JP2012137285A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a refrigerator that improves visibility of stock.SOLUTION: The refrigerator includes: a storage compartment for storing the stock; a plurality of LEDs 3 arranged in the rear of the storage compartment and aligned up and down; a light guide plate 20 arranged along both of sidewalls 8 of the storage compartment and guiding an outgoing beam of the LED 3 to a front of the storage compartment. The inside of the storage compartment is illuminated with light guided by the light guide plate 20 and emitted from the light guide plate 20.

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator that illuminates a storage room with LEDs.

  Conventional refrigerators are disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2. This refrigerator has a plurality of LEDs for illuminating a storage room for storing stored items. The LEDs are arranged in front of both side walls of the storage room side by side.

  FIG. 8 is a top sectional view showing the front part of the side wall of the storage chamber. The side wall 8 of the storage chamber 2 is filled with a heat insulating material, and the illumination chamber 4 extending up and down facing the storage chamber 2 is recessed. The wall surface of the illumination chamber 4 is formed by a frame portion 5 made of a resin molded product integrated with the side wall 8. A mounting substrate 7 on which the LEDs 3 are mounted is attached to the frame portion 5. A lamp cover 6 made of a transparent resin is disposed in front of the illumination chamber 4. The lamp cover 6 is locked by engaging the claw portion 6 a with the hole portion 5 a provided in the frame portion 5.

  When the door of the storage chamber 2 is opened, the LED 3 is energized, and the emitted light emitted from the LED 3 passes through the lamp cover 6. Thereby, the inside of the storage chamber 2 is illuminated from the front.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2007-187363 (page 3 to page 6, FIG. 2) JP 2008-89277 A (pages 4 to 6, FIG. 2)

  However, according to the conventional refrigerator, since the emitted light of the LED 3 is emitted from the front part of the storage chamber 2, a shadow of the stored item illuminated from the front is formed behind the stored item. For this reason, there existed a problem that the visibility of the stored thing distribute | arranged to a rear part was bad.

  An object of this invention is to provide the refrigerator which can improve the visibility of stored goods.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a storage room for storing stored items, a plurality of LEDs arranged at the rear of the storage room and arranged vertically, and along both side walls of the storage room. And a light guide plate for guiding the emitted light of the LED to the front portion of the storage chamber, and the interior of the storage chamber is illuminated by the light that is guided through the light guide plate and emitted from the light guide plate. Yes.

  According to this configuration, the emitted light of the LED disposed at the rear of the storage chamber enters the light guide plate disposed along the side wall of the storage chamber. The light incident on the light guide plate is reflected by the surface of the light guide plate and guided to the front of the storage chamber. Light that is guided through the light guide plate and reaches the surface of the light guide plate at an incident angle smaller than the critical angle is emitted from the light guide plate toward the storage chamber or the side wall of the storage chamber. The light emitted in the direction of the side wall of the storage room is reflected by the side wall and is emitted into the storage room through the light guide plate.

  According to the present invention, in the refrigerator having the above-described configuration, a duct panel that covers a back surface of the storage chamber and forms a cool air passage is provided, and the LED is attached to the duct panel.

  Moreover, the present invention is characterized in that, in the refrigerator having the above-described configuration, an illumination room in which the LEDs are arranged is provided in a corner portion between a side wall and a back wall of the storage room.

  In the refrigerator configured as described above, the light guide plate may have a bent portion bent toward the outside of the storage chamber at a rear portion, and the LED may be disposed to face an end surface of the bent portion. Yes. According to this configuration, the rear portion of the light guide plate is bent outward in the left-right direction to form a bent portion. The LED faces the end surface of the bent portion, and the emitted light of the LED enters the light guide plate from the end surface of the bent portion.

  Moreover, the present invention is characterized in that, in the refrigerator configured as described above, a metal panel is provided on the back surface of the storage chamber. According to this configuration, the emitted light of the LED enters the light guide plate, and part of the emitted light is reflected by the metal panel to illuminate the storage chamber from the back.

