JP2007120820A - Storage box with automatic ice-making machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technology for satisfactorily breaking ice in water passages formed in partition walls between ice-making cells while rapidly spreading ice-making water supplied from a water supply point, to the ice-making cell at a final point located farthest from the water supply point when setting the water supply point to an ice tray to one point in a state of dividing the inside of the ice tray into a large number of ice-making cells to make a large number of (about twenty) small ice cubes because ice made by a conventional automatic ice-making machine for a refrigerator is comparatively large and is not small enough to enter a mouth of a PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottle. <P>SOLUTION: The ice-making cells of the ice tray are partitioned by the partition walls into a size to make ice small enough to enter the PET bottle, and the water supply point for supplying the ice-making water from a water supply passage is located on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the ice tray. The water passages through which the ice-making water flows to each ice-making cell are formed in the partition walls, and an ice-breaking protrusion is formed in a side wall of the water passage, in the depth direction of the water passage. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement of an ice tray of an automatic ice maker, which is a storage unit equipped with an automatic ice maker, and in particular, ice having a size small enough to allow the automatic ice maker to enter from the mouth of a PET bottle (polyethylene terephthalate bottle). It relates to an ice-making tray.

An automatic ice maker configured to rotate and twist the ice tray by driving by an electric mechanism and drop the ice in the ice tray downward is disposed in the ice making chamber, and ice making water is supplied to the ice tray from the upper water supply channel. There is a refrigerator to supply. (For example, patent document 1).
JP 2005-257176 A

  The ice made in the ice tray of the invention of Patent Document 1 is relatively large and does not produce ice that is small enough to enter from the mouth of a PET bottle (polyethylene terephthalate bottle), so a large number of around 20 small ices In a state where the ice tray is divided into a number of ice making chambers (ice cells), a water supply point is set at one end of the ice tray, and the ice making water supplied from the water supply point is set in each ice making chamber (ice cell). ) When flowing through a water passage formed on the partition wall, the technology for making ice making water quickly reach the ice making chamber (ice making cell) at the final point located farthest from the water supply point, and in the deicing process When the ice tray is twisted by the electric mechanism, the ice formed in this water passage is destroyed well, and the ice in each ice making chamber (ice cell) is separated. There is no disclosure about the surgery.

  In view of these points, the present invention has a water supply point on one end side of the ice tray when the ice tray that makes a lot of ice that is small enough to enter from the mouth of a PET bottle (polyethylene terephthalate bottle) is provided. The ice making water supplied from the water supply point passes through the water passage formed on the partition wall between each ice making chamber (ice making cell) and quickly reaches the ice making chamber (ice making cell) at the final point located farthest from the water supply point. In addition, when the ice making tray is twisted by the electric mechanism in the deicing process, the ice formed in the water channel is destroyed well, and the ice in each ice making chamber (ice making cell) is separated and is The technology which can be dropped into an ice storage container is provided.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, an ice making tray in which a large number of ice making chambers (ice making cells) are arranged in a plurality of rows along the longitudinal direction and supported rotatably along the row direction axis is rotated by an electric mechanism. An automatic ice maker configured to drop the ice in the dish downward is disposed in the freezing temperature chamber, and an ice storage chamber (ice cell) of the ice tray is a PET in which an ice storage container is provided immediately below the ice tray. A water supply point where ice making water is supplied from the water supply path of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) in the row direction is one end in the longitudinal direction of the ice making tray. A water passageway through which ice making water flows to each ice making chamber (ice making cell) is formed in the partition wall, and ice breaking protrusions are formed on the side walls of the water passage in the depth direction of the water passage. Features.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, an ice making tray in which a large number of ice making chambers (ice making cells) are arranged in a plurality of rows along the longitudinal direction and rotatably supported along the row direction axis is rotated by an electric mechanism. An automatic ice maker configured to drop the ice in the dish downward is disposed in the freezing temperature chamber, and an ice storage chamber (ice cell) of the ice tray is a PET in which an ice storage container is provided immediately below the ice tray. A water supply point where ice making water is supplied from the water supply path of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) in the row direction is one end in the longitudinal direction of the ice making tray. A vertical water passage is formed in all the partition walls in the column direction of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) arranged in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction), and the ice making chambers (ice making cells in the row direction close to the water supply point) On the partition wall between A directional water passage is formed, and on the far side from the water supply point, a lateral water passage is formed in the partition wall between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) in the row direction before the last stage, and on the side wall of the vertical water passage. An ice breaking protrusion is formed in the depth direction of the water passage.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, an ice making tray having a plurality of ice making chambers (ice making cells) arranged in a plurality of rows along the longitudinal direction and rotatably supported along the row direction axis is rotated by an electric mechanism. An automatic ice maker configured to drop the ice in the dish downward is disposed in the freezing temperature chamber, and an ice storage chamber (ice cell) of the ice tray is a PET in which an ice storage container is provided immediately below the ice tray. A water supply point where ice making water is supplied from the water supply path of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) in the row direction is one end in the longitudinal direction of the ice making tray. A vertical water passage is formed in all the partition walls in the column direction of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) arranged in the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction), and from the ice making chamber (ice making cell) at the water supply point Through direction waterway A lateral water passage is formed in the partition wall between the second row of ice making chambers (ice making cells) into which ice making water has entered, and in the far side from the water supply point, the ice making in the row direction just before the last stage is made. A storage basin characterized in that a lateral water passage is formed in a partition wall between small chambers (ice-making cells), and an ice breaking protrusion is formed in the depth direction of the water passage only on the side wall of the vertical water passage.

  The storage of the fourth invention is characterized in that, in the first to third inventions, the ice breaking protrusion is formed only on one of the side walls of the longitudinal water passage.

  The storage of the fifth invention is characterized in that, in the first to fourth inventions, the ice breaking protrusion is formed on an upper part of a side wall of the longitudinal water passage.

In the first invention, when providing a new ice tray that produces about 20 small ices that enter from the mouth of the PET bottle, when the water supply point to the ice tray is determined at one place, the ice-making water supplied from this water supply point Will flow through the water channel formed in the partition wall between each ice making chamber (ice making cell) and quickly reach the last ice making chamber (ice making cell) located farthest from the water supply point. Can do. When the ice tray is twisted in the deicing process, the ice in the water channel is broken from the ice breaking projection, so that the ice in each ice making chamber (ice cell) is stored in the ice storage container in a separated state. The

  In the second invention, in addition to the effects of the first invention, the ice-making water supplied to the ice making chamber (ice-making cell) at the water supply point is gradually distant from the water supply point through the longitudinal water passage in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction). It flows to the ice making chamber (ice making cell) located at, but in the meantime it forms a flow of water in the horizontal direction toward the row direction through the lateral water passage on the water supply point side, and sequentially to the adjacent ice making chamber (ice making cell) It flows into the ice making chambers (ice making cells) aligned in the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction) through the longitudinal water passage. In addition, water that has flowed far from the water supply point through the longitudinal water passage in the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction) passes through the transverse water passage formed between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) in the row direction before the last stage. The water flowing into the adjacent ice making chamber (ice making cell) and flowing into the adjacent ice making chamber (ice making cell) flows into the ice making chamber (ice making cell) at the final stage through the vertical water passage, and is made into the ice making chamber (ice making cell). The ice-making water can reach the ice-making chamber (ice-making cell) located farthest from the cell. For this reason, water for ice making can be uniformly distributed to each ice making chamber (ice making cell), and uniform ice can be made.

