REFRIGERATOR

Abstract

A refrigerator includes: a main body; a storage compartment provided in the main body; and an air duct provided in the storage compartment and configured to discharge air into the storage compartment, wherein the air duct may include: a front panel having an assembly groove formed at upper portion of a front surface of the front panel; an air flow path part provided at a rear surface of the front panel; an air duct cover including an upper portion inserted into the assembly groove and a lower portion attached to the front panel; and a fixing member configured to detachably attach the air duct to the front panel.

Description

BACKGROUND

1. Field

The disclosure relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator having a removable air duct cover provided on a front surface of an air duct.

2. Description of Related Art

A refrigerator includes a main body having a storage compartment and a cold air supply system for supplying cold air to the storage compartment to keep foods fresh. The storage compartment includes a refrigerating compartment that is kept at temperature of about 0 degrees Celsius to 5 degrees Celsius to keep foods refrigerated, and a freezing compartment that is kept at temperature of about 0 degrees Celsius to −30 degrees Celsius to keep foods frozen. A door may be provided at the front of the main body to open and close the storage compartment. The door may be rotatably provided at the front of the main body with a hinge to open and close the storage compartment. Also, the door may be provided as a drawer type door to open and close the storage compartment.

The refrigerator has an evaporator installed at the rear of the storage compartment, and the evaporator generates cold air depending on an operation of a compressor installed in a machine room. The cold air generated by the evaporator is supplied into the storage compartment through an air duct provided at a rear side of the storage compartment. The cold air supplied into the storage compartment freezes or refrigerates the interior of the storage compartment so that foods stored in the storage compartment may be kept fresh for a long period of time.

The air duct includes a front panel, a rear panel attached to a rear surface of the front panel to form a flow path for guiding cold air, a flow path part provided between the front panel and the rear panel to form the flow path together with the rear panel, and an air duct cover attached to a front surface of the front panel.

The air duct cover, which is visible to a user when the user opens the door, may have various designs. That is, various designs may be provided to the user depending on colors or materials of the air duct cover.

However, the air duct cover is attached to the front surface of the front panel with adhesive or tape, and as such, in order to change a front design of the air duct, the entire air duct must be replaced.

SUMMARY

Provided is a refrigerator capable of changing a front design of an air duct by replacing an air duct cover detachably attached to a front surface of the air duct.

According to an aspect of the disclosure, a refrigerator includes: a main body; a storage compartment provided in the main body; and an air duct provided in the storage compartment and configured to discharge air into the storage compartment, wherein the air duct may include: a front panel having an assembly groove formed at upper portion of a front surface of the front panel; an air flow path part provided at a rear surface of the front panel; an air duct cover including an upper portion inserted into the assembly groove and a lower portion attached to the front panel; and a fixing member configured to detachably attach the air duct to the front panel.

The refrigerator may further include a plurality of screws, wherein the fixing member has a plurality of first assembly holes, the front panel has a plurality of second assembly holes corresponding to the plurality of first assembly holes, and the fixing member is detachably attached to the front panel by the plurality of screws inserted through the plurality of first assembly holes and the plurality of second assembly holes.

The refrigerator may further include a fan, wherein the front panel may include: an air discharge part having a plurality of air discharge holes through which air is discharged into the storage compartment, and a fan mounting part provided below the air discharge part and on which the fan is mounted.

The fixing member has an L shape and may include a first surface corresponding to a lower end of the air discharge part and a second surface corresponding to an upper surface of the fan mounting part.

The plurality of second assembly holes may be provided at the lower end of the air discharge part, and the plurality of first assembly holes may be provided on the first surface of the fixing member corresponding to the lower end of the air discharge part on which the plurality of second assembly holes is formed.

The plurality of second assembly holes may be provided on the upper surface of the fan mounting part, and the plurality of first assembly holes may be provided on the first surface of the fixing member corresponding to the upper surface of the fan mounting part on which the plurality of second assembly holes is formed.

The fixing member may include a plurality of assembly hooks configured to be detachably attached to the front panel, and the front panel may include a plurality of hook assembly holes into which the plurality of assembly hooks are attached.

The refrigerator may further a fan, wherein the front panel may include: an air discharge part having a plurality of air discharge holes through which air is discharged into the storage compartment, and a fan mounting part provided below the air discharge part and on which the fan is mounted.

