Unit cooler

Abstract

We provide a unit cooler that enhances the ability to deliver cool air while suppressing the outflow of water droplets to the outside. [Solution] The unit cooler comprises a housing with an opening in its side wall through which air passes from the inside to the outside, a fan device equipped with a fan for introducing air into the housing, a heat exchanger disposed inside the housing, and a duct disposed inside the housing so as to cover the opening. The air that has passed through the heat exchanger is blown out through the opening and the duct, and in at least a portion of the duct, the cross-sectional area perpendicular to the airflow direction of the duct decreases as it moves away from the heat exchanger. This makes it possible to provide a unit cooler that can increase the ability to deliver cold air while suppressing the blowing of water droplets to the outside.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a unit cooler.

Background Art

[0002] A unit cooler has a function of cooling outside air taken in from outside the casing through a coil (heat exchanger) disposed inside the casing and supplying the cooled air into a large refrigerator or freezer to lower the temperature inside the storage.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] As one type of unit cooler, there is a ceiling-mounted unit cooler that is suspended and installed on the ceiling of a refrigerator or the like. In such a ceiling-mounted unit cooler, in addition to the cooling capacity and the air volume, in recent years, the cold air reachability has also come to be desired. The cold air reachability is determined, for example, by measuring the wind from the unit cooler with an anemometer and the distance between the farthest position where the wind exceeding the reference value reaches and the unit cooler. If the cold air reachability is high, the number of unit coolers in the storage can be reduced.

[0005] Here, one way to increase the cold air reachability is to increase the blowing ability of the unit cooler. However, simply increasing the rotational speed of the fan is not enough to increase the blowing ability of the unit cooler. This is because the air that has passed through the heat exchanger has a higher density than the air around the unit cooler, and thus tends to descend after passing through the unit cooler, thereby limiting the cold air reachability.

[0006] Furthermore, increasing the airflow capacity of a unit cooler can lead to other problems. For example, in unit coolers used in refrigerators operating in environments above 0 degrees Celsius, moisture in the air condenses as it passes through the heat exchanger, forming water droplets that adhere to the fins of the heat exchanger. Even in unit coolers used in sub-zero temperature ranges, water droplets generated during defrosting can adhere to the fins. Therefore, if the airflow capacity of a unit cooler is increased, there is a risk that the water droplets adhering to the fins will be blown out by the air pressure and ejected from the unit cooler.

[0007] This invention has been made in view of the above problems, and aims to provide a unit cooler that can improve the ability to deliver cold air while suppressing the outflow of water droplets to the outside. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] To achieve the above objective, the unit cooler according to the present invention is A housing with an opening in the side wall, A fan device equipped with a fan that introduces air into the aforementioned enclosure, A heat exchanger arranged inside the aforementioned housing, The housing includes a duct arranged to cover the opening, The air that has passed through the heat exchanger is blown out through the opening and the duct. In at least a portion of the duct, the cross-sectional area perpendicular to the airflow direction of the duct decreases as it moves away from the heat exchanger. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a unit cooler that can improve the ability to deliver cold air while suppressing the outflow of water droplets to the outside. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is an external perspective view of a unit cooler according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing a schematic of a unit cooler according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a magnified view of the area near the duct. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is an external perspective view of a unit cooler 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, but it is drawn in perspective, and in reality the height of each side is uniform. Figure 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing the general shape of the unit cooler 10. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an enlarged view of the vicinity of the duct. Here, the unit cooler 10 is assumed to be installed and used on the ceiling of a freezer where the internal temperature is approximately 0 to -30 degrees Celsius. In this specification, "downward" means downward in the direction of gravity, and "upward" means upward in the direction of gravity.

[0012] The unit cooler 10 comprises a housing 12 that forms an internal space, a pair of heat exchangers 20 arranged at intervals inside the housing 12, two sets of ducts 14 attached to the housing 12, and a fan device 30 attached to the housing 12. The ducts 14 are positioned on the external side relative to each heat exchanger 20.

[0013] The housing 12 comprises a top wall 12a attached to the ceiling CL of the refrigerator, a rectangular tubular side wall 12b joined at its upper end to the top wall 12a, and a drain pan 12c positioned below the side wall 12b. The drain pan 12c is formed from a rectangular bottom wall 12h having an opening 12d, a rectangular tubular outer wall 12f surrounding the outer edge of the bottom wall 12h, and a cylindrical inner wall 12g surrounding the inner edge of the opening 12d. The space between the outer wall 12f and the inner wall 12g is a water-storage space, and the water stored in this space is discharged through a drain port (not shown).

