KR100565643B1 - ice bank in the refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an ice bank that preserves cold air when discharging ice and prevents ice from remaining in the ice chute.

To this end, in the present invention, an ice passage hole 58a is formed so that ice passes through a predetermined portion of one side wall 58, and an ice outlet 52 is formed to correspond to the ice chute 31 on the discharge side of the ice passage hole. A bank container 50 which becomes; A drive unit 53 installed in the bank container; An ice conveyor 54 axially coupled to the drive unit, installed to cross the inside of the bank container, and rotated to transfer ice of the bank container to an ice passing hole 58a; At least one ice bucket fixed to the ice feeder so as to correspond to the ice discharge port, the ice bucket rotates together with the ice feeder to spread the ice discharged through the ice passing hole, and closes the ice passing hole in a predetermined rotation section ( 56); A damper (57) rotatably installed near the ice outlet to open the ice outlet when the ice falls from the ice bucket to the ice outlet (52); The driven bank provides a ice bank of a refrigerator, comprising: a driven assembly interlocking a damper with a rotation shaft of the ice conveyor and rotating the damper a predetermined angle while the ice bucket rotates a predetermined rotation section.

Refrigerator, Ice Bank, Ice Bucket

Description

Ice bank in the refrigerator

1 is a side view showing a state in which an ice maker is installed in a conventional refrigerator.

2 is a perspective view showing the structure of an ice maker constituting the ice making device of FIG.

Figure 3 is a side view showing the structure of the ice bank constituting the ice making device of Figure 1;

4 is a state diagram showing a state in which ice is discharged from the ice maker to the ice bank.

5 is a perspective view showing the structure of the ice bank of the refrigerator according to the present invention.

6 is a perspective view showing the shape of the ice bucket of FIG.

7 is a configuration diagram showing the mechanical structure of the ice bucket and the damper of the ice bank of FIG.

8A is an operating state diagram illustrating a state in which an ice bucket enters a predetermined rotation section.

8B is an operating state diagram illustrating a state in which the ice bucket is about to go out of a predetermined rotation section.

8C is an operating state diagram illustrating a state in which the ice bucket is out of a predetermined rotation section.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

50 bank container 51 housing

52: ice outlet 53: drive device

54: ice transporter 55: helix section

56: ice bucket 57: damper

58: elastic member 59a: magnet

59b: Hall sensor 61: drive cam

62: lever 62a: pressurized part

62b: gear portion 62c: rotating shaft portion

63: 1st driven gear 64: 2nd driven gear

70: ice suit

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to an ice bank of a refrigerator that preserves cold air when discharging ice, prevents ice from remaining in the ice chute, and reduces the manufacturing cost of the product.

A typical refrigerator is divided into a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment. The refrigerator compartment keeps food and vegetables fresh and long at a temperature of about 3 ° C. to 4 ° C., and the freezer compartment keeps food such as meat and fish frozen at subzero temperatures.

Recently, various functions have been added to the refrigerator for the user to conveniently use, such as storing kimchi. The ice making machine described below is one such additional function.

Hereinafter, a conventional refrigerator ice making apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

1 is a side view showing a state in which a conventional ice maker is installed in the refrigerator, Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of the ice maker constituting the ice maker of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a structure of the ice bank constituting the ice maker of Figure 1 4 is a side view showing a state in which ice is discharged from the ice maker to the ice bank.

Referring to FIG. 1, the refrigerator is largely divided into a freezing compartment 1 and a refrigerating compartment 2, and a door 3 is installed to open and close the freezing compartment and the refrigerating compartment. An ice maker is installed in the freezer compartment, and a control panel (not shown) is installed on an outer surface of the door to allow a user to select a predetermined function of the refrigerator.

The ice maker is composed of an ice maker 10 for producing ice, an ice bank 20 for accommodating the ice, and an ice chute 31 and a dispenser 32 for discharging the ice of the ice bank to the outside. .

Referring to FIG. 2, the ice maker 10 has an ice making chamber 11 in which ice is generated and a water supply part 12 formed at one side of the ice making chamber 11 to supply water to the ice making chamber. . In the ice making chamber 11, the partition ribs 11a are formed to protrude upward at predetermined intervals so that ice can be separated.

One side of the ice making chamber 11 is provided with a motor device (13). The motor device 13 has a built-in motor, the ejector 14 (ejector) is rotatably connected to the rotating shaft of the motor.

