Cooling Storage

Abstract

A cooling storage (1) includes: a housing (10) with a storage chamber (SC) to store products in a low-temperature; an outer door (20) to close a front opening of the housing; a door frame (11) disposed inside the housing at a position separated backward from an inner surface of the outer door when the outer door is closed; and a transparent inner door (30) attached to a front surface of the door frame, wherein a front chamber (FC) is formed between the outer door and the inner door in which both the outer and inner doors are closed, and paths that establish communication between the storage chamber and the front chamber are formed in a state in which the inner door is closed, wherein the storage can prevent dew condensation from occurring on an outer surface of the inner door even if the outer door is opened.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention relates to a cooling storage for storing products in a low-temperature state.

BACKGROUND ART

[0002] A cooling storage for storing products such as beverages and foods, for example, in a refrigerated state (a low-temperature state at about 5.degree. C., for example) or a frozen state (a low-temperature state at about -20.degree. C., for example) is known.

[0003] Such a cooling storage comprises a housing including a storage chamber formed therein for storing products, a door configured to close a front opening of the housing, and a cooling device configured to cool air in the storage chamber.

[0004] If the door of such a cooling storage is opened to take in or out a product, cold air in the storage chamber leaks to outside (or outside air enters the storage chamber), and a temperature in the storage chamber rises.

[0005] In order to prevent this, a cooling storage comprising, in addition to a door (hereinafter, referred to as an "outer door") configured to close a front opening of a housing, an inner door provided behind the outer door in order to close a front opening of a storage chamber has been proposed (see Patent Document 1, for example).

PRIOR ART DOCUMENT

Patent Document

[0006] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-49961

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0007] In such a cooling storage, the inner door is formed of a transparent material, it is thus possible to view the inside of the storage chamber through the inner door even in a state in which only the outer door is opened, and since the inner door is closed in this state, cold air inside the storage chamber does not leak to the outside (or outside air does not enter the storage chamber), and it is possible to maintain the inside of the storage chamber at a low temperature. Further, since the space between the outer door and the inner door acts as a heat insulating air layer, it is also possible to improve heat insulating performance of the cooling storage.

[0008] However, if the outer door is opened, the outside air enters the space between the outer door and the inner door, and moisture contained in the outside air causes dew condensation on the outer surface of the inner door cooled to a low temperature due to contact with the cold air inside the storage chamber. Occurrence of dew condensation causes fogging of the inner door, and the inner door becomes opaque and prevents the inside of the storage chamber from being viewed, which is unfavorable.

[0009] As a counter measure, heating the inner door using a heater such as a film heater is considered to be effective in order to prevent occurrence of dew condensation or to remove dew condensation (defrost) after occurrence. However, if a heater is provided, the inner door heated to a high temperature melts away dew condensation on the outer surface thereof, the heater thus heats not only the outer surface thereof but also the cold air inside the storage chamber that comes into contact with the inner surface thereof, and this leads to a problem that the temperature in the storage chamber rises.

[0010] The present invention was made in view of the aforementioned problems, and an object thereof is to provide a cooling storage that comprises: a housing including a storage chamber formed therein to store products in a low-temperature state; an outer door configured to close a front opening of the housing; and an inner door configured to close a front opening of the storage chamber, and that is able to prevent dew condensation from occurring on the outer surface of the inner door even in a case in which the outer door is opened.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0011] In order to solve the aforementioned problems, a cooling storage according to the present invention comprises: a housing including a storage chamber formed therein to store products in a low-temperature state; an outer door configured to close a front opening of the housing; a door frame disposed inside the housing at a position that is separated backward from an inner surface of the outer door in a state in which the outer door is closed; and a transparent inner door attached to a front surface of the door frame, wherein a front chamber is formed between the outer door and the inner door in a state in which both the outer door and the inner door are closed, and paths that establish communication between the storage chamber and the front chamber are formed in a state in which the inner door is closed.

[0012] Preferably, the paths are gaps formed between the inner door and the door frame and extending in a left-right direction at an upper portion and a lower portion of the inner door.

