US2695502A - Ice-making apparatus - Google Patents

Ice-making apparatus Download PDF

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US2695502A
US2695502A US195664A US19566450A US2695502A US 2695502 A US2695502 A US 2695502A US 195664 A US195664 A US 195664A US 19566450 A US19566450 A US 19566450A US 2695502 A US2695502 A US 2695502A
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ice
evaporator
tank
temperature
valve
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Muffly Glenn
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    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25C—PRODUCING, WORKING OR HANDLING ICE
    • F25C1/00—Producing ice
    • F25C1/12—Producing ice by freezing water on cooled surfaces, e.g. to form slabs

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  • hoWevergthat the "above mentioned application includes features .adapted ⁇ for use in household refrigerators and the present application willbe useful in commerical as. ⁇
  • O'ne of the objects ofthe present invention is to elimi-l natethe need ffor a water pump withv itsattendant requirementlofa packing gland or a vertical drive shaft, ⁇
  • Ariotherlobject is to utilize the elevator which-lifts the ice'from'the water for the additional purpose of agitat ⁇ ing the water ⁇ so as to maintain a constant-flow of water- ⁇ overth'e surfaceslof the ice asit forms.
  • AA further object is to reduce the power requirement lforagitating the water and lifting the ice.
  • Anfadditi'onal objeetis ⁇ to ⁇ provide positive means for i rolling "ice 'disks into'the ice storage compartment instead) of 'employing water flow to float them from ⁇ the tankin which they' are formed or to use a head of water to -pushthem out.
  • Another'object is to provide means for lifting lthe ice i disksfroml the water ⁇ in ⁇ a manner to drain Water from itghemk more completely before they drop into the ⁇ ice un erft
  • Still another object is to accomplish -the'ice lifting and wateragitation #withfa motor requiring anelectricalinput more nearlylbalancing-the number of B. t. u.s per hour requ1redto-ma1ntam a Jbutter compartment at the optimum temperature whenflocatedtwithn the ⁇ food storage compartment of a household refrigerator;
  • a furtherobject is to causeltheow diverting valve'td" servethe additional purpose of aiding 1n the detrostlng of' the freezer evaporator and providing for ⁇ pre's ⁇ sure relief" from "the Vevaporator being defrosted. ⁇
  • Figure Vl is a side elevationof the upper portionof a household refrigerator showing the ice-making apparatus partly in section.”
  • Figure 2 is a front vieW-of' Figure 1 showing thesaine apparatus.
  • Figure l3 is'a horizontal sectional view'of Figure l or Figure 2 taken on the line 3-'-3 thereof, omitting thebelt Figure 4 is a front elevationof the upperportionofa refrigerator showing a modified arrangement ⁇ inwhich"" ice is rolled out-of the ice-maker tank and stored ina separate ice bunker.
  • Figure 5 is a plan view of the apparatusseen'in Fig ⁇ ure 4.
  • the refrigerator' cabinet 10 encloses an ice-maker tank 12 in-Whichice is frozen bythe method disclosed in my previ-ous patents and copending applications and particularly shown in 'my United States application Serial No. 174,944 wherein two disks of ice separately started are causedhto freeze to-l gether to make a thicker disk which is then released 'to float and is pushed from the tank by the head of'water back of it.
  • the pulley 20 is driven at a suitable speed to drive the" belt at such linear velocity that the vanes 16' enter and ⁇ leave the waterin the ice-maker tank 12 withoutobjectional splashing or noise and yet fast enough to produce a substantial circulation of water withinthe icemaker tank 12 in ⁇ a counter-clockwisedirection as viewed 1n Figure "1.
  • the butter compartment 56 is located beside and preferably separated from the ice bunker 26. At its front, it is provided with a door 58 for access and at its rear is provided with a thermostatically controlled shutter 60 which opens in response to a drop of temperature within the butter compartment to allow warm air and radiant heat from the motor 48 to enter the butter compartment for the purpose of maintaining its temperature. As the butter compartment rises to the desired temperature, the thermostat 62 moves the shutter in a closing direction to reduce the heat input to the butter compartment.
  • a curved shield 64 is provided as an extension of one or two walls to prevent the ice disks from rolling oif from the ends of the vanes 16 as they approach their top position.
  • the vane then pushes the ice disk off the top of the pulley with suflicient force to carry it over the wall 32 into the ice bunker.
  • the vane 16 which carried the ice disk up will push the ice disk over the top of the wall 32 so that it falls into the ice bunker.
  • the shield 36 fits into the tank 12 and provides an angular wall 66 which aids in guiding ice toward the elevator.
  • This shield is readily removable by merely lifting it out after removing ice from the bunker 26.
  • the somewhat similar float cover 38 may be removed by sliding it rearwardly, tilting and lifting it out along with the float 42, its lever arm 68 and its pivot pin 70.
  • k This provides access to the valve 44 which is preferably threaded into a fitting such as 72 and is readily removable therefrom by the use of a socket wrench.
  • the valve 44 is similar to an automobile tire valve, having a removable core or valve guts. Such valves are well-known as tank valves and are commonly provided with 1/s male pipe threads.
  • the butter compartment 56 is provided with a glass bottom 82 supported by the two side members 84 which are tied together by two or more cross members such as 86. This compartment is closed at the front by the door 58 and at the rear abuts the rear liner of the cabinet, so that no rear wall is required.v There is, however, a partial dividing wall 88 arranged to separate the butter compartment 56 from the rear compartment 90 in which is located the lamp 92. This wall stops short of the top and bottom of the butter compartment so that the heat produced by the lamp causes warm air to ow forwardly over the partition member 88 and to return below it. In conventional refrigerators it has been customary to provide such a lamp with a switch arranged to close when the refrigerator door is opened.
  • Such a switch is located within the housing 94 and actuated by the push rod 96 which extends forward so that the switch is opened whenever the door is closed.
  • This second switch is of the thermostatic type and arranged to close in response to a drop of air temperature within the compartment 56 and to re-open in response to a rise of this temperature.
  • Such switches have previously been employed to actuate heating elements for the purpose of maintaining the desired temperature in a butter compartment of a refrigerator, but
  • the thermostatic switch need not carry a heavy current, I propose to include a resistance coil in series with this thermostatic switch and the lamp, so that when the lamp is lighted for the purpose of producing heat,
  • metal.y element'. .62 drops 1.-to C. the. minimumlitemperatnre desired within ⁇ thetbutter. compartment, thus .allowing fheat.. l from' .the...motor..r48 :tokbe .transferred by. .radiation and.
  • Thefslamp .bulb maybe .removed .by sliding the 4glass .L
  • bunker;r This provides .storage spacetor. Athe '.waterlrre'a. 255.2:sulting 'fromicermeltagein the event: .of .current failure" or..-.accidental stoppage of .the refrigerating system... In...
  • Assembly of the wire element to the tank is acomplished by hooking the ends 132 back of the lip 134 andtherr., swinging lthefwire memberv downwardly throughthe adjacent corner of the ice-maker tank until the vertical legs %,.;128 snapinto position as shown ⁇ in Figure 4f Removal'. isaccomplished by squeezing Ithe two legs ⁇ 128 together. ⁇ so that the wire will .again pass through.the corner of ⁇ the.icemaker tank..
  • the .float 42 ispivoted at 70 to the inverted. U-shaped member 138 which ts snugly over the end of fthe ice-4 maker tank so that when the float 42 falls as a result of a drop of water level in the ice-maker tank the arm 681con tactsthe stem of the valve 4.4 to admit additionalwater... from the supply tube 140.
  • a wall member 142 which .is preferablyfremovable, .is provided to preventanypieces of ice from lloating into the water tank 114. Ice disks are free ⁇ to o'at upward whenreleased .since ⁇ the ice-maker. tank 12 is slightly wider. at its top than at its bottom as. is thesimilar tank 12 -seen in Figure 2.
  • This ice mayV :..flo ⁇ at directly' into the path of the .vanes 16 of the t belt 18" or they may be guided into such contact by the angu lar wire legs 130 or by the .shield 144 which protects the float 42.
  • FIG. 6 shows diagrammatically a system suitable for use in connection with the previous views and including a freezer evaporator 148 which is employed to cool a frozen food compartment as is the evaporator 20 of my copending United States Patent Application Serial No. 74,528 led February 24, 1949, or evaporator 88 of my copending United States patent application Serial No. 178,498 filed August 9, 1950.
  • This evaporator includes a header 150 and is selectively cooled under control of solenoid valve 152 and thermostatic switch 154 which responds to temperature changes of a bulb located adjacent to evaporator 148.
  • valve 152 The solenoid of valve 152 is energized while motorcompressor unit operates to cool evaporators 80 and 74. During this period refrigerant vapor compressed by the motor-compressor unit 156 is delivered to the condenser 158 and liquid accumulating therein llows into the receiver 159 and thence through the tube -160 to the expansion valve 161 which is of the thermostatic type and has its bulb 162 adjustedly supported, as will be explained later.
  • Liquid refrigerant leaves the expansion valve 161 through the tube 163 which extends into the tube 164 past the point at which tube 164 is joined by tube 166. This produces a jet effect which induces ilow through the tube 166 in the direction indicated by the arrow. A portion of the liquid refrigerant evaporates in the evaporator 80, seen in previous figures as part of the ice maker.
  • the solenoid valve 152 is lifted so that refrigerant vapor flows from the tube 168 into the main suction tube 170, which leads back into the low pressure casing of the motor-compressor unit 156.
  • This cycle of operation is under control of the thermostatic switch 172 which when closed energizes the motor of the unit 156 and also closes the circuit through the solenoid of valve 152 which causes the armature of the solenoid to lift the valve so that tube 168 is open to tube 170.
