U.S. patent number RE28,924 [Application Number 05/557,410] was granted by the patent office on 1976-08-10 for plate type ice maker.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Reynolds Products Inc.. Invention is credited to Harvey R. Krueger, Charles G. Neumann, Walter Panock.
United States Patent |
RE28,924 |
Neumann , et al. |
August 10, 1976 |
Plate type ice maker
Abstract
A plate type ice maker for forming chunks of hard ice in which a
member provided with an ice-forming passage having a cutting edge
at one end thereof is moved over a plane freezing surface to cause
ice crystals scraped from the freezing surface by the cutting edge
to be forced into the forming passage in which they are subjected
to compressive forces sufficient to form a rod of hard ice which
emerges from the other end of the passage and which engages a
breaker surface which fractures the rod to form a hard piece of
ice.
Inventors: |
Neumann; Charles G. (Palatine,
IL), Krueger; Harvey R. (Dundee, IL), Panock; Walter
(Addison, IL) |
Assignee: |
Reynolds Products Inc.
(Schaumburg, IL)
|
Family
ID: |
26986161 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/557,410 |
Filed: |
March 11, 1975 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
|
Reissue of: |
327985 |
Jan 30, 1973 |
03803869 |
Apr 16, 1974 |
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
62/320;
62/354 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25C
1/14 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
F25C
1/12 (20060101); F25C 1/14 (20060101); F25C
001/14 () |
Field of
Search: |
;62/354,320,71,346 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Other References
German Utility Model PA 769,337, Hoppe 10/28/64..
|
Primary Examiner: Wayner; William E.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Shenier & O'Connor
Claims
Having thus described our invention, what we claim is:
1. Apparatus for forming hard pieces of ice including in
combination, means forming an extended freezing surface, means
forming an extruding passage having an entry and an exit .Iadd.and
a bottom extending upwardly and away from said surface.Iaddend., a
gathering edge .Iadd.provided on said passage forming means for
movement therewith .Iaddend.adjacent to said entry, and means
mounting said passage forming means for movement relative to said
surface with said gathering edge adjacent to said surface to remove
ice crystals from a film of ice on said surface and to deliver said
ice crystals to said entry in the form of slush ice.Iadd., said
passage forming means being provided with means for exerting a
compressive force on slush ice delivered thereto so that slush ice
.Iaddend.which enters said passage .[.and.]. emerges from said exit
in the form of a hard rod of ice in response to relative movement
between said passage forming means and said surface.
2. Apparatus as in claim 1 in which said surface is generally
horizontal and in which said passage forming means is mounted above
said surface.
3. Apparatus as in claim 2 including means for supplying water to a
predetermined level over said surface and in which said passage
exit is above said level.
4. Apparatus as in claim 3 in which said passage forms an inclined
plane with reference to said surface from said entry to said
exit.
5. Apparatus as in claim 4 including means for breaking said rod
emerging from said exit.
6. Apparatus as in claim 5 .[.including.]. .Iadd.in which said
compressive force exerting means includes .Iaddend. means forming a
plenum chamber between said gathering edge and said entry.
7. Apparatus as in claim 5 .[.including.]. .Iadd.in which said
compressive force exerting means includes .Iaddend. resilient means
normally closing said exit, said resilient means adapted to be
actuated by the ice emerging from said passage.
8. Apparatus as in claim 5 in which said breaker means comprises a
surface making an angle of less than 90.degree. with said inclined
plane.
9. Apparatus for forming hard pieces of ice including in
combination, means providing an extended ice forming surface, means
forming an extrusion passage having an entry and an exit .Iadd.and
a bottom extending upwardly and away from said surface.Iaddend.,
said passage forming means being provided with a gathering edge
adjacent to said entry, means mounting said surface forming means
and said passage forming means for relative rotary movement with
said passage above said surface and with said gathering edge
adjacent to said surface and with said exit above said entry, and
means for driving said passage forming means and said surface
forming means relative to each other to cause said gathering edge
to remove ice from said ice-forming surface and to feed slush ice
into said passage.Iadd., said passage forming means being provided
with means for exerting a compressive force on slush ice fed
thereto .Iaddend.to form a mass of hard ice emerging from said
exit.
