EP0284452B1 - Refrigerated cabinet provided with a mobile closing and shielding device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a refrigeration unit provided with a mobile closure and screen device.

A refrigeration unit, in particular that intended for the presentation for sale of food cans such as a container unit, a display unit unit, is generally open, that is to say provided with an opening which is not closed by a material barrier and gives free access to the exposed foodstuffs.

In such a piece of furniture, the foodstuffs are directly subjected to heating by radiation and heating by convection of the air from the outside environment. This results in an appreciable consumption of energy to produce this cool necessary for maintaining these foodstuffs at a storage temperature required by regulations.

To reduce this consumption of cold, devices in the form of a cover, canopy or curtain have been proposed. These known devices are on the one hand devices which close the opening of the refrigeration unit outside of sales hours, and on the other hand the fixed devices which, arranged at a predetermined distance from the opening, opposite the foodstuffs to form a screen to thermal radiation. These devices thus serve more or less as barriers against undesirable heating of these foodstuffs, by air convection and / or by direct radiation from the outside environment. Some of these known devices also have a reflecting surface.

Thus, the specification EP-A-0114017 describes such a known refrigeration unit, provided with a movable closure and screen device, which comprises a reflector having the shape of a gutter arranged with the concave face facing the surface. food exhibition. The cross section of this reflector has a curvature in the shape of an arc of a circle.

However, it is found that the effectiveness of these known closing and shielding devices in protecting this furniture against radiation from the outside environment remains insufficient.

The aim of the present invention is to avoid these drawbacks, making it possible to produce a refrigerated cabinet provided with a movable closing device and screen with reflector having excellent efficiency in protecting this cabinet against radiation. direct and thoughtful coming from the outside environment.

According to the invention, a refrigeration unit provided with a movable closure and screen device, is characterized in that the movable closure and screen device comprises a reflector constituted by a piece of reflective material having the form of '' a gutter whose cross section has a curvature formed by an arc of a circle of radius which is determined as a function of the width of the food display surface and the height of the edge of this reflector vis-à-vis screw of this exhibition area.

• la figure 1 représente une vue schématique en perspective d'un meuble frigorifique réalisé selon l'invention montrant un dispositif mobile de fermeture et d'écran à réflecteur, au cours d'un déplacement de sa position basse de fermeture vers sa position haute d'écran, et
• la figure 2 représente à une autre échelle une vue partielle et schématique en coupe transversale du réflecteur du dispositif mobile de fermeture et d'écran de la figure 1, montrant un mode de détermination de sa forme.

To better understand the invention, an exemplary embodiment is illustrated below, illustrated by the attached drawings,

• FIG. 1 represents a schematic perspective view of a refrigeration unit produced according to the invention showing a movable closure device and screen with reflector, during a displacement from its low position of closure towards its high position of screen, and
• 2 shows on another scale a partial and schematic view in cross section of the reflector of the mobile closure and screen device of FIG. 1, showing a method of determining its shape.

The invention is applicable to any refrigerating cabinet intended for the presentation of foodstuffs for sale. A refrigeration unit 1 taken as an exemplary embodiment of the invention is schematically illustrated in FIG. 1. The refrigeration unit 1 is a unit intended for a presentation for sale of frozen products and ice creams. The cabinet 1 comprises a lower part 2 produced in a similar manner to a known tray cabinet intended for frozen products and ice creams, and an upper part 3 supported by vertical uprights 4 fixed on the lower part 2, and intended mainly in housing a mobile closure and screen device 5 when the latter is in the high screen position. The movable closure and screen device 5 comprises a low position or closed position where it closes the opening 11 of the lower part 2 to avoid any loss of cold, and a high position or screen position in order to allow free access to the foodstuffs exposed in the lower part 2 and to prevent as much as possible direct and reflected radiation from the external environment from reaching the foodstuffs. The mobile closure and screen device 5 is suspended from the upper part 3 of the cabinet 1 by means of cables or belts 6 and idler support pulleys 7. The cable or belts 6 which pass over the support pulleys 7 are, under the control of an electric motor 9 and its transmission shafts 10, wound on storage pulleys 8 when the device is raised from its low closed position to its high screen position, and unwound from these storage pulleys 8, when lowering this device from its upper screen position to its lower closed position.

In its high position or screen position, the closure and screen device 5 covers by its extent, an area of space above the part 2 of the cabinet where the food is exposed, separates the food by its presence of direct and / or reflected thermal radiation outside this covered area, and effectively prevents them from reaching these commodities. The closure and screen device 5 comprises a reflector 12 and a rigid frame 15 supporting this reflector.

Surprising results of the efficiency of the closure and screen device 5 have been recorded, in comparison with that of known solutions. These good results are mainly due to a particular shape of the reflector 12 of this device 5, shown diagrammatically in broken lines in FIG. 1.

