US3075364A

US3075364A - Freezing device

Info

Publication number: US3075364A
Application number: US136459A
Authority: US
Inventors: Walter G Kniffin
Original assignee: Motors Liquidation Co
Current assignee: Motors Liquidation Co
Priority date: 1961-09-07
Filing date: 1961-09-07
Publication date: 1963-01-29
Anticipated expiration: 1980-01-29

Description

Jan. 29, 1963 w. G. KNIFFIN 3,075,364

FREEZING DEVICE Filed Sept. 7, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 x INVENTOR.

H13 :47 UKZVEY Jan. 29, 1963 Y w. s. KNIFFIN 3,075,354

FREEZING DEVICE Filed Sept. '7, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 2215 AT 0 5y Jan. 29, 1963 w. G. KNIFFIN 3,075,364

FREEZING DEVICE Filed Sept. '7, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VEN TOR.

ms A7704? [Y Jan. 29, 1963 w. G. KNlFFlN 3,075,364

FREEZING DEVICE Filed Sept. '7, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR.

United States Pate nt Ofiice I misses Patented Jan. 29, 1953 3,075,36 FREEZING DEVECE Walter G. Kniffin, Dayton, (lhio, assignor to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich, a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. 7, 1961, Ser. No. 136,459 13 Claims. (Cl. 62-353) This invention relates to a freezing device and particulariy to a mold or tray member for use in household refrigerators and/ or in automatically operated ice making apparatuses incorporated within such refrigerators for congealing water into ice blocks.

An object of my invention is to provide an improved freezing device from which an ice block or blocks can be readily removed from compartments thereof by a force applied directly to the ice by fingers of a persons hand or by other mechanical force applying means.

Another object of my invention is to provide an inexpensive unique freezing tray or mold for use as such per se in a household refrigerator and/ or for use in an ice making apparatus which tray or mold is devoid of movable walls and from which elongated ice blocks are removed by a force applied to the top and one end thereof.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a freezing device including a mold having a cavity or cell therein bounded by upright walls and a continuously rounded integral lower wall that has a fixed curved surface formed by radii, each of progressively increased length at least from a point substantially centrally of the cavity or cell to one of its ends, and in which a relative rotary movement between an ice block therein and the mold shifts portions of the bottom of the ice block out of contact with the rounded cavity wall to relieve friction during the act of forceably removing the ice block from the mold.

A further object of my invention is to provide a freezing device or tray with compartments having a channel or recess in a wall thereof that forms a trunnion or protuberance on ice blocks frozen in the compartments which bears and reacts against a wall portion or surface of the channel or recess upon initiating rotation of the ice blocks within and outwardly of their compartments to relieve certain portions of the blocks from contact with a compartment wall or Walls for facilitating mechanical removal of ice blocks from the device or tray.

A still further object of my invention is to provide an improved ice making and harvesting apparatus with a freezing mold or tray having cavities or compartments therein of unique design for obtaining mechanical release of ice blocks from wells thereof and ejection of the ice blocks out of the mold or tray with a minimum of force in order to reduce the torque of a motor or other means employed for removing the ice blocks.

A specific object of my invention is to provide a freezing device including a mold or tray having long relatively narrow cavities, cells or compartments therein which are bounded by upright walls, diverging and/or converging in certain directions, and by a continuously rounded lower wall formed integral with the upright walls and all walls of which are immovable relative to one another wherein the rounded lower wall is a fixed curved surface generated by radii each having a different radius from end to end of the rounded wall surface as distinguished from semi-spherical, semicircular and half moon shaped or the like rounded surfaces.

A still more specific object of my invention is to provide a freezing device of the tray type with a row of elongated com artments adjacent side walls of which have a water overflow passageway therein that is utilized to freeze trunnions of ice on side-by-side ice blocks wherein the ice trunnions are fractured by an initial force and the portion of the fractured trunnions on an ice block thereafter serve as cam means to relieve surfaces of ice blocks from walls of the compartments during rotation of the blocks within and outwardly thereof to facilitate their removal from the tray.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein preferred embodiments of the present invention are clearly shown.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a top broken plan view of an ice tray for use in household refrigerators having compartments therein of a predetermined form according to my invention;

