KR102658026B1 - Compressor for Ice Pack Freezing - Google Patents

Abstract

In the present invention, rapid freezing is achieved while the ice pack is pressed left and right through an ice pack press plate module and a press plate guide module made of a metal material with excellent heat conduction efficiency, so the production speed is significantly faster than before and the center is not swollen during packaging. This relates to a compression device for freezing ice packs that can significantly increase the packaging quantity per unit box and significantly reduce logistics and transportation costs when compared to existing ice packs that are frozen in the frozen state.

Description

Compressor for Ice Pack Freezing}

In the present invention, rapid freezing is achieved while the ice pack is pressed left and right through an ice pack press plate module and a press plate guide module made of a metal material with excellent heat conduction efficiency, so the production speed is significantly faster than before and the center is not swollen during packaging. This relates to a compression device for freezing ice packs that can significantly increase the packaging quantity per unit box and significantly reduce logistics and transportation costs when compared to existing ice packs that are frozen in the frozen state.

Generally, ice packs are manufactured with a sol-gel material with high specific heat contained inside.

Ice packs produced in this way are frozen and used as a substitute for ice for various purposes, such as storing and transporting various foods or marine products, or for beauty treatment or preventing drowsiness while driving. These ice packs are widely used because they are effective due to their long cooling time. The trend is being used.

When such ice packs are frozen and distributed in large quantities, the boxed ice packs are placed in a large freezer and frozen, as shown in FIG. 14.

However, when ice packs are packaged in boxes and frozen in a freezer, there is a problem that it takes a long time, approximately 20 days or more, to complete freezing, which increases production costs and makes it difficult to ship products to meet immediate demand.

In addition, because a large amount of ice packs are frozen in a stacked state, there is a problem in that the central part where the ice packs are in contact has a slower transfer of cold air compared to the outer part, and is not completely frozen as shown in FIG. 15.

Republic of Korea Patent No. 10-1988543 Republic of Korea Patent No. 10-2424917

The present invention was made to solve the problems of the prior art, and the purpose of the present invention is to rapidly freeze the ice pack in a state in which the ice pack is pressed from side to side through an ice pack press plate module and a press plate guide module made of a metal material with excellent heat conduction efficiency. Because this is achieved, the production speed is significantly faster than before, and compared to existing ice packs that are frozen with a bulging center during packaging, the packaging quantity per unit box can be significantly increased, and logistics and transportation costs can be significantly reduced. A compression device is provided.

The problems to be solved by the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other problems not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

In order to achieve the above object, a pressing device for freezing ice packs according to the present invention includes an ice pack pressing plate module including at least a pair of left and right pressing plates that provide individual ice pack mounting spaces so that a plurality of ice packs can be mounted separately; An ice pack compression plate guide module that guides the positions of a pair of compression plates so that each ice pack mounted on the ice pack compression plate module maintains a constant thickness, wherein the ice pack compression plate module includes a support plate coupled to a transport means, and It includes at least one pair of movable vertical compression plates movably coupled to the support plate in the left and right width directions within a certain range, and the ice pack compression plate guide module is a pair of opposing movable vertical compression plates of the ice pack disposed between the pair of movable vertical compression plates. It includes at least a pair of left and right guide rails to enable compression, wherein the pair of left and right guide rails are each composed of an upper guide rail and a lower guide rail.

In addition, in the pressing device for ice pack freezing according to the present invention, the ice pack pressing plate module is fixedly installed on the support plate and further includes at least one fixed vertical pressing plate disposed between the pair of movable vertical pressing plates; , Characterized in that a pair of mounting spaces are provided on both left and right sides based on the vertical pressing plate.

In addition, in the compression device for ice pack freezing according to the present invention, the support plate is formed with a front step or a rear step at the front or rear, and a front clearance groove and a front clearance groove at positions corresponding to the front and rear ends of each movable vertical compression plate. A rear clearance groove is installed, and the left and right side ends are characterized in that they are coupled with the transport means.

In addition, in the pressing device for ice pack freezing according to the present invention, an upper contact zone and a lower contact zone are formed on one surface of the movable vertical pressing plate at a height corresponding to the upper guide rail and the lower guide rail, and the movable vertical pressing plate The lower part of the is characterized in that it is provided with a lower locking bar that is inserted into the front clearance groove and the rear clearance groove and engages with it.

