Ice making device for square ice cubes using disc-baffled and pin-wound serpentine evaporators

Abstract

The present disclosure provides an ice-making evaporator that combines the cubic shape of a plate evaporator and a partition evaporator with the center ice-making of a pin evaporator to achieve an ice shape that is substantially cubic. The separation of the cooling capacity of the two evaporator sections allows for the cubic shaping based on time, temperature, pressure, or other variables during the ice-making cycle.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure provides ice machines including evaporators and methods for operating the machines. More specifically, the present disclosure provides ice machines that use both a tray-style evaporator and a partition-style evaporator as well as a pin-style evaporator. The method includes independently controlling the evaporators so that the evaporators can be run together or can be run one at a time. BACKGROUND

[0002] The shape of ice nuggets (e.g., ice cubes) is largely driven by the consumer and can depend largely on visual appeal to the consumer. Currently available evaporators produce ice that does not meet at least one aspect of consumer expectations. Current evaporators can produce ice that is not uniformly shaped, for example, resulting in ice cubes that have a hollow center or "dimple" in the middle. Other evaporators that attempt to more uniformly form ice cubes produce ice nuggets or ice cubes that are not visually appealing to the consumer.

[0003] Accordingly, there is a need for an ice machine and evaporator that efficiently forms ice nuggets and that produces ice nuggets in such a way that they are visually appealing to the consumer. SUMMARY

[0004] The ice machine of the present disclosure includes evaporators having both a tray-style or box-style evaporator as well as a pin-style evaporator. The tray-style evaporator has an upturned rim or sidewall that defines a central portion and there are multiple partitions in the central portion that form at least one cell. The pin of the pin-style evaporator protrudes into the cell. Water is sprayed on or otherwise applied to the cell and the water freezes in the cell. This provides ice nuggets that have a generally cubic shape with a cubic appearance that many consumers prefer. The tray-style evaporator cools the water and the cube being formed from the outside in. The pin-style evaporator cools the water and the cube being formed from the inside out to ensure faster and more efficient cooling while also preventing dimples or indentations on the ice nuggets that many currently available evaporators provide.

[0005] The two evaporators of the present disclosure can be run independently. The two evaporators can be run at the same time or one can be run while the other is off. The method of the present disclosure includes controlling the evaporators in this way.

[0006] Accordingly, in one embodiment, the present disclosure provides an ice maker including a compressor, a refrigerant, a first evaporator, and a second evaporator connected to the first evaporator. A first fluid line is connected at one end to the compressor and at a second end to the first evaporator for delivering a first portion of the refrigerant to the first evaporator. A second fluid line is connected at one end to the compressor and at a second end to the second evaporator for delivering a second portion of the refrigerant to the second evaporator. A solenoid valve is connected to the first fluid line for selectively opening and closing the first fluid line for refrigerant flowing through the first fluid line.

[0007] The present disclosure also provides a method of making ice with an ice maker, including the steps of:

[0008] initiating a first portion of a freeze cycle;

[0009] during the first portion of the freeze cycle, controlling the first fluid line solenoid to open and controlling the refrigerant to flow into each of the first evaporator and the second evaporator;

[0010] initiating a second portion of the freeze cycle;

[0011] during the second portion of the freeze cycle, controlling the first fluid line solenoid to close, preventing the refrigerant from flowing into the first evaporator, and continuing to control the refrigerant to flow into the second evaporator;

[0012] initiating a harvest cycle; and

[0013] during the harvest cycle, controlling each of a pair of harvest solenoids to open to allow warm refrigerant to flow to each of the first evaporator and the second evaporator. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1a A bottom perspective view of a tray evaporator of the present disclosure is shown. Figure 1b A perspective view of a tray of the present disclosure is shown with a grid insert. Figure 1a An exploded perspective view of a tray of the present disclosure is shown with an insert. Figure 1c A perspective view of a tray of the present disclosure is shown with an insert therein. Figure 1b A perspective view of a tray of the present disclosure is shown with an insert therein. Figure 1a A perspective view of a tray of the present disclosure is shown with an insert therein. Figure 1d A perspective view of an assembled tray evaporator of the present disclosure is shown with refrigerant coils attached to the back of the tray.

[0015] Figure 2 A perspective view of a pin evaporator of the present disclosure is shown.

