JPH03260574A - Ice dispenser - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To discharge ice through an ice outlet port securely and smoothly, by a construction wherein an auger part for pushing out ice is provided only at a rotary shaft part spaced from an ice outlet port, and a baffle plate is provided in the vicinity of the ice outlet port. CONSTITUTION:A motor 14 drives a rotary shaft 15 to rotate, whereby an auger part 16 is rotated to push out ice along the shaft 15. Simultaneously, a shutter 19 opens a drop guide port 18, thereby bringing the port 18 into communication with the ice outlet port 21. First, some pieces of ice making contact with the auger part 16 are pushed out, and other pieces of ice in contact with them are pushed out by them. Those pieces of ice which are prevented by the baffle plate 20 from passing to the drop guide port 18 are pushed up along the plate 20, due to a continued pushing-out action of the auger part 16, and are guided via an ice guide part 10 into an ice storing part 11.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention [Purpose of the Invention (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to an ice dispenser that stores, for example, square ice made by an ice maker and automatically dispenses ice as needed. Regarding the improvement of

(Prior Art) For example, ice boxes and ice dispensers are provided to store and dispense a large amount of ice cubes produced by an ice machine at a place where it is actually used. The ice box is simply a box with a heat insulating structure, and ice is put into the ice storage chamber by opening the upper lid, and then stored by closing the lid. If the above water is required, open the lid and take out the required amount of ice. Since the lid of such an ice box is opened every time ice is taken out, the ice in the ice storage chamber is exposed to warm air and quickly melts. Then, the ice melts together and forms a large lump, which can become too large to be contained in the cup. For example, although it has a simple structure and is inexpensive for commercial use, it is not easy to use.

On the other hand, the ice dispenser stores ice in an ice storage chamber having a sealed and insulated structure, and when the ice is taken out as needed, the ice supply outlet, which can be opened and closed, can be opened. Since the ice in the ice storage chamber is not exposed to warm air, it can be kept cold for a long time without melting.

To explain the structure of the ice dispenser, the ice storage chamber provided in the main body of the device is provided with an ice supply outlet and an ice extrusion mechanism that can be opened and closed. For example, when a push button switch or a control lever linked to the switch is operated, the ice supply outlet is automatically opened and the ice extrusion mechanism is activated. The ice in the ice storage chamber is pushed out by an ice pushing mechanism and sequentially delivered from the ice supply outlet. The ice extrusion mechanism has a drive source such as a motor disposed outside the ice storage chamber, a rotating shaft extending from the drive source into the ice storage chamber, and both ends of the rotating shaft being fixed to the rotating shaft and a space between them. is composed of an auger part that winds back in a spiral manner along the circumferential surface of the rotating shaft.

The auger part and the rotating shaft are buried between the ice tiles in the ice storage chamber, but when the driving source rotationally drives the rotating shaft, the auger part spirally rotates to move the ice it comes into contact with along the direction of the rotating shaft. Push it out.

This extruded ice extrudes other ice that comes into contact with it, transmits the extrusion force to the other ice, and moves to the ice supply outlet. Therefore, the ice that is closest to the ice supply outlet is sequentially supplied to the outside through the ice supply outlet.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) However, in such an ice dispenser, the rotating shaft of the ice extrusion mechanism extends from the vicinity of the ice supply outlet of the ice storage compartment to the vicinity of the side wall on the opposite side. This is common, and the auger section is provided across this axial direction. Therefore, as the rotating shaft rotates, all of the ice in contact with the auger part is extruded all at once, and these pieces of ice exert an extrusion force on other ice. In other words, the water and metal in the water storage chamber move all at once. However, since the ice supply outlet is large enough to allow only one piece of ice to pass through, other pieces of ice are pushed together. Since the circumferential surface of the ice storage chamber is a side wall, ice is prevented from moving there and moves upward, which is free space.

In other words, the ice becomes completely floating. A lid is fitted into the upper part of the ice storage chamber so that it can be opened and closed, and the ice storage chamber has a sealed structure. However, depending on the amount of water stored or the state of floating, the lid may come into contact with the lid and push it up to open the ice storage chamber. Resulting in. When the ice storage compartment opens, warm air immediately enters and melts the ice. If the ice pushing mechanism stops in this state, the ice in the ice storage chamber will quickly melt and stick to each other, forming lumps. Even if a new supply of ice is instructed in this state, since the ice supply outlet has space for supplying only one piece of ice, no lumped ice can pass through it.

