KR20180003173A - Aquarium chiller - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cooler for controlling temperature of a water tub, which cools water stored in an aquarium or the like by using a coolant and a thermoelectric element, and at the same time, by means of a cooling fan, can lower surface temperature by creating water waves on the surface of the aquarium and thereby promoting surface evaporation. According to the present invention, the cooler may comprise: a main body unit which comprises a case unit, a cooling pin, a thermoelectric element, a heat transfer plate, and a cover unit; and a heat dissipation unit which is connected to the heat transfer plate through a cooling pipe, wherein the case unit has a storage space formed therein, a coupling hole formed on one surface thereof, and an opening formed on the other surface thereof, the cooling pin is configured to couple with the coupling hole of the case unit, the thermoelectric element is configured to face the other side of the cooling pin, the heat transfer plate is configured to face the other side of the thermoelectric element, and the cover unit is coupled with the opening of the case unit.

Description

{AQUARIUM CHILLER}

More particularly, the present invention relates to a cooler for controlling the temperature of a water tank, and more particularly, to a water cooler for cooling water stored in an aquarium or the like by using a coolant and a thermoelectric element and generating a wave on the surface of the aquarium using a cooling fan, And to a cooler for controlling the temperature of a water tank in which the temperature can be lowered.

The water temperature of the aquarium should be maintained at a suitable temperature depending on the species of the aquarium that is being raised. For example, in tropical or sub-tropical climate, it is an ornamental fish that is vulnerable to cold environments, so that the water temperature should not fall below a certain temperature, and the ornamental fish that live in relatively cold water should keep the water temperature from rising above a certain temperature . For this purpose, a tank for breeding ornamental fish must have a heater or a cooler.

The conventional cooler for controlling the temperature of the water tank can be divided into two types. One is a system in which a natural cooling is performed by blowing wind on the water surface of a water tank, and cooling is performed by using a refrigeration system for compressing and evaporating refrigerant with a compression pump.

However, since the natural cooling method has a poor cooling efficiency, there is a limitation in maintaining the temperature of the water tank in the hot weather as in the summer. In the method using the refrigeration system, power consumption is high and the compression pump, which pressurizes the refrigerant, There is a problem.

In addition, a cooling method using a piezoelectric element as part of a known cooling method has been partially applied. The cooling method using the piezoelectric element is advantageous in that the noise is small and the cooling efficiency is higher than that of the natural cooling. However, in order to improve the cooling efficiency, the size of the piezoelectric element used increases. When the capacity of the piezoelectric element increases, .

KR 20-0156108 Y1 KR 20-2010-0000069 U

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a piezoelectric element which can cool water in a water tank and induce a blowing effect on the water surface, And it is an object of the present invention to provide a water tank cooler for temperature control.

The present invention as a technical means for solving the above problems is characterized in that it comprises a housing part having a housing space formed therein and a coupling hole formed on one side thereof and an opening part formed on the other side thereof, A main body including a thermoelectric element configured to face the other side of the cooling fin, a heat transfer plate configured to face the other side of the thermoelectric element, and a lid part coupled to an opening of the case part; And a heat dissipating unit connected to the heat transfer plate through a cooling pipe.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the cooling fin comprises a coupling plate having a shape corresponding to the coupling hole and a heat absorbing plate vertically protruding from one surface of the coupling plate, Can be combined to face each other.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the cooling fin may be configured such that the heat absorbing portion faces the other surface of the coupling plate.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the heat dissipation unit is provided on one side surface of the case part so that the heat dissipation plate is perpendicular to the water surface, and a first cooling fan is provided on one surface of the heat dissipation unit, Can be configured so as to face the water surface of the water tank and blow in a direction perpendicular to the water surface.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a second cooling fan is further provided on the other side of the main body, and the second cooling fan can be configured to blow in the water surface direction.

According to the cooler for regulating the temperature of the water tank according to the present invention, cooling of the water temperature by using the piezoelectric element is advantageous in that noise and power consumption are smaller than that of a refrigeration system using a compression pump. In addition, by cooling the refrigerant by naturally circulating the heat generated by the piezoelectric element, and by using a cooling fan to generate waves on the water surface, the water cooled by the piezoelectric element is promoted to diffuse to other parts, So that the cooling efficiency can be improved.

1 is an external perspective view of a water cooler according to the present invention;
2 is a side view of a water cooler according to the present invention;
3 is a bottom perspective view of a water cooler according to the present invention.
4 is an exploded view of a main body of a water cooler according to the present invention;

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

2 is a side view of a water cooler according to the present invention, FIG. 3 is a bottom perspective view of a water cooler according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the water cooler according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a main body of a water cooler according to the present invention.

1 to 4, a cooler for a water tank 10 according to the present invention includes a main body 100 and a heat dissipation unit 210, a first cooling fan 230 provided in the heat dissipation unit 210, And a second cooling fan 250 provided on the other side of the main body 100.

