WO2009155880A1

WO2009155880A1 - Refrigerator

Info

Publication number: WO2009155880A1
Application number: PCT/CN2009/072479
Authority: WO
Inventors: 王东宁; 赵明华; 马杰; 陈磊; 杨红燕
Original assignee: 海尔集团公司; 青岛海尔股份有限公司
Priority date: 2008-06-26
Filing date: 2009-06-26
Publication date: 2009-12-30
Also published as: US20110259035A1; EP2320176A4; EP2320176A1; CN101307977B; EP2320176B1; RU2500958C2; MA32504B1; RU2011104044A; CN101307977A

Abstract

A refrigerator is disclosed that comprises a shell (1) and a door body (20), wherein the shell (1) is divided into a refrigerating chamber (2) and a freezing chamber (3); the door body (20) selectively opens and closes the refrigerating chamber (2) and the freezing chamber (3); the refrigerator also comprises an ice-making chamber (21) and a movable supporting mechanism (213, 214); and the movable supporting mechanism (213, 214) connects the ice-making chamber (21) and the inner walls of the shell (1).

Description

Water tank

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to the field of refrigeration equipment, and more particularly to a refrigerator. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION With the demand of people, the function of the refrigerator is gradually enriched, and the function of making ice has become a consideration for people to choose a refrigerator. The equipment on which the ice is made is the ice machine. There are two types of existing refrigerators for the ice machine: First, the ice maker is placed in the refrigerator. In this arrangement, since the ice maker is fixed in the refrigerating compartment, the refrigerating compartment space located at the rear of the ice maker cannot be effectively utilized. Even if it is barely utilized, it is inconvenient for the user to pick up and place the items placed on the back of the ice machine. Second, place the ice machine in the door. In this solution, since the ice machine is integrated on the door body, the self-weight of the door body is increased, so that the bearing capacity of the opening and closing of the door body is increased, and the life is reduced. Moreover, in the above two schemes, when the user opens the door body and picks up the articles placed on the door body, the cold volume of the refrigerator compartment is lost, and the energy consumption is large. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a refrigerator with an ice maker capable of making full use of space and facilitating access to articles. In order to solve the above technical problem, the present invention provides a refrigerator including a casing and a door body, the casing being partitioned into a refrigerating compartment and a freezing compartment, the door body selectively opening and closing the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment, and further comprising An ice making compartment and a movable support mechanism connect the ice making compartment to the inner wall of the casing. The movable supporting mechanism is a rotating shaft that connects the inner wall of the casing and the ice making chamber, and the ice making chamber is rotatable relative to the casing about an axis of the rotating shaft. Specifically, the rotating shaft includes opposite upper and lower shafts; the upper shaft and the lower shaft are connected to the An inner wall of the housing and the ice making chamber. Wherein, the rotating mechanism is a hinge, one end of the hinge is connected to the ice making chamber, and the other end is connected to an inner wall of the casing. The inner wall of the casing is an inner wall of the refrigerating compartment casing. Further, the water chamber is located at an opening of the refrigerating chamber. Wherein, the ice making chamber comprises an ice making chamber outer casing, and the outer casing comprises an ice making machine and an ice storage container located under the ice making machine; the ice making chamber outer shell further comprises an air inlet and an air outlet. Wherein, the air inlet or the air outlet is disposed at a top or a side of the outer casing of the ice making chamber. In addition, a first conduit for directing cold air from around the evaporator to the ice making chamber is provided, the first conduit being disposed in a wall of the housing. The evaporator is disposed in the freezing chamber, and the ice making chamber is disposed in the refrigerating chamber; the first pipeline is disposed in the rear wall and the side wall of the casing, or in the rear wall and the top wall. In another aspect, the method further includes at least one fan located adjacent to the first conduit inlet around the evaporator; or at an outlet of the first conduit; or located inside the ice making chamber Near the air inlet. There is further included a second conduit that communicates with the ice making chamber and the freezing chamber to form a cold air loop of the water making chamber. In addition, the door body includes an ice distribution chamber with an ice distribution mechanism; the ice distribution chamber is provided with an ice receiving port, the water receiving port is connected with the system; the water chamber is discharged; the water port is in contact with each other to receive water; Wherein, the ice distribution chamber is located at a lower portion of the door body, the ice making chamber corresponds to an upper portion of the door body; the ice receiving port is disposed at a top of the ice distribution chamber, and the ice outlet is disposed at The bottom of the ice making chamber. The method further includes a first pipeline for directing cold air from around the evaporator to the ice making chamber, an inlet end of the first pipeline is disposed around the evaporator, and an outlet end is connected to the air inlet; a second pipeline, the inlet end of the second pipeline is in communication with the air outlet, and the outlet end is in communication with the freezer compartment; The first conduit and the second conduit form a cold air loop of the ice making chamber. The present invention provides a movable supporting mechanism between the ice making chamber and the casing of the refrigerator, so that the ice making chamber can be rotated relative to the casing to expose the storage space at the rear of the ice making chamber , making space utilization more convenient, and users accessing items is more convenient. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic structural view of an embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a side view of an embodiment of the refrigerator compartment of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an AA of the embodiment shown in FIG. Figure 4 is a partial perspective exploded view of the embodiment of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a schematic view of one embodiment of the ice making chamber of the embodiment of Figure 2; Figure 6 is a perspective view of the embodiment of Figure 1. . DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. First, the principle of the present invention will be briefly explained. The present invention is arranged to be an active connection between the ice making chamber and the casing in order to prevent the space in the rear portion of the ice making compartment from being applied, or to be inconvenient to access the article during use; Just turn the ice making room and rotate the ice making room out of the cold room/freezer to expose the rear space, which is convenient for accessing items and making full use of the space. Moreover, since the ice making chamber is separated from the door body, the self-weight of the door body is reduced, and the service life of the joint between the door body and the housing is prolonged. The separation arrangement also effectively reduces the loss of cold in the refrigerating compartment when the door body is taken to take the items placed on the door body. Referring to Figure 1, there is illustrated a schematic structural view of an embodiment of a refrigerator of the present invention. As shown, the housing 1 is further divided into an upper refrigerating chamber 2 and a lower freezing chamber 3. Also included is a door body that selectively opens or closes the refrigerating compartment 2 and the freezing compartment 3. Further, an ice taking port 4 is further provided on the door body of the refrigerating compartment 2. An evaporator is disposed in the freezing chamber 3, and the evaporator supplies cold air cooling to the freezing chamber 3, Cooling