JP5572533B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator.

  In recent years, refrigerators having various functions in addition to basic functions such as a cooling function and an interior lighting function have become mainstream. For example, there is an operation unit in which the operation state of the refrigerator can be set by a user and a display unit for displaying the operation state of the refrigerator is provided on the refrigerator door.

  Here, when various functions are provided on the refrigerator door side, a main control device that controls the basic functions described above is installed on the refrigerator body side, and separately from this, a sub-control device that controls functions on the refrigerator door side is provided. It is necessary to install on the refrigerator door side.

  As described above, when a plurality of control devices are provided, it is necessary to share information among the control devices or to issue a control command from one control device to the other control device. For example, it is necessary to share the operation mode information set by the sub-control device on the refrigerator door side with the main control device on the refrigerator body side.

  In addition, if any abnormality occurs in the refrigerator, it is necessary to issue a control command from the main controller on the refrigerator body side to the sub controller on the refrigerator door side in order to display the state on the display unit on the refrigerator door side. It becomes.

  As a related art regarding this, there is JP 2009-268488 A (Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 discloses an electric rice cooker configured to perform desired control of a control target using a plurality of microcomputer control units that can communicate with each other, and any specific microcomputer control unit during control standby It is described that it is possible to instruct and cancel the transition to the power saving standby mode in which the power consumption is smaller than that in the standby mode.

JP 2009-268488 A

  However, the configuration described in Patent Document 1 stops communication in order to reduce power consumption, and stops the control function of the sub control device until a special return signal is transmitted from the main control device to the sub control device. It is the composition which continues.

  Then, in the case of a device such as a refrigerator that needs to constantly monitor the internal temperature with the temperature sensor and perform a cooling operation, it becomes impossible to take in the information of the temperature sensor from the sub control device to the main control device. And the main control apparatus cannot update the information of a temperature sensor, and there exists a possibility that the control of the driving | operation suitable for the cooling in a warehouse cannot be performed.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator that reduces power consumption generated by a communication signal and improves cooling efficiency.

In order to solve the above problems, for example, the configuration described in the claims is adopted. As an example, a first control device provided on the refrigerator main body side, a second control device provided on the refrigerator door side, and means for determining whether the switch of the second control device receives an input; , An illuminance sensor , and a illuminance sensor that counts a time during which the refrigerator door is closed or the switch is not receiving input, the illuminance sensor being an illuminance of an installation space of the refrigerator When the information that each control device has is transmitted and received between the first control device and the second control device, and the time counted by the counting means is a predetermined time or more , the unit and one step down the transmission frequency in per hour, at time counted in said counting means is a predetermined time or more, and, the communication frequency in per the case illuminance is low, the unit time 1 Floor to further lower than the lower the communication frequency.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the power consumption which generate | occur | produces with a communication signal can be reduced, and the refrigerator which improved the cooling efficiency can be provided.

The external appearance front view of the refrigerator which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 2A and 2B illustrate a display panel in FIG. 1. The sectional side view of the refrigerator which concerns on embodiment of this invention. The block diagram explaining the structure of the control circuit of the refrigerator which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. The flowchart explaining the control which changes the communication interval which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. The block diagram explaining the structure of the control circuit of the refrigerator which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. The flowchart explaining the control which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. The flowchart explaining the process of the sub control part which concerns on Example 3 of this invention. The figure explaining the change of the communication interval which concerns on Example 3 of this invention. The figure explaining the control which concerns on Example 4 of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an external front view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the display panel of FIG. FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the refrigerator according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, 11 is a refrigerator body, 12a and 12b are refrigerator compartment doors, 14 is an ice making compartment door, 15a and 15b are freezer compartment doors, and 16 is a vegetable compartment door.

  A display panel 13 is provided in the refrigerator compartment door 12a. As shown in FIG. 2, the display panel 13 includes a display unit 22 that displays operation mode states of various functions such as a set temperature of each storage room of the refrigerator and the size of ice making, and a user operates these functions. And an operation unit 21 whose settings can be changed.