The fixing member may have an L shape and may include a first surface corresponding to a lower end of the air discharge part, and a second surface corresponding to an upper surface of the fan mounting part.

The plurality of hook assembly holes may be provided at the lower end of the air discharge part, and the plurality of assembly hooks may be provided on the first surface of the fixing member corresponding to the lower end of the air discharge part on which the plurality of hook assembly holes is formed.

The plurality of hook assembly holes may be provided on the upper surface of the fan mounting part, and the plurality of assembly hooks may be provided on the first surface of the fixing member corresponding to the upper surface of the fan mounting part on which the plurality of hook assembly holes is formed.

The air duct cover may include a plurality of fixing hooks provided on the rear surface of the air duct cover to be detachably fixed to a front plate.

The front plate may include a plurality of fixing holes to which the plurality of fixing hooks is detachably fixed.

The plurality of fixing hooks may be provided in a central portion between the upper and lower portions of the air duct cover, and configured to prevent the air duct cover from being lifted from the front panel when the air duct cover is attached to the front panel.

The plurality of fixing hooks are separately provided and are fastened to the rear surface of the air duct cover.

According to one or more embodiments, a front design of an air duct can be changed by replacing an air duct cover, independent of any other parts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certain embodiments of the present disclosure are more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a cold air duct according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a view illustrating a rear panel and a flow path part of FIG. 2 that are integrally formed, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a view illustrating the air duct cover attached to the front panel by a fixing member, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating the air duct cover inserted into an assembly groove of the front panel, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A′ in FIG. 6, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating the air duct cover attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 9 is a view illustrating the air duct cover inserted into the assembly groove of the front panel, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B′ in FIG. 10, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 12 is a view illustrating the air duct cover attached to the front panel by the fixing member in a hooking manner, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 13 is a view illustrating the air duct cover inserted into the assembly groove of the front panel, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 14 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C′ in FIG. 14, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 16 is a view illustrating the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member in a hooking manner, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 17 is a view illustrating the air duct cover is inserted into the assembly groove of the front panel, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 18 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view taken along line D-D′ in FIG. 18, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 20 is a view illustrating that a plurality of fixing hooks formed on the air duct cover and a plurality of fixing holes are formed in the front panel, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 21 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view taken along line E-E′ in FIG. 21, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 23 is a view illustrating the plurality of fixing hooks separately provided and fastened to the air duct cover, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 24 is a view illustrating an air duct cover and a front panel detachably attached in a state in which a film is provided between the air duct cover and the front panel, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 25 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover and the front panel detachably attached in a state in which the film is provided between the air duct cover and the front panel, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 26 is an exploded perspective view of an inner case and an air duct attached to the inner case, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 27 is a view illustrating a rear panel and a flow path part of FIG. 26 that are integrally formed, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 28 is a view illustrating an air duct cover inserted into an assembly groove of the inner case, according to one or more embodiments;

FIG. 29 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the inner case, according to one or more embodiments; and

FIG. 30 is a cross-sectional view taken along line F-F′ in FIG. 29, according to one or more embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The embodiments described in the present specification, and the configurations shown in the drawings, are only examples of embodiments of the present disclosure, and various modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure.

Like reference numbers or signs in the various drawings of the application represent parts or components that perform substantially the same functions.

The terms used herein are for the purpose of describing the embodiments and are not intended to restrict and/or to limit the present disclosure. For example, the singular expressions herein may include plural expressions, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, the terms “comprises” and “has” are intended to indicate that there are features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification, and do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various components, these components should not be limited by these terms, and the terms are only used to distinguish one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, a first component may be referred to as a second component, and similarly, the second component may also be referred to as a first component. The term “and/or” includes any combination of a plurality of related items or any one of a plurality of related items.

In this specification, the terms “front end,” “rear end,” “upper portion,” “lower portion,” “front surface,” “rear surface,” “upper end,” and “lower end” used in the following description are defined with reference to the drawings, and the shape and position of each component are not limited by these terms.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to one or more embodiments.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, a refrigerator may include a main body 10, a plurality of storage compartments 20 provided inside the main body 10 such that the front side of the refrigerator is open, and a door 30 is provided to open and close the front of the storage compartment 20.

