JP2000220955A - Door of refrigerator and its manufacture - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To form a door without providing a pouring port for pouring foamed polyurethane composition or the like in a closed space, by forming the door for filling and adhering a foamed heat insulator in the space formed therein by combining a front panel, inner surface panel and reinforcing component or the like made of resin. SOLUTION: The door 20 is formed by filling a foamed heat insulator 25 formed of a foamed polyurethane or the like in a closed space 24 formed therein by combining a front panel 21, an inner surface panel 22 and a reinforcing component 23 or the like injection molded by using a resin, and the panel 21, the panel 22 and the component 23 are adhered to the material 25, and integrating them. Thus, it is not necessary to provide a pouring inlet for pouring a foamed polyurethane composition or the like in the space, the degree of freedoms of its design can be enhanced, and a deterioration of its appearance can be prevented.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a refrigerator door and a method for manufacturing the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional refrigerator 1A, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, a refrigerator main body 1 is formed by a heat insulating wall, and a storage chamber 2 for storing food is provided in the refrigerator main body 1. . Further, an evaporator 3 is provided at a lower portion of the accommodation room 2, a duct 4 extending vertically is provided at a back side of the accommodation room 2, and a blower fan 5 for circulating cool air is provided at an upper portion of the duct 4. The air cooled by the evaporator 3 is circulated as shown by a solid line arrow in the figure to cool the storage chamber 2. A machine room 6 is provided below the refrigerator body 1.
In the machine room 6, a compressor 7, a condenser 8, and a condenser fan 9 are installed.

[0003] A door 10 (swing-out type door) is provided in an opening on the front surface of the refrigerator 1A. The door 10 includes a front panel 11 made of an iron-based material plate, an inner panel 12 made by vacuum molding using a resin such as ABS or PS, and upper and lower portions of the front panel 11 and the inner panel 12. Polyurethane foam filled in a closed space formed by combining the door caps 13 and 14 made by injection molding or the like using the resin installed in the front panel 11, the inner panel 12, and the door caps 13 and 14. And the like.

The door 10 has a problem that the number of components is large, the cost is high, and since the front panel 11 is made of a plate made of an iron-based material, heat is easily conducted from outside to inside the refrigerator. there were. To remedy this problem, the door cap 1
A front panel 11 integrally including 3, 14 and the like is made by injection molding using a resin such as ABS or PS, and separately made of PP.
A foamable polyurethane composition or the like is injected into a closed space formed by combining the inner panel 12 made by injection molding using a polyolefin such as the above and foamed, and the closed space is filled with a foam insulating material 15 to form the door 10. The way to be done.

[0005]

According to this method, the number of components is reduced, and since the front panel 11 is made of resin, there is an advantage that it is difficult to conduct heat from outside to inside the refrigerator. In addition, since both the front panel 11 and the inner panel 12 are made by injection molding, the cost is increased due to a high mold cost and the like, and an inlet for injecting the foamable polyurethane composition or the like into the closed space is provided on the door 10. There is a problem that the appearance must be deteriorated because it is necessary to provide them.

Further, when the foamable polyurethane composition or the like is injected into the closed space and foamed, there is a problem that the foamable polyurethane composition leaks from a part of the joint between the front panel 11 and the inner panel 12. To prevent foaming P
It was necessary to interpose a sealing material made of a plastic foam such as E at the joint. Further, since the foam insulating material 15 such as polyurethane foam filled in the closed space does not adhere to the inner panel 12 made of polyolefin such as PP, there is a problem that the rigidity of the door 10 is reduced.

A first object of the present invention is to use a front panel and an inner panel made of a resin. The inner panel can be a vacuum molded product, and is used for injecting a foamable polyurethane composition or the like into a closed space. There is no need to provide an inlet, and when injecting a foamable polyurethane composition or the like into a closed space and foaming, the front panel and the inner panel can be interposed without a sealing material made of a plastic foam such as foamed PE. A second object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator door that does not leak the foamable polyurethane composition from a part of the joint, has high rigidity, and is low in cost. It is to provide a method that can be easily and economically manufactured.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a resin front panel, a resin inner panel, and a joint between the front panel panel and the inner panel. A closed space formed inside by combining with a resin reinforcing component mounted on at least a part is filled with a foam insulating material, and the foam insulating material bonds the front panel, the inner panel, and the reinforcing component. The present invention relates to a door of a refrigerator, which is formed by performing the following.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a thin box-shaped resin front panel having an opening on the back side, and a flange formed on the inner peripheral edge of the back side opening of the front panel. A resin-made reinforcing component, a foamed heat insulating material filled from the back side opening of the front panel, and a resin attached to the reinforcing component so as to cover the back side opening of the front panel filled with the foamed heat insulating material And an inner panel made of stainless steel, wherein the foamed heat insulating material fixes the front panel, the reinforcing component, and the inner panel to each other.

