Ice mold switching device and ice granulator using the same

Abstract

The application provides an ice mold switching device and a granular ice machine using the same. The ice mold switching device comprises a first driving device for driving a conveying belt to reciprocatingly move, one end of an internal space of the conveying belt forms an ice making space, and the other end forms a maintenance space; a plurality of ice mold modules are installed at intervals on the conveying belt; an ice making device is arranged in the ice making space and is used for ice making operation on the ice mold modules; and a refrigeration system is used for providing cold energy for the ice making device. When the ice mold module located in the ice making space is damaged, the first driving device is used to drive the conveying belt to move the damaged ice mold module to the maintenance space for maintenance. The ice mold switching device and the granular ice machine using the same can move the damaged ice mold module from the ice making space to the maintenance space for easy observation, and at the same time, the standby ice mold module is moved to the ice making space, so that the damaged ice mold can be quickly disassembled and maintained, the standby ice mold can be used for normal ice making without affecting the normal ice making, and the maintenance progress is accelerated through the quick disassembly of the ice mold module.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of ice-making technology, and in particular to an ice mold switching device and a granular ice machine using the same. Background Technology

[0002] Currently, commercially available granulated ice machines primarily use a one-piece ice mold system. This involves welding multiple ice molds to a heat-conducting plate and the evaporator coils (evaporator coils) mounted on it, and then securing them internally to the granulated ice machine unit with screws. For granulated ice machines, the quality and integrity of the produced ice are paramount. However, during prolonged use, the ice molds are prone to damage, affecting the machine's normal ice-making operation. Furthermore, the traditional welded connection between the ice molds, heat-conducting plate, and evaporator coils makes replacing and repairing damaged ice molds extremely difficult, increasing maintenance costs.

[0003] Furthermore, with the widespread use of ice makers, users' demands for the diversity of ice cube shapes produced by granulated ice machines have also increased. However, traditional granulated ice machines use a welding method to fix the ice mold, heat conduction plate, and evaporation tube together, which results in a relatively limited range of ice cube shapes that can be produced and an inability to freely switch between ice mold types. This limits the application range of granulated ice machines and affects the user experience. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention proposes an ice mold switching device and a granular ice machine using the same, in order to solve the technical problem that the ice mold of the granular ice machine is fixedly connected to the heat conduction plate and evaporation tube in the prior art, which makes it difficult to replace and maintain.

[0005] To solve the above problems, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows: This invention provides an ice mold switching device, comprising: The first drive unit is used to drive a conveyor belt to reciprocate in a circular motion. One end of the internal space enclosed by the conveyor belt forms an ice-making space, and the other end forms a maintenance space. Multiple ice mold modules are installed at intervals on the conveyor belt; An ice-making device, located in an ice-making space, is used to perform ice-making operations on ice mold modules located in the ice-making space; Refrigeration system, used to provide cooling capacity to ice-making devices; The second drive unit is used to drive the ice-making device to move closer to or away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space, so that the ice-making device can move to or away from the ice-making operation position to make way for the transmission belt to drive the ice mold module.

[0006] When an ice mold module located in the ice-making space is damaged, the first drive device can drive the transmission belt to move the damaged ice mold module to the repair space for repair work.

[0007] Furthermore, the ice mold switching device also includes: Preferably, the first driving device includes: frame; A drive shaft and at least three driven shafts are rotatably mounted on a frame. Each end of the drive shaft is provided with a drive wheel, and each end of the driven shaft is provided with a driven wheel. The conveyor belt wraps around the outside of a pair of driving wheels and three pairs of driven wheels, and the driving shaft and the three driven shafts are arranged parallel to each other, so that the conveyor belt is rectangular when it wraps around the outside of the pair of driving wheels and the three pairs of driven wheels. The driving shaft and the three driven shafts are respectively located at the four corners of the rectangular conveyor belt. The first drive unit is used to drive the drive shaft and a pair of drive wheels to rotate synchronously, so as to drive the conveyor belt and three driven shafts and three pairs of driven wheels to rotate synchronously.

