JP4581954B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator and an electrostatic atomizer that are equipped with an atomizer that humidifies the space of a storage room such as vegetables.

  In recent years, refrigerators have been proposed in which the inside of a vegetable container, in particular, the inside of a vegetable container is humidified to maintain the freshness of vegetables.

  As a conventional humidification method, there is a method using an ultrasonic humidifier as an atomizer (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 6 shows a sectional view of a conventional atomizer for a refrigerator described in Patent Document 1. In FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the first hole 2 is opened in the partition plate 1 that partitions the refrigerator compartment and the vegetable compartment, and cold air from the refrigerator compartment flows into the vegetable compartment through the first hole 2. The vegetable container lid 3 is provided with a second hole 4, and a water absorbing material 5 and an ultrasonic oscillator 6 are installed in the second hole 4.

  About the refrigerator comprised as mentioned above, the operation | movement is demonstrated below.

The water absorbing material 5 is made of a water absorbing material such as silica gel, zeolite, activated carbon or the like. Therefore, the water absorbing material 5 adsorbs moisture in the air flowing into the vegetable compartment. When the vegetable room is humidified, the ultrasonic oscillator 6 is driven. Thereby, the water | moisture content in the water absorbing material 5 atomizes, is discharged | emitted outside, and a vegetable compartment is humidified.
JP 2004-125179 A

  However, in the above-described conventional configuration, the water to be atomized is collected by using the water absorbing material 5 made of a material such as silica gel, zeolite, activated carbon, etc., so that there is a problem that the reliability is inferior because of the material life. Had. Moreover, since the ultrasonic oscillator 6 is used as the atomizing device, there is a problem that the mist particle size is large and there is no deodorizing effect.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention solves the above-described conventional problems, and is capable of collecting maintenance-free water to be atomized and generating a mist having a nano-size particle diameter having a deodorizing effect and an electrostatic fog. An object of the present invention is to provide a device.

  In order to solve the above conventional problems, a refrigerator of the present invention includes a refrigerator main body, a water reservoir portion that stores water provided in the refrigerator main body, a capillary pump body that transports water in the water reservoir portion, An electrostatic device comprising an application electrode for applying a voltage to water, a counter electrode disposed at a position facing the application electrode, and a voltage application unit for applying a high voltage between the application electrode and the counter electrode An atomization device, a temperature-variable cooling plate, and a cooling plate control means for controlling the temperature of the cooling plate, the cooling plate being disposed in a cooling air passage of the refrigerator body, and the cooling It is controlled to a temperature at which moisture condenses on the surface of the cooling plate by the plate control means, and includes a transport unit that collects the water collected by the cooling plate in the water reservoir of the electrostatic atomizer, To collect water without using a water-absorbing material with a long life That.

  Moreover, the electrostatic atomizer of this invention detects the discharge current when the voltage application part which generates a high voltage discharges, and estimates the amount of ozone generation.

  The refrigerator of the present invention collects moisture in the air by a condensation method using a cooling plate without using a water-absorbing material having a material life, so that the atomization device is maintenance-free and highly reliable. be able to.

  Moreover, since the electrostatic atomizer of this invention estimates the amount of ozone generation from a discharge current, it can restrict | limit the unnecessary ozone which generate | occur | produces at the time of high voltage use.

  The invention according to claim 1 is a refrigerator main body, a water reservoir portion for storing water provided in the refrigerator main body, a capillary pump body for transporting water in the water reservoir portion, and an application for applying a voltage to the water. An electrostatic atomizer comprising: an electrode; a counter electrode disposed at a position facing the application electrode; and a voltage application unit that applies a high voltage between the application electrode and the counter electrode; And a cooling plate control means for controlling the temperature of the cooling plate, the cooling plate being disposed in a cooling air passage of the refrigerator main body, and the cooling plate by the cooling plate control means. The water is controlled to a temperature at which moisture condenses on the surface of the water, and a transport unit that collects the water collected by the cooling plate in the water reservoir of the electrostatic atomizer is provided. Since the water is collected using the dew condensation method used, maintain the atomizer. It is possible to those of high reliability free, because it uses the electrostatic atomizer can be generated mist of nano-sized particle diameter, deodorizing, removing harmful substances in the food surface, it is possible to enhance the effect of antifouling.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, wherein the cooling plate control means is a blower fan or a heating heater, or both, so that the temperature of the cooling plate can be controlled by simple ON / OFF control of the heater and fan. Therefore, water to be atomized can be collected without affecting the humidity in the air in the refrigerator.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to the first or second aspect, at least one or more water level detection means for measuring the amount of water collected in the water reservoir portion is provided, whereby Since the amount of water can be measured, it is possible to determine the time for condensation on the cooling plate, or to prevent high voltage from being applied for safety when the reservoir is empty and there is no water in the application electrode .

