Patent Publication Number: US-6655760-B1

Title: Cold storage

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a cold storage preferable for uses such as the cold preservation of chemicals, for example, in hospitals, research facilities, and the like. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     Various chemicals have heretofore been used in hospitals and research facilities, and particularly chemicals requiring cold preservation have been contained and kept in a showcase for low-temperature insulation (cold storage) as disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 178510/1996. A conventional low-temperature insulating showcase  100  will next be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. 
     In the low-temperature insulating showcase  100 , a main body is constituted by an insulation box  102  opened in a front face, and a storage chamber  103  for containing chemicals, and the-like is constituted in the insulation box  102 . A machine chamber  106  for installing a compressor  104  of a cooling device, and the like is constituted under the insulation box  102 , and a cooler (not shown) also constituting the cooling device is disposed inside the storage chamber  103 . Moreover, a plurality of shelves  107  for laying thereon chemicals, and the like are extended in the storage chamber  103 . 
     Moreover, the front face opening of the storage chamber  103  is openably closed by two sliding type doors  108 ,  109 . In this case, each of the doors  108 ,  109  is constituted by placing a transparent composite layer glass  112  in a sash  111  formed by extruding/molding a hard synthetic resin, attached between upper and lower rails  113 ,  114  attached to upper and lower opening edges of the insulation box  102  and extended to the left and right, and structured to move to the left and right and open/close the opening in a sliding system. 
     The cold air subjected to heat exchange with the cooler of the cooling device is circulated by a blower (not shown) in the storage chamber  103  closed by the doors  108 ,  109 , and maintained in a refrigeration temperature of +2° C. to +14° C. suitable for the low-temperature insulation of chemicals, and the like. 
     Since the doors  108 ,  109  of the conventional low-temperature insulating showcase  100  are structured only of the peripheral hard resin sash  111  and composite layer glass  112  as described above, the entire insulating performance is deteriorated, and humidity in outside air causes dew condensation and adheres to the surfaces of the sash  111  and composite layer glass  112 . Therefore, the visibility of the outside is deteriorated, or there is a problem that user&#39;s clothes and peripheral floor face are contaminated/damaged. 
     Moreover, since the low insulating performance adversely affects the cooling ability of the low-temperature insulating showcase  100 , energy saving is inhibited, and in the worst case there is a danger that the properties of the inside chemicals are changed by the temperature rise in the storage chamber  103 . Furthermore, since the composite layer glass  112  is positioned immediately before the shelves  107  . . . , there occurs a disadvantage that when the chemicals on the shelves  107  . . . drop by some vibration, and the like, the chemicals hit the composite layer glass  112  and break. 
     Particularly, since the inside of the storage chamber  103  is visible from the outside through the composite layer glass  112 , there is a problem that a danger of robbery is rather increased when dangerous drugs are contained inside. 
     The present invention has been developed to solve the conventional technical problem, and provides a cold storage which improves a door insulating performance and which is preferable particularly for the low-temperature insulation of chemicals, and the like. 
     DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION 
     According to the present invention there is provided a cold storage in which a storage chamber opening constituted in an insulation box is openably closed by a door, the door is constituted of an insulation wall and a see-through transparent wall, and a panel is detachably attached on the storage chamber side of the transparent wall. 
     According to the present invention, since in the cold storage formed by openably closing the storage chamber opening constituted in the insulation box by the door, the door is constituted of the insulation wall and the see-through transparent wall, the proportion of the transparent wall to the entire door is reduced, the other part forms the insulation wall, and the insulating performance of the door itself is enhanced. Particularly, since the panel is detachably attached on the storage chamber side of the transparent wall, an insulation space is formed between the transparent wall and the panel. 
     Therefore, the door insulating performance is further enhanced, the occurrence of dew condensation is effectively inhibited, and the contribution to cooling performance improvement and energy saving can also be realized. Moreover, by the presence of the panel on the storage chamber side of the transparent wall, even when contained articles fall toward the door, the transparent wall is protected by the panel, and the breakage of the transparent wall can be avoided beforehand. 
     Moreover, the above-described effect can be achieved by forming the panel to be transparent without deteriorating the visibility inside the storage chamber, the storage chamber can be used as a cold/dark chamber by replacing the panel with a light screen color panel and setting the inside of the storage chamber to be invisible, and safety can also be enhanced. 
     Furthermore, according to the present invention there is provided a chemicals cold storage in which a storage chamber opening constituted in an insulation box is openably closed by a door, and the door is a sliding type door constituted of an insulation wall and a see-through transparent wall. 