[0016] Figure 3a A rear perspective view of an evaporator of the present disclosure combining a tray evaporator and a pin evaporator is shown. Figure 3b A perspective view of a pin evaporator of the present disclosure is shown.Figure 3a front perspective view of an evaporator of Figure 3c is Figure 3a and Figure 3b cross-sectional view of an evaporator of

[0017] Figure 4 shows that ice pellets manufactured with Figure 3a and Figure 3b cross-sectional view of ice pellets manufactured with an evaporator of

[0018] Figure 5 shows a schematic view of an ice maker of the present disclosure comprising Figures 3a to 3c an evaporator of

[0019] Figure 6 shows a schematic view of a water flow used in a machine of Figure 5

[0020] Figure 7 is a logic diagram illustrating the state of the components of a machine of Figure 5 DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] With reference to the appended drawings, and in particular with reference to Figures 1a to 3c , an evaporator 1 of the present disclosure is shown. The evaporator 1 comprises a disc evaporator 10 and a pin evaporator 20 connected to each other. Water is sprayed, applied or introduced into cells 30 and can be cooled by one or both of the disc evaporator 10 and the pin evaporator 20. The disc evaporator 10 cools the water in the cells 30 from the side of the cells. The pin evaporator 20 protrudes into each of the cells 30 so that the pin evaporator 20 can cool the water in the cells 30 from the inner portion of the cells 30 outwards Figure 3c After the cooling cycle, ice pellets 40 are formed.

[0022] In this way, the evaporator 1 can provide several advantages not found in the prior art ice makers. The ice pellets 40 produced by the evaporator 1 can have a generally cubic shape that is generally preferred by customers. However, unlike currently available cubic shaped ice, the pellets 40 produced by the evaporator 1 are frozen up to or at the center portion, except in the area where the pin-like evaporator 20 protrudes into the cells 30. There are no noticeable indentations or cracks in the ice pellets 40.

[0023] With particular reference to Figures 1a to 1d ​​The tray evaporator 10 can include a plate 12 having sides 14 that are turned up to form a center portion 15 having a depth. The depth of the center portion 15 can correspond generally to the desired height of the ice nuggets 40. The size of the ice nuggets 40 depends on the needs of the application or use of the ice nuggets 40. In one embodiment, the ice nuggets 40 are two inches or less on each side.

[0024] The plurality of grid elements 16 are connected to each other and are disposed into the center portion 15 to form a plurality of cells 30. A plurality of refrigerant coils 18 are connected to the plate 12 on a side of the plate 12 opposite the cells 30. Figure 1d In the manner described below, refrigerant passes through the coils 18 to cool the water in the cells 30. The sides 14 can be turned up portions of the plate 12, i.e., integral as shown, or the sides 14 can be separately formed and attached side walls.

[0025] Referring to Figure 2 , a pin evaporator 20 is shown. The pin evaporator 20 has a manifold 22 and a plurality of projections or pins 24, each of which is hollow to allow refrigerant to pass through. The pins 24 project into the cells 30 in the manner described below to cool the water located in the cells 30. The manifold 22 can have an optional flat portion 23. This flat portion allows the pins 24 to be easily attached to the manifold 22 during manufacture of the pin evaporator 20. The cross-section of the pins 24 is shown as circular, and this pin is generally the easiest type of pin to manufacture. However, the present disclosure also contemplates that the pins 24 can be square, rectangular, oval, ovoid, or other suitable shape.

[0026] Referring to Figures 3a to 3c , the assembled evaporator 1 is shown. As can be seen, the pin evaporator 20 is connected to the tray evaporator 10 so that the pins 24 project into the cells 30. The plate 12 can have a plurality of plate holes 13, one for each of the cells 30 through which the pins 24 pass. The holes 13 can be slightly larger in diameter than the pins 24. In addition to facilitating cooling by the pin evaporator 20 in the cells 30, the holes 13 can also allow air to enter from the back of the plate 12 into the cells 30. In current tray evaporators, a vacuum is often created when the water in the cells is frozen, which makes it more difficult to eject the ice cubes. The holes 13 in the evaporator 1 can make it easier to eject the ice nuggets 40 when cooling is complete. This is another advantage of the evaporator 1 over prior art devices.

[0027] As Figure 4As seen in the image, the ice pellets 40 comprise a roughly cubic shape with a generally square cross-section. This is a shape generally preferred by many consumers. The ice pellets 40 are "roughly" cubic in shape because, although the ice pellets 40 can be completely flat, it is not necessarily completely flat on all sides. The ice pellets 40 can also be flat on one, two, three, four, or five of the six sides of the cube. Unlike prior art machines, there are no noticeable or deep pits in the surface of the pellets 40. This is due to the fact that, because of the pin-type evaporator 30, the water in unit 30 is cooled from the center as well as the sides.