air cooling is also provided to the refrigerating compartment 2. Further, an ice making chamber is further provided in the refrigerating chamber 2, and the ice making chamber is also cooled by cold air supplied from an evaporator in the freezing chamber 3. After the ice making of the ice making chamber is completed, the generated ice cubes are supplied to the user through the ice taking port 4. The ice making chamber is disposed at an opening in the refrigerating chamber 2, preferably in a direction facing the refrigerating chamber, at a left upper portion or a right upper portion of the refrigerating chamber; and further comprising a movable supporting mechanism, the movable supporting mechanism The ice making compartment is movably coupled to an inner wall of the housing. (An embodiment of the movable support mechanism may refer to the related description of the embodiment shown in Fig. 5.) The casing 1 includes an insulation layer between the inner casing, the outer casing, and the inner casing. The inner wall of the housing in this embodiment is also the inner wall of the inner casing. Referring to Figure 2, a side view of one embodiment of the refrigerating compartment of the embodiment of Figure 1 is illustrated. As shown, the ice making chamber 21, the inner casing 11, the water supply line 60, the first line 51, the third line 53, and the second line 52 are included. In addition, in the present embodiment, only the inner casing 11 of the casing 1 is shown. For the outer casing and the intermediate heat insulating layer, since the invention of the present invention needs to peel off the outer casing and the heat insulating layer, Shown in the figure. The first conduit 51 is an air inlet conduit disposed in the heat insulation layer between the inner casing 11 and the outer casing; specifically, the inlet of the first conduit 51 is disposed at the evaporation The periphery of the apparatus is supplied to the ice making chamber 21 with introduction of cold air/gas; and its outlet, as shown in the figure, communicates with the ice making chamber 21 through the inner casing 11. (more detailed display can be referred to FIG. 3) The second conduit 52 is an air outlet duct, which is also disposed in the heat insulation layer between the inner casing 11 and the outer casing; It is said that the inlet of the second conduit 52 communicates with the ice making chamber 21 through the inner casing 11, and the outlet thereof leads to the freezing chamber (not shown). (more detailed display can be seen in FIG. 3) The outlet of the first conduit 51 and the inlet of the second conduit 52 pass through the inner casing 11 and the side wall of the ice making chamber 21 The connection, in turn, forms communication with the ice making chamber 21. The presence of the first line 51 and the second line 52 constitutes a cold air loop in which the ice making chamber 21 is included, thereby realizing the ice making operation of the ice maker 21. The third conduit 53 is also an air inlet duct disposed in the heat insulation layer between the inner casing 11 and the outer casing; specifically, the inlet of the third conduit 53 is disposed at the Week of evaporator To the outside of the ice making chamber 21, cold air/wind is introduced; and its outlet, as shown, passes through the inner casing 11 to communicate with the ice making chamber 21. More specifically, it is connected to the top wall of the ice making chamber 21 to form communication with the ice making chamber 21. (more detailed display can be seen in FIG. 3) As shown in FIG. 2, the first line 51 and the second line 52 are disposed in the side wall of the casing in which the refrigerator compartment 2 is located, that is, The side wall is provided with a pipeline; the third conduit 53 is disposed in the rear wall and the top wall of the casing in which the refrigerating compartment 2 is located, that is, a conduit is disposed in the rear wall and the top wall. The water supply pipe 60 is also in communication with the ice making chamber 21. One end leads to the water tank/source (not shown), and the other end leads to the water tank 21; Regarding the connection structure of the inlet/outlet duct and the ice making chamber 21, reference may be made to the subsequent related description. It should be noted that, in this embodiment, two air inlet lines (a first line 51, a third line 53) and an air outlet line (a second line 52) are included. These three lines can be used simultaneously to increase the amount of cold air circulation, making ice making more rapid. Alternatively, one of the inlet ducts may be combined with the outlet duct to form a group of cold air loops. Specifically, a set of cold air loops can be constructed in two ways, including a combination of the first conduit 51 and the second conduit 52, and a combination of the third conduit 53 and the second conduit 52. Referring to Figure 3, a cross-sectional view along line AA of the embodiment of Figure 2 is illustrated. As shown, the first line 51, the second line 52, the third line 53, the water chamber 21 and the inner casing 11 are included. The first pipeline 51, the second pipeline 52, and the third conduit 53 can be referred to the description of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, and will not be described here. As shown in the figure, the water chamber 21 is disposed at the upper left portion of the refrigerating chamber (the front view is forward, the same below). The side wall is provided with an air inlet and an air outlet, and the air inlet and the air outlet respectively communicate with the outlet of the first conduit 51 and the inlet of the second conduit 52 to introduce and send cold air/wind. The top of the ice making chamber 21 is further provided with an air inlet which communicates with the outlet of the third line 53 to introduce cold air/wind. The left side wall of the ice making chamber 21 is connected to the inner wall of the inner casing 11 by a movable supporting mechanism. Thus, the ice making chamber 21 can be moved relative to the housing. One embodiment of the movable support mechanism may refer to the related description of the embodiment shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the ice making chamber 21 includes an outer casing and an ice making machine and an ice storage container disposed therein, the ice making machine is disposed at an upper portion of the ice making chamber 21, and the ice storage container is disposed at the In the lower part of the ice making chamber 21, after the ice making mechanism is finished, the ice is turned over, and the ice cubes are discharged into the ice storage container. Referring to Figure 4, a partial exploded perspective view of the embodiment of Figure 1 is illustrated. As shown, the door body 20, the ice making chamber 21, the ice dispensing chamber 22, the water supply line 60, the first line 51, and the second line 52 are included. The state shown in this embodiment is a partial perspective exploded view of the door body 20 when it is closed. As can be seen from the figure, the side wall of the ice making chamber 21 is connected to the first line 51 and the second line 52 to form a cold air loop including the ice making chamber 21. The ice distribution chamber 22 is located on the door body 20 and located at a lower portion of the door body 20; the ice extraction port 4 described in FIG. 1 is correspondingly disposed outside the door body 20. The ice making chamber 21 is located above the ice dispensing chamber 22 in a spatial position, and the bottom of the ice making chamber 21 is provided with an ice outlet, and the top of the ice dispensing chamber 22 is located corresponding to the ice outlet. Set into the ice. The ice cubes are transported from the ice outlet to the ice inlet, and finally ice is taken out from the ice extraction port 4. (For a more specific explanation of this portion, reference may be made to FIG. 6 and related description.) Since the internal distribution mechanism of the ice distribution chamber 22 can employ any existing scheme, it is not the point of the invention and therefore will not be described in detail. An outlet of the first conduit 51 is disposed at an upper portion of the ice making chamber 21, and an inlet of the second conduit 52 is disposed at a lower portion of the ice making chamber 21. Referring to Figure 5, there is illustrated a schematic structural view of one embodiment of an ice making chamber in the embodiment of Figure 2.

