KR101823554B1 - Wwater purifier cooling device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a water purifier cooling apparatus, and more particularly, to a water purifier cooling apparatus capable of increasing instantaneous cooling efficiency by separating water purifier water into primary and secondary water through a flow path using heat absorption of a thermoelectric element.
A water purifier cooling apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a cooling body in which a primary flow path is formed in a storage tank in which water is stored and a secondary flow path is formed lower than the primary flow path under the primary flow path, A thermoelectric element attached to the heat absorbing cover and cooling the water in the first flow path and the second flow path by heat generated from the other surface when one surface of the opposite surface absorbs heat; And a heat sink attached to the other surface of the thermoelectric element and absorbing heat from the other surface of the thermoelectric element to dissipate heat.

Description

[0001] WATER PURIFIER COOLING DEVICE [0002]

The present invention relates to a water purifier cooling apparatus, and more particularly, to a water purifier cooling apparatus capable of increasing instantaneous cooling efficiency by separating water purifier water into primary and secondary water through a flow path using heat absorption of a thermoelectric element.

Generally, a cooling water supply system using a thermoelectric element in a water purifier is a structure in which a thermoelectric element is installed in a tank for storing water, and water contained in the tank is cooled by a heat absorbing function of the thermoelectric element.

The cooling device using such a thermoelectric element takes a considerable time to cool the entire water contained in the tank, and since the water contained in the tank can not be discharged sufficiently without performing the heat exchange action, the instant cooling efficiency can not be obtained have.

For example, prior art document registration utility model No. 20-0226905 (a cooling water supply device using a thermoelectric semiconductor device) has a structure in which a plurality of thermoelectric conversion elements are formed in which water flows into an inlet port in a water tank in a staggered manner, The heat absorbing portion of the thermoelectric semiconductor element absorbs the heat of the water tank to cool the water tank and the diaphragm. The water introduced into the cooled water tank passes through the diaphragm and the diaphragm, Exchanged with the water tank, sufficiently cooled, and then discharged through the outlet.

This is because the residence time of the water in the water tank becomes long and the cooling efficiency of the water introduced into the water tank is improved because the water is contacted with the cooled water tank and the diaphragm. However, it takes a considerable time to cool the whole water contained in the water tank In addition, the instant cooling efficiency can not be obtained.

Registration No. 20-0226905 (Date of Publication: June 15, 2001) Registration No. 10-1262719 (Published on May 09, 2013)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been conceived to solve the above-mentioned problems. It is an object of the present invention to solve the above-mentioned problems by providing an apparatus and a method for cooling water of a primary flow path inside a block using a heat absorbing heat block, And it is an object of the present invention to provide a water purifier cooling device that can cool a predetermined amount of water that is first cooled by using a flow path, thereby increasing the instantaneous cooling efficiency.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a water purifier cooling apparatus comprising: a water storage tank having a first flow path formed therein and a second flow path formed below the first flow path, main body;

A heat absorbing cover having a plate shape of a heat conductor having a predetermined thickness and coupled to the cooling body;

A thermoelectric element attached to the heat absorbing cover and cooling the water in the first flow path and the second flow path when the other surface is heat absorbed on one side of the opposite surface, And

A heat sink attached to the other surface of the thermoelectric element to absorb heat from the other surface of the thermoelectric element to dissipate heat;

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In addition, a plurality of partitions are horizontally arranged vertically in the storage tank, and the left and right sides of the upper and lower partitions are alternately opened, so that the partition between the partitions and the left and right sides of the partition are communicated with each other to form a zigzag- A flow path is formed,

A plurality of horizontal grooves are formed in the lower portion of the primary flow passage so as to communicate with the primary flow passage. The left and right sides of the partition walls between the upper and lower grooves are alternately opened to open the left and right sides of the groove and the open partition, And a second flow path of a shape is formed.

The heat absorbing cover is made of stainless steel (SUS) on one side coupled to the cooling body, and is made of aluminum (Al) on the opposite side and is thermally welded to each other.

In addition, a plurality of grooves having a predetermined depth corresponding to the secondary flow path are horizontally formed in the heat absorbing cover, and the secondary auxiliary flow path is separated by the partition walls.

In addition, a spacer is protruded from the heat absorbing cover and the heat sink to which the thermoelectric element is attached, and the thermoelectric element is attached to the spacer.

Further, a pump is connected to the outlet of the secondary flow passage, and the cooling temperature of the secondary flow passage is controlled to be equal to or lower than the freezing point by using the spring water principle flowing using the pump.

The two thermoelectric elements are provided in the upper and lower portions by the number of the flow paths, and power is applied to the upper thermoelectric element to control and manage the water of the first flow path at a constant temperature. And controls the freezing point by supplying power of current to the lower thermoelectric element when the water is used for cooking, and controlling the temperature to be a multiple temperature which supplies a current other than the low current to the lower thermoelectric element.

