Ice machine

Abstract

To provide an ice machine which uses a combustible refrigerant as a refrigerant of a freezer which cools an ice-making part of the ice machine and prevents accumulation of the leaking combustible refrigerant when the combustible refrigerant leaks from a path in which the refrigerant of the freezer circulates.SOLUTION: An ice machine 10 performs control so as to conduct an ice making operation, in which ice making water fed by water supply means 23 is frozen by an ice-making part 21 cooled by a freezer 40 to make ice, as an ice-making mode to make ice to be stored in an ice storage chamber 14 when an ice storage detector 39 does not detect a state in which the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice. When the ice storage detector 39 detects the state in which the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice, the ice machine 10 performs control, as a stand-by mode, to prevent the ice making operation from being conducted and stands by without making ice to be stored in the ice storage chamber 14 and further performs control to operate a fan 42a of a condenser 42 in a state that a compressor 41 is not operated in the stand-by mode.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an ice maker that produces ice in an ice-making section cooled by a refrigeration device using a flammable refrigerant, and more particularly to an ice maker configured to wait for ice production in the ice-making section when the ice storage chamber is filled with ice.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an invention of an ice maker that produces ice in an ice-making section. This ice maker includes an ice-making section that freezes ice-making water to produce ice, a condenser that condenses a refrigerant circulated and supplied by a compressor by air blown by a fan, and an evaporator that cools the ice-making section by the latent heat of vaporization when the condensed refrigerant vaporizes, a water supply means that sends ice-making water to the ice-making section, an ice storage chamber that stores the ice produced in the ice-making section, and an ice storage detector that detects that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice.

[0003] In this ice maker, an ice-making operation in which ice-making water is sent out by the water supply means and frozen in the ice-making section cooled by the refrigeration device to produce ice, and a defrosting operation in which hot gas is sent from the refrigeration device to the ice-making section to detach the ice from the ice-making section are alternately executed. Thus, the ice produced in the ice-making section by the ice-making operation falls and is stored in the ice storage chamber by the defrosting operation. When the ice storage detector does not detect that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice, the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation are alternately executed as an ice-making mode to produce ice to be stored in the ice storage chamber. When the ice storage detector detects that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice, the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation are not executed as an ice storage mode (standby mode), and the ice maker waits without producing ice to be stored in the ice storage chamber.

[0004] Also, in this ice maker, when in the ice storage mode, it is controlled to execute a cold storage operation for suppressing the rise in the temperature inside the ice storage chamber. The cold storage operation cools the ice storage chamber through the ice making chamber in which the ice making unit is disposed by cooling the ice making unit with the refrigeration device. This ice maker is provided with a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the ice storage chamber or the ice making unit. In the cold storage operation, when the detected temperature of this temperature sensor reaches the upper limit temperature, the refrigeration device is operated, and when the detected temperature of the temperature sensor reaches the lower limit temperature, the operation of the refrigeration device is stopped.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] In the ice maker of Patent Document 1, when the ice making operation during the ice making mode is being executed, if the refrigerant leaks from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device circulates, each component constituting the ice making unit or the refrigeration device does not have temperature fluctuations as in the ice making operation. By detecting the temperature fluctuations of the ice making unit and the temperature fluctuations of the condenser, which is a component of the refrigeration device, it is possible to detect that the refrigerant has leaked from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device circulates. On the other hand, when the refrigerant leaks from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device circulates during the ice storage mode, since ice is not being produced in the ice making unit, the ice making unit and the condenser do not have temperature fluctuations as in the ice making operation, and it is impossible to detect that the refrigerant has leaked from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device circulates based on the temperature fluctuations of the ice making unit and the condenser. In particular, when the cold storage operation for cooling the ice storage chamber is not being executed during the ice storage mode, since the refrigeration device is not operating, the temperature fluctuations of the ice making unit and the condenser are small, and it is impossible to detect that the refrigerant has leaked from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device circulates based on the temperature fluctuations of the ice making unit and the condenser.

[0007] The refrigerant used in a refrigeration device may be a hydrocarbon-based flammable refrigerant instead of a non-flammable refrigerant using alternative Freon gas. If the flammable refrigerant leaks inside the housing of an ice maker, there is a risk that the leaked flammable refrigerant will stay inside the housing of the ice maker. When a gas sensor for detecting a leak of the flammable refrigerant is provided inside the housing of the ice maker, it becomes possible to detect a leak of the flammable refrigerant, but there is a problem that the cost of the ice maker is increased by providing the gas sensor. Further, when a gas sensor for detecting a leak of the flammable refrigerant is provided, there is a risk that the gas sensor will react to corrosive gases generated from food residues remaining in the kitchen where the ice maker is installed, and there is a risk of false detection that the flammable refrigerant has leaked due to the gas sensor. An object of the present invention is to prevent the leaked flammable refrigerant from staying when the flammable refrigerant leaks from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device for cooling the ice-making section of the ice maker circulates.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0008] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides an ice-making section for freezing ice-making water to produce ice, a condenser for condensing a flammable refrigerant circulated and supplied by a compressor by air blown by a fan, and cooling the ice-making section by the latent heat of vaporization when the condensed flammable refrigerant is vaporized in an evaporator, a water supply means for sending ice-making water to the ice-making section, a storage chamber for storing ice produced in the ice-making section, and an ice storage detector for detecting that the storage chamber is filled with ice. When the ice storage detector does not detect that the storage chamber is filled with ice, it controls to execute an ice-making operation of producing ice by freezing the ice-making water sent by the water supply means in the ice-making section cooled by the refrigeration device in an ice-making mode, and when the ice storage detector detects that the storage chamber is filled with ice, it controls not to execute the ice-making operation in a standby mode and waits without producing ice to be stored in the storage chamber. The present invention provides an ice maker characterized in that, during the standby mode, the fan of the condenser is controlled to operate in a state where the compressor is not operating.

