Refrigerator

Abstract

The present invention provides a refrigerator that is capable of suppressing peeling at a boundary surface between different heat insulation materials.　A refrigerator according to the present disclosure comprises: an outer box that forms an outer shell; an inner box that is provided inside the outer box; a partition that includes a first filling part, which divides the inner box into a first space and a second space that is formed below the first space and which is filled with a first heat insulating material, a left second filling part, which is provided on the left side of the first filling part when viewed from the front and which is filled with a second heat insulating material differing from the first heat insulating material, and a right second filling part, which is provided on the right side of the first filling part when viewed from the front and which is filled with the second heat insulating material; and an outer filling part that is provided between the outer box and the inner box and that is filled with the second heat insulating material, wherein the boundary surface between the first filling part and the left second filling part and the boundary surface between the first filling part and the right second filling part are provided rightward of the left end of the inner box and leftward of the right end of the inner box, when viewed from the front.

Description

refrigerator

[0001] The present disclosure relates to refrigerators.

[0002] In general, a partition provided to divide the space between the outer box and the inner box of a refrigerator and the space inside the inner box is filled with a heat insulating material. Patent Document 1 describes a configuration in which the partition provided to divide the space inside the inner box into upper and lower sections is filled with two types of heat insulating material: a heat insulating material filled between the outer box and the inner box (hereinafter referred to as a first heat insulating material), and a heat insulating material different from the heat insulating material filled between the outer box and the inner box (hereinafter referred to as a second heat insulating material).

[0003] In the invention described in Patent Document 1, when the refrigerator is viewed from the front, the boundary surface between the first insulating material and the second insulating material is on the outside of the inner box. Note that the outside of the inner box when viewed from the front means the left side of the left end of the inner box or the right side of the right end of the inner box.

[0004] Publication No. 59-23089

[0005] The boundary surface between different insulating materials has weaker strength than the portion made of the same type of insulating material. Furthermore, when the refrigerator is distorted, a large load is applied to the right and left ends of the inner box of the refrigerator and to the outside of the inner box. Therefore, the invention described in Patent Document 1 has a problem in that the large load is applied to the boundary surface between the first insulating material and the second insulating material, which makes the insulating materials prone to peeling.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to suppress peeling at the boundary surface between different insulating materials.

[0007] The refrigerator of the present disclosure comprises an outer box forming an outer shell, an inner box provided inside the outer box, a partition dividing the inner box into a first space and a second space formed below the first space, the partition comprising a first filling section filled with a first insulating material, a left second filling section provided to the left of the first filling section when viewed from the front and filled with a second insulating material different from the first insulating material, and a right second filling section provided to the right of the first filling section when viewed from the front and filled with the second insulating material, and an outer filling section provided between the outer box and the inner box and filled with the second insulating material, and the boundary surface between the first filling section and the left second filling section and the boundary surface between the first filling section and the right second filling section are located to the right of the left end of the inner box and to the left of the right end of the inner box when viewed from the front.

[0008] The refrigerator of the present disclosure can suppress peeling at the interface between different insulating materials.

[0009] 5 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, as seen from above; FIG. 6 is a front view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 7 is a top view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 8 is a simplified cross-sectional view of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, taken along line A-A in FIG. 3; FIG. 9 is a partially enlarged front view of a refrigerator compartment, an ice maker compartment, and a small freezer compartment when the door of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is open; FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, taken along line B-B in FIG. 5; FIG. 11 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, taken along line A-A in FIG. 3; FIG. 12 is a top view of a first case section in the first partition section of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 13 is a bottom view of the first case section in the first partition section of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 14 is a right side view of the first case section in the first partition section of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 15 is a left side view of the first case section in the first partition section of the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing a procedure for filling a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure with insulating material.

[0010] Refrigerators according to embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments, and modifications or omissions may be made without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. Furthermore, common elements in the drawings will be designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions will be omitted.

[0011] Embodiment. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of refrigerator 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, as seen from above. Fig. 2 is a front view of refrigerator 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 3 is a top view of refrigerator 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The overall configuration of refrigerator 100 will be described using Figs. 1 to 3. In addition, although the up / down, left / right, and front / rear directions of refrigerator 100 are defined in the figures, these are defined for the purpose of explaining the embodiment and do not limit the arrangement and orientation of devices and components of the present disclosure.

[0012] Refrigerator 100 has door section 10 and refrigerator body 20. Door section 10 is provided on the front of refrigerator 100. Door section 10 is a door for opening and closing storage compartment 22 and is provided so as to be able to open and close freely. Door section 10 has refrigerator compartment door 11, ice maker compartment door 12, small freezer compartment door 13, large freezer compartment door 14, and vegetable compartment door 15.

