EP3935328A1

EP3935328A1 - Door for a freezer or refrigerator

Info

Publication number: EP3935328A1
Application number: EP20712508.9A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Jochen DIEDERICHS
Original assignee: Schott AG
Current assignee: Schott AG
Priority date: 2019-07-17
Filing date: 2020-03-16
Publication date: 2022-01-12
Also published as: US12078407B2; DE102019210574A1; WO2021008739A1; US20220136759A1

Abstract

Door (1) for a freezer or refrigerator, comprising an insulating-glass unit with at least two panels (2a, 2b), which are connected by means of spacers (3a-3d) to form a gas-filled interspace, wherein the panels each have a transparent region, and wherein all the spacers are designed to be free of desiccant, and also comprising a desiccant reservoir (5), which is fluidically connected to the interspace between the at least two panels.

Description

DOOR FOR A FREEZER OR REFRIGERATOR

The invention relates to a door for a freezer or refrigerated cabinet, comprising an insulating glass unit with at least two panes which are connected by means of spacers to form a gas-filled space and the panes each having a transparent area.

The invention further relates to a freezer or refrigerator unit with a door.

Although the present invention is generally applicable to any doors in any furniture, the present invention will be described in relation to a refrigerated cabinet.

Refrigerated cabinets are used to cool products below the ambient temperature. Refrigerated furniture, for example refrigerators in supermarkets, can have a vertically oriented interior space with several shelves in which products to be cooled are stored. The refrigerators also have transparent doors so that a customer can see refrigerated products in the refrigerator without having to open every door in search of a desired product. By means of the transparent door, a customer can then specifically open the respective door and remove the desired product from the refrigerator in a simple and quick manner.

For thermal insulation, the doors are provided in a known manner with an insulating glass unit, which consists of several panes arranged parallel to one another. In this case, an intermediate space is formed between two panes by circumferential spacers arranged on the edge between the panes. Desiccant is at least partially introduced into the spacers in the usual way in order to prevent the panes from fogging up later due to moisture trapped in the space during the production of the insulating glass unit and moisture penetrating into the space. In conventional insulating glass units, the desiccant is introduced into a hollow spacer or the spacer itself consists, for example, of structural foam with an integrated desiccant. These spacers are not transparent and block the view of the products on the shelves directly or indirectly because the spacers are concealed by additional profiles outside the panes or by printing. In other words, the spacers reduce the transparent area of the panes.

To increase the perceptibility of products and to increase the visual appearance, it has become known from EP 2 878 233 A1 to use at least partially a transparent adhesive as a spacer, with opaque spacer sections being used as the desiccant reservoir.

From DE 20 2014 010 734 U1, a cooling container furniture is also known which has two panes connected by spacers, an aluminum rod with desiccant being inserted into the horizontally arranged spacers.

The disadvantage here is that, on the one hand, differently designed spacers have to be used, which increases the assembly effort as well as the costs of manufacturing the respective refrigerated appliance. Different designed spacers increase the likelihood of moisture penetration, particularly in their connection areas in the corners of the panes. In addition, the opaque spacers reduce the transparent area.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a door and a refrigerator or freezer cabinet with a door which can be produced simply and inexpensively, have a high visual appearance, a long service life and sufficient mechanical stability.

In one embodiment, the present invention provides a door for a freezer or refrigerator, comprising an insulating glass unit with at least two panes, which by means of spacers to form a gas-filled Intermediate space are connected, wherein the panes each have a transparent area, and wherein all spacers are formed free of desiccant and a desiccant reservoir which is fluidically connected to the intermediate space between the at least two panes.

In a further embodiment, the present invention provides a freezer or refrigeration cabinet comprising a door according to any one of claims 1-19.

In other words, the desiccant reservoir can be arranged in the space between the at least two panes itself and fluidly connected to the remaining space through openings, for example, and / or the desiccant reservoir can be arranged outside the space and fluidly connected to the space via one or more channels .

One of the advantages achieved in this way is that, on the one hand, the transparent surface of the panes can be used almost completely, since the spacers can be made small or narrow, so that in addition to a high optical

Appearance also improves the visibility of products through the respective door. In addition, inexpensive and simple manufacture is possible. The structure is also simplified by the desiccant-free spacers and in particular an improvement in the gas tightness in the

Connection areas achieved between two spacers. In addition, the desiccant reservoir can be arranged in any areas of the door and the door or the refrigerator or freezer cabinet can be easily adapted to different customer requirements.