  In the refrigerator having the above-described configuration, the present invention includes a plurality of transparent mounting trays arranged in the storage chamber and on which stored items are mounted, and the LEDs are disposed in the vicinity of each of the mounting trays described above. It is said. According to this configuration, the emitted light of the LED enters the light guide plate and a part of the emitted light enters the transparent mounting tray. Light incident on the mounting tray is guided through the mounting tray, and light reaching the surface at an incident angle smaller than the critical angle is emitted. Thereby, a store thing is illuminated from the upper and lower sides.

  Moreover, the present invention is characterized in that, in the refrigerator having the above-described configuration, the light guide plate has a concavo-convex portion extending forward and backward facing the side wall. According to this configuration, the light guide plate extends back and forth, and the vertical cross section is formed with, for example, a sawtooth-shaped uneven portion facing the side wall of the storage chamber, and light emitted from the surface of the uneven portion is reflected by the side wall and reflected in the storage chamber. Illuminate.

  According to the present invention, in the refrigerator configured as described above, the light guide plate is made of polystyrene resin.

  According to the present invention, since the light guide plates for guiding the emitted light of the LEDs arranged at the rear of the storage room to the front part of the storage room are arranged along the both side walls of the storage room, they are arranged at the front part and the rear part of the storage room. The stored storage can be illuminated from the side. Moreover, the storage thing distribute | arranged to the front part and rear part of a store room can be illuminated from front and back. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the visibility of the stored item behind from being deteriorated due to the shadow of the stored item, and to improve the visibility of the stored item. Moreover, since the LED is arranged at the rear of the storage chamber, the wiring connected to the LED can be shortened. Thereby, the void which generate | occur | produces in the foam heat insulating material of a heat insulation box by wiring can be reduced. Therefore, the cost of the refrigerator can be reduced and the heat insulation can be improved.

The perspective view which shows the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention. 1 arrow view of FIG. The front view which shows the duct panel of the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention. BB sectional view of FIG. The perspective view which shows the light-guide plate of the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the other light-guide plate of the refrigerator of 1st Embodiment of this invention. Top sectional drawing which shows the side wall of the storage chamber of the refrigerator of 2nd Embodiment of this invention Top sectional view showing a side wall of a storage room of a conventional refrigerator

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. For convenience of explanation, the same parts as those in the conventional example shown in FIG. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the refrigerator according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a view taken in the direction of arrow A in FIG. In the refrigerator 1, a storage chamber 2 is defined by a heat insulating box 1a filled with a foam heat insulating material 1d between an inner box 1b and an outer box 1c.

  A flat light guide plate 20 made of a transparent resin is disposed in the storage chamber 2 along the left and right side walls 8. Between the side walls 8, a placing tray 9 for placing a stored item is disposed. The loading tray 9 is bridged on support portions 11 protruding from both side walls 8 of the storage chamber 2, and an opening 22 through which the support portion 11 passes is formed in the light guide plate 20.

  A duct panel 14 is disposed on the back surface of the storage chamber 2. FIG. 3 shows a front view of the duct panel 14, and FIG. 4 shows the inside of the storage chamber 2 taken along the line BB of FIG. The duct panel 14 is made of a resin molded product, and forms a cold air passage 12 extending vertically in the center of the back surface of the storage chamber 2. A heat insulating material 15 is disposed on the front surface of the cool air passage 12 in the duct panel 14, and the front surface of the duct panel 14 is covered with a metal panel 13 made of aluminum, stainless steel, or the like.

  The duct panel 14 has a discharge port 14a that discharges cold air from the cold air passage 12 to the side. A return port 14 b through which cool air flows out is provided at the lower part of the duct panel 14. The cold air flowing through the cold air passage 12 is discharged into the storage chamber 2 through the discharge port 14a, cools the inside of the storage chamber 2, and flows out from the return port 14b.

  Further, the cold heat of the cold air flowing through the cold air passage 12 is transmitted to the metal panel 13. At this time, the heat insulating material 15 prevents condensation due to overcooling of the metal panel 13. The cold heat transmitted to the metal panel 13 is released from the entire metal panel 13 to the storage chamber 2. Thereby, the inside of the storage chamber 2 can be cooled uniformly.

