JP2008040617A - Drain water processing device of automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a drain water processing device of an automatic vending machine without a possibility of inviting decline of cooling efficiency by suppressing entry of outside air through a transport piping. <P>SOLUTION: In the drain water processing device 50 which passes the drain water produced inside the automatic vending machine inside the transport piping, transports it to an evaporating dish 51 and evaporates and processes the drain water with the evaporating dish 51, the transport piping 52 has a trap 52b which becomes relatively lower than an exit 52a, and in the trap 52b, water is stored beforehand in a mode to block inside of the tube. Especially the transport piping 52 is arranged outside of an article accommodation storages 5a, 5b, and 5c in which articles are held, and transports the drain water produced in a circulation duct 41 which cools the internal atmosphere introduced from the article accommodation storages 5a, 5b, and 5c, and sends them out to the article accommodation storages 5a, 5b, and 5c. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a drain water treatment apparatus for a vending machine, and more specifically, a vending machine for transferring drain water generated in the machine to a predetermined evaporation site and evaporating the drain water at the evaporation site for processing. The present invention relates to a drain water treatment apparatus.

  For example, in a vending machine that sells cold products such as canned products, bottled products, and plastic bottled products, an evaporator (cooling unit) that is a component of the cooling unit is placed inside (inside) the product cabinet of the main body cabinet. Condensate water (mainly generated from the cooler) generated by the cooling operation of the cooling unit and defrost water generated during defrosting of the evaporator are generated as drain water in the vending machine. To do. And in order to process this drain water which generate | occur | produced, it is common that the vending machine is provided with the drain water processing apparatus.

  The drain water treatment apparatus is provided in a machine room which is a lower part of the commodity storage of the main body cabinet together with a compressor, an external blower fan, a condenser, an expansion mechanism, and the like that are components of the cooling unit. Such a drain water treatment apparatus includes an evaporating dish placed in a machine room, and a transfer means for transferring drain water to the evaporating dish. The transfer means is provided with a small-diameter cup portion for storing drain water and a large-diameter cup portion surrounding the outer periphery of the small-diameter cup portion, and the drain water is stored in the small-diameter cup portion. The diameter cup portion receives drain water overflowing from the small diameter cup portion. On the bottom of the large-diameter cup portion, a pipe that reaches the evaporating dish is provided.

  The drain water treatment apparatus having such a configuration stores drain water generated in a machine such as a product storage container in a small diameter cup portion, receives drain water overflowing from the small diameter cup portion in the large diameter cup portion, and then passes through the piping. The process is carried out by evaporating the drain water stored in the evaporating dish and evaporating the drain water stored in the evaporating dish by the action of the outside fan or by the heat of the high-temperature refrigerant gas from the compressor (for example, see Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-083375

  By the way, in the drain water treatment apparatus as described above, the inside of the commodity storage is in communication with the outside through the transfer means until the required amount of drain water is stored in the small diameter cup portion. Therefore, even if the cooling unit is cooled, outside air enters the product storage etc. through the transfer means, and as a result, the internal atmosphere of the product storage etc. cannot be cooled well, and the cooling efficiency may be reduced. There is.

  In addition, the internal atmosphere of the product storage is circulated with the circulation duct provided outside the product storage (machine room), and the cold heat generated in the refrigeration equipment such as a Stirling refrigerator installed in the machine room. In the vending machine of the type that cools the product in the product storage by cooling the internal atmosphere in the circulation duct, it is necessary to transfer the drain water generated in the circulation duct to the evaporating dish through the transfer means There is. However, since the inside of the circulation duct is in communication with the outside through the transfer means until the required amount of drain water is stored in the small-diameter cup portion constituting the transfer means, the outside air enters the circulation duct through the transfer means. As a result, there is a possibility that this also causes a decrease in cooling efficiency.