As shown in the port diagram, the water machine 21 includes a casing 210, an upper shaft 213, a lower shaft 214, an air inlet 211, an air outlet 212, and an air inlet 215. The upper shaft 213 is disposed at the top of the water chamber 21; one end of the upper shaft 213 is connected to the inner wall of the inner casing 11, and the other end is fixed to the upper seat by the upper seat as shown in the figure. The system is on the outer casing of the top of the water chamber 21. The lower shaft 214 is disposed at the bottom of the ice making chamber 21; one end of the lower shaft 214 is connected to the side wall of the inner casing 11 through a lower seat, and the other end is connected by a rotating shaft as shown in the figure. The shaft L on the outer casing of the bottom of the water chamber 21; The cooperation of the upper shaft 213 and the lower shaft 214 enables the ice making chamber 21 to form around the two The axis rotates relative to the housing. Wherein, the upper shaft 213 and the lower shaft 214 are preferably the same axis. In another embodiment of the invention, the movable support mechanism uses a hinged structure. That is, the ice maker 21 is hinged to the inner wall of the inner casing 11 by a hinge. Both ends of the hinge are respectively connected to the outer casing of the ice maker 21 and the inner wall of the inner casing 11. In still another embodiment of the present invention, the movable support mechanism uses a through shaft, that is, the shaft penetrates the ice making chamber, and both ends thereof connect the inner wall of the casing. It should be noted that, for the rotating shaft and the hinge, one or two structures can be used. In the specific embodiment, only two cases are listed. For one case, it can be set in the case. The top of the ice chamber 21 is described, or it may be disposed on one side of the outer casing of the ice making chamber 21 (the side is close to the inner casing 11), etc., since the position and structure of the person skilled in the art can be analogized, Therefore, it will not be elaborated. In addition, for the case of the upper and lower shafts, it may also be disposed in the ice making chamber

