TW202334595A - (無) - Google Patents

Abstract

The heat-insulating box has an inner box and an outer box, which includes: a partition that separates the inside of the heat-insulating box; a vacuum heat-insulating material configured in the heat-insulating box; a foamed heat-insulating material, which is filled inside the heat-insulating box and the partition; and at least one injection port arranged on the back of the heat-insulating box for injecting the material of the foamed heat-insulating material. On the side portion of the heat-insulating box, there are more areas, in which the thickness of the foamed heat-insulating material opposite to the vacuum heat-insulating material is smaller than the thickness of the vacuum heat-insulating material, than the areas in which the thickness of the foamed heat-insulating material is greater than the thickness of the vacuum heat-insulating material. The thickness of the side portion of the heat-insulating box at the allocated position of the partition is greater on the back side than on the gap side.

Description

Insulated boxes and refrigerators

The present invention relates to a heat-insulating box provided in a refrigerator and the like, and a refrigerator equipped with the heat-insulating box.

In order to perform heat insulation from the surroundings, the refrigerator is provided with a heat insulating box covering the outer periphery of the storage space. The heat-insulating box is composed of an outer box, an inner box and heat-insulating material filled between them. As the heat insulating material, for example, a foam heat insulating material such as a rigid foamed polyurethane heat insulating material is used.

In recent years, in order to further improve the thermal insulation performance, it has been proposed to configure vacuum insulation materials in the thermal insulation box. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-183896 discloses that in a refrigerator having a vacuum insulation material and a foam insulation material in an insulation wall, the volume ratio of the vacuum insulation material to the entire volume of the insulation wall is set to For refrigerators above the specified value.

By using vacuum insulation materials, the insulation performance is improved and the thickness of the insulation box can be made thinner. However, as the thickness of the heat insulation box becomes thinner, the space for the foam insulation material to flow in the heat insulation box becomes narrower, making it difficult for the foam heat insulation material to flow. Therefore, unfilled foam may occur after the heat insulation material is foamed. The void in the insulation material.

Therefore, in one aspect of the present invention, an object is to provide a structure that can make it easier to fill the heat insulating box with the foamed heat insulating material when injecting the foamed heat insulating material into the heat insulating box.

One aspect of the present invention relates to a heat-insulating box having an inner box and an outer box. The heat-insulating box includes: a partition that separates the interior of the heat-insulating box; a vacuum heat-insulating material that is disposed in the heat-insulating box; and a foamed heat-insulating material that is filled in the heat-insulating box. The inside of the box and the partition; and at least one injection port, which is disposed on the back of the heat-insulating box and injects the material of the foamed heat-insulating material. On the side portion of the heat insulating box, a region in which the thickness of the foamed heat insulating material opposite to the vacuum heat insulating material is smaller than the thickness of the foamed heat insulating material is smaller than the thickness of the foamed heat insulating material. Because there are many areas more than the thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material, the thickness of the side portion of the heat insulating box at the placement position of the partition is larger on the back side than on the gap side.

According to the heat-insulating box according to one aspect of the present invention, when the foamed heat-insulating material is injected, the foamed heat-insulating material can be filled more easily in the heat-insulating box.

Hereinafter, each embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same components are given the same reference numerals. Their names and functions are also the same. Therefore, detailed descriptions about them will not be repeated.

<First Embodiment> (The overall composition of the refrigerator) First, the overall structure of the refrigerator 10 according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 shows the internal structure of the refrigerator 1 .

As shown in FIG. 1 , the refrigerator 1 includes a refrigerator compartment 11 in an upper section, a vegetable compartment 12 in a middle section, a freezer compartment 13 in a lower section, and the like. The refrigerating compartment 11 is provided with a refrigerating compartment door 11a. The vegetable room 12 is provided with a vegetable room door 12a. The freezing chamber 13 is provided with a freezing chamber door 13a.

As described above, the refrigerator 1 according to this embodiment is divided into the upper section, the middle section, and the lower section, and each storage space is provided. A partition is provided between each storage space. More specifically, the first partition 54 is provided between the upper refrigerator compartment 11 and the middle vegetable compartment 12 . Furthermore, a second partition (partition member) 55 is provided between the vegetable compartment 12 in the middle section and the freezing compartment 13 in the lower section. In addition, the arrangement position of each storage space is not limited to this.

In this embodiment, the surface provided with the door is called the front surface or the front surface of the refrigerator. Furthermore, with the front surface as a reference, each surface of the refrigerator 1 is defined as an upper surface, a side surface, a back surface, and a bottom surface based on the position where the refrigerator 1 exists when the refrigerator 1 is installed in a normal state. In addition, in the state where the refrigerator 1 is placed on the installation surface, the up-and-down direction of the refrigerator 1 is called the up-and-down direction of the refrigerator 1 (or the heat insulation box 50, etc.). In addition, when the refrigerator 1 is placed on the installation surface, the front-to-back direction when viewing the refrigerator 1 from the front is called the front-to-back direction of the refrigerator 1 (or the heat insulation box 50, etc.).

