Patent Application
20180164029
This application claims the benefit, under 35 U.S.C. § 119, of German patent application DE 10 2016 224 610.0, filed Dec. 9, 2016; the prior application is herewith incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The invention relates to a household refrigeration appliance having a receiving space for foodstuffs which is delimited by walls of an inner container. The household refrigeration appliance has a cover plate which is separate from the inner container and is arranged in the receiving space, where it is positioned forward of a wall of the inner container. Furthermore, the invention also relates to a method for installing a cover plate of said type.
A no-frost household refrigeration appliance is known from the commonly assigned German published patent application DE 10 2010 041 952 A1, for example. An air intake opening is embodied therein in an upper region of the receiving space, and an air outlet opening or air discharge opening in a lower region. The two openings are arranged substantially at the same depth position in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance and are embodied in a back half of the receiving space. Due to said arrangement of the openings it is possible that air circulation over the entire receiving space may be restricted, in particular being confined to a back half of the receiving space only, since the intake of air in the upper region may cause the air discharged at the bottom to be immediately drawn upward again, with the result that a corresponding subregion of the receiving space, in particular an area close to the doors, is subject to said air circulation only to a limited extent.
Published patent application US 2009/0090121 A1 and its counterpart German published patent application DE 10 2005 032 976 A1 disclose a household refrigeration appliance in which an additional separate mounting plate is arranged in a receiving space for foodstuffs forward of the rear wall of the inner container and is secured by means of screws.
In the known embodiments, it is awkward and time-consuming to install a separate cover plate of that type, and the cover plate, furthermore, cannot be positioned permanently with absolute accuracy.
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a refrigeration appliance which overcomes the above-mentioned and other disadvantages of the heretofore-known devices and methods of this general type and which provides for a household refrigeration appliance in which a separate cover plate of the above-noted type can be easily installed in the receiving space and the cover plate is nonetheless arranged in a permanently positionally secure manner.
With the foregoing and other objects in view there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a household refrigeration appliance, comprising:
an inner container having walls delimiting a receiving space for foodstuffs;
a rail system of the refrigeration appliance; and
a cover plate separate from said inner container and disposed in said receiving space forward of a wall of said inner container;
said cover plate being connected to said rail system at a first connection point and at a second connection point that is different from said first connection point, wherein a functionally first connection type is embodied at said first connection point and a second connection type that is functionally different from said first connection type is embodied at said second connection point.
According to a first aspect of the invention, a household refrigeration appliance is formed with a receiving space for foodstuffs, said receiving space being delimited by walls of an inner container. In addition, the household refrigeration appliance has a cover plate which is separate from the inner container and is arranged in the receiving space forward of a wall of the inner container. It is to be regarded as an essential idea of said first aspect of the invention that the cover plate is connected to a separate rail system of the household refrigeration appliance that is distinct from the container and the cover plate and consequently is secured to said rail system. A functionally first, in particular mechanical, connection type is embodied at a first connection point between the cover plate and the rail system, and a second connection type that is functionally different from the first connection type is embodied at a different second connection point between the cover plate and the rail system. An embodiment of this type produces a particularly mechanically stable mounting and also a cover plate that is able to be securely positioned, since the cover plate is not, or not exclusively, fastened directly to a wall of the inner container itself, but to a rail system that is separate therefrom. In addition, it is also provided according to this aspect of the invention that not just one connection point is provided in this case, but that a plurality of separate and spaced-apart connection points are embodied between the cover plate and the rail system. Furthermore, in addition to said multipositional connection, it is also provided in a quite particular manner that different connection types are embodied at said connection points. The simple, positionally secure and mechanically stable mounting of the cover plate is achieved as a result.
Preferably, the first connection type and the second connection type are not screw-type fastenings and both connection types are nondestructively releasable fastenings. A particularly quick installation is made possible by means of said embodiments. Furthermore, manufacturing tolerances can then also be easily compensated for as a result of these specifications and the desired end position of the cover plate reliably achieved.
It is advantageous development, the first connection type is an expansion connection. What is understood by an expansion connection is a mechanical connection in which the installation of the cover plate does not merely entail a simple suspension mounting on or insertion into the rail system, but in which a desired and defined expansion force also occurs at said connection point in the installed end state. In this case, too, a very quick, positive and positionally accurate attachment of the cover plate is again made possible as a result. By means of said expansion connection, a specific fastening element, which is preferably embodied in a single piece on the cover plate, is expanded on the rail system in the installed state in such a way that a retention, and consequently already as a result thereof a retaining force for retaining the cover plate on the rail system, is achieved by virtue of said expansion forces or retaining forces. In an expansion connection, a fastening element of the cover plate is mechanically coupled to at least two separate contact elements of the rail system and spread apart between said contact elements.
