US20130270989A1

US20130270989A1 - Sliding apparatus and refrigerator having the same

Info

Publication number: US20130270989A1
Application number: US13/800,815
Authority: US
Inventors: Sung Cheul Park; Hyoung Min Go; Sang Bum Kim
Original assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2012-04-12
Filing date: 2013-03-13
Publication date: 2013-10-17
Also published as: EP2650629A2; EP2650629A3; KR20130115546A

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a refrigerator which improves the structure of a sliding apparatus to reduce noise and warpage generated when a storage unit slides. The refrigerator includes storage units inserted into and extracted out of storage chambers in a sliding manner, cover rails combined with both side walls of the insides of the storage chambers and provided with rack gears and planar parts, slide units combined with both side surfaces of the storage units and including pinion gears moving in a state in which the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and moving in a state in which the pinion gears are suspended above the planar parts, a connection bar connected between the pinion gears to prevent movement of the storage units, and a reinforcing frame connected between the slide units to prevent warpage of the storage units generated when the pinion gears move above the planar parts.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2012-0037924, filed on Apr. 12, 2012 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

1. Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a sliding apparatus and a refrigerator having the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
A refrigerator includes storage chambers and a cold air supply apparatus supplying cold air to the storage chambers, and thus stores foods in a fresh state.
The insides of the storage chambers maintain temperatures, each of which is within a designated range, required to store foods in the fresh state.
The front surfaces of such storage chambers of the refrigerator are opened, and the opened front surfaces are closed by doors to maintain the temperatures of the insides of the storage chambers at normal times.
The storage chambers are divided by diaphragms, and among the storage chambers, the upper storage chamber is opened and closed by two doors rotatably hinged to a main body of the refrigerator and the lower storage chamber is opened and closed by a drawer-type door sliding in the forward and backward directions.
The drawer-type door slides in the forward and backward directions by a sliding apparatus, and the sliding apparatus includes cover rails connected to both side walls of the inside of the storage chamber and slide units connected to the drawer-type door.
A rack gear is provided at the lower end of the cover rail, and a pinion gear engaged with the rack gear and moving is provided on the slide unit.
When the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and thus moves in the forward and backward directions while being rotated, the drawer-type door slides in the forward and backward directions.
However, if the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and thus move, noise friction due to friction between the pinion gears and the rack gears may occur.

