Refrigerator with icemaker chilled by thermoelectric device cooled by fresh food compartment air

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9714784-B2
Application number	US-201213691919-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 3, 2012
Priority date	Dec 3, 2012
Publication date	Jul 25, 2017
Grant date	Jul 25, 2017

Abstract

A refrigerator that has a fresh food compartment, a freezer compartment, and a door that provides access to the fresh food compartment is disclosed. An icemaker is mounted remotely from the freezer compartment. The icemaker includes an ice mold. A thermoelectric device is provided and includes a warm side and an opposite cold side. The icemaker is thermally influenced by the cold side of the thermoelectric device. Air or fluid may be moved from the fresh food compartment across the warm side of the thermoelectric device. Cold air or fluid, such as from the refrigerator compartment, is used to dissipate heat from the warm side of the thermoelectric device for cooling the ice mold of the icemaker.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A refrigerator that has a fresh food compartment, a freezer compartment, and a door that provides access to the fresh food compartment, the refrigerator comprising:
an insulated compartment mounted remotely from the freezer compartment;
an icemaker housed within the insulated compartment, the icemaker having an ice mold;
a first enclosed fluid pathway supplying a heat carrying fluid from the insulated compartment to the fresh food compartment, said heat carrying fluid being a glycol, the fluid pathway having a pump within the fresh food compartment;
a second enclosed fluid pathway supplying a cold fluid from the freezer compartment to the insulated compartment;
a thermoelectric device in directly contacting the ice mold, said thermoelectric device having a thermal influence on the ice mold, the glycol in the first fluid pathway, the insulated compartment and the fresh food compartment, said thermoelectric device having a first side and a second side;
a liquid sink in thermal contact with the first side of the thermoelectric device whereby the liquid sink dissipates heat from the first side of the thermoelectric device to the first fluid pathway during an ice making operation of the refrigerator; and
whereby the first fluid pathway forms a fluid loop from the pump to the liquid sink, wherein said first fluid pathway remains within fresh food compartment and the insulated compartment.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1 whereby the first fluid pathway is selected from the group consisting essentially of a conduit, tube, duct, and a channel.

3. A method for making ice in a refrigerator, said refrigerator comprising: a refrigerator compartment, a freezer compartment, and a door that provides access to the refrigerator compartment, the refrigerator comprising:
an insulated compartment mounted remotely from the freezer compartment;
an icemaker housed within the insulated compartment, the icemaker having an ice mold;
an enclosed fluid supply pathway supplying a heat carrying fluid from the insulated compartment to the refrigerator compartment, said heat carrying medium being a glycol, the fluid supply pathway having a pump within the refrigerator compartment;
an enclosed fluid return pathway supplying said heat carrying medium from the refrigerator compartment to the insulated compartment, whereby the fluid supply pathway and the fluid return pathway form a fluid loop that remains within fresh food compartment and the insulated compartment;
an enclosed fluid pathway supplying a cold fluid from the freezer compartment to the insulated compartment;
a thermoelectric device having a first side and a second side, whereby the second side is in direct contact with the ice mold and in thermal contact with the glycol in the fluid loop, said second side having a temperature below the temperature for making ice, said first side having a temperature of about 0° F. plus a delta temperature for the thermoelectric device; and
a liquid sink connected to the fluid supply pathway and the fluid return pathway, said liquid sink in thermal contact with the first side of the thermoelectric device;
the method comprising:
cooling the ice mold by carrying heat away from the ice maker through the thermoelectric device by supplying the glycol from the refrigerated compartment through the fluid supply pathway and across the liquid sink on the first side of the thermoelectric device and returning the glycol to the refrigerated compartment via the fluid return pathway; and
transferring heat from the second side of the thermoelectric device to the ice mold to harvest ice from the ice mold.

Assignees

• Whirlpool Co

Inventors

• Boarman Patrick J
• Culley Brain K
• Hortin Gregory Gene
• Thomas Mark E

Classifications

• F25D17/08 Primary

  using ducts · CPC title

• F25D17/065

  with compartments at different temperatures · CPC title

• F25D2323/021

  French doors · CPC title

• F25B2321/025

  Removal of heat · CPC title

• F25C5/22

  particularly adapted for household refrigerators · CPC title