JP2004272587A - Automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce a coolant filling amount, to reduce welding parts, and to improve safety against coolant leakage in an automatic vending machine having a cooling device using an inflammable HC coolant. <P>SOLUTION: The cooling device is provided with a compressor of a type that a pressure inside a container is low, an evaporator, and a condenser. By making the cross sectional area of a liquid pipe from the exit of the condenser to a pressure reducing device ≥40% and ≤60% of the cross sectional area of the piping of the condenser, the filling amount of the single coolant of R290 or the mixed coolant containing the R290 is made ≥50g and ≤100g, and thus the coolant amount is reduced. Further, by constituting at least one of the evaporator and the condenser by one line of piping without a joint from the entrance to the exit, the safety against the coolant leakage is improved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a vending machine using a cooling device using a flammable refrigerant and a vending machine not using Freon.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, from the viewpoint of protecting the earth's ozone layer, the use of refrigerants containing chlorine atoms, such as refrigerants CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) -12 or HCFC (hydrochlorofluorocarbon) -22, which has been used in a refrigeration cycle of a cooling device, has been restricted. The conversion to HFC (hydrofluorocarbon) refrigerant which does not contain chlorine atoms and does not destroy the ozone layer is in progress.
[0003]
Conventionally, in a vending machine mainly using HCFC-22, R407C which is a mixed refrigerant of HFC refrigerant is adopted and sold as an alternative refrigerant.
[0004]
In addition, as a foaming gas for the heat insulating material, CFC-11 has been converted to HCFC-141b, but at present, further substitution is desired.
[0005]
However, although currently used HFC refrigerants such as R407C do not cause ozone depletion, they have a high global warming potential and are therefore insufficient refrigerants for global warming, and therefore have low global warming potential. As such, natural refrigerants such as HC (hydrocarbon) have been attracting attention instead of HFCs.
[0006]
On the other hand, since the HC-based refrigerant has flammability, when using it as a refrigerant in a refrigeration cycle in a cooling device, it is important to ensure safety, and it is necessary to reduce the amount of charged refrigerant and consider refrigerant leakage. .
[0007]
For this reason, as an example of preventing the flammable refrigerant from leaking into the closed chamber, a refrigeration apparatus is connected in a cascade manner, a refrigeration cycle using the flammable refrigerant is provided outside the chamber, and brine is provided inside the chamber. There is a method of flowing cooling (for example, see Patent Document 1).
[0008]
Also, there is a refrigerator that can reduce the leakage of refrigerant into the interior even if the leakage of flammable refrigerant occurs, thereby avoiding the danger of ignition and explosion (for example, see Patent Document 2).
[0009]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2001-118134 A [Patent Document 2]
JP-A-9-42817
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In vending machines, it is easy to obtain a refrigerant, and a single refrigerant of R290 or a mixed refrigerant containing R290, which has high refrigerating capacity and high efficiency, is about to be adopted.
[0011]
Further, replacement of HCFC141b as a foaming gas for a heat insulating material with one using a natural foaming gas from the viewpoint of preventing global warming is about to be performed.
[0012]
Furthermore, in order to prevent global warming, the demand for reducing the power consumption of vending machines has been increasing year by year, and the development and introduction of environmentally friendly products that are environmentally friendly to the global environment have become an issue.
[0013]
An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vending machine that is highly safe even when a flammable refrigerant is used as a refrigerant in a refrigeration cycle.
[0014]
It is another object of the present invention to provide a complete non-fluorocarbon vending machine that does not use chlorofluorocarbon as a heat insulating material, and also to provide a vending machine that can reduce power consumption.
[0015]
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a vending machine which is safer than ever before even in the event of leakage of refrigerant.
[0016]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, a vending machine according to claim 1 of the present invention comprises a storage room having a heat insulating structure for storing products, a storage shelf for storing products in the storage room, and a cooling device for cooling the storage room. In a vending machine that cools and sells goods, the cooling device uses a flammable R290 single refrigerant or a mixed refrigerant containing the R290, and a low-pressure type compressor in a container, and an evaporator. , A condenser, and a decompression device, and a cross-sectional area of a liquid pipe from an outlet of the condenser to the decompression device is 40% or more and 60% or less of a cross-sectional area of a pipe of the condenser. Thus, the amount of the refrigerant containing the flammable refrigerant is set to 50 g or more and 100 g or less. Since R290 has a high refrigerating capacity and a low liquid density, the amount of the refrigerant can be reduced as compared with the current R407C. In addition, by employing a compressor having a low pressure in the container, the amount of the refrigerant dissolved into the refrigerating machine oil in the compressor can be reduced, and the amount of the refrigerant can be further reduced.