[0013] Refrigerator compartment door 11 has a left refrigerator compartment door 11a and a right refrigerator compartment door 11b. Refrigerator compartment door 11 is a double door that opens and closes refrigerator compartment 1. Ice-making compartment door 12 is a drawer-type door that opens and closes ice-making compartment 2. Small freezer compartment door 13 is a drawer-type door that opens and closes small freezer compartment 3. Large freezer compartment door 14 is a drawer-type door that opens and closes large freezer compartment 4. Vegetable compartment door 15 is a drawer-type door that opens and closes vegetable compartment 5.

[0014] Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a cross-sectional view of refrigerator 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure taken along line A-A in Fig. 3. The configuration of refrigerator body 20 of refrigerator 100 will be described using Fig. 4. In Fig. 4, polystyrene foam filling section 215, which will be described later, is indicated by dotted lines, and urethane foam filling section 216 is indicated by diagonal lines.

[0015] Refrigerator body 20 has an opening on the front surface. Refrigerator body 20 also has outer box 202, inner box 203, partition section 21, storage compartment 22, and heat insulating material filling section 23.

[0016] Outer box 202 forms the outer shell of refrigerator 100. Outer box 202 is made of, for example, a steel plate. Inner box 203 is provided inside outer box 202 and forms storage compartment 22 for storing food therein. Inner box 203 is made of, for example, a resin.

[0017] Dividers 21 divide the interior of inner box 203, thereby forming a plurality of storage compartments 22 inside inner box 203. More specifically, storage compartments 22 of refrigerator 100 have a refrigerator compartment 1, an ice-making compartment 2, a small freezer compartment 3, a large freezer compartment 4, and a vegetable compartment 5.

[0018] The storage compartments 22 of the refrigerator 100 are each set to a different temperature range. Refrigerator compartment 1 is set to a refrigeration temperature range (for example, 0°C to 6°C). The configuration of refrigerator compartment 1 will be described later. Ice-making compartment 2 has an automatic ice maker and an ice-making case. The automatic ice maker automatically forms and releases ice. The ice-making case stores ice formed by the automatic ice maker 8. Ice-making compartment 2 freezes water to form ice and stores the ice. Small freezer compartment 3 and large freezer compartment 4 freeze stored items. Ice-making compartment 2, small freezer compartment 3, and large freezer compartment 4 are set to a freezing temperature range (for example, -20°C to -18°C) that is lower than the refrigeration temperature range. Vegetable compartment 5 stores vegetables. Vegetable compartment 5 is set to a vegetable temperature range (for example, 3°C to 8°C) that is higher than the freezing temperature range.

[0019] The partition section 21 has a first partition section 210 , a second partition section 211 , a third partition section 212 , and a fourth partition section 213 .

[0020] First partition 210 is a partition that divides the space inside inner box 203 of refrigerator 100 into upper and lower compartments. Specifically, first partition 210 divides refrigerator compartment 1 into ice-making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3. In other words, first partition 210 forms the floor surface of refrigerator compartment 1. First partition 210 also forms the ceiling surface of ice-making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3. First partition 210 is also filled with a heat insulating material. Filling first partition 210 with a heat insulating material prevents heat transfer between ice-making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3 and refrigerator compartment 1, thereby maintaining each storage compartment at an appropriate temperature.

[0021] Second partition 211 is a partition that divides the space inside inner box 203 of refrigerator 100 into left and right sections. More specifically, second partition 211 divides ice-making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3. In other words, second partition 211 forms the right side of ice-making compartment 2. Second partition 211 also forms the left side of small freezer compartment 3. Second partition 211 is filled with a heat insulating material. By filling second partition 211 with a heat insulating material, it becomes possible to precisely control the temperatures of ice-making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3.

[0022] Third partition 212 is a partition that divides the space inside inner box 203 of refrigerator 100 into upper and lower compartments. More specifically, third partition 212 divides ice making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3 from large freezer compartment 4. In other words, third partition 212 forms the floor surface of ice making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3. Third partition 212 also forms the ceiling surface of large freezer compartment 4. Third partition 212 is also filled with a thermal insulating material. By filling third partition 212 with a thermal insulating material, it becomes possible to precisely control the temperatures of ice making compartment 2, small freezer compartment 3, and large freezer compartment 4.

[0023] The fourth partition 213 is a partition that divides the space inside the inner box 203 of the refrigerator 100 into upper and lower compartments. More specifically, the fourth partition 213 divides the large freezer compartment 4 and the vegetable compartment 5. In other words, the fourth partition 213 forms the floor surface of the large freezer compartment 4. The fourth partition 213 also forms the ceiling surface of the vegetable compartment 5. The fourth partition 213 is also filled with a heat insulating material. Filling the fourth partition 213 with a heat insulating material prevents heat from transferring from the large freezer compartment 4 to the vegetable compartment 5, thereby maintaining each storage compartment at an appropriate temperature.

