JPH0440140Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an ice-making machine that generates ice by spraying circulating water onto an ice-making cooler.

[Prior art]

In conventional ice making machines, water is supplied by connecting directly to a water tap, and this water is temporarily stored in a water supply tank and then sprayed into the ice making cooler of the refrigeration cycle using a water supply pump and injection pipe. When the ice making is completed, ice removal operation begins and water is supplied for the next ice making.

[Problem that the invention attempts to solve]

With the above structure, since the ice maker is directly connected to the water supply, plumbing work is required when installing the ice maker. If the water is not replaced, the remaining water will rot, which is undesirable from a sanitary standpoint.

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention provides an ice making machine that generates ice by spraying circulating water to an ice making cooler, which includes: a water tank that is detachably installed in the main body; a water tank detection circuit that detects the presence or absence of the water tank; A full water detection circuit that detects when the ice storage container is full; a water exchange timer that integrates at least the time since the full water detection circuit detected that the ice storage container is full; The system is equipped with an alarm device that issues an alarm when it does not detect replacement.

[Effect]

According to the present invention, the water supply tank is detachable, so the ice maker can be easily moved without the need for construction to directly connect it to the water supply, unlike conventional methods.
Even when the ice storage container is full and the ice making operation is no longer performed, the timer adds up a predetermined amount of time and activates an alarm that prompts you to change the water in the water tank, so you never forget to change the water. It is possible to prevent corruption in the future.

〔Example〕

Reference numeral 1 designates a compressor constituting a refrigeration cycle, and refrigerant gas discharged from a discharge pipe flows through a condenser 3 and a capillary tube 4, which are cooled by a blower fan 2, to an ice-making cooler 5, where it is heated. After being replaced, it returns to the compressor 1 through the accumulator 6.

7 short-circuits the series circuit of the condenser 3 and capillary tube 4 to form a bypass passage connected to the ice-making cooler 5, which is normally closed by a solenoid valve 8 and closed when ice-making is completed. When the electromagnetic valve 8 is opened, high-temperature, high-pressure refrigerant gas from the compressor 1 flows into the refrigerant pipe 5a provided in the ice-making cooler 5 to remove ice.

Further, the ice making cooler 5 has a plurality of ice making chambers 10, 10... formed by a partition wall 9, and is installed so that the open surfaces of the ice making chambers 10, 10... face downward, Circulating water from a jet pipe 11 is sprayed onto the inner surfaces of the ice making chambers 10, 10, . . . .

Reference numeral 12 designates an inclined plate installed below the ice-making cooler 5, which has a plurality of slits (not shown) formed therein, and functions to return circulating water into the water supply tank 13 through the slits. It functions to guide the ice block after ice removal to an ice storage container (not shown).

The water tank 13 is detachably provided inside the main body, and the attachment/detachment operation of the water tank 13 is detected by a water tank detection circuit 14.

15 is a water supply pipe 16 for supplying water in the water supply tank 13.
17 is a water level gauge/thermometer immersed in the water supply tank 13, and reed switches 18, 19 for water level detection and a water supply temperature detection sensor are installed in the cylinder 17a. 20 is provided, and a magnetic float 21 that moves up and down according to changes in the water level in the water supply tank 13 is provided on its outer periphery. The vertical movement of the magnetic float 21 closes either of the reed switches 18 and 19, and when the lower reed switch 19 is closed, the ice storage container is filled with water. A lower limit water level is set in advance.

FIG. 1 is a block circuit diagram of the ice maker of the present invention, in which 22 is a power-on reset circuit, 23 is an ice-making start switch, 24 is an ice-making detection circuit, and 25
26 is a ice break detection circuit, 26 is a temperature sensor, 27 is a full water detection circuit, 28 is a control circuit, 29 is a water exchange warning light, 30 is a water exchange alarm sound generation circuit, 31 is a compressor drive circuit, 32 is a cooling fan drive circuit ,
33 is a hot gas drive circuit, 34 is a water pump drive circuit, 35 is an OR circuit, 36 and 37 are AND circuits, and 38 is a water exchange timer. This water exchange timer 38 is designed to generate an output signal 48 hours after the start of counting.

