KR101596502B1 - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, wherein a freezing unit and an ice bank are separately provided. The ice making chamber for accommodating the ice making unit is defined by a separate heat insulating wall structure.

Ice making machine, ice making unit, ice bank

Description

Refrigerator {Refrigerator}

The present invention relates to a refrigerator.

Generally, a refrigerator is a household appliance for storing foods at a low temperature.

The refrigerator has a structure having a refrigerating chamber in which the food is refrigerated at a room temperature of about 1 to 3 degrees Celsius and a freezing chamber in which the refrigerating chamber is frozen at below the freezing temperature. Depending on the position of the freezer compartment, it is divided into a top mount system, a side by side system, and a bottom freezer system.

In addition, the type of refrigerator is divided according to the location of the ice making assembly to make ice. An in-cabinet system in which an icemaker assembly is mounted in a refrigerator compartment or a freezer compartment, and an in-door system in which an icemaker assembly is mounted on a door for opening or closing a refrigerator compartment or a freezer compartment.

In recent years, there has been a tendency to favor a bottom freezer system in which a refrigerator room having a relatively high frequency of use is located on the upper side of a freezer compartment, and an ice maker assembly is disposed in the refrigerator compartment space so that a user can draw ice The refrigerator structure is becoming popular.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator in which the refrigerator compartment is located on the upper side and the refrigerator compartment door is closed and the refrigerator compartment is located in the refrigerator compartment.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator in which an ice making unit for making ice and an ice bank for storing ice are arranged separately from each other. Specifically, a refrigerator structure in which a freezing unit is mounted inside a refrigerator compartment and an ice bank is mounted on a refrigerator compartment door is provided.

In order to achieve this object, it is required to improve the ice-making chamber structure in which the ice-making unit is exposed to the cold room cold air so that the ice-making capacity is not lowered, and the ice guide structure for guiding the ice made in the ice- It is an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator which can satisfy such a demand.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a refrigerator comprising: a refrigerator compartment; a main body having a freezer compartment defined below the refrigerator compartment; A door for selectively opening and closing the refrigerator compartment; An ice making unit provided at one side of the inside of the refrigerating chamber and including a tray for producing ice and a guide member extending from one side edge of the tray and guiding movement of ice separated from the tray; An ice making chamber defined at one side of the inside of the refrigerating chamber and accommodating the ice making unit; And an ice supply unit provided on a rear surface of the door, for storing ice separated from the tray, and a dispenser provided on a front surface of the door, the dispenser for discharging ice stored in the ice bank to the outside .

According to the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention, the ice cubes can be safely guided to the ice bank in a structure in which the ice-making unit and the ice bank are separately mounted.

Hereinafter, a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It is to be understood that the spirit of the present invention encompasses all of the structures that occur as a result of the combination of the embodiments, as well as the structures presented by each of the one or more embodiments set forth below. It is to be understood that the scope of the present invention is not to be interpreted as being limited to the detailed description and drawings presented, but is only limited by the scope of the appended claims.

Meanwhile, a bottom freezer type refrigerator will be shown as an embodiment for implementing the idea of the present invention, but it is not limited to this, and it is also applicable to a top mount type refrigerator or a side by side type refrigerator. In other words, the basic premise for implementing the idea of the present invention is that all or part of the icemaker assembly is accommodated in the refrigerator compartment, and any kind of refrigerator can be adopted if these preconditions are satisfied.

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view showing an internal configuration of a refrigerator provided with an ice-making assembly according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the configuration of the refrigerator.

1 and 2, a refrigerator 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention includes a refrigerator compartment 15, a main body 11 defining a freezer compartment 16, A refrigerator compartment door 12 rotatably provided at both edges to selectively open and close the refrigerator compartment 15 and a freezer compartment door 13 selectively opening and closing the free compartment 16 and slidably moving forward and backward. A storage box may be provided on the back surface of the freezing chamber door 13. [

In detail, a machine room 111 is defined inside the main body 11 corresponding to the rear of the freezing chamber 16, and the machine room 111 accommodates parts constituting a refrigeration cycle such as a compressor and a condenser. An evaporator 22 is installed in the rear of the freezer compartment 16 and a cool air duct 18 extends from a space in which the evaporator 22 is accommodated to a top surface along the rear wall of the main body 11. [ A cool air discharge port is formed on a front surface or a side surface of the cool air duct 18. Therefore, the air cooled by the evaporator 22 rises along the cool air duct 18 and is supplied to the freezer compartment 16 and the refrigerating compartment 15.

