Heat exchange – Heating and cooling – Heating and cooling of the same material
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-16
2001-01-30
Tapolcai, William E. (Department: 3744)
Heat exchange
Heating and cooling
Heating and cooling of the same material
C062S340000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06179045
ABSTRACT:
The invention concerns a method for treatment of water, especially for freezing water to ice, particularly in the form of ice cubes, in a machine, where water is distributed over a freezing plate with cooling elements for cooling water and/or forming ice on the plate. The invention also concerns a machine for use in such treatment of water, especially an ice cube machine.
The production of ice is per se a conventional process, and there are a number of known designs of machines for producing ice cubes. Such ice cube machines have been used especially in hotels and restaurants where the consumption of ice cubes is high. Such machines are intended for more or less continuous operation, the machine usually being supplied with water directly from the mains and ensuring a regular replenishment of a storage container for the ice cubes. In the freezing process, water is distributed over a relatively large freezing surface, which means that a relatively large refrigeration system must be used for forming ice simultaneously over the entire surface. Most of the known devices of this type are relatively large and expensive and not particularly suitable for private households. Ice cube machines have also been developed in connection with refrigerators/freezers, where the freezer's refrigeration system is also utilised for the formation of ice cubes.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,412,420 there is disclosed a machine for producing ice cubes where water is circulated along a freezing plate in a machine. The plate is equipped on both sides with a lattice of channels for circulation of a cooling medium and water pipes, thus forming hollows or moulds. The plate is placed vertically below a vessel with water from which water is supplied to the plate. Ice cubes will thus be formed in the hollows on both sides of the plate. When the ice cubes have to be loosened, the cooling medium is replaced with a heating medium, the water pipes are filled with water and this heating process causes the ice cubes to work loose and fall down into a container under the freezing plate.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,357,807 describes a machine for producing ice cubes where water runs over a inclined, flat freezing plate, where tubes are provided for the cooling medium on the bottom, thus forming a layer of ice on the plate. After a certain operating period the cooling medium is replaced with a heating medium, thus causing the plate to be heated and the bottom layer of ice melts, with the result that it slides down on a net consisting of a tube with a heating medium, which will divide the sheet of ice into cubes by melting the sections which are in contact with the net.
In both U.S. patents the water which does not freeze is recycled to the freezing plate's upper area. There is further disclosed in DE 2517942 a method for producing ice cubes where the ice cubes are made in moulds which are surrounded by tubes for a cooling medium. The ice cubes are loosened by means of hot water and forced out of the moulds by water under pressure which is introduced at the bottom of the moulds. This water is employed in a next stage for the formation of new ice cubes.
Most of the ice cube machines on the market to-day are, as mentioned above, connected to the water mains, since the water which has to be frozen should not be polluted before entering the ice making machine. Moreover, connection to the mains permits a process to be achieved which is as automatic as possible. A disadvantage of this kind of connection, however, will be that impurities which exist in the mains system will also enter the ice making machine. Furthermore, there is often a certain amount of air in the mains water, which can lead to air bubbles in the ice cubes which are formed.
This problem forms the basis for the invention as well as the desire to provide a water treatment, especially when freezing water to ice, particularly in the form of ice cubes, where the water will be as free as possible of pollution and bacteria. The object of the invention, therefore, is to provide a method by which a simple and rapid water treatment can be undertaken, especially in the production of pure ice, where the entrapment of air is avoided, thus providing ice which is “homogeneous” and transparent. A further object of the invention is to provide a machine which can treat water in a simple manner, especially in the production of ice of such quality. The machine should have sufficient capacity to satisfy the normal requirements of an ordinary family and should be so reasonable to purchase that it will be an alternative in the consumer goods sector. The machine should have a low energy consumption, should be service-friendly and mobile and in the standard version should not be connected to the water mains. The invention should also be able to be employed for cooling water down to the freezing point of water without the formation of ice cubes.
These objects are achieved by a method and a machine which are characterized by the features presented in the patent claims.
In the invention water which has been heated to a temperature near the boiling temperature (in the following called boiled water) is employed, wherein bacterial growth is partially killed and wherein at least some of the air is expelled. The water should thereby be heated at least to a temperature of approx. 80-100° C., and preferably as near as possible to he boiling temperature. Especially in the starting period of the process the temperature may be in the lower area. It may appear to be a self-contradiction that the water which has to be cooled or from which ice cubes have to be made, is exposed to a boiling process, but this can also have its advantages since the hot water in a circulation process can emit heat which can be used to free ice from the freezing plate. Thus during the circulation the boiled and partly sterilised water will be cooled and a uniform build-up of a layer of ice will be obtained on the freezing plate. During the freezing which takes place, any remaining impurities in the water will be exposed to the effect of cold and thereby to a further purification. It has been shown that the combination of heating to circa 80-100° C. with consequent cooling towards or below 0° C. provides a particularly efficient purification and removal of the bacterial flora. In principle water may be employed which is heated or boiled in a preceding stage, but the most advantageous procedure will be to incorporate the boiling process in the actual ice making machine. On start-up it may be advantageous to fill up with previously boiled water, thus enabling the machine to be operated with this until water has been boiled. The invention also comprises a machine for treatment of water, especially for cooling and/or producing ice, particularly ice cubes. The machine is preferably intended for use on a small scale, such as for household use and can be built as a mobile machine, which is independent of connection to a water mains system, with the result that the water which has to be frozen into ice cubes is taken from a storage container in the actual machine which can be replenished as it becomes empty. In the machine the water undergoes a boiling or sterilising process, thus avoiding bacteria and similar pollution in the water, while at the same time air is forced out to a great extent, thus giving the ice cubes a clear and compact consistency. In the machine according to the invention the heat from the boiling process is utilised for releasing the ice cubes after the completion of production on the freezing element, which is composed of a inclined plate. The method which is employed for operation of the apparatus, together with the design of the actual freezing element or the inclined plate is the object of Norwegian patent application 96 2830 and described in more detail therein.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3791163 (1974-02-01), Dickson et al.
patent: 3811494 (1974-05-01), Menzel
patent: 3930535 (1976-01-01), Menzel
patent: 4357807 (1982-11-01), Aleksandrow
patent: 4412420 (1983-11-01), Patrichi et al.
patent: 4412429 (1983-11-01), Kohl
Quarles & Brady LLP
Tapolcai William E.
LandOfFree
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