Refrigerator Ice Tray Sensor-Wire Routing Through Support Shaft
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Solution Overview
Problem
In ice making apparatuses of refrigerators, sensor wires often get twisted or cut off when the ice tray is rotated, leading to malfunction due to being caught between the driving unit and the ice tray or tray hood.
Innovation Solution
The sensor wire is routed through a support rotational shaft with cutaway portions, allowing it to be drawn out and positioned at the rotation central axis, preventing entanglement and ensuring smooth rotation of the ice tray.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the sensor wire is routed close to the rotational shaft through a sensor wire through hole, then the wire positioning is improved, but the wire gets twisted and caught between the ice tray and driving unit during rotation
Solution Approach 1:
A grommet is introduced as an intermediary component between the sensor wire and the rotational shaft through-hole. The grommet acts as a protective mediator that allows the wire to pass through smoothly while preventing direct contact and entanglement with rotating parts, thus maintaining wire positioning while protecting wire integrity during rotation
Solution Approach 2:
The grommet provides beforehand protection by creating a cushioned passage for the sensor wire through the rotational shaft. This pre-established protective structure prevents the wire from being twisted or caught during subsequent rotation operations, addressing the reliability issue before it occurs
2Stability of the object's composition
If the sensor wire is made thicker to be installed within a tube of certain thickness, then the installation stability is improved, but the wire may be caught between the ice tray and driving unit causing malfunction
Solution Approach 1:
The grommet serves as a mediator between the thick sensor wire and the rotational shaft opening. It provides a compatible interface that accommodates the thicker wire while maintaining smooth passage during rotation, thus preserving both installation stability and rotation smoothness
3Productivity
If the ice tray is rotated by 180 degrees for ice release, then the ice releasing function is achieved, but the sensor wire is twisted and cut off
Solution Approach 1:
The grommet acts as a protective intermediary that guides the sensor wire through the rotational shaft in a manner that prevents twisting during the 180-degree rotation required for ice release. This maintains wire durability while enabling efficient ice release operation
Solution Approach 2:
The grommet provides beforehand protection against the twisting forces generated during ice tray rotation. By establishing a protected wire passage in advance, it prevents wire damage while allowing the necessary 180-degree rotation for ice release to proceed
Data Source
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AI summary
An ice making apparatus of a refrigerator capable of preventing a sensor wire connected from a sensor unit installed therein from being twisted irrespective of a rotation of an ice tray, and a method for assembling a sensor wire and an ice making apparatus of a refrigerator are provided. The ice making apparatus of a refrigerator includes: an ice tray for accommodating water for making ice; a sensor unit installed at a lower portion of the ice tray; a sensor wire transferring data measured by the sensor unit to a controller of the refrigerator; a driving unit formed at one side of the ice tray and including a controller or a motor to rotate the ice tray; a driving rotational shaft formed at one side of the ice tray and rotated by the motor of the driving unit; a rotational shaft support unit formed on the opposite side of the driving unit, supporting the other side of the ice tray, and having a rotational shaft hole; and a support rotational shaft formed on the other side of the ice tray, inserted into the rotational shaft hole of the rotational shaft support unit, supportedly rotated therein, and having a through hole allowing the sensor wire to pass therethrough (Fig. 2).