JP2003065641A - Ice making containers and ice making equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To make ice formed in a freezing space in a desired shape without generating unnecessary projections or deformed portions, and to easily and surely separate and drop the ice. SOLUTION: A member for partitioning the inside of the container into a small chamber is vertically inserted into a dish-shaped container into which water is injected, and the distance between the partition members can be temporarily increased by an external force operation such as bending or stretching. It is composed of a flexible elastic body.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ice making container which is constructed so that it can be easily separated after freezing the poured water, and this ice making container is placed in a freezing chamber to produce ice, and the produced ice is The present invention relates to an ice making device for separating and dropping.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An ice making container which is placed in a freezing chamber to freeze the water injected therein to produce ice is provided as an alternative to a domestic refrigerator provided with an ice making chamber. It is widely used in various materials and shapes. Typically, it is an aluminum dish-shaped container that divides the generated ice into suitable sizes and stores a manually installable partition plate so that it can be separated from the container when ice making is completed. Are known. In recent years, an ice making container having a configuration in which a large number of recessed portions made of plastic such as polypropylene is arranged has been widely used, and has a configuration shown in FIG. That is, the dish-shaped container 6
1, a large number of recesses 62 are arranged side by side, and the ice 63 generated here is twisted by applying external force (which may be manual or mechanical force) to the dish-shaped container 61 to deform the shape of each recess 62. The ice 63 that adheres to the inner wall of the concave portion 62 is peeled off by giving it and the ice 63 is separated and dropped by turning the dish-shaped container 61 upside down. The operations of ice making (water injection and freezing) and ice removing (peeling and separating and dropping) can be performed manually and at any timing without using any mechanical structure. Some ice making devices have such a structure. There is also an automatic operation that works together. In the latter case, from a separately installed water supply tank (not shown here), a dish-shaped container 61 placed in a freezing space maintained at a freezing temperature through a water injection pipe 64 by means of a water supply pump or the like is used. Water is supplied to the recess 62. A water supply groove 65 is formed between the recesses 62 so as to communicate with water, and the water reaches the entire area of the dish-shaped container 61 through the water supply groove 65. If necessary, freezing is performed in the freezing space with the upper cover 66 attached to the inside of the concave portion 62 (and the water supply groove 65).
Ice 63 is also produced (inside). Then, the dish-shaped container 61 is subjected to the same twisting force and vertical reversing force as the above-mentioned manual operation by an operating means (not shown), and is easily broken because it is thin ice. The ice in the concave portion 61 divided by the ice portion is operated so as to be separated and fall.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the above conventional method,
The shape of the generated ice could not be set arbitrarily, and it was difficult to obtain beautiful rectangular or polygonal ice blocks. That is, the ice 63 formed in the concave portion 62 of the dish-shaped container 61 is in close contact with the inner wall surface of the concave portion 62, and in order to separate this by the twisting operation of the dish-shaped container 61 by an external force, the dish-shaped container 61 is largely deformed. Alternatively, it is necessary to make the contact area between the concave portion 62 and the ice 63 as small as possible so that the dish-shaped container 61 can be easily detached even with a slight deformation. The deformation of the dish-shaped container 61 is
Restrictions and mechanical force due to the material (manual force in the case of manual operation)
However, there was a limit due to the limitation of, and there was no choice but to rely on a means for keeping the contact area small. For this reason, as shown in the figure, the concave portion 62 has a trapezoidal shape having a considerably steep inclined surface, and has a structure (so-called ice-like surface melting) in which a protrusion structure is not formed as a whole. In particular, in an apparatus that automatically performs water injection, freezing, and ice removal, the water injected as described above is spread over the entire dish-shaped container 61.
The water supply groove 65 is formed, and the ice frozen in the water supply groove 65 is destroyed by the mechanical operation, but the recess 62
Traces are left as protrusions on the side wall of the ice 63 formed in 1., which is a defect that the aesthetic appearance is impaired for cooling the food and drink, the value of the food and drink is impaired, and the appetite is attenuated.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art and, while supplying water for icing uniformly and reliably, produces ice in a desired shape without producing unnecessary protrusions or deformations in the generated ice, It is made to provide an ice making container that can easily and surely separate and drop ice, and an ice making device using the same.

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, in the ice making container of the first aspect of the present invention, a plurality of plate-shaped containers for injecting and storing water and partition plates standing inside the plate-shaped container are provided. And a detachable partition member for partitioning into a small chamber, wherein the partition member is made of a flexible elastic body capable of temporarily expanding the gap between the partition plates by an external force operation such as stretching or bending. There is.

