JPS591188Y2 - freezer - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention provides a drain pipe sealing structure that is effective for use in so-called two-temperature refrigerators equipped with a freezing compartment, general large-sized freezers, and the like.

In general, in freezers whose storage chambers are maintained at extremely low temperatures such as -20°C or -40°C, cold air leaks from the drain pipe that serves as a discharge path for discharging defrost water from the cooler that cools the room. Therefore, the insulation effect was lowered and the power consumption increased unnecessarily.

In addition, an insulating door is installed at the opening of the insulating box via an airtight device such as a gasket, but if the storage room is cooled to an extremely low temperature as described above, the moment the insulating door is opened and closed, ~
For a short time of about 2 minutes, the inside of the storage room will be under negative pressure, so even if you apply considerable force to the insulation door, it will not be possible to open it immediately.

This negative pressure causes the warm air outside the refrigerator to replace the cold air inside the refrigerator while the door is open, and when the door is closed, the warm air is cooled by the operation of the internal circulation fan motor and its moisture is removed by the cooler. It is caused by shrinkage or volumetric contraction.

Because of this negative pressure, negative pressure is relieved from unexpected places such as the mutual gap between the inner panel and outer panel insulation layer that make up the door, and the abutment gap between the airtight device and the opening edge of the insulation box. If possible, air from outside the refrigerator will enter the refrigerator, and the moisture in this air will condense or freeze on the interior walls, mesh shelves, and inner surfaces of the refrigerator, resulting in water leakage, damage due to freezing, or freezing and sticking of stored items to the mesh shelves. This has caused accidents such as the user being unable to take out the stored items immediately after they have been stored.

The present invention has been developed in view of the above-mentioned drawbacks, and will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

Reference numeral 1 denotes a well-known heat insulating box body composed of an inner box having an opening 1A at the front, an outer box, and a heat insulating material, and has a machine room 2 below.

The opening +1111A is hermetically closed by a heat insulating door 4 provided with a gasket 3, thereby forming a storage chamber 5.

In addition to this insulating door 4, a small door (not shown) made of acrylic plate or the like is provided in the opening 1A of the insulating box 1 to improve insulation efficiency and reduce leakage of cold air when the insulating door 4 is opened. You can do it as you like.

A cooling chamber 6 is formed in the upper part of the storage chamber 5.

The cooler 7 is fixed to the ceiling wall of the inner box via a support (not shown), and a dew pan 8 is provided directly below the cooler 7, and a heat insulating partition plate 9 on which the dew pan 8 is placed is spaced from the ceiling wall of the inner box. It is fixed with

In front of the cooling chamber 6, a fan motor 10 for internal circulation is fixed by a mounting plate 11 to hang down from the ceiling wall of the inner box. A driven fan IOA is facing.

Note that the rear end of the heat insulating partition plate 9 is spaced apart from the inner box back wall, and a discharge port 13 is formed therein.

Further, the aforementioned cooler 7 constitutes a well-known refrigeration cycle with an electric compressor 14, a condenser (not shown), etc. in the machine room 2.

A drain cylinder part 8A is provided at the lowest part of the drain tray 8, and the end part of this drain pipe part 8A penetrates the back wall of the heat insulating box 1 and projects outside the refrigerator.

Reference numeral 15 denotes a drain pipe made of nylon material or the like, one end of which is tightly inserted into the above-mentioned end, hangs downward, and the other end discharge end 15A is inserted into the evaporating dish 16 in the machine room 2.
is coming.

Utilizing its flexibility, the drain pipe 15 has a trap portion 15' formed near the discharge end in the machine room 2 as shown in the figure.

This trap portion 15' is easily formed, for example, by a trap forming support plate (FIG. 3, 17) that is erected from the bottom wall 2A of the machine room.

Although the trap portion 15' is formed inside the machine room 2, it may be formed outside the refrigerator by supporting it on the back wall of the heat insulating box 1 with a suitable support.

An exhaust pipe 18 is erected in the middle of this trap part 15' so as to communicate with the drain pipe 16, and its upper end 18
A is open above the trap height Hl.

On the upstream side of the trap section 16', that is, on the cooler side, there is a large diameter section 1.
will be established.

This large-diameter portion 19 is made of synthetic resin or metal such as copper or aluminum, and both ends have a small diameter and the drain pipe 15 is fitted and connected thereto.

Further, the volume of this large diameter portion 19 must be sufficiently larger than the volume of defrosting water stored up to the trap height Hl.

In the drawings of the embodiment, both ends of the copper pipe forming the large diameter portion 19 are appropriately drawn to be connected to the drain pipe 15.

