JPH0972640A - Freezer/refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate a water supplying operation for an ice making device not with a complex structure but by a low cost less-expensive structure. SOLUTION: Within a freezing chamber 3 are installed an ice making device 5 for manufacturing ice by freezing supplied water with cold air in the freezing chamber 3; an ice storing device 6 for storing ices manufactured by this ice manufacturing device 5; and a water supplying device 4 for supplying water to the ice manufacturing device 5. The water supplying device 4 has a water supplying tank 8 and a water supplying pipe 3. Then, the water supplying tank 8 is arranged in a thermal shielded construction to shield itself thermaly against the cold air in the freezing chamber and in turn an opening or closing device 15 which can be opened or closed is arranged at a part of the configuration and at the same time the opening or closing device 15 is applied as a fixing or a removing port of the water supplying tank 8.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a freezer-refrigerator having a freezing compartment and a refrigerating compartment, and further comprising an ice making device for producing ice and an ice storage device for storing ice produced by the ice making device. Is.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional freezer-refrigerator is provided with an ice tray as an ice making device and an ice storage case as an ice storage device for storing the ice made in the freezing chamber, so that water can be supplied to the ice storage case. There is a freezer-refrigerator of the type that does not have the water supply device, and a freezer-refrigerator that has such a water supply device but is provided in the refrigerating room instead of in the freezing room.

[0003]

In the former refrigerator / freezer, that is, without a water supply device, there is no water supply device, so when the ice made in the ice making tray is transferred to the ice storage case and the ice making tray becomes empty, it is used. It is necessary for the person himself to replenish the ice tray with water. In such water supply work, every time the ice tray is emptied, the ice tray must be taken out of the freezer and taken to the tap of the water supply to replenish the ice tray. However, there is a problem that it becomes a very troublesome replenishment work for the user. In addition, water is often spilled from the ice tray when water is supplied to the ice tray, when the ice tray is transported to the freezer compartment after replenishment, or when the ice tray is stored in the ice tray. However, from the user's point of view, there is also a problem that it is very inconvenient as an operation for supplying water to the ice tray.

The latter freezer-refrigerator, that is, one having a water supply device for an ice tray has a so-called ice releasing function of automatically dropping ice from the ice tray after the ice tray is made. After the ice is removed, it has an automatic water supply function that automatically supplies water from the water supply tank to the ice tray. An ice maker having such a function is called an automatic ice maker, and is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 20772/1992. In such an automatic ice maker, the water tank has a capacity that allows the ice tray to store water that can be used for ice making and ice removal multiple times, so the number of times the user replenishes the water tank also increases. It can be done once for multiple times of ice making in the ice tray, and you can also bring the water tank itself to the tap of the water supply and supply a lot of water at one time and do not directly supply water to the ice tray. It does not spill water from the ice tray like this, and since the water tank itself has a large capacity, there is less chance of water spilling during water supply and transportation, and its usability is greatly improved over the former. To be done. However, in this latter case, since the water supply tank as the water supply device is provided in the refrigerating compartment, in order to automatically supply water from this water supply tank to the ice tray, the water from the water supplying tank in the refrigerating compartment is supplied. Since it is necessary to provide a water supply pipe for supplying water to the ice tray in the freezing room, the structure as a freezer-refrigerator is complicated and the cost is considerably high compared to the former case. is there. Especially in the latter case, the freezer compartment may be arranged differently depending on whether the freezer compartment is the top freezer type installed in the uppermost compartment of the refrigerator or the freezer compartment is a mid freezer type installed under the refrigerator compartment. Since it is necessary to change the configuration and functions of the ice cube, it is difficult to standardize due to severe design restrictions, and although the user is automatically supplied water to the ice tray, it is necessary to remove ice from the ice tray. If there is no ice after opening the door, there is also a problem that the inconvenience of opening the door of the refrigerating compartment and supplying water to the water tank remains.

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the refrigerator-freezer of the present invention has a refrigerating room and a freezing room, and water supplied to the freezing room is stored in the freezing room. A water supply device for supplying water to the ice making device together with an ice making device for producing ice by freezing with cold air and an ice storage device for storing ice made by the ice making device are provided, and the water supply device has at least a water supply tank and a water supply pipe. While having the water supply tank inside the thermal shutoff structure to thermally shut off from the cold air in the freezer compartment, a part of this structure is provided with an opening / closing device that can be opened and closed. The device serves as an attachment / detachment port of the water supply tank.

