Ice making structure and ice maker

Abstract

The utility model provides an ice making structure and an ice maker, the ice making structure comprises an ice box, an ice tray and an evaporator, and the ice tray is located in the ice box; one end of the ice tray is fixedly connected to the inner wall of the ice box, the other end of the ice tray rotatably enables the ice tray to twist and deform so as to extrude ice blocks out of the ice tray, and at least part of the evaporator is located in the ice tray. According to the ice outlet mode that the ice cube tray is rotated to deform, at least part of the evaporator is arranged in the ice cube tray, water in the ice cube tray makes direct contact with the surface of the evaporator, and the ice block is easier to form. The ice making efficiency is comprehensively improved by improving the ice discharging speed and the ice block forming speed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of ice making, and in particular to an ice making structure and an ice maker. Background Art

[0002] After making ice, the ice maker uses mechanical force to twist and deform the flexible ice tray to squeeze out the ice cubes. This ice-discharging method usually places the ice tray in the freezer and uses the coldness of the freezer to make ice, resulting in slow ice formation and low ice-making efficiency, which needs to be improved. Utility Model Content

[0003] The utility model provides an ice making structure and an ice maker to solve the technical problem of low ice making efficiency.

[0004] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the ice-making structure proposed in the present application includes an ice box, an ice tray and an evaporator. The ice tray is located in the ice box; one end of the ice tray is fixedly connected to the inner wall of the ice box, and the other end of the ice tray can be rotated to twist and deform the ice tray to squeeze the ice cubes out of the ice tray. At least part of the evaporator is located in the ice tray.

[0005] Optionally, in one embodiment, the evaporator includes an ice-making pipe section and an extension pipe section connected to both ends of the ice-making pipe section, the ice-making pipe section is inserted into the ice tray along the rotation axis of the ice tray, and the extension pipe section extends out of the ice tray.

[0006] Optionally, in one embodiment, there are multiple ice trays, the evaporator includes multiple ice-making pipe sections and multiple extended pipe sections, each ice tray is equipped with one ice-making pipe section, and the extended pipe section connects two adjacent ice-making pipe sections.

[0007] Optionally, in one embodiment, when the ice-making structure is in the ice-making state, the ice tray opening is set upward, the extension tube section extends obliquely upward to the upper area of ​​the ice tray, and an angle is formed between the extension tube section and the horizontal plane, and the angle is greater than 0 degrees and less than or equal to 90 degrees.

[0008] Optionally, in one embodiment, the ice tray includes an ice-making area and non-ice-making areas located at both ends of the ice-making area, the ice-making pipe section is passed through the ice-making area, the extended pipe section is passed through the non-ice-making area, and the bottom of the ice-making area is lower than the bottom of the non-ice-making area.

[0009] Optionally, in one embodiment, a first main shaft and a first secondary shaft are provided at one end of the ice tray in parallel and spaced apart from each other, and the ice tray can be twisted and deformed around the first main shaft to squeeze out the ice cubes; a rotating operating part is provided on the ice box, and the rotating operating part is connected to the first main shaft and the first secondary shaft, and is used to drive the ice tray to twist and deform around the first main shaft.

[0010] Optionally, in one embodiment, the ice tray is fixedly connected to one end of the ice box and is provided with a second main shaft and a second secondary shaft spaced parallel to each other, and the second main shaft and the second secondary shaft are both fixedly connected to the inner surface of the ice box; the second main shaft, the first main shaft, the rotating operating part and the ice-making pipe section are coaxially arranged, and the first secondary shaft and the second secondary shaft are located on opposite sides of the first main shaft.

[0011] Optionally, in one embodiment, a return spring is provided at one end of the ice tray fixedly connected to the ice box, and both ends of the return spring are respectively connected to the ice tray and the ice box, and the elastic restoring force of the return spring is opposite to the rotation direction of the ice tray.

[0012] Optionally, in one embodiment, a limit block is provided on the inner surface of the ice box, and the limit block is located in the rotation direction of the ice tray to limit the rotation angle of the ice tray.

[0013] The present application also provides an ice maker, comprising the ice making structure as described above.