[0009] In the ice maker configured as described above, during the standby mode, the fan of the condenser is controlled to operate while the compressor is not operating. Therefore, even if the combustible refrigerant of the refrigeration device leaks from the path through which the combustible refrigerant circulates during the standby mode, the leaked combustible refrigerant diffuses by the air convection generated by the operation of the fan of the condenser, and it is possible to prevent the leaked combustible refrigerant from staying.

[0010] In the ice maker configured as described above, when the ice storage detector detects that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice during the standby mode, it is preferable to control the fan of the condenser to operate while the compressor is not operating near the end of the standby mode. When this is done, even if the combustible refrigerant leaks during the standby mode, the leaked combustible refrigerant can be diffused before the compressor operates in the ice making mode. Further, since the fan of the condenser is operated near the end of the standby mode, the power consumption can be suppressed compared to when the fan of the condenser is continuously operated during the standby mode.

[0011] In the ice maker configured as described above, the refrigeration device includes a bypass path that sends the compressed combustible refrigerant supplied by the compressor to the evaporator without passing through the condenser, and a bypass valve that opens and closes the bypass path. When the ice storage detector detects that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice during the standby mode, it is preferable to control the bypass valve to be opened and the fan of the condenser to be operated while the compressor is not operating near the end of the standby mode. Even if the combustible refrigerant leaks during the standby mode, the leaked combustible refrigerant can be diffused before the compressor operates in the ice making mode. Also, by controlling the bypass valve to be opened while the compressor is not operating near the end of the standby mode, the pressure of the refrigerant in the path through which the combustible refrigerant circulates can be equalized, and the load at the start of the compressor when shifting to the ice making mode can be reduced.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0012]

Figure 1

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Figure 10

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Figure 15

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the ice maker of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The ice maker of the present invention is a so-called closed cell type ice maker that manufactures ice in an ice making unit 21 cooled by a refrigeration device 40 using a flammable refrigerant as a refrigerant circulating in a refrigeration circuit. When the ice storage chamber 14 for storing the ice manufactured in the ice making unit 21 is filled with ice, the ice making unit 21 waits for ice making. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the ice maker 10 includes an ice making chamber 12 and a machine room 13 at the upper part of a housing 11, and an ice storage chamber 14 at the lower part inside the housing 11. The ice storage chamber 14 is arranged below the ice making chamber 12, and the ice storage chamber 14 is connected to the ice making chamber 12 by an ice discharge port at the lower part of the ice making chamber 12. Further, an air intake port (not shown) for introducing outside air is formed at a position where the machine room 13 is arranged at the upper front part of the housing 11, and exhaust ports (not shown) for discharging the air in the machine room 13 are formed at positions where the machine room 13 is arranged at the upper right side surface and the upper rear surface of the housing 11.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 2, the ice maker 10 includes an ice making mechanism part 20 for making ice. The ice making mechanism part 20 includes an ice making part 21 for freezing ice making water to make ice, a refrigeration device 40 for cooling and heating the ice making part 21, and a water supply means 23 for sending ice making water to the ice making part 21. The ice making part 21 is arranged in the ice making chamber 12, and a plurality of ice making cells 22 opened downward are formed by providing a lattice-shaped partition member inside a shallow box shape with an open lower side. Ice making water is jetted and sent out from the lower side into the ice making cells 22, and block-shaped ice is formed by freezing the ice making water in the ice making cells 22.

[0015] As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a tubular evaporator 44 that constitutes a refrigeration device 40 is disposed on the upper surface of the ice-making unit 21, and the evaporator 44 has a meandering shape so as to be disposed above all the ice-making compartments 22. The refrigeration device 40 can cool or heat the ice-making unit 21 by a cooling operation and a heating operation, and is disposed in the machine room 13 except for the evaporator 44 disposed above the ice-making unit 21 in the ice-making chamber 12. As shown in FIG. 2, the refrigeration device 40 includes a compressor 41 that compresses a refrigerant, a condenser 42 that cools and liquefies the refrigerant pumped from the compressor 41 by blowing air by a fan 42a, an expansion valve 43 that expands the liquefied refrigerant liquefied by the condenser 42 into a low-pressure liquefied refrigerant, and an evaporator 44 that vaporizes the liquefied refrigerant expanded by the expansion valve 43 to cool the ice-making unit 21.