[0024] Insulating material filling section 23 is a section filled with insulating material. More specifically, insulating material filling section 23 is the space inside first partition section 210, the space inside second partition section 211, the space inside third partition section 212, the space inside fourth partition section 213, and the space between outer box 202 and inner box 203. By filling the spaces between outer box 202 and inner box 203 with insulating material, heat transfer from storage compartment 22 to the outside of refrigerator 100 can be prevented, and each storage compartment can be maintained at an appropriate temperature.

[0025] Hereinafter, the insulating material filling section 23 inside the first partition section 210 will be referred to as the first partition insulating material filling section 24. The first partition insulating material filling section 24 has a polystyrene foam filling section 215 filled with polystyrene foam. The insulating material filling the urethane foam filling section 216, which is the portion of the first partition insulating material filling section 24 other than the polystyrene foam filling section 215, and which is composed of the first partition urethane foam filling section 25, the second partition section 211, the third partition section 212, the fourth partition section 213, and the space between the outer box 202 and the inner box 203, is urethane foam. More specifically, the insulating material filling the urethane foam filling section 216 is rigid urethane foam. Rigid urethane foam has high insulating performance. The detailed configuration of the first partition section 210 will be described later.

[0026] The polystyrene foam is filled by placing solid polystyrene foam in the filling portion. The urethane foam is installed as insulation during the installation stage of refrigerator 100 by spraying a two-component urethane concentrate onto refrigerator 100 with a spray gun while refrigerator 100 is tilted forward and fixed with a jig, causing it to foam on-site. Fixing with a jig is performed to prevent deformation of refrigerator 100 due to foaming pressure. In addition, first partition 210, second partition 211, third partition 212, fourth partition 213, and outer casing 202 each have an injection port for filling with urethane foam. For example, the injection ports of outer casing 202 are multiple circular openings provided on the rear surface.

[0027] Fig. 5 is a partially enlarged front view of refrigerator compartment 1, ice-making compartment 2, and small freezer compartment 3 when door 10 of refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is open. Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view of refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure taken along line B-B in Fig. 5. The configuration of refrigerator compartment 1 will be described using Figs. 5 and 6. In Fig. 6, polystyrene foam filling section 215 is indicated by dotted lines, and first partition urethane foam filling section 25 is indicated by diagonal lines.

[0028] Refrigerator compartment 1 includes a food refrigerator compartment 16 and a water supply tank 17. Food refrigerator compartment 16 is provided at the top of refrigerator compartment 1 and refrigerates food. Food refrigerator compartment 16 also has a plurality of refrigerator cases 18. Refrigerator cases 18 are provided so as to be movable in the front-to-rear direction. Water supply tank 17 is a tank that stores water to be sent to ice making compartment 2. Water supply tank 17 is provided below refrigerator cases 18. As shown in FIG. 6 , water supply tank 17 is also provided at the front of refrigerator 100. Water supply tank 17 is provided in refrigerator compartment 1, which is set to the refrigeration temperature range, to prevent the water in the tank from freezing.

[0029] FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged view of the vicinity of the first partition section 210 in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 3 taken along the line A-A of FIG. 3 of the refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 8 is a top view of the first case section 220 in the first partition section 210 of the refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 9 is a bottom view of the first case section 220 in the first partition section 210 of the refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 10 is a right side view of the first case section 220 in the first partition section 210 of the refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 11 is a left side view of the first case section 220 in the first partition section 210 of the refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. The detailed configuration of the first partition section 210 will be described using FIGS. 7 to 11 . In FIG. 7 , the polystyrene foam filling section 215 is indicated by a dotted line, and the first partition urethane foam filling section 25 is indicated by a diagonal line. 8 and 9, only the polystyrene foam filling section 215 is indicated by hatching. In addition, in Fig. 8 and 9, the portion other than the hatched portion is the first partition urethane foam filling section 25 filled with urethane foam.

[0030] As shown in Figure 7, the first partition section 210 comprises a first case section 220, a second case section 221, and a first partition insulation filling section 24 in which insulation material is filled between the first case section 220 and the second case section 221.

[0031] First case portion 220 is made of resin, for example, polypropylene. First case portion 220 has a partition top surface portion 222 and a side surface portion 223. Partition top surface portion 222 forms the floor surface of food refrigerator compartment 16. Partition top surface portion 222 has a top opening portion 222a. Top opening portion 222a is an opening provided in partition top surface portion 222. Water supply tank 17 is installed in the space between top opening portion 222a and second case portion 221.

[0032] 8 and 9, the partition upper surface portion 222 has an air passage partition 37, a refrigerating rail 224, and an aluminum foil heater 30.

