JP2012027783A - Automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automatic vending machine of which power consumption can be suppressed.SOLUTION: An automatic vending machine which supplies a coolant to an evaporator through an electronic expansion valve 53 provided in a conduit through which the condensed coolant is supplied to the evaporator, for adjusting a flow rate of the coolant passing therethrough by changing the opening thereof according to a given opening command, so that an interior temperature inside a cooling chamber has a temperature in a preset temperature range, the machine comprises: an in-chamber operation on/off time measuring section 63 for measuring an operation time and stop time of the evaporator and for measuring those of a condenser installed in a heating chamber; an operation rate calculating section 64 for calculating each operation rate of the evaporator and the condenser from each measured operation time and stop time of the evaporator and the condenser; and an expansion valve opening correcting section 66 for correcting the opening of the electronic expansion valve 53 so that the operation rate of the evaporator corresponds to that of the condenser.

Description

  The present invention relates to a vending machine that sells a cooled product and a warmed product.

  It has evaporators individually arranged in a plurality of product storages, and decompressors connected individually to the respective evaporators, and operates each evaporator to bring the temperature of each product storage to a predetermined temperature range. In a vending machine to be controlled, one decompressor is constituted by an electronic expansion valve (variable flow type throttle valve) that varies the flow rate of refrigerant, and the operation time of one evaporator connected to the electronic expansion valve is set to another evaporator. There has been proposed a vending machine that adjusts the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing in one evaporator so as to coincide with the operation time.

  In this vending machine, at least one decompressor is constituted by an electronic expansion valve that varies the flow rate of refrigerant, and the operation time of one evaporator connected to the electronic expansion valve is made to coincide with the operation time of the other evaporator. In addition, since the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing through one evaporator is adjusted, the compression ratio of the compressor can be reduced and the operation efficiency can be improved (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  By the way, there has been proposed a vending machine that heats a product using condensation heat in one product storage while cooling the product using evaporation heat in another product storage. Since this vending machine is used to warm the product without exhausting the heat of condensation, energy can be used effectively.

JP 2004-61072 A

  However, in a vending machine that warms the product with condensation heat and cools the product with evaporation heat, if the operation rate of the evaporator differs from the operation rate of the heat exchanger that constitutes the condenser, the heat exchanger has a high operation rate. In addition, the compressor is operated, and the power consumption of the compressor cannot be suppressed.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the above, Comprising: It aims at providing the vending machine which can suppress power consumption.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the present invention provides a condenser for supplying refrigerant condensed to an evaporator installed in a refrigerator in a heating cabinet and a machine room, and further in the evaporator. A variable flow rate control valve that adjusts the flow rate of the refrigerant that passes by changing the opening degree according to a given opening degree command is provided in a pipeline that supplies the condensed refrigerant, and the internal temperature of the refrigerator is set in advance. In the vending machine that supplies the refrigerant to the evaporator via the variable flow rate control valve from the condenser installed in the heating chamber or the condenser installed in the machine room so that the temperature in the set temperature range is reached, In-house operation on / off time measuring means for measuring the operation time and stop time of the evaporator, and measuring the operation time and stop time of the condenser installed in the heating chamber, and the in-house operation on / off time measurement Means measured The operation rate calculation means for obtaining the operation rate of the evaporator and the operation rate of the condenser from the operation time and the stop time of the generator, the operation time and the stop time of the condenser, and the operation of the evaporator obtained by the operation rate calculation means And a valve opening degree correcting means for correcting the opening degree of the variable flow rate control valve so that the rate matches the operating rate of the condenser.

  Further, according to the present invention, in the vending machine, the valve opening degree correction unit sets a target target operating rate so that a deviation between the target operating rate and the measured operating rate of the evaporator is minimized. Further, the opening degree of the flow control valve is corrected.

  In the vending machine according to the present invention, the target operating rate is an average value of the operating rate of the evaporator and the operating rate of the condenser obtained by the operating rate calculating means.

  In the vending machine according to the present invention, the valve opening correction means obtains the opening of the flow control valve by PID control.

  Further, according to the present invention, in the above vending machine, the target evaporation temperature of the evaporator is set from the deviation between the target operation rate and the measured operation rate of the evaporator so that the evaporation temperature of the evaporator becomes the target evaporation temperature. Further, the opening degree of the flow control valve is corrected.

  Further, the present invention provides a condenser for supplying refrigerant condensed to an evaporator installed in a refrigerator in a heating chamber and a machine room, and the internal temperature of the refrigerator is set to an on-point temperature and an off-point that are set in advance. In a vending machine that supplies a refrigerant to the evaporator from a condenser installed in a heating chamber or a condenser installed in a machine room, the operation time and stop time of the evaporator are In-compartment operation on / off time measuring means for measuring, an operation rate calculating means for obtaining an operation rate of the evaporator from the operation time and stop time of the evaporator measured by the in-compartment operation on / off time measuring means, and the operation On-point temperature / off-point temperature correction means for correcting the on-point temperature and the off-point temperature so that the temperature range is expanded when the operation rate obtained by the rate calculation means is less than the preset operation ratio. With the characteristics That.

  In the vending machine according to the present invention, the on-point temperature / off-point temperature correction means corrects the on-point temperature of the refrigerator higher than a preset on-point temperature.

  In the vending machine according to the present invention, the on-point temperature / off-point temperature correcting means may be configured such that the on-point temperature is controlled by PID control based on a deviation between a set operation rate and the operation rate obtained by the operation rate calculating means. And the off-point temperature is corrected.