A refrigeration cycle is provided inside the refrigerator 1 . The refrigeration cycle is configured by connecting a compressor 31, a condenser (not shown), an expander (not shown), and a cooler (evaporator) 32 via a refrigerant pipe (refrigerant flow path) through which refrigerant flows.

Furthermore, a control unit (not shown) is provided inside the refrigerator 1 . This control unit controls the operation of the refrigeration cycle. That is, the control unit drives the compressor 31 to start the operation of the refrigeration cycle, and the refrigerant circulates in the cycle. As shown in FIG. 1 , the compressor 31 is disposed in the machine room 30 provided on the back side of the bottom of the refrigerator 1 .

The cooler 32 is arranged in the cooling chamber 35 provided on the back side of the refrigerator 1 . In addition to the cooler 32, the cooling chamber 35 is provided with a cooling fan 33 and the like. The cooling fan 33 is provided to circulate air between the cooling chamber 35 and each storage space. The cooling chamber 35 is connected to the cold air duct 41 . The cold air duct 41 serves as a cold air passage for supplying the cold air generated in the cooling chamber 35 to the refrigerator compartment 11 and the like.

(Construction of heat insulation box) The refrigerator 1 is provided with a heat insulating box 50 as a heat insulating structure for insulating each storage space from the surroundings. FIG. 2 shows the appearance of the heat insulating box 50 when viewed from the front side (the side of the opening 50e). The heat insulating box 50 is provided to cover the outer periphery of the refrigerator 1 . The heat insulation box 50 is mainly composed of an upper surface part, a side part 50b, a back part 50c, and a bottom part. The front side of the heat insulating box 50 is an open mouth portion 50e.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the thermal insulation box 50 mainly includes an outer box 60 , an inner box 70 , a vacuum insulation material 51 and a foam insulation material 52 and at least one partition (such as a first partition 54 and a second partition 55).

The outer box 60 forms the outer peripheral surface of the heat insulating box 50 . The outer box 60 is mainly composed of an upper surface part 60a, a side part 60b, a back part 60c, and a bottom part. The inner box 70 forms the inner peripheral surface of the heat insulating box 50 . The inner box 70 is mainly composed of an upper surface part, a side part 70b, a back part 70c, and a bottom part 70d. The inner box 70 forms the inner wall of the storage space (for example, the refrigerator compartment 11 , the vegetable compartment 12 , and the freezing compartment 13 ) and the rear wall of the cooling chamber 35 .

The interior of the heat insulating box 50 formed by the inner box 70 is divided into a plurality of spaces by at least one partition. In this embodiment, two partitions, a first partition 54 and a second partition 55 are included. The first partition 54 is arranged between the refrigerator compartment 11 and the vegetable compartment 12 . The second partition 55 is arranged between the vegetable compartment 12 and the freezing compartment 13 .

In addition, a space for arranging the machine room 30 is formed on the back side of the bottom of the heat insulating box 50 . The machine room 30 is arranged outside the heat insulation box 50 . This is because the temperature in the machine room 30 rises due to the operation of the compressor 31 . The machine room 30 is mainly divided by the bottom plate 62 constituting the bottom surface of the outer box 60 .

In this way, the machine room 30 and the freezing room 13 are isolated by the heat insulating box 50 . Therefore, the heat generated in the machine room 30 can be suppressed from flowing into the freezing chamber 13 .

The vacuum insulation material 51 and the foam insulation material 52 are provided in the space between the outer box 60 and the inner box 70 . The vacuum heat insulating material 51 is also called VIP and is a sheet-shaped or plate-shaped heat insulating material. For example, the vacuum heat insulating materials 51 are respectively arranged on the side surfaces, the upper surface, the bottom surface, the back surface, etc. of the refrigerator 1 . In FIG. 1 , illustration of the vacuum heat insulating material arranged on the bottom surface of the refrigerator 1 is omitted. As shown in FIG. 1 etc., the vacuum heat insulating material 51 is arrange|positioned in the heat insulation box 50 on the outer box 60 side.

The foamed heat insulating material 52 may be formed of, for example, foamed polyurethane (also called rigid polyurethane foam) or the like. The foamed heat insulating material 52 is also filled in the second partition part 55 that partitions the vegetable compartment 12 as a refrigerated storage space and the freezing compartment 13 as a frozen storage space. In this embodiment, the inside of the first partition 54 that partitions the refrigerator compartment 11 and the vegetable compartment 12 which are also refrigerated storage spaces is not filled with the foamed heat insulating material 52 . A heat insulating material different from the foam heat insulating material 52 may be disposed inside the first partition 54 . Furthermore, in another embodiment, the inside of the first partition 54 may be filled with the foamed heat insulating material 52 .

The foamed heat insulating material 52 injects liquid foamed polyurethane material (also called foamed heat insulating material, heat insulating material) into the heat insulating box 50, so that the material foams in the heat insulating box 50. Thereby, the heat insulation box 50 is filled. The back portion 60 c of the outer box 60 is provided with an injection port 58 for injecting the heat insulating material (see FIG. 5 ). In this embodiment, two injection ports 58 are provided near the left end of the back portion 60c, and two injection ports 58 are provided near the right end of the back portion 60c. A total of four injection ports 58 are provided. . However, the number of injection ports 58 is not limited to this.

