Ice making assembly with rotating tray

Abstract

An ice making assembly for a refrigerator appliance includes a support frame and a tray. A mold cavity is defined in the tray. The tray is rotatably mounted inside of the support frame. The tray is rotatable between a fill position and a release position. The mold cavity is configured to receive a fill of liquid water and form an ice piece therein when the tray is in the fill position.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An ice making assembly for a refrigerator appliance, the ice making assembly comprising:
 a support frame; and   a tray with a mold cavity defined therein, the tray rotatably mounted inside of the support frame by a first pivot joint at a first end of the tray and second pivot joint at a second end of the tray, wherein the second pivot joint is a passive pivot joint, whereby the entire tray is rotatable in a single direction between a fill position and a release position, the mold cavity configured to receive a fill of liquid water and form an ice piece therein when the tray is in the fill position.   
     
     
         2 . The ice making assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the tray comprises a resilient mold, the mold cavity defined in the resilient mold, wherein the support frame comprises a cross beam, and wherein the cross beam engages the resilient mold when the tray is in the release position, whereby the resilient mold is deformed to release the ice piece from the resilient mold in the release position. 
     
     
         3 . The ice making assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the tray further comprises a heat exchanger in thermal communication with the resilient mold to freeze the liquid water and thereby form the ice piece in the mold cavity. 
     
     
         4 . The ice making assembly of  claim 3 , wherein the heat exchanger comprises a slot, wherein the cross beam of the support frame extends through the slot when the tray is in the release position. 
     
     
         5 . The ice making assembly of  claim 3 , wherein the resilient mold is removably mounted to the heat exchanger. 
     
     
         6 . The ice making assembly of  claim 5 , wherein the tray is rotatable to an access position for accessing the resilient mold. 
     
     
         7 . The ice making assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a fill cup positioned above the mold cavity for selectively filling the mold cavity with the liquid water when the tray is in the fill position. 
     
     
         8 . The ice making assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the fill position is approximately one hundred and eighty degrees from the release position. 
     
     
         9 . The ice making assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the mold cavity comprises an open end, the open end oriented upwards in the fill position and oriented downwards in the release position, whereby the ice piece falls out of the mold cavity in the release position. 
     
     
         10 . A refrigerator appliance defining a vertical direction, a lateral direction, and a transverse direction, comprising:
 a cabinet defining a chilled chamber;   a door rotatably mounted to the cabinet to provide selective access to the chilled chamber;   an ice making assembly positioned within the chilled chamber, the ice making assembly comprising:
 a support frame; and 
 a tray with a mold cavity defined therein, the tray rotatably mounted inside of the support frame by a first pivot joint at a first end of the tray and second pivot joint at a second end of the tray, wherein the second pivot joint is a passive pivot joint, whereby the entire tray is rotatable in a single direction between a fill position and a release position, the mold cavity configured to receive a fill of liquid water and form an ice piece therein when the tray is in the fill position. 
   
     
     
         11 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 10 , wherein the tray comprises a resilient mold, the mold cavity defined in the resilient mold, wherein the support frame comprises a cross beam, and wherein the cross beam engages the resilient mold when the tray is in the release position, whereby the resilient mold is deformed to release the ice piece from the resilient mold in the release position. 
     
     
         12 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 11 , wherein the tray further comprises a heat exchanger in thermal communication with the resilient mold to freeze the liquid water and thereby form the ice piece in the mold cavity. 
     
     
         13 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 12 , wherein the heat exchanger comprises a slot, wherein the cross beam of the support frame extends through the slot when the tray is in the release position. 
     
     
         14 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 12 , wherein the resilient mold is removably mounted to the heat exchanger. 
     
     
         15 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 14 , wherein the tray is rotatable to an access position for accessing the resilient mold. 
     
     
         16 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 10 , further comprising a fill cup positioned above the mold cavity for selectively filling the mold cavity with the liquid water when the tray is in the fill position. 
     
     
         17 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 10 , wherein the fill position is approximately one hundred and eighty degrees from the release position. 
     
     
         18 . The refrigerator appliance of  claim 10 , wherein the mold cavity comprises an open end, the open end oriented upwards along the vertical direction in the fill position and oriented downwards along the vertical direction in the release position, whereby the ice piece falls out of the mold cavity in the release position.