     According to the present invention, since in the chemicals cold storage formed by openably closing the storage chamber opening constituted in the insulation box by the door, the door is constituted as the sliding type door of the insulation wall and see-through transparent wall, the proportion of the transparent wall to the entire door is reduced, the other part forms the insulation wall, and the insulating performance of the door itself is enhanced. Therefore, the occurrence of dew condensation to the door can effectively be inhibited, the contribution to cooling performance improvement and energy saving can also be made, and a preferable showcase for low-temperature insulation of chemicals is formed. 
     Particularly, since this is achieved by the sliding type door, the door can be opened/closed without any problem even in the installation environment of the cold storage in which there is no space for rotating the door. 
     Still furthermore, for the cold storage of the present invention, in the above-described invention the insulation wall is constituted of a plurality of insulation panels fixed inside a door main body, and the bond faces of the respective insulation panels are molded in a staircase shape and mutually bonded. 
     According to this invention, in addition to the above-described invention, since the insulation wall is constituted of a plurality of insulation panels fixed inside the door main body, and the bond faces of the respective insulation panels are molded in the staircase shape and mutually bonded, the mutual bond area of the insulation panels is enlarged, and the bond strength is remarkably enhanced. This can remarkably improve the strength of the entire door in which the insulation panels are used. Particularly, the deterioration of the insulating performance in the bond part can be minimized by lengthening the movement distance of the heat conducted in the bond face. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a front view of a low-temperature insulating showcase showing an embodiment of a cold storage of the present invention, 
     FIG. 2 is a longitudinally sectional side view of the low-temperature insulating showcase of FIG. 1, 
     FIG. 3 is a sectional plan view of a door in the low-temperature insulating showcase of FIG. 1, 
     FIG. 4 is a front view of the door (one side) of the low-temperature insulating showcase of FIG. 1, 
     FIG. 5 is a longitudinally sectional side view of the door of FIG. 4, 
     FIG. 6 is an enlarged longitudinally sectional side view showing the upper part of the door of FIG. 5, 
     FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional plan view-showing the middle part of the door of FIG. 3, 
     FIG. 8 is an enlarged longitudinally sectional side view showing a door main body and insulation panel, 
     FIG. 9 is an exploded view showing the assembly procedure of the door main body and insulation panel, 
     FIG. 10 is a front view of a conventional low-temperature insulating showcase, and 
     FIG. 11 is a longitudinally sectional side view e low-temperature insulating showcase of FIG.  10 . 
    
    
     BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 
     A mode for carrying out the present invention will be described hereinafter in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view of a chemicals low-temperature insulating showcase  1  as an embodiment of a cold storage of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a longitudinally sectional side view thereof. The low-temperature insulating showcase  1  of the embodiment is used for preserving chemicals, for example, in hospitals and research facilities, and a main body is constituted by an insulation box  2  opened in a front face. 
     A storage chamber  3  for containing chemicals, and the like is constituted in the insulation box  2 , a machine chamber  6  for installing a compressor  4  of a cooling device, and the like is constituted under the insulation box  2 , and a cooler (not shown) also constituting the cooling device is disposed inside the storage chamber  3 . Moreover, a plurality of shelves  7  for laying thereon chemicals, and the like are extended in the storage chamber  3 . 
     Moreover, the front face opening of the storage chamber  3  is openably closed by two sliding type doors  8 ,  9 . In this case, the doors  8 ,  9  are attached between upper and lower rails  13 ,  14  attached to upper and lower opening edges of the insulation box  2  and extended to the left and right, and structured to move to the left and right and open/close the opening in a sliding system. 
     The cold air subjected to heat exchange with the cooler of the cooling device is circulated by a blower (not shown) in the storage chamber  3  closed by the doors  8 ,  9 , and maintained in a refrigeration temperature of +2° C. to +14° C. suitable for the low-temperature insulation of chemicals, and the like. 
     The structure of the doors  8 ,  9  of the present invention will next be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to  9 . Additionally, since the doors  8 ,  9  are symmetrical and have substantially the same structure, the same members are denoted with the same reference numerals. Specifically, each of the doors  8 ,  9  is constituted of a door main body  21  of a steel plate, upper and lower insulation panels  22 ,  23  and left and right insulation panels  24 ,  24  as insulation walls, a composite layer glass  26  as a transparent wall, a door inner plate  27  of a hard resin, a panel  28  also of the hard resin, and the like. 
     The door main body  21  is provided with an outer flange  21 A constituted by folding/bending an outer periphery rearward at right angles as shown in FIG. 6, a rectangular window hole  21 B formed in a middle part, and a barring flange  21 C constituted by folding/bending the periphery of the window hole  21 B rearward at right angles. Moreover, a handle  29  is attached to one side of the front face of the door main body  21 . 
     The insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  are bonded/fixed to a back surface surrounded by the outer flange  21 A and barring flange  21 C of the door main body  21  by a foam-shaped insulation adhesive sheet  31  provided with flexibility. In this case, the upper and lower insulation panels  22 ,  23  are positioned above and below the window hole  21 B, and the left and right insulation panels  24 ,  24  are positioned on the left and right of the window hole  21 B. 
