showcase

Abstract

To cool commercial products placed on a commercial product placement shelf in an excellent manner while improving flexibility in installation of the commercial product placement shelf.SOLUTION: A show case includes: a ventilation duct 12 constituted to communicate to a storage chamber 11 of a case body 10: plural stages of commercial product placement shelves 20 which are provided vertically in the storage chamber 11 for placing commercial products on shelf boards 24; and an under-shelf duct 30 which is provided on an arbitrary commercial product placement shelf 20 to form a ventilation passage 31 between the shelf boards 24 and blows out air from a back surface hole 14a from a duct outlet 34 while introducing the air into the ventilation passage 31. A guide unit 40 which is provided to cover a front area of a part of the back surface hole 14a between a first commercial product placement shelf 20 where the under-shelf duct 30 is provided and a second commercial product placement shelf 20 right below the first commercial product placement shelf and a part of the back surface hole 14a between the first commercial product placement shelf 20 and a third commercial product placement shelf 20 right above the first commercial product placement shelf, and regulates the blow-out of the air from the covered back surface hole 14a and / or guides the air blowing out from the back surface hole 14a to the ventilation passage 31 is equipped.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a showcase.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a showcase for maintaining a product to be stored at a desired cooling temperature has been proposed in Patent Document 1.

[0003] In the showcase proposed in this Patent Document 1, a plurality of product placement shelves are provided in a plurality of stages along the vertical direction in a storage chamber of a case body having a front opening in the front portion, and products are placed on the shelf boards of each product placement shelf. Further, in a portion inside the case body that is outside the storage chamber, a ventilation duct for the air sucked through a suction port formed in the lower front portion of the storage chamber is formed, and an evaporator is installed in this ventilation duct. The air passing through such a ventilation duct is cooled by the evaporator and then blown out from a blowout port formed in the upper front portion of the storage chamber. By the air blown out from the blowout port being sucked into the suction port and circulating through the ventilation duct, the air inside the storage chamber is cooled and the product is maintained at a desired cooling temperature.

[0004] In the above showcase, a plurality of rear holes are provided in a back plate constituting the back surface of the storage chamber, and an under-shelf duct is provided in the lower region of an arbitrary product placement shelf. The plurality of rear holes are for blowing out the air cooled by the evaporator in the ventilation duct into the storage chamber.

[0005] The under-shelf duct is provided on an arbitrary product placement shelf and is arranged along the lower surface of the shelf board. Such an under-shelf duct forms a ventilation path between itself and the shelf board, introduces the air blown out from the rear hole behind itself, blows it downward from a duct blowout port formed in itself, and can blow out air from a front-end blowout port formed between the front-end portion of itself and the shelf board.

[0006] Such under-shelf ducts can cool the products placed on the product display shelves directly below the product display shelves where the under-shelf ducts are installed, and moreover, the air blown out from the front end outlet can be combined with the air blown out from the outlet to form an air curtain in the front part of the storage compartment. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2005-312586 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0008] Incidentally, in the above-mentioned showcase, the under-shelf duct introduces air blown out from a rear hole at its back. Therefore, the product shelves on which the under-shelf duct is installed can only be placed where a rear hole is formed at the back, thus limiting the flexibility of product shelf placement. It is conceivable that by providing numerous rear holes across the entire surface of the back panel, the rear holes would always be located on the rear side of the under-shelf duct, thereby improving the flexibility of product shelf placement. However, in this case, the amount of air blown forward from the rear holes and not flowing into the under-shelf duct's airflow path would increase, potentially causing turbulence in the air and hindering the cooling of the products.

