REFRIGERATOR APPLIANCE HAVING A ROTATING COMPARTMENT LINER SEPARATING A FREEZER AND A CONVERTIBLE CHAMBER

Abstract

A refrigerator appliance includes a cabinet defining a primary chilled chamber and a compartment liner dividing the primary chilled chamber into a freezer chamber and a convertible chamber. The compartment liner is rotatable for accessing the freezer chamber and a door is rotatably mounted to the compartment liner for accessing the convertible chamber. The freezer chamber and the convertible chamber have approximately the same storage volume and are cooled using a single sealed system.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present subject matter relates generally to refrigerator appliances, and more particularly to door and chilled chamber configurations for refrigerator appliances.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Refrigerator appliances generally include a cabinet that defines one or more chilled chambers for receipt of food articles for storage. In addition, one or more doors are typically rotatably hinged to the cabinet to permit selective access to food items stored in chilled chamber(s). Refrigerator appliances are often classified according to the chamber configuration. For example, refrigerator appliances with a bottom mounted freezer compartment are referred to as bottom mount refrigerators, those with their freezer compartments on top are referred to as top mount refrigerators, and side-by-side refrigerators have the freezer and fresh food compartments positioned beside each other and extending vertically along a height of the appliance.

Conventional refrigerator appliances often have various limitations in terms of cooling, compartment configurations, and accessibility of stored food items. For example, current bottom mount configurations provide convenient access to fresh food storage and less convenient access to freezer storage. This is because the freezer is positioned close to the ground and requires the customer to bend down to reach items stored there. By contrast, current top mount configurations provide convenient access to the freezer chamber and not the fresh food chamber. Side-by-side refrigerators provide easy access to only portions of both compartments; however, neither compartment is wide enough for storing some common food items, such as frozen pizzas in a horizontal orientation.

Certain conventional refrigerator appliances use a door-in-door design for improved access. Such designs include a two-part door where an outer door can be opened to provide access to food items stored in a secondary storage space (e.g., on or in the door itself) or the complete door can be opened to provide access to contents in the fresh food compartment. However, such door-in-door configurations provide minimal secondary storage space and do not provide for cooling the compartments to different temperatures. In this regard, the freezer compartment of conventional door-in-door refrigeration appliances is still a separate compartment in the cabinet separated by a fixed divider or mullion.

Accordingly, a refrigerator appliance with features for improving access to items stored therein would be desirable. More particularly, a refrigerator appliance that provides chamber configurations facilitating convenient access to items stored therein and versatile cooling capabilities would be particularly beneficial.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the following description, or may be apparent from the description, or may be learned through practice of the invention.

In a first exemplary embodiment, a refrigerator appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction is provided. The refrigerator appliance includes a cabinet defining a primary chilled chamber. A compartment liner is rotatably mounted to the cabinet, the compartment liner dividing the primary chilled chamber into a first chilled chamber and a second chilled chamber when in a closed position, the compartment liner being movable to an open position to provide selective access to the first chilled chamber. A door is rotatably mounted to the compartment liner for providing selective access to the second chilled chamber.

According to another exemplary embodiment, a refrigerator appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction is provided. The refrigerator appliance includes a cabinet defining a primary chilled chamber. A compartment liner is rotatably mounted to the cabinet, the compartment liner dividing the primary chilled chamber into a freezer chamber and a convertible chamber when in a closed position, the compartment liner being movable to an open position to provide selective access to the freezer chamber. A door is rotatably mounted to the compartment liner for providing selective access to the convertible chamber and a sealed system is positioned within the primary chilled chamber for directly cooling the freezer chamber, the freezer chamber being in fluid communication with the convertible chamber through a flow control device.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including the best mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is set forth in the specification, which makes reference to the appended figures.

FIG. 1 provides a perspective view of a refrigerator appliance according to an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter.

FIG. 2 provides a perspective view of the exemplary refrigerator appliance of FIG. 1, with a compartment liner and a door in the open position to reveal a freezer chamber and a convertible chamber of the appliance.

FIG. 3 provides a perspective view of the exemplary refrigerator appliance of FIG. 1, with the compartment liner completely open to reveal the freezer chamber of the appliance.

FIG. 4 provides a cross sectional view of the exemplary refrigerator appliance of FIG. 1, taken along Line 4-4 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 provides a cross sectional view of the exemplary refrigerator appliance of FIG. 1, taken along Line 5-5 of FIG. 1.

