JPH0336479A - Open show case and operating method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make it possible to inhibit a rise in a temperature in a defrosting region to the minimum without lowering the cold insulation and cooling functions in a cooling region by keeping either one of the lower and upper cases under a defrosting condition and the other under a cooling condition, and mixing cooled air with defrosting air at the position of an intake port. CONSTITUTION:During defrosting in an upper region A, the operation of a first cooler 7 is suspended, and the operation of a second cooler 10 is continued, and then a defrosting heater 16 for the first cooler is thrown in. As a result, the cooled air produced by the second cooler 10 forms an air curtain in the lowest stage region B. Since the lowest stage region M is shielded from the upper region A with the lowest shelf 5, an cold insulation and cooling state is formed in the region B. On the other hand, the air curtain formed between a first diffuser 9 and an intake port 13 rises in its temperature since the first cooler is suspended, but the rise in the temperature is lowered by mixing with the cooled air of the air curtain generated in the lowest stage region B at the intake port 13 and a recovery passage 14, which makes it possible to inhibit the effect on the cold insulation and cooling functions in the upper region to the minimum.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an open sea case and a method of operating the same.

[Conventional technology]

In open showcases that display refrigerated and frozen products while keeping them cool, the cold air obtained by the cooler is guided from the back of the showcase to the air outlet at the top front, and the cold air blown out from the air outlet is directed to the bottom front of the showcase. It has already been done to form a one-layer or multiple-layer air curtain on the front part of a shutter case by collecting air from a provided suction port. In this case, the products are separated into multiple fences, but the flow of cold air blown out from the outlet is obstructed by the products and columns, so the cold air does not flow evenly toward the lower fences. Products are not kept cold enough.

On the other hand, from the user's point of view, lower shelves are more visible and easier to access, so there is a general tendency for similar products to be placed on lower shelves, resulting in a higher purchase rate. Therefore, it is a general rule to display the so-called best-selling products at the bottom, but the problem is that this area has the lowest cooling performance.

As the cooler accumulates frost as it is used, it is necessary to periodically remove the frost to maintain constant cold storage performance, but when defrosting, the operation of the cooler itself is stopped, which inevitably causes the temperature inside the refrigerator to rise. For this reason, attempts have been made to install two coolers and have one cooler stop operating during defrosting, but the other cooler continues to operate and defrost alternately.
Even with this method, the aforementioned temperature rise at the bottom tier is still large, which is not preferable for best-selling products.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

An object of the present invention is to provide an open showcase and a method for operating the same, which can improve the cold storage performance of the entire interior of the showcase and suppress the temperature rise of the entire interior even during defrosting.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, the open showcase of the present invention includes a first cooler and a first air outlet that passes through the back of the showcase from the first cooler to a first air outlet provided at the top front surface. a second cooler, a second cold air route from the second cooler to a second outlet that passes through the back of the showcase and opens into the bottom of the showcase; This includes a suction port provided and a common cold air recovery passage leading from the suction port to the first and W42 coolers.

In addition, in order to avoid the above-mentioned purpose, in the open showcase described above, the lowest stage of the showcase is heated by the cold air blown from the first cooler through the first cold air path and from the first outlet toward the suction port. The lowermost area of the showcase is cooled by the cold air blown from the second cooler through the second cold air path and from the second outlet toward the suction port, and either one of the coolers When defrosting one cooler, the operation of that cooler is stopped, and the other cooler is operated for cooling.

[Effect]

In the open showcase of the present invention, the air returns from the first cooler to the first cooler via the 111 cold air path at the back of the showcase, the first outlet, the front of the showcase, the suction port, and the cold air recovery passage. By forming the first cold air circulation circuit, an air curtain is created on the front surface of the showcase while cooling the area inside the showcase except for the lowermost stage. In addition, from the second cooler to the second cold air passage on the back of the showcase, the second air outlet, the front of the bottom stage of the Jiro case,
By forming a second cold air circulation circuit that returns to the second cooler via the suction port and the cold air recovery passage, an air curtain is created at the front of the bottom stage of the Ziro case with no outside air infiltrating heat, while the top of the Ziro case is heated. Cool the lower area.

