U.S. patent application number 11/878602 was filed with the patent office on 2008-02-14 for refrigerator.
This patent application is currently assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Myung Hoon Cho, Jong Dal Lee, Jae Hoon Lim, Seung Tae Lim, Dong Nyeol Ryu.
Application Number | 20080034779 11/878602 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39049204 |
Filed Date | 2008-02-14 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080034779 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lee; Jong Dal ; et
al. |
February 14, 2008 |
Refrigerator
Abstract
A refrigerator having an ice making device. The refrigerator
includes a body having a refrigerating compartment, a freezing
compartment, and an ice making compartment, an ice making device
arranged in the ice making compartment, to produce and store ice,
an outlet formed through the ice making compartment, to introduce
cold air into the ice making compartment, and at least one inlet
formed through the ice making compartment, to discharge the cold
air from the ice making compartment. The outlet is arranged at a
rear side of the ice making compartment, and the inlet is arranged
at a front side of the ice making compartment, so that it is
possible to achieve a smooth circulation of cold air in the ice
making compartment.
Inventors: |
Lee; Jong Dal; (Gwangsan-gu,
KR) ; Lim; Jae Hoon; (Suwon-si, KR) ; Cho;
Myung Hoon; (Suwon-si, KR) ; Lim; Seung Tae;
(Gwangsan-gu, KR) ; Ryu; Dong Nyeol; (Daedeok-gu,
KR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
STAAS & HALSEY LLP
SUITE 700, 1201 NEW YORK AVENUE, N.W.
WASHINGTON
DC
20005
US
|
Assignee: |
Samsung Electronics Co.,
Ltd.
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
39049204 |
Appl. No.: |
11/878602 |
Filed: |
July 25, 2007 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
62/344 ;
62/66 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25C 1/04 20130101; F25D
17/065 20130101; F25D 2317/067 20130101; F25D 2317/0654 20130101;
F25C 2400/10 20130101; F25D 2317/061 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
62/344 ;
62/66 |
International
Class: |
F25C 1/00 20060101
F25C001/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Aug 11, 2006 |
KR |
P2006-76461 |
Claims
1. A refrigerator comprising a body defined with a refrigerating
compartment, a freezing compartment, and an ice making compartment,
the refrigerator comprising: an ice making device arranged in the
ice making compartment, to produce and store ice; an outlet formed
through the ice making compartment, to introduce cold air into the
ice making compartment; and at least one inlet formed through the
ice making compartment, to discharge the cold air from the ice
making compartment, wherein the outlet is arranged at a rear side
of the ice making compartment, and the at least one inlet is
arranged at a front side of the ice making compartment.
2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the inlet
comprises a plurality of inlets, and one of the inlets is arranged
at the rear side of the ice making compartment.
3. The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein the body
comprises a supply passage connected with the outlet, to guide cold
air to the ice making compartment, and a return passage connected
to the inlet, to discharge the cold air out of the ice making
compartment.
4. The refrigerator according to claim 3, wherein the supply
passage and the return passage communicate with the freezing
compartment.
5. The refrigerator according to claim 3, wherein the return
passage comprises: a first return passage buried in one side wall
of the body; and a second return passage buried in a rear wall of
the body.
6. The refrigerator according to claim 5, wherein the first and
second return passages are joined at an upper portion of the rear
wall of the body, and then extend to the freezing compartment.
7. A refrigerator comprising a body defined with a refrigerating
compartment, a freezing compartment, and an ice making compartment,
the refrigerator comprising: an ice making device arranged in the
ice making compartment, to produce and store ice; and an inlet and
an outlet formed through the ice making compartment, to introduce
cold air into the ice making compartment and to discharge the cold
air from the ice making compartment, respectively, wherein one of
the inlet and the outlet is arranged at a front side of the ice
making compartment, and the other of the inlet and the outlet is
arranged at a rear side of the ice making compartment.
