JPH10153365A - Ice making machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To produce a highly transparent ice by discharging all the remaining water in a tank after the end of ice making operation (the remaining water includes condensed impurities, such as chlorinated lime, calcium, chlorinated ion, which are components contained in city water) with regards to the improvement of a tank which stores ice manufactured at an ice making machine which produces a sheet-like ice on an ice making board and cuts the sheet-like ice into squared ice. SOLUTION: An ice making machine is provided with an ice making device provided in the upper part of an ice making and ice storage compartment slanting downward from the front to the rear, an ice cutting device 16, a water supply valve 17 which supplies city water and a tank 24 which stores manufactured ice connected to a drain hose one after another. It is possible to discharge all the remaining water in the tank 24 by opening the solenoid valve 25 directly before starting the supply of water at the end of ice making operation and thereby provide ice whose transparent degree is higher.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of a tank for storing ice making water in an ice maker for producing plate ice on an ice making plate and cutting the plate ice into ice cubes.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a tank described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 65656/1985 has been used as a tank for storing and discharging ice making water with an ice making machine.

Hereinafter, a conventional ice making machine will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a conventional ice maker, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the conventional ice maker. 4 and 5, reference numeral 1 denotes a main body of an ice making machine. The main body 1 is composed of an outer box 2, an inner box 3, and a heat insulating material 4. The inside of the main body 1 includes an ice making / ice storage room 5, a machine room 6, Is divided into In the machine room 6, a compressor 7, a condenser 8, a fan motor 9, a solenoid valve 10 and the like which constitute a cooling cycle are housed.

Further, an ice making plate 11 is provided in the ice making and ice storage room 5 and is provided with an evaporator 11a for generating plate-like ice and is inclined in the room, and a water sprayer for flowing ice making water down the ice making plate 11. 12. A tank 13 for storing ice making water, comprising an overflow pipe 13a fixedly penetrating the bottom of the tank 13 and a drainage hose 13b connected to the overflow pipe 13a, and controlling the level of ice making water in the tank 13. , A pump 15 for circulating the ice making water in the tank 13 to the sprinkler 12, a heater for cutting the plate ice, and the like are housed respectively.

The tip of the drain hose 13b is loosely inserted into a drain port 3a provided on the bottom of the inner box 3.

Reference numeral 13c is a cap for manually draining residual water in the tank. 17 is a water supply valve for supplying a predetermined amount of water to the tank 13, and 18 is a hose (not shown) having one side connected to the water supply valve 17 and the other side connected to a water supply or the like.
It is fixed to the back wall 19 of the main body 1 by a connection pipe connected to the like.

A front panel 20 and a door 21 are provided on the front of the ice making and ice storage chamber 5, respectively, and the lower side and the upper side thereof are in contact with a cross rail 22 to be sealed.

[0008] The operation of the ice making machine configured as described above will be described. First, a predetermined amount of ice-making water supplied from a water supply or the like to the water supply valve 17 flows into the tank 13 for a predetermined time, and is stored at a constant water level by the action of the float 14.
The stored water is sucked up by the pump 15 and the sprinkler 12
Flow down to the ice making plate 11 through both ends of the
3 and the circulation is repeated by the pump 15.

Then, the ice making plate 11 provided with the evaporator 11a is cooled to make ice and produce plate-like ice.

When plate ice of a certain thickness is generated, the electromagnetic valve 1
0 valve (not shown) is opened and the fan motor 9
Is stopped, the high-temperature and high-pressure gas (hot gas) generated by the compressor 7 flows continuously to the evaporator 11A, and the plate ice separates from the ice making plate 11 and falls into the heater 16.

The dropped plate ice is cut into a grid by the heater 16 and becomes ice cubes, which are stored in the ice making / ice storage room 5.

On the other hand, at the same time as the valve of the solenoid valve 10 is opened and the operation shifts to the deicing operation, water for ice making for the next ice making flows into the tank 13 for a predetermined time. Drain hose 13b, drain port 3
The water is drained out of the refrigerator through a.

[0013]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional construction, the residual water in the tank 13 at the end of the ice making (this residual water is a component contained in tap water extracted from the ice making water used for the ice making, ie, , Calcium, calcium, chloride ions and the like are concentrated) on the bottom surface of the tank 13 and cannot be completely replaced with fresh water for the next ice making.

For this reason, as the ice making cycle is repeated, the concentration of impurities, chlorine ions, etc. of residual water increases,
The ice produced by this effect had the disadvantage that the ice was white and turbid, and transparent ice could not be formed.

In addition, since the concentration of impurities in the residual water is high, the tank 13 is liable to be soiled quickly and the tank 13 needs to be cleaned frequently.

Further, since the purpose is to discharge residual water together with the water supplied through the overflow pipe 13a, a large amount of tap water is required, which is disadvantageous in that it is uneconomical.

In order to solve the above-mentioned drawback, there is a method in which the water supply time is made extremely long to increase the overflow amount of ice making water. Had.

