EP3076106B1 - Cooling unit - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a cooling unit, in particular for cooling food.

Commercially available cooling units in the form of cooling shelves are known from the prior art, which are provided, for example, in supermarkets for cooling fresh food in the plus degree range, such as sausage or cheese.

Commercial refrigerated shelves have a rear wall, a base plate and a cover plate, so that an at least partially open goods space to be cooled is spanned between these components.

In order to enable cooling at all, the corresponding cooling medium supply lines or cooling medium discharge lines with the corresponding throttling devices are provided outside the cooling unit, so that heat can be extracted from it due to the heating of the coolant in the goods space to be cooled.

When laying central supply lines or discharge lines for the cooling medium to or from the cooling unit, expensive and complex insulation or insulation of the pipelines is always required. This insulation prevents condensate from forming on the supply lines or discharge lines through which a cooling medium flows and the lines outside the goods area to be cooled from icing up.

Furthermore, in the outer area of the cooling unit, for example on the outer surface of the cover plate, throttle elements for regulating the mass flow and thus also for extracting heat from the goods space to be cooled are provided.

The disadvantage of this technology is that moisture constantly condenses, in particular on the throttle elements, which as a result freeze up and impair their function or are completely unusable. Furthermore, the liquid condensate on the throttle elements, which are themselves designed to be insulation-free, and / or in the area around the throttle elements, which are also designed to be insulation-free due to the structural fixing measures between the cooling medium lines and the throttle element, are disadvantageous for the insulation connected to this insulation-free area, because the insulation is soaked in water like a sponge, which significantly accelerates pipe corrosion. In addition, the soaking of the cooling medium supply lines or cooling medium discharge lines always causes the loss of their intrinsic insulation. Due to the construction of known cooling units, as mentioned above, it is always necessary to provide insulation and / or insulation of the cooling medium lines. However, this insulation is interrupted by the throttling devices, which are flanged to the lines, for example. Consequently it is not possible to do that To dam the throttle organs themselves. It is also not possible to insulate the immediate vicinity of the throttling organs, so that the throttling organs and their surroundings are designed to be insulation-free and this is where condensate precipitates and freezes. Due to the formation of ice and the associated restriction in the function of the throttle elements, known cooling units require complex defrosting steps and long defrosting times in order to defrost the throttle elements again. During these defrosting steps, cooling of the goods to be cooled is of course not possible, so that loss of goods must be accepted at all times. Furthermore, due to the soaking of the insulation, it is permanently damaged, so that the insulation effect is lost and has to be re-insulated at great expense. Furthermore, the prior art has the disadvantage that additional drip pans have to be fitted directly below the throttle elements in order to collect and discharge the defrosted water
JP S56 3379 U discloses relevant prior art.

Accordingly, the present invention is based on the object of providing a cooling unit, the control unit of which prevents the formation of ice on the throttling elements and / or of the insulation, known from the prior art, from being soaked through.

This object is achieved according to the features of claim 1.

An essential point of the invention according to claim 1 is that the control unit is arranged within the cooling unit. This essentially has the advantage that a Icing is avoided as is the case with known throttle elements from the prior art. The control unit of the present invention is thus designed to be permanently ice-free. In addition, this arrangement is advantageous since the central cooling medium supply and / or discharge lines can be designed to be completely insulated by the control units within the cooling unit, without the insulating material being interrupted by the throttling elements, as in known cooling units. Furthermore, the control unit advantageously has an intrinsic temperature in the range from -20 ° C. to 25 ° C., more advantageously, depending on the cold room temperature, in the range from 0.25 K to 20 K higher than the cold room temperature, so that during operation the Control unit, which at the same time corresponds to the operation of the cooling unit, the temperature of the control unit is always the same as or higher than the temperature of the liquefied cooling medium and / or the expanded cooling medium.

To simplify the discharge of condensation water from the control unit, which may still form at extremely high humidity, a free space can be required between the control unit and the floor element, which has no relevant, in particular electronic, components of the cooling unit. This ensures that the condensate on the cooling medium lines or directly on the control unit itself can drip down in the direction of the floor element and thus advantageously known corrosion, rust formation and electronic damage due to water (condensate / ice) are completely avoided. This is particularly advantageous for the running time of the cooling unit as well as the significantly reduced maintenance intervals. This arrangement also turns out to be also more cost-effective, as fewer components are worn.

Another advantage of the floor element is that, in the event of maintenance, it is also suitable for collecting cooling medium and discharging the cooling medium via the drain, so that soiling of the cooling unit itself is avoided.

An essential point of the invention according to claim 1 is that the control unit is arranged within the cooling unit at least partially within an insulation unit. This arrangement has the advantage that the control unit here is at least partially, advantageously completely, arranged within an insulation unit. This is particularly advantageous in order to isolate the control unit from the humidity of the room air, so that a way is also created to avoid condensation and ice formation. The insulation unit is also advantageously formed from insulation material, for example from at least one polymer foam, more advantageously from expanded polypropylene or polystyrene, so that a temperature gradient between the internal volume of the insulation unit and the cooling unit itself results. The internal volume of the insulation unit is advantageously heated to a higher temperature than the external environment. Consequently, the control unit is also designed to be free of ice and / or free of ice here.

