Patent Publication Number: US-2004040329-A1

Title: Refrigeration compressor with evaporation pan

Description:
[0001] The present invention refers to a refrigeration compressor, in particular for household-type refrigeration appliances provided with a pan for the evaporation of the defrost water of the refrigeration appliance.  
       [0002] Household-type refrigerators are largely known to require defrosting periodically, or cyclically, so as to allow for an efficient operation of the refrigerating circuit, while the frost that so melts into water must of course be appropriately removed from the appliance.  
       [0003] Compressors are since a long time now used, which are to such a purpose provided with a proper evaporation pan which is mounted on top of the shell of the compressor, and in which the defrost water is discharged from the interior of the refrigerator via an appropriate flexible tube. The heat that is generated by the compressor and transferred to the pan thereupon causes the so collected defrost water to evaporate in an automatic and effective manner.  
       [0004] Assembling the pan upon the compressor constitutes a technical problem that has up to now been solved with various means and methods.  
       [0005] The Italian utility model application no PN2000U 000023, at this same Applicant describes a refrigeration compressor provided with a moulded plastic pan that is mounted upon the shell of the compressor by means of a profile section adapted to slide in a vertical direction into a through-aperture provided in the body of the pan This profile section terminates at its lower end portion with a hook-like portion engaging the border that joins the lower body of the compressor casing with the upper shell thereof. The profile section is kept in position owing to a serrated surface thereof engaging an elastic tongue protruding from the though-aperture in the body of the pan.  
       [0006] The solution disclosed in the above cited utility model is certainly a convenient and effective one. However, it can be further improved In fact, the border of the compressor to which said profile section is due to hook on may be rounded off or bevelled, so that such a hook-on coupling may become unstable owing to the vibrations which it is exposed to when the compressor is operating. Furthermore, the use of a tool, albeit a simple screwdriver, is always required in order to remove the pan from the compressor.  
       [0007] The technical solution according to the present invention enables such drawbacks to be done away with by having the pan for the evaporation of the defrost water of the refrigerator hooked on to one of the tubes that connect the compressor to the refrigerating circuit, as well as by providing the lower end portion of the related hook-on coupling profile section with a retention tab, as recited in the appended claims. 
     
    
    
     [0008] Features and advantages of the present invention will anyway be more clearly and readily understood from the description that is given below by way of non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:  
     [0009]FIG. 1 is a perspective top view of a compressor provided with a pan according to the present invention;  
     [0010]FIG. 2 is a front view of a detail of the present invention.  
    
    
     [0011] With reference to FIG. 1, this illustrates a hermetic refrigeration compressor  10 , adapted to be mounted inside a household-type refrigerator appliance (not shown) by means of two fastening brackets  11 .  
     [0012] Such a compressor  10  is constituted, in a largely per sè known manner, by a casing  12  that is closed on top by a shell  13 , wherein such a casing and such a shell are joined to each other along a protruding horizontal border  14 . Connected to the casing  12  there are the pipes  15 ,  16  ensuring the delivery and the return of the refrigerant fluid. On the same casing there is mounted the electrical connection box  17 .  
     [0013] Upon the shell  13  there is mounted a pan  18  for collecting and evaporating the water resulting from the defrost cycles of the refrigerator appliance, in which said water is conveyed into said pan through an appropriate tubing (not shown). The pan is substantially parallelepiped in its shape, with bevelled corners, while the bottom thereof is convex for proper compliance to the shape of the upper surface of the compressor shell  13 , so as to increase the heat-exchange surface area and, as a result, the evaporation rate of the water collected in the pan.  
     [0014] According to the present invention, the pan  18  is made of plastic material, preferably polypropylene, and on one of the sides thereof there is provided a vertical through-aperture  22 , in which a profile section  19  is capable of being slidably inserted.  
     [0015] Said profile section  19  has a grooved body, which shall be described in greater detail with reference to FIG. 2. The surface of the grooved body of the profile section  19  is provided with at least a serrated portion  24 , which is adapted to engage an elastic tab  32  provided at the lower end portion of the through-aperture  22 . The elasticity of the tab  32  is obtained by notching the lower end portion of the through-aperture  22 , so as this is shown in FIG. 1. The serrated portion  24  of the profile section  19  engages a tooth (not shown) that is provided inside said tab  32 .  
     [0016] In order to enable the profile section  19  to be released from the aperture  22 , without any special tool having to be used to such a purpose, the tab  32  is so shaped as to feature an edge that is bent at right-angle towards the outside of the pan  18 . In a preferred manner, the lower surface of said bent edge of the tab  32 , is knurled in view of improving the prehensility thereof.  
     [0017] According to the present invention, the profile section  19  terminates, at the lower end portion thereof, with a hook-like portion  25  having an inner configuration in the shape of a V (FIG. 2). This particular shape enables the profile section  19  to be hooked on to a service tube  30  of the compressor (tube for filling in the refrigerant fluid). It will of course be appreciated that said profile section may also be hooked on to any of the other pipes connecting the compressor with the refrigerating circuit.  
     [0018] By hooking the profile section  19  in this way on to the tube  30  the result is obtained of making the pan  18  much more firmly and reliably secured to the compressor  10 . It can further be readily appreciated that such a V-shape of the hook-like portion  25  is advantageous from the point of view of its adaptability in engaging tubes of different diameters. As a result, a single pan  18  provided with the hook-on arrangement  19  and  22 - 32  can be used for differently rated and, therefore, differently sized compressors.  
     [0019] The solution according to the present invention therefore improves the solution described and claimed in the former utility model application no. PN2000U 000023 filed by this same Applicant, while adding the advantages of a particular effectiveness and convenience to the inherent advantages of that solution.