Abstract:
There is described a novel appliance that, on the one hand, can be used to access goods stored in the appliance while, on the other hand, can be retracted when access to the goods is not required. Preferably, the appliance is in the form of a refrigeration unit although other applications are possible (e.g., dishwasher, freezer and the like). The present appliance is well-suited to be incorporated into a counter, for example a kitchen counter.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     The present application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/575,372, filed Jun. 1, 2004, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The present invention relates to an appliance, more particularly (and preferably) a refrigeration unit.  
         [0004]     2. Description of the Prior Art  
         [0005]     Refrigeration units are known.  
         [0006]     For residential applications, known refrigeration units typically have a housing and a swinging door. The housing and the door are insulated and a compressor unit is coupled to the housing to refrigerate the interior of the housing.  
         [0007]     Over the years, advances in the art of residential refrigeration units have typically taken the form of improved compressor units, improved insulation materials, cosmetic features and the like. These improvements have been primarily directed to improving the cost efficiency of operating the refrigeration units. Notwithstanding this, the basic design and structure of residential refrigeration units has remained unchanged.  
         [0008]     With increasing population densities in major markets in the world, in recent years, there has been increased pressure in reducing the amount of living space in residence. This is particularly so in many European and Southeast Asian cities and is becoming increasingly so in a number of large North American cities. There is also an increasing demand for more energy efficient appliances and, with an aging population, a demand for counter height access to goods  
         [0009]     One location in a typical residence in which it has been desired to reduce space is the kitchen or food preparation area. While some success has been achieved in this area, a limiting factor has been the amount of space occupied by conventional residential refrigeration units. Little progress has been made in this regard.  
         [0010]     Thus, there remains a need for a practical and effective refrigeration unit which, on the one hand will allow storage of a significant volume of goods while on the other hand, can be incorporated in a novel manner in a kitchen or food preparation area. It would be particularly advantageous if the refrigeration unit were effectively “out of sight” when not used. It would also be advantageous if such a refrigeration unit was relatively energy efficient and allowed for relatively easy access to the goods stored therein.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0011]     It is an object of the present invention to obviate or mitigate at least one of the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art.  
         [0012]     Accordingly, in one of its aspects, the present invention provides an appliance comprising:  
         [0013]     a housing;  
         [0014]     a carriage comprising at least one support element for storing goods and a cover element; and  
         [0015]     and a non-pneumatic drive mechanism connected to the carriage and operable between (i) a retracted position in which the cover element and the housing combine to form an enclosure for the goods, and (ii) an extended position in which the cover element is spaced from the housing to allow access to the goods.  
         [0016]     In another of its aspects, the present invention provides an under-the-counter refrigeration unit comprising:  
         [0017]     an insulated housing;  
         [0018]     a carriage comprising at least one shelf for storing goods and a cover element;  
         [0019]     a cooling unit coupled to the insulated housing;  
         [0020]     and a non-pneumatic drive mechanism connected to the carriage and operable between (i) a retracted position in which the cover element and the housing combine to form an enclosure for the goods, and (ii) an extended position in which the cover element is spaced from the housing to allow access to the goods.  
         [0021]     Thus, the present inventor has discovered a novel appliance that can be, on the one hand, used to access goods stored in the appliance while, on the other hand, retracted when access to the goods is not required. Preferably, the appliance is in the form of a refrigeration unit although other applications are possible (e.g., dishwasher and the like). The present appliance is well-suited to be incorporated in a counter, for example a kitchen counter. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0022]     Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals denote like parts, and in which:  
         [0023]      FIG. 1  illustrates a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0024]      FIG. 2  illustrates a sectional view of the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0025]      FIG. 3  illustrates a perspective view, partially cutaway, of the embodiment of the invention illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 ;  
         [0026]      FIGS. 4-5  illustrate a sectional view of a preferred drive mechanism for use in the present invention;  
         [0027]      FIG. 6  illustrates the drive mechanism illustrated in  FIGS. 4-5  in a disassembled form;  
         [0028]      FIGS. 7-8  illustrate a safety feature of a preferred form of the present invention;  
         [0029]      FIG. 9  illustrates an exploded sectional view of a seal arrangement for a preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0030]      FIG. 10  illustrates an alternate embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0031]      FIGS. 11-13  illustrate one preferred form of shelving for the present invention; and  
         [0032]      FIG. 14  illustrates an alternate embodiment of shelving for the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0033]     Thus, with reference to  FIGS. 1-3 , there is illustrated a refrigeration unit  100  mounted in a countertop  105 . Refrigeration unit  100  comprises a housing  110 , a carriage  115  and a cover  120 .  
