KR20220155003A - Ice making device and refrigerator including the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides an ice maker capable of providing transparent ice that can be maintained for a longer period of time and a visually aesthetic sense, and a refrigerator including the same. According to the present invention, the ice maker comprises: an ice maker body installed in an inner space of a refrigerator equipped with a door; a control box provided at one end of the ice maker body in the longitudinal direction and in which a plurality of electrical components are embedded; an ice-making tray rotatably mounted on one side of the ice maker body, positioned on one side of the control box, and having a plurality of ice-making grooves in which ice-making water is accommodated; and a cooling control means disposed in a shape surrounding at least one surface of the ice-making tray.

Description

Ice maker and refrigerator including the same {ICE MAKING DEVICE AND REFRIGERATOR INCLUDING THE SAME}

The present invention relates to an ice maker and a refrigerator including the same.

In general, a refrigerator is a device that prevents deterioration of food at room temperature by storing food at a low temperature. Recently, a product equipped with an ice maker for a refrigerator that is provided in a refrigerator and provides ice to a user separately from food has been released.

An ice maker for a refrigerator includes an ice making tray having a plurality of ice making grooves for automatically receiving water and making ice of a certain size, an ice bank provided under the ice making tray to store ice flaked by an ice shaving motor, and the asis bank. and a driving unit mounted on one side of and driving the ice to transport the ice.

Here, there may be two methods for separating the ice from the ice-making tray. The ice-making tray itself is twisted using the above-described ice-making motor to separate the ice from the ice-making groove, and then A twist type that drops into an ice bank, and an operation of rotating a separate ice removal ejector after separating the ice from the ice making groove by applying a predetermined amount of ice removal heat using an ice removal heater to an ice removal tray provided with a metal material. It is a heater type that pushes the ice tray to one side and drops it to the ice bank below it.

In recent years, demand for more transparent and clean ice as well as various shapes such as circular shapes for cocktails is increasing.

Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 2000-0041567 (2000.07.15. Publication date)

The present invention has been made to solve the above technical problems, and provides a structure that blocks cold air directly contacting one surface of an ice tray, thereby providing transparent ice that can be maintained for a longer period of time and visually aesthetics. Its object is to provide an ice maker and a refrigerator including the same.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an ice maker capable of more effectively making ice into transparent ice by disposing an ice making tray on an ice making tray of a twist type ice maker, and a refrigerator including the same.

The objects of the present invention are not limited to the tasks mentioned above, and other tasks not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

An ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention,

an ice maker main body installed in an inner space of a refrigerator equipped with a door;

a control box provided at one end of the ice maker body in the longitudinal direction and in which a plurality of electric components are embedded;

an ice-making tray rotatably mounted on one side of the ice maker main body, positioned on one side of the control box, and having a plurality of ice-making grooves in which ice-making water is accommodated; and

A cooling control means disposed in a shape surrounding at least one surface of the ice making tray.

In one example of the present invention, the cooling regulation unit may be spaced apart from the ice making tray by a predetermined distance.

In one example of the present invention, the cooling control unit may be formed of an insulating material to block cold air from being transferred to the ice making tray.

In one example of the present invention, the ice-making groove of the ice-making tray may have a circular or elliptical cross section.

In one example of the present invention, the moving unit is disposed to be able to go up and down between the ice maker main body and the ice maker tray, and includes at least one heating element generating heat in a direction of the ice maker tray; and

It may further include; a lifting driver providing a driving force to allow the moving unit to move up and down.

In one example of the present invention, the movable unit may be configured to move up and down in association with a twist rotation operation of the ice making tray.

In one example of the present invention, the heating element may include a heater operated by DC power.

In one example of the present invention, the heating element may be wholly or at least partially buried in the lower portion of the moving unit so that a portion thereof is exposed, and heat generated by an external power source may be radiated toward the ice making tray.

In one example of the present invention, the heating element may include a ceramic heater, cement, a thin metal plate, a local heating element, a PTC heater (positive temperature coefficient heater), a surface heater, or a cord heater.

Meanwhile, the present invention provides a refrigerator including the ice maker.

An ice maker and a refrigerator including the same according to an embodiment of the present invention provide a structure that blocks cold air directly contacting one surface of an ice tray, thereby providing transparent ice that can be maintained for a longer time and a sense of aesthetics visually. provide an effect.

An ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention and a refrigerator including the same provide an effect of more effectively breaking ice into transparent ice by disposing a heater for ice making in an ice making tray of a twist type ice maker.