[0016] The refrigeration device 40 uses a hydrocarbon-based flammable refrigerant (flammable refrigerant) as a refrigerant for heat exchange, and a refrigeration circuit is configured in which the compressor 41, the condenser 42, the expansion valve 43, and the evaporator 44 are annularly connected by refrigerant pipes to form a path through which the refrigerant circulates. The condenser 42 is provided with a fan 42a for cooling the refrigerant, and the refrigerant passing through the condenser 42 is cooled by the blowing of outside air introduced from the intake port at the upper front of the housing 11 by the fan 42a. Further, the blowing of the fan 42a of the condenser 42 passes around the components of the refrigeration device 40 other than the evaporator 44 and is discharged from the exhaust ports at the upper right side and the upper rear surface of the housing 11. Therefore, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 has a function of discharging and diffusing the refrigerant leaked in the machine room 13 to the outside of the housing 11 without retaining it. The condenser 42 is provided with a condenser temperature sensor 42b, and the condenser temperature sensor 42b detects the temperature of the refrigerant passing through the condenser 42. When the cooling operation of the refrigeration device 40 is executed, the refrigerant pumped from the compressor 41 is cooled by the condenser 42 to become a liquefied refrigerant, the liquefied refrigerant becomes a low-pressure liquefied refrigerant by the expansion valve 43, and the low-pressure liquefied refrigerant cools the ice-making unit 21 by the heat of vaporization when evaporating in the evaporator 44.

[0017] Further, the refrigeration device 40 includes a bypass pipe (bypass path) 45 that supplies hot gas (vaporized compressed refrigerant) to the evaporator 44. The bypass pipe 45 connects the downstream of the compressor 41 and the upstream of the evaporator 44, and guides the hot gas from the compressor 41 to the evaporator 44 without passing through the condenser 42. A bypass valve 46 is installed in the bypass pipe 45, and the bypass valve 46 can open and close the bypass pipe 45. When the refrigeration device 40 is in heating operation, the hot gas sent out from the compressor 41 is guided to the evaporator 44 without passing through the condenser 42 by the opening of the bypass valve 46, and the hot gas heats the ice-making section 21 when passing through the evaporator 44. In this way, the ice-making section 21 is cooled by the refrigerant circulating during the cooling operation of the refrigeration device 40 evaporating in the evaporator 44, and is heated by the hot gas sent from the compressor 41 to the evaporator 44 during the heating operation of the refrigeration device 40.

[0018] As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, water supply means 23 for sending out ice-making water is provided below the ice-making section 21. The water supply means 23 includes a water tray 24 that closes the lower side of the ice-making chamber 22 of the ice-making section 21 in an openable and closable manner, a tank 25 that stores the ice-making water below the water tray 24, and a pump 26 that sends the ice-making water in the tank 25 to the ice-making section 21. The water tray 24 is pivotally supported (tiltable) about a horizontal axis between a closed position (shown in FIGS. 2 and 3) that closes the lower side of the ice-making chamber 22 and an open position (shown in FIG. 4) that opens the lower side of the ice-making chamber 22. An opening and closing mechanism 27 is provided on the water tray 24, and the water tray 24 tilts between the closed position and the open position by the drive of the actuator motor 27a of the opening and closing mechanism 27 to open and close the lower side of the ice-making chamber 22. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, an ice-making water passage 24a for sending the ice-making water sent out from the tank 25 to each ice-making chamber 22 is formed in the water tray 24, and injection holes 24b for injecting the ice-making water from the ice-making water passage 24a into each ice-making chamber 22 are formed on the upper surface of the water tray 24.

[0019] As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a tank 25 capable of storing ice-making water is integrally provided below the water tray 24, and the tank 25 can be tilted together with the tilting water tray 24. A pump 26 is connected to the bottom of the tank 25, and the discharge port of the pump 26 is connected to the ice-making water passage 24a of the water tray 24 via a water supply pipe 26a. The ice-making water in the tank 25 is sent to the ice-making water passage 24a by the operation of the pump 26, and is jetted from the ice-making water passage 24a through the jet holes 24b into each ice-making chamber 22.

[0020] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a drain port 25a is formed at the bottom of the tank 25, and a drain pipe 28 is connected to the drain port 25a. A drain valve 29 is installed in the drain pipe 28, and the water in the tank 25 is discharged to the upper side of the drain pan 34 by opening the drain valve 29. An overflow port 25b is formed at the upper part of the tank 25, and an overflow pipe 30 is connected to the overflow port 25b. The overflow port 25b drains the water exceeding the upper limit water level of the tank 25 through the overflow pipe 30 when the water tray 24 is in the closed position, and the water in the tank 25 is discharged from the overflow pipe 30 when the water tray 24 is tilted to the open position.

