Patent ID: 7712322

Claim:
A refrigerator comprising: a cabinet including a refrigerated compartment; an ice maker mounted in the refrigerated compartment, said ice maker including a body portion, an ice maker unit for receiving water and forming ice cubes during an ice production cycle, an ice storage bin for receiving ice cubes from the ice maker unit during a harvest cycle, and a device for detecting a level of ice cubes in the ice storage bin, said device including: a bail arm pivotally mounted to the body portion for movement between a raised position and a lowered position for controlling the ice production cycle; and an actuator including a shape memory element operatively connected to the bail arm for moving the bail arm from the lowered position to the raised position for the ice harvest cycle and thereafter allowing the bail arm to return to the lowered position upon completion of the ice harvest cycle; and a controller for regulating operation of the shape memory element.