8. The refrigerator according to claim 7, wherein the outlet is
arranged at a rear surface of the ice making compartment, and the
inlet is arranged at one side of a front surface of the ice making
compartment.
9. The refrigerator according to claim 8, wherein the inlet
comprises a plurality of inlets, and one of the inlets is arranged
at the rear surface of the ice making compartment.
10. The refrigerator according to claim 9, wherein the body
comprises: a first return passage buried in one side wall of the
body, the first return passage communicating with the inlet
arranged at one side of the front surface of the ice making
compartment, to discharge cold air out of the ice making
compartment; and a second return passage buried in a rear wall of
the body, the second return passage communicating with the inlet
formed at the rear surface of the ice making compartment.
11. The refrigerator according to claim 10, wherein the first and
second return passages are joined at an upper portion of the rear
wall of the body, and then extend to the freezing compartment.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent
Application No. P2006-76461 filed on Aug. 11, 2006 in the Korean
Intellectual Property Office, the disclosures of which are
incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field
[0003] The present invention relates to a refrigerator. More
particularly, to a refrigerator having an ice making device.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] A conventional refrigerator includes a freezing compartment
and a refrigerating compartment, into which cold air heat-exchanged
at an evaporator is introduced, and a machinery compartment
arranged at a rear side of the freezing compartment or
refrigerating compartment beneath the freezing compartment or
refrigerating compartment, to install a compressor and a condenser.
In such a conventional refrigerator, the refrigerating compartment
stores food in a fresh state at a temperature of about 3 to
5.degree. C., and the freezing compartment can store food in a
frozen state at a sub-zero temperature for a prolonged period of
time.
[0006] Another refrigerator includes an upper compartment
functioning as a refrigerating compartment, to store beverage or
foods to be stored for a short period of time, and a lower
compartment functioning as a freezing compartment. A refrigerator
also includes an ice making device provided with a dispenser
arranged at a front side of a door of the ice making device, in
order to allow the user to conveniently take ice out of the ice
making device.
[0007] An example of such a conventional refrigerator is disclosed
in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/0090496. The disclosed
refrigerator includes a lower compartment functioning as a freezing
compartment and an upper compartment functioning as a refrigerating
compartment. An ice making region is defined at an upper or lower
corner of the refrigerating compartment.
[0008] When the ice making region is defined at a lower corner of
the refrigerating compartment, an opening for introducing cold air
into the ice making region is formed directly through a partition
wall for partitioning the refrigerating and freezing compartments.
In this case, however, there is a problem in that it is impossible
to achieve smooth circulation of cold air. This is because the
opening formed, as mentioned above, not only functions to introduce
cold air from the freezing compartment into the ice making region,
but also functions to discharge cold air from the ice making region
into the freezing compartment, thereby causing the flow direction
of cold air to be non-uniform.
[0009] On the other hand, when the ice making region is defined at
an upper corner of the refrigerating compartment, an air duct for
guiding cold air to the ice making region is connected to a rear
side of the ice making region. In this case, cold air is introduced
into and discharged from the ice making region through the rear
side of the ice making region. For this reason, there is
interference between the introduced cold air flow and the
discharged cold air flow. Due to such interference, it is
impossible to achieve smooth circulation of cold air for an ice
making operation.
SUMMARY
[0010] Accordingly, it is an aspect of the present invention to
provide a refrigerator having a structure capable of achieving a
smooth circulation of cold air for an ice making operation.
[0011] Additional aspects and/or advantages will be set forth in
part in the description which follows and, in part, will be
apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the
invention.
[0012] The foregoing and/or other aspects of the present invention
are achieved by providing a refrigerator including a body having a
refrigerating compartment, a freezing compartment, and an ice
making compartment, the refrigerator further including an ice
making device arranged in the ice making compartment, to produce
and store ice, an outlet formed through the ice making compartment,
to introduce cold air into the ice making compartment, and at least
one inlet formed through the ice making compartment, to discharge
the cold air from the ice making compartment, wherein the outlet is
arranged at a rear side of the ice making compartment, and the at
least one inlet is arranged at a front side of the ice making
compartment.
