DOMESTIC APPLIANCE HAVING A TRANSCEIVER UNIT
20220373252 · 2022-11-24
Inventors
Cpc classification
F25D2400/36
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
F25D23/028
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
F25D29/005
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
International classification
Abstract
A domestic appliance has a housing, a transceiver unit and an electrically non-conductive covering. The housing delimits an interior accessible via a housing opening and has a frame which edges the housing opening. The transceiver unit contains an antenna for wirelessly receiving and transmitting signals. The domestic appliance has a door leaf, which is mounted pivotably relative to the housing and is provided to open and close the interior, or a drawer, which can be pulled partially out of the interior and has a front panel which closes the interior when in the pushed-in state. The housing, the door leaf or the front panel of the drawer has a cavity which is accessible via an opening in the housing, in the door leaf or in the front panel and inside of which the transceiver unit with the entire antenna is arranged. The electrically non-conductive covering covers the opening completely.
Claims
1-10. (canceled)
11. A household appliance, comprising: a housing having a housing opening formed therein and delimiting an interior space being accessible via said housing opening, and a frame bordering said housing opening; a door leaf mounted so as to be able to pivot relative to said housing and disposed so as to open and close said interior space, or a drawer being pullable at least in part out of said interior space and having a front plate that in a pushed-in state closes said interior space; at least one transceiver unit having an antenna so as to receive and transmit signals in a wireless manner; at least one electrically non-conductive cover; said housing or said door leaf or said front plate of said drawer having a further opening formed therein; and said housing, said door leaf or said front plate of said drawer having a hollow space formed therein that is accessible via said further opening formed in said housing, in said door leaf or in said front plate and said at least one transceiver unit together with said antenna disposed within said hollow space, and said at least one electrically non-conductive cover completely covers said further opening.
12. The household appliance according to claim 11, wherein said housing, said door leaf and said front plate each have an outward facing outer skin that is manufactured from metal or containing metal.
13. The household appliance according to claim 11, wherein: said further opening to said hollow space is disposed in said frame of said housing, and said at least one electrically non-conductive cover completely covers said further opening and consequently is part of said frame; or said further opening to said hollow space is disposed in an end face of said door leaf, and said at least one electrically non-conductive cover completely covers said further opening and is part of said end face of said door leaf; or said further opening to said hollow space is disposed in an end face of said drawer, and said at least one electrically non-conductive cover completely covers said further opening and is part of said end face of said front plate.
14. The household appliance according to claim 13, wherein: said housing has a horizontally running wall which contains said hollow space, said door leaf or said front plate of said drawer overlaps said frame of said housing at least in a region of said further opening and an inner side, which faces said interior space, of said door leaf being a closed door leaf or an inner side, which faces said interior space, of said front plate of said drawer being a closed drawer is spaced at least in said region of said further opening from said frame such that said inner side of said closed door leaf or of said front plate of said closed drawer forms a gap at least in said region of said further opening with a result that the signals that are transmitted by said antenna of said at least one transceiver unit or are received by said antenna are able to pass through said gap and through said at least one electrically non-conductive cover; or said door leaf contains said hollow space, said further opening is disposed in an upward facing upper end face of said door leaf and a component of the household appliance overlaps said upward facing upper end face of said closed door leaf and is spaced from said upward facing upper end face of said closed door leaf in such a manner that said upward facing upper end face of said closed door leaf forms a gap with the component of the household refrigeration appliance with a result that the signals that are transmitted by said antenna of said at least one transceiver unit or are received by said antenna are able to pass through said gap and through said at least one electrically non-conductive cover; or said front plate of said drawer contains said hollow space, said further opening is disposed in an upward facing upper end face of said front plate and a component of the household appliance overlaps said upward facing upper end face of said front plate of said closed drawer and is spaced from said upward facing upper end face of said front plate of said closed drawer such that said upward facing upper end face of said front plate of said closed drawer forms a gap with the component of the household appliance with a result that the signals that are transmitted by said antenna of said at least one transceiver unit or are received by said antenna are able to pass through said gap and through said at least one electrically non-conductive cover.
15. The household appliance according to claim 14, wherein: the component of the household appliance is said horizontal running wall of said housing with a result that said housing with said horizontally running wall overlaps said upward facing upper end face of said closed door leaf or said upward facing upper end face of said front plate of said closed drawer; or the component of the household appliance is a further closed door leaf that is disposed above said closed door leaf with a result that a downward facing lower end face of said further closed door leaf overlaps said upward facing upper end face of said closed door leaf; or the component of the household appliance is a further closed drawer that is disposed above said closed drawer with a result that a downward facing end face of a front plate of said further closed drawer overlaps said upward facing upper end face of said front plate of said closed drawer; or said interior space is a lower interior space and said housing of the household appliance delimits an upper interior space that is disposed above said lower interior space, wherein said drawer is allocated to said lower interior space and said door leaf is allocated to said upper interior space and the component of the household appliance is said closed door leaf that is disposed above said closed drawer with a result that said downward facing lower end face of said closed door leaf overlaps said upward facing upper end face of said front plate of said closed drawer.
