JP4914172B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly to a refrigerator having a rapid cooling function.

As a conventional technique for improving the speed of cooling food, that is, rapid cooling performance, for example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, a cold air current bundle as a jet of cold air is radiated into a cooling chamber to reduce the cooling time of food. A food cooling device for shortening has been proposed.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-77088

  The prior art described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 cools food by directing a cold air beam ejected from the through-hole into the freezing chamber toward the food, but is stored in a chamber (rapid cooling chamber) that performs rapid cooling. The effects on other foods were not considered.

  That is, food that is not desired to be exposed to the cold air beam generated during the rapid cooling operation is stored in the rapid cooling chamber (for example, food that is easily dried or food that may be scattered due to the cold air beam). The user had to take the food out of the rapid cooling chamber before performing the rapid cooling operation. In addition, for example, when canned beverages, bottled beverages, etc. are cooled, there may be problems such as complete freezing and breakage of containers.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and even when food that is not desired to be hit by a cold air beam (high-speed jet) is stored in the storage space of the rapid cooling chamber, the food is rapidly removed. It is an object of the present invention to provide an easy-to-use refrigerator that does not need to go out of the cooling room and that does not lead to complete freezing even when food that is not desired to be completely frozen is rapidly cooled. .

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention mainly adopts the following configuration.
An internal fan that circulates the cold air heat-exchanged by the cooler housed in the cooler housing room into the refrigerator, a quick cooling room capable of rapidly cooling food, and food in the quick cooling room A food storage container opened upward for storage, a ventilation path for sending cool air to the rapid cooling chamber, a return path for returning cool air to the cooler storage chamber, and boosting the cool air to the rapid cooling chamber A rapid cooling chamber fan to be sent, a duct for guiding the cold air from the quick cooling chamber fan to a predetermined position in the rapid cooling chamber, an opening provided in the duct for jetting and discharging the cold air, and the opening The discharged cold air jet is turned before reaching the bottom or side surface of the food storage container, and is provided with a cold air jet turning / food placing member for placing food for rapid cooling,
The cold air jet turning / food placing member is formed with a high thermal conductor at the upper part and formed with a low thermal conductor at the lower part, in order to heat the area above the cold air jet turning / food placing member, A heating means in contact with the high thermal conductor is provided .

Further, in the refrigerator, openings for discharging the cold air jet are provided at a plurality of locations of the duct, and the openings are symmetrically disposed so as to be substantially opposed to each other in the horizontal direction. . Further, the cold air jet turning / food placing member includes an intermediate portion of the circular prism shaped body and the cold air jet turning / food placing member when the placed food is a circular prism shaped body such as a can beverage. It is set as the structure which forms an inclined surface which a space | gap produces between upper receiving surfaces. Further, the cold air jet turning / food placing member forms an inclined surface such that the placed food is automatically positioned on the concave bottom portion. Further, the heating means is for preventing freezing of the food placed on the cold air jet turning / food placing member, provided in a rapid cooling chamber, and after the rapid cooling operation is finished, the heating means It is set as the structure which operates. Furthermore, a detecting means for detecting opening / closing of the door of the rapid cooling chamber is provided, and after the rapid cooling operation is finished, the operation of the heating means is ended by detecting the opening / closing of the door by the detecting means.

  According to the present invention, there is no need to take out the food out of the rapid cooling chamber even if the storage space of the rapid cooling chamber contains food that is not desired to be hit by a high-speed jet (cold air beam). In addition, it is possible to provide an easy-to-use refrigerator that does not lead to complete freezing even when food that is not desired to be completely frozen is rapidly cooled.

  The refrigerator which concerns on embodiment of this invention is demonstrated in detail below, referring FIGS. In the following description, the same functional parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

FIG. 1 is an external view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the front. As shown in FIG. 1, the refrigerator 1 includes a refrigerator compartment 2, an ice making compartment 3, a quick cooling compartment 4, a freezer compartment 5, and a vegetable compartment 6 from above. The door 2a of the refrigerator compartment 2 is provided with an operation panel 26 for setting the internal temperature of the refrigerator 1, setting the operation mode, displaying the internal temperature, etc. FIG. 2 is shown in FIG. It is the longitudinal cross-sectional view which looked at the AA cross section from the arrow direction. As shown in FIG. 2, the outside of the refrigerator 1 and the inside of the refrigerator are separated by a heat insulating box 10. The interior of the refrigerator is partitioned into a refrigerator compartment 2, a rapid cooling chamber 4, a freezer compartment 5, and a vegetable compartment 6 from above the interior by heat insulating partition walls 28, 29 and 30. The rapid cooling chamber 4 and the ice making chamber 3 shown in FIG. 1 are separated by a heat insulating wall (not shown). The refrigerator compartment 2 is opened and closed by a rotary door 2a, and the quick cooling compartment 4, the freezing compartment 5 and the vegetable compartment 6 are opened and closed by drawer type doors 4a, 5a and 6a provided in front of the respective compartments. The drawer type doors 4a, 5a, 6a are provided with storage containers 4b, 5b, 6b, respectively. The ice making chamber 3 shown in FIG. 1 is opened and closed by a drawer door (not shown), and the drawer door (not shown) of the ice making chamber 3 is provided with a storage container (not shown).