  In the third aspect of the invention, in addition to the effects of the first aspect of the invention, the water supply point is positioned on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the ice tray, and the first-stage partition in the row direction to which the ice making chamber (ice cell) of the water supply point belongs. Without forming a horizontal water passage on the wall, through the horizontal water passage formed on the partition wall between the second row of ice making chambers (ice making cells) where ice making water enters from the water supply point through the vertical water passage. This is a system for supplying to the adjacent column, and a horizontal water passage is formed in the partition wall between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) in the row direction just before the last stage. As a result, as in the effect of the first invention, ice making water can be distributed from the ice making chamber (ice making cell) to the farthest ice making chamber (ice making cell), and the ice making water is uniformly distributed to each ice making chamber (ice making cell). Can be used to make uniform ice.

  In the fourth aspect of the invention, in addition to the effects of the first to third aspects of the invention, the ice breaking protrusion is formed only on one of the side walls of the vertical direction water passage so that the ice making water flowing in the vertical direction water passage is provided. Even in a state where the resistance to is small, the ice in the longitudinal water passage can be favorably broken.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the ice breaking protrusion is formed on the upper part of the side wall of the vertical water passage so that the ice in the vertical water passage can be broken with little resistance to the ice-making water flowing through the vertical water passage. Thus, the effects of the first to fourth inventions are further improved.

  In the storage of the present invention, an ice making tray in which a large number of ice making chambers (ice making cells) are arranged in a plurality of rows along the longitudinal direction and rotatably supported along the row direction axis is rotated by an electric mechanism. An automatic ice maker configured to drop the ice in the ice tray downward is disposed in the freezing temperature chamber, and an ice storage chamber (ice making cell) of the ice tray is in a storage room provided with an ice storage container immediately below the ice tray. A water supply point where ice making water is supplied from the water supply path in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) in the row direction is sized in the longitudinal direction of the ice making tray. A water passage that is located at one end and through which ice making water flows to each ice making chamber (ice making cell) is formed in the partition wall, and an ice breaking protrusion is formed on the side wall of the water passage in the depth direction of the water passage. And implementation of the present invention It is set forth below.

  Next, an embodiment in which the storage of the present invention is a refrigerator-freezer will be described. FIG. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator-freezer, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal side view of an ice making chamber and a freezer compartment in which an automatic ice maker for a refrigerator refrigerator is installed, FIG. 3 is a front view of an automatic ice-maker portion of a refrigerator-freezer, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the automatic ice maker portion with the ice compartment door of the refrigerator-freezer opened (drawn), and FIG. 5 shows the state where the ice-maker door of the refrigerator-freezer is opened (drawn) and the entire automatic ice maker is slightly pulled out. FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the automatic ice maker, FIG. 7 is a plan view of an ice tray of the automatic ice maker, FIG. 8 is an enlarged perspective view of a water passage portion of the ice maker, and FIG. 9 is a rear view of the automatic ice maker. FIG. 10 is a vertical side view of an automatic ice making machine in which the ice tray is stored, FIG. 11 is a side view of the PET bottle, and FIG. 12 is a top view of the PET bottle body.

  The refrigerator-freezer 1 which concerns on Example 1 is the structure which partitions off the inside of the refrigerator-freezer main body 2 of front opening, and forms several storage chambers, and the front surface of each of these storage chambers can be opened and closed with a door. The refrigerator-freezer main body 2 has a heat insulating structure in which a foam heat insulating material 2C is filled between an outer box (outer wall plate) 2A and an inner box (inner wall plate) 2B. A refrigerator compartment 3, a freezing temperature compartment 5, and a vegetable compartment 4 are partitioned and provided in the refrigerator main body 2 from the top. The freezing temperature chamber 5 is formed with an ice making chamber 6 having a front opening maintained at the freezing temperature at the upper portion by a partition plate (partition plate) 41, and a freezing chamber 5A maintained at the freezing temperature at the lower portion. Yes. An automatic ice maker 7 is attached to the upper part of the ice making chamber 6, and an ice storage container 8 having an upper opening is disposed below the automatic ice maker 7. A freezer compartment 5B is defined on the side of the ice making chamber 6.

  The refrigerating chamber 3 located in the upper part and the freezing temperature chamber 5 (in the figure, the ice making room 6 and the freezing small room 5B) located in the lower part are partitioned by a heat insulating partition wall. The heat insulating partition wall 28 is a heat insulating material 31 in which polyurethane resin is foam-filled between an injection-molded synthetic resin upper plate 29 and an injection-molded synthetic resin lower plate 30, foamed polystyrene or the like previously molded into a predetermined shape, etc. The heat insulating structure provided with the heat insulating material 31 is formed.

  An automatic ice making machine 7 is attached to the upper part of the ice making chamber 6, and an ice storage container 8 having an upper surface opening is disposed immediately below the automatic ice making machine 7. The front opening of the ice making chamber 6 is opened and closed by a pull-out door 14 supported by the support device 18 so as to be movable in the front-rear direction together with the ice storage container 8. The support device 18 is configured such that the rails 16 of the left and right support members 19 extending horizontally from the back side of the door 14 are placed on rollers 17 attached to the left and right walls of the ice making chamber 6. 8, the left and right sides of the ice storage container 8 are placed on the left and right support members 19 so as to be removable upward. With this configuration, with the automatic ice maker 7 left in the ice making chamber 6, the ice storage container 8 is pulled out to the front of the ice making chamber 6 as the pull-out door 14 is pulled out. As shown in FIG. 2, the ice storage container 8 has an ice making tray 7B of the automatic ice making machine 7 entering the upper surface opening by the left and right side walls 8A and the front wall 8B higher than the lower rear wall 8C. With the size of the automatic ice maker 7 wrapped around, the ice maker 7 is stored in the ice making chamber 6 with the drawer 14 being pulled forward in front of the lower rear wall 8C with the ice making chamber 6 left in the ice making chamber 6. The container 8 is pulled out. Therefore, the ice storage container 8 is exposed to the front surface side of the refrigerator-freezer main body 2 in a state in which the pull-out door 14 is sufficiently pulled out, and is attached to the support member 19 so as to be removable upward from the support member 19. It is placed.

  The front opening of the refrigerator compartment 3 is opened and closed by a revolving refrigerator door 10 that is rotated laterally by hinge devices 21 </ b> A and 21 </ b> B on one side of the refrigerator refrigerator body 2. The front opening of the vegetable compartment 4 is opened and closed by a drawer-type door 11 that is supported so as to be movable in the front-rear direction together with the vegetable container by a support device using a combination of left and right rails and rollers, as in the ice making compartment 6. Like the ice making chamber 6, the front opening of the freezing chamber 5 </ b> A is a drawer type door 12 that is supported so as to be movable in the front-rear direction together with the container 15 by a support device that is a combination of left and right rails and rollers provided in the freezing chamber 5 </ b> A. It is opened and closed at. Similar to the ice making chamber 6, the front opening of the freezer compartment 5B is formed in a drawer-type door 13 supported by the freezer compartment 5B so as to be movable in the front-rear direction together with the container of the upper surface opening by a support device that combines a left and right rail and rollers. Open and close.