The main body 10 may include an inner case 11 forming the storage compartment 20 and an outer case 15 forming an exterior. According to one or more embodiments, a heat insulator may be foamed between the inner case 11 and the outer case 15 to prevent leakage of cold air in the storage compartment 20.

According to one or more embodiments, a lower rear side of the main body 10 may include a machine room in which a compressor for compressing a refrigerant and a condenser for condensing the refrigerant compressed by the compressor may be provided.

The storage compartment 20 may be partitioned into a refrigerating compartment 21 as an upper storage compartment and a freezing compartment 23 as a lower storage compartment by a partition wall 17. A plurality of shelves 25 in which foods and the like may be stacked and stored may be provided inside the storage compartment 20. In addition, a storage container 27 in which foods and the like may be put and stored may be provided inside the storage compartment 20.

The refrigerating compartment 21 may be opened and closed by a refrigerating compartment door 31 and the freezing compartment 23 may be opened and closed by a freezing compartment door 32 rotatably attached to the main body 10. For example, the refrigerating compartment door 31 and the freezing compartment door 32 may be attached to the main body 10 through a hinge. A plurality of door guards 35 in which foods and the like may be stored may be installed on a rear surface of the door 30.

According to one or more embodiments, the refrigerator may include a cold air supply device for supplying cold air to the storage compartment 20. The cold air supply device may include the compressor and the condenser installed in the machine room, an evaporator installed on a rear surface of the storage compartment 20 to generate cold air, a fan F (see FIG. 2) provided above the evaporator to induce cold air generated from the evaporator to be supplied to the storage compartment 20, and an air duct 100 provided to guide the cold air induced by the fan to be discharged into the storage compartment 20. Although the drawings illustrate that the air duct 100 is provided at the rear of the refrigerating compartment 21 in the upper storage compartment, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. That is, the air duct 100 may be provided at the rear of the freezing compartment 23 in the lower storage compartment, at the rear of each of the refrigerating compartment 21 and the freezing compartment 23, or a position other than the rear of each of the refrigerating compartment 21 and the freezing compartment 23.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of an air duct according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 3 is a view illustrating the rear panel and a flow path part of FIG. 2 integrally formed, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 4 is a view illustrating the air duct cover attached to the front panel by a fixing member, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 5 is a view illustrating the air duct cover inserted into an assembly groove of the front panel, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A′ in FIG. 6, according to one or more embodiments.

As illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 7, the air duct 100 may include a front panel 110. The front panel 110 may include an air discharge part 111 having a plurality of air discharge holes 112 through which cold air is discharged into the refrigerating compartment 21 (see FIG. 1). The plurality of air discharge holes 112 may be formed at positions corresponding to a plurality of air discharge holes 133 formed in a flow path part 130, which are subsequently described herein. In order to distinguish the air discharge holes from each other, the air discharge holes 133 formed on the flow path part 130 may be referred to as first air discharge holes, and the air discharge holes 112 formed on the front panel 110 may be referred to as second air discharge holes.

The front panel 110 may include a fan mounting part 113 protruding toward the front of the refrigerator and provided below the air discharge part 111. The fan F may be mounted on the fan mounting part 113.

The air duct 100 may include a rear panel 120 attached to a rear surface of the front panel 110 to form flow paths 121 and 131 for guiding cold air. The rear panel 120 may include the first flow path 121 forming the flow paths 121 and 131 together with the flow path part 130, which will be described later.

The air duct 100 may include the flow path part 130 provided between the front panel 110 and the rear panel 120 to form the flow paths 121 and 131 for guiding cold air together with the rear panel 120. The flow path part 130 may include the second flow path 131 forming the flow paths 121 and 131 together with the rear panel 120. The flow path part 130 may include a plurality of the first air discharge holes 133 through which cold air is discharged. The plurality of first air discharge holes 133 may be formed at positions corresponding to a plurality of the second air discharge holes 112 formed on the front panel 110.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the rear panel 120 and the flow path part 130 may be integrally formed or otherwise joined together. That is, the flow path part 130 may be joined to the rear surface of the front panel 110 to form the flow path 131 for guiding cold air.

The air duct 100 may include an air duct cover 140 detachably attached to a front surface of the front panel 110. The air duct cover 140, is visible to a user when the user opens the door 30 (see FIG. 1), and the air duct cover 140 may have various designs. For example, the user may be able to select air duct covers 140 of different colors or made from different materials.

