JP3657668B2 - Beverage cooler - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a bottle-type beverage cooler provided with a compression-type refrigeration apparatus.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As a beverage cooler, for example, a bottle-type beverage cooler equipped with a compression-type refrigeration apparatus as described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 62-38571 is generally known.
[0003]
FIG. 3 shows an outline of the structure of a conventional bottle-type beverage cooler. The main part of the beverage cooler stores a compressor 11, a condenser 12, an expansion valve (not shown), a compression refrigeration apparatus 15 having an evaporation pipe 6, and drinking water 5, and is poured into the bottom. The beverage tank 3 is provided with a valve 10. On the outer periphery of the beverage tank 3, the evaporation pipe 6 is wound around almost the entire surface, and the outside is further covered with the heat insulating material 2.
[0004]
The gas-liquid mixed refrigerant whose temperature has been reduced by the expansion valve is supplied to the evaporation pipe 6 from the lower end side of the outer periphery of the beverage tank 3, and exchanges heat with the internal drinking water via the barrel side wall of the beverage tank 3. After being vaporized, it flows into the compressor 11 from the upper end side of the outer periphery of the body portion of the beverage tank 3 and returns to the expansion valve via the condenser 12. Further, a heat sensitive pipe 7 is attached by welding or the like to a portion near the upper end of the evaporation pipe 6, and one end of an aluminum heat transfer plate 14 is fixed in close contact with the outside of the heat sensitive pipe 7. The other end of the heat transfer plate 13 is fixed in close contact with the vicinity of the upper end of the outer periphery of the body portion of the beverage tank 3. A temperature sensor 8 made of a resistance temperature detector is accommodated in the heat sensitive pipe 7, and the refrigeration apparatus 15 is controlled by an output signal of the temperature sensor 8.
[0005]
Below, the process of cooling drinking water with this drink cooling machine is demonstrated. When the operation of the refrigeration apparatus 15 is started, the gas-liquid mixed refrigerant whose temperature has been lowered by the expansion valve is supplied to the evaporation pipe 6 from the lower end side of the outer periphery of the body of the beverage tank 3, via the body side wall of the beverage tank 3. It flows to the upper end while vaporizing by exchanging heat with the internal drinking water 5. While the temperature of the drinking water 5 inside the beverage tank 3 is high, the refrigerant is completely vaporized in the lower part of the beverage tank by heat exchange with the drinking water, loses the cooling capacity, and is compressed from the vicinity of the upper end of the beverage tank 3 Return to vessel 11. As the temperature of the drinking water 5 gradually decreases, the gas-liquid mixed state region of the refrigerant expands above the evaporation pipe 6 so that cooling is also performed via the upper wall surface of the body portion of the beverage tank. . In this manner, when the gas-liquid mixed state region of the refrigerant reaches the upper end portion of the evaporation pipe 6, the heat sensitive pipe 7 attached in the vicinity of the upper end portion of the evaporation pipe 6 is cooled, and this is cooled by the internal temperature sensor 8. Once detected, the control device 9 operates to temporarily stop the operation of the refrigeration apparatus 15.
[0006]
Even if the region of the gas-liquid mixture state of the refrigerant reaches the upper end of the evaporation pipe 6, it is not possible to completely cool all the drinking water in the beverage tank 3 in a short time. The temperature of the drinking water inside the beverage tank 3 is transmitted to the heat sensitive pipe 7 via the heat transfer plate 14, and the temperature rises. This is detected by the internal temperature sensor 8, and the control device 9 works to restart the operation of the refrigeration device 15. Since the drinking water in the beverage tank has already been cooled to some extent after the restart of the operation, the region in the gas-liquid mixture state of the refrigerant reaches the upper end of the evaporation pipe 6 in a short time compared to the previous time. Then, the refrigeration apparatus 15 stops again. By repeating such an operation 3 to 4 times, the whole drinking water in the beverage tank 3 is gradually cooled to a predetermined temperature.
[0007]
In addition, although the method of detecting only the temperature of the drinking water 5 inside the drink tank 3 and controlling the freezing apparatus 15 is also considered, since there exists temperature distribution inside the drink tank 3, in the method, the drink tank 3 There is a disadvantage that freezing of the lower drinking water starts before the temperature of the upper drinking water drops to a predetermined temperature. Therefore, in the beverage cooler having the bottle-type structure as described above, it is indispensable to control the refrigeration apparatus by detecting the temperature of the evaporation pipe.
