Patent Publication Number: US-2022228796-A1

Title: Refrigerator having slide rail wiring mechanism

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to the technical field of refrigeration devices and particularly to a refrigerator having a slide rail wiring mechanism. 
     BACKGROUND 
     As people&#39;s living standards improve in the society, conventional household electrical appliance products are updated constantly to meet demands of the consumer market. As far as refrigerators are concerned, it is a currently widely-used technical solution to dispose a display screen or another electrical component on the door to enhance the appearance of the refrigerator and increase corresponding function. Electrical power transmission is mostly achieved on a conventional pivotable door bodies by disposing a corresponding cable in a hinge shaft; it is necessary to provide a cable that is movable as a drawer-type door is pushed or drawn, to achieve electrical connection between the drawer-type door and the cabinet side. Since the gap between the corresponding drawer box and the inner wall of the cabinet is small, the cable is prone to entanglement with other parts and damages, and even break and failure. 
     Regarding the above problem, a refrigerator having a slide rail wiring mechanism is already disclosed in the industry, wherein the constraint of the cable is achieved by using a wiring box to receive part of the cable in cooperation with other limiting structure designs. However, it is difficult for the slide rail wiring mechanism to form effective limitation and constraint of the movable part of the cable, and said movable part of the cable is still likely to interfere with the slide rail or other parts so that it is prone to squeeze and wear; additionally, as far as the low-temperature storage compartment of the refrigerator is concerned, corresponding condensate might accumulate on the inner wall and the wiring box of the compartment so that the cable gets frozen, which affects smooth opening of the drawer-type door and even causes disengagement and damages of the cable. Therefore, it is necessary to perform structural optimization design on the basis of the prior art to develop a new refrigerator having a slide rail wiring mechanism. 
     SUMMARY 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator having a slide rail wiring mechanism, which can effectively avoid water accumulation, prevent the cable from freezing, and ensure the firm connection of the cable and the smooth opening of the drawer-type door. 
     To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a refrigerator having a slide rail wiring mechanism, comprising a compartment configured to open forward, and a drawer-type door configured to move back and forth to close or open the compartment, wherein the compartment comprises a bottom wall, a rear wall and two side walls disposed on left and right sides and opposed to each other, and the drawer-type door is provided with an electrical component; the slide rail wiring mechanism comprises a cable for supplying power to the electrical component and a first wiring box fixed in the compartment; the first wiring box is formed with a first receiving portion and a second receiving portion; the cable comprises a fixed section fixed in the first receiving portion and a movable section that may be at least partially received in the second receiving portion, and at least part of the movable section may retract in the second receiving portion or extend out of the second receiving portion when the drawer-type door moves; the second receiving portion is disposed apart from the bottom wall, the second receiving portion comprises a top plate and a bottom plate arranged opposite to each other in an up-down direction, and the bottom plate is provided with drainage holes. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the drainage holes are set to at least two drainage holes distributed at an interval in a front-rear direction. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the top plate extends obliquely and downwardly in a left-right direction from a side on which the second receiving portion opens. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, a first fixing portion and a second fixing portion are provided at front and rear ends of the first wiring box, respectively, and the first receiving portion and the second receiving portion are disposed apart from each other in the left-right direction and are both located between the first fixing portion and second fixing portion; a side of the second receiving portion facing away from the first receiving portion is arranged open. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the first wiring box further comprises a third receiving portion connecting a front end of the first receiving portion with a front end of the second receiving portion, and a first clamping member for holding the cable is disposed at an end of the third receiving portion close to the second receiving portion. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the first wiring box further comprises a through hole passing through the first wiring box from top to bottom and provided between the first receiving portion and the second receiving portion. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the slide rail wiring mechanism comprises a support frame fixed on a rear side of the drawer-type door and a second wiring box fixed on the support frame. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the second wiring box is formed with a fixed receiving portion extending in a front-rear direction and a guide portion located behind the fixed receiving portion, and a second clamping member for holding the cable is disposed at the rear end of the fixed receiving portion; the guide portion is formed with a guide surface extending backward and in the left-right direction inwardly the compartment. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the slide rail wiring mechanism further comprises a base fixed on the bottom wall and used to mount the first wiring box, and the base is disposed adjacent to a front opening of the compartment. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the bottom wall protrudes upward to form a fixing boss, and the fixing boss is provided with a fixing hole for fixing the base. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the bottom wall further protrudes upward to form a raised rib located on an outer periphery of the fixing boss and adapted to the base, and the raised rib is provided with at least one notch. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the base is formed with a first mounting hole that is inclined backward and downward, and the first wiring box is provided with a second mounting hole at a position corresponding to the first mounting hole. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, the bottom wall protrudes upwardly to form a supporting rib which extends obliquely upwards from front to back. 