FIG. 2 shows the heat insulating box 50 when the foamed polyurethane material is injected into the heat insulating box 50 . When the foamed polyurethane material is injected into the heat insulating box 50 , as shown in FIG. 2 , only the second partition 55 is installed inside the heat insulating box 50 . Accordingly, when the foamed heat insulating material is injected from the injection port 58, the polyurethane inlet 68a, 68b (refer to FIG. 6 etc.) provided between the inner box 70 and the second partition 55 passes through the second partition 55. The interior is also filled with foam insulation material 52.

(Regarding the thickness of the side walls of the insulated box and the thickness of the vacuum insulation material) In recent refrigerators, for the purpose of ensuring a larger interior space, it is desired to make the side wall of the heat insulating box 50 thinner. Therefore, in this embodiment, the wall thickness of each surface (for example, the side part 50b) of the heat insulation box 50 is made thin.

FIG. 4 schematically shows the structure within the side wall of the heat insulating box 50 . FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the A-A line portion of the heat insulating box 50 shown in FIG. 3 . In addition, in FIG. 4 , a part of the heat insulating box 50 (a portion surrounded by a dotted frame) is enlarged and shown.

The average thickness of the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50 according to this embodiment is, for example, 25 mm or more and 35 mm or less. Furthermore, in the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50, the area where the thickness T2 of the foamed heat insulating material 52 facing the vacuum heat insulating material 51 is smaller than the thickness T1 of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 is smaller than the thickness T2 of the vacuum heat insulating material. There are many areas above thickness T1 of 51.

The thickness T1 of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 arranged on the side part 50b is substantially constant over the entire area of one vacuum heat insulating material. In one example, the thickness T1 of the vacuum insulation material 51 is set to 10 mm or more and 30 mm or less, preferably, it is set to 15 mm or more and 25 mm or less.

On the other hand, the thickness T2 of the foamed heat insulating material 52 in the side part 50b differs in each part according to the outer shape of the heat insulating box 50 (especially the shape of the inner box 70). As described above, in the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50, the thickness T1 is larger than T2 in most, at least half, of the area where the vacuum heat insulating material 51 exists. Therefore, the thickness T2 of the foam insulation material 52 covering most of the area where the vacuum insulation material 51 exists in the side portion 50b is set to, for example, 5 mm or more and 15 mm or less, preferably, 8 mm or more and 13 mm or less.

In one example, the thickness T1 of the vacuum insulation 51 may be approximately 2 times the thickness T2 of the foam insulation 52 . In this way, by increasing the proportion of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 in the side portion 50b, the thickness of the entire side portion 50b can be further reduced.

In addition, the thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material arranged on the surface parts other than the side part 50b of the heat insulating box 50 (that is, the upper surface part, the back part 50c, and the bottom surface part) may be the same as the thickness T1, or may be different. Furthermore, the thickness of the foamed heat insulating material 52 in the surface portion other than the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50 (that is, the upper surface portion, the back portion 50c, and the bottom portion) may be equal to the thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material disposed on the surface portion. The thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 may be greater than or equal to the thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 .

For example, in the back surface part 50c, the thickness of the foam heat insulating material 52 arrange|positioned in the back surface part 50c may be greater than the thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 arrange|positioned in the back surface part 50c. Pipes, electrical wiring, etc. of the refrigeration cycle connected to the cooler 32 tend to pass through the back part. In order to fix these pipes, wiring, etc. and further ensure thermal insulation, the foam heat insulating material 52 arranged on the back part 50c is The thickness is preferably a certain thickness or more. Furthermore, although the back part 50c is often the last place to be filled with the foam insulation material 52, and considering that the curing of the heat insulation material is progressing compared with other parts, by thickening the foam insulation disposed in the back part 50c, The thickness of the thermal material 52 will easily ensure the fluidity of the insulating material.

(Method of manufacturing heat-insulating box) Next, a method of manufacturing the heat insulating box 50 will be described. FIG. 5 shows the state of injecting heat insulating material into the heat insulating box 50 .

First, components such as the vacuum heat insulating material 51 and the heat dissipation pipe (not shown) are installed at predetermined positions on the inner surfaces of each surface of the outer box 60 (specifically, the upper surface portion 60a, the side portion 60b, the back portion 60c, etc.) . Furthermore, in-box electrical components, various wiring and other components are installed at predetermined positions of the inner box 70 .

Next, each surface part of the outer box 60 is attached so as to cover the outer periphery of the inner box 70 . Thereby, the outer shape of the heat insulation box 50 is formed.

Then, with the back surface 50c of the heat insulating box 50 facing upward, a liquid foamed heat insulating material (for example, foamed polyurethane material) is injected from the injection port 58 formed in the back surface 60c of the outer box 60. ). At this time, the injection nozzle 91 of the heat insulating material injection device is inserted into the injection port 58 (see FIG. 5 ). The foamed heat insulating material sprayed from the injection nozzle 91 into the heat insulating box 50 is foamed in the space between the outer box 60 and the inner box 70 in an increasing order from the front side (the gap portion 50e side) to the back side. Volume side filling. The foamed insulation is then cured.

