Patent Description:
In general, ice includes opaque ice and transparent ice.

The opaque ice is obtained by freezing water containing impurities and air, and has an opaque color.

The transparent ice is obtained by freezing water that does not contain impurities and air, and has a transparent color.

The transparent ice is not melt better than the opaque ice. For example, in an environment of <NUM>, the transparent ice is thawed after <NUM> hours and <NUM> minutes, but the opaque ice is thawed after <NUM> hours and <NUM> minutes. Furthermore, in an environment of <NUM>, the transparent ice is thawed after <NUM> hour and <NUM> minutes, but the opaque ice is thawed after <NUM> hours and <NUM> minutes.

The reason why the transparent ice is not melt better than the opaque ice is that an exposure area of transparent ice is rather narrow because there is no air tunnel due to impurities and air, but an exposure area of opaque ice is rather wide because there is air tunnels due to impurities and air.

A conventional transparent ice manufacturing system manufactures a large capacity of opaque ice by freezing a large capacity of water at once, separates the large capacity of opaque ice frozen by an ice maker, cutting the large capacity of opaque ice into a plurality of opaque ice pieces by a carver, crushes unnecessary parts of the plurality of opaque ice pieces to manufacture a plurality of transparent ice pieces, and in turn forms the plurality of transparent ice pieces into shapes corresponding to a final product.

In this way, according to the conventional transparent ice manufacturing system, a manufacturing time for transparent ice increases as a manufacturing process for the transparent ice becomes very complex, and energy consumptions, such as electric power, which are necessary for manufacturing transparent ice increase.

Furthermore, according to the conventional transparent ice manufacturing system, raw materials are wasted because unnecessary parts of the transparent ice are discarded through carving, crushing, and forming.

<CIT> relates to an ice maker to generate various sizes and shapes of ice. <CIT> relates to an ice making assembly for making clear ice and the ice making assembly includes a conductive ice mold, an insulation jacket, and a water dispenser. <CIT> relates to a clear ice cube producer. <CIT> relates to an automatic ice maker for producing a large amount of ice cubes in a spherical form in full automatic manner.

The following disclosure serves a better understanding of the present invention.

An aspect of the inventive concept provides a transparent ice manufacturing system and a method for manufacturing transparent ice by using the same, by which a manufacturing time for the transparent ice may be shortened by simplifying a manufacturing process for the transparent ice, energy consumptions such as electric power that is necessary for manufacturing the transparent ice may be reduced, and a manufacturing efficiency of the transparent ice may be enhanced.

Another aspect of the inventive concept provides a transparent ice manufacturing system and a method for manufacturing transparent ice by using the same, by which a quality of transparent ice may be easily managed, and transparent ice of various shapes and various kinds may be manufactured.

An aspect of the inventive concept provides a transparent ice manufacturing system and a method for manufacturing transparent ice by using the same, by which because transparent ice is manufactured by filling the liquid in the cavity of a shape corresponding to a final product and then freezing the liquid, parts that are not necessary in the transparent ice may be prevented from being discarded through the carving, the crushing, and the forming and raw materials may be prevented from being wasted.

The technical objects of the inventive concept are not limited to the above-mentioned ones, and the other unmentioned technical objects will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description.

The present invention provides a transparent ice manufacturing system as defined in the independent claim <NUM> and a method for manufacturing transparent ice as defined in the independent claim <NUM>.

According to the invention, a transparent ice manufacturing system includes a reservoir tank, in which a liquid is stored, a mold having a cavity, in which the liquid supplied from the reservoir tank is filled to form ice, a cooling part that cools one area of the mold to manufacture ice while freezing the liquid from the one area to an opposite area of the mold, and a fluid circulation part provided between the reservoir tank and the mold, and that circulates the liquid between the reservoir tank and the cavity while the liquid is frozen in the cavity.

Furthermore, the mold includes a first mold and a second mold that are coupled to each other to be separable while forming the cavity.

Furthermore, the transparent ice manufacturing system may further include a pair of forming molds having an auxiliary cavity that forms ice of a specific shape, and coupled to a cavity formed in the first mold and a cavity formed in the second mold to be separable.

Furthermore, the transparent ice manufacturing system may further include a coupling recess formed in any one of the first mold and the second mold, and a coupling boss protruding from the other of the first mold and the second mold, coupled to the coupling recess to be separable, and combining and arranging the first mold and the second mold.