     Here, each of the respective insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24  is a foamed polyurethane panel (slab material) molded beforehand, the lower face of the upper insulation panel  22  is molded in a staircase shape as shown in FIGS. 8,  9 , and the upper face of the lower insulation panel  23  also has the staircase shape. Moreover, the upper and lower faces of the left and right insulation panels  24  are formed in the staircase shape to conform to the staircase shape of the lower or upper face of the respective insulation panels  22 ,  23 . 
     Furthermore, the upper faces of the insulation panels  24 ,  24  are bonded to the left and right of the lower face of the insulation panel  22  by an adhesive, the lower faces of the insulation panels  24 ,  24  are bonded to the left and right of the upper face of the insulation panel  23  by the adhesive, and the respective insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  are bonded beforehand in a frame shape. 
     Since the bond faces of the respective insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  are formed in the staircase shape in this manner, the mutual bond area of the insulation panels is enlarged, and the bond strength is remarkably enhanced. This can remarkably improve the strength of the entire door in which the insulation panels are used. Particularly, the deterioration of the insulating performance in the bond part can also be minimized by lengthening the movement distance of the heat conducted in the bond face. 
     Subsequently, the insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  are fixed to the door main body  21  by placing the insulation adhesive sheet  31  (the part of the window hole  21 B is cut off) with double faces used as adhesive faces to the back surface of the door main body  21  as shown in FIG. 9, and subsequently bonding the insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  bonded beforehand as described above to the insulation adhesive sheet  31 . In this case, the strains and irregularities of the door main body  21  and insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  are absorbed by the insulation adhesive sheet  31 , and the insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  are firmly fixed to the door main body  21 . 
     Here, since the bond faces of the respective insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  are formed in the staircase shape as described above, the mutual bond area of the insulation panels is enlarged, and the bond strength is remarkably enhanced. This remarkably improves the strength of the entire doors  8 ,  9  in which the insulation panels are used. Particularly, the deterioration of the insulating performance in the bond part can also be minimized by lengthening the movement distance of the heat conducted in the bond face. 
     An abutment metal fixture  32  is welded/fixed beforehand to the outer periphery of the barring flange  21 C of the door main body  21 . This abutment metal fixture  32  is provided with a crank shape as shown in FIG. 6, the periphery of the composite layer glass  26  abuts on the abutment metal fixture  32  via a seal material  33  and cushion material  34 , a press metal fixture  36  shaped like a picture frame is attached from behind and fixed to the abutment metal fixture  32  with a screw (not shown), and the composite layer glass  26  is thus engaged in the window hole  21 B. 
     Moreover, an upper sash  38  of a hard synthetic resin is attached to the upper face of the upper outer flange  21 A of the door main body  21 , and a lower sash  39  of the hard synthetic resin is also attached to the lower face of the lower outer flange  21 A. Furthermore, lateral sashes  41 ,  42  of the hard synthetic resin are attached to the outer faces of the left and right outer flanges  21 A. 
     Inner flanges  43  extending toward the window hole  21 B are formed on the rear ends of the respective sashes  38 ,  39 ,  41 ,  42 , and engagement grooves  44  are formed in the flanges  43 . Moreover, a gasket  46  is fixed to the upper face of the upper sash  38  with a screw  47 , and a gasket  48  is attached to the lateral sash  41  on the side of the handle  29 . 
     Furthermore, a soft fin  49  is integrally formed on the rear face of the opposite lateral sash  42  (in the door  8 ) or the back surface (in the door  9 ) by double extrusion molding. Moreover, rolling wheels  51  are attached to the left and right places of the lower sash  39 . 
     The peripheral edges of the door inner plate  27  are inserted/engaged into the engagement grooves  44  of the respective sashes  38 ,  39 ,  41 ,  42  and held by the respective insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24 . A window hole  27 A is also formed in the middle part of the door inner plate  27  as the part corresponding to the composite layer glass  26 , an abutment flange  27 B protruded forward is integrally formed on the periphery of the window hole  27 A, and the tip end of the flange abuts on the rear face of the composite layer glass  26 . 
     Moreover, the panel  28  is attached to the window hole  27 A of the door inner plate  27  from behind, and the edge of the panel is detachably attached to the door inner plate  27  by a clip  52 . When this panel  28  as a transparent hard resin plate is attached to the door inner plate  27 , a predetermined air layer G is formed between the panel  28  and the composite layer glass  26 . 
     The doors  8  and  9  constituted in this manner are engaged in tracks before and after the upper and lower rails  13 ,  14 , and move to the left and right to constitute the sliding type doors. In this case, the gasket  46  on the upper face abuts on the upper rail  13  to seal an opening, and the fins  49 ,  49  abut on each other to seal a gap between the doors  8 ,  9  when the doors are closed as shown in FIG.  7 . Moreover, the gasket  48  on the side face also abuts on the side face of the storage chamber  3  to seal an opening. 
