Cooling box

Abstract

Provided is a cooling box capable of smoothly flowing cold air into a cold air passage and controlling the flow of liquid flowing down along the inner surface of the cold air passage. The cooling box is provided with: a storage chamber; a cooler that is disposed below the storage compartment and generates cold air; and a cold air passage that guides cold air generated by the cooler to the storage chamber above. The cold air duct on the storage compartment side constituting the cold air duct has an opening that passes through the cold air duct and communicates the cold air duct with the storage compartment. The inner surface of the cold air duct, which is the surface on the side of the cold passage, is provided with an inclined step that is inclined in the width direction of the cold air duct and that is below the opening and above the ion generator, the lower side of the inclined step protruding from the upper side of the inclined step. The inclined step is formed by a recess provided on an upper side of the inclined step on the inner surface of the cold air duct.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a cooling box. Background Art

[0002] Some refrigerators include a cooling box equipped with an ion generator for sterilization and deodorization in the box.

[0003] The ion generator is disposed, for example, in a cold air passage through which the cold air generated by the cooler passes. Thus, ions can be contained in the cold air passing through the cold air passage, and the cold air containing ions can be blown out from the cold air passage to the storage room.

[0004] In Japanese Patent Gazette No. 6502041, a refrigerator is disclosed, which includes a storage chamber for cooling and preserving stored items, a cooler for generating cold air, a cold air passage for guiding the cold air generated by the cooler to the storage chamber, an outlet for discharging the cold air from the cold air passage to the storage chamber, and an ion generator that is arranged between the cooler and the outlet and generates ions. Summary of the invention

[0005] In the above-mentioned refrigerator, due to some factors (e.g., liquid contents overflowing or splashing from a food container), the liquid in the storage room may enter the cold air passage from the cold air outlet, etc. Even in such a case, it is necessary to control the flow of the liquid flowing down the inner surface of the cold air passage so that the liquid does not apply to electrical components such as the ionizer. Conventionally, there is also a case where an umbrella portion is provided above the ion generator on the inner wall of the cold air passage to prevent the ion generator from getting wet. However, since the umbrella portion is a convex portion provided on the inner surface of the cold air passage, the cross-sectional area of ​​the cold air passage (cold air duct) is reduced by providing the convex portion, which may hinder the flow of cold air in the cold air passage during normal use, causing adverse effects on energy-saving performance.

[0006] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a cooling box that can allow cool air to flow smoothly in a cool air passage and can control the flow of liquid flowing down along the inner surface of the cool air passage.

[0007] A cooling box according to one aspect of the present disclosure comprises: Storage room; a cooler, disposed below the storage chamber, to generate cold air; and The cold air passage guides the cold air generated by the cooler toward the storage room above. The cold air duct on the storage compartment side constituting the cold air passage has an opening penetrating the cold air duct to allow the cold air passage to communicate with the storage compartment. An inclined step whose lower side protrudes more than the upper side and is inclined in the width direction of the cold air duct is provided on the inner surface of the cold air duct as the cold air passage side, below the opening and above the ion generator. The inclined step is formed by a recessed portion provided on the inner surface of the cold air duct at an upper side of the inclined step.

[0008] According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a cooling box can be provided which can allow cool air to flow smoothly in a cool air passage and can control the flow of liquid flowing down the inner surface of the cool air passage. Furthermore, by controlling the flow of the liquid flowing down the inner surface of the cool air duct, it is possible to prevent the electrical components and the like from being wetted by the liquid. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 It is a front view of the cooling box of embodiment. Figure 2 It is a perspective view of the cooling box in the embodiment. Figure 3 for Figure 1 Cross-sectional view of the cooling box in plane III-III. Figure 4 for Figure 3 A partial enlarged view of . Figure 5 It is a rear perspective view of the cooling box according to the embodiment. Figure 6 It is a rear perspective view of a part of the cooling box of the embodiment. Figure 7 yes Figure 6 A partial enlarged view of . Figure 8 for Figure 6 A partial enlarged view of the rear part. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0010] Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals are used for the same components, and their names and functions are also the same.

