WO2022201579A1

WO2022201579A1 - Refrigerator

Info

Publication number: WO2022201579A1
Application number: PCT/JP2021/030652
Authority: WO
Inventors: 隆介馬場; 藍増田; 玉王
Original assignee: 日立グローバルライフソリューションズ株式会社
Priority date: 2021-03-23
Filing date: 2021-08-20
Publication date: 2022-09-29
Also published as: CN116761970A; JP2022147363A

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator having a heat-insulating door in which adaptability for recycling is improved. A refrigerator according to the present invention is provided with a heat-insulating box body and a heat-insulating door. The heat-insulating door has an external plate that is located on the surface and a frame body that extends rearward of peripheral edges of the external plate. The frame body has formed therein a flange part that is located at the rear surface of the external plate and a locking part that partially covers the front surface side of the external plate. The external plate is sandwiched by the locking part and an elastic body that is located on the front surface of the flange part.

Description

refrigerator

The present invention relates to refrigerators.

From the perspective of design, most refrigerator doors use front panels (outer panels) made of glass material. For example, Patent Literature 1 describes, "On the inner surface of the front surface forming portion 32, a gap adjustment portion 34 is formed to protrude. The gap adjustment portion 34 can be applied to the front panel 20 having various thicknesses. ” is stated.

China Patent No. 101131288

In the door of the refrigerator described in Patent Document 1, since the frame and the outer plate are integrally foam-molded, it is difficult to separate the outer plate from the foam insulation material when the refrigerator is recycled, and the entire door is considered to be discarded. .

An object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator having an insulated door with improved recyclability.

In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a refrigerator having a heat insulating box body and a heat insulating door, wherein the heat insulating door extends rearward from the outer plate located on the surface and the peripheral edge of the outer plate. a frame, wherein the frame is formed with a flange portion located on the rear surface of the outer plate and a locking portion covering a part of the front side of the outer plate; The outer plate is sandwiched between the elastic body located on the front surface of the portion and the locking portion.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a refrigerator having an insulated door with improved recyclability.

The front view of the refrigerator which concerns on this embodiment. AA sectional view of FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of a refrigerator compartment door according to Embodiment 1. FIG. BB sectional view of FIG. 3 (refrigerating chamber door top sectional view). The front perspective view which expanded the lower part of the refrigerator compartment door before assembling|attaching an outer plate. The front view which expanded the lower part of the refrigerator compartment door after assembling|attaching an outer plate. CC sectional view of FIG. The front perspective view which shows the 1st process of assembling a refrigerator compartment door. The front perspective view which shows the 2nd process of assembling a refrigerator compartment door. The front perspective view which shows the 3rd process of assembling a refrigerator compartment door. FIG. 4 is an upper cross-sectional view of a refrigerating compartment door according to Modification 1; FIG. 11 is an upper cross-sectional view of a refrigerating compartment door according to Modification 2; The front view which expanded the lower part of the refrigerator compartment door which concerns on Example 2. FIG. DD sectional view of FIG.

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

First, the overall configuration of the refrigerator 1 according to this embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator according to this embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the refrigerator 1 has storage compartments in the order from top to bottom: a refrigerating compartment 2, an ice making compartment 3, an upper freezing compartment 4, a lower freezing compartment 5, and a vegetable compartment 6. The front openings are provided with heat insulating doors for opening and closing these openings. The arrangement of each storage room is not limited to this.

The heat-insulating doors include rotating refrigerating

compartment doors

2a and 2b that rotate about hinges (not shown), a drawer-type ice making compartment door 3a, an upper freezing compartment door 4a, a lower freezing compartment door 5a, and a vegetable compartment. It consists of a door 6a. Further, the inside of each heat insulating door is filled with foam heat insulating material 13 such as rigid urethane foam.

The heat insulating box body of the refrigerator 1 includes an outer box 7 made of steel plate and an inner box 8 made of synthetic resin, and a space formed by the outer box 7 and the inner box 8 is provided with a heat insulating layer to provide heat insulation. Each storage room in the box is insulated from the outside. The outer box 7 includes a top plate 7a, left and right side plates 7b and 7c (not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2), a back plate 7d and a bottom plate 7e. For example, the top plate 7a and the side plates 7b and 7c are integrated. The rear plate 7d and the bottom plate 7e are fixed to the top plate 7a and the side plates 7b and 7c by post-installation.