[0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the conventional beverage cooler as described above, it is necessary to repeat the operation and stop of the refrigeration apparatus in a short cycle until the entire beverage in the beverage tank is cooled to a predetermined temperature, and the time required for cooling is reduced. In addition, there is a problem that it is not preferable in terms of durability of the refrigeration apparatus.
[0009]
In view of such problems, the object of the present invention is to improve the cooling capacity of the upper beverage in the beverage tank to shorten the time required for cooling and extend the operation cycle of the refrigeration apparatus. It is providing the drink cooler which can aim at the improvement of durability.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The beverage cooler of the present invention is
A compression refrigeration apparatus comprising a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve and an evaporation pipe;
A beverage tank in which the evaporation pipe is wound in close contact with the outer periphery of the body,
A heat-sensitive pipe that contacts the vicinity of the upper end of the evaporation pipe, contacts the vicinity of the upper end of the body side wall of the beverage tank or is attached through a good thermal conductor, and houses a temperature sensor therein,
A control device for controlling the operation of the refrigeration apparatus based on an output signal of the temperature sensor,
The refrigeration apparatus is configured to supply a refrigerant to the evaporation pipe from the lower end side of the outer periphery of the beverage tank,
The evaporation pipe is composed of a plurality of portions having different contact areas between the beverage tank and the evaporation pipe per unit area on the outer peripheral surface of the beverage tank at the upper and lower portions of the beverage tank, and the contact area at the lower portion is It is characterized by being small compared to the contact area.
[0011]
Further, the evaporation pipe is composed of two parts having different cross-sectional shapes at the upper part and the lower part of the beverage tank, the lower part is a circular cross section, the upper part is a flat cross section, and the flat surface is in contact with the outer periphery of the beverage tank. If it winds like this, it can be set as the evaporation pipe which satisfies said conditions.
[0012]
Below, the process of cooling drinking water with this drink cooling machine is demonstrated.
[0013]
When the operation of the refrigeration apparatus is started, the refrigerant in the gas-liquid mixed state whose temperature has dropped by the expansion valve is supplied to the evaporation pipe from the lower end side of the body portion of the beverage tank, and the internal drinking water is passed through the body side wall of the beverage tank. It exchanges heat with it and flows to the upper end side while gradually evaporating. While the water temperature inside the beverage tank is high, the refrigerant is completely vaporized in the lower part of the evaporation pipe, loses the cooling capacity, and returns to the compressor from the upper end of the beverage tank. As the water temperature inside the beverage tank gradually decreases, the gas-liquid mixed region of the refrigerant expands to the upper part of the evaporation pipe, and cooling is performed through the upper body side wall of the beverage tank. In the upper part of the beverage tank, the contact area between the beverage tank and the evaporation pipe per unit area on the outer surface of the beverage tank is larger than the lower part, so the amount of heat exchange between the refrigerant and the drinking water per unit area increases. As a result, the speed at which the region of the refrigerant in the gas-liquid mixed state expands upward becomes moderate. Therefore, cooling is performed in the upper part of the beverage tank for a sufficient period of time until the gas-liquid mixed state region of the refrigerant reaches the upper end of the evaporation pipe. In addition, as a result of the contact area of the evaporation pipe being set to be relatively small in the lower part of the beverage tank, freezing does not occur in the lower part during this period. When the gas-liquid mixture state of the refrigerant reaches the upper end of the evaporator tube, the heat sensitive pipe is attached in contact with the upper end of the evaporator tube, so the heat sensitive pipe is cooled and accommodated in the heat sensitive pipe. A temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the heat-sensitive pipe activates the control device to temporarily stop the refrigeration apparatus.
[0014]
When the refrigeration unit is first stopped, the drinking water at the top of the cooling tank has not yet been completely cooled. For this reason, when the refrigeration system is stopped and the circulation of the refrigerant stops, the heat sensitive pipe is attached to the vicinity of the upper end of the body side wall of the beverage tank or attached via a good heat conductor. The temperature of the drinking water is transmitted to the heat sensitive pipe via the attachment portion and detected by the temperature sensor, and the operation of the refrigeration apparatus is restarted by operating the control device. When the operation of the refrigeration apparatus is resumed, the region of the refrigerant in the gas-liquid mixed state again expands upward from the lower part of the evaporator tube. At this stage, since the water temperature in the beverage tank has already decreased considerably, the gas-liquid mixed region of the refrigerant expands to the upper part of the evaporator tube in a much shorter time than the first time. If the gas-liquid mixed state area of the refrigerant expands to the upper part of the evaporation pipe, the water temperature in the beverage tank is higher in the upper part than in the lower part, and the contact area between the beverage tank and the evaporator pipe is lower in the upper part. Therefore, the speed at which the region of the gas-liquid mixed state of the refrigerant expands upward is slightly moderate. Thereby, the drinking water in the middle and upper part of the beverage tank is cooled again. In this way, when the region of the gas-liquid mixture state of the refrigerant reaches the upper end of the evaporation pipe, the refrigerating apparatus is stopped again by the control device.
