JP4335083B2 - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator suitable for use as a rapid refrigerator.

One form of use of the refrigerator is to rapidly cool the foodstuff, for example, when the freshly boiled pasta is rapidly cooled to a certain temperature (rough heat is taken). Therefore, although a dedicated quick cooler is also prepared, it is relatively expensive, such as the need for a high-performance cooling unit. Therefore, for example, a table-type cooler often installed in a kitchen or the like ( A horizontal refrigerator) may be substituted. This type of table-type refrigerator is equipped with a cooling unit on the side of a storage room in which ingredients and the like are stored, for example, as described in Patent Document 1, and the cold air generated by the cooling unit is stored in the storage room. It is cooled by being blown out and being circulated.
JP-A-9-243231

However, in the table type refrigerator, since a high-performance cooling unit is not used, there is a dislike that cooling cannot be performed in a short time when the heat load is large. In addition, in the table type refrigerator, the cold air is blown out from the upper side of the side wall of the storage room and circulated by sucking in the cold air from the lower side of the side wall. For example, the ingredients are stored in a tray such as a hotel pan. In such a case, the circulation of cold air is hindered at the lower side of the tray so that it is difficult to cool, and accordingly, there is a problem that the cooling temperature of the food material varies depending on the upper and lower sides of the storage chamber.
This invention is completed based on the above situations, The objective exists in providing the suitable refrigerator using it for rapidly cooling a foodstuff.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a cooling unit is provided on each of the left and right side walls of the storage chamber of the front opening in which an object to be cooled is stored, and the cooling unit is a refrigeration apparatus connected to the cooler by a refrigerant pipe. : it is formed into a unit, and both the cooling unit is made possible operating both cooling units together If it is the same structure simultaneously, the left and right sides wall of the reception chamber, the air inside the lower side The cool air sucked and generated by heat exchange in the cooling unit is blown out from the upper side toward the storage chamber, and the rear wall of the storage chamber is provided with a circulation fan. provided circulation duct that blows anew the storage chamber draw in cool air from the side, the circulation duct, a box-shaped surface opening after having almost total height over the height of the storage chamber, The left and right side surfaces and the lower surface are formed into inclined surfaces with widened hems, and cold air inlets are provided on the upper front side of the circulation duct and the inclined left and right side surfaces and the lower surface. On the other hand, the present invention is characterized in that a blower outlet is provided in substantially the entire region below the suction port on the front surface of the circulation duct .

<Invention of Claim 1>
By arranging cooling units on both the left and right sides of the storage room, a sufficient cooling speed can be secured even when the heat load is large. Further, since the cool duct can be blown out from the back wall side of the storage room by the circulation duct, for example, even when a tray or the like is stored and the cold air circulation in the storage room tends to be hindered, the storage room is passed through between the trays. It is possible to blow out cold air toward the entire area of the room, and variations in the cooling temperature such as a place where it is difficult to cool in the storage room are minimized.
That is, it is possible to provide a cooler having a high cooling capacity that can be used as a quick cooler and having little unevenness in the cooling temperature while allowing inexpensive manufacturing using a normal cooling unit.

Further, when the cool air generated by the cooling unit is blown out from the upper side of the left and right side walls, a part of the duct through the suction port at the top side of the front surface in the circulation duct provided in the rear wall of the housing chamber Cold air that has been sucked into the interior and sinks in the back side is also sucked into the duct from the suction ports on the left and right side surfaces and the bottom surface, and from the air outlets that are provided in almost the entire area below the suction ports on the front surface of the circulation duct. It is blown out into the storage room.
For example, when the trays are stored in a plurality of stages in the storage chamber, cool air blown from the upper side of the left and right side walls is applied to the upper tray, and the circulation ducts are provided to the lower trays. Cold air from the air outlet is applied. In this way, it is possible to circulate cold air uniformly and efficiently in the storage chamber.

