JP2021196069A - Refrigerator and output device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a refrigerator such that the inside of a cold room (storage room) can be properly photographed.SOLUTION: A refrigerator has a box body which forms a storage room having its front part opened, an imaging device 30 which is provided outside the storage room, and a mirror 37 which is provided in an imaging region of the imaging device 30 and outside the storage room. When the imaging device 30 picks up an image with the mirror 37 included in the imaging region, a virtual image by the imaged mirror 37 includes the inside of the storage room. The imaging device 30 comprises a lens 34, and is provided above the box body, and the lens 34 is located in front of the door with the door of the box body closed. The mirror 37 is arranged in front of the lens 34 with its mirror surface directed to the inside of the storage room.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5B

Description

The present invention relates to a refrigerator and an output device.

A refrigerator has been proposed in which a camera is used to photograph the inside of a refrigerator (inside the refrigerator) for the purpose of managing the inventory of stored items. According to Patent Document 1, "The camera is provided on the front surface of the upper surface of the refrigerator body in a state of projecting forward, in the X direction (front-back direction) by the first motor, and in the Y direction by the second motor. It is rotated (left-right direction). When the door of the refrigerator compartment is opened, the camera automatically turns to the first shooting position for shooting the refrigerator compartment and shoots the refrigerator compartment. " ing.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-42626

In the refrigerator described in Patent Document 1, the control means can automatically control the shooting direction of the camera corresponding to the opened door to automatically perform shooting. For this reason, it is possible to automatically take a picture of the state of the storage room corresponding to the opened door, and it is not necessary for the user to operate the camera one by one. It is not preferable for the reliability of the product to be movable.

Further, Patent Document 1 also describes a camera having a fixed type instead of a movable type. That is, in the fixed type of Patent Document 1, the camera provided at the tip of the arm is fixed on the refrigerator main body side and in a state of being directed diagonally downward, and is the first and first driving means. No. 2 motor is provided, and the camera cover is not provided with concave lenses for a refrigerator compartment and a door pocket. The lens of the camera is a wide-angle lens, and the field of view includes a refrigerated room with an open door and each drawer drawn from a vegetable room, etc., and these areas should be photographed with a single lens. (3rd Example of Patent Document 1).

When the inventors of the present application examined the imaging range, it was found that when the camera was fixed, it was not possible to properly photograph the inside of the refrigerating room (storage room).

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator and an output device capable of appropriately photographing the inside of a refrigerating room (storage room).

In order to achieve the above object, the refrigerator of the present invention has a box body forming a storage chamber with an open front, an image pickup device provided outside the storage chamber, and the storage chamber in the image pickup region of the image pickup device. It is characterized by having a mirror provided outside the. Other aspects of the invention will be described in embodiments described below.

According to the present invention, the refrigerating room can be appropriately photographed.

It is a front view which shows the refrigerator which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a side view which shows the refrigerator which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a side view when the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment is housed. It is a front view which shows the state which the door of the refrigerator which concerns on 1st Embodiment is opened. It is a top view which shows the state which the door of the refrigerator which concerns on 1st Embodiment is opened. It is a front view which shows the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a side view which shows the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a side sectional view which shows the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a side sectional view which shows the detail of the image pickup part of the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the application effect of the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the image pickup example by the image pickup apparatus of a comparative example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the image processing of the image pickup example by the image pickup apparatus of a comparative example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the image pickup example by the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the image processing of the image pickup example by the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a side view which shows the state which pulled out the drawer part of the refrigerator which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the image image example of the drawer part of the refrigerator which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the image pickup system of the refrigerator which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process at the time of the manual shooting setting which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process at the time of the automatic shooting setting which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the normal state of the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state in the process of accommodating the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state at the time of accommodating the image pickup apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment.

The embodiment (embodiment) for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate.
<< First Embodiment >>
FIG. 1 is a front view showing the refrigerator 100 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2A is a side view showing the refrigerator 100 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2B is a side view when the image pickup apparatus 30 according to the first embodiment is housed. FIG. 3 is a front view showing a state in which the door of the refrigerator 100 according to the first embodiment is opened. FIG. 4 is a top view showing a state in which the door of the refrigerator 100 according to the first embodiment is opened. In the following description, the 6-door refrigerator 100 will be described as an example, but the description is not limited to the 6-door refrigerator 100.

