Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
76-CON-416
¦' S P E C I F I C A T I O M
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
! In one aspect, this invention relates to ice dispensers.
S i In a further aspect, this invention relates to ice
storage and dispensing in home refrigerators.
2. DescriPtion of the Prior Art
I
Ice dispensers for dispensing ice through a chute on
a refrigerator door are known. Such devices will dispense ice on
demand and have gained acceptance in the marketplace. One such
known dispenser has an ice container with a fixed dispensing
; chute. A screw auger is disposed longitudinally within the con-
` tainer and moves the cubes to the dispensing chute when activatedE
I One example of an ice dispenser is shown in U. S.
Patent 3,798,923 issued to Pink, et al. This patent discloses
I a dispenser having a mullion which forms a part of the storage
¦ compartment of the ice dispenser.
A further example of a prior art system is exemplified
by U. S. Patent 3,968,906 issued to Kochendorfer, et al. This
I ice dispenser has a storage bin with a chute and dispensing
¦ opening. An elongated ram is positioned withi~ the bin and
¦ adapted for reciprocal motion along the longitudinal axis of the
¦ bin to move ice within the bin to the dispensing area. Howe~er
it is possible in certain of the prior art dispensers to activate
the unit while the operator's hand is in the storage bin, such as
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l l¦ during cleaning. The operator's hand could then be injured by
exposed fast moving parts. This is particularly true of auger
type dispensers because the augers often have sharp edges which
I can pinch or cut fingers. Also, the fast-moving parts result
1 in a substantial amount of noise when the dispenser is operated.
I A further problem is a failure on the part of prior art
¦, devices to insure that ice in the bin is properly recycled within
the storage bin. Therefore, the ice cubes can fuse together and
I grow stale. This failure to recycle has necessitated cleaning
¦¦ of the bin from time to time to remove ice which is old, or
breaking up the frozen cubes and mixing them with other ice in
the storage bin.
Yet a further problem is the formation of ice chips
~ in cube dispensers. Ice chips from the cubes are produced in
1 substantial quantities during dispensing of ice cubes due to
rapid movement of the cubes caused by the ice dispenser operating
I at a high speed, and are dispensed by the dispenser even when
j not desired.
SUMMAR~ OF THE INVENTIO~
I It is an object of this invention to provide an ice
I dispenser which quickly dispenses ice with a minimum of chip
~ formation.
j It is a further object of this invention to provide an ice
dispenser which will dispense ice on a rotating basis from a bin
so as to prevent the cubes from freezing into a solid mass~
According to the present invention there is
provided a dispenser for dispensing ice, the dispenser
having bin means suitable for receiving and holding ice,
the bin means including means defining a discharge port
~or delivering ice therethrough and scoop means operable
to receive and direct the ice into the discharge port.
Rotor means is rotatably mounted in the bin means, the
rotor means having gripping means operative upon rotation
of the rotor means to receive ice from the bin means and
move the ice circumferentially therewith and into the scoo~
m~ans. The rotor means includes hub means with flange
means extending generally radially outwardly fxo~ the base
of the hub means. Drive means is adapted for connection
to a source of power and is operable upon activation to
rotate the rotor means. Activation means is operable upon
selective actuation by the user to activate the drive means.
According to one aspect of the invention, the
scope means includes a deflecting member having an edge
spaced closely adjacent and conforming to the hub means.
Another portion is spaced closely adjacent the gripping
means and the deflecting member is effective for channelling
ice into the discharge port and preventing ice from bypassing
~the scoop means.
According to ano-ther aspect of the present
invention, the scoop means includes an upper panel member
connected to the upper edge of the deflecting member and
extending to the bin means for shielding and isolating the
ice therein from the ice located immediately above the
upper panel member.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In the accompanying drawings:
FIGURE 1 is a top view of one embodiment of this
cbr/~ C
invention;
FIGURE 2 is a side view, in section, of FIGURE 1
taken along line 2-2; and
FIGURE 3 is a second embodiment of this invention.
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$~ cbr/~ ~
76-CON-416
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to the accompanyi~g drawing and initially to
FIGURES 1 and 2, an icemaker dasignated generally 10 has a
~ storage bin 12 firmly attached to a base member 14 which will
i generally be a solid freezer shelf. The bin could be permanently
attached by using rails attached to the shelf when such fastening
is desired. The storage bin 12 can be placed so as to receive
ice produced by an automatic ice maker such as those often found
I in home refrigerators.