FIGURE 2 is an end view of the ice tray disclosed in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a broken view taken along the lines 3-3 of FIGURE 1 partly in section and partly in elevation showing water in compartments of the tray;

FIGURE 4 is a view taken along the lines 4-4 of FIG- URE 1 showing a section of a compartment of the tray near one end thereof;

FIGURE 5 is a view taken along the lines 5-5 of FIGURE 1 showing a section of the compartment of the tray near the other end thereof;

FIGURE 6 is a vertical sectional view taken along the lines 6-6 of FIGURE 1 showing an ice block in a compartment of the tray;

FIGURE 7 is a side view of an ice block removed from a compartment of the tray and showing a fractured ice trunnion on the ice block;

FIGURE 8 is a top view of the removed ice block showing a fractured ice trunnion on each side of the block;

FIGURE 9 is an enlarged sectional view similar to FIGURE 6 diagrammatically illustrating the generation of arcuate shaped fixed Wall surfaces of different radii incorporated in walls of compartments of the present ice tray;

FIGURE 10 is an end View of some essential members of an ice making apparatus with the tray member thereof constructed according to my invention shown in a normal water receiving and freezing position by full lines and in a position attained upon removing all ice blocks therefrom by dot-dash lines; and

FIGURE ll is a broken top View of the apparatus disclosed in FIGURE 10 showing the relationship of an ice e ecting member with the tray member of the apparatus.

Referring to the drawings the freezing device, to which the present invention relates, includes or comprises a onepiece elongated mold or tray member generally designated at 19 and stamped or formed of metal or molded plastic material as desired having a flat top rim portion, a downturned peripheral flange i1 and integral supporting legs 12 (see FIGURES 2 and 3) at the corners thereof. Mold or tray member 19 has a row of long, relatively narrow cells, cavities or compartments 13, preferably eight or ten, therein for receiving a liquid such as water to be frozen into elongated ice blocks. Each compartment, cell or cavity 13 is bounded by opposed upright side walls 1d and a continuously rounded lower wall 16 integral therewith and immovable relative to one another. The upright side walls M of compartments 13 converge toward one side of tray member It? and consequently diverge toward the other or opposite side of the tray (see FEGURES l, 4 and 5). In accordance with my invention the inner surface ofthe continuously rounded lower compartment wall 16 is a fixed curve formed by radii each of diflierent radius at least from a. point centrally of tray 1% or compartment 13 to one side of the tray or to one end of the compartment. Specifically, the inner surface of compartment lower wall 16 is composed of integral fixed curved sections each having a different radius of increased length from end to end of a compartment 13 for progressively enlarging the radii of the lower compartment wall surface or of a cell or cavity in a direction toward one end thereof. In other words the rounded lower wall 16 is a fixed curve of ever increasing radii from one to the other ends of compartments 13, as distinguished from a semicircle, half moon shaped or a curved surface which has fiat portions therein and is therefore not continuously rounded. Generation of the radii of the inner surface of wall 16 will be more fully described hereinafter in connection with a description of FIGURE 9 of the drawings.

Adjacent upright walls 14 of compartments 13 are joined together at their upper extremity and are provided at the juncture therebetween with a concaved channel, orifice or ice trunnion bearing forming means substantially centrally of tray 10 and ends of the compartments having a generally arcuate shaped wall surface 18. It is to be noted that the arcuate shaped wall surface 18 of the recess or weir is of different radii on each side of the longitudinal center of tray 10. In other words, the radius of wall surface 18 in the direction of one side of the tray member 10 is greater than that in a direction toward the other side of the tray. Thus tray member 10 has two fixed curved wall surfaces, compartment wall 16 and weir walls 18 of the recesses, each of which is provided with changing radii therealong and walls 18 form the ice protuberance or ice trunnion bearings on ice blocks frozen in compartments of the freezing device. A part or the lower portion of the wall surface 18 of the channel or recesses depends below the normal level of water placed in tray member 10 and provides a water overflow passageway between the row of side-by-side compartments to insure equalization of the water level in each compartment, cell or cavity 13 of the row thereof. The overflow passageways between compartments 13 causes, when water freezes therein, formation of an ice protuberance or trunnion on ice blocks frozen in the compartments and the particular shape of the arcuate recesses together with the ice trunnions play important roles or functions in the present invention as will be hereinafter described. Tray member 10 at each compartment second from ends of the tray and on one of the sides only of the tray is provided with a water spill-over depression 19 in the flat top rim portion thereof. The spill-over depressions 19 insure filling of compartments in the tray with Water only up to a desirable level therein to provide an ice protuberance or trunnion in the recesses of walls of the side-by-side compartments 13 of a predetermined thickness from the lowermost portion of a Wall surface 18 to the top of an ice block to be frozen in the compartments. Depressions 19 also serve in an ice making apparatus wherein one tray member may be disposed over another tray member as means to cascade a measured amount of water delivered to the trays from the upper to the lower of offset superimposed tray members.

