JP4257986B2 - Automatic ice making machine - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an improvement in an automatic ice making apparatus that enables the ice tray of a refrigerator to be attached and detached.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The structure of a conventional automatic ice making device of this type is shown in FIGS. FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of the refrigerator with an automatic ice making machine as viewed from the side. In the figure, 1 is a refrigerator main body, 2 is a refrigerator compartment in the upper stage of the refrigerator, 3 is a freezer room in the middle stage of the refrigerator, 5 is a cooler room at the back of the freezer room 3, 6 is a cooler arranged in the cooler room 5, and 7 is A blower above the cooler 6, 8 is a self-made ice device above the freezer 3, and 9 is an ice storage box below the automatic ice making device. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the automatic ice making device as viewed from the side, and FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the ice making tray of the automatic ice making device as viewed from the front. In the figure, 10 is a frame of the automatic ice making device 8, 11 is a drive device located on the back side of the automatic ice making device 8 and attached to the frame, and 11a is driven by a motor (not shown) inside the drive device 11. 11b is a cut surface in which the upper and lower sides of the drive shaft 11 are cut flat, 11c is a hollow portion of the drive shaft 11, 12 is a hollow pipe passing through the hollow portion 11c, 12a is a bellows portion of the hollow pipe 12, and 13 is A temperature sensor built in the tip of the hollow pipe 12, 13 a is a lead wire of the temperature sensor 13, 14 is a lid on the front side of the frame body 10, and 14 a is on the shaft portion 10 a at the front portion of the frame body 10 so that the lid 14 can be opened and closed. An engaging part 15 for engaging, a flexible ice tray positioned between the driving device 11 and the lid 14, a recess 15 a for fitting into the drive shaft 11 a on the back side of the ice tray 15, and 15 b in front of the ice tray 15. Shaft hole 14b of lid 14 on the side 15c is an outer peripheral flange of the ice tray 15, and 15d is a multi-stage container portion arranged in two rows on the left and right sides of the ice tray 15. The tip of the hollow pipe 12 incorporating the temperature sensor 13 is disposed in contact with it and covered with a heat insulating material 16. Reference numeral 17 denotes a fixing screw for fastening the lid 14 to the frame body 10, and 18 denotes a water supply pipe for supplying water to the ice tray.
[0003]
In the automatic ice making device configured as described above, when water supplied from the water supply pipe 18 and stored in the container portion 15d of the ice tray 15 is frozen, this is detected by the temperature sensor 13, and the drive shaft 11a is driven based on this. The ice tray 15 is rotated until it is reversed, and a convex piece provided at one end of the ice tray 15 is brought into contact with the stopper portion of the lid 14 so that a twist is added to the ice tray 15. Ice marks are deiced and released below.
At this time, since the hollow pipe 12 has the bellows portion 12a when the temperature sensor 13 is incorporated, the twist between the drive shaft 11a and the tip of the hollow pipe 12 is absorbed, so that the hollow pipe 12 is not damaged. Further, since the lid 14 is fixed to the frame body 10 with screws 17, the lid 14 does not open.
[0004]
When attaching or detaching the ice tray 15, the fixing screw 17 is removed using a screwdriver, the lid 14 is flipped up and the ice tray 15 is pulled out. The attachment is performed by attaching the tip of the hollow pipe 12 between the ice tray 15 and the heat insulating material 16. The recess 15a of the insertion ice tray 15 is inserted into the drive shaft 11b, and the lid 14 is closed and fixed with screws 17 using a screwdriver so that the shaft portion 15b of the ice tray 15 is inserted into the shaft hole 14b of the lid 14.
An example of the prior art is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-323702.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the automatic ice making device configured as described above, the hollow pipe 12 is on the same axis as the drive shaft 11a, and the temperature sensor 13 is positioned in contact with the inside of the container portion 15d in order to sense the temperature of the ice mark. Since it is necessary to twist near the center of the height of the ice tray 15 and away from the opening of the ice tray 15, the twistability is poor and there is a problem in the deicing property. Therefore, measures such as increasing the power of the motor and increasing the twisting angle of the ice tray 15 are necessary as countermeasures, and there are problems that the driving sound of the motor becomes large, the life of the ice tray 15 is short, and the ice breaks. Met. Further, since the bellows portion 12a of the hollow pipe 12 is flexible, when the ice tray 15 is attached, the position of the tip of the hollow pipe 12 is not stable, and it is difficult to attach the ice tray 15, or the attachment strength of the lid 14 is secured. Therefore, since the lid 14 is fixed to the frame body 10 with the screw 17 using a screwdriver, there is a problem that it takes time and effort to attach and detach.
