JP6827858B2 - Cell type ice machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cell-type ice machine in which an ice-making case having a group of cells that open downward is supported by a unit base via a support structure, among which a cell-type ice machine in which the support structure is provided with a spacer. Regarding.

This type of cell-type ice maker is disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1. In the automatic ice maker of Patent Document 1, a support member (unit base) is horizontally arranged, an ice making chamber (ice making case) is arranged below the support member, and suspension support is provided by a support structure fixed to the support member. Has been done. The support structure includes bolts and nuts and sleeve-shaped spacers. At the time of assembly, a spacer is interposed between the support member and the ice making chamber, and a bolt is inserted into each hole of the ice making chamber, the spacer, and the support member from the ice making chamber (cell) side, and the bolt protrudes from the upper surface of the support member. By screwing and fastening the nut, the ice making chamber is supported by the support member via the support structure. The bolt head of the bolt in the fastened state is located in the ice making chamber.

Jitsufuku No. 3-34618 (Fig. 7)

When a spacer is interposed between the support member and the ice making chamber and these three parties are fastened with a fastener as in the automatic ice maker of Patent Document 1, the support member and the support member can be easily attached and detached. The ice-making chambers can be arranged one above the other at predetermined intervals. However, as in the automatic ice maker of Patent Document 1, when fastening with bolts and nuts, it is possible to avoid creating a small gap between the inner surface of the ice making chamber and the seating surface of the bolt head, and between the support member and the seating surface of the nut. I can't. Therefore, when the ice making water is sprayed toward the ice making chamber at the time of ice making, the ice making water invades the gap due to the capillary phenomenon, and the ice making water that has entered the gap further enters the screw shaft, the ice making chamber, the spacer, and the ice making chamber. The ice-making water that may rise through the gaps between the holes of the support member (hereinafter, appropriately referred to as “inside the support structure”) and reach the upper surface of the support member, and reach the upper surface of the support member, Contact with electrical components such as electronic components and wiring arranged on the upper surface of the support member may cause problems such as short circuit, electric leakage, or corrosion of the electrical components. The gap can be sealed by interposing a sealing material between the inner surface of the ice making chamber and the seating surface of the bolt head, but small pieces peeled off from the deteriorated sealing material may be mixed in the ice for hygiene reasons. It is not preferable to use a sealing material because of the problem of.

The present invention can prevent ice-making water that has entered through the gap between the inner surface of the cell and the seating surface of the fastener from reaching the upper surface of the unit base through the inside of the support structure without using a sealing material. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a cell-type ice maker capable of reliably preventing the occurrence of failure of electrical components on the unit base due to ice making water.

The present invention is directed to a cell-type ice machine in which an ice making case 12 having a group of cells 11 opening downward is supported by a unit base 10 via a support structure. The support structure includes a bolt 35 and a nut 36, and a hollow tubular spacer 37 that fits outside the bolt 35 between the unit base 10 and the ice making case 12. The unit base 10, the spacer 37, and the ice making case 12 are fastened and fixed by bolts 35 and nuts 36. The bolt 35 is composed of a bolt shaft 41 on which a male screw portion 44 is formed and a bolt head 42 formed at one end of the bolt shaft 41. With the bolt 35 and the nut 36 fastened and fixed, the bolt head 42 of the bolt 35 is located in the cell 11 of the ice making case 12, and the nut 36 is located on the upper surface of the unit base 10. Then, the cylindrical wall 48 of the spacer 37, a communication hole 49 extending through the tubular wall 48 in and out is you characterized by being Tsu設.

A reinforcing rib 50 extending in the axial direction of the spacer 37 is formed on the outer surface of the tubular wall 48 of the spacer 37.

A communication hole 49 is provided in the middle of the spacer 37 in the axial direction.

Some of the cylindrical wall 48 the inner surface of the scan pacer 37 or to all, the male screw portion 44 forms a screwable female screw portion 51. When the nut 36 is separated from the male threaded portion 44, the male threaded portion 44 is received by the female threaded portion 51 to prevent the bolt 35 from falling.