The control units described here are advantageous within a cooling unit, even more advantageously at least partially, most advantageously arranged in the goods space to be cooled of the cooling unit.

An advantage of both cooling units described here according to patent claim 1 or 2 is that the cooling unit is hydraulically optimally balanced. The basis of the hydraulic balancing is a corresponding design of the cooling network using pipe network calculation programs. The cooling capacity of the individual cooling units as well as the pressure losses of all components of the pipe network must be known. In the prior art there is no hydraulic balancing, so that certain cooling units that are close to the cold generator are oversupplied and cooling units that are not close to the cold generator are undersupplied. In this context, the term cold supplier is advantageously to be understood as a device which conveys the cooling medium, for example a heat pump, the cooling medium or cooling carrier of which is selected as brine. This means that to cool the undersupplied cooling units, the brine temperature must be lowered so that the cold generator cycles more frequently. Furthermore, the lowering of the brine temperature also means that the brine concentration must be increased, which causes a deterioration in the value of the specific heat capacity and consequently also in the efficiency. With the control unit described here, precisely these disadvantages of the prior art are overcome and an optimal hydraulic balance is generated.

Further advantageous designs are listed in the subclaims.

According to the invention, the control unit is designed as a pump arrangement. An advantage of the The pump arrangement consists in the fact that it emits thermal energy during operation. This inherent heat prevents the pump arrangement itself from sweating or icing up. Another advantage is that the dew point temperature is increased due to the self-heating in electrical control units, in particular by a pump arrangement. This means that due to the self-heating of the control unit, the temperature, in particular in the housing of the pump arrangement, is raised to a temperature so that no moisture can precipitate inside the housing of the pump. Consequently, during the operation of the pump arrangement, which also corresponds to the operation of the cooling unit, the temperature in and / or on the housing of the pump arrangement is always higher than the dew point temperature in the goods space to be cooled.

In addition, the provision of a pump arrangement per cooling point has proven to be advantageous in that it also enables pump arrangements with a lower output to be used. This decentralized individual arrangement is also advantageous because it allows each cooling unit to be individually regulated, so that the cooling temperature of each cooling unit can be variably adjusted, for example, depending on the goods to be cooled.

The provision of at least one pump arrangement per cooling unit also requires ideal hydraulic balancing, as explained above, so that each pump arrangement always only provides as much delivery head as is actually required by the respective cooling unit.

In this case, the pump arrangement is designed in such a way that it advantageously permanently reduces the pressure loss of the heat extraction transmitter as well as the supply line or discharge line through which the cooling medium flows.

In addition, there is the possibility of arranging the control unit, advantageously the pump arrangement, in addition and / or alternatively in the ventilation flow of the heat exchanger of the cooling unit, so that the control unit is designed to be free of condensation water and / or ice at least during operation by means of the ventilation flow of the heat exchanger.

Furthermore, there is also the possibility of keeping the pump arrangement free of condensate and / or ice by additionally insulating and / or insulating the control unit within the cooling unit. This can be done, for example, with a simple insulation unit that encloses the control unit. In the simplest case, the insulation unit can only be designed to be temperature-insulating. Alternatively, it would also be conceivable to design the insulation unit to be diffusion-tight.

Furthermore, in a further advantageous embodiment, the pump arrangement is designed as a high-efficiency pump. This is advantageous because a regulated high-efficiency pump promotes a needs-based mass flow of the cooling medium and this enables a uniform, continuous flow rate of the cooling medium within the cooling unit with higher energy efficiency.

Of course, this is not to be understood as restrictive, so that it is also conceivable to provide several pump arrangements per cooling unit.

In particular, the design of the control unit as a pump arrangement is advantageous in that the pressure loss in the cooling medium network of a cooling unit can be significantly reduced. For example, the provision of a central cooling medium feed pump and throttling devices arranged as is known from the prior art means that a significantly higher feed pressure must be provided due to the requirement for an effective valve authority (P _Veff ) in the cooling medium network with a central cooling medium feed pump. Consequently, for an effective valve authority of at least 0.4, the total pressure to be provided would have to be increased by 67% compared to a cooling medium network in which the mass flow per cooling unit is controlled by a pump arrangement.

According to an example that is not part of the claimed invention, the control unit is designed as a control element, advantageously comprising several throttle elements and at least one pump arrangement. For example, the throttling elements can be selected from the group consisting of 2-point valves, 2-way valves, 3-way valves and / or balancing valves.

In addition, there is the possibility of arranging the throttle element additionally and / or alternatively in the ventilation flow of the heat exchanger of the cooling unit, so that the throttle element is also free of condensation water and / or ice-free by means of the ventilation flow of the heat exchanger, at least during operation of the cooling unit.

Thus, the control unit can advantageously be designed as a pump arrangement and / or also as a throttle element with a central cooling medium feed pump in the goods space to be cooled. For example, it is conceivable that within the cooling unit, pump assemblies and / or throttle elements and / or combinations thereof are advantageously arranged within the goods space to be cooled, the throttle elements advantageously being selected from the group of 2-point valves, 2-way valves, 3-way valves and / or balancing valves. In particular, the pump arrangement within each cooling unit, more advantageously within each cooling space, has proven to be effective and reliable, since the pump arrangement always remains free of ice.

