JP2024018457A - Cooling box and method for transporting objects needing cooling - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cooling box which eliminates a need for a power source during transportation and can maintain a low-temperature state over a long time.

SOLUTION: A cooling box includes: an outer housing 2 in which a storage space 43 for storing objects needing cooling is formed; and a refrigeration unit 5. A cold storage material holding part 42 for holding a cold storage material 41 is provided within the outer housing 2. The refrigeration unit 5 has an evaporator 53 and includes a housing member 60 in which the evaporator 53 is housed. The housing member 60 is disposed on an exterior of the outer housing 2. A space in the housing member 60 communicates with a storage space in the outer housing 2 through a communication part 72. The cooling box has opening/closing means 6 for opening or closing the communication part 72.

SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

COPYRIGHT: (C)2024,JPO&INPIT

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a cold storage. The cold storage of the present invention is suitable for transporting medicines, blood, plasma, and other organs, frozen foods, and other items that require cooling.
The present invention also relates to a method for transporting objects that require cooling.

Some biopharmaceuticals, vaccines, etc. need to be stored at low temperatures and transported to the point of consumption while maintaining the low temperature. Blood for transfusion, plasma, etc. may also need to be stored at low temperatures and transported to the point of consumption while maintaining the low temperature.

Cold storage boxes used for these purposes include those equipped with a refrigeration system and those that use cold storage materials.
The former type of cold storage equipped with a refrigeration device maintains the inside of the refrigerator at a low temperature using the refrigeration device.
The latter type of cold storage maintains the inside of the refrigerator at a low temperature using a cold storage material.

JP 2019-190753 Publication

The former type of cold storage equipped with a refrigeration system requires a power source to be secured during transportation. Therefore, the vehicles that transport the cold storage are limited to those that have a power source. Therefore, cold storages equipped with refrigeration equipment may not be transported by trucks or the like without a power source.
The latter type of cold storage, which uses cold storage material to cool the inside, has the advantage of not requiring a power source during transportation, but requires refilling with cold storage material each time it is transported. For example, it is necessary to cool the cold storage material in an external freezer in advance, and then fill the cold storage material with the cold storage material into a cold storage box before transportation. Therefore, cold storages that use cold storage materials have a problem in that it is necessary to fill them with cold storage materials every time they are transported, which is time-consuming.

Therefore, the present inventors studied a cold storage box equipped with a refrigeration device and a cold storage material. That is, before transportation, a cold storage material is placed in a place where there is a power source, and a refrigeration device is driven to cool the cold storage material. On the other hand, during transportation, the refrigeration system is stopped and the temperature inside the refrigerator is maintained at a low temperature by the internal cold storage material.

However, this structure of cold storage had new problems to be solved. In other words, in a cold storage with this structure, it is desirable to place the evaporator and the cold storage material in the same space from the viewpoint of cooling the cold storage material with the cold heat of the evaporator. Cooling and heat inside the refrigerator may be taken away.
Specifically, when the refrigeration system is stopped, the cooling function of the evaporator is lost, but since the evaporator is connected to external equipment (such as a compressor or condenser) through piping, heat is transferred from the outside through the piping. The surface temperature of the evaporator may rise. Therefore, after the refrigeration system is stopped, the evaporator placed inside the refrigerator becomes a heat source, which may increase the temperature inside the refrigerator. As a result, the time during which the inside of the refrigerator can be maintained at a low temperature may become shorter than expected.

The present invention solves the problems caused by a newly discovered phenomenon, does not require a power source during transportation, does not require the hassle of filling a cold storage material with cold storage material each time it is transported, and can maintain low temperature for a long period of time. The purpose is to provide a cold storage that can be maintained.
Furthermore, the present invention does not require a power source during transportation, there is no need to fill a cold storage material with cold storage material each time it is transported, and the temperature of items that need to be cooled can be maintained at a low temperature for a long period of time during transportation. This paper proposes a possible transportation method.

A mode for solving the above-mentioned problems includes an outer casing that forms a storage space inside for accommodating objects that need to be cooled, and a refrigeration device, and has a cold storage material that holds a cold storage material in the outer casing. The refrigeration device has an evaporator, and there is a housing member for housing the evaporator, and the housing member is disposed outside the outer housing, and the space inside the housing member and the housing member are disposed outside the outer housing. The cold storage is characterized in that storage spaces within the outer casing communicate with each other through a communication section, and include an opening/closing means for opening and closing the communication section.

