An apparatus for preserving bulk ice that includes a compartment for drying and storing ice, and a shaft for attaching an ice drying receptacle to the drying and storage compartment is disclosed. The shaft is actuated by a motor having two directions of rotation. The motor is adapted to cause the shaft and ice drying receptacle to rotate in two directions. The action of the motor, and therefore the rotation of the shaft and the ice drying receptacle, are controlled based in part on information received from one or more sensors. The compartment also has a tray with a drain for collecting and removing waste. The tray includes a resistor for melting the remains of the drying process.

An ice dispensing assembly, as provided herein, may include a container, a rotatable drum, a motor, an agitator bridge, and a rotatable blade. The container may define an opening for passing ice. The rotatable may be positioned below the container. The rotatable drum may define an inner channel from a first arc point to a second arc point. The rotatable blade may be housed within the rotatable drum between the first arc point and the second arc point. The rotatable drum may be movable between a crusher position and an agitator position. The crusher position may include the rotatable blade in engagement with the rotatable drum at the first arc point while being circumferentially spaced apart from the second arc point. The agitator position may include the rotatable blade in engagement with the rotatable drum at the second arc point while being circumferentially spaced apart from the first arc point.

An ice bagger is provided. The ice bagger includes an ice hopper into which ice is disposed from an ice manufacturer. The ice hopper further includes an ice agitator and defines an ice trough there beneath. An ice auger, housed inside the ice trough, transports ice to an ice delivery chute. A hatch is positioned beneath the ice delivery chute, upon which the bag rests while filling. A scale is positioned on the hatch. The scale weighs the ice being deposited into the bag. When the bag is full, the bag is sealed by a sealer. When the bag is sealed, the hatch opens and the bag of ice is deposited in an bag depository. This Abstract is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims.

A refrigerator utilizes an ice dispensing system incorporating multiple ice movers, e.g., multiple ice augers, that are arranged adjacent to one another and operable to move ice in opposite directions. Doing so may enable, for example, the multiple ice movers to be operated concurrently with one another to circulate ice in a storage bin and thereby break apart clumped ice.

An ice making system includes a tank that stores a medium to be cooled, an ice making machine that cools the medium and makes ice, a pump that circulates the medium between the tank and the ice making machine, a de-icing mechanism that heats the medium and melts the ice in the ice making machine, and a control device that controls operations of the ice making machine, the pump, and the de-icing mechanism. The ice making machine includes a cooling chamber that cools the medium, an inflow port through which the medium flows into the cooling chamber, and a discharge port through which the medium is discharged from the cooling chamber. The control device activates the de-icing mechanism when a pressure difference between a pressure of the medium at the inflow port and a pressure of the medium at the discharge port exceeds a predetermined value.

An icemaking system includes: a refrigerant circuit that executes a vapor compression refrigeration cycle; a circulation circuit that circulates solution as a cooling target of the refrigerant circuit; and a control device that controls refrigerant evaporation temperature at the refrigerant circuit. The circulation circuit includes a solution flow path of: an ice generator; a solution tank that stores the solution; and a pump that pressure feeds the solution to the solution flow path. The refrigerant circuit includes: an evaporator of the ice generator; a compressor; a condenser; and an expansion valve. The control device includes a central processing unit (CPU) that adjusts to lower evaporation temperature at the evaporator as the solution has higher solute concentration.

A clear ice maker assembly for use in a home refrigerator appliance, the clear ice maker assembly including: an evaporator plate that is cooled via contact with a refrigerant tube; at least one thermally non-conductive ice mold part disposed below the evaporator plate and having one or more walls that together with a surface of the evaporator plate form an ice mold cavity; a spray bar having at least one opening for introducing water vertically into the ice mold cavity such that a clear ice piece forms on the surface of the evaporator plate inside the ice mold cavity of the at least one thermally non-conductive ice mold part; a water reservoir system configured to supply water to the spray bar; and an ejection system configured to eject the clear ice piece formed inside the ice mold cavity of the at least one thermally non-conductive ice mold part.

A motor assembly according to the present invention comprises: a BLDC motor; a gear box in which the BLDC motor is installed; and a power transmission part having a plurality of gears installed in the gear box so as to transmit power generated by the BLDC motor to an ice bin. The BLDC motor comprises: a stator and a rotor rotating with respect to the stator, wherein the rotor may be connected to the power transmission part by a shaft and the stator may be coupled to the gear box in a separable manner.

A safety device for an ice machine comprising a cover-type body (1), with a spherical cap shape, which is articulated on one of the ends (1a) thereof, while on the other end (1b) thereof it has a floating character and incorporates protuberances (1c) that make up the arrangement of an elastic closure (2) responsible for fastening said body to the ice machine (10); and wherein electronic means (3) are located adjacently to the body (1) in the placement area of an end of the elastic closure (2), which are responsible for detecting the change in position or opening of said body (1) and sending machine stop and breakdown warnings.

A refrigerator includes a freezer compartment and a machine compartment positioned proximate the freezer compartment. An icemaker assembly is positioned within the freezer compartment. A fill tube extends from the machine compartment into the icemaker assembly. A first solenoid valve is coupled to the fill tube. A second solenoid valve is coupled to the fill tube, wherein the first and second solenoid valves are positioned within the machine compartment. A controller is configured to independently open and close the first and second solenoid valves.