Ice and water system in refrigerator with stirring fan in ice chamber
원문보기
IPC분류정보
국가/구분
United States(US) Patent
등록
국제특허분류(IPC7판)
F25D-003/02
F25C-005/18
출원번호
US-0712818
(2010-02-25)
등록번호
US-8820110
(2014-09-02)
발명자
/ 주소
Schenk, Dennis
Fu, Xiaoyong
출원인 / 주소
Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
대리인 / 주소
Pearne & Gordon LLP
인용정보
피인용 횟수 :
0인용 특허 :
10
초록▼
A refrigerator includes a freezer compartment and a fresh food compartment which includes an ice chamber. The ice chamber includes an ice maker which includes a first heat exchanger for producing ice. The ice chamber further includes an ice container, a second heat exchanger, an air moving apparatus
A refrigerator includes a freezer compartment and a fresh food compartment which includes an ice chamber. The ice chamber includes an ice maker which includes a first heat exchanger for producing ice. The ice chamber further includes an ice container, a second heat exchanger, an air moving apparatus, and an enclosed loop passageway. The ice container is for storing ice produced by the ice maker and includes an exterior surface. The second heat exchanger is for controlling temperature at the ice container. The passageway forms an air flow path such that air travels in thermal contact with the second heat exchanger. The air moving apparatus is positioned to move air through the passageway.
대표청구항▼
1. A refrigerator including: a freezer compartment; anda fresh food compartment located vertically above the freezer compartment and including an ice chamber exposed to an above-freezing environment within the fresh food compartment, the ice chamber providing insulation from the above-freezing envir
1. A refrigerator including: a freezer compartment; anda fresh food compartment located vertically above the freezer compartment and including an ice chamber exposed to an above-freezing environment within the fresh food compartment, the ice chamber providing insulation from the above-freezing environment of the fresh food compartment and including: an ice maker disposed within the ice chamber and configured to receive water and including a first evaporator disposed within the ice chamber and in fluid communication with a refrigerant loop and configured to freeze said water to produce ice;an ice container disposed within the ice chamber and configured to store ice produced by the ice maker within the ice chamber, the ice container including a first lateral side exterior surface extending along a longitudinal axis of the ice container, a second evaporator disposed within the ice chamber, located at a rear of the ice chamber and away from a user side of the refrigerator, and in fluid communication with the refrigerant loop and configured to control temperature at the ice container to maintain a below freezing temperature in the ice container;an air moving apparatus disposed within the ice chamber and located adjacent the second evaporator; andan enclosed, looped passageway forming an air flow path contained within the ice chamber such that air travels in thermal contact with the second evaporator to be cooled,wherein the air moving apparatus is positioned to move air through the passageway,wherein the passageway is bounded in part by the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container, andwherein the passageway is partially defined by an air delivery duct extending between the second evaporator and the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container, and the air delivery duct is located on one side of the ice maker and is defined between an outer plenum panel and a second lateral side panel of the ice chamber that defines an interior boundary of the ice chamber andthe air delivery duct is in communication with a vent comprising a plurality of vents formed in the second lateral side panel that extend along the longitudinal length of the ice container and through which said cooled air from the second evaporator and provided by the air moving apparatus is exhausted in a direction perpendicular to the plurality of vents into said region adjacent to said ice container, and wherein the second lateral side panel of the ice chamber includes a first depressed portion, wherein the air delivery duct is substantially parallel to the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container so that air out of the second lateral side panel impinges in a substantially perpendicular manner with respect to the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container. 2. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the vent is configured so that air impinges in a substantially perpendicular manner with respect to the first lateral side exterior surface. 3. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the plurality of vents scatter air substantially evenly over the lateral side exterior surface of the ice container. 4. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the vents are scattered lengthwise about the lateral side exterior surface of the ice container so that air impinging on the lateral side exterior surface is scattered lengthwise with respect to the ice container. 5. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the vents are uneven in size and are arranged so that the vents increase in size toward a user side of the refrigerator. 6. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container is configured with a second depressed portion extending along said longitudinal axis of the ice container adjacent to the vents and terminating at said rear of the ice chamber. 7. The refrigerator of claim 6, wherein the second depressed portion extends to a bottom of the ice container, and the passageway is further defined by air flowing in the second depressed portion beneath the ice container and returning to the second evaporator at said rear of the ice chamber. 8. The refrigerator of claim 7, wherein the air moving apparatus is located above the second evaporator. 9. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein ice is dispensed from the ice chamber through a door on a user side of the refrigerator. 