JP2021113622A - Ice machine - Google Patents

Abstract

An ice-making machine capable of more accurately controlling the discharging direction of ice discharged to the outside is provided. An ice making unit 10 for making ice and an ice storage 40 for storing the ice made by the ice making unit 10 are housed in a housing 1M, and when an ice supply is requested, the ice in the ice storage 40 is stored. An ice making machine 1 that opens a discharge port 40a and discharges ice to the outside through a drop guide 40c connected to the ice discharge port 40a and a chute 100 arranged directly below the drop guide 40c, The drop guide 40c forms a guide groove 40cc having a U-shaped cross section extending obliquely downward forward from the ice discharge port 40a. becomes smaller as [Selection drawing] Fig. 7

Description

The present disclosure relates to an ice machine.

Conventionally, an ice making section for producing a large number of small pieces of ice (hereinafter, simply referred to as ice) and an ice storage for storing ice produced in the ice making section are stored in a housing, and the supply of ice is required. Then, an ice maker that opens the ice discharge port of the ice storage and discharges ice to the outside via a drop guide connected to the ice discharge port and a shooter arranged directly under the fall guide is known. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-145212

By the way, in this type of ice maker, when the ice is discharged from the ice storage to the outside, there is a request that the ice be properly put into the container placed on the container mounting table of the ice maker. be.

In particular, in recent years, in order to make it possible to supply ice to containers of various heights such as short glasses and beer mugs, a design to increase the distance between the container mount of the ice machine and the shooter has been studied. In such a configuration, the ice discharged from the ice storage to the outside via the shooter is more likely to be scattered outside the container.

The present disclosure has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide an ice maker capable of suppressing the scattering of ice released to the outside.

The main disclosure that solves the above-mentioned problems is
An ice making section for producing ice and an ice storage for storing ice produced in the ice making section are stored in the housing, and when an ice supply is requested, the ice outlet of the ice storage is opened to obtain the above. An ice maker that discharges ice to the outside via a drop guide connected to an ice discharge port and a shooter arranged directly under the drop guide.
The drop guide constitutes a guide groove having a U-shaped cross section extending diagonally downwardly forward from the ice discharge port.
The width of the guide groove in a plan view decreases from the upper side to the lower side.
It is an ice machine.

According to the ice maker according to the present disclosure, it is possible to suppress the scattering of ice released to the outside.

The figure which shows the structure of the ice machine which concerns on one Embodiment A side sectional view showing a configuration of an ice machine according to an embodiment. A perspective view showing the appearance of the ice machine according to the embodiment. A perspective view showing the configuration of the shooter according to the embodiment. Front view showing the configuration of the shooter according to one embodiment Side view showing the configuration of the shooter according to one embodiment Front view showing the mounting structure of the shooter formed in the housing of the ice machine according to the embodiment. A perspective view showing a mounting structure of a shooter formed in a housing of an ice machine according to an embodiment. A front view showing a state in which a shooter is attached to a housing in the ice machine according to the embodiment. A side sectional view showing a state in which a shooter is attached to a housing in the ice maker according to the embodiment. The figure which shows the difference between the ice release mode when the drop guide which concerns on one Embodiment is used, and the ice release mode when the drop guide which concerns on a prior art is used. The figure which shows the difference between the ice release mode when the drop guide which concerns on one Embodiment is used, and the ice release mode when the drop guide which concerns on a prior art is used.

Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the present specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same function are designated by the same reference numerals, so that duplicate description will be omitted.

Each figure shows a common Cartesian coordinate system (X, Y, Z) in order to clarify the positional relationship of each configuration. In the following, the positive direction of the X-axis represents the front direction of the ice machine (hereinafter, also referred to as "forward direction"), and the positive direction of the Y-axis represents the right side direction of the side surface of the ice machine (hereinafter, also referred to as "right direction"). The positive direction of the Z-axis will be described as representing the upward direction of the ice maker (hereinafter, abbreviated as "upward direction").