1 is a perspective view showing the inside of a refrigerator equipped with an ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention;
2 is a schematic perspective view showing an ice making tray of an ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention;
3 is a schematic configuration diagram of an ice making tray according to an embodiment of the present invention;
4 to 5 are diagrams illustrating an operation process of an ice making tray according to an embodiment of the present invention;
6 to 8 are views of a heating element provided on one side of an ice making tray according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a specific embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In adding reference numerals to components of each drawing, it should be noted that the same components have the same numerals as much as possible even if they are displayed on different drawings. In addition, in describing an embodiment of the present invention, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known configuration or function hinders understanding of the embodiment of the present invention, the detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In describing the components of the embodiment of the present invention, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), and (b) may be used. These terms are only used to distinguish the component from other components, and the nature, order, or order of the corresponding component is not limited by the term. In addition, unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs. Terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the meaning in the context of the related art, and unless explicitly defined in the present application, they should not be interpreted in an ideal or excessively formal meaning. don't

1 is a perspective view showing the inside of a refrigerator equipped with an ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a twist-type ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, referring to FIG. 1 , the refrigerator 1 may include a cabinet forming a storage compartment with an open front, and at least one door 8 or 9 opening and closing the open front of the storage compartment.

The storage compartment may include at least one of a refrigerating compartment for storing food in a refrigerated state and a freezing compartment for storing food in a frozen state. The refrigerator 1 of this embodiment is exemplified as including both the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment, and the refrigerating compartment may be provided above the freezing compartment.

The doors 8 and 9 may include a refrigerating compartment door 8 opening and closing the refrigerating compartment and a freezing compartment door 9 opening and closing the freezing compartment. There are two refrigerating compartment doors 8 disposed on the left and right of each other, so that the left refrigerating compartment door 8 can open and close the left side, which is part of the refrigerating compartment, and the right refrigerating compartment door 8 can open and close the right side, which is the rest of the refrigerating compartment. can

The ice box may be installed in the storage compartment of the refrigerator 1 . The ice box may be disposed below the ice maker 100 . The ice box may be formed in a tubular shape with an open top. Ice made in the ice maker 100 may be transferred from the ice maker 100 to the ice box, and may be received and stored in the ice box.

An auger may be disposed in the ice box. The auger may be rotatably installed in the ice box in a circumferential direction. Both ends of the auger may be rotatably coupled to both sides of the ice box, respectively. A spiral groove may be formed on an outer circumferential surface of the auger. When the auger rotates, the ice stored in the ice box may be transferred to the outside of the ice box through the spiral groove. The auger may be rotated by a driving force of an auger motor installed on one side of the ice box.

The ice maker 100 may be installed in at least one of the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment. In the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, the ice maker 100 may be installed in the upper left corner of the refrigerating compartment.

The ice maker 100 may receive ice-making water from the refrigerator 1, and convert the ice-making water into ice by cold air supplied from the refrigerating cycle of the refrigerator 1 to the storage compartment to manufacture the ice. .

The ice maker 100 according to the present embodiment may include a heater type and a twist type according to the type of ice to be made.

Here, among the ice makers according to an embodiment of the present invention, the twist type ice maker includes a control box 110 equipped with a drive unit (not shown) in which at least one or more gears are interposed, and one side of the control box 110. It may include an ice making tray 200 provided on and forming a plurality of ice making grooves 15 .

Control box 110 of ice maker 100 may accommodate a plurality of electrical components including a driving motor and gears for driving the driving unit. The driving unit in the control box 110 may be controlled so that an operation is performed through a control unit (not shown). An ejector (not shown) rotatably mounted on the ice making tray 200 may be rotated by the driving force of the driving motor to eject ice from the ice making groove 15 .

The full ice detection unit 111 may be formed as a lever type rotatably provided in the control box 110 . The full ice detection unit 111 may include an optical sensor (not shown) composed of a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit. The signal detected by the full ice detection unit 111 may be input to the controller, and the controller may determine whether the ice stored in the ice bank (not shown) is full of ice through the signal input from the full ice detection unit 111. When the ice stored in the ice bank is in a full ice state, the control unit may stop the supply of ice-making water supplied to the ice-making groove 15 and stop the production of ice. Of course, if the ice stored in the ice bank is not in a full ice state, the controller may restart the production of the ice. The lifespan of the optical sensor may be improved by configuring the optical sensor to be activated (ON) only during periodic or non-periodic full ice detection.

