Description

DAMPING LEG AND REFRIGERATOR HAVING THE SAME

Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to an adjustment leg and a refrigerator, and more particularly to a damping leg and a refrigerator having the same capable of minimizing movement of a main body when a door is opened and closed and capable of maintaining a horizontal state of the refrigerator.

[2]

Background Art

[3] Generally, a refrigerator is an apparatus for storing food at a low temperature by cooling or freezing the stored food according to demands. Cool air which is supplied into the refrigerator is produced by a heat exchange function of a coolant.

[4] That is, the cool air is continuously supplied into the refrigerator by repeatedly conducting a cycle of compression, condensation, expansion and evaporation. The supplied cool air is uniformly transferred in the refrigerator by convention to store food at a desired temperature in the refrigerator.

[5] An inner space of a main body of the refrigerator is sectionalized into a freezing compartment to store food in a frozen state and a cooling compartment to store food in a cooled state by a separation wall. Doors are disposed, for example, on left and right sides, at a front surface of the main body according to a product.

[6] The doors prevent the cool air inside the main body from leaking to the outside and block outside hot air from being introduced into the main body. Generally, the doors are rotatably installed on the main body to selectively close an open front surface of the main body by a user.

[7] Meanwhile, a conventional refrigerator generally includes four wheels which are installed at respective corners of a bottom surface of the main body to move the refrigerator and a pair of height adjustment legs which are installed at a front portion of the bottom surface to fix the refrigerator.

[8] In this case, when an installation position of the refrigerator is intended to be changed, the height adjustment legs are moved upward and the refrigerator is moved to a desired position using the wheels. Then, the height adjustment legs are moved downward and fixed to the floor again.

[9] However, the adjustment legs applied to the conventional refrigerator are simply screw-coupled to the main body to move vertically. Accordingly, if the floor is uneven, it is not easy to adjust a horizontal state of the refrigerator. Further, if food is stored in a nonuniform load distribution in the refrigerator, there is a problem that the main body

may be easily deformed due to load deviation. [10]

Disclosure of Invention

Technical Problem

[11] An object of the present invention devised to solve the problem lies on a damping leg and a refrigerator having the same capable of easily adjusting a horizontal state even though the floor is uneven and capable of uniformly distributing load in the main body despite unbalanced storage of food in the refrigerator. Technical Solution

[12] The object of the present invention can be achieved by providing a refrigerator having at least one damping leg which includes: a central shaft having a fastening portion coupled to a bottom surface of a main body; an upper support member which is inserted to an upper portion of the central shaft; an elastic member which is elastically coupled to the upper support member; and a lower support member which is inserted to a lower portion of the central shaft and is connected to the elastic member to adjust a relative distance with the upper support member.

[13] Preferably, the central shaft has a thread formed at an upper end portion thereof.

[14] Preferably, the upper support member includes an insertion guide extending downwardly along a lower outer peripheral surface, and the lower support member includes an insertion groove which is cut inwardly along an upper outer peripheral surface corresponding to the insertion guide.

[15] Preferably, the upper support member includes a first spring fixing portion formed at a lower portion thereof, and the lower support member includes a second spring fixing portion formed at an upper portion thereof corresponding to the first spring fixing portion.

[16] Preferably, a nut is coupled to the lower portion of the central shaft to restrict a movement of the upper support member.

[17] Preferably, a receiving space in which the nut moves and a step which restricts an upward movement of the nut are formed at a lower central portion of the lower support member.

[18] Preferably, the main body includes a pair of doors installed at opposite sides of a front surface of the main body.

[19] Preferably, the central shaft, the upper support member, the elastic member and the lower support member include a pair of central shafts, a pair of upper support members, a pair of elastic members and a pair of lower support members installed at opposite front corners of the bottom surface of the main body, respectively.

[20] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a

damping leg comprising: an upper support member which is inserted to an upper portion of a central shaft having a fastening portion; an elastic member which is elastically coupled to the upper support member; and a lower support member which is inserted to a lower portion of the central shaft and is connected to the elastic member to adjust a relative distance with the upper support member. [21]

Advantageous Effects

[22] The damping leg and the refrigerator having the same according to the present invention have the following effects.

[23] Firstly, it is possible to automatically and conveniently fix and maintain a horizontal state of the refrigerator even though the floor is uneven and food is nonuniformly stored in the refrigerator by providing a damping function to the adjustment legs.

[24] Secondly, since the transmission members disposed at the front portion do not support the weight of the refrigerator, after the refrigerator is installed, the refrigerator can be maintained in a stable fixed state without shaking although the doors are opened and closed.

[25]

Brief Description of the Drawings

[26] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principle of the invention.

[27] In the drawings:

[28] FIG. 1 illustrates a partial perspective view showing a bottom surface of a refrigerator having a damping leg according to the present invention.

[29] FIG. 2 illustrates a front view of the refrigerator shown in FIG. 1.

[30] FIG. 3 illustrates a combined cross-sectional view of the damping leg shown in FIG.

1.

[31] FIG. 4 illustrates an exploded cross-sectional view of the damping leg shown in FIG.

1.

[32]

Mode for the Invention

[33] Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention to embody an object of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of the embodiment of the present invention, parts having the same configuration are designated by the same term and the same reference numeral and the repeated description thereof is omitted.

[34] As shown in FIGs. 1 and 2, a refrigerator having a damping leg according to the

present invention includes a main body 10 having doors 11 disposed on a front surface thereof, and transmission members 20 and damping legs 30 installed on a bottom surface of the main body 10.

[35] The front surface of the main body 10 is opened, and the main body 10 includes a freezing compartment and a cooling compartment to store food. In this embodiment, a side-by-side refrigerator having a pair of the doors 11 installed at opposite sides of the front surface is shown in the drawings as an example.

