US 12,104,839 B2
Ice maker and refrigerator comprising same
Donghoon Lee, Seoul (KR); Wookyong Lee, Seoul (KR); Chongyoung Park, Seoul (KR); Donghoon Lee, Seoul (KR); and Sunggyun Son, Seoul (KR)
Assigned to LG ELECTRONICS INC., Seoul (KR)
Appl. No. 17/282,195
Filed by LG ELECTRONICS INC., Seoul (KR)
PCT Filed Oct. 2, 2019, PCT No. PCT/KR2019/012915
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Apr. 1, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/071788, PCT Pub. Date Apr. 9, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 10-2018-0117806 (KR), filed on Oct. 2, 2018; and application No. 10-2019-0081688 (KR), filed on Jul. 6, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2021/0356191 A1, Nov. 18, 2021
Int. Cl. F25C 5/08 (2006.01); F25C 1/18 (2006.01); F25C 1/24 (2018.01); F25C 1/25 (2018.01); F25C 5/06 (2006.01)
CPC F25C 5/08 (2013.01) [F25C 1/18 (2013.01); F25C 1/24 (2013.01); F25C 1/25 (2018.01); F25C 5/06 (2013.01); F25C 2700/04 (2013.01)] 14 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An ice maker comprising:
a first tray configured to define a first portion of a cell;
a first tray cover formed as a separate component to the first tray and coupled to the first tray;
a first tray supporter formed as a separate component to the first tray and coupled to the first tray, a portion of the first tray passing through the first tray supporter, and another portion of the first tray being positioned between the first tray cover and the first tray supporter;
a second tray configured to define a second portion of the cell, the first and second portions being configured to form a space in which a liquid introduced into the space is phase-changed into ice;
a heater configured to be adjacent to the first tray to heat the cell; and
a pusher configured to separate the ice from the cell,
wherein:
the first tray includes a first surface to define the first portion of the cell and a second surface to define an exterior of the first tray,
the heater is embedded in a space between the first surface and the second surface of the first tray, and the second surface is configured to surround the heater to prevent the heater from being exposed to an outside, and
in an ice separation process, the pusher passes through the first tray cover, the second surface, and the first surface, and pushes the ice in the cell.