In addition, in the pressing device for ice pack freezing according to the present invention, the pair of left and right guide rails facing each other are provided with a pair of tapered structures narrowing in the entry direction at the front end where the pair of movable vertical pressing plates enters. A guide surface and a pair of parallel pressure surfaces extending from the guide surface to maintain the pressure state of the pair of movable vertical pressure plates are formed, and the guide surface and the pressure surfaces include the upper contact zone or the lower contact surface. The bearing is formed to reduce friction with the contact zone.

According to the pressing device for ice pack freezing according to the present invention, rapid freezing is achieved while the ice pack is pressed left and right through an ice pack pressing plate module and a pressing plate guide module made of a metal material with excellent heat conduction efficiency, so the production speed is lower than before. It is significantly faster, and compared to existing ice packs that are frozen with a swollen center during packaging, the packaging quantity per unit box can be significantly increased, and logistics and transportation costs can be significantly reduced.

The effects of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

Figure 1 is a side view showing the overall configuration of an ice pack refrigeration system equipped with a compression device for ice pack refrigeration according to the present invention.
Figure 2 is a diagram showing the main configuration of the ice pack mounting portion of the present invention.
Figure 3 is a side view showing the overall structure of the ice pack pickup unit and the ice pack packaging unit of the present invention.
Figure 4 is a side view showing the ice pack pickup unit of the present invention.
Figure 5 is a side view showing the discharge hole provided in the transfer table of the ice pack packaging unit of the present invention.
Figure 6 is a diagram showing a state in which a plurality of ice packs are pressed and aligned in the ice pack packaging alignment device of the present invention and then placed into a packaging box through a discharge hole.
Figure 7 is a diagram showing a compression device for freezing ice packs according to the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a view showing the ice pack pressing plate module before being pressed in the ice pack freezing pressing device of FIG. 7.
Figure 9 is a plan view of Figure 8.
Figure 10 is a plan view of Figure 7.
Figure 11 is a front view showing an ice pack mounted on the compression device for ice pack freezing according to the present invention.
Figure 12 is a front view showing the water drop-shaped ice pack of Figure 11 after it has been frozen.
Figure 13 is a photograph of a sample of the pressing device for ice pack freezing of the present invention.
Figure 14 is a photograph showing a conventional ice pack being frozen in a frozen warehouse in a packaged state.
Figure 15 is a photograph of the frozen state of an ice pack when frozen in a conventional manner as shown in Figure 14.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.

In describing the present invention, if a detailed description of a related known function or configuration is judged to unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention, the detailed description will be omitted. In addition, the terms described below are terms defined in consideration of functions in the present invention, and may vary depending on the intention of the user or operator or precedents. Therefore, the definition should be made based on the contents throughout this specification.

Figure 1 is a side view showing the overall configuration of an ice pack refrigeration system equipped with a compression device for freezing ice packs according to the present invention, Figure 2 is a diagram showing the main configuration of the ice pack mounting unit of the present invention, and Figure 3 is an ice pack pickup unit of the present invention. and a side view showing the overall structure of the ice pack packaging unit. And Figure 4 is a side view showing the ice pack pickup unit of the present invention, Figure 5 is a side view showing the discharge hole provided in the transfer table of the ice pack packaging unit of the present invention, and Figure 6 is a plurality of ice packs in the alignment device of the ice pack packaging unit of the present invention. This is a diagram showing how to press, align, and then put it into a packaging box through the discharge hole.

1 to 6, the pressing device 100 for freezing ice packs according to the present invention includes at least a pair of left and right pressing plates that provide individual ice pack mounting spaces 116 so that a plurality of ice packs 1 can be mounted separately. An ice pack pressing plate module 110 including (113, 115), and a guide for guiding the position of a pair of pressing plates 113, 115 so that each ice pack 1 mounted on the ice pack pressing plate module 110 maintains a constant thickness. It may include an ice pack pressure plate guide module 130.

The ice pack pressing plate module 110 of the present invention includes a support plate 111, at least one pair of movable vertical pressing plates 113, and at least one fixed vertical pressing plate 115.

The support plate 111 serves to support the movable vertical pressing plate 113 and the fixed vertical pressing plate 115, and a front step 111a or a rear step 111b is formed at the front and rear. , a front clearance groove portion (111c) and a rear clearance groove portion (111d) are installed at positions corresponding to the front and rear ends of each movable vertical compression plate 113, and the transfer chain 313, which is a transfer means, is located at the left and right side ends. A chain coupling portion 112 where coupling is performed is installed.