Therefore, there is no choice but to misunderstand that it is a malfunction.

Since the inside of the ice storage chamber cannot be visually observed, the state of floating ice cannot be determined at all. Since the abnormality is not noticed until the lid is lifted, by that time, the stored ice has already melted, so the discovery tends to be delayed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to prevent ice from floating in the ice storage chamber, to ensure that ice is dispensed one by one from the ice supply outlet, and to ensure smooth ice supply. The purpose of the present invention is to provide an ice dispenser that can be used reliably.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means and Effects for Solving the Problems) That is, the present invention includes an ice storage chamber with an insulated structure for storing ice, an ice supply outlet that can be freely opened and closed, and A driving source is disposed outside, a rotating shaft of this driving source is extended into the ice storage chamber, and an auger portion for pushing out ice is provided only at a portion of the rotating shaft that is distant from the ice supplying outlet, and an auger portion is provided near the ice supplying outlet. An ice dispenser characterized by being provided with a baffle plate that allows the ice pushed out from the auger section to pass through the auger section in order and guide it to the ice supply outlet, while blocking other ice from passing through and guiding it back to the auger section. be.

When the rotating shaft is driven to rotate, the auger part also rotates at the same time, pushing out the ice that comes into contact with it. A baffle plate is provided in the direction in which the ice is extruded, so that the ice extruded by the auger portion can be passed one by one or two or three at a time, guided to the ice supply outlet, and supplied to the outside. Other ice is prevented from passing to the ice supply outlet by the baffle and is guided back to the auger section. Therefore, the auger part does not lift the water metal body, and the upper lid body does not open.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 to 3 show the external appearance of a so-called table-top ice dispenser. The front surface of the main body 1 of the apparatus is recessed only at the lower part, and an ice supply outlet body part 3, which will be described later, is protruded from the upper side of the recess 2. Furthermore, the ice supply outlet body 3
A makeup front lid 4 is removably provided on the top of the holder, and can be opened for maintenance. A tray portion 5 is provided at the bottom of the concave portion 2 to receive ice that has failed to be delivered to the tip or water that has overflowed from the tip. Both sides and the back of the apparatus main body 1 are covered with decorative panels 6, and the upper end is provided with a lid 7 having a heat-insulating structure, which is detachable.

The internal configuration of the device main body 1 is as shown in FIG. 4. That is, a space is left in the lower part of the device main body 1, and almost all of it is occupied by the water storage chamber 8. This water storage chamber 8
The upper surface has an opening that can be opened and closed by the lid 7, and the other peripheral surfaces have a heat-insulating structure covered with a heat-insulating material. The bottom part is formed into an inclined surface that gradually slopes downward from the front side to the back side, and as shown in Figure 5, the width of the lower part is compared with the width of the upper part. It has become quite small. Specifically, the dimensions are such that one piece of ice to be stored in the water storage chamber 8 is interposed with a margin, and two pieces of ice cannot be arranged side by side in parallel. Here, the narrow lower chamber is referred to as the ice chamber interior 10, and the wider upper chamber above it is referred to as the ice storage section 11. The water storage chamber 8 is composed of the ice chamber interior 10 and the ice storage section 11.

The lid 7 opens and closes the upper opening of the ice storage section 11. Further, a plurality of ribs 12 are provided at predetermined intervals on the opposing side walls of the ice storage section 11 in the vertical direction. These ribs 12... serve to reinforce the side walls and prevent stored ice from sticking to the side walls.

Inside the ice chamber 10, an ice extrusion mechanism 13 is provided along the front-rear direction. The ice extrusion mechanism 13 includes a motor 14 as a drive source disposed outside the front side of the ice compartment interior 10, a rotating shaft 15 extending from the motor 14 into the ice compartment interior 10, and an end of the rotating shaft 15. The auger section 16 is provided in the section. In other words, the rotating shaft 15 extends parallel to the slope of the interior of the ice compartment 10, and its tip is rotatably supported by a bearing 17 provided on the rear wall. The auger part 16 has a bearing 17
It is wound spirally from the side end portion, and the end portion is fixed to approximately the middle portion of the rotating shaft 15. That is, the auger portion 16 is provided only on the tip side of the rotating shaft 15.

