EP2085724B1 - Refrigerator and method of controlling the same - Google Patents

Refrigerator and method of controlling the same Download PDF

Info

Publication number
EP2085724B1
EP2085724B1 EP09152409.0A EP09152409A EP2085724B1 EP 2085724 B1 EP2085724 B1 EP 2085724B1 EP 09152409 A EP09152409 A EP 09152409A EP 2085724 B1 EP2085724 B1 EP 2085724B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
home bar
refrigerator
amount
bar heater
heater
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Not-in-force
Application number
EP09152409.0A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP2085724A2 (en
EP2085724A3 (en
Inventor
Su Nam Chae
Chang Joon Kim
Sung Jhee
Jun Ho Bae
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
LG Electronics Inc
Original Assignee
LG Electronics Inc
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by LG Electronics Inc filed Critical LG Electronics Inc
Publication of EP2085724A2 publication Critical patent/EP2085724A2/en
Publication of EP2085724A3 publication Critical patent/EP2085724A3/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP2085724B1 publication Critical patent/EP2085724B1/en
Not-in-force legal-status Critical Current
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

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Classifications

    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D25/00—Charging, supporting, and discharging the articles to be cooled
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D21/00—Defrosting; Preventing frosting; Removing condensed or defrost water
    • F25D21/04—Preventing the formation of frost or condensate
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D11/00—Self-contained movable devices, e.g. domestic refrigerators
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D23/00—General constructional features
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D23/00—General constructional features
    • F25D23/02—Doors; Covers
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
    • F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F25D2323/00—General constructional features not provided for in other groups of this subclass
    • F25D2323/02—Details of doors or covers not otherwise covered
    • F25D2323/023—Door in door constructions

