JP2008014539A - Ice dispenser - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ice dispenser capable of increasing an ice storage amount in an ice storage. <P>SOLUTION: An agitator 12 is disposed inside of the ice storage 3. The rotating direction of the agitator 12 is switchable and its rotating speed is variable. An ice discharging portion 4 communicated with the inside of the ice storage is formed on a side wall 10 of the ice storage 3 at a position symmetrical to an ice making portion 2 with respect to a rotating shaft 13. The ice discharging portion 4 comprises an ice lead-out passage 23 and an ice discharging port 25. The ice lead-out passage 23 extends in the tangential direction of a side wall 10 of the ice storage 3, and communicated with the inside of the ice storage 3 through an opening portion 17 formed on a lower part of the side wall 10 of the ice storage 3. The ice discharging port 25 is communicated with the ice lead-out passage 23, and has a discharge opening 25a directing downward. A connecting portion of the ice lead-out passage 23 and the ice discharging port 25 is provided with an opening and closing cover 27 mounted by a hinge to openably and closably cover the ice lead-out passage 23. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ice dispenser, and more particularly to a structure for increasing the amount of ice stored in an ice storage.

  A conventional ice dispenser is described in Patent Document 1, for example. Such an ice dispenser has a structure in which a cylindrical ice storage is provided above the ice making unit, and ice produced in the ice making unit is supplied into the ice storage through the bottom surface of the ice storage. An agitator that rotates in conjunction with the auger of the ice making unit is installed inside the ice storage. When using the ice in the ice storage, the electric shutter provided in the ice discharge unit is opened and the agitator is rotated. By doing so, ice is discharged from the ice discharge portion.

  In such an ice dispenser, even during ice making, a lot of scrap ice is generated because the agitator rotates in conjunction with the auger, and this causes the scrap ice to join together to generate a large lump (arching). there were. In addition, ice made in the ice making unit is supplied to the ice storage through the bottom of the ice storage, so that newly iced ice is released from the ice storage earlier, so older ice stays in the ice storage. There is a problem in that the time becomes longer and arching is more likely to occur.

  In order to solve such problems, the ice making unit and the ice storage are arranged in parallel in the horizontal direction, and the ice making unit communicates with the ice storage through the upper side wall of the ice storage, and is provided inside the ice storage. An ice dispenser has been developed in which a motor for rotating the agitator is separately provided. In this ice dispenser, the ice supplied to the ice storage is stacked one after another, so that it is the old ice that is closer to the bottom of the ice storage, so the old ice can be discharged first, which can prevent arching. it can.

JP 2002-243326 A

  However, in such an ice dispenser, ice produced in the ice making section is supplied from the upper part of the side wall of the ice storage into the ice storage, so that a single mountain-like ice mountain is formed in the ice storage. In this case, even though there is a lot of space in the ice store, the connection between the ice making unit and the ice store is blocked by ice, so it is determined that the ice store is full. Ice making will stop. Therefore, there is a problem that the amount of ice storage is reduced because the space in the ice storage is not used effectively.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object thereof is to provide an ice dispenser capable of increasing the amount of ice stored in an ice storage.

An ice dispenser comprising an ice making unit for making ice and a cylindrical ice storage for storing ice, wherein the ice making unit communicates with the ice storage through the upper side wall of the ice storage. The ice dispenser communicates with the inside of the ice storage. And an ice discharge portion having an ice lead-out path extending in a tangential direction of the side wall of the ice storage, and the ice stored in the ice storage is in a direction in which the ice lead-out path extends or in a direction in which the ice lead-out path extends. And can be rotated in the opposite direction.
An agitator provided in the ice storage and rotating the ice in the ice storage may be provided, and the agitator may be capable of switching the rotation direction.
A geared motor that rotates the agitator may be provided, and the geared motor may be disposed in an upper part of the ice storage.
The geared motor may change the rotational speed of the agitator in rotation in the direction in which the ice outlet path extends or in the direction opposite to the direction in which the ice outlet path extends.
A first agitator that is provided below the ice storage and rotates in the direction in which the ice lead-out path extends, and a second agitator that is provided above the ice storage and rotates in the direction opposite to the direction in which the ice lead-out path extends. The agitator may be provided.
A first rotating shaft that is a rotating shaft of the first agitator and a second rotating shaft that is a rotating shaft of the second agitator are provided, and the first rotating shaft and the second rotating shaft are coaxial. The second rotating shaft may be connected to the first agitator so that the first agitator is rotatable with respect to the second rotating shaft.