<Embodiment>
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
In FIG. 1 thru | or FIG. 5, the code | symbol 10 is a refrigerator main body, Comprising: It is formed by the slightly vertically long heat insulation box body by which the front surface was opened, and the inside becomes the storage chamber 11, The entrance / exit 12 of the front surface WHEREIN: A heat insulating door 13 is mounted so as to be able to swing open and close around the left edge. In addition, you may mount | wear with the heat insulation door 13 so that rocking | fluctuation opening / closing is possible centering | focusing on the right edge as needed.
Machine rooms 15 are formed on both the left and right sides as viewed from the front of the main body 10. The machine room 15 is formed in a box shape with an open front, and a front panel 16 is attached to each front opening so as to be swingable.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a heat-insulating cooler chamber 17 communicating with the storage chamber 11 is symmetrically projected and formed at the upper position in both machine chambers 15, and a storage space 18 is provided below the cooler chamber 17. It has been. In each machine room 15, the cooling unit 20 is housed so as to be drawable. The cooling unit 20 has a refrigeration device 22 mounted on a base 21 from a compressor 23, a condenser 24, and the like, and a cooler 25 is stacked above the refrigeration device 22 so that a refrigerant pipe is connected to the refrigeration device 22. Further, a cooling fan 26 is arranged on the inner surface of the cooler 25 to form a unit.

When the cooling unit 20 is inserted into the machine room 15 from the front side, the cooler 25 and the cooling fan 26 are accommodated in the cooler room 17, and the front opening of the cooler room 17 is closed by the lid 17A. At the same time, the refrigeration apparatus 22 is stored in the storage space 18.
The main body 10 and both machine chambers 15 are supported by five legs 28 provided at two positions on the front and rear of the bottom surfaces of both machine chambers 15 and near the rear edge of the bottom surface of the main body 10. A top plate 29 made of a single plate is stretched over the upper surfaces of both machine chambers 15 and can be used as a table on which foodstuffs, kitchen equipment, and the like are placed.

Then, the structure in the storage chamber 11 is demonstrated. On the left and right side walls 11 </ b> A side of the storage chamber 11, a panel 31 is stretched so as to partition the cooler chamber 17, and a blowout duct 32 is attached through the panel 31. The cooling fan 26 is disposed on the inlet side of the blowout duct 32, and the outlet faces the ceiling of the storage chamber 11.
As shown in FIG. 3, a suction duct 34, which is shaped like a rectangular shallow dish, is mounted over the entire surface below the blowout duct 32, and the upper side of the suction duct 34 is located in the cooler chamber 17. It communicates with the bottom side. In addition, the suction duct 34 is provided with a suction port 35 having a lower surface opened and a suction port 35 formed on the surface facing the inside of the storage chamber 11 in three upper and lower stages.

A circulation duct 40 is stretched at the center in the width direction on the back wall 11B side of the storage chamber 11. As shown in FIG. 4, the circulation duct 40 as a whole is formed in a box shape with a rear opening having a width dimension slightly more than 2/3 of the width of the back wall 11B and a height dimension extending over almost the entire height. Has been. However, the left and right side surfaces and the lower surface are inclined surfaces with wide hems.
An upper suction port 41 is formed at an upper position of the front surface of the circulation duct 40, for example, in an area of about 1/5 of the total height. In addition, side suction ports 42 and lower suction ports 43 are also formed on the inclined left and right side surfaces and the lower surface, respectively.
On the other hand, in the entire area below the formation position of the upper suction port 41 on the front surface of the circulation duct 40, three air outlets 45 having a substantially square shape are formed side by side in three stages. A circulation fan 47 is provided on the back side of each air outlet 45.

  In the storage room 11, ingredients are stored in the hotel bread 50. Therefore, the shelf columns 52 are erected at four convenient locations near the left and right end portions on the back wall 11B side in the storage chamber 11 and the doorway 12 on the left and right side walls 11A. On the other hand, a plurality of pairs of rails 54 that are paired on the left and right are provided, and each pair of rails 54 is mounted at the same height across the front and back shelf columns 52 on both the left and right sides. It is like that. In this embodiment, the rail 54 is mounted over four stages. The hotel pan 50 is configured such that the left and right flanges are placed on a pair of rails 54 and can be inserted and removed while sliding on the rails 54.

