US-12617664-B2 - Countertop appliances and water supply therefor

US12617664B2US 12617664 B2US12617664 B2US 12617664B2US-12617664-B2

Abstract

Systems and methods for providing water to a countertop appliance, and a pitcher which may be used with such systems and methods, are provided. The pitcher may include at least one pitcher wall and an internal volume defined within the at least one wall of the pitcher. The pitcher may be configured to be received in an autofill dispenser in a refrigerator appliance. The refrigerator appliance may include a cabinet defining a fresh food chamber. The pitcher may also be configured to couple to a countertop appliance whereby the internal volume of the pitcher is in fluid communication with the countertop appliance to provide water from the internal volume of the pitcher to the countertop appliance when coupled.

Inventors

Louis A. Wantland

Assignees

HAIER US APPLIANCE SOLUTIONS, INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20240322

Claims (8)

1 . A method of providing water to a countertop appliance, the method comprising: providing a refrigerator appliance, the refrigerator appliance comprising a cabinet defining a fresh food chamber and an autofill dispenser; providing the countertop appliance; providing a pitcher; and receiving the pitcher in the autofill dispenser in the refrigerator appliance, the pitcher comprising at least one pitcher wall, and an internal volume defined within the at least one pitcher wall of the pitcher, and a spout, wherein the at least one pitcher wall comprises a bottom wall, wherein the pitcher comprises a normally-closed check valve extending downward from the bottom wall away from the internal volume of the pitcher, wherein the bottom wall of the pitcher is configured to be received on a shelf of the autofill dispenser, wherein the shelf comprises a recess defined therein which accommodates the normally-closed check valve when the bottom wall of the pitcher is received on the shelf, whereby the normally-closed check valve remains in a closed position while the pitcher is received on the shelf, flowing a volume of water through the spout into the internal volume of the pitcher from the autofill dispenser in the refrigerator appliance; coupling the pitcher to the countertop appliance, by coupling the pitcher to the countertop appliance at the normally-closed check valve of the pitcher whereby the normally-closed check valve is moved to an open position and the internal volume of the pitcher is in fluid communication with the countertop appliance through the normally-closed check valve in the open position; and providing the volume of water from the internal volume of the pitcher to the countertop appliance through the normally-closed check valve in the open position when coupled.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the autofill dispenser is positioned on an inner side of a door of the refrigerator, wherein the volume of water is flowed into the internal volume of the pitcher from the autofill dispenser while the door is in a closed position, whereby the pitcher is located in the fresh food chamber of the refrigerator appliance.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the autofill dispenser defines a cavity, wherein receiving the pitcher in the autofill dispenser comprises receiving the pitcher in the cavity.
4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the countertop appliance is an ice making appliance, wherein providing the volume of water from the internal volume of the pitcher to the countertop appliance when coupled comprises providing the volume of water from the internal volume of the pitcher to an internal water tank in the ice making appliance.
5 . A system for providing water to a countertop appliance, the system comprising: a refrigerator appliance, the refrigerator appliance comprising: a cabinet defining a fresh food chamber; and an autofill dispenser; the countertop appliance; and a pitcher, the pitcher comprising at least one pitcher wall, an internal volume defined within the at least one wall of the pitcher, and a spout, wherein the pitcher is configured to receive a volume of water into the internal volume of the pitcher from the autofill dispenser in the refrigerator appliance by flowing the volume of water into the internal volume through the spout, wherein the at least one pitcher wall comprises a bottom wall, wherein the pitcher comprises a normally-closed check valve extending downward from the bottom wall away from the internal volume of the pitcher, wherein the pitcher is configured to be received in the autofill dispenser in the refrigerator appliance, wherein the bottom wall of the pitcher is configured to be received on a shelf of the autofill dispenser, wherein the shelf comprises a recess defined therein which accommodates the normally-closed check valve when the bottom wall of the pitcher is received on the shelf, whereby the normally-closed check valve remains in a closed position while the pitcher is received on the shelf, and wherein the pitcher is configured to couple to the countertop appliance, by coupling the pitcher to the countertop appliance at the normally-closed check valve of the pitcher whereby the normally-closed check valve is moved to an open position and the internal volume of the pitcher is in fluid communication with the countertop appliance through the normally-closed check valve in the open position to provide water from the internal volume of the pitcher to the countertop appliance when coupled.
6 . The system of claim 5 , wherein the autofill dispenser is positioned on an inner side of a door of the refrigerator, whereby the pitcher is located in the fresh food chamber of the refrigerator appliance when the pitcher is received in the autofill dispenser and the door is in a closed position.