Furthermore, the fluid circulation part includes a liquid supply pump that pumps and supplies the liquid stored in the reservoir tank to the cavity formed by the first mold and the second mold, a first flow passage that guides flows of the liquid pumped by the liquid supply pump to the cavity, and a second flow passage that guides flows of the liquid discharged from the cavity to the reservoir tank.

Furthermore, the fluid circulation part further includes an air pump that suctions air in the cavity formed by the first mold and the second mold, or discharges air stored in the reservoir tank into the cavity.

Furthermore, the liquid supply pump may be provided in the first flow passage, and the air pump may be provided in the second flow passage.

Furthermore, the transparent ice manufacturing system may further include a controller that relieves the remaining liquid left in the cavity to the reservoir tank before the ice frozen in the cavity is separated from the cavity.

Furthermore, the controller may relieve the remaining liquid left in the cavity to the reservoir tank and then separating the ice frozen in the cavity from the cavity by relieving discharging the air accommodated in the reservoir tank into the cavity.

Furthermore, the transparent ice manufacturing system may further include a relief valve provided in the reservoir tank, and that ejects air in the reservoir tank to an outside when a pressure in the reservoir tank is a preset pressure or more.

Furthermore, the transparent ice manufacturing system may further include an agitation part that agitates the liquid filled in the cavity.

Furthermore, the transparent ice manufacturing system may further include a liquid tank, in which the liquid supplied to the reservoir tank is stored, and a liquid supply part that supplies the liquid stored in the liquid tank to the reservoir tank such that a constant amount of the liquid stored in the reservoir tank is maintained.

Furthermore, the cooling part may be provided in any one of the first mold and the second mold, and the fluid circulation part may be provided in the other of the first mold and the second mold.

According another embodiment of the inventive concept, a method for manufacturing transparent ice by using the transparent ice manufacturing system includes suctioning the air in the cavity formed by the mold, filling the liquid stored in the reservoir tank in the cavity, cooling the one area of the mold to manufacture the ice while freezing the liquid from the one area to the opposite area of the mold, by the cooling part, circulating the liquid between the reservoir tank and the cavity while the liquid is frozen in the cavity, relieving the remaining liquid left in the cavity to the reservoir tank before the ice frozen in the cavity is separated from the cavity, and separating the ice frozen in the cavity from the cavity by discharging the air accommodated in the reservoir tank into the cavity.

Detailed items of the other embodiments are included in the detailed description and the accompanying drawings.

According to the inventive concept, a manufacturing time for the transparent ice may be shortened by simplifying a manufacturing process for the transparent ice, energy consumptions such as electric power that is necessary for manufacturing the transparent ice may be reduced, and a manufacturing efficiency of the transparent ice may be enhanced.

Furthermore, a quality of transparent ice may be easily managed, and transparent ice of various shapes and various kinds may be manufactured.

In addition, because transparent ice is manufactured by filling the liquid in the cavity of a shape corresponding to a final product and then freezing the liquid, parts that are not necessary in the transparent ice may be prevented from being discarded through the carving, the crushing, and the forming and raw materials may be prevented from being wasted.

The effects of the inventive concept are not limited thereto, and other unmentioned effects of the inventive concept may be clearly appreciated by those skilled in the art from the following descriptions.

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of the inventive concept will become apparent from the following description of the following embodiments given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, the inventive concept is not limited by the embodiments disclosed herein but will be realized in various different forms, and the embodiments are provided only to make the disclosure of the inventive concept complete and fully inform the scope of the inventive concept to an ordinary person in the art, to which the inventive concept pertains, and the inventive concept will be defined by the scope of the claims.

The terms used herein are provided to describe the embodiments but not to limit the inventive concept. In the specification, the singular forms include plural forms unless particularly mentioned. The terms "comprises" and/or "comprising" used herein does not exclude presence or addition of one or more other elements, in addition to the aforementioned elements. Throughout the specification, the same reference numerals denote the same elements, and "and/or" includes the respective elements and all combinations of the elements. Although "first", "second" and the like are used to describe various elements, the elements are not limited by the terms. The terms are used simply to distinguish one element from other elements. Accordingly, it is apparent that a first element mentioned in the following may be a second element without departing from the inventive concept.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which the inventive concept pertains.

