JP2023167282A - refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a refrigerator which enables simplification of a connection configuration of a refrigerant pipeline.SOLUTION: A refrigerator 10 includes: a heat insulation box body 11; a storage chamber formed in the heat insulation box body 11; a refrigeration cycle 16 which cools the storage chamber; and a refrigerant pipeline 30 in which a refrigerant used in the refrigeration cycle 16 circulates. The refrigerant pipeline 30 has: a front surface pipeline part 31 arranged along a front surface of the heat insulation box body 11; a side surface pipeline part 32 arranged along a side surface of the heat insulation box body 11; and a first connection pipeline part 33 which connects the front surface pipeline part 31 with the side surface pipeline part 32. An connection area in which the first connection pipeline part 33 and the side surface pipeline part 32 are connected is arranged at one end side in a width direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and particularly to a refrigerator having refrigerant piping arranged along an outer case.

In a typical refrigerator, each storage compartment is cooled to a desired refrigerating temperature range or freezing temperature range by blowing air cooled by an evaporator of a refrigeration cycle to each storage compartment. A refrigeration cycle has a compressor, a condenser, an expansion means, and an evaporator, and a refrigerant circulates between these devices. Further, each device constituting the refrigeration cycle is connected by a refrigerant pipe, and the refrigerant flows inside the refrigerant pipe. A portion of the refrigerant piping is routed along the outer box of the heat insulating box. By doing so, the high temperature refrigerant can be cooled via the outer box and the refrigerant pipe. Furthermore, the surface of the outer box can be heated to prevent dew condensation on the surface of the outer box. Such a configuration is described in Patent Document 1, for example.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a connection configuration of refrigerant piping 103 in refrigerator 100 according to the background art. In FIG. 7, the machine room 106 formed at the rear lower end of the refrigerator 100 is shown from the rear.

A compressor 101 and an electrical equipment box 105 are arranged inside the machine room 106 . Compressor 101 compresses refrigerant used in the refrigeration cycle. The electrical equipment box 105 houses a circuit board and the like that control the operation of the refrigerator 100.

A refrigerant pipe 103 is arranged near the left end of the machine room 106. Further, a pipe connection portion 104 is provided in the middle of the refrigerant pipe 103. The pipe connection part 104 is a part to which the pipe connection part 104 is connected by welding in the manufacturing process of the refrigerator 100.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-124458

However, in the invention described in the above-mentioned patent document, there is room for improvement from the viewpoint of the connection configuration of the refrigerant piping.

Specifically, referring to FIG. 7, in the manufacturing process of refrigerator 100, welding is performed when connecting refrigerant pipe 103 at pipe connection portion 104. When performing this welding, if the outer box 102 is thermally affected by the welding in the vicinity of the piping connection portion 104, there is a possibility that the outer box 102 may be locally discolored or deformed. Further, the electrical equipment box 105 is made of synthetic resin. For this reason, if the electrical equipment box 105 is affected by the thermal effects of the welding work described above, there is a risk that the electrical equipment box 105 will be deformed. In addition, in order to perform welding under such conditions, skilled workers are required, leading to an increase in manufacturing costs. Further, welding work was required at both the left end and the right end of the machine room 106, which also made the welding connection work complicated.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a refrigerator that can simplify the connection configuration of refrigerant piping.

The refrigerator of the present invention includes an insulating box, a storage chamber formed inside the insulating box, a refrigeration cycle that cools the storage chamber, and refrigerant piping through which a refrigerant used in the refrigeration cycle flows. The refrigerant piping includes: a front piping section routed along the front surface of the insulation box; a side piping section routed along the side surface of the insulation box; and the front piping section and the a first connection piping part that connects the side piping part, and a connection area where the first connection piping part and the side piping part connect is disposed on one end side in the width direction. shall be.

Moreover, in the present invention, the first connection piping section is arranged at one end side in the width direction and extends along the front-rear direction.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the connection region and the compressor are disposed at one end in the width direction inside the machine room.

Further, in the present invention, the side piping portion includes a first side piping portion disposed at one end side in the width direction, a second side piping portion disposed at the other end side in the width direction, and the first side piping portion disposed at the other end side in the width direction. and a second connecting piping section that connects the second side piping section and the second side piping section, and the second connecting piping section is characterized in that two of the second connecting piping sections are formed.