[0033] The air duct partition 37 is a partition that divides the first case section 220 into a front and a rear section. The rear side separated by the air duct partition 37 is the rear polystyrene foam filling section 215a, which has an air duct. The refrigeration rails 224 are rails for moving the refrigeration case 18 in the front-to-rear direction. The refrigeration rails 224 are provided inside the case. The refrigeration rails 224 include a left refrigeration rail 224a and a right refrigeration rail 224b. The aluminum foil heaters 30 are provided to control the temperature inside the refrigeration case 18.

[0034] The aluminum foil heater 30 has a cord-shaped heater 31 and aluminum foil 32 that secures the cord-shaped heater 31. The aluminum foil heater 30 is secured to the first case portion 220 with, for example, double-sided tape. The cord-shaped heater 31 is, for example, a cord-shaped heater in which a heating wire is wound around a core material at equal intervals and then coated with an insulating coating material. The heating wire is, for example, nichrome wire. The core material is, for example, glass fiber. The insulating coating material is, for example, polyvinyl chloride.

[0035] The side surface portion 223 is provided along the side surface of the food refrigerator compartment 16, i.e., along the side surface of the inner box 203. The side surface portion 223 has a left side surface portion 223a provided along the left side surface of the inner box 203 and a right side surface portion 223b provided along the right side surface of the inner box 203. As shown in FIG. 10 , the left side surface portion 223a has a plurality of left circular openings 225a. As shown in FIG. 11 , the right side surface portion 223b has a plurality of right circular openings 225b. The left circular openings 225a and the right circular openings 225b are injection ports for injecting urethane foam into the first partition portion 210.

[0036] Second case portion 221 is made of resin, for example, polypropylene. Second case portion 221 has partition lower surface portion 226 and protrusion 227. Partition lower surface portion 226 has left lower surface portion 226a and right lower surface portion 226b. Left lower surface portion 226a forms the ceiling surface of ice making compartment 2. Right lower surface portion 226b forms the ceiling surface of small freezer compartment 3. Protrusion 227 is provided between left lower surface portion 226a and right lower surface portion 226b, and protrudes toward ice making compartment 2, i.e., downward, beyond left lower surface portion 226a and right lower surface portion 226b. In other words, water supply tank 17 is provided in the space formed between upper surface opening 222a and protrusion 227.

[0037] In this way, by providing the water supply tank 17 in the space between the top opening 222a and the protrusion 227, the water supply tank 17 can be installed without reducing the width dimension of the refrigerated case 18.

[0038] The first partition insulation filling section 24 includes a first partition urethane foam filling section 25 and a polystyrene foam filling section 215. The first partition urethane foam filling section 25 has a left urethane foam filling section 25a and a right urethane foam filling section 25b. The polystyrene foam filling section 215 has a rear polystyrene foam filling section 215a, a middle polystyrene foam filling section 215b, and a front polystyrene foam filling section 215c.

[0039] Rear polystyrene foam filling section 215a is provided at the rear of refrigerator 100 and has an air passage. Intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b is provided in front of rear polystyrene foam filling section 215a and behind water supply tank 17. Intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b is provided at a position where the water supply tank is provided in the left-right direction. In other words, intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b is provided at a position overlapping with water supply tank 17 when refrigerator 100 is viewed from the front. Intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b is provided to the right of left urethane foam filling section 25a and to the left of right urethane foam filling section 25b. Intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b and front polystyrene foam filling section 215c are provided between first case section 220 and second case section 221.

[0040] The front polystyrene foam filling section 215c is provided forward of the intermediate polystyrene foam and between the water supply tank 17 and the second case section 221. The front polystyrene foam filling section 215c is provided to the right of the left urethane foam filling section 25a and to the left of the right urethane foam filling section 25b.

[0041] A left boundary surface 230a, which is the boundary surface between the left urethane foam filling section 25a and the intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b and front polystyrene foam filling section 215c, is provided to the right of the left side surface of the inner box 203. Furthermore, a right boundary surface 230b, which is the boundary surface between the intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b and front polystyrene foam filling section 215c and the right urethane foam filling section 25b, is provided to the left of the right side surface of the inner box 203. In other words, the left boundary surface 230a and the right boundary surface 230b are provided to the right of the left edge of the inner box 203 and to the left of the right edge of the inner box 203.

[0042] The boundary surfaces of the insulating materials are generally joined with adhesive or adhesive tape. However, the left boundary surface 230a and the right boundary surface 230b are the boundary surfaces between urethane foam and polystyrene foam, and are therefore the boundary surfaces of different insulating materials. The boundary surfaces of different insulating materials are weaker than surfaces made of the same type of insulating material. Furthermore, if the refrigerator 100 is distorted, a large load is applied to the right and left ends of the inner box 203 of the refrigerator 100 and to the outside of the inner box 203. Note that the outside of the inner box 203 is the left side of the left end and the right side of the right end. Therefore, by locating the left boundary surface 230a and the right boundary surface 230b to the right of the left end of the inner box 203 and to the left of the right end of the inner box 203, the load applied to the boundary surfaces can be reduced compared to a configuration in which the boundary surfaces of different insulating materials are located on the outside of the inner box 203, thereby suppressing peeling at the boundary surfaces.

