JP7625829B2 - Round Open Display Case - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a round open showcase.

Conventionally, a round open showcase has a case body with openings formed on the front and both left and right sides in a manner that is continuous with each other. In this case body, a storage chamber is defined in a manner that faces the opening, and a ventilation passage component is provided in the center of the storage chamber, extending in the vertical direction. Inside the ventilation passage component, a ventilation passage is formed that communicates with an air outlet formed in the upper edge of the opening and an intake port formed in the lower edge of the opening. On the front and both left and right sides of this ventilation passage component, multiple product placement shelves are provided in the vertical direction with the same height level. These product placement shelves are used to place products to be stored on the upper surfaces of the shelves. An evaporator is also provided on the path from the air sucked in through the intake port to the ventilation passage.

In such a round open showcase, air from the storage room is sucked in through the intake port by driving a blower fan installed inside the case body, where it is cooled in the evaporator and then blown out through the exhaust port after passing through a ventilation passage. The air blown out from the exhaust port is sucked into the intake port and circulated, so that the products placed on each product shelf are adjusted to and maintained at the desired temperature (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2005-241136 A

Although not explicitly stated in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, it is known that in a round open showcase, due to its structure, the corners of the storage room, i.e., the left and right side areas of the multiple product placement shelves provided in front of the ventilation passage configuration part, are difficult to sufficiently cool compared to other areas.

Therefore, a round open showcase has been proposed in which a flat guard member is installed on the case body in such a way that it partially blocks the opening of the case body that is on both the left and right sides of the multiple product placement shelves in front of the ventilation passage configuration section. This guard member prevents outside air from entering and promotes cooling of both the left and right sides.

However, in round open showcases equipped with such guard members, condensation occurs in specific areas near the air intake of the guard members, resulting in a poor appearance.

As for the occurrence of this condensation, it is believed that when the blower fan is operated, some of the outside air is sucked into the intake port, and as this part of the outside air is sucked into the intake port it is cooled as it passes over the surface of the guard member near the intake port, causing condensation.

In view of the above-mentioned circumstances, the present invention aims to provide a round open showcase that can effectively cool the storage compartment while preventing condensation from occurring.

In order to achieve the above object, the round open showcase of the present invention comprises a case body having openings formed on the front and both left and right sides in a manner that they are continuous with each other, and a storage chamber defined inside facing the openings; a ventilation passage component extending vertically in the center of the storage chamber, and an internal ventilation passage communicating with an air outlet formed on the upper edge of the opening and an intake port formed on the lower edge of the opening; a product placement shelf on which products to be stored are placed, the product placement shelf being provided in multiple stages vertically with the same height level on the front and both left and right sides of the ventilation passage component; and a storage unit that draws in air from the storage chamber through the intake port, passes the air through the ventilation passage, and then delivers the air to the front and both left and right sides. The round open showcase is equipped with a blower fan that circulates air by blowing it out from the air outlet into the storage room, an evaporator that is installed in the ventilation passage and cools the air by heat exchange between the refrigerant supplied to it and the air passing around it, and a flat guard member that is installed on the case body in a manner that blocks a part of the opening on both the left and right sides of a plurality of product placement shelves provided in front of the ventilation passage component, and maintains products placed on the product placement shelves at a desired temperature, and is characterized in that the guard member is formed in a predetermined position near the intake port and has a plurality of passage holes that allow a portion of the air blown out from the air outlet to pass to the outside.

The present invention is also characterized in that in the above-mentioned round open showcase, the multiple passage holes are formed in a rear portion of the guard member near the suction port.

The present invention is also characterized in that in the above-mentioned round open showcase, the multiple passage holes are formed in a manner that is distributed throughout the entire rear portion.

The present invention is also characterized in that in the above-mentioned round open showcase, the guard member is made of a translucent material.

