JP2578682Y2 - Water pipe connection structure for ice machines - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a water supply pipe connection structure for an ice machine or the like, and more particularly, to an apparatus for receiving water from an external water supply system and consuming the water, such as an ice machine. The present invention relates to a water supply pipe connection structure in which a gap generated between a rear surface of a housing and a wall surface of an installation place is reduced to enable effective use of space.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various devices have been used which receive a supply of water from an external water supply system such as a water supply, consumes the water, and supplies it to a required use. For example, an automatic ice making machine for ice cubes and a vending machine for shaved ice are examples of this type of device. The former is
Mainly installed in the kitchen of a coffee shop or restaurant, connected to an external water supply system and supplied with water, built-in ice making mechanism automatically produces many ice cubes, and discharges the ice cubes into the ice storage It is stored and used for eating and drinking and other uses in stores.

[0003] The latter is installed mainly on the street or at a place where a lot of people scatter, and when a coin is inserted, a built-in auger-type ice making mechanism is activated, and a required amount of shaved ice is put together with syrup in a cup at a product outlet. Release. In this apparatus, water is consumed for ice generation in the ice making mechanism, and water is also consumed for washing syrup attached to the product outlet. For this reason, a water pipe is permanently connected to the installed vending machine main body, and a required amount of tap water is supplied under a valve action. In addition, as a similar device, there is a beverage vending machine of a type that supplies and supplies crushed ice together with soft drinks such as juice, and this is also configured to be permanently connected to an external water supply system by a pipeline.

In the above-described apparatus, an internal water supply pipe, which is provided in a water consumption section such as an ice making mechanism disposed inside the housing of the apparatus, protrudes to the back of the housing, and a connecting end such as an elbow is connected to the protruding end. A structure in which an external water supply pipe (water pipe) is connected via a pipe is general. In this case, since the connection pipe protrudes greatly from the rear surface of the housing, a large gap is generated between the wall surface of the installation location and the rear surface of the housing, and there is a disadvantage that the space cannot be effectively used.

To cope with this, there has been proposed a device "water supply connection structure for ice making machine" according to Japanese Utility Model Publication No. Sho 60-35017. With this structure, a piping connection chamber is formed at the rear of the casing of the ice making machine,
A piping outlet is provided on each of the left and right sides and the back of the chamber, and an external water supply pipe introduced into the connection chamber via the pipe outlet is connected to the internal water supply pipe provided in the pipe connection chamber. doing. That is, if the external water supply pipe is introduced into the pipe connection chamber through the left and right pipe outlets, the pipe does not protrude from the back of the casing, so that the back can be closely attached to the wall surface of the installation location, and the space can be effectively used. It can be used.

[0006]

In the above structure, it is necessary to secure a space for defining a pipe connection chamber inside the casing, and there is a disadvantage that the outer diameter of the casing itself becomes large. In addition, since a piping connection chamber and a plurality of outlets are formed, the processing of the casing becomes complicated, and a disadvantage that the production cost increases is pointed out. Furthermore, the work of introducing the external water supply pipe from the pipe outlet to the pipe connection chamber and the work of connecting the pipes in a narrow connection chamber are complicated and poor in workability.

In the above structure, when other equipment is close to the left and right of the casing, an external water supply pipe is introduced into the pipe connection chamber through a pipe outlet on the rear side, and this is supplied to the internal water supply pipe. I try to connect with. Since both pipes are connected via a connecting pipe such as an elbow, in this case, there is a problem that the pipe protrudes largely on the back side and a large gap still remains between the pipe and the wall.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned drawbacks inherent in the water supply pipe connection structure, the present invention has been proposed in order to solve the problem suitably. It is an object of the present invention to provide a water supply pipe connection structure that can reduce a gap generated between the water supply pipe and a wall surface and can easily perform a pipe connection with an external water supply system.

[0009]

In order to overcome the above-mentioned problems and achieve the intended purpose, the present invention communicates with a water consumption extinction unit provided inside a housing, and is provided outside the housing. In an ice making machine or the like that connects an external water supply pipe piped outside the housing via a joint to a connection part of the internal water supply pipe protruding by a required length to supply water to the water consumption section, A substantially L-shaped tube, a boss formed eccentrically at the open end of a short tube in the tube, and a flange formed concentrically at the open end of the boss. The joint is connected by fitting the cap nut to the joint in a state where the cap nut is aligned with the boss portion, and tightening the cap nut to the connection portion in a state where the flange portion and the connection portion are opposed to each other. The external water supply pipe is connected to the open end of the long pipe section of the pipe body. Characterized by being adapted to.

