JP2007327683A - Refrigerator with automatic ice making machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve a problem in which many input ports of a microcomputer are necessary as detection signals relating to ice-making are separately input to the microcomputer. <P>SOLUTION: Input signals relating to ice-making from an ice tray existence/nonexistence detecting means 112, an ice-making stopping means 111, an ice tray position detecting means 30 and the like, share the input port to the microcomputer 70, and the signals can be discriminated even by the same port by control specification. Accordingly, the number of used ports of the microcomputer can be reduced. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator provided with an ice making device.

  In recent years, refrigerators with automatic ice makers have become mainstream. An automatic ice maker incorporated in a refrigerator or the like automatically supplies ice-making water from a water storage tank provided in the refrigerator through a water supply pipe, automatically makes ice, and rotates the ice tray when ice is formed. A twist is applied to drop the ice in the ice tray into the ice storage container.When a certain amount of ice has accumulated in the ice storage container, it is detected by the ice storage detection lever, etc. When the amount of water is reduced, it is detected by the ice storage detection lever, water is supplied again, and ice making automatically resumes. Here, the ice tray of the automatic ice maker is generally connected and fixed to the rotating shaft of the drive mechanism driven by the motor of the automatic ice maker, but cannot be separated from the drive mechanism. It was a structure that could not be done. Therefore, in order to improve the hygiene of ice trays, a refrigerator with an automatic ice maker was proposed in which the ice tray was separated from the drive mechanism and improved so that it could be taken out of the refrigerator, making it easier to clean the ice tray, etc. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 10 is a partial longitudinal sectional view showing a structure of a portion provided with a conventional refrigerator automatic ice maker described in Patent Document 1, and FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of the automatic ice maker. 12 is a control block diagram. In each figure, 1 is a refrigerator main body, and this main body 1 has a freezer compartment 2 and a refrigerator compartment 3 inside. 4 is a door for opening and closing the front opening of the freezer compartment 2, and 5 is a door for opening and closing the front opening of the refrigerator compartment 3. The automatic ice making machine 6 is provided in the freezer compartment 2, and the overall structure thereof is an ice making tray 7, and a drive mechanism 8 for turning the ice making tray 7 downward and removing the ice while twisting the ice making tray 7 when the ice making is completed. Consists of. Reference numeral 9 denotes a mechanism box that houses the drive mechanism 8 and has a motor, a gear, and the like inside. The mechanism box 9 is installed and fixed at a predetermined location in the back of the freezer compartment 2. A rotating shaft 10 protrudes from the mechanism box 9 and is connected to the ice tray 7 to rotate it.

  A water storage tank 11 for storing ice-making water is provided in the refrigerator compartment 3, and the water in the tank 11 is led to the upper part of the ice-making tray 7 in the freezer compartment 2 through a water supply pipe 13 by a pump 12. The water is supplied from above. The ice tray 7 has a box-like container shape whose upper surface is open, and the inside thereof is partitioned into a plurality of small chambers 7m to produce ice of a predetermined size. In addition, 21 is a cooling fan and 22 is an evaporator.

  The ice tray 7 is integrally provided with a connecting portion 14 that can be fitted to the rotary shaft 10 at the central portion of the longitudinal end portion 7b facing the mechanism box 9. A long shaft portion 16 acting as an ice tray support provided on the ice making machine support 15 is inserted from the longitudinal end 7c of the ice tray 7 opposite to the connecting portion 14 so that the ice tray 7 is The ice making machine support 15 is rotatably supported. As a result, the ice tray 7 is first rotated clockwise by the motor in the mechanism box 9 with the rotation axis P as a fulcrum, and then reverses and rotates counterclockwise. ing. In addition, the protrusion 17 for twisting is provided in the longitudinal direction edge part 7c of the ice tray 7, On the other hand, the protrusion 17 is fitted on the inner surface of the end wall 20a from which the shaft part 16 of the ice making machine support 15 protrudes. An arcuate guide groove 18 that slides is formed. As the ice tray 7 is rotated by the rotary shaft 10, the projection 17 slides on the guide groove 18 and finally reaches one end side of the guide groove 18 and rotates. After being stopped, a twist is added to the ice tray 7 so that the ice can be easily deiced.

  An ice storage container 19 is disposed so as to be able to be taken in and out under the ice tray 7, and the ice tray 7 is rotated when the ice making is completed, and receives ice falling when the ice removing operation is performed.