10. Apparatus as in claim 9 including means for breaking said mass
of ice emerging from said exit.
11. Apparatus as in claim 10 in which said breaking means comprises
a surface disposed at an angle to the direction of movement of said
mass.
12. Apparatus as in claim 11 .[.including.]. .Iadd.in which said
compressive force exerting means include .Iaddend.resilient means
normally closing said exit. .[., said resilient means exerting a
compressive force on ice moving into said passage under the
influence of said relative movement.].
13. Apparatus as in claim 9 .[.including.]. .Iadd.in which said
compressive force exerting means includes .Iaddend.resilient means
normally closing said exit .[., said resilient means exerting a
compressive force on ice moving into said passage under the
influence of said relative movement.]., said resilient means being
actuated to open said exit in response to movement of a mass of
hard ice toward said exit.
14. Apparatus as in claim 13 in which said resilient means is a
leaf spring forming part of the wall of said passage.
15. Apparatus as in claim 14 including means forming a breaker
surface making an angle with the direction of movement of said rod,
said surface being spaced from said exit.
16. Apparatus as in claim 9 in which sad passage forming means
forms a plurality of radially spaced passages.
17. Apparatus as in claim 16 in which said .[.passage forming means
provide.]. .Iadd.compressive force exerting means comprises
.Iaddend.a common plenum chamber .Iadd.formed by said passage
forming means .Iaddend.between said gathering edge and the passage
entries.
18. Apparatus as in claim 9 including a plurality of passage
forming means, said passage forming means being radially and
circumferentially spaced with reference to the axis of rotary
movement thereof.
19. Apparatus for forming hard pieces of ice including in
combination means providing a generally horizontally disposed
annular extended ice forming surface, a plurality of hard ice
forming units, each of said hard ice forming units having an
inclined extruding passage therein extending from an entry to an
exit, each of said units having a cutting edge adjacent to said
entry, each of said units having resilient means normally closing
said exit and having an ice breaker surface spaced from said exit
and making an acute angle with the direction of inclination of said
passage, means mounting said units at respective locations
circumferentially spaced and radially spaced with respect to the
center of said annulus for relative rotary movement of said units
and said surface providing means around said center and with said
cutting edges closely adjacent to said surface and means for
driving said surface providing means and said mounting means
relative to each other to cause said cutting edges to remove said
ice from said surface and to feed slush ice into said passage
entries to cause rods of ice to form in said passages and to cause
said rods to actuate said resilient means to open said passage exit
and to impinge on said breaker surfaces to provide said pieces of
hard clear ice.
20. Apparatus as in claim 19 including means for supplying water to
a predetermined level over said surface, said exits being
positioned above said level.
21. Apparatus as in claim 9 in which said mounting means comprises
means forming an elongated ice confining channel above and
extending generally parallel to said ice forming surface, said
passage opening into said channel.
22. Apparatus as in claim 19 in which said unit mounting means
comprises means forming a plurality of radially spaced
circumferentially extending channels over said ice forming surface,
said extruding passage extending into respective channels.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
There are known in the prior art two general types of ice makers.
The first of these which produces what is known in the art as flake
or chip ice rather than hard ice includes an auger or the like
which scrapes ice crystals from a tubular freezing surface and
feeds the resultant slush ice outwardly through a die or the like
to form flake or chip ice. Alternatively, a cylindrical freezing
chamber can be employed and scraper blades on the outside of the
chamber remove the ice crystals. In all ice makers of this type
this chamber is vertical and of tubular or cylindrical shape. While
ice makers of this type produce ice on a continuous basis, they
embody the defect that the tubular evaporator configuration is
mechanically weak and it requires various bearings and water seals.
It is relatively costly to produce. In addition, the quality of ice
produced on ice makers of this type is not consistent but is a
function of the ambient temperature and the temperature of the
incoming water and of the condition of the refrigerating
equipment.