The bolt shaft 41 of the bolt 35 is composed of a round shaft portion 43 on the bolt head 42 side and a male screw portion 44 on the tip side, and the round shaft portion 43 is formed to have a diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the female screw portion 51. The female screw portion 51 is formed on a part of the spacer 37 on the inner surface of the cylinder wall 48 near the ice making case 12.

In the cell-type ice maker of the present invention, a communication hole 49 that communicates the inside and outside of the cylinder wall 48 is provided in the cylinder wall 48 of the hollow tubular spacer 37 provided in the support structure. According to such a support structure, even if the ice-making water that has entered the gap between the inner surface of the cell 11 and the seat surface of the bolt 35 or the nut 36 rises inside the support structure, the capillary phenomenon is blocked at the communication hole 49 portion. Then, it is possible to prevent the ice making water from rising further to the unit base 10 side. Further, the ice-making water that has risen to the communication hole 49 due to the capillary phenomenon can be discharged to the outer surface side of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 through the communication hole 49, so that the ice-making water rises to the unit base 10 side also in this respect. Can be prevented. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ice-making water from reaching the upper surface of the unit base 10 through the inside of the support structure, and prevent the occurrence of failure of the electrical components on the unit base 10 due to the ice-making water.

Further, since the ice making water can be reliably prevented from reaching the upper surface of the unit base 10 by simply forming a penetrating communication hole 49 in the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37, the support structure can be simplified and the support structure can be simplified. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of failures due to ice making water while maintaining the ease of attachment / detachment. Since the structure is as simple as forming the communication holes 49, there is an advantage that the cost increase of the support structure can be suppressed.

When a reinforcing rib 50 extending in the axial direction of the spacer 37 is formed on the outer surface of the tubular wall 48 of the spacer 37, the structural strength of the spacer 37 is enhanced by the reinforcing rib 50, and the shaft is formed by the fastening force of the bolt 35 and the nut 36. Buckling of the spacer 37 due to compression in the central direction can be prevented. As a result, the bolt 35 and the nut 36 can be fastened and fixed more strongly, so that the gap between the inner surface of the cell 11 and the seating surface of the bolt 35 or the nut 36 is minimized to prevent ice making water from entering the gap. it can. Further, the thickness of the tubular wall 48 of the spacer 37 can be made thinner by the amount that the structural strength of the spacer 37 can be increased by the reinforcing rib 50. As a result, the distance from the inner surface to the outer surface of the cylinder wall 48 can be reduced, and the ice making water that blocks the capillary phenomenon and prevents the rise can be quickly discharged, and the ice making water inside the support structure can be accurately discharged to make ice. It is possible to more reliably prevent the irrigation water from reaching the upper surface of the unit base 10.

When the communication hole 49 is provided in the vicinity of the ice making case 12, the ice making water in the communication hole 49 may freeze due to the cold heat of the ice making case 12 to block the communication hole 49. When the communication hole 49 is closed, the capillary phenomenon cannot be blocked by the communication hole 49, and the ice making water cannot be discharged. Therefore, the ice making water may reach the upper surface of the unit base 10. When the communication hole 49 is provided in the vicinity of the unit base 10, the ice making water discharged from the communication hole 49 re-enters the inside of the support structure through the gap between the unit base 10 and the spacer 37, and re-enters the inside of the support structure. The invading ice making water may reach the upper surface of the unit base 10. However, according to the communication hole 49 provided in the middle of the spacer 37 in the axial direction as in the present invention, the distance between the ice making case 12 and the communication hole 49 and the distance between the unit base 10 and the communication hole 49 can be determined. Since it can be separated, it is possible to avoid freezing of the ice-making water and re-entry of the ice-making water. Therefore, it is possible to more reliably prevent the ice making water from reaching the upper surface of the unit base 10 through the inside of the support structure.

When the nut 36 is separated from the male threaded portion 44, the male threaded portion 44 is received by the female threaded portion 51 on the inner surface of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 to prevent the bolt 35 from falling. According to this, even if the bolt 35 and the nut 36 are loosened due to vibration or the like caused by the operation of the cell-type ice maker and the nut 36 is separated from the male screw portion 44, the bolt 35 falls to the lower part of the ice making chamber 1. You can prevent it from doing so. Normally, since the generated ice is stored in the lower part of the ice making chamber 1, it is possible to prevent the bolt 35 from falling and prevent the bolt 35 from being mixed in the stored ice.