  Here, the ice tray 7 is rotatably attached to the ice making machine support 15, and the ice making plate 7 and the ice making machine support 15 are integrated with each other from the rotating shaft 10 on the mechanism box 9 side. It is characterized by having a structure that can be separated, whereby the ice tray 7 can be easily cleaned and the like. When the ice tray 7 is removed, it can be detected by the ice tray presence / absence detector 40, and control is performed so that water is not supplied when there is no ice tray 7.

  The deicing operation will be described in detail.

FIG. 13 is a time chart of the deicing operation. The motor in the mechanism box 9 is rotated forward to mask the input of the position detecting means 30 built in the mechanism box 9 for a predetermined time t3, and then the position detecting means After detecting the “L” input of 30 and detecting the ice removal signal (“H” input of the position detection means 30), it is determined that the ice tray 7 has been fully twisted, and the motor in the mechanism box 9 is stopped for t4. The position detection switch 30 masks the input of the position detection switch for t2 from the detection of 'L' of the position detection means 30, and then detects the -20 ° position ('L' input of the position detection means 30). Next, when the -20 ° position is detected, the motor in the mechanism box 9 is stopped for t4, and the motor in the mechanism box 9 is rotated forward again. After t5, it is determined that the ice tray 7 has become horizontal and stopped. Let The ice making stop means 50 can be controlled so as not to forcibly deice. A series of ice making operations is controlled by the microcomputer 60.
JP 2000-161824 A

  However, the above conventional configuration has a problem that many microcomputer input ports are required because detection signals related to ice making are separately input to the microcomputer.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described conventional problems and to provide a refrigerator with an automatic ice making machine that can control automatic ice making with a small number of microcomputer ports.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, the refrigerator of the present invention combines an ice making tray presence / absence detecting means and an ice making-related input signal such as an ice making stop means and an ice making position detecting means as an input port to a microcomputer. Yes, the signal can be discriminated even at the same port according to the control specifications. As a result, the number of ports used by the microcomputer can be reduced.

  The refrigerator of the present invention can reduce the number of input ports to the microcomputer for ice making-related signals, can use the surplus ports for other controls, and can use an inexpensive microcomputer.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the water supplied from the water supply device is stored in an ice making tray installed in the freezer compartment to make ice, and after ice making, the ice making plate is inverted by the ice removing mechanism so as to be iced. An ice making tray presence / absence detecting means for detecting whether or not the ice making tray is attached to the ice removing mechanism in a refrigerator-freezer equipped with an automatic ice making machine, wherein the ice making tray can be freely detached from the ice removing mechanism while performing the ice making operation; , Position detection means for detecting the rotational position of the ice tray, ice making stop means for forcibly stopping the ice removing operation and the water supply operation, and an ice making control means using a microcomputer for controlling the water supply and ice removing operations The input port of the microcomputer is used as both the signal from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means and the other ice making-related detection signals, so that B can reduce the number of input ports to the computer, can use the extra ports to other control, it can be used a less expensive microcomputer.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the microcomputer input port of the ice making control means is shared by a signal from the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means and a signal from the ice making stop means. Therefore, the number of input ports for ice making-related signals to the microcomputer can be reduced, the remaining ports can be used for other control, and a cheaper microcomputer can be used.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the input port of the microcomputer of the ice making control means is shared by a signal from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means and a signal from the position detecting means. Therefore, the number of input ports for ice making-related signals to the microcomputer can be reduced, the remaining ports can be used for other control, and a cheaper microcomputer can be used.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the microcomputer input port of the ice making control means includes a signal from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means, a signal from the ice making stop means, and the position. This is also used as a signal from the detection means, can reduce the number of input ports of ice making related signals to the microcomputer, can use the remaining ports for other controls, and uses a cheaper microcomputer. be able to.

  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 with an automatic ice maker according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a time chart of the deicing mechanism of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker according to the same embodiment. The description will be given with reference.