  In addition, the present invention provides a variable flow rate that adjusts the flow rate of refrigerant that passes through a conduit that supplies refrigerant to an evaporator installed for each commodity storage by changing the opening according to a given opening command. In a vending machine that provides a control valve and supplies the refrigerant to the evaporator so that the temperature inside the product storage is in a preset temperature range, the operation time of the evaporator for each product storage and An internal cooling on / off time measuring means for measuring the stop time, and an operating rate for determining the evaporator operating rate for each product storage from the operating time and stop time of the evaporator for which the internal cooling on / off time is measured It is characterized by comprising a calculation means and a valve opening correction means for correcting the opening of the variable flow valve so that the operating rates of the evaporators obtained for each of the commodity storages coincide.

  Further, according to the present invention, in the vending machine, the valve opening degree correction unit sets a target target operating rate so that a deviation between the target operating rate and the measured operating rate of the evaporator is minimized. Further, the opening degree of the flow control valve is corrected.

  Further, the present invention is characterized in that, in the vending machine, the target operating rate is an average value of the operating rate of the evaporator for each product storage obtained by the operating rate calculating means.

  In the vending machine according to the present invention, the valve opening correction means obtains the opening of the flow control valve by PID control.

  The vending machine according to the present invention corrects the opening degree of the variable flow control valve so that the operation rate of the evaporator installed in the cooling chamber matches the operation rate of the condenser installed in the heating chamber. The refrigeration capacity of the refrigerator and the heating capacity of the heating chamber are balanced, the operation rate of the compressor can be reduced, and the power consumption can be suppressed.

  Further, the vending machine according to the present invention corrects the on-point temperature and the off-point temperature so that the temperature range is expanded when the operation rate is less than the preset operation rate, so that the product is supercooled. Power consumption can be suppressed.

  In addition, the vending machine according to the present invention corrects the opening of the variable flow valve so that the operation rate of the evaporator obtained for each product storage matches, so the operation rate of the compressor can be reduced and the consumption Electric power can be suppressed.

FIG. 1 is a front view of a vending machine according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the outer door of the vending machine shown in FIG. 1 is opened. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the internal configuration of the vending machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a temperature control system of the vending machine shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing valve opening correction processing of the electronic expansion valve and compressor rotation speed correction processing executed by the control box when the vending machine shown in FIG. 1 is operating. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing valve expansion correction processing of the electronic expansion valve and compressor rotation speed correction processing executed by the control box in a state where the vending machine shown in FIG. 1 is operating. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a temperature control system of the vending machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an on / off point correction process executed by the control box in a state where the vending machine shown in FIG. 7 is operating. FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing the internal configuration of the vending machine according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a temperature control system of the vending machine shown in FIG. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the opening correction process of the electronic expansion valve executed by the control box in a state where the vending machine shown in FIG. 9 is operating.

  Embodiments of a vending machine according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a front view of a vending machine according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the outer door of the vending machine shown in FIG. 1 is opened. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the internal configuration of the vending machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the vending machine described here sells products such as canned beverages and beverages containing plastic bottles in a cooled state or a warmed state, and includes a main body cabinet 1, an outer door 2 and an inner door. A door 3 is provided. The main body cabinet 1 is configured by combining a plurality of steel plates and has a box shape with a heat insulating structure having an open front surface. The outer door 2 is for closing the front opening of the main body cabinet 1. As shown in FIG. 1, on the front surface of the outer door 2, a display window 21 for displaying a sample of products to be sold and a product are selected. A selection button 22 for inserting coins, a coin insertion slot 23 for inserting coins, a bill insertion slot 24 for inserting banknotes, an integrated display 25 for displaying various information, a product outlet 26 for taking out merchandise, etc. A configuration necessary for selling products is provided. The inner door 3 is for closing a front opening of the commodity storage chamber 4 to be described later, and has a heat insulating function such as filling a hollow steel plate panel with a heat insulating material. The outer door 2 and the inner door 3 are supported on one side edge of the main body cabinet 1 in such a manner that they can be opened and closed individually.

  The inside of the main body cabinet 1 is divided into an upper region and a lower region by a partition plate (floor plate) 11, and the upper region constitutes the commodity storage chamber 4 described above, and the lower region constitutes the machine room 5. The product storage chamber 4 is further divided into two product storages 4L and 4R by a heat insulating partition plate. The product storage 4L (hereinafter referred to as the left store 4L) on the left side of the front side stores the stored products. The product storage 4R on the right side (hereinafter referred to as the right store 4R) constitutes a refrigerator that cools the stored product, while constituting the heating cabinet that warms up.

  Product shooters 4L1 and 4R1 are provided below the left warehouse 4L and the right warehouse 4R, respectively. The merchandise shooters 4L1 and 4R1 are for carrying out merchandise paid out from a merchandise storage rack 41, which will be described later. In the left warehouse 4L and the right warehouse 4R, a product storage rack 41 is disposed in a region above the product shooters 4L1, 4R1.

  The product storage rack 41 has a meandering product storage passage (not shown) called serpentine, and stores the input product along the vertical direction. The products located at 1 are paid out to the product shooters 4L1 and 4R1 one by one.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, a heater 4L4 in addition to the temperature sensor 4L2 and the condenser 4L3 in the heating chamber is disposed in a region below the product shooter 4L1 in the left chamber 4L, and the interior of the right chamber 4R. In FIG. 4, a cooling chamber temperature sensor 4R2 and an evaporator 4R3 are arranged in a region below the product shooter 4R1.

  The temperature sensor 4L2 in the heating chamber and the temperature sensor 4R2 in the cooling chamber are for detecting the temperature inside the product storage 4L, 4R, and are individually prepared in each product storage (left store 4L and right store 4R). It is.

