JP2012127584A - Storage - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a storage capable of discharging a vaporized refrigerant to the outside of a storage chamber without deteriorating airtightness and heat insulation in the storage chamber.SOLUTION: An ice-making chamber 20 is provided with an ice-making thermistor 30 detecting the leakage of the vaporized refrigerant from a cooler 28 into an ice storage chamber 12. A machine chamber 14 is defined below the ice storage chamber 12, and the machine chamber 14 is provided with a drain trap 50. An exhaust pipe 62 opened in the machine chamber 14 at its lower end is disposed at the lowermost section of a trap section 52 of the drain trap 50. The exhaust pipe 62 is provided with an opening/closing valve 64, a control device 29 opens the opening/closing valve 64 to discharge drainage in the trap section 52 to the machine chamber 14 when the ice-making thermistor 30 detects the leakage of the vaporized refrigerant, and the ice storage chamber 12 and the machine chamber 14 are made to communicate with each other via the exhaust pipe 62.

Description

  The present invention relates to a storage provided with a trap unit for storing water in a storage chamber.

  A spray type automatic ice making machine (for example, refer to Patent Document 1) that continuously produces ice cubes (ice blocks) by supplying ice making water from below to a large number of ice making chambers that open downwards. It is preferably used in other facilities and other kitchens. Describing the schematic configuration of this automatic ice maker, the ice making chamber horizontally arranged in the ice storage of the ice making machine has a large number of ice making chambers opening downward, and a top surface of the ice making chamber. The evaporator in which the vaporized refrigerant can flow is closely arranged in a meandering manner. A water tray is pivotally supported via a support shaft directly below the ice making chamber, and an ice making water tank for storing a predetermined amount of ice making water is integrally provided at the bottom of the water tray. Yes. Below the ice making water tank, a drain tray for receiving surplus water in the ice making water tank (hereinafter referred to as ice making residual water) is disposed, and a discharge pipe for discharging the ice making residual water received by the drain tray is provided on the drain tray. It extends downward from the bottom. In addition, a drain opening that opens in the vertical direction is formed at the bottom of the ice storage, and the lower end of the discharge pipe faces the drain.

  A machine room in which a refrigeration apparatus including a compressor, a condenser, a cooling fan, a capillary tube, and the like is disposed is defined below the ice storage. The refrigeration apparatus is configured to supply a low-temperature refrigerant (vaporized refrigerant) to the evaporator during the ice making operation and to circulate and supply a high-temperature hot gas (vaporized refrigerant) during the deicing operation. The machine room is provided with a drain trap connected to the drain port, and a drain pipe led out from the drain trap extends through the wall of the machine room to the outside.

  In the automatic ice maker, in the ice making operation, with the water tray held in a closed position where the ice making chamber is closed from below, the refrigerant is circulated and supplied from the refrigeration apparatus to the evaporator to force the ice making chamber. While cooling, the ice making water in the ice making water tank is sprayed and supplied to the ice making chamber through the water tray, thereby generating ice cubes in the small chamber. When the ice making completion detecting means detects the formation of ice cubes, the ice making operation is shifted to the deicing operation, hot gas is circulated and supplied from the refrigeration apparatus to the evaporator, the ice making chamber is heated, and the open / close mechanism is used. The ice tray is tilted to an open position obliquely downward about the support shaft to open the ice making chamber. Further, the ice making water remaining in the ice making water tank when the ice making operation is completed is discharged from the ice making water tank when the ice making water tank is tilted together with the water plate by the deicing operation. It is accepted. The ice making residual water received by the drain pan is stored in a drain trap through the drain port. In addition, the surplus water that exceeds the specified storage amount in the drain trap is discharged to the outside of the machine room via the discharge pipe.

  During deicing operation, the ice supply section of the ice making chamber and the ice cube melts due to the circulation of hot gas, and the ice cube separates from the ice making chamber due to its own weight and slides down on the water tray at the open position to enter the ice storage. It is stored in. When the deicing completion detecting means detects the removal of the ice cube from the ice making chamber, the deicing operation is shifted to the ice making operation, and the water tray is returned to the closed position again. In addition, the melted water of ice cubes stored in the ice storage is stored in the drain trap from the drain outlet along the bottom of the ice storage.