[0009] In view of the above circumstances, the present invention aims to provide a showcase that can effectively cool products placed on product shelves while improving the flexibility of product shelf placement. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] To achieve the above objective, the showcase according to the present invention comprises: a ventilation duct configured inside the case body in a manner that communicates with a storage chamber defined inside the case body; a circulation means for circulating air between the storage chamber and the ventilation duct; a cooling means for cooling the air circulated by the circulation means; product display shelves arranged vertically in the storage chamber, on which products are placed; and a ventilation passage formed between the lower surface of the shelves and any product display shelf, which is provided on any product display shelf in a manner that forms a ventilation passage between the product display shelf and the lower surface of the shelf, and introduces the air from the ventilation duct blown out from a back hole formed in the back panel that constitutes the back of the storage chamber into the ventilation passage. A showcase comprising a shelf-under duct that cools products placed on a second product shelf directly below a first product shelf on which it is provided by blowing air out from a duct outlet formed thereon, wherein the first product shelf is installed in such a manner that it covers the front area of ​​at least one of the rear holes between itself and the second product shelf, and the rear holes between itself and the third product shelf directly above it, and is equipped with a guide unit that restricts the airflow from the covered rear holes and / or guides the air blown out from the rear holes into the ventilation passage.

[0011] Furthermore, the present invention is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned showcase, the rear holes are formed in multiple locations across the entire surface of the rear panel.

[0012] Furthermore, the present invention is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned showcase, the guide unit is arranged in such a manner that it is gradually inclined downward as it moves toward the rear, and includes a lower guide that guides the air blown out from the rear hole covered by itself into the ventilation passage, and an upper guide that extends upward from the lower guide, with its upper end portion overlapping the lower end portion of another guide unit that is provided on the second product display shelf, and which closes the rear hole covered by itself with a cushioning material attached to its rear surface.

[0013] Furthermore, the present invention is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned showcase, the under-shelf duct has more duct outlets formed as it moves away from the rear hole. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, a guide unit installed in such a manner that it covers the front area of ​​at least one of the rear holes between the first product shelf and the second product shelf, and the rear holes between the first product shelf and the third product shelf, restricts the airflow from the covered rear holes and / or guides the air blown out from the rear holes into the ventilation passage. Therefore, even if there are no rear holes formed on the rear side, product shelves can be arranged and air from the rear holes above or below them can be guided into the ventilation passage, thus not limiting the installation location of the product shelves. Accordingly, this provides the effect of improving the freedom of installation of product shelves while effectively cooling the products placed on them. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0015] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic cross-sectional side view showing the internal structure of a showcase according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a magnified perspective view showing the main parts of the showcase shown in Figure 1. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a cross-sectional side view showing an enlarged view of the main part of the showcase shown in Figure 1. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the main parts of the product display shelf shown in Figures 2 and 3. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a perspective view showing the main parts of the product display shelf shown in Figures 2 and 3. [Figure 6] Figure 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the main parts of the product display shelf shown in Figures 2 and 3. [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the airflow in the under-shelf duct of the product display shelf shown in Figures 2 and 3. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0016] A preferred embodiment of the showcase according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings.

[0017] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional side view schematically showing the internal structure of a showcase according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an enlarged main part of the showcase shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view showing an enlarged main part of the showcase shown in FIG. 1. The showcase 1 illustrated here is for accommodating goods in stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores, and includes a case body 10.

[0018] The case body 10 includes a bottom surface portion 10A, a rear surface portion 10B, and a top surface portion 10C, and a storage chamber 11 having openings at the front and both side surfaces is formed in a portion surrounded by these bottom surface portion 10A, rear surface portion 10B, and top surface portion 10C. That is, the case body 10 has a front opening 10d in the front portion, and the storage chamber 11 is defined inside the case body 10 in a manner facing the front opening 10d.

[0019] A ventilation duct 12 is provided in the case body 10 in a manner partitioned from the storage chamber 11. The ventilation duct 12 is formed inside the bottom surface portion 10A, rear surface portion 10B, and top surface portion 10C, and includes a lower ventilation duct 12A, a rear ventilation duct 12B, and an upper ventilation duct 12C.

[0020] The lower ventilation duct 12A is formed in the bottom surface portion 10A in a portion below a bottom plate 13 that constitutes the bottom surface of the storage chamber 11. A suction port 13a extending along the left-right direction is formed at the front end portion of the bottom plate 13. That is, the suction port 13a opens at the lower front portion of the storage chamber 11.

[0021] The rear ventilation duct <12B> is formed in the rear surface portion <10B> in a portion behind a back plate <14> that constitutes the back surface of the storage chamber <11>. The lower end portion of this rear ventilation duct <12B> communicates with the rear end portion of the lower ventilation duct <12A>.