  • the thermostatic switch 154 When only the thermostatic switch 154 is closed as a result of a rise of temperature in the freezer compartment cooled by the evaporator 148, the motor-compressor unit 156 is likewise energized, but there is no Ilow of current through the solenoid of valve 152, hence the outlet of tube 168 is closed and enough pressure will have built up in the evaporators '74 and 80 to close the expansion valve 161.
  • Liquid refrigerant therefore flows from the tube 160 through the branch liquid tube 174 to the expansion valve 176, which feeds the freezer evaporator 148.
  • Vaporized refrigerant leaves the evaporator 148 through the suction tube 178 which connects with the header 151B and is now open at the valve 152 for the llow of refrigerant vapor from the tube 178 to the main suction tube 170 and thence back to the unit 156.
  • thermostatic switch 172 recloses before the switch 154 reopens, the cooling effect will shift back to the evaporators 80 and 74, due to the energizing of the solenoid and consequent lifting of the valve member of 152.
  • the main food compartment of the refrigerator is thus cooled and ice is formed until the switch 172 reopens, whereupon cooling of the evaporator 148 continues until the freezer air temperature falls to the cutout point of the switch 154, whereupon the unit 156 stops.
  • An additional switch 180 is provided for defrosting of the evaporator 148.
  • This may be a double pole, double throw switch, which for convenience and clarity is here shown as 180A and 188B, with the two blades or movable members shown in solid lines and their alternative positions shown by dotted lines.
  • the switch 188 is in its normal position which prevails at all times except when the heating element 182 is to be energized for thepurpose of defrosting the freezer evaporator 148.
  • V The switch may be actuated either manually or automatically, but it is preferred that at least the termination of the defrosting operation be automatic, as disclosed in my copending patent application Serial No. 178,498 above mentioned, which discloses means for accomplishing automatic starting as well as stopping of the defrosting operation.
  • FIG 6 also shows connections for supplying electrical energy to the motor 48 and to the lamp switch and butter compartment heater 94 which are seen in Figures 2 and 3.
  • the thermostatic switch 172 is shown with two bulbs instead of the usual single bulb. One of these bulbs is adjustably located adjacent to an ice making area and the other is located so as to be responsive to changes in the quantity of ice in storage under the additional influence of changes in air temperature within the refrigerator, as disclosed in my copending application, Serial No. 178,498 and illustrated by bulb positions in Figure 6 thereof.
  • This arrangement causes the switch 172 to regulate the ice making cycles to produce ice disks of the desired size and to maintain the desired quantity of ice in storage, this quantity of ice being greater when the air temperature of the main food compartment of the refrigerator is near its high limit than when the air temperature is near its low limit.
  • the present invention provides additional means for proportioning the cooling eifects produced by the ice maker evaporator 80 and Vthe cabinet air cooling evaporator 74.
  • the expansion valve 161 being of the thermostatic type, is urged in its closing direction by a reduction of temperature of the bulb 162. In the event that the bulb 162 is at a higher-than-normal temperature, the expansion valve 161 maintains a higher-than-normal operating pressure within the evaporators 80 and 74.
  • the bulb 162 is associated with the outlet of evaporator 74, but also has a considerable portion of its length exposed to air temperatures above its contact with the tube 168.
  • the bulb is adjustably supported so that more or less of its length can be exposed to cabinet air temperature. An upward adjustment of the bulb may raise the liquid level within the bulb above the uppermost contact between the bulb and its support or with the tube 168.
  • This provides for increasing the ilow of liquid refrigerant through the expansion valve 161 when the air temperature within the refrigerator is higher than normal.
  • This increased flow of liquid causes evaporator 80 to operate at a higher-than-normal evaporating temperature, thus slowing down the formation of ice.
  • the greater supply of liquid causes more of the evaporator 74 to be cooled and this cooling is prolonged due to the slower formation of ice and consequent longer running period for each batch of ice frozen.
  • the expansion valve 161 is set at a considerably higher superheat than is customary in thermostatic expansion valves, thus the expansion valve 161 is controlled mainly by air temperature and only in emergency by suction tube temperature to prevent frost-back.
  • evaporator 74 l 9 rt mayhave only its klower loops frosted during normalioperation of thef refrigerator; but in -theevent ⁇ offrequent door mopenings; ⁇ anfr excessively high: ⁇ ambient temperature, or the ⁇ placing of anfunusualiiamount.
  • Figure ⁇ illustratesthemethod of controlling ⁇ cabinet air temperature .in,the.main.foodspacepwhich must be. ⁇
  • Evaporator ⁇ 80 ⁇ is. under.;control of thermostatic lswitch 172 which has ⁇ two bulbs 1.73 and 173 .connected with Yit, bulb 1173 being located relative to an. ice-making area and bulb "17la”relative,to ⁇ ,.thefheightzoffthe maximum ice supply lin the storage, compartment,.26.
  • Equivalent loca- ".tions .of the.two bulbs connected with one thermostatic switch are shownat, 44and .138 .in' Figure 6 of -my copending U ⁇ . S, patent lapplication,Serial sNo. ⁇ V178,498 ⁇ tiled ⁇ ⁇ Augustr9, 1950. "Bulbj173 regulatesice-,making periods Vby stopping the compressorwhen.
  • Each of these bulbs'. is affected -tofsome ⁇ extent byA a rise of cabinet air temperature,.inlthe direction of hastening thelstarting 'ofan ice-making cycle andA increasing running timegfwhich etfecttends to cause morecooling ⁇ ofcabinet air when the cabinet air-temperature is higher *than normal, but I have rinthe ⁇ present application shown f'additional meansfor control ofcabinet airtemperature- This Acontrol is accomplished ⁇ by further modification of the ice-making cycles and lby varying the ;amount :of cool- Vlarger portion of the'evaporatoi 74 will be actively cooled by the evaporation'of refrigerant.
  • thermostaticexpansion -valve 161 which is responsive to Variations of low side pressure and also I to variations in temperature fof thebulb 162.
  • 'Such bulbs are commonly placed iniheat exchange relationship with the outlet of an evaporator and the valve is designed to maintain approximately the desired temperature at ⁇ the 4evaporator outlet. It is common practice to identify the setting of such ⁇ valves -in'terms of superheat of refrig- 1 erant vapor at the pointfof bulb attachment ⁇ to theevaporator outlet tube. They are used to insure coolingof substantiallythe entire evaporator from'start to ⁇ finishy of its active period.
  • the bulb 162 has only a slight contact with the tube ⁇ 1158l leading from evaporator 74 but has a considerable portion of its areaexposed to lthe circulation of warm air approaching thetop ofthe tins 76 of evaporator 74.
  • valve ⁇ 161 responsive to ⁇ tem- ⁇ perature changes-of bulb ⁇ 162 at higher temperatures than usual.
  • i-the valve 161 is setatY a much higher superheat4 ythan usual.
  • theevaporatorit may be operating at l ⁇ F. withsubstantiallyall oftheliquid refrigerant evaporatingdngthe evaporator 80 and very little of it inl evaporator 74. This condition would be 162 rises.
  • i be mainly responsive -to :temperature lof ⁇ the warmer l'ing done bythe'flnn'ed evapo.rator ⁇ 74.
  • l It willV be obvious desired size Aand,.duri ng..this longer .periodof operation a 5:8
  • ThisY arrangementof ⁇ the bulb 162 so asto cabinet air approaching ⁇ the 4top ofthe fins76 ⁇ modifies the cooling lof evaporator -74 'so that only one or two .of lits lower loops may be cooled by-evaporation of refrigerant when cabinet air temperature is low (say 35TF.) and substantiallyall of evaporator 74 is cooled Whentheair temperature rises to say 40" F.
  • thebulb 162- replaces Y'the usual bulb'of a thermostatic switchiin the control-of cabinet air temperature.
  • this bulb causes evaporator 74 to be-more fully cooled and to ⁇ be cooled for longeroperating periods; ⁇ thus pulling the air temperature down to normal for the purpose of hold-
  • the adjustment of bulb ⁇ 162 relative ⁇ to tube" 168 to ⁇ decreasethethermal conductivitybetween' these parts has the effect lof a colder setting ofthe ordinary manual adjustment of a thermostat switch which responds to air temperature within the cabinet.
  • the knob'188, Fig. 2 may be arranged to move bulb "162 for this purpose.
  • ⁇ Another effect obtained by the system illustrated in Fig; 6, as applied to any of the other figures and particularly to Figs. l, 2 and 3, is that in the event of a prolonged idle period, such as might be vcaused ⁇ by failure of the ⁇ source of current,fthefr eserve fcooling effect of ice and rcoldrwater ⁇ in-the.Y tank 12 becomes Veffectivefincooling cabinet air, ⁇ ⁇ not only fby.qexposed surfacesofrthel tank and of the evaporator 80, but by means of evaporator 74 which acts as a secondary evaporator during idle periods of the system with evaporator 80 serving as the secondary condenser.
  • This hold-over effect can be greatly increased by raising the water level 24 so that at least the lower portion of the ice stored in ice bunker 26 1s below the water level. While it is true that the water within the tank 12 is normally maintained between 32 F. and 39.2 F., and is consequently within the range of reverse thermal expansion of water, the 32 water in contact with the ice will be more dense than the water in the tank 12 when the latter rises to 40 F. Thus there will be thermal circulation of water in the event of a prolonged idle period such as might result from current failure and this utilizes the stored ice more effectively for the purpose of cabinet air cooling in an emergency.