The other type ice maker known in the art is a "cube" ice maker in
which water in a container is subjected to the action of a
refrigerant. While some of the cube ice makers employ flat plate
type evaporators, none of them produce ice on a continuous basis.
That is to say, the freezing cycle is carried on until ice of the
thickness of about one quarter to one half inch is formed and is
then interrupted. Following interruption of the freezing cycle a
harvest or defrost cycle is started. Thus, ice makers of this type
do not produce ice on a continuous basis. While the ice is of high
quality, the machine is extremely inefficient owing to the inherent
insulating property of the ice itself. Stated otherwise, a
relatively great refrigerating effort is required to produce ice of
any appreciable thickness.
We have invented a plate type ice maker which overcomes the defects
of ice makers of the prior art. Our plate type ice maker is adapted
to produce chunks of hard ice on a continuous basis. It is more
rugged than are auger type ice makers of the prior art. It is less
expensive to manufacture than auger type ice makers. It is more
efficient than are cube type ice makers of the prior art. It does
not require the alternate freeze and harvest cycles of cube type
ice makers of the prior art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One object of our invention is to provide a plate type ice maker
which overcomes the defects of ice makers of the prior art.
Another object of our invention is to provide a plate type ice
maker which produces chunks of hard ice on a continuous basis.
A further object of our invention is to provide a plate type ice
maker which is more rugged than are auger type ice makers of the
prior art.
A still further object of our invention is to provide a plate type
ice maker which is less expensive to produce than are auger type
ice makers of the prior art.
Yet another object of our invention is to provide a plate type ice
maker which is more efficient than are cube type ice makers of the
prior art.
Yet another object of our invention is to provide a plate type ice
maker for producing pieces of hard ice without the necessity for
alternate freeze and harvest cycles.
Other and further objects of our invention will appear from the
following description.
In general, our invention contemplates the provision of a plate
type ice maker in which a cutting edge at the entrance to an
ice-forming passage moves over a plane freezing surface to scrape
crystals of ice from the surface and force them into the ice
forming passage in which the slush ice is compressed to such a
degree as to form a hard rod of ice which emerges from the passage
and impinges on a breaker surface which fractures the rod thus to
form pieces of hard ice.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In the accompanying drawings which form part of the instant
specification and which are to be read in conjunction therewith and
in which like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts in
the various views:
FIG. 1 is a top plan view of one form of our plate type ice maker
with parts removed and with other parts broken away.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the form of our plate type ice maker
shown in FIG. 1 taken along the line 2--2 of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view of one of the ice rod forming units of
the form of our plate type ice maker illustrated in FIGS. 1 and
2.
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary top plan view of an alternate embodiment of
our plate type ice maker with parts removed.
FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the embodiment of our ice maker
illustrated in FIG. 4.
FIG. 6 is a section view taken along a diametral chord of the form
of our ice maker shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 to illustrate the mode of
operation thereof.
FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of a further form of our
plate type ice maker.
FIG. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view of the form of our plate
type ice maker shown in FIG. 7 and taken along the path of movement
of a cutter thereof to illustrate the operations thereof.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to FIGS. 1 to 3, one form of our plate type ice maker
indicated generally by the reference character 10, includes a motor
12, which provides the input to a gear box 14 having an output
shaft 16. A bracket 18 secured to a boss 20 on the gear box 14 is
attached by means of a screw 22 or the like to an evaporator plate
24. We form the upper surface of the evaporator plate 24 with a
plurality of coil-forming channels 26. Refrigerant may be
introduced into the channels 26 through an inlet 28. A return
outlet 30 permits the refrigerant to pass back to the compressor
(not shown).
Shaft 16 extends upwardly through a hollow hub 32 on the evaporator
plate 24. The arrangement is such that shaft 16 can rotate in the
hub 32. An annular freezer plate 34 is secured over the channels 26
by any suitable means known to the art. Refrigerant flowing through
the channels 26 cools the plate 34 to permit ice crystals to form
thereon in a manner to be described.
