US1147754A - Refrigerator. - Google Patents

Description

' M. M. SCHULTZ.

REFRIGERATOR. APPLICATION FILED MN. 2, i914.

Patented July 27, 1915.

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To all whom it may concern:

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Specification of Letters Eatent.

Patented Ci n1 2?, Edit) Application died January 26,- 1914. Serial No. 814,271.

gm thereof, and it has for one of its objects the provision, in connection with the refrigerator box and the drip discharge thereof, of a valve whereby the drip pipe which forms a part of the refrigerator, may be closed before the drip pan is removed. I

The invention has, furthermore, for its object the provision of means, in connection with. such a valve, whereby the latter must be in closed condition before the drip pan may be removed.

The invention has also for its object the provision of means whereby the valve will be locked in closed position, andwill thus remain, as long as the drip pan is not in po sition on the refrigerator.

Further objects of the invention will here inafter appear and be particularly defined in the claims. v

The invention'has been clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which similar'characters denote similar parts and in which v Figure 1 is a front view of a portion of a refrigerator embodying my invention. Fig. 2, is a transverse section on line 2, 2 of Fig. 1. tions of the drip valve showing the same in different positions.

Briefly stated, the present invention has for its particular aim to prevent the leak age of drip water from the refrigerator, when the drip pan has been removed therefrom for the purpose-of emptying the same,

while atthe same time means are provided whereby the housekeeper is prevented from removing the drip pan from the refrigerator. unless the valve has first been closed,

and then under ordinaryconditions, the

valve cannot be opened on account of its remaining locked'in closed position until the drip pan has been again restored to its proper position in the refrigerator, whereupon the valve may again be opened as permit the issue of drip water into the pan.

Referring to the drawings, 10, i1 denote the front and rear walls of a refrigerator,

Figs. 3 and 4t and 5 are cross sec-- and 12 is one of the side walls thereof, these walls inclosing the ice chamber C the bot tom of which is lined with zinc 13, as usual, and is slightly depressed toward the center so that the drip may issue or be discharged through an opening 15 provided in the chamber bottom. Attached to the base board 16 of the chamber bottom is a valve casing 17 having at its upper end a tubular nipple 18 which is forced into tight. contact withthe base board 16, and it may be held in position therein in any suitable manner, as for instance by side flanges 17, as shown in Fig. 3.

Disposed within a tapered bore of the valve casing, is a correspondingly-shaped plugli) wh ch is cut away, as at 20, to establish a communication between the duct 15 and an outlet pipe or conduit 21 which is also formed in said casing and has its fiow-overledg'e 21' so disposed as to form. a trap for the drip water, so that, therefore, the latter may be enabled to seal the lower end of the outlet duct 15 against the admission of atmosphere into the bottom of the ice chamber C. Furthermore, inasmuch as insome instances the drip opening of the refrigerator may be directly connected with a pipe leading to a sewer, I provide an eX- tension 22 on the discharge end of the casing, in which case the trapwill also serve to prevent the entrance of sewer gas into the bottom of the ice chamber, as will be readily-understood,

The water issuing from the drip spout 22 falls into a drip pan shown herein as a drawer 23, the side and rear walls of which are provided near the -upper margins with extensions or flanges 2% so arranged that the drawer 23 may be pulled out toward the front of the refrigerator by a handle H and also so that when said drawer is in place, said flanges will form tight joints with the casing of the refrigerator and thus prevent drip water from dripping onto the floor, this construction being particularly advantageous in cases where the refrigerator, as a whole, is of the portable type, in which instance the movement of the refrigerator may cause the water in the drip pan to slop. In order to prevent this body-movement of the water" to a more or less extent, baffles 25 may as provided in the pan, as desired.

The plug 19 of the valve is operable from the front of the refrigerator by virtue or a rod or stem 26 secured to thelplug incany suitable manner and having eiacured to its front end a handle 27, the latter being provided with a flange 28 which, when the valve is in the position shown in Fig. 2, will overlap the front face of the front wall 29 of the drip pan. By ret'prr ing to Fig. 1, it will be noted that the flange 28 is cut away, as at 28, so that w 'en said handle is rotated for 180 degrees sa d drawer can then be removed by pulling the same forwardly, it being understodd that this 180 degree rotation of the handle 27 will-result'in rotating the valve plug 19 into the position shown in Fig. 4 where it will be noted thatthe duct 15 is closed, while the trap conduit 21 is in open communication with the aperture 30 preferably in vertical alinement with the duct'15 above mentioned. It will therefore be understood that, when the valve plug 19 is in the position. shown in Fig. 4, all the water contained within the trap 21 may find an exit through said aperture 30 into the drip pan, while at the same time further discharge from the ice chamber through the duct 15 is stopped. It will also be understood that if the handle 28 should be turned at right angles to bring the plug into the position shown in Fig. 5, a direct communication will be established between the duct 15 and the discharge aperture 30, so that any loose matter, such as is frequently found adhering to the ice and finding a lodging place within the plug or the casing, can be readily displaced or removed, as for instance by means of a piece of wire suchas is indicated at w in Fig. 5. v