[0014] The ice-making structure provided in the present application is designed for the twisted ice tray ice-discharging method. At least part of the evaporator is arranged in the ice tray. The water in the ice tray directly contacts the surface of the evaporator, thereby improving the ice forming efficiency and thus improving the ice making efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on the structures shown in these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0016] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the ice-making structure of this application;

[0017] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the ice tray and evaporator in this application;

[0018] Figure 3 A cross-sectional view of an ice tray in this application;

[0019] Figure 4 An exploded view of the ice making structure for this application;

[0020] Figure 5 This is a side view of the ice tray and evaporator in this application.

[0021] Description of Figure Numbers:

[0022] 1. Ice box; 11. Limiting clamp; 2. Ice tray; 21. Ice-making area; 22. Non-ice-making area; 23. First main shaft; 24. First secondary shaft; 25. Second main shaft; 26. Second secondary shaft; 27. Return spring; 3. Evaporator; 31. Ice-making pipe section; 32. Extension pipe section; 4. Rotating operating part; 5. Press plate; α, angle.

[0023] The realization of the objectives, functional features and advantages of this application will be further explained in conjunction with embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] The following will clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention. In addition, it should be understood that the specific implementation methods described herein are only used to illustrate and explain the present invention, and are not used to limit the present invention. In the present invention, unless otherwise specified, the directional words used, such as "upper" and "lower", generally refer to the upper and lower parts of the device in actual use or working state, specifically the drawing direction in the accompanying drawings; while "inside" and "outside" refer to the outline of the device.

[0025] The present invention provides an ice-making structure to solve the problem of low ice-making efficiency.

[0026] In the embodiments of this application, Figure 1 As shown, the ice-making structure includes an ice box 1, an ice tray 2 and an evaporator 3. The ice tray 2 is located in the ice box 1; one end of the ice tray 2 is fixedly connected to the inner wall of the ice box 1, and the other end of the ice tray 2 can be rotated to twist and deform the ice tray 2 to squeeze the ice cubes out of the ice tray 2. At least part of the evaporator 3 is located in the ice tray 2.

[0027] It is understood that ice tray 2 is made of a flexible material, such as rubber; thus, when one end of ice tray 2 is rotated, the other end remains fixed. This asynchronous motion creates an angular displacement difference between the two ends of ice tray 2, causing ice tray 2 to deform, squeezing ice cubes out of it and achieving ice production. The produced ice cubes fall directly into ice box 1. Based on this, at least a portion of evaporator 3 is disposed within ice tray 2, allowing the water in ice tray 2 to directly contact the surface of evaporator 3, making it easier for ice cubes to form. At least a portion of evaporator 3 is located outside ice tray 2 to avoid interference with the deformed ice tray 2. By increasing both the ice production speed and the ice cube formation speed, ice-making efficiency is comprehensively improved.

[0028] In some embodiments, as Figure 2As shown, the evaporator 3 includes an ice-making pipe section 31 and an extension pipe section 32 connected to both ends of the ice-making pipe section 31. The ice-making pipe section 31 is arranged in the ice tray 2 along the rotation axis direction of the ice tray 2, and the extension pipe section 32 extends out of the ice tray 2.

[0029] It should be noted that the ice-making pipe section 31 is arranged within the ice tray 2 along the rotation axis of the ice tray 2, which means that the ice tray 2 rotates around the ice-making pipe section 31, preventing the ice-making pipe section 31 from interfering with the deformation of the ice tray 2. The extended pipe sections 32 connected to both ends of the ice-making pipe section 31 may be pipes for allowing refrigerant to flow into or out of the ice-making pipe section 31. Based on this, the direction in which the extended pipe section 32 extends from the ice tray 2 facilitates the design of the rotation direction of the ice-making pipe section 31 to avoid the extended pipe section 32.

[0030] In some embodiments, as Figure 2 As shown, there are multiple ice trays 2 , and the evaporator 3 includes multiple ice-making pipe sections 31 and multiple extension pipe sections 32 . Each ice tray 2 is equipped with an ice-making pipe section 31 , and the extension pipe section 32 connects two adjacent ice-making pipe sections 31 .

[0031] It is understandable that the extended pipe section 32 is used to achieve the communication between the ice-making pipe sections 31 corresponding to different ice trays 2 .

