Divider for refrigerator drawer

• US 7,296,433 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2006
• Issued: 11/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: U-Line Corporation (Middleby Corporation)
• Original Assignee: U-Line Corporation (Middleby Corporation)
• Inventors: Bullis, Daniel R. Jr., Vaughn, Jack L., Doberstein, Andrew J., Braun, Joseph E., Verhalen, Ami M., Rand, Thomas W., Uihlein, Philip J., Reed, William A., Strazewski, Jennifer U.
• Primary Examiner(s): Jones; Melvin
• Application Number:
  US11/461,104
• Publication Number:
  US 20060260353A1
• Time in Patent Office: 477 Days
• Field of Search: 623/87, 624/40, 624/41, 312/402, 312/404
• US Class Current: 62/441
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 88/90 Constructional details of drawers
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 88/969 Drawers having means for organising or sorting the content
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 88/975 in the form of repositionable partition walls
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 88/988 in the form of holders for positioning specific articles
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 23/021 Sliding doors
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2331/803 Bottles
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2331/809 Holders
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 25/025 Drawers
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 31/007 Bottles or cans

Abstract

A drawer refrigerator, including an evaporator, compressor and condenser, has a partitioned cabinet with two vertically stacked pull-out drawers having drawer bins. A single evaporator is located adjacent both drawer cavities and is partitioned to keep the temperature in both drawer bins approximately equal. The pull-out drawers can have a bottle bin with recesses holding the necks of wine, soda or like bottles. The bottle bin slides on the top edges of the drawer bin at its sides and can be moved front to back. The pull-out drawers can have an underside compartment opening at both sides of the drawer containing a removable storage bin. The pull-out drawers can also have an adjustable divider fence with pairs of lateral and transverse divider rods extending between the side walls and between the door panels and the rear walls of the drawer bins. The rods are coupled by a hub having a hand operated screw knob for locking the position of the fence.

Claims

1. A divider fence for use in partitioning a drawer, comprising a lateral divider for extending between a first set of walls and a transverse divider for extending between a second set of walls, the lateral and transverse dividers being coupled and releasably locked together at a hub such that when the hub is unlocked the transverse divider can slide along a first axis and the lateral divider can slide along a second axis independent of the position of the other divider.

2. The divider fence of claim 1, wherein the hub of the divider fence includes a locking member contacting one of the dividers and pressing it against the other divider to inhibit relative movement.

3. The divider fence of claim 2, wherein the hub further includes a body having openings through which the dividers pass.

4. The divider fence of claim 3, wherein the locking member is a threaded knob that threads into a mating opening in the hub body.

5. The divider fence of claim 1, wherein the dividers are elongated rods.

6. The divider fence of claim 1, wherein the dividers have contact pads at each end.

7. The divider fence of claim 1, wherein there are two lateral dividers spaced apart in parallel and two transverse dividers spaced apart in parallel.

8. The divider fence of claim 7, wherein the two lateral dividers and the two transverse dividers are spaced apart vertically.

9. In a drawer refrigerator having an evaporator, a compressor receiving return refrigerant from the evaporator and a condenser coupled to the compressor and to the evaporator through a restriction, a cabinet defining a cavity with a front opening, and a pull-out drawer slidably mounted within the cavity of the cabinet having a front door panel at least partially closing the front opening and a drawer bin having a bottom, rear and opposite side walls, a divider fence for partitioning the drawer bin, comprising:

a lateral divider extending being the side walls of the drawer bin;

a transverse divider extending between the door panel and the rear wall of the drawer bin; and

a hub coupling and releasably locking the lateral and transverse dividers together such that when the hub is unlocked the transverse divider can slide between the sides of the drawer bin and the lateral divider can slide between the door panel and the rear wall of the drawer bin independent of the position of the other divider.

10. The divider fence of claim 9, wherein the hub of the divider fence includes a locking member contacting one of the dividers and pressing it against the other divider to inhibit relative movement.

11. The divider fence of claim 10, wherein the hub further includes a body having openings through which the dividers pass.

12. The divider fence of claim 11, wherein the locking member is a threaded knob that threads into a mating opening in the hub body.

13. The divider fence of claim 9, wherein the dividers are elongated rods.

14. The divider fence of claim 9, wherein the dividers have contact pads at each end.

15. The divider fence of claim 9, wherein there are two lateral dividers spaced apart in parallel and two transverse dividers spaced apart in parallel.

16. The divider fence of claim 15, wherein the two lateral dividers and the two transverse dividers are spaced apart vertically.

17. A divider fence for use in partitioning a drawer having a set of walls, the divider fence comprising dividers for extending between the walls, the dividers being coupled at a hub having a locking member which in a locked position inhibits sliding of a first of the dividers and in an unlocked position allows sliding of the first divider.

18. The divider fence of claim 17, wherein the locking member inhibits sliding of the first divider by contacting one of the dividers and pressing it against the other divider.

19. The divider fence of claim 17, wherein the locking member inhibits sliding of the first divider by contacting the first divider.

20. The divider fence of claim 17, wherein the locked position inhibits sliding of a second of the dividers.

21. The divider fence of claim 17, wherein the locking member inhibits sliding by pressing the first divider against a second of the dividers.

22. The divider fence of claim 17, wherein the hub further includes a body having openings through which the dividers pass.

23. The divider fence of claim 17, wherein the locking member turns between the locked and the unlocked positions.

24. The divider fence of claim 23, wherein the locking member is a turn knob that threads into a mating opening in the hub body.

25. The divider fence of claim 17, wherein the dividers are elongated rods.

26. The divider fence of claim 24, wherein the first divider includes a first pair of spaced rods and a second of the dividers includes a second pair of spaced rods between the first pair of spaced rods of the first divider.