WO2012031886A2

WO2012031886A2 - Refrigeration device comprising an ice maker

Info

Publication number: WO2012031886A2
Application number: PCT/EP2011/064445
Authority: WO
Inventors: Stephan Kempfle; Jose Manuel Lamuela Rosano
Original assignee: BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH
Priority date: 2010-09-07
Filing date: 2011-08-23
Publication date: 2012-03-15
Also published as: DE102010040355A1; WO2012031886A3

Abstract

The invention relates to a refrigeration device having an essentially cuboid-shaped body (1) and a door (2) which surrounds the storage chamber (3). An ice-maker (14) is arranged in one section of the storage chamber (3) with a reduced depth (12), at the height of the machine compartment (5) which is arranged on the rear side (7) of the body (1) of the device.

Description

Refrigerating appliance with ice maker

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, in particular a household refrigerator, with an icemaker. Refrigerators with integrated icemaker are known per se. They usually comprise a tray in which a plurality of hollow molds which can be filled via a water pipe installed in the refrigerator are formed, means for removing the finished ice pieces from the molds and a collecting container in which the finished pieces of ice can be stored until use. Such an ice maker occupies a considerable place in the storage chamber of the refrigerator, which is no longer available for other use. In order to create a refrigeration device with high utility value for the user, it is therefore important to place the icemaker in the refrigerator so that the usability of the storage chamber for other refrigerated goods is impaired as little as possible.

Object of the present invention is to provide such a refrigeration device.

The object is achieved by having in a refrigerator with a substantially cuboidal body and a door which surround a storage chamber, and housed in the storage chamber ice maker, the storage chamber at the level of a arranged at a rear of the body engine room a section with reduced depth, and the icemaker is located in this section with reduced depth. Such a section is in itself present in many refrigerators, and in particular in freezers its usability is limited because large items of refrigerated goods do not fit into it or only in an unfavorable, dense packing not allowing

Orientation can be accommodated in it. However, the dimensions of the icemaker can be accurately accommodated to the space available in such a section without undue difficulty. Such a section with reduced depth is preferably formed at the bottom of the storage chamber, in particular, so that frost, which is deposited on an evaporator of the storage chamber during operation and flows down during defrost, without any effort Evaporation tray can be supplied in the engine room. in case of a

Refrigeration device, in which a defrosting of the hoop is not provided during operation, in particular a freezer, would alternatively also a placement of the

Engine room and the section with reduced depth near the ceiling

Warehouse in consideration.

If the icemaker has a tray pivotable for extracting the ice pieces produced, then the pivot axis of the tray is preferably oriented in the width direction of the storage chamber. Such an orientation makes it possible, with little effort, in particular by varying the number of cavities arranged side by side along the pivot axis in a tray, to provide various models of ice makers capable of varying the available width of the deep reduced section in refrigerators Use housing width or even use only an arbitrarily definable part of this width and to keep the rest of the reduced-depth section available for other purposes.

In order to collect the finished pieces of ice and to be able to remove them conveniently, a pull-out drawer is preferably arranged under the tray.

A frame in which the tray is pivotally suspended, is conveniently attached to a rear wall of the body. Since the side walls of the body are not required for the installation of the Einsbereiters, this can therefore be mounted in refrigerators with different housing widths in a uniform manner and without adjustment. A part of the reduced depth section that is not occupied by the icemaker, by an arranged next to the icemaker drawer, in particular for

Accommodation of small parts, to be used.

In order to facilitate the extraction of the finished pieces of ice from the tray, the tray is suitably torsionally elastic. The rotation of such a tray may be manual or powered by a motor. When a motor is provided, this and a stop limiting the pivotal movement preferably engage axially spaced end faces of the tray.

A water supply line, through which the tray is supplied with fresh water when needed, is suitably in thermal contact with the engine room to prevent freezing of the water in the supply line by means of the waste heat produced by the units of the engine room.