In an advantageous development, the second connection type is a snap-fit connection. This likewise enables a quick mounting and positionally accurate retention of the cover plate on the rail system to be realized by means of a simple and secure snap-fit or latching connection. In a snap-fit connection, in contrast to an expansion connection, only a rearward engagement or insertion of a snap-fit element into a latching seat is provided, but in such a context no expanding action is effected. As a result of said rearward engagement or snapping into place, a mechanical coupling is realized in which in particular the fastening element is not urged under pressure, in particular deformed, against at least one bearing wall of the rail system in the installed end state.
In an advantageous embodiment, it is provided that the household refrigeration appliance has a first curved expansion clip, in particular curved in a banana shape, as a fastening element, which is embodied on a rear side of the cover plate in particular in a single piece and therefore in an integrated manner. The rail system has a first rail which has a freely projecting first lug. Said freely projecting first lug preferably extends in the form of a strip and projects in the width direction of the household refrigeration appliance. Said rail furthermore has a supporting wall which is spaced apart from said first lug and is likewise embodied in particular in an integrated manner in said rail. The lug and the supporting wall form coupling elements of the rail. Preferably, said first lug can be produced by means of a die-cutting and bending process, for example. In the case of the first connection type, the separator clip is positioned between the cover plate and the rail of the rail system in the installed state in such a way that it engages behind said first lug and is arranged inserted in an intermediate space between the first lug and the supporting wall. The expansion clip engages behind said first lug and is spread apart between the rear side of the first lug and the supporting wall. This results in an expansion effect occurring in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance, such that a positionally accurate positioning of the cover plate with respect to the rail system, and consequently also to at least one further wall of the inner container, is set and permanently maintained in particular in said spatial direction by means of this embodiment. In particular, it is provided that during said expansion action the expansion clip is formed into itself in order to generate said bidirectionally acting clamping force. The curved shape of the clamping clip, in particular the banana shape, is particularly advantageous in this case, since this enables said expansion clip to be pivoted easily and accurately, in particular coming from below, into said intermediate space between the lug and the supporting wall, and the expansion force is then reliably built up and brought to bear at two separate contact points.
In the installed state of the cover plate, the rear side of said cover plate preferably bears against the rail on a front side of said first lug. Owing to its embodiment and the functional principle, which in particular is an embodiment variant of the first connection type and therefore an expansion connection, the clamping clip engages at oppositely disposed contact points, as a result of which the expansion is achieved.
Preferably it is provided that the rail is a hollow profile that has a side wall or rail wall which, when viewed in the width direction of the household refrigeration appliance, faces toward the receiving space. Particularly when the rail system has at least one separate further rail, said side wall of the first rail is then oriented facing toward the second rail in the installed state. In particular, the first lug extends from said first side wall of the first rail into the receiving space. Said side wall of the first rail is preferably oriented in a plane which is spanned by the depth direction and the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance.
In an advantageous embodiment, the first lug is accordingly arranged spaced apart from and forward of the supporting wall, when viewed in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance.
In accordance with an added feature of the invention, a first snap-fit hook is arranged on a rear side of the cover plate, in particular is embodied in integrated form in a single piece there, and a freely projecting second lug is embodied on a rail of the rail system. In the case of the second connection type, the snap-fit hook is latched into place on the rail system on the second lug in the installed state of the cover plate. In particular, the snap-fit hook engages behind a lower or upper edge of the second lug, viewed in the height direction, and consequently snaps into place behind said lug upwardly or downwardly, viewed in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance. A retention or positioning of the cover plate on the rail system is achieved by means of an embodiment of said type, enabling a positionally secure mounting of the cover plate in a preferred further spatial direction, namely the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance.
In particular, it is thus also provided that a positionally accurate arrangement of the cover plate on the rail system in a preferred first spatial direction is made possible by means of the first connection type, and a positionally accurate arrangement of the cover plate on the rail system in a different second spatial direction is made possible by means of the second connection type. As a result of this interaction and in each case preferred spatial directions, which preferably are achieved individually and primarily by means of the connection types, the cover plate is beneficially mounted in a positionally secure manner in this case too.
In accordance with an additional feature of the invention, the first rail has a side wall or rail wall oriented in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance, in which wall the first lug and the second lug are each embodied in a single piece. In particular, both lugs are oriented in the width direction of the household refrigeration appliance. In the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance, and therefore also in the height direction of the first rail, the two lugs are arranged spaced apart at a distance from one another. Preferably, the two lugs are embodied in said rail wall by means of die-cutting and bending processes. The lugs are arranged in the height direction such that the first lug is arranged at a higher level than the second lug.
In particular, the first snap-fit hook, as provided in the advantageous embodiment as explained above, latches into place on the second lug.
In a preferred embodiment, the cover plate is connected to the rail system of the household refrigeration appliance at a third connection point, which constitutes a connection point that is spaced apart and separate from the two aforementioned connection points, by means of a further functionally second connection type. This means that in this advantageous embodiment three different connection points in terms of location are embodied between the cover plate and the rail system, and two connection points share the same connection type, namely the second connection type. Said additional second connection point further improves the mechanically stable and positionally accurate mounting of the cover plate.
