KR101519156B1 - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

This embodiment relates to a refrigerator. The refrigerator includes an ice maker for generating ice and a dispenser for discharging the ice from the ice maker. In the dispenser, various sizes of ice can be discharged.

Refrigerator

Description

Refrigerator {Refrigerator}

This embodiment relates to a refrigerator.

Generally, a refrigerator is a device that stores foods at a low temperature.

The refrigerator includes a main body having a storage chamber, a door movably coupled to the main body, and a door for opening and closing the storage chamber. The storage room may include a freezing room or a refrigerating room.

In addition, the main body or the door may be provided with an ice maker for generating ice, and the main body or the door may be provided with a dispenser for taking out the ice produced in the ice maker.

The object of the present embodiment is to propose a refrigerator which can take ice of various sizes.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a refrigerator includes: an ice making unit for generating ice; An ice bin in which ice produced in the ice-making unit is stored, and an ice crusher for crushing ice is provided; And a dispenser for discharging the ice stored in the ice bin to the outside, wherein the ice bin includes a discharge unit for discharging each ice or pieces of ice, And the net member for positioning is located.

A refrigerator according to another aspect includes: an ice making unit for forming ice; An ice bin in which ice produced in the ice-making unit is stored, and an ice crusher for crushing ice is provided; And a dispenser for discharging the ice stored in the ice bin to the outside, wherein the ice bin has a first outlet for discharging each ice; A second outlet for discharging poured ice of a predetermined size or smaller; And a shutter selectively covering the first outlet.

According to the proposed embodiment, when picking out a piece of ice, the piece ice of a certain size or smaller is discharged by the net member, so that the piece ice can flow into the bottle with a narrow entrance.

Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the inconvenience of crushing the crushed ice into a bottle smaller than the entrance of the bottle after the user takes out the ice, and to insert the crushed ice directly into the bottle.

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a refrigerator door according to an embodiment of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 shows a side-by-side type refrigerator in which a freezing compartment and a refrigerating compartment are arranged on the left and right sides. However, the idea of the present embodiment is that a top-mounted type refrigerator in which a freezing compartment is disposed on the upper side of the refrigerating compartment, The present invention can be applied to a refrigerator of a bottom freezer type disposed in a refrigerator.

1 and 2, the refrigerator 1 according to the present embodiment includes a main body 10 having a storage chamber, and a refrigerator door movably coupled to the main body 10 to open and close the storage chamber do.

The storage room includes a freezer compartment 11 and a refrigerating compartment 12. The refrigerator door includes a freezing compartment door 20 for opening and closing the freezing compartment 11 and a refrigerating compartment door 21 for opening and closing the refrigerating compartment 12.

Each of the doors 20 and 21 is provided with a handle 22 for holding the user.

The freezing chamber door 20 is provided with an ice making device 100 for generating ice using the cool air of the freezing chamber 11 and a dispenser 40 for taking out the ice generated in the ice making device 100 .

The dispenser 40 includes an input unit 42 for inputting operating conditions of the refrigerator 1 and a display unit 44 for displaying an operating state of the refrigerator 1. [

Specifically, the input unit 42 is provided with a temperature button for selecting the temperature of the freezing compartment and the refrigerating compartment, a take-out button for taking out the ice, and a type of ice, for example, each ice or piece ice And a type selection button for selecting the type of button.

In the display unit 44, the current temperature or the desired temperature of the freezing compartment and the refrigerating compartment, the size of the ice to be discharged, and the like are displayed.

Meanwhile, the refrigerator compartment door 21 may be provided with a home bar 30 for allowing the user to take out the food in the refrigerator compartment without opening the refrigerator compartment door.

Hereinafter, the structure of the icemaker 100 will be described in detail.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the ice maker according to the present embodiment, FIG. 4 is a top view of the ice maker according to the present embodiment, FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the ice maker according to the present embodiment, Sectional view showing an internal structure of an ice maker according to an example.

3 to 6, the ice maker 100 according to the present embodiment is mounted on the back surface (the surface facing the freezer compartment) of the freezer compartment door 20.

In detail, the freezing chamber door 20 includes an outer case 201 forming the front surface of the freezing chamber door 20, and an outer case 201 joined to the outer case 201 to form the outer surface of the rear surface of the freezing chamber door 20. A door liner 202 is provided. The space formed between the outer case 201 and the door liner 202 may be filled with a heat insulating material, not shown.

The door liner 202 is provided with a seat 203 on which the ice maker 100 is seated. The seat 203 is provided with a guide passage 204 for guiding the movement of ice generated in the ice maker 100.