The term “vertical” in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, refers to a direction parallel to the direction of the gravitational force, that is, perpendicularly from top to bottom or vice versa, in particular parallel to a perpendicular. The term “horizontal” relates in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, to a direction perpendicular to the vertical direction. For example, a horizontal spacer is a spacer that is arranged on a horizontal side of the panes.

The term “transparent” relates in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, to an area, area, surface or the like that are optically designed so that goods, products or the like cannot be seen behind the area through one or more opaque ones Element is blocked, for example by reinforcement profiles, desiccant reservoirs, frame profiles or the like. The definition of the term “transparent” or “transparency” according to embodiments of the present invention can include the following definition: Transparency of an element means that light can pass through the element without scattering, preferably using Snell's law of refraction for the light path or the Formation of images can be applied.

The term “transparent surface” is to be understood here as a two-dimensional area which is at least partially, in particular predominantly transparent, but can also have translucent partial areas.

The term “non-transparent” relates in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, to an area, area, surface or the like, which are optically designed so that a view of goods, products or the like behind the area through one or more opaque element is blocked, for example by reinforcement profiles, desiccant reservoirs, frame profiles or the like.

The term “translucent” relates in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, to an area, area, surface or the like that are optically designed so that goods, products or the like cannot be seen behind the area through one or more opaque ones Element is blocked but diffuse so that, for example, the outlines of a product can be seen, but none Lettering, in particular where it is at least illegible. In particular, transparent materials appear clearly in a single color.

The term “at least” in relation to the term “translucent” means in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, that, for example, the optical visibility of products behind an at least translucent element is translucent or greater or better, ie the visibility between translucent and lies transparently or, in other words, the optical visibility of products behind an at least translucent element is increased. The term “at least translucent” thus includes the term “transparent”.

The terms “freezer”, “freezer”, “freezer” or “freezer” refer in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, to a piece of furniture or device in which the temperature of consumer goods is usually in the range between -12 ° C and - 30 ° C is kept under normal conditions. Normal conditions are defined as operating conditions that prevail when all permanently available additional elements are used and operated in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations or specifications. Typical examples of consumer goods are, for example, products that are stored in accordance with EN23953, Part 2 (September 2012) in temperature classes L1, L2 and L3.

The term “refrigeration unit”, “cooling device” or “refrigerator” refers in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, to a piece of furniture or device in which the temperature of consumer goods is usually in the range between -5 ° C and +10 ° C Normal conditions are maintained, preferably between - 0 ° C and + 7 ° C. Typical examples of consumer goods are, for example, products that are stored in temperature classes M1 and M2 in accordance with EN23953, Part 2 (September 2012).

The term “gas-filled insulating glass unit”, in particular in relation to the term “gas-filled space”, relates in particular in the claims, preferably in the description, to a unit or device at least two panes, for example 2 or 3 panes, which do not necessarily have to be made of glass, and which are spaced apart by means of spacers to form an in particular hermetically sealed space. Air or an insulating gas or an air-insulating gas mixture is introduced into the space, which is in particular hermetically sealed. The panes can have a thickness between 3 mm and 5 mm, in particular 4 mm, and / or can have an anti-fog film and / or a heatable coating and / or a coating with low emissivity and / or an anti-reflective coating. The spacers can have a depth / thickness between 4 mm and 20 mm.

Further features, advantages and further embodiments of the invention are described below or become apparent thereby.

According to an advantageous development, at least one spacer is at least partially translucent, in particular at least partially, preferably completely transparent. This further enlarges the usable transparent or translucent surface of the panes and improves the visibility of products through the door.

According to a further advantageous development, all spacers are at least partially translucent, in particular at least partially, preferably completely transparent. In addition to a particularly high appearance, an extremely large usable transparent or translucent surface of the panes is thus made available.

According to a further advantageous development, the drying agent reservoir is arranged in an edge area which is arranged adjacent to one of the spacers. This enables a simple arrangement and connection of the desiccant reservoir with the space between the at least two panes. According to a further advantageous development, the desiccant reservoir and an at least partially opaque element are arranged within the transparent area in such a way that the desiccant reservoir is at least partially, in particular completely, covered by the opaque element. Thus, for example, the desiccant reservoir can be arranged covered by a non-transparent or non-translucent element, so that the transparent or translucent surface is not additionally reduced in size by the desiccant reservoir blocking the view.