[0011] <Cooling box> In the present disclosure, a "cooling box" refers to any case where the temperature of the internal space (storage room) is lower than the outside air temperature and the temperature of the stored items can be lowered. The cooling box may be, for example, a refrigerator or a freezer. The cooling box may have only one storage room or may have multiple storage rooms. In the case where the cooling box has multiple storage rooms, the multiple storage rooms may also include at least two of a refrigerator, a freezer, a vegetable room, a zero-degree room, a partial freezer, and the like.

[0012] Figure 1 This is a diagram of the cooling box 1 viewed from the front. Figure 2 This is a view of the cooling box 1 viewed obliquely from the front. Figure 1 and Figure 2 In the figure, the front door of the refrigerator compartment 11, the drawer-type doors of the vegetable compartment 12 and the freezer compartment 13, and the shelves in the storage compartment (refrigerator compartment) 11 are omitted. Figure 3 yes Figure 1 Cross-sectional view (longitudinal cross-sectional view) of the cooling box in plane III-III. Figure 4 Is Figure 3 An enlarged view of the portion surrounded by the dotted line. Figure 5 1 is a back perspective view of the cooling box 1. Figure 5 In the figure, the back side of the heat insulating box body 5 of the cooling box 1 is omitted. Figure 6 yes Figure 5 A rear perspective view of a portion of a cooling box is shown. Figure 7 is Figure 6 An enlarged view of the portion surrounded by the dotted line. Figure 8 is viewed from the back. Figure 6 The dotted line encloses the portion of the diagram.

[0013] In this specification, the surface with the door is referred to as the front or front surface of the cooling box 1. Then, based on the configuration of the cooling box 1 set in a normal state, the surfaces of the cooling box 1 are referred to as the back, top, bottom, and side surfaces, with the front surface as the reference. In addition, the direction perpendicular to the front and back surfaces is referred to as the front-to-back direction, the direction perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces is referred to as the up-down direction, and the direction perpendicular to the two side surfaces is referred to as the width direction (see Figure 1 ) In addition, the directions of the components constituting the cooling box 1 may also be expressed based on the arrangement of the cooling box 1 .

[0014] The cooling box 1 includes a heat-insulating box body 5 as a heat-insulating structure for insulating each storage space from the surroundings. The heat-insulating box body 5 includes a heat-insulating layer 51 (see Figure 3 ), an outer box forming the outer shape of the cooling box 1, an inner box forming the storage space of the cooling box 1, etc. The heat insulating layer 51 includes foam insulation materials and vacuum insulation materials. The foam insulation material can be formed of, for example, foamed polyurethane (also called rigid polyurethane foam). The vacuum insulation material is a thin plate or plate-shaped insulation material. The vacuum insulation material is arranged on, for example, the side, upper surface, bottom surface, and back surface of the cooling box 1.

[0015] The storage space formed by the heat-insulating box body 5 is divided into a storage room (refrigerating room 11) on the upper side and other storage rooms (vegetable room 12 and freezing room 13) on the lower side by a partition 2 extending in the horizontal direction. As described above, the cooling box 1 according to the present embodiment includes storage compartments (refrigerating compartment 11, vegetable compartment 12, freezing compartment 13). In addition, Figure 1 In the embodiment, the refrigerator compartment 11 is located on the upper side of the cooling box 1, and the vegetable compartment 12 and the freezer compartment 13 are located on the lower side of the cooling box 1, but the arrangement of the storage compartments is not limited thereto.

[0016] A drawer-type storage 11a is provided at the lower portion of the refrigerator compartment 11. The drawer-type storage 11a may be, for example, a zero-degree room or a partial freezing room.