The operation of the present invention will be explained below based on the flowchart of FIG. First, water is first supplied to the water supply tank 13, and after it is installed at a predetermined location, the power supply reset circuit 22 and the ice making start switch 2 are turned on.
3, the water exchange timer 38 is set and the control circuit 28 is activated to perform the ice making operation. That is, the compressor drive circuit 3
1. The cooling fan drive circuit 33 and the water pump drive circuit 34 operate, and the water in the water supply tank 13 is sprayed into the ice making cooler 5 through the injection pipe 11. Then, a portion of the ice blown onto the ice-making cooler 5 contacts the inner surfaces of the ice-making chambers 10, 10, . Ice is made by repeating this operation.

When the temperature sensor 26 detects that ice making is completed, the compressor drive circuit 31, cooling fan drive circuit 32, and water pump drive circuit 34 are stopped, and the ice removal detection circuit 2 is stopped.
The hot gas drive circuit 33 is activated in response to a signal from the ice making cooler 5, and high temperature, high pressure refrigerant gas flows into the cooling pipe 5a of the ice making cooler 5 to perform an ice removal operation. The ice cubes released from the ice-making cooler 5 by this ice-off operation fall onto the inclined plate 12.
is guided into an ice storage container (not shown).

If the reed switch 19 is not yet closed, that is, the ice storage container is not full of water, the cycle of ice making, ice removal, and ice storage is repeated again.

After that, when the water in the water supply tank 13 decreases and the reed switch 19 is closed, it is determined that the ice storage container is full of ice, and the ice making-ice removal-ice storage cycle is stopped.

When the water temperature in the water tank 13 is higher than 7°C, the compressor drive circuit 31 and the cooling fan drive circuit 32 operate at low speed, and the water pump drive circuit 34 operates to circulate and cool the water in the water tank 13. to prevent water from spoiling. Note that when the water temperature in the water supply tank 13 becomes lower than 2° C., the compressor drive circuit 31, the cooling fan drive circuit 32, and the water pump drive circuit 34 are configured to stop.

Thereafter, the water in the water tank 13 is repeatedly cooled by circulation and the water temperature is maintained at a predetermined temperature. If the user replaces the water in the water tank 13 during this water temperature maintenance period, all The operation stops and prepares for the next operation.

However, if the water in the water tank 13 is not replaced during the water temperature maintenance period, the water replacement timer 3
8 progresses, and after 48 hours have elapsed, the water change warning light 29 and the water change alarm sound generation circuit 30 operate to prompt the user to change the water in the water tank 13.

〔effect〕

Since the present invention is constructed as described above, the water supply tank is detachable, so there is no need for large-scale waterworks as in the past.
In addition, the user can be reliably notified of the need to replace the water in the water tank after it is full by operating the alarm system, which has the remarkable effect of preventing water from spoiling due to forgetting to replace the water in the water tank. It is something that can be played.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is an electric block circuit diagram of the ice maker of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the ice making machine, FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the main parts of the ice making machine, and FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the ice making machine. 5... Ice making cooler, 11... Injection pipe, 13...
...Water tank, 14...Water tank detection circuit, 1
5...Water pump, 27...Full ice detection circuit, 38
...Water change timer, 29,30...Water change alarm device.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] 1. In an ice-making machine that generates ice by spraying circulating water to an ice-making cooler, a water supply tank that is detachably installed in the main body, and a water supply that detects the presence or absence of the water supply tank. a tank detection circuit, a full ice detection circuit that detects whether the ice storage container is full of ice, a water exchange timer that integrates at least the time from when the full ice detection circuit detects full ice, and the timer that integrates a predetermined time. and an alarm device that issues an alarm when the water tank detection circuit does not detect replacement of the water tank. 2 Claim No. 1 of the previous utility model registration claim, which is characterized in that the water in the water supply tank is forced to circulate intermittently even after ice making is completed to cool it to a constant temperature.
Ice maker as described in section.