CN100436980C

CN100436980C - Refrigerator

Info

Publication number: CN100436980C
Application number: CNB2006100090944A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 堀江宗弘; 塚本惠造; 野口好友; 仁木茂; 菊地宣博; 山本亮介
Original assignee: Toshiba Corp; Toshiba Consumer Marketing Corp; Toshiba Home Appliances Corp
Current assignee: Toshiba Corp; Toshiba Consumer Marketing Corp; Toshiba Lifestyle Products and Services Corp
Priority date: 2005-02-18
Filing date: 2006-02-17
Publication date: 2008-11-26
Anticipated expiration: 2026-02-17
Also published as: KR20060093051A; TW200639360A; JP2006226635A; TWI308207B; CN1821688A; KR100681983B1

Abstract

The invention provided a refrigerator retaining a proper temperature state by effectively suppressing a cold air flow to be introduced into an ice making chamber, suppressing sublimation of stored ice, providing long term preservation, and eliminating a temperature rise in the ice making chamber. The refrigerator wherein a refrigeration chamber 2, a vegetable chamber 3, a freezing chamber 4, and the ice making chamber 5 provided with an automatic ice making device 12 are independently arranged, is characterized by that it is provided with a fan 7 introducing cold air into the ice making chamber, and a damper 15 adjusting an amount of the cold air to be introduced, and the damper is opened and closed during stoppage of an ice making function.

Description

Refrigerator

Technical field

The present invention relates to have automatic ice-making plant, to the refrigerator that calculates of long preservation of ice.

Background technology

Refrigerator in recent years generally has automatic ice-making plant, and its water that will be located at the feed-tank in the refrigerating chamber is supplied in automatically and is located at cryogenic temperature space independently is that ice-making disc in the ice-making compartment is carried out ice making, and deices and ice storage.This automatic ice-making plant structure is, has the water of ormal weight in feed-tank, as long as the ice storage amount is not more than or equal to prescribed level and do not forced to stop ice making by the user, just continues to carry out automatically ice making and moves.

And ice-making compartment is identical with refrigerating chamber, is will import the cryogenic temperature space of cooling off with cold air that cooler generated by freezing by fan, often separates setting with other storeroom.Therefore, refrigerating chamber be communicated with, make cold air from refrigerating chamber to circulate by cold duct to cool off, ice making.

When moving according to above-mentioned continuation ice making, the water that the capital is used because of the ice making in the feed-tank becomes not to be had or the ice storage case is full of ice the ice making action is stopped, in addition, wait the less period of needs of ice in the winter time, the situation that does not need ice making and forced to stop ice making function by the user is also arranged.

Owing to the occasion that stops at ice making function, cold air flows into ice-making compartment by pipeline, therefore, in order to eliminate unreasonable situation that unnecessary space is cooled off and on the pipeline of ice-making compartment, be provided with air door, needn't cold wind be sent to the occasion of ice maker at finishing ice-making, following technical scheme has been proposed: close air door, will do greatly (for example Japanese documentation 1 or 2) to the cold air import volume of other storerooms such as refrigerating chamber, refrigerating chamber, vegetable compartment.

[patent documentation 1] Japan Patent spy opens the 2000-292046 communique

[patent documentation 2] Japan Patent spy opens the 2001-221555 communique

But, even stop the occasion of ice making function, as described in Japanese documentation 1 etc., closing cold air that air door will flow into ice-making compartment when cutting off, reefer space is that the ice making indoor temperature rose in several hours near 0 ℃, and the dissolved problem of ice of storage is arranged.In addition, need only and open and close air door, cold air flows into the volume-diminished that the distillation phenomenon that is produced makes ice when opening because of air door, flows into cold air and is in drying regime, so the phenomenon that distils in addition, when so for a long time, the amount of ice just significantly reduces.

Summary of the invention

The present invention considers the problems referred to above and makes, purpose is to provide a kind of like this refrigerator: by the cold air flow in effective control introducing ice-making compartment, can control the distillation of the ice that stores and, the temperature in the ice-making compartment be risen, keep suitable state of temperature its long preservation.

To achieve these goals, refrigerator of the present invention is separate configurations refrigerating chamber and the refrigerator with ice-making compartment of automatic ice-making plant, have cold air is imported the fan in the described ice-making compartment and regulates the air door that imports air conditioning quantity, when stopping, ice making function make described air door carry out on-off action, the characteristics of this refrigerator are that the switching of the air door when ice making function stops is alternately to move every the stipulated time.