[0021] The tank 25 is provided with a water supply means 31 for supplying water from a water supply source such as a water supply. The water supply means 31 includes a water supply pipe 32 for supplying water from a water supply source such as a water supply, and a water supply valve 33 installed in the water supply pipe 32. The water from a water supply source such as a water supply is supplied to the water supply pipe 32 with the water supply pressure from the water supply applied, and is supplied to the tank 25 through the water supply pipe 32 by opening the water supply valve 33. A drain pan 34 is provided below the tank 25, and the drain pan 34 receives a part of the ice-making water remaining in the tank 25 after the ice-making operation from the drain port of the overflow pipe 30. Further, the drain pan 34 functions as a partition member for partitioning the ice-making chamber 12 and the ice storage chamber 14. A drain pipe 35 is connected to the drain pan 34, and the ice-making water received by the drain pan 34 is discharged to the outside of the housing 11 through the drain pipe 35.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 2, an ice-making unit temperature sensor 36 is provided in the ice-making unit 21. The ice-making unit temperature sensor 36 can detect the completion of ice-making in the ice-making operation and the completion of de-icing in the de-icing operation described later by detecting the temperature of the ice-making unit 21. An ice-making chamber temperature sensor 37 is provided in the ice-making chamber 12, and the ice-making chamber temperature sensor 37 detects the temperature of the ice-making chamber 12. The ice-making chamber 12 is connected to the ice storage chamber 14 by an ice discharge port at the lower part, and since the temperature of the ice-making chamber 12 has a correlation approximately equal to the temperature of the ice storage chamber 14, the ice-making chamber temperature sensor 37 can detect the temperature inside the ice storage chamber 14 by detecting the temperature of the ice-making chamber 12. A machine room temperature sensor 38 is provided in the machine room 13, and the machine room temperature sensor 38 detects the temperature inside the machine room 13. An air intake port and an exhaust port are formed at the position where the machine room 13 of the housing 11 is arranged, and since the temperature inside the machine room 13 has a correlation approximately equal to the temperature outside the housing 11 (outside air temperature), the machine room temperature sensor 38 can detect the temperature outside the housing 11 (outside air temperature) by detecting the temperature inside the machine room 13. An ice storage detector 39 for detecting that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice is provided in the ice storage chamber 14, and it is possible to detect that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice when an on signal output from the ice storage detector 39 due to the ice accumulated in the upper part of the ice storage chamber 14 continues for a certain period of time.

[0023] As shown in FIG. 5, the ice maker 10 includes a control device 50, and this control device 50 is connected to a pump 26, an actuator motor 27a of an opening / closing mechanism 27, a drain valve 29, a water supply valve 33, an ice-making unit temperature sensor 36, an ice-making chamber temperature sensor 37, a machine room temperature sensor 38, an ice storage detector 39, a compressor 41, a fan 42a, a condenser temperature sensor 42b, a bypass valve 46, and an operation panel 51 provided on the front panel of the housing 11. The control device 50 has a microcomputer (not shown), and the microcomputer includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and a timer (all not shown) connected via a bus.

[0024] The control device 50 has an ice-making program that alternately repeats an ice-making operation of freezing ice-making water in the ice-making unit 21 to produce ice and a defrosting operation of removing the ice frozen in the ice-making unit 21 by the ice-making operation. When the ice storage detector 39 does not detect that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice, the control device 50 executes an ice-making program that alternately repeats the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation as an ice-making mode to produce ice to be stored in the ice storage chamber 14. Further, when the ice storage detector 39 detects that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice, the control device 50 waits without executing the ice-making program that repeats the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation as a standby mode. Further, during this standby mode, the control device 50 controls the operation of the refrigeration device 40 based on the detected temperature of the ice-making chamber temperature sensor 37 to cool the ice-making unit 21, and controls to execute a cold storage operation of cooling the inside of the ice storage chamber 14 with the cold air flowing down from the ice-making chamber 12 by cooling the ice-making unit 21.

[0025] In the ice maker 10 of this embodiment, a hydrocarbon-based flammable refrigerant (flammable refrigerant) is used as the refrigerant for the refrigeration device 40. If the flammable refrigerant leaks in the machine room 13 of the housing 11 of the ice maker 10, there is a risk that the leaked flammable refrigerant will accumulate in the machine room 13. When the ice-making operation in the ice-making mode described above is being performed, if the refrigerant leaks from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates, the ice-making unit 21 and the condenser 42 constituting the refrigeration device 40 do not change in temperature during the ice-making operation. By detecting the temperature change of the ice-making unit 21 and the condenser 42, it is possible to detect that the refrigerant has leaked from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates. On the other hand, when the refrigerant leaks from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates during the standby mode, since ice is not being produced in the ice-making unit 21, the ice-making unit 21 and the condenser 42 do not change in temperature as they do during the ice-making operation, and it is not possible to detect that the refrigerant has leaked from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates based on the temperature change of the ice-making unit 21 and the condenser 42. In particular, when the cold storage operation for cooling the inside of the ice storage chamber 14 is not being performed during the standby mode, since the refrigeration device 40 is not operating, the temperature change of the ice-making unit 21 and the condenser 42 is small, and it is not possible to detect that the refrigerant has leaked from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates based on the temperature change of the ice-making unit 21 and the condenser 42. Therefore, in order to prevent the refrigerant leaking from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates during the standby mode from accumulating in the machine room 13, the control device 50 controls the fan 42a of the condenser 42 to operate in a state where the compressor 41 of the refrigeration device 40 is not operating, regardless of whether the cold storage operation is performed during the standby mode.

