Double-door vertical freezer

Abstract

The present invention relates to a freezer 10 of the very low temperature vertical type. The freezer 10 comprises: a thermally insulating cabinet 12 comprising in turn two side walls 14 and 16 , an upper wall 18 , a lower wall 20 and a rear wall 22 ; a thermally conducting shelf 24 suitable for defining, inside the cabinet, an upper compartment 26 and a lower compartment 28 ; an upper door 30 for closing the upper compartment 26 ; and a lower door 32 for closing the lower compartment 28 . The freezer comprises a single cooling plant 34 designed to cool the upper compartment and the lower compartment. Moreover, the thermally conducting shelf defines an air-tight closure between the upper compartment and the lower compartment. Finally, the cooling plant comprises a coil circuit 36 running through the upper wall, the side walls and the rear wall of the cabinet. The coils are distributed with a variable density along the height of the cabinet.

1 - 14 . (canceled) 
     
     
         15 . A very low temperature vertical freezer, comprising:
 a thermally insulating cabinet comprising two side walls, an upper wall, a lower wall, and a rear wall;   a thermally conducting shelf suitable for defining, inside said cabinet, an upper compartment and a lower compartment;   an upper door for closing the upper compartment;   a lower door for closing the lower compartment;   
       wherein
 the freezer comprises a single cooling plant designed to cool the upper compartment and the lower compartment; 
 the thermally conducting shelf forms an air-tight closure between the upper compartment and the lower compartment; and 
 the cooling plant comprises a coil circuit running through the upper wall, the side walls, and the rear wall of the cabinet, coils of the coil circuit being distributed with variable density along a height of the cabinet. 
 
     
     
         16 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein volume of the upper compartment is smaller than or equal to volume of the lower compartment, and wherein extension of the coils around the upper compartment is greater than or equal to the extension of the coils around the lower compartment. 
     
     
         17 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein the cooling plant is designed to cool the upper and lower compartments to a temperature of between −40° C. and −80° C. 
     
     
         18 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein the coils are distributed in the walls bounding the upper compartment with a greater average density than in the walls bounding the lower compartment. 
     
     
         19 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein the upper wall has a density of the coils greater than density of the coils in the side walls and in the rear wall. 
     
     
         20 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein the coils are distributed in the side walls and in the rear wall in such a way so as to have an almost constant average density along a section bounding the upper compartment and in such a way so as to have a variable density along the section bounding the lower compartment. 
     
     
         21 . The freezer according to  claim 20 , wherein density of the coils increases from bottom to top of the lower compartment. 
     
     
         22 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein 54% of total of the coils extend around the upper compartment and remaining 46% of the total of the coils extend around the lower compartment. 
     
     
         23 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein the air-tight closure between the upper compartment and the lower compartment is obtained by means of a silicone bead. 
     
     
         24 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein overall inner volume of the freezer is divided up differently between the upper compartment and the lower compartment. 
     
     
         25 . The freezer according to  claim 24 , wherein volume of the upper compartment is about 45% of total volume cooled by the freezer, while volume of the lower compartment is about 55% of the total volume cooled by the freezer. 
     
     
         26 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , wherein the upper door and the lower door are identical to each other. 
     
     
         27 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , further comprising a thermally insulating band between the two upper and lower doors, the shelf having a smaller thickness than the band and being mounted above, flush with the band. 
     
     
         28 . The freezer according to  claim 15 , further comprising control means for allowing separate access to the upper and lower compartments.