  • the motor 48 may be connected across the line to run continuously or it may be connected as shown in Figure 6 so that this motor operates during ice freezing periods only. In the latter case it is assumed that the tank 12 will have ample volume above its ice-making areas for released nieces of ice to float out of contact with such areas or that upon starting of motor 48 ice will be removed rapidly enough to insure against any of the floating pieces of ice being trapped by freezing to the wall areas which evaporator 8i) is starting to cool.
  • Figure 6 also shows the wiring to the assembly 94 which includes a heating element and a thermostatic switch for connecting the heating element of 94 in series with lamp 92 when the temperature of butter compartment 56 falls and opening this circuit when the butter compartment has risen to the desired high limit of temperature.
  • the lamp 92 lights under full line voltage as usual when the door-operated switch is closed, this switch being connected to short out the heating element of 94.
  • a refrigerating system for cooling said refrigerator, an evaporator included in said system and arranged to cool air within said refrigerator, a portion of said evaporator near its inlet end being arranged for making ice, a thermostatically controlled expansion valve connected in said system to control the iiow of liquid refrigerant to said evaporator, a thermally affected element of said expansion valve being exposed to said air and mainly responsive to temperature changes thereof, and control means responsive to the increase in volume of a body of said ice to control the removal of refrigerant vapor from said evaporator, said expansion valve and control means coacting to cause said evaporator to present more cooled area to said air and be actively cooled by removal of vapor therefrom for longer periods of time when said air temperature is higher.
  • a refrigerating system including two evaporators connected in series, the first of said evaporators being adapted for producing sub-freezing temperatures and the second for cooling air within said refrigerator, valve means controlling the flow of liquid refrigerant to the rst of said evaporators, and thermally responsive means for controlling the first said means to increase said ow mainly in response to a rise of temperature of the cooled air in said refrigerator, whereby more or less-liquid refrigerant is caused to enter and evaporate in said second evaporator and said air temperature is thereby held within preselected limits.
  • ice-making means In a refrigerator, ice-making means, an evaporator associated with said ice-making means, a thermostatic expansion valve arranged to control the fiow of liquid refrigerant to said evaporator, a second evaporator arranged to cool air within said refrigerator and connected in series to receive liquid refrigerant and the vapor thereof from the first said evaporator, said expansion valve having a thermally affected element located in position to respond to changes of air temperature within said refrigerator whereby said evaporators are supplied with an increased flow of liquid refrigerant and caused to operate at higher temperatures when said air temperature is high, and control means responsive to ice formation for controlling the operating periods of said pair of evaporators, said operating periods being thereby prolonged when the evaporators are operating at higher temperatures and ice is therefore being frozen more slowly, said valve regulating ow so that only a part of the second said evaporator is cooled by evaporation of refrigerant during periods of low temperature operation and a greater part of it being so cooled during periods
  • a refrigerating system including two evaporators, one of said evaporators being arranged to cool a space in which the air temperature is maintained above 32 F. and the other being adapted for operation at a lower temperature, means forming an outlet passage for each of said evaporators, means forming a main suction passage of said system, valve means arranged to connect said outlet passages one at a time with said main suction passage, heating means associated with said lower temperature evaporator to defrost it by causing refrigerant to evaporate and to condense therein, and control means for simultaneously energizing said heating means and actuating said valve means to close the outlet passage of said lower temperature evaporator, said valve means being so constructed and arranged as to act as a pressure relief valve allowingA refrigerant vapor to escape from said lower temperature evaporator into another portion of said system when excessive pressures are developed in said lower temperature evaporator.
  • a refrigerator cabinet including a compartment for the storage of frozen foods and a second compartment adapted to be maintained above 32 F., a refrigeration system including two evaporators, one for each of said compartments, means forming a main suction passage of said system, means forming a separate outlet passage for each of the two said evaporators, valve means arranged to connect said outlet passages one at a time with said main suction passage, and means for defrosting the evaporator which cools said frozen food compartment and simultaneously actuating said valve means to close the outlet passage of the last said evaporator.
  • a pair of evaporators connected in series, a thermostatic expansion valve connected to supply liquid refrigerant to the first of said evaporators, and a control bulb of said valve located adjacent to the second of said evaporators and primarily in heat exchange with cooled air adjacent said evaporator, said bulb being also in adjustable heat exchange with the outlet portion of said second evaporator.
  • a refrigerating system means for controlling said system to effect cyclic operation of an evaporator thereof whereby a predetermined quantity of ice is formed during each period of active cooling of said evaporator, and means responsive to temperature variations of air cooled by said system to modify the operating temperature of said evaporator, thus controlling the temperature of said air by varying the time required in forming said predetermined quantity of ice and thereby varying the lengths of operating periods of said evaporator.
  • a pair of evaporators connected in series, the second of said evaporators being ernployed to cool air, a thermostatic expansion valve arranged to feed liquid refrigerant to the first of said evaporators, a thermo-sensitive element of said expansion valve located in heat exchange relationship with the second one of said evaporators and also in heat exchange relationship with circulating air owing toward said second evaporator, and means for adjusting said heat exchange relationships to increase the heat transfer rate of one and reduce the heat transfer rate of the other with reference to said element.
  • a refrigerating system including a pair of evaporators connected in series, the first of said series of evaporators being employed to freeze separate pieces of ice of which a batch is completed during each operating period of said evaporator, control means for regulating said ice freezing periods, means for causing the second of said evaporators to be variable as to the area thereof which is cooled by evaporation of refrigerant, and control means responsive to temperature changes of air adjacent to said second evaporator for increasing said cooled area in response to a rise of temperature of said air.
  • a refrigerating system two evaporators connected in series, a thermostatic expansion valve arranged to feed liquid refrigerant to the first of said evaporators, and a thermally responsive element of said valve so located as to be mainly affected by temperature changes of a fluid which recirculates over and is cooled by the second of said evaporators and secondarily responsive to temperature changes of the outlet end of said second evaporator.

Description

NOV. 30, 1954 G MUFFLY 2,695,502
ICE-MAKING APPARATUS Filed Novv. 14) 195o 2 sheets-sheet 1 El IN VEN TOR. 95 /e//r Muff@ 92 Ain-e u M MSV ,am
G. MUFFLY ICE-MAKING APPARATUS Nov. 30, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV. 14, 1950 United States Patent flier@ This' invention" isa -further'"development` of the ice making"A apparatus shown inlmy `copending United States application Serial'No.'17`4`,9 44`, 'led July 20,` 1950. That patentapplcation'refers in particular to commercial ice making equipmentand thepresentapplicationto an ice maker ladapted for Yuse in a household refrigerator of either the compression ori' absorption type. Itis noted,`
hoWevergthat the "above mentioned application includes features .adapted `for use in household refrigerators and the present application willbe useful in commerical as.`
wellas'household refrigerators although here illustrated in connection `witlr'a household refrigerator.
Reference .is also madero my United States Patents No." 2,145,775, issuedJanuary 31, 1939; No.v 2,291,826, issued August4, 1942; and No. 2,359`,780,"issued October 10, "14944, for.' earlier disclosures of 'apparatus lfor lifting ice from -thewater in which it has been formed, for storing the' ice 'above the water 4level and for draining them water ofmeltage from the ice backto the ice maker tankf` Reference is also made to my `copending -Urnited` States applications SerialNo. 50,10l,`filed September 20,.-` 1948, and Serial No. 109,942, led August 12, 1949,` and to my"Canadian patent application fSerialr No. 588,997, flled'lune 13,1949."
In some of the above mentioned earlier Aapplications of'minegl havedisclosed the use of a waterpumpto circulate water'thr'ough the ice maker-tank or over the surfaces upon whlch ice is being frozen. Y I have alsoshown the method of'oating ice from the tankin which -ithasa beenformed, apparatus for mechanically lifting fthe Aice fromthe` tank and the method of pushingha round diskofice fromthe tank by means of the head' of Iwater accumulatedba'ck of itwhe'nthe ice` diskblocksvtheover-A low passage` leading vfrom the tank.
O'ne of the objects ofthe present invention is to elimi-l natethe need ffor a water pump withv itsattendant requirementlofa packing gland or a vertical drive shaft,`
and still' make vclear ice.
Ariotherlobject is to utilize the elevator which-lifts the ice'from'the water for the additional purpose of agitat` ing the water `so as to maintain a constant-flow of water-` overth'e surfaceslof the ice asit forms.
AA further object is to reduce the power requirement lforagitating the water and lifting the ice.
Anfadditi'onal objeetis` to` provide positive means for i rolling "ice 'disks into'the ice storage compartment instead) of 'employing water flow to float them from `the tankin which they' are formed or to use a head of water to -pushthem out.
Another'object is to provide means for lifting lthe ice i disksfroml the water `in` a manner to drain Water from itghemk more completely before they drop into the `ice un erft Still another object is to accomplish -the'ice lifting and wateragitation #withfa motor requiring anelectricalinput more nearlylbalancing-the number of B. t. u.s per hour requ1redto-ma1ntam a Jbutter compartment at the optimum temperature whenflocatedtwithn the` food storage compartment of a household refrigerator;
A-still further` Objectis to conserve the space vwithin therefrigerator by a more'compact` arrangement ofparts part ofthezspace for `the dualpurpose =for` storing excesswater in the event and-'by utilizing `a of storing? ice' and thatuall I of the! stored-ice -is accidentally' melted.
