KR100609920B1 - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides an automatic ice making apparatus including a tray on which an ice receiving unit is formed, an ice-making member for ice-icing ice from the tray, and a driving unit for driving the ice-making member; A refrigerator having a cold air discharge port for supplying cold air to the automatic ice making apparatus, the refrigerator comprising: an ice storage container installed at a lower region of the automatic ice making apparatus and storing ice iced from the tray; An ice making sensor provided between the automatic ice making device and the ice storage container and detecting whether ice is stored in the ice storage container; A cold air discharge member coupled to the cold air discharge port to discharge cold air; It is rotatably coupled to the ice sensing member and the cold air discharging member, characterized in that it comprises a connecting bracket for changing the cold air discharge direction of the cold air discharging member in accordance with the movement of the ice sensing member. As a result, after the ice making is completed, the cooling air discharge direction directed to the automatic ice making device can be changed to the direction of the ice storage container, thereby improving the cooling efficiency.

Refrigerator, automatic ice maker, ice detection member, cold air discharge member, ice storage container, connecting bracket

Description

Refrigerator {REFRIGERATOR}

1 is a side view showing an ice maker according to a conventional refrigerator,

Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view showing an ice maker of the present invention,

3 is a side view showing an ice making state according to the ice maker of FIG. 2,

4 is a side view illustrating a full ice state according to the ice maker of FIG. 2.

* Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings

  1: refrigerator 10: body

 22: freezer door 24: dispenser

 30: freezing chamber 40: automatic ice maker

410 tray 412 ice holding unit

420: drive unit 422: drive unit hinge shaft

430: support portion 432: support portion hinge axis

440: ice sensing member 442: hinge axis receiving portion

444: hinge shaft 450: connecting bracket

452: first hinge axis accommodating part 454: second hinge axis accommodating part

456: bracket through portion 52: cold air discharge member

 54: support frame 540: frame hinge axis receiving portion

 56: rotation frame 560: frame hinge axis

562: frame penetration portion 564: coupling pin

70: ice container

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator capable of automatically adjusting a cold air discharge direction directed to an automatic ice maker.

Recently, the side-by-side refrigerator has been widely used due to the needs of consumers who want a large storage room and its convenience. In the case of such a parallel refrigerator, a dispenser for supplying water and ice is often mounted on the outside of the door.

An ice maker is installed in the freezer to supply ice to the dispenser, and the ice maker operates automatically.

1 is a side view illustrating an ice maker according to a conventional refrigerator.

As shown in the drawing, the conventional automatic ice making apparatus 40 includes a tray 410 on which an ice receiving portion is formed, an ice-making member (not shown) to ice the ice from the tray 410, and a driving unit for driving the ice-making member ( 420). In the lower portion of the automatic ice making device 40, an ice storage container 70 in which iced ice is stored is installed. At the lower end of the automatic ice making device 40, the ice-covering member 440 is coupled to detect whether or not ice is stored in the ice storage container 70. The cold air discharge port 50 for supplying cold air is provided at the rear of the automatic ice making device 40, and the direction of the cold air supplied from the cold air outlet 50 is directed toward the tray 410 of the automatic ice making device 40.

However, such a conventional ice making device has a problem in that cold air is directed toward the automatic ice making device even after ice is filled in the ice storage container and ice making is completed.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator which can selectively adjust the direction of cold air discharge directed to an automatic ice making device by an automatic ice making device or an ice storage container.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an automatic ice making apparatus including a tray on which an ice receiving unit is formed, an ice-making member for moving ice from the tray, and a driving unit for driving the ice-making member; A refrigerator having a cold air discharge port for supplying cold air to the automatic ice making device, the refrigerator comprising: an ice storage container installed at a lower region of the automatic ice making device and storing ice iced from the tray; An ice making sensor provided between the automatic ice making device and the ice storage container and detecting whether ice is stored in the ice storage container; A cold air discharge member coupled to the cold air discharge port to discharge cold air; The refrigerator is rotatably coupled to the ice sensing member and the cold air discharging member, and includes a connecting bracket for changing a cold air discharging direction of the cold air discharging member according to the movement of the ice sensing member.

The cold air discharge member may include a support frame installed at the cold air discharge port, and a rotation frame rotatably coupled to the support frame to change the cold air discharge direction.

One end of the connection bracket is rotatably coupled to the ice-covering member, the other end is rotatably coupled to the cold air discharging member, and a middle region of the longitudinal direction is rotatably coupled to one region of the automatic ice making apparatus. desirable.

