JP2003279205A - Ice making device and refrigerator provided with this ice making device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] To provide an ice making device with a small installation space. SOLUTION: An ice tray to which cold air of less than 0 ° C. is supplied to a bottom portion, a driving device for rotating a shaft formed on a side portion of the ice tray to rotate the ice tray, and an ice tray above the ice tray. An ice making device, which is provided and has a duct for supplying hot air having a temperature exceeding 0 ° C. to the water surface of the ice tray, wherein a position of a rotation axis of the ice tray is set at a center of the ice tray, and a lower portion of the duct Since the cross-sectional shape is formed in an arc shape at a predetermined distance from the rotation trajectory of the end of the ice tray, the trajectory of the ice tray at the time of rotation can be suppressed small, and the installation space can be reduced.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ice making device capable of producing transparent ice from the lower side by supplying warm air to the water of the ice making tray to gradually make ice from the lower part of the ice making tray. The present invention relates to a refrigerator equipped with a device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional technique relating to an ice making device, there is one described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-289544. The one described in this publication is provided with a duct having a blowing nozzle for blowing warm air to the water surface above the ice tray, and this hot air delays the freezing of the upper portion of the water in the ice tray and gradually clears the ice tray from the lower side. It makes ice. Moreover, by supplying warm air, the flow of water is created, and it is easy for fine air bubbles that do not rise easily to move to the upper part. Therefore, relatively transparent ice is formed.

When ice is formed, a shaft arranged in one corner of the ice tray is rotated to lower the part farther from the shaft to remove ice.

[0004]

In the device described in the above publication, since the trajectory of the ice tray requires a large space when it is rotated, a large space must be provided between the ice storage box and the ice tray. There was a flaw. Therefore, a large space is required to install the ice making device. If the installation space of the ice making device is large, there is a drawback that the size of the refrigerator becomes large when incorporated in the refrigerator.

The present invention provides an ice making device having a small installation space.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides an ice tray to which cold air below 0 ° C. is supplied to the bottom and a shaft formed on the side portion of the ice tray to drive the ice tray. An ice making device comprising: a drive device for rotating a plate; and a duct arranged above the ice plate for supplying hot air having a temperature of more than 0 ° C. to the water surface of the ice plate. With the position of the shaft as the center of the ice tray, the lower cross-sectional shape of the duct is formed in an arc shape with a predetermined dimension separated from the rotation locus of the end portion of the ice tray.

Further, the ice making device is provided in a refrigerator.

[0008]

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

1 and 2 show an embodiment of the present invention,
FIG. 1 is a front view showing a state in which a door of a refrigerator equipped with the ice making device of the present invention is removed, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a cross section of the ice making device.

Reference numeral 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a household refrigerator, which comprises a heat insulating box 2 having a front opening which constitutes the main body thereof, and a door (not shown) which closes the opening.

Reference numeral 3 denotes a refrigerating room, which is controlled at about 3 ° C.
Reference numeral 4 denotes a chilled chamber formed in the lower part of the refrigerating chamber 3, which is controlled at about 1 ° C., and is a chamber which can be adjusted at 1 to 2 ° C. by setting a control knob or the like.

A vegetable compartment 5 is arranged below the refrigerating compartment 3 and is controlled to a temperature suitable for storing vegetables, for example, about 5 ° C.

Numeral 6 is an ice making chamber controlled to about -18 ° C., and an ice making tray 7 which is a part of an automatic ice making machine (ice making device), an ice box 8 for storing the ice made and the like are arranged. Has been done. A temperature switching chamber 9 is a chamber that can be set to any temperature from -18 ° C to 3 ° C. 10 is a freezer compartment controlled to about -18 ° C.

A water supply tank 11 stores tap water and supplies the tap water to the ice tray 7 through the water supply pipe 12. In addition, the vegetable compartment 5 has a container 1 for the vegetable compartment.
3, the temperature switching chamber 9 has a switching chamber container 14, the freezing chamber 1
Freezer compartment containers 15 are arranged at 0, respectively.

Since FIG. 1 shows a state in which the door is removed, a rotatable door for closing the opening of the refrigerating compartment 3, the vegetable compartment 5,
Although it has a drawer-type door for closing the openings of the ice making chamber 6, the temperature switching chamber 9, and the freezing chamber 10, it is not shown in the drawing as described above.