  In FIG. 1, an ice tray temperature detecting means 101 detects the temperature of the ice tray 7 attached to the ice removing mechanism 21. The water supply pump 12 sends water to the ice tray 7 and is controlled by the ice making control means 110. After the water is fed to the ice tray 7 by the water supply pump 12, when the ice tray temperature detecting means 101 shows a predetermined temperature or lower, the ice making control means 110 judges that ice has been formed and operates the motor built in the ice removing mechanism 21. Then, the ice tray 7 is rotated, and ice formed with the ice tray 7 facing downward is dropped onto the ice tray 104. The ice tray 7 that has finished dropping the ice then rotates in the opposite direction and returns upward, and when the ice tray 7 becomes horizontal, the water supply pump 12 supplies water again. By repeating this series of operations, ice is stored in the ice tray 7. The ice making stop means 111 is a switch for preventing a series of operations of automatically making ice such as water supply and deicing when ice is not needed, and is installed in the operation unit 105. The ice tray presence / absence detecting means 112 detects whether or not the ice tray 7 has been removed from the ice removing mechanism 21. If the ice tray presence / absence detecting means 112 detects that the ice tray 7 has been removed, the ice making control means 110 controls so as not to perform a series of automatic ice making operations such as water supply and deicing because ice cannot be made. The deicing operation will be described in detail. FIG. 2 is a time chart of the deicing operation, after the motor in the deicing mechanism 21 is rotated forward and the input of the ice tray position detecting means 30 incorporated in the deicing mechanism 21 is masked for a predetermined time t3. When the “L” input of the ice tray position detection means 30 is detected and the ice removal signal (“H” input of the position detection means 30) is detected, it is determined that the ice tray 7 has been completely twisted, and the motor in the ice removal mechanism 21 is detected. Is stopped for t4, reversely rotated, and the input of the position detection switch is masked for t2 based on the detection of 'L' of the position detection means 30, and then the position of -20 ° (the 'L' input of the position detection means 30) ) Is detected. Next, when the -20 ° position is detected, the motor in the ice removing mechanism 21 is stopped for t4, and the motor in the ice removing mechanism 21 is rotated in the normal direction again. After t5, it is determined that the ice tray 7 has become horizontal. , Stop.

  The refrigerator control apparatus configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the control means of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker in the present embodiment.

  In FIG. 3, the ice making control means 110 includes a microcomputer 70. A series of operations of automatic ice making are controlled by the microcomputer 70. To control, it is necessary to input a large number of detection signals to the microcomputer 70, but the ice tray presence / absence detecting means 112 and other ice making related signals are used. By sharing the input port of the microcomputer 70, the number of ports used by the microcomputer 70 can be reduced.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means 112 and other ice making-related signals share the input port of the microcomputer 70, thereby reducing the number of input ports of the ice making-related signals to the microcomputer 70. It is possible to reduce the number of ports, and the remaining ports can be used for other control, and a cheaper microcomputer can be used.

(Embodiment 2)
4 is a block diagram of the control means of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a flowchart. The ice making control means 200 includes a microcomputer 201. Of the ice making-related signals input to the microcomputer 201, the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means 112 and the ice making stopping means 111 also serve as input ports. The ice making stop means 111 is a switch input, and normally the time for which the switch is pushed by a person is within one second. On the other hand, when the ice tray 7 is removed, the no-pan signal is sent from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means 112 continuously for a long time. For example, when the switch of the ice making stop means 111 is pushed, the input to the microcomputer 201 is “L” and when it is not pushed, it is set to “H”, and the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means when the ice tray 7 is removed. If the input of the microcomputer 201 from 112 is “L” and is not removed, if it is “H”, the microcomputer 201 takes in the input signal from the shared port in step 101 in FIG. If it is determined that the ice making stop means 111 is not pushed and the ice tray 7 is not removed, the normal automatic ice making operation is continued.

  If "L" is determined in step 102, it is determined in step 103 whether the "L" input time is shorter than the predetermined value T1, and if it is shorter, it is determined in step 104 that the input is from the ice making stop means 111. If it is determined in step 103 that the input time is long, it is determined in step 105 that the input is from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means 112 and it is determined that the ice tray 7 has been removed.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means 112 and the ice making stop means 111 also serve as the input port of the microcomputer 201, thereby reducing the number of input ports of the ice making related signal to the microcomputer 201, The surplus port can be used for other control, and a cheaper microcomputer can be used.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the control means of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a flowchart. The ice making control means 300 includes a microcomputer 301. Of the ice making-related signals input to the microcomputer 301, the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means 112 and the ice making position detecting means 30 also serve as input ports. The ice making position detecting means 30 is a switch built in the ice removing mechanism 21 and is “H” when the ice making tray 7 is stopped at the horizontal position as shown in the time chart of FIG. “L” is temporarily output according to the angle. On the other hand, when the ice tray 7 is removed, a no tray signal is continuously sent from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means 112 for a long time. Referring to the flowchart of FIG. 7, it is determined in step 201 whether the “L” input time is shorter than the predetermined value T <b> 2. If it is determined in step 201 that the input time is long, it is determined in step 203 that the input is from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means 112 and it is determined that the ice tray 7 has been removed.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means 112 and the ice making position detecting means 30 share the input port of the microcomputer 301, thereby reducing the number of input ports of ice making related signals to the microcomputer 301. The surplus port can be used for other control, and a cheaper microcomputer can be used.

