Transparent and rotary door in door design for a refrigerator

Nowadays the aesthetic perception has become quite important as well as the functionality of the goods that are gain importance in human life. Especially the aesthetic aspect of the goods which are exhibited in the living spaces is more important. The visual properties that customers want to acquire for their own preferences are also reflected to the white goods. Therefore, it is important that the designs of white goods which have an important position in daily life are shaped in this direction. The ease of use is another important factor for industrial products. Ease of use means to use the product in the easiest way without losing the functionality. It is especially important that goods which are frequently used in daily life can easily fulfill the functions. The ease of use is a critical factor to avoid the loss of these properties for ever-evolving white goods in order to make our life easier. Thus, besides the functionality of the white goods, the ease of use of the product also completes it. Today, one of the most important issue is energy. The proper use of energy resources is one of the most essential issue for today and especially for the future. Energy consumption of white goods energy is controlled by certain regulations for the proper use of energy. Energy consumption values is classified by energy labels. Sales of low-energy white goods are blocked after a certain period of times. So, they wouldn't take place in the market. Thus, energy consumption needs to be constantly improved. Keeping the energy consumption low is also one of the important items for the family economy. Especially the refrigerator which is a continuously working white good is one of the most energy consuming items in houses. One of the solutions in reflecting refrigerators that is encountered when considering the user experience and energy efficiency together, is door in door concept. Especially in the 90's, this concept was gained to the literature, then started to settle into product ranges. In recent years, it is often confronted as a feature encountered in refrigerators. This concept which is matched with ease of use and energy efficiency, is a solution developed for commonly used foods in daily life. It serves for easy access to the foods that are commonly used in daily life. The refrigerator door needs to be opened to access the foods that stored on door shelves. Instead of doing this frequently, the door in door can be used to provide easy access to the product. The door in door is correlated with the compartment where these foods are located. Access to frequently used foods also caused the frequently opening the refrigerator door. Therefore, the inner cavity of the refrigerator is opened to the outside, because of frequently opening the door when accessing these foods. Thus, the cold air inside the refrigerator could be vented out. The door in door concept is a solution for this energy loss. Whole inner cavity of the refrigerator wouldn't be opened by accessing only the related compartment. In this way, the outflow of the cold air value is reduced. Thus, solution contributes to the improvement of energy consumption. The aesthetics sense could be increased with this design change made to the refrigerator door. A new door design is available. Thus, this concept design could be differentiated by various designs. Recently, the refrigerator door designs have been changed by differentiation of the door in door concepts. Aesthetically strong designs are made by using this opportunity. Through this reason, the aesthetics of refrigerators have been strengthened by changing the figure of refrigerator. This study introduces the innovative concept for refrigerators emerged with an idea which is generated as a part of Arçelik Inc. Garage&Maker Lab Department. In order to introduce an innovation to the door in door concept, a transparent and rotary door in door concept has been developed. It presents a value proposition, thanks to its transparent door that allows the user to see the inside without opening the refrigerator door and prioritize the user experience and preventing the energy loss with the rotary structure. Due to the rotary structure of the door in door, it is possible to open the door in door compartment and keep the inner volume of the refrigerator closed. The energy efficiency is also a priority among the advantages of door in door concept. It is aimed to avoid increasing the energy consumption of the refrigerator during the accessing of the frequently used foods which are stored on the door shelves. Frequently used items would be stored in this compartment and the door in door structure is opened instead of refrigerator door. Allowing the user to easily get the desired food is possible because, this compartment is visible from the outside. In addition to provide ease of use with easy access to shelves, it is predicted strengthening the aesthetics sense of refrigerator. The aesthetics sense of door in door and compartment is also priority in the design of refrigerator door. Beside the mechanical design, industrial design is gaining importance in this respect. Access to a compartment that could be seen at any time with lighting, where frequently used products could be stored, is provided. After defining the problem, a literature search was conducted. Door in door is described. Then, academic studies in this area have been examined. Market research has been conducted and door in door concepts examined. Concepts that serve the same purpose as the solution but differentiate by presenting different user experiences with their designs are described. The state of know-how and protections in the field of intellectual property have been researched. Patent applications for door in door concept and transparent refrigerator door have been examined. Infrastructure for conceptual design was established with the literature research. The concept design alternatives have been created in order to determine the concept that the design would be shaped. The concept has been shaped on the selected design among these alternatives. A simply shaped prototype that describes the concept has been produced. A user experience study has been done with this prototype. In the usability test carried out with the 14 participation, questions about refrigerator the concept were asked and they were asked to experience with using this prototype. As a result of this study, users' expectations have been determined. These results have been incorporated into the concept design and the user experience gained in concept has improved. Industrial design alternatives were also presented in this process. The refrigerator model which the concept applied and concept form is determined by evaluated the industrial design alternatives. Applying to SBS type refrigerator is suitable. The effect of cooling performance on refrigerator is an essential criterion. Therefore, the effect of concept has been analyzed. Heat gain has been calculated for the current situation of the refrigerator and for the applied door in door design. These calculations are carried out together with the detail design process. Thus, proper material and insulation thickness have been applied. In the conceptual design process, the details of the design have been determined. These problems are discussed and solved in the detail design section. Sealing, insulated transparent glass are discussed in this part. In addition, the geometries that allow the serial production have been considered in the detail design process. The design has been shaped by creating an assembly setup for a suitable design for the installation. A reliable construction has been made by calculations for structure and shelves. The results of this study are presented. These results are discussed and suggestions are reported. The transparent and rotary door in door compartment design which is performed within Arçelik Inc., constitutes the content of this thesis.