Whirlpool Corporation

Mark G Steffenhagen

Daryl Lee Reuter

Diane E Marret

Johnny R Revlett

Guy E Garrison

Jill C Moeller

Jeff J Smale

Frank W Klitzing

Matthew P Dieg

Sinuhé Argumedo

Jeffrey J Smale

Kevin R Leatherwood

Sooraj Puthiyaveetil

Jeffrey Neil Wilson

A refrigerator having an in-door water dispenser and a water routing system is provided with a cabinet. A door is reversibly hinged to the cabinet at either a first edge or a second edge. A water supply line leads from a water reservoir and has a first connection at a first top front corner of the cabinet and a second connection at a second top front corner. A feeder line leads from the dispenser to a top surface of the door with an end at one of the first door edge and the second door edge. When the door is hinged along the first edge, the end of the feeder line is connected to the first connection and when the door is hinged along the second edge, the end of the feeder line is connected to the second connection.

Water routing system for reversible door refrigerator with dispenser

A refrigerator with at least one openable door has a hinge at a pivoting edge of the door allowing the door to open about the pivoting edge. A water dispenser, positioned on the door, has a paddle which is moved horizontally by a user to cause water to be dispensed. The paddle engages a toggle that is attached to the dispenser housing, causing the toggle to rotate into engagement with a microswitch. The microswitch is mounted on a user interface control board which communicates with a power supply electronic control board. The power supply control board operates a water dispenser solenoid valve to cause water to flow to the dispenser when the toggle engages the microswitch. An endcap is secured to an edge of the door adjacent to the pivoting edge. A first conduit extends from the water dispenser to an end within the endcap. A second conduit extends from within the cabinet to an end exterior of the cabinet and within the endcap. An end connector is provided to receive the ends of the first and second conduits. The hinge is movable from the pivoting edge of the door to an opposite edge of the door. The second conduit is arranged to exit from either adjacent one corner or adjacent an opposite corner of the cabinet to be adjacent to the pivoting edge. The two conduits are joinable within the endcap at the end connector to form a continuous conduit.

In-door water dispenser with door reversibility

An appliance cabinet with at least one openable door has a hinge at a pivoting edge of the door to allow the door to open about the pivoting edge. An endcap is secured to an edge of the door adjacent to the pivoting edge. A first conduit extends from an in-door apparatus to an end within the endcap. A second conduit extends from within the cabinet to an end exterior of the cabinet and within the endcap. An end connector is provided to receive the ends of the first and second conduits. The hinge is movable from the pivoting edge of the door to an opposite edge of the door. The second conduit is arranged to exit from either adjacent one corner or adjacent an opposite corner of the cabinet to be adjacent to the pivoting edge. In this arrangement, the two conduits are joinable within the endcap at the end connector to form a continuous conduit.

An ice dispenser for a refrigeration apparatus includes a container for storing ice bodies. The container has opposite front and rear walls and an access opening through the front wall. A housing is secured at the front wall adjacent the access opening and has a dispensing space for dispensing ice bodies. An ice conveyor transfers ice bodies stored in the container to the dispensing space. The ice conveyor includes a wire auger and a cylindrical sleeve surrounding the wire auger for rotation therewith. The cylinder has an outer wall including a helical rib extending outwardly therefrom. The sleeve rib moves ice bodies frontwardly at a slower rate than the wire auger.

Ice conveyor system for refrigerator

Growing community of inventors

Evansville, IN, United States of America

Mark G Steffenhagen