Door construction for vertical refrigerator and freezer spaces

• US 5,329,736 A
• Filed: 03/03/1993
• Issued: 07/19/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Termofrost AB (Schott Glaverbel Bv)
• Original Assignee: Termofrost AB (Schott Glaverbel Bv)
• Inventors: Sodervall, Sven-Erik
• Primary Examiner(s): Friedman, Carl D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): COGGINS, WYNN WOOD
• Application Number:
  US08/025,756
• Time in Patent Office: 503 Days
• Field of Search: 52/171 R, 52/788, 312/236, 312/116, 62/248, 62/247, 62/255
• US Class Current: 52/171.3
• CPC Class Codes: A47F 3/0434 Glass or transparent panels

Abstract

A door structure, for use in combination with upright refrigerator and freezer spaces, which utilizes heat transfer by forced convection, of the kind used in everyday commodity stores to display goods on sale. The door has two glass panes which together with a frame embracing the edges of the glass panes, either completely or partially, form a door leaf. The glass pane which faces towards the warm atmosphere of a shop area is provided on the surface thereof facing away from the shop area with an electrically conductive coating, which is operative to heat the outer pane electrically. The door has solely two mutually parallel glass panes, of which the glass pane facing towards the colder refrigerator or freezer space is provided on the surface thereof which faces towards the colder space solely with an infrared radiation reflective coating or layer.

Claims

1. A vertical door structure and upright cabinet structure with refrigerator and freezer cold spaces of the kind normally used in everyday commodity stores to display goods on sale, said upright cabinet structure having a cooling system with forced cooling air circulation within and through the cold space, and having a vertical doorway, and means pivotally mounting said door structure on said cabinet structure on a vertical axis so the door structure is adapted to close said doorway;

said door structure comprising two glass panes which, together with a frame which embraces the edges of the glass panes, at least partially form a vertical door leaf, wherein the glass panes of said door comprise solely two parallel, spaced apart glass panes, a first of said parallel glass panes having two surfaces and facing towards the warm atmosphere of a shop area when the door is installed on said cabinet structure, a heat generating electrically conductive coating provided on the surface of said first pane which will be remote from the shop area and being effective to heat said first glass pane electrically; and

the second of said two parallel glass panes, having two surfaces and facing towards the colder refrigerator or freezer space when the door is installed on said cabinet structure and is closed, an infrared radiation reflective material coating provided on the surface of said second pane facing towards said colder space, said infrared radiation reflective material coating constituting the sole surface material on the surface of said second glass pane facing the colder space and which said sole surface material provides a radiation exchange with an emissivity factor, to the colder space, which is less than 0.2.

2. A door structure as defined in claim 1, wherein said infrared reflective material coating has an emissivity factor less than 0.12.

3. A door and cabinet structure as defined in claim 1, wherein said cooling system includes air flow duct means within the cabinet with at least one upper duct at the top of said cabinet with at least an airflow outlet adjacent the top of the interior side of the cabinet door;

and said duct means include at least a return air flow duct with a return airflow inlet at least adjacent the bottom of the interior side of the cabinet door, whereby a curtain of cooling air flow will pass from said outlet down over said door structure surface and in contact with said infrared radiation reflective coating surface material on said second glass pane.

4. A door and cabinet structure as defined in claim 3, wherein said cooling system includes refrigerator unit with evaporator coils and a circulation fan which receives air from said return air flow duct and forces the air to pass over the cooling system evaporator coils and thence through said one duct and out through said airflow outlet at the top of said cabinet.