A DRAWER ASSEMBLY FOR A HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE

Abstract

A drawer assembly for a household appliance, in particular for a cooling appliance, includes a conduit protection cover having a longitudinal body and a housing slot extending longwise along the longitudinal body for guiding a conduit. The longitudinal body has an elongated portion allowing the conduit to extend along the housing slot, an enlarged portion projecting outwardly in a radial direction of the longitudinal body for housing fitting members of the conduit, and a narrowed portion provided at one end of the longitudinal body. The narrowed portion is configured to be inserted into an inlet opening on a panel of the household appliance and the enlarged portion is positioned between the narrowed portion and the elongated portion.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a drawer assembly according to the preamble of claim 1.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In recent years, refrigerators have become increasingly multi-functional with changes of dietary lives and gentrification of products, and refrigerators having various structures and convenience devices for the convenience of users and for efficient use of internal spaces have been released. Also, refrigerators may be classified into various types according to an arranged configuration of the storage space and a structure of the door for opening and closing the storage space.

The refrigerator door may be classified as a rotation-type door that opens and closes a storage space through rotation thereof or as a drawer-type door. The drawer-type door is often disposed in a lower region of the refrigerator.

With the continuous development of refrigerator technology, it has become necessary to use more wiring harnesses between the storage spaces and the door of the refrigerator in order to provide the needed power supply. Therefore, more wire harnesses are being laid around the drawer assembly in drawer-type doors. During the pushing and pulling process, the wire harnesses are often entangled with each other due to the large number of wire harnesses, which makes it hard to effectively use the drawer. Moreover, these wire harnesses cause an undesirable appearance within the household appliance and also pose a danger to the user.

The state of the art document numbered WO2019242223 (A1) discloses a cable retaining device for a bottom-freezer type refrigerator and a refrigerator having the same. The cable retaining device comprises: a guide portion; a slide rail structure disposed at two ends of the guide portion, the slide rail structure comprising a first slide rail provided at an inner wall of a refrigerator cabinet and a rotating mechanism meshed with the first slide rail; a rotating portion connected to the rotating mechanism; a linear motion portion provided on the guide portion; and a connecting line having a first end electrically connected to a power supply portion of the refrigerator cabinet and a second end, extending into an inner portion of a freezer drawer of the refrigerator, and being wound around or passing through the linear motion portion and extending from the rear thereof into a sidewall of the freezer drawer. The rotating mechanism is driven to rotate in a circumferential direction by the motion of the meshed rotating mechanism, and the rotating mechanism is rotated in the circumferential direction, such that the connecting line is driven by the linear motion portion to move in a lengthwise direction of the guide portion to perform a retracting or releasing motion.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the invention is to provide a drawer assembly for use in a cooling appliance, ensuring long-term preservation for conduits and conduit connections and enhancing the user safety by preventing the contact of the conduit to the drawer assembly and to the user, while presenting simplicity in both appearance and use.

The present invention proposes a drawer assembly for a household appliance, in particular for a cooling appliance, comprising a conduit protection cover. The conduit protection cover has a longitudinal body and a housing slot extending longwise along the longitudinal body for guiding a conduit. The longitudinal body has an elongated portion allowing the conduit to extend along the housing slot, an enlarged portion projecting outwardly in a radial direction of the longitudinal body for housing the fitting members of the conduit, and a narrowed portion provided at one end of the longitudinal body. The narrowed portion is configured to be inserted into an inlet opening on a panel of the household appliance. According to this arrangement, the enlarged portion is positioned between the narrowed portion and the elongated portion. This three-parts arrangement ensures that both the conduit and the fitting members of the conduit are being securely carried along the conduit protection cover and that no parts of the conduit are in direct contact with the drawer assembly. This brings also the prevention of the visibility of the conduit and the interference of the user with the conduit and the fitting members when the drawer assembly is in use. Thus, long-term preservation of conduits and conduit connections and user safety are provided. Here, the term of “conduit” can be any kind of conduit such as a cable carrying electricity, or a pipe carrying any kind of fluid (ie. water) or gas.

