Patent Application
20070295024
The invention relates to a refrigerator cabinet, especially for bringing bottles of wine to the proper serving temperature. Such refrigerator cabinets are sometimes referred to as service wine cellars. The refrigerator cabinet according to the invention is especially suitable for storing or bringing bottles of wine to the respective optimal serving temperature, which wines are best served at different temperatures.
Different wines are normally considered to be best served at different serving temperatures. Generally, many red wines are considered to be most tasteful when served at around 15-19° C., whereas many white wines should be served at around 6-10° C. Further, different wines within each group of red and white wines have a more precise optimal serving temperature within these general ranges. For instance, some red wines are best served at 15.5° C., whereas other red wines are better at 18° C. Normally, it is further considered that long term storing of wines, both red and white should better take place at around 11° C. Especially for restaurants and the like there therefore exists a need for bringing the wines to be served within a relatively short period of time from the storage temperature to the desired serving temperature. For this purposes, so called service wine cellars might be used. Bottles of wine that are to be served for example the next day are brought from the long-term storage to a service wine cellar, where they adopt a more suitable serving temperature than the long term storage temperature.
Depending on for instance the season, the demand for different types of wine might vary. It is therefore desirable that the service wine cellars are able to handle varying amounts of bottles that are to be served at a higher and lower temperature.
Previously known service wine cellars are normally constituted by a refrigerator cabinet, which comprises a refrigerating system and two compartments. A first, normally upper, compartment for red wines is kept at a higher temperature and a second lower compartment for white wines is kept at a lower temperature. In order to be able to meet the varying demand for red and white wines, the sizes of the upper and lower compartments might be varied by altering the vertical position of a movable partition wall, which divides the first and second compartment from each other.
A respective evaporator cools each compartment. The evaporators might be positioned on the inside of the back wall of each compartment. Alternatively the evaporators might be placed in the back wall of each compartment and communicate with the respective compartment via air openings in the back wall. The evaporators might be connected in series and form part of a common refrigerator system. However, in such case a single temperature sensor for measuring and controlling the temperature is placed in one of the compartments. The temperature in the compartments cannot therefore be controlled individually. Alternatively, each evaporator may form part of a respective refrigerating system. Each compartment and refrigerating system may then be provided with a respective temperature sensor. This allows for better individual control of the temperature in each compartment but it also adds considerably to the cost of the service wine cellar.
In both cases, the evaporators or the air openings are arranged in the upper portion of the upper compartment and in the lower portion of the lower compartment, such that they don't interfere with that portion of the cabinet in which the partition wall is movable. Such placement of the evaporators or air openings is unfavourable for achieving a well-controlled and constant temperature gradient within the compartments.
At such known service wine cellars it might be possible to keep the temperature in an area close to the temperature sensor comparatively constant and at the desired temperature with comparatively high accuracy. However, the known systems provide little control of the temperature gradient within each compartment.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved refrigerator cabinet, which is suitable for bringing bottles of wine and the like to a desired serving temperature.
Especially, it is object to provide such a refrigerator cabinet which allows for varying the sizes of two or more compartments or zones kept at different temperatures and which provides for an improved control of the temperature and temperature gradients within each zone.
These and other objects are achieved by a refrigerator cabinet according to the preamble of claim 1, which refrigerator cabinet exhibits the special technical features as set out in the characterizing portion of claim 1.
The refrigerator cabinet according to the invention comprises a refrigerating system with a heat exchanger, which is arranged in a heat exchanger chamber, a storage compartment which is enclosed by outer cabinet walls and by a cabinet door and, a partition wall for delimiting a first and a second zone within said storage compartment, which partition wall is fixable at different positions within a zone size varying portion of said storage compartment, for allowing the sizes of the first and second zone to be varied. The cabinet is characterized by an air channel for conducting air between the heat exchanger chamber and the storage compartment, a number of orifices arranged along a portion of said channel for allowing communication between said channel and said storage compartment, which channel portion extends along said zone size varying portion, and means for blocking the communication between the heat exchanger chamber and one of said first and second zones, through said orifices, while allowing communication between the heat exchanger chamber and the other of said first and second zone, through said orifices.
The inventors have realized that an enhanced control of the temperature gradient in each compartment or temperature zone of a cabinet may be obtained if cooled air is supplied to the bottom of the zone and drawn off from the top of the zone. By this means a homogeneous air-flow from bottom to top may be obtained. This reduces any uncontrolled circulation within the zones to thereby create a controlled and stable temperature gradient in each zone. The temperature in each zone will thereby increase gradually from the lower to the upper portion of the zone, in a well controlled manner. The inventors have further realized that such a well control temperature gradient within each zone may be utilized for storing bottles of wine which requires slightly different serving temperatures at different positions within one and the same temperature zone.