The ejector 14 is installed so that the rotation axis crosses the ice making chamber 11, and a plurality of ejector pins 15 are spaced at predetermined intervals so that the rotation axis of the ejector is substantially perpendicular to the rotation axis. At this time, each of the ejector pin 15 is disposed for each section partitioned by the partition rib (11a).

A plurality of slide bars 16 extend in the upper end of the front side of the ice making chamber 11 to about the rotation axis of the ejector 14.

In addition, a heater 17 (see FIG. 4) is attached to the bottom surface of the ice making chamber 11. The heater 17 heats the surface of the ice making chamber for a short time to slightly dissolve the ice surface attached to the surface of the ice making chamber so that the ice can be easily separated from the ice making chamber 11.

The ice maker 10 is provided with an ice sensing arm 18 to measure the amount of ice filled in the ice bank 20. The ice detection arm 18 is installed to be movable up and down and is connected to a control unit built in the motor device 13.

Referring to FIG. 3, the ice bank includes a bank container 21, an ice feeder 22, a motor device 23, and an ice crusher 24.

The bank container 21 is opened at an upper surface thereof to receive the ice falling from the ice maker 10. At this time, an ice passage hole 26a is formed in one wall surface 26 of the bank container so as to allow ice to pass therethrough, and an ice discharge port is formed to correspond to the ice chute 31 (see FIG. 1).

The ice transporter 22 is formed in a spiral shape so as to cross the inside of the bank container 20. The ice conveyor 22 is rotatably coupled to the motor device 23.

The helix unit 22a is installed in the ice feeder 22. This helix portion presses the ice toward the ice crusher 24 to prevent the ice from retreating when the ice is crushed in the ice crusher 24.

The ice crusher 24 is composed of a stationary blade 24a and a movable blade 24b.

At this time, the fixed blade 24a is fixed to cross the inside of the housing, and the end of the ice feeder 22 is inserted into the center of the fixed blade 24a. In addition, at least one movable blade 24b is provided at the end of the ice conveyor. This movable blade 24b is disposed between the stationary blades 24a.

An ice chute 31 having a predetermined space is installed below the ice outlet as shown in FIG. 1. This ice chute 31 is in communication with the dispenser 32. At this time, the dispenser 32 is provided with a damper 33 to block the outside air when the ice is not discharged.

Referring to the operation of the icemaker of the conventional refrigerator configured as described above are as follows.

When the ice bank 20 determines that the ice bank 20 lacks ice by the ice detection arm 18, water is supplied to the water supply part 12 of the ice maker 10. This water is filled up to a predetermined level in the ice making chamber 11 and is frozen by cold air in the freezing chamber. At this time, the partition rib 11a of the ice making chamber 11 serves to divide the ice produced in the ice making chamber 11 into a predetermined size.

When the ice is manufactured, the heater 17 of the ice maker is operated for a short time to melt the contact surface of the ice in contact with the surface of the ice making chamber 11. Subsequently, as the ejector pin 15 is rotated by the motor device 13, the ice located in the corresponding space is discharged to the outside. This ice is discharged to the ice bank 20 as shown in FIG.

If a predetermined amount of ice is filled in the ice bank 20 by repeating this series of processes, the ice making process of the ice maker 10 is terminated by the control unit. In addition, if it is determined that the ice is insufficient in the ice detection arm 18, by performing the ice manufacturing process, the ice maker 10 is filled with a certain amount of ice.

On the other hand, when the user selects the ice button of the control panel, the ice conveyor 22 is rotated to transfer the ice to the ice crusher 24 side. At this time, the ice conveyer 22 is rotated at a low speed, the conveyed ice is discharged to the ice chute 31 before being crushed by the ice crusher 24. Thus, the user can obtain ice cubes through the dispenser 32.

In addition, when the user selects the crushed ice button of the control panel, the ice conveyor 22 is rotated at a high speed to transfer the ice to the ice crusher 24 side. Accordingly, the ice cube is crushed by the ice crusher 24 and then discharged to the ice chute 31. Thus, the user can obtain the crushed ice through the dispenser 32.

In this way, users can selectively obtain ice cubes and crushed ice.

However, the ice bank of the conventional refrigerator has the following problems.

First, since the ice making apparatus closes the ice chute only by the damper when ice is not discharged, there is a problem that cold air flows out through the ice chute.

Second, most of the operation time of the refrigerator is to close the damper by closing the damper. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a structure for preventing the outflow of cold air from the ice chute.

