EP2433063B1 - No-frost refrigeration device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, in particular a household refrigerator, in no-frost construction.

A no-frost refrigeration device conventionally comprises at least one storage chamber for refrigerated goods and an evaporator chamber, in which an evaporator and a fan are accommodated. The fan serves to drive an air circuit passing through the storage chamber and the evaporator chamber, by which the storage chamber is cooled. Most storage chamber and evaporator chamber of such a device are surrounded by a common housing, whose interior is divided by an intermediate wall in the evaporator chamber and storage chamber. A no-frost refrigerator according to the preamble of claim 1 is for example from the DE-U1-20 2005 014 370 known. Moisture, which is entered together with the refrigerated goods or by opening the door in the refrigerator, should only precipitate on the evaporator, because at a time when the evaporator and fan are out of service, the evaporator can defrost and precipitated moisture from him be derived from the device, without this leading to a noticeable heating of the refrigerated goods in the storage chamber.

A problem can occur if the path of the air between the storage chamber and the evaporator chamber is not defined precisely enough. Ideally, air drawn in from the storage chamber should be led completely past the evaporator in the evaporator chamber in order to dehumidify it on the evaporator and to prevent residual moisture from condensing out on the fan. In the case of insufficient sealing between the evaporator chamber and the bearing chamber, however, it may happen that leakage air from the bearing chamber is sucked through gaps between the partition wall and the housing directly into an intermediate space of the evaporator chamber, which lies in the flow between the evaporator and the fan. The relatively warm and moist air leakage mixes in the interspace with air cooled on the evaporator. By cooling, the relative humidity can rise to over 100%, with the result that frost precipitates on more downstream surfaces. If too much frost accumulates on the fan, the fan may freeze, with the result that the storage chamber can no longer be cooled.

In addition, leakage air affects the energy efficiency of the refrigerator because, on the one hand, the drive energy of the fan used to draw the leakage air does not contribute to the cooling of the storage chamber and, on the other hand, to achieve a desired temperature in the storage compartment, the evaporator must be cooled to a lower temperature the more the leakage air flow is.

It is therefore desirable to design a no-frost refrigerator from the outset in such a way that the amount of leakage air taken in by the fan is kept to a minimum.

The object is achieved by providing in a no-frost refrigeration device with at least one storage chamber for refrigerated goods and an evaporator chamber containing an evaporator and a fan for driving a running through the storage chamber and the evaporator chamber air circulation, wherein the evaporator chamber is at least a two-part housing has, the first housing part at least locally has a resilient surface and a molded on the second housing part rib is sealingly pressed into the resilient surface.

Preferably, the second housing part is an intermediate wall which separates the evaporator chamber from the storage chamber.

The compliant surface, however, may be part of a common housing or mounted on a common housing surrounding the bearing chamber and evaporator chamber.

If, in a manner known per se, the storage chamber and the evaporator chamber are delimited by a common inner container, the resilient surface may expediently be part of a lining element which is attached to the inner container on the inside.

The resilient surface preferably consists of a closed-cell foam, in particular of expanded polystyrene (EPS).

The second housing part can be formed, for example, by a flexible layer glued into the inner container. Preferably, however, it is considered a rigid, one-piece Molded part carried out, since such a shaped part of a wall contour of the second housing part can be reproduced more accurately than the - formed generally by deep drawing - inner container.

If the fan is located downstream of the evaporator, the rib should expediently seal at least one gap of the evaporator chamber, which is fluidly between the evaporator and the fan.

A socket for the fan can be conveniently formed on the second housing part. The rib may then expediently extend around an intake opening of the fan formed in the second housing part.

Fig. 1

einen schematischen vertikalen Schnitt durch ein erfindungsgemäßes No-Frost-Kältegerät;

Fig. 2

eine perspektivische Ansicht eines ersten Gehäuseteils einer Verdampferkammer des Kältegeräts aus Fig. 1;

Fig. 3

eine perspektivische Ansicht einer Verdampferschale als zweites Gehäuseteil der Verdampferkammer des Kältegeräts aus Fig. 1;

Fig. 4

ein Detail der Verdampferschale in perspektivischer Ansicht; und

Fig. 5

ein Detail des Kältegeräts im Schnitt in Tiefenrichtung des Gerätegehäuses.

Further advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying figures. Show it:

Fig. 1

a schematic vertical section through an inventive no-frost refrigeration device;

Fig. 2

a perspective view of a first housing part of an evaporator chamber of the refrigerator Fig. 1 ;

Fig. 3

a perspective view of an evaporator shell as the second housing part of the evaporator chamber of the refrigerator Fig. 1 ;

Fig. 4

a detail of the evaporator shell in a perspective view; and

Fig. 5

a detail of the refrigerator in section in the depth direction of the device housing.

Fig.1 shows a schematic partial section through the housing of a combination refrigerator with an upper and a lower storage compartment 1 and 2. The walls of the refrigerator have a known construction with a solid outer skin 3, which may consist of different materials, depending on whether it is a built-in or a stand device, to a side wall or a rear wall 4 acts, a deep-drawn plastic sheet material inner container 5 and 6 and enclosed between the outer skin 3 and inner container 5 insulating material layer. 7

On the ceiling of the lower inner container 6, an undercut 8 is formed, which extends to near the front edge of the ceiling. This undercut 8 is on a large part of its surface by a shell-like molded part 9 of closed-cell foam, in particular EPS, lined; only a back wall near the edge of the ceiling is recessed. This in Fig. 2 in a perspective view obliquely from below shaped part 9 consists to a large extent of a flat plate 10, the top of which rests against the ceiling of the inner container 6 and which is surrounded at its edges by four downwardly directed webs, of which the front web 11 and lateral ridges 12 of the shape of a front edge of the undercut 8 and a rounding between the ceiling and side walls of the inner container 6 following obliquely, while a distance from the rear wall 4 rear web 13 is vertically aligned. The rear web 13 is bisected by a central circular arc-shaped recess 14. The recess 14 extends into the central planar plate 10 of the molded part 9. The cutting plane of the Fig. 1 passes through the recess 14.

