JP4994198B2 - Flowing ice machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a flow-down type ice maker, and more particularly to a flow-down type ice maker provided with a watering guide for uniformly flowing ice-making water supplied from an ice-making water supply means to an ice-making unit.

  As an automatic ice maker that continuously manufactures ice, it has an ice making unit consisting of a pair of ice making plates, and the ice making surface of each ice making plate is cooled by a refrigerant supplied to an evaporation pipe disposed between both ice making plates. A flow-down type ice making machine is known. The schematic configuration of this flow-down type ice maker will be briefly described below. A plurality of partition members are arranged on the ice making surface of the ice making unit, and an ice making region extending in the vertical direction is defined between adjacent partition members. It is made. In addition, an ice making water supply pipe is disposed above the ice making unit, and the ice making water stored in the ice making water tank and sucked up by the circulation pump is supplied to each ice making region through the ice making water supply pipe. . In the ice making operation, a refrigerant is circulated and supplied from the refrigeration system to the evaporation pipe to cool the ice making part, and ice making water is allowed to flow down on the ice making surface to form a half-moon shaped ice block on the ice making surface. ing.

  By the way, the ice making water supply pipe is provided with a plurality of water sprinkling holes on its lower surface, and ice making water is jetted through the water sprinkling holes. However, since the ice-making water flowing down in the ice-making water supply pipe flows at a predetermined speed from the upstream to the downstream due to the pressure of the circulation pump, the ice-making water supplied from the sprinkling holes is slightly downstream due to inertia. Inclined and sprayed onto the ice making surface. For this reason, ice-making water is displaced to the left or right of the ice-making region and flows down, and distorted ice (irregular ice) is sometimes produced.

Therefore, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a flow-down type ice making machine in which a watering guide is provided between the ice-making water supply pipe and the ice-making unit so that the ice-making water flows uniformly on the ice making surface. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the sprinkling guide 10 is disposed close to the lower side of the ice making water supply pipe 12, and the upper end of the ice making portion 16 is inserted into the guide hole 14 provided in the lower center portion. Further, the water spray guide 10 includes a slope portion 18 that is inclined downward from the upper end toward the ice making portion 16, and the ice making water supplied from the ice making water supply pipe 12 is passed through the slope portion 18 to the ice making surface 20 of the ice making portion 16. It is designed to guide you. That is, by uniformly guiding the ice making water to the ice making surface 20 by the water spray guide 10, the generation of deformed ice is suitably suppressed.
Japanese Patent No. 2863078

  By the way, the ice making water circulated and supplied during the ice making operation is gradually cooled by exchanging heat with the ice making plate 22, and when reaching near freezing point (freezing temperature), ice blocks C begin to form on the ice making surface 20. However, since the ice making water flows down the ice making surface 20 at a predetermined speed, the ice making water may not be started easily even if it reaches the freezing temperature, and the ice making water may be excessively cooled (supercooling). If this supercooled state continues, ice crystals (cotton ice R) like ice nuclei may be generated in the ice making water at a predetermined timing. Then, ice making water containing the cotton ice R may accumulate in the sprinkling guide 10 and block the guide hole 14. As a result, the supply of the ice making water to the ice making unit 16 is reduced, the ice making water is stored in the water sprinkling guide 10, and finally the ice making water tends to overflow from the upper edge of the water sprinkling guide 10.

  However, as shown in FIG. 10, since the watering guide 10 is disposed close to the lower side of the ice making water supply pipe 12, the gap between the upper edge of the watering guide 10 and the ice making water supply pipe 12 is small. (See symbol s in FIG. 10). For this reason, the ice making water in the watering guide 10 overflows from the small gap s at a stretch and sometimes jumps outward (see the arrow in FIG. 10). As a result, ice making water is not uniformly supplied to the ice making surface 20, and irregular shaped ice may be formed. In addition, ice making water scatters on the back side of the ice making plate 22 and at places other than the ice making unit 16, and ice blocks C are formed in portions that are not originally planned, such as between the ice making plates 22 and 22. In some cases, this member was damaged.