The main body 100 may include a case 110, a cooling fin 130, a thermoelectric element 150, a heat transfer plate 170, and a lid 120. The case 110 has a receiving space formed therein, a coupling hole formed on one surface, and an opening formed on the other surface. The storage space may be configured as a quadrangular column or the like having both sides opened as shown in the figure. However, the above-described configuration is for facilitating the housing of the thermoelectric element 150 and the like in the case 110 considering the general shape of the thermoelectric element 150 and the like to be described later. It can be designed in various shapes. The fixing part 115 can be further provided on one side of the case part 110 to fix the case part 110 to the wall surface of the water tub 10. The fixing part 115 is formed in an annular shape having an interval corresponding to the wall surface of the water tub 10 as shown in the figure so that the fixing part 115 of the annular shape is mounted on the upper part of the wall surface of the water tub 10 can do. However, the above-described structure shows an embodiment of the present invention, and various known shapes and methods can be applied as long as the case 110 can be fixed to the wall surface of the water tub 10. For example, although not shown in the drawing, the fixing part 115 may be provided on one side of the case 110 to attach the cubicle to the inner surface of the water tub 10.

The cooling fin 130 may be composed of a coupling plate 135 having a plate-like structure and a heat absorbing plate 133 protruding perpendicularly to one surface of the coupling plate 135. The cooling fin 130 may be formed of various known materials having a high heat transfer efficiency and the coupling plate 135 may be configured to correspond to the coupling hole of the casing 110. Thus, when the coupling plate 135 is coupled to the coupling hole, the coupling hole is shielded. At this time, a sealing member (not shown) such as rubber or silicone may be further provided on the contact surface between the coupling plate 135 and the coupling hole to prevent water from flowing into the case 110. The heat absorbing plate 133 is vertically formed on one surface of the coupling plate 135 and may have a plurality of plate-like structures in order to increase the contact area with water. However, the heat absorbing plate 133 may have a variety of known structures capable of increasing the contact area with water. For example, a variety of heat dissipation structures or endothermic structures can be applied to increase the surface area, such as a cylindrical pin or a plate-like structure having a bent structure.

The thermoelectric element 150 refers to a semiconductor element in which an endothermic phenomenon occurs on one side and a heat phenomenon occurs on the other side according to the direction of current. The thermoelectric element 150 has a well-known structure, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted. The thermoelectric element 150 is provided on the other side of the cooling fin 130 and is disposed inside the housing space of the case 110 so that the heat absorbing portion of the thermoelectric element 150 faces the other surface of the coupling plate 135 do.

The heat transfer plate 170 is provided on the other side of the thermoelectric element 150, specifically, on the inner side of the housing space of the case part 110 so that one surface thereof faces the heat radiating part of the thermoelectric element 150. The heat transfer plate 170 may be made of a metal material having high heat transfer efficiency. The heat transfer plate 170 is coupled while the cooling tube 175 is in contact. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the heat radiating plate 170 may further include a heat radiating portion 190 at the other side thereof. Thus, the heat of the heat transfer plate 170 can be discharged through the heat discharging unit 190. In this case, when the heat radiating part 190 is provided, the lid part 120 of the case part 110 may be provided with a cover hole 125 through which the heat radiated through the heat radiating part 190 escapes .

The heat dissipation unit 210 is constructed by continuously connecting a plurality of heat dissipation plates having a plate-like structure as shown in the figure. However, the above-described structure shows an example of a structure that is typically applied to a heat radiation function configured to increase a contact area with air. Therefore, the structure of the heat dissipating unit 210 is not limited to the structure shown in the drawings, and various known shapes and structures useful for realizing the heat dissipating function can be applied. The heat dissipating unit 210 is heated through the heat transfer plate 170 and the cooling pipe 175 described above. That is, one side of the cooling pipe 175 filled with the coolant may be configured to penetrate the heat dissipating unit 210, and the other side may be configured to contact or penetrate the heat transfer plate 170. The specific structure in which the cooling pipe 175 is coupled to the heat dissipating unit 210 and the heat transfer plate 170 may be variously formed.

A first cooling fan 230 may be provided on one side of the heat dissipation unit 210. The first cooling fan 230 functions to cool the heat dissipation unit 210 by allowing wind to pass through the heat dissipation unit 210. The first cooling fan 230 is configured to face the water surface of the water tank, and can be configured to blow in a direction perpendicular to the water surface. It is preferable that the air blown by the first cooling fan 230 is configured to pass through the gap between the heat sinks of the heat dissipation unit 210. [ Thus, in one embodiment of the present invention, the heat dissipation unit 210 described above allows the heat dissipation plates to be arranged side by side in the vertical direction with respect to the water surface. However, the heat dissipating unit 210 may be provided independently of the water surface of the water tub or may be provided in an upper portion of the body 100 in the vertical direction.

