Ice-maker motor with integrated encoder and header

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10126037-B2
Application number	US-201314438231-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 22, 2013
Priority date	Nov 5, 2012
Publication date	Nov 13, 2018
Grant date	Nov 13, 2018

Abstract

An ice maker mechanism provides a position sensor sensing the position of the ice tray to allow control of absolute position of the ice tray without the need for motor stalling such as generates heat and wastes energy. An ice maker mechanism provides two motors for rotating the ice tray adapted for high torques low-speed rotation and low torque high-speed rotation the latter used for agitation of the water during freezing.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An ice making apparatus comprising:
a housing having a front wall positioned adjacent to an ice mold, wherein the ice mold is for molding ice cubes;
a rotatable shaft that extends through the front wall and is rotatable about an axis, the rotatable shaft having a first end within the housing and a second end displaced from the first end along the axis and said second end is configured to be attached to the ice mold;
a position sensor configured to communicate with the rotatable shaft to provide an electrical position signal indicating a position of the rotatable shaft; and
electrical conductor attached to the position sensor and configured to communicate the electrical position signal to an electrical controller for controlling ice making;
wherein the ice making apparatus further includes:
a brushless motor positioned within the housing and is configured to drive the first end of the rotatable shaft to rotate the rotatable shaft in a first mode of operation for agitating freezing water; and
a brush motor positioned within the housing and is configured to drive the first end of the rotatable shaft to rotate the rotatable shaft in a second mode of operation for releasing ice.

2. The ice making apparatus of claim 1 wherein the brush motor is further configured to receive electrical signals from the controller;
whereby the electrical controller is further configured to control the brush motor according to the electrical position signal.

3. The ice making apparatus of claim 1 wherein the electrical position signal has a magnitude indicating the position of the rotatable shaft.

4. The ice making apparatus of claim 3 wherein the position sensor provides a set of electrically switched connections communicating with a resistor ladder to provide a voltage dependent on a state of the electrically switched connections as they change with a rotation of the position sensor and wherein the voltage is the electrical position signal.

5. The ice making apparatus of claim 4 wherein the position sensor includes a printed circuit board positioned to extend perpendicularly to the rotatable shaft providing traces having arcuate surfaces concentric about an axis of rotation of the rotatable shaft that may be selectively interconnected by a wiper rotating with the rotatable shaft to implement the set of electrically switched connections.

6. The ice making apparatus of claim 4 wherein the position sensor includes a magnet element and a magnet supporting structure with the magnet element attached to the magnet supporting structure and the magnet supporting structure attached for rotation with the rotatable shaft, and further includes multiple angularly displaced Hall effect sensors positioned along a path of the magnet element with rotation of the rotatable shaft to provide electrically switched connections that vary with rotation of the magnet element to provide the electrical position signal.

7. The ice making apparatus of claim 1 wherein the ice mold is attached to the rotatable shaft for rotating therewith, the ice mold including cavities for receiving and holding water in an upright position for freezing the water.

8. The ice making apparatus of claim 1 further including a printed circuit board within the housing that extends perpendicularly to the axis of the rotatable shaft, the printed circuit board supporting at least a portion of the position sensor;
wherein the electrical conductors provide connector pins of a releasable electrical connector, the connector pins attached to the printed circuit board extend through the housing to provide electrical communication to the printed circuit board; and
wherein the housing provides an integrated connector shell for surrounding the connector pins to guide and retain a corresponding mating electrical connector.

9. The ice making apparatus of claim 8 wherein the housing has interfitting front and back portions each supporting part of the integrated connector shell and together providing a shroud surrounding the connector pins.

10. The ice making apparatus of claim 1 wherein the housing further includes right and left sidewalls flanking the front wall and further includes a second rotatable shaft extending from at least one of the right and left side walls to provide an exposed end of the second rotatable shaft outside of the housing;
a reciprocating mechanism communicating with the rotatable shaft to provide reciprocation of the second rotatable shaft with rotation of the rotatable shaft; and
a bail arm attachable to the exposed end.

11. The ice making apparatus of claim 10 further including a second position sensor configured to communicate with the second rotatable shaft to sense a position of the bail arm.

12. The ice making apparatus of claim 11 further including a printed circuit board extending perpendicularly to the rotatable shaft and wherein the second position sensor is an electrical switch having contacts formed on the printed circuit board contacting contacts movable with the second rotatable shaft.

13. The ice making apparatus of claim 11 wherein the second position sensor is a magnet sensor configured to be activated by a magnet, and wherein the magnet is mounted to move with the second rotatable shaft.

14. The ice making apparatus of claim 1 wherein the brushless motor is a stepper motor.

15. The ice making apparatus of claim 1 including a power transmitting mechanism physically engaging the brushless motor only over a first range of rotation of the rotatable shaft and physically engaging the brush motor only over a second range of rotation of the rotatable shaft different from the first range.

16. The ice making apparatus of claim 15 wherein the first and second range of rotation overlap.

17. The ice making apparatus of claim 15 wherein the power transmitting mechanism is a gear having an outer periphery following a radius about an axis of rotation of the gear and having teeth along only a portion of the periphery to selectively engage a first gear driven by the brush motor in the first range of rotation and a second gear driven by the brushless motor in the second range of rotation.

18. The ice making apparatus of claim 15 wherein the power transmitting mechanism is a stop surface attached to a rotatable drive element driven by the brush motor, the stop surface engaging a concentrically rotating arm attached to the rotatable shaft driven by the brushless motor, the stop surface being configured to engage the rotating arm when the rotatable arm passes beyond a predetermined angular position with respect to rotatable drive element;
whereby the rotating arm is configured to reciprocate within a predetermined angular range without engagement with the rotatable drive element.

19. The ice making apparatus of claim 18 further including temperature sensor signal conductors, wherein the temperature signal conductors are attached to the rotatable shaft and thereby rotate with the rotatable shaft and are configured for communication with a temperature sensor in the ice mold attached to the rotatable shaft,
wherein the ice making apparatus further including a slip ring system attached between the rotatable drive element and circuitry fixed with respect to the housing; and
the ice making apparatus further including contacts for connecting the signal conductors on the rotatable shaft with a portion of the slip ring system on the rotatable drive element only when the rotating arm engages the rotatable drive element.

20. The ice making apparatus

Assignees

• Illinois Tool Works

Inventors

• Barrena Juan J
• Maloof James M
• Larson Eric K
• Prunty Jeffrey L

Classifications

• F25C2305/022

  Harvesting ice including rotating or tilting or pivoting of a mould or tray · CPC title

• F25C5/187 Primary

  with ice level sensing means · CPC title

• F25C1/00

  Producing ice (F25C3/00 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F25C2700/12

  Temperature of ice trays · CPC title

• F25C2600/04

  Control means · CPC title