Refrigerator

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016201976-A1
Application number	US-201615077017-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 22, 2016
Priority date	Feb 21, 2014
Publication date	Jul 14, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A refrigerator includes a cabinet having a storage compartment provided therein, a main door pivotably mounted at one side of the cabinet for opening and closing the storage compartment, an auxiliary storage compartment coupled to a rear of the main door, a sub door pivotably mounted at one side of the main door for opening and closing the auxiliary storage compartment, a locking device for selectively coupling the main door and the sub door to each other, a handle pivotably mounted at one side of the sub door for pivoting and opening the main door when pulled and releasing the locking device when pushed, and a lock control device mounted in the sub door for lock control with operation of the handle to release the locking device.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A refrigerator comprising:
a cabinet having a storage compartment; a main door pivotably mounted at one side of the cabinet; a sub door pivotably mounted at the main door; a handle mounted at one side of the sub door and having a vertical pivoting shaft; a catching protrusion provided at the main door, a hook member mounted at a horizontal pivoting shaft mounted in the sub door and configured to selectively engage with the catching protrusion, and a pivoting member integrally formed with the hook member and configured to pivot together with the hook member, the catching protrusion, the hook member, and the pivoting member being configured to selectively couple the main door with the sub door; a repulsion member disposed at one side of the main door or the sub door and configured to separate the sub door from the main door; and a push rod selectively coupled to a protrusion formed at one side of the handle, the protrusion having an inclined upper surface, and configured to pivot the pivoting member and to selectively release a locked state between the hook member and the catching protrusion according to an operation of the handle, wherein the sub door is separated from the main door and only the sub door is opened as a result of the handle being pushed, and the main door and the sub door are opened simultaneously while being coupled to each other as a result of the handle being pulled.

2 . The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the handle is formed to have a bar shape having a quadrangular section, the vertical pivoting shaft is mounted vertically at a lower end of the sub door, and the handle is configured to horizontally pivot about the vertical pivoting shaft.

3 . The refrigerator according to claim 2 , wherein the sub door has a step-shaped part that is located at a lower end of the sub door and that has a shape corresponding to the handle.

4 . The refrigerator according to claim 3 , wherein the push rod has an inclined bottom surface that corresponds to the inclined upper surface of the protrusion.

5 . The refrigerator according to claim 4 , wherein the pivoting member has an inclined bottom surface, and the push rod has an inclined upper surface that slidably contacts the inclined bottom surface of the pivoting member.

6 . The refrigerator according to claim 5 , wherein the push rod is vertically movably mounted and guided in a guide groove formed in the sub door and extending from the protrusion of the handle to the pivoting member.

7 . The refrigerator according to claim 6 , wherein the sub door has a pivoting groove formed on the guide groove and configured to allow the pivoting member to pivot therein.

8 . The refrigerator according to claim 7 , further comprising an elastic member mounted between one side of the hook member and the pivoting groove and configured to restore the hook member to an original position.

9 . The refrigerator according to claim 3 , wherein the handle is configured such that a front and a bottom surface of the handle are substantially co-planar with a front and a bottom surface of the sub door at a restored position of the handle.

10 . The refrigerator according to claim 9 , wherein the main door has a step-shaped part that is located at a lower end of the main door and that has a concave shape defining a handle groove opened downward between the step-shaped part and the handle.

11 . The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the pivoting groove has a lower end step that is located at a lower end of the pivoting groove communicating with the guide groove, and the push rod has a protruding part that is located at an upper end of the push rod and that is supported by the lower end step.

12 . The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the hook member and the push rod are disposed at an outside of a circumference of a gasket that is mounted at a rear of the sub door.

13 . The refrigerator according to claim 6 , wherein the guide groove has a support groove that is located at a lower end of the guide groove and that is stepped rearward and configured to allow the protrusion to be inserted thereinto.

14 . The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein
the catching protrusion is provided in a coupling groove formed at a front of the main door and configured to allow a front end of the hook member to be inserted thereinto, and the catching protrusion comprises: a catching groove formed at a middle portion of a protruding part protruding upward such that the catching groove is engaged with the hook member; and an inclined surface formed at a front of the catching groove and configured to guide the hook member such that the hook member is pivoted as a result of the hook member being inserted into the coupling groove.

15 . The refrigerator according to claim 14 , wherein the hook member comprises:
a pair of extension parts extending rearward from the horizontal pivoting shaft; and a catching pin coupled between the pair of extension parts and configured to be selectively inserted and caught into the catching groove.

16 . A refrigerator comprising:
a cabinet having a storage compartment; a main door pivotably mounted at one side of the cabinet; a sub door pivotably mounted at the main door; a handle mounted at a lower side of the sub door and having a vertical pivoting shaft; a catching protrusion provided at the main door, a hook member mounted at a horizontal pivoting shaft mounted at a middle height part of the sub door and configured to selectively engage with the catching protrusion, and a pivoting member integrally formed with the hook member and configured to pivot together with the hook member, the catching protrusion, the hook member, and the pivoting member being configured to selectively couple the main door with the sub door; a repulsion member disposed at one side of the main door or the sub door and configured to separate the sub door from the main door; and a push rod selectively coupled to a protrusion formed at one side of the handle and configured to pivot the pivoting member and to selectively release a locked state between the hook member and the catching protrusion according to an operation of the handle, wherein the push rod is inserted into a guide groove formed at an outside of a circumference of a gasket that is mounted at the sub door and extending vertically from the protrusion of the handle to the pivoting member, the push rod being configured to be vertically movably guided in the guide groove.

17 . The refrigerator according to claim 16 , wherein the sub door has a pivoting groove formed on the guide groove, having the horizontal pivoting shaft mounted therein, and configured to allow the pivoting member to pivot therein.

18 . The refrigerator according to claim 17 , further comprising an elastic member mounted in the pivoting groove and configured to provide a restoration force to pivot the hook member such that the hook member engages with the catching protrusion.

19 . The refrigerator according to claim 18 , wherein the handle is formed to have a bar shape having a quadrangular section, the vertical pivoting shaft is mounted vertically at a lower end of the sub door, and the handle is configured to horizontally pivot about the vertical pivoting shaft.

20 . The refrigerator according to claim 19 , wherein the sub door has a step-shaped part that is located at a lower end of the sub door and that has a shape corresponding to the handle.

21 . The

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Choi Kyukwan
• Kim Minsub
• Han Sungkyong

Classifications

• F25D23/04 Primary

  with special compartments, e.g. butter conditioners · CPC title

• F25D2323/023

  Door in door constructions · CPC title

• F25D25/00

  Charging, supporting, and discharging the articles to be cooled · CPC title

• E05C17/14

  Hook and eye, or equivalent · CPC title

• F25D23/00

  General constructional features (F25D21/00 takes precedence) · CPC title