KR20150002991A - Cooling Device for Water Purifier - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cooling device for a water purifier. The objective of the present invention is to provide the cooling device for the water purifier to minimize the volume of a cooling water tank and maximize the obtaining flow rate of fluid in the cooling situation stored in the cooling water tank. According to the cooling device for the water purifier, a storage formed inside the device and the cooling device for the water purifier includes; the cooling water tank having an inlet port supplying the fluid on one side of the storage and an outlet port discharging the fluid on other side of the storage; a cooling unit installed in the outer surface of the cooling water tank to cool the stored fluid in the storage; one or more partitions dividing the storage placed between the inlet port and the outlet port inside the cooling water tank; and a connecting channel forming a passage by connecting the both sides of the zones divided by the partition.

Description

{Cooling Device for Water Purifier}

More particularly, the present invention relates to a cooling device for a water purifier, and more particularly, to a cooling device for a water purifier, And a cooling device for a water purifier that can minimize the capacity of the cooling water tank.

Recently, as water pollution due to industrialization and pollution materials becomes serious, distrust of tap water becomes high, and tap water is purified by water purifier and used as drinking water, or bottled water sold in the market is used as drinking water.

A commonly used water purifier is made by passing tap water through several filters to remove heavy metals and other harmful substances contained in tap water through processes such as sedimentation, filtration, and sterilization, and cooling the purified water to a predetermined temperature So that cold water and hot water can be selectively consumed by heating.

1, the heat absorbing surface of the thermoelectric element 22 is fixed to the cold sink 21, the heat generating surface is fixed to the heat sink 22, and one cooling unit (not shown) 20, the cold sink 21 is tightly fixed to the outer surface of the cooling water tank 10. (Reference numeral 23 denotes a cooling fan, 11 denotes an inlet, 12 denotes a storage space, and 13 denotes an outlet)

That is, since the heat transfer is performed through the contact surface between the thermoelectric element 22 and the cold sink 21 and the contact surface between the cold sink 21 and the cooling water tank 10, the thermal conductivity is different according to the accuracy of the flattening of the contact surface. In order to improve the adhesion, a thermal compound must be used, which not only increases the number of assembling processes, but also has a problem in that a cooling efficiency difference between the products largely occurs depending on the degree of processing of the contact surface and the assembly skill of the components.

Further, when the cold sink and the cooling water tank in which the heat conduction is performed are deformed by thermal shock, the adhesion of the contact surface becomes poor, and voids are formed between the contact surfaces, and the thermal conductivity is drastically lowered.

In addition, when the uncooled fluid is supplied to the storage space of the cooling water tank in which the cold water is stored, the supply fluid and the cooling fluid are immediately mixed in the storage space and the temperature of the cooling fluid rises. , There is a problem in that the efficiency of energy utilization is low because the power consumption for cooling is large.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to solve such conventional problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a cooling system for a refrigerator which is capable of suppressing an increase in the temperature of a fluid in a cooling state, And it is an object of the present invention to provide a cooling device for a water purifier that can minimize the volume of the cooling water tank as well as maximize the flow rate of the fluid.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a cooling device for a water purifier that can quickly cool uncooled fluid supplied into a cooling water tank through an inlet.

In addition, by dividing the storage space of the cooling water tank into a plurality of regions by the partition walls, the temperature of the fluid cooled by the fluid supplied from the outside is prevented from rising immediately, so that the time when the thermoelectric element is driven And a cooling device for a water purifier capable of driving at a low speed with a maximum delay.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a cooling device for a water purifier which can prevent the temperature of a fluid in a cooling state from rising by suppressing heat exchange between adjacent areas sandwiching a partition wall by partition walls partitioning the storage space.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a cooling device for a water purifier which can improve heat transfer efficiency by minimizing the number of heat transfer interfaces and heat conduction parts by directly fixing the thermoelectric elements to the outer surface of the cooling water tank.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cooling system comprising: a cooling water tank having a storage space formed therein and having an inlet for supplying a fluid to one side of the storage space and an outlet for discharging fluid from the other side of the storage space; At least one partition wall disposed between an inlet port and an outlet port of the cooling water reservoir for partitioning the storage space; And a connecting passage connecting the two side regions defined by the partition to form a flow path.

The partition wall is disposed between the inlet port and the outlet port of the cooling water tank to divide the storage space into the inflow space and the outflow space. The inflow space is divided into a first area adjacent to the inlet and a second area adjacent to the cooling area, And a second barrier rib partitioned into regions.

The partition may further include a third partition that divides the outlet space into a fourth area adjacent to the outlet and a third area adjacent to the cooling area.