[0022] The upper ventilation duct 12C is located in the top surface portion 10C, above the top panel 15 that forms the top surface of the storage compartment 11. An outlet 15a extending in the left-right direction is formed at the front end portion of the top panel 15. In other words, the outlet 15a opens to the front upper part of the storage compartment 11.

[0023] An evaporator 16 and a blower fan 17 are installed inside the ventilation duct 12. The evaporator 16, together with a condensing unit (not shown), constitutes a refrigeration cycle and is a cooling means that cools the air passing through the ventilation duct 12 by exchanging heat with it.

[0024] The blower fan 17, when driven, circulates air between the storage compartment 11 and the ventilation duct 12 by passing the air drawn in from the intake port 13a through the lower ventilation duct 12A, the rear ventilation duct 12B, and the upper ventilation duct 12C in that order, and blowing it out from the outlet 15a.

[0025] In this showcase 1, when the condensing unit and the blower fan 17 are driven, the air that has passed through the evaporator 16 is circulated and supplied to the storage compartment 11 through the ventilation duct 12, and the storage compartment 11 is maintained at the desired refrigerated temperature.

[0026] The storage compartment 11 is provided with multiple levels (five levels in the illustrated example) of product shelves 20 arranged vertically. Each of the multiple product shelves 20 has a similar configuration, and is constructed by mounting a pair of left and right bracket members 21 that extend forward from shelf support columns 18 provided on both the left and right sides of the back panel 14, and then installing a shelf support member 23 between these bracket members 21 using a conventionally known slider 22 or the like, and this shelf support member 23 supports the shelf board 24.

[0027] Such a product display shelf 20 is designed to display products by placing them on the top surface of the shelf board 24, and the shelf board 24 is capable of sliding back and forth through the front opening 10d.

[0028] Incidentally, the rear panel 14 has multiple rear holes 14a formed across its entire surface. Each of these rear holes 14a has an elongated shape with the left-right direction being its longitudinal direction, making it possible to blow air from the ventilation duct 12 towards the storage compartment 11.

[0029] Furthermore, in the showcase 1 described above, under-shelf ducts 30 and guide units 40 are provided for the product shelves 20, excluding the top product shelf 20.

[0030] The under-shelf duct 30 is a substantially flat plate-shaped member formed from, for example, sheet metal, and is attached to the shelf support member 23 that constitutes the first product display shelf 20 (hereinafter also referred to as the first product display shelf 20) in such a manner that an air passage 31 is formed between the under-shelf duct 30 and the lower surface of the shelf board 24 of the product display shelf 20 on which the product display shelf 20 is provided.

[0031] Such an under-shelf duct 30 forms an inlet 32 ​​between its rear end and the shelf 24, and a front end outlet 33 between its upwardly bent front end and the shelf 24. The under-shelf duct 30 also has multiple duct outlets 34. These duct outlets 34 are more numerous near the front end outlets 33 than near the inlet 32. In other words, the under-shelf duct 30 has more duct outlets 34 as it moves away from the rear hole 14a.

[0032] As shown in Figures 4 to 6, the guide unit 40 is configured to include a lower guide 41 and an upper guide 42. The lower guide 41 is formed from, for example, sheet metal, and is a long, rectangular member with its longitudinal direction in the left-right direction. This lower guide 41 is constructed by integrally molding a flat plate-shaped lower guide base 411 that extends along the horizontal direction, and a lower guide extension 412 that extends from the rear end portion of the lower guide base 411, gradually curving downward as it moves towards the rear.

[0033] The upper guide 42 is formed from, for example, sheet metal, and is a long, elongated member with its longitudinal direction in the left-right direction. This upper guide 42 is constructed by integrally molding an upper guide base 421, an upper guide extension 422, a first upper guide inclined extension 423, and a second upper guide inclined extension 424.