The terms, such as "below", "beneath", "lower", "above", and "upper", which are spatially relative may be used to easily describe a correlation between one element and other elements as illustrated in the drawings. The spatially relative terms have to be understood as terms including different directions of the elements during use or an operation, in addition to the direction illustrated in the drawings. For example, when the elements illustrated in the drawings are overturned, the elements "below" or "beneath" another element may be positioned "above" the other element. Accordingly, the term "below" or "beneath" may include "below" or "beneath" and "above". The element may be oriented in different directions, and accordingly, the spatially relative terms may be construed according to the orientation.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the inventive concept will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<FIG> is a schematic view illustrating a transparent ice manufacturing system according to an embodiment of the inventive concept. <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG> are schematic views illustrating various examples of a cooling part of a transparent ice manufacturing system according to an embodiment of the inventive concept. <FIG> and <FIG> are schematic views illustrating a coupling recess and a coupling boss of a transparent ice manufacturing system according to an embodiment of the inventive concept. <FIG> is a schematic view illustrating an agitation part of a transparent ice manufacturing system according to an embodiment of the inventive concept. <FIG> is a schematic view illustrating an agitation part of a transparent ice manufacturing system according to an embodiment of the inventive concept.

As illustrated in <FIG>, a transparent ice manufacturing system according to an embodiment of the inventive concept includes a reservoir tank <NUM>, a mold <NUM>, a cooling part <NUM>, and a fluid circulation part <NUM>.

A liquid that is to be supplied into a cavity <NUM> of the mold <NUM> is stored in the reservoir tank <NUM>. Here, the liquid may be water, a drinking water, a chemical or a chemical liquid. The reservoir tank <NUM> has a sealed container shape for storing the liquid.

A constant amount of the liquid may normally be stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> by a liquid tank <NUM> and a liquid supply part <NUM>.

The liquid that is to be supplied to the reservoir tank <NUM> is stored in the liquid tank <NUM>. The liquid tank <NUM> has a container shape for storing the liquid. Here, the liquid tank <NUM> may supply the preliminarily cooled liquid to the reservoir tank <NUM>. Accordingly, as the preliminarily cooled liquid is filled in the cavity <NUM>, a freezing efficiency of the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> may be improved later.

A scheme of preliminarily cooling the liquid stored in the liquid tank <NUM> is not particularly limited, but various embodiments of the cooling part <NUM>, which will be described below, may be applied.

The liquid supply part <NUM> functions to supply the liquid stored in the liquid tank <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM> such that a constant amount of the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> is maintained. For example, the liquid supply part <NUM> may be a volumetric pump that connects the liquid tank <NUM> and the reservoir tank <NUM> and supplies a constant amount of the liquid stored in the liquid tank <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM>.

The mold <NUM> has the cavity <NUM>, in which the liquid supplied to the reservoir tank <NUM> is filled to form ice <NUM>. Here, the cavity <NUM> may have a shape corresponding to the frozen ice <NUM> that is a final product. Accordingly, because the ice <NUM> frozen in the cavity <NUM> has a shape corresponding to the final product, it is not necessary to carve, crush, and form the ice <NUM>. As a result, because the ice <NUM> frozen in the inventive concept does not cause parts that are discarded through the carving, the crushing, and the forming, raw materials may be prevented from being wasted.

The mold <NUM> includes a first mold <NUM> and a second mold <NUM>.

The first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> form the cavity <NUM> and are coupled to each other to be separable. For example, the first mold <NUM> may be disposed on an upper side of the second mold <NUM>, and the first mold <NUM> may form an upper portion of the cavity <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> may form a lower portion of the cavity <NUM>. Furthermore, the first mold <NUM> may be moved toward the second mold <NUM> by a driving unit such as a lift, and the second mold <NUM> may be provided in the fluid circulation part <NUM>.

The cooling part <NUM> manufactures the ice <NUM> by cooling one area of the mold <NUM> and freezing the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> from the one area to an opposite area of the mold <NUM>. In this way, when the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is frozen by the cooling part <NUM>, the fluid circulation part <NUM>, which will be described below, may circulate the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> between the reservoir tank <NUM> and the cavity <NUM> continuously or intermittently to remove bubbles contained in the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM>.

The cooling part <NUM> may be provided in the first mold <NUM>, and the fluid circulation part <NUM>, which will be described blow, may be provided in the second mold <NUM>. Then, the cooling part <NUM> may manufacture the ice <NUM> by cooling the first mold <NUM> and freezing the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> from the first mold <NUM> to the second mold <NUM>.