[0006]
In order to solve the problems as described above, the present invention can be easily detached from the ice making apparatus main body as necessary as an ice making tray or an ice making tray and a frame as a single body, has good deicing properties, The present invention provides an automatic ice making device that is easy to dismantle.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The automatic ice making device of the present invention is an automatic ice making device installed in a freezer compartment of a refrigerator, and has an outer peripheral flange and a plurality of container parts arranged in two rows on the left and right sides, and the water contained in the container part is A flexible ice tray that freezes, a drive shaft that fits on the outer peripheral flange of the ice tray, is driven by the motor of the drive device, rotates the ice tray, and defrosts the ice frozen in the container , and this drive The front end of the shaft is rotatably attached to the recessed portion of the shaft , and the tip is eccentric below the drive shaft in a state where the drive shaft is not driven, and the container portions arranged in two rows on the back side of the container portion face each other. a crank-shaped arm located inside, is the built in tip of the arm, in which the freezing of the water contained in the container portion comprising a temperature sensor for detection knowledge, the.
[0008]
The automatic ice making device of the present invention is an automatic ice making device installed in a freezer compartment of a refrigerator, and has an outer peripheral flange and a plurality of container parts arranged in two rows on the left and right sides, and is accommodated in this container part. A flexible ice tray that freezes water, a drive shaft that fits to the outer peripheral flange of the ice tray, is driven by the motor of the drive device, rotates the ice tray, and deiculates the ice frozen in the container portion; A container portion that is rotatably attached to the front recessed portion of the drive shaft, and whose tip is eccentric from the drive shaft in a state where the drive shaft is not driven and is arranged in two rows on the back side of the container portion. a crank-shaped arm which is located opposite the inner, built in the tip of the arm, comprising a temperature sensor for detecting the icing of the contained water in the container unit, and the arm and driving the shaft is a hollow , the lead wire of the temperature sensor is, in the arm Through the hollow portion of the drive shaft from the parts, it is intended to be guided to the rear side of the drive unit.
[0012]
The automatic ice making apparatus of the invention are guide pieces extending from the container portion on the inner side of the container section arranged in two rows right and left behind the container portion is opposed is formed, the tip of the arm to the guide piece in Is stored .
[0013]
Further, the automatic ice making device of the present invention can be attached by removing and inserting the ice tray while the temperature sensor built in the tip of the arm is left on the driving device side .
[0014]
4 is a cross-sectional view of the automatic ice making device as viewed from the front, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the automatic ice making device. 15 g is a convex piece formed at one end of the front edge of the outer peripheral flange 15 c of the ice tray 15, 14 e is a stopper when the ice tray 15 is de-iced formed on the lid 14, 10 b is the front edge flange of the frame 10, and 14 f is the front edge An outer rib of the lid in contact with the outer side of the edge flange 10a, 14g is an inner rib in contact with the inner side of the front edge flange 10b, 10c is a claw hole opened in the front edge flange 10b, and 14h is a claw engaged with the claw hole 10c. .
[0015]
As shown in FIG. 5, the automatic ice making device configured in this way is detected by the temperature sensor 13 when the water supplied from the water supply pipe 18 and frozen in the container portion 15d of the ice tray 15 is frozen. On the basis of this, the drive shaft 11a is driven to rotate until the ice tray 15 is reversed (rotates from the dotted ice tray 15 to the dashed-dotted ice tray 15), and at the convex portion provided at one end of the outer peripheral flange 15c of the ice tray. A certain convex piece 15g abuts against the stopper portion 14e, which is the abutting portion of the lid 14, whereby a twist is applied to the ice tray 15, whereby the ice marks in the ice tray 15 are deiced and discharged downward. The The position of the stocker portion may be a location where the rotation angle A of the ice tray 15 is at a rotation angle at which ice can be deiced from the ice tray 15, and may be about 90 degrees or more.