Such a water supply line can, in particular when the section is formed with reduced depth at the bottom of the storage chamber, expediently by a

Ceiling of the engine room forming wall portion of the body run. Such a wall section is generally heated by rising from the units of the engine room heat. Although the water supply line could run directly through the engine room, but this would mean that fresh water at a relatively high temperature in the tray. This would delay the ice making process and increase the energy required for it. If, however, the water supply line runs in the interior of the wall portion, the in the

Wall section between storage chamber and engine room ruling

Temperaturgradient be exploited to guide the water supply line through a portion of the wall portion in which prevail over the operation of the refrigerator reliably just positive temperatures. Thus, both the freezing of the water supply line is prevented and minimized the time required for freezing the water in the icemaker. A valve controlling the inflow of water to the icemaker is also suitably in thermal contact with the engine room to prevent freezing.

From this valve to an outlet opening adjacent to the tray, the water supply line should be continuously sloping to ensure that even in a downstream region of the water supply line, which is no longer appreciably warmed up from the engine room, no water can freeze and obstruct the water supply line. Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following

Description of embodiments with reference to the accompanying figures. Show it:

Fig. 1 is a schematic section through the lower part of a

Refrigerating appliance according to the invention; and

Fig. 2 is a front view of the lower part with the door open.

The refrigerator shown in Fig. 1 in a schematic partial section comprises in a conventional manner a body 1 and a door hinged thereto 2, the one

Surrounded storage chamber 3. The sectional plane of Fig. 1 is parallel to a

Side wall 4 of the body 1 through the storage chamber 3. A recessed at the back of the body 1 near the ground engine room 5 includes a compressor 6 and

optionally not shown other components of a conventional refrigerating machine such as a condenser and a fan for driving a compressor 6 and the condenser 7 sweeping cooling air flow. In order to accommodate the machine room 5, the body 1 has a stepped back wall 7 with a slightly sloping down to the door section 8 between two vertical sections 9, 10. The stepped course of the rear wall 7 corresponding to the storage chamber 3 comprises an upper portion 1 1 full Depth and, at the level of the engine room 5, a lower section 2 with reduced depth. A plate-shaped wire tube evaporator 13 separates the sections 1 1 and 12 from each other. Further, not shown, wire tube evaporators divide the upper portion 1 1 in several superposed compartments in which in a conventional manner each case a drawer for accommodating frozen food can be accommodated, which extends over substantially the entire depth of Abschnits 1 1.

An ice maker 4 accommodated in the lower section 2 comprises a rectangular frame 15 seen from above, the two longitudinal sides 16 of which are shown in section in FIG. One of the narrow sides 7 of the frame 5 carries an inwardly projecting pin 18, and both narrow sides 17 have in Fig. 1 not visible on bearings in which a tray 19 about a plane perpendicular to the cutting axis 20 is pivotable. A motor for driving a pivotal movement of the tray 19 about the axis 20 is attached to the not visible in the Fig. 17 narrow side of the frame 15.

Keyhole-shaped openings 21 and downwardly open slots 22 are provided in one of the longitudinal sides 16 of the frame 15 to receive anchored in the lower vertical portion 0 of the rear wall 7 bolts 23 and so the frame 15th

positively anchored to the rear wall 7.

Through a further upwardly open slot 24 of this longitudinal side 16 extends downstream portion 25 of a water supply line 26. The section 25 terminates over one of several along the axis 20 juxtaposed hollow molds 27 of the tray 19th notches 28 in the individual molds 27 from each other separating walls of the tray 19 allow the overflow of water between adjacent molds 27, so that over the one water supply line 26 all the molds 27 of the tray 19 can be filled.