  By the way, in recent years, so-called non-fluorocarbon refrigerants such as isobutane and propane have been widely adopted as vaporized refrigerants from the viewpoint of protecting the ozone layer. However, since these non-fluorocarbon refrigerants have a large specific gravity with respect to air and are flammable, if the vaporized refrigerant leaks from the evaporator into the ice storage, it stays at a high concentration at the bottom of the ice storage. Risk of ignition. In order to cope with this problem, an automatic ice making machine has been proposed in which an exhaust pipe for discharging the vaporized refrigerant leaked in the ice storage to the outside is provided. For example, in Patent Document 2, an exhaust pipe led out from a storage chamber is extended to the outside through a wall portion of a heat insulating box, and the vaporized refrigerant in the storage chamber is discharged to the outside through the exhaust pipe. A refrigerator is disclosed.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-324055 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-281248

  However, in the configuration in which the exhaust pipe is extended outside the wall through the wall portion of the heat insulation box as in the cited document 2, the airtightness and heat insulation in the storage chamber are lowered, and the cooling capacity in the storage chamber is reduced. There is a problem. In addition, since the temperature in the storage chamber is likely to rise, there is a problem that the running cost for maintaining the storage chamber at a low temperature becomes high. Further, the exhaust pipe led out from the storage room is cooled by the cold air in the storage room and becomes cooler than the external air, and condensation is generated on the surface of the communication pipe extending outside the storage room, so that the place where the refrigerator is installed gets wet. There is a fear.

  Therefore, the present invention has been proposed to solve this problem in view of the above-described problems inherent in the prior art described above, and can be stored without impairing the airtightness and heat insulation in the storage chamber. It aims at providing the storage which can exhaust the vaporization refrigerant | coolant which leaked indoors.

In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the intended purpose suitably, the storage of the invention according to claim 1 of the present application is:
A storage room internally defined in an insulated box;
A cooler that is disposed in the storage chamber and that is configured to constitute a cooling circuit and is supplied with vaporized refrigerant having a specific gravity greater than that of air;
A detection sensor for detecting the vaporized refrigerant leaking from the cooler into the storage chamber;
A machine room defined below across the bottom of the storage room and provided with a compressor and a condenser constituting a cooling circuit;
A trap portion that is disposed in the machine room, communicates with the storage chamber via a drain port provided at the bottom of the storage chamber, and stores a predetermined amount of unnecessary water generated in the storage chamber;
Derived from the trap part, in a storage room with a drain pipe for discharging water beyond the amount of storage in the trap part to the outside of the machine room,
An exhaust pipe connected to a lower part than the drain pipe in the trap part and extending downward, and having a lower end opened in a machine room,
An on-off valve provided in the exhaust pipe;
A control device for opening and closing the on-off valve,
When the detection sensor detects leakage of vaporized refrigerant, the control device discharges water stored in the trap portion to a machine room, and the storage room and the machine room communicate with each other via the exhaust pipe. The gist is that the on-off valve is set to open.
According to the invention of claim 1, since the exhaust pipe is provided in the trap portion, the airtightness and heat insulation in the storage chamber are not impaired, and the cooling capacity of the storage chamber can be prevented from being lowered. Therefore, the running cost for maintaining the storage chamber at a low temperature can be suppressed. In addition, since the exhaust pipe is not routed outside the storage, even if condensation occurs around the exhaust pipe, the surroundings of the installation location of the storage are not wetted.

