JP5640589B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator in which an atomizer is installed in a storage room space.

  In recent years, some refrigerators for home use have the purpose of preserving foods such as vegetables, and by reducing the moisture content of foods by increasing the humidity in the cabinet, the preservation is improved. Here, there exists what sprays mist as a humidification means in a store | warehouse | chamber.

Conventionally, refrigerators equipped with this kind of mist spraying function are those that produce and spray mist with an ultrasonic atomizer when the storage chamber is low in humidity, and humidify the storage chamber to suppress transpiration of vegetables and moisture loss of food. (For example, see Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 12 shows a refrigerator provided with a conventional ultrasonic atomizer described in Patent Document 1. FIG. 13 is an enlarged perspective view showing a main part of the ultrasonic atomizer.

  As shown in the figure, the front opening of the vegetable compartment 21 which is one of the storage compartments provided in the refrigerator main body 20 is closed by a drawer door 22 which can be opened and closed freely. Moreover, the vegetable compartment 21 is partitioned off from the upper refrigerator compartment (not shown) by the partition plate 2.

  A fixed hanger 23 is fixed to the inner surface of the drawer door 22, and the vegetable container 1 for storing food such as vegetables is mounted on the fixed hanger 23. The top opening of the vegetable container 1 is sealed with a lid 3. A thawing chamber 4 is provided inside the vegetable container 1, and an ultrasonic atomizer 5 is provided in the thawing chamber 4.

  In addition, the ultrasonic atomizer 5 is provided with a mist outlet 6, a water storage container 7, a humidity sensor 8, and a hose receiver 9. The water storage container 7 is connected to a defrost water hose 10 by a hose receiver 9. The defrost water hose 10 is provided with a purification filter 11 for purifying the defrost water at a part thereof.

  The operation of the refrigerator configured as described above will be described below.

  The cold air cooled by a heat exchange cooler (not shown) flows through the outer surfaces of the vegetable container 1 and the lid 3, whereby the vegetable container 1 is cooled and the food stored therein is cooled. Further, the defrost water generated from the cooler during the refrigerator operation is purified by the purification filter 11 when passing through the defrost water hose 10 and supplied to the water storage container 7 of the ultrasonic atomizer 5.

  Next, when the humidity sensor 8 detects that the internal humidity is 90% or less, the ultrasonic atomizing device 5 starts humidification, so that the humidity in the vegetable container 1 is kept at a suitable level. Humidity can be adjusted.

  On the other hand, when the humidity sensor 8 detects that the internal humidity is 90% or more, the ultrasonic atomizer 5 stops excessive humidification. As a result, the ultrasonic atomizer 5 can quickly humidify the vegetable compartment, the humidity in the vegetable compartment is always high, the transpiration action of the vegetable or the like is suppressed, and the freshness of the vegetable or the like can be maintained.

  Moreover, the refrigerator provided with the ozone water mist apparatus is shown (for example, refer patent document 2).

  The refrigerator has an ozone generator, an exhaust port, a water supply path directly connected to a water supply, and an ozone water supply path in the vicinity of the vegetable compartment. The ozone water supply route is led to the vegetable room. The ozone generator is connected to a water supply unit directly connected to the water supply. Further, the exhaust port is configured to be connected to the ozone water supply path. In addition, an ultrasonic element is provided in the vegetable compartment. Ozone generated by the ozone generator is brought into contact with water to become ozone water as treated water. The generated ozone water is guided to the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator, atomized by an ultrasonic vibrator, and sprayed to the vegetable compartment.

JP-A-6-257933 JP 2000-220949 A

  However, in the above-described conventional configuration, since the water or ozone water is atomized by the ultrasonic vibration element, the atomized water particles or ozone water particles are not fine and the particles are large, and thus the mist is heavy. Therefore, the diffusibility is low and it cannot be sprayed by being diffused in the cabinet, and is sprayed only in the vegetable room where the ultrasonic atomizer 5 and the ozone water mist device are provided.