  A plurality of operation units 21 are provided side by side, and a plurality of display units 22 are provided side by side corresponding to the operation unit 21. When the user operates any one of the plurality of operation units 21, the display unit 22 corresponding to this operation is caused to emit light by illumination such as an LED, so that the setting state is easily displayed to the user.

  The operation unit 21 may be a known operation means such as a mechanical or electrical switch, a capacitive touch switch, or the like. Moreover, the display part 22 may be a means for notifying the user visually, as well as a means for informing the user of the operating condition of the refrigerator.

  Next, the refrigerator main body side control board (first control device 31) and the refrigerator door side control board (second control device 32) will be described with reference to FIG.

  The refrigerator main body 11 is provided with a refrigerator main body side control board (first control device 31) for controlling a load described later. In addition, on the refrigerator door (refrigeration room door 12a) side, a refrigerator door side control board (second control device 32) for controlling the operation unit 21 for operating the setting of the operation mode of the refrigerator and the display unit 22 for displaying the operation mode. ) Is installed.

  The first control device 31 controls the load of a device that requires high power, such as the compressor 17. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent the user from touching easily while the refrigerator is operating. Therefore, the first control device 31 is disposed on the upper rear side of the refrigerator main body 11.

  On the other hand, the second control device 32 is disposed on the front surface of the refrigerator compartment door 12a so that the user can easily operate the operation unit 21.

  In other words, the first control device 31 and the second control device 32 are arranged at remote locations. Therefore, the 1st control apparatus 31 and the 2nd control apparatus 32 are connected by the communication line 33, The information which each has is shared by performing communication. Note that the communication line 33 may be wired or wireless as long as information can be exchanged between the first control device 31 and the second control device 32. In the case of a wired connection, the first control device 31 and the second control device 32 are connected from the refrigerator compartment door 12a through the door hinge (not shown) through the upper part of the refrigerator body 11.

  Next, the configuration of the control circuit will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the control circuit of the refrigerator.

  The refrigerator main body side control board 31 includes a main control unit 43, a damper control unit 44, a cold air fan control unit 45, a cooling fan control unit 46, a compressor control unit 47, a temperature sensor 48, and a door open / close detection sensor 49.

  The damper control unit 44 controls the opening and closing of the dampers 18a and 18b for adjusting the temperature by controlling the inflow of the cold air by opening and closing the passages of the cold air to the respective storage rooms of the refrigerator.

  The cold air blower fan control unit 45 controls the blower fan 19 that blows cold air to each storage room (for example, a refrigerator room, a freezer room, an ice making room, and a vegetable room) of the refrigerator.

  The cooling fan control unit 46 controls a machine room fan (not shown) for cooling a load that generates heat (for example, the compressor 17 installed in the machine room 20).

  The compressor control unit 47 controls on / off of the compressor 17 and the rotation speed.

  A plurality of temperature sensors 48 are attached to the refrigerator main body 11 for each detection target, and detect the temperature of each storage room of the refrigerator, the temperature of the compressor 17, the temperature of the cooler 23 that performs cooling, and the like.

  The door open / close detection sensor 49 detects the open / closed state of the door of each storage room of the refrigerator.

  The refrigerator door side control board 32 includes a sub control unit 50, a display control unit 51, a buzzer output unit 52, an outside air temperature sensor 53, and a switch 54.

  The display control unit 51 controls the display unit 22 that informs the user of operation mode setting information of various functions that are currently set.

  The buzzer output unit 52 outputs a sound for notifying the user that an input operation performed by the user has been accepted or that the door has been opened for a long time.

  The outside air temperature sensor 53 detects the temperature of the room in which the refrigerator is installed, that is, the external temperature.

  The switch 54 is used by the user to operate the operation unit 21 to adjust the temperature of each storage room and additional functions (for example, a mode for rapidly cooling the refrigerator compartment, a mode for rapidly cooling the freezer compartment, a mode for shortening ice making time, etc. ) Input to change ON / OFF of various operation modes.