Repeat use of reference characters in the present specification and drawings is intended to represent the same or analogous features or elements of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference now will be made in detail to embodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the drawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention, not limitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used with another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

FIG. 1 provides a perspective view of a refrigerator appliance 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter. Refrigerator appliance 100 includes a housing or cabinet 102 that extends between a top 104 and a bottom 106 along a vertical direction V, between a first side 108 and a second side 110 along a lateral direction L, and between a front side 112 and a rear side 114 along a transverse direction T. Each of the vertical direction V, lateral direction L, and transverse direction T are mutually perpendicular to one another.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter, cabinet 102 defines a primary chilled chamber 120. In this regard, primary chilled chamber 120 includes substantially the entire volume defined in enclosed by cabinet 102. It should be appreciated that as used herein, terms of approximation, such as “approximately,” “substantially,” or “about,” refer to being within a ten percent margin of error. More specifically, as best illustrated in FIG. 2, refrigerator appliance 100 defines no divider walls or mullions typical in top mount, bottom mount, side-by-side, and other refrigerator appliances. In addition, as best illustrated schematically in FIG. 4, cabinet 102 may define a machinery compartment 122 for housing a sealed system 124. For example, according to the illustrated embodiment, sealed system 124 is positioned proximate bottom 106 and rear side 114 of refrigerator appliance 100, although alternative positions and configurations may be used according to alternative embodiments. For simplicity of discussion, the details of operation of sealed system 124 are not discussed herein.

Referring now specifically to FIGS. 2 through 5, a refrigerator appliance 100 further includes a compartment liner 130 which is rotatably mounted to cabinet 102. More specifically, one or more hinge mechanisms (not shown) may be used permit compartment liner 130 to move or rotate between an open position (e.g., as shown in FIG. 3) and a closed position (e.g., as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5). According to exemplary embodiments, compartment liner 130 may be any suitably rigid component suitable for supporting bins, shelves, and other storage components as well as food items located thereon. For example, compartment liner 130 may be a thermoformed liner or molded plastic. In addition, compartment liner 130 may be made from one or more pieces and may include a thin layer of insulation within its walls.

Compartment liner 130 may define a rear sealing surface 132 that is configured for forming a substantially airtight seal with cabinet 102 when compartment liner 130 is in the closed position. More specifically, rear sealing surface 132 is defined on a flange 134 that extends outward along all sides of compartment liner 130 and may include one or more gaskets or resilient sealing members (not shown) according to exemplary embodiments. In addition, compartment liner 130 may comprises a handle or recessed hand grip (not shown) to permit a user to grasp and open compartment liner 130.

Notably, as best illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, compartment liner 130 divides primary chilled chamber 120 into a first chilled chamber and a second chilled chamber when compartment liner 130 is in the closed position. More specifically, according to the exemplary embodiment described herein, the first chilled chamber is a freezer chamber 140 and the second chilled chamber is a convertible chamber 142. Thus, when compartment liner 130 is in the closed position, rear sealing surface 132 seals against cabinet 102 to define a substantially airtight storage volume within freezer chamber 140. More specifically, freezer chamber 140 is defined between cabinet 102 and a rear surface 144 of compartment liner 130. In addition, compartment liner 130 may be used to provide selective access to freezer chamber 140. In this regard, a user may rotate compartment liner 130 to the open position to access food items stored within freezer chamber 140. According to an exemplary embodiment, sealed system 124 may be in direct fluid communication with freezer chamber 140 for providing a flow of cooling air therein.

Referring now specifically to FIG. 2, refrigerator appliance 100 further includes a door 150 that is rotatably mounted to compartment liner 130 for providing selective access to convertible chamber 142. In this regard, door 150 may be mounted directly to compartment liner 130 or cabinet 102 using any suitable hinge mechanism. In addition, door 150 may be rotated relative to both cabinet 102 and compartment liner 130. Thus, in the closed position, door 150 may define a door sealing surface 152 that is configured for sealing against a front sealing surface 154 defined by compartment liner 130. More specifically, front sealing surface 154 may be positioned opposite rear sealing surface 132 on flange 134 of compartment liner 130. In addition, one or more gaskets or resilient sealing members may be positioned between door 150 and compartment liner 130 to ensure convertible chamber 142 is substantially airtight. According to an exemplary embodiment, compartment liner 130 and door 150 may extend across an entire width and height of cabinet 102.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter, sealed system 124 may be used to cool both freezer chamber 140 and convertible chamber 142. In this regard, for example, refrigerator appliance 100 may include one or more flow control devices 160 (see, e.g., FIG. 4) which are used to regulate the flow of cooling air into and out of convertible chamber 142. For example, according to an exemplary embodiment, flow control device 160 may be a set of louvers that are positioned on compartment liner 130 and are configured to selectively open and close to adjust the amount of air passing into convertible chamber 142. In this regard, for example, a controller of refrigerator appliance 100 may be operably coupled to the louvres and may regulate their position in order to obtain the desired temperature within convertible chamber 142.

