JP2012247140A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the generation of a short cycle while reliably flowing down dew condensation water generated near a blowing out duct to a drain pan.SOLUTION: The inside of an insulation case 17 in which the drain pan 26 is arranged in the inner bottom is divided into an inlet chamber 21 and an outlet chamber 22 by a dividing plate 20. A shielding plate 23 contacting the side surface of an evaporator 18 is arranged in the lower side of the dividing plate 20. The blowing out duct 34 arranged facing the blowing duct 25 of the outlet chamber 22, a cover wall 36 facing the shielding plate 23 via small gap are arranged in a cover 33 in the refrigerator. A water discharging channel 39 for flowing down dew condensation water flowing down from the blowing out duct 34 to the drain pan 26 is arranged between the shielding plate 23 and the cover wall 36 facing each other. A labyrinth shaped gas/liquid separating structure 41 is formed in the water discharging channel 39 to allow the dew condensation water to flow down and make the flow of cold gas difficult.

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and relates to an improvement in the drainage structure of condensed water and defrost drainage generated in the vicinity of a blowout duct that blows out cold air to a refrigerator.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a cooling storage unit having a structure in which condensed water and defrosted waste water generated in the vicinity of a blowout duct flow down toward a drain port. Here, the guide plate of the blowout duct is provided as a downward slope, and the lower end of the slope is provided so as to protrude to the cooling chamber side from the partition plate. The inclined lower end of the guide plate is placed in a state where it enters a recess provided in the front of the cooler, and the inclined lower end of the guide plate is left so as to leave only a gap where the defrost drainage flowing down the blowing duct can be dropped. Close to cooler.

JP-A-9-243227 (paragraph number 0019, FIG. 5)

  According to the cooling storage of Patent Document 1, the defrost drainage generated in the blowout duct flows down the guide plate, and then discharges toward the drain through the gap between the inclined lower end of the guide plate and the cooler. Can do. In addition, since the air in the warehouse sucked into the cooling chamber can be prevented from being disturbed by the inclined lower end of the guide plate and circulated to the blowing duct side, the cold air blown out from the cooler can be cooled through the gap. It is possible to prevent a so-called short cycle that is sucked into the water. However, it is not easy to assemble the gap between them at an appropriate interval due to dimensional errors of parts or variations in the assembly position of the inclined lower end of the guide plate and the cooler. For example, when the gap is smaller than the appropriate value or in contact, drainage cannot be performed smoothly, and the drainage may accumulate without flowing down. On the contrary, when the gap is larger than the appropriate value, drainage is performed properly, but the cool air in the storage can easily pass through, so that a short cycle occurs and cooling efficiency is reduced.

  The objective of this invention is providing the refrigerator which can prevent a short cycle, making the dew condensation water produced in the blow duct vicinity flow down reliably toward a drain pan.

  The refrigerator of the present invention is intended for a refrigerator that includes the refrigerator compartment 2, the heat exchange unit 10, and an in-compartment cover 33 that faces the communication port 16 that communicates both. The heat exchange unit 10 includes a heat insulating case 17 in which a drain pan 26 is disposed on the inner bottom, an evaporator 18 and a circulation fan 19 provided inside the heat insulation case 17, and the inside of the heat insulation case 17 supporting the circulation fan 19. And a partition plate 20 that divides the gas into an inlet chamber 21 and an outlet chamber 22. A shielding plate 23 that contacts the side surface of the evaporator 18 is provided below the partition plate 20. The internal cover 33 is provided with an air outlet duct 34 provided facing the air outlet 25 of the outlet chamber 22 and a cover wall 36 that faces the shielding plate 23 with a small gap. A drainage channel 39 is provided between the pair of shielding plates 23 and the cover wall 36 to allow the condensed water flowing down from the blowing duct 34 to flow down to the drain pan 26. Then, a maze-like gas-liquid separation structure 41 is formed in the drainage channel 39, while allowing the dewed water to flow down, but making the flow of cold air difficult.

  The gas-liquid separation structure 41 can be configured by a labyrinth-shaped convex strip 42 formed integrally with the cover wall 36 of the interior cover 33 and the shielding plate 23 of the partition plate 20 circumscribing the convex strip 42.