[0028] One advantage of the machine disclosed herein is that it provides a shorter path in evaporator 1 for absorbing heat from water to form ice. In currently available devices, as ice accumulates on the surface of a disc evaporator, the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant inside the meandering pipes on the back of the disc evaporator must become colder to continue absorbing heat from the water through the already formed ice layer. That is, once ice begins to form a layer on the surface of the evaporator, the refrigerant passing through the other side of that surface must become increasingly cold as the refrigerant absorbs heat through a layer of ice in water that has never frozen. In such systems, the efficiency of the compressor decreases as the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant decreases. With evaporator 1 of this disclosure, by cooling each block of ice both externally (via the walls of unit 30 and disc evaporator 10) and internally (via pins 24 in pin evaporator 20), this disclosure reduces the average thickness of ice that the refrigerant must pass through and allows the refrigeration system to operate at a warmer (and therefore more efficient) evaporation temperature.

[0029] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the machine 100 of this disclosure is shown, illustrating how the disc evaporator 10 and the pin evaporator 20 can operate independently. The machine 100 may include a compressor 101, a condenser 102, an optional receiver 103, and / or an optional filter dryer 104. During a cooling cycle, the refrigerant is compressed in the compressor 101 and passed to the condenser 102 for cooling. After passing through the condenser 102 and the optional receiver 103 and / or the optional filter dryer 104, the refrigerant can be passed to the evaporator 1, and one or both of the disc evaporator 10 and the pin evaporator 20. Refrigerant or fluid line solenoid valves 105 and 106 can be controlled to open or close expansion valves 107 and 108, respectively, and to control the passage to expansion valves 107 and 108. Solenoid valve 105 and expansion valve 107 control the flow of refrigerant to disc evaporator 10, and optional solenoid valve 106, together with expansion valve 108, controls the flow of refrigerant to pin evaporator 20. Optional filter dryer 104 prevents any particles from entering the refrigerant flow and may also include features to prevent desiccant from entering expansion valves 107 and 108.

[0030] As Figure 5 shown in FIG. 1, solenoid 106 is optional. In the absence of solenoid 106, refrigerant will continue to flow to evaporator 20 during the freeze cycle and / or whenever compressor 101 supplies compressed refrigerant.

[0031] After exiting expansion valves 107 and / or 108, the refrigerant is significantly cooled to a degree that can freeze water in contact with either of evaporators 10 or 20. The refrigerant leaving evaporator 1 returns to compressor 101 to restart the compression cycle. During the heat or ice release cycle, solenoid 105 (and optionally 106) can be closed, and one or both of collection valves 111 and 112 can be opened, allowing warm refrigerant to pass through disc evaporator 10 and / or pin evaporator 20, respectively. Optional collection filter 110 can prevent any particulate matter from passing through collection valves 111 and 112.

[0032] The ability to pass refrigerant through disc evaporator 10 and pin evaporator 20 separately and independently of one another provides several advantages in machine 100. It provides significant control over the rate of cooling and shape of the cube formed within the evaporators. For example, at the beginning of the cooling cycle, refrigerant can pass through each of evaporators 10 and 20. As the cooling cycle nears its end, when the cube is about to take its final shape, solenoid valve 105 can be closed, allowing refrigerant to flow only to pin evaporator 20. This allows pin evaporator 20 to complete the formation of the cube by filling in the center of the cube, without any additional cooling from the outside of the cube.

[0033] One method of ice making that can be performed with machine 100 is described as follows. During a first portion of the freeze cycle, fluid line solenoid 105 is open to allow refrigerant to flow into disc evaporator 10. During this portion of the freeze cycle, refrigerant will also flow to pin evaporator 20, whether or not optional solenoid 106 is present. This provides maximum cooling for machine 100 and will form ice on the walls of cell 30 and on pins 24. During a second portion of the freeze cycle, fluid line solenoid 105 is closed to prevent refrigerant from flowing into disc evaporator 10, while refrigerant continues to flow to pin evaporator 20. (If fluid line solenoid 106 is used, fluid line solenoid 106 is open at this time.) This will concentrate cooling on pin evaporator 20 to help fill in the center of the cube. During the collection cycle, one or both of collection solenoids 111 and 112 are open, allowing warm refrigerant vapor to heat evaporator 1 and separate ice from evaporator 1.

