Door assembly of a refrigerator appliance

Abstract

A door assembly for an appliance includes a door frame defining a perimeter of the door assembly, an outer door panel mounted to the door frame, wherein a magnetic material is applied to at least a portion of the outer door panel, and one or more magnets mounted to the door frame, the one or more magnets being mechanically coupled to the magnetic material to attach the outer door panel to the door frame.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A refrigerator appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction, the refrigerator appliance comprising: 
 a cabinet defining a chilled chamber; and   a door assembly rotatably mounted to the cabinet to provide selective access to the chilled chamber, the door assembly comprising: 
 a door frame defining a perimeter of the door assembly; 
 an outer door panel mounted to the door frame, wherein a magnetic material is applied to at least a portion of the outer door panel; and 
 one or more magnets mounted to the door frame, the one or more magnets being mechanically coupled to the magnetic material to attach the outer door panel to the door frame. 
   
     
     
         2 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the magnetic material is applied to an inner surface of the outer door panel. 
     
     
         3 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 2 , wherein the magnetic material is localized around the one or more magnets on the door frame. 
     
     
         4 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 2 , wherein the magnetic material covers an entirety of the inner surface of the outer door panel. 
     
     
         5 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the magnetic material is magnetic paint. 
     
     
         6 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the magnetic material is a magnetic adhesive pad.  
     
     
         7 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more magnets are positioned proximate a center of the door frame along the lateral direction. 
     
     
         8 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the door frame comprises a plurality of reinforcement brackets extending across a center of the door frame, wherein the one or more magnets are mounted to the plurality of reinforcement brackets. 
     
     
         9 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 8 , wherein the plurality of reinforcement brackets extend along the lateral direction and are spaced apart along the vertical direction. 
     
     
         10 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 8 , wherein the plurality of reinforcement brackets are attached to side brackets of the door frame using one or more mechanical fasteners. 
     
     
         11 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the outer door panel is formed from stainless steel. 
     
     
         12 . A door assembly for an appliance, the appliance comprising a cabinet defining an internal chamber, the door assembly comprising: 
 a door frame defining a perimeter of the door assembly;   an outer door panel mounted to the door frame, wherein a magnetic material is applied to at least a portion of the outer door panel; and   one or more magnets mounted to the door frame, the one or more magnets being mechanically coupled to the magnetic material to attach the outer door panel to the door frame.   
     
     
         13 . The door assembly of  claim 12 , wherein the magnetic material is applied to an inner surface of the outer door panel. 
     
     
         14 . The door assembly of  claim 13 , wherein the magnetic material is localized around the one or more magnets on the door frame. 
     
     
         15 . The door assembly of  claim 13 , wherein the magnetic material covers an entirety of the inner surface of the outer door panel. 
     
     
         16 . The door assembly of  claim 12 , wherein the magnetic material is magnetic paint. 
     
     
         17 . The door assembly of  claim 12 , wherein the magnetic material is a magnetic adhesive pad.  
     
     
         18 . The door assembly of  claim 12 , wherein the one or more magnets are positioned proximate a center of the door frame along the lateral direction. 
     
     
         19 . The door assembly of  claim 12 , wherein the door frame comprises a plurality of reinforcement brackets extending across a center of the door frame, wherein the one or more magnets are mounted to the plurality of reinforcement brackets. 
     
     
         20 . The door assembly of  claim 19 , wherein the plurality of reinforcement brackets extend along the lateral direction and are spaced apart along a vertical direction.