Patent Application
20080022703
Refrigerator 10 includes a fresh food storage compartment 12 and a freezer storage compartment 14. Fresh food storage compartment 12 and freezer storage compartment 14 are arranged side-by-side within an outer case 16 and defined by inner liners 18 and 20 therein. A space between case 16 and liners 18 and 20, and between liners 18 and 20, is filled with foamed-in-place insulation. Outer case 16 normally is formed by folding a sheet of a suitable material, such as pre-painted steel, into an inverted U-shape to form top and side walls of case 16. A bottom wall of case 16 normally is formed separately and attached to the case side walls and to a bottom frame that provides support for refrigerator 10. Inner liners 18 and 20 are molded from a suitable plastic material to form fresh food storage compartment 12 and freezer storage compartment 14, respectively. Alternatively, liners 18, 20 may be formed by bending and welding a sheet of a suitable metal, such as steel. The illustrative embodiment includes two separate liners 18, 20 as it is a relatively large capacity unit and separate liners add strength and are easier to maintain within manufacturing tolerances. In smaller refrigerators, a single liner is formed and a mullion spans between opposite sides of the liner to divide it into a freezer storage compartment and a fresh food storage compartment.
A breaker strip 22 extends between a case front flange and outer front edges of liners 18, 20. Breaker strip 22 is formed from a suitable resilient material, such as an extruded acrylo-butadiene-styrene based material (commonly referred to as ABS).
The insulation in the space between liners 18, 20 is covered by another strip of suitable resilient material, which also commonly is referred to as a mullion 24. In one embodiment, mullion 24 is formed of an extruded ABS material. Breaker strip 22 and mullion 24 form a front face, and extend completely around inner peripheral edges of case 16 and vertically between liners 18, 20. Mullion 24, insulation between compartments, and a spaced wall of liners separating compartments, sometimes are collectively referred to herein as a center mullion wall 26.
In addition, refrigerator 10 includes shelves 28 and slide-out storage drawers 30, sometimes referred to as storage pans, which normally are provided in fresh food storage compartment 12 to support items being stored therein.
Operation of refrigerator 10 is monitored and/or controlled by a microprocessor, as described in greater detail below, according to user preference via manipulation of a control interface 32 mounted in an upper region of fresh food storage compartment 12 and operatively coupled to the microprocessor. A shelf 34 and wire baskets 36 are also provided in freezer storage compartment 14. In one embodiment, an ice making assembly 38 is positioned within freezer storage compartment 14.
A fresh food door 42 and freezer door 44 provide access to fresh food storage compartment 12 and freezer storage compartment 14, respectively. Each door 42, 44 is mounted to rotate between an open position, as shown in
In one embodiment, ice making assembly 38 includes an ice maker 49 and a dispenser 50 in flow communication with ice maker 39. Dispenser 50 is configured to dispense ice to a user through freezer door 44 in response to the user's desired or selected operation. In a particular embodiment, dispenser 50 is at least partially positioned on the inner wall of freezer door 44, as shown in
A heater 66 is positioned with respect to mold 52 and configured for facilitating harvesting ice formed within mold 52. More particularly, heater 66 is attached to bottom wall 54 and heats mold 52 when a harvest cycle is executed to slightly melt ice pieces 68 and release each ice piece 68 from a respective mold cavity. A rotating rake 70 sweeps through mold 52 as ice is harvested and ejects ice piece 68 from mold 52 into an ice bucket 72, shown in
Ice making assembly 38 includes an evaporator 76 that is operatively coupled to refrigerator components (not shown) for executing a known vapor compression cycle for cooling air. In one embodiment, evaporator 76 is located within freezer storage compartment 14. In this embodiment, evaporator 76 is a type of heat exchanger that transfers heat from air passing over evaporator 76 to a refrigerant flowing through evaporator 76, thereby causing the refrigerant to vaporize. The cooled air is used to refrigerate freezer storage compartment 14 with an evaporator fan 78 positioned with respect to evaporator 76 and configured to move air across evaporator 76.
As evaporator fan 78 continuously operates for the selected time period, ice maker 49 fills ice bucket 72 with ice pieces 68 to a selected level, such as a full capacity level. In one embodiment, if dispenser 50 dispenses a second amount of ice from ice bucket 72, timer 84 is reset and evaporator fan 78 continues to operate until ice pieces 68 are deposited within ice bucket 72 to the selected level.
In one embodiment, sensor 86 detects or senses activation of water valve 64 for facilitating water flow into mold 52. In response to the activation of water valve 64, sensor 86 transmits a feedback signal is sent to controller 82 which then commands or initiates evaporator fan 78 to operate for a selected time period to provide an additional cooling to ice maker 49. In one embodiment, the selected time period is about 30 minutes to about 90 minutes. In alternative embodiments, the selected time period is less than about 30 minutes or greater than about 90 minutes, as required in accordance with the present invention. In a particular embodiment, each time water valve 64 cycles to supply water to ice maker 49, timer 84 is reset and evaporator fan 78 continues to operate for the selected time period. When ice pieces 68 within ice bucket 72 reach or approach a selected level, controller 82 initiates water valve 64 to close and discontinue cycling, as well as resetting timer 84 to an initial position.
In a further embodiment, sensor 88 detects or senses the cycling of heater 66. In response to the cycling of heater 66, sensor 88 transmits a feedback signal to controller 82 which then commands or initiates evaporator fan 78 to operate for a selected time period to provide additional cooling to ice maker 49. However, when heater 66 is operating to facilitate harvesting ice from mold 52, evaporator fan 78 does not operate, which allows ice pieces 68 to be harvested faster. In one embodiment, the selected time period is about 30 minutes to about 90 minutes. In alternative embodiments, the selected time period is less than about 30 minutes or greater than about 90 minutes, as required in accordance with the present invention. In a particular embodiment, each time sensor 88 senses an additional ice harvest cycle, timer 84 is reset and evaporator fan 78 continues to operate for the selected time period. When ice pieces 68 within ice bucket 72 reach or approach a selected level, controller 82 discontinues ice maker 49 to prevent harvesting of additional ice pieces and evaporator fan 78 resumes normal operation after timer 84 has expired.
In one embodiment, any cycling of dispenser, heater and/or water valve is sensed by control system 80. In a particular embodiment, a feedback signal or other suitable signal is transmitted from dispenser board 51 or respective sensor 86, 88 to control system 80 indicating commencement of a cycling event. In response to the signal, control system 80 activates evaporator fan 78 to operate for a selected time period to provide additional cooling to ice maker 49. In this embodiment, when a user's demand for more ice is detected or sensed, the operating parameters of freezer storage compartment 14 are changed to maximize an ice production rate. As such, energy efficiency is greatly improved with no additional product cost and/or negative impact on energy consumption by automatically making more ice based on the demand from the consumer.
While the invention has been described in terms of various specific embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the claims.