As shown in FIG. 1, the heat insulating box body (box body 10) of the refrigerator 100 is in the order of the refrigerating room 1, the ice making room 2 and the upper freezing room 3, the vegetable room 4, and the lower freezing room 5 arranged on the left and right from the top. Has a storage room at. The refrigerator 100 includes a door that opens and closes the opening of each storage room. These doors open and close the openings of the refrigerating room 1, the left and right rotary refrigerating room doors 1a and 1b, and the openings of the ice making room 2, the upper freezing room 3, the vegetable room 4, and the lower freezing room 5. These are a pull-out type ice making chamber door 2a, an upper refrigerating chamber door 3a, a vegetable compartment door 4a, and a lower refrigerating chamber door 5a, which are opened and closed, respectively. The positions of the vegetable compartment 4 and the lower freezing chamber 5 may be changed vertically. Further, the ice making chamber 2, the upper freezing chamber 3 and the lower freezing chamber 5 are collectively referred to as a freezing chamber 7.

Door hinges (reference numerals omitted) are provided at the upper and lower portions of the refrigerator compartment 1 in order to fix the refrigerator compartment doors 1a and 1b to the refrigerator 100. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, when the refrigerating chamber doors 1a and 1b are opened and closed, door storage portions 11a (door storage portions a) and 11b (door storage portions b) are provided.

The refrigerating chamber 1 is a refrigerating storage chamber in which the inside of the refrigerator is set to a refrigerating temperature range (0 ° C. or higher), for example, about 4 ° C. on average. The freezing chamber 7 is a freezing storage chamber in which the inside of the refrigerator is set to a freezing temperature range (less than 0 ° C.), for example, about −18 ° C. on average. The vegetable compartment 4 is a refrigerated storage chamber having a refrigerated temperature range of, for example, about 6 ° C. on average, and is a refrigerated storage chamber that suppresses drying of food.

In the refrigerator 100, an image pickup device 30 for photographing the inside of the refrigerator is arranged in a substantially central portion of the outer upper part of the storage chamber. That is, it is provided above the box body (insulated box body) of the refrigerator 100, substantially in the center. When the door of the box is closed, the lens 34 of the image pickup apparatus 30 (see FIGS. 6A and 6B) is in front of the opening edge surface 10a of the storage chamber, preferably from the refrigerating chamber doors 1a and 1b (doors). Is also located in front. That is, by providing the image pickup device 30 outside the storage chamber and arranging one or more mirrors 37 (see FIGS. 6A and 6B) within the image pickup range, the amount of protrusion of the image pickup device 30 can be minimized. It is possible to take a bird's-eye view of the situation inside the refrigerator including the door storage portions 11a and 11b without spoiling the appearance. The mirror 37 is arranged in front of the lens 34. Details of the image pickup apparatus 30 will be described later.

Further, the image pickup device 30 has a sliding mechanism (a mechanism that slides in a direction perpendicular to the opening of the storage chamber) that moves back and forth, and can move back and forth across the front surface of the door of the refrigerator 100. For example, as shown in FIG. 2B, since the door can be moved rearward from the front surface of the door or rearward from the edge surface of the storage chamber opening, the depth dimension is not affected at the time of packing. In addition, the number of refrigerators loaded on the transport truck does not decrease, and even after installation, the image pickup device 30 can be stored and the image pickup range can be blindfolded when the image pickup device 30 is not used. By using the blindfold, it is possible to make the configuration in consideration of the user who does not like that the image pickup area of the camera is always within his / her own living range. Similarly, a portion of the imaging range outside the enclosure is blindfolded by a mirror, which is also suitable for such users.

The refrigerating room door 1b is provided with a shooting button 39 (a shooting command receiving unit that receives a shooting command from the user) that is used when shooting manually by the image pickup device 30. The photographing button 39 may be provided in the refrigerating room door 1a, the box body, or another area of the door.

FIG. 5A is a front view showing the image pickup apparatus 30 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 5B is a side view showing the image pickup apparatus 30 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 5C is a side sectional view (AA sectional view of FIG. 5A) showing the image pickup apparatus 30 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6A is a perspective view showing the image pickup apparatus 30 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6B is a side sectional view showing the details of the image pickup unit of the image pickup apparatus 30 according to the first embodiment.