That is, when the heat insulating material is injected from each injection port 58 with the back portion 60c of the heat insulating box 50 facing upward, the heat insulating material passes through the side portion 50b and the upper surface portion in the heat insulating box 50 due to gravity. etc., and flows down toward the lowermost intermouth portion 50e.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the thickness T1 of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 is larger than the thickness T2 of the foam heat insulating material in most areas of the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50. The thickness of the side wall of the heat insulating box 50 becomes thinner, so that the space for the heat insulating material to flow in the side wall becomes narrower, making it difficult for the heat insulating material to flow. When the vacuum insulation material 51 is provided inside the insulation box 50, the flow space of the insulation material becomes narrower. This increases the possibility that voids (voids) not filled with the foamed heat insulating material will be generated in the heat insulating box 50 after the injected heat insulating material is foamed.

For example, if the liquid foamed heat insulating material hits the wall surface inside the heat insulating box 50 when injecting it, foaming begins partially at that location, and then the heat insulating material moves from the front side of the heat insulating box 50 to When filling while foaming, the partially foamed area may become an obstacle and the filling may be uneven. Specifically, at the location where the second partition portion 55 is arranged, there are obstacles (for example, narrow width portions 59 a and 59 b, etc.) that may hinder the flow of the foam insulation material.

(Construction of the partition arrangement part of the thermal insulation box) Therefore, in this embodiment, a study was made on the portion of the heat insulating box 50 where the second partition 55 is arranged to promote the inflow of the foamed heat insulating material. This structure will be described below.

6 and 7 show the inner box 70 in a state where the second partition 55 is installed. FIG. 6 shows the inner box 70 in a state where the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 and the water supply pipe 67 arranged in the vegetable compartment 12 are installed. FIG. 7 shows the inner box 70 in a state where the vegetable compartment cold air duct component 43 and the water supply pipe 67 are removed. FIG. 8 schematically shows a horizontal cross-section when the inside of the vegetable compartment 12 of the heat insulating box 50 is viewed from above. In addition, in FIG. 8 , a part of the heat insulating box 50 (a portion surrounded by a dotted frame) is enlarged and shown. In the overall sectional view of FIG. 8 , illustration of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 is omitted. FIG. 9 shows the interior of the second partition 55 .

As shown in FIG. 6 , a vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 is arranged on the back surface of the vegetable compartment 12 . A cold air duct 41 is formed inside the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 . The cold air duct 41 serves as a cold air passage for supplying the cold air generated in the cooling chamber 35 to the refrigerator compartment 11 and the like.

The vegetable room cold air duct member 43 is attached along the bank portion 43a formed on the upper surface portion 55a of the second partition portion 55. The bank portion 43a is formed to protrude from the upper surface portion 55a, and the foamed heat insulating material 52 is filled in the bank portion 43a. By providing such a bank portion 43a, the heat insulation between the cold air duct 41 inside the vegetable room cold air duct member 43 and the vegetable room 12 can be improved.

A water supply pipe 67 is disposed on the back surface of the vegetable compartment 12 for supplying water from a water tank (not shown) disposed in the refrigerator compartment 11 to the ice maker disposed in the freezing compartment 13 . In this embodiment, the water supply pipe 67 is arranged on the left side of the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 when viewed from the front. The water supply pipe 67 is attached to the water supply pipe installation part 67A formed in the upper surface part 55a of the second partition part 55. The water supply pipe installation part 67A is formed to protrude from the upper surface part 55a, and the foam heat insulating material 52 is filled in the inside.

A cold air return port 47 is formed on the opposite side of the water supply pipe 67 on the back side of the vegetable compartment 12 (see FIG. 8 ). The return port 47 communicates with the cooling chamber 35 to return the cold air passing through the refrigerator compartment 11 and the vegetable compartment 12 to the cooling chamber 35 . In this embodiment, the return port 47 is arranged on the right side of the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 when viewed from the front.

As described above, structures such as the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43, the water supply pipe 67, and the return port 47 are present on the back surface of the second partition 55. Such structures can act as obstructions to the flow of foam insulation. For example, between the bank part 43a and the water supply pipe installation part 67A, there exists the narrow width part 59a which is close to each other (refer FIG. 9 etc.). In addition, between the bank part 43a and the return port 47, there exists the narrow width part 59b (refer FIG. 8) which is close to each other.

The presence of such narrow width portions 59a and 59b forms a portion in the second partition portion 55 that can suppress the inflow of the heat insulating material when the foamed heat insulating material is filled. Therefore, for example, voids that are not filled with the foamed heat insulating material may be generated in the bank portion 43 a and the like.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the thickness of the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50 at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 is set so that the back side is larger than the gap side. Specifically, a step portion 56 is provided between the back side and the gap side in the side portion 50 b of the heat insulating box 50 at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 (see FIG. 8 ). The step portion 56 is provided on the side portion 70b of the inner box 70 .