[0026] Next, the ice-making program executed during the ice-making mode will be described. When the control device 50 executes the ice-making program during the ice-making mode, the ice-making unit 21 alternately repeats the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation. Also, at the start of the execution of the ice-making program or when shifting from the standby mode to the ice-making mode, it is controlled to execute the defrosting operation first and then the ice-making operation. By operating the compressor 41 and opening the bypass valve 46, hot gas is sent into the evaporator 44 so that no ice remains in the ice-making unit 21.

[0027] When the ice-making operation is executed after the defrosting operation that is executed after shifting to the ice-making mode is completed, when the control device 50 cools the refrigeration device 40, the refrigerant pumped from the compressor 41 is liquefied by the condenser 42 to become a liquefied refrigerant. The liquefied refrigerant expands by the expansion valve 43 to become a low-pressure liquefied refrigerant. The low-pressure liquefied refrigerant vaporizes in the evaporator 44 and then returns to the compressor 41, and the ice-making unit 21 is cooled by the vaporization of the liquefied refrigerant in the evaporator 44. Further, the control device 50 opens the water supply valve 33 for a predetermined time according to the capacity of the tank 25 in a state where the water tray 24 is tilted to the closed position by the actuator motor 27a of the opening / closing mechanism 27, so that an amount of ice-making water necessary for forming ice in the ice-making unit 21 is stored in the tank 25.

[0028] When the control device 50 operates the pump 26 in a state where the refrigeration device 40 is being cooled, the ice-making water in the tank 25 is jetted and sent out to each ice-making chamber 22 of the ice-making unit 21 by the operation of the pump 26. The jetted and sent ice-making water is cooled in each ice-making chamber 22 and then returns to the tank 25 again. The ice-making water is cooled in the process of circulating between the tank 25 and each ice-making chamber 22 and gradually freezes in each ice-making chamber 22. When the ice-making water in the tank 25 decreases and the ice-making water freezes in each ice-making chamber 22 to form block-shaped ice, and the detected temperature by the ice-making unit temperature sensor 36 becomes equal to or lower than the ice-making completion temperature, the control device 50 ends the ice-making operation and starts the defrosting operation.

[0029] In the defrosting operation after the ice-making operation, the control device 50 operates the compressor 41 and opens the bypass valve 46 to heat the refrigeration device 40, and tilts the water tray 24 to the open position by the actuator motor 27a of the opening / closing mechanism 27. When the refrigeration device 40 is heated, the hot gas sent out from the compressor 41 is guided to the evaporator 44 through the bypass pipe 45 to heat each ice-making chamber 22 of the ice-making section 21. The temperature of the ice-making section 21 gradually rises due to the hot gas introduced into the evaporator 44, and the ice frozen in each ice-making chamber 22 detaches, slides down the water tray 24, and drops into the ice storage chamber 14. As the ice detaches, the temperature of the ice-making section 21 gradually rises. When the detected temperature of the ice-making section temperature sensor 36 becomes equal to or higher than the defrosting completion temperature at which it is detected that defrosting is completed, the control device 50 detects that there is no ice remaining in the ice-making chamber 22 of the ice-making section 21, that is, defrosting is completed, closes the bypass valve 46, and ends the defrosting operation. If the control device 50 does not detect that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice by the ice storage detector 39, it causes the ice-making program that alternately executes the above-described ice-making operation and defrosting operation to be executed again. In this way, the control device 50 controls to execute the ice-making program that alternately repeats the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation in the ice-making mode until it detects that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice when the on-signal output from the ice storage detector 39 continues for a certain period of time.

[0030] When controlling to execute the ice-making program that alternately repeats the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation, the ice storage chamber 14 will be filled with the ice produced in the ice-making section 21. As shown in FIG. 6, when it is detected that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice when the on-signal output from the ice storage detector 39 continues for a certain period of time, the control device 50 ends the ice-making mode and shifts to the standby mode, and controls to standby without executing the ice-making program that alternately repeats the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation.

[0031] As shown in FIG. 6, even when the compressor 41 is not operating during the standby mode, the control device 50 controls the fan 42a of the condenser 42 to operate. By controlling the fan 42a of the condenser 42 to operate during the standby mode, outside air flows in through the intake port of the housing 11, and the air in the machine room 13 is discharged to the outside of the housing 11 from the exhaust port. As a result, even if the refrigerant leaks from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates, the leaked refrigerant is discharged to the outside of the housing 11 from the exhaust port by the air convection generated by the operation of the fan 42a and diffused, and does not stay in the machine room 13.