The refrigerator of the present invention includes an insulating box, a storage chamber formed inside the insulating box, a refrigeration cycle that cools the storage chamber, and refrigerant piping through which a refrigerant used in the refrigeration cycle flows. The refrigerant piping includes: a front piping section routed along the front surface of the insulation box; a side piping section routed along the side surface of the insulation box; and the front piping section and the a first connection piping part that connects the side piping part, and a connection area where the first connection piping part and the side piping part connect is disposed on one end side in the width direction. shall be. According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a refrigerator that can simplify the connection configuration and connection process of refrigerant piping. Specifically, by arranging the connection area where the first connection piping section and the side piping section are connected at one end side in the width direction, welding work for connection can be performed all at once at one end side. It is possible to improve workability during welding.

Moreover, in the present invention, the first connection piping section is arranged at one end side in the width direction and extends along the front-rear direction. According to the present invention, the length of the refrigerant pipe can be suppressed by arranging the first connection pipe portion at one end side in the width direction similarly to the connection region.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the connection region and the compressor are disposed at one end in the width direction inside the machine room. According to the present invention, by arranging the compressor at one end in the width direction inside the machine room, the connection area of the refrigerant pipe and the compressor are brought close to each other. Generally, compressors are made of metal such as iron, so when the connection area is formed by welding, even if the compressor is affected by the welding, the risk of adverse effects on the compressor can be reduced. .

Further, in the present invention, the side piping portion includes a first side piping portion disposed at one end side in the width direction, a second side piping portion disposed at the other end side in the width direction, and the first side piping portion disposed at the other end side in the width direction. and a second connecting piping section that connects the second side piping section and the second side piping section, and the second connecting piping section is characterized in that two of the second connecting piping sections are formed. According to the present invention, by having two second connection piping parts, the connection area can be concentrated on one side in the width direction.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from the front right side. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a side sectional view which shows the whole refrigerator based on embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view showing refrigerant piping of the refrigerator concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view showing refrigerant piping and an outer box of a refrigerator concerning an embodiment of the present invention, and is a perspective view showing the case where it is seen from the front left side and the front right side. It is an exploded perspective view showing refrigerant piping of the refrigerator concerning an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a perspective view showing a connection configuration of refrigerant piping of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view showing the connection structure of refrigerant piping of the refrigerator concerning an embodiment of the present invention from another viewpoint. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a connection configuration of refrigerant piping of a refrigerator according to the background art.

Hereinafter, a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail based on the drawings. In the following description, the same members are basically given the same reference numerals, and repeated description will be omitted. Furthermore, in the following description, each direction of up, down, front, back, left, and right will be used as appropriate, but left and right refers to the left and right when the refrigerator 10 is viewed from the front. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the refrigerator 10 is illustrated as having a freezer compartment and a refrigerating compartment, but the refrigerator 10 may also be one having only a freezing compartment or a refrigerator having only a refrigerating compartment.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from the front right side. The refrigerator 10 has a heat insulating box 11 and a storage chamber formed inside the heat insulating box 11. As a storage room, it has a refrigerating room 12 and a freezing room 13 from the upper side. The front opening of the refrigerator compartment 12 is closed at an upper stage by a heat insulating door 18 and at a lower stage by a heat insulating door 19. The front opening of the freezer compartment 13 is closed at an upper stage by a heat insulating door 20 and at a lower stage by a heat insulating door 21. The heat insulating door 18 is a rotating door, and the heat insulating door 19, the heat insulating door 20, and the heat insulating door 21 are pull-out doors.

FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view showing the refrigerator 10 as a whole. The insulating box body 11 includes an outer box 111 made of a steel plate bent into a predetermined shape, an inner box 112 made of a synthetic resin plate placed inside the outer box 111, and an outer box 111 and an inner box 112. and a heat insulating material 113 filled between the two. Further, the refrigerator compartment 12 and the freezer compartment 13 are partitioned by a partition wall 25. The partition wall 25 is a member having a heat insulating structure like the heat insulating box 11.

A cooling chamber 115 is formed on the back side of the freezing chamber 13, and the freezing chamber 13 and the cooling chamber 115 are partitioned by a partition plate 17. An evaporator 162 serving as a cooler is disposed inside the cooling chamber 115. A machine room 14 is defined at the rear of the lower end of the refrigerator 10.