  In order to solve such a problem, it is conceivable to attach a check valve to the outlet of the transfer pipe. When such a check valve is attached, it is necessary to close the outlet of the transfer pipe when the check valve is closed from the viewpoint of ensuring airtightness. However, when the check valve is closed in this manner to close the outlet of the transfer pipe, the check valve is more tightly blocked by the surface tension of the drain water passing through the transfer pipe and reaching the outlet. As a result, the pipe resistance increases, and the above problem has not been solved.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a drain water treatment device for a vending machine that suppresses the entry of outside air through a transfer pipe and does not cause a decrease in cooling efficiency. .

  In order to achieve the above object, a drain water treatment apparatus for a vending machine according to claim 1 of the present invention allows drain water generated in the vending machine to pass through the inside of a transfer pipe to a predetermined evaporation site. In the drain water treatment apparatus for transporting and evaporating drain water at the evaporation site, the transfer pipe has a trap portion that is relatively below the outlet, and the trap portion closes the inside of the pipe. In an aspect, water is stored in advance.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a drain water treatment apparatus for a vending machine, wherein drain water generated in the vending machine passes through a transfer pipe and is transferred to a predetermined evaporation site. In the drain water treatment apparatus for evaporating the drain water, the transfer pipe is provided in advance in a manner in which a blocking member made of a water-decomposable material is closed in the vicinity of the outlet so as to block the inside of the pipe. .

  Moreover, the drain water treatment device of the vending machine according to claim 3 of the present invention is the above-described claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the transfer pipe is disposed outside a product storage for storing products, And the drain water produced in the circulation duct which cools the internal atmosphere of this goods storage introduced from the said goods storage and sends out to the said goods storage is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  According to the drain water treatment apparatus of the vending machine of the present invention, the transfer pipe has a trap portion that is relatively below the outlet, and water is stored in advance in the trap portion so as to close the inside of the pipe. Therefore, the inside of the machine is not in communication with the outside through the transfer pipe. That is, the inside of the machine can be shut off from the outside. Therefore, there is no possibility that outside air will enter the machine through the transfer pipe, and thus cooling of the internal atmosphere by the cooling device will not be hindered by the entry of outside air. Therefore, there is an effect that there is no possibility of causing a decrease in cooling efficiency.

  Exemplary embodiments of a drain water treatment apparatus for a vending machine according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  1 and 2 schematically show a vending machine to which a drain water treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied, and FIG. 1 shows an internal structure when viewed from the front. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view showing a main part. 1 and 2, the vending machine includes a main body cabinet 1.

  The main body cabinet 1 is formed as a rectangular heat-insulating housing whose front surface is open. The main body cabinet 1 is provided with an outer door 2 and an inner door 3 on the front surface thereof, and three independent commodity containers 5a, 5b, 5c partitioned by, for example, two heat insulating partition plates 4 therein. It is provided in a manner that is arranged side by side. The outer door 2 is for opening and closing the front opening of the main body cabinet 1. The inner door 3 is for opening and closing the front surface of the product storage 5a, 5b, 5c. The product storages 5a, 5b, 5c are for storing beverage cans and plastic bottles in a state maintained at a desired temperature.

  The product storage racks 5a, 5b, and 5c are provided with a product storage rack 6, a carry-out mechanism 7, a product carry-out shooter 8, and a rear duct 9, respectively.

  The commodity storage rack 6 is for storing commodities such as canned beverages and beverages containing plastic bottles in a manner arranged in the vertical direction. The carry-out mechanism 7 is provided at the lower part of the product storage rack 6 and is used to carry out the products at the bottom of the product group stored in the product storage rack 6 one by one. The product carry-out shooter 8 is a flat plate-like member having a large number of air holes, and is arranged in such a manner that it is inclined downward from the rear to the front of the product storage 5a, 5b, 5c. This product carry-out shooter 8 is for guiding the product carried out from the carry-out mechanism 7 to the product take-out port 2 a provided in the outer door 2. The back duct 9 is an air guide path provided in a part located on the back side in the commodity storage 5a, 5b, 5c.

