JP2003207242A - Ice maker - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve a problem of being unable to make rectangular and small ice from the relationship of a shape and the size of a recessed part for making the ice by storing water and a water supply groove for smoothly supplying water since a construction material of an ice making pan is a hard resin. <P>SOLUTION: Small and almost rectangular ice can be made by providing this ice maker having a frame body, and a vessel composed of a soft resin and having an opening upper surface, and characterized by arranging a plurality of recessed parts and the water supply groove for communicating between the recessed parts in the vessel, fixing the inside of an upper surface peripheral part of the frame body and the outside of an upper surface peripheral part of the vessel, and changing an opening width of the recessed parts and the water supply groove by opening and closing the frame body. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ice making device which is mounted on a refrigerator or the like to automatically produce ice for eating and drinking.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The popularity of household refrigerators equipped with an automatic ice making device is increasing rapidly. The automatic ice-making device equipped in the conventional household refrigerator is an ice tray for storing and freezing the water supplied from a water tank by a water supply pump or the like, and by applying a rotational force to the ice tray to deform it. It consists of an actuator for removing ice and a container for stocking the ice released from the ice tray. A hard resin such as polypropylene (hereinafter referred to as PP) is used for the ice tray because it needs to return to its original shape even if it is twisted and deformed.
Further, the ice tray has a large number of recesses for accumulating water and a water supply groove communicating between the recesses so that the water can be distributed to all recesses when water is supplied from one or several places. Further, the ice tray is twisted and the opening is directed downward so that the ice tray can be dropped into a container stocking ice.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional automatic ice making device for a refrigerator, water is accumulated and frozen in the water supply groove provided for distributing the supplied water to all the recesses. Depending on the relationship between the size and shape of the water and the size of the water supply groove, ice removal may not always be performed smoothly. In particular, a resin such as PP having water repellency is often used in order to return to the original shape even if it is deformed by twisting, and the water supply groove needs to have a width of at least 5 mm or more. When the ice is large (for example, 2 cm or more in width), the water supply groove becomes 1/4 or less of the width of the ice, and since the deformation due to the twist of the ice tray is large, the ice in the water supply groove between the recesses is large. Is disconnected. However, with small ice (for example, with a width of 1 cm or less), it is not possible to narrow the water supply groove just because the ice is small as long as PP is used in the ice tray, so the water supply groove is 1/2 or more of the width of the ice. Since there is little deformation due to the twisting of the ice tray, the ice in the water supply groove between the recesses is not cut and the ice in the recesses is connected to each other, which may prevent ice separation. Further, in order to remove ice from the ice tray by deformation due to twisting, the shape of the recess greatly affects the ice removal. If you use a nice-looking rectangular shape or a shape that is as close to a rectangular shape as possible, if you twist it, the ice will break in the recess of the ice tray and you will not be able to remove ice, so the recess of the ice tray has a wide opening with a bottom surface. Had a shape close to a narrow trapezoid.

[0004]

In order to solve the above problems, an ice making device according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises a frame body made of a hard resin and a container made of a soft resin and having an upper surface opened. The container is provided with a plurality of recesses and a water supply groove that communicates with the recesses, the inside of the upper surface peripheral part of the frame body and the outside of the upper surface peripheral part of the container are fixed, and the frame body is The opening width of the recess and the water supply groove is changed by opening and closing.

The ice-making device of the second invention comprises a frame body made of hard resin and a container made of a soft resin with an open upper surface, and the container has a plurality of recesses and the recesses communicating with each other. The water supply groove is provided, the side surface inside of the frame body and the side surface outside of the container are fixed, one of the frame bodies is fixed to the refrigerator body, and the other is horizontally movable, The opening widths of the recess and the water supply groove are changed.

An ice making device according to a third aspect of the present invention comprises a frame body made of a hard resin and a container made of a soft resin and having an open upper surface. The container has a plurality of recesses and the recesses communicate with each other. A water supply groove is provided, the side surface inside of the frame body and the side surface outside of the container are fixed, one of the frame bodies is fixed to the refrigerator body, and the other is rotatably movable. The opening widths of the recess and the water supply groove are changed.