The image pickup apparatus 30 is composed of a case portion 31 and a lid portion 32, and has a camera 33 (imaging section) and a lens 34 which is a fisheye lens in front of the case section 31. As shown in FIG. 6A, the lens 34 is surrounded by a light-shielding wall 35. A plurality of lighting units 38 are provided in the vicinity of the light-shielding wall 35. Further, a mirror 37 is provided in the vicinity of the lens 34 (in front of the lens 34).

As shown in FIG. 5C, the control SoC 41 and the wireless LAN unit 42 are housed inside the case unit 31. The control SoC 41 (System on a chip) integrates the functions of a general microcontroller such as a processor core on one chip of an integrated circuit, as well as the functions for application purposes, and cooperates with the system. It is an integrated circuit designed to function as an integrated circuit. The control SoC41 is an example of an integrated circuit, and can be replaced by another integrated circuit or the like.

The image pickup device 30 provided outside the storage chamber takes a bird's-eye view of the door storage portions 11a and 11b, preferably the inside of the storage chamber. Further, the mirror 37 provided in the image pickup range of the image pickup apparatus 30 and outside the storage chamber has a mirror surface arranged in front of the image pickup lens 34 toward the storage chamber.

It is preferable that the mirror 37 is partially arranged so as not to overlap the storage chamber and the image pickup range of the door storage portion within the image pickup range of the lens 34. That is, in the present embodiment, the mirror 37 is arranged in front of the lens 34. As a result, the range that cannot be imaged only by the image pickup range of the lens 34 of the image pickup apparatus 30 can be supplemented by the virtual image by the mirror 37 without disturbing the image pickup range of the image pickup apparatus 30. That is, the camera 33 can take a picture of the portion that becomes a blind spot by the image taken by the lens 34 through the mirror 37 (with the image reflected in the mirror 37). Further, by providing the mirror 37, it is possible to take a more bird's-eye view of the inside of the refrigerator while minimizing the amount of the image pickup device 30 protruding to the front of the main body, and the appearance is not spoiled. Further, the length of the wiring (wiring for power supply, etc.) connected from the main body of the refrigerator 100 to the camera 33 and the control SoC 41 can be shortened.

The features of the image pickup apparatus 30 will be further described.
(1) The camera 33 used in the image pickup apparatus 30 has a wide angle of 180 degrees or more, and by having a fisheye lens, the entire interior of the refrigerator can be visually recognized from a bird's-eye view when the door is opened.
(2) Since the lens 34 for the camera of the image pickup apparatus 30 is located in front of the front of the refrigerator door, the state inside the refrigerator is photographed even when only the drawer portion 6 of the vegetable compartment 4 and the lower freezing chamber 5 is opened. can do.
(3) The image pickup apparatus 30 has a mirror 37 within the shooting range, and the mirror 37 has a role of expanding the shooting range by the virtual image projected on the mirror 37.

(4) The image pickup apparatus 30 is provided with a lighting unit 38, and a highly visible image can be obtained by taking a picture using the lighting unit 38 outside the refrigerator, which can be adjusted to an illuminance suitable for shooting. Since the lighting provided in the refrigerator has a relatively high illuminance, the stored items are strongly reflected when the image is taken with the camera, and the photographed image is overexposed. Therefore, in the present embodiment, at the time of shooting, the lighting inside the refrigerator is turned off and the lighting unit 38 outside the refrigerator is turned on for shooting. Details will be described later in FIGS. 13 and 14.
Further, the lighting of the lighting unit 38 is directional so as to illuminate the entire interior, the door storage units 11a and 11b when the door is opened, and the second storage room (for example, the vegetable room 4 and the lower freezing room 5). Have.
(5) Since the image pickup device 30 has the light-shielding wall 35, the direct light of the illumination unit 38 does not enter the shooting range, so that it is possible to obtain a highly visible image with suppressed reflection and overexposure.
(6) By providing a light-shielding wall 35 that directly blocks light between the illumination unit 38 of the image pickup apparatus 30 and the lens 34, the installation position of the illumination can be made as close as possible to the lens 34, so that the outer shape can be kept compact. Further, it is possible to obtain the effect of preventing scratches on the lens 34.

