KR20160050254A

KR20160050254A - Ice maker

Info

Publication number: KR20160050254A
Application number: KR1020140148014A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 강영환
Original assignee: 강영환
Priority date: 2014-10-29
Filing date: 2014-10-29
Publication date: 2016-05-11

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide an ice maker with a direct cooling type freezer on an upper part, which is equipped with both a freezing room and an ice making room, and provides both an ice making function and a freezing function using a single compressor and a condenser. The ice maker with a direct cooling type freezer on an upper part comprises: a machine room (10) including a compressor (11) and a condenser (12); an ice making room (30) combined with the machine room (10); a freezing room (20) positioned on an upper part of the ice making room (30); a refrigerant line (40) which is started from the machine room (10) and connected to the ice making room (30) and the freezing room (20); and a control part (50) which controls a refrigerant supplied to the freezing room (20). In regards to this, the refrigerant line (40) includes: an ice making room capillary tube (41) connected from the condenser (12) to an ice making module (31) of the ice making room (30); a retrieval tube (42) connected from the ice making module (31) to the compressor (11); a freezing room capillary tube (43) which is connected to the retrieval tube (42) adjacent to the ice making module (31) with a first triaxial valve (61) intervening therebetween, and is connected to an evaporator (21) of the freezing room (20); a freezing room low pressure tube (44) which is connected to the evaporator (21), and is connected to the retrieval tube (42) adjacent to the compressor (11) with a second triaxial valve (62) intervening therebetween; a hot line (46) which is combined with a connecting tube (45) between the compressor (11) and the condenser (12), and is connected to the ice making room (30); and a valve (63) combined with the hot line (46).

Description

(ICE MAKER) equipped with a direct-

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an icemaker, and more particularly, to a combi-type ice maker having a direct-cooling freezer at an upper portion thereof.

An ice maker is a device that continuously mass-produces ice blocks with a uniform shape. These ice machines are used in shipyards, factories, restaurants, and cafes. The ice maker consists largely of an ice making room for ice generation and ice storage, and a machine room in which a cooling system for circulation and cooling of the refrigerant is installed.

On the other hand, a refrigerator was separately provided in a shop, and the food was frozen and stored. Therefore, the employer had to purchase the refrigerator and the ice maker separately.

However, in the case of a narrow space, there was not enough room to place the freezer and ice maker. Also, it was an economic burden if they were to be separately provided.

Accordingly, it has become necessary to develop an ice maker having both an ice-making function and a freezing function.

Technical documents related to the ice maker include Korean Patent Laid-Open Nos. 10-2001-0051251 and Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-2006-0036986.

The present invention provides an ice maker having a freezing chamber and a freezing chamber together.

The present invention also provides an ice maker having an ice-making function and a freezing function by using one compressor and a condenser.

The present invention also provides an icemaker in which a direct cooling type freezing chamber is disposed at an upper portion and an ice making chamber is disposed at a lower portion.

In addition, the present invention is intended to provide an ice maker in which hot gas does not flow back into the freezing chamber by controlling the valve.

According to an aspect of the present invention,

A machine room (10) having a compressor (11) and a condenser (12);

An ice making chamber 30 coupled with the machine room 10;

A freezing chamber 20 located above the ice making chamber 30;

A refrigerant line (40) starting from the machine room (10) and connected to the ice making chamber (30) and the freezing chamber (20);

And a controller (50) for controlling the refrigerant supplied to the ice making chamber (30) and the freezing chamber (20)

The refrigerant line (40)

An ice-making chamber capillary (41) connected to the ice-making module (31) of the ice-making chamber (30) in the condenser (12);

A recovery pipe (42) connected to the compressor (11) from the ice making module (31)

A freezing compartment capillary tube 43 connected to an evaporator 21 of the freezing compartment 20 via a first three-way valve 61 to a return pipe 42 adjacent to the ice making module 31;

A freezing compartment low pressure pipe (44) connected to the evaporator (21) and connected to the return pipe (42) adjacent to the compressor (11) through a second triaxial valve (62);

A hot line (46) coupled to the connecting pipe (45) between the compressor (11) and the condenser (12) and connected to the ice making chamber (30);

An ice maker is provided with a direct cooling freezer on top, including a hotline valve (63) coupled to the hotline (46).

Also,

The control unit (50)

In the ice-making process, the hot-line valve 63 is shut off, and the first and second triaxial valves 61 and 62 are controlled so that the refrigerant passes through the ice-making module 31 and the evaporator 21, Is recovered to the compressor (11)

The hot line valve 63 is opened to control the first triaxial valve 61 and the second triaxial valve 62 so that hot gas does not flow into the freezing chamber 20 An ice-maker provided with a direct-cooling freezer at an upper portion thereof.

In addition, the present invention provides an ice-maker having an ice-making function and a freezing function together using one compressor and a condenser.

Further, the present invention provides an ice-maker in which a direct cooling type freezing chamber is disposed at an upper portion and a ice making chamber is disposed at a lower portion.