A vending machine according to a second aspect of the present invention is the vending machine according to the first aspect, wherein at least one of the evaporator and the condenser is formed of a single seamless pipe from an inlet to an outlet. Therefore, it is possible to eliminate a welding portion in the hairpin portion of the heat transfer tube, greatly reduce the number of welding portions of the cooling device, and have an effect of increasing safety against refrigerant leakage.
[0017]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the vending machine according to the first or second aspect, at least one of the two liquid pipes connected between the condenser, the dryer, and the pressure reducing device is the same as that of the first aspect. It is composed of a condenser or the dryer and a single seamless pipe, and has the effect of further reducing the number of welding points of the cooling device and increasing the safety against refrigerant leakage.
[0018]
A vending machine according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the vending machine according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein cyclopentane is used as a heat-insulating foamed gas for the heat-insulating material constituting the storage chamber. Thus, it is possible to realize a complete non-fluorocarbon vending machine that does not use chlorofluorocarbon not only for the refrigerant of the refrigeration cycle but also for the heat insulating material.
[0019]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the vending machine according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, a vacuum heat insulating material that does not use Freon at all is incorporated in the heat insulating material. Thus, by increasing the heat insulation performance of the storage room, the load on the cooling device can be reduced, and as a result, the power consumption can be reduced.
[0020]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of a vending machine according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0021]
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a vending machine according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a refrigeration cycle diagram of the cooling device of the vending machine according to the embodiment.
[0022]
1 and 2, the storage room 1 has a semi-closed structure made of a heat insulating material, and stores and stores products. The storage shelves 2 are shelves for cooling and storing sold products. The compressor 3 is of a low pressure type in the container, and the condenser 4 uses one seamless pipe from the inlet to the outlet. The dryer 5 has a built-in desiccant, and the liquid tubes 6a and 6b connect the condenser 4, the dryer 5 and the decompression device 7, respectively. The evaporator 8 uses a single seamless pipe from the inlet to the outlet. The cooling device 9 is a cooling device that connects these components sequentially and cools the inside of the storage chamber 1.
[0023]
The refrigerant 10 is a single refrigerant R290 or a mixed refrigerant containing R290 weighing 50 g or more and 100 g or less sealed in the cooling device 9. In a cooling system of a vending machine, a refrigerant less than 50 g causes a shortage of gas, which may cause poor cooling.
[0024]
Here, the single refrigerant of R290 is a refrigerant of 97% or more of propane which is a flammable refrigerant, and examples of the mixed refrigerant include a mixture of R290 (propane) and R600a (isobutane) which are also flammable refrigerants, There is a mixture of R290 and R170 (ethane).
[0025]
The fan 11 circulates cool air to cool the goods stored in the storage shelf 2 to a predetermined temperature. The duct 12 is a duct provided on the back of the storage room 1.
[0026]
The operation of the vending machine configured as described above will be described.
[0027]
When cooling the goods stored in the storage shelf 2, the cooling device 9 is operated, and the cool air cooled by the cooling device 9 by the fan 11 is circulated. The cool air cooled by the fan 11 cools the goods stored in the storage shelf 2, returns to the cooling device 9 again through the duct 12, and repeats the cooling.
[0028]
At this time, the refrigerant 10 sealed in the cooling device 9 is compressed by the compressor 3 to become a high-temperature and high-pressure gas, and is liquefied by being cooled by the condenser 4. The liquefied refrigerant is removed of water by the dryer 5, passes through the liquid pipe 6, is decompressed by the decompression device 7, and is vaporized by the evaporator 8 to be gasified.
[0029]
At this time, when gasifying, the evaporator is cooled by the latent heat of evaporation, and cool air is circulated in the storage room by the fan 11 to cool the product.
