REFRIGERATION SYSTEM WITH INDOOR CONDENSER AND REMOTE FAN

Abstract

A refrigeration system for a refrigerated merchandiser includes a refrigerated merchandiser disposed within an indoor environment, the refrigerated merchandiser including a case defining a product display area. The refrigeration system also includes a condenser coupled to the refrigerated merchandiser and disposed within the indoor environment, an evaporator coupled to the condenser and disposed within the indoor environment, a compressor coupled to the evaporator and disposed within the indoor environment, and a condenser fan assembly coupled to the condenser. The condenser fan assembly is disposed remote from the condenser in an ambient environment.

Description

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to a refrigeration system for refrigerated merchandisers, and more particularly to a parallel refrigeration system setup.

Small convenience stores typically use self-contained refrigerated cases to refrigerate product for consumers. These cases are refrigerated by one or more refrigeration systems located inside the store. These refrigeration systems typically include one or more condensers, as well as a plurality of condenser fans. Due to their construction and design, the condensers and condenser fans reject significant amounts of heat directly into the store. This rejected heat increases the store ambient temperature and increases energy consumption and demand for the store's air conditioning system. Additionally, due to the quantity of condenser fans typically employed to reject refrigerant heat, these refrigeration systems often generate significant noise within the store.

SUMMARY

In one construction, the invention provides a refrigeration system refrigeration system for a refrigerated merchandiser including a refrigerated merchandiser disposed within an indoor environment, the refrigerated merchandiser including a case defining a product display area. The refrigeration system also includes a condenser coupled to the refrigerated merchandiser and disposed within the indoor environment, an evaporator coupled to the condenser and disposed within the indoor environment, a compressor coupled to the evaporator and disposed within the indoor environment, and a condenser fan assembly coupled to the condenser. The condenser fan assembly is disposed remotely from the condenser in an ambient environment.

In another construction, the invention provides a method of moving air with a refrigeration system including cooling air with an evaporator inside an indoor environment and directing the cooled air into a product display area of a refrigerated merchandiser inside the indoor environment. The method also includes directing warmed air from a condenser in the indoor environment to an ambient environment with a condenser fan assembly disposed in the ambient environment, the condenser coupled to both the evaporator and the condenser fan assembly.

In another construction, the invention provides a method of moving air with a refrigeration system including cooling air with an evaporator inside an indoor environment and directing the cooled air into a product display area of a refrigerated merchandiser inside the indoor environment. The method also includes directing outside air from an ambient environment into the indoor environment with a condenser fan assembly disposed in the ambient environment, the condenser fan assembly coupled to a condenser disposed in the indoor environment. The method also includes warming the outside air with the condenser.

Other aspects of the invention will become apparent by consideration of the detailed description and accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a building interior, including a refrigeration system embodying the present invention.

FIG. 2 is another perspective view of a portion of the building interior and the refrigeration system.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of the refrigeration system illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 4 is another perspective view of a portion of the refrigeration system illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

Before any embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1-4 show a refrigeration system 10 that is positioned substantially within a building 14 (e.g., a convenience store, a grocery store, a warehouse, or other indoor environment). The building 14 includes a roof 18, a floor 22, and a plurality of merchandisers 26 that are positioned along the floor 22. Each merchandiser 26 includes a case 30 defining a product display area 32 for supporting and displaying food products to be visible and accessible through an opening or openings in the front of the case 30. At least some of the merchandisers 26 include one or more evaporators (not shown) that are in communication with the refrigeration system 10 so that the product display areas 32 of these merchandisers 26 can be conditioned by the refrigeration system 10. Also, some merchandisers 26 include doors 34 that enclose the product display areas 32 of the cases 30 to reduce the amount of cold air released into the surrounding environment. The doors 34 typically include one or more glass panels that allow a consumer to view the food products stored inside the case 30. In some constructions, the merchandisers 26 can be provided without doors.

The illustrated refrigeration system 10 is a parallel refrigeration system that conditions several merchandisers 26, although several refrigeration systems 10 can be provided in the building 14 to condition one or more merchandisers 26. As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, the refrigeration system 10 includes one or more compressors 36 (illustrated schematically in FIG. 4) and a condenser 38 that has a condenser housing 40 and a condenser coil 42. The compressors 36 and the condenser 38 are connected in series with the evaporator(s) in each merchandiser 26, and a refrigerant is circulated through the refrigeration circuit defined by these components so that a refrigerated airflow can be provided by the evaporator(s) to the respective product display areas 32.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, the refrigeration system 10 is a modular refrigeration system that is positioned on top of one merchandiser 26 and that is pre-charged with a predetermined quantity of refrigerant and that is fluidly connected to each case 30 by quick connect fittings 44 (e.g., tubing and quick connect couplings). In the illustrated construction, the merchandisers 26 are pre-packaged with the evaporators and include a refrigerant charge (i.e., a holding charge) to provide a relatively quick installation of the merchandiser 26 and the refrigeration system 10. One or more noise deadening enclosures 45 (illustrated schematically in FIG. 4) are provided around the compressor 36 to reduce noise emanating from the compressor 36. While the illustrated refrigeration system 10 is a parallel refrigeration system, the refrigeration system 10 can be at least partially dedicated to one merchandiser 10.

