Foam-Embedded Air Damper Layout to Prevent Refrigerator Icing Failures
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Solution Overview
Problem
The dual electrical damper in existing three-door air-cooled refrigerators tends to fail due to frosting and icing in the freezing compartment, leading to control failures that prevent proper refrigeration in the refrigerating and temperature-variable compartments.
Innovation Solution
The air-cooled refrigerator design includes an electrical damper mounted in a foaming layer between the housing and the inner containers, with a freezing air-outlet passage and temperature-variable and refrigerating air-inlet passages, preventing the damper from being exposed to low temperatures and thus avoiding control failures, while also allowing for easier and more stable mounting and increased storage space.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the dual electrical damper is mounted in the freezing compartment, then the refrigerating compartment and temperature-variable compartment can be cooled, but the damper tends to frost and ice up causing control failure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the electrical damper from the freezing compartment environment and relocates it to the refrigerating compartment where temperatures are higher. This removes the damper from the harmful low-temperature environment that causes frosting and icing, thereby eliminating the root cause of control failures while maintaining its air distribution function.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an air outlet passage as an intermediary component that bridges the freezing compartment and the damper. The passage extends from the freezing compartment through the foaming layer to deliver cold air to the damper, allowing the damper to remain in a warmer environment while still receiving cold air for distribution.
2Reliability
If the electrical damper is relocated to the foaming layer, then control failure is avoided, but the mounting structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the damper mounting structure with the existing air outlet passage and foaming layer. The damper is integrated into the air outlet passage assembly, and the entire assembly is embedded within the foaming layer, combining multiple functions into a unified structure that reduces overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a nested arrangement where the damper is positioned within the air outlet passage, which in turn is embedded within the foaming layer. This nested configuration allows compact integration of multiple components without requiring separate mounting structures, thereby managing complexity through hierarchical organization.
3Volume of moving object
If the damper is embedded in the foaming layer, then storage space is increased, but the air passage routing becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes the third dimension by routing the air outlet passage vertically through the foaming layer from the freezing compartment to the damper location. This vertical routing through the depth of the refrigerator allows efficient space utilization and simplifies the horizontal air distribution paths, managing complexity through dimensional optimization.
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 prevents control failures in the electrical damper, ensuring effective refrigeration in the temperature-variable and refrigerating compartments and providing a larger storage space with a reasonable structure.
Implementation Method 1
an embedded member disposed in the foaming layer; an electrical damper provided to the embedded member and located in the foaming layer
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 4
AI summary
An air-cooled refrigerator (10) comprises: a housing (101), a freezer liner (1021), a variable-temperature liner (1022), a refrigerator liner (1023), a foam layer (103), an embedded member (104), an electric air door (105), a freezer air outlet channel (1061), a variable-temperature air inlet channel (1062) and a refrigeration air inlet channel. The space between the housing (101) and the freezer liner (1021), variable-temperature liner (1022) and refrigerator liner (1023) is filled with the foam layer (103). The electric air door (105) is disposed above the embedded member (104) and in the foam layer (103), and is provided with a cool air inlet, a first cool air outlet (1053) and a second cool air outlet (1054) thereon. The freezer air outlet channel (1061) has a first end in communication with an air outlet and a second end in communication with the cool air inlet, the variable-temperature air inlet channel (1062) has a first end in communication with a variable-temperature air inlet, and the refrigeration air inlet channel has a first end in communication with the second cool air outlet (1054) and a second end in communication with a refrigeration air inlet.