Further, unlike the embodiment shown in the drawings, the large-diameter portion 19 may be simply provided in the middle of the drain pipe 15 as a large-diameter pipe.

Next, to explain how the defrosting water remains in the drain pipe 15) and wrap portion 15', when the temperature regulator (not shown) detects a temperature higher than the set temperature (for example, -40°C), it turns on and the electric compressor 14 Then, the internal circulation fan motor 10 is operated.

The refrigerant discharged from the electric compressor 14 is liquefied in a condenser, sent to the cooler 7 via a pressure reducer such as a capillary tube (not shown), and evaporated.

The rotation of the fan IOA circulates the air in the storage room as shown by the arrow, and the cold air cooled by the cooler 7 is supplied from the discharge unit 3 into the storage room 5 and then sucked in. , +, returns to the cooler 7 from D12.

When the set temperature (-42.5°C) is reached in the storage chamber through this circulation, the temperature controller is turned off and the electric compressor 14 is turned off.
Then, the internal circulation fan motor 10 stops.

The temperature in the storage chamber 5 is maintained within the range of -40°C to -42.5°C by operating and stopping these devices.

As time passes in this cooling state, frost grows on the cooler 7.

When appropriate frost growth occurs, equipment such as the electric compressor 14 is stopped and defrosted, and the cooler 7 is defrosted by being energized (not shown).

At this time, the defrosting water drips into the dew pan 8, flows down the drain pipe 15 from the drain pipe section 8A, flows further downward through the large diameter section 19, and reaches the trap section 15'.

Defrosting water exceeding the trap height Hl drips from the discharge end 15A of the drain pipe 15 into the evaporating dish 16 and is stored therein.

Further, at this time, since the upper end 18A of the exhaust pipe 18 is at a position higher than the trap height H, the defrosting water will not leak out from the upper end 18A.

When the surface temperature of the cooler 7 reaches a defrosting end temperature such as +5° C., the supply of electricity to the defrosting heater is stopped and the cooling operation is restarted to maintain the inside of the storage chamber 5 within the above-mentioned temperature range.

The defrosting water in the evaporating dish 16 is forcibly evaporated by heat dissipation from a condenser (not shown), but the defrosting water stored in the trap section 15' is not affected by heat so much that it does not evaporate there for a long time. This means that it remains in

In the cooling operation state, low-temperature cold air from the storage chamber 5 and the cooling chamber 6 leaks through the drain pipe 15 because the defrosting water remaining in the wrap portion 15' flows to the upper end 18 of the exhaust pipe 18.
This is completely prevented by sealing A and the discharge end 15A.

Further, when the cooling operation starts immediately after the end of defrosting, the fan 10A is driven to circulate warm air, and in this case, there is a time when the inside of the storage chamber 5 becomes more positive than the outside, and this positive pressure generally causes the trap part 15 to The defrosting water remaining in ' is discharged toward the evaporating dish 16.

In the present invention, in order to prevent this, an exhaust pipe 18 is added to the trap part 15', and when positive pressure is applied to the S1 surface of the defrosting water remaining up to the height of Hl as shown by the arrow, the trap The defrosting water is pushed down to the bottom of the section 15' (the intersection with the exhaust pipe 18), and the defrosting water that was at the height of Hl of the exhaust pipe 18 also falls to the intersection and defrosts this bifurcated bone. Water is discharged into the evaporation dish 16.

As the defrosting water falls in the exhaust pipe 18, it communicates with the outside of the refrigerator, and the air under positive pressure is thrown out of the refrigerator through the exhaust pipe 18, and the air is gradually balanced.

Then, the remaining defrosting water that had stopped when there was positive pressure on the inside of S2 moves to the right again when the balance is achieved, and this time it reaches the height of H2, sealing the exhaust pipe side and the exhaust end side. Let's do it.

Furthermore, when the defrost water returns to this height of H2, the exhaust pipe 1
It is important to provide the exhaust pipe 18 at a location where the intersection of the pipes 8 and 8 is sealed by the defrosting water.

In addition, the positive pressure state occurs not only immediately after the defrosting is finished, but also when, for example, the insulation door 4 is slammed shut, but even in that case, the defrosting water is prevented from being completely discharged through the exhaust pipe 18.

Next, looking at the state in which the heat insulating door 4 is opened and the stored items in and out of the storage chamber 5 are taken in and out, and then closed, as soon as the heat insulating door 4 is closed, the internal circulation fan motor 10 is operated.
As the fan IOA rotates, the warm air that has entered the storage chamber 5 is rapidly cooled down.