  A plurality of vertical ribs 43 projecting in a state in which the ridges 42 divide the interior of the drainage channel 39 in the front-rear direction, and staggered in a state in which they are inclined downward from each vertical rib 43 toward the adjacent vertical rib 43. A plurality of inclined ribs 44 are provided. A chamber 45 surrounded by both the inclined ribs 44 and 44 and the vertical rib 43 is formed between the upper and lower adjacent inclined ribs 44 and 44, and adjacent to the upper and lower sides between the lower end of the inclined rib 44 and the vertical rib 43. The flow-down port 46 which connects the chambers 45 to be communicated is formed.

  A guide wall 50 that guides the condensed water flowing down from the gas-liquid separation structure 41 to the drain pan 26 can be formed at the lower end of the cover wall 36.

  In the present invention, the inside of the heat insulating case 17 in which the drain pan 26 is disposed on the inner bottom is divided into an inlet chamber 21 and an outlet chamber 22 by the partition plate 20, and the side surface of the evaporator 18 is below the partition plate 20. A shielding plate 23 in contact with is provided. In addition, the internal cover 33 is provided with an air outlet duct 34 provided facing the air outlet 25 of the outlet chamber 22 and a cover wall 36 facing the shielding plate 23 via a small gap. A drainage channel 39 is provided between the opposing shielding plate 23 and the cover wall 36 to allow the condensed water flowing down from the blowout duct 34 to flow into the drain pan 26. The drainage channel 39 allows the condensed water to flow down, A maze-like gas-liquid separation structure 41 that makes flow difficult is formed.

  As described above, when the gap between the opposing shielding plate 23 and the cover wall 36 is a drainage channel 39 and the labyrinth-like gas-liquid separation structure 41 is provided in the drainage channel 39, the dew condensation water generated in the blowout duct 34 is reduced. It is possible to flow down toward the drain pan 26 through the drainage channel 39. Furthermore, the labyrinth-like gas-liquid separation structure 41 provided in the drainage channel 39 can prevent free flow of cold air. Therefore, the dew condensation water generated in the blowout duct 34 can surely flow down toward the drain pan 26 while preventing a short cycle caused by the cold air flowing through the drainage channel 39.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the gas-liquid separation structure 41 has a labyrinth formed by a convex strip 42 formed integrally with the cover wall 36 of the interior cover 33 and a shielding plate 23 of the partition plate 20 that circumscribes the convex strip 42. Configured. According to this, the gas-liquid separation structure 41 can be formed in the drainage channel 39 only by attaching the interior cover 33 so that the ridges 42 are in close contact with the shielding plate 23. Therefore, the structure of the refrigerator can be simplified and the labor required for assembly can be reduced. Further, since the gas-liquid separation structure 41 is formed along the cover wall 36, it is possible to avoid the drainage channel 39 and the gas-liquid separation structure 41 from greatly projecting to the refrigerator compartment 2 side. Providing the liquid separation structure 41 can prevent the capacity of the refrigerator compartment 2 from decreasing. In addition, since it is not necessary to prepare and attach components for forming the gas-liquid separation structure 41 separately, an increase in the manufacturing cost of the refrigerator can be suppressed.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the ridge 42 is formed by a plurality of vertical ribs 43 and a plurality of inclined ribs 44 that are inclined downward from each vertical rib 43 toward the adjacent vertical rib 43. Further, a chamber 45 serving as a cold storage is formed between the inclined ribs 44 adjacent to the upper and lower sides, and the chambers 45 adjacent to the upper and lower sides are communicated with each other via a flow-down port 46 provided at the inclined lower end of the inclined rib 44. I tried to do it.

  Thus, according to the labyrinth-like gas-liquid separation structure 41 in which the downflow port 46 for flowing down the dew condensation water and the chamber 45 serving as a cold air reservoir are alternately provided, the flow of the dew condensation water is promoted while free flowing of the cold air. Can be prevented more reliably. This is because condensed water flows down the inclined rib 44 due to gravity and can flow down from the downstream port 46 to the next inclined rib 44, but the cold air has an increased flow resistance at the downstream port 46 connecting the chambers 45. This is because the flow becomes difficult. Moreover, since the drainage channel 39 is divided into a plurality by the adjacent two rows of vertical ribs 43, gas-liquid separation can be performed in each drainage channel divided by the vertical ribs 43. Therefore, even when any drainage channel becomes nonfunctional due to freezing of dew condensation water or foreign matter, the flow of dew condensation water can be continued from another drainage channel.