Meanwhile, the refrigerating compartment 15 and the freezing compartment 16 are partitioned by a barrier 17 extending horizontally. The cool air duct 18 extends through the barrier 17 to the refrigerating chamber 15. An ice making duct 19 may be further provided in addition to the cool air duct 18 and the ice making duct 19 may communicate directly with a space in which the evaporator 22 is accommodated, May be provided in a branched form.

An ice making chamber 20 is formed at an upper corner of the refrigerating chamber 15 and an end of the ice making duct 19 is connected to a rear end of the ice making chamber 20. Accordingly, the cool air that rises along the ice making duct 19 is guided to the ice making chamber 20. The ice making chamber 24 is accommodated in the ice making chamber 20 and the ice making fan 23 can be mounted at a position near the rear end of the ice making chamber 20. Here, a cooling fan is provided on the outlet side of the space in which the evaporator 22 is accommodated, that is, a portion where the cool air duct 18 is started, and the ice-making fan 23 is installed in the refrigerator according to the type of the refrigerator Lt; / RTI > For example, when the ice making duct 19 is branched from the cool air duct 18, the ice making fan 23 may not be separately provided.

A discharge hole 201 for discharging ice is formed in a front portion of the ice making chamber 20 and the blowing opening 201 can be selectively opened and closed by a cooling air adjusting member 205. In the present embodiment, although the outlet 201 is shown as being inclined at a predetermined angle, it may be formed horizontally. A guide member (to be described later) is extended to one side of the ice making unit 24 so that ice cubes are allowed to pass through the outlet 201 along the guide member. Hereinafter, a detailed description will be given with reference to the drawings.

On the other hand, an ice supply unit 21 for storing ice made by the ice making unit 24 and discharging ice to the outside is provided on the rear surface of the refrigerator door 12.

Specifically, the ice supply unit 21 includes a housing 210 which houses therein an ice bank 211 for ice storage. A dispenser 25 capable of receiving ice stored in the ice supply unit 21 is formed on the front surface of the refrigerator compartment door 12. The dispenser 25 is located below the ice bank 211 and is recessed to a predetermined depth to receive a container for receiving ice.

A discharge channel 212 communicating with the outlet 201 of the ice making chamber 20 is formed on the upper side of the housing 210. The upper surface of the housing 210 may be inclined at the same angle as the front surface of the ice making chamber 20 where the blowing out port 201 is formed. Then, when the refrigerating compartment door 12 is closed, the inlet of the discharge duct 212 and the outlet 201 will coincide without deviating from each other. The discharge duct 212 is also provided with a separate air conditioning member 214 to selectively open and close the discharge duct 212. Although it has been described that the two cold air conditioning members 205 and 214 are provided to the air outlet 201 and the discharge duct 212, only one air conditioning member may be provided at the entrance of the discharge duct 212 or the outlet 201 are not necessarily excluded. The outlet of the discharge duct 212 communicates with the upper opening of the ice bank 211. Therefore, the ice made by the ice making unit 24 drops into the ice bank 211 along the discharge duct 212 through the ice-making process.

A hole for discharging ice is formed at one side of the bottom of the ice bank 211 and an ice chute 215 for guiding ice extraction is provided in the inside of the refrigerating chamber door 12 corresponding to the hole Is formed. The ice chute 215 passes through the upper surface of the dispenser 25 and a take-out lever 251 for taking out ice is formed behind the ice chute 215. The ice chute 215 is provided with a cool air adjusting member 216 so that ice can be selectively discharged.

In the ice bank 211, a conveying means 217 for conveying ice is provided. In detail, the conveying means 217 includes an auger which presses the ice toward the inlet of the ice chute 215 and a crusher which crushes the ice carried by the auger, The crusher may be provided on a single rotating shaft. The rotation shaft may be connected to a driving motor provided inside the refrigerator compartment door (12). The ice bank 211 can be drawn out from the housing 210. When the ice bank 211 is drawn out, the rotation axis can be separated from the driving motor. Here, it is noted that the vertically oriented auger structure disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 6,082,103 is also applicable to the inside of the ice bank 211. In addition, an auger structure in which a rotating shaft is inclined as disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 2008-0052503 may be applicable. In detail, the rotary shaft may extend in a direction to be interchanged with the refrigerator compartment door 12, or may be inclined in the vertical or horizontal direction, or may extend in parallel with the refrigerator compartment door 12 and may be inclined in the vertical direction.