The invention renders it possible to create such a well defined homogeneous airflow from bottom to top in each zone even if the partition wall dividing two zones is movable for variation of the sizes of the zones.
According to the invention this is made possible by at least one channel for supplying air to or drawing off air from at least one temperature zone. The channel communicates at one end with a heat exchanger chamber for bringing the air to a suitable temperature. Normally this means cooling the air. The other end of the channel exhibits a portion provided with orifices through which the channel communicates with the storage compartment housing the different zones. This portion of the channel extends along that portion of the complete storage compartment where the partition wall may be fixed at different positions for defining the sizes of the zones. Now, at any possible position of the partition wall, the means for blocking the airflow in the channel may be applied such that air passing to or from the heat exchanger chamber can only pass through orifices arranged at one side of the partition wall. Thus, only one of the two zones may communicate with the heat exchanger chamber through the channel.
If for instance the cabinet is of the upright type with the first zone arranged on top of the other, the channel may be used for supplying air to the bottom portion of the upper zone. Since orifices are arranged along that portion of the cabinet at which the partition wall may be fixed it is accomplished that at least one orifice for supplying air from the channel is arranged at a lower part of the upper zone. In this case the blocking means prevents air supplied from the heat exchanger to enter the second zone, which would otherwise both reduce the airflow to the upper zone and affect the temperature in the lower zone. A fixed air outlet may be arranged in the upper portion of the upper zone, which outlet is connected with the heat exchanger chamber for re-circulation.
The channel according to the invention may alternatively be used for drawing off air from the lower zone. In correspondence with what is described above, at least one orifice will always be positioned at an upper portion of the lower zone, irrespective of where the partition wall is positioned. Here, the blocking means prevents air to be drawn off from the upper zone and allows air to be drawn off from an upper part of the lower zone. A fixed air inlet may be arranged in the lower part of the lower zone for supplying air from the heat exchanger chamber to this zone.
Thus, the invention makes it possible to supply air at a lower part of at least one temperature zone in a multiple zone cabinet and to draw off air from the upper part of the same zone, irrespective of where a movable partition wall is positioned. Thereby, a homogenous and well defined air flow within said zone may be achieved which creates a stable and well defined temperature gradient in the same zone. Since the temperature gradient in the zone is well defined and stable bottles of wine to be served with as little as 1 or even 0.5° C. difference in temperature may be placed on shelves at different levels in the zone to be brought to the respective desired temperature with high accuracy.
The means for blocking communication with one zone while allowing communication with the other, may be formed simply as blocking plugs which are introduced in the orifices arranged on the same side of the dividing wall as the zone which is not to communicate with the heat exchanger camber in question. Naturally such plugs may be added removed or moved in relation to where the partition wall is positioned. However, the blocking means are suitably formed as a cut-off flange, which is insertable in the channel for cutting of the airflow through the channel at a level, which corresponds to the present position of the dividing wall. Such an embodiment facilitates handling since only one element need to be inserted for inactivating several orifices arranged in the zone, which is not to communicate with the heat exchanger. Especially if the cabinet comprises several channels of the above-described type, this embodiment facilitates cutting of several channels simultaneously by arranging a corresponding number of cut-off flanges on a common member.
Preferably one or several cut-off flanges are arranged on the partition wall. By this means the channel or the respective channels will be automatically cut off at the correct level when the partition wall is fixed at any of its possible positions.
As mentioned above a single channel may be used either for supplying air or drawing of air from one zone. However, the cabinet may also comprise two or several channels. Each channel is then arranged for supplying or drawing off air to or from one zone. In such case channels communicating with one and the same zone are connected to one and the same heat exchanger chamber, whereas channels communicating with different zones are connected to different heat exchanger chambers. With such an arrangement it is possible to achieve the precise and accurate temperature control, which is made possible by the invention, in several or all zones of a multiple zone compartment.
Preferably the cabinet comprises at least one ventilator for creating a forced airflow in a respective of said channels. By this means an even more precise control of the temperature in the respective zone may be obtained. In contrast to if air is circulated between the respective zone and its heat exchanger by natural convection, the use of a ventilator makes it possible to regulate the temperature in the zone both by regulating the refrigeration system comprising the heat exchanger and by regulating the airflow. Such two-parameter regulation is not only more precise, but also faster and more energy efficient.