In a possible embodiment, the drawer assembly comprises two opposing guiding slides, wherein the elongated portion is configured to be attached on at least one of the guiding slides by means of at least one connection bracket. Thus, the attachment of the conduit protection cover to the drawer assembly is provided without preventing the sliding motion of the drawer when in use.

In a possible embodiment, the drawer assembly comprises at least two brackets each configured to be detachably attached on a connection lug positioned on the elongated portion. By this arrangement, the conduit protection cover can be fixed to the guiding slide in a detachable way, thus providing ease of disassembly of the conduit protection cover when needed. In an embodiment, the connection brackets have Z-shaped form.

In a possible embodiment, the narrowed portion has a retaining lug that partially covers the housing slot for enclosing a respective length of the conduit within the narrowed portion such that the conduit does not come into contact with the panel of the household appliance. This arrangement ensures that the conduit is fully engaged into the narrowed portion, thus preventing the conduit from coming out of the housing slot so that the user cannot see and touch the conduit when the drawer assembly is in use.

In a possible embodiment, the enlarged portion has at least two opposing fixing clips for holding the fitting members within the enlarged portion. This arrangement enables the specific fixation of the fitting members, thus securing both the conduit and the user. Moreover, the fixing clips make it possible to detachably assemble and disassemble the fitting member into the housing.

In a possible embodiment, wherein the enlarged portion further has at least two opposing fixing ribs such that the fitting members are firmly settled into the enlarged portion. Thus, the stability of the fitting members when attached in the enlarged portion is enhanced. Accordingly, the fitting member is prevented from being unintentionally detached from the enlarged portion.

In a possible embodiment, the enlarged portion further comprises a support protrusion that is configured to enable disassembly of the conduit by creating a certain distance between the conduit and a surface of the enlarged portion facing the housing slot. This protrusion arrangement forms a depth within the enlarged portion that provides ease of assembly, thus enabling to take the fitting member out of the housing slot without damaging the conduit.

In a possible embodiment, the panel of the household appliance is a door panel comprising a first wall and a second wall spaced apart from the first wall, wherein the door panel is provided with a conduit holder that is embedded between the first wall and the second wall and comprising a receiving opening on the first wall for enabling the conduit to be inserted into the door panel. By this arrangement, the conduit holder provides an entrance for the insertion of the narrowed portion into the panel and also guides the conduit such that that the conduit is prevented from coming into contact with any part of the panel. In an embodiment, the receiving opening is covered by an opening lid such that the opening lid allows the entrance of the narrowed portion and thus the conduit.

In a possible embodiment, the conduit holder is configured to be fixedly attached on at least the second wall by means of a mounting interface. Accordingly, the position of the conduit holder in the door panel is fixed, thus preventing the conduit from being damaged. In an embodiment, the mounting interface is attached on the second wall by means of an adhesive material.

In a possible embodiment, the conduit holder comprises a leading duct as an extension of the receiving opening for guiding and directing the conduit within the door panel. In this way, the guidance of the conduit is maintained within the door panel as well.

In a possible embodiment, an insulation material is provided between the first wall and second wall. This arrangement prevents the conduit holder from tilting and dislocating thus providing a full fixation for the conduit holder and therefore the conduit within the door panel. It also ensures the preservation of the cold air within the drawer assembly by reducing heat exchange. Here, the insulation material can be any kind of material that provides insulation between the first wall and the second wall. In an embodiment, the insulation material is being a polyurethane foam.

In a possible embodiment, the conduit holder has a carrier frame with more than one transfer holes. The transfer holes enable the passage of the insulation material when it is in fluid state through the conduit holder.

In a possible embodiment, the drawer assembly further comprises a sealing material between the first wall and the conduit holder such that the insulation material cannot leak into the conduit holder. This arrangement eliminates the risk of the contact between the insulation material and the conduit, thus preventing the conduit from chemical damaging.

