Patent Abstract:
The present invention relates to a refrigerator, which comprises: a main body having a storage compartment therein; and a door connected to the main body and opening/closing the storage compartment, wherein the door includes: an outer case defining an external appearance of the door; a door liner combined with the outer case; an insulation material filled between the outer case and the door liner; and a holder supporting both a receptacle connected with a cable for controlling an ice maker and a water supply cock for making ice, the holder disposed between the outer case and the door liner, wherein the holder is fixed to the outer case.

Full Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 and 35 U.S.C. 365 to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2009-0129259 (Dec. 22, 2009), which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The embodiment relates to a refrigerator. 
         [0003]    Generally, a refrigerator is home appliances that stores food in a low temperature state by a low-temperature air. 
         [0004]    Currently, there has been increasing a demand for a bottom freezer type refrigerator whose refrigerating compartment is provided at an upper side and freezing compartment is provided at a lower side. In the case of the bottom freezer type refrigerator, an ice making device that makes ice and a water dispenser that can take out drinking water may be provided at a door. When the door of a refrigerator is equipped with the ice making device and the water dispenser, water supply hoses connected to the ice making device and the water dispenser expand inside the door. 
         [0005]    In detail, in the structure with the ice making device in the door, in addition to the water supply hose, the door is equipped with built-in control unit and a driving motor for controlling the operation of the ice maker and cables for, and cables for transmitting electric current and operational signals to the control unit and the driving motor. In this configuration, a holder is required to support the connecting terminal, such as a receptacle, formed at the end of the cable connected to the ice maker, and keep their positions while filling the door with an insulator. 
         [0006]    In the related art, the holder was simply attached to the rear side of the outer case forming the front external appearance of the door, by a bonding member. Therefore, there was a problem that the position of the holder changed on the outer case in manufacturing the door, particularly filling the insulator. 
         [0007]    Further, it has been tried to, not filling polyurethane foam, but installing a specific insulator, such as vacuum insulation panel, in the door, in order to achieve a slim door that is equipped with an ice making compartment. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    The present invention is based on the above technical requirements and it is an object to provide a refrigerator that has a slim door equipped with an ice making compartment and a holder stably fixed to the inside of the door. 
         [0009]    In order to achieve the objects of the present invention, a refrigerator according to an aspect of the present invention comprises: a main body having a storage compartment therein; and a door connected to the main body and opening/closing the storage compartment, wherein the door includes: an outer case defining an external appearance of the door; a door liner combined with the outer case; an insulation material filled between the outer case and the door liner; and a holder supporting both a receptacle connected with a cable for controlling an ice maker and a water supply cock for making ice, the holder disposed between the outer case and the door liner, wherein the holder is fixed to the outer case. 
         [0010]    According to another aspect of the present invention, a refrigerator comprises: a main body; a door including an outer case and a door liner combined with the outer case, the door rotatably connected to the main body; an ice making compartment provided to the door liner and accommodating an ice maker; a water supply cock supplying water to the ice maker; a receptacle connected to an end of a cable for transmitting electric current and/or operational signal to the ice maker; a holder supporting both the water supply cock and the receptacle between the door liner and the outer case; and a insulation plate interposed between the outer case and the holder. 
         [0011]    According to a refrigerator having the above configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, it is possible not to fill polyurethane foam, but to mount a specific insulation panel inside a door. 
         [0012]    Further, it is possible to stably fix a holder supporting the end of a water supply hose and the end of a cable for operating and controlling an ice maker, in side the door, even if a specific insulation panel is mounted. 
         [0013]    Further, it is possible to improve productivity by simplifying the assembly process, as compared with the related art in which a receptacle connected to the end of the cable should be fixed to the holder by a specific bracket and the holder should be bonded to the rear of the door of the refrigerator. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0014]      FIG. 1  is an exterior perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of the door of the refrigerating compartment according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0016]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing the front of a holder according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing the bottom of an upper panel attached to the upper side of the door of a refrigerating compartment according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0018]      FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view illustrating the connection between the holder and the upper panel, taken along the line I-I of  FIG. 2 ; and 
           [0019]      FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view illustrating the connection between a holder and an upper panel according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0020]    Hereinafter, the structure of a refrigerator according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
         [0021]      FIG. 1  is an exterior perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0022]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , a refrigerator  10  according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a main body  11  that includes a refrigerating compartment  111  and a freezing compartment therein, a refrigerating compartment door  12  opening/closing the refrigerating compartment  111  and a freezing compartment door  13  opening/closing the freezing compartment, which are rotatably connected to the front edge of the main body  11 . 