[0015]
By following the above process, in the case of a general beverage cooler having an internal volume of 3 l and an inner diameter of about 160 mm, the beverage tank is usually divided into one long cycle operation cycle and one short cycle operation cycle. The whole inside is cooled to a predetermined temperature or lower. As a result, after a short cycle of operation, even if the water temperature at the top of the beverage tank is transmitted to the heat sensitive pipe, the control device will no longer operate, and after that, the drinking water consumption or time associated with the consumption of drinking water Along with the progress, the refrigeration apparatus is intermittently operated for a short period of time.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
1 (a) and 1 (b) show the structure of a beverage cooler according to the present invention, wherein (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line YY of (a). In the figure, 3 is a beverage tank, 15 is a freezing device, 11 is a compressor, 12 is a condenser, 13 is an expansion valve, 6 is an evaporation pipe, 7 is a heat sensitive pipe, 8 is a temperature sensor, and 9 is a control device.
[0017]
A vertically long metallic beverage tank 3 is installed in the housing 1, a pouring valve 10 is attached to the side of the housing 1, and the pouring valve 10 is connected to the bottom of the beverage tank 3 by piping. Yes. An evaporation pipe 6 is tightly wound around the outer periphery of the body of the beverage tank 3, and the evaporation pipe 6 is a compression type together with a compressor 11, a condenser 12 and an expansion valve 13 housed in the bottom of the housing 1. A refrigeration apparatus 15 is configured. The heat-sensitive pipe 7 is attached to the vicinity of the upper end portion of the body portion of the beverage tank 3 by welding along the outer periphery of the body portion, and is also welded to the upper end surface of the evaporation pipe 6 at the same time. A rubber tube 16 is inserted into the heat sensitive pipe 7, and a temperature sensor 8 made of a resistance temperature detector is accommodated in the rubber tube 16. A space between the beverage tank 3 and the evaporation pipe 6 and the housing 1 is filled with a heat insulating material 2. In addition, a control device 9 that controls the refrigeration device 15 based on the output signal of the temperature sensor 8 is housed inside the housing 1.
[0018]
The evaporating pipe 6 is composed of two parts 6a and 6b which are different from each other in the upper half and the lower half on the outer periphery of the body of the beverage tank 3, and the lower evaporating pipe 6a has a circular cross section. The evaporation pipe 6 b has a flat cross section and is wound so that the flat surface is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the body portion of the beverage tank 3.
[0019]
Next, the process of cooling drinking water by this beverage cooler will be described. First, when the beverage tank 3 is filled with the drinking water 5 and the operation of the refrigeration apparatus 15 is started, the refrigerant in the gas-liquid mixed state whose temperature has dropped by the expansion valve 13 is discharged from the lower end side of the trunk portion of the beverage tank 3 to the lower evaporation pipe 6a. And exchanges heat with the drinking water 5 inside through the trunk side wall of the beverage tank 3 and flows to the upper end side while vaporizing. While the water temperature inside the beverage tank 3 is high, the refrigerant is completely vaporized in the region of the lower evaporation pipe 6a, loses the cooling capacity, and returns to the compressor 11 from the upper end portion of the beverage tank 3. As the temperature of the drinking water 5 gradually decreases, the region in the gas-liquid mixture state of the refrigerant expands to the inside of the upper evaporation pipe 6b, and cooling is performed also through the trunk side wall at the top of the beverage tank 3. become. Since the cross section of the upper evaporation pipe 6b is flat and is wound so that the flat face is in contact with the outer periphery of the body portion of the beverage tank 3, the upper evaporation pipe 6b is connected to the evaporation pipe per unit area of the outer peripheral surface of the beverage tank 3. Since the contact area is large, the speed at which the region of the refrigerant in the gas-liquid mixed state expands upward is moderate. In this way, after cooling for a sufficient time in the upper part of the beverage tank 3, the region in the gas-liquid mixed state of the refrigerant reaches the upper end of the evaporation pipe 6b. As a result, when the heat-sensitive pipe 7 is cooled, the rubber tube 16 is inserted into the heat-sensitive pipe 7 and heat is hardly transmitted from the heat-sensitive pipe 7 to the temperature sensor 8. After that, the temperature sensor 8 detects the temperature of the heat sensitive pipe 7, operates the control device 9, and temporarily stops the refrigeration device 15.