  Reference numeral 20 denotes a refrigerant compressor installed in a machine room provided at the bottom of the refrigerator-freezer main body 2. The refrigerant compressed by the compressor 20 is condensed by a condenser (not shown), and a decompression unit such as a capillary tube is provided. After passing through the evaporator (cooler) 24 and evaporating, the refrigerant is returned to the compressor 20 and compressed again, and a refrigeration cycle is constituted by these. A blower 25 circulates the cold air cooled by the evaporator (cooler) 24 to the freezing room 5A, the ice making room 6 and the freezing small room 5B constituting the freezing temperature room 5, and further to the refrigerating room 3 and the vegetable room 4 through a duct. It is. The freezer compartment 5A, the ice making compartment 6 and the freezer compartment 5B are configured to be cooled by circulating the cool air cooled by the evaporator (cooler) 24 by the blower 25, while the refrigerator compartment 3 and the vegetables The chamber 4 may be configured to be cooled by circulating the cool air cooled by another evaporator (cooler) connected to the refrigeration cycle by another blower.

  The automatic ice maker 7 includes an electric mechanism 7A and an ice tray 7B that is rotationally driven by the electric mechanism 7A, and the electric mechanism 7A and the ice tray 7B together with the automatic attachment / detachment of the power supply line to the electric mechanism 7A are combined with the refrigerator 1 It is configured to be removable by a drawer outside. The ice tray 7B is formed of a twistable synthetic resin material such as polypropylene and has a long shape in the front-rear direction, and a plurality of ice making cells 7B1 are formed in one column in the longitudinal direction. It is in the form of arrangement. The ice storage container 8 is made of a white, transparent, translucent or other color synthetic resin, and has a box shape with a top opening that is longer in depth than the left and right width.

  Reference numeral 9 denotes a water supply container (also referred to as a water storage container) for storing ice-making water to be supplied to the ice tray 7B of the automatic ice making machine 7. The water supply container 9 has a rectangular shape whose depth is longer than the horizontal width, and is a small chamber partitioned in the refrigerator compartment 3 And is cooled at the temperature in the refrigerator compartment 3. By opening the front door 10 of the refrigerator compartment 3, the water supply container 9 can be taken out to the front of the refrigerator 1 and the upper lid 9A can be opened to inject new water. The ice making water may be pumped from the water supply container 9 by a pump and supplied to the ice tray 7B of the automatic ice making machine 7. In the embodiment, however, the ice making water is supplied from a water supply channel 51 that vertically penetrates the heat insulating partition wall 28 by a natural fall method. The structure supplied to the ice tray 7B of the automatic ice making machine 7 is shown.

  A solenoid 52 is disposed around the water supply channel 51 made of synthetic resin, and an operation rod disposed in the water supply channel 51 is raised by energization of the solenoid 52, and an open / close valve 53 provided at the bottom of the water supply container 9 is provided. When pushed up, the water supply hole 54 at the bottom of the water supply container 9 is opened, and ice-making water is supplied from the water supply channel 51 to the ice tray 7B. Then, when the solenoid 52 is not energized, the on-off valve 53 is lowered by a spring force to close the water supply hole 54 at the bottom of the water supply container 9.

  The automatic ice maker 7 includes an electric mechanism 7A and an ice tray 7B that is rotationally driven by the electric mechanism 7A in the main body member 100. The main body member 100 of the automatic ice maker 7 constitutes a frame in which the members are combined. It will be referred to as member 100. In the housing member 100, an electric mechanism 7A and an ice tray 7B are disposed in front of the electric mechanism 7A. The rear part of the housing member 100 is provided with an electrical connector 120 that is detachably connected to an electrical connector provided on the refrigerator-freezer main body 2 side. The housing member 100 can be pulled out to the front of the ice making chamber 6 using the supporting portion 200 as a rail and can be stored in the ice making chamber 6. With such a configuration, the automatic ice maker 7 including the electric mechanism 7A and the ice tray 7B can be removed by pulling forward of the refrigerator 1 and can be stored in the refrigerator 1.

  A specific configuration related to this will be described below. A partition plate 40 between the ice making chamber 6 and the freezer compartment 5B is attached to the left and right middle portions of the synthetic resin lower plate 30 of the heat insulating partition wall 28 constituting the ceiling wall of the ice making chamber 6 and the freezer compartment 5B. Support portions 200 are formed on the left and right side portions near the ceiling wall portion of the chamber 6 so as to perform a rail function in the front-rear direction. Although the support part 200 is formed by integral molding with the lower plate 30, a structure in which the support part 200 is formed in a rail form extending in the front-rear direction integrally or separately from the left and right walls of the ice making chamber 6 may be used. The left and right flange portions 100A of the housing member 100 are placed on the support portion 200 so that they can be pulled out in the front-rear direction. For this reason, the left and right support portions 200 can be referred to as the left and right rail portions 200.

  The housing member 100 is formed with an automatic ice making unit 101 surrounded by front and rear and left and right walls 101A, 101B, 101C, 101D and a bottom wall 101E. The housing member 100 is formed with an auxiliary ice making portion 105 that accommodates an auxiliary ice tray 7C made of synthetic resin that can be manually twisted so that it can be pulled out forward. The auxiliary ice tray 7C can be manually twisted to take out the ice in the ice making cell 7C1. The automatic ice making unit 101 and the auxiliary ice making unit 105 are adjacently arranged on both the left and right sides with the right wall 101D of the automatic ice making unit 101, which is a partition wall therebetween, as a boundary. The auxiliary ice making unit 105 is surrounded by the front and rear and left and right walls 105A, 105B, 105C (same as 101D), 105D and the bottom wall 105E, and the auxiliary ice tray 7C is placed on the bottom wall 105E so as to be slidable back and forth. . Further, from the form of the housing member 100, the main right side wall 105D and the right bottom wall 105E of the auxiliary ice making unit 105 have a structure in which the integrated members Q are combined.

  The front part of the automatic ice making unit 101 forms the storage part 102 of the ice tray 7B, and the rear part of the automatic ice making part 101 forms the storage part 103 of the electric mechanism 7A. The housing member 100 is made of a synthetic resin, and includes a main body member base (hereinafter referred to as a housing main body) 100B and a cover 106 that covers the upper surface thereof. The cover 106 is attached to the housing main body 100B with screws at the fixing portion 106B so as to cover the automatic ice making portion 101 and the auxiliary ice making portion 105, and forms an upper wall of the housing member 100. Therefore, the storage portion 102 of the ice tray 7B is an area surrounded by the cover 106, the front wall 101A, the left and right walls 101C, 101D, and the bottom wall 101E. The storage portion 103 of the electric mechanism 7A is an area surrounded by the cover 106, the rear wall 101B, the left and right walls 101C, 101D, and the bottom wall 101E. The auxiliary ice making section 105 is an area surrounded by the cover 106, the front wall 105A, the left and right walls 105C, 105D, and the bottom wall 105E. In order to improve the cooling from the bottom surface of the ice tray 7B, an opening R is formed in the bottom wall 101E of the storage portion 102, and in order to improve the cooling from the bottom surface of the auxiliary ice tray 7C, an auxiliary An opening S is formed in the bottom wall 105E of the ice making unit 105.

  In the storage portion 102 of the ice tray 7B, a frame-shaped ice tray support 104 that supports the ice tray 7B is placed on the bottom wall 101E so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. In the electric mechanism 7A, an electric motor and a speed reduction mechanism that is a combination of a plurality of gears rotated by the electric motor are housed in a case, and a drive shaft 110 that rotates at a reduced speed by the speed reduction mechanism projects in the horizontal direction on the front surface of the case. ing. In the electric mechanism 7A, the left and right engaging claws 7A1 formed on the front upper part of the case are held by the storage portion 103 in a state where the engaging portions 7A1 of the cover 106 are engaged.

