JP2010281526A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a refrigerator which improves sterilizing performance. <P>SOLUTION: This refrigerator includes a storage compartment 21 for storing stored objects, a cooler 11 for producing cold air, a cold air passage 32 in which the cold air produced by the cooler 11 passes, discharge ports 75a, 75b formed on the wall surface of the storage compartment 21 and discharging the cold air circulated in the cold air passage 32, to the storage compartment 21, and an ion generating device 86 having ion generating sections 86j, 86k generating ion, near the discharge ports 75a, 75b in the cold air passage 32. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator provided with an ion generator.

  A conventional refrigerator is disclosed in Patent Document 1. This refrigerator has a refrigerator compartment and a vegetable compartment arranged side by side. A cold air passage through which cold air flows is provided on the back of the refrigerator compartment and the vegetable compartment. A discharge port and a return port are provided in the refrigerator compartment and the vegetable compartment, respectively.

  The cold air generated by the cooler flows through the cold air passage at the back of the refrigerator compartment and is discharged from the discharge port to the refrigerator compartment. The cold air discharged into the refrigerator compartment flows through the refrigerator compartment to cool the stored items, flows out from the return port, and passes through the cold air passage at the back of the vegetable compartment. The cold air is discharged from the discharge port provided in the vegetable room into the vegetable room. The cold air discharged into the vegetable compartment flows through the vegetable compartment to cool the stored items, flows out from the return port, and returns to the cooler. Thereby, cold air circulates and cooling of a refrigerator compartment and a vegetable compartment is performed.

  In addition, an ion generator for generating ions is provided in a cold air passage connecting the return port of the refrigerator compartment and the outlet of the vegetable compartment. The ion generator includes an electrode that emits positive ions and negative ions. The cold air flowing out of the refrigerator compartment is deodorized by the ions generated from the electrodes and sent to the vegetable compartment. In addition, cold air containing ions circulates through the cold air passage, so that floating bacteria floating in the refrigerator room and the vegetable room and adhering bacteria attached to the stored product can be sterilized.

JP 2002-303481 A (3rd page-8th page, Fig. 4)

  However, according to the conventional refrigerator, the ions generated by the ion generator collide with the wall surface of the cold air passage while flowing through the cold air passage, and disappear and decrease. For this reason, there is a problem that the ions discharged from the discharge port do not reach every corner of the storage room such as the refrigeration room and the sterilization performance is lowered.

  An object of this invention is to provide the refrigerator which can improve disinfection performance.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a storage chamber for storing stored items, a cooler for generating cold air, a cool air passage through which the cool air generated by the cooler circulates, and an opening in the wall surface of the store chamber. And a discharge port for discharging the cold air flowing through the cold air passage to the storage chamber, and an ion generator having an ion generator for generating ions arranged in the vicinity of the discharge port in the cold air passage. Yes.

  According to this configuration, the cold air generated by the cooler flows through the cold air passage and is discharged from the discharge port into the storage chamber. An ion generation unit of the ion generator is disposed in the vicinity of the discharge port in the cool air passage, and ions generated in the ion generation unit are included in the cold air discharged from the discharge port. The cold air containing the ions discharged into the storage chamber flows through the storage chamber, the cooling of the storage chamber is performed, and the sterilization of floating bacteria and attached bacteria is performed.

  According to the present invention, in the refrigerator having the above-described configuration, a plurality of the discharge ports are provided, and the ion generation unit includes a first electrode that discharges positive ions and a second electrode that discharges negative ions. The first electrode is arranged around the outlet, and the second electrode is arranged around the other discharge ports.

  According to this configuration, cold air containing negative ions generated at the first electrode is discharged from one discharge port to the storage chamber, and cold air containing positive ions generated at the second electrode is discharged from the other discharge port to the storage chamber. The Positive ions and negative ions aggregate and break down on the surface of planktonic and adherent bacteria.

  Further, in the refrigerator having the above-described configuration, the present invention is characterized in that one discharge port and the other discharge port are formed to be inclined in the thickness direction of the wall surface of the storage chamber so as to face each other on the storage chamber side. It is said. According to this configuration, the cold air containing negative ions and the cold air containing positive ions are discharged and mixed so as to approach each other from each discharge port, and both ions aggregate on the surface of floating bacteria or the like.

  Moreover, the present invention is characterized in that in the refrigerator configured as described above, one discharge port and the other discharge port are formed to be inclined in the same direction in the thickness direction of the wall surface of the storage chamber. According to this configuration, cold air containing positive ions and cold air containing negative ions are discharged from each discharge port in the same direction with respect to the wall surface, and a swirling flow is formed in the storage chamber. Both ions are mixed with each other by the swirling flow, and both ions agglomerate on the surface of suspended bacteria or the like.

  According to the present invention, in the refrigerator configured as described above, the storage chamber includes an isolation chamber provided in a refrigeration chamber for storing stored items in a refrigerator. According to this configuration, ions are discharged from the discharge port provided in the narrow isolation chamber, and sterilization is performed while maintaining a high concentration of ions in the isolation chamber.

  Moreover, the present invention is characterized in that, in the refrigerator having the above-described configuration, the cold air passage is branched and cold air is sent to the refrigerator compartment. According to this structure, a part of cold air containing the ion which generate | occur | produced in the ion generating part is sent to a refrigerator compartment, and the refrigerator compartment is disinfected.

  According to the present invention, since the ion generating part of the ion generating device is disposed near the discharge port in the cold air passage, the disappearance of the ions due to the cold air flowing through the cold air passage is reduced and a sufficient amount of ions is contained. Cold air is discharged into the storage chamber. Therefore, the cold air generated by the cooler can be spread into the storage chamber, and the sterilization performance can be improved.