[0013] According to an aspect of the present invention, the at
least one inlet includes a plurality of inlets, and one of the
inlets is arranged at a rear side of the ice making
compartment.
[0014] According to an aspect of the present invention, the body
includes a supply passage connected with the outlet, to guide cold
air to the ice making compartment, and a return passage connected
with the inlet, to discharge the cold air out of the ice making
compartment.
[0015] According to an aspect of the present invention, the supply
passage and the return passage communicate with the freezing
compartment.
[0016] According to an aspect of the present invention, the return
passage includes a first return passage buried in one side wall of
the body, and a second return passage buried in a rear wall of the
body.
[0017] According to an aspect of the present invention, the first
and second return passages are joined at an upper portion of the
rear wall of the body, and then extend to the freezing
compartment.
[0018] It is another aspect of the present invention to provide a
refrigerator including a body having a refrigerating compartment, a
freezing compartment, and an ice making compartment, the
refrigerator further including an ice making device arranged in the
ice making compartment, to make and store ice; and an inlet and an
outlet formed through the ice making compartment, to introduce cold
air into the ice making compartment and to discharge the cold air
from the ice making compartment, respectively, wherein one of the
inlet and the outlet is arranged at a front side of the ice making
compartment, and the other of the inlet and the outlet is arranged
at a rear side of the ice making compartment.
[0019] According to an aspect of the present invention, the outlet
is arranged at a rear surface of the ice making compartment. The
inlet is arranged at one side of a front surface of the ice making
compartment.
[0020] According to an aspect of the present invention, the inlet
includes a plurality of inlets, and one of the inlets is arranged
at the rear surface of the ice making compartment.
[0021] According to an aspect of the present invention, the body
includes a first return passage buried in one side wall of the
body. The first return passage communicates with the inlet arranged
at one side of the front surface of the ice making compartment, to
discharge cold air out of the ice making compartment. The body also
includes a second return passage buried in a rear wall of the body.
The second return passage communicates with the inlet formed at the
rear surface of the ice making compartment.
[0022] According to an aspect of the present invention, the first
and second return passages are joined at an upper portion of the
rear wall of the body, and then extend to the freezing
compartment.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0023] These and/or other aspects and advantages of the present
invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from
the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction
with the accompanying drawings of which:
[0024] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of a
refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention in
an opened state of a refrigerating compartment door;
[0025] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line A-A' in
FIG. 1 in a closed state of the refrigerating compartment door of
FIG. 1;
[0026] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line B-B' of
FIG. 1 in the closed state of the refrigerating compartment door of
FIG. 1;
[0027] FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating an ice making
compartment included in the refrigerator according to an embodiment
of the present invention;
[0028] FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating an ice making
compartment included in a refrigerator according to an embodiment
of the present invention;
[0029] FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating an ice making
compartment included in a refrigerator according to an embodiment
of the present invention; and
[0030] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an ice making
compartment included in a refrigerator according to an embodiment
of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0031] Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of
the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the
like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below to
explain the present invention by referring to the figures.
[0032] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of a
refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention in
an opened state of a refrigerating compartment door. FIG. 2 is a
cross-sectional view taken along a line A-A' in FIG. 1 in a closed
state of the refrigerating compartment door of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a
cross-sectional view taken along a line B-B' of FIG. 1 in the
closed state of the refrigerating compartment door of FIG. 1.
[0033] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the refrigerator according to an
embodiment of the present invention comprises a body 10. The body
10 comprises a refrigerating compartment 20 defined at an upper
portion of the body 10, a freezing compartment 30 defined beneath
the refrigerating compartment 20, and an ice making compartment 40
defined above the refrigerating compartment 20 by insulating walls
41. The refrigerator also comprises doors 21 and 31 respectively
arranged at front sides of the refrigerating and freezing
compartments 20 and 30, and an ice making device 50 arranged in the
ice making compartment 40, to produce and store ice.