-A n.additionali-object-fis to Ycontrol. airl temperature* withinHthe mam food compartment `byfm'eansfofa ther-"4 most-atic expansion valve/mainly responsive to changes` of air temperature and thereby to regulate the proportional Patented Nov; l30, 1954 cooling of the ice maker evaporator an'dthe aircooling Another object isto employ the two evaporators above mentioned as a secondary systemwhich operates during idle-periods'` of the compressor to transterheat from cabinet airto the 'ice-maker'tank.`
A furtherobject is to causeltheow diverting valve'td" servethe additional purpose of aiding 1n the detrostlng of' the freezer evaporator and providing for`pre's`sure relief" from "the Vevaporator being defrosted.`
In' the drawings:
Figure Vl is a side elevationof the upper portionof a household refrigerator showing the ice-making apparatus partly in section."
Figure 2 is a front vieW-of'Figure 1 showing thesaine apparatus.
Figure l3 is'a horizontal sectional view'of Figure l or Figure 2 taken on the line 3-'-3 thereof, omitting thebelt Figure 4 is a front elevationof the upperportionofa refrigerator showing a modified arrangement `inwhich"" ice is rolled out-of the ice-maker tank and stored ina separate ice bunker.
Figure 5 is a plan view of the apparatusseen'in Fig` ure 4.
Figure 6 is a diagrammatic view showing a refrigeration system suitable for use in connecuon with the pre1 vious views.
Referring now to Figure l, we see that the refrigerator' cabinet 10 encloses an ice-maker tank 12 in-Whichice is frozen bythe method disclosed in my previ-ous patents and copending applications and particularly shown in 'my United States application Serial No. 174,944 wherein two disks of ice separately started are causedhto freeze to-l gether to make a thicker disk which is then released 'to float and is pushed from the tank by the head of'water back of it.
ln the present Figure Vl, it will beseen that the ice `disks 14 are Aengaged by the vanes 16 which are" attached to or formed integrally with the belt`18.l This belt vis drivenl by a pulley 20 and runs over theidler pulley 22' which is located adjacent to the normal operating wa-l ter level 24 in the tank 12. The belt passes through tle wider upper tank 26 in a space 28 provided in the rear by' of portion/thereof and divided from the main tank 26 means of the walls'tl and 32. The rear end wall 34 the Vice-maker `tank. 12 is joined with 'the rear wall of'the` Y upper tank 26 in the same plane so thatthese rearwalls form one continuous surface which prevents the ice disks 14 from-rolling ofi of the vanes 16 as thebelt 18 car" ries them upwardly to the position of the ice disk 14 which is about to roll olf of the beltinto the ice bunker" formed' by theupper tank 26.
The pulley 20 is driven at a suitable speed to drive the" belt at such linear velocity that the vanes 16' enter and `leave the waterin the ice-maker tank 12 withoutobjectional splashing or noise and yet fast enough to produce a substantial circulation of water withinthe icemaker tank 12 in `a counter-clockwisedirection as viewed 1n Figure "1. This circulation of water washes air bubbles `from th'eisurfaces of ice disks 14 in'process of orma-` tionfand also carries any floating ice disks to the left as Viewed in Figurer l so they come into engagement with the vanes 1650i the `belt 18 and arefnally liftedby this belt to be deposited `in the ice bunker 26.` The vanes 16 are preferably solid paddles and their width'is nearly as great as thatofthe ice maker tank 12 so that they produce the maximum movement of water. ice disks to be one inch thick, the width of the vanes 16 will be only slightly less than one inch while theirlength- Assuming the measuredlradially from one of the pulleys as the Vane passes over it is preferably such as to extend from the belt a distance somewhat greater than one-halfthe` diameter of an icedisk.` Since the vertical channel formed t bythe two side walls 36', the wall 34 and `the beltiis` only slightly wider than the thickness of the ice disks, i
they cannot fall off of the vanes 16 travel. The ice disks must, however, as it `passes over the upper fall into the ice bunker 26.
Screens, gratingsror removable sheets 36 Aand 3S' pulley 20 and `they canV only Separate'the upper'tankZG and the lower tank 12." This pre! during their upward` fall oit of the belti fact that the ice bunker 26 is located above the ice-making tank and provided with vertical walls which are joined in a water-tight manner to the top of the icemaker tank, while the access door 40 is located at the up per front portion of the tank, allowing the water-tight front wall of tank 26 to extend upwardly to the opening closed by this door. This provides a water-tight compartment extending upwardly from the ice-making tank 12 and having sufficient internal volume to hold more water than would be obtained by melting the maximum supply of ice that can be stored in the bunker 26. This provides against flooding the refrigerator and the floor of the room in which it is located in the event of acci dental stoppage such as might be caused by failure of electrical current or of a vital part of the refrigeration system.
In the event that such a failure occurs and operation is re-established while the upper tank contains the water of meltage, no harm will result and the first ice disks formed will fall into the water which now lls the lower portion of the ice bunker. The first of this ice will melt to aid in cooling the water, but as ice begins to accumulate in the bunker, the water level will drop until it will eventually stabilize at the normal water level 24 within the ice-maker tank 12. Assuming now that some of the ice is removed from the bunker and the ice maker continues to operate, using up some of the water in the tank 12 by converting it into ice, the water level 24 will fall and with it the float 42 which causes the water inlet valve 44 to open and restore the operating level to the line 24. The same replenishment of water within the tank 12 occurs when water is drawn from the faucet 46.
Figure 2 shows a front view of Figure l, including the motor 48 and its speed reduction gearing S0 which drives the shaft 52 upon which the driving pulley 20 is mounted. Due to the light load imposed by the pulleys and belt plus the occasional lifting of an ice disk and the fact that the gearing 50 provides a considerable ratio of speed reduction, the motor 48 can be quite small, preferably consuming not over l watts and, therefore, it is permissible to locate this motor within the refrigerated space. Some of the waste heat from the motor 48 may be utilized in maintaining the temperature of the butter compartment, as will later be explained.
In Figure 2, it is seen that the lower left corner of the upper tank 26 is rounded and that the bottom of the tank slants downward to the left side of the ice maker tank 12. This provides for conducting the moisture which condenses on the side and bottom of the ice bunker over to a side wall of the ice-maker tank from which it drops into the pan S4 which, therefore, can be made narrower than would be otherwise required. This pan is preferably drained to the rear corner of the liner of the food space and the water conducted outside of the refrigerated space to be re-evaporated to room atmosphere as disclosed in my copending patent application Serial No. 178,498, tiled August 9, 1950.
Referring now to Figure 3, we are looking down on the top of the ice bunker 26. The butter compartment 56 is located beside and preferably separated from the ice bunker 26. At its front, it is provided with a door 58 for access and at its rear is provided with a thermostatically controlled shutter 60 which opens in response to a drop of temperature within the butter compartment to allow warm air and radiant heat from the motor 48 to enter the butter compartment for the purpose of maintaining its temperature. As the butter compartment rises to the desired temperature, the thermostat 62 moves the shutter in a closing direction to reduce the heat input to the butter compartment.
The belt 18 and the vanes 16 may be molded or vulcanized together in one piece using a combination of material or one rubber-like material. It is preferred that the vanes 16 be flexible or flexibly mounted upon the belt so as to prevent damage in the event that an extra large disk of ice wedges between a vane and the rear wall 34 of the ice-maker tank in the position indicated in Figure l by the ice disk 14".
At the top of the rear wall 34 or on the sides 30 of the vertical chute 28 a curved shield 64 is provided as an extension of one or two walls to prevent the ice disks from rolling oif from the ends of the vanes 16 as they approach their top position. The vane then pushes the ice disk off the top of the pulley with suflicient force to carry it over the wall 32 into the ice bunker. In the event that an ice disk should lodge between the belt and the top edge of the wall 32, as indicated by 14 in Figure 1, the vane 16 which carried the ice disk up will push the ice disk over the top of the wall 32 so that it falls into the ice bunker.
In order to make the oat valve 44 readily accessible, I prefer to use a two-piece cover for the ice-maker tank 12, as shown in Figure l. The shield 36 fits into the tank 12 and provides an angular wall 66 which aids in guiding ice toward the elevator. This shield is readily removable by merely lifting it out after removing ice from the bunker 26. Upon removal of the shield 36 the somewhat similar float cover 38 may be removed by sliding it rearwardly, tilting and lifting it out along with the float 42, its lever arm 68 and its pivot pin 70. kThis provides access to the valve 44 which is preferably threaded into a fitting such as 72 and is readily removable therefrom by the use of a socket wrench. The valve 44 is similar to an automobile tire valve, having a removable core or valve guts. Such valves are well-known as tank valves and are commonly provided with 1/s male pipe threads.
In Figure 2, the evaporator 74 is provided with fins 76 and is open to circulation of air from the food storage space of the refrigerator for the purpose of cooling the same. The arrows indicate such circulation and the upper one indicates flow of air into the top of the finned evaporator 74, there being an opening or openings provided in the sheet metal wall 78 for that purpose. The evaporator 74 may be operated intermittently during periods when the ice maker evaporator is idle, the two evaporators may operate at the same time or they may each operate under its own control as required to make ice and to maintain the desired temperature of cabinet air.
It will be obvious that a considerable amount of cooling of cabinet air is obtained by normal gravity circulation of air over the exposed surfaces of the ice-maker tank 12 and the ice bunker 26 as well as by contact of the ice-maker evaporator 80 during both its active and defrosting periods which are controlled to regulate the size of ice disks made. The controls described later herein and illustrated by Figure 6 provide for so proportroning this operation of evaporators 74 and S0 that cabinet air temperature is maintained within the desired llmits and ice production is regulated to maintain the desired supply in the bunker 26.
