refrigerator

Abstract

To provide a refrigerator constituted only by a vacuum heat insulation material while maintaining strength of a heat insulation door, improved in heat insulation performance and energy saving performance, and further improved in appearance by making the heat insulation door thin.SOLUTION: A refrigerator includes a heat insulation door opening / closing a front surface opening part of a refrigerator body. The heat insulation door includes: a front panel part located on the front side of the front surface opening part; an inner panel part located in an inside space of the refrigerator body; an edge frame part covering the outer peripheries of the front panel part and the inner panel part; and a vacuum heat insulation material provided among the front panel part, the inner panel part and the edge frame part. The vacuum heat insulation material is formed by sealing a concave-shaped outer shell member having gas barrier performance and housing a core material with a second outer shell member having gas barrier performance and different from the outer shell member. The inner panel part, the edge frame part and the front panel part are composed of at least two components respectively. Each of the components is joined to the vacuum heat insulation material.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a refrigerator. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a refrigerator having a door in which a plurality of shell parts are integrated by filling and foaming urethane foam.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses a refrigerator with improved thermal insulation performance by disposing a vacuum insulation material, which has better thermal insulation performance than urethane foam, inside urethane foam.

[0004] Patent Document 3 discloses a refrigerator that eliminates urethane foam inside the door and has a door made only of vacuum insulation material, thereby achieving further energy savings. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-52156 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-52404 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-90045 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The present disclosure provides a refrigerator with improved heat insulation performance and excellent energy-saving performance. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The refrigerator according to the present disclosure has an insulated door that opens and closes a front opening of the refrigerator body, and the insulated door is made up of a front panel located forward of the front opening, an inner panel located in the internal space of the refrigerator body, a frame that covers the outer peripheries of the front panel and the inner panel, and a vacuum insulation material provided between the front panel, the inner panel, and the frame, and the vacuum insulation material is formed by sealing a concave outer shell member that has gas barrier properties and houses a core material with a second outer shell member that has gas barrier properties and is different from the outer shell member, and the inner panel, frame, and front panel are made up of two or more parts, and each part is joined to the vacuum insulation material. At least a part of the edge frame portion has an exterior edge frame part that forms the exterior surface of the edge frame portion and a joint edge frame part that forms the joint surface with the vacuum heat insulating material, and the exterior edge frame part is a part separate from the joint edge frame part. . [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] The refrigerator according to the present disclosure can be constructed using only vacuum insulation materials while maintaining the strength of the insulated door, improving the insulation performance and energy saving performance. In addition, the insulated door can be made thinner, improving the aesthetic appearance of the refrigerator. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment; [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a heat insulating door of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] 1 is a cross-sectional view of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration example of an upper door hinge of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration example of a lower door hinge of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment; [Figure 7A] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration example of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment. [Figure 7B] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing another example of the configuration of the heat-insulating door housing of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7C] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing another example of the configuration of the heat-insulating door housing of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7D] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing another example of the configuration of the heat-insulating door housing of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7E] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing another example of the configuration of the heat-insulating door housing of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration example of a vacuum insulating material of an insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment. [Figure 9A] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing an assembly example of the edge frame portion of the heat-insulating door housing of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. [Figure 9B] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing another assembly example of the edge frame portion of the heat-insulating door housing of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. [Figure 10A] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration example of an edge frame part of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment; [Figure 10B] 1 is a cross-sectional view of an edge frame part of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of bonding of a front panel portion of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to the first embodiment. [Figure 12A] 1 is an enlarged view of a hinge-side adhesive portion showing an example of adhesive bonding of a front panel portion of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to the first embodiment; [Figure 12B] FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional view of a lower portion of a heat-insulating door housing of a refrigerator according to the first embodiment. [Figure 13A] FIG. 10 is a partial enlarged view of a central adhesive portion showing another example of adhesive bonding of the front panel portion of the heat-insulating door housing of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment; [Figure 13B] FIG. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view of a lower portion showing another example of the heat-insulating door housing of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] (Findings that formed the basis of this disclosure) Conventionally, refrigerator doors have been constructed by integrating multiple outer shell components together by filling and foaming urethane foam (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In order to save energy, vacuum insulation material, which has better insulating properties than urethane foam, has been placed inside the urethane foam to improve its insulating properties (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

[0011] In recent years, in order to further reduce energy consumption, doors have been invented that do not use urethane foam inside the door and are made only of vacuum insulation material (see, for example, Patent Document 3).

