Ice maker, refrigerator having the same, and method for supplying ice thereof
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ice makers in refrigerators face challenges such as increased forward/backward area occupancy, limited surface roughness for uniform heating, and high power consumption due to the use of heaters for ice release, which restricts the design of thinner refrigerator doors and increases residual water generation.
Innovation Solution
An ice maker design featuring an ice making container with a partitioning plate that demarcates the space into unit spaces, allowing ice to freefall upon rotation, eliminating the need for a heater and reducing the occupied area, while enhancing surface roughness for uniform heating.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the ejector pushes up ice while rotating to release ice toward the front side, then ice can be effectively separated from the ice making container, but the area occupied by the ice maker in the forward/backward direction is increased
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of pushing ice upward and forward using a rotating ejector, the invention inverts the approach by allowing ice to freefall downward through gravity when the container is tilted. The container rotates to a tilted position where ice naturally falls away from the container rather than being mechanically pushed, thereby reducing the forward space required while maintaining effective ice separation.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the ice release mechanism from a horizontal forward-push motion to a vertical freefall motion. By tilting the container and allowing ice to fall downward in the vertical dimension, the system eliminates the need for extensive horizontal space in the forward/backward direction, thus resolving the space occupancy issue while maintaining ice separation functionality.
2Temperature
If the inner side of the ice making container is made with high surface roughness for uniform heating, then heating uniformity is improved, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies local quality by creating surface roughness specifically at the inner side of the ice making container where ice contacts the surface. This localized roughness treatment (through techniques like shot peening, sandblasting, or chemical etching) improves heat transfer uniformity only where needed for ice formation, without requiring the entire container to be manufactured with complex rough surfaces, thus balancing heating uniformity with manufacturing feasibility.
3Ease of operation
If a heater is used to release ice from the ice making container, then ice can be effectively separated, but power consumption increases and residual water is generated
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces the thermal field (heater) with a mechanical field (gravity-assisted rotation). Instead of using heat to melt and release ice, the container is mechanically tilted and rotated to a specific angle, allowing ice to naturally freefall and separate due to gravity. This substitution eliminates the need for heating, thereby reducing power consumption and preventing residual water generation from melting.
Solution Approach 2:
The system utilizes gravity as a free, naturally available force to achieve ice release without requiring external energy input from a heater. By designing the container to tilt and rotate, the ice automatically separates itself through gravitational pull, making the system self-service in terms of ice release and eliminating the need for energy-consuming heating components.
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 reduces the ice maker's size, minimizes power consumption, and decreases residual water generation, enabling a slimmer refrigerator door and improved ice release efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a driving unit for supplying a rotary force to the ice making container to allow the ice making container to rotate with respect to the partitioning plate to release ice of the ice making space
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
Disclosed are an ice maker, a refrigerator having the ice maker, and a method for supplying ice of the refrigerator. When the ice making container is rotated, ice of the ice making container freefalls to be released, thus reducing the size of the ice maker and making a refrigerator slimmer. Also, since a partition wall is not provided on an inner circumferential surface of the ice making container, the roughness of the inner circumferential surface of the ice making container can be enhanced, and accordingly, heat can be evenly transferred from an ice releasing heater to reduce a generation amount of residual water. In addition, since ice can be released without using the ice releasing heater, power consumption can be reduced and residual water which can be generated in case of using the heater can be further reduced.