Furthermore, it is conceivable that the cooling units described here also comprise at least one local control device which regulates and / or controls, for example, the delivery rate of the pump arrangement or the mass flow of the throttle element. This control device can be integrated both in the pump arrangement and / or the throttle element and / or arranged separately in the cooling unit and / or outside the cooling unit. Furthermore, the control device is advantageously designed in such a way that it controls the local control units within the cooling unit and, if necessary, also increases or reduces the delivery height of the central cooling medium delivery pump and / or decentralized pump arrangement.

In a further advantageous embodiment, the control unit is designed to be controllable via at least one sensor element. This is advantageous because, depending on the cooling medium, the supply of the cooling medium, its temperature and / or its pressure, the control unit, in particular the pump arrangement, can be individually controlled in order to carry out pressure compensation and / or temperature compensation. The sensor element is advantageously designed as a measuring sensor and has at least one interface connected to the control unit, advantageously the pump arrangement, and / or the control device. The interface is advantageously designed as a bus, even more advantageously than Modbus and / or as a PWM signal and / or as a 0 to 10 volt interface.

In particular, it has proven to be advantageous to provide two sensor elements in the flow direction of the cooling medium, that is to say of the refrigerant, upstream and downstream of the control unit, with both sensor elements advantageously being arranged at the same distance from the control unit. This enables a reliable control of the mass flow of the cooling medium. Both sensors are advantageously connected to the control unit via an interface each. This can be done in a wired and / or wireless manner, for example via radio or RFID. For example, it is conceivable that the data recorded by the sensor elements are transmitted wirelessly to the control unit and / or to the control device and processed there. Alternatively, it would also be conceivable that the regulating unit and / or the control device fetch the data recorded by the sensor elements from them at predeterminable time intervals for further processing.

According to the invention, the insulation unit comprises at least one first opening for leading the cooling medium supply line into the insulation unit and at least one further opening for leading the cooling medium discharge line out of the insulation unit, the insulation unit additionally comprising at least one condensate collecting channel. The provision of an insulation unit is advantageous to the control unit in reduced operation of the pump arrangement or to keep almost ice-free and / or condensate-free even when the control unit is designed as a throttle device with a central cooling medium feed pump.

The insulation unit advantageously spans a closed space around the control unit, so that the insulation effect of the insulation unit is used. In the simplest case, the insulation unit is designed as a parallelepiped, cube or also as a sphere. Of course, this is not to be understood as limiting, so that any other polygonal shapes and bodies are also conceivable.

Should condensate nevertheless form on the control unit, then the insulation unit, which is advantageously formed from at least one insulation material, comprises at least one condensate collecting channel. In the simplest case, this condensate collecting channel is designed as a recess, for example as an inclined channel, so that the condensate is collected in at least one collecting area of the insulation unit, advantageously at its bottom, and can consequently be easily removed.

The feed-through openings of the cooling medium supply and discharge lines are advantageously made moisture-tight and / or gas-tight with suitable sealing elements.

The condensate collecting channel also advantageously opens into the collecting area, which comprises a further opening within the wall of the insulation device. In order to ensure the moisture and / or gas tightness of this opening, it has proven advantageous to suddenly open the opening by means of a valve, for example a solenoid valve, in order to remove the condensate quickly and completely removed from the insulation unit. The solenoid valve is advantageously controlled as a function of the amount of condensate and / or the weight of the condensate. Appropriate sensor elements are provided for this detection. In addition, it would be conceivable to provide a heating device within the insulation unit in order to avoid condensation and to regulate the temperature of the control unit.

In addition, it is also conceivable to discharge the condensate from the insulation unit via a control flap and / or tilt flap, which is then provided instead of the solenoid valve. These two flaps can advantageously be controlled mechanically and / or electronically, so that the control flap and / or tilt flap are automatically opened and / or closed as a function of the amount of condensate and / or the weight of the condensate.

In addition, it is conceivable to arrange a further conveying device, for example an additional pump, within the insulation unit, which pumps off the condensate in the collecting area of the insulation unit. The pump is advantageously arranged within the insulation unit. Alternatively, it is also conceivable to suck off the condensate from the outside in the collecting area. Here, the suction device, for example a pump, is advantageously arranged outside the insulation unit. Both pumps are preset in such a way that, depending on the amount of condensate and / or the weight of the condensate, they provide the corresponding output directly and actively discharge the condensate from the insulation unit. For this purpose, measuring sensors or other sensor elements could advantageously be located within the insulation unit, advantageously in and / or on the collecting area of the Insulation unit and / or be arranged on and / or in the condensate collecting channel.

The insulation unit and the insulation device can advantageously be used synonymously here. Furthermore, it has been shown that it is particularly advantageous to make the insulation unit from expanded polypropylene. This material is particularly light and can be produced in any shape.

Furthermore, it is advantageous to provide the insulation unit at least partially on and / or in the upper ceiling element of the cooling unit. This is advantageous because the condensate can then be discharged from the insulating device via the cooling unit. As a result, complex pipe systems are avoided. The insulation unit is advantageously provided as a component of the cooling unit and can, for example, also be formed in one piece with it.