The butter compartment 56 is provided with a glass bottom 82 supported by the two side members 84 which are tied together by two or more cross members such as 86. This compartment is closed at the front by the door 58 and at the rear abuts the rear liner of the cabinet, so that no rear wall is required.v There is, however, a partial dividing wall 88 arranged to separate the butter compartment 56 from the rear compartment 90 in which is located the lamp 92. This wall stops short of the top and bottom of the butter compartment so that the heat produced by the lamp causes warm air to ow forwardly over the partition member 88 and to return below it. In conventional refrigerators it has been customary to provide such a lamp with a switch arranged to close when the refrigerator door is opened. Such a switch is located within the housing 94 and actuated by the push rod 96 which extends forward so that the switch is opened whenever the door is closed. In addition to this switch, I propose to use a second switch connected in parallel with it and enclosed in the same housing 94. This second switch is of the thermostatic type and arranged to close in response to a drop of air temperature within the compartment 56 and to re-open in response to a rise of this temperature. Such switches have previously been employed to actuate heating elements for the purpose of maintaining the desired temperature in a butter compartment of a refrigerator, but
in this case, I propose to use the lamp 92 as a heating element as well as for the purpose of illumination. In order that the thermostatic switch need not carry a heavy current, I propose to include a resistance coil in series with this thermostatic switch and the lamp, so that when the lamp is lighted for the purpose of producing heat,
it operatesf at fa. vlowerth-'annormalz voltage; hence 1=pro'- duces littlelight" but a highpercentageiof heatiin lprop'or-w tionlfftoithe amount lof fligh tf The' A"resistance l*element* f thus. .connected also 'provides heat'l'forthe "butter coin-H meanstiof .the iknob L9S'fwhich-carries: a pointer. 10`0flto' indicate itslposition.'
Another. methodsofwsupplying .heatxtotthebutterr cornpartrnent- .is illustrated .in-uFigurcS .-2 and 23,. wherev .the bimetalc thermostat.. 62 ..actuates.l.. th'efconnectingl rod; .102
to the open positionzasashown' in.. Figure. .2 .when the .bi-w.`
metal.y element'. .62 .drops 1.-to C. the. minimumlitemperatnre desired within` thetbutter. compartment, thus .allowing fheat.. l from' .the...motor..r48 :tokbe .transferred by. .radiation and.
convection :.ftoather. compartment'. 90 .and .'thenceto the butter. compartment: 561 .'by lconvection. The :thermostat all. three be. used. in. thesame model. Normally,. there willbe two sources. of .heatxused such `as the lamp and theY resistance coil, ortheilampuand .the heat..from..thewV motor, hence:therewillzbevonly :one thermostat fem-1` ployed and only.one dialforits adjustment...
`When thel lamp yis-.connected in vseries `.with .the .resistance coil, it is periodically energized even when theudoor of-4 the refrigerator is closed.: This aids in keepingqthe lampl base, ...its electrical connections, and th'ethermof" static..switch: dry..` It will. be Inoted thatlthe position-2 of.V thelamp withinva somewhatwarmer compartment 'prevents the collection of dew on thelamp and itsbase as .well as -on the connecting wires. and. the roperating... switch. Theflamps location. :above `the :glass 82 protects. it and avoids the usual interference .with vthe clean-.1
ing of thererigerators interior;`
y It-.is .also within the: scope of..my inventionto.keep. the. lampdnrthe positionshown vand connect. itlonly with. the door-operated vswitch .so .thatuit operates: in the'1usual:. manner, but .it andits switch are enclosed within/:thisv warmer compartment where both. are readily accessible foriservice and less servicingisfrequired because-rboth:.A In this casel'the. thermostatic switch* ad.` justed -by the. knob 981 would -be nindependent Vof `thet'lamp circuit and in series only with theV resistance coil which are .kept dry.
provides all. of` the `heatsfor A the butter compartment. ex-
cept. the incidental' heat from. thewlamp 92, which is.:
produced only while the `.refrigerator door is open.1
.Another arrangement .isto keep.' the lamp-and its. switch 1. independent as above described, eliminating the `knob 98,:- its-.switch-anduthe' resistance coil but-usingthe thermo-v statically controlled shutter wherebygheatfis admitted to .the compartment 90 from themotor 48. -This retainsA the. drylocation .of the-.lamp;and its switch and provides` the `-additional heat without usefofelectrical current. by. merelyuopeningtthe. louvers .60. when required to main. tain-.the desired .temperature withinathe butter. compartment;
Thefslamp .bulb maybe .removed .by sliding the 4glass .L
82. forward fandwhatever. switch. .or thermostat: 1s used cant belreadily removed for servicing `along with the sup-5 porting.;.wall. 88;:which is preferably made of; thermal angle :instead of verticallyso-that the round. ice blocks 14 are caused to roll up the .inclinedtrack formed by the wires 110 Jinsteadof being lifted vertically as shown in Figure 1. This elevator delivers theA blocks of ice to :the ice bunker 112 lwhich is `separate from the icemakertank instead of beirrganupward extension of it as shown in Figures l and 2. The motor .48", whichin" cludes gear reduction `to 4drive the be'lt18" of' Figure 4, `is-locatedoutside" the refrigerated" space'as shoWnin Figure 5 instead of being located insideof lthe refrigerated" spaceas shownvin FigureslZ and 3. The/"butter'comf-4 partment56.=is thereforenheated byianelectricalresist ancerfelement t undervthermostatic 1 control as described in connectionlwith "thenl control'.'assembly-f94 A`-V`of.: Figures 2 andi.' 3,1.th`oughr this:'inotorz zltcould .foptionallywbe located .385 required: .Ito operate a .pump lwhich. produces enough .flow-i partment 56' for thepurposeoflheating"itlifldesiredw Theice'maker"tank 12"\is joinedataitsV `left endewith tlieice-makerA tank.- The rice-rnalner tankA is.located 3 .15\'..tofffabove LitLas shown .in Figures l and 12,.'provision.. is
ing. type driven by aneccentric 122 (Figfj) onftheshaftf' 52;..which carriesi the'. pulley. 20 =andldrives` th'e..belt18".2 2(j5..Water. .resulting .from ice` .meltage is.. returned .tof-tank. 12'..or 114 by. means. of..the..tube. 124... Theuice-fbunker.-
hinged .attone-halfto two-thirds.ofstheheightof the. e
bunker;r This provides .storage spacetor. Athe '.waterlrre'a. 255.2:sulting 'fromicermeltagein the event: .of .current failure" or..-.accidental stoppage of .the refrigerating system... In..
stirredV by thevanes 16 ofthe .belt as previouslyexplainedl. in connectionwithFigure .1. The beltis-not, however?,f ggg-required to. lift the 4ice disks from .thea .water butmerely. to roll them. up onthe ramp formed. by .the..wires.: 110 under guidance ofthe side wires 126. These? wires...
may allbe formedby .one continuouswire which...also.. forms two Vertical. portions 128. andl two angular legs.;130'.`h 1351;.1which. hold the..formed .wire element in. position: and.:
guide the.ice disks upwardlyinto the path. of the vanes.` 16 after the ice is released from the walls of .the tank. The two ends of the formed wire are .bent upwardly4i at 1352` to be retained back of the downwardly extending.. 4012lip134 of the spout-like extension `136 of the. tank 114..
Assembly of the wire element to the tank is acomplished by hooking the ends 132 back of the lip 134 andtherr., swinging lthefwire memberv downwardly throughthe adjacent corner of the ice-maker tank until the vertical legs %,.;128 snapinto position as shown `in Figure 4f Removal'. isaccomplished by squeezing Ithe two legs` 128 together.` so that the wire will .again pass through.the corner of` the.icemaker tank..
The .float 42 ispivoted at 70 to the inverted. U-shaped member 138 which ts snugly over the end of fthe ice-4 maker tank so that when the float 42 falls as a result of a drop of water level in the ice-maker tank the arm 681con tactsthe stem of the valve 4.4 to admit additionalwater... from the supply tube 140.- A wall member 142, which .is preferablyfremovable, .is provided to preventanypieces of ice from lloating into the water tank 114. Ice disks are free `to o'at upward whenreleased .since `the ice-maker. tank 12 is slightly wider. at its top than at its bottom as. is thesimilar tank 12 -seen in Figure 2. This ice mayV :..flo`at directly' into the path of the .vanes 16 of the t belt 18" or they may be guided into such contact by the angu lar wire legs 130 or by the .shield 144 which protects the float 42.
In Figures 4 and 5 as .well as in Figures l, 2 and 3,. 65.. the floating disks of ice are lifted vfrom/the Water mechanically' rather than being floated out as in my .copendM ingapplication, Serial No. 50,101 filed September 20, .1948 or rolled out by a head of water. accumulated backof an... p ice disk asshown in my copending application, Serial No. l 17.4,944-led luly 20, 1950. This eliminates.thenecessity for pumpingoverflow water back .to `the ice-maker tank'.v The pulleyr20 Which..drives the belt. 18 for llcouldbe driven .at an` extremely slow speed and still move thebelt rapidly enough to remove 4the ice blocks as fast as they are' released,` but it .is proposed to drive this pulley ata somewhat higher speed so that the vanes 16 will produceV sufcient agitation of the water in the ice-maker tank to wash air bubbles from the surfaces of the ice disks as they .30. are'forming and thus insure the production of clear ice.