SUMMARY

Therefore, it is an aspect of the present disclosure to provide a refrigerator which improves the structure of a sliding apparatus sliding a storage unit to reduce noise and warpage generated when the storage unit slides.
Additional aspects will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.
In accordance with one aspect, a refrigerator includes a main body, plural storage chambers, each of which is provided with an opened front surface, provided in the main body, storage units received within the storage chambers formed in the lower portion of the main body among the plural storage chambers, and inserted into and extracted out of the storage chambers in a sliding manner, cover rails respectively combined with both side walls of the inside of each of the storage chambers in which the storage units are received, and provided with rack gears at the front regions of the lower ends thereof and planar parts, from which the rack gears are removed, at the rear regions of the lower ends thereof, slide units respectively combined with both side surfaces of each of the storage units, and including pinion gears moving in a state in which the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and are rotated, at the front regions of the lower ends of the cover rails and moving in a state in which the pinion gears are suspended above the planar parts, at the rear regions of the lower ends of the cover rails so as to allow the each of the storage units to slide, a connection bar connected between the pinion gears of the slide units of each of the storage units and preventing movement of each of the storage units when each of the storage units is inserted into and extracted out of each of the storage chambers, and a reinforcing frame connected between the slide units of each of the storage units to prevent warpage of each of the storage units generated when the pinion gears move above the planar parts.
By providing the planar parts, from which the rack gears are removed, at the rear of the rack gears of the cover rails, noise due to friction generated when the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and move may be eliminated when the pinion gears move above the planar parts.
Each of the slide units may include a first slide rail received in each of the cover rails and fixed, a second slide rail slidably combined with the first slide rail, and a third slide rail slidably combined with the second slide rail.
A sliding part with which bearings facilitating sliding are combined may be provided between the first slide rail and the second slide rail and between the second slide rail and the third slide rail.
Each of the slide units may further include a slide cover receiving and fixing the third slide rail and combined with each of both side surfaces of each of the storage units.
A combining part with which each of the pinion gears is combined may be provided on the third slide rail.
Both ends of the reinforcing frame may be combined with the slide covers of the slide units.
In accordance with one aspect, a refrigerator includes a main body, plural storage chambers, each of which is provided with an opened front surface, provided in the main body, drawer-type doors opening and closing the storage chambers in a sliding manner, receiving containers mounted on the rear surfaces of the drawer-type doors, received in the storage chambers, and inserted into and extracted out of the storage chambers together with the drawer-type doors in the sliding manner, and a sliding apparatus including cover rails respectively combined with both side walls of the inside of each of the storage chambers and provided with rack gears at the lower ends thereof, and slide units, each of which is provided with one side connected to each of the receiving containers and the other side slidably combined with each of the cover rails, wherein pinion gears engaged with the rack gears and moving are provided on the sliding apparatuses so that each of the receiving containers may slide along the cover rails, and the rack gear is removed from a section of the lower end of each of the cover rails on which the pinion gears move so that noise due to friction generated when the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and move is eliminated in the section from which the rack gear is removed.
The pinion gears may be respectively combined with the sliding apparatus, and in order to prevent movement of each of the receiving containers when each of the receiving containers is inserted into and extracted out of the corresponding storage chamber, a connection bar may be connected between the pinion gears.
The sliding apparatus may further include a reinforcing frame connected between the slide units to prevent warpage of each of the drawer-type doors generated when the pinion gears pass through the rack gears and moves above the planar parts during the sliding process of each of the receiving containers in the forward and backward directions.
Each of the slide units may include a first slide rail received in each of the cover rails and fixed, a second slide rail slidably combined with the first slide rail, and a third slide rail slidably combined with the second slide rail.
A sliding part with which bearings facilitating sliding are combined may be provided between the first slide rail and the second slide rail and between the second slide rail and the third slide rail.
Each of the slide units may further include a slide cover receiving and fixing the third slide rail and combined with each of both side surfaces of each of the storage units.
Both ends of the reinforcing frame may be combined with the slide covers of the slide units.
In accordance with one aspect, a sliding apparatus to insert and extract a storage unit received in a storage chamber, the front surface of which is opened, into and out of the storage chamber in a sliding manner, includes cover rails respectively combined with both side walls of the inside of the storage chamber in which the storage unit is received, and provided with rack gears at the front regions of the lower ends thereof and planar parts, from which the rack gears are removed, at the rear regions of the lower ends thereof, slide units respectively combined with both side surfaces of the storage unit, and including pinion gears moving in a state in which the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and are rotated, at the front regions of the lower ends of the cover rails and moving in a state in which the pinion gears are suspended above the planar parts, at the rear regions of the lower ends of the cover rails so as to allow the storage unit to slide, a connection bar connected between the pinion gears of the slide units to prevent movement of the storage unit when the storage unit is inserted into and extracted out of the storage chamber, and a reinforcing frame connected between the slide units of the storage unit to prevent warpage of the storage unit generated when the pinion gears pass through the rack gears and move above the planar parts during the sliding process of the storage unit in the forward and backward directions.
By providing the planar parts, from which the rack gears are removed, at the rear of the rack gears of the cover rails, noise due to friction generated when the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and move may be eliminated when the pinion gears move above the planar parts.
Each of the slide units may include a first slide rail received in each of the cover rails and fixed, a second slide rail slidably combined with the first slide rail, and a third slide rail slidably combined with the second slide rail.
A sliding part with which bearings facilitating sliding are combined may be provided between the first slide rail and the second slide rail and between the second slide rail and the third slide rail.
Each of the slide units may further include a slide cover receiving and fixing the third slide rail and combined with each of both side surfaces of the storage unit.
Both ends of the reinforcing frame may be combined with the slide covers of the slide units.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other aspects will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator in accordance with one embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a view illustrating combination of a sliding apparatus to the inside of a storage chamber and a storage unit in accordance with the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the sliding apparatus in accordance with the embodiment;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a slide unit in accordance with the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating an automatic door closing unit in accordance with the embodiment; and

