Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
WO 00/78187 cA 02371868 2001-11-23 pCT/ZA00/00110
REFRIGERATOR STORAGE TRAY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to the storage of material inside a
refrigerator, cold room
or the like referred to generally hereinafter as "a refrigerator".
Refrigerators are often provided with large single compartment drawers and
fixed shelves.
A typical refrigerator is used with a large number of relatively small items
which are
sequentially packed onto the shelves. Consequently when an item must be
retrieved from
an inner end of a shelf it is necessary to unpack the preceding items to gain
access to the
desired item. This can be a tedious process.
US patent No. 5,182,923 described a refrigerator unit for food products which
is used for
storing and serving salads and the like. The unit provides access from above
to various
food pans when a cover is lifted.
US patent No. 5, 527,016 relates to a carousel device for freezing drops of a
liquid reagent
for biological samples.
US patent No. 5,305,615 also describes a carousel device, but for the
dispensing of frozen
food.
US patent No. 4,831,841 shows a cooling system for a merchandising machine
which
makes use of a rotatable drum.
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International application No. W099/56071 illustrates medicine refrigerating
drawers, in a
column configuration.
Devices of the preceding types are generally custom-made for a particular
purpose or
cooling arrangement and do not address the problem referred to, viz the
convenient
accessibility of food or other items in a typical refrigerator, such as a
domestic refrigerator.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is concerned with a storage tray which at least partly
alleviates the
aforementioned problem.
The invention provides a storage tray for use in a refrigerator, the tray
including a body
and a plurality of formations on or in the body which define receptacles or
with which
containers are engageable.
The formations may be openings on or in the body, be channels, ribs, flanges
or the like,
or have any other suitable shape or form.
The formations may define respective openings or inlets to, or mouths of,
receptacles
which are integrally formed with the body. Alternatively a plurality of
containers may
respectively be engaged with the formations.
The openings may be formed so that they are of the same size or in at least
two different
sizes.
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The body of the storage tray may be formed to accommodate at least one drawer
which
is mounted to, and which is slidably movable relatively to, the body.
At least one lid may be provided for covering at least one respective
container or
receptacle. According to requirement each of the containers or receptacles may
be
covered directly or indirectly by one or more lids. The lids may sealingly
engage with the
body so that the respective containers or receptacles are effectively isolated
and sealed.
As indicated the receptacles may be formed integrally with the tray and the
mouth of each
receptacle may define a respective opening.
As used herein, only to avoid confusion, the word "receptacle" designates a
compartment,
holder, or the like, formed integrally with the tray body, while the word
"container"
designates a compartment, holder, or the like, which is separable from the
body.
The receptacles may define respective recesses in an upper surface of the
tray.
Alternatively, as indicated, separate containers are engageable with, or
insertable into the
formations in the tray. In one embodiment the formations are mouths of
respective
receptacles and the containers are shaped so that they can be inserted with
ease into the
receptacles.
Preferably the containers are tapered so that engagement of the containers
with the
respective receptacles, formations or openings, as the case may be, is
facilitated.
The invention also provides, in combination, a refrigerator and a tray of the
preceding type,
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the tray being mounted to the refrigerator for sliding movement relatively to
the refrigerator.
In one form of the invention the refrigerator includes a shelf and the tray is
supported on
the shelf and is slidably movable relatively to the shelf. The tray may be
guided for
movement by means of at least one guide which is fixed to the shelf.
In a different form of the invention the tray, in effect, forms a shelf, which
preferably is
slidably movable relatively to the refrigerator.
Containers which are engageable with the tray (ie. the shelf) may be slidably
movable
relatively to the tray. The tray body may have slide ribs or other formations
and each
container may have complementary formations which are engageable therewith.
In a different form of the invention the combination includes at least one
slide mechanism
with at least first and second relatively slidable members, the first member
being fixed to
the refrigerator and the second member being fixed to the tray so that the
tray is slidingly
movable relatively to the refrigerator.
The tray may be made from any suitable material eg. it may moulded from a
suitable
plastics material and, for example, except for the openings, may be in sheet
form. It is
possible though to fabricate the tray from a mesh material eg. a wire or
plastics mesh. In
this instance the openings may be defined by apertures in the mesh.
The invention also extends to a storage tray for use in a refrigerator, the
tray including a
body with a plurality of container-receiving formations on the body, and
mounting
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In one form the invention the container-receiving formations are respective
openings or
recesses in the body into which a plurality of containers are at least partly
respectively
insertable.
In a different form of the invention the container-receiving formations are
guide formations
with which a plurality of containers are respectively slidingly engageable.