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to any one of the first to third aspects, the drainage means for draining the collected water is installed in the water reservoir, so that the water reservoir When the amount of water exceeds a predetermined range, the water can be drained and appropriate water can be supplied to the application electrode.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, a discharge current detecting unit that detects a current when the voltage application unit discharges, and the discharge current detecting unit Because the ozone generation amount can be estimated from the discharge current value by limiting the ozone generation amount from the current value detected in step 1. Can do.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, when the discharge current detected by the ozone amount determination means is 1 μA or more, the operation of the voltage application unit By stopping the operation, ozone is not generated by air discharge due to high voltage, and ozone that is harmful to foods such as vegetables can be prevented from being generated over a specified amount.

  The invention according to claim 7 is the refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein a plurality of application electrodes are provided, and the counter electrode facing each application electrode is one. Since the structure of the electrostatic atomizer for securing the necessary amount of atomization is simplified, the installation space can be reduced and the cost can be reduced.

  The invention according to claim 8 is the invention according to claim 7, wherein the amount of ozone generated is determined by the total amount of discharge currents detected by the ozone amount determination means in the ozone amount determination means. It is not necessary to measure the discharge current value, and the ozone amount determination means can be configured with a simple configuration, so that the cost can be reduced.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a cooling air passage section cross-section of the refrigerator and the electrostatic atomizer in Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, one end of a capillary pump body 8 is immersed in the water collected in the water reservoir 7, and the other end is connected to the bottom surface of a cylindrical holder 9 whose top surface is open. An application electrode 10 is installed in the center of the bottom surface of the holder 9, and the water is pumped up by the capillary pump body 8 and is in a water-containing state up to the spherical tip of the application electrode 10. Further, a donut disk-shaped counter electrode 11 is attached to the opening of the holder 9 so as to maintain a certain distance from the tip of the application electrode 10. Further, the negative electrode side of the voltage application unit 12 that generates a high voltage is electrically connected to the application electrode 10, and the positive electrode side is electrically connected to the counter electrode 11. The electrostatic atomizer 13 is formed with the above configuration.

  Further, there is a cooling air passage 16 between the internal partition wall 14 and the main body outer wall 15, and one surface of the cooling plate 17 is installed so as to face the cooling air passage 16 side. A heater 19 abuts on the cooling air passage 16 side of the cooling plate 17, and a blower fan 18 is installed on the other surface side. Further, the water collected by condensation on the other surface side of the cooling plate 17 is connected to the electrostatic atomizer 13 so as to collect water in the water reservoir 7 through the transport unit 21. Further, a water level detecting means 22 for measuring the amount of collected water is arranged in the water reservoir 7, and a drain means 23 for draining is arranged on the bottom surface.

  About the refrigerator comprised as mentioned above, the operation | movement is demonstrated below.

  First, the cooling plate temperature at which the surface of the cooling plate 17 is condensed is determined from the temperature in the cooling air passage 16 and the inside temperature of the refrigerator, and the blower fan 18 and the heater 19 which are the cooling plate control means 20 are set so as to reach the temperature. ON / OFF control promotes condensation of moisture in the air. The water collected by the dew condensation is collected in the water reservoir 7 of the electrostatic atomizer 13 through the transport unit 21. When the upper limit amount is determined by the water level detection means 22, the cooling plate control means 20 is reached. To stop the condensation promotion. That is, by controlling the temperature of the cooling plate 17 by the cooling plate control means 20, an appropriate amount of water in the water reservoir 7 is maintained. However, when the amount of water in the water reservoir 7 exceeds the upper limit value, the drainage means 23 is operated to drain the water in the water reservoir 7 so as to reach a predetermined amount.