The heat dissipating unit 210 is provided on one side (left side in the drawing) of the case 110 as shown in the drawing, and the wind to be conveyed by the first cooling fan 230 can be directed to the water surface direction of the water tub have. When the heat released from the heat dissipating unit 210 is directed to the water surface of the water tank, water evaporation on the water surface is promoted to improve the cooling effect. In addition, water flowing in the water surface may flow so that the cooling water around the cooling fin 130 is well mixed. The temperature of the water tank 10 may be increased rather than supplying too much heat to the water of the water tank. However, when a small amount of hot air is supplied, the vaporization of water is promoted and the temperature of the water tank is lowered by the heat of vaporization.

The lid part 120 is detachably coupled to the opening of the case part 110. The lid part 120 protects the thermoelectric element 150 and the heat transfer plate 170 housed in the housing part.

Meanwhile, as a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a second cooling fan 250 may be further provided on the other side of the main body 100. The second cooling fan 250 may be configured such that the direction of the blades is horizontally arranged with respect to the water surface so as to blow air in the water surface direction.

Hereinafter, the use state of the water cooler for controlling the temperature of the water tank according to the present invention will be described.

The water tank temperature control cooler according to the present invention uses a fixing part 115 provided on one side surface of the case part 110 to be fixed to a wall surface of a water tank, and the cooling fin 130 is partially installed on the water surface. When the power is supplied, the thermoelectric element 150 absorbs the heat of the cooling fin 130 and transfers the heat to the heat transfer plate 170 to cool water around the cooling fin 130. The heat transferred to the heat transfer plate 170 is transferred to the refrigerant flowing through the cooling pipe 175 and the refrigerant heated by the heat transfer plate 170 is transferred to the heat dissipating unit 210 through the cooling pipe 175 to be cooled . The refrigerant is transferred to the heat dissipating unit 210 through the cooling tube 175 connected between the heat transfer plate 170 and the heat dissipating unit 210 and then cooled by the heat dissipating unit 210. [ The refrigerant is transferred to the heat transfer plate 170, and the heat of the heat transfer plate 170 is transferred to the heat dissipation unit 210. The heat transferred to the heat dissipating unit 210 is cooled in the heat dissipating plate. At this time, the first cooling fan 230 supplies air to the heat dissipating unit 210 to cool the heat dissipating unit 210. On the other hand, the first cooling fan 230 may blow air in the opposite direction of the water surface to cool the heat sink, but preferably blows in the water surface direction to cool the heat sink. That is, the air heated by the heat sink is blown toward the water surface. The heated air blown to the surface of the water causes water from the surface of the water to evaporate. Thus, as the water evaporates, it absorbs the heat of the water and lowers the water temperature. Also, the first cooling fan 230 and the second cooling fan 250 may blow water in the direction of the water surface to cause waves on the water surface, thereby causing the water in the water tank to swing. When the wave of the main surface of the cooling fin 130 swings, the water cooled by the cooling fin 130 is circulated while being circulated to improve the cooling efficiency, and the cold water can be prevented from staying on one side for a long time. In an embodiment of the present invention, the first cooling fan 230 and / or the second cooling fan 250 may be inclined at an angle with respect to the water surface of the water tank. Thus, the water of the water surface can be transferred to either side to promote the movement and diffusion of water.

Although the present invention has been described in connection with certain exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited by the described embodiments, but should be defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.

100:
110: Case part
115:
120:
130: cooling pin
133: Endothermic plate
135: engaging plate
150: thermoelectric element
170: heat transfer plate
175: cooling pipe
190:
210: Heat dissipating unit
230: first cooling fan
250: second cooling fan

Claims (4)

A housing having a housing space formed therein, a coupling hole formed on one side thereof, and an opening formed on the other side thereof, a cooling fin configured to be coupled to the coupling hole of the case, and a thermoelectric element A heat transfer plate configured to face the other side of the thermoelectric element, and a cover part coupled to an opening of the case part;
A heat dissipating unit connected to the heat transfer plate through a cooling pipe;
And a condenser for controlling the temperature of the water bath.
The method according to claim 1,
The cooling fin
And a heat absorbing plate vertically protruding from one surface of the coupling plate, the coupling plate being coupled to the coupling hole of the case part so as to face the coupling hole.
The method of claim 2,
Wherein the cooling fin is configured to face the other surface of the engaging plate.
The method of claim 3,
The heat dissipation unit is disposed on one side surface of the case part so that the heat dissipation plate is perpendicular to the water surface,
Wherein the first cooling fan is disposed on one surface of the heat dissipation unit and the first cooling fan is configured to face the water surface of the water tank and blows in a direction perpendicular to the water surface.

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