The front view which shows the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention. AA sectional view of FIG. BB sectional view of FIG. The front view which shows the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention. CC sectional view of FIG. The top view which shows the ion generator of the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention Side surface sectional drawing which shows the ion generator of the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which looked at the discharge outlet of the chilled chamber of the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention from the front Top surface sectional drawing which shows the discharge outlet of the chilled chamber of the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention Top sectional drawing which shows the other form of the discharge outlet of the chilled chamber of the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention. Top surface sectional drawing which shows the discharge outlet of the chilled chamber of the refrigerator of 2nd Embodiment of this invention Top surface sectional drawing which shows the other form of the discharge outlet of the chilled chamber of the refrigerator of 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view showing the refrigerator of the first embodiment. 2 and 3 are sectional views taken along lines AA and BB in FIG. The refrigerator 1 is provided with a refrigerator compartment 2 at the top, and below the refrigerator compartment 2, a temperature switching chamber 3 and an ice making chamber 4 are arranged side by side. A freezing room 6 is arranged below the temperature switching room 3 and the ice making room 4, and a vegetable room 5 is arranged below the freezing room 6.

  The refrigerator compartment 2 is opened and closed by a rotating door 2a to store stored items in a refrigerator. The doors 2a are arranged on the left and right with the approximate center of the refrigerator compartment 2 as a boundary, and the left front surface and the right front surface of the refrigerator compartment 2 can be opened independently. The left and right doors 2a are provided with a plurality of door pockets 42 for storing stored items. The vegetable compartment 5 is opened and closed by a drawer-type door 5a integrated with the storage case 5b, and the vegetables are cooled and stored at a higher room temperature (about 8 ° C.) than the refrigerator compartment 2. The temperature switching chamber 3 is opened and closed by a door (not shown), and the room temperature can be switched by the user as will be described in detail later.

  The freezer compartment 6 is opened and closed by a drawer-type door 6a integrated with the storage case 6b to store the stored items in a frozen state. The ice making chamber 4 is opened and closed by a door 4a integrated with the ice storage container 4b, and communicates with the freezing chamber 6 to make ice. The ice making chamber 4 and the freezing chamber 6 are maintained below the freezing point.

  In the lower part of the refrigerator compartment 2, a chilled chamber 21, an accessory storage chamber 102, and a water tank chamber 103, which are isolated chambers, are arranged side by side. The chilled chamber 21 has a door (not shown) that opens and closes the front surface, and is maintained in a chilled temperature range (about 0 ° C.), for example, a temperature range lower than that in the refrigerator compartment 2. An ice greenhouse maintained at an ice temperature (about −3 ° C.) may be provided instead of the chilled chamber 21. In the water tank chamber 103, a water tank 103a for ice making is detachably stored. The accessory storage chamber 102 is disposed in front of a cold air passage 32, which will be described in detail later, and has an accessory case 102a for storing accessories such as eggs.

  The main body of the refrigerator 1 is formed by filling a foam heat insulating material 1c between the outer box 1a and the inner box 1b. The ice making chamber 4 and the temperature switching chamber 3 are separated from the refrigerator compartment 2 by a heat insulating wall 7, and the freezer compartment 6 and the vegetable compartment 5 are separated from each other by a heat insulating wall 8. Further, the temperature switching chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 6 are isolated by a heat insulating wall 35, and the temperature switching chamber 3 and the ice making chamber 4 are isolated by a vertical heat insulating wall 36.

  When the foam heat insulating material 1c is filled between the outer box 1a and the inner box 1b, the heat insulating walls 7 and 8 are filled simultaneously. That is, the stock solution of the foam heat insulating material 1c is injected simultaneously between the outer box 1a and the inner box 1b and into the heat insulating walls 7 and 8 communicating with the outer box 1a, and is foamed integrally. By filling the heat insulating walls 7 and 8 simultaneously with the space between the outer box 1a and the inner box 1b with the foam heat insulating material 1c such as urethane foam heat insulating material, the heat insulating walls 7 and 8 can be easily formed thin. Therefore, the internal volume of the refrigerator 1 can be secured widely.

  The refrigerator compartment 2 is provided with a plurality of placement shelves 41 on which stored items are placed. In the present embodiment, the mounting shelf 41 is provided in three stages up and down. A machine room 50 is provided behind the vegetable room 5, and a compressor 57 is disposed in the machine room 50. A condenser, an expander (all not shown), and a cooler 11 are connected to the compressor 57 in order, and a refrigerant such as isobutane is circulated by driving the compressor 57 to constitute a refrigeration cycle. Thereby, the cooler 11 becomes the low temperature side of the refrigeration cycle.

  Behind the freezer compartment 6 is provided a cold air passage 31 partitioned by a back plate 6c. As will be described in detail later, the cold air passage 31 communicates with the cold air passage 32 disposed behind the refrigerator compartment 2 via the refrigerator compartment damper 20. The cool air passage 31 is partitioned into a front part 31a and a rear part 31b by a partition plate 31c, and the cooler 11 is arranged in the rear part 31b. The cooler 11 is formed by meandering refrigerant pipes 11a through which refrigerant flows, and left and right ends of the refrigerant pipes 11a are supported by end plates 11b. A large number of fins (not shown) for heat dissipation are provided in contact with the refrigerant pipe 11a. A gas-liquid separator 45 is connected to the upper part of the refrigerant pipe 11a.

