1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the art of refrigerators and, more particularly, to a storage and dispensing compartment arranged in a refrigerator door for holding beverage containers.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
In a refrigerator, it is highly desirable to enhance the ability to store products within a limited space. The space available for storage not only includes fresh food and freezer compartments, but also inner surfaces of the fresh food and freezer compartment doors of the refrigerator. Towards this end, it is common to provide shelves and compartments on these inner surfaces. In recent years, some emphasis has been placed on increasing the ability to store a wide range of products on the fresh food door in order to free up space in the main areas of the refrigerator for additional products or features. Thus, provisions have been made to store large beverage containers, including gallon milk jugs and liter bottles of soda on the fresh food compartment door.
There is also a recognized need to provide a reduced temperature storage compartment for beverages and the like. In order to address this need, several refrigerator models are provided with specialized chill compartments. The chill compartment is typically arranged on the fresh food compartment door and is provided with a door or cover for selectively accessing the compartment. To provide for a reduced temperature in the chill compartment, a flow of cooling air is guided from the freezer compartment into the chill compartment. Consumers can place items into the chill compartment, such as soda bottles, wine bottles and the like, that they wish to be cooled to a temperature below a temperature of the fresh food compartment.
While the chiller compartment is capable of storing all kinds of containers, it is hardly practical to store small containers such as beverage cans. The number of cans that can be placed in the compartment is limited. The cans cannot be stacked for fear that opening the refrigerator would cause the cans to topple from the compartment. Arranging the cans in a typical can holder would also not be acceptable. Unless the can holder was properly constrained, it too could become dislodged and fall from the refrigerator with the opening of the fresh food door.
Based on the above, despite the presence of chiller compartments in the prior art, there exists a need in the art for a chiller compartment that includes a beverage can holder. More specifically, there exists a need for a chiller compartment having a beverage can holder that can be securely, yet removably, mounted to a refrigerator door.