[0017] Reference Figure 3 A space (space below the air supply fan 31 (and above the compressor room 7)) for arranging a cooler (not shown) for generating cold air is provided on the back side below the heat-insulating box body 5 (below the refrigerating room 11). In addition, since the temperature in the compressor room 7 rises due to the operation of the cooler, the compressor room 7 is arranged outside the heat-insulating box body 5. The cooler includes a refrigeration cycle, a control unit, etc. The refrigeration cycle is composed of a compressor, a condenser, an expander, an evaporator, etc. connected via a refrigerant pipe through which the refrigerant flows.

[0018] (Air conditioning channel) The cooling box 1 of this embodiment includes: Storage room (cold room 11); A cooler disposed below the storage room (refrigerating room 11) and generating cold air; and The cold air duct 3 guides the cold air generated by the cooler (the space below the air supply fan 31) to the storage room (refrigerating room 11) above.

[0019] Reference Figure 3 The cold air duct 3 is provided at the back side of the storage room (refrigerating room 11, vegetable room 12, etc.). The cold air duct 3 guides the cold air generated by the cooler (the space below the air supply fan 31) to the storage room above (for example, the refrigerating room 11).

[0020] The cold air passage 3 is formed by a space surrounded by the cold air duct 4 (duct forming member) on the front side (storage room side) and the heat insulating layer 51 on the back side.

[0021] Reference Figure 6 The cold air duct 4 has a front portion 4a and a side portion 4b. The front portion 4a is a wall portion constituting the front side of the cold air passage 3, and the side portion 4b is a wall portion constituting both sides of the cold air passage 3 in the width direction A. A heat insulating material is provided at least on the back side (i.e., the side of the cold air passage 3) of the cold air duct 4. The heat insulating material is formed of, for example, EPS (expanded polystyrene), expanded styrene, etc. In this way, the storage room (refrigerated room 11, etc.) and the cold air passage 3 are separated by the cold air duct 4 containing the heat insulating material, thereby improving the heat insulation in the cold air passage 3 and suppressing the generation of condensation in the cold air passage 11.

[0022] The front portion 4a of the cold air duct 4 is provided with openings 41, 41a penetrating the cold air duct 4 and communicating the cold air passage 3 with the storage room (refrigerating room 11). In this embodiment, the openings 41, 41a function as outlets for discharging the cold air guided from the cold air passage 3 to the refrigerating room 11. The cold air passage 3 is a passage for cold air between the openings 41, 41a (cold air discharge ports) of the cold air duct 4 and the cooler (space below the air blowing fan 31). The cold air passage 3 mainly extends in the up-down direction.

[0023] A blower fan 31 is provided in the middle of the cold air duct 3. The cold air generated by the cooler is sent upward through the cold air duct 3 by the blower fan 31. The cold air blown into the cold air passage 3 by the air supply fan 31 is supplied to the storage room (refrigerating room 11, drawer storage 11a) from the openings 41, 41a (discharge ports) provided in the front surface 4a of the cold air duct 4. Furthermore, cold air is supplied to the refrigerating chamber 11 through a plurality of openings (discharge ports) 41 located above the drawer-type storage 11a. Furthermore, cold air is supplied to the drawer-type storage 11a through an opening 41a located on the back side of the drawer-type storage 11a. In this way, the cold air generated by the cooler is guided toward the storage room above through the cold air duct 3 .

[0024] Electrical components may also be provided in the cold air passage 3. The electrical components are arranged, for example, on the cold air passage 3 side of the cold air duct 4 and at a position below the openings 41, 41a.

[0025] The electric component is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include an ion generator, a damper motor, and a fan. In the present embodiment, the ion generator 6 is provided on the cold air passage 3 side of the cold air duct 4 at a position below the openings 41 , 41 a .

[0026] The ion generator 6 emits ions. The ion generator 6 includes an ion generating unit 61 having electrodes. The electrodes of the ion generating unit 61 generate positive (+) ions (for example, H + (H2O) m (m is an arbitrary natural number)) and negative (-) ions (e.g., O2 - (H2O)n (n is an arbitrary natural number)) at least one of.