  If a guide wall 50 that guides the condensed water to flow down to the drain pan 26 is provided at the lower end of the cover wall 36, the condensed water is prevented from flowing into the refrigerator compartment 2 along the wall surface continuous with the cover wall 36. The water can surely flow down toward the drain pan 26. Thereby, it can prevent reliably that dew condensation water accumulates in the refrigerator compartment 2, and can maintain a sanitary state.

It is a vertical front view of the heat exchange unit which concerns on this invention. It is a front view of a refrigerator. It is a vertical side view of the refrigerator which shows the internal structure of an apparatus room. It is the sectional view on the AA line in FIG. It is an enlarged front view of a gas-liquid separation structure. It is the BB sectional view taken on the line in FIG. It is CC sectional view taken on the line in FIG.

(Example) FIGS. 1-7 shows the Example which applied this invention to the cold table type refrigerator. In the present invention, front / rear, left / right, and upper / lower follow the cross arrows shown in the figure and the front / rear, left / right, and upper / lower indications shown in the vicinity of each arrow. In FIG. 2, the refrigerator includes a refrigerator main body 1, and most of the inside is a refrigerator compartment 2 made of a horizontally long box whose peripheral wall is formed of a heat insulating wall, and refrigeration equipment is accommodated on one side of the refrigerator compartment 2. An equipment room 3 is provided. The front opening of the refrigerator compartment 2 can be opened and closed by two doors 4 having a double door structure, and the equipment room panel 5 is detachably fixed to the front opening of the equipment room 3 with screws. An operation unit 6 that controls the operating state of the refrigeration equipment is disposed on the upper part of the equipment room panel 5. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 7 denotes a control box that houses electrical components such as a control board. The top plate on the top of the refrigerator is used as a cooking table.

  The refrigeration equipment includes a condensing unit disposed in the machine room 3 and a heat exchange unit 10, both of which are connected via a refrigerant pipe 11. As shown in FIG. 3, the condensing unit is unitized by assembling a compressor 12, a condenser 13, a blower fan 14, and the like on the upper surface of a base plate provided at the bottom of the equipment room 3. As shown in FIG. 1, the heat exchange unit 10 is arranged facing the communication port 16 opened on the left side surface of the refrigerator compartment 2. In the heat exchange unit 10, an evaporator 18 and a circulation fan 19 are arranged inside a heat insulating case 17 whose one side surface is open. The inside of the heat insulating case 17 is divided into an inlet chamber 21 and an outlet chamber 22 by a partition plate 20, an evaporator 18 is disposed on the inlet chamber 21 side, and a circulation fan 19 is disposed on the outlet chamber 22 side. Yes. The partition plate 20 is formed integrally with a shielding plate 23 disposed so as to contact the right side surface of the evaporator 18 and an inclined plate 24 disposed so as to cover the upper portion of the evaporator 18. The circulation fan 19 is fixed to the opening provided in the. The evaporator 18 is disposed in a state where the peripheral side surface is covered with the heat insulating case 17 and the shielding plate 23. The cold air in the refrigerator compartment 2 sucked into the inlet chamber 21 by the circulation fan 19 undergoes heat exchange when passing through the evaporator 18 and decreases in temperature, and is then discharged from the outlet 25 of the outlet chamber 22.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a drain pan 26 is disposed on the bottom wall of the heat insulating case 17. A connecting pipe 28 projects downward from the bottom wall of the heat insulating case 17 facing the drain port 27 of the drain pan 26. The drain water flowing down from the connection pipe 28 is sent to a water receiver 30 provided on the rear wall of the equipment room 3 via a drain trap 29 disposed on the lower surface of the heat insulation case 17, and further connected to the water receiver 30. The drain pipe 31 is discharged to the drain (see FIG. 3). In the drain pan 26, defrost drainage flowing down from the evaporator 18, dew condensation water generated in a blow-out duct 34 to be described later, and the like flow down as drain water.