In a further preferred embodiment, a second snap-fit hook is arranged on a rear side of the cover plate, in particular in a single piece, and therefore in an integrated manner, and that a cutout is embodied on a rail wall of the first rail of the rail system that is oriented in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance, wherein in the case of the third connection type said second snap-fit hook is latched into place in said cutout in the installed state. It is therefore provided with said third connection point that no further, third lug is bent outward from a rail wall of the rail, and consequently no strip-like projection extending into the receiving space is embodied in this regard at said third connection point. Rather, a contour oriented in an opposite direction is created in this case, namely a cutout, in particular a hole, into which said second snap-fit hook then latches into place.
In particular, it is provided that in the case of the second connection point and the third connection point, at which in particular the same second connection type is embodied, the preferably embodied latching engagement is effected in two different spatial directions of the respective snap-fit hooks. Thus, it is preferably provided that when being latched into place in the height direction the first snap-fit hook engages behind the second lug or then snaps upwardly or downwardly in said height direction and is pivoted accordingly, while at the third connection point the second, in this regard, snap-fit hook remains at the same level and snaps into place or latches in the cutout outwardly in the width direction, such that the snap-fit direction is oriented in said width direction. This also is a further very advantageous embodiment, since in this way different snap-fit directions are nonetheless produced at two different connection points by means of the same connection type, as a result of which preferred second positioning directions are in turn created in two different, in particular vertically oriented, spatial directions.
In a further advantageous embodiment, a grippable release clip is embodied integrated on the second snap-fit hook, the second snap-fit hook being releasable out of the engaged end position from the cutout in the rail by means of said release clip. By means of a nondestructively releasable coupling and decoupling device of this type it is possible to achieve a particularly simple and quick disassembly, since a user can simply grasp said release clip and then, by means of a simple bending action, the elastic, and therefore reversibly deformable, snap-fit hook can be bent out of its engaged end position from the cutout. This is a further very advantageous embodiment, since in this way very defined and explicitly reversible disassembly possibilities are created which can be readily recognized and easily carried out by a user.
In a further advantageous embodiment, it is provided that the cover plate is connected to the rail system of the household refrigeration appliance at a further, fourth, connection point, which is embodied differently in terms of location from the other connection points, by means of a functionally third connection type that is different from the other connection types. In particular the third connection type is a clamping connection, in particular having a contact point of the components engaging in a clamping action. The numerous advantages already cited above are brought to the fore once again as a result. In particular, it is provided that at said fourth connection point a second curved clamping clip, in particular curved in a banana shape, is embodied on a rear side of the cover plate, in particular in a single piece and therefore integrated. A freely projecting third lug is embodied on a rail of the rail system, wherein in the case of the fourth connection type the second clamping clip is seated from above on the third lug in the installed state and exerts a downward pressure. Preferably said third lug is in turn embodied in a single piece with the rail and extends out of a side wall or rail wall of said first rail, which in turn is preferably oriented in a plane that is spanned by the depth direction and the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance. Alternatively, it can be provided that in the case of the fourth connection type the second clamping clip is seated from below on the third lug in the installed state and exerts an upward pressure.
Preferably, the third lug, which is a lug that is separate from the other lugs and spaced apart therefrom, accordingly projects into the receiving space and extends here also in the width direction of the household refrigeration appliance. With regard to the strip-like embodiment of the lug, the latter is however rotated through 90° relative to the first lug and/or the second lug, such that it extends with its embodiment covering a greater area in a horizontal plane (spanned by the depth direction and the width direction of the household refrigeration appliance). Such an orientation of the third lug results in the creation of a flat seating surface on which said second clamping clip can then be seated from above and can generate the corresponding force effect. Due to the curved shape of the second clamping clip, a pivoting movement during the installation of the cover plate can result in this case also to a seizing or spreading apart at said third lug and the second clip can make uniform contact and slide along on the top side of said third lug, such that said clamping force effect can then be built up relatively consistently and be reliably maintained. A clamping fit is then created by means of said preferably fourth connection point, which in respect of its retaining function preferably promotes an accurate and secure positioning of the cover plate in the height direction. Viewed in the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance, said fourth connection point is preferably embodied below the second connection point and above the third connection point. This embodiment and height-direction-specific location of said fourth connection point is advantageous especially when the cover plate is not maneuvered into its installed end position in the receiving space by means of a linear displacement movement, but a defined pivoting movement is performed to that effect, since a continuous buildup of said clamping effect is achieved by the pivoting of the cover plate toward the rails and consequently by the pivoting of the clamping clip relative to the third lug.
Preferably, the four connection points are arranged spaced apart from one another in the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance and embodied at different heights. In a vertical sequence viewed in this regard, the first connection point is embodied at a topmost position, the second connection point at a second position, the fourth connection point at a third position, and the third connection point at a bottom fourth position.