[Overall configuration of ice machine]
Hereinafter, the overall configuration of the ice maker according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an ice maker 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a side sectional view showing the configuration of the ice machine 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the ice machine 1 according to the present embodiment.

The ice machine 1 includes an ice making unit 10, a cooling device 20, a water storage tank 30, an ice storage 40, a drain pan 50, a controller 60, and the like. These are housed in the housing 1M of the ice machine 1. Further, a shooter 100 is detachably attached to the housing 1M of the ice maker 1 (described later with reference to FIG. 8 and the like).

The ice making section 10 includes a stainless steel cooling cylinder 11, an auger (that is, a rotary blade) 12 rotatably arranged in the cooling cylinder 11, a motor 13 for driving the auger 12, and the like. Then, the evaporator 21 of the cooling device 20 is wound around the outer wall of the cooling cylinder 11 in a pipe shape so that the water in the cooling cylinder 11 can be cooled. Water for ice making is sent out from the water storage tank 30 into the cooling cylinder 11. That is, the ice making unit 10 cools the water sent from the water storage tank 30 into the cooling cylinder 11 in the cooling cylinder 11 to generate ice. The ice generated in the cooling cylinder 11 is cut into small pieces by the auger 12 and then moved into the ice storage 40 connected to the upper part of the cooling cylinder 11.

The cooling device 20 includes an evaporator 21, an expansion valve 22, a condenser 23, and a compressor 24, and constitutes a refrigeration cycle. The evaporator 21 led out from the cooling device 20 is piped to the cooling cylinder 11 of the ice making section 10, and the cooling device 20 is configured to cool the cooling cylinder 11 by circulating and supplying the refrigerant to the evaporator 21. Will be done.

The water storage tank 30 supplies ice-making water to the ice-making unit 10. A water pipe Lc is connected to the water storage tank 30, and the ice-making water stored in the water storage tank 30 is introduced into the ice-making unit 10 via the water pipe Lc. Further, a water suction port Lb extending from the water pipe La is connected to the water storage tank 30, and water is appropriately supplied to the water storage tank 30 from the water pipe La.

The ice storage 40 stores the ice produced by the ice making unit 10. The ice storage 40 is connected to the cooling cylinder 11, and the ice generated by the cooling cylinder 11 is supplied to the ice storage 40 through a communication hole formed in the bottom surface of the ice storage 40.

The ice storage 40 is provided in an ice discharge port 40a formed in the lower part of the front surface of the ice storage 40, a shutter 40b for opening and closing the ice discharge port 40a, a drop guide 40c connected to the ice discharge port 40a, and the ice storage 40. It has an arranged agitator 40d.

The ice discharge port 40a is an opening for discharging the ice accumulated in the ice storage 40 to the outside. The ice discharge port 40a is opened and closed by the operation of the shutter 40b.

The shutter 40b is a door that opens and closes the ice discharge port 40a. The shutter 40b is controlled by, for example, a solenoid, and when an ice release command is received from the user, the shutter 40b is switched from a state in which the ice discharge port 40a is closed to a state in which the ice discharge port 40a is open.

The upper end 40ca of the drop guide 40c is connected to the ice discharge port 40a, and the lower end 40cc is arranged directly above the shooter 100 or in the through hole 100a of the shooter 100 (described later with reference to FIG. 7). The fall guide 40c constitutes a guide groove extending diagonally downward forward from the ice discharge port 40a, and guides the ice released from the ice discharge port 40a into the shooter 100. The guide groove formed by the drop guide 40c has, for example, a U-shaped (or U-shaped) cut surface orthogonal to the longitudinal direction. In other words, the guide groove formed by the drop guide 40c is formed in a slide shape.

The agitator 40d agitates the ice group accumulated in the ice storage 40 to prevent the ice from solidifying with each other, and moves the ice accumulated in the ice storage 40 to the ice discharge port 40a side. Let me. The agitator 40d is rotatably arranged in the ice storage 40 near the center of the bottom of the ice storage 40.