  When the door (not shown) of the storage chamber 2 is opened, moisture-containing air flows into the storage chamber 2 and condenses on the metal panel 13. The condensation on the metal panel 13 is then evaporated, and the inside of the storage chamber 2 can be moisturized. Moreover, when the metal panel 13 is stainless steel, metal ion flows out by dew condensation, and the sterilization effect in the storage chamber 2 can be obtained.

  The duct panel 14 extends to the side wall 8 of the storage chamber 2, and an extended portion 14 c that is bent forward along the side wall 8 is formed. A mounting substrate 7 on which a plurality of chip-shaped LEDs 3 are mounted in the up-down direction is attached to the extending portion 14 c substantially parallel to the side wall 8. Thereby, LED3 is distribute | arranged to the rear part of the storage chamber 2, and the output surface 3a is installed in the side wall 8 substantially parallel. The LED 3 is installed in the vicinity of each loading tray 9 and covered with a transparent lamp cover 6 attached to the duct panel 14.

  The extending portion 14 c in the vicinity of the mounting substrate 7 is provided with a hole portion 14 d through which the wiring 27 is inserted. The wiring 27 extends from an electrical component (not shown) disposed behind the refrigerator 1 and is connected to the LED 3 via the mounting substrate 7. Since the LED 3 is arranged at the rear part of the storage chamber 2, the wiring 27 can be shortened. Thereby, the void which generate | occur | produces in the foam heat insulating material 1d of the heat insulation box 1a with the wiring 27 can be reduced.

  The light guide plate 20 disposed along the side wall 8 is made of polystyrene resin, and the first side surface 20a facing the storage chamber 2 and the second side surface 20b facing the side wall 8 face each other. A bent portion 24 bent outward is formed at the rear portion of the light guide plate 20. The light emitting surface 3a of the LED 3 faces the vertical end surface 24a of the bent portion 24. The end of the bent portion 24 on the storage chamber 2 side is formed on a curved or flat inclined surface 23.

  FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of the light guide plate 20. On the second side surface 20b of the light guide plate 20, an uneven portion 21 having a sawtooth-like vertical cross section extending in the front-rear direction is formed. As for the shape of the concavo-convex portion 21, for example, the apex angle is 90 ° and the pitch is 0.15 mm. An air layer is formed between the uneven portion 21 and the side wall 8. When the refractive index of the air layer is about 1.0 and the light guide plate 20 is made of polystyrene, the refractive index is 1.59 to 1.60, so the critical angle for total reflection is about 43 °. .

  In the refrigerator 1 having the above configuration, when the door of the storage chamber 2 is opened, the LED 3 is energized. The outgoing light emitted from the LED 3 passes through the lamp cover 6 and enters the light guide plate 8 from the end face 24 a of the bent portion 24. The light incident on the light guide plate 20 is guided forward by the inclined surface 23 of the bent portion 24 and is reflected by the first and second side surfaces 20 a and 20 b to guide the light guide plate 20. Then, the light incident on the first side surface 20 a or the second side surface 20 b at an angle smaller than the critical angle is emitted from the surface of the light guide plate 20.

  The light emitted from the second side surface 20b is reflected by the reflecting surface 8a formed by the inner box 1b facing the light guide plate 20, enters the light guide plate 20 again, and is emitted from the first side surface 20a. Thus, the entire light guide plate 20 is illuminated from the front to the rear of the storage chamber 2. In addition, when the reflective surface 8a of the side wall 8 is made white, it will become easy to reflect in the storage chamber 2 side. In addition, it is more desirable to provide a reflection member such as a metal reflection film or a reflection sheet on the second side surface 20b of the light guide plate 20 or the reflection surface 8a of the side wall 8 because attenuation of light intensity can be suppressed. Further, a reflection member may be provided on the back surface of the bent portion 24 including the inclined surface 23.

  Further, the light guided through the light guide plate 20 is also emitted from the front surface 20c, the upper surface 20d, and the lower surface 20e of the light guide plate 20. Thereby, it is possible to illuminate the front, upper and lower sides of the light guide plate 20. When the stored item is not disposed in front of or above the light guide plate 20, a reflective member such as a reflective film or a reflective tape may be provided on the front surface 20c or the upper surface 20d.