Accordingly, in the side portion 50b at the arrangement position of the second partition 55, the thickness T3 on the back side is larger than the thickness T4 on the gap side. In one example, the thickness T3 is set to 30 mm to 55 mm, preferably 35 mm to 45 mm, and the thickness T4 is set to 15 mm to 45 mm, preferably 25 mm to 35 mm.

When the thicknesses T3 and T4 are set as described above, the thickness T2 of the foam heat insulating material 52 on the gap side of the step portion 56 may be, for example, 5 mm or more and 15 mm or less (preferably 8 mm or more and 13 mm or less). On the other hand, the thickness T2a (refer to FIG. 8 ) of the foam heat insulating material 52 on the back surface side of the step portion 56 may be, for example, 10 mm or more and 35 mm or less (preferably 15 mm or more and 25 mm or less).

Accordingly, when the foamed heat insulating material is injected into the heat insulating box 50, a structure can be obtained in which the foamed heat insulating material can be more easily filled in the heat insulating box. More specifically, the inflow of the foam heat insulating material into the back surface portion within the second partition 55 can be promoted.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, among the plurality of polyurethane inlets provided between the inner box 70 and the second partition 55 , the size of the polyurethane inlet 68 b located on the back side is larger. Thereby, the inflow of the foam heat insulating material into the back surface part inside the 2nd partition part 55 can be further promoted.

If the polyurethane inlet 68 a located on the gap side is opened widely, it is considered that a large amount of foam insulation material flows into the second partition 55 when the viscosity of the foam insulation material filled from the gap side (front side) is low. Inside, the filling of the foam insulation material to the side parts is relatively slow, and the viscosity of the side parts with smaller thickness becomes higher during flow, and the fluidity may be reduced. Therefore, the opening of the polyurethane inlet 68a located on the gap side is reduced to promote the filling of the foamed heat insulating material into the side portion. On the other hand, it is also necessary to prevent insufficient filling of the foamed heat insulating material into the second partition 55. Therefore, by increasing the size of the polyurethane inlet 68b located on the back side, even a foamed heat insulating material with a high viscosity can be It is easy to enter the second partition 55 . In particular, when the narrow width portions 59a and 59b are present on the back side of the second partition 55, the foamed heat insulating material directly injected from the back side is thicker than the foamed heat insulating material that is gradually filled from the front side. It is easy to fill around the narrow portions 59a and 59b. Therefore, increasing the size of the polyurethane inlet 68b located on the back side is effective for filling the foam heat insulating material in the second partition 55.

The polyurethane inflow port 68b may be provided on the back surface side of the step portion 56 . Thereby, the foam heat insulating material directly entering the polyurethane inlet 68b can be increased. Furthermore, when the polyurethane inlet 68b is provided near the injection port 58, a part of the original solution of the injected foam heat insulating material can be directly injected into the second partition 55, and the flow rate to the second partition 55 can be further improved. Filling with foam insulation material.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the discharge port 44 for discharging cold air from the refrigerator compartment 11 to the vegetable compartment 12 is disposed above the water supply pipe installation part 67A (that is, on the left side when viewed from the front). Furthermore, a return port 47 is arranged below the side opposite to the arrangement position of the discharge port 44 (that is, on the right side when viewed from the front) (see FIG. 8 ). Therefore, in the vegetable compartment 12, the cold air flows in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 8 .

Thereby, the cold air flowing into the vegetable compartment 12 from the discharge port 44 can be supplied toward the narrow width part 59a. Therefore, by causing the cold air to flow toward the narrow portion 59a of the second partition 55 where unfilled portions (gaps) of the foam insulation material are relatively easily formed, air becomes less likely to stagnate and dew condensation can be prevented. Similarly, by causing cool air to flow near the narrow-width portion 59b, the air becomes less likely to stagnate and dew condensation can be prevented.

(Summary of the first embodiment) As described above, the refrigerator 1 according to this embodiment includes the heat insulating box 50 . The heat insulation box 50 has an inner box 70 and an outer box 60 . The inside of the heat insulating box 50 is partitioned by partitions such as the first partition part 54 and the second partition part 55 . A vacuum heat insulating material 51 is arranged on the outer box side in the heat insulating box 50 . The inside of the heat insulating box 50 is filled with a foamed heat insulating material 52 . At least one injection port 58 for injecting foam insulation material is provided on the back surface of the heat insulation box 50 .

In the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50, the thickness T1 of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 is greater than the thickness T2 of the foam heat insulating material 52 in most, at least half, of the area where the vacuum heat insulating material 51 exists. Furthermore, the thickness of the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50 at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 is larger on the back side than on the gap side (that is, T3>T4).

According to the above structure, when the foamed heat insulating material is injected into the heat insulating box 50, a structure can be obtained in which the foamed heat insulating material can be filled in the heat insulating box more easily. More specifically, the inflow of the foam heat insulating material into the back surface portion within the second partition 55 can be promoted.

As described above, according to the heat insulating box 50 of this embodiment, when the foamed heat insulating material is injected, the foamed heat insulating material can be configured to flow more easily within the heat insulating box. Thereby, the side surface part of the heat insulation box 50 can be made thin, and the possibility that a site|part which is not filled with the foam heat insulation material may arise in the heat insulation box 50 can be reduced.