In a pivoting of the cover plate when it is being mounted on the rail system, particularly this specific sequence arrangement, viewed from top to bottom, promotes a respective individual coupling at the respective points at specific time instants during said pivoting movement, such that the individual connection types, each considered separately, produce a contacting effect at a suitable time instant and then act particularly advantageously during the further pivoting action and reach their end position.
In a further advantageous embodiment, the cover plate is mounted at an upper edge, viewed in the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance, on the inner container. A further attachment point is created in a particularly advantageous manner thereby, as a result of which in particular the upper edge region of the cover plate is then additionally positioned in a mechanically stable manner. This embodiment is advantageous to a quite special degree so as firstly to achieve an initial coupling of the cover plate to the inner container during the installation and then, starting from said actual state of the cover plate on the inner container, to be able to perform a defined pivoting movement in which the cover plate is then swung toward the rail system and the individual couplings to specific lugs and/or cutouts in the rail can be completed in succession. By means of said upper attachment point with the mounting function it is then also possible to complete the pivoting movement in a defined manner, without the cover plate tilting or being positioned too far down or too far up, such that the respective desired coupling of said cover plate to the elements on the rails is also accomplished in a targeted and precise manner and here too in turn no undesirable seizing or a movement of the fastening element past a lug and/or cutout of the rail occurs.
In particular, it is provided that a coupling ridge projecting into the receiving space is embodied on a top wall of the inner container, in particular is integrally formed in a single piece, which coupling ridge is arranged spaced apart at a distance from a back wall of the inner container in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance. A rib integrally molded on the upper end of the cover plate engages behind said coupling ridge of the inner container in the installed state of the cover plate. By means of said structure in the form of the coupling ridge projecting from above in an elevated position into the receiving space, a defined mounting pocket for the upper edge of the cover plate is then also created, such that during the installation of said cover plate, the latter can first be simply inserted from below behind said coupling ridge into the formed pivot pocket. An undesirable excess pressure of said coupling ridge, and potential damage to or bending of said coupling ridge associated therewith, is prevented as a result. The upper end of the cover plate does not snap across or latch behind said coupling ridge, but rather the installation scenario always proceeds in such a manner that the upper edge of the cover plate is initially urged behind said coupling ridge by a pushing action coming from below.
In a further advantageous embodiment, it is provided that a panel facing clip is embodied in an integrated manner at said upper end of the cover plate spaced apart at a distance from said rib. In the installed state of the cover plate, said panel facing clip covers the coupling ridge on the inner container at the front side, and therefore toward the receiving space, such that said coupling ridge cannot be seen when viewed from a loading opening into the receiving space. Said panel facing clip advantageously abuts against the top wall of the inner container, such that an additional supporting effect for the cover plate is achieved in this case also.
In a further advantageous embodiment, the cover plate is supported or mounted at a lower edge, viewed in the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance, on the inner container during an installation step or in an installed state. A further attachment point is thereby created in a particularly advantageous manner, as a result of which in particular the lower edge region of the cover plate is then additionally positioned in a mechanically stable manner. This embodiment is advantageous to a particularly special degree, in order firstly to achieve an initial coupling of the cover plate to the inner container during the installation and then, starting from said actual state of the cover plate on the inner container, to be able to perform a defined pivoting movement in which the cover plate is then swung toward the rail system and the individual couplings to specific lugs and/or cutouts in the rail can be completed in succession. By means of said lower attachment point with the supporting function or mounting function it is then also possible to complete the pivoting movement in a defined manner, without the cover plate tilting or being positioned too far down or too far up, such that the respective desired coupling of said cover plate to the elements on the rails is also accomplished in a targeted and precise manner and here too in turn no undesirable seizing or a movement of the fastening element past a lug and/or cutout of the rail occurs.
In a further advantageous embodiment, it is provided that a rearward-projecting spacer ridge is embodied on a rear side of the cover plate, in particular in an integrated manner and therefore in a single piece, which spacer ridge abuts on a front side of a back wall of the inner container in the installed state of the cover plate. This is another very advantageous embodiment, since in this way the cover plate on the one hand cannot be positioned too far toward the rear during installation and a desired intermediate space is embodied in a defined manner between the back wall of the inner container and the cover plate. In particular, functional units of the household refrigeration appliance, for example a water reservoir for a dispenser unit of the household refrigeration appliance and/or a connector backing part for an electrical plug-in connector and/or valves and/or at least one light source, are arranged in said intermediate space. The said dispenser unit is embodied for dispensing liquid and/or ice mold elements, in particular on a door on a front side of the household refrigeration appliance. This enables specific drinks to be produced and dispensed.