The storage according to claim 2 is provided with temperature detection means for detecting the outside air temperature, and an evaporating dish for receiving the water discharged through the exhaust pipe is disposed in the machine room. The gist is that the on-off valve is set to open when the detected temperature exceeds a preset reference temperature.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the water stored in the trap portion is supplied to the evaporating dish, and the water is evaporated so that the machine room can be cooled. Therefore, the refrigerant supplied from the compressor to the condenser is cooled in the machine room, and the condensation capacity of the condenser can be increased. Moreover, since water is supplied to the evaporating dish using the exhaust pipe, it is not necessary to separately provide a supply pipe for supplying water to the evaporating dish, and the number of parts can be suppressed. In addition, since water is supplied to the evaporating dish only when the temperature detected by the temperature detecting means exceeds the reference temperature, water is not supplied to the evaporating dish at a low temperature, and the condenser has a high condensing capacity. It won't be too much.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the exhaust pipe is connected to the lowest part of the trap portion.
According to the invention of claim 3, it is possible to prevent the leaked vaporized refrigerant from remaining in the trap portion.

In the storage according to claim 4, a cooling fan that air-cools the condenser is disposed in the machine room, and the control device is set to drive the cooling fan when the on-off valve is opened. The gist.
According to the invention of claim 4, the vaporized refrigerant can be diffused efficiently by driving the cooling fan.

  According to the storage according to the present invention, the vaporized refrigerant can be discharged to the outside of the storage chamber without lowering the airtightness and heat insulation in the storage chamber.

It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the automatic ice making machine which concerns on an Example, Comprising: The state which closed the on-off valve is shown. It is explanatory drawing which shows the refrigeration circuit which concerns on an Example. It is a block diagram which shows a control apparatus in an Example. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the automatic ice making machine which concerns on an Example, Comprising: The state which opened the on-off valve is shown. It is a flowchart figure which shows the operation method at the time of the gas leak generation | occurrence | production of the automatic ice making machine which concerns on an Example. It is a flowchart figure which shows the operation method in the cooling mode of the automatic ice making machine which concerns on an Example. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the principal part of the automatic ice making machine which concerns on the modification 1, Comprising: The state which opened the on-off valve is shown. It is an expanded longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the drain trap which concerns on the modification 2, Comprising: The state which opened the on-off valve is shown.

  Next, a preferred embodiment of the storage according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, an Example demonstrates the case where it applies to an injection type automatic ice making machine as a storage. Further, in the following description, “upper”, “lower”, “left”, and “right” are designated with reference to the case where the automatic ice making machine is viewed in the state of FIG. 1 unless otherwise specified. To do.

  FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of an automatic ice maker 10 according to an embodiment. The automatic ice maker 10 includes an ice storage room (storage room) 12 and a machine room 14 which are defined in an up-and-down relationship, and ice storage. An ice making mechanism 16 disposed in the upper part of the chamber 12 and a refrigeration circuit (cooling circuit) 18 for cooling the ice making mechanism 16 are basically constructed. The ice storage chamber 12 is defined inside the heat insulating box 13 and is configured to store the ice cube R manufactured by the ice making mechanism 16 below the ice making mechanism 16. The ice making mechanism 16 includes an ice making chamber 20 having a plurality of ice making chambers 20a that open downward, a water tray 24 integrally having an ice making water tank 22, and a pump motor 26 disposed in the ice making water tank 22. It basically consists of On the upper surface of the ice making chamber 20, a cooler 28 constituting the refrigeration circuit 18 is closely arranged in a meandering manner. The ice making chamber 20 is provided with an ice making thermistor (detection sensor) 30 connected to a control device 29 for controlling the operation of the automatic ice making machine 10, and the ice making chamber 20 has reached the ice making completion temperature during the ice making operation. When the ice making thermistor 30 detects this, it is set to shift from the ice making operation to the deicing operation. Further, the ice making thermistor 30 has a function of detecting leakage of vaporized refrigerant from the cooler 28, as will be described later. One end of the water tray 24 is pivotally supported via a support shaft (not shown), and the other end is connected to an opening / closing mechanism 32, and an actuator 34 in the opening / closing mechanism 32 is provided. With the forward / reverse rotation of the water tray 24, the water dish 24 tilts in the forward / reverse direction with the support shaft as a fulcrum, to a horizontal closed position where the ice making chamber 20a is closed from below and an open position where the ice making chamber 20a is opened. It is configured to be positioned.