  Therefore, in view of the problems inherent in the prior art, the present invention has been proposed to suitably solve this problem, and by sequentially discharging ice-making water exceeding a predetermined water level in the watering guide, It is an object of the present invention to provide a flow-down type ice making machine that can prevent ice making water from jumping out of the watering guide even if cotton ice is generated.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the desired purpose suitably, the flow-down type ice making machine according to the present invention is:
An ice making section in which the evaporator is meandered, an ice making water supply means that is disposed above the ice making section and supplies ice making water, and is disposed between the ice making section and the ice making water supply means. In a flow-down type ice making machine provided with a watering guide that uniformly flows ice-making water supplied from a supply means to the ice-making surface of the ice-making unit through a guide hole,
The sprinkling guide is provided with the guide hole at the lower end of the receiving portion that opens upward toward the ice making water supply means and receives the ice making water,
The receiving portion is provided with a drainage portion for discharging ice-making water stored therein at a level above the guide hole.
According to the invention of claim 1, by providing the drainage part in the watering guide, it is possible to sequentially discharge the ice making water to the outside through the drainage part. Therefore, even if cotton ice is generated and the ice making water in the receiving portion overflows, the ice making water can be discharged through the drainage portion, and the ice making water does not jump out of the sprinkling guide. Thereby, it can suppress that ice making water is locally supplied to an ice making part, and deformed ice is manufactured. In addition, it is possible to prevent the ice making water from flowing down to the contact part between the ice making part and the evaporator and freezing at that part, or to prevent ice blocks from being produced by members other than the ice making part. Troubles can be avoided.

According to the flow-down type ice maker according to claim 2, the receiving portion is formed with a slope portion inclined downward so as to be close to the ice making surface and having a lower end facing the guide hole, and the drainage portion is provided on the slope portion. Is provided.
According to the invention of claim 2, since the drainage portion is provided on the slope portion inclined downward toward the ice making surface, the ice making water discharged from the drainage portion is guided to the ice making surface along the outer surface of the slope portion. be able to.

  According to the flow-down type ice making machine according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the generation of deformed ice and to prevent the occurrence of trouble by preventing the freezing of unintended parts.

  Next, the flow-down type ice making machine according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings by giving a preferred embodiment. In the following description, “front”, “back”, “left”, and “right” are designated when the flow-down type ice making machine is viewed in the state shown in FIG.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the overall configuration of a flow-down ice making machine 30 according to an embodiment. The flow-down type ice making machine 30 includes a pair of ice making plates 22 and 22 arranged in front and back to form an ice making unit 16, and between the ice making plates 22 and 22, an evaporation pipe (evaporation) led out from a refrigeration system (not shown). ) 32 is arranged in a meandering manner. A plurality of partition members 48 are provided on the ice making surface 20 of the ice making plate 22 at predetermined intervals on the left and right sides, and an ice making region 50 is defined between the adjacent partition members 48, 48. An ice making water supply pipe (ice making water supply means) 12 for supplying ice making water to the ice making surface 20 of the ice making part 16 is disposed above the ice making part 16. One end of the ice-making water supply pipe 12 is provided with a connecting portion 36 that communicates with a connecting pipe 34 that is led out from the circulation pump P. The ice making water supply pipe 12 includes a plurality of water spray holes 38 that are spaced apart by a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction, and is configured to inject ice making water downward from the water sprinkling holes 38 (see FIG. 2). The watering holes 38 are provided in two rows in the front and rear corresponding to the front and rear ice making plates 22 and 22.

  Here, in the ice making water supply pipe 12, the flow of ice making water is fast particularly near the connection portion 36 close to the circulation pump P, and the water spray hole 38 close to the connection portion 36 tends to be negative pressure. Therefore, air may be mixed into the ice making water supplied from the water sprinkling hole 38 near the connection portion 36, and white cloudy ice or irregular ice may be generated. As a countermeasure, if the diameter of the ice making water supply pipe 12 is increased, the flow speed of the ice making water is reduced, and the water spray hole 38 can be prevented from becoming a negative pressure. However, when the diameter of the ice-making water supply pipe 12 is increased, the ice-making water supply pipe 12 becomes bulky, and there is a problem that the overall size of the flow-down type ice making machine 30 is increased. Therefore, in the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, a recess 40 that is recessed in the inner diameter direction is formed on the upper surface of the ice making water supply pipe 12 from the connection portion 36 to the first (rightmost) sprinkling hole 38. The inner diameter dimension of the ice making water supply pipe 12 at the part is reduced. This prevents the ice-making water that has passed through the connecting portion 36 of the ice-making water supply pipe 12 from becoming turbulent in the depression 40 and becoming negative pressure in the water spray holes 38 close to the depression 40 (arrow in FIG. 3). reference).