     As a further improvement of the present invention, a partial area of the bottom wall is recessed downward to form a groove, and the first receiving portion and the second receiving portion are correspondingly disposed above the groove. 
     Advantageous effects of the present invention are as follows: in the refrigerator according to the present invention, at least part of the movable section may move along with the drawer-type door to retract in or extend out of the second receiving portion, and with the drainage holes being formed on the bottom plate forming the second receiving portion, the refrigerator effectively avoids the hidden safety hazard caused by the accumulation of water in the second receiving portion, prevents the cable from freezing, and ensures the firm connection of the cable and the smooth opening of the drawer-type door. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an overall schematic view of a refrigerator having a slide rail wiring mechanism according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an assembly view of a liner and the slide rail wiring mechanism in the refrigerator according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic structural view of a liner in the refrigerator according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is an enlarged view of area A of  FIG. 3 ; 
         FIG. 5  is an assembly view of the slide rail wiring mechanism of the refrigerator according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is an exploded view of the slide rail wiring mechanism of the refrigerator according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 7  is a schematic structural view of a first wiring box of the slide rail wiring mechanism of the refrigerator according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 8  is an enlarged view of area B of  FIG. 7 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present invention will be described in detail in conjunction with embodiments shown in the figures. However, the embodiments are not intended to limit the present invention. Structural, method or function variations made by those having ordinary skill in the art according to the embodiments are all comprised in the protection scope of the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , a refrigerator  100  according to the present invention comprises a compartment  10  configured to open forward, and a drawer-type door  20  configured to move back and forth to close or open the compartment  10 . The drawer-type door  20  is provided with an electrical component that may be a touch screen  30 ; a drawer box  40  for storing articles is disposed in the rear of the drawer-type door  20 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 , the compartment  10  comprises a bottom wall  11 , a rear wall  12  and two side walls  13  disposed on the left and right sides and opposed to each other. It may be appreciated here the compartment  10  is a liner configured to open forward and receive the drawer box  40 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 4  through  FIG. 8 , the refrigerator  100  further comprises a slide rail wiring mechanism  50 . The slide rail wiring mechanism  50  comprises a support frame  51  fixed on a rear side of the drawer-type door  20  and configured to support the drawer box  40 . The support frame  51  is disposed in the compartment  10  and slidable in a front-to-rear direction. Specifically, the support frame  51  can be mounted on the side wall  13  via a corresponding slide rail assembly (not shown). The sliding rail wiring mechanism  50  comprises a door supporting iron member  52  fixed on a rear side of the drawer-type door  20  and fixed to the support frame  51 , and a connecting window  521  is provided on the door supporting iron member  52 . In other embodiments of the present invention, the door supporting iron member  52  may be formed integrally with the support frame  51 . 
