An ice maker

Abstract

An ice maker comprises a frame, an ice making tray supported by the frame and configured to receive water for making ice, a driving part comprising a housing and an output shaft protruding forward from the housing along a length direction, the output shaft being coupled to the ice making tray to drive the ice making tray to rotate, wherein the driving part further comprises a first anti-disengagement part protruding upward from an upper surface of the housing and extending along the length direction, and a second anti-disengagement part protruding upward from the upper surface of the housing and extending along a width direction, the frame is provided with a first accommodating part extending along the length direction and a second accommodating part extending along the width direction, and the first anti-disengagement part and the second anti-disengagement part are respectively inserted into the first accommodating part and the second accommodating part.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to an ice maker, and more specifically, to an ice maker with higher reliability. Background Technology

[0002] Ice makers produce ice by cooling water in an ice-making tray, and then use a drive unit to rotate the tray to remove the ice. The drive unit's housing has protrusions, and the frame has corresponding protrusion fixing parts. Inserting the protrusions into the fixing parts mounts the drive unit onto the frame. However, in existing technology, during operation, the twisting and ice-removing process of the ice-making tray exerts a backward force on the drive unit, posing a risk of it detaching from the frame.

[0003] Therefore, it is hoped that an ice maker can be proposed to overcome the shortcomings of the existing technology. Utility Model Content

[0004] According to one aspect of the present invention, an ice maker is provided, comprising: a frame; an ice-making tray supported by the frame and configured to receive water for making ice; a drive unit including a housing and an output shaft, the output shaft extending forward from the housing along its length and connected to the ice-making tray to drive the ice-making tray to rotate; the drive unit further comprising a first anti-detachment portion and a second anti-detachment portion, the first anti-detachment portion protruding upward from the upper surface of the housing, the second anti-detachment portion protruding upward from the upper surface of the housing, the first anti-detachment portion being perpendicular to the second anti-detachment portion, the frame having a first receiving portion and a second receiving portion, the first anti-detachment portion and the second anti-detachment portion being respectively inserted into the first receiving portion and the second receiving portion.

[0005] In some designs, the first anti-detachment portion may extend along the length direction, the second anti-detachment portion may extend along the width direction, the first receiving portion extends along the length direction, and the second receiving portion extends along the width direction.

[0006] According to the scheme, the cooperation between the first anti-detachment part and the first receiving part restricts the movement of the driving part in the width direction, and the cooperation between the second anti-detachment part and the second receiving part restricts the movement of the driving part in the length direction, thereby making the fixation between the driving part and the frame more secure.

[0007] In some embodiments, the frame may include an elastic element, with a first receiving portion located on one side of the elastic element along the width direction. During the assembly of the drive portion into the frame, a first anti-detachment portion slides forward along the elastic element and pushes the elastic element upward.

[0008] In some embodiments, the first anti-detachment part may have a first abutting surface, which is perpendicular to the width direction, and the elastic element includes a first mating abutting surface, which is perpendicular to the width direction, and the first abutting surface abuts against the first mating abutting surface.

[0009] According to the scheme, the first abutting surface abuts against the first mating abutting surface, which restricts the movement of the drive part in the width direction, thereby making the fixation between the drive part and the frame more secure and reducing the noise generated by the shaking of the drive part.

[0010] In some designs, the first mating contact surface can be higher than the first contact surface.

[0011] According to this scheme, when disassembling the drive unit, the elastic element can be directly pushed through the first mating contact surface to cause the elastic element to deform upward, thereby separating the drive unit from the frame along the width direction, making the disassembly operation of the drive unit easier.

[0012] In some designs, the second anti-detachment part may have a second abutting surface perpendicular to the length direction, the frame is provided with a reinforcing rib extending along the width direction, the reinforcing rib has a second mating abutting surface perpendicular to the length direction, and the second abutting surface abuts against the second mating abutting surface.

[0013] According to the scheme, the second abutting surface abuts against the second mating abutting surface, restricting the movement of the drive unit along the length direction, thereby making the fixation between the drive unit and the frame more secure and preventing the drive unit from detaching from the frame during the operation of the ice maker.