[0043] The rear polystyrene foam filled section 215a is separated from the left urethane foam filled section 25a and the right urethane foam filled section 25b by an air passage partition section 37, so there is no boundary surface between the urethane foam and the polystyrene foam.

[0044] 9 , aluminum foil heater 30 is disposed across left urethane foam filling section 25a and right urethane foam filling section 25b. Therefore, cord-shaped heater 31 is provided in a heater relief shape provided in polystyrene foam filling section 215. In refrigerator 100, to prevent a gap from being formed between aluminum foil heater 30 and polystyrene foam filling section 215, a foam substrate seal is provided between aluminum foil heater 30 and polystyrene foam filling section 215. When filling with urethane foam, the foam substrate seal does not allow the urethane foam to pass through but only allows gas generated during foaming to pass through.

[0045] Cord-shaped heaters 31 are also arranged on left boundary surface 230 a and right boundary surface 230 b. With this configuration, refrigerator 100 has an advantage of being able to release gas that is generated when the urethane foam concentrate is foamed.

[0046] 10 and 11 , the volume of left urethane foam filling portion 25a is smaller than the volume of right urethane foam filling portion 25b. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 10 and 11 , the opening area of ​​left circular opening 225a is made smaller than the opening area of ​​right circular opening 225b. By comparing the volumes of left urethane foam filling portion 25a and right urethane foam filling portion 25b in this way and making the opening area of ​​the circular opening provided in the portion with the larger volume larger, refrigerator 100 can effectively prevent unfilled areas from occurring in first partition 210.

[0047] 8 and 9, the insulating material filled around refrigerated rail 224 is urethane foam. More specifically, left refrigerated rail 224a is provided to the left of left boundary surface 230a, and right refrigerated rail 224b is provided to the right of right boundary surface 230b. With this configuration, urethane foam is filled around refrigerated rail 224 of refrigerator 100, which has the effect of aligning the vertical positions of left refrigerated rail 224a and right refrigerated rail 224b.

[0048] Rear polystyrene foam filling section 215a cannot be filled with urethane foam through left circular opening 225a or right circular opening 225b because it is partitioned by air passage partition 37. Therefore, rear polystyrene foam filling section 215a is filled with polystyrene foam.

[0049] As described above, when foaming the urethane foam concentrate, it is necessary to fix it with a jig. The jig is inserted from the opening side of refrigerator body 20, i.e., from the front side. However, because water supply tank 17 is provided on the front side of refrigerator 100, the rear side of water supply tank 17 cannot be fixed with a jig. Therefore, when filling intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b and front polystyrene foam filling section 215c with urethane foam, deformation of intermediate polystyrene foam filling section 215b and front polystyrene foam filling section 215c may occur, so polystyrene foam is filled instead.

[0050] Furthermore, because the left circular opening 225a and the right circular opening 225b, which are the urethane foam injection ports, are both located on the side of the refrigerator 100, the distance between the intermediate styrofoam filling section 215b and the front styrofoam filling section 215c is long. The greater the distance from the injection port, the longer it takes for the urethane foam to fill, which increases the hardness of the urethane foam. Furthermore, because the partition undersurface 226 and the protruding portion 227 are positioned differently in the vertical direction, it is difficult to fill the urethane foam. Therefore, when filling the intermediate styrofoam filling section 215b and the front styrofoam filling section 215c with urethane foam, there is a possibility that some areas will remain unfilled. For these reasons, it is not appropriate to fill the intermediate styrofoam filling section 215b and the front styrofoam filling section 215c with urethane foam.

[0051] Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing a procedure for filling refrigerator 100 with insulating material according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The procedure for filling refrigerator 100 with insulating material will be described with reference to Fig. 12. The procedure for filling refrigerator 100 with insulating material is started after the assembly of refrigerator 100 components is completed. Furthermore, the processes of steps S11 to S14 are performed by an operator or a machine.

[0052] In step S11, processing is started when a procedure for filling refrigerator 100 with thermal insulation material is started. In step S11, the foam is filled by placing foam polystyrene in foam polystyrene filling section 215. In step S11, processing is ended when foam polystyrene is filled in foam polystyrene filling section 215.

[0053] Step S12 is performed after step S1. In step S12, refrigerator 100 is tilted forward. In step S2, when refrigerator 100 is tilted forward, the process ends.