     The slide rail wiring mechanism  50  further comprises a cable  53  for supplying power to the touch screen  30 , a first wiring box  54  fixed in the compartment  10 , and a second wiring box  55  fixed on the support frame  51 . The first wiring box  54  is formed with a first receiving portion  541  and a second receiving portion  542  located below the drawer box  40 ; the second wiring box  55  is provided with a fixed receiving portion  551  extending in a front-rear direction and a guide portion  552  located behind the fixed receiving portion  551 . The first wiring box  54  and the second wiring box  55  are disposed apart from each other, so that the cable  53  maintains a proper degree of bending between the second receiving portion  542  and the guide portion  552 . In particular, the spacing between the second receiving portion  542  and the second wiring box  55  is set to be 15-20 times a diameter of the cable  53 . 
     Both the first receiving portion  541  and the second receiving portion  542  are disposed apart from the bottom wall  11  to avoid possible erosion of the cable  53  caused by the condensate accumulating on the bottom wall  11 , and to prevent the occurrence of abnormal conditions such as power leakage. In the present embodiment, a partial area of the bottom wall  11  is recessed downward to form a groove  111 , and the first receiving portion  541  and the second receiving portion  542  are correspondingly disposed above the groove  111  and spaced apart from the bottom of the groove  111 . The arrangement of the groove  111  reduces the occupation of the space between the bottom wall  11  and the drawer box  40  by the first wiring box  54 , so that the spacing between the bottom wall  11  and the drawer box  40  may be reduced properly. Here, a front baffle  112  is also formed on the front side of the groove  111 , and the height of the front baffle  112  coincides with the height of part of the bottom wall  11  on both sides of the groove  111 . Furthermore, the groove  11  is disposed extending obliquely downward from front to rear, so that the moisture that might appear in the compartment  10  gathers to the rear of the groove  111 . 
     The cable  53  comprises a fixed section  531  fixed in the first receiving portion  541 , a movable section  532  that may be at least partially received in the second receiving portion  542  and extending toward the second wiring box  55 , and the other fixed section  533  received in the fixed receiving portion  551 . Both ends of the cable  53  are further provided with a first electrical connector  534  and a second electrical connector  535 , respectively. Correspondingly, the compartment  10  and the drawer-type door  20  are respectively provided with electrical connectors (not shown) mating with the first electrical connector  534  and the second electrical connector  535 . At least part of the outer circumference of the cable  53  is provided with a sheath to enhance the structural strength of the cable  53 . The sheath may be made of a material such as a metal wire mesh or a resin, and the sheath is preferably disposed on the outer circumference of the movable section  532  of the cable  53 . 
     The first receiving portion  541  and the second receiving portion  542  are disposed apart from each other in the left-right direction, and a side of the second receiving portion  542  facing away from the first receiving portion  541  is arranged open. A plurality of first limiting members  5411  are disposed in the first receiving portion  541 , and the first limiting members  5411  are preferably provided as plate-shaped or hook-shaped protrusions integrally formed inside the first receiving portion  541  to limit the movement of the fixed section  531  in the height direction and the horizontal direction. The first receiving portion  541  is formed with a linear receiving space  5412 , and a bent receiving space  5413  located rearward of the linear receiving space  5412 , so that the rear end of the fixed section  531  is located exactly at a middle position of the first wiring box  54  in the left-right direction to facilitate the assembling and connection of the cable  53  with the compartment  10 . 
     When the drawer-type door  20  is closed, at least part of the movable section  532  retracts inwardly into the second receiving portion  542 ; when the drawer-type door  20  is drawn out, at least part of the movable section  532  extends outward from the second receiving portion  542 . When the humidity in the compartment  10  high, partial condensate still might accumulate in the second receiving portion  542 . In particular, when the temperature in the compartment  10  is lower than the zero temperature, a freezing phenomenon might occur at part of the movable section  532  in the second receiving portion  542 , which affects the smooth drawing out of the drawer-type door  20 , and even causes the cable  53  to be damaged. In other words, it is necessary to, with effective technical means, further reduce the possible accumulation of water in the second receiving portion  542  to avoid freezing and adhesion of the movable section  532 . 