[0008] Preferably, the ice-making device includes: Heat-conducting plate; The evaporator is mounted on the heat-conducting plate and connected to the refrigeration circulation pipeline of the refrigeration system via refrigerant pipes.

[0009] Preferably, the second driving device includes: Linear guide mechanism, connected to the heat-conducting plate; The second drive unit is used to drive the heat-conducting plate to move closer to or away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space along the linear guide mechanism.

[0010] Preferably, the linear guide mechanism includes: A pair of guide rails, set parallel to each other and spaced apart; A pair of sliders are respectively installed on a pair of guide rails, and a heat-conducting plate is fixedly connected between the pair of sliders; The second drive unit is connected to one of the sliders and drives the heat-conducting plate and the other slider to move synchronously along a pair of guide rails toward or away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space.

[0011] Furthermore, the linear guide mechanism also includes: A limiting block is located at the end of the guide rail away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space, and is used to limit the maximum stroke of the heat-conducting plate away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space.

[0012] Furthermore, the first drive unit also includes: Limit sensors are used to detect whether the ice mold module has moved into position in the ice-making space.

[0013] Furthermore, the ice mold switching device also includes: An electronic control device and an external handheld device connected to the electronic control device, wherein the electronic control device is used to control the first drive device, the ice-making device, the refrigeration system, and the second drive device.

[0014] The present invention also provides a pellet ice machine, including the ice mold switching device described above.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: The ice mold switching device and granular ice machine using the present invention can automatically switch ice mold modules between the ice-making space and the maintenance space of the unit. Damaged ice mold modules are moved from the ice-making space to the easily observable maintenance space, while spare ice mold modules are moved accordingly. This allows for quick disassembly and repair of damaged ice molds without affecting the normal ice-making operation of spare ice molds. The quick disassembly between the ice mold modules and the rubber conveyor belt also speeds up the ice mold repair process. Furthermore, it allows for rapid switching between various shapes of ice mold modules according to user preferences, achieving diversified ice-making. In addition, limit sensors can be installed to ensure the accuracy of ice mold switching and prevent abnormal secondary ice-making phenomena. Attached Figure Description

[0016] To more clearly illustrate the technical solution proposed by the present invention, a detailed description is provided below in conjunction with the embodiments and accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the accompanying drawings described below are merely some embodiments of the present invention, and those skilled in the art can make changes to these drawings under the concept of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the overall assembly three-dimensional structure of an embodiment of the ice mold switching device provided by the present invention; Figure 2 A partial assembly front view schematic diagram of an embodiment of the ice mold switching device provided by the present invention; Figure 3 for Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the movement state of the ice mold switching device in ice mold switching mode; Figure 4 This is a schematic flowchart illustrating the control method logic of an embodiment of the ice mold switching control method for a granular ice machine.

[0018] The main markings in the attached figures are as follows: 1. First drive unit; 11. Drive wheel; 12. Driven shaft; 121. Driven wheel; 13. First drive unit; 14. Limit sensor; 2. Conveyor belt; 3. Ice-making space; 4. Maintenance space; 5. Ice mold module; 6. Ice-making device; 61. Heat-conducting plate; 62. Refrigerant pipe; 7. Refrigeration system; 8. Second drive unit; 81. Linear guide mechanism; 811. Guide rail; 812. Slider; 813. Limit block; 82. Second drive unit; 9. Electrical control device; 91. External handheld device. Detailed Implementation

[0019] To make the technical problem to be solved, the technical solution and the beneficial effects of the present invention clearer, the following description is provided in conjunction with the appendix. Figure 1-4 The present invention will be further described in detail with reference to embodiments.

[0020] Please refer to the following: Figure 1-3 The ice mold switching device provided by the present invention includes: A first driving device 1 drives a conveyor belt 2 to reciprocate in a cyclical motion. One end of the internal space enclosed by the conveyor belt 2 forms an ice-making space 3, and the other end of the internal space enclosed by the conveyor belt 2 forms a maintenance space 4. Multiple ice mold modules 5 are installed at intervals on the conveyor belt 2. An ice-making device 6 is located in the ice-making space 3 and is used to perform ice-making operations on the ice mold modules 5 located in the ice-making space 3. A refrigeration system 7 is used to provide cooling capacity for the ice-making operation of the ice-making device 6. When the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3 is damaged, the transmission belt can be driven by the first drive device 1 to reciprocate in a cyclical motion, thereby moving the damaged ice mold module 5 to the repair space 4 for repair work.