Adopt structure of the present invention, in the ice storage amount for full box or feed-tank is anhydrous or force to stop to move etc. because of user's intention and stop under the occasion of ice making function, can suppress the temperature rising in the ice-making compartment and be held in necessary chilling temperature state, but the distillation of the ice that can suppress to store simultaneously and long preservation.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 is the ice making running control flow chart of the refrigerator of expression the present invention the 1st embodiment.

Fig. 2 is the flow chart of the ice making running control of expression the present invention the 2nd embodiment.

Fig. 3 is the flow chart of the ice making running control of expression the present invention the 3rd embodiment.

Fig. 4 is the longitudinal section of expression refrigerator general configuration of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is the flow chart of the control mode of the common automatic ice-making plant of expression.

The specific embodiment

Below, one embodiment of the invention are described with reference to the accompanying drawings.Fig. 4 is the longitudinal section of refrigerator, the inside of the refrigerator body 1 that is formed by heat insulating box is as storage space, respectively independently at topmost configuration refrigerating chamber 2, thereunder dispose vegetable compartment 3 and foot configuration refrigerating chamber 4, between refrigerating chamber 2 and vegetable compartment 3, be arranged side by side ice-making compartment 5 about by heat insulation baffle wall and not shown many temperature are switched the chamber, be provided with special-purpose separately door in the front openings of each storeroom and seal freely to open and close.

Rear portion in vegetable compartment 3, dispose the cooler 6 that the spaces that keep in cold storage such as refrigerating chamber and ice-making compartment are used, with the fan 7 that will in storeroom, circulate by the cold air that this cooler 6 is generated by pipeline, be provided with cooler 8 and fan 9 that refrigeration storage space that refrigerating chamber 2 and vegetable compartment 3 are cooled off is used at the back side of storeroom 2, the driving of the coolant compressor 10 of the Machine Room by being located at the body bottom makes cold-producing medium alternately at described cooler 6, flow in 8, cooled cold air is passed through fan 7,9 rotation and being sent in each storeroom of freezing side and refrigeration side, and be cooled respectively and be controlled to set point of temperature.

Be provided in the automatic ice-making plant 12 in the described ice-making compartment 5, move ice making by the ice making shown in the control flow chart of Fig. 5 usually.Promptly, the ice-making disc 12a that supplies in the ice-making compartment 5 by the water that will be located at the feed-tank 13 in the refrigerating chamber 2 carries out ice making, detect (during the situation of step 1) finishing ice-making detecting by the sensor that is located at ice-making disc 12a smaller or equal to-12 ℃, detect ice storage amount (step 2) earlier, then make ice-making disc 12a rotation, reverse, deice (step 4), the subglacial after the disengagement fall be located at ice-making disc 12a bottom ice storage case 12b in by ice storage.

It is that the ice in the relative ice storage case of the test rod 12b is carried out as knee-action that the ice storage amount of carrying out before rotation deices action detects (step 2).And, if ice storage case 12b for example is full ice state, then contacts it is detected by test rod and face on ice, this occasion stops to deice action, and detects the action (step 3) of ice storage amount more repeatedly in the moment of passing through 90 minutes.The detection again of described ice storage amount action when the door of ice-making compartment 5 is opened, is moved its taking-up that is considered as icing and is carried out.

During above-mentioned ice storage amount detection, when detecting the situation that is not full box by the ice that takes out ormal weight from ice storage case 12b, proceed to deice action (step 4), and carry out the feedwater action (step 5) that next ice making uses, but residual water not in feed-tank 13, and in ice-making disc 12a, do not supply to the occasion of the water of ormal weight, because the temperature of ice-making disc does not rise to setting, do not detect that (step 6) rises to temperature and for example rises to more than or equal to-9 ℃ and be installed in temperature sensor on the ice-making disc 12a, therefore, be judged as anhydrous (step 7), interrupt later ice making action, the moment after 90 minutes, (step 8), detection had or not feedwater again.This occasion also detects action equally again with described ice storage amount, when the door of refrigerating chamber 2 is opened, it is considered as carrying out supplementing water action and the tentative again action of feeding water to feed-tank 13.

In other words, do not detect the full box of the ice storage amount of described ice storage case 12b,, just continue this ice making action automatically repeatedly in feed-tank 13 as long as the ice making water of ormal weight is arranged more than or equal to prescribed level.On the contrary,, stop later ice making action, and waits the user who does not need to ice to force to carry out the occasion of shut-down operation or cooler in defrosting is turned round in the winter time, also stop ice making and move when the ice making water in the feed-tank 13 become not to have, ice storage case 12b is during for full box.