A door may be provided on one side of the housing 210 for separating the ice bank 211. A bank door 213 is provided for separating the refrigerator compartment door 12 from the freezer compartment door 13 Define it. The bank door 213 may be rotatably connected to the housing 210, and the bank door 213 may be rotated about a vertical axis or a horizontal axis. The relationship between the rotation of the bank door 213 and the withdrawal of the ice bank 211 will be described in more detail below with reference to the drawings.

In the drawings, the same reference numerals as those shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 denote the same reference numerals in the drawings, and redundant introduction thereof will be omitted.

3 is a partial perspective view schematically showing a cool air flow path of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, a return hole 112 is formed at one side of the main body defining the refrigerating chamber 15 of the main body 11, and a return duct 113 having the return hole 112 as an inlet And extends into the main body 11. The other end corresponding to the outlet of the return duct 113 may be connected to the freezing chamber 16 or may be connected to a space where the evaporator 22 is accommodated. A hole communicating with the return hole 112 is formed in a side surface of the housing 210 constituting the ice supply unit 21, which will be described later.

The cold air supplied into the ice making chamber 20 through the ice making duct 19 drops into the ice supplying unit 21 through the blowout opening 201 of the ice making chamber 20. The air dropped into the ice supply unit 21 is returned to the freezer compartment 16 or the evaporator 22 through the return hole 112.

A part of the cool air supplied to the cool air duct 18 is discharged to the freezer compartment 16 and the remaining part of the cool air is discharged to the refrigerator compartment 15. The cold air existing in the refrigerating chamber (15) moves to the freezing chamber (16).

On the other hand, a return passage (not shown) communicating with the space in which the evaporator 22 is accommodated is formed at a rear side of the freezing chamber 15. Therefore, the cold air moving to the freezing chamber 16 is returned to the evaporator 22, so that the cold air continues to circulate in the refrigerator 10.

Here, although not shown, a supply hole may be formed at a position spaced apart from the return hole 112, and a supply duct connecting the supply hole and the space in which the evaporator 22 is accommodated may be extended. That is, in addition to a flow path structure in which cool air passing through the ice making chamber 20 is supplied to the ice supply unit 21, air cooled through heat exchange with the evaporator 22 is supplied to the ice supply unit 21 along the supply duct, It is also possible to propose a flow path structure that is directly supplied to the evaporator 21 and returned to the evaporator 22 along the return duct 113. [ It is to be understood that such a supply duct structure is fully understood and practicable by those skilled in the art, and is fully supported by the contents of FIG. 3, even if it is not shown in a separate drawing.

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of a refrigerator compartment door provided with an ice supply unit according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the refrigerator compartment door.

4 and 5, a water supply unit 21 protrudes from the rear of the refrigerator compartment door 12 and a water supply unit 21 is installed inside the water supply unit 21 in a space capable of accommodating the ice bank 211 .

In detail, the front surface of the housing 210 defining the outer shape of the water supply unit 21 is provided with the bank door 213 pivoted downward about a horizontal axis. As described above, the discharge duct 212 is formed in the housing 210, and the inlet of the discharge duct 212 is formed on the upper surface of the housing 210.

As shown in the drawing, when the bank door 213 rotates about the horizontal axis and the upper end is separated from the housing 210, the bank door 213 can be rotated up to 90 degrees from the vertical plane. Therefore, when the bank door 213 is rotated and opened, when the ice bank 211 is drawn out, the ice bank 211 will be slid out along the upper surface of the bank door 213. Then, since the ice bank 211 is supported by the bank door 213, it is not necessary for the user to take out the ice bank 211 and hold it by hand.

A return hole 218 is formed in one side of the housing 210 and the return hole 218 communicates with a return hole 112 formed in an inner side surface of the refrigerating chamber 15. That is, one side of the housing 210 where the return hole 218 is formed may be a side facing the side surface of the refrigerator compartment where the return hole 112 is formed when the refrigerator compartment door 12 is closed. A plurality of cool air discharge openings 219 communicating with the refrigerating chamber 15 may be formed on the side surface of the housing 210. When the cool air discharge port 219 is formed, a part of the cool air supplied into the housing 210 may be discharged into the refrigerating chamber 15.

6 is an external perspective view of an ice making unit constituting an ice making assembly according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, the ice making unit 24 constituting the ice making assembly according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a tray 241 in which water for icing is stored.

In detail, the tray 241 is divided into a plurality of cells, and the water stored in each cell is frozen to form one piece of ice. An ejector 245 is provided above the tray 241 and includes a plurality of pins 245b for separating ice formed in the cells and a shaft 245a for rotating the pins 245b . A guide surface 246 is formed on the upper surface of the tray 241 to allow ice to be slid down by the ejector 245. A guide member 247 ). The guide member 247 functions to guide ice, which is slid along the guide surface 246, to the outlet 201 of the ice-making chamber 20.