         [0023]    In detail, the freezing compartment may be formed as a single space under the refrigerating compartment  111  and may be divided into a plurality of spaces by specific partitions for products. 
         [0024]    Though not shown, a storage box capable of being drawn forward may be provided in the freezing compartment. A drawer is further provided in the freezing compartment and includes a door selectively blocking the front opening of the freezing compartment, a door frame extending backward from the rear of the door, and a rail connected to the storage box seated on the door frame and the door frame for the door to slide forward/backward. 
         [0025]    Further, the freezing compartment may be divided into a plurality of spaces in the up-down direction or the left-right direction by specific partitions. The figures show when the freezing compartment is divided in the up-down direction and each space is blocked by the door  13 . Further, any one of the spaces divided by the partitions in the freezing compartment may be used as a convertible compartment. Accordingly, the door  13  opening/closing the freezing compartment  13  may have a convertible compartment door and a freezing compartment door. 
         [0026]    A plurality of shelves and baskets may be provided in the refrigerating compartment. The front opening of the refrigerating compartment  111 , as shown in the figure, can be opened/closed by a pair of refrigerating doors  12 . The pair of refrigerating doors  12  can be rotatably connected to the left and right edges of the main body  11 . 
         [0027]    Further, an ice making compartment  20  for making ice may be provided on the rear of the refrigerating compartment door  12  and one or more door baskets  15  may be attached to the outer surface of the ice making compartment  20 . A cooling air inlet  123  and a cooling air outlet  124  may be formed in the side of the ice making compartment  20 , that is, the side contacting with the inside of the refrigerating compartment  111 . Further, a cooling air inlet and a cooling air outlet are at the side of the refrigerating compartment  111  where the cooling air inlet  123  and the cooling air outlet  124  are in contact when the refrigerating compartment door  12  is closed. Furthermore, a cooling air supply duct and a cooling air return duct which are connected with an evaporation compartment (not shown) may be formed in the side of the refrigerating compartment  111 . 
         [0028]    Further, one or more door baskets  16  may be provided to the rear of the refrigerating door  12 , corresponding to the bottom of the ice making compartment  20 . A water storage unit  30  having a predetermined size may be provided on the rear of the lower end portion of the refrigerating compartment door  12 . 
         [0029]    Meanwhile, a dispenser (not shown) may be formed on the front of the refrigerating compartment door  12 , in particular, the front of the refrigerating compartment door  12  where the ice making compartment  20  is formed, in order to take out drinking water and ice. Further, a water supply hose ( 41  in  FIG. 2 ) extends from the rear of the main body  11  into the refrigerating compartment door  12  through a hinge connecting the refrigerating compartment door  12  with the main body  11 . Furthermore, the water supply hose  41  extending into the refrigerating compartment door  12  branches off to an ice maker (not shown) provided in the ice making compartment  20  and a water-taking opening of the dispenser, across the water storage unit  30 . 
         [0030]      FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of a refrigerating compartment door according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0031]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , the refrigerating compartment door  12  according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an outer case formed of a metal plate to form the front external appearance, a door liner  122  attached to the rear of the outer case  121 , and a polyurethane foam insulator (not shown) filled between the outer case  121  and the door liner  122 . 
         [0032]    In detail, a filler  16  may be attached to the side of the door liner  122 , in detail, the side corresponding to the surfaces facing each other when the pair of refrigerating compartment doors are closed. The filler  16  is in closed contact with a side of the door liner  122  when the refrigerating compartment door  12  is open, as shown in the figures. On the contrary, when the refrigerating compartment door  12  is closed, the filler rotates at 90° to block the interface with the refrigerating compartment door such that the cooling air is prevented from leaking through the interface between the refrigerating compartment doors. 