, The storage bin 12 has a discharge port 16 located at one
end. The discharge port 16 is normally closed by a door 18 which
is biased into the closed position by a spring 20, counter
balancing a solenoid or other mechanical closure means. The door
1` is shown in a horizontal position; however, it could also be
, pivoted at the top and be disposed in a vertical position. In
either position, the door would prevPnt warm air from entering
the storage bin. This allows the dispenser of this invention
¦ to operate without the use of complex closure mechanisms in the
i refrigerator door.
I A removable rotor 22 is rotated by a driven shaft designated
1 24. The shaft rotates a pinion gear 26 engaging a drive gear 28
¦ which, in the presently preferred practice, is disposed at right
¦ angles to the pinion 26. As gear 28 rotates, it drives a shaft
! 30 to which the removable rotor 22 is attached. The rotor can be
I mated to the shaft 30 by various means~ one acceptable means being
the provision of flat mating surfaces on the exterior of shaft
30 and the interior of rotor 22 which lock the rotor and shaft.
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~ 7 76-CON-416
I .
As shown, the rotor 22 has radially extending vanes 32
I located at the upper end thereof. The lower end of the rotor ~2
¦ opposite the vaned portion has a radially extending flange or
platform 36 shown with a plurality of steps or teeth 38 on the
I platform's upper surface. As the rotor ~2 rotates counterclock-
1l wise, the teeth 38 grip the ice in the storage bin 12 and move
i the ice into a removable scoop 40. The scoop has a guide 42 as
shown fully in FIGURE 1, whlch directs ice into the channel 44
I within the scoop. The ice then passes through the door and is
¦I dispensed at the discharge port 16.
The bin 12 has a plurality of apertures 37 therein which
allow ice chips to fall on to ~he shelf 14. This prevents ice
chips from being dispensed and allows the accumulation of
1 chips until removal is convenient.
1 Attached to the rotor 22 is a removable wiper or spider 46
having four arms 48 extending generally radially therefrom, the
spider being held in place by a nut 47. The arm~ 48 also tend to
move the ice within the storage bin 12. The arms 48 also provide
I a means whereby ice which is not dispensed is moved past the
I scoop 40 and back into the storage area for recycling. The arms
48 also tend to break any clumps of ice which may have formed
in the storage bin 12. It will be understood that although four
arms 48 are shown in the figures, the spider 46 may have from one
to eight arms and still function efficiently. The wiper is not
necessary but is a preferred embodiment since it helps keep the
ice from forming clumps and helps clear the area around the
sc~op 40.
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l i
The drive mechanism 24 derives its power from a gear
; reduction train 52 powered by an electric motor 50. The gear
reduction train 52 turns a shaft 54 which in turn moves pinion
, 26. The shaft 54 has a coupling 55 comprising a male coupling
1 55a and a female coupling 55b. This coupling allows the bin and
associated dispensing ports to be separated from the power source ,
when bin cleaning is indicated. After cleaning, the coupling 55 Z
¦~ is reunited and the dispenser is ready for further operation.
The shaft 54 is supported by two hangers 56 which depend downward
¦ from a slanting surface 58 of bin 12. The motor and speed
IZ reduction train 52 determines the speed at which the pinion 26 Z
¦l rotates, the pinion being driven at a xate which turns the rotor
at about 3 to 8 rpm, or 6.3 to 16.7 surface feet per minute at
1, the outside edge of the rotor platform.
15 l Shaft 54 also can be used to drive an agitator designated
generally 60. The agitator 60 comprises an arm 66 with one end
thereof pivotably mounted to the bin wall at 61. A cam 62
mounted on shaft 54 has one or more lobes thereon. The opposite
end 63 of ar~ 66 has a cam follower 64 provided thereon which
rides on the cam 62. As the shaft 54 .rotates, the cam ollower
64 and flat portion of arm 66 of agitator 60 oscillate in a
vertical direction to break any clumps of ice which may form
within the storage bin 12.
FI~URE 3 shGws a second embodiment wherein the rotor 22 is
driven directly by an electric motor 70 with a gear reduction
gear train. In this embodiment, an agitator 72 is moved by an
7~-C0~-416
oscillating lever arm 74 moun~ed intermediate the ends thereof
, on a pivot 76 attached to the bin wall 12 structure. The lever
~ arm 74 has a cam follower 78 attached to the right-hand end in
¦ FIGURE 3 which engages a cam 80 on a vertically disposed drive
shaft 82. The remainder of the system is structurally similar
to the embodiment of FIGURES 1 and 2 and operates as described
I hereinabove with reference to FIGURES 1 and 2.
j Further modifications and alterations will become obvious
to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of
¦ this invention, and it is understood that this invention is not
limited to the specific embodiments set forth hereinbefore but
eAc mpasses that which i9 defined by the f~ll wing c1aims.
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