Reference numeral 21 shown in FIG. 2 is a duct, which heats the air flowing therein by the heat of the heater 22. Reference numeral 23 is a nozzle through which warm air is blown to the water surface of the ice tray 7. The ice tray 7 includes a plurality of cells 24, and a shaft 25 for rotation thereof is located at the center of the ice tray 7 where the distance X from the right end 25 and the left end 26 of the ice tray 7 is equal. Therefore, the locus (rotation locus) Y of the left end portion 26 when the ice tray is rotated is indicated by a dashed line. Further, the right end portion 25 draws a locus (rotation locus) Z as shown by a dashed line.

Since the lower cross-sectional shape 28 of the duct 21 is formed in an arc shape with a predetermined dimension from the rotation locus of the end portion 26 of the ice tray 7, the ice tray 7 is rotated by a drive device (not shown). When it hits, it does not hit the duct 21. Therefore, when the ice tray 7 is rotated, it is not necessary to perform complicated control such as raising the duct or lowering the ice tray in advance so that the duct does not hit.

In the ice making device of the refrigerator 1 having such a structure, when water is supplied to the ice making tray 7 to start ice making, warm air (for example, about 5 ° C.) is supplied to the water surface from the nozzle 23. . In addition, cold air (for example, −
(About 20 ° C.), the lower side of the cell 24 has a low temperature and the upper side of the cell 24 has a high temperature, so that almost transparent ice gradually increases from the lower side to the upper side of the cell 24. it can. At this time, due to the temperature difference and the flow of water, the fine gas components in the water are likely to rise and escape, and the mineral components are likely to collect in the upper part.

When the ice making is completed, the ice tray 7 is rotated by a driving device (not shown) to remove the ice. At that time,
Since the end portion 26 of the ice tray 7 does not hit the duct, it is not necessary to raise the duct or lower the ice tray to prevent the ice tray from hitting the duct.

Therefore, the control of the ice making device can be facilitated. Moreover, since the control is easy, it is possible to make the refrigerator incorporating such an ice making device hard to break down.

[0021]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the invention, the ice tray to which the cold air of less than 0 ° C. is supplied to the bottom and the shaft formed on the side portion of the ice tray are driven. An ice making device comprising: a drive device that rotates a lever ice making tray; and a duct that is arranged above the ice making tray and that supplies hot air having a temperature exceeding 0 ° C. to the water surface of the ice making tray. With the position of the rotation axis of the plate as the center of this ice tray, the lower cross-sectional shape of the duct was formed in an arc shape with a predetermined dimension separated from the rotation trajectory of the end of the ice tray, so It can be kept small and the ice making device can be downsized. Moreover, since the duct cross-section is formed so that the ice tray does not hit the duct, complicated control such as moving the duct upward or moving the ice tray downward so that the duct does not hit Moreover, it is possible to easily control the ice making device.

According to the second aspect of the invention, since the refrigerator is equipped with the ice making device according to the first aspect, the refrigerator can be made smaller as the ice making device becomes smaller.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a state in which a door of a refrigerator equipped with an ice making device of the present invention is removed.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a cross section of the ice making device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 refrigerator 7 ice tray 21 duct 25 axes 28 Lower section shape Y rotation locus Z rotation locus

Continued front page    (72) Inventor Hiroshi Kibe             2-5-3 Keihan Hondori, Moriguchi City, Osaka Prefecture             Within Yo Denki Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 3L045 AA04 BA03 CA04 DA02 EA01                       PA04

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An ice tray at the bottom of which cold air below 0 ° C. is supplied, a drive device for driving a shaft formed on the side portion of the ice tray to rotate the ice tray, and an upper portion of the ice tray. In the ice making device provided with a duct for supplying warm air having a temperature exceeding 0 ° C. to the water surface of the ice tray, the position of the rotation axis of the ice tray is the center of the ice tray, An ice making device, characterized in that a lower cross-sectional shape is formed in an arc shape with a predetermined dimension separated from a turning locus of an end portion of the ice making tray. 2. A refrigerator provided with the ice making device according to claim 1.