Patent ID: 6952935

Claim:
An ice making and delivery system comprising: (a) a condenser unit including: (i) a compressor for compressing a gaseous refrigerant; (ii) a condenser for condensing the gaseous refrigerant and dissipating heat; (b) the condenser unit being adapted for selective placement relative to a building such that compressor noise and condenser heat are substantially minimized relative to an evaporator zone in the building; (c) at least one expansion valve for receiving a compressed gaseous fluid from the condenser and converting the gaseous fluid from a high temperature gaseous fluid to a lower temperature liquid fluid; (d) at least one evaporator for receiving the lower temperature liquid fluid from the expansion valve and cooling an associated ice making apparatus; (e) an ice making apparatus associated with said at least one evaporator and having means for creating ice on a cold wall of the apparatus and scraping ice from that wall and compressing the ice into formed nuggets; (f) said at least one evaporator and its associated ice making apparatus being adapted to be separately located, spaced apart from the condenser unit, in an evaporator zone of the building; (g) at least one ice storage unit being adapted to be separately located from the at least one evaporator and its associated ice making apparatus, and from the condenser unit, in an ice storage zone of the building; (h) ice nugget conduit means connecting said ice making apparatus and the separately located ice storage unit; (i) said ice nugget conduit means comprising means for delivery of ice nuggets from said ice making apparatus to said at least one ice storage unit; and (j) said ice making apparatus including ice nugget drive means for driving ice through said conduit means by a driving force other than gravity; (k) means for returning refrigerant from the at least one evaporator, to the condenser unit; and (l) means for driving the compressor and ice making apparatus and its delivery means in a continuous manner, whereby ice nuggets are delivered to that at least one storage unit in a continuous manner; wherein the at least one evaporators and their respective ice making apparatus are provided with two ice nugget conduit means; wherein the means of clause (h) comprise two means for delivery to two different laterally spaced apart locations in the same ice storage unit, for improving the distribution of ice nuggets in the storage unit.