A machine room 14 is defined at the rear lower end of the refrigerator 10. The machine room 14 is a storage space that is continuously formed from the right end side to the left end side of the heat insulating box body 11. A compressor 161 is arranged in the machine room 14. The evaporator 162 and the compressor 161 form a refrigerant compression type refrigeration cycle 16. Specifically, the refrigeration cycle 16 includes a compressor 161, a condenser (not shown), an expansion means (not shown), and an evaporator 162. By operating the refrigeration cycle 16, the air inside the cooling chamber 115 is cooled by the evaporator 162, and the blower 27 blows this cold air to each storage chamber, so that the internal temperature of each storage chamber falls within a predetermined cooling temperature range. shall be. Specifically, the refrigerator compartment 12 is cooled to the refrigeration temperature range, and the freezing compartment 13 is cooled to the freezing temperature range. The components constituting the refrigeration cycle 16 are interconnected by refrigerant pipes made of metal pipes such as copper pipes.

Inside the cooling chamber 115, a blower 27 is arranged above the evaporator 162. The blower 27 is an axial blower or a centrifugal blower, and blows the cold air inside the cooling room 115 cooled by the evaporator 162 toward the refrigerator room 12 and the freezer room 13 .

A defrosting heating unit 117 is arranged inside the cooling chamber 115 and below the evaporator 162. The defrosting heating unit 117 is a heater that generates heat when energized during defrosting operation.

A ventilation path 118 is formed upward from the cooling chamber 115. An opening for blowing cold air into the refrigerator compartment 12 is formed in the air passage 118 . The cold air that has cooled the refrigerator compartment 12 returns to the cooling compartment 115 via a return air path (not shown here), whereby the refrigerator compartment 12 is cooled to a predetermined refrigeration temperature range.

A part of the blown cold air is blown into the freezer compartment 13 through the opening formed in the upper part of the partition plate 17, and the cold air that has cooled the freezer compartment 13 is cooled through the opening formed in the lower part of the partition plate 17. Return to room 115. Thereby, the freezing chamber 13 is cooled to a predetermined freezing temperature range.

If the refrigeration cycle 16 continues to cool the refrigerator compartment 12 and the freezer compartment 13, a lot of frost will form on the evaporator 162, inhibiting heat transfer and air flow in the evaporator 162. Therefore, the evaporator 162 must be defrosted periodically. Drive. In the defrosting operation, the cooling of the refrigerator compartment 12 and the freezing compartment 13 by the refrigeration cycle 16 is stopped by stopping the compressor 161, the air blowing by the blower 27 is stopped, and the inside of the cooling compartment 115 is heated by the defrosting heating unit 117. The evaporator 162 is defrosted by heating the air. After the defrosting operation is completed, the cooling operation of the refrigerator compartment 12 and freezing compartment 13 described above is restarted.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the refrigerant pipe 30. The refrigerant pipe 30 is a conduit through which the refrigerant used in the refrigeration cycle 16 described above flows, and is made of a metal with excellent thermal conductivity such as copper or aluminum. In the refrigerant pipe 30, a refrigerant that has been compressed by the compressor 161 described above and brought into a high temperature and high pressure state flows through the refrigerant pipe 30. The refrigerant piping 30 mainly includes a front piping section 31 , a side piping section 32 , a first connecting piping section 33 , and a second connecting piping section 34 . Here, the side piping section 32 is called a crest condenser because it functions as a condenser. Further, the front piping section 31 is referred to as a frame pipe that prevents dew condensation by increasing the temperature of the front surface of the outer box 111 described above.

The front piping section 31 is routed along the front surface of the heat insulating box 11. Specifically, the front piping section 31 is routed along the front peripheral edge of the outer box 111 described above. Further, a part of the front piping section 31 is also routed near the front of the partition wall 25 shown in FIG. 2 .

The side piping section 32 is routed along the side surface of the outer box 111. Here, the side surface piping section 32 includes a first side surface piping section 321 meanderingly formed on the left side and a second side surface piping section 322 meanderingly formed on the right side.