  The cooler 7 is provided in a cooler storage chamber 8 provided substantially at the back of the freezer compartment 5, and air (in which heat is exchanged by the cooler 7 by an internal blower fan 9 provided above the cooler 7). In this specification, the heat-exchanged low-temperature air is also referred to as cold air or cooling air). Air blowing to each chamber is controlled by opening and closing the damper 20 and the quick cooling chamber damper 50.

  A machine room 19 is provided on the lower back side of the heat insulating box 10. The machine room 19 stores a compressor 24 and a radiator (condenser) (not shown), and is ventilated by an outside fan (not shown). The compressor 24, a radiator (not shown), a throttle mechanism (not shown), and the cooler 7 are connected by a refrigerant pipe (not shown) to constitute a refrigeration cycle. The refrigerant is isobutane.

  The frost adhering to the cooler 7 is periodically defrosted by the defrost heater 22. The defrosted water generated by the defrosting flows into the eaves 23 provided at the lower part of the cooler storage chamber 8, then reaches the evaporating dish 21 through the drain pipe 27 and evaporates. Moreover, the refrigerator 1 is mounted with a plurality of vacuum heat insulating materials 25 shown in FIG.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a cooling air circulation path of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment. The cooling air blowing path in the refrigerator according to the present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG.

  The cooling air cooled in the cooler storage chamber 8 is boosted by the internal blower fan 9, and when the damper 20 and the quick cooling chamber damper 50 are in the open state, the refrigerator compartment air duct 11, the vegetable compartment air duct 15, It is sent to the refrigeration room 2, the vegetable room 6, the ice making room 3, the freezing room 5, and the quick cooling room 4 via the ice making room air duct 12, the freezer room air duct 14, and the quick cooling room air duct 13.

  After each room is cooled, the refrigerator is accommodated through the refrigerator compartment return duct 16 from the refrigerator compartment 2, the vegetable compartment return duct 19 from the vegetable compartment 6, and the quick cooling compartment return duct 18 from the rapid cooling compartment 4, respectively. Return to chamber 8. The cooling air that has cooled the ice making chamber 3 merges with the cooling air that has cooled the freezing chamber 5 and returns to the cooler storage chamber 8 via the ice making chamber / freezing chamber return duct 17. Further, when the damper 20 is in the closed state, the air blowing to the refrigerator compartment 2 and the vegetable room 6 is blocked, and when the quick cooling chamber damper 50 is in the closed state, the air blowing to the quick cooling chamber 4 is blocked.

  The refrigerator compartment 2, the vegetable compartment 6, the freezer compartment 5, and the quick cooling compartment 4 are provided with temperature sensors (not shown). The vegetable compartment 6 and the quick cooling compartment 4 are provided with heating heaters (not shown) that operate when the temperature of the respective compartments becomes a predetermined temperature or lower. In the refrigerator 1 according to the present embodiment, the temperature of each chamber is set to a predetermined temperature by opening / closing control of the damper 20 and the damper 50 and control of energization to the heating heater according to the temperature detected by the temperature sensor provided in each chamber. To be kept.

  The rapid cooling chamber 4 is in a normal operating state (an operating state not using the rapid cooling function), depending on the situation (according to the user's request), a “refrigerated room” in the refrigerated temperature zone, or the freezing temperature. It can be used as a storage room by switching to the “freezer room” of the belt. In addition, the wall surface which comprises the rapid cooling chamber ventilation duct 13 is equipped with the heat storage material which is not shown in figure (it fulfills the auxiliary function of a cooler). Here, the switching between the refrigerated room and the freezer room is performed by the user operating the predetermined temperature of the rapid cooling room determined, and the rapid cooling is basically based on the set temperature and the temperature detected from the temperature sensor 66 measured. It can be switched by controlling the opening degree of the chamber damper 50. Further, switching of the temperature zone of the rapid cooling chamber can include a room in an intermediate temperature zone in addition to switching between the “refrigerated room” and the “freezer room”.

