The Manitowoc Company, Inc.

Vance L Kohl

Charles E Schlosser

John J Jaschinski

Carl J Schulze-Berge

Joseph R Spinner

Mark E Federspiel

An improved evaporator/ice forming assembly for an ice machine is disclosed. The assembly comprises evaporator tubing sections having one or more integrally formed fin elements; evaporator system connectors adapted for connecting the tubing sections together to form a sealed evaporator section of a refrigeration system; and divider elements adapted to fit together with the one or more fin elements to form a plurality of ice formation pockets. Processes for forming the assembly, as well as an ice machine incorporating the assembly, are also disclosed.

Ice machine with improved evaporator/ice forming assembly

An ice cube making machine having an inclined ice forming mold over which water is circulated from an underlying sump. The ice forming mold includes an endless, inclined conveyor for delivering the formed ice upwardly to an adjacent, laterally spaced ice storage bin.

Ice machine

An ice cube making machine having a vertically oriented ice forming mold over which water is circulated from an underlying sump. The ice forming mold includes an endless conveyor for delivering the formed ice upwardly to a chute which communicates with an adjacent, laterally spaced ice storage bin.

An ice making system having a compressor, a condenser and an evaporator, and having freeze and harvest cycles. During the harvest cycle, vaporous refrigerant is circulated from the compressor to the evaporator through a discharge line, and is thereafter returned to the compressor through a supply line. A predetermined amount of refrigerant is condensed in a reservoir during the freeze cycle and expelled therefrom during the harvest cycle to augment the amount of refrigerant circulating in the system.

Harvest cycle refrigerant control system

A pump assembly for use in circulating water from a reservoir to an ice forming mold in an ice making machine, the pump assembly comprising an unvented, unit bearing electric motor having a downwardly extending drive shaft, a pump having a housing with an inlet and an outlet, a fan secured to the drive shaft between the motor and the pump, a support structure interconnecting the pump and the motor, said support structure including a cylindrical upper portion encircling the fan and having an upper edge which is spaced from the bottom of the motor to define an annular slot, said interconnecting structure also including a lower portion with openings near the surface of the water in the reservoir, and a substantially cylindrical collar encircling the motor which defines a substantially axial extension of the annular slot, through which cool air from the surface of the reservoir is directed to the motor to prevent the motor from overheating.

Ice machine pump assembly

An ice cube making machine having a vertical, open-faced freezing mold over which water is circulated from an underlying trough to build up ice. When the mold is full, the pump circulating the water is stopped and the ice is harvested. Harvesting is facilitated by a plunger that is biased to push ice from the mold. Water pressure from the pump holds the plunger against its bias until the pressure is released for the harvest cycle. The mold open face is covered by a water curtain having a lower lip underlying the mold open face so that the underlying trough need not extend substantially out from the mold, thereby permitting similar such units to be vertically stacked.

Stackable water pressure ejection control ice cube maker

A vertical ice cube mold chilled by a refrigeration system has a water stream pumped into its open vertical face to build up ice cubes in the mold. A probe hangs over the open mold face at an adjustable spacing. When the mold fills with ice and the water stream contacts the probe, an electrical circuit is completed to cause a control to stop the water pump and heat the mold, thus harvesting the ice cubes. A timer restarts the icemaking cycle in case ice is not delivered for some reason. Casual water contact with the probe is prevented from tripping the control through the use of a simple integrator device.

Growing community of inventors

Manitowoc, WI, United States of America

Vance L Kohl