The air duct cover 140 may include a plurality of air discharge holes 141. The plurality of air discharge holes 141 may be formed at positions corresponding to the plurality of second air discharge holes 112 formed on the front panel 110. Therefore, the cold air guided by the flow paths 121 and 131 may be discharged to the inside of the refrigerating compartment 21 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) through the plurality of first air discharge holes 133 formed on the flow path part 130, the plurality of second air discharge holes 112 formed on the front panel 110, and the plurality of air discharge holes 141 formed on the air duct cover 140.

The air duct cover 140 may be detachably attached to the front surface of the front panel 110 by a fixing member 150. For example, the air duct cover 140 attached to the front panel 110 may be replaced, independent of any other parts, thereby allowing the user to vary the design of the air duct cover 140.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the front panel 110 may include an assembly groove 114 formed at an upper portion of the front surface of the front panel 110. An upper portion of the air duct cover 140 may be inserted into and secured via the assembly groove 114.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the front panel 110 may include a plurality of assembly holes 115 into which the fixing member 150 is detachably attached by screws S. The plurality of assembly holes 115 may be formed at a lower end of the air discharge part 111. The fixing member 150 may include a plurality of assembly holes 152 detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the screws S. To distinguish the plurality of assembly holes 152 formed on the fixing member 150 from the plurality of assembly holes 115 formed on the front panel 110, the assembly holes 152 formed on the fixing member 150 may be referred to as first assembly holes, and the assembly holes 115 formed on the front panel 110 may be referred to as second assembly holes. The fixing member 150 may include one surface 151 corresponding to the lower end of the air discharge part 111 and another surface 153 corresponding to an upper surface of the fan mounting part 113. That is, the fixing member 150 may be formed in an L shape. The plurality of first assembly holes 152 may be formed on the one surface 151 of the fixing member 150.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the upper portion of the air duct cover 140 may be inserted into the assembly groove 114 (see FIG. 7) of the front panel 110 as illustrated in FIG. 5. The upper portion of the air duct cover 140 is inserted into the assembly groove 114 of the front panel 110 by positioning a lower portion of the air duct cover 140 between the front panel 110 and the fixing member 150 as illustrated in FIG. 4. The fixing member 150 may be detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the screws S as illustrated in FIG. 6, thereby detachably attaching the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110. When the air duct cover 140 is to be removed from the front panel 110, the screws S are removed to separate the fixing member 150 from the front panel 110, and the upper portion of the air duct cover 140 is removed from the assembly groove 114, thereby allowing the air duct cover 140 to be detached from the front panel 110.

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating the air duct cover attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 9 is a view illustrating the air duct cover inserted into the assembly groove of the front panel, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B′ in FIG. 10.

As illustrated in FIGS. 8 to 11, the air duct cover 140 may be detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150. Compared to the configurations illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 7, FIGS. 8 to 11 differ in how the air duct cover 140 is attached to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the front panel 110 may include the assembly groove 114 formed at the upper portion of the front surface of the front panel 110. The upper portion of the air duct cover 140 may be inserted into and secured via the assembly groove 114.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the front panel 110 may include a plurality of assembly holes 116 into which the fixing member 150 is detachably attached by the screws S. The plurality of assembly holes 116 may be formed on the upper surface of the fan mounting part 113. The fixing member 150 may include a plurality of assembly holes 154 detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the screws S. In order to distinguish the plurality of assembly holes 154 formed on the fixing member 150 from the plurality of assembly holes 116 formed on the front panel 110, the assembly holes 154 formed on the fixing member 150 may be referred to as first assembly holes, and the assembly holes 116 formed on the front panel 110 may be referred to as second assembly holes. The fixing member 150 may include the one surface 151 corresponding to the lower end of the air discharge part 111 and the other surface 153 corresponding to the upper surface of the fan mounting part 113. That is, the fixing member 150 may be formed in an L shape. The plurality of first assembly holes 154 may be formed on the other surface 153 of the fixing member 150.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the upper portion of the air duct cover 140 may be inserted into the assembly groove 114 (see FIG. 11) of the front panel 110 as illustrated in FIG. 9. The upper portion of the air duct cover 140 is inserted into the assembly groove 114 of the front panel 110 by positioning the lower portion of the air duct cover 140 between the front panel 110 and the fixing member 150 as illustrated in FIG. 8. The fixing member 150 may be detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the screws S as illustrated in FIG. 10, thereby detachably attaching the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110. When the air duct cover 140 is to be removed from the front panel 110, the screws S are removed to separate the fixing member 150 from the front panel 110, and the upper portion of the air duct cover 140 is removed from the assembly groove 114, thereby allowing the air duct cover 140 to be detached from the front panel 110.

