JP2008106975A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a refrigerator constituted to visually acquire temperature distribution in a storage chamber by illuminating the interior of the chamber with color temperatures corresponding to the temperature distribution by a plurality of light sources by utilizing human characteristics of having a warm impression from light with a low color temperature and a cold impression from light with a high color temperature in addition to an interior light for illuminating the inside of the storage chamber. <P>SOLUTION: The refrigerator has the internal light 15 illuminating the inside of the storage chamber 3 by opening a door, and light sources 26a-26c having a plurality of color temperatures and disposed respectively at suitable parts in the storage chamber. When opening storage chamber doors 9a, 9b, the inside of the chamber is illuminated with the light sources of color temperatures corresponding to the cooling temperature distribution in the storage chamber. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator in which a storage room is illuminated with a color corresponding to a temperature distribution.

  In recent years, refrigerators that are used frequently and have a large volume are arranged at the top, an ice making room and a temperature switching room are placed in the lower part, and a vegetable room for storing vegetables is provided in the lower part. The type which arrange | positions a freezer compartment in the lowest part has increased.

  And as an illuminating device, the interior lamp | ramp which consists of a light bulb type or a light emitting diode (henceforth "LED") is provided in the ceiling surface or back surface of a refrigerator compartment with a large storage volume, and when this door is opened, It was easy to store and take out food by turning on the lights to illuminate the stored items in the room. At this time, the light source color of the illuminating device was generally monochromatic although there were some differences in brightness and hue.

On the other hand, a technique has been proposed in which the temperature in the cooling room is displayed in the color of the interior lamp, and the color of the interior lamp is changed according to the temperature in the interior (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2004-286333 A

  However, even in the configuration described in Patent Document 1, the color of the interior lamp is controlled according to the indoor temperature detected by the temperature sensor in the interior of the refrigerated room or the like to be illuminated. It was a single color.

  The present invention has been made by paying attention to the above points. In addition to the interior lighting that illuminates the storage room, the present invention has a warm impression for light with a low color temperature, and for light with a high color temperature. Provides a refrigerator that uses the human characteristic of having a cold impression and uses multiple light sources to illuminate the room with a color temperature that corresponds to the temperature distribution, so that the temperature distribution in the storage room can be visually grasped. The purpose is to do.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a refrigerator according to the present invention includes an interior lamp that illuminates a storage room by an open door, and a light source that has a plurality of color temperatures and is disposed at appropriate locations in the storage room. When the storage room door is opened, the room is illuminated with the light source having a color temperature corresponding to the cooling temperature distribution in the storage room.

  According to the present invention, when the storage chamber door is opened, the storage chamber is illuminated with a plurality of light sources having different color temperatures corresponding to the temperature distribution, so that the temperature distribution due to the level of the indoor temperature is increased. It can be visually grasped and can effectively store and take out stored items, and the appearance quality can be improved by indoor lighting with a plurality of colors when the door is opened.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator, with the interior of the refrigerator main body (1) formed of a heat insulating box composed of an outer box and an inner box (2) provided via a heat insulating wall as a storage space at the top. A refrigerator compartment (3), an ice making chamber (4) equipped with a relatively small-volume automatic ice making machine and a temperature switching chamber (5) are provided below it through a heat insulating partition wall, and below these are a vegetable compartment ( 6) The freezer compartment (7) is independently arranged in the lowermost part. A heat insulating partition wall is also provided between the vegetable compartment (6) and the freezer compartment (7), and a dedicated door is provided at the front opening of each storage compartment so as to be freely opened and closed.

  The refrigerating room (3) has the largest storage capacity and is frequently used, so that shelves (8a) (8b) on which stored items are placed and shelves that also serve as the ceiling plate of the cold room provided at the bottom of the refrigerating room ( 8c), the interior of the room is divided into a plurality of stages, and the opening is closed by pivotally supporting the double doors (9a) and (9b) with hinges provided on both sides of the front opening. The storage rooms such as the ice making room (4) and the temperature switching room (5), the vegetable room (6), and the freezing room (7) other than the refrigerating room (3) disposed in the lower part of the storage room are smaller than the refrigerating room. Because of its small size and ease of use due to its installation height position, the support frame that is fixed to the door and holds the container is slid back and forth with the rail member provided on the indoor wall surface, and is pulled out of the room with the door opening operation. Drawer door to store and take out food from top opening It is set to.

  On the back of the vegetable compartment (6) located below the center of the main body is a refrigeration cooler (10) for cooling the refrigerated storage space of the refrigerator compartment (3) and vegetable compartment (6), and the ice making chamber ( 4), temperature switching chamber (5), freezing cooler (11) for cooling frozen storage spaces such as freezing chamber (7), etc., and each storage space is arranged in each cooler or machine room The refrigerator is cooled by a refrigeration cycle comprising a compressor and the like, and is operated by controlling the refrigeration cycle according to a temperature detected by a temperature sensor (not shown) provided in the refrigerator compartment (3) or the freezer compartment (7). The cooling air is supplied to the refrigerated storage space and the refrigerated storage space by rotation of the fans (12) and (13) disposed in the vicinity of the respective coolers, and each is controlled to be cooled to a predetermined temperature independently. .