[0034] The refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present
invention also comprises elements for constituting a refrigerant
cycle, for example, a compressor 12, a condenser (not shown), an
expander (not shown), and evaporators 23 and 33.
[0035] Electric or mechanical elements are arranged in a machinery
compartment 11 defined in a lower portion of the body 10 at a rear
side of the body 10. For example, the compressor 12 is installed in
the machinery compartment 11. The freezing compartment 30 is
arranged above the machinery compartment 11. The refrigerating
compartment 20 is arranged above the freezing compartment 30. The
refrigerating compartment 20 and freezing compartment 30 are
partitioned by a horizontal partition wall 13. A foam 14 is filled
in a space defined between inner and outer cases 10a and 10b of the
body 10, in order to achieve thermal insulation.
[0036] A freezing compartment door 31, which is of a sliding type,
is provided at a front side of the freezing compartment 30. A pair
of refrigerating compartment doors 21, which are of a side-by-side
type, are provided at a front side of the refrigerating compartment
20.
[0037] The doors 21 and 31 comprise door handles 21a or 31a,
respectively. Receiving spaces 21b are provided at an inner side of
each refrigerating compartment door 21. A dispenser 22 is mounted
to an outer surface of the left refrigerating compartment door 21,
to dispense ice made by the ice making device 50. A cup lever 22c
is provided at the dispenser 22, to open a damper 22b provided at
an outer end of an ice discharge passage 22a.
[0038] The refrigerating compartment 20, which is defined at the
upper portion of the body 10, includes a first evaporator 23
arranged at the rear side of the refrigerating compartment 20, to
generate cold air to be supplied to the interior of the
refrigerating compartment 20, a refrigerating space 24 for storing
food, etc., a refrigerating duct 25 partitioning the refrigerating
space 24 from the first evaporator 23, and circulating cold air
heat-exchanged at the first evaporator 23 into the refrigerating
space 24, and a first blowing fan 26 arranged in the refrigerating
duct 25, to forcibly circulate the cold air.
[0039] A first inlet 25a is formed at a lower portion of the
refrigerating duct 25, to guide cold air from the refrigerating
space 24 toward the first evaporator 23. A first blowing port 25b
is provided at an upper portion of the refrigerating duct 25, to
discharge cold air introduced through the first inlet 25a into the
refrigerating space 24 after being subjected to heat exchange while
passing the first evaporator 23. The first blowing fan 26 is
arranged at the first blowing port 25b, in order to forcibly supply
the heat-exchanged cold air to the refrigerating space 24.
[0040] An appropriate number of spaced first outlets 25c are formed
at a front side of the refrigerating duct 25 such that the cold air
emerging from the first blowing port 25b by the first blowing fan
26 is discharged into the refrigerating space 24 in a
uniformly-distributed manner. A refrigerating flow passage 25d is
defined in the refrigerating duct 25, to guide the cold air
introduced through the first blowing port 25b to the first outlets
25c.
[0041] Accordingly, the cold air present in the refrigerating space
24 flows toward the first evaporator 23 through the first inlet
25a. After being subjected to heat exchange while passing the first
evaporator 23, the cold air is introduced into the refrigerating
flow passage 25d via the first blowing fan 26. The cold air
introduced into the refrigerating flow passage 25d is discharged
into the refrigerating space 24 through the first outlets 25c.
Thus, the circulation of cold air in the refrigerating compartment
20 is carried out in a closed circulation manner. Accordingly, the
cold air present in the refrigerating compartment 20 is introduced
into neither the freezing compartment 30 nor the ice making
compartment 40. Similarly, the cold air present in the freezing
compartment 30 or ice making compartment 40 is not introduced into
the refrigerating compartment 20.