In detail, the guide member 247 extends downwardly from a point where the guide surface 246 ends. The end of the guide member 247 is positioned close to the outlet 201. A guide rib 247a may protrude from the upper edge of the guide member 247, respectively. The pair of guide ribs 247a may extend in a direction toward the end of the guide member 247. Specifically, the guide ribs 247a may have an interval equal to or smaller than the width of the outlet 201. Even if the width of the air outlet 201 is narrower than the width of the guide member 247 or the tray 241, all the ice will be guided to the air outlet 201.

A water supply unit 244 may be provided at one longitudinal end of the tray 241 and a motor and a cam for driving the ejector 245 may be installed at the other end opposite to the water supply unit 244. [ A control box 242 is provided. A hooking member 243 can be extended to a side of the tray 241 opposite to the guide member 247. The hooking member 243 is a means for fixing the ice making unit 24 to the one surface of the ice making chamber 20 by a fastening member. That is, a fastening member passing through the hooking member 243 is inserted into one side of the ice-making chamber 20, so that the ice-making unit 24 is fixed in the ice-making chamber 20. One side of the ice making chamber 20 into which the fastening member is inserted may be an inner wall of the refrigerating chamber defining the ice making chamber 20 or an insulating wall defining the ice making chamber 20.

7 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a state in which the ice making unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention is housed in the ice making chamber.

Referring to FIG. 7, the freezing unit 24 is placed in the lateral direction at a position close to the inside of the ice making chamber 20, in particular, to the front end of the ice making chamber 20. An end portion of the guide member 247 extending from one side of the ice making unit 24 is located at a position near the outlet 201 of the ice making chamber 20. The end of the guide member 247 and the outlet 201 may be brought into contact with each other or spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance. When the guide member 247 is separated from the blow-out port 201, the ice cubes are spaced apart from each other by a distance not to fall into a clearance. The rear portion of the ice making chamber 20, that is, the space behind the ice making unit 24, serves as a passage for guiding cool air supplied from the ice making duct 19 to the ice making unit 24. [ As described above, the air conditioning unit 205 can be rotatably provided on the air outlet 201. The cold air can be selectively supplied to the ice supply unit 21 by the cold air conditioning unit 205. [ For example, when the temperature inside the ice supply unit 21 is maintained below the set temperature, the cool air adjustment member 205 is closed to supply the cool air inside the ice making chamber 20 to the ice supply unit 21 . Conversely, when the temperature inside the ice supply unit 21 exceeds the set temperature, the cold air inside the ice making chamber 20 is supplied to the ice supply unit 21 by opening the cold air adjusting member 205, Ice stored in the ice bank 211 can be prevented from melting and clogging. Of course, in the ice-making process of separating ice from the ice-making unit 24 and transferring the ice to the ice bank 211, regardless of the temperature inside the ice-supplying unit 21, .

8 is a plan view showing a state where the ice making unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention is accommodated in the ice making chamber.

8, when the refrigerating compartment door 12 is closed, the upper end of the ice supplying unit 21 is positioned directly below the ice making chamber 20.

In detail, the upper end of the ice supply unit 21 is in close proximity to or comes into close contact with the lower end of the front surface of the ice making chamber 20. The inlet of the discharge duct 212 formed at the upper end of the ice supply unit 21 communicates with the outlet 201 formed at the front end of the ice making chamber 20.

The return hole 218 formed in the side surface of the ice supply unit 21 is connected to the inlet of the return duct 113 formed in the inner side wall of the refrigerating chamber 15 in a state where the refrigerator compartment door 12 is closed, To form a cool air return passage. Here, a sealing member may be provided around the edge of the return hole 218 or around the inlet of the return duct 113. In other words, when the refrigerator compartment door 12 is closed, the return hole 218 is brought into close contact with the inlet of the return duct 113, so that a part of the cool air that is returned can be prevented from leaking to the refrigerator compartment 15 .

Of course, though not shown in the figure, a discharge port is formed in the ice supply unit 21, specifically, the side surface portion of the housing 210 so that a part of cool air inside the ice supply unit 21 flows into the refrigerating chamber 15 It can be discharged.

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the internal construction of a refrigerator provided with the ice making assembly according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a cross- 11 is a front perspective view of a refrigerator compartment door provided with an ice supply unit on the rear surface thereof, and FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an internal configuration of a refrigerator provided with the refrigerator compartment according to the second embodiment of the present invention. to be.