  Also, when water spray or ozone water particles are supplied to other storage chambers by natural diffusion, increasing the spray amount or continuous spraying causes food such as vegetables to rot, or condensation in the storage There is a problem that deterioration of freshness and quality are concerned.

  The present invention provides a refrigerator provided with a mist spraying device that exhibits an optimum effect in all the storage rooms of the refrigerator by more effectively distributing the mist generated by the mist spraying device to each storage room. With the goal.

In order to solve the above-described conventional problems, a refrigerator according to the present invention sprays mist, a plurality of storage chambers that are thermally insulated, a cooling chamber that houses a cooler and is connected to the plurality of storage chambers via an air passage. The plurality of storage chambers includes at least a refrigeration chamber that is held in a refrigeration temperature zone and a vegetable chamber that has a temperature setting equal to or higher than the refrigeration temperature zone, and is stored in the storage chamber A mist-dedicated section for storing the mist independently of the unit, and the mist supply from the mist-dedicated section to the refrigerator compartment is forced convection using a blower fan, and from the mist-dedicated section to the vegetable compartment also it is of the mist feed with a mist supply passage to natural convection
Therefore, the mist-dedicated section has an opening communicating with the vegetable compartment and an opening communicating with the vegetable compartment suction air passage .

In this way, in a refrigerated room where sterilization or deodorization is most desired due to a wide variety of foods to be stored, or in storage rooms where sterilization is mainly expected, mist is supplied from the dedicated compartment by forced convection. In a vegetable room or a storage room that mainly stores vegetables, the concentration of mist is reduced by using natural convection from the dedicated compartment to use convection. It is possible to provide a refrigerator in which the concentration of mist is adjusted according to any storage room as required by devising the way of mist distribution.

  The present invention can provide a refrigerator capable of exerting a useful effect by mist over a plurality of storage rooms.

The longitudinal cross-sectional view of the refrigerator in Embodiment 1 of this invention Sectional drawing of the principal part of the mist spraying apparatus in the refrigerator of Embodiment 1 of this invention The schematic diagram which shows the positional relationship of the air path and each store room in the refrigerator of Embodiment 1 of this invention. Sectional drawing which shows arrangement | positioning of the suction cover and outer case in the refrigerator of Embodiment 1 of this invention Top view of vegetable room in refrigerator of embodiment 1 of the present invention The timing chart figure which shows the control pattern of the mist spraying apparatus in the refrigerator of Embodiment 1 of this invention Explanatory drawing which shows the decoloring rate required in order to express the mist effect in the refrigerator of Embodiment 3 of this invention Longitudinal sectional view of the refrigerator in the second embodiment of the present invention The schematic diagram which shows the positional relationship of the air path and each store room in the refrigerator of Embodiment 2 of this invention. Sectional drawing which shows arrangement | positioning of the suction cover and outer case in the refrigerator of Embodiment 2 of this invention The schematic diagram which shows the positional relationship of the air path and each store room in the refrigerator of Embodiment 3 of this invention. Vertical section of a vegetable room in a conventional refrigerator The expanded perspective view which shows the principal part of the ultrasonic atomizer provided in the vegetable compartment of the conventional refrigerator

The first invention includes a plurality of storage chambers that are insulated and partitioned, a cooling chamber that houses a cooler and is connected to the plurality of storage chambers via an air passage, and a mist spraying device that sprays mist, The plurality of storage rooms include at least a refrigeration room maintained in a refrigeration temperature zone and a vegetable room having a temperature setting equal to or higher than the refrigeration temperature zone, and stores the mist independently of a storage unit in the storage room. The mist supply from the mist dedicated section to the refrigerator compartment is forced convection using a blower fan, and the mist supply from the mist dedicated section to the vegetable compartment is natural convection. The mist exclusive section has an opening communicated with the vegetable compartment and an opening communicated with the vegetable compartment suction air passage.