  A portion of the water tray 24 facing the ice making chamber 20 has a fountain hole for supplying ice making water to each of the ice making chambers 20a, and uniced water is adjoined to the fountain hole and the ice making water tank. A number of return holes (both not shown) for recovery are formed in 22. By operating the pump motor 26, the ice making water in the ice making water tank 22 is supplied to the ice making chambers 20a through the numerous fountain holes. Note that uniced water is collected in the ice making water tank 22 through the return hole and supplied to the recirculation. Below the ice making water tank 22, a drain tray 36 for collecting ice making residual water (unnecessary water generated in the storage chamber) discharged from the tank 22 tilted during the deicing operation is disposed. The drain tray 36 is formed with a drain hole 36 a that opens in the vertical direction, and a discharge pipe 38 that communicates with the drain hole 36 a extends downward from the drain tray 36. In addition, a drainage port 40 that opens in the vertical direction is opened at the bottom of the ice storage chamber 12, and the bottom of the ice storage chamber 12 is gently inclined downward toward the drainage port 40. Melted water of the ice cube R stored therein (unnecessary water generated in the storage chamber) flows down toward the drain port 40. The open end of the discharge pipe 38 faces the drain port 40, and the ice making residual water received by the drain tray 36 is discharged to the drain port 40 through the discharge pipe 38.

  The machine room 14 is provided below the ice storage room 12 with the bottom of the ice storage room 12 interposed therebetween, and accommodates and arranges a compressor CM and a condenser CD that constitute the refrigeration circuit 18. A ventilation port 42 for taking in external air is formed in the left wall portion of FIG. 1 that defines the machine room 14, and the condenser CD is disposed so as to face the ventilation port 42. In addition, a cooling fan FM is disposed in the machine room 14 in the vicinity of the condenser CD, and the cooling fan FM is driven so that external air is passed through the ventilation hole 42 in the machine room 14. And the condenser CD is air-cooled. The air exchanged with the condenser CD and the compressor CM is exhausted to the outside through an exhaust port (not shown) provided in the wall portion defining the machine room 14. The refrigeration circuit 18 of the automatic ice making machine 10 according to the embodiment is configured by connecting a compressor CM, a condenser CD, an expansion valve EV, a cooler 28, and an accumulator 44 with a refrigerant pipe 46, as shown in FIG. . In the refrigeration circuit 18, the vaporized refrigerant compressed by the compressor CM is condensed and liquefied by the condenser CD, and then the refrigerant decompressed by the expansion valve EV flows into the cooler 28 where it is expanded and evaporated. The vaporized refrigerant flowing through the cooler 28 is gas-liquid separated via the accumulator 44, and the vaporized refrigerant returns to the compressor CM. Further, the refrigeration circuit 18 includes a bypass circuit that directly supplies hot gas from the compressor CM to the cooler 28 without passing through the condenser CD and the expansion valve EV during the deicing operation. This bypass circuit includes a bypass pipe 48 connecting the discharge side of the compressor CM and the suction side of the cooler 28, and a hot gas valve HV disposed in the middle of the bypass pipe 48 and controlled to be opened and closed by the control device 29. It consists of.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a drain trap 50 capable of storing a predetermined amount of the ice making residual water and melted water (hereinafter referred to as discharged water) is provided in the upper part of the machine room 14. The drain trap 50 includes a trap portion 52 attached to the bottom of the ice storage chamber 12 in communication with the drain port 40, and extends horizontally from the side of the trap portion 52 to the outside of the machine chamber 14. It is basically composed of a drain pipe 54 to be taken out. A communication hole 56 is formed in a side portion of the trap part 52, and the trap part 52 and the drain pipe 54 are connected to each other through the communication hole 56. The trap portion 52 is configured to be able to store discharged water up to a water level corresponding to the lower edge portion of the communication hole 56 (hereinafter referred to as an upper limit water level), and the discharged water exceeding the upper limit water level passes through the drain pipe 54. Thus, it is discharged outside the machine room 14. A partition wall 58 that bisects the storage space of the trap portion 52 is provided inside the trap portion 52, and the lower end of the partition wall 58 extends downward from the lower edge portion of the communication hole 56. A lower exhaust port 60 opened in the vertical direction is formed at the bottom of the trap portion 52, and an exhaust pipe 62 communicating with the lower exhaust port 60 extends downward. A lower end portion of the exhaust pipe 62 opens downward in the machine room 14. An open / close valve 64 that opens and closes the exhaust pipe 62 is disposed in the middle of the exhaust pipe 62. The on / off valve 64 is controlled to be opened and closed by the control device 29.

