JP3998952B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a refrigerator provided with a solar panel.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, there is an increasing need for energy saving in refrigerators. On the other hand, the amount of power consumption has been decreasing year by year due to improvements in refrigeration technology, heat insulation technology, and control technology, but it is almost impossible to make a significant reduction. In the future, due to global warming due to depletion of fossil fuels and excessive use of fossil fuels, it is required to use other energy sources and to use clean energy. There are various approaches as a new energy source, but a method using a solar panel is a representative approach.
[0003]
A conventional refrigerator of this type is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 62-122273.
[0004]
Hereinafter, the conventional refrigerator will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0005]
FIG. 5 is a front view of a conventional refrigerator. FIG. 6 is a time chart showing the operation.
[0006]
5 and 6, 1 is a refrigerator body, 2 is a control device mounted on the upper part of the refrigerator body 1, 3 is a clock function display unit, 4 is an illuminance sensor, and 5 is a solar cell. A compressor and an electric blower (not shown) are connected in parallel to the power supply circuit via a control relay. The electrical signal of the illuminance sensor 4 is input to the control means.
[0007]
Further, the control means outputs to the power supply switching means for switching the power supply of the control means power supply to the power supply circuit or the solar cell 5.
[0008]
The operation of the above configuration will be described below. Measuring the contour of luminance L by the illuminance sensor 4, incorporating the luminance L by the control unit (step 101), compares and determines the magnitude of the set value L ₀ (step 102).
[0009]
If the illuminance L is greater than the set value L ₀ , the control means power supply is switched to the solar cell 5 (step 103). When the illuminance L is smaller than the set value L ₀ , that is, when L ≦ L ₀ , the control power source is switched to the AC power source side (step 104). As described above, the solar battery 5 can be switched to the solar battery output or the AC power supply output in conjunction with the availability of the solar battery 5, and the power consumption of the refrigerator can be reduced when the solar battery 5 is used. It becomes possible.
[0010]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, since the conventional configuration switches to the power supply voltage when the output voltage of the solar cell is lowered, there is a drawback that the power consumption as a refrigerator is not different from the usual when the output voltage of the solar cell is lowered. It was.
[0011]
This invention solves the said conventional subject, and is providing the refrigerator which reduced the power consumption at the time of the output fall of a solar cell.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
Invention of Claim 1 of this invention is equipped with the control apparatus which controls the driving | operation of a cooling device based on freezer compartment temperature and freezer compartment preset temperature, and the solar panel which detects surrounding illumination intensity, The said control apparatus is Based on a predetermined power saving switch operation, a power saving mode for increasing the freezer set temperature is executed, and if the ambient illuminance is low based on the output of the solar panel, the increase range of the freezer set temperature is further increased. It has a solar mode that expands , and even if the power saving mode is executed for a predetermined time after the end of the solar mode, it does not switch to the solar mode. It can be expanded to increase the energy-saving effect, suppress frequent temperature rises in the refrigerator, and reduce the accumulation of temperature damage to food.
[0013]
Invention of Claim 2 cancels solar mode by door opening / closing operation of a refrigerator even if the surrounding illuminance is low and the control device operates based on the output of the solar panel. However, the temperature is lowered to the set temperature of the freezer in the power saving mode, and the set temperature of the freezer is forcibly lowered even when the temperature of the inside of the refrigerator rises due to opening and closing of the door, so that the quality of food can be ensured.
[0014]
The invention of claim 3 further extends the cycle of performing the defrosting control in the solar mode to that of the invention of claim 1 from that in the normal mode, and reduces the number of times the defrosting heater is energized. Therefore, power consumption can be reduced.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of a refrigerator according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0017]
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the control device according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a flowchart of solar power saving according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a time chart showing the operation of FIG.
[0018]
In FIG. 1, the refrigerator 6 has a refrigerator compartment 7, a vegetable compartment 8, and a freezer compartment 9 from above, and the refrigerator compartment 7 and the vegetable compartment 8 are divided up and down by a partition plate 10, and the vegetable compartment 8 and the freezer compartment 9 are separated from a heat insulating wall. It is divided up and down by the partition wall 11 which becomes. A refrigerating room door 12 opens and closes the front opening of the refrigerating room 7, and in the case of the present embodiment, a kannon door is formed. Reference numeral 13 denotes a drawer-type vegetable room door which is provided in the front opening of the vegetable room 8 and is drawn out in the front-rear direction, and 14 is a drawer-type freezer room door of the freezing room 9.