At this time, the temperature sensor 13 is disposed at the tip of the arm 19, and the temperature sensor 13 is in contact with the wall surface of the container portion 15d of the ice tray 15 and is stored in the guide piece 15e (through the thickness of the ice tray 15). E) The temperature of ice can be detected reliably.
In addition, since the guide piece is provided in the container part of the ice tray, the temperature sensor is surely guided to a predetermined position, and the guide piece separates the left and right sides of the container part with a slit. There is no loss.
In addition, an arm 19 having a temperature sensor 13 disposed thereon is attached to the drive unit 11, and the ice tray can be removed while leaving the temperature sensor 13 in the drive unit 11, and plastic parts such as a frame and an ice tray can be removed at the time of disassembly. It has a structure that can be easily separated from electrical components, and the recyclability is improved.
[0016]
Further, the drive shaft 11a directly twists the outer peripheral flange 15c of the ice tray 15, and the guide piece 15e separates the left and right sides of the container portion 15d by the slit 15f as a separation portion, so that the flexibility of the ice tray 15 is not impaired. Therefore, the ice tray 15 is easily twisted and has good deicing properties, so that it can be deiced with a small motor and the operation sound can be improved. Since the twist angle of the ice tray can be small, the ice making tray has a long life and the ice may break. Nor. In addition, although the slit f was mentioned here as a isolation | separation part, what is in the state which is easy to isolate | separate, such as a perforation, is not included in the slit shape.
The arm 19 incorporating the temperature sensor 13 is rotatably attached to the drive shaft 11a, and the tips of the drive shaft 11a and the arm 19 are eccentric, so that a twist between the drive shaft 11a and the tip of the arm 19 is absorbed and the arm 19 is absorbed. Will not cause damage.
Since the lead wire 13a of the temperature sensor 13 is freely arranged from the hollow portion in the arm 19 to the hollow portion 11c in the drive shaft 11a and is drawn out from the back side of the drive device, the lead wire 13a is pulled by the rotation of the ice tray 15. There is no disconnection.
[0017]
In FIG. 5, reference numeral 10 denotes a frame that covers the side surface and the upper surface of the ice tray 15, and the upper frame 10 includes a water supply pipe 18 that pours ice-making water into the ice tray 15. A lid 14 is provided so as to cover the front surface of the frame body 10. The lid 14 sandwiches the front edge flange 10b of the frame 10 between the outer rib 14f and the inner rib 14g, and is fitted and locked by a flexible claw 14h, so that the lid 14 does not come off during the deicing operation, and the ice tray 15 It will not drop out. As described above, the lid 14 is provided with the outer rib and the inner rib and the frame body 10 is sandwiched between the ribs. However, the rib may be provided on the frame body and the lid 14 may be sandwiched. In addition, the rib part should just be a thing which does not open a lid | cover at the time of ice removal operation | movement, and the number may provide one or more.
[0018]
When attaching and detaching the ice tray 15, the lid 14 is lifted up so that the lid 14 is flipped up, and the ice tray 15 is pulled out. For attachment, the tip of the arm 19 is inserted into the guide piece 15e of the ice tray 15, the recess 15a of the ice tray 15 is inserted into the drive shaft 11a, and the shaft portion 15b of the ice tray 15 is inserted into the shaft hole 14b of the lid 14. Is closed, the claw 14 h of the lid 14 is locked in the claw hole 10 c of the frame 10. Therefore, since a tool such as a screwdriver is not required for attaching / detaching the ice tray, the attaching / detaching workability can be further improved.
In addition, by making the ice trays detachable in this way, it is possible to construct an ice making tray that has different sizes and shapes of ice grains so that customer's favorite ice can be made.
Also, the lid is sandwiched between the outer and inner ribs of the front edge flange of the frame and fitted and locked with a flexible claw, so the lid opens during ice removal operation and the ice tray does not fall off. Since a screwdriver is not required when attaching and detaching, the ice tray can be easily attached and detached.
[0019]
Embodiment 2. FIG.
Next, a second embodiment. Will be described with reference to FIG.