[0014] In some designs, the first anti-loosening part can be located in front of the second anti-loosening part.

[0015] According to this design, during the assembly of the drive unit to the frame, the first anti-detachment part first contacts the elastic element of the frame and pushes the elastic element upward, creating a larger space to accommodate the forward movement of the drive unit, making it easier for the drive unit to move forward. After the drive unit has moved forward into place, the second anti-detachment part is inserted into the second receiving part, further strengthening the fixation between the drive unit and the frame.

[0016] In some designs, the first anti-loosening part can be spaced apart from the second anti-loosening part.

[0017] In some designs, the first anti-loosening part can intersect with the second anti-loosening part.

[0018] In some designs, the second anti-loosening part can be higher than the first anti-loosening part. For example, the first and second anti-loosening parts can together form a cross-shaped, L-shaped, or T-shaped structure.

[0019] In some designs, the height of the first anti-detachment part can be no less than 4mm.

[0020] In some designs, the ice maker may also include a mounting bracket located at the rear of the frame. The ice maker is mounted to the refrigerator via the mounting bracket. The rear end of the frame has an opening through which the frame is fixed to the mounting bracket. The mounting bracket has a stop block that engages with the opening and abuts against the housing.

[0021] According to the design, the stop block abuts against the housing of the drive unit, further preventing the drive unit from detaching from the frame during the operation of the ice maker.

[0022] In some designs, the drive unit may also include a tab that extends forward from the housing along its length, and the frame is provided with a tab fixing part into which the tab is inserted. Attached Figure Description

[0023] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0024] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A magnified view of a portion of the view;

[0025] Figure 3 Another schematic diagram of an ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0026] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a portion of an ice maker according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0027] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the drive unit according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0028] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the framework according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0029] Figure 7 Another schematic diagram of the framework according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0030] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the drive unit being assembled to the frame according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, wherein the drive unit has not yet been fully assembled.

[0031] Figure 9 A schematic diagram of the drive unit being assembled into the frame according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, wherein the drive unit has been assembled.

[0032] Figure Labels

[0033] 100 ice makers

[0034] 110 Frame

[0035] 111 Elastic component

[0036] 112 First Reception Section

[0037] 113 First mating contact surface

[0038] 114 Second Reception Section

[0039] 115 Second mating contact surface

[0040] 116 Reinforcing Ribs

[0041] 117. Protrusion fixing part

[0042] 118-1 First Limiting Part

[0043] 118-2 Second Limiting Part

[0044] 119 Opening

[0045] 120 ice tray

[0046] 130 Drive Unit

[0047] 131 Casing

[0048] 132 Output Shaft

[0049] 133 convex plate

[0050] 134 First Stop-Loss Section

[0051] 135 First contact surface

[0052] 136 Second Stop-Loss Section

[0053] 137 Second contact surface

[0054] 138 Ice Inspection Shaft

[0055] 140 Ice Detection Arm

[0056] 150 power cord

[0057] 160 Temperature Sensor

[0058] 170 water inlet tank

[0059] 180 mounting bracket

[0060] 182 stop blocks Detailed Implementation

[0061] To make the objectives, solutions, and advantages of this disclosure clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this disclosure will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Unless otherwise stated, the terms used herein have their ordinary meanings in the art. The same reference numerals in the drawings represent the same parts.

[0062] For clarity, unless otherwise explicitly stated, the directional terms used in this document are defined as follows: forward direction refers to the direction of travel of the drive unit as it is assembled into the frame; backward direction refers to the direction opposite to the forward direction; length direction refers to the front-to-back direction; width direction refers to the direction perpendicular to the length direction; both the length and width directions are parallel to the horizontal plane.