FIGS. 6 to 8 are views illustrating an operation of inserting and extracting the storage unit in accordance with the embodiment by the sliding apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.
As shown in FIG. 1, a refrigerator in accordance with one embodiment includes a main body 10, plural storage chambers 20, each of which is provided with an opened front surface, provided in the main body 10, doors 30 rotatably connected to the main body 10 so as to open and close the opened front surface of the upper storage chamber 21 formed in the upper portion of the main body 10 among the plural storage chambers 20, storage units 40 received within the middle storage chamber 23 and the lower storage chamber 25 formed in the lower portion of the main body 10 among the plural storage chambers 21 and inserted into and extracted out of the middle storage chamber 23 and the lower storage chamber 25 in a sliding manner, and sliding apparatuses 100 connected to both side walls of the insides of the middle storage chamber 23 and the lower storage chamber 25 in which the storage units 40 are received and to both side walls of the storage units 40 so as to slide the storage units 40 to insert and extract the storage units 40 into and out of the middle storage chamber 23 and the lower storage chamber 25.
As shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 5 to 7, the main body 10 includes an inner case 13 forming the storage chambers 20, an outer case 11 forming the external appearance of the main body 10, and a cold air supply apparatus (not shown) supplying cold air to the storage chambers 20.
The cold air supply apparatus may include a compressor C, a condenser, an expansion valve, an evaporator, an air blower fan and a cold air duct, and a foamed thermal insulating material 15 is provided between the inner case 13 and the outer case 11 of the main body 10 so as to prevent cold air leakage.
A machine chamber 29 in which the compressor C compressing a refrigerant and the condenser condensing the compressed refrigerant are installed is provided in the lower area of the rear portion of the main body 10.
The storage chambers 20 are divided by diaphragms 17, and may include an upper storage chamber 21, an middle storage chamber 23 and an lower storage chamber 25 disposed sequentially in the downward direction. The upper storage chamber 21, the middle storage chamber 23 and the lower storage chamber 25 may store foods in a refrigerated state or a frozen state, as needed.
Multiple racks 27 may be provided within the upper storage chamber 21 to divide the upper storage chamber 21 into plurality of places.
The upper storage chamber 21 may be opened and closed by the doors 30 rotatably combined with the main body 10, and the middle storage chamber 23 and the lower storage chamber 25 may be opened and closed by the storage units 40 slidable with respect to the main body 10.
A plurality of guards 31 receiving foods may be installed on the rear surfaces of the doors 30.
The storage unit 40 includes a drawer-type door 41 opening and closing the middle storage chamber 23 or the lower storage chamber 25 and a receiving container 43 mounted on the rear surface of the drawer-type door 41, and a handle 41 a gripped by a user may be provided on the drawer-type door 41.
The receiving container 43 may be formed integrally with the drawer-type door 41, or may be manufactured separately from the drawer-type door 41 and then combined with the drawer-type door 41.
The storage units 40 are inserted into and extracted out of the middle storage chamber 23 and the lower storage chamber 25 in a sliding manner by the sliding apparatuses 100.
For convenience, the storage unit 40 inserted into and extracted out of the lower storage chamber 25, is combined with the sliding apparatus 100 to allow the storage unit 40 to be inserted into and extracted out of the lower storage chamber 25 will be exemplarily illustrated.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, one side of the sliding apparatus 100 sliding the storage unit 40 is combined with both side walls of the inside of the lower storage chamber 25 in which the storage unit 40 is received, and the other side of the sliding apparatus 100 is combined with both side surfaces of the receiving container 43 of the storage unit 40.
Although the drawings illustrate the other side of the sliding apparatus 100 as being combined with both side surfaces of the receiving container 43 of the storage unit 40, the other side of the sliding apparatus 100 may be combined with the rear surface of the drawer-type door 41 other than both side surfaces of the receiving container 43 so that the sliding apparatus 100 may support the receiving container 43.
The sliding apparatus 100 includes cover rails 110 combined with both side walls of the inside of the lower storage chamber 25, slide units 120, each of which is provided with one side combined with each of both side surfaces of the receiving container 43 and with the other side combined with the cover rails 110 so as to be slidable, a connection bar 130 connecting pinion gears 126 which will be described later, a reinforcing frame 140 connecting the slide units 120, and automatic door closing units 150 moving the storage unit 40 so that the storage unit 40 closes the lower storage chamber 25 when the storage unit 40 reaches a designated point during a process of inserting and extracting the storage unit 40 into and out of the lower storage chamber 25.