According to a further advantageous development, the at least partially opaque element is designed as at least one desiccant reservoir. The advantage of this is that a structural unit consisting of the desiccant reservoir and the opaque element is provided, which simplifies the arrangement of the same on or in the door.

According to a further advantageous development, all spacers are each designed in the same way. This simplifies the production and lowers the production costs for the door.

According to a further advantageous development, the drying agent reservoir is arranged outside the area which is formed by the spacers and the transparent surface. This ensures particularly easy access to the desiccant reservoir.

According to a further advantageous development, the drying medium reservoir is arranged in the lower region of the door. One of the advantages achieved in this way is that a visually subordinate perception area for the customer is used for the arrangement of the desiccant reservoir. Another advantage is that moisture basically sinks to the bottom so that moisture can be effectively absorbed by the desiccant in the desiccant reservoir. According to a further advantageous development, the drying medium reservoir is designed to extend horizontally over the horizontal width of the insulating glass unit. Thus, a particularly large drying medium reservoir can be made available and / or a drying medium reservoir with a small vertical extension. In addition, moisture can be effectively absorbed by the desiccant in the desiccant reservoir over the entire horizontal length of the door.

According to a further advantageous development, the door comprises several desiccant reservoirs, which are preferably arranged symmetrically with respect to an axis of symmetry of the door. This significantly increases the flexibility in the arrangement of the drying agent, and at the same time an increased visual appearance is achieved due to the symmetrical arrangement.

According to a further advantageous development, the drying medium reservoirs are arranged symmetrically to one another with respect to a horizontal axis of symmetry, in particular they have the same dimensions in at least two dimensions. In this way, in addition to an increased visual appearance, a uniform arrangement of drying agent with regard to the vertical extent is achieved. Moisture can thus be absorbed by the desiccant both in the upper and in the lower area, which significantly reduces the likelihood of the windows of the door misting up.

According to a further advantageous development, a drying agent reservoir is arranged in the area of a suspension and / or guide of the door. In this way, for example, non-translucent or non-transparent elements of the suspension can be used in a simple manner to cover the desiccant reservoir without the usable transparent surface being additionally restricted by at least one desiccant reservoir.

According to a further advantageous development, the opaque element comprises a handle unit for opening and closing the door. In this way, a handle or the like that is usually present is used in a simple manner to to cover the at least one desiccant reservoir. This does not limit the usable transparent area.

According to a further advantageous development, the opaque element comprises a display device, in particular a printed or glued decorative surface or the like. The opaque element can thus be used in a simple manner for displaying information, for example for customers.

According to a further advantageous development, a drying agent reservoir has an optical cover element for optically covering the one drying agent reservoir, in particular which is designed to be reflective and / or translucent. A particularly high visual appearance is thus achieved and the gaze of a customer or the like is diverted from the at least one desiccant reservoir.

According to a further advantageous development, at least one

Desiccant reservoir designed to replace the desiccant. This can increase flexibility, as well as service life. For example, more effective drying agents can be used in the future instead of the previous ones, or the drying agent can be replaced after a certain time, which increases the service life of the door.

According to a further advantageous development, at least one

Desiccant reservoir arranged interchangeably in the door. This enables the drying agent to be exchanged particularly quickly and easily. For example, corresponding desiccant reservoirs can be made available to a customer, similar to toner cartridges for printers or the like, so that an operator of the door does not have to remove the old desiccant himself and introduce the new desiccant into the reservoir.

According to a further advantageous development, the door is a revolving door,

Swinging door, hinged door or sliding door. This means that the door can be adapted extremely flexibly to customer requirements. Further important features and advantages of the invention emerge from the subclaims, from the drawings and from the associated description of the figures on the basis of the drawings.

It goes without saying that the features mentioned above and those yet to be explained below can be used not only in the respectively specified combination, but also in other combinations or alone, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Preferred designs and embodiments of the present invention are shown in the drawings and are explained in more detail in the following description, the same reference symbols referring to the same or similar or functionally identical components or elements.

It shows in schematic form

FIG. 1 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 6 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 shows a detail of a side view of the door according to FIG. 6.

