JP2013029220A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem with a refrigerator including a dielectric heating device, wherein there is no energy-saving conscious and high quality refrigerator.SOLUTION: The refrigerator includes: a refrigerator body; a cooling device for cooling the inside of the refrigerator; an electromagnetic wave radiation device for performing high frequency heating; and a detecting device for detecting an operation state of a cooling mechanism in the refrigerator. The radiated power of the electromagnetic wave radiation device is varied based on a result detected by the detecting device, and foods are controlled by cold air and electromagnetic waves so that a temperature of the foods is in a predetermined temperature zone which is preset. Accordingly, a temperature of the foods is stably and finely controlled. As a result, a high quality refrigerator that keeps the energy efficiency of the refrigerator can be achieved.

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator provided with means for heating food by electromagnetic waves, and in particular, a refrigerator that enables preservation of high-quality food by controlling the output of electromagnetic waves according to the operation pattern of the cooling mechanism of the refrigerator. It is about.

  In recent years, household refrigerators have been equipped with functions to maintain the umami and freshness of long-term (or frozen) foods against the backdrop of changes in user lifestyles and growing demands for the quality of foods to be stored. It is out. As means for realizing this kind of function, “rapid freezing”, “freezing applying a supercooling phenomenon”, and the like are generally known.

  For example, the “rapid freezing” is a period in which the temperature of the food is in a predetermined temperature zone (maximum ice crystal formation zone: −1 ° C. to −5 ° C.) by directly blowing the cryogenic cold air onto the food when freezing the food. Is a refrigeration method that shortens as much as possible. By this method, the generation and growth of large ice crystals inside the food material and the preservation while suppressing the damage of the cell tissue associated therewith are possible.

  When the food stored in this manner is thawed, the outflow of cell internal components (so-called umami components) is suppressed, so that the original umami of the food can be maintained even during the thawing cooking stage. . On the other hand, in this cooling method, there are problems in the arrangement of components and cost, such as the need for a high-performance and large-sized compressor for quick freezing.

  In addition, “refrigeration applying the supercooling phenomenon” has been reported as a method for high-quality storage by an approach different from “rapid freezing” (see, for example, Patent Document 2). Here, the supercooling phenomenon refers to a phenomenon in which an unfrozen state is maintained even in a temperature range below the freezing point when the food is cooled under specific cooling conditions. In particular, when the food in this state is forcibly stimulated, the supercooled state is released and the state rapidly shifts to the frozen state. It is known that the ice crystals generated during this transition remain small.

  Therefore, by freezing the food using this phenomenon, the effect of maintaining the flavor of the food even after thawing can be obtained. On the other hand, in order to keep the food in a supercooled state, it is necessary to keep the temperature difference between the surface and the inside of the food small before and after passing through the freezing point, and to have a maximum ice crystal formation zone that allows the food to pass while maintaining the unfrozen state. Therefore, fine temperature control according to the ingredients is required.

  On the other hand, a conventional household refrigerator introduces a refrigeration cycle including a compressor, a condenser, a throttle valve, and an evaporator, and cold air cooled by the evaporator into a blower fan and an air passage, and Is provided with a cooling mechanism that feeds the gas into the cabinet via a damper. By controlling the operating state of the cooling mechanism in accordance with various detection results such as the outside temperature (outside air temperature) and the inside temperature, the inside of the warehouse is kept at a suitable temperature.

  Therefore, in order to realize high-quality refrigeration using only the conventional cooling mechanism, in addition to increasing the number of parts such as dampers, cooling mechanisms such as compressor speed control, blower rotation control, damper open / close control, etc. It is necessary to finely control the operation state of the system, and problems such as complicating the control process arise.

In order to solve these problems, the structure of the food storage device that variably controls the temperature decrease rate, temperature maintenance, and temperature increase rate of the food by the output of dielectric heating by high frequency radiation without controlling the operating state of the cooling mechanism. Is disclosed.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the conventional food storage room will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the food storage device 300 has a storage chamber 301. On the back side of the storage chamber 301, a compressor 302 and a cooler 303 that constitute a refrigeration cycle, and cooling cold air are stored in the storage chamber 301. A cooling air passage 305 and a blower fan 304 to be circulated are provided. A high-frequency power feeding device 306 is further provided on the back side of the storage chamber 301, and the high frequency generated here is transmitted to the antenna 307 via a power transmission means (not shown).