According to the invention the reflector 12 of the closure and screen device 5 is constituted by a piece of reflective material having the shape of a gutter whose cross section has a curvature formed by an arc of a circle of radius R which is determined as a function of the width of the food display surface of the cabinet 1 and the height of the edge of this reflector 12 with respect to this display surface.

où la tangente de cet angle alpha est égale au quotient de la valeur d de cette largeur AB de la surface d'exposition de denrées par la valeur h de la hauteur du bord du réflecteur 12 vis-à-vis de cette surface d'exposition,

$$\text{tg α =}\frac{\text{d}}{\text{h}}$$

Dans la figure 2, il est facile d'identifier dans le triangle rectangle ABC dont l'angle au sommet C est égal à alpha, que

$$\text{tg α =}\frac{\text{AB}}{\text{BC}}\text{=}\frac{\text{d}}{\text{h}}$$

et dans le triangle rectangle OEC dont l'angle au somment C est égal à une moitié de l'angle alpha, OE étant une parallèle à AB et OC étant une bissectrice de l'angle alpha, que

   L'efficacité du dispositif de fermeture et d'écran 5 à réflecteur 12 permet d'obtenir par rapport aux dispositifs des solutions connus une économie d'énergie supérieure à 20 %.In the example illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, in cabinet 1, the width of the food display surface is delimited by points A and B and equal to d, the height with respect to this display surface AB where the edge of the reflector 12 is located in the high position, is marked by points B and C and equal to h, C being vertical to B in other words BC perpendicular to AB, the angle formed by straight lines joining point C of the edge of the reflector 12 and respectively these delimiting points A and B of the width of the food display surface, is equal to alpha, and the reflector 12 is provided with a cross section having a curvature constituted by an arc delimited by the points D, C of a circle with defined center O by the meeting point of a bisector CO of this angle alpha and a perpendicular bisector of this width AB, and of radius R equal to the product of half the value d of this width AB, and the inverse of the sine of an angle equal to half of this alpha angle

where the tangent of this angle alpha is equal to the quotient of the value d of this width AB of the food display area by the value h of the height of the edge of the reflector 12 with respect to this display area ,

$$\text{tg α =}\frac{\text{d}}{\text{h}}$$

In Figure 2, it is easy to identify in the right triangle ABC whose apex angle C is equal to alpha, that

$$\text{tg α =}\frac{\text{AB}}{\text{BC}}\text{=}\frac{\text{d}}{\text{h}}$$

and in the right triangle OEC whose angle at the top C is equal to half of the angle alpha, OE being a parallel to AB and OC being a bisector of the angle alpha, that

The efficiency of the closure and screen device 5 with reflector 12 makes it possible to obtain, compared with the devices of the known solutions, an energy saving greater than 20%.

In the cabinet 1, the upper part 3 with its strips or side plates 14 constitutes a housing for the closure and screen device 5 in the high position and serves as a lighting support, decoration and information or advertising on products for sale and / or insured services. As a lighting support, the upper part 3 contains a system of tubes and / or light bulbs, not shown, which, in direct or reflected light, diffuse or in the form of a beam or spot, white, monochrome or full color, illuminates not only the food display surface in the lower part 2 but also the strips or side plates 14 made of materials chosen from transparent, translucent and opaque materials.

The reflector 12 is made of a material chosen from metals with a reflective surface, metallized reflective materials and other known reflective materials.

The reflector 12 consists of a single part or an assembly of component parts having the same color or several assorted colors.

Claims (9)

1. Refrigerating piece of furniture provided with a movable closing and screen device comprising a reflector constituted by a part of reflecting material having the shape of a gutter disposed with the concave face in front of the foodstuff exhibition surface, the cross-section of which exhibits a curvature formed of an arc of a circle, characterized in that the radius (R) of the said circle is determined as a function of the width (AB) of the foodstuff exhibition surface and of the height (BC) of the edge of this reflector (12) in front of this exhibition surface, in that the said reflector (12) reflects the thermal radiations originating from the outside of the foodstuff exhibition surface towards the outside of the foodstuff exibition surface.
2. Piece of furniture according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a lower portion (2) comprising a surface of exhibition of foodstuff put on sale and an upper portion (3) provided with strips or side plates (14) constituting a housing for the closing and screen device (5) in the up position and serving as a support for ornamentation, information or advertisement and lighting.
3. Piece of furniture according to one of claims 1 and 2, having an exhibition surface with a width defined by the points A and B and equal to d, an edge height of the reflector (12) in front of this exhibition surface AB, marked by points B and C and equal to h, C being on the vertical line passing through B, the angle formed of the straight lines joining the point C and the points A and B being equal to alpha, characterized in that in the closing and screen device (5), the reflector (12) is provided with a cross-section exhibiting a curvature constituted by an arc defined by points D, C of a circle with a center O defined by the point of meeting of a bisectrix CO of the angle alpha and of a mid-perpendicular of the width AB and with a radius R equal to the product of one half of the value (d) of this width AB by the reciprocal of the sine of an angle equal to one half of the angle alpha.
4. Piece of furniture according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that in the closing and screen device (5), the reflector (12) is made from a material selected among the metals with a reflecting surface, the reflecting metal-sprayed materials and the materials with a reflecting surface.
5. Piece of furniture according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that in the closing and screen device (5), the reflector (12) is constituted by one single member.
6. Piece of furniture according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that in the closing and screen devices (5), the reflector (12) is constituted by an assembly of component parts the colour of which is selected among a uniform colour and several matched colours.
7. Piece of furniture according to claim 2, characterized in that in the upper portion (3), the strips or side plates (14) are constituted by materials selected among the transparent, translucent and opaque materials.
8. Piece of furniture according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises in its upper portion (3) serving as a lighting support, a system of tubes and/or of electric bulbs which illuminates the foodstuff exhibition surface in the lower portion (2) and the strips or side plates (14) with a light selected among the direct and reflected, diffused and bundle-shaped or spot-shaped, white and monochromic or polychromic lights.
9. Piece of furniture according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the closing and screen device (5) is suspended from the upper portion (3) of the piece of furniture by means of cables or straps (6) and of loose pulleys (7) and displaced in its up and down positions by the control of an electric motor (9) and of the transmission shafts (10) effecting a winding of these cables or straps (6) into storage pulleys (8) and an unwinding thereof from these pulleys (8), respectively.

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