CN115210517A

CN115210517A - Refrigerator with a door

Info

Publication number: CN115210517A
Application number: CN202080094334.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 正久昌利; 冈本泰幸; 松山真衣; 金原幸子
Original assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co Ltd
Current assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-01-22
Filing date: 2020-12-09
Publication date: 2022-10-18
Also published as: JP2021116934A; WO2021149385A1

Abstract

The refrigerator of the present invention includes: a refrigerating chamber; a compressor for compressing a refrigerant; a damper for adjusting cold air to the refrigerating chamber; and an electrostatic atomization device disposed in the refrigerating chamber and applying a high voltage to atomize water. The electrostatic atomization device has, as operation modes, a cycle of an opening operation and a closing operation of a damper or a cycle of an operation and a stopping operation of a compressor: a normal operation mode in which the electrostatic atomization device is operated every 2 or more predetermined cycles; and a power operation mode in which the operation of the electrostatic atomization device is performed every 1 cycle.

Description

Refrigerator with a door

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a refrigerator having an atomizing device in a storage compartment.

Background

In recent years, in order to enable rapid mist generation, an electrostatic atomizing device has been proposed, which includes, as a supply mechanism for supplying water to a discharge electrode: an icing mechanism for icing the discharge electrode by moisture in the air through cooling of the discharge electrode; a thawing means for thawing the frozen ice to produce water (see, for example, patent document 1).

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent No. 4625267

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a refrigerator, which can switch the time of supplying fog corresponding to the load change in a room caused by the opening and closing of a refrigerating chamber.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator according to embodiment 1 of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the refrigerator.

Fig. 3 is a main portion sectional view above the refrigerating chamber when the refrigerating chamber door is opened.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of the electrostatic atomizing device portion of the refrigerator.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the atomizing cover member of the refrigerator.

Fig. 6 is a timing chart in the normal operation mode of the electrostatic atomizing device for the refrigerator according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 7 is a timing chart showing another example of the normal operation mode of the electrostatic atomizing device for a refrigerator according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 8 is a timing chart in the powerful operation mode of the electrostatic atomizing device for a refrigerator according to embodiment 1.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the detailed description may be omitted to the extent necessary. For example, there are cases where detailed descriptions of already known matters or overlapping descriptions of substantially the same structures are omitted.

In addition, the drawings and the following description are provided for those skilled in the art to sufficiently understand the present invention, and these contents are not intended to limit the subject matter described in the scope of claims.

(embodiment mode 1)

Fig. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator, and fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view. The overall structure of the refrigerator will be described with reference to fig. 1 and 2.

As shown in fig. 2, the refrigerator 1 of the present embodiment has a refrigerator main body 2 that is open at the front (left side in the X direction shown in fig. 2). The refrigerator main body 2 is composed of a metal outer panel 3 constituting a fascia, a hard resin inner panel 4, and a heat insulating material 5 filled between the outer panel 3 and the inner panel 4 by foaming. A plurality of storage compartments are formed in the refrigerator main body 2 by heat-insulating

partition plates

6, 7, and 8. Each storage chamber of the refrigerator main body 2 is configured to be openable and closable by a rotatable refrigerator door 9 or a pull-out

door

10, 11, 12, 13 having the same heat insulation structure as the refrigerator main body 2.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, a refrigerating room 14 is disposed in the refrigerator main body 2 at the uppermost part. In the example of the present embodiment, a switching chamber 15 capable of switching a temperature range, an ice making chamber 16, a vegetable chamber 17, and a freezing chamber 18 provided in parallel with switching chamber 15 are disposed in refrigerator main body 2. The switching chamber 15 is partitioned vertically by the heat-insulating partition plate 6 and the refrigerating chamber 14, and is disposed below the heat-insulating partition plate 6. Ice making compartment 16 is partitioned from switching compartment 15 in a heat-insulating manner and is disposed on a side of switching compartment 15. Vegetable compartment 17 is partitioned in the vertical direction by heat insulating partition plate 7, switching compartment 15, and ice making compartment 16, and is disposed below heat insulating partition plate 7. Freezing compartment 18 is vertically partitioned from vegetable compartment 17 by heat-insulating partition plate 8, and is disposed below heat-insulating partition plate 8.

In the refrigerating compartment 14, a plurality of shelves 19 are arranged in a plurality of stages in the vertical direction. A freezer compartment 20 having a different cooling temperature range from that of the refrigerator compartment 14 is disposed at the lower part of the refrigerator compartment 14.