The front step 111a or the rear step 111b serves to ensure that the ice pack 1 is accurately positioned in the ice pack mounting space 116.

The front clearance groove 111c and the rear clearance groove 111d provide a space for the movable vertical pressing plate 113 to move left and right, so that the ice pack 1 is positioned at the upper side of the ice pack mounting space 116. It serves to secure sufficient space when falling.

That is, since the movable vertical pressing plate 113 is in a movable state before the ice pack 1 is mounted in the ice pack mounting space 116, it is pushed to one side when the ice pack falls.

The movable vertical pressing plate 113 is formed at least one pair coupled to the support plate 111 so as to be movable in the left and right width directions within a certain range.

More specifically, an upper contact zone (113b) and a lower contact zone (113c) are formed on one surface of the movable vertical pressing plate 113 at a height corresponding to the upper guide rail (132a) and the lower guide rail (132b), , The lower end of the movable vertical pressing plate 113 is provided with a lower stopper (113a) that is inserted into and engages the front and rear clearance grooves (111c) and the rear clearance grooves (111d).

The fixed vertical pressing plate 115 is fixedly installed on the support plate 111 and is disposed between the pair of movable vertical pressing plates 113, and is located on both sides with respect to the fixed vertical pressing plate 115. A pair of loading spaces are provided.

The ice pack press plate guide module 130 of the present invention includes at least a pair of left and right guide rails 132a and 132b to compress the ice pack 1 disposed between a pair of opposing movable vertical press plates 113. Includes.

And the pair of left and right guide rails 132a and 132b are each composed of an upper guide rail 132a and a lower guide rail 132b, and each guide rail has a bearing 133c installed between the upper and lower plates.

The upper guide rail 132a is located on the same vertical line as the lower guide rail 132b.

The pair of left and right guide rails 132a and 132b facing each other are provided with a pair of guide surfaces 133a having a tapered structure narrowed in the entry direction at the front end where the pair of movable vertical pressing plates 113 enters. ) and a pair of pressing surfaces 133b extending from each guide surface 133a and arranged in parallel to maintain the pressing state of the pair of movable vertical pressing plates 113 are formed.

The bearings 133c are formed on the guide surface 133a and the pressure surface 133b to reduce friction with the upper contact zone 113b or the lower contact zone 113a, respectively.

The bearing 133c may be a cylindrical bearing as shown, or may be made of a bearing of another structure, such as a ball bearing.

A total of three guide rails are shown in Figure 2, where the guide surface 133a and the pressure surface 133b are formed on the left and right sides of the upper and lower pair of guide rails disposed in the center, respectively, and the left and right A guide surface (133a) and a pressing surface (133b) are formed on only one side of the guide rail disposed. However, only one pair of upper and lower guide rails disposed in the center is shown, but of course, they can be configured in multiple numbers according to the packaging unit.

The lower guide rail 132b is fixed on the support panel 131 constituting the transfer unit, which will be described later, and the upper guide rail 132a is attached to the support frame 13 disposed on the top of the base frame 11, which will be described later. It is fixed by combining with the installed support bar (135).

Meanwhile, the support plate 111, the movable vertical pressing plate 113, and the fixed vertical pressing plate 115 that constitute the ice pack pressing plate module 110 are preferably made of a metal material such as stainless steel or aluminum with high thermal conductivity. In this way, the support plate, movable vertical pressing plate, and fixed vertical pressing plate that divide the individual ice pack mounting space are made of metal material, so that cooling efficiency can be maximized compared to the method of cooling multiple ice packs in a conventional box in a freezer. .

In addition, since the components that partition the individual ice pack mounting space 116 are completely immersed in the liquid refrigerant together with the ice pack, each ice pack is frozen in a matter of minutes to tens of minutes.

The liquid refrigerant is ethyl alcohol, and may be used at a temperature of -30°C to 75°C, but is not limited thereto.

On the other hand, the method of cooling a number of ice packs in a conventional box by putting them in a freezer requires a freezing period of at least 20 days or more. This is because a large number of ice packs, for example, 42 ice packs, stacked up, down, left, and right in one box are used to cool the gas. This is because in order to be frozen by the coldness of the state, cooling occurs sequentially starting from the ice pack placed on the outside.