[0032] For example, when two ice trays 2 are provided, one extension pipe segment 32 provided in each ice tray 2 serves as the refrigerant inlet and outlet, respectively, and the other extension pipe segments 32 provided in each ice tray 2 are interconnected. The ice-making pipe segments 31 and the extension pipe segments 32 corresponding to different ice trays 2 are symmetrically arranged.

[0033] In some embodiments, as Figure 5 As shown, when the ice-making structure is in the ice-making state, the ice tray 2 is opened upward, and the extension tube section 32 extends obliquely upward to the area above the ice tray 2. An angle α is formed between the extension tube section 32 and the horizontal plane, and α is greater than 0 degrees and less than or equal to 90 degrees. Preferably, the angle α is 20-30 degrees.

[0034] It should be noted that when the ice-making structure is in the ice-making state, the ice tray 2 should be in a horizontal position and the opening of the ice tray 2 should face upward. Then, by setting the angle α between the extension tube segment 32 and the horizontal plane, the extension tube segment 32 can be extended obliquely upward from the opening side of the ice tray 2 to the outside of the ice tray 2. On the one hand, interference between the extension tube segment 32 and the ice tray 2 is avoided, so that the ice tray 2 has a larger rotation angle, thereby generating a larger deformation amount. On the other hand, the extension tube segment 32 does not need to pass through the side wall of the ice tray 2, so there is no need to set a sealing structure between the extension tube segment 32 and the side wall of the ice tray 2, which can achieve structural simplification.

[0035] In some embodiments, as Figure 2 and Figure 3As shown, the ice tray 2 includes an ice-making area 21 and non-ice-making areas 22 located at both ends of the ice-making area 21. The ice-making pipe section 31 is arranged in the ice-making area 21, and the extended pipe section 32 is arranged in the non-ice-making area 22. The bottom of the ice-making area 21 is lower than the bottom of the non-ice-making area 22.

[0036] It should be noted that the non-ice-making zone 22 does not mean that ice cubes will not form in this area. It just means that the ice forming speed and amount need to be reduced compared to the ice-making zone 21. The ice-making zone 21 is equipped with multiple ice-making cells, each of which is used to form a single ice cube. The multiple ice-making cells are arranged in sequence along the ice-making pipe section 31.

[0037] It is understandable that since only one end of the ice-making pipe section 31 is located in the non-ice-making area 22, the ice-making speed is slower than that of the ice-making area 21; and the bottom of the ice-making area 21 is lower than the bottom of the non-ice-making area 22, so that the volume of ice cubes in the non-ice-making area 22 is smaller, thereby reducing the resistance between the ice cubes and the evaporator 3, as well as the resistance between the ice cubes and the ice tray 2 when the ice tray 2 is rotated.

[0038] In some embodiments, as Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, a first main shaft 23 and a first secondary shaft 24 are provided at one end of the ice tray 2 in parallel and spaced apart from each other. The ice tray 2 can be twisted and deformed around the first main shaft 23 to squeeze out the ice cubes. A rotating operating part 4 is provided on the ice box 1, and the rotating operating part 4 is connected to the first main shaft 23 and the first secondary shaft 24, and is used to drive the ice tray 2 to twist and deform around the first main shaft 23.

[0039] It can be understood that the rotating operating part 4 is fixedly connected to the first main shaft 23 and the first secondary shaft 24. When the ice tray 2 rotates around the first main shaft 23, the first secondary shaft 24 also rotates around the first main shaft 23. The torsional force is increased by the first secondary shaft 24 located in the radial direction of the first main shaft 23, thereby promoting the ice tray 2 to separate from the ice tray 2.

[0040] In some embodiments, as Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the ice tray 2 is fixedly connected to one end of the ice box 1 and is provided with a second main shaft 25 and a second secondary shaft 26 spaced parallel to each other. The second main shaft 25 and the second secondary shaft 26 are both fixedly connected to the inner surface of the ice box 1; the second main shaft 25, the first main shaft 23, the rotating operating part 4 and the ice making pipe section 31 are coaxially arranged, and the first secondary shaft 24 and the second secondary shaft 26 are located on opposite sides of the first main shaft 23.