  The condenser 4L3 and the evaporator 4R3 are components of a cooling unit that constitutes a refrigeration cycle together with the compressor 51 and the condenser 52 disposed in the machine room 5. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the condenser 4L3 is arranged in the left warehouse 4L, while the evaporator 4R3 is arranged in the right warehouse 4R, and these are serially arranged in the order of the condenser 4L3 and the evaporator 4R3. And a condenser 52 is connected in parallel to the condenser 4L3.

  An electronic expansion valve 53 and an electromagnetic opening / closing valve 54 are provided in the pipe for supplying the refrigerant to the evaporator 4R3, and an electromagnetic opening / closing valve 55 is provided in the pipe for supplying the refrigerant to the condensers 4L3 and 52. , 56 are provided. The electronic expansion valve 53 adjusts the flow rate of the passing refrigerant by changing the opening according to the opening command when the opening command is given. The electromagnetic on-off valve 54 provided in the pipeline for supplying the refrigerant to the evaporator 4R3 is for selecting operation or stop of the evaporator 4R3. On the other hand, the electromagnetic on-off valves 55 and 56 provided in the pipelines for supplying the refrigerant to the condensers 4L3 and 52 are for selecting the condensers 4L3 and 52 for supplying the refrigerant.

  One compressor 51 is arranged in the machine room 5 and is shared by the two condensers 4L3 and 52. Further, an inverter 57 is connected to the compressor 51. The inverter 57 is for operating the compressor 51 efficiently.

  Although not clearly shown in the figure, the left chamber 4L is provided with an internal fan that blows air to the condenser 4L3, and the right chamber 4R blows air to the evaporator 4R3. An internal blower fan is provided.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a temperature control system of the vending machine described above. The electronic expansion valve 53, the electromagnetic on-off valves 54, 55, 56, the inverter 57, and the blower fan described above are connected to the control box 6. When the temperature information is given from the heating chamber temperature sensor 4L2 or the cooling chamber temperature sensor 4R2, the control box 6 is provided with an electronic expansion valve 53, an electromagnetic opening / closing valve 54 according to a program or initial data stored in the memory 61 in advance. , 55, 56, inverter 57, and the blower fan are controlled in an integrated manner to maintain a product sold by the vending machine at a desired temperature state. An internal operation on / off time measurement unit 63, an operation rate calculation unit 64, a compressor rotation speed correction unit 65, and an expansion valve opening correction unit 66 are provided.

  The internal operation on / off determination unit 62 determines whether to turn on the internal operation or to turn off the internal operation according to the on / off set temperature data stored in the memory 61. Specifically, the temperature in the product storage 4L, 4R measured through the temperature sensor 4L2 in the heating chamber and the temperature sensor 4R2 in the cooling chamber is compared with the on / off set temperature, and based on the comparison result, Decide whether to turn on internal operation or turn off internal operation. For example, when the internal temperature of the left warehouse 4L is equal to or lower than the on-set temperature, the internal operation (internal heating) is determined to be on, and when the internal temperature is equal to or higher than the off-set temperature, the internal operation (internal heating) is turned off. And decide. On the other hand, when the internal temperature of the right warehouse 4R is equal to or higher than the on-set temperature, the internal operation (internal cooling) is determined to be on, and when the internal temperature is equal to or lower than the off-set temperature, the internal operation (internal cooling) is determined to be off. To do.

  If the internal operation on / off determination unit 62 determines that the internal operation (internal cooling) of the right storage 4R is on, the evaporator until the internal operation (internal cooling) is determined to be off. The compressor 51 is operated so as to supply the refrigerant to 4R3, and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 is opened to cool the internal air of the right compartment 4R. On the other hand, when the in-compartment operation on / off determination unit 62 determines that the in-compartment operation is off, the compressor is configured to stop the supply of the refrigerant to the evaporator 4R3 until the in-compartment operation is determined to be on. The operation of 51 is stopped and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 is closed to stop the cooling of the internal air of the right compartment 4R.

  For example, when the internal temperature of the right warehouse 4R is equal to or higher than the set temperature, the drive of the compressor 51 and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 is controlled so as to supply the refrigerant to the evaporator 4R3 until the temperature becomes equal to or lower than the off-set temperature. The storage 4R is cooled. By stopping the supply of the refrigerant, the internal temperature rises, and when the off set temperature is exceeded and the on set temperature is reached, the compressor 51 and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 are driven so that the refrigerant is again supplied to the evaporator 4R3. To control.

  As a result of the temperature control by the internal operation on / off determination unit 62, the internal temperature of the right compartment 4R is maintained between the on-set temperature and the off-set temperature. It can be cooled to around 5 ° C.

  On the other hand, when the internal operation on / off determination unit 62 determines that the internal operation (internal heating) of the left storage 4L is on, and further, when the refrigerant is supplied to the evaporator 4R3, Until the internal operation (internal heating) is determined to be off, the internal air of the left compartment 4L is heated by opening the electromagnetic on-off valve 55 so as to supply the refrigerant to the condenser 4L3. On the other hand, even if the internal operation on / off determination unit 62 determines that the internal operation (internal heating) of the left storage 4L is on, if the refrigerant is not supplied to the evaporator 4R3, the internal storage The internal air of the left chamber 4L is heated by energizing the heater 4L4 until the internal operation (internal heating) is determined to be off.

  On the other hand, when the internal operation on / off determination unit 62 determines that the internal operation is off, the electromagnetic switching is performed so that the supply of the refrigerant to the condenser 4L3 is stopped until the internal operation is determined to be on. While closing the valve 55 and stopping energization of the heater 4L4, heating of the internal air of the left warehouse 4L is stopped.