16. The household appliance according to claim 11, wherein: said door leaf contains said hollow space and said further opening is disposed in an outward facing outer side of said door leaf with a result that said at least one electrically non-conductive cover is part of an outer side of said door leaf; or said front plate of said drawer contains said hollow space and said further opening is disposed in an outward facing outer side of said front plate of said drawer with a result that said at least one electrically non-conductive cover is part of an outer side of said front plate of said drawer; or said housing contains said hollow space and said further opening is disposed in one of an outward facing outer side of said housing with a result that said at least one electrically non-conductive cover is part of said outward facing outer side of said housing.
17. The household appliance according to claim 11, further comprising a display apparatus that is disposed together with said at least one transceiver unit in said hollow space; and wherein said at least one electrically non-conductive cover is at least semi-transparent, and said display apparatus is disposed in said hollow space such that information content that is displayed by said display apparatus is viewable through said at least semi-transparent, electrically non-conductive cover.
18. The household appliance according to claim 11, wherein said hollow space is configured as a pocket-shaped hollow space and said at least one transceiver unit is pushed into said pocket-shaped hollow space; and/or wherein said at least one transceiver unit is attached to said at least one electrically non-conductive cover; and/or further comprising an electronic control apparatus that is disposed in said hollow space and is provided so as to activate at least one component of the household appliance.
19. The household appliance according to claim 11, wherein: the household appliance is a household refrigeration appliance with a result that said housing is a thermally insulated housing, said door leaf is thermally insulated and said front plate is thermally insulated; said interior space is an interior space that can be cooled and is provided so as to store food; and the household refrigeration appliance contains a refrigeration apparatus that is provided so as to cool said interior space that can be cooled.
20. The household appliance according to claim 19, wherein: said door leaf has, on an inner side that faces said interior space that can be cooled, a circumferential door seal with which said door leaf being a closed door leaf lies against said frame of said housing with a result that said frame and said inner side of said closed door leaf form a gap; or said front plate of said drawer contains on an inner side that faces said interior space that can be cooled a circumferential seal with which said inner side of said front plate of said drawer being a closed drawer lies against said frame of said housing with a result that said frame and said inner side of said front plate of said closed drawer form a gap.
21. The household appliance according to claim 13, wherein: said frame has a horizontally running wall with an end face, said hollow space is disposed in said end face of said horizontally running wall, said end face forming in part said frame of said housing; or said end face of said door leaf is an upward facing upper end face and said hollow space is disposed in said upward facing upper end face of said door leaf; or said end face of said drawer is an upward facing upper end face and said hollow space is disposed in said facing upper end face of said front plate of said drawer.
22. The household appliance according to claim 17, wherein said at least one electrically non-conductive cover is made from glass.
23. The household appliance according to claim 12, wherein said outward facing outer skins extend as far as said frame of said housing and end faces of said door leaf and/or of said front plate of said drawer.
Description
[0061] Exemplary embodiments of the invention are illustrated in an exemplary manner in the attached schematic drawings. In the drawings:
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[0075] The housing 2 of the household refrigeration appliance 1 is thermally insulated.
[0076] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the housing 2 delimits two interior spaces that are arranged one above the other and are cooled to predeterminable temperatures by means of a refrigeration apparatus 3 that is known in principle to the person skilled in the art and is designed in particular as a refrigerant circuit. The interior spaces are consequently interior spaces that can be cooled. In particular, the upper interior space that can be cooled is a refrigerator compartment 4 that is cooled by the refrigeration apparatus 3 to temperatures above 0° C. The lower interior space that can be cooled is in particular a freezer compartment 5 that is cooled by the refrigeration apparatus 3 to temperatures below 0° C.
[0077] The refrigerant circuit 3 comprises for example a compressor, a liquefier that is connected downstream of the compressor, a restrictor apparatus that is connected downstream of the liquefier and is embodied in particular as a restrictor tube or a capillary tube, and an evaporator that is arranged between the restrictor apparatus and the compressor.
[0078] The household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises in the case of the present exemplary embodiment an electronic controller that is configured so as to activate the refrigeration apparatus 3, in particular the compressor of the refrigerant circuit, in a manner known in general to the person skilled in the art, in such a manner that the refrigerator compartment 4 and the freezer compartment 5 have at least approximately predetermined or predeterminable setpoint temperatures. It is preferred that the electronic controller is configured in such a manner that it regulates the temperatures of the refrigerator compartment 4 and of the freezer compartment 5. In order where necessary to obtain the actual temperatures of the refrigerator compartment 4 and of the freezer compartment 5, the household refrigeration appliance 1 can have temperature sensors that are not illustrated in detail and are connected to the electronic controller.