In order to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an ice making device that can minimize the outflow of cold air through the dispenser, and improve the discharge performance of ice.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention, the ice passing hole is formed so that the ice passes through a predetermined portion of one side wall surface, so as to correspond to the ice chute which is a passage through which the ice is discharged to the outside of the ice passing hole A bank container in which an ice outlet is formed; A driving device installed in the bank container; An ice transporter axially coupled to the drive unit, installed to cross the inside of the bank container, and rotated to transfer ice of the bank container to an ice passing hole; At least one ice feeder is provided at a position corresponding to the ice discharge port and rotates along the rotation of the ice feeder, while at least one surface is connected to one wall surface on which the ice passing hole is formed. The ice bucket which lifts the ice discharged from the ice passing hole and drops it to the ice discharge port, rotates along the ice feeder, and opens and closes the ice passing hole formed in the one wall while closing the ice passing hole while the ice is not discharged. ; A damper rotatably installed near the ice outlet, the damper opening the ice outlet when the ice falls from the ice bucket to the ice outlet; The driven bank provides a ice bank of a refrigerator, comprising: a driven assembly interlocking a damper with a rotation shaft of the ice conveyor and rotating the damper a predetermined angle while the ice bucket rotates a predetermined rotation section.

The driven assembly includes a drive cam axially coupled to the rotating shaft of the ice conveyor; A lever installed to rotate as it is pressed only in a predetermined rotation section of the drive cam; A first driven gear installed to engage the lever; And a second driven gear engaged with the first driven gear and axially coupled to the rotation shaft of the damper.

The lever is pressurized by the driving cam in the predetermined rotation section of the drive cam; A gear part positioned at the other end of the pressurized part and engaged with the first driven gear; And, it comprises a rotating shaft portion: installed in the rotation center of the gear portion.

At this time, the damper is preferably provided with an elastic member so as to apply a restoring force in a direction opposite to the rotation axis of the ice conveyor.

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of an ice bank of a refrigerator according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7C.

5 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the ice bank of the refrigerator according to the present invention, Figure 6 is a perspective view showing the shape of the ice bucket of Figure 5, Figure 7 is the mechanical bucket and the damper of the ice bank of Figure 5 8A is an operational state diagram showing a state in which the ice bucket enters a predetermined rotation section, and FIG. 8B is an operational state diagram showing a state in which the ice bucket is about to escape a predetermined rotation section, and FIG. 8C. Is an operating state diagram showing a state where the ice bucket is out of a predetermined rotation section.

5 and 6, the ice bank includes a bank container 50, a drive unit 53, an ice feeder 54, an ice bucket 56, an ice bucket 56, a damper 57, and a driven assembly ( cam assembly).

The bank container 50 is formed so that the upper surface is open to accommodate the ice discharged from the ice maker. An ice passage hole 58a is formed in a predetermined portion of one side wall 58 of the bank container so that ice can pass therethrough, and an ice discharge port 52 is formed on the discharge side of the ice passage hole so as to correspond to the ice chute.

In this case, it is more preferable that a housing 51 is installed in the bank container, and an ice outlet 52 is formed on a lower surface of the housing 51.

Such bank containers may be formed in various shapes as well as boxes.

The bank 53 is provided with a drive device 53. This driving device is fixedly installed on the outer surface of the bank container 50. In addition, the driving device is provided on the opposite side of the housing 51.

The driving device 53 has a motor built therein, and the ice feeder 54 is axially coupled to the rotating shaft of the motor.

The ice conveyor 54 is rotatably installed to cross the interior of the bank container. This ice conveyor is formed approximately in a spiral. Therefore, ice is transferred to the ice passing hole 58a by rotating the ice feeder, and the transferred ice is introduced into the housing 51 through the ice passing hole.

In addition, the helix unit 55 is installed in the ice conveyor. The helix part is also formed in a substantially plate-like spiral and presses the ice toward the ice passing hole 58a. Of course, the ice transporter may not be separately installed.

An ice bucket 56 is fixed to a predetermined portion of the ice conveyor 54. That is, the ice bucket 56 is installed to correspond to the ice outlet 52. As the ice bucket is rotated together with the ice conveyor 54, the ice bucket closes the ice passing hole 58a in a predetermined rotation section.

At this time, the ice bucket 56 is preferably formed so that the front end portion in the rotation direction. This is because the ice bucket is rotated to pour ice near the ice outlet 52 and fall to the ice outlet.

In addition, one surface 56a of the ice passing hole 58a side of the ice bucket is formed to a size capable of closing the ice passing hole as shown in FIG. 6.

A damper 57 is installed near the ice outlet so as to be rotatable. This damper 57 is rotated to open the ice outlet while ice falls from the ice bucket to the ice outlet 52.

