JPH0447593Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention relates to a structure of a refrigerator that allows the opening and closing of an insulating door to be performed easily and smoothly.

(Prior Art) In a refrigerator (refrigerator in this specification has a broad meaning that includes a freezer), a part of the air inside the refrigerator is replaced with outside air by opening and closing an insulating door (hereinafter referred to as the door). If you leave the door closed for a while, the hot outside air that enters will rapidly cool down, resulting in a decrease in volume and a drop in air pressure inside the refrigerator. This decrease occurs so significantly that the door often becomes unable to open due to the difference in air pressure with the outside air (lower inside the refrigerator).

Therefore, as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 55-13669, conventionally, a pivot hole 23 provided in the outer panel 21 of the door and an air hole 2 provided in the inner panel 22 of the door were used.
By arranging the ventilation pipe 25 inside the door so as to communicate with 4 (see Fig. 4), air from outside the refrigerator is guided into the interior of the refrigerator and ventilated, thereby reducing the pressure difference. I've lost it.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) The conventional device described above is inconvenient because it takes tens of seconds to several minutes to equalize the pressure if the vent pipe 25 has a small diameter. If a large diameter one is used to equalize the pressure, there is a problem in that it is uneconomical because more heat enters the inside of the refrigerator and the running cost required to maintain the temperature increases.

The present invention has been developed to address these problems, and by using a synthetic resin curtain in combination with a pressure regulating valve, the amount of outside air taken in can be minimized, and the pressure can be reduced as much as possible. The high response speed of the regulating valve makes it possible to quickly open and close the door, thereby saving energy and facilitating door opening and closing operations at low cost.

(Means for Solving the Problems) Therefore, the present invention is designed to move the curtain 4 made of soft alloy resin to a position immediately behind and adjacent to the insulating door 2 in the refrigerator via a hanging fitting 7 fixed above the insulating door 2. A pressurized chamber 8 is formed by hanging vertically in a U-shape to form a pressurized chamber 8 surrounded by an insulating door 2 and a curtain 4.
A pressure regulating valve 5 capable of adjusting the differential pressure before and after the heat insulating door 2 to below a certain value is attached, and a distance between the opening of the pressure regulating valve 5 and the curtain 4 is installed on the inner surface of the heat insulating door 2. The refrigerator is characterized in that it has a structure in which a frame body 6 capable of holding the refrigerator is attached.

(Function) By forming the pre-pressure chamber 8 immediately behind the heat-insulating door 2, it is possible to reduce the amount of outside air that enters into the refrigerator by opening and closing the heat-insulating door 2 to be enough to accommodate the pre-pressure chamber. In addition, since the amount of air for pressure equalization is sufficient to correspond to the differential pressure between the preload chamber and the outside air, it can be reduced, and this works well with the high response speed of the pressure regulating valve 5. As a result, the pressure is equalized more quickly, and the heat insulating door 2 can be opened immediately.

Furthermore, since the amount of intrusion of outside air is small, energy-saving operation is possible, and on the other hand, the provision of the frame 6 ensures that the pressure regulating valve 5 always operates reliably and normally.

(Example) An example of the present invention will be described in detail based on the accompanying drawings.

In Figures 1 to 3, 1 is a refrigerator whose floor, top, and four circumferential surfaces are surrounded by heat insulating panels, and the inside of the refrigerator is cooled to a low temperature by the freezing action of a refrigerator (not shown). It's summery.

A rectangular entrance is cut out in a part of the front wall of the refrigerator 1, and a heat insulating door (hereinafter referred to as door) 2 is placed in the entrance, and is supported by a hinge so that it can be opened and closed, for example, in a single-sided manner. A door 2 is provided, and when the door 2 is fully closed, gaskets 3 provided on the inner surface of the four peripheries come into close contact with the periphery of the entrance, making it possible to seal the entrance airtightly and thermally. be.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a curtain that hangs vertically in the vicinity of the door 2 in the refrigerator 1, and is made of a relatively thick and transparent material made of soft synthetic resin. They are suspended from hanging fittings 7 made of channel steel fixed to the timber and hang down almost to the floor surface, and as shown schematically in Figure 3, one on each side and one on each side facing the entrance. Curtains 4 look like "long curtains" by combining 6 vertical strips with 4 strips arranged horizontally so that they overlap slightly on the back side.
That's what I'm saying. This curtain 4 forms a narrow space facing the back of the door 2 in a normal state without people or carts intervening, and is separated from the wide space inside the refrigerator position, and this narrow space is divided into a pre-pressure chamber 8. The structure also allows people and trolleys to pass through it.