Since. Watervis not being. pumped throughrestricted pas-` sages nor lifted to produce agitation and thet-motorshaft requires no.packing:gland,'tlie motor which drivesthe belt-18 or.18.1fcanbe considerably smal-lerthan the motor` insidei-theerefrigeratedspace adjacentrtovthf'butter com-'f the lwater tank1-114 and -theA faucetu 46 is connectedI with 5 ".1 this twater `tank YinsteadV .of" being llocated on one endf of "f thermo'static .hswitch iwhich'ds enclosedwinf ithe= same-hous= ingewith lit, .thusresultingf .inI the. elect of Aan'. anticipating .I thermostat.. l. The thermostatic switch .within T94' 'is ladjustable from `the insidefioffthe butter. compartment .by s
cated at the same level as the ice-maker tank insteadly made .for disposal; of therwater of meltage Thisis donebvs means .of. the'. pump. .120.which'-may be `of a reciprocat.
is .provided\with...a water-tight-front .ot which the dooruis Figures 4 and' 5,. thewater in the..icemaker .tank .is.
to wash the air bubbles from the iceand tocause the ice to oat out of the tank in which it is made.
Figure 6 shows diagrammatically a system suitable for use in connection with the previous views and including a freezer evaporator 148 which is employed to cool a frozen food compartment as is the evaporator 20 of my copending United States Patent Application Serial No. 74,528 led February 24, 1949, or evaporator 88 of my copending United States patent application Serial No. 178,498 filed August 9, 1950. This evaporator includes a header 150 and is selectively cooled under control of solenoid valve 152 and thermostatic switch 154 which responds to temperature changes of a bulb located adjacent to evaporator 148.
The solenoid of valve 152 is energized while motorcompressor unit operates to cool evaporators 80 and 74. During this period refrigerant vapor compressed by the motor-compressor unit 156 is delivered to the condenser 158 and liquid accumulating therein llows into the receiver 159 and thence through the tube -160 to the expansion valve 161 which is of the thermostatic type and has its bulb 162 adjustedly supported, as will be explained later.
Liquid refrigerant leaves the expansion valve 161 through the tube 163 which extends into the tube 164 past the point at which tube 164 is joined by tube 166. This produces a jet effect which induces ilow through the tube 166 in the direction indicated by the arrow. A portion of the liquid refrigerant evaporates in the evaporator 80, seen in previous figures as part of the ice maker.
Vapor and unevaporated liquid refrigerant flow from 'the evaporator 8i) into the evaporator 74, which is arranged to cool air within the refrigerator cabinet and is preferably provided with extended surface as shown in Figure 2. Refrigerant vapor leaves evaporator 74 through the tube 168 while any unevaporated liquid refrigerant reaching the top of evaporator 74 flows through the tube 166 into the tube 164 and recirculates until evaporated. At the time evaporators 88 and 74 are active the solenoid valve 152 is lifted so that refrigerant vapor flows from the tube 168 into the main suction tube 170, which leads back into the low pressure casing of the motor-compressor unit 156.
This cycle of operation is under control of the thermostatic switch 172 which when closed energizes the motor of the unit 156 and also closes the circuit through the solenoid of valve 152 which causes the armature of the solenoid to lift the valve so that tube 168 is open to tube 170. When only the thermostatic switch 154 is closed as a result of a rise of temperature in the freezer compartment cooled by the evaporator 148, the motor-compressor unit 156 is likewise energized, but there is no Ilow of current through the solenoid of valve 152, hence the outlet of tube 168 is closed and enough pressure will have built up in the evaporators '74 and 80 to close the expansion valve 161. Liquid refrigerant therefore flows from the tube 160 through the branch liquid tube 174 to the expansion valve 176, which feeds the freezer evaporator 148. Vaporized refrigerant leaves the evaporator 148 through the suction tube 178 which connects with the header 151B and is now open at the valve 152 for the llow of refrigerant vapor from the tube 178 to the main suction tube 170 and thence back to the unit 156.
In the event that thermostatic switch 172 recloses before the switch 154 reopens, the cooling effect will shift back to the evaporators 80 and 74, due to the energizing of the solenoid and consequent lifting of the valve member of 152. The main food compartment of the refrigerator is thus cooled and ice is formed until the switch 172 reopens, whereupon cooling of the evaporator 148 continues until the freezer air temperature falls to the cutout point of the switch 154, whereupon the unit 156 stops.
An additional switch 180 is provided for defrosting of the evaporator 148. This may be a double pole, double throw switch, which for convenience and clarity is here shown as 180A and 188B, with the two blades or movable members shown in solid lines and their alternative positions shown by dotted lines. As indicated by solid lines the switch 188 is in its normal position which prevails at all times except when the heating element 182 is to be energized for thepurpose of defrosting the freezer evaporator 148.
lt will be seen that when the two blades of the switch 180 are simultaneously moved to their dotted positions the blade of 180A connects one side of the line with one pole` of the solenoid while the blade of 180B connects the f same time the heater 182 causes evaporation of liquid refrigerant in the header of evaporator 148. Such evaporation of refrigerant causes condensation of refrigerant vapor Within the tubes or passages of the evaporator 148 and within the upper portion of the header 150, thus melting any frost or ice that may have accumulated on these parts or extended surfaces thereof.
The outlet of tube 178 is stopped by a valve held closed magnetically, hence this valve acts as a pressure relief valve. In the event of excessive pressure developing within the evaporator 148 refrigerant vapor is allowed to pass into the tube 17 0 and thence to the low pressure side of the unit 156, which has ample internal volume to receive and hold all of the refrigerant vapor that may be passed by the valve 152 during the defrosting of evaporator 148.
VThe switch may be actuated either manually or automatically, but it is preferred that at least the termination of the defrosting operation be automatic, as disclosed in my copending patent application Serial No. 178,498 above mentioned, which discloses means for accomplishing automatic starting as well as stopping of the defrosting operation.
Figure 6 also shows connections for supplying electrical energy to the motor 48 and to the lamp switch and butter compartment heater 94 which are seen in Figures 2 and 3. lt will be noted that the thermostatic switch 172 is shown with two bulbs instead of the usual single bulb. One of these bulbs is adjustably located adjacent to an ice making area and the other is located so as to be responsive to changes in the quantity of ice in storage under the additional influence of changes in air temperature within the refrigerator, as disclosed in my copending application, Serial No. 178,498 and illustrated by bulb positions in Figure 6 thereof. This arrangement causes the switch 172 to regulate the ice making cycles to produce ice disks of the desired size and to maintain the desired quantity of ice in storage, this quantity of ice being greater when the air temperature of the main food compartment of the refrigerator is near its high limit than when the air temperature is near its low limit.
In addition to this previously disclosed method of control, the present invention provides additional means for proportioning the cooling eifects produced by the ice maker evaporator 80 and Vthe cabinet air cooling evaporator 74. The expansion valve 161, being of the thermostatic type, is urged in its closing direction by a reduction of temperature of the bulb 162. In the event that the bulb 162 is at a higher-than-normal temperature, the expansion valve 161 maintains a higher-than-normal operating pressure within the evaporators 80 and 74. It will be noted that the bulb 162 is associated with the outlet of evaporator 74, but also has a considerable portion of its length exposed to air temperatures above its contact with the tube 168. The bulb is adjustably supported so that more or less of its length can be exposed to cabinet air temperature. An upward adjustment of the bulb may raise the liquid level within the bulb above the uppermost contact between the bulb and its support or with the tube 168.
This provides for increasing the ilow of liquid refrigerant through the expansion valve 161 when the air temperature within the refrigerator is higher than normal. This increased flow of liquid causes evaporator 80 to operate at a higher-than-normal evaporating temperature, thus slowing down the formation of ice. At the same time the greater supply of liquid causes more of the evaporator 74 to be cooled and this cooling is prolonged due to the slower formation of ice and consequent longer running period for each batch of ice frozen.
While the bulb 162 is closely enough associated with the tube 168 to insure against frost-back, the expansion valve 161 is set at a considerably higher superheat than is customary in thermostatic expansion valves, thus the expansion valve 161 is controlled mainly by air temperature and only in emergency by suction tube temperature to prevent frost-back. Theresult is that evaporator 74 l 9 rtmayhave only its klower loops frosted during normalioperation of thef refrigerator; but in -theevent^offrequent door mopenings;` anfr excessively high: `ambient temperature, or the` placing of anfunusualiiamount. of rwarm "food in the f main food icompartment lzoffthe` refrigerator; the evapo- ,iis actively cooling theffreezerevaporator 148-, the evapo-l ratorsi 74 ands80 are-isolated` from -the balance ofthe ,system bythe valve 152,\which closesthevoutlet` of tube 168, and by the expansion valve-161;.which doesrnot allow -ow.in areverse direction. There will `alwaysibe some liquid refrigerantY trapped-within lthese ltwo, evaporators"` at the time the switch-A 172 `opens. and the solenoid -is thereby des-energized. Thel cross-over tube=-166 allows vaporfrom the `evaporator y74 to flow-,into `.the upper -por- ,tionf the evaporator Swhere it` will condense dueto `the qzfactthat evaporator 80is 4in intimate thermal contactwith the ice-,maker-,tank12iwhilef the evaporator `74 is notfonly ,.in air,.but is provided with-fina-as seen in Figure 2, so i that it approaches-more closely to` cabinet air temperature, causing liquid-.refrigerant to evaporate :in-74` `under -the .same pressureat which it condenses in the evaporatorflh* which now acts as the .condenser of a secondary or ,constant .pressure refrigeratingsystem, transferring heat from cabinet airto the-,ice-maker tank ,12.
Figure` illustratesthemethod of controlling `cabinet air temperature .in,the.main.foodspacepwhich must be.`
` held `abovethefreezingpointandiis preferably -held below '40 F. A..considerablep-part of `the `cooling"effect-required is-,obtained` .by .aircontact with external surface .of theice,.bunker,.26,the,ice-makerrtank 12` and the icemaker, evaporator 80,? but? aavariable amount of addi-t` tional cooling effect., isrequired to: hold. the ',aintempera- .ture Within the main food storage space-.below the desired f, top limit which` may-.be 40, F` .or lower. This Variable cooling effect is. supplied, by;the. evaporator 74. This L evaporator `doessome .cooling 'ofcair each-,time the` ice-H maker evaporator 80..is. cooled. for the purposerof Y,mak-ing 1ce.