The first connection piping section 33 connects the front piping section 31 and the side piping section 32. Here, the first connection piping section 33 is arranged at the lower left end, which is one end side in the width direction, and extends substantially linearly along the front-rear direction.

The second connection piping section 34 connects the first side piping section 321 and the second side piping section 322. Two second connection piping sections 34 are formed along the left-right direction. With such a configuration, there is no need to form a connection part with the front piping part 31 for both the first side piping part 321 and the second side piping part 322. That is, the connection area 23 between the side piping section 32 and the front piping section 31 can be concentrated on the left end side. Furthermore, the total extension distance of the refrigerant piping 30 can be made as short as possible.

In FIG. 3, the connection area 23 where the side piping part 32 and the first connection piping part 33 are connected by welding is shown surrounded by a dotted line. In this embodiment, the connection area 23 is concentrated on the rear left end side. With this configuration, as will be described later, the connection area 23 where the first connection piping section 33 and the side piping section 32 are connected can be concentrated at one end in the width direction, thereby improving the safety of welding work for connection. and improve efficiency.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the refrigerant pipe 30 and the heat insulating box 11, as viewed from the front left and the front right.

The outer box 111 has an outer box left side surface 1111 and an outer box right side surface 1112. The outer box left side surface 1111 forms the outer surface on the left side of the heat insulating box body 11. The outer box right side surface 1112 forms the outer surface on the right side of the heat insulating box body 11. The first side piping section 321 is formed in a meandering manner along the inner surface of the left side surface 1111 of the outer box. The second side piping section 322 is formed in a meandering manner along the inner surface of the right side surface 1112 of the outer box. The second connection piping section 34 is installed between the lower end of the left side surface 1111 of the outer case and the lower end of the right side surface 1112 of the outer case. The first connection piping section 33 is arranged along the lower side of the left side surface 1111 of the outer box.

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing the refrigerant pipe 30. In FIG. 5, each part constituting the refrigerant pipe 30 is shown separated, and the direction in which the refrigerant flows inside the refrigerant pipe 30 is shown by an arrow.

The flow of the refrigerant inside the refrigerant pipe 30 will be explained. First, the refrigerant that has been compressed to a high temperature by the compressor 161 described above flows into the second connection piping section 342 from the end portion 3421. The refrigerant that has flowed to the right inside the second connection piping section 342 flows from the end 3422 to the second side piping section 322 via the end 3222 . The refrigerant that has flowed in a meandering manner along the second side piping portion 322 flows into the second connecting piping portion 341 via the end portion 3221 and the end portion 3412.

The refrigerant flowing leftward inside the second connection piping section 341 flows into the first side piping section 321 via the end portion 3411 and the end portion 3211. The refrigerant that has flowed in a meandering manner along the first side piping section 321 flows into the first connecting piping section 331 via the end portion 3212 and the end portion 3312. The refrigerant flowing forward inside the first connection piping section 331 flows into the front piping section 31 via the end portion 3311 and the end portion 312.

The refrigerant flowing inside the front piping section 31 flows into the first connecting piping section 332 via the end portion 311 and the end portion 3321. The refrigerant flowing backward inside the first connection piping portion 332 flows from the end portion 3322 into the evaporator 162 described above via the dryer 22 and expansion means described below.

In this way, in this embodiment, by having the two second connection piping parts 341 and the second connection piping part 342, the connection area 23, which is the place where the front piping part 31 and the side piping part 32 are connected, can be It can be gathered at the rear left end side. The connection configuration in the connection area 23 will be described later with reference to FIGS. 6A and 6B.

With reference to FIGS. 6A and 6B, the connection configuration in the side piping section 32 described above will be described. FIG. 6A is a perspective view of the connection configuration of the refrigerant pipe 30 viewed from the rear right side. FIG. 6B is a perspective view of the connection configuration of the refrigerant piping 30 viewed from the rear left side.

As described above, in the connection area 23, the connection points between the side piping section 32 and the front piping section 31 shown in FIG. 3 are concentrated. Specifically, in the connection area 23, a pipe connection part 37, a pipe connection part 38, and a pipe connection part 39 are formed. In the process of manufacturing a refrigerator, pipe connections are made by welding at the pipe connection portion 37, the pipe connection portion 38, and the pipe connection portion 39.