[0034] The upper guide base 421 is a flat plate-shaped portion extending horizontally. The upper guide extension 422 is a flat plate-shaped portion extending upward from the rear end portion of the upper guide base 421. A rectangular communication hole 422a is formed in this upper guide extension 422. The first upper guide inclined extension 423 is continuous with the extension end of the portion that gradually extends upward from the upper end portion of the upper guide extension 422 as it moves backward, and is a flat plate-shaped portion formed in such a manner that it gradually inclins backward as it moves upward from the extension end. A cushioning material 43 (see Figures 1 and 3) is attached to the rear surface of this first upper guide inclined extension 423. The second upper guide inclined extension 424 is a flat plate-shaped portion that gradually inclins forward as it moves upward from the upper end portion of the first upper guide inclined extension 423. This second upper guide inclined extension 424 constitutes the upper end portion of the upper guide 42.

[0035] In such a guide unit 40, the upper guide base 421 overlaps the lower guide base 411, and the left and right ends of the lower guide base 411 and upper guide base 421 are attached to the lower surface of the rear end portion of the upper end portion 211 of the bracket member 21 via mounting members N such as screws. In other words, the guide unit 40 is installed between the rear ends of a pair of left and right bracket members 21. Thus, the length of the guide unit 40 in the left-right direction (longitudinal direction) is slightly greater than the distance between the bracket members 21 and slightly greater than the left-right width of the back plate 14.

[0036] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the guide unit 40 has a lower guide 41 that covers the front area of ​​a portion of the rear holes 14a on the lower side of the first product display shelf 20, with its lower end overlapping the upper end of an upper guide 42 that constitutes another guide unit 40 provided on the product display shelf 20 directly below the first product display shelf 20 (hereinafter also referred to as the second product display shelf). The upper guide 42 also covers the front area of ​​a portion of the rear holes 14a on the upper side of the first product display shelf 20, with its upper end overlapping the lower end of a lower guide 41 that constitutes another guide unit 40 provided on the product display shelf 20 directly above the first product display shelf 20 (hereinafter also referred to as the third product display shelf). The upper guide 42 then closes off a portion of the rear holes 14a with a cushioning material 43.

[0037] In other words, the guide unit 40 covers the front area of ​​some of the rear holes 14a between the first product shelf 20 and the second product shelf 20, and also covers some of the rear holes 14a between the first product shelf 20 and the third product shelf 20, and further closes the covered portion of the rear holes 14a with cushioning material 43.

[0038] Furthermore, if other guide units 40 are provided on the second and third product shelves 20, the guide unit 40, together with these other guide units 40, covers all the rear holes 14a between the first and second product shelves 20, and the front area of ​​all the rear holes 14a between the first and third product shelves 20, and closes off a portion of the covered rear holes 14a between the first and third product shelves 20 with cushioning material 43.

[0039] In such a guide unit 40, as shown in Figure 7, the lower guide 41 guides the air blown out from the covered rear hole 14a to the inlet 32 ​​through the communication hole 422a, thereby guiding it to the ventilation passage 31. The upper guide 42 restricts the air blown out from the rear hole 14a, which is blocked by the cushioning material 43, while guiding the air blown out from the covered rear hole 14a, which is not blocked by the cushioning material 43, to the inlet through the communication hole 422a, thereby guiding it to the ventilation passage 31.

[0040] In this way, the air guided into the ventilation passage 31, that is, the air cooled in the evaporator 16, is partially blown out from the duct outlet 34 to cool the products placed on the product display shelves 20 directly below, and the remainder is blown out from the front outlet 33 to merge with the air blown out from outlet 15a, forming an air curtain in the front part of the storage compartment 11, thereby effectively cooling the internal atmosphere of the storage compartment 11.

[0041] As described above, according to the showcase 1, which is an embodiment of the present invention, the guide unit 40 provided on the first product display shelf 20 is installed in such a manner that it covers the front area of ​​some of the rear holes 14a between the first product display shelf 20 and the second product display shelf 20, and some of the rear holes 14a between the first product display shelf 20 and the third product display shelf 20. The guide unit 40 restricts the airflow from the covered portion of the rear holes 14a while guiding the air blown out from the remaining rear holes 14a to the ventilation passage 31. Therefore, even if there are no rear holes 14a formed on the rear side, the product display shelf 20 can be installed and the air from the rear holes 14a above or below it can be guided to the ventilation passage 31, and the installation location of the product display shelf 20 is not limited. Accordingly, the degree of freedom in installing the product display shelf 20 is improved, and the products placed on the product display shelf 20 can be cooled effectively.