The position of the shaft or hinge does not limit the present invention on the outer casing of the side closest to the inner casing 11 of 21, or at other suitable locations. The air inlet 211 is in communication with the outlet end of the first conduit 51 to receive cold air; the air inlet 215 is in communication with the outlet end of the third conduit 53 to receive cold air; the air outlet 212 is The inlet end of the second line 52 communicates to circulate back to the air. The air inlet 215 is placed on the outer casing of the top of the ice making chamber 21. The air inlet 211 and the air outlet 212 are disposed on the outer casing of the water chamber 21 closest to the inner casing 11, and the air inlet 211 is above the air outlet 212 to allow the air to be fully circulated. Achieve good cooling. Referring to Figure 6, a perspective view of the embodiment of Figure 1 is illustrated. In the figure, the refrigerator compartment door is opened, and the freezer compartment drawer is removed to more clearly show the internal structure of the freezer compartment. As shown in the figure, the casing 1 is further partitioned into a refrigerating compartment 2 located at an upper portion and a freezing compartment 3 located at a lower portion, and a door body 20 that opens and closes the refrigerating compartment 2. Further comprising an ice making chamber 21, the ice making chamber 21 is rotatably connected to the casing 1; a lower portion of the door body 20 is provided with an ice distributing chamber 22, and the ice distributing chamber 22 is located at a spatial position Below the ice chamber 21; and, the top of the ice distribution chamber 22 is provided with an ice inlet 221, and the position of the ice inlet 221 corresponds to the position of the ice outlet provided at the bottom of the ice making chamber 21 to receive Ice making room 21 Prepared ice cubes. In addition, as can be seen from the figure, the return air port 62 on the side wall of the freezing chamber 3, the air return port 62 is in communication with the air outlet of the second line 52; the second line 52 will be made from ice. The cold air after the cycle of chamber 21 is returned to the freezer compartment 3. In another aspect, the refrigerator of the present invention further includes at least one fan. The fan may be installed in the vicinity of the air inlet 211 in the ice making chamber 21, or installed at the outlet of the first conduit 51, or installed at the outlet of the third conduit 53, or installed in the The inlet of the first line 51 or the third line 53 or the like; or a plurality of fans are simultaneously installed at the above several positions. The presence of the fan speeds up the flow of cold air and shortens the time for ice making. It is explained above that the movable supporting mechanism can be in the form of a rotating shaft or a hinge, and the sliding rail can also be used, that is, the ice making chamber is connected to the inner wall of the casing through the sliding rail, so that the ice making chamber can also move For easy access to items. The above is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and thus equivalent changes made in the claims of the present invention are still within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