When at least one channel is provided with a ventilator this channel preferably comprises means for preventing self-circulation through said at least one channel. Such means might for instance comprise a U-shaped portion of the channel, in which portion comparatively heavy cold air is stuck by influence of the gravitation to thereby obstruct self-circulation. With such self-circulation preventing means it is possible to completely block the air circulation through the respective zone and heat exchanger chamber, by simply inactivating the ventilator. Such an arrangement also leads to a faster and more precise control of the temperature in the zone.
In case the temperature in two or several zones are to be controlled by means of a respective channel. Each channel is preferably connected to a separate heat exchanger channel, such that regulation of the temperature in one zone does not affect the temperature in another zone. For achieving an optimal temperature regulation, the different air flows circulating through the different zones should if possible be kept completely separated from each other. This may be achieved by utilising a separate refrigeration system with a respective heat exchanger for cooling the respective airflows. Such an arrangement is however rather costly and space demanding. Alternatively and preferably the cabinet instead comprises a single refrigerator system with a single heat exchanger having a first portion which is arranged in a first heat exchanger chamber and a second portion which is arranged in a second heat exchanger chamber. For reducing any mixing of the airflows the first and second heat exchanger chambers are preferably essentially hermetically sealed from each other. By this means a comparatively simple, space and energy efficient as well as cheap arrangement is made possible which arrangement still allows fast and accurate temperature control. The refrigeration system may be of any type such as a compressor based system or an absorption refrigerating system.
For enhancing the distribution of air within a single zone to thereby further stabilize the temperature gradient, the cabinet may comprise an air distribution channel. The air distribution channel operates in a similar way as the above-described channel, in regard of how and where the air distribution communicates with the zone when the partition wall is moved in order to change the size of that zone. The air distribution channel thus comprises a number of air distribution orifices arranged along a portion of said air distribution channel for communication between the storage compartment and the air distribution channel. This air distribution channel portion extends along the zone size varying portion, and the partition wall comprises a third cut-off flange which is insertable into said air distribution channel portion. The air distribution channel further comprises at least one fixed orifice arranged at a part of said single zone, which part is opposite to the partition wall. By this means an air circulation flow passing through the zone, the fixed orifice, the air distribution channel and through at least one of the orifices arranged in proximity to the partition wall back to the zone is created. Such a circulating flow further enhances the temperature gradient within the zone, especially when the partition wall is positioned such that this zone is comparatively large.
For further enhancing the air distribution circulating flow, the air distribution channel may comprise an air distribution ventilator.
The air distribution channel may also comprise a heater. By this means the zone, which is in communication with the air distribution channel may be heated in a simple and efficient manner. Such heating may be desirable especially for quickly heating red bottles of wine, which bottles have been previously stored at a storage temperature below the desired serving temperature. Heating of, for instance, a warmer zone for red wines may also be needed if the cabinet is operated in a room where the ambient temperature is comparatively low.
In order to fully utilize the storage volume of the cabinet, the partition wall preferably constitutes a shelf on which bottles can be placed. Such an arrangement further facilitates changing the sizes of the zones since the partition wall may then simply be interchanged with another shelf previously arranged at another position in the portion of the storage compartment allowing fixation of the partition wall.
The cabinet preferably comprises a number of shelves which are hermetical and arranged in sealing contact with the side and back walls of the cabinet. Such shelves are suitable for placing a comparatively large number of bottles in the cabinet without the need for stacking the bottles on each other. The hermetic and sealing arrangement of the shelves further enhances the formation of a homogenous airflow within the respective zone, which in turn contributes to achieving a stable and desirable temperature gradient within the zone.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be given in the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment and by the appending claims.
In the following a exemplifying detailed description of embodiments will be given with reference to the figures in which:
a-3e are cross sections along line 3a-3a, 3b-3b, 3c-3c, 3d-3d and 3e-3e respectively.
a-4e are cross sections along line 4a-4a, 4b-4b, 4c-4c, 4d-4d and 4e-4e respectively.
First with reference to
A refrigerating system housing 10 is arranged at the lower part of the cabinet, for accommodating a refrigerating system (not shown). The refrigerating system is in the embodiment shown a compressor based system but may be of any other kind, such as an absorption refrigerating system.