[0042] According to the showcase 1 described above, the number of duct outlets 34 of the under-shelf duct 30 increases as they move away from the rear hole 14a, so that the air introduced from the inlet 32 ​​can pass through the entire length of the ventilation passage 31, and air can be effectively blown out not only from the duct outlets 34 but also from the front outlet 33.

[0043] Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications can be made.

[0044] In the above-described embodiment, the under-shelf duct 30 was attached to the shelf support member 23 and the guide unit 40 was attached to the bracket member 21. However, in the present invention, the guide unit may be integrally formed with the under-shelf duct.

[0045] In the embodiment described above, the guide unit 40 blocked some of the back holes 14a that it covers with cushioning material 43 to restrict the airflow from these back holes 14a, while guiding the air that was blown out from some of the back holes 14a to the ventilation passage 31. However, in the present invention, the guide unit may guide the air blown out from all of the back holes it covers to the ventilation passage, or it may block all of the back holes it covers to restrict the airflow from these back holes.

[0046] In the embodiment described above, multiple rear holes 14a were formed across the entire surface of the rear panel 14. However, in the present invention, the rear holes do not necessarily have to be formed across the entire surface, as long as multiple rear holes are formed on the rear panel. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0047] 1…Showcase, 10…Case body, 10A…Bottom section, 10B…Rear section, 10C…Top section, 10d…Front opening, 11…Storage compartment, 12…Ventilation duct, 12A…Lower ventilation duct, 12B…Rear ventilation duct, 12C…Upper ventilation duct, 13…Bottom panel, 13a…Intake, 14…Back panel, 14a…Back hole, 15…Top panel, 15a…Air outlet, 16…Evaporator, 17…Blower fan, 18…Shelf support, 20…Product display shelf, 21…Bracket component 22...Slider, 23...Shelf support member, 24...Shelf board, 30...Under-shelf duct, 31...Ventilation passage, 32...Inlet, 33...Front end outlet, 34...Duct outlet, 40...Guide unit, 41...Lower guide, 411...Lower guide base, 412...Lower guide extension, 42...Upper guide, 421...Upper guide base, 422...Upper guide extension, 422a...Communication hole, 423...First upper guide inclined extension, 424...Second upper guide inclined extension, 43...Cushioning material.

Claims

1. A ventilation duct is configured inside the case body in such a manner that it communicates with a storage compartment defined inside the case body, A circulation means for circulating air between the storage room and the ventilation duct, A cooling means for cooling the air circulated by the aforementioned circulation means, The aforementioned storage room is provided with multiple shelves, one above the other, on which products are placed. The under-shelf duct is provided on any product display shelf in such a manner that an air passage is formed between it and the lower surface of the shelf board, and by introducing the air from the ventilation duct, which is blown out from a back hole formed in the back panel that constitutes the back of the storage compartment, into the air passage and blowing it out from a duct outlet formed in itself, it cools the products placed on the second product display shelf directly below the first product display shelf on which it is provided. A showcase equipped with, The first product display shelf is installed in such a manner that it covers the front area of ​​at least one of the rear holes between itself and the second product display shelf, and the rear holes between itself and the third product display shelf directly above it, and is equipped with a guide unit that restricts the airflow from the covered rear holes and / or guides the air blown out from the rear holes into the ventilation passage. The under-shelf duct is characterized in that it has an inlet between its rear end and the shelf board, a front end outlet between its front end and the shelf board, and the number of duct outlets increases as it moves away from the rear hole.

2. The showcase according to claim 1, characterized in that the rear holes are formed in multiple locations across the entire surface of the rear panel.

3. The aforementioned guide unit is A lower guide is provided which is arranged in such a manner that it gradually slopes downward as it approaches the rear, and which guides the air blown out from the rear hole that it covers into the ventilation passage, An upper guide that extends upward from the lower guide, with its upper end portion overlapping the lower end portion of another guide unit that is provided on the third product shelf, and which closes the rear hole that it covers with cushioning material attached to its rear surface. A showcase according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by comprising the following features.

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