In addition, it is preferable that the partition is made of a heat insulating material.

The cooling water tank may include a water tank main body having a storage space formed therein and an opening connected to the storage space at one side thereof and a water tank cover closing the opening of the water tank body, It is preferable that the fixed surface to be fixed is protruded from the plate surface of the water tub cover.

The inner surface of the water tank cover may be provided with a depression at a position corresponding to the fixing surface, and the depression may form a connection path connecting the inflow area and the outflow area.

It is preferable that the cooling section includes a thermoelectric element closely fixed to the fixing surface of the water tank cover and a heat sink closely fixed to the heat radiating surface of the thermoelectric element.

It is preferable that the cooling unit is fixed to the water tub cover by a fastening member fixed to the water tub cover and a screw fastened to the fastening member through the heat sink.

In addition, it is preferable that the fastening member is press-fitted and fixed to the inside of the through hole formed in the water tub cover in a watertight manner.

The cooling section is fixed to the water tank cover by a fastening member which is press-fitted and fixed to the inside of the through hole formed in the water tank cover and a screw fastened to the fastening member through the heat sink, It is preferable that the partition and the fastening member are formed with a fixing portion and a fixing groove which are mutually engaged with each other.

According to the present invention, it is possible to maximize the flow rate of the cooling fluid stored in the cooling water tank by suppressing the increase in the temperature of the fluid in the cooling state by mixing the uncooled fluid with the fluid in the cooling state, A cooling device for a water purifier capable of minimizing the capacity of the bath is provided.

In addition, there is provided a cooling device for a water purifier capable of rapidly cooling uncooled fluid supplied into the cooling water tank through an inlet.

In addition, by dividing the storage space of the cooling water tank into a plurality of regions by the partition walls, the temperature of the fluid cooled by the fluid supplied from the outside is prevented from rising immediately, so that the time when the thermoelectric element is driven There is provided a cooling device for a water purifier capable of driving at a low speed with a maximum delay.

Also, a partition for partitioning the storage space is formed of a heat insulating material to prevent heat exchange between adjacent areas sandwiching the partition, thereby preventing the temperature of the fluid in the cooling state from rising.

Also provided is a cooling device for a water purifier that can improve heat transfer efficiency by minimizing the number of heat transfer interfaces and heat conduction parts by directly fixing the thermoelectric elements to the outer surface of the cooling water tank.

1 is a sectional view of a cooling device for a conventional water purifier,
2 is a perspective view of a cooling device for a purifier according to the present invention,
3 to 4 are exploded perspective views of a cooling device for a purifier according to the present invention,
5 is a cross-sectional view of a cooling device for a purifier according to the present invention,
6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a coupling structure of a portion "A"

Prior to the description, components having the same configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in the first embodiment. In other embodiments, configurations different from those of the first embodiment will be described do.

Hereinafter, a cooling apparatus for a water purifier according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

2 is a perspective view of a cooling device for a water purifier according to the present invention, and FIGS. 3 to 4 are exploded perspective views of a cooling device for a water purifier according to the present invention.

The cooling apparatus for a water purifier according to the present invention includes a cooling water tank 110, a cooling unit 120, a plurality of partitions 130 forming a flow path in the cooling water tank 110, And a heat insulating member 140 surrounding the heat insulating member 110.

The cooling water tank 110 includes a water tank main body 110a having a storage space 111 formed therein and an opening communicating with the storage space 111 at one side thereof and a water tank body 110a having a high thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance, An inlet 112 formed on the upper surface of the water tub main body 110a for supplying a fluid not cooled to the inside of the storage space 111, And an outlet 113 formed on the lower surface of the water tub main body 110a and for discharging the fluid in a cooled state in the storage space 111. [ The water tank cover 110b is formed by forming a plate-shaped material to form a protruding portion 114 on the outer side of the center and a depression 115 on the inner side of the center. The outer surface of the protruding portion 114 is cooled A fixing surface 116 of a flat shape is formed so that the portion 120 can be closely fixed.

The cooling unit 120 is closely fixed to the fixing surface 116 of the cooling water tank 110 so as to cool the fluid contained in the storage space 111. The heat absorbing surface is in close contact with the fixing surface 116 of the cooling cover 110, And a heat sink 122 which is in close contact with a heat generating surface of the thermoelectric element 121. The thermoelectric element 121 is a thermoelectric element, The cooling unit 120 includes a fastening member 124 which is press-fit tightly and tightly to the inside of the through hole 117 formed in the water tank cover 110b and a fastening member 124 which penetrates the heat sink 122 and is fastened to the fastening member 124 And is fixed to the water tub cover 110b side by a screw 125 to be fastened.

