JP2008002728A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a refrigerator capable of allowing a user to easily find failure to prevent food inside from spoiling without user's noticing. <P>SOLUTION: This refrigerator comprises an inside lighting 104, a warning LED 103 for warning of failure by a digital display LED and the like when electrical equipment such as a thermistor is failed, and a control means 102 detecting the failure of the electrical equipment and controlling the warning LED 103 and the inside lighting 104, and the inside lighting 104 flickers in addition to the warning by the warning LED 103, when the failure of the electrical equipment is detected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator provided with an interior lighting and a failure alarm function for electrical components.

  Conventionally, this type of refrigerator has been put on the market with an internal lighting and a failure warning function for electrical components. For example, the failure alarm function of the conventional refrigerator described in Patent Document 1 will be described with reference to FIG. Of compressors, condensers, decompressors, evaporators, etc., which are components that are connected in order by pipes to constitute the refrigeration system, the function is not fully exhibited, especially due to clogging of the filter, etc. I will explain by taking up many condensers.

  If the condenser is clogged and left in this state for a long time, the ambient temperature of the condenser fan motor will rise and the temperature of the bearing will rise, resulting in oil deterioration. Connect.

  In addition, if lint or the like is tangled around the fan motor, air is not sufficiently sent to the condenser, the condenser rises in temperature, or the load is heavy, so the fan motor itself rises in temperature. This will lead to the failure of the fan motor.

  At the stage where such condenser clogging and fan motor rotation failure continue, the situation is informed in advance so that the user can take action before a complete failure occurs.

  First, the flowchart showing the flow of basic control operation of the failure prediction and alarm system shown in FIG. 10 will be described.

  To see if the condenser is functioning properly, a condenser temperature sensor is provided that is attached to the condenser surface and measures the condenser temperature. The condenser is also provided with a fan motor that sends external air to the condenser and a filter for taking in clean air. And in order to measure the temperature of a fan motor, the fan motor temperature sensor attached to the case surface of a fan motor is also provided. In addition, a compressor overload protection device (OLR) is provided that detects an overload state of the compressor based on the compressor current and stops the compressor. Therefore, first, it is checked whether or not the condenser temperature has risen by the condenser temperature sensor (21). Specifically, an upper limit temperature (for example, 55 ° C.) that can be considered to be abnormally high is set with respect to the temperature (for example, 45 ° C.) when the condenser operates normally and functions, and this upper limit temperature is set. Judgment is made based on whether or not (setting criteria) is exceeded.

  Here, the reason why the temperature of the condenser becomes considerably higher than normal is considered that the filter of the condenser is clogged with clogging, the fan motor itself is stopped, and the like.

  On the other hand, although the temperature of the condenser is not as high as described above, the fan motor temperature measured by the fan motor temperature sensor may be high. In such a case, for example, a thread or the like may be caught around the fan motor, which may increase the load on the fan motor and cause the fan motor to be overheated. Or the rotation operation of a fan motor is irregular, and the case where the lifetime of a fan motor has come is considered.

  Therefore, in the situation where the temperature rise of the condenser does not exceed the upper limit temperature (NO in 21), the temperature rise of the fan motor is measured by the fan motor temperature sensor (22), and the reference value when the fan motor is functioning normally. Comparison with temperature (outside air temperature + 15 ° C.) is performed (23). For example, if the outside air temperature is 30 ° C., the reference value temperature is 45 ° C. Therefore, if the temperature exceeds 45 ° C. (over), a warning for the life of the fan motor is given (24). In this way, removal of lint stuck to the user or the life of the fan motor has come to indicate the need for replacement. Note that, as the reference value temperature in this case, a difference between the inlet air temperature and the outlet air temperature of the condenser may be compared with a measurement reference value. And if the situation where the condenser temperature exceeds the upper limit temperature (55 ° C.) continues (YES in 21), the load on the compressor increases, the compressor current also increases, and the conditions for operating the compressor overload relay are established.

  Therefore, it is next determined whether or not there is an operation of the compressor overload relay (25). If the situation is not sufficient to activate the compressor overload relay (NO in 25), it is predicted that the filter is clogged and a filter cleaning warning is issued (26). The user sees this warning and cleans the filter.

