Slim Ice Maker with Selective Insulation for Fresh Food Compartment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional refrigerators with bottom-mount configurations face challenges in integrating an ice maker within the fresh food compartment, which is typically maintained above freezing temperatures, requiring a compact and space-efficient solution for ice production and storage.
Innovation Solution
An ice maker is mounted to the liner of the fresh food compartment at the intersection of the top wall and a lateral side wall, featuring a housing with thermal insulation on three sides and no insulation on the side abutting the wall, utilizing a ring-shaped protrusion for sealing and anchors for secure attachment, allowing efficient ice production and storage within the compartment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the ice maker is placed in the freezer compartment of a bottom-mount refrigerator, then ice production is efficient, but user access to ice becomes inconvenient and requires elaborate conveyor systems
Solution Approach 1:
The ice maker is extracted from the traditional freezer compartment location and relocated to the fresh food compartment. This allows ice to be produced and stored in close proximity to the user access point, eliminating the need for complex conveyor systems while maintaining efficient ice production through proper thermal management
2Ease of operation
If the ice maker is placed in the fresh food compartment, then user access to ice is convenient, but the compartment temperature above freezing makes ice production difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The housing incorporates thermal insulation on three sides (top, bottom, and first side) while leaving the second side uninsulated to abut the lateral wall. This creates a localized cold environment within the housing for efficient ice production, while the overall fresh food compartment remains above freezing for convenient user access
3Productivity
If the ice maker housing is fully insulated, then ice production efficiency is improved, but the housing occupies more space and reduces compactness
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of fully insulating the housing, thermal insulation is applied selectively to only three sides (top, bottom, and first side). The second side remains uninsulated and abuts the lateral wall, reducing the overall housing volume and increasing compactness while maintaining sufficient ice production efficiency through localized thermal management
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 configuration enables compact, efficient ice production and storage within the fresh food compartment, maintaining the compartment's temperature above freezing while providing convenient access to ice through a dispenser, addressing the impracticality of traditional freezer-based ice makers in bottom-mount refrigerators.
Implementation Method 1
Thermal insulation is disposed on the bottom, the first side and the top of the housing
Data Source
AI summary
An ice maker for producing and storing ice pieces. The ice maker is mountable to a liner of a fresh food compartment at an intersection of a top wall and a lateral side wall of the liner. The ice maker includes an ice tray for forming ice pieces. An ice bin receives and stores ice pieces produced by the ice tray. A housing contains the ice tray and ice bin. The housing has a first side, a second side, a bottom and a top. A first cavity is formed in the first side and a second cavity is formed in the bottom. A thermal insulation is disposed in the first cavity and the second cavity. The second side of the ice maker housing does not include thermal insulation.