Rotational Ice Mold Design to Eliminate Trapped Air for Clear Ice
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ice makers produce cloudy ice due to trapped air, resulting in undesirable taste and appearance, and methods to produce clear ice are costly and inefficiently integrated into consumer appliances.
Innovation Solution
An ice maker with a rotational ice mold featuring a metallic and insulated piece, where a thermoelectric device freezes water in a cavity, and a drive body rotates the mold from an injection position to a tilted position to freeze water on the side surfaces, forming clear ice pieces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional ice making methods are used, then ice is produced quickly and easily, but the ice becomes cloudy with trapped air
Solution Approach 1:
The ice mold is divided into two separate pieces: a first piece forming a first reservoir and a second piece forming a second reservoir. These pieces can be assembled together to create the complete spherical cavity, allowing for easier manufacturing and assembly while producing clear ice through the specific two-reservoir configuration that prevents air trapping.
2Manufacturing precision
If the mold is rotated during freezing, then clear ice is produced by eliminating trapped air, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The ice mold is made rotatable through a drive body mechanism that allows the mold to rotate between an injection position and a tilted position during the freezing process. This dynamic rotation enables air bubbles to escape and water to redistribute, producing clear ice without requiring overly complex fixed structures.
3Manufacturing precision
If water is frozen on side surfaces during rotation, then clear ice is produced, but the freezing time and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The freezing process uses periodic action by rotating the mold between injection and tilted positions during the freezing cycle. This periodic rotation allows air to escape at specific intervals while water freezes on the side surfaces, achieving clear ice production without requiring continuously extended freezing 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 effectively produces clear ice by eliminating trapped air and efficiently freezing water on the side surfaces of the cavity, resulting in a clear and desirable ice product without the need for costly processing techniques.
Implementation Method 1
A cooling source is thermally coupled to the metallic piece
Implementation Method 2
A cooling source is thermally coupled to the metallic piece
Implementation Method 3
The cavity receives an incremental amount of water in the injection position and moves to the tilted position to freeze at least a portion of the incremental amount of water over a side surface of the cavity
Data Source
AI summary
An ice maker has an ice mold that includes a metallic piece and an insulated piece. A cooling source is thermally coupled to the metallic piece. A cavity is within the ice mold and has a first reservoir in the metallic piece and a second reservoir in the insulated piece. The first and second reservoirs align to substantially enclose the cavity. An intake aperture in the insulated piece extends to the cavity for receiving water. A drive body rotatably coupled to the ice mold that operates in an ice-making cycle, wherein the drive body repeatedly rotates the mold from an injection position to a tilted position. The cavity receives an incremental amount of water in the injection position and moves to the tilted position to freeze at least a portion of the incremental amount of water over a side surface of the cavity to make an ice piece.