Clear ice making refrigerator

A refrigerator with clear ice making capability, comprising:

• a cabinet defining an interior refrigerator chamber and an interior ice maker chamber isolated from the refrigerator chamber by a partition wall;
• a clear ice maker mechanism disposed in the ice maker chamber and including an evaporator plate defining a plurality of pockets over which water cascades and in which clear ice pieces are formed;
• a refrigeration system including an ice maker evaporator disposed in the ice maker chamber adjacent the evaporator plate and a refrigerator evaporator disposed in the refrigerator chamber, the evaporators being coupled to a compressor receiving return refrigerant from the evaporators and to a condenser coupled to the compressor;
• wherein the evaporators are connected in series;
• wherein the refrigerator evaporator receives refrigerant passing through the ice maker evaporator;
• wherein the refrigeration system further includes a refrigerator valve controlling flow of refrigerant from the ice maker evaporator to the refrigerator evaporator;
• wherein the refrigeration system further includes a bypass valve controlling flow of refrigerant from the ice maker to the compressor when the primary valve is closed.

A refrigerator with clear ice making capability, comprising:

• a cabinet defining an interior refrigerator chamber and an interior ice maker chamber isolated from the refrigerator chamber by a partition wall;
• a clear ice maker mechanism disposed in the ice maker chamber and including an evaporator plate defining a plurality of pockets over which water cascades and in which clear ice pieces are formed;
• a refrigeration system including an ice maker evaporator disposed in the ice maker chamber adjacent the evaporator plate and a refrigerator evaporator disposed in the refrigerator chamber, the evaporators being coupled to a compressor receiving return refrigerant from the evaporators and to a condenser coupled to the compressor;
• wherein the evaporators are connected in series;
• wherein the refrigerator evaporator receives refrigerant passing through the ice maker evaporator;
• wherein the refrigeration system further includes a bypass valve disposed between an outlet side of the compressor and the inlet side of the ice maker evaporator so that when open hot refrigerant is routed to the ice maker evaporator.

A refrigerator with clear ice making capability, comprising:

• a cabinet defining an interior refrigerator chamber and an interior ice maker chamber isolated from the refrigerator chamber by a partition wall;
• a clear ice maker mechanism disposed in the ice maker chamber and including an evaporator plate defining a plurality of pockets over which water cascades and in which clear ice pieces are formed;
• a refrigeration system including an ice maker evaporator disposed in the ice maker chamber adjacent the evaporator plate and a refrigerator evaporator disposed in the refrigerator chamber, the evaporators being coupled to a compressor receiving return refrigerant from the evaporators and to a condenser coupled to the compressor;
• wherein the evaporators are connected in series;
• wherein the refrigerator evaporator receives refrigerant passing through the ice maker evaporator;
• wherein the refrigeration system further includes a water system including a water sump mounted in the ice maker chamber beneath the ice maker evaporator plate, a water pump disposed in the sump to circulate water from the sump back to the evaporator plate, and an overflow mechanism coupling the sump to a drain;
• wherein the ice maker mechanism includes a water distributor disposed above the evaporator plate distributing water over the plurality of pockets of the evaporator plate;
• wherein the distributor receives water from a water tube;
• wherein the water tube is mounted to the distributor by a tube retainer;
• wherein the tube retainer is located at a center of the distributor and has an opening receiving the water tube and an inverted partial cup section mating with a partial cup section of the distributor.

A refrigerator with clear ice making capability, comprising:

• a cabinet defining an interior refrigerator chamber and an interior ice maker chamber isolated from the refrigerator chamber by a partition wall;
• a clear ice maker mechanism disposed in the ice maker chamber and including an evaporator plate defining a plurality of pockets over which water cascades and in which clear ice pieces are formed;
• a refrigeration system including an ice maker evaporator disposed in the ice maker chamber adjacent the evaporator plate and a refrigerator evaporator disposed in the refrigerator chamber, the evaporators being coupled to a compressor receiving return refrigerant from the evaporators and to a condenser coupled to the compressor;
• wherein the evaporators are connected in series;
• wherein the refrigerator evaporator receives refrigerant passing through the ice maker evaporator;
• wherein the refrigeration system further includes a water system including a water sump mounted in the ice maker chamber beneath the ice maker evaporator plate, a water pump disposed in the sump to circulate water from the sump back to the evaporator plate, and an overflow mechanism coupling the sump to a drain, wherein the overflow mechanism includes a drain pump and an overflow collector having a first float operating a switch to activate the drain pump wherein the overflow collector includes a second float disposed vertically above the first float used to operate a second switch for signaling the controller to shut down the ice maker mechanism until the second float has returned to a normal position.

A refrigerator with clear ice making capability, comprising:

• a cabinet defining an interior refrigerator chamber and an interior ice maker chamber isolated from the refrigerator chamber by a partition wall;
• a clear ice maker mechanism disposed in the ice maker chamber and including an evaporator plate defining a plurality of pockets over which water cascades and in which clear ice pieces are formed;
• a refrigeration system including an ice maker evaporator disposed in the ice maker chamber adjacent the evaporator plate and a refrigerator evaporator disposed in the refrigerator chamber, the evaporators being coupled to a compressor receiving return refrigerant from the evaporators and to a condenser coupled to the compressor;
• wherein the cabinet has a front opening leading to the ice maker chamber and the refrigerator chamber that is closed by a door hinged to the cabinet along one side having a seal that when the door is closed extends along walls of the cabinet defining the front opening and along the partition wall dividing the refrigerator chamber from the ice maker chamber;
• wherein a cross member of the seal extends between parallel segments of the seal at an intermediate location between end segments of the seal selected to seal an opening to an insulated body in the ice section when the door is closed.

A combination refrigerator and ice maker unit having a cabinet defining an interior refrigerator chamber and an interior ice maker chamber in which is disposed a clear ice maker having an evaporator plate in which ice cubes are formed, the unit has an electronically controlled refrigeration system, comprising:

• an ice maker evaporator disposed in the ice maker chamber adjacent the evaporator plate;
• a refrigerator evaporator disposed in the refrigerator chamber;
• a compressor disposed in the cabinet external to the ice maker and refrigerator chambers receiving refrigerant from one of the evaporators via a suction tube;
• a condenser disposed in the cabinet external to the ice maker and refrigerator chambers receiving compressed refrigerant from the compressor via a discharge tube and being coupled to the ice maker evaporator via a capillary tube;
• a refrigerator valve disposed in a line between an outlet side of the ice maker evaporator and an inlet side of the refrigerator evaporator so that when open the refrigerator evaporator is in fluid communication with the ice maker evaporator and when closed the refrigerator evaporator is closed from the ice maker evaporator;
• and
• a refrigerator bypass valve disposed in a line between outlet sides of the evaporators and an inlet side of the compressor so that when open the ice maker is in fluid communication with the compressor and when closed the refrigerator evaporator is in fluid communication with the compressor;
• wherein one of the refrigerator valve and refrigerator bypass valve is open during operation of the refrigerator without both being open concurrently such that when the refrigerator bypass valve is open no refrigerant passes from the ice maker evaporator to the refrigerator evaporator.