(7) Since the image pickup device 30 has a sliding mechanism that moves back and forth and can move back and forth across the front surface of the door of the refrigerator 100, it does not affect the depth dimension at the time of packing. Further, the load capacity of the refrigerator on the transport truck does not decrease, and even after the installation, the image pickup device 30 can be stored and the image pickup range can be blindfolded when the image pickup device 30 is not used.
(8) The image pickup device 30 includes a communication unit (wireless LAN unit 42), and image data transmitted from the communication unit is, for example, via a home wireless router (for example, a home router 53 (see FIG. 12)). Is supplied to the server 54 (see FIG. 12). Details will be described later.
(9) In the image pickup apparatus 30, a communication circuit for transmitting power supply and a shooting command is connected to the refrigerator main body side. The refrigerator itself is powered by a commercial power source or the like. The power source of the image pickup apparatus 30 can be received from a commercial power source via the refrigerator body. The image pickup device 30 may be driven by a rechargeable battery.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the application effect of the image pickup apparatus 30 according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 7, the size of the mirror 37 is emphasized more than in FIGS. 5B and 5C in order to make the explanation of the effect easier to understand. In order to photograph the back of the storage chamber, it is preferable to arrange the lens 34 of the camera 33 of the image pickup apparatus 30 in front of the front wall of the storage chamber (opening edge surface 10a of the storage chamber) as much as possible. This is because the edge of the front wall of the storage chamber becomes a blind spot in the imaging area from above.

However, it is desirable to suppress the amount of protrusion to the front as much as possible in consideration of transportability, appearance design, and ease of use. According to the present embodiment, by arranging the mirror 37 in front, the virtual image reflected and reflected by the mirror 37 has the effect of expanding to the back side of the storage chamber from the photographing area by the camera 33 as shown in FIG. Bring. If the height h of the mirror 37 is made larger, the photographing area can be further expanded.

An imaging example of this embodiment will be described in comparison with a comparative example (when the mirror 37 is not provided).
FIG. 8A is an explanatory diagram showing an example of imaging by an imaging device of a comparative example. FIG. 8B is an explanatory diagram showing image processing of an image pickup example by the image pickup device of the comparative example. 8A and 8B are cases where the mirror 37 is not provided. FIG. 8A is an image before the image correction processing in the refrigerator, and the image through the lens 34 of the fisheye lens is a real image.

FIG. 8B is an image after performing the predetermined image processing of the present embodiment and performing the image correction processing in the refrigerator (without a mirror). This is an image converted into an image that is easy for the user who uses the refrigerator 100 to check what is in the refrigerator. Looking at FIG. 8B, the objects in the door storage portion a, the door storage portion b, and the storage c can be seen as real images.

FIG. 9A is an explanatory diagram showing an example of imaging by the imaging apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 9B is an explanatory diagram showing image processing of an image pickup example by the image pickup apparatus according to the first embodiment. 9A and 9B are cases where the mirror 37 of the present embodiment is provided. FIG. 9A is an image before the image correction processing in the refrigerator, and the image through the lens 34 of the fisheye lens is captured by the real image shown in FIG. 8A and the virtual image of the storage c via the mirror 37 (via the mirror 37). It is a composite image with the image).

FIG. 9B is an image after the image correction processing in the refrigerator (with a mirror) that has been subjected to the predetermined image processing of the present embodiment. This is an image converted into an image that is easy for the user who uses the refrigerator 100 to check what is in the refrigerator. Looking at FIG. 9B, the one of the door storage portion a and the door storage portion b is the real image, and the one of the storage c is a combination of a virtual image through the mirror 37 and a real image not through the mirror 37, and is converted. There is. As a result, the viewing area in the depth direction is enlarged by the mirror 37, especially in the upper stage. Specifically, the explanatory diagram uses a can as an example, and a pull tab (not shown) can be seen when there is a mirror. By enlarging the mirror 37, the visible area can be further expanded.

FIG. 10 is a side view showing a state in which the drawer portion 6 of the refrigerator 100 according to the first embodiment is pulled out. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an image pickup example of the drawer portion 6 of the refrigerator 100 according to the first embodiment. The image pickup device 30 for photographing the inside of the refrigerator can image the inside of the drawer portion 6. FIG. 11 is an image of the drawer portion 6 of the vegetable compartment 4, and it is possible to grasp the stored state of the vegetables.

FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram showing a photographing system of the refrigerator 100 according to the first embodiment. As sensors on the door side, door sensors (not shown) that detect the open / closed state of the refrigerating room doors 1a and 1b, the ice making room door 2a, the upper freezing room door 3a, the vegetable room door 4a, and the lower freezing room door 5a, respectively (not shown). Etc. are also provided.