[0013] Preferably, of the paths, the gap formed at the upper portion of the inner door is a gap in a front-back direction formed between an inner surface of the inner door and a front surface of the door frame.

[0014] Preferably, the paths are slits formed at the upper portion and the lower portion of the inner door and extending in the left-right direction.

[0015] Preferably, the inner door is formed as a double door.

[0016] Preferably, the inner door is formed as a double door divided into two parts in an up-down direction.

[0017] Preferably, a pair glass is fitted into a center of the outer door.

[0018] Preferably, an air flow directed downward along an opening surface of the door frame is formed in the storage chamber.

Advantageous Effects of the Invention

[0019] According to the present invention, since the paths that establish communication between the front chamber formed between the outer door and the inner door and the storage chamber are formed in a state in which the inner door is closed, air inside the front chamber containing moisture that may cause dew condensation is quickly replaced with air inside the storage chamber dehumidified by an evaporator even in a case in which the outer door is opened and outside air enters the front chamber. In this manner, it is possible to obtain an excellent advantage that moisture adhering to the outer surface of the inner door is evaporated by the dehumidified air and dew condensation (fogging) can be quickly solved. Further, it is also possible to obtain an excellent advantage that the inside of the storage chamber can be satisfactorily viewed in a case in which a part of the outer door has a see-through structure such as a pair glass.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a cooling storage according to the present invention.

[0021] FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of the cooling storage according to the present invention when seen from the observer's left side.

[0022] FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating an embodiment of an inner door in the cooling storage according to the present invention.

[0023] FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating another embodiment of the inner door in the cooling storage according to the present invention.

[0024] FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating another embodiment of an aspect of placement of slits of the inner door in the cooling storage according to the present invention.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0025] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to drawings.

[0026] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a cooling storage according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of the cooling storage according to the present invention when seen from the observer's left side.

[0027] A cooling storage 1 is composed of a storage part S disposed at an upper portion and a machine part M disposed at a lower portion.

[0028] The storage part S includes an outer casing 10 (housing) of a rectangular parallelepiped shape with a front opening and an outer door 20 configured to close the front opening of the outer casing 10, and both the outer casing 10 and the outer door 20 have structures, the inside of which is filled with a heat insulating material.

[0029] The outer door 20 opens and closes the front opening of the outer casing 10 by turning around a hinge (not illustrated) attached to the front surface of a side wall on the observer's left side (or right side) of the outer casing 10.

[0030] Also, a packing 22 is attached to the entire peripheral edge portion of the inner surface of the outer door 20 (a portion that faces front surfaces of upper, lower, left, and right walls that configure the outer casing 10 in a state in which the outer door 20 is closed) in order to prevent the cold air from leaking from the inside of the outer casing 10 to the outside (or the outside air from entering the outer casing 10) in the state in which the outer door 20 is closed.

[0031] Further, a pair glass 24 is fitted into a center of the outer door 20. In this manner, it is possible to visually view the inside even in the state in which the outer door 20 is closed while maintaining heat insulation by causing a space between two pieces of glass configuring the pair glass 24 to act as a heat insulating air layer. Note that if it is not necessary to view the inside in the state in which the outer door 20 is closed, it is not necessary to provide the pair glass.

[0032] A rectangular door frame 11 disposed at a position that is separated backward from the inner surface of the outer door 20 in the state in which the outer door 20 is closed is provided inside the outer casing 10, and the inner door 30 is attached to the front surface of the door frame 11. In this manner, an interior space of the outer casing 10 is sectioned by the inner door 30 into a front chamber FC formed between the outer door 20 and the inner door 30 and a storage chamber SC formed behind the inner door 30 in the state in which the outer door 20 and the inner door 30 are closed (see FIG. 2). Also, the door frame 11 may be formed on the inner surfaces of the upper, lower, left, and right walls of the outer casing 10 in an integrated manner, may be formed such that a part thereof is a separate part, or may be formed by front end portions of upper, lower, left, and right walls of an inner casing 40, which will be described later.