A further independent aspect of the invention relates to a household refrigeration appliance having a receiving space for foodstuffs which is delimited by walls of an inner container. The household refrigeration appliance has a cover plate which is separate from the inner container and is arranged in the receiving space forward of a wall of the inner container. Viewed in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance, said cover plate is therefore positioned further forward than the wall of the inner container. In particular, said wall of the inner container is therefore a back wall. An essential idea of the invention is to be seen in the fact that the cover plate is connected to a rail system of the household refrigeration appliance, in particular a rail system that is separate from the inner container and the cover plate, and a first curved expansion clip, in particular curved in a banana shape, is embodied on a rear side of the cover plate, in particular in an integrated manner and therefore in a single piece, and there are embodied on a rail of the rail system, in particular in an integrated manner and therefore in a single piece, a freely projecting first lug and a supporting wall spaced apart therefrom on the rail, wherein the expansion clip engages behind the first lug on the rail system in the installed state of the cover plate and is spread apart between the rear side of the first lug and the supporting wall.
A further independent aspect of the invention relates to a household refrigeration appliance having a receiving space for foodstuffs which is delimited by walls of an inner container. The household refrigeration appliance additionally has a cover plate which is separate from the inner container and is arranged in the receiving space forward of a wall of the inner container. In particular, said wall is thus arranged forward of a back wall, viewed in the depth direction of the household refrigeration appliance, such that said back wall of the inner container is covered by said cover plate at least in sections on the front side. An essential idea of the invention is to be seen in the fact that the cover plate is connected to a rail system of the household refrigeration appliance, in particular a rail system that is separate from the inner container and the cover plate, at at least one connection point, wherein for that purpose a curved clamping clip, in particular curved in a banana shape, is embodied on a rear side of the cover plate, in particular in an integrated manner and therefore in a single piece, and a freely projecting lug, in particular extending in the width direction, is embodied on a rail of the rail system, wherein in the installed state of the cover plate on the rail system the clamping clip is seated from above on the lug and exerts a downward pressure. In this building up of the clamping force, which exerts a downward action in the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance, said clamping clip is in particular elastically deformable. Alternatively, it may be provided that in the installed state of the cover plate on the rail system the clamping clip is seated from below on the lug and exerts an upward pressure.
In a further independent aspect of the invention, a household refrigeration appliance is provided which has a receiving space for foodstuffs which is delimited by walls of an inner container. The household refrigeration appliance has a cover plate which is separate from the inner container and is arranged in the receiving space forward of a wall of the inner container. An essential idea of said further independent aspect of the invention is to be seen in the fact that a backward-projecting spacer ridge, in particular integrated in the cover plate, is embodied on a rear side of the cover plate, wherein said spacer ridge bears against a front side of a back wall of the inner container in the installed state of the cover plate in the receiving space.
Embodiments of the first independent aspect of the invention are to be regarded as advantageous embodiments of the further independent aspects of the household refrigeration appliance.
In all aspects of the invention it is provided in particular that the cover plate is arranged with a baseplate spaced apart at a distance from a front side on the wall of the inner container, in particular a front side of a back wall of the inner container, such that an intermediate space is formed between the baseplate of the cover plate and said front side of the wall of the inner container, in which intermediate space functional units of the household refrigeration appliance are arranged. A functional unit may be a container for a liquid and/or a valve and/or an electrical component and/or an optical component.
The cover plate is preferably embodied in a single piece and in particular made of plastic. It may be embodied as textured and/or individually colored on a front side facing toward the receiving space. At least said front side may for example be covered with an adhesive foil or coated in some other way. This enables an individual functionality to be embodied with regard to the ambient conditions in the receiving space and/or a practically individual appearance to be created.
The cover plate may cover a wall of the inner container, in particular a front side of a back wall of the inner container, at least by 50% or at least by 75% or at least by 90% or substantially completely.
In the case of the preferably embodied second clamping clip at the fourth connection point, no snap-fit connection and no expansion connection are embodied as the connection type, but rather a clamping connection or press-fit connection with only one pressure point, which, compared to the expansion connection cited above in an advantageous embodiment, has only one contact point between the clamping clip and the top side of the lug, on which the clamping clip is no longer seated, but is mechanically press-fitted in a defined manner. In the case of the preferred expansion connection, in this context, at least two contact points are provided, which are embodied on oppositely disposed bearing surfaces, such that in this case said expansion fit is realized.
Furthermore, the invention also relates to a method for installing a cover plate in a receiving space for foodstuffs of a household refrigeration appliance, in which method a cover plate is fastened to a rail system of the household refrigeration appliance which is separate from the inner containers of the cover plate and for that purpose a functional first connection type is embodied at a first connection point and a second connection type that is functionally different from the first connection type is embodied at a second connection point that is different from the first connection point.