The cover rails 110 are combined with both side walls of the inside of the lower storage chamber 25, and rack gears 111 are provided at the lower ends of the cover rails 110.
The pinion gears 126 are engaged with the upper portions of the rack gears 111 provided at the lower ends of the cover rails 110, and thus when the storage unit 40 moves in the forward and backward directions so as to be inserted into and extracted out of the lower storage chamber 25, the pinion gears 126 engaged with the rack gears 111 are rotated and move in the forward and backward directions so that the storage unit 40 is inserted into and extracted out of the lower storage chamber 25.
The rack gears 111 provided at the lower ends of the cover rails 110 are provided only at the front regions of the lower ends of the cover rails 110, and planar parts 113 from which the rack gears 111 are removed are provided at the rear regions of the lower ends of the cover rails 110. The planar parts 113 may have a length of about 100 mm.
When the pinion gears 126 are engaged with the rack gears 111 and move, noise due to friction occurs. However, since the planar parts 113 are provided at the lower ends of the cover rails 110, when the pinion gears 126 pass through the rack gears 111 and move above the planar parts 113, the pinion gears 126 do not contact the planar parts 113 and are suspended above the planar parts 113 and thus noise due to friction does not occur.
When the pinion gears 126 moves along the planar parts 113, noise due to friction is eliminated, but the pinion gears 126 moves in a non-contact state with the planar parts 113 and thus, the drawer-type door 41 of the storage unit 40 may be warped.
In order to prevent warpage of the drawer-type door 41, the reinforcing frame 140 connecting the slide units 120 is provided. Such connection of the slide units 120 by the reinforcing frame 140 will be described later.
A hanging member 115 hung on cover rails 110 to connect to the automatic door closing unit 150 which will be described later and inducing an automatic closing operation of the storage unit 40 is provided at the lower end of the cover rail 110.
Each of the slide units 120 combined with both side surfaces of the receiving container 43, as shown in FIG. 4, includes a first slide rail 121 received in the cover rail 110 and fixed, a second slide rail 122 slidably combined with the first slide rail 121, a third slide rail 123 slidably combined with the second slide rail 122, a slide cover 124 combined with each of both side surfaces of the receiving container 43 so that the third slide rail 123 is fixed to the slide cover 124, and the pinion gear 126 rotatably combined with the third slide rail 123.
Although the drawings illustrate the slide unit 120 as including three slide rails, i.e., the first slide rail 121, the second slide rail 122 and the third slide rail 123, the slide unit 120 may include two slide rails, i.e., the first slide rail 121 and the third slide rail 123, and the second slide rail 122 may be omitted.
A sliding part 125 facilitating sliding is provided between the first slide rail 121 and the second slide rail 122 and between the second slide rail 122 and the third slide rail 123.
Bearings 125 a facilitating sliding of the first slide rail 121 and the second slide rail 122 and sliding of the second slide rail 122 and the third slide rail 123 may be combined with the sliding part 125.
A combining part 123 a with which the pinion gear 126 is rotatably combined is provided on the third slide rail 123.
The pinion gear 126 combined with the combining part 123 a of the third slide rail 123 moves along the rack gear 111 and the planar part 113 provided at the lower end of the cover rail 110 when the storage unit 40 moves in the forward and backward directions, thereby allowing the storage unit 40 to slide in the forward and backward directions.
The connection bar 130 to prevent movement of the receiving container 43 when the storage unit 40 is inserted into and extracted out of the lower storage chamber 25 is connected between the pinion gears 126 of the slide units 120 respectively combined with both side surfaces of the receiving container 43.
During the process of inserting and extracting the storage unit 40 into and out of the lower storage chamber 25, when the pinion gears 126 move on the upper portions of the rack gears 111 of the cover rails 110, the pinion gears 126 are engaged with the rack gears 111 and thus are rotated and move, and when the pinion gears 126 pass through the rack gears 111 and move above the planar parts 113, the pinion gears 126 are suspended above the planar parts 113 from which the pinion gears 126 are removed without contact with the planar parts 113, and thus noise due to friction does not occur but the drawer-type door 41 may be warped.
In this case, in order to prevent warpage of the drawer-type door 41, the reinforcing frame 140 is connected between the slide covers 124 of the slide units 120.
Since both ends of the reinforcing frame 140 are respectively combined with the slide covers 124 combined with both side surfaces of the receiving container 43 and thus support the slide covers 124, warpage of the drawer-type door 41 may be prevented when the storage unit 40 is inserted into and extracted out of the lower storage chamber 25.