The cold storage of this embodiment is equipped with a refrigeration device and a cold storage material. The cold storage of this aspect communicates between the housing member that houses the evaporator and the housing space in the outer housing through a communication section, and has an opening/closing means for opening and closing the communication section.
The cold storage of this embodiment can cool the cold storage material using the refrigeration device. When the opening/closing means is opened when cooling the cold storage material, air cooled by the evaporator flows to the cold storage material through the communication portion, and the cold storage material can be efficiently cooled.
When moving the cold storage, close the opening/closing means. As a result, the housing member housing the evaporator and the housing space within the outer housing are cut off. Therefore, even if the surface temperature of the evaporator rises, it hardly affects the temperature inside the cold storage.

In the aspect described above, a heat insulating casing is further provided inside the outer casing, the cold storage material holding section is disposed inside the heat insulating casing, and the housing space is formed, and the heat insulating casing further includes a heat insulating casing. It is desirable that the opening/closing means is provided in the opening/closing means.

According to this aspect, the accommodation space for accommodating the object to be cooled is doubly insulated by the wall of the heat-insulating casing and the wall of the outer casing.

In the above aspect, the top wall of the outer casing has an outer opening, the top wall of the heat insulating casing has a heat insulating casing side opening, and the inner surface of the outer casing is in contact with the top surface of the heat insulating casing. The housing member is installed on the outer housing, and the space within the housing member and the housing space formed within the heat insulation housing connect the outer shell side opening and the heat insulation housing side opening. It is desirable that the communicating portion is formed by communicating through the connecting portion.

According to this aspect, no wasted space is created between the inner surface of the outer casing and the top surface of the heat-insulating casing. Further, since the inside of the housing member and the inside of the heat insulating casing are directly connected, there is no need for a member to connect the two.

In the above aspect, it is desirable that there is a space between the inner surface of the outer casing and at least one of the outer surfaces of the heat insulating casing.

According to this aspect, there is a space between the inner surface of the outer casing and the heat insulating casing, and the space functions as a heat insulating layer made of air.

In the above aspect, it is preferable that the communication portion is a single ventilation path, and that the air in the heat insulating casing and the air in the housing member go in and out through the ventilation path.

In the cold storage of this embodiment, air inside the heat insulating casing and air inside the housing member enter and exit through a single ventilation path. Therefore, heat is exchanged between the cooled air going from inside the housing member into the heat insulating casing and the air returning from inside the heat insulating housing into the housing member, and cold energy is less likely to be wasted.

In the above aspect, it is desirable that the opening/closing means is a removable and/or movable closing plate.

Although the opening/closing means employed in this aspect has a simple structure, it can effectively isolate the inside of the housing member and the inside of the heat insulating casing.

In the aspect described above, the closing plate closes the communicating portion by being inserted into the communicating portion, and it is desirable that the contact surface between the closing plate and the communicating portion has an uneven shape.

When the closing plate is attached, the remaining space connecting the inside of the housing member and the inside of the heat insulating casing is a gap between the contact surface between the closing plate and the communicating portion. In the cold storage of this embodiment, since the contact surface between the closing plate and the communication part is uneven, the distance connecting the inside of the housing member and the inside of the heat insulating housing becomes substantially longer, increasing the thermal resistance and causing the inside of the housing member to connect with the inside of the housing member. The amount of heat dissipated between the insides of the heat insulating casing is reduced.

The invention of a method for transporting an object to be cooled includes an outer casing that forms an accommodation space inside for accommodating an object to be cooled, and a refrigeration device, and a cold storage material that holds a cold storage material in the accommodation space. The refrigerator is provided with a holding part, the refrigeration device has an evaporator, the evaporator cools air sent to the accommodation space, and an opening/closing means for blocking the flow of air to the accommodation space. A cold storage material cooling method using a method for transporting objects that require cooling, in which the cold storage is placed in a predetermined position, the refrigeration device is driven with the opening/closing means open, and the cold storage material is cooled by an evaporator. step, a shutoff step of stopping the refrigeration device and closing the opening/closing means, and a moving step of moving the cold storage.

