JP5659948B2 - Vending machine cooling system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cooling device for a vending machine, and more particularly to a vending machine that sells a product such as a canned beverage or a beverage containing a plastic bottle, and a product in a product storage of the vending machine. The present invention relates to a cooling device that cools a product storage area for storing products.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a cooling device of a vending machine that sells products such as canned beverages and beverages in plastic bottles, those equipped with a refrigerant circuit are known. The refrigerant circuit is configured by sequentially connecting an evaporator, a compressor, a condenser, and an expansion mechanism through a refrigerant pipe, and the refrigerant is sealed inside. The evaporator is disposed on the inner bottom surface of the commodity storage, which is a heat insulating structure of the vending machine. This evaporator cools the internal air (internal atmosphere) of the product storage box by evaporating the supplied refrigerant. The compressor is disposed inside the vending machine main body and outside the product storage, for example, in the machine room. The compressor sucks the refrigerant evaporated by the evaporator, compresses the sucked refrigerant and compresses it at high temperature and high pressure. In this state, the liquid is discharged. Like the compressor, the condenser is disposed in a place (machine room or the like) in the vending machine main body and outside the commodity storage. This condenser condenses the refrigerant discharged from the compressor by cooling it with ambient air. Like the compressor and the condenser, the expansion mechanism is disposed in a place (machine room or the like) inside the vending machine main body and outside the commodity storage. This expansion mechanism is for adiabatically expanding the refrigerant condensed in the condenser by reducing the pressure.

  In such a refrigerant circuit, the refrigerant circulates to cool the ambient air around the evaporator, and the air cooled by the drive of the internal fan disposed in the product storage circulates inside the product storage. As a result, the product stored in the product storage is cooled.

  And the cooling device which further provided the cold storage unit in addition to the said structure is proposed by patent document 1. FIG. The cold storage unit is configured by immersing one end of a heat transfer means such as a heat pipe in water stored in a water storage tank. The other end of the heat pipe is thermally connected to the evaporator of the refrigerant circuit. Thereby, a cold storage unit ice-produces the water stored by the water storage tank by using an evaporator as a cold heat source by circulating a refrigerant in a refrigerant circuit.

  In a cooling device equipped with such a cold storage unit, in principle, the refrigerant is circulated in the refrigerant circuit, the ambient air is cooled by the evaporator, and the air cooled by the driving of the internal blower fan is stored inside the commodity storage. In the specified peak power time period, the compressor is stopped and the ambient air is cooled using ice made by the cold storage unit, and the cooled air is driven by the internal fan and the product is stored. It is made to circulate inside the storage.

JP-A-7-141556

  However, in the cooling device described above, in principle, the refrigerant is circulated in the refrigerant circuit, the ambient air is cooled by the evaporator, and the air cooled by the driving of the internal fan is circulated inside the commodity storage. During the peak power hours, the compressor is stopped and the ambient air is cooled using ice made by the cold storage unit, and the air cooled by driving the internal fan is circulated inside the product storage. Therefore, even if it is possible to stop energizing the compressor during the peak power hours, it is necessary to drive the internal fan, and as a result, it is difficult to sufficiently reduce power consumption. there were.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a cooling device for a vending machine that can favorably reduce power consumption.

  In order to achieve the above object, a vending machine cooling apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention includes an evaporator, a compressor that sucks and compresses refrigerant evaporated by the evaporator, and a refrigerant compressed by the compressor. A condenser for condensing the refrigerant and an expansion mechanism for adiabatically expanding the refrigerant condensed in the condenser are sequentially connected by refrigerant piping, and the enclosed refrigerant is circulated to store the evaporator as a cold heat source. In a vending machine cooling device that includes a refrigerant circuit that cools the stored cold storage material, and that cools the product storage area for storing products in the product storage of the heat insulating structure, using the cooled cold storage material, A condensing part thermally connected to the cold storage material, and an evaporating part disposed in a heat dissipating part above the product storage area in the product storage, the condensing part and the evaporation part Phase change of working fluid enclosed between Further comprising heat transfer means for transferring the cold heat of the cold accumulating material in heat dissipation area by circulating while being characterized.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the cooling device for a vending machine according to the first aspect, wherein the heat transfer means is configured such that the evaporation section has a gap between the evaporation section and the condensation section. It is provided on the lower side.