[0021] In this embodiment, the conveyor belt 2 is a rubber belt, and multiple ice mold modules 5 are evenly spaced on the conveyor belt 2.

[0022] In a preferred embodiment, the transmission belt 2 (rubber belt) is provided with multiple slots that match the shape of the ice mold module 5, and the multiple ice mold modules 5 are directly fitted into the corresponding slots by utilizing the elasticity of the rubber transmission belt 2.

[0023] In this embodiment, the ice mold switching device further includes: The second drive device 8 is used to drive the ice-making device 6 to move closer to or further away from the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3, so that the ice-making device 6 reaches the ice-making operation position where it can realize the ice-making function of the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3, or moves away from the ice-making operation position to make way for the transmission belt to drive the ice mold module 5 to move.

[0024] In this embodiment, the first driving device 1 includes: A frame (not shown in the figure); a drive shaft (not shown in the figure) and at least three driven shafts 12 are rotatably mounted on the frame, with drive wheels 11 corresponding to both ends of the drive shaft and driven wheels 121 corresponding to both ends of each driven shaft 12; The conveyor belt 2 is wrapped around the outside of a pair of driving wheels 11 and three pairs of driven wheels 121, and the driving shaft and the three driven shafts 12 are arranged parallel to each other, so that the conveyor belt 2 is stretched out in a rectangle when wrapped around the outside of the pair of driving wheels 11 and the three pairs of driven wheels 121, and the driving shaft and the three driven shafts 12 are respectively located at the four corners of the rectangular conveyor belt 2. The first drive unit 13 is used to drive the drive shaft and a pair of drive wheels 11 to rotate synchronously, so as to drive the conveyor belt 2 and three driven shafts 12 and three pairs of driven wheels 121 to rotate synchronously.

[0025] In a preferred embodiment, the first drive unit 13 is a drive motor, which drives one or both of the pair of drive wheels 11 to rotate synchronously via a gear mechanism.

[0026] In one embodiment (not shown in the figure), the first drive device 1 further includes a second drive shaft (not shown in the figure), which is rotatably mounted on the frame. The two ends of the second drive shaft are respectively provided with second drive wheels 11 (not shown in the figure). The conveyor belt 2 is wrapped around the outside of a pair of drive wheels 11, a pair of second drive wheels 11 and three pairs of driven wheels 121. The drive shaft, the second drive shaft and the three driven shafts 12 are arranged parallel to each other, so that the conveyor belt 2 is rectangularly spread out when wrapped around the outside of a pair of drive wheels 11 and three pairs of driven wheels 121. The third drive unit (not shown in the figure) is used to drive the second drive shaft and the pair of second drive wheels 11 to rotate synchronously with the first drive shaft and the pair of first drive wheels 11.

[0027] In one embodiment (not shown in the figure), the drive shaft and three driven shafts 12 are respectively located at the four corners of the rectangular conveyor belt 2, and the second drive shaft is located between the drive shaft and the driven shafts 12 or any two driven shafts 12. In another embodiment, the drive shaft, the second drive shaft, and two driven shafts 12 are respectively located at the four corners of the rectangular conveyor belt 2, and another driven shaft 12 (i.e., the third driven shaft 12) is located between the drive shaft and the driven shafts 12 or two driven shafts 12. In other embodiments, the first drive device 1 further includes a third drive shaft (not shown in the figure) and a fourth drive unit (not shown in the figure) driving it, or includes more drive shafts and more drive units driving them.