The automatic door closing units 150 are mounted on the slide covers 124 of the slide units 120, and move the storage unit 40 so as to close the lower storage chamber 25 when the storage unit 40 reaches a designated position during the process of inserting and extracting the storage unit 40 into and out of the lower storage chamber 25.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the automatic door closing unit 150 includes a case 151 forming the external appearance of the automatic door closing unit 150, a slider 153 moving rectilinearly within the case 151, a rotator 155 rotatably combined with one side of the slider 153, and an elastic member 157 connecting the slider 153 to the case 151.
The case 151 is fixed to the lower portion of the slider cover 124, and accommodates the slider 153, the rotator 155 and the elastic member 157.
A guide rail 151A guiding the slider 153 and the rotator 155 so as to move the slider 153 and the rotator 155 along a designated orbit is provided in the case 151.
The guide rail 151A includes a straight route 151 a formed in a straight line, and a hanging part 151 b formed at the end of the straight route 151 a so that the rotator 155 may be rotated and hung on the hanging part 151 b.
A guide part 151B is provided in the case 151 in parallel with the guide rail 151A. The guide part 151B is provided so as to cause the hanging member 115 provided on the cover rail 110 to be engaged with a hanging recess 155 a of the rotator 155 which will be described later.
The slider 153 moves along the straight route 151 a of the guide rail 151A, and the position of the slider 153 is varied according to elastic force of the elastic member 157 and force by which a user pushes or draws the storage unit 40.
The rotator 155 is rotatably combined with one side of the slider 153 by a combining pin 153 a. When the rotator 155 moves on the straight route 151 a, the rotator 155 is not rotated, and when the rotator 155 is hung on the hanging part 151 b, a rotator protrusion 155 b enters the hanging part 151 b and thus the entirety of the rotator 155 is rotated.
The hanging recess 155 a with which the hanging member 115 is engaged is provided on the upper portion of the rotator 155.
That is, during the process of opening and closing the lower storage chamber 25 by the storage unit 40, the hanging member 115 is engaged with the hanging recess 155 a of the rotator 155 through the guide part 151B, and the slider 153 and the rotator 155 relatively moves on the guide rail 151A.
Next, with reference to FIGS. 6 to 8, an operation of inserting and extracting the storage unit 40 into and out of the lower storage chamber 25 will be described.
First, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, in a state in which the storage unit 40 is inserted into the lower storage chamber 25, the pinion gears 126 of the sliding apparatus 100 are located above the planar parts 113 of the cover rails 110.
Since the pinion gears 126 do not contact the planar parts 113 when the pinion gears 126 are located above the planar parts 113, the pinion gears 126 move in a suspended state above the planar parts 113 in an initial stage of the operation of extracting the storage unit 40 out of the lower storage chamber 25, and thus strong force is not required to draw the storage unit 40 out of the lower storage chamber 25.
During the operation of extracting the storage unit 40 out of the lower storage chamber 25, when the pinion gears 126 move above the planar parts 113, strong force is not required, but the pinion gears 126 do not contact any portion and thus the drawer-type door 41 of the storage unit 40 may be warped.
In order to prevent movement of the storage unit 40 during the insertion and extraction of the storage unit 40, the connection bar 130 is connected between the pinion gears 126. However, warpage of the drawer-type door 41 is not greatly reduced by the connection bar 130 alone, and thus the reinforcing frame 140 is connected between the slide units 120 to prevent warpage of the drawer-type door 41.
As shown in FIG. 8, when the storage unit 40 is extracted out of the lower storage chamber 25 to some degree, the pinion gears 126 pass through the planar parts 113, are engaged with the rack gears 111, are rotated, and thus move.
In the same manner as the operation of extracting the storage unit 40 out of the lower storage chamber 25, during the operation of inserting the storage unit 40 into the lower storage chamber 25, when the storage unit 40 is inserted into the lower storage chamber 25 to some degree, the pinion gears 126 engaged with the rack gears 111 pass through the rack gears 111 and move above the planar parts 113.
Movement of the pinion gears 126 above the planar parts 113 during the operation of inserting the storage unit 40 is the same as movement of the pinion gears 126 above the planar parts 113 during the operation of extracting the storage unit 40, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted.
As is apparent from the above description, in a sliding apparatus and a refrigerator having the same in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, noise due to friction generated during an operation of inserting and extracting a storage unit into and out of a storage chamber is reduced, and warpage of the storage unit is prevented.
Although a few embodiments have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A refrigerator comprising:

