Ice maker and refrigerator

Abstract

The utility model provides an ice maker and a refrigerator, the ice maker comprises an ice making assembly and a water storage box, and the ice making assembly is used for making ice blocks; the water storage box is connected with the ice making assembly and used for supplying water to the ice making assembly, the water storage box comprises a box body and a cover body, the box body forms a water storage cavity with a water injection opening, the water storage cavity is suitable for storing water, and the cover body is rotationally connected with the box body and used for rotating relative to the box body to open or close the water injection opening. According to the ice maker, the cover body of the water storage box is arranged to be the turnover cover body, when water adding operation is carried out, the water injection opening can be opened or closed by turning over the cover body, water can be directly added into the water storage cavity through the water injection opening, the water storage box does not need to be moved, the convenience degree of the water adding operation of the ice maker is improved, the water storage box is prevented from being abraded, and the service life of the ice maker is prolonged. And better use experience can be brought to the user.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application belongs to the technical field of household appliances, and particularly relates to an ice maker and a refrigerator. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the increasing improvement of living standards, people's demand for multifunctional refrigerators is gradually increasing. Some refrigerators on the market are equipped with ice makers to make ice cubes to meet the needs of users to make iced drinks in summer.

[0003] The ice maker is usually arranged in the refrigeration space of the refrigerator and is usually composed of a water system, an ice making system, an ice storage system and an ice outlet system. The water system includes a water storage box for storing water to be injected into the ice making system. When the water in the water storage box is insufficient, the user needs to manually add water to the water storage box. However, the water storage box of the existing ice maker needs to be taken out entirely to add water, which is very inconvenient. CONTENT OF THE UTILITY MODEL

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide an ice maker and a refrigerator, which can solve the technical problem of inconvenient operation of the water storage box of the ice maker.

[0005] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present application provides the following technical solutions:

[0006] An ice maker comprises:

[0007] An ice making assembly for making ice cubes;

[0008] A water storage box connected with the ice making assembly for supplying water to the ice making assembly, the water storage box comprising a box body and a cover body, the box body forming a water storage cavity with a water inlet, the water storage cavity being adapted to store water, and the cover body being rotationally connected with the box body for rotating relative to the box body to open or close the water inlet.

[0009] In some embodiments, the box body comprises a box body and a first connecting portion arranged on the box body, and the cover body comprises a cover plate and a second connecting portion arranged on the cover plate, the box body forming a water storage cavity with the water inlet, and the cover plate being rotationally connected with the box body to rotate to open or close the water inlet.

[0010] The first connecting portion is adapted to be connected with the second connecting portion to lock the cover plate on the box body and close the water inlet.

[0011] In some embodiments, one of the first connecting portion and the second connecting portion is a locking tongue and the other is a push-spring locking groove. The locking tongue locks into the push-spring locking groove so that the cover plate is locked onto the box body and the water inlet is closed. When the locking tongue is unlocked from the push-spring locking groove, the push-spring locking groove pops out the locking tongue, thereby detaching the cover plate from the box body.

[0012] In some embodiments, the cover further includes a water guide plate, the cover having an inner wall facing the water storage cavity, one end of the water guide plate being connected to the inner wall of the cover facing the water storage cavity, and the other end extending toward the water storage cavity, the water guide plate being used to guide injected water into the water storage cavity.

[0013] In some embodiments, the water-guiding plate includes a water-guiding surface, which is an arc-shaped surface and extends toward the bottom of the water storage cavity.

[0014] In some embodiments, the cover further includes a baffle plate connected to the water inlet plate and extending toward a side away from the cover plate, the baffle plate being used to block water.

[0015] In some embodiments, the cover is rotatably connected to the box body via a hinge assembly, the hinge assembly including a hinge seat connected to the box body and a hinge shaft connected to the cover body, the hinge seat being provided with a track groove, and the shaft portion of the hinge shaft being adapted to move along a track in the track groove;

[0016] When the cover moves from the closed state to the open state, the shaft moves from the first position to the second position relative to the track groove; when the cover moves from the open state to the closed state, the shaft moves from the second position to the first position relative to the track groove.

[0017] In some embodiments, the box body includes a transparent plate, and the water storage cavity is provided with an installation port communicating with the outside. The transparent plate is connected to the water storage cavity and closes the installation port to form a transparent window.