Preferably the mounting formations permit sliding movement of the body
relatively to the
refrigerator.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is further described by way of examples with reference to the
accompanying
drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a tray according to one form of the
invention,
Figure 2 is a perspective view of a tray according to a second form of the
invention,
Figure 3 is a side view of a slide mechanism which is suitable for use with a
tray of the
invention,
Figure 4 is an end view of the slide mechanism of Figure 3,
Figure 5 is a perspective view of a tray according to a different form of the
invention,
Figure 6 is a view of a receptacle which is engageable with the tray of Figure
5,
Figure 7 illustrates an expansion mechanism for use with a tray which is retro-
fitted to a
refrigerator,
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Figure 8 is an end view of a different slide mechanism,
Figure 9 is a view of a shelf-tray slide arrangement,
Figure 10 illustrates a tray according to the invention which is made from
mesh, and
Figure 11 shows another variation of the invention.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings illustrates a tray 10 according to one
form of the
invention which is made from any suitable material. The tray may for example
be injection
moulded from PVC so that it is in sheet material form.
The tray includes a body 12 which has a base 14 and a surrounding side wall
16.
A number of internal walls 18 traverse the base and form, in this example, six
small
compartments or receptacles 20 and a single relatively large receptacle 22.
Each
receptacle has a respective mouth or opening 23.
A tray of the kind shown in Figure 1 is dimensioned to fit, making effective
use of available
space, inside a domestic refrigerator, not shown. The tray is slidingly
located on a
conventional shelf inside the refrigerator and can be pushed so that it rests
wholly on the
shelf or it can be withdrawn to a desired extent from the shelf and, if
required, can be
removed totally from the refrigerator. A catch or hook formation, of any
appropriate type
(not shown), can be used to prevent the tray from inadvertently being totally
withdrawn
from the shelf.
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The tray could alternatively be engaged with guide or slide formations fixed
to the
refrigerator, so that it does not rest on a shelf.
The various receptacles 20 and 22 are used for the storage of separate items.
The
receptacles keep the items separated from one another. A principal benefit
which arises
from the use of the tray is that it is no longer necessary to remove items
sequentially from
a shelf inside a refrigerator to access an item at an inner end of the shelf.
All that is
necessary is to withdraw the tray, select the desired item and then replace
the tray on the
shelf.
The tray may include a handle 24; on a front side of the side wall, to
facilitate handling and
sliding movement of the tray.
Items may be placed directly in the receptacles 20 and 22 or alternatively use
may be
made of custom-designed containers 30, as shown in Figure 1. Each container 30
is
designed to receive food or liquid directly and is dimensioned so that it fits
through a
respective mouth or opening 23 and snugly into a respective receptacle 20
which thus acts
as a container-receiving formation on the tray body. Side walls 32 of the
container may
be slightly tapered to facilitate insertion of the container into a
receptacle. The container
may be used in conjunction with a removable lid 34.
Figure 2 illustrates a tray 40 according to a different form of the invention.
The tray has a
base 42 and a side wall 44.
The tray has an upper plate 46 and, on one side, the plate is formed with a
plurality of
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openings 48. Each opening forms the mouth of a respective receptacle 50 of
rectangular
dimensions. In this case the receptacles are formed in at least two sizes.
Each receptacle has a removable lid 52 which is transparent so that the
contents of the
receptacle can be viewed. Again it is possible to place a removable container
with food in
each receptacle instead of, for example, placing food directly into a
receptacle.
On a front side 54 of the wall 44 two openings 56 and 58 are formed. These
openings
accommodate drawers 60 and 62 respectively which are slidably engaged with the
remainder of the tray.
The tray can, as is the case with the Figure 1 embodiment, be accommodated on
a
conventional shelf in a refrigerator. Alternatively the tray is attached to
the refrigerator by
means of slide mechanisms 64 which are further illustrated in Figures 3 and 4.
Each slide mechanism includes three telescopic components 66, 68 and 70 and a
number
of rollers 72 and 74. The component 68 can move with a sliding action into the
component
70, riding on the rollers 74, and in a similar way the component 66 can move
with a sliding
action into the component 68, moving over the rollers 72. The component 70 can
be
attached to an inner side wall 76 of a refrigerator by means of fasteners 78,
as is shown
in Figure 4. and an outer end 80 of the component 66 is secured by means of a
fastener
82 to the wall 44 of the tray.
If the slide mechanisms are used then the tray is not supported on a shelf
inside the
refrigerator but is supported only by the slide mechanisms. The tray can be
withdrawn from
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the refrigerator to access the containers or the receptacles, when required,
and is then
restored with a sliding action to its original position.
By making use of the trays of the invention easy access to items in a
refrigerator is
afforded. The trays can be made in different sizes and shapes to ensure that
they can be
used with practically any refrigerator in a manner which ensures effective use
of available
space.