  The cooler 11 on the low temperature side of the refrigeration cycle exchanges heat with the air flowing through the rear portion 31b of the cool air passage 31 to generate cool air. Since the cooler 11 is arranged on the back side of the freezer compartment 6, the cold heat of the cooler 11 is released to the freezer compartment 6 side through the partition plate 31c and the back plate 6c. For this reason, the freezer compartment 6 is cooled efficiently and the cooling efficiency is improved.

  A defrost heater 33 for defrosting the cooler 11 is provided below the cooler 11. Below the defrost heater 33, a drain pan 63 for receiving drain water by defrosting is provided. The drain water in the drain pan 63 is guided to an evaporating dish (not shown) disposed in the machine room 50 via a drain pipe.

  A freezer compartment blower 12 composed of an axial fan is disposed in the cold air passage 31 with the rotational axis direction horizontal. The cold air passage 31 is provided with an opening (not shown) facing the ice making chamber 4 in front of the freezer blower 12 and discharge ports 6d and 6e facing the storage case 6b of the freezer compartment 6. Thereby, when the freezer compartment fan 12 is driven, cold air is sent to the ice making compartment 4 and the freezer compartment 6. In the lower part of the freezer compartment 6, there is provided a return port 22 that opens in front of the cooler 11 and returns cool air to the cooler 11.

  The cooler 11 is arranged in the left-right direction so as to be biased toward the ice making chamber 4, and a cool air passage 34 through which the cool air flows through the refrigerating chamber 2 and the vegetable chamber 5 is disposed on the side of the cooler 11. Further, the refrigerator compartment damper 20 and the freezer compartment fan 12 are arranged in the vertical direction so as to be biased in the same direction as the cooler 11. That is, the refrigerator compartment damper 20 and the freezer compartment fan 12 are arranged so as to overlap in the planar projection. Thereby, while the width | variety of the left-right direction of the refrigerator 1 can be narrowed, the cool air passages 31 and 32 can be shortened and volume efficiency and ventilation efficiency can be improved.

  Further, in order to secure a large volume of the temperature switching chamber 3, the vertical heat insulating wall 36 that separates the temperature switching chamber 3 and the ice making chamber 4 is arranged to be shifted to the left side in FIG. 1. When the front portion 31 a of the cold air passage 31 and the refrigerator compartment damper 20 are provided behind the temperature switching chamber 3, heat is released from the temperature switching chamber 3 to the cold air in the cold air passage 31.

  The cold air flowing through the cold air passage 31 is, for example, −23 ° C., and heat loss increases when the temperature switching chamber 3 is controlled to a temperature higher than the cold air (for example, 3 ° C., 8 ° C., 50 ° C.). For this reason, the refrigerator compartment damper 20 and the front part 31a of the cold air passage 31 are provided behind the vertical heat insulating wall 36 or on the left side thereof to prevent heat from being released from the temperature switching chamber 3 to the cold air. Thereby, cooling efficiency can be improved more.

  The temperature switching chamber 3 is connected to an introduction ventilation path 15 that branches from the cold air passage 31 and guides the cold air. A temperature switching chamber blower 18 and a heater 16 are disposed at the rear of the temperature switching chamber 3. A temperature switching chamber discharge damper 37 is provided at the lower left portion of the temperature switching chamber 3. The temperature switching chamber discharge damper 37 is arranged in the introduction ventilation path 15, and the temperature switching chamber blower 18 is arranged in the upper part of the introduction ventilation path 15.

  When the temperature switching chamber discharge damper 37 is opened and the temperature switching chamber blower 18 is driven, cold air flows from the cooler 11 into the temperature switching chamber 3 through the introduction ventilation path 15. The amount of air flowing into the temperature switching chamber 3 from the introduction ventilation path 15 is adjusted by the opening / closing amount of the temperature switching chamber discharge damper 37. In addition to the heater 16, the temperature switching chamber 3 may be provided with a panel heater at the bottom.

  A temperature switching chamber return damper 38 is provided below the temperature switching chamber 3. The temperature switching chamber return damper 38 opens and closes the return passage 17 extending downward, and the air in the temperature switching chamber 3 returns to the cool air passage 31 via the return passage 17.

  Note that when the room temperature of the temperature switching chamber 3 is set to a high temperature, the air in the introduction ventilation path 15 and the return path 17 is lower in temperature than the air in the temperature switching chamber 3. Hot air rises in the temperature switching chamber 3, and a temperature switching chamber discharge damper 37 and a temperature switching chamber return damper 38 are provided in the lower part of the temperature switching chamber 3. For this reason, leakage of hot air from the temperature switching chamber 3 to the introduction ventilation path 15 and the return path 17 can be reduced.

  The air flowing through the return passage 17 is returned to the cooler 11 from an outlet 17a provided in the middle of the cooler 11 in the vertical direction. The cool air flowing out of the freezer compartment 6 through the freezer compartment return port 22 returns to the lower part of the cooler 11. Moreover, cold air | gas returns from the vegetable compartment 5 to the downward direction of the cooler 11 via the return channel | path 46 (refer FIG. 2).

  Therefore, the cold air flowing out from each storage chamber is returned to the cooler 11 in a dispersed manner. For this reason, the frost by the cold air containing the water | moisture content which circulated through each store room and returned does not generate | occur | produce intensively, but disperse | distributes and generate | occur | produces in the whole cooler 11. Thereby, clogging of the cold air flow due to frost is prevented, and a decrease in cooling performance of the cooler 11 can be prevented.