[0012] However, if the refrigerator door is constructed using only vacuum insulation material, the effect of integrating the components by filling and foaming the urethane foam is lost, making it difficult to maintain the strength of the door.

[0013] The inventors have discovered the above-mentioned problems and have come up with the subject matter of the present disclosure in order to solve these problems.

[0014] Therefore, the present disclosure provides a refrigerator that can be constructed using only vacuum insulation material while maintaining the strength of the insulated door, thereby improving insulation performance and energy-saving performance, and further improving aesthetics by making the insulated door thinner.

[0015] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, in some cases, more detailed explanation than necessary may be omitted. For example, detailed explanation of already well-known matters or redundant explanation of substantially the same configuration may be omitted.

[0016] The accompanying drawings and the following description are provided to enable those skilled in the art to fully understand the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the subject matter described in the claims.

[0017] (Embodiment 1) Hereinafter, the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0018] [1-1.Configuration] In FIG. 1, refrigerator body 11 of the refrigerator in this embodiment includes an outer box 11b mainly made of steel plate, an inner box (not shown) molded from a resin such as ABS, and an insulating box body 11a made of insulating material (not shown) injected between outer box 11b and the inner box.

[0019] The refrigerator body 11 is divided into multiple insulated storage compartments, with a refrigerator compartment 12 at the top, an ice-making compartment 13 or a switching compartment 14 arranged side by side below the refrigerator compartment 12, a freezer compartment 15 below the ice-making compartment 13 and the switching compartment 14, and a vegetable compartment 16 at the bottom.The front opening of each storage compartment (not shown) is provided with an insulated door 17 that separates it from the outside air and opens and closes the front opening.

[0020] A machine room (not shown) formed in the rear region at the top of the refrigerator compartment 12 houses components of the refrigeration cycle, such as a compressor (not shown) and a dryer that removes moisture.

[0021] A cooling chamber (not shown) that generates cold air is provided behind freezer compartment 15, and within the cooling chamber are disposed a cooler (not shown) and a cooling fan (not shown) that blows the cold air, which is the cooling means cooled by the cooler, into refrigerator compartment 12, switching compartment 14, ice making compartment 13, vegetable compartment 16, and freezer compartment 15. Furthermore, an air volume adjustment damper (not shown) that adjusts the air volume from the cooling fan is installed in the air duct (not shown). Also, a radiant heater (not shown), a drain pan (not shown), a drain tube (not shown), an evaporation dish (not shown), etc. are provided to defrost frost and ice that adheres to the cooler and its surroundings.

[0022] The refrigerator compartment 12 is normally set to a temperature of 1°C to 5°C, the lowest limit of which prevents freezing for refrigerated storage, and the vegetable compartment 16 at the bottom is set to a temperature of 2°C to 7°C, which is the same as or slightly higher than that of the refrigerator compartment 12. The freezer compartment 15 is set to a freezing temperature range, and is normally set to -22°C to -15°C for frozen storage, but may be set to a lower temperature such as -30°C or -25°C to improve the frozen storage condition.

[0023] Ice making compartment 13 uses water sent from a water storage tank (not shown) in refrigerator compartment 12 to make ice in an automatic ice maker (not shown) located at the top of ice making compartment 13, and stores the ice in an ice storage container (not shown) located at the bottom of ice making compartment 13.

[0024] Switchable compartment 14 can be switched to a preset temperature range between the refrigeration temperature range and the freezer temperature range, in addition to the refrigeration temperature range set at 1°C to 5°C, the vegetables temperature range set at 2°C to 7°C, and the freezer temperature range which is normally set at -22°C to -15°C. Switchable compartment 14 is a storage compartment provided alongside ice-making compartment 13 and equipped with an independent insulated door 17, and in many cases the insulated door 17 is a drawer-type door.

