Direct-Conduction Ice Maker for Fresh Food Compartments
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional refrigerators with bottom mount configurations face impracticalities in placing ice makers within the freezer compartment due to the location of the freezer beneath the fresh food compartment, requiring elaborate conveyor systems for ice dispensing, which is inefficient and inconvenient.
Innovation Solution
An ice maker is integrated within the fresh food compartment, featuring an evaporator coil in direct contact with an ice tray, a heater on the ice mold, and a refrigerant tube that cools the ice mold via thermal conduction, along with a fan for air circulation and a water fill cup, allowing for efficient ice production and storage above freezing temperatures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the ice maker is placed in the freezer compartment of a bottom mount refrigerator, then ice can be made in a sub-freezing environment, but it requires elaborate conveyor systems to transport ice to the dispensing port in the fresh food compartment door
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of placing the ice maker in the freezer compartment (conventional approach), the patent inverts the location by placing it in the fresh food compartment. This eliminates the need for conveyor systems while still enabling ice production through direct thermal conduction from the refrigerant tube to the ice mold.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the ice making function from the freezer compartment and relocates it to the fresh food compartment. This separation allows ice production to occur independently in the fresh food compartment without requiring mechanical transport systems to the dispensing port.
2Ease of operation
If the ice maker is placed in the fresh food compartment, then the dispensing location is convenient and no conveyor system is needed, but the compartment is maintained above freezing temperature which challenges ice production
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating a localized sub-freezing zone within the fresh food compartment where the ice mold is positioned. The refrigerant tube conducts cold directly to the ice mold, maintaining it below freezing temperature while the rest of the fresh food compartment remains above freezing for food storage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the thermal environment by separating the ice making zone (sub-freezing) from the food storage zone (above freezing). This is achieved through direct thermal conduction from the refrigerant tube to the ice mold, creating a distinct cold region within the warmer fresh food compartment.
3Productivity
If conventional convection cooling is used to make ice, then ice can be produced, but it requires circulating cold air which is inefficient in a fresh food compartment environment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the conventional convection cooling system (mechanical air circulation) with direct thermal conduction. The refrigerant tube conducts cold directly to the ice mold through thermal contact, eliminating the need for fans and air circulation systems, thereby improving energy efficiency and ice production productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The refrigerant tube acts as an intermediary that directly transfers thermal energy from the refrigeration system to the ice mold. This thermal conduction pathway is more efficient than convection, as it provides direct contact cooling without requiring air movement or intermediate heat transfer through air.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration enables convenient ice production and storage within the fresh food compartment, eliminating the need for complex conveyor systems and ensuring efficient ice making and storage in a compartment maintained above freezing temperatures.
Implementation Method 1
an ice maker refrigerant tube abutting at least one lateral side surface of the ice mold and cooling the ice mold to a temperature below 0° C. via thermal conduction
Implementation Method 2
an evaporator coil in direct contact with an ice tray of the ice maker for cooling the ice tray
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigeration appliance includes a fresh food compartment for storing food items in a refrigerated environment having a target temperature above 0° C., a freezer compartment for storing food items in a sub-freezing environment having a target temperature below 0° C., a system evaporator for providing a cooling effect to at least one of the fresh food compartment and the freezer compartment, and an ice tray assembly disposed within the fresh food compartment for freezing water into ice pieces. The ice tray assembly includes an ice mold with an upper surface comprising a plurality of cavities formed therein for the ice pieces, a heater disposed on the ice mold and an ice maker refrigerant tube abutting at least one lateral side surface of the ice mold and cooling the ice mold to a temperature below 0° C. via thermal conduction and a cover having a water fill cup integrated into the cover and an outlet aligned with an inlet of the ice mold.