  In addition, the cold air that has flowed through the temperature switching chamber 3 with a small volume is cooled at the upper part of the cooler 11, and the cold air that has flowed through the cold room 3, the vegetable room 5, and the freezer room 6 with a large capacity is Cooled by. Therefore, the cold air flowing out from the temperature switching chamber 3 is not heat exchanged with the cooler 11 more than necessary, and the heat exchange efficiency of the cooler 11 can be improved.

  A cool air passage 32 and a circulation passage 81 are provided behind the refrigerating chamber 2 so as to partially overlap each other. In FIG. 1, the front shape of the circulation passage 81 is indicated by a broken line D1, and in FIG. 4, the front shape of the cool air passage 32 is indicated by a broken line D2. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC in FIG. Above the accessory storage chamber 102 of the cold air passage 32 and the circulation passage 81 are integrally formed by a cooling panel 70 disposed on the back surface of the refrigerator compartment 2, and the circulation passage 81 is disposed in front of the cold air passage 32.

  The cooling panel 70 has a rectangular front shape, and includes a panel base 71 and a member 72. The panel base 71 is formed of a molded product of a heat insulating material such as polystyrene foam, and integrally forms the outer shapes of the cold air passage 32 and the circulation passage 81.

  The member 72 is disposed on the front surface of the panel base 71, and the front shape of the member 72 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape by covering the back surface of the refrigerating chamber 2 with a good heat conductor such as a metal plate. As the material of the member 72, aluminum, stainless steel, copper, brass, plated steel plate, or the like can be selected. It is more desirable that the member 72 is made of aluminum in consideration of thermal conductivity, rust prevention, strength, lightness, price, and the like.

  The thickness of the member 72 is 0.5 mm to 1 mm. Thereby, while being able to have sufficient livestock cooling performance and heat conductive performance, it is cheap and can obtain high intensity | strength. The member 72 forms the front surface of the circulation passage 81, and the cold air flowing through the circulation passage 81 is in contact with the member 72.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the circulation passage 81 has a back surface portion 81 a formed on the back surface of the refrigerator compartment 2 by the cooling panel 70, and a ceiling portion 81 d formed on the ceiling surface of the refrigerator compartment 2. Yes. The ceiling portion 81d is provided extending in the front-rear direction. A discharge port 84 is provided at the front end of the ceiling part 81d, and a circulation fan 85 is provided at the rear part.

  The back surface portion 81a has a vertical passage 81b and a horizontal passage 81c. The vertical passage 81b extends up and down at the center in the left-right direction and communicates with the ceiling 81d. The horizontal passage 81c is formed to extend horizontally in a comb shape from the lower portion of the vertical passage 81b, and is provided with suction ports 82a, 82b, 83a, 83b through which the cold air in the refrigerator compartment 2 is sucked by driving of the circulating blower 85. Thereby, the suction inlets 82a, 82b, 83a, 83b are arranged in the lower part of the refrigerator compartment 2.

  The suction ports 82a and 82b open laterally at the right end of the lateral passage 81c, and the suction ports 83a and 83b open laterally at the left end of the lateral passage 81c. Thereby, the suction inlets 82a, 82b, 83a, 83b are arranged at both ends in the left-right direction of the refrigerator compartment 2. The upper suction ports 82a and 83a are arranged between the second stage mounting shelf 41 and the third stage mounting shelf 41 from the top. The lower suction ports 82b and 83b are arranged below the mounting shelf 41 in the third row from the top.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the cold air passage 32 extends upward from the refrigerator compartment damper 20, and an inflow portion 32 c having a narrow lateral width is provided in the lower part of the refrigerator compartment 2 behind the accessory storage chamber 102. A refrigerator compartment fan 23 is disposed in the inflow portion 32c. The refrigerating room blower 23 is composed of an axial fan, and the cold air is circulated through the cold passage 32 by opening the refrigerating room damper 20 and driving the refrigerating room blower 23.

  The cold air immediately after flowing into the cold air passage 32 from the refrigerator compartment damper 20 is extremely low temperature (about −20 ° C. to −18 ° C.). For this reason, the heat insulating material 107 is arranged on the inner side of the lower part of the cold air passage 32. Thereby, dew condensation on the back wall surface of the refrigerator compartment 2 can be prevented.

  On the downstream side of the refrigerator compartment damper 20, the back wall of the refrigerator compartment 2 is inclined, and the depth of the lower part of the cold air passage 32 is reduced to about 10 mm. Thereby, the depth of the cold air | gas channel | path 32 can be formed narrowly, and the depth of the refrigerator compartment 2 can be ensured widely. Moreover, the refrigerator compartment damper 20 is arrange | positioned in the position which one part overlaps with the heat insulation wall 7 in front projection. For this reason, the amount by which the refrigerator compartment damper 20 protrudes into the refrigerator compartment 2 and the freezer compartment 6 can be reduced, and the refrigerator compartment 2 and the refrigerator compartment 6 can be formed widely.

  The cool air passage 32 branches right and left above the inflow portion 32c, and has a right passage 32a and a left passage 32b in the upper portion. A plurality of discharge ports 73a, 73b, and 73c are provided at the side end of the right passage 32a so as to open sideways from the top. A plurality of discharge ports 74a, 74b, and 74c are provided at the side end of the left passage 32b in order from the top and open to the side. Accordingly, the discharge ports 73 a to 73 c and 74 a to 74 c are arranged at both ends in the left-right direction of the refrigerator compartment 2. The cool air flows through the cold air passage 32 from below to above, and the discharge ports 73a and 74a are provided at the upper portion which is the end portion of the cold air passage 32.