[0030]
Since the refrigerant 10 is flammable, it is necessary to set the amount of the refrigerant to be small so as not to cause refrigerant leakage from the viewpoint of safety.
[0031]
Therefore, by using the compressor 3 of which the pressure in the container is low, the amount of the refrigerant dissolved into the refrigerating machine oil in the compressor can be reduced, and the amount of the R290 single refrigerant or the mixed refrigerant 10 containing R290 is 50 g or more and 100 g. The following operations are possible. Further, by providing the condenser 4 having one seamless pipe from the inlet to the outlet and the evaporator 8 having one seamless pipe from the inlet to the outlet, a welding portion in a hairpin portion of the heat transfer tube is eliminated. Therefore, the number of welding points of the cooling device 9 can be greatly reduced, and the refrigerant can be prevented from leaking due to poor welding. Therefore, safety can be improved, and a vending machine with higher safety can be provided.
[0032]
Further, by setting the cross-sectional area of the liquid pipe 6 from the outlet of the condenser 4 to the pressure reducing device 7 to be 40% or more and 60% or less with respect to the cross-sectional area of the pipe of the condenser 4, the liquid as the refrigerant pipe is formed. By reducing the volume of the pipe 6, the amount of refrigerant condensed in the condenser 4 and present in the liquid phase can be reduced without being greatly affected by pressure loss, and a more secure vending machine can be provided. Can be.
[0033]
As described above, the vending machine of the present embodiment determines the cross-sectional area of the low-pressure type compressor 3 and the liquid pipe 6 from the outlet of the condenser 4 to the pressure reducing device 7 by the cross-sectional area of the pipe of the condenser 4. On the other hand, the amount is set to 40% or more and 60% or less, so that the amount of charged refrigerant can be reduced.
[0034]
Further, since at least one of the evaporator of the cooling device and the condenser is constituted by a single seamless pipe from the inlet to the outlet, it is possible to eliminate a welded portion in the hairpin portion of the heat transfer tube, and the cooling device 9 Thus, the number of welding points can be greatly reduced, the safety against refrigerant leakage can be increased, and a more secure vending machine using flammable refrigerant can be provided.
[0035]
Here, the case where one evaporator 8 is used has been described. However, even when there are a plurality of storage chambers 1 and there are a plurality of evaporators 8 corresponding to each of the storage chambers 1, the amount of refrigerant can be reduced, and A safe vending machine using a volatile refrigerant can be provided.
[0036]
Further, if the dryer 5 and the liquid tubes 6a and 6b are formed by a single seamless pipe, the number of connection points by welding can be further reduced, and the possibility of the refrigerant 10 leaking can be further reduced.
[0037]
Further, if the condenser 4 and the liquid pipe 6b or the liquid pipe 6a and the dryer 5 are formed by a single seamless pipe, the number of connection points by welding can be further reduced, and the possibility of leakage of the refrigerant 10 is further increased. Can be reduced.
[0038]
(Embodiment 2)
Hereinafter, a second embodiment of a vending machine according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description is omitted.
[0039]
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a heat insulating material of a vending machine according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.
In FIG. 3, reference numeral 13 denotes a heat insulating material constituting the storage chamber 1 for storing a product, made of urethane foam resin, and using cyclopentane as the heat insulating foam gas. Numeral 14 is a vacuum heat insulating material which does not use the chlorofluorocarbon built in the heat insulating material 13 at all. The degree was set to 67 Pa or less. Its thermal conductivity is about 0.0055 W / m, and has heat insulation performance three times or more that of urethane foam resin. Vacuum insulation material is reduced in heat insulation performance when the laminated film of the outer bag is broken and the degree of vacuum inside is reduced, but since it is built in urethane foam resin (urethane foam around the vacuum insulation material), Worry less.
[0040]
Also, in recent vending machines, it is usual to cool and heat only the lower half of the inside of the vending machine in order to save energy. It is effective to use it.
[0041]
As described above, the vending machine according to the present embodiment uses cyclopentane as the heat-insulating foaming gas of the heat-insulating material 13 that forms the storage room 1 that stores the product, so that not only the refrigerant of the cooling device 9 but also It is possible to provide a complete non-fluorocarbon vending machine that does not use fluorocarbon for the heat insulating material 13.