The pipe connection part 37 is a connection point between the end 3421 of the second connection pipe part 342 and the connection pipe part 36. The connecting piping section 36 is a piping connected to a refrigerant outlet of the compressor 161. In other words, the pipe connection portion 37 is a connection point between the compressor 161 and the refrigerant pipe 30.

The piping connection part 38 connects the end 3312 of the first connection piping part 331 and the end 3212 of the first side piping part 321. In other words, with reference to FIG. 5, the piping connection part 38 is a connection point that connects the side piping part 32 routed along the outer box 111 and the first connection piping part 33 extending along the front-rear direction. It is.

The pipe connection part 39 connects the end 3322 of the first connection pipe part 332 and the dryer 22. A connecting piping section 35 is connected to the lower end of the dryer 22 . The connecting piping section 35 is connected to the above-mentioned evaporator 162 via an expansion means such as a capillary tube and an expansion valve (not shown here). In other words, the pipe connection portion 39 is a connection point that connects the refrigerant pipe 30 and the dryer 22.

In this embodiment, the connection area 23 for making pipe connections by welding is concentrated near the left end inside the machine room 14 described above. By doing so, workability during welding can be improved. That is, although the compressor 161 shown in FIG. 6A and the like is present near the connection area 23, electrical equipment such as a transmission box or harness is not provided. Therefore, it is possible to prevent electrical equipment from being damaged by heat generated during welding. Additionally, the compressor 161 may be affected by the heat generated during welding, but since the compressor 161 is a component made of metal such as iron, there is no risk of damage to the compressor 161 due to the heat during welding. small.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the connection area 23 can be concentrated at the right end of the machine room 14, as shown in FIG. 6B. Therefore, by arranging the electrical equipment box (not shown) on the left end side of the machine room 14, it is possible to prevent chattering noise caused by contact between the refrigerant pipe 30 and the electrical equipment box during operation. Furthermore, by arranging the connection region 23 at the right end of the machine room 14, welding work can be facilitated by right-handed workers, who are the majority of workers.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Moreover, each of the above-mentioned forms can be combined with each other.

10 Refrigerator 11 Insulating box body 111 Outer box 1111 Outer box left side 1112 Outer box right side 112 Inner box 113 Insulating material 115 Cooling chamber 117 Defrosting heating section 118 Air duct 12 Refrigerator room 13 Freezer room 14 Machine room 16 Refrigeration cycle 161 Compressor 162 Evaporator 17 Partition plate 18 Insulation door 19 Insulation door 20 Insulation door 21 Insulation door 22 Dryer 23 Connection area 25 Partition wall 27 Blower 30 Refrigerant piping 31 Front piping part 311 End part 312 End part 32 Side piping part 321 1st Side piping section 3211 End section 3212 End section 322 Second side piping section 3221 End section 3222 End section 33 First connection piping section 331 First connection piping section 3311 End section 3312 End section 332 First connection piping section 3321 End section 3322 End Part 34 Second connection piping part 341 Second connection piping part 3411 End part 3412 End part 342 Second connection piping part 3421 End part 3422 End part 35 Connection piping part 36 Connection piping part 37 Piping connection part 38 Piping connection part 39 Piping connection Section 100 Refrigerator 101 Compressor 102 Outer box 103 Refrigerant piping 104 Piping connection section 105 Electrical box 106 Machine room

Claims (4)

an insulated box,
a machine room defined in the insulating box;
a storage chamber formed inside the insulating box;
a compressor that constitutes a refrigeration cycle that cools the storage room;
A refrigerant pipe through which a refrigerant used in the refrigeration cycle flows,
The refrigerant piping includes a front piping section that is routed along the front surface of the insulating box, a side piping section that is routed along the side surface of the insulating box, and the front piping section and the side piping section. a first connection piping section connecting the
A refrigerator characterized in that a connection area where the first connection piping section and the side piping section connect is disposed at one end in the width direction. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the first connection piping section is arranged at one end in the width direction and extends in the front-rear direction. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the connection region and the compressor are disposed at one end in the width direction inside the machine room. The side surface piping section includes a first side surface piping section disposed at one end in the width direction, a second side surface piping section disposed at the other end in the width direction, and the first side surface piping section and the second side surface piping section. a second connection piping section that connects the piping section;
The refrigerator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein two second connection piping portions are formed.

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