The heat insulating layer portion of the heat insulating box is filled with foam heat insulating material 13 as described above, but vacuum heat insulating material may also be placed. A first heat insulating partition 9 separates the refrigerator compartment 2 from the ice making compartment 3 and the upper freezer compartment 4 , and a second heat insulator partition 10 separates the lower freezer compartment 5 from the vegetable compartment 6 . These insulating partitions are also constructed of foam insulation or vacuum insulation.

Furthermore, the refrigerator 1 is provided with a cooler for cooling each storage compartment to a predetermined temperature range. In this embodiment, a first cooler 11a for cooling the refrigerator compartment 2 and a second cooler 11b for cooling the ice making compartment 3, the upper freezer compartment 4, the lower freezer compartment 5, and the vegetable compartment 6 are provided. However, the number of coolers and the storage chambers to be cooled are not limited to this. Compressor 12 for compressing the refrigerant, heat dissipation means (not shown condenser and heat dissipation pipe) for dissipating heat from the refrigerant sent from the compressor 12, decompression means (not shown capillary tube) for decompressing the refrigerant sent from the heat dissipation means ) and a cooler (evaporator) that cools the air by evaporating the refrigerant sent from the decompression means are connected to form a refrigeration cycle. In addition, since the compressor 12 and the condenser arranged in the lower part of the back surface of the heat insulating box are parts that generate a large amount of heat, a vacuum insulating material is also arranged inside the bottom plate 7e in order to prevent heat from entering the chamber. be done.

Here, the heat insulating door according to the present embodiment has a structure in which the outer plate 20 can be easily separated from the foam heat insulating material 13 when the refrigerator 1 is recycled. Hereinafter, the configuration of the heat insulating door will be described in detail based on examples.

Embodiment 1 is a heat insulating door having a display/operation unit 30, and will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 8C. Here, the refrigerating compartment door 2b using the outer plate 20 made of steel is taken as an example. can also be applied. However, since glass is not a material with high recycling value, it is particularly effective to use a valuable material such as a steel plate for the outer plate 20 . Materials other than steel plates that are environmentally friendly include aluminum and the like.

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of the refrigerating compartment door according to Embodiment 1, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view along BB in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the refrigerating chamber door 2b includes a steel plate outer plate 20 positioned on the surface, a frame body extending rearward (toward the refrigerating chamber side) from the periphery of the outer plate 20, and an outer wall. An inner plate 25 which is spaced behind the plate 20 and has a frame fixed to its periphery, and a foamed heat insulating material 13 filled in a space surrounded by the frame and the inner plate 25 on the sides and the rear, configured with A vacuum heat insulating material may be provided in front of the foam heat insulating material 13 . Furthermore, the frame includes an upper frame member 21 positioned along the upper edge of the outer plate 20, a lower frame member 22 positioned along the lower edge of the outer plate 20, and a left edge of the outer plate 20. A left frame member 23 positioned along the outer plate 20 and a right frame member 24 positioned along the right edge of the outer plate 20 are combined.

The upper frame member 21 and the lower frame member 22 have

flange portions

21 a and 22 a that face the rear surface of the outer plate 20 and extend in the vertical direction substantially parallel to the outer plate 20 . The foamed heat insulating material 13 is filled in the area behind the

flanges

21 a and 22 a and is fixed to the inner surfaces of the frame and the inner plate 25 . A plate spring 26 as an elastic body is fixed to the front surfaces of the

flanges

21a and 22a at a position close to the edge using a spring fixing screw 28 (see FIG. 5). In this embodiment, the leaf spring 26 is used as the elastic body, so it is fixed with screws. However, if another member is used as the elastic body, it may be fixed by another method such as an adhesive.

Furthermore, the front ends of the upper frame member 21 and the lower frame member 22 are formed with

first locking portions

21b, 22b for locking the upper edge portion or the lower edge portion of the outer plate 20. As shown in FIG. The first

engaging portions

21b and 22b have a covering structure that covers a part of the front side of the upper edge or the lower edge of the outer plate 20. 20 can be interleaved. Therefore, even if the thickness of the outer plate 20 is different, the elastic force of the plate spring 26 presses the outer plate 20 against the

first locking portions

21b and 22b, and the outer plate 20 can be supported. In this embodiment, the length of extension from the edge of the covering surface of the upper frame member 21 (upper end of the outer plate 20) is smaller than the length of extension from the edge of the leaf spring 26 (upper end of the outer plate 20). Therefore, the area where the first locking portion 21b covers the front surface of the outer plate 20 is reduced, and the design is improved. It goes without saying that this configuration of the upper frame member 21 can also be applied to the lower frame member 22 .

