Ice-Making Tray Air Guide for Uniform Refrigerator Freezing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional refrigerators experience non-uniform cold air distribution in the ice making compartment, leading to variations in ice making completion times across different parts of the ice making tray, resulting in inefficiencies and longer overall ice production times.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a cold air guide system within the ice making compartment, featuring a hollow guide body with inclined guide ribs and a seal member, which directs and concentrates cold air uniformly over the ice making tray, ensuring consistent cold air distribution and reducing lateral leakage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If cold air is introduced into the ice making compartment without guidance, then the ice making compartment receives cold air, but the cold air distribution is non-uniform leading to variations in ice making completion times
Solution Approach 1:
The cold air guide acts as an intermediary device between the cold air inlet and the ice making tray. It includes a guide body with inlet and outlet sections, and guide ribs that direct cold air flow. The guide redistributes cold air uniformly across the tray surface, eliminating non-uniform temperature distribution and reducing ice making completion time differences.
2Productivity
If cold air is allowed to flow freely in the ice making compartment, then the structure remains simple, but cold air leakage occurs and distribution efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The cold air guide is segmented into distinct functional parts: a guide body housing, an inlet section for receiving cold air, an outlet section for distributing cold air, and guide ribs for flow direction control. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently while keeping the overall structure manageable and not overly complex.
3Speed
If the cold air inlet is positioned without optimization, then the installation is simple, but cold air cannot be effectively directed toward the ice making tray
Solution Approach 1:
The cold air guide exhibits asymmetric design in its inlet and outlet sections. The inlet section is positioned to receive cold air from a specific direction, while the outlet section and guide ribs are configured to redirect the air flow at specific angles toward the ice making tray. This asymmetric configuration optimizes cold air delivery efficiency while maintaining a relatively simple mounting structure.
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 solution significantly reduces the time difference in ice making completion across the ice making tray, enhancing the efficiency and uniformity of ice production, with ice making completion times decreased by approximately 46 minutes when using the cold air guide compared to without it.
Implementation Method 1
a cold air guide configured to guide cold air entering the ice making compartment through the cold air inlet toward the ice making tray
Implementation Method 2
the guide rib may be inclined with respect to a surface of the ice making tray and configured to change a flow direction of a portion of cold air flowing from the inlet section toward the outlet section
Implementation Method 3
water is supplied to the ice making tray, and is then frozen by cold air introduced into the ice making compartment, thereby forming ice having a particular shape
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigerator, which includes an ice making compartment, an ice making device arranged in the ice making compartment, and an ice making tray provided at the ice making device and configured to receive and retain water to be frozen to make ice. The refrigerator also includes a cold air inlet provided at the ice making compartment and configured to allow cold air to be introduced into the cold air compartment, and a cold air guide configured to guide cold air from the cold air inlet toward the ice making tray.