Refrigerator with an adjustable compartment base

Abstract

A refrigerating appliance contains a housing that encloses an interior space. A shelf can be mounted at different heights on walls of the housing by brackets that are each joined to one of the walls in a manner that enables them to pivot about a first axis and joined to the shelf in a manner that enables them to pivot about a second axis that is offset with regard to the first axis.

We claim:  
     
         1 . A refrigerator, comprising: 
 a housing defining and surrounding an internal area and having walls;    at least one compartment base mountable in said internal area at different heights on said walls of said housing; and    supporting arms mounting said compartment base to said walls, each of said supporting arms being connected to one of said walls such that said supporting arms pivot about a first axis and further connected to said compartment base such that said supporting arms can pivot about a second axis being offset with respect to said first axis.    
     
     
         2 . The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , further comprising a suspension device, one of said supporting arms which can pivot and said suspension device which can be moved horizontally are provided on each side edge of said compartment base.  
     
     
         3 . The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , wherein two of said supporting arms which can pivot include a front supporting arm and a rear supporting arm are provided on each side edge of said compartment base, and said compartment base is able to assume an upper rest position, in which said second axis runs above said first axis of each of said supporting arms, a lower rest position in which said second axis runs below said first axis of each of said supporting arms, and at least one oblique rest position in which said second axis of said front supporting arm runs below said first axis, and said second axis of said rear supporting arm runs above said first axis or said second axis of said front supporting arm runs above said first axis, and said second axis of said rear supporting arm runs below said first axis.  
     
     
         4 . The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , wherein at least three of said supporting arms which can pivot are provided on each side edge of said compartment base.  
     
     
         5 . The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , wherein at least some of said supporting arms are disposed on a first side edge of said compartment base and can be moved to a different rest position than others of said supporting arms which are fitted to an opposite second side edge.  
     
     
         6 . The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , wherein said supporting arms, which are fitted on opposite side edges of said compartment base, are each connected to one another in pairs.  
     
     
         7 . The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , further comprising a holding apparatus for holding refrigerated items is fitted to at least one of a front edge and a rear edge of said compartment base.  
     
     
         8 . The refrigerator according to  claim 3 , wherein when each of said supporting arms is in an upper rest position, said second axis is located closer to a rear wall of said internal area than said first axis.  
     
     
         9 . The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , further comprising at least one device ( 25 ,  26 ,  27 ,  28 ,  29 ,  30 ) for locking a respective one of said supporting arms at least in a raised position.  
     
     
         10 . The refrigerator according to  claim 9 , wherein: 
 said walls having openings formed therein;    said compartment base has cutouts formed therein; and    each of said supporting arms has a first pin for engaging in one of said openings in a respective one of said walls, a second pin for engaging in a respective one of said cutouts in said compartment base, and an intermediate section, which is angled with respect to said first and second pins and connects said first and second pins.    
     
     
         11 . The refrigerator according to  claim 10 , wherein said device for locking has a tongue, said tongue can be moved elastically and has a stop surface for supporting a face of said intermediate section which faces a rear wall of said housing.  
     
     
         12 . The refrigerator according to  claim 10 , wherein said respective cutout is open at a bottom, and said second pin is clamped in said respective cutout.  
     
     
         13 . The refrigerator according to  claim 12 , further comprising a plastic body plugged into said compartment base and said respective cutout is formed in said plastic body.