  A shaft portion 70 is formed at the front portion of the ice tray 7B, and a bearing portion 71 that rotatably supports the shaft portion 70 of the ice tray 7B is formed at the front portion of the ice tray support 104. The bearing portion 71 is opened upward, and the shaft portion 70 of the ice tray 7B can be taken out and placed on the bearing portion 71 in the vertical direction. A driven shaft 72 is formed at the rear of the ice tray 7B. The drive shaft 110 of the electric mechanism 7A and the driven shaft portion 72 of the ice tray 7B are non-circular and detachable in the front-rear direction so that the non-circular portion of the drive shaft 110 is detachably fitted in the driven shaft portion 72 in the front-rear direction. A coupling power transmission unit 80 is configured. The ice tray 7B has a configuration in which a plurality of ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 are arranged in a plurality of rows with the longitudinal direction as a row, and the longitudinal axis of the ice tray 7B in a state where the refrigerator-freezer 1 is installed in a horizontal state. P, that is, along the axis P passing through the central axis of the shaft 70 and the central axis of the driven shaft 72, the front shaft 70 of the ice tray 7B is placed on the bearing 71 and the rear of the ice tray 7B. In the state where the driven shaft portion 72 is coupled to the drive shaft 110 of the electric mechanism 7A, the ice tray 7B is in a substantially horizontal installation state in which the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 is opened upward. As a result, the ice tray 7B is rotatably supported along the axis P and is rotated by the electric mechanism 7A.

  At the rear of the ice tray support 104, a circular hole support portion 73 is formed in which a driven shaft portion 72 provided at the rear of the ice tray 7B is supported in a penetrating state. The driven shaft portion 72 at the rear part of the ice tray 7B may be formed simultaneously with the ice tray 7B, but in this embodiment, the driven shaft member in which the front shaft 77 is fitted to the protruding shaft 74 at the rear portion of the ice tray 7B. 75. The driven shaft member 75 is attached with the upper and lower elastic claws 76 engaged with the protruding shaft 74. Since the driven shaft portion 72 is loosely fitted to the support portion 73, the electric mechanism 7A is pulled by pulling the ice tray 7B forward while the shaft portion 70 of the ice tray 7B is slightly lifted from the bearing portion 71. The driven shaft portion 72 of the ice tray 7B is detached from the drive shaft 110, and the ice tray 7B can be detached from the ice tray support 104 in this state.

  In addition, when the ice tray 7B is placed on the ice tray support 104, pulling the ice tray support 104 forward removes the driven shaft 72 from the drive shaft 110, and the ice tray 7B has a front portion. With the shaft portion 70 placed on the bearing portion 71, the rear driven shaft portion 72 is placed on the support portion 73. In this state, the ice tray 7B is held in a substantially horizontal state, and the ice tray 7B is prevented from falling off. In this state, the ice tray 7B can be removed upward from the ice tray support 104. Thus, since the ice tray 7B can be held in a substantially horizontal state in a state where the ice tray support 104 is pulled out, the ice tray 7B is placed on the ice tray support 104 and moved to the normal position of the housing body 100B. When the slide shaft is housed, the driven shaft portion 72 and the drive shaft 110 can be smoothly coupled.

  A drawer handle 78 is rotatably attached to the front surface of the ice tray support 104. The handle 78 is positioned in front of the front wall 104A so as to keep a distance from the front wall 104A of the ice tray support 104, and an upper part is rotatably supported by a shaft 78A, and an applied spring (not shown) force is provided. Thus, the locking projection 79 protruding upward is engaged with the locking portion 81 formed on the cover 106. Due to this engaged state, the ice tray support 104 is kept in the normal position of the storage portion 102 of the ice tray 7B of the housing body 100B, and the drive shaft 110 of the electric mechanism 7A and the driven shaft portion of the ice tray 7B. 72 is fitted and power transmission is possible.

  When the ice tray support 104 is pulled forward from the housing member 100, the handle 78 is rotated by pulling it forward (forward) against the spring force, and the locking projection 79 is disengaged from the locking portion 81. Therefore, the ice tray support 104 can be pulled forward from the housing member 100. A stopper device 111 is provided to prevent the ice tray support 104 from falling off the housing member 100 in a state where the entire top surface of the ice tray 7B is pulled out so as to be almost exposed. As described above, the ice tray 7B can be detached from the ice tray support 104 with almost all the ice tray 7B pulled out.

  In the stopper device 111, when the ice tray support 104 is pulled out, the locking protrusion 113 of the elastic locking piece 112 provided on the bottom rear portion of the ice tray support 104 is formed on the front portion of the bottom wall 101E of the housing member 100. In this mechanism, the ice tray support 104 is prevented from being pulled out by coming into contact with the stopper 114 at the rear end. When removing the ice tray support 104 from the state stopped by the stopper device 111, the ice making tray support 104 is removed in a state where the elastic locking piece 112 is manually pushed up from below and the locking projection 113 is removed from the stopper portion 114. This is accomplished by pulling out the front of the housing member 100.

  As described above, the ice tray 7B can be taken out of the ice making chamber 6 with the electric mechanism 7A left in the ice making chamber 6. Therefore, even when the ice tray 7B is washed with water, the electrical components are not splashed with water. It is a configuration. As a configuration that exhibits this effect, since the electric mechanism 7A for rotationally driving the ice tray 7B is housed in the rear portion of the automatic ice making unit 101, the cold air cooled by the evaporator (cooler) 24 is converted into the ice tray 7B. It cannot be introduced into the ice tray 7B from behind. For this reason, in order to introduce the cool air cooled by the evaporator (cooler) 24 from the cool air passage 91 to the ice tray 7B, the cool air introduction path 90 is formed so as to bypass the automatic ice making machine 7. The cold air introduction path 90 is depressed at a portion corresponding to the auxiliary ice making unit 105 of the cover 106, and automatic ice making is performed so that the cold air supplied from the cold air passage 91 flows into the ice tray storage unit 102 from the side of the ice tray 7B. A cold air introduction path 90 is bent at the side of the portion 101.

  The cold air cooled by the evaporator (cooler) 24 flows from the cold air passage 91 to the cold air introduction passage 90 by the blower 25 and also flows from the cold air passage 92 to the freezer compartment 5A. The cold air that has flowed into the cold air introduction path 90 is diverted by the flow dividing wall 90 </ b> A and flows into the ice making tray storage unit 102 from the opening on the right side of the ice tray storage unit 102. The cold air flowing into the freezer compartment 5A cools the freezer compartment 5A, then returns to the periphery of the evaporator (cooler) 24 from the suction port 93, and is cooled again to circulate as described above.

