Method of constructing refrigerator cabinet

Abstract

Abstract A single sheet of metal is stamped to provide portions which form the top, side and bottom outer walls of the refrigerator cabinet and portions which form the top, side and bottom inner walls of the cabinet. This single sheet of metal is stamped in the same operation to include a plurality of perforations in an elongated section thereof extending lengthwise of the sheet between the portions which form the outer wall and the portions which form the inner wall. This same elongated section is further shaped to provide a groove of arcuate cross-section extending substantially the length thereof. The single sheet of metal is then bent to form in one operation the top, side and bottom outer walls of the refrigerator and the top, side and bottom inner walls of the refrigerator, the elongated perforated section framing the door opening of the refrigerator, the perforations retarding heat transfer from the outer walls. A portion of the tubing forming the condenser of the refrigerating system employed with the refrigerator is assembled in the aforementioned arcuate groove. This condenser tubing both conceals the perforations in the assembled cabinet and provides a readily available economical source of supplementary heat in the area between the inner and outer walls to raise the temperature of the outer wall and hence to further assist in eliminating sweating thereof and of the adjacent door gasket. The assembly is completed by connecting a separate rear inner wall to the previously-formed top, side and bottom inner walls and connecting a separate rear outer wall to the previously-formed top, side and bottom outer walls. Finally, this cabinet assembly is placed in a suitable fixture which holds the walls in position and in the desired shape while foam insulation is injected into the space between the inner and outer walls to provide the necessary thermal insulation and to give final rigidity to the cabinet. In a modified form the single sheet of metal is stamped to provide also portions forming the back outer wall and the back inner wall of the cabinet.

Inventors

• 👤 Julius B. Horvay

Bibliographic Details