The form of our ice maker 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 includes three
cube or ice piece-forming units indicated generally respectively by
the reference characters 36, 38 and 40. Since all of the units 36,
38 and 40 are substantially identical we will describe only the
unit 36 in detail. The unit 36 includes a chute-forming member 42
provided with an ice chute 44 which, together with a roof or top
member 46, forms a channel for the reception of slush ice. The roof
member may be secured to the channel-forming member 42 in any
suitable manner. It includes a resilient tip portion 48 adapted to
move to the broken line position illustrated in FIG. 3 in response
to movement of a rod of ice up the passage. The member 42 further
is formed with a scraper edge 50 adapted to scrape ice crystals
from the surface of the plate 34. The leading edge of a rod of ice
emerging from chute 44 passes under the tip 48, forcing it to the
broken line position and ultimately engages a breaker surface 52
located in a plane forming an angle of less than 90.degree. with
the plane of the chute base and a piece of ice breaks off the rod.
The length L of the piece is approximately equal to the distance
between surface 52 and the end of tip 48, as indicated in FIG.
3.
Member 42 is formed with a peripheral flange 54 adapted to receive
screws 56 to secure the member 42 in an opening 58 in a support
plate 60 threaded onto shaft 16 for rotation therewith. We provide
the plate 60 with a number of reinforcing ribs 62.
It is to be noted that the respective units 36, 38 and 40 are
radially staggered as indicated in FIG. 1. That is, unit 36 is
radially positioned so that its edge 50 rides over the outermost
portion of the surface of the plate 34. Unit 38 is so positioned
that its edge 50 rides over the central portion of the annular
plate 34. Unit 40 is furthest inboard so that its edge 50 rides
over the innermost portion of the plate 34. If desired, we may
provide some overlap between the edges 50 of the various units. We
provide the surface of the plate 34 with spaced radially extending
grooves 64 for preventing a body of ice from moving along with the
rotating support plate 60 when shaft 16 is driven.
We mount a cover plate 66 on the plate 60 for rotation therewith.
As chunks of ice are formed in the various units in a manner to be
described they are discharged at locations above the plate 66 so as
to be retained thereon. Any water running off the formed ice passes
downwardly over the edge of the plate 66. We mount a surrounding
wall 68 on the outer edge of plate 24 to provide a storage space
for formed ice. The entire assembly is provided with an insulating
jacket 72. An inlet pipe 70 permits water to be introduced into the
space over the freezer plate 34. Preferably, we maintain the water
at a level indicated by the dot-dash line in FIG. 2. A cover 74 is
adapted to be removably secured over the top of the wall 68 by any
suitable means such for example as by screws 76.
Referring now to FIGS. 4 to 6, an alternate embodiment of our plate
type ice maker indicated generally by the reference character 78
includes an evaporator plate 80 covered with a plate 82 providing
the freezing surface. The output shaft 84 of a gear box or the like
passes upwardly through the central hollow hub of the plate 80 and
is secured to an extruding head support 86 by means of a key 90 or
the like the ends of which engage recesses in the hub 88 of the
support plate 86. A nut 92 threaded onto shaft 84 is adapted to
position the support 86 on the shaft.
The support 86 carries a scraper blade 94 adapted to move over the
surface 82 when the support member 86 is driven by shaft 84. It
will be appreciated that the blade 94 may include more than one
scraping edge, such for example as a second edge at a location
circumferentially spaced around hub 88 from the edge shown in the
drawings.
We mount a respective extruder ad 96 over each of the scraping
edges of the blade 94. The member 86 includes downwardly extending
partitions 98 which, together with the upper surface of the
scraping blade 94 provide extruding passages for the formation of
ice. It will be seen that the space between the outer wall portion
of support 86 and the hub 88 and between the top of head 96 and the
cutting edge of blade 94 forms a plenum chamber just ahead of
passages 100 in the direction of movement of the head 96. Ice being
scraped from plate 82 collects in the plenum chamber and is
partially dewatered in the course of its passage therethrough.
Finally it is forced into passages 100 wherein it is .[.extended.].
.Iadd.extruded .Iaddend.to to form hard ice.
