CN107388685B

CN107388685B - Refrigerator and ice removing mechanism of ice maker in freezing chamber of refrigerator

Info

Publication number: CN107388685B
Application number: CN201710464449.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 薛建军; 崔船; 孙为首; 周茂来
Original assignee: Qingdao Haier Co Ltd
Current assignee: Haier Smart Home Co Ltd
Priority date: 2017-06-19
Filing date: 2017-06-19
Publication date: 2020-10-30
Anticipated expiration: 2037-06-19
Also published as: CN107388685A

Abstract

The invention discloses a refrigerator, wherein an ice maker is accommodated in a freezing chamber, a first air duct is arranged at the lower part of an ice box of the ice maker, the first air duct is communicated with a refrigerating chamber through a second air duct, and the first air duct is configured to introduce air in the refrigerating chamber into the lower part of the ice box to circulate and discharge the air to the freezing chamber.

Description

Refrigerator and ice removing mechanism of ice maker in freezing chamber of refrigerator

Technical Field

The invention belongs to the technical field of refrigeration equipment, and particularly relates to an ice removing mechanism of an ice maker.

Background

The aluminum ice box ice maker utilizes the electric heating wire to de-ice, when ice blocks are frozen, the electric heating wire is electrified to heat the bottom of the aluminum ice box at about 20 ℃ below zero, so that the bottom of the ice blocks is melted and separated from the ice box, and then the ice blocks are pushed out of the ice maker by the ice pushing rod. The electric heating ice-removing mode wastes energy, the current is only about 0.05A when the ice maker runs, the current is about 0.6A when the heating wires work, and the heat generated during heating ice-removing can be dissipated to the periphery of the ice maker, so that the refrigerator is required to provide additional cold air for neutralization, and the energy is further wasted.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide an energy-saving ice removing structure of an ice maker and a refrigerator.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a refrigerator, including a refrigerating compartment and a freezing compartment, wherein the freezing compartment accommodates an ice maker, a first air duct is disposed at a lower portion of an ice box of the ice maker, the first air duct is communicated with the refrigerating compartment through a second air duct, the first air duct is configured to introduce air in the refrigerating compartment into the lower portion of the ice box to circulate and discharge the air to the freezing compartment, the first air duct includes an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end and the outlet end are open ports, and the first air duct further includes a circulating portion, two ends of which are respectively connected to the inlet end and the outlet end.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the second air duct communicates the refrigerating compartment and the evaporator to return air in the refrigerating compartment to the periphery of the evaporator.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the second duct extends from the rear wall of the refrigerating compartment to the rear wall of the freezing compartment.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the inlet end communicates with the second air duct.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the inlet end is provided with a fan.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the invention, the outlet end is connected to the freezer compartment.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the circulating portion has a U-shaped air duct.

Compared with the prior art, the ice removing mechanism of the ice maker and the refrigerator with the ice removing mechanism provided by the invention have the advantages that the ice maker is cooled by utilizing the backflow air with higher temperature in the cold storage chamber, so that ice blocks are separated from the bottom of the ice box, and the cooled air enters the cold storage chamber again for circulation, thereby saving cold.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of an embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of an embodiment of the ice removing structure of the ice maker of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic top view of the ice removing structure circulation part of the ice maker of the present invention;

fig. 5 is a side view of a refrigerator according to still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of yet another embodiment of an ice removing structure of the ice maker of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a side view of a refrigerator according to still another embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 8 is a plan view of a deicing structure of an ice maker according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to specific embodiments shown in the drawings. These embodiments are not intended to limit the present invention, and structural, methodological, or functional changes made by those skilled in the art according to these embodiments are included in the scope of the present invention.

The invention provides a refrigerator which comprises a refrigerator body with an opening at the front end and a door arranged at the front part of the refrigerator body. The door is pivotable about an axis to open or close the cabinet. A storage space is defined within the enclosure.

The storage space in the box body is divided into a plurality of independent compartments by partition plates, wherein the compartments comprise a refrigerating compartment and a freezing compartment.

The door comprises a refrigerating chamber door body which can open or close the refrigerating chamber and a freezing chamber door body which can open or close the freezing chamber.

The dispenser is provided at an outer surface of the refrigerating chamber door or the freezing chamber door, and ice or water made by the ice maker is output through the dispenser.