  Next, the configuration of the quick cooling chamber of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. 4, 5, and 8. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the rapid cooling chamber of the refrigerator according to this embodiment. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the BB cross section shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the wind direction turning member in the rapid cooling chamber according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the rapid cooling chamber 4, the rapid cooling chamber cooling fan 31 and a member 35 that causes all the cooling air from the rapid cooling chamber air duct 13 to flow into the suction port of the rapid cooling chamber cooling fan 31. A duct 32 through which cooling air discharged from the rapid cooling chamber cooling fan 31 passes, an exhaust port 44 communicating with the rapid cooling chamber return duct 18, and a filter 70 at the inflow portion of the exhaust port 44. The duct 32 is provided with a jet discharge port 33, and the cooling air passing through the duct 32 is discharged from the jet discharge port 33. The storage container 4b is opened only in the upper direction, and a wind direction turning member 36 for turning the flow direction of the high-speed jet discharged from the jet discharge port 33 is provided above the storage container 4b. In the illustrated example, the wind direction diverting member 36 is placed on the storage container 4b, but is not limited thereto, and may be held by another member so as to cover the upper side of the storage container 4b.

  FIG. 8 shows an exploded perspective view of the wind direction turning member 36. As shown in FIG. 8, the wind direction diverting member 36 is composed of a high heat conducting portion 36 a made of aluminum on the upper surface side and a heat insulating portion 36 b made of resin on the lower surface side. Here, in this specification, the space from the bottom surface of the storage container 4b to the lower surface of the wind direction diverting member 36 is referred to as space 1, and the space above the wind direction diverting member 36 is referred to as space 2. The rapid cooling chamber 4 is provided with a door opening / closing sensor (not shown) that detects opening / closing of the door 4a.

  FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the B-B cross section shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the cooling air boosted by the rapid cooling chamber fan 31 is discharged from the jet discharge ports 33 and 33 ′ provided on the inclined surfaces 32 a and 32 a ′ of the duct 32 obliquely above the rapid cooling chamber 4. Is done. The high speed jets 60 and 60 ′ discharged from the jet discharge ports 33 and 33 ′ travel in a direction substantially perpendicular to the inclined surfaces 32 a and 32 a ′ and reach the wind direction diverting member 36. The flow directions of the high speed jets 60 and 60 ′ reaching the wind direction turning member 36 are changed by the influence of the wind direction turning member 36, collide with each other in the space 2, and are diffused. Here, the jet outlets 33 and 33 'have a substantially rectangular shape that is long in the depth direction, and are arranged at positions that are substantially opposed in the horizontal direction.

  An infrared temperature sensor 66 is provided on the upper surface of the rapid cooling chamber 4. Further, the rapid cooling chamber 4 is provided with a freezing prevention heating heater 68 separate from a heating heater (not shown) for the purpose of controlling the temperature of the rapid cooling chamber 4, particularly the space 1. The warm heater 68 is in contact with the end of the high heat conduction portion 36 a of the wind direction turning member 36. In the refrigerator of this embodiment, the wind direction turning member 36 is not integrated with the storage container 4b, and can be easily removed when the user determines that the effect of the wind direction turning member 36 is unnecessary. As described above, the wind direction diverting member 36 performs a function of diverting the flow direction of the cold air jet from the jet discharge port 33, and, as will be described later, an object to be rapidly cooled, for example, a can beverage, is appropriately positioned. In addition, it performs the function of mounting so that the cooling effect is effective, and is also referred to as a cold air jet turning / food mounting member.

  Next, how to use the quick cooling function and the freeze prevention function of the refrigerator according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a flowchart for performing various rapid cooling functions in the rapid cooling chamber in the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention. First, a case where a can beverage is rapidly cooled will be described as an example. Here, canned drinks will be described as foods in a broad sense. As described above, the quick cooling chamber 4 is switched to the “refrigerated room” in the refrigerated temperature zone or the “refrigerated room” in the refrigerated temperature zone depending on the situation (according to the user's request) in the normal operation state. Can be used as a chamber. Therefore, when the user uses the rapid cooling function, the rapid cooling chamber 4 is maintained in either the “refrigerated room” or “freezer room” temperature range (step S1000).

  First, when the state before using the rapid cooling function is “refrigerated room” (the user has previously selected the rapid cooling room as either the refrigerated room or the frozen room, so this selection state is detected. To understand which one was selected). The user opens the drawer-type door 4a and installs the canned beverage to be cooled on the wind direction turning member 36. If the state before the use of the rapid cooling function is “refrigerated room”, when the user selects the rapid cooling operation, the rapid cooling mode is automatically set (step S3000). Select "quick cooling mode" or "quick freezing mode"). After closing the door 4a, the user designates the cooling time from the operation panel 26 provided on the door 2a of the refrigerator compartment 2 (step S3001). The cooling time can be set up to a maximum of 15 minutes.

