Refrigerator Door Housing Fan Assembly for Uniform Cold Air Flow
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional refrigerators with a double door structure face inefficiencies in supplying cold air to the housing compartment, resulting in inadequate temperature maintenance and circulation, especially when food is stored, leading to temperatures being 2 to 3°C higher than the storage compartment.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator design featuring a housing mounted at the rear surface of the door with a fan assembly, including a blowing fan and shroud, to efficiently supply and distribute cold air directly into the housing compartment, ensuring uniform cooling and preventing air leakage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If a double door structure with housing is used to minimize cold air leakage, then cold air retention in the storage compartment is improved, but cold air supply into the housing becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is segmented into multiple zones with separate air inlets and outlets. Cold air is supplied through dedicated inlets positioned at different locations, and outlets are strategically placed to ensure uniform distribution throughout the housing, preventing temperature gradients and ensuring adequate cooling even when food blocks certain pathways.
Solution Approach 2:
A fan assembly is introduced as an intermediary device to actively circulate cold air from the storage compartment into the housing. The fan overcomes the resistance caused by food placement and ensures continuous cold air supply, mediating between the cold air source and the housing interior to maintain temperature uniformity.
2Quantity of substance
If food is stored in the housing, then storage capacity is improved, but cold air circulation is blocked
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple air inlets and outlets are distributed throughout the housing to create parallel circulation pathways. This segmentation ensures that even when food occupies certain spaces, cold air can flow through alternative routes, maintaining circulation efficiency while preserving storage capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The fan assembly provides excessive air movement capability, creating strong air currents that can penetrate through and around food items. This partial action approach ensures that cold air reaches all areas of the housing even when food blocks direct pathways, maintaining effective circulation despite storage occupancy.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the housing is located far from the back wall, then door structure flexibility is improved, but cold air supply efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Cold air supply is not limited to a single direction from the back wall. Instead, air inlets are positioned on multiple surfaces of the housing (front, side, and top), creating three-dimensional air distribution. This dimensional change compensates for the distance from the back wall, ensuring efficient cooling regardless of the housing's position or size.
Solution Approach 2:
The fan assembly acts as an intermediary that actively transports cold air across the distance from the storage compartment to the housing. This mechanical mediation overcomes the spatial separation, maintaining supply efficiency even when the housing is positioned far from the back wall to achieve door structure flexibility.
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
The solution effectively maintains the internal temperature of the housing at a set temperature or less, ensuring uniform cold air distribution and preventing interruption by baskets, thereby enhancing refrigeration efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a blowing fan generating a blowing force
Implementation Method 2
a shroud guiding the flow of cold air passing through the blowing fan
Implementation Method 3
an evaporator that generates cold air to be supplied into the storage compartment
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigerator including a housing mounted at a rear surface of a door to define a storage space of food, a basket disposed inside the housing, a duct extending to the housing from one side of an evaporator to supply cold air generated by the evaporator into the storage space of the housing, and a fan assembly coupled to the duct to allow the cold air to be forcibly supplied.