EP1825202A1 - No-frost refrigerator - Google Patents

No-frost refrigerator

Info

Publication number
EP1825202A1
EP1825202A1 EP05811096A EP05811096A EP1825202A1 EP 1825202 A1 EP1825202 A1 EP 1825202A1 EP 05811096 A EP05811096 A EP 05811096A EP 05811096 A EP05811096 A EP 05811096A EP 1825202 A1 EP1825202 A1 EP 1825202A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
air
rim
cavity
refrigerator
fact
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP05811096A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Inventor
Romildo Whirlpool Europe s.r.l. VALENICH
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Whirlpool Corp
Original Assignee
Whirlpool Corp
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Whirlpool Corp filed Critical Whirlpool Corp
Publication of EP1825202A1 publication Critical patent/EP1825202A1/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D17/00—Arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces
    • F25D17/04—Arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces for circulating air, e.g. by convection
    • F25D17/06—Arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces for circulating air, e.g. by convection by forced circulation
    • F25D17/062—Arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces for circulating air, e.g. by convection by forced circulation in household refrigerators
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D25/00—Charging, supporting, and discharging the articles to be cooled
    • F25D25/02—Charging, supporting, and discharging the articles to be cooled by shelves
    • F25D25/024—Slidable shelves
    • F25D25/025—Drawers
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D2317/00—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass
    • F25D2317/06—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass with forced air circulation
    • F25D2317/061—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass with forced air circulation through special compartments
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D2317/00—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass
    • F25D2317/06—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass with forced air circulation
    • F25D2317/066—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass with forced air circulation characterised by the air supply
    • F25D2317/0661—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass with forced air circulation characterised by the air supply from the bottom
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D2317/00—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass
    • F25D2317/06—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass with forced air circulation
    • F25D2317/066—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass with forced air circulation characterised by the air supply
    • F25D2317/0665—Details or arrangements for circulating cooling fluids; Details or arrangements for circulating gas, e.g. air, within refrigerated spaces, not provided for in other groups of this subclass with forced air circulation characterised by the air supply from the top
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D2400/00—General features of, or devices for refrigerators, cold rooms, ice-boxes, or for cooling or freezing apparatus not covered by any other subclass
    • F25D2400/06—Refrigerators with a vertical mullion

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a ventilated refrigerator, of the type comprising at least one cavity in which is arranged a plurality of shelves and which is equipped with a duct for introducing refrigerated air into said cavity.
  • a ventilated refrigerator is here taken to be any type of household electrical appliance for refrigerating and preserving food products in which air is caused to circulate by means of a fan through an evaporator connected to a refrigeration circuit.
  • Such refrigerators conventionally known as "no-frost" refrigerators, usually have at least two separate cavities, a first cavity capable of acting as a freezer compartment and a second cavity for preserving fresh foodstuffs ("fridge" compartment).
  • the refrigerated air downstream from the evaporator is supplied to the second cavity through vents for introducing cold air, and less cold air within the second cavity is drawn out through one or more outlet vents with the aim of directing it to the evaporator.
  • a characteristic cold air introduction point is arranged such that the stream of air is directed inside a removable drawer for preserving fruit and vegetables and/or meat.
  • a temperature that is lower than the mean temperature in the fridge compartment it has, however, been found that this type of supply can give rise to the unwanted development of ice or frost on the foodstuffs contained in said drawer, with a consequent decline in preservation performance.
  • the aim of the present invention is provide a refrigerator of the type specified at the beginning of the description that does not have the above-stated disadvantage and is simple and economic to produce. - -
  • At least one of said shelves comprises a rim provided with an element for connection to said duct and means for distributing the air uniformly within the cavity.
  • the rim of the shelf is preferably hollow and a plurality of openings are defined in said rim, for distributing the air uniformly.
  • the rim defines an air space, the lower wall of which comprises a plurality of openings for distributing the air.
  • FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a no-frost refrigerator in which the present invention is implemented
  • FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a detail of the refrigerator in Figure 1 , produced according to the prior art;
  • FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a cavity of the refrigerator in Figure 1 , in which a shelf according to the invention is used;
  • FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the shelf in Figure 3;
  • FIG. 5 shows the shelf in Figure 4 in its assembled configuration
  • FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a shelf produced according to a variant of the invention.
  • FIG. 7 is a sectional view along the line VII-VII in Figure 6.
  • 10 denotes overall a ventilated ("no-frost") refrigerator of the "side-by-side” type, in which a freezer cavity 10a is beside a fridge cavity 10b.
  • a plurality of glass shelves 12 for food products are arranged in the latter.
  • One shelf 14, arranged at the bottom of the cavity, defines, together with a drawer 16 located beneath, an enclosed space for preserving fruit and vegetables and/or meat.
  • an opening 15 is provided on the rim of the shelf 14, said opening being capable of being located, in the installed - -
  • the rim of the shelf 14, denoted 20 in the drawings has three hollow faces, and in particular the bottom face and the side faces adjacent to the side walls of the cavity.
  • the cross-section of the three hollow faces of the rim 20 has a cross-section shaped like a right-angled triangle, in which the inclined surface 20a, corresponding to the hypotenuse, has a plurality of holes 22 for uniformly distributing air towards the interior of the drawer 16. In this manner, overcooling of one zone of the drawer (typically the zone immediately downstream from the vent 18 in the case of Figure 2) is prevented.
  • connection between the rim 20 and the duct C is provided by means of an element in the manner of a union joint 24 capable of being connected in a substantially airtight manner with the duct C.
  • Said element 24 can be produced integrally with the rim 20, or can be produced in an elastomeric material and subsequently joined to said rim.
  • the hollow rim 20 is advantageously produced by using a C-shaped component, for example produced by injection moulding and denoted 26 in Figure 4, and subsequently assembled, for example by adhesive bonding or by ultrasound welding, to the horizontal and vertical walls of said rim.
  • a rim 28 ( Figures 6-7) capable of defining an air space K around the perimeter.
  • Said air space is defined, in the manner of double glazing, by an upper sheet 30 and a lower sheet 32 (which is also preferably made of transparent material) provided with a plurality of regularly spaced holes 34 for introducing cold air into the drawer 16.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Thermal Sciences (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Cold Air Circulating Systems And Constructional Details In Refrigerators (AREA)
  • Defrosting Systems (AREA)