On the upper part of the refrigerator 100, a main microcomputer 52 (control device) equipped with a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory), an interface circuit, etc., which are a part of the control device. , Control unit) is arranged. The main microcomputer 52 controls the photographing system that photographs the inside of the refrigerator based on the information from the door sensor or the photographing button 39. The main microcomputer 52 also supplies power to the image pickup apparatus 30.

When the main microcomputer 52 detects a predetermined angle or more from the door sensor based on information such as the door opening angle at the time of automatic shooting setting, the main microcomputer 52 transmits a shooting command to the control SoC 41. The control SoC 41 issues a shooting instruction to the camera 33 and acquires unprocessed image data from the camera 33. The control SoC41 performs image processing on the unprocessed image data by combining a real image and a virtual image, for example, as shown in FIG. 9B. On the other hand, when the main microcomputer 52 detects that the shooting button 39 has been operated during the manual shooting setting, the main microcomputer 52 transmits a shooting command to the control SoC 41. Subsequent processing is the same as when automatic shooting is set.

As described above, the image pickup apparatus 30 is provided with a wireless LAN unit 42 that can be connected to the home router 53. By providing the wireless LAN unit 42, the image data in the refrigerator processed by the control Soc 41 can be transmitted to the server 54 via the home router 53. The server 54 transmits the image data in the refrigerator in response to the image display request in the refrigerator from a mobile device such as a smartphone 55 owned by the user, a personal computer, or the like. As a result, the user can grasp the situation in the refrigerator.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a process at the time of manual shooting setting according to the first embodiment. It will be described with reference to FIG. 12 as appropriate. When the setting from the setting device (not shown) is the camera shooting setting (camera setting ON) (S31), the main microcomputer 52 determines whether or not the door is open (door open?) By the door sensor. (S32) If there is a door opening (S32, Yes), the process proceeds to S33. On the other hand, when the door is not opened (S32, No), the main microcomputer 52 returns to S32.

In S33, the main microcomputer 52 determines whether or not the shooting button 39 is operated (pressed), and if the shooting button 39 is pressed (S33, Yes), the process proceeds to S34 and the shooting button 39 is not pressed. In the case (S33, Yes), the process returns to S32.

In S34, the main microcomputer 52 issues a shooting command to the control SoC41 to turn off the lighting inside the refrigerator and turn on the lighting outside the refrigerator (illumination unit 38) (S35). The control SoC 41 commands the camera 33 to shoot (S36). Then, the main microcomputer 52 turns on the lighting inside the refrigerator and turns off the lighting outside the refrigerator (illumination unit 38) (S37).

The camera 33 transmits unprocessed image data (for example, FIG. 9A) to the control SoC41 (S38), and the control SoC41 performs in-house image correction processing (image processing) (S39). Specifically, as described with reference to FIG. 9B, a composite image of a virtual image and a real image is created.

The control SoC 41 updates the processed image data to the server 54 via the wireless LAN unit 42 and the home router 53 (S40). When the image is updated, the server 54 notifies the user's mobile device or the like (S41).
The above is the process when manual shooting is set.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a process at the time of automatic shooting setting according to the first embodiment. It will be described in a timely manner with reference to FIG. The same process as in FIG. 13 will be omitted. When the setting from the setting device (not shown) is the camera automatic shooting setting (camera automatic setting ON) (S31A), the main microcomputer 52 determines whether or not the door is opened by the door sensor (door open?). If the determination is made (S32) and the door is open (S32, Yes), the process proceeds to S33. On the other hand, when the door is not opened (S32, No), the main microcomputer 52 returns to S32.

In S33, the main microcomputer 52 determines whether or not the door opening angle is equal to or greater than a predetermined angle (for example, the door angle is 85 degrees or more) (S33A), and the door opening angle is equal to or greater than the predetermined angle (S33A). , Yes), if the door opening angle is less than a predetermined angle (S33A, No), the process returns to S32. S34 to S41 are the same as in FIG. In S33A, in the case of the refrigerating room 1 having double doors, if the opening angle of at least one of the refrigerating room doors 1a and 1b is a predetermined angle (S33A, Yes), the process proceeds to S34.
The above is the process when automatic shooting is set.