The refrigerating chamber 14 is a storage chamber for refrigerating, and specifically, is set to a temperature of about 2 to 3 ℃ for cooling. In addition, the temperature of the freezing chamber 20 provided in the refrigerating chamber 14 is set to about-3 ℃ suitable for freezing preservation. The temperature of the freezing chamber 20 can be set to a temperature range of about 1 ℃.

The vegetable compartment 17 is a storage compartment whose temperature is set to be slightly higher than that of the refrigerating compartment 14, and specifically, is cooled at 4 to 7 ℃. Since the vegetable room 17 has a high humidity due to moisture emitted from food items such as vegetables, the room may be partially supercooled and dew condensed. Therefore, by setting the vegetable compartment 17 to a relatively high temperature to reduce the amount of cooling, the occurrence of condensation due to local supercooling can be suppressed.

The freezing chamber 18 is a storage chamber whose temperature is set to a freezing temperature range, and is generally cooled with its temperature set to about-18 ℃. However, in order to improve the frozen state of the stored food, the food may be cooled by setting the temperature to a low temperature such as-30 ℃ or-25 ℃.

The switching chamber 15 is a storage chamber capable of changing the temperature in the interior, and is configured to be switchable from a refrigeration temperature range to a freezing temperature range according to the application.

A cooling chamber 21 is disposed on the rear surface (right side in the X direction in fig. 2) of the vegetable compartment 17. In the cooling compartment 21, a cooler 22 for generating cold air and a cooling fan 23 for supplying the cold air to each compartment are disposed. A defrosting mechanism 24 (hereinafter referred to as a heater) including a glass tube heater or the like is provided below the cooler 22.

The cooler 22, the compressor 25, a heat exchanger (not shown), a dew condensation preventing pipe (not shown) for preventing dew condensation at the opening of each chamber, and a capillary tube (not shown) are connected in a ring shape to constitute a refrigeration cycle, and cooling by the cooler 22 is performed by the circulation of the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 25.

The cooling fan 23 is disposed above the cooler 22. A part of the cold air cooled by cooler 22 is supplied to refrigerating room 14 through refrigerating room cold air flow path 26 communicating with cooling room 21 on the downstream side of cooling fan 23 by forced ventilation by cooling fan 23. Part of the cold air cooled by cooler 22 is supplied to freezer compartment 18 through freezer cold air duct 27 by forced ventilation by cooling fan 23. Part of the cold air circulating in refrigerating room 14 or the cold air cooled by cooler 22 is supplied to vegetable room 17 through a vegetable room cold air passage (not shown). In this way, the refrigerator 1 is configured to cool each compartment.

The heat insulating partition plate 6 for partitioning the refrigerating chamber 14, the switching chamber 15, and the ice making chamber has a refrigerating chamber damper 39 for adjusting the amount of cold air to the refrigerating chamber 14.

Next, the structure of the refrigerating compartment 14 will be specifically described.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of an upper portion of the refrigerating compartment 14. Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of the electrostatic atomizing device in fig. 3, and fig. 5 is a perspective view of the atomizing cover member.

An electrostatic atomizing device 29 is provided on an inner panel 4 constituting an inner wall of the refrigerating compartment 14 and on a top surface portion 28 of the refrigerating compartment 14. The electrostatic atomization device 29 causes a nano-sized mist of negative ions to be generated in the storage chamber. The electrostatic atomization device 29 includes: an atomizing unit 30 for condensing moisture in the air in the refrigerating compartment 14; and a circuit unit 31 for applying a high voltage to the atomizing unit 30.

The atomizing unit 30 includes: an atomizing electrode 40 that generates negative ion mist; and a counter electrode 41 disposed to face the atomizing electrode 40. The peltier element 42 is provided as a supply mechanism for supplying moisture in the air to the atomizing electrode 40. The peltier element 42 of the heat exchanger is energized from the circuit unit 31. Thereby, heat transfer occurs in the peltier element 42, and the atomizing electrode 40 is cooled via the cooling portion connected to the heat absorption side of the peltier element 42. The humidity of the refrigerating compartment 14 is specifically a low humidity environment of about 20 to 30%, and therefore the atomizing electrodes 40 are less likely to dew.