The partition 130 divides the storage space 111 inside the cooling water tank 110 into a plurality of areas and is disposed between the inlet 112 and the outlet 113 inside the cooling water tank 110 A first partition 131 separating the storage space 111 into an inflow space and an outflow space and a second partition 131 adjacent to the inside of the first area A1 and the fixing surface 116 adjacent to the inflow port 112, And a fourth region A4 adjacent to the outlet 113 in the third region A3 adjacent to the inside of the fixing surface 116. The second partitioning wall 132 separates the outlet space into the second region A2, And a third barrier rib 133 formed on the second barrier rib 133. A first connection passage P1 connecting the first region A1 and the second region A2 is formed between the second partition 132 and the first partition 131, A second connection passage P2 connecting the second area A2 and the third area A3 is formed between the third partition wall 131 and the water tank cover 110b and the third partition wall 133 and the first partition wall 131, A third connection passage P3 connecting the third region A3 and the fourth region A4 is formed. Therefore, the first to fourth regions A1, A2, A3, and A4 partitioned by the partition 130 are sequentially connected by the first to third connection passages P1 to P3 A zigzag flow path is formed between the inlet 112 and the outlet 113. The first barrier rib 131, the second barrier rib 132, and the third barrier rib 133 are formed of a heat insulating material such as polyoxymethylene (POM) to prevent the fluid contained in each region from undergoing heat exchange with the fluid in the adjacent region. The second connection passage P2 is formed by the depression 115 formed on the inner surface of the water tank cover 110b so that the first partition 131 and the inner surface of the water tank cover 110b are separated from each other, (A2) and the third area (A3).

The first partition 131 is integrally formed with the water tank 110a of the cooling water tank 110 and the second partition 132 and the third partition 133 are formed integrally with the inner surface of the water tank cover 110b. Respectively. A plurality of fastening members 124 for fixing the cooling unit 120 are formed at positions corresponding to the respective corners of the fixing surface 116 and the end portions of the second partition wall 132 and the third partition wall 133 Fixed portions 132a and 133a are formed on the fastening member 124 and fastening grooves 124a on which the fastening portions 132a and 133a are engaged are formed on the fastening member 124.

The heat insulating member 140 surrounds the remaining portion of the outer surface of the cooling water tank 110 excluding the fixing surface 116 to which the thermoelectric element 121 closely contacts and the heat sink 122 and the cooling water tank 110 heat- And prevents the internal heat of the cooling water tank 110 from being lost to the outside, and may be formed by dividing into two or more parts for assembly and separation.

Hereinafter, the operation of the first embodiment of the cooling apparatus for a water purifier described above will be described.

5 is a cross-sectional view of a cooling apparatus for a purifier according to the present invention, and Fig. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a coupling structure of a portion "A" in Fig.

5 and 6, the heat absorbing surface of the thermoelectric element 121 is closely attached to the fixing surface 116 formed on the outer surface protruding portion 114 of the water tub cover 110b, and the heat generated on the opposite side of the heat absorbing surface The fastening member 124 whose front end portion is passed through the heat sink 122 and whose rear end portion is supported by the heat sink 122 is fitted to the inner surface of the water tub cover 110b, (Not shown).

A large number of fastening members 124 and screws 125 are disposed around the thermoelectric element 121 so that the heat absorbing surface and the heat generating surface of the thermoelectric element 121 are fixed to the fixing surface 116 of the water tub cover 110b, (122).

A cooling fan 123 for cooling the outside of the heat sink 122 by supplying outside air toward the heat sink 122 is disposed outside the heat sink 122.

The fixing groove 124a of the fastening member 124 which is press-fitted into the through hole 117 from the inner surface of the water tub cover 110b is provided with a fixing part 124a provided at the rear end of the second partition wall 132 and the third partition wall 133, The second partition wall 132 and the third partition wall 133 are fixed to the inner surface of the water tub cover 110b by coupling the first and second partition walls 132a and 133a.

Subsequently, when the inner surface of the water tank cover 110b is fixed to the rim of the opening of the water tank body 110a, the assembling of the cooling water tank 110 for receiving the fluid in the inner space 111 is completed.

The internal storage space 111 of the cooling water tank 110 assembled as described above is partitioned into the inflow space and the outflow space by the first partition 131 and the inflow space is partitioned into the inflow space 112 by the second partition 132, And the outlet space is divided into a fourth area A4 (which is connected to the outlet 113 by the third partition wall 133) and a second area A2 And a third area A3 adjoining the fixing surface 116. [0064]

A first connection passage P1 through which the fluid passes is formed between the second partition 132 and the first partition 131 that define the first region A1 and the second region A2 A second connection passage P2 is formed between the first partition 131 and the water tub cover 110b which define the second area A2 and the third area A3 and the second connection passage P2 is formed between the third area A3 A third connection passage P3 is formed between the third partition wall 133 partitioning the fourth region A4 and the first partition wall 131 to form the first to fourth regions A1, A2, A3, A4) are connected in this order to form a flow path in which the fluid moves in a zigzag fashion.

