Ice delivery device
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Solution Overview
Problem
Ice dispensers often fail due to agglomeration of ice cubes, chips, or nuggets over time, which causes blockages and interferes with the delivery mechanism, leading to machine failure.
Innovation Solution
An ice delivery device equipped with a rotatable helical auger and a flexible agitator wheel with arms that can displace laterally to overcome obstructions, along with flexible liners to deflect obstructions and prevent stalling, ensuring continuous operation without external power sources.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If ice is stored in the bin for an extended period, then the ice dispenser can be operated on-demand, but the ice cubes, chips, nuggets, or tubular ice tend to agglomerate and block delivery
Solution Approach 1:
The agitator wheel performs preliminary action by continuously or periodically agitating the ice in the bin before delivery is needed. This preliminary agitation prevents ice agglomeration from occurring in the first place, ensuring that when delivery is requested, the ice remains loose and deliverable. The agitator wheel achieves this by mechanically disturbing the ice mass, preventing the formation of compacted agglomerates that would otherwise block the auger.
Solution Approach 2:
The agitator wheel employs mechanical vibration and agitation to combat ice agglomeration. By rotating the wheel with its arms or blades, it creates mechanical disturbance and vibration within the ice mass, which breaks up developing agglomerates and maintains ice流动性. This mechanical action counteracts the natural tendency of ice to compact and stick together during extended storage periods.
2Reliability
If an agitator wheel is added to break up agglomerates, then ice delivery reliability improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The agitator wheel is merged with the existing auger assembly, sharing the same central axis and structural support. The agitator wheel's hub is mounted on the auger's central axis, and both components are driven by the same motor through the existing drive mechanism. This merging eliminates the need for separate mounting structures, additional motors, and independent control systems, thereby reducing the increase in device complexity while maintaining the ice-breaking function.
Solution Approach 2:
The auger assembly serves multiple functions: it conveys ice from the bin to the outlet and simultaneously drives the agitator wheel to break up agglomerates. The motor that powers the auger also powers the agitator wheel through the shared drive mechanism. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional components and simplifies the overall device structure while achieving both ice delivery and ice agitation functions.
3Productivity
If the auger rotates continuously to convey ice, then delivery speed improves, but the auger may stall when encountering agglomerated ice
Solution Approach 1:
The agitator wheel performs preliminary anti-action by continuously breaking up ice agglomerates before they can form large enough to obstruct the auger. By maintaining constant or periodic agitation, it prevents the formation of obstructions that would cause the auger to stall. This preliminary counter-action ensures that the auger encounters only small, manageable ice pieces during rotation, maintaining continuous operation at full speed without stalling.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The device effectively breaks up agglomerated ice during operation, reducing machine downtime, maintaining user safety, and preventing ice clumps from forming, thus ensuring reliable and safe ice dispensing without manual agitation or external power.
Implementation Method 1
the arms of the agitator wheel are sufficiently flexible such that when rotation of the agitator wheel is opposed by an obstruction in the bin, such as a mass of agglomerated ice, the force imparted by the rotating auger laterally displaces the arm of the agitator wheel in contact with the auger sufficiently so as to permit the auger to continue to rotate
Implementation Method 2
the flexible liner is preferably mounted such that liner deflects outwardly away from the auger when the auger encounters an obstruction in the bin lodged between the auger and the flexible liner, such as an agglomeration of ice
Data Source
AI summary
An ice delivery device includes a bin for storing ice, a rotatable helical auger for delivering ice, and a rotatable agitator wheel with multiple flexible arms to help break up agglomerations of ice. The agitator wheel is mounted such that as the auger is rotated the auger successively engages arms of the agitator wheel to rotate the agitator wheel. If the agitator wheel encounters an obstruction, such as a mass of agglomerated ice, the auger displaces the flexible arm out of the plane of the agitator wheel thus permitting the auger to continue rotate to deliver ice. The agitator wheel is mounted on a pair of flexible liners, which are displaceable by agglomerated ice.