[0041] It can be understood that the second secondary shaft 26 can effectively reduce the deformation stress generated at the other end of the ice tray 2 due to deformation at one end, thereby increasing the angular displacement difference between the two ends of the ice tray 2 and ensuring effective deformation. Simultaneously, at least the portion of the ice tray 2 on the side of the second primary shaft 25 facing away from the second secondary shaft 26 deforms in conjunction with the rotation of the ice tray 2. This is equivalent to causing a small folding of the ice tray 2 in a direction perpendicular to the rotation of the ice tray 2, facilitating ice dispensing. Furthermore, the second primary shaft 25, the first primary shaft 23, the rotating operating unit 4, and the ice-making pipe section 31 are all aligned, preventing interference between the ice tray 2 and the evaporator 3 during rotation. This facilitates smooth rotation of the ice tray 2 and the release of ice cubes.

[0042] In some embodiments, as Figure 2 As shown, the ice tray 2 is fixedly connected to one end of the ice box 1 and is provided with a return spring 27. The two ends of the return spring 27 are respectively connected to the ice tray 2 and the ice box 1. The elastic restoring force of the return spring 27 is opposite to the rotation direction of the ice tray 2.

[0043] It is understood that when the return spring 27 drives the ice tray 2 to rotate and return to its original position, the elastic restoring force of the return spring 27 is zero, thereby preventing deformation of the ice tray 2. When the ice tray 2 is rotated, the return spring 27 stores kinetic energy through deformation. When the external force rotating the ice tray 2 is removed, the kinetic energy of the return spring 27 is released, and the elastic restoring force returns the ice tray 2 to its original ice-making position. For example, the return spring 27 can be a tension spring, a compression spring, or a torsion spring. In this embodiment, a torsion spring is mounted on the second main shaft 25, one end of which is connected to the second secondary shaft 26, and the other end of which is connected to the ice tray 2. It is understood that due to the difference in deformation at the two ends of the ice tray 2, placing the torsion spring at the end with less deformation allows the ice tray 2 to be fully reset through its smaller torsional force, while avoiding the excessive restoring force that would otherwise affect other components of the ice tray 2 if the torsion spring were placed at the end with greater deformation.

[0044] In some embodiments, a limit block is provided on the inner surface of the ice box 1 , and the limit block is located in the rotation direction of the ice tray 2 to limit the rotation angle of the ice tray 2 .

[0045] It is understood that the limit block prevents the ice tray 2 from twisting further. For example, along the rotation direction of the ice tray 2, the limit block can be set before the ice tray 2 contacts the extension tube section 32 to prevent the ice tray 2 from rotating too much and damaging the extension tube section 32.

[0046] In some embodiments, as Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, a limiting clamp 11 is provided on the inner surface of the ice box 1 , which clamps the portion of the extension tube section 32 outside the ice tray 2 , and the bayonet of the limiting clamp 11 is fixedly connected to one end of the ice box 1 facing the ice tray 2 .

[0047] It is understandable that the limiting clip 11 limits the evaporator 3 so that when the ice tray 2 rotates, the rotational friction between the ice cubes and the evaporator 3 will not cause the evaporator 3 to move.

[0048] In some embodiments, as Figure 3 As shown, when the ice tray 2 is in a horizontal position, the upper side of the ice-making pipe section 31 is lower than the upper end opening of the ice tray 2. In this way, the ice-making pipe section 31 can be completely immersed in the water in the ice tray 2, improving ice making efficiency.

[0049] In some embodiments, as Figure 1 and Figure 4 As shown, the ice-making structure further includes a pressing plate 5 detachably connected to the ice box 1 to press the extended tube section 32 fixedly connected to one end of the ice box 1 near the ice tray 2 .

[0050] In some embodiments, a heat preservation and evaporation device is provided in the ice box 1 to prevent the ice cubes in the ice box 1 from melting.

[0051] An embodiment of the present application also provides an ice maker, which includes the above-mentioned ice-making structure. The specific structure of the ice-making structure refers to the above-mentioned embodiment. Since this ice maker adopts all the technical solutions of all the above-mentioned embodiments, it has at least all the beneficial effects brought by the technical solutions of the above-mentioned embodiments, which will not be repeated here one by one.