[0020]
At the stage when the refrigeration apparatus 15 is first stopped, the drinking water in the upper part of the beverage tank 3 has not been completely cooled. For this reason, when the refrigerating apparatus 15 is stopped and the circulation of the refrigerant is stopped, the temperature of the drinking water in the upper part of the beverage tank 3 is transmitted to the thermal pipe 7 through the welded portion, and after a certain time delay, the temperature sensor 8 is activated. The temperature of the heat sensitive pipe 7 is detected, the control device 9 is operated, and the operation of the refrigeration device 15 is resumed.
[0021]
Hereinafter, as described in the latter part of the section of the means, after the operation of the second cycle of the refrigeration apparatus is performed, the state shifts to the steady operation state.
[0022]
FIG. 2 shows an example of a comparison between a beverage cooler based on the present invention and a conventional beverage cooler with respect to the process of cooling drinking water and the operating status (ON-OFF) of the refrigeration apparatus. In the figure, the vertical axis represents the water temperature at a position corresponding to 30% of the depth from the water surface to the bottom surface at the center of the beverage tank, and the horizontal axis represents the elapsed time since the start of the operation of the refrigeration apparatus. . Moreover, A represents the change in the water temperature by the beverage cooler according to the present invention, and B represents the change in the water temperature by the conventional beverage cooler. In the beverage cooler according to the present invention, the water temperature drops to near the target temperature θ in the first long-cycle operation cycle, and reaches the target temperature θ in the next short-cycle operation cycle. On the other hand, in the conventional beverage cooler, the short cycle operation cycle is repeated three more times, and then the target temperature θ is reached later than A by a time ΔT.
[0023]
【The invention's effect】
In the beverage cooler of the present invention, as a result of increasing the contact area of the evaporation pipe in the upper part of the beverage tank as compared with the lower part, the heat exchange amount in the upper part of the beverage tank is increased, and the drinking water is cooled with a relatively few operation cycles. It becomes possible to do. It has become possible to reduce the time required to cool the drinking water first. Moreover, as a result of the operation cycle of the refrigeration apparatus becoming longer, the effect of improving the durability of the refrigeration apparatus can be obtained.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of a beverage cooler according to the present invention. (A) is a vertical sectional view, and (b) is a horizontal sectional view of a YY portion.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a process for cooling drinking water, in which a beverage cooler based on the present invention is compared with a conventional beverage cooler.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a conventional beverage cooler.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Housing | casing, 2 ... Heat insulating material, 3 ... Beverage tank, 5 ... Drinking water, 6 ... Evaporation pipe, 6a ... Lower evaporation pipe, 6b ... Upper evaporation pipe , 7 ... thermal pipe, 8 ... temperature sensor, 9 ... control device, 11 ... compressor, 12 ... condenser, 13 ... expansion valve, 15 ... freezing device, 16: Rubber tube.

Claims (2)

A compression refrigeration apparatus comprising a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve and an evaporation pipe;
A beverage tank in which the evaporation pipe is wound in close contact with the outer periphery of the body,
A heat-sensitive pipe that contacts the vicinity of the upper end of the evaporation pipe, contacts the vicinity of the upper end of the body side wall of the beverage tank or is attached through a good thermal conductor, and houses a temperature sensor therein,
A control device for controlling the operation of the refrigeration apparatus based on an output signal of the temperature sensor,
The refrigeration apparatus is configured to supply a refrigerant to the evaporation pipe from the lower end side of the outer periphery of the beverage tank,
The evaporation pipe is composed of a plurality of portions having different contact areas between the beverage tank and the evaporation pipe per unit area on the outer peripheral surface of the beverage tank at the upper and lower portions of the beverage tank, and the contact area at the lower portion is A beverage cooler characterized by being smaller than the contact area. The evaporation pipe is composed of two parts having different cross-sectional shapes at the upper and lower parts of the outer peripheral surface of the beverage tank, the lower part has a circular cross section, the upper part has a flat cross section, and the flat surface is a beverage. The beverage cooler according to claim 1, wherein the beverage cooler is wound so as to be in contact with the outer periphery of the tank.

Images