The evaporators connected in the refrigeration system 10 receive saturated refrigerant that has passed through one or more expansion valves disposed between the condenser 38 and the evaporator. The saturated refrigerant is evaporated as it passes through the evaporators as a result of absorbing heat from air passing over the evaporators via heat exchange. The absorption of heat by the refrigerant allows the temperature of the air to decrease as the air passes over the evaporators. The heated or gaseous refrigerant then exits the evaporators and is directed to the compressors 36 where the refrigerant is compressed and delivered to the condenser 38 for cooling via heat exchange with air passing over the coil 42 prior to restarting the cycle.

Air exiting the condenser 38 is heated via heat exchange with the refrigerant in the coil 42. With continued referenced to FIGS. 1-4, the refrigeration system 10 includes a ductwork 46 that provides air communication between the condenser 38 and an ambient, outdoor environment 48 disposed outside of the indoor environment of the building 14. At one end 50, the ductwork 46 is coupled to the condenser housing 40 of the refrigeration system 10 adjacent the condenser coil 42. At the other end 54, the ductwork 46 is coupled to the roof 18 and is in communication with the outdoor environment 48. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the ductwork 46 has a primarily tubular construction between the refrigerated merchandiser 26 and roof 18, and the ductwork 46 extends generally vertically between the top of the refrigerated merchandiser 26 and the roof 18.

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the refrigeration system 10 also includes a condenser fan assembly 58 disposed on the roof 18 and that has one or more fans 60 to generate an airflow within the ductwork 46. The fan 60 is located adjacent the end of the ductwork 46 on the roof 18, though the fan or fans 60 can also be located within the ductwork 46. The fan 60 includes a motor (e.g., a variable frequency drive motor), although other types of motors can be used.

The condenser fan assembly 58 is located outside the building 14 to reduce the noise within the building 14. The condenser fan assembly 58 can be located anywhere outside the building and remote from the condenser 38 (e.g., coupled to the roof 18 on the interior side of the building 14).

In operation, the condenser fan assembly 58 can be operated continuously or for a predetermined time period to move air within the ductwork 46 to either direct air from the condenser 38 to the ambient, outdoor environment 48, or from the outdoor environment 48 to the condenser 38. As air moves over the condenser coil 42, the air is warmed by heat exchange with refrigerant flowing through the condenser coil 42. When the interior space of the building 14 is being cooled (e.g., by a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning or “HVAC” system), the airflow warmed by refrigerant in the condenser coil 42 is directed toward the roof 18 through the ductwork 46 by the condenser fan assembly 58. The ductwork 46 provides a pathway for the unidirectional airflow generated by the fan assembly 58 that directs the warmed air out of the building 18 into the ambient outdoor environment 48.

When it is desired to heat the interior space of the building 14, the ductwork 46 and the fan assembly 58 can be used to direct ambient air from outside the building 14 toward the condenser coil 42. In particular, the direction of rotation of the condenser fan assembly 58 can be reversed so that ambient air from outdoor environment 48 is drawn into the ductwork 46 and directed toward the condenser coil 42. The ambient airflow is directed over the condenser coil 42, where the airflow is heated by heat exchange with the refrigerant flowing through the condenser coil 42. The warmed air is then directed into the interior space of the building 14 to offset at least some of the heating capacity provided by the HVAC system, especially when the outdoor environment 48 is relatively cold (e.g., during colder temperature seasons). That is, reversing the airflow within the ductwork 46 can reduce the need to operate the HVAC system to heat the interior space when the outside temperatures are low.

Referring back to FIG. 1, a controller 66 is in communication with the refrigeration system 10 to control, among other things, the refrigeration system 10 and the condenser fan assembly 58. The controller 66 is also in communication with a temperature sensor 70, or several sensors 70, located inside the building 14. The illustrated controller 66 is also in communication with an ambient temperature sensor 74 located outside the building 14. In some constructions, the controller 66 can be in communication with the HVAC system.

The controller 66 can utilize information from the sensors 70, 74 to determine whether the refrigeration system 10 exhausts air warmed by heat exchange with the refrigerant in the coil 42 to the outside environment 48, or whether air is directed from the outside environment 48 into the building 14 to be warmed by heat exchange with the refrigerant in the coil 42 and exhausted into the building 14. For example, the controller 66 can monitor the air temperature inside the building 14 by receiving a signal from the temperature sensor 70 indicative of the interior building temperature. Based on the signal from the temperature sensor 70, the controller 66 determines whether the interior building temperature is above a first predetermined temperature (e.g., any temperature between about 60° Fahrenheit and 80° Fahrenheit). When the interior building temperature is above the predetermined temperature, the controller can control the fan assembly 58 to direct air from the condenser 38 toward and into the outdoor environment 48 to avoid undesirably heating the interior space of the building 14. When the interior building temperature is below the predetermined temperature, the controller can control the fan assembly 58 to direct air from the outdoor environment 48 toward and through the condenser 38 to assist with cooling the interior space of the building 14.

