JP4545425B2 - Automatic ice machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic ice making machine that causes ice blocks generated in an ice making unit to be separated from the ice making unit by heating means that generates heat.

  An automatic ice maker that automatically manufactures a large amount of ice blocks is provided with an evaporation pipe derived from a refrigeration system including a compressor, a condenser, and the like in an ice making unit, and is cooled by a refrigerant that is circulated and supplied to the evaporation pipe. Ice making water is supplied to the ice making unit to generate ice blocks, and the obtained ice blocks are peeled off and released. This automatic ice maker is equipped with an ice making water tank for storing the required amount of ice making water. During ice making operation, the ice making water in the tank is pumped by a circulation pump and supplied to the ice making unit, and the ice making water that did not freeze. Is collected in the tank and then sent out again toward the ice making section. When the detection device detects that the ice making operation has continued and the water level in the ice making water tank has decreased to a predetermined lower water level set in advance, it is determined that ice making in the ice making unit has been completed and the ice making operation is started. Transition to deicing operation, supplying hot gas discharged from the compressor by switching the valve of the refrigeration system to the evaporation pipe, and spraying and supplying water from an external water source to the ice making unit as deicing water, It is designed to promote melting with the icing surface (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  As described above, in an automatic ice maker using both hot gas and deicing water during the deicing operation, the deicing operation becomes longer and the ice making capacity per unit time is limited. Moreover, since deicing water is used, the amount of water consumption increases and the running cost increases.

Thus, attempts have been made to shorten the time required for the deicing operation using the technique disclosed in Patent Document 2. That is, an electric heater is provided on the ice making plate, and the heater is energized and heated during the deicing operation to melt the ice formation surface between the ice making plate and the ice piece so that the ice piece is detached from the ice making plate and removed. With this configuration, the deicing operation can be shortened and deicing water can be dispensed with.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3-17187 US Patent Application Publication No. 2003-0155467

  By the way, since the automatic ice maker produces a large number of ice blocks at once, when using the technique disclosed in Patent Document 2, an extremely large amount of heat is required to deice all the ice blocks generated on the ice making plate at once. Is required. For this reason, it is necessary to employ components such as heaters and electric wires that can be used for this, and the manufacturing cost of the automatic ice making machine increases, which is not practical.

  That is, the present invention has been proposed to solve this problem in view of the above-mentioned problems inherent in the prior art described above, and it is possible to efficiently reduce the amount of heat necessary for deicing and efficiently in a short time. An object is to provide an automatic ice making machine capable of deicing.

In order to overcome the above-mentioned problems and achieve the desired purpose suitably, the automatic ice making machine according to the present invention is:
The ice making unit is provided with an evaporator and electric heating means, and during ice making operation, a refrigerant is circulated and supplied to the evaporator to cool the ice making unit, and ice making water is supplied to the ice making unit to generate ice blocks. In the automatic ice maker configured to melt and detach the ice block from the ice making unit by energizing the heating means during deicing operation,
The ice making unit is configured as an ice making member in which a metal plate, an insulating layer, and a heater of a metal sheet as a heating unit are layered,
The ice making member is fixed to the evaporation tube so that the metal plate, the insulating layer, and the heater are in this order, and the heater forms an ice making surface .

  According to the automatic ice making machine of the present invention, the ice making unit is provided with a plurality of ice making regions and the heating means is provided independently in each ice making region, so that the ice blocks can be separated for each ice making region of the ice making unit. it can. Then, by repeating energization and deenergization for each heating means, the ice blocks can be sequentially detached for each ice making region, and a part of the ice blocks generated in the ice making unit can be sequentially detached. Therefore, the amount of heat required for deicing can be suppressed, and it is not necessary to employ expensive parts such as heaters and electric wires, and damage to each part can be prevented.

  Next, an automatic ice making machine according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings by way of preferred embodiments.

  FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a flow-down type automatic ice maker as an automatic ice maker according to an embodiment, and a refrigeration system is provided on the back surface of an ice making plate (ice making part) 10 arranged substantially vertically in an ice making chamber. An evaporating pipe (evaporator) 14, which is derived from 13 and meanders in the lateral direction, is closely fixed, and is configured to forcibly cool the ice making plate 10 by circulating a refrigerant during ice making operation. Immediately below the ice making plate 10, a guide plate 18 is provided in an inclined posture for guiding the ice mass M that is melted and separated from the ice making plate 10 by the deicing operation to the stocker 16 arranged obliquely below. The guide plate 18 has a number of through holes (not shown), and ice making water supplied to the ice making surface (front surface) of the ice making plate 10 during the ice making operation is provided on the guide plate 18. It is collected and stored in the ice making water tank 20 located below through the through hole.