In an embodiment, referring to <FIG>, the cooling part <NUM> may include a plurality of cooling channels <NUM> that is formed in the first mold <NUM> such that a refrigerant circulates therein. Here, the refrigerant may be brine or a gas of a low temperature.

Furthermore, referring to <FIG>, the cooling part <NUM> may include a cooling pad <NUM> that is formed in the first mold <NUM> such that the refrigerant circulates therein. Here, the refrigerant may be brine or a gas of a low temperature.

Furthermore, referring to <FIG>, the cooling part <NUM> may include a cooling chamber <NUM> that is formed in the first mold <NUM> such that the refrigerant circulates therein. Here, the refrigerant may be brine or a gas of a low temperature.

Furthermore, referring to <FIG>, the cooling part <NUM> may include a cooling tank <NUM> that is provided in the first mold <NUM> and in which brine is filled, and the plurality of cooling channels <NUM> that is formed in the cooling tank <NUM> such that the refrigerant circulates therein. Here, the refrigerant may be a gas of a low temperature.

Furthermore, referring to <FIG>, the cooling part <NUM> may include a cooling tank <NUM> that is provided in the first mold <NUM> and in which brine is filled, and a cooling pipe <NUM> that is formed in the cooling tank <NUM> such that the refrigerant circulates therein. Here, the refrigerant may be a gas of a low temperature.

The fluid circulation part <NUM> is provided between the reservoir tank <NUM> and the mold <NUM>, and circulates the liquid between the reservoir tank <NUM> and the cavity <NUM> continuously or intermittently while the liquid is frozen in the cavity <NUM>. In this way, when the liquid circulates, bubbles contained in the liquid frozen in the cavity <NUM> are removed, and thus the transparent ice <NUM> may be manufactured in the cavity <NUM>.

The fluid circulation part <NUM> may be controlled by a controller <NUM>. The controller <NUM> may include an image sensor that photographs a frozen state of the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> to obtain an image, and may identify the frozen state of the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> according to data transmitted by the image sensor to operate the fluid circulation part <NUM>. For example, the controller <NUM> may include a microcomputer, a programmable logic controller (PLC), and the like.

The fluid circulation part <NUM> includes a liquid supply pump <NUM>, a first flow passage <NUM>, a second flow passage <NUM>, and an air pump <NUM>.

The liquid supply pump <NUM> pumps and supplies the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> to the cavity <NUM> formed by the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM>.

The first flow passage <NUM> and the second flow passage <NUM> may be pipes that communicate the reservoir tank <NUM> and the cavity <NUM>. The first flow passage <NUM> and the second flow passage <NUM> may pass through a manifold <NUM>.

The first flow passage <NUM> guides flows of the liquid pumped by the liquid supply pump <NUM> to the cavity <NUM>.

The second flow passage <NUM> guides flows of the liquid discharged from the cavity <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM>.

The air pump <NUM> suctions the air in the cavity <NUM> formed by the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM>, or discharges the air stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> into the cavity <NUM>.

Here, the liquid supply pump <NUM> is provided on the first flow passage <NUM>, and the air pump <NUM> is provided on the second flow passage <NUM>. Furthermore, although it is illustrated in the present embodiment that the liquid supply pump <NUM> and the air pump <NUM> are disposed on a lower side of the cavity <NUM>, the inventive concept is limited thereto, and may be disposed on any one of an upper side, a left side, and a right side of the cavity <NUM>, that is, on one side of a circumference of the cavity <NUM>. Furthermore, according to disposition locations of the liquid supply pump <NUM> and the air pump <NUM>, the fluid circulation part <NUM> including the manifold <NUM> may be disposed on any one of the upper side, the left side, and the right side of the cavity <NUM>, that is, on one side of the circumference of the cavity <NUM>.

Circulating the liquid between the reservoir tank <NUM> and the cavity <NUM> by the fluid circulation part <NUM> having the above configuration may be repeating a first process of pumping and supplying the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> to the cavity <NUM> through the first flow passage <NUM> by the liquid supply pump <NUM> and a second process of discharging the liquid pumped and supplied to the cavity <NUM> into the reservoir tank <NUM> through the second flow passage <NUM>, as one cycle. Here, the liquid supply pump <NUM> may be controlled by the controller <NUM>.