Generation of curved wall surfaces, compartment wall 16 and the wall 18 of recesses or ice trunnion bearings intermediate adjacent compartments 13 of tray 10, is illustrated in FIGURE 9 of the drawings. It is to be understood that in describing this illustration and giving the following specific dimensions an example only is set forth since such may be varied depending upon the arcuate shape and particular size of ice blocks desired to be frozen in the compartments. Beginning approximately 1.68 inches inwardly from the one or left-hand side edge of the tray, opposite the side having depressions 19 therein as viewed in FIGURE 9, toward which upright side walls 14 of compartments 13 converge, and at a point substantially centrally of tray 10 or compartments 13 a vertical center line A is established. The distance from the central inner surface portion of a compartment Wall 16,

4 along line A, to the top of tray 10, indicated by the horizontal line extending transversely across the tray as shown in FIGURE 9, is 1.25 inches. Establishment of the vertical median line A together with the 1.25 inches depth of compartment 15 provide an initial measuring arrangement to describe location of focal points of the differential radii of continuously rounded compartment bottoms in the present example. At 0.350 inch above the top of tray 10 a point is fixed on line A for a 1.60 inches radius, indicated by the arrow line C, of the inner surface of compartment wall 16 throughout 60 of its lower portion or 30 thereof on each side of center line A. On a line drawn at a right angle to the focus point of radius C on line A toward the left-hand side of tray 10 and paralleling the top thereof as viewed in FIGURE 9 a center point of a circle, indicated by the dot-dash line E, is fixed. The radius of circle E is greater than the 0.350 inch distance of focus point of radius C above the top of tray 10 and this circle is scribed through this point so as to be tangent to line A and to intersect the tray top at the location thereon Where the 30 angle line of radius C, on the left-hand side of compartment 13 as viewed in FEGURE 9, intersects the top of the tray. A focus point for a 1.20 inches radius, indicated at B, is fixed on circle E at the location thereon of intersection thereof with the tray top and the left-hand 30 angle line. Radius B extends upwardly from the 1.60 radius C along the left-hand side of compartment wall 16. At a distance of 0.700 inch above the top of tray 10 and to the left of line A, beyond where a 30 angle line of that portion of radius C on the right-hand side of compartment 13 passes through the tangent point of line A with circle E, a focus point is fixed on circle E for a radius of 2.00 inches, indicated at D, forming the curvature of a 60 angle portion of the inner surface of compartment wall 16 along the right-hand side thereof above and counterclockwise from radius C or throughout the remainder of the extension of wall 16 with respect to the 1.20 inches and 1.60 inches of radii B and C respectively. In this manner focus points for radius B and radius D are fixed substantially equidistant from and both located on the left-hand side of center line A as viewed in EEG- URE 9. The focus point of each radius B, C, and D is arranged on the circumference of a circle drawn through these points, as indicated by the dot-dash lines E, and consequently these radii are secant lines with respect to this circle and the curvature of rounded wall 16 of the cavities, cells or compartments 13 is fixed and has radii about the involute of a circle. Each radius B, C and D may vary somewhat at its ends so as to blend smoothly into one another and not be noticeable at meeting or junctures of the fixed curve. The three 60 angled portions or sections of Wall 16, indicated in FIGURE 9, may, without departing from the realm of my invention, be further divided into two or more angles each having a different radius if desired. As far as the continuously rounded wall 16 is concerned it could be a part of an Archimedes, hyperbolic, logarithmic or the like spiral having varied radii each preferably of increasing radius from end to end of the wall. Thus integral wall surface 16 of compartments 13 are composed of fixed curved sections of progressively or ever increasing radius at least from center line A to one end thereof. Differential radii of wall surface 18 of the channels, recesses or ice trunnion hearings in walls 14 of compartments 13 of the ice tray is also illustrated in FIGURE 9. The lower portion of wall surface 18 toward the one or left-hand side of tray 10 has a radius F of 0.312 inch with its focus point on center line A. The juncture of radius F of wall surface 18 with the upper extremity of walls 14 is a radius G of 0.125 inch with its focus point close to a line 30 from center line A. The remainder of wall surface 18 on the other or right-hand side of center line A has a constant radius H of 0.750 inch taken therefrom and is suitably rounded by a radius J, 45 from center line A, of 0.125 inch into the upper extremity of adjacent compartment Walls 14, hence arcuate shaped wall surface 18 of the recesses or channels intermediate compartments 13 of tray 19 are of different radii.