In FIG. 6, reference numeral 15 denotes an ice tray, and 19 denotes a frame that is configured so that the ice tray can rotate and is open in the vertical direction. In addition, the structure of the frame 19 is provided with a recess 19a and a hole 19b as shown in FIG. 7 so that the ice tray can freely rotate. The ice tray 15 can be easily attached to the frame body 19 by, for example, inserting the stopper 15 as a separate part after inserting the ice tray shaft 15b into the hole 19b.
[0020]
FIG. 8 shows a ZZ longitudinal section in FIG. 7, and is a view showing a state where the ice tray 15 is stable. Even when the ice tray 15 rotates, for example, a spring 21 on the coil is used so that the ice tray 15 is stably leveled, and the ice tray 15 is attached to the convex portion 19 c formed on the ice tray and the frame body 19. By constructing in this way, an integrated part in which the ice tray is stably attached upwards to the frame body is obtained, and by attaching this integral part to the refrigerator body with a removable claw, etc., it is not possible to attach and detach only the ice tray In addition, the frame and the ice tray can be integrally attached and detached, and the flip-up type lid 14 (see FIG. 1) is not necessary, and the number of parts is reduced. As long as the convex part 19c is an attachment part to which the spring 21 is attached, the convex part 19c may not be a convex part shape, but may have a hole or the like.
The flexible material may be any material that can be twisted even at a low temperature, such as a mixture of PP or olefin resin.
[0021]
【The invention's effect】
The automatic ice making device of the present invention is an automatic ice making device installed in a freezer compartment of a refrigerator, and has an outer peripheral flange and a plurality of container parts arranged in two rows on the left and right sides, and the water contained in the container part is A flexible ice tray that freezes, a drive shaft that fits on the outer peripheral flange of the ice tray, is driven by the motor of the drive device, rotates the ice tray, and defrosts the ice frozen in the container , and this drive The front end of the shaft is rotatably attached to the recessed portion of the shaft , and the tip is eccentric below the drive shaft in a state where the drive shaft is not driven, and the container portions arranged in two rows on the back side of the container portion face each other. a crank-shaped arm located inside, is the built in tip of the arm, and a temperature sensor for detection known icing of water contained in the container portion, since with a easy rather away twisted is manufactured ice tray Do as ice is good Ri, therefore, the motor of the driving device is a small Some can improve motor driving sound can be separated ice motor, and because it may be small twist angle of the ice tray, with a longer life of the ice tray, could no break ice. Since the arm is pivotally attached to the drive shaft, the arm will not be damaged even if the ice tray is twisted .
[0022]
The automatic ice making device of the present invention is an automatic ice making device installed in a freezer compartment of a refrigerator, and has an outer peripheral flange and a plurality of container parts arranged in two rows on the left and right sides, and is accommodated in this container part. A flexible ice tray that freezes water, a drive shaft that fits to the outer peripheral flange of the ice tray, is driven by the motor of the drive device, rotates the ice tray, and deiculates the ice frozen in the container portion; A container portion that is rotatably attached to the front recessed portion of the drive shaft, and whose tip is eccentric from the drive shaft in a state where the drive shaft is not driven and is arranged in two rows on the back side of the container portion. a crank-shaped arm which is located opposite the inner, built in the tip of the arm, comprising a temperature sensor for detecting the icing of the contained water in the container unit, and the arm and driving the shaft is a hollow , the lead wire of the temperature sensor is, in the arm Through the hollow portion of the drive shaft from the parts, so is guided to the rear side of the drive unit, the ice tray is assumed good easy releasability Freezing twisted, therefore, also be separated ice motor motor driving apparatus is small Thus, the driving sound of the motor can be improved, and the twisting angle of the ice tray may be small, so that the life of the ice tray is prolonged and there is no risk of ice breaking. Since the arm is rotatably attached to the drive shaft, the arm will not be damaged even if the ice tray is twisted. Further, the lead wire of the temperature sensor is connected to the drive shaft from the hollow portion in the arm. The lead wire of the temperature sensor is not broken by the rotation of the ice tray by being guided through the inner hollow portion to the back side of the driving device .
[0026]
The automatic ice making apparatus of the invention are guide pieces extending from the container portion on the inner side of the container section arranged in two rows right and left behind the container portion is opposed is formed, the tip of the arm to the guide piece in because There is housed the temperature sensor built in the tip of the arm is securely guided to a predetermined position, Ru can reliably detect the temperature of the ice tray.