Abstract

A refrigerator of the no-frost type comprising a cavity in which are arranged a plurality of shelves and which is equipped with a duct for introducing cold air into said cavity. At least one of said shelves comprises a rim provided with an element for connection to said duct, the rim being provided with a plurality of holes for uniformly distributing the air in the cavity.

Description

- -
TITLE: NO-FROST REFRIGERATOR
The present invention relates to a ventilated refrigerator, of the type comprising at least one cavity in which is arranged a plurality of shelves and which is equipped with a duct for introducing refrigerated air into said cavity. A ventilated refrigerator is here taken to be any type of household electrical appliance for refrigerating and preserving food products in which air is caused to circulate by means of a fan through an evaporator connected to a refrigeration circuit. Such refrigerators, conventionally known as "no-frost" refrigerators, usually have at least two separate cavities, a first cavity capable of acting as a freezer compartment and a second cavity for preserving fresh foodstuffs ("fridge" compartment). The refrigerated air downstream from the evaporator is supplied to the second cavity through vents for introducing cold air, and less cold air within the second cavity is drawn out through one or more outlet vents with the aim of directing it to the evaporator.
In this type of household electrical appliance, a characteristic cold air introduction point is arranged such that the stream of air is directed inside a removable drawer for preserving fruit and vegetables and/or meat. In fact, it is well known that, if such foodstuffs are to be properly preserved, it is necessary to provide a temperature that is lower than the mean temperature in the fridge compartment. It has, however, been found that this type of supply can give rise to the unwanted development of ice or frost on the foodstuffs contained in said drawer, with a consequent decline in preservation performance.
The aim of the present invention is provide a refrigerator of the type specified at the beginning of the description that does not have the above-stated disadvantage and is simple and economic to produce. - -
According to the invention, this aim is achieved thanks to the fact that at least one of said shelves comprises a rim provided with an element for connection to said duct and means for distributing the air uniformly within the cavity.
The rim of the shelf is preferably hollow and a plurality of openings are defined in said rim, for distributing the air uniformly.
According to a variant of the invention, the rim defines an air space, the lower wall of which comprises a plurality of openings for distributing the air.
Further advantages and features of a refrigerator according to the invention will emerge from the following detailed description, which is provided purely by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the attached drawings, in which:
- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a no-frost refrigerator in which the present invention is implemented;
- Figure 2 is a perspective view of a detail of the refrigerator in Figure 1 , produced according to the prior art;
- Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of a cavity of the refrigerator in Figure 1 , in which a shelf according to the invention is used;
- Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view of the shelf in Figure 3;
- Figure 5 shows the shelf in Figure 4 in its assembled configuration;
- Figure 6 is a perspective view of a shelf produced according to a variant of the invention; and
- Figure 7 is a sectional view along the line VII-VII in Figure 6.
With reference to the drawings, 10 denotes overall a ventilated ("no-frost") refrigerator of the "side-by-side" type, in which a freezer cavity 10a is beside a fridge cavity 10b. A plurality of glass shelves 12 for food products are arranged in the latter. One shelf 14, arranged at the bottom of the cavity, defines, together with a drawer 16 located beneath, an enclosed space for preserving fruit and vegetables and/or meat.
According to the prior art shown in Figure 2, an opening 15 is provided on the rim of the shelf 14, said opening being capable of being located, in the installed - -
configuration of the shelf, in line with a vent 18 for introducing cold air, said air originating from a duct C within a dividing wall W between the two cavities 10a and 10b.
According to the invention (Figure 3), the rim of the shelf 14, denoted 20 in the drawings, has three hollow faces, and in particular the bottom face and the side faces adjacent to the side walls of the cavity. The cross-section of the three hollow faces of the rim 20 has a cross-section shaped like a right-angled triangle, in which the inclined surface 20a, corresponding to the hypotenuse, has a plurality of holes 22 for uniformly distributing air towards the interior of the drawer 16. In this manner, overcooling of one zone of the drawer (typically the zone immediately downstream from the vent 18 in the case of Figure 2) is prevented. The connection between the rim 20 and the duct C is provided by means of an element in the manner of a union joint 24 capable of being connected in a substantially airtight manner with the duct C. Said element 24 can be produced integrally with the rim 20, or can be produced in an elastomeric material and subsequently joined to said rim. As is shown clearly in Figure 4, the hollow rim 20 is advantageously produced by using a C-shaped component, for example produced by injection moulding and denoted 26 in Figure 4, and subsequently assembled, for example by adhesive bonding or by ultrasound welding, to the horizontal and vertical walls of said rim.
According to a variant of the invention, instead of the hollow rim 20, it is possible to use a rim 28 (Figures 6-7) capable of defining an air space K around the perimeter. Said air space is defined, in the manner of double glazing, by an upper sheet 30 and a lower sheet 32 (which is also preferably made of transparent material) provided with a plurality of regularly spaced holes 34 for introducing cold air into the drawer 16.
It is, of course, also possible to provide further variants of the above-described solutions, for example a shelf in which the openings for distributing the air are produced in the form of straight or shaped slots. Such further variants are also included within the scope of the present invention, in that they ensure uniform distribution of air within the cavity. Furthermore, although a "no-frost" refrigerator of the "side-by-side" type is illustrated, the invention can advantageously be - -
applied to other types of refrigerator, for example the "twin door" or combined types, in which the freezer compartment and the fridge compartment are located one above the other.

