Direct-Cooling Ice-Making Unit With Rotating Tray Ejection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Indirect cooling type icemakers in refrigerators consume substantial electricity and have low efficiency due to the use of high-capacity heaters and forced convection of cold air, resulting in slow ice-making speed and energy loss.
Innovation Solution
A direct cooling type ice-making unit with a refrigerant pipe that comes into direct contact with a cooling unit, which includes a thermally conductive cooler and a rotatable tray with an ice-separating member, allowing for efficient heat transfer and ice formation without heat exchange with an evaporator.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If indirect cooling type icemaker uses forced convection of cold air via blower fan, then cooling coverage is improved, but energy consumption increases and ice-making speed decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the refrigerant pipe from the evaporator system and places it directly in contact with the cooling unit and water, eliminating the need for forced air circulation. This direct contact method removes the intermediary air medium, allowing heat transfer to occur directly from the refrigerant to the water, thereby reducing energy consumption and increasing ice-making speed.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling unit acts as an intermediary component that facilitates direct thermal contact between the refrigerant pipe and water. By introducing this intermediate structure, the system achieves efficient heat transfer without requiring air circulation, thus resolving the contradiction between energy consumption and cooling effectiveness.
2Ease of operation
If high capacity heater is used for ice separating operation, then ice separation is achieved, but electricity consumption increases and temperature of freezing compartment rises
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the operational parameters of the heater by controlling its activation timing and duration more precisely. The heater is activated only when necessary for ice separation and is turned off once the ice is released, rather than operating continuously or at high capacity. This parameter optimization reduces electricity consumption while maintaining effective ice separation.
3Productivity
If direct cooling type with refrigerant pipe contact is used, then ice-making efficiency is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the cooling unit with the tray structure, integrating the thermal transfer function directly into the ice-making component. By combining these elements, the system achieves direct cooling without requiring separate complex mechanisms, thus improving ice-making efficiency while minimizing the increase in device complexity.
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
Enhances ice-making performance by reducing energy loss and increasing speed, with the direct cooling method minimizing heat and flow losses, and allowing for efficient ice discharge and storage.
Implementation Method 1
at least a part of the cooling unit being placed in the receiving region to come into contact with the water received in the tray so as to freeze the water into ice
Implementation Method 2
an inner surface of the cooler may come into direct contact with the refrigerant pipe arranged inside the cooler
Data Source
AI summary
An ice-making unit, which uses a cooling unit in which a refrigerant pipe is received, and a refrigerator having the same. The cooling unit includes a cooler for conduction of coldness, an inner surface of the cooler coming into direct contact with the refrigerant pipe, realizing a direct cooling type ice making operation. A rotatable tray is provided under the cooling unit, so that an ice-separating member attached to the cooling unit pushes ice upon rotation of the tray, allowing the ice to be discharged in a direction opposite to the rotating direction of the tray.