Advantageously, in addition to the fastening of the cover plate directly to the rail system, the cover plate is also secured, in particular supported or mounted, directly to the inner container at a further attachment point, this preferably being carried out in an upper or lower corner region between a top wall and a back wall of the inner container or a bottom wall and a back wall of the inner container. To that end, an upper end or a lower end of the cover plate is preferably mounted, coming from below or coming from above, in a pivot pocket of the inner container, wherein, viewed in the depth direction, said pivot pocket may be delimited toward the front by an integrally formed coupling ridge. During installation, the cover plate is therefore introduced by the upper end or the lower end into said pivot pocket initially in a first installation step coming from below or from above, and in each case inclined at an angle, and then, starting from said inclined position, is pivoted in the state mounted in said pivot pocket in the direction of the wall of the inner container, such that then, during said pivoting action, the end positions are contacted and created at said cited different connection types between the cover plate and the rail system.
In a further advantageous embodiment, it is provided that in a concluding installation step, in which the cover plate has then already been fastened to the rail system, the cover plate is also screwed in addition at a lower end to the inner container, in particular to that wall which is covered toward the receiving space at least in sections by the cover plate.
Advantageous embodiments of an inventive aspect of a household appliance, as has been presented above, are to be regarded as advantageous embodiments of the inventive method, wherein to that end the connection types individually cited in each case and/or individual lugs and/or cutouts on the rails, as well as the respective clamping clips and expansion clips and/or snap-fit hooks on the cover plate on the other hand, make possible the respective coupling scenarios and mechanically acting bonding and retaining functionalities of the respective method steps.
With the above and other objects in view, there is also provided, in accordance with a further independent aspect of the invention, a method for installing a cover plate in a receiving space for foodstuffs of a household refrigeration appliance. In the method, the cover plate is inserted into a coupling pocket or pivot pocket and, starting from that inserted state, a pivoting movement toward the wall of the inner container is performed and as a result thereof the cover plate is automatically connected to, in particular expanded and additionally snapped into place on, a rail system of the household refrigeration appliance. In this case the expansion and snap-fit action is performed automatically at different connection points when said pivoting movement of the cover plate relative to the wall of the inner container is performed. In the then pivoted end position of the cover plate, the expansion and snap-fitting of the cover plate at different connection points on the rail system is achieved automatically.
In this case, too, advantageous embodiments of the above-cited aspects are regarded as advantageous embodiments of said further independent method aspect.
The household refrigeration appliance preferably comprises a functional unit, in particular a no-frost unit, which, viewed in the height direction, is arranged below the cover plate. Said functional unit is therefore no longer covered by the cover plate on the front side. In particular, it is provided that said functional unit, which is associated with the aforesaid functional units which may be arranged behind the cover plate, is covered by a separate cover. Said separate cover can preferably be fastened, in particular screwed, to a back wall of the inner container. A panel separate therefrom may additionally be arranged, in particular screwed on, also at an interface or transition zone between the cover plate and said cover.
In particular, the household refrigeration appliance is a no-frost household refrigeration appliance. To that end, the no-frost unit may be connected to an air duct so that cold air of the no-frost unit can be blown into the receiving space by way of said air duct, for which purpose the cover plate then has openings through which the cold air can make its way from behind the cover plate through the cover plate and into the receiving space.
The no-frost unit has an evaporator which is also covered by a covering system, in particular by a cover separate from the cover plate, separated off from the receiving space or from the remaining volume region of the receiving space. In particular, the no-frost unit has a fan. The evaporator is oriented in particular vertically, which means that it extends with its planar extension in the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance in the region of the back wall of the inner container.
A no-frost household refrigeration appliance is equipped with a no-frost technology that comprises a no-frost unit. The term no-frost technology serves to denote a technical process in which the humidity in an interior space embodied as a freezer space is reduced. As a result, no frost forms on the foodstuffs or frost formation is significantly reduced and a defrosting of the freezer space becomes unnecessary or must only be carried out in significantly reduced time cycles. With such a no-frost technology, cooling elements embodied as cooling fins, and therefore a heat exchanger of the secondary circuit, are located for example in a segregated region in the interior space. During the cooling phase, the cold air is then introduced by means of a fan from said segregated region into the interior space and consequently into the freezer space. These appliances are configured in this case in such a way that air circulates through all compartments of the interior space and reenters the segregated region in the manner of a closed loop. Because cold air holds less humidity, the latter is deposited in the form of frost primarily only on the heat exchanger of the secondary refrigeration circuit, which is located in the segregated region and is the coldest point in the no-frost household appliance that has contact with air. It may then be provided that at specific time intervals a defrost mode is performed in which said first heat exchanger is defrosted in the segregated region. To that end there is provided in the no-frost household refrigeration appliance in particular a heating device by means of which said heat exchanger is heated. The water then resulting from the thawing ice layer can run out from the interior space, and therefore also from the appliance, via a drainage channel and can be collected in a drip tray, which may also serve as an evaporation container. In particular, the fan is deactivated in the defrost mode so that the freezer space continues to remain refrigerated. The frosting of cooling fins is significantly reduced by means of the no-frost technology and the humidity in the entire household refrigeration appliance decreases, thereby also significantly reducing the formation of ice layers.