  A box-shaped evaporating dish 66 opened upward is disposed at the bottom of the machine chamber 14, and the lower end of the exhaust pipe 62 faces above the evaporating dish 66. When the on-off valve 64 is opened, the discharged water stored in the trap portion 52 is supplied to the evaporating dish 66 through the exhaust pipe 62 and is stored in the evaporating dish 66. A refrigerant pipe 46 (hereinafter referred to as a discharge pipe) on the discharge side of the compressor CM is in contact with the outer bottom surface of the evaporating dish 66, and high-temperature vaporized refrigerant flowing through the discharge pipe 46 a is stored in the evaporating dish 66. It is configured to cool by exchanging heat with the discharged water. A water level sensor 68 for detecting the level of the discharged water stored in the evaporating dish 66 is provided on the inner wall portion of the evaporating dish 66. When the water level in the evaporating dish 66 reaches the detection position of the water level sensor 68, The water level sensor 68 sends a detection signal to the control device 29 (the water level sensor 68 is turned on).

  In the machine room 14, an electrical box 70 is disposed. Inside the electrical box 70, the control device 29 and a temperature sensor (temperature detection means) 72 for detecting the outside air temperature are disposed. As shown in FIG. 3, the control device 29 according to the embodiment is electrically connected to the ice making thermistor 30, the water level sensor 68, and the temperature sensor 72, and based on these detection signals, the actuator 34, the open / close The driving of the valve 64, the cooling fan FM, the compressor CM, and the hot gas valve HV is controlled. In addition, the control device 29 is provided with a timer 74 that starts timing simultaneously with the start of the ice making operation. When the ice making thermistor 30 does not detect the ice making completion temperature in the ice making operation even when the timer 74 measures a certain time, the control device 29 leaks the vaporized refrigerant from the cooler 28 (hereinafter referred to as gas). It is judged that it was leaked. In this case, as shown in FIG. 4, the control device 29 controls the opening and closing of the on-off valve 64 to discharge the discharged water in the trap portion 52 and connect the ice storage chamber 12 and the machine chamber 14 via the exhaust pipe 62. Set to communicate. The control device 29 is set to shift to the cooling mode when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 72 exceeds a predetermined reference temperature in the ice making operation or the deicing operation. In this cooling mode, the control device 29 is set to open the on-off valve 64 at the start of the deicing operation and supply the drained water in the trap portion 52 to the evaporating dish 66. When the water level sensor 68 is turned on or the deicing operation is finished, the control device 29 is set to close the on-off valve 64 and stop the supply of discharged water to the evaporating dish 66. The

(Operation of Example)
Next, the operation of the automatic ice maker 10 of the embodiment will be described below. First, the operation method of the automatic ice making machine 10 at the normal time when no gas leak occurs will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, when the ice making operation is started, the timer 74 of the control device 29 is activated (step S1), and the vaporized refrigerant is circulated and supplied to the cooler 28. In addition, ice making water stored in the ice making water tank 22 is jetted and supplied to each ice making small chamber 20 a of the ice making chamber 20. The ice making water supplied to the ice making chamber 20a begins to freeze gradually by exchanging heat with the vaporized refrigerant flowing through the cooler 28. Further, unfrozen water that has not been frozen in the ice making chamber 20 a is collected into the ice making water tank 22 through the return hole of the water tray 24.