As the warm air is cooled, the volume contracts, and moisture is also dehumidified by the cooler 7, resulting in a considerable negative pressure with respect to the outside of the refrigerator.

Due to this negative pressure, the defrosting water remaining at the height of H2 in the trap section 15' flows back and rises upward in the drain pipe 15.

When the defrosting water enters the large diameter portion 19, the flow rate of the defrosting water rising up this inner wall slows down and falls, so that the defrosting water cannot rise above this point.

On the other hand, air coming from the discharge end 15A of the drain pipe 15 and the upper end 18A of the exhaust pipe 18 passes through the defrosting water stored at the bottom of the large diameter portion 19 in the form of bubbles and passes through the drain tube portion 8A to the storage chamber 5. enters the interior and rapidly relieves negative pressure.

Therefore, you don't have to wait 1-2 minutes after door 4 is closed.
The door 4 can be opened again in about seconds (it may be a little faster or slower depending on the inner diameter of the drain pipe 15), and most of the moisture from the humid warm air coming in through the drain pipe 15 is removed from the dew pan 8 and the cooler. 7, frost does not form on the stored articles on the net shelves in the storage room 5, and it is also possible to prevent stored articles from sticking to the net shelves due to frost and becoming difficult to remove.

Furthermore, humid warm air outside the refrigerator is stored from unexpected places such as the gap between the inner panel of the heat insulating door 4 and the outer panel heat insulating layer, or the minute gap between the gasket and the opening edge of the heat insulating box 1 in order to relieve negative pressure. Since the suction into the chamber 5 can be suppressed by sucking water from the drain pipe 15, there is no possibility of water pooling or leaking in strange places.

Note that as the pressure difference between the storage chamber 5 and the outside of the refrigerator disappears, the defrosting water that had remained at the bottom of the large diameter portion 19 gradually flows down the drain pipe 15 and returns to the original trap section 15'. Then, the exhaust pipe 18 returns to the sealed state so that it does not communicate with the outside of the refrigerator.

In addition, the volume of the large-diameter portion 19 in the anterior leaflet is 1 herb portion 15'.
However, if the volume of the large diameter portion]9 is equal to or smaller than the volume of defrost water, the negative pressure state as described above will occur. At this time, the inside of the large-diameter portion 19 is sealed with liquid by the defrosting water rising inside the drain pipe 15, and the defrosting water rises further upwards at the part facing the cooling chamber 6 of the drain pipe section 8A. This is because there is a risk of freezing and destroying this part.

As described above, the present invention provides a freezer equipped with a cooler that cools a storage compartment formed by an insulated box and an insulated door, and a drain pipe that discharges defrost water from the cooler to the outside of the storage compartment. A trap part is formed in the drain pipe, and a large diameter portion is provided on the side of the cooler from the trap part, and an exhaust pipe is made to stand upright in the middle of the trap part.

Therefore, it is possible to prevent defrosting water from remaining in the trap portion and leaking cold air from the storage room through this drain pipe, thereby increasing the heat insulation effect.

Furthermore, the user does not have to wait for a long time after closing the insulated door, since air outside the refrigerator is sucked in from the drain pipe and the negative pressure can be quickly relieved, allowing the user to open the insulated door again.

In addition, by providing an exhaust pipe in the trap section and by providing a large diameter part on the upstream side of the cooler from the trap section, the defrost that remains in the trap section can be removed even when the pressure inside the storage chamber is positive or negative. This can prevent water from disappearing.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a schematic longitudinal side view of the freezer, Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the main parts near the trap section, Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the wrap forming support plate 1 to 1, and Fig. 4 is a partially cutaway view of the same part. FIG. 7... Cooler, 15... Drain pipe, 15'... Trap section, 18... Exhaust pipe, 19... Large diameter part.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A cooler for cooling a storage room formed by an insulating box and an insulating door, a drain pipe for discharging defrosting water from the cooler to the outside of the storage room, and a trap section formed in the drain pipe;
A portion of the drain pipe outside the storage room that has a large diameter and is located closer to the cooler than the trap portion, and an exhaust pipe that is erected in the middle of the trap portion and has an open upper end. The volume of the large portion of the diameter is made sufficiently larger than the amount of defrosting water remaining in the trap section and the exhaust pipe, and the lower end of the exhaust pipe is liquid-sealed by the defrosting water remaining in the trap section. The freezer is also positioned so that it is sealed by the amount of defrosting water remaining in the trap section on the side of the drainage end of the exhaust pipe.