In a possible embodiment, the conduit is being an electrical cable and wherein the fitting members are being at least two corresponding cable connectors connecting to each other. This arrangement provides electrical current to the drawer assembly.

The present invention also proposes a household appliance, particularly a cooling appliance comprising a drawer assembly according to any of the preceding embodiments. Accordingly, a household appliance having the advantages mentioned in the preceding embodiments is achieved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The accompanying drawings are given solely for the purpose of exemplifying the invention whose advantages over prior art were outlined above and will be explained in detail hereinafter:

FIG. 1 shows a detailed perspective view of the conduit protection cover according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows an extended perspective view of a conduit protection cover according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows a detailed perspective view of a drawer assembly in which a conduit protection cover is connected to a panel of a household appliance, according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of a conduit holder according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 shows a door panel with the conduit holder according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 shows a partially exploded perspective view of a drawer assembly having a conduit protection cover, a conduit holder, a sealing material, and connection brackets, according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 shows a top perspective view of a drawer assembly in which a conduit protection cover is connected to a door panel with a conduit holder, according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 shows a detailed perspective view of a drawer assembly in which the conduit protection cover is connected to a door panel of and the receiving opening is covered by an opening lid, according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 shows a side view of a drawer assembly in which a conduit protection cover is attached to a guiding slide and connected to a door panel, according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 shows a perspective view of a drawer assembly in which a conduit protection cover with connection brackets and connected to a door panel, according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 shows a perspective view of an elongated portion of a conduit protection cover with connection brackets, according to the present invention.

FIG. 12 shows a detailed perspective view of an elongated portion with a connection lug, according to the present invention.

FIG. 13 shows a perspective view of a cooling appliance comprising the drawer assembly according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The present application proposes a drawer assembly (100) for a household appliance, in particular for a cooling appliance. The drawer assembly (100) has a conduit protection cover (1) and a housing slot (3) extending longwise along the longitudinal body (2) for guiding a conduit (C), as depicted in FIG. 2. The conduit protection cover (1) mainly comprises three portions which are an elongated portion (23), an enlarged portion (21) and a narrowed portion (22).

FIG. 1 shows the enlarged portion (21) in which fitting members (F) of the conduit (C) are embedded when the drawer assembly (100) is in use. Accordingly, the enlarged portion (21) is projecting outwardly in a radial direction of the longitudinal body (2) for housing the fitting members (F) as seen in FIG. 1. Referring again to FIG. 1, the enlarged portion (21) has two fixing clips (211), two fixing ribs (212) and a support protrusion (213).

The fixing clips (211) are arranged for holding the fitting members (F) within the enlarged portion (21). The fixing ribs (212), on the other hand, clamp the fitting members (F) in such a way that the fitting members (F) are firmly settled into the enlarged portion (21). The fitting members (F) embedded and fixed in the enlarged portion (21) by means of the fixing clips (211) and the fixing ribs (212) can be seen in FIG. 3 and FIG. 7.

The support protrusion (213) is located on a surface of the enlarged portion (21) facing the housing slot (3) as depicted in FIG. 1. It creates a mounting distance between the fitting members (F) and the inner surface of the enlarged portion (21) when the fitting members are settled in. The assembly and disassembly of the fitting members (F) are carried out with the help of this distance. Herein, “the inner surface” refers to the surface of the enlarged portion (21) facing the housing slot (3).