In a further advantageous embodiment, it is conceivable to arrange the control unit in a further, additional housing section within the cooling unit, this housing section being able to be provided as an alternative to or in addition to the insulation unit. This is advantageous because the housing section, which is advantageously designed to be open downward in the direction of the base element, provides an additional fixation of the control unit. In addition, the housing section also serves to reduce noise. The housing section is advantageously arranged on the back wall of the cooling unit, for example screwed to it. Furthermore, the housing section can also be designed as a screen so that, for example, it advantageously completely covers the control unit arranged on the back wall of the cooling unit spanned, wherein the screen can be designed, for example, plate-shaped or as a C-profile. This does not affect the function of the control unit.

It is also conceivable to provide further control devices or control devices within the housing section, so that the further housing section is designed as a decentralized control unit. The entire control of the cooling unit is advantageously carried out via this control unit. Each cooling unit advantageously further comprises at least one power supply.

If no corresponding housing section is provided in a cooling unit, the control unit is advantageously firmly fixed to the cooling unit so that it is not damaged, for example, during transport.

It has also proven to be advantageous to arrange the control unit on the back wall, more advantageously in the lower third of the back wall of the cooling unit facing the cooling space. This is of advantage because it significantly reduces the influence of the turbulence in the air flow, which is generated by the control unit designed as a pump arrangement. If the control unit, more advantageously the pump arrangement, is arranged too high up in the cooling unit, this can have the disadvantage, especially in the case of open cooling units, that the cooling curtain is interrupted and unevenness in the cooling of the goods occurs.

In a further advantageous embodiment, the floor element is designed to be fixed or detachable as part of the stand structure. Is the floor element firmly attached to the cooling unit connected, this is of advantage, since this increases the stability of the entire cooling unit. In addition, it is also advantageous that further components of the cooling unit, such as fans or heat extraction exchangers, can be arranged here and / or on it through the base element.

If the floor element is detachable with the cooling unit, it is advantageous if the floor element has a trough-like section, the opening of which is directed towards the interior of the cooling unit. For example, the condensate that forms on the lines or on the pump arrangement within the cooling unit can be easily and simply removed from the cooling unit.

In a further advantageous embodiment, the cooling unit is designed as a cooling space and / or cooling unit and / or as a cooling shelf. This is advantageous because the cooling unit described here can be used in many ways. Depending on the design, it is advantageous to design the cooling unit to be open, at least partially closed and / or also completely closed. For example, it is also conceivable that the cooling units described here are designed as a cooling space and / or as a mobile cooling container.

In a further advantageous embodiment, it has proven to be advantageous that the cooling medium supply line, which has a lower temperature than the cooling medium discharge line, is longer in its longitudinal extent within the cooling unit than the cooling medium discharge line for discharging the cooling medium out of the cooling unit. As a result, for example, insulation of the lines can be almost, advantageously completely, dispensed with.

In a further advantageous embodiment, the cooling unit is designed as a cooling module unit. This is advantageously to be understood as a modular unit, so that, depending on the local circumstances, a plurality of such modular cooling units can be designed to be coupled to one another in series or in parallel. Consequently, it is advantageous to provide several of the cooling units described here, which are designed even more advantageously as cooling module units, connected to one another. The advantage of the cooling module units here is that each unit can be controlled and / or activated separately and each comprise at least one control unit of its own, in particular a pump arrangement.

Of course, this is not to be understood in a limiting sense, so that it is also conceivable that central control processes, such as the provision of cooling medium, can be regulated and / or monitored via central control devices.

The cooling module units are consequently both jointly controllable and / or regulatable and / or controllable as well as individually controllable and / or regulatable and / or controllable separately from one another, so that, for example, if several cooling module units are connected in series, each Cooling module unit can have a different cooling temperature, for example. For example, the requirements of the food to be cooled can be met in a simple manner while saving energy.

In addition, it is also advantageous that the cooling units described here advantageously furthermore each comprise a power supply unit and / or a control unit. This ensures, for example, that even if a single cooling module fails, the functionality of the other cooling units is still guaranteed and the entire system does not have to be switched off for maintenance or replacement of spare parts.

In a further advantageous embodiment, the cooling units, advantageously the cooling module units, each have at least one coupling element for rapid assembly. The coupling element can be designed, for example, as a latching connection and / or clip connection and / or bayonet connection. The advantage of providing at least one coupling element, advantageously two coupling elements, on the cooling medium supply line and / or the cooling medium discharge line, make the assembly of the cooling units much easier on site. Depending on the local circumstances, any number of cooling units can be connected to one another quickly and easily are arranged in that two cooling units come into operative connection with one another via the corresponding coupling elements, so that the cooling medium network is expanded to include a cooling unit, the cooling medium networks being designed to be differently controllable and / or controllable and / or controllable, in particular by the respectively provided pump arrangement .