  When the compressor overload relay operates (YES in 25), an abnormality display of a fan motor failure is displayed and an alarm is issued (27).

The various determinations, warnings, and alarms described above are performed by a control device including a microcomputer (see Patent Document 1).
JP-A-4-340197

  However, the conventional configuration has a problem that the alarm only turns on the alarm LED and the user is often not aware of it.

  This invention solves the said conventional subject, and it aims at providing the refrigerator in which a user is easy to notice a failure.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, the refrigerator of the present invention includes an interior lighting, an alarm means for alarming an electrical component when an electrical component fails, an alarm means for detecting the failure of the electrical component, and the alarm means and the interior And a control means for controlling the lighting. When a failure of the electrical component is detected, an alarm is given by the warning means and the interior lighting is blinked.

  This makes it easier for the user to notice the failure.

  Further, the refrigerator of the present invention includes an interior lighting using an LED, an alarm means for alarming a failure when an electrical component such as a thermistor fails, an alarm means for detecting the failure of the electrical component, and the interior lighting. And a control means for controlling the alarm, and when an electrical component failure is detected, the alarm means alerts and changes the color of the LED of the interior lighting.

  This makes it easier for the user to notice the failure.

  The refrigerator of the present invention makes it easier for the user to notice the failure, and prevents the user from noticing the food in the warehouse without being noticed.

  The invention according to claim 1 is the interior lighting, the alarm means for alarming the failure when the electrical component fails, the control means for detecting the malfunction of the electrical component and controlling the alarm means and the interior lighting. When a failure of an electrical component is detected, the alarm means alerts and the interior lighting blinks, making it easier for the user to notice the malfunction, and the user is not aware of the food in the warehouse and is damaged. Can be prevented.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the interior lighting using the LED, the alarm means for alarming the failure when the electrical component such as the thermistor fails, the failure of the electrical component is detected, and the alarm means and the interior Control means for controlling the lighting, and when a failure of the electrical component is detected, the warning means alerts and changes the color of the LED of the interior lighting, which makes it easier for the user to notice the failure. It is possible to prevent the food in the warehouse from being damaged without being noticed.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 1, in which the manner of blinking of the interior lighting is changed depending on the failed part, and the user can know what has failed, There is no need to install a dedicated alarm device or numeric display LED.

  The invention according to claim 4 changes the color of the LED of the interior lighting according to the failed part in the invention according to claim 2, and the user can know what has failed, There is no need to install a dedicated alarm device or numeric display LED.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the interior lighting using the LED, the alarm means for alarming the failure when the electrical component such as the thermistor fails, the failure of the electrical component is detected, and the alarm means and the interior Control means for controlling the lighting, and when the failure of the electrical component is detected, the warning means alerts, changes the color of the LED of the interior lighting, and blinks. The user can know more detailed failure information without installing a numerical display LED, and can receive an accurate and quick repair.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The same reference numerals are given to the same configurations as those of the conventional example or the embodiments described above, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a refrigerator control circuit according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the refrigerator control circuit, which will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  In FIG. 1, the partial pressure of the thermistor 100 and the resistor 101 for detecting the internal temperature is input to the control means 102, and the control means 102 is configured to control the failure warning LED 103 and the internal lighting 104.

  Operation of the refrigerator configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. First, in step 100, the control means 102 inputs the voltage from the thermistor 100. In step 101, if the voltage value is not possible, the thermistor 100 fails, and the failure warning LED 103 is turned on in step 102. Blinks. If the voltage value is not an impossible value in step 101, the process returns to step 100. The impossible value in step 101 includes a resistance value range of the thermistor 100 in a possible range for the temperature of the thermistor 100, and a possible range of partial pressure with the resistor 101 in that resistance value range. It is a range that cannot be outside this range. Although the case where the thermistor has failed has been described as an example in the present embodiment, the interior lighting blinks in the same manner when a failure of another electrical component is detected. The interior lighting may be turned off when the refrigerator door is closed and blinked when the door is opened.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when a failure of an electrical component is detected, the user is more easily aware of the failure by not only warning the failure warning LED but also blinking the interior lighting, and the user is aware of the failure. It is possible to prevent the food in the storage from being damaged.