[0054] Step S13 is performed after the process of step S12. In step S13, refrigerator 100 is fixed by inserting a jig from the opening of inner box 203 of refrigerator 100. In step S13, the process ends when refrigerator 100 is fixed with the jig.

[0055] Step S14 is performed after step S13. In step S14, first partition urethane foam filling section 25 is filled with urethane foam by injecting a urethane foam concentrate through left circular opening 225a and right circular opening 225b and foaming it. More specifically, in step S14, urethane foam is filled through injection ports provided in first partition 210, second partition 211, third partition 212, fourth partition 213, and outer box 202. In first partition 210, urethane foam is filled into left urethane foam filling section 25a through left circular opening 225a. Furthermore, urethane foam is filled into right urethane foam filling section 25b through right circular opening 225b. Step S14 ends when refrigerator 100 is filled with urethane foam. Furthermore, when step S14 ends, the process of filling refrigerator 100 with insulating material ends.

[0056] As described above, refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure comprises outer box 202 forming an outer shell, inner box 203 provided inside outer box 202, and inner box 203 divided into a first space (corresponding to refrigerator compartment 1) and a second space (corresponding to ice-making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3) formed below the first space, a first filled section (corresponding to polystyrene foam filled section 215) filled with a first insulating material (corresponding to polystyrene foam), and a left second filled section (left urethane foam filled section 216) provided to the left of the first filled section when viewed from the front and filled with a second insulating material (corresponding to urethane foam) different from the first insulating material. 25a), and a right second filling section (corresponding to right urethane foam filling section 25b) which is provided to the right of the first filling section when viewed from the front and is filled with a second insulating material; and an outer filling section which is provided between outer box 202 and inner box 203 and is filled with a second insulating material, and the boundary surface between the first filling section and the left second filling section (corresponding to left boundary surface 230a) and the boundary surface between the first filling section and the right second filling section (corresponding to right boundary surface 230b) are provided to the right of the left end of inner box 203 and to the left of the right end of inner box 203 when viewed from the front. With this configuration, refrigerator 100 has the effect of suppressing peeling at the boundary surfaces of different insulating materials.

[0057] Furthermore, in the refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, the second insulating material is a rigid urethane foam as an additional configuration. This additional configuration provides the refrigerator 100 with an advantage of having high insulating performance.

[0058] Furthermore, refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure has, as an additional configuration, a partition (corresponding to first partition 210) having partition upper surface 222 that forms the floor surface of the first space (corresponding to refrigerator compartment 1) and partition lower surface 226 that forms the ceiling surface of the second space (corresponding to ice-making compartment 2 and small freezer compartment 3), and first filling section (corresponding to polystyrene foam filling section 215), left second filling section (corresponding to left urethane foam filling section 25a), and right second filling section (corresponding to right urethane foam filling section 25b) are provided between partition upper surface 222 and partition lower surface 226. This additional configuration provides refrigerator 100 with the effect of increasing the strength of the portions filled with insulating material.

[0059] Furthermore, refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure has, as an additional configuration, inner box 203 provided with refrigerating case 18, and partition top surface 222, when viewed from the front, provided to the left of first filling section (corresponding to polystyrene foam filling section 215) or to the right of first filling section, and has refrigerating rail 224, which is a rail for moving refrigerating case 18 in the front-to-rear direction. This additional configuration enables refrigerator 100 to advantageously move refrigerating case 18 provided in the storage compartment in the front-to-rear direction.

[0060] Furthermore, refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure has, as an additional configuration, partition upper surface 222 having an opening (corresponding to upper surface opening 222a), partition lower surface 226 having protrusion 227 protruding downward, a storage chamber (corresponding to water supply tank 17) for storing storage items provided in the space between the opening and protrusion 227, and a first filling section (corresponding to polystyrene foam filling section 215) provided between the storage chamber and protrusion 227. This additional configuration advantageously allows refrigerator 100 to install water supply tank 17 without reducing the width dimension of refrigerating case 18.

[0061] Furthermore, refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure has, as an additional configuration, partition top surface 222 having cord-shaped heater 31 and aluminum foil heater 30 including aluminum foil 32 that secures cord-shaped heater 31, and cord-shaped heater 31 is provided at the boundary surface (corresponding to left boundary surface 230a) between first filling section (corresponding to polystyrene foam filling section 215) and left second filling section (corresponding to left urethane foam filling section 25a) and at the boundary surface (corresponding to right boundary surface 230b) between the first filling section and right second filling section. This additional configuration allows refrigerator 100 to effectively release gas generated when foaming the urethane foam concentrate.

[0062] Furthermore, refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure has an additional configuration in which second insulating material (expanded polystyrene) is hard urethane foam, partition top surface 222 has side surface 223 provided along the side surface of inner box 203, and side surface 223 has openings (corresponding to left circular opening 225a and right circular opening 225b) for filling with the second insulating material. With this additional configuration, refrigerator 100 exhibits the effect of being able to foam the second insulating material in situ.

