# US 5,704,224 A · Cooling air circulating structure for refrigerator > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 5,704,224 A - Document ID: US5704224A - Status: Granted - Kind: A - Application number: 08/720,097 - Filed: 1996-09-27 - Granted: 1998-01-06 - Earliest claimed: 1995-10-13 - Assignees: LG Electronics Inc. - Inventors: Jeong Myung Choi - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US5704224A ## CPC - F25D 17/065: {with compartments at different temperatures} - F25D 17/045: {Air flow control arrangements} - F25D 25/028: {Cooled supporting means} - F25D 2317/0653: through the mullion - F25D 2317/0665: from the top - F25D 2317/067: characterised by air ducts - F25D 2400/04: Refrigerators with a horizontal mullion - 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) ## Abstract An improved cooling air circulating structure for a refrigerator which is capable of enabling a smooth flowing of a cooled air by providing a vertically arranged duct unit in a refrigerating compartment thereof and integrally forming a cooled air returning path with the duct unit, which includes a shroud disposed between the evaporator chamber and the grill panel for distributing cooling air generated in the evaporating chamber into the freezing compartment and the refrigerating compartment, respectively, and a duct unit disposed in the refrigerating compartment, comprising an upper freshening section duct portion disposed at an upper rear portion of the refrigerating compartment for providing cooling air into a freshening section of the refrigerating compartment and for returning an air circulated in the upper freshening section portion to the evaporator chamber through an air flow path, and a lower refrigerating section duct portion of which an upper end is integrally connected with a bottom portion of the upper freshening section duct portion for providing cooling air to a refrigerating section of the refrigerating compartment and for returning air circulated in the refrigerating section to the evaporator chamber through the air flow path. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A cooling air circulating structure for a refrigerator having a freezing compartment, an evaporator chamber, an evaporator disposed in the evaporator chamber for generating a cooling air, a grill panel disposed at a rear portion of the freezing compartment, a refrigerating compartment, and a barrier disposed between the freezing compartment and the refrigerating compartment, the improvements comprising: a shroud disposed between the evaporator chamber and the grill panel for distributing cooling air generated in the evaporating chamber into the freezing compartment and the refrigerating compartment, respectively; and a duct unit disposed in the refrigerating compartment, comprising: an upper freshening section duct portion disposed at an upper rear portion of the refrigerating compartment for providing cooling air into a freshening section of the refrigerating compartment and for returning an air circulated in the upper freshening section portion to the evaporator chamber through an air flow path; and a lower refrigerating section duct portion of which an upper end is integrally connected with a bottom portion of the upper freshening section duct portion for providing cooling air to a refrigerating section of the refrigerating compartment and for returning air circulated in the refrigerating section to the evaporator chamber through the air flow path. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The cooling air circulating structure of claim 1, wherein said shroud includes: a cooling air discharge hole formed in a center portion thereof, through which a cooling air from the evaporator chamber is discharged into the freezing compartment and the refrigerating compartment; a recess formed around the cooling air discharge hole for guiding the cooling air from the cooling air discharge hole; a discharge outlet formed at a lower center portion thereof communicating with the recess, through which the cooling air from the circular recess is guided; a pair of spaced-apart suction ports formed at a lower edge portion thereof, through which air circulated in the freezing compartment is returned to the evaporator chamber; a pair of spaced-apart suction guide ducts formed at the lower edge portion thereof, through which the air circulated in the refrigerating compartment is returned to the evaporator chamber. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The cooling air circulating structure of claim 2 further comprising a ceiling duct unit disposed on an upper portion of the refrigerating compartment and having a plurality of holes and wherein said barrier includes a first cooling air discharge tube connected between the discharge outlet of the shroud and the refrigerating compartment through the ceiling duct unit through which cooling air from the first cooling air discharge tube is discharged into the freshening section of the refrigerating compartment; a second cooling air discharge tube connected between the discharge outlet of the shroud and the upper freshening section portion of the duct unit; and a pair of suction guide ducts communicating with the evaporator chamber through the suction guide ducts of the shroud. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The cooling air circulating structure of claim 3, wherein said upper freshening section portion of the duct unit includes: a freshening section discharge duct communicating with the second cooling air discharge tube of the barrier and having a pair of spaced-apart cooling air discharge ports through which the cooling air from the second cooling air discharge tube of the barrier is discharged into the freshening section of the refrigerating compartment; and a pair of freshening section suction ducts communicating with the suction guide ducts of the barrier and having a plurality of freshening section suction ports through which the air circulated in the freshening section is returned to the evaporator chamber through the suction guide ducts of the barrier and the suction ports of the shroud. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The cooling air circulating structure of claim 4, wherein said refrigerating section duct portion of the duct unit includes: a refrigerating section discharge duct portion communicating with the freshening section discharge duct portion of the upper freshening section duct portion and having a plurality of cooling air discharge ports through which cooling air is discharged into the refrigerating compartment, the cooling air discharge port being selectively opened/closed, and an auxiliary cooling air discharge port formed below each cooling air discharge port through the cooling air is discharged into the refrigerating compartment; and a pair of refrigerating section suction ducts communicating with the suction guide ducts of the barrier via the freshening section suction ducts and having a detachable deodorizing unit and a lower suction port formed below the detachable deodorizing unit, through which the air circulated in the refrigerating compartment is returned to the evaporator chamber through the suction guide ducts of the shroud. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The cooling air circulating structure of claim 1, further comprising a rack duct unit having a plurality of air discharge holes formed in an outer circumferential surface thereof through which cooling air from the cooling discharge port of the refrigerating section duct portion. ### Claim 7 (depends on 5) The cooling air circulating structure of claim 5, wherein said detachable deodorizing unit includes a receptacle having an open bottom and a deodorizing material support section for receiving a deodorizing material therein, the receptacle being disposed in the path of the returning air for deodorizing odors contained in the air returning to the evaporator chamber. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The cooling air circulating structure of claim 1, wherein said refrigerating section duct portion includes a discharge port opening/closing member which is elastically supported by an elastic member connected between a rear side thereof and an inner wall of a discharge duct of said refrigerating section duct portion for urging a front side of said member to block the cooling air discharge port and to allow said member to be pressed rearwardly to open said discharge port when one end of a rack duct unit is inserted into the cooling air discharge port.