ICE MAKING ASSEMBLY AND ICE MAKER

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a Continuation-in-part Application of PCT Application No.PCT/CN2024/103888, filed on July 5, 2024, which claims the priority of Chinese Patent Application No. 202321895597.1, filed on July 18, 2023, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to the technical field of ice makers, and particularly to an ice making assembly and an ice maker.

BACKGROUND

An ice making assembly is a core component of an ice maker. One type of such ice making assembly includes a water receiving box and an ice making evaporator. The water receiving box is rotatably arranged to form an ice making position and an ice discharging position. The water receiving box is a container with an opening, when the opening faces upward, water may be stored therein, and the water receiving box is in the ice making position at this time. When ice making is completed and ice needs to be discharged, the water receiving box is rotated to a position where ice cubes can be poured out from the opening, and a rotation angle is generally greater than 90 degrees. The ice cubes are separated from ice making heads by gravity. This cycle is repeated to achieve an ice making function.

In the ice making position, the ice making heads of the ice making evaporator are accommodated in the water receiving box. Refrigerant flows through the ice making evaporator to freeze water on the ice making heads. When ice making is completed, the water receiving box is rotated to reach the ice discharging position. Simultaneously or subsequently, hot refrigerant is diverted to the ice making evaporator via a reversing valve, and then the ice cubes on the ice making heads are heated and separated from the ice making heads by gravity. The ice cubes are scraped into an ice storage basket (ice storage bin) via a scraper plate (ice pushing plate) rotatably connected to a front side of the water receiving box.

The ice making evaporators of conventional ice making assemblies adopt a U-shaped design. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, an ice making evaporator 01 is provided with 9 ice making heads 02 arranged in a U-shape, and the ice making heads 02 are used to make ice cubes 03. The ice making evaporator 01 includes refrigerant inlet and outlet pipes 04, and the refrigerant inlet and outlet pipes 04 are concentrated on one side of the water receiving box 05. A size of the water receiving box 05 needs to be able to accommodate the refrigerant inlet and outlet pipes 04 during rotation. Correspondingly, the refrigerant inlet and outlet pipes 04 are also provided with a pipeline layout to better cooperate with the rotation of the water receiving box 05. Therefore, on one hand, a width of the water receiving box 05 needs to be made relatively large; on the other hand, the ice making heads 02 cannot be accommodated in a reserved space for accommodating the refrigerant inlet and outlet pipes 04, causing water stored in the reserved space to consume refrigeration capacity.

In the prior art, in order to reduce occupied area and improve compactness, heat exchange components in the refrigeration field, such as a condenser and an evaporator, are always designed into a coiled tube shape, that is, a plurality of U-shapes connected end to end. Therefore, this habitual thinking also extends to the ice making field, and the ice making evaporator 01 is designed into a U-shape as well.

The present disclosure provides an ice making assembly and an ice maker, which break through limitations of conventional thinking and increase an effective volume of a water receiving box in the field of ice making, thereby improving ice making efficiency and being conducive to reducing a volume of the ice making assembly. The ice maker is further designed based on the ice making assembly, improving ice making efficiency; in addition, its structure is more compact, thereby being conducive to reducing a volume of the ice maker.

SUMMARY

Technical problems to be solved by the present disclosure are as follows: to provide an ice making assembly that increases an effective volume of a water receiving box, thereby improving ice making efficiency and being conducive to reducing a volume of the ice making assembly. Further to provide an ice maker adopting the ice making assembly, which improves ice making efficiency and has a more compact structure, thereby being conducive to reducing a volume of the ice maker.

The technical solution provided by the present disclosure is as follows: an ice making assembly, including a water receiving box and an ice making evaporator, wherein the water receiving box is rotatably disposed to an ice making position or an ice discharging position; the water receiving box is a container provided with an opening, when the water receiving box is in the ice making position, the opening faces upward, and water is storable therein; when ice making is completed and ice discharging is required, the water receiving box is rotated to the ice discharging position, after which ice cubes are dischargeable; and the water receiving box includes a front side and a rear side, and the front side of the water receiving box is an ice discharging side; and wherein the ice making evaporator includes an elongated body and a plurality of ice making heads, and the plurality of ice making heads are arranged one after another along a length direction of the body; one end of the body is connected to a refrigerant inlet pipe, and another end of the body is connected to a refrigerant outlet pipe; the water receiving box is disposed along the length direction of the body and located under the body; and each of the refrigerant inlet pipe and the refrigerant outlet pipe extends outward after passing through and/or straddling corresponding side walls of the water receiving box along the length direction of the body.

In one embodiment, a rotating end is provided on each of two side walls of the water receiving box, each rotating end is configured to be rotatably matched with a machine body of an ice maker, and each rotating end is located on a rear side of the body.