  An ice making water supply pipe 22 led out from the ice making water tank 20 through a circulation pump PM is connected to an ice making water spreader 24 provided above the ice making plate 10. The ice making water spreader 24 has a large number of water sprinkling holes, and ice making water pumped from the tank 20 during ice making operation is cooled from the water sprinkling holes to the freezing temperature of the ice making plate 10. The ice mass M having a required shape is generated on the ice making surface. As shown in FIG. 1, a water supply pipe 26 connected to an external water source faces above the ice making water tank 20, and the water supply pipe 26 corresponds to the amount of water in the ice making water tank 20 that decreases during the ice making operation. The valve WV is appropriately opened and a predetermined amount of ice making water is stored in the ice making water tank 20.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the refrigeration system 13, the vaporized refrigerant compressed by the compressor CM is condensed and liquefied by the condenser 32 through the discharge pipe 30, depressurized by the expansion valve 34, and flows into the evaporation pipe 14. The ice making plate 10 expands and evaporates all at once, and heat exchange is performed with the ice making plate 10 to cool the ice making plate 10 to below the freezing point. The vaporized refrigerant evaporated in the evaporation pipe 14 repeats a cycle of returning to the compressor CM via the suction pipe 36. In addition, the code | symbol FM in a figure shows the cooling fan FM for the condenser 32. FIG.

  The ice making plate 10 is configured by arranging N ice making members 11 adjacent to each other in the left-right direction (where “N” is an integer of 2 or more). As shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, each ice making member 11 has a plate-like main body 11a extending in a vertical direction and fixed to the evaporation pipe 14, and both sides of the plate-like main body 11a in the width direction. , A pair of side plates 11b, 11b bent forward (in a direction away from the evaporation pipe 14) are formed in a substantially U shape in cross section. That is, the plate-shaped main body 11a and the side plates 11b and 11b define an ice making region A in which the ice block M is generated. Here, each of the ice making members 11 is inclined forward at a predetermined angle from the bottom to the top. Further, the side plates 11b, 11b are bent so as to be inclined at a predetermined angle in a direction away from each other, and each ice making member 11 expands from the plate-like main body 11a toward the front end portion of each side plate 11b. . Furthermore, the bent part of the plate-like main body 11a and each side plate 11b is formed in a rounded shape with a required radius.

  Each of the ice making members 11 is configured by laminating first to Nth heaters (heating means) H1 to HN made of a metal plate 12a, an insulating layer 12b, and a metal sheet, and the heaters H1 to HN are made of ice. A surface is formed, and the heaters H1 to HN are energized to generate heat, thereby melting the icing surface of the ice block M and dropping it by its own weight. That is, the ice making plate 10 is provided with a plurality of heaters H1 to HN. In the embodiment, a stainless steel (SUS304) having a thickness of 300 μm is used as the metal plate 12a, and a heat-fusible polyimide film having a thickness of 25 μm is used as the insulating layer 12b. As the first to Nth heaters H1 to HN, a stainless material (SUS304) having a thickness of 38 μm is adopted. Each of the ice making members 11 is formed into a laminate by thermocompression bonding the metal plate 12a and the insulating layer 12b, and the insulating layer 12b and the heaters H1 to HN under high temperature and high pressure conditions (for example, 4 MPa, 350 ° C.). It is formed. Then, as shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, each ice making member 11 is fixed to the evaporation pipe 14 so that the metal plate 12a, the insulating layer 12b, and the heaters H1 to HN are arranged in this order with respect to the evaporation pipe 14. Yes. That is, during the ice making operation, ice blocks M are generated on the surfaces (ice making surfaces) of the heaters H1 to HN. The heaters H <b> 1 to HN may be formed in the minimum necessary unit for generating the ice block M.