  Inside the main body cabinet 1 is located below the product storage 5a, 5b, 5c, and in the machine room 1a which is outside the product storage 5a, 5b, 5c, a Stirling refrigerator 10 and a cooling unit 20 are provided. A heat radiating unit 30, a circulation unit 40, and a drain water treatment device 50 are provided.

  The Stirling refrigerator 10 is placed horizontally in the machine room 1a of the main body cabinet 1, and has a low temperature part 11 that generates cold heat when operated and a high temperature part 12 that generates high temperature exhaust heat. Yes.

  The cooling unit 20 is disposed inside the machine room 1 a of the main body cabinet 1. The cooling unit 20 is configured to transfer the cold heat generated from the low temperature part 11 of the Stirling refrigerator 10 to the circulation duct 41 constituting the circulation unit 40 and cool the air inside the circulation duct 41. When it demonstrates in detail about the cooling unit 20, it has the heat pipe as a heat transport means. The heat pipe has a refrigerant sealed therein, and includes a condensing heat exchanger 21, an evaporating heat exchanger 22, a liquid pipe 23, and a gas pipe 24. Here, as the refrigerant, for example, a gas (such as carbon dioxide) that is a gas at normal temperature and does not freeze with the cold heat from the low temperature portion 11 of the Stirling refrigerator 10 (an antifreeze refrigerant) is used.

  The condensation heat exchanger 21 is thermally connected to the low temperature part 11 of the Stirling refrigerator 10, and more specifically, is disposed in a manner covering the peripheral surface of the low temperature part 11. In the condensation heat exchanger 21, the refrigerant is condensed by the cold heat obtained from the low temperature part 11, that is, the cold heat generated from the low temperature part 11.

  The evaporating heat exchanger 22 is disposed at a position spaced apart from the condensing heat exchanger 21 by a predetermined distance and at a position relatively lower than the condensing heat exchanger 21. In the evaporative heat exchanger 22, the details will be described later, but the refrigerant evaporates due to the heat obtained from the air inside the circulation duct 41. In other words, the air inside the circulation duct 41 that is the peripheral region of the evaporative heat exchanger 22 is cooled because heat is taken away as the refrigerant evaporates.

  The liquid pipe 23 is a pipe line that connects the condensation heat exchanger 21 and the evaporation heat exchanger 22. The liquid pipe 23 is for moving the refrigerant condensed in the condensation heat exchanger 21 to the evaporation heat exchanger 22.

  The gas pipe 24 is a pipe line that connects the condensation heat exchanger 21 and the evaporation heat exchanger 22 separately from the liquid pipe 23. The gas pipe 24 is for moving the refrigerant evaporated in the evaporating heat exchanger 22 to the condensing heat exchanger 21.

  The arrangement of the liquid pipe 23 and the gas pipe 24 is such that the gas pipe 24 is located above the liquid pipe 23. This is because the density of the refrigerant passing through the gas pipe 24 is smaller than the density of the refrigerant passing through the liquid pipe 23.

  In the cooling unit 20, the cold heat from the low temperature part 11 of the Stirling refrigerator 10 is transferred to the evaporating heat exchanger 22 as follows to cool the air inside the circulation duct 41. The refrigerant rapidly cooled and condensed in the condensation heat exchanger 21 thermally connected to the low temperature part 11 moves to the evaporation heat exchanger 22 through the liquid pipe 23 by gravity. In the evaporative heat exchanger 22, the refrigerant evaporates due to the heat of the internal air of the circulation duct 41 that accommodates the evaporative heat exchanger 22. That is, the air inside the circulation duct 41 is deprived of heat, whereby the air inside the circulation duct 41 is cooled. By the way, the refrigerant evaporated in the evaporating heat exchanger 22 moves to the condensing heat exchanger 21 through the gas pipe 24, is condensed again in the condensing heat exchanger 21, and moves to the evaporating heat exchanger 22 through the liquid pipe 23. The cycle will be repeated.