[0079] The interior spaces that can be cooled are provided so as to store food (not illustrated).
[0080] The household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises in particular a door leaf 6 that in the closed state closes the refrigerator compartment 4, such as is illustrated in
[0081] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises a drawer 7 that comprises a front plate 8 and a container 13 that is open in the upward direction. The front plate 8 is attached to the container 13. Food can be stored in the container. In the closed state, the front plate 8 closes the freezer compartment 5 or a corresponding housing opening 51 of the freezer compartment 5. In the open state, the drawer 5 is pulled at least in part out of the freezer compartment 5.
[0082] The door leaf 6 and the front plate 8 are in particular thermally insulated. The door leaf 6 is for example mounted by means of hinges 21 relative to the housing 2.
[0083] The housing 2 comprises in particular two thermally insulated side walls 31, an upper horizontally running wall 32 and a middle horizontally running wall 33.
[0084] The middle horizontally running wall 33 separates the refrigerator compartment 4 from the freezer compartment 5 and comprises a side 35 that faces the refrigerator compartment 4 and a side 36 that faces the freezer compartment 5.
[0085] The side walls 31 comprise in each case an inner side 37, which faces the refrigerator compartment 4 and the freezer compartment 5, and in each case an outer side, and the upper horizontally running wall 32 comprises a side 38 that faces the refrigerator compartment 4 and an outer side. The outer sides of the upper horizontally running wall 32 and of the side walls 31 form the outer side 39 of the housing 2.
[0086] An upper part of the forward facing end faces of the side walls 31, and the forward facing end faces of the upper horizontally running wall 32 and the middle horizontally running wall 33 form an upper frame 40 that borders the housing opening 41 of the refrigerator compartment 4.
[0087] A lower part of the forward facing end faces of the side walls 31 and the forward facing end faces of the middle horizontally running wall 33 and of a base 53 of the freezer compartment 5 form a lower frame 50 that borders the housing opening 41 of the refrigerator compartment 4.
[0088] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the outer side 39 of the housing 2 is an outer skin that is made from metal or is an outer skin that comprises metal and extends in particular over the forward facing end faces of the side walls 31, of the upper horizontally running wall 32 and of the base 53. The end face of the middle horizontally running wall 33 is in particular made from metal or comprises metal with the result that the upper frame 40 and the lower frame 50 comprise metal or are made from metal.
[0089] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the door leaf 6 comprises an inner side 9, which faces the refrigerator compartment 4, multiple door racks 10 being arranged on said inner side so as to store food, and an outer side 14 that is remote from the refrigerator compartment 4. Furthermore, the door leaf 6 comprises an upper end face 14a, a lower end face 14b that faces the drawer 7 and lateral end faces that face sideward.
[0090] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the outer side 14 of the door leaf 6 is formed by an outer skin that comprises metal or is made from metal. In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the outer skin extends over the upper end face 14a, the lower end face 14b and the lateral end faces of the door leaf 6.
[0091] In particular, multiple shelves 11 that are arranged one above the other so as to store food and a drawer 12 that can be pulled at least in part out of the refrigerator compartment 4 so as to store food are arranged within the interior space 4 which can be cooled.
[0092] A circumferential door seal 42 that is illustrated in
[0093] The front plate 8 comprises an inner side 15 that faces the freezer compartment 5 and in particular a circumferential seal 52 that is designed as a magnetic seal is attached to said inner side. In the closed state of the drawer 7, the seal 52 lies against the lower frame 50. As a consequence, a gap is provided between the housing 2 or the lower frame 50 and the door leaf 8.
[0094] The front plate 8 comprises an upper end face 16a, a lower end face and lateral end faces that face sideward. The lower end face 14b of the closed door leaf 6 and the upper end face 16a of the front plate 8 of the closed drawer 7 form a gap 17.
[0095] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the outer side 16 of the front plate 8 is formed by an outer skin that comprises metal or is made from metal. In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the outer skin extends over the upper end face 16a, the lower end face and the lateral end faces of the door leaf 8.
[0096] The household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises a transceiver unit 61 that is illustrated in
[0097] The household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises moreover a hollow space 18 and the transceiver unit 61 together with its antenna 61a is completely arranged in said hollow space. The hollow space 18 is arranged for example in the housing 2, in the door leaf 6 or in the front plate 8 of the drawer 7. In particular, the hollow space 18 is arranged in the upper running wall 32.
[0098] The hollow space 18 is accessible via an opening 19 in the housing 2, in the door leaf 6 or in the front plate 8. The hollow space 18 is designed in particular in a pocket-shaped manner.