  The sub-control unit 50 is connected to the main control unit 43, the display control unit 51, the buzzer output unit 52, the outside air temperature sensor 53, and the switch 54. The switch 54 receives an operation input from the user, and then performs internal processing. To determine the current mode setting.

  Thereafter, the display control unit 51 or the buzzer output unit 52 is controlled in order to inform the user of the operation mode such as the temperature adjustment mode and the additional function operation mode setting.

  The main control unit 43 and the sub control unit 50 communicate with each other and notify the user by outputting the current state to the display control unit 51 and the buzzer output unit 52.

  Further, the operation mode controlled by the main control unit 43, the open / close state of each storage compartment door of the refrigerator, and the abnormality detected by the main control unit 43 are transmitted to the sub control unit 50. As an abnormality detected by the main control unit 43, for example, when the sending fan 19 is frozen and not driven, or a value greatly deviating from the operating temperature range (for example, −50 to 40 ° C.) of the temperature sensor 48 (for example, 90 ° C.). ) Is detected.

  In addition, information on the operation mode currently set by the user and information on the outside air temperature sensor 53 connected to the sub-control unit 50 are transmitted from the sub-control unit 50 to the main control unit 3 to share the information. Do.

  The main control unit 43 calculates the target value of the temperature of each storage room based on the inputs from the temperature sensor 48 and the door opening / closing detection sensor 49 and the currently set operation mode information received from the sub control unit 50. Moreover, the temperature of each storage chamber is controlled to be a target value by outputting from the main control unit 43 to the damper control unit 44, the cool air blowing fan control unit 45, the cooling fan control unit 46, and the compressor control unit 47. To do.

  Next, specific control will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining control for changing the communication interval, and is a diagram for explaining processing for controlling the communication interval between the main control unit 43 and the sub control unit 50.

  In the communication between the main control unit 43 and the sub control unit 50, the sub control unit 50 is a master, and the main control unit 43 is a slave. That is, first, the sub-control unit 50 transmits data to the main control unit 3, and the main control unit 43 transmits to the sub-control unit 10 in response to data reception.

  In STEP 01, the sub control unit 50 determines whether or not the current operation is normal through communication performed with the main control unit 43. If it is abnormal, the fact that the abnormality has occurred or that it has returned to normal is immediately communicated by communication, and the process does not proceed to STEP 02 (transition to STEP 07). If it is normal, the process proceeds to STEP02.

  In STEP02, whether one of the refrigerator compartment doors 12a, 12b, the freezer compartment doors 15a, 15b, the vegetable compartment door 16, and the ice making compartment door 14 is opened, or the switch 54 receives an input from the user Determine. If the door is closed or the switch 54 is not receiving input, the process proceeds to STEP03. If the door is opened or the switch 54 receives an input from the user, the process proceeds to STEP07.

  In STEP 03, it is determined whether or not a timer that counts the time during which all the doors of the refrigerator are closed is currently counting. If not counting, the process proceeds to STEP 04. If the count is being performed, the process proceeds to STEP 05.

  In STEP 04, the timer starts counting, and the counting of the time when all the doors of the refrigerator are closed and the input of the switch 54 is not received from the user is started. Thereafter, the process proceeds to STEP01.

  In STEP 05, it is determined whether a certain period of time (for example, 5 minutes) has elapsed when all the doors of the refrigerator are closed and the timer has finished counting. If the predetermined time has not elapsed and the count has not ended, the process proceeds to STEP01. From STEP01 to STEP05 until one of the doors of the refrigerator is opened, the switch 54 accepts an input from the user, or until a predetermined time (for example, the above-mentioned 5 minutes) elapses and the timer count ends. Repeat the process.