  The vending machine cooling device according to claim 3 of the present invention is the vending machine cooling device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cold storage material is water, and the refrigerant circuit is water stored in the storage container. It is characterized by cooling to ice.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vending machine cooling device according to the third aspect, wherein the vending machine cooling device is thermally connected to a refrigerant pipe connecting the evaporator and the compressor in the refrigerant circuit. And a condenser for condensing water vapor around itself using the cold heat of the refrigerant passing through the refrigerant pipe and storing it in the storage container as water.

  According to the present invention, a heat transfer means comprising a condensing part thermally connected to the cold storage material, and an evaporating part disposed in a heat radiation part above the product storage area in the product storage, Since the working fluid enclosed between the condensing part and the evaporating part is circulated while changing the phase, the cold heat of the regenerator material is transmitted to the heat radiation part, so that the air cooled by natural convection is circulated in the product storage Thus, the product can be cooled satisfactorily without driving the air blowing means. Therefore, there is an effect that power consumption can be favorably reduced.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where an internal structure of a vending machine to which a cooling device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied is viewed from the front. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view showing the case where the internal structure of the vending machine to which the cooling device according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied is viewed from the side.

  Exemplary embodiments of a vending machine cooling device according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  1 and 2 each show a vending machine to which a cooling device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied, and FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a case where the internal structure of the vending machine is viewed from the front. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view showing the internal structure of the vending machine as viewed from the side. The vending machine illustrated here includes a main body cabinet 1 and a cooling device 10.

  The main body cabinet 1 has a rectangular shape with an open front surface. The main body cabinet 1 is provided with a commodity storage 2 inside thereof, and an outer door 3 and an inner door 4 are provided on the front surface thereof.

  The commodity storage 2 is for storing commodities such as canned drinks and plastic bottled drinks in a state maintained at a desired temperature, and has a heat insulating structure. The outer door 3 is for opening and closing the front opening of the main body cabinet 1. The inner door 4 is for opening and closing the front surface of the commodity storage 2 and has a heat insulating structure.

  The product storage 2 is provided with a product storage rack 5 and a carry-out shooter 6. The merchandise storage rack 5 is disposed in the merchandise storage area 2a of the merchandise container 2, and is used to store the merchandise in a manner arranged in the vertical direction. The upper area of the product storage rack 5 communicates with a product input port (not shown) for inputting products. On the other hand, a delivery mechanism (not shown) is provided at the bottom of the product storage rack 5. The payout mechanism is for paying out the products at the bottom of the product group stored in the product storage rack 5 one by one. The carry-out shooter 6 is for guiding the product delivered from the delivery mechanism to the transport mechanism 7 through the product exit 4 a provided in the inner door 4. The transport mechanism 7 receives the product that has passed through the product exit 4 a and transports the product received by being driven to the product take-out port 3 a of the outer door 3.

  The cooling device 10 includes a refrigerant circuit 20, a heat transfer means 30, an internal blower fan F, and a condenser 40.

  The refrigerant circuit 20 has a refrigerant (for example, R134a) enclosed therein, and the compressor 21, the condenser 22, the expansion mechanism 23, and the evaporator 24 are sequentially connected by a refrigerant pipe 25 to form an annular shape. .

  The compressor 21 is arrange | positioned in the machine room 8 in the main body cabinet 1, as shown in FIG. The machine room 8 is a room inside the main body cabinet 1 and partitioned from the product storage 2 and above the product storage 2. The compressor 21 sucks the refrigerant through the suction port, compresses the sucked refrigerant, puts it in a high temperature and high pressure state, and discharges it from the discharge port.

  The condenser 22 is disposed in the machine room 8 similarly to the compressor 21. The condenser 22 condenses the refrigerant that passes therethrough. More specifically, the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 21 and discharged from the discharge port and sent out through the refrigerant pipe 25 is condensed by exchanging heat with ambient air.

  The expansion mechanism 23 is disposed in the machine room 8 similarly to the compressor 21 and the condenser 22. The expansion mechanism 23 is composed of, for example, an expansion valve or a capillary tube, and decompresses the refrigerant supplied from the condenser 22 to adiabatic expansion.

  The evaporator 24 is disposed inside the commodity storage 2, and more specifically, is disposed in a state of being immersed in water stored in the storage container 26. The storage container 26 is a box-shaped container formed of stainless steel, plastic, or the like with an open top surface, and is provided above the product storage area 2a (product storage rack 5) via a support member (not shown). The storage container 26 stores water as a cold storage material. In the present embodiment, water is exemplified as an example of the cold storage material. However, the present invention is not limited to water, and for example, an antifreeze liquid or the like can be used. In addition, the volume of the storage container 26 has a size that can store enough cold storage material (water) to cool the interior of the product storage container 2 to a desired temperature, and a sufficient amount of water. Is stored.

