Technical Field

The present invention relates to a white appliance with a wireless connection module.

Background of the Invention

White appliances such as refrigerators and dishwashers generally comprise at least one compartment with at least one placement opening; and at least one door for controlling access into the compartment by opening or closing the placement opening. A user opens the door to access into the compartment, and closes the door to make the compartment a closed box.

With the developing technology, the white appliances may also comprise a wireless connection module in order to communicate with a remote device (for example, with smart home systems, user mobile devices, another white appliances, etc.) and to send data to and receive data from this remote device. By means of this wireless connection module, for example, the user can remotely control the white appliances and monitor their operational status.

Said wireless connection modules can send and receive signals through a medium such as air. For this reason, operational performance of the wireless connection modules can be adversely affected by other electronic components and plastic parts in white appliances. Therefore, wireless connection modules should be installed in the white appliances to provide minimal interference such that it is affected by other elements in the white appliances at the lowest level.

As a result of the tests carried out, it has been determined that data can be exchanged with minimum loss at the signal level, especially in white appliances such as refrigerators, if the wireless connection module is positioned on the door. However, creating an extra space on the door for the wireless connection module lengthens and complicates the production process and may lead to an increase in production costs.

Brief Description of the Invention

The white appliance according to the present invention comprises at least one compartment with at least one placement opening; at least one door for controlling access into the compartment by opening or closing the placement opening, which has at least one inner surface facing the compartment in a closed position thereof and at least one outer surface opposite the inner surface; at least one mounting slot in the form of a recess from the outer surface towards inner surface, which has:

• at least one base,

• at least one mounting opening opposite the base,

• at least a first side wall extending from the base to the outer surface, and

• at least a second side wall located opposite the first side wall, wherein the mounting opening extends between the first side wall and the second side wall; at least one display assembly attached to the mounting slot so as to substantially close the mounting opening, which has:

• at least one covering part having at least one display screen in the form of a plate fitted into the mounting opening, and at least one mounting wall extending from the display screen into the mounting slot and forming a holding slot with the display screen, and

• at least one control card which is placed in the holding slot to be mounted on the covering part; at least one wireless connection module placed in the mounting slot so as to be opposite the control card; at least one centering pin extending from the base towards the mounting opening, which passes through at least one hole in the wireless connection module to center the wireless connection module; at least a first support member located between the base and the first side wall and/or the second side wall, wherein at least a portion of the wireless connection module is placed on the support member; and at least a first mounting tab for mounting the wireless connection module to the mounting slot, which is located on the first side wall and/or the second side wall such that the wireless connection module remains between the first mounting tab and the first support member. With the white appliance according to the present invention, the wireless connection module can be placed on the door of the white appliance, in a mounting slot already provided in the door, so that it is minimally affected by other components in the white appliance. Therefore, a white appliance can be achieved, which is easy, cheap, practical and reliable to produce.

Object of the Invention

An object of the present invention is to provide a white appliance with a wireless connection module.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a white appliance, wherein the wireless connection module is located on the door thereof.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a white appliance which is cheap, easy, practical and reliable to produce.

Description of the Drawings

Exemplary embodiments of the white appliance according to the present invention is illustrated in the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a door of the white appliance according to the invention. Figure 2 is a perspective view of a mounting slot located on the door of the white appliance according to the invention.

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of a part of the door of the white appliance according to the invention, where the mounting slot is located.

All the parts in the figures are individually assigned a reference numeral and the corresponding terms of these numbers are listed as follows:

Door (1)

Outer surface (1a) Mounting slot (2) Base (2a)

First side wall (2b)

First mounting tab (2c)

Centering pin (2d)

Second mounting tab (2e)

Second support member (2f)

Third support member (2g)

Third side wall (2h)

Second side wall (2j)

First support member (2k)

Display assembly (3)

Covering part (3a)

Control card (3b)

Third mounting tab (3c)

Wireless connection module (4) Connection cable (5)

Description of the Invention

White appliances, such as refrigerators, are widely used to make our daily life easier. With the developing technology, the functions of white appliances are enhanced, and white appliances that can communicate with a remote device becomes more preferable day by day. The white appliances with at least one wireless connection module are among the more preferred appliances by the users as they can be controlled by mobile devices of the users. However, wireless connection modules may be adversely affected by other components in the white appliances, and communication signals may be lost, reducing the operational performance of the wireless connection module. Therefore, according to the present invention, there is provided a white appliance with at least one wireless connection module located to minimize negative effects by other components.