[0099] If the hollow space 18 is arranged in the housing 2, in particular in its upper horizontally running wall 32, then the opening 19 is preferably arranged in one of the frames, preferably in the upper frame 40 or in the end face of the upper horizontally running wall 32.
[0100] If the hollow space 18 is arranged in the door leaf 6, then the opening 19 is preferably arranged in the upper end face 14a of the door leaf 6. The opening 19 can also be arranged in the lower end face 14b of the door leaf 6.
[0101] If the hollow space 18 is arranged in the front plate 8, then the opening 19 is preferably arranged in the upper end face 16a of the front plate 8.
[0102] The household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises an electrically non-conductive cover 62 that completely covers the opening 19.
[0103] In the embodiment of the transceiver unit 61 that is illustrated in
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[0105] The electronic system 65 that is illustrated in
[0106] In the case of the embodiment that is illustrated in
[0107] The further assembly 64a that is illustrated in
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[0109] In the case of the embodiment that is illustrated in
[0110] The assemblies 64a, 64b that are illustrated in
[0111] The assembly 64 that is illustrated in
[0112] The frame 63 is made for example from plastic or from metal. The cover 62 is made for example from plastic.
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[0115] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises a display apparatus 101 that is arranged together with the transceiver unit 61 in the hollow space 18. In particular, the transceiver unit 61 is arranged behind the display apparatus 101 and the display apparatus 101 is arranged behind the cover 62. The electrically non-conductive cover 62 is at least semi-transparent in particular made from glass with the result that information content that is displayed by the display apparatus 101 can be viewed through the at least semi-transparent, electrically non-conductive cover 62.
[0116] The transceiver unit 61 comprises for example a circuit board 61b on which the antenna and electronic components 61c of the transceiver unit 61 are arranged.
[0117] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the display apparatus 101 is designed in a planar manner and the transceiver 61 is attached to the rear side of the planar display apparatus 101.
[0118] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the transceiver 61 and the display apparatus 101 are arranged in a housing 104, which is made for example from plastic, and together with the housing 104 form an assembly 103. This assembly 103 is illustrated in a perspective view in
[0119] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises two speakers 102 which are arranged behind the cover 62, in particular behind a largely opaque border region 62b of the cover 62.
[0120] In the case of the present exemplary embodiment, the cover 62 comprises a transparent region 62a, through which the information content of the display apparatus 101 can be viewed, and the non-transparent frame 62b which covers the speakers 102.
[0121] The above described household refrigeration appliance 1 comprises the two interior spaces that can be cooled, of which the upper interior space can be closed by the door leaf 6 and the lower interior space can be closed by the drawer 7. Alternatively, it is also possible to provide that the household refrigeration appliance comprises two drawers 7 each having a front plate 8 with the result that, rather than by the door leaf 6, the upper interior space that can be cooled can be closed by a further drawer that has a front plate. The further drawer can consequently be pulled at least in part out of the upper interior space that can be cooled and the front plate of the closed further drawer closes the upper interior space that can be cooled. In particular, in this case the upper interior space that can be cooled does not comprise shelves 11 and also does not comprise the drawer 12.
LIST OF REFERENCE CHARACTERS
[0122] 1 Household refrigeration appliance [0123] 2 Housing [0124] 3 Refrigeration apparatus [0125] 4 Refrigerator compartment [0126] 5 Freezer compartment [0127] 6 Door leaf [0128] 7 Drawer [0129] 8 Front plate [0130] 9 Inner side [0131] 10 Door rack [0132] 11 Shelf [0133] 12 Drawer [0134] 11 Container [0135] 14 Outer side [0136] 14a Upper end face [0137] 14b Lower end face [0138] 15 Inner side [0139] 16 Outer side [0140] 16a Upper end face [0141] 17 Gap [0142] 18 Hollow space [0143] 19 Opening [0144] 21 Hinge [0145] 31 Side walls [0146] 32 Upper horizontally running wall [0147] 33 Middle horizontally running wall [0148] 35, 36 Side [0149] 37 Inner sides [0150] 38 Side [0151] 39 Outer side [0152] 40 Upper frame [0153] 41 Housing opening [0154] 42 Door seal [0155] 43, 43a Gap [0156] 50 Lower frame [0157] 51 Housing opening [0158] 52 Seal [0159] 53 Base [0160] 61 Transceiver unit [0161] 61a Antenna [0162] 61b Circuit board [0163] 61c Electronic components [0164] 62 Cover [0165] 62a Transparent region [0166] 62b Border region [0167] 63 Frame [0168] 64, 64a, 64b Assembly [0169] 65 Electronic system [0170] 75 Door opening sensor [0171] 101 Display apparatus [0172] 102 Speaker [0173] 103 Assembly [0174] 104 Housing