<Second Embodiment> Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 10 shows the structure of the heat insulating box 50 provided in the refrigerator 1 according to the second embodiment. The following description will focus on configurations different from those of the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing a horizontal cross-section at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 of the heat insulating box 50 . In FIG. 10 , illustration of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 is omitted.

Like the first embodiment, the thermal insulation box 50 mainly includes an outer box 60, an inner box 70, a vacuum insulation material 51 and a foam insulation material 52, and at least one partition (for example, the first partition 54 and the second partition). Partition 55).

As shown in FIG. 10 , a vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 is arranged on the back surface of the vegetable compartment 12 . The vegetable room cold air duct member 43 is attached along the bank portion 43a formed on the upper surface portion 55a of the second partition portion 55.

Furthermore, a water supply pipe 67 for supplying water from a water tank (not shown) disposed in the refrigerator compartment 11 to the ice maker disposed in the freezing compartment 13 is disposed on the back surface of the vegetable compartment 12 . In this embodiment, the water supply pipe 67 is arranged on the left side of the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 when viewed from the front. The water supply pipe 67 is attached to the water supply pipe installation part 67A formed in the upper surface part 55a of the second partition part 55.

A cold air return port 47 is formed on the opposite side of the water supply pipe 67 on the back side of the vegetable compartment 12 . The return port 47 communicates with the cooling chamber 35 to return the cold air passing through the refrigerator compartment 11 and the vegetable compartment 12 to the cooling chamber 35 . In this embodiment, the return port 47 is arranged on the right side of the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 when viewed from the front.

As described above, structures such as the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43, the water supply pipe 67, and the return port 47 are present on the back surface of the second partition 55. Such structures can act as obstructions to the flow of foam insulation. For example, between the bank part 43a and the water supply pipe installation part 67A, there exists the narrow width part 59a which is close to each other. Furthermore, between the bank part 43a and the return port 47, there exists the narrow width part 59b (refer FIG. 10) which is close to each other.

The presence of such narrow width portions 59a and 59b forms a portion in the second partition portion 55 that can suppress the inflow of the heat insulating material when the foamed heat insulating material is filled. Therefore, for example, voids that are not filled with the foamed heat insulating material may be generated in the bank portion 43 a and the like.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the thickness of the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50 at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 is set so that the back side is larger than the gap side.

Specifically, a step portion 56 is provided between the back side and the gap side in the right side side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50 at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 . Accordingly, in the right side surface portion 50b at the arrangement position of the second partition 55, the thickness T3 on the back side is larger than the thickness T4 on the gap side. This structure is the same as the structure of the heat insulation box 50 which concerns on 1st Embodiment.

In addition to the above-mentioned structure, in this embodiment, the inclined wall part 156 is provided on the back side of the left side surface part 150b of the heat insulation box 50. The inclined wall portion 156 forms a part of the side portion 170b of the inner box 70 and is inclined in a direction such that the thickness of the side portion 150b of the heat insulating box 50 gradually increases from the gap side toward the back side. Accordingly, in the side portion 150b at the arrangement position of the second partition 55, the thickness T13 on the back side is larger than the thickness T4 on the gap side.

According to the above structure, when the foamed heat insulating material is injected into the heat insulating box 50, a structure can be obtained in which the foamed heat insulating material can be filled in the heat insulating box more easily. More specifically, the inflow of the foam heat insulating material into the back surface portion within the second partition 55 can be promoted.

In this embodiment, the inclined wall portion 156 is provided on the side surface portion 150b on the side where the water supply pipe installation portion 67A is arranged. Thereby, the inflow of the foam heat insulating material into the narrow width part (for example, the narrow width part 59a) existing near the water supply pipe installation part 67A can be promoted.

Furthermore, on the side where the water supply pipe installation part 67A is arranged (the left side in this embodiment), the water supply pipe 67 and the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 are arranged adjacent to each other, and the left inner side in the vegetable compartment 12 becomes difficult to use as a storage space. partially utilized area. By providing the inclined wall portion 156 in this area, the inflow of the foamed heat insulating material into the side portion 150b and the narrow width portion 59a can be promoted without significantly reducing the storage capacity in the vegetable compartment 12.

In the above-described embodiment, the right side side portion 50b has the step portion 56 when viewed from the front, and the left side side portion 150b has the inclined wall portion 156 when viewed from the front. However, in another embodiment, the left and right side surfaces of the heat insulating box 50 may be configured to have inclined wall portions 156 . Furthermore, in yet another embodiment, the left side side portion of the heat insulating box 50 may have a step portion 56 and the right side side portion may have an inclined wall portion 156 .

<Third Embodiment> Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 11 shows the structure of the heat insulating box 50 provided in the refrigerator 1 of the third embodiment. The following description will focus on configurations different from those of the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically showing a horizontal cross-section at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 of the heat insulating box 50 . In FIG. 11 , illustration of the vacuum heat insulating material 51 is omitted.

Like the first embodiment, the thermal insulation box 50 mainly includes an outer box 60, an inner box 70, a vacuum insulation material 51 and a foam insulation material 52, and at least one partition (for example, the first partition 54 and the second partition). Partition 55).