Figure 1 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In Figure 1, a door 1 with a hermetically sealed insulating glass unit 2 is shown in detail with a view of one of the two panes 2a, 2b of the insulating glass unit 2. The two panes 2a, 2b are over circumferential, in the edge areas 6 of the panes 2a, 2b vertical and horizontal spacers 3a-3d connected to each other to form a space. The spacers 3a-3d are designed to be transparent and together with the pane 2a form a transparent surface 4a. Furthermore, a desiccant reservoir is arranged inside the transparent surface 4a, which is partially covered or covered by a handle 7. “Inside” here means inside the surface 4a, which means both an arrangement inside the space and an arrangement outside, for example on the pane 2a includes. The desiccant reservoir 5 itself can also be designed as a handle 7. Regardless of the respective design, the desiccant reservoir 5 is in fluid contact with the space between the two panes 2a, 2b of the door 1, for example via holes (not shown) in the pane 2a.

Figure 2 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 essentially shows a door 1 according to FIG. 1. In contrast to the door 1 according to FIG. 1, in the door 1 according to FIG. 2 the desiccant reservoir 5 is now arranged outside of these in the lower region 8a of the door 1 instead of inside the area formed by the circumferentially arranged spacers 3a-3d. Here, the desiccant reservoir 5 extends along the entire horizontal length of the door 1. The drying agent reservoir 5 is fluidically connected to the space between the two disks 2a, 2b via connecting openings or channels 10.

FIG. 3 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 essentially shows a door 1 according to FIG. 1. In contrast to the door 1 according to FIG. 1, the door 1 according to FIG. 3 now has two desiccant reservoirs 5a, 5b outside of the area 4a formed by the circumferentially arranged spacers 3a-3d and the panes 2a, 2b. These are located on the upper side 8b and the lower side 8a on the left-hand side of the door 1 in FIG. 3. The spacers 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d are accordingly designed around the respective desiccant reservoir 5. On the upper side 8b and the lower side 8a, also on the left side of the door 1 in FIG. 3, suspensions 22a, 22b are arranged, which are used to rotate the door about an axis 21. If the handle is pulled, the door 1 opens by rotating it around the axis 21. The two desiccant reservoirs 5a, 5b are arranged symmetrically to a horizontal axis 20, here an axis of symmetry of the door 1. The two desiccant reservoirs 5a, 5b are in fluidic connection with the space between the two disks 2a, 2b via corresponding openings or connecting channels 10 in the spacers 3c, 3d.

FIG. 4 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 essentially shows a door 1 according to FIG. 3. In contrast to door 1 according to FIG. 3, in door 1 according to FIG. 4, the two desiccant reservoirs 5a, 5b are now arranged within surface 4a formed by panes 2a, 2b and circumferentially arranged spacers 3a-3d. For the sake of simplicity, the suspensions 22a, 22b, as in the other figures, are no longer shown here. Here it is conceivable that the desiccant reservoirs 5a, 5b within the space between the two disks 2a, 2b, as well as outside the space, for example on one of the disks 2a, but within the area delimited by the spacers 3a-3d.

FIG. 5 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 essentially shows a door 1 according to FIG. 1. In contrast to the door 1 according to FIG. 1, in the door 1 according to FIG. 5 the desiccant reservoir 5 is now arranged within the surface 4a formed by the panes 2a, 2b and the circumferentially arranged spacers 3a-3d. Furthermore, the desiccant reservoir 5 is arranged on the upper side 8b of the door 1. A display device 11 is arranged on the surface of the drying agent reservoir 5 in order to cover the drying agent reservoir 5. The display device 11 can, for example, be a printed film or the like, which has, for example, designations of groups of products or the like for information for customers. For the sake of simplicity, the suspensions 22a, 22b are again no longer shown here. According to the design of Figure 2, the desiccant reservoir 5 extends horizontally over the entire horizontal width of the door 1 between the two vertical spacers 3a, 3b.

FIG. 6 shows a door in plan view according to an embodiment of the present invention and FIG. 7 shows a detail of a side view of the door according to FIG. 6.