Fig. 3 shows a schematic perspective view of a plastic injection-molded evaporator shell 15, which is provided to form a housing for an evaporator 16 together with the molded part 9. In an inclined front wall 17 of the evaporator shell 15 inlet openings 18 are formed, can pass through the air from the storage chamber 2 into the evaporator housing. In a rear wall 20 of the evaporator shell 15 is a suction port 19 for a in Fig. 3 not shown fan 21 is formed. The fan 21 is provided to be plugged into a socket which is formed by an externally formed on the rear wall 20, the suction port 19 surrounding annular ridge 22. In order to accommodate a sufficiently large, powerful fan, the diameter of the web 22 is greater than the height of the actual evaporator shell, and sections 23, 24 of the web 22 engage up over the otherwise horizontal upper edges of the front and rear walls 17, 20 and Side walls 25 of the evaporator shell 15 upwards or below a bottom 26 of the shell down. The recess 14 of the molding 9 is provided to receive a part of the upwardly projecting portion 23.

The in Fig. 3 Evaporator 16 shown schematically as a transparent cuboid is arranged in shell 15 such that it fills the entire free cross-section of the evaporator housing formed by shell 15 and molding 9 and forces air that flows through the evaporator chamber from inlet openings 18 to suction opening 19 to pass the evaporator 16, being cooled and dried.

Leakage air sucked in by the fan 21 without having passed the evaporator 16 and mixing with cold air from the evaporator 16 in an intermediate space 27 between the evaporator 16 and the rear wall 20 could cause icing of the fan 21. It is therefore important, especially in the vicinity of the intermediate space 27, for it to be so absorbed that the edges of the molded part 9 and the evaporator shell 15 bear tightly against one another. In order to ensure this in particular in the region of section 23, a sharp-edged, radially outwardly projecting rib 28 is integrally formed thereon, which, when assembling the refrigerator, the evaporator shell 15 is pressed against the molding 9, in the amount of the recess 14 cutting in the molding 9 presses.

In a partition between the two storage chambers 1, 2 passages between the storage chambers and valves or flaps can be provided, which make it possible to direct the 21 driven by the fan air circulation through the storage chamber 2 or the storage chamber 1.

Fig. 5 shows an enlarged section through a rear upper corner of the inner container 6 and a part of the rear wall with the suction opening formed therein 19. It can be clearly seen a stepped course of the edge portion 23, with a rear portion of large diameter 29, from the ceiling of the inner container 6 is separated only by a narrow gap 30, and a front portion 31 of smaller diameter. The diameter of the front portion 31 must be chosen to be sufficiently smaller than that of the rear portion 29 to fit into the space between the front portion 31 and the top of the inner container 6, an edge portion 32 of the molding 9, the strength of which is sufficient not to break in the case of assembly, when the rib 28 arranged at the front region 31 cuts into the edge section 32.

Of course, the rib 28 need not be limited to the portion 23, but may extend over other areas of the upper edge of the evaporator shell 15. In general, however, the rib 28 will not extend past the evaporator 16 because a leak between the mold 9 and bowl 15 upstream of the evaporator 16 has no effect on the tendency of the fan to freeze and can be tolerated.

Claims (9)

1. No-frost refrigeration device, particularly a no-frost domestic refrigeration device having at least one storage chamber (1, 2) for items to be cooled and an evaporator chamber, comprising an evaporator (16) and a ventilator (21) for driving air circulation running through the storage chamber (1; 2) and the evaporator chamber, wherein the evaporator chamber comprises a housing having at least two parts (9, 15), characterised in that the first housing part (9) has, at least locally, a flexible surface, and that a rib (28) formed on the second housing part (15) is pressed in a sealing manner into the flexible surface.
2. No-frost refrigeration device according to claim 1, characterised in that the second housing part (15) is an intermediate wall which separates the evaporator chamber from the storage chamber (2).
3. No-frost refrigeration device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the flexible surface is mounted on a housing (6) which surrounds the storage chamber (2) and the evaporator chamber.
4. No-frost refrigeration device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the flexible surface is part of a covering element (9) which is mounted on a common inner container (6) of the storage chamber (2) and the evaporator chamber is mounted internally.
5. No-frost refrigeration device according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the flexible surface is made from a closed-pore foam material, particularly EPS.
6. No-frost refrigeration device according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the first housing part (9) is a rigid integral moulded part.
7. No-frost refrigeration device according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the ventilator (21) is arranged downstream from the evaporator (16) and the rib (28) seals an intermediate space (27) of the evaporator chamber lying, in the direction of flow, between the evaporator (16) and the ventilator (21).
8. No-frost refrigeration device according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that a mount (22) for the ventilator (21) is provided on the second housing part (15).
9. No-frost refrigeration device according to claim 8, characterised in that the rib (28) extends around a suction aperture (19) of the ventilator (21) formed in the second housing part (15).

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