FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This application relates generally to a door end closure assembly for a door of a refrigeration device, and more particularly to said closure assembly having a handle for aiding a user in opening the door and an integrated user interface for providing information to a user and/or for allowing control of one or more aspects of the refrigeration appliance.

Background of the Invention

Conventional refrigeration appliances, such as domestic refrigerators, have one or more compartments, and typically have both a fresh food compartment and a freezer compartment or section. The fresh food compartment is where food items such as fruits, vegetables, and beverages are stored and the freezer compartment is where food items that are to be kept in a frozen condition are stored. The refrigerators are provided with a refrigeration system that maintains the fresh food compartment at temperatures above 0° C., such as between 0.25° C. and 4.5° C. and the freezer compartments at temperatures below 0° C., such as between 0° C. and −20° C.

The arrangements of the fresh food and freezer compartments with respect to one another in such refrigerators vary. For example, in some cases, the freezer compartment is located above the fresh food compartment and in other cases the freezer compartment is located below the fresh food compartment. Additionally, many modern refrigerators have their freezer compartments and fresh food compartments arranged in a side-by-side relationship. Whatever arrangement of the freezer compartment and the fresh food compartment is employed, typically, separate access and thus separate doors are provided for the compartments so that either compartment may be accessed without exposing the other compartment to the ambient air.

Conventional closure for these compartments can include hinged doors, drawer doors, or any combination thereof. Typically a hinged door is hinged either on a left side or a right side of the door. A drawer door typically is provided on a sliding and/or tilting drawer. Both door types, conveniently referred to herein generally as doors or compartment closures, are configured to engage with a front surface of a body of the refrigeration appliance, generally around an outer periphery of a respective compartment, such as to seal that compartment from the ambient air.

The doors typically are the most visible aspects of a refrigeration appliance, and can provide both aesthetic and utility functions to the owner. As owners of the appliances desire greater control, customization and functionality from their devices, these desires often do not align with a state of conventional controls available in such refrigeration appliances, nor with the location of the conventional controls, which generally are located internally, in the food compartments, if provided at all. Instead, users now are desiring to have these features provided in visible and easy to access locations, one of which being the doors. Where external controls are contemplated, their incorporation, particularly related to manufacturing, should not be over-complicated.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the present disclosure may address one or more of the concerns described above while providing at least one compartment closure that includes additional utility for a user beyond that of merely sealing a food compartment of a refrigeration appliance.

In accordance with one aspect, a refrigeration appliance includes a body defining a compartment for storing food items in a refrigerated environment, and a door for engaging with the body and selectively closing the compartment. The door has a front panel and a rear panel, with the front panel disposed outwardly from the compartment and the rear panel facing the compartment when the door is engaged with the body. A door end closure assembly provides an end of the door adjacent to each of the front panel and the rear panel. The door end closure assembly includes an endcap extending between the front panel and the rear panel and a user interface engaged with the endcap. The user interface is configured to allow control of or to provide feedback regarding one or more aspects of the appliance to the user. The endcap defines at least a portion of a handle gap configured to receive at least a portion of a user's hand to allow for selective opening of the compartment, and an interface cavity for receiving the user interface. The interface cavity is separated from the handle gap and closed by the user interface, which extends along the handle gap and is provided at an outer main surface of the endcap.

In accordance with another aspect, there is provided a door end closure assembly for closing an end of an appliance door. The door end closure assembly includes an endcap configured to engage with front and rear panels of the appliance door to close an end of the door, and the endcap having a handle extending along a length of the endcap. The door end closure assembly also includes an intermediate member for mounting a front of the endcap to at least the front panel, and a user interface retained in an interface cavity extending along the length of the endcap, generally parallel to the handle. The user interface is configured to allow control of one or more aspects of the appliance. The endcap includes an outwardly opening groove extending peripherally about an opening of the interface cavity. The user interface includes a board housing received into the interface cavity and retaining an electronics board of the user interface therein. The board housing has a downwardly extending lip disposed about a periphery of the board housing and configured to be received into the outwardly opening groove of the endcap to provide therewith a labyrinth closure to restrict moisture infiltration into the interface cavity.

In accordance with still another aspect, there is provided a door end closure assembly for closing an end of a refrigeration appliance door. The door end closure assembly includes an endcap having an interface cavity extending along a length of the endcap. The interface cavity receives a user interface to provide control of or feedback regarding one or more aspects of the refrigeration appliance. The user interface is retained in the interface cavity and forms with the endcap an S-shaped closure disposed fully-circumferentially about the interface cavity to restrict water infiltration into the interface cavity. The user interface includes an electronics board retained both within a board housing of the user interface and within the interface cavity that receives the board housing extended thereinto. The electronics board is electrically coupled to an outer surface of the board housing for being contacted by a user to thereby send signals to the electronics board.

The foregoing and other features of the invention are hereinafter described in greater detail with reference to the accompany drawings.