The drain pan 50 functions as a discharge destination of water stored in the ice making section 10 and the water storage tank 30 when cleaning the ice making section 10 and the water storage tank 30. Further, the drain pan 50 is arranged directly under the container mounting table 1Mb (see FIG. 3) of the housing 1M, and collects water or the like overflowing from the container or the like placed on the container mounting table 1Mb.

The controller 60 communicates with each part of the ice maker 1 to control them and receive data from them.

The controller 60 is configured to accept user operations via, for example, an operation unit (for example, an operation button) 1Ma (see FIG. 3) arranged on the front surface of the housing 1M.

The housing 1M has an operation unit 1Ma for receiving user operations, a container mounting table 1Mb for placing a container for providing ice, a recessed portion 1MR for arranging the shooter 100, and the like on the front side. Has (see FIG. 3). The recessed portion 1MR is formed directly above the container mounting table 1Mb, and the ice released from the shooter 100 mounted in the recessed portion 1MR is put into the container placed on the container mounting table 1Mb. It is composed.

The user operates the operation unit 1Ma with his / her own container placed on the container mounting table 1Mb to operate the shutter 40b of the ice storage 40 to release ice from the ice storage 40, and the container. It is possible to put ice inside. At this time, when the user selects "ice only" on the operation unit 1Ma and presses the release button, the controller 60 releases the ice in the ice storage 40 to the outside with the shutter 40b open. When the user selects "ice / water" on the operation unit 1Ma and presses the release button, the controller 60 releases the ice in the ice storage 40 to the outside with the shutter 40b open, and the shooter. Water is discharged from the water pipe Ld (see FIG. 1) supported by 100.

[Shooter mounting structure]
Hereinafter, the mounting structure of the shooter 100 of the ice maker 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 10. The shooter 100 is detachably attached to the housing 1M in the recessed portion 1MR of the housing 1M.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the shooter 100 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 5 is a front view showing the configuration of the shooter 100 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 6 is a side view showing the configuration of the shooter 100 according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a front view showing a mounting structure of the shooter 100 formed in the housing 1M of the ice machine 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a mounting structure of the shooter 100 formed in the housing 1M of the ice machine 1 according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a front view showing a state in which the shooter 100 is attached to the housing 1M in the ice machine 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a side sectional view showing a state in which the shooter 100 is attached to the housing 1M in the ice machine 1 according to the present embodiment.

The shooter 100 has a tubular shape and guides the ice so that the ice released from the ice discharge port 40a of the ice storage 40 falls into the container placed on the container mounting table 1Mb of the ice maker 1. .. That is, the shooter 100 forms a passage path for ice discharged from the ice discharge port 40a of the ice storage 40, and regulates the discharge direction of the ice. The shooter 100 is arranged below the ice discharge port 40a of the ice storage 40, and more specifically, directly below the drop guide 40c.

The shooter 100 is formed on the front surface of itself, with a through hole 100a formed along the vertical direction, a flange portion 100b formed on both left and right sides on the upper portion of the shooter 100, and a protrusion 100c formed on the rear surface of the shooter 100. It has a water pipe support portion 100d (see FIGS. 4 to 6).

The through hole 100a is a guide hole for passing ice discharged from the ice discharge port 40a of the ice storage 40. The shape of the through hole 100a is arbitrary, but the through hole 100a has, for example, an elliptical shape.

On the upper side of the wall portion forming the through hole 100a of the shooter 100, a notch portion 100aa forming a window leading to the through hole 100a is provided. The notch 100aa is a window through which the drop guide 40c is inserted, and when the shooter 100 is attached to the housing 1M, the lower end of the drop guide 40c penetrates through the notch 100aa. It is disposed in the hole 100a (see FIG. 10). With such a configuration, the through hole 100a of the shooter 100 and the guide groove of the drop guide 40c communicate with each other, and the ice falling from the drop guide 40c is surely thrown into the through hole 100a of the shooter 100.