It is preferable that the damper 57 is further provided with an elastic member 58 to apply a restoring force in a direction opposite to the rotation axis of the ice feeder 54. The elastic member 58 applies a coil spring as shown in FIG. The type of the elastic member 58 can be variously changed.

A predetermined portion of the damper 57 is provided with a magnet 59a, and near the ice outlet, a hall sensor 59b is provided so as to face the magnet when the damper 57 is opened.

For example, the magnet 59a is installed at the end of the damper, and the hall sensor 59b is installed at the upper side of the ice chute 70 or the ice discharge port of the housing 51 so as to correspond to the magnet. In this case, the hall sensor is electrically connected to a control unit built in the motor device.

Therefore, the hall sensor 59b detects the magnet 59a so that the control unit can determine the open / closed state of the damper 57.

In addition, the damper 57 is installed at a position where the rotating shaft is substantially horizontal to the rotating shaft of the ice conveyor 54. Of course, it is also understood that by installing the rotary shaft of the damper at the ice discharge port, the ice bucket 56 can open the damper while leaving the predetermined rotation section α.

In addition, the damper 57 is preferably formed to have the same shape as the wall near the ice outlet 52. For example, the damper is formed to have a predetermined curvature such as a wall surface of the housing 51.

As the damper is brought into close contact with the wall surface of the housing as described above, it is possible to prevent the discharge of ice by the damper 57.

Referring to FIG. 7, a driven assembly is installed to interlock the rotation shaft of the ice conveyor 54 and the damper 57. This driven assembly includes a drive cam 61, a lever 62, and first and second driven gears 63 and 64.

The drive cam 61 is axially coupled to the rotating shaft of the ice conveyor 54. At this time, the drive cam is formed with a protruding portion (61a) on the outer peripheral surface to have a circular arc of a predetermined length in the circular body.

The lever 62 is installed to rotate as it is pressed only in a predetermined rotation section of the drive cam.

The lever 62 is engaged with the first driven gear 63 while being positioned at the other end of the pressurized part 62a pressed by the drive cam 61 in the predetermined rotation section of the drive cam and the other end of the pressurized part. It is comprised including the gear part 62b and the rotating shaft part 62c provided in the rotation center of the said gear part. The lever 62 has an elongated shape as a whole.

At this time, the press part 62a has a shape bent a predetermined length toward the drive cam 61.

The first driven gear 63 is installed to engage the gear part 62b of the lever. In addition, the second driven gear 64 meshes with the first driven gear 63 and the rotation shaft of the damper 57 is axially coupled.

Here, the arc length and position of the protruding portion 61a of the drive cam 61, and the gear ratio of the gear portion 62b and the first and second driven gears 63 and 64 formed on the lever 62 are It should be adjusted accordingly. By these factors, the rotation angle of the damper 57 can be determined when the ice bucket 56 rotates a predetermined rotation section.

On the other hand, it is also understood that two or more ice buckets may be installed in the ice conveyor. At this time, by forming a protruding portion of the driving cam as much as the ice bucket, the damper may be rotated while the ice bucket rotates a predetermined rotation section.

The operation of the ice bank of the refrigerator configured as described above will be described.

When the user selects the ice button, the ice is transferred to the ice passing hole 58a as the ice feeder 54 is rotated by the motor device. At this time, the helix unit 55 presses the ice toward the ice passing hole to prevent the ice from retreating.

Subsequently, as the ice bucket 56 is rotated by the ice feeder, the ice bucket 56 is scooped upward through the ice passing hole and dropped to the ice outlet 52. At this time, the damper 57 opens the ice outlet 52.

The ice passing through the ice outlet 52 is sequentially discharged to the ice chute 70 (see FIG. 7) and the dispenser so that the user can obtain ice.

As described above, the operation of the ice bucket, the driven assembly, and the damper will be described in more detail.

The ice bucket 56 enters a predetermined rotation section α to contain the ice supplied through the ice passing hole 58a.

At this time, the protruding portion 61a of the drive cam 61 presses the pressure portion 62a of the lever. That is, when the ice bucket 56 enters a predetermined position on the opposite side of the damper 57 of the ice outlet 52 as shown in FIG. 8A, the drive cam 61 presses the pressing portion 62a of the lever.

As the press part 62a is pressed, the lever 62 is rotated by a predetermined angle about the rotation axis. At this time, the first driven gear 63 meshed with the gear part 62b of the lever 62 is also rotated, and the second driven gear 64 meshed with the first driven gear 63 is also interlocked. Is rotated.