  FIG. 4 shows a control circuit for the heaters H1 to HN of the flow-down type automatic ice maker according to the embodiment. The AC current supplied from the power source is converted into a necessary voltage by the transformer TR, and further, by the diode bridge DB. It is configured to convert to direct current. A switch SW, a resistor R, and a charging contactor CC are connected in series to the diode bridge DB, and a capacitor CAP is interposed between the switch SW and the charging contactor CC. Further, between the switch SW and the charging contactor CC, a first heater H1 connected in series with the first discharging contactor DC1, a second heater H2 connected in series with the second discharging contactor DC2,... N An Nth heater HN connected in series with the discharge contactor DCN is connected in parallel with the capacitor CAP. That is, by closing the first to Nth discharge contactors DC1 to DCN, the corresponding first to Nth heaters H1 to HN are energized to generate heat. In addition, as switch SW, various conventionally well-known switches, such as a rotary switch and a semiconductor switch, can be employ | adopted.

  Here, each of the first to N-th heaters H1 to HN is independently provided for each of the N ice making members 11 described above, and responds by energizing each heater H1 to HN. Only the ice making member 11 can be heated. Since each ice making member 11 is provided with an insulating layer 12b between the metal plate 12a and the heaters H1 to HN, when the predetermined heaters H1 to HN are energized, the metal plate 12a and other The heaters H1 to HN are not energized.

  That is, the capacitor CAP is charged by turning on the switch SW and closing the charging contactor CC while the first to Nth discharging contactors DC1 to DCN are opened. Then, with the charging contactor CC open, only one of the first to Nth discharge contactors DC1 to DCN is closed to discharge the capacitor CAP, and the corresponding first to Nth heaters H1. -HN is energized to heat the heaters H1-HN. Accordingly, each time the capacitor CAP is charged, the selected one of the discharge contactors DC1 to DCN is closed and the corresponding heaters H1 to HN are sequentially energized, whereby the ice making member 11 provided on the ice making plate 10 is sequentially repeated. (Ice Making Area A) Deicing is performed for each unit.

(Effects of Example)
Next, the operation of the automatic ice maker according to the above-described embodiment will be described.

  When the ice making operation of the flow-down type automatic ice making machine according to the embodiment is started, each ice making member 11 (ice making plate 10) is forcibly cooled by exchanging heat with the refrigerant circulating in the evaporation pipe 14, and the ice making water tank 20 The ice making water supplied to the plate-like main body 11a (heaters H1 to HN) of the ice making member 11 through the circulation pump PM gradually starts to freeze. Here, since the ice making water flows down the surfaces (ice making surfaces) of the first to Nth heaters H1 to HN of the ice making members 11, the ice making water freezes on the surfaces of the heaters H1 to HN and ice blocks M are formed. Is generated. The ice making water falling from the ice making surface without freezing is collected in the ice making water tank 20 through the through hole of the guide plate 18 and supplied to the ice making plate 10 again.

When completion of ice making is detected by an ice making completion detection means (not shown), the ice making operation is stopped and the deicing operation is started. When the deicing operation is started, the switch SW is closed in the control circuit, the charging contactor CC is closed, and the capacitor CAP is charged. Then, when charged to a predetermined voltage, the charging contactor CC is opened. Next, the first discharge contactor DC ₁ is closed, and the electricity charged in the capacitor CAP is energized to the first heater H1, and the first heater H1 generates heat. Here, when the first discharge contactor DC1 is closed, the current charged in the capacitor CAP is supplied to the first heater H1 at once, and the heater H1 generates heat instantaneously. As a result, the interface of the ice block M frozen on the surface of the first heater H1 is melted, and the ice block M is detached by its own weight and stored in the stocker 16. Here, in the embodiment, since the ice making member 11 has a three-layer structure of the metal plate 12a, the insulating layer 12b, and the heaters H1 to HN, when the first heater H1 is energized through the first discharge contactor DC1. In addition, the metal plate 12a and the other heaters H2 to HN are not energized. Therefore, when the first heater H1 is energized, only the ice mass M frozen in the ice making area A (ice making member 11) corresponding to the first heater H1 is melted and separated, and the ice mass M frozen in another ice making area A is obtained. Does not melt away.