  Next, “cooling start” of the operation panel 26 is selected (step S3002). In response to the input of “cooling start”, the damper 20 for controlling the air flow to the refrigerator compartment 2 and the vegetable compartment 6 is closed, the quick cooling chamber damper 50 is opened, the compressor 24, the internal fan 9 The number of rotations of the rapid cooling chamber cooling fan 31 and the outside fan is high speed, and the rapid cooling operation is started (step S3003). The rapid cooling operation is performed for a time designated by the user (step S3004), and after the designated time has elapsed, a buzzer notifying the end of the cooling is sounded (step S3005), the rapid cooling operation is terminated (step S3006), and the rapid cooling chamber 4 is maintained in the temperature zone of the state “refrigerated room” before using the rapid cooling function (step S3007).

  Then, the user opens the door 4a of the rapid cooling chamber 4 (step S3008), and takes out the can beverage, thereby terminating the use of the rapid cooling function (detecting that the door 4a has been opened). In this case, since it becomes a refrigeration temperature zone after the end of the rapid cooling operation, freezing does not occur even if the user leaves the can beverage as it is. Therefore, when the state before using the rapid cooling function is “refrigerated room”, the freeze prevention function does not operate.

  Next, the case where the can beverage is cooled will be described as an example when the state before use of the rapid cooling function is “frozen room”. The user opens the drawer-type door 4a, installs the can beverage to be cooled on the wind direction turning member 36, and closes the door 4a. Next, the user selects “rapid cooling mode” or “rapid freezing mode” as the cooling mode setting on the operation panel 26 (step S2000). The “rapid cooling mode” is selected when food freezing is not actively desired, and the “quick freezing mode” is selected when food freezing is desired. Here, since the canned beverage is cooled, the “rapid cooling mode” is selected. When the “rapid cooling mode” is selected, the message “Are there any chances of freezing? Are you sure?” Is displayed, and the process can proceed to the next step only when this is agreed (step S2101).

  The user knows that there is a possibility of freezing, and then proceeds to the next step and designates a cooling time (step S2102). The cooling time can be set up to a maximum of 15 minutes. Subsequently, when the user determines that the “freezing prevention function” is unnecessary, it can be canceled from the operation panel (step S2103). However, if you perform the “Release Freeze Function” operation, the confirmation message “Do you want to release the Freeze Prevention function?” Is displayed on the operation panel, and the freeze prevention function is released only if you agree to this. The Here, the freeze prevention function is not canceled.

  After the above operation, the user selects “cooling start” (step S2111). In response to the input of “cooling start”, the damper 20 for controlling the air flow to the refrigerator compartment 2 and the vegetable compartment 6 is closed, the quick cooling chamber damper 50 is opened, the compressor 24, the internal fan 9 The number of rotations of the rapid cooling chamber cooling fan 31 becomes high speed, and the rapid cooling operation is started (step S2112). The rapid cooling operation is performed for the time specified by the user (step S2113). After the specified time elapses, a buzzer for notifying the end of cooling is sounded (step S2114), and the rapid cooling chamber 4 is in a state “freezing” before the rapid cooling function is used. The room temperature is maintained (step S2115).

  Since the freezing temperature zone is reached after completion of the rapid cooling operation, there is a risk of freezing if the can beverage is left as it is after the rapid cooling operation. In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, after the rapid cooling operation is completed, the opening / closing of the door 4a is detected by a sensor that detects the opening / closing of the door 4a of the rapid cooling chamber 4 (step S2117). Determines that the user has forgotten to take out the canned beverage from the quick cooling chamber 4, and the freeze prevention function is activated (step S2118).

  Next, the freeze prevention function will be specifically described. The freeze prevention function includes an infrared temperature sensor 66 provided on the upper surface of the rapid cooling chamber 4 and a freeze prevention heating heater 68. When the freeze prevention function is activated, the can beverage surface temperature detected by the infrared temperature sensor 66 is first sampled at regular time intervals (for example, every 3 minutes).

  When the can beverage reaches freezing, latent heat is released, so that the gradient in which the temperature decreases changes, and a time zone (time zone 1 shown in FIG. 10) where the temperature becomes substantially constant appears. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the relationship between the food cooling time and the food temperature. In the present embodiment, when the fluctuation range of the temperature for 15 minutes is within ± 1 ° C., it is determined that the freezing is proceeding, and energization to the anti-freezing warming heater 68 is started.