Furthermore, the present invention discloses a cooling system with at least two cooling module units according to at least one of the aforementioned features, their cooling medium networks via coupling elements are in medium-tight connection with each other. It has also proven advantageous here that the coupling elements furthermore have at least one sealing element, so that the leakage of cooling medium is prevented. Depending on the design, it is advantageous that the coolant feed lines and coolant discharge lines extend in and / or on the cooling unit in such a way that a simple connection of two cooling units arranged adjacent to one another can take place.

It is conceivable to provide these lines on the outside of the cooling units, for example on the outside of the ceiling element or also in the floor area and / or the back wall of the cooling unit, where the control unit is advantageously also located. A further structural simplification can thus be achieved, since the corresponding lines are arranged within the base area of the cooling unit or along the inside of the back wall and the corresponding condensate can be discharged directly downwards from the cooling unit via the floor pan.

Another advantageous point of the cooling units described here is that the cooling system resulting from the coupling of the individual cooling units comprises a line network which can be used to cool goods rooms, for example refrigerated shelves in supermarkets. By providing the control units inside the goods rooms to be cooled and / or in the cold generator, there is no need for a throttle device outside the cooling units. The higher-level line network of the cooling system, which consists of the central cooling medium supply and discharge lines, which run to and from the individual cooling units, does not have any control units, more advantageous control element-free, designed so that in particular no control elements for regulating the mass flow of the cooling medium are installed. This essentially has the advantage that icing is avoided as in the case of known arrangements from the prior art, so that the control unit of the present invention is designed to be permanently free of ice. Furthermore, this effectively prevents the control unit from losing its functionality due to icing.

Furthermore, it would also be conceivable that, in addition to the decentralized control unit, a central pump arrangement with local throttling elements is provided within each cooling unit. It has proven to be advantageous here if the central pump arrangement is also arranged within the goods space to be cooled.

Another arrangement of the invention is a variant in which the central pump arrangement is part of the refrigeration unit. In this variant there is z. B. the central pump arrangement within the housing of a heat pump.

The cooling units and cooling module units described here are advantageously part of a refrigeration circuit in which the transport of the cooling medium designed as a refrigerant is controlled via at least one heat pump, in particular a brine pump. As a result, the formulations cooling medium and refrigerant can be used synonymously.

Fig. 1

eine schematische Darstellung einer Ausführungsform einer Kühleinheit;

Fig. 2

eine schematischer Ausschnitt einer Kühlanlage;

Fig. 3

eine schematische Ansicht einer Anlage mit mehreren Kühleinheiten;

Fig. 4

eine weitere schematische Darstellung einer Kühleinheit;

Fig. 5

eine weitere schematische Darstellung einer Kühleinheit;

Fig. 6

eine weitere schematische Darstellung einer Kühleinheit;

Fig. 7

eine weitere schematische Darstellung einer Kühleinheit;

Fig. 8a bis c

eine seitliche Schnittdarstellung einer Kühleinheit;

Fig. 9

eine weitere schematische Darstellung einer Kühleinheit; und

Fig. 10

eine weitere schematische Darstellung einer Kühleinheit.

Advantages and practicalities can be found in the following description in connection with the drawing. Here show:

Fig. 1

a schematic representation of an embodiment of a cooling unit;

Fig. 2

a schematic section of a cooling system;

Fig. 3

a schematic view of a system with several cooling units;

Fig. 4

a further schematic representation of a cooling unit;

Fig. 5

a further schematic representation of a cooling unit;

Fig. 6

a further schematic representation of a cooling unit;

Fig. 7

a further schematic representation of a cooling unit;

Figures 8a to c

a side sectional view of a cooling unit;

Fig. 9

a further schematic representation of a cooling unit; and

Fig. 10

another schematic representation of a cooling unit.

Fig. 1 FIG. 11 shows a cooling unit 1 which comprises a space W to be cooled. The characteristic of the room W to be cooled is that the room is delimited by a ceiling element 2, a back wall 4 and a floor element 6. The ceiling element 2 closes off the goods space W to be cooled at the top. The bottom element 6 delimits the cooling unit 1 at the bottom, with the waste water being able to be discharged from the goods space to be cooled via openings in the bottom element. Stand elements 8 can advantageously be provided on the floor element 6, which can be adjusted as a function of the local conditions. In the simplest case, the stand elements 8 are provided as stand feet which are designed to be adjustable in height. Furthermore, it is also conceivable to design the cooling unit closed and, for example, to design it so that it can be closed with a glass door.

The cooling unit 1 shown here in this embodiment further comprises vertical struts 10 which are provided for the additional stabilization of the back wall 4 and which also support the ceiling element 2. In addition, these struts 10 serve to hold storage shelves for the food to be cooled (not shown).

Furthermore, a line section 12 is shown schematically as an example on the outside surface of the ceiling element 2. In this case, the line section 12 represents a part of the cooling medium supply line 16. The line section 12 extends in the longitudinal direction of the cooling unit 1 and can comprise coupling elements (not shown) or also closing elements (not shown) at the respective ends E, depending on whether further cooling units intended for connection to it are. The cooling units 1 are supplied with cooling medium via the line sections 12.

Furthermore, there is a unit in the room W to be cooled, via which heat is extracted from the room W to be cooled. Part of this unit is i.a. a heat exchanger 34 or a heat exchanger 20, a control device 24 and sensor elements (not shown).