An ice storage box is arranged on the door, and ice made by the ice maker is transferred into the ice storage box through a transfer mechanism. The ice bank is connected with the dispenser.

A refrigerating system is arranged in the box body. The refrigerating system is used for providing cold energy for the compartment and/or the ice making chamber so as to reduce the temperature in the compartment and the ice making chamber.

The refrigerating system comprises a compressor, a condenser, a drying filter, a control valve, a capillary tube and an evaporator which are connected through a refrigerant pipeline to form a loop. A compressor installed in the machine room is used to compress refrigerant. The evaporator absorbs heat to cool the compartment and the ice making chamber, and the condenser absorbs heat of the evaporator and forcibly dissipates heat.

When the compressor is operated, the refrigerant changed into a gaseous state by the evaporator flows to the compressor and is compressed, the compressed refrigerant is condensed into a high-pressure liquid state while passing through the condenser, and the pressure is reduced after passing through the capillary tube, and flows to the evaporator again. The refrigerant is evaporated to a gaseous state after heat exchange in the evaporator. The air around the evaporator is cooled to form cold air, and the cold air is sent into each compartment and/or the ice making compartment through the air supply channel, is circulated in each compartment for heat exchange, and flows back to the periphery of the evaporator through the air return channel.

Referring to fig. 1, in an embodiment of the present invention, a heat insulation space is disposed in a refrigerating chamber door 10, and an ice making chamber is accommodated in the heat insulation space, and an ice maker 20, an ice bank, and a water supply device are disposed in the ice making chamber. An air supply channel and an air return channel are formed in a foaming layer on the side wall of the refrigerating chamber 50, an air outlet of the air supply channel and an air inlet (not shown) of the air return channel are formed on the surface of the side wall of the refrigerating chamber 50, which is in contact with the refrigerating chamber door body 10, and an air inlet and an air outlet (not shown) of the ice making chamber are formed on the side wall of the refrigerating chamber door body 10. When the door body 10 of the refrigerating chamber is closed, the air outlet of the air supply channel is communicated with the air inlet of the ice making chamber, and the air inlet of the air return channel is communicated with the air outlet of the ice making chamber, so that a cold air circulation passage is formed. The cold air is controlled by the control system to enter the ice making chamber for circulation, and the water provided by the water supply device is frozen into ice blocks.

Referring to fig. 2 to 3, an air guide passage is provided at a lower portion of an ice box of the ice maker 20. The air guiding channel comprises an inlet end 31, a circulating part 33 and an outlet end 35. Wherein, the circulating part 33 is close to the bottom of the ice box, and two ends of the circulating part 33 are respectively connected with the inlet end 31 and the outlet end 35. The inlet port 31 and the outlet port 35 are open ports, and communicate the refrigerating compartment 50 and the circulating unit 33. The inlet end 31 is provided with a fan 40.

Referring to fig. 4, the circulating portion 33 is partitioned into U-shaped air paths by the raised ribs 331 to guide the air to the outlet end 35 after one circulation.

When the ice blocks are frozen, the fan 40 is controlled to be turned on to send the air in the refrigerating chamber into the air guide channel for circulation. The temperature of the bottom of the ice box of the ice maker 20 is about-20 ℃, the air temperature of the refrigerating chamber is higher, the heat exchange is carried out with the bottom of the ice box when the air is circulated through the air guide channel, the bottom of ice blocks is melted, and the ice blocks can be pushed out of the ice maker by the ice pushing rod. The cooled air is discharged to the refrigerating chamber 50 through the outlet port 35, and has little influence on the temperature change around the ice making chamber.

When the ice blocks are separated from the ice box, the fan 40 is controlled to be closed, and cold air circulation is not formed between the air in the refrigerating chamber and the air guide channel. Since the inlet end 31 and the outlet end 35 have a small diameter and are adjacent to the side wall of the refrigerating compartment 50, the air exchange at the inlet end 31 and the outlet end 35 has a negligible influence on the temperature change in the ice making compartment.

Referring to fig. 5, in the second embodiment of the present invention, an adiabatic space is provided in a refrigerating chamber 50 of the refrigerator, and an ice making chamber is received therein, and an ice maker 20, an ice bank, and a water supply device are provided in the ice making chamber. An air supply passage and an air return passage (not shown) are formed in the foaming layer of the side wall, the rear wall or the top wall of the refrigerating chamber 50 to communicate with the ice making chamber, so that cool air around the evaporator is supplied into the ice making chamber to circulate, heat-exchanged and discharged to the periphery of the evaporator.