(Embodiment 2)
FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b) are diagrams showing LEDs used in the refrigerator interior lighting according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. One LED is composed of three red, green, and blue LEDs. By changing the current passed through the LED, the light intensity of each LED is changed, and the overall color changes. The interior lighting is composed of several LEDs, each composed of three red, green and blue LEDs. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the control circuit of the refrigerator in the present embodiment, and FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the control circuit of the refrigerator, which will be described below with reference to FIGS. 3, 4, and 5.

  3 and 4, the current varying means 200 varies the current value flowing through the red LED 201, the current varying means 202 varies the current value flowing through the blue LED 203, the current varying means 204 varies the current value flowing through the green LED 205, The current variable means 200, the current variable means 202, and the current variable means 204 are controlled by a control means 206.

  Operation of the refrigerator configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. First, in step 200, the current variable means 200 is set to N, in step 201, the current variable means 202 is set to N, in step 202, the current variable means 204 is set to N, and in step 203, the voltage from the thermistor is input. If the voltage value is impossible at 204, the failure warning LED 103 is turned on at step 205 as a failure of the thermistor 100. The reason why the currents of the red, blue and green LEDs are equal (N) is that the light intensity of each LED is the same and the interior lighting is white. If the voltage value is not an impossible value in step 204, the process returns to step 200. By setting the current variable means 200 to S (> N) in step 206, setting the current variable means 202 to 0 in step 207, and setting the current variable means 204 to 0 in step 208, the color of the interior lighting is red. become.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when a failure of an electrical component is detected, the user is more easily aware of the failure by changing the color of the interior lighting as well as alarming with the failure warning LED. It is possible to prevent the food in the storage from being damaged without being noticed.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a refrigerator control circuit according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a blinking pattern of the interior lighting of the refrigerator, which will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  6 and 7, the partial pressure of the thermistor A 301 and the resistor 101 for detecting the internal temperature and the partial pressure of the thermistor B 302 and the resistor 101 for detecting the internal temperature of another room of the refrigerator are input to the control means 300. The control means 300 is configured to control the interior lighting 104.

  The operation of the refrigerator configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. The failure detection method for the thermistor A301 and the thermistor B302 is the same as that in the first embodiment. For example, when a failure of the thermistor A301 is detected, the flashing pattern A is output from the control means 300, and when a failure of the thermistor B302 is detected, the flashing pattern B is output.

  As described above, in this embodiment, by changing the blinking method depending on the failed part, the user can know what has failed, and a dedicated alarm device or numerical display LED for each part (depending on the failed part) It is not necessary to install (change the number to be displayed).

(Embodiment 4)
FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a refrigerator control circuit according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention, which will be described below with reference to FIG.

  In FIG. 8, the partial pressure of the thermistor A301 and the resistor 101 for detecting the internal temperature, and the partial pressure of the thermistor B302 and the resistor 101 for detecting the internal temperature of another room of the refrigerator are input to the control means 400. The variable means 200 varies the current value flowing through the red LED 201, the current varying means 202 varies the current value flowing through the blue LED 203, and the current varying means 204 varies the current value flowing through the green LED 205. The current varying means 200 and the current varying means 202 and the current varying means 204 are controlled by the control means 400.

  Operation of the refrigerator configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. The failure detection method for the thermistor A301 and the thermistor B302 is the same as in the first embodiment, and the method for changing the color of the interior lighting is the same as in the second embodiment. For example, when a failure of the thermistor A301 is detected, the blue LED 203 is turned on by the current varying means 202, and the other red LED 201 and green LED 205 are turned off by the current varying means 200 and the current varying means 204, respectively. Thus, when the thermistor A fails, the interior illumination turns blue. When the failure of the thermistor B302 is detected, the green LED 205 is turned on by the current variable means 204, and the other red LED 201 and blue LED 203 are turned off by the current variable means 200 and the current variable means 202, respectively. Thus, when the thermistor A fails, the interior lighting turns green.