[0034] During the collection phase of the ice-making cycle, it is not important whether the fluid line solenoid 105 (and optionally 106) is open or closed. Collection valves 111 and 112 will have a pressure drop across them during the collection cycle, so the pressure on the inlet side of expansion valves 107 and 108 will still be higher than the outlet side. If any refrigerant flows through valves 107 and 108, the refrigerant will still flow from the inlet to the outlet, not backwards. This is why it is not important whether solenoids 105 and 106 are open or closed during the collection cycle.

[0035] Reference Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the pump mechanism 200 is shown. The mechanism 200 includes a pump 201, a spray nozzle 201a, and a storage tank 202. The pump 201 moves water through the nozzle 201a, spraying water onto the surface of the evaporator 1. Any water that does not adhere to and freeze onto the surface of the evaporator 1 is guided back into the storage tank 202 by a protective shield 201b that partially covers the nozzle 201a. The protective shield 201b may be perforated, allowing water to pass through and fall back into the storage tank 202.

[0036] The perforations in the protective shield 201b prevent the formed ice particles 40 from passing through. Instead, the protective shield 201b is tilted relative to the horizontal direction, causing the collected ice particles 40 to impact the protective shield 201b and slide laterally toward the curtain 207 and into a bucket (not shown) located on the other side of the curtain 207. As described in more detail below, when the ice level in the bucket reaches a certain height, the curtain 207 will not be able to return to its vertical position. This indicates that the bucket is full, and ice making should be paused until the bucket is emptied.

[0037] The pump mechanism 200 is advantageously designed to supply water to the evaporator 1 in such a way that the water is not exposed to any plastic in the machine 100 cold enough to freeze. When a portion of the ice plate formed during the freezing process is frozen into a low thermal conductivity material like plastic during a long cycle, it is difficult to push heat into the plastic quickly enough to release the ice during a short collection cycle. In this disclosure, water is sprayed onto the evaporator 1 and allowed to drain back into the storage tank 202 without contacting any cold plastic. This shortens the time required for the ice to be released from the evaporator 1 and detach.

[0038] A high water level float switch 203 and a low water level float switch 204 are shown located in the sump 202. The switches 203 and 204 determine when the water level in the sump 202 reaches a set high point and a set low point, respectively. A thermistor 208 can measure the temperature of the evaporator 1. The thermistor 208 can be attached directly to the plate evaporator 10, for example to the plate 12, or to one or more of the coils 18. If the thermistor 208 is attached to the coils 18, the thermistor 208 can be located at a point before or after the coils 18 contact the plate 12.

[0039] Referring to Figure 7 A diagram illustrating the status of various components in the machine 100 during the freeze cycle and the harvest cycle is shown. At status 0, the illustrated components - the compressor 101, "C", the fluid line solenoid to the plate evaporator 105, "L", the harvest solenoids 111 and 112, "H", the water inlet valve 205, "W", and the pump 201, "P" are off or closed. The water curtain 207 is connected to a switch (not shown) so that the machine 100 can detect when the water curtain 207 is closed. Status 0 can correspond to when the bucket (not shown) is full of ice so that a user is harvesting ice from the bucket, which allows the curtain 207 to "close", i.e. fall to the vertical position of the curtain 207. When the switch connected to the curtain 207 is activated, the machine 100 enters status 1, called "pre-chill". The compressor 101 is turned on, and the solenoids 105 and 205 are turned on so that water flows into the sump 202. If the optional solenoid 106 is used, the solenoid 106 can also be turned on at this time.

[0040] After a set period of time, shown as five minutes, or when the high water level float switch 203 detects that the water level in the sump 202 has reached the desired height, the machine 100 enters status 2, the first freeze phase. At this time, there is enough water in the sump 202 to produce the desired amount of ice. The pump 201 is activated so that water is sprayed onto the surface of the evaporator 1. Refrigerant is flowing to the evaporator 1 at status 1 so that the evaporator is ready to freeze the water at phase 2. During status 2, the refrigerant continues to flow. The water inlet valve 105 is closed because there is enough water temporarily.

[0041] After a second period of time, shown here as forty minutes, or when the thermistor 208 determines that the surface of the evaporator 1 has reached a first set temperature or lower, the machine 100 enters status 3, the second freeze phase. In one embodiment, the first set temperature is zero degrees Fahrenheit or lower. At this time, most of the ice has formed, so the solenoid 105 is turned off, cutting off the flow of refrigerant to the plate evaporator 10. The pump 201 continues to run. The solenoid 106, if used, remains on. In either embodiment, the flow of refrigerant to the pin evaporator 20 continues to flow at this phase.