[0018] In some embodiments, the ice maker further includes a projection device, the transparent plate includes a reflector, and the projection device is used to project an image onto the reflector to display the water storage status of the water storage box.

[0019] A refrigerator includes a storage compartment and the aforementioned ice maker, the ice maker being disposed in the storage compartment.

[0020] The ice maker and refrigerator provided in this application embodiment have a flip-top cover for the water storage box. When adding water, the water inlet can be opened or closed by flipping the cover, and water can be added directly to the water storage chamber through the water inlet without moving the water storage box. This improves the convenience of adding water to the ice maker, avoids wear and tear on the water storage box, and provides users with a better user experience. Attached Figure Description

[0021] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0022] To gain a more complete understanding of this application and its beneficial effects, the following description will be provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals denote the same parts.

[0023] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an ice maker provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0024] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the water storage box provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0025] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the hinge assembly provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0026] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the transparent plate and projection device provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0027] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a refrigerator provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0028] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0029] 10. Refrigerator;

[0030] 100. Ice maker; 200. Storage room;

[0031] 110. Ice-making assembly; 120. Water storage box; 130. Hinge assembly; 140. Projection device;

[0032] 121. Box body; 122. Lid body; 131. Hinge seat; 132. Hinge pin;

[0033] 1211, Water inlet; 1212, Water storage chamber; 1213, Box body; 1214, First connecting part; 1215, Transparent plate; 1221, Cover plate; 1222, Second connecting part; 1223, Water guide plate; 1224, Water baffle plate; 1311, Track groove; 1312, First position; 1313, Second position; 1321, Shaft part; 1215a, Reflector plate. Detailed Implementation

[0034] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of this application without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0035] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the terms "center," "longitudinal," "lateral," "length," "width," "thickness," "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicating orientation or positional relationships based on the orientation or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, are used only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of this application. Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of indicated technical features. Thus, features defined with "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the stated features. In the description of this application, "a plurality of" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0036] "A and / or B" includes the following three combinations: A only, B only, and a combination of A and B.

[0037] The use of "applies to" or "configured to" in this application implies open and inclusive language, which does not exclude the applicability to or configuration to devices performing additional tasks or steps. Additionally, the use of "based on" implies openness and inclusivity, because processes, steps, calculations, or other actions "based on" one or more of the stated conditions or values ​​may in practice be based on additional conditions or values ​​beyond those stated.

[0038] In this application, the term "exemplary" is used to mean "used as an example, illustration, or description." Any embodiment described as "exemplary" in this application is not necessarily to be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other embodiments. The following description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use this application. Details are set forth in the following description for purposes of explanation. It should be understood that those skilled in the art will recognize that this application can be made without using these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and processes are not described in detail to avoid obscuring the description of this application with unnecessary detail. Therefore, this application is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown, but is consistent with the broadest scope of the principles and features disclosed in this application.

[0039] This application provides an ice maker, as exemplified by [example provided]. Figures 1-2 , Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an ice maker provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the water storage box provided in an embodiment of this application. The ice maker 100 includes an ice-making component 110 and a water storage box 120.

[0040] The ice-making component 110 is used to make ice cubes; the water storage box 120 is connected to the ice-making component 110 and is used to supply water to the ice-making component 110. The water storage box 120 includes a box body 121 and a cover 122. The box body 121 forms a water storage cavity 1212 with a water inlet 1211. The water storage cavity 1212 is suitable for storing water. The cover 122 is rotatably connected to the box body 121 and is used to rotate relative to the box body 121 to open or close the water inlet 1211.

[0041] It should be noted that the ice maker 100 requires three stages to make ice: a water filling stage, a freezing stage, and an ice removal stage. The ice-making assembly 110 includes, for example, a water filling module, an ice-making module, and an ice removal module. In the water filling stage, the ice-making assembly 110 draws water from the water storage chamber 1212 through its water filling module and distributes the water evenly into the ice-making module. In the freezing stage, the cooling energy generated by the refrigeration system is transferred to the ice-making module to gradually cool the water in the ice-making tray of the ice-making module until it freezes into ice cubes. In the ice removal stage, the ice-making assembly 110 uses the ice removal module to detach the ice cubes from the ice-making tray and rotates the ice-making tray to make the ice cubes fall into the ice storage box.

