Refrigerated display counter

Abstract

 A refrigerated display counter (1) is described in the body (2) of which there is defined at least one accessory compartment (32) for cooling and forced air circulation means which is removably closed by a plurality of shelves (19) cooled by circulation of cold air below them and which jointly define the display shelf of the counter. Facilitated is access to the accessory compartment (32) and a possible stock stowage compartment (33) for cleaning or maintenance operations.

Description

[0001] The present invention refers to a refrigerated display counter of the type comprising:

• an insulated body in which there is defined at least one product display compartment and at least one accessory compartment intended to receive means for cooling and force circulating cooled air in said counter,
• a display shelf removably mounted in said body and delimiting said display compartment,
• at least one cooled air distribution conduit below said display shelf for cooling the same, said conduit being extended from said cooling means.

[0002] A display counter including the aforesaid characteristics is known from British Patent No. 1414743 in the name of the German Company Linde Aktiengesellschaft.

[0003] The subject display counter of this prior patent has a display shelf essentially tray-like in shape, which can be inserted or removed from the insulated body according to specific demands.

[0004] This counter has the undoubted advantage of enabling cooling of the products both by forced ventilation with cold air from above, that is with a stream of cooled air which sweeps past the products above the display shelf, and by direct thermal exchange with the display shelf because the surface of the same is cooled by the cold air stream which circulates below it.

[0005] With this refrigeration system one partly avoids drawbacks typical of refrigerated display counters in which the products are cooled solely by the cold air stream which circulates above the display shelf.

[0006] For example, these counters particularly suit the treatment of non-packaged products in that they allow the surface drying of the goods on display to be limited owing to the lower temperature of the products for the same relative humidity of the circulating air.

[0007] On the other hand these known counters have the drawback of a comparatively difficult maintenance of the evaporators and the means for forced circulation of cooled air and involve some difficulty to clean the accessory compartment and the corresponding walls of the body.

[0008] The object of the invention is to provide a refrigerated display counter structured to ensure optimum preservation of the products and at the same time having such a structure as to facilitate maintenance and cleaning the accessory compartment as well as the means intended for cooling and forcibly circulating cooled air.

[0009] This object is achieved by a display counter including the characteristics mentioned initially and characterized in that said display shelf constitutes removable closure of said accessory compartment so that said accessory compartment and said cooling means are accessible following removal of said display shelf.

[0010] The characteristics arid advantages of the invention will be better appreciated from the detailed description that follows of two preferred but not exclusive embodiment forms thereof, shown by way of illustration and not of limitation, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

• Figure 1 is a schematic view in cross-section of a refrigerated display counter embodying this invention;
• Figure 2 is a perspective view to an enlarged scale and in partial section of a detail of the counter of Figure 1;
• Figure 3 is a schematic view in cross-section of a variation of the counter of this invention.

[0011] In Figures 1 and 2, generally denoted by 1 is a refrigerated display counter embodying this invention.

[0012] The counter 1 comprises an insulated unitized body 2, supported on a bed 3 and overlaid by a display window 4 of a structure conventional per se.

[0013] The unitized body 2 has a substantially tray-like configuration with walls marked by the references 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d. The walls 2a and 2d are substantially perpendicular to the wall 2b which constitutes the bottom of the tray-like structure; the wall 2c is inclined for connection between the walls 2b and 2d. In the wall 2a there is formed a plurality of openings 5 closed removably by insulated doors 6. In the wall 2b there is formed a header 7 intended for collecting and draining off the condensation and/or defrosting water.

[0014] Along the wall 2c, inside the tray-like structure, there is anchored and supported an evaporator 8 belonging to a refrigerating circuit not shown and conventional per se. Such an evaporator 8 is disposed in an air suction conduit 8a, delimited between the wall 2c and a case 9. Said case 9 has a plurality of openings 10 with each of which there is associated an electric fan 11 with such an arrangement that the air sucked in by the electric fans 11 is preliminarly cooled by the evaporator 8.

[0015] The case 9 is also a closure wall of a tubular box 12, intended for distributing the cooled air as better explained hereinafter. In the box 12 there are identified two walls 13, 14 substantially square to each other and both provided with groups of through-openings identified with 16, 17 and 18. The openings 16 and 17 are associated with refrigerated air feed-in conduits whilst the openings 18 are associated with air recovery conduits 18a placed at the bottom wall 2c of the unitized body 2.

[0016] A plurality of shelves, all indicated at 19, are supported side-by-side in the unitized body 2 so as to identify a display shelf of the refrigerated counter. The shelves 19 comprise a metal plate 20 whose juxtaposed longitudinal edges 21, 22 are folded upwards, in the direction of the display window 4 and whose juxtaposed transverse edges 23 are folded to an "L" downwards to define juxtaposed brackets between which a panel 24 is supported and secured.