Therefore, by increasing the cooling capacity of the atomizing electrode 40 by the peltier element 42, moisture in the air is cooled, and frozen ice is generated on the atomizing electrode 40. Then, the energization to the peltier element 42 is stopped, and the ice frozen on the atomizing electrode 40 is melted to generate water. Then, a high voltage is applied between the atomizing electrode 40 and the counter electrode 41 via a transformer of the circuit unit 31, and electricity is applied to the peltier element 42, thereby atomizing the generated water to generate mist.

Refrigerating room cold air flow path 26 is provided behind electrostatic atomizing device 29, i.e., at the back of refrigerating room 14. Cold-storage room air-conditioning duct 26 extends from the lower end of cold-storage room 14 to a position above the uppermost shelf 19 and below top surface 28. Refrigerating compartment cold air flow path 26 has a plurality of outlets. Of the air outlets provided in cold-storage room air-conditioning duct 26, air outlet 26a provided at the uppermost portion opens to top surface portion 28.

The top surface portion 28 is provided with an illumination device 32 made of an LED (light-emitting diode) for illuminating the inside of the refrigerator compartment 14. The lighting device 32 and the electrostatic atomizing device 29 are arranged in this order from the front opening side of the refrigerating compartment 14.

Space 33 is formed between electrostatic atomizing device 29 and discharge port 26a of cold air passage 26 in the refrigerating compartment. Electrostatic atomizing device 29 is disposed closer to lighting device 32 than cold-storage compartment air-conditioning duct 26.

A control board housing portion 35 that houses a control board (control portion) 34 that controls the operation of the refrigerator 1 is disposed in the outer panel 3 that constitutes the top wall of the refrigerator 1. In the example of the present embodiment, the control board housing portion 35 is formed by a recess provided in the ceiling wall, and the control board 34 is housed in the control board housing portion 35.

The electrostatic atomizing device 29 is disposed below the control board 34, in which the top surface portion 28 is thinner than the front surface opening of the refrigerating compartment 14.

As shown in fig. 4, the atomizing cover member 37 of the electrostatic atomizing device 29 is formed to protrude from the top surface 28 toward the uppermost shelf 19 of the refrigerating compartment 14 toward the inside of the compartment. As shown in fig. 5, the mist discharge openings 37e formed in a plurality of layers in the vertical direction are disposed in the side surface portion 37d of the atomizing cover member 37. The atomizing cover member 37 is configured to be able to spray mist into the refrigerating compartment 14 through the mist discharge port 37e. The mist discharge opening 37e of the atomizing cover member 37 is formed in a stepped shape so as to be closer to the atomizing area 30 or the circuit area 31 as the mist discharge opening 37e goes to the lower layer. Between the mist discharge openings 37e adjacent in the up-down direction, a guide rib 37f extending in the horizontal direction is formed. This prevents the mist discharge port 37e from being clogged even if food or the like is placed in front of the atomizing cover member 37.

Therefore, even when food or the like is packed in refrigerating room 14, mist can be discharged from mist discharge port 37e, and the sterilization and deodorization effects in refrigerating room 14 can be maintained.

As shown in fig. 4, the atomizing cover member 37 is formed to protrude from the top surface portion 28 toward the uppermost shelf 19 into the refrigerating compartment 14. Therefore, the mist discharge port 37e functions as an intake port for taking in the air in the storage together with the moisture contained in the air. That is, when water is generated in the atomizing area 30, the moisture in the air in the atomizing cover member 37 decreases, and the mist discharge port 37e functions as an in-storage air intake hole in the atomizing cover member 37, so that the in-storage air can be continuously fed into the atomizing cover member 37 to exchange the air. Therefore, the mist generating section 30 can continue to generate a proper mist. Therefore, OH radicals contained in the mist decompose various smelly components, thereby improving the sterilization and deodorization effects.

The bottom surface of the atomizing cover member 37 is disposed so as to be inclined upward toward the front opening of the refrigerating compartment 14, whereby the mist discharge port 37e can be more effectively prevented from being clogged with food and the like.

An opening 37g is formed in the atomizing cover member 37 on the side opposite to the air outlet 26 a. An opening 37h is formed in the atomizing cover member 37 on the side not facing the outlet port 26 a. The opening area of the opening 37g is formed smaller than the opening area of the opening 37h. This prevents the cold air of low humidity near the air outlet 26a from entering the atomizing cover member 37 in a collected manner.

In the present embodiment, 2 discharge ports 26a are formed in the left-right width direction of cold-storage room air-conditioning duct 26. In a plan view of refrigerator 1, uppermost air outlet 26a is disposed on both left and right sides so that atomizing area 30 is disposed between extension lines of each of 2 air outlets 26a in the front-rear direction. In this way, the low-humidity cold air blown out from the air outlet 26a is configured not to directly contact the atomizing area 30.