[0063] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an ice maker 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. The ice maker 100 mainly includes a frame 110, an ice-making tray 120, a drive unit 130, an ice-detecting arm 140, a power cord 150, a temperature sensor 160, and a water tank 170. The frame 110 forms a space to accommodate the various components of the ice maker 100 and provides support for them. The ice-making tray 120 is generally made of an elastically deformable resin material and receives water for making ice. Although... Figure 1 The diagram shows ten ice-making trays 120 arranged in two rows and five columns, but this invention is not intended to limit the arrangement or number of ice-making trays 120. The drive unit 130 is located at the rear end of the frame (i.e., Figure 1 (As shown on the left), the drive unit 130 is connected to the ice-making tray 120 to drive the ice-making tray 120 to rotate, thereby performing the de-icing operation. An ice-detecting arm 140 is configured to detect the amount of ice in the ice storage box (not shown), and the ice-detecting arm 140 is driven by the drive unit 130. A power cord 150 is electrically connected to the drive unit 130 to supply power to the drive unit 130. A temperature sensor 160 is fixed to the lower surface of the ice-making tray 120 to detect the temperature of the ice in the ice-making tray 120. A water inlet 170 is in fluid communication with the ice-making tray 120, thereby injecting water from the water inlet 170 into the ice-making tray 120.

[0064] The ice-making process of the ice maker 100 is described below. The drive unit 130 is connected to the power supply via the power cord 150. The drive unit 130 is connected to the ice detector shaft 138 (e.g., Figure 5 (As shown) The drive arm 140 moves to detect the amount of ice in the ice storage box. If the amount of ice in the ice storage box is insufficient, the controller (not shown) executes an ice-making operation. The ice-making operation is as follows: First, water is injected into the ice-making tray 120 via the water tank 170, and then the water in the ice-making tray 120 is cooled to freeze it. Next, the temperature sensor 160 detects the temperature of the ice in the ice-making tray 120. If the temperature of the ice in the ice-making tray 120 is detected to be below the set temperature, the controller executes a de-icing operation. The de-icing operation is as follows: The drive unit 130 moves via the output shaft 132 (as shown) Figure 5 (As shown) Drive the ice-making tray 120 to rotate, so that the ice-making tray 120 rotates from the state with the opening facing upward to the state with the opening facing downward, so that the ice cubes in the ice-making tray 120 fall into the ice storage box below.

[0065] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a portion of an ice maker 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. The drive unit 130 mainly includes a housing 131, an output shaft 132, a tab 133, a first anti-detachment portion 134, and a second anti-detachment portion 136. The output shaft 132 extends forward from the housing 131 to the ice-making tray 120, thereby driving the ice-making tray 120 to rotate to perform an ice removal operation. The tab 133 is arranged on the front edge of the upper surface of the housing 131, and the tab 133 protrudes forward from the housing 131. During the assembly of the drive unit 130 to the frame 110, the tab 133 is inserted into a corresponding tab fixing portion 117 on the frame 110 to secure the drive unit 130 to the frame 110. Although Figure 4 Two tabs 133 are shown arranged at the upper left and upper right corners of the drive section 130, but the present invention is not intended to limit the arrangement position and number of tabs 133.

[0066] To make the fixation between the drive unit 130 and the frame 110 more reliable, the drive unit 130 also includes a first anti-detachment portion 134. The first anti-detachment portion 134 has a generally elongated shape, protruding upward from the upper surface of the housing 131 and extending along its length. The first anti-detachment portion 134 has a first abutment surface 135, which is perpendicular to the width direction. In other words, the first abutment surface 135 is a vertical plane parallel to the length direction. Accordingly, as... Figure 6 As shown, the frame 110 is provided with a first receiving portion 112, which extends along the length direction. The frame 110 may include an elastic member 111, and the first receiving portion 112 is located on one side of the elastic member 111 along the width direction (e.g., as shown). Figure 1 (As shown on the lower side). During the assembly of the drive unit 130 to the frame 110, the first anti-detachment portion 134 slides forward along the elastic member 111 and pushes the elastic member 111 upward. After the drive unit 130 is assembled to the frame 110, as shown... Figure 2 As shown, the first abutting surface 135 of the first anti-detachment portion 134 abuts against the first mating abutting surface 113 of the elastic member 111, thereby constraining the movement of the driving portion 130 in the width direction. Preferably, the height of the first anti-detachment portion 134 can be not less than 4mm, so that the first mating abutting surface 113 can more reliably constrain the driving portion 130 in the width direction.