For example, the drive cam 61 and the gear portion 62b of the lever are rotated counterclockwise as shown in FIG. 8A, and the first driven gear 63 is rotated clockwise, and the second driven gear 64 is rotated. ) Is rotated counterclockwise. Therefore, the damper 57 axially coupled with the second driven gear is close to the driving cam 61 while being rotated counterclockwise.

Subsequently, when the ice bucket 56 completely enters the predetermined rotation section, one side of the ice bucket almost closes the ice passing hole 58a. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent cold air from flowing out through the ice passage hole 58a.

At this time, the end of the pressing portion 62a of the lever is positioned at the protruding portion 61a of the drive cam. At this time, as the gear part 62b of the lever and the first and second driven gears 63 and 64 are rotated, the elastic member 58 fixed to the damper 57 is extended.

Subsequently, when the ice bucket 56 is out of the predetermined rotation section α, the ice contained in the ice bucket falls to the ice outlet.

At this time, the pressing portion 62a of the lever is released from the restraint of the driving cam 61, and the elastic member 58 is contracted to exert a restoring force on the damper 57.

By the restoring force of the elastic member 58, the second driven gear 64, the first driven gear 63, and the gear part 62b of the lever are interlocked and rotated in the opposite direction as described above to restore the original position. Thus, the damper 57 is attached to the inner surface of the housing 51 to open the ice outlet 52.

On the other hand, the ice bucket 56 closes the ice passing hole (58a) while the ice is not discharged.

The ice bank control unit may control the discharge of the ice by inputting the rotation speed of the ice bucket in advance whenever the user selects the ice button. At this time, the rotation speed of the ice bucket should be appropriately adjusted in consideration of the size of the ice bucket.

It is also understood that the ice bucket can be rotated an appropriate number of times according to the discharge of the ice.

As described above, the ice bank according to the present invention has the following effects.

First, the ice bank has the effect of opening and closing the ice passing hole without installing a separate solenoid. In addition, there is an effect that the capacity of the ice bank can be formed relatively large.

Second, by closing the ice passing hole while the ice is not discharged, there is an effect that can minimize the outflow of cold air into the ice chute.

Third, ice may be prevented from accumulating at the ice outlet by the ice bucket.

Fourth, by discharging the ice by the ice bucket, the ice can be more easily discharged.

Claims (7)

A bank container having an ice passage hole formed to pass ice through a predetermined portion of one wall surface, and an ice discharge hole formed to correspond to an ice chute which is a passage through which ice is discharged to the outside of the ice passage hole; A driving device installed in the bank container; An ice transporter axially coupled to the drive unit, installed to cross the inside of the bank container, and rotated to transfer ice of the bank container to an ice passing hole; At least one ice feeder is provided at a position corresponding to the ice discharge port and rotates along the rotation of the ice feeder, while at least one surface is connected to one wall surface on which the ice passing hole is formed. The ice bucket which lifts the ice discharged from the ice passing hole and drops it to the ice discharge port, rotates along the ice feeder, and opens and closes the ice passing hole formed in the one wall while closing the ice passing hole while the ice is not discharged. ; A damper rotatably installed near the ice outlet, the damper opening the ice outlet when the ice falls from the ice bucket to the ice outlet; And, And a driven assembly interlocking the rotation axis of the ice conveyor with the damper and rotating the damper a predetermined angle while the ice bucket rotates a predetermined rotation section. The method of claim 1, The driven assembly is: A drive cam axially coupled to the rotating shaft of the ice conveyor; A lever installed to rotate as it is pressed only in a predetermined rotation section of the drive cam; A first driven gear installed to engage the lever; And, And a second driven gear meshed with the first driven gear and axially coupled to the rotational shaft of the damper. The method of claim 2, The lever is: A pressurized part pressurized by the drive cam in a predetermined rotation section of the drive cam; A gear part positioned at the other end of the pressurized part and engaged with the first driven gear; And, An ice bank of the refrigerator, comprising: a rotating shaft unit installed at the center of rotation of the gear unit. The method of claim 3, The damper is an ice bank of the refrigerator, characterized in that the elastic member is installed to apply a restoring force in a direction opposite to the rotation axis of the ice conveyor. The method of claim 4, wherein A magnet is installed at a predetermined portion of the damper, and a hall sensor is installed near the ice outlet so as to face the magnet when the damper is opened to detect opening and closing of the damper. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 5, The ice bucket is an ice bank of the refrigerator, characterized in that the front end of the rotation direction is open. The method of claim 6, One side of the ice bucket is formed of a size that can close the ice passing hole ice bank of the refrigerator.

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