  With this configuration, the food material is dielectrically heated by the high frequency radiated from the antenna 307 under cooling conditions in which both the cooling air temperature and the cooling air flow are constant. For example, when the heating capacity is set to be low (high) compared to the cooling capacity, the food can be cooled (heated) at a corresponding cooling rate (heating rate). In addition, the food material temperature can be maintained by setting the cooling capacity and the heating capacity to be equal. With the above operation, the temperature control of the food can be realized only by increasing / decreasing the output of the high-frequency irradiation without controlling the cooling air temperature and the cooling air amount, that is, controlling the cooling capacity.

JP 2009-229037 A

  As in the conventional configuration described above, it is expected that fine temperature control is realized by simple control of only the heating capacity by making the cooling capacity constant and canceling part or all of the cooling capacity by the heating capacity.

  However, when the temperature control period is long, such as when performing slow thawing in a refrigerator or storing frozen by applying the supercooling phenomenon, the cooling mechanism is cooled at a constant cooling air temperature and cooling air volume during that period. However, there is a problem that energy waste increases and power consumption increases.

  The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and provides a high-quality refrigerator considering energy saving in a refrigerator provided with dielectric heating means.

  In order to solve the conventional problem, the refrigerator of the present invention detects the operating states of a plurality of cooling mechanisms arranged in the refrigerator body by the detection means arranged in the refrigerator, and based on the detection results, The radiation power of the electromagnetic wave radiating means is varied, and the food material temperature is controlled to a target temperature range by the cold air from the cooling means and the electromagnetic waves radiated from the electromagnetic wave radiating means.

  The refrigerator of the present invention controls the food temperature stably and finely even when the cooling mechanism is intermittently operated by controlling the heating capability by dielectric heating according to the operating state of the cooling mechanism of the refrigerator. Therefore, it is possible to realize a high-quality refrigerator that maintains the energy saving performance of the refrigerator.

The longitudinal cross-sectional view of the refrigerator in Embodiment 1 of this invention The control block diagram which shows the control action of the refrigerator in Embodiment 1 of this invention Operation | movement explanatory drawing of the refrigerator in Embodiment 1 of this invention Operation | movement explanatory drawing of the refrigerator in Embodiment 1 of this invention Vertical section of a conventional refrigerator

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the refrigerator main body includes at least one storage chamber for storing the stored items, cooling means for cooling the storage chamber, and irradiating the stored items stored in the store chamber with electromagnetic waves. An electromagnetic wave radiation means including an electromagnetic wave emission part, and a detection means for detecting an operating state of the cooling means,
The radiation power of the electromagnetic wave radiation means is varied based on the detection result of the detection means, and the contents are controlled to a predetermined temperature range set in advance by the cool air by the cooling means and the electromagnetic waves radiated from the electromagnetic wave radiation means. The control means to perform is provided.

  As a result, only the necessary amount can be emitted from the electromagnetic wave radiation means, so that even when the cooling mechanism is intermittently operated, the temperature of the food can be controlled stably and finely, so that it is possible to provide a refrigerator considering energy saving. .

  The invention described in claim 2 further includes a damper portion that allows cold air to flow into each room in the refrigerator, and the opening / closing detection means that detects the opening / closing state of the damper portion detects an opening (closing) operation of the damper portion. In this case, the control means increases (decreases) the radiation power of the electromagnetic wave radiation means.

  As a result, fine temperature control can be performed without adding new cooling mechanism parts and cooling mechanism control, and thus a refrigerator with a simple configuration and energy saving can be provided.

  Invention of Claim 3 is further provided with the ventilation means which performs cool air ventilation to each chamber in a refrigerator, and is a ventilation detection means which detects the operation state of a ventilation means, and ventilation detection means starts (stops) a ventilation means. When detecting the above, the control means increases (decreases) the radiation power of the electromagnetic wave radiation means.

  As a result, fine temperature control can be performed without adding new cooling mechanism parts and cooling mechanism control, and thus a refrigerator with a simple configuration and energy saving can be provided.

  The invention according to claim 4 further includes a plurality of doors provided on the front portion of the refrigerator, wherein the door opening / closing detection means detects an open and closed state of at least one of the plurality of doors, The operation of the electromagnetic wave radiating means is stopped during the period in which the door open / close detecting means detects the door open state.

  Thereby, since the radiation | emission to the exterior of a high frequency can be avoided, the refrigerator which ensured safety | security with a simple structure can be provided.

