JP3145256B2 - Vertical ice machine - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vertical ice maker, and more particularly, to an ice maker comprising an ice maker having a laterally opened ice maker and a water tray which is tiltably arranged to open and close the opening. It relates to a vertical ice machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An example of such a vertical ice maker is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. Hei 6-6003 filed on Mar. 4, 1994 by the present applicant.
No. 0. The invention of this prior application is:
The purpose of the present invention is to reduce the "folds" connecting the ice pieces to each other and to reduce the "dents" formed on the surface of the ice pieces. As shown in FIG. 7, an ice making chamber 1 is provided with a plurality of ice making chambers 2 each of which is opened in a lateral direction and a bottom portion 2 a is inclined downward toward the opening side. An ice making water tank 11, a water tray 3, which is provided adjacent to or in contact with the opening side of the ice making small chamber 2, has a fountain port 4 for the ice making small chamber 2, and receives return water from the ice making small chamber 2, The ice making water in the water tank 11
There is provided a vertical ice maker comprising a pressure feeding device 57 for guiding the water tray 3 from the inside to the fountain port 4 and a driving device 15 for separating the water tray 3 from the ice making chamber 1.

In the vertical ice making machine shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the water tray 3 closes the opening of the ice making chamber 1 (FIG. 6).
The tap water supplied through the electromagnetic valve 17 and flowing down the water supply passage 3a inside the water tray 3, and the water guided from the ice making water tank 11 to the water tray 3 by the pumping device 57 and flowing down the ice making water passage 3b. Falls from the lower end 9 of the water tray 3 into the ice making water tank 11 as indicated by the solid arrow in the figure. On the other hand, when the ice making process is completed, the water tray 3 is separated from the ice making chamber 1 around the upper shaft 13 as a rotation center, and tilts clockwise in the figure (FIG. 7). Then, in the state of FIG. 6, the water remaining inside the water tray 3 without dropping,
That is, there is a possibility that the ice-making residual water may fall from the tip portion 9 into the ice storage (not shown) through the ice falling passage 11a formed through the center of the ice-making water tank 11 during the tilting. When the ice-making residual water falls into the ice storage in this way, it adheres to the ice 30 in the ice storage and re-freezes there, solidifying the separated ice pieces, or impairing the surface of the ice before re-freezing. It may melt into the rules. As a result, when the user takes out ice from the ice storage, the ice is connected,
There is a concern that the ice surface may have to be crushed and removed, or the ice surface may be irregularly melted as described above, which may result in more aesthetically inferior ice and lower the commercial value of the ice. Was. Most of the places where ice produced by the ice maker is used mainly for restaurants related to eating and drinking, such as restaurants, coffee shops, cafeterias, etc., it is necessary to provide customers with quick and beautiful ice. Therefore, the above-mentioned problem is an important factor influencing the evaluation of the ice maker.

[0004]

As described above, in this ice making machine, when the ice making process is completed and the process proceeds to the deicing process, the ice making water remaining inside the water tray is tilted when the water tray is tilted. However, there is a possibility that the water will drop onto the ice in the ice storage along the tip of the water dish. And the dropped water hardens the ice in the ice storage and melts the surface irregularly, so it is difficult to take out the ice from the ice storage and it is inconvenient for use,
Alternatively, there have been undesired problems such as impairing the appearance of the surface and reducing the commercial value of ice. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a vertical ice maker in which water remaining in a water tray is reliably recovered in an ice making water tank when tilted.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a vertical ice making machine according to the present invention comprises a plurality of ice making compartments which are opened in a horizontal direction, and an ice making compartment arranged in a vertical direction. An ice making water tank disposed below the ice making chamber and deviated from the ice falling path, and vertically arranged to be tiltable between a closed position and an open position of the opening to open and close the opening of the ice making small chamber. A fountain port for supplying ice making water to each of the ice making compartments, a water tray for receiving return water from each of the ice making compartments, and a discharging portion provided below the water trays; A gutter-like portion consisting of an enclosure for collecting water in the water dish, directly below the discharge portion and falling of the ice;
A water receiving portion, which is a part of the ice making water tank, is provided so as to deviate from the path .