The refrigerator-freezer is preferably capable of detecting the open / closed state of the switchgear and displaying or alarming the open / closed state of the switchgear.

More preferably, the installation state of the water supply tank in the water supply device is detected, and when the water supply tank is not installed, the open state is displayed when the water supply tank attachment / detachment port is open to indicate whether the water supply tank has been opened. When the water supply tank attachment / detachment port is open in the installed state, this open state is alarmed.

More preferably, the temperature inside the water supply device is controlled so as not to be frozen by the cold air in the freezing chamber.

More preferably, the water in the water supply tank can be controlled to flow out by an external operation of the water supply operation body, and the water supply operation by the external operation supplies the water in the water supply tank to the ice making device through the water supply pipe. Be controllable.

More preferably, when it is detected that the temperature in the water supply tank is below a certain temperature, the operation of supplying water from the water supply tank is stopped.

More preferably, when the temperature inside the water supply device is below a certain temperature and after the water supply from the water supply tank is stopped and the temperature rises above a certain temperature, the stop of the water supply operation is released.

More preferably, a drive device for the opening / closing device is provided at the water supply tank attachment / detachment port, and the opening / closing device can be automatically closed by the drive device, and the water supply tank provided in the water supply device is provided. It is possible to automatically close the water supply tank attachment / detachment port after the installation state of the water supply tank is detected by the means for detecting the installation state.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of a refrigerator according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a main part of a refrigerator-freezer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the main part of FIG. With reference to these drawings, reference numeral 1 is a body of a freezer-refrigerator having a refrigerating room and a freezing room, 2 is a freezing room door, 3 is the freezing room,
4 is a water supply device. Above and below the freezer compartment 3 are refrigerator compartments. Reference numeral 5 is an ice tray as an ice making device, and 6 is an ice storage case as an ice storage device. In the water supply device 4, 7
Is a heat insulating material as a thermal barrier that insulates the inside of the water supply device 4 from the cold air in the freezing chamber 3, 8 is a water supply tank provided in the heat insulating material 7, and 9 is formed at the bottom of the water supply tank 8. The water injection port 10 is attached to the water injection port 9 and the water supply port 1
0a is a water supply cap, 11 is a nozzle cap that opens and closes the water supply port 10a, 12 is a coil spring that urges the nozzle cap 11 downward in the direction of closing the water supply port 10a of the water supply cap 10, and 13 is a discharge port 13a. Water supply pipe for guiding water from the water supply tank 8 to the ice tray 5,
Reference numeral 14 denotes a water supply operation body that is operated when water is supplied to the water supply tank 8 and pushes the nozzle cap 11 upward against the biasing force of the coil spring 12 to open the water supply port 10a of the water supply cap 10. Reference numeral 15 is a door as an opening / closing device that is openably / closably provided in a part of the heat insulating material 7 for attaching / detaching the water supply tank 8 to / from the freezer compartment 3 when supplying water to the water supply tank 8, and 16 is a water supply A heating element that heats the inside of the water supply device 4 in order to prevent the water in the tank 8 from freezing and the nozzle cap 11 from freezing and clogging, and 17 controls the heating operation of the heating element 16. A temperature detector such as a thermistor provided to detect the temperature in the water supply device 4 so that it is possible, and 18 is a drive device such as a motor for driving the door 15 to close when the user forgets to close the door 15. Reference numeral 19 denotes an opening / closing detector for detecting the open / closed state of the door 15. For example, an open / close detector including a fixed side reed switch such as the heat insulating material 7 and a moving side magnet such as the door 15 is provided. Installed in the position Water tank 8 that detects whether the is installed detector for detecting the installed state by turning off the not installed in installed by the pressing has been turned to a predetermined position in a predetermined position. The water supply device 4, the ice tray 5 which is an ice making device, and the ice storage case 6 which is an ice storage device are arranged in this order in the ice making machine unit 21 arranged at the back side of the freezing compartment 3 in this order from top to bottom. It is integrally supported and arranged, so that water is supplied from the water supply device 4, particularly the water supply tank 8 to the ice tray 5 therebelow, and the ice made by the ice tray 5 can be stored in the ice storage case 6, so that the ice making is performed. The structure can be simplified and the freezer space can be effectively used.