         [0034]     Carriage  115  comprises a tubular element  125 . Cover  120  is attached to a distal portion of tubular element  125 . Also attached to tubular element  125  is a series of shelves  130 .  
         [0035]     As shown in  FIG. 2 , shelves  130  support various goods (e.g., food) shown in ghosted outline.  
         [0036]     Carriage  115  is operable between a retracted position ( FIG. 1 ) in which cover  120  is substantially flush with counter  105  to enclose goods for storage and an extended position ( FIGS. 2 and 3 ) in which cover  120  is lifted from counter  105  in the direction of arrow A thereby allowing access to goods stored on shelves  130 .  
         [0037]     As shown in  FIG. 3 , it is preferred to construct housing  110  such that the walls thereof are insulated. In the particular embodiment shown, housing  110  comprises an inner wall  112  and an outer wall  114  to define and insulating space  116  therebetween. Insulating space  116  comprises a series of cooling coils  118 . Further cooling coils  119  are disposed on the exterior of outer wall  114 . Alternatively, cooling coils  118  and  119  maybe replaced or supplemented with insulation material (e.g., foam) and/or vacuum disposed in insulating gap  116 .  
         [0038]     With reference to  FIGS. 4-6 , there is illustrated a preferred embodiment of a drive mechanism  200  which is particularly preferred for incorporation in refrigeration unit  100 . Drive mechanism  200  comprises a threaded element  205  and a thrust tube  210 . Threaded element  205  and thrust tube  210  are engaged to one another via a bearing unit  215  comprising a series of ball bearings  220 . Threaded element  205  is connected to an electric drive motor  211 . Threaded element  205  and thrust tube  210  are disposed within a base element  225  (stanchion) having a flange  227  that is secured to a bottom surface of housing  110 . Tubular element  125  is in sliding, telescopic engagement with base unit  225 . An upper bushing element  235  is anchored statically in the top of base element  225 . A lower bushing element  237  is used to engage tubular element  125  and base unit  225 , and is free to rotate about  225  and/or slide telescopically.  
         [0039]     Preferably, thrust tube  210 , bushing element  235  and a washer  250  are interconnected to form a thrust tube end cap and a thrust washer (not shown) is interposed between this end cap and tubular element  125 . The purpose of the square shape of thrust tube  210  is to hold the tube from torquing when the screw turns.  
         [0040]     As shown in  FIG. 6 , washer  250  comprises a square shaped projection  245  on a bottom surface thereof for engagement with aperture  240  of bushing element  235 . Washer  250  further comprises a extension portion  255  that passes through a distal end of tubular element  125  and is received in a recess  122  disposed in cover  120 .  
         [0041]     When it is desired to lift carriage  115  from housing  110 , electric drive motor  211 ) connected to threaded element  205  is actuated. This causes threaded element  205  to rotate thereby causing thrust tube  210  to extend with respect to threaded element  205 .  
         [0042]     As threaded element  205  is rotated, thrust tube  210  is lifted with respect to threaded element  205  thereby causing carriage  115  to lift and be in an extended position—see  FIGS. 2 and 3 .  
         [0043]     With reference to  FIGS. 7 and 8 , there is shown a safety feature of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, if an object such a users hand  300  is interposed between cover element  120  and housing  110 , injury to the user can be avoided in a number of ways. For example, tubular element  125  can be designed so that it is not mechanically coupled to thrust tube  210 . In the result, when thrust tube  210  is retracted in the direction of arrow B, tubular element  125  will stop if it is impeded by a blockage  300  and the same is true for lid  120  and each of the shelves  130  in relationship to tubular element  125 —see  FIG. 7 . Alternatively (or in addition), it is possible to incorporate a detector, such as a pressure sensitive ring (for example, incorporated in second seal  111  described below) to sense a blockage and reverse the closing actuation of electric drive motor  211 . Thus, the pressure sensitive ring would sense and respond to a an obstruction placed between cover  120  and housing  110 . Further, actuation of the pressure sensitive ring could cause actuation of an interruption switch to stop further movement of carriage  115  to the retracted position.  