  Since the anti-freezing warming heater 68 is in contact with the high heat conducting portion 36a of the wind direction turning member 65, it is immediately heated from the bottom side of the can beverage, and the can beverage is prevented from being completely frozen. When energization to the anti-freezing warming heater 68 continues, the temperature detected by the non-contact temperature sensor 66 begins to rise. In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, when the temperature detected by the infrared temperature sensor 66 rises by 5 ° C. compared to when the energization of the antifreeze warming heater 68 is started, energization of the antifreeze warming heater 68 is stopped. Thereafter, the energization and stop of the anti-freezing warming heater 68 are repeated according to the above-described determination criteria. The above-described freeze prevention function prevents the can beverage from being completely frozen.

  In addition, a buzzer sounds appropriately during the freeze prevention function operation to inform the user that the user has forgotten to take a canned beverage. In the refrigerator of this embodiment, a buzzer sounds every 10 minutes to inform the user that he has forgotten to take a canned beverage. In addition, when opening / closing of the door 4a of the rapid cooling chamber 4 is detected during the freeze prevention function operation (step S2117), it is determined that the user has taken out the can beverage, and the freeze prevention function is released.

  Next, the case where the food which desires freezing is cooled in the quick cooling chamber of the refrigerator of this embodiment is demonstrated. The user opens the drawer type door 4a, installs the food to be frozen on the wind direction turning member 36, and closes the door 4a. Next, when the user selects “rapid cooling mode” or “quick freezing mode” on the operation panel 26, the user selects “rapid freezing mode” (step S2000). When quick freezing is selected, the user cannot set the time. Accordingly, the user next selects “cooling start” (step S2201).

  In response to the input of “cooling start”, the pre-cooling operation shown below starts (step S2202). First, the compressor 24, the internal blower fan 9, and the external blower fan are rotated at a high speed, the quick cooling chamber damper 50 is closed, and the damper 20 is opened. Thereby, especially the refrigerator compartment 2 and the vegetable compartment 6 are cooled. When the refrigerator 2 reaches a preset lower limit temperature (0.5 ° C. in the refrigerator of the present embodiment), the damper 20 is closed (the rapid cooling chamber damper 50 remains closed). As a result, the freezer compartment 5 is subsequently cooled.

  When the freezer compartment 5 is below a preset lower limit temperature (−30 ° C. in the refrigerator of the present embodiment), it is determined that the temperature of each room other than the rapid cooling room 4 has become sufficiently low (step S2203). The pre-cooling operation is terminated. Subsequently, the damper 20 is closed, the rapid cooling chamber damper 50 is opened, and the rapid cooling chamber fan 31 is rotated at high speed to start the rapid cooling operation (step S2204). This promotes rapid freezing of food. After a predetermined time (30 minutes in the refrigerator of this embodiment) has elapsed (step S2205), the rapid cooling operation ends (step S2206), and the rapid cooling chamber 4 is in the temperature zone of the state “freezer room” before the rapid cooling function is used. (Step S2207). Subsequently, when the user opens the door 4a of the rapid cooling chamber 4 (step S2208) and takes out the frozen food, the use of the rapid cooling function ends.

  In the refrigerator of this embodiment, the setting of the rapid cooling function is reset when there is no input by the user for 1 minute or more in the setting stage of the rapid cooling function (the stage before reaching the “start” step in FIG. 9). The If the user wants to forcibly terminate this function during the period from “Start” to “End of Rapid Cooling Operation” in FIG. 9, it can be forcibly terminated from the operation panel 26.

  Next, effects produced by the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. The refrigerator according to the present embodiment is provided with a wind direction turning member 36 to turn the traveling direction of the high speed jets 60 and 60 ′. Accordingly, the high-speed jets 60 and 60 'are turned before reaching the storage space (space 1) of the rapid cooling chamber 4, so that the high-speed jets 60 and 60' do not directly affect the storage space. Therefore, even when food that is not desired to be hit by the high-speed jets 60 and 60 ′ (for example, food that is easy to dry or food that may be scattered due to the high-speed jet) is stored in the storage space, The quick cooling function can be used without taking the food out of the quick cooling chamber 4, and the refrigerator becomes very convenient.

  The refrigerator of the present embodiment includes a plurality of jet discharge ports 33 and 33 ′ and is disposed so as to face each other in the horizontal direction. This allows for more rapid cooling of the food. Hereinafter, the reason will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a jet flow when a single jet collides against a cylindrical food such as a can beverage and cools it. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a jet flow when two jets facing a cylindrical food such as a can drink are collided and cooled.

  As shown in FIG. 11, when a single jet collides with a columnar food 38, it flows along the surface of the food due to the Coanda effect, and then peels off on the back side. Therefore, a region indicated by a region b in FIG. 11 where the flow is separated is a region having a low heat transfer performance. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 12, when two opposing jets collide with the food 38, the low heat transfer region generated in the case of a single jet becomes a high heat transfer region when another jet collides. Thus, the heat transfer performance is greatly improved. Therefore, it becomes possible to cool food more rapidly.