It is to be understood that the ice tray of the present disclosure may be a sheet metal stamping with at least wall surfaces of compartments thereof, to be contacted by Water or ice, roughened or patterned and thereafter coated with a layer or film of wax so as to reduce forces necessary to loosen ice blocks from the compartments. Such feature is shown and fully described in the patent to Robert E. Davis, No. 3,033,008 dated May 8, 1962 entitled Patterned and Coated Ice Tray and assigned to the assignee of this application. The ice tray may on the other hand be molded from any suitable substantially rigid plastic material, having the inherent property of shedding water, to thereby prevent or reduce bondage of ice thereto. In this respect manual ejection of ice blocks from the present tray is made entirely feasible. Regardless of the material from which tray it} is formed or fabricated it will inherently be, due to its elongation, somewhat resilient at least from end to end thereof and capable of being slightly twisted.

Having described the construction of tray member It the method of harvesting ice blocks therefrom will now be explained. Assuming that tray 10 has previously been filled with water, up to a level therein approximating the level indicated at 21 in FIGURE 3 of the drawings, in a below 32 F. freezing chamber of a refrigerator, the water frozen into ice blocks 22, ice protuberances or trunnions 23 thereon and therebetween and the tray and ice therein removed from the chamber and supported upon legs 12 on a kitchen work ledge or table and that it is now desired to remove ice blocks 22 from the tray, one hand of an operator is placed on the top side or portion of tray 10 having spill-out depressions 19 therein, to steady the tray, and a downward force is initially applied by the thumb or finger of the operators other hand to the top and end of one ice block 22 on the opposite side of the tray from the depressions. This initial force fractures the protuberance or trunnion 23 on the one ice block 22, substantially centrally of the trunnion, and also simultaneously therewith starts rotation of the block within its compartment 13 whereby same is readily loosened from walls of the compartment. Here it is to be further understood that my invention is made more feasible and practical in modern refrigerators wherein air is circulated out of a freezing chamber into contact with an evaporator of a refrigerating system associated therewith and back into the chamber in a very cold stream over the surface of water in a freezing tray or mold disposed Within the chamber. In such an arrangement water contained in the tray or mold is congealed from top downwardly erein and this freezing action substantially self-loosens ice blocks from walls of the cavity or compartment in which they are frozen. Continued application of the downward force to the one ice block 22, after the ice protuberance or trunnion 23 thereon is fractured, rotates this block within and outwardly of its compartment 13. That portion of the fractured ice trunnion 23 remaining on this one block 22 bears, during rotation thereof, against the wall surface, trunnion radius F and radius H (see FIGURE 9), or wall of channel or recess 13 which prevents the ice block from being lowered within compartment 13 into engagement with its rounded lower wall 16 as the block is rotated and that portion of ice trunnion 23 corresponding to the radius F acts as a cam means on the surface of wall 18, along the radius H thereof, to shift or earn the bottom of the rotating ice block away from the increased radii of compartment lower wall 16. The ice block being rotated in the direction of the increased radii of compartment Wall 16 also moves away from diverging portions of upright walls 14- whereby the block rotates out of its compartment and is readily removable, by the operators fingers, from the tray or mold member 10. In other words, initial rotation or movement of the one ice block 22 immediately relieves contact of portions of its bottom with the intrinsic curvature of the continuously rounded wall 16 of compartment 13 and very little effort is expended in breaking the ice trunnion 23, rotating the ice block and removing same from tray in. This operation is repeated progressively along the length of tray or mold It? to remove the desired number or all of the ice blocks 22 therefrom. Thus my improvement permits ice blocks to be manually removed with the greatest of ease from a mold or tray member of a freezing device without employment of a force multiplying leverage mechanism or means to move bounding walls or walls adjacent an ice block. The ice block compartments in the present mold or tray, being devoid of walls movable relative to one another and means for moving them, provides an inexpensive freezing device which does not become damaged or inoperative with prolonged life.