  Next, in the electrostatic atomizer 13, the application electrode 10 is in a certain amount of water-containing state due to the capillarity of the capillary pump body 8 formed by felt, for example, in the water reservoir 7. In this state, the application electrode 10 is set to a negative voltage and the counter electrode 11 is set to the positive voltage side, and a high voltage (for example, 4.6 kV) is applied between the electrodes by the voltage application unit 12. At this time, corona discharge occurs between the distances between the electrodes (for example, 3 mm), the water of the application electrode 10 is atomized, and mist having a nano-size particle diameter is generated.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the water reservoir 7 that stores water, the capillary pump body 8 that transports the water in the water reservoir 7, the application electrode 10 that applies a voltage to the water, and the application An electrostatic atomizer 13 including a counter electrode 11 disposed at a position facing the electrode 10, and a voltage application unit 12 that applies a high voltage between the application electrode 10 and the counter electrode 11, and a refrigerator cooling air passage 16 is a cooling plate 17 that condenses moisture in the air in the refrigerator, cooling plate control means 20 that controls the temperature of the cooling plate, and water collected by the cooling plate 20 Since the transport unit 21 for collecting water in the reservoir 7 collects moisture in the air by a dew condensation method using a cooling plate instead of scientific water absorption, the reservoir of the electrostatic atomizer 13 The part 7 can be made clean, maintenance-free and highly reliable. Since atomizing electrostatic method can generate mist of nano-sized particle diameter, deodorizing, removing harmful substances in the food surface, it is possible to enhance the effect of antifouling.

  In the present embodiment, since the cooling plate control means 20 is the blower fan 18 or the heater 19 or both, the cooling plate temperature can be controlled by simple ON / OFF control of the heater and fan. Water that is stably atomized without being affected by the humidity in the air can be collected.

  In the present embodiment, since at least one water level detecting means 22 for measuring the amount of water collected in the water reservoir 7 can be measured, the amount of water in the water reservoir 7 can be measured. The operating time of the cooling plate control means 20 for dew condensation can be determined at 17, or when the water reservoir is empty and there is no water in the application electrode 10, safety can be improved so as not to apply a high voltage.

  Further, in the present embodiment, since the drainage means 23 for draining the collected water in the water reservoir 7 is installed, when the amount of water in the water reservoir 7 exceeds a predetermined range, the water is appropriately drained. Water can be supplied to the application electrode, and overflow of water in the water reservoir 7 can be prevented.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 2 is a main configuration block diagram of an electrostatic atomizer for a refrigerator according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a characteristic diagram of discharge current and ozone generation concentration in the electrostatic atomizer of the refrigerator according to the embodiment.

  About the same structure as Embodiment 1, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and the detailed description is abbreviate | omitted.

  In FIG. 2, when a high voltage is generated from the voltage application unit 12, a discharge current flows through the counter electrode 11 and the application electrode 10, and the discharge current detection means 24 inputs the discharge current as a signal S1. Next, the ozone amount determination means 25 inputs and determines the signal S2 from the discharge current detection means 24, and outputs a signal S3 for controlling the voltage application unit 12.

  About the refrigerator comprised as mentioned above, the operation | movement is demonstrated below.

  First, when the discharge current value is input to the discharge current detection unit 24 as the signal S1, the current value is converted into a digital or analog voltage signal S2 that can be easily calculated by a CPU or the like, and is output to the ozone amount determination unit 25. Next, the ozone amount determination means 25 converts the discharge current value into the ozone generation concentration (experimentally found that there is a positive proportional relationship between the discharge current and the ozone generation), and becomes a predetermined ozone generation concentration or less. Thus, the control signal S3 is output to the voltage application unit 12. Finally, the voltage application unit 12 changes the voltage value to be applied to generate a high voltage. Thereafter, feedback control is performed while observing the discharge current value.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the discharge current detection unit 24 that detects the current when the voltage application unit 12 discharges, and the ozone that determines the ozone generation amount from the current value detected by the discharge current detection unit 24. Since the amount determination means 25 is provided, it is possible to indirectly estimate the amount of ozone generated from the discharge current value, so unnecessary ozone that is generated during discharge with a simple configuration without using an expensive ozone measuring device. Can be limited.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, when the discharge current is 1 μA or less, the ozone generation concentration is proportional to the linear equation, but if it exceeds 1 μA, the curve increases that is difficult to estimate. Therefore, in the case where the discharge amount detected by the ozone amount determination means 25 is 1 μA or more, the operation of the voltage application unit 12 is stopped and a high voltage is not generated, so that accidental ozone generation due to unstable control is eliminated. Ozone that is harmful to foods such as vegetables can be prevented from being generated over a specified amount.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 4 is a main configuration block diagram of the electrostatic atomizer of the refrigerator in the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a top view of the counter electrode of the electrostatic atomizer of the refrigerator according to the embodiment.

  About the same structure as Embodiment 1 and 2, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and the detailed description is abbreviate | omitted.

