JP2007531669A - Self-cooling packaging actuator - Google Patents

Abstract

Self-cooling packaging comprising a cavity forming a heat exchanger (20) and containing a coolant and its vapor and a cavity forming an adsorption chamber (30) for pumping said vapor. The packaging also includes connection means (40) provided in a common wall (25) of each cavity (20, 30), the connection means comprising a check valve (42) and an adsorption chamber cavity (30). ) And actuating means (45) capable of opening the check valve (42) in the first position in the heat exchanger cavity (20). The packaging further includes spring means (43), and the check valve (42) is configured to gradually reach the fully open position by the operation of the spring means (43). Using the present invention, the check valve can be gradually opened within the heat exchanger cavity.

Description

  The present invention relates to the field of self-cooling packaging, and more particularly to a packaging device capable of cooling contents by a sorption cooling method. The principle of such a cooling method consists of the evaporation of the liquid by the effect of a vacuum maintained by the adsorption of the liquid vapor.

  The present invention can be used to cool beverages contained in sealed cans, particularly cans or bottles. The object of the present invention is therefore to make it possible to consume a beverage at an ideal temperature in a favorite place at a favorite time. However, the present invention can also be utilized in any other packaging that contains products that need to be cooled immediately prior to use, such as cosmetics, ice cream, and the like.

  The implementation of sorption cooling methods is well known and is a theme that has been actively studied in the prior art. Many devices have been proposed in connection with heat exchangers that contain coolant that evaporates in cavities that contain adsorbents, particularly for use in self-cooling beverage packaging.

WO 03/073019 relates to the self-cooling packaging and associated actuator shown in FIG.
This document describes a first cavity 10 capable of containing a beverage, a second cavity 20 forming a heat exchanger and containing a coolant and its vapor, and adsorbing said vapor, such as a desiccant. A package comprising a third cavity 30 containing means for doing so is disclosed. The second and third cavities are provided with a common wall 25 with built-in connection means 40. The connecting means includes a check valve 42, which can withstand the pressure applied on the side surface of the second cavity, and that acts by the action of a force applied on the side surface of the third cavity. open.

  Therefore, the check valve 42 can withstand atmospheric pressure while maintaining the vacuum in the drying chamber 30 formed by the third cavity, and enters the heat exchanger 20 formed by the second cavity. It can be easily operated with a minimum operating force.

  The check valve 42 described in this document is a plunger hollow that transmits the displacement of at least a part of the wall 35 of the third cavity 30 (drying chamber) facing the wall 25 including the connecting means 40 having the check valve. It can be actuated by a rod 45.

  The check valve 42 includes two stroke opening means. The first open position is actuated by the plunger rod 45 to define a coolant vapor restriction path, and the second open position defines an enlarged path that facilitates coolant vapor flow. In the first open position, the closing member of the valve 42 is in continuous contact with the end of the rod 45 due to excessive pressure in the second cavity 20 compared to the third cavity 30, thereby The path of steam through the small side openings into the hollow rod is restricted. In the second position, when the excessive pressure drops, the closure member falls in the second cavity (heat exchanger) and a larger opening into the hollow rod is opened.

  A gas-liquid separator can be installed in the second cavity forming the heat exchanger. Such a gas-liquid separator is disclosed in the pamphlet of International Publication No. 03/041841. Such a gas-liquid separator can separate the vapor molecules of the cooling liquid from the liquid droplets along the vapor flow.

  However, when the flow of steam is very important, especially when starting the cooling process, such a gas-liquid separator may be overloaded. Therefore, when such a separation device is combined with two stroke opening means, when the pressure difference between the drying chamber and the heat exchanger is very large, the cooling process is performed when the pressure difference decreases with the temperature of the heat exchanger. The steam flow can be restricted at the start of the cooling process while avoiding slowing down. The pressure in the heat exchanger cavity is equal to the saturated vapor pressure of a coolant such as water.