The invention of claim 3 of the present invention provides the following (1) to
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a refrigerator door, comprising the step (4). (1) A step of mounting a resin-made reinforcing component on a resin-made front panel (2) A step of injecting foam insulation into an internal space of the front panel to which the reinforcing component is attached (3) Inside of the front panel A step of mounting and combining resin inner panels so as to close the space. (4) A step of heating the inside of the furnace to foam the foamed heat insulating material, and fixing the front panel, the reinforcing parts, and the inner panels.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In FIGS. 1 to 4, the portions indicated by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 5 have the same functions as the portions denoted by the same reference numerals described in FIG.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the refrigerator door of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the refrigerator door of the present invention shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view for explaining a front panel and reinforcing parts of the door of the refrigerator of the present invention shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a view showing a manufacturing process of the door of the refrigerator of the present invention. FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, a door 20 (swing-out door) is provided at an opening on the front surface of the refrigerator 1B. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the door 20 is made of ABS or PS.
Front panel 21 formed by injection molding using a resin such as ABS, an inner panel 22 formed by vacuum molding or the like using a resin such as ABS or PS, and a joint between the front panel 21 and the inner panel 22. It is configured by combining resin reinforcing parts 23, 23 and the like such as ABS and PS having a flange shape used for a part thereof.

A closed space 24 formed by combining these components is filled with a foam heat insulating material 25 made of polyurethane foam or the like to form a front panel 21 and an inner panel 2.
2 and the reinforcing component 23 are integrally formed by bonding to the foam heat insulating material 25. 26 is a metal rail mounting plate fixedly attached to the foam panel 25 of the inner panel 22;
Reference numeral 27 denotes a synthetic rubber gasket which is installed around the inner wall surface of the door 20 and seals between the door 20 and the refrigerator body 1.

In the present invention, the resin used for the front panel 21, the inner panel 22, the reinforcing parts 23, etc.
When forming the foamed heat insulating material 25 such as a polyurethane foam, it is preferable to use a resin that can be well bonded to and integrated with the foamed heat insulating material 25.

As shown in FIG. 3, the front panel 2 of the door 20
1 is an upper wall 28, a lower wall 29, a right wall 30, and a left wall 31
It is integrally made by injection molding using a resin such as ABS or PS in a box shape with an opening on the back side with
An undercut (flange) 32 is formed at the tip of the upper wall 28, and an undercut (flange) 33 is similarly formed integrally with the front panel 21 at the tip of the lower wall 29. The undercut portion 32 and the undercut portion 33 are portions that become joint surfaces between the front panel 21 and the inner panel 22 when the inner panel 22 is combined.

However, such undercut portions (flange portions) are not provided at the distal ends of the right wall 30 and the left wall 31. It is difficult to provide an undercut portion (flange portion) on the entire inner peripheral edge on the back side without increasing the cost by the current injection molding technology. Right wall 30 and left wall 31
Since the undercut portion as described above is not provided at the distal end of the front panel 21, after the inner panel 22 is combined, the front panel 21 and the inner panel 22 are combined to form a closed space 24 inside the foamable polyurethane. When the composition or the like is injected and foamed, the foamable polyurethane composition leaks from between the front end portions of the right wall 30 and the left wall 31 and the joint surface of the inner panel 12. Therefore, in order to prevent this leakage, a sealing material made of a plastics foam such as foamed PE is applied to the end portions of the right wall 30 and the left wall 31 and the inner panel 22.
It is necessary to intervene between the joining surface with the.

In the present invention, the right wall 30 and the left wall 3
A flange-shaped reinforcing component 23 separately formed by injection molding using a resin such as ABS or PS is attached to the front end of the device. Reference numeral 34 denotes a plurality of ribs provided substantially at right angles to the longitudinal direction of the reinforcing component 23, 35 denotes holes provided near the upper and lower ends of the reinforcing component 23, 36 denotes claw portions provided near four corners of the front panel 21, The claw portion 36 is inserted into the hole 35 and fixed, and the reinforcing component 23 is mounted at a predetermined position on the front panel 21. The right wall 30 and the left wall 3
1 while the strength and rigidity are improved,
Since the joining surface when the inner panel 22 is combined is formed, the joining strength is increased, and the rigidity and strength of the door 20 are improved. With this configuration, the front panel 21
Is made by injection molding using a resin such as ABS or PS, but the inner panel 22 made of a resin such as ABS or PS has sufficient strength, rigidity,
The physical properties such as dimensional accuracy can be satisfied, and the door 20 excellent in strength, rigidity and the like can be obtained.

FIG. 4 illustrates a method of manufacturing a refrigerator door according to the present invention in detail. Step (1): As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, first, the reinforcing component 23 is mounted on the front panel 21. Reinforcing parts 2
Numeral 3 is adapted to be fitted to the front panel 21 by claws or the like. Step (2): An aluminum tape a is attached to the inner surface of the front panel 21 at an appropriate position as indicated by oblique lines in FIG. Since the entire door is made of resin, heat is not easily conducted, but the internal low temperature is gradually transmitted to the front panel 21 side of the door. At this time, since the temperature of the front panel 21 is lower than that of the outside air, dew condensation occurs on the surface. However, the attachment of the aluminum tape a facilitates heat exchange with the outside air temperature. Can be prevented.