         [0044]     With reference to  FIG. 9 , there is shown the preferred use of a double seal system for refrigeration unit  100 . Thus, unit  120  is provided with a first seal  124  and housing  110  is provided with a second seal  111 . In retracted position of carriage  115 , first seal  124  and second seal  111  combine to provide a substantially fluid type seal between cover element  120  and housing  110 .  
         [0045]      FIG. 10  illustrates an alternate embodiment of refrigeration unit  100  described above. The specific modification in  FIG. 10  relates to the use of compartments in carriage  115  so that only specific compartments of interest need be open to access the goods therein. This improves the operating efficiency of the refrigeration unit.  
         [0046]     With reference to  FIGS. 11-13 , there is illustrated an alternate form of shelving for refrigeration unit  100 . Thus, tubular element  125  has disposed thereon a locking ring  305 . Locking ring  305  combines with tubular element  125  to provide a series of locking receptacles  310 . A number of shelves  315  are provided, each shelf  315  having a general wedge shape and a locking tab  320 . As shown in  FIGS. 11 and 12 , locking tab  320  may be engaged with locking receptacle  310  to mount each shelf  315  on locking ring  305 . As such, one or more shelves  315  maybe easily removed for cleaning and/or replacement, as necessary. Once all shelves  315  are in place, a circular shelve unit results—see  FIG. 13 .  
         [0047]      FIG. 14  illustrates a disassembled form of a preferred shelving system. Thus, a bottom shelf  320  is provided on a proximal portion of tubular element  125 . A support ring  325  is provided on tubular element  125  and serves to support an intermediate shelf  330  having a tubular projection portion  335 . Tubular projection portion  335  serves to support a top shelf  340  having a tubular extension portion  335  which is connected to cover  120 . Drive mechanism  200  described above can be incorporated within tubular sections of this alternate shelving system.  
         [0048]     While this invention has been described with reference to illustrative embodiments and examples, the description is not intended to be construed in a limiting sense. Thus, various modifications of the illustrative embodiments, as well as other embodiments of the invention, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to this description. For example, it is possible to replace the ball screw shown in the illustrated embodiments with a simple square cut screw since the latter may be better suit to self-braking. Further, it is possible to replace the double seal arrangement shown in  FIG. 9  with a simpler single seal arrangement. In this regard, it should be pointed out that the cold air in the housing  110  is heavier than ambient air and is captive (e.g., like water in a bowl)—this one of the reasons why refrigeration unit  100  is more energy efficient than a conventional refrigerator since the latter loses significantly more cold air every time it is opened. Generally, it is possible to envision a number of safety elements and/or sensors that serve to reverse the action of the lid and shelves so that they lift off if they encounter a blockage. Also, it is envisioned that carriage  115  would open (i.e., be extended) relatively quickly for total opening (e.g., about 3 seconds) but when closing is selected (i.e., retraction of carriage  115 ), the speed of movement is slower (e.g., 2-5, preferably 4, times slower) giving the operator time to ensure there are no blockages. Further, it is possible to substitute bearing unit  215  (including ball bearings  220 ) with an alternate engagement system such as a threaded element or the like. Still further, the specific embodiment discussed above refers to a thrust tube  210  having a generally square cross-section. The selection of such a tube having a square cross-section results in prevention of torquing of the follower (or other) as it slides the square bushings it hold. However, thrust tube  210  could be modified to be a spline, octagonal or have a longitudial groove. The point is that the function of the element is to hold the threaded follower nut from torquing within the confines of the telescoping round outer shaft that carry the shelves and thus, any shaped tube that can slide longitudinally but not turn rotationally could be substituted for thrust tube  210 . Still further, it is possible to modify threaded element  205  to include a carrier bearing at the distal end thereof to prevent the distal end of threaded element  205  from rattling within thrust tube  210 . It is therefore contemplated that the appended claims will cover any such modifications or embodiments.  
         [0049]     All publications, patents and patent applications referred to herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety to the same extent as if each individual publication, patent or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference in its entirety.