         [0033]    Meanwhile, as shown in  FIG. 2 , the water storage unit  30  is positioned under the door liner  122 , and a tank housing  123  accommodating a water tank (not shown) and a valve (not shown) is formed under the door liner  122 . 
         [0034]    In detail, the outer case  121  is formed of a metal plate and has a plastic upper panel  126  on the upper end. A hinge is fastened to the upper edge of the outer case  121  and the inside of the hinge is empty. The water supply hose  41  extends along the rear of the outer case  12  through the hinge, as shown in the figure. The end of the water supply hose  41  is connected to the water tank (not shown) in the tank housing, through the tank housing  123  of the door liner  122 , at the lower end of the outer case  121 . In the figure, the region A is where the tank housing  123  of the door liner  122  is disposed. An ice maker hose  44  and a dispenser hose  43  that extend from the outlet of a diverging valve (not shown) disposed in the tank housing  123  extend upward along the rear of the outer case  121 . The end of the hose connected to the water outlet of the water tank is connected to the inlet of the diverging valve. 
         [0035]    Meanwhile, a holder  50  supporting a receptacle R connected to a substrate for controlling the ice maker and a water supply cock  441  through which water is supplied to the ice maker are disposed at the upper portion of the rear of the outer case  121 . Further, the holder  50  is fixed to the upper panel  126  a specific insulation panel  80 , such as a vacuum insulation panel, may be attached to the rear of the outer case  121  corresponding to the front of the ice making compartment  20 . In detail, the vacuum insulation panel is formed by combining a plurality of thin metal plate with a vacuum space therein. The vacuum space is maintained in a substantially vacuum state, under 0.0001 atmospheric pressure. An absorbent, such as silica gel, may be provided in the vacuum space to remove moisture that may be created in the vacuum space by changes in temperature etc. Unlikely, the vacuum insulation panel may include a core formed by pressing glass fiber and a seal cover covering the core. Structures known in the art can be used for the vacuum insulation panel and the detailed description is not provided. The vacuum insulation panel has a larger insulation performance per unit thickness than the insulation foam. Therefore, it is possible to achieve the same insulation performance as the insulation foam, even if using a vacuum insulation panel thinner than the insulation foam. Since a vacuum insulation panel  80  is provided for the refrigerating compartment door of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention, the thickness of the refrigerating compartment door  12  can be reduced. 
         [0036]    Further, the insulation panel  80  is interposed between the outer case  121  and the holder  50 . A dispenser housing  70  depressed to accommodate a vessel for taking out drinking water and ice may be attached to the rear of the outer case  121 . An ice suit  71  that guides ice made in the ice making compartment  20  to be discharged outside the refrigerating compartment door  12  may be mounted on the upper end of the dispenser housing  70 . A water cock for taking out water is formed at the front of the ice suit  71 . 
         [0037]    In the refrigerator having the above structure, the dispenser hose  43  extends upward to the water cock and the ice maker hose  44  extends further upward than the dispenser hose  43  to the water supply cock  441 . 
         [0038]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing the front of the holder according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0039]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , the holder  50  may be formed by injection-molding plastic and has a PCB seat  511  where a control substrate controlling the operation of the ice maker, a holder body  51  provided with a water supply cock guide covering the upper surface of the water supply cock  441  to protect it, and a fastening arm  52  extending from the upper surface of the holder body  51 . 
         [0040]    In detail, a receptacle hole  512  is formed at the upper portion of the PCB seat  511  and a receptacle (not shown) connected to the end of a group of a plurality of cables extending from a main control unit of the main body  11  of the refrigerator is inserted in the receptacle hole  512 . The receptacle is connected with a connector extending from the substrate seated on the PCB seat  511 . The water supply cock  441  that is made of metal and rounded is connected to the end of the ice maker hose  44 , protruding forward from the backward of the holder  50 . The water supply cock guide  513  is rounded, taking the shape of the water supply cock  441 . A heater is attached to the outer circumference of the water supply cock  491  to prevent freezing inside the water supply cock  441 . 