[0042] The freezing compartment 30, which is arranged beneath the
refrigerating compartment 20, comprises a second evaporator 33
arranged at the rear side of the freezing compartment 30, to
generate cold air to be supplied to the interior of the freezing
compartment 30, a freezing space 34 for storing food, etc. in a
frozen state, a freezing duct 35 partitioning the freezing space 34
from the second evaporator 33, and circulating cold air generated
in accordance with heat exchange carried out by the second
evaporator 33 into the freezing space 34, and a second blowing fan
36 arranged in the freezing duct 35, to forcibly circulate the cold
air.
[0043] A second inlet 35a is formed at a lower portion of the
freezing duct 35, to guide cold air from the freezing space 34
toward the second evaporator 33. A second blowing port 35b is
provided at an upper portion of the freezing duct 35, to discharge
cold air introduced through the second inlet 35a into the freezing
space 34 after being subjected to heat exchange while passing the
second evaporator 33. The second blowing fan 36 is arranged at the
second blowing port 35b, in order to forcibly supply the
heat-exchanged cold air to the freezing space 34.
[0044] An predetermined number of spaced second outlets 35c are
formed at a front side of the freezing duct 35 such that the cold
air emerging from the second blowing port 35b by the second blowing
fan 36 is discharged into the freezing space 34 in a
uniformly-distributed manner. A freezing flow passage 35d is
defined in the freezing duct 35, to guide the cold air introduced
through the second blowing port 35b to the second outlets 35c.
[0045] As described above, the ice making compartment 40 is defined
above the refrigerating compartment 20 by the insulating walls 41.
In the ice making compartment 40, the ice making device 50, which
produces and stores ice, is arranged. The ice making compartment 40
are arranged at one side of an upper or lower portion of the
refrigerating compartment 20. The following description will be
given in conjunction with an embodiment in which the ice making
compartment 40 is arranged at an upper corner of the refrigerating
compartment 20.
[0046] The ice making compartment 40 is arranged at the upper
corner of the refrigerating compartment 20. As shown in FIG. 4, the
ice making compartment 40 comprises an upper surface defined by an
upper surface 20a of the refrigerating compartment 20, and a lower
surface defined by the insulating wall 41, which is horizontally
protruded from one side surface of the refrigerating compartment 20
in the form of a structure integral with the side surface of the
refrigerating compartment 20. Also, one side surface of the ice
making compartment 40 is defined by the side surface of the
refrigerating compartment 20. The other side surface of the ice
making compartment 40 is defined by the insulating wall 41 which is
downwardly protruded from the upper surface 20a of the
refrigerating compartment 20.
[0047] An outlet 42 is formed at a rear surface 44 of the ice
making compartment 40, to introduce cold air into the ice making
compartment 40. An inlet 43 is formed at one side of a front
surface of the ice making compartment 40, to discharge the cold air
introduced into the ice making compartment 40 toward the second
evaporator 33. In order to achieve a smooth circulation of cold air
in the ice making compartment 40, the inlet 43 is open in a flow
direction of the cold air discharged from the outlet 42. That is,
the main stream of the cold air discharged from the outlet 42
reaches the inlet 43 after flowing in a specified direction.
Accordingly, it is possible to prevent cold air flows from
interfering with each other, and thus to achieve a smooth
circulation of cold air.
[0048] In order to cause the cold air discharged from the outlet 42
to flow toward the inlet 43 after passing a lower portion of a tray
51c included in the ice maker 51, according to an embodiment of the
present invention, the inlet 43 is not arranged near a front end of
the tray 51c, but is arranged at one side surface 45 of the ice
making compartment 40 in a front region of the ice making
compartment 40. The tray 51c will be described in detail later.
