JP5027685B2 - How to operate a jet ice maker - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an operation method of an injection type ice maker, and more particularly to an operation method of an injection type ice maker that performs a protection operation that delays activation of a refrigeration circuit for a predetermined time at the start of operation.

  A spray type ice making machine that continuously manufactures ice blocks by spraying ice making water from below to a large number of ice making chambers that open downward is preferably used in facilities such as coffee shops and restaurants. As disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1, the basic structure of an injection-type ice making machine is that the evaporator constituting the refrigeration circuit meanders closely on the upper surface of the ice making chamber that defines a large number of ice making chambers that open downward. An ice making mechanism is provided. Immediately below the ice making chamber, a water tray integrally provided with an ice making water tank for storing ice making water is pivotally supported in a cantilevered manner by a tilting shaft, and the water tray has an ice making chamber (ice making chamber). ) Is closed from below, and is tilted downward from the ice making chamber to an open position where the ice making chamber (ice making chamber) is opened.

  The refrigeration circuit is configured by connecting a compressor, a condenser, an expansion means, and an evaporator with refrigerant piping, and in ice making operation, the refrigerant is circulated and supplied to the evaporator by the operation of the compressor to force the ice making chamber. While cooling, the ice making water in the ice making water tank is jetted and supplied to the ice making chamber through the water tray, thereby forming ice blocks in the small chamber. When an ice block of a required size is formed in the ice making chamber, the ice making operation is shifted to the deicing operation, and the hot gas valve provided in the bypass pipe of the refrigeration circuit is opened. Then, hot gas (high temperature refrigerant) is supplied to the evaporator through the bypass pipe, and the ice block is deiced by heating the ice making chamber with the hot gas.

Here, when the injection type ice maker is abnormally stopped during the ice making operation due to a power failure or the like, the refrigerant in the refrigeration circuit is in a non-equilibrium state divided into a high pressure portion and a low pressure portion. If the jet ice maker is restarted in this state and the compressor is immediately started, there is a problem that smooth operation of the compressor is hindered due to the non-equilibrium state of the refrigerant pressure. In addition, when the compressor is started in a state where the refrigerant pressure is unbalanced, a load on the compressor increases, which may cause a malfunction or failure of the compressor. Therefore, the injection type ice making machine is provided with a protection timer that operates at the start of operation, and implements a protection operation that delays the start of the compressor in the refrigeration circuit until the set time of the protection timer elapses. During the protection operation, the hot gas valve is opened to eliminate the refrigerant pressure imbalance in the refrigeration circuit.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 53-72251

  However, when the hot gas valve is opened during the protection operation, another problem as described below will arise. That is, in the ice making operation where the water pan is in the closed position, if the injection ice machine is restarted after an abnormal stop due to a power failure or the like, the refrigeration circuit will open the hot gas valve during protection operation. The low-temperature refrigerant in the evaporator is mixed with other high-temperature refrigerant, and the refrigerant pressure becomes uniform. As a result, the temperature of the refrigerant in the evaporator rises and the icing between the ice block and the ice making chamber may be melted. On the other hand, since ice blocks formed in the ice making chamber in the ice making operation are frozen on the surface of the water dish, ice formation between the ice blocks and the water dish is maintained even during the protection operation. Therefore, when the water tray is tilted from the closed position to the open position after the protection operation is completed, the ice block is detached from the ice making chamber and tilted while frozen in the water tray. When the water tray returns to the closed position in this state, there is a problem that ice scum occurs between the ice block that is frozen on the water tray and the ice making chamber, or multiple ice making occurs. It was happening.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been proposed to solve the above-mentioned problems inherent in the operation method of the conventional jet type ice making machine, and is intended to solve this problem. It aims at providing the driving | running method which can prevent generation | occurrence | production of this.