Step (3): As shown in FIG.
A rail mounting plate 26 is mounted on the inner panel 22 with screws or the like. The rail mounting plate 26 is a metal member for mounting a rail for fixing an inner box (not shown).
It is fixed with screws and foam insulation. Step (4): As shown in FIG.
The gasket 27 is inserted into and attached to the groove formed around the periphery of the gasket 2.

Step (5): The front panel 21 is set on a lower jig (not shown). Step (6): The inner panel 22 is set on an upper jig (not shown). Step (7): As shown in FIG. 4D, a predetermined amount of a foamable polyurethane composition or the like is injected into the internal space 37 of the front panel 21 set in the lower jig. The foamable polyurethane composition and the like are not particularly limited.
Specific examples of the foamable polyurethane composition include, for example,
A foamable polyurethane composition in which a premix containing cyclopentane and a polyol (polyoxypropylene glycol), a catalyst, an antifoaming agent, a silicon dispersant, etc. is mixed with carbon dioxide gas, and then isocyanate is mixed at the time of molding and foaming can be used. . This foamable polyurethane composition can be injected into a closed space or an internal space from a nozzle and foamed to produce a heat insulating material made of flame-retardant rigid urethane foam. In the present invention, a commercially available foaming machine 38 can be used. Reference numeral 39 denotes a nozzle for injecting a predetermined amount of a foamable polyurethane composition or the like into the internal space 37 as indicated by a black arrow.

Step (8): Immediately after the injection, the inner panel 22
Lock the upper jig with the lower jig. At the same time as being locked, the inner panel 22 is mounted and assembled so as to close the internal space 37 of the front panel 21 (FIG. 4).
(D)). Step (9): With the upper jig and the lower jig locked, put them in a foaming furnace (oven) not shown. Since the foamable polyurethane composition does not become uniform when foamed at room temperature, it is heated in a foaming furnace and foamed at a predetermined atmospheric temperature. The atmosphere temperature of the foaming furnace is about 60 ° C., and the time (curing time) for keeping the foaming furnace in the foaming furnace is about 8 minutes. By the foaming of the foamable polyurethane composition, the foam insulating material 25 fills the closed space 24 and fixes the front panel 21, the reinforcing component 23 and the inner panel 22.

Step (10): The jig is taken out of the foaming furnace, the lock is released, and the completed door is taken out (FIG. 4E).
reference). Step (11): The door 20 is attached to the refrigerator main body 1 to complete the refrigerator 1B (see FIG. 4 (F)).

Since the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0025]

The refrigerator door of the present invention uses a front panel and an inner panel made of resin, but a vacuum molded product can be used as the inner panel. Since there is no need to provide an inlet for injecting the foamable polyurethane composition or the like into the closed space, the degree of freedom in design is high. Also, when injecting a foamable polyurethane composition or the like into the closed space and foaming, foamed PE
Since the reinforcing component is used without interposing a sealing material made of a plastic foam such as a plastic foam, the foamable plastic composition does not leak from a part of the joint between the front panel and the inner panel. In addition, the use of reinforcing parts improves the strength of the right and left walls of the front panel, and this reinforcing part becomes a joint surface when the inner panel is combined, so the joint strength increases, and the rigidity and strength of the door Is improved.

According to the manufacturing method of the present invention, a door having high rigidity and strength can be easily and economically manufactured.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a door of a refrigerator of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory cross-sectional view of the refrigerator door of the present invention shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a front panel and reinforcing parts of the door of the refrigerator of the present invention shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a manufacturing process of the refrigerator door of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory sectional view of a conventional refrigerator.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1B Refrigerator 1 Refrigerator body 20 Door 21 Front panel 22 Inner panel 23 Reinforcement part 24 Closed space 25 Foam insulation 37 Internal space

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A resin front panel, a resin inner panel, and a resin reinforcing component mounted on at least a part of a joint between the front panel panel and the inner panel are formed inside. The refrigerator door is formed by filling a closed space to be filled with a foamed heat insulating material, and bonding the front panel, the inner panel, and the reinforcing component with the foamed heat insulating material. 2. A thin box-shaped resin front panel having an opening on the back side, a resin reinforcing part attached to the inner peripheral edge of the back side opening of the front panel to form a flange, and A foam heat insulating material filled from the back side opening of the front panel, and a resin inner panel attached to the reinforcing component so as to close the back side opening of the front panel filled with the foam heat insulating material, The foam insulation,
A refrigerator door to which the front panel, the reinforcing component and the inner panel are fixed. 3. A method for manufacturing a refrigerator door, comprising the following steps (1) to (4). (1) A step of mounting a resin-made reinforcing component on a resin-made front panel (2) A step of injecting foam insulation into an internal space of the front panel to which the reinforcing component is attached (3) Inside of the front panel A step of mounting and combining resin inner panels so as to close the space. (4) A step of heating the inside of the furnace to foam the foamed heat insulating material, and fixing the front panel, the reinforcing parts, and the inner panels.