  In the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention, the wind direction diverting member 36 is provided with an inclined surface (the inclined surface is described later, but the air gap 1 shown in FIG. 7 is formed and the cooling air of the arrow shown in FIG. 5 is formed. The flow direction is formed, and as shown in FIG. 6, the cylindrical can beverage is automatically positioned by rolling to an appropriate position for rapid cooling). Thereby, the food can be cooled more rapidly, and at the same time, the variation in the cooling rate due to the influence of the variation in the food installation position can be reduced. Hereinafter, the case of cooling the columnar (same as prismatic) food 38 will be described as an example, and the reason will be described with reference to FIGS. 6, 7, and 8.

  FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the columnar food 38 is installed on the wind direction diverting member 36 according to the present embodiment (the cross-sectional position is the same as that in FIG. 5), and FIG. It is a figure showing the positional relationship of the wind direction turning member in C section, and a foodstuff, FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the wind direction turning member 36 with which the rapid cooling chamber 4 of the refrigerator which concerns on this embodiment was equipped.

  As is clear from the exploded perspective view shown in FIG. 8 (see also the flow of cooling air indicated by the arrow in FIG. 5 and the formation of the gap 1 in FIG. 7), the wind direction diverting member 36 has an inclined surface. Due to this inclined surface, when the food 38 is installed on the wind direction turning member 36, a gap 1 is formed between the upper surface of the wind direction turning member 36 and the food 38 as shown in FIG. 7. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, a flow 60 a passing through the lower surface side of the food 38 is generated, and the food is cooled more rapidly by this flow. Further, even when the food 38 is installed at an inappropriate location on the wind direction turning member, the food 38 rolls along the inclined surface of the wind direction turning member 36 and is automatically stored in the recess formed by the inclined surface. Therefore, variation in cooling rate due to the influence of variation in food installation position hardly occurs.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, when the food 38 is installed only in the concave portion on one side of the wind direction turning member 36, the high-speed jet 60 ′ discharged from the jet outlet 33 ′ on the side where the food 38 is not installed is After reaching the wind direction turning member 36, the flow toward the food 38 is caused by the influence of the inclined surface of the wind direction turning member 36, and the region a of the food 38 is cooled. The region a of the food 38 is a region (dead water region) in which the influence of the high-speed jet 60 from the jet discharge port 33 is difficult to be affected. Since this region is effectively cooled, the food 38 is cooled more rapidly. .

  In the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention, the lower surface side of the wind direction diverting member 36 is a low heat conducting portion. Thereby, the rapid temperature fluctuation of the space 2 generated when the rapid cooling operation is performed does not easily affect the space 1 in which the food is stored. Moreover, the refrigerator of this embodiment uses the upper surface side of the wind direction diverting member 36 as a high heat conduction part. As a result, when the rapid cooling operation is performed, the upper surface side of the wind direction turning member 36 on which the food is installed is uniformly and rapidly cooled, thereby enabling more rapid cooling of the food and cooling with less temperature unevenness. In addition, the refrigerator of the present embodiment includes means for heating the space 2 above the wind direction turning member 36 (freezing prevention heater 68). Thereby, the freezing of the food in which the freezing installed in the space 2 is not desirable can be prevented.

  The refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a filter 70 at the exhaust port 44 of the rapid cooling chamber 4. As a result, even if a food piece or the like scatters due to the influence of the high-speed jet generated during the rapid cooling operation, the food piece or the like does not enter the rapid cooling chamber return duct 18, and the user can Since the food pieces can be easily collected, the refrigerator is very convenient to use. Moreover, the refrigerator of this embodiment provides an upper limit for the duration of the rapid cooling operation. Thus, by continuing the rapid cooling operation excessively, the temperature of the chambers other than the rapid cooling chamber does not rise too much, so that the refrigerator becomes highly reliable.

  The refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a quick cooling chamber damper 50 to control the air blowing to the quick cooling chamber 4. Thereby, since the ventilation volume to the rapid cooling chamber 4 can be controlled, the rapid cooling chamber 4 can be more accurately maintained at a predetermined temperature. The refrigerator of the present embodiment includes a space that can be used as a storage room in a plurality of temperature zones in the quick cooling room 4. As a result, the user can use it as a food storage room in different temperature zones depending on the situation, so that the refrigerator is very easy to use. In addition, the refrigerator of the present embodiment includes a space that can be used as a storage room in the refrigeration temperature zone and the freezing temperature zone in the rapid cooling chamber 4. As a result, the user can use the quick cooling chamber as a food storage room in a refrigeration temperature zone or a food storage room in a freezing temperature zone depending on the situation, so that the refrigerator is very easy to use.