  When ice ice R of a predetermined size is formed in the ice making chamber 20a and the ice making thermistor 30 detects the ice making completion temperature before the timer 74 counts the predetermined time (Yes in step S2), the ice making operation is finished. (Step S3), the process proceeds to the deicing operation (Step S4). That is, the control device 29 opens the hot gas valve HV, circulates and supplies hot gas to the cooler 28, and operates the actuator 34 of the opening / closing mechanism 32 to tilt the water tray 24 to the open position. . At this time, the ice making residual water is discharged from the ice making water tank 22, received by the evaporating dish 66, and stored in the trap portion 52 of the drain trap 50 through the discharge pipe 38. When the freezing of the ice making chamber 20a and the ice cube R is melted by the heat of the hot gas, the ice cube R falls by its own weight and is stored in the ice storage chamber 12. When all the ice cubes R fall from the ice making chamber 20, the deicing operation is finished and the ice making operation is started again. Note that the melted water of the ice cube R stored in the ice storage chamber 12 flows down toward the drain port 40 through the bottom of the ice storage chamber 12 and is stored in the trap unit 52 through the drain port 40.

  As described above, in the automatic ice making machine 10 according to the embodiment, the ice making residual water and the discharge water of the molten water are stored in the trap portion 52 of the drain trap 50, so that the ice storage chamber 12 and the outside are blocked by the discharge water, The cold air in the ice storage chamber 12 can be prevented from flowing out. Further, by providing the drain trap 50, it is possible to prevent external dust, off-flavors, pests and the like from entering the ice storage chamber 12, and to keep the ice storage chamber 12 clean. In addition, the discharged water that exceeds the upper limit water level of the trap section 52 is discharged outside the machine through the drain pipe 54.

  Next, an operation method of the automatic ice maker 10 when a gas leak occurs will be described. When the ice making operation is started in a state where a gas leak has occurred, the amount of vaporized refrigerant supplied to the cooler 28 decreases, and the cooling capacity for the ice making chamber 20 decreases. Therefore, even if the timer 74 elapses a predetermined time, the ice making thermistor 30 does not detect the ice making completion temperature (No in step S2, Yes in step S5), and the occurrence of gas leakage is detected (step S6). . When the gas leak is detected, the control device 29 opens the on-off valve 64 and discharges the discharged water in the trap portion 52 to the evaporating dish 66 through the exhaust pipe 62 (step S7). Here, since the specific gravity of the vaporized refrigerant leaking into the ice storage chamber 12 is larger than that of air, the vaporized refrigerant stays at the bottom of the ice storage chamber 12 (see FIG. 4). Therefore, the discharged water in the trap portion 52 is discharged, and the ice storage chamber 12 communicates with the machine chamber 14 via the exhaust pipe 62 as shown in FIG. 40, the trap part 52 and the exhaust pipe 62 flow down and are discharged to the machine room 14. When the gas leak is detected, the control device 29 operates the cooling fan FM (step S7), and takes in external air into the machine chamber 14 through the ventilation port 42. Therefore, the vaporized refrigerant discharged to the machine room 14 is diffused by the cooling fan FM and efficiently discharged from the exhaust port to the outside of the machine. When a gas leak is detected, the control device 29 stops the operation of the automatic ice making machine 10 except for the cooling fan FM.

  As described above, according to the automatic ice making machine 10 according to the embodiment, the exhaust pipe 62 led out from the trap portion 52 is extended into the machine room 14, so that the airtightness and heat insulation in the ice storage room 12 are impaired. It is possible to prevent the cooling capacity of the ice storage chamber 12 from being lowered. Further, since the exhaust pipe 62 extends through the machine room 14, dew that adheres to the exhaust pipe 62 does not drip onto the installation place of the automatic ice making machine 10 and the installation place does not get wet. In addition, in the embodiment, since the condensation dripped from the exhaust pipe 62 can be received by the evaporating dish 66, the inside of the machine room 14 does not get wet. In the embodiment, since the exhaust pipe 62 is connected to the lowest part of the trap part 52, the leaked vaporized refrigerant can be prevented from remaining in the trap part 52.