FIG. 12 is a view illustrating the air duct cover attached to the front panel by the fixing member in a hooking manner, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 13 is a view illustrating the air duct cover inserted into the assembly groove of the front panel, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 14 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C′ in FIG. 14.

As illustrated in FIGS. 12 to 15, the air duct cover 140 may be detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150. Compared to the configurations illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 7, all the other configurations are the same except for the detailed configurations in which the cold air duct cover 140 is assembled to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150, and thus descriptions of the same configurations will be omitted.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the front panel 110 may include the assembly groove 114 formed at the upper portion of the front surface of the front panel 110. The upper portion of the air duct cover 140 may be inserted into and secured via the assembly groove 114.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the front panel 110 may include a plurality of hook assembly holes 117 into which the fixing member 150 is detachably attached. The plurality of hook assembly holes 117 may be formed at the lower end of the air discharge part 111. The fixing member 150 may include a plurality of assembly hooks 155 detachably attached to the front panel 110. The plurality of assembly hooks 155 formed on the fixing member 150 may be detachably attached into the plurality of hook assembly holes 117 formed on the front panel 110.

The fixing member 150 may include the one surface 151 corresponding to the lower end of the air discharge part 111 and the other surface 153 corresponding to the upper surface of the fan mounting part 113. That is, the fixing member 150 may be formed in an L shape. The plurality of assembly hooks 155 may be formed on the one surface 151 of the fixing member 150.

According to one or more embodiments, in order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the upper portion of the air duct cover 140 may be inserted into the assembly groove 114 (see FIG. 15) of the front panel 110 as illustrated in FIG. 13. The upper portion of the air duct cover 140 is inserted into the assembly groove 114 of the front panel 110 by positioning the lower portion of the air duct cover 140 between the front panel 110 and the fixing member 150 as illustrated in FIG. 12. The fixing member 150 may be detachably attached to the front panel 110 through a hook assembly as illustrated in FIG. 14, thereby detachably attaching the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110. When the air duct cover 140 is to be removed from the front panel 110, the hook-joined fixing member 150 is separated from the front panel 110, and the upper portion of the air duct cover 140 is removed from the assembly groove 114, so that the air duct cover 140 may be detached from the front panel 110.

FIG. 16 is a view illustrating the air duct cover attached to the front panel by the fixing member in a hooking manner, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 17 is a view illustrating the air duct cover inserted into the assembly groove of the front panel, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 18 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view taken along line D-D′ in FIG. 18.

As illustrated in FIGS. 16 to 19, the air duct cover 140 may be detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150. Compared to the configurations illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 7, all the other configurations are the same except for the detailed configurations in which the cold air duct cover 140 is assembled to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150, and thus descriptions of the same configurations will be omitted.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the front panel 110 may include the assembly groove 114 formed at the upper portion of the front surface of the front panel 110. The upper portion of the air duct cover 140 may be inserted into and secured via the assembly groove 114.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the front panel 110 may include a plurality of hook assembly holes 118 into which the fixing member 150 is detachably attached. The plurality of hook assembly holes 118 may be formed on the upper surface of the fan mounting part 113. The fixing member 150 may include a plurality of assembly hooks 157 detachably attached to the front panel 110. The plurality of assembly hooks 155 formed on the fixing member 150 may be detachably attached into the plurality of hook assembly holes 118 formed on the front panel 110.

The fixing member 150 may include the one surface 151 corresponding to the lower end of the air discharge part 111 and the other surface 153 corresponding to the upper surface of the fan mounting part 113. That is, the fixing member 150 may be formed in an L shape. The plurality of assembly hooks 155 may be formed on the other surface 153 of the fixing member 150.

