JP2006300458A - Storage house - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To abolish a conventional switch operation mechanism penetrating a door, to simplify a door structure, and to simplify a wiring composition between the door and a storage house body. <P>SOLUTION: A door opening assisting device 11 is composed by providing a driving part 12 and a feed coil 19 provided on a door body 2, and a receiving coil 23, a switch 26, or the like provided on a freezing chamber door 7. The driving part 12 is composed by providing a direct-current power supply circuit 13, a drive circuit 14, a control circuit 15, and an electromagnet 16. A feeding device 24 from the storage house body 2 to the switch 26 is composed of the feed coil 19 and the receiving coil 23. A switch-on signal of the switch 26 of the freezing chamber door 2 is transmitted to a storage house body 2 side by a feeding device 22 provided with a photocoupler 22A. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a storage provided with a drawer main body provided with a drive unit of a door opening assisting device that assists an opening operation of the door while the storage main body is provided with a drawer-type door.

  Conventionally, in a refrigerator such as a refrigerator, a refrigerator body is provided with a door for a refrigerator room, a door for a freezer room, a door for a vegetable room, etc. Some have a door assist device. In this configuration, a drive unit of the door opening assist device and a switch for controlling the drive unit are provided in the refrigerator main body, and a switch operation mechanism for operating the switch on the refrigerator main body side is provided in the door. It is said. In this case, the operation mechanism for the switch needs to have a configuration including an operation member that penetrates from the door surface to the back surface and reaches the switch of the refrigerator main body, the configuration is complicated, and the heat insulation structure of the door Also affects.

As a countermeasure, a configuration in which a switch is provided on the door is also conceivable. In this case, if the door is a hinge-rotating door, through the hinge portion, the feeder line is wired from the refrigerator body to the switch, and the signal line is wired from the switch to the drive unit of the refrigerator body. And the wiring length between refrigerator main bodies can be shortened.
JP 2002-213867 A

  However, some recent refrigerators have a drawer type door, and this type of door has no hinge and the entire door is taken in and out. It is necessary to keep the line long, and the wiring process is difficult.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the said situation, The objective is to provide the storage which can simplify the wiring structure between a door and a storage main body.

The invention of claim 1
In the storage body with a drawer-type door, and the storage body with a drive part of a door opening assisting device that assists in opening the door.
The door is provided with a switch for controlling the drive unit, and a control signal generated when the switch is operated is transmitted from the door to the drive unit of the storage body,
The power supply means for supplying power to the switch of the door from the storage body and the signal transmission means for transmitting a control signal from the door to the drive unit of the storage body have a non-wiring configuration, respectively. .

  According to this, since the switch for controlling the drive part of the door opening assist device is provided on the door, the conventional switch operating mechanism penetrating the door can be eliminated and the door structure can be simplified. Can do. And although it is the structure which provides a switch in a door, the electric power feeding means which supplies electric power to the switch of the door from the storage body, and the signal transmission means which transmits the control signal from the door to the drive part of the storage body Since each has a non-wiring configuration, wiring between the door and the storage body can be eliminated, and the wiring configuration can be simplified.

  According to the present invention, the wiring configuration between the door and the storage body can be simplified.

  A first embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a refrigerator will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 shows a refrigerator corresponding to a storage as viewed from the front. The refrigerator 1 forms a refrigeration room, a vegetable room, a switching room, an ice making room, and a freezing room (not shown) in the storage body 2 corresponding to the storage body, and each room has a refrigeration room door 3 and a vegetable room door. 4. It is opened and closed by a switching room door 5, an ice making room door 6, and a freezing room door 7.

  The freezer compartment door 7 corresponding to the door that assists the opening operation is provided with a handle 7a for opening the door, as shown in FIG. 5, from the solid line state to the two-dot chain line state. It can be rotated at a slight angle, and is normally urged to rotate to a solid line position in FIG. 5 by a spring (not shown).