The cold storage of the present invention does not require a power source during transportation, there is no need to fill the cold storage material with cold storage material each time it is transported, and it is possible to maintain a low temperature state for a long period of time.
In addition, the method for transporting objects that require cooling according to the present invention does not require a power source during transportation, there is no need to fill a cold storage material with cold storage material each time it is transported, and the temperature of objects that need to be cooled is maintained at a low temperature for a long period of time. It can be kept and transported.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a perspective view of the cold storage box of embodiment of this invention, and shows the state with the door open. FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of the cold storage box shown in FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the cold storage box of FIG. 2 with the closing plate removed. It is a BB sectional view of the cold storage box in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the cold storage box shown in FIG. 1. FIG. (a) is an enlarged view of the heat insulating casing and the closing plate, and (b) is an enlarged sectional view of the joint between the two when the closing plate is attached to the opening on the heat insulating casing side of the heat insulating casing.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the cold storage 1 of this embodiment includes an outer casing 2, a heat insulating casing 3, a freezing device 5, and a closing plate (opening/closing means) 6.
The outer housing 2 is a box having a door 10. That is, the outer casing 2 is composed of a main body box 11 and a door 10. The main body box 11 and the door 10 that constitute the outer casing 2 both have a built-in material having heat insulating properties. The outer casing 2 includes a frame and reinforcing members (not shown). The surface is covered with a metal plate or resin plate. Therefore, the outer housing 2 has considerable rigidity.

The main body box 11 of the outer casing 2 has a top wall 12, a bottom wall 15, a back wall 17, and left and right side walls 18, and is a box with an open front. That is, the main body box 11 has a cavity 8 surrounded by a top wall 12, a bottom wall 15, a back wall 17, and left and right side walls 18.
Four wheels 20 are attached to the bottom wall 15 of the main body box 11.
An opening (opening on the outer shell side) 21 is provided in the top wall 12 of the main body box 11. The opening (outer opening) 21 communicates the inside and outside of the main body box 11.

The door 10 is swingably attached to the front side of the main body box 11 by a hinge (not shown). The door 10 opens and closes the front opening of the main body box 11.
The door 10 is provided with an operation panel 16 as shown in FIG. The operation panel 16 is used to start and stop the refrigeration device 5, which will be described later.
The operation panel 16 has a built-in battery and a control device. The control device may be provided with a storage means to record the temperature history in the cold storage 1. Further, a display device may be provided on the operation panel 16 to display the temperature history inside the cold storage 1.

A rectangular projection 73 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5 is provided on the inner surface of the door 10. That is, on the inner surface side of the door 10, there is a protrusion 73 at the center of the main body part 75.
The size and shape of the protrusion 73 are such that it can fit into the opening on the front side and approximately match the edge of the opening on the front side of the heat insulating casing 3, which will be described later.
The protrusion 73 of the door 10 functions as an inner lid that closes off the front of the heat insulating casing 3, which will be described later. That is, the door 10 of this embodiment functions as a door of the outer casing 2 and a door of the heat-insulating casing 3.
Although it is desirable that the door 10 be provided with the protrusion 73, a configuration may be adopted in which the door 10 is not provided with the protrusion 73.

The heat insulating case 3 is a box made of heat insulating material. Although the material of the heat insulating casing 3 is not limited, it is preferably a vacuum heat insulating material or a foamed resin. The heat insulating casing 3 of this embodiment is made of a vacuum heat insulating material. Note that each part has a reinforcing member (not shown), so that the heat insulating casing 3 has a certain degree of rigidity. The rigidity of the heat insulating casing 3 is lower than that of the outer casing 2.

The heat insulating casing 3 has a top wall 22, a back wall 27, and left and right side walls 28, and the front and bottom surfaces are open. Note that the heat insulating casing 3 may have a bottom wall.
The top wall 22 of the heat insulating case 3 is provided with an opening (opening on the heat insulating case side) 31 . The opening (insulating housing side opening) 31 is in the shape of a cutout, and has a "U" shape when viewed from above.
That is, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6(a), the opening 31 has two side sides 32 and 33 that face each other in parallel, and a back side 45 that connects the back sides of the side sides 32 and 33. , a notch with an open front side.
The vertical wall 37 forming each side of the opening 31 is provided with a groove 40 extending in the longitudinal direction.

On the inner surface of the heat insulating casing 3, there is a cold storage material holding section 42 that holds a large number of cold storage materials 41. That is, there are engaging portions (not shown) on the inner surfaces of the back wall 27 and left and right side walls 28 that constitute the heat insulating casing 3, and the cold storage material 41 is held in the engaging portions. Therefore, three sides of the heat insulating casing 3 are substantially covered with a large number of cold storage materials 41. In this embodiment, it can be said that the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 is covered by the wall of the cool storage material 41.
The area inside the heat insulating casing 3 and covered with the cool storage material 41 becomes the article storage space 43 .