In the above structure, the water supply device 4 includes the water supply tank 8, the water supply pipe 13, and the temperature detector 1 as described above.
7, the installation detector 20 and the like, and the periphery thereof is covered with a heat insulating material 7 which is a thermal cutoff component, so that it is thermally cut off from the cold air in the freezer compartment 3 and inside the water supply tank 8 and the like. Freezing of water can be prevented. A part of the heat insulating material 7 constitutes a door 15 which is an opening / closing device, and when the door 15 is opened, a water inlet / outlet port for attaching / detaching the water tank 8 is formed from inside the heat insulating material 7, and when the door 15 is opened. In order to prevent the water in the water supply tank 8 from freezing due to the cold air in the freezer compartment 3, the driving device 18 closes the water automatically. The door 15
The details of the configuration for opening and closing the drive device 18 such as a motor are omitted. The open / closed state of the door 15 in this case is detected by turning on / off the open / close detector 19 and the like, and by this detection, the drive device 1 is output by a control output from a microcomputer described later.
8 drives the door 15 in the closing direction.

The water supply tank 8 has a water injection port 9 at the bottom for supplying water.
This water injection port 9 is capped with a water supply cap 10 so that the water in the water supply tank 8 does not come out. The water supply cap 10 is removed from the water injection port 9 when replenishing the water in the water supply tank 8, and when it is attached to the water injection port 9, the water supply port 10a is a nozzle as shown in FIG. 2 (a). Although capped by the cap 11, when pouring water into the ice tray 5, the cap by the nozzle cap 11 is removed as shown in FIG. Water flows out. In this case, the nozzle cap 11 is pushed upward by the operation of the water supply operation body 14, the water supply port 10a is opened, and the water in the water supply tank 8 is supplied to the ice tray 5 through the water supply port 10a. It A detector for detecting whether or not the ice tray 5 is empty may be provided, and when the ice tray 5 is empty, water is automatically supplied, and when the water supply is completed, the water supply operation may be automatically stopped. Further, if ice making is completed in the ice making tray 5, the ice making of the ice making tray 5 is released and stored in the ice storing case 6, and a detector is provided to detect whether the ice storing case 6 is fully filled with ice storing, If the distribution is full, the ice making operation may be stopped, or a display may be displayed to inform the user.

The water supply tank 8 may have a cubic shape, a cylindrical shape or a spherical shape,
In short, the structure may be provided with the water injection port 9 so that water can be stored and the water does not leak, but generally, the water injection port 9 is provided with the water supply cap 10 and the water supply tank 8 is supplied with water when replenishing water. The cap 10 is removed and water is replenished from the water injection port 9. When water is supplied to the ice tray 5, the water supply operation body 14 is operated to push the nozzle cap 11 upward to open the water supply port 10a of the water supply cap 10, whereby the water in the water supply tank 8 is supplied. Also, water is supplied to the ice making section 5a defined by a plurality of recesses in the ice making tray 5 via the water supply pipe 13. Although the water supply pipe 13 has only one discharge port in FIG. 2, the heat insulating material 7 is provided with two water supply pipe connection ports as shown in FIG. 3, and each connection port has a plurality of tips, for example, two. In this example, two discharge ports 13 are provided at each tip.
By arranging two ice trays 5 corresponding to a, a plurality of ice trays 5 in this example can be simultaneously supplied with water.

It should be noted that a larger number of ice trays 5 is capable of making a large number of ices at the same time, and if there are the same number of outlets as the ice trays, it is possible to supply water to all the ice trays at the same time. It is also possible to sequentially discharge to each ice tray. Then, the water supplied to the ice making part of the ice tray 5 is made in the freezer compartment 3, and the ice made is released by rotating the ice tray 5, for example. The released ice is stored in the ice storage case 6 under the ice tray 5.
It falls inside and the ice is stored.

The circuit for controlling the refrigerator / freezer of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
Reference numeral 2 denotes the heating element 16 and the driving device 1 via the driving circuit 23.
8. The display 24, which is composed of an LED or liquid crystal, and the alarm 25, which is composed of a buzzer, are driven and controlled. The microcomputer 22 also takes in the temperature detection output in the water supply device 4 from the temperature detector 17, drives and controls the heating element 16 via the drive circuit 23, and also relates to the installation state of the water supply tank 8 from the installation detector 20. Capture the detection output,
The installation state of the water supply tank 8 is controlled by driving the display device 24 via the drive circuit 23 so that it is displayed by simply lighting a lamp or by characters, or by driving the alarm device 25 to perform an alarm operation by voice or the like. . Also, the open / close detector 19
The detection output related to the closed state of the door 15 is fetched from the
When the door 5 is forgotten to be closed, the drive device 18 is drive-controlled via the drive circuit 23 to control the door 15 to be closed.