To detachably attach the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110, the upper portion of the air duct cover 140 may be inserted into the assembly groove 114 (see FIG. 19) of the front panel 110 as illustrated in FIG. 17. The upper portion of the air duct cover 140 is inserted into the assembly groove 114 of the front panel 110 by positioning the lower portion of the air duct cover 140 between the front panel 110 and the fixing member 150 as illustrated in FIG. 16. The fixing member 150 may be detachably attached to the front panel 110 via a hook assembly as illustrated in FIG. 18, thereby detachably attaching the air duct cover 140 to the front panel 110. When the air duct cover 140 is to be removed from the front panel 110, the hook-joined fixing member 150 is separated from the front panel 110, and the upper portion of the air duct cover 140 is removed from the assembly groove 114, so that the air duct cover 140 may be detached from the front panel 110.

FIG. 20 is a view illustrating a plurality of fixing hooks formed on the air duct cover, and a plurality of fixing holes formed in the front panel, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 21 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the front panel by the fixing member, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view taken along line E-E′ in FIG. 21.

As illustrated in FIGS. 20 to 22, the air duct cover 140 may be detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150. Compared to the configurations illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 7, all the other configurations are the same except for the detailed configurations in which the cold air duct cover 140 is assembled to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150, and thus descriptions of the same configurations will be omitted.

Configurations in which the air duct cover 140 is attached to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150 as depicted in FIGS. 2 to 7, the air duct cover 140 may further include a plurality of fixing hooks 143 provided on a rear surface of the air duct cover 140, and the front panel 110 may include a plurality of fixing holes 119 to which the plurality of fixing hooks 143 are detachably fixed.

The plurality of fixing hooks 143 may be formed in a central portion of the air duct cover 140. That is, the plurality of fixing hooks 143 may be formed in the central portion between the upper and lower portions of the air duct cover 140.

The plurality of fixing holes 119 may be formed at positions corresponding to the plurality of fixing hooks 143 formed on the air duct cover 140 attached to the front panel 110.

When the air duct cover 140 is detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150, the plurality of fixing hooks 143 of the air duct cover 140 may be fixed to the plurality of fixing holes 119 of the front panel 110, thereby preventing the air duct cover 140 from being lifted from the front panel 110.

Although FIGS. 2 to 7 illustrate configurations with a plurality of fixing hooks 143 and a plurality of fixing holes 119, these configurations with a plurality of fixing hooks 143 and a plurality of fixing holes 119 may be applied to any embodiment in which the air duct cover 140 is detachably attached to the front panel 110 by the fixing member 150, such as those illustrated in FIGS. 8 to 19.

FIG. 23 is a view illustrating the plurality of fixing hooks separately provided and fastened to the air duct cover, according to one or more embodiments.

As illustrated in FIG. 23, the plurality of fixing hooks 143 may be provided separately and fastened to the rear surface of the air duct cover 140. The configurations illustrated in FIGS. 20 to 22 otherwise apply to the one or more embodiments depicted in FIG. 23.

FIG. 24 is a view illustrating an air duct cover and a front panel are detachably attached in a state in which a film is provided between the air duct cover and the front panel, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 25 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover and the front panel are detachably attached, and the film is provided between the air duct cover and the front panel, according to one or more embodiments.

As illustrated in FIGS. 24 and 25, an air duct 200 may include a front panel 210. The front panel 210 may include an air discharge part 211 on which a plurality of air discharge holes 213 through which cold air is discharged into the refrigerating compartment 21 (see FIG. 1) is formed.

The front panel 210 may include a fan mounting part 215 protruding toward the front and provided below the air discharge part 211. The fan F (see FIG. 24) may be mounted on the fan mounting part 215. The configuration of the rear panel and the flow path part are not separately illustrated for the one or more embodiments depicted in FIGS. 24 and 25, but the configurations depicted in illustrated in FIG. 2 may apply to such embodiments.

The air duct 200 may include an air duct cover 240 to be detachably attached to a front surface of the front panel 210. The air duct cover 240 may be provided as a transparent glass. The air duct cover 240, which is visible to a user when opening the door 30 (see FIGS. 1 and 24), may have various designs. To this end, a film 250 having various designs may be provided on a rear surface of the air duct cover 240, and the film 250 may have various colors or be composed of various materials. The various designs of the film 250 may be visible to the user through the air duct cover 240 provided as a transparent glass.

Because the film 250 is provided between the front panel 210 and the air duct cover 240, and because the air duct cover 240 is detachably attached to the front surface of the front panel 210, the user may change the design by detaching the air duct cover 240 from the front panel 210 and replacing the installed film 250 with a film 250 with a different design.