However, considering the large variation in steam flow between the start of the cooling process and the subsequent cooling process, it is not sufficient to open these two strokes.
For example, starting a cooling process in which the temperature of the heat exchanger is about 30 ° C., the saturated vapor pressure in the cavity forming the heat exchanger is about 40 mbar (4000 Pa). When the temperature of the heat exchanger is lowered to 10 ° C. or lower due to the sorption cooling process (see the graph of FIG. 8), this pressure is reduced to 10 mbar (1000 Pa) or lower.

  If the sorption capacity of the desiccant is very high at the start of the cooling process, the steam flow changes in proportion to the pressure P. This variation in steam flow is so great that the two stroke open plunger rods of the prior art cannot be adjusted efficiently. In the conventional arrangement, when the connecting means is operated without limiting the evaporation rate of the cooling liquid, it is not possible to avoid the droplets being sent to the direction of the drying chamber due to the boiling force of the cooling liquid, and therefore heat exchange The cooling rate of the vessel is limited.

  The present invention thus provides an enhanced connection between the cavity forming the heat exchanger and the cavity forming the drying chamber. For the check valve in the self-cooling packaging device, a staged opening means is provided instead of two stroke opening means.

More particularly, the present invention provides:
A cavity forming a heat exchanger and containing the coolant and its vapor;
A cavity forming an adsorption chamber for pumping the vapor;
A connecting means provided in a common wall of each of the cavities and provided with a check valve;
An actuating means disposed on a side of the adsorption chamber cavity and configured to open the check valve to an initial position;
The present invention relates to a self-cooling package comprising spring means, wherein the check valve is configured so that the check valve gradually reaches a fully open position by operation of the spring means.

  According to one feature, the check valve is configured to withstand the pressure applied on the side of the heat exchanger cavity and is opened in the heat exchanger cavity by the force applied by the actuating means and the spring means. Can be.

According to one characteristic, when the connecting means is in the closed position, the spring means is in the rest position and is loaded by the actuating means in the initial open position.
According to one embodiment, the spring means is part of the actuation means.

According to another embodiment, the spring means is part of the coupling means.
According to one feature, the actuating means comprises a plunger rod.
According to one characteristic, the spring means has a spring stroke in the range of 0.5 to 0.7 of the stroke of the plunger rod of the actuator.

According to one embodiment, the spring means comprises a helical spring.
According to another embodiment, the spring means comprises a tongue.
According to one embodiment, the check valve has a disc shape.

According to one embodiment, the connecting means comprises a conical check valve and a conical valve seat formed in the common wall.
According to one feature, the conical shape has an angle in the range of 15-30 degrees with respect to the common wall.

According to one embodiment, the coupling means comprises a seal member that is compressed into a receiving position in a direction perpendicular to the opening direction of the check valve.
According to one feature, the package further comprises a gas-liquid separator disposed in the heat exchanger cavity.

According to one characteristic, the gas-liquid separation device defines a solid angle including a connecting means.
The present invention further relates to a method for cooling the contents of a self-cooling package, the package comprising:
A cavity forming a heat exchanger and containing the coolant and its vapor;
A cavity forming an adsorption chamber for pumping the vapor;
A connecting means provided in a common wall of each of the cavities and provided with a check valve;
An actuating means disposed on a side surface of the adsorption chamber cavity;
Spring means,
The method
Opening the check valve to an initial position by operation of the actuating means;
Pumping coolant vapor from the heat exchanger cavity to the adsorption chamber cavity;
Gradually opening the check valve so as to open widely with respect to the pressure drop in the heat exchanger cavity by the operation of the spring means.

According to one feature, the method includes further dropping a check valve into the heat exchanger cavity when the pressure in the heat exchanger cavity drops below a threshold value.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be understood upon reading the following detailed description of embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. This description is merely exemplary.

  The present invention provides a self-cooling package that forms a heat exchanger and includes a cavity that contains a coolant and its vapor and a cavity that forms an adsorption chamber for pumping the vapor. The package also comprises connecting means provided in a common wall of the heat exchanger cavity and the adsorption chamber cavity, the connecting means comprising a check valve. Actuating means is also provided that is disposed on the side of the adsorption chamber cavity and is configured to open the check valve in an initial position within the heat exchanger cavity. The package further includes spring means, and the check valve is configured to gradually reach the fully open position by the operation of the spring means.