[0049] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention,
an ice making flow duct 60 is provided at the body 10 of the
refrigerator, to circulate cold air through the ice making
compartment 40 and second evaporator 33. The ice making flow duct
60 is arranged in the rear wall of the body 10 between the inner
case 10a and the outer case 10b. The ice making flow duct 60 is
fixed to the rear wall of the body 10 by filling a foam 14 into a
space defined between the ice making flow duct 60 and the rear wall
of the body 10.
[0050] The ice making flow duct 60 comprises a supply duct 61 for
guiding, to the ice making compartment 40, cold air subjected to
heat exchange while passing the second evaporator 33, and a return
duct 62 for guiding the cold air present in the ice making
compartment 40 to an inlet side 33a of the second evaporator
33.
[0051] The supply duct 61 comprises a first end connected with the
outlet 42 open to the ice making compartment 40. A third blowing
fan 63 is arranged at a second end of the supply duct 61 arranged
above the second evaporator 22, to forcibly supply, to the ice
making compartment 40, cold air subjected to heat exchange while
passing the second evaporator 33. The third blowing fan 63 is
arranged adjacent to the second evaporator 33.
[0052] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the
third blowing fan 63 comprises any one of a cross-flow fan and an
axial flow fan. According to an embodiment of the present
invention, a cross-flow fan 63a is used for the third blowing fan
63. The third blowing fan 63 comprises a fan casing 63b for guiding
cold air.
[0053] Cold air emerging from the second evaporator 33 after being
heat-exchanged is introduced into the ice making compartment 40 via
the supply duct 61 and outlet 42 by the third blowing fan 63. Thus,
cold air is supplied to the ice making device 50 arranged in the
ice making compartment 40. The cold air supplied to the ice making
compartment 40, as described above, is sucked into the inlet 43
formed at one side of the front surface of the ice making
compartment 40, and is subsequently guided to the inlet side 33a of
the second evaporator 33 via the return duct 62. Thus, the cold air
is circulated after being heat exchanged. In accordance with such a
circulation procedure, a smooth circulation of cold air is
achieved. Accordingly, cold air heat-exchanged at the second
evaporator 33 is rapidly supplied to the ice making compartment
40.
[0054] For example, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the ice making
device 50 included in the refrigerator according to an embodiment
of the present invention, further comprises an ice bank 52 arranged
beneath the ice maker 51, to store ice separated from the ice maker
51, an auger 53 arranged in the ice bank 52, to move the ice stored
in the ice bank 52 to the dispenser 22, and an ice crusher 54
arranged at an end of the auger 53, to selectively crush ice in
accordance with a user's desire.
[0055] The ice maker 51 comprises a water supply pipe 51a for
supplying water. The tray 51c, which is also included in the ice
maker 51, is formed with a plurality of ice receiving spaces 51b in
which water is stored and frozen. The ice maker 51 further
comprises an ice separating member 51d for separating ice from the
ice receiving spaces 51b, and a drive motor 51e for driving the ice
separating member 51d.
[0056] The ice maker 51 extends considerably in a depth direction
of the ice making compartment 40. Also, the tray 51c of the ice
maker 51 is fixed to the upper surface of the ice making
compartment 40. Thus, it is possible to reduce the volume of the
ice making device 50 installed in the ice making compartment
40.
[0057] The ice bank 52, which is arranged beneath the ice maker 51,
stores ice separated from the tray 51c of the ice maker 51. The
auger 53, which is arranged in the ice bank 52, comprises a spiral
shape. Accordingly, as the auger 53 rotates, the ice stored in the
ice bank 52 is moved to the dispenser 22.
[0058] The ice crusher 54 which is mounted to the outer end of the
auger 53 to crush ice, comprises a fixed blade 54a and rotating
blades 54b. Accordingly, the ice crusher 54 can feed ice cubes or
ice particles to the dispenser 22 through the ice discharge passage
22a in accordance with a user's selection.
[0059] Hereinafter, a refrigerator according to an embodiment of
the present invention will be described.