Definitions

  • the present disclosure relates to a refrigerator and a method of controlling the refrigerator.
  • a refrigerator includes a plurality of compartments for storing foods or other goods at low temperatures close to or below zero degrees Celsius. Predetermined sides of the storing compartments are opened for allowing access to the foods stored in the storing compartment.
  • Some of recent refrigerators include a home bar installed in a door for preventing unnecessary leakage of cold air caused by frequent opening and closing of the door. Drinks or foods and the like can be accessed through the home bar without having to open the refrigerator door.
  • the refrigerator door includes an opening having a predetermined size to access foods through the home bar.
  • the opening may be coupled with a rotatable home bar door to selectively cover the opening.
  • a refrigerator compartment inside the refrigerator has a temperature ranging from about 2°C to 3°C, and the outside of the refrigerator has an ambient temperature (about 15 to 25°C) of the room where the refrigerator is installed.
  • an insulation material may be inserted into the home bar door to prevent heat transfer caused by the temperature difference between the outside and the inside of the refrigerator.
  • the home bar may include a home bar heater to prevent the condensation of moisture in air around the home bar caused by a temperature difference between the outside and the inside of the home bar.
  • the lower end of the opening generally has a lower temperature than that of other portions of the opening.
  • the related art home bar heater is adjacent to the home bar door along a predetermined portion of the refrigerator door to supply a constant amount of heat.
  • a low temperature phenomenon occurs especially in the lower end of the opening among peripheral regions of the opening where the home bar door is installed.
  • moisture in air in the lower end of the opening is condensed on the refrigerator by a temperature difference between the lower end of the opening and the peripheral regions of the refrigerator.
  • Embodiments of the invention provide a refrigerator configured to improve the structure of a home bar heater provided to a home bar, thereby controlling the amount of heat produced from the heater according to temperature conditions inside and outside the home bar.
  • Embodiments of the invention also provide a home bar heater optimized to adjust heat produced by the home bar heater using a semiconductor device having various resistances according to temperature, thereby decreasing power consumption for operating the home bar heater.
  • a refrigerator according to claim 1 In one embodiment, a refrigerator according to claim 1.
  • the amount of heat from the heater using the PTC device is controlled according to varied temperature around the home bar, and thus the amount of heat produced by the heater is decreased under a high temperature condition that does not require heat produced by the heater, and the amount of heat produced by the heater is increased under a low temperature condition requiring heat produced by the heater.
  • the heater produces just a required amount of heat according to the temperature around the home bar, thereby reducing power consumption for the heat produced by the heater.
  • FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a refrigerator home bar 100 according to an embodiment.
  • a refrigerator 1 includes a main body 10, a freezer compartment door 11, and a refrigerator compartment door 12.
  • the main body 10 has an open front and includes a freezer compartment (not shown) and a refrigerator compartment (not shown).
  • the freezer compartment door 11 and the refrigerator compartment door 12 are configured to respectively cover portions of the open front of the main body 10.
  • the refrigerator compartment door 12 includes the home bar 100 in an approximately center thereof to improve storing and accessing of frequently used foods.
  • a side-by-side-type refrigerator including a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment at left and right sides, will be exemplified in FIG. 1 .
  • positions of the freezer compartment and the refrigerator compartment are not limited thereto, and a top-mount-type refrigerator in which a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment are vertically arranged, or a bottom freezer-type refrigerator in which a refrigerator compartment is disposed on a top side, and the freezer compartment is disposed on a bottom side may be provided according to other embodiments.
  • the home bar 100 may be provided on the freezer compartment door 11, or to both the refrigerator compartment door 12 and the freezer compartment door 11.
  • the main body 10 includes the refrigerator compartment storing a food required to be at a temperature ranging from about 2 °C to 5 °C, and the freezer compartment storing a food required to be frozen.
  • the home bar 100 includes an opening 101, a home bar frame 102, and a home bar door 103.
  • the opening 101 allows access to a good inside the refrigerator.
  • the home bar frame 102 is disposed on a periphery around the opening 101 to form an appearance of the home bar 100.
  • the home bar door 103 is configured to open and close the opening 101.
  • the opening 101 and the home bar frame 102 which are separately referred in function, are included in the home bar 100, the opening 101 and the home bar frame 102 may be considered as portions of the refrigerator compartment door 12.
  • An inner surface of the home bar door 103 is provided with a home bar door liner 104.
  • the home bar door liner 104 contacts the home bar frame 102 to close an inner space of the refrigerator 1 in the state where the home bar door 103 covers the opening 101.
  • the home bar door 103 is rotatably mounted at a lower end of the home bar 100, i.e., a hinge portion 107.
  • the hinge portion 107 may be provided to the refrigerator compartment door 12 on both sides of a lower end of the opening 101.
  • the home bar door 103 includes a latch member 106 in an inner upper portion thereof.
  • the latch member 106 fixes the home bar door 103 covering the opening 101 to the home bar frame 102.
  • the home bar frame 102 includes a latch assembly 105 that is, when the home bar door 103 is closed, interlocked with the latch member 106.
  • the home bar door 103 When the home bar door 103 is closed, the latch member 106 is inserted into the latch assembly 105 and interlocked with the latch assembly 105, to maintain the closing state of the home bar door 103.
  • the home bar door 103 includes a push part (not shown) in a front surface thereof.
  • the push part is configured to perform a push operation for a user to open the home bar door 103.
  • the latch member 106 with the push part may be one element of an "opening/closing device" for opening/closing the home bar door 103.
  • the home bar frame 102 includes a gasket 108 in a front surface thereof.
  • the gasket 108 in the state where the home bar door 103 is closed, contacts the inner surface of the home bar door 103 to close the inner space of the refrigerator 1, thereby preventing the leakage of cool air in the refrigerator 1.
  • the home bar frame 102 includes a home bar heater 120 therein.
  • the home bar heater 120 heats the periphery of the opening 101 to prevent wet air, i.e., moisture in air from being condensed by a temperature difference between the inside and the outside of the refrigerator 1.
  • FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line I-I' of FIG. 1 .
  • the home bar heater 120 may be disposed inside the home bar frame 102.
  • the home bar frame 102 may include an insulation material inserted into the home bar frame 102 to thermally insulate the inside and the outside of the refrigerator 1 from each other.
  • the home bar heater 120 includes a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) device 121.
  • PTC positive temperature coefficient
  • the PTC device 121 also referred to as a positive temperature coefficient thermistor, is formed of a barium titanate-based ceramic material and has a characteristic where resistance quickly increases with increasing temperature.
  • the PTC device 121 employs the so-called switch principle where when current flows in a short time, current flow is stopped by the increase of resistance, which may be used for demagnetizing a television shadow mask and starting a motor of an air conditioner.
  • Such PTC devices are formed in a honeycomb structure and directly heat air passing through the honeycomb structure, which may be adapted for hair driers and clothes driers.
  • the home bar heater 120 is disposed around the opening 101.
  • a power supplier 122 is disposed on both sides of the home bar heater 120 to supply a refrigerator power to the home bar heater 120.
  • the home bar heater 120 When a constant voltage (220 V) is supplied to the main body 10, the home bar heater 120 receives a constant voltage to produce heat.
  • FIG. 3 is a graph illustrating the variation in resistance depending on temperature of the PTC device 121 applied to the home bar heater 120 according to an embodiment.
  • the home bar heater 120 may employ the PTC device 121 having a characteristic where resistance varies according to temperature.
  • the PTC device 121 may include a ceramic semiconductor device.
  • the PTC device 121 experiences a decrease in electrical resistance at a low temperature, but when the temperature is over a set value (critical temperature) of a specific temperature, the resistance increases hundreds or thousands of times. As such, the reason why the electrical resistance of the PTC device 121 is rapidly changed is because electrons carrying current do not penetrate through a small ceramic crystal at a high temperature.
  • the PTC device 121 has a value R 25°C at a room temperature of about 25°C, and a minimum resistance R min at a temperature T min greater than about 25°C. In a range of temperature greater than the temperature T min , the resistance increases in proportion to the increase of temperature.
  • the resistance rapidly increases. Accordingly, the amount of current passing through the PTC device 121 rapidly decreases to decrease the amount of heat generated through the PTC device 121.
  • the PTC device 121 may generate heat with a temperature ranging from about 110°C to 180°C.
  • the PTC device 121 has the longer life span than nickel and chrome heaters.
  • FIG. 4 is a graph illustrating the variation in current versus voltage depending on an ambient temperature of a home bar of a refrigerator according to an embodiment.
  • the PTC device 121 has various current values according to temperature, versus a constant input voltage V in .
  • a curve (a) expresses a flowing state of a current I a corresponding to variation of the resistance according to a changed temperature T a of the PTC device 121 when a temperature around the home bar is low.
  • a curve (b) expresses a flowing state of a current I b corresponding to variation of the resistance according to a changed temperature T b of the PTC device 121 when a temperature around the home bar is a room temperature.
  • a curve (c) expresses a flowing state of a current I c corresponding to variation of the resistance according to a changed temperature T c of the PTC device 121 when a temperature around the home bar is a high temperature over the room temperature.
  • the PTC device 121 may emit a great amount of heat with high current. Relatively, in the case of the curve (c), the PTC device 121 may emit a less amount of heat with low current.
  • the PTC device 121 has various resistances according to the variation of temperature, and current varies corresponding to the various resistances. Since power for the generating of heat is in inverse proportion to resistance with respect to the constant voltage V in , the greatest power is consumed under condition of the curve (a). Relatively, the least power is consumed under condition of the curve (c).
  • the temperature around the home bar is decreased by discharged cold air, thereby the temperature of the PTC device 121 is decreased to produce a large amount of heat, and then as time elapses, the temperature of the PTC device 121 increases again. Accordingly, the resistance of the PTC device 121 is increased, and thus the current flowing through the PTC device 121 is decreased to reduce the amount of heat produced.
  • the PTC device 121 arrives at a preset temperature, the current flowing througt, the PTC device 121 is decreased, so that stable equilibrium may be achieved between power supplied to the PTC device 121 and the amount of heat consumed.
  • the electrical resistance of the PTC device 121 is decreased, and thus the current flowing through the PTC device 121 is increased.
  • the amount of heat produced is inversely proportional to the resistance, the amount of heat produced by the PTC device 121 is increased.
  • the temperature of the refrigerator 1 is increased as time elapses, and thus the temperature around the home bar 100 is also increased.
  • the amount of heat produced is inversely proportional to the resistance, the amount of heat produced by the PTC device 121 is decreased.
  • the PTC device 121 may emit heat in response to variation in the temperature around the refrigerator 1.
  • the surface temperature around the home bar 100 is decreased, and thus the temperature of the PTC device 121 is decreased. Then, the amount of heat emitted from the PTC device 121 is increased.
  • an additional switch device and the on/off control of a switch can be omitted. Since the amount of heat produced by the PTC device is variable according to temperature, it is not necessary to use a large-sized heater to emit the great amount of heat.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Thermal Sciences (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Devices That Are Associated With Refrigeration Equipment (AREA)
  • Cold Air Circulating Systems And Constructional Details In Refrigerators (AREA)
EP09152409.0A 2008-01-31 2009-02-09 Refrigerator and method of controlling the same Not-in-force EP2085724B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
KR1020080009996A KR20090084047A (ko) 2008-01-31 2008-01-31 냉장고 및 냉장고의 제어방법