On the other hand, the door 2 is provided with a small opening 9 of an appropriate shape such as a square in the front and back at an appropriate location, for example, in the center, and a pressure regulating valve 5 is interposed in the opening 9. Grill 1 on the rear side
0 and 11 are respectively provided.

The pressure regulating valve 5 is a control valve that automatically opens and closes the valve so that the differential pressure on both sides of a partition portion having the valve is maintained below a certain value. A valve 13 made of a disc is provided so as to be movable toward and away from one or more small holes bored in the partition plate 12 of the partition plate 12, and the small holes are closed or opened by the valve 13. It is configured so that it can be done.

The valve 13 is always brought into contact with the small hole by a coil spring 14 and held in a closed state. By setting the elasticity of the coil spring 14 to an appropriate value, the partition plate 12 Immediately after, that is, the differential pressure across the door 2 is maintained at a constant value (set elasticity value) or less.

A frame body 6 is provided in association with the opening 9 in which the pressure regulating valve 5 is interposed, and this frame body 6 is arranged so as to cover the opening 9 so as to face the inner surface of the door 2. For example, it is formed into a ``tower'' shape, and its depth is set to an appropriate size so that the maximum depth corresponds to the depth of the hanging fitting 7.

This frame body 6 is provided as an interference body to prevent the curtain 4 from swinging and blocking the grill 11 facing the pressure regulating valve 5 on the inside of the compartment. Any structure may be used as long as it has the function of maintaining the distance between the inner opening and the curtain 4 at an appropriate value so that the inner opening of the pressure regulating valve 5 is always in communication with the pressurized chamber 8. Various modifications other than the above example are possible.

In the refrigerator having the configuration described above, the outside air and the air inside the refrigerator are exchanged each time the door 2 is opened. therefore, only a small amount of air needs to be replaced.

After opening and closing the door 2, the internal pressure will drop as described above, but as a result of the pressure regulating valve 5 automatically opening and closing to prevent the differential pressure from exceeding a certain value, the pressure will rise. The problem of the door 2 not opening due to the pressure difference is solved.

Furthermore, due to the provision of the frame 6, due to the influence of the differential pressure that occurs slightly between the pressurized chamber 8 and other chambers inside the refrigerator, and the pressure inside the chamber immediately after the door 2 is closed. Even if the curtain 4 is moved toward the door 2 due to the influence of pressure, it will not close the opening on the inside of the pressure regulating valve 5, and thus the pressure regulating valve 5 will operate normally.

(Effects of the invention) In the present invention, the pressurized chamber 8 is formed by hanging the curtain 4 in the immediate vicinity of the door 2, so there is no need to take in enough outside air to equalize the pressure throughout the interior of the refrigerator.
Therefore, the time required for pressure equalization is shortened, and together with the immediate action performance of the pressure regulating valve 5, the door 2 can be opened immediately.

Moreover, by providing the frame body 6, the curtain 4
As a result, pressure equalization is performed reliably and stably, resulting in high reliability.

Furthermore, the present invention has the advantage that the amount of air exchange required for pressure equalization is small, so the refrigeration load can be reduced, and therefore energy can be saved.

In addition, as mentioned above, the pressurized chamber is formed using a soft resin curtain, so when the door is opened and people or carts enter the chamber, they can easily pass through the curtain and enter. .

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a partial sectional view of a heat insulating door according to an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the external appearance, Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the heat insulating door from the inside of the refrigerator, and Fig. 4 is FIG. 2 is a sectional view of main parts of a conventional refrigerator. 1... Refrigerator, 2... Insulated door, 4... Curtain, 5... Pressure adjustment valve, 6... Frame, 8... Pressurized room.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A curtain 4 made of soft synthetic resin is suspended in a U-shape near the immediate rear of the insulating door 2 via a hanging fitting 7 fixed above the insulating door 2 inside the refrigerator.
A pressurized chamber 8 is formed surrounded by a heat insulating door 2 and a curtain 4, and a pressure regulating valve 5 is attached to the heat insulating door 2, which can adjust the differential pressure across the heat insulating door 2 to below a certain value. The refrigerator is further characterized in that a frame 6 is attached to the inner surface of the heat insulating door 2 to maintain a distance between the opening of the pressure regulating valve 5 and the curtain 5.