The operation of the electrostatic atomizing device 29 disposed in the refrigerating chamber 14 as described above will be described.

Fig. 6 is a timing chart showing the operation of the electrostatic atomizing apparatus 29, and shows the operation of the electrostatic atomizing apparatus 29 in the normal operation mode in the case where the detected temperature detected by the outside air temperature sensor (not shown) provided in the refrigerator 1 is 15 ℃. Fig. 7 is a timing chart showing the operation in the normal operation mode of the electrostatic atomization device 29 when the outside air temperature is low, i.e., the outside air temperature is less than 15 ℃.

As the operation mode of the electrostatic atomization device 29, the respective operation modes are performed in the order of a freezing mode in which moisture in the air is frozen at the atomization electrode 40, a melting mode in which the frozen ice is melted to generate water, and an atomization mode in which the generated water is atomized. Thereby, the refrigerating compartment 14 is sprayed. Each operation mode will be specifically described.

As shown in fig. 6, during operation of compressor 25, that is, in the ON (open) state of the compressor, refrigerating room damper 39 is opened (opened), and cold air is blown out from air outlet 26a into refrigerating room 14 through refrigerating room cold air flow path 26.

When an indoor temperature sensor (not shown) of refrigerating room 14 reaches a predetermined temperature at a certain time, a closing signal is input to refrigerating room damper 39 so that refrigerating room damper 39 is changed from an open state to a closed state.

Starting from the state in which the refrigerating room damper 39 is opened to the closed state, energization to the peltier element 42 of the electrostatic atomizing device 29 is started, and the freezing mode operation is performed. In the freezing mode, the peltier element 42 is energized to cool the atomizing electrode 40 for a predetermined period of time. At this time, a high current of 1.5A is applied to the peltier element 42 as a current value, thereby increasing the cooling capacity, and moisture in the air in the refrigerating compartment 14 is frozen on the atomizing electrode 40.

The freeze mode is initiated when the refrigerating compartment damper 39 is closed. Therefore, the low-temperature and low-humidity cold air that has been heat-exchanged in cooler 22 is circulated in refrigerating room 14 without being discharged from air outlet 26a, and the air having relatively high humidity after the heat exchange is supplied to electrostatic atomizing device 29. That is, the cooling capacity is improved by applying a high current to the peltier element 42 while suppressing the decrease in moisture, and the moisture can be continuously frozen on the atomizing electrode 40.

The operation time of the freeze mode is 10 minutes in the case of the present embodiment, and the freeze mode continues for 10 minutes. The operating time can be changed. The operating time may vary depending on the load conditions. For example, since the interior tends to have a high humidity when the amount of the stored material in refrigerating room 14 is large, the predetermined time as the operation time of the freezing mode may be relatively short when the amount of the stored material is small.

After the freeze mode is performed for a predetermined period of time, the operation of the thaw mode is started. In the melting mode, the energization to the peltier element 42 is stopped for a predetermined time period, and ice frozen at the atomizing electrode 40 is melted to generate water. In the melting mode, it is preferable that the refrigerating compartment damper 39 is closed so that the generated water is not dried.

After the melting mode is started and a predetermined time has elapsed, the operation of the atomizing mode is started. In the atomization mode, a high voltage is applied between the atomization electrode 40 and the counter electrode 41, and also the energization to the peltier element 42 is performed. At this time, the peltier element 42 is energized at a low current of 0.5A, which is lower than the current value in the freezing mode, whereby the atomizing electrode 40 can be cooled while atomizing, and moisture in the air can be condensed. Therefore, in the atomization mode, it is possible to continue to rapidly spray the nano-sized mist of negative ions toward the refrigerating compartment 14.

When no current is supplied to the peltier element 42 in the atomization mode, heat on the heat release side of the atomization portion 30 is thermally transferred to the heat absorption side, and the temperature of the atomization electrode 40 is increased. In addition, in the environment of the low-humidity refrigerating compartment 14, evaporation of water generated in the thawing mode can be promoted. Therefore, the atomizing electrode 40 may not hold sufficient water and the mist may not be supplied into the refrigerating compartment 14 quickly.