[0025] In the first embodiment, the switchable compartment 14 is a storage compartment that includes both refrigeration and freezing temperature ranges, but it may be a storage compartment specialized in switching only between the above-mentioned temperature ranges between refrigeration and freezing, with refrigeration being handled by the refrigerator compartment 12 and vegetable compartment 16, and freezing by the freezer compartment 15. Also, it may be a storage compartment that is fixed to a specific temperature range, for example, freezing, in response to the increasing demand for frozen foods in recent years.

[0026] The following explanation will be given using the left-side insulating door 17 of the refrigerator compartment 12 as an example, but the invention may also be applied to the insulating doors 17 of the freezer compartment 15, ice-making compartment 13, switchable compartment 14, and vegetable compartment 16 other than the refrigerator compartment 12.

[0027] In Figure 2, the insulated door 17 comprises an insulated door housing 21, a gasket 22, and a center pillar 25, and is rotatably supported at the front opening by an upper hinge 23 and a lower hinge 24 attached to the refrigerator body 11.

[0028] 3 and 4, the insulated door housing 21 is made up of an inner plate portion 32, a front plate portion 33, a frame portion 34 that covers the outer peripheries of the inner plate portion 32 and the front plate portion 33, which correspond to the outer shell parts 31 of the insulated door housing 21, and a vacuum insulation material 35 provided inside the insulated door housing 21. The frame portion 34 is made up of a top surface 34a, a bottom portion 34b, a left side surface 34c, and a right side surface 34d when the front plate portion 33 is the front surface and the inner plate portion 32 is the rear surface, and is located forward of the front opening and makes up the exterior surface of the insulated door housing 21.

[0029] The inner plate portion 32 is located in the internal space (internal space) of the refrigerator body 11, and constitutes the internal surface of the heat-insulating door housing 21. The front plate portion 33 is located forward of the front opening of the refrigerator body 11, and constitutes the external surface of the heat-insulating door housing 21.

[0030] A gasket 22 that prevents cold air from the interior space from leaking to the outside is fixed to the inner plate portion 32 by fixing means (not shown). The fixing means may be, for example, a groove portion 32a with an Ω-shaped cross section provided on the inner plate portion 32 and an anchor shape 22a with an anchor-shaped cross section provided on the gasket 22, and the anchor shape 22a may be inserted into the groove portion 32a to fix the gasket.

[0031] An upper door hinge 36 is provided at the upper part of the edge frame portion 34, and a lower door hinge 37 is provided at the lower part.

[0032] The heat insulating door 17 is rotatably attached to the refrigerator body 11 by an upper hinge 23 and a lower hinge 24 which are attached to the refrigerator body 11. The upper hinge 23 and the lower hinge 24 may be pivot hinges or arm-type hinges, although not particularly shown.

[0033] In FIG. 5, upper door hinge 36 is a pivot hinge that has upper hinge bearing 51 and reinforcing metal 52, and is rotatably fixed by inserting round bar shape 23a provided on upper hinge 23 of refrigerator body 11.

[0034] Upper hinge bearing 51 may be formed of a part using a resin such as polyacetal, which has excellent sliding properties, or a bearing portion (not shown) may be formed in edge frame portion 34. Furthermore, upper hinge bearing 51 may be configured to pass through hole 52a provided in reinforcing metal 52 fixed to top surface 34a and left side surface 34c of edge frame portion 34, thereby reducing the risk of upper door hinge 36 being damaged and insulated door housing 21 falling off. In addition, round bar shape 23a of upper hinge 23 may be hollow, and wiring 53 may be arranged therein. Wiring 53 is a power line (not shown) or a signal line that connects an anti-condensation heater (not shown) and an operating unit (not shown) provided in insulated door 17 to a board portion (not shown) provided in refrigerator body 11.

[0035] 6 is a perspective view of lower door hinge 37. Lower door hinge 37 has lower hinge bearing 61, rotation restricting member 62, fastening means 63, latch 64, and reinforcing metal 65, and is a pivot hinge in which round bar shape 24a provided on lower hinge 24 of refrigerator body 11 is inserted into lower hinge bearing 61 to rotatably fix it. Lower hinge bearing 61 may be formed of a part using a resin such as polyacetal, which has excellent sliding properties, or a bearing portion (not shown) may be formed in a part of edge frame portion 34. Lower hinge 24 is L-shaped, and one side is firmly fixed to refrigerator body 11 by fixing means (not shown), and a round bar is fixed to the other side by welding or caulking to form round bar shape 24a.