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the freezer compartment door 7 is of a drawer type, and a support member 8 is attached to the freezer compartment door 7, and a storage container 9 is supported by the support member 8. ing. The support member 8 has a support roller 8a at the rear end, and can slide back and forth on a rail 10 provided on the side surface of the freezer compartment. Accordingly, when the freezer compartment door 7 is pulled out, the storage container 9 is also pulled out.

  The freezer compartment door 7 is assisted by a door opening operation by a door opening assisting device 11 shown in FIG. 1, and the electrical configuration of the door opening assisting device 11 will be described below. The storage body 2 is provided with a drive unit 12. The drive unit 12 includes a DC power supply circuit 13, a drive circuit 14, a control circuit 15 serving as a determination unit, and an electromagnet 16. The DC power supply circuit 14 forms a control DC power supply and a drive DC power supply from the AC power supply 17. The control DC power supply is supplied to the control circuit 15, and the drive DC power supply is supplied to the drive circuit 14. It has become.

The drive circuit 14 is configured to control disconnection of the electromagnet 16 and to switch the energization direction. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the electromagnet 16 is provided in the freezer compartment opening of the cabinet body 2, and the permanent magnet 18 is disposed on the freezer compartment door 7 so as to face the electromagnet 16. ing. The electromagnet 16 generates a magnetic field with a polarity that repels the permanent magnet 18 when a voltage is applied in a predetermined direction, and a polarity that attracts the permanent magnet 18 when a voltage is applied in a direction opposite to the predetermined direction. Generates a magnetic field.
The control circuit 15 is configured to include a microcomputer and various A / D converters, which start the door opening assist command So (repulsive direction voltage application command) and the door closing assist command Sc to the drive circuit 14. (Suction direction voltage application command) is output.

  A power supply coil 19 is connected to the AC power supply 17, and a current detection circuit 20 serving as a current detection means for detecting a current flowing through the power supply coil 19 is provided in a power supply path from the AC power supply 17 to the power supply coil 19. Is provided. The current detection signal Si detected by the current detection circuit 20 is supplied to the control circuit 15. This current detection signal Si is used as a door opening / closing signal for detecting opening / closing of the freezer compartment door 7. The feeding coil 19 is provided with an iron core 19a.

  Further, the control circuit 15 is provided with a distance detection signal Sk from the optical sensor 21 serving as a distance detecting means. The optical sensor 21 is a reflective optical sensor, and is provided from the back surface of the freezer compartment door 7. The distance from the storage body 2 to the freezer compartment door 7 is detected by the amount of reflected light. Further, the signal transmission device 22 as a signal transmission means is composed of a photocoupler 22A, the phototransistor 22b of the photocoupler 22A is provided on the freezer compartment opening surface of the cabinet body 2, and the freezer compartment door 7 has A photodiode 22a is provided at a portion facing the transistor 22b. The photodiode 22a and the phototransistor 22b are configured to transmit light. The power feeding device 22 is configured to transmit a signal between the freezer compartment door 7 and the storage body 2 in a non-wired configuration.

  Further, the freezer compartment door 7 is provided with a power receiving coil 23 constituting a power feeding device 24 as a power feeding means with the power feeding coil 19 at a portion facing the power feeding coil 19. In this configuration, power is supplied to the power supply 23 by electromagnetic coupling, that is, a power supply device 24 as a power supply means having a non-wiring configuration is configured. The power receiving coil 23 is provided with an iron core 23a. A DC power supply circuit 25 that rectifies and smoothes AC power generated in the power receiving coil 23 to form a predetermined DC power supply is connected to the power receiving coil 23. The output DC power supply of the DC power supply circuit 25 is connected to the switch 26. Are connected to a switch circuit (series circuit) 27 comprising the photodiode 22a. The switch 26 is composed of, for example, a micro switch, and is disposed in the concave portion 7b on the back surface of the handle portion 7a. The switch 26 is turned on when the user places a hand on the handle portion 7a to open the freezer compartment door 7 and performs a pulling operation (opening operation) as indicated by a two-dot chain line. When the switch 22 is turned on, the photodiode 22a is energized and turned on (light emission), the transistor 22b on the case body 2 side is turned on, and the switch-on detection signal Sw is input to the control circuit 15. That is, a signal is given from the freezer compartment door 7 to the cabinet body 2 by a non-wiring configuration.