As shown in fig. 6, from the start of the operation of electrostatic atomizing device 29 in the freeze mode to the start of the operation in the next thaw mode and the final atomizing mode, the operation is performed with refrigerating room damper 39 closed, and moisture is collected from the air in refrigerating room 14 more easily than in the case where refrigerating room damper 39 is open, and the mist can be continuously generated more quickly. Depending on the usage state of refrigerator 1 by the user, refrigerating room damper 39 may be opened during the operation in each of these modes, and the operation in each mode may be performed without interruption in the normal operation mode of electrostatic atomizing device 29.

In the case of the present embodiment, the normal operation mode is performed every 2 cycles of the opening and closing operations of refrigerating room damper 39, and the inside of refrigerating room 14 is sprayed. Thus, OH radicals contained in the mist decompose various smelly components, and perform sterilization and deodorization in refrigerating room 14. The operation in the normal operation mode is not limited to every 2 cycles, and the operation in the normal operation mode may be performed every 2 or more predetermined cycles.

Fig. 8 is a timing chart showing a power operation mode of the electrostatic atomizing device 29 in each 1 cycle of the opening operation and the closing operation of the refrigerating compartment damper 39.

When the door 9 of the refrigerating chamber is opened for a predetermined time or longer, the next operation of the electrostatic atomizing device 29 is switched to the powerful operation mode. Then, the freezing mode operation is started every time the refrigerating compartment damper 39 is closed, and thereafter, the operation mode of the thawing mode and then the atomizing mode is performed in order.

Therefore, the mist can be rapidly generated according to the environment in the refrigerating room 14, and the concentration of the atomized water in the spraying operation control room can be switched, thereby improving the sterilization effect.

Further, refrigerator 1 may have storage amount detection unit 51 in refrigerator compartment 14 for detecting the amount of storage in refrigerator compartment 14. When the storage amount detection unit 51 detects that the storage amount in the refrigerating compartment 14 has increased by a predetermined amount, the electrostatic atomization device 29 can be switched to the powerful operation mode. This makes it possible to perform sterilization indoors more strongly than usual.

When a predetermined time has elapsed from the start of the power operation mode, the mode is switched to the normal operation mode. In the normal operation mode, as described above, the operation in the freeze mode is started every 2 cycles of the opening operation and the closing operation of refrigerating room damper 39, and a series of operations based on the operation mode of electrostatic atomizing device 29 are performed. This can achieve power saving.

The refrigerating chamber door 9 may have a display portion 52. The display unit 52 is formed of, for example, an LED, and is configured to be visible even when the refrigerating chamber door 9 is closed. For example, the LED may be turned off when the electrostatic atomization device 29 is not operated, and the LED may be turned on when the electrostatic atomization device 29 is operated. Further, the LED may be turned on in the normal operation mode, and the color of the LED may be displayed in a color different from the color of the LED turned on in the power operation mode. This makes it possible to notify the user of the operating state of the electrostatic atomization device 29.

The operation stop unit 53 may forcibly stop the operation of the electrostatic atomizing device 29. The operation stop unit 53 is disposed in the refrigerator compartment 14, for example. Further, by the user operating the operation stop unit 53, the operation of all the operation modes can be stopped regardless of the operation mode in the implementation of the electrostatic atomization device 29. Therefore, when the user is aware of the sterilization odor, the operation of the electrostatic atomizing device 29 can be forcibly stopped according to the situation of the user.

In addition, in the refrigerator 1, for example, when the power saving mode operation in which the cooling operation for saving power is performed is set in a time zone in which the door is not opened or closed, such as at night, the operation mode of the electrostatic atomization device 29 may be switched to the power operation mode during the power saving mode operation. This allows a large amount of OH radicals contained in the mist to decompose the odorous components, thereby improving the sterilization and deodorization effects in refrigerating compartment 14.

Alternatively, the power mode operation may be switched to the normal mode operation from the intensive mode operation, for example, 1 hour earlier than the time when the power saving mode operation ends. This can suppress the sterilization odor associated with the sterilization operation.

Fig. 7 is a timing chart showing the operation of the electrostatic atomizing device 29, and shows a normal operation mode of the electrostatic atomizing device 29 when the outside air temperature detected by the outside air temperature sensor (not shown) provided in the refrigerator 1 is a low outside air temperature of less than 15 ℃. Here, the operation of the electrostatic atomizing device 29 is performed based on an operation cycle of the operation/stop of the compressor 25.