On the other hand, although not shown, the left frame member 23 is not provided with the leaf spring 26 in order to prevent the outer plate 20 from being caught when it is inserted. A second locking portion for locking the left edge of the outer plate 20 is formed at the front end of the left frame member 23 . The second locking portion may have a covering structure that covers a part of the front side of the outer plate 20, or may protrude from the rear end of the outer plate 20 without covering the front side of the outer plate 20 (outer plate 20). It may be an abutting structure (including cases where it protrudes from the front end of the plate 20 and cases where it does not protrude).

Like the left frame member 23, the upper frame member 21, and the lower frame member 22, the right frame member 24 is composed of an inner right frame member 24A (see FIG. 8A) assembled before foam filling of the foam heat insulating material 13, and an outer panel after foam filling. and an outer right frame member 24B which is fixed after inserting 20. The front end of the outer right frame member 24B is also formed with a second locking portion that locks the right edge of the outer plate 20. This second locking portion corresponds to the second locking portion of the left frame member 23. It may have the same structure as the part or a different structure. In this embodiment, since the outer plate 20 is inserted from the right, the right frame member 24 has a double structure. However, when the outer plate 20 is inserted from the left, the left frame member 23 has a double structure. Also good.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged front perspective view of the lower portion of the refrigerator compartment door before the outer panel is assembled. As shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of leaf springs 26 are arranged side by side in the left-right direction on the front side of the flange portion 22a of the lower frame member 22. As shown in FIG. Each leaf spring 26 has a shape elongated in the left-right direction, but is fixed by a spring fixing screw 28 on the side where the outer plate 20 is inserted, that is, on the right side. The assembling workability of the door is improved. Further, each plate spring 26 has a convex shape that protrudes substantially in the center in the left-right direction, and this convex shape presses the rear surface of the outer plate.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged front view of the lower part of the refrigerator compartment door after the outer panel has been assembled. In this embodiment, since the outer plate 20 of the refrigerating compartment door 2b is made of steel plate, even if the LED is provided behind the outer plate 20, the light does not pass in front of the outer plate 20, and the electrode is positioned behind the outer plate 20. is provided, it is difficult to detect changes in capacitance on the surface of the outer plate 20 . Accordingly, a display/operation unit 30 of a mechanism for automatically opening the refrigerator compartment door 2b is attached to a recess (notch) formed in a portion of the lower frame member 22 on the lower side of the outer plate 20. As shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line CC of FIG. 6 (a sectional view of the display unit provided at the bottom of the refrigerating compartment door).
As shown in FIG. 7, below the outer plate 20, a surface member 30a with printing or the like faces forward, and a translucent member 30b extending toward the first heat insulation partition 9 on the heat insulation box side. and the surface member 30a are integrally formed. The translucent member 30b is fixed to the lower surface of the lower frame member 22 that supports the leaf spring 26 via the flange portion 22a. On the other hand, a box-shaped substrate 31 is arranged in front of the first heat insulating partition 9 , and an LED 32 is mounted on the front of this box-shaped substrate 31 .
Therefore, when the refrigerator compartment door 2b is closed, the rear end of the translucent member 30b is close to the front surface of the LED 32 of the box substrate 31, and the light emitted from the LED 32 is transmitted through the translucent member 30b to the surface member. 30a is displayed.

In addition, although not shown, a mechanical operation button for automatically opening the door is also provided at the bottom of the refrigerator compartment door 2b. This operation button extends toward the first heat insulating partition 9 and is configured integrally with an operating piece that is displaced in the front-rear direction relative to the lower frame member 22 . When the operation button is pushed, the rear end of the operating piece is connected to a switch contact formed on the front surface of the first heat insulating partition 9, and a door opening mechanism (not shown) is operated.