According to the solution of the above-mentioned problem, by using the heat conduction of the thermoelectric block, the water in the primary flow path inside the block is cooled to a predetermined low temperature and the secondary flow path having the maximum surface area The instant cooling function can be performed by cooling a predetermined amount of the first cooled water, and the cooling efficiency can be greatly improved.

1 is an exploded perspective view of a water purifier cooling apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of Fig. 1 taken at another angle.
3 is an assembled perspective view of the water purifier cooling apparatus assembled by FIG.
4 is a perspective view of the cooling body shown in Fig.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

It is to be noted that the same components of the drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals and symbols as possible even if they are shown in different drawings.

In the following description of the present invention, a detailed description of known functions and configurations incorporated herein will be omitted when it may make the subject matter of the present invention rather unclear.

Also, when a part is referred to as "including " an element, it does not exclude other elements unless specifically stated otherwise.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a water purifier cooling apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 1 viewed from another angle, FIG. 3 is an assembled perspective view of a water purifier cooling apparatus assembled by FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the cooling body shown in Fig.

The water purifier cooling apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a cooling body 110, a heat sink 120, a thermoelectric element 130, a heat absorbing cover 140, a sealing member 150, A cooling fan 160, and a pump 170.

Here, the heat absorbing cover 140 is a thermally conductive thermally conductive body, and the cooling body 110 is a thermally insulated thermally conductive body.

The cooling body 110, which is a heat insulator such as a resin, has a substantially rectangular shape, and flanges 116 are formed on upper, lower, right, and left rims so as to be coupled with the heat absorbing cover 140 in a pair.

An inlet 113 through which purified water flows into the upper end of the cooling body 110 is formed and an outlet 118 through which the cooled water flows out is formed at a lower end of the cooling body 110, And a flow path 116 is provided.

A storage tank 111 communicating with the inlet 113 and storing water is formed in the upper part of the cooling body 110 and a plurality of partitions 112 are vertically arranged in the interior of the storage tank 111 The left and right sides of the upper and lower partition 112 are alternately opened so that the openings of the partition 112 and the partition 112 are communicated with each other to form a staggered primary flow path 114 do.

The zig-zag primary flow path 114 can provide a flow path space so that the water introduced into the primary flow path 114 can be sufficiently heat-exchanged. The cooled water is discharged only from the cooled water without mixing with un- To the secondary flow path (116).

The lower part of the cooling body 110 is formed in a plate shape having a predetermined thickness and a plurality of horizontal grooves are formed in the lower part of the primary flow path 114 so as to communicate with the primary flow path 114, The left and right open sides of the groove 115 and the left and right sides of the partition 115 are opened so that the staggered secondary flow path 116 is formed shallower than the primary flow path 114. [

The flow path is minimized while maximizing the surface area of the flow path so that instantaneous cooling can be performed by forming a small flow path formed of one (one stem) flow of water by the zigzag-like, shallowly formed second flow path 116. Therefore, Sufficient cooling efficiency can be obtained.

As a result, the cooling body 110 has a structure of a fluid flow configured to smoothly flow the cooling fluid (water) absorbed from the heat absorbing cover 140, which is heat transfer.

The heat absorbing cover 140, which is a heat conductor and is coupled to the cooling body 110 to form a pair, is formed in a plate shape having a predetermined thickness.

At this time, in order to prevent leakage of water, the cooling body 110 and the heat absorbing cover 140 may be coupled in a pair with the sealing member 150 interposed therebetween.

A plurality of grooves having a predetermined depth are formed horizontally at a lower portion of the heat absorbing cover 140 so as to correspond to the secondary flow path 116 and are separated from each other by a partition wall 143, Is formed shallower than the flow path (114).

That is, one of the secondary flow paths 116 may be formed, or the secondary flow path 116 and the secondary auxiliary flow path 144 may be formed together so that the surface area of the secondary flow path 116 may be further increased.

Here, it is exemplified that the primary flow path 114, the secondary flow path 116 or the secondary auxiliary flow path 144 are formed to separate the flow of water two times in the primary and secondary directions to increase the instantaneous cooling efficiency. However, It is possible to improve the instantaneous cooling efficiency by separating it further.

One surface of the heat absorbing cover 140 that is coupled to the cooling body 110 is formed of stainless steel (SUS) to allow water to be edible and the other surface thereof is made of aluminum (Al ), So that stainless steel and aluminum can be heat-welded.

Alternatively, the heat absorbing cover 140 may be made of aluminum, and may be coated with Teflon coating so that water may be edible on one side of the heat absorbing cover 140 that is joined to the cooling body 110.

As described above, by using the aluminum material as the endothermic cover 140 and allowing the water to be edible, heat exchange efficiency can be improved.

The thermoelectric element 130 attached to the spacer 142 protruding from the other surface of the heat absorbing cover 140 is configured to generate heat when the other surface of the thermoelectric element 130 absorbs heat, Is heat absorbed and the other surface is heated.