  As shown in FIGS. 1, 4, and 6, an internal cover 33 is disposed on the left side wall of the refrigerator compartment 2 so as to cover the communication port 16. The interior cover 33 includes an outlet duct 34 provided facing the outlet 25, a suction duct 35 that occupies the lower half of the interior cover 33, a cover wall 36 that connects both the ducts 34 and 35, and an interior cover. The front and rear mounting plates 37 for fixing 33 to the refrigerator compartment 2 are made of a plastic molded product formed integrally. The interior cover 33 has a mounting plate 37 fixed to the left side wall of the refrigerator compartment 2 with four screws 38. The blowout duct 34 is partitioned by vertical and horizontal partition walls 34a and 34b, and the horizontal partition wall 34b is formed so as to incline downward toward the outlet 25. A plurality of suction holes 35a are opened in the suction duct 35, and the cold air in the refrigerator compartment 2 is sucked into the inlet chamber 21 after passing through the suction holes 35a.

  The cover wall 36 is formed in a U shape in a plan view, is opposed to the shielding plate 23 of the partition plate 20 through a small gap, and is further assembled into the communication port 16 (see FIG. 7). . A small gap between the shielding plate 23 and the cover wall 36 can be used as a drainage channel 39 to allow the condensed water generated in the blowout duct 34 to flow down. Specifically, the dew condensation water generated in the blowout duct 34 flows toward the blowout port 25 due to the inclination provided in the horizontal partition wall 34 b, flows down onto the inclined plate 24 of the partition plate 20, and then flows into the drainage channel 39.

  In order to prevent a short cycle caused by cold air flowing through the drainage channel 39, a labyrinth-like gas-liquid separation structure 41 is formed in the drainage channel 39. The gas-liquid separation structure 41 includes a cover wall 36, a ridge 42 that is integrally formed with the cover wall 36, and a shielding plate 23 that is in close contact with the ridge 42. As shown in FIG. 6, the ridge 42 has a plurality of vertical ribs 43 extending in the vertical direction, and a plurality of inclined ribs 44 formed in a state of being inclined downward from each vertical rib 43 toward the adjacent vertical rib 43. And is formed. The drainage channels 39 are divided into a plurality of adjacent two rows of vertical ribs 43, and gas-liquid separation can be performed in each drainage channel divided by the vertical ribs 43.

  As described above, the inside of the drainage channel 39 is divided into the vertical ribs 43 and the inclined ribs 44, so that one vertical rib 43 and two inclined ribs are provided between the ribs 43 and 44 as shown in FIG. A triangular chamber 45 surrounded by the ribs 44 is formed. Further, between the inclined lower end of the inclined rib 44 and the vertical rib 43, a flow-down port 46 that communicates between the chambers 45 adjacent in the vertical direction is formed. The uppermost downstream outlet 46 serves as an inlet 47 for condensed water, and the lowermost downstream outlet 46 serves as an outlet 48 for condensed water.

  Condensed water flowing into the chamber 45 from the inlet 47 flows down the upper surface of the lower inclined rib 44 and then flows into the lower chamber 45 through the outlet 46. By repeating this and flowing out from the outlet 48, it is discharged to the drain pan 26 side. On the other hand, the cold air blown out from the circulation fan 19 is prevented from freely passing through the gas-liquid separation structure 41. This is because the flow path formed by the chamber 45 and the flow-down port 46 serving as a cold air reservoir has a flow path cross section that changes in size, and the flow-path resistance at the flow-down port 46 is particularly large. Therefore, it is possible to reliably flow down the dew condensation water toward the drain pan 26 side while preventing a short cycle caused by the cold air flowing through the drainage channel 39. In addition, since the ridges 42 constituting the gas-liquid separation structure 41 are formed integrally with the cover wall 36, the chamber cover 33 is simply fixed with screws 38 so that the ridges 42 are in close contact with the shielding plate 23. The liquid separation structure 41 can be configured. Therefore, the structure of the refrigerator can be simplified, and the labor required for assembly can be reduced.

  Since the evaporator 18 is disposed adjacent to the drainage channel 39, the dew condensation water flowing down the drainage channel 39 may freeze and block the drainage channel 39 in some cases. However, in the refrigerator, in order to remove the frost adhering to the fins and the refrigerant pipe of the evaporator 18 and improve the heat exchange efficiency, the defrosting process is periodically performed. Condensed water frozen in is melted at the same time and can flow down again.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a guide wall 50 that guides the dew condensation water that has flowed down from the gas-liquid separation structure 41 to the drain pan 26 is formed integrally with the interior cover 33 at the lower end of the cover wall 36. The guide wall 50 is formed across the entire width of the inlet chamber 21 in the front-rear direction, and inclines downward as the distance from the cover wall 36 increases. By providing the guide wall 50, the condensed water can be surely flowed down toward the drain pan 26 while preventing the condensed water from flowing into the refrigerator compartment 2 along the wall surface continuing to the cover wall 36. Thereby, it can prevent reliably that dew condensation water accumulates in the refrigerator compartment 2, and can maintain a sanitary state.