  Further, the upper discharge ports 73a and 74a are provided above the first stage mounting shelf 41 from the top. The middle-stage discharge ports 73b and 74b are provided between the first-stage mounting shelf 41 and the second-stage mounting shelf 41 from the top. The lower discharge ports 73c and 74c are provided between the second-stage mounting shelf 41 and the third-stage mounting shelf 41 from the top.

  The opening areas of the middle and lower discharge ports 73b, 73c, 74b, and 74c are smaller than the opening areas of the upper discharge ports 73a and 74a. Accordingly, the amount of cool air discharged from the lower discharge ports 73b, 73c, 74b, and 74c close to the cool air inflow side of the cool air passage 32 and close to the return port 2d arranged in the lower part of the refrigerator compartment 2 is limited. Accordingly, the cold air can be guided to the upper part of the cold air passage 32.

  Discharge ports 75a and 75b for discharging cool air to the chilled chamber 21 are provided at the lower end of the right passage 32a. The discharge ports 75 a and 75 b open to the back plate 76 made of a resin molded product of the chilled chamber 21. Since the cold air immediately after flowing into the cold air passage 32 from the refrigerator compartment damper 20 is discharged from the discharge ports 75a and 75b to the chilled chamber 21, the chilled chamber 21 can be maintained at a low temperature. Further, an ion generator 86 for generating ions is provided below the discharge ports 75a and 75b in the cold air passage 32.

  A return port 2d through which cold air from the refrigerator compartment 2 flows out is provided at the lower back of the chilled chamber 21. A cold air passage 34 that communicates the refrigerator compartment 2 and the vegetable compartment 5 is led out from the return port 2d. An upper portion of the cold air passage 34 faces the return port 2d and is provided with a cold air return portion 34a extending from the left end to the right end of the chilled chamber 21, and a lower portion of the cold air passage 34 extends downward from the right portion of the cold air return portion 34a.

  An inflow port 5 c that opens to the vegetable compartment 5 is provided at the lower end of the cold air passage 34. A return passage 46 (see FIG. 2) is provided in the upper part of the vegetable compartment 5 so as to open the front of the vegetable compartment 5 and the front of the cold air passage 31 and return the cold air below the cooler 11.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a gap 88 is formed on the side of the cooling panel 70 between the rear end of the mounting shelf 41 and the back surface of the refrigerator compartment 2. Thereby, the duct by the clearance gap 88 is formed between the discharge ports 73a to 73c and the suction ports 82a and 82b and between the discharge ports 74a to 74c and the suction ports 83a and 83b.

  6 and 7 show a plan view and a side sectional view of the ion generator 86. The ion generator 86 is covered with a housing 86a made of an insulator, and needle-like first and second discharge electrodes 86p and 86q are arranged apart in the left-right direction. An annular induction electrode 86e is disposed around the first and second discharge electrodes 86p and 86q. The housing 86a is provided with a through hole 86b facing the first and second discharge electrodes 86p and 86q. Thereby, the discharge electrodes 86p and 86q are exposed on the ion generation surface 86d.

  A positive or negative high voltage with respect to the induction electrode 86e is applied to the first and second discharge electrodes 86p and 86q, respectively. As a result, positive ions are generated by, for example, corona discharge in the ion generating portion 86j formed between the first discharge electrode 86p and the induction electrode 86e. In addition, negative ions are generated, for example, by corona discharge in the ion generator 86k formed between the second discharge electrode 86q and the induction electrode 86e.

A positive voltage is applied to the first discharge electrode 86p, and ions generated by ionization combine with moisture in the air to generate positive cluster ions whose charges mainly consist of H ⁺ (H ₂ O) m. A negative voltage is applied to the second discharge electrode 86q, and ions generated by ionization combine with moisture in the air to generate negatively clustered ions mainly composed of O ₂ ⁻ (H ₂ O) n. Here, m and n are arbitrary natural numbers. H ⁺ (H ₂ O) m and O ₂ ⁻ (H ₂ O) n agglomerate and surround the surface of airborne bacteria, odorous components, and stored bacteria.

Then, as shown in the formulas (1) to (3), the active species [.OH] (hydroxyl radical) and H ₂ O ₂ (hydrogen peroxide) are aggregated and formed on the surface of the microorganism or the like by collision. Destroy airborne bacteria, stored bacteria, odorous components, etc. Here, m ′ and n ′ are arbitrary natural numbers.

H ⁺ (H ₂ O) m + O ₂ ⁻ (H ₂ O) n → OH + 1 / 2O ₂ + (m + n) H ₂ O (1)
_{^{H + (H 2 O) m}} + H + (H 2 O) m '+ O 2 - (H 2 O) n + O 2 - (H 2 O) n'
→ 2 OH + O ₂ + (m + m ′ + n + n ′) H ₂ O (2)
_{^{H + (H 2 O) m}} + H + (H 2 O) m '+ O 2 - (H 2 O) n + O 2 - (H 2 O) n'
→ H ₂ O ₂ + O ₂ + (m + m ′ + n + n ′) H ₂ O (3)

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the discharge port 75 a of the chilled chamber 21. The ion generator 86 is provided with an ion generation surface 86d along the lower ends of the discharge ports 75a and 75b. The ion generator 86j having the first discharge electrode 86p is arranged in the vicinity of the discharge port 75a. Similarly, the ion generator 86k having the second discharge electrode 86q is arranged in the vicinity of the discharge port 75b.

  FIG. 9 is a top sectional view showing a section passing through the discharge ports 75a and 75b. The discharge ports 75a and 75b are formed in an inclined manner in the thickness direction of the cooling panel 70 so as to open to the back plate 76 that forms the wall surface of the chilled chamber 21, and to face each other on the chilled chamber 21 side.