         [0041]    On the other hand, a fastening hole  521  is formed through the upper surface of the fastening arm  52  and at least one temporary connecting protrusion  522  may be formed around the fastening hole  521 . A fastening member that passes through the outer case  121  of the refrigerating compartment door  12  is inserted in the fastening hole  521 . A preliminary fastening protrusion of the outer case  121  is inserted in the preliminary fastening hole  522  and this is described below with reference to the drawings. 
         [0042]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing the bottom of an upper panel attached to the upper side of the door of a refrigerating compartment according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0043]    The upper panel  126 , as described above, is mounted on the upper end of the outer case  121 . In detail, fastening holes  126   a  corresponding to the number of fastening arms  52  may be formed in the upper panel  126 . Further, at least one or more preliminary fastening protrusions  126   b  protrude from the bottom of the upper panel  126  spaced from the fastening holes  126   a.    
         [0044]    By inserting the preliminary fastening protrusions  126   b  in the preliminary fastening holes  522 , it is easy to arrange the fastening holes  521  and  126   a  in assembling the holder  50 . 
         [0045]      FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view illustrating the connection between the holder and the upper panel, taken along the line I-I of  FIG. 2 . 
         [0046]    Referring to  FIG. 5 , the fastening arm  52  of the holder  50  is in close contact to the bottom of the upper panel  126 . Accordingly, the fastening holes  521  of the fastening arm  52  meet the fastening holes  126   a  of the upper panel  126 . Fastening members, such as screws, are sequentially inserted into the fastening holes  126   a  and  152 . The holder  50  is firmly fixed to the upper panel  126  of the outer case  121  by the above assemblage. The holder  50  is fixed apart from the outer case  121 . The insulation panel  80  is disposed in the space between the holder and the outer case. The insulation panel  80  can be firmly fixed to the rear of the outer case  121  by a bonding member. Further, as described above, the insulation panel  80  may be formed to have a size corresponding to that f the ice making compartment  20 . By interposing the insulation panel  80 , heat exchange between the ice making compartment  20  and the air outside the refrigerator is prevented, such that it is possible to prevent the internal temperature of the ice making compartment  20  from increasing. Further, since a vacuum insulation panel  80  is used as the insulation panel  80 , it is possible to achieve heat insulation effect at least the same as or more than when insulation foam is filled in the related art. Furthermore, since it is not necessary to fill the portion where the insulation panel  80  is attached with specific insulation foam, the distance from the front of the refrigerating compartment door  12  to the rear of the ice making compartment, that the thickness of the refrigerating compartment door  12  around the ice making compartment is reduced. 
         [0047]    After the insulation panel  80  is attached to the rear of the outer case  121  and the holder  50  is fixed to the upper panel  126  from the backward of the insulation panel  80 , as described above, the door liner  122  is combined. Further, insulation foam is filled in the space between the door liner  122  and the outer case  121 . Since the holder  50  is fixed to the upper panel  126 , it is possible to prevent the holder  50  from being moved by injection speed of the insulation panel in filling the insulation foam. 
         [0048]      FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view illustrating the connection between a holder and an upper panel according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0049]    Referring to  FIG. 6 , specific fasteners, such as screws, are not necessary to fix the holder  50  to the upper panel  126 . 
         [0050]    In detail, fastening hooks  523 , instead of the fastening holes, may protrude from the upper surface of the fastening arm  52  of the holder  50 . Further, the fastening hooks  523  may be injection-molded integrally with the holder  50  to have a predetermined elastic force. 
         [0051]    According to this configuration, the fastening hooks  523  pass through the fastening holes  126   a  of the upper panel  126  by closely contacting the fastening arm  52  of the holder  50  to the bottom of the upper panel  126 . Further, since the fastening hooks  523  have elasticity, they contacts while passing through the fastening holes  126   a  and then return to the initial shape after completely passing through the fastening holes  126   a.  Therefore, it is possible to firmly fix the holder  50  to the bottom of the upper panel  126 .

Technology Classification (CPC): 5