[0006] In a preferred embodiment, the trough-like portion comprises:
A bottom wall portion, one of the surrounding walls, a front wall portion of the peripheral end of the bottom wall portion erected on the ice making room side, and one of the surrounding walls; A side wall portion that is erected at a peripheral end of the gutter-shaped portion and defines both left and right ends of the gutter-shaped portion, and one of the surrounding walls, at a position facing the front wall portion of the peripheral end of the bottom wall portion It consists of an upright rear wall, and as the discharge part,
An opening provided by notching the side wall is provided, and a drain portion is provided at an edge of a bottom wall defining a lower limit of the opening. Alternatively, as the discharge portion, a hole provided in the front wall portion or a tubular member attached to the front wall portion may be provided instead of the opening.

[0007]

In the ice making process, that is, when the water tray substantially closes the opening of the ice making room, a part of the ice making water freezes in the ice making room,
The remaining part flows out and falls into the ice making water tank from the trough-shaped part of the water tray. When the water tray is tilted and opened after the ice making is completed, the shape of the ice making water tank is determined so that the remaining ice making water remaining inside the water tray is located immediately below the above-described tilting locus of the discharge portion. As a result, it flows out of the discharge area and falls into the ice making water tank. Then, when the water tray is at the maximum inclination, that is, when the water tray is fully opened, the de-iced ice falls into the ice storage without being obstructed by the structure of the ice making water tank provided with the ice passage.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference numerals indicate the same or corresponding parts. FIG. 1 is an elevational view showing the vertical ice maker of the present invention in an ice making process, partially broken away,
FIG. 2 is a similar view of the vertical ice maker of the present invention in the deicing step. An ice-making chamber 101 vertically arranged in FIG.
Is attached to the frame 121 by an appropriate fastening means such as a bolt 119 or the like. The ice making chamber 101 is composed of a plurality of ice making chambers 123 defined by a plurality of vertical and horizontal partition plates, each of which intersects at right angles. Among the partition plates, the partition plate extending in the horizontal direction is inclined vertically downward from the back side of the ice making chamber 123 toward the opening side.

In the vicinity of the opening of the ice making chamber 123, a water tray 1 is provided.
03 is provided. The water dish 103 has an axis 1 at the upper part.
13 pivotably support the pivot. The rotatable angle of the water tray 103 is limited by the operation and length of a cam lever and the like to be described later and the contact of the water tray with the outer frame of the ice making chamber 101. The inside of the water tray 103 is composed of a water supply channel 125, an ice making water channel 127, and a pressure chamber 129. Of these, the water supply channel 125 is connected to the water tray main body by screws on the upper side and left and right side surfaces. The water tray 127 is defined by a water tray cover 105 mounted on the opposite side of the ice making chamber 101 with respect to the ice making water channel 127 by appropriate fastening means such as 131. The lower part of the water tray cover 105 is a gutter-shaped part 109 formed in a gutter shape, and details thereof will be described later with reference to FIG.

The ice making chamber 10 which defines the ice making water channel 127
On the wall on one side, a plurality of fountain holes 135 directed one by one to each ice making chamber 101 are formed. At least one return port (not shown) is formed around one fountain port 135. The wall is an ice making room 1
01 is in contact with the outer frame, but is separated from the partition plate extending in the vertical and horizontal directions in the ice making chamber 101. That is, the partition plate is shorter than the outer frame. Above the water supply passage 125, one end of a water supply pipe 139 is attached, and the other end communicates with the solenoid valve 137. A water supply source is provided upstream of the solenoid valve 137.