The cold air discharge member is preferably to change the cold air discharge direction to an automatic ice making device or an ice storage container.

Hereinafter, a refrigerator (SIDE BY SIDE TYPE) refrigerator in one embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, the same components as in the prior art will be described using the same reference numerals.

2 is an exploded perspective view showing an ice maker of the present invention.

As shown in the figure, the refrigerator 1 of the present invention includes a main body 10 having a cooling chamber and a door 20 rotatably coupled to the main body 10 to open and close the cooling chamber ( 1).

The cooling chamber is divided into a refrigerating chamber (not shown) and a freezing chamber 30.

The freezing chamber 30 supplies water to an automatic ice making device 40, a cold air discharging outlet 50 provided with a cold air discharging member 52 for supplying cold air into the freezing chamber 30, and an automatic ice making machine 40. The water supply pipe 60 and the ice storage container 70 for storing the ice made from the automatic ice making device 40 is accommodated. An end portion of the ice container 70 is connected to an ice supply unit 80 for supplying ice to the dispenser 24 installed in the freezer door 22. An automatic ice maker 40 is installed on the top of the ice storage container 70.

Automatic ice making device 40 is a tray 410 is provided with a plurality of aligned ice receiving portion 412, a ribbing member (not shown) for moving the ice from the ice receiving portion 412, and a driving unit for driving the ice holding member 420, a support 430 for supporting the tray 410, and a ice-covering member 440 for detecting whether ice is accommodated in the ice storage container 70. In addition, the connection bracket 450 for connecting them between the ice sensing member 440 and the cold air discharge member 52 is coupled.

The drive hinge shaft 422 and the support hinge shaft 432 protrude from one region of the driving unit 420 and the support unit 430, respectively. The drive hinge shaft 422 and the support hinge shaft 432 are respectively accommodated in the ice-covering member 440 and the connecting bracket 450 which will be described later to support them rotatably. The tray 410 is connected to the lower portion of the support 430.

One end of the tray 410 is connected to the driving unit 420 and has a plurality of ice receiving portions 412 formed therein. A heater member (not shown) is installed on the back of the ice receiving portion 412. The ice is slightly melted to be iced by the heater member. The ice of the ice accommodating part 412 is iced by the ice-creaming member when the ice-creaming time comes. The ice-covering member 440 is provided below the tray 410.

The ice sensing member 440 is made of a plurality of bent bar shapes. One end of the ice sensing member 440 is rotatably coupled to one region of the driving unit 420. A hinge shaft accommodating part 442 is formed at one end of the ice sensing member 440 to accommodate the driving part hinge shaft 422, and is rotatably coupled to the driving part hinge shaft 422. At the other end of the ice sensing member 440, a hinge shaft 444 coupled to the connection bracket 450 protrudes.

The connecting bracket 450 is supported by the support part 430 between the ice sensing member 440 and the cold air discharging member 52 to connect the ice sensing member 440 and the cold air discharging member 52. The connecting bracket 450 is made to be bent in an approximately 'c' shape. One end of the connecting bracket 450 is provided with a first hinge axis accommodating part 452 coupled to the hinge shaft 444 of the ice sensing member 440 to rotatably support the ice sensing member 440. The other end of the connecting bracket 450 is formed with a bracket through portion 456 for coupling with the cold air discharge member (52). In addition, a second hinge shaft accommodating part 454 for accommodating the support hinge shaft 432 is provided at an intermediate region of both ends of the connecting bracket 450.

The second hinge axis accommodating part 454 is rotated in combination with the support hinge axis 432, and the ice sensing member 440 and the cold air discharge around the second hinge axis accommodating part 454 and the support hinge axis 432. The member 52 is supported to be relatively movable.

The cold air discharge member 52 is provided in the cold air discharge port 50. The cold air discharge member 52 includes a support frame 54 installed at the cold air discharge port 50 and a rotation frame 56 coupled to the support frame 54.

The support frame 54 is made to correspond to the size and shape of the cold air discharge port 50, and forms a through portion to allow cold air to pass therethrough. Frame hinge axis accommodating part 540 is formed on both sides of the support frame 54 to accommodate the rotation frame 56.

Rotating frame 56 is coupled to the inner region of the support frame 54, the frame hinge shaft 560 protrudes on both sides corresponding to the position of the frame hinge axis receiving portion 540. As a result, the rotation frame 56 may rotate in the inner region of the support frame 54. The frame through part 562 is provided on the upper side of the rotating frame 56.