  As shown in FIG. 2, which is a front view of the refrigerator compartment (3) in the open state, an interior lamp (15) is provided on the ceiling surface of the refrigerator compartment. This interior lamp (15) consists of an incandescent bulb placed in a recess formed on the ceiling surface. The lower part, that is, the indoor side, is covered with a shade (16) to diffuse the light from the interior lamp (15), and it is refrigerated. The whole room (3) is illuminated to every corner.

  A rear duct plate (3) is formed on the back surface of the refrigerator compartment (3) so as to guide the cold air generated in the refrigerator for cold storage (10), which is formed wide across the entire rear surface, and is disposed below. 17). The rear duct plate (17) is formed by injection molding synthetic resin and has a substantially flat plate shape. A predetermined duct space (18) is formed between the rear duct plate (17) and the entire rear surface of the refrigerator compartment (3). It arrange | positions so that it may cover. The outer periphery of the rear duct plate (17) is installed so as to provide a predetermined cool air blowing gap (19) with the upper wall and both side wall surfaces of the inner box (2) rear part. The opening (21) is about one third of the duct (17), and the vertical dimension forms a central blowout part (20) having a height dimension extending from the upper and lower ends of the plurality of shelves (8a) to (8c). Has been drilled.

  As shown in FIG. 3 which is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 2 and FIG. 4 which is a perspective view of the main part, the central blow-out portion (20) is a part of the rear duct plate (17). It is formed with an opening (21) and a plate-shaped design panel (22) provided so that the surface of the opening (21) is flush with the surface of the rear duct plate (17). .

  The design panel (22) has a U-shaped concave groove (23) extending in the vertical direction on both sides, and the concave portion inside the concave groove (23) is raised in an arc shape toward the surface. The side edge is raised to the back side of the rear duct plate (17) and brought into contact therewith. Then, this rising part is cut up and down at an appropriate interval to form a blow-out opening (24) from the inside of the duct (18), whereby a cold blow-out part ( 20).

  Thus, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 which is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B of FIG. 2, the surface of the design panel (22) divides the refrigerator compartment in the vertical direction. A light guide cover (25), which is a light guide formed of a transparent acrylic resin, is provided at positions divided into three stages, upper, middle, and lower, according to the height positions of A to C (8a) to (8c). It is arranged.

  A recess (25a) is formed on the back side of the light guide cover (25), and a light source A (26a) composed of a plurality of LEDs having different color temperatures is formed on the surface of the design panel (22) corresponding to the recess (25a). The board (27) to which the same B (26b) and C (26c) are attached is arranged, and the locking piece (28) protruding rearward of the light guide cover (25) is recessed in the display panel (22). The parts are fixed by engaging with the inner box (2) via 22a.

  When the refrigerator doors (9a) and (9b) are opened, light sources A to C comprising the LED alternately with the interior lamp (16) provided on the ceiling of the inner box by the operation of a door switch (not shown) at intervals of several seconds. (26a) to (26c) are turned on, and this light enters each light guide cover (25) and irradiates the refrigerator compartment (3).

  Since the said refrigerator compartment (3) used as illumination object is a storage room which has a large volume of 250-300L as a single room, there exists a comparatively difference in indoor temperature distribution. That is, the temperature of the upper space corresponding to the indoor upper shelf (8a) is 6 ° C., the central shelf (8b) is 4 ° C., and the upper portion of the lower shelf (8c) is most cooled to about 2 ° C. It is distributed in the temperature of.

  The light sources A to C correspond to these distribution temperatures, and the light source A (26a) on the upper shelf (8a) where the temperature is relatively high is a “red” color with a low color temperature that gives a warm impression to humans. The light source B (26b) in the middle shelf (8b) is a “yellow” LED. In the vicinity of the upper part of the lower shelf (8c), which has the lowest temperature, a “blue” LED having a cold impression and a high color temperature is installed.

  With the above-described configuration, when the light sources A to C (26a) to (26c) are turned on by opening the door, the interior of the refrigerator compartment (3) is illuminated by the light source LED and the light guide cover (25). Thus, the upper space of the upper shelf (8a) is illuminated with “light red”, the upper portion of the middle shelf (8b) is colored “light yellow”, and the upper portion of the lower shelf (8c) is colored “light blue”. .

  With this color distribution, the user can visually recognize the temperature distribution in the refrigerator compartment (3), and can store the purchased food in the appropriate place in the room without taking time, without hesitation. Also, when taking out, the storage location can be easily estimated from the storage temperature range of the target food using the illumination color as a guide, so the time for opening the door can be shortened, and power consumption is wasted Can be reduced.