Referring to fig. 6, similarly to the first embodiment of the present invention, an air guide passage is provided at a lower portion of an ice box of the ice maker 20. The air guiding channel comprises an inlet end 31, a circulating part 33 and an outlet end 35. The circulating part 33 is located right below the ice box, and the inlet end 31 and the outlet end 35 are connected with the refrigerating chamber 50 and the circulating part 33. Dampers are provided at the inlet end 31 and the outlet end 35, and the dampers can be opened and closed in a controlled manner. When the damper is opened, the refrigerating compartment 50 and the circulation unit 33 are communicated with each other, and when the damper is closed, the relatively high temperature air in the refrigerating compartment 50 cannot enter the ice maker 20. The inlet end 31 is provided with a fan 40, and when the damper is open, the fan 40 is turned on.

The circulating part 33 is partitioned into U-shaped air paths by the raised ribs 331 to guide the air to the outlet end 35 after one circulation.

Referring to fig. 7, in the third embodiment of the present invention, an icemaker 20 is provided in a freezer compartment 60 of a refrigerator. The ice maker 20 is fixed to a rear wall of the freezing chamber 60 and makes ice using cold air of the freezing chamber 60.

The return air passage 51 of the refrigerating compartment 50 is connected to the evaporator. The evaporator can simultaneously provide cooling for an ice maker or other compartments, or can separately provide cooling for the refrigerated compartment 50. The return air passage 51 extends from the foamed layer of the rear wall of the freezer compartment 50 to the foamed layer of the rear wall of the freezer compartment 60.

Referring to fig. 8, the ice maker 20 is provided with an air guide passage at a lower portion of an ice bank. The air guiding channel comprises an inlet end 31, a circulating part 33 and an outlet end 35. The inlet end 31 and the outlet end 35 are open ports. The inlet port 31 communicates with the return air duct 51 of the refrigerating compartment 50 and the circulating section 33. The inlet end 31 is provided with a fan 40. The outlet port 35 communicates the circulation portion 33 with the freezing chamber 60.

The return air after heat exchange from the cooling compartment 50 is returned to the surroundings of the evaporator through the return air passage 51. When the fan 40 is controlled to be started, part of the return air in the return air channel 51 is sent to the air guide channel to circulate, the return air exchanges heat with the bottom of the ice box to melt the bottom of ice blocks, and the ice pushing rod can push the ice blocks out of the ice maker. The cooled return air is discharged to the freezing chamber 60 through the outlet end 35 to participate in the cold air circulation of the freezing chamber 60.

It should be understood that although the present description refers to embodiments, not every embodiment contains only a single technical solution, and such description is for clarity only, and those skilled in the art should make the description as a whole, and the technical solutions in the embodiments can also be combined appropriately to form other embodiments understood by those skilled in the art.

The above-listed detailed description is only a specific description of a possible embodiment of the present invention, and they are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and equivalent embodiments or modifications made without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention should be included in the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A refrigerator comprises a cold storage chamber and a freezing chamber, and is characterized in that the freezing chamber accommodates an ice maker, a first air channel is arranged at the lower part of an ice box of the ice maker, the first air channel is communicated with the cold storage chamber through a second air channel, the first air channel is configured to introduce air in the cold storage chamber into the lower part of the ice box to circulate and discharge the air to the freezing chamber, the first air channel comprises an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end and the outlet end are both open ports, the first air channel further comprises a circulating part, two ends of the circulating part are respectively connected with the inlet end and the outlet end, the circulating part is close to the bottom of the ice box, the circulating part is isolated into a U-shaped air channel through a raised rib, the inlet end is communicated with the second air channel, the inlet end is provided with a fan, after ice blocks are frozen, the fan is controlled to be turned on, and after the, the fan is controlled to be closed, cold air circulation is not formed between the air in the refrigerating chamber and the first air channel, and the outlet end is connected with the freezing chamber.

2. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second duct communicates the refrigerating compartment with the evaporator to return air in the refrigerating compartment to the surroundings of the evaporator.

3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the second duct extends from the rear wall of the refrigerating compartment to the rear wall of the freezing compartment.