The top 1, bottom 2, side 3, 4 and back 5 walls comprise an insulation of polyurethane foam. As is most clearly seen in
The cavities further form four channels 20, 30, 40, 50 for conducting air between the heat exchanger chambers 11, 12 and the upper 7a and lower 7b zone of the storage compartment 7. The cavities forming the heat exchanger chambers 11, 12 and the channels are separated from the storage compartment by means of a comparatively thin plate 15, which extends over the entire cross section above the housing 10 at the back of the storage compartment 7. The plate 15 exhibits a number of communication openings or orifices 21, 22, 31, 42, 51, 52 for passage of air between the storage compartment 7 and the respective channel 20, 30, 40, 50. The plate 15 also exhibits an orifices 41 for supplying air from the second heat exchanger chamber 12 to the second zone 7b in the lower part of the storage compartment 7. The orifices 21, 31 and 51 are arranged above the zone size varying portion 9 of the storage compartment and they are therefore always arranged in the upper zone. The orifice 41 is arranged below the zone size varying portion 9 and is therefore always arranged in the lower zone 7b. The orifices 22, 42, 52 are arranged along the zone size varying portion 9 and each of them may thus be arranged in either the upper 7a or lower 7b zone, depending on the position of the partition wall 8. In the shown embodiment each of the orifices 22, 42, 52 comprises five identical orifices arranged one above the other in the zone size varying portion 9. As indicated above the width of the flanges 71 of the shelves 70 corresponds to the width of the orifices 42 such that the flanges 71 may block communication through the orifices 42.
A ventilator 23, 43, 53 is arranged in each of the respective channels 20, 40 and 50. A heater 54 is arranged in channel 50.
The partition wall 8 comprises three cut-off flanges 820, 840, 850, which are inserted through widened portions of the orifices 22, 42, 52, into the respective channel 20, 40, 50, when the partition wall is fixed at any of its positions along the zone size varying portion 9. When the cut-off flanges 820, 840, 850 are inserted in their respective channel 20, 40, 50, air is prevented to pass from one side of the flanges to the other in the respective channel.
Referring to
In the embodiment shown in the figures the shelves 70 are arranged to allow air to pass through them. As illustrated in
Now with reference to
The air then passes down through outlet channel 40 by means of the ventilator 43 into the lower part of the second heat exchanger chamber 12. The lower portion of the outlet channel 40 is separated from the second heat exchanger 12 by a wall 44. The lower edge of this wall is arranged below the heat exchanger portion 14b and the upper edge of the front wall 16 is arranged above the heat exchanger portion 14b. Thereby self-circulation of the air circulating in the second heat exchanger chamber 12, the supply channel 45, the lower zone 7b and the outlet channel 40 is prevented, also during defrosting of the heat exchanger portion 14b if such defrosting means is provided.
Now with reference to
The temperature in both zones 7a and 7b are constantly being measured by a respective temperature sensor 61, 62. The temperature sensors 61, 62 are connected to a control system (not shown) for controlling the temperatures in the zones 7a, 7b. This is accomplished by regulating both the refrigerating system and the ventilators 23, 43. Even though one single refrigerating system is used for cooling both zones, the possibility to independently control the ventilators 23, 43 provides an excellent means for achieving a fast and accurate temperature control in both zones. The air distribution channel with the independently controlled ventilator and heater further enhances the possibility to such independent temperature control of both zones.
In
In the illustrated embodiment of the cabinet the upper zone 7a constitutes a warmer zone for bringing bottles of red wine to a desired serving temperature. The lower zone 7b constitutes a colder zone for bottles of white wine and the like.
Experiments have shown that it is possible to maintain a set temperature of for example 17° C. with a temperature gradient of ±2° C. over the height of the upper zone. Thus, the lower shelf 70 of this the upper zone will maintain 15° C. and the upper shelf 19° C. The temperature difference varies linearly in the zone, such that the temperature difference between two successive shelves is constant for the entire zone. When for instance the partition wall is fixed as is illustrated in
The embodiment illustrated in the figures is an example only. It is understood that the invention may be varied in a lot off different ways within the scope of the claims.
For instance instead of a single compressor based refrigerating system a separate refrigerating system could be used for each zone. The refrigerating system or systems may be of the absorption type or any other type.
Instead of being an upright cabinet with two zones arranged one above the other, the cabinet may be a so called side-by-side cabinet where the zones are arranged on beside the other.
The shelves may be hermetical and arranged in sealing contact with the side and back walls of the cabinet, such that air may pass from one side of each shelf to the other only between the front edge of each self and the front door. By such an arrangement the airflow within each zone is even more well defined and a better control of the temperature gradient within each zone is achieved.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0601390-8 | Jun 2006 | SE | national |