  According to the present invention, in the ice dispenser in which the ice making part communicates with the ice storage via the upper side wall of the cylindrical ice storage, the ice dispenser has the ice lead-out path that communicates with the ice storage and extends in the tangential direction of the side wall of the ice storage. The ice that has an ice discharge part and is stored in the ice storage is suitable for ice making by rotating in the direction in which the ice lead-out path extends or in the direction opposite to the direction in which the ice lead-out path extends. The ice in the ice storage can be stirred at the same or different speed as when the ice is released in the opposite direction to the direction in which the ice lead-out path extends, so that the ice is released from the ice discharge part. It is possible to collapse the ice piles formed in the ice storage without increasing the amount of ice stored in the ice storage.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Embodiment 1 FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, an ice dispenser 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an ice making unit 2 that makes ice and an ice storage 3 that stores ice made by the ice making unit 2.

  The ice making unit 2 includes a bulge-type cylindrical heat exchanger 5 to which an inlet / outlet cooling pipe 19 is attached, an auger 6 that is rotatably provided inside the cylinder of the bulge-type cylindrical heat exchanger 5 and has a spiral blade 6a, A geared motor 7 for rotating the auger 6, a pressing head 8 provided at the top of the bulge type cylindrical heat exchanger 5, and a refrigeration apparatus (not shown) communicating with the inlet / outlet cooling pipe 19 are provided. A cutter 9 for folding the ice produced by the bulge type cylindrical heat exchanger 5 to an appropriate size is provided on the upper portion of the pressing head 8.

  The ice storage 3 includes a cylindrical side wall 10 and an ice discharge portion 4 communicating with the inside of the ice storage 3. An agitator 12 is provided inside the ice storage 3. The agitator 12 includes a rotation shaft 13, and the rotation shaft 13 extends downward so that one end penetrates the central portion of the bottom 3 a of the ice storage 3 and the other end extends upward in the ice storage 3. A geared motor 14 that rotates the rotating shaft 13 is connected to the rotating shaft 13 below the ice storage 3. The geared motor 14 can switch the rotation direction of the rotary shaft 13 and can change the rotation speed. Further, the rotary shaft 13 is provided with a rotary shaft packing 31 inside the ice storage 3 so as to seal a through hole provided in the bottom 3 a of the ice storage 3, and condensation water dripping prevention is performed outside the ice storage 3. A plate 32 is provided. Thereby, the water when the ice melts in the ice storage 3 is prevented from dripping onto the geared motor 14, and the condensed water due to condensation on the rotating shaft 13 is prevented from dripping onto the geared motor 14.

  The ice making unit 2 and the ice storage 3 are connected by a spout 15. The spout 15 is connected to the upper end of the press head 8 from above so that one end includes the cutter 9 from the upper side, and the other end is connected to the side wall 10 of the ice storage 3 with a divergent shape. That is, the ice making unit 2 communicates with the ice storage 3 via the upper part of the side wall 10 of the ice storage 3. In the spout 15, an optical transmission sensor 16 that is an ice storage detection device for detecting that the ice storage 3 is full of ice is provided. When the optical transmission sensor 16 detects that the ice is full, the operation of the ice making unit 2 is stopped.

  In FIG. 2, the top view when the inside of the ice storage 3 is seen from upper direction is shown. The agitator 12 includes four stirring blades 12a, and each stirring blade 12a has a shape bent so as to form an obtuse angle near the center. An ice discharge part 4 communicating with the inside of the ice storage 3 is provided on the side wall 10 of the ice storage 3 at a position symmetrical to the ice making part 2 with respect to the rotation shaft 13. The ice discharge unit 4 includes an ice outlet path 23 and an ice discharge port 25. The ice lead-out path 23 extends in the tangential direction of the side wall 10 of the ice storage 3 in the same direction as the rotation direction (arrow A) of the agitator 12 described later, and is an opening provided in the lower part of the side wall 10 of the ice storage 3. 17 is provided so as to communicate with the inside of the ice storage 3 via 17. The ice discharge port 25 communicates with the ice lead-out path 23 and has a discharge opening 25a facing downward. An opening / closing lid 27 attached by a hinge is provided at a connecting portion between the ice lead-out path 23 and the ice discharge port 25 so as to close the ice lead-out path 23 so as to be openable and closable. When the ice 18 is not discharged from the ice discharge portion 4, the open / close lid 27 is closed.