The outer width A of the heat insulating casing 3 is smaller than the inner width B of the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2. The depth C of the outer dimension of the heat insulating casing 3 is smaller than the depth D of the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2. The height E of the heat insulating casing 3 is approximately equal to the height F of the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2.

A cooling device 5 for cooling the inside of the cold storage 1 is provided on the outside of the outer housing 2.
As shown in FIG. 4, the refrigeration device 5 has a compressor 50, a condenser 51, an expansion means 52, and an evaporator 53, which are connected in a ring shape by a pipe 55, and a phase-change refrigerant is contained inside. is enclosed.
By driving the compressor 50, the gaseous refrigerant is compressed, and the refrigerant is cooled and liquefied in the condenser 51. The liquid refrigerant then enters the evaporator 53 via the expansion means 52 and is vaporized. At this time, heat of vaporization is taken away, and the surface temperature of the evaporator 53 is lowered. The vaporized refrigerant returns to the compressor 50 and is compressed again.

In this embodiment, the refrigeration device 5 is divided into two regions as shown in FIG. That is, the compressor 50, condenser 51, and expansion means 52 of the refrigeration device 5 are arranged in the machine box 57, and the evaporator 53 is arranged alone in the housing member 60. Further, a blower 56 is provided below the evaporator 53.
The housing member 60 is a box with an open bottom and is made of a heat insulating material.
In the housing member 60, the evaporator 53 and the blower 56 are placed on one side as shown in FIG.

The closing plate (opening/closing means) 6 is a rectangular plate made of a heat insulating material. The closing plate (opening/closing means) 6 is attached to an opening (opening on the insulation housing side) 31 provided in the top wall 22 of the heat insulating casing 3, and the shape and size of the closing plate 6 are the same as those in the heat insulating casing. This is substantially the same as the opening (opening on the heat insulating case side) provided in the top wall 22 of No. 3. Further, the thickness of the closing plate 6 is approximately equal to the thickness of the top wall 22 of the heat insulating casing 3.
Three side surfaces 38 of the closing plate 6 are provided with protrusions 36 extending in the longitudinal direction.

Next, the positional relationship of each member constituting the cold storage 1 will be explained.
In the cold storage 1 of this embodiment, a heat insulating housing 3 is built into the main body box 11 of the outer housing 2 .
Here, since the outer width A of the heat insulating case 3 is smaller than the inner width B of the cavity 8 of the outer case 2, the inner side surfaces 61a and 61b of the outer case 2 and the outer side of the heat insulating case 3 There are spaces 63a and 63b between the side surfaces 62a and 62b, respectively.
Since the depth C of the external dimension of the heat insulating casing 3 is smaller than the depth D of the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2, there is a gap between the inner back surface 65 of the outer casing 2 and the outer back surface 66 of the heat insulating casing 3. There is also a space 67.
In this embodiment, the heat insulating housing 3 is installed slightly further back than the front opening of the outer housing 2.
Since the height E of the heat insulating casing 3 is equal to the height F of the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2, there is a gap between the top wall 22 of the heat insulating casing 3 and the ceiling surface 70 of the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2. are close together.
Furthermore, most of the openings (outer shell side openings) 21 provided in the top wall 12 of the outer housing 2 and the openings 31 (insulating housing side openings) provided in the top wall 22 of the heat insulating housing 3 match, communicate.

The heat insulating casing 3 is fixed within the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2 by temporary fastening elements such as screws (not shown).

The refrigeration device 5 is placed on the top wall 12 outside the outer housing 2 . The housing member 60 that houses the refrigeration device 5 is installed in the top wall 12 of the outer housing 2 at a position that covers an opening (outer shell side opening) 21 provided in the top wall 12.
Therefore, as shown in FIG. An opening 31 provided in the face wall 22 (opening on the heat insulating case side) is communicated as a communication portion 72 .
However, the closing plate (opening/closing means) 6 is removable, and when the closing plate 6 is attached to the opening 31 on the side of the heat insulating case 3 (opening on the side of the heat insulating case), as shown in FIGS. 72 is closed, and the inside of the housing member 60 and the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 are cut off.