  Moreover, a part of the light emitted from the LED 3 is reflected by the metal panel 13, and the interior of the storage chamber 2 can be illuminated from the back. In addition, since the LED 3 is disposed in the vicinity of the mounting tray 9, a part of the light emitted from the LED 3 enters the mounting tray 9 and is guided. Then, light that is guided through the mounting tray 9 and enters the surface of the mounting tray 9 at an angle smaller than the critical angle is emitted from the surface of the mounting tray 9. Thereby, a store thing can be illuminated also from the upper and lower sides.

  According to this embodiment, since the light guide plate 20 that guides the emitted light of the LED 3 to the front part of the storage room 2 is arranged along the both side walls 8 of the storage room, it is arranged at the front part and the rear part of the storage room 2. The store can be illuminated from the side. Moreover, the storage thing distribute | arranged to the front part and the rear part of the store room 2 can be illuminated from back and front. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the visibility of the stored item behind from being deteriorated due to the shadow of the stored item, and to improve the visibility of the stored item.

  Moreover, since LED3 is distribute | arranged to the rear part of the storage chamber 2, the wiring 27 connected to LED3 can be shortened. Thereby, the void which generate | occur | produces in the foam heat insulating material of the heat insulation box 1a with the wiring 27 can be reduced. Therefore, the cost of the refrigerator 1 can be reduced and the heat insulation can be improved.

  Moreover, since LED3 was attached to the duct panel 14 which covers the back surface of the store room 2 and forms the cold air | gas channel | path 12, LED3 can be easily arrange | positioned in a predetermined position by installation of the duct panel 14. FIG. Therefore, the assembly of the refrigerator 1 can be facilitated.

  In addition, since the LED 3 is disposed so as to face the end surface 24a of the bent portion 24 obtained by bending the rear portion of the light guide plate 20, the mounting substrate 7 can be easily arranged by arranging the emission surface 3a of the LED 3 substantially parallel to the side wall 8 of the storage chamber 2. Can be installed.

  Moreover, since the metal panel 13 was provided in the back surface of the store room 2, the store room 2 can be illuminated from a back surface by reflecting a part of emitted light of LED3. Therefore, the visibility of the stored item can be further improved.

  Moreover, since LED3 was arrange | positioned in the vicinity of each mounting tray 9, a part of emitted light of LED3 can guide the mounting tray 9, and can illuminate a stored item from an up-down direction. Therefore, the visibility of the stored item can be further improved.

  In addition, the light guide plate 20 has a concavo-convex portion 21 extending in the front-rear direction facing the side wall 8 on the second side surface 20 b. The light guide of the light guide plate 20 is dispersed in various directions compared to the case where the second side surface 20b is formed as a flat surface by reflection at the concavo-convex portion 21. As a result, the incident angle of light reaching the surface of the light guide plate 20 is likely to be smaller than the critical angle, so that the light guided to the back surface 20f of the light guide plate 20 is reduced and more light is emitted to the side. . Therefore, it is possible to more reliably illuminate the interior of the storage chamber 2 from the front portion to the rear portion, thereby further improving the visibility of the stored items.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, it is more desirable to apply a non-glossy surface treatment K such as a satin pattern to the surface of the concavo-convex portion 21 by sand blasting or graining. Thereby, the reflected light of the uneven | corrugated | grooved part 21 can be disperse | distributed more.

  Next, FIG. 7 is a top sectional view showing the side wall 8 of the storage chamber 2 of the refrigerator 1 according to the second embodiment. For convenience of explanation, the same parts as those in the first embodiment shown in FIGS. In the present embodiment, the arrangement of the LEDs 3 is different. Other parts are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  In the corner portion between the side wall 8 and the back wall 30 of the storage chamber 2, an illumination chamber 4 in which the LED 3 is installed is recessed. The wall surface of the illumination chamber 4 is formed by a frame portion 5 made of a resin molded product integrated with the side wall 8. A lamp cover 6 made of a transparent resin is disposed in front of the illumination chamber 4. The lamp cover 6 is sandwiched between the frame portion 5 and the inner box 1b of the heat insulating box 1a.