The ice-making container according to the second aspect of the present invention has a plate-like lid body made of an elastic plastic material, and when the lid body is mounted on the dish-shaped vessel so as to cover the upper surface of the dish-shaped vessel, the dish-shaped vessel is placed. It is characterized in that a large number of partition plates arranged so as to divide the inside of the container into small chambers having an appropriate area are erected on the lower surface of the lid.

Further, in the ice making container of the third aspect of the present invention, the partition plate is separated and divided for each side of the polygonal structure for partitioning the dish-shaped container and is erected on the flat surface portion of the lid. There is.

The ice-making container according to the fourth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the partition member is made of a soft material which exhibits flexibility even in an ice-making temperature atmosphere.

The ice-making container of the fifth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that at least the water storage inner surface layer of the dish-shaped container is made of a soft material that exhibits flexibility even in an ice-making temperature atmosphere.

The ice-making container of the sixth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the dish-shaped container is made of an aluminum material and a thin film alumina layer is formed in close contact with at least the inner surface of the stored water.

The ice making container of the seventh aspect of the present invention is characterized in that a heat dissipation plate made of a metal material is closely attached to the outside of the bottom surface of the dish-shaped container.

Further, in the ice making device of the eighth aspect of the present invention, a freezing chamber provided with means for cooling the room to an ice making temperature atmosphere, and the ice making container according to the second aspect of the invention housed in the freezing chamber,
A means for supplying water for ice making, which is in communication with the dish-shaped container of the ice making container, and an operating means for causing a bending operation with the partition plate facing outward together with the vertical movement provided in the lid of the ice making container. It is characterized by having.

Further, in the ice making device of the ninth invention, water for ice making communicated with the ice making container according to the fourth invention stored in the freezing chamber and the plate-shaped container of the ice making container. It is characterized in that it is provided with a supply means and an operation means which is provided in the partition member and causes an up-and-down movement and a stretching deformation operation in the lateral direction.

[0014]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a side sectional view (A) and a plan view (B) of an essential part of an ice making container of the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an operation explanatory view thereof. In FIG. 1, 11
Is a smooth rectangular dish-shaped container made of aluminum, and 12 is a polypropylene lid which is detachably attached to the dish-shaped container 11. A partition plate 13 is provided on the lower surface of the lid body 12 so as to partition the inside of the dish-shaped container 11 into a large number of rectangular small chambers when the crown body is worn, and the partition plate 13 is a polypropylene integrally formed with the lid body 12. It is made of independent plate material that is separated into vertical and horizontal sections. 14 is a water supply pipe, 15
Is the water supplied (it becomes ice after freezing).

In the above structure, when ice is produced, a predetermined amount of water is poured into the dish-shaped container 11 from the water supply pipe 14, the lid 12 is placed therein, and the partition plate 13 is used to store the water 15 in the dish-shaped container 11. Wear it to divide it into rectangles. In this state, if the water 15 is frozen by allowing it to stand in a low temperature atmosphere, the water 15 becomes ice in a state of being in close contact with the partition plate 13. Here, if the lid 12 is pulled out upward, it will be pulled out from the dish-shaped container 11 with the rectangular ice 15 sandwiched between the partition plates 13. When an external force is applied to the lid body 12 from this state and the lid body 12 is curved and deformed as shown in FIG.
However, the ice pieces 15 that are closely supported by the partition plate 13 are easily peeled off because the ice pieces 15 move in a direction in which they are spaced apart from each other. Since the partition plate 13 is separated vertically and horizontally, the ice 15 can be separated and dropped more reliably by performing the bending operation of the lid body 12 in both the vertical direction and the horizontal direction as necessary.

The ice 15 thus obtained does not have to be deformed into a trapezoidal shape as in the conventional case, and can be generated in a completely rectangular shape without distortion. Of course, the shape is not limited to a square, and other polygons may be used as needed. Further, conventionally, the projection in which the water in the flow path for water injection is unnecessary was formed, but with this configuration, the partition plate 13 is inserted after the water is spread throughout the dish-shaped container 11. Since it is divided, no special flow path for water injection is required, and therefore, an atypical ice structure other than the rectangular ice 15 is not generated, and the ice 15 having a uniform shape can be easily generated. It will be possible.

In this embodiment, the dish-shaped container 11 is made of aluminum, and the lid 12 and the partition plate 13 are made of polypropylene. However, the material is not limited to this, and the dish-shaped container 11 is arbitrary. You can choose the material and the lid 1
For the 1 and the partition plate 13, a plastic material is preferable because flexibility and elasticity are required because a deformation operation is performed at a low temperature, but a general-purpose plastic material such as polyethylene or polypropylene can be used.