  For example, in the case where the internal temperature of the left warehouse 4L is equal to or lower than the set temperature and the refrigerant is supplied to the evaporator 4R3, the refrigerant is supplied to the condenser 4L3 until the temperature becomes equal to or higher than the off set temperature. Thus, the left warehouse 4L is heated by controlling the drive of the electromagnetic on-off valve 55. On the other hand, when the internal temperature of the left chamber 4L is equal to or lower than the set temperature, and further, when the refrigerant is not supplied to the evaporator 4R3, control is performed so that the heater 4L4 is energized until the temperature reaches the off set temperature or higher. By doing so, the left warehouse 4L is heated.

  When the supply of the refrigerant is stopped or the heater is de-energized, the internal temperature decreases, and when the temperature exceeds the off-set temperature and reaches the on-set temperature, the electromagnetic on-off valve 55 is supplied so that the refrigerant is supplied to the condenser 4L3 again. Is controlled, or the heater 4L4 is energized.

  As a result of the temperature control by the internal operation on / off determination unit 62, the internal temperature of the left compartment 4L is maintained between the on-set temperature and the off-set temperature. It can be warmed to around 55 ° C.

  The internal operation on / off time measuring unit 63 measures the internal operation on time and the internal operation off time, and measures each of the commodity storages 4L and 4R. The internal operation on time is a time during which the electromagnetic on / off valves 54 and 55 are on (opened), and the time during which the electromagnetic on / off valves 54 and 55 are actually on may be measured by the timer 67. The above-described in-compartment operation on / off determination unit 62 may measure the time from when the in-compartment operation is determined to be on until it is determined to be off by the timer 67. Similarly, the internal operation off time is the time when the electromagnetic on / off valves 54 and 55 are off (closed), and the time at which the electromagnetic on / off valves 54 and 55 are actually off is measured by the timer 67. Alternatively, the above-described internal operation on / off determination unit 62 may measure the time from when the internal operation is determined to be off to when it is determined to be on by the timer 67.

  The operation rate calculation unit 64 calculates the operation rate of the electromagnetic on-off valves 54 and 55 based on the internal operation on / off time measured by the internal operation on / off time measuring unit 63 and the internal operation off time. It calculates for every goods storage 4L and 4R. The operation rate is a ratio of the in-compartment on-time to the total time, and the total time is obtained by adding the in-compartment operation off time to the in-compartment operation on-time.

  The compressor rotation speed correction unit 65 corrects the rotation speed of the compressor 51 and controls the inverter 57 so that the compressor 51 rotates at the rotation speed calculated by the compressor rotation speed correction unit 65.

  The expansion valve opening degree correction unit 66 corrects the opening degree of the electronic expansion valve 53, and the operation rate of the electromagnetic on-off valve 55 of the left case 4L and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 of the right case 4R calculated by the operation rate calculation unit 64. The opening degree of the electronic expansion valve 53 is controlled so as to coincide with the average value of the operation rate. Then, the expansion valve opening degree correction unit 66 repeatedly performs the correction, so that the operation rate of the electromagnetic on-off valve 55 of the left case 4L approaches the operation rate of the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 of the right case 4R, and the deviation is reduced.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a valve opening correction process of the electronic expansion valve and a rotation speed correction process of the compressor executed by the control box in a state where the vending machine is operating. The processing contents of the control box 6 will be described in detail below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  First, the control box 6 sets the opening degree of the electronic expansion valve 53 and the rotational speed of the compressor 51 based on the setting data stored in the memory 61 (step S1). Next, the in-compartment operation on / off determination unit 62 measures the in-compartment temperature for each of the product storage units 4L and 4R and determines whether to turn on the in-compartment operation or to turn off the in-compartment operation. Then, based on the determined contents, the compressor 51 is operated or stopped, and the electromagnetic on / off valves 54, 55, and 56 are controlled to open / close (step S2).

  Next, the operation rate calculation part 64 calculates the operation rate of the goods storage 4L, 4R (electromagnetic on-off valves 54, 55) (step S3). Then, an average value of the operating rate of the left chamber 4L (electromagnetic switching valve 55) and the operating rate of the right chamber 4R (electromagnetic switching valve 54) is calculated (step S4).

  Next, the expansion valve opening degree correction unit 66 obtains the opening degree of the electronic expansion valve 53 by the PID control based on the deviation between the average value of the operating rate and the operating rate of the right warehouse 4R, and the electronic device at the obtained opening degree. The expansion valve 53 is controlled (step S5).

  Next, the compressor rotational speed correction unit 65 obtains the rotational speed of the compressor 51 by PID control based on the deviation between the average value of the operational ratio and the operational ratio of the right warehouse 4R, and the compressor is obtained at the obtained rotational speed. The inverter 57 is controlled so that 51 operates (step S6).

  The control box 6 repeatedly performs the opening degree correction process of the electronic expansion valve 53 and the rotation speed correction process of the compressor 51, whereby the operating rate of the electromagnetic on-off valve 14L5 of the left box 4L and the electromagnetic on-off valve 14R5 of the right box 4R are The driving rate approaches and the deviation decreases.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing valve opening correction processing of the electronic expansion valve and compressor rotation speed correction processing executed by the control box in a state where the vending machine is operating.

  The vending machine according to the embodiment of the present invention replaces the valve opening correction process and the compressor rotation speed correction process shown in FIG. 5 with the valve opening correction process and the compressor rotation speed correction shown in FIG. It is possible to execute processing. Hereinafter, the processing contents of the control box will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  First, the control box 6 sets the opening degree of the electronic expansion valve 53 and the rotational speed of the compressor 51 based on the setting data stored in the memory 61 (step S11). Next, the in-compartment on / off determination unit 62 measures the in-compartment temperature for each of the product storage units 4L and 4R and determines whether to turn on the in-compartment operation or to turn off the in-compartment operation. Then, based on the determined contents, the compressor 51 is operated or stopped, and the electromagnetic on / off valves 54, 55, and 56 are controlled to open / close (step S12).