[0028] In one embodiment (not shown in the figure), the first drive device 1 further includes a fourth driven shaft 12 (not shown in the figure), which is rotatably mounted on the frame. The two ends of the fourth driven shaft 12 are respectively provided with driven wheels 121. The conveyor belt 2 is wrapped around the outside of a pair of driving wheels 11 and four pairs of driven wheels 121. The driving shaft, the second driving shaft and the four driven shafts 12 are arranged in parallel to each other, so that the conveyor belt 2 is rectangularly spread out when wrapped around the outside of a pair of driving wheels 11 and four pairs of driven wheels 121.

[0029] In one embodiment (not shown in the figure), the drive shaft and three driven shafts 12 are respectively located at the four corners of the rectangular conveyor belt 2, and the fourth driven wheel 121 is located between the drive shaft and the driven shaft 12 or any two driven shafts 12; in other embodiments, the first drive device 1 also includes a fifth driven shaft 12 or more drive shafts.

[0030] In this embodiment, the ice-making device 6 includes: The heat-conducting plate 61 and the evaporator tube (not shown in the figure) are arranged together. The evaporator tube is coiled inside the heat-conducting plate 61 to form an evaporator tube coil structure, and is connected to the refrigeration circulation pipeline of the refrigeration system 7 through the refrigerant pipe 62. That is, the evaporator tube and the heat-conducting plate 61 are integrated. In a preferred embodiment, the refrigerant pipe 62 is a low-temperature resistant flexible hose. Since the evaporator tube coil is a movable part that can move with the heat-conducting plate 61, the refrigerant pipe 62 connected to the evaporator tube cannot use conventional rigid copper pipes or other metal pipes. Therefore, a low-temperature resistant flexible hose is used instead of a metal pipe as the refrigerant pipe 62. The ice-making space 3 is equipped with a water injection device (not shown in the figure) above the position where the evaporation pipe and the heat-conducting plate 61 contact the ice mold module 5. Water is sprayed through the water injection device so that the water flow can seep into the space between the heat-conducting plate 61 and the ice mold module 5 to achieve the freezing and ice-making operation.

[0031] In this embodiment, the second driving device 8 includes: A linear guide mechanism 81 is connected to a heat-conducting plate 61; a second drive unit 82 is used to drive the heat-conducting plate 61 to move closer to or away from the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3 along the linear guide mechanism 81.

[0032] In this embodiment, the linear guide mechanism 81 includes: A pair of guide rails 811 are arranged parallel to each other and spaced apart at one end of the ice-making space 3 within the internal space enclosed by the conveyor belt 2; a pair of sliders 812 are respectively slidably mounted on the pair of guide rails 811; and a heat-conducting plate 61 is fixedly connected between the pair of sliders 812. The second drive unit 82 is connected to one of the sliders 812, and drives the heat-conducting plate 61 and the other slider 812 to move synchronously along a pair of guide rails 811 toward or away from the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3.

[0033] In this embodiment, the extension direction of a pair of guide rails 811 is parallel to the horizontal direction of the conveyor belt 2 as it reciprocates between the ice-making space 3 and the maintenance space 4.

[0034] In a preferred embodiment, the second drive unit 82 is a drive motor. The second drive unit 82 drives the heat-conducting plate 61 to move closer to or further away from the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3 along the linear guide mechanism 81 through linear transmission mechanisms such as lead screw nut, gear rack and pinion.

[0035] In other embodiments, the second drive unit 82 may also be a cylinder.

[0036] In this embodiment, the linear guide mechanism 81 further includes: The limiting block 813 is located at the end of the guide rail 811 away from the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3, and is used to limit the maximum stroke of the heat-conducting plate 61 away from the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3.

[0037] In this embodiment, the first driving device 1 further includes: Limit sensor 14 is used to sense whether the ice mold module 5 has moved into position in the ice-making space 3.

[0038] In this embodiment, the ice mold switching device further includes: The electronic control device 9 and the external handheld device 91 connected to the electronic control device 9 are used to control the first drive device 1, the ice-making device 6, the refrigeration system 7, and the second drive device 8.

[0039] In this embodiment, the refrigeration system 7 and the electronic control device 9 are located in the internal space enclosed by the conveyor belt 2, and are situated between the refrigeration space and the maintenance area. The external handheld device 91 is externally placed on the conveyor belt 2 and the internal space enclosed by it, and is wired to the electronic control device 9.