Each of the passages 100 has an outlet 104 leading into a recess
formed in the top of a drip ring 106 secured to shaft 84 for
rotation therewith. Each recess 108 is provided with a surface 110
on which a rod of ice emerging from the outlet 104 impinges. In
FIG. 6 we have indicated water by the reference character 112, the
thin film of ice on the surface of plate 82 by 114, slush ice in
the plenum chamber by the reference character 116, the rod of ice
by 118, and a broken off ice piece by 120.
Referring now to FIGS. 7 and 8, we have illustrated yet another
form of our plate type ice maker, indicated generally by the
reference character 122. The ice maker 122 includes a gear motor
124 having an output shaft 126. A stationary housing 128 formed
with a base 130 is secured to the gear motor housing by any
suitable means such, for example, as by screws 132. A refrigerant
coil-forming member 134 supported on the base 130 carries a freezer
plate 136 on the surface of which ice crystals form when water is
supplied to the plate and when refrigerant flows in the
coil-forming assembly 134.
The ice maker 122 includes a cutter disc 138 formed with a hub 140
which is screwed onto or otherwise secured to the shaft 126 for
rotation therewith. We provide a cover plate 142 secured to hub 140
in any suitable manner so as to be driven together with the cutter
disc 138.
The salient feature of the form of our plate type ice maker
illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 is a plurality of circumferentially
extending radially spaced ribs or walls 144, 146, 148 and 150 on
the bottom of the cutter plate 138. Pairs of adjacent ribs 144 and
146, 146 and 148, and 148 and 150 provide confined passages 152,
154 and 156 for ice removed from the surface of plate 136 in a
manner to be described.
Our ice maker 122 includes a plurality of ice rod-forming
assemblies indicated generally by the reference character 158.
While we have illustrated only one assembly 158 in FIGS. 7 and 8,
it will readily be appreciated from the description hereinbelow
that we provide three such assemblies, one for each of the channels
152, 154 and 156. Each of these channels is provided with a
respective opening 160 surrounded by a boss 162 for receiving an
assembly 158. Each assembly 158 is formed with an inclined passage
164 and with a base 166 secured to a boss 162 by any suitable means
such, for example, as by screws 168. An extension 170 on the
trailing wall of the inclined passage 164 extends downwardly
through the opening 160 and to a location at which a scraper edge
172 thereon cooperates with the portion of the freezer plate 136
associated with the channel 154 for example.
Each assembly 158 includes a spring finger 174 analogous to the
finger 46 of the form of our invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3.
In the form of our ice cube maker illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8
however, the fingers 174 are provided with pivotal supports 176
which mount the fingers on the assemblies 158. As ice is scraped
off the surface of the plate 136 by the scraper edge 172, it builds
up in the channel 154 and forces its way up the inclined passage
164 so as ultimately to engage the finger 174. Upon continued
rotation of the scraper plate 138, the action of the finger 174
compresses the slush ice until ultimately a rod of ice emerges from
the upper end of the inclined passage 164.
We form the cover 142 with a respective prominence or boss 178 over
each of the assemblies 158. The underside of the top of each boss
178 provides a breaker surface 180. As the rod moves upwardly out
of the passage 164 its upper edge engages the surface 180 so that a
cube of ice is broken off the upper end of the rod. It will readily
be appreciated that the length of the cube or piece of ice broken
off is determined by the distance between the upper end of the
trailing edge of the passage 164 and the surface 180. Pieces of ice
thus broken off the upper end of the rod outwardly of the cover 142
through openings 182 in the bosses. This ice accumulates within the
housing 128 over the cover 142. It will be seen that any melt-down
from the accumulated ice flows downwardly over the edges of the
cover and back toward the freezer plate 136.
In operation of the form of our invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 to
3, water is introduced into the space over the surface of plate 34
through line 70. A thin film of ice forms on top of the plate 34.
