EVAPORATOR ASSEMBLY FOR REFRIGERATION APPLIANCE

Abstract

The present invention relates to an evaporator assembly for use in a refrigeration appliance. The evaporator assembly of the present invention has a casing for accommodating an evaporator. The casing has on its inner surface a protrusion abutting against an opposing surface thereof. The protrusion has a sufficient strength to withstand a pressure exerted by a foam material which cures during an assembly process. In addition, the protrusion does not obstruct installation of the evaporator into the casing. The present invention also relates to a manufacturing process of a refrigeration appliance. The manufacturing process of the present invention comprises a step of installing the evaporator into the casing and a subsequent step of injecting foam material between an outer case of the refrigeration appliance and an outer surface of the casing.

Description

The present invention relates to an evaporator assembly for use in a refrigeration appliance, in particular a no-frost domestic refrigerator. The present invention also relates to a process of manufacturing the refrigeration appliance by using the evaporator assembly.

The no-frost technology is an effective method of reducing humidity in a refrigeration compartment in order to prevent formation of frost on an inner case of the refrigeration compartment and on the articles stored therein. A refrigeration appliance utilizing the no-frost technology generally includes an air circulation facility along which the air inside the refrigeration compartment is conveyed by means of a fan towards the evaporator and subsequently discharged into the refrigeration compartment. In the no-frost refrigeration appliance the evaporator of the refrigeration circuit is disposed at a location outside the refrigeration compartment usually in a rear partition of the inner case which has an air inlet and an air outlet for the circulation of the air. Thereby, the moisture in the circulated air freezes on the surface of the evaporator as the refrigerant evaporates. During the circulation of the air, heat is also transferred with the circulated air from the articles stored in the refrigerating compartment to the evaporator through convection. As the moisture in the circulated air freezes on the surface of the evaporator, the proper functioning of the evaporator starts degrading. Therefore, the evaporator must be eventually defrosted.

In general, the refrigeration compartment must be thermally insulated from an outside in order to improve the refrigeration performance. Therefore, a region between the inner case of the refrigeration compartment and the outer case of the refrigeration appliance is filled with foam material, in particular polyurethane.

JPH0849965 (A) discloses a refrigerator which has an evaporator located in a rear partition of the refrigeration compartment. A gap between the inner case of the refrigeration apartment and the outer case of the refrigerator is filled with foam material.

A problem with the foam material is that during the curing process, the foam material exerts pressure on the inner case and on the outer case such that the plastic elements thereof start deforming. If the inner case is permanently deformed when the foam material is completely cured, it becomes impossible to properly install the evaporator into the partition.

In a commonly known technique spacers are utilized to prevent deformation of the plastic elements during the curing process. After the foam is completely cured, the spacers are removed and the evaporator is installed. However, the assembly process of the evaporator becomes more complicated after the gaps have been filled with the foam material. Moreover, a thermal insulation performance degrades when the foam material is damaged during the assembly process of the evaporator.

An objective of the present invention is to provide an evaporator assembly and a refrigeration appliance having the same which overcomes the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art and which enables an easy and a reliable installation of the evaporator. Another objective of the present invention is to provide a process of manufacturing the refrigeration appliance by using the evaporator assembly of the present invention.

This objective have been achieved by the evaporator assembly as defined in claim 1, the manufacturing process as defined in claim 11, and the refrigeration appliance as defined in claim 12. Further achievements have been attained by the subject-matters respectively defined in the dependent claims.

The evaporator assembly of the present invention has a casing for accommodating an evaporator. The casing has a front cover and a rear cover which are detachably attachable. The front cover forms a portion of an inner case of the refrigeration compartment. The rear cover has on its inner surface a protrusion which firmly abuts against an opposing surface of the front cover. A cross-section and a material of the protrusion is configured to exhibit a sufficient strength to withstand without being deformed, a pressure exerted by a curing foam material which is injected between the outer surface of the rear cover and the outer case during an assembly process. In addition, the protrusion is formed on an inner surface of the rear cover at a position which does not obstruct installation of the evaporator.

The present invention also provides a process of manufacturing the refrigeration appliance by using the evaporator assembly. In the manufacturing process of the refrigeration appliance the evaporator is installed into the casing from an open side of the rear cover. Then, the rear cover is attached to the front cover. Subsequently, foam material is injected between the outer surface of the rear cover and the outer case.

In an embodiment, the protrusion has a mounting portion for detachably attaching the evaporator to the rear cover. With the protrusion having the mounting portion, the evaporator can be secured to the casing and simultaneously protected from possible damages during the foaming process. Thereby, an inner structure of the casing has been simplified. The circulation of air through he casing has been improved.

In alternative embodiment, the casing is provided in addition to the protrusion with a separate mounting portion for detachably attaching the evaporator to the rear cover.

By virtue of the evaporator assembly of the present invention, the evaporator can be installed into the casing without interference with the protrusion which prevents deformation of the cover during the curing of the foam material. The thermal insulation can be formed by foam material in a state where the evaporator has been already installed into the casing. Thereby, the manufacturing process of the refrigeration appliance has been simplified and a high quality thermal insulation has been attained. The casing has been effectively protected from deformations through the curing foam material during the manufacturing process. Thereby, the evaporator has been protected from damages. Thus, the proper installation of the evaporator has been maintained after completion of the foaming process.