As shown in FIG. 11 , a vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 is arranged on the back surface of the vegetable compartment 12 . The vegetable room cold air duct member 43 is attached along the bank portion 43a formed on the upper surface portion 55a of the second partition portion 55.

Furthermore, a water supply pipe 67 for supplying water from a water tank (not shown) disposed in the refrigerator compartment 11 to the ice maker disposed in the freezing compartment 13 is disposed on the back surface of the vegetable compartment 12 . In this embodiment, the water supply pipe 67 is arranged on the left side of the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 when viewed from the front. The water supply pipe 67 is attached to the water supply pipe installation part 67A formed in the upper surface part 55a of the second partition part 55.

A cold air return port 47 is formed on the opposite side of the water supply pipe 67 on the back side of the vegetable compartment 12 . The return port 47 communicates with the cooling chamber 35 to return the cold air passing through the refrigerator compartment 11 and the vegetable compartment 12 to the cooling chamber 35 . In this embodiment, the return port 47 is arranged on the right side of the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43 when viewed from the front.

As described above, structures such as the vegetable compartment cold air duct member 43, the water supply pipe 67, and the return port 47 are present on the back surface of the second partition 55. Such structures can act as obstructions to the flow of foam insulation. For example, between the bank part 43a and the water supply pipe installation part 67A, there exists the narrow width part 59a which is close to each other. In addition, between the bank part 43a and the return port 47, there exists the narrow width part 59b (refer FIG. 11) which is close to each other.

The presence of such narrow width portions 59a and 59b forms a portion in the second partition portion 55 that can suppress the inflow of the heat insulating material when the foamed heat insulating material is filled. Therefore, for example, voids that are not filled with the foamed heat insulating material may be generated in the bank portion 43 a and the like.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the thickness of the side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50 at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 is set so that the back side is larger than the gap side.

Specifically, a step portion 56 is provided between the back side and the gap side in the right side side portion 50b of the heat insulating box 50 at the arrangement position of the second partition 55 . Accordingly, in the right side surface portion 50b at the arrangement position of the second partition 55, the thickness T3 on the back side is larger than the thickness T4 on the gap side. This structure is the same as the structure of the heat insulation box 50 which concerns on 1st Embodiment.

Based on the above-mentioned structure, in this embodiment, the inner wall of the left side side part 250b of the heat insulation box 50 is inclined so that the width of the side part 250b may expand from the gap side toward the back side. That is, the side surface portion 270b on the left side of the inner box 70 is inclined in a direction in which the thickness of the side surface portion 250b of the heat insulating box 50 gradually increases from the gap side toward the back side. Accordingly, in the side portion 250b at the arrangement position of the second partition 55, the thickness T23 on the back side is larger than the thickness T24 on the gap side.

According to the above structure, when the foamed heat insulating material is injected into the heat insulating box 50, a structure can be obtained in which the foamed heat insulating material can be filled in the heat insulating box more easily. More specifically, the inflow of the foam heat insulating material into the back surface portion within the second partition 55 can be promoted.

In this embodiment, the wall of the inner box 70 on the side surface 250b on which the water supply pipe installation part 67A is disposed is inclined so as to expand the width of the side surface 250b from the gap side toward the back side. Thereby, the inflow of the foam heat insulating material into the narrow width part (for example, the narrow width part 59a) existing near the water supply pipe installation part 67A can be promoted.

In the above embodiment, the right side side portion 50b has the step portion 56 when viewed from the front, and the left side side portion 250b has the inclined side portion 270b when viewed from the front. However, in another embodiment, the left and right side portions of the heat insulating box 50 may be configured to have inclined side portions 270b. Furthermore, in yet another embodiment, the left side side portion of the heat insulating box 50 may have a step portion 56 and the right side side portion may have an inclined side portion 270b.

(Summary) a) One aspect of the present invention relates to a heat-insulating box (for example, the heat-insulating box 50) having an inner box (for example, the inner box 70) and an outer box (for example, the outer box 60). The heat-insulating box includes: a partition (for example, the second partition 55), which separates the interior of the heat-insulating box; and a vacuum heat-insulating material (for example, a vacuum heat-insulating material 51), which is disposed on the wall of the heat-insulating box. Inside the thermal box; foam insulation material (eg, foam insulation material 52), which is filled inside the thermal insulation box and the partition; and at least one injection port (eg, injection port 58) , which is arranged on the back of the heat insulation box and injected with the foam heat insulation material. On the side part (for example, side part 50b) of the heat insulation box, the thickness of the foam heat insulation material opposite to the vacuum heat insulation material (for example, thickness T2) is smaller than the thickness of the vacuum heat insulation material. There are more areas with a thickness (eg, thickness T1) than an area with a thickness (eg, thickness T2) of the foamed thermal insulation material that is greater than the thickness (eg, thickness T1) of the vacuum thermal insulation material, and the partition is The thickness of the side portion of the heat insulating box at the arrangement position is larger on the back side than on the gap side (ie, T3>T4).