  Next, the operation rate calculation part 64 calculates the operation rate of the goods storage 4L, 4R (electromagnetic on-off valves 54, 55) (step S13). Then, an average value of the operating rate of the left chamber 4L (electromagnetic switching valve 55) and the operating rate of the right chamber 4R (electromagnetic switching valve 54) is calculated (step S14).

  Next, the target value of the evaporation temperature (low pressure) by the PID control is obtained based on the deviation between the average value of the operating rate and the operating rate of the right warehouse 4R (step S15). Further, a target value of the condensation temperature (high pressure) by PID control is obtained based on the deviation between the average value of the operating rate and the operating rate of the left warehouse 4L (step S16).

  The expansion valve opening correction unit 66 controls the opening of the electronic expansion valve 53 so that the evaporation temperature (low pressure) and the condensation temperature (high pressure) become target values, and the compressor rotation speed correction unit 65 The rotation speed of the compressor is controlled (step S17).

  The control box 6 repeatedly performs the opening correction process of the electronic expansion valve and the rotation speed correction process of the compressor, whereby the operating rate of the electromagnetic on / off valve 14L5 of the left chamber 4L and the operation of the electromagnetic on / off valve 14R5 of the right chamber 4R are The rate approaches and the deviation decreases.

  The vending machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention described above has an electronic expansion valve so that the operation rate of the evaporator 4R3 installed in the right store 4R matches the operation rate of the condenser 4L3 installed in the left store 4L. Since the opening degree of 53 is corrected, the refrigeration capacity of the right case 4R and the heating capacity of the left case 4L are balanced, the operation rate of the compressor 51 can be reduced, and the power consumption can be suppressed.

(Embodiment 2)
The vending machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention is not different except for the temperature control system of the vending machine according to the first embodiment. Therefore, the temperature control system of the vending machine will be described and the common configuration will be described. Are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a temperature control system of the vending machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 7, the electronic expansion valve 53, the electromagnetic open / close valves 54, 55, 56, the inverter 57, and the blower fan are connected to the control box 106. The control box 106 has an electronic expansion valve 53 and an electromagnetic on-off valve 54 in accordance with a program and initial data stored in advance in the memory 161 when the temperature inside the heating box temperature sensor 4L2 and the cooling box temperature sensor 4R2 is given higher temperature. , 55, 56, inverter 57, and the drive of the blower fan are controlled in an integrated manner to maintain the product sold by the vending machine at a desired temperature state. An internal operation on / off time measurement unit 163, an operation rate calculation unit 164, and an on / off point temperature correction unit 165 are provided.

  The internal operation on / off determination unit 162 determines whether the internal operation is turned on or the internal operation is turned off according to the on / off set temperature data stored in the memory 161. Specifically, the temperature in the product storage 4L, 4R measured through the temperature sensor 4L2 in the heating chamber and the temperature sensor 4R2 in the cooling chamber is compared with the on / off set temperature, and based on the comparison result, Decide whether to turn on internal operation or turn off internal operation. For example, when the internal temperature of the left warehouse 4L is equal to or lower than the on-set temperature, the internal operation (internal heating) is determined to be on, and when the internal temperature is equal to or higher than the off-set temperature, the internal operation (internal heating) is turned off. And decide. On the other hand, when the internal temperature of the right warehouse 4R is equal to or higher than the on-set temperature, the internal operation (internal cooling) is determined to be on, and when the internal temperature is equal to or lower than the off-set temperature, the internal operation (internal cooling) is determined to be off. To do.

  If the internal operation on / off determination unit 162 determines that the internal operation (internal cooling) of the right storage 4R is on, the evaporator until the internal operation (internal cooling) is determined to be off. The compressor 51 is operated so as to supply the refrigerant to 4R3, and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 is opened to cool the internal air of the right compartment 4R. On the other hand, when the in-compartment operation on / off determination unit 162 determines that the in-compartment operation is off, the compressor is configured to stop the supply of the refrigerant to the evaporator 4R3 until the in-compartment operation is determined to be on. The operation of 51 is stopped and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 is closed to stop the cooling of the internal air of the right compartment 4R.

  For example, when the internal temperature of the right warehouse 4R is equal to or higher than the set temperature, the drive of the compressor 51 and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 is controlled so as to supply the refrigerant to the evaporator 4R3 until the temperature becomes equal to or lower than the off-set temperature. The storage 4R is cooled. By stopping the supply of the refrigerant, the internal temperature rises, and when the off set temperature is exceeded and the on set temperature is reached, the compressor 51 and the electromagnetic on-off valve 54 are driven so that the refrigerant is again supplied to the evaporator 4R3. To control.

  As a result of the temperature control by the internal operation on / off determining unit 162, the internal temperature of the right warehouse 4R is maintained between the on-set temperature and the off-set temperature. It can be cooled to around 5 ° C.

  On the other hand, when the internal operation on / off determination unit 162 determines that the internal operation (internal heating) of the left storage 4L is on, and further, when the refrigerant is supplied to the evaporator 4R3, Until the internal operation (internal heating) is determined to be off, the internal air of the left compartment 4L is heated by opening the electromagnetic on-off valve 55 so as to supply the refrigerant to the condenser 4L3. On the other hand, even when the internal operation on / off determination unit 162 determines that the internal operation (internal heating) of the left storage 4L is on, if the refrigerant is not supplied to the evaporator 4R3, The internal air of the left chamber 4L is heated by energizing the heater 4L4 until the internal operation (internal heating) is determined to be off.

  On the other hand, when the internal operation on / off determination unit 162 determines that the internal operation is off, the electromagnetic switching is performed so that the supply of the refrigerant to the condenser 4L3 is stopped until the internal operation is determined to be on. While closing the valve 55 and stopping energization of the heater 4L4, heating of the internal air of the left warehouse 4L is stopped.