In order to overcome the above-mentioned problems and achieve the intended purpose, the operation method of the injection type ice making machine according to claim 1 is as follows:
An ice making chamber that is provided with an evaporator constituting a refrigeration circuit and that opens downward, and is tiltably disposed below the ice making chamber, and a water tray opening / closing mechanism closes the ice making chamber from below. A water tray that changes its position to an open position that opens the ice making chamber, and refrigerant is circulated and supplied from the compressor of the refrigeration circuit to the evaporator during ice making operation, and provided in the refrigeration circuit during deicing operation In the jet ice maker that opens the hot gas valve and supplies hot gas to the evaporator,
At the start of operation of the jet ice making machine, a protective operation is performed to delay the start of the compressor for a predetermined time,
During the protection operation, the water tray opening / closing mechanism is operated to tilt the water tray downward to open the ice making chamber, and to open the hot gas valve to bring the refrigerant pressure in the refrigeration circuit into an equilibrium state. It is characterized by.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the water tray is opened during the protection operation, it is possible to eliminate icing between the ice block and the water tray. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ice tray from being opened and closed while the ice block is frozen on the surface of the water tray to generate ice scum and multiple ice making. Further, the load on the compressor can be reduced by opening the hot gas valve during the protective operation.

In the operation method of the jet ice maker according to the second aspect of the present invention, normal temperature water is supplied to the surface of the water pan tilted downward during the protective operation.
According to the invention of claim 2, by supplying water to the water dish, ice pieces remaining on the surface of the water dish can be removed, and ice blocks falling from the ice making chamber during the protection operation are caught on the surface of the water dish. Can be prevented.

  According to the operation method of the injection type ice making machine according to the present invention, it is possible to protect the compressor and prevent the occurrence of ice scum and multiple ice making.

  Next, a preferred embodiment of the operation method of the injection type ice making machine according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an ice making mechanism 12 and a refrigeration circuit 14 of an injection type ice making machine 10 according to an embodiment. The ice making mechanism 12 is a so-called closed cell type, and is arranged horizontally inside the main body of the jet ice making machine 10 and includes an ice making chamber 16 (see FIG. 2) that opens downward. 18 and the ice making chamber 16 are openable and closable, and a water tray 22 integrally provided with an ice making water tank 20 for storing ice making water is provided. An evaporator 26 constituting the refrigeration circuit 14 is closely and meanderingly disposed on the upper surface of the ice making chamber 18, and the ice making chamber 16 is forcibly cooled by circulating a refrigerant through the evaporator 26 during ice making operation. During the ice operation, hot gas (high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant) is supplied to the evaporator 26 to promote the removal of the ice block from the ice making chamber 16. The water tray 22 is pivotally supported by a support shaft 22a, and the water tray 22 and the ice making water tank 20 are held in a closed position where the ice making chamber 18 is closed by being horizontally positioned during ice making operation. During the deicing operation, the water tray opening / closing mechanism 28 is biased to tilt downward about the support shaft 22a to change the posture to the open position where the ice making chamber 16 is opened. The ice making water tank 20 is provided with a pump motor 34, and the ice making water in the ice making water tank 20 is supplied to the ice making chamber 18 by the pump motor 34.

  A water supply pipe 30 communicating with a water source (not shown) is provided above the water tray 22, and a water supply valve WV is interposed in the water supply pipe 30. The water supply valve WV is opened at the initial stage of the ice making operation and the initial operation (operation performed after the protective operation described later), and normal temperature water is supplied from the water supply pipe 30 to the surface of the water tray 22. The water supplied from the water supply pipe 30 is stored in the ice making water tank 20 through a return hole (not shown) provided in the water tray 22 and used as ice making water. The water supply valve WV is also opened during the deicing operation so that water (melted ice water) flows down on the surface of the water tray 22 in the open position. That is, in the deicing operation, water dish washing is performed to remove ice pieces adhering to the surface of the water dish 22, and ice blocks falling from the ice making chamber 18 are prevented from being caught on the surface of the water dish 22. Further, this water dish cleaning is also performed during the protection operation.

  The refrigeration circuit 14 is set such that the refrigerant circulates in the order of the compressor CM, the condenser CD, the expansion means EV, and the evaporator 26, and each device is connected in communication with a refrigerant pipe 36. That is, the vaporized refrigerant compressed by the compressor CM is condensed and liquefied by the condenser CD via the refrigerant pipe 36, and then depressurized by the expansion means EV, and flows into the evaporator 26 at once. The ice making chamber 18 expands and evaporates, and exchanges heat with the ice making chamber 18 to forcibly cool the ice making chamber 18 to below the freezing point. The vaporized refrigerant evaporated and heat-exchanged by the evaporator 26 repeats a cycle of returning to the compressor CM via the refrigerant pipe 36. Note that the fan motor FM provided to face the condenser CD functions to cool the condenser CD.