  The heat dissipation unit 30 is disposed inside the machine room 1 a of the main body cabinet 1. This heat radiating unit 30 is for releasing the high-temperature exhaust heat generated in the high-temperature section 12 of the Stirling refrigerator 10 to the outside of the vending machine (main body cabinet 1), a heat pipe as a heat transport means, An external blower fan 35 is included.

  The heat pipe has a refrigerant sealed therein and includes a heat radiation heat exchanger 31, an air heat exchanger 32, a first transport line 33, and a second transport line 34. Here, various refrigerants can be used. In this embodiment, a case where carbon dioxide is used will be described.

  The radiant heat exchanger 31 is thermally connected to the high temperature portion 12 of the Stirling refrigerator 10, and more specifically, is disposed in a manner covering the peripheral surface of the high temperature portion 12. In this heat dissipation heat exchanger 31, the high temperature exhaust heat obtained from the high temperature portion 12, that is, the high temperature exhaust heat generated from the high temperature portion 12 is received by the refrigerant.

  The air heat exchanger 32 is disposed at a position separated from the Stirling refrigerator 10 (radiation heat exchanger 31) by a predetermined distance and at a position relatively higher than the radiation heat exchanger 31. The air heat exchanger 32 radiates heat to the internal refrigerant. Although details will be described later in the air heat exchanger 32, the refrigerant radiates the high-temperature exhaust heat received by the heat dissipation heat exchanger 31 to the ambient air, and as a result, the ambient air is heated.

  The first transport line 33 is a pipe line that connects the heat radiation heat exchanger 31 and the air heat exchanger 32. The first transport line 33 is for moving the refrigerant that has received the high-temperature exhaust heat by the radiating heat exchanger 31 to the air heat exchanger 32.

  The second transport line 34 is a pipe line that connects the heat dissipation heat exchanger 31 and the air heat exchanger 32 separately from the first transport line 33. The second transport line 34 is for moving the refrigerant radiated by the air heat exchanger 32 to the radiant heat exchanger 31.

  As for the arrangement relationship between the first transport line 33 and the second transport line 34, the first transport line 33 is located above the second transport line 34. This is because the density of the refrigerant passing through the first transport line 33 is smaller than the density of the refrigerant passing through the second transport line 34.

  The outside blower fan 35 is disposed at a predetermined location in the peripheral region of the air heat exchanger 32. The outside blower fan 35 is for discharging air heated by the heat radiation of the refrigerant in the air heat exchanger 32 to the outside of the vending machine.

  In the heat radiating unit 30, the high temperature exhaust heat from the high temperature part 12 of the Stirling refrigerator 10 is released to the outside of the vending machine as follows. The refrigerant that has received heat in the heat dissipation heat exchanger 31 that is thermally connected to the high temperature section 12 moves to the air heat exchanger 32 through the first transport line 33 and radiates heat in the air heat exchanger 32. That is, the air around the air heat exchanger 32 is heated. The heated air is discharged outside the vending machine by the outside fan 35. Therefore, the high temperature exhaust heat generated in the high temperature part 12 of the Stirling refrigerator 10 is released to the outside of the vending machine by the heat radiating unit 30. By the way, the refrigerant radiated by the air heat exchanger 32 moves to the radiant heat exchanger 31 through the second transport line 34, receives heat again by the radiant heat exchanger 31, and passes through the first transport line 33 to the air heat exchanger 32. Go to and repeat the cycle.

  The circulation unit 40 includes the circulation duct 41, the air supply switching shutter 42, and the intake air switching shutter 43.

  The circulation duct 41 is disposed on the back side of the machine room 1a. The circulation duct 41 has an air supply path 41a and an intake path 41b.