However, it is preferable that the inner surface of the dish-shaped container 11 is in close contact with the tip of the partition plate 13 when the partition plate 13 is inserted after water injection so as to ensure the division of each partition. It is also effective to form a film of a material having flexibility even at a low temperature of -20 ° C.

On the other hand, after freezing, the plate-like container 11 to the partition plate 1
When the 3 is pulled out, it is desirable that the ice 15 be surely attached to the partition plate 13 and pulled up, and easily separated from the dish-shaped container 11. For that purpose, it is necessary to prevent the inner surface of the dish-shaped container 11 from being damaged by the ice 15 or the like and maintain sufficient water repellency. As a means for this, for example, by using a material with a thin film alumina layer formed on the surface of an aluminum plate, the surface is protected by a solid alumina layer while maintaining the high thermal conductivity of aluminum, and the smoothness and water repellency are maintained and ensured. Therefore, the ice can be reliably removed from the dish-shaped container 11.

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 3 shows the present embodiment.
And it demonstrates using FIG. The present embodiment has the same basic components and functions as those of the first embodiment,
The material and configuration of the partition plate 13 provided in the dish-shaped container 11 and the operation method thereof are different. Therefore, the present embodiment will be described focusing on this difference.

FIG. 3A is a sectional view showing the construction of the main part of the present embodiment, and FIG. 3B is a perspective view of the main part. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the operation. In FIG. 3 (A), a partition plate 13 is inserted into the aluminum dish-shaped container 11 so as to partition the interior into small partitions, and water (which freezes into ice) 15 is partitioned. As shown in FIG. 3B, the partition plate 13 is an integral structure made of a silicon resin that maintains flexibility even in an atmosphere of −20 ° C. After injecting the water 15 into the dish-shaped container 11, the partition plate 13 is inserted thereinto to divide the water 15, and in this state, the water 15 is frozen to be ice. After the freezing, the partition plate 13 is pulled out from the dish-like container 11 together with the ice 15, and a lateral stretching force is applied to the partition plate 13 to separate the partition plate 13 and the ice 15, as shown in FIG.
The ice 15 is dropped.

In this structure, since the partition plate 13 made of a flexible silicone resin is brought into close contact with the dish-shaped container 11 and the water 15 can be frozen in the state of being completely separated, the generated ice does not produce unnecessary protrusions or There is no inclination or deformation, and the whole shape is a perfect rectangle. The shape of the generated ice is the partition plate 13
The shape can be arbitrarily set, and for example, a columnar shape or an animal type such as a dog or cat can be realized.

Regarding the operation of removing ice, the partition plate 13 is expanded and contracted by applying a horizontal force as described above, and the ice 15
Although it is easy to separate the pieces and drop them by their own weight, a means for disposing an extruding member having projections corresponding to each section of the partition plate 13 separately and pushing the ice 15 with the extruding member to drop it is also possible. It can be used because the plate 13 is made of a flexible material. Thus, it is possible to surely form ice having any desired and uniform shape and to easily separate and drop the ice.

(Third Embodiment) FIG. 5 shows the present embodiment.
Will be explained. The present embodiment is characterized by the shape configuration of the dish-shaped container 11, and the present embodiment will be described focusing on this point.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the construction of the main part of this embodiment. In FIG. 5, 11 is a dish-shaped container made of aluminum, 14 is a water supply pipe, and a heat-dissipating member 16 made of a fin-shaped body made of aluminum is closely arranged outside the bottom surface of the dish-shaped container 11. When the ice making container including the dish-shaped container 11 is arranged in the freezing chamber of the ice making device, the low-temperature air current circulating in the freezing chamber contacts the heat radiating member 16 to exchange heat, thereby radiative cooling from the bottom surface of the dish-shaped container 11. Will be promoted.
The water 15 injected into the dish-shaped container 11 gradually starts freezing from the bottom surface, and the freezing gradually progresses to the upper part. When freezing progresses from the upper part of the dish-shaped container 11, the freezing near the water surface of the water 15 progresses to the lower part in a state of being restrained by the freezing, and the expansion force generated by the freezing directly causes the dish-shaped container 11 and the partition plate 13 to move. However, if freezing gradually progresses from the bottom of the dish-shaped container 11, the expansive force generated by the freezing of the water 15 can be released to the open upper space. Inconveniences such as the partition plate 13 being deformed and the partition plate 13 being unable to be pulled up due to pressure contact can be avoided. Further, since the heat radiation from the dish-shaped container 11 is promoted, the ice making time can be shortened.