  The DC power supply circuit 25 is connected to a charging circuit 28 for charging the secondary battery 29. When the charge amount of the secondary battery 29 is insufficient, the DC power supply circuit 25 is sequentially charged and the DC power supply circuit 25 has a power receiving coil. In a situation where no power is supplied from 23 (fully opened state), power is supplied from the secondary battery 29 to the switch circuit 27.

Now, the operation of the above configuration will be described together with the control operation of the control circuit 15. FIG. 6 shows the control contents of the control circuit 15. In FIG. 1, the power feeding coil 19 and the power receiving coil 23 are electromagnetically coupled, and power is given to the DC power supply circuit 25 by a non-wiring configuration.
In step P1, the current detection signal Si output from the current detection circuit 20 is read.
In Step P2, it is determined whether or not the freezer compartment door 7 is currently closed based on the current detection signal Si. That is, since the inductance of the feeding coil 19 is different between the case where the freezer compartment door 7 is in the closed state and the case where it is in the opened state, the current flowing through the feeding coil 19 is different. The control circuit 15 stores a current reference value for determining the closed state and the open state, and compares the current reference value with the current detection signal Si level to determine whether the door is closed or opened.

  If it is determined in step P2 that the door is closed, it is determined in step P3 whether or not the switch-on detection signal Sw is given (if the switch-on detection signal Sw is given), the switch 26 is turned on and the door is opened. In step P4, a door opening assist command So is output to the drive circuit 14 to operate the drive circuit 14 so that the electromagnet 16 generates a magnetic field with a polarity repelling the permanent magnet 18. As a result, the electromagnet 16 exerts a magnetic force in the direction in which the permanent magnet 18 is repelled, thereby assisting the opening operation of the freezer compartment door 7 (the opening operation force by the user is reduced or the door is forcibly opened). ) If a predetermined time elapses in Step P5 and Step P6 thereafter, the output of the door opening assist command So to the drive circuit 14 is stopped (the drive circuit 14 is made to disconnect the electromagnet 16).

  Here, when the freezer compartment door 7 is in the open state, it is determined in Step P2 that there is no output of the switch-on detection signal Sw (the switch 26 is off), and the process proceeds to Step P7 and subsequent steps. In step P7, the distance detection signal Sk from the optical sensor 21 is read, and the separation distance of the freezer compartment door 7 from the case body 2 is determined. If it is determined in step P8 that the separation distance between the refrigerator main body 2 and the freezer compartment door 7 has become a predetermined distance (for example, 5 mm), that is, the freezer compartment door 7 is operated in the closing direction. If it is determined that the predetermined distance has been reached, the door closing assist command Sc is output to the drive circuit 14 in step P9, and the drive circuit 14 generates a magnetic field with a polarity at which the electromagnet 16 attracts the permanent magnet 18. Operate to occur. Thereby, the door closing operation of the freezer compartment door 7 is assisted. If a predetermined time elapses thereafter in Step P10 and Step P11, the output of the door opening assist command So to the drive circuit 14 is stopped (the drive circuit 14 is turned off).

  As described above, according to this embodiment, the switch 26 for controlling the drive unit 12 of the door opening assisting device 11 is provided in the freezer compartment door 7, so that the conventional door-penetrating switch operating mechanism can be eliminated. In addition, the structure of the freezer compartment door 7 can be simplified, and the switch 26 is provided on the freezer compartment door 7, and the power supply device supplies power to the switch 26 of the freezer compartment door 7 from the cabinet body 2. 24 has a non-wiring configuration, and since the signal transmission device 22 for transmitting a control signal from the freezer compartment door 7 to the drive unit 12 of the freezer body 2 has a non-wiring configuration, The wiring configuration can be simplified and the wiring configuration can be simplified.