The humidity in the freezer space is significantly reduced in a no-frost appliance by means of a relatively simple exemplary method. This is achieved in particular by a separation of the cooling fins from the actual refrigerated region or refrigerator compartment, the cold air being conveyed into the freezer interior space or the freezer compartment with the aid of a fan. The cold air circulates as a closed circuit through all compartments of the refrigeration appliance and reenters the refrigeration part. Because the cold air is poor at absorbing the humidity, and is less able to hold it effectively, the latter condenses on the cooling fins. These are heated and defrosted at regular time intervals and the water is preferably conducted into an evaporation container by way of a channel, for example. The humidity in the overall appliance decreases and virtually no ice layers form. In contrast to conventional appliances, the majority of the resulting humidity that leads to frost buildup in conventional freezer cabinets accumulates in the segregated region of the cooling fins in the case of the household refrigeration appliance equipped with no-frost technology.
The positions and orientations given in the case of proper use and arrangement of the appliance as intended, and with an observer then standing in front of the appliance and looking in the direction of the appliance, are specified by indicators such as “top”, “bottom”, “front”, “rear, “horizontal”, “vertical”, “depth direction”, “width direction”, “height direction”, etc.
Further features of the invention will become apparent from the claims, the figures and the description of the figures. The features and feature combinations cited hereinabove in the description, as well as the features and feature combinations cited hereinbelow in the description of the figures and/or shown solely in the figures, can be used not only in the combination specified in each case, but also in other combinations, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. It is therefore also appropriate to consider embodiments of the invention as incorporated and disclosed which are not explicitly shown in the figures and explained, yet which may be derived and produced by feature combinations separated from the embodiments that have been explained. Embodiments and feature combinations which therefore do not exhibit all of the features of an originally formulated independent claim are also to be regarded as disclosed. Furthermore, embodiments and feature combinations, in particular based on the above-described embodiments, are to be regarded as disclosed which go beyond or diverge from the feature combinations set forth in the back-references of the claims.
The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.
In the figures, like or functionally equivalent elements are labeled with the same reference numerals and symbols throughout.
Referring now to the figures of the drawing in detail and first, particularly, to
In the exemplary embodiment, the household refrigeration appliance 1 additionally has a second receiving space 8 which is separate from the first receiving space 3 and in this case is a freezer compartment. In this configuration, the second receiving space 8 is arranged in particular in the vertical direction and consequently below the first receiving space 3, viewed in the height direction. In the height direction, the two receiving spaces 3 and 8 are arranged free of overlap. The second receiving space 8 can be closed on the front side by means of a separate third door 9, said door 9 being embodied in particular as a front wall of a drawer which is displaceable in the depth direction (z-direction), i.e. can be inserted into and withdrawn from the second receiving space 8. The doors 6, 7 and 9 are arranged free of overlap relative to one another and are positioned next to one another on the front side. They represent in particular front-side closure parts or visible parts of the household refrigeration appliance 1.
The no-frost unit 10 is embodied at least in a lower rear section of the first receiving space 3. The no-frost unit 10 extends in particular also into the second receiving space 8 and is also arranged there in the rear section.
The household refrigeration appliance 1 additionally comprises an air duct 13 (
In the exemplary embodiment, the no-frost unit 10, which is a functional unit of the household refrigeration appliance 1, has two separate air intake openings 16, through which air is drawn out of the receiving space 3 and introduced into the no-frost unit 10. In the region of the back wall 14, a functional unit in the form of a water reservoir 17 is additionally arranged in the exemplary embodiment next to the air duct 13, which represents a functional unit. Liquid for a dispenser unit (not shown) of the household refrigeration appliance 1 is arranged in said water reservoir 17. The dispenser unit is embodied for dispensing liquid and/or ice mold elements and preferably has a dispensing unit mounted on a door, the door 6, for example, for the purpose of dispensing drinks.
In addition, valves 18 may be arranged as further functional units in the rear section of the receiving space 3. An electrical plug-in connector may likewise be arranged as a further functional unit.
Also to be seen in
As can be seen, said cover plate 19 extends in the width direction over the entire width between vertical side walls 22 and 23 of the inner container 4, such that the back wall 14 is completely covered in this regard. In the height direction, however, the cover plate 19 ends spaced apart from the no-frost unit 10 above the no-frost unit 10.
Also shown in
As can be seen in
The rails 28, 29 and 30 are elongate bars that are mounted in the receiving space 3. The rail system 27 is embodied in such a way that the cover plate 19 can be secured thereto without additional separate fastening means. This means that on the one hand the rails 28 to 30 have integrated fastening elements which mechanically couple to further fastening means integrated in the cover plate 19 without additional separate fastening elements in such a way that the cover plate 19 can be securely fixed to said rail system 27.