In this embodiment of the cooling unit 1, a cooling medium is supplied to the space W to be cooled via a line section 12. Depending on requirements, the pump arrangement 14 of the cooling unit 1 conveys the cooling medium within the cooling unit 1, so that the cooling medium flows via the heat exchanger 34 into the line section 13 and is discharged again from the cooling unit 1 via this. Both line sections are advantageously part of the central line network of a cooling system 22. The cooling system 22 also includes at least one cold generator, for example a brine heat pump (not shown).

The directions that are in the Figures 1 to 10 The arrows shown represent the flow or flow direction of the cooling medium within a cooling unit 1 or within the cooling system 22 (not shown).

One advantage of the local, decentralized pump arrangement 14 is that the delivery pressure of the pump arrangement is such that the pressure loss of the respective line section 12 and 13 and of the heat exchanger 34 can be overcome. To regulate the necessary mass flow of the cooling medium, sensor elements (not shown) allow the cooling capacity to be determined of each cooling unit 1. An advantageous variant of the needs determination is the detection of the temperature in the room to be cooled W. Increases z. B. this temperature in the room to be cooled W, the mass flow of the cooling medium is increased by the control unit 14, 15. If the temperature in the room W to be cooled falls, the mass flow of the cooling medium is reduced.

The line section 13 of the cooling medium discharge line 18 advantageously runs parallel to the line section 12. This is not to be understood as limiting here, so that it is also conceivable that the two line sections 12, 13 extend within the cooling unit in its longitudinal direction, for example along the back wall 4 The arrangement of the two line sections 12, 13 or their diameter can be freely selected and can either already be fixed in terms of production technology or, depending on the local conditions, also be determined on the construction site. For example, it is conceivable that the cooling medium is supplied to the cooling unit 1 near the floor through the floor element 6, whereas it is discharged at the opposite end of the cooling unit 1 via the ceiling element 2.

The regulating device 14 is designed here as a pump arrangement, for example as a high-efficiency pump, which regulates and / or controls and / or controls the cooling medium pressure and / or the cooling medium temperature. For this purpose, the control unit 14 is connected to the cooling medium supply line 16. The cooling medium supply line 16 in turn opens after the pump arrangement 14 into a heat exchanger 34, which is advantageously designed as a brine heat exchanger 20. In this In an embodiment, the illustrated cooling unit 1 comprises several subsections, only one pump arrangement 14 being provided. The cooling medium supply line 16 extends in the longitudinal direction of the cooling unit 1.

The heat exchanger 34; 20 is connected to the cooling medium discharge line 18. It is also characterized in that the cooling medium supply line 16 is connected to the line section 12 and the cooling medium discharge line 18 is connected to the line section 13 or is formed in one piece therewith. The cooling medium flows into the cooling unit 1 in the direction of the arrow Z and out of the cooling unit 1 again in the direction of the arrow.

The cooling medium supply line 16 with the pump arrangement 14 is advantageously placed in the longitudinal extension of the cooling unit 1 in front of the heat exchanger 20 of the cooling space W. This is advantageous because the constant flow around the control unit 14, 15 prevents it from sweating and / or icing up. The reason for this is that the air that flows over the heat exchanger 34; 20 can absorb significantly more moisture than air that does not flow.

The cooling unit 1 described here can of course also have known components (not shown here) and is connected to the cooling circuit and / or the central line network of a cold generator, such as, for example, by the superordinate line sections 12, 13. B. be connected to a heat pump.

Fig. 2 shows a section of two cooling units 1 which are coupled to one another and which are connected to one another via a coupling element 32 are connected. The same reference numbers as before correspond to the same components and are not explained again here. The coupling element 32 forms an operative connection between the two cooling units 1. The two line sections 12 of each cooling unit 1, which are arranged adjacent to one another, are advantageously connected to one another in a cool-medium-tight connection via coupling elements 32, for example T-pieces made of plastic or metal. The course of the cooling medium supply / discharge lines 16, 18 is only indicated schematically here and can be determined as a function of the actual local conditions.

Advantageously for a low pressure and / or temperature loss, the cooling medium supply line 16 is made longer in its longitudinal extent within the cooling unit 1 than the cooling medium discharge line 18. This is made significantly shorter in comparison. The ratio of the cooling medium supply line 16 to the length of the cooling medium discharge line 18 is advantageously designed in a ratio of 5: 1 to 1.1: 1. The cooling unit 1 described here can of course also have known components (not shown here) and is connected to the cooling circuit of the heat pump (not shown) by the superordinate line sections 12, 13.

In Fig. 3 a further embodiment is shown. Here, three cooling units 1 arranged at a distance from one another form a cooling system 22. The same reference numbers as before correspond to the same components and are not explained again here. Each of the cooling units 1 comprises both a cooling medium supply and discharge line 16, 18, as well as a pump arrangement 14 and also a control device 24. The medium lines 16, 18 with the central line sections 12, 13 do not have any control units connected. The line sections 12, 13 in turn form the line network with a cold generator, for. B. a heat pump 11, from. With this arrangement of one pump 14 per cooling unit, the individual control of the pump proves to be advantageous. All three cooling units 1 can thus be controlled differently depending on requirements, for example the goods to be cooled, so that, for example, each cooling unit has a different temperature.