  In this case, the power feeding device 24 has a non-wiring configuration in the form of electromagnetic coupling between the power feeding coil 19 provided in the storage body 2 and the power receiving coil 23 provided in the freezer compartment door 7. And a non-contact configuration. Further, since the photocoupler 22A by optical coupling is used as the signal transmission device 22, a non-contact configuration can be achieved.

Further, since a current detection circuit 20 for detecting a current flowing through the power supply coil 19 is provided and the open / close of the freezer compartment door 7 is determined based on the current detected by the current detection circuit 20, it has been conventionally required. The opening / closing of the freezer compartment door 7 can be detected using a power supply configuration without using a door switch formed of a mechanical switch such as a micro switch.
In addition, an optical sensor 21 is provided to detect a separation distance between the storage body 2 and the freezer compartment door 7, and when the separation distance reaches a predetermined distance, the electromagnet 16 in a direction to attract the freezer compartment door 7. Therefore, the closing operation force can be reduced (closing assistance).

  Further, a charging circuit 28 and a secondary battery 29 are provided in the power receiving coil 23 so that the secondary battery 29 is charged, and the power source from the secondary battery 29 can be used when no power is supplied to the power receiving coil 23. As a result, even if the switch 26 is turned on after the freezer compartment door 7 is slightly opened and the electromagnetic coupling between the power feeding coil 19 and the power receiving coil 23 is interrupted, a switch-on signal can be reliably output.

Further, as a configuration for operating the switch 26, the handle 7a for opening the freezer compartment door 7 is configured to be rotatable, and the switch 26 is operated by the rotation of the handle 7a. When operating, the switch 26 can be switched on.
The switch may be constituted by a touch switch. In this case, as shown in FIG. 7 shown as the second embodiment of the present invention, the touch switch 31 may be provided on the back side of the handle 32 having a fixed structure. good.

As a configuration for signal transmission, a push electrode 33 made of a conductive material is movably provided on the freezer compartment door 7 as shown in FIG. By providing the electrode 34, a non-wiring configuration may be adopted. In this case, the push electrode 33 is preferably covered with an extendable cover 34.
In addition, this invention is not limited to said each Example, You may implement and apply also to doors other than the door for freezing rooms, Furthermore, it applies to storages, such as a freezer and a heat insulation store besides a refrigerator. It can be implemented.

Electrical circuit diagram of a door opening assist device showing a first embodiment of the present invention Front view of refrigerator Broken side view of freezer compartment Perspective view of the freezer compartment in the open state Longitudinal section of the handle of the freezer compartment door Flow chart showing control contents FIG. 5 equivalent view showing a second embodiment of the present invention Fractured side view of a signal transmission component showing a third embodiment of the present invention

Explanation of symbols

  In the drawings, 1 is a refrigerator (storage), 2 is a storage body (storage body), 7 is a freezer door, 11 is a door opening assist device, 12 is a drive unit, 15 is a control circuit (determination means), and 16 is an electromagnet. , 18 is a permanent magnet, 19 is a power supply coil, 20 is a current detection circuit (current detection means), 21 is an optical sensor, 22 is a signal transmission device (signal transmission means), 22A is a photocoupler, 23 is a power reception coil, and 24 is power supply. An apparatus (power supply means) 26 is a switch.

Claims (2)

In the storage body with a drawer-type door, and the storage body with a drive part of a door opening assisting device that assists in opening the door.
The door is provided with a switch for controlling the drive unit, and a control signal generated when the switch is operated is transmitted from the door to the drive unit of the storage body,
The power supply means for supplying power to the switch of the door from the storage body and the signal transmission means for transmitting a control signal from the door to the drive unit of the storage body have a non-wiring configuration. Storage. The power supply means has a non-wiring configuration in the form of electromagnetic coupling by a power supply coil provided in the storage body and a power reception coil provided in the door,
Providing a current detection means for detecting a current flowing in the feeding coil;
The storage according to claim 1, further comprising a determination unit that determines opening and closing of the door based on the current detected by the current detection unit.

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