[0014] Inside the inner wall 12g, the fan device 30 is mounted to the housing 12 via a frame 12e, with its rotation axis oriented vertically.

[0015] The fan device 30 includes a motor 31 attached to the frame 12e and a fan 32 rotatable by the motor 31.

[0016] A pair of heat exchangers 20 supported in the housing 12 with the fan device 30 interposed therebetween are schematically shown in FIG. 2, and include a coil which is a pipe through which a refrigerant passes inside, and a number of rectangular thin plate-like fins joined around the coil and extending parallel to the plane of the paper in FIG. 2.

[0017] A rectifying plate 15 is disposed between the heat exchanger 20 and the fan device 30, and the air sent from the fan device 30 enters the heat exchanger 20 substantially evenly by passing through the rectifying plate 15. Although not shown, inside the housing 12 below the heat exchanger 20, a partition plate is erected and disposed in the vertical direction. By partitioning between the housing 12 and the lower end of the heat exchanger 20 with this partition plate, it is possible to suppress the air supplied from the fan device 30 from passing below the heat exchanger 20, and as a result, increase the amount of air passing through the heat exchanger 20. Adjacent to the heat exchanger 20, a pair of ducts 14 are attached to the outer surface of the side wall 12b of the housing 12 by welding or the like. The duct 14 is formed in a cylindrical shape from, for example, a bent plate material.

[0018] In FIG. 3, a rectangular horizontal opening 12i is formed in the side wall 12b of the housing 12, and the duct 14 is attached so as to cover the horizontal opening 12i. The duct 14 has an upper wall 14a, a lower wall 14b facing the upper wall 14a, and vertical walls 14c connecting both ends of the upper wall 14a and the lower wall 14b. The end of the lower wall 14b away from the heat exchanger 20 may be bent to be parallel to the upper wall 14a. Further, the duct 14 is provided with a rectangular plate 14d fixed by welding or the like around the horizontal opening 12i of the side wall 12b. The inner peripheral edge of the rectangular plate 14d is joined to the end of the cylindrical body formed by the upper wall 14a, the lower wall 14b, and the vertical walls 14c close to the heat exchanger 20.

[0019] The upper wall 14a extends parallel to the top wall 12a, but may be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane so as to approach the lower wall 14b as it moves away from the heat exchanger 20. The pair of vertical walls 14c are preferably parallel to each other, but may be inclined so as to approach each other as they move away from the heat exchanger 20.

[0020] The lower wall 14b is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane so as to approach the upper wall 14a as it moves away from the heat exchanger 20. For this reason, the cross-sectional area orthogonal to the air flow direction in the duct 14 (the direction from the heat exchanger side of the duct 14 toward the air outlet side, the left-right direction in FIG. 3) decreases as it moves away from the heat exchanger 20, that is, the cross-sectional area is gradually narrowed. Note that the cross-sectional area is not narrowed in the vicinity of the air outlet of the duct 14, and the region where the cross-sectional area is narrowed is part of the duct 14, but the cross-sectional area may be narrowed in all regions of the duct 14 through which air passes. The edge of the upper wall 14a on the heat exchanger 20 side preferably coincides with the upper edge of the horizontal opening 12i, the edge (lower edge) of the lower wall 14b on the heat exchanger 20 side preferably coincides with the lower edge of the horizontal opening 12i or is located above it, and the side edge of the vertical wall 14c on the heat exchanger 20 side preferably coincides with the side edge of the horizontal opening 12i.

[0021] (Operation of the unit cooler) In the unit cooler 10, when the motor 31 is driven with the cooled refrigerant passing through the inside of the heat exchanger 20, the fan 32 rotates, and air is sucked through the opening 12d of the unit cooler 10 as shown by the arrow A in FIG. 2 and enters the unit cooler 10. The air lifted by the fan 32 hits the top wall 12a and branches in the left-right direction, and each enters the heat exchanger 20 through the flow rectifying plate 15. The air cooled by passing through the fins of the heat exchanger 20 further passes through the horizontal opening 12i, passes through the duct 14, and is then blown out toward the outside of the unit cooler 10 as shown by the arrow B.

