Patent Application
20190072309
The invention relates to an ice maker for a household cooling appliance. The ice maker comprises an ice tray with cavities for ice form elements. The invention further relates to a household cooling appliance with an ice maker.
Household cooling appliances configured for storing and preserving food can also comprise an ice maker. By an ice maker ice form elements can be produced from liquid in the device itself. For this purpose, an ice maker usually comprises an ice tray which comprises cavities into which the liquid can be inserted. The liquid is then frozen so that the ice form elements are generated therefrom.
For removing the ice form elements from the ice tray, different concepts are envisaged. Thus, in one embodiment it can be provided that the ice tray can be inherently twisted such that the ice form elements in the cavities can be loosened. In an embodiment different therefrom it can be provided that the ice tray can be definably heated such that the generated ice form elements can be subjected to slight melting and thus easily removed from the cavities.
In this context, it is known that ice trays are made of metal, in particular die-cast aluminum. Such ice trays are rather heavy. Besides, they are disadvantageous as regards their heat capacity. Specifically with embodiments of ice makers which are configured for incipient melting of ice form elements in the ice tray, these embodiments of the ice tray which are made of metal enable only limited contact between a heating device and the ice tray. Thus, apart from a design requiring considerable packaging space, the heat supply to specific areas of the ice tray is inadequate, which adversely affects the thawing or melting of the ice form elements. The resulting melting may be too strong or conversely, in places, insufficient.
It is the object of the invention to provide an ice maker in which the loosening of the ice form elements in the ice tray is improved. It is a preferred object to provide an ice maker in which the melting or thawing of the ice form elements for the purpose of their removal from the ice tray is improved. It is a further object to provide a household cooling appliance with such an ice maker.
The above objects are solved by an ice maker and a household cooling appliance according to the independent claims.
A first aspect of the invention relates to an ice maker for a household cooling appliance. The ice maker comprises at least one ice tray. The ice tray comprises cavities in which ice form elements can be generated. The ice maker comprises a heater for heating the ice tray so as to enable incipient melting of the ice form elements in the cavities in order to facilitate removing the generated ice form elements from the ice tray. The ice tray is made of heat-conductive plastic.
A further aspect of the invention relates to a household cooling appliance with an ice maker. The ice maker comprises an ice tray with cavities for ice form elements. The ice maker moreover comprises a heater for heating the ice tray to enable incipient melting of the ice form elements in the cavities. The ice tray is made of heat-conductive plastic.
Further features of the invention are apparent from the claims, the figures and the description of figures. The features and feature combinations mentioned above in the description as well as the features and feature combinations mentioned below in the description of figures and/or shown in the figures alone are usable not only in the respectively specified combination but also in other combinations, without departing from the scope of the invention. Thus, implementations are also to be considered as encompassed and disclosed by the invention, which are not explicitly shown in the figures and explained, but arise from and can be generated by separated feature combinations from the explained implementations. Implementations and feature combinations are also to be considered as disclosed, which thus do not comprise all of the features of an originally formulated independent claim. Moreover, implementations and feature combinations are to be considered as disclosed, in particular by the implementations set out above, which extend beyond or deviate from the feature combinations set out in the back-references of the claims.
Embodiments of the invention are explained in the following in more detail on the basis of schematic drawings. These show in:
In the figures identical or functionally identical elements are equipped with the same reference signs.
With indications “top”, “bottom”, “front”, “back”, “horizontal”, “vertical”, “depth direction”, “width direction”, “height direction” etc. the positions and orientations given in the case of intended use and intended arrangement of the ice maker or the device are indicated.
The illustrated household cooling appliance 1 comprises an outer housing 2. In the outer housing 2 a first receiving space for food is formed which is presently a refrigerator compartment 3. The household cooling appliance 1 in addition comprises a second receiving space for food which is separate from the first receiving space and which is presently a freezer compartment 4. As can be seen, in the presently shown embodiment the refrigerator compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4 are arranged one above the other in the height direction (y direction) of the household cooling appliance 1. The freezer compartment 4, positioned further down, can be closed by a door 5. In the illustrated embodiment, the door 5 is a front wall of a drawer which can be moved linearly in the depth direction (z direction) of the household cooling appliance 1. The refrigerator compartment 3 is closable at the front by two separate doors 6 and 7, which in
The household cooling appliance 1 moreover comprises a dispenser unit 10 which is configured for dispensing ice form elements or broken ice. The dispenser unit 10 can also optionally be configured for dispensing a beverage. The dispenser unit 10 comprises an ice maker 8 or ice maker unit. In the illustrated embodiment, the ice maker 8 is arranged inside the refrigerator compartment 3. This means that while the ice maker 8 is arranged and formed to be thermally insulated against the refrigerator compartment 3, it is accessible and reachable only via the charging opening of the refrigerator compartment 3. Thus, the ice maker 8 is accessible only if at least the door 6 is open.