  In the refrigerator 1 having the above configuration, when the freezer blower 12 is driven, the cold air generated by the cooler 11 is discharged into the ice making chamber 4 and is discharged into the freezer compartment 6 through the discharge ports 6d and 6e. The cold air discharged into the ice making chamber 4 circulates through the ice making chamber 4, mixes with the cold air discharged into the freezing chamber 6, and flows through the freezing chamber 6. The cold air flowing through the ice making chamber 4 and the freezer compartment 6 flows out from the freezer return port 22 and returns to the cooler 11. As a result, the ice making chamber 4 and the freezing chamber 6 are cooled.

  When the refrigerator compartment damper 20 is opened, the refrigerator compartment fan 23 and the circulation fan 85 are driven. At this time, the wind speed of the refrigerator compartment fan 23 is set lower than the wind speed of the circulation fan 85. The cold air branched on the exhaust side of the freezer compartment fan 12 by the driving of the refrigerator compartment fan 23 circulates in the cold passage 32. The cold air flowing through the cold air passage 32 branches into a right passage 32a and a left passage 32b.

  A part of the cold air passing through the right passage 32a is discharged into the chilled chamber 21 through the discharge ports 75a and 75b as shown by an arrow A1 (see FIG. 4). The cool air discharged from the discharge ports 75a and 75b includes positive ions and negative ions generated by the ion generator 86, respectively. Since the discharge ports 75a and 75b are inclined so as to approach the chilled chamber 21, the cold air containing positive ions and the cold air containing negative ions are mixed and circulated in the chilled chamber 21. Cooling in the chilled chamber 21, sterilization of floating bacteria and attached bacteria, and odor removal can be performed by cold air containing ions. And the cold air which distribute | circulated the chilled chamber 21 flows out from the return port 2d.

  Further, the cool air rising from the lower side to the upper side in the right passage 32a and the left passage 32b is discharged into the refrigerator compartment 2 through the discharge ports 73a to 73c and 74a to 74c as shown by an arrow A2 (see FIGS. 4 and 5). The The cold air flowing through the right passage 32a branches into cold air guided to the discharge ports 75a and 75b of the chilled chamber 21 and cold air guided to the discharge ports 73a to 73c. At this time, some of the ions generated by the ion generator 86 ascend the right passage 32a and are guided to the discharge ports 73a to 73c.

  The cold air discharged from the discharge ports 73a to 73c and 74a to 74c to the side flows through the side wall of the refrigerator compartment 2 to the front because the wind speed of the refrigerator compartment fan 23 is relatively low. Further, some of the cool air discharged from the discharge ports 73a to 73c and 74a to 74c descends through the gap 88 behind the mounting shelf 41.

  The cool air flowing forward along the side wall from the discharge ports 73a to 73c and 74a to 74c cools the stored items on the mounting shelf 41 from the surroundings and diffuses them to perform sterilization and odor removal by ions. Then, the cool air descends in front of the mounting shelf 41 and is guided to the suction ports 82a, 82b, 83a, 83b and the return port 2d. A part of the cool air introduced to the return port 2 d cools the stored items in the accessory storage chamber 102 and the water tank 103 a in the water tank chamber 103.

  A part of the cool air descending in front of the mounting shelf 41 and the cool air descending through the gap 88 are sucked into the circulation passage 81 from the suction ports 82a, 82b, 83a, 83b as shown by an arrow A3 (see FIGS. 1 and 5). It is. The cold air sucked into the circulation passage 81 rises in the circulation passage 81.

  The cold air flowing through the circulation passage 81 is discharged from the discharge port 84 of the circulation passage 81 to the refrigerator compartment 2 as indicated by an arrow A5 (see FIGS. 2 and 6). At this time, cool air is discharged obliquely downward from the discharge port 84 toward the upper door pocket 42 and the mounting shelf 41. As a result, the interior of the door pocket 42 is cooled, and the cool air descends in front of the mounting shelf 41.

  The cold air discharged from the discharge port 84 to the refrigerator compartment 2 descends in front of the mounting shelf 41 and is guided to the return port 2d and partly to the suction ports 82a, 82b, 83a and 83b. Thereby, the cool air in the refrigerator compartment 2 circulates through the circulation passage 81 without passing through the cooler 11. Moreover, since the discharge port 84 opens in the center part of the left-right direction of the refrigerator compartment 2, the cold air discharged from the center part of the top | upper surface is in the suction ports 82a, 82b, 83a, 83b distribute | arranged to the both ends of the left-right direction. Led. Thereby, the cold air discharged from the discharge port 84 spreads to the lower rear of the refrigerator compartment 2, and the whole refrigerator compartment 2 is cooled.

  Further, the cold air flowing through the circulation passage 81 and the cold heat discharged from the discharge ports 73 a to 73 c and 74 a to 74 c are transmitted to the member 72. Since the member 72 has high thermal conductivity, the temperature is made uniform, and cold heat is released from the entire back surface of the refrigerator compartment 2. Thereby, the temperature distribution of the refrigerator compartment 2 can be equalized.

  Furthermore, when the door 2a is opened and the outside air flows into the refrigerator compartment 2, the surface of the member 72 becomes cloudy due to condensation of outside water. The condensed moisture is then evaporated by the circulation of cold air and released into the refrigerator compartment 2. Therefore, the refrigerator 72 is moisturized by the member 72. At this time, dew condensation also occurs on the back side of the member 72 facing the back surface part 81a of the circulation passage 81, so that a wide dew condensation area can be secured and the moisturizing effect can be improved.