[0007]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of an ice making device according to the present invention. A case where the ice making device shown in FIG. 1 is equipped in a freezing chamber having a door will be described (the freezing chamber is not shown). In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an ice tray made of a soft resin such as silicone rubber, and both upper side surfaces of the ice tray 1 are fixed to a frame body 2 made of a hard resin such as polypropylene (hereinafter referred to as PP) by fixing screws 5. There is. The reason why the silicone rubber is used in the ice tray 1 is that it is extremely excellent in cold resistance and maintains sufficient elasticity even at a low brittle point of -60 ° C to -70 ° C.

When water freezes and changes into ice, the volume increases by about 10%. Therefore, in an ice tray made of a hard resin such as PP, the volume expansion caused by the change from water to ice and the contraction of PP itself. As a result, a large force acts on the side surface of the ice inside the ice tray to prevent it from coming off the ice tray. On the other hand, an ice tray made of silicone rubber that retains sufficient elastic force even at −20 ° C. absorbs the volume expansion that occurs when water changes to ice, and the side surface of the ice is as large as a PP ice tray. There is no power. Further, by taking advantage of the properties of silicone rubber, it is easily stretched when pulled a little at −20 ° C., so that the ice adhered to the ice tray can be easily peeled off. Further, the frame bodies 2A and 2B each have a left-right symmetrical L-shape, and rotation shafts 6A and 6B are provided at the constricted portions so that they can rotate about these. Further, the water is supplied from one place or several places, and in order to spread the water to the plurality of recesses 3 provided inside the ice tray 1, the recesses and the recesses are connected by the water supply groove 4.

FIG. 1 shows a state in which the frame bodies 2A and 2B are rotated along the rotary shaft 6 so that the recess 3 becomes substantially rectangular and the width of the water supply groove 4 becomes narrow. When water is supplied (water supply nozzle, pump, etc. are not shown), as shown in FIG. 2, the frame 2 is rotated along the rotation axis 6 so that the right side frame 2B is rotated right and the left side is rotated so that the opening is opened. By rotating the frame body 2A counterclockwise, the water supply groove 4 opens in a V shape, and water can be supplied to all the concave portions 3 by supplying water from one or several places (the rotating means is shown in the figure. Not). However, since silicone rubber exhibits water repellency like PP, in order to spread water over the entire ice tray 1,
The width and depth of the water supply groove 4 become important. Water supply groove 4 is V
When opened in a V shape, it is desirable that the widest portion reach 5 mm or more and the depth reaches the bottom of the recess 3.

When the water supply is completed, the frame body 2 is rotated in the opposite direction to that at the time of water supply so that the recess 3 becomes substantially rectangular and the width of the water supply groove 4 becomes narrow as shown in FIG. If the shape of the water supply groove 4 is V-shaped, the water supply groove 4 is completely closed in the vicinity of the bottom surface of the recess 3 and almost no ice is formed in the water supply groove 4 that connects the recesses to each other to form an independent and beautiful rectangle. Near ice can be made. For example, when ice making is performed by the ice making device according to the present invention in a freezer equipped in a domestic refrigerator, water supply, ice making, and deicing are performed at a temperature of approximately −15 ° C. or lower, but after deicing, water is supplied. However, since it does not freeze immediately, the frame body 2 is rotated after water supply to narrow the water supply groove 4. Recess 3
If the volume is about 1 to 1.4 ml, it is frozen 30 minutes after the water supply, so the frames 2A and 2B are again attached to the rotary shaft 6
2, the right side frame 2 is rotated right and the left side frame 2 is rotated left to widen the opening of the ice tray 1 and at the same time push it up from the bottom to make the ice tray 1 and the frame 2 Are simultaneously rotated to direct the opening downward so that the ice is released from the ice tray 1. In this way, the ice frozen in the recess 3 of the ice tray 1 can be easily taken out from the ice tray 1 regardless of the size of the ice. When ice removal is completed, the water supply is started again with the opening facing upward. The process after water supply is as described above. With the conventional automatic ice machines,
Since only the hard resin such as PP was used for the ice tray, there were restrictions on the size and width of the water supply groove 4 and the recessed portion 3 and 1 ml.
The automatic ice making of small ice (about 1 cm square) was difficult to remove due to the difficulty in removing the ice, but according to the first embodiment of the present invention, even small ice of about 1 ml has good reproducibility in a shape close to a beautiful rectangle. It became possible to automatically make ice. Frame 2
Although a hard resin was used for this, it goes without saying that a metal such as aluminum may be used. Water supply groove 4
The shape of is convenient when the upper part of the ice tray 1 is V-shaped so that the water supply groove 4 becomes narrower when the opening is narrowly closed, but a trapezoid with a wide opening may be used. Absent.