[0017] The shelves 19 are made to rest in a removable way in the counter 1 and supported such that one longitudinal end of the panels 24 rests on a bracket 25 running along the wall 2a, above the openings 5, the juxtaposed end of the panels rests on the box 12 and the part proximate to the edge 21 rests, substantially sealed by the provision of a strip 26, along the upper corner edge of the case 9 where this partly encloses the evaporator 8. In this way, the shelves 19 help to delimit the air suction conduit 8a.

[0018] Said shelves 19 also help to constitute a conduit 27 for distributing cooled air below the display shelf. That conduit 27 is extended between the openings 16 and an outflow opening defined on the free end of the edge 21 at which there is provided a so-called "air brake", perforated plate labyrinth device 30. The conduit 27 is delimited between the plate 20, on the one side, and the case 9, wall 14, panel 24 and wall 2a of the unitized body 2, on the other side.

[0019] The above-described structural elements and in particular the unitized body 2, display window 4, shelves 19 and box 12 delimit three discrete compartments in the counter 1. The first of them, the so-called display compartment 31, is identified between the display shelf defined by the shelves 19 and the display window 4. The second is an accessory compartment indicated at 32 and delimited below the shelves 19 between the wall 2c and the box 12. That compartment 32 is intended as mentioned to contain the counter components intended for cooling and circulating the air. The third compartment, indicated at 33, is defined below the shelves 19 between the walls 2a and 13 and is intended for stowing the stock of products intended to be disposed on the display shelf.

[0020] Notice that by removing the panels 19, both the compartment 32 housing the "technical" components of the counter, and the stock stowage compartment 33 are fully accessible for maintenance and/or cleaning making the operation of the counter 1 particularly simple and sanitary.

[0021] In Figure 3 there is shown a second example of the counter of this invention. The counter of this example is indicated generally at 40 and similar items are identified with the same reference numerals as in the previous example.

[0022] The counter 40 is provided with a display compartment 31, a well-shaped accessory compartment 32 containing the evaporator 8, the means 9, 10 and 11 intended for forced circulation of the cooled air whilst absent is the stock stowage compartment. The accessory compartment is divided by the case 9 into two volumes, the one to contain the evaporator 8 and identifying the suction conduit 8a and the other to contain the electric fans 11 and belonging to the distribution conduit 27.

[0023] As for the display shelf, this is defined by a plurality of shelves 41 disposed side-by-side and each comprising a plate 42 whose longitudinally juxtaposed ends are folded upwards to define two juxtaposed longitudinal edges 43, 44 and whose juxtaposed transverse ends are folded to an "L" downwards to define, like in the previous example, two juxtaposed transverse edges 45.

[0024] The cooled air distribution conduit 27 is delimited, at the air suction conduit 8a, between the plate 20 and an eave 46 extended between the edges 45 from the rest area of the shelf on the evaporator 8. The eave 46 is shaped into a nozzle 47 so as to limit the flow rate of cooled air issuing therefrom into the conduit 8a. The same suction conduit is delimited, between the evaporator 8 and the wall 2a of the unitized body, between the plate 20 and the longitudinal edge 43, on the one side, and the walls 2a, 2e and 2f of the unitized body 2, on the other side. The shelves are made to rest removably on the case 9, where this encloses the upper corner edge of the evaporator, and on the wall 2f of the unitized body.

[0025] This different embodiment of the invention also allows of easy cleaning and maintenance of the accessory compartment and the air refrigerating means contained in it.

Claims

1. Refrigerated display counter (1) comprising:

- an insulated body (2) in which there is defined at least one product display compartment (31) and at least one accessory compartment (32) intended to receive means for cooling and force circulating cooled air in said counter,

- a display shelf (19) removably mounted in said body and delimiting said display compartment (31),

- at least one cooled air distribution conduit (27) below said display shelf (31) for cooling the same, said conduit (27) being extended from said cooling means, characterized in that said display shelf (19) constitutes removable closure of said accessory compartment (32) so that said accessory compartment (32) and said cooling means are accessible following removal of said display shelf (19).

2. Refrigerated display counter according to Claim 1 comprising a further stock storage compartment (33), removably closed by panels (24) rigid with corresponding shelves (19) which define said display shelf (19).

3. Refrigerated display counter according to Claim 2, wherein said cooling means include cooled air feed-in conduits into said storage compartment and recovery conduits (18a) from said compartment.

4. Refrigerated display counter according to Claim 2, wherein each panel (24) is attached to the corresponding shelf (19) in spaced relationship therewith and wherein said panel (24) delimits over at least some length said distribution conduit (27) and constitutes wall of said storage compartment (33).

Drawing