On-door ice maker cooling

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10018384-B2
Application number	US-201514932339-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 4, 2015
Priority date	Dec 3, 2012
Publication date	Jul 10, 2018
Grant date	Jul 10, 2018

Abstract

A refrigerator includes a refrigerator cabinet, a refrigerator compartment disposed within the refrigerator cabinet, a refrigerator compartment door for providing access to the refrigerator compartment, an ice maker on the refrigerator compartment door, a thermoelectric cooler associated with the ice maker and operatively connected to the refrigerator compartment door, the thermoelectric cooler having a first side and an opposite second side, and a cooling loop operatively connected to the refrigerator compartment door and configured for cooling the thermoelectric cooler.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A refrigerator comprising:
a refrigerator cabinet;
a refrigerator compartment disposed within the refrigerator cabinet;
a refrigerator compartment door for providing selective access to the refrigerator compartment;
an ice maker within the refrigerator compartment;
a thermoelectric device associated with the ice maker and operatively connected to the refrigerator compartment door, the thermoelectric device having a warm side and a cool side;
a liquid cooling loop comprising a plurality of channels, the liquid cooling loop being operatively connected to the refrigerator compartment door and configured to cool the warm side of the thermoelectric device.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the plurality of channels is substantially parallel.

3. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising liquid cooling media within the cooling loop.

4. The refrigerator of claim 3 wherein the liquid cooling media comprises at least one of glycol or water.

5. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the cooling loop further provides for heating water to provide heated water.

6. The refrigerator of claim 5 further comprising a dispenser on the refrigerator compartment door adapted to dispense the heated water.

7. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising an ice storage bucket operatively connected to the refrigerator compartment door and a pathway conveying ice from the ice maker to the ice storage bucket.

8. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising a fluid pump operatively connected to the cooling loop for circulating cooling media through the liquid cooling loop.

9. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising a fan at the refrigerator compartment door for circulating air to and from the refrigerator compartment in manner that alters temperature of the air.

10. The refrigerator of claim 9 wherein the temperature is reduced.

11. The refrigerator of claim 9 wherein the temperature is increased.

12. The refrigerator of claim 11 further comprising a heat sink and wherein the fan circulates the air by the heat sink to increase the temperature of the air.

13. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising a second refrigerator compartment door and wherein the refrigerator compartment door and the second refrigerator compartment door are French doors.

14. The refrigerator of claim 13 further comprising a freezer compartment disposed below the refrigerator compartment.

15. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising a hinge operatively connected between the refrigerator compartment door and the refrigerator cabinet and wherein the cooling loop contains cooling media, with no cooling media crossing the hinge.

16. A method of making ice on a door of a refrigerator, the method comprising:
providing a refrigerator comprising (a) a refrigerator cabinet, (b) a refrigerator compartment disposed within the refrigerator cabinet, (c) a refrigerator compartment door for providing access to the refrigerator compartment, (d) an ice maker on the refrigerator compartment door, (e) a thermoelectric cooler associated with the ice maker and operatively connected to the refrigerator compartment door, the thermoelectric cooler having a warm side and a cool side, and (f) a plurality of channels associated with a liquid cooling loop operatively connected to the refrigerator compartment door;
cooling a surface associated with the ice maker using the cool side of the thermoelectric cooler;
circulating liquid cooling media through the plurality of channels to cool the warm side of the thermoelectric cooler.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising cooling water by circulating the liquid cooling media through the liquid cooling loop.

18. The method of claim 16 further comprising heating water or ice by circulating the liquid cooling media through the liquid cooling loop.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein the refrigerator further comprises a fan associated with the refrigerator compartment door and further comprising altering temperature in the refrigerator compartment door using the fan.

20. A refrigerator comprising:
a refrigerator cabinet;
a refrigerator compartment disposed within the refrigerator cabinet;
a refrigerator compartment door for providing access to the refrigerator compartment;
an ice maker on the refrigerator compartment door;
a liquid cooled thermoelectric cooler comprising a warm side and a cool side and associated with the ice maker and operatively connected to the refrigerator compartment door; and
a transfer plate having a plurality of fins configured to transfer heat from the warm side of the liquid cooled thermoelectric cooler to liquid passing between the plurality of fins.

Assignees

• Whirlpool Co

Inventors

• Boarman Patrick J
• Hortin Gregory Gene
• Thomas Mark E

Classifications

• F25D23/028

  Details · CPC title

• F25B21/02 Primary

  using Peltier effect; using Nernst-Ettinghausen effect · CPC title

• F25C5/182

  Ice bins therefor · CPC title

• F25B25/005

  using primary and secondary systems · CPC title

• F25C1/04

  by using stationary moulds · CPC title