  As described above, in this embodiment, by changing the color of the interior lighting depending on the failed part, the user can know what has failed, and a dedicated alarm device or numerical display LED (failed for each part) It is not necessary to install (change the number to be displayed depending on the part).

(Embodiment 5)
FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a refrigerator control circuit according to Embodiment 5 of the present invention. Hereinafter, a case where the present invention is applied to the invention of claim 4 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  In FIG. 9, the control means 500 inputs the voltage from the thermistor and controls the interior lighting.

  The operation of the refrigerator configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. The failure detection method for the thermistor A301 and the thermistor B302 is the same as in the first embodiment, and the method for changing the color of the interior lighting is the same as in the second embodiment. For example, when the voltage input to the control means 500 is higher than a possible voltage when a failure of the thermistor A301 is detected (a short circuit of the thermistor A circuit is predicted), the current variable means 202 displays the blue LED 203. 7 is blinked, and when it is low (disconnection of the circuit of the thermistor A is predicted), the blinking pattern B of FIG. The other red LED 201 and green LED 205 are turned off by the current variable means 200 and the current variable means 204, respectively. Thus, when the circuit of the thermistor A fails in a short-circuit state, the interior lighting blinks in blue with the blinking pattern A in FIG. 7, and blinks in blue with the blinking pattern B when it fails in a disconnected state. The same applies to the thermistor B302.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the user can not only change the color of the interior lighting but also blink, so that the user can provide more detailed failure information without installing a dedicated alarm device or numerical display LED for each part. Know and get accurate and quick repairs.

  As described above, the refrigerator according to the present invention makes it easier for the user to notice the failure due to the operation of the interior lighting, and more detailed failure information without installing a dedicated alarm device or numeric display LED for each part. Since it can be known by the user, it can be applied to all devices using interior lighting.

The block diagram of the control circuit of the refrigerator in Embodiment 1 of this invention The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the control circuit of the refrigerator in Embodiment 1 of this invention. (A) The figure which looked at LED of the refrigerator in Embodiment 2 of this invention from the top (b) Side view of LED of the refrigerator in Embodiment 2 of this invention The block diagram of the control circuit of the refrigerator in Embodiment 2 of this invention The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the control circuit of the refrigerator in Embodiment 2 of this invention. The block diagram of the control circuit of the refrigerator in Embodiment 3 of this invention The figure which shows the blink pattern of the interior lighting of the refrigerator in Embodiment 3 of this invention The block diagram of the control circuit of the refrigerator in Embodiment 4 of this invention The block diagram of the control circuit of the refrigerator in Embodiment 5 of this invention Flow chart showing the flow of control operation of a conventional refrigerator failure prediction and alarm system

Explanation of symbols

100 thermistor 102 control means 103 failure warning LED
104 Interior lighting 200 Current variable means 201 Red LED
202 Current variable means 203 Blue LED
204 Current variable means 205 Green LED
206 Control means 300 Control means 301 Thermistor A
302 Thermistor B
400 control means 500 control means

Claims (5)

  When the interior lighting and the electrical component break down, the alarm means for alarming the failure and the control means for detecting the failure of the electrical component and controlling the alarm means and the interior lighting are detected. A refrigerator characterized by alarming the alarm means and flashing the interior lighting.   The interior lighting using the LED, and when an electrical component such as a thermistor fails, an alarm means for alarming the failure, and a control means for detecting the malfunction of the electrical component and controlling the alarm means and the interior lighting When the failure of the electrical component is detected, the alarm means alerts the refrigerator and changes the color of the LED of the interior lighting.   The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein a manner of blinking of the interior lighting is changed depending on a failed part.   The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein the color of the LED of the interior lighting is changed depending on the failed part.   The interior lighting using the LED, and when an electrical component such as a thermistor fails, an alarm means for alarming the failure, and a control means for detecting the malfunction of the electrical component and controlling the alarm means and the interior lighting When the failure of the electrical component is detected, the alarm means alerts the LED, changes the color of the LED of the interior lighting, and blinks the refrigerator.

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