US 12,188,705 B2
Refrigerator and method for controlling the same
Donghoon Lee, Seoul (KR); Wookyong Lee, Seoul (KR); Seungseob Yeom, Seoul (KR); Donghoon Lee, Seoul (KR); Yongjun Bae, Seoul (KR); Sunggyun Son, Seoul (KR); and Chongyoung Park, Seoul (KR)
Assigned to LG ELECTRONICS INC., Seoul (KR)
Appl. No. 17/281,936
Filed by LG ELECTRONICS INC., Seoul (KR)
PCT Filed Oct. 2, 2019, PCT No. PCT/KR2019/012975
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Mar. 31, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/071822, PCT Pub. Date Apr. 9, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 10-2018-0117785 (KR), filed on Oct. 2, 2018; application No. 10-2018-0117819 (KR), filed on Oct. 2, 2018; application No. 10-2018-0117821 (KR), filed on Oct. 2, 2018; application No. 10-2018-0117822 (KR), filed on Oct. 2, 2018; application No. 10-2018-0142117 (KR), filed on Nov. 16, 2018; and application No. 10-2019-0081744 (KR), filed on Jul. 6, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2021/0381741 A1, Dec. 9, 2021
Int. Cl. F25C 1/18 (2006.01); F25C 1/24 (2018.01); F25C 5/08 (2006.01); F25D 29/00 (2006.01)
CPC F25C 1/18 (2013.01) [F25C 1/24 (2013.01); F25C 5/08 (2013.01); F25D 29/00 (2013.01); F25C 2400/06 (2013.01); F25C 2400/10 (2013.01); F25C 2600/04 (2013.01); F25C 2700/12 (2013.01)] 22 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A refrigerator comprising:
a storage chamber;
a cold air supply configured to provide cold air;
a tray provided in the storage chamber and including at least one cell which forms a space in which a liquid introduced into the space is phase-changed into ice;
a heater configured to provide heat to the tray; and
a controller configured to control the heater, wherein:
the controller is configured to operate the heater during an ice making process so that air bubbles in the liquid within the space move from a portion of the liquid which has phase-changed into ice toward a portion of the liquid that is still in a liquid state, and
the controller is configured to control the cold air supply and the heater so that at least one of a cooling power of the cold air supply or a heating amount of the heater vary, wherein the controller is configured to control the heater so that when a target temperature of the storage chamber decreases, the heating amount of the heater increases, and when the target temperature of the storage chamber increases, the heating amount of the heater decreases.
 
18. A refrigerator comprising:
a storage chamber;
a cold air supply configured to provide cold air;
a tray provided in the storage chamber and including at least one cell which forms a space in which a liquid is introduced to be phase-changed into ice, the space having a spherical shape including a top portion, a middle portion, and a bottom portion, wherein a mass of liquid in the space increases from the top portion to the middle portion and decreases from the middle portion to the bottom portion;
a heater configured to provide heat to the tray; and
a controller configured to control output power of the heater, wherein the controller is configured to control the heater so that when a target temperature of the storage chamber decreases, a heating amount of the heater increases, and when the target temperature of the storage chamber increases, the heating amount of the heater decreases.
 
21. A refrigerator, comprising:
a storage chamber;
a cold air supply configured to provide cold air;
a tray provided in the storage chamber and including at least one cell which forms a space in which a liquid is introduced to be phase-changed into ice, the space having a spherical shape including a top portion, a middle portion, and a bottom portion, wherein a mass of liquid in the space increases from the top portion to the middle portion and decreases from the middle portion to the bottom portion;
a heater configured to provide heat to the tray; and
a controller configured to control output power of the heater to vary the output power as ice is formed from the top portion to the bottom portion,
wherein the controller is configured to control the heater such that:
when a heat transfer amount between the cold air within the storage chamber and the liquid in the space increases, a heating amount of the heater increases, and
when the heat transfer amount between the cold air within the storage chamber and the liquid in the space decreases, the heating amount of the heater decreases so as to maintain an ice making rate of the liquid in the space within a predetermined range that is lower than an ice making rate that occurs if the heater is turned off.