The particular construction of tray member 10 incites, after the tray has been removed from a freezing chamber of a refrigerator cabinet and supported upon a fiat surface of a table top or work ledge, another or alternative mode of harvesting ice blocks from compartments thereof which can be carried out if desired. Due to the elongation of the freezing device and its inherent resilience therealong an operator may place the palm of his or her hand on top of tray 10, intermediate ends thereof, and apply a downward force to both the tray and ice contained therein to spring or how same downwardly and thereby break or fracture the plurality of trunnions 23 on ice blocks 22 frozen in the tray. With the ice trunnions 23 fractured in this manner the act of rotating the ice blocks about trunnions thereon, in or against the trunnion bearings, wall surfaces 18, can thereafter proceed in the fashion hereinbefore described to remove the blocks from the tray.

My improved ice tray or mold It is applicable to serve as an improved water freezing device, portion or element of an ice block making apparatus and its use in such an apparatus permits employment therein of a smaller and consequently less expensive motor for rotating a tray member to eject ice blocks therefrom. In FIGURES 10 and 11 of the present drawings I show two members of an ice block making apparatus which members are normally conttained in or housed within at below 30 F. insulated freezing chamber (not shown) such as a frozen food or ice freezing chamber of a household refrigerator cabinet as is conventional and Well known in the art. One member of this apparatus is in the form of a freezing device embodying a tray or mold 3ft of my improved character. Tray member 30 is slightly modified over the tray 1%, disclosed inFlGURES 1, 2 and 3, in a minor fashion to render it suitable for such installation in that legs 12 of the tray are omitted for the reason such legs are of no utility in an automatically operated ice making apparatus. Tray member St has one of its ends secured, by rivets or the like, to a plate 31 having an integral shaft 32 extending therefrom adapted to be connected to an electric motor or other means for swinging the tray member, which motor is usually located beyond walls of a freezing chamber containing thetray. The other or opposite end of tray member 30 is secured, by rivets or the like, to a plate 33 having a shaft 34 formed integral thereon. Shaft 34 is pivoted for rotation in a bearing aperture or hole provided in a supporting bracket 36 which has a base portion thereof attached to a wall such as the bottom wall of a freezing chamber by bolts or the like 37.

Shafts

32 and 34 are located at the neutral axis of tray member 3b as, for example, on the center line A (see FIGURE 9), substmtially at the locus point of radius F of wall 18 of the channels or recesses between compartments 13. The other member of the ice making apparatus is an ice block ejector or ejecting member generally represented at 4t}. Memher 40 is stationarily mounted in association with tray member 30 upon a wall of a freezing chamber or a support 41, by screws or bolts 42, and a downwardly directed side edge portion thereof is provided with a plurality of spaced-apart fingers 43. These fingers d3 are arranged in different stepped distances with respect to one another from tray member 30 (see FIGURE 10) and are adapted, upon swinging one of the member 30 and/ or 40 relative to the other of the members, to progressively enter compartments 13 of tray member 3t It is to be noted that one finger at the end of tray member 39', adjacent the end thereof which is rotatably supported by bracket 36, is lower than other of the fingers 43 and is the first to enter the compartment 13 at this end of the tray member. While either member 39 or 4b can be stationarily mounted and the other pivotally mounted, I prefer to mount tray member 30 for swinging movement toward and into cooperative relationship with ejecting member 40. As hereinbefore mentioned the depressions 19 in tray member 30 may serve as spill-over passages to cascade a measured amount of water admitted thereto to a second tray member disposed therebelow when a dual tray arrangement is employed in an ice making apparatus.