     In this state, the inside of the storage chamber  3  is visible through the composite layer glass  26  and panel  28  of the doors  8 ,  9 , and maintained in the refrigeration temperature as described above. Moreover, the cold temperature also cools the inner faces of the doors  8 ,  9 , but the doors  8 ,  9  are constituted of the insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  and composite layer glass  26 , the proportion of the composite layer glass  26  to the entire doors  8 ,  9  is therefore reduced, the other part forms the insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24 , and the insulating performances of the doors  8 ,  9  themselves are enhanced. 
     Particularly, since the panel  28  is attached on the side of the storage chamber  3  of the composite layer glass  26 , the air layer G between the composite layer glass  26  and the panel  28  forms an insulation space. Therefore, the insulating performances of the doors  8 ,  9  are further enhanced, the occurrence of dew condensation to the outer faces is effectively inhibited, and the contribution to cooling performance improvement and energy saving can also be made. 
     Moreover, by the presence of the panel  28  on the side of the storage chamber  3  of the composite layer glass  26 , even when the chemicals contained on the shelves  7  fall toward the doors  8 ,  9 , the chemicals collide against the panel  28 . Therefore, the composite layer glass  26  is protected by the panel  28 , and a disadvantage that the composite layer glass  26  breaks can also be avoided beforehand. 
     Furthermore, when the dangerous drugs stored in the storage chamber  3  are visible from the outside, there is a danger that robbery is caused. In this case, the transparent panel  28  is removed, and a panel  28 A colored in a light screen color is attached to the door inner plate  27  with the clip  52 . This sets the inside of the storage chamber  3  to be invisible, the storage chamber  3  can be used as the cold/dark chamber, and the safety can also be enhanced. 
     Additionally, in the embodiment, the present invention is applied to the sliding type door, but this is not limited, and the present invention is also effective for a so-called rotating door. Moreover, in the constitution of the doors  8 ,  9  of the embodiment the insulation panels  22 ,  23 ,  24 ,  24  are fixed to the door main body  21  with the adhesive sheet  31 , but this is not limited, and a foamed polyurethane insulation wall may be formed by injecting and foaming a raw polyurethane liquid into the door main body  21  on the site. 
     POSSIBILITY OF INDUSTRIAL UTILIZATION 
     As described above, according to the present invention, since in the cold storage formed by openably closing the storage chamber opening constituted in the insulation box by the door, the door is constituted of the insulation wall and the see-through transparent wall, the proportion of the transparent wall to the entire door is reduced, the other part forms the insulation wall, and the insulating performance of the door itself is enhanced. Particularly, since the panel is detachably attached on the storage chamber side of the transparent wall, the insulation space is formed between the transparent wall and the panel. 
     Therefore, the door insulating performance is further enhanced, the occurrence of dew condensation can effectively be inhibited, and the contribution to the cooling performance improvement and energy saving can also be made. Moreover, by the presence of the panel on the storage chamber side of the transparent wall, even when the contained articles fall toward the door, the transparent wall is protected by the panel, and the breakage of the transparent wall can be avoided beforehand. 
     Moreover, the above-described effect can be achieved by forming the panel to be transparent without deteriorating the visibility inside the storage chamber, the storage chamber can be used as the cold/dark chamber by replacing the panel with the light screen color panel and setting the inside of the storage chamber to be invisible, and the safety can also be enhanced. 
     Furthermore, according to the present invention, since in the chemicals cold storage formed by openably closing the storage chamber opening constituted in the insulation box by the door, the door is constituted as the sliding type door of the insulation wall and see-through transparent wall, the proportion of the transparent wall to the entire door is reduced, the other part forms the insulation wall, and the insulating performance of the door itself is enhanced. Therefore, the occurrence of dew condensation to the door can effectively be inhibited, the contribution to the cooling performance improvement and energy saving can also be made, and the preferable showcase for the low-temperature insulation of the chemicals is formed. 
     Particularly, since this is achieved by the sliding type door, the door can be opened/closed without any problem even in the cold storage installation environment in which there is no space for rotating the door. 
     Still furthermore, according to the present invention, in addition to the above-described invention, since the insulation wall is constituted of a plurality of insulation panels fixed inside the door main body, and the bond faces of the respective insulation panels are molded in the staircase shape and mutually bonded, the mutual bond area of the insulation panels is enlarged, and the bond strength is remarkably enhanced. This can remarkably improve the strength of the entire door in which the insulation panels are used. Particularly, the deterioration of the insulating performance in the bond part can also be minimized by lengthening the movement distance of the heat conducted in the bond face.