  The ice tray storage unit 102 and the auxiliary ice making unit 105 communicate with each other through a cold air passage so that the cold air on the ice tray 7B passes to the auxiliary ice tray 7C. That is, the cold air that has flowed into the ice tray receiving section 102 from the cold air introduction path 90 formed by recessing the portion corresponding to the auxiliary ice making section 105 of the cover 106 flows around the ice tray 7B to cool the ice tray 7B. The water in it can be frozen. A wall in which a part of the cold air is a vent hole 83 formed in the right side wall of the ice tray support 104 and a partition wall between the ice tray storage portion 102 and the auxiliary ice making portion 105 that are opened at a position overlapping the vent hole 83. The auxiliary ice tray 7C in the auxiliary ice tray 105 is cooled through the vent hole 84 formed in 101D (same as 105C) to freeze the water in the auxiliary ice tray 7C, so that the hollow portion S and the right side wall 105D It flows out from the vent hole 87 to the ice making chamber 6. Further, the other portions of the cold air that flowed around the ice tray 7B are a portion that flows out from the hollow portion R to the ice making chamber 6 below, and a vent hole 85 formed in the left side wall of the ice tray support 104. There is a portion that flows out to the ice making chamber 6 through the vent hole 86 formed in the left side wall 101C of the ice tray storage unit 102 that is opened at a position overlapping with the vent hole 85. The cold air that has flowed out into the ice making chamber 6 flows into the freezing chamber 5A through a gap around the bottom plate 47 of the ice making chamber 6 and returns to the surroundings of the evaporator (cooler) 24 through the suction port 93 and is cooled again. Repeat the above cycle.

  As described above, the automatic ice maker 7 is supported by the left and right rail portions 200 provided in the ice making chamber 6 in which the housing member 100 is the freezing temperature chamber so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. For this reason, the automatic ice maker 7 can be pulled out of the ice making chamber 6 by pulling out the housing member 100, and can be stored by sliding. In order to store and hold the automatic ice making machine 7 in a regular position in the ice making chamber 6, a lock device 95 is provided for holding the housing member 100 in the regular position. The locking device 95 is pivotable on the front wall of the housing member 100, and a locking recess 97 formed by recessing upward in the synthetic resin lower plate 30 of the heat insulating partition wall 28 constituting the ceiling wall of the ice making chamber 6. It is comprised in combination with the lock lever 96 attached to.

  The housing member 100 can be held in the normal position by engaging the upper end of the lock lever 96 with the locking recess 97 while the housing member 100 is stored in the normal position. Further, the housing member 100 can be pulled out from the ice making chamber 6 in a state where the lock lever 96 is rotated and removed from the locking recess 97.

  The ice making water supplied from the water supply channel 51 to the ice making tray 7B is supplied to one of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 of the ice making plate 7B, and is sequentially supplied from there to the other ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1. ing. Therefore, a water supply hole 106A is formed in the cover 106 at a position corresponding to one ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 at the rear of the ice tray 7B, and the lower end of the water supply channel 51 corresponds to the water supply hole 106A. ing. A groove 106 </ b> D is formed in the cover 106 so as to open rearward from the water supply hole 106 </ b> A so that the lower end of the pipe forming the water supply path 51 does not hit the cover 106 when the housing member 100 is pulled forward.

  As described above, the automatic ice making machine 7 is attached to the housing member 100 disposed along the upper wall 30 of the ice making chamber 6 so as to be disposed in the vicinity of the upper wall of the ice making chamber 6, and the freezing temperature chamber. Are supported by the left and right rail portions 200 provided in the ice making chamber 6 so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. For this reason, the electric line which electrically connects the electrical equipment part and control circuit part by the side of the refrigerator-freezer main body 2 and the electric mechanism 7A is a detachable connector mechanism. This specific configuration will be described below.

  The housing member 100 is provided with an automatic ice maker 7 side connector 120, and a connector (not shown) to which electric power is supplied from an electrical component (not shown) of the refrigerator / freezer main body 2 through a lead wire to the refrigerator / freezer main body 2 side. Not shown). The automatic ice maker 7 side connector 120 connected to the electric mechanism 7A is provided to protrude rearward from the rear portion of the housing member 100, specifically, to the housing main body 100B. The connector on the refrigerator-freezer body 2 side is attached to the synthetic resin lower plate 30 so as to be close to the upper wall 30 of the ice making chamber 6. In order for the automatic ice making machine 7 to be housed in the refrigerator-freezer 1, the left and right portions 100 </ b> A of the housing member 100 are placed on the support portion 200 and pushed in, so that the automatic ice-making machine 7 reaches a predetermined position in the refrigerator-freezer 1. 120 is connected to a connector on the refrigerator-freezer body 2 side. In order to facilitate the pushing-in of the housing member 100, the combination of the housing member 100 and the support portion 200 is given a little flexibility, so that the connection of both connectors has a little flexibility. By doing so, the connection between both connectors becomes smooth.

  As this specific configuration, the terminal portion of the connector 120 is constituted by a protruding pin, and the connector on the refrigerator refrigerator body 2 side is a terminal portion in the form of a hole into which the protruding pin is inserted. Even if the housing member 100 is slightly displaced up and down, left and right, the inlet of the connector hole on the freezer refrigerator body 2 side is slightly widened so that the protruding pin of the connector 120 can easily enter the connector hole on the refrigerator refrigerator body 2 side. is there. Further, the connector 120 has a flexible mounting structure so that the connector 120 can move slightly in the vertical and horizontal directions.

  In the automatic ice making machine 7, the housing member 100 is supported by the left and right rail portions 200 provided in the ice making chamber 6 which is a freezing temperature chamber so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. The ice making chamber 6 can be used as a freezer for storing frozen food by removing it from the chamber 6 and also removing the ice storage container 8 from the ice making chamber 6.

  By pulling out the housing member 100, the automatic ice making machine 7 is removed from the ice making chamber 6. Therefore, in this state, a connector cover (not shown) is provided to cover the terminal portion of the connector on the refrigerator-freezer main body 2 side. In the state where the housing member 100 is pulled out from the ice making chamber 6, this connector cover covers the terminal portion of the connector on the side of the refrigerator refrigerator 2, and the housing member 100 is left and right to store the housing member 100 in the ice making chamber 6. By sliding backward along the rail part 200, it is pushed up along the inclined surface of the upper surface of the pair of left and right operating parts 133 projecting rearward of the housing member 100, and the terminal part of the connector on the refrigerator / refrigerator main body 2 side is pushed up. It is a configuration that gradually becomes exposed.

  The pair of left and right operating pieces 133 are disposed close to both the left and right sides of the connector 120 to protect the connector 120, and the cover portion 134 of the housing member 100 is configured to cover the pair of left and right operating pieces 133 from both the left and right sides and the lower side. It is provided on the rear wall. When the housing member 100 is pulled out, the cover part 134 protects the connector 120 and the pair of left and right operating pieces 133 from collision with other objects.

  The ice making operation of the automatic ice making machine 7 includes an ice making process and a deicing process controlled by a control circuit unit provided in the refrigerator 1. When the ice making process is started in a state where a sufficient amount of ice making water is contained in the water supply container 9 set at a predetermined position in the refrigerator compartment 3, the solenoid 52 is energized for a predetermined time by the control circuit unit, and is opened and closed. The valve 53 opens the water supply port 54, and a predetermined amount of ice making water required for one ice making is automatically supplied to the ice making tray 7B by natural fall.

  By supplying water to the ice tray 7B, the water in the ice tray 7B is frozen, and when the timer means of the control circuit unit has passed for a certain period of time, or the ice tray sensor detects the lowered temperature of the ice tray 7B when ice is formed. Then, the control circuit unit shifts from the ice making process to the deicing process. When the deicing process is started, the electric mechanism 7A is started and the ice tray 7B is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 8 and inverted, and the protrusion 7B20 provided at the front portion of the ice tray 7B is the ice tray support 104. The ice tray 7B is twisted by coming into contact with the stopper portion 104B, and the ice in the ice tray 7B is dropped to the ice storage container 8 below. After this twisting, the ice tray 7B is returned and rotated clockwise in FIG. 6 to return the ice tray 7B to the horizontal state. In this state, the next ice making process starts automatically, and after supplying water again, the above operation is performed. By performing such an ice making operation cycle, ice is stored in the ice storage container 8. In the deicing step, the ice tray 7B may be rotated clockwise.