Assuming now that water has been frozen into the ice blocks 22 within compartments 13 of tray member 30, ice protuberances or trunnions 23 above channel or recess walls 18 and the hard frozen condition thereof has been detected by a thermostatic means or the like, as is conventional or common practice in ice making apparatuses, and that a motor connected to shaft 32 is energized. Tray member 30 and ice therein is swung by the motor in a clockwise direction, as viewed in FIGURE 10 of the drawings, toward cooperative relationship with member 40. The lowermost end finger 43 on member 40 is the first to enter a compartment 13 of tray member 3% at the end thereof adjacent bracket 36. Lowermost finger 43 engages and applies force to the top of the ice block at the end of compartment 13 on the side of tray member 30 opposite the side thereof having depressions 19 therein. The initial force applied to the end of the ice block fractures the ice trunnion 23 between it and the next adjacent ice block and simultaneously loosens the block from walls of its compartment l3. Continued swinging movement of tray member 36 toward the fingers 43 on ejecting member 4% causes rotation of the one end ice block 22 within its compartment 13 and the next stepped finger then engages the top of the adjacent ice block and so on throughout the length of tray member 30 to progressively loosen and rotate ice blocks in the row thereof one after another in succession for consecutively removing ice blocks from the tray of the apparatus. The dot-dash lines in FIGURE 10 indicate tray member 30 swung into engagement with member 40 and illustrates the ice block in the last or farthest from the bracket end of the tray being ejected therefrom by the uppermost finger 43. When tray member 3% has been swung to this position the electric motor may be reversed in any suitable or conventional manner so as to return the tray member to its normal upright water receiving, water freezing position to thereafter await another freezing and ice ejecting cycle of the apparatus. The electric motor may be a conventional timed reversible type now well known to those skilled in the art. That portion of the fractured ice protuberances or trunnions 23 re maining on each ice block 22 bear, as the ice blocks are rotated within compartments 13, against wall surface 18, radius F and radius H (see FIGURE 9), of the channels, recesses or trunnion bearings between the compartments and the cam part on the trunnions 23, corresponding to radius F, shift the rotating ice blocks relative to or away from the rounded lower compartment wall 16. By virtue of the intrinsic shape or increased radii of wall 16 in the direction of rotation of ice blocks the bottom of the blocks are progressively re ieved from or moved out of contact with wall 16. At one time or another, especially if the surface of water in tray member 39 is not exposed to a cold substantially concentrated air stream circulated thereover, the first ice block 22 of the row thereof in the tray member may 'bond to or have a tendency to bind or stick to Walls of its compartment 13 and the motor in continuing to swing tray 34) toward member 4-0, after a finger 43 engages the first ice block, will twist the tray member from end to end thereof and this twisting fractures all of the ice protuberances or trunnions 23 throughout the length of the tray. It has been found that breaking of the ice trunnions in this manner is advantageous rather than detrimental because it then permits the force applied to the first ice block to readily start its rotation and camming action of the portion of the fractured trunnion thereon at which time a resilient tray member will immediately flex back into its nontwisted or original position. The progressive engagement of fingers 43 with tops of the ice blocks 22 cooperate with twisting of the tray member to prevent ejection of all ice blocks at the same time or as a unit, by the interconnected trunnions 23, from tray member 31 and insures rotation of the ice blocks one after another out of the compartments 13 whereafter they freely fall into an ice storage receptacle or bucket associated with the ice making apparatus and removably located in the freezing chamber. Thus a relative rotation between ice blocks 22 and the tray member 30 once having been initiated will cause their progressive removal.

In either of the ice making and harvesting arrangements herein disclosed it should from the foregoing be apparent that ice blocks can be removed from their compartments with the greatest of ease. Initial rotation of an ice block within its compartment immediately reduces friction between walls thereof and the ice block and furthermore permits venting of the space intermediate surfaces of the blocks and compartment walls normally contacted thereby so as to prevent creation of a succession therebetween during removal thereof, which ordinarily impedes or renders ice blocks more difficult to be released from compartment walls, regardless of whether they are mechanically loosened or thawed loose therefrom. The intrinsic shape of the rounded lower compartment walls and their increased radii in the direction of rotation of ice blocks together with the different radii of the arcuate channels or recesses cooperate with one another to render the task of mechanically ejecting ice blocks an easy one. Walls of the compartments are divergent or enlarged in the direction of rotation of ice blocks therein and these walls offer little resistance to force applied to the blocks so that this force is initially directed to an ice trunnion on an ice block. Since such trunnions are very thin from top to bottom they are easily manually or mechanically fractured whereby the fractured portion thereof remaining on an ice block can carry out the function of preventing the block from being lowered within its compartment during rotation thereof and of shifting or camming surfaces of the block away from walls of the compartment.