The features of the photographing system of the refrigerator 100 will be further described.
(1A) It has a detection unit (for example, the main microcomputer 52) that detects the opening angle of the refrigerator door, and can automatically take a picture when the detection unit determines that the angle is equal to or more than a predetermined angle (for example, 85 degrees). ..
(2A) When the detection unit determines that the angle is equal to or greater than the predetermined angle, the lighting inside the refrigerator is turned off and the lighting of the image pickup apparatus 30 is turned on, so that the illuminance is not only adjusted to an appropriate illuminance for shooting but also the timing of shooting is given to the user. Has the effect of informing.
(3A) It has a detection unit (for example, installed in the drawer unit 6) that detects when the drawer distance of the refrigerator 100 exceeds a certain level, and the detection unit detects the operation of the drawer and automatically takes a picture. As a result, the imaging range of the vegetable room or the freezing room can be kept substantially constant.

(4A) A shooting button (for example, a shooting button 39) is provided on the door of the refrigerator, and when the user presses the shooting button, the lighting inside the refrigerator is turned off and the lighting of the image pickup apparatus 30 is turned on before shooting. Therefore, it is easy to recognize the timing of shooting.
(5A) The captured image is subjected to image correction processing, and the distorted image is corrected by the wide-angle camera, so that an image close to the user's line of sight can be provided.
(6A) It has an application service that allows the user to confirm the image via a mobile phone or the like, and the image is a storage room in which the image taken by the detection unit provided in the door and the drawer is. It is possible to automatically determine whether the image is an image of.

<< Second Embodiment >>
In the first embodiment, it has been described that the image pickup apparatus 30 has a slide mechanism, but the present invention is not limited to this. In the second embodiment, the two-fold mechanism will be described.

FIG. 15A is an explanatory diagram showing a normal state of the image pickup apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 15B is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the image pickup apparatus according to the second embodiment is being stored. FIG. 15C is an explanatory diagram showing a state when the image pickup apparatus according to the second embodiment is stored.

The refrigerator 100 of the second embodiment (see FIG. 1) includes a box body forming a storage chamber with an open front, an image pickup device 30 provided outside the storage chamber, and the refrigerator 100 with respect to a direction at least perpendicular to the opening. A support portion 45 (hinge portion) that movably supports the image pickup apparatus 30 is provided.

As shown in FIGS. 15A to 15C, the tip portion of the image pickup apparatus 30 having the camera 33 is configured to be folded in half from the support portion 45 and does not affect the depth dimension at the time of packing. The load quantity of the image is not reduced, and even after the installation, the image pickup device 30 can be stored and the image pickup range can be blinded when the image pickup device 30 is not used.

In addition, the image pickup apparatus 30 can revolve (move in a circular locus around the hinge portion; revolve around the axis) in the direction of looking into the inside of the refrigerator. Since the box body exists in the circular locus, the revolving angle is less than 360 ° when observed from the direction orthogonal to the revolving plane. In this case, a drive unit capable of applying a force in the revolution direction may be attached to the image pickup apparatus 30, and the angle may be controlled so as to look into the inside of the refrigerator or the like at the time of image pickup. For example, the image pickup device 30 can be positioned within the movement locus of the door at the time of image pickup. By doing this, it is possible to image the inside of the refrigerator more effectively, and after the image is completed, it can be returned to the outside of the movement trajectory of the door, or it can be revolved to the rear from the edge of the front opening of the door or storage room and stored. Therefore, it is easy to lengthen the arm connecting the support portion 45 (hinge portion) and the camera.

The refrigerator 100 of the present embodiment described above has the following features.
The refrigerator 100 of the present embodiment includes a box body 10 forming a storage chamber with an open front, an image pickup device 30 provided outside the storage chamber, and an image pickup device 30 inside the image pickup region and outside the storage chamber. It is provided with a mirror 37 (see FIGS. 1 to 4 and 7).

When the image pickup apparatus 30 includes the mirror 37 in the image pickup region and takes an image, the image taken by the image pickup device 37 includes the storage chamber (see FIG. 8B).

The image pickup device 30 includes a lens 34, and the image pickup device 30 is provided above the box body 10, and the lens 34 is located in front of the opening edge surface 10a of the storage chamber (see FIG. 7).

The storage room has at least a first storage room with double doors (for example, a refrigerating room 1) and a second storage room with a front-rear opening (for example, an ice making room 2, an upper freezing room 3, a vegetable room 4, and a lower freezing room 5). When the image pickup device 30 includes the mirror 37 in the image pickup area and takes an image, the image pickup device 30 is positioned so that the virtual image by the imaged mirror 37 includes the first storage chamber or the second storage chamber (FIGS. 1 to 1). 4. See FIG. 10).