[0036] The lower door hinge 37 is equipped with a rotation restricting member 62 to prevent the insulated door 17 from opening beyond a predetermined angle. The lower hinge 24 is equipped with a rotation restricting member contact portion 24b that the rotation restricting member 62 comes into contact with, and when the angle exceeds the predetermined angle, the rotation restricting member 62 of the lower door hinge 37 comes into contact with the rotation restricting member contact portion 24b, thereby restricting rotation. The rotation restricting member 62 is equipped with a hole 62a or a U-shaped hole (not shown) through which the lower hinge bearing 61 passes, and is fixed so as to surround the round bar shape 24a of the lower hinge 24 via the lower hinge bearing 61.

[0037] Here, the parts that make up the inner panel portion 32, front panel portion 33, and edge frame portion 34 are made up of at least two or more parts, and the number and configuration of the parts are free, and they are joined to the vacuum insulation material 35 by adhesive means (not shown).

[0038] 7A, the front plate 33 may be made of a plate-like front plate component 75 made of glass, metal, or the like, the edge frame 34 may be made of four resin edge frame components 76, and the inner plate 32 may be made of a resin inner plate component 77. In this case, each of the four edge frame components 76 may be provided with a fitting portion (not shown), allowing them to be joined after temporary assembly.

[0039] Also, as shown in FIG. 7B, the front panel portion 33 may be made of a plate-shaped front panel component 75 made of glass, metal, or the like, the edge frame portion 34 may be made of a square-shaped component 71 made of resin, or the like, and the inner panel portion 32 may be made of an inner panel component 77 made of resin.

[0040] Alternatively, as shown in Fig. 7C, the front panel 33 may be made of a front panel component 75 such as glass, and the inner panel 32 and frame 34 may be made of a single recessed component 72 made of resin or the like, or as shown in Fig. 7D, the left and right portions of the front panel 33 and frame 34 may be made of a U-shaped component 73 such as a steel plate, and the remaining portion of the frame 34 and the inner panel 32 may be made of multiple resin components (frame component 76 and inner panel component 77), or as shown in Fig. 7E, the front panel 33 and frame 34 may be made of a recessed component 74 such as a steel plate, and the inner panel 32 may be made of an inner panel component 77. The bonding means may be an adhesive such as modified silicone or modified polyolefin, or double-sided tape.

[0041] 8 is made up of a core material 81 and a covering material 82 that covers the core material 81, and the interior is vacuum sealed. The covering material 82 is made up of a concave outer shell member 82a that has gas barrier properties and accommodates the core material 81, and a second outer shell member 82b that has gas barrier properties and is different from the outer shell member 82a, and the core material 81 is disposed in the internal space of this outer shell member 82b.

[0042] The outer shell member 82a is a molded product produced by vacuum forming, injection molding, pressure forming, press molding, or the like to fit the inner shape of the inner plate portion 32. The outer shell member 82a is formed from a multilayer sheet in which multiple layers of a soft material, such as an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer resin, are laminated together, which is softer than the material of the inner plate portion 32. This allows the outer shell member 82a to bond to the inner surface of the inner plate portion 32 when it is housed in the inner plate portion 32.

[0043] Second shell member 82b is a rectangular film configured to seal opening 82d of shell member 82a, and may be, for example, a laminate film of thermoplastic resin or the like, which may have a metal layer of aluminum, stainless steel, etc. Alternatively, like shell member 82a, second shell member 82b may also be a molded product produced by vacuum forming, injection molding, pressure forming, press molding, or the like.

[0044] After accommodating contents such as core material 81 in the internal space between outer shell member 82a and second outer shell member 82b, covering material 82 seals the internal space by bonding outer shell member 82a and second outer shell member 82b together. Bonding may be performed by thermal welding, or a thermal welding portion 82c may be provided on the outer periphery of outer shell member 82a. Alternatively, second outer shell member 82b may be folded and welded to the side surface of outer shell member 82a.