Below, an ice pack refrigeration system equipped with a compression device for ice pack refrigeration according to the present invention will be described.

FIG. 7 is a view showing a compression device for freezing ice packs according to the present invention, FIG. 8 is a view showing the ice pack compression plate module before being compressed in the compression device for freezing ice packs of FIG. 7, and FIG. 9 is a plan view of FIG. 8. , and FIG. 10 is a top view of FIG. 7. And FIG. 11 is a front view showing an ice pack mounted on a compression device for freezing an ice pack according to the present invention, and FIG. 12 is a front view showing the water drop-shaped ice pack of FIG. 11 completed frozen.

Referring to FIGS. 7 to 12, the ice pack refrigeration system 10 equipped with a compression device for freezing ice packs according to the present invention is provided with a compression device 100 for freezing ice packs, thereby maintaining the thickness of the ice pack 1 constant. Allows freezing to occur in frozen state.

More specifically, the ice pack refrigeration system 10 according to the present invention includes a base frame 11, an ice pack mounting unit 200, a compression device 100 for freezing the ice pack, a transfer unit 300, a cooling unit 400, and , may include an ice pack pickup unit 500 and an ice pack packaging unit 600.

The base frame 11 serves to support the ice pack mounting unit 200, the ice pack packaging unit 600, and the transfer unit 300 disposed at the front and rear ends.

The ice pack mounting unit 200 is disposed at the front end of the base frame 11 to supply and mount the ice pack 1. The frozen ice pack is removed from the ice pack pressing plate module 110 and placed on the base frame. (11) It includes a tong robot unit 213 and a cable bear 211 to be transferred to the transfer table 620 provided on one side of the rear end.

The transfer unit 300 is installed to circulate from the front end to the rear end of the base frame 11 and serves to transfer the ice pack pressing plate module 110.

More specifically, the transfer unit 300 includes a support panel 131 installed on the base frame 11, a transfer rail 311 installed on the support panel 131, and the base frame 11. It has an endless track structure that circulates up and down from the front end to the rear end and includes a transfer chain 313 installed on the transfer rail 311.

The transfer chain 313 is installed at the rear and front ends of the base frame 11 and includes a drive sprocket 317a that transmits rotational force by a drive motor, a driven sprocket 317b, and a drive sprocket 317a and a driven sprocket. It may be composed of a plurality of guide sprockets (317c) disposed between (317b).

The plurality of guide sprockets 317c serve to guide the transfer chain so that the ice pack pressing plate module descends when it is transported toward the cooling water tank and rises when it leaves the cooling water tank.

The cooling unit 400 includes a section 401 in which the transfer chain 313 descends, a cooling section 400 in which the ice pack 1 is completely immersed and cooled, and a section 402 in which the transfer chain 313 rises. ), and a plurality of discharge ports 411 are installed in the cooling water tank 410.

The ice pack pickup unit 500 includes a tong robot unit 512 and a tongs robot unit 512 to remove the frozen ice pack from the ice pack pressing plate module 110 and transfer it to the transfer table 620 provided on one side of the rear end of the base frame 11. Includes cable bear (511).

And the ice pack packaging unit 600 includes the transfer table 620 provided with a discharge hole 622, a conveyor 621 for supplying packaging boxes directly below the discharge hole 622, and the transfer table. It includes an alignment device 630 that aligns the plurality of ice packs 1 seated in 620 by pressing them from left and right, and a linear actuator 610 that moves the aligned ice packs 1 to the discharge hole 622. .

The alignment device may be composed of a cylinder 631 and an alignment plate 633 coupled to the end of the shaft 632 of the cylinder to adhere the ice pack placed on the transfer table from left and right. The cylinder 631 is a linear Connected to the actuator 610 and moving back and forth, a plurality of ice packs that are in close contact with the alignment plate are moved toward the discharge hole, and then the alignment plate is released from tight contact and dropped into the packaging box.

Meanwhile, the ice pack refrigeration system 10 of the present invention is configured to freeze the ice pack 1 in a rectangular parallelepiped structure through the ice pack pressing plate module 110, and a plurality of ice packs 1 are aligned left and right through the alignment device 630. Since it is put into the packaging box 623 in a close contact state, the quantity of ice packs accommodated in the existing packaging box can be greatly increased, which has the effect of significantly reducing logistics and transportation costs.