As described above, the cooler of the present embodiment includes the left and right two cooling units 20, but the cooling unit 20 housed in the left machine room 15 is housed in the main unit and the right machine room 15. When the cooling unit 20 is a sub unit and used as a quick cooler, in the case of a high load, both the main and sub cooling units 20 are operated, whereas when used as a normal cooler, the load is low. In this case, only the main unit is operated. In the following, when the main and the sub are distinguished, they are appropriately referred to as a main unit 20M and a sub unit 20S.
However, the cooling operation and the defrosting operation at high load and low load are controlled based on a program stored in a single microcomputer. Further, only the front panel 16 of the left machine room 15 storing the main unit 20M is provided with an operation panel 56 including various switches, a display unit, and the like.

Then, the effect | action of this embodiment is demonstrated.
When rapid cooling is performed, as shown on the right side of the timing chart of FIG. 6, in addition to the main unit power supply (always on), the subunit power supply is turned on. That is, the compressor 23 of both the main and sub cooling units 20 is driven, and the main and sub cooling fans 26 are also driven. Further, the circulation fan 47 provided in the circulation duct 40 is also driven.

  Thereby, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 5, the air in the cabinet is sucked from the suction ports 35 of the suction ducts 34 on both sides, introduced into the cooler chamber 17, and exchanged heat while passing through the cooler 25. The cool air generated by is blown out toward the upper position in the storage chamber 11 from the blowing ducts 32 on both the left and right sides. A part of the blown-out cool air is sucked into the duct 40 from the upper suction port 41 of the circulation duct 40, and the cool air that has sunk in the back side of the storage chamber 11 is converted into the side suction port 42 and the lower suction port. Similarly, the air is sucked into the duct 40 from 43 and is blown out to the near side from the blower outlet 45 divided into three upper and lower parts.

  Therefore, in the case where the hotel pan 50 containing ingredients is stored in four stages in the storage room 11, cold air blown out from the left and right outlet ducts 32 is applied to the uppermost hotel pan 50 and ingredients. The cold air blown out from the air outlet 45 of the circulation duct 40 is applied to the hotel pans 50 and the foods below. That is, the cool air can be circulated uniformly and efficiently in the storage chamber 11.

During this time, the internal temperature is detected by the internal temperature thermistor installed on the main unit 20M side. When the detected temperature is lower than the set temperature, both compressors 23 are stopped. When the detected temperature is higher than the set temperature, both compressors 23 are turned on again. By being driven, the internal temperature of the storage chamber 11 is maintained substantially at the set temperature. However, when the compressor 23 is driven, after the main-side compressor 23 is activated, for example, the sub-side compressor 23 is activated after 10 times, that is, by shifting the activation timing of both the compressors 23. , Preventing overload to the original power supply. Further, in order to protect the compressor 23, it takes at least 3 minutes before restarting after stopping.
Furthermore, when it is detected by the door switch that the heat insulating door 13 of the storage chamber 11 has been opened, the driving of the circulation fan 47 is stopped during that time, and the outflow of cold air to the outside of the cabinet is prevented.
Further, since both the cooling fans 26 and the circulation fan 47 are operated while both the compressors 23 are stopped, the circulation flow in the above path is continued and the temperature in the storage chamber 11 is made uniform. Effective above.

  When used as a normal refrigerator, the subunit power is turned off as shown on the left side of the timing chart of FIG. Then, the compressor 23 and the cooling fan 26 of the subunit 20S are stopped, in other words, only the compressor 23, the cooling fan 26, and the circulation fan 47 of the main unit 20M are operated and controlled.

Regardless of 2-unit operation or 1-unit operation, the defrosting operation is appropriately performed during the operation.
The case of 2-unit operation will be described with reference to the timing chart of FIG. The defrosting operation is performed when the compressor 23, the cooling fan 26, and the circulation fan 47 of both the units 20M and 20S are stopped, and the defrosting heater provided in the cooler 25 of each unit 20M and 20S and each cooling. This is performed by energizing a drain pan heater provided in a drain pan disposed on the bottom surface of the chamber 17. Thereby, the frost adhering to the cooler 25 and the like is melted, and the defrost water is received by the drain pan and then discarded to the drainage point outside the warehouse by the drain hose 58 (see FIG. 1).