Each cooling unit 1 comprises an internal cooling medium network and a control device 24, which advantageously regulates and / or controls the output of the pump arrangement 14. The cooling medium entering the cooling unit 1 first flows through the pump arrangement 14 in order to then be transferred to the heat exchanger 20. After flowing through the heat exchanger 20, the cooling medium is transported via the cooling medium discharge line 18 to the line section 13 and exits the cooling unit 1 again. The two central line sections 12 and 13, together with the heat pump 11, which is designed as a heat pump, for example, form the line network outside of the cooling units 1. Due to the extremely advantageous arrangement of the pump arrangements 14 in each cooling unit 1, the line network up to the heat pump 11 is designed without a control unit. This increases the efficiency.

In Fig. 4 a modification is shown, where the same reference numerals as above correspond to the same components. In addition to the pump arrangement 14, the cooling unit 1 shown here also includes power electronics 14a. Furthermore, shut-off valves 25 are also provided within the cooling unit 1, which control the cooling medium flow. Fig. 5 differs from this in that, in addition, throttle elements 15, e.g. B. throttle bodies are provided with associated power electronics 15a. The power electronics 15a are advantageously designed as a servomotor. The servomotor, which is assigned to each throttle element 15, is responsible for adjusting the throttle element 15, for example in order to adjust the coolant flow.

Fig. 6 corresponds to the structure Fig. 3 According to an example which is not part of the claimed invention, instead of the pump arrangement 14, throttle element 15 are arranged in each cooling unit 1. These are used to fine-tune requirements. In the Fig. 6 The cooling system 22 shown also comprises a single pump arrangement 14 which is arranged within a cooling unit.

In Fig. 7 Another embodiment is shown with throttle elements 15, the pump arrangement 14 being arranged here within the heat pump. This is also advantageous in order to keep the pump arrangement free of ice and / or free of condensate. Figures 8a-c FIG. 11 shows a schematic side view of a cooling unit 1, the same reference numerals as in FIG Fig. 1 correspond to the same components and are not explained again here.

The bottom element 6 is here trough-shaped in the front area, advantageously opposite the back wall 4. The recess serves as a condensate trap and / or as a coolant trap for maintenance work.

It is also conceivable to form the rear wall 4 from different materials so that, for example, an upper The rear wall section 4a has a different insulation property than the lower rear wall section 4b. The arrangement of the regulating element 14, advantageously a high-efficiency pump, has proven to be advantageous in the lower third of the cooling unit 1 due to the control of the regulating and / or monitoring function. The two cooling medium lines 16, 18 run within the cooling unit 14 and only connect the outside of the ceiling element 2 to the line sections 12, 13 in a medium-tight connection. This ensures that the continuous flow of cooling medium between the cooling units 1 is ensured within the entire cooling system 22, which comprises a plurality of cooling units 1.

The in Figure 8a The cooling unit 1 shown still has storage shelves 26 and an exit area 30 from which the cold air flow exits like a curtain and falls downwards following gravity.

Figure 8b , c show further exemplary embodiments of the cooling unit 1, the cooling medium lines 12 and 13 being integral components of the cooling space. This means that the line sections 12 and 13 are introduced into the insulation or the insulation of the rear wall 4 or of the ceiling element 2.

Fig. 9 finally shows yet another embodiment. Here the cooling units 1 are designed as cooling spaces. In this case, the arrangements of the individual components within the refrigeration rooms are different from the example refrigeration units listed above. Each cooling unit, here each cooling space, comprises, in addition to a pump arrangement 14 and a control device 24, also at least one sensor element 38, advantageously for temperature detection. Also the one shown here The cooling system 22 is connected to a heat pump 11 via the line network.

In Fig. 10 a further advantageous embodiment of the cooling unit 1 is shown. As in the figures above, the cooling unit 1 is designed as a cooling unit module which can be arranged individually and / or in combination with further cooling module units 1. In the latter case, several cooling units 1 form components of a cooling system 22. The same reference numerals as in the previous figures correspond to the same components and are not explained again here.

In the in Fig. 10 The embodiment of the cooling unit 1 shown here comprises an insulation unit 36 which is arranged on the upper side of the cooling unit 1. This arrangement can be fixed and / or detachable, so that the insulation unit 36 can also be exchanged easily. On the other hand, it is also advantageous to provide the insulation unit 36 as a fixed component of the cooling unit 1 during manufacture, since complex assembly costs can be saved in this way. The insulation unit 36 is firmly connected to the ceiling element 2.

The pump arrangement 14 is arranged within the insulation unit 36, which is advantageously formed from insulation material 40, more advantageously from at least one polymer foam, even more advantageously from at least one expanded polypropylene. The pump arrangement 14 is in the flow direction of the cooling medium a shut-off valve 25 arranged upstream. This regulates the flow of the cooling medium and can also completely prevent it, for example during repairs or transport. Another shut-off valve 25 is also arranged in the insulation unit 36 in the outflow direction of the cooling medium.