According to the present invention, the flat guard member is installed on the case body in a manner that partially blocks the openings on both the left and right sides of the multiple product placement shelves provided on the front surface of the ventilation passage configuration section, so that both the left and right sides can be cooled, and multiple passage holes formed in a specific area of the guard member near the intake port allow a portion of the air blown out from the outlet to pass to the outside, thereby cooling the surface of the specific area, thereby providing the effect of preventing condensation while effectively cooling the storage chamber.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a round open showcase according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a round open showcase according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view showing a schematic view of the round open showcase according to the embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the left. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view showing a schematic view of the round open showcase according to the embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the right. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a round open showcase according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the front. FIG. 6 is an enlarged left side view showing the main part of the round open showcase shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, and partially shows the internal structure. FIG. 7 is an enlarged left side view showing a main part of the acrylic guard shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is an enlarged right side view showing the main part of the round open showcase shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, and partially shows the internal structure. FIG. 9 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main part of the acrylic guard shown in FIG. FIG. 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main part of a modified example of the acrylic guard shown in FIG. FIG. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main part of a modified example of the acrylic guard shown in FIG. FIG. 12 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main part of a modified example of the acrylic guard shown in FIG.

The following describes in detail a preferred embodiment of the round open showcase according to the present invention with reference to the attached drawings.

Figures 1 to 5 each show a round open showcase according to an embodiment of the present invention, with Figures 1 and 2 being perspective views, Figure 3 being a cross-sectional side view showing the round open showcase as viewed from the left, Figure 4 being a cross-sectional side view showing the round open showcase as viewed from the right, and Figure 5 being a cross-sectional view showing the round open showcase as viewed from the front. The round open showcase 1 shown here is equipped with a case body 10.

The case body 10 is a heat-insulated housing having openings 11 formed on the front and both left and right sides in a manner that is continuous with each other. For ease of explanation, the opening 11 formed on the front of the case body 10 is also referred to as the front opening 11a, the opening 11 formed on the left side of the case body 10 is also referred to as the left side opening 11b, and the opening 11 formed on the right side of the case body 10 is also referred to as the right side opening 11c. Inside the case body 10, a storage chamber 12 is defined in a manner that faces the openings 11 (front opening 11a, left side opening 11b, and right side opening 11c).

A columnar ventilation passage component 13 extending in the vertical direction is provided in the central region of such a storage room 12. This ventilation passage component 13 has a ventilation passage 13a formed therein that extends in the vertical direction.

The ventilation passage 13a is connected to the front intake port 15a through the front lower duct 14a, which is outside the storage room 12 and on the lower side of the storage room 12, and is connected to the front exhaust port 17a through the front upper duct 16a, which is outside the storage room 12 and on the upper side of the storage room 12. Here, the front intake port 15a is an opening formed on the lower edge of the front opening 11a. The front exhaust port 17a is an opening formed on the upper edge of the front opening 11a.

Furthermore, the ventilation passage 13a communicates with the left intake port 15b through the left lower duct 14b, which is outside the storage room 12 and on the lower side of the storage room 12, and with the left exhaust port 17b through the left upper duct 16b, which is outside the storage room 12 and on the upper side of the storage room 12. Here, the left intake port 15b is an opening formed in the lower edge of the left side opening 11b. The left exhaust port 17b is an opening formed in the upper edge of the left side opening 11b.

Furthermore, the ventilation passage 13a communicates with the right intake port 15c through the right lower duct 14c, which is outside the storage room 12 and on the lower side of the storage room 12, and with the right exhaust port 17c through the right upper duct 16c, which is outside the storage room 12 and on the upper side of the storage room 12. Here, the right intake port 15c is an opening formed in the lower edge of the right side opening 11c. The right exhaust port 17c is an opening formed in the upper edge of the right side opening 11c.

The left lower duct 14b is provided with a left blower fan 18L. For example, there are four left blower fans 18L, which are driven by drive commands given from a control unit (not shown) to circulate air.

Right-side blower fans 18R are also provided in the right-side lower duct 14c. There are, for example, four right-side blower fans 18R, which are driven by drive commands given by the control unit to circulate air.

By the way, multiple evaporators 19 are installed at the bottom of the ventilation passage 13a. Although not shown in the figure, these evaporators 19 are connected in sequence to a compressor, a condenser, and an electronic expansion valve through refrigerant pipes to form a refrigerant circuit that circulates the refrigerant.