  In the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention, after the rapid cooling operation is finished, the space 2 in the rapid cooling chamber becomes a storage chamber in a temperature zone before the rapid cooling operation starts (the temperature of the refrigerator before the rapid cooling operation starts). The controller can remember whether the belt was a refrigerated room, a freezer room, or an intermediate temperature zone room, so that it can be returned to the original temperature zone room). Thereby, the temperature zone suitable for the food stored in the rapid cooling chamber 4 is maintained even after the rapid cooling function is used without any special operation by the user, so that the refrigerator becomes very convenient.

  In the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention, the freeze prevention function is activated after the rapid cooling operation is completed. Thereby, even if it is a case where a user forgets to take food after carrying out rapid cooling, such as a can drink and a bottled drink, it is not desired to complete freezing, such food does not reach complete freezing. Therefore, it becomes a highly reliable refrigerator. Moreover, the refrigerator of this embodiment is cancelled | released after the freeze prevention function detects door opening / closing. Thereby, since a freeze prevention warming heater does not operate after a user takes out food, it becomes a refrigerator excellent in energy saving. In the refrigerator according to the present embodiment, the rapid cooling chamber damper 50 is closed while the defrost heater 22 is energized. Thereby, since the hot and humid air generated during the defrosting does not reach the rapid cooling chamber, the blades of the rapid cooling chamber fan 31 installed in the rapid cooling chamber 4 are blocked by frost, and the air cannot be blown. Can be avoided. Therefore, it becomes a highly reliable refrigerator.

  In the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention, the room in contact with the upper portion of the rapid cooling chamber 4 is the refrigerator compartment 2, and the chamber in contact with the lower portion of the rapid cooling chamber 4 is the freezer compartment 5. As a result, when the freeze prevention function is activated after the rapid cooling operation is completed, the room in contact with the upper part of the rapid cooling chamber 4 is the refrigerator compartment 2 that is a relatively high temperature zone in the refrigerator. The influence of the heater 68 is kept to a minimum, and the chamber in contact with the lower portion of the rapid cooling chamber is a low-temperature freezing chamber so that it is stored in a space (space 1) for storing food in the rapid cooling chamber 4. Increase in food temperature is suppressed. The reason will be described below.

  When the anti-freezing function is operating, the temperature of the space 2 above the wind direction diverting member 36 rises due to the effect of energizing the anti-freezing warming heater 68. On the other hand, the space 1 has a heat insulation effect of the heat insulation member 36b in the wind direction diverting member 36 and the principle of natural convection, so that the high temperature air is directed upward and the low temperature air is directed downward. And the room adjacent to the lower part of the quick cooling chamber 4 is a low-temperature freezing room 5, so that when the frozen food is stored in the space 2, the temperature of the frozen food may increase. Will not reach a thawed state. Further, in the space 2, hot air tends to gather upward as a result of natural convection. Therefore, when the adjacent chamber above the rapid cooling chamber is a freezing temperature zone chamber, it is strongly affected by the temperature rise by the antifreezing warming heater 68, which is not preferable because the frozen food reaches a thawed state. Can occur. The room adjacent to the upper part of the rapid cooling room, such as the refrigerator of the present embodiment, is desirably a refrigerated temperature room (refrigerated room).

  In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6 or FIG. 8, the wind direction turning member 36 includes a space below the wind direction turning member 36 (space 1) and a space above the wind direction turning member 36 (space 2). Although it has a shape with an opening that communicates, the shape of the wind direction turning member 36 is not limited to the shape of the present embodiment. For example, the wind direction turning member 36 has a structure that does not have an opening that communicates the space 1 and the space 2, and the wind direction turning member 36 substantially seals the upper opening of the storage container 4b as in the refrigerator of the present embodiment. An effect is obtained.

It is the external view which looked at the refrigerator which concerns on embodiment of this invention from the front. It is the longitudinal cross-sectional view which looked at the AA cross section shown in FIG. 1 from the arrow direction. It is a figure showing the cooling air circulation path | route of the refrigerator which concerns on this embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the rapid cooling chamber of the refrigerator which concerns on this embodiment. It is sectional drawing which looked at the BB cross section shown in FIG. 4 from the arrow direction. It is sectional drawing showing the state which installed the columnar foodstuff on the wind direction turning member regarding this embodiment. It is a figure showing the positional relationship of the wind direction turning member and foodstuff in the CC cross section of FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view of the wind direction turning member in the rapid cooling chamber regarding this embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows various quick cooling functions in the quick cooling room in the refrigerator concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the cooling time of food, and food temperature. It is a figure showing the jet flow in the case of cooling by making a single jet collide with cylindrical foodstuffs, such as a can drink. It is a figure showing the jet flow in the case of cooling by making two jets which oppose cylindrical foods, such as a can drink, collide.