     Here, the second receiving portion  542  comprises a top plate  5421  and a bottom plate  5422  arranged opposite to each other in the up-down direction, and a side plate  5423  connecting the top plate  5421  with the bottom plate  5422 . The bottom plate  5422  is provided with drainage holes  5424 . The drainage holes  5424  are set to at least two drainage holes distributed at an interval in a front-rear direction. Furthermore, the drainage holes  5424  are preferably disposed close to the side plate  5423 . The water that might appear in the second receiving portion  542  may be smoothly discharged from the drainage holes  5424  into the groove  111  of the bottom wall  11 , and then gathers along the bottom of the groove  11  to a given area. Here, the bottom plate  5422  and the bottom wall  11  are disposed apart, and the bottom plate  5422  is preferably not lower than the position of an opening of the groove  111  in the height direction, to reduce the wear of the cable  53 . A side of the rear end of the side plate  5423  facing towards the second wiring box  55  is set in an arc shape, so that when the drawer box  40  retracts into the interior of the compartment  10 , the bending tendency of the cable  53  is better limited. 
     The first wiring box  54  further comprises a through hole  543  passing through the first wiring box  54  from top to bottom and provided between the first receiving portion  541  and the second receiving portion  542 , so that water dripping from the drawer box  40  to the top of the first wiring box  54  may be smoothly drained from the through hole  543  to the bottom wall  11 . To further prevent the water on the top of the first wiring box  54  from entering the second receiving portion  542 , the top plate  5421  extends obliquely and downwardly from a side on which the second receiving portion  542  opens, toward the side plate  5423 . 
     The first wiring box  54  further comprises a third receiving portion  544  connecting a front end of the first receiving portion  541  with a front end of the second receiving portion  542 . The third receiving portion  544  has a semicircular arc portion so that the cable  53  is bent 180° from the front end of the first receiving portion  541 , and then enters the second receiving portion  542 . A first clamping member  5441  for holding the cable  533  is disposed at the end of the third receiving portion  544  close to the second receiving portion  542  to prevent the cable  53  from play more effectively. A first fixing portion  545  and a second fixing portion  546  are formed at the front and rear ends of the first wiring box  54 , respectively. The first receiving portion  541 , the second receiving portion  542  and the third receiving portion  544  are all located between the first fixing portion  545  and the second fixing portion  546  in the front-rear direction. 
     The second wiring box  55  is held on the support frame  51 , and the guide portion  552  is integrally formed with the fixed receiving portion  551 . The fixed receiving portion  551  is provided with a plurality of second fixing members  5511  for restricting the movement of the cable  53 . The second fixing members  5511  are also provided as plate-shaped or hook-shaped protrusions integrally formed in the fixed receiving portion  551 . The guide portion  552  is formed with a guide surface extending backward and in the left-right direction inwardly the compartment, and the guide surface is preferably an arcuate surface. The second wiring box  55  further has a mounting opening  553  located between the fixed receiving portion  551  and the guide portion  552 , and a second clamping member  5512  for holding the cable  53  is disposed at the rear end of the fixed receiving portion  551 , i.e., at a portion close to the mounting opening  553 . The cable  53  also comprises a clamping sleeve  536  adapted for the first clamping member  5441  and the second clamping member  5511  to keep the cable  53  from damages. The clamping sleeve  536  may also be integrally formed with a sheath of the cable  53 . Especially, a blocking plate  5442  is disposed on the rear side of the first clamping member  5441 , a size of the opening of the blocking plate  5442  is smaller than a diameter of the clamping sleeve  536 , and the rear end of the clamping sleeve  536  may resist the blocking plate  5442  so that the movable section  532 , even though getting frozen, does not affect the stability of other portions of the cable  53 . Similarly, the second clamping member  5511  also employs the above design, which will not be repeated here. 