Meanwhile, among the ice makers according to an embodiment of the present invention, a twist type ice maker, as shown in FIG. 2 , includes a control box 110 and a control box 110 in which the same drive unit as the heater type ice maker is accommodated. It includes an ice making tray 200 provided on one side of and formed with a plurality of ice making grooves 15 and rotatably provided at a predetermined angle.

Heater-type ice makers and twist-type ice makers may be classified according to whether an ice shaving heater (not shown) is present and whether the ice tray 200 rotates to twist. In particular, the location of the drive motor disposed inside the drive box and the design of the gear set may be different depending on whether the heater type or the twist type is used.

In the case of a heater-type ice maker, when ice-making is completed in the ice-making groove 15 of the ice-making tray 200, the ice-making heater applies a predetermined amount of heat to the ice-making tray 200, and then a plurality of ejectors The ejector rod (not shown) equipped with a pin (not shown) is rotated by the interlocking operation of the drive motor and gear set provided inside the driving box 50, and the ejector pin is rotated to remove the flaked ice from the bottom thereof. It is driven to store in an ice storage bowl (not shown).

In addition, in the case of the twist type ice maker according to the present invention, when ice making in the ice making groove 15 of the ice maker tray 200 is completed, the gear set is driven interlockingly while the drive unit is driven, and the gear set As the ice tray 200 directly connected to one of the gear shafts is rotated in one direction, one end is twisted in an interfering motion, and by this twisting motion, the ice made in the ice making groove 15 is separated and at the same time the lower part thereof is twisted. Ice is dropped into the ice storage container and stored therein.

Hereinafter, the twist type ice maker 100 according to the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

2 is a schematic perspective view showing an ice making tray of an ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of an ice making tray according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to these drawings, an ice maker 100 according to the present invention, a control box 110 provided at one end of the main body of the ice maker 100 in the longitudinal direction and having a plurality of electric components embedded therein, and one side of the main body of the ice maker 100 The ice tray 200 rotatably mounted on the control box 110 and having a plurality of ice making grooves 15 in which ice making water is accommodated and a cooling control means 210 disposed on one side of the ice tray 200 ) may be included.

3 to 5 are shown as examples for explaining one embodiment, but are not limited thereto, and a storage unit in which ice is moved after ice is made, an auger motor installed in the storage unit, a screw, an ice box, etc. The composition omitted the city.

The main body of the ice maker 100 may have a rectangular shape as a whole, and an upper portion of the main body of the ice maker 100 may include an open portion. Both ends of the ice tray 200 are rotatably coupled to both sides of the inner circumferential surface of the main body. It can be.

The ice making tray 200 may have circular or elliptical ice making grooves 15 formed therein. The ice-making grooves 15 may be formed in the shape of a plurality of concave grooves spaced apart from each other along the length direction of the ice-making tray 200, preferably having a circular or elliptical cross section.

A lift drive unit (not shown) is formed on one side of the ice making tray 200 , and the lift drive unit may provide a driving force to substantially move the moving unit 300 up and down. The moving unit 300 may be disposed to move up and down between the ice maker main body 101 and the ice tray 200 . The moving unit 300 may be formed of a plastic injection molding or a metal material.

Meanwhile, the cooling regulation means 210 according to the present invention may be formed in a shape that surrounds and is spaced apart from the outer circumferential surface of the ice tray 200 by a predetermined distance. That is, the cooling control unit 210 is formed in a shape that surrounds the side surface and the lower surface of the ice tray 200 and is spaced apart by a predetermined distance, so that cold air flowing in the ice maker 100 directly hits the ice tray 200. contact can be prevented. Therefore, since the ice making process gradually progresses by allowing the cooling process to proceed in the cooling atmosphere of the ice maker 100, more transparent and hard ice C may be produced.

Of course, the cooling regulation means 210 is not particularly limited as long as it is a material capable of blocking cold air so that the cold air does not come into direct contact with the ice tray 200 .

4 to 5 are diagrams illustrating an operation process of an ice making tray according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to these drawings, the operation process in which the ice-making of the double-structured ice-making tray 200 equipped with the aforementioned heating element H will be described with reference to the drawings, as described above, the ice maker 100 according to the present invention The moving unit 300 of the ice tray 200 is formed to move up and down in conjunction with the rotation of the ice making tray 200 . On the upper side of the ice tray 200 of the ice maker 100, the moving unit 300 according to the present invention is connected to the lift driver, and the heating element H of the moving unit 300 is the ice making groove 15 of the ice making tray 200. ) Is disposed close to the ice-making water supplied to or is formed to be heated in a submerged form.