The ice making device 100 includes an ice making unit 110 for generating ice, an ice bin 120 for storing ice generated in the ice making unit 110, A supporter 150 for supporting the bins 120 and a cover 170 coupled to the supporter 150 and covering the freezing unit 110.

Specifically, the ice making unit 110 is an article that receives water and generates ice. In the present embodiment, the structure of the ice-making unit 110 is not limited, and a known structure can be applied, so that a detailed description will be omitted.

The ice bin 120 is located below the ice making unit 110 and stores ice generated by the ice making unit 110.

The ice bin 120 includes a storage chamber 121 for storing ice and a discharge chamber 122 for discharging the stored ice from the ice bin 120. The storage chamber 121 and the discharge chamber 122 are partitioned by a partition wall 123. The partition wall 123 is formed with an opening 123a through which the ice of the storage chamber 121 is moved to the discharge chamber 122.

The storage chamber 121 includes a transfer unit 141 for transferring stored ice to the discharge chamber 122. The transfer unit 141 may be a spiral auger. The transfer unit 141 is coupled to the rotation shaft 142. The rotation shaft 142 is rotated by a first drive unit, which will be described later.

Accordingly, when the first driving unit is rotated, the ice in the storage chamber 121 is moved to the discharge chamber 122 through the opening 123a by the rotation of the transfer unit 141. [

Meanwhile, the discharge chamber 122 is provided with an ice crusher for crushing the transferred ice. The ice crusher includes a stationary blade 144 fixed to the discharge chamber 122 and a rotating blade 143 rotated with respect to the stationary blade 144. The rotating blade 143 is connected to the rotating shaft 142. Therefore, the rotating blade 143 is rotated together with the transfer unit 141.

And a discharge unit 124 communicating with the discharge chamber 122 is provided on the lower side of the ice bin 120.

The discharge unit 124 is provided with a net member 127 for discharging pieces of ice having a predetermined size or smaller.

The net member 127 allows the discharge unit 124 to discharge the ice from the first discharge port 124a (see FIG. 8) and the second discharge ports 128 formed in the net member 127, . At this time, the size of the plurality of second outlets 128 may be smaller than the opening of the bottle or the like.

The ice bin 120 includes a shutter 125 for selectively communicating the first discharge port 124a and the discharge chamber 122 with each other.

The net member 127 is fixed to the ice bin 120 and the shutter 125 is rotatably installed in the ice bin 120.

The shutter 125 is coupled to a power transmission unit 126 that transmits the power of the second drive unit, which will be described later. The power transmitting portion 126 protrudes to the outside of the ice bin 120. When the power transmission unit 126 is moved by the second driving unit, the shutter 125 is rotated so that the discharge chamber 122 and the first discharge port 124a communicate with each other. The shutter 125 is formed with a coupling portion 125a for coupling the power transmission portion 126. [

Meanwhile, the ice bin 120 is provided with a connector 130 to be selectively connected to a first drive unit to be described later. The second connector 130 is rotatably installed in the ice bin 120 by a shaft 131. The shaft 131 is engaged with the rotation shaft 142.

The second connector 130 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and a plurality of ribs 132 are formed on an inner circumferential surface of the second connector 130. The plurality of ribs 132 are spaced apart from each other.

The supporter 150 is coupled to the seat 203. The supporter 150 includes a vertical plate 153 coupled to the door liner 202 and a bottom plate 151 bent at the vertical plate 153 and coupled to the upper portion of the seating portion 203. The bottom plate 151 is formed with a hole 152 communicating with the guide duct 204.

In addition, the supporter 150 is provided with the first drive unit and the second drive unit. The first driving unit includes a first driving motor 155 and a first connector 157 coupled to a shaft 155a of the first driving motor 155. [ A plurality of protrusions 158 are formed in the first connector 157. The plurality of projections 158 are spaced apart from one another.

When the ice bin 120 is mounted on the supporter 150, the plurality of protrusions 158 are inserted into the second connector 130. When the first driving motor 155 rotates, the plurality of protrusions 158 are rotated in contact with the plurality of ribs 132, respectively.

The second drive unit includes a second drive motor 159 and a lever 159a coupled to the second drive motor 159. When the second driving motor 159 rotates by a predetermined angle, the lever 159a lifts the power transmitting portion 126 and the shutter 125 rotates.

On the other hand, the cover 170 is formed with a cooling hole 170 through which cool air in the freezing chamber 11 passes.

