Refrigerator door opening/closing apparatus
First Claim
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1. A refrigerator comprising:
- a stationary housing;
a door hinged to said housing for rotation about an upright axis between open and closed positions; and
a door opening/closing assist mechanism, comprising;
a guide member fixed to one of said housing and door and forming a guide curvature,a roller mounted on the other of said housing and door, andan elastic member yieldably biasing said roller toward and against said guide curvature, so that said roller follows said curvature during opening and closing movements of said door,said guide curvature being shaped for displacing said roller in a first direction during an initial stage of said opening and closing movements to cause said elastic member to store energy, and for enabling said roller to be displaced in a second direction during a final stage of said opening and closing movements by released energy from said elastic member to apply a force to said door which assists in the performance of said final stage of movement, said guide curvature including first and second convexly shaped curves defining respective ones of said initial and final stages of each of said opening and closing movements.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A refrigerator includes a door hinged to a housing, and a door opening/closing assist device which aids in opening and closing the door. The device includes a spring-biased roller carried by the door and a guide plate carried by the housing. The guide plate forms a guide curvature against which the roller is elastically biased. The guide curvature is shaped so that during an initial stage of a door opening (or closing) movement the roller is displaced by the guide curvature to cause the spring to store energy, and so that during a final stage of the door opening (or closing) movement, the spring releases energy and forces the door to assist the performance of the final stage.
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Citations
16 Claims
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1. A refrigerator comprising:
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a stationary housing; a door hinged to said housing for rotation about an upright axis between open and closed positions; and
a door opening/closing assist mechanism, comprising;a guide member fixed to one of said housing and door and forming a guide curvature, a roller mounted on the other of said housing and door, and an elastic member yieldably biasing said roller toward and against said guide curvature, so that said roller follows said curvature during opening and closing movements of said door, said guide curvature being shaped for displacing said roller in a first direction during an initial stage of said opening and closing movements to cause said elastic member to store energy, and for enabling said roller to be displaced in a second direction during a final stage of said opening and closing movements by released energy from said elastic member to apply a force to said door which assists in the performance of said final stage of movement, said guide curvature including first and second convexly shaped curves defining respective ones of said initial and final stages of each of said opening and closing movements. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A refrigerator comprising:
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a stationary housing; a hinge member fixed to said refrigerator adjacent one side thereof; a guide member fixed to said hinge member and forming guide curves along an edge thereof; a door mounted to said hinge member about an upright hinge axis to be rotatable about said axis between open and closed positions, said door including a recess formed therein; an elastic member mounted in said recess, a roller support engaging said elastic member; a roller mounted on said roller support for movement therewith and biased toward and against said guide curvature by said elastic member so that said roller follows said guide curvature during opening and closing movements of said door, said guide curvature being shaped for displacing said roller in a first direction during an initial stage of said opening and closing movements to cause said elastic member to store energy, and for enabling said roller to be displaced in a second direction during a final stage of said opening and closing movements by released energy from said elastic member to apply a force to said door which assists in the performance of said final stage of movement. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A refrigerator comprising:
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a stationary housing; a door hinged to said housing for rotation about an upright axis between open and closed positions; and a door opening/closing assist mechanism, comprising; a guide member fixed to one of said housing and door and forming a guide curvature, a roller mounted on the other of said housing and door, and an elastic member yieldably biasing said roller toward and against said guide curvature, so that said roller follows said curvature during opening and closing movements of said door, said guide curvature being shaped for displacing said roller in a first direction during an initial stage of said opening and closing movements to cause said elastic member to store energy, and for enabling said roller to be displaced in a second direction during a final stage of said opening and closing movements by released energy from said elastic member to apply a force to said door which assists in the performance of said final stage of movement, said guide curvature comprising a first curve defining an initial stage of said opening movement and a final stage of said closing movement, and a second curve defining an initial stage of said closing movement and an initial stage of said opening movement. - View Dependent Claims (16)
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Specification