  The amount of ice in the ice storage container 8 is detected by the ice detecting lever 140 that is lowered by the electric mechanism 7A at every ice making process, every deicing process, or every predetermined time (for example, every 30 minutes). The ice detecting lever 140 is arranged on the side of the ice tray 7B so as not to obstruct the rotation of the ice tray 7B. In the ice detecting standby state, the ice detecting lever 140 is at the standby position 140B raised as shown in FIG. Then, it descends through the opening R in accordance with the ice detecting operation and enters the ice storage container 8, and the detection portion 140A becomes substantially horizontal at the lowest descending position as the ice detecting position as shown in FIG. Is detected. When the amount of ice in the ice storage container 8 becomes full, the ice detecting lever 140 is restricted from descending by the ice, so this state is electrically detected and the ice tray before entering the next ice making process. It is a mechanism to stop water supply to 7B.

  As a method for detecting the fullness of the ice amount, when the ice in the ice storage container 8 is full, the ice detection lever 140 is prevented from descending to the lowest position by the ice, so the electric mechanism 7A at this time There is a method in which the increase in the motor current is detected and the control circuit unit determines that the motor current is full. As another method, a switch that operates when the ice detecting lever 140 reaches the lowest position is provided, and this switch is operated within a predetermined time after the ice detecting lever 140 starts to descend by the control circuit unit. There is a method of determining that the switch is not full when the switch is operated and determining that the switch is full when the switch is activated within a predetermined time. As another method, there is a method in which the control circuit unit determines that the ice detecting lever 140 is full when it does not reach the lowest position even after a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the descending operation. Other methods may also be used.

  In such a storage 1, the ice tray 7 </ b> B according to the present invention has a long shape in the front-rear direction made of a twistable synthetic resin material such as polypropylene, and the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction) is 1 as the tandem direction. A plurality of (many) ice-making chambers (ice-making cells) 7B1 such that there are two rows of eight ice-making cells 7B1, three rows of eight ice-making cells 7B1, or three rows of ten ice-making cells 7B1. It is made of synthetic resin that can be divided into 16 to 30 small square ice pieces. In the illustrated embodiment, eight ice-making cells 7B1 in one row are arranged in three rows, and in particular, the size of ice generated in each ice-making chamber (ice-making cell) 7B1 is PET as described later. It is characterized in that it is small enough to enter from the mouth 301 of a bottle (a bottle-like container made of polyethylene terephthalate) 300.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the ice tray 7B is an array of three rows of eight ice making cells 7B1 arranged in a row, and each ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 has the same size. It is a size that makes small ice that can be inserted from the mouth 301 of the PET bottle 300. As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the PET bottle 300 has an inner volume of 300 ml (milliliter), 500 ml (milliliter), and 2000 ml (milliliter). Are the same, the outer diameter S2 of the threaded portion of the main Achi's mouth 301 of the PET bottle 300 is about 28 mm, and the inner diameter S1 of the mouth 301 is about 20 mm. For this reason, the size of the ice made in each ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 is preferably the same as or slightly smaller than the inner diameter S1 of the mouth 301 so that it can be inserted from the mouth 301. .

  In the ice tray 7B, a large number of ice-making chambers (ice-making cells) 7B1 having the same size are arranged in a plurality of rows extending in the front-rear direction with the front-rear direction being the longitudinal direction (vertical direction). ) The shaft is rotatably supported along the axis P and is rotated by the electric mechanism 7A. The ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 of the ice tray 7B is partitioned by a partition wall 7B5, and the partition wall 7B5 between each ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 is cut out at the center of the partition wall 7B5. A water passage 7B2 is formed. The water flow path 7B2 includes the vertical water flow paths 7B2A formed in all the partition walls 7B5 in the column direction of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 arranged in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction), and the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 arranged in the horizontal direction. And a horizontal water passage 7B2B formed in a predetermined partition wall 7B5 of the partition wall in the row direction.

  The ice making water supplied from the water supply channel 51 is supplied to a specific ice making chamber 7B11 in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 partitioned by the partition wall 7B5. Due to the relationship that the ice making water flows into the adjacent ice making chamber 7B1 through the water channel 7B2, and the ice making water further flows into the adjacent ice making chamber 7B1, the ice making water sequentially flows into the adjacent ice making chamber 7B1, and each ice making chamber 7B1 has ice making. Filled with irrigation water. The ice tray 7B circulates the surrounding wall 7B6 higher than the ice making chamber 7B1 so that the ice making water supplied to the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 does not fall down. This supply of ice making water is time-controlled as described above.

  As described above, the flow of water to each ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 is performed through the vertical water passage 7B2A and the horizontal water passage 7B2B formed in the partition wall 7B5, but there is one water supply point to the ice tray. In this case, it is necessary that the ice-making water supplied from the water supply point reaches the ice making chamber (ice-making cell) 7B1 at the final point located farthest from the water supply point. Therefore, in the present invention, the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 is partitioned by the partition wall 7B5 to have a size to make small ice entering from the mouth 301 of the PET bottle 300, and the ice making water in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 arranged in the vertical direction. Is located on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the ice tray 7B, and is vertically connected to all the vertical partition walls 7B5 of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 arranged in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction). A directional water passage 7B2A is formed, and a lateral water passage 7B2B is formed in the partition wall 7B5 between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 in the row direction near the water supply point, and on the far side from the water supply point, the row before the last stage The lateral water passage 7B2B is formed in the partition wall 7B5 between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 in the direction.

  A preferred specific example of this basic configuration will be shown. That is, the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 into which ice making water supplied from the water supply channel 51 first enters, that is, the specific ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 located at the water supply point in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 is The ice making tray 7B is located far from the ice making chamber 7B1 located on one end side or the other end side (in the illustrated case, the rear half or the front half) when viewed from the center in the longitudinal direction (the front-rear direction in the figure). Water is supplied from a water supply channel 51 to an ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11. In that case, the most of the ice making chambers 7B1 located on one end side or the other end side (in the illustrated case, the rear half or the front half) when viewed from the center of the ice tray 7B in the length direction (the front-rear direction in the figure). The ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 located at the corner of the ice making tray 7B in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 located on the far side enters the ice making chamber (ice making) into which ice making water supplied from the water supply channel 51 first enters. Cell) 7B11. In the embodiment, an ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 located at a corner portion of the ice making chamber 7B1 located at the rear end in the length direction (the front-rear direction in the figure) of the ice tray 7B is supplied from the water supply channel 51. An ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 into which ice making water enters first is used.

  In this way, the longitudinal water passage 7B2A is formed in all the partition walls 7B5 in the column direction of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 arranged in the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction), and thereby the water in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction) is formed. The flow becomes smooth. Further, on the water supply point side, the horizontal water passage 7B2B for forming a water flow in the horizontal direction toward the horizontal direction is a first row-wise section to which the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 of the water supply point belongs. It is not formed on the wall 7B5, but is formed on the partition wall 7B5 between the ice-making chambers (ice-making cells) 7B1 in the second row direction in which ice-making water enters from the ice-making chambers (ice-making cells) 7B11 through the vertical water passages 7B2A. ing.