While the downstream portion 25 of the water supply pipe 26 projects from the rear wall 7 into the storage chamber 3 and is exposed to the temperatures therein below 0 ° C, an upstream portion 29 of the pipe 26 inside an insulating material layer 30 of the body 1 passes through the downfall Section 8 of the rear wall 7. Since this section 8 on its underside of the

Compressor 6 is exposed to heat given off, while its upper side adjacent to the cooled storage chamber 3, there is a temperature gradient in the insulating material layer 30, and the distance from the inside and outside of the section 8, in which the line section 29 extends, is chosen so that also at the lowest assumed operating temperature of the storage chamber 3, the temperature of the insulating material in the immediate vicinity of the line section 29 is just above 0 ° C. This ensures that water in the line section 29 always remains liquid. An electrically controlled valve, for example a solenoid valve, 31 for opening or shutting off the water supply line 26 can, as shown in FIG. 1, also be embedded in the insulating material 30 of the wall section 8

frost-protected outside of the body 1 may be arranged. By the water supply pipe 26 downstream of the valve 31 runs steadily downward, it can be ensured that after shutting off the valve 31, the water flows completely from all frost-prone parts of the conduit 26 into the tray 19 inside.

After the water is frozen in the molds 27, it is sufficient to put the engine, not shown, in order to rotate the tray 19 about the axis 20 so far that his facing away from the engine end face against the pin 18. By a beyond this rotation of the motor, the tray 19 is deformed in itself, the pieces of ice are expelled from the molds 27 and fall into a arranged under the frame 15 drawer 32. This can, when the door 2 of the refrigerator is opened, be brought forward, to remove the pieces of ice out of it.

Since the frame 5 is attached only via the bolts 23 on the rear wall 7 of the body 1, but not on the side walls 4, the extension of the

Eisbereiters 13 in the transverse direction of the body 1 may be arbitrarily smaller than that of the

Storage Chamber 3. As seen in Fig. 2, therefore, adjacent to the ice pieces receiving drawer 32 still a small-sized drawer 33 may be arranged to accommodate specifically small-sized frozen food, which under under the large compartments of the upper portion 11, the storage chamber 3 housed frozen possibly difficult to find again, such as packs of frozen culinary herbs and the like.

Claims

Refrigerating appliance having a substantially cuboidal body (1) and a door (2) surrounding a storage chamber (3), and an ice maker (14) accommodated in the storage chamber (3), characterized in that

Storage chamber (3) at the level of at a rear side (7) of the body (1) arranged engine room (5) has a portion (2) with reduced depth, and that the ice maker (14) in the section of reduced depth (12) is.

Refrigerating appliance according to claim 1, characterized in that the section with reduced depth (12) at the bottom of the storage chamber (3) is formed.

Refrigerating appliance according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the

Ice maker (14) has a about a horizontal axis (20) pivotable tray (19), and that the horizontal axis (20) in the width direction of

Storage chamber (3) is oriented.

Refrigerating appliance according to claim 3, characterized in that a pull-out drawer (32) under the tray (19) is arranged to catch finished pieces of ice.

Refrigerating appliance according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that the tray in (19) a frame (15) is pivotally suspended, which is fixed to a rear wall (7) of the body (1).

6. Refrigerating appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized

in that a pull-out box (33) is arranged next to the ice maker (14).

7. Refrigerating appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the tray (19) is torsionally elastic.

8. Refrigerating appliance according to claim 7, characterized in that a motor for

Driving a pivoting movement of the tray (19) and a

Swivel movement limiting stop (18) at axially spaced

Front sides of the tray (19) attack.

9. Refrigerating appliance according to one of the preceding claims, characterized

in that a water supply line (26) is in thermal contact at least in sections with the machine room (5).

10. Refrigerating appliance according to claim 9, characterized in that the

Water supply line (26) through a ceiling of the machine room (5) forming wall portion (8) of the body (1) extends.

11. Refrigerating appliance according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the inflow of water to the icemaker-controlling valve (31) with the

Engine room (5) is in thermal contact. 12. Refrigerating appliance according to claim 11, characterized in that the

Water supply line (26) from the valve (31) to an outlet opening is continuously sloping.