[0067] Furthermore, the drive unit 130 also includes a second anti-detachment portion 136 higher than the first anti-detachment portion 134, and the second anti-detachment portion 136 may be located behind the first anti-detachment portion 134. Optionally, the first anti-detachment portion 134 and the second anti-detachment portion 136 are spaced apart. Alternatively, the first anti-detachment portion 134 may intersect with the second anti-detachment portion 136. For example, the first anti-detachment portion 134 and the second anti-detachment portion 136 may together form a cross-shaped, L-shaped, or T-shaped structure. Accordingly, the first receiving portion 112 and the second receiving portion 114 may together form a cross-shaped, L-shaped, or T-shaped structure. The second anti-detachment portion 136 has a generally elongated shape, protruding upward from the upper surface of the housing 131 and extending along the width direction. The second anti-detachment portion 136 has a second abutment surface 137, which is perpendicular to the length direction. In other words, the second abutment surface 137 is a vertical plane parallel to the width direction. Accordingly, as Figure 6 As shown, the frame 110 is provided with a second receiving portion 114, which extends in the width direction. The frame 110 may include a reinforcing rib 116, which extends in the width direction and may be located behind the second receiving portion 114. After the drive unit 130 is assembled into the frame 110, as... Figure 2 As shown, the second abutting surface 137 of the second anti-detachment portion 136 abuts against the second mating abutting surface 115 of the reinforcing rib 116, thereby constraining the movement of the drive portion 130 along its length. It should be understood that the second abutting surface 137 and the second mating abutting surface 115 do not necessarily contact each other directly. Rather, when the drive portion 130 moves backward, the second mating abutting surface 115 can contact the second abutting surface 137, thereby preventing the drive portion 130 from continuing to move backward and detach from the frame 110. It should be particularly noted that during the operation of the ice maker 100, the ice tray 120 will generate a rearward reaction force on the drive portion 130. Therefore, the second mating abutting surface 115 of the reinforcing rib 116 constrains the rearward movement of the drive portion 130, thereby ensuring that the drive portion 130 will not detach backward from the frame 110 during the operation of the ice maker 100.

[0068] The following is combined with Figure 8 and Figure 9 The specific operation of assembling the drive unit 130 into the frame 110 is described in detail. Figure 9 It is along Figure 1 The cross-sectional view shown is taken by the broken line BB. Figure 8 Corresponding to Figure 9The assembly is incomplete. First, the drive unit 130 is placed into the drive unit receiving cavity of the frame 110. The first anti-detachment part 134 contacts the elastic member 111 and pushes the elastic member 111 upward, causing the elastic member 111 to elastically deform upward. Then, the first anti-detachment part 134 slides forward along the lower surface of the elastic member 111 until the second anti-detachment part 136 moves into the second receiving part 114. Next, the first anti-detachment part 134 slides along the lower surface of the elastic member 111 in the width direction (i.e., Figure 8 The drive unit 130 moves to the left (in the middle direction) until the first anti-detachment part 134 moves into the first receiving part 112. At this time, the tab 133 is inserted into the corresponding tab fixing part 117 to fix the drive unit 130 to the frame 110. The first abutting surface 135 of the first anti-detachment part 134 abuts against the first mating abutting surface 113 of the elastic member 111, thereby restraining the movement of the drive unit 130 in the width direction. The second abutting surface 137 of the second anti-detachment part 136 abuts against the second mating abutting surface 115 of the reinforcing rib 116, thereby restraining the movement of the drive unit 130 in the length direction. The movement of the drive unit 130 in both the width and length directions is restrained by the frame 110, which not only prevents the drive unit 130 from detaching from the frame 110, but also reduces the noise caused by the shaking of the drive unit 130.

[0069] Preferably, the first mating abutment surface 113 may be higher than the first abutment surface 135. In this way, when disassembling the drive unit 130, the elastic member 111 can be pushed by the first mating abutment surface 113 to deform the elastic member 111 upward, thereby separating the drive unit 130 from the frame 110 in the width direction, making the disassembly operation of the drive unit 130 easier.