The bolt shaft 41 of the bolt 35 is composed of a round shaft portion 43 on the bolt head 42 side and a male screw portion 44 on the tip side, and the round shaft portion 43 is formed to have a diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the female screw portion 51. Was formed on a part of the inner surface of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 near the ice making case 12. According to such a support structure, in the process of fastening and fixing the unit base 10, the spacer 37, and the ice making case 12 with the bolt 35 and the nut 36, the spacer 37 is screwed in and the female screw portion 51 is a male screw of the bolt 35. After passing through the portion 44, the seat surface of the bolt 35 and the lower end surface of the spacer 37 can be brought into close contact with the ice making case 12 without the need for screwing operation. Therefore, as compared with the form in which the male screw portion 44 is formed on the entire bolt shaft 41 and / or the female screw portion 51 is formed on the entire inner surface of the cylinder wall 48, the labor of the screwing operation can be saved. It can reduce the time required for assembly work.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 3 showing a support structure of a cell-type ice machine according to the present invention. It is a vertical sectional front view which shows the schematic structure of the cell type ice maker. It is a front view which shows the support state of the ice making case by a support structure. It is a cross-sectional plan view which shows the arrangement position of a support structure. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. It is a longitudinal side view of the support structure which shows the state which the nut is separated from the bolt. It is a longitudinal side view which shows another embodiment of the support structure. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional plan view showing another embodiment of the spacer.

(Examples) FIGS. 1 to 6 show examples of a cell-type ice maker according to the present invention. The front / rear, left / right, and up / down in this embodiment follow the crossing arrows shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 and the front / rear, left / right, and up / down indications shown in the vicinity of each arrow. As shown in FIG. 2, the cell-type ice maker includes an ice making chamber 1 composed of a heat insulating box and a machine room 2 arranged below the ice making chamber 1, and ice is made in the upper part of the ice making chamber 1. The unit 3 is arranged, and the lower half of the ice making chamber 1 is an ice storage chamber 4 for ice generated by the ice making unit 3. Inside the machine room 2, a compressor 5, a condenser 6, a blower fan 7, and the like that make up the refrigerating device are arranged. Although not shown, an outlet for taking out the ice stored in the ice storage chamber 4 is opened on the front surface of the ice making chamber 1, and this outlet can be opened and closed by a swing door that can be opened and closed in the front-rear direction. A bottomed box-shaped unit base 10 having an upper opening is fixed to the ceiling of the ice making chamber 1, and electrical components such as electronic parts and wiring constituting the cell-type ice making machine are arranged in the unit base 10. Has been done.

The ice making unit 3 is supported by a unit base 10, and is provided on an ice making case 12 having a group of cells 11 that open downward, a water supply tray 13 that ejects ice making water into the group of cells 11, and a lower surface of the water supply tray 13. It is composed of a water supply tank 14 and the like. The water supply tray 13 and the water supply tank 14 are supported by the tray bracket 15, and the upper portion of the bracket 15 is supported by the unit base 10 via the support shaft 16. As a result, the water supply tray 13 and the water supply tank 14 can swing up and down between the upper ice making position facing the ice making case 12 and the ice removal position tilting downward. In order to swing the postures of the water supply tray 13 and the water supply tank 14 between the ice making position and the ice removal position, a tray operating mechanism 17 is provided between both 13 and 14 and the unit base 10.

