Rapid freezing of ice cubes comprising method, device, product and uses

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for rapid freezing of ice cubes by means of a higher dispensing rate and contact freezing, the cube being produced in 7 minutes with a water consumption equivalent to the volume of the cubes, thereby not wasting a single drop of water. A conventional condenser and compressor store cold in a store where the cold produced is maintained at a constant temperature of −30° C., and a gel that absorbs the cold from the medium is pumped as far as the ice-tray, where it runs into the spaces separating the cells where the cubes are formed in order then to return via a downward conduit to the cold store, continuing the cycle, and a series of dispensing devices meter out the water necessary into the cells where a contact-freezing process is initiated.

Claims

1. Method of rapid freezing ice cubes, comprising the following steps: a) Cold is produced through a conventional condenser and compressor of low power consumption and is brought to an enclosure in stainless steel, called cold store, until reaching a temperature of −30° C., maintaining said temperature constant; b) By means of a forcing pump; a coolant liquid gel at −30° C. is pumped from a cooling coil located inside of said cold store, through an upward conduit, running into spaces between the cells where the cubes are formed in an ice-tray, then returns to a downward conduit again to the cold store, continuing the cycle; c) Water for refilling each of the cells forming the ice-tray is dispensed through a number of liquid dispensers attached in line to a structural support of the liquid dispensers; d) A delay of 5 to 10 minute is allowed to lapse, depending on a cube sizes, until the water contained in each of said cells of highly conductive material cools through walls' contact with the gel, with an ultrasonic or infrared temperature detector detecting the ice has reached a set temperature; e) A heater ring, which heats each cube until it can come off the walls of the cell, is activated; f) A lower ice-tray gate swings about a hinge axis starting a gear motor, thereby releasing a base or bottom cover of the cells so far covered by said gate; g) Upon release of a cell lower cover, an ice cube falls by presenting on an underside of the ice cube a distinctive sign or word initial engraved, which an upper side of said gate presents in bas-relief regularly spaced and coinciding with the base of the cells; and h) Ice cubes slide down a ramp formed by said opened gate to a cube storage bin.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the ice cubes can be an organic product made without wasting a single drop of water, and produced both with mineral water and normal or flavoured water.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the ice cubes are for use of upscale hotel restaurants, catering, haute-cuisine and quality ice-cream shops.

4. Rapid ice cube freezing device which comprises a housing that houses at a base of the housing a condenser and compressor, is a cold store on a right and an ice cube storage bin on a left, said cold store consisting of a stainless steel enclosure where cold produced at a constant temperature of −30° C. is maintained, and said cold store is a coil and a gel that absorbs cold from ambient air by being also maintained at a constant temperature of −30° C., a forcing pump pumping said gel through an upward conduit until reaching an ice-tray, wherein the gel runs into spaces separating cells where the cubes are formed in order then to return via a downward conduit to a cooling coil continuing a cycle, and a number of liquid dispensers attached in line to the structural support of the liquid dispensers meter out water until reaching an amount of each of the cells that form the ice-tray and, once filled, a freezing process starts by contact of walls of the cells of high conductive material with a cooling gel, the freezing process taking between 5 and 10 minutes, depending on size of the cube.

5. The rapid ice cube freezing device, according to claim 4, further comprises an ultrasound or infrared temperature detector detects when the ice cubes reach a set temperature, activating a heater ring that heats each frozen cube until each frozen cube can come off of the walls of the cell and go down when a lower gate of the ice-tray that swings about a hinge axis situated at one end of the ice-tray, which is automatically operated by a gear motor.

6. The rapid ice cube freezing device according to claim 5, wherein a gate swings, a cell base is released, wherein a top side of the gate may have a bas-relief of distinctive signs at regular spaces matching with a cube base, which may be initials of trademarks or others, which are engraved at the base of the cube; once opened the gate, the ice cubes fall and slide down a ramp formed by the same opened gate to the cube storage bin.

7. The rapid ice cube freezing device according to claim 5, further comprises a programmable logic controller, PLC, controls an operation and maintenance of the device by detecting and controlling lack of water low temperature at cold store opening and closing of the ice-tray gate ice storage bin full cube finished at the set temperature failure in the pump for liquids failure in the gear motor failure in dosing and dispensing failure in compressor and evaporator inlet water temperature failure in defrosting heaters power failure alarm ceasing of the operation at the opening of the housing panels.

8. The rapid ice cube freezing device according to claim 4, wherein a gate swings, a cell base is released, wherein a top side of the gate may have a bas-relief of distinctive signs at regular spaces matching with a cube base, which may be initials of trademarks or others, which are engraved at the base of the cube, once opened the gate, the ice cubes fall and slide down a ramp formed by the same opened gate to the cube storage bin.