The image pickup apparatus 30 includes a lens 34, and the mirror 37 is arranged in front of the lens 34 with the mirror surface facing the storage chamber (see FIG. 7).

The image pickup apparatus 30 includes a lens 34, one or a plurality of illumination units 38 around the lens 34, and a light-shielding wall 35 between the lens 34 and the illumination unit 38 (see FIGS. 6A and 6B).

The image pickup apparatus includes a lens 34, one or more lighting units 38 around the lens 34, and an interior light provided in the storage chamber. This is performed with the lighting unit 38 lit (see FIGS. 13 and 14).

The image pickup apparatus 30 is movable in the front-rear direction (see FIGS. 2A and 2B).

The image pickup apparatus 30 can revolve around an axis (see FIGS. 15A, 15B, and 15C).

An output device (for example, control SoC41) that outputs an image captured by the refrigerator 100, and outputs one image using a real image and a virtual image included in the image pickup region of the image pickup device 30 (see FIGS. 9B and 12). ).

The refrigerator 100 has a shooting command receiving unit (for example, a shooting button 39) for receiving a shooting command from a user on the door of the storage room.

The present invention is not limited to the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above, and includes various modifications. For example, the above-described embodiment has been described in detail in order to explain the present invention in an easy-to-understand manner, and is not necessarily limited to the one including all the described configurations. Further, it is possible to add / delete / replace a part of the configuration of the above-described embodiment with another configuration. For example, the photographing button 39 of FIG. 3 may be provided on the refrigerating room door 1a or may be provided on the upper surface of the drawer portion 6.

1 Refrigerator room (1st storage room)
1a, 1b Refrigerator door 2 Ice making room (second storage room)
2a Ice making room door 3 Upper freezing room (second storage room)
3a Upper freezing room door 4 Vegetable room (second storage room)
4a Vegetable room door 5 Lower freezing room (second storage room)
5a Lower freezer door 6 Drawer 10 Box 10a Opening edge 11a, 11b Door storage 30 Imaging device 31 Case 32 Lid 33 Camera (imaging)
34 Lens 35 Shading wall 37 Mirror 38 Lighting unit
39 Shooting button (shooting command reception section)
41 Control SoC (output device)
42 Wireless LAN unit 45 Support part (hinge part)
51 Door sensor 52 Main microcomputer 53 Home router 54 Server 55 Smartphone 100 Refrigerator

Claims (13)

A box that forms a storage room with an open front,
An image pickup device provided outside the storage chamber and
A refrigerator having a mirror provided in the imaging region of the imaging apparatus and outside the storage chamber. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein when the image pickup apparatus includes the mirror in an image pickup region and takes an image, the image taken by the mirror includes the storage chamber. The image pickup device includes a lens and is equipped with a lens.
The image pickup device is provided above the box body and is provided.
The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the lens can be located in front of the opening edge surface of the storage chamber. The storage chamber has at least a first storage chamber with double doors and a second storage chamber with front-rear opening.
When the image pickup device includes the mirror in the image pickup area and takes an image, the image pickup device is positioned so that the virtual image taken by the mirror includes the first storage chamber or the second storage chamber. The refrigerator according to claim 1. The image pickup device includes a lens and is equipped with a lens.
The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the mirror is arranged in front of the lens with a mirror surface facing the storage chamber. The image pickup device includes a lens and is equipped with a lens.
One or more lighting units are provided around the lens.
The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein a light-shielding wall is provided between the lens and the lighting unit. The image pickup device includes a lens and is equipped with a lens.
One or more lighting units are provided around the lens.
Equipped with an interior light provided in the storage room
The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the image pickup of the image pickup apparatus is performed in a state where the interior light is turned off and the lighting unit is turned on. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the image pickup apparatus is movable in the front-rear direction. The refrigerator according to claim 8, wherein the image pickup apparatus can revolve around an axis. An output device that outputs an image captured by the refrigerator according to claim 1.
An output device that outputs one image using a real image and a virtual image included in the image pickup area of the image pickup device. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerator has a shooting command receiving unit for receiving a shooting command from a user at the door of the storage room. A box that forms a storage room with an open front,
An image pickup device provided outside the storage chamber and
A refrigerator comprising a support that movably supports the image pickup device in a direction at least perpendicular to the opening. The refrigerator according to claim 12, wherein the refrigerator has a mirror provided in the image pickup region of the image pickup apparatus and outside the storage chamber.

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