[0042] After a third time period (shown as twenty minutes), or when the low water level float switch 204 detects that the water level in the sump 202 has reached the desired low level, the machine 100 enters state 4, the harvest state. During state 3, the pump continues to supply water to the evaporator 1 for freezing. Because there is no new supply of water through the water inlet valve 205, eventually there will not be enough water in the sump 202 to apply to the evaporator 1. This is determined by the switch 204 or by the passage of the third time period.

[0043] State 4 is the harvest phase, and at this time the pump 201 is turned off so that no more water is applied to the evaporator 1. Instead, the compressor 101 continues to run, passing warm refrigerant through the harvest solenoids 111 and 112, which are now in the open state. The warm refrigerant passing through the disc evaporator 10 and pin evaporator 20 releases ice cubes 40 from the cell 30, from which the ice cubes 40 fall into the bucket. As discussed previously, it does not matter at this time whether the solenoid 105 and optional solenoid 106 are open or closed. After a fourth time period (shown here as five minutes), the machine 100 can return to state 0.

[0044] Alternatively, during phase 4, the system can determine that the curtain 207 has been open for more than a fifth time period (shown here as thirty seconds). As discussed previously, this indicates that the bucket is full of harvested ice, and the curtain 207 cannot close. This condition will also cause the system to return to state 0. If the curtain 207 continues to open and close for no longer than the fifth time period, this indicates that the container is not yet full. In this case, the system will return to state 1 to start the ice making cycle again.

[0045] While the present disclosure has been described with reference to one or more particular embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes can be made and equivalents substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In addition, many modifications can be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the present disclosure without departing from the scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the present disclosure not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this present disclosure, but that the present disclosure will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An ice maker, comprising: compressor; refrigerant; First evaporator; A second evaporator is connected to the first evaporator such that a protrusion of the second evaporator protrudes into the unit of the first evaporator; A first fluid line, which is connected to the compressor at a first end and to the first evaporator at a second end, for delivering a first portion of the refrigerant to the first evaporator; A second fluid line, which is connected to the compressor at a first end and to the second evaporator at a second end, is used to deliver a second portion of the refrigerant to the second evaporator; as well as A solenoid valve, connected to the first fluid line, selectively opens and closes the first fluid line for the refrigerant flowing through it. The first evaporator includes: A flat disc with upward-curving edges, such that a central portion is defined between the upward-curving edges; A plurality of partitions located in the central portion, such that the unit is defined by the plurality of partitions and / or the upwardly flared edge of the flat disk; and A first meandering coil is connected to the flat disc and the second end of the first fluid line, allowing refrigerant to pass through the first meandering coil; and The second evaporator includes: The manifold connected to the second end of the second fluid line, and The protrusion is connected to and in fluid communication with the manifold, allowing the refrigerant to flow through the manifold and the protrusion.

2. The ice maker according to claim 1, wherein, The first evaporator has a hole in the flat plate corresponding to the position of the unit, and the protrusion of the second evaporator protrudes through the hole.

3. The ice maker according to claim 2, wherein, The first diameter of the hole is larger than the second diameter of the protrusion.

4. The ice maker according to claim 1, wherein, The protrusion is pin-shaped.

5. The ice maker of claim 1 further includes a second solenoid valve connected to the second fluid line for selectively opening and closing the second fluid line for the refrigerant flowing through the second fluid line.

6. The ice maker according to claim 1 further includes a thermistor for measuring the temperature of the first evaporator and / or the second evaporator.

7. The ice maker according to claim 1, further comprising: Storage tank; A water inlet valve, which is connected to the storage tank, is used to supply water to the storage tank; as well as water pump, The water pump delivers water from the storage tank to the surfaces of the first evaporator and the second evaporator.

8. The ice maker according to claim 7 further includes a high water level sensor and a low water level sensor located in the storage tank.

9. The ice maker according to claim 7, further comprising a spray nozzle in fluid communication with the water pump, wherein, The water pump delivers water from the storage tank to the surface of the first evaporator and the surface of the second evaporator via the jet nozzle.

10. The ice maker of claim 9, further comprising a perforated protective cover located between the spray nozzle and the first evaporator and the second evaporator, such that unfrozen water falls from the first evaporator and the second evaporator through the perforated protective cover and into the storage tank.

11. The ice maker of claim 10, further comprising a pivotable curtain such that frozen ice blocks fall from the first evaporator and the second evaporator, slide off the perforated protective cover, and contact the pivotable curtain.

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