Patent ID: 6276160
Filing Date: 2001-08-21
Classification: F16H,H02K,Y10T

Abstract:
An ice maker comprising:a motor having gears which transmits rotations of a rotor to an output shaft through a gear mechanism made of gear trains, said gear mechanism being a speed reduction mechanism;an ice making portion for making ice of water which is poured therein;a drive member driven by said motor having gears for removing ice from said ice making portion, ice being made in said ice making portion;an intermittent rotation mechanism including a primary gear which rotates upon receiving rotations of said rotor and a secondary gear which meshes with said primary gear and rotates intermittently, said gear train having said primary gear and said secondary gear so as to transmit rotation of the rotor to the output shaft;said primary gear having only a single tooth for engaging said secondary gear, a tooth-shaped hole, which is provided adjacent to one side of said tooth and with which a meshing tooth of said secondary gear meshes, and a control unit provided adjacent to the other side of said tooth so as to stop said secondary gear from rotation for a given period;wherein, when said primary gear rotates in a predetermined direction, said meshing tooth meshes with said tooth-shaped hole to intermittently rotate said secondary gear; and when said primary gear rotates in a direction opposite to said predetermined direction, said meshing tooth contacts said control unit to prevent rotation of said secondary gear and rotate said primary gear in said predetermined rotational direction,andsaid primary gear is rotated by said rotor, the rotation of said primary gear being transmitted to said secondary gear to make intermittent rotations of said secondary gear to said output shaft so that said output shaft is rotated by said secondary gear.