Refrigerator or freezer cabinet

• US 6,874,333 B2
• Filed: 08/01/2001
• Issued: 04/05/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aktiebolaget Electrolux
• Original Assignee: Aktiebolaget Electrolux
• Inventors: Johansson, Lennart, Fjaestad, Adam, Miefalk, Håkan, Jonsson, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): Jiang, Chen Wen
• Application Number:
  US10/343,033
• Publication Number:
  US 20040065108A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,343 Days
• Field of Search: 624/07, 624/40, 624/41, 625/15, 165/146
• US Class Current: 62/407
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 39/02 Evaporators
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 11/00 Self-contained movable devices, e.g. domestic refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 17/062 in household refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2400/16 Convertible refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2500/02 Geometry problems

Abstract

At a refrigerator or freezer cabinet (10) with a space for storing goods, an evaporator (38) extends along the rear wall (18) of the cabinet and confines in sidewards direction a chamber (52), which is also confined by the rear wall (18) and an intermediate wall (44) arranged in front of the rear wall. An opening (54) is arranged in the intermediate wall (44), through which opening an impeller (56) sucks in air from the space and blows the air out into the chamber (52), the cross sectional area of which decreasing in vertical direction so that the air is evenly distributed along the evaporator (38) before the air in sidewards direction passes through the evaporator out into the space along the rear wall, from where the air circulates further on through the space between shelves located therein back to the opening (54).

Claims

1. Refrigerator or freezer cabinet (10) comprising:

a space (29) for goods, which space is confined by a rear wall (18), first and second side walls (20 and 22), a top wall (24), a bottom wall (26) and a door (58);

a chamber defined by the rear wall (18) and an intermediate wall arranged in front of the rear wall;

an impeller (56) of a fan for circulating air through the space (29);

an element (38;

38A) for refrigerating the air circulated through the element by the impeller (56) in order to thereby refrigerate the goods, wherein the element (38;

38A) extends horizontally along the rear wall (18);

a chamber (52) defined by the element (38;

38A), the rear wall (18) and an intermediate wall (44) arranged in front of the rear wall;

an opening (54;

54A) in the intermediate wall (44), wherein the impeller (56) sucks in air from the space (29) through the opening (54;

54A) and into the chamber (52); and

shelves (30) located within the space;

wherein the cross sectional area of the chamber decreases in a vertical direction so that the air is evenly distributed along the element (38;

38A) before passing horizontally through the element out into the space (29) along the rear wall, then between the shelves (30), and then back to the opening (54).

2. The cabinet according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate wall (44) is substantially parallel with the rear wall (18) and the element (38;

38A) is covered by the intermediate wall (44).

3. The cabinet according to claim 2, wherein the element (38) has a long and narrow shape and the opening (54) is located in an upper part of the intermediate wall (44).

4. The cabinet according to claim 3, wherein the intermediate wall (44) extends about 60% of a distance between the first and second side walls (20 and 22).

5. The cabinet according to claim 2, wherein the element (38A) has the shape of a V and the opening (54A) is located proximate to a point of said V.

6. The cabinet according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate wall (44) has a substantially rectangular shape and extends from the bottom wall (26) to the top wall (24) and from the second side wall (22) towards the second side wall (20), so that the intermediate wall covers a part of the rear wall (18).