In one embodiment, each rotating end is located on the rear side of the water receiving box.

In one embodiment, an avoidance recess is provided on the rear side of the water receiving box, and in the ice discharging position, the avoidance recess is configured to accommodate the body.

In one embodiment, a protruding part is provided in the water receiving box and located on the rear side of the water receiving box, and the protruding part is arranged to protrude toward the front side to reduce a volume of the water receiving box.

In one embodiment, a portion of the rear side of the water receiving box located above the protruding part is configured as the avoidance recess, and in the ice discharging position, the avoidance recess is configured to accommodate the body.

By adopting the above structure, the present disclosure achieves the following advantages:

An effective volume of the water receiving box is significantly improved. Specifically, the water receiving box does not require reserving space for accommodating the refrigerant inlet and outlet pipes, and the plurality of ice making heads can be effectively distributed along the entire length of the water receiving box, thus increasing the effective volume of the water receiving box and thereby improving the ice making efficiency. A reason for improving the ice making efficiency is that, with the same refrigeration capacity, the more water in the water receiving box, the slower the freezing process; therefore, increasing the effective volume of the water receiving box means reducing unused water, thus reducing wasted cooling capacity, thereby improving the ice making efficiency. Further, the water receiving box does not require reserving space for accommodating the refrigerant inlet and outlet pipes; that is, the volume of the water receiving box is reduced, thereby being conducive to reducing the volume of the ice making assembly.

Further, since there is no U-shaped bend, the length of the body can be effectively utilized when arranging the plurality of ice making heads; that is, the entire body is an effective length without waste caused by the bend, which is conducive to reducing the volume of the ice making assembly.

Further, the ice making evaporator includes the elongated body and the plurality of ice making heads arranged one after another along the length direction of the body, one end of the body is connected to the refrigerant inlet pipe, and another end of the body is connected to the refrigerant outlet pipe; the water receiving box is disposed along the length direction of the body and located under the body; and each of the refrigerant inlet pipe and the refrigerant outlet pipe extends outward after passing through and/or straddling the corresponding side walls of the water receiving box along the length direction of the body. Therefore, a width of the water receiving box can be made relatively narrow without worrying about interfering with the refrigerant inlet pipe and the refrigerant outlet pipe during rotation.

In summary, the ice making assembly provided by the present disclosure increases the effective volume of the water receiving box, thereby improving the ice making efficiency, and further being conducive to reducing the volume of the ice making assembly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an ice maker (with a housing removed) in the prior art.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an ice maker according to the present disclosure, as viewed from one end of a mounting groove.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an ice maker according to the present disclosure (with a top housing removed).

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an ice maker according to the present disclosure (with a housing removed).

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an ice maker according to the present disclosure (with a machine body removed).

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an ice making assembly according to the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view mainly showing the mounting groove.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an ice maker according to the present disclosure, as viewed from another end of the mounting groove.

Reference numerals shown in FIG. 1: 01, ice making evaporator; 02, ice making head; 03, ice cube; 04, refrigerant inlet and outlet pipes; 05, water receiving box; 06, compressor; 07, condenser.

Reference numerals shown in the drawings of the present disclosure: 1, water receiving box; 101, opening; 102, front side; 103, rear side of the water receiving box; 104, side wall; 2, body; 203, rear side of the body; 3, ice making head; 4, refrigerant inlet pipe; 5, refrigerant outlet pipe; 6, rotating end; 7, avoidance recess; 8, protruding part; 9, compressor; 10, condenser; 11, base; 12, machine body; 121, horizontal part; 13, ice storage bin; 14, water receiving tank; 15, mounting groove; 151, air inlet side; 152, air outlet side; 16, fan; 17, ice pushing plate; 18, ventilation hole; 19, water leakage hole; 20, rotation driver; 21, water pump; 22, shielding part; 23, ice cube.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

In order to make the present disclosure more clearly understood, the present disclosure is described in more detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the present disclosure. Apparently, detailed descriptions are only illustrative of exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any manner. Throughout the specification, the same reference numerals refer to the same elements.

In the accompanying drawings, for ease of explanation, the thickness, dimension, and shape of objects are slightly exaggerated. The accompanying drawings are merely illustrative and not drawn to scale.

It should be understood that the terms "comprise", "include", "have", and the like, when used in the present specification, indicate the presence of the listed features, entirety, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, entirety, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or combinations thereof.