  When the deicing completion detection means (not shown) detects that the ice block M has completely dropped from the ice making member 11 in the ice making region A corresponding to the first heater H1, the first discharge contactor DC1 is opened. . In addition, since the ice mass M is detached when the temperature of the icing surface between the ice making member 11 and the ice mass M becomes 0 ° C. or higher, if the means for detecting the temperature of the ice making surface is adopted as the deicing completion detection means, stable removal is possible. Ice control is possible. Next, the charging contactor CC is closed and the capacitor CAP is charged again. When the charging contactor CC is charged to a predetermined voltage as described above, the charging contactor CC is opened and charging is completed. Next, the second discharge contactor DC2 is closed, the electricity charged in the capacitor CAP is supplied to the second heater H2, and the second heater H2 is heated to melt and separate the ice block M from the corresponding ice making region A. And stored in the stocker 16. In this way, when the de-icing completion detecting means detects that the ice mass M is detached from the corresponding ice making region A by sequentially energizing and stopping the electricity charged in the capacitor CAP up to the Nth heater HN, the deicing operation is performed. To finish the ice making operation.

  In this way, the ice making plate 10 is composed of a plurality of independent ice making members 11, and the ice making regions A are defined in the respective ice making members 11, and the first ice making region A (ice making member 11) is independently provided for each first ice making region A. -By providing the Nth heaters H1 to HN, even when ice blocks M are generated on all the ice making members 11 at once by the ice making operation, only ice blocks M frozen in a specific ice making region A (ice making member 11) are provided. It can be melted and separated. In other words, only the heaters H1 to HN corresponding to the predetermined ice making region A are energized to generate heat and the ice block M is detached, and then the heaters H1 to HN corresponding to the other ice making regions A are sequentially energized. The amount of heat required to melt and separate the ice block M from one ice making region A can be suppressed. For this reason, special heat resistance is not requested | required of components, such as heaters H1-HN, wiring, and discharge contactors DC1-DCN, and the cost of an ice making machine can be reduced. Furthermore, since the ice blocks M can be melted and separated by energizing the heaters H1 to HN to generate heat, the deicing operation can be shortened and no deicing water is required, so that the running cost can be reduced and the per unit time. The production amount of the ice block M can be increased, and the ice making capacity of the ice making machine can be improved. In addition, since the ice blocks M are generated directly on the heaters H1 to HN, the ice blocks M can be melted and detached in a short time when the heaters H1 to HN are energized and heated.

  In addition, during the deicing operation, the heaters H1 to HN are instantaneously heated to melt only the interfaces of the ice blocks M with the heaters H1 to HN. Can be removed from the ice making area A in a short time. Therefore, the ice block M can be stored in the stocker 16 at a low temperature. By the way, if the deicing time takes a long time, the part of the ice block M other than the interface with the heaters H1 to HN is melted, and the ice block M may be deformed by re-freezing in the stocker 16. In the flow-down type automatic ice maker of the example, since only the interface of the ice block M melts, such a problem is prevented from occurring.

  By the way, as described above, when the ice block M leaves the ice making region A while the internal temperature of the ice block M is low, the ice block M once detached from the surface of the ice making member 11 (heaters H1 to HN) 11 (heaters H1 to HN) may refreeze. Therefore, in the flow-down type automatic ice maker according to the embodiment, each ice making member 11 is arranged so as to incline forward as it goes from below to above, so that it temporarily leaves the surface of the ice making member 11 (heaters H1 to HN). The ice block M is separated from the ice making member 11 as it falls and is prevented from freezing on the surface of the ice making member 11 (heaters H1 to HN) again. Further, since the both side plates 11b and 11b in each ice making member 11 are configured to be separated from each other toward the front, the ice mass M is also separated from the side plates 11b and 11b as it falls, and the ice mass M is It is possible to prevent the side plates 11b and 11b from freezing. Further, by forming the bent portions of the side plates 11b and 11b with the plate-like main body 11a in a rounded shape, when the interface of the ice block M is melted, the ice block M is formed into the ice making member 11 (heaters H1 to H1). HN) can be quickly detached from the surface.

[Modification of Example]
The automatic ice making machine according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made. For example, in the embodiment, the ice block is separated from one ice making member and then the next ice making member is separated from the next ice making member. It is also possible to cause the to leave. In the embodiment, the heating means arranged for each ice making region is individually controlled to be energized and stopped. However, the heating means is controlled to be energized and deenergized for each required group unit. The ice blocks in the ice making region corresponding to the heating means for which the energization is controlled can be melted and separated. In the embodiment, the ice making unit is composed of a plurality of ice making members and each ice making member defines an ice making region. However, as shown in FIG. 5 (a), the ice making unit made of a single plate member is used. A plurality of ice making regions A can be provided by bending and bending a plurality of walls 10, or, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), a plurality of wall members 38 are spaced apart in the width direction in the ice making portion 10 made of a plate member. A plurality of ice making regions A may be provided by standing in parallel, and heating means H1 to HN may be provided independently for each ice making region A.