Referring to FIG. 9, the refrigerator according to the second embodiment of the present invention is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment, except that the freezing unit 24 is placed in the front-rear direction of the refrigerator.

In detail, the shape of the guide member is different from that of the first embodiment while the ice-making unit 24 is disposed in the ice-making chamber 20 in the front-rear direction. Although the front surface of the ice making chamber 20 is inclined in a manner that the front surface and the bottom surface of the ice tray 20 are orthogonal to each other, this portion can be designed as in the first embodiment. Of course, it is also possible that the structure of the ice-making chamber front portion of the first embodiment is designed in the same manner as the structure of the ice-making chamber front portion of the second embodiment.

The same reference numerals as those used in the first embodiment denote the same parts in the present embodiment, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Referring to FIG. 10, the ice making chamber 20 is defined as extending from the front end to the rear end of the refrigerating chamber 15, and the ice making unit 24 is disposed in the ice making chamber 20 in the forward and backward directions. That is, the control box 242 of the ice-making unit 24 is placed in front of the ice-making chamber 20, and the water-supplying portion 244 is placed behind the ice-making chamber 20. It is of course possible that the control box 242 is placed behind the ice making chamber 20 and the water supplying portion 244 is placed in front of the ice making chamber 20.

A guide member 248 is formed on a side surface of the tray 241 of the ice making unit 24. The guide member 248 is formed to be equal to or longer than the length of the tray 241, and is inclined downwardly in the width direction.

Further, the tray 241 is inclined downward from the rear end to the front end. The guide member 248 includes a first surface 248b inclined downwardly away from the guide surface 246 of the ice making unit 24 and a second surface 248b extending horizontally at the end of the first surface 248b A second surface 248c inclined downward toward the outlet 201 and a guide wall 248a protruding from the edges of the first surface 248b and the second surface 248c.

The first surface 248b may be flush with the guide surface 246 of the ice making unit 24 or may be less inclined than the guide surface 246. [ If the first surface 248b is less inclined downward than the guide surface 246, the speed of the ice slipping down along the guide surface 246 is reduced so that the ice hits the guide wall 248a It is prevented from breaking or splashing. The guide wall 248a serves as a fence for preventing ice from being released from the guide member 248 and falling on the bottom surface of the ice making chamber 20. [

On the other hand, the second surface 248c extends further from the end of the first surface 248b with a predetermined width. The second surface 248c is not inclined in the width direction like the slide, but is inclined in the longitudinal direction. In other words, the second surface 248c is inclined downward toward the bottom of the ice making chamber 20 from the rear end toward the front end. The front end of the second surface 248C is located at or close to the outlet 201 so that ice that slides along the second surface 248c flows through the outlet 201 into the ice bank 211).

11 and 12, a return hole 218 is formed in a side surface portion of the housing 210 forming the outer shape of the ice supply unit 21, and a return duct 113 is formed on a side surface of the refrigerating chamber 15 . The structure in which the return hole 218 and the inlet of the return duct 113 are communicated is already described in the first embodiment, and a further explanation will be omitted.

When the refrigerator door 12 is completely closed, an outlet 201 formed at the bottom of the ice making chamber 20 is connected to the outlet of the discharge duct 212 formed in the ice supplying unit 21 And is positioned in the upper room. Therefore, the ice falling through the blowout opening 201 falls to the ice bank 211 through the discharge duct 212.

FIG. 13 is a partial perspective view showing an ice-making chamber for receiving an ice-making unit structure according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view illustrating an ice-making chamber bonding structure according to an embodiment.

13 and 14, the ice making chamber according to the embodiment of the present invention is not a structure which is injected into the refrigerator body 11 as one body, but a structure in which a separate heat insulating wall member is coupled to the inner wall of the refrigerating chamber 15 It accomplishes. In the following description, reference numeral 20 is defined as an ice-making chamber, but it should be interpreted that it includes an insulating wall for defining the ice-making chamber.

In detail, a structure is formed on the inner side surface and the upper surface of the refrigerating chamber 15 so that the heat insulating wall constituting the ice making chamber 20 is coupled.

The heat insulating wall for defining the ice making chamber 20 is composed of a side portion, a front portion and a bottom portion. The ice making chamber 20 forms a substantially cubic space by the side walls and the upper surface of the heat insulating wall and the refrigerating chamber 15.

A guide rib 31 formed of an upper guide rib 311, a rear guide rib 312, a lower guide rib 314 and a side guide rib 313 is formed on the inner wall of the refrigerating chamber 15, Is formed on the front surface of the base plate 31.