  As a result of the temperature control by the internal operation on / off determination unit 162, the internal temperature of the left compartment 4L is maintained between the on-set temperature and the off-set temperature. It can be warmed to around 55 ° C.

  The in-compartment operation on / off time measuring unit 163 measures the in-compartment operation on-time and the in-compartment operation off time, and measures each of the product storage units 4L and 4R. The internal operation on time is a time during which the electromagnetic on / off valves 54 and 55 are on (opened), and the time during which the electromagnetic on / off valves 54 and 55 are actually on may be measured by the timer 167. Alternatively, the timer 167 may measure the time from when the above-described internal operation on / off determination unit 162 determines that the internal operation is on to when it is determined to be off. Similarly, the internal operation off time is the time when the electromagnetic on / off valves 54 and 55 are off (closed), and the time at which the electromagnetic on / off valves 54 and 55 are actually off is measured by the timer 167. Alternatively, the timer 167 may measure the time from when the above-described internal operation on / off determination unit 62 determines that the internal operation is off to when it is determined to be on.

  The operation rate calculation unit 164 calculates the operation rate of the electromagnetic on-off valves 54 and 55 based on the internal operation on / off time measured by the internal operation on / off time measuring unit 163 and the internal operation off time. It calculates for every goods storage 4L and 4R. The operation rate is a ratio of the in-compartment on-time to the total time, and the total time is obtained by adding the in-compartment operation off time to the in-compartment operation on-time.

  The on-point / off-point temperature correction unit 165 corrects the on-point temperature and the off-point temperature so that the temperature range is expanded when the operation rate obtained by the operation rate calculation unit 164 is less than the preset operation rate. To do. That is, the operation rate depends on the temperature environment of the installed vending machine and the product storage state of the product storage. For example, when the number of products stored in the product storage decreases, the operation rate decreases. In such a case, if the on-point temperature of the product storage is maintained as it is, the product is overcooled and overheated, which is contrary to energy saving. For this reason, the ON / OFF point temperature correction unit 165 increases the ON point temperature by a predetermined temperature when the operation rate does not satisfy the preset operation rate in the right compartment 4R (cooling compartment), and the left compartment 4L. When the operation rate is less than the preset operation rate in the (heating chamber), the on-point temperature is lowered by a predetermined temperature.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing on / off point correction processing executed by the control box in a state where the vending machine is operating. The processing contents of the control box will be described in detail below with reference to this flowchart.

  First, the control box 106 sets an on-point temperature and an off-point temperature for each product storage, based on the setting data stored in the memory 161 (step S101). Next, the in-compartment operation on / off determination unit 162 measures the in-compartment temperature for each of the product storage units 4L and 4R and determines whether to turn on the in-compartment operation or to turn off the in-compartment operation. Then, based on the determination not to be determined, the compressor 51 is operated or stopped, and the electromagnetic on / off valves 54, 55, and 56 are controlled to open / close (step S102).

  Next, the operation rate calculation part 164 calculates the operation rate of the goods storage 4L, 4R (electromagnetic on-off valves 54, 55) (step S103). Then, a deviation from a predetermined operation rate set in advance is calculated for each of the product storage boxes 4L and 4R (step S104). Thereafter, the on-point temperature and the off-point temperature are corrected for each of the calculated deviations or the product storages 4L and 4R (step S105).

  Then, when the control box 106 repeatedly performs the on / off point correction processing, the operating rate of the electromagnetic on / off valve 55 of the left chamber 4L approaches the operating rate of the electromagnetic on / off valve 54 of the right chamber 4R, and the deviation is reduced. To do.

  Since the vending machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention described above corrects the on-point temperature and the off-point temperature to expand the temperature range when the operation rate is less than the preset operation rate, The product is not overcooled and overheated, and power consumption can be suppressed.

(Embodiment 3)
The vending machine according to the third embodiment of the present invention differs from the vending machine according to the first embodiment in that it constitutes a refrigerator that cools the products stored in the left warehouse 4L and the right warehouse 4R. For this reason, about the structure which is common in the vending machine which is Embodiment 1, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted, and a different structure is explained in full detail.

  FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing the internal configuration of the vending machine according to the third embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 9, a product storage rack (not shown) is disposed in a region above the product shooter (not shown) in each of the left warehouse 4L and the right warehouse 4R. Further, the inside temperature sensors 14L2 and 14R2 and the evaporators 14L3 and 14R3 are arranged in the lower regions.

  The internal temperature sensors 14L2 and 14R2 detect temperatures inside the product storage units 4L and 4R, and are individually prepared in the respective product storage units (the left store 4L and the right store 4R).

  The evaporators 14 </ b> L <b> 3 and 14 </ b> R <b> 3 are components of a cooling unit that constitutes a refrigeration cycle together with the compressor 251 and the condenser 252 disposed in the machine room 5. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the individual evaporators 14L3 and 14R3 are arranged in the two commodity storages 4L and 4R, respectively, and these evaporators 14L3 and 14R3 are connected in parallel to each other. .

  Electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4 and electromagnetic on-off valves 14L5 and 14R5 are provided in individual pipes for supplying refrigerant to the respective evaporators 14L3 and 14R3. The electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4 adjust the flow rate of the refrigerant passing therethrough by changing the opening degree according to the opening degree command when the opening degree command is given. The electromagnetic on-off valves 14L5 and 14R5 are used to select the evaporators 14L3 and 14R3 that supply the refrigerant.

  The compressor 251 and the condenser 252 are arranged one by one in the machine room 5 and are shared by the two evaporators 14L3 and 14R3.