[0010]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a water supply pipe connecting structure for an ice making machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view schematically showing the overall configuration of an ice making machine employing the water supply pipe connection structure according to the embodiment. The interior of the housing 10 constituting the ice making machine main body includes a lower machine room 14 in which a refrigerating machine such as the compressor CM and the condenser 12 is stored, and an ice storage 16 located above and surrounded by a heat insulating material.
And an ice making unit 18 disposed above the ice storage 16. The ice blocks produced by the ice making unit 18 are released and stored in the ice storage 16. In addition, an air suction port is opened at the bottom of the housing 10 and an air outlet (not shown) is opened on the back side, and a cooling fan (not shown) arranged in the machine room 14 rotates. After the air sucked from the suction port is brought into contact with the condenser 12 to perform cooling by heat exchange, the temperature-raised air is discharged to the outside through the discharge port.

One end of a water supply pipe 20 is connected to an appropriate position of the ice making unit 18, and the other end of the water supply pipe 20 is connected to an outlet 22 a of a water supply valve 22 disposed inside the housing 10 via a water supply hose 24. Connected. Water supply valve 22
As shown in FIG. 3, an inlet (hereinafter referred to as a “connecting portion”) 22b protrudes from the rear surface of the housing 10 by a predetermined length, and a male screw 22c is threaded around the outer periphery of the connecting portion 22b. Is fastened to this, so that the joint 28 is connected.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a joint 28 used in the embodiment of the present invention has a tube 30 formed in a substantially L-shape and a short first tube in the tube 30. Part 3
The boss 32 is basically composed of a boss 32 that is eccentrically connected to the boss 32a and a flange 34 that is formed concentrically with the open end of the boss 32. The first pipe portion 30a of the pipe body 30 includes:
It is continuously provided at a position deviated downward from the center of the boss portion 32,
The second pipe portion 30b is bent and extends in a direction in which the first pipe portion 30a is deviated from the boss portion 32. A male screw 30c is threaded around the open end of the elongated second tube portion 30b, and one end of the connecting member 36 is screwed through the male screw 30c.
An external water supply pipe 38 is connected to the other end of the connecting tool 36.

A groove 34a is formed concentrically on the front end face of the flange portion 34, and a ring-shaped packing 40 is formed.
A protruding portion 40a protruding concentrically on one side is formed in a groove 34a.
And is positioned on the front surface of the flange portion 34 in a state of being inserted into. Then, with the packing 40 applied to the open end of the connection portion 22b of the water supply valve 22, the joint 28 and the connection portion 22b are connected in a water-tight manner by tightening the cap nut 26 (FIG. (See FIG. 2).

As shown in FIG. 2, a cap nut 26 for connecting the connecting portion 22b and the joint 28 is provided with a male screw 22c threaded on the connecting portion 22b on the inner surface of a large-diameter opening 26a opened to the front side. The female screw 26b to be screwed is threaded.
The cap nut 26 is provided with a through hole 26c that opens to the rear side, and the inside diameter of the through hole 26c is set to a size that allows the boss 32 to be inserted. Then, in a state where the cap nut 26 is covered with the joint 28, the through hole 26 c is made to face the outside of the boss 32, so that the boss 32
The center of the flange portion 34 and the center of the cap nut 26 match.

Here, the connection portion 22b is formed by the cap nut 26.
The nut 26 is connected to the joint 28 in order to connect the
Need to be packaged. That is, by moving the nut 26 along the pipe 30 to the first pipe 30a in a state where the second pipe 30b of the pipe 30 is inserted into the through hole 26c of the cap nut 26, the boss 32 And the cap nut 26 is made to face the outside of the flange portion 34. In this case, as shown in FIG. 1, since the first tube portion 30a of the tube 30 is eccentrically connected to the boss 32, the dimension L of the first tube portion 30a is reduced as shown in FIG. Even if it is set short, the cap nut 26 is kept at a predetermined position (the boss portion 32 and the flange portion 3).
4). Thereby, in a state where the joint 28 is connected to the connection portion 22b,
The size of the joint 28 protruding from the rear surface of the housing 10 can be reduced.

That is, the first tube portion 30a of the tube 30 set under the same conditions as the tube 30 shown in FIG. 4 is aligned with the boss 32 as shown in FIG. In the case where the nuts 26 are connected, the inner surface of the opening 26a of the nut 26 is formed in the bent portion of the first tube portion 30a and the second tube portion 30b and the flange portion 34 during the movement of the cap nut 26 along the tube 30. It comes into contact and becomes immovable. Therefore, in order to cover the cap nut 26 at a predetermined position of the joint 28 having the shape shown in FIG. 7, it is necessary to set the dimension L of the first pipe portion 30a to be long. The protruding dimension becomes longer.

[0018]

Next, a description will be given of the actual assembling of pipes by the water supply pipe connection structure according to the above-described configuration. First,
A cap nut 26 is provided at a predetermined position of the joint 28. That is, as shown in FIG.
The cap nut 26 is inserted through the opening 26a side into the second pipe portion 30b of the No. 0. Then, the cap nut 26 is connected to the cap nut 26 as shown in FIG.
As shown in (c), the second pipe part 30b and the first pipe part 30a
Along the outer periphery of the boss portion 32 and the flange portion 34. At this time, as described above, the first tube portion 30a is eccentrically connected to the boss portion 32, and the second tube portion 30b is bent toward the eccentric side of the first tube portion 30a with respect to the boss portion 32. Since the cap nut 26 is formed, the cap nut 26 can be provided at a predetermined position in a state where the dimension L of the first pipe portion 30a is set to be short.