Next, the operation of the ice dispenser according to the first embodiment will be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, when the ice dispenser 1 is turned on, a refrigeration apparatus (not shown) of the ice making unit 2 starts and the refrigerant flows through the inlet / outlet cooling pipe 19. Ice making water is supplied onto the inner peripheral surface of the inside of the cylinder of the bulge-type cylindrical heat exchanger 5 and exchanges heat with the refrigerant flowing in the inlet / outlet cooling pipe 19, so that the bulge-type cylindrical heat exchanger 5 Ice is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder. When the auger 6 is rotated by the geared motor 7, the generated ice is scraped off by the spiral blade 6a and sent upward. The ice sent upward by the auger 6 is compressed into a stick-shaped ice when passing through the pressing head 8, and is folded into an appropriate length by the cutter 9. The ice folded to an appropriate length is discharged into the ice storage 3 via the spout 15 and stored.

  When taking out ice from the ice discharge | release part 4, as shown in FIG. 2, the geared motor 14 (in order that the agitator 12 may rotate in the direction where the ice derivation path 23 extends, that is, counterclockwise (direction of arrow A). 1) rotates the rotary shaft 13. Then, the ice 18 rotates in the direction of arrow A inside the ice storage 3. When the ice 18 rotates in the direction of arrow A, the ice 18 in the vicinity of the opening 17 is discharged from the opening 17 to the ice discharger 4 along the ice lead-out path 23. The ice 18 discharged from the ice storage 3 to the ice discharging unit 4 is pushed by the ice 18 that is subsequently discharged to the ice discharging unit 4, thereby further proceeding through the ice lead-out path 23. The ice that has advanced through the ice lead-out path 23 moves to the ice discharge port 25 by pushing the opening / closing lid 27 open, and is discharged from the discharge opening 25a. Therefore, a certain amount of ice is discharged from the ice discharge portion 4 by rotating the agitator 12 for a fixed time by one ice discharge operation of the user. On the other hand, the geared motor 14 rotates the rotary shaft 13 in the direction of arrow A so that the agitator 12 rotates in the opposite direction to the direction in which the ice lead-out path 23 extends, that is, in the clockwise direction (the direction of arrow B). When rotating at a lower speed than when the ice is rotated, the ice 18 in the vicinity of the opening 17 moves so as to be returned into the ice storage 3 along the ice lead-out path 23, so that no ice is discharged from the ice discharge unit 4.

  On the other hand, when the ice is not taken out from the ice discharge portion 4, the agitator 12 does not rotate, and the ice 18 does not rotate. Then, as shown in FIG. 1, in the ice storage 3, a one-sided ice mountain 30 having a downward slope from the spout 15 toward the ice discharge part 4 is formed. When such a mountain-shaped ice mountain 30 is formed in the ice storage 3, the slope 30a of the ice mountain 30 is continuously formed up to the inside of the spout 15. Therefore, the optical transmission sensor 16 Ice will block the light. Thereby, the optical transmission sensor 16 detects that the ice storage 3 is full of ice, and stops the operation of the ice making unit 2. In this state, a space without ice, that is, a space not used as an ice storage space is formed in the ice storage 3. As a result, the amount of ice stored in the ice storage 3 decreases.

  Accordingly, when the light of the optical transmission sensor 16 is continuously blocked by ice for 0.5 seconds, the geared motor 14 rotates the rotary shaft 13 so that the agitator 12 rotates in the direction of arrow B for 0.5 seconds. By repeating this operation, the ice can be stored flat in the ice storage 3. As the amount of ice stored in the ice storage 3 increases and the upper surface 30b of the ice mountain 30 is above the optical transmission sensor 16, as shown in FIG. 3, the optical transmission is achieved even if the agitator 12 is rotated. Ice blocks the light from the sensor 16. At this time, it is determined that the ice storage 3 is full of ice, and the ice making operation is stopped. When the ice discharge from the ice discharge part 4 is not performed for 3 hours in the full ice state, the agitator 12 is moved in the direction opposite to the extending direction of the ice lead-out path 23 (indicated by the arrow B in FIG. 2). Direction) for about 0.5 seconds. Even if the agitator 12 rotates in the direction of the arrow B, no ice is discharged from the ice discharge portion 4, so that even if the agitator 12 is rotated to break the ice pile 30, the ice is discharged unnecessarily. There is no.