1 is a cross-sectional view (icing and freezing process) of an ice-maker provided with a direct-cooling freezer at the top according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view (ice-making process) of an ice-maker provided with a direct-cooling freezer at an upper portion thereof according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. , Thereby not limiting the spirit and scope of the present invention.

The freezing chamber of the present embodiment may have only a refrigerating function or a refrigerating function.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view (icing and freezing process) of an ice-maker provided with a direct-cooling freezer at an upper portion thereof according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross- Process).

The ice-maker 100 equipped with the direct cooling type freezer of this embodiment,

A machine room (10) having a compressor (11) and a condenser (12);

An ice making chamber 30 coupled with the machine room 10;

A freezing chamber 20 located above the ice making module 31;

The refrigerant line (40)

A recovery pipe (42) connected to the compressor (11) in the ice making chamber (30);

And a hotline valve (63) coupled to the hotline (46).

The ice maker 100 of the present embodiment has both a freezing function and an ice-making function. In order for these functions to operate in a complex manner, the controller 50 must control the flow of the refrigerant effectively.

The machine room 10 is generally located at the bottom of the overall apparatus. The machine room 10 includes a compressor 11, a condenser 12, a blower 13, and the like, which are similar to the machine room of a general ice maker. Therefore, detailed description of the specific configuration of the machine room 10 is omitted.

The ice making chamber (30) engages with the machine room (10). An ice making module (31) is located inside the ice making chamber (30) to form ice pieces. The ice-making module 31 can use all known techniques.

The freezing chamber 20 is located above the ice making chamber 30. The refrigerant compressed in the machine room (10) is transferred to the freezer compartment (20). The freezing chamber 20 of this embodiment operates by direct cooling, and the evaporator 21 is located inside. Heat exchange occurs immediately in the evaporator 21.

In the ice making module 31, ice is formed through an ice-making process and a de-ice process. In the ice-making process, low-temperature refrigerant is supplied to the ice-making module 31 to grow ice. Thereafter, when the ice is fully grown, the high temperature gas is supplied during the dehydrating process to remove the ice combined with the ice-making frame of the ice-making module 31.

The core technology of this embodiment is to supply low temperature refrigerant to the evaporator 21 of the freezing device 20 and the ice making module 31 of the ice making chamber 30 in the ice making process, The valve is controlled so as not to be supplied.

The ice-making chamber capillary tube 41 is connected to the ice-making module 31 of the ice-making chamber 30 in the condenser 12. The refrigerant discharged from the condenser 12 is vaporized in the ice-making module 31 to absorb heat. Ice is formed in the ice-making module (31), and the ice is removed. The ice making chamber 30 may further include a water injecting device for injecting water into the ice making module 31, a water supplying device, and the like.

The ice-making chamber capillary tube 41 is connected from the condenser 12 to the ice-making module 31 of the ice-making chamber 30. The ice-making chamber capillary tube 41 absorbs heat while the liquid-state refrigerant in the ice-making chamber 31 is converted into a gas by the ice-making module 31 in the ice-making chamber 30. The first shutoff valve 411 is coupled to the ice-making chamber capillary tube 41, and the first shutoff valve 411 is automatically opened and closed under the control of the controller 50.

The recovery pipe 42 is connected to the compressor 11 from the ice-making module 31. The refrigerant having absorbed heat in the ice-making module 31 can be converted into the low-temperature-compressed refrigerant in turn through the compressor 11 and the condenser 12 in turn.

On the other hand, the freezer-compartment capillary tube 43 is connected to the return pipe 42 at a position adjacent to the ice-making module 31 via a first three-shaft valve 61. Further, the freezing compartment capillary tube 43 is connected to the evaporator 21 of the freezing compartment 20. When the first three-axis valve 61 is controlled, the refrigerant passing through the ice making module 31 may be immediately recovered to the compressor 11 along the recovery pipe 42, and the refrigerant passing through the ice- To the evaporator (21) of the evaporator (20). The refrigerant that has not sufficiently absorbed heat in the ice-making module (31) can absorb heat in the evaporator (21). Therefore, the freezing chamber 20 can be operated.

The freezing compartment low pressure pipe 44 is connected to the return pipe 42 adjacent to the compressor 11 via the second triaxial valve 62, starting from the evaporator 21. When the second three-axis valve (62) is opened, the refrigerant in the freezing compartment low-pressure pipe (44) can flow into the compressor (11). When the second three-way valve 62 is closed, the refrigerant in the freezing compartment low-pressure pipe 44 can not flow into the compressor 11, nor does it flow backward.

A connecting pipe 45 is coupled between the compressor 11 and the condenser 12. [ The hot line 46 starts at the connecting pipe 45 and is joined to the ice making module 31 of the ice making chamber 30. [ A hotline valve (63) is coupled to the hotline (46). When the hot-line valve 63 is opened, the high-pressure, high-temperature gas from the compressor 11 reaches the ice-making module 31 on the hot line 46 to ice the ice combined with the ice-making module 31. On the other hand, when the hot gas flowing on the hot line 46 flows into the evaporator 21, the freezing function of the freezing chamber 20 is lost. Therefore, it is important to control the first triaxial valve 61 and the second triaxial valve 62 so that the hot gas does not flow backward.