10. An ice chamber disposed within a fresh food compartment of a refrigerator and exposed to an above-freezing environment within the fresh food compartment and providing insulation from the above-freezing environment of the fresh food compartment, including: an ice maker disposed within the ice chamber and configured to receive water and including a first evaporator disposed within the ice chamber and in fluid communication with a refrigerant loop and configured to freeze said water to produce ice;an ice container disposed within the ice chamber and with a first lateral side exterior surface extending along a longitudinal axis of the ice container, the ice container further including an opening that is located at a front of the ice chamber;an air moving apparatus disposed within the ice chamber; a second evaporator disposed within the ice chamber adjacent the air moving apparatus, located at a rear of the ice chamber and away from said front of the ice chamber, and in fluid communication with the refrigerant loop and configured to actively control temperature at the ice container to maintain a below freezing temperature in the ice container;a rear duct structure disposed within the ice chamber and located at said rear of the ice chamber that houses the air moving apparatus and substantially encloses the second evaporator, and comprising a first opening towards a bottom of the rear duct structure through which air enters and a second opening towards a top of the rear duct structure through which air is exhausted; andan enclosed, looped passageway contained within the ice chamber that extends through the rear duct structure from the first opening towards the second opening, the air moving apparatus configured to move air in the passageway into the first opening, and along the second evaporator and subsequently exhausted out of the second opening towards the ice container, such that the second evaporator is configured to be in thermal contact with air in the passageway to thereby cool said air, and an air delivery duct is located on one side of the ice maker and is defined between an outer plenum panel and a second lateral side panel of the ice chamber that defines an interior boundary of the ice chamber and the air delivery duct is in communication with a vent comprising a plurality of vents formed in the second lateral side panel that extend along the longitudinal length of the ice container and through which said cooled air from the second evaporator and provided by the air moving apparatus is exhausted in a direction perpendicular to the plurality of vents into said region adjacent to said ice container, and wherein the second lateral side panel of the ice chamber includes a first depressed portion, wherein the air delivery duct is substantially parallel to the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container so that air out of the second lateral side panel impinges in a substantially perpendicular manner with respect to the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container. 11. The ice chamber of claim 10, wherein the passageway is configured so that air of the passageway comes in contact with the lateral side exterior surface of the ice container at least in part of the passageway. 12. The ice chamber of claim 11, wherein the passageway is configured so that air initially comes in contact with the lateral side exterior surface of the ice container in a substantially perpendicular manner with respect to the lateral side exterior surface. 13. The ice chamber of claim 11, wherein the ice container is substantially box-shaped having side faces and a bottom face, and the lateral side exterior surface is one of the side faces. 14. The ice chamber of claim 13, wherein an order of travel for the air of the passageway is the second evaporator, the air moving apparatus, the lateral side exterior surface, and the bottom face. 15. The ice chamber of claim 13, wherein the passageway is configured so that air from the second evaporator controls a temperature of the ice container by contacting the one of the side faces and by contacting the bottom face or another one of the side faces. 16. The insulated ice chamber of claim 15, wherein the passageway is configured so that air of the passageway contacts the side face at a plurality of portions scattered lengthwise about the one of side faces. 17. A refrigerator with a refrigerant loop including: a freezer compartment comprising a unit heat exchanger that is provided to control the temperature of the freezer compartment; anda fresh food compartment located vertically above the freezer compartment and including an ice chamber exposed to an above-freezing environment within the fresh food compartment, the ice chamber providing insulation from the above-freezing environment of the fresh food compartment and including: an ice maker disposed within the ice chamber and including a first evaporator disposed within the ice chamber and configured to freezer water to produce ice, the first evaporator being in refrigerant communication with the refrigerant loop;an ice container disposed within the ice chamber for storing ice produced by the ice maker within the ice chamber, the ice container including a first lateral side exterior surface;a second evaporator disposed within the ice chamber, located at a rear of the ice chamber and away from a user side of the refrigerator for controlling temperature at the ice container to maintain a below freezing temperature in the ice container, the second evaporator being in refrigerant communication with the refrigerant loop; andan air moving apparatus disposed within the ice chamber and located above the second evaporator for blowing air through the second heat exchanger and toward the ice container,wherein the second evaporator and the air moving apparatus are enclosed within a rear duct structure disposed within the ice chamber and located at said rear of the ice chamber, and are configured to maintain below freezing temperature in the ice container without using air cooled by the unit heat exchanger of the freezer compartment, and an air delivery duct is located on one side of the ice maker and is defined between an outer plenum panel and a second lateral side panel of the ice chamber that defines an interior boundary of the ice chamber and the air delivery duct is in communication with a vent comprising a plurality of vents formed in the second lateral side panel that extend along the longitudinal length of the ice container and through which said cooled air from the second evaporator and provided by the air moving apparatus is exhausted in a direction perpendicular to the plurality of vents into said region adjacent to said ice container, and wherein the second lateral side panel of the ice chamber includes a first depressed portion, wherein the air delivery duct is substantially parallel to the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container so that air out of the second lateral side panel impinges in a substantially perpendicular manner with respect to the first lateral side exterior surface of the ice container.
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이 특허에 인용된 특허 (10)
Anselmino,Jeffery J.; Fischer,Marcus R.; Kulkarni,Tushar; Tenbarge,Andrew M.; Maglinger,Frank W., Ice and water dispenser on refrigerator compartment door.
Pastryk Jim J. ; Nelson Mark H. ; Myers Verne H. ; Harmon Daryl L. ; Oltman Andrew M. ; Hortin Gregory G. ; Singh Devinder, Ice delivery system for a refrigerator.
Wiseman, Joshua Stepen; Froelicher, Stephen Bernard; Borden, Jeffery Wayne; Jessie, Jeffrey Lynn, Systems and methods for boosting ice rate formation in a refrigerator.
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