  The refrigeration circuit 14 is provided with a bypass pipe 38 in which a hot gas valve HV is inserted. The bypass pipe 38 is connected at its starting end to a refrigerant pipe 36 that communicates from the discharge side of the compressor CM to the suction side of the condenser CD, and its end is a refrigerant that communicates from the expansion means EV to the suction side of the evaporator 26. It is connected to the pipe 36. As the hot gas valve HV, an electromagnetic valve, an electric valve or the like is preferably employed, and is opened and closed by a control means 40 described later to control the flow of hot gas in the bypass pipe 38. In other words, the hot gas valve HV closes the bypass pipe 38 during ice making operation to restrict the flow of hot gas, and opens the bypass pipe 38 during ice removal operation so that the hot gas can flow. It comes to allow.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the control means 40 is electrically connected to each device such as the compressor CM, the water supply valve WV, the water tray opening / closing mechanism 28 and the hot gas valve HV, and the ice making mechanism 12 and the refrigeration circuit 14 are connected to each other. It plays the role of overall control. The control means 40 incorporates a protection timer 42 that operates when the operation of the injection type ice making machine 10 is started (when the main power supply 44 is turned on) and counts a predetermined time. Further, the control means 40 is connected to the main power supply 44 of the jet ice making machine 10 so that it can detect that the main power supply 44 is turned ON / OFF.

(Operation of Example)
Next, the operation method of the jet ice maker 10 according to the embodiment will be described below.

  First, the ice making operation and the deicing operation of the injection type ice making machine 10 will be described. During the ice making operation, the control means 40 operates the refrigeration circuit 14 and circulates and supplies the refrigerant to the evaporator 26. At the same time, the pump motor 34 is operated to spray the ice making water in the ice making water tank 20 into the ice making chamber 16. At this time, the hot gas valve HV is closed and the bypass pipe 38 is closed. As the ice making operation proceeds, ice blocks are formed in each ice making chamber 16.

  When the ice block is formed to a predetermined size, the control means 40 ends the ice making operation and proceeds to the deicing operation. That is, the hot gas valve HV is opened to supply hot gas to the evaporator 26 via the bypass pipe 38, and the water tray opening / closing mechanism 28 is operated to lower the water tray 22. When the ice making chamber 18 is heated by the hot gas, the ice block in the ice making chamber 16 starts to melt, and the ice formation between the ice making chamber 16 and the ice block begins to collapse. Further, the control means 40 opens the water supply valve WV, and causes the melted ice water to flow down on the surface of the water tray 22. Then, ice blocks are peeled and dropped from the ice making chamber 16, and the ice blocks are discharged to an ice storage (not shown) after sliding down the surface of the water tray 22.

  Next, the protection operation of the injection type ice making machine 10 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 4 and the timing chart of FIG. For example, it is assumed that a power failure occurs during ice making operation and the main power supply 44 of the jet ice making machine 10 is turned off. Further, it is assumed that ice blocks of a predetermined size are formed in the ice making chamber 18 and the water tray 22 closes the ice making chamber 18. When the main power supply 44 is turned on to resume the operation of the injection type ice making machine 10 (step S1), the control means 40 first starts the protective operation. That is, the protection timer 42 starts operating simultaneously with the start of the protection operation (step S2), and the timer 42 starts counting. Next, the hot gas valve HV is opened (step S3), and the refrigerant pressure in the refrigeration circuit 14 is balanced. That is, by opening the hot gas valve HV, the low-temperature refrigerant existing downstream from the expansion means EV and the high-temperature refrigerant existing in the refrigerant pipe 36 connecting the compressor CM to the condenser CD are connected via the bypass pipe 38. The refrigerant pressure in the refrigeration circuit 14 is in an equilibrium state.

  Further, the control means 40 operates the water tray opening / closing mechanism 28 simultaneously with the start of the protection operation (simultaneously with the opening of the hot gas valve HV) (see FIG. 5), and tilts the water tray 22 to the open position, thereby making the ice making chamber. 18 is released (step S3). That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the water tray 22 is in a state where the ice making chamber 18 is opened during the protection operation. Then, when the water tray 22 is lowered, icing between the surface of the water tray 22 and the ice block is eliminated, and the ice block remains in the ice making chamber 16. When the water tray 22 is opened (water tray opening / closing mechanism 28: OFF), the control means 40 then opens the water supply valve WV for a predetermined time to perform water dish cleaning (step S4), and ice on the surface of the water dish 22 is obtained. Remove the piece. The water supply valve WV is closed after a predetermined time (for example, 20 seconds) has elapsed (see FIG. 5).