[0042] In practical applications, when the water level in the water storage box 120 is low, the user can flip the cover 122 to the open position to open the water inlet 1211, and then add water to the water storage chamber 1212 through the water inlet 1211. This eliminates the need to remove the water storage box 120 when adding water, making the water-adding operation of the ice maker 100 more convenient. Furthermore, the water storage box 120 does not need to be moved, reducing wear and tear and preventing water spillage. After adding water, the user can flip the cover 122 to the closed position to close the water inlet 1211. This prevents contaminants from entering the water storage chamber 1212 through the water inlet 1211 and contaminating the water, ensuring hygienic ice-making.

[0043] It should be noted that the ice maker 100 of this application can also be configured in household appliances such as refrigerators 10, water dispensers, and smart kitchen systems.

[0044] The ice maker 100 provided in this application embodiment has a flip-type cover 122 for the water storage box 120. When adding water, the water inlet 1211 can be opened or closed by flipping the cover 122, and water can be added directly to the water storage chamber 1212 through the water inlet 1211 without moving the water storage box 120. This improves the convenience of adding water to the ice maker 100, avoids wear and tear on the water storage box 120, and provides users with a better user experience.

[0045] Optionally, the box body 121 includes a box body 1213 and a first connecting portion 1214 disposed on the box body 1213, and the cover 122 includes a cover plate 1221 and a second connecting portion 1222 disposed on the cover plate 1221. The box body 1213 forms a water storage cavity 1212 with a water inlet 1211. The cover plate 1221 is rotatably connected to the box body 1213 to rotatably open or close the water inlet 1211. The first connecting portion 1214 is adapted to connect with the second connecting portion 1222 so that the cover plate 1221 is locked on the box body 1213 and the water inlet 1211 is closed. In this way, by rotating the cover plate 1221 to the closed position and connecting the first connecting portion 1214 with the second connecting portion 1222, the cover 122 can be locked on the box body 1213 and the water inlet 1211 can be tightly closed, preventing the cover 122 from being opened by vibration and affecting the hygiene of ice making.

[0046] Preferably, a sealing ring is also provided on the outer wall of the box body 1213, and the sealing ring is arranged around the outer periphery of the water inlet 1211. When the first connecting part 1214 is connected to the second connecting part 1222, the cover plate 1221 is sealed to the box body 1213 through the sealing ring. In this way, dirt can be prevented from entering the water inlet 1211 through the gap between the cover plate 1221 and the box body 1213, thus improving the hygiene of ice making. For example, an annular groove is recessed on the outer wall of the box body 1213, and the annular groove is arranged around the water inlet 1211; the sealing ring is conformally embedded in the annular groove; an annular rib is protruding on the inner wall of the cover plate 1221 facing the water storage cavity 1212; when the first connecting part 1214 is connected to the second connecting part 1222, the annular rib is inserted into the annular groove and is press-fitted with the sealing ring.

[0047] Optionally, one of the first connecting portion 1214 and the second connecting portion 1222 is a locking tongue, and the other is a push-spring locking groove. The locking tongue locks into the push-spring locking groove so that the cover plate 1221 is locked onto the box body 1213 and the water inlet 1211 is closed. When the locking tongue is unlocked from the push-spring locking groove, the push-spring locking groove pops out the locking tongue, thereby detaching the cover plate 1221 from the box body 1213. For example, as shown... Figure 2 As shown, the first connecting part 1214 is a push-spring locking groove, and the second connecting part 1222 is a locking tongue. In practical applications, when the user needs to lock the cover 1221 to the box body 1213, pressure can be applied to the locking tongue towards the push-spring locking groove until the locking tongue is locked in the push-spring locking groove, thereby fixing the cover 1221 in the closed position. When the user needs to unlock the cover 1221, pressure can be applied to the locking tongue again towards the push-spring locking groove until the locking tongue and the push-spring locking groove are unlocked. When the push-spring locking groove and the locking tongue are unlocked, a pushing force is generated on the locking tongue based on the elastic deformation of its internal elastic element. After the user stops applying pressure to the locking tongue, the locking tongue pops out from the push-spring locking groove under the action of the pushing force, and drives the cover body 122 to rotate to open the water inlet 1211.

[0048] Optionally, the first connecting part 1214 and the second connecting part 1222 can also be magnetic components, with the first connecting part 1214 and the second connecting part 1222 attracting each other so that the cover plate 1221 is locked onto the box body 1213 and the water inlet 1211 is closed.