Claims

1. Ventilated refrigerator of the type comprising at least one cavity (10b) in which are arranged a plurality of shelves (12, 14) and which is equipped with an air duct (C) for introducing cold air into said cavity, characterised by the fact that at least one (14) of said shelves (12, 14) comprises a rim (20, 28) provided with an element (24) for connection to said duct (C) and means (20a, 22, K, 34) for distributing the air uniformly in the cavity (10b, 16).
2. Refrigerator according to Claim 1 , characterised by the fact that said rim (20) is hollow, such means for uniformly distributing the air comprising a plurality of openings (22) located at the level of said rim (20).
3. Refrigerator according to Claim 2, characterised by the fact that said openings (22) are arranged in such a manner as to direct the air towards the space beneath the shelf (14).
4. Refrigerator according to Claim 1 , characterised by the fact that the rim (28) defines an air space (K) around its perimeter, there being provided on at least one of the walls (30, 32) of said air space (K) a plurality of openings (34) for distributing the air.
5. Refrigerator according to Claim 4, characterised by the fact that said openings (34) are located at the level of a lower wall (32) of the air space (K), in such a manner as to direct the air towards the space beneath the shelf (14).
EP05811096A 2004-12-07 2005-11-22 No-frost refrigerator Withdrawn EP1825202A1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
IT000020U ITVA20040020U1 (en) 2004-12-07 2004-12-07 NO-FROST REFRIGERATOR
PCT/EP2005/056131 WO2006061319A1 (en) 2004-12-07 2005-11-22 No-frost refrigerator

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1825202A1 true EP1825202A1 (en) 2007-08-29

Family

ID=36577680

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP05811096A Withdrawn EP1825202A1 (en) 2004-12-07 2005-11-22 No-frost refrigerator

Country Status (4)

Country Link
EP (1) EP1825202A1 (en)
BR (1) BRPI0518417A2 (en)
IT (1) ITVA20040020U1 (en)
WO (1) WO2006061319A1 (en)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN109798727A (en) * 2019-03-21 2019-05-24 合肥华凌股份有限公司 Refrigeration equipment, storage box and its Defrost method

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN101749911B (en) * 2008-11-28 2012-11-07 博西华家用电器有限公司 Refrigerator

Family Cites Families (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3169383A (en) * 1958-11-25 1965-02-16 Whirlpool Co Refrigerator with hollow cold shelf
JPS598749B2 (en) * 1978-02-06 1984-02-27 三洋電機株式会社 refrigerator
US5722252A (en) * 1995-10-13 1998-03-03 Lg Electronics, Inc. Cooling air distribution apparatus for refrigerator
JPH11257830A (en) * 1998-03-12 1999-09-24 Sanyo Electric Co Ltd Open showcase
JP3863699B2 (en) * 2000-03-31 2006-12-27 三洋電機株式会社 refrigerator

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See references of WO2006061319A1 *

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN109798727A (en) * 2019-03-21 2019-05-24 合肥华凌股份有限公司 Refrigeration equipment, storage box and its Defrost method
CN109798727B (en) * 2019-03-21 2021-05-28 合肥华凌股份有限公司 Refrigeration equipment, storage box and defrosting method thereof

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
ITVA20040020U1 (en) 2005-03-07
BRPI0518417A2 (en) 2008-11-25
WO2006061319A1 (en) 2006-06-15

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