9. The rapid ice cube freezing device according to claim 8, further comprises a programmable logic controller, PLC, controls an operation and maintenance of the device by detecting and controlling lack of water low temperature at cold store opening and closing of the ice-tray gate ice storage bin full cube finished at the set temperature failure in the pump for liquids failure in the gear motor failure in dosing and dispensing failure in compressor and evaporator inlet water temperature failure in defrosting heaters power failure alarm ceasing of the operation at the opening of the housing panels.

10. The rapid ice cube freezing device according to claim 4, further comprises a programmable logic controller, PLC, controls an operation and maintenance of the device by detecting and controlling lack of water low temperature at cold store opening and closing of the ice-tray gate ice storage bin full cube finished at the set temperature failure in the pump for liquids failure in the gear motor failure in dosing and dispensing failure in compressor and evaporator inlet water temperature failure in defrosting heaters power failure alarm ceasing of the operation at the opening of the housing panels.

11. The rapid ice cube freezing according to claim 4, further comprises a gas coil used in the ice-tray.

12. The rapid frozen ice cube according to claim 4, wherein the ice cube is an organic product made without wasting a single drop of water, and produced both with mineral water and normal or flavoured water.

13. The rapid frozen ice cube according to claim 4, wherein the ice cube is for use of ice cubes upscale-hotel restaurants, catering, haute-cuisine and quality ice-cream shops.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Next, reference is made to figures that help to better understand the description and shows a non-exclusive concrete mode for obtaining an ice cube.

(2) FIG. 1: Side view of the housing showing the elements of the device that do not characterise the invention

(3) In said figures, the following numbered elements stand out:

(4) 1.—Gas inlet to the cold store

(5) 2.—Cold store

(6) 3.—Pump for gel

(7) 4.—Gel outlet tube to ice-tray

(8) 5.—Gel return tube

(9) 6.—Rack for ice-tray gate opening and closing

(10) 7.—Gear motor

(11) 8.—Support of the ice-tray gate

(12) 9.—Heater ring

(13) 10.—Ice ultrasound or infrared temperature detector

(14) 11.—Dispenser for liquids, water or liquid mixture

(15) 12.—Dispenser structural support

(16) 13.—Ice-tray

(17) 14.—Ice-tray gate

(18) 15.—Cold store drain

(19) 16.—Compressor

(20) 17.—Water inlet

(21) 18.—PLC

(22) 19.—Ice cube storage bin

(23) 20.—Condenser

(24) 21.—Cell

(25) 22.—Plug connection

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

(26) Described below is a preferred mode for carrying out the invention, which is only one of multiple modes of construction that can be carried out in the technical development of the invention.

(27) A preferred mode for carrying out the rapid ice cube freezing device object of this invention is constituted from a parallelepiped housing that houses at its base a conventional condenser (20) and compressor (16), and on these, a cold store (2) on the right and an ice cube storage bin (19) on the left, the first consisting of a rectangular sheet metal enclosure, where the cold produced is maintained at a constant thermostatically controlled temperature of −30° C. Within said cold store (2) is a coil for liquid gel, which absorbs the ambient cold and being maintained also at a constant temperature of −30° C. A pump (3) coupled to the coil outlet pumps the gel through an upward conduct (4) until arriving to the ice-tray, where it runs into the spaces separating the cells in which cubes are formed, and then returns via a downward conduit (5) to the cooling coil continuing the cycle. A series of liquid dispensers (11) attached in line to its structural support (12) meter out the necessary water until filling each one of the cells (21) that form the ice-tray (13) and, once filled, a freezing process starts by contact of their walls of high conductive material with the cooling gel, the freezing process taking about 7 minutes. An ultrasound or infrared temperature detector (10) detects the moment in which the ice cubes reach the set temperature, in which moment a heater ring (9) is activated that heats the walls of each cell (21) until the frozen cube can come off of the walls of the cell (21) and go down when the lower gate (14) of the ice-tray (13) that swings just at that moment about a hinge axis situated in its support (8) at one end of the ice-tray (13), which is automatically operated by a gear motor (7). By the swinging the gate (14), the base of the cell (21) remains free. The top side of said gate (14) presents bas-reliefs of distinctive signs at regular spaces matching with the cube base, which may be initials of trademarks or others, which are engraved at the base of the cube. Once opened the gate (14), the ice cubes fall and slide down the ramp formed by the same opened gate to the cube storage bin (19).

(28) A PLC (18) controls the operation and maintenance of the device by detecting and controlling lack of water low temperature at cold store opening and closing of the ice-tray gate ice storage bin full cube finished at the set temperature failure in the pump for liquids failure in the gear motor