As described above, the display/operation unit 30 of the present embodiment is provided on the heat insulating door without being fixed to the outer panel 20, so that the outer panel 20 can be recycled with high workability. Moreover, since the substrate for the display/operation unit 30 is provided on the heat insulating box side, there is an advantage that the electric wiring to the heat insulating door is not necessary.

Figs. 8A to 8C are front perspective views showing the steps of assembling the refrigerating compartment door, showing the first step to the second step, respectively.

First, in the first step, as shown in FIG. 8A, the foam heat insulating material is assembled with the upper frame member 21, the lower frame member 22, the left frame member 23, and the inner right frame member 24A attached to the inner plate 25. 13 is foam-filled to obtain a frame structure. The plate springs 26 are fixed in advance to the

flange portions

21a and 22a of the upper frame member 21 and the lower frame member 22 with spring fixing screws 28, respectively. Therefore, the fixed state of the plate spring 26 is reinforced by covering and fixing the spring fixing screw 28 behind the

flange portions

21a and 22a with the foamed heat insulating material 13 .

Next, in the second step, as shown in FIG. 8B , the obtained frame structure is subjected to outer The plate 20 is inserted from the right side. Here, since the front end position of the inner right frame member 24A is behind the front end positions of the upper frame member 21, the lower frame member 22 and the left frame member 23, the outer plate 20 can be inserted. In addition, since the inner right frame member 24A does not form a design surface, it may be made of a material different from that of the upper frame member 21, the lower frame member 22 and the left frame member .

Finally, in the third step, when the insertion of the outer plate 20 is completed, as shown in FIG. 8C, the outer right frame member 24B is fixed to the inner right frame member 24A by the frame fixing screws 27. Thus, the refrigerator compartment door 2b as shown in FIG. 3 is obtained. Since the outer right frame member 24B forms a design surface, it may be fixed to the inner right frame member 24A by a method other than screws. Furthermore, the outer right frame member 24B is made of the same material as the left frame member 23 and the like, and is not provided with the leaf spring 26 like the left frame member 23. A second locking portion for locking is formed.

When recycling the refrigerator 1, the heat insulating door is dismantled and the outer plate 20 is removed in the reverse process to that described above.

[Modification of Embodiment 1]
A modification of the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. FIG.

FIG. 9 is an upper cross-sectional view of a refrigerating compartment door according to Modification 1. FIG. A refrigerating compartment door 2b according to Modification 1 shown in FIG. 9 has the same basic configuration as the refrigerating compartment door shown in FIG. different in that respect. In the case of Modification 1, the thickness of the outer plate 20 is absorbed by compressing the plate spring 26 more and reducing the dimension in the front-rear direction.

FIG. 10 is an upper cross-sectional view of a refrigerating compartment door according to Modification 2. FIG. A refrigerating compartment door 2b according to Modification 2 shown in FIG. 10 differs from the refrigerating compartment door shown in FIG. Specifically, the extension dimension from the edge of the covering surface of the upper frame member 21 (upper end of the outer plate 20) is larger than the extension dimension from the edge of the leaf spring 26 (upper end of the outer plate 20). In this case, since the contact area between the covering surface of the first locking portion 21b and the outer plate 20 is large, it is possible to stably support the outer plate 20 from the front side as well. Although the configuration of the upper frame member 21 has been described here, it goes without saying that the same configuration can be applied to the lower frame member 22 as well.

As described above, in the heat-insulating door of the present embodiment, the outer panel 20 is attached to the structure after integral foam molding, so that the outer panel 20 can be easily removed when the refrigerator 1 is recycled. there is Further, even if the thickness of the outer plate 20 differs, the difference in thickness can be supported by the leaf spring 26, so that the structure before the outer plate 20 is assembled can be shared, resulting in the manufacture of a heat insulating door. Improve efficiency. Patent document 1 also discloses an example of a refrigerator that can accommodate outer panels of different thicknesses, but the technique described in this document cannot cope with subtle differences in thickness that are equal to or less than a predetermined pitch width. .