The first rail 28 is embodied as a hollow profile and has a front wall 31 facing forward and therefore facing away from the back wall 14, a side wall 32 facing toward the side wall 22, a rear wall 33 facing toward the back wall 14, and a side wall 34 facing toward the receiving space 3 and therefore facing toward the opposite second rail 30 in the width direction. The rail wall or internal side wall 34 is oriented in a plane that is spanned by the depth direction and the height direction of the household refrigeration appliance 1. In addition, the rail 28 has a supporting wall 35 oriented in the width direction and facing toward the opposite second rail 30. Said supporting wall 35 is configured in particular as an extension of the rear wall 33 and is therefore embodied as extending sideways at a rear end of the rail 28.
The first rail 28 has a first lug 36 which is embodied by means of a die-cutting and bending process in the internal side wall 34 facing toward the supporting wall 35. Said first lug 36 is embodied in a strip shape and extends into a plane that is formed by the height direction and the width direction of the household refrigeration appliance 1. An enlarged detail view of the first rail 28 in the region of said first lug 36 is shown in
Also shown in
An enlarged partial sectional view of the first rail 28 in the region of the second lug 37 is in turn shown in
In addition, the first rail 28 has a third lug 38 which is likewise embodied in a single piece and therefore integrated in the first rail 28, in particular is embodied by means of a die-cutting and bending process in the internal side wall 34. Like the two first lugs 36 and 37, said third lug 38 is also oriented extending in the width direction and facing away from the vertical side wall 22, and consequently is oriented facing toward the opposite side wall 23 and in particular the opposite second rail 30.
An enlarged detail view of the first rail 28 in the region of said third lug 38 is in turn shown in
Viewed in the height direction, said third lug 38 is offset downward with respect to the two first lugs 36 and 37 and consequently is embodied at a further lower level than the other two lugs 36 and 37.
In addition, the first rail 28 has a cutout 39 in the internal side wall 34, which cutout 39 is in particular a hole toward the inner cavity of the first rail 28. Thus, no outwardly bent lug is embodied at said point, but only said feedthrough in the form of the cutout 39. Viewed in the height direction, said cutout 39 produced by die-cutting is embodied below the lugs 36, 37 and 38 and consequently is positioned at a lowest level. An enlarged detail view of the rail 28 in the region of said cutout 39 is shown in
Also indicated in
In addition, right at the bottom in
In addition, a panel rib 44b is integrally formed in a single piece on the cover plate 19 at said upper end 43, which panel rib 44b covers the coupling ridge 41 on the front side in the installed state according to
It is furthermore provided in an advantageous embodiment that a spacer ridge 46 is integrally formed in a single piece on a rear side 45 of the cover plate 19, in particular of the baseplate 20, which spacer ridge 46 bears against the front side of the back wall 14 in the installed state. The desired clearance in the depth direction between the cover plate 19, in particular the baseplate 20, and the back wall 14 is achieved in a defined manner and maintained as a result.
With regard to the further embodiment of the cover plate 19 and options for mounting the same to the rail system 27, it will now be explained initially how the cover plate 19 may be installed. To that end, the cover plate 19 is first introduced, still separated from the rail system 27, into the receiving space 3 and inserted by the upper end 43 coming from below into the pocket 42, said rib 44a being introduced into the pocket 42 for that purpose. While being introduced in this fashion, the cover plate 19 then still stands at an angle to the back wall 14 and upon completion of said mounting into said pocket 42 is pivoted toward the back wall in order then to bring about the mechanical coupling to the rail system 27.
In this regard,
As can be seen, the inclined attitude of the cover plate 19 relative to the rail 28 is shown and the pivoting direction toward the first rail 28 is indicated by the arrow P1. During disassembly, the pivoting movement is performed in precisely the opposite direction.
A first fastening element in the form of a first curved expansion clip 48, in particular curved in a banana shape, is shown embodied on a rear side section 47 of the cover plate 19, in particular of the baseplate 20, in a single piece therewith. Said expansion clip 48 is curved toward the top in a banana shape and when pivoted in the direction of the arrow P1 descends into an intermediate space 49 between the first lug 36 and the supporting wall 35. The manner in which said expansion clip 48 is pivoted into the space or engaged in position coming from below is shown in
The cover plate 19 is again shown in a pivoted intermediate installation state, as has been explained already with reference to
A further, second, snap-fit element in the form of a second snap-fit hook 59 is embodied in an integrated manner, and therefore in a single piece, on the rear side section 47 of the cover plate 19, in particular of the baseplate 20, said second snap-fit hook 59 likewise being embodied as elastically deformable. In this case
As can be seen in
In contrast, the latching direction in the case of the snap-fit connection in
Preferably, it is provided that a rear edge 37b of the lug 37 and/or the upward-pointing nose of the first snap-fit hook 54 are tapered slightly so that during said disassembly and a pivoting movement in the opposite direction to the arrow P1, a corresponding releasing of the connection point 62 in
Preferably, it is provided that that the cover plate 19 is additionally screwed to the back wall 14 in the marking zone VI, as shown in
The following is a summary list of reference numerals and the corresponding structure used in the above description of the invention:
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2016 224 610.0 | Dec 2016 | DE | national |