The compressor is driven by a drive command given from the control unit, and when driven, it compresses the refrigerant. The condenser condenses the refrigerant by exchanging heat between the refrigerant compressed by the compressor and the surrounding air. The electronic expansion valve adjusts its opening according to an opening command given from the control unit, and adiabatically expands the refrigerant passing through it and circulates it to the evaporator 19. The evaporator 19 exchanges heat between the refrigerant adiabatically expanded by the electronic expansion valve and the air passing around it, cooling the air.

In addition, a number of product placement shelves 20 are arranged vertically on the front and both left and right sides of the ventilation passage configuration section 13. Each of these product placement shelves 20 is used to place products.

A front fence member 21a is installed in an upwardly protruding manner over the entire front edge portion (lower edge portion of the front opening 11a) of the front suction port 15a. The front fence member 21a is made of a translucent material such as acrylic resin, and is a long, flat member whose longitudinal direction is in the left-right direction.

A left fence member 21b is installed in an upwardly protruding manner over the entire left edge portion of the left suction port 15b (the lower edge portion of the left side opening 11b). The left fence member 21b is made of a translucent material such as acrylic resin, and is a long, flat member whose longitudinal direction is the front-to-rear direction. The front end portion of this left fence member 21b is connected to the left end portion of the front fence member 21a via a connecting member 22.

A right fence member 21c is installed in an upwardly protruding manner along the entire right edge of the right suction port 15c (the lower edge of the right side opening 11c). The right fence member 21c is made of a translucent material such as acrylic resin, and is a long, flat member whose longitudinal direction is the front-to-rear direction. The front end of this right fence member 21c is connected to the right end of the front fence member 21a via a connecting member 23.

The case body 10 is fitted with a pair of acrylic guards (guard members) 30 on the left and right sides. The acrylic guards 30 are flat members made of a translucent material such as acrylic resin, and are fitted in such a way that they partially block the left side opening 11b and the right side opening 11c, which are on the left and right sides of the multiple product placement shelves 20 on the front side of the ventilation passage configuration section 13.

To explain in more detail, the lower end portion of the left acrylic guard 30 is attached to a part of the left fence member 21b via the mounting member 24a, and the upper end portion is attached to a part of the left edge portion of the left air outlet 17b via the mounting member 24b.

On the other hand, the lower end of the right acrylic guard 30 is attached to a part of the right fence member 21c via an attachment member 25a, and the upper end is attached to a part of the right edge of the right air outlet 17c via an attachment member 25b.

The left acrylic guard 30 has a plurality of passage holes 32 distributed over the entire area of the rear part 31 of the lower end, which is near the left suction port 15b, as shown in Fig. 6. As shown by the two-dot chain arrow in Fig. 6, the left surface (front surface) of the rear part 31 of the lower end of the left acrylic guard 30 is a passage area for outside air that is drawn into the left suction port 15b by the drive of the left blower fan 18L.

The passage holes 32 formed in the rear portion 31 of the left acrylic guard 30 are circular with a diameter R of 4.5 mm or less, as shown in FIG. 7, and the distance D between the passage holes 32 is about 20 mm.

On the other hand, in the right acrylic guard 30, as shown in Fig. 8, multiple passage holes 32 are formed in a dispersed manner throughout the rear part 31 of the lower end, which is near the right suction port 15c. As shown by the two-dot chain arrow in Fig. 8, the right surface (front surface) of the rear part 31 of the lower end of the right acrylic guard 30 is a passage area for outside air that is sucked into the right suction port 15c by driving the right blower fan 18R.

The through holes 32 formed in the rear portion 31 of the right acrylic guard 30 are not shown in the figure, but like the through holes 32 formed in the left acrylic guard 30 described above, they are circular with a diameter of 4.5 mm or less, and the distance between the through holes 32 is about 20 mm.

In the round open showcase 1 configured as described above, the products in the storage chamber 12 can be cooled and maintained at the desired temperature in the following manner.

