Refrigerated drawer and divider assembly therefor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9347704-B2
Application number	US-201414155415-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 15, 2014
Priority date	Jan 15, 2014
Publication date	May 24, 2016
Grant date	May 24, 2016

Abstract

A divider assembly for a refrigerated drawer includes a plurality of dividers to form a plurality of adjustable storage compartments. Each of the dividers has a slot formed therein to receive a guide portion of another divider. The guide portions of a first divider are configured to slidably engage the guide portions of a second divider. The slots form openings which allow a cooling airflow to circulate between the storage compartments.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A refrigeration device, comprising:
a housing including an interior space;
a cooling unit to direct a cooling airflow into the interior space to cool the interior space;
a drawer to store items, the drawer including a bottom wall with a first pair of parallel grooves extending below a top surface of the bottom wall and a second pair of parallel grooves that are perpendicular to the first pair of parallel grooves and extend below the top surface, the drawer being slidably received in the housing;
a plurality of sub-grooves disposed within each of the first pair of parallel grooves and the second pair of parallel grooves; and
a plurality of dividing walls to separate the drawer into at least three adjustable storage compartments,
wherein each of the dividing walls comprises
a material with a thickness and includes an opening formed through the thickness to slidably receive a portion of another dividing wall, and
at least two feet that extend downward and are configured to slide horizontally within one of the first pair of parallel grooves and the second pair of parallel grooves, and
wherein the openings are configured such that the cooling airflow is allowed to circulate through each of the at least three storage compartments.

2. The refrigeration device of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of dividing walls includes at least three dividing walls.

3. The refrigeration device of claim 1 , wherein the at least three adjustable compartments comprises at least six adjustable compartments.

4. The refrigeration device of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of dividing walls has an elongate substantially planar configuration.

5. The refrigeration device of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of dividing walls comprises a first dividing wall and a second dividing wall, the first dividing wall including at least one first slot extending through the first dividing wall and along a length direction of the first dividing wall, the second dividing wall including at least one second slot extending through the second dividing wall and along a length direction of the second dividing wall,
wherein a portion of the first dividing wall is configured to extend through the second slot, and a portion of the second dividing wall is configured to extend through the first slot such that the first dividing wall is adjustable relative to the second dividing wall along the second slot and the second dividing wall is adjustable relative to the first dividing wall along the first slot.

6. A refrigeration device, comprising:
a housing including an interior space;
a cooling unit to cool the interior space;
a drawer to store food items, the drawer having a bottom storage surface and being slidably received in the housing, the bottom storage surface including a first pair of parallel grooves extending below the bottom storage surface and a second pair of parallel grooves that are perpendicular to the first pair of parallel grooves and extend below the bottom storage surface, and including a plurality of sub-grooves disposed within each of the first pair of parallel grooves and the second pair of parallel grooves; and
a divider assembly disposed in the drawer, the divider assembly comprising:
at least one first divider having an elongate substantially planar configuration and comprising a material with a first thickness, the first divider including at least one first slot extending through the first thickness and along a length direction of the first divider and including a first foot and a second foot extending downward below the bottom storage surface into the first pair of parallel grooves and allowing horizontal adjustment of the at least one first divider; and
at least one second divider having an elongate substantially planar configuration and comprising a material with a second thickness, the second divider including at least one second slot extending through the second thickness and along a length direction of the second divider and including a third foot and a fourth foot extending downward below the bottom storage surface into the second pair of parallel grooves and allowing horizontal adjustment of the at least one second divider,
wherein a portion of the first divider is configured to extend through the second slot, and a portion of the second divider is configured to extend through the first slot such that the first divider is adjustable relative to the second divider along the second slot and the second divider is adjustable relative to the first divider along the first slot.

7. The divider assembly of claim 6 , wherein the portion of the first divider is at least a first guide portion having at least one first guide surface, the portion of the second divider is at least one second guide portion having at least a second guide surface.

8. The divider assembly of claim 7 , wherein the at least one first guide surface is configured to engage the at least one second guide surface.

9. The divider assembly of claim 8 , wherein the at least one first guide surface is configured to slidably engage the at least one second guide surface when the first divider is adjusted relative to the second divider.

10. The divider assembly of claim 9 , wherein the at least one second guide surface is configured to slidably engage the at least one first guide surface when the second divider is adjusted relative to the first divider.

11. The refrigeration device of claim 6 , wherein the drawer includes a bottom wall to support the divider assembly, the bottom wall including a top surface.

12. The refrigeration device of claim 11 , further comprising a locating member disposed on the bottom wall, the locating member including grooves extending below the top surface and configured to locate the first foot and the second foot of the first divider and the third foot and the fourth foot of the second divider.

13. A method of dividing a drawer space in a refrigerator, the method comprising:
providing the drawer space with a bottom storage surface, the bottom storage surface including a first pair of parallel grooves extending below the bottom storage surface and a second pair of parallel grooves that are perpendicular to the first pair of parallel grooves and extend below the bottom storage surface, and including a plurality of sub-grooves disposed within each of the first pair of parallel grooves and the second pair of parallel grooves
providing at least one first divider in the drawer space of the refrigerator, the first divider having an elongate substantially planar configuration with a first thickness, the first divider including at least one first slot extending through the first thickness and along a length direction of the first divider and including a first foot and a second foot extending downward below the bottom storage surface of the drawer space into the first pair of parallel grooves and allowing horizontal adjustment of the at least one first divider;
providing at least one second divider in the drawer space of the refrigerator, the second divider having an elongate substantially planar configuration with a second thickness, the second divider including at least one second slot extending through the second thickness and along a length direction of the second divider and including a third foot and a fourth foot extending downward below the bottom storage surface into the second pair of parallel grooves and allowing horizontal adjustment of the at least one second divider;
positioning a portion of the first divider to extend through the second slot, and positioning a portion of the second divider to extend through the first slot; and
at least one of adjusting the

Assignees

• Bsh Home Appliances Corp

Inventors

• Mok Andy
• Ringemann Laura

Classifications

• F25D25/025 Primary

  Drawers · CPC title

• A47B88/975

  in the form of repositionable partition walls · CPC title

• Y10T29/49826

  Assembling or joining · CPC title

• F25D23/069

  Cooling space dividing partitions · CPC title