Specifically, the electrostatic atomizing device 29 is operated in the normal operation mode every 2 cycles of the operation/stop operation of the compressor 25, and the inside of the refrigerating compartment 14 is sprayed. In this case, as described above, in the powerful operation mode shown in fig. 8, by operating the electrostatic atomization device 29 every 1 cycle of the operation/stop operation of the compressor 25, the concentration of atomized moisture in the room can be increased, and the sterilization and deodorization effects in the refrigerating room 14 can be improved. The operation in the normal operation mode is not limited to 2 cycles, and the operation in the normal operation mode may be performed every 2 or more predetermined cycles.

The switching control between the normal operation mode and the power operation mode is the same as that performed when the electrostatic atomization device 29 is operated based on the cycle of the opening operation and the closing operation of the refrigerating compartment damper 39.

As described above, the refrigerator according to the present invention can switch the timing of supplying the mist to the refrigerating compartment.

In the above-described embodiments, the embodiments are intended to exemplify the technique of the present invention, and various modifications, substitutions, additions, omissions, and the like can be made within the scope of the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

Possibility of industrial utilization

The present invention switches between a normal operation mode and a powerful operation mode in an electrostatic atomization device to control the concentration of atomized moisture in a room, and therefore can switch between atomization operations according to the conditions in the room, and can be applied to various refrigerators.

Description of the reference numerals

1. Refrigerator with a door

2. Refrigerator main body

3. Outer plate

4. Inner plate

5. Heat insulating material

6. Heat insulation partition board

7. Heat insulation partition board

8. Heat insulation partition board

9. Refrigerating chamber door

10. Door with a door panel

14. Refrigerating chamber

15. Switching room

16. Ice making chamber

17. Vegetable room

18. Freezing chamber

19. Shelf board

20. Micro-freezing chamber

21. Cooling chamber

22. Cooling device

23. Cooling fan

25. Compressor with a compressor housing having a plurality of compressor blades

26. Cold air path of refrigerating chamber

26a air outlet

27. Cold air path of freezing chamber

28. Top surface part

29. Electrostatic atomization device

30. Atomizing part

31. Circuit unit

32. Lighting device

33. Space(s)

34. Control base plate (control part)

35. Control substrate containing part

37. Atomizing cover component

37d side surface part

37e fog releasing port

37f guide rib

37h opening part

39. Air door of refrigerating chamber

40. Atomizing electrode

41. Counter electrode

42. Peltier element

50. Door switch

51. Storage amount detection unit

52. Display unit

53. An operation stop unit.

Claims

1. A refrigerator, comprising:

a refrigerating chamber;

a compressor for compressing a refrigerant;

a damper for adjusting cool air to the refrigerating chamber;

an electrostatic atomization device disposed in the refrigerating chamber, applying a high voltage to atomize water; and

a control part therein

The electrostatic atomizing device has, as an operation mode, a cycle of an opening operation and a closing operation of the damper or a cycle of an operation and a stopping operation of the compressor, the following mode:

a normal operation mode in which the electrostatic atomization device is operated every 2 or more predetermined cycles; and

a power mode in which the operation of the electrostatic atomization device is performed every 1 cycle.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein:

the refrigerating compartment is provided with a door,

the control unit is configured to switch the operation of the electrostatic atomization device to the powerful operation mode when the door is opened for a predetermined time or longer.

3. The refrigerator of claim 1 wherein:

the refrigerator includes a storage amount detection unit for detecting a storage amount in the refrigerator compartment,

the control unit is configured to switch the operation mode of the electrostatic atomizing apparatus to the powerful operation mode when it is detected that the storage amount in the refrigerating chamber increases by a predetermined amount or more based on the detection result of the storage amount detection unit.

4. A refrigerator as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein:

the control unit is configured to switch the operation mode of the electrostatic atomization device to the normal operation mode when a predetermined time has elapsed from the start of the powerful operation mode.

5. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein:

the refrigerator has a display unit for displaying when the electrostatic atomizing device is operated,

the display unit displays the image in different colors during the normal operation mode and during the power operation mode.

6. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that:

the refrigerator includes an operation stop unit for stopping the operation of the electrostatic atomizing device,

the control unit stops the operation of the electrostatic atomization device in accordance with an input from the operation stop unit.

7. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that:

the refrigerator has a power saving mode for performing a cooling operation for saving power,

the control unit is configured to operate the electrostatic atomization device in the power operation mode during operation in the power saving mode of the refrigerator.

8. The refrigerator of claim 7 wherein:

the control unit switches the operation mode of the electrostatic atomizing device to the normal operation mode before a predetermined time elapses after the refrigerator finishes operating in the power saving mode.