The upper surface guide rib 311 extends in the front and rear direction on the upper surface of the refrigerating chamber 15 and the rear surface guide rib 312 extends a predetermined length from the rear end of the upper surface guide rib 311 downward. That is, the rear guide ribs 312 protrude from the rear wall of the refrigerating chamber 15. The bottom guide ribs 314 extend laterally from the lower ends of the rear guide ribs 312. That is, the bottom guide rib 314 is a rib structure protruding from the rear wall of the refrigerating chamber 15, and horizontally extends toward a corner where the side face and the rear face of the refrigerating chamber meet. The side guide ribs 313 are ribs protruding from the side surface of the refrigerating chamber 15 and horizontally extend for a predetermined length at the end of the bottom guide rib 314.

The contact ribs 32 protrude toward the front end of the upper surface guide ribs 311 and the side surface guide ribs 313. Specifically, the contact ribs 32 are L-shaped ribs protruding from the side surface and the upper surface of the refrigerating chamber 15. A fitting protrusion 321 protrudes from the front surface of the contact rib 32. These guide ribs 31 and the contact ribs 32 are joined to the heat insulating walls for defining the ice making chamber 20, and the structure of the heat insulating wall will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

On the other hand, a water supply port 40 protrudes from the rear wall of the refrigerating chamber 15 and is positioned in the freezing space 20. The hooking member 243 protruding from the side surface of the freezing unit 24 is fixed to the side surface of the freezing chamber by the fastening member. When the ice making unit 24 is fixed to the side surface of the refrigerating compartment 15 defining the ice making room space, the water supplying port 40 is positioned in the room directly above the water supplying part 244 of the ice making unit 24. In this state, the heat insulating wall is mounted to complete the ice making room space.

FIG. 15 is a front perspective view showing an ice making room insulation wall structure according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 16 is a rear perspective view of the heat insulating wall structure.

15 and 16, the heat insulating wall structure defining the ice making chamber 20 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a front portion 202, a side portion 204, and a bottom portion 203.

In detail, the front part 202, the side part 204, and the bottom part 203 are formed as one body, and the inside is filled with a foam for heat insulation. That is, it may be made of the same material as that of the refrigerator body 11. The front, bottom and one side of the ice making chamber are defined by the heat insulating wall, and the other side and top surface of the ice making chamber are defined by the side surface and the upper surface of the refrigerating chamber (15). An outlet 201 is formed on the front end side of the bottom portion 203.

On the other hand, upper and lower guide grooves 204a and 204b are formed on the upper side and rear side of the side part 204, respectively. An upper surface guide rib 311 of the refrigerating compartment is inserted into the upper surface guide groove 204a and a rear guide rib 312 of the refrigerating compartment is inserted into the rear guide groove 204b.

The side surface guide grooves 203a and the bottom surface guide grooves 203b are formed on the side surface and the rear surface of the bottom surface portion 203, respectively. The side guide ribs 313 of the refrigerating compartment are inserted into the side guide grooves 203a and the bottom guide ribs 314 of the refrigerating compartment are inserted into the bottom guide grooves 203b.

A fitting groove 202a is formed on the rear surface of the front portion 202 and a fitting protrusion 321 of the fitting rib 32 is inserted into the fitting groove 202a.

FIG. 17 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line I-I 'of FIG. 13, FIG. 18 is a side sectional view taken along line II-II' of FIG. 13, Sectional view.

The upper surface guide ribs 311 and the side surface guide grooves 203a are formed in the upper surface guide grooves 204a and the side surface guide grooves 203a of the side surface portion 204, The heat insulating wall 20 is pushed backward from the front of the refrigerating chamber so that the guide rib 313 is inserted. The heat insulating wall 20 is pushed until the rear guide rib 312 and the bottom guide rib 314 are completely inserted into the rear guide groove 204b and the bottom guide groove 203b of the side part 204 . Then, the fitting protrusion 321 is completely inserted into the fitting groove 202a of the front portion 202. [ Thus, the heat insulating wall bent to define three sides of the ice making chamber is coupled to the inside of the refrigerating chamber through one assembly process.

A sealing member may be attached to a point where the rim of the heat insulating walls and the inner wall of the refrigerating compartment are in contact with each other to minimize the leakage of cold air through a gap between the heat insulating wall and the inner wall of the refrigerating compartment. In order to exclude the possibility that the heat insulating wall 20 is separated from the refrigerating chamber during the movement of the refrigerator, the front part 202 and the side part 204 and the bottom part 203 are screwed together So that it can be fixed to the inner wall of the refrigerating compartment. In one embodiment, the fastening member may be inserted into the fitting protrusion 321 through the front portion 202.