The tray operating mechanism 17 is a tension-type coil spring that is hooked between a motor 20 capable of forward and reverse rotation, a pair of front and rear drive arms 21 that are tilted back and forth by the motor 20, and a water supply tray 13 and a drive arm 21. It is composed of 22 and the like. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 23 is a pump unit provided in the water supply tank 14, 24 is a water supply pipe for supplying water for ice making at room temperature to the water supply tray 13 and the water supply tank 14, and 25 remains in the water supply tank 14 without ice making. It is a drain pan for draining ice-making water and washing water of the water supply tray 13. Although not shown, the water supply tray 13 is provided with a nozzle for injecting and supplying ice making water toward the cell 11 and a return hole for returning the ice making water that has not been frozen in the cell 11 to the water supply tank 14. There is.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the ice making case 12 is a passage plate 29 having a square plate-shaped base plate 27 and a refrigerant passage 28 arranged on the upper surface of the base plate 27 and functioning as an evaporator, and the base plate 27. It is provided with a grid-like partition frame 30 which is arranged on the lower surface and partitions a group of cells 11 in a matrix. The ice making case 12 is formed by integrally joining the base plate 27, the passage plate 29, and the compartment frame body 30 by brazing. The base plate 27 is formed of a clad material in which a copper plate is laminated on the upper surface of an aluminum plate, and the partition frame 30 is formed by incorporating a strip made of aluminum in a braided shape. Further, the passage plate 29 is formed of an aluminum plate having the same size as the base plate 27 as a material, and the rectangular plate surface is pressed to form an upwardly convex refrigerant passage 28. The refrigerant passage 28 is formed in a meandering one-stroke shape. The ice making case 12 of this embodiment includes 24 cells 11, which are the second and fourth cells from the left in the frontmost cell row and the first and third cells 11 from the left in the rearmost cell row. The bottom wall (base plate 27 and passage plate 29) is provided with a bolt through hole 31 through which a bolt shaft 41, which will be described later, is inserted (see FIG. 1). In FIG. 4, reference numeral 32 is a ventilation hole provided for each cell 11 for allowing air to flow into the cell 11 at the time of ice removal.

As shown in FIG. 3, the ice making case 12 is supported by the unit base 10 via a support structure, and two support structures are provided on the front and rear edges of the ice making case 12. As shown in FIG. 1, the support structure includes a nut 36 composed of a bolt 35 and a hexagon nut, and a hollow tubular spacer 37 that fits outside the bolt 35 between the unit base 10 and the ice making case 12. The bolt 35 is composed of a bolt shaft 41 and a disk-shaped bolt head 42 formed at one end of the bolt shaft 41, and is formed as a low-head bolt as a whole. Although not shown, the bolt head 42 is provided with a hexagonal hole for inserting a hexagon wrench. The bolt shaft 41 is composed of a round shaft portion 43 on the bolt head 42 side and a male screw portion 44 on the tip side, and the round shaft portion 43 is formed to have a diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the female screw portion 51 of the spacer 37 described later. There is. When the unit base 10, the spacer 37, and the ice making case 12 are fastened and fixed by the bolt 35 and the nut 36, the bolt head 42 is located in the cell 11 and the nut 36 is located on the upper surface of the unit base 10. ing.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, the spacer 37 is formed in a hollow round cylinder shape, and the inner diameter of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 is set to be slightly larger than the outer diameter of the male screw portion 44 of the bolt 35. There is. In order to block the capillary phenomenon that occurs between the bolt shaft 41 and the inner surface of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 before and after the substantially central portion (midway in the axial direction) of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 in the vertical direction. A communication hole 49 that penetrates the cylinder wall 48 in and out is provided. Further, the communication hole 49 can discharge the ice making water that has entered the inside of the support structure. The communication hole 49 is formed of a round hole having a diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the spacer 37, and is provided in a direction orthogonal to the axis of the spacer 37.

In order to enhance the structural strength of the spacer 37, a plurality of reinforcing ribs 50 extending in the axial direction thereof are formed on the outer surface of the tubular wall 48 of the spacer 37. The reinforcing rib 50 includes four large reinforcing ribs 50A and two small reinforcing ribs 50B. The large reinforcing rib 50A is formed at a position shifted by 45 degrees around the axis from the communication hole 49, and the small reinforcing rib 50B is formed at a position shifted by 90 degrees around the axis from the communication hole 49. There is. On the inner surface of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37, a female screw portion 51 into which the male screw portion 44 can be screwed is formed in a part near the ice making case 12, and the female screw portion 51 is a cylinder from a position below the communication hole 49. It is provided up to the lower end position of the wall 48.