In addition to the ice maker 8, the dispenser unit 10 also comprises an output unit 9. The output unit 9 is presently for example integrated into the door 6. On an outer side of the door 6 which faces away from the refrigerator compartment 3 and which is thus a front side, a recess is formed into which a receptacle can be inserted, into which the ice form elements or the broken ice can then be transmitted via the output unit 9.
In the closed state of the door 6 the output unit 9 is coupled with the ice maker 8 such that via an ice chute 11, which is presently formed in the output unit 9, ice form elements or broken ice can be transmitted from the ice maker 8 to the output unit 9.
As regards the number and position of the doors, the household appliance 1 can be diversely designed. This applies analogously to the number and position of the receiving spaces.
Preferably, the ice maker 8 also comprises a motor 14 by which an expulsion unit 15 is drivable. The expulsion unit 15 comprises a bar 16 on which protruding blade-like expulsion lugs 17 are arranged. The expulsion lugs 17, of which for a better overview only a few are provided with reference numbers, can dive into the cavities 13 in order to push out the ice form elements formed therein. By the motor 14 the bar 16 is set in rotary motion such that the expulsion lugs 17 also rotate and thus dive into the cavities 13 and push out the ice form elements.
The ice maker 8 in addition comprises a feeding pipe 18 via which liquid can be guided to the ice tray 12. The liquid then flows into the cavities 13 to be frozen therein.
Preferably, a valve 19 is arranged in the feeding pipe 18.
In an advantageous embodiment it is provided that the ice maker 8 comprises a heater 20. In the presently illustrated embodiment the heater 20 comprises a U-shaped pipe coil or heating coil 21. In the illustrated embodiment, the heating coil 21 is arranged underneath the cavities 13.
In the illustrated embodiment, the ice tray 12 is made of heat-conductive plastic. This plastic can, for example, be duroplastic or thermoplastic.
In an advantageous embodiment, heat-conductive particles are added to the heat-conductive plastic. Preferably, the heat-conductive particles comprise soot. It can also be provided that the heat-conductive particles comprise ceramic particles or other plastic particles.
In a particularly advantageous embodiment it is provided that the heater 20, in particular the U-shaped pipe coil, is overmolded with a heat-conductive plastic 22. Preferably, the heat-conductive plastic 22 is identical to the heat-conductive plastic 23 of which the ice tray 12 is formed. In an advantageous embodiment it is provided that the heat-conductive plastics 22 and 23 form a single-piece component. It can be provided that in particular in a single-piece design the heat-conductive plastics 22 and 23 are the same heat-conductive plastic material. However, a two-component injection molding design can also be envisaged.
In such an embodiment, the overmold of the heating coil 21 formed by the heat-conductive plastic 22 is thus directly connected with the heat-conductive plastic 23 of the ice tray 12.
Preferably, the plastic material 23 is void-free particularly in the area between the heating coil 21 and the cavities 13. This enables particularly advantageous heat transfer from the heating coil 21 to the cavities 13. Thus, particularly homogenous and uniform heating of all cavities 13 is enabled. Thus, particularly uniform and dosed slight melting of the ice form elements in the cavities 13 is enabled, in particular enabled simultaneously.
It is preferably provided that specifically in the intermediate space 24 between the heating coil 21 and the cavities 13 heat-conductive particles are added to the heat-conductive plastic. In particular, the quantity and type of the heat-conductive particles in this intermediate space 24 are pre-specified in a defined manner. This enables particularly individual heat transfer from the heating coil 21 to the cavities 13.
In
Besides, further options are provided to enable the freezing of the liquid in the cavities 13 such that the ice form elements are generated. If an embodiment is provided in which the freezing and thus the thermal coupling of the ice tray 12 to such a cooling circuit with the refrigerant pipe 25 is provided, it is envisaged in a further advantageous embodiment that the refrigerant pipe 25 is likewise overmolded with heat-conductive plastic. This overmold is not shown in
In a further advantageous embodiment it can be provided that the refrigerant pipe 25 at least partially comprises cooling fins 27, which in
It can presently also be provided that the ice tray 12, formed of the heat-conductive plastic 23, and the overmold of the heating coil 21 and the overmold of the refrigerant pipe 25 form a single piece-component.
In a further advantageous embodiment it can be provided that at least the cavities 13 are provided with a food safe additional layer 29, as shown in
The cooling fins 27 can, for example, be made of metal, in particular aluminum. By such cooling fins 27 improved and more even distribution of the released cooling energy is enabled.
Instead of the heating coil 21 the heater 20 can also comprise a focused and local concentration increase of heat-conductive particles, for example soot. This also enables a targeted transfer of the desired coupled-in heat energy to the cavities 13. In such an embodiment the heating coil 21 can be omitted.
For example, in such an embodiment the concentration of heat-conductive particles such as soot and/or ceramic particles and/or other plastic particles can be locally formed such that a geometrical structure is formed which corresponds to the heating coil 21.