[0063] Furthermore, refrigerator 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure additionally includes openings (corresponding to top opening 222a) that, when viewed from the front, include a left opening (left circular opening 225a) along the left side of inner box 203 and a right opening (right circular opening 225b) along the right side of inner box 203. When the volume of left second filling section (corresponding to left urethane foam filling section 25a) is larger than the volume of right second filling section (right urethane foam filling section 25b), the opening area of ​​the left opening is made larger than the opening area of ​​the right opening. When the volume of the left second filling section is smaller than the volume of the right second filling section, the opening area of ​​the left opening is made smaller than the opening area of ​​the right opening. This additional configuration allows refrigerator 100 to prevent unfilled areas from occurring in first partition section 210.

[0064] The number and type of doors of the refrigerator, and the number and configuration of the compartments inside the refrigerator are not limited to those described in the embodiments. The refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure includes four partitions, namely, a first partition, a second partition, a third partition, and a fourth partition, but the configuration is not limited to this. It is sufficient that the refrigerator has at least a partition that divides the space inside the inner box of the refrigerator into upper and lower compartments.

[0065] In addition, in the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, the first partition having the left and right boundary surfaces is a partition that separates the refrigerator compartment from the ice-making compartment and the small freezer compartment, but this is not limited thereto. As long as the partition having the left and right boundary surfaces separates the space inside the inner box into upper and lower compartments, the type and temperature range of the stored items are not limited.

[0066] Furthermore, although the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is configured to foam using a urethane concentrate composed of two components, the present disclosure is not limited to this and may be configured to foam by spraying a urethane concentrate composed of one component.

[0067] Furthermore, in the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, foaming is performed using rigid urethane foam, but this is not a limitation. Foaming may be performed using a foamed plastic insulation material other than rigid urethane foam. For example, bead-method polystyrene foam, extruded polystyrene foam, or phenolic foam may be used. Furthermore, the refrigerator is not limited to foamed plastic insulation, and insulation filled by a method other than foaming may also be used.

[0068] Furthermore, although the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure uses polystyrene foam as the insulating material, this is not limiting. Instead of polystyrene foam, an insulating material that can be filled into the filling portion by fixing the insulating material in a fixed state may be used. For example, vacuum insulating material may be used. In other words, the type of insulating material is not limited as long as the left and right boundary surfaces, which are the boundaries between different types of insulating materials, are located to the right of the left edge and to the left of the right edge of the inner box.

[0069] The rear polystyrene foam filled section may be filled with a heat insulating material different from that filled with the intermediate polystyrene foam filled section and the front polystyrene foam filled section.

[0070] Furthermore, although the aluminum foil heater of the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is configured to be fixed by double-sided tape, the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the aluminum foil heater may be fixed by gluing.

[0071] Although the left and right circular openings of the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure are configured to have different opening areas, the openings may be located at different positions. Furthermore, the left and right circular openings may have different numbers of openings. Furthermore, if there is no difference in volume between the left and right urethane foam filling sections, the left and right circular openings may have the same opening area.

[0072] Furthermore, the cord-shaped heater does not need to have the heating wire wound around the core material at a strictly uniform pitch. The cord-shaped heater may have a configuration in which the winding pitch of the heating wire is variable. More specifically, the cord-shaped heater may be a variable-pitch heater in which the winding pitch is changed depending on the left-right position in the first partition section, thereby changing the amount of heat generated in the first partition section.

[0073] In addition, in the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, a water supply tank is provided in the space between the top opening and the protruding portion, but this is not limitative. The space between the top opening and the protruding portion may be provided with any storage compartment for storing items, not just a water supply tank.

[0074] 1 Refrigerator compartment, 2 Ice maker compartment, 3 Small freezer compartment, 4 Large freezer compartment, 5 Vegetable compartment, 8 Automatic ice maker, 10 Door section, 11 Refrigerator compartment door, 11a Left refrigerator compartment door, 11b Right refrigerator compartment door, 12 Ice maker compartment door, 13 Small freezer compartment door, 14 Large freezer compartment door, 15 Vegetable compartment door, 16 Food refrigerator compartment, 17 Water tank, 18 Refrigerator case, 20 Refrigerator body, 21 Partition section, 22 Storage compartment, 23 Insulation material filling section, 24 First partition insulation material filling section, 25 First partition urethane foam filling section, 25a Left urethane foam filling section, 25b Right urethane foam filling section, 30 Aluminum foil heater, 31 Cord-shaped heater, 32 Aluminum foil, 37 Air duct partition section, 100 Refrigerator, 202 Outer box, 203 Inner box, 210 First partition section, 211 Second partition section, 212 Third partition section, 213 Fourth partition section, 215 Styrofoam filling section, 215a Rear Styrofoam filling section, 215b Middle Styrofoam filling section, 215c Front Styrofoam filling section, 216 Urethane foam filling section, 220 First case section, 221 Second case section, 222 Partition top surface section, 222a Top opening, 223 Side section, 223a Left side surface section, 223b Right side surface section, 224 Refrigerated rail, 224a Left refrigerated rail, 224b Right refrigerated rail, 225a Left circular opening, 225b Right circular opening, 226 Partition bottom surface section, 226a Left lower surface section, 226b Right lower surface section, 227 Protrusion section, 230a Left boundary surface, 230b Right boundary surface.