Figure 5 shows a tray 90 which is moulded from a suitable plastics material
and which is
formed with a nurnber of rectangular formations or openings 92. Figure 6 shows
a
container 94, which is one of a number of similar containers, not shown, which
are
respectively insertable into the openings of the tray of Figure 5.
Each container has an upper rim 96 which rests on a perimeter of the opening
into which
the container is inserted, thereby keeping a mouth 98 of the container
slightly above the
upper surface of the tray.
A lid 91, which preferably is transparent, is engageable with the receptacle.
The tray has rollers or slides 100 on its side which are engageable with
guides, not shown,
installed inside a refrigerator. Alternatively the tray has slide mechanisms
of the kind
shown in Figures 3 and 4 fixed to opposed sides of the tray. Either approach
allows the
tray to be moved into the refrigerator and withdrawn when needed to allow for
access to
a desired container. A handle 102 on what, in use, is a front side of the
tray, facilitates
movement of the tray. Stops 104 which are optionally used, depending on the
slide
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arrangement adopted, prevent total inadvertent withdrawal of the tray from its
installed
position.
The tray of the invention can be made to fit closely inside a refrigerator,
particularly as
original equipment, to maximize space utilization. There is, however, a need
for an after
market, or retro-fit, arrangement and to this end trays can be made in a range
of sizes but,
nonetheless, it may not be possible to arrange matters to ensure that a tray
can be easily
and effectively fitted inside a refrigerator. Figure 7 illustrates one
possible approach to the
problem.
In Figure 7 a tray 120, of the general kind described in connection with
Figure 5, is formed
with side flanges 122. A guide rail 124 is mounted to threaded spigots 126
which are
fixed, eg. adhesively or by means of suitable fasteners, to an inner surface
of a side wall
128 of a refrigerator. The guide rail 124 is locked to the spigots by means of
respective
lock nuts 130. It is evident that the guide rail can be moved towards or away
from the side
wall 128 so that, within reason, adjustments can be made to take account of
the available
space for installing the tray 120 inside the refrigerator.
Figure 8 shows a tray 140 with a side flange 142 which fits inside a slotted
guide rail 144
which is fixed to a side wall 146 of a refrigerator. The side flange 142, if
initially oversized,
can be trimmed or cut to size to enable the tray to be installed effectively
inside the
refrigerator.
Figure 9 shows a shelf-tray slide arrangement wherein a tray 160, with
downwardly
extending sides 162, is mounted to a mesh or wire shelf 164 installed as
original standard
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equipment in a refrigerator 166. Each side terminates in a lower
longitudinally extending
enlarged bead 168 which is slidingly engaged in a channel 170 of a slide 172.
A lower
channel 174 in the slide is clipped onto a wire 176 of the shelf 164. Thus the
tray 160 is
on top of the shelf and in a sense "stands" on its sides as opposed to being
suspended
from guide rails which are fixed to walls of the refrigerator and accordingly
is independent
of the inner width of the refrigerator. Again it is to be noted that the tray
160, or the shelf
164, could have a catch formation (not shown) of any appropriate type which
prevents the
tray from accidentally being pulled off the shelf.
In the preceding examples the trays are moulded from a plastics material and
have a sheet
material form. This is not limiting though for the tray could alternatively be
made from a
different material eg. a wire mesh. Figure 10 for example shows a tray 180
which is made
from a wire mesh 182 with a plurality of small apertures, in which are formed
larger
openings 184 which receive respective containers 186, similar to the
arrangement of
Figures 5 and 6. The wire tray is similar to the tray 160 of Figure 9 in that
it has
downwardly extending sides 188 which are slidingly engaged with guides 190
fixed to an
upper surface of a shelf (not shown).
Figure 11 shows another form of the invention wherein a tray 200 has a body
202 made,
for example, from wire mesh, with a number of parallel guide wires 204 which
stand proud
of transverse supports 206.
The tray could be fixed in position inside a refrigerator, not shown, or could
be mounted
for sliding movement relatively to the refrigerator using techniques of the
kind already
described. A number of custom-made containers 208, only one of which is shown,
are
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engageable with the tray body. Each container is moulded from a plastics
material and
has a number of grooves 210, in its undersurface, which are respectively
engageable with
the guides 204. The grooves could engage with the guides with a clip action,
which
permits the aforementioned sliding action but which prevents inadvertent
disengagement
of the container from the guides. Alternatively a different type of retaining
mechanism is
used for this purpose. The container could include internal partitions 212.
The arrangement of Figure 11 is used in the same way as the trays and
containers (or
receptacles) already described and displays similar advantages.