Hereinafter, the process of discharging ice from the ice bin 120 will be described.

FIG. 7 is a view showing a state in which poured ice is discharged from an ice bin, and FIG. 8 is a view showing a state in which each ice is discharged from an ice bin.

Referring to FIG. 7, when the piece ice is selected by the type selection button, the first outlet 124a and the discharge chamber 122 are disconnected from each other by the shutter 125.

In this state, the rotation shaft 142 is rotated by the first drive motor 155. Here, ice stored in the storage chamber 121 is stored in the ice making unit 110.

When the rotation shaft 142 is rotated, the transfer unit 141 and the rotating blade 143 rotate.

Each ice stored in the storage chamber 121 is transferred to the discharge chamber 122 by the transfer unit 141. Each ice transferred to the discharge chamber 122 is crushed by the interaction of the rotating blade 143 and the fixed blade 144. The crushed ice is discharged to the outside of the ice bin 120 through the second outlet 128.

At this time, if the size of the crushed ice is smaller than the size of the second discharge port 128, it can not pass through the second discharge port 128, so that the crushed ice is further processed in the discharge chamber 122 . When the ice is again smaller than the size of the second outlet 128, the ice is discharged to the outside of the ice bin 120 through the second outlet 128.

8, when each ice is selected by the type selection button, the shutter 125 is rotated by the second driving motor 159 so that the first discharge port 124a and the discharge The chamber 122 is communicated.

In this state, the rotation shaft 142 is rotated by the first drive motor 155. When the rotation shaft 142 is rotated, the transfer unit 141 and the rotating blade 143 rotate.

Each ice stored in the storage chamber 121 is transferred to the discharge chamber 122 by the transfer unit 141. Each ice transferred to the discharge chamber 122 is discharged to the outside of the ice bin 120 through the first discharge port 124a without being crushed. Of course, each ice transferred to the discharge chamber 122 may be partially crushed by impact with the rotating blades 144. [ Therefore, in the present embodiment, ice having a size that does not pass through the second outlet 128 is collectively referred to as "each ice ".

Hereinafter, the operation of the dispenser according to the type of ice will be described.

Fig. 9 is a view showing the operation structure of the take-out unit according to the present embodiment, Fig. 10 is a view showing the operation of the dispenser when each ice is discharged, and Fig. 11 is a view showing the operation of the dispenser Fig.

9, the dispenser 40 includes a take-out unit 410 for discharging ice and a third drive unit for driving the take-out unit 410. As shown in FIG.

The take-out unit 410 is rotatably installed in the dispenser 40. The takeout unit 410 includes a first discharge passage 412 for discharging each ice and a second discharge passage 414 for discharging the pieces of ice.

The first discharge passage 412 is formed to have a size allowing each ice to pass through. That is, the inlet 412a and the outlet 412b of the first discharge passage 412 are formed larger than the respective ice.

The outlet 414b of the second discharge passage 414 is formed to be larger than the piece ice and the flow passage sectional area of the second discharge passage 414 is formed to be smaller from the inlet 414a to the outlet 414b.

Therefore, the pieces of ice can easily pass through the entrance of the bottle or the like.

A plurality of gear teeth 416 are formed on a peripheral surface of the take-out unit 410.

The third driving unit includes a third driving motor 420 and a driving gear 422 coupled to the third driving motor 420 and engaged with the gear 416.

The first discharge passage 412 or the second discharge passage 414 selectively communicates with the guide passage 204 by driving the third drive motor 420 according to the size of the ice.

Referring to FIG. 10, when each ice is selected by the type selection button, the first discharge passage 412 is communicated with the guide passage 204 by the rotation of the take-out unit 210. Then, each ice is discharged from the ice bin 120. Then, the ice discharged from the ice bin 120 is moved along the guide channel 204 and then discharged to the outside of the refrigerator through the first discharge channel 412. Of course, when each ice is taken out, a container or cup (C) having an inlet of a size larger than each ice will have to be placed on the dispenser 40.

11, when the piece ice is selected by the type selection button, the second discharge passage 414 is communicated with the guide passage 204 by the rotation of the take-out unit 410. As shown in FIG. The crushed ice pieces are discharged from the ice bin 120. Then, the ice discharged from the ice bin 120 is moved along the guide channel 204 and then discharged to the outside of the refrigerator through the second discharge channel 414. [ Of course, when each ice is taken out, a bottle B or the like having an inlet larger than each ice should be placed in the dispenser.