A door 1 according to FIG. 5 is shown in detail in FIGS. 6 and 7. In contrast to the door 1 according to FIG. 5, in the door 1 according to FIGS. 6 and 7 the desiccant reservoir 5 is now arranged on the lower side 8b of the door 1 between the two panes 2a, 2b. Arranged on the surface of the desiccant reservoir 5 is an inclined, mirrored or printed decorative surface or a decorative element 12 in order to conceal the view of the desiccant reservoir 5. Molecular sieves or a combination with silica gel, for example, can be used as drying agents. Corresponding crystals have an average pore size between 3 and 10 angstroms.

For example, glass and / or plastic can be used as the material for the panes.

For example, transparent adhesives, resins or the like can be used as the material for the spacers.

In summary, at least one of the embodiments of the invention has at least one of the following advantages:

Long lifetime

High visual appearance

Mechanical stability

Largest possible translucent or transparent surfaces. High flexibility

Simple, inexpensive production

Impermeability to moisture penetration into the space between the panes of the door

Although the present invention has been described on the basis of preferred exemplary embodiments, it is not restricted thereto, but rather can be modified in many ways.

List of reference symbols

1 door

2 insulating glass unit

2a, 2b disc

a, 3b, 3c, 3d spacers

4a, 4b Transparent surface

5, 5a, 5b drying agent reservoir

6 border area

7 handle

8a Upper side

8b lower side

9 Vertical side

10 connection openings / channels

11 Display device

12 decorative element

20 Horizontal axis

21 axis

22a, 22b suspensions

Claims

Expectations

1. Door (1) for a freezer or refrigerator, comprising

an insulating glass unit (2) with at least two panes (2a, 2b) which are connected by means of spacers (3a, 3b, 3c, 3d) to form a gas-filled space, the panes (2a, 2b) each having a transparent area (4a, 4b) and wherein all spacers (3a, 3b, 3c, 3d) are formed free of desiccant,

and a desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) which is fluidically connected to the space between the at least two disks (2a, 2b), preferably

wherein at least one spacer (3c, 3d) is at least partially translucent, in particular at least partially, preferably completely transparent, in particular all spacers (3a, 3b, 3c, 3d) are at least partially translucent, in particular at least partially, preferably completely transparent .

2. Door according to claim 1, wherein the desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) is arranged in an edge region (6) which is arranged adjacent to one of the spacers (3a, 3b, 3c, 3d).

3. Door according to one of claims 1-2, wherein the desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) and an at least partially opaque element (7) are arranged within the transparent area (4a, 4b), such that the desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) is at least partially, in particular completely covered by the opaque element (7), preferably wherein the at least partially opaque element (7) is designed as a desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b).

4. Door according to one of claims 1-3, wherein all spacers (3a, 3b, 3c, 3d) are each formed identically.

5. Door according to one of claims 1-4, wherein the desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) outside the area which is formed by the spacers (3a, 3b, 3c, 3d) and the transparent surface (4a, 4b), is arranged.

6. Door according to one of claims 1-5, wherein the desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) is arranged in the lower region of the door (1), in particular wherein the desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) horizontally across the horizontal width of the insulating glass unit (2) is designed to extend.

7. Door according to one of claims 1-6, wherein the door comprises a plurality of desiccant reservoirs (5, 5a, 5b), which are preferably arranged symmetrically with respect to an axis of symmetry (20) of the door (1), preferably

wherein the desiccant reservoirs (5, 5a, 5b) are arranged symmetrically to one another with respect to a horizontal axis of symmetry (20), in particular have the same dimensions in at least two dimensions.

8. Door according to one of claims 1-7, wherein a desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) is arranged in the region of a suspension (22a, 22b) and / or guide of the door (1).

9. Door according to claim 3, wherein the opaque element (7) comprises a handle unit for opening and closing the door (1).

10. Door according to claim 3 or 8, wherein the opaque element (7) comprises a display device (11), in particular a printed or glued decorative surface or the like.

11. Door according to one of claims 1 -10, wherein a desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) has an optical cover element (12) for optically covering the one desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b), in particular which is reflective and / or translucent is.

12. Door according to one of claims 1-11, wherein at least one desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) is designed to replace the desiccant.

13. Door according to one of claims 1-12, wherein at least one

Desiccant reservoir (5, 5a, 5b) is arranged interchangeably in the door (1).

14. Door according to one of claims 1-13, wherein the door (1) is designed as a revolving door, swing door, stop door or sliding door.

15. Freezer or refrigeration cabinet comprising a door according to one of claims 1-14.