Claims

1. The outer casing forms the outer shell, An inner box provided inside the outer box, The inner box is divided into a first space and a second space formed below the first space, and the partition comprises: an upper partition portion forming the floor surface of the first space; a lower partition portion forming the ceiling surface of the second space; a first filling portion filled with a first insulating material; a left second filling portion provided to the left of the first filling portion when viewed from the front and filled with a second insulating material different from the first insulating material; and a right second filling portion provided to the right of the first filling portion when viewed from the front and filled with the second insulating material. An outer filling section is provided between the outer box and the inner box, and the second insulating material is filled into it. Refrigerated display case and It has, The first filling section, the left second filling section, and the right second filling section are provided between the upper part of the partition and the lower part of the partition. The interface between the first filling section and the left second filling section, and the interface between the first filling section and the right second filling section, are provided to the right of the left end of the inner box and to the left of the right end of the inner box when viewed from the front. The upper part of the partition is provided to the left or right of the first filling section when viewed from the front, and has a refrigerated rail which is a rail for moving the refrigerated case in the front-to-back direction. refrigerator.

2. An outer box forming the outer shell, An inner box provided inside the outer box, The inner box is divided into a first space and a second space formed below the first space, and the partition comprises: an upper partition portion forming the floor surface of the first space; a lower partition portion forming the ceiling surface of the second space; a first filling portion filled with a first insulating material; a left second filling portion provided to the left of the first filling portion when viewed from the front and filled with a second insulating material different from the first insulating material; and a right second filling portion provided to the right of the first filling portion when viewed from the front and filled with the second insulating material. An outer filling section is provided between the outer box and the inner box, and the second insulating material is filled into this outer filling section, It has, The first filling section, the left second filling section, and the right second filling section are provided between the upper part of the partition and the lower part of the partition. The interface between the first filling section and the left second filling section, and the interface between the first filling section and the right second filling section, are provided to the right of the left end of the inner box and to the left of the right end of the inner box when viewed from the front. The upper part of the partition has an opening, The lower part of the partition has a protrusion that extends downward, A storage chamber for storing goods is provided in the space between the opening and the protrusion. The first filling section is provided between the storage chamber and the protruding section. refrigerator.

3. An outer box forming the outer shell, An inner box provided inside the outer box, The inner box is divided into a first space and a second space formed below the first space, and the partition comprises: an upper partition portion forming the floor surface of the first space; a lower partition portion forming the ceiling surface of the second space; a first filling portion filled with a first insulating material; a left second filling portion provided to the left of the first filling portion when viewed from the front and filled with a second insulating material different from the first insulating material; and a right second filling portion provided to the right of the first filling portion when viewed from the front and filled with the second insulating material. An outer filling section is provided between the outer box and the inner box, and the second insulating material is filled into this outer filling section, It has, The first filling section, the left second filling section, and the right second filling section are provided between the upper part of the partition and the lower part of the partition. The interface between the first filling section and the left second filling section, and the interface between the first filling section and the right second filling section, are provided to the right of the left end of the inner box and to the left of the right end of the inner box when viewed from the front. The second insulating material is rigid polyurethane foam. The partition has a side portion provided along the side of the inner box, The aforementioned side portion has an opening for filling with the second insulation material. refrigerator.

4. The second insulating material is rigid polyurethane foam. The refrigerator according to claim 1 or 2.

5. The upper part of the partition has an aluminum foil heater comprising a cord-shaped heater and aluminum foil for fixing the cord-shaped heater. The cord-shaped heater is provided at the interface between the first filling section and the left second filling section, and at the interface between the first filling section and the right second filling section. A refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

6. The opening, when viewed from the front, has a left opening provided along the left side of the inner box and a right opening provided along the right side of the inner box. If the volume of the left second filling section is greater than the volume of the right second filling section, the opening area of ​​the left opening is made larger than the opening area of ​​the right opening. If the volume of the left second filling section is smaller than the volume of the right second filling section, the opening area of ​​the left opening is made smaller than the opening area of ​​the right opening. The refrigerator according to claim 3.

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