# US 11,994,338 B2 · Control method for drawer door of refrigerator and refrigerator > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,994,338 B2 - Document ID: US11994338B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/430,654 - Filed: 2020-02-11 - Published: 2022-07-07 - Granted: 2024-05-28 - Earliest claimed: 2019-02-15 - Assignees: Qingdao Haier Refrigerator Co., Ltd.; Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Qingdao Haier Refrigerator Co., Ltd.; Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Bin Hui; Shidong Li; Zhijun Liu; Xiaobin Hu; Guoshuai Cao - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11994338B2 ## CPC - F25D 25/025: {Drawers} - F25D 23/02: Doors; Covers (F25D23/08 takes precedence {locks or fastenings E05B65/0042}) - F25D 23/028: {Details} - F25D 29/00: Arrangement or mounting of control or safety devices - A47B 88/457: operated by electrically-powered actuation means - A47B 2210/175: Refrigerators or freezers - F25D 29/005: {Mounting of control devices} - F25D 2323/02: Details of doors or covers not otherwise covered - F25D 2600/00: Control issues - F25D 2600/02: Timing - F25D: REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR (refrigerated showcases A47F3/04; thermally-insulated vessels for domestic use A47J41/00; refrigerated vehicles, see the appropriate subclasses of classes B60 - B64; containers with thermal insulation in general B65D81/38; heat-transfer, heat-exchange or heat-storage materials, e.g. refrigerants, or materials for the production of heat or cold by chemical reactions other than by combustion C09K5/00; thermally-insulated vessels for liquefied or solidified gases F17C; air-conditioning or air-humidification F24F; refrigeration machines, plants, or systems F25B; cooling of instruments or comparable apparatus without refrigeration G12B) - A47B: TABLES; DESKS; OFFICE FURNITURE; CABINETS; DRAWERS; GENERAL DETAILS OF FURNITURE (furniture jointing F16B) ## Abstract A control method for a drawer door of a refrigerator and the refrigerator. The refrigerator comprises a refrigerator body, a drawer door mounted in the refrigerator body in a front-back pushed and pulled mode, and a driving mechanism driving the drawer door to move forward and backward. The control method comprises: obtaining a door opening instruction or a door closing instruction; controlling the driving mechanism to drive the drawer door to move forward to open or move backward to close; detecting a resistance borne by the drawer door during the movement; determining whether the resistance is greater than a preset resistance threshold; and if yes, controlling the driving mechanism to stop running to enable the drawer door to stop moving. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A control method for a drawer door of a refrigerator, wherein the refrigerator comprises a cabinet, a drawer door mounted in the cabinet in a manner of capable of being pushed and pulled front and back and a driving mechanism configured to controllably drive the drawer door to move front and back, the refrigerator further comprises a switch, and the control method for the drawer door comprises the following steps: obtaining a door opening instruction or a door closing instruction; controlling the driving mechanism to drive the drawer door to move forwards to be opened or move backwards to be closed; detecting a resistance on the drawer door during the movement; determining whether the resistance is larger than a preset resistance threshold value or not; if yes, controlling the driving mechanism to stop running so as to enable the drawer door to stop moving; detecting whether the switch is triggered or not; and if yes, controlling the driving mechanism to drive the drawer door to move towards a direction opposite to the direction in which the drawer door moves before stopping, wherein the method further comprises the following step before the step of obtaining the door opening instruction or the door closing instruction: giving the door opening instruction when the switch is triggered in a closed static state of the drawer door; or giving the door closing instruction when the switch is triggered in a completely-opened static state of the drawer door. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The control method for the drawer door of claim 1, further comprising the following steps after the step of controlling the driving mechanism to stop running so as to enable the drawer door to stop moving: if the switch is not triggered, controlling the driving mechanism to drive the drawer door to move backwards to be closed after a duration in which the drawer door stops moving reaches a preset time threshold value. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The control method for the drawer door of claim 1, wherein the switch is a trigger switch. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The control method for the drawer door of claim 1, further comprising the following steps before the step of obtaining the door opening instruction or the door closing instruction: detecting the magnitude of forward pulling force to the drawer door when the drawer door of the refrigerator is in a closed static state, and giving the door opening instruction if the magnitude of the pulling force is larger than a preset pulling force threshold value; and detecting the magnitude of backward pushing force to the drawer door when the drawer door of the refrigerator is in a completely-opened static state, and giving the door closing instruction if the magnitude of the pushing force is larger than a preset pushing force threshold value. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The control method for the drawer door of the claim 1, wherein the method of controlling the driving mechanism to drive the drawer door to move forwards to be opened or move backwards to be closed comprises: controlling the driving mechanism to drive the drawer door to move forwards to be opened or move backwards to be closed in a manner of first accelerating and then decelerating. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) A refrigerator, comprising: a cabinet with a front side opened; a drawer door, comprising a door body and a drawer installed at a rear side of the door body, wherein the drawer is installed in the cabinet in a manner of capable of being pushed and pulled front and back; a driving mechanism, configured to controllably drive the drawer door to move forwards to be opened or move backwards to be closed; and a controller, comprising a memory and a processor, wherein a computer program is stored in the memory, and the computer program is configured to implement a control method for the door of claim 1 executed by the processor. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The refrigerator of the claim 6, wherein the driving mechanism comprises at least one belt transmission mechanism and a motor, each of the belt transmission mechanisms comprises: two toothed belt wheels, spaced front and back and rotatably installed on a side wall of the cabinet respectively, a synchronous belt, tensioned on the two toothed belt wheels, a connecting member, fixed to the synchronous belt and directly or indirectly fixed to the drawer door, and the motor is installed on the side wall of the cabinet, and is configured to directly or indirectly drive one of the toothed belt wheels to rotate so as to drive the synchronous belt to move, thereby driving the drawer door to move. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The refrigerator of the claim 7, wherein the driving mechanism further comprises: a worm wheel, coaxially connected with one of the toothed belt wheels; and a worm, matched with the worm wheel and connected with a rotating shaft of the motor, so that the motor drives the worm to rotate so as to drive the worm wheel to rotate, thereby driving the toothed belt wheel to rotate.