Refrigerator including door open module

Abstract

In a refrigerator according to the present invention, by allowing a plurality of gear racks of a rack-and-pinion assembly to be extended forward with different extension forces, a drawer assembly may be opened using only an amount of force necessary for each stage of opening the drawer assembly, thereby maximizing energy efficiency through efficient force distribution.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A refrigerator comprising:
 a cabinet including one or more storage compartments;   a drawer assembly configured to open and close a front surface of the storage compartment; and   a door open module which is disposed in the storage compartment and pushes and opens the drawer assembly,   wherein the door open module includes a multi-stage rack-and-pinion assembly including a plurality of gear racks extendable and retractable in a front-rear direction, and   a first gear rack, which is extended a shortest distance among the plurality of gear racks, pushes and partially opens the drawer assembly.   
     
     
         2 . The refrigerator of  claim 1 , wherein the first gear rack initially opens the closed drawer assembly. 
     
     
         3 . The refrigerator of  claim 1 , further comprising a pushing member that pushes the drawer assembly forward,
 wherein, after the drawer assembly is partially opened, the pushing member pushes and fully opens the drawer assembly.   
     
     
         4 . The refrigerator of  claim 3 , wherein the multi-stage rack-and-pinion assembly includes a first gear rack, a second gear rack, and a third gear rack, and
 the pushing member moves while depending on movement of the third gear rack.   
     
     
         5 . The refrigerator of  claim 1 , wherein the multi-stage rack-and-pinion assembly includes a first gear rack, a second gear rack, and a third gear rack, and
 among the first gear rack, the second gear rack, and the third gear rack, the first gear rack has a greatest extension force, and the third gear rack has a smallest extension force.   
     
     
         6 . The refrigerator of  claim 1 , wherein the multi-stage rack-and-pinion assembly includes a first gear rack, a second gear rack, and a third gear rack, and
 the door open module further includes a sliding rack configured such that one side is connected to the pushing member and the other side is connected to the third gear rack to synchronize forward and backward movements of the pushing member and the third gear rack.   
     
     
         7 . The refrigerator of  claim 6 , further comprising a rack guide member stored within the sliding rack to slide in the front-rear direction within the sliding rack and engaged with the third gear rack,
 wherein a front sliding gap is provided between a front end portion of the rack guide member and a front end portion of the sliding rack.   
     
     
         8 . The refrigerator of  claim 7 , wherein, when the rack guide member moves forward and comes into contact with the sliding rack to push the sliding rack forward, the pushing member pushes the drawer assembly forward. 
     
     
         9 . The refrigerator of  claim 7 , wherein the sliding rack includes an open rear surface to allow the rack guide member to be inserted, and the rear surface of the sliding rack is closed by a closure member, and
 a rear sliding gap is provided between a rear end portion of the rack guide member and a front end portion of the closure member.   
     
     
         10 . The refrigerator of  claim 9 , wherein the door open module further includes a hook member engaged with and disengaged from the drawer assembly, and
 the hook member moves while depending on the movement of the third gear rack.   
     
     
         11 . A refrigerator comprising:
 a cabinet including one or more storage compartments;   a drawer assembly configured to open and close a front surface of the storage compartment; and   a door open module which is disposed in the storage compartment and pushes and opens the drawer assembly,   wherein the door open module includes:   a multi-stage rack-and-pinion assembly including a plurality of gear racks; and   a driving assembly including a driving unit and a gear assembly configured to transmit a driving force of the driving unit to the rack-and-pinion assembly, and   the plurality of gear racks are each extended forward with different extension forces.   
     
     
         12 . The refrigerator of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of gear racks are each extended forward with an extension force inversely proportional to a clearance distance from the gear assembly. 
     
     
         13 . The refrigerator of  claim 11 , wherein a rotational force generated from the driving unit is distributed as the same torque to each of the plurality of gear racks through the gear assembly, and
 each of the plurality of gear racks moves along a straight path based on the received torque.   
     
     
         14 . The refrigerator of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of gear racks include a first gear rack spaced apart from the gear assembly by a first transmission distance, a second gear rack spaced apart from the gear assembly by a second transmission distance, and a third gear rack spaced apart from the gear assembly by a third transmission distance,
 a clearance distance increases in the order of the first transmission distance, the second transmission distance, and the third transmission distance, and   an extension force decreases in the order of the first gear rack, the second gear rack, and the third gear rack.   
     
     
         15 . The refrigerator of  claim 14 , wherein a lengths of the first gear rack in a front-rear direction is larger than lengths of the second gear rack and the third gear rack in the front-rear direction. 
     
     
         16 . The refrigerator of  claim 14 , wherein the driving assembly includes a case configured to store the rack-and-pinion assembly, and
 when the rack-and-pinion assembly is driven, the first gear rack among the plurality of gear racks is primarily protruded forward from the case.   
     
     
         17 . The refrigerator of  claim 14 , wherein a gasket part in contact with the cabinet in a closed state of the drawer assembly is disposed on a rear surface of the drawer assembly, and
 the first gear rack pushes the drawer assembly forward to release the contact between the gasket part and the cabinet.   
     
     
         18 . The refrigerator of  claim 17 , wherein an extension force of the first gear rack is greater than a sealing pressure between the gasket part and the cabinet. 
     
     
         19 . The refrigerator of  claim 14 , wherein the door open module further includes a pushing member configured to push the drawer assembly forward,
 wherein the pushing member pushes the drawer assembly forward after the first gear rack has released contact between the gasket part and the cabinet.   
     
     
         20 . The refrigerator of  claim 19 , wherein the pushing member is connected to the third gear rack so as to move in synchronization with movement of the third gear rack after a predetermined time delay since the movement of the third gear rack has started.