  The present invention can gradually open the check valve within the heat exchanger cavity. The check valve conductance, which provides a path for the coolant vapor flow, gradually increases as the pressure in the heat exchanger cavity decreases. Therefore, the flow of steam from the heat exchanger cavity to the adsorption chamber cavity is substantially constant for most of the cooling process. As the pressure drops, the steam pumping speed slows, and the wide open check valve provides a large path for steam to compensate for the pressure drop.

  According to the present invention and as shown in FIGS. 2a to 2c, the packaging forms a heat exchanger with the first cavity 10 that can contain the beverage to be cooled or any other product, A second cavity 20 for accommodating the coolant and its vapor and a third cavity 30 for accommodating means for adsorption pumping of the vapor, such as a desiccant, are provided.

The second and third cavities have a common wall 25 with built-in connection means 40. The connecting means includes a check valve 42.
The packaging further includes coupling means 40 for communicating the heat exchanger cavity 20 and the adsorption chamber cavity 30 to pump the coolant vapor to cool the heat exchanger and to cool the contents of the first cavity 10. Actuating means 45 configured to actuate. The actuating means may include a hollow plunger rod 45 that transmits the displacement of at least a part of the wall 35 of the third cavity 30 (adsorption chamber) facing the common wall 25 of the second and third cavities.

  The package also includes a spring means 43 that is configured to cooperate with the connecting means 40 and the actuating means 45. The spring means 43 can be arranged in the actuating means, i.e. in the plunger rod 45 or in the connecting means, i.e. attached to the check valve 42. The spring means 43 will be described in more detail below with reference to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

  The check valve 42 of the connecting means 40 is configured to withstand pressure applied from the side surface of the heat exchanger cavity 20 and is applied by the actuating means 45 and the spring means 43 from the side surface of the cavity 30 of the adsorption chamber. By force, it can be opened in the heat exchanger cavity 20.

  The check valve 42 includes a closure member that closes the opening in the common wall 25 of the heat exchanger cavity 20 and the drying chamber cavity 30. Preferably, the closure member is solid and can be formed by a metal disc.

  The connecting means 40 also includes a sealing 41 of a check valve 42 around the opening of the common wall 25. The sealing 41 may be a malleable joint, such as vacuum grease or elastomer, disposed between the solid closure member of the valve 42 and the common wall 25. Further, the sealing 41 may be a thin tearable vacuum-tight sheet that covers the closing member of the valve 42 such as an aluminum sheet that is 2/100 mm thick and is bonded to the common wall 25. This sealing is not stressed by high pressure from the side of the heat exchanger cavity 20 due to the design of the check valve 42 and has a very low resistance to the pressure applied by the plunger rod 45 from the side of the drying chamber cavity 30. Just give.

Accordingly, the check valve 42 of the connecting means can be easily opened only in one direction, ie in the direction of the heat exchanger cavity 20.
The operation of the self-cooling packaging apparatus according to the present invention is as follows. Preferably, the packaging is performed upside down, i.e. the adsorption chamber cavity 30 is arranged on the heat exchanger cavity 20.

When not operating, the coupling means is closed (FIG. 2a).
FIG. 3 is a detailed view A of the connecting means according to the first embodiment located in the closed position. The check valve 42 closes the opening of the common wall 25 between the heat exchanger cavity 20 and the adsorption chamber cavity 30 in a vacuum-tight state by the sealing 41. The check valve 42 has a disk shape that is slightly larger than the opening of the common wall 25.

The plunger rod 45 of the actuator is not in direct contact with the valve 42 and is in contact with at least a portion of the bottom wall 35 of the package. The distance L ₀ between the end of the rod 45 and the valve 42 is shorter than the stroke L _{1 of the} actuator. The spring 43 is in a rest state between a fixed point in the rod 45 and the valve 42 and therefore has no effect on the valve 42. The spring 43 can border the valve 42 but does not apply any force to the valve 42 if no wrapping has taken place. The distance L ₀ is selected to be approximately equal to the spring stroke.