  As a result, in the refrigerator compartment where the sterilization or deodorization effect is most desired due to the wide variety of stored foods, it is possible to supply a thick mist by supplying mist from the dedicated compartment by forced convection. In the vegetable room, the mist concentration can be made thinner than using forced convection by supplying mist by natural convection from the dedicated section, and any method according to need can be obtained by devising the way of mist distribution. It is possible to provide a refrigerator in which the concentration of mist is adjusted according to the storage room.

According to a second invention, in the first invention, a mist concentration in a storage chamber other than the storage chamber provided with the mist spraying device is higher than a mist concentration in a storage chamber provided with the mist spraying device.

  As a result, in a storage room other than the storage room provided with the mist spraying device, the mist concentration necessary for realizing the mist effect (such as sterilization and deodorization) is higher than that in the storage room where the mist spraying device is installed. Even so, the mist spraying device can be installed at any optimum location, and can exhibit a mist effect in a storage room that requires a high concentration of mist.

  As a result, since the mist spraying device is provided in the storage chamber having a relatively high absolute humidity, it becomes possible for condensation to occur in the atomizing portion of the mist spraying device, so that the mist can be sprayed stably. Become.

  Also, in the storage room where the absolute humidity is relatively low and the mist spraying device is not installed, the mist concentration required to realize the mist effect (such as sterilization and deodorization) is higher than that of the storage chamber where the mist spraying device is installed. Even if it is a case, a mist effect can be expressed in store rooms other than the store room provided with the mist spraying apparatus.

  In other words, since the mist is sprayed only indirectly in a storage room with a low absolute humidity where no mist spraying device is installed, the mist concentration generally tends to be lower than in a storage chamber where a mist spraying device is installed. It is the main point of the present invention that the mist concentration in the other storage chamber that is indirectly sprayed with mist becomes higher.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The same reference numerals are given to the same configurations as those of the conventional example or the embodiments described above, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a refrigerator according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view of essential parts of a mist spraying device in the refrigerator according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a diagram of Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing the positional relationship between the air passage and each storage room in the refrigerator, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the arrangement of the suction cover and the outer case in the refrigerator of Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a timing chart showing a control pattern of the mist spraying device in the refrigerator of Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is in the refrigerator of Embodiment 1 of the present invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the decoloring rate required in order to express a mist effect.

  In the figure, a heat insulating box 101 which is a refrigerator main body of the refrigerator 100 includes an outer box 102 mainly using a steel plate, an inner box 103 formed of a resin such as ABS, and the outer box 102 and the inner box 103. It is comprised with the hard foaming urethane 101b by which foam filling is carried out, and it heat-insulates with the circumference | surroundings and is heat-insulated by the partition wall 101C into several storage chambers. A refrigeration chamber 104 as a first storage chamber is provided at the top, and a switching chamber 105 as a fourth storage chamber and an ice making chamber 106 as a fifth storage chamber are provided side by side below the refrigeration chamber 104. A freezing room 107 as a second storage room is arranged at the lower part of the chamber 105 and the ice making room 106, and a vegetable room 108 as a third storage room is arranged at the lowermost part, and each storage room has a door 104a, 105a, 106a, 107a, 118 are provided.

  The refrigerated room 104 is set to a refrigerated temperature zone that is a temperature that does not freeze for refrigerated storage, and is usually set to 1 ° C. to 5 ° C. The vegetable temperature range is 2 ° C to 7 ° C. The freezer compartment 107 is set in a freezing temperature zone, and is usually set at −22 ° C. to −15 ° C. for frozen storage, but for example, −30 ° C. or −25 ° C. to improve the frozen storage state. It may be set at a low temperature.

  The switching chamber 105 can be switched to a preset temperature zone between the refrigeration temperature zone and the freezing temperature zone in addition to the refrigeration temperature zone, vegetable temperature zone, and freezing temperature zone. The switching chamber 105 is a storage chamber provided with an independent door arranged in parallel with the ice making chamber 106, and is often provided with a drawer-type door.