  As shown in FIG. 4, an internal lamp 52 that illuminates the refrigerator compartment 2 is provided at the upper left front corner of the refrigerator compartment 2. The internal lamp 52 includes a lamp case 53, a pyroelectric infrared sensor 54 fixed to the lamp case 53, and an LED 55. If the door 4 of the refrigerator compartment 2 is opened, the temperature in the refrigerator compartment 2 will rise rapidly. When the infrared sensor 54 detects this temperature change, it is determined that the door 4 has been opened, and the LED 55 is turned on. When a pyroelectric infrared sensor 54 is used to detect the opening / closing operation of the door 4, the wiring structure can be simplified as compared with the case where a detecting means such as a proximity sensor is provided between the refrigerator body 1 and the door 4. Can reduce the manufacturing cost of the refrigerator.

  In the above embodiment, the inclined rib 44 forming the gas-liquid separation structure 41 is formed in a state of being inclined downward in the front-rear direction, but it is not necessary and may be inclined in the left-right direction. In this case, the gap between the shielding plate 23 and the cover wall 36 is increased, and the gas-liquid separation structure 41 is formed by providing the shielding plate 23 and the cover wall 36 as vertical ribs 43 and inclined ribs 44 respectively. can do.

2 refrigerator compartment 10 heat exchange unit 16 communication port 17 heat insulation case 18 evaporator 19 circulation fan 20 partition plate 21 inlet chamber 22 outlet chamber 23 shielding plate 25 outlet 26 drain pan 33 inner cover 34 outlet duct 36 cover wall 39 drainage channel 41 Gas-liquid separation structure 42 Convex strip 43 Vertical rib 44 Inclined rib 45 Chamber 46 Downflow port 50 Guide wall

Claims (4)

A refrigerator comprising a refrigerator compartment (2), a heat exchange unit (10), and an in-chamber cover (33) arranged facing a communication port (16) communicating both of them,
The heat exchange unit (10) includes a heat insulating case (17) in which a drain pan (26) is disposed on the inner bottom, an evaporator (18) and a circulation fan (19) provided inside the heat insulating case (17), A partition plate (20) that supports the circulation fan (19) and divides the inside of the heat insulation case (17) into an inlet chamber (21) and an outlet chamber (22);
On the lower side of the partition plate (20), a shielding plate (23) in contact with the side surface of the evaporator (18) is provided,
The inner cover (33) has an outlet duct (34) provided facing the outlet (25) of the outlet chamber (22), and a cover wall (36) facing the shielding plate (23) with a small gap. ) And
Between the pair of shielding plates (23) and the cover wall (36), a drainage channel (39) is provided for allowing the condensed water flowing down from the blowout duct (34) to flow down to the drain pan (26),
A refrigerator characterized in that a labyrinth-like gas-liquid separation structure (41) is formed in the drainage channel (39) which allows the flow of condensed water but makes the flow of cold air difficult.   The gas-liquid separation structure (41) includes a labyrinth-shaped ridge (42) formed integrally with the cover wall (36) of the interior cover (33), and a partition plate (20) circumscribing the ridge (42). The refrigerator according to claim 1, comprising a shielding plate (23). A plurality of vertical ribs (43) projecting in a state where the ridge (42) divides the interior of the drainage channel (39) in the front-rear direction, and vertical ribs (43) adjacent to each vertical rib (43) A plurality of inclined ribs (44) protruding in a staggered manner in a state of being inclined downward toward the
A chamber (45) surrounded by both the inclined ribs (44, 44) and the vertical rib (43) is formed between the vertically adjacent inclined ribs (44, 44).
The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein a downstream opening (46) is formed between the inclined lower end of the inclined rib (44) and the vertical rib (43) to communicate the upper and lower adjacent chambers (45).   The guide wall (50) for guiding the condensed water flowing down from the gas-liquid separation structure (41) to the drain pan (26) is formed at the lower end of the cover wall (36). Refrigerator.

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