In the freezer-refrigerator of the present invention as described above, when ice is required, the user only has to open the door 2 of the freezer compartment 3 and take out the ice from the ice storage case 6. Also,
Since the periphery of the water supply tank 8 is covered with the heat insulating material 7, the water supply tank 8 does not come into direct contact with the cool air in the freezer compartment 3. Since the heating element 16 is provided inside the water supply device 4, the water in the water supply tank 8 or the like is not supplied. It does not freeze and is very reliable. Furthermore, the temperature inside the water supply device 4 is detected by the temperature detector 17,
From the detection, the heating element 16 is energized and the temperature is controlled so that water in the water supply tank 8 or the like is not frozen, so that energy saving design is possible. Further, the installation detector 20 including a micro switch detects that the water tank 8 is installed, that is, the water tank 8 is installed. In this case, the installation detector 20 installs the water tank 8. If the open / close detector 19 detects that the door 15 is open, the microcomputer 22 causes the display 24 to perform a display operation to notify the user. When the installation detector 20 detects that the water tank 8 is installed and the open / close detector 19 detects that the door 15 is open, the microcomputer 22 causes the alarm device 2 to operate.
5 is activated to warn the user. Further, since the door 15 is provided with the drive device 18, when the open / close detector 19 detects the open state of the door 15, the microcomputer 22 operates the drive device 18 to automatically close the door 15. Since it is put in the state, the user never closes it or forgets to close it, and the usability is greatly improved.

In addition, the outflow of water from the water inlet 9 of the water supply tank 8 is automatically controlled by a solenoid valve or the like, and then the microcomputer 22 controls the temperature inside the water supply device 4 to be below a certain temperature. When the detection output is taken, the solenoid valve is driven to close the water injection port 9 to stop the water supply operation from the water supply tank 8 in order to prevent the water in the water supply tank 8 from freezing. Heating element 1
6 may be drive-controlled.

In this way, the temperature inside the water supply device 4 rises after the water supply from the water supply tank 8 is stopped when the temperature inside the water supply device 4 is below a certain temperature. The solenoid valve may be driven by 22 to open the water injection port 9 to cancel the stop of the water supply operation. In this case, the display 24,
The alarm device 25 may be drive-controlled to notify the user of the fact, so that the user's anxiety that the water cannot be supplied due to freezing of water may be prevented and the reliability thereof may be improved.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

That is, in the refrigerating refrigerator according to the first aspect, an ice making device constituting the ice making machine, an ice storage device for storing the ice made by the ice making device, and a water supply device for supplying water to the ice making device. Since not only the ice making device and the ice storage device but also the water supply device is provided in the freezing room, the user is supplied with water from the water supply device in the freezing room inside the ice making device. There is no need to supply water with a tap. In addition, since the water supply device is installed in the freezing room instead of the refrigerating room, there is no need to guide and install a water conduit such as a water supply pipe for supplying water to the ice making device from the refrigerating room to the freezing room. The cost is also cheap. Since the water supply device has a water supply tank and a water supply pipe that are thermally isolated from the freezer compartment, the water stored in the water supply tank or water droplets attached to the water supply pipe may easily freeze. The function of the water supply tank and the water supply pipe is not impaired and their reliability is improved, and a part of the thermal shut-off structure can be opened / closed and is configured as the attachment / detachment port of the water supply tank. Thus, the water tank can be easily removed from and installed in the shutoff structure when replenishing water.

In the refrigerating refrigerator according to the second and third aspects, the installation state of the water supply tank can be detected, and the result of this detection can be displayed and an alarm can be issued. If the device is in the open state, it can display and inform the user of the state,
Even if a water supply tank is installed, if the switchgear is open, an alarm can be activated to warn that the water in the water supply tank may freeze, so it is extremely convenient to use. become.

In the refrigerating refrigerator according to the fourth aspect, since the temperature inside the water supply device is controlled so as not to be frozen by freezing in the freezing room, the freezing of the water in the water supply tank can be prevented, and the ice making is extremely reliable. Machine can be provided.