The collar portion 100b is formed so as to engage with the slide guide portion 1Ms arranged in the housing 1M. The collar portion 100b is formed on both the left and right sides of the upper portion of the shooter 100.

The protrusion 100c has a shape that fits with the fitting portion 1Mt of the housing 1M. In the present embodiment, the protrusion 100c has a columnar protruding shape. Further, on the outer surface of the protrusion 100c, a fitting receiving portion 100ca having a concave-convex structure (here, a concave shape) is formed.

The water pipe support portion 100d supports the water pipe Ld extending from the water pipe La. With such a configuration, the ice maker 1 can provide water in addition to ice from the position of the shooter 100.

The housing 1M has a recessed portion 1MR formed on the front surface thereof, a slide guide portion 1Ms formed in a pair in the recessed portion 1MR on the left and right, and a slide guide portion 1Ms formed in the recessed portion 1MR below the slide guide portion 1Ms. It has an arranged fitting portion 1 Mt and.

The recessed portion 1MR is formed, for example, above the container mounting table 1Mb of the housing 1M and on the front surface of the housing 1M so as to pass through the ice discharge port 40a.

The slide guide portion 1Ms is formed so as to be engaged with the flange portion 100b of the shooter 100, and guides the shooter 100 from the position on the front surface of the housing 1M to the position directly below the drop guide 40c. The slide guide portions 1Ms are, for example, slide guide grooves arranged in pairs on the left and right so as to extend from the front surface of the housing 1M to a position directly below the drop guide 40c in the recessed portion 1MR. The slide guide portion 1Ms is arranged so that when the shooter 100 is locked, the shooter 100 is located directly below the drop guide 40c.

The fitting portion 1Mt is formed below the slide guide portion 1Ms and at a position facing the protrusion 100c of the shooter 100 when the shooter 100 is attached to the housing 1M. The fitting portion 1Mt exhibits a concave-convex structure and fits with the protrusion 100c of the shooter 100 to position the shooter 100. In the present embodiment, the fitting portion 1Mt exhibits a cylindrical groove structure that fits with the cylindrical protrusion 100c.

Further, the fitting portion 1Mt has a second fitting portion 1Mta that fits with the fitting receiving portion 100ca of the shooter 100 on the inner surface surface of the groove. The second fitting portion 1Mta has, for example, a convex shape, and when the shooter 100 is attached to the housing 1M, the second fitting portion 1Mta has a concave fitting receiving portion formed on the outer surface of the protrusion 100c of the shooter 100. Fits with 100ca. Here, the fitting of the second fitting portion 1Mta and the fitting receiving portion 100ca functions to stabilize the fixed state of the shooter 100.

In the ice machine 1 according to the present embodiment, the work of attaching the shooter 100 to the housing 1M is as follows.

When attaching the shooter 100 to the housing 1M, the user first engages the flange portion 100b of the shooter 100 with the slide guide portion 1Ms of the housing 1M. Then, the user moves the shooter 100 backward and pushes the flange portion 100b of the shooter 100 to the depth of the slide guide portion 1Ms of the housing 1M. At this time, the user adjusts the posture of the shooter 100 so that the protrusion 100c of the shooter 100 fits into the fitting portion 1Mt of the housing 1M.

In this state, the user further pushes the protrusion 100c of the shooter 100 toward the fitting portion 1Mt side of the housing 1M. As a result, the fitting receiving portion 100ca of the protrusion 100c of the shooter 100 is fitted with the second fitting portion 1Mta formed in the fitting portion 1Mt of the housing 1M, and the shooter 100 is fixed to the housing 1M. It will be in a state of being.

[Drop guide configuration]
Hereinafter, the configuration of the drop guide 40c of the ice maker 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7, 11, and 12.

