatably provided on the cabinet, and a gasket is provided between the door and the cabinet. Therefore, when the door is closed, the gasket is tightly sealed between the door and the cabinet, preventing cold air from leaking from the storage room. The greater the sealing force of this gasket, the greater the effect of preventing cold air leakage. To increase the sealing force of the gasket, the gasket may be formed of a rubber magnet, and a magnet may be provided inside the gasket. However, if the sealing force of these gaskets increases, a correspondingly greater force is required to open the door. Therefore, recently, refrigerators with an automatic door opening function are being provided. A refrigerator is disclosed in the prior art Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2018-0119027. The refrigerator of the prior art includes a cabinet having at least one storage compartment inside, a door disposed on one side of the cabinet to open and close the storage compartment, and a door opening device that moves the door to open the storage compartment by the driving force of a motor. Specifically, the door may include an inner door that is in close contact with the front of the cabinet and an outer door positioned in front of the inner door. A door opening device is provided in the cabinet and opens the inner door by pushing it. However, in the case of the prior art, since the outer door opens together with the inner door when the inner door is opened, there is a disadvantage in that the outer door cannot be opened automatically. In addition, in the case of the prior art, the cabinet is equipped with a door opening device, and if the outer door is to be opened using the door opening device, there is a disadvantage in that the length of the door opening device increases and the structure becomes complex in order to push the outer door without interfering with the inner door. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the front of a refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a front view showing the second door of the refrigerator door in Figure 1 opened. Figure 3 is a front view showing the refrigerator door and freezer door in open state as in Figure 1. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the “IV” portion in FIG. 1, and is a conceptual diagram showing the first door and the second door when the locking device is in the locked position. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing the locking part of the first door in FIG. 4 where the locking device is engaged. Figure 6 is a conceptual diagram showing a pusher mounted on the rear of the second door in Figure 2. Figure 7 is a conceptual diagram showing the pusher protruding from the rear of the second door in Figure 6. Figure 8 is a conceptual diagram showing the door opening device in Figure 6 installed inside the second door. Figure 9 is a conceptual diagram showing the door opening device in Figure 8 as viewed from the bottom. FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the locked state of the locking device before operation of the door opening device when the second door is closed, viewed from the rear of the second door. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the locked state of the locking device before operation of the door opening device when the second door is closed, viewed from the front of the second door. FIG. 12 is a conceptual diagram of the locked state of the locking device before operation of the door opening device when the second door is closed, viewed from the rear of the second door. FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram of the locked state of the locking device before operation of the door opening device when the second door is closed, viewed from the front of the second door. FIG. 14 is a conceptual diagram showing the first rack of FIG. 10 viewed from the bottom. FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing the rotating bar and locking device disassembled from FIG. 10. Fig. 16 is a conceptual diagram showing the second rack in Fig. 10. FIG. 17 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the operation of the second rack according to the movement of the first rack in FIG. 10. FIG. 18 is a perspective view illustrating the combined relationship between the second rack and the pusher in FIG. 10. Fig. 19 is an exploded view of the second rack and pusher in Fig. 18. FIG. 20 is a conceptual diagram showing the operating state of the pusher according to the movement of the second rack in FIG. 18. FIG. 21 is a block diagram