As shown in FIG. 6, an ice making assembly is usable in an ice maker. The ice making assembly includes a water receiving box 1 and an ice making evaporator. The water receiving box 1 is rotatably disposed to an ice making position or an ice discharging position. The water receiving box 1 is a container provided with an opening 101, when the water receiving box 1 is in the ice making position, the opening 101 faces upward, and water may be stored therein; when ice making is completed and ice discharging is required, the water receiving box 1 is rotated to the ice discharging position, after which ice cubes 23 can be dischargeable. The water receiving box 1 includes a front side 102 and a rear side 103, and the front side 102 of the water receiving box 1 is an ice discharging side. To allow the ice cubes 23 to enter an ice storage bin 13 at the front side 102 of the water receiving box 1 automatically, in the ice discharging position, the ice cubes 23 fall onto an ice pushing plate 17 and into an arc-shaped cavity cooperatively arranged with the ice pushing plate 17. When the water receiving box 1 is reset, the water receiving box 1 drives the ice pushing plate 17 to push the ice cubes 23 into the ice storage bin 13 (or shovel the ice cubes 23 into the ice storage bin 13). The ice making evaporator includes an elongated body 2 and a plurality of ice making heads 3, and the plurality of ice making heads 3 are arranged one after another along a length direction of the body 2. The plurality of ice making heads 3 are configured to be inserted into the water receiving box 1 to form the ice cubes 23. One end of the body 2 is connected to a refrigerant inlet pipe 4, and another end of the body 2 is connected to a refrigerant outlet pipe 5. The water receiving box 1 is disposed along the length direction of the body 2 and located under the body 2. Each of the refrigerant inlet pipe 4 and the refrigerant outlet pipe 5 extends outward after passing through and/or straddling corresponding side walls 104 of the water receiving box 1 along the length direction of the body 2. In the present embodiment, each of the refrigerant inlet pipe 4 and the refrigerant outlet pipe 5 extends outward after straddling the side walls 104 of the water receiving box 1. In particular, when the water receiving box 1 is rotated to the ice discharging position, it moves away from a position beneath the ice making heads 3, thereby exposing the ice cubes 23 on the plurality of ice making heads 3 downwardly. Therefore, in the ice discharging position of the water receiving box 1, the ice cubes 23 can directly fall from the ice making heads 3 onto the ice pushing plate 17 and into an arc-shaped cavity cooperatively arranged with the ice pushing plate 17.

As shown in FIG. 6, one end of the body 2 is connected to the refrigerant inlet pipe 4, and another end of the body 2 is connected to the refrigerant outlet pipe 5; the water receiving box 1 is disposed along the length direction of the body 2 and located under the body 2; and each of the refrigerant inlet pipe 4 and the refrigerant outlet pipe 5 extends outward after passing through and/or straddling the corresponding side walls 104 of the water receiving box 1 along the length direction of the body 2. Therefore, two ends of the body 2 can be closely adjacent to two ends of the water receiving box 1, that is, the two ends of the body 2 can be closely adjacent to the two side walls 104 of the water receiving box 1 respectively. Thus, an effective utilization rate of the water receiving box 1 along the length direction is significantly high.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 6, a rotating end 6 is provided on each of the two side walls 104 of the water receiving box 1. Each rotating end 6 is configured to be rotatably matched with a machine body 12 of an ice maker. Each rotating end 6 is located on a rear side 203 of the body 2. With such a design, when the water receiving box 1 rotates, the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1 is upturned; and since each rotating end 6 is located on the rear side 203 of the body 2, an upturned part of the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1 needs to be rotated by a large angle to approach or contact the body 2. In this way, a larger rotation angle can be obtained without quickly interfering with the rear side 203 of the body 2. The larger rotation angle is conducive to the water receiving box 1 flipping over by a large angle as a whole, thereby being more conducive to the ice cubes 23 falling onto the ice pushing plate 17. The ice pushing plate 17 is connected to the front side 102 of the water receiving box 1 and is driven to move by the water receiving box 1.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 6, each rotating end 6 is located on the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1. With such a design, when the water receiving box 1 rotates backward, the water receiving box 1 moves away from the refrigerant inlet pipe 4 and the refrigerant outlet pipe 5, and never interferes with the refrigerant inlet pipe 4 and the refrigerant outlet pipe 5, thereby achieving high reliability. Further, the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1 is upturned, and since each rotating end 6 is located on the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1, the upturned part of the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1 is extremely narrow. In this way, a still larger rotation angle can be obtained without quickly interfering with the rear side 203 of the body 2. The larger rotation angle is conducive to the water receiving box 1 flipping over by a large angle as a whole, thereby being more conducive to the ice cubes 23 falling onto the ice pushing plate 17. The ice pushing plate 17 is connected to the front side 102 of the water receiving box 1 and is driven to move by the water receiving box 1.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 6, an avoidance recess 7 is provided on the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1. In the ice discharging position, the avoidance recess 7 is configured to accommodate the body 2. In this way, a still larger rotation angle can be obtained; the larger rotation angle is conducive to the water receiving box 1 flipping over by a larger angle as a whole, thereby being more conducive to the ice cubes 23 falling onto the ice pushing plate 17. The ice pushing plate 17 is connected to the front side 102 of the water receiving box 1 and is driven to move by the water receiving box 1.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 3, a protruding part 8 is further provided in the water receiving box 1 and located on the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1. The protruding part 8 is arranged to protrude toward the front side 102 to reduce a volume of the water receiving box 1. In this way, an effective volume of the water receiving box 1 is increased, thereby further improving ice making efficiency. In the present embodiment, the protruding part 8 is disposed on a rear side wall of the water receiving box 1 and extends from bottom to top, and the plurality of ice making heads 3 are inserted and accommodated between the protruding part 8 and an inner side wall of the front side 102 of the water receiving box 1.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 6, a portion of the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1 located above the protruding part 8 is configured as the avoidance recess 7; in the ice discharging position, the avoidance recess 7 may be configured to accommodate the body 2. In this way, the structure change formed by the setting of the protruding part 8 is used to achieve the avoidance recess 7, which is more conducive to simplifying the structure and facilitating production. In the present embodiment, the protruding part 8 protrudes toward the front side 102 from the rear side wall of the rear side 103 of the water receiving box 1, a step recess is formed between a top surface of the protruding part 8 and the rear side wall, and the step recess is the avoidance recess 7.