a main body;

a plurality of storage chambers, each of which is provided with an opened front surface, provided in the main body;

a storage unit received within the storage chamber formed in the lower portion of the main body among the plurality of storage chambers, and inserted into and extracted out of the storage chambers in a sliding manner;

a pair of cover rails respectively combined with both side walls of the inside of each of the storage chambers in which the storage units are received, and provided with rack gears at the front regions of the lower ends thereof and planar parts, from which the rack gears are removed, at the rear regions of the lower ends thereof;

a pair of slide units respectively combined with both side surfaces of each of the storage units, and including a pinion gears moving in a state in which the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and are rotated, at the front regions of the lower ends of the cover rails and moving in a state in which the pinion gears are suspended above the planar parts, at the rear regions of the lower ends of the cover rails so as to allow the each of the storage units to slide;

a connection bar connecting each of the pinion gears of the slide units of each of the storage units and preventing movement of each of the storage units when each of the storage units is inserted into and extracted out of each of the storage chambers; and

a reinforcing frame connected between the slide units of each of the storage units to prevent warpage of each of the storage units generated when the pinion gears move above the planar parts.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein, by providing the planar parts, from which the rack gears are removed, at the rear of the rack gears of the cover rails, noise due to friction generated when the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and move is eliminated when the pinion gears move above the planar parts.

3. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein each of the slide units includes a first slide rail received in each of the cover rails and fixed, a second slide rail slidably combined with the first slide rail, and a third slide rail slidably combined with the second slide rail.

4. The refrigerator according to claim 3, wherein a sliding part with which bearings facilitating sliding is combined is provided between the first slide rail and the second slide rail and between the second slide rail and the third slide rail.

5. The refrigerator according to claim 3, wherein each of the slide units further includes a slide cover receiving and fixing the third slide rail and combined with each of both side surfaces of each of the storage units.

6. The refrigerator according to claim 5, wherein a combining part with which each of the pinion gears is combined is provided on the third slide rail.

7. The refrigerator according to claim 5, wherein both ends of the reinforcing frame are combined with the slide covers of the slide units.

8. A refrigerator comprising:

a main body;

a plurality of drawer-type doors opening and closing the storage chambers in a sliding manner;

a receiving container mounted on the rear surfaces of the drawer-type doors, received in the storage chambers, and inserted into and extracted out of the storage chambers together with the drawer-type doors in the sliding manner; and

a sliding apparatus including a cover rail respectively combined with both side walls of the inside of each of the storage chambers and provided with a rack gear at the lower ends thereof, and a slide unit, each of which is provided with one side connected to each of the receiving containers and the other side slidably combined with each of the cover rails,

a pinion gears engages with the rack gears and moving are provided on the sliding apparatus so that each of the receiving containers may slide along the cover rails, and the rack gear is removed from a section of the lower end of each of the cover rails on which the pinion gears move so that noise due to friction generated when the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and move is eliminated in the section from which the rack gear is removed.

