Patent 7762097 was granted and assigned to LG on July, 2010 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
An ice maker for a refrigerator includes a first shaft rotatably fastened to an inside of an ice bank, a second shaft fastened to an end of the first shaft and rotated by a driving motor, and a plurality of blades formed along a longitudinal direction of the second shaft. The blades are spaced apart a predetermined distance along the second shaft and have a spiral surface which acts to push ice as the second shaft rotates. The first shaft may be formed of a material such as steel, which has good torsional elasticity. The second shaft and the blades may be formed as one molded piece.