[0033] The inner door 30 is formed of a transparent material such as acryl, it is possible to view the inside of the storage chamber SC through the inner door 30 even in a state in which only the outer door 20 is opened, and since the inner door 30 is closed in this state, no outside air enters the storage chamber SC, and it is thus possible to maintain the inside of the storage chamber SC at a low temperature. In addition, since the front chamber FC formed between the outer door 20 and the inner door 30 acts as a heat insulating air layer, it is also possible to improve heat insulating performance of the cooling storage 1.

[0034] The inner door 30 is formed as a double door configured to turn around hinges attached to the front surface of the door frame 11 on the left side and the right side as illustrated in FIG. 1. However, the inner door 30 may be formed as a single-swing door configured to turn around a hinge attached to the front surface of the door frame 11 either on the left side or on the right side.

[0035] The inner casing 40 is disposed inside the outer casing 10 and at a portion behind the inner door 30 in a closed state as illustrated in FIG. 2.

[0036] The inner casing 40 is a housing of a rectangular parallelepiped shape with a front opening and is configured of an upper wall 42, a rear wall 44, a lower wall 46 and left and right side walls.

[0037] The upper wall 42, the rear wall 44, and the lower wall 46 of the inner casing 40 are disposed away from the inner surfaces of an upper wall 12, a rear wall 14, and a lower wall 16 of the outer casing 10, respectively. In this manner, a cold air duct C through which cold air is circulated is formed between the outer casing 10 and the inner casing 40.

[0038] Opening portions 42A and 46A are formed in the upper wall 42 and the lower wall 46 of the inner casing 40, respectively. Also, the upper wall 42 of the inner casing 40 is disposed at a position that is separated backward from the rear surface of the door frame 11, and a cold air path 42P is thus formed between the front end of the upper wall 42 and the door frame 11.

[0039] In the cold air duct C, an evaporator 56 that configures a cooling device 50, which will be described later, is disposed in the vicinity of the center in the height direction of a part between the rear wall 14 of the outer casing 10 and the rear wall 44 of the inner casing 40, and a blowing fan 56F is disposed above the evaporator 56.

[0040] The machine part M includes a machine chamber MC disposed below the outer casing 10, and the cooling device 50 for cooling air inside the storage chamber SC is accommodated in the machine chamber MC.

[0041] The cooling device 50 includes a compressor 52, a condenser 54, an expansion mechanism (not illustrated), and the evaporator 56 as main components and execute a refrigerating cycle. Among these components, the compressor 52, the condenser 54, and the expansion mechanism (not illustrated) are disposed inside the machine chamber MC while the evaporator 56 is disposed inside the cold air duct C as described above.

[0042] With the aforementioned configuration, the air in the storage chamber SC that has been cooled at the time of passing through the evaporator 56 flows upward at a part between the rear wall 14 of the outer casing 10 and the rear wall 44 of the inner casing 40 in the cold duct C due to an action of the blowing fan 56F, and a part of the air flows into the storage chamber SC through the opening portion 42A provided in the upper wall 42 of the inner casing 40. The remaining air flows into the storage chamber SC through the cold air path 42P formed between the front end of the upper wall 42 of the inner casing 40 and the door frame 11 and forms a downward flow along the inner surface of the inner door 30 in a closed state, namely the opening surface of the door frame 11. The air flow acts as an air curtain and prevents the outside air from entering the storage chamber SC when the inner door 30 is opened. The cold air that has flowed downward inside the storage chamber SC returns from the storage chamber SC to the cold air duct C through the opening portion 46A provided in the lower wall 46 of the inner casing 40 and is then flown back to the evaporator 56.

[0043] In addition, the inner door 30 is provided with the following features in the cooling storage 1 according to the present invention in order to prevent dew condensation from occurring on the outer surface (the surface that faces the front chamber FC) of the inner door 30 even in a case in which the outer door 20 is opened.

[0044] In other words, the inner door 30 in the cooling storage 1 according to the present invention employs an aspect in which paths that establish communication between the storage chamber SC and the front chamber FC are formed in the state in which the inner door 30 is closed (in a state in which the inner door 30 is in a closed position). This will be described below in detail.