What has proven to be advantageous is the connection of the insulation unit 36 with the cooling unit 1, in that both components have a common opening 42. The opening 42 can advantageously be designed as a connection between the interior volume of the insulation unit 36 and the interior of the cooling unit 1. In this case, possible condensate can flow directly out of the insulation unit 36 via its inclined bottom surface 44 and be removed via the cooling unit 1.

Another alternative is, for example, to design the inclined bottom surface 44 of the insulation unit 36 as a condensate collecting channel, so that the condensate can be discharged from the insulation unit 36 even more easily and quickly. Advantageously, the condensate collecting channel comprises a little one depression, which is advantageously designed as a groove in which the condensate collects.

Furthermore, it has proven to be advantageous that the opening is designed to be reversibly closable with a closure cap, for example with a solenoid valve, a tilting flap or a control flap (not shown) so that the flap opens automatically depending on the amount of condensate and / or the weight of the condensate to allow the condensate to flow off and then automatically close and seal again. It is advantageous here if the condensate is discharged to the cooling medium lines in an offset manner in order to prevent them from corroding avoid. Advantageously, the cooling medium lines in the inlet and / or outlet area on the insulation unit 36 are provided with sealing elements (not shown) which close them off in a liquid-tight and / or gas-tight manner.

The condensate collecting channel and / or the inclined floor area 44 can advantageously be formed from a further material, for example from a water-resistant and / or water-repellent organic and / or inorganic coating, for example from at least one polymer, at least one block copolymer, at least one surfactant, at least one sol or at least one sol-gel composition and / or a mixture thereof. The organic coating can also advantageously comprise at least one halogen, for example fluorine. The at least one coating material is advantageously hydrophobic, more advantageously superhydrophobic, so that on the one hand a large contact angle of greater than and / or equal to 90 ° is established and consequently only small wetting areas are formed between the condensate and the coating material. This makes it much easier to drain the condensate. In addition to the chemical modification of the inclined floor area 44, a physical treatment is also conceivable, so that the surface properties of the inclined floor area 44 and especially the condensate collecting channel, for example by means of plasma, laser or the like. is negated, so that the aqueous condensate is more likely to be repelled and drains off more easily.

All features disclosed in the application documents are claimed as essential to the invention, provided that they are new to the state of the art, individually or in combination.

List of reference symbols

1

Cooling unit

2

Ceiling element

4th

Back wall

4a

upper rear wall section

4b

lower rear wall section

6th

Floor element

8th

Stand element

10

vertical strut

11

Heat pump

12, 13

Line section

14th

Pump arrangement

14a

Power electronics

15th

Control organ / throttle organ

15a

Power electronics

16

Cooling medium supply line

18th

Cooling medium discharge line

20th

Heat exchanger

22nd

Cooling system

24

Control device

26th

Storage shelves

30th

Exit area

32

Coupling element

34

Heat exchanger

36

Insulation unit

38

Sensor element

40

Insulation material

42

opening

44

inclined floor surface

W.

Goods room

Z

Direction of flow

A.

Flow direction

arrow

Cooling medium flow direction

Claims (6)

1. Cooling unit (1), in particular for cooling foodstuffs, comprising at least

   a. goods compartment (W) and boundary elements at least partially surrounding the goods compartment (W), which comprise at least one rear wall (4) and at least one bottom element (6),

   b. at least one cooling medium supply line (16) for supplying a cooling medium to the cooling unit (1) and at least one cooling medium discharge line (18) arranged separately from the cooling medium supply line (16) for discharging the cooling medium from the cooling unit (1) to form a cooling medium network within the cooling unit (1),

   c. at least one control unit (14; 15) for controlling the temperature and/or the pressure of the cooling medium flowing at least partially through the cooling unit,

   an insulation unit (36), wherein the insulation unit (36) comprises at least one first opening for passing the cooling medium supply line (16) into the insulation unit (36) and at least one further opening for passing the cooling medium discharge line (18) out of the insulation unit (36), wherein the control unit is designed as a pump arrangement (14),
   characterized in that
   the control unit (14; 15) is arranged within the cooling unit (1), wherein the control unit (14; 15) within the cooling unit (1) is arranged at least partially within the insulation unit (36) and wherein the insulation unit additionally comprises at least one condensate collecting duct.
2. Cooling unit according to claim 1,
   characterized in that
   the pump arrangement (14) is designed as a high-efficiency pump, advantageously speed-controlled.
3. Cooling unit according to claim 1,
   characterized in that
   the pump arrangement (14) is arranged in a housing section within the cooling unit (1).
4. Cooling unit according to claim 1,
   characterized in that
   the latter each comprises at least one coupling element (32) for quick assembly.
5. Cooling unit according to at least one of the aforementioned claims,
   characterized in that
   the cooling unit (1) is designed as cold-storage room and/or refrigerated cabinet and/or refrigerated display unit.
6. Cooling system (22) with at least two cooling module units (1) arranged at least partially against one another according to at least one of the preceding claims, wherein the cooling module units (1) are designed to be connected to one another in a cooling-medium-tight manner, wherein a superordinate line network of the cooling system, which consists of the central cooling medium supply and discharge lines (12; 13) which run to and from the individual cooling units (1), is designed without control units.

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