When the thermoelectric element 130 is directly attached to the flat plate of the heat absorbing cover 140, the thickness of the thermoelectric element 130 is as thin as 3 to 4 mm and the thickness of the other surface of the thermoelectric element 130 The heat absorbing heat from one surface of the thermoelectric element 130 having a small thickness and the heat generated from the other surface are absorbed by the heat sink 120 and the heat absorbing cover 140 The heat exchange efficiency is inevitably lowered.

As a result, the purified water can not be cooled or becomes less cold cold water.

To this end, in the present invention, the spacer 142 is protruded from the endothermic cover 140, and one surface of the thermoelectric element 130 is attached to the spacer 142.

In the present invention, two thermoelectric elements 130 are provided on the upper and lower sides of the number of flow paths to control the water in the primary flow path 114 by controlling power to the upper thermoelectric element 130, The water in the flow path 116 manages the freezing point by supplying a low current power to the lower thermoelectric element 130 and supplies a current other than the low current to the lower thermoelectric element 130 when water is used for food. Controlled by temperature control.

A spacer 122 is also formed on the heat sink 120 so that the other surface of the thermoelectric element 130 is attached to the spacer 122.

In this state, the heat absorbing cover 140 and the heat sink 120 are coupled to each other by a coupling member (not shown) such as a screw or a bolt. At this time, the thickness of the two spacers 142 and 122 and the thermoelectric element 130 140 and the heat sink 120 are widened so that the heat absorbing heat from one surface of the thermoelectric element and the heat generated from the other surface do not affect the opposite heat sink 120 and the heat absorbing cover 140, Can be improved.

A plurality of heat dissipation fins 124 are formed on the heat sink 120 opposite to the spacer 122. The heat dissipation fins 124 are provided with a blowing fan 160 for blowing heat radiated from the heat dissipation fins 124 to the outside .

The plurality of blowing fans 160 may be provided depending on the capacity of the water purifier.

The pump 170 is connected to the outlet port 118 of the secondary flow passage 116 and allows a minute amount of water to flow through the secondary flow passage 116 by using the pump 170 to keep the cooling temperature below the freezing point It is possible to obtain a sufficient cooling efficiency (flowing spring water principle).

The water in the primary flow path 114 is cooled to a predetermined low temperature by the heat absorbed by the thermoelectric element 130 and the primary cooling is performed using the secondary flow path 116, Temperature water can be obtained through the heat absorption of the thermoelectric element 130 so that instantaneous cooling of the water at the predetermined temperature can be achieved.

At this time, if necessary, the first flow path 114 forms an uneven protrusion in the first flow path 114 so as to make contact with water in the first flow path 114, thereby maximizing the heat exchange efficiency and cooling the water.

The secondary flow path 116 has a structure similar to that of the primary flow path 114 and has no water storage capacity. However, since a small amount of water flows to maximize the heat exchange time, the cooling water of low temperature flows out through the outlet 118 do.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.

In addition, it is a matter of course that various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the technical idea of the present invention by anyone having ordinary skill in the art.

100: water purifier cooling device 110: cooling body
120: heat sink 130: thermoelectric element
140: heat absorbing cover 150: sealing member
160: cooling fan 170: pump

Claims (7)

A cooling body in which a primary flow path is formed in a storage tank in which water is stored and a secondary flow path is formed lower than the primary flow path in the lower portion of the primary flow path;
A heat absorbing cover having a plate shape of a heat conductor having a predetermined thickness and coupled to the cooling body;
A thermoelectric element attached to the heat absorbing cover and cooling the water in the first flow path and the second flow path when the other surface is heat absorbed on one side of the opposite surface, And
And a heat sink attached to the other surface of the thermoelectric element and absorbing heat of the other surface of the thermoelectric element to dissipate heat,
The left and right sides of the upper and lower partitions are alternately opened so that the left and right sides of the partition between the partitions and the opened partition are communicated with each other to form a zigzag- Formed,
A plurality of horizontal grooves are formed in the lower portion of the primary flow passage so as to communicate with the primary flow passage. The left and right sides of the partition walls between the upper and lower grooves are alternately opened to open the left and right sides of the groove and the open partition, And a second flow path of a second flow path is formed. delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the heat absorbing cover is made of stainless steel (SUS) on one side coupled to the cooling body, and is made of aluminum (Al) on the opposite side and thermally welded to each other. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein a plurality of recesses having a predetermined depth are formed horizontally in the heat absorbing cover so as to correspond to the secondary flow path, and the secondary auxiliary flow path is separated by the partition wall. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein a spacer is formed on the heat absorbing cover and the heat sink to which the thermoelectric element is attached, and a thermoelectric element is attached to the spacer. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the pump is connected to the outlet of the secondary flow passage and the cooling temperature of the secondary flow passage is controlled to be equal to or lower than a freezing point using the spring principle flowing using the pump. The method according to claim 1,
The number of the thermoelectric elements is two in the upper and lower parts by the number of the flow paths to control the water of the first flow path by controlling the water of the first flow path by applying power to the upper thermoelectric element, Wherein the control unit controls the freezing point by controlling the freezing point to supply a current other than the low current to the lower thermoelectric element when the water is used for cooking.

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