In the activated state, the connecting means is open to the initial position (FIG. 2b). The plunger rod is pushed (45) and conveys the displacement of at least a portion of the bottom wall 35 wall. The check valve 42 is pushed by the plunger rod 45 in the heat exchanger cavity 20. This operation has two successive steps. Initially, the plunger rod 45 is pushed in the direction of the valve 42 beyond a given length L ₀ until it contacts the valve. The spring 43 is compressed against the valve 42 at the given length _{L 0} by the rod 45. The plunger rod 45 then breaks the seal and pushes the valve 42 in the heat exchanger cavity 20.

  Accordingly, a path for the vapor of the coolant contained in the heat exchanger cavity 20 that is pumped by the desiccant in the adsorption chamber cavity 30 is opened. At this moment, the pressure in the heat exchanger cavity 20 is much higher than the pressure in the drying cavity 30 within the first fraction of a second after activation of the connecting means. Therefore, the valve 42 is continuously pressed against the end of the rod 45, and the compression state of the spring 43 toward the opening in the common wall 25 of the second and third cavities 20, 30 is maintained by the vapor pressure. The

  The closing member of the valve 42 closes the end of the hollow plunger rod 45 so that the steam path uses a small lateral opening in the rod. While the pressure difference between the second and third cavities 20 and 30 is large, the flow of the steam can be restricted, so that the ejection of droplets into the drying chamber 30 is prevented.

  In the cooling state, the connecting means is gradually fully opened (FIG. 2c). While pumping is taking place, the temperature in the heat exchanger cavity 20 decreases and the pressure in the heat exchanger cavity 20 decreases accordingly. Thus, the spring 43 can extend gradually and the valve 42 is pushed further into the heat exchanger cavity 20 until it reaches its rest position again. The steam path from the heat exchanger cavity 20 to the adsorption chamber cavity 30 gradually increases as the pressure in the heat exchanger 20 decreases.

Accordingly, the speed and stroke of the spring 43 are selected. For example, the spring speed can be in the range of 10-20 g / mm and the spring stroke can be in the range of 1-3 mm. Preferably, the spring stroke is dependent on the actuator stroke. The plunger rod 45 can load the spring 43 beyond the distance L ₀ and has a stroke L ₁ that is long enough to open the check valve to its initial position. The spring stroke can be between 0.5 and 0.7 of the actuator stroke. The optimal ratio between L ₀ and L ₁ is 2/3.

  The closing member of the valve 42 removes the obstruction at the end of the plunger 45 while remaining directly on the steam path. Accordingly, the flow of steam from the heat exchanger cavity 20 to the drying cavity 30 can be increased while restricting the ejection of droplets into the drying chamber 30.

  Preferably, the packaging is performed upside down, so that dripping can be limited by gravity. Furthermore, when the pressure in the heat exchanger 20 falls below a threshold value for cooling, the blocking member of the check valve 42 falls into the heat exchanger cavity 20, and the steam in the direction of the adsorption chamber cavity 30 is dropped. The route becomes larger. Therefore, the weight of the closing member of the check valve 42 is selected.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the connecting means of the packaging according to the invention with different spring means. All other functions are almost the same. As already described in the drawings, the spring means comprises a helical spring fixed on the inner wall of the hollow rod 45 at a predetermined distance from the check valve 42. In FIG. 4, the spring 43 includes a tongue provided at the end of the rod 45. The tongue 43 may be integrated with the rod 45. In the rest position (FIG. 4), the tongue 43 extends straight in the direction of the check valve 42. The end of the actuator plunger rod 45 is still away from the check valve beyond a given distance L ₀ which is shorter than the actuator stroke L ₁ . In the actuated state (corresponding to FIG. 2b), the tongue 43 bends on the end of the rod due to the pressure of the closing member of the valve 42 and extends straight, gradually as the pressure decreases. Push away (corresponds to FIG. 2c).

The embodiment described in FIG. 4 is easy and inexpensive to manufacture, but requires careful adjustment of the spring speed.
In other embodiments, the tongue 43 is integral with the check valve 42. When in the rest position (FIG. 4), the tongue extends straight in the direction of the plunger rod 45. The end of the actuator plunger rod 45 is still away from the check valve beyond a given distance L ₀ which is shorter than the actuator stroke L ₁ . In the activated state (corresponding to FIG. 2 b), the tongue is bent with respect to the closing member of the valve 42 by the rod 45. Next, the tongue 43 gradually returns to a straight state, and pushes the closing member of the valve as the pressure decreases (corresponding to FIG. 2c).