  Although not clearly shown in the figure, each of the product storage boxes 14L and 14R includes an internal fan that blows air to the evaporators 14L3 and 14R3. An external fan that blows air is provided.

  FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the temperature control system of the vending machine described above. When the temperature information is given from the internal temperature sensors 14L2 and 14R2, the control box 206 is supplied with the compressor 251, the electromagnetic on-off valves 14L5 and 14R5, and the electronic expansion valve 14L4 according to the program and initial data stored in the memory 261 in advance. , 14R4, which controls the driving of the blower fan in an integrated manner to maintain the product sold by the vending machine at a desired temperature state, the internal cooling on / off determining unit 262, the internal cooling on / off A time measurement unit 263, an operation rate calculation unit 264, and an expansion valve opening degree correction unit 266 are provided.

  The internal cooling on / off determination unit 262 determines whether to turn on internal cooling or to turn off internal cooling according to the on / off set temperature data stored in the memory 261. Specifically, whether the internal temperature of the product storage 4L, 4R measured through the internal temperature sensors 14L2, 14R2 and the on / off set temperature are compared, and based on the comparison result, whether the internal cooling is turned on. Decide whether to turn off internal cooling. For example, the internal cooling is determined to be on when the internal temperature of the product storage 4L, 4R is equal to or higher than the on-set temperature, and the internal cooling is determined to be off when the internal temperature is equal to or lower than the off-set temperature. When the internal cooling on / off determining unit determines that the internal cooling of at least one of the commodity storages 4L and 4R is on, the internal cooling to the evaporators 14L3 and 14R3 is determined until the internal cooling is determined to be off. The compressor 251 is operated so as to supply the refrigerant, and the electromagnetic on-off valves 14L5 and 14R5 are opened to cool the internal air of the product storage boxes 14L and 14R. On the other hand, when the internal cooling on / off determination unit 262 determines that the internal cooling of all the product storage containers 4L and 4R is off, the internal cooling to the evaporators 14L3 and 14R3 is determined until the internal cooling is determined to be on. The operation of the compressor 251 is stopped and the electromagnetic on-off valves 14L5 and 14R5 are closed so as to stop the supply of the refrigerant, thereby stopping the cooling of the internal air of the left compartment 4L and the right compartment 4R.

  The inside cooling on / off time measuring unit 263 measures the inside cooling on time and the inside cooling off time, and measures each of the commodity storages 4L and 4R. The inside cooling on time is a time during which the electromagnetic on / off valves 14L5, 14R5 are on (opened), and the time during which the electromagnetic on / off valves 14L5, 14R5 are actually on may be measured by the timer 267. The time from when the above-described internal cooling on / off determination unit 262 determines that the internal cooling is turned on to when it is determined to be off may be measured by the timer 267. Similarly, the internal cooling off time is the time that the electromagnetic on / off valves 14L5 and 14R5 are off (closed), and the time that the electromagnetic on / off valves 14L5 and 14R5 are actually off is measured by the timer 267. Alternatively, the timer 267 may measure the time from when the above-described internal cooling on / off determination unit 262 determines that the internal cooling is off to when it is determined to be on.

  The operating rate calculation unit 264 calculates the operating rate of the electromagnetic on-off valves 14L5 and 14R5 based on the internal cooling on / off time and the internal cooling off time measured by the internal cooling on / off time measuring unit 263. It calculates for every goods storage 4L and 4R. The operating rate is a ratio of the internal cooling on time to the total time, and the total time is obtained by adding the internal cooling off time to the internal cooling on time.

  The expansion valve opening correction unit 266 corrects the opening of the electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4. The expansion valve opening correction unit 266 corrects the opening / closing valve 14L5 of the left chamber 4L and the electromagnetic switching valve 14R5 of the right chamber 4R calculated by the operating rate calculation unit 264. The opening degree of the electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4 is controlled so as to coincide with the average value of the operation rate. The expansion valve opening degree correction unit 266 repeats the correction, so that the operating rate of the electromagnetic on-off valve 14L5 of the left chamber 4L approaches the operating rate of the electromagnetic on-off valve 14R5 of the right chamber 4R, and the deviation is reduced.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the opening correction process of the electronic expansion valve executed by the control box in a state where the vending machine is operating. The processing contents of the control box will be described in detail below with reference to this flowchart.

  First, the control box 206 sets the opening degree of the electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4 based on the setting data stored in the memory 261 (step S201). Next, the internal cooling on / off determination unit 262 measures the internal temperature for each of the product storages 4L and 4R, and determines whether internal cooling is turned on or internal cooling is turned off. Then, based on the determined content, the compressor 251 is operated or stopped, and the electromagnetic on / off valves 14L5 and 14R5 are controlled to open / close (step S202).

  Next, the operation rate calculation part 264 calculates the operation rate of the product storages 4L and 4R (electromagnetic on-off valves 14L5 and 14R5) (step S203). Then, an average value of the operating rate of the left chamber 4L (electromagnetic switching valve 14L5) and the operating rate of the right chamber 4R (electromagnetic switching valve 14R5) is calculated (step S204).

  Next, the expansion valve opening degree correction unit 266 obtains and obtains the opening degrees of the electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4 by PID control based on the deviation between the average value of the operation rate and the operation rate of the product storages 4L and 4R. The electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4 are controlled with the opening degree (step S205).

  Then, when the control box 206 repeatedly performs the opening correction processing of the electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4, the operating rate of the electromagnetic on / off valve 14L5 of the left chamber 4L approaches the operating rate of the electromagnetic on / off valve 14R5 of the right chamber 4R. The deviation is reduced.