7 . The system of claim 5 , wherein the autofill dispenser defines a cavity, wherein the pitcher is configured to be received in the cavity of the autofill dispenser.
8 . The system of claim 5 , wherein the countertop appliance is an ice making appliance and wherein the pitcher is configured to couple to the countertop appliance whereby the internal volume of the pitcher is in fluid communication with an internal water tank in the ice making appliance to provide the volume of water from the internal volume of the pitcher to the internal water tank in the ice making appliance.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present subject matter relates generally to domestic appliances, and more particularly to water reservoir systems for such appliances. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Various household appliances or domestic appliances use water to perform a range of tasks, such as making ice, brewing coffee, and other similar tasks. Some such domestic appliances are not provided with a plumbing connection, or may include a self-contained water supply, e.g., a water tank or water reservoir, for various reasons. Such unplumbed domestic appliances are typically sized to be conveniently located at any spot of the user's choosing, such as on a kitchen countertop, and thus may be referred to as countertop appliances. For example, a coffee maker or a stand-alone ice making appliance may include a water reservoir. Users frequently add tap water to the water reservoir of such appliances. Tap water may be less than optimal for some applications. For example, tap water may include various impurities that negatively affect the appearance and/or taste of coffee brewed from the tap water or ice cubes formed from the tap water. As another example, ice may be more readily formed in an ice maker when the water is chilled prior to being supplied to the ice maker. Some refrigerator appliances include autofill dispensing systems. Autofill dispensing systems typically include a dispenser housing and a pitcher. When the pitcher is positioned in a designated spot, e.g., within the autofill housing, water is automatically dispensed into the pitcher to a predetermined volume. When chilled water is desired, the pitcher is removed from the refrigerator appliance and the desired amount of liquid is manually dispensed, typically by tilting the pitcher to pour the water from the pitcher. When the pitcher is returned to the dispenser housing, it is automatically refilled to the predetermined volume of water. Thus, a supply of chilled water is maintained. Some users may desire to fill the water reservoir of a water-using domestic appliance from the pitcher of the autofill dispensing system. Doing so may, however, be cumbersome, inconvenient, or messy. For example, a filled pitcher may be too heavy for a user to manipulate safely and/or accurately. As another example, dispensing water from a spigot of the pitcher into the water reservoir of the water-using domestic appliance may involve removing the water reservoir from the water-using appliance, then holding the water reservoir with one hand while operating the spigot the other. Accordingly, improved systems and methods for providing water to a countertop appliance are desired in the art. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the following description, may be apparent from the description, or may be learned through practice of the invention. In one exemplary aspect, a method of providing water to a countertop appliance is provided. The method includes receiving a pitcher in an autofill dispenser in a refrigerator appliance. The pitcher includes at least one pitcher wall and an internal volume defined within the at least one pitcher wall of the pitcher. The refrigerator appliance includes a cabinet defining a fresh food chamber. The method further includes flowing a volume of water into the internal volume of the pitcher from the autofill dispenser in the refrigerator appliance. The method also includes coupling the pitcher to the countertop appliance. As a result of such coupling, the internal volume of the pitcher is in fluid communication with the countertop appliance. The method further includes providing the volume of water from the internal volume of the pitcher to the countertop appliance when coupled. In another example aspect, a system for providing water to a countertop appliance is provided. The system includes a refrigerator appliance, the countertop appliance, and a pitcher. The refrigerator appliance includes a cabinet defining a fresh food chamber and an autofill dispenser. The pitcher includes at least one pitcher wall and an internal volume defined within the at least one wall of the pitcher. The pitcher is configured to couple to the countertop appliance. As a result of such coupling, the internal volume of the pitcher is in fluid communication with the countertop appliance to provide water from the internal volume of the pitcher to the countertop appliance when coupled. In another exemplary aspect, a pitcher is provided. The pitcher includes at least one pitcher wall and an internal volume defined within the at least one wall of the pitcher. The pitcher is configured to be received in an autofill dispenser in a refrigerator appliance. The refrigerator appliance includes a cabinet defining a fresh food chamber. The pitcher is configured to couple to a countertop appliance. As a result of such coupling, the internal volume of the pitcher is in fluid communication with the countertop appliance to provi