  Further, on the far side from the water supply point, the lateral water passage 7B2B for forming a lateral water flow in the row direction is located on the side farthest from the ice making chamber (ice cell) 7B11 at the water supply point. It is not formed on the partition wall 7B5 in the row direction of the last stage to which the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B12 belongs, but is formed on the partition wall 7B5 between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 in the row direction just before the last stage. ing.

  With such a configuration, the ice making water supplied to the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 at the water supply point passes through the longitudinal water passage 7B2A in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction), and the ice making chambers (distant from the water supply point sequentially) (Ice-making cell) 7B1 flows through the horizontal water passage 7B2B on the water supply point side in the meantime to form a water flow in the horizontal direction toward the row direction, and sequentially flows into the adjacent ice-making chamber (ice-making cell) 7B1, It flows sequentially through the longitudinal water passage 7B2A to the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 arranged in the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction). Further, the water flowing from the water supply point through the longitudinal water passage 7B2A in the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction) to the far side is the transverse passage formed between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 in the row direction just before the last stage. The water flowing to the adjacent ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 through the water channel 7B2B, and the water flowing to the adjacent ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 passes through the vertical water passage 7B2A and is the final ice making chamber (ice making cell). 7B1 flows into the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 and the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B12 located farthest from the ice making water.

  In this way, the ice making water can be uniformly distributed to each ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1, and uniform ice can be produced. Further, in order to smoothly spread the ice making water supplied to the water supply point to the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B12 located farthest from the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11, the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B12. Is constructed so that the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 is located at a slightly lower position (for example, 0.7 degrees lower). As a result, a further improved effect can be obtained.

  If the horizontal water flow path 7B2B is formed in the partition wall 7B5 in the first row direction to which the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 of the water supply point belongs, when the ice tray 7B is installed low on the water supply point side, The ice making water to be supplied becomes higher in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 on the water supply point side, and the ice in the first horizontal row water passage 7B2B causes the ice making chamber (ice making cell in the first row). ) The ice connection of 7B1 becomes strong, and there is a possibility that the ice separation is insufficient when the ice tray 7B is twisted by the deicing process.

  Further, when the horizontal water passage 7B2B is formed in the partition wall 7B5 between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) 7B1 in the row direction of the last stage, the supply is made when the ice making tray 7B is set low on the last stage side. The water level for the ice making becomes higher in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 on the last stage side, and the ice in the last water passage 7B2B in the last stage makes the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 in the last row direction. There is a possibility that the ice will be insufficiently separated when the ice tray 7B is twisted by the deicing process. This is because the ice-making water supplied to the water supply point smoothly spreads from the ice-making chamber (ice-making cell) 7B11 to the ice-making chamber (ice-making cell) 7B12 located farthest from the ice-making chamber (ice-making cell) 7B12. Since the same problem occurs when assembling so that the ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B11 is located at a slightly lower position (for example, 0.7 degrees lower), it is not preferable.

  In order for the ice making water to flow well through the water passage 7B2 to each ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1, the width of the water passage 7B2 may be widened, but if it is too wide, the water in the water passage 7B2 will freeze. When the ice that can be formed becomes too thick and the ice tray 7B is twisted by the deicing process, the ice in the water passage 7B2 may not be broken. Considering these conflicting elements, the width of the water passage 7B2 is set not to be too wide and not too narrow.

  The width of the water passage 7B2 is narrow at the lower part, but the upper part is adjacent to the ice making compartment (ice making cell) through the water passage 7B2 because the surface tension of the ice making water is cut off before the water level of the ice making compartment (ice making cell) 7B1 reaches the full level. ) Widened so that ice making water flows to 7B1. Thus, even when the width of the water passage 7B2 is narrow, coupled with the above inclination, the action of cutting the surface tension of the ice making water in the water passage 7B2 becomes accurate, and the ice making water is successively placed in the adjacent ice making chamber (ice making cell). 7B1 flows. As one form of the ice tray 7B for realizing this, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, each ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1 has the same shape and the same depth, and has a top opening. Is a trapezoidal shape that is 20 mm square and becomes smaller toward the bottom. The width of the water passage 7B2 is 5 mm at the upper end and 2 mm at the lower end, and the lower end of the water passage 7B2 is an ice making chamber (ice making cell). ) A position slightly higher than the bottom surface of 7B1 by about 2 mm.

  In the ice making tray 7B, as described above, the ice making tray 7B is rotated and reversed and twisted by starting the electric mechanism 7A in the deicing process, so that the ice in the ice making tray 7B is moved downward. The ice storage container 8 falls. As described above, the width of the water passage 7B2 is set to such a width that the ice-making water flows favorably through the water passage 7B2 to each ice making chamber (ice making cell) 7B1, but when the ice tray 7B is twisted by the deicing process. It is important that the ice in the water passage 7B2 is not broken.

  In the present invention, in order to eliminate such concerns and to ensure that the ice in the water passage 7B2 is sufficiently broken when the ice tray 7B is twisted, the side wall of the water passage 7B2 is provided on the side wall of the water passage 7B2. In the depth direction, the ice breaking protrusions 7P that make the ice easily break are formed. In this case, the ice breaking protrusion 7P is formed on the side wall of the longitudinal water passage 7B2A in the depth direction of the water passage 7B2 so that the ice breaking protrusion 7P does not cause defective flow of the ice-making water passing through the water passage 7B2. And is not formed on the side wall of the lateral water passage 7B2B. This is because the ice-making water tends to flow in the vertical direction of the ice tray 7B and hardly flows in the horizontal direction. And in order to reduce the flow resistance of the ice making water, the ice breaking protrusion 7P is formed on the upper part of the side wall where the width of the vertical water passage 7B2A is larger than the lower part. The shape of the ice breaking projection 7P protrudes in a substantially triangular shape from the side wall of the vertical water passage 7B2A toward the vertical water passage 7B2A, and the depth of the vertical water passage 7B2A from the upper end of the side wall of the vertical water passage 7B2A. The length is approximately half to one third of the depth of the longitudinal water passage 7B2A in a vertical direction.

  The ice breaking projections 7P are in a state where a cut groove is formed in the ice formed in the vertical water passage 7B2A, and the ice easily breaks in this portion. When the ice tray 7B is twisted as described above, the ice breaking protrusions 7P can be formed on both side walls of the longitudinal water passage 7B2A in order to give a strong breaking action to the ice in the water passage 7B2A. However, in order to reduce the flow resistance of the ice making water passing through the water passage 7B2A, it is preferably formed on the one side wall. Thus, even when formed on the side wall on one side, it has been demonstrated that the ice in the water passage 7B2A is favorably broken by twisting the ice tray 7B.

  7 and 8 show an embodiment in which the ice breaking projections 7P are formed on the side wall on one side of the vertical water passage 7B2A. In this case, the ice breaking projections 7P have three rows of vertical water passages. Of 7B2A, the vertical water passage 7B2A in the central row is formed only on one side wall, and the vertical water passage 7B2A in the outer rows is formed only on the side wall from the central row. The projecting length of the upper end of the ice breaking projection 7P projecting toward the longitudinal water passage 7B2A is approximately 0.5 mm, and the projecting length decreases as it goes downward, and becomes zero at the lower end. is there.