  When the refrigerant pressure reaches an equilibrium state by opening the hot gas valve HV, the refrigerant temperature in the evaporator 26 rises and the ice making chamber 18 is heated. Then, the ice blocks in the ice making chamber 16 begin to melt, and the ice blocks leave the ice making chamber 16. Here, since the water tray 22 opens the ice making chamber 18, the ice lump detached from the ice making chamber 16 slides down the surface of the water tray 22 and is released to the ice storage as it is. At this time, since ice pieces are removed from the surface of the water dish 22, ice blocks are not caught on the surface of the water dish 22.

  When the protection timer 42 counts a predetermined time (for example, 3 minutes) (Yes in Step S5), the control means 40 that detects this ends the protection operation and starts the next operation (initial operation) (Step S5). , S6). In this initial operation, the hot gas valve HV is closed simultaneously with the start, and the water tray opening / closing mechanism 28 is operated to return the water tray 22 to the closed position. At this time, as described above, since ice blocks do not adhere to the surface of the water dish 22, ice stagnation and multiple ice making do not occur. Further, the control means 40 operates the compressor CM simultaneously with the start of the initial operation to supply the refrigerant to the evaporator 26 (see FIG. 5). At this time, since the refrigerant pressure imbalance in the refrigeration circuit 14 is eliminated, the load on the compressor CM is reduced, and stable operation can be ensured. Thereafter, the water supply valve WV is opened, and water is supplied through the water supply pipe 30, and the water is stored in the ice making water tank 20 as ice making water. When the initial operation is completed, a normal ice making operation and deicing operation cycle is executed.

  As described above, in the operation method according to the embodiment, since the water tray 22 is opened during the protection operation, the water tray 22 does not open and close while the ice block is adhered, and it is preferable to use ice scum and multiple ice making. Can be prevented. Further, by supplying melted water during the protection operation, it is possible to prevent the ice blocks that have fallen from being caught on the surface of the water tray 22.

  In the embodiment, the hot gas valve HV is opened (ON) simultaneously with the opening of the water dish 22 (ON of the water dish opening / closing mechanism 28) during the protective operation. However, after the water dish 22 is opened first, The hot gas valve HV may be opened. Further, the condition for opening the water tray 22 during the protection operation is limited to the case where the spray ice making machine abnormally stops with the water tray 22 closed, and when the water tray 22 is abnormally stopped with the water tray 22 opened. The water dish 22 may not be opened during the protective operation. By carrying out such an operation method, useless opening / closing operation of the water tray 22 is eliminated, and the operation cost can be suppressed.

It is the schematic which shows the ice making mechanism and freezing circuit of the injection type ice making machine which concern on an Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the ice making mechanism at the time of protection driving | operation. It is explanatory drawing which shows the connection relation of a control means. It is a flowchart figure which shows the driving | operation procedure in protection driving | operation. It is a timing chart figure of an injection type ice maker.

Explanation of symbols

14 Refrigeration circuit, 18 Ice making room, 22 Small plate, 24 Refrigeration circuit, 26 Evaporator 28 Water tray opening / closing mechanism, 38 Bypass pipe, HV hot gas pipe

Claims (2)

An evaporator (26) constituting a refrigeration circuit (14) is disposed and an ice making chamber (18) opening downward, and is tiltably disposed below the ice making chamber (18), and a water tray opening / closing mechanism (28) is provided with a water tray (22) that changes its position to a closed position for closing the ice making chamber (18) from the lower side and an open position for opening the ice making chamber (18), and a freezing circuit ( The refrigerant is circulated and supplied to the evaporator (26) from the compressor (CM) of 14), and the hot gas valve (HV) provided in the refrigeration circuit (24) is opened during deicing operation to In the injection type ice making machine that supplies the evaporator (26),
At the start of operation of the injection type ice making machine, a protective operation is performed to delay the start of the compressor (CM) for a predetermined time,
During the protection operation, the water tray opening / closing mechanism (28) is operated to tilt the water tray (22) downward to open the ice making chamber (18), and the hot gas valve (HV) is opened to open the ice tray (18). An operation method of an injection type ice making machine, wherein the refrigerant pressure in the refrigeration circuit (24) is brought into an equilibrium state.   The method of operating a jet ice maker according to claim 1, wherein normal temperature water is supplied to the surface of the water pan (22) tilted downward during the protective operation.

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