  As shown in FIG. 2, a deicing water supply pipe (deicing water supply means) is provided below the ice making water supply pipe 12 to supply water at normal temperature (deicing water) between the ice making plates 22 and 22 during the deicing operation. 42 is fixed to the lower surface of the ice making water supply pipe 12. The deicing water supply pipe 42 has a plurality of injection holes 44 formed on the lower surface thereof, and supplies deicing water through the injection holes 44.

  Between the ice making water supply pipe 12 and the ice making unit 16, a watering guide 46 is provided in a state of being placed on the upper end of the ice making unit 16 corresponding to each ice making region 50. As shown in FIG. 4, the watering guide 46 is formed by bending stainless steel or the like as shown in the figure, and is connected to each other in the width direction. In each sprinkling guide 46, a guide hole 52 is formed in the front and rear center portions, and the upper end portions of the ice making portions 16 are inserted into the guide holes 52 so that the upper end portions of the front and rear ice making plates 22 and 22 are surrounded. Mounted.

  The water sprinkling guide 46 includes a pair of receiving portions 54, 54 that open upward and receive the ice making water from the ice making water supply pipe 12. The receiving portion 54 includes a slope portion 56 that extends in the front-rear direction and side portions 57, 57 that rise from the left and right edges of the slope portion 56, and secures a space within which a predetermined amount of ice-making water can be received. Has been. The inclined surface portion 56 is inclined downward toward each ice making surface 20, and the lower end thereof faces the guide hole 52. In addition, the slope portion 56 includes central inclined portions 59 and 59 that are inclined downward to the left and right with the central portion as a ridgeline, and distributes the ice-making water supplied from the ice-making water supply pipe 12 to the left and right, and is uniform on the ice making surface 20. To send to. The outer surface of the slope portion 56 is also inclined toward the ice making surface 20, and the lower end thereof faces the ice making surface 20 in the vicinity. That is, the outer surface of the slope portion 56 also functions as a guide surface that sends ice-making water overflowing from the receiving portion 54 to the ice-making surface 20.

  A rectangular drainage part 58 cut out with a required width is formed at the upper edge of the slope part 56, and a gap is formed between the ice-making water supply pipe 12 and the watering guide 46 by the drainage part 58. (See FIG. 1). That is, by providing the drainage part 58 at a level above the guide hole 52, it is possible to discharge (overflow) the ice-making water exceeding the predetermined water level in the receiving part 54. As shown in FIG. 2B, the ice making water leaked to the outside through the drainage part 58 flows down along the outer surface of the slope part 56 and is guided to the ice making surface 20. The drainage part 58 is formed outside the sprinkling hole 38 of the ice-making water supply pipe 12 so that the ice-making water supplied through the sprinkling hole 38 is not directly discharged from the drainage part 58. .

