JPH05264152A - Cooling system - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To improve the cooling performance of a cooling device using an electronic cooling element. [Structure] The heat absorption portion of the electronic cooling element 23 is connected to the spacer base 22.
The heat generating portion is attached to the storage case 21 via the heat dissipating fins 26.
And the storage case 21 is cooled by closely arranging them so as to be thermally coupled to each other and supplying a direct current. Further, the evaporation part of the heat pipe 24 and the condensing part are arranged in close contact with the heat dissipation fin 26 and the storage case 21, respectively, and the working fluid 3 sealed inside is
The storage case 21 is further cooled by the heat of condensation of 2.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cooling device used for a refrigerator, a moisture absorber, a cooler, etc., and more particularly to improving the efficiency of an electronic cooling system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as shown in the principle diagram of FIG. 4, when a direct current I is supplied to an electronic cooling element PL formed by joining both ends of dissimilar metals X and Y, heat is absorbed at the joining portion A. It is known that a reaction and an exothermic reaction occur at the junction B. At this time, if the direction of the current I is reversed, heat generation and endothermic reaction are reversed. Further, the magnitude of this amount of heat can be easily changed depending on the value of the current I supplied.

By utilizing this principle, a compressor required when a refrigeration cycle is used can be dispensed with, and a compact, lightweight, noise-free and vibration-free cooling device can be realized, which is put to practical use in portable products and the like. Are generally commercially available.

[0004]

However, in general, when a metal is energized, Joule heat is generated, so that the conventional cooling device described above has a problem that a sufficient cooling capacity cannot be obtained.

On the other hand, a cooling device based on the refrigeration cycle principle has a sufficient cooling capacity because it uses a compressor, but the weight of the main body is large and it is not suitable for portable use. In addition, there is noise and vibration, and since refrigerants such as CFCs are used, adverse effects on the environment must be taken into consideration.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cooling device using a thermoelectric cooling element, which has improved cooling performance.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises an electronic cooling element which is formed by joining dissimilar metals and produces a heat generating portion and a heat absorbing portion. A cooling device configured to cool the combined container is provided with a heat pipe whose one end is thermally coupled to the heat generating portion and the other end is thermally coupled to the heat absorbing portion.

[0008]

According to the present invention, the container is cooled by the heat absorbing portion of the electronic cooling element, and one end of the heat pipe is heated by the heat generating portion. Further, the heat of condensation of the working fluid inside the heated heat pipe further cools the container via the heat absorbing portion thermally coupled to the other end of the heat pipe.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 3 is a view showing the appearance of a refrigerator to which the present invention is applied, FIG. 3 (a) is an overall perspective view, and FIG. The body case 1 and the lid 2 can be easily opened and closed by a lock 3. Further, a handle 4 is provided on the lid 2 so as to be convenient to carry.
A display panel 5 for operating the refrigerator, a ventilation port 6 through which air circulates from the outside, and a panel plate 9 having ventilation ports 7 above and below the ventilation panel 6 are provided in an appropriate place on one side surface of the main body case 1.

The display panel 5 has refrigeration (G) and hot storage (R).
11, an operation switch 12 for switching between refrigerating, warming, and stopping operations, a capacity changing switch 13 for changing the cooling capacity, a power mode switch 14 for switching between AC and DC power modes, and a power cord 8a for AC. Or DC power cord 8b
And the like, which is provided with a socket 15 for connecting the power cord 8 and the like.

The refrigerator may be driven by a storage battery. In this case, when the power cords 8a or 8b are connected, the storage battery is charged together with the power supply to the cooling device. Good.

1A and 1B are views showing the structure of a refrigerator to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 1A is a side sectional view of the refrigerator, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view showing a joint between a radiation fin and a heat pipe. c)
FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view showing the structure of a heat pipe and its peripheral portion. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of the refrigerator.

The storage case 21 is for storing an object to be cooled, and is made of a material having a good thermal conductivity, for example, aluminum. The recess 29 is for mounting a member for cooling, and is provided at an appropriate position on one side surface of the main body case 1. A heat insulating material 10 such as urethane foam is filled between the storage case 21 and the main body case 1 except for the recess 29.

The electronic cooling element 23 is formed by joining dissimilar metals, and generates a heat generating portion and a heat absorbing portion at each joint when electric current is supplied. The spacer base 22 is for mounting the electronic cooling element 23 in close contact with the heat absorbing portion of the electronic cooling element 23 with heat transfer grease, and is formed of a material having a good thermal conductivity, for example, aluminum, and is provided in the recess 29. The storage case 21 is fitted to the fitting portion.
It is closely attached so that it can be thermally coupled to.