As shaft 16 rotates, the respective scraper or cutter edges 50 of
the units 36, 38 and 40 traverse different portions of the upper
surface of the plate 34 and scrape or cut ice from the film of ice
as slush ice. The radial grooves 64 prevent any body of ice being
moved along with the rotating units 36, 38 and 40. It will be
appreciated that as a cutting edge 50 removes ice from the film
formed on the surface of plate 34, a diametral track in line with
the cutter is formed in the film of ice. Thus, the cut ice is
contained within this track and is immediately forced up the
inclined plane formed by the bottom of chute 44. Owing to the fact
that such a diametral track is formed, all ice is ultimately forced
up the chute. In this manner, the slush ice is raised above the
water level maintained in the freezing chamber. As more ice is
forced up the chute, water is removed therefrom by elevating it
above the water level. Ultimately the ice is forced against the
spring tip 48 of the roof or top 46 of the chute 44. The pressure
exerted by this closure forces additional water out of the ice
until sufficient force is exerted by the rod of ice on the tip 48
to force it to the broken line position shown in FIG. 3. By this
time, the ice emerging from the top of the chute is hard bar ice.
Finally this bar of ice impinges on the surface 52 which is at an
angle of less than 90.degree. to the bottom of the chute. Owing to
the fact that the ice is brittle, it will fracture at the end of
the tip 48 in its broken line position to form a chunk of ice. The
thus formed chunks of ice collect on top of the cover 66 so as to
provide a supply of hard chunks of ice.
It is to be noted that in the form of our invention shown in FIGS.
1 to 3 radial and thrust loads of the cutters are applied directly
to the bearings of the gear motor output shaft. Moreover, since the
three cutter edges are displaced from one another by 120.degree.
the leads and forces developed by the edges are relatively evenly
distributed. The evaporator plate is mounted on the output shaft 16
so as to eliminate the possibility of misalignment between the
freezing surface and the cutting edges 50. Our arrangement
eliminates the necessity for providing water seals and shaft
bearings such as cause problems with auger type ice makers of the
prior art.
In operation of the form of our ice maker shown in FIGS. 4 to 6,
the cutting edges of the blade 94 scrape slush ice off the film of
ice 114 formed on the upper surface of plate 82 from the water 112.
This slush ice is forced into the plenum chamber leading into the
passages 100, in the course of movement through which it is
extruded into the hard rod 118. Ultimately the leading edge of the
rod strikes surface 110 to break the rod into chunks of ice. The
amount of compression exerted on the slush ice is determined not by
the lead of an auger, as in auger type ice makers of the prior art,
but rather by the quantity of ice collected in the plenum chamber.
The quantity of ice thus collected is dependent upon the velocity
of the cutter and the refrigeration conditions of the freezing
surface. The quality of the extruded ice does not change. It
requires only more or less revolutions of the device to produce ice
of a given length and size.
In operation of the form of our invention illustrated in FIGS. 7
and 8, the scraper edges 172 of the respective units 158 scrape ice
crystals off the surface of plate 136. In this form of our
invention, the walls or ribs 144, 146, 148 and 150 form confined
channels extending circumferentially of the plate 136 and in line
with the cutting edges 172 and the entries of the inclined passages
164 of the units 158. These passages ensure that ice scraped from
the surface of plate 136 will enter the passages 164. As this ice
is formed upwardly along the inclined passages 164, a rod of hard
ice is formed in a manner similar to that in the operation of the
form of our invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3. As a rod of ice
emerges from the top of the inclined passage 164, it strikes the
breaker surface 180 so that pieces of hard ice break off and are
discharged outwardly through outlets 182 to the storage area in
housing 128 above the cover 142.
It will be seen that we have accomplished the objects of our
invention. We have provided a plate type ice maker which overcomes
the defects of ice makers of the prior art. Our ice maker is
adapted to make hard chunks of ice on a continuous basis. It does
not require alternate freezing and harvest cycles. It is more
efficient than are cube type ice makers of the prior art. It is
more rugged and is less expensive to construct than are auger type
ice makers of the prior art.
It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are
of utility and may be employed without reference to other features
and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the
scope of our claims. It is further obvious that various changes may
be made in details within the scope of our claims without departing
from the spirit of our invention. It is, therefore, to be
understood that our invention is not to be limited to the specific
details shown and described.
* * * * *