[0027] The ions generated by the ion generator 6 are supplied to the cold air passing through the cold air duct 3. Thus, the cold air supplied from the cold air duct 3 to the refrigerating chamber 11 can contain ions. The cold air to which the ions are added is blown out from the openings 41 and 41a located above the ion generator 6 to the refrigerating chamber 11 and the drawer-type storage 11a. By supplying the cold air containing ions, deodorization and sterilization of the refrigerating chamber 11, the drawer-type storage 11a, etc. can be performed.

[0028] (Inclined steps) An inclined step 42 (a guide flow path) is provided on the inner surface 40 of the cold air duct 4 (the surface on the cold air passage 3 side) below the openings 41 and 41 a and above the electric component (the ion generator 6 ). The inclined step 42 is a step (step) with the lower side protruding more than the upper side, and is inclined in the width direction of the cold air duct 4 (ie, becomes lower from one side to the other side in the width direction). Preferably, the inclined step 42 is provided in a range wider than the electrical component (ion generator 6) in the width direction. By inclining the step 42, the liquid that flows down from above on the inner surface 40 of the cold air duct 4 can be made to flow downward. Figure 4 The liquid flows in a lower direction inclined in the width direction (as indicated by the dotted arrow) and flows toward a width direction position where there are no electrical components (ion generator 6), thereby preventing the electrical components (ion generator 6) from being wetted by the liquid.

[0029] Here, the lowest end 42a of the inclined step 42 (the lowest position in the inclination in the width direction) is located below the upper end 6a of the electrical component (ion generator 6). In addition, the lowest end 42a of the inclined step 42 is preferably located below the ion generating portion 61 (electrode) of the electrical component (ion generator 6), and more preferably located below the lower end 6b of the ion generator. Thus, when the lowermost end 42a of the inclined step 42 is located at such a position, the liquid flowing in the inclined step 42 is less likely to rise to the ionizer, so that the electric components (ionizer 6) can be more reliably prevented from being wetted by the liquid.

[0030] The inclined step 42 (the step in which the lower side protrudes more than the upper side) is formed by a recess 43 provided on the inner surface 40 of the cold air duct 4 on the upper side of the inclined step 42 (see Figure 7 ). In addition, the recessed portion 43 is a portion that is recessed toward the storage room (refrigerating room 11) side. In this case, the inner surface 40 of the cold air duct 4 on the lower side of the inclined step 42 is flat. Thus, the flow of liquid flowing down the inner surface of the cold air passage is controlled by the inclined step 42, and the liquid wetting of the electrical components such as the ion generator 6 is suppressed, and there is no convex portion that collides with the flow of cold air during normal use, so that the cold air can flow smoothly, and it is expected that energy saving can be improved. In addition, since the cold air flows smoothly, it is also expected to ensure the effect of ion concentration in the cold air in the storage room such as the refrigerating room 11.

[0031] When the drawer-type storage 11a is provided in a storage room such as the refrigerator room 11, it is preferable that the recessed portion 43 is provided within the range of the drawer-type storage 11a (on the back side of the drawer-type storage 11a) in the up-down direction. Providing a recessed portion in the heat insulating layer 51 will reduce the heat insulating performance and become the main cause of condensation in the storage room, so it is generally not preferred. In addition, in order to ensure the thickness of the heat insulating layer 51, it is also considered to provide a convex portion on the storage room (refrigerating room 11) side of the heat insulating layer 51 at a position corresponding to the recessed portion, but the storage volume of the storage room becomes smaller. However, the drawer-type storage 11a of the cold air duct 4 is located at the position where cold air accumulates below the refrigerating chamber 11, and is a relatively low-temperature space used as a zero-degree room, a partial freezing chamber, etc., so the thickness of the heat insulation layer on the back side thereof is relatively thick. Therefore, even if the recess 43 is provided in the heat insulation layer 51 on the back side of the drawer-type storage 11a, the effect on the heat insulation performance is small. Such a structure is possible when the electric component (ion generator 6) is arranged below the refrigerator room 11 or the drawer-type storage 11a.