  As shown in FIG. 1, an ice guide member 60 is provided below the ice making unit 16 to receive the ice block C dropped from the ice making unit 16 and guide it to an ice storage (not shown). As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the ice guide member 60 is configured by connecting a plurality of guide pieces 62 to the left and right via connecting portions 64 and 64. The ice guide member 60 is provided slightly apart from the lower end of the ice making plate 22, and the lower part of each guide piece 62 faces the inside through the opening 67 of the ice making water tank 66. The guide piece 62 is a thin plate-shaped member having two oblique sides 68, 68 extending in the front-rear direction, and guides the ice block C dropped from the ice making part 16 forward or backward. Yes. The guide pieces 62 are arranged at a predetermined distance from each other via the connecting portion 64, and a water passage portion 70 that opens up and down is defined between the adjacent guide pieces 62 and 62. Then, ice-making water that has not been frozen in the ice-making unit 16 (unfreezing water) is dropped into the ice-making water tank 66 below through the water-passing unit 70. In addition, the width dimension of the right and left of the said water flow part 70 is set smaller than the dimension of the ice block C, and it is comprised so that the ice block C may not fall from the water flow part 70. FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the oblique sides 68 and 68 of the guide piece 62 are formed thick at the center portion side of the guide piece 62. That is, by thinning the open ends 68a and 68a of the oblique sides 68 and 68, uniced water drops into the ice making water tank 66 before reaching the open ends 68a and 68a through the oblique sides 68 and 68. It has come to be. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the oblique sides 68, 68 of the guide piece 62 slightly protrude outward from the front and rear walls 66 a, 66 b of the ice making water tank 66. As a result, the gap t generated between the open ends 68a, 68a of the oblique sides 68, 68 and the upper ends of the walls 66a, 66b can be made small, and the gap t can be opened sideways or downward. ing. Therefore, it is possible to suitably suppress the ice block C sliding down the ice guide member 60 from being caught in the gap t.

  In the ice making water tank 66, a tank part 72 capable of storing ice making water is defined by front, rear, left and right wall parts 66a, 66b, 66c, 66d, and the tank part 72 is used for approximately one time used for ice making operation. The ice-making water can be stored. The bottom portion 74 of the tank portion 72 is inclined downward toward one side (rightward in FIG. 1), and a discharge port 78 connected to the suction pipe 76 of the circulation pump P is opened at the deepest portion. Further, an overflow member 80 for discharging excess ice making water in the tank portion 72 is disposed at the deepest portion of the tank portion 72. As shown in FIG. 7, the overflow member 80 is erected in a substantially vertical manner that divides the inside of the main body 82 into left and right halves, and a columnar main body 82 erected on the bottom 74 of the tank 72. And a partition wall 84.

  A suction port 86 that opens at the bottom 74 is formed at a lower portion of the left side surface that defines the main body 82, and a left space (hereinafter referred to as a first space) in the main body 82 is formed through the suction port 86. 88) and the tank portion 72 are communicated with each other. In addition, a discharge port 92 communicating with the outside of the ice making water tank 66 is provided in a lower portion corresponding to a right space (hereinafter referred to as a second space 90) on the rear surface defining the main body portion 82. Further, a communication portion 94 is defined between the upper portion of the main body portion 82 and the partition wall 84. That is, the tank portion 72 communicates with the outside of the ice making water tank 66 through the suction port 86, the first space 88, the communication portion 94, the second space 90 and the discharge port 92. Accordingly, excess water in the tank portion 72 is preferentially discharged from the ice making water on the bottom 74 side. The height of the partition wall 84 determines the amount of ice making water stored in the ice making water tank 66, and is a height that can secure the amount of water stored for approximately one time of ice making water used in the ice making operation. It is set to.

(Operation of Example)
Next, the operation of the flow-down ice maker 30 according to the embodiment will be described. First, in the ice making operation, the refrigerant is circulated and supplied to the evaporation pipe 32 from a refrigeration system (not shown), and the circulation pump P is operated to send the ice making water in the ice making water tank 66 to the ice making water supply pipe 12. At this time, since the vicinity of the connecting portion 36 in the ice making water supply pipe 12 is close to the circulation pump P, the water pressure of the ice making water is high. However, since the inner diameter dimension is reduced by providing the recess 40 in the ice-making water supply pipe 12, turbulence is generated when the ice-making water passes through the recess 40 as shown in FIG. Thereby, the water sprinkling hole 38 near the hollow part 40 does not become negative pressure, and the ice making water can be smoothly supplied through the sprinkling hole 38.