A mechanism for opening and closing the water tray 103 is provided below the ice making chamber 101. Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, first, a motor (drive device) is provided at a required position below the ice making chamber 101. At least one, in this embodiment, two cam levers 143 are fixed to the motor shaft 141, which is the output shaft of the motor, with their base ends integrally fixed to the motor shaft 141. That is, it is attached so as to tilt by the same angle as the rotation angle of the motor shaft 141. A lever piece 145 is integrally fixed to the cam lever 143. A switch 147 provided on the frame 121 is provided on the tilt locus of the lever piece 145. A spring holder 149 is provided at the tip of the cam lever 143. One end of the spring 151 is engaged with the spring holder 149, and the other end is engaged with the spring holder 153 provided below the water tray 103. ing.
Accordingly, during ice making, the spring 151 is in an extended state, and the water tray 103 is resiliently (tensile) to the ice making chamber 10.
One opening is maintained in a substantially closed position.

Below the water tray 103, an ice making water tank 111 for collecting and storing ice making water is provided. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a water receiving portion 155 which is a part of the ice making water tank 111 is provided immediately below the discharge portion of the gutter-like portion 109. That is, the ice making water tank 111 is a tank having a substantially “L” -shaped inlet when viewed from above. Incidentally, the structure of the ice making water tank is not limited to the one described above, and a tank having a substantially "B" -shaped inlet provided with an ice falling passage leading to an ice storage in the center, or water receiving portions on the left and right. May be provided with a substantially "U" shaped inlet. As an important condition of the ice making water tank, it is necessary that a water receiving portion is always provided immediately below the movement locus of the discharge portion of the gutter-like portion 109.

A circulation pump 157 disposed below the ice making water tank 111 has a suction side communicating with the bottom of the ice making water tank 111 and a discharge side connected to one end of the circulation pipe 159. The other end of the circulation pipe 159 connected to the circulation pump 157 communicates with a pressure chamber 129 located above the water tray 103.

Next, the structure of the gutter-like portion 109 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 shows only part of the water tray cover 105 and the ice making water tank 111 for convenience of explanation.
Other parts are omitted. As described above, the gutter-like portion 109 is located below the water tray cover 105, and extends rearward from the end of the cover main body 105a to the ice making chamber 101 (FIG. 1). In the state of FIG. 1, the rear wall portion 160 is slightly upwardly inclined from the front end of the rear wall portion 160 toward the ice making chamber 101 over the entire width thereof.
In the state of FIG. 2, the bottom wall 161 extends substantially horizontally, and extends upward from the tip of the bottom wall 161 over the entire width thereof.
And a relatively short front wall 163. Also, each end of the side plate 105b on both sides of the cover body 105a extends downward, and the side wall 167a,
167b. In this embodiment, one of the side wall portions 167a completely covers one end in the longitudinal direction of the gutter-like portion 109, while the other side wall portion 167b has an opening or notch 165 formed therein, so that a water discharging portion is formed. It has become. It is preferable that the bottom wall portion 161 be slightly inclined in the longitudinal direction so that the opening 165 side is located below in order to easily discharge water from the gutter-like portion 109. Front wall 16
3 has a required height such that the ice making water flowing down and reaching the gutter-like portion 109 does not fall over the front wall portion 163. Although only one opening 165 is shown in FIG. 3, an opening is also provided in the side wall portion 167a, and the gutter-like portion 109 is formed.
Openings may be provided at two places on both sides of. However, in this case, it is necessary to dispose the water receiving portion 155 below the other opening. The water receiving portion 155 may be separated from the ice making water tank 111 as long as the water receiving portion 155 communicates with the ice making water tank 111. A drain portion 169 is attached to an edge of the bottom wall portion 161 that defines the lower limit of the opening 165. Without this draining portion 169, the opening 16
The ice making water discharged from the water receiving portion 5 flows along the lower surface of the bottom portion 161 without falling to a water receiving portion described later.
There is a risk of falling on ice in the ice storage at a position where there is no 5. Therefore, the draining portion 169 is usually provided as a plate-shaped member toward the water receiving portion 155. In addition, for the trough-like portion 109 having two openings 165 on both sides as described above, the structure of the ice making water tank 111 is not sufficient if it becomes a substantially "L" -shaped inlet. A substantially "U" -shaped or substantially "B" -shaped inlet structure in which the water receiving portion 155 is disposed immediately below the movement trajectory of the opening 165 is preferable.