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP2085724A2 EP2085724A2 (en) 2009-08-05
EP2085724A3 EP2085724A3 (en) 2015-09-30
EP2085724B1 true EP2085724B1 (en) 2016-11-30

Family

ID=40578808

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP09152409.0A Not-in-force EP2085724B1 (en) 2008-01-31 2009-02-09 Refrigerator and method of controlling the same

Country Status (3)

Country Link
EP (1) EP2085724B1 (ko)
KR (1) KR20090084047A (ko)
ES (1) ES2610192T3 (ko)

Families Citing this family (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
KR101426566B1 (ko) * 2008-02-27 2014-08-13 엘지전자 주식회사 냉장고의 홈바 히터 제어 시스템 및 제어 방법
KR101721108B1 (ko) * 2009-01-30 2017-03-29 엘지전자 주식회사 가변히터를 구비한 냉장고
CN104713302A (zh) * 2015-03-19 2015-06-17 青岛海尔股份有限公司 内门体及具有该内门体的冷藏冷冻装置
CN114777378B (zh) * 2022-04-02 2024-04-30 海信冰箱有限公司 一种冰箱及其控制方法

Family Cites Families (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3633374A (en) * 1970-02-06 1972-01-11 Gen Motors Corp Refrigerator with self-regulating heaters
KR100213147B1 (ko) * 1997-08-23 1999-08-02 윤종용 냉장고의 이슬맺힘 방지장치
KR100853681B1 (ko) * 2002-05-24 2008-08-25 엘지전자 주식회사 냉장고의 홈바히터 제어방법

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
ES2610192T3 (es) 2017-04-26
EP2085724A2 (en) 2009-08-05
EP2085724A3 (en) 2015-09-30
KR20090084047A (ko) 2009-08-05

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