Ice Supplying Apparatus And Refrigerator Having The Same

• US 20160138845A1
• Filed: 10/30/2015
• Published: 05/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: KIM, Bongjun, AN, Siyeon
• Granted Patent: US 10,641,534 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: F25C 2400/04 Ice guide, e.g. for guiding ice blocks to storage tank
• CPC Class Codes: F25C 2500/02 Geometry problems
• CPC Class Codes: F25C 2500/08 Sticking or clogging of ice
• CPC Class Codes: F25C 5/046 Ice-crusher machines
• CPC Class Codes: F25C 5/22 particularly adapted for household refrigerators

Abstract

An ice supplying apparatus includes: an ice bank configured to store therein ice made by an ice maker; a blade unit having a fixed blade, and a rotary blade formed to be relatively-rotatable with respect to the fixed blade, the rotary blade configured to crush ice when rotated in one direction; and a discharge guide unit provided below the blade unit, and configured to discharge the crushed ice, wherein a scattering preventing unit having a different inclination, in a gravitational direction of the earth, from another side of the discharge guide unit is formed at one side of the discharge guide unit, so as to prevent scattering of the crushed ice when the crushed ice is taken out.

Claims

1. An ice supplying apparatus, comprising:

an ice bank configured to store ice made by an ice maker;

a blade unit having a fixed blade and a rotary blade, the rotary blade being configured to rotate with respect to the fixed blade and being configured to crush ice based on rotation of the rotary blade in a first direction that causes ice stored by the ice bank to be crushed between the rotary blade and the fixed blade;

a discharge guide unit located below the blade unit and configured to guide discharge of the crushed ice; and

a scattering preventing unit that is located at a first side of the discharge guide unit and that is configured to, during discharge of the crushed ice, reduce scattering of the crushed ice from the discharge guide unit, the scattering preventing unit having a first inclination angle relative to a direction of gravity that is different from a second inclination angle relative to the direction of gravity of a second side of the discharge guide unit, the second side of the discharge guide unit being opposite of the first side of the discharge guide unit where the scattering preventing unit is located.

2. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the fixed blade and the scattering preventing unit are disposed on opposite sides of the discharge guide unit based on a line extending from a rotation axis of the rotary blade in the direction of gravity.

3. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the scattering preventing unit is positioned between a tangential vector and a normal vector at a lowest point of a circle defined by rotation of the rotary blade as the rotary blade is rotated in the first direction.

4. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the discharge guide unit includes:

a guide body installed at a dispenser case, the guide body having an inlet through which the crushed ice is introduced; and

an inner guide that is located in the guide body and that is configured to guide discharge of the crushed ice, the inner guide having a discharge outlet for discharge of the crushed ice, and

wherein the scattering preventing unit is located on a first side of an inner wall of the inner guide.

5. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 4, wherein the scattering preventing unit has a thickness that gradually increases toward an inside of the inner guide as the scattering preventing unit extends toward the discharge outlet.

6. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 4, wherein the first side of the inner wall of the inner guide is bent, on at least one point, to extend toward an inside of the inner guide to define the scattering preventing unit.

7. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 6, wherein both side walls of the inner guide have a same thickness.

8. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 4, wherein a first distance, from a central axis of the inlet to a first side of the discharge outlet where the scattering preventing unit is located, is shorter than a second distance from the central axis of the inlet to a second side of the discharge outlet that is opposite of the first side of the discharge outlet.

9. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 4, further comprising a manipulation lever configured to generate a control signal for dispensing ice based on being pressed,

wherein the inner guide has an arc shape in which both ends of the inner guide are positioned in correspondence to both sides of the manipulation lever.

10. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 9, wherein a portion of the inner guide has a thickness that gradually increases toward an inside of the inner guide to define the scattering preventing unit, the thickness of the portion of the inner guide also gradually increases toward a first end of the inner guide from a point between the both ends of the inner guide that are positioned in correspondence to both sides of the manipulation lever.

11. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first end of the inner guide has a tapered portion that is spaced apart from the manipulation lever.

12. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an ice duct configured to guide discharge of from the ice bank to the discharge guide unit.

13. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 1, wherein the fixed blade and the rotary blade each have a knife edge configured to crush ice located at one side, and

wherein the knife edge of the rotary blade is configured to rotate toward the knife edge of the fixed blade based on rotation of the rotary blade in the first direction.

14. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 13, wherein, based on rotation of the rotary blade in the first direction, the knife edge of the rotary blade is moved toward the knife edge of the fixed blade to crush ice disposed between the rotary blade and the fixed blade, and

wherein, based on rotation of the rotary blade in a second direction that is opposite of the first direction, a smooth side of the rotary blade pushes ice to bypass the fixed blade and dispense as ice cubes.

15. A refrigerator, comprising:

a refrigerator body;

a refrigerator door rotatably connected to the refrigerator body; and

an ice supplying apparatus installed at the refrigerator door, the ice supplying apparatus comprising;

an ice bank configured to store ice made by an ice maker;

a blade unit having a fixed blade and a rotary blade, the rotary blade being configured to rotate with respect to the fixed blade and being configured to crush ice based on rotation of the rotary blade in a first direction that causes ice stored by the ice bank to be crushed between the rotary blade and the fixed blade;

a discharge guide unit located below the blade unit and configured to guide discharge of the crushed ice; and

a scattering preventing unit that is located at a first side of the discharge guide unit and that is configured to, during discharge of the crushed ice, reduce scattering of the crushed ice from the discharge guide unit, the scattering preventing unit having a first inclination angle relative to a direction of gravity that is different from a second inclination angle relative to the direction of gravity of a second side of the discharge guide unit, the second side of the discharge guide unit being opposite of the first side of the discharge guide unit where the scattering preventing unit is located.

16. The ice supplying apparatus of claim 15, wherein the scattering preventing unit is positioned between a tangential vector and a normal vector at a lowest point of a circle defined by rotation of the rotary blade as the rotary blade is rotated in the first direction.

17. The refrigerator of claim 15, wherein the discharge guide unit includes:

a guide body installed at a dispenser case, the guide body having an inlet through which the crushed ice is introduced; and

an inner guide that is located in the guide body and that is configured to guide discharge of the crushed ice, the inner guide having a discharge outlet for discharge of the crushed ice, and

wherein the scattering preventing unit is located on a first side of an inner wall of the inner guide.

18. The refrigerator of claim 17, wherein the scattering preventing unit has a thickness that gradually increases toward an inside of the inner guide as the scattering preventing unit extends toward the discharge outlet.

19. The refrigerator of claim 17, wherein the ice supplying apparatus further comprises a manipulation lever configured to generate a control signal for dispensing ice based on being pressed,

wherein the inner guide has an arc shape in which both ends of the inner guide are positioned in correspondence to both sides of the manipulation lever.

20. The refrigerator of claim of claim 19, wherein a portion of the inner guide has a thickness that gradually increases toward an inside of the inner guide to define the scattering preventing unit, the thickness of the portion of the inner guide also gradually increases toward a first end of the inner guide from a point between the both ends of the inner guide that are positioned in correspondence to both sides of the manipulation lever.