FIG. 2 depicts that the enlarged portion (21) is positioned between the narrowed portion (22) and the elongated portion (23). Thus, when the drawer assembly (100) is in use, the conduit (C) extends along the elongated portion (23) and then passes through the enlarged portion (21) to the narrowed portion (22). The narrowed portion (22) is responsible for transmitting the conduit into a panel of the household appliance (P) such that the conduit (C) is not visible to the user. Referring to FIG. 3, the narrowed portion (22) is provided at one end of the longitudinal body (2) to be inserted into the panel of the household appliance (P). When the drawer assembly (100) is in use, the user can only see the enlarged portion (21) and the elongated portion (23) as the narrowed portion (22) is inserted into an inlet opening (A) on the panel of the household appliance (P). The conduit (C), on the other hand, is hidden in the housing slot (3) thus also invisible to the user as the user only sees the outer surface of the longitudinal body (2), when the drawer assembly (100) is in use. Herein, “the outer surface” refers to the surface of the enlarged portion (21) not facing the housing slot (3).

Moreover, a retaining lug (221) that partially covers the housing slot (3) is provided on the narrowed portion (22). FIG. 1 also depicts the narrowed portion (22) with the retaining lug (221). As can be seen in FIG. 3 and FIG. 7, the conduit (C) extends through the housing slot (3) so as to pass between the narrowed portion (22) and the retaining lug (221). Referring to FIG. 3, the retaining lug (221) keeps the conduit (C) engaged in the narrowed portion (22) and plays a role in improving the guiding of the conduit (C), thereby preventing the conduit (C) from contacting the panel of the household appliance (P).

Referring to FIG. 7, the panel of the household appliance (P) is a door panel (11) comprising a first wall (12) and a second wall (13) spaced apart from the first wall (12). Further a conduit holder (4) is provided embedded in the door panel (11) and positioned between the first wall (12) and the second wall (13). The conduit holder (4) comprises a receiving opening (5) on the first wall (12) that enables the conduit (C) to be inserted into the door panel (11). Accordingly, the conduit (C) is transferred from the narrowed portion (22) directly to the conduit holder (4) without touching any part of the door panel (11). The receiving opening (5) extends into a leading duct (6), thus providing the guidance of the conduit (C) within the door panel (11).

FIG. 5, FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 depict the conduit holder (4) embedded in the door panel (11). Accordingly, the conduit holder (4) has a mounting interface (7) that is fixedly attached on the second wall (13) of the door panel (11). Furthermore, the conduit holder (4) can be seen in FIG. 4 in more detail. More than one transfer holes (81) are provided on a carrier frame (8). The transfer holes (81) are configured to allow the passage of a fluid material, for example an insulation material, through the conduit holder (4).

The drawer assembly (100) is further provided with a sealing material (14) positioned between the first wall (12) and the conduit holder (4) as can be seen in FIG. 7. FIG. 6 also shows the sealing material (14) in an exploded perspective view. The sealing material (14) is in the form of a ring framing the receiving opening (5).

According to the present invention, the conduit (C) is an electrical cable and the fitting members (F) are at least two corresponding cable connectors connecting to each other. FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 depict the electrical cable and the corresponding cable connectors which are all engaged into the longitudinal body (2).

Referring to FIG. 8, the receiving opening (5) is covered by an opening lid (15) for further coverage of the conduit (C). Accordingly, the narrowed portion (22) is inserted into the inlet opening (A) through a hole having an area smaller than the area of the inlet opening (A).

According to the invention, the drawer assembly (100) comprises two opposing guiding slides (9) such that a conduit protection cover (1) is attached to each or only one of the guiding slides (9) as depicted in FIG. 9. Referring to both FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, two connection brackets (10) are provided on the elongated portion (23) for the connection of the guiding slide (9) and the conduit protection cover (1).

The connection brackets (10) are depicted in more detail in FIG. 11. These connection brackets (10) are snapped on the conduit protection cover (1) by means of connection lugs (231) provided on the elongated portion (23). These connection lugs (231) are configured to allow the connection brackets (10) to be detachably attached referring to FIG. 12.

As depicted in FIG. 13, a cooling appliance (B) is provided with the drawer assembly (100) according to the invention. The cooling appliance (B) further comprises more than one carrier shelves and/or compartments for storage and/or drawers. The drawer assembly (100) is located at the bottom of the cooling appliance (B) referring to FIG. 13, and can be slidably pulled and pushed to be opened and closed respectively.