FIG. 20 is a partial perspective view showing the internal structure of a refrigerating compartment for forming an ice making chamber according to another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 21 is a front perspective view of a heat insulating wall structure according to another embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 23 is a rear perspective view of the heat insulating wall structure. Fig.

20 to 23, a plurality of guide ribs are formed on the inner side surface and the upper surface of the refrigerating chamber 15, which is the same as the embodiment of FIG. However, there is a difference in that the front guide rib is provided instead of the contact rib.

Further, in this embodiment, the heat insulating wall corresponding to the front part is closely attached to the side face portion and the bottom face portion as separate parts.

The upper guide ribs 331, the rear guide ribs 332, the bottom guide ribs 334 and the side guide ribs 333 are formed on the inner wall of the refrigerating chamber 15 as in the previous embodiment. In this embodiment, a front guide rib 335 is formed at a position where the contact rib 32 of Fig. 14 is formed.

The heat insulating wall structure according to the present embodiment includes a side face portion 204 and a bottom face portion 203 which are made of one body and a front face portion 203 which is in contact with the front end of the side face portion 204 and the bottom face portion 203 in the form of a separate member (202). Here, an L-shaped heat insulating material defining the side surface portion 204 and the bottom surface portion 203 is defined as a first heat insulating member, and the front surface portion 202 is defined as a second heat insulating member. In the present embodiment, since the front portion 202 is provided as a separate member, the front portion 202 can be coupled with the front guide ribs 335 in a sliding manner.

 The bottom surface portion 203 is formed with a side surface guide groove 203b, a bottom surface guide groove 203a, and a front surface guide groove 203b. The top surface guide groove 204a and the bottom surface guide groove 204b are formed in the side surface portion 204, (203c) is formed. That is, guide grooves are formed on all three sides of the bottom portion 203. A front guide groove 202b is formed on an upper surface and a side surface of the front part 202. The front guide groove 202b is a groove into which the front guide rib 335 is inserted.

First, the first heat insulating member including the bottom surface portion 203 and the side surface portion 204 is slidably coupled from the front to the rear of the refrigerating chamber, and then the second heat insulating member Is slidably engaged with the front surface of the first heat insulating member in a direction intersecting with the moving direction of the first heat insulating member. A sealing member may be interposed between the contact surfaces of the first and second heat insulating members and the contact surfaces of the heat insulating wall including the first and second heat insulating members and the inner wall of the refrigerating chamber. In addition, the front portion 202 corresponding to the first heat insulating member may be further secured to the inner wall of the refrigerating chamber by a fastening member such as a screw.

In the above embodiment, the front portion 202 is provided as a separate member. However, it is also possible that one of the bottom portion 203 and the side portion 204 is coupled to another member.

Meanwhile, in the above description, the ice-making unit 24 is fixed to the inner wall of the refrigerating chamber, and then the heat-insulating wall for forming the ice-making chamber is coupled. However, other methods are also possible. That is, after the ice making unit 24 is fixed to the inside of the heat insulating wall constituting the ice making chamber, it is also possible to assemble the heat insulating wall in the order of fixing to the inner wall surface of the refrigerating chamber.

24 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another embodiment of the cold air flow path of the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention.

In the above description, the cold air provided from the evaporator provided on the rear side of the freezing chamber 16 is supplied to the ice making chamber 20, but in the present embodiment, a separate evaporator is provided in the ice making chamber 20 .

24, a suction hole 209 is formed on one side of the ice making chamber 20, and the evaporator 222 for ice making is accommodated in the ice making chamber 20. [ The ice making fan 23 is installed in front of or behind the ice making evaporator 222.

According to this configuration, air in the refrigerating chamber (15) flows into the ice making chamber (20) through the suction hole (209) and is cooled while passing through the ice making evaporator (222). Then, the cooled air is moved to the ice making unit 24 by the ice making fan 23. Therefore, the space in which the evaporator 22 is accommodated and the ice making duct connecting the ice making chamber 20 may not be provided.

 Meanwhile, the flow path structure of the cool air passing through the ice making chamber 20 is the same as that shown in the previous embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front perspective view showing an internal structure of a refrigerator provided with an ice-making assembly according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG.

2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a configuration of the refrigerator.

3 is a partial perspective view schematically showing a cold air flow path of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention;

4 is a rear perspective view of a refrigerator compartment door provided with an ice supply unit according to an embodiment of the present invention;

5 is a front perspective view of the refrigerator compartment door.

