Refrigerator hinge cover
AssigneeWhirlpool Corporation
InventorsScott William Leimkuehler, Christopher Ryan McElvain
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A hinge cover is provided for a refrigerator door hinge so as to hide the hinge screws. The cover includes a cap with a front face and a side wall extending continuously around the cover. A bead is formed on the inside of the side wall to engage a mounting plate secured to the base of the door hinge, or alternatively, to frictionally engage the hinge base. The cover is made of a flexible material, and includes a slot through which the hinge flange and post extend. The cover can be colored to match or complement the refrigerator color.
Claims18
An improved hinge assembly for a refrigerator having a cabinet and a door pivotally mounted to the cabinet for movement between open and closed positions, comprising:
- a hinge base secured to the cabinet with fasteners;
- a protrusion integrally formed with the hinge base and extending forwardly from the hinge base;
- a hinge pin mounted to the protrusion and extending into the door to define a vertical pivot axis;
- and
- a cover overlying the hinge base to cover the fasteners and having a slot through which the protrusion extends.
A hinge cover for a refrigerator door hinge having a base mounted to the refrigerator with screws and a forwardly projecting flange to support a vertical pivot pin, the hinge cover comprising:
- a plate secured to the base with the hinge screws;
- a one piece cap fit over the flange in covering relation with the hinge base and the plate to hide the screws;
- wherein the plate has a perimeter edge extending beyond the perimeter edge of the base, with the cap being stretch fit over the perimeter edge of the plate.
A method of hiding hinge screws for a hinge pivotally mounting a refrigerator door to a refrigerator cabinet, comprising:
- securing a hinge base to the refrigerator cabinet using screws;
- mounting a plate over the base using the screws;
- and
- mounting a one-piece cover over the base;
- and
- retentively fitting the cover over a perimeter edge of the plate so as to hide the screws behind the cover.
An improved hinge assembly for a refrigerator having a cabinet and a door pivotally mounted to the cabinet for movement between open and closed positions, comprising:
- a hinge base secured to the cabinet with fasteners;
- a protrusion integrally formed with the hinge base and extending forwardly from the hinge base;
- a hinge pin mounted to the protrusion and extending into the door to define a vertical pivot axis;
- a cover overlying the hinge base to cover the fasteners and having a slot through which the protrusion extends;
- and
- a plate secured over the hinge base by the fasteners, and the cover having a lip extending over a perimeter edge of the plate.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.