[0019]
The handle part 15 of the refrigerator compartment door 12 is provided with a display part 16 for displaying the temperature setting and storage information of each room on a liquid crystal display, and a solar panel 17 is provided adjacent to the upper part of the display part 16.
[0020]
In FIG. 2, the control device 18 is constituted by a microcomputer 19, and inputs are a freezer temperature sensor (FCC) 20 that detects the temperature of the freezer room 9, and a refrigerator temperature sensor (PCC) that detects the temperature of the refrigerator room 7. 21, an outside air temperature sensor (ATC) 22 that detects the outside air temperature in which the refrigerator compartment 6 is installed, a solar panel 17 that detects the ambient illuminance in which the refrigerator 6 is installed, and a refrigerator compartment that detects the cooler temperature in the refrigerator compartment 7 A cooler temperature sensor 23, a freezer cooler temperature sensor 24 for detecting the cooler temperature in the freezer compartment 9, a setting switch 25 for setting temperature and various functions, a power saving switch 26 for switching to a power saving mode, and detecting the open / closed state of each door A door switch 27 is provided.
[0021]
The output of the microcomputer 19 includes a compressor 28, a machine room fan 29, a freezer room fan 30, a refrigerating room fan 31, a defrost heater 32 for a refrigerating room cooler (not shown), and a freezer room cooler (not shown). The defrosting heater 33 is connected.
[0022]
The operation of the refrigerator configured as described above when the power saving switch 26 is operated will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
[0023]
In the refrigerator 6, the operation frequency of the compressor 28 is switched by an inverter circuit (not shown) in six stages of 25 Hz, 32 Hz, 42 Hz, 52 Hz, 62 Hz, and 72 Hz. Further, the frequency use range is determined by the outside air temperature detected by the ATC 22. For example, when the outside air temperature is 28 ° C. or lower, the normal operation control (step 101) is performed by switching the operation frequency at 25 Hz, 32 Hz, 42 Hz, 52 Hz, and 62 Hz.
[0024]
Then, the power saving switch 26 provided in the display unit 16 is turned on (step 102), and the power saving mode is entered (step 103). And to enter solar mode, it is necessary to satisfy the following steps.
[0025]
When the power saving mode is in the ON state (step 102) and the illuminance around the refrigerator 6 is low, that is, the output voltage of the solar panel 17 is continuously for 1 minute, and the threshold value (V ₀ ) is 3.4 V or less ( step 104), the working rotational speed of the compressor 28 is the predetermined rotational speed (step 105), if it is t ₀ minutes ago not in solar mode (step 106), is set in the solar mode (step 107) The
[0026]
When the power saving mode (step 103) is set, the microcomputer 19 increases the FCC 20 temperature by 1 ° C. from the normal operation control (step 101). In step 105, in the case of the present embodiment, the operating frequency of the compressor 28 set for each ATC 22 is a predetermined frequency (25 Hz and 32 Hz when the outside air temperature is 28 ° C. or lower) and can be changed to the solar mode. . If this is operated at the lowest frequency or one higher frequency, it is determined that the inside of the refrigerator is stable at a predetermined temperature in each room.
[0027]
Also, the broken line in FIG. 4 indicates the compressor rotation speed up temperature, and the operation frequency of the compressor 28 is maintained at a low frequency by increasing the compressor rotation speed increase temperature by 2 ° C. with respect to the FCC 20 temperature in the solar mode. be able to.
[0028]
When the power saving mode and the conditions of steps 104, 105, and 106 are satisfied, the solar mode (step 107) is automatically entered, and the FCC 20 temperature is increased by about 1 ° C., and the compressor rotation speed up temperature is also increased by 1 accordingly. The compressor is kept at a low frequency by raising the temperature, and the operation efficiency is improved, resulting in energy saving.
[0029]
However, if the predetermined time (t ₀ minutes) has not elapsed since the end of the previous solar mode when switching to the solar mode, the temperature rise mode will continue multiple times in close proximity, Since the quality damage to the stored food increases due to temperature rise, protection control is performed so as not to enter the next solar mode unless a predetermined time (t ₀ min) is set.
