What we claim is:
1. Gusseted bag made of a flexible weldable material with a closed bottom end that at the inside top end is provided with a reclosable device, where side gussets that are inserted between the two bag walls that form the front bag wall and the rear bag wall stretch from the bottom end to the top end and terminate at a distance below the upper edge of the bag walls and thus define a top area of the bag without side gussets, where the reclosable device is formed between the two bag walls, said upper ends (7a) of the side gussets (7) being closed by welding to themselves and reach freely into the interior space of the bag underneath the reclosable device (9).
2. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 1, wherein the weld of the upper side gusset ends (7a) with itself is formed by a closing weld seam between the two layers of the side gusset end (7a).
3. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 1 or 2, wherein the upper region (17) of the ends (7a) of the side gussets (7) is folded onto a (13) of the two halves (13, 14) of each side gusset (7) and that the weld of the side gusset end (7a) with itself is formed with the folded end region (17) and the adjacent side gusset half (13).
4. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 3, wherein the upper end region (17) of the side gussets (7) is folded along a fold line (19) that starts at the outer edge of the side gusset half (13) and runs transversely towards the bottom end (1).
5. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 3, wherein the folded end region (17) exhibits the shape of a rectangular triangle.
6. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 3, wherein the reclosable device (9) is formed by two interlockable closing strips (10) that stretch across the entire width of the bag, where one strip is affixed to the front wall (4) of the bag and the other to the rear wall (5) of the bag.
7. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 6, wherein the closing strips (10) are formed as interlocking profile strips that can be closed by interlocking the locking elements (11) in a groove and tongue fashion.
8. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 6, wherein the closing strips (10) are formed as velcro-type strips.
9. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 6, wherein the closing strips (10) are formed as gliding or zipper-type closing devices.
10. Gusseted bag as set forth in claim 6, wherein the reclosable device (9) is formed by a strip of a continuously adhesive material that stretches across the width of the bag and is applied to the inside of the front wall (4) andor the back wall (5) of the bag.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A method for crushing and dispensing ice from an ice dispenser, the method comprising:
a) transferring ice from a non-refrigerated ice bin to an ice crusher housing having a cubed ice inlet and a crushed ice outlet and containing an ice crusher, the ice crusher including at least one rotating crusher blade and at least one non-rotating crusher blade within the ice crusher housing; and
b) crushing ice with the ice crusher;
c) wherein at least one wiper within the ice crusher housing blocks the path of the crushed ice and directs the crushed ice to the ice crusher housing outlet, thereby conveying crushed ice through the crushed ice outlet.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein ice from the ice bin is fed to the ice crusher by a downward sloping chute.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein a motor and a drive shaft connected to the motor drives each of the at least one rotating crusher blades.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein the wiper is provided by a part formed on each of the at least one non-rotating crusher blades.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein the ice crusher housing further comprises a door adjacent to and normally closing the crushed ice outlet, and the door is opened to allow crushed ice to be dispensed through the crushed ice outlet.
6. The method of claim 1 further comprising dispensing non-crushed ice from the ice dispenser.
7. The method of claim 1 further comprising operating an ice maker and conveying ice automatically from the ice maker to the ice bin.
8. The method of claim 6 further comprising selecting whether crushed ice or cubed ice is dispensed from the ice dispenser.
9. The method of claim 1 wherein a paddlewheel in the ice bin is used to transfer ice to the ice crusher housing.
10. A method of operating a beverage dispenser with an integrated ice dispenser, the beverage dispenser having at least one mixing and dispensing valve for mixing a syrup and water and dispensing a beverage, comprising:
a) selecting whether crushed ice or cubed ice is to be dispensed and activating ice dispensing;
b) in response to a selection of crushed ice in step a),
i) causing ice cubes to be delivered to an ice crusher housing;
ii) crushing the ice cubes in the ice crusher housing and conveying crushed ice formed thereby out of a crushed ice outlet of the ice crusher housing, with the ice being lifted between the entry of the ice cubes into the ice crusher housing and the exit of the crushed ice through the crushed ice outlet, and
c) in response to a selection of cubed ice in step a), delivering cubed ice to an ice despising chute.
11. The method of claim 10 wherein the ice is lifted in that the ice cubes are being lifted as the ice cubes are crushed.
12. The method of claim 10 wherein the ice is lifted in that crushed ice is raised in elevation between a place in the ice crusher housing where the crushed ice is formed and the crushed ice outlet.
13. The method of claim 10 wherein selecting whether crushed ice or cubed ice is to be dispensed involves pushing a push button.
14. The method of claim 10 wherein activating ice dispensing involves pushing on an ice dispensing chute.
15. The method of claim 10 wherein both cubed and crushed ice are dispensed through the same dispensing chute.
16. A method of operating a combined ice and beverage dispenser, wherein the beverage dispenser comprises at least one mixing and dispensing valve for mixing a syrup and water and dispensing a beverage, and wherein the ice dispenser is equipped with an ice crusher in an ice crusher housing, the ice crusher housing having a cubed ice inlet and a crushed ice outlet, comprising:
a) selecting whether crushed ice or cubed ice is to be dispensed and, when crushed ice is selected,
b) causing cubed ice to pass into the ice crusher housing, and
c) activating the ice crusher, thereby crushing the ice, the ice crusher and housing being configured and attached to the dispenser such that the bottom of the ice crusher housing outlet is at least as high in elevation as the bottom of the ice crusher housing inlet.
17. The method of claim 16 wherein the step of selecting whether crushed ice or cubed ice is to be dispensed and activating the ice crusher involves two distinct actions.
18. The method of claim 16 wherein an outlet from the ice bin into the ice crusher is always open, but an outlet from the ice crusher is controlled, and the step of activating the ice crusher also opens the outlet from the ice crusher.
19. The method of claim 16 wherein one switch is used for selecting whether cubed ice or crushed ice will be dispensed and a second switch is used for activating dispensing of the ice.
20. The method of claim 16 wherein cubed ice may pass from the ice bin though a first opening out of the ice bin and into the ice crusher when crushed ice is selected and wherein cubed ice may pass from the ice bin through a second opening out of the ice bin when cubed ice is selected.
21. The method of claim 20 wherein first and second solenoid-activated doors are used to control whether the dispenser will deliver cubed ice or crushed ice.
22. The method of claim 21 wherein:
a) when cubed ice is selected, ice dispensing is activated by opening the first solenoid-activated door, and
b) when crushed ice is selected, ice dispensing is activated by activating the ice crusher and opening the second solenoid-activated door, allowing crushed ice from the ice crusher to be dispensed.