  In this embodiment, the switching chamber 105 is a storage room including the temperature range of refrigeration and freezing. However, the refrigeration is performed by the refrigeration room 104 and the vegetable room 108, and the freezing is performed by the freezing room 107. A storage room specialized for switching only the temperature zone in the middle of freezing may be used. Moreover, the storage room fixed to the specific temperature range may be sufficient.

  The ice making chamber 106 creates ice with an automatic ice maker (not shown) provided in the upper part of the room with water sent from a water storage tank (not shown) in the refrigerated room 104, and an ice storage container ( (Not shown).

  The top surface portion of the heat insulating box 101 has a stepped recess shape toward the back of the refrigerator. A machine chamber 101a is formed in the stepped recess, and the compressor 109, moisture is formed in the machine chamber 101a. Houses high pressure side components of the refrigeration cycle such as a dryer (not shown) for removal. That is, the machine room 101 a in which the compressor 109 is disposed is formed by biting into the uppermost rear region in the refrigerator compartment 104.

Thus, by providing the machine room 101a in the rear region of the uppermost storage room of the heat insulation box 101 that has become a dead space that is difficult to reach, the compressor 109 is disposed in the conventional refrigerator. The space in the machine room at the bottom of the easy-to-use heat insulation box 101 can be effectively converted as the storage room capacity, and the storage performance and usability can be greatly improved.

  The refrigeration cycle is formed of a series of refrigerant flow paths including a compressor 109, a condenser (not shown), a capillary as a decompressor, a cooler 112, and an accumulator 112a in order by a refrigerant pipe 112b. For example, isobutane, which is a hydrocarbon-based refrigerant, is enclosed.

  The compressor 109 is a reciprocating compressor that compresses refrigerant by reciprocating a piston in a cylinder. In the case of a refrigeration cycle using a three-way valve or a switching valve for the heat insulation box 101, those functional parts may be disposed in the machine room 101a.

  In this embodiment, the decompressor constituting the refrigeration cycle is a capillary. However, an electronic expansion valve that can freely control the flow rate of the refrigerant driven by the pulse motor may be used.

  In the present embodiment, the matter relating to the main part of the invention described below is a type in which the compressor 109 is arranged by providing a machine room in the rear region of the lowermost storage chamber of the heat insulation box 101 which has been generally used conventionally. It may be applied to other refrigerators.

  A cooling chamber 110 for generating cold air is provided on the back surface of the freezing chamber 107, and is partitioned from the air passage 141, and a rear partition wall 111 configured to be thermally insulated from each storage chamber is configured. In the cooling chamber 110, a cooler 112 is disposed, and in the upper space of the cooler 112, the cold air cooled by the cooler 112 by a forced convection method is stored in the refrigerating chamber 104, the switching chamber 105, the ice making chamber 106, and vegetables. A cooling fan 203 for blowing air to the chamber 108 and the freezing chamber 107 is disposed.

  The air passage 141 is provided with a damper device 241 to adjust the air volume in the air path. In this embodiment, the air temperature to the refrigerator compartment 104 is adjusted so that the room temperature falls within a predetermined temperature range.

  Further, a radiant heater 114 made of a glass tube is provided in the lower space of the cooler 112 to defrost frost and ice adhering to the cooler 112 and its periphery during cooling.

  In the vegetable compartment 108, a storage container 119 placed on a frame attached to the drawer door 118 of the vegetable compartment 108 is disposed.

  In the upper part of the vegetable compartment 108, there are a suction inlet 126 for the vegetable compartment for cooling the inside of the vegetable compartment 108 and returning heat to the cooler 112, and a suction inlet cover 126a installed in the upper part of the vegetable compartment 108. It is provided so as to cover the suction port 126. The heat-exchanged cold air is taken in from an opening provided in the suction port cover 126a, is carried to the cooling chamber 110 through the suction port 126, and is circulated in the refrigerator after being cooled.