Further, when cleaning the tank 13, the cap 13c is removed and the remaining water in the tank 13 is drained, so that it takes time and trouble to lose the cap 13c.

The present invention solves the conventional problems.
The purpose is to discharge all residual water in the water storage tank at the time of water supply after the ice making operation.

Another object of the present invention is to easily discharge residual water when cleaning a tank.

[0021]

In order to achieve this object, an ice making machine according to the present invention is provided with a tank for storing ice making water in which a solenoid valve and a drain hose are sequentially connected at the bottom of the tank.

According to another ice making machine of the present invention, a supporting plate attached to an inner box, an electromagnetic valve attached to the supporting plate, an outlet pipe of the electromagnetic valve are connected to a drain hose, and the electromagnetic valve is connected to a drainage hose. The inlet pipe is detachably inserted into a drainage pipe having an inner sealing material provided inside a projecting portion integrally formed on the bottom surface of the tank.

[0023] Thus, all the remaining water in the tank can be discharged at the time of water supply after the ice making operation is completed.

Further, the tank can be easily attached and detached from the ice making machine main body. Further, in order to achieve the second object, the ice making machine of the present invention has a switch connected in series with the solenoid valve coil of the solenoid valve.

Thus, when cleaning the tank, the residual water can be easily discharged by operating the switch.

[0026]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The invention according to claim 1 of the present invention is directed to an ice making device, an ice cutting device, and a water supply valve for supplying tap water, which are provided on the upper part of the ice making and ice storage room from the front surface to the rear surface and inclined downward. The bottom of the tank is equipped with a water storage tank that stores the ice making water in which a solenoid valve and a drain hose are sequentially connected to the bottom surface.By opening the solenoid valve just before the water supply operation at the end of the ice making operation, all remaining water in the tank is removed. It has the function of being able to discharge.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a support plate attached to the inner box, a solenoid valve attached to the support plate, and an outlet pipe of the solenoid valve are connected to a drain hose, and an inlet pipe of the solenoid valve is connected. The drainage pipe with the inner sealing material is removably inserted into the protrusion integrally formed on the bottom of the water storage tank, and it is necessary to remove the wiring to the solenoid valve coil when cleaning the tank. It has the effect that the tank can be easily removed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a switch is connected in series with the solenoid valve coil of the solenoid valve, and the switch is operated (in this case, the switch is turned on) when cleaning the water storage tank. Thus, the residual water can be easily discharged from the tank.

[0029]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of an ice making machine according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The same components as those in the conventional example are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a sectional view of Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 24 denotes a tank formed of resin or the like, and a protruding portion 24a is integrally formed on the bottom surface of the tank 24, and an inlet pipe 25a of a solenoid valve 25 is fixed in contact with the protruding portion 24a. Have been.

An outlet pipe 25b of the solenoid valve 25 is detachably connected to the drain hose 26, and the end of the drain hose 26 is loosely inserted into a drain port provided on the bottom surface of the inner box 3.

The operation of the ice maker constructed as described above will be described. First, a predetermined amount of ice-making water supplied from a water supply or the like to the water supply valve 17 flows into the tank 24 for a predetermined time, and is stored at a constant water level by the action of the float 14.
The stored water is sucked up by the pump 15 and the sprinkler 12
Flow down to the ice making plate 11 through both ends of the
4 and the circulation is repeated by the pump 15.

The ice making plate 11 provided with the evaporator 11a is cooled to produce ice and produce plate-like ice.

When plate ice of a certain thickness is generated, the electromagnetic valve 1
The valve 0 (not shown) is opened and the fan motor 9 is stopped, the high-temperature high-pressure gas (hot gas) generated by the compressor 7 flows continuously to the evaporator 11A, and the plate-like ice is made into an ice making plate. 11 and falls to the heater 16.

The dropped plate-like ice is cut into a grid by the heater 16 and becomes ice cubes, which are stored in the ice making / ice storage room 5.

On the other hand, when the operation shifts to the ice releasing operation, the valve (not shown) of the solenoid valve 25 is opened for a certain period of time, and the residual water in the tank 24 is drained out of the refrigerator through the drain hose 26 and the drain port 3a.

After a certain period of time, the valve of the solenoid valve 25 is closed and the water supply valve 17 is opened, and water for ice making for the next ice making flows into the tank 24, and when the water level reaches a predetermined level, the float 14 is turned on. The operation stops the water supply and starts the next ice making operation.

As described above, according to the ice making machine of the present embodiment,
By providing the tank 24 in which the electromagnetic valve 25 and the drain hose 26 are sequentially connected to the bottom surface of the tank 24 to store the ice making water, all the remaining water in the tank 24 can be discharged at the time of water supply after the ice making operation is completed.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 2 is a sectional view of Embodiment 2 of the present invention. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 24 denotes a tank formed of resin or the like.
a is integrally formed, and a drain pipe 28 in which a sealing material 27 is inscribed on the inner surface is fixed to the protruding portion 24a. I have.