As described above, the shape and size of the closing plate 6 are substantially the same as the opening (opening on the heat insulating case side) 31 provided in the top wall 22 of the heat insulating case 3.
As shown in FIG. 6, protrusions 36 extending in the longitudinal direction are provided on three side surfaces 38 of the closing plate 6. On the other hand, a groove 40 extending in the longitudinal direction is provided in the vertical wall 37 of the opening (insulating housing side opening) 31 provided in the top wall 22.
Therefore, by engaging the protrusions 36 extending in the longitudinal direction provided on the three side surfaces 38 of the closing plate 6 with the grooves 40 of the opening 31 and pushing the closing plate 6 toward the back of the opening 31, the closing plate 6 can be attached to the opening 31.
Further, by pulling the closing plate 6, the closing plate 6 slides along the groove 40, and the closing plate 6 can be removed from the opening 31.

If we pay attention to the joint surface between the closing plate 6 and the opening 31 when it is attached to the opening 31, we can see that the protrusion 36 of the closing plate 6 and the groove 40 of the opening 31 fit together as shown in FIG. 6(b). Therefore, in the top wall 22 of the heat insulating casing 3, the only space that communicates between the inside and outside is the gap created between the vertical wall 37 of the opening 31 and the side surface 38 of the closing plate 6.
In this embodiment, since the joint surface between the closing plate 6 and the opening 31 is an uneven surface, the distance connecting the inside of the housing member 60 and the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 becomes substantially long, and the thermal resistance increases. The amount of heat dissipated between the inside of the member 60 and the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 is reduced.
In this embodiment, each of the protruding stripes 36 on the three side surfaces 38 of the closing plate 6 and the groove 40 on the opening 31 side is one strip, but the number of strips may be larger. Further, the closing plate 6 may have a groove, and the opening 31 side may have a protrusion.

In the housing member 60, the evaporator 53 and the blower 56 are arranged at a position closer to one side as shown in FIG. It is in.

When the door 10 is closed, the front opening of the outer housing 2 is closed as shown in FIG. That is, the main body portion 75 of the door 10 contacts the front opening edge of the outer housing 2 and seals the inside of the outer housing 2.
Further, when the door 10 is closed, the protrusion 73 of the door 10 comes into contact with the front opening edge of the heat insulating case 3, thereby sealing the inside of the heat insulating case 3. In this manner, in this embodiment, the protrusion 73 of the door 10 functions as the door of the heat insulating casing 3.

Next, how to use the cold storage 1 will be explained.
The cold storage 1 of this embodiment is used, for example, for transporting objects that need to be cooled, such as vaccines. For example, as a preparation process for transporting objects that need to be cooled, a cold storage material cooling process of cooling the cold storage material 41 in the cold storage warehouse 1 is performed.
In the cold storage material cooling process, for example, a cold storage box is placed in a house such as a warehouse, and the closing plate (opening/closing means) 6 is removed from the opening 31 on the side of the heat insulating case 3 (opening on the side of the heat insulating case) to open the communication part 72 and store the cool storage material. The inside of the member 60 and the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 are communicated.
In this state, the refrigeration device 5 and the blower 56 are driven.

As a result, the surface temperature of the evaporator 53 decreases. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, air is circulated between the inside of the housing member 60 and the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 by the blower 56.
In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the evaporator 53 and the blower 56 are located at a position closer to one side from the center of the communication section 72, so the air from the blower 56 is directed away from the center of the communication section 72 as shown by the arrow. It passes through a position on one side and enters the inside of the heat insulating casing 3.
Further, the air inside the heat insulating casing 3 passes through a position closer to the other side of the communication section 72 and returns to the housing member 60, and is sucked into the evaporator 53 by the suction force of the blower 56 and cooled.

In this embodiment, air flows between the inside of the housing member 60 and the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 through the communication portion 72 . That is, the air inside the housing member 60 passes through a position closer to one side from the center of the communication part 72 and enters the inside of the heat insulating casing 3, and the air inside the heat insulator casing 3 passes to the other side of the communication part 72. The storage member 60 is then returned to the storage member 60.
Therefore, the forward and return air come into contact within one communication portion 72, and heat is exchanged between them. As a result, cold heat is prevented from being transferred to the outside, and cold heat is less likely to be wasted.

When the cool storage material 41 is sufficiently cooled, the door 10 is opened and the object to be cooled is stored in the article storage space 43 of the heat insulating casing 3.
Before and after this operation, the refrigeration device 5 is stopped, and a shutoff step is carried out in which the closing plate (opening/closing means) 6 is attached to the opening 31 on the side of the heat insulating case 3 (opening on the side of the heat insulating case) and the communication part 72 is closed. do.
Through the shutoff process, the communication portion 72 is closed, and the inside of the housing member 60 and the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 are shut off.
In this state, the cold storage 1 is pushed and moved and placed on a vehicle such as a truck or a container.
The vehicle is then driven to transport materials that need to be cooled, such as vaccines, to the destination.