  Therefore, the relationship between the light sources A to C (26a) to (26c) and the interior lamp (16) is not limited to the above-described control of alternately lighting the lamp, but the interior lamp (16) is turned on immediately after the door is opened. When it is turned on and the door is open for 10 seconds, for example, it is assumed that the user is thinking about the food storage location, and the LED light sources A to C are switched on and the temperature distribution zone is illuminated. You may make it do. Contrary to the above, color temperature distribution illumination is performed by turning on the light sources A to C (26a) to (26c) simultaneously with the opening of the door, and then switching to illumination by the ceiling interior lamp (16) may be performed. It is.

  At this time, since the LED used as the light source has strong directivity, color development is good, and even when the color temperature is different, the color is rarely mixed, so the distribution color does not change and an effective temperature distribution display is performed. Can do. In addition, the user can enjoy colorful and beautiful interior lighting each time the door is opened, and can exhibit an excellent design effect as lighting decoration.

  The left and right refrigerator compartment doors (9a) and (9b) are of a double door type, and when taking out the stored items, the storage location is grasped to some extent, so that one of the doors is often opened and taken out. On the other hand, when storing food, the door lamp (16) is turned on when only one of the doors is open because both doors are opened and the entire room is viewed. When both doors are open, it is considered that the food is stored, and control is performed so that the LED light sources A to C (26a) to (26c) have different color temperature illuminations. It may be.

  As another control mode, when food is stored, the number of doors opened and closed tends to be longer than when the food is taken out, and the door opening time tends to be longer. If the door is opened or closed twice or more, or if the door has been open for more than 20 seconds, it is assumed that the food is being stored and the LED light source is switched from the illumination by the interior light (16). You may control to switch to temperature distribution illumination from which color temperature differs by AC (26a)-(26c).

  For each of the above embodiments, the temperature distribution in the normal refrigerator compartment (3) is set in advance based on the loaded experimental data at the time of manufacturing and development, and an LED having a predetermined color temperature is set so as to match this. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a temperature sensor is attached in the vicinity of the light source, and the LEDs are light sources of three colors of red, blue, and green, and the LEDs of the three colors are based on the detected temperature of the temperature sensor. If the temperature distribution in the refrigerator compartment (3) is displayed in a zone by changing the color temperature, it is possible to perform illumination display with a more accurate color temperature.

  Further, the plurality of shelves (8a) to (8c) in the refrigerator compartment (3) are formed of a light-transmitting resin, and the rear ends of the shelves are respectively connected to the light sources A to C (26a) to (26c). The light from the light sources A to C or the light guide cover (25) is conducted to the shelves (8a) to (8c) and the entire shelf emits light by being arranged in close proximity to or close to the front surface of the unit. A design effect can be produced.

  At this time, the light emitted from the LED or the light guide cover (25) is directly guided by cutting out portions corresponding to the shelves (8a) to (8c) of the light guide cover (25). Thus, the design effect can be improved by increasing the amount of light to the shelf.

  In the above embodiment, the interior lamp (16) for illuminating the inside of the refrigerator compartment (3) provided on the ceiling of the inner box (2) has been described as an incandescent light bulb. Of course it is good. Moreover, in the said embodiment, the storage room has a layout of the refrigerator compartment (3) at the top, and then the ice making chamber (4) and the temperature switching chamber (5), and the vegetable compartment (6) at the bottom. Although arrange | positioned like the freezer compartment (7) in the lowest part, this invention is not limited to this.

It is a front view of the refrigerator which shows one Embodiment of this invention. It is a front view of the refrigerator compartment part in FIG. FIG. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 2. It is a perspective view which shows the principal part of FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which follows the CC line of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Refrigerator main body 2 Inner box 3 Refrigeration room 8a, 8b, 8c Refrigeration room shelf 9a, 9b Refrigeration room door
15 Interior light
16 shades
17 Rear duct plate
22 Design panel
25 Light guide cover
26a LED light source A
26b LED light source B
26c LED light source C
27 Board

Claims (6)

  It has an interior light that illuminates the storage room by opening the door, and a light source that has a plurality of color temperatures and is arranged at appropriate locations in the storage room, and stores the storage room when the storage room door is opened. A refrigerator characterized in that the room is illuminated with the light source having a color temperature corresponding to the indoor cooling temperature distribution.   2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein illumination with a low color temperature is associated with a portion where the storage room temperature is high in distribution, and illumination with a high color temperature is associated with a portion where distribution is low.   The light source is a light-emitting diode, and ones with multiple color temperatures are arranged on the back of the storage room, and a light guide panel is arranged on the front of each light source to direct the light indoors. The refrigerator according to claim 2.   4. The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein the storage room is a refrigerated room, the shelf is formed of a light-transmitting resin, and light from the light emitting diode is guided to the shelf to emit light from the shelf surface.   The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the color of the light source is changed according to the temperature detected by the temperature sensor to change the distribution color of the entire storage room.   3. The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein a rear end portion of a shelf of a refrigerator compartment formed of a light transmissive resin is brought into close contact with or close to a light guide that emits light from a light emitter.

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