Beverage refrigerator

• US 20060213852A1
• Filed: 03/20/2006
• Published: 09/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kwon, Yong Chol
• Application Number:
  US11/378,282
• Publication Number:
  US 20060213852A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 211/151
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/31 for refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 23/003 for cooling refrigerating machinery
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2323/00262 through the back top side
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2323/00278 from the top
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2323/024 Door hinges
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2331/803 Bottles
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2331/805 Cans
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2331/809 Holders
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2400/08 Refrigerator tables
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 25/021 combined with trays
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 25/025 Drawers

Abstract

A beverage refrigerator includes: a refrigerator body having a predetermined storage space surrounded by an evaporator; one or more beverage carriages, each of which is pushed into and drawn out of the storage space like a drawer, and on each of which beverages are stored; and as many doors as the beverage carriages, each of which has a first end hingedly assembled with a corresponding beverage carriage and a second end pivotable about the first end, so as to selectively open and close the storage space.

Claims

1. A beverage refrigerator comprising:

a refrigerator body having a predetermined storage space surrounded by an evaporator;

one or more beverage carriages, each of which is pushed into and drawn out of the storage space like a drawer, and on each of which beverages are stored; and

as many doors as the beverage carriages, each of which has a first end hingedly assembled with a corresponding beverage carriage and a second end pivotable about the first end, so as to selectively open and close the storage space.

2. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an inner case, by which the storage space is formed to have a shape of a hexahedron having an open front side, wherein the evaporator is disposed on a backside of the inner case and surrounds an upper side, a lower side, both lateral sides, and a backside of the storage space.

3. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, further comprising at least one partition member detachably assembled on one of the beverage carriages, so as to partition and support the beverages stored in the beverage carriage.

4. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 3, wherein each of the beverage carriages is mounted on a corresponding slider which moves forward and backward along guide rails provided at opposed portions of the lateral sides of the storage space.

5. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 4, wherein each of the doors has a lower end hingedly assembled with a front end of a corresponding slider and an upper end pivotable about the lower end.

6. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 5, wherein, when the storage space is completely opened, a rear surface of the door and an upper surface of the slider are located on one same plane.

7. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 6, further comprising at least one elastic member which provides an elastic force to a corresponding door in order to rotate the door toward a position at which the door closes the storage space.

8. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 7, wherein the elastic member comprises a torsion spring provided at a rotation shaft which serves a center of rotation for the door with respect to the slider.

9. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 7, wherein the elastic member comprises a coil spring having opposite ends held by a backside of the door and one side of the slider.

10. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 7, further comprising a locking means for preventing the door from being unintentionally rotated by an elastic force of the elastic member to close the storage space after the storage space is completely opened.

11. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 10, wherein the locking means comprises a locking protuberance and a locking groove formed at corresponding portions of the slider and the door, respectively.

12. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 7, wherein the elastic member provides elastic force to the door in both directions based on a middle position between a position at which the door completely closes the storage space and a position at which the door completely opens the storage space.

13. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, wherein a machine room for housing various elements constituting a cooling cycle is formed at an upper part of the refrigerator body.

14. The beverage refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the refrigerator body is designed to have a height equal to a height of other pieces of furniture disposed adjacent to the refrigerator body.