  Here, the suction port 126 can be interpreted as an opening leading to a storage room (the refrigeration room 104 and the freezing room 107) where the mist spraying device 131 is not provided.

  It should be noted that the matters relating to the main part of the invention described below in the present embodiment may be applied to a refrigerator that is opened and closed by a frame attached to a door and a rail provided in an inner box, which has been conventionally common. I do not care.

  The rear surface partition wall 111 is composed of a resin such as ABS and a heat insulating material such as polystyrene foam for isolating the air passage 141 and the cooling chamber 110 and ensuring the heat insulation of the storage chamber.

  An outer case 127 is provided in the upper part of the vegetable compartment 108, and a mist spraying device 131 is installed therein.

  In the present embodiment, the mist-dedicated section is formed by an outer case 127 that covers the mist spraying device, and the inner space of the outer case 127 is an air passage 141 from the vegetable compartment 108 that is a storage room provided with the mist spraying device 131. It communicates with a suction port that returns cool air to the air.

  The mist spraying device 131 sprays mist using the dew condensation water generated by condensing moisture in the air, and is mainly an atomization unit 139, a voltage application unit 133, and a heat transfer cooling member. The outer case 127 is provided with a humidity supply port 138, which includes a cooling pin 134.

  The atomization part 139 is an atomization electrode which sprays mist from the front-end | tip, and is comprised with platinum, titanium, etc. The atomizing section 139 is located close to the cooling pin 134, which is a heat transfer cooling member made of a good heat conducting member such as aluminum or stainless steel, via an electrically insulating material such as alumina, and is located almost at the center of the cooling pin 134. It is fixed to.

  The material of the cooling pin 134 is preferably a high heat conductive member such as aluminum or copper, and the periphery of the cooling pin 134 is covered with a heat insulating material 152 in order to efficiently transfer cold heat from one end to the other end of the cooling pin 134. It is desirable.

  Further, in the present embodiment, since the shape of the cooling pin 134 is a cylinder, when fitting into the heat insulating material 152, the mist spraying device 131 can be pressed and attached while rotating even if the fitting size is a little tight. Therefore, the cooling pin 134 can be attached with no gap.

  The shape of the cooling pin 134 may be a rectangular parallelepiped or a regular polygon. In the case of these polygons, positioning is easier than a cylinder, and the mist spraying device 131 can be provided at an accurate position.

  The cooling pin 134 has a projecting portion 134 a with its tip extending in a convex shape toward the freezer compartment 107 through the inside of the heat insulating material 152. The tip surface and the periphery of the projecting portion 134a are not provided with a heat insulating material, and the inner wall formed of a resin such as ABS serving as a freezer compartment wall also extends in a convex shape toward the refrigerator compartment 104 side. Since the freezing chamber 107 is a drawer-type storage chamber, the extending portion is arranged so that it is not visible to the user even when the door is opened by an internal storage container.

  The temperature of the freezer compartment 107 is −22 ° C. to −15 ° C. By extending the tip of the cooling pin 134, the entire cooling pin 134 can be cooled more effectively. Or the structure of exposing the front-end | tip surface of the cooling pin 134 to the freezer compartment 107 may be sufficient. Furthermore, the cooling pin 134 may be embedded in the heat insulating material 152, but in this case, the cooling effect of the cooling pin 134 is smaller than that in the present embodiment.

  Here, the cooling pin 134 cooled by the cold air in the freezer compartment 107 cools the atomizing portion 139 by heat conduction, and condensation occurs on the surface of the atomizing portion 139 that has become a temperature below the dew point, and this condensed water is used. Mist will be sprayed.

  In addition, a disk-shaped counter electrode 136 having a hollow donut-shaped interior on the storage chamber (vegetable chamber 108) side at a position facing the atomizing portion 139 maintains a certain distance from the tip of the atomizing portion 139. As installed.