REFERENCE LIST

• • 100. Drawer assembly
  • 1. Conduit protection cover
  • 2. Longitudinal body
    • 21. Enlarged portion
      • 211. Fixing clip
      • 212. Fixing rib
      • 213. Support protrusion
    • 22. Narrowed portion
      • 221. Retaining lug
    • 23. Elongated portion
      • 231. Connection lug
  • 3. Housing slot
  • 4. Conduit holder
  • 5. Receiving opening
  • 6. Leading duct
  • 7. Mounting interface
  • 8. Carrier frame
    • 81. Transfer holes
  • 9. Guiding slide
  • 10. Connection bracket
  • 11. Door panel
  • 12. First wall
  • 13. Second wall
  • 14. Sealing material
  • 15. Opening lid
  • A. Inlet opening
  • P. Panel of a household appliance
  • C. Conduit
  • F. Fitting member
  • B. Cooling appliance

Claims

1-15. (canceled)

16. A drawer assembly for a household appliance, comprising:

a conduit protection cover having a longitudinal body and a housing slot extending longwise along said longitudinal body for guiding a conduit;

said longitudinal body having: an elongated portion enabling the conduit to extend along said housing slot; an enlarged portion projecting outwardly in a radial direction of said longitudinal body for housing fitting members of the conduit; and a narrowed portion formed at one end of said longitudinal body and configured to be inserted into an inlet opening on a panel of the household appliance, wherein said enlarged portion is positioned between said narrowed portion and said elongated portion.

17. The drawer assembly according to claim 16, further comprising two opposing guiding slides and at least one connection bracket configured for attaching said elongated portion on at least one of said guiding slides.

18. The drawer assembly according to claim 17, wherein said at least one connection bracket is one of at least two connection brackets each configured to be detachably attached on a connection lug disposed on said elongated portion.

19. The drawer assembly according to claim 16, wherein said narrowed portion has a retaining lug that partially covers said housing slot for enclosing a respective length of the conduit within said narrowed portion, preventing the conduit from coming into contact with the panel of the household appliance.

20. The drawer assembly according to claim 16, wherein said enlarged portion has at least two opposing fixing clips for holding said fitting members within said enlarged portion.

21. The drawer assembly according to claim 20, wherein said enlarged portion is further formed with at least two opposing fixing ribs formed to firmly settle said fitting members into said enlarged portion.

22. The drawer assembly according to claim 20, wherein said enlarged portion further comprises a support protrusion that is configured to enable disassembly of the conduit by creating a certain distance between said fitting members and a surface of said enlarged portion facing said housing slot.

23. The drawer assembly according to claim 16, wherein the panel of the household appliance is a door panel comprising a first wall and a second wall spaced apart from the first wall, wherein the door panel is provided with a conduit holder embedded between the first wall and the second wall, and comprising a receiving opening on the first wall for enabling the conduit to be inserted into the door panel.

24. The drawer assembly according to claim 23, wherein said conduit holder is configured to be fixedly attached on at least the second wall by way of a mounting interface.

25. The drawer assembly according to claim 23, wherein said conduit holder comprises a leading duct forming an extension of the receiving opening for guiding and directing the conduit within the door panel.

26. The drawer assembly according to claim 23, wherein an insulation material is provided between the first wall and second wall.

27. The drawer assembly according to claim 26, wherein said conduit holder has a carrier frame formed with a plurality of transfer holes.

28. The drawer assembly according to claim 26, which further comprises a sealing material between the first wall and said conduit holder, for preventing the insulation material from leaking into said conduit holder.

29. The drawer assembly according to claim 16, wherein the conduit is an electrical cable and said fitting members are at least two corresponding cable connectors connecting to each other.

30. The drawer assembly according to claim 16 configured for a cooling appliance,

31. A household appliance, comprising a drawer assembly according to claim 16.

32. The household appliance according to claim 31 being a cooling appliance.