[0040] In a preferred embodiment, the electrical control device 9 is integrated into the electrical control box.

[0041] The present invention also provides a pellet ice machine, including the ice mold switching device described above.

[0042] In this embodiment, the maintenance space 4 is located in a position within the granular ice machine unit that facilitates observation and maintenance by maintenance personnel, as well as the replacement of ice mold modules.

[0043] This invention provides an ice mold switching device to control the automatic switching of ice mold modules 5. It can quickly and accurately move the damaged ice mold module 5 to the maintenance space 4 of the granular ice machine, and correspondingly quickly and accurately move the spare ice mold module 5 to the ice-making space 3. This allows for convenient and rapid disassembly, replacement, and repair of the damaged ice mold module 5 in the maintenance space 4, without affecting the normal ice-making of the ice mold module 5 moved to the ice-making space 3. At the same time, the quick disassembly and installation between the ice mold module 5 and the conveyor belt 2 accelerates the ice mold maintenance and replacement process.

[0044] Please see Figure 4 The present invention also provides a method for switching ice molds in a granular ice machine, comprising: S1: During the operation of the granular ice machine, the electronic control device 9 monitors the ice-making quality of the unit in real time. If the ice-making quality of the unit is found to be qualified, the granular ice machine will continue to operate normally. If the ice-making quality of the unit is found to be unqualified (that is, when an abnormality is found in the ice-making process, such as when the ice blocks are deformed or the ice blocks cannot be demolded normally, it indicates that the ice mold is deformed or damaged and needs to be repaired or replaced), then proceed to S2. S2: By controlling the electronic control device 91 of the granular ice machine to pause the operation of the refrigeration system 7 of the granular ice machine unit, the second drive unit 82 (drive motor) is started, thereby driving the heat-conducting plate 61 and evaporation tube of the ice-making device 6 to move backward along the linear guide mechanism 81 from the ice-making operation position close to the ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3, away from the damaged ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3, until the heat-conducting plate 61 contacts the limit block 813 of the linear guide mechanism 81 and the stroke stops, entering S3, thereby creating a certain safe space for the next step of the conveyor belt 2 to move the damaged ice mold module 5 to the maintenance space 4, avoiding the heat-conducting plate 61 and evaporation tube of the ice-making device 6 to rub against the ice mold module 5 and the conveyor belt 2 during the movement, which would cause damage to both; S3: The first drive unit 13 (drive motor) is started by controlling the external hand-held device 91. The drive shaft, drive wheel 11, driven shaft 12, and driven wheel 121 of the first drive device 1 synchronously drive the conveyor belt 2 to rotate in a cycle. The damaged ice mold module 5 is moved from the ice-making space 3 to the unit maintenance space 4 area by the conveyor belt 2 and enters S4. S4: The unit maintenance space 4 area is set in a position that is easy for maintenance personnel to observe. During the movement of the conveyor belt 2, it is observed and judged whether the damaged ice mold module 5 has been moved to the designated unit maintenance space 4 area. If it is found that the damaged ice mold module 5 has not yet arrived at the designated maintenance space 4 area, return to S3 and continue to control the conveyor belt to rotate until it is observed that the damaged ice mold module 5 has arrived at the designated maintenance space 4 area. Then, control the first drive unit 13 (drive motor) to stop and enter S5. S5: When the damaged ice mold module 5 is observed to have arrived at the designated maintenance space 4, the control limit sensor 14 is activated to detect whether the spare ice mold module 5 has arrived at the designated unit ice-making space 3. If the condition is not met, the electronic control device 9 automatically controls the first drive unit 13 (drive motor) to start, thereby continuously transporting the spare ice mold module 5 to the designated space area through the conveyor belt 2 until the limit sensor 14 detects that the spare ice mold module 5 has met the requirement of arriving at the designated ice-making position. The electronic control device 9 then automatically controls the first drive unit 13 (drive motor) to stop and proceeds to S6. S6: The electronic control device 9 automatically controls the second drive unit 82 (drive motor) to start, thereby driving the heat-conducting plate 61 and evaporation tube of the ice-making device 6 to move forward along the linear guide mechanism 81 towards the ice-making operation position of the spare ice mold module 5 located in the ice-making space 3, until the heat-conducting plate 61 and evaporation tube reach the ice-making operation position and stop the stroke, and enter S7. S7: At this point, the granular ice machine unit has reached the normal ice-making conditions. The electrical control device 9 automatically controls the refrigeration system 7 to resume startup, and the granular ice machine continues to operate normally, returning to S1.