[0060] In the following description, the same constituent elements
as those of the above-described embodiment will be designated by
the same reference numerals, respectively, and no description
thereof will be given.
[0061] In the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the
present invention, as shown in FIG. 5, the ice making compartment
40 comprises an outlet 42 formed at one side of the front surface
of the ice making compartment 40 and connected to the supply duct
61, to supply cold air to the ice making compartment 40, and an
inlet 43 formed at a rear surface of the ice making compartment 40
and connected to the return duct 62, to guide cold air from the ice
making compartment 40 to the inlet side 33a of the second
evaporator 33.
[0062] Hereinafter, a refrigerator according to an embodiment of
the present invention will be described.
[0063] In the following description, the same constituent elements
as those of the above-described embodiment will be designated by
the same reference numerals, respectively, and no description
thereof will be given.
[0064] In the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the
present invention, an ice making device 50 is arranged in the ice
making compartment 40, as shown in FIG. 6. An outlet 42 is formed
at an upper side of the rear surface of the ice making compartment
40. A first inlet 43' is formed at one side of the front surface of
the ice making compartment 40. A second inlet 43'' is also formed
at a lower side of the rear surface of the ice making compartment
40.
[0065] The outlet 42 communicates with the supply duct 61 connected
to the freezing compartment 30 at one side of the supply duct 61,
to supply cold air from the freezing compartment 30 to the ice
making compartment 40. The inlets 43' and 43'' communicate with a
return duct 62' connected to the freezing compartment 30 at one
side of the return duct 62', to discharge, to the freezing
compartment 30, cold air passing a lower portion of the ice maker
51.
[0066] The return duct 62' comprises a first return duct 62a'
buried in one side wall of the body 10 and directly connected to
the first inlet 43' formed at one side of the front surface of the
ice making compartment 40, and a second return duct 62b' buried in
the rear wall of the body 10 and directly connected to the second
inlet 43'' formed at the lower side of the rear surface of the ice
making compartment 40.
[0067] The first return duct 62a' extends to the rear wall of the
body 10 along one side wall of the body 10, and then extends toward
the freezing compartment 30 after being joined with the second
return duct 62b' at an upper portion of the rear wall of the body
10.
[0068] Since the supply duct 61 and return duct 62' (62a' and 62b')
are buried in a foam, the insulation thickness at regions, where
the supply duct 61 and return duct 62' are arranged, may be
reduced. To this end, in order to minimize such an insulation
thickness reduction, it is preferred that the supply duct 61 and
return duct 62' have a reduced lateral length, namely, a reduced
width, and an increased vertical length, namely, an increased
height.
[0069] In a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present
invention, as shown in FIG. 7, the return duct 62, which is
connected with the inlet 43 provided at one side of the front
surface of the ice making compartment 40, extends downwardly in a
state of being buried in one side wall of the body 10.
[0070] Although the refrigerator, in which evaporators are provided
at refrigerating and freezing compartments, respectively, has been
described, the present invention is also applicable to a
refrigerator comprises a single evaporator installed in a
refrigerating compartment or freezing compartment. Also, the
present invention is applicable not only to a bottom freezer type
refrigerator including an upper compartment functioning as a
refrigerating compartment and a lower compartment functioning as a
freezing compartment, but also to a top freezer type refrigerator
including an upper compartment functioning as a freezing
compartment and a lower compartment functioning as a refrigerating
compartment and a side-by-side type refrigerator including freezing
and refrigerating compartments respectively defined at opposite
sides of a refrigerator body.
[0071] As apparent from the above description, in accordance with
an embodiment of the present invention, an inlet and an outlet,
which function to introduce cold air into an ice making compartment
and to discharge the cold air from the ice making compartment,
respectively, are open in a flow direction of the cold air.
Accordingly, there is an effect capable of achieving a smooth
circulation of cold air in the ice making compartment.
[0072] Although a few embodiments have been shown and described, it
would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may
be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles
and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the
appended claims and their equivalents.
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