The heat insulating member 140 is disposed on the outer surface of the cooling water tank 110 except for the fixing surface 116 to which the thermoelectric element 121 is tightly fixed to the outer surface of the cooling water tank 110, And is prevented from being lost by the heat sink 122 and the outside air.

When power is applied to the thermoelectric element 121 of the cooling unit 120 in a state where the fluid is filled in the storage space 111 of the cooling water tank 110, the heat absorbing surface of the cooling water tank 110 The temperature is lowered and the temperature of the heating surface is increased.

That is, the temperature of the fixing surface 116 of the cooling water tank 110 which is in close contact with the heat absorption surface of the thermoelectric element 121 is lowered, the fluid stored in the cooling water tank 110 is cooled and the heat of the thermoelectric element 121 The heat emitted from the surface is cooled by heat exchange with the outside air by the heat sink 122 and the cooling fan 123.

On the other hand, the temperature of the fluid stored in the storage space 111 of the cooling water tank 110 is measured by a temperature sensor (not shown), and the thermoelectric element 121 is controlled according to the temperature of the fluid, .

When the fluid stored in the cooling water tank 110 is cooled by the thermoelectric element 121 as described above and the internal fluid is discharged through the outlet 113, the fluid is supplied to the inlet 112, 110) is kept constant.

Particularly, when the fluid stored in the storage space 111 of the cooling water tank 110 and cooled to a predetermined temperature flows out to the outside through the outlet 113, the level of the fluid stored in the cooling water tank 110 is kept constant The fluid not being cooled by the inlet 112 is supplied.

At this time, the storage space 111 of the cooling water tank 110 is divided into the first to fourth regions A1, A2, and A3 by the first partition 131, the second partition 132 and the third partition 133 And A4, and each region is sequentially connected by the first to third connection passages P1, P2, and P3 to move the fluid. Therefore, the fluid stored in the cooling water tank 110 It is possible to supply a large amount of the cooling fluid through the outlet 113 because the cooling temperature of the inlet 113 is prevented from rising by the uncooled fluid supplied through the inlet 112. [

The second region A2 and the third region A3 defined by the second bank 132 and the third bank 133 are limited to the region adjacent to the thermoelectric element 121. [ That is, the second partition 132 is formed in a substantially "a" shape, and the inflow space adjacent to the inlet 112 is divided into a first region A1 adjacent to the outer surface of the water tub main body 110a, a thermoelectric element 121 And is divided into an adjacent area second area A2. That is, the fluid flowing into the storage space 111 through the inlet port 112 collides with the horizontal surface of the first partition 131 located on the discharge side of the inlet port 112 to stabilize the flow velocity due to the supply pressure, 131 and the outer surface of the water tub main body 110a while being diffused into the first region A1. Subsequently, when the fluid cooled through the outlet 113 is continuously discharged to the outside of the cooling water tank 110, the fluid in the first region A1 flows into the second region A2 through the first connection passage P1 The second region A2 is disposed adjacent to the fixing surface 116 to which the thermoelectric element 121 closely contacts and is cooled by being directly affected by the cooling heat provided from the thermoelectric element 121, And the temperature distribution of the fluid in the second region A2 is equalized by the cooling convection as well as being quickly cooled inside.

Since the third region A3 is also disposed adjacent to the thermoelectric element 121 like the second region A2, the fluid located in the third region A3 is also quickly and uniformly cooled by the cooling convection. Particularly, since the second connection passage P2 connecting the second area A2 and the third area A3 is formed in the depression 115 recessed in the inner surface of the water tub cover 110b, A2 is rapidly cooled while passing through the second connection passage P2 so that the supply fluid is rapidly cooled to the desired temperature while passing through the second region A2 and the third region A3 The supply amount of the cooling fluid discharged through the outlet 113 can be increased while the storage capacity of the cooling water tank 110 is minimized.