  In such a refrigerant circuit 20, when the compressor 21 is driven, the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 21 is sucked and circulated by the compressor 21 through the condenser 22, the expansion mechanism 23 and the evaporator 24. It will be. As a result, the refrigerant that has been compressed by the compressor 21 and then condensed by the condenser 22 and adiabatically expanded by the expansion mechanism 23 passes through the evaporator 24 and evaporates by exchanging heat with water, thereby cooling the water. And change state to ice.

  The heat transfer means 30 is constituted by a heat pipe made of a wicked copper pipe having a tube diameter of about 8 to 12 mm in which a working fluid such as water or alcohol is enclosed, and has a condensing unit 31 and an evaporating unit 32. Yes.

  The condensing unit 31 is configured at one end of the heat pipe, and is connected to the bottom surface of the bottom of the storage container 26 via a heat receiving plate 34 formed of a metal material having excellent thermal conductivity such as copper or aluminum. It is. Thereby, the condensing part 31 is thermally connected to the water (cold storage material) of the storage container 26.

  The evaporation unit 32 is configured at the other end of the heat pipe, and is not shown in the heat radiation part 2b below the condensing unit 31 and above the product storage area 2a (product storage rack 5). It is provided via a support member. The evaporation unit 32 includes a plurality of radiating fin members 35 and can exchange heat with ambient air via the radiating fin members 35. Further, the evaporation unit 32 is provided with a gap S between the evaporation unit 32 and the condensation unit 31.

  In such a heat transfer means 30, the working fluid is condensed by heat exchange with ice (water) through the heat receiving plate 34 in the condensing unit 31, and the condensed working fluid is condensed into the evaporation unit 32 by capillary action. Moving. The working fluid evaporates by exchanging heat with the surrounding air through the radiating fin member 35 in the evaporation unit 32, and the evaporated working fluid moves to the condensing unit 31. That is, the heat transfer means 30 transmits the cold heat of ice (water) to the heat radiation part 2b by circulating the working fluid sealed between the condensing part 31 and the evaporation part 32 while changing the phase.

  The internal blower fan F is disposed on the lower side of the evaporation unit 32 constituting the heat transfer means 30 and on the upper side of the product storage area 2a (product storage rack 5). The internal blower fan F is a blower that sends the air in the heat radiating part 2b (air around the evaporation unit 32) toward the lower product storage area 2a when driven by a drive command.

  The condenser 40 is disposed on the upper side of the storage container 26 and is thermally connected to the refrigerant pipe 25 that connects the evaporator 24 and the compressor 21 in the refrigerant circuit 20. The condenser 40 condenses the water vapor around itself using the cold heat of the refrigerant that evaporates in the evaporator 24 and passes through the refrigerant pipe 25 and stores it in the storage container 26 as water.

  In the cooling device 10 having the above-described configuration, the product in the product storage area 2a can be cooled as follows. In addition, as a premise for cooling the product in the product storage area 2a, it is desirable to perform an operation (cool storage material cooling operation) for cooling the cold storage material in a predetermined time zone set in advance such as a midnight time zone.

  Such a cool storage material cooling operation is performed by driving the compressor 21 and circulating the refrigerant through the refrigerant circuit 20. As a result, the water stored in the storage container 26 is cooled as the refrigerant evaporates in the evaporator 24 and is changed into ice and stored. After completion of the regenerator cooling operation, the compressor 21 is stopped.

  The cold heat of the ice produced by the regenerator cooling operation is transmitted through the heat transfer means 30 to the heat radiating part 2b where the evaporation section 32 is disposed. In the heat radiation part 2 b, the ambient air around the evaporation unit 32 is cooled via the heat radiation fin member 35. Here, since the heat radiation part 2b is above the product storage area 2a, the cooled air naturally moves downward due to the density difference from the air in the product storage area 2a, and the product storage area 2a The product stored in the product storage rack 5 is cooled by passing. On the other hand, the air in the product storage area 2a moves upward, is cooled by the heat radiation portion 2b, and then naturally moves downward due to the density difference from the air in the product storage area 2a. As described above, in the commodity storage 2, air cooled by natural convection can be circulated.