By driving the left blower fan 18L and the right blower fan 18R according to a drive command given by the control unit, the air sucked in from the front intake port 15a passes through the front lower duct 14a, is cooled by the evaporator 19 and passes through the ventilation passage 13a, the air sucked in from the left intake port 15b passes through the left lower duct 14b, is cooled by the evaporator 19 and passes through the ventilation passage 13a, and the air sucked in from the right intake port 15c passes through the right lower duct 14c, is cooled by the evaporator 19 and passes through the ventilation passage 13a.

In this way, the air that passes through the ventilation passage 13a and passes through the front upper duct 16a is blown out from the front outlet 17a and sucked back into the front intake 15a, forming an air curtain that cools the products in the front area of the storage room 12 while suppressing the intrusion of heat from the front opening 11a.

Of the air that passes through the ventilation passage 13a, the air that passes through the left upper duct 16b is blown out from the left air outlet 17b and is sucked back into the left air inlet 15b, forming an air curtain that cools the products in the left area of the storage room 12 while suppressing the intrusion of heat from the left side opening 11b.

The air that passes through the ventilation passage 13a and passes through the right upper duct 16c is blown out from the right air outlet 17c and sucked back into the right air inlet 15c, forming an air curtain that cools the products in the right area of the storage room 12 while suppressing the intrusion of heat from the right side opening 11c.

By the way, most of the air that is blown out from the left air outlet 17b and passes downward along the right surface (back surface) of the left acrylic guard 30 is sucked into the left air inlet 15b, thereby cooling the left side area of the multiple product placement shelves 20 in front of the ventilation path configuration section 13.

In addition, a portion of the air blown out from the left air outlet 17b and passing downward along the right side of the left acrylic guard 30 passes through the passage hole 32 and passes over the surface (left side) of the left acrylic guard 30, as shown in FIG. 9, and can cool the surface of the rear portion 31 of the lower end of the left acrylic guard 30.

The majority of the air blown out from the right air outlet 17c and passing downward along the left surface (back surface) of the right-side acrylic guard 30 is sucked into the right air inlet 15c, thereby cooling the right side area of the multiple product placement shelves 20 in front of the ventilation path configuration section 13.

Although not shown in the figure, a portion of the air that is blown out from the right air outlet 17c and passes downward along the left side of the right acrylic guard 30 passes through the passage hole 32 and the right side (surface) of the right acrylic guard 30, similar to the left acrylic guard 30 described above, and can cool the surface of the rear portion 31 of the lower end of the right acrylic guard 30.

As described above, in the round open showcase 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the pair of left and right acrylic guards 30 are installed on the case body 10 in a manner that partially blocks the openings 11 (left side opening 11b and right side opening 11c) on the left and right sides of the multiple product placement shelves 20 provided in front of the ventilation passage configuration section 13, so that both left and right sides can be cooled. Furthermore, the multiple through holes 32 formed in a distributed manner throughout the entire rear portion 31 of the lower end of the pair of left and right acrylic guards 30 allow a portion of the air blown out from the left air outlet 17b and the right air outlet 17c to pass to the outside, so that the surface of the rear portion 31 can be cooled, thereby preventing the occurrence of condensation while effectively cooling the storage room 12.

The above describes a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this and various modifications can be made.

In the embodiment described above, multiple circular passage holes 32 are formed throughout the entire rear portion 31 at the lower end of the acrylic guard 30, but in the present invention, the following modifications can also be made.

That is, as shown in FIG. 10, each of the through holes 34 may be formed so as to gradually slope downward toward the surface of the acrylic guard 33 (the left surface in the left acrylic guard 33, and the right surface in the right acrylic guard 33). This allows air passing downward along the back surface of the acrylic guard 33 (the right surface in the left acrylic guard 33, and the left surface in the right acrylic guard 33) to more easily pass through each of the through holes 34, thereby further cooling the surface of the acrylic guard 33 and preventing condensation from occurring.

