Refrigerator with thermoelectric device for ice making

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9593870-B2
Application number	US-201213691966-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 3, 2012
Priority date	Dec 3, 2012
Publication date	Mar 14, 2017
Grant date	Mar 14, 2017

Abstract

An apparatus that has a housing with an icemaker disposed within the housing is disclosed. The icemaker includes an ice mold. A thermoelectric device is provided having a warm side and an opposite cold side. The cold side is thermally coupled to the icemaker. A flow pathway is configured in communication with the warm side of the thermoelectric device. A heat carrier is communicated through the flow pathway. The heat carrier transfers heat from the warm side of the thermoelectric device to support operations of the apparatus. The apparatus may be configured as a refrigerator wherein the refrigerator is configured to transfer the heat carrier from the warm side of the thermoelectric device to a compartment of the refrigerator.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A refrigerator, comprising:
a housing comprising a refrigerated compartment and a freezer compartment;
an icemaker disposed within the housing, the icemaker having an ice mold;
a thermoelectric device disposed remote from the icemaker, the thermoelectric device having a warm side and a cold side when a polarity of an applied voltage to said thermoelectric device is in a first direction in which the icemaker makes ice, the cold side fluidly coupled to the icemaker via a liquid refrigerant line, the liquid refrigerant line comprising a fluid supply pathway and a fluid return pathway;
a flow pathway in communication with the warm side of the thermoelectric device;
a first heat carrier in the flow pathway, the flow pathway comprising a flow controller, wherein said flow controller is configured to operate by selectively switching into a first position and a second position; said first position is configured to fluidly communicate the first heat carrier from the flow pathway with a first discrete space within the refrigerator compartment via said flow controller; and said second position is configured to fluidly communicate the first heat carrier from the flow pathway with a second discrete space within the freezer compartment via said flow controller; and wherein said first heat carrier is configured transfer heat from the warm side of the thermoelectric device to said first discrete spave when the flow controller is in said first position and transfer heat from the warm side of the thermoelectric device to said second discrete space when the flow control is in said second position.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising an ice storage bin for containing ice positioned below the icemaker.

3. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the first discrete space is in a bin, and wherein the refrigerator is configured to transfer the heat carrier from the warm side of the thermoelectric device to the bin of the refrigerator.

4. The refrigerator of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of fastenerless mounts throughout the housing and connectors on the icemaker for removably mounting the icemaker to the mounts in various locations within the housing.

5. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein the supply pathway acquires a second heat carrier from a location remote from the icemaker.

6. The refrigerator of claim 1 , wherein the supply pathway is in communication between the cold side of the thermoelectric device and the icemaker.

Assignees

• Whirlpool Co

Inventors

• Boarman Patrick J
• Culley Brian K
• Hortin Gregory G
• Thomas Mark E

Classifications

• F25D17/065

  with compartments at different temperatures · CPC title

• F25B21/02 Primary

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

• F25C5/185

  with freezing trays · CPC title

• F25C2400/10

  Refrigerator units · CPC title

• F25C2400/14

  Water supply · CPC title