When the reinforcing rib 50 is provided on the outer surface of the spacer 37 as described above, the area of the cross section orthogonal to the axis increases by the amount of the reinforcing rib 50, so that the space between the unit base 10 and the ice making case 12 is provided via the spacer 37. It is inevitable that the amount of heat transferred will increase. Therefore, the spacer 37 of this embodiment is made of a plastic molded product made of polyacetal. Since the spacer 37 made of a plastic molded product has a lower thermal conductivity than a metal material such as iron, stainless steel, or aluminum, the heat transfer between the unit base 10 and the ice making case 12 can be reduced. As a result, it is possible to prevent the temperature of the ice making case 12 of the support structure portion from becoming higher than that of the other portions during ice making, and it is possible to uniformly freeze the ice making water in each cell 11. Further, since the temperature of the spacer 37 is less likely to decrease due to the cold heat of the ice making case 12, it is possible to further prevent the ice making water from freezing in the communication hole 49. The material for forming the spacer 37 is not limited to polyacetal, but may be another resin material, a hard rubber material, or the like.

The ice making case 12 is assembled to the unit base 10 according to the following procedure. First, the bolt shaft 41 of the bolt 35 is inserted into the bolt through hole 31 from the lower surface side of the ice making case 12, and the male screw portion 44 of the bolt shaft 41 is screwed into the female screw portion 51 of the spacer 37. When the female screw portion 51 passes through the male screw portion 44 by further screwing operation, the bolt 35 and the spacer 37 are temporarily held by the ice making case 12. The bolt 35 and the spacer 37 in the temporarily held state are relatively slidable and inseparable.

Next, with the seat surface of the bolt 35 pushed up so as to be in close contact with the inner surface of the cell 11, the tip of the bolt shaft 41 is inserted into the bolt through hole 54 formed in the bottom wall of the unit base 10, and the male screw portion 44 is inserted. It is projected onto the upper surface of the unit base 10. By screwing the nut 36 into the male screw portion 44 in this state, the unit base 10, the spacer 37, and the ice making case 12 are placed in a state where the spacer 37 is interposed between the unit base 10 and the ice making case 12. It is fastened and fixed with bolts 35 and nuts 36. By performing these procedures in the support structure at four places, the ice making case 12 is arranged below the unit base 10 and is suspended and supported by the support structure. Note that the bolt 35 and the nut 36 are loosened due to vibration or the like caused by the operation of the cell-type ice maker, and as shown in FIG. 6, even if the nut 36 is separated from the male screw portion 44, the bolt 35 is a male screw. Since the portion 44 is received by the female screw portion 51 on the inner surface of the cylinder wall 48 and is temporarily held by the ice making case 12, the bolt 35 falls from the water supply tray 13 to the ice storage chamber 4 (lower part of the ice making chamber 1). Can be blocked.

The bolt shaft 41 of this embodiment is composed of a round shaft portion 43 and a male screw portion 44, and the female screw portion 51 is formed on a part of the inner surface of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 near the ice making case 12. According to such a support structure, in the process of fastening and fixing the unit base 10, the spacer 37, and the ice making case 12 with the bolt 35 and the nut 36, the spacer 37 is screwed in and the female screw portion 51 is a male screw of the bolt 35. After passing through the portion 44, the seat surface of the bolt 35 and the lower end surface of the spacer 37 can be brought into close contact with the ice making case 12 without the need for screwing operation. Therefore, as compared with the form in which the male screw portion 44 is formed on the entire bolt shaft 41 and / or the female screw portion 51 is formed on the entire inner surface of the cylinder wall 48, the labor of the screwing operation can be saved. It can reduce the time required for assembly work.

The cell-type ice maker alternates between the ice making process and the ice taking process to generate 24 cube-shaped ice in one ice making process. In the ice making process, the water supply tray 13 and the water supply tank 14 are operated by the tray operating mechanism 17 to switch to the ice making posture shown in FIG. 2, and the water supply tray 13 faces the ice making case 12 through a slight gap. In this state, while supplying the refrigerant to the refrigerant passage 28 to cool the ice making case 12, the pump unit 23 is started to pressurize and supply the ice making water in the water supply tank 14, and the ice making water is supplied under pressure from the nozzle provided in the water supply tray 13. Ice-making water is ejected toward each cell 11 to freeze and gradually grow ice. The ice-making water that has not been frozen is returned to the water supply tank 14 through the return hole.