The air duct cover 240 may include a plurality of air discharge holes 241. The plurality of air discharge holes 241 may be formed at positions corresponding to the plurality of air discharge holes 213 formed on the front panel 210. The film 250 may include a plurality of air discharge holes 251 formed at positions corresponding to the plurality of air discharge holes 213 formed on the front panel 210. In order to distinguish the plurality of air discharge holes 241 formed on the air duct cover 240 from the plurality of air discharge holes 251 formed on the film 250, the air discharge holes 251 formed on the film 250 may be referred to as first air discharge holes, and the air discharge holes 241 formed on the air duct cover 240 may be referred to as second air discharge holes.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 240 to the front surface of the front panel 210, a plurality of fastening holes may be formed on the air duct cover 240, the film 250, and the front panel 210, respectively. To distinguish the plurality of fastening holes respectively formed on the air duct cover 240, the film 250, and the front panel 210 from each other, the fastening holes formed on the air duct cover 240 may be referred to as first fastening holes 243, the fastening holes formed on the film 250 may be referred to as second fastening holes 253, and the fastening holes formed in the front panel 210 may be referred to as third fastening holes 217. The air duct cover 240, the film 250, and the front panel 210 may be detachably attached by the screws S inserted into the plurality of fastening holes 243, 253, and 217 formed on the air duct cover 240, the film 250, and the front panel 210, respectively.

FIG. 26 is an exploded perspective view of an inner case and an air duct attached to the inner case, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 27 is a view illustrating a rear panel and a flow path part of FIG. 26 integrally formed. FIG. 28 is a view illustrating an air duct cover inserted into an assembly groove of the inner case, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 29 is a view illustrating a state in which the air duct cover is attached to the inner case, according to one or more embodiments. FIG. 30 is a cross-sectional view taken along line F-F′ in FIG. 29.

As illustrated in FIGS. 26 to 30, an air duct 300 may include a rear panel 320 attached to the inner case 11 to form flow paths 321 and 331 for guiding cold air. The rear panel 320 may include the flow path 321 forming the flow paths 321 and 331 together with a flow path part 330, which are subsequently described herein.

The air duct 300 may include the flow path part 330 joined to a front surface of the rear panel 320 to form the flow paths 321 and 331 for guiding cold air together with the rear panel 320. The flow path part 330 may include the second flow 331 forming the flow paths 321 and 331 together with the rear panel 320. The flow path part 330 may include a plurality of air discharge holes 333 through which cold air is discharged.

As illustrated in FIG. 27, the rear panel 320 and the flow path part 330 may be integrally formed. That is, the flow path 330 may be joined to the inner case 11 to form the flow path 331 for guiding cold air.

The air duct 300 may include an air duct cover 340 detachably attached to the inner case 11. The air duct cover 340, which is visible to a user when the user opens the door 30 (see FIG. 1), may have various designs. That is, various designs may be provided depending on colors or materials of the cold air duct cover 340.

The air duct cover 340 may include a plurality of air discharge holes 341. The plurality of air discharge holes 341 may be formed at positions corresponding to the plurality of air discharge holes 333 formed on the flow path part 330. Therefore, the cold air guided by the flow paths 321 and 331 may be discharged into the refrigerating compartment 21 (see FIG. 1) through the plurality of air discharge holes 333 formed on the flow path part 330 and the plurality of air discharge holes 341 formed on the air duct cover 340.

The air duct cover 340 may be detachably attached to the inner case 11 by the screws S. The air duct cover 340 attached to the inner case 11 may be replaced, independent of any other parts, thereby allowing the user to vary the design of the air duct cover 340.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 340 to the inner case 11, the inner case 11 may include an assembly groove 12. An upper portion of the air duct cover 340 may be inserted into and secured via the assembly groove 12.

In order to detachably attach the air duct cover 340 to the inner case 11, the inner case 11 may include a plurality of fastening holes 13 into which the air duct cover 340 is detachably joined by the screws S. The air duct cover 340 may include a plurality of fastening holes 343 detachably attached to the inner case 11 by the screws S. To distinguish the plurality of fastening holes 343 formed on the air duct cover 340 from the plurality of fastening holes 13 formed on the inner case 11, the fastening holes 343 formed on the air duct cover 340 may be referred to as first fastening holes, and the fastening holes 13 formed on the inner case 11 may be referred to as second fastening holes.