[0030]
Moreover, when the user opens and closes the refrigerator compartment door 12, the vegetable compartment door 13, and the freezer compartment door 14 and uses the refrigerator while the solar mode is being executed, the temperature inside the refrigerator further rises and the temperature of the food rises. Since the quality damage due to is further increased, if each door is opened and closed, the temperature rise in the warehouse is considered to be in the danger zone, the solar mode is terminated, and the power saving mode is returned to the previous stage. This can prevent the deterioration of the quality of the food from being accelerated.
[0031]
Furthermore, in order to avoid the influence of the temperature rise by the defrost during execution of the solar mode as much as possible, the defrost cycle is configured to be longer than normal during the solar mode. As a result, defrosting during the solar mode can be avoided in terms of timing or can be suppressed to a minimum number of times, so that heat shock due to defrosting of food during storage can be reduced, and deterioration in quality can be suppressed.
[0032]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, when the user intends to intentionally execute the power saving mode, if the power saving switch 26 is pressed, the ambient illuminance is low such as at night, and the load reduction is expected. In this case, it is possible to automatically shift to the solar mode in which the increase range of the freezer compartment set temperature is further expanded, the increase range of the set temperature is increased, and the energy saving effect can be enhanced.
[0033]
In addition, when the doors 12, 13, and 14 of the refrigerator are opened and closed during the solar mode, the solar mode is canceled at that point and the temperature is restored to the freezer compartment set temperature in the previous power saving mode. Thus, even if the inside temperature rises, the set temperature of the freezer is forcibly lowered, so that the quality of food can be prevented from deteriorating. Also, when the solar mode is entered after turning off the lights at night, at night, even if the illuminance on the solar panel 17 is not sufficiently strong the next morning, the householder first uses the doors 12, 13, Since the freezer temperature setting is lowered at the time when 14 is opened and closed, it becomes a countermeasure against temperature rise in advance for morning use, and energy-saving operation control of the refrigerator can be performed on the safe side for food preservation.
[0034]
Furthermore, after the end of the solar mode, even if the power saving mode is executed for a predetermined time (t ₀ minutes), it is configured not to switch to the solar mode and is being stored in frequent high-temperature freezing operation. Accumulation of temperature damage to food can be prevented, and the deterioration of food quality can be stopped.
[0035]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the invention described in claim 1 includes the control device that controls the operation of the cooling device based on the freezer temperature and the freezer temperature setting, and the solar panel that detects ambient illuminance, and the control The apparatus executes a power saving mode for increasing the set temperature of the freezer based on a predetermined power saving switch operation, and further increases the set temperature of the freezer when the ambient illuminance is low based on the output of the solar panel. Equipped with a solar mode that expands the width, even after the solar mode ends, even if the power saving mode is executed for a predetermined time, it will not switch to the solar mode, which can enhance the energy saving effect and the quality of stored food Can be prevented .
[0036]
Invention of Claim 2 cancels solar mode by door opening / closing operation of a refrigerator even if the surrounding illuminance is low and the control device operates based on the output of the solar panel. However, the temperature is lowered to the set temperature of the freezer in the power saving mode, and the quality of the food can be ensured.
[0037]
The invention according to claim 3 further extends the cycle for performing the defrost control in the solar mode to the invention according to claim 1 from that in the normal mode. The effect of energy-saving operation can be maximized.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front view of a first embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a refrigerator control device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a flowchart of power saving control of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. ] Time chart of the refrigerator of the same embodiment [FIG. 5] Front view of the conventional refrigerator [FIG. 6] Time chart of the conventional refrigerator [Explanation of symbols]
6 Refrigerator 17 Solar panel 18 Control device 26 Power saving switch 27 Door switch

Claims (3)

A control device that controls the operation of the cooling device based on the freezer temperature and the freezer set temperature, and a solar panel that detects ambient illuminance, the control device based on a predetermined power-saving switch operation, the freezer setting The power saving mode for increasing the temperature is executed, and when the ambient illuminance is low based on the output of the solar panel , the solar mode further increases the increase range of the freezer compartment set temperature, and after the solar mode ends, A refrigerator characterized by not switching to the solar mode even if the power saving mode is executed for a predetermined time .   The solar mode is canceled by the door opening / closing operation of the refrigerator even when the ambient illuminance is low and the control device operates based on the output of the solar panel, and the temperature is reduced to the freezer compartment set temperature in the power saving mode. The refrigerator according to 1.   2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein in the solar mode, a cycle for performing the defrosting control is extended from that in the normal mode.

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