  When a certain time (for example, the above-mentioned 5 minutes) has elapsed and the timer has finished counting, the process proceeds to STEP06. In STEP06, the communication interval between the main control unit 3 and the sub-control unit 10 is changed to be longer than the communication interval that is always performed for 1 second (FIG. 9A described later). B)). This is presumed that after a predetermined time has elapsed since the door was closed, the user is away from the refrigerator, so it is highly likely that the user is not using it and the switch 54 is unlikely to be operated. Because. Thus, by increasing the communication interval, it is possible to reduce power consumption generated in communication.

  In STEP07, the timer which has counted the time when all the doors of the refrigerator are closed is reset, and the process proceeds to STEP08.

  In STEP08, the communication interval between the main control unit 43 and the sub control unit 50 is returned to the normal communication interval. This is because when the door is opened, the user is using the refrigerator, so there is a high possibility that the operation mode is shifted by the operation of the switch 54, and the mode change is immediately made to the main control unit 3. This is for sending.

  As described above, the first control device 31 is provided on the refrigerator body 11 side, and the second control device 32 is provided on the refrigerator door (refrigeration room door 12a) side, and operates the setting of the operation mode of the refrigerator. And the display part 22 which displays an operation mode is controlled, and when the refrigerator door (refrigeration room door 12a) is closed for a predetermined time, or when operation of the operation part 21 is not performed for a predetermined time, communication frequency is lengthened. Thereby, it can be set as the refrigerator which suppresses communication more than necessary and operates in a power-saving state according to an actual use state. In addition, the information update frequency of the control device can be varied as necessary while reducing the generated power consumption, and control can be performed without reducing the control accuracy.

  Next, an example of changing the communication interval by monitoring the brightness with an illuminance sensor will be described as one of the human detection means. Note that the description of the same configuration as in the first embodiment is omitted.

  In this embodiment, the illuminance at the place where the refrigerator is installed is measured, and the communication interval is changed.

  FIG. 6 shows a configuration in which an illuminance sensor 75 is connected to the sub-control unit 70. Other configurations are the same as those in FIG.

  The illuminance sensor 75 is attached to the front surface of the refrigerator and detects the illuminance of the operation unit 21 of the refrigerator.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart for detecting the illuminance of the installation space of the refrigerator by the illuminance sensor 75 and controlling the communication interval between the main control unit 63 and the sub-control unit 70 based on this. Note that description of the same STEP as in FIG. 5 is omitted.

  In STEP 12, it is determined whether the illuminance on the front surface of the refrigerator detected by the illuminance sensor 75 is darker than the set value recorded in the sub-control unit 70, or whether the switch 74 is receiving input from the user. If the illuminance on the front surface of the refrigerator is dark or the switch 74 is not receiving input from the user, the process proceeds to STEP13. If the illuminance on the front surface of the refrigerator is bright or the switch 74 does not accept input, the process proceeds to STEP 17.

  Thereby, since the user often does not operate when the place where the refrigerator is installed is dark, the communication interval can be changed at an earlier timing than when the opening and closing of the door is monitored in the first embodiment. Power consumption can be reduced from an early time.

  Since the normal illuminance varies depending on the refrigerator installation location and time zone, the illuminance setting value recorded in the sub-control unit 70 can be set variably depending on the refrigerator installation location and time zone. Is preferred.

  As described above, when the presence of the human detection means is detected and the user has approached the refrigerator, the communication frequency is increased, and when the user has left the refrigerator, the communication frequency is decreased. . Thereby, it can be set as the refrigerator which suppresses communication more than necessary and operates in a power-saving state according to an actual use state. Moreover, when a user uses a refrigerator, a temperature fluctuation etc. can be caught quickly, and when the user is in a stable state not using the refrigerator, power consumption generated by transmission / reception of communication signals can be reduced.