  The ice making water sent to the ice making water supply pipe 12 is jetted and supplied downward through the water spray hole 38. Then, as shown in FIG. 2A, the ice making water supplied through the sprinkling hole 38 is received by the receiving portion 54 of the sprinkling guide 46 and flows downward along the slope portion 56. The ice making water is uniformly guided to the ice making surface 20 through the guide holes 52, and the ice making water flows down over the entire ice making surface 20. The ice making water flowing down the ice making surface 20 is gradually cooled by exchanging heat with the refrigerant supplied to the evaporation pipe 32. The uniced water is dripped from the ice making unit 16 to the ice guide member 60 below, and is collected to the tank unit 72 of the ice making water tank 66 through the water flow unit 70. A part of the ice making water falls on the oblique side portion 68 of the guide piece 62 and is guided downward along the oblique side portion 68. However, since the open end 68 a side of the oblique side portion 68 is formed thin, the ice-making water that has reached that portion falls from the oblique side portion 68 and is collected in the ice-making water tank 66. That is, the ice making water does not scatter on the hypotenuse part 68 except for the ice making water tank 66.

  Here, since the guide piece 62 constituting the ice guide member 60 is formed in a mountain shape, the vertical dimension can be substantially halved compared to a guide piece having a slope inclined only in one direction. Therefore, the ice guide member 60 can be made smaller in the vertical direction, and the flow-down type ice making machine 30 can be made compact. Moreover, if it is the mountain-shaped guide piece 62, the central portion thereof can be disposed very close to the lower end of the ice making plate 22, and the distance between the oblique sides 68, 68 and the ice making plates 22, 22 is small. It will never grow. Therefore, the splash of the ice making water dropped on the oblique sides 68 and 68 is small and can be prevented from being scattered outside the ice making water tank 66.

  The ice making water collected in the ice making water tank 66 is circulated and supplied to the ice making unit 16 again by the circulation pump P. The ice-making water is gradually cooled by this circulation supply, and when it reaches the vicinity of the freezing point, the ice-making surface 20 starts to freeze. Here, if the ice making water is supercooled and the cotton ice R is generated in the ice making water, the cotton ice R is accumulated in the receiving portion 54 of the water spray guide 46. As shown in FIG. 2 (b), when the guide hole 52 of the water spray guide 46 is blocked by the cotton ice R, the supply of ice-making water through the guide hole 52 becomes almost impossible. The amount of ice making water in the portion 54 increases. However, when the ice making water in the receiving portion 54 reaches the drainage portion 58, the icemaking water overflows through the drainage portion 58 and is guided to the ice making surface 20 along the outer surface of the slope portion 56.

  When the ice making operation proceeds and an ice block C having a predetermined size is produced on the ice making surface 20, a detection means (not shown) detects completion of ice making and shifts from the ice making operation to the deicing operation. At this time, the tank portion 72 is in a state where ice-making water (ice-making residual water T) enriched with impurities such as silica remains slightly in the vicinity of the bottom portion 74. When the deicing operation is started, hot gas is circulated and supplied to the evaporation pipe 32 from a refrigeration system (not shown), and room-temperature deicing water is supplied between the ice making plates 22 and 22 from the deicing water supply pipe 42. The ice making plates 22 and 22 are heated. The deicing water heats the ice making plates 22, 22, then drops toward the ice guiding member 60, and is collected into the ice making water tank 66 through the water flow unit 70. Also in this case, since the oblique side portion 68 of the guide piece 62 is formed thin on the open end 68 a side, the deicing water falls before reaching the open end 68 a of the oblique side portion 68 and is collected in the ice making water tank 66. .

  As the deicing operation proceeds, the ice block C on the ice making surface 20 starts to melt, and finally the icing with the ice making surface 20 is eliminated. Then, the ice block C slides down the ice making surface 20 and falls toward the ice guide member 60. Then, the ice block C falling on the oblique side 68 of the guide piece 62 slides on the oblique side 68 and is discharged to an ice storage (not shown). Here, the open ends 68 a and 68 a of the oblique sides 68 and 68 of the guide piece 62 extend outward from the front and rear walls 66 a and 66 b of the ice making water tank 66. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the gap t between the open end 68a and the ice making water tank 66 from being directed laterally or downward, and the ice block C sliding on the oblique side 68 from being caught in the gap t.