Reference numeral 25b denotes an outlet pipe of the solenoid valve 25, which is detachably connected to the drain hose 29, and the end of the drain hose 29 is loosely inserted into a drain port provided on the bottom surface of the inner box 3.

Reference numeral 30 denotes a support plate for fixing and holding the electromagnetic valve 25, which is attached to the inner box 3.

The operation of the ice maker constructed as described above will be described. When the ice making operation is completed and the operation shifts to the ice releasing operation, a valve (not shown) of the electromagnetic unit 25 is opened for a certain period of time, and the remaining water in the tank 24 is drained out of the refrigerator through the drain hose 29 and the drain port 3a.

After a certain period of time, the valve of the solenoid valve 25 is closed and the water supply valve 17 is opened, and the water for ice making for the next ice making flows into the tank 24 and the float 14 reaches a predetermined water level. The operation stops the water supply and starts the next ice making operation.

Next, when removing the tank 24 from the ice making machine body 1 when cleaning the tank 24, the drain pipe 2
The tank 24 and the solenoid valve 25 are separated by removing the insertion portion of the inlet pipe 25a of the solenoid valve 25 from the tank 7.

As described above, according to the ice making machine of the present embodiment,
The support plate 30 attached to the inner box 3, the solenoid valve 25 attached to the support plate 30, and the outlet pipe 25b of the solenoid valve 25
Is connected to a drain hose 29, and the inlet pipe 25a of the solenoid valve 25 is removably inserted into a projection 24a integrally formed on the bottom surface of the water storage tank 24 with a drain pipe 28 having a sealing material 27 provided inside. Tank 2
The tank 24 can be easily removed without having to remove the wiring to the coil of the solenoid valve 25 at the time of cleaning of 4.

(Embodiment 3) FIG. 3 is a sectional view of Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

A switch 31 is electrically connected in series to the coil of the solenoid valve 25. The operation of the ice maker configured as described above will be described.

When draining the remaining water in the tank 24 when cleaning the tank 23, when the switch 31 is turned on, the valve of the solenoid valve 25 is opened and the remaining water in the tank 24 is drained by the drain hose 29 and the drain hose 29. The water is drained out of the refrigerator through the mouth 3a.

When drainage is completed, the switch 31 is turned off to close the solenoid valve 25. As described above, according to the ice making machine of the present embodiment, by connecting the switch 31 in series with the coil of the solenoid valve 25, when cleaning the tank 24, the remaining water can be easily discharged by operating the switch 31. Can be done.

[0051]

As described above, in the ice making machine of the present invention, an ice making device is provided at the upper part of the ice making and ice storage room from the front to the rear and inclined downward, the ice cutting device, and the water supply valve for supplying tap water. ,
By providing a tank for storing ice making water in which a solenoid valve and a drain hose are sequentially connected to the bottom surface, all water remaining in the tank can be discharged at the time of water supply after the ice making operation is completed, and the ice making cycle is repeated As a result, the concentration of impurities such as residual water and chlorine ions becomes higher, and the ice produced by this influence becomes white and turbid, so that the conventional disadvantage that transparent ice cannot be obtained is solved, and ice with high transparency is provided.

Further, the amount of tap water used at the time of water supply is smaller than that of the prior art, which is economically advantageous.

Further, in the ice making machine of the present invention, a support plate attached to the inner box, a solenoid valve attached to the support plate, and an outlet of the solenoid valve connected to a drain hose, The drain of the solenoid valve coil is removed when cleaning the tank by detachably inserting a drain pipe with a sealing material inside on the protruding part integrally molded with the bottom of the tank at the valve inlet The tank can be easily removed without necessity, thereby improving the ease of cleaning.

Further, in the ice making machine of the present invention, the switch is connected in series with the solenoid valve coil of the solenoid valve, so that when cleaning the tank, the remaining water is easily discharged by operating the switch. Therefore, the ease of cleaning can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of an ice making machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of an ice making machine according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of an ice making machine according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a conventional ice making machine.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of a conventional ice making machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body 3 Inner box 5 Ice making and ice storage room 16 Ice cutting device 17 Water supply valve 24 Tank 24a Projecting part 25 Solenoid valve 25a Inlet pipe 25b Outlet pipe 26,29 Drain hose 27 Sealing material 28 Drain pipe 30 Support plate 31 Switch

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An ice making device, an ice cutting device, a water supply valve for supplying tap water, an electromagnetic valve, and a drainage hose on the bottom surface are provided at an upper part of an ice making and ice storage room at an angle from the front surface to the rear surface. An ice maker comprising a tank for storing ice water that is sequentially connected. 2. A support plate attached to the inner box, a solenoid valve attached to the support plate, an outlet pipe of the solenoid valve connected to a drain hose, and an inlet pipe of the solenoid valve connected to a bottom surface of the tank. 2. The ice making machine according to claim 1, wherein a drainage pipe having a sealing material provided therein is detachably inserted into the protrusion formed integrally with the ice making machine. 3. The ice making machine according to claim 1, wherein a switch is connected in series with a coil of the solenoid valve.