Ice making assembly for a refrigerator appliance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional ice making assemblies in refrigerators are large, inefficient, and experience performance issues such as ice cube fracturing and reduced storage capacity due to the use of heating elements and bottom ejection mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
A compact ice making assembly featuring a resilient mold with a heat exchanger for freezing water, a lifter mechanism to deform the mold and raise ice cubes, and a sweep assembly to push the cubes out, driven by a mechanism that allows for efficient ice dispensing without the need for heating elements and increased storage capacity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a resilient mold with lifter mechanism and sweep assembly is used, then ice cube breakage is minimized and storage capacity is maximized, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mold is designed as resilient rather than rigid, allowing it to flex during the ice making and ejection process. This dynamic property enables the mold to deform under the lifter mechanism, facilitating ice cube release without requiring complex heating or rotating components, thus maintaining reliability while managing complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The ejection function is divided into two separate mechanisms: a lifter mechanism that raises the ice cubes by deforming the mold, and a sweep assembly that pushes the cubes out. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently, reducing the complexity of any single mechanism while maintaining overall system reliability
2Ease of operation
If heating elements are used to melt ice for ejection, then ice cubes can be discharged, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the thermal field (heating elements) with a mechanical field (lifter mechanism and sweep assembly). The resilient mold deforms mechanically under the lifter, raising and ejecting ice cubes without any heating, thereby eliminating the energy consumption associated with melting ice while maintaining effective ice ejection
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the physical state or parameter of the mold from rigid to resilient, allowing it to deform elastically under mechanical force. This parameter change enables the mold to facilitate ice ejection through mechanical deformation rather than thermal melting, significantly reducing energy consumption
3Ease of operation
If ice is ejected from the bottom of the icemaker, then discharge is achieved, but storage bin height is reduced and storage capacity is lost
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of ejecting ice from the bottom as in conventional designs, this patent inverts the ejection approach by using a sweep assembly that pushes ice cubes horizontally out of the front of the mold. This inverted discharge method allows the storage bin to extend vertically beneath the icemaker, maximizing storage capacity without compromising ice discharge functionality
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 provides a reliable, efficient, and compact ice making system that minimizes ice cube breakage and maximizes storage capacity by dispensing ice from the top, allowing for a taller storage bin and reduced energy consumption.
Implementation Method 1
a heat exchanger in thermal communication with the resilient mold to freeze the water and form one or more ice cubes
Implementation Method 2
a resilient mold defining a mold cavity for receiving water
Data Source
AI summary
An ice making assembly for a refrigerator appliance includes a resilient silicone mold and a lifter mechanism positioned below the resilient mold for selectively deforming the mold and raising the ice cubes formed therein. A sweep assembly is positioned over the resilient mold and moves to an extended position after the cubes are raised to discharge the ice cubes at a top of the ice making assembly. A drive mechanism such as a motor drives the lifter mechanism using a cam-follower arrangement and the sweep assembly using a slotted yoke mechanism.