  During this time, the temperatures of the coolers 25 of both units 20M and 20S are detected by the defrosting thermistor, and when the temperature of 5 ° C is detected, it is considered that the frosting has disappeared, and the defrosting heaters of the corresponding units 20M and 20S are turned off. Is done. When both defrosting heaters are turned off, the defrosting is completed, and then, for example, a draining time of 5 minutes is taken. It is not known which of the main and sub units 20M and 20S has no frost formation first, but the defrosting is not completed until both units 20M and 20S have no frost formation.

When the draining process is completed, both drain pan heaters are turned off, both compressors 23 are started (time difference start), and a so-called precooling operation is performed, for example, for 5 minutes. When the pre-cooling operation is completed, the cooling operation is resumed by driving both the cooling fans 26 and the circulation fan 47, and after that, it is delayed for about 8 minutes and a display indicating that the cooling operation has been started is displayed.
In the case of one-unit operation, as shown in the timing chart of FIG. 8, only the main unit 20M side and the circulation fan 47 are controlled as described above.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the cooling units 20 are arranged on the left and right sides of the storage chamber 11, a sufficient cooling speed can be ensured even when the heat load is large. Further, since the cool duct can be blown out from the back wall 11B side of the storage chamber 11 by the circulation duct 40, the food is put in the hotel pan 50 and stored, and the cold air circulation in the storage chamber 11 tends to be hindered. Even in this case, the cold air can be blown out to the entire area of the storage room 11 through the upper and lower hotel pans 50, and there is a place where it is difficult to cool in the storage room 11, so that variations in the cooling temperature are minimized. Fastened.

That is, it is possible to realize a cooler having a high cooling capacity that can be used as a quick cooler and having little unevenness in the cooling temperature, while allowing inexpensive manufacturing using the normal cooling unit 20.
In addition, even if two cooling units 20 are provided, both can be taken in and out of the corresponding machine room 15 from the front side, so that maintenance and the like can be easily performed in a short time, and it is easy to use. It will be.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention, and further, within the scope not departing from the gist of the invention other than the following. Various modifications can be made.
(1) About a cooling unit, while a cooler and a cooling fan are a fixed type, only a refrigerating device can be pulled out, or the whole cooling unit may be a fixed type.
(2) In the above embodiment, the case where the food is stored in a tray such as a hotel pan is illustrated. However, the object to be cooled such as the food may be directly placed on the shelf network and stored. . Since the food material itself may hinder the circulation of cool air in the vertical direction, blowing the cool air from the back wall side is effective in cooling the storage chamber evenly.

The front view of the refrigerator which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention The cross-sectional view The longitudinal section Front view showing the storage room Perspective view showing the interior with the insulated door open Cooling operation timing chart Timing chart for defrosting operation during 2-unit operation Timing chart of defrosting operation during 1 unit operation

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Cooling body 11 ... Storage chamber 11A ... Side wall 11B (storage chamber 11) Side wall 11B ... Back wall (of storage chamber 11) 15 ... Machine chamber 17 ... Cooler chamber 20 ... Cooling unit 22 ... Refrigeration device 23 ... Compressor 25 ... Cooler 26 ... Cooling fan 32 ... Blowout duct 34 ... Suction duct 35 ... Suction port 40 ... Circulation duct 41 ... Suction port 45 ... Blowout port 47 ... Circulation fan 50 ... Hotel pan 54 ... Rail

Claims (1)

A cooling unit is provided on each of the left and right side walls of the storage chamber of the front opening in which the object to be cooled is stored, and the cooling unit is formed by unitizing a cooler and a refrigeration apparatus connected to this with a refrigerant pipe. It is, and both the cooling unit is made possible operating both cooling units together If it is the same structure simultaneously,
On the left and right side walls of the storage chamber, the internal air is sucked from the lower side, and the cold air generated by heat exchange in the cooling unit is blown out from the upper side toward the storage chamber . ,
The rear wall of the storage chamber is provided with a circulation duct that includes a circulation fan and sucks cool air from the side wall and blows it out into the storage chamber again .
This circulation duct has a box shape with a rear opening having a height dimension covering almost the entire height of the storage chamber, and a shape in which the right and left side surfaces and the lower surface are inclined surfaces with widened hems,
While the upper side of the front side of the duct for circulation and the inclined left and right side surfaces and the lower surface are provided with cold air inlets,
A cooling box, characterized in that an air outlet is provided in substantially the entire area below the suction port on the front surface of the circulation duct .

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