While the embodiments of the present invention as herein disclosed constitute preferred forms, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. An ice block making apparatus comprising in combination, a tray member to be refrigerated to a temperature below 32 F. having a row of elongated compart' ments therein for receiving water to be frozen into elongated ice blocks and an ice block ejecting member associated with said tray member provided with a plurality of spaced-apart fingers thereon, one of said members being stationary and the other member being swingable into cooperation with said one member, each compartment of said tray member being bounded by opposed upright walls and another wall curvilinear from end to end of the compartment, said curvilinear wall of the compartments being formed by radii each of increasing length at least from a predetermined point in a compartment to an end thereof toward one side of said tray member, said fingers on the ejecting member being of such length as to enter said compartments upon swingting one of said members relative to the other of said members and engage and apply force to the top of elongated ice blocks frozen therein at the end thereof opposite said one side of the tray member for rotating the ice blocks within and outwardly of the compartments, and portions of the bottom of said ice blocks being when their rotation is initiated shifted out of contact with said rounded curvilinear wall of the compartments to facilitate removal of the blocks from said tray member.

2. The combination defined by claim 1 wherein pposed upright walls of each compartment are divergent in the same direction toward the one side of the tray member to also relieve portions of sides of the ice blocks from contact with said upright compartment walls.

3. An ice block making apparatus comprising in combination, a resilient tray member adapted to be twisted from end to end thereof to be refrigerated to a temperature below 32 F. having a row of long relatively narrow compartments therein for receiving water to be frozen into elongated ice blocks and an ice block ejecting member associated with said tray member provided with a plurality of spaced-apart fingers thereon each arranged in different stepped distances from the tray member, one of said members being stationary and the other of said members being swingable into cooperation with said one member, each compartment of said tray member being bounded by upright walls and another wall curvilinear from end to end of the compartment and formed by radii each of increasing length at least from a predetermined point in a compartment to an end thereof toward one side of said tray member, adjacent upright compartment walls being joined together at their upper extremity and provided at the juncture therebetween with a recess centrally of ends of compartments, said recess having a gen erally arcuate shaped wail surface a part of which depends below the normal level of water placed in said tray member providing a water overflow passageway between each compartment and causing when water freezes in said passageways formation of ice trunnions intermediate ice blocks frozen in said compartments, said spaced-apart fingers on said ejecting member being of such length as to progressively enter said compartments upon swinging one member relative to the other member whereby one finger engages and applies force to the top of one elongated ice block therein at the end thereof opposite said one side of the tray, the initial force applied by said one finger to said one ice block twisting said tray member and fracturing ice trunnions intermediate ice blocks in said compartments, other of said plurality of fingers on the ejecting member engaging the top and said end of all of the elongated ice blocks in said row of compartments during continued relative swinging of said members for rotating the ice blocks Within and outwardly of their compartments, and that portion of the fractured ice trunnions remaining on the ice blocks bearing against said arcuate shaped wall surface of the recesses to relieve the bottom of said ice blocks while they are being rotated from contact with said curvilinear compartment walls for facilitating removal of the blocks from said tray member.

4. A freezing device including a mold provided with a cavity therein, said mold cavity having a wall which is continuously rounded from the top at one end thereof to the topof its opposite end, and said rounded well being a fixed curve formed by radii each of increasing length at least from a point substantially centrally of the cavity to one of said ends thereof.

5. A freezing device including a mold provided with a cavity therein, said mold cavity having upright side 1% Walls and another wall integral with said side walls which is continuously rounded from the top at one end of the cavity to the top of the other end thereof, and said another rounded wall being a fixed curve formed by radii each of changing length from end to end of said cavity.