  When unevenness due to bending is provided on the front surface and the back surface of the member 72, the dew condensation water flowing down on the member 72 can be accumulated on the surface facing the upper surface of the unevenness to further improve the moisturizing effect. Unevenness can be easily formed by bending by pressing or drawing. The unevenness may be a groove shape or a rail shape extending in the horizontal direction, or may be a number of dimple shapes. Further, even if a water storage part (not shown) that stores condensed water is provided at the lower end of the back surface part 81a, the moisture retaining effect can be further improved by storing the condensed water flowing down the member 72 in the water storage part.

  The return port 2d is arranged to be deviated to the left of the chilled chamber 21 and is arranged in the vicinity of the central portion in the left-right direction of the refrigerator compartment 2. For this reason, the refrigerator compartment 2 can be cooled more uniformly by the cool air led to the return port 2d from the discharge ports 73a to 73c and 74a to 74c at both ends in the left-right direction.

  The cold air flowing out of the refrigerator compartment 2 through the return port 2d passes through the cold air passage 34 and flows into the vegetable compartment 5 from the inlet 5c. At this time, since the inflow port 5c is provided above the vegetable compartment 2, the cold air passage 34 is formed short, and the pressure loss can be reduced. The cold air flowing into the vegetable compartment 5 flows through the vegetable compartment 5 and returns to the cooler 11 via the return passage 46. Thereby, the inside of the refrigerator compartment 2 and the vegetable compartment 5 is cooled, and when it reaches preset temperature, the refrigerator compartment damper 20 is closed and the refrigerator compartment fan 23 and the circulation fan 85 are stopped.

  In addition, the cold air branched on the exhaust side of the freezer compartment fan 12 flows into the temperature change chamber 3 via the temperature change chamber discharge damper 37 by driving the temperature change chamber fan 18. The cold air that has flowed into the temperature switching chamber 3 flows through the temperature switching chamber 3, flows out of the temperature switching chamber return damper 38, and returns to the cooler 11 through the return passage 17. Thereby, the inside of the temperature switching chamber 3 is cooled.

  As described above, the temperature switching chamber 3 can switch the room temperature by a user's operation. The operation modes of the temperature switching chamber 3 are wine (8 ° C.), refrigeration (3 ° C.), chilled (0 ° C.), soft freezing (−8 ° C.), and freezing (−15 ° C.) depending on the temperature zone. Provided.

  Thereby, the user can preserve | save the stored item at the desired temperature. The room temperature can be switched by varying the amount of opening of the temperature switching chamber discharge damper 37. For example, the heater 16 may be energized to switch the temperature from the refrigerated room temperature to the refrigerated room temperature. Thereby, it can switch to desired room temperature rapidly.

  By energizing the heater 16, the room temperature of the temperature switching chamber 3 can be switched from a low temperature side where the stored items are cooled and stored to a high temperature side higher than normal temperature. Thereby, temporary heat insulation, warm cooking, etc. of the cooked heated food can be performed.

  Since the growth temperature of the main food poisoning bacteria is 30 ° C. to 45 ° C., the indoor temperature on the high temperature side is preferably set to 50 ° C. or more in consideration of the tolerance of the heater capacity, the temperature distribution in the temperature switching chamber 3, and the like. Thereby, propagation of food poisoning bacteria can be prevented.

  Moreover, since the heat-resistant temperature of the general resin parts used for a refrigerator is 80 degreeC, when the room temperature of a high temperature side shall be 80 degrees C or less, it can implement | achieve cheaply. In addition, in order to sterilize food poisoning bacteria, for example, in the case of enterohemorrhagic E. coli (pathogenic E. coli O157), heating at 75 ° C. for 1 minute is required. Therefore, it is more desirable to set the indoor temperature on the high temperature side to 75 ° C. to 80 ° C.

The following are test results on sterilization of food poisoning bacteria at 55 ° C. In the initial state, E. coli 2.4 × 10 ³ CFU / mL, Staphylococcus aureus 2.0 × 10 ³ CFU / mL, Salmonella 2.1 × 10 ³ CFU / mL, Vibrio parahaemolyticus 1.5 × 10 ³ CFU / ML, Cereus 4.0 × 10 ³ CFU / mL. This test sample was heated from 3 ° C. to 55 ° C. over 40 minutes, kept at 55 ° C. for 3.5 hours, then returned from 55 ° C. to 3 ° C. over 80 minutes, and the amount of each bacterium was examined again. As a result, all the bacteria were reduced to a level of 10 CFU / mL or less (not detected). Therefore, even if the set temperature on the high temperature side of the temperature switching chamber 3 is 55 ° C., there is a sufficient sterilization effect.

  According to the present embodiment, since the ion generators 86j and 86k of the ion generator 86 are arranged in the vicinity of the discharge ports 75a and 75b in the cold air passage 32, the disappearance of ions due to the cold air flowing through the cold air passage 32. The cool air containing a sufficient amount of ions is discharged into the chilled chamber 21 (storage chamber). Therefore, the cold air generated by the cooler 11 can be spread in the chilled chamber 21 and the sterilization performance can be improved.

  Further, the ion generator 86j has a first discharge electrode 86p that emits positive ions and is disposed around the discharge port 75a, and the ion generator 86k has a second discharge electrode 86q that emits negative ions. It arrange | positions around the discharge outlet 75b. For this reason, the first and second discharge electrodes 86p and 86q are disposed apart from each other, and the sterilization performance is reduced by reducing the disappearance due to the collision between the positive ions and the negative ions immediately after the first and second discharge electrodes 86p and 86q are generated. Can be further improved.