The radiating fins 26 efficiently dissipate the heat and Joule heat generated in the heat generating portion and are made of a material having a good thermal conductivity, and are closely fixed to the heat generating portion of the electronic cooling element 23 with heat transfer grease. In addition, it is fixed to the main body case 1 via a heat insulating cushion 28. The fan 27 blows air to the radiating fins 26 to cool the radiating fins 26. The fan 27 is disposed inside the ventilation holes 6 so as to face each other, and the air blown to the radiating fins 26 is discharged from the ventilation holes 7.

The heat pipe 24 includes, for example, a wick material 31 made of glass fiber or a net-like thin copper wire inside an aluminum pipe, and a heat-transporting medium such as CFC, ammonia, or water enclosed inside. Working fluid 32
And the transfer of the vapor of the working fluid 32 and the transfer of the evaporation heat or the condensation heat to perform heat transfer. In the present embodiment, four are used. Each heat pipe 24 has its evaporating portion fitted and joined in close contact with the fins of the heat radiation fins 26, the central portion is provided with the heat insulating material 25 around it, and the condensing portion is tightly fixed to the storage case 21 for thermal coupling. Has been done.

Next, the operation of the electronic cooling element 23 will be described. The amount of heat absorbed by the heat absorbing portion of the electronic cooling element 23 is proportional to the supplied current. However, since the Joule heat due to the internal resistance of the element is proportional to the square of the current, there is a maximum current value at which the maximum amount of heat absorption is obtained when a constant current is supplied. Therefore, cooling is performed by cooling the radiating fins 26 that are in close contact with the heat generating portion of the electronic cooling element 23 by blowing air from the fan 27 and dissipating the Joule heat to lower the temperature of the heat generating portion. Becomes

Next, the operation of the heat pipe 24 will be described with reference to FIG. Part of the heat of the heat generating portion of the electronic cooling element 23 is dissipated through the heat radiation fins 26, and the other is supplied to the evaporation portion of the heat pipe 24 which is fitted and joined to the heat radiation fins 26 (X in the figure). When the evaporation part is heated, the working fluid 32 inside this part evaporates (in the figure,
A), a pressure difference occurs between the condenser and the condenser. Therefore, the vapor moves to the condenser through the heat insulating section (B in the figure). The moved vapor is condensed here (C in the figure) and absorbs the heat of condensation, so that the storage case 21 is cooled (Y in the figure).
On the other hand, the condensed working fluid 32 is returned to the evaporation portion by the capillary force of the wick material 31, so that the evaporation and condensation operations are repeated and the storage case 21 is continuously cooled.

As described above, the heat absorption portion of the electronic cooling element 23 is further cooled by the heat pipe 24, so that the cooling capacity is improved. Further, the heat dissipation to the heat pipe 24 improves the heat dissipation efficiency of the heat dissipation fins 26, so that the cooling efficiency can be further improved and the power consumption can be suppressed.

By reversing the direction of the current supplied to the electronic cooling element 23 by the operation switch 12,
Since the heat absorption part and the heat generation part of each joint of the electronic cooling element 23 can be switched, the storage case 21 can also be used as a warm storage.

[0021]

As described above, the present invention is provided with an electronic cooling element formed by joining dissimilar metals to generate a heat generating portion and a heat absorbing portion, and cools a container thermally coupled to the heat absorbing portion. In the cooling device, since the heat pipe whose one end is the heat generating part and the other end is thermally coupled to the heat absorbing part is heated by the heat generating part of the electronic cooling element, the condensation heat of the working fluid inside the heat pipe is used. Since the container is further cooled, the heat of the heat generating portion can be efficiently removed and the cooling capacity can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a structure of a refrigerator to which the present invention is applied,
(A) is sectional drawing of the same refrigerator, (b) is a perspective view which shows joining of a radiation fin and a heat pipe, (c) is a longitudinal sectional view which shows the structure of a heat pipe and its periphery.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of a refrigerator to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an appearance of a refrigerator to which the present invention is applied,
(A) is a whole perspective view, (b) is a figure which shows a display panel.

FIG. 4 is a principle diagram showing a configuration of an electronic cooling element.

[Explanation of symbols]

 5 Display Panel 6, 7 Ventilation Port 8, 8a, 8b Power Cord 21 Storage Case 22 Spacer Stand 23 Thermoelectric Cooling Element 24 Heat Pipe 25 Heat Insulating Material 26 Radiating Fin 27 Fan 28 Insulating Cushion 29 Recess 31 Wick Material 32 Working Fluid

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A cooling device comprising an electronic cooling element, which is formed by joining dissimilar metals and which produces a heat generating part and a heat absorbing part, and which cools a container thermally coupled to the heat absorbing part. Is equipped with a heat pipe whose other end is thermally coupled to the heat absorbing part at the heat generating part.