Open showcase

Abstract

The invention is intended to provide an open showcase which allows efficient displaying of frozen and refrigerated foods even in a retail store with a limited sales floor space. Thus, the open showcase, as it comprises a lower showcase whose top face is open and an upper showcase which is arranged above and at a prescribed distance from the top face of the lower showcase, is enabled to display frozen foods in the lower showcase and refrigerated foods in the upper showcase. For instance, frozen foods such as ice cream and sherbet and refrigerated items such as custard pudding and yogurt can be displayed at the same time in a single showcase. Accordingly goods can be efficiently displayed even in a retail store having only a limited sales floor space.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] (i) Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an open showcase to be installed in retail stores including supermarkets and convenience stores for the storage of frozen or refrigerated foods. [0003] (ii) Description of the Related Art [0004] Known conventional open showcases of this kind include one comprising a showcase body whose top side is open, an air duct formed along the front, bottom and rear sides of the showcase body, and a cooler and an air blower arranged within the air duct, in which an air curtain is formed in the opening of the top face by air sucked through an air intake disposed toward the front end of the showcase body, cooled by the cooler and discharged through an air outlet disposed toward the rear end of the opening of the top face of the showcase body. Frozen or refrigerated foods are preserved at low temperature in the showcase body. [0005] However, according to the configuration of this conventional open...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide an open showcase which allows efficient displaying of both frozen and refrigerated foods even in a retail store with a limited sales floor space.

[0008] It is thereby enabled, for instance, to display frozen foods in the lower showcase and refrigerated foods in the upper showcase. In this case, since the upper showcase is arranged above the lower showcase, no extra installation space is required. Therefore, as it is possible to display frozen foods in the lower showcase and refrigerated foods in the upper showcase, frozen foods such as ice cream and sherbet and refrigerated items such as custard pudding and yogurt can be displayed at the same time in a single showcase for instance. Accordingly goods can be efficiently displayed even in a retail store having only a limited sales floor space.

[0010] This makes it possible, in addition to the above-described effect, to prevent air on the upper showcase side from falling onto the top face of the lower showcase because the air descending from the rear side opening of the upper showcase is caused by the forced draft unit to circulate along the under face of the upper showcase toward the front of the lower showcase. Therefore, even where cold air having overflowed the air curtains formed on the upper showcase and external air cooled by contact with the air curtains descend toward the upper face of the lower showcase body, air on the upper showcase side does not fall onto the top face of the lower showcase. Therefore, disturbance of the air curtain of the lower showcase can be prevented without fail.

Problems solved by technology

In a retail store with a limited sales floor space, difficulty is very likely to be experienced in efficiently displaying such foods.

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