  The air supply path 41a is provided in such a manner as to hold the heat insulating structure with each of the commodity storage containers 5a, 5b, 5c. More specifically, the air supply path 41a communicates with the fan room 44 disposed on the bottom surface of each commodity storage 5a, 5b, 5c through the air supply port 45. Here, the fan room 44 incorporates the internal blower fan F. The internal blower fan F is for circulating the air (internal atmosphere) inside the product storage 5a, 5b, 5c. The fan room 44 communicates with the heater room 46 through the air outlet 47. The heater room 46 incorporates a heater H for heating, and communicates with the back duct 9 and the suction port 48.

  The intake passage 41b is provided in such a manner as to hold the heat insulating structure with the rear duct 9 disposed in each of the commodity storages 5a, 5b, 5c. More specifically, the intake passage 41 b communicates with each rear duct 9 through the intake port 49.

  The air supply switching shutter 42 opens and closes the air supply port 45 and the air outlet 47. Specifically, when the air supply port 45 is opened, the air outlet 47 is closed, while when the air outlet 47 is opened, the air supply port 45 is closed.

  The intake air switching shutter 43 opens and closes the intake port 49 and the intake port 48. Specifically, when the intake port 49 is opened, the intake port 48 is closed, while when the intake port 48 is opened, the intake port 49 is closed.

  The opening / closing operations of the air supply switching shutter 42 and the intake switching shutter 43 are linked to each other. Specifically, when the air supply switching shutter 42 opens the air supply port 45, the intake air switching shutter 43 opens the air intake port 49, and when the air supply switching shutter 42 opens the air outlet 47, An intake switching shutter 43 opens the intake port 48.

  The drain water treatment device 50 includes an evaporating dish 51 and a transfer pipe 52 as schematically shown in FIG. The evaporating dish 51 is placed on the side of the circulation duct 41 in the machine room 1 a of the main body cabinet 1.

  One end of the transfer pipe 52 is connected to the bottom of the circulation duct 41, the other end is disposed above the evaporating dish 51, one end serves as an inlet, and the other end serves as an outlet 52a. The transfer pipe 52 is configured to transfer the dew condensation water generated inside the commodity storage 5a, 5b, 5c or the dew condensation water generated inside the circulation duct 41 to the evaporating dish 51 as drain water. In the present embodiment, a case where drain water generated inside the circulation duct 41 is transferred will be described. Here, the drain water generated inside the product storage 5a, 5b, 5c is transferred through the transfer pipe 52 after reaching the inside of the circulation duct 41 through the air supply port 45 or the intake port 49.

  Such a transfer pipe 52 is provided with a trap (U-shaped trap) 52b which is bent in the middle thereof. The trap 52b is a portion that is relatively lower than the outlet 52a, and is a portion in which drain water that has entered the transfer pipe 52 is stored. In the transfer pipe 52, water is stored in the trap 52b in advance so as to block the inside of the pipe.

  In the drain water treatment apparatus 50 having the above-described configuration, the dew condensation water generated in the evaporative heat exchanger 22 provided inside the circulation duct 41 due to the operation of the Stirling refrigerator 10 and the internal blower fan F or the like. Enters the inside of the transfer pipe 52 as drain water and mixes with the water already stored in the trap 52b. Then, the water level rises according to the increase in the amount of water (including drain water) stored in the trap 52b, and when the water level reaches the height position of the outlet 52a, the water is discharged from the outlet 52a of the transfer pipe 52, It is transferred to the evaporating dish 51. The drain water transferred to the evaporating dish 51 is then evaporated to ambient air and diffused to the outside.

  Therefore, according to the drain water treatment apparatus 50 in the embodiment of the present invention, the water is stored in advance so as to block the inside of the pipe in the trap 52b, so that the inside of the circulation duct 41 communicates with the outside through the transfer pipe 52. Not. That is, the circulation duct 41 is disconnected from the outside. Therefore, there is no possibility that outside air may enter the inside of the circulation duct 41 through the transfer pipe 52, and thereby cooling of the internal atmosphere by the Stirling refrigerator 10 and the cooling unit 20 is not hindered by the entry of outside air. Therefore, there is no possibility of causing a decrease in cooling efficiency.