  4 and 5, the application electrodes 10 a, 10 b, and 10 c are arranged on the bottom surface of the cylindrical holder 9 at 120 ° intervals on the same circumference, and a single conductor is formed in the upper surface opening of the holder 9. A molded counter electrode 11 is attached. In the counter electrode 11, circular holes 11a, 11b, and 11c are opened at positions corresponding to the application electrodes 10a, 10b, and 10c, and each circular hole is connected to the edge 11d. Furthermore, the negative electrode side of the voltage application unit 12 that generates a high voltage is electrically connected to the application electrodes 10a, 10b, and 10c, and the positive electrode side is electrically connected to the counter electrode.

  About the refrigerator comprised as mentioned above, the operation | movement is demonstrated below.

  First, the application electrodes 10a, 10b, and 10c are set to a negative voltage of the same potential, and the counter electrode 11 is set to the positive voltage side, and a high voltage is applied between the electrodes by the voltage application unit 12. At this time, corona discharge occurs between the circular holes 11a of the application electrode 10a and the counter electrode 11, between the circular holes 11b of the application electrode 10b and the counter electrode 11, and between the circular holes 11c of the application electrode 10c and the counter electrode 11, respectively. The water of the application electrodes 10a, 10b, and 10c is atomized to generate mist having a nano-sized particle diameter. In the embodiment, the number of application electrodes is three, but the number of application electrodes may be selected according to the required atomization amount.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, a plurality of application electrodes 10 and a single counter electrode 11 opposed to the application electrodes 10a, 10b, and 10c are provided. Since it becomes a structure of an electrostatic atomizer, it can aim at reduction of installation space and cost reduction.

  In the present embodiment, the ozone generation amount is determined for each application electrode 10a, 10b, and 10c by determining the ozone generation amount based on the total discharge current of each application electrode 10a, 10b, and 10c detected by the ozone amount determination means 25. It is not necessary to measure the discharge current value, the ozone amount determination means 25 can be configured with a simple configuration, and the cost can be reduced.

  As described above, the refrigerator according to the present invention can be applied not only to household or commercial refrigerators but also to uses such as low-temperature distribution of foods such as vegetables.

Configuration diagram of cooling air passage section cross section and electrostatic atomizing device of refrigerator in embodiment 1 of the present invention Main configuration block diagram of electrostatic atomizer for refrigerator in embodiment 2 of the present invention Characteristic diagram of discharge current and ozone generation concentration in electrostatic atomizer of refrigerator in embodiment 2 of the present invention Main configuration block diagram of the electrostatic atomizer of the refrigerator in the third embodiment of the present invention The top view of the counter electrode of the electrostatic atomizer of the refrigerator in Embodiment 3 of this invention Cross-sectional view of a conventional refrigerator atomizer

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 7 Water reservoir 8 Capillary pump body 9 Holder 10 Applied electrode 11 Counter electrode 12 Voltage application part 13 Electrostatic atomizer 14 Inner partition wall 15 Main body outer wall 16 Cooling air path 17 Cooling plate 18 Blower fan 19 Heating heater 20 Cooling plate Control means 21 Transport section 22 Water level detection means 23 Drainage means 24 Discharge current detection means 25 Ozone amount determination means

Claims (8)

Refrigerator body, water reservoir provided in the refrigerator body, a capillary pump body for transporting water in the water reservoir, an application electrode for applying a voltage to the water, and a high voltage applied to the application electrode An electrostatic atomizer including a voltage application unit for applying a voltage, a temperature-variable cooling plate, and a cooling plate control means for controlling the temperature of the cooling plate, the internal partition wall and the refrigerator main body outer wall There is a cooling air passage between the cooling plate, and one side of the cooling plate is disposed in the cooling air passage and is controlled to a temperature at which moisture is condensed on the surface of the cooling plate by the cooling plate control means. A refrigerator comprising a transport unit that collects moisture collected by condensation of moisture in the air on the cooling plate on the other surface side in a water reservoir of the electrostatic atomizer . The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the cooling plate control means is a blower fan, a heater, or both. The refrigerator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein at least one water level detecting means for measuring the amount of water collected in the water reservoir is disposed. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a drainage means for draining the collected water is installed in the water reservoir. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a discharge current detection unit that detects a current when the voltage application unit discharges; and an ozone amount determination unit that determines an ozone generation amount from a current value detected by the discharge current detection unit. The refrigerator according to any one of 4. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein when the discharge current detected by the ozone amount determination unit is 1 µA or more, the operation of the voltage application unit is stopped. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein a plurality of the application electrodes are provided, and the counter electrode facing each application electrode is one. The refrigerator according to claim 7, wherein the ozone generation determination unit determines an ozone generation amount based on a total value of the detected discharge currents of the application electrodes.

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