Claim

A refrigerator comprising a casing and a door body, the casing being partitioned into a refrigerating compartment and a freezing compartment, the door body selectively opening and closing the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment, characterized in that the casing further comprises an ice making compartment And a movable support mechanism connecting the ice making chamber and the inner wall of the casing.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the movable supporting mechanism is a rotating shaft, the rotating shaft is connected to an inner wall of the casing and the ice making chamber, and the ice making chamber is rotatable around the rotating shaft The axis rotates relative to the housing.

The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein the rotating shaft includes opposing upper and lower shafts; the upper shaft and the lower shaft are connected to an inner wall of the casing and the water chamber.

The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the rotating mechanism is a hinge, one end of the hinge is connected to the ice making chamber, and the other end is connected to an inner wall of the casing.

The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the inner wall of the casing is an inner wall of the refrigerating compartment casing.

The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the ice making chamber is located at an opening of the refrigerating chamber.

The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the ice making chamber includes an ice making chamber casing, and the outer casing includes an ice making machine and ice storage under the ice making machine a container; an air inlet and an air outlet are further disposed on the outer casing of the ice making chamber.

The refrigerator according to claim 7, wherein the air inlet or the air outlet is provided at a top or a side of the water chamber casing.

The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a first conduit for directing cold air from around the evaporator to the ice making chamber, the first conduit being disposed at the In the wall of the housing.

The refrigerator according to claim 9, wherein the evaporator is disposed in a freezing chamber, and the ice making chamber is disposed in a refrigerating chamber; the first conduit is disposed on a rear wall of the casing and In the side wall, or in the back wall and top wall.

11. The refrigerator according to claim 10, further comprising at least one fan located near the evaporator adjacent to the first conduit inlet; or located at the first conduit Or the outlet; or, located in the system; the interior of the water chamber is adjacent to the air inlet.

12. The refrigerator according to claim 10, further comprising a second conduit communicating with the ice making chamber and the freezing chamber to form a cold air loop of the ice making chamber .

The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the door body comprises an ice dispensing chamber having an ice dispensing mechanism; the ice dispensing chamber is provided with an ice receiving port, the ice receiving port Out of the water chamber; the nozzle is in contact to receive water.

The refrigerator according to claim 13, wherein the ice distribution chamber is located at a lower portion of the door body, the ice making chamber corresponds to an upper portion of the door body, and the ice receiving port is disposed at the At the top of the ice distribution chamber, the ice outlet is disposed at the bottom of the ice making chamber.

15. The refrigerator according to claim 7, further comprising a first line leading from the periphery of the evaporator to the ice making chamber, the inlet end of the first line being disposed at the evaporator Around, the outlet end is connected to the air inlet;

a second conduit, the inlet end of the second conduit is in communication with the outlet, and the outlet is in communication with the freezer;

The first conduit and the second conduit form a cold air loop of the ice making chamber.