Means are provided whereby the valve plug 19 may be locked in the position shown in Fig. 4 whenever the drip pan is not'in proper position on the refrigerator, these means preferably comprising a lock plunger 31 having a collar 32 and slidable in a re cess 33 provided therefor in the refrigerator casing. A back plate 34 secured to the casing may serve to guide said plunger for longitudinal movement and at the same time act as an abutment for a spring 35 interposed between it and the collar 32 for normally projecting said plunger 31 forwardly and into engagement with the recess 36 of the flange 28, when the latterhas been turned to bring said recess into alinement with said plunger, it being remembered that at such. time the valve plug 19 is closed. v

As shown in Fig. 2, the front wall 29 of the drip pan extends upwardly far enough so as, to be within the path of the collar 32 of the plunger, so that consequently, when the drawer is closed, the plunger 31 will have been pushed back far enough to withdraw the point 31 of the plunger out of the recess 36 and in fact eave the flange 28 entirely free therefrom. If desired, a wearingplate 37 may be secured to the 1. The combination with a refrigerator. having an ice chamber provided with a dis-- charge opening, of a drip pan carried by said refrigerator and movable thereln, am-

tatable plug valve controlling the passage of liquid from said ice chamber into said pan, means for rotating said valve, and means adapted to lock said valve against opening rotation by the movement of the drip pan out of its normal position, and to unlock said valve by the reinstatement of said pan, into its normal position.

2. The combination with a refrigerator having an ice chamber provided with a discharge opening, of a drip pan carried by said refrigerator and movable therein, a

valve controlling the passage of liquid from said ice chamber into said pan, a device for operating said valve, and a spring-pressed plunger coiiperative with said. device for locking the same against valve-opening movement by the movement of the drip pan out of its normal position, and for automatically unlocking said device by the reinstatement of the drip pan into its normal position.

3. The combination with a refrigerator having an ice chamber provided with a discharge opening, of a drip pan carried by said refrigerator and movable therein, a valve for controlling the passage of liquid from said ice chamber into said pan, 2. device for operating said valve, a spring-operated plunger codperative with said device for locking said device against valve-opening movement by the movement of the drip pan out of its normal position, and means carried by the front wall of said drip pan for retracting said plunger during the end of the closing movement of the drip pan.

charge opening, a plug rotatable in said valve casing and adapted for opening and closing said discharge opening, a rod extending forwardly from said plug and having a flan e'd handle, a drip pan carried by and mova le in said refrigerator and having its its, front wall overlapped by said flange when'in proper position, a portion of said flange being cut avlay and adapted to clear .the front Wall of'said drip pan when the valve is in closed position.

5. The combination with a refrigerator comprising an. ice chamber having a discharge opening, of a drip pan carried by and movable in said refrigerator, a valve comprising a casing connected with said discharge opening, a plug rotatable in saii valve casing and adapted for opening an closing said discharge opening, a rod extending forwardly from said plug and having a flanged handle, a drip pan carried by and movable in said refrigerator and having its front wall overlapped by said flange When in proper position, a portion of said flange being cut away and adapted to clear; the front Wall of said drip pan when the valve is in closed position, and means carried by'sa-id refrigerator for locking said flange against valveo pening movement upon the movement of the drip pan out of its normalposition. v

6. The combination With a refrigerator comprising an ice. chamber having a discharge opening, of a drip pan carried by and movable in said refrigerator, a valve comprising a casing connected with said discharge opening, a plug rotatable in said valve casing and adapted for opening and 3e ing its front Wall overlapped by said flange when in proper position, a portion of said flange being cut away and adapted to clear. the front wall of said drip pan 'When the valve is in closed position, and a spring-actuated plunger carried by'said refrigerator 40 for locking said flange against valve-openmg movement upon the movement of the drip pan out of its normal position.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of twp Witnesses.

MAX SCHULTZ.

Witnesses CHAS. F. SCHMELZ, H. D. MACDONALD.

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