For example, ice packs frozen in an uncompressed state generally have a structure with a convex bulge in the center, so about 24 to 28 units can be accommodated in each unit packaging box, whereas in the present invention, up to 42 ice packs can be accommodated, allowing at least 50% more packaging. It becomes possible.

In addition, because the ice pack refrigeration efficiency increases dramatically, production costs can be greatly reduced and mass supply is possible.

The present invention described above is merely illustrative, and those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications and other equivalent embodiments are possible therefrom. Therefore, it will be understood that the present invention is not limited to the forms mentioned in the detailed description above. Therefore, the true scope of technical protection of the present invention should be determined by the technical spirit of the attached patent claims. In addition, the present invention should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents and substitutes within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

10: Ice pack refrigeration system 11: Base frame
13: Support frame
100: Ice pack freezing compression device 110: Ice pack compression plate module
111: support plate 111a: front step
111b: rear step 111c: front gap groove
111d: rear clearance groove 112: chain coupling part
113: movable vertical pressing plate 113a: lower hanging bar
113b: upper contact zone 113c: lower contact zone
115: Fixed vertical pressing plate 116: Ice pack mounting space
130: Ice pack compression plate guide module 131: Support panel
132a: upper guide rail 132b: lower guide rail
133a: Guide surface 133b: Pressing surface
133c: bearing 135: support bar
200: Ice pack mounting unit 210: Supply conveyor
211: Cable Bear 213: Clamp Robot Unit
300: transfer unit 311: transfer rail
313: Transfer chain 317a: Drive sprocket
317b: driven sprocket 317c: guide sprocket
400: Cooling unit 410: Cooling water tank
411: outlet 500: ice pack pickup unit
511: Cable Bear 512: Clamp Robot Unit
600: Ice pack packaging unit 610: Linear actuator
620: transfer table 621: conveyor
622: discharge hole 623: packaging box
630: Alignment device 631: Cylinder
632: Shaft 633: Alignment plate

Claims (5)

an ice pack press plate module including at least a pair of left and right press plates that provide individual ice pack mounting spaces so that a plurality of ice packs can be mounted separately;
It includes an ice pack press plate guide module that guides the position of a pair of press plates so that each ice pack mounted on the ice pack press plate module maintains a constant thickness,
The ice pack compression plate module,
It includes a support plate coupled to the transport means, and at least one pair of movable vertical pressing plates movably coupled to the support plate in the left and right width directions within a certain range,
The ice pack pressure plate guide module is,
It includes at least a pair of left and right guide rails to compress the ice pack disposed between a pair of facing movable vertical compression plates, wherein the pair of left and right guide rails each consist of an upper guide rail and a lower guide rail. Characterized by a compression device for freezing ice packs.
According to paragraph 1,
The ice pack pressing plate module is fixedly installed on the support plate and further includes at least one fixed vertical pressing plate disposed between the pair of movable vertical pressing plates, and a pair of fixed vertical pressing plates on both left and right sides based on the vertical pressing plate. A compression device for freezing ice packs, characterized in that a mounting space is provided.
According to paragraph 1,
The support plate has a front step or a rear step formed at the front or rear, a front clearance groove and a rear clearance groove are installed at positions corresponding to the front and rear ends of each movable vertical compression plate, and the transfer groove is installed at the left and right side ends. A compression device for freezing an ice pack, characterized in that it is combined with a means.
According to paragraph 3,
On one side of the movable vertical pressing plate, an upper contact zone and a lower contact zone are formed at a height corresponding to the upper guide rail and the lower guide rail, and the lower end of the movable vertical pressing plate is inserted into the front clearance groove and the rear clearance groove and is caught. A compression device for freezing ice packs, characterized in that it is provided with a lower engaging bracket.
According to clause 4,
The pair of left and right guide rails facing each other includes a pair of guide surfaces with a tapered structure that narrows in the entry direction at the front end where the pair of movable vertical compression plates enter, and a pair of guide surfaces extending from the guide surfaces and A pair of parallel-structured pressing surfaces are formed to maintain the pressing state of the movable vertical pressing plate,
A pressing device for ice pack freezing, characterized in that bearings are formed on the guide surface and the pressing surface to reduce friction with the upper contact zone or the lower contact zone.

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