As shown in FIG. 11, guide portions 37 are provided on the back side of the lower edge of each through hole 36, and these guide portions 37 may be formed so that the further down the acrylic guard 35 they are formed, the greater their extension length. In this way, the guide portions 37 act as resistance and guide the air passing downward along the back surface of the acrylic guard 35 to the through holes 36, making it possible to further cool the surface of the acrylic guard 35 and prevent condensation from occurring.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 12, the acrylic guard 38 may be formed from multiple plate-like components 38a, with steps provided at the joints of each component, and the steps may form the passage holes 39. This allows air passing downward along the back surface of the acrylic guard 38 to more easily pass through each passage hole 39, allowing the surface of the acrylic guard 38 to be more cooled, and preventing condensation from occurring.

In the above-described embodiment, multiple passage holes 32 are formed in the rear portion 31 of the lower end of the acrylic guard 30, but in the present invention, they are not necessarily limited to the rear portion as long as they are in a predetermined portion near the suction port of the guard member.

In the above-described embodiment, the acrylic guard 30 is made of a translucent material, but in the present invention, the guard member does not have to be made of a translucent material.

1...Round open showcase, 10...Case body, 11...Opening, 12...Storage room, 13...Ventilation passage component, 13a...Ventilation passage, 15a...Front intake port, 15b...Left intake port, 15c...Right intake port, 17a...Front outlet, 17b...Left outlet, 17c...Right outlet, 18L...Left blower fan, 18R...Right blower fan, 19...Evaporator, 20...Product placement shelf, 21a...Front fence member, 21b...Left fence member, 21c...Right fence member, 30...Acrylic guard, 31...Rear portion, 32...Passage hole.

Claims (4)

a case body having openings formed in a manner such that the openings are continuous with each other on the front surface and on both the left and right sides, and a storage chamber is defined inside the case body so as to face the openings;
a ventilation passage component extending in the vertical direction in the central portion of the storage chamber and having a ventilation passage formed therein communicate with an air outlet formed in an upper edge portion of the opening and an air inlet formed in a lower edge portion of the opening;
a product placement shelf provided in a plurality of stages in a vertical direction with the height levels being the same on the front surface and on both the left and right sides of the ventilation passage configuration portion, on which products to be stored are placed;
a blower fan that circulates air by sucking in air from the storage chamber through the suction port, passing the air through the ventilation passage, and then blowing the air out of the air outlet into the storage chamber;
an evaporator that is installed in the ventilation passage and exchanges heat between a refrigerant supplied thereto and air passing around the evaporator to cool the air;
a flat guard member installed on the case body in a manner to completely block both left and right side areas of a plurality of product placement shelves provided on the front surface of the ventilation passage configuration portion,
A round-type open showcase that maintains products placed on the product placement shelf at a desired temperature,
a guard member that blocks the entire left side area of a plurality of product placement shelves provided on the front surface of the ventilation passage configuration portion , the guard member being formed at a predetermined position near a left intake port formed on a lower edge portion of the left side opening of the case body, and having a plurality of passage holes that allow a portion of the air blown out from a left outlet port formed on an upper edge portion of the left side opening to pass to the outside;
A round open showcase characterized in that a guard member that blocks the entire right side area of a plurality of product placement shelves provided on the front side of the ventilation passage component is formed at a predetermined location near a right intake port formed on the lower edge of the right side opening of the case body, and is provided with a plurality of passage holes that allow a portion of the air blown out from a right outlet port formed on the upper edge of the right side opening to pass to the outside. a plurality of passage holes formed in a guard member that blocks the entire left area of a plurality of product placement shelves provided on the front surface of the ventilation passage configuration portion are formed only in a rear portion of the guard member near the left suction port,
The round-type open showcase described in claim 1, characterized in that the multiple passage holes formed in the guard member that blocks the entire right side area of the multiple product placement shelves provided on the front side of the ventilation passage component are formed only in the rear portion of the guard member near the right suction port. a plurality of passage holes formed in a guard member that blocks the entire left area of a plurality of product placement shelves provided on the front surface of the ventilation passage configuration portion are formed in a manner that is dispersed throughout the entire rear area,
The round-type open showcase described in claim 2, characterized in that a plurality of passage holes formed in a guard member that blocks the entire right side area of a plurality of product placement shelves provided in front of the ventilation passage component are formed in a distributed manner throughout the entire rear area. The round open showcase described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the guard member is made of a translucent material.

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