[0049] In some embodiments, the cover 122 further includes a water guide plate 1223. The cover 1221 includes an inner wall facing the water storage cavity 1212. One end of the water guide plate 1223 is connected to the inner wall of the cover 1221 facing the water storage cavity 1212, and the other end extends toward the water storage cavity 1212. The water guide plate 1223 is used to guide the injected water into the water storage cavity 1212. It can be understood that when the cover 1221 is flipped to the open position, one end of the water guide plate 1223 extends outside the box body 1213 as the cover 1221 rotates, and the other end extends toward the water storage cavity 1212. When adding water, the user does not need to insert the outlet of the external water source into the water storage chamber 1212. Water can be poured onto the protruding end of the water guide plate 1223. The water then flows from the protruding end of the water guide plate 1223 towards the end of the water guide plate 1223 closest to the water storage chamber 1212, and finally flows into the water storage chamber 1212. This further improves the convenience of adding water to the ice maker 100. Optionally, the water guide plate 1223 includes a water-guiding surface, which is arc-shaped and extends towards the bottom of the water storage chamber 1212, thus improving the flow efficiency of the water guide plate 1223.

[0050] In some embodiments, the cover 122 further includes a baffle 1224, which is connected to the water guide plate 1223 and extends toward the side opposite to the cover 1221. The baffle 1224 is used to block water. For example, as... Figure 2 As shown, water baffles 1224 are provided at both ends of the water inlet plate 1223 and at the end connected to the cover plate 1221. The water baffles 1224 are used to prevent the injected water from splashing out of the water storage box 120.

[0051] In some embodiments, please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the hinge assembly provided in an embodiment of this application. The cover 122 is rotatably connected to the box 121 via the hinge assembly 130. The hinge assembly 130 includes a hinge seat 131 fixed to the box 121 and a hinge shaft 132 fixed to the cover 122. The hinge seat 131 is provided with a track groove 1311, and the shaft portion 1321 of the hinge shaft 132 is adapted to move along a track in the track groove 1311. When the cover 122 moves from the closed state to the open state, the shaft portion 1321 moves relative to the track groove 1311 from a first position 1312 to a second position 1313; when the cover 122 moves from the open state to the closed state, the shaft portion 1321 moves relative to the track groove 1311 from the second position 1313 to the first position 1312. In this way, the stability and smoothness of the cover 122 when opening and closing can be improved, enhancing the user's feel and experience during operation. Optionally, the track groove 1311 is an arc-shaped groove.

[0052] In some embodiments, the housing 121 includes a transparent plate 1215, and the water storage cavity 1212 also has an installation port communicating with the outside. The transparent plate 1215 is connected to the water storage cavity 1212 and closes the installation port to form a transparent window. Thus, the user can observe the remaining water level in the water storage cavity 1212 through the transparent window to determine whether water needs to be added. Preferably, the installation port extends from the top to the bottom of the water storage cavity 1212 to facilitate the user's observation of the water level. The transparent plate 1215 can also be marked with a maximum water level and a minimum water level. The maximum water level is used to remind the user not to exceed the maximum water level when adding water, and the minimum water level is used to remind the user that water needs to be added when the water level is below the minimum water level, otherwise ice cannot be made normally. The transparent plate 1215 can be made of glass, acrylic sheet, or other transparent materials.

[0053] Optionally, please refer to Figure 4 , Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the transparent plate and projection device provided in the embodiments of this application. The ice maker 100 also includes a projection device 140. The transparent plate 1215 includes a reflector, and the projection device 140 is used to project images onto the reflector to display the water storage status of the water storage box 120. The reflector is typically made of transparent glass or plastic, with a special reflective coating on its surface. This coating reflects light of a specific wavelength, such as the light projected by the projection device 140, while allowing other light to pass through. The water storage status is used, for example, to indicate the water level and whether water needs to be added. It is understood that compared to installing a display panel on the box 121, using the projection device 140 to project onto the reflector not only improves aesthetics but also allows for display without affecting the user's observation of the water level through the transparent plate 1215.

[0054] The ice maker 100 provided in this application embodiment has a flip-type cover 122 for the water storage box 120. When adding water, the water inlet 1211 can be opened or closed by flipping the cover 122, and water can be added directly to the water storage chamber 1212 through the water inlet 1211 without moving the water storage box 120. This improves the convenience of adding water to the ice maker 100, avoids wear and tear on the water storage box 120, and provides users with a better user experience.