  By the way, when the product replenishment for the product storage rack 5 is performed, it is necessary to perform a pull-down operation for rapidly cooling the internal temperature of the product storage 2. When performing such pull-down operation, a drive command is given to the internal blower fan F to drive it. As a result, the air in the heat radiating portion 2b, that is, the air cooled in the evaporation section 32 is sent downward, and as a result, the internal air circulates inside the product storage box 2 and the products in the product storage area 2a are rapidly circulated. Can be cooled to.

  According to the vending machine cooling apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment as described above, the condensing unit 31 thermally connected to the cold storage material (water or ice), and the product storage area in the product storage 2 The heat transfer means 30 including the evaporation part 32 disposed in the heat radiation part 2b above 2a circulates the working fluid between the condensation part 31 and the evaporation part 32 while changing the phase, and from ice. Therefore, the air cooled by natural convection in the product container 2 can be circulated. Thereby, even if the internal fan F which is a ventilation means is not driven, the product can be cooled satisfactorily. Therefore, it is possible to favorably reduce power consumption.

  Further, according to the cooling device 10, since the gap S is provided between the evaporation unit 32 and the condensation unit 31 constituting the heat transfer means 30, the air around the evaporation unit 32 after passing through the gap S is provided. The air can be sufficiently cooled, and as a result, the cooling efficiency can be improved.

  Furthermore, according to the cooling device 10, the condenser 40 condenses the water vapor around itself using the cold heat of the refrigerant evaporated in the evaporator 24 and stores it as water in the storage container 26. The water evaporated from the water can be returned to the storage container 26. Thereby, the cooling capacity of water which is a cold storage material can be sufficiently secured, and as a result, power consumption can be reduced.

  The preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made.

  In the above-described embodiment, the condensing part 31 of the heat transfer means 30 is thermally connected to the water as the cold storage material via the heat receiving plate 34 disposed on the bottom bottom surface of the storage container 26. In this invention, as long as a condensation part can be thermally connected to a cool storage material, you may connect with what kind of form.

  In the above-described embodiment, the upper surface of the storage container 26 is opened. However, in the present invention, the storage container may be a sealed container. In this case, the condenser 40 is not particularly required.

  As described above, the vending machine cooling device according to the present invention is useful for vending machines that sell products such as canned beverages and beverages containing plastic bottles.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body cabinet 2 Goods storage 2a Goods storage area 2b Heat radiation part 3 Outer door 4 Inner door 5 Goods storage rack 6 Unloading shooter 7 Conveyance mechanism 8 Machine room 10 Cooling device 20 Refrigerant circuit 21 Compressor 22 Condenser 23 Expansion mechanism 24 Evaporation 25 Refrigerant piping 26 Reservoir 30 Heat transfer means 31 Condensing part 32 Evaporating part 34 Heat receiving plate 35 Radiating fin member 40 Condenser F Internal blower fan S Gap

Claims (4)

Refrigerant piping includes an evaporator, a compressor that sucks and compresses the refrigerant evaporated by the evaporator, a condenser that condenses the refrigerant compressed by the compressor, and an expansion mechanism that adiabatically expands the refrigerant condensed by the condenser. A refrigerant circuit configured to sequentially connect and cool the regenerator material stored in the storage container using the evaporator as a cold heat source by circulating the enclosed refrigerant;
In the cooling device of the vending machine for cooling the product storage area for storing the product in the product storage of the heat insulating structure using the cooled cold storage material,
A condensing part thermally connected to the cold storage material, and an evaporating part disposed in a heat dissipating part above the product storage area in the product storage, the condensing part and the evaporation part A vending machine cooling apparatus comprising heat transfer means for transmitting cold heat of a regenerator material to a heat radiating portion by circulating a working fluid sealed between them in a phase change.   The cooling device for a vending machine according to claim 1, wherein the heat transfer means is provided on the lower side of the condensing unit with the evaporation unit interposed between the condensing unit and a gap.   The vending machine cooling device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cold storage material is water, and the refrigerant circuit cools the water stored in the storage container into ice.   The refrigerant in the refrigerant circuit is thermally connected to a refrigerant pipe connecting the evaporator and the compressor, and condenses water vapor around itself using the cold heat of the refrigerant passing through the refrigerant pipe. The vending machine cooling device according to claim 3, further comprising a condenser for storing water in the storage container.

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