In some constructions, the controller 66 can utilize other information (e.g., a thermostat temperature, a state of the HVAC system, etc.) to determine the desired direction of airflow within the ductwork 46. For example, the controller 66 can control the fan assembly 58 to direct air from the condenser 38 toward and into the outdoor environment 48 when the HVAC system is in a cooling mode to avoid adding heat to the interior space. The controller 66 can control the fan assembly 58 to direct air from the outdoor environment 48 toward the condenser 38 when the HVAC system is in a heating mode so supplement heating provided by the HVAC system. In other constructions, the controller 66 can utilize the temperature sensed by the outdoor temperature sensor 74 to direct air out of the building 14 when the outdoor temperature is above a threshold temperature or temperature range, and to direct air into the building 14 when the outdoor temperature is below the threshold temperature or temperature range.

Various features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1. A refrigeration system for a refrigerated merchandiser, the refrigeration system comprising: a refrigerated merchandiser positioned in an indoor environment, the refrigerated merchandiser including a case defining a product display area;a condenser coupled to the refrigerated merchandiser within the indoor environment;an evaporator coupled to the condenser and positioned within the indoor environment;a compressor coupled to the evaporator and positioned within the indoor environment; anda condenser fan assembly coupled to the condenser, the condenser fan assembly disposed remote from the condenser in an ambient environment.

2. The refrigeration system of claim 1, wherein the refrigeration system includes a ductwork that provides airflow communication between the condenser and the ambient environment.

3. The refrigeration system of claim 2, wherein the condenser includes a condenser housing and a condenser coil, and wherein the ductwork is coupled at one end to the condenser housing adjacent the condenser coil.

4. The refrigeration system of claim 3, wherein the ductwork is coupled at an opposite end to the condenser fan assembly.

5. The refrigeration system of claim 2, wherein the ductwork has a primarily tubular construction.

6. The refrigeration system of claim 2, wherein the ductwork extends generally vertically between a top of the refrigerated merchandiser and a roof of a building.

7. The refrigeration system of claim 2, wherein the condenser fan assembly includes a fan that generates an airflow within the ductwork.

8. The refrigeration system of claim 2, wherein the condenser fan assembly includes a fan disposed adjacent an end of the ductwork.

9. The refrigeration system of claim 1, wherein the condenser fan assembly is disposed on a roof of a building.

10. The refrigeration system of claim 1, further comprising a controller that is coupled to the condenser fan assembly that directs the condenser fan assembly to move air both in and out of the indoor environment.

11. The refrigeration system of claim 1, wherein the condenser is a single condenser, and wherein the refrigeration system is a parallel refrigeration system that includes a plurality of merchandisers disposed within the indoor environment, each of the merchandisers coupled to the single condenser.

12. The refrigeration system of claim 11, wherein the parallel refrigeration system includes a plurality of compressors and evaporators, and wherein the compressors and the single condenser are connected in series with the evaporators in each merchandiser so that a refrigerated airflow is provided to the product display area in each refrigerated merchandiser.

13. A method of operating a refrigeration system comprising: cooling an airflow with an evaporator in an indoor environment;directing the cooled airflow into a product display area of a refrigerated merchandiser positioned within the indoor environment; anddirecting a warmed airflow from a condenser in the indoor environment to an ambient environment with a condenser fan assembly disposed in the ambient environment, the condenser coupled to both the evaporator and the condenser fan assembly.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of directing warmed air includes first detecting a temperature inside the indoor environment with a sensor disposed in the indoor environment, and based on the detected temperature, directing the warmed air to the ambient environment.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of directing warmed air includes first detecting a temperature in the ambient environment with a sensor disposed in the ambient environment, and based on the detected temperature, directing the warmed air to the ambient environment.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of directing warmed air includes first determining that the refrigerated merchandiser is in a cooling mode, and based on the determination that the refrigerated merchandiser is in a cooling mode, directing the warmed air to the ambient environment.

17. A method of moving air with a refrigeration system, the method comprising: cooling air with an evaporator in an indoor environment and directing the cooled air into a product display area of a refrigerated merchandiser in the indoor environment;directing outside air from an ambient environment into the indoor environment with a condenser fan assembly disposed in the ambient environment, the condenser fan assembly coupled to a condenser disposed in the indoor environment; andwarming the outside air with the condenser.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the step of directing outside air includes first detecting a temperature in the indoor environment with a sensor disposed in the indoor environment, and based on the detected temperature, directing the outside air into the indoor environment.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the step of directing outside air includes first detecting a temperature in the ambient environment with a sensor disposed in the ambient environment, and based on the detected temperature, directing the outside air into the indoor environment.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the step of directing outside air includes first determining that the refrigerated merchandiser is in a heating mode, and based on the determination that the refrigerated merchandiser is in a heating mode, directing the outside air into the indoor environment.