초록 ▼

A refrigerator includes a hinge bracket that is installed on a cabinet between an upper door and a lower door, which are configured to individually open and close an upper portion and a lower portion of a cabinet, respectively, and rotatably supports the upper door and the lower door, the hinge brac

A refrigerator includes a hinge bracket that is installed on a cabinet between an upper door and a lower door, which are configured to individually open and close an upper portion and a lower portion of a cabinet, respectively, and rotatably supports the upper door and the lower door, the hinge bracket coupled to a connecting member through a reinforcing bracket, which is installed at an inner side of a wall forming a heat insulation space of the cabinet, thereby enhancing the sealing performance of a filler unit configured to seal between the upper door and the lower door.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A refrigerator comprising: a cabinet comprising an inner case, which is laterally divided by a vertical partition wall to form a cooling compartment and a freezer compartment, and an outer case, which is disposed on an outer side of the inner case while interposing a heat insulation space, in whi

1. A refrigerator comprising: a cabinet comprising an inner case, which is laterally divided by a vertical partition wall to form a cooling compartment and a freezer compartment, and an outer case, which is disposed on an outer side of the inner case while interposing a heat insulation space, in which thermal insulating material is formed, between the outer case and the inner case;an upper door and a lower door rotatably installed on the cabinet to independently open and close an upper portion and a lower portion of the cooling compartment while dividing the cooling compartment into the upper portion and the lower portion, the cooling compartment being configured not to have any horizontal partition wall;a pillar unit rotatably installed at either of the upper door or the lower door to seal a gap between the upper door and the lower door;an upper hinge part configured to rotatably support an upper portion of the upper door;a lower hinge part configured to rotatably support a lower portion of the lower door;a hinge bracket disposed between the upper door and the lower door, comprising an upper hinge pin and a lower hinge pin, which are configured to rotatably support a lower portion of the upper door and an upper portion of the lower door, respectively, and coupled directly to an outer surface of the outer case; anda reinforcing bracket provided on an inner surface of the outer case while being coupled to the hinge bracket such that rigidity of the hinge bracket is reinforced,wherein the hinge bracket comprises a lateral side plate supported by a lateral side of the cabinet, a front side plate bentedly extending from the lateral side plate and supported by a front side of the cabinet, and a hinge plate through which the upper hinge pin and the lower hinge pin protrude, andwherein the reinforcing bracket comprises a lateral side support part, which is coupled to a connecting member that passes through the lateral side plate, and a front side support part, which bentedly extends from the lateral side support part and is coupled to a connecting member that passes through the front side plate, so that both of the hinge bracket and the reinforcing bracket are coupled to the lateral side and the front side of the cabinet. 2. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the pillar unit comprises a pillar member coupled at either of the upper door or the lower door as to enable a rotation in a vertical direction and provided at one end thereof with a guide protrusion, a pillar guide installed onto a side of the vertical partition wall and having a guide groove, to which the guide protrusion is inserted, such that the rotation of the pillar member is guided, and a torsion spring configured to elastically support the pillar member in a state that the pillar member is rotated upward by the pillar guide. 3. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the front side plate has a width corresponding to a front edge of the cabinet. 4. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the reinforcing bracket comprises metal provided in a shape of a plate, is coupled to an inner side of the outer case, and is supported by the thermal insulating material formed in the heat insulation space. 5. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein a plurality of shelves are disposed on the upper portion of the cooling compartment which is opened and closed by the upper door, and a plurality of drawers are disposed over the lower portion of the cooling compartment which is opened and closed by the lower door. 6. The refrigerator of claim 5, wherein a front surface of each of the drawers is disposed to be adjacent to a rear surface of the lower door in a state that the lower door is closed. 7. The refrigerator of claim 5, wherein a hinge bracket accommodating part is formed in the outer surface of the outer case while being recessed from the outer surface to the inner surface of the outer case. 8. The refrigerator of claim 7, further comprising a hinge bracket cover configured to be coupled to the outer surface of the outer case such that the hinge bracket accommodating part is covered, and an outer surface of the hinge bracket cover is coplanar with the outer surface of the outer case. 9. A refrigerator comprising: a cabinet comprising storage compartments divided by a vertical partition wall, an outer case, an inner case disposed inside the outer case to form the storage compartments, and thermal insulating material filled in a heat insulation space between the outer case and the inner case;an upper door and a lower door that are rotatably installed on the cabinet to independently open and close an upper portion and a lower portion of one of the storage compartments while dividing the one storage compartment into the upper portion and the lower portion, the one storage compartment being configured not to have any horizontal partition wall;a pillar unit rotatably installed at a lower edge of the upper door to seal a gap between the upper door and the lower door;a hinge bracket provided between the upper door and the lower door and coupled directly to the outer case with a connecting member to rotatably support a lower end of the upper door and an upper end of the lower door; anda reinforcing bracket installed onto an inner side of a wall forming the heat insulation space and coupled to the connecting member such that rigidity of the hinge bracket is reinforced,wherein the hinge bracket comprises a lateral side plate, which is supported by a lateral side of the cabinet, a front side plate, which bentedly extends from the lateral side plate and supported by a front side of the cabinet, and a hinge plate, which extends from the front side plate forward and has an upper hinge pin and a lower hinge pin axially coupled to the upper door and the lower door, respectively, andwherein the reinforcing bracket comprises a lateral side support part, which is supported by an inner side of the outer case corresponding to the lateral side plate and is coupled to the connecting member, and a front side support part, which bentedly extends from the lateral side support part and is coupled to a connecting member coupled to the front side plate, so that both of the hinge bracket and the reinforcing bracket are coupled to the lateral side and the front side of the cabinet. 10. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein the pillar unit comprises a pillar member rotatably coupled to the upper door and provided at one end thereof with a guide protrusion, a pillar guide installed onto a side of the vertical partition wall and having a guide groove, to which the guide protrusion is inserted, such that the rotation of the pillar member is guided, and a torsion spring configured to elastically support the pillar member in a state that the pillar member is rotated upward by the pillar guide. 11. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein the pillar unit further comprises a heating wire. 12. A system to independently allow access to at least two portions of a refrigerated storage cabinet, the system comprising: the refrigerated storage cabinet being configured not to have any horizontal partition wall;a first door to provide access to a first portion of the cabinet;a second door installed adjacent to the first door to provide access to a second portion of the cabinet;a hinge bracket installed between the first door and the second door, and coupled to an exterior surface of the cabinet to rotatably support the first door and the second door;a reinforcing bracket installed on an interior surface of the cabinet and coupled to the hinge bracket by a connecting member to reinforce the hinge bracket; anda pillar unit rotatably installed on an interior surface of the first door to seal a gap between the first door and the second door when the first door and the second door are in a closed position,wherein the second door operates independently from the first door,wherein the hinge bracket comprises a lateral side plate supported by a lateral side of the cabinet, a front side plate bentedly extending from the lateral side plate and supported by a front side of the cabinet, and a hinge plate through which an upper hinge pin and a lower hinge pin protrude, andwherein the reinforcing bracket comprises a lateral side support part, which is coupled to a connecting member that passes through the lateral side plate, and a front side support part, which bentedly extends from the lateral side support part and is coupled to a connecting member that passes through the front side plate, so that both of the hinge bracket and the reinforcing bracket are coupled to the lateral side and the front side of the cabinet. 13. The system of claim 12, the system further comprising: a subsidiary door mounted on the first door to provide access to the first portion of the cabinet without opening the first door.