     The fixed receiving portion  551  is located below the drawer box  40  in the height direction, and the fixed receiving portion  551  is slightly higher than the second receiving portion  542  to prevent the movable section  532  of the cable  53  from damages due to friction with the bottom wall  11 . Furthermore, the bottom wall  11  here protrudes upwardly to form a supporting rib  113 . The supporting rib  113  extends obliquely upwards from front to back, and a rear end of the supporting rib  113  is disposed adjacent to the rear wall  12 . When the drawer-type door  20  is closed, the movable section  532  moves above the supporting rib  113  to prevent the movable section  532  from blocking the water flow on the surface of the bottom wall  11  to make the use of the cable  53  safer, and also avoid the possible risk that the cable  53  gets frozen together with the bottom wall  11 . 
     The slide rail wiring mechanism  50  further comprises a base  56  fixed on the bottom wall  11 , a connecting box  57  fixed on the rear wall  12 , and a cover plate  58  adapted for the connecting window  521  of the door supporting iron member  52 . The first fixing portion  545  is fixed to the base  56 ; the second fixing portion  546  is fixed to the connecting box  57 , and the rear wall  12  is provided with a mounting window  121  for mounting the connecting box  57 . 
     The base  56  is preferably disposed and mounted in the groove  111 , and the base  56  is disposed adjacent to the front opening of the compartment  10 . The first fixing portion  545  covers and presses the base  56 . The first fixing portion  545  opens downward so that the base  56  is received inside the first fixing portion  545 , and the first fixing portion  545  is formed with a plurality of fixing ribs  5451  that resist the surface of the base  56  from both left and right sides. The fixing ribs  5451  arranged opposite to one another on the left and right sides taper toward the center from bottom to top to facilitate the mounting of the first fixing portion  545 . To achieve the convenient mounting of the first fixing portion  545 , the base  56  is formed with a first mounting hole  561  that is inclined backward and downward, the first fixing portion  545  is formed with a second mounting hole  5452  at a position corresponding to the first mounting hole  561 , and the fixing and assembling of the first fixing portion  545  and the base  56  may be achieved with a corresponding screw. 
     Here, the base  56  itself is also fixed on the bottom wall  11  by a screw. The bottom wall  11  protrudes upward to form a fixing boss  114 , and the fixing boss  114  is provided with a fixing hole  115  for fixing the base  56 . The above design effectively prevents the water on the bottom wall  11  from leaking through the fixing hole  15  into a foamed layer and affecting the thermal insulation performance. In addition, the bottom wall  11  further protrudes upward to form a raised rib  116  located on an outer periphery of the fixing boss  114  and adapted to the base  56 , that is, the raised rib  116  corresponds to the size of the bottom opening of the base  56  to facilitate the positioning and mounting of the base  56 . The raised rib  116  is disposed apart from the fixing boss  114 . To prevent water from entering between the raised rib  116  and the fixing boss  114 , the raised rib  116  is provided with at least one notch  117 . In addition, the bottom of the groove  111  extends obliquely downward from the front to the back, which also helps to prevent water from leaking through the fixing hole  115 . 
     To sum up, the refrigerator  100  according to the present invention achieves the electrical connection of the drawer-type door  20  through the sliding rail wiring mechanism  50 , and with the drainage holes  5424  being formed on the bottom plate  5422  forming the second receiving portion  542 , the refrigerator effectively avoids the hidden safety hazard caused by the accumulation of water in the second receiving portion  542 , prevents the cable  53  from freezing, and ensures the firm connection of the cable  53  and the smooth opening of the drawer-type door  20 . 
     It should be understood that although the description is described according to the embodiments, not every embodiment only includes one independent technical solution, that such a description manner is only for the sake of clarity, that those skilled in the art should take the description as an integral part, and that the technical solutions in the embodiments may be suitably combined to form other embodiments understandable by those skilled in the art. 
     The detailed descriptions set forth above are merely specific illustrations of feasible embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. All equivalent embodiments or modifications that do not depart from the art spirit of the present invention should fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.