Further, in the method of operating an open showcase of the present invention, as described above, the first cooler cools the upper area except the bottom tier, and the second cooler cools only the bottom tier. When defrosting the first cooler, the operation of the first cooler is stopped and the operation of the second cooler is continued. As a result, the bottom area is kept cool by the air curtain formed by the second cooler and the shielding of the bottom shelf, and the top area! Defrosting air flows through the first cold air circulation circuit instead of cold air, but this air is mixed with cold air from the second cooler at the suction port and the common recovery passage, so the temperature of the air curtain in the upper area increases. is kept to a minimum. In the case of defrosting the second cooler, the operation of the second cooler is stopped and the operation of the first cooler is continued. As a result, the upper region is kept cool by the air curtain formed by the first cooler and the shielding of the bottom layer, and the second cold air circulation circuit is replaced with cold air and defrosting air is supplied to the lowermost region. However, since this air is mixed with the cold air from the first cooler in the suction inlet and the common recovery passage, the temperature rise in the air curtain in the lowermost region is kept to a minimum.

〔Example〕

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

1 is the oven showcase body, which consists of a container surrounded by cross-sectional walls on three sides and open at the front.

2.3.4.5.6 are shelves arranged sequentially from above inside the showcase, with columns 2 to 5 forming an upper area A, and a lowermost area B being formed between shelves 5.6. . 7 is the first
A cooler, 8 is a first cold air path extending from the first cooler 7 through the back of the upper area A to the upper front surface, and 9 is placed at the end of the first cold air path 8, that is, at the upper front surface of the main body l. 10 is a second cooler, 11 is a second air outlet that extends from the cooler 10 of W42 to the uppermost end of the back of the lowermost area B, that is, below the lowest shelf 5 of the upper area A. cold pilgrimage,
12 is placed at the end of the second cold air pilgrimage 10 and is the lowest area B
13 is a suction port placed on the lower front surface of the main body l; 14 is a suction port that connects the suction port 13 to the first cooler 7;
A common cold air recovery passage leading to the second cooler lO, 15 a blower installed in the cold air recovery passage 14, 16 a defrosting heater of the first cooler 7, 17 a defrosting heater of the second cooler 10; A frost heater 18 is a cold air vent for an air curtain provided further behind the first cold air passage 8, and one end of the frost heater 18 is connected to a third cold air vent placed adjacent to the first air outlet 9 on the upper front surface of the main body 1. It communicates with an air outlet 19, the other end communicates with an inlet 20 placed adjacent to the inlet 13, and a blower 21 is provided at the top.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be explained.

(1) Cooling operation In the cooling operation, both the first cooler 7 and the second cooler 9 are put into operation. The cold air generated by the first cooler 7 is sent out by the blower 15, passes through the first cold air path 8, is blown out from the first outlet 9, flows as shown by the arrow, is collected from the suction port 13, and is passed through the recovery passage. 1st through 14
Returning to the cooler 7, an air curtain is formed on the front of the main body 1 to keep the products placed on the handles 2 to 5 cool. At this time, by driving the blower 21, some of the cold air is transferred to the inlet. 20, passes through the air curtain cold air path 18, is blown out from the third outlet 19, forms an air curtain, and is collected from the inlet 20. A curtain is formed.

The cold air generated by the second cooler 10 is sent out by the blower 15, passes through the second cold air path 11, and is blown out from the air outlets 12 of 1!2 into the lowermost region B, forming an air curtain as shown by the arrow. While forming, it flows toward the suction port 13 to keep the product in the lowermost area B cool, and the suction port 13
The cooled air is mixed with the cold air from the first outlet 9 and collected.

