Ice maker and refrigerator
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ice makers struggle to produce transparent sphere-shaped ice with uniform transparency across heights and prevent ice cubes from connecting during the freezing process, while also ensuring the heater's wire remains connected during the rotation of the lower tray.
Innovation Solution
The ice maker design includes an upper tray with upper chambers and a lower tray with lower chambers, where a lower heater with rounded portions surrounds the lower chambers to ensure even heat transfer, and a support system that prevents the heater wire from disconnecting during rotation, allowing for the production of transparent sphere-shaped ice with uniform transparency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a heater is installed in a lower cell of the lower tray to produce transparent ice, then transparency of the ice is improved, but the heater may interfere with a lower ejecting pin during rotation process of the lower tray
Solution Approach 1:
The heater is divided into multiple heating sections that are distributed around the lower tray, allowing the heating function to be maintained while avoiding interference with the ejecting pin during rotation. Each heating section operates independently and can be positioned to clear of the pin's path.
Solution Approach 2:
The heater is designed with a curved or spherical configuration that follows the contour of the lower tray, allowing it to provide uniform heating while maintaining clearance from the ejecting pin during rotational movement. The curved design enables the heater to wrap around the tray without creating straight-line interference.
2Device complexity
If the heater extends in a straight line to contact multiple ice-making blocks, then the structure is simplified, but the contact area between heater and ice-making block is small which takes longer for heat transfer
Solution Approach 1:
The heater is designed with a curved or spherical configuration that follows the contour of the lower tray, allowing it to provide uniform heating while maintaining clearance from the ejecting pin during rotational movement. The curved design enables the heater to wrap around the tray without creating straight-line interference.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the heater are positioned to contact different areas of the ice-making blocks, ensuring optimal heat transfer at each local contact point. The heater's configuration is optimized so that each segment contacts the block at the most effective location for heat transfer.
3Shape
If ice is frozen in each of the upper and lower cells to produce sphere-shaped ice, then the spherical shape is achieved, but bubbles are present in the completed ice making it opaque
Solution Approach 1:
The upper cell is frozen first to form a solid upper hemisphere, then water is added to the lower cell and frozen afterward. This preliminary freezing of the upper cell prevents bubble formation in the final assembly, as the lower cell's water freezes against the already-solid upper cell, pushing any air bubbles upward where they can escape or be minimized.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of freezing both cells simultaneously or freezing the lower cell first, the process inverts the sequence by freezing the upper cell first. This reverse approach to the conventional freezing sequence eliminates bubble entrapment that would otherwise occur in sphere-shaped ice production.
4Extent of automation
If the lower tray is rotated to transfer the made ice, then ice transfer is automated, but the heater wire may disconnect during rotation
Solution Approach 1:
The heater wire is enclosed in a flexible protective sheath that allows it to bend and flex during the rotation of the lower tray without disconnecting or breaking. The flexible covering maintains the electrical connection while accommodating the mechanical movement required for automated ice transfer.
Solution Approach 2:
The heater wire is routed in a curved or circular path that follows the rotation trajectory of the lower tray, ensuring that the wire remains under minimal tension and stress during rotation. This curved routing prevents the wire from being pulled taut or disconnected during the automated transfer process.
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 design results in transparent sphere-shaped ice with uniform transparency across heights and prevents ice cubes from connecting, ensuring efficient and consistent ice production while maintaining the integrity of the heater connection during tray rotation.
Implementation Method 1
a lower heater with rounded portions surrounds the lower chambers to ensure even heat transfer
Implementation Method 2
water supplied from a water supply source or a water tank is accommodated in a tray to make ice
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
Provided is an ice maker for a home appliance, in particular for a refrigerator or freezer, including: an upper assembly (110) including an upper tray (150) having at least one upper chamber part (152); a lower assembly (200) including a lower support (270) and a flexible lower tray (250) having at least one lower chamber part (252), wherein the lower assembly (200) is movable with respect to the upper assembly (110) between an open position and a closed position, wherein in the closed position, the lower chamber part (252) and the upper chamber part (152) form at least one ice chamber (111) in which ice is to be formed, and a lower heater (296) for making clear ice, the lower heater (296) being provided in the lower assembly (200) between the lower support (270) and the lower tray (250).