[0022] According to this embodiment, the air sent from the fan device 30 to the heat exchanger 20 is rectified by passing through the rectifier plate 15 and enters the heat exchanger 20 almost uniformly, thereby improving the heat exchange efficiency. Furthermore, as the air passes through the heat exchanger 20, its cross-sectional area is narrowed as it passes through the duct 14, increasing its flow velocity. Combined with the fact that the air is directed upward after hitting the lower wall 14b of the duct 14, the cool air reaches farther away from the unit cooler 10, thus extending the distance the cool air reaches.

[0023] Because the temperature inside the chamber is relatively high, moisture in the air condenses on the fins of the heat exchanger 20, and the water droplets are blown away by the air sent from the fan device 30. However, because the water droplets are relatively heavy, they fall in a parabolic trajectory, as shown by the dotted line in Figure 3, onto the lower wall 14b of the duct 14. The water droplets on the lower wall 14b then run down towards the lateral opening 12i due to their own weight, fall along the inner surface of the side wall 12b into the drain pan 12c, and are discharged from a drain port (not shown). Therefore, even when the unit cooler 10 is installed on the ceiling CL, the falling of condensation droplets below the unit cooler is suppressed.

[0024] Because the unit cooler 10 of this embodiment has a small vertical dimension, it can be suitably used in refrigerators with low ceilings. Furthermore, because the unit cooler 10 of this embodiment has a long cold air reach, the number of unit coolers inside the refrigerator can be reduced compared to conventional unit coolers. In addition, since the outlet of the duct 14 surrounded by the upper wall 14a, lower wall 14b, and vertical wall 14c is a horizontally elongated rectangle with a horizontal dimension longer than its vertical dimension, a single unit cooler 10 can supply uniform cold air to a wide area inside the refrigerator. Moreover, because cold air can be blown out from both horizontal sides, it can be installed in the center of the refrigerator, thereby making temperature control inside the refrigerator easier.

[0025] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. Within the scope of the present invention, any component of the embodiments described above can be modified. Furthermore, any component can be added to or omitted in the embodiments described above. For example, the unit cooler of the present invention may be installed not only on the ceiling of a refrigerator but also on the floor.

[0026] This specification includes disclosures of the following inventions. (First form) A housing with an opening in the side wall, A fan device equipped with a fan that introduces air into the aforementioned enclosure, A heat exchanger arranged inside the aforementioned housing, The housing includes a duct arranged to cover the opening, The air that has passed through the heat exchanger is blown out through the opening and the duct. In at least a portion of the duct, the cross-sectional area perpendicular to the airflow direction of the duct decreases as it moves away from the heat exchanger. A unit cooler characterized by the following features.

[0027] (Second form) The duct has an upper wall and a lower wall opposite to the upper wall. The lower wall is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane so as it moves away from the heat exchanger, it approaches the upper wall. A first embodiment of a unit cooler characterized by the following:

[0028] (Third form) The lower edge of the opening is located at the same level as, or lower than, the lower edge of the lower wall. A second form of unit cooler characterized by the following.

[0029] (Fourth form) A drain pan is installed below the aforementioned side wall. A unit cooler according to any of the first to third embodiments, characterized by the above.

[0030] (Fifth form) Installed on the ceiling inside the storage room, A unit cooler according to any of the first to fourth embodiments, characterized by the above. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0031] 10 Unit Cooler 12 cabinets 12a Top wall 12b side wall 12c Drain Pan 12i side opening 14 ducts 14a Upper wall 14b Lower wall 14c vertical wall 20 Heat exchanger 30 Fan device 31 Motor 32 Fans A-B Airflow CL ceiling

Claims

1. A housing with an opening in the side wall, A fan device equipped with a fan that introduces air into the aforementioned enclosure, A heat exchanger arranged inside the aforementioned housing, The housing includes a duct arranged to cover the opening, The air that has passed through the heat exchanger is blown out through the opening and the duct. In at least a portion of the duct, the cross-sectional area perpendicular to the airflow direction of the duct decreases as it moves away from the heat exchanger. A unit cooler characterized by the following features.

2. The duct has an upper wall and a lower wall opposite to the upper wall. The lower wall is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane so as it moves away from the heat exchanger, it approaches the upper wall. The unit cooler according to feature 1.

3. The lower edge of the opening is located at the same level as, or lower than, the lower edge of the lower wall. The unit cooler according to feature 2.

4. A drain pan is installed below the aforementioned side wall. The unit cooler according to feature 3.

5. Installed on the ceiling inside the storage room, A unit cooler according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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