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SamsungGranted patentOtherInterest 3/10

Samsung patents fridge door bar that seals gaps when opened

Patent drawing
Patent drawing from the official filing.

Samsung has been granted a patent for a refrigerator design featuring a rotating bar that covers the gap between two side-by-side doors. The mechanism uses a guide inside the fridge to move the bar automatically when a door is opened or closed.

Why it mattersThis is a minor mechanical improvement that helps keep cold air inside the fridge when one door is open, which is a standard feature in many modern appliances.

In the filing’s own words

A refrigerator includes an outer case, an inner case forming a storage compartment and including a guide receiving space, and a guide mounting groove, an insulation between the outer and inner cases, a first door rotatably coupled to the outer case to cover a portion of the storage compartment, a second door rotatably coupled to the outer case to cover another portion of the storage compartment, a bar rotatable with one of the first and second doors and cover a gap between the first and second doors, and a rotation guide disposed on an upper portion of the storage compartment to guide the bar to allow rotation of the bar in response to opening or closing of the first or second door and including a guide body partially accommodated in the guide receiving space and a protrusion inserted into the guide mounting groove to prevent movement of the rotation guide.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. A refrigerator comprising: an outer case forming an exterior thereof; an inner case forming a storage compartment, and including a guide receiving space and a surface forming a guide mounting groove formed integrally with the inner case, the surface including a first surface, a second surface disposed to face the first surface, a plurality of third surfaces connecting the first surface and the second surface, and an insertion surface; an insulation foamed between the outer case and the inner case; a first door rotatably coupled to the outer case to open or close at least a portion of the storage compartment; a second door disposed on a right side of the first door and rotatably coupled to the outer case to open or close at least another portion of the storage compartment; a rotating bar configured to be rotatable with respect to one of the first door and the second door and cover a gap between the first door and the second door when the first door and the second door are closed; and a rotation guide disposed on an upper portion of the storage compartment to guide the rotating bar to allow rotation of the rotating bar in response to opening or closing of the first door or the second door, and including a guide body at least partially accommodated in the guide receiving space and an insertion protrusion inserted into the guide mounting groove in a direction from a lower portion toward an upper portion of the inner case to prevent movement of the rotation guide, wherein the insertion surface of the inner case is disposed in a direction in which the insertion protrusion is inserted into the guide mounting groove, and wherein an outer surface of the insertion protrusion is formed to contact at least a portion of the first surface, at least a portion of the second surface, and at least a portion of each of the plurality of third surfaces, and wherein the insertion protrusion includes an interference protrusion that protrudes in a direction different from the direction in which the insertion protrusion is inserted into the guide mounting groove.

Facts

Company
Samsung (SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.)
Official title
Refrigerator
Patent number
US12760957B2
Application number
18677649
Filed
May 29, 2024
Granted
Oct 13, 2026
Inventors
6
Claims
15

Classified under

F25D 23/028 Mechanical engineeringF25D 2201/10 Mechanical engineeringF25D 2323/024 Mechanical engineering

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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.