[0045] Also, since the inner door 30 is not configured to completely close the opening inside the door frame 11 in any states as represented by the aforementioned features (or as will be described below in detail), the "closed position" of the inner door 30 is defined to indicate a position at which the inner surface of the inner door 30 approaches the front surface of the door frame 11 to the maximum extent within a turning range of the inner door 30.

[0046] FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating an embodiment of the inner door in the cooing storage 1 according to the present invention and illustrates a state in which the inner door 30 is in the closed position. (a) is a view of the inner door 30 when seen from the front side, (b) is a view of the arrow in the T direction (top view) of (a), (c) is a view of the arrow in the B direction (bottom view) of (a), (d) is an enlarged sectional view along X-X in (a), and (e) is an enlarged sectional view along Y-Y in (a).

[0047] In the embodiment, the inner door 30 is formed as a double door including inner doors 30L and 30R that turn around hinges 11H attached to the front surface of the door frame 11 on the observer's left side and right side. Also, each of the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R is divided into two parts on the upper and lower sides, the inner door 30L is composed of an inner door section 30LU and inner door section 30LL, and the inner door 30R is composed of an inner door section 30RU and an inner door section 30RL.

[0048] Also, both the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R are formed such that dimensions in the up-down direction are greater than the inner dimensions of the door frames 11, and the upper end portions of the inner door sections 30LU and 30RU and the lower end portions of the inner door sections 30LL and 30RL thus overlap with the door frame 11 in the front-back direction.

[0049] At the same time, the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R are separated forward from the front surface of the door frame 11 as illustrated in the view of the arrow in the T direction (top view) in (b) and the view of the arrow in the B direction (bottom view) in (c). This is because stoppers 48S that come into contact with inner surfaces of the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R at the closed position of the inner door 30 are attached to the upper portion and the lower portion of the front surface of a partitioning wall 48 (see FIG. 1) that sections the inside of the inner casing 40 into left and right parts, and front surfaces of the stoppers 48S project forward beyond the front surface of the door frame 11. In this manner, gaps GU and GL in the front-back direction are formed between the inner surface of the inner door 30 and the front surface of the door frame 11 at the upper portion and the lower portion of the inner door 30.

[0050] In addition, the stoppers may be attached to the front surface of the door frame 11 and the inner surfaces of the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R instead of the front surface of the partitioning wall 48.

[0051] Also, since each of the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R is divided into two parts on the upper and lower sides as described above, a gap GM is formed between the inner door sections 30LU and 30RU and the inner door sections 30LL and 30RL.

[0052] The gaps GU and GL formed at the upper portion and the lower portion of the inner door 30 form paths that establish communication between the storage chamber SC and the front chamber FC as represented by the arrows AE and AI in the enlarged sectional view along X-X in (d) and the enlarged sectional view along Y-Y in (e). Similarly, the gap GM formed at the center of the inner door 30 in the up-down direction also forms a path that establishes communication between the storage chamber SC and the front chamber FC.

[0053] With the aforementioned configuration, a part of the cold air circulating in the storage chamber SC flows out to the inside of the front chamber FC via the gaps GU and GM, flows downward along the outer surface of the inner door 30, and then flows into the storage chamber SC again via the gap GL. The flow that flows into the storage chamber SC via the gap GL is caused by the air inside the storage chamber SC being suctioned into the cold air duct C through the opening portion 46A provided in the lower wall 46 of the inner casing 40 due to an action of the blowing fan 56F.

[0054] By the aforementioned flow of cold air being generated, the air in the front chamber FC in a high-temperature and high-humidity state is replaced with air at a low temperature and a low humidity flowing from the inside of the storage chamber SC via the gaps GU and GM even in a case in which the outer door 20 is opened and the outside air enters the front chamber FC. Thus, it is possible to prevent dew condensation from occurring on the outer surface of the inner door 30.