Furthermore, a drop guide port 18 is opened at the lower part of the base end of the rotating shaft 15, which is the lower part of the front side of the ice chamber interior 10. The drop guide port 18 is provided with a shutter 19 connected to a drive mechanism (not shown), allowing the drop guide port 18 to be opened and closed. Further above one of the shutters, a baffle plate 20 is provided. The baffle plate 20 is made of a leaf spring material, for example, and has a width extending in the width direction of the ice compartment interior 10, and its upper end is attached and fixed to the upper end of the water volume interior 10 by appropriate means. It has an appropriate slope from the upper end to the lower end, and the lower end is bent into an appropriate shape to ensure rigidity. One piece of ice can pass between the lower end and the bottom of the water bulky interior 10 with plenty of room, but when two pieces of ice overlap one above the other, the lower end is designed to prevent them from passing at the same time, that is, to align the ice cubes. The part position is set.

The ice supply outlet body 3 is configured to be connected to the drop guide port 18 of the water storage chamber 7.

That is, the ice supply outlet body 3 is a single unit, and the ice supply outlet 2 is fitted into the drop guide port 18.
1, an operating lever 22 rotatably provided on the lower side of the ice supply outlet 21, and a micro switch 23 that is controlled to turn ON/OFF as the operating lever 22 rotates.
It is equipped with such things as The operating lever 22 projects obliquely from the ice supply outlet body 3 to the recess 2 on the front surface of the apparatus main body 1 with a very small gap from the front surface of the recess 2 .

Its upper end is inserted into the device main body 1, and the pivot pin 2
4, and the microswitch 23 is disposed opposite to the end on the pivot side. The microswitch 23 is electrically connected to the motor 14 and the drive mechanism of one of the shutters via a control circuit (not shown). Therefore, while the operating lever 22 is rotationally biased and the microswitch 23 is turned ON, the motor 14 rotationally drives the rotating shaft 15, and at the same time, the shutter 19 drive mechanism rotates and holds the shutter 19 and holds the shutter 19 at the drop guide opening. 18 is now open.

A hose joint is provided at the bottom of the water guide section 10, which is the bottom of the water storage chamber 8, and a drain tube 24 is connected thereto. The distal end of the drain tube 24 communicates with the inside of the tray portion 5 . The receiver is provided with a hose joint 25 on the back side of the tray portion 5, to which a drain tube (not shown) is connected.

Next, the operation of the ice dispenser constructed in this way will be explained. An upper lid body 7 is opened and ice made by an ice making machine is put into a water storage chamber 8 and stored. When no ice is delivered, the shutter 19 closes the drop guide port 18, and the water storage chamber 8 is completely sealed. Further, the lid body 7 has a heat insulating structure, and the water storage chamber 8
Since most of the circumferential surface of the tank is covered with a heat insulating material, the ice stored in the water storage chamber 8 can be kept insulated and cool.

As shown in Figure 6, when ice is required, hold the ice cup K, which is a container for receiving ice, and place the cup K at the ice supply outlet 2.
1. The operation lever 22 is placed opposite the lower part and is pressed down.
Press. The operating lever 22 rotates to turn the microswitch 23 ON and energize the motor 14 and the shutter 19 drive mechanism. The motor 14 rotationally drives the rotating shaft 15, and the auger part 16 rotates to push out the ice in the direction along the rotating shaft 15. At the same time, the shutter 19 opens the drop guide port 18, and the ice is connected to the drop guide port 18. The supply port 21 is brought into communication. The rotating shaft 15 is provided across the water guide section 10, and the auger section 1 that actually pushes out the ice
6 is provided only on the end side of the rotating shaft 15,
The ice in the water guide section 10 does not move all at once. That is, first, some of the ice that is in contact with the auger portion 16 is pushed out, and pushed by these ice, other parts of the ice that are in contact with these ice are pushed out. A baffle plate 20 provided in the direction in which the ice is pushed out sequentially passes the ice one by one and guides it to the drop guide port 18, and this ice is delivered to the above-mentioned cup K from the ice supply port 21.