Evaporator `80` is. under.;control of thermostatic lswitch 172 which has `two bulbs 1.73 and 173 .connected with Yit, bulb 1173 being located relative to an. ice-making area and bulb "17la"relative,to` ,.thefheightzoffthe maximum ice supply lin the storage, compartment,.26. Equivalent loca- ".tions .of the.two bulbs connected with one thermostatic switch are shownat, 44and .138 .in'Figure 6 of -my copending U`. S, patent lapplication,Serial sNo.` V178,498 `tiled` `Augustr9, 1950. "Bulbj173 regulatesice-,making periods Vby stopping the compressorwhen. a.,givenpiece `of ice has 'grown to the desired size and by starting .the compressor when the icehasmeltedfremfrom the surface on ylocated in ,the ice` bunker,takes no. partin the control until the ice supply has accumulated ,toQslightlyabove Vthe Llevel of the bulb, thus cooling bulb,173. andcausingvthe liquid portion of the.volatile chargeofthesthermostatic switch 172 to ,collect in Athisbulb, whichisnow colder..
`than bulb.'173 associated with the..icemaking area.
Each of these bulbs'. is affected -tofsome `extent byA a rise of cabinet air temperature,.inlthe direction of hastening thelstarting 'ofan ice-making cycle andA increasing running timegfwhich etfecttends to cause morecooling` ofcabinet air when the cabinet air-temperature is higher *than normal, but I have rinthe `present application shown f'additional meansfor control ofcabinet airtemperature- This Acontrol is accomplished `by further modification of the ice-making cycles and lby varying the ;amount :of cool- Vlarger portion of the'evaporatoi 74 will be actively cooled by the evaporation'of refrigerant.
In order to regulate the removal: of heat from cabinet air I employ the thermostaticexpansion -valve 161, which is responsive to Variations of low side pressure and also I to variations in temperature fof thebulb 162. 'Such bulbs are commonly placed iniheat exchange relationship with the outlet of an evaporator and the valve is designed to maintain approximately the desired temperature at` the 4evaporator outlet. It is common practice to identify the setting of such` valves -in'terms of superheat of refrig- 1 erant vapor at the pointfof bulb attachment` to theevaporator outlet tube. They are used to insure coolingof substantiallythe entire evaporator from'start to `finishy of its active period. In the present caselthe bulb 162 has only a slight contact with the tube `1158l leading from evaporator 74 but has a considerable portion of its areaexposed to lthe circulation of warm air approaching thetop ofthe tins 76 of evaporator 74.
In addition I makethe valve ^161 responsive to` tem- `perature changes-of bulb` 162 at higher temperatures than usual. In Yother words,i-the valve 161 is setatY a much higher superheat4 ythan usual. When the'bulb 162 is cooled to say '35- F. theevaporatorit) may be operating at l` F. withsubstantiallyall oftheliquid refrigerant evaporatingdngthe evaporator 80 and very little of it inl evaporator 74. This condition would be 162 rises. i be mainly responsive -to :temperature lof `the warmer l'ing done bythe'flnn'ed evapo.rator`74. l It willV be obvious desired size Aand,.duri ng..this longer .periodof operation a 5:8
ring it within the desired limits.
stated as operating at a superheat` of F. `Ifthe valve really maintained a 25 superheat vand bulb 162. was increased from a temperature of D to a temperature of the evaporating temperature wouldrise from l0`F. to 15 F., thus-slowing down `the formation of ice mand allowing more liquid refrigerant to'flow 'into-the `evaporator 74.
I may,: however, prefer to design'. the valve 161 so `that the riseof temperature of bulb 162 increases the ilow of liquid refrigerant so that evaporator '80 operates at say 20 F. `and a `still'greater proportion of the liquid refrigerant flows 'into-evaporator` 74.*'In other words, the expansionrvalve 161 maywoperate at a diminishing superheat1as=the temperature of itsbulb ThisY arrangementof `the bulb 162 so asto cabinet air approaching `the 4top ofthe fins76` modifies the cooling lof evaporator -74 'so that only one or two .of lits lower loops may be cooled by-evaporation of refrigerant when cabinet air temperature is low (say 35TF.) and substantiallyall of evaporator 74 is cooled Whentheair temperature rises to say 40" F.
' It will be obvious that under thellatter conditiongthe bulb `162 will begin to be cooled-bythe tube 168 through Athe air temperature Vmay be quite high,fas infthe case of pulling down a warm cabinet.
In addition to varying the `refrigerated area of evaporator `74 to maintainthe desired air temperature it will be seen thateach running period` of the connected evaporai tors 74 and 80 will be longer when they are operating at .a, higher evaporatingpressure;since this slows` down the formation i of Vice` and the runningperiod ends in response to .the building uptfof'one lof the'ice` disks 14 Vto the maximum size established bythe `location of thevbulb of thermostat 172 whichA contacts Athetank 12 adjacent to one of the ice-making areasr thereof.
\ In effect thebulb 162- replaces Y'the usual bulb'of a thermostatic switchiin the control-of cabinet air temperature. When `cabinet air Vtemperature is high` this bulb causes evaporator 74 to be-more fully cooled and to `be cooled for longeroperating periods;` thus pulling the air temperature down to normal for the purpose of hold- The adjustment of bulb `162 relative `to tube" 168 to` decreasethethermal conductivitybetween' these parts has the effect lof a colder setting ofthe ordinary manual adjustment of a thermostat switch which responds to air temperature within the cabinet. The knob'188, Fig. 2, may be arranged to move bulb "162 for this purpose.
`Another effect obtained by the system illustrated in Fig; 6, as applied to any of the other figures and particularly to Figs. l, 2 and 3, is that in the event of a prolonged idle period, such as might be vcaused` by failure of the `source of current,fthefr eserve fcooling effect of ice and rcoldrwater `in-the.Y tank 12 becomes Veffectivefincooling cabinet air,` `not only fby.qexposed surfacesofrthel tank and of the evaporator 80, but by means of evaporator 74 which acts as a secondary evaporator during idle periods of the system with evaporator 80 serving as the secondary condenser. This hold-over effect can be greatly increased by raising the water level 24 so that at least the lower portion of the ice stored in ice bunker 26 1s below the water level. While it is true that the water within the tank 12 is normally maintained between 32 F. and 39.2 F., and is consequently within the range of reverse thermal expansion of water, the 32 water in contact with the ice will be more dense than the water in the tank 12 when the latter rises to 40 F. Thus there will be thermal circulation of water in the event of a prolonged idle period such as might result from current failure and this utilizes the stored ice more effectively for the purpose of cabinet air cooling in an emergency.
The motor 48 may be connected across the line to run continuously or it may be connected as shown in Figure 6 so that this motor operates during ice freezing periods only. In the latter case it is assumed that the tank 12 will have ample volume above its ice-making areas for released nieces of ice to float out of contact with such areas or that upon starting of motor 48 ice will be removed rapidly enough to insure against any of the floating pieces of ice being trapped by freezing to the wall areas which evaporator 8i) is starting to cool.
Figure 6 also shows the wiring to the assembly 94 which includes a heating element and a thermostatic switch for connecting the heating element of 94 in series with lamp 92 when the temperature of butter compartment 56 falls and opening this circuit when the butter compartment has risen to the desired high limit of temperature. The lamp 92 lights under full line voltage as usual when the door-operated switch is closed, this switch being connected to short out the heating element of 94.
I claim: l
l. In a refrigerator, a refrigerating system for cooling said refrigerator, an evaporator included in said system and arranged to cool air within said refrigerator, a portion of said evaporator near its inlet end being arranged for making ice, a thermostatically controlled expansion valve connected in said system to control the iiow of liquid refrigerant to said evaporator, a thermally affected element of said expansion valve being exposed to said air and mainly responsive to temperature changes thereof, and control means responsive to the increase in volume of a body of said ice to control the removal of refrigerant vapor from said evaporator, said expansion valve and control means coacting to cause said evaporator to present more cooled area to said air and be actively cooled by removal of vapor therefrom for longer periods of time when said air temperature is higher.
2. In a refrigerator, a refrigerating system including two evaporators connected in series, the first of said evaporators being adapted for producing sub-freezing temperatures and the second for cooling air within said refrigerator, valve means controlling the flow of liquid refrigerant to the rst of said evaporators, and thermally responsive means for controlling the first said means to increase said ow mainly in response to a rise of temperature of the cooled air in said refrigerator, whereby more or less-liquid refrigerant is caused to enter and evaporate in said second evaporator and said air temperature is thereby held within preselected limits.
3. In a refrigerator, ice-making means, an evaporator associated with said ice-making means, a thermostatic expansion valve arranged to control the fiow of liquid refrigerant to said evaporator, a second evaporator arranged to cool air within said refrigerator and connected in series to receive liquid refrigerant and the vapor thereof from the first said evaporator, said expansion valve having a thermally affected element located in position to respond to changes of air temperature within said refrigerator whereby said evaporators are supplied with an increased flow of liquid refrigerant and caused to operate at higher temperatures when said air temperature is high, and control means responsive to ice formation for controlling the operating periods of said pair of evaporators, said operating periods being thereby prolonged when the evaporators are operating at higher temperatures and ice is therefore being frozen more slowly, said valve regulating ow so that only a part of the second said evaporator is cooled by evaporation of refrigerant during periods of low temperature operation and a greater part of it being so cooled during periods of higher temperature operation, whereby the temperature of said air is maintained within desired limits.