In the freezer-refrigerator according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, as compared with the conventional ice making device having no water supply device, that is, the case where the user supplies water directly to the ice making tray each time the ice making tray becomes empty,
It is possible to supply the water in the water supply tank to the ice tray by simply operating the water supply operation body.As a result, every time water is supplied to the ice tray, water is spilled or the ice tray becomes empty. Since it is not necessary to supply water directly to the ice tray, it is extremely convenient to use.

In the refrigerating refrigerator according to claims 6 and 7, the outflow control of the water supply tank is an electrically automatic operation, and the ice removal from the ice making device to the water storage device is performed by a so-called ice making mega, specifically, an ice making device. When using the automatic ice maker as a drive unit that is attached to the ice maker and rotates the ice maker to release ice, the water supply is performed when the automatic ice maker is used. The water supply operation is stopped when the temperature inside the device drops below a certain temperature, and the stop of the water supply operation is released when the temperature inside the device rises above a certain temperature. It will be high and easy to use.

In the refrigerating refrigerator according to claim 8, the installation state of the water supply tank can be detected and the opening / closing device of the water supply tank attachment / detachment opening can be automatically opened, so that the user can replenish the water supply tank with water. Simply setting the water tank to the water supply device will make the water supply device ready for use, and there will be no troubles due to forgetting to close the opening / closing device, etc., and it will be extremely easy to use.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an essential part showing an embodiment of a refrigerator-freezer according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the essential parts of the refrigerator-freezer according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of another example of the refrigerator-freezer according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a control circuit of the refrigerator-freezer according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Refrigerator / Refrigerator Main Body 2 Door 3 Freezer Room 4 Water Supply Device 5 Ice Making Plate (Ice Making Device) 6 Ice Storage Case (Ice Storage Device) 7 Insulation Material 8 Water Supply Tank 9 Water Injection Port 10 Water Supply Cap 11 Nozzle Cap 12 Coil Spring 13 Water Supply Pipe 14 Water Supply Operation Body 15 Door (opening / closing device) 16 Heating element 17 Temperature detector 18 Drive device 19 Opening / closing detector 20 Installation detector 22 Microcomputer 24 Display 25 Alarm

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An ice making device having a refrigerating compartment and a freezing compartment, wherein ice is produced by freezing the supplied water with cold air in the freezing compartment, and ice made by the ice making equipment. A water supply device for supplying water to the ice making device together with an ice storage device for storing ice, the water supply device having at least a water supply tank and a water supply pipe, and arranging the water supply tank in a thermal cutoff structure A freezer-refrigerator characterized in that it is provided with an opening / closing device that can be opened / closed in a part of this component while being thermally shielded from cold air in the freezing room, and that the opening / closing device serves as an attachment / detachment port of the water tank. 2. The refrigerator / freezer according to claim 1, wherein an open / closed state of the opening / closing device can be detected to display or alarm the open / closed state of the opening / closing device. 3. An installation state of the water supply tank in the water supply device is detected, and when the water supply tank is not installed, the open state is displayed when the water supply tank attachment / detachment port is open, and the water supply tank is already installed. The freezer / refrigerator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein when the water supply tank attachment / detachment port is in an open state, the open state is alarmed. 4. The freezer-refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein a temperature is controlled so that the inside of the water supply device is not frozen by the cold air in the freezing chamber. 5. The water in the water supply tank can be controlled to flow out by an external operation of a water supply operation body, and the water supply operation by the external operation controls the water supply in the water supply tank to the ice making device through the water supply pipe. The freezer-refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it is possible. 6. The refrigerator / freezer according to claim 1, wherein when the temperature in the water supply tank is detected to be below a certain temperature, the operation of supplying water from the water supply tank is stopped. . 7. The stop of the water supply operation is released when the temperature rises after stopping the water supply from the water supply tank when the temperature inside the water supply device is below a certain temperature-above a certain temperature. Item 6. The freezer-refrigerator according to item 6. 8. A drive device for the opening / closing device is provided at a water supply tank attachment / detachment port, and the opening / closing device can be automatically closed by the drive device, and a water supply tank provided in the water supply device is provided. 8. The refrigerating machine according to claim 1, wherein the water supply tank attachment / detachment port can be automatically closed after the installation state of the water supply tank is detected by a means for detecting the installation state. refrigerator.