By setting the rotational speed of the motor 14, it is possible to freely obtain the interval time between ice supplies, which are sequentially dispensed from the ice supply outlet 21.

On the other hand, the ice blocked by the baffle plate 20 from passing to the drop guide port 18 is pushed up along the baffle plate 20 as the pushing action of the auger part 16 continues, and the ice is transferred from the water guide part 10 to the ice storage. You will be led to Section 11. However, since the auger part 16 rotates at the end of the rotating shaft 15 and pushes out the ice, the ice in the upper part is inevitably replenished and pushed out. Eventually, all the ice that is blocked from passing to the ice supply outlet 21 by the baffle plate 20 circulates within the water storage chamber 8 so as to return to the auger section 16 again. Therefore, the water metal body does not float in the water storage chamber 8, and the upper lid body 7 reliably keeps the opening of the water storage chamber 8 open.

In addition, if a so-called arch phenomenon occurs in the water storage chamber 8, where the sides of the ice freeze one after another and stop falling entirely, the ice blocked by the baffle plate 20 from passing to the ice supply port 21 is It can collide with frozen ice to break it and resume its fall.

Once the required amount of ice has been received by the tip K, the tip K may be separated from the operating lever 22. The microswitch 23 is turned OFF, the drive mechanism for the shutter 19 returns the shutter 19 to its original position, which is the closing position of the drop guide port 18, the motor 14 is stopped, and the ice pushing action of the auger section 16 is stopped. It disappears.

Even if the ice melts in the water storage chamber 8, the melted water will be guided to the tray part 5 via the drain tube 24 connected to the bottom of the water storage chamber 8, and then to the outside. From the point where it is discharged, the melted water does not melt any other ice.

In the above embodiment, the device main body 1 is of a so-called tabletop type, but is not limited to this, and may be of a stationary type.

Further, the space between the bottom of the water guide section 10 and the lower end of the baffle plate 20 may be dimensioned so that two or three pieces of ice can pass through, depending on the purpose.

Although the operating lever 22 is rotated and biased when dispensing ice, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, dispensing may be performed by pressing a push button switch.
Alternatively, it may be configured such that it can be dispensed by inserting a predetermined amount of coins.

The shape of the ice to be delivered is not limited to so-called ice cubes, but any ice that has a certain shape can be delivered in the manner described above.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, an auger part for pushing out ice is provided only at the rotating shaft part spaced apart from the ice supply outlet,
Since a baffle plate is provided near the ice supply outlet, the ice pushed out by the auger section passes through the baffle plates in order and is guided to the ice supply outlet, while other ice is prevented from passing by the baffle plate, and the ice is guided to the ice supply outlet. You will be guided back to the auger club. Therefore, ice can be supplied reliably and smoothly from the ice supply outlet, improving usability. Furthermore, since the ice in the ice storage chamber does not float up, warm air does not enter the ice storage chamber, and the ice is reliably kept cold.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the ice dispenser, Fig. 2 is a front view thereof, Fig. 3 is a side view thereof, Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view thereof, and Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the ice dispenser. is V-■ in Figure 4
FIG. 6, a vertical cross-sectional view taken along a line, is a diagram illustrating the state of ice supply. 8... Ice storage chamber, 18... Ice supply outlet, 14... Drive source (motor), 15... Rotating shaft, 16... Auger section, 20... Baffle plate. 4' Figure 4 Figure 5

Claims (1)

[Claims] An ice storage compartment with an insulated structure for storing ice, an ice supply outlet provided in the ice storage compartment that can be opened and closed, a drive source provided outside the ice storage compartment, and a rotating shaft extending from the drive source into the ice storage compartment. an auger section that is provided only at a portion of the rotating shaft that is spaced apart from the ice supply outlet and that pushes out ice; and an auger section that is provided near the ice supply outlet and allows the ice pushed out from the auger section to pass through the auger section in order to reach the ice supply outlet. An ice dispenser characterized by comprising a baffle plate that guides the ice and prevents other ice from passing through and guides the ice to return to the auger section.