As shown in FIG. 7, the drop guide 40c is arranged so that the upper end portion 40ca is connected to the ice discharge port 40a and the lower end portion 40cc is located in the through hole 100a of the shooter 100. Then, the fall guide 40c, together with the shooter 100, regulates the discharge direction of the ice discharged from the ice discharge port 40a of the ice storage 40. That is, the ice released from the ice discharge port 40a of the ice storage 40 slides down along the fall guide 40c, then passes through the shooter 100 and falls toward the container mounting table 1Mb.

Here, the fall guide 40c constitutes a guide groove 40cc extending diagonally downward from the ice discharge port 40a. The guide groove 40cc formed by the drop guide 40c has, for example, a U-shaped (or U-shaped) cut surface orthogonal to the longitudinal direction. In other words, the guide groove 40cc formed by the drop guide 40c is formed in a slide shape. The lateral width (that is, the groove width) of the guide groove 40 cc in a plan view becomes smaller from the upper side to the lower side.

Further, the lower end portion 40cc of the drop guide 40c has a shape in which the central region is recessed rearward (more specifically, rearward and upward) with respect to the regions at both the left and right ends in a plan view. Here, the lower end portion 40cc of the drop guide 40c has a shape cut out in an arc shape on the rear side. As a result, the distance from the ice discharge port 40a to the central region of the lower end portion 40cc of the fall guide 40c (ta in FIG. 7) is from the ice discharge port 40a to the regions at both left and right ends of the lower end portion 40cc of the fall guide 40c. It is smaller than the distance between them (tb in FIG. 7).

The shape of the fall guide 40c is set to control the ice discharge direction with higher accuracy. Specifically, by reducing the width of the guide groove 40cc in a plan view from the upper side to the lower side, the ice falling from the fall guide 40c is scattered from the direction directly below the fall guide 40c to the left and right. Suppress. Further, by forming the lower end portion 40cc of the fall guide 40c into a shape in which the central region is recessed rearward from the regions at both the left and right ends in a plan view, the ice falling from the fall guide 40c is directed in the direction directly below the fall guide 40c. Suppresses the vigorous scattering forward.

11 and 12 are diagrams showing the difference between the ice release mode when the drop guide 40c according to the present embodiment is used and the ice release mode when the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art is used. be.

FIG. 11A is a front view of the ice release mode when the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art is used, and FIG. 11B is a view showing the ice release mode when the drop guide 40c according to the present embodiment is used. It is the figure which looked at the aspect from the front. Further, FIG. 12A is a side view of the ice release mode when the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art is used, and FIG. 12B is a view when the drop guide 40c according to the present embodiment is used. It is the figure which looked at the release mode of ice from the side. In addition, each figure shows an example of the container P1 mounted on the container mounting table 1Mb.

Here, in the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art, the lateral width (that is, the lateral width of the guide groove 40cc') in a plan view is the same at each position from the upper side to the lower side. Further, the lower end portion 40ccb'of the drop guide 40c' according to the prior art does not have a shape in which the central region is recessed rearward from the regions at both the left and right ends.

Normally, the ice released from the ice discharge port 40a of the ice storage 40 is discharged so as to be pushed out by the agitator 40b that rotates in the ice storage 40. Therefore, when the ice is released from the ice discharge port 40a, the ice is tilted to the left or right from the direction directly below the fall guide 40c'(that is, the extending direction of the fall guide 40c') (typically). It falls toward the rotation direction of the agitator 40b (to the right in FIG. 11A). Therefore, when the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art is used, the ice falls in the extending direction of the drop guide 40c' (that is, directly below the fall guide 40c' even when the ice falls downward from the fall guide 40c'. It scatters from the direction) to the left and right. Then, when the ice falls downward from the shooter 100, it scatters in the left-right direction from the direction directly below the shooter 100 due to its own inertia or collision with the wall portion of the shooter 100 (see FIG. 11A). ..