[0032] Further, the control device 50 enables the cold storage operation for cooling the inside of the ice-making chamber 12 during the standby mode. When the cold storage operation is executed, the inside of the ice-making chamber 12 is cooled by the ice-making part 21 cooled by the cooling operation (operation) of the refrigeration device 40. As shown in FIG. 7, when the cold storage operation is executed, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operating, and further, the compressor 41 starts to operate. The refrigerant pumped from the compressor 41 is cooled by the condenser 42 cooled by the air blown by the fan 42a and becomes a liquefied refrigerant, which is supplied to the evaporator 44. The ice-making part 21 is cooled by the evaporation of the liquefied refrigerant in the evaporator 44. The ice-making chamber 12 is cooled by the ice-making part 21 cooled by the cooling operation of the refrigeration device 40, and the ice storage chamber 14 is cooled by the cold air flowing down from the ice-making chamber 12.

[0033] When the user uses the ice in the ice storage chamber 14 and the ice in the ice storage chamber 14 decreases, and the off signal output from the ice storage detector 39 continues for a certain period of time without detecting that the ice storage chamber 14 is full of ice, the control device 50 stops the operation of the fan 42a of the condenser 42, opens the bypass valve 46, opens the water supply valve 33, and further, after a certain period of time elapses, shifts to the ice-making mode, operates the compressor 41, and starts the defrosting operation. After the defrosting operation is executed after shifting from the standby mode to the ice-making mode, as described above, the ice-making operation and the defrosting operation are repeatedly executed until the ice storage detector 39 detects that the ice storage chamber 14 is full of ice.

[0034] The ice maker 10 configured as described above includes an ice-making unit 21 that freezes ice-making water to produce ice, a condenser 42 that condenses the refrigerant circulated and supplied by a compressor 41 by air blown by a fan 42a, a refrigeration device that cools the ice-making unit 21 by the heat of vaporization when the condensed refrigerant is vaporized in an evaporator 44, a water supply means 23 that sends ice-making water to the ice-making unit, an ice storage chamber 14 that stores the ice produced in the ice-making unit 21, and an ice storage detector 39 that detects that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice.

[0035] In this ice maker 10, when the ice storage detector 39 does not detect that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice, a control is performed to execute an ice-making operation of freezing the ice-making water sent by the water supply means 23 in the ice-making unit 21 cooled by the refrigeration device 40 as an ice-making mode to produce ice to be stored in the ice storage chamber 14. When the ice storage detector 39 detects that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice, a control is performed not to execute the ice-making operation as a standby mode, and it waits without producing ice to be stored in the ice storage chamber 14.

[0036] In this ice maker 10, when the cold storage operation is being executed during the standby mode, the compressor 41 operates and the fan 42a of the condenser 42 also operates. However, even when the cold storage operation is not being executed during the standby mode, a control is performed to operate the fan 42a of the condenser 42 in a state where the compressor 41 is not operating. Even if the refrigerant leaks from the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates during the standby mode, the leaked refrigerant is discharged to the outside of the housing 11 from the exhaust port and diffused by the air convection generated by the operation of the fan 42a of the condenser 42, and it is possible to prevent the leaked refrigerant from staying in the machine room 13. In FIGS. 6 and 7, an embodiment is shown in which the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is continuously controlled to operate in a state where the compressor 41 is not operating during the standby mode. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and as exemplified in the following embodiments, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 may be operated at an appropriate timing in a state where the compressor 41 is not operating during the standby mode.

[0037] Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described in which the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to operate while the compressor 41 is not operating during the standby mode. In the above embodiment, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to continuously operate while the compressor 41 is not operating during the standby mode. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to intermittently operate while the compressor 41 is not operating during the standby mode. During the control to intermittently operate the fan 42a of the condenser 42 during the standby mode, after the ice storage detector 39 stops detecting that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice, the operation of the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is stopped, and as described above, the bypass valve 46 is opened, the water supply valve 33 is opened, and then the operation mode is shifted to the ice making mode to start the defrosting operation by operating the compressor 41.

[0038] Even if there is a possibility that the refrigerant gradually leaks from the refrigerant circulation path during the standby mode, mainly from the connection part of the pipe, by controlling the fan 42a of the condenser 42 to intermittently operate, it is possible to prevent the leaked refrigerant from staying in the machine room 13. Further, since the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to intermittently operate, the power consumption can be reduced as compared with the case where the fan 42a of the condenser 42 continuously operates.

[0039] Also, immediately after shifting to the standby mode, the pressure in the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigerating apparatus 40 circulates is high, and the refrigerant is likely to leak from the path through which the refrigerant circulates. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, when the ice storage detector 39 detects that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice and shifts to the standby mode, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to continuously operate until a predetermined time has elapsed after the shift to the standby mode, and after a predetermined time has elapsed after the shift to the standby mode, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to intermittently operate. Thereby, when the temperature of the refrigerant of the refrigerating apparatus 40 is high, the refrigerant is cooled by the fan 42a of the continuously operating condenser 42, and the temperature and pressure decrease, making it difficult for the refrigerant to leak. Further, after the possibility of the refrigerant of the refrigerating apparatus 40 leaking due to being cooled by the fan 42a of the condenser 42 and having its temperature lowered has decreased, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to intermittently operate, so that while preventing the leaked refrigerant from staying in the machine room 13, the power consumption can be reduced compared to when the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is continuously operated during the standby mode.