  Here, for example, when the temperature of the installation place of the automatic ice making machine 10 rises and the inside of the machine room 14 becomes high temperature, a very high temperature vaporized refrigerant is supplied from the compressor CM to the condenser CD. A situation will occur where the CD's condensing capacity declines. Moreover, when the temperature in the machine room 14 rises, there is a possibility that electric parts such as the control device 29 may be hindered or malfunctioned. Therefore, in the automatic ice making machine 10 according to the embodiment, when the temperature in the machine room 14 exceeds the reference temperature, the cooling mode is set.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 6, when the detected value of the temperature sensor 72 exceeds the reference temperature (Yes in step S8), the control device 29 shifts to the cooling mode (step S9). In the cooling mode, when the next deicing operation is started (Yes in step S10), the control device 29 opens the on-off valve 64 (step S11). Thereby, the discharged water in the trap part 52 is discharged through the exhaust pipe 62, and the discharged water is supplied to the evaporating dish 66. When the water level sensor 68 detects the discharged water (Yes in Step S12) or the deicing operation ends (No in Step S12, Yes in Step S13), the control device 29 closes the on-off valve 64 ( Step S14). By supplying the discharged water to the evaporating dish 66, the vaporized refrigerant flowing through the discharge pipe 46a is cooled by the discharged water, and the vaporized refrigerant whose temperature is lowered is supplied to the condenser CD. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the condensation capability of the condenser CD from being reduced by supplying the very high temperature vaporized refrigerant to the condenser CD, and to maintain the ice making capability of the automatic ice making machine 10. Moreover, the inside of the machine room 14 is cooled by evaporating the water discharged from the evaporating dish 66, and the electric components in the machine room 14 are not hindered. If the detected value of the temperature sensor 72 is lower than the reference temperature (No in step S8), the ice making operation or deicing operation is continued (step S15).

(Modification 1)
FIG. 7 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view showing a main part of the automatic ice making machine 80 according to the first modification. In the description of the modification example 1, the same members as those in the embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted. In the automatic ice making machine 80 according to the first modification, the exhaust pipe 82 and the evaporating dish 66 are provided between the ventilation port 42 of the machine room 14 and the condenser CD. Further, the lower end portion of the exhaust pipe 82 is configured to face the ventilation port 42 side (the suction side of the cooling fan FM) of the condenser CD. When a gas leak occurs in the ice storage chamber 12, the vaporized refrigerant is released to the suction side of the cooling fan FM via the exhaust pipe 82, so that the vaporized refrigerant can be diffused more efficiently. Become. Moreover, the leaked vaporized refrigerant can be forcibly sucked from the ice storage chamber 12 and the ice storage chamber 12 can be quickly exhausted.

(Modification 2)
In the embodiment and the first modification, the so-called jet type automatic ice making machines 10 and 80 have been described as an example of the storage, but a refrigerator or a showcase may be employed as the storage of the present invention. However, in the refrigerator and the showcase, no ice making residual water or melted water is generated in the ice storage chamber 12 as in an ice making machine, and only the water generated during the defrosting operation is generated as the discharged water in the storage chamber. Therefore, in the refrigerator and the showcase, the amount of water generated in the storage room is less than that in the ice making machine. As in the embodiment, in the configuration in which all discharged water in the trap unit 52 is discharged in the cooling mode, the water is discharged to the trap unit 52 next. It takes time until water is stored. In the meantime, since it cannot serve as a drain trap, cold air in the storage chamber may leak out of the warehouse, or pests or the like may enter the storage chamber.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, in the second modification, when the refrigerator 87 is employed as the storage, the space between the lower end portion of the partition wall 58 in the trap portion 92 of the drain trap 88 and the lower edge portion of the drain pipe 54 is used. An exhaust pipe 90 is connected to the site. That is, in Modification 2, as well as open the lower outlet 94 on the side of the trap portion 92, the lower end portion of the lower edge the partition wall 58 of the lower exhaust opening 94 (see L ₁ in FIG. 8) than the upper position and, and is configured to the upper edge of the lower outlet 94 is positioned from the lower bottom edge of the communicating hole 56 (see L ₂ in FIG. 8). As a result, even when the on-off valve 64 is opened, all the discharged water in the trap portion 92 is not discharged, and the level of the discharged water in the trap portion 92 is the lower edge portion of the lower exhaust port 94. When it is located at the position, the discharge of the discharged water stops. Thereby, a part of the discharged water in the trap part 92 can be supplied to the evaporating dish 66, and the communication with the outside air is blocked by the discharged water remaining in the trap part 92. That is, in the second modified example, the cooling mode can be shifted while the function of the drain trap 88 is maintained, so that it is preferable to prevent the cool air in the storage chamber 96 from leaking and the infestation of insects and the like into the storage chamber 96. be able to. Also in the second modification, when gas leakage occurs, the on-off valve 64 is opened, so that the vaporized refrigerant in the storage chamber 96 is removed from the machine through the trap portion 92, the lower exhaust port 94, and the exhaust pipe 90. It can be discharged into the chamber 14.