[0032] like Figure 8 As shown, the lowermost end 42 a of the inclined step 42 is preferably connected to the side surface 4 b of the cold air duct 4 . When the lowermost end 42a of the inclined step 42 does not reach the side surface 4b of the cold air duct 4, the liquid flowing through the inclined step 42 drips in the cold air passage 3, and the liquid droplets fly due to the flow of cold air, which may wet the electrical components (ion generator 6). On the other hand, when the lowermost end 42a of the inclined step 42 contacts the side surface 4b of the cold air duct 4, the liquid flowing on the inclined step 42 flows down along the inner surface of the side surface 4b of the cold air duct 4, so it is difficult to fly due to the flow of cold air, and the electrical components (ion generator 6) can be more reliably prevented from being wetted by the liquid.

[0033] In this embodiment, the opening 41a (located above the inclined step 42) may also have the following function (function of a drain): the liquid flowing down along the inner surface of the cold air duct 4 from above the opening 41a enters the cold air passage through other openings 41 above the opening 41a, and is discharged to the storage room side such as the refrigerating room 11. In order to give the function of the drain, for example, Figure 7 As shown, a protrusion 41b may be provided which protrudes from the lower end of the opening 41a toward the inner side (preferably slightly above the inner side) of the cold air duct 3. The protrusion 41b can recover the liquid flowing down along the inner surface of the cold air duct 4 from the upper side of the opening 41a and discharge it toward the storage room (refrigerating room 11) side through the opening 41a. In addition, when the opening 41a has the function of a drain port, the amount of liquid falling on the inclined step 42 is reduced, and the step difference of the inclined step 42 can be made shallower, so that the cold air can flow smoothly, and it is expected that energy saving can be improved.

[0034] In addition, in the present embodiment, the ion generator 6 is arranged on an inner wall surface slightly recessed toward the front surface side from directly below the inner wall surface of the front surface side (storage room side) of the cold air duct 3 arranged in the vertical direction (see Figure 4 ). Thus, it is possible to prevent the liquid flowing down from the upper part of the cold air passage 3 from directly hitting the ion generator 6. In the ion generator 6 embedded in the cold air duct 4, the ion generating portion 61 is arranged so as to protrude slightly from the cold air duct 4 to the back side (see Figure 4 ). As a result, the liquid flowing along the inner wall surface on the front side of the cold air duct 3 is particularly difficult to reach the ion generating part 61 which needs to be prevented from being wetted by the liquid.

[0035] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative and non-restrictive in all aspects. The scope of the present disclosure is not indicated by the above description, but by the claims, and is intended to include all changes within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims. In addition, the structures obtained by combining the structures of the different embodiments described in this specification are also included in the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A cooling box, characterized in that: have: Storage room; a cooler disposed below the storage chamber and generating cold air; and a cold air passage for guiding the cold air generated by the cooler toward the storage chamber above; The cold air duct on the storage compartment side constituting the cold air passage has an opening that penetrates the cold air duct and connects the cold air passage with the storage compartment. An inclined step is provided below the opening on the inner surface of the cold air duct as the surface on the cold air passage side, the lower side of the inclined step protrudes more than the upper side and is inclined in the width direction of the cold air duct. The inclined step is formed by a recessed portion provided on the inner surface of the cold air duct at an upper side of the inclined step.

2. The cooling box according to claim 1, characterized in that: The storage room is also provided with a drawer-type storage. The recessed portion is provided in the range of the drawer-type storage in the up-down direction.

3. The cooling box according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes electrical components arranged in the cold air duct, The electrical component is arranged on the cold air passage side of the cold air duct and at a position below the inclined step.

4. The cooling box according to claim 1, characterized in that: The lowermost end of the inclined step is connected to the side surface of the cold air duct.

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