To detachably attach the air duct cover 340 to the inner case 11, an upper portion of the air duct cover 340 may be inserted into the assembly groove 12 (see FIG. 30) of the inner case 11 as illustrated in FIG. 28. The upper portion of the air duct cover 340 is inserted into the assembly groove 12 of the inner case 11, and the air duct cover 340 may be attached to the inner case 11 by the screws S as illustrated in FIG. 29. When the air duct cover 340 is separated from the inner case 11, the screws S are removed to separate a lower portion of the air duct cover 340 from the inner case 11 and then the upper portion of the air duct cover 340 is removed from the assembly groove 12, so that the air duct cover 340 may be detached from the inner case 11.

Although certain embodiments have been described in the description of the refrigerator with reference to the accompanying drawings, various modifications and changes are possible by those skilled in the art, and these modifications and changes should be construed as being included in the scope of rights of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A refrigerator comprising: a main body;a storage compartment provided in the main body; andan air duct provided in the storage compartment and configured to discharge air into the storage compartment,wherein the air duct comprises: a front panel having an assembly groove formed at an upper portion of a front surface of the front panel;an air flow path part provided at a rear surface of the front panel;an air duct cover comprising an upper portion inserted into the assembly groove and a lower portion attached to the front panel; anda fixing member configured to detachably attach the air duct to the front panel.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of screws, wherein the fixing member has a plurality of first assembly holes,wherein the front panel has a plurality of second assembly holes corresponding to the plurality of first assembly holes, andwherein the fixing member is detachably attached to the front panel by the plurality of screws inserted through the plurality of first assembly holes and the plurality of second assembly holes.

3. The refrigerator according to claim 2, further comprising a fan, wherein the front panel comprises:an air discharge part having a plurality of air discharge holes through which air is discharged into the storage compartment, anda fan mounting part provided below the air discharge part and on which the fan is mounted.

4. The refrigerator according to claim 3, wherein the fixing member has an L shape and comprises a first surface corresponding to a lower end of the air discharge part and a second surface corresponding to an upper surface of the fan mounting part.

5. The refrigerator according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of second assembly holes is provided at the lower end of the air discharge part, and the plurality of first assembly holes is provided on the first surface of the fixing member corresponding to the lower end of the air discharge part on which the plurality of second assembly holes is formed.

6. The refrigerator according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of second assembly holes is provided on the upper surface of the fan mounting part, and the plurality of first assembly holes is provided on the first surface of the fixing member corresponding to the upper surface of the fan mounting part on which the plurality of second assembly holes is formed.

7. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the fixing member comprises a plurality of assembly hooks configured to be detachably attached to the front panel, and the front panel comprises a plurality of hook assembly holes into which the plurality of assembly hooks are attached.

8. The refrigerator according to claim 7, further comprising a fan, wherein the front panel comprises:an air discharge part having a plurality of air discharge holes through which air is discharged into the storage compartment, anda fan mounting part provided below the air discharge part and on which the fan is mounted.

9. The refrigerator according to claim 8, wherein the fixing member has an L shape and comprises a first surface corresponding to a lower end of the air discharge part, and a second surface corresponding to an upper surface of the fan mounting part.

10. The refrigerator according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of hook assembly holes is provided at the lower end of the air discharge part, and the plurality of assembly hooks is provided on the first surface of the fixing member corresponding to the lower end of the air discharge part on which the plurality of hook assembly holes is formed.

11. The refrigerator according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of hook assembly holes is provided on the upper surface of the fan mounting part, and the plurality of assembly hooks is provided on the first surface of the fixing member corresponding to the upper surface of the fan mounting part on which the plurality of hook assembly holes is formed.

12. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the air duct cover comprises a plurality of fixing hooks provided on the rear surface of the air duct cover to be detachably fixed to a front plate.

13. The refrigerator according to claim 12, wherein the front plate comprises a plurality of fixing holes to which the plurality of fixing hooks is detachably fixed.

14. The refrigerator according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of fixing hooks is provided in a central portion between the upper and lower portions of the air duct cover, and configured to prevent the air duct cover from being lifted from the front panel when the air duct cover is attached to the front panel.

15. The refrigerator according to claim 12, wherein the plurality of fixing hooks are separately provided and are fastened to the rear surface of the air duct cover.