The frame through portion 562 receives the bracket through portion 456 formed on the connecting bracket 450 and is rotatably coupled to the bracket through portion 456 by a coupling pin 564.

In the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention having such a configuration, the process of changing the direction of the cold air discharging member will be described in more detail as follows.

3 is a side view illustrating an ice making state according to the ice maker of FIG. 2.

As shown in the figure, ice making is in progress, and in the state where the ice is not iced in the ice storage container 70, a part of the ice sensing member 440 is accommodated in the ice storage container 70. That is, the ice sensing member 440 is moved downward.

In this state, since the end portion of the connecting bracket 450 is connected to the ice-sensing member 440 at the end of the first hinge shaft receiving portion 452, the first hinge shaft-receiving portion 452 is formed along the ice-covering sensing member 440. The end is inclined downward.

Since the end portion of the first hinge shaft receiving portion 452 of the connecting bracket 450 is inclined downward, the end portion of the bracket through portion 456 of the connecting bracket 450 relatively has the second hinge shaft receiving portion 454. Ascend upwards to the center.

The end portion of the bracket through portion 456 of the connecting bracket 450 is moved upward, and the rotary frame 56 of the cold air discharging member 52 is connected to the connecting bracket 450. Therefore, the cold air discharge member 52 discharges cold air toward the automatic ice making device 40. That is, when one side is descended about the connecting bracket 450, the other side is to adjust the direction of the cold air discharge member 52 on the same principle as the lever.

4 is a side view illustrating a full ice state according to the ice maker of FIG. 2.

As shown in the figure, when ice making continues and the ice storage container 70 is in an iced state, the ice-covering member 440 moves upward toward the tray 410, and ice making is stopped.

When the ice sensing member 440 moves upward, the end portion of the first hinge shaft receiving portion 452 of the connecting bracket 450 connected to the hinge shaft 444 of the ice sensing member 440 also moves upward. do.

When the end of the first hinge shaft receiving portion 452 of the connecting bracket 450 moves upward, the end of the bracket through portion 456 of the connecting bracket 450 is centered on the second hinge shaft receiving portion 454. Relatively downward movement.

When the end portion of the bracket through portion 456 of the connecting bracket 450 moves downward, the cold air discharging direction of the cold air discharging member 52 is changed to face the ice storage container 70.

As a result, the direction of cold air discharge can be selectively changed to an automatic ice maker or an ice storage container according to the ice making state. Therefore, while ice making is in progress, ice cold is concentrated in the ice making device, thereby shortening the ice making time, thereby improving the ice making efficiency. After the ice making is completed, the cold air directed to the automatic ice making device is directed to the ice storage container, thereby preventing the ice from melting and deforming or sticking. That is, by selectively changing the cold air discharging direction, cooling air is not sent in an unnecessary direction, thereby improving cooling efficiency.

In the above-described embodiment, the ice-covering member, the connecting bracket, and the cold air discharging member may be coupled by any means that can be rotatably coupled.

In the above-described embodiment, the connecting bracket is said to be made in a substantially 'c' shape, but if the direction of the cold air discharging member can be relatively changed according to the movement of the ice sensing member, the shape can be modified without limitation.

As described above, in the refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present invention, after the ice making is completed, the cooling air discharge direction toward the automatic ice making device can be changed to the direction of the ice storage container, thereby improving the cooling efficiency.

Claims (4)

An automatic ice making device including a tray on which an ice receiving part is formed, an ice-making member for ice-icing the ice from the tray, and a driving unit for driving the ice-making member; In the refrigerator having a cold air discharge port for supplying cold air to the automatic ice making device, An ice storage container installed at a lower region of the automatic ice making device to store ice iced from the tray; An ice making sensor provided between the automatic ice making device and the ice storage container and detecting whether ice is stored in the ice storage container; A cold air discharge member coupled to the cold air discharge port to discharge cold air; And a connecting bracket rotatably coupled to the ice sensing member and the cold air discharging member and changing a cold air discharging direction of the cold air discharging member according to the movement of the ice sensing member. The method of claim 1, The cold air discharging member includes a support frame installed at the cold air discharging opening, and a rotating frame rotatably coupled to the support frame to change the cold air discharging direction. The method of claim 1, One end of the connecting bracket is rotatably coupled to the ice-covering member, the other end is rotatably coupled to the cold air discharging member, and an intermediate region of the longitudinal direction is rotatably coupled to one region of the automatic ice making apparatus. Featured refrigerator. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, The cold air discharging member is a refrigerator, characterized in that for selectively changing the cold air discharging direction to an automatic ice maker or ice storage container.

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