  Further, in the embodiment, at the time of the deicing operation, the ice blocks are separated from one ice making region, then the ice blocks are separated from the other ice making regions, and after the ice blocks are separated from all the ice making regions, the ice making operation is switched. However, ice blocks may be generated in order from the ice making region where the deicing has been completed. Furthermore, the ice making chamber may be configured to be visible from the outside. In this case, the contradictory steps of the ice making operation and the deicing operation are performed at a time for an observer observing the ice making chamber. There is an advantage that a display effect can be obtained that gives a wonder to what to do and also gives joy to detaching the ice blocks in a predetermined order. At this time, if the heating means to be energized is controlled at random, the ice mass randomly leaves the ice making region, and thus there is an advantage that the observer is interested in the next ice mass to be detached.

  In the ice making machine of the embodiment, the ice making part is inclined forward by a predetermined angle. However, the ice making part can be arranged so as to be drooped. In this case, it is only necessary to set a long time for energizing the heating means so that the ice lump once detached from the ice making unit does not freeze again on the ice making unit during the fall. For the same reason, the plate-like main body and the side plate in the ice making part are widened toward the front end, and the bent portion of the plate-like main body and the side plate is formed in a rounded shape with a required radius. It is not limited to the configuration. As the automatic ice maker for carrying out the present invention, a flow-down type automatic ice maker was mentioned, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a type that forms ice blocks by supplying ice making water to an ice making chamber defined in an ice making unit. If the ice making unit is provided with a plurality of ice making regions and the heating means is provided independently in each ice making region, various types of conventionally known automatic ice making machines may be used.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a flow-down type automatic ice making machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a vertical side view which shows the ice making part of the flow-down type automatic ice making machine which concerns on an Example. It is a cross-sectional top view which shows the ice making part of the flow-down type automatic ice making machine which concerns on an Example. It is a schematic circuit diagram which shows the control circuit of the heater of the flow-down type automatic ice maker which concerns on an Example. It is a cross-sectional plan view showing an ice making part of a flow-down type automatic ice making machine according to a modified example, and (a) shows a plurality of ice making regions formed by bending a plurality of ice making parts made of a single plate member. (B) shows a structure in which a wall member is erected on a plate member to define a plurality of ice making regions.

Explanation of symbols

10 ice making plate (ice making part), 11 ice making member, 14 evaporation pipe (evaporator)
A ice making area, H1-HN heater (heating means), M ice block

Claims (4)

The ice making unit (10) is provided with an evaporator (14) and electric heating means (H1 to HN), and during ice making operation, a refrigerant is circulated and supplied to the evaporator (14) to cool the ice making unit (10). In addition, ice making water is supplied to the ice making section (10) to generate ice blocks (M), and during the deicing operation, the heating means (H1 to HN) are energized to generate heat and ice blocks (10) from the ice making section (10) ( In an automatic ice maker configured to melt and detach M),
The ice making section (10) is configured as an ice making member (11) in which metal plates (12a), an insulating layer (12b) and metal sheet heaters (H1 to HN) are stacked in layers as the heating means,
The ice making member (11) is fixed to the evaporation pipe (14) in the order of the metal plate (12a), the insulating layer (12b) and the heater (H1 to HN), and the heater (H1 to HN). ) Forms an ice making surface . An automatic ice making machine. The ice making unit (10) is provided with a plurality of ice making regions (A), and the heaters (H1 to HN) are provided independently corresponding to the respective ice making regions (A).
The automatic ice maker according to claim 1, wherein: The ice making part (10) includes a plurality of ice making members (11) that extend in the vertical direction and are arranged adjacent to each other in a plurality of rows in the left-right direction, and each ice making member (11) has the ice making region (A ) And the heaters (H1 to HN) are provided independently on each ice making member (11), and the ice blocks (M) are generated on the heaters (H1 to HN) during ice making operation. The automatic ice maker according to claim 1. A plurality of said heaters (H1 to HN) before Symbol ice making unit (10),
2. The automatic ice making machine according to claim 1, wherein the heaters (H1 to HN) are controlled to be energized and de-energized individually or for each required group unit.

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