[0040] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 10, after shifting to the standby mode, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operated for a predetermined time in a state where the compressor 41 is not operating, and the operation of the fan 42a is stopped after a lapse of a predetermined time after shifting to the standby mode. Immediately after shifting to the standby mode, the pressure in the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigerating apparatus 40 circulates is high, and the refrigerant is likely to leak from the path through which the refrigerant circulates. Control is performed so that the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is continuously operated until a predetermined time elapses after shifting to the standby mode, and the operation of the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is stopped after a predetermined time elapses after shifting to the standby mode. Thereby, when the temperature of the refrigerant of the refrigerating apparatus 40 is high, the refrigerant is cooled by the fan 42a of the condenser 42 that continuously operates, and the temperature and pressure decrease, making it difficult to leak. Further, after the possibility of the refrigerant of the refrigerating apparatus 40 leaking due to being cooled by the fan 42a of the condenser 42 and having its temperature lowered has decreased, control is performed to stop the operation of the fan 42a of the condenser 42. Thus, while preventing the leaked refrigerant from staying in the machine room 13, the power consumption can be reduced compared to when the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is continuously operated during the standby mode.

[0041] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 11, after shifting to the standby mode, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operated while the compressor 41 is not operating, and the rotation speed of the fan 42a is reduced and controlled to operate in response to the decrease in the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b. Immediately after shifting to the standby mode, the pressure in the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 circulates is high, and the refrigerant is likely to leak from the path through which the refrigerant circulates. When the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant immediately after shifting to the standby mode are high, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is rotated at the maximum rotation speed (HIGH in FIG. 11) to quickly reduce the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant in the condenser 42. When the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant in the condenser 42 begin to decrease, the rotation speed of the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to be gradually decreased (MIDDLE and LOW in FIG. 11) in response to the decrease in the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b. Thereby, when the temperature of the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 is high, the refrigerant is cooled by the fan 42a of the condenser 42 operating at the maximum rotation speed, and the temperature and pressure are decreased, making it difficult to leak. Also, after the risk of the refrigerant of the refrigeration device 40 leaking due to being cooled by the fan 42a of the condenser 42 and the temperature becoming low is reduced, the rotation speed of the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to be decreased, so that while preventing the leaked refrigerant from staying in the machine room 13, the power consumption can be reduced compared to when the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is continuously operated during the standby mode. Note that the rotation speed of the fan 42a of the condenser 42 may be controlled to be gradually decreased (from HIGH to MIDDLE and LOW in FIG. 11) according to the elapsed time after shifting to the standby operation.

[0042] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 12, control is performed such that the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operated in a state where the compressor 41 is not operating near the end of the standby mode. The refrigerant leaking from the path through which the refrigerant circulates during the standby mode is discharged to the outside of the housing 11 from the exhaust port by the air convection generated by the operation of the fan 42a that operates near the end of the standby mode and diffuses, so that the leaked refrigerant can be diffused before the operation of the compressor 41 in the ice-making mode. Further, since the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is temporarily operated near the end of the standby mode, the power consumption can be suppressed as compared with the case where the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is continuously operated during the standby mode.

[0043] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 13, control is performed such that the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operated and the bypass valve 46 is opened in a state where the compressor 41 is not operating near the end of the standby mode. The refrigerant leaking from the path through which the refrigerant circulates during the standby mode is discharged to the outside of the housing 11 from the exhaust port by the air convection generated by the operation of the fan 42a that operates near the end of the standby mode and diffuses, so that the leaked refrigerant can be diffused before the operation of the compressor 41 in the ice-making mode. Further, control is performed such that the bypass valve 46 is opened in a state where the fan 42a is operated for a time that can equalize the pressure of the refrigerant in the path through which the refrigerant circulates in a state where the compressor 41 is not operating near the end of the standby mode. Then, after stopping the operation of the fan 42a, the ice-making mode is entered and the compressor 41 is operated. Thereby, the load at the start of the compressor 41 can be reduced when shifting to the ice-making mode. Further, since the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is temporarily operated near the end of the standby mode, the power consumption can be suppressed as compared with the case where the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is continuously operated during the standby mode.