9. The refrigerator according to claim 8, wherein the pinion gears are respectively combined with the sliding apparatus, and in order to prevent movement of each of the receiving containers when each of the receiving containers is inserted into and extracted out of the corresponding storage chamber, a connection bar is connected between the pinion gears.

10. The refrigerator according to claim 8, wherein the sliding apparatus further includes a reinforcing frame connected between the slide units to prevent warpage of each of the drawer-type doors generated when the pinion gears pass through the rack gears and moves above the planar parts during the sliding process of each of the receiving containers in the forward and backward directions.

11. The refrigerator according to claim 8, wherein each of the slide units includes a first slide rail received in each of the cover rails and fixed, a second slide rail slidably combined with the first slide rail, and a third slide rail slidably combined with the second slide rail.

12. The refrigerator according to claim 11, wherein a sliding part with which bearings facilitating sliding are combined is provided between the first slide rail and the second slide rail and between the second slide rail and the third slide rail.

13. The refrigerator according to claim 11, wherein each of the slide units further includes a slide cover receiving and fixing the third slide rail and combined with each of both side surfaces of each of the storage units.

14. The refrigerator according to claim 13, wherein both ends of the reinforcing frame are combined with the slide covers of the slide units.

15. A sliding apparatus to insert and extract a storage unit received in a storage chamber, the front surface of which is opened, into and out of the storage chamber in a sliding manner, comprising:

a cover rail respectively combined with both side walls of the inside of the storage chamber in which the storage unit is received, and provided with a rack gears at the front regions of the lower ends thereof and planar parts, from which the rack gears are removed, at the rear regions of the lower ends thereof;

a slide unit respectively combined with both side surfaces of the storage unit, and including a pinion gear moving in a state in which the pinion gear engages with the rack gears and are rotated, at the front regions of the lower ends of the cover rails and moving in a state in which the pinion gears are suspended above the planar parts, at the rear regions of the lower ends of the cover rails so as to allow the storage unit to slide;

a connection bar connected between the pinion gears of the slide units to prevent movement of the storage unit when the storage unit is inserted into and extracted out of the storage chamber; and

a reinforcing frame connected between the slide units of the storage unit to prevent warpage of the storage unit generated when the pinion gears pass through the rack gears and move above the planar parts during the sliding process of the storage unit in the forward and backward directions.

16. The sliding apparatus according to claim 15, wherein, by providing the planar parts, from which the rack gears are removed, at the rear of the rack gears of the cover rails, noise due to friction generated when the pinion gears are engaged with the rack gears and move is eliminated when the pinion gears move above the planar parts.

17. The sliding apparatus according to claim 15, wherein each of the slide units includes a first slide rail received in each of the cover rails and fixed, a second slide rail slidably combined with the first slide rail, and a third slide rail slidably combined with the second slide rail.

18. The sliding apparatus according to claim 17, wherein a sliding part with which bearings facilitating sliding are combined is provided between the first slide rail and the second slide rail and between the second slide rail and the third slide rail.

19. The sliding apparatus according to claim 17, wherein each of the slide units further includes a slide cover receiving and fixing the third slide rail and combined with each of both side surfaces of the storage unit.

20. A storage apparatus comprising:

a body;

a storage compartment disposed within the body;

a drawer-type door to open and close the storage compartment;

a storage container attached to the rear of the drawer-type drawer that slidable into and out of the storage compartment with the movement of the drawer-type drawer;

a cover rail disposed on opposing sides of the storage compartment;

a sliding unit attached to opposing sides of the storage container to slidably interact with the cover rail;

wherein the cover rail comprises:

a rack gear disposed on the front portion of cover rail;

a smooth portion disposed on the rear portion of the cover rail adjacent to the rack gear;

wherein the sliding unit comprises:

a plurality of slide rails that allow the draw to slide;

a pinion gear to engage the rack gear of the cover rail and to be suspended over the smooth portion of the cover rail;

a connection bar connecting each of the pinion gears disposed on opposing sides of the storage container;

a reinforcement member to connect each of the opposing sliding unit to each other to prevent warping.