As mentioned above, stopping the occasion of ice making function, interrupt ice making function, up to removing stop reason, promptly, added to feed-tank 13, maybe will ice from ice storage case 12b and take out or till the user carries out recovery operation up to water, but stopping under the state of ice making, if shelve for a long time, as previously mentioned, because ice pellets diminishes because of distillation, so in the present invention, when stopping ice making function, by closing the air door 15 that is located on the cold duct of ice-making compartment 5, thereby the cold air that cuts off from ice-making compartment 5 blow-off outlets blows out.

But, recover period by the ice making function that is carried out to described feed-tank 13 supplementing water etc., because the influence that carried out by user's recovery action, so it is uncertain, such as described above, in order to prevent to rise and make the ice dissolving, or open and close the inflow of the dry cold air that causes, make the volume-diminished of ice by the phenomenon that distils, because of air door 15 only so further take following structure in the present invention because of unconditionally closing temperature in the caused ice-making compartments 5 of air door 15.

Now the 1st embodiment of the present invention is described according to control flow chart shown in Figure 1.Fig. 1 only represents control of the present invention.

At first,, whether confirm in ice making that (if step 11), is then opened air door 15 that (step 12) is detecting the ice making action when stopping, and the air door 15 that ice-making compartment is used is controlled to closed condition (step 13) in the ice making through described common ice making action.By this action, because cold air does not circulate in ice-making compartment 5, so in the distillation that can reduce ice on the other hand, the temperature in the ice-making compartment just rises.

Therefore, close air door 15 during water is added to feed-tank 13, maybe will ice from ice storage case 12b and take out and (step 14) when recovering the ice making action, continue this action and open air door 15 (step 12), in addition, after continuing to stop ice making action, in that for example (step 15) is opened (step 16) with air door 15 too 20 minutes the time through certain hour, be controlled to cold air is sent in the ice-making compartment 5, prevent that indoor temperature from rising.

When after opening air door 15, recovering the ice makings action (step 17), the open mode that continues described same ice making action and undertaken by step 12 pair air door 15, open air door 15 backs in the described step 16 when stopping at of ice making action and continue the stipulated times for example 30 minutes the time, it is counted (step 18), return step 13 again, close air door 15, carry out described program then repeatedly.The shut-in time of the air door 15 in the described program and the time of opening are not limited to described numerical value.

By above-mentioned control, when the ice storage amount of ice storage case 12b anhydrous or when forcing to stop ice making action etc. mechanism for ice maker is stopped for full box or feed-tank 13 because of user's intention, by air door 15 being opened and closed every the stipulated time, the temperature that can suppress in the ice-making compartment 5 rises, be held in necessary chilling temperature state, and can suppress to cause that because of cold air flow the distillation of the ice of storage can long preservation.

Then, according to control flow chart shown in Figure 2 the present invention the 2nd embodiment is described.The characteristics of present embodiment are to cooperate the freeze cycle structure that the switching of air door 15 is controlled.

For the freeze cycle in the refrigerator in recent years, roughly divide for the form the refrigeration storage space of keep in cold storage the space and the high temperature of low temperature cooled off by single cooler and in the above-mentioned freezing and refrigeration storage space form of configure dedicated cooler separately.

In the form of single cooler, have the cooler of freezing chilling temperature as the basis, high temperature side is that refrigerating space is regulated by the air conditioning quantity of being undertaken by air door switching etc. and controlled, in special-purpose cooler form separately, utilize transfer valve etc. that each cooler is switched and make flow of refrigerant, cool off separately, and ice-making compartment 5 is temperature bands identical with refrigerating chamber 4, and must make the environment smaller or equal to-10 ℃ low temperature, arbitrary occasion all is controlled as reefer space.

But, ice-making compartment 5 needn't keep the temperature environment smaller or equal to-18 ℃ usually as refrigerating chamber, as long as can keep high slightly about-12 ℃, and needn't cooperate the control temperature of refrigerating chamber 4 that ice-making compartment air door 15 is carried out open and close controlling, by air door 15 being added the switching conditions by the ice-making compartment temperature sensor, the distillation control that just can further ice effectively, and as following, control.