  As described above, the amount of ice in the ice storage container 8 is detected by the lowering operation of the ice detecting lever 140. When the ice detecting lever 140 is lowered, the ice detecting lever 140 is moved as shown in FIG. Since it has entered the ice storage container 8, it must be prevented from colliding with the rear wall of the ice storage container 8 even when the ice storage container 8 is pulled out in this state. For this reason, a movement groove for the ice detecting lever 140 is formed on the rear wall so as not to collide when the ice storage container 8 is pulled out when the ice detecting lever 140 is lowered. This groove penetrates the rear wall and forms the shape of the upper surface opening.

  When the size of the ice made by the plurality of ice making cells 7B1 of the ice tray 7B is small enough to enter from the mouth 301 of the PET bottle (polyethylene terephthalate) 300, the inside of the ice storage container 8 is ice. When the ice storage container 8 is withdrawn vigorously in a full state, the groove is formed in such a size that the ice does not fall from the groove on the rear wall of the ice storage container 8.

  The automatic ice making machine of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and the arrangement relationship of the refrigerator compartment, the freezing room, the ice making room, etc. of the refrigerator-freezer is not limited to the above form, and further, the configuration of the automatic ice making machine, etc. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described form, and can be applied to various types of refrigerator-freezers without departing from the technical scope of the present invention.

It is a front view of the refrigerator-freezer of the present invention. Example 1 It is a vertical side view of the ice making room and the freezing room part which installed the automatic ice making machine of the refrigerator-freezer main body of this invention. Example 1 It is a front view of the automatic ice maker part of the refrigerator-freezer of this invention. Example 1 It is a front perspective view of the automatic ice maker part in the state where the ice making room door of the refrigerator-freezer of the present invention is opened (drawn). Example 1 It is a front perspective view of the state where the ice making room door of the refrigerator-freezer of the present invention is opened (drawn) and the automatic ice making machine is slightly pulled out. Example 1 It is a disassembled perspective view of the automatic ice making machine of this invention. Example 1 It is a top view of the ice tray of the automatic ice making machine of this invention. Example 1 It is an expansion perspective view of the water channel part of the ice tray of this invention. Example 1 It is a back perspective view of the automatic ice making machine of this invention. Example 1 It is a vertical side view of the automatic ice making machine in which the ice tray of the present invention is stored. Example 1 It is a side view of a PET bottle concerning the present invention. Example 1 It is a top view of the PET bottle main body regarding this invention. Example 1

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Refrigeration refrigerator 2 ... Refrigeration refrigerator main body 3 ... Refrigeration room 4 ... Vegetable room 5 ... Freezing room 5A ... Freezing room 6 ... Ice making room 7 ... Automatic ice making machine 7A · · Electric mechanism 7B · · Ice tray 7B1 for automatic ice making machine · · Ice making chamber (ice making cell)
7B2 ・ ・ Water passage 7B2A ・ ・ Vertical water passage 7B2B ・ ・ Horizontal water passage 7B5 ・ ・ Partition wall 7C ・ ・ ・ ・ Auxiliary ice tray 7P ・ ・ ・ ・ Protrusion for ice breaking 8 ・ ・ ・ Ice storage container 8A ・ ・Ice storage container side wall 8B ... Ice storage container front wall 8C ... Ice container rear wall 9 ... Water supply container 24 ... Cooler 25 ... Blower 28 ... Heat insulation partition wall between ice compartment and ice storage 51 ... Water supply path 52 .. Solenoid 53 .. Open / close valve 54 .. Water supply port 70 .. Shaft portion 71 of ice tray 71 .. Bearing portion 72 .. Drive shaft portion of ice tray 80 .. Power transmission portion 95. Lock device 96... Lock lever 97 .. locking recess 100 .. body member (housing member)
100A .. Left and right parts of main body member (housing member) 100B .. Main body member base (housing main body)
101.. Automatic ice making unit 102.. Ice tray storage unit 103.. Electric mechanism storage unit 104.. Ice tray support 105.. Auxiliary ice making unit 106.. Cover 110... Drive shaft 111. · · Elastic locking piece 114 · · Stopper portion 120 · · Refrigeration refrigerator main body side connector 140 · · Ice detection lever 200 · · Support portion (rail portion)
210 .. Placement part 211 .. Step part 212 .. Standing wall (partition wall)
219 ·· Groove 220A ·· Inclined surface 220B ·· Inclined surface 300 ··· PET bottle 301 ··· PET bottle mouth

Claims (5)

  A large number of ice-making chambers (ice-making cells) are arranged in a plurality of rows along the longitudinal direction, and the ice trays supported by the shafts so as to be rotatable along the row-direction axis are rotated by an electric mechanism to remove the ice in the ice-making trays. An automatic ice maker configured to drop downward is disposed in the freezing temperature chamber, and in a storage provided with an ice storage container immediately below the ice tray, the ice making chamber (ice making cell) of the ice tray enters from the mouth of the PET bottle. A water supply point to which ice making water is supplied from a water supply channel in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) in the row direction is positioned on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the ice making tray, and is divided by a partition wall into a size that produces small ice. A water storage channel through which ice-making water flows to each ice making chamber (ice-making cell) is formed in the partition wall, and an ice breaking protrusion is formed on a side wall of the water channel in the depth direction of the water channel.   A large number of ice-making chambers (ice-making cells) are arranged in a plurality of rows along the longitudinal direction, and the ice trays supported by the shafts so as to be rotatable along the row-direction axis are rotated by an electric mechanism to remove the ice in the ice-making trays. An automatic ice maker configured to drop downward is disposed in the freezing temperature chamber, and in a storage provided with an ice storage container immediately below the ice tray, the ice making chamber (ice making cell) of the ice tray enters from the mouth of the PET bottle. A water supply point to which ice making water is supplied from a water supply channel in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) in the row direction is positioned on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the ice making tray, and is divided by a partition wall into a size that produces small ice. A partition wall between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) in the horizontal direction close to the water supply point is formed with vertical water passages in all the partition walls in the column direction of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) arranged in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction). In the lateral waterway Formed on the far side from the water supply point, a lateral water passage is formed in the partition wall between the ice making chambers (ice making cells) in the row direction before the last stage, and the water passage is formed on the side wall of the vertical water passage. A storage, characterized in that ice breaking protrusions are formed in the depth direction.   A large number of ice-making chambers (ice-making cells) are arranged in a plurality of rows along the longitudinal direction, and the ice trays supported by the shafts so as to be rotatable along the row-direction axis are rotated by an electric mechanism to remove the ice in the ice-making trays. An automatic ice maker configured to drop downward is disposed in the freezing temperature chamber, and in a storage provided with an ice storage container immediately below the ice tray, the ice making chamber (ice making cell) of the ice tray enters from the mouth of the PET bottle. A water supply point to which ice making water is supplied from a water supply channel in the ice making chamber (ice making cell) in the row direction is positioned on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the ice making tray, and is divided by a partition wall into a size that produces small ice. Longitudinal water passages are formed in all the partition walls in the column direction of the ice making chambers (ice making cells) arranged in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction), and ice making is performed from the ice making chambers (ice making cells) at the water supply points through the longitudinal water passages. Water A lateral water passage is formed in the partition wall between the inserted second row ice making chambers (ice making cells), and on the far side from the water supply point, the row direction ice making chamber (one row before the last stage) A storage basin characterized in that a lateral water passage is formed in a partition wall between the ice making cells), and an ice breaking protrusion is formed only in the depth direction of the water passage on the side wall of the vertical water passage.   The storage according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the ice breaking protrusion is formed only on one of the side walls of the longitudinal water passage.   The storage according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the ice breaking protrusion is formed on an upper portion of a side wall of the longitudinal water passage.

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