  The invention according to claim 5 uses an electromagnetic wave in the microwave band as the electromagnetic wave radiated from the electromagnetic wave radiation means. Thereby, since a foodstuff can carry out dielectric heating efficiently, the refrigerator which considered energy saving can be provided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a refrigerator according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a control block diagram showing a control operation of the refrigerator according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIGS. 3a and 3b are diagrams of the present invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the refrigerator in Embodiment 1. FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, reference numeral 100 denotes a heat insulation box body of a refrigerator main body. In an outer box mainly using a steel plate, an inner box formed of a resin such as ABS, and the space between the outer box and the inner box. The structure provided with a heat insulating material provides heat insulation with the surroundings. The refrigerator main body 100 is heat-insulated into a plurality of storage rooms. The refrigerator compartment 110 is arranged at the top, the storage compartment 120, the vegetable compartment 140 at the bottom of the refrigerator compartment 110, and the freezer compartment 150 at the bottom. In order to partition the outside from the outside air, a door is formed in each front opening of the refrigerator main body.

  The refrigerator body 100 includes a compressor 121, a condenser (not shown), a decompressor (not shown), and an evaporator (not shown), and is a cooling means that is a refrigeration cycle in which a series of refrigerant flow paths are formed. The low-temperature cold air is generated by the operation of the cooling means. During the operation of the cooling means, the air blowing means 122 (not shown) and the damper 123, which is a ventilation window, are interlocked to circulate the low-temperature cold air in each room in the warehouse, thereby cooling each room.

  On the back side of the storage chamber 120, an electromagnetic wave generation unit 127 that supplies an electromagnetic wave by a semiconductor element or a magnetron is provided, and the supply power can be varied according to a control signal.

  The electromagnetic wave generated by the electromagnetic wave generation unit 127 is transmitted to an electromagnetic wave emission unit 129 that is an antenna, for example, disposed at the rear of the storage chamber 120 via a power transmission unit 128 such as a waveguide. The electromagnetic wave power radiated from the electromagnetic wave emission unit 129 irradiates the food stored in the storage chamber 120 and in the interior thereof. The electromagnetic wave emission part 129 is configured by a metal dipole antenna in which the length of the radiation part is set to ½ of the wavelength. Note that the shape and arrangement of the antenna are merely examples, and the antenna is appropriately selected and used depending on the radiated output, directivity, and installation dimensions.

  In addition, a temperature detection device 203 (not shown) including an infrared sensor or the like is provided inside the storage chamber 120, and it is possible to detect the surface temperature of food placed in the storage chamber 120. Yes. The detection information of the temperature detection device 203 is transmitted to the control means 126 (not shown) and used.

  About the refrigerator comprised as mentioned above, the operation | movement * effect | action is demonstrated below.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the operation control means 202 selects an operation pattern based on the output of various sensors 201 such as the internal temperature and the external temperature in order to keep the inside of the storage room at an appropriate temperature. The compressor 121 which is a component of the means, and the air blowing means 122 and the damper 123 which are cold air circulation means are intermittently controlled. In the following, the constituent elements of the cooling means and the cold air circulation means will be described together as the cooling mechanism 124. The detecting means 125 detects the operating state of the cooling mechanism 124, that is, the blowing or blowing stop in the blowing means 122, the opening and closing of the damper 123, the ON / OFF of the compressor 121, and the control means 126 is based on the detection result. The control signal is output to the electromagnetic wave radiation means 130. The electromagnetic wave generation unit 127 varies the feeding power based on the control signal, and dielectrically heats the foodstuff with the electromagnetic wave radiated from the electromagnetic wave emission unit 129. In addition, in order to heat food efficiently, it is necessary to heat the water | moisture content in food efficiently, As a suitable frequency, for example, 915 MHz vicinity and 2450 MHz vicinity are raised.

  Next, the relationship between the internal temperature, the electromagnetic wave output, and the food surface temperature when the cooling mechanism 124 is intermittently operated will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 3 a shows an operation explanatory diagram of the refrigerator when the electromagnetic wave emitting means always outputs a predetermined amount of electromagnetic waves for comparison with the present embodiment. Moreover, FIG. 3b has shown the operation | movement explanatory drawing of the refrigerator at the time of performing output control of the electromagnetic wave emission means according to the driving | running state of a cooling mechanism. For the sake of simplicity, the cooling mechanism 124 will be described as an opening / closing operation of the damper 123 below.

  It should be noted that the operation of the cooling mechanism 124 is not limited to the opening / closing operation of the damper 123, but the operation of other cooling mechanisms such as the operation and stop of the compressor 121 or the operation and stop of the blower 122. It doesn't matter.

  As shown in FIG. 3a, the internal temperature rises when the damper is closed due to factors such as the heat insulation characteristics of the refrigerator and the outside air temperature. When the internal temperature reaches the set temperature TCmax (upper limit), the internal temperature is rapidly lowered by opening the damper, which is a cooling mechanism, and performing cool air inflow. Then, waiting for cooling in the warehouse, the damper is closed again at a predetermined timing, and the inflow of cold air is stopped.