[0042]
Also, cyclopentane is used as a heat-insulating foaming gas for the heat-insulating material 13 that constitutes the storage room 1 for storing products, and the heat-insulating material 13 incorporates a vacuum heat-insulating material 14 that does not use any chlorofluorocarbon. A non-CFC vending machine with improved performance and reduced power consumption can be provided.
[0043]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the invention according to claim 1 can reduce the amount of refrigerant dissolved in the refrigerating machine oil in the compressor by using a compressor having a low internal pressure in the container, and use a flammable refrigerant as the refrigerant. Using a single refrigerant of R290 or a mixed refrigerant containing R290, the cross-sectional area of the liquid pipe from the outlet of the condenser to the decompression device is 40% or more and 60% or less of the cross-sectional area of the condenser pipe. By doing so, the amount of the refrigerant containing the flammable refrigerant is set to 50 g or more and 100 g or less. Since R290 has a high refrigerating capacity and a low liquid density, the amount of the refrigerant can be reduced as compared with the current R407C.
[0044]
A vending machine according to a second aspect of the present invention is the vending machine according to the first aspect, wherein at least one of the evaporator and the condenser is formed of a single seamless pipe from an inlet to an outlet. In this way, it is possible to eliminate welding points at the hairpin portion of the heat transfer tube, greatly reduce the number of welding points of the cooling device, significantly reduce the number of welding points of the cooling device, and suppress the occurrence of refrigerant leakage. A highly safe vending machine can be provided.
[0045]
The vending machine according to claim 3 is a vending machine according to claim 1 or 2, in which at least one of two liquid pipes connected between the condenser, the dryer and the decompression device is provided. Since the condenser or the dryer is constituted by one pipe having no seam, the number of welding points of the cooling device can be further reduced, and a vending machine having higher safety against refrigerant leakage can be provided.
[0046]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the first aspect of the present invention, by using cyclopentane as a heat-insulating foaming gas for a heat-insulating material constituting a storage room for storing goods, a refrigerant for a cooling device is provided. In addition, it is possible to provide a complete non-fluorocarbon vending machine that does not use fluorocarbon as a heat insulating material.
[0047]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the first aspect of the present invention, cyclopentane is used as a heat-insulating foaming gas for a heat-insulating material constituting a storage room for storing goods. By incorporating a vacuum heat-insulating material that does not use Freon at all in the heat-insulating material, it is possible to provide a non-fluorocarbon vending machine with improved heat-insulating performance and reduced power consumption.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a vending machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a refrigeration cycle diagram of a cooling device of the vending machine according to the embodiment; FIG. Perspective view of heat insulating material of form 2 [Description of reference numerals]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Storage room 2 Storage shelf 3 Low pressure type compressor 4 Condenser 6a, 6b Liquid pipe 7 Decompression device 8 Evaporator 9 Cooling device 10 Mixed refrigerant 13 Insulation material 14 Vacuum insulation material

Claims (5)

A vending machine that cools and sells products, comprising a storage room having an insulating structure for storing products, a storage shelf for storing products in the storage rooms, and a cooling device for cooling the storage rooms, wherein the cooling device is flammable. Using a single refrigerant of R290 or a mixed refrigerant containing R290, the pressure in the vessel has a low-pressure type compressor, an evaporator, a condenser, and a decompression device, and the outlet of the condenser By setting the cross-sectional area of the liquid pipe to the pressure reducing device to be 40% or more and 60% or less of the cross-sectional area of the pipe of the condenser, the amount of the refrigerant containing the flammable refrigerant is set to 50 g or more and 100 g or less. Vending machine characterized by the following. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the evaporator and the condenser is formed of a single seamless pipe from an inlet to an outlet. The liquid pipe connected between the condenser, the dryer and the decompression device, at least one of which is constituted by one pipe seamless with the condenser or the dryer. The vending machine according to claim 2. 2. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein cyclopentane is used as the heat-insulating foam gas of the heat-insulating material constituting the storage chamber. The vending machine according to claim 1 or 4, wherein a vacuum heat insulating material using no chlorofluorocarbon is incorporated in the heat insulating material.

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