Although flow control device 160 is illustrated herein as being a set of louvers defined in compartment liner 130, it should be appreciated that according to alternative embodiments any other means for regulating the temperature of convertible compartment 142 may be used. For example, one or more fans may be positioned in compartment liner 130 and may be used for urging the flow of cooling air into convertible chamber 142. Alternatively, cabinet 102 may define internal passages that are in fluid communication with convertible chamber 142, or convertible chamber 142 may have a dedicated sealed system according to alternative embodiments. In addition, flow control device 160 may be positioned at any other suitable location in or on cabinet 102, compartment liner 130, or door 150.

In this manner, according to exemplary embodiments, sealed system 124 is generally configured for maintaining the temperature within freezer chamber 140 at or around conventional freezer temperatures, e.g., approximately 0° F. By contrast, the temperature within convertible chamber 142 may be adjusted within a wide range (e.g., between about 0° F. and 60° F.). Specifically, because compartment liner 130 is insulated and flow control devices 160 may regulate the flow of cool air into convertible chamber 142, freezer chamber 140 and convertible chamber 142 may be maintained at substantially different temperatures. For example, according to an exemplary embodiment, freezer chamber 140 may be maintained at a temperature that is cooler than convertible chamber 142 by 30° F., 40° F., 50° F., or any other suitable temperature. Thus, convertible chamber 142 may be used as an additional freezer chamber, as a fresh food chamber, as a wine storage chamber, or a chamber suitable for storing food items at any other suitable temperatures.

Referring now generally to FIGS. 2 through 5, cabinet 102, compartment liner 130, and door 150 may have any suitable geometries and dimensions for improving storage and access of food items. For example, according an exemplary embodiment, freezer chamber 140 defines a first depth 170 measured along the transverse direction T and the convertible chamber 142 defines a second depth 172 measured along the transverse direction T. According to exemplary embodiments, the second depth 172 may be greater than 30%, 40%, or greater than 50% of the first depth 170. In addition, according to another embodiment, compartment liner 130 may divide primary chilled chamber 120 into two substantially equivalent volume chambers, e.g., such that first depth 170 is substantially equivalent to second depth 172.

According to other exemplary embodiments, compartment liner 130 may divided primary chilled chamber 120 into any suitable storage volumes having any suitable geometry. For example, freezer chamber 140 may define a first storage volume and convertible chamber 142 may define a second storage volume. According to exemplary embodiments, the second storage volume is greater than 40%, 50%, or greater than 60% of the first storage volume. According to still another embodiment, the first storage volume is substantially equivalent to the second storage volume.

According to an exemplary embodiment, compartment liner 130 may further include a rear access door 180 that facilitates improved access to items stored within convertible chamber 142 when compartment liner 130 is in the open position. For example, as best illustrated in FIG. 3, rear access door 180 is rotatably mounted to compartment liner 130. According to another exemplary embodiment, some or all of compartment liner 130 and/or rear access door 180 may be transparent to improve visibility of items stored therein or otherwise reduce the visual weight of the door.

As shown generally in FIGS. 2 through 5, various storage components may be mounted within freezer chamber 140 and convertible chamber 142 to facilitate storage of food items therein as will be understood by those skilled in the art. In particular, the storage components may include bins 190 and shelves 192. Each of these storage components are configured for receipt of food items (e.g., beverages and/or solid food items) and may assist with organizing such food items. It should be appreciated that the illustrated storage components are used only for the purpose of explanation and that other storage components may be used and may have different sizes, shapes, and configurations.

As described above, aspects of the present invention are directed to an improvement to the door-in-door design, where when the door is opened, the user will be provided access to a convertible compartment that will have an adjustable temperature (e.g., between 0° F. and 60° F.). When the door and compartment liner are opened, the user will have access to a freezer chamber. This design provides single motion access to either fresh food or freezer storage. In addition, a single cooling system and evaporator can be placed in the primary compartment and the temperature in the convertible chamber can be easily adjusted with airflow. The full width freezer chamber also provides sufficient storage space for storing a frozen pizza horizontally, while also providing fresh food storage that is equally accessible.