4. A refrigerating system including two evaporators, one of said evaporators being arranged to cool a space in which the air temperature is maintained above 32 F. and the other being adapted for operation at a lower temperature, means forming an outlet passage for each of said evaporators, means forming a main suction passage of said system, valve means arranged to connect said outlet passages one at a time with said main suction passage, heating means associated with said lower temperature evaporator to defrost it by causing refrigerant to evaporate and to condense therein, and control means for simultaneously energizing said heating means and actuating said valve means to close the outlet passage of said lower temperature evaporator, said valve means being so constructed and arranged as to act as a pressure relief valve allowingA refrigerant vapor to escape from said lower temperature evaporator into another portion of said system when excessive pressures are developed in said lower temperature evaporator.
5. A refrigerator cabinet including a compartment for the storage of frozen foods and a second compartment adapted to be maintained above 32 F., a refrigeration system including two evaporators, one for each of said compartments, means forming a main suction passage of said system, means forming a separate outlet passage for each of the two said evaporators, valve means arranged to connect said outlet passages one at a time with said main suction passage, and means for defrosting the evaporator which cools said frozen food compartment and simultaneously actuating said valve means to close the outlet passage of the last said evaporator.
6. In a refrigerating system, a pair of evaporators connected in series, a thermostatic expansion valve connected to supply liquid refrigerant to the first of said evaporators, and a control bulb of said valve located adjacent to the second of said evaporators and primarily in heat exchange with cooled air adjacent said evaporator, said bulb being also in adjustable heat exchange with the outlet portion of said second evaporator.
7. A refrigerating system, means for controlling said system to effect cyclic operation of an evaporator thereof whereby a predetermined quantity of ice is formed during each period of active cooling of said evaporator, and means responsive to temperature variations of air cooled by said system to modify the operating temperature of said evaporator, thus controlling the temperature of said air by varying the time required in forming said predetermined quantity of ice and thereby varying the lengths of operating periods of said evaporator. Y
8. In a refrigerating system, a pair of evaporators connected in series, the second of said evaporators being ernployed to cool air, a thermostatic expansion valve arranged to feed liquid refrigerant to the first of said evaporators, a thermo-sensitive element of said expansion valve located in heat exchange relationship with the second one of said evaporators and also in heat exchange relationship with circulating air owing toward said second evaporator, and means for adjusting said heat exchange relationships to increase the heat transfer rate of one and reduce the heat transfer rate of the other with reference to said element.
9. A refrigerating system including a pair of evaporators connected in series, the first of said series of evaporators being employed to freeze separate pieces of ice of which a batch is completed during each operating period of said evaporator, control means for regulating said ice freezing periods, means for causing the second of said evaporators to be variable as to the area thereof which is cooled by evaporation of refrigerant, and control means responsive to temperature changes of air adjacent to said second evaporator for increasing said cooled area in response to a rise of temperature of said air.
l0. In a refrigerating system, two evaporators connected in series, a thermostatic expansion valve arranged to feed liquid refrigerant to the first of said evaporators, and a thermally responsive element of said valve so located as to be mainly affected by temperature changes of a fluid which recirculates over and is cooled by the second of said evaporators and secondarily responsive to temperature changes of the outlet end of said second evaporator.
(References on following page) Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Rezos July 13, 1937 5 Wussow Oct. 18, 1938 Bergdoll Dec. 6, 1938 Muy Jan. 31, 1939 Mutfiy Jan. 31, 1939 Kucher Oct. 31, 1939 10 Reilly Apr. 16, 1940 Number 14 Name Date Peterson Sept. 17, 1940 Cocanour Nov. 2, 1943 Muy May 23, 1944 Pownall Sept. 25, 1945 Copeman Oct. 11, 1949 Askin Nov. 8, 1949
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Cited By (14)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2718123A (en) * 1952-07-25 1955-09-20 Jr James W Braswell Ice making apparatus
US2769319A (en) * 1952-02-18 1956-11-06 Whirlpool Seeger Corp Two temperature household refrigerators
US2778200A (en) * 1953-11-20 1957-01-22 Gen Motors Corp Ice making apparatus
US2870612A (en) * 1955-08-29 1959-01-27 Frick Co Ice-making apparatus
US2890572A (en) * 1955-10-20 1959-06-16 Richelli Federico Ice making machine
US2942432A (en) * 1950-08-09 1960-06-28 Muffly Glenn Defrosting of evaporator
US2943456A (en) * 1957-04-23 1960-07-05 Lee Aaron Ice cube making addition to domestic refrigerators
US2993347A (en) * 1957-06-04 1961-07-25 Muffly Glenn Refrigerating systems
US3390537A (en) * 1966-10-20 1968-07-02 Market Forge Co Ice dispensing apparatus
US4719765A (en) * 1986-09-19 1988-01-19 Whirlpool Corporation Ice storage receptacle light for ice maker
US5035118A (en) * 1990-04-16 1991-07-30 Hoshizaki Denki Kabushiki Kaisha Automatic ice making machine
US9091473B2 (en) 2010-11-09 2015-07-28 General Electric Company Float-type ice making assembly and related refrigeration appliance
US9644878B2 (en) 2013-11-08 2017-05-09 Haier Us Appliance Solutions, Inc. Ice making assembly and an ice bucket
US9664430B2 (en) 2010-11-17 2017-05-30 Haier Us Appliance Solutions, Inc. Ice maker for dispensing soft ice and related refrigeration appliance

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US2087117A (en) * 1934-08-23 1937-07-13 Arta Corp Of America Sanitary butter container
US2133521A (en) * 1933-05-15 1938-10-18 Wussow Reinhard Ice making apparatus
US2139297A (en) * 1937-03-06 1938-12-06 York Ice Machinery Corp Refrigeration
US2145774A (en) * 1934-04-05 1939-01-31 Muffly Glenn Apparatus for freezing ice
US2145777A (en) * 1935-08-26 1939-01-31 Muffly Glenn Refrigerating mechanism
US2178511A (en) * 1936-11-23 1939-10-31 Andrew A Kucher Refrigerating apparatus
US2197437A (en) * 1937-12-18 1940-04-16 Gen American Precooling Corp Method for conditioning potatoes
US2215274A (en) * 1938-12-09 1940-09-17 Ezra M Peterson Food receptacle
US2333296A (en) * 1941-01-07 1943-11-02 Col Temp Corp Refrigerator
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US2484017A (en) * 1944-04-11 1949-10-11 Copeman Lab Co Apparatus for dispensing ice cubes
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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2385539A (en) * 1945-09-25 Automatic ice freezing unit and method
US2133521A (en) * 1933-05-15 1938-10-18 Wussow Reinhard Ice making apparatus
US2145774A (en) * 1934-04-05 1939-01-31 Muffly Glenn Apparatus for freezing ice
US2087117A (en) * 1934-08-23 1937-07-13 Arta Corp Of America Sanitary butter container
US2349367A (en) * 1935-08-26 1944-05-23 Muffly Glenn Refrigerating apparatus
US2145777A (en) * 1935-08-26 1939-01-31 Muffly Glenn Refrigerating mechanism
US2178511A (en) * 1936-11-23 1939-10-31 Andrew A Kucher Refrigerating apparatus
US2139297A (en) * 1937-03-06 1938-12-06 York Ice Machinery Corp Refrigeration
US2197437A (en) * 1937-12-18 1940-04-16 Gen American Precooling Corp Method for conditioning potatoes
US2215274A (en) * 1938-12-09 1940-09-17 Ezra M Peterson Food receptacle
US2333296A (en) * 1941-01-07 1943-11-02 Col Temp Corp Refrigerator
US2484017A (en) * 1944-04-11 1949-10-11 Copeman Lab Co Apparatus for dispensing ice cubes
US2487408A (en) * 1945-01-20 1949-11-08 Peerless Of America Apparatus for freezing ice cubes

Cited By (15)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2942432A (en) * 1950-08-09 1960-06-28 Muffly Glenn Defrosting of evaporator
US2769319A (en) * 1952-02-18 1956-11-06 Whirlpool Seeger Corp Two temperature household refrigerators
US2718123A (en) * 1952-07-25 1955-09-20 Jr James W Braswell Ice making apparatus
US2778200A (en) * 1953-11-20 1957-01-22 Gen Motors Corp Ice making apparatus
US2870612A (en) * 1955-08-29 1959-01-27 Frick Co Ice-making apparatus
US2890572A (en) * 1955-10-20 1959-06-16 Richelli Federico Ice making machine
US2943456A (en) * 1957-04-23 1960-07-05 Lee Aaron Ice cube making addition to domestic refrigerators
US2993347A (en) * 1957-06-04 1961-07-25 Muffly Glenn Refrigerating systems
US3390537A (en) * 1966-10-20 1968-07-02 Market Forge Co Ice dispensing apparatus
US4719765A (en) * 1986-09-19 1988-01-19 Whirlpool Corporation Ice storage receptacle light for ice maker
US5035118A (en) * 1990-04-16 1991-07-30 Hoshizaki Denki Kabushiki Kaisha Automatic ice making machine
US9091473B2 (en) 2010-11-09 2015-07-28 General Electric Company Float-type ice making assembly and related refrigeration appliance
US9664430B2 (en) 2010-11-17 2017-05-30 Haier Us Appliance Solutions, Inc. Ice maker for dispensing soft ice and related refrigeration appliance
US10126036B2 (en) 2010-11-17 2018-11-13 Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc Ice maker for dispensing soft ice and related refrigeration appliance
US9644878B2 (en) 2013-11-08 2017-05-09 Haier Us Appliance Solutions, Inc. Ice making assembly and an ice bucket

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