In this way, by sharing the cooling areas with the first cooler for the upper area A and the second cooler for the lowermost area B, the quality of the products in the upper area A, which usually has a relatively long residence time, can be improved. The quality of the products can be maintained by directly keeping the bottom area, where best-selling products are placed and frequently accessed and removed, directly cooled by an air curtain separate from the upper area.

(2) Defrosting operation When defrosting the upper region A, the operation of the first cooler 7 is stopped, the operation of the second cooler 10 is continued, and the defrosting heater 16 of the first cooler is stopped. throw into. As a result, the cold air generated by the second cooler 10 forms an air curtain in the lowermost region B in the same manner as described above, and since the upper region A is shielded by the lowermost lever 5, the lowermost region Region B is in a cooling state. On the other hand, the first air outlet 9 and the suction port 13
Since the first cooler is stopped, the temperature of the air curtain formed between
By mixing the cold air of the air curtain generated inside the air curtain at the suction port 13 and the recovery passage 14, the temperature is lowered, and the influence on the cold insulation function of the upper area A can be kept to a minimum. The influence of the temperature increase on the lowermost region B does not pose any practical problem.

When defrosting the lowest area B, use the cooler 1 of W42.
0 is stopped, the operation of the first cooler 7 is continued, and the defrosting heater 17 of the second cooler is turned on. As a result, the cold air generated by the first cooler 7 is transferred to the upper area A in the same manner as described above.
An air curtain is created in front of the room, and the lowermost area B is shielded from the lowermost fence 5, so the upper area A is kept cold. On the other hand, the temperature of the air curtain formed between the second air outlet 12 and the suction port 13 increases because the second cooler is stopped, but the temperature of the air curtain formed between the second air outlet 12 and the suction port 13 increases.
By mixing in the air curtain between the suction port 13 and the suction port 13 and the recovery passage 14, the temperature decreases.
The influence on the cold insulation function of the lowermost region B can be kept to a minimum, and due to this mixing, the influence of the temperature increase on the upper region A does not pose any practical problem.

In this way, by separately defrosting the upper area A and the lowermost area B, and by mixing the cold air for the area being cooled and the defrosting air at the suction port, the cold retention function of the area being cooled is completely reduced. The temperature rise in the area during defrosting can be suppressed to the minimum.

In the above example, we explained how to defrost using a heater, but the defrosting method is not limited to this.
Various conventional schemes can be used. Furthermore, the air curtain is not limited to the two-layer type, and various types can be applied.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the interior of the shearing case is divided into an upper region and a lowermost region, each of which is kept cool by a separate cold air circulation circuit, and when defrosting, only one is in the defrosted state and the other is cooled. By mixing cold air and defrosting air at the suction port, the temperature rise in the area being defrosted can be kept to a minimum without compromising the cooling function of the area being cooled. This makes it possible to efficiently keep products cool at any location within the refrigerator.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The figure is a sectional view of the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention. l・-・Body 2.3.4.5.6...Shelf 7...'W41 cooler 8...First cold pilgrimage 9...first suction port lO...Second cooler 11...1!2 cold air pilgrimage 12...Second air outlet 13...Suction port 14...Collection passage 15...Blower A... Upper area B... Bottom area 17th squad frost heater

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) A first cooler, a first cold air passage extending from the first cooler to a first air outlet provided at the top front surface through the back of the showcase, and a second cooling air passage. and a second cooler that opens from the second cooler through the back of the showcase and into the lowest stage of the showcase.
A second cold air passageway leading to the outlet of the showcase, an inlet provided at the lower front surface of the showcase, and a common cold air recovery passageway extending from the inlet to the first and second coolers. open showcase. 2) Cool air from the first cooler passes through the first cold air path and blows out from the first outlet toward the suction port to cool the area other than the bottom tier of the showcase, and from the second cooler to the second The lowest area of the showcase is cooled by the cold air blown from the second air outlet toward the suction port through the cold air passage, and when defrosting one of the coolers, the operation of that cooler is stopped; 2. The method of operating an open showcase according to claim 1, wherein the other cooler is operated in a cooling operation.