  As described above, in a general household refrigerator, a cooling mechanism such as a damper, a blower, or a compressor is intermittently operated to keep the temperature in the refrigerator cabinet constant over a long period (average). The energy consumption related to cooling is suppressed.

  At this time, the temperature of the surface of the food material exposed to the cold also moves up and down in the same manner due to the inflowing cold accompanying the intermittent operation of the cooling mechanism (dotted line in the lowermost diagram in FIG. 3a). At this time, when a certain amount of electromagnetic wave is applied to the food material and dielectric heating is performed, a difference occurs in the relationship between the cooling capacity and the heating capacity during the opening and closing period of the damper 123, and as a result, the food material is excessive or too small. A period during which a sufficient amount of heat is supplied occurs.

  For this reason, variation in the cooling rate of the food material occurs in each period, and the food material itself is always exposed to cold and warm (solid line in the bottom diagram of FIG. 3a). For example, food under supercooling due to a high-quality freezing method, such as when the amount of heat is triggered, the supercooling is released at a higher temperature. There is a concern that quality will be limited.

  Next, in FIG. 3b, the electromagnetic wave is increased when there is inflow of cold air, such as when the damper is opened, and similarly, the electromagnetic wave is decreased so as to decrease when there is no inflow of cold air, such as when the damper is closed. The case where the radiation means is controlled is shown. Here, the output of the electromagnetic wave is controlled according to the intermittent operation of the cooling mechanism, and the temperature fluctuation (the dotted line in the lowermost diagram in FIG. 3b) generated by the inflowing cold air of the cooling mechanism is absorbed to be supplied to the food. The relative amount of heat can be stabilized and the fluctuation of the surface temperature can be suppressed (solid line in the bottom diagram in FIG. 3b).

  Therefore, even when the cooling mechanism is intermittently operated, the cooling rate determined by the cooling capacity and the heating capacity can be maintained, so that stable temperature control can be realized.

  With the above operation, the temperature of the food can be controlled more stably and finely even during the intermittent operation of the cooling mechanism, so that a high-quality refrigerator that maintains the energy-saving performance of the refrigerator can be realized.

  The refrigerator according to the present invention is a means for easily realizing fine temperature control in household or commercial refrigerators, and can be implemented and applied to high-quality preservation of foods using the result.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Refrigerator main body 110 Refrigerating room 120 Storage room 121 Compressor 122 Blowing means 123 Damper 124 Cooling mechanism 125 Detection means 126 Control means 127 Electromagnetic wave production | generation part 128 Electric power transmission means 129 Electromagnetic wave emission part 130 Electromagnetic wave radiation means 140 Vegetable room 150 Freezing room 201 Various sensors 202 Operation Control Means 203 Temperature Detection Device 300 Food Storage Device 301 Storage Room 302 Compressor 303 Cooler 304 Blower Fan 305 Cooling Air Path 306 High Frequency Power Supply Device 307 Antenna

Claims (5)

The refrigerator main body includes a storage chamber for storing the stored items, a cooling unit for cooling the storage chambers, and an electromagnetic wave emitting unit including at least one electromagnetic wave emission unit that irradiates the stored items stored in the storage chamber with electromagnetic waves. And detecting means for detecting the operating state of the cooling means,
The radiation power of the electromagnetic wave radiation means is varied based on the detection result of the detection means, and the contents are controlled to a predetermined temperature range set in advance by the cool air by the cooling means and the electromagnetic waves radiated from the electromagnetic wave radiation means. The refrigerator characterized by including the control means to do. It is further equipped with a damper part that cools air into the storage room,
The detection means is an open / close detection means for detecting an open / closed state of the damper portion,
When the opening / closing detection means detects an opening operation of the damper portion,
The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the control means increases the radiated power of the electromagnetic wave radiation means. It further comprises air blowing means for blowing cold air into the storage room,
The detection means is an air blowing detection means for detecting an operating state of the air blowing means,
When the air blowing detection means detects the activation of the air blowing means,
The refrigerator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control means increases the radiation power of the electromagnetic wave radiation means. It further comprises a plurality of doors provided on the front part of the refrigerator,
The detection means is a door opening / closing detection means for detecting an open and closed state of at least one of the plurality of doors,
The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the operation of the electromagnetic wave radiation means is stopped during a period in which the door opening / closing detection means detects the door open state. The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the electromagnetic wave radiated from the electromagnetic wave radiation means is an electromagnetic wave in a microwave band.