[0055] This advantage of preventing occurrence of dew condensation appears further significantly by the gaps GU, GM, and GL being formed so as to extend over the entire range of the inner door 30 in the left-right direction. In other words, by the gaps GU, GM, and GL extending over the entire range of the inner door 30 in the left-right direction, the air at a low temperature and low humidity flowing out of the inside of the storage chamber SC flows downward along substantially the entire surface of the inner door 30, and the advantage of preventing occurrence of dew condensation appears substantially over the entire surface of the inner door 30.

[0056] Also, in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the gap GU formed at the upper portion of the inner door 30 forms a path meandering as illustrated in the enlarged sectional view along X-X in (d). This is intended to increase a fluid resistance of the path in order to prevent an excessively large amount of cold air from flowing out of the storage chamber SC into the front chamber FC, since the position at which the gap GU is formed corresponds to the position against which the cold air flowing forward at a part between the upper wall 12 of the outer casing 10 and the upper wall 42 of the inner casing 40 in the cold air duct C collides.

[0057] In the embodiment, since the inner door sections 30LU and 30RU and the inner door sections 30LL and 30RL are parts with the same shape (that is, common parts), the gap GL formed at the lower portion of the inner door 30 forms the path meandering as illustrated in the enlarged sectional view along Y-Y in (e). However, the gap GL that has the function of suctioning the cold air out of the front chamber FC into the storage chamber SC does not necessarily form the path with an increased fluid resistance. Thus, a gap GL' that serves as a path that establishes linear communication between the storage chamber SC and the front chamber FC in the front-back direction may be formed by shortening the dimensions of the inner door sections 30LL and 30RL in the up-down direction as represented by the dashed line in FIG. 3.

[0058] Also, although the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3 employs a structure in which each of the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R is divided into two parts in the up-down direction, the number of divided parts in the up-down direction may be three or more, or conversely, the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R may not be divided in the up-down direction. Even in a case in which each of the left and right inner doors 30L and 30R is not divided into two parts in the up-down direction, the cod air flows out of the storage chamber SC into the front chamber FC via the gap GU extending over the entire range of the inner door 30 in the left-right direction, and it is thus possible to obtain a sufficient effect of preventing dew condensation.

[0059] Also, since the inner door 30 does not come into contact with the door frame 11 in the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, water caused by dew condensation does not adhere across the outer edge portion of the inner door 30 and the door frame 11, and a situation in which adhering water is frozen, the inner door 30 and the door frame 11 are thus coated with ice, and it becomes difficult to open and close the inner door 30 is prevented.

[0060] FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating another embodiment of the inner door in the cooling storage 1 according to the present invention and illustrates a state in which an inner door 130 is in the closed position. Similarly to FIG. 3, (a) is a diagram of the inner door 130 when seen from the front side, (b) is a view of the arrow in the T direction (top view) of (a), (c) is a view of the arrow in the B direction (bottom view) of (a), (d) is an enlarged sectional view along X-X in (a), and (e) is an enlarged sectional view along Y-Y in (a).

[0061] This embodiment is different from the embodiment described using FIG. 3 in that left and right inner doors 130L and 130R configuring the inner door 130 are in contact with the front surface of a door frame 111 as illustrated in the view of the arrow in the T direction (top view) of (b) and the view of the arrow in the B direction (bottom view) of (c). In such disposition, no gap is formed between the inner surface of the inner door 130 and the front surface of the door frame 111 at an upper portion and a lower portion of the inner door 130.

[0062] Thus, in the embodiment, slits SU and SL extending in the left-right direction are provided at upper portions and lower portions of the left and right inner doors 130L and 130R as parts that form paths that establish communication between the storage chamber SC and the front chamber FC instead of the gaps GU and GL in the embodiment described above using FIG. 3. More specifically, the slits SU and SL are provided at positions that do not overlap with the front surface of the door frame 111 in the front-back direction at the upper portion and the lower portion of the inner door sections 130LU and 130LL configuring the inner door 130L on the observer's left side. Similarly, the slits SU and SL are also provided at positions that do not overlap with the front surface of the door frame 111 in the front-back direction at the upper portion and the lower portion of the inner door sections 130RU and 130RL configuring the inner door 130R on the observer's right side.