At first, identical with previous embodiment, whether confirm in ice making (step 21), when the action of ice making under any condition stops, confirming the state (step 22) of freeze cycle.Promptly, occasion in single cooler mode, whether detect freeze cycle stops, occasion in special-purpose cooler mode, whether whether detecting freezing at least is the situation of time of not being cooled with cooler, for example detect than-12 ℃ also low (steps 23), promptly is enough to keep ice smaller or equal to-12 ℃ if the ice-making compartment sensor temperature is sufficient temperature, then close ice-making compartment air door 15 (step 24), suppress distillation because of the ice that cold air flow produced.

On the contrary, for more than or equal to-12 ℃, and than-10 ℃ of also high occasions (step 25) might dissolving ice, for ice-making compartment 5 is cooled off, open air door 15 and cool off action (step 25).This step 25 and described step 24 are all returned step 21 after it, carry out identical flow process repeatedly.

In addition, if be lower than-10 ℃ low temperature, then air door 15 similarly turns back to step 21 with abovementioned steps under the maintenance state that opens or closes so far (step 26).

According to above-mentioned, by closing after air door 15 rises the temperature of ice-making compartment 5, detect this ascending temperature, open air door 15 again, repeatedly air door 15 is carried out open and close controlling, though be the high temperature higher than refrigerating chamber 4 by the ice-making compartment temperature sensor, but can keep preserving the environment temperature of the required sufficient ice-making compartment 5 of ice, can bring into play effectively the preservation of ice and the effect of inhibition ice distillation two aspects, bring convenience, can obtain stable system to control.In addition, the space that keeps in cold storage of ice-making compartment 5 since also can needn't be cooled to remaining space required more than, so can reduce power consumption by the inhibition cooling capacity.

And, owing to the temperature elapsed time of reefer space rises, so enter into the reefer space refrigerating mode from the state that freeze cycle stops or refrigerating space cools off.At this moment, rise too, carry out the cooling of ice-making compartment 5 so open air door 15 because reefer space is the room temperature of ice-making compartment 5.

The present invention the 3rd embodiment then is described.Distillation that suppresses to ice and reduction power consumption, only the air door of in the cooling running of reefer space ice-making compartment being used 15 opens and closes, the effect that can increase the time delay that ice-making compartment 5 temperature when the cooling of reefer space running enters the refrigerating space running rise is arranged, but this moment, because ice-making compartment 5 is cooled by freezing rotation with cooling fan 7, therefore, when described fan 7 with ice making in identical speed when turning round, just promote to be stored at the distillation of the ice in the ice-making compartment 5, embodiment is such as described above, when under the state that ice making action stops, air door 15 being opened, also low by what freezing rotating speed with fan 7 is done than in the ice making action, just can further suppress the distillation of icing.

Shown in the control flow chart of Fig. 3, confirm whether be in the ice making action (step 31),, confirm the open and-shut mode (step 32) of the air door 15 of ice-making compartment 5 usefulness in the occasion that the ice making action stops.And, by the control identical with described the 2nd embodiment with the occasion that air door 15 is opened, make freezing rotating ratio with cooling fan 71 grade (step 33) that descends usually, thereby reduce air conditioning quantity, and can reduce the distillation of the ice in the ice storage case 12b.

In addition, if the rotating speed of fan 7 is descended, then the refrigerating capacity to reefer space also descends, but like this, when freezing rotating speed with fan 7 is descended, remedies by the rotating speed (step 34) that improves compressor 10, and available simple structure keeps refrigerating capacity.

When the air door 15 that the ice making action stops and ice-making compartment is used is closed, owing to needn't consider cooling control for ice-making compartment 5, so describedly freezingly carry out controlling (step 35) as the common rotation of refrigerator with fan 7, as refrigerating capacity, can cut down the cooling Power of ice-making compartment space segment, therefore, as long as corresponding compressor 10 low speed rotation (step 36) that make just can reduce power consumption.

The present invention can be used for having the refrigerator of automatic ice-making plant.

Claims

1. refrigerator, separate configurations refrigerating chamber and ice-making compartment with automatic ice-making plant, this refrigerator is characterised in that, have cold air is imported the fan in the described ice-making compartment and regulates the air door that imports air conditioning quantity, when stopping, ice making function make described air door carry out on-off action, it is characterized in that the switching of the air door when ice making function stops is alternately to move every the stipulated time.

2. refrigerator as claimed in claim 1 is characterized in that, when opening air door when stopping at ice making function, the rotating ratio that cold air is imported to the fan in the ice-making compartment is low usually.