  Further, a voltage application unit 133 is configured in the vicinity of the atomization unit 139, and the negative potential side of the voltage application unit 133 that generates a high voltage is electrically connected to the atomization electrode 135 and the positive potential side is electrically connected to the counter electrode 136, respectively. Yes.

  In the vicinity of the atomizing portion 139, discharge is always generated due to mist spraying, and thus there is a possibility that wear will occur at the tip of the atomizing portion 139. Since the refrigerator 100 is generally operated for a long period of 10 years or longer, the surface of the atomizing portion 139 needs to be surface-treated. For example, it is desirable to use nickel plating, gold plating, or platinum plating.

  The counter electrode 136 is made of, for example, stainless steel, and it is necessary to ensure its long-term reliability. In particular, in order to prevent foreign matter adhesion and contamination, it is desirable to perform surface treatment such as platinum plating.

  The voltage application unit 133 communicates and is controlled with the control means 146 of the refrigerator main body, and performs ON / OFF of high voltage application by an input signal from the refrigerator 100 or the mist spraying device 131.

  In the present embodiment, the voltage application unit 133 is installed in the mist spraying device 131, and the storage room (vegetable room 108) is in a low temperature and high humidity atmosphere. Therefore, on the substrate surface of the voltage application unit 133, Bold material or coating material is applied to prevent moisture.

  About the refrigerator 100 of this Embodiment comprised as mentioned above, the operation | movement and an effect | action are demonstrated below.

  First, the operation of the refrigeration cycle will be described. The refrigeration cycle is operated by a signal from a control board (not shown) according to the set temperature in the cabinet, and the cooling operation is performed.

  Here, the low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant exchanges heat with the cold air in each storage chamber, and the refrigerant in the cooler 112 evaporates. When evaporating and evaporating, heat for evaporating is taken from the surroundings to generate cool air for cooling each storage chamber in the cooling chamber 110. The low-temperature cold air is diverted from the cooling fan 203 to the refrigerating room 104, the switching room 105, the ice making room 106, the vegetable room 108, and the freezing room 107 by using the air passage 141 or the damper device 241 and cooled to the respective target temperature zones. . In particular, the vegetable compartment 108 is adjusted to 2 ° C. to 7 ° C. by ON / OFF operation such as cold air distribution and heating means (not shown), and generally has no internal temperature detection means. There are many.

  The flow of the cold air circulating through the storage rooms of the refrigerator 100 will be described with reference to FIG. The cool air in each storage chamber is structured to return to the cooling chamber 110 through the air passage 141 when the cooling fan 203 is operated. When the returned cold air passes through the cooler 112, it is heat-exchanged and cooled, and is supplied to each storage room through an air passage.

  First, the cold air heat-exchanged in the cooling chamber 110 is supplied to the freezing chamber 107, the switching chamber 105, and the ice making chamber 106, and the damper device 241 provided in the discharge air passage 141 a that flows from the cooler 112 to the refrigerating chamber 104. When is open, cold air is supplied to the refrigerator compartment 104. In addition, the cold air that has passed through the damper device 241 is supplied to the vegetable compartment 108 through the air passage 141 that goes into the refrigerator compartment 104 and the discharge air passage 141 a that leads to the branched vegetable compartment 108.

  In addition, the cold air after cooling each storage room returns to the cooling room 110 through the suction air passage 141b again, and the refrigerator is cooled to a predetermined temperature by repeating this cycle.

Here, the cold air circulated through the vegetable chamber 108 returns to the cooling chamber 110 through the suction port 126 that is the entrance to the suction air passage 141b. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the mist spraying device 131 is a mist-dedicated section. The outer case 127 is provided with a humidity supply port 138 that is an opening for taking in high-humidity cold air from the vegetable compartment 108.

