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An ice dispensing assembly includes a hopper, a metering disk, a shelf member, and a separating wall. The hopper includes an outlet opening defined in a bottom end of the hopper, and an ice inlet defined in a top end of the hopper. The metering disk is positioned in the hopper and includes a plurali

An ice dispensing assembly includes a hopper, a metering disk, a shelf member, and a separating wall. The hopper includes an outlet opening defined in a bottom end of the hopper, and an ice inlet defined in a top end of the hopper. The metering disk is positioned in the hopper and includes a plurality of cavities. The shelf member is arranged to at least partially shield the cavities from a supply of ice held in the hopper. The metering disk is rotatable relative to the hopper between a first position wherein at least one cavity is exposed to the supply of ice to be filled with ice, and a second position wherein the cavity is separated from the supply of ice by the separating wall and ice in the cavity is dispensed through the outlet opening.

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1. An ice dispensing system, comprising: a hopper configured to retain a supply of ice, the hopper having a bottom end with an outlet opening;a motor positioned vertically below the hopper;a shelf member positioned in the hopper dividing a portion of the supply of ice from a supply of ice under the

1. An ice dispensing system, comprising: a hopper configured to retain a supply of ice, the hopper having a bottom end with an outlet opening;a motor positioned vertically below the hopper;a shelf member positioned in the hopper dividing a portion of the supply of ice from a supply of ice under the shelf member;a metering member mounted within the hopper, the metering member including a plurality of ice cavities, the metering member being rotatable by the motor between a fill position wherein at least one of the ice cavities is exposed to and filled by the supply of ice under the shelf member, and a dispense position wherein the at least one cavity is aligned with the outlet opening to dispense ice from the at least one cavity;wherein the shelf member constantly shields at least a portion of each of the plurality of ice cavities. 2. The ice dispensing system of claim 1, wherein the metering member is oriented vertically below the supply of ice. 3. The ice dispensing system of claim 1, wherein the shelf includes at least one projection extending into the supply of ice. 4. The ice dispensing system of claim 1, wherein the metering member rotates relative to the shelf. 5. The ice dispensing system of claim 1, further comprising an agitator member mounted to the metering member, wherein rotation of the metering member rotates the agitator within the supply of ice to break apart the supply of ice and facilitates the delivery of the ice to the metering member in the fill position. 6. The ice dispensing system of claim 1, further comprising a dividing wall positioned in the hopper, wherein when the metering member is in the dispense position, the at least one ice cavity is shielded from the supply of ice by the dividing wall. 7. The ice dispensing system of claim 6, wherein the dividing wall is positioned under the shelf. 8. The ice dispensing system of claim 1, wherein the ice cavities are defined in part by the metering member and in part by a sidewall surface of the hopper, wherein rotation of the metering member relative to the hopper agitates the ice in the ice cavities. 9. An ice dispensing system, comprising: a cylindrical hopper having an outlet opening defined in a bottom end of the hopper and an ice inlet defined in a top end of the hopper;a metering disk positioned in the hopper, the metering disk including a plurality of cavities;a shelf member positioned in the hopper, the shelf member separating a supply of ice held in an upper portion of the hopper from a fill space underneath the shelf member, the shelf member arranged to constantly shield at least a portion of all of the cavities from the supply of ice held in the upper portion of the hopper;a dividing wall positioned in the hopper;wherein the metering disk is rotatable relative to the hopper between a first position wherein at least one cavity is exposed to the supply of ice in the fill space to be filled with ice and a second position wherein the at least one cavity is separated from the supply of ice by the dividing wall and the shelf member and ice in the at least one cavity is dispensed through the outlet opening. 10. The ice dispensing system of claim 9, further comprising an agitator positioned in the hopper and movable within the supply of ice to break apart the supply of ice. 11. The ice dispensing system of claim 9, wherein the plurality of cavities are evenly spaced apart around a circumference of the metering disk. 12. The ice dispensing system of claim 9, wherein the shelf member and dividing wall are integrally formed as a single piece. 13. The ice dispensing system of claim 9, wherein the shelf extends in a direction at least partially radially inward, and the dividing wall extends generally perpendicular to the shelf. 14. The ice dispensing system of claim 9, further comprising an ice generating device mounted to the hopper, the ice generating device configured to deliver the supply of ice into the hopper through the ice inlet. 15. The ice dispensing system of claim 14, wherein the ice generating device generates pellet or any other appropriate shaped ice. 16. The ice dispensing system of claim 9, further comprising a control system, the control system being operable to rotate the metering disk to dispense a selected volume of ice from the hopper depending on a size of the cavities, a duration of rotating the metering disk, and a speed of rotation of the metering disk. 17. The ice dispensing system of claim 9, wherein the dividing wall defines a nonconcentric interior shape in the hopper that increases ice break up and delivery of ice into the at least one cavity. 18. An ice dispensing system, comprising: a hopper having a sidewall surface, a bottom surface, and an outlet opening formed in the bottom surface at a bottom end thereof, the hopper being configured to hold ice;a metering member mounted within the hopper;at least one ice cavity defined in part by the metering member and in part by the sidewall surface of the hopper;wherein the metering member is rotatable to a fill position wherein the at least one ice cavity is filled by a first portion of ice held in the hopper, the ice cavity in the fill position being separated from the outlet opening, and the metering member is rotatable to a dispense position wherein the at least one ice cavity is exposed to the outlet opening to dispense ice from the at least one ice cavity; anda shelf member shielding the first portion of ice entering the at least one ice cavity from a second portion of ice resting on the shelf member directly above the first portion of ice, the shelf member constantly shielding at least a portion of one ice cavity from the second portion of ice. 19. The ice dispensing system of claim 18, further comprising a dividing wall arranged to shield the at least one ice cavity from the supply of ice when the metering member is in the dispense position. 20. The ice dispensing system of claim 19, wherein the dividing wall is between the shelf member and the outlet opening. 21. The ice dispensing system of claim 18, wherein the at least one ice cavity includes a plurality of ice cavities, and a separate one of the plurality of ice cavities is exposed to and filled by the supply of ice concurrently with the metering member being in the dispense position. 22. The ice dispensing system of claim 21, wherein a separate one of the plurality of ice cavities is aligned with the outlet opening to dispense ice concurrently with the metering member being in the fill position.