According to this embodiment, when the picked-up piece ice is taken out, the picked-up ice of a predetermined size or smaller is discharged by the net member, and the discharge flow path through which the picked ice is discharged by the selective rotation of the take- This inlet can be easily introduced into a narrow bottle or the like.

Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the inconvenience of crushing the crushed ice into a bottle smaller than the entrance of the bottle after the user takes out the ice, and to insert the crushed ice directly into the bottle.

12 is a sectional view showing an internal structure of an ice bin according to another embodiment.

The present embodiment is the same as the previous embodiment in the other portions, but differs in the ice bin structure. Therefore, only the characteristic parts of the present embodiment will be described below.

Referring to FIG. 12, the ice bin 120 of the present embodiment includes a discharge portion 224 for discharging ice. The discharge portion 224 includes a first discharge port 224a through which ice passes. The ice bin 120 includes a shutter 225 for selectively blocking the movement of each ice of the storage chamber 121 to the first outlet 224a. The shutter 225 is rotatably coupled to the ice bin 120.

The shutter 225 is provided with a plurality of second outlets 225a through which the pieces of ice having a predetermined size or less pass.

Accordingly, when each ice is selected by the type selection button, the shutter 225 is rotated and the ice is discharged through the first outlet 224a. On the other hand, when the piece ice is selected by the type selection button, pieces of ice having a predetermined size or smaller are discharged through the second outlet 225a.

Thus, in this embodiment, the shutter further performs the net member function of the previous embodiment.

The idea of the present embodiment is not limited to the above description, and may further include the following contents.

First, the positions of the ice-making unit, the ice bin, and the dispenser are not limited, and the ice-making unit, the ice bin, and the dispenser may be installed in the refrigerator body or the freezing chamber door or the refrigerating chamber door. For example, the ice-making unit and the ice bin may be provided in the refrigerator body, and the dispenser may be provided in the freezer compartment door or the refrigerator compartment door.

In addition, although the first and second discharge flow paths are provided in the blowout unit, a single discharge flow path may be formed, and the size of the discharge flow path may vary according to the type of ice. For example, the outlet size of the discharge passage may be adjusted depending on the type of ice.

In the above description, the structure in which the ice is taken out from the dispenser has been described, but it is needless to say that the refrigerator may further have a structure for taking out water.

1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the refrigerator door according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG.

3 is an exploded perspective view of the ice maker according to the present embodiment.

4 is a top view of the ice maker according to the present embodiment.

5 is a bottom view of the ice maker according to the present embodiment.

6 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the internal structure of the icemaker according to the embodiment.

7 is a view showing a state in which a piece of ice is discharged from an ice bin.

8 is a view showing how each ice is discharged from the ice bin.

9 is a view showing an operation structure of the take-out unit according to the present embodiment.

10 is a view showing operation of the dispenser when each ice is discharged;

11 is a view showing operation of the dispenser when poured ice is discharged;

12 is a sectional view showing an internal structure of an ice bin according to another embodiment;

Claims (11)

An ice making unit for generating ice; An ice bin in which ice produced in the ice-making unit is stored, and an ice crusher for crushing ice is provided; And a dispenser for discharging the ice stored in the ice bin to the outside, In the dispenser, And a drive unit for selectively moving the take-out unit in accordance with the size of the ice, wherein the take-out unit includes a take-out unit having a discharge passage for varying the size of the ice, In the ice bin, Wherein a net member for allowing the pieces of ice to pass through a predetermined size or less is placed in the discharge portion. The method according to claim 1, Wherein the discharge portion includes a first discharge port for discharging each ice and a second discharge portion formed in the net member for discharging the pieces of ice. 3. The method of claim 2, Wherein the ice bin further includes a shutter for selectively opening and closing the first outlet. The method according to claim 1, Wherein the net member is movably coupled to the ice bin. delete delete The method according to claim 1, Wherein the discharge passage includes a first discharge passage for discharging each ice and a second discharge passage for discharging the pieces of ice. 8. The method of claim 7, And the outlet of the second discharge channel is formed smaller than the inlet. An ice making unit for forming ice; An ice bin in which ice produced in the ice-making unit is stored, and an ice crusher for crushing ice is provided; And And a dispenser for discharging the ice stored in the ice bin to the outside, In the ice bin, A first outlet for discharging each ice; A second outlet for discharging poured ice of a predetermined size or smaller; And A shutter for selectively covering the first outlet, And the second outlet is formed in the shutter. 10. The method of claim 9, And a net member defining the second outlet. delete

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