Door-Mounted Ice Storage Bin for Refrigerator Energy Efficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Refrigerator appliances face inefficiencies due to the need to open doors to access or view the ice storage bin, which introduces hot ambient air, reducing the appliance's efficiency and requiring users to manually remove the bin for visibility.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator design featuring a dispensing assembly with a transverse opening in the door that allows for a vertically and laterally extending ice storage bin, which is selectively mounted within the dispenser recess, enabling ice delivery without opening the door and providing a transparent bin for visibility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the door is opened to access or view the ice storage bin, then the user can retrieve ice or see the bin contents, but hot ambient air is introduced to the chilled chamber, increasing temperature and reducing efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The ice storage bin is segmented from the main chilled chamber by being positioned within a door-mounted dispenser recess. This allows the bin to be accessed through the transverse opening in the door without opening the main chilled chamber, thus preventing hot ambient air from entering the chilled chamber while still providing easy access to ice.
2Temperature
If the ice storage bin is positioned within the chilled chamber, then ice is maintained in frozen state, but the user must open the door to access or view the bin contents
Solution Approach 1:
The ice storage bin is nested within the door-mounted dispenser recess, which itself is positioned within the chilled chamber. This nested arrangement allows the bin to benefit from the chilled chamber's cold environment while being accessible through the door's transverse opening, eliminating the need to open the main chamber door.
3Reliability
If the ice storage bin contents are not readily visible, then the bin can be sealed, but the user must completely or partially remove the bin to view contents
Solution Approach 1:
The ice storage bin incorporates a transparent or translucent panel that allows users to view the bin contents without opening or removing the bin. This transparent panel maintains the bin's sealed state while providing visibility, eliminating the need to remove the bin to check ice levels.
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigerator appliance, as disclosed herein, may include a cabinet, a door, a dispensing assembly, an ice-making assembly, and an ice storage bin. The door may define a dispenser recess having a transverse opening extending vertically from a top recess end to a bottom recess end and laterally from a first recess side to a second recess side. The dispensing assembly may be positioned within the dispenser recess and define an ice delivery passage. The ice-making assembly may be attached to the cabinet. The ice storage bin may include a bin body defining a storage cavity. The bin body may be selectively mounted to the door within the dispenser recess to receive ice from the dispensing assembly. The bin body may extend vertically from the top recess end to the bottom recess end and laterally from the first recess side to the second recess side.