  The taken-in high-humidity cold air is cooled by the atomizing section 139 that has become below the dew point due to heat conduction from the freezing temperature zone, and is condensed and sprayed with mist.

  Cold air in the freezing temperature zone in the freezer compartment 107, which is a cooling means for cooling the cooling pins 134, is generated by the cooler 112 by the operation of the cooling system, and cool air of about −15 to −25 ° C. flows by the cooling fan 203, The cooling pin 134 which is a heat transfer cooling member is cooled to about 0 to −10 ° C., for example.

  Here, the temperature of the vegetable compartment 108 is 2 ° C. to 7 ° C., and the temperature of the cooling pin 134 on the side of the vegetable compartment 108 is 10 ° C. or more with the surrounding air, and the humidity is relatively high due to transpiration from the vegetables. Since it is in the state, the atomization part 139 becomes below the dew point temperature, water is generated in the atomization part 139, and water droplets adhere.

  A high voltage (for example, 4 to 10 kV) is applied to the atomizing unit 139 to which water droplets are attached by the voltage applying unit 133 to cause corona discharge, and water droplets at the tip of the atomizing unit 139 are refined by electrostatic energy, It becomes. Furthermore, since the droplets are charged, ozone, OH radicals, etc. are generated simultaneously with nano-level or pico-level fine mist having a charge of several nm level due to Rayleigh splitting.

  The effect expected by such mist spraying differs depending on the usage pattern unique to the refrigerator.

  For example, the mist diffused in the vegetable compartment 108 is expected to act mainly on the vegetables in the cabinet to increase nutrients such as vitamin C and prevent low-temperature damage.

  Further, the mist diffused in the refrigerator compartment 104 mainly acts on the bacteria present in the warehouse, and a sterilizing effect is expected.

  Indigo carmine is the mist concentration necessary for expressing the expected effect in the storage room, that is, the mist concentration necessary for expressing the effect on vegetables and the mist concentration necessary for expressing the sterilization effect. FIG. 7 shows the decoloration rate of the aqueous solution.

  The indigo carmine aqueous solution acted on ozone and OH radicals contained in the mist to cause a decolorization reaction, and the mist concentration was quantified by measuring the decolorization rate.

  10 g of indigo carmine aqueous solution is put in a container (in this embodiment, a plastic petri dish having an inner diameter of 53 mm), and the container is placed in the refrigerator compartment 104 and the vegetable compartment 108 for measuring the mist concentration. The container was taken out from the vegetable compartment 108, and the absorbance of the indigo carmine aqueous solution was measured with an ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometer (manufactured by JASCO Corporation: UV-245).

  The containers containing the indigo carmine aqueous solution are placed in the refrigerator compartment 104 in the open state without covering the center of the three shelves, and the container is distributed in the vegetable compartment 108 on the front, rear, left and right sides of the storage container 119. At the same time, in the upper case (not shown) in the upper part of the storage container 119, the six containers are respectively arranged in an open state without a lid.

  Here, the decolorization rate is defined as the decolorization rate obtained by dividing the amount of change with respect to the absorbance of the blank indigo carmine aqueous solution not arranged in the refrigerator by the absorbance of the blank indigo carmine aqueous solution.

  Note that a container containing a blank indigo carmine aqueous solution is also placed in the same temperature and humidity environment as the refrigerator compartment 104 and the vegetable compartment 108.

  The decolorization rate of the refrigerator compartment 104 is the average value of the measurement results of the three containers, and the decolorization rate of the vegetable compartment 108 is the average value of the measurement results of the 12 containers.

  In addition, in order to prevent the indigo carmine aqueous solution from decolorizing due to factors other than mist, it is preferable to be careful not to hit light as much as possible.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the decolorization rate necessary to develop the sterilization effect is larger than the decolorization rate necessary to develop the effect on vegetables, and the absorbance measurement of the indigo carmine aqueous solution in the refrigerator 100 of the present embodiment. The