6 is an external perspective view of an ice making unit constituting an ice making assembly according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

7 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a state in which the ice making unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention is accommodated in the ice making chamber.

8 is a plan view showing a state in which the ice making unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention is accommodated in the ice making chamber.

FIG. 9 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an internal structure of a refrigerator provided with an ice-making assembly according to a second embodiment of the present invention; FIG.

10 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the ice-making assembly and the ice supply unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention in a state where the refrigerator compartment door is closed;

11 is a front perspective view of a refrigerator compartment door provided with an ice supply unit on its back side;

12 is a cross-sectional view showing an internal structure of a refrigerator having an icemaker assembly according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

13 is a partial perspective view showing a state in which an ice making chamber for accommodating the structure of the ice making unit according to the embodiment of the present invention is mounted inside the refrigerating chamber.

FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view showing an ice making chamber coupling structure according to an embodiment; FIG.

15 is a front perspective view showing an ice-making room insulation wall structure according to an embodiment of the present invention;

16 is a rear perspective view of the heat insulating wall structure.

FIG. 17 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line I-I 'of FIG. 13; FIG.

FIG. 18 is a side sectional view cut along II-II 'of FIG. 13; FIG.

FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III 'of FIG. 13; FIG.

20 is a partial perspective view showing the internal structure of a refrigerating compartment for forming an ice making chamber according to another embodiment of the present invention;

21 is a front perspective view of a heat insulating wall structure according to another embodiment of the present invention;

22 is a side perspective view of the heat insulating wall structure.

23 is a rear perspective view of the heat insulating wall structure.

24 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another embodiment of the cold air flow path of the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (14)

A main body having a freezing chamber and a freezing chamber defined below the freezing chamber; A door for selectively opening and closing the refrigerator compartment; An ice making unit provided at one side of the inside of the refrigerating chamber and including a tray for producing ice and a guide member extending from one side edge of the tray and guiding movement of ice separated from the tray; An ice making chamber defined at one side of the inside of the refrigerating chamber and accommodating the ice making unit; And And an ice supply unit provided on the rear surface of the door for storing ice separated from the tray, The ice supply unit includes: A housing formed on a rear surface of the door and having an opening formed at one side thereof, An ice bank accommodated in the housing, A bank door rotatably connected to the housing around a horizontal axis to selectively open and close the opening, And a dispenser provided on a front surface of the door for discharging the ice stored in the ice bank to the outside, Wherein the ice bank is slidable from the housing through the opening, and the drawn ice bank is supported by the opened bank door. The method according to claim 1, Further comprising an ice-making fan located behind the ice-making chamber. 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, An outlet for ejecting ice is formed in the bottom of the ice making chamber, Wherein the guide member extends toward the outlet and slopes downward. The method of claim 3, The ice supply unit includes: A discharge duct in which an inlet portion communicates with the outlet, and an outlet portion communicates with the ice bank, Further comprising an ice chute extending from a bottom surface of a space for accommodating the ice bank and connected to the dispenser. 5. The method of claim 4, Wherein at least one side of the housing is provided with a cool air discharge port to discharge the cool air inside the housing to the refrigerator compartment. 5. The method of claim 4, An evaporator provided in the main body to generate cool air; Further comprising a return duct extending along a side portion of the refrigerating compartment and communicating with a space in which the evaporator is accommodated, Wherein a return hole is formed in a side surface of the housing opposite to a side surface of the refrigerating chamber where the return duct is formed when the door is closed, the return hole being aligned with the inlet of the return duct. 5. The method of claim 4, And a cold air conditioner mounted on at least one of the air outlet, the discharge duct, and the ice chute. The method of claim 3, Wherein the ice-making unit is disposed in a lateral direction inside the ice-making chamber. 9. The method of claim 8, Further comprising guide ribs formed on an edge of an upper surface of the guide member so as to concentrate the separated ice toward the outlet. The method of claim 3, Wherein a portion of the heat insulating wall defining the ice making chamber in which the blowout opening is formed is inclined rearward, Wherein an upper portion of the ice supply unit corresponding to the outlet is inclined in the same manner as a heat insulating wall of a portion where the outlet is formed. The method of claim 3, Wherein the ice making unit is disposed in the forward and backward directions within the ice making chamber. 12. The method of claim 11, The guide member includes a first surface extending downwardly sloping from a side edge of the tray, And a second surface extending further from an end of the first surface and sloping downward forward. 13. The method of claim 12, And a front end of the second surface is positioned close to the outlet. 13. The method of claim 12, And a guide wall extending upward from an edge of the first surface and the second surface to prevent detachment of separated ice.

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