Incidentally, the structure of the gutter-shaped portion of the present invention is not limited to the structure shown in FIG. 3, and several other structures are conceivable. For example, referring to FIG. 4, the gutter-like portion 209 includes a bottom wall portion 261 and a front wall portion 2 on the ice making chamber 101 side.
63 and side wall portions 267a on both sides of the front wall portion 263,
267b. And the tubular member 265 which is the discharge part of the present invention is attached to the front wall part 263. Also in this example, a plurality of tubular members 265 may be provided, and the mounting positions thereof are determined not only by the front wall 263 but also by the side wall 267 a or the side wall 26.
7b. However, it is necessary to always provide the water receiving portion 255 below the tubular member 265.
In addition, in the embodiment of FIG. 4, the structure of the ice making water tank has a large outer box-shaped portion whose entrance extends far below the tubular member 265, and has a central portion for storing ice falling during deicing. An inner box defining an ice outlet 269 leading to the ice storage,
Ice making water can be stored between the inner box-shaped portion outside the ice falling port 269 and the outer box-shaped portion, and the ice falling port 26
Although the inside of 9 is a passage to the ice storage, as shown in FIG. 3, an ice making water tank having a substantially "L" shaped inlet or a substantially "U" shaped not shown inlet can be used. Of course it is good.

FIG. 5 shows a structure having a further different emission part. The gutter-like portion 309 is provided on the bottom wall portion 36.
1, a front wall 363 on the side of the ice making chamber 101, and the front wall 36
3 on both sides. Further, holes 365 are formed at both ends of the front wall portion 363. The hole 365 may be formed in the side wall portion 367 instead of the front wall portion 363, and only one of both ends may be formed.
Further, an ice making water tank 311 having an ice falling port 369 is disposed below the ice making tank 311 as in FIG.

Next, the operation of the ice making machine of the present invention will be described. First, water supply to the ice making water tank 111 in the vertical ice maker according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. When the ice making process is completed and the ice removing process is started, the water tray 103 rotates to the open position as shown in FIG. Thus, the water dish 103
Is fully opened, the solenoid valve 137 is opened, and the tap water enters the water tray water supply passage 125 through the solenoid valve 137 and the water supply pipe 139, and the inclined water tray is shown as a broken arrow in FIG. 1
03 to the ice making water tank 11
1 is supplied. The solenoid valve 137 is kept in this open state for 90 seconds, then closed and the water supply is temporarily stopped.
When the ice in the ice making chamber 101 separates due to the progress of the deicing process, the temperature of the ice making chamber rises. Therefore, a sensor (not shown) provided in the ice making chamber 101 detects the temperature rise as completion of deicing, and the water tray 103 Pivots from the tilted or open position shown in FIG. 2 to the vertical or closed position shown in FIG. 1, and the ice making machine enters the ice making process. In this embodiment, the solenoid valve 137 is connected to the water tray 1.
03 is set to open again when it starts to close, so that water supply is performed again as described above. However, since the amount of water supply per unit time through the solenoid valve is not so large, it is shown in FIG. The water does not exceed the front wall 163 of the trough-like portion 109 and is stored in the ice making water tank 111 through the opening 165 of the trough-like portion 109 until the water tray 103 is completely closed. More specifically, as described above, since the ice making water tank 111 has a substantially "L" -shaped inlet, water from the opening 165 at the end of the gutter-shaped portion is
It is received in the ice making water tank 111 via the water receiving portion 155. When the water tray 103 reaches the closed position, the ice making machine enters the ice making process as described above, but the solenoid valve 137 keeps the valve opened further and closes 15 seconds after the water tray is completely closed. . At this time, the level of the ice making water in the ice making water tank 111 is at a certain level defined by an overflow pipe (not shown) (since it is the same as the conventional one).