  The above-described vending machine according to the third embodiment of the present invention corrects the opening degree of the electronic expansion valves 14L4 and 14R4 so that the operation rate of the evaporator obtained for each product storage matches, so that the compressor The operation rate of 251 can be reduced and power consumption can be suppressed.

1 Main body cabinet 2 Outer door 4 Product storage room 4L Product storage (left storage)
4L1 Commodity shooter 4L2 Heater internal temperature sensor 4L3 Condenser 4L4 Heater 4R Commodity storage (right storage)
4R1 Commodity shooter 4R2 Cooling chamber temperature sensor 4R3 Evaporator 41 Commodity storage rack 5 Machine room 51 Compressor 52 Condenser 53 Electronic expansion valve 54, 55, 56 Electromagnetic on-off valve 57 Inverter 6 Control box 61 Memory 62 Internal operation ON / OFF determination unit 63 Internal operation ON / OFF time measurement unit 64 Operation rate calculation unit 65 Compressor rotation speed correction unit 66 Expansion valve opening correction unit 67 Timer 106 Control box 161 Memory 162 Internal operation ON / OFF determination unit 163 Storage Internal operation on / off time measurement unit 164 Operation rate calculation unit 165 On point / off point temperature correction unit 167 Timer 14L, 14R Product storage 14L2, 14R2 Internal temperature sensor 14L3, 14R3 Evaporator 14L4, 14R4 Electronic expansion valve 14L5 14R5 electromagnetic on-off valve 251 compressor 52 condenser 206 control box 261 memory 262-compartment cooling on / off determination unit 263 chamber cooling on / off time measuring section 264 operation rate calculating unit 266 expansion valve opening degree correction section 267 timer

Claims (12)

Condensers that supply the refrigerant condensed to the evaporator installed in the refrigerator are installed in the heating chamber and the machine room, and in addition to the pipeline that supplies the refrigerant condensed to the evaporator, according to the given opening command A condenser installed in the heating chamber is provided with a variable flow rate control valve that adjusts the flow rate of the refrigerant passing by changing the opening degree, so that the internal temperature of the cooling chamber becomes a temperature in a preset temperature range Or in a vending machine that supplies refrigerant to the evaporator via the variable flow control valve from a condenser installed in a machine room,
In-house operation on / off time measuring means for measuring the operation time and stop time of the evaporator, and measuring the operation time and stop time of the condenser installed in the heating chamber,
An operation rate calculating means for obtaining an operation rate of the evaporator and an operation rate of the condenser from the operation time and the stop time of the evaporator, the operation time and the stop time of the condenser measured by the internal operation on / off time measuring means; ,
Valve opening correction means for correcting the opening of the variable flow rate control valve so that the operation rate of the evaporator and the operation rate of the condenser determined by the operation rate calculating means are the same. To vending machines.   The valve opening correction means sets a target target operating rate, and corrects the opening of the flow control valve so that a deviation between the target operating rate and the measured operating rate of the evaporator is minimized. The vending machine according to claim 1.   The vending machine according to claim 2, wherein the target operating rate is an average value of the operating rate of the evaporator and the operating rate of the condenser obtained by the operating rate calculating means.   The vending machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the valve opening correction means obtains the opening of the flow control valve by PID control.   From the deviation between the target operating rate and the measured operating rate of the evaporator, the target evaporation temperature of the evaporator is set, and the opening degree of the flow control valve is corrected so that the evaporation temperature of the evaporator becomes the target evaporation temperature. The vending machine according to claim 2. A condenser that supplies refrigerant condensed to an evaporator installed in a refrigerator is installed in a heating chamber and a machine room, and a temperature between the on-point temperature and the off-point temperature set in advance in the chamber of the cooling chamber. In a vending machine that supplies refrigerant to the evaporator from a condenser installed in a heating chamber or a condenser installed in a machine room,
In-chamber operation on / off time measuring means for measuring the operation time and stop time of the evaporator;
An operation rate calculating means for obtaining an operation rate of the evaporator from the operation time and the stop time of the evaporator measured by the internal operation on / off time measuring means;
On-point temperature / off-point temperature correction means for correcting the on-point temperature and the off-point temperature so that the temperature range is expanded when the operation rate obtained by the operation rate calculation means is less than a preset operation ratio. Vending machine characterized by comprising   The vending machine according to claim 6, wherein the on-point temperature / off-point temperature correcting means corrects the on-point temperature of the refrigerator higher than a preset on-point temperature.   The on-point temperature / off-point temperature correction means corrects the on-point temperature and the off-point temperature by PID control based on a deviation between the set operation rate and the operation rate obtained by the operation rate calculation means. The vending machine according to claim 6 or 7. A variable flow rate control valve that adjusts the flow rate of refrigerant passing by changing the opening degree according to a given opening degree command is provided in a pipeline that supplies the refrigerant to an evaporator installed for each product storage, In the vending machine that supplies refrigerant to the evaporator so that the temperature inside the product storage is a temperature in a preset temperature range,
In-chamber cooling on / off time measuring means for measuring the operation time and stop time of the evaporator for each product storage,
An operation rate calculating means for obtaining an operation rate of the evaporator for each product storage from the operation time and the stop time of the evaporator in which the internal cooling on / off time is measured;
A vending machine comprising: valve opening correction means for correcting the opening of the variable flow valve so that the operation rate of the evaporator obtained for each of the commodity storages matches.   The valve opening correction means sets a target target operating rate, and corrects the opening of the flow control valve so that a deviation between the target operating rate and the measured operating rate of the evaporator is minimized. The vending machine according to claim 9.   The vending machine according to claim 10, wherein the target operating rate is an average value of operating rates of evaporators for each product storage obtained by the operating rate calculating means.   The vending machine according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the valve opening correction means obtains the opening of the flow control valve by PID control.

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