[0045] The core material 81 is made of open-cell urethane foam, glass fiber, rock wool, alumina fiber, polyethylene terephthalate fiber, or the like. The open-cell urethane foam may have the characteristics disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 5310928, for example. An adsorbent 83 may also be disposed inside the reduced-pressure space. Examples of the adsorbent 83 include a moisture adsorbent (not shown) that adsorbs and removes moisture, and a gas adsorbent (not shown) that adsorbs atmospheric gases and other gases. The adsorbent 83 is fitted into a hole 81a formed in the core material 81. When the adsorbent 83 is fitted into the hole 81a of the core material 81, the core material 81 and the hole 81a are formed to have the same shape as the inner surface (internal space) of the outer shell member 82a.

[0046] Additionally, in order to prevent warping of the vacuum heat insulating material 35 caused by the reduced pressure and to improve the strength of the heat-insulating door housing 21, a reinforcing metal 84 may be placed inside the reduced pressure space.

[0047] [1-2. Operation] The operation and function of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment configured as above will be described below.

[0048] First, the insulated door housing 21 is constructed by joining the outer shell parts 31 (inner plate part 32, front plate part 33, edge frame part 34) of the insulated door housing 21 to the vacuum insulation material 35 provided inside, thereby forming the insulated door housing 21. The covering material 82 of the vacuum insulation material 35 is formed into a shape that can be joined to the inner surface of the outer shell part 31 when joined to the outer shell part 31, thereby increasing the proportion of the vacuum insulation material 35 in the internal space of the insulated door housing 21 and improving the insulation performance.

[0049] The outer shell part 31 of the insulated door housing 21 has the role of protecting the vacuum insulation material 35 and preventing the vacuum insulation material 35 from breaking. In addition, it also serves as a structural part that maintains the strength of the insulated door 17. The edge frame part 34 or the inner panel part 32 is connected to the refrigerator body 11, and the connecting part is fixed by a pivot hinge, an arm-type hinge, or a drawer frame, and is connected to the refrigerator body 11 so that it can rotate freely or be drawn out. Therefore, the bonding strength between the outer shell part 31 of the insulated door housing 21 and the vacuum insulation material 35 is important.

[0050] 9A, before joining the outer shell part 31 of the insulated door housing 21 to the vacuum insulation material 35, a frame part 34 consisting of four resin parts (top surface 34a, bottom surface 34b, left side surface 34c, and right side surface 34d) may be fitted together to form a temporary assembly, which may then be joined to the vacuum insulation material 35 as a square-shaped frame part 92. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 9B, the frame part 92 and the inner panel part 32 may be temporarily bonded together before being joined to the vacuum insulation material 35, which may then be joined to the vacuum insulation material 35 as a single recessed part 93.

[0051] 10A and 10B, the left side surface 34c of the frame 34 may be made of two resin components. An exterior frame component 102, which forms the exterior surface 101 of the frame 34, and a joining frame component 104, which forms the joining surface 103 with the vacuum insulation material 35, are fitted together using a fitting 105. This allows the frame 34 to be securely joined to the vacuum insulation material 35 while maintaining design freedom for the exterior. To improve the strength of the frame 34 and the insulated door housing 21, a reinforcing metal 106 may be placed inside the space formed by the exterior frame component 102 and the joining frame component 104.

[0052] Dividing the outer shell part 31 of the insulated door housing 21 into multiple parts allows the vertical edge frame part 34 to be shared when producing insulated door housings 21 of different widths, which is excellent for mass production of multiple models. It also has the effect of preventing the mold from becoming too complicated.

[0053] Furthermore, the front panel 33, which corresponds to the front portion of the refrigerator body 11, is important in terms of design. Therefore, for example, using glass can improve aesthetics. However, due to molding considerations, it is difficult to form a claw or interlocking shape on glass, increasing the risk of it falling off. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 11 , an adhesive portion 111 for joining the front panel 33 is provided at the inner corner of the frame 34, and the frame 34 and the front panel 33 are joined by an adhesive. This allows the front panel 33 to be joined to both the vacuum insulation material 35 and the frame 34, reducing the risk of it falling off. The adhesive may be an adhesive such as modified silicone or modified polyolefin, or double-sided tape.

[0054] As shown in Figures 12A and 12B, the hinge side adhesive portion 111a may be provided on the front surface of the reinforcing metal 65 around the mounting portion of the lower door hinge 37, and may also serve to prevent the vacuum insulation material 35 from being ruptured by metal parts.