6. A freezing device including a tray provided with a plurality of cavities therein, said cavities being bounded by upright walls and another wall integral therewith which is continuously rounded from the top at one end of the cavities to the top of the other end thereof, said upright walls of each of the cavities diverging in the same direction toward one side of said tray, and said rounded wall of the cavities being a fixed curve formed by radii each of increasing length at least from a point substantially centrally of a cavity to its end adjacent said one side of said tray.

7. A freezing device comprising a tray having a row of long relatively narrow compartments therein adapted to receive water to be frozen into elongated ice blocks, each compartment being bounded by two upright walls and a wall surface which is continuously rounded from the top at one end of a compartment to the top of its opposite end, adjacent upright compartment walls being joined together at their upper extremity and provided at the juncture therebetween with a recess substantially centrally of ends of said compartments, said recess having a generally arcuate shaped wall surface with a part thereof depending below the normal level of water placed in said tray to provide an overflow weir between the compartrnents causing when water freezes therein formation of an ice trunnion intermediate ice blocks frozen in said row of compartments, one of said well surfaces being a fixed curve formed by radii each of increasing length at least from the center of a compartment to an end thereof in a direction toward one side of said tray with respect to a single radius of the coextensive part of the other of said wall surfaces, the top of an elongated ice block adapted to have a downward force applied thereto at the end thereof opposite said one side of said tray for rotating same within and outwardly of its compartment, the initial application of force to said rotating ice block fracturing said ice trunnion, and that portion of the fractured ice trunnion remaining on said rotating ice block bearing during rotation thereof against said weir whereby the part of said ice block normally engaging said one wall surface throughout its increased radii is shifted out of engagement therewith to facilitate removal of the block of ice from said tray.

8. A freezing device as defined by claim 7 wherein the opposed upright walls of each compartment of the row thereof are divergent in the same direction toward the one side of the tray.

9. A freezing device including a mold provided with an elongated cavity therein adapted to receive water to be frozen into an ice block, said mold cavity being bounded by opposed substantially upright walls and an other wall integral therewith which is continuously rounded from the top at one end of the cavity to the top of the other end thereof, said rounded wall being a fixed curve formed by radii each of progressively increasing length from a predetermined point in the cavity to one of its ends, said ice block being rotatable within said cavity toward and upwardly relative to said one end thereof for effecting removal of the ice block from said mold, and the intrinsic shape of said rounded cavity wall being such that contact of portions of the bottom of said ice block therewith is relieved upon initiating rotation of the block.

10. A freezing device as defined by claim 9 wherein wall of the mold cavity are metal and provided with a multitude of spaced-apart reoccurring depressions therein imparting a patterned surface thereto which is coated with a coextensive layer of nonporous nonmetallic water repellent material.

11. A freezing device as defined by claim 9 wherein walls of the mold cavity are constructed of substantially rigid water shedding plastic material.

12. A freezing device including a tray provided with a plurality of elongated cavities therein adapted to receive water to be frozen into ice blocks, said cavities being bounded by opposed substantially upright side walls diverging from one end thereof to their other end and another wall integral with said side walls which is continuously rounded throughout its entire extension be tween the top of ends of the cavities, said rounded cavity wall being a fixed curve formed by different radii, said radii each being of increased length from a point in the vicinity of said one end of said cavities toward said other end thereof, said ice blocks being when a force is applied to the topthereof at said one end of a cavity selectively rotatable therein toward and outwardly of its said other end, and said divergent side Walls cooperating with the intrinsic contour of said rounded wall of a cavity to simultaneously relieve contact of both sides and at least portions of the bottom of an ice block therewith upon initiating rotation of said block.

13. A freezing device including a mold provided with a cavity therein, said mold cavity having a wall the surface of which is arcuate shaped and continuously rounded between the top of opposite sides thereof, and said wall surface being a fixed curve formed by radii each of increased length from a point intermediate said top of one side to said top of the other side of said cavity.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,889,481 Kennedy Nov. 29, 1932 2,717,503 Woehler Sept. 13, 1955 2,757,519 Sampson Aug. 7, 1956 2,796,742 Flatt June 25, 1957 2,968,168 Lip-pincott Ian. 17, 1961 3,003,335 Kattis Oct. 10, 1961