Patent Application
20170328626
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The disclosure and prior art relates to refrigeration devices and more particularly pertains to a new refrigeration device having a plurality of refrigerators that are removably coupled together.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a plurality of refrigerators and each of the refrigerators may contain perishable items. A selected number of the refrigerators is removably coupled together. Thus, the selected refrigerators may facilitate a selected amount of cold storage area. The selected refrigerators are selectively uncoupled from each other. Thus, the selected refrigerators may be moved through an area has a height and a width is less than a height and a width of the selected refrigerators when the selected refrigerators are removably coupled together.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A selected number of the refrigerators 12 are removably coupled together. Thus, the selected refrigerators 12 facilitate a selected amount of cold storage area. The selected refrigerators 12 are selectively uncoupled from each other. Thus, each refrigerator 12 may be moved through an area that has a height and a width that is less than a height and a width of the selected refrigerators 12 when the selected refrigerators 12 are removably coupled together. The area may be a hallway in an apartment building, a staircase or other area too small to accommodate a full sized refrigerator.
Each of the plurality of refrigerators 12 comprises a housing 14 that has an outer wall 16. The outer wall 16 has a front side 18, a back side 20, a bottom side 22, a top side 24, a first lateral side 26 and a second lateral side 28. The front side 18 is open to access an interior of the housing 14. The housing 14 may contain the perishable items. At least one door 30 is hingedly coupled to the front side 18 and a handle 32 is coupled to the at least one door 30. Thus, the at least one door 32 selectively opens and closes the front side 24.
A plurality of hooks 34 is provided. Each of the hooks 34 is coupled to the outer wall 16 of the housing 14. The hooks 34 are spaced apart from each other and are distributed around the outer wall 16. Each of the hooks 34 may have a first end 36. Each of the hooks 34 may curve away from the outer wall 16 such that the first end 36 is spaced from the outer wall 16. The hooks 34 may be distributed around the top side 24, the bottom side 20, the first lateral side 26 and the second lateral side 28 of the housing 14.
A plurality of latches 38 is provided. Each of the latches 38 is coupled to the outer wall 16 and each of the latches 38 may be manipulated. The latches 38 are spaced apart from each other and are distributed around the outer wall 16. Each of the latches 38 is aligned with an associated one of the hooks 34.
Each of the latches 38 on the selected refrigerator 12 selectively engages the associated hooks 34 corresponding to an adjacent one of the refrigerators 12. Thus, the selected refrigerator 12 is removably coupled to the adjacent refrigerator 12. Each of the latches 38 may comprise a lever 40 and a grapple 42 that is coupled to the lever 40. The lever 40 may be movably coupled to the refrigerator 12 and the grapple 42 may engage the associated hook 34.
A touch screen 44 may be coupled to the at least one door 32 corresponding to an associated one of the refrigerators 12. The touch screen 44 may be electrically coupled to the associated refrigerator 12. The touch screen 44 may be manipulated to control operational parameters of the associated refrigerator 12. A transceiver 46 may be coupled to an associated one of the refrigerators 12. The transceiver 46 may be electrically coupled to the associated refrigerator 12 and the transceiver 46 may be in electrical communication with an extrinsic communications network such as the internet or the like.
In an alternative embodiment 48 as shown in
In use, a selected number of the refrigerators 12 are positioned adjacent to one another. The latches 38 on each of the selected refrigerators 12 are manipulated to engage the associated hooks 34 on an adjacent refrigerator 12. Thus, the selected refrigerators 12 are coupled together. The selected refrigerators 12 may be arranged in a horizontal row. The selected refrigerators 12 may be arranged in a vertical column. Moreover, the selected refrigerators 12 may be arranged in a combination of the horizontal row and the vertical column.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