Thus, in the ice dispenser 1 in which the ice making unit 2 communicates with the ice storage 3 via the upper part of the side wall 10 of the cylindrical ice storage 3, the ice making unit 2 communicates with the ice storage 3 and is tangential to the side wall 10 of the ice storage 3. The ice discharge part 4 having the ice lead-out path 23 extending in the direction of the ice, and the ice stored in the ice storage 3 is in the direction in which the ice lead-out path 23 extends or in the direction opposite to the direction in which the ice lead-out path 23 extends. Since the ice in the ice storage 3 can be agitated in an opposite direction to the direction in which the ice lead-out path 23 extends at an appropriate timing and at an appropriate speed during ice making, the ice is released. Without releasing ice from the portion 4, the ice pile 30 formed in the ice storage 3 can be broken, and the amount of ice stored in the ice storage 3 can be increased.
Further, since the agitator 12 can switch the rotation direction and the rotation speed is variable, the agitator 12 moves the ice in the ice storage 3 in the direction in which the ice derivation path 23 extends or in the direction opposite to the direction in which the ice derivation path 23 extends. It can be switched and rotated at an appropriate speed.

  In the first embodiment, when the ice discharge from the ice discharge unit 4 is not performed for 3 hours, the agitator 12 is rotated in the direction in which the ice is not discharged from the ice discharge unit 4 for 0.5 seconds. However, it is not limited to these set times. These are merely examples, and can be appropriately set depending on the size and shape of the ice dispenser, the installation environment, and the like.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
Next, an ice dispenser according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the following embodiments, the same reference numerals as those in FIGS. 1 to 3 are the same or similar components, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

In the ice dispenser according to the second embodiment, the geared motor 14 is arranged on the upper part of the ice storage 3 with respect to the first embodiment.
In the ice dispenser 40, one end of the rotating shaft 13 is rotatably provided in the bottom portion 3a without penetrating the bottom portion 3a of the ice storage 3, and the other end penetrates the central portion of the upper portion 3b of the ice storage 3. It extends upward. Above the ice storage 3, a geared motor 14 that rotates the rotating shaft 13 is connected to the rotating shaft 13. In addition, since the rotating shaft 13 does not penetrate the bottom part 3a, the rotating shaft packing 31 and the condensed water dripping prevention plate 32 which are the components in Embodiment 1 are not provided. Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  Thus, by providing the geared motor 14 at the upper part of the ice storage 3, it is not necessary to form a through hole through which the rotation shaft 13 penetrates in the bottom 3a of the ice storage 3, so that the ice dispenser 40 is provided with the rotation shaft packing. 31 and the need to provide the condensed water dripping prevention plate 32 can be eliminated. Thereby, the structure of the ice storage 3 can be simplified.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
Next, an ice dispenser according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The ice dispenser according to the third embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that two agitators are provided below and above the ice storage 3.

  In the ice dispenser 50, a first agitator 52 is provided below the ice storage 3, and a second agitator 55 is provided above the ice storage 3. The first agitator 52 includes a first rotating shaft 53, and the first rotating shaft 53 extends downward so as to penetrate the center portion of the bottom 3 a of the ice storage 3, and below the ice storage 3, Is connected to a first geared motor 51 that rotates the rotation shaft 53 of the first geared motor 51. The first geared motor 51 rotates the first rotating shaft 53 so that the first agitator 52 rotates only in the direction corresponding to the arrow A in FIG. That is, the first agitator 52 is an agitator for discharging ice from the ice discharging unit 4. On the other hand, the second agitator 55 includes a second rotating shaft 56, and the second rotating shaft 56 extends upward so as to penetrate the central portion of the upper portion 3 b of the ice storage 3, and above the ice storage 3, The second rotating shaft 56 is connected to a second geared motor 54 that rotates the second rotating shaft 56. The second geared motor 54 rotates the second rotating shaft 56 so that the second agitator 55 rotates only in the direction corresponding to the arrow B in FIG. That is, even if the second agitator 55 rotates, the ice is not discharged from the ice discharge portion 4. The first rotating shaft 53 and the second rotating shaft 56 are provided coaxially. The first geared motor 51 and the second geared motor 54 can change the speed at which the first rotating shaft 53 and the second rotating shaft 56 are rotated, respectively, whereby the first agitator 52 and the second agitator 52 are changed. The rotational speed of 55 is variable. Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  Ice is stored in the ice storage 3 of the ice dispenser 50 by the same operation as in the first embodiment. When taking out ice from the ice discharge | release part 4, the 1st agitator 52 is rotated. On the other hand, when ice is not discharged from the ice discharge part 4 for a certain period of time, for the same reason as in the first embodiment, a one-sided ice mountain 30 is formed in the ice storage 3. Therefore, for example, when the ice discharge from the ice discharge unit 4 is not performed for 3 hours, the second agitator 55 is rotated for about 0.5 seconds. As a result, ice is not released from the ice discharge part 4, and the ice pile 30 in the shape of a single mountain is broken in the ice storage 3. Thus, ice is stored in the ice storage 3 so that a space that is not used as an ice storage space is not formed.