It should be noted that the storage according to the present invention is not limited to the configurations of the embodiment and the first and second modified examples, and the following modifications are possible.
(1) In the embodiment and the modified example 1, the injection type automatic ice making machine is adopted as the storage. However, as long as the discharge water is generated in the ice storage chamber, for example, a down flow type ice making machine, an auger type ice making machine, etc. It is also possible to adopt an ice making machine.
(2) In Examples and Modifications 1 and 2, the ice making thermistor is used as a detection sensor for detecting the leakage of the vaporized refrigerant. However, as long as an abnormality caused by the vaporized refrigerant leaking from the cooler can be detected, Other detection sensors can be employed. For example, a pressure sensor that detects a pressure drop in the cooler due to leakage of the vaporized refrigerant from the cooler may be employed, or a gas sensor that directly detects the vaporized refrigerant may be employed.

12 ice storage room (storage room), 13 heat insulation box, 14 machine room, 18 refrigeration circuit (cooling circuit)
28 Cooler, 29 Control device, 30 Ice making thermistor (detection sensor), 40 Drain port 52,92 Trap part, 54 Drain pipe, 62,82,90 Exhaust pipe, 64 On-off valve 66 Evaporating dish, 72 Temperature sensor (Temperature detection) Means), 96 storage room

Claims (4)

A storage room (12,96) defined internally in an insulating box (13);
A cooler (28) disposed in the storage chamber (12, 96), configured to constitute a cooling circuit (18) and supplied with vaporized refrigerant having a specific gravity greater than that of air;
A detection sensor (30) for detecting the vaporized refrigerant leaking from the cooler (28) into the storage chamber (12,96);
A machine room (14) defined below across the bottom of the storage room (12, 96) and provided with a compressor (CM) and a condenser (CD) constituting a cooling circuit (18);
The storage room (12, 96) is disposed in the machine room (14) and communicates with the storage room (12, 96) through a drain port (40) provided at the bottom of the storage room (12, 96). ) Trap part (52,92) capable of storing a predetermined amount of unnecessary water generated in
A storage provided with a drain pipe (54) that is derived from the trap part (52, 92) and discharges water exceeding the amount stored in the trap part (52, 92) to the outside of the machine room (14). In
An exhaust pipe (62, 82, 90) connected to a lower part than the drain pipe (54) in the trap part (52) and extending downward, and having a lower end opened in the machine room (14),
An on-off valve (64) provided in the exhaust pipe (62, 82, 90);
A control device (29) for controlling opening and closing of the on-off valve (64),
When the detection sensor (30) detects the leakage of the vaporized refrigerant, the control device (29) discharges water stored in the trap section (52, 92) to the machine room (14), and A storage, wherein the on-off valve (64) is set to open so that the storage chamber (12, 96) and the machine room (14) communicate with each other through the exhaust pipe (62, 82, 90).   A temperature detecting means (72) for detecting the outside air temperature is provided, and an evaporating dish (66) for receiving water discharged through the exhaust pipe (62, 82, 90) is disposed in the machine room (14), The storage device according to claim 1, wherein the control device (29) is set to open the on-off valve (64) when the temperature detected by the temperature detecting means (72) exceeds a preset reference temperature.   The storage according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the exhaust pipe (62, 82) is connected to the lowest part of the trap portion (52).   The machine room (14) is provided with a cooling fan (FM) for air-cooling the condenser (CD), and the control device (29) opens the on-off valve (64) when the cooling fan ( The storehouse according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which is set to drive FM).

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