In the ice making process, referring to FIG. 1, the ice making water in the ice making water tank 111 is discharged into the circulation pipe 159 by the operation of the circulation pump 157, and as shown by the solid line arrow in the figure. 159 to the water dish 10
3 to a pressure chamber 129 above. Pressure chamber 129
The ice making water therein flows into the ice making water channel 127, a part of which is jetted from the fountain port 135 into the ice making chamber 123, and the rest flows further down in the ice making water channel 127. Ice making room 123
The ice making water injected into the inside is deprived of heat by the evaporator 171 and gradually freezes. At this time, the ice making water that has not been frozen returns to the water supply passage 125 from a return port (not shown) and flows down. Then, the ice making water that has reached the gutter-like portion 109 below the water tray 103 is supplied from the opening 165 (or the tubular member 265 or the hole 365) to the water receiving portion 155 (255, 3).
55).

When a sensor (not shown) detects completion of ice making in the ice making chamber 101, a deicing process is started. Referring to FIG. 2, the circulation pump 157 stops, and the motor shaft 141 of the driving device (not shown) rotates. Motor shaft 141
The cam lever 143, which is integrally fixed with the cam lever 143, rotates clockwise around the motor shaft 141 in the drawing to contract the spring 151. Then, during the ice making process, the water tray 103, which closed the ice making chamber 101 by the elastic force of the spring 151, has its elastic force reduced and added.
1 is pushed by the leftward movement with respect to the drawing, and tilts and separates clockwise around the upper shaft 113 to the fully open position as shown in FIG. During tilting, if there is ice making water remaining inside the water tray 103, it is removed from the gutter-shaped portion 10
9 (opening 165, tubular member 265, hole 365)
Etc.), but directly under the water receiving portion 155
Since (255, 355) is provided, the ice making water does not fall into the ice storage 173. In addition, in the water dish provided with the hole 365, the ice making residual water falls from the hole 365 during the tilting of the water dish, but when the water dish is fully opened, the tap water passes over the upper edge of the front wall portion 363. It is necessary to select a sufficient size so as not to fall on the ice falling port 369. On the other hand, the lever piece 145 integrally fixed to the cam lever 143 also rotates about the motor shaft 141 by the same angle and in the same direction as the cam lever 143, and switches the switch 147 attached to the frame 121 to drive. Stop the device (see FIG. 2).

On the other hand, during the deicing step, the evaporator 171 contains
Hot gas is flushed. Thereby, the ice making chamber 123
The inner ice melts from the contact surface with the ice making chamber 123, and falls into the ice storage 173 by its own weight because the horizontal partition plate is inclined downward. At this time, the ice falling port 269
In the ice making water tank 211 (311) having (369), ice passes therethrough. In the ice making water tank 111 having no ice falling port, the ice passes through a portion other than the water receiving portion 155, and enters the ice storage 173. Fall.

Thus, the de-icing step is completed, and the motor shaft 141 of the driving device rotates in the opposite direction.
Cam lever 143, spring 151, lever piece 145
The water tray 103 closes the ice making chamber 101 by the elastic force of the spring 151 in a direction opposite to the above-mentioned movement.
At the same time, the tip of the cam lever 143 is
By switching the switch 147 provided in 1 again, the driving device stops (see FIG. 1).