[0070] Preferably, such as Figure 3 As shown, the ice maker 100 also includes a mounting bracket 180, which is a component for connecting the ice maker 100 and a refrigerator (not shown). The frame 110 has an opening 119 located on one side of the drive unit 130 on the frame 110. The frame 110 is fixed to the mounting bracket 180 through the opening 119. The mounting bracket 180 has a stop 182 that engages with the opening 119. The stop 182 directly abuts against the housing 131 of the drive unit 130, further preventing the drive unit 130 from disengaging from the frame 110 during operation of the ice maker 100.

[0071] In addition, such as Figure 7As shown, the frame 110 may also be provided with a first limiting part 118-1 and a second limiting part 118-2, which are located in front of and behind the drive part 130, respectively. During the assembly of the drive part 130 to the frame 110, the first limiting part 118-1 prevents the drive part 130 from moving excessively forward. After the drive part 130 is assembled to the frame 110, the second limiting part 118-2 prevents the drive part 130 from disengaging from the frame 110 backward.

[0072] This document describes in detail several exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to preferred embodiments. However, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and alterations can be made to the above specific embodiments without departing from the concept of the present disclosure, and various technical features and structures proposed in the present disclosure can be combined without exceeding the protection scope of the present disclosure, the protection scope of the present disclosure being determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An ice maker, characterized in that, include: frame; An ice-making tray, supported by the frame, is configured to receive water for making ice; The drive unit includes a housing and an output shaft, the output shaft extending forward from the housing along the length direction and being connected to the ice-making tray to drive the ice-making tray to rotate; The drive unit further includes a first anti-detachment part and a second anti-detachment part. The first anti-detachment part protrudes upward from the upper surface of the housing, and the second anti-detachment part protrudes upward from the upper surface of the housing. The first anti-detachment part and the second anti-detachment part are perpendicular to each other. The frame is provided with a first receiving part and a second receiving part. The first anti-detachment part and the second anti-detachment part are respectively inserted into the first receiving part and the second receiving part.

2. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first anti-detachment portion extends along the length direction, the second anti-detachment portion extends along the width direction, the first receiving portion extends along the length direction, and the second receiving portion extends along the width direction.

3. The ice maker according to claim 2, characterized in that, The frame includes an elastic element, and the first receiving portion is located on one side of the elastic element along the width direction. During the assembly of the driving portion to the frame, the first anti-detachment portion slides forward along the elastic element and pushes the elastic element upward.

4. The ice maker according to claim 3, characterized in that, The first anti-detachment part has a first abutting surface, which is perpendicular to the width direction. The elastic member includes a first mating abutting surface, which is perpendicular to the width direction, and the first abutting surface abuts against the first mating abutting surface.

5. The ice maker according to claim 4, characterized in that, The first mating contact surface is higher than the first contact surface.

6. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The second anti-detachment part has a second abutting surface, which is perpendicular to the length direction. The frame is provided with a reinforcing rib, which extends along the width direction. The reinforcing rib has a second mating abutting surface, which is perpendicular to the length direction. The second abutting surface abuts against the second mating abutting surface.

7. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first anti-loosening part is located in front of the second anti-loosening part.

8. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first anti-detachment part is spaced apart from the second anti-detachment part.

9. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first anti-loosening part intersects with the second anti-loosening part.

10. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The second anti-loosening part is higher than the first anti-loosening part.

11. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The height of the first anti-detachment part is not less than 4mm.

12. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes a mounting bracket located at the rear of the frame. The ice maker is mounted to the refrigerator via the mounting bracket. The rear end of the frame has an opening through which the frame is fixed to the mounting bracket. The mounting bracket has a stop block that engages with the opening and abuts against the housing.

13. The ice maker according to claim 1, characterized in that, The drive unit also includes a tab that extends forward from the housing along the length direction. The frame is provided with a tab fixing part, and the tab is inserted into the corresponding tab fixing part.

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