While being transported, the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 is maintained at a low temperature by the internal cool storage material 41 .
That is, objects that need to be cooled, such as vaccines, are inside the heat insulating casing 3. Further, the heat insulating casing 3 is housed in the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2, and the outer casing 2 also has considerable heat insulation properties. Furthermore, there is a space between the outer casing 2 and the heat insulating casing 3, and there is an air layer in the space.
Therefore, external heat is blocked by the outer casing 2 and further heat insulated by the air layer, so the outside of the heat insulating casing 3 is hardly affected by external heat. Furthermore, the object to be cooled is placed in the heat insulating casing 3 at a position surrounded by the cool storage material 41. Therefore, the temperature of the object to be cooled is maintained at a low temperature.

On the other hand, since the refrigeration device 5 is stopped, there is no evaporation of refrigerant in the evaporator 53, and the evaporator 53 has no cooling capacity. Therefore, heat is conducted from the outside through the pipe 55, and the temperature of the evaporator 53 gradually increases.
However, the closing plate (opening/closing means) 6 is attached to the opening 31 on the side of the heat insulating case 3 (opening on the side of the heat insulating case 3), and the communication part 72 is closed, and the inside of the housing member 60 and the inside of the heat insulating case 3 are The time is cut off.
Therefore, even if the surface temperature of the evaporator 53 increases, the effect on the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 is small. As a result, the temperature of the object to be cooled is maintained at a low temperature for a long period of time.

The cold storage 1 of this embodiment can be transported by being mounted on a vehicle without a power source. It can also maintain a low temperature inside even in places where there is no power supply. In other words, even if there is no power source at the destination where the item to be cooled is transported, the internal low temperature state can be maintained. Moreover, since the inside of the housing member 60 that houses the evaporator 53 and the inside of the heat insulating casing 3 are cut off, it is necessary to maintain a low temperature state compared to the case where the evaporator and the cold storage material are placed in the same space. The amount of cold storage material can be reduced.
The cold storage 1 of this embodiment does not require refilling the cold storage material, and has good workability.
The cold storage 1 of this embodiment has a double structure composed of an outer casing 2 and a heat insulating casing 3, and since there is an air layer between the outer casing 2 and the heat insulating casing 3, the heat insulation performance is improved. The temperature is high, the influence of outside air can be minimized, and the cold storage time can be extended.
Since the cold storage 1 of this embodiment has a structure separated into an outer casing 2 and a heat insulating casing 3, it is possible to ensure rigidity with the outer casing 2 and ensure high heat insulation properties with the heat insulating casing 3. can.
The cold storage 1 of this embodiment can efficiently cool the cold storage material 41 inside by driving the refrigeration device 5 and the blower 56 with the communication section 72 open. Further, by closing the communication portion 72, heat radiation can be suppressed.
According to the cold storage 1 of the present embodiment, it is possible to cool the cold storage material 41 and keep objects that need to be cooled by the cold storage material 41 by itself.
Since the cold storage 1 of the present embodiment has excellent efficiency in maintaining low temperature, it contributes to energy saving, and as a result, it is possible to suppress carbon dioxide emissions.
The size of the cold storage 1 and the amount of cold storage material 41 to be accommodated are arbitrary, and can be designed according to the purpose.

When the cold storage 1 is used for a long period of time, various parts may deteriorate. In the cold storage 1 of this embodiment, the heat insulating casing 3 is made of a vacuum heat insulating material. Vacuum insulation materials have high insulation performance, but if they are damaged, the internal vacuum level may decrease and the insulation performance may decrease. Therefore, it is desirable that the heat insulating housing 3 be replaced regularly.
In this embodiment, the heat insulating casing 3 is fixed within the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2 with screws or the like, so it can be easily removed by removing the screws or the like. Further, there are spaces 63a, 63b, and 67 between the heat-insulating casing 3 and the outer casing 2. Therefore, the work of removing the heat insulating casing 3 can be easily performed.

In the cold storage 1 of this embodiment, the air inside the storage member 60 and the air inside the heat insulating casing 3 flow back and forth through one communication section 72. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and the communication path on the outgoing side and the communication path on the return side may be separated.