[0052] In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have their own emphasis. For parts not described in detail in a particular embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments. In the description of this application, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood to indicate or imply relative importance or implicitly specify the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, features defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more features.

[0053] The ice-making structure provided in the embodiment of the present application is introduced in detail above. Specific examples are used herein to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of the present application. The description of the above embodiments is only used to help understand the method and core idea of ​​the present application. At the same time, for those skilled in the art, according to the idea of ​​the present application, there may be changes in the specific implementation methods and application scope. In summary, the content of this specification should not be understood as limiting the present application.

Claims

1. An ice making structure, characterized in that: The invention comprises an ice box (1), an ice tray (2) and an evaporator (3), wherein the ice tray (2) is located in the ice box (1); one end of the ice tray (2) is fixedly connected to the inner wall of the ice box (1), and the other end of the ice tray (2) can be rotated to twist and deform the ice tray (2) so as to squeeze ice cubes out of the ice tray (2); at least a part of the evaporator (3) is located in the ice tray (2).

2. The ice making structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The evaporator (3) comprises an ice-making pipe section (31) and an extension pipe section (32) connected to both ends of the ice-making pipe section (31); the ice-making pipe section (31) is arranged in the ice tray (2) along the rotation axis direction of the ice tray (2); and the extension pipe section (32) extends out of the ice tray (2).

3. The ice making structure according to claim 2, characterized in that: The ice tray (2) is provided with a plurality of ice trays, and the evaporator (3) comprises a plurality of ice-making pipe sections (31) and a plurality of extension pipe sections (32). Each ice tray (2) is provided with an ice-making pipe section (31), and the extension pipe section (32) connects two adjacent ice-making pipe sections (31).

4. The ice making structure according to claim 2, characterized in that: When the ice-making structure is in an ice-making state, the ice tray (2) is opened upward, the extension tube section (32) extends obliquely upward to the upper area of ​​the ice tray (2), and an angle (α) is formed between the extension tube section (32) and a horizontal plane, and the angle (α) is greater than 0 degrees and less than or equal to 90 degrees.

5. The ice making structure according to claim 3, characterized in that: The ice tray (2) comprises an ice-making area (21) and non-ice-making areas (22) located at both ends of the ice-making area (21); the ice-making pipe section (31) is arranged through the ice-making area (21); the extension pipe section (32) is arranged through the non-ice-making area (22); and the bottom of the ice-making area (21) is lower than the bottom of the non-ice-making area (22).

6. The ice making structure according to claim 2, characterized in that: One end of the ice tray (2) is provided with a first main shaft (23) and a first secondary shaft (24) which are parallel and spaced apart from each other. The ice tray (2) can be twisted and deformed around the first main shaft (23) to squeeze out ice cubes. The ice box (1) is provided with a rotating operating part (4). The rotating operating part (4) is connected to the first main shaft (23) and the first secondary shaft (24) and is used to drive the ice tray (2) to twist and deform around the first main shaft (23).

7. The ice making structure according to claim 6, characterized in that: The ice tray (2) is fixedly connected to one end of the ice box (1) and is provided with a second main shaft (25) and a second secondary shaft (26) which are spaced apart in parallel. The second main shaft (25) and the second secondary shaft (26) are both fixedly connected to the inner surface of the ice box (1). The second main shaft (25), the first main shaft (23), the rotating operating part (4) and the ice making pipe section (31) are coaxially arranged. The first secondary shaft (24) and the second secondary shaft (26) are located on opposite sides of the first main shaft (23).

8. The ice making structure according to claim 7, characterized in that: The ice tray (2) is fixedly connected to one end of the ice box (1) and is provided with a return spring (27). The two ends of the return spring (27) are respectively connected to the ice tray (2) and the ice box (1). The elastic restoring force of the return spring (27) is opposite to the rotation direction of the ice tray (2).

9. The ice making structure according to claim 1, wherein: The inner surface of the ice box (1) is provided with a limit block, and the limit block is located in the rotation direction of the ice tray (2) to limit the rotation angle of the ice tray (2).

10. An ice maker, characterized in that: The ice-making structure comprises the ice-making structure according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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