[36] The transmission members 20 are moving members such as wheels fixed to brackets

12 to stably move the main body 10. In this embodiment, the transmission members 20 are respectively installed at a front middle portion and opposite rear corners of the bottom surface of the main body 10 as shown in the drawings.

[37] As shown in FIGs. 3 and 4, the damping legs 30 are installed at opposite front corners of the bottom surface of the main body 10. The damping legs 30 generally have a circular or elliptical transverse cross section. Each of the damping legs 30 includes a central shaft 31, an upper support member 32, an elastic member 33 and a lower support member 34.

[38] The central shaft 31 includes an upper fastening portion 311 disposed at an upper end thereof to be coupled to the bottom surface of the main body 10. Preferably, the upper fastening portion 311 is formed in a thread shape to conveniently adjust a vertical distance of the central shaft 31 from the main body 10.

[39] Further, a lower fastening portion 312 is formed at a lower end of the central shaft 31 in the same way as the upper fastening portion 311 of the upper end. The lower fastening portion 312 is coupled to a nut 35 to be described later.

[40] The upper support member 32 is inserted to an upper portion of the central shaft 31.

A receiving space is formed at a lower portion of the upper support member 32. An insertion guide 321 is thinly formed to extend downwardly along an outer peripheral surface. A fixing ring 322 is disposed in the upper portion of the upper support member 32 to insert and fix the central shaft 31.

[41] Further, a first spring fixing portion 323 is formed to be recessed inwardly at a lower portion of the upper support member 32 to fix one end portion of the elastic member 33 that will be described later.

[42] The elastic member 33 is elastically coupled to the first spring fixing portion 323 of the upper support member 32. As an example of the elastic member 33, a coil spring is shown in the drawings.

[43] The lower support member 34 is inserted to a lower portion of the central shaft 31. A second spring fixing portion 341 is formed to be recessed inwardly at the lower support member 34 corresponding to the first spring fixing portion 323 to fix the other end portion of the elastic member 33.

[44] That is, an upper end portion of the elastic member 33 is inserted and fixed to the re- cessedly formed first spring fixing portion 323 and a lower end portion of the elastic member 33 is inserted and fixed to the recessedly formed second spring fixing portion 341. Accordingly, the elastic member 33 elastically connects the upper support member 32 and the lower support member 34 so as to adjust a relative distance to each other.

[45] The elastic member 33 serves to disperse the weight of the main body 10 and maintain horizontality by compensating nonuniformity of the floor and load deviation due to unbalanced storage of food.

[46] An insertion groove 342 is formed inwardly on the lower support member 34 corresponding to the insertion guide 321 by thinly cutting an upper outer peripheral surface thereof, so that the lower support member 34 can be inserted into the insertion guide 321 of the upper support member 32 to move vertically.

[47] Thus, the upper support member 32 may entirely cover the elastic member 33 and the lower support member 34 from the top.

[48] Further, the nut 35 is coupled to the lower fastening portion 312 formed at a lower portion of the central shaft 31 to restrict an upward movement of the upper support member 32 which vertically moves with the central shaft 31.

[49] A receiving space is formed at a lower central portion of the lower support member

34 such that the nut 35 can vertically and smoothly move with the central shaft 31. Further, a step 343 which is in contact with the nut 35 is formed on the lower support member 34 to restrict an upward movement of the nut 35.

[50] As described above, the nut 35 combines the upper support member 32 with the lower support member 34 such that the upper support member 32 and the lower support member 34 are not separated from each other.

[51] In this case, the lower support member 34 stably supports the upper support member

32 and the like in a vertical damping movement of the damping legs 30 while the lower surface of the lower support member 34 is in contact with the floor.

[52] The damping legs 30, each leg having the central shaft 31, the upper support member

32, the elastic member 33 and the lower support member 34 according to the present invention, are more effective in the side-by-side refrigerator having a pair of the doors 11 installed at opposite sides of the front surface of the main body 10 to have a large storage capacity.

[53] Meanwhile, although the side-by-side refrigerator having the freezing compartment formed at a lower portion of the refrigerator is shown in the drawings and described as an example, the damping legs of the present invention can be applied to various types of refrigerators, for example, a refrigerator having a freezing compartment formed at an upper portion of the refrigerator.

[54] A non-described reference numeral P represents a damping movement section between the upper support member 32 and the lower support member 34.

[55] The above-configured damping legs and the refrigerator having the damping legs according to the present invention have the following action.

[56] When a position of the refrigerator having the damping legs 30 is intended to be changed, first, the upper fastening portion 311 formed at each central shaft 31 is turned such that the damping legs 30 are separated from the floor by a specific distance. Then, the refrigerator is moved to a desired position using the transmission members 20. Then, each upper fastening portion 311 is unfastened again to move downward, thereby fixing the refrigerator at the desired position.

[57] In this case, if the transmission members 20 disposed at the front middle portion of the main body 10 are separated from the floor, even though the floor is uneven, a horizontal state of the refrigerator is automatically maintained by the damping legs 30 disposed at the opposite front corners. Thus, it is possible to prevent a height difference of the doors 11.

[58] That is, deformation of the main body 10 due to nonuniformity of load is compensated in the damping movement section P by the damping legs 30 disposed at the opposite front corners of the main body 10, thereby preventing load from being concentrated on hinge portions 13 for fixing the doors 11 to the main body 10. Thus, it is possible to minimize a height difference of the doors 11.

[59] Particularly, when the position of the refrigerator is fixed, the damping legs 30 are moved downward to the floor such that the transmission members 20 disposed at the front portion are separated upward from the floor. Consequently, when the doors 11 are opened and closed after the refrigerator is installed, the refrigerator can be stably supported without shaking.

[60] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

[61] Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.