Next, the packing 40 positioned on the front side of the flange portion 34 is connected to the connecting portion 2 of the water supply valve 22.
2b. Then, the female screw 26b of the cap nut 26 provided on the joint 28 is screwed into the male screw 22c of the connecting portion 22b, thereby connecting the joint 28 to the connecting portion 22.
b can be connected in a watertight manner. Also, cap nut 2
When the boss portion 32 faces the through hole 26c of No. 6, the center of the cap nut 26, the boss portion 32, and the flange portion 34 are aligned, and the joint 28 and the connection portion 22b are accurately connected.

By connecting an external water supply pipe 38 to the open end of the second pipe portion 30b of the pipe body 30 via a connecting member 36, the piping work is completed. In addition, external water supply pipe 38
However, when piping is performed from the right side with respect to the connection part 22b, as shown in FIG. 5, the cap nut 26 is tightened in a state where the second pipe part 30b of the pipe body 30 is directed horizontally rightward. . When the external water supply pipe 38 is piped from below to the connection portion 22b, as shown in FIG.
The cap nut 26 is tightened in a state where the pipe portion 30b is directed vertically downward. That is, the joint 28 can be positioned extremely easily in accordance with the piping direction of the external water supply pipe 38 with respect to the connection portion 22b.

When installing the housing 10 having the external water supply pipe 38 through the joint 28 at a predetermined place, the joint 28 and the external water supply pipe 38 can be exposed between the back surface and the wall surface. Install with a gap. As described above, the size of the gap can be made extremely small by setting the length L of the first pipe portion 30a in the joint 28 to the necessary minimum. As a result, limited space can be effectively used.

In this embodiment, the description has been made of the case where the water supply pipe connection structure is adopted in the ice making machine. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various types of water that need to be supplied with water from an external water supply system. It can be widely used in general equipment.

[0023]

[Effect of the Invention] As described above, according to the water supply pipe connection structure of the ice making machine and the like according to the present invention, the external water supply pipe and the internal water supply pipe of the housing can be easily connected by the joint and the cap nut. Therefore, there is an advantage that workability at the time of installation is excellent.
Also, since the length of the joint protruding from the housing can be extremely small, the gap generated between the joint and the wall of the installation location is reduced,
Effective use of limited space can be achieved. Furthermore, the piping direction of the external water supply pipe to the connection part of the internal water supply pipe can be arbitrarily set according to the installation location of the device.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an exploded state of a joint and a cap nut of a water supply pipe connection structure according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the water supply pipe connection structure according to the embodiment, partially cut away in the state shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 3 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view showing an ice making machine employing the water supply pipe connection structure according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a process of externally attaching a cap nut to a joint.

FIG. 5 is a rear view showing a connection state of a joint in a case where an external water supply pipe is connected to the connection part from a horizontal right side.

FIG. 6 is a rear view showing a connection state of a joint in a case where an external water supply pipe is vertically connected to a connection portion from below.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a cap nut is externally mounted on a joint in which a first pipe portion of a pipe body is coaxially connected to a boss portion.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Housing, 18 ... Ice making unit, 20 ... Water supply pipe, 22
b: connection portion 26: cap nut, 28: joint, 30: tube, 30a: first tube portion 30b: second tube portion, 32: boss portion, 34: flange portion,
34a ... groove 38 ... external water supply pipe, 40 ... packing, 40a ... protrusion

Claims (2)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] A water cost consuming unit (1) disposed inside a housing (10).
8), and connected to a connection part (22b) of an internal water supply pipe (20) protruding outside of the housing (10) by a required length through a joint (28). In an ice making machine or the like that connects an external water supply pipe (38) and supplies water to the water cost consuming section (18), the joint (28) includes a substantially L-shaped pipe body (30). A boss portion (32) formed eccentrically at the open end of the short tube portion (30a) of the tube body (30), and a flange portion (34) formed concentrically at the open end of the boss portion (32). The joint (28) is covered with a cap nut (26) in a state where the cap nut (26) is aligned with the boss (32), and the flange (34) and the connecting part (22b) are opposed to each other. Then, by fastening the cap nut (26) to the connection portion (22b), the joint (28) is connected to the connection portion (22b), and the long tube portion (30b) in the tube body (30) is connected. The external water supply pipe (38) is connected to the open end of the ice making machine. Water pipe connection structure for machines. 2. A groove (34a) is formed concentrically at the open end of the flange portion (34), and a protrusion (40a) formed on one side is formed in the groove (3).
4a) to position the ring-shaped packing (40) at the open end of the flange portion (34) by fitting the packing (40).
The water supply pipe connection structure for an ice making machine or the like according to claim 1, wherein the joint (28) is connected in a state where the joint is applied to the connection portion (22b).