Additional advantages of the evaporator assembly of the present invention and the manufacturing process of the refrigeration appliance by using the evaporator assembly of the present invention will become apparent with the detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1—is a schematic partial perspective view of a refrigeration appliance having an evaporator assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2—is a schematic partial side view of the refrigeration appliance having the evaporator assembly shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3—is a schematic partial perspective view of the evaporator assembly attached to an inner case of a refrigeration compartment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4—is a schematic partial side view of the evaporator assembly attached to the inner case of the refrigeration compartment shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5—is a schematic cross sectional view of the evaporator assembly attached to the inner case of the refrigeration compartment shown in FIG. 4, taken along the line A-A;

FIG. 6—is a schematic enlarged view of the detail B shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7—is a schematic perspective inner view of a rear cover of the evaporator assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8—is another schematic perspective inner view of the rear cover of the evaporator assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9—is a schematic perspective outer view of the rear cover of the evaporator assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10—is a schematic perspective view of an evaporator used in the evaporator assembly shown in FIGS. 1 to 6;

The reference signs appearing on the drawings relate to the following technical features.

• 1. Evaporator assembly
• 2. Refrigeration appliance
• 3. Inner case
• 3′ Inner case
• 3″ Inner case
• 3′″ Inner case
• 4. Refrigeration compartment
• 4′ Refrigeration compartment
• 4″ Refrigeration compartment
• 4′″ Refrigeration compartment
• 5. Outer case
• 6. Casing
• 7. Evaporator
• 8. Front cover
• 9. Rear cover
• 9a. Inner surface
• 9b. Outer surface
• 10. Protrusion
• 11. Mounting portion
• 12. Resilient leg
• 13. Recess
• 14. Reinforcement rib
• 15. Open side
• 16. Seat
• 17. Counterpart seat
• 18. Tube inlet
• 19. Tube outlet
• 20. Cable throughlet
• 21. Power cable
• 22. Discharge outlet
• 23. Heater

The evaporator assembly (1) is suitable for use in a refrigeration appliance (2), in particular a domestic refrigerator (FIGS. 1 and 2).

The refrigeration appliance (2) comprises an inner case (3) and an outer case (5). The inner case (3) forms a refrigeration compartment (4). The outer case (5) forms a body of the refrigeration appliance (2). The refrigeration appliance (2) further comprises an evaporator assembly (1) (FIGS. 1 to 9).

The evaporator assembly (1) of the present invention comprises a casing (6) for accommodating an evaporator (7) for refrigerating the refrigeration compartment (2). The casing (6) has an air inlet (not shown) and an air outlet (not shown) for circulating the air inside the refrigeration compartment (2) via the evaporator (7) by means of a fan (not shown). The casing (6) has a front cover (8) and a rear cover (9) which are detachably attachable to each other. The front cover (8) forms a portion of an inner case (3). The rear cover (9) has on its inner surface (9a) a protrusion (10) which firmly abuts against an opposing surface of the front cover (8). A cross-section and a material of the protrusion (10) is configured to exhibit a sufficient strength to withstand without being deformed, a pressure exerted by a curing foam material which is injected between the outer surface (9b) of the rear cover (9) and the outer case (5) during an assembly process. The protrusion (10) is formed at a position on said inner surface (9a) so as not to obstruct installation of the evaporator (7) at a designated mounting position inside the casing (6) (FIGS. 1 to 9).

In an embodiment, the protrusion (10) has a mounting portion (11) for detachably attaching the evaporator (7) to the rear cover (9) (FIGS. 5 to 9).

In another embodiment, the mounting portion (11) has two resilient legs (12) each having an arc-shaped recess (13). The arc-shaped recesses (13) are formed to oppose each other and snap-fittingly engage with a refrigerant conveying tube of the evaporator (7). The resilient legs (12) are configured to firmly abut against the surface of the front cover (8). In a version of this embodiment, the resilient legs (12) each have a tapered tip which form a V-shaped groove which narrows towards a middle of the arc-shaped recesses (FIGS. 5 to 9).

In another embodiment, the protrusion (10) is integrally provided with the rear cover (9) (FIGS. 5 to 9).

In another embodiment, the protrusion (10) is formed at position which is at a mid-width and a mid-height of the rear cover (9) or in the close vicinity thereof (FIGS. 5 to 9).

In another embodiment, an outer surface (9b) of the rear cover (9) is provided with a plurality of reinforcement ribs (14) (FIG. 9).

In another embodiment, the rear cover (9) is provided in form of a rectangular-shaped shell. The shell has an open side (15) which is configured to face the front cover (8). The shell has also a seat (16) which is formed around said open side (15) to circumferentially abut against a counterpart seat (17) which is formed on the front cover (8) (FIGS. 5 to 9).

In another embodiment, the front cover (8) is integrally provided with the inner case (3) (FIG. 5). In this embodiment, the air inlet (not shown) and the air outlet (not shown) are formed into the front cover (8).