Example 2 is a heat insulating door having a display/operation panel 40, and will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12. FIG. FIG. 11 is an enlarged front view of the lower portion of the refrigerator compartment door according to the second embodiment. Since the outer plate 20 of the refrigerator compartment door 2b of this embodiment is also made of steel, the display/operation panel 40 is attached to the lower side of the outer plate 20. As shown in FIG. However, unlike the display/operation panel 30 of the first embodiment, the display/operation panel 40 of the present embodiment enables display and operation of temperature setting and the like.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view (cross-sectional view of the display section) taken along line DD of FIG. As shown in FIG. 12, the translucent surface member 40a faces forward, and the door base plate 41 is provided behind the outer plate 20 at a position where projection in the front-rear direction does not overlap. On the front surface of the door substrate 41, in addition to the LEDs 32, electrodes (not shown) for detecting changes in the capacitance of the surface member 40a are mounted. In addition, since the refrigerating compartment door 2b of the present embodiment is a rotary door and has a hinge portion, by providing electric wiring using this hinge portion, it is possible to move the door to the heat insulating door side instead of the heat insulating box side. , it is possible to place the substrate.

The present invention is not limited to each embodiment described above, and various modifications are possible. For example, in

Embodiments

1 and 2 described above, the plate spring 26 was used as the elastic body for pressing the outer plate 20 against the frame, but a spring ball may be used. In the case of the spring ball, there is an advantage that the resistance when sliding and inserting the outer plate 20 is small, and the assembling workability of the door is improved. The material of the elastic body may be metal, rubber or resin. For example, a pre-foamed independent heat insulating material may be used as the elastic body. In the case of such a heat insulating material, the entire rear surface of the outer panel 20 can be supported, thereby improving stability and heat insulation.

In addition, the above-described embodiments are illustrated for easy understanding of the present invention, and are not necessarily limited to those having all the configurations described. Furthermore, it is also possible to replace part of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another embodiment, and to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. Moreover, it is also possible to add, delete, or replace a part of the configuration of each embodiment with another configuration.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Refrigerator 2...

Refrigerator compartment

2a, 2b... Refrigerator compartment door 3... Ice-making compartment 3a... Ice-making compartment door 4... Upper freezer compartment 4a... Upper freezer compartment door 5... Lower freezer compartment 5a... Lower level Freezer compartment door 6 Vegetable compartment 6a Vegetable compartment door 7 Outer box 7a Top plate 7b, 7c Side plate 7d Rear plate 7e Bottom plate 8 Inner box 9 Third 1 heat insulating partition 10 second heat insulating partition 11 a first cooler 11 b second cooler 12 compressor 13 foam heat insulating material 20 outer plate 21 upper frame member 22 bottom Frame member 23 Left frame member 24A Inner right frame member 24B Outer right frame member 25 Inner plate 26 Leaf spring 27 Frame fixing screw 28 Spring fixing screw

Claims

In a refrigerator equipped with an insulated box body and an insulated door,
The heat insulating door has an outer plate located on the surface and a frame body extending rearward from the peripheral edge of the outer plate,
The frame body is formed with a flange portion located on the rear surface of the outer plate and a locking portion that covers a part of the front side of the outer plate,
A refrigerator in which the outer plate is sandwiched between an elastic body located in front of the flange portion and the locking portion.
In the refrigerator according to claim 1,
A refrigerator in which a foamed heat insulating material is fixed to at least a portion of the frame body behind the flange portion, and the foamed heat insulating material is not fixed to the outer plate.
In the refrigerator according to claim 1,
The said elastic body is a refrigerator fixed to the said flange part formed in the frame member parallel to the insertion direction of the said outer plate.
In the refrigerator according to claim 3,
The elastic body is a leaf spring,
A refrigerator fixed to the flange portion on a side of the plate spring in the longitudinal direction where the outer plate is inserted.
In the refrigerator according to claim 3,
The refrigerator, wherein the elastic body is a spring ball.
In the refrigerator according to claim 1,
The extension dimension from the edge of the covering surface of the locking part is smaller than the extension dimension from the edge of the elastic body.
In the refrigerator according to claim 1,
The extension dimension of the locking portion from the edge of the covering surface is larger than the extension dimension from the edge of the elastic body.
In the refrigerator according to claim 1,
The outer plate is made of steel plate,
The refrigerator, wherein the heat insulation door has a display part or an operation part below the outer plate.
In the refrigerator according to claim 8,
A refrigerator in which a substrate of the display unit or the operation unit is provided on the heat insulating box body.
In the refrigerator according to claim 8,
The heat insulating door is a rotary door,
The refrigerator provided in the heat insulating door at a position where the substrate of the display unit or the operation unit does not overlap with the projection of the outer plate in the front-rear direction.