In the above-described embodiment, the configuration and operation of the container portion mainly relating to ice making have been described. However, although not shown in the drawings, the following configuration and operation are used in the ice making device using these containers. . That is, the dish-shaped container 11
Is installed in a freezing space controlled to an ice making temperature (for example, around −20 ° C.), and is constantly cooled while being fixed as necessary. Water is supplied from a separately provided water supply tank by a pumping means such as a pump to a predetermined amount in the dish-shaped container 11 via a water supply pipe 14, and the lid body 12 or the partition plate 13 supported by the vertically moving means, It is lowered so as to fit into the dish-shaped container 11, and is cooled in this state for a predetermined time to freeze the water 15. After the water 15 is sufficiently frozen after a lapse of a predetermined time, the lid body 12 or the partition plate 13 is pulled up by the up-and-down moving means, and if the lid body 12 (the configuration of the first embodiment), the twisting operation is performed on the flexible member. Partition plate 13 (configuration of the second embodiment)
If so, expand and contract in the horizontal direction, and the ice 1
5 is dropped by its own weight (or pushed by an extruding member installed as necessary as described above) into an ice container or the like separately provided. All of these operations are based on mechanical operations that have been conventionally used, and although not specifically shown here, by using together with the above ice making container, reliable and good ice making can be performed with simple operation. It is possible to take off ice.

[0028]

As described above, in the ice making container and the ice making device according to the present invention, the subdivided constituent members are inserted into the container into which water is poured to cause freezing, and after the freezing, the partition member is curved or It is possible to provide an ice-making device which is highly functional and convenient in that ice having an arbitrary shape can be easily and surely produced and supplied by causing the ice to fall by an operation means such as stretching.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional configuration diagram of a main part of a first embodiment of an ice making container according to the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a waist plan view showing a first embodiment of an ice making container according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the operation of using the ice making container.

FIG. 3 (A) is a sectional view showing the configuration of a main part of a second embodiment of an ice making container according to the present invention, and (B) is a waist perspective view showing a second embodiment of the ice making container according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of using the above ice making container.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing the configuration of the essential parts of a third embodiment of an ice making container according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 (A) is a sectional view showing the configuration of the main parts of a conventional ice making container. (B) A plan view of a main part of a conventional ice making container

[Explanation of symbols]

11,61 dish-shaped container 12,66 Lid 13 partition boards 14,64 Water supply pipe 15,63 water / ice 16 Heat dissipation member 62 recess 65 water ditch

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A dish-shaped container for injecting and storing water, and a detachable partition member for partitioning the interior of the dish-shaped container into a plurality of small chambers by a partition plate standing upright, wherein the partition member is extended. Alternatively, the ice-making container is configured by a flexible elastic body capable of temporarily expanding the gap between the partition plates by an external force operation such as bending. 2. A plate-shaped lid body made of an elastic plastic material, and when the lid body is mounted so as to cover the upper surface of the dish-shaped container, the inside of the dish-shaped container is formed into a small chamber having an appropriate area. An ice making container, wherein a large number of the partition plates arranged so as to be divided are provided upright on the lower surface of the lid body. 3. The ice making container according to claim 2, wherein the partition plate is separated and divided for each side of a polygonal structure that partitions the dish-shaped container and is erected on a flat surface portion of the lid. . 4. The ice making container according to claim 1, wherein the partition member is made of a soft material that exhibits flexibility even in an ice making temperature atmosphere. 5. The ice making container according to claim 1, wherein at least the water storage inner surface layer of the dish-shaped container is made of a soft material that exhibits flexibility even in an ice making temperature atmosphere. 6. The ice making container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the dish-shaped container is made of an aluminum material, and a thin film alumina layer is adhered to at least the inner surface of the stored water. 7. A heat dissipation plate made of a metal material is closely attached to the outside of the bottom surface of the dish-shaped container.
7. The ice-making container according to any one of 6 to 6. 8. A freezing compartment provided with means for cooling the interior to an ice making temperature atmosphere, an ice making container according to claim 2 housed in the freezing compartment, and an ice making container communicating with the dish-shaped container of the ice making container. An ice making device, comprising: water supply means for use in water; and an operating means for causing a bending operation with the partition plate facing outward as well as an up-and-down operation provided in the lid of the ice-making container. 9. The ice making container according to claim 4, which is housed in the freezing compartment, a water supply means for ice making which communicates with the dish-shaped container of the ice making container, and the partition member. An ice making device comprising an operation means for causing a vertical movement and a lateral stretching deformation operation.