Meanwhile, the controller <NUM> may relieve the remaining liquid left in the cavity <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM> before the ice <NUM> frozen in the cavity <NUM> is separated from the cavity <NUM>. For example, the controller <NUM> may stop the liquid supply pump <NUM> and the air pump <NUM> to relieve the remaining liquid left in the cavity <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM> by naturally dropping it.

After relieving the remaining liquid left in the cavity <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM>, the controller <NUM> may operate the air pump <NUM> to separate the ice <NUM> frozen in the cavity <NUM> from the cavity <NUM> by discharging the air accommodated in the reservoir tank <NUM> into the cavity <NUM>.

The manifold <NUM> may be passed through by the second mold <NUM>, and may be elevated with respect to the cavity <NUM> of the second mold <NUM>. In detail, the manifold <NUM> may be raised with respect to the cavity <NUM> of the second mold <NUM> such that an inner surface of the manifold <NUM> and an inner surface of the second mold <NUM> are connected to each other. That is, the inner surface of the manifold <NUM> and the inner surface of the second mold <NUM> are disposed to correspond to an inner surface of the final product. Furthermore, the manifold <NUM> may be lowered to a location that is spaced apart from the cavity <NUM> of the second mold <NUM>.

As will be described later, the elevation of the manifold <NUM> may be controlled by the controller <NUM>.

For example, the controller <NUM> may raise the manifold <NUM> with respect to the cavity <NUM> of the second mold <NUM> such that the inner surface of the manifold <NUM> and the inner surface of the second mold <NUM> may be disposed to be continuous to each other before the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is frozen to a specific ratio of a volume of the cavity <NUM>. (See <FIG>).

Then, because the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is made to circulate between the reservoir tank <NUM> and the cavity <NUM> by the liquid supply pump <NUM>, it is difficult to freeze the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> into ice of a shape corresponding to the final product.

Accordingly, the controller <NUM> may lower the manifold <NUM> to a location that is spaced apart from the cavity <NUM> of the second mold <NUM> such that the ice frozen in the cavity <NUM> grows up to the shape corresponding to final product after the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is frozen to the specific ratio of the volume of the cavity <NUM>. (see <FIG>). Then, processes of relieving the remaining liquid left in the cavity <NUM> through the first flow passage <NUM> and the second flow passage <NUM> may be performed simultaneously.

In the example, the specific ratio of the volume of the cavity <NUM> set by the controller <NUM> is not particularly limited, but may be <NUM>% to <NUM>%.

In the example, the controller <NUM> may determine whether the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is frozen to the specific ratio of the volume of the cavity <NUM> by a medium of a period of time, for which the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is frozen.

Furthermore, the controller <NUM> may determine a reference for freezing the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> to the specific ratio of the volume of the cavity <NUM> by a medium of data transmitted from a distance sensor that measures a distance between the ice frozen in the cavity <NUM> and the manifold <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, the transparent ice manufacturing system according to the embodiment of the inventive concept may further include a relief valve <NUM>.

The relief valve <NUM> may be provided in the reservoir tank <NUM> and may eject the air in the reservoir tank <NUM> to the outside when a pressure in the reservoir tank <NUM> is a preset pressure or more. In this way, because the air in the reservoir tank <NUM> is ejected to the outside by the relief valve <NUM>, the internal pressure in the reservoir tank <NUM> may be maintained at a specific pressure. For example, the relief valve <NUM> may change the preset pressure according to a magnitude of a control current set by the controller <NUM>, in an electronic proportional scheme.

The transparent ice manufacturing system according to the embodiment of the inventive concept may further include a coupling recess <NUM>, a coupling boss <NUM>, and an agitation part <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG> and <FIG>, the coupling recess <NUM> is recessed on a facing surface of the first mold <NUM>, which faces the second mold <NUM>. The coupling recess <NUM> may be recessed along a circumference of the cavity <NUM> of the first mold <NUM> or in one area of the circumference.

The coupling boss <NUM> may protrude on a facing surface of the second mold <NUM>, which faces the first mold <NUM>, to be coupled to the coupling recess <NUM> to be separable, and may arrange the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> while combining them. The coupling boss <NUM> may protrude along a circumference of the cavity <NUM> of the second mold <NUM> or in one area of the circumference in correspondence to the coupling recess <NUM>.

Accordingly, because the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> are combined with each other by the coupling recess <NUM> and the coupling boss <NUM>, leakage of the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> may be prevented, and intrusion of the air in the cavity <NUM> may be prevented.

