Refrigerator door assembly with thermal break frame
First Claim
1. A door mounting frame for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet and within which a door can be operatively mounted comprisinga forward structural frame member mountable within said cabinet opening, said forward structural member having a first wall portion that extends outwardly in overlapping relation with a front face of said cabinet about the periphery of said cabinet opening and jamb portion extending rearwardly thereof,a separate rear structural member positioned rearwardly of said jamb portion and having a portion extending inwardly into said opening for establishing a door closure sealing surface located inwardly of said first structural member against which said door closes,non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between the rear side of said jamb portion and said rear structural member for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, andmeans rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween.
11 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A refrigerator door assembly having a thermally efficient door mounting frame which includes a forward structural frame member mounted within the opening of a refrigerator cabinet for providing an attractive finished appearance for the frame, a separate rear structural frame member for establishing a door closure sealing surface against which doors of the assembly close and which may be made of less expensive and/or less heat conductive material than the forward structural frame member, and a flexible plastic barrier sheet interposed between the forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other. Stitch like connections are formed from adjacent connecting flanges of the forward and rear structural members for rigidly coupling the structural members together without substantial contact therebetween. Various magnetically attractable sealing strip arrangements are disclosed that are adapted for use in low temperature refrigeration units without condensation or frost build up.
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Citations
33 Claims
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1. A door mounting frame for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet and within which a door can be operatively mounted comprising
a forward structural frame member mountable within said cabinet opening, said forward structural member having a first wall portion that extends outwardly in overlapping relation with a front face of said cabinet about the periphery of said cabinet opening and jamb portion extending rearwardly thereof, a separate rear structural member positioned rearwardly of said jamb portion and having a portion extending inwardly into said opening for establishing a door closure sealing surface located inwardly of said first structural member against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between the rear side of said jamb portion and said rear structural member for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, and means rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween.
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7. A door mounting frame for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet and within which a door can be operatively mounted comprising
a forward structural frame member mountable within said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural member for establishing a door closure sealing surface against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between said forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, means rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween, said forward structural member including a first wall portion that extends outwardly in overlapping relation with the front face of said cabinet about the periphery of said cabinet opening and a jamb portion extending rearwardly of said front wall portion, first foam insulating means disposed adjacent said jamb portion between said jamb portion and the periphery of said cabinet opening, second foam insulating means adjacent a rear side of said rear structural member, and, a unitary retaining member for maintaining said first and second foam insulating means in adjacent relation to said forward and rear structural frame members respectively.
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12. A door mounting frame for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet and within which a door can be operatively mounted comprising
a forward structural frame member mountable within said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural member for establishing a door closure sealing surface against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between said forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, means rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween, said forward structural member being in the form of an outwardly opening channel which includes a first wall portion that extends outwardly in overlapping relation with the front face of said cabinet about the periphery of said cabinet opening and a jamb portion extending rearwardly of said front wall portion, first foam insulating means disposed in the channel opening of said forward structural member adjacent said jamb portion between said jamb portion and the periphery of said cabinet opening, and second foam insulating means disposed adjacent the rear side of said rear structural member.
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17. A refrigerator door assembly for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet comprising
a door mounting frame, at least one insulated door mounted on said frame for pivotal movement between open and closed position, said door mounting frame including a forward structural frame member mountable in adjacent relation to the periphery of said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural frame member for establishing a stop against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between said forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, means rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween, a non-metallic closure plate covering a front side of said rear structural frame member, a magnetically attractive sealing strip mounted on said closure plate for defining a sealing surface, and a magnetic gasket mounted on said door for sealing contact with said sealing strip when said door is in a closed position.
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21. A refrigerator door assembly for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet comprising
a door mounting frame, at least one insulated door mounted on said frame for pivotal movement between open and closed position, said door mounting frame including a forward structural frame member mountable in adjacent relation to the periphery of said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural frame member for establishing a stop against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between said forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, means rigidly coupled to said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween, said door mounting frame further including at least one vertically disposed mullion extending across said cabinet opening between top and bottom sides of said door mounting frame, said mullion including a channel shaped structural frame member, first foam insulating means adjacent a rear side of said mullion structural frame member, and non-metallic means for retaining said foam insulating means in adjacent relation to said mullion structural frame member.
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26. A refrigerator door assembly for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet comprising
a door mounting frame, at last one insulated door mounted on said frame for pivotal movement between open and closed position, said door mounting frame including a forward structural frame member mountable in adjacent relation to the periphery of said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural frame member for establishing a stop against which said door closes, said structural members each being formed with a connecting flange, said connecting flanges being disposed in parallel side-by-side relation, non-metallic thermal barrier means in the form of a sheet of flexible plastic material interposed between said connecting flanges of forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, and means rigidly coupling said connecting flanges of said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween.
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29. A refrigerator door assembly for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet comprising
a door mounting frame, at least one insulated door mounted on said frame for pivotal movement between open and closed positions, said door mounting frame including a forward structural frame member mountable in adjacent relation to the periphery of said cabinet opening, said forward structural member having a first wall portion that extends outwardly in overlapping relation with a front face of said cabinet about the periphery of said cabinet opening and a jamb portion extending rearwardly thereof, a separate rear structural frame member positioned rearwardly of said jamb portion and having a portion extending inwardly into said opening for establishing a stop located inwardly of said first structural member against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between a rear side of said jamb portion and said rear structural member for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, and means rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween.
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30. A door mounting frame for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet and within which a door can be operatively mounted comprising
a forward structural frame member mountable within said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural member for establishing a door closure sealing surface against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between said forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, said structural members each being formed with a connecting flange, said connecting flanges being disposed in parallel side-by-side relation with said thermal barrier means interposed therebetween, means rigidly connecting said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween, and said connecting means comprising a plurality of stitch connections in the form of discrete sections of said connecting flanges with said interposed thermal barrier means being deformed onto a side of one of said connecting flanges.
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31. A door mounting frame for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet and within which a door can be operatively mounted comprising
a forward structural frame member mountable within said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural member for establishing a door closure sealing surface against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means in the form of a sheet of flexible plastic material interposed between said forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, and means rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween.
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32. A door mounting frame for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet and within which a door can be operatively mounted comprising
a forward structural frame member mountable within said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural member for establishing the location of a door closure sealing surface against which said door closes, a non-metallic closure plate covering a front side of said rear structural frame member, a magnetically attractive sealing strip mounted on said closure plate for defining said sealing surface, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between said forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, and means rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween.
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33. A refrigerator door assembly for mounting in an opening of a refrigerator cabinet comprising
a door mounting frame, at least one insulated door mounted on said frame for pivotal movement between open and closed position, said door mounting frame including a forward structural frame member mountable in adjacent relation to the periphery of said cabinet opening, a separate rear structural frame member for establishing a stop against which said door closes, non-metallic thermal barrier means interposed between said forward and rear structural members for thermally insulating the structural members from each other, means rigidly coupling said forward and rear structural members together without substantial contact therebetween, a magnetically attractive sealing strip mounted on said door, a magnetic gasket mounted on said rear structural frame member for sealing contact with said sealing strip when said door is in a closed position, and a compression gasket mounted on said rear structural frame member in outwardly spaced relation to said magnetic gasket for engaging said door in outwardly spaced relation to said sealing strip for blocking communication of ambient air to said sealing strip when said door is in a closed position.
Specification