  Next, an embodiment in which the communication time is changed stepwise will be described. In addition, the description which overlaps with Example 1 and Example 2 is abbreviate | omitted.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart of control in which the communication interval is changed stepwise by performing the first embodiment and the second embodiment together. As a result, when a certain time (for example, 5 minutes) has elapsed without opening and closing the door, the communication interval is increased by one step (STEP 19 to STEP 22, FIGS. 9A to 9B), and When the illuminance on the front surface of the refrigerator is low, it can be predicted that the user does not use the refrigerator while going out or sleeping, etc., so the communication interval for performing communication once per second is further increased (STEP 20 to STEP 21, FIG. 9). (B) to FIG. 9 (C)). Thereby, the communication state matched with the actual usage state of the user can be configured, and the power consumption can be further reduced.

  Next, a fourth embodiment in which the communication time is changed depending on the number of times the door is opened and closed will be described. In addition, the description which overlaps with Example 3 is abbreviate | omitted.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram in which the number of times the refrigerator door is opened and closed for one week is tabulated and divided every hour. In this way, the number of times the refrigerator door is opened and closed is held by the sub-control unit 70, and “the time when the refrigerator is mostly used”, “the time when the refrigerator is hardly used”, and “the time when the refrigerator is not used”. The time period in which the “hours when the refrigerator is hardly used” continues continuously increases the communication interval, and the time periods when the “refrigerator is not used” continue continuously. The band has the longest communication interval. Thereby, the power consumption in communication can be reduced when the user is not using the refrigerator without using the illuminance sensor of the second embodiment.

  Thus, based on the opening / closing information of the refrigerator door, the use time zone and the unused time zone of the refrigerator are distinguished, the use time zone increases the communication frequency, and the unused time zone decreases the communication frequency. Thereby, it can be set as the refrigerator which suppresses communication more than necessary and operates in a power-saving state according to an actual use state. Moreover, even when not using a human detection means, when the user is in a stable state not using the refrigerator, it is possible to reduce power consumption generated by transmission and reception of communication signals.

  According to each of the above embodiments, a refrigerator including a first control device and a second control device, each control device has between the first control device and the second control device. Information is transmitted and received, and the frequency of transmission and reception per unit time is changed based on the operating state of the refrigerator.

  Thereby, about the power consumption generate | occur | produced when sharing the information between several control apparatuses, or performing the control command to a mutual control apparatus, power consumption can be reduced, without producing the problem on the control of a refrigerator. . Further, the generated power consumption can be reduced by reducing the number of times of transmission / reception of communication signals per unit time.

Further, it is possible to reduce power consumption and CO ₂ emission.

11 refrigerator main body 12a, 12b refrigerator compartment door 13 display panel 21 operation part 22 display part 31, 61 refrigerator main body side control board (first control device)
32, 62 Refrigerator door side control board (second control device)
33 Communication lines 43, 63 Main control unit 44, 64 Damper control unit 45, 65 Cooling air fan control unit 46, 66 Cooling fan control unit 47, 67 Compressor control unit 48, 68 Temperature sensor 49, 69 Door opening / closing detection sensor 50 , 70 Sub control unit 51, 71 Display control unit 52, 72 Buzzer output unit 53, 73 Outside temperature sensor 54, 74 Switch 75 Illuminance sensor

Claims (2)

A first control device provided on the refrigerator body side, a second control device provided on the refrigerator door side, means for determining whether a switch of the second control device is receiving input, and the refrigerator A refrigerator comprising: counting means for counting a time when the door is closed or the switch is not receiving input; and an illuminance sensor ,
The illuminance sensor detects the illuminance of the installation space of the refrigerator,
Sending and receiving information that each control device has between the first control device and the second control device ,
When the time counted by the counting means is a predetermined time or more, the communication frequency per unit time is lowered by one step ,
The refrigerator characterized in that when the time counted by the counting means is a predetermined time or more and the illuminance is low, the communication frequency per unit time is further lower than the communication frequency reduced by one step . Based on the opening / closing information of the refrigerator door, the use time zone and the unused time zone of the refrigerator are distinguished, the use time zone increases the communication frequency, and the unused time zone decreases the communication frequency. the to Rukoto characterized refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein.

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