Here, although it is illustrated in the present embodiment that the coupling recess <NUM> is provided in the first mold <NUM> and the coupling boss <NUM> is provided in the second mold <NUM>, the inventive concept is not limited thereto, but the coupling recess <NUM> may be provided in the second mold <NUM> and the coupling boss may be provided in the first mold.

Furthermore, an O-ring <NUM> for sealing the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> may be provided on a combining surface of the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> to maintain a sealed state of the cavity <NUM> formed by the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, the agitation part <NUM> may be provided at an end of the manifold <NUM> that faces the cavity <NUM> to agitate the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> through the fluid circulation part <NUM>. In this way, because the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is additionally agitated through the agitation part <NUM>, generation of bubbles in the ice frozen in the cavity <NUM> may be remarkably alleviated. For example, the agitation part <NUM> is not particularly limited, but may include an impeller, a BLDC motor, a vibration element, a piezoelectric element, and an ultrasonic vibrator.

A process of manufacturing the transparent ice <NUM> by the transparent ice manufacturing system according to an embodiment of the inventive concept will be described. The following process may be performed by the controller <NUM>.

<FIG> are schematic views illustrating a process of manufacturing transparent ice <NUM> by the transparent ice manufacturing system according to the embodiment of the inventive concept.

First, as illustrated in <FIG>, in a state in which the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> are spaced apart from each other, the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> are combined with each other by moving the first mold <NUM> in a direction that faces the second mold <NUM>.

Next, as illustrated in <FIG>, the air in the cavity <NUM> formed by the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> is suctioned through the second flow passage <NUM> by driving the air pump <NUM>.

Next, as illustrated in <FIG>, the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> is filled in the cavity <NUM> through the first flow passage <NUM> by driving the liquid supply pump <NUM>. Then, the liquid supply part <NUM> may supply the liquid stored in the liquid tank <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM> such that a constant amount of the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> is maintained.

Here, the liquid supplied from the liquid tank <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM> may be the preliminarily cooled liquid. Accordingly, as the preliminarily cooled liquid is filled in the cavity <NUM>, a freezing efficiency of the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> may be improved later.

Thereafter, as illustrated in <FIG>, when the first mold <NUM> is cooled by driving the cooling part <NUM>, the cooling heat of the cooling part <NUM> is transferred from the circumference of the first mold <NUM> toward the circumference of the second mold <NUM> via a center of the cavity <NUM> to form ice, for example, the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is gradually frozen from the first mold <NUM> to the second mold <NUM> to manufacture the ice <NUM> of a desired shape. Then, the ice <NUM> is frozen while growing up from the first mold <NUM> to the second mold <NUM>.

In this way, while the liquid filled in the cavity <NUM> is frozen, a first process of pumping and supplying the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> to the cavity <NUM> through the first flow passage <NUM> by the liquid supply pump <NUM> and a second process of discharging the liquid pumped and supplied to the cavity <NUM> into the reservoir tank <NUM> through the second flow passage <NUM> are repeated as one cycle. In this way, when the liquid circulates, bubbles contained in the liquid frozen in the cavity <NUM> are removed, and thus the transparent ice <NUM> may be manufactured.

Next, when the ice frozen in the cavity <NUM> reaches the preset size, as illustrated in <FIG>, the remaining liquid left in the cavity <NUM> is relieved through the first flow passage <NUM> and the second flow passage <NUM> before the ice <NUM> is separated from the cavity <NUM>.

Next, as illustrated in <FIG>, the air stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> is discharged into the cavity <NUM> through the second flow passage <NUM> by driving the air pump <NUM>. As a result, the ice <NUM> separated from the cavity <NUM> is separated from the cavity <NUM> by the air discharged from the reservoir tank <NUM>, and the transparent ice of a desired shape may be obtained.

<FIG> is a schematic view illustrating a transparent ice manufacturing system according to another embodiment of the inventive concept. <FIG> is a perspective view illustrating a first mold, a second mold, and a pair of forming molds of a transparent ice manufacturing system according to another embodiment of the inventive concept.

Although it has been described that the transparent ice manufacturing system according to the above-described embodiment of the inventive concept manufactures ice through the cavity <NUM> formed by the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> by circulating the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> between the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM>, and the reservoir tank <NUM>, in another embodiment, as illustrated in <FIG>, a pair of forming molds <NUM> having an auxiliary cavity <NUM> for forming ice of a specific shape are provided in an interior thereof such that the pair of forming molds <NUM> are mounted on the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM>, whereby ice of various shapes may be manufactured through the auxiliary cavity <NUM> by circulating the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> between the auxiliary cavity <NUM> and the reservoir tank <NUM>.

