초록 ▼

A ice maker employing a relatively thin ice tray with sealed ice cube receptacles and having a freezing chamber of relatively small volume cooled by a high capacity cooling plate. The ice cube receptacles are sealed by a frangible cover to keep liquid water therein and to maintain frozen water in a

A ice maker employing a relatively thin ice tray with sealed ice cube receptacles and having a freezing chamber of relatively small volume cooled by a high capacity cooling plate. The ice cube receptacles are sealed by a frangible cover to keep liquid water therein and to maintain frozen water in a sanitary state until the frangible cover is ruptured for the ice cubes to be used. The ice make housing also may include other chambers for holding containers of food and drink. The cooling surface of the freezing chamber may be sloped for drainage and the ice maker provided with a spring loaded device for ejecting the ice tray when a housing door is opened. Detection switches and indicator lights may be actuated by insertion and removal of the tray. Multiple freezing chambers may be jointly cooled by a single cooling plate.

대표청구항 ▼

An ice making apparatus comprising: at least one ice cube molding means for holding at least one body of liquid water while said body is being frozen to make an ice cube; a cooling member of heat conductive material for contacting said molding means and conducting heat away from said body of liquid

An ice making apparatus comprising: at least one ice cube molding means for holding at least one body of liquid water while said body is being frozen to make an ice cube; a cooling member of heat conductive material for contacting said molding means and conducting heat away from said body of liquid water; cooling means for cooling said cooling member so as to freeze said body of liquid water and form an ice cube in said molding means, said cooling means including a heat exchange means for transferring heat from said cooling member to a heat exchange medium; housing means including an insulated portion cooperating with said cooling member to define at least one freezing chamber for receiving said molding means and having a chamber opening for providing said molding means with access to and from said freezing chamber, said cooling member having a cooling surface providing at least part of a supporting surface for supporting said molding means within said freezing chamber, and said supporting surface being slanted downwardly from said chamber opening toward a rear wall of said freezing chamber; and, means adjacent to a downward edge of said slanted cooling surface for draining any liquid water accumulations caused by a defrosting of said cooling member; and, door means including a door member movable between a closed position for covering and an open position for uncovering said chamber opening; said ice cube molding means comprising a tray having at least one receptacle for receiving said at least one body of liquid water, a frangible cover for covering said receptacle with said body of liquid water received therein, and means for adhering said frangible cover to said tray so as to seal said receptacle and provide a sealed compartment for said body of liquid water during said freezing thereof, said frangible cover being rupturable by hand, and said tray being substantially less fragile than said frangible cover so as not to be ruptured when said frangible cover is ruptured by hand.