When the inside of the cell 11 is filled with ice after a certain period of time, the supply of the refrigerant is stopped, the pump unit 23 is stopped, the ice making process is ended, and the process shifts to the ice removal process. In the ice removal process, hot gas is supplied to the refrigerant passage 28 to heat the ice making case 12 and promote the peeling of ice in the cell 11. When a certain period of time has elapsed from the start of heating the ice making case 12, the tray operating mechanism 17 switches the water supply tray 13 and the water supply tank 14 to the ice-free posture, and both 13 and 14 are tilted downward. At the same time, water at room temperature for ice removal is poured from the water supply pipe 24 onto the upper surface of the water supply tray 13. The ice separated from the cell 11 and dropped on the water supply tray 13 slides down on the water supply tray 13 and falls into the ice storage chamber 4, and the washing water poured on the upper surface of the water supply tray 13 flows down to the water supply tank 14. It is drained to the drain pan 25. After that, the ice making process and the ice removing process are alternately performed to continuously generate cube-shaped ice.

As described above, in the cell-type ice maker according to the present embodiment, the communication hole 49 that communicates the inside and outside of the cylinder wall 48 is provided in the cylinder wall 48 of the hollow tubular spacer 37 provided in the support structure. According to such a support structure, even if the ice-making water that has entered the gap between the inner surface of the cell 11 and the seat surface of the bolt 35 or the nut 36 rises inside the support structure, the capillary phenomenon is blocked at the communication hole 49 portion. Then, it is possible to prevent the ice making water from rising further to the unit base 10 side. Further, the ice-making water that has risen to the communication hole 49 due to the capillary phenomenon is discharged to the outer surface side of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 through the communication hole 49 to prevent the ice-making water from rising to the unit base 10 side. it can. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the ice making water from reaching the upper surface of the unit base 10 through the inside of the support structure, and prevent the occurrence of failure of the electrical components on the unit base 10 due to the ice making water.

Further, since the ice making water can be reliably prevented from reaching the upper surface of the unit base 10 by simply forming a penetrating communication hole 49 in the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37, the support structure can be simplified and the support structure can be simplified. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of failures due to ice making water while maintaining the ease of attachment / detachment. Since the structure is as simple as forming the communication holes 49, there is an advantage that the cost increase of the support structure can be suppressed.

When a reinforcing rib 50 extending in the axial direction of the spacer 37 is formed on the outer surface of the tubular wall 48 of the spacer 37, the structural strength of the spacer 37 is enhanced by the reinforcing rib 50, and the shaft is formed by the fastening force of the bolt 35 and the nut 36. Buckling of the spacer 37 due to compression in the central direction can be prevented. As a result, the bolt 35 and the nut 36 can be fastened and fixed more strongly, so that the gap between the inner surface of the cell 11 and the seating surface of the bolt 35 or the nut 36 is minimized to prevent ice making water from entering the gap. it can. Further, the thickness of the tubular wall 48 of the spacer 37 can be made thinner by the amount that the structural strength of the spacer 37 can be increased by the reinforcing rib 50. As a result, the distance from the inner surface to the outer surface of the cylinder wall 48 can be reduced, and the ice making water that blocks the capillary phenomenon and prevents the rise can be quickly discharged, and the ice making water inside the support structure can be accurately discharged to make ice. It is possible to more reliably prevent the irrigation water from reaching the upper surface of the unit base 10.

When the communication hole 49 is provided in the vicinity of the ice making case 12, the ice making water in the communication hole 49 may freeze due to the cold heat of the ice making case 12 to block the communication hole 49. When the communication hole 49 is closed, the capillary phenomenon cannot be blocked by the communication hole 49, and the ice making water cannot be discharged. Therefore, the ice making water may reach the upper surface of the unit base 10. When the communication hole 49 is provided in the vicinity of the unit base 10, the ice making water discharged from the communication hole 49 re-enters the inside of the support structure through the gap between the unit base 10 and the spacer 37, and re-enters the inside of the support structure. The invading ice making water may reach the upper surface of the unit base 10. However, according to the communication hole 49 provided in the middle of the spacer 37 in the axial direction as in the present embodiment, the distance between the ice making case 12 and the communication hole 49 and the distance between the unit base 10 and the communication hole 49 Therefore, it is possible to avoid freezing of the ice-making water and re-entry of the ice-making water. Therefore, it is possible to more reliably prevent the ice making water from reaching the upper surface of the unit base 10 through the inside of the support structure.

FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of the support structure. In this embodiment, a bolt 35 made of a long screw (cutting bolt) and two hexagon nuts 36 having different height dimensions are used to fasten and fix the unit base 10, the spacer 37, and the ice making case 12. .. As described above, the bolt 35 does not need to be composed of a headed bolt. Further, in this embodiment, the female screw portion 51 on the inner surface of the cylinder wall 48 of the spacer 37 is omitted. In this way, the female screw portion 51 that prevents the bolt 35 from falling can be omitted.

FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the spacer 37. In the spacer 37 of this embodiment, four large and small reinforcing ribs 50A and 50B are alternately arranged. Further, in addition to the communication holes 49 in the front and rear of the upper and lower substantially central portions of the cylinder wall 48, communication holes 49 were formed on the left and right sides near the upper end of the cylinder wall 48, respectively, to form a total of four communication holes 49. According to such a communication hole 49, even if the lower communication hole 49 cannot block the capillary phenomenon, the upper communication hole 49 can block the capillary phenomenon. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the ice making water from rising to the unit base 10 side. As described above, the communication holes 49 and the reinforcing ribs 50 can be appropriately changed in shape position, number of formed ribs, and the like, and are not limited to the above-described embodiment and the embodiment shown in the present embodiment. Further, in the case of the spacer 37 in which the female screw portion 51 is formed, the communication hole 49 may be formed so as to penetrate through the female screw portion 51 portion.

In the above embodiment, the spacer 37 is formed in the shape of a hollow round cylinder, but may be formed in the shape of a hollow square cylinder or a polygonal cylinder. Although 24 cells 11 are provided in the ice making case 12, the total number of cells 11 can be changed as needed by changing the number of cell columns and cell rows. Further, the position and number of the support structures can be appropriately changed according to the size of the ice making case 12.

10 Unit base 11 Cell 12 Ice making case 35 Bolt 36 Nut 37 Spacer 41 Bolt shaft 42 Bolt head 43 Round shaft 44 Male thread 49 Communication hole 50 Reinforcing rib 51 Female thread

Claims (5)

In a cell-type ice machine in which an ice case (12) having a group of cells (11) that opens downward is supported by a unit base (10) via a support structure.
The support structure comprises a bolt (35) and a nut (36) and a hollow tubular spacer (37) that fits externally into the bolt (35) between the unit base (10) and the ice making case (12). ,
The unit base (10), spacer (37), and ice making case (12) are fastened and fixed with bolts (35) and nuts (36).
The bolt (35) is composed of a bolt shaft (41) on which a male screw portion (44) is formed and a bolt head (42) formed at one end of the bolt shaft (41).
With the bolt (35) and nut (36) fastened and fixed, the bolt head (42) of the bolt (35) is located in the cell (11) of the ice making case (12), and the nut (36) is the unit base (36). It is located on the upper surface of 10)
A cell-type ice maker characterized in that a communication hole (49) penetrating the inside and outside of the cylinder wall (48) is provided in the cylinder wall (48) of the spacer (37). The cell-type ice maker according to claim 1, wherein a reinforcing rib (50) extending in the axial direction of the spacer (37) is formed on the outer surface of the tubular wall (48) of the spacer (37). The cell-type ice maker according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the communication hole (49) is provided in the middle of the spacer (37) in the axial direction. Scan for some or all of the inner surface of the pacer (37) cylindrical wall (48), and externally threaded portion (44) is screwable internally threaded portion (51) is formed,
According to claims 1 to 3, when the nut (36) is separated from the male screw portion (44), the male screw portion (44) is received by the female screw portion (51) to prevent the bolt (35) from falling. The cell-type ice machine described in any one. The bolt shaft (41) of the bolt (35) is composed of a round shaft portion (43) on the bolt head (42) side and a male screw portion (44) on the tip side, and the round shaft portion (43) is a female screw portion. It is formed to have a diameter smaller than the inner diameter of (51).
The cell-type ice machine according to claim 4, wherein the female screw portion (51) is formed in a part of the spacer (37) on the inner surface of the cylinder wall (48) near the ice making case (12).

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