The white appliance according to the present invention (especially, preferably a refrigerator), which is illustrated in figure 1-3, comprises at least one compartment with at least one placement opening; at least one door (1) for controlling access into the compartment by opening or closing the placement opening, which has at least one inner surface facing the compartment in a closed position thereof and at least one outer surface (1a) opposite the inner surface; at least one mounting slot (2) in the form of a recess from the outer surface (1a) towards inner surface, which has at least one base (2a), at least one mounting opening opposite the base (2a), at least a first side wall (2b) extending from the base (2a) to the outer surface (1a), and at least a second side wall (2j) located opposite the first side wall (2b), wherein the mounting opening extends between the first side wall (2b) and the second side wall (2j); at least one display assembly (3) attached to the mounting slot (2) so as to substantially close the mounting opening, which has at least one covering part (3a) having at least one display screen (preferably a touch screen) in the form of a plate fitted into the mounting opening, and at least one mounting wall (preferably at least two mounting walls located opposite each other) extending from the display screen into the mounting slot (2) and forming a holding slot with the display screen, the display assembly (3) further comprising at least one control card (3b) which is placed in the holding slot to be mounted on the covering part (3a). The white appliance according to the invention also comprises at least one wireless connection module (4) (a Wi-Fi module) placed in the mounting slot (2) so as to be opposite the control card (3b); at least one centering pin (2d) extending from the base (2a) towards the mounting opening, which passes through at least one hole in the wireless connection module (4) to center the wireless connection module (4); at least a first support member (2k) located between the base (2a) and the first side wall (2b) and/or the second side wall (2j) (preferably on the first side wall (2b) and/or the second side wall (2j), wherein at least a portion of the wireless connection module (4) is placed on the support member (2k) (said first support member (2k) is preferably in the form of an extension, which supports the wireless connection module (4) when the wireless connection module (4) is inserted into the mounting slot (2)); at least a first mounting tab (2c) for mounting the wireless connection module (4) to the mounting slot (2), which is located on the first side wall (2b) and/or the second side wall (2j) such that the wireless connection module (4) remains between the first mounting tab (2c) and the first support member (2k); and at least one connection cable (5) for energy and/or data transmission between the control card (3b) and the wireless connection module (4), which is preferably connected to the control card (3b) on one side and connected to the wireless connection module (4) on the other, opposite side.

For white appliances comprising the wireless connection module (4), the wireless connection module (4) must be positioned on the door (1) of the white appliance in order to operate with a good performance. Thus, according to the white appliance of the present invention, said wireless connection module (4) is mounted in a mounting slot (2), in which an display assembly (3) provided on a door of the white appliance is already located, such that signal performance is not adversely affected. Therefore, according to the white appliance of the present invention, the centering pin (2d) and the first mounting tab (2c) located in the mounting slot (2) are used, so that the wireless connection module (4) can be fixed into the mounting slot (2). In addition, the wireless connection module (4) and the control card (3b) in the display assembly (3), which is already provided in the white appliance, can wirelessly connect with each other for both data exchange and energy transfer, the wireless connection module (4) can be connected to the control card (3b) in the display assembly (3) by means of at least one connection cable (5), and, for example, the energy required for the wireless connection module (4) can be supplied from the control card (3b) via the connection cable (5). Thanks to the white appliance according to the invention, the wireless connection module (4) can be mounted to the door (1) of the white appliance without the need for additional operations on the door (1) of the white appliance, such that the losses in the signals are minimized. Moreover, the amount of cable required to mount the wireless connection module (4) can be minimized, so that a white appliance, which is simple, cheap, practical and reliable to produce, can be achieved. Furthermore, thanks to the mounting slot (2), another control card and/or module for another function can be placed in the mounting slot (2) instead of the wireless connection module (4).

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the white appliance according to the invention comprises at least two centering pins (2d) of different lengths, located opposite each other, each closer to a side wall. Thus, the wireless connection module (4) can be mounted to the mounting slot (2) more easily.

In another preferred embodiment, the first mounting tab (2c) of the white appliance according to the invention may be a fixed tab which is fixed to the first side wall (2b) and/or the second sidewall (2j), or it be a movable tab which can move towards or away from said side wall. In an alternative embodiment, the white appliance according to the invention comprises at least two first mounting tabs (2c) located on opposite side walls, at least one of which is a movable tab and the other is a fixed tab. In another preferred embodiment, the white appliance comprises at least a second mounting tab (2e) (preferably a plurality of second mounting tabs) located on the first side wall (2b) and/or the second side wall (2j), which is attached to at least a third mounting tab (3c) provided on a mounting wall on the display assembly (3), thereby securing the display assembly (3) in the mounting slot (2).

In another alternative embodiment, the white appliance preferably comprises at least a second support member (2f) (preferably, a plurality of second support members) in the form of an extension, which is located on the first side wall (2b) and/or the second side wall (2j) and supports the display screen of the covering part (3a) when the display assembly (3) is inserted into the mounting slot (2).

In another exemplary embodiment, the mounting slot (2) comprises at least a third side wall (2h) connecting opposite sides of the first sidewall (2b) and the second sidewall (2j). In this embodiment, preferably, the mounting slot (2) has a substantially rectangular form, with the first side wall (2b) and the second side wall (2j) forming the long sides. In this embodiment, the white appliance according to the invention also preferably comprises at least a third support member (2g) (preferably, a plurality of third support members) in the form of an extension, which is located on the third side wall (2h) and supports the display screen of the covering part (3a) when the display assembly (3) is inserted into the mounting slot (2).

With the white appliance according to the present invention, the wireless connection (4) module can be placed on the door (1) of the white appliance, in a mounting slot (2) already provided in the door (1), so that it is minimally affected by other components in the white appliance. Therefore, a white appliance can be achieved, which is easy, cheap, practical and reliable to produce.