  FIG. 5 shows another embodiment of the connecting means of the packaging of the present invention. The coupling means 40 comprises a valve seat 44 comprising a cylindrical part configured to receive a closing member of a check valve 42 having a corresponding cylindrical part on the periphery. With such a design, the sealing member 41 can compress the space between the wall of the cylindrical valve closing member 42 and the wall of the cylindrical valve seat 44. Conveniently, such a sealing member may be an O-ring sealing 41.

  Due to the strongly compressed O-ring sealing, in the storage state, the force to open the valve 42 is perpendicular to the compression force of the O-ring, so it still needs a little force to operate, Before the cooling process is activated, the sealing efficiency between the heat exchanger cavity 20 and the adsorption chamber cavity 30 can be improved. The cylindrical portion of the valve closure member 42 and the cylindrical portion of the valve seat 44 are slightly conical or any other shape that compresses the sealing member 41 perpendicular to the displacement of the check valve closure member 42. It should be understood that a combination of The embodiment of FIG. 5 comprises the spring means of FIG. 3, but can be implemented in conjunction with the spring means of FIG.

  FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of the packaging according to the present invention including a gas-liquid separation device 50 provided in the heat exchanger cavity 20. Such a gas-liquid separation device 50 is described in International Publication No. 03041841 pamphlet. Such a gas-liquid separator can separate the vapor molecules of the coolant from the droplets carried along the vapor flow. The gas-liquid separator 50 is a vapor deflector that causes at least one sudden change in direction of the vapor flow on the path to the opening of the common wall 25 in the direction of the adsorption chamber cavity 30. This gas-liquid separator 50 relates to the gradual opening of the connecting means according to the present invention in order to improve the pumping conditions of the coolant vapor.

  FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of the connection means of the package having a conical valve seat 44 and a valve closure member 42 in the open position. Conveniently, this is associated with a check valve 42 having a conical closure member instead of the previously described disc shape. Preferably, the angle of inclination α is the same as the angle of inclination of the valve seat 44 and the valve closure member 42 and can be in the range of 15-30 degrees.

Due to the conical shape of the valve seat 44 and the valve closure member 42, excellent sealing can be achieved with an inclined wall coated with a suitable vacuum-tight material such as PTFE (Teflon ™). However, in this design, the actuator stroke L ₁ needs to be longer compared to the design of FIGS. 3 and 4 in order to pass through the conical shape of the valve seat 44.

The embodiment of FIG. 7 can be combined with any of the spring means embodiments of FIG. 3 or FIG. 4 as well.
In the case of FIG. 7, the spring 43 pushes the valve 42 into the gas-liquid separator 50 in order to open the rod 45. Accordingly, the steam path passes from the inside of the heat exchanger cavity 20 to the inside of the gas-liquid separation device 50 through the side opening 51 shown in FIG. 6, surrounds the valve closing member 42, and tilts the valve seat 44. Between the wall and the inclined wall of the valve closure member 42 flows into the end of the hollow rod 45 and into the side opening.

When the vapor pressure in the heat exchanger cavity 20 falls below a threshold value, the valve closing member 42 falls into the gas-liquid separator 50.
Only the embodiment of FIG. 7 includes a gas-liquid separator. However, it should be understood that the embodiments described with reference to FIGS. 3-5 can also include such a gas-liquid separator.

FIG. 9 shows the efficiency of the connecting means of the packaging according to the present invention.
When the pressure in the heat exchanger cavity is high (when the cooling process is started), the flow rate towards the adsorption chamber cavity through a check valve with means of gradually opening is compared to the flow rate of the prior art Less and more prevent droplets of coolant pumped with steam.

  If the spring opens the rod during the cooling process, the flow rate increases slightly and gradually decreases. However, the rapid increase in flow rate does not occur as in the prior art, where droplets can flow with the vapor in the drying chamber cavity.