As shown from FIG. 2 to FIG. 8, the present disclosure provides an ice maker, including a compressor 9, a condenser 10, and an ice making assembly; the ice making assembly adopts the ice making assembly described above. During ice making, water can be pumped into the water receiving box 1 by a water pump 21 without adding water manually, thereby improving ice making automation.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 4, the compressor 9 and the condenser 10 are arranged one after another along the length direction of the body 2, and located under the ice making assembly. This configuration is conducive to a compact structure and a reduced volume. Specifically, by utilizing the characteristic that the ice making assembly of the present disclosure has a relatively long length, the compressor 9 and the condenser 10 can be simultaneously disposed below the ice making assembly, thereby fully utilizing a space under the ice making assembly. The above structure is significantly different from the prior art, as shown in FIG. 1, a compressor 06 and a condenser 07 are arranged at a right angle.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 4, the ice maker further includes a base 11 and an inverted L-shaped machine body 12. The ice making assembly is mounted on a horizontal part 121 of the machine body 12; an ice storage bin 13 and a water receiving tank 14 located under the ice storage bin 13 are disposed on a vertical part of the machine body 12; a mounting groove 15 is defined between the horizontal part 121 of the machine body and the base 11, and the compressor 9 and the condenser 10 are mounted in the mounting groove 15. In this way, the structure is more compact, thereby reducing a volume of the ice maker.

A rotation driver 20 is mounted on an outer side of the horizontal part 121 of the machine body 12. The rotation driver 20 drives the water receiving box 1 to rotate. The rotation driver 20 may be, for example, an electric motor.

The ice storage bin 13 is provided with a water leakage hole 19; water formed by the gradual melting of the ice cubes 23 may flow into the water receiving tank 14 through the water leakage hole 19, thereby preventing the ice cubes 23 from being submerged in water.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 7, a straight-through mounting groove 15 is defined between the horizontal part 121 of the machine body 12 and the base 11; one end of the mounting groove 15 is an air inlet side 151, and another end is an air outlet side 152. Correspondingly, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 8, a ventilation hole 18 is provided on a housing of the ice maker corresponding to each of the air inlet side 151 and the air outlet side 152; the condenser 10 is arranged horizontally; a fan 16 is disposed on a side of the condenser 10 in proximity to the outer side of the horizontal part 121 of the machine body 12, and a direction of airflow driven by the fan 16 is arranged along a direction of the mounting groove 15. This configuration is more conducive to heat dissipation, and thus conducive to ice making.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 7, a shielding part 22 is provided on another side opposite to the condenser 10, that is, the side of the compressor 9, so that a cross section of an airflow channel formed by the mounting groove 15 becomes smaller. Therefore, when the fan 16 is working, an airflow velocity in a channel on the side of the shielding part 22 is higher, thereby improving airflow efficiency of the entire channel and thus improving heat dissipation efficiency. Further, the shielding part 22 can be hollowed out, and the hollowed-out shielding part 22 may also be used as a storage box to place objects, which is convenient for users and improves the space utilization of the ice maker.

In understanding the present disclosure, if necessary, the above structures may be understood in conjunction with other embodiments/accompanying drawings, and no further elaboration is provided herein.

The above descriptions are merely exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. Accordingly, any equivalent changes or modifications made in accordance with the structures, features, and principles set forth in the scope of protection of the present disclosure shall fall within the scope of protection of the claims of the present disclosure.