ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 23 -- United States Patent no. 12,422,178, issued on Sept. 23, was assigned to Illinois Tool Works Inc. (Glenview, Ill.).
"Hybrid ice maker" was invented by Eric K. Larson (Cumberland, R.I.), Juan J. Barrena (Johnston, R.I.) and William D. Chatelle (Cranston, R.I.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "An ice making device provides an ice tray and a frame to hold the ice tray. The frame has a proximal end with a motor and a distal end with a circular opening. An insert positioned in the circular opening with a projection provides a vibrating motion to dislodge ice cubes from the ice tray. An ice tray includes an integrated heating circuit for sensing capacitance and releasing f...