[0045] The ice mold switching device and the granular ice machine using it provided by the present invention can not only be used for the rapid repair and replacement of damaged ice mold modules 5, but also quickly switch ice mold modules 5 of different shapes according to user needs for different ice-making applications, thereby meeting the diverse needs of users for ice making and realizing the humanization of ice making in granular ice machine units.

[0046] The above are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the invention.

Claims

1. An ice mold switching device, characterized in that, include: The first driving device is used to drive a conveyor belt to reciprocate in a cyclical motion. One end of the internal space enclosed by the conveyor belt forms an ice-making space, and the other end forms a maintenance space. Multiple ice mold modules are installed at intervals on the conveyor belt; An ice-making device is provided in the ice-making space for performing ice-making operations on the ice mold module located in the ice-making space; A refrigeration system for providing cooling capacity to the ice-making device; The second driving device is used to drive the ice-making device to move closer to or away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space, so that the ice-making device can reach the ice-making operation position or leave the ice-making operation position to make way for the transmission belt to drive the ice mold module to move. When an ice mold module located in the ice-making space is damaged, the first drive device can drive the transmission belt to move the damaged ice mold module to the repair space for repair work.

2. The ice mold switching device as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The first driving device includes: frame; A drive shaft and at least three driven shafts are rotatably mounted on the frame. Each end of the drive shaft is provided with a drive wheel, and each end of the driven shaft is provided with a driven wheel. The conveyor belt is wrapped around the outside of a pair of driving wheels and three pairs of driven wheels, and the driving shaft and the three driven shafts are arranged parallel to each other, so that the conveyor belt is stretched out in a rectangle when wrapped around the outside of the pair of driving wheels and the three pairs of driven wheels, and the driving shaft and the three driven shafts are respectively located at the four corners of the rectangular conveyor belt. The first drive unit is used to drive the drive shaft and a pair of drive wheels to rotate synchronously, so as to drive the conveyor belt and three driven shafts and three pairs of driven wheels to rotate synchronously.

3. The ice mold switching device as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The ice-making device includes: Heat-conducting plate; An evaporator is mounted on the heat-conducting plate and connected to the refrigeration circulation pipeline of the refrigeration system via a refrigerant pipe.

4. The ice mold switching device as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The second driving device includes: A linear guide mechanism is connected to the heat-conducting plate; The second driving unit is used to drive the heat-conducting plate to move closer to or away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space along the linear guide mechanism.

5. The ice mold switching device as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The linear guidance mechanism includes: A pair of guide rails, set parallel to each other and spaced apart; A pair of sliders are respectively installed on a pair of guide rails, and the heat-conducting plate is fixedly connected between the pair of sliders; The second drive unit is connected to one of the sliders and drives the heat-conducting plate and the other slider to move synchronously along a pair of guide rails toward or away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space.

6. The ice mold switching device as described in claim 5, characterized in that, The linear guidance mechanism further includes: A limiting block is located at the end of the guide rail away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space, and is used to limit the maximum stroke of the heat-conducting plate away from the ice mold module located in the ice-making space.

7. The ice mold switching device as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The first driving device further includes: Limit sensors are used to detect whether the ice mold module has moved into position in the ice-making space.

8. The ice mold switching device according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, Also includes: An electronic control device and an external handheld device connected to the electronic control device, the electronic control device being used to control the first drive device, the ice-making device, the refrigeration system, and the second drive device.

9. A pellet ice machine, characterized in that, Includes the ice mold switching device as described in any one of claims 1-8.

Images