[0055] This application also provides a refrigerator, for example, please refer to [link to example]. Figure 5 , Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a refrigerator provided in an embodiment of this application. The refrigerator 10 includes a storage compartment 200 and an ice maker 100 as described in any of the above embodiments, with the ice maker 100 disposed in the storage compartment 200. The storage compartment 200 may be the refrigerator compartment of the refrigerator 10.

[0056] Preferably, the water inlet 1211 of the water storage box 120 is oriented towards the door of the storage compartment 200. In this way, after the user opens the door of the storage compartment 200, flipping the cover 122 to the open position will allow the water inlet 1211 to face the outside of the refrigerator 10, making it convenient for the user to add water to the water storage box 120.

[0057] The refrigerator 10 provided in this application embodiment sets the cover 122 of the water storage box 120 of the ice maker 100 as a flip-type cover 122. When adding water to the ice maker 100, the water inlet 1211 can be opened or closed by flipping the cover 122, and water can be added directly to the water storage chamber 1212 through the water inlet 1211 without moving the water storage box 120. This improves the convenience of adding water to the ice maker 100, avoids wear and tear on the water storage box 120, and provides users with a better user experience.

[0058] The ice maker and refrigerator provided in the embodiments of this application have been described in detail above. Specific examples have been used to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of this application. The description of the above embodiments is only for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of this application. At the same time, for those skilled in the art, there will be changes in the specific implementation methods and application scope based on the ideas of this application. Therefore, the content of this specification should not be construed as a limitation of this application.

Claims

1. An ice maker, characterized in that, include: Ice-making components, used to make ice cubes; A water storage box, connected to the ice-making assembly, is used to supply water to the ice-making assembly. The water storage box includes a box body and a cover. The box body forms a water storage cavity with a water inlet. The water storage cavity is suitable for storing water. The cover is rotatably connected to the box body and is used to rotate relative to the box body to open or close the water inlet.

2. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The box body includes a box body and a first connecting part disposed on the box body, the cover includes a cover plate and a second connecting part disposed on the cover plate, the box body forms a water storage cavity with the water inlet, and the cover plate is rotatably connected to the box body to rotatably open or close the water inlet. The first connecting part is adapted to connect with the second connecting part so that the cover plate is locked onto the box body and the water inlet is closed.

3. The ice maker according to claim 2, characterized in that, One of the first connecting part and the second connecting part is a locking tongue, and the other is a push-spring locking groove. The locking tongue is locked in the push-spring locking groove so that the cover is locked on the box body and the water inlet is closed. When the locking tongue is unlocked from the push-spring locking groove, the push-spring locking groove pops out the locking tongue, thereby the cover is detached from the box body.

4. The ice maker according to claim 2, characterized in that, The cover also includes a water guide plate, which has an inner wall facing the water storage cavity. One end of the water guide plate is connected to the inner wall of the cover facing the water storage cavity, and the other end extends toward the water storage cavity. The water guide plate is used to guide the injected water into the water storage cavity.

5. The ice maker according to claim 4, characterized in that, The water-guiding plate includes a water-guiding surface, which is an arc-shaped surface and extends toward the bottom of the water storage cavity.

6. The ice maker according to claim 4, characterized in that, The cover also includes a water baffle plate, which is connected to the water guide plate and extends toward the side away from the cover plate. The water baffle plate is used to block water.

7. The ice maker according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The cover is rotatably connected to the box body via a hinge assembly. The hinge assembly includes a hinge seat connected to the box body and a hinge shaft connected to the cover body. The hinge seat is provided with a track groove, and the shaft portion of the hinge shaft is adapted to move along a track in the track groove. When the cover moves from the closed state to the open state, the shaft moves from the first position to the second position relative to the track groove; when the cover moves from the open state to the closed state, the shaft moves from the second position to the first position relative to the track groove.

8. The ice maker according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The box body includes a transparent plate, and the water storage cavity is provided with an installation port that communicates with the outside. The transparent plate is connected to the water storage cavity and closes the installation port to form a transparent window.

9. The ice maker according to claim 8, characterized in that, It also includes a projection device, wherein the transparent plate includes a reflector, and the projection device is used to project an image onto the reflector to display the water storage status of the water storage box.

10. A refrigerator, characterized in that, It includes a storage room and an ice maker as described in any one of claims 1-9, wherein the ice maker is disposed in the storage room.

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