As one skilled in the art will appreciate, the above described embodiments are used only for the purpose of explanation. Modifications and variations may be applied, other configurations may be used, and the resulting configurations may remain within the scope of the invention. For example, refrigerator appliance 100 is described herein as having a single compartment divided by compartment liner 130 and a single door. It is recognized, however, that the benefits of the present disclosure apply to other types and styles of refrigerator appliances such as, e.g., a bottom mount, top mount, a side-by-side, or another single door refrigerator appliance. Consequently, the description set forth herein is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to be limiting in any aspect to any particular refrigerator chamber configuration. One skilled in the art will appreciate that such modifications and variations may remain within the scope of the present subject matter.

This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they include structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal languages of the claims.

Claims

1. A refrigerator appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction, the refrigerator appliance comprising;

a cabinet defining a primary chilled chamber;

a compartment liner rotatably mounted to the cabinet, the compartment liner dividing the primary chilled chamber into a first chilled chamber and a second chilled chamber when in a closed position, the compartment liner being movable to an open position to provide selective access to the first chilled chamber, the compartment liner comprising a flange that extends outward along all sides of the compartment liner, the flange defining a rear sealing surface that seals against the cabinet in the closed position;

a door rotatably mounted to the compartment liner for providing selective access to the second chilled chamber, the door sealing against a front sealing surface of the flange in the closed position; and

a rear access door rotatably mounted to the compartment liner to provide selective access to the second chilled chamber.

2. The refrigerator appliance of claim 1, wherein the first chilled chamber is a freezer compartment and the second chilled chamber is a convertible compartment.

3. The refrigerator appliance of claim 2, wherein a temperature in the convertible compartment is adjustable between 0° F. and 60° F.

4. The refrigerator appliance of claim 1, wherein the first chilled chamber is maintained at a first temperature and the second chilled chamber is maintained at a second temperature, the second temperature being at least 30° F. higher than the first temperature.

5. The refrigerator appliance of claim 1, wherein the first chilled chamber defines a first depth measured along the transverse direction and the second chilled chamber defines a second depth measured along the transverse direction, the second depth being greater than 50% of the first depth.

6. The refrigerator appliance of claim 5, wherein the first depth is substantially equivalent to the second depth.

7. The refrigerator appliance of claim 1, wherein the first chilled chamber defines a first storage volume and the second chilled chamber defines a second storage volume, wherein the second storage volume is greater than 60% of the first storage volume.

8. The refrigerator appliance of claim 7, wherein the first storage volume is substantially equivalent to the second storage volume.

9. (canceled)

10. The refrigerator appliance of claim 1, wherein the rear access door is transparent.

11. The refrigerator appliance of claim 1, wherein the compartment liner and the door extends across an entire width and an entire height of the cabinet and the door extends across an entire width and an entire height of the compartment liner.

12. The refrigerator appliance of claim 1, wherein the first chilled chamber and the second chilled chamber are cooled using a single sealed system.

13. A refrigerator appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction, the refrigerator appliance comprising:

a cabinet defining a primary chilled chamber;

a compartment liner rotatably mounted to the cabinet, the compartment liner dividing the primary chilled chamber into a freezer chamber and a convertible chamber when in a closed position, the compartment liner being movable to an open position to provide selective access to the freezer chamber, the compartment liner comprising a flange that extends outward along all sides of the compartment liner, the flange defining a rear sealing surface that seals against the cabinet in the closed position;

a door rotatably mounted to the compartment liner for providing selective access to the convertible chamber, the door sealing against a front sealing surface of the flange in the closed position:

a rear access door rotatably mounted to the compartment liner to provide selective access to the convertible chamber; and

a sealed system positioned within the primary chilled chamber for directly cooling the freezer chamber, the freezer chamber being in fluid communication with the convertible chamber through a flow control device.

14. The refrigerator appliance of claim 13, wherein the flow control device is a set of louvres positioned on the compartment liner.

15. The refrigerator appliance of claim 13, wherein a temperature in the convertible compartment is adjustable between 0° F. and 60° F.

16. The refrigerator appliance of claim 13, wherein the freezer chamber defines a first depth measured along the transverse direction and the convertible chamber defines a second depth measured along the transverse direction, the second depth being greater than 50% of the first depth.

17. The refrigerator appliance of claim 16, wherein the first depth is substantially equivalent to the second depth.

18. The refrigerator appliance of claim 13, wherein the freezer chamber defines a first storage volume and the convertible chamber defines a second storage volume, wherein the second storage volume is greater than 60% of the first storage volume.

19. The refrigerator appliance of claim 18, wherein the first storage volume is substantially equivalent to the second storage volume.

20. (canceled)

21. The refrigerator appliance of claim 1, wherein the compartment liner comprises a layer of insulation within walls of the compartment liner.

22. The refrigerator appliance of claim 13, wherein the compartment liner comprises a layer of insulation within walls of the compartment liner.