(Second Embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail. As in the first embodiment, the ice making device shown in FIG. 3 is installed in the freezing compartment having a door (the freezing compartment is not shown). Reference numeral 21 in FIG. 3 is an ice tray made of a soft resin such as silicone rubber, which is the same as that in the first embodiment, and therefore its explanation is omitted. The configuration and operation of the ice making device will be described below. Both sides of the upper portion of the ice tray 21 are fixed to the frames 22A, 2A made of a hard resin such as polypropylene (hereinafter referred to as PP) by fixing screws 25.
It is fixed to 2B. The reason why not only the entire side surface of the ice tray 21 but the upper portion is tightly fixed is that the ice can be peeled from the ice tray 21 and pushed up at the same time by widening the opening of the ice tray 21. This is because if the entire side surface is closely fixed, the opening can be expanded and peeled from the ice tray 21, but it cannot be pushed up. Further, the water is supplied from one place or several places, and the water is distributed to a plurality of recesses 23 provided inside the ice tray 1, so that the recesses and the recesses are connected by a water supply groove 24.

As shown in FIG. 3, the ice making device has a frame 22A.
Is fixed so as not to move, and only the frame 22B can be moved in the horizontal direction (the moving means of the frame is not shown). When the distance between the frame body 22A and the frame body 22B is the narrowest, the recess 23 has a shape close to a rectangle as shown in FIG. 3, and the water supply groove 24 is the narrowest. When water is supplied (water supply nozzle, pump, etc. are not shown), the frame body 22B is moved so that the opening is widened (moved to the right in FIG. 4), and the water supply groove 24 is opened so as to have a V shape. It is possible to supply water to all the recesses 23 by supplying water from one place or several places. The shape and size of the water supply groove 24 are the same as those in the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof will be omitted.

When the water supply is completed, the frame body 22B is moved leftward so that the recess 23 has a shape close to a rectangle and the width of the water supply groove 24 near the opening is narrowed. In this case as well, since the water does not freeze immediately after water supply, it is possible to narrow the water supply groove 24 by moving the frame body 23B after water supply. Since the frame bodies 22A and 22B and the ice tray 21 are fixed only around the upper surface, only the opening is widened by the movement of the frame body 22B so that water can be smoothly supplied. Further, even after ice making, ice is separated from the side surface of the ice tray 21 by moving the frame body 22B, and the ice tray 21 and the frame bodies 22A and 22B are rotated downward at the same time, thereby enabling ice release. Become. In the case of the present invention, needless to say, the material of the frame may be not only hard resin but also metal such as aluminum.

[0015]

As described above, for example, 1 ml
It can supply water, make ice, and remove ice even if it is a small ice cube, and can be used without breaking the ice into a container with a small opening such as a plastic bottle, which is not possible with conventional home refrigerators. (EN) It is possible to provide an automatic ice making device capable of making ice with high convenience.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a first embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a use operation according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a second embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a use operation of the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1,21 ice tray 2A, 2B, 22A, 22B frame 3,23 recess 4,24 water ditch 5,25 fixing screw 6 rotation axes

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A freezer compartment having an openable / closable door is provided with an L-shaped frame and a container made of a soft resin and having an open upper surface. The container has a plurality of recesses and recesses and recesses. A water supply groove communicating with each other is provided, and the inside of the peripheral portion of the upper surface of the frame body and the outside of the peripheral portion of the upper surface of the container are fixed, and rotation is possible with the constricted portion of the frame body as a rotation axis. An ice making device characterized in that 2. A freezing chamber having an openable / closable door is provided with a frame body and a container made of a soft resin and having an open upper surface,
The container is provided with a plurality of recesses and a water supply groove that connects the recesses to each other, the inside of the side surface of the frame body and the outside of the side surface of the container are fixed, and one of the frame bodies is fixed so as not to move. And the other one is capable of horizontal movement. 3. The ice making device according to claim 1, wherein the water supply groove has a V-shape or an elongated trapezoidal shape. 4. The ice making device according to claim 1, wherein the frame body is made of hard resin or metal. 5. The ice making device according to claim 1, wherein the soft resin is silicone rubber.