ICE DISPENSING SYSTEM

• Main Authors: BITTS, DONALD R, THOMPSON, VIRGIL R, DISBENNETT, WALTER I
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French
• Published: 19.09.2006
• Subjects: BLASTING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; HEATING; LIGHTING; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; MEASURING; MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUIDLEVEL; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; METERING BY VOLUME; PHYSICS; PRODUCING, WORKING OR HANDLING ICE; REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; TESTING; WEAPONS

An ice dispenser system incorporates a common ice delivery passage for both cubed and crushed ice. A first set of ice crushing blades are mounted upon a shaft that rotates concurrently with an ice delivery element such as an auger. When cubed ice is desired, an unobstructed ice delivery path is provided with the second set of ice crushing blades being pivoted out of the passage and the first set of ice crushing blades simply rotating within the passage to aid in delivering ice to an ice receiving area. Preferably, the second set of ice crushing blades are pivoted through the use of a crank arm that has a first bent end received in a slot formed in the second set of ice crushing blades and a second bent end that is acted upon by an output member of a solenoid attached to a rear portion of an ice collecting bin of the system. When crushed ice is desired, the second set of ice crushing blades is arranged in the delivery path such that the second set of ice crushing blades is interleaved with the first set of rotating crushing blades so the ice will be crushed between the two sets of blades.