  A mounting substrate 7 in which a plurality of chip-shaped LEDs 3 are mounted in the vertical direction is mounted in the illumination chamber 4 substantially parallel to the surface of the inner box 1b. The LED 3 is arranged in the vicinity of each loading tray 9. The end surface 24 a of the bent portion 24 of the light guide plate 20 is disposed so as to oppose the emission surface 3 a of the LED 3.

  In the refrigerator 1 configured as described above, when the LED 3 is energized as in the first embodiment, the emitted light of the LED 3 passes through the lamp cover 6 and enters the light guide plate 8 from the end surface 24a of the bent portion 24. The light incident on the light guide plate 20 is guided forward by the inclined surface 23 of the bent portion 24 and is reflected by the first and second side surfaces 20 a and 20 b to guide the light guide plate 20. Then, the light incident on the first side surface 20 a or the second side surface 20 b at an angle smaller than the critical angle is emitted from the surface of the light guide plate 20.

  According to this embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained. Moreover, since the illumination chamber 4 in which the LED 3 is disposed is recessed in the corner portion between the side wall 8 and the back wall 30 of the storage chamber 2, the LED 3 is illuminated without protruding into the storage chamber 2 as in the first embodiment. be able to. Therefore, the volumetric efficiency of the storage chamber 2 can be improved.

  In the first and second embodiments, the light guide plate 20 may be made of acrylic resin or glass as long as it is transparent. However, polystyrene resin has better moldability and greater light diffusion than acrylic resin and glass. Therefore, the light guide plate 20 can be easily formed, and the light guided to the back surface 20f can be reduced to increase the light emitted from the first side surface 20a and the second side surface 20b. Therefore, the visibility of the stored item can be further improved.

  Further, the illumination light may be colored by mixing a colorant into the light guide plate 20. Thereby, since the color is generated at a position away from the LED 3, it is possible to reduce the coloring material compared to coloring the lamp cover 6 close to the LED 3. For this reason, it can color by suppressing the fall of illumination intensity. Further, the color of the illumination light can be varied by replacing the light guide plate 20 according to the user's preference.

  According to this invention, it can utilize for the refrigerator which illuminates the storage chamber by LED.

1 Refrigerator 2 Storage room 3 LED
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 4 Illumination room 5 Frame part 6 Lamp cover 7 Mounting board 8 Side wall 9 Loading tray 11 Support part 12 Cold air path 13 Metal panel 20 Light guide plate 20a 1st side surface 20b 2nd side surface 20c Front surface 21 Concavity and convexity part 22 Opening part 23 Inclined surface 24 Bent part

Claims (8)

A storage chamber for storing stored items, and a plurality of Ls arranged at the rear of the storage chamber and lined up and down
ED and a light guide plate that is arranged along both side walls of the storage chamber and guides the emitted light of the LED to the front portion of the storage chamber, and guides the light guide plate from the light guide plate. A refrigerator characterized in that the storage room is illuminated with emitted light. A duct panel that covers a rear surface of the storage chamber and forms a cool air passage;
The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerator is attached to the duct panel. 2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein an illumination room in which the LEDs are arranged is recessed in a corner portion between a side wall and a back wall of the storage room. The said light guide plate has the bending part bent toward the outer side of the said storage chamber in the rear part, and has arrange | positioned the said LED facing the end surface of the said bending part, The any one of Claims 1-3 characterized by the above-mentioned. Refrigerator. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a metal panel is provided on a back surface of the storage room. A plurality of transparent mounting trays arranged in the storage chamber for mounting stored items, the LED
The refrigerator in any one of Claims 1-5 arrange | positioned in the vicinity of each said mounting tray. The said light-guide plate has an uneven | corrugated | grooved part extended in the front-back direction facing the said side wall,
-The refrigerator in any one of Claim 6. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the light guide plate is made of polystyrene resin.

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