Explanation of symbols

  1: refrigerator, 2: cold room, 3: ice making room, 4: quick cooling room, 4a: quick cooling room door, 4b: quick cooling room storage container, 5: freezing room, 6: vegetable room, 7: cooler, 8: Cooler storage room, 9: Internal fan, 10: Insulation box, 11: Cold room air duct, 12: Ice making room air duct, 13: Quick cooling room air duct: 14: Freezer room air duct, 15 : Vegetable room ventilation duct, 16: Refrigeration room return duct, 17: Ice making room / freezer room return duct, 18: Quick cooling room return duct, 19: Vegetable room return duct, 20: Damper, 21: Evaporating dish, 22: Exclusion Frost heater, 23: firewood, 24: compressor, 25: vacuum heat insulating material, 26: operation panel, 27: drain pipe, 28, 29, 30: heat insulating partition wall, 31: quick cooling chamber cooling fan, 32: duct, 33: Jet outlet, 35: Member, 36: Wind direction turning member, 38 Food, 44: outlet, 50: rapid cooling chamber damper, 60: jet, 66: infrared sensors, 68: antifreeze heating heater, 70: filter

Claims (12)

An internal fan that circulates in the refrigerator the cold air heat-exchanged by the cooler stored in the cooler storage chamber;
A rapid cooling chamber capable of rapidly cooling food,
A food storage container opened upward for storing food in the rapid cooling chamber;
A ventilation path for sending cold air to the rapid cooling chamber;
A return path for returning cold air to the cooler storage chamber;
A rapid cooling chamber fan that boosts and sends cool air to the rapid cooling chamber;
A duct for guiding cool air from the quick cooling chamber fan to a predetermined position in the quick cooling chamber;
An opening provided in the duct for jetting cool air;
The cold air jet discharged from the opening is turned before reaching the bottom or side surface of the food container, and a cold air jet turning / food placing member for placing food for rapid cooling is provided.
The cold air jet turning / food mounting member is formed with a high thermal conductor at the top and a low thermal conductor at the bottom.
In order to heat the area | region above the said cold-air jet turning and food mounting member, the heating means which contacts the said high heat conductor is provided, The refrigerator characterized by the above-mentioned. In claim 1,
The refrigerator is characterized in that openings for discharging the cold air jet are provided at a plurality of locations of the duct, and the openings are symmetrically disposed so as to be substantially opposed to each other in the horizontal direction. In claim 1 or 2,
The cold-air jet turning / food placing member has an intermediate portion of the circular prism-shaped body and an upper receiving portion of the cold-air jet turning / food placing member when the placed food is a circular prism-shaped body such as a can beverage. A refrigerator characterized by forming an inclined surface such that a gap is formed between the surface and the surface. In claim 1, 2 or 3,
The refrigerator, wherein the cold air jet turning / food placing member forms an inclined surface such that the placed food is automatically positioned on the concave bottom portion. In any one of claims 1 to 4,
The heating means is for preventing the freezing of the food placed on the cold air jet turning / food placing member , provided in the rapid cooling chamber, and operating the heating means after the rapid cooling operation is completed. A refrigerator characterized by being allowed to. In claim 5 ,
Providing a detecting means for detecting opening and closing of the door of the rapid cooling chamber;
After completion of the rapid cooling operation, the operation of the heating means is ended by detecting the opening / closing of the door by the detection means. In any one of claims 1 to 6,
A refrigerator, wherein a filter is disposed in an inflow portion of a return path of the quick cooling chamber to prevent intrusion of food pieces and the like. In any one of claims 1 to 7,
An operation means for designating a duration of a rapid cooling operation in the rapid cooling chamber is provided, and an upper limit value is provided for the duration. In any one of claims 1 to 8,
The refrigerator characterized by providing a damper for controlling the amount of cool air to the quick cooling chamber in the air flow path of the quick cooling chamber in the downstream of the internal fan. In claim 9,
The quick cooling chamber has a first space that can be switched to a refrigerated temperature zone room or a freezing temperature zone room with the cold air jet turning / food placing member as a partition, and a rapid cooling above the partition. And a second space for the refrigerator. In claim 10,
The refrigerator is characterized in that the first space is a space that can be switched to a plurality of temperature zone rooms ranging from a refrigeration temperature zone to a freezing temperature zone. In claim 10 or 11,
After the rapid cooling operation in the rapid cooling chamber is finished, the first space is in a temperature zone before the rapid cooling operation is started.

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