Docking station for a refrigerator

• US 8,276,399 B2
• Filed: 07/30/2008
• Issued: 10/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Original Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Inventors: Maglinger, Frank Weston
• Primary Examiner(s): Jules, Frantz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Comings, Daniel C
• Application Number:
  US12/182,177
• Publication Number:
  US 20090064705A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,525 Days
• Field of Search: 623/31, 623/77, 625/31
• US Class Current: 62/377
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 23/12 Arrangements of compartments additional to cooling compartments; Combinations of refrigerators with other equipment, e.g. stove

Abstract

The present invention provides a refrigerator having a docking station for holding electronic accessories tight against the door of the refrigerator. In one aspect of the present invention, the refrigerator includes a body having one or more doors, a docking station associated with the door, and having a receiving portion adapted to receive a module, and at least one spring associated with the docking station adapted to keep the docking station and the module flush against the door to eliminate variation and fit between the module and the door.

Claims

1. A refrigerator comprising:

a body having a door defining a front face bound by a peripheral edge including a topmost edge; and

a docking station comprising;

a receiving portion provided in the topmost edge and adapted to receive at least a portion of a module within the door, the receiving portion having at least one wall; and

at least one spring provided in the receiving portion and adapted to bias the at least a portion of the module toward the at least one wall.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising at least one fastener positioned on the front face of the door and adapted to couple with a corresponding fastener on the module.

3. The refrigerator of claim 2 wherein the at least one fastener is one of a hook fastener and a loop fastener and the corresponding fastener is the other of a hook fastener and a loop fastener.

4. The refrigerator of claim 2 wherein the at least one fastener is one of a suction cup and a surface capable of receiving a suction cup and the corresponding fastener is the other of a suction cup and a surface capable of receiving a suction cup.

5. The refrigerator of claim 2 wherein the at least one fastener is one of a magnetically active plate and at least one magnet and the corresponding fastener is the other of a magnetically active plate and at least one magnet.

6. The refrigerator of claim 5 wherein the at least one magnet comprises a pair of magnets, and further comprising a pole shoe mounted across the pair of magnets.

7. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the receiving portion is cup-shaped and includes a bottom wall attached to the at least one wall, and the at least one spring comprises a first pair of spring levers extending upward from the bottom wall.

8. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the module has an abutment shaped to mate within the docking station whereby the at least one spring presses the abutment toward the at least one wall.

9. The refrigerator of claim 7 wherein the docking station further comprises a top surface having parallel edges terminating in a pair of sidewalls, whereby one edge further comprises a second pair of spring levers extending generally downward from the edge and generally outward from the sidewall.

10. The refrigerator of claim 9 wherein the second pair of spring levers push against an interior of the door to bias the docking station toward an exterior of the door.

11. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the door further comprises an inner surface and the docking station further comprises at least one second spring which biases the docking station against the inner surface.

12. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the docking station is adapted to be positioned relative to the door by at least one snap adapted to enter the door and/or the module.

13. The refrigerator of claim 12 wherein the module has an aperture adapted to mate with the at least one snap on the docking station to secure the module to the docking station.

14. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the docking station further comprises at least one cavity adapted to receive a pin to secure a cap to the docking station.

15. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the docking station further comprises a mounting plate adapted to floatably house a connector having contact pins, whereby the contact pins in the connector are mateably received in the module when docked in the docking station.

16. The refrigerator of claim 15 wherein the connector is a power connector adapted to provide power to the module.

17. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the module is an electronic device.

18. The refrigerator of claim 17 wherein the electronic device is one of a portable media player docking station, a cell phone charging/hands-free docking station, a TV, a digital picture frame, a Web tablet, a message board, and a DVD system.

19. A refrigerator comprising:

a body having a door with an exterior surface and a topmost edge;

a docking station comprising;

a receiving portion provided in the topmost edge and adapted to receive at least a portion of a module within the door, the receiving portion having at least one wall; and

at least one pair of spring levers associated with the docking station and adapted to bias the module toward the at least one wall and keep the module flush against the exterior surface of the door.

20. The refrigerator of claim 19 wherein the at least one pair of spring levers is positioned within the receiving portion.

21. The refrigerator of claim 19 further comprising at least one second pair of spring levers positioned outside the docking station to keep the docking station flush against an inner sidewall of the exterior surface of the door.

22. The refrigerator of claim 19 wherein a ferrous metal plate is positioned behind the exterior surface of the door.

23. The refrigerator of claim 22 wherein the module has one or more magnets attracted to the ferrous metal plate to urge the module flush against the exterior surface of the door.

24. The refrigerator of claim 19 wherein the module further comprises an abutment adapted to be mateably received within the receiving portion, whereby the at least one pair of spring levers press against the abutment to bias the module toward the at least one wall.