Refrigerator

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11199033-B2
Application number	US-201615310037-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 7, 2016
Priority date	Sep 11, 2015
Publication date	Dec 14, 2021
Grant date	Dec 14, 2021

Abstract

Disclosed is a refrigerator, more particularly a refrigerator including dual doors that are convenient to use. The refrigerator includes a main body having a storage space therein, a first door hinged to the main body for opening and closing the storage space, a door frame provided at the first door, a second door hinged to the first door, the second door having a side wall, at least a portion of which is inserted into the door frame, and a catching part provided in the side wall, and a locking device for selectively allowing the second door to be turned with respect to the first door, wherein the locking device includes a moving member, the displacement of which is changed depending on the open or closed state of the first door, and a catching member, the displacement of which is changed depending on the displacement of the moving member, whereby the protruding length of the catching member from the door frame is changed, the catching member being selectively caught in the catching part.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A refrigerator comprising:
a main body having a main storage space therein;
a first door hinged to the main body and configured to open and close the main storage space, the first door including:
a decoration trim disposed at an upper portion of the first door,
an opening defined at a middle portion of the first door, and
a sub storage space defined at a rear portion of the first door;

a second door hinged to the first door and configured to open the opening to thereby provide access to the sub storage space through the opening, the second door comprising disposed at an upper surface of the second door; and
a locking device disposed in the decoration trim of the first door and configured to restrict movement of the second door with respect to the first door, the locking device comprising:
a housing inserted in a recess defined at the decoration trim,
a moving member configured to horizontally slide in the housing in a forward-rearward direction based on a movement of the first door,
an elastic member configured to push the moving member within the housing, and
a catching member configured to contact the moving member and to vertically slide along a surface of the housing based on a movement of the moving member such that a lower portion of the catching member is selectively inserted in the catching part of the second door,

wherein contacting surfaces of the moving member and the catching member include inclined surfaces, and
wherein the catching member includes a protruding part that is disposed at a front surface of the catching member, that faces the surface of the housing, and that is configured to reduce a friction area between the catching member and the surface of the housing.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of a side wall of the second door is configured to be inserted into the opening of the first door.

3. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the catching member is configured to linearly move toward an inside of the decoration trim in a vertical direction.

4. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the contacting surfaces include:
a first inclined surface defined at the moving member; and
a second inclined surface defined at the catching member and configured to slide with respect to the first inclined surface in a state of contacting the first inclined surface, and
wherein the first inclined surface is configured to contact the second inclined surface based on the first door closing the main storage space.

5. The refrigerator according to claim 4 , wherein at least one of the first inclined surface or the second inclined surface comprises another protruding part for reducing a frictional area of the contacting surfaces, and
wherein the protruding part of the at least one of the first inclined surface or the second inclined surface extends in parallel to a moving direction of the at least one of the first inclined surface or the second inclined surface.

6. The refrigerator according to claim 4 , wherein the second inclined surface includes an upper end and a lower end, and
wherein a distance between the upper end of the second inclined surface and a front surface of the first door is greater than a distance between the lower end of the second inclined surface and the front surface of the first door.

7. The refrigerator according to claim 5 , wherein the second inclined surface is configured to slide with respect to the first inclined surface based on a linear displacement of the moving member being changed, and
wherein the catching member is configured to move in a direction perpendicular to the linear displacement of the moving member of the moving member.

8. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the housing defines:
a first through part at a rear part of the housing, at least a portion of the moving member being configured to move through the first through part; and
a second through part at a front lower part of the housing, at least a portion of the catching member being configured to move through the second through part.

9. The refrigerator according to claim 8 , wherein the first door comprises:
a rear wall that defines a first through hole, at least a portion of the moving member being configured to move through the first through hole; and
a door frame that defines a second through hole, at least a portion of the catching member being configured to move through the second through hole.

10. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the protruding part extends in parallel to a moving direction of the catching member.

11. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein a rotary axis of the first door and a rotary axis of the second door extends in parallel to each other.

12. The refrigerator according to claim 11 , wherein the rotary axes of the first and second doors are perpendicular to a ground, and the first door and the second door are configured to be opened in a same direction.

13. The refrigerator according to claim 12 , wherein the locking device is provided at a position of the first door that is laterally opposite to a position at which the rotary axis of the first door is located.

14. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a first door gasket provided at a rear wall of the first door, the first door gasket defining a first closed loop configured to block a leakage of cool air,
a second door gasket that is provided at a rear wall of the second door and defines a second closed loop configured to block the leakage of cool air,
wherein the moving member is located outside the first closed loop, and
wherein the catching part is located outside the second closed loop.

15. The refrigerator according to claim 14 , wherein the moving member is configured to, based on the first door coming into contact with the main body, be pushed by the main body and move toward a front of the first door, and
wherein the catching member is configured to, based on the moving member moving toward the front of the first door, move upward and be released from the catching part.

16. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the first door further includes a decoration trim cover that covers the recess of the decoration trim.

17. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the housing includes:
a lower housing that receives the moving member, the catching member, and the elastic member; and
an upper housing coupled to an upper portion of the lower housing.

18. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the moving member includes a push bar and a conversion member connected to the push bar, the conversion member being configured to transmit a displacement of the push bar to the catching member.

19. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the contacting surfaces are inclined with respect to the front surface of the catching member and disposed rearward relative to the front surface of the catching member in the forward-rearward direction.

20. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the catching member is configured to move into the catching part of the second door along a vertical direction, and
wherein the protruding part and the surface of the housing extend in the vertical direction.

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Yi Myeongha
• Kim Nami

Classifications

• F25D2323/023

  Door in door constructions · CPC title

• F25D2323/021

  French doors · CPC title

• F25D23/028 Primary

  Details · CPC title

• E05C7/02

  for wings which lie one behind the other when closed {(E05C7/002 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• E05C1/006 Primary

  parallel to the wing edge · CPC title