  In addition, according to the drain water treatment device 50, since water is only stored in the trap 52b of the transfer pipe 52 in advance, the pipe resistance is increased unlike the conventional example in which a check valve is provided at the outlet 52a. There is no.

  Next, a modification of the above embodiment will be described. FIG. 4 schematically shows an enlarged variation of the drain water treatment apparatus in the embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to what has the same structure as the drain water treatment apparatus 50 in embodiment mentioned above, and the description is abbreviate | omitted.

  In the drain water treatment apparatus 50 shown in FIG. 4, a blocking member 52c is provided in advance in a manner in which the inside of the pipe is closed at a predetermined portion in the vicinity of the outlet 52a of the transfer pipe 52, that is, in the region from the trap 52b to the outlet 52a. The blocking member 52c is formed from a water-decomposable material, and for example, toilet paper can be used as the water-decomposable material.

  In this way, by providing the blocking member 52 c in a manner that closes the inside of the pipe in the vicinity of the outlet 52 a of the transfer pipe 52, the inside of the circulation duct 41 can be blocked from the outside, and thereby the outside air circulates through the transfer pipe 52. There is no risk of entering the inside of the duct 41. Therefore, cooling of the internal atmosphere by the Stirling refrigerator 10 and the cooling unit 20 is not hindered by the entry of outside air. Therefore, there is no possibility of causing a decrease in cooling efficiency.

  Further, when the drain water enters the inside of the transfer pipe 52, it is stored in the trap 52b. When the amount of drain water stored in the trap 52b increases and the water level rises. As a result, when the drain water reaches the blocking member 52c, the blocking member 52c is formed of a water-decomposable material. As a result, the drain water is discharged from the outlet 52 a of the transfer pipe 52 and transferred to the evaporating dish 51. The drain water transferred to the evaporating dish 51 is then evaporated to ambient air and diffused to the outside.

  As described above, the drain water treatment apparatus for a vending machine according to the present invention is useful for evaporating the drain water generated in the machine of the vending machine.

It is sectional drawing which shows an internal structure at the time of seeing the vending machine to which the drain water treatment apparatus in embodiment of this invention was applied from the front. It is a cross-sectional side view which shows the principal part of the vending machine to which the drain water treatment apparatus in embodiment of this invention was applied. It is explanatory drawing which expanded and showed the principal part of the drain water treatment apparatus in embodiment of this invention typically. It is explanatory drawing which expanded and showed typically the modification of the drain water treatment apparatus in embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body cabinet 10 Stirling refrigerator 11 Low temperature part 12 High temperature part 20 Cooling unit 30 Heat radiation unit 40 Circulation unit 50 Drain water treatment apparatus 51 Evaporating dish 52 Transfer pipe 52a Outlet 52b Trap 52c Shut off member

Claims (3)

In the drain water treatment apparatus for passing the drain water generated in the vending machine through the inside of the transfer pipe to the predetermined evaporation site, evaporating the drain water at the evaporation site, and processing the drain water,
The transfer pipe has a trap portion which is relatively lower than the outlet, and water is previously stored in the trap portion so as to close the inside of the pipe, and the drain water treatment of the vending machine is characterized in that apparatus. In the drain water treatment apparatus for passing the drain water generated in the vending machine through the inside of the transfer pipe to the predetermined evaporation site, evaporating the drain water at the evaporation site, and processing the drain water,
A drain water treatment device for a vending machine, wherein the transfer pipe is provided in advance in a manner in which a blocking member made of a water-decomposable material closes the inside of the pipe in the vicinity of the outlet.   The transfer pipe is disposed outside the product storage for storing the product, and is generated in a circulation duct that cools the internal atmosphere of the product storage introduced from the product storage and sends the product to the product storage. The drain water treatment apparatus for a vending machine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein drain water is transferred.

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