[0022]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ice making chamber having a plurality of ice making compartments which are opened in the horizontal direction and arranged vertically, and Downward and
An ice making water tank arranged so as to deviate from the ice falling path, and an opening and closing position for opening and closing the ice making chamber, vertically arranged to be tiltable between a closed position and an open position of the opening, In a vertical ice making machine comprising a fountain port for supplying ice making water to each, and a water tray for receiving return water from each of the ice making compartments, a discharge portion is provided below the water tray, A water receiving portion which is a part of the ice making water tank, which has a gutter-like portion formed of an enclosure for collecting water in the water tray, and is disposed immediately below the discharge portion and out of the ice falling path; The ice-making residual water remaining inside the water tray does not fall into the ice storage while the water tray is tilted, preventing ice from consolidating and melting the ice surface, and from the ice storage, Available immediately, and
Ice with high commercial value can be taken out.

According to the second, fourth or fifth aspect of the present invention, the discharge portion is provided in at least one opening provided in the side wall portion of the gutter-like portion or in the end portion of the front wall portion of the gutter-like portion. Because at least one hole, or at least one tubular member provided at the end of the gutter-shaped portion,
The residual ice making water remaining inside is discharged in a predetermined direction, and can be reliably prevented from falling into the ice storage.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the draining portion is provided at the edge of the bottom wall portion, the remaining ice making water flows along the edge of the bottom wall portion to the lower surface thereof, and the ice making water tank is provided. It is prevented from dropping just above the missing portion or directly above the ice drop opening and adhering to ice in the ice storage.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an elevational view showing an entire structure of a vertical ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention in an ice making process, partially broken away.

FIG. 2 is a similar view showing the overall structure of the vertical ice maker of FIG. 1 during the deicing step.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a relationship between a water tray and an ice making water tank used in the vertical ice maker of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a relationship between a water tray and an ice making water tank used in a vertical ice maker according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a relationship between a water tray and an ice making water tank used in a vertical ice machine according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an overall view showing the structure of a conventional ice making machine during an ice making process.

FIG. 7 is an overall view showing the structure of a conventional ice maker during a deicing step.

[Explanation of symbols]

101: ice making room, 103: water dish, 109, 209, 30
9: gutter-shaped part, 111, 211, 311: ice-making water tank, 123: ice-making chamber, 135: fountain, 155, 25
5,355: water receiving portion, 160, 260, 360: rear wall portion, 161, 261, 361: bottom wall portion, 163, 26
3,363: front wall (enclosure), 165: opening (discharge part), 167, 267, 367 ... side wall (enclosure), 16
9 ... draining part, 265 ... tubular member (discharge part), 36
5 ... hole (release part).

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. An ice-making chamber having a plurality of ice-making chambers opened in a lateral direction and arranged in a vertical direction, and an ice below and below the ice- making chamber.
An ice making water tank arranged so as to deviate from the falling path of the ice making chamber, and an opening and closing position of the ice making chamber, which are vertically arranged tiltably between a closed position and an open position of the opening, and each of the ice making chambers And a water tray for receiving return water from each of the ice making compartments, wherein a discharge portion is provided below the water tray, and a discharge portion is provided below the water tray. It has a gutter-like portion consisting of an enclosure for collecting water inside the dish, directly below the discharge portion and
A vertical ice maker, wherein a water receiving portion, which is a part of the ice making water tank, is provided so as to deviate from the ice falling path . 2. A surrounding wall of the gutter-like portion, a bottom wall portion, and a front wall portion of a peripheral end of the bottom wall portion, the front wall portion being erected on the ice making room side,
A side wall portion standing upright at a peripheral end of the bottom wall portion and defining both left and right ends of the gutter-like portion; and a side wall portion standing upright at a position facing the front wall portion at a peripheral end of the bottom wall portion. The vertical ice maker according to claim 1, comprising a wall, and an opening provided in the side wall as the discharge portion. 3. The vertical ice making machine according to claim 2, wherein a drain portion is provided at an edge of a bottom wall defining a lower limit of the opening. 4. The vertical ice making machine according to claim 2, wherein a hole formed in the front wall portion is provided as the discharge portion instead of the opening. 5. The discharge section includes a tubular member attached to the front wall instead of the opening.
The vertical ice maker described in 1.