  On the other hand, in the ice making water tank 66, the inside of the tank portion 72 gradually increases due to the collected deicing water. Then, the ice making residual water T collected in the vicinity of the bottom portion 74 of the tank portion 72 preferentially flows into the first space 88 through the suction port 86 of the overflow member 80. Further, when the deicing water increases, ice making water (ice making residual water T) flows into the first space 88 through the suction port 86, and the water level in the first space 88 gradually rises. When the ice making water in the first space 88 reaches the communication portion 94, the ice making water flows down the second space 90 via the communication portion 94 and is discharged from the discharge port 92 to the outside of the ice making water tank 66. Is done. Thus, the overflow member 80 can preferentially drain the ice making residual water T containing a large amount of impurities, and the generation of scale in the ice making water tank 66 can be suitably suppressed. Moreover, since the main body 82 and the partition wall 84 are integrally formed in the ice making water tank 66, the overflow member 80 according to the embodiment prevents the occurrence of malfunction due to a mounting failure or the like as compared with a case of separate structure. The assembly cost can be reduced.

  As described above, according to the flow-down type ice making machine 30 according to the embodiment, since the drainage portion 58 is provided in the watering guide 46, the icemaking water does not jump out of the watering guide 46 as conventionally. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the ice making water from being concentratedly supplied to a part of the ice making surfaces 20 and forming the deformed ice. In addition, it is possible to prevent the ice making water from splashing from the water sprinkling guide 46 to other than the ice making part 16 and causing an unexpected trouble. Further, it is possible to prevent the trouble that the ice making water in the sprinkling guide 46 flows down between the ice making plates 22 and 22 and the contact portion between the evaporation pipe 32 and the ice making plates 22 and 22 is frozen and the welding between them is peeled off. .

  In the embodiment, the drainage portion 58 provided in the sprinkler guide 46 is configured by cutting out the upper edge of the slope portion 56 in a rectangular shape. However, if the ice making water in the receiving portion 54 can be overflowed, Other configurations can be employed. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, a drainage part 96 cut out in an inverted triangle shape from the upper edge of the slope part 56 is adopted, or as shown in FIG. 9, a plurality of through holes 98 provided in the slope part 56 are used. You may comprise a drainage part. In the embodiment, the ice making unit 16 is configured by arranging the pair of ice making plates 22 and 22 to face each other. However, for example, even a flow-down type ice making machine including the ice making unit 16 including one ice making plate 22 may be used. Good.

It is a front view which shows the whole structure of the flow-down type ice making machine which concerns on an Example. It is a vertical side view showing an enlarged sprinkling guide, where (a) shows how ice making water flows down during normal ice making operation, and (b) shows how ice making water flows down when cotton ice occurs. Indicates. It is an expanded longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the principal part of an ice-making water supply pipe. It is a perspective view which shows the watering guide which concerns on an Example. It is a vertical side view which expands and shows an ice guide member. It is a schematic plan view which shows an ice guide member. It is an expanded longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the principal part of an ice making water tank. It is a perspective view which shows the watering guide which concerns on another example. It is a perspective view which shows the watering guide which concerns on another example. It is an expanded longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the watering guide of the conventional flow-down type ice making machine.

Explanation of symbols

12 ice making water supply pipe (ice making water supply means), 16 ice making part, 20 ice making surface 32 evaporating pipe (evaporator), 46 sprinkling guide, 52 guide hole, 54 receiving part 56 slope part, 58,96 drainage part, 98 through Hole (drainage)

Claims (2)

An ice making section (16) in which the evaporator (32) is arranged meandering, ice making water supply means (12) for supplying ice making water disposed above the ice making section (16), and the ice making section (16) And the ice making water supply means (12), and the ice making water supplied from the ice making water supply means (12) is passed through the guide holes (52) to the ice making surface (20) of the ice making part (16). In a flow-down type ice maker equipped with a watering guide (46) for flowing down uniformly,
The sprinkling guide (46) is provided with the guide hole (52) at the lower end of a receiving part (54) that opens upward toward the ice making water supply means (12) and receives ice making water,
The receiving portion (54) is provided with a drainage portion (58, 96, 98) for discharging ice-making water stored therein at a level above the guide hole (52). Flowing ice machine.   The receiving portion (54) is formed with a slope portion (56) inclined downward so as to be close to the ice making surface (20) and having a lower end facing the guide hole (52), and the drainage is formed on the slope portion (56). The flow-down type ice maker according to claim 1, further comprising a portion (58, 96, 98).

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