The pair of forming molds <NUM> may constitute a plurality of groups having auxiliary cavities <NUM> of different shapes. Accordingly, because any one of the plurality of groups may be selectively mounted on the first mold <NUM> and the second mold <NUM> to manufacture the ice <NUM> of a shape corresponding to the auxiliary cavity <NUM> of the corresponding group, the ice <NUM> of various shapes may be manufactured for respective groups.

Furthermore, when ice is manufactured by using the pair of forming molds <NUM>, the coupling recess <NUM> and the coupling boss <NUM>, which have been described above, may be provided in the pair of forming molds <NUM>, respectively. Furthermore, an O-ring may be provided between the pair of forming molds <NUM> to maintain a sealed state of the auxiliary cavity formed by the pair of forming molds <NUM>.

A method for manufacturing transparent ice by using the transparent ice manufacturing system according to an embodiment of the inventive concept includes an operation of suctioning the air in the cavity <NUM> formed by the mold <NUM>, an operation of filling the liquid stored in the reservoir tank <NUM> in the cavity <NUM>, an operation of cooling the one area of the mold <NUM> to manufacture the ice while freezing the liquid from the one area to the opposite area of the mold <NUM>, by the cooling part, an operation of circulating the liquid between the reservoir tank <NUM> and the cavity <NUM> while the liquid is frozen in the cavity <NUM>, an operation of relieving the remaining liquid left in the cavity <NUM> to the reservoir tank <NUM> before the ice frozen in the cavity <NUM> is separated from the cavity <NUM>, and an operation of separating the ice frozen in the cavity <NUM> from the cavity by discharging the air accommodated in the reservoir tank <NUM> into the cavity <NUM>.

According to the inventive concept, in the transparent ice manufacturing system and the method for manufacturing transparent ice by using the same according to the embodiments of the inventive concept, a manufacturing time for the transparent ice may be shortened by simplifying a manufacturing process for the transparent ice, energy consumptions such as electric power that is necessary for manufacturing the transparent ice may be reduced, and a manufacturing efficiency of the transparent ice may be enhanced.

Furthermore, according to the transparent ice manufacturing system and the method for manufacturing transparent ice by using the same according to the embodiments of the inventive concept, a quality of transparent ice may be easily managed, and transparent ice of various shapes and various kinds may be manufactured.

Furthermore, according to the transparent ice manufacturing system and the method for manufacturing transparent ice by using the same according to the embodiments of the inventive concept, because transparent ice is manufactured by filling the liquid in the cavity of a shape corresponding to a final product and then freezing the liquid, parts that are not necessary in the transparent ice may be prevented from being discarded through the carving, the crushing, and the forming and raw materials may be prevented from being wasted.

Claim 1:
A transparent ice manufacturing system comprising:
a reservoir tank (<NUM>), in which a liquid is stored;
a mold (<NUM>) having a cavity (<NUM>), in which the liquid supplied from the reservoir tank is filled to form ice;
a cooling part (<NUM>) configured to cool one area of the mold to manufacture the ice while freezing the liquid from the one area to an opposite area of the mold; and
a fluid circulation part (<NUM>) provided between the reservoir tank and the mold, and configured to circulate the liquid between the reservoir tank and the cavity while the liquid is frozen in the cavity;
wherein the mold (<NUM>) includes a first mold (<NUM>) and a second mold (<NUM>) that are coupled to each other to be separable while forming the cavity (<NUM>),
wherein the fluid circulation part (<NUM>) includes:
a liquid supply pump (<NUM>) configured to pump and supply the liquid stored in the reservoir tank (<NUM>) to the cavity (<NUM>) formed by the first mold (<NUM>) and the second mold (<NUM>);
a first flow passage (<NUM>) configured to guide flows of the liquid pumped by the liquid supply pump to the cavity; and
a second flow passage (<NUM>) configured to guide flows of the liquid discharged from the cavity to the reservoir tank,
wherein the transparent ice manufacturing system is characterized in that
the fluid circulation part (<NUM>) further includes:
an air pump (<NUM>) configured to suction air in the cavity (<NUM>) formed by the first mold (<NUM>) and the second mold (<NUM>), or discharge air stored in the reservoir tank (<NUM>) into the cavity.