(Embodiment 4)
FIG. 8 is a block diagram of the control means of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention, and FIG. 9 is a flowchart. The ice making control means 400 includes a microcomputer 401. Of the ice making-related signals input to the microcomputer 401, the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means 112, the ice making stop means 111, and the ice making position detecting means 30 also serve as input ports. The ice making position detecting means 30 is a switch built in the ice removing mechanism 21 and is “H” when the ice making tray 7 is stopped at the horizontal position as shown in the time chart of FIG. “L” is temporarily output according to the angle. This “L” output time is usually several seconds to several tens of seconds, and the time during which the ice making stop means 111 is pushed by a person is usually within one second. On the other hand, when the ice tray 7 is removed, a no tray signal is continuously sent from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means 112 for a long time. Referring to the flowchart of FIG. 9, it is determined in step 301 whether or not the “L” input time is shorter than the predetermined value T 1. If the input time is shorter than the predetermined value T2, it is determined in step 304 that the input is from the ice making position detection means 30, and if it is long, it is determined in step 305 that the input is from the ice tray presence / absence detection means 112 and the ice tray 7 is removed Judge that it was done.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means 112, the ice making stop means 111, and the ice making position detecting means 30 are also used as the input port of the microcomputer 401, so that the ice making related signal is sent to the microcomputer 401. The number of input ports can be reduced, the remaining ports can be used for other controls, and a cheaper microcomputer can be used.

  As described above, the control device for the refrigerator according to the present invention combines the input port of the microcomputer with the ice tray presence / absence detecting means and the other ice making related signals, thereby reducing the number of input ports to the microcomputer of the ice making related signals. Since the remaining ports can be used for other controls and a cheaper microcomputer can be used, the present invention can be applied to all devices using an automatic ice making apparatus in which the ice tray can be removed from the ice removing mechanism.

Block diagram of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention Time chart of deicing mechanism of refrigerator with automatic ice maker in the embodiment The block diagram of the control apparatus of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker in the embodiment The block diagram of the control apparatus of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker in Embodiment 2 of this invention Flowchart of control device for refrigerator with automatic ice maker in the embodiment The block diagram of the control apparatus of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker in Embodiment 3 of this invention Flowchart of control device for refrigerator with automatic ice maker in the embodiment The block diagram of the control apparatus of the refrigerator with an automatic ice maker in Embodiment 4 of this invention Flowchart of control device for refrigerator with automatic ice maker in the embodiment Partial longitudinal sectional view of a conventional refrigerator with an automatic ice maker Disassembled perspective view of conventional automatic ice maker for refrigerator with automatic ice maker Block diagram of a conventional refrigerator control device with an automatic ice maker Time chart of deicing mechanism of conventional refrigerator with automatic ice maker

Explanation of symbols

7 Ice tray 12 Water supply pump (water supply device)
21 Ice removing mechanism 30 Ice tray position detecting means 70, 201, 301, 401 Microcomputer 101 Ice tray temperature detecting means 110, 200, 300, 400 Ice making control means 111 Ice making stop means 112 Ice tray presence / absence detecting means

Claims (4)

  The water supplied from the water supply device is stored in an ice tray installed in the freezer compartment to make ice, and after ice making, the ice making tray is inverted by the ice release mechanism so that the ice is released. In a refrigerator-freezer equipped with an automatic ice making machine that can be freely removed from the ice removing mechanism, the ice making tray presence / absence detecting means for detecting whether the ice making tray is attached to the ice removing mechanism and the rotation position of the ice making tray are detected. And an ice making control means using a microcomputer for controlling the operation of water supply and deicing, and an input port of the microcomputer. A refrigerator with an automatic ice making machine that combines the signal from the ice tray presence / absence detecting means with other detection signals related to ice making.   The refrigerator with an automatic ice maker according to claim 1, wherein the input port of the microcomputer of the ice making control means is shared by a signal from the ice tray presence detecting means and a signal from the ice making stop means.   The refrigerator with an automatic ice maker according to claim 1, wherein the input port of the microcomputer of the ice making control means is shared by a signal from the ice tray presence detecting means and a signal from the position detecting means.   The automatic ice maker with an automatic ice maker according to claim 1, wherein the input port of the microcomputer of the ice making control means is shared by a signal from the ice tray presence detecting means, a signal from the ice making stop means, and a signal from the position detecting means. refrigerator.

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