[0055] In addition, it is preferable that the vacuum insulation material side adhesive surface 121 that is adhered to the front panel portion 33 of the vacuum insulation material 35 and the adhesive portion side adhesive surface 122 that is adhered to the adhesive portion 111 are formed on the same plane so that they can each be joined to the front panel portion 33.

[0056] 13A and 13B, even in the center adhesive portion 111b, the vacuum insulation material-side adhesive surface 121 and the adhesive portion-side adhesive surface 122 are preferably formed on the same plane so that they can each be joined to the front panel portion 33. If the vacuum insulation material 35 has a welding portion 82c, the adhesive portion-side adhesive surface 122 is structured to be located closer to the front panel portion 33 than the welding portion 82c and the adhesive surface 131 between the welding portion 82c and the edge frame portion 34 by the thickness t of the welding portion 82c, thereby eliminating a step due to the thickness of the welding portion 82c, and the front panel portion 33 of the vacuum insulation material 35, the vacuum insulation material-side adhesive surface 121, and the adhesive portion-side adhesive surface 122 are configured to be on the same plane.

[0057] Furthermore, if adhesive were applied to the adhesive surface 131, there is a risk that the adhesive would overflow from the adhesive surface 131 and mar the appearance. Therefore, a protrusion 133 may be provided on the adhesive surface 131. By providing the protrusion 133 in a location that corresponds to the outside of the front plate portion 33, the adhesive is prevented from overflowing to the outside of the front plate portion 33. The protrusion 133 is not present in the portion that corresponds to the inside of the front plate portion 33, and if there is too much adhesive, it will not run down to the inside of the front plate portion 33 and mar the appearance.

[0058] The tip of the protrusion 133 is configured to be flush with the front panel 33 of the vacuum insulation material 35 and the vacuum insulation material-side adhesive surface 121, and the adhesive part-side adhesive surface 122 is configured to be located slightly to the rear, but as long as the difference is less than the thickness of the adhesive, it can be considered to be flush. Even in cases where the difference is due to a draft angle or component variation, it can be said to be flush as long as it is less than the thickness of the adhesive.

[0059] [1-3. Effects, etc.] As described above, in this embodiment, the refrigerator has heat insulating door 17 that opens and closes the front opening (not shown) of refrigerator body 11. Heat insulating door 17 is made up of front panel 33 located forward of the front opening, inner panel 32 located in the internal space of refrigerator body 11, frame 34 that covers the outer peripheries of front panel 33 and inner panel 32, and vacuum insulation material 35 provided between front panel 33, inner panel 32, and frame 34.

[0060] The vacuum heat insulating material 35 is formed by sealing a concave outer shell member 82a having gas barrier properties and accommodating a core material 81 with a second outer shell member 82b having gas barrier properties and different from the outer shell member 82a.

[0061] The inner plate portion 32, the edge frame portion 34 and the front plate portion 33 are made up of two or more parts, and each part is joined to a vacuum heat insulating material 35.

[0062] As described above, the entire interior of the insulated door 17 is made of vacuum insulation material 35, which improves the insulating performance of the insulated door 17 and improves energy efficiency. Also, it becomes possible to make the insulated door 17 thinner, which improves the aesthetic appearance of the refrigerator. Also, the degree of freedom in the shape of the vacuum insulation material 35 is improved, making it possible to provide an insulated door 17 with high energy efficiency.

[0063] Additionally, the inner plate portion 32 and the front plate portion 33 are respectively made up of an inner plate part 77 and a front plate part 75, and the edge frame portion 34 is made up of four or more edge frame parts 76. This ensures moldability of the parts, and when producing multiple types of insulated door 17 with different widths, it becomes possible to share some of the edge frame parts 76, thereby reducing investment in molds.

[0064] Moreover, by configuring the edge frame part 34 with one square-shaped part 71, the heat insulating door 17 can be configured with a minimum number of parts, making it easier to assemble the heat insulating door 17 and providing an inexpensive refrigerator.

