Drawer system including cover

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9869506-B2
Application number	US-201615157546-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 18, 2016
Priority date	May 18, 2015
Publication date	Jan 16, 2018
Grant date	Jan 16, 2018

Abstract

A drawer system includes a drawer and a drawer cover. The drawer can include an open top and be configured to be supported at a supporting structure, such as a refrigerator fresh food compartment for example, for selective sliding movement outwardly from the supporting structure and sliding movement inwardly toward the supporting structure. The drawer cover can be configured to be mounted at the supporting structure in engagement with the drawer at the open top of the drawer for movement directly vertically upwardly at the supporting structure away from the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved outwardly from the supporting structure and for movement directly vertically downwardly at the supporting structure toward the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved inwardly toward the supporting structure.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A drawer system including:
a drawer including an open top, the drawer configured to be supported at a supporting structure for sliding movement outwardly from the supporting structure and subsequent sliding movement inwardly toward the supporting structure; and
a drawer cover configured to be mounted at the supporting structure in engagement with the drawer at the open top of the drawer for movement directly vertically upwardly at the supporting structure away from the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved outwardly from the supporting structure and movement directly vertically downwardly at the supporting structure toward the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved inwardly toward the supporting structure,
wherein the supporting structure includes at least one hanger at the drawer cover that supports the drawer cover from a fixed anchor, and
wherein the at least one hanger includes a pin that is received in a vertical slot in the fixed anchor, thereby limiting the drawer cover to movement directly vertically upwardly at the fixed anchor away from the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved outwardly from the fixed anchor and movement directly vertically downwardly at the fixed anchor toward the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved inwardly toward the fixed anchor.

2. The drawer system of claim 1 wherein the drawer includes at least one drawer cover engaging component and the drawer cover includes at least one drawer engaging component in engagement with a one of the at least one drawer cover engaging component.

3. The drawer system of claim 2 wherein the at least one drawer cover engaging component includes a first portion, a second portion that is substantially coplanar with the first portion and an intermediate portion that joins the first portion and the second portion and is located further from the drawer cover than the first portion and the second portion.

4. The drawer system of claim 3 wherein the at least one drawer engaging component is rotatable along the first portion and intermediate portion of one of the at least one drawer cover engaging component when the drawer is moved outwardly from the supporting structure and when the drawer is moved inwardly toward the supporting structure.

5. The drawer system of claim 4 wherein the at least one drawer engaging component comprises a wheel that is mounted for rotation at the drawer cover.

6. The drawer system of claim 4 wherein the drawer includes a front end and a rear end, the first portion of the drawer cover engaging component is located nearer the rear end of the drawer than the front end of the drawer, the drawer engaging component is located at the first portion of the drawer cover engaging component when the drawer is located outwardly of the supporting structure and the drawer engaging component is located at the intermediate portion of the drawer cover engaging component when the drawer is located at the supporting structure.

7. The drawer system of claim 1 wherein the supporting structure comprises a refrigerator cabinet.

8. The drawer system of claim 1 wherein the drawer cover includes two hangers at each of two sides of the drawer cover.

9. A refrigerator that includes a fresh food compartment and a drawer system supported at the fresh food compartment, the drawer system comprising:
a drawer including an open top, the drawer configured to be supported at the fresh food compartment for selective sliding movement outwardly from an interior of the fresh food compartment toward an exterior of the fresh food compartment and sliding movement inwardly from the exterior of the fresh food compartment toward the interior of the fresh food compartment; and
a drawer cover configured to be mounted at the interior of the fresh food compartment in engagement with the drawer at the open top of the drawer for movement directly vertically upwardly within the fresh food compartment away from the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved outwardly from the interior of the fresh food compartment toward the exterior of the fresh food compartment and movement directly vertically downwardly within the fresh food compartment toward the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved inwardly from the exterior of the fresh food compartment toward the interior of the fresh food compartment,
wherein the drawer cover includes at least one hanger that supports the drawer cover from an anchor mounted to a side wall of the fresh food compartment, and
wherein the at least one hanger includes a pin that is received in a vertical slot in the anchor, thereby limiting the drawer cover to movement directly vertically upwardly at the anchor within the fresh food compartment away from the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved outwardly from the fresh food compartment and movement directly vertically downwardly at the anchor toward the open top of the drawer when the drawer is moved inwardly of the fresh food compartment.

10. The drawer system of claim 9 wherein the drawer includes at least one drawer cover engaging component and the drawer cover includes at least one drawer engaging component in engagement with a one of the at least one drawer cover engaging component.

11. The drawer system of claim 10 wherein the at least one drawer cover engaging component includes a first portion, a second portion that is substantially coplanar with the first portion and an intermediate portion that joins the first portion and the second portion and is located further from the drawer cover than the first portion and the second portion.

12. The drawer system of claim 11 wherein the at least one drawer engaging component is rotatable along the first portion and intermediate portion of one of the at least one drawer cover engaging component when the drawer is moved outwardly from the interior of the fresh food compartment toward the exterior of the fresh food compartment and when the drawer is moved inwardly from the exterior of the fresh food compartment toward the interior of the fresh food compartment.

13. The drawer system of claim 12 wherein the at least one drawer engaging component comprises a wheel that is mounted for rotation at the drawer cover.

14. The drawer system of claim 12 wherein the drawer includes a front end and a rear end, the first portion of the drawer cover engaging component is located nearer the rear end of the drawer than the front end of the drawer, the drawer engaging component is located at the first portion of the drawer cover engaging component when the drawer is located at the exterior of the fresh food compartment and the drawer engaging component is located at the intermediate portion of the drawer cover engaging component when the drawer is located at the interior of the fresh food compartment.

15. The drawer system of claim 9 wherein the drawer cover includes two hangers at each of two sides of the drawer cover.

Assignees

• Electrolux Home Prod Inc

Inventors

• Hanson Joshua
• Shrader Benjamin Paul
• Rizzi Saba
• Cho Nathan

Classifications

• A47B2210/08

  Covers or lids for sliding drawers · CPC title

• A47B2210/175

  Refrigerators or freezers · CPC title

• F25D25/025 Primary

  Drawers · CPC title

• F25D2325/00

  Charging, supporting or discharging the articles to be cooled, not provided for in other groups of this subclass · CPC title

• F25D2323/02

  Details of doors or covers not otherwise covered · CPC title