Refrigerator door storage system

• US 6,085,542 A
• Filed: 06/30/1998
• Issued: 07/11/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Maytag Corporation (Whirlpool Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Maytag Corporation (Whirlpool Corporation)
• Inventors: Pohl, Douglas Alan, Johnson, Warren F., Dietz, Larry Edward, Albert, Jane
• Primary Examiner(s): Bennett, Henry
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jones, Melvin
• Application Number:
  US09/106,900
• Time in Patent Office: 742 Days
• Field of Search: 62/441, 62/465, 312/405, 312/292
• US Class Current: 62/441
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 11/02 with cooling compartments at different temperatures
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 23/025 Secondary closures
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 23/04 with special compartments, e.g. butter conditioners
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2400/06 Refrigerators with a vertical mullion
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 25/025 Drawers

Abstract

A refrigerated product storage system incorporates first, second and third vertically spaced storage sections carried by a unitary support frame attached to an inner wall portion of a fresh food compartment door of a refrigerator. In the most preferred form of the invention, the storage system includes an uppermost dairy compartment, an intermediate chill compartment, and a lower, slidable drawer. The chill compartment is provided with a door which is pivotably mounted about a vertical, inboard pivot axis, with the door being formed with a cut-out handle portion adapted to be aligned with a passageway formed in a partition separating freezer and fresh food compartments of the refrigerator. With this construction, a supply of low temperature air is directed from the freezer compartment directly into the chill compartment through the cut-out handle portion. The door of the chill compartment is provided with a latching mechanism, preferably an over-center acting latching mechanism. In addition, the slidable drawer cooperates with a locking mechanism, which is preferably located at an inboard, visually obstructed location to restrict access to the contents of the slidable drawer.

Claims

1. In a refrigerator including a cabinet shell within which is defined fresh food and freezer compartments separated by a partition, with the fresh food and freezer compartments being selectively accessed by opening respective doors, having respective inner wall portions, pivotally mounted about substantially vertical axes to the cabinet shell, a refrigerated product storage system comprising:

a first product support shelf projecting from the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door; and

a chill compartment door including an inner portion, an outer portion and a wrap around section, the inner portion of said chill compartment door being pivotally mounted for movement relative to the fresh food compartment door about a substantially vertical axis such that the chill compartment door is selectively movable between an open position, wherein access to the first shelf is provided, and a closed position, wherein the chill compartment door extends across the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door and the wrap around section projects towards the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door to enclose the first shelf within a chill compartment.

2. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 1, wherein the wrap around section of the chill compartment door is formed with a handle for manually shifting the chill compartment door.

3. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 2, wherein the handle is defined by a cut-out portion of the wrap around section.

4. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 3, further comprising:

an air passage formed in the partition, said cut-out portion being aligned with the air passage when the fresh food compartment door is closed in order to deliver a supply of cooling air from the freezer compartment to within the chill compartment.

5. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a second product support shelf mounted within the chill compartment.

6. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 5, wherein the second shelf is mounted for vertical repositioning within the chill compartment.

7. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 6, wherein the second shelf is adapted to be selectively positioned within the chill compartment in one of a lower, in-use position and an upper, non-use position.

8. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a storage system frame secured to the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door, said chill compartment door being directly, pivotally attached to the storage system frame.

9. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a dairy compartment, including a rotatably mounted cover, positioned vertically above the chill compartment.

10. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 9, further comprising:

a slidable storage drawer arranged vertically below the chill compartment.

11. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a mechanism for latching the chill compartment door in said closed position.

12. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 11, wherein said latching mechanism includes a pawl member pivotally attached to said first shelf, said pawl member being adapted to be received within a cavity formed in said chill compartment door.

13. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 12, wherein said latching mechanism further includes a over-center acting spring which is interconnected to said pawl member and biases said pawl member into one of latching and release positions.

14. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 12, wherein said cavity has an associated mouth into which said pawl member projects, said mouth being formed with a projection which engages said pawl member upon closing of the chill compartment door and a protrusion which engages said pawl member upon opening of the chill compartment door.

15. In a refrigerator including a cabinet shell within which is defined fresh food and freezer compartments separated by a partition, with the fresh food and freezer compartments being selectively accessed by opening respective doors, having respective inner wall portions, pivotally mounted about substantially vertical axes to the cabinet shell, a refrigerated product storage system comprising:

a first product support shelf projecting from the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door;

a chill compartment door including an inner portion and an outer portion, the inner portion of said chill compartment door being pivotally mounted for movement relative to the fresh food compartment door about a substantially vertical axis such that the chill compartment door is selectively movable between an open position, wherein access to the first shelf is provided, and a closed position, wherein the chill compartment door extends across the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment to enclose the first shelf within a chill compartment, said chill compartment door being formed with a cut-out portion; and

an air passage formed in the partition, said cut-out portion being aligned with the air passage when the fresh food compartment door is closed in order to deliver a supply of cooling air from the freezer compartment to within the chill compartment.

16. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 15, further comprising:

a storage system frame mounted to the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door, said chill compartment door being directly, pivotally attached to the storage system frame.

17. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 15, further comprising:

a dairy compartment, including a rotatably mounted cover, positioned vertically above the chill compartment.

18. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 17, further comprising:

a slidable storage drawer arranged vertically below the chill compartment.

19. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 15, further comprising:

a mechanism for latching the chill compartment door in said closed position.

20. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 19, wherein said latching mechanism includes a pawl member pivotally attached to said first shelf, said pawl member being adapted to be received within a cavity formed in said chill compartment door.

21. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 20, wherein said latching mechanism further includes a over-center acting spring which is interconnected to said pawl member and biases said pawl member into one of latching and release positions.

22. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 21, wherein said cavity has an associated mouth into which said pawl member projects, said mouth being formed with a projection which engages said pawl member upon closing of the chill compartment door and a protrusion which engages said pawl member upon opening of the chill compartment door.

23. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 15, wherein said chill compartment door further includes a wrap around section at the outer portion thereof, said cut-out portion being formed in the wrap around section.

24. In a refrigerator including a cabinet shell within which is defined fresh food and freezer compartments separated by a partition, with the fresh food and freezer compartments being selectively accessed by opening respective doors, each of which has an inner wall portion, pivotally mounted about substantially vertical axes to the cabinet shell, a refrigerated product storage system comprising:

a storage system frame mounted to the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door, said storage frame being divided into at least first and second distinct storage sections;

a first product support shelf carried by the storage frame, with the first shelf separating the first and second storage sections;

a second product support shelf carried by the storage frame at a lower end of the second storage section; and

first and second storage section covers, with the first cover being adapted to selectively extend across products placed upon the first shelf and the second cover being adapted to extend across products placed on the second shelf, each of the first and second covers being movably supported by the storage frame.

25. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 24, wherein the first storage section constitutes a dairy compartment, said first cover being rotatably mounted about a substantially horizontal axis.

26. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 25, wherein the second storage section constitutes a chill compartment, said second cover being pivotally mounted about a substantially vertical axis.

27. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 26, wherein the second cover comprises a chill compartment door including an inner portion, an outer portion and a wrap around section, the inner portion of said chill compartment door being pivotally mounted for movement relative to the fresh food compartment door about a substantially vertical axis such that the chill compartment door is selectively movable between an open position, wherein access to the second shelf is provided, and a closed position, wherein the chill compartment door extends across the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door and the wrap around section projects towards the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door to enclose the second shelf within a chill compartment.

28. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 27, wherein the wrap around section of the chill compartment door is formed with a handle for manually pivoting the chill compartment door.

29. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 28, wherein the handle is defined by a cut-out portion of the wrap around section.

30. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 29, further comprising:

an air passage formed in the partition, said cut-out portion being aligned with the air passage when the fresh food compartment door is closed in order to deliver a supply of cooling air from the freezer compartment to within the chill compartment.

31. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 27, further comprising:

a third product support shelf mounted within the chill compartment.

32. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 31, wherein the third shelf is mounted for vertical repositioning within the chill compartment.

33. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 32, wherein the third shelf is adapted to be selectively positioned within the chill compartment in one of a lower, in-use position and an upper, non-use position.

34. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 33, wherein the third shelf projects on both sides of a vertical plane defined by the storage frame when in either of the in-use or non-use positions.

35. In a refrigerator including a cabinet shell within which is defined fresh food and freezer compartments separated by a partition, with the fresh food and freezer compartments being selectively accessed by opening respective doors, each of which has an inner wall portion, pivotally mounted about substantially vertical axes to the cabinet shell, a refrigerated product storage system comprising:

first, second and third vertically spaced storage sections arranged on the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door, at least one of said storage sections being defined by a slidable drawer; and

a locking unit for preventing unauthorized opening of the slidable drawer.

36. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 35, wherein said slidable drawer has an inboard side and an outboard side, with the inboard side being located closer to the vertical axis about which the fresh food compartment door pivots than the outboard side, said locking unit being located on the inboard side of the slidable drawer.

37. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 36, wherein the locking unit comprises a lever shiftably mounted relative to the slidable drawer for movement between a locking position, wherein the slidable drawer is prevented from shifting relative to the fresh food compartment door, and an unlocking position, wherein the slidable drawer can be freely opened.

38. The refrigerated product storage system according to claim 36, further comprising:

a storage system frame mounted to the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door, each of the first, second and third vertically spaced storage sections being carried by the storage system frame.

39. In a refrigerator including a cabinet shell within which is defined fresh food and freezer compartments separated by a partition, with the fresh food and freezer compartments being selectively accessed by opening respective doors, each of which has an inner wall portion, pivotally mounted about substantially vertical axes to the cabinet shell, a refrigerated product storage system comprising:

a storage system frame mounted to the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door, said storage frame being divided into at least first, second and third vertically spaced and distinct storage sections arranged on the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door, at least one of said storage sections being defined by a slidable drawer;

a locking unit for preventing unauthorized opening of the slidable drawer;

a first product support shelf carried by the storage frame and projecting from the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door, with the first shelf separating the first and second storage sections;

a second product support shelf carried by the storage frame at a lower end of the second storage section;

first and second storage section covers, with the first cover being adapted to selectively extend across products placed upon the first shelf and the second cover being adapted to extend across products placed on the second shelf, each of the first and second covers being movably supported by the storage frame, said first cover constituting a chill compartment door including an inner portion, an outer portion and a wrap around section, the inner portion of said chill compartment door being pivotally mounted for movement relative to the fresh food compartment door about a substantially vertical axis such that the chill compartment door is selectively movable between an open position, wherein access to the first shelf is provided, and a closed position, wherein the chill compartment door extends across the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door and the wrap around section projects towards the inner wall portion of the fresh food compartment door to enclose the second shelf within a chill compartment, said chill compartment door being formed with a cut-out portion; and

an air passage formed in the partition, said cut-out portion being aligned with the air passage when the fresh food compartment door is closed in order to deliver a supply of cooling air from the freezer compartment to within the chill compartment.