[0065] Furthermore, by configuring the inner plate part 32 and the edge frame part 34 with one recessed part 72 and configuring the front plate part 33 with a front plate part 75, the heat insulating door 17 can be configured with a minimum number of parts, making it easier to assemble the heat insulating door 17 and providing an inexpensive refrigerator.

[0066] Furthermore, by constructing the edge frame portion 34 from a plurality of edge frame parts 76 each having a fitting portion 105, and assembling the fitting portions 105 into a square shape to form the square-shaped part 71, it becomes possible to temporarily assemble the edge frame portion 34 before bonding, and the productivity of a plurality of types of insulated doors 17 with different widths is improved.

[0067] In addition, by providing an adhesive portion 111 at the inner corner of the edge frame portion 34 and joining the front panel portion 33 to the adhesive portion 111, the front panel portion 33 is joined to both the vacuum insulation material 35 and the edge frame portion 34, thereby reducing the risk of the front panel portion 33 falling off. [Industrial Applicability]

[0068] The present disclosure can be applied to refrigerators that are constructed solely with vacuum insulation materials while maintaining the strength of the insulated door, thereby improving insulation performance and energy-saving performance, and further enabling the insulated door to be made thinner for improved aesthetics. Specifically, the present disclosure can be applied to household refrigerators, commercial refrigerators, refrigeration and freezing equipment, etc. [Explanation of symbols]

[0069] 11 Refrigerator body 11a Insulated box 11b Outer box 12 Refrigerator 13 Ice maker 14 Switching room 15 Freezer 16 Vegetable compartment 17 Insulated Door 21 Insulated door housing 22 Gasket 22a Anchor Shape 23 Upper hinge 23a, 24a round bar shape 24 Lower hinge 24b Rotation restriction member contact portion 25 Center pillar 31 Outer shell parts 32 Inner plate part 32a Groove 33 Front plate part 34 Edge frame 34a Top 34b bottom 34c left side 34d right side 35 Vacuum insulation material 36 Upper door hinge 37 Lower door hinge 51 Upper hinge bearing 52, 65, 84, 106 Reinforcing metal 52a, 81a hole 53 Wiring 61 Lower hinge bearing 62 Rotation restriction member 62a hole 63 Fastening means 64 Latch 71 Square-shaped parts 72, 74, 93 Concave parts 73 U-shaped parts 75 Front panel parts 76 Edge frame parts 77 Inner panel parts 81 Core material 82 Covering material 82a Outer shell member 82b Second outer shell member 82c weld part 82d opening 83 Adsorbents 92 Square frame parts 101 Exterior 102 Exterior edge frame parts 103 Joint surface 104 Joint edge frame parts 105 Fitting part 111 Adhesive part 111a Hinge side adhesive part 111b Center side adhesive part 121 Vacuum insulation material adhesive surface 122 Adhesive side adhesive side 131 Adhesive surface 133 Convex

Claims

1. A heat-insulating door is provided to open and close the front opening of the refrigerator body. The heat-insulating door includes a front plate portion located forward from the front opening, an inner plate portion located in the internal space of the refrigerator body, a frame portion covering the outer peripheries of the front plate portion and the inner plate portion, and a vacuum heat insulating material provided between the front plate portion, the inner plate portion, and the frame portion, The vacuum insulation material is formed by sealing a concave outer shell member having gas barrier properties and accommodating a core material with a second outer shell member having gas barrier properties and different from the outer shell member, Each of the inner plate portion, the edge frame portion, and the front plate portion is joined to the vacuum insulation material, At least a portion of the edge frame portion has an exterior edge frame part that forms an exterior surface of the edge frame portion and a joining edge frame part that forms a joining surface with the vacuum insulation material, A refrigerator in which the exterior edge frame part is a part separate from the joining edge frame part.

2. 2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the frame portion is composed of four or more frame parts.

3. 2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the edge frame portion is formed of a single square-shaped part.

4. 2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the inner plate portion and the edge frame portion are formed as a single recessed part, and the front plate portion is formed as a front plate part.

5. 4. The refrigerator according to claim 3, wherein the edge frame portion is made up of a plurality of edge frame parts each having a fitting portion, and the fitting portions are fitted together to form a square-shaped part.

6. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein an adhesive portion is provided at an inner corner of the edge frame portion, and the front panel portion is joined to the adhesive portion.

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