Further, since the ice discharged from the ice discharge port 40a of the ice storage 40 is discharged so as to be pushed out to the agitator 40b, a part of the ice is vigorously moved forward by the pushing force from the agitator 40b. Therefore, when the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art is used, the ice vigorously moves forward even when falling downward from the fall guide 40c', and the ice falls downward from the shooter 100. , Its own inertia or collision with the wall of the shooter 100 causes it to scatter in the front-rear direction from the direction directly below the shooter 100 (see FIG. 12A).

In this regard, when the drop guide 40c according to the present embodiment is used, when the ice discharged from the ice discharge port 40a falls downward from the drop guide 40c, the drop guide 40c causes the release direction of the ice to be set to the drop guide 40c. It will be regulated in the direction directly below (see FIG. 11B). Further, when the drop guide 40c according to the present embodiment is used, the central region of the lower end portion of the drop guide 40c is behind the regions at both left and right ends (more specifically, rearward) of the ice discharged from the ice discharge port 40a. And since it has a concave shape (upward), it falls from the drop guide 40c at an earlier stage and heads in the direction directly below the drop guide 40c, as compared with the case where the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art is used. (See FIG. 12B).

For this reason, when the drop guide 40c according to the present embodiment is used, when the ice released from the ice discharge port 40a falls from the drop guide 40c, passes through the shooter 100, and is discharged downward. Compared with the case of using the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art, the discharge direction is restricted, and most of the ice is discharged in the direction directly below the shooter 100.

[effect]
As described above, according to the ice maker 1 according to the present embodiment, the ice released from the shooter 100 protrudes to the outside of the container arranged on the container mounting table 1Mb of the ice maker 1 and scatters to the outside. Can be suppressed.

The difference between the degree of ice scattering when the drop guide 40c according to the present embodiment and the degree of ice scattering when the drop guide 40c'according to the prior art is used is particularly the length of the shooter 100 ( It represents the length of the shooter 100 in the longitudinal direction. The same applies hereinafter), and it appears prominently. In other words, by using the drop guide 40c according to the present embodiment, it is possible to suppress the scattering of ice, so that the distance from the container mounting table 1Mb of the ice maker 1 to the shooter 100 can be increased. This makes it possible to apply the ice machine 1 to containers of various heights (for example, short glasses and beer mugs).

Although specific examples of the present invention have been described in detail above, these are merely examples and do not limit the scope of claims. The techniques described in the claims include various modifications and modifications of the specific examples illustrated above.

According to the ice maker according to the present disclosure, it is possible to suppress the scattering of ice discharged from the ice storage to the outside via the shooter.

1 Ice maker 10 Ice maker 20 Cooler 30 Water storage tank 40 Ice storage 40a Ice outlet 40b Shutter 40c Drop guide 40ca Upper end 40cc Lower end 40cc Guide groove 40d Agitator
50 drain pan 60 controller 100 shooter
100a Through hole 100b Brim part 100c Protrusion part 100d Water pipe support part 1M Housing 1MR Recess part 1Ms Slide guide part 1Mt Fitting part 1Mta Second fitting part La Water pipe Lb Water inlet Lc Water pipe Ld Water pipe

Claims (3)

An ice making section for producing ice and an ice storage for storing ice produced in the ice making section are stored in the housing, and when an ice supply is requested, the ice outlet of the ice storage is opened to obtain the above. An ice maker that discharges ice to the outside via a drop guide connected to an ice discharge port and a shooter arranged directly under the drop guide.
The drop guide constitutes a guide groove having a U-shaped cross section extending diagonally downwardly forward from the ice discharge port.
The width of the guide groove in a plan view decreases from the upper side to the lower side.
Ice machine. The lower end of the drop guide has a shape in which the central region is recessed to the rear side of the regions at both the left and right ends in a plan view.
The ice maker according to claim 1. The drop guide is arranged so that its lower end is located in the through hole of the shooter.
The ice maker according to claim 1 or 2.

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