A sensor may be provided to detect that the closing plate (opening/closing means) 6 is closed. Further, safety measures may be taken, such as automatically stopping the refrigeration device 5 when the closing plate 6 is closed, or displaying a display prompting the refrigeration device 5 to stop.

In the cold storage 1 of this embodiment, the opening/closing means is plate-shaped and is attached/detached by sliding, but it may be a swinging type opening/closing means such as a damper. In the cold storage box 1 of this embodiment, the opening/closing means is removable, but may not be removable, and the communicating portion 72 may be opened and closed by moving or changing the posture.
Further, it is also possible to employ a configuration in which the opening/closing means is operated by power.
In the cold storage 1 of this embodiment, the plate-shaped opening/closing means is fitted into the top wall 22 of the heat insulating casing 3, but the mounting position of the opening/closing member is not limited to the heat insulating casing 3.
For example, an opening/closing member may be fitted into an opening (outer opening) 21 provided in the top wall 12 of the outer housing 2. An opening/closing member may be provided inside the housing member 60 or inside the heat insulating casing 3.

In the cold storage 1 described above, the door 10 has a rectangular protrusion 73, and the protrusion 73 contacts the front opening edge of the heat insulating case 3 to seal the inside of the heat insulating case 3. In the above-described cold storage 1, the surface of the protrusion 73 is placed against the edge of the front opening of the heat insulating case 3, but the protrusion 73 is inserted into the heat insulating case 3 to close the front opening of the heat insulating case 3. You can.
Alternatively, a configuration may be considered in which the rectangular protrusion 73 of the door 10 is omitted and the main body portion 75 of the door 10 is brought into direct contact with the front opening edge of the heat insulating case 3 to seal the inside of the heat insulating case 3. When adopting this configuration, it is desirable to have a layout in which the front opening of the heat insulating case 3 and the front opening of the main body box 11 are on the same plane.

The cold storage 1 described above has a double structure that further includes an insulating casing 3 inside the outer casing 2, and inside the insulating casing 3, a cold storage material holding section is arranged, and the material to be cooled is An accommodation space (article accommodation space 43) for accommodating is formed, and a closing plate (opening/closing means) 6 is provided in the heat insulating casing 3.
Although the cold storage 1 described above has a double structure composed of the outer casing 2 and the heat insulating casing 3, it may have a single layer structure insulated only by the outer casing 2. When adopting a single layer structure with the outer housing 2, the opening/closing means is attached to the opening (outer opening) 21.
Moreover, as one of the modified examples of the cold storage, it may be a single layer structure of only the heat insulating housing 3 among the structures of the above-described embodiments. In this case, the heat insulating casing 3 of the embodiment described above functions as the outer casing of the present invention. In the case of a single-layer structure using the heat insulating casing 3, it is necessary to increase the rigidity of the heat insulating casing 3.
Furthermore, a multiple structure may be used.
All of the spaces 63a, 63b, and 67 between the outer casing 2 and the heat insulating casing 3 are not necessarily required. Further, the spaces 63a, 63b, and 67 between the outer casing 2 and the heat insulating casing 3 may not exist at all.
The top wall 22 of the heat insulating casing 3 and the ceiling surface 70 of the cavity 8 of the outer casing 2 may be separated from each other.

In the cold storage 1 described above, all of the refrigeration device 5 is placed on the top wall 12 of the outer housing 2, but a part or all of the refrigeration device 5 may be placed in another location.
For example, only the housing member 60 of the refrigeration device 5 may be placed on the top wall 12 of the outer casing 2, and other equipment may be placed on the back side of the outer casing 2.
Further, the housing member 60 of the refrigeration device 5 may be placed on the lower surface side or the back surface side of the outer housing 2.

The cold storage 1 of the embodiment described above has an outer housing 2 and a refrigeration device 5, and a storage member 60 that is a space in which an evaporator 53 is placed, and an insulating housing 3 that is an area in which a cold storage material 41 is placed. The inside of the inner or outer housing 2 communicates through a communication section 72, and has a closing plate 6 that is an opening/closing means for opening and closing the communication section 72.
In the cold storage 1 described above, there is a space outside the outer casing 2 in which the evaporator 53 is placed, but even if there is a space in the heat-insulating casing 3 or inside the outer casing 2 in which the evaporator 53 is placed, good.
For example, a cold storage having a configuration in which the evaporator 53 is disposed within the outer casing 2 is as follows. A cold storage with this configuration is, for example, a cold storage that includes an outer casing and a refrigeration device having an evaporator, and a partition is provided inside the outer casing to provide a space where the evaporator is placed and a cold storage material. It is divided into areas. There is a communication section between the space where the evaporator is placed and the area where the cold storage material is placed, and the communication section is provided with an opening/closing means.
In the cold storage with this configuration, a partition is provided between the space where the evaporator is placed and the area where the cold storage material is placed, and a communication portion is formed in the partition. There is also an opening/closing means for opening and closing the communication section. Note that it is desirable that the partition be a heat insulating wall.

