Ice Maker Lower Heater Control to Gather Bubbles for Transparent Ice
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ice makers produce opaque ice due to bubbles trapped during the freezing process, and there is a need for a solution to create transparent and uniformly transparent ice with consistent quality.
Innovation Solution
An ice maker design featuring a control unit that variably controls a lower heater to gather bubbles in the lowermost section of the ice chamber during the ice-making process, using a combination of upper and lower trays with flexible materials to ensure spherical ice formation and minimize deformation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If ice is made simultaneously in upper and lower cells, then ice production efficiency is improved, but bubbles are dispersed in the water making opaque ice
Solution Approach 1:
The ice making process is segmented into sequential stages: first freezing in the lower cell, then freezing in the upper cell. This temporal segmentation allows bubbles to be concentrated and discharged during the first stage, preventing bubble dispersion that would occur with simultaneous freezing in both cells.
Solution Approach 2:
The lower cell performs preliminary freezing action first, creating an initial ice structure that traps and concentrates bubbles in a specific region. This preliminary action prepares the water structure for subsequent upper cell freezing, ensuring uniform transparency in the final ice product.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If a heater is used during ice making, then bubble discharge is improved, but ice quality uniformity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The heater is positioned locally at the bottom of the lower cell rather than uniformly distributed. This local heating creates a controlled bubble discharge zone at the bottom, allowing bubbles to be expelled from specific regions without affecting the overall uniformity of the ice quality throughout the entire ice chamber.
Solution Approach 2:
The heater operates with controlled temperature parameters during specific phases of the ice making process. By adjusting heating intensity and duration, bubbles are effectively discharged while maintaining the temperature conditions necessary for uniform ice crystallization and quality.
3Shape
If flexible materials are used in trays, then spherical ice formation is improved, but tray durability worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The tray is constructed using composite materials that combine the flexibility needed for spherical ice formation with the durability required for long-term use. This composite structure allows the tray to deform elastically during the spherical freezing process while maintaining sufficient strength and resistance to degradation over time.
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 enables the production of transparent and uniformly transparent spherical ice, reducing the formation of opaque bands and ensuring consistent ice quality.
Implementation Method 1
a lower heater mounted on the lower support, wherein a control unit operably controls the lower heater such that bubbles included in water in the ice chamber are gathered in a lowermost section in the ice making process
Data Source
AI summary
An ice maker includes: an upper tray defining an upper chamber that is a portion of an ice chamber, where an upper opening is provided in an upper side of the upper tray; a lower tray defining a lower chamber that is another portion of the ice chamber; a lower support supporting the lower tray and provided with a lower heater; and a control unit configured to operate the lower heater in an ice making process, where the control unit variably controls an output of the lower heater so that bubbles included in water in the ice chamber are gathered in a lowermost section in the ice making process.