[0027]
Further, since the automatic ice making device of the present invention, in a state in which a temperature sensor built in the distal end of the arm is left to the drive device side, it can be removed and plug by attachment by withdrawal of the ice tray, ice tray during dismantling Therefore, it is easy to separate plastic parts such as electrical components from each other, and it is easy to recycle .
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an automatic ice making device according to the present invention as viewed from the side.
FIG. 2 is a front view of a drive unit according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the ice tray portion of the automatic ice making device according to the present invention as seen from the front.
FIG. 4 is a front view of an automatic ice making device according to the present invention.
FIG. 5 is an external view of an automatic ice making device according to the present invention.
FIG. 6 is an integrated configuration diagram of an ice tray and a frame according to the present invention.
FIG. 7 is an assembly diagram of a frame and an ice tray according to the present invention.
8 is a ZZ cross-sectional view of FIG.
FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of a conventional refrigerator with an automatic ice making device.
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional automatic ice making device viewed from the side.
FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of an ice making tray of a conventional automatic ice making device as seen from the front.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Refrigerator main body, 2 refrigerator compartment, 3 freezer compartment, 5 cooler room, 6 cooler, 7 air blower, 8 automatic ice making device, 9 ice storage box, 10 frame, 10a shaft part, 10b front edge flange, 10c claw hole, 11 drive device, 11a drive shaft, 11b flat part, 11c hollow part, 12 hollow pipe, 12a bellows part, 13 temperature sensor, 13a lead wire, 14 lid, 14a locking part, 14b shaft hole, 14e stopper, 14f outer rib , 14g inner rib, 14h claw, 15 ice tray, 15a recess, 15b shaft, 15c outer flange, 15d container, 15e guide piece, 15f slit, 16 heat insulating material, 17 screw, 18 water supply pipe, 19 frame, 19a Frame body concave part, 19b Frame body hole part, 19c Frame body spring mounting convex part, 20 ice tray stopper, 21 spring.

Claims (4)

An automatic ice making apparatus installed in the refrigerating chamber of the refrigerator,
A flexible ice tray having an outer peripheral flange and a plurality of container portions arranged in two rows on the left and right sides, and water stored in the container portion freezes;
A drive shaft that fits to the outer peripheral flange of the ice tray, is driven by a motor of a drive device to rotate the ice tray, and defrosts the ice frozen in the container portion ;
The drive shaft is rotatably attached to the front recessed portion of the drive shaft , and the tip is eccentric below the drive shaft in a state where the drive shaft is not driven, and is arranged in two rows on the back side of the container portion. A crank-shaped arm located inside the container portion facing each other ;
Is the built in the tip of the arm, and a temperature sensor for detection known icing of water contained in the cooking vessel,
An automatic ice making device characterized by comprising: An automatic ice making device installed in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator,
A flexible ice tray having an outer peripheral flange and a plurality of container portions arranged in two rows on the left and right sides, and water stored in the container portion freezes;
A drive shaft that fits to the outer peripheral flange of the ice tray, is driven by a motor of a drive device to rotate the ice tray, and defrosts the ice frozen in the container portion;
The drive shaft is rotatably attached to the front recessed portion of the drive shaft, and the tip is eccentric below the drive shaft in a state where the drive shaft is not driven, and is arranged in two rows on the back side of the container portion. A crank-shaped arm located inside the container portion facing each other;
A temperature sensor that is built in the tip of the arm and detects icing of water contained in the container part, and
Said arm in and inside the driving shaft is a hollow,
The temperature sensor leads through the hollow portion within the drive shaft from the hollow portion in the arm, automatic ice making device you characterized in that guided in the rear side of the driving device. Is pre SL extending from the container portion to an inner side of the container portion is opposed to side-by-side two rows on the back side of the container portion guide piece is formed, and the tip of the arm is accommodated in the guide piece in The automatic ice making device according to claim 1 or 2 . 4. The ice tray can be removed by being pulled out and attached by being inserted while the temperature sensor built in the tip of the arm is left on the driving device side. The automatic ice making device according to any one of the above.

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