For example, a cold storage having a structure in which an evaporator 53 is disposed within a heat insulating case is as follows. A cold storage with this configuration is, for example, a cold storage that further has an insulating casing inside the external casing, and a partition is provided inside the insulating casing to separate the space where the evaporator is placed and the area where the cold storage material is placed. It is divided. There is a communication section between the space where the evaporator is placed and the area where the cold storage material is placed, and the communication section is provided with an opening/closing means.
Also in the cold storage with this configuration, a partition is provided between the space where the evaporator is placed and the area where the cold storage material is placed, and a communication portion is formed in the partition. There is also an opening/closing means for opening and closing the communication section. Note that it is desirable that the partition be a heat insulating wall.
Even in the case of the cold storage having the configuration in which the evaporator 53 is disposed within the outer housing 2 or the heat insulating case described above, the same usage method as the cold storage 1 of the above-described embodiment can be adopted. That is, it is possible to drive the refrigeration device with the opening/closing means open to cool the cold storage material by the evaporator, stop the refrigeration device, close the opening/closing means, and move the cold storage.

1 Cold storage box 2 Outer housing 3 Insulated housing 5 Refrigeration device 6 Closing plate (opening/closing means)
12 Top wall 21 opening (outer side opening)
22 Top wall 31 Opening (insulated housing side opening)
36 Projections 40 Grooves 41 Cold storage material 42 Cold storage material holding section 43 Article storage space 53 Evaporator 56 Air blower 60 Storage members 63a, 63b, 67 Space 72 Communication section

Claims (8)

It has an outer casing that forms an accommodation space inside for accommodating objects that need to be cooled, and a refrigeration device,
A cold storage material holding part for holding a cold storage material is provided in the outer housing,
The refrigeration device includes an evaporator, and a housing member that accommodates the evaporator.
The accommodating member is arranged outside the outer casing, the space inside the accommodating member and the accommodating space inside the outer casing communicate with each other through a communicating section, and the accommodating member has an opening/closing means for opening and closing the communicating section. Features a cold storage. The outer casing further includes a heat insulating casing, the cold storage material holding section is disposed inside the heat insulating casing, the accommodation space is formed, and the opening/closing means is provided in the heat insulating casing. A cold storage according to claim 1, further comprising: a cold storage according to claim 1; The top wall of the outer casing has an outer opening, the top wall of the heat insulating casing has a heat insulating casing side opening, and the inner surface of the outer casing is in contact with the top surface of the heat insulating casing;
The housing member is installed on the outer casing,
A space within the housing member and the housing space formed within the heat insulating casing communicate with each other via the outer opening and the opening on the heat insulating casing to form the communicating portion. The cold storage described in 2. 3. The cold storage box according to claim 2, wherein there is a space between an inner surface of the outer casing and at least one outer surface of the heat insulating casing. 2. The cold storage box according to claim 1, wherein the communication portion is a single ventilation path, and air in the heat insulating case and air in the housing member enter and exit through the ventilation path. The cold storage box according to claim 1, wherein the opening/closing means is a removable and/or movable closing plate. The closing plate closes the communication part by being inserted into the communication part,
7. The cold storage box according to claim 6, wherein a contact surface between the closing plate and the communicating portion has an uneven shape. It has an outer casing that forms an accommodation space inside for accommodating objects that need to be cooled, and a refrigeration device,
A cold storage material holding part that holds a cold storage material is provided in the accommodation space, and the refrigeration device has an evaporator;
The evaporator cools the air sent to the accommodation space,
A method for transporting objects that require cooling using a cold storage equipped with an opening/closing means for blocking air flow to the storage space, the method comprising:
a cold storage material cooling step of placing the cold storage in a predetermined position and driving the refrigeration device with the opening/closing means open to cool the cold storage material with an evaporator;
a shutoff step of stopping the refrigeration device and closing the opening/closing means;
A method for transporting objects that require cooling, characterized by carrying out a moving step of moving the cold storage.

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