[0044] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 14, after shifting to the standby mode, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operated in a state where the compressor 41 is not operating, and when the temperature difference obtained by subtracting the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b from the detected temperature of the machine room temperature sensor 38 for detecting the outside air temperature after shifting to the standby mode becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, the operation of the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is controlled to stop. Immediately after shifting to the standby mode, the pressure in the path through which the refrigerant of the refrigerating apparatus 40 circulates is high, and the refrigerant is likely to leak from the path through which the refrigerant circulates. When the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant are high immediately after shifting to the standby mode, the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operated to quickly lower the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant in the condenser 42. Further, since the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operated until the temperature difference obtained by subtracting the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b from the detected temperature of the machine room temperature sensor 38 becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, the refrigerant of the refrigerating apparatus 40 is lowered until it approaches the outside air temperature (the temperature in the machine room 13), and when the compressor 41 is started after shifting from the standby mode to the ice-making mode, a load is less likely to occur. As a result, the power consumption can be suppressed as compared with the case where the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is continuously operated during the standby mode, and further, when the compressor 41 is started after shifting from the standby mode to the ice-making mode, a load can be made less likely to occur.

[0045] Also, before the temperature difference obtained by subtracting the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b from the detected temperature of the machine room temperature sensor 38 during the standby mode becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, the ice storage detector 39 may fail to detect that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice. In this case, as shown in FIG. 15, while the temperature difference obtained by subtracting the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b from the detected temperature of the machine room temperature sensor 38 during the standby mode does not become equal to or less than the predetermined value, the mode is not shifted from the standby mode to the ice-making mode, and the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is operated until the temperature difference obtained by subtracting the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b from the detected temperature of the machine room temperature sensor 38 becomes equal to or less than the predetermined value. When the temperature difference obtained by subtracting the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b from the detected temperature of the machine room temperature sensor 38 becomes equal to or less than the predetermined value, the operation of the fan 42a of the condenser 42 is stopped, and the mode is shifted from the standby mode to the ice-making mode. In this way, even after the ice storage detector 39 fails to detect that the ice storage chamber 14 is filled with ice, the fan 42a is operated until the temperature and pressure of the condenser 42 decrease, so that the load generated at the start of the compressor 41 when shifting from the standby mode to the ice-making mode can be surely reduced. Note that although the temperature and pressure of the refrigeration device 40 are detected by the temperature difference obtained by subtracting the detected temperature of the condenser temperature sensor 42b from the detected temperature of the machine room temperature sensor 38, the present invention is not limited to this, and the temperature and pressure of the refrigeration device 40 may be detected by detecting the pressure of the refrigerant in the condenser 42.

[0046] The ice maker 10 of this embodiment is a so-called closed cell type ice maker in which the lower opening of the ice making chamber 22 of the ice making section 21 is openably and closably closed by the water tray 24, but it is not limited thereto. It is also applicable to a so-called open cell type ice maker in which the lower opening of the ice making chamber 22 of the ice making section 21 is not openably and closably closed by the water tray 24, a flow-down type ice maker in which ice making water flows down to the ice making section, and an auger type ice maker in which ice frozen on the inner peripheral surface of a cylindrical ice making section is scraped off by an auger. Further, the standby mode may be such that even when the ice storage detector does not detect that the ice is full, the ice making mode is not set during a specific time period such as at night. Furthermore, in the ice maker 10 of the above-described embodiment, the refrigerant used in the refrigeration device 40 has been described using a flammable refrigerant, but for various controls for reducing the load of the compressor 41, the same operational effects as described above can be obtained even when a non-flammable refrigerant such as alternative Freon gas is used.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0047] 10…Ice maker, 14…Ice storage chamber, 21…Ice making section, 23…Water supply means, 39…Ice storage detector, 40…Refrigeration device, 41…Compressor, 42…Condenser, 42a…Fan, 44…Evaporator, 45…Bypass path (bypass pipe), 46…Bypass valve.

Claims

1. An ice-making section that freezes ice-making water to produce ice, A refrigeration device that condenses a combustible refrigerant circulated and supplied by a compressor by a condenser that cools the refrigerant with air blown by a fan, and cools the ice-making section with the latent heat of vaporization when the condensed combustible refrigerant is vaporized in an evaporator, Water supply means for sending ice-making water to the ice-making section, An ice storage chamber for storing ice produced in the ice-making section, An ice storage detector for detecting that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice, and When the ice storage detector does not detect that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice, control is performed to execute an ice-making operation in which ice-making water sent by the water supply means is frozen by the ice-making section cooled by the refrigeration device as an ice-making mode to produce ice to be stored in the ice storage chamber, When the ice storage detector detects that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice, it is an ice maker that controls so as not to execute the ice-making operation as a standby mode and waits without producing ice to be stored in the ice storage chamber, The ice maker is characterized in that the fan of the condenser is controlled to operate in a state where the compressor is not operating during the standby mode.

2. In the ice maker according to Claim 1, When the ice storage detector detects that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice during the standby mode, control is performed to operate the fan of the condenser in a state where the compressor is not operating near the end of the standby mode.

3. In the ice maker according to Claim 1 or 2, The refrigeration device includes a bypass path for sending the compressed combustible refrigerant supplied by the compressor to the evaporator without passing through the condenser, and a bypass valve for opening and closing the bypass path, When the ice storage detector detects that the ice storage chamber is filled with ice during the standby mode, control is performed to open the bypass valve and operate the fan of the condenser in a state where the compressor is not operating near the end of the standby mode.

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