In the above-mentioned heat insulating box (for example, the heat insulating box 50 ) according to one aspect of the present invention, the heat insulating box at the arrangement position of the partition (for example, the second partition 55 ) may be A step portion (for example, a step portion 56 ) is provided on the side portion of the body between the back side and the gap side.

In the above-mentioned heat insulating box (for example, the heat insulating box 50 ) according to one aspect of the present invention, there may be a structure on the back side of the partition (for example, the second partition part 55 ) to suppress the foaming. A narrow portion of the flow of insulation material (for example, narrow portion 59).

In the above-mentioned heat insulating box (for example, the heat insulating box 50 ) according to one aspect of the present invention, it is also possible that all the points between the partition (for example, the second partition 55 ) and the heat insulating box are A plurality of openings (for example, polyurethane inlets 68a, 68b) for the foam insulation material and its materials to pass are provided between the side portions (for example, the side portions 50b). The opening (for example, the polyurethane inlet 68b) is larger than the other opening (for example, the polyurethane inlet 68a).

Furthermore, another aspect of the present invention relates to a refrigerator (for example, refrigerator 1). This refrigerator includes the heat-insulating box (for example, the heat-insulating box 50) related to one aspect of the present invention.

It should be understood that the embodiments disclosed this time are examples in all respects and are not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the scope of the claims, not by the above description, and includes all changes within the scope and meanings equivalent to the claims. In addition, a structure obtained by combining the structures of different embodiments described in the present invention is also included in the scope of the present invention.

1: Refrigerator 11: Refrigerator 11a: Refrigerator door 12:Vegetable room 12a:Vegetable room door 13: Freezer 13a: Freezer door 30:Mechanical room 31:Compressor 32:Cooler 33: Cooling fan 35:Cooling room 41:Air conditioning duct 43:Vegetable room air-conditioning duct parts 43a: Tsube 44:Discharge outlet 47:Return port 50:Thermal insulation box 50b: Side face 50c: back part 50e: mesooral part 51: Vacuum insulation material 52: Foam insulation material 54: First partition 55:Second partition 55a: Upper surface 56:Stairway 58:Injection port 59a, 59b: Narrow width part 60:Outer box 60a: Upper surface 60b: Side face 60c: back part 62: Base plate 67:Water supply pipe 67A: Water supply pipe installation department 68a, 68b: Polyurethane inlet 70:Inner box 70b: Side face 70c: back part 70d: Bottom face 91:Injection nozzle 170b, 250b, 270b: side face T1, T2, T2a, T3, T4, T23, T24: Thickness

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the internal structure of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure inside the heat insulating box of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. Figure 3 is a side view of the heat insulation box shown in Figure 2 . FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view and a partial cross-sectional view of the structure of the A-A line portion shown in FIG. 3 . FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state of injecting a heat insulating material into the heat insulating box shown in FIG. 2 . 6 is a perspective view showing the structure of the inner box, the second partition, the vegetable room cold air duct and the water supply pipe of the heat insulating box shown in FIG. 2 . FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the structure of the inner box and the second partition of the heat insulating box shown in FIG. 2 . FIG. 8 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the second partition portion of the heat insulating box shown in FIG. 2 . FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the inside of the second partition part of the heat insulating box shown in FIG. 2 . 10 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the second partition of the heat insulating box of the refrigerator according to the second embodiment. 11 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the second partition portion of the heat insulating box of the refrigerator according to the third embodiment.

11: Refrigerator

12:Vegetable room

41:Air conditioning duct

43a: Tsube

44:Discharge outlet

47:Return port

50:Thermal insulation box

51: Vacuum insulation material

50b: Side face

50c: back part

50e: mesooral part

52: Foam insulation material

55:Second partition

55a: Upper surface

56:Stairway

59a, 59b: Narrow width part

67A: Water supply pipe installation department

70b: Side face

T1, T2, T2a, T3, T4: Thickness

Claims (5)

A heat-insulating box, which has an inner box and an outer box. The heat-insulating box is characterized by including: A partition that separates the interior of the insulated box; Vacuum heat insulation material, which is arranged in the heat insulation box; Foam insulation material, which is filled inside the insulation box and the partition; and At least one injection port is arranged on the back of the heat insulation box and injects the foam heat insulation material, In the area of the side portion of the heat insulating box where the vacuum heat insulating material faces the foamed heat insulating material, the thickness of the foamed heat insulating material is smaller than the thickness of the vacuum heat insulating material. It is more than the area where the thickness of the foam insulation material is equal to or greater than the thickness of the vacuum insulation material, The thickness of the side portion of the heat insulating box at the placement position of the partition is larger on the back side than on the gap side. The heat-insulating box as described in claim 1, wherein, A step portion is provided on the side portion of the heat insulating box at the placement position of the partition between the back side and the gap side. The heat-insulating box as described in claim 1 or 2, wherein, A narrow portion that suppresses the flow of the foamed heat insulating material is present on the back side of the partition. The thermal insulation box as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, A plurality of openings for the foamed heat insulating material and its materials to pass are provided between the partition and the side portion of the heat insulating box, The opening located on the back side is larger than the other openings. A refrigerator in which, Including the thermal insulation box as described in any one of claims 1 to 4.

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