As described above, the first agitator 52 provided below the ice storage 3 and rotating in the direction in which the ice lead-out path 23 extends, and provided above the ice storage 3 and extending in the direction in which the ice lead-out path 23 extends. By providing the second agitator 55 that rotates in the opposite direction, the ice in the ice storage 3 can be stirred in an opposite direction to the direction in which the ice lead-out path 23 extends at an appropriate timing during ice making. As a result, the ice pile 30 formed in the ice storage 3 can be broken, and the amount of ice stored in the ice storage 3 can be increased.
Further, the first geared motor 51 and the second geared motor 54 are geared motors that are not switchable in the rotation direction as in the geared motor 14 in the first embodiment, and can rotate only in one direction. An expensive geared motor such as a reversible motor or a DC brushless motor must be used as a geared motor whose rotation direction can be switched. However, in the third embodiment, it is not necessary to use such expensive geared motors for the first geared motor 51 and the second geared motor 54, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
Next, an ice dispenser according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the ice dispenser according to the fourth embodiment, the lower end of the second rotating shaft 56 is connected to the central portion of the first agitator 52 as compared with the third embodiment.

  In the ice dispenser 60, the first agitator 52 has an insertion hole 52a into which the first rotating shaft 53 is inserted. The 2nd rotating shaft 56 is extended in the ice storage 3, and the lower end part 56a is inserted in the insertion hole 52a. However, the lower end portion 56 a is not fixed to the insertion hole 52 a, and the second rotating shaft 56 can be rotated with respect to the second rotating shaft 56 so that the first agitator 52 can rotate with respect to the second rotating shaft 56. It is connected to. Other configurations are the same as those in the third embodiment.

  As described above, the first rotating shaft 53 and the second rotating shaft 56 are provided coaxially, and the second agitator 52 is configured to be rotatable with respect to the second rotating shaft 56. Since the second rotating shaft 56 is supported at both ends by connecting the rotating shaft 56 to the first agitator 52, the strength of the second rotating shaft 56 can be increased. That is, when the ice is stirred in the ice storage 3 or when the ice pile 30 is broken, the second rotating shaft 56 is inclined to connect the second rotating shaft 56 and the second geared motor 54. It is possible to prevent the portion from being damaged due to stress.

It is a block diagram of the ice dispenser which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. 3 is a plan view of the inside of the ice storage of the ice dispenser according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an ice dispenser according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of an ice dispenser according to Embodiment 2. FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of an ice dispenser according to Embodiment 3. FIG. It is a block diagram of the ice dispenser which concerns on Embodiment 4.

Explanation of symbols

  1, 40, 50, 60 Ice dispenser, 2 ice making unit, 3 ice storage, 4 ice discharge unit, 10 (side wall of ice storage), 12 agitator, 14 geared motor, 23 ice lead-out path, 52 1st agitator, 53 1 rotation axis, 55 second agitator, 56 second rotation axis.

Claims (6)

In an ice dispenser comprising an ice making part for making ice and a cylindrical ice storage for storing the ice, wherein the ice making part communicates with the ice storage via an upper side wall of the ice storage,
The ice dispenser includes an ice discharge portion having an ice lead-out path that communicates with the inside of the ice storage and extends in a tangential direction of the side wall of the ice storage;
The ice stored in the ice storage is
An ice dispenser that can be switched so as to be switchable in a direction in which the ice lead-out path extends or in a direction opposite to the direction in which the ice lead-out path extends. Provided in the ice storage, comprising an agitator for rotating the ice in the ice storage;
The ice dispenser according to claim 1, wherein a rotation direction of the agitator is switchable. A geared motor for rotating the agitator,
The ice dispenser according to claim 2, wherein the geared motor is disposed on an upper part of the ice storage.   The geared motor can change a rotational speed of the agitator in rotation in a direction in which the ice lead-out path extends or in a direction opposite to the direction in which the ice lead-out path extends. Item 4. The ice dispenser according to item 3. A first agitator provided below the ice storage and rotating in a direction in which the ice lead-out path extends;
The ice dispenser according to claim 1, further comprising a second agitator provided above the ice storage and rotating in a direction opposite to a direction in which the ice lead-out path extends. A first rotating shaft that is a rotating shaft of the first agitator;
A second rotating shaft that is a rotating shaft of the second agitator,
The first rotating shaft and the second rotating shaft are provided coaxially, and the second rotating shaft is configured such that the first agitator is rotatable with respect to the second rotating shaft. The ice dispenser according to claim 5, wherein the ice dispenser is connected to the first agitator.

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