[0063] In this manner, a part of the cold air circulating in the storage chamber SC flows out into the front chamber FC via the slit SU, flows downward along the outer surface of the inner door 130, and then flows into the storage chamber SC again via the slit SL, and it is possible to prevent dew condensation from occurring on the outer surface of the inner door 130 similarly to the embodiment described above using FIG. 3.

[0064] Also, in the present embodiment, the number of divided parts of the left and right inner doors 130L and 130R in the up-down direction may be equal to or greater than three, or conversely, the left and right inner doors 130L and 130R may not be divided in the up-down direction.

[0065] Note that the aspect of the placement of the slits is not limited to that illustrated in FIG. 4. Another exemplary aspect of the placement of slits of the inner door in the cooling storage 1 according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. 5.

[0066] Although the slits SU and SL are provided at the upper portion and the lower portion of the inner door in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the slits SU and SL may be provided at parts located above the upper end of the inner door 230LU and below the lower end of the inner door 230LL in the door frame 211 as illustrated in FIGS. 5(a) and (b).

[0067] Also, for the slit provided at the upper portion of the inner door, in particular, a part of the inner door 330LU that is adjacent to the upper side of the slit SU may be formed as a louver LV projecting forward (that is, toward the side of the front chamber FC) (see FIG. 5(c)), or the slit SU provided at an inner door 430LU may be formed into a shape inclined downward from the rear side to the front side (see FIG. 5(d)). In this manner, the cold air flowing out of the storage chamber SC into the front chamber FC via the slit SU more reliably flows along the outer surface of the inner door, and it is possible to improve an effect of preventing or solving dew condensation.

[0068] Further, for the slit provided at the upper portion of the inner door, in particular, a wind shielding plate (wall) BF may be disposed inside the storage chamber SC at a position that faces the slit SU provided at the inner door 530LU (see FIG. 5(e)), or a part of the inner door 630LU that is adjacent to the upper side of the slit SU may be formed as a louver LV projecting backward (that is, toward the side of the storage chamber SC) (see FIG. 5(f)). In this manner, it is possible to increase a fluid resistance of the path formed by the slit SU and to prevent an excessively large amount of cold air from flowing out of the storage chamber SC into the front chamber FC.

EXPLANATION OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0069] 1 Cooling storage

[0070] 10 Outer casing (housing)

[0071] 11, 111 Door frame

[0072] 20 Outer door

[0073] 24 Pair glass

[0074] 30, 130 Inner door

[0075] FC Front chamber

[0076] SC Storage chamber

[0077] GU, GM, GL Gap (path)

[0078] SU, SL Slit (path)

Claims

1. A cooling storage comprising: a housing including a storage chamber formed therein to store products in a low-temperature state; an outer door configured to close a front opening of the housing; a door frame disposed inside the housing at a position that is separated backward from an inner surface of the outer door in a state in which the outer door is closed; and a transparent inner door attached to a front surface of the door frame, wherein a front chamber is formed between the outer door and the inner door in a state in which both the outer door and the inner door are closed, and paths that establish communication between the storage chamber and the front chamber are formed in a state in which the inner door is closed.

2. The cooling storage according to claim 1, wherein the paths are gaps formed between the inner door and the door frame and extending in a left-right direction at an upper portion and a lower portion of the inner door.

3. The cooling storage according to claim 2, wherein of the paths, the gap formed at the upper portion of the inner door is a gap in a front-back direction formed between an inner surface of the inner door and a front surface of the door frame.

4. The cooling storage according to claim 1, wherein the paths are slits formed at the upper portion and the lower portion of the inner door and extending in the left-right direction.

5. The cooling storage according to claim 1, wherein the inner door is formed as a double door.

6. The cooling storage according to claim 5, wherein the inner door is formed as a double door divided into two parts in an up-down direction.

7. The cooling storage according to claim 1, wherein a pair glass is fitted into a center of the outer door.

8. The cooling storage according to claim 1, wherein an air flow directed downward along an opening surface of the door frame is formed in the storage chamber.