  Thus, the present invention provides a self-cooling package with gradually opening connection means that can maintain high pumping efficiency while more preventing droplets pumped with steam.

Self-cooling packaging according to the prior art. The self-cooling packaging according to the present invention, having a connecting means located in a closed position. A self-cooling packaging according to the present invention having a coupling means located in the operating position. The self-cooling packaging according to the present invention, having connecting means that are gradually positioned in the open position. Detailed view A of the connection means which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention located in a closed position. Detailed view of the connecting means according to the second embodiment of the present invention located in the closed position. Detailed drawing of the connection means which concerns on the 3rd Embodiment of this invention located in a closed position. Embodiment of this invention containing a gas-liquid separator. The detail drawing of the connection means which concerns on the 4th Embodiment of this invention located in an open position. Diagram of saturated vapor pressure depending on the temperature in the heat exchanger. The diagram which compares the valve flow volume which concerns on a prior art, and the valve flow volume which concerns on this invention.

Claims (17)

Self-cooling packaging,
A cavity forming a heat exchanger (20) and containing a coolant and its vapor;
A cavity forming an adsorption chamber (30) for pumping said vapor;
A connecting means (40) provided in a common wall (25) of each of the cavities (20, 30) and comprising a check valve (42);
Actuating means (45) disposed on a side of the adsorption chamber cavity (30) and configured to open the check valve to an initial position;
Self-cooling packaging comprising spring means (43) configured to gradually push the check valve (42) from its initial position to its fully open position. The check valve (42) is configured to withstand pressure applied on the side of the heat exchanger cavity (20), and by the force applied by the actuating means (45) and the spring means (43), The self-cooling packaging according to claim 1, which can be opened into the heat exchanger cavity (20). The said spring means (43) is located in a rest position when said connection means is located in a closed position, and the load is applied by said actuating means (45) in said first open position. Self-cooling packaging as described. The self-cooling packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the spring means (43) is part of the actuating means (45). The self-cooling type packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the spring means (43) is a part of the connecting means (40). The self-cooling packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the operating means includes a plunger rod (45). Self-cooling packaging according to claim 6, wherein the spring means (43) has a spring stroke in the range of 0.5 to 0.7 of the stroke of the plunger rod (45) of the actuator. The self-cooling packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the spring means (43) comprises a helical spring. The self-cooling packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the spring means (43) comprises a tongue. The self-cooling type packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the check valve (42) has a disk shape. The connecting means (40) comprises a conical check valve (42) and a conical valve seat (44) formed in the common wall (25). The self-cooling type packaging according to any one of the above. The self-cooling packaging according to claim 11, wherein the conical shape has an angle (α) in a range of 15 degrees to 30 degrees with respect to the common wall (25). The said connection means (40) is provided with the sealing member (41) compressed to the accommodation position of the direction perpendicular | vertical with respect to the open direction of the said non-return valve (42). Self-cooling packaging as described in the item. The self-cooling type packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 13, further comprising a gas-liquid separation device (50) disposed in the heat exchanger cavity (20). 15. The self-cooling packaging according to claim 14, wherein the gas-liquid separator (50) defines a solid angle including the connecting means (40). A method of cooling the contents of self-cooling packaging,
The packaging is
A cavity forming a heat exchanger (20) and containing a coolant and its vapor;
A cavity forming an adsorption chamber (30) for pumping said vapor;
A connecting means (40) provided in a common wall (25) of the respective cavities (20, 30) and comprising a check valve (42);
Actuating means (45) disposed on a side surface of the adsorption chamber cavity (30);
Spring means (43),
The method
Opening the check valve (42) to an initial position by operation of the actuating means (45);
Pumping the coolant vapor from the heat exchanger cavity (20) to the adsorption chamber cavity (30);
Gradually opening the check valve (42) by the operation of the spring means (43) so that it opens largely against a drop in pressure in the heat exchanger cavity (20). 17. The method of claim 16, comprising dropping the check valve (42) into the heat exchanger cavity (20) when the pressure in the heat exchanger cavity (20) drops below a threshold value. Method.

Images