Meanwhile, a coupling pipe 45 is coupled between the compressor 11 and the condenser 12. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant which has passed through the compressor 11 is moved to the condenser 12. [ The hot line 46 is branched to the connection pipe 45 and the inner diameter of the hot line 46 is larger than that of the connection pipe 45. The hot line 46 is connected to the ice making module 31 of the ice making chamber 30 to supply hot gas to the ice making module 31. Hot gas is needed in the process of evacuation. A hot line valve 461 is coupled to the hot line 46, and the hot line valve 461 is controlled by the control unit 50. The inner diameter of the hot line 46 is larger than the inner diameter of the connecting pipe 45. Therefore, most of the high-pressure gas exiting the compressor 11 flows into the hot line 46.

A method in which the control unit 50 controls the valves during the deicing process and the deicing process is as follows.

The controller 50 controls the first three-axis valve 61 and the second three-axis valve 62 so that the refrigerant discharged from the condenser 12 flows into the freezing capillary 41 Through the freezing chamber capillary tube 43, the evaporator 21 and the freezer compartment low pressure pipe 44. The refrigerant is then returned to the compressor 11 through the evaporator 21, the ice-making module 31, the freezer compartment capillary 43, As a result, in the ice making process, the freezing chamber is operated simultaneously with the ice making in the ice making chamber.

The control unit 50 opens the hot line valve 63 and controls the first triaxial valve 61 and the second triaxial valve 62 so that the hot gas coming on the hot line 46 flows into the evaporator 21, . As a result, the hot gas is supplied only to the ice-making module 31. In the ice-making module (31), ice pieces are removed and dropped to the bottom of the ice making chamber (30).

The refrigerant or hot gas exiting the ice-making module (31) flows into the compressor (11) along the recovery pipe (42).

The controller 50 effectively controls the valves during the ice-making process and the de-icing process so that the ice-making chamber 30 and the freezing chamber 20 are operated by the single compressor 11 and the condenser 12, respectively.

When the ice maker 100 of the present embodiment is used, the ice making chamber 30 and the freezing chamber 20 can be completed as a single product.

The icemaker 100 of the present embodiment may have all or some of the functions of the existing icemaker in the icemaker 30. For example, a device such as a water jetting device for supplying water from the outside and jetting to an ice-making module, a circulating pump for circulating water, a drain for discharging overflowed water to the outside can be installed in the ice- In addition, a door for taking out ice and an ice reservoir for storing ice can be installed in the ice making chamber 30.

In addition, the direct-cooling freezer compartment 20 of the present embodiment can have all or optional functions of the conventional direct-cooling freezer compartment.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. Modifications and additions by those skilled in the art to an equivalent range based on the embodiment will also fall within the scope of the present invention.

An ice-maker 100 having an air-
Compressors (11) Condensers (12)
Machine room (10) Freezer room (20)
In the ice making chamber 30, the refrigerant line 40,
The ice-making chamber capillary (41)
Collecting tubes (42) Freezer chambers (43)
Freezer Low Pressure Tube (44) Connection Tube (45)
The first three-way valve 61, the second three-way valve 62,
Hotline valves (63)

Claims

A machine room (10) having a compressor (11) and a condenser (12);
An ice making chamber 30 coupled with the machine room 10;
A freezing chamber 20 located above the ice making chamber 30;
A refrigerant line (40) starting from the machine room (10) and connected to the ice making chamber (30) and the freezing chamber (20);
And a controller (50) for controlling the refrigerant supplied to the ice making chamber (30) and the freezing chamber (20)

The refrigerant line (40)
An ice-making chamber capillary (41) connected to the ice-making module (31) of the ice-making chamber (30) in the condenser (12);
A recovery pipe (42) connected to the compressor (11) from the ice making module (31)
A freezing compartment capillary tube 43 connected to an evaporator 21 of the freezing compartment 20 via a first three-way valve 61 to a return pipe 42 adjacent to the ice making module 31;
A freezing compartment low pressure pipe (44) connected to the evaporator (21) and connected to the return pipe (42) adjacent to the compressor (11) through a second triaxial valve (62);
A hot line (46) coupled to the connecting pipe (45) between the compressor (11) and the condenser (12) and connected to the ice making chamber (30);
And a hot-freezer (63) coupled to the hot line (46).

The method according to claim 1,
The control unit (50)
In the ice-making process, the hot-line valve 63 is shut off, and the first and second triaxial valves 61 and 62 are controlled so that the refrigerant passes through the ice-making module 31 and the evaporator 21, Is recovered to the compressor (11)
The hot line valve 63 is opened to control the first triaxial valve 61 and the second triaxial valve 62 so that hot gas does not flow into the freezing chamber 20 And a direct cooling type freezer on the upper part.