In another embodiment, the rear cover (9) has a tube inlet (18) and a tube outlet (19) for respectively inserting an incoming tube and an outgoing tube of the evaporator (7). In this embodiment, the rear cover (9) has also a cable throughlet (20) for inserting a electrical power transmission cable (21) of an electrical defrost heater (23) attached to the evaporator (7). In this embodiment, the rear cover (9) has also a discharge outlet (22) for discharging defrost water (FIGS. 8 to 9).

In another embodiment, the cable throughlet (20) is formed close to an upper side of the rear cover (9) and the discharge outlet (22) is formed on a lowest side of the rear cover (9) (FIGS. 8 to 9).

In another embodiment, the front cover (8), the rear cover (9), and the protrusion (10) are made of plastic material.

The present invention also provides a process of manufacturing a refrigeration appliance (2) using the evaporator assembly (1). In the manufacturing process of the present invention the evaporator (7) is installed into the casing (6) from an open side (15) of the rear cover (9). Then, the rear cover (9) is attached to the front cover (8). Then, foam material is injected between the outer surface (9b) of the rear cover (9) and the outer case (5). These steps are carried out in the above given order.

In another embodiment, refrigeration appliance (2) has an evaporator (7) which has a meandering refrigerant conveying tube (FIG. 10). In a version of this embodiment, the evaporator (7) is provided with fins (not shown).

In another embodiment, the evaporator (7) is provided with an electrical defrost heater (23). In an alternative embodiment, a hot gas defrost technique is utilized. In this alternative embodiment the electrical defrost heater (23) is omitted.

By virtue of the evaporator assembly (1) of the present invention, the proper installation of the evaporator (7) has been maintained during and after completion of the foaming process, a high quality thermal insulation has been attained, and the manufacturing process of the refrigeration appliance (2) has been simplified.

Claims

1. An evaporator assembly for use in a refrigeration appliance, in particular a domestic refrigerator comprising:

an inner case which forms a refrigeration compartment;

an outer case which forms a body of the refrigeration appliance,

a casing for accommodating an evaporator for refrigerating the refrigeration compartment, wherein the casing has an air inlet and an air outlet for circulating the air inside the refrigeration compartment via the evaporator by means of a fan,

wherein said casing has a front cover and a rear cover which are detachably attachable to each other,

wherein the front cover forms a portion of an inner case, and the rear cover has on its inner surface a protrusion which firmly abuts against an opposing surface of the front cover, wherein a cross-section and a material of the protrusion is configured to exhibit a sufficient strength to withstand without being deformed, a pressure exerted by a curing foam material which is injected between the outer surface of the rear cover and the outer case during an assembly process, and wherein the protrusion is formed at a position on said inner surface so as not to obstruct installation of the evaporator at a designated mounting position inside the casing.

2. The evaporator assembly according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion has a mounting portion for detachably attaching the evaporator to the rear cover.

3. The evaporator assembly according to claim 2, wherein the mounting portion has two resilient legs each having an arc-shaped recess which are formed to oppose each other, wherein the arc-shaped recesses are configured to snap-fittingly engage with a refrigerant conveying tube of the evaporator, and wherein the resilient legs are configured to firmly abut against the surface of the front cover.

4. The evaporator assembly according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion is integrally provided with the rear cover.

5. The evaporator assembly according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion is formed at position which is at a mid-width and a mid-height of the rear cover or in a close vicinity thereof.

6. The evaporator assembly according to claim 1, wherein an outer surface of the rear cover is provided with a plurality of reinforcement ribs.

7. The evaporator assembly according to claim 1, wherein the rear cover is provided in form of a rectangular-shaped shell which has: an open side which is configured to face the front cover; and a seat which is formed around said open side to circumferentially abut against a counterpart seat formed on the front cover.

8. The evaporator assembly according to claim 1, wherein the front cover is integrally provided with the inner case, wherein the air inlet and the air outlet are formed in to the front cover.

9. The evaporator assembly according to claim 1, wherein the rear cover having a tube inlet and a tube outlet for respectively inserting an incoming tube and an outgoing tube of the evaporator; a cable throughlet for inserting a electrical power transmission cable of an electrical defrost heater attached to the evaporator and a discharge outlet for discharging defrost water.

10. The evaporator assembly according to claim 9, wherein the cable throughlet is formed close to an upper side of the rear cover and the discharge outlet is formed on a lowest side of the rear cover.

11. A process of manufacturing a refrigeration appliance using the evaporator assembly as defined in claim 1, the manufacturing process comprising the steps of:

installing the evaporator into the casing,

attaching the rear cover to the front cover and

injecting foam material between the outer surface of the rear cover and the outer case.

12. A refrigeration appliance, in particular a domestic refrigerator comprising an inner case which forms a refrigeration compartment; and an outer case which forms a body of the refrigeration appliance, comprising an evaporator assembly as defined in claim 1.

13. The refrigeration appliance according to claim 12, wherein an evaporator which has a meandering refrigerant conveying tube.

14. The refrigeration appliance according to claim 13, wherein the evaporator is provided with fins.

15. The refrigeration appliance according to claim 13, wherein the evaporator is provided with an electrical defrost heater.