According to the present invention, the moving unit 300 of the ice maker 100 may be positioned in the upper, middle, or submerged standby state in the ice-making water of the ice-making groove 15 according to ice removal or ice-making.

As described above, the ice making tray 200 of the ice maker 100 according to the present invention is spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance and the cooling control unit 210 is formed. At this time, when the ice making process proceeds, since the cooling control means 210 is formed in a shape to surround the side surface and lower surface of the ice tray 200 except for the ice making groove 15, it is transferred from the lower portion of the ice tray 200. The ice-making process by direct contact with cold air may be inhibited. That is, the ice-making process is gradually progressed over a predetermined period of time by the cold air flowing around the ice-making tray 200, compared to the case where the cold air flowing from the lower side of the ice-making tray 200 is in direct contact with the ice-making process. Depending on the speed control, ice (C) can be made harder and more transparent.

Thereafter, when the ice making operation is performed at a specific time point, the heating operation of the heating element H of the moving unit 300 may proceed. In this case, the above-described heating element H is formed on the center of the moving unit 300 according to the present invention, and is disposed so as to be maximally approached or submerged in the ice-making water supplied to each ice-making groove 15 during ice making. , Air or bubbles in the ice-making water may be easily discharged to the outside.

Subsequently, when the ice-breaking operation is performed, the ice-making tray 200 rotates counterclockwise around a rotational axis (not shown), and the moving unit 300 engaged with the lifting driver rises upward to form ice (C). ) can be easily achieved.

6 to 8 are views of a heating element provided on one side of an ice making tray according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to these drawings, in the ice maker 100 according to the present invention, the moving unit 300 may be disposed on the upper side of the ice making tray 200, and the moving unit 300 is mounted so that the heating element H can be accommodated therein. A groove 320 may be formed. In some cases, a plurality of heating elements H may be disposed in the mounting groove 320 of the moving unit 300 in a mutually stacked form. According to the present invention, the plurality of heating elements (H) may be configured to generate heat at different temperatures, that is, two or more stages of temperature.

Here, the mounting groove 320 of the moving unit 300 may be filled with insulating material E to prevent electrical safety accidents caused by heat from the heating element H. Preferably, the insulating material (E) may be urethane or silicone. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 8 , it may be provided as a separate heterogeneous material filled with an insulating material and an independent configuration, and may be injection molded to the moving unit 300 or formed in a detachable structure.

In the above, a specific embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it should be taken for granted that the embodiments of the present invention are not necessarily limited by the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and implementation within the equivalent range are possible by those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs. will be. Therefore, it will be said that the true scope of the present invention is determined by the claims described later.

1: refrigerator 8, 9: door
10: water supply unit 15: ice making home
100: ice maker 110: control box
111: full ice detection unit 200: ice tray
210: cooling control means 300: mobile unit
320: mounting groove 330: insulation molded body
C: Ice E: Insulation
H: heating element

Claims (10)

an ice maker main body installed in an inner space of a refrigerator equipped with a door;
a control box provided at one end of the ice maker body in the longitudinal direction and in which a plurality of electric components are embedded;
an ice-making tray rotatably mounted on one side of the ice maker main body, positioned on one side of the control box, and having a plurality of ice-making grooves in which ice-making water is accommodated; and
and a cooling control means disposed in a shape surrounding at least one surface of the ice making tray.
According to claim 1,
The ice maker wherein the cooling control unit is spaced apart from the ice tray by a predetermined distance.
According to claim 1.
The ice maker according to claim 1 , wherein the cooling control unit is formed of an insulating material to block cold air from being transferred to the ice tray.
According to claim 1,
The ice making groove of the ice making tray has a circular or oval cross section.
According to claim 1,
a moving unit disposed to move up and down between the ice maker main body and the ice tray and including at least one heating element generating heat in a direction of the ice tray; and
The ice maker further comprising a lifting driver providing a driving force to enable the moving unit to move up and down.
According to claim 5,
The moving unit moves up and down in association with the twisting and rotating motion of the ice making tray.
According to claim 5,
The ice maker according to claim 1 , wherein the heating element includes a heater operated by DC power.
According to claim 5,
The ice maker of claim 1 , wherein the heating element is entirely or at least partially embedded in the lower portion of the mobile unit so that a portion thereof is exposed, and heat generated by an external power source is radiated toward the ice making tray.
According to claim 5,
The heating element includes a ceramic heater, cement, a thin metal plate, a local heating element, a PTC heater (positive temperature coefficient heater), a surface heater, or a cord heater.
A refrigerator comprising the ice maker according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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