  Further, since the discharge ports 75a and 76b are inclined in the thickness direction of the back plate 76 so as to face each other on the chilled chamber 21 side, cold air containing positive ions clustered after discharge and cold air containing negative ions are mixed. For this reason, positive ions and negative ions can be mixed and circulated in the chilled chamber 21, and the sterilization performance can be further improved. In addition, as shown in FIG. 10, you may form by the curved surface which inclined the inner wall of the discharge outlets 75a and 75b.

  In addition, since the chilled chamber 21 is composed of an isolation chamber provided in the refrigerator compartment 2 for storing stored items in a refrigerator, ions in the chilled chamber 21 can be maintained at a high concentration by the isolation chamber having a small volume. Therefore, the sterilization performance in the chilled chamber 21 can be further improved.

  In addition, since the cold air passage 32 that guides the cold air to the discharge ports 75a and 75b is branched and the cold air is sent from the discharge ports 73a to 73c to the refrigerator compartment 2, a part of the cold air including ions generated in the ion generation units 86j and 86k. Is sent to the refrigerator compartment 2. Thereby, disinfection and odor removal in the refrigerator compartment 2 can be performed.

  In addition, the cold air passage 32 and the circulation passage 81 are arranged so as to overlap each other, and the discharge ports 73a to 73c and 74a to 74c are arranged at both ends in the left-right direction in the upper part of the refrigerator compartment 2, so that the discharge ports 73a to 73c, The relatively dry cool air discharged from 74a to 74c descends and is sucked from the suction ports 82a, 82b, 83a, 83b. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the amount of dry cold air that comes into direct contact with the stored item, and to reduce the drying of the stored item.

  Next, the refrigerator of 2nd Embodiment is demonstrated with reference to FIG. For convenience of explanation, the same reference numerals are assigned to the same parts as those in the first embodiment shown in FIGS. The present embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the shape of the discharge ports 75a and 75b of the chilled chamber 21. Other parts are the same as those of the first embodiment.

  FIG. 11 is a top sectional view showing a section passing through the discharge ports 75a and 75b. The discharge ports 75a and 75b open to the back plate 76 of the chilled chamber 21, and are formed to be inclined in the same direction. The cool air discharged from the discharge ports 75a and 75b is discharged inclining in the same direction with respect to the back plate 76. Thereby, a swirl flow is formed in the chilled chamber 21, and the cool air containing positive ions and the cool air containing negative ions are mixed by the swirl flow.

  According to this embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained. Further, since the discharge ports 75a and 75b are inclined in the same direction, the cold air containing positive ions discharged from the discharge port 75a and the cold air including negative ions discharged from the discharge port 75b are discharged in an inclined direction. The Thereby, both ions are mixed with each other by the swirling flow formed in the chilled chamber 21. For this reason, positive ions and negative ions can be mixed and circulated in the chilled chamber 21, and the sterilization performance can be improved.

  The discharge ports 75a and 75b may be inclined in parallel as shown in the figure, or may be formed at different inclination angles as shown in FIG. The inner walls of the discharge ports 75a and 75b may be formed with curved surfaces.

  In the first and second embodiments, the ion generators 86j and 86k are arranged in the vicinity of the discharge ports 75a and 75b of the chilled chamber 21, but other storage rooms (refrigeration room 2, vegetable room 5, temperature switching room) 3, the accessory storage chamber 102, etc.) may be disposed in the vicinity of the discharge port. Thereby, the ion of each store room can be maintained at high concentration.

  According to this invention, it can utilize for the refrigerator provided with the ion generator.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Refrigerator 2 Refrigerated room 2d Return port 3 Temperature switching room 4 Ice making room 5 Vegetable room 6 Freezer room 7, 8, 35 Insulation wall 11 Cooler 12 Freezer room fan 15 Introduction ventilation path 16 Heater 17, 46 Return path 18 Temperature switching room Blower 20 Refrigerating room damper 21 Chilled room 23 Refrigerating room blower 31, 32, 34 Cold passage 37 Temperature switching chamber discharge damper 38 Temperature switching chamber return damper 41 Mounting shelf 70 Cooling panel 71 Panel base 72 Members 73a to 73c, 74a to 74c , 75a, 75b, 84 Discharge port 76 Back plate 81 Circulating passage 81a Back surface portion 81d Top surface portion 82a, 82b, 83a, 83b Suction port 85 Circulating fan 86 Ion generator 86j, 86k Ion generator 86p First discharge electrode 86q Second Discharge electrode 88 Crevice 102 Small article storage room 103 Water tank room

Claims (6)

  A storage chamber for storing stored items, a cooler for generating cool air, a cool air passage through which the cool air generated by the cooler flows, and a cool air that opens to the wall surface of the store chamber and flows through the cool air passage. A refrigerator comprising: a discharge port that discharges into a storage chamber; and an ion generator that includes an ion generation unit that generates ions disposed in the vicinity of the discharge port in the cold air passage.   A plurality of the discharge ports are provided, and the ion generator has a first discharge electrode that discharges positive ions and a second discharge electrode that discharges negative ions, and the first discharge electrode is disposed around the one discharge port. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the second discharge electrode is arranged around the other discharge ports.   The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein the one outlet and the other outlet are formed to be inclined in the thickness direction of the wall surface of the storage chamber so as to face each other on the storage chamber side.   The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein the one outlet and the other outlet are formed to be inclined in the same direction in the thickness direction of the wall surface of the storage chamber.   The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the storage room comprises an isolation room provided in a refrigerating room for storing stored items in a refrigerator.   The refrigerator according to claim 5, wherein the cold air is branched and the cold air is sent to the refrigerator compartment.

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