Child safe freezer

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Modern refrigerators and freezers are provided with _2gmagnetic low latching force means for normally holding the door or doors in sealing engagement with the cabinet or body portion of the refrigerator or freezer. These low latching force means provide a safeguard against entrapment of a child within the cabinet either during the use ₃θ thereof or when abandoned.

It is also common practice to provide some refrigerated cabinets, particularly freezers, with positive locking means in order to prevent unauthorized access to the contents of the cabinet. Such positive locking means presents no ₃particular problem from a child safety standpoint so long as no one unfamiliar with the possible hazard of a child being locked in the cabinet has access to the key or other means employed to operate the lock. However if children have access to the lock operating means, it is 40 possible that one child may enter the storage compartment and the other playfully shut the door and lock the door thereby preventing the entrapped child from escaping.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION .4a

The present invention has at its primary object the provision of a positive locking means for a refrigerated cabinet which is adapted to permit a partial opening of the cabinet door when in its locking position while at the same time preventing access to the contents of the cabinet. ⁵⁰

More specifically there is provided a refrigerated cabinet, particularly a freezer, comprising a cabinet member and a closure member, a low latching force means for normally maintaining the closure member in sealing engagement with the cabinet member and manually operated ^δδmeans for locking the closure member in a closed position. The locking means is adapted as to permit limited opening of the closure member so as to provide ventilation of the interior of the cabinet while at the same time preventing access to the interior of the cabinet member. ^b

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

In the accompanying drawing:

FIG. 1 illustrates a freezer cabinet incorporating the θ⁵locking means of the present invention with the door shown in an open position;

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view taken along line 2—2 of FIG. 1 showing the door in a closed and locked position; 70

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 illustrating the operation of the present invention in permitting ventilation of

3,621,684 or camming surface 15 that will slide over the adjacent edge of the opening 12 as the locked door is opened due to the flexibility of the element 10 and which will then be in a position to engage the adjacent portion of flange 6 and prevent the door from being closed so long as ele- 5 ment 10 is in its locking position.

It is desirable also to provide warning means indicating that the locked door is ajar. A visual warning means may comprise a light turned on by a door operated switch. The light may be the usual bulb provided for il- 10 luminating the interior of the cabinet when the door is open or a special light on the face of the cabinet. Alternatively, a door operated switch means may be used to energize an audible alarm such as a buzzer, chime or the like. Alternatively or in addition to the operation of 15 an audible or visual warning means, the means for controlling the warning means may deenergize the refrigeration system.

The warning control means may also be operated by the locking means so that it functions only when the 20 door is ajar and locked. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, a warning control switch 16 may be mounted on the rear surface of flange 6 in a position to be operated by an arm 17 on the locking element 10 only when that element is in its locking position and the door has been part- ²⁵ly opened.