The first barrier rib 131, the second barrier rib 132, and the third barrier rib 133 are formed of a heat insulating material to prevent heat exchange between adjacent areas defined by the barrier ribs 130. For example, when the uncooled fluid is supplied to the first region A1 through the inlet 112, the cooling of the second region A2 and the fourth region A4, which are in contact with the first region A1, The heat of the fluid in the first region A1 is prevented from being exchanged with the fluid in the first region A1. Likewise, even in the process of moving the uncooled fluid from the first region A1 to the second region A2 and the third region A3 while the cooling fluid is continuously discharged through the outlet 113, And the uncooled fluid is supplied to the respective regions. Therefore, it is possible to maximize the flow rate of the cooling fluid that can be discharged all at once through the outlet 113 .

Also, by supplying the uncooled fluid into the cooling water tank 110, the temperature of the cooled fluid is prevented from rising immediately. Therefore, the time when the thermoelectric element 121 is driven to cool the fluid can be delayed as much as possible, so that the power consumption can be reduced by keeping the waiting time in the low power state long.

According to the present embodiment, the protrusion 114 is formed on the outer surface of the water tank cover 110b constituting the cooling water tank 110 and the flat fixing surface 116 is formed on the protrusion 114, The thermoelectric element 121 of the cooling water tank 110 is directly fixed to the cooling water tank 110.

That is, since the intermediate heat transfer medium such as the aluminum block disposed between the thermoelectric element 121 and the cooling water tank 110 is omitted, cooling efficiency is improved by direct heat transfer and heat transfer The number of interfaces is reduced and the device configuration is simplified. Specifically, as the number of heat transfer interfaces is reduced compared to the prior art, the heat energy lost at the interface can be minimized, and the number of contact surfaces that influence the cooling performance can be reduced to reduce the deviation in performance between products, The manufacturing process can be minimized, so that the manufacturing process can be simplified and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Since the fixing surface 116 to which the thermoelectric element 121 is fixed is provided in the protruding portion 114 integrally molded from the plate surface of the water tub cover 110b by foaming molding, And provides an effect of stably maintaining the shrinkage and expansion due to thermal deformation.

The scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but may be embodied in various forms of embodiments within the scope of the appended claims. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

110: cooling water tank, 110a: water tank main body, 111: storage space,
112: inlet, 113: outlet, 110b: water tank cover,
114: protruding portion, 115: depression portion, 116: fixing surface,
120: cooling section, 121: thermoelectric element, 122: heat sink,
123: cooling fan, 124: fastening member, 124a: fixing groove,
125: screw, 130: partition, 131: first partition,
132: second partition, 132a: fixed portion, 133: third partition,
133a: fixed portion, P1: first connecting passage, P2: second connecting passage,
P3: third connecting passage, A1: first region, A2: second region,
A3: third region, A4: fourth region, 140: insulating member

Claims (10)

A cooling water tank in which a storage space is formed, an inlet for supplying the fluid to one side of the storage space, and an outlet for discharging the fluid from the other side of the storage space;
A cooling unit disposed on an outer surface of the cooling water tank to cool the fluid stored in the storage space;
At least one partition wall disposed between the inlet and outlet of the cooling water reservoir and defining a storage space; And
And a connecting passage connecting the two side regions defined by the partition to form a flow path. The method according to claim 1,
The partition wall is disposed between an inlet port and an outlet port of the cooling water tank and divides the storage space into an inflow space and an outflow space. The inflow space is divided into a first area adjacent to the inlet and a second area adjacent to the cooling area And a second partition wall for partitioning the first partition and the second partition. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the partition further comprises a third partition for partitioning the outlet space into a fourth region adjacent to the outlet and a third region adjacent to the cooling section. 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Wherein the partition wall is made of a heat insulating material. 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The cooling water tank includes a water tank body having a storage space formed therein and an opening communicating with the storage space at one side, and a water tank cover closing an opening of the water tank body,
And a fixing surface to which the cooling section is closely fixed to the outer surface of the water tub cover is formed to protrude from the surface of the water tub cover. 6. The method of claim 5,
Wherein a depression is formed in an inner surface of the water tub cover at a position corresponding to the fixing surface, and the depression is a connection channel connecting the inflow area and the outflow area. 6. The method of claim 5,
Wherein the cooling section includes a thermoelectric element closely attached to the fixing surface of the water tank cover and a heat sink closely attached to the heat radiating surface of the thermoelectric element. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein the cooling section is fixed to the water tub cover by a fastening member fixed to the water tub cover and a screw fastened to the fastening member through the heat sink. The method of claim 3,
Wherein the fastening member is press-fitted and fixed in the water-tight inside the through-hole formed in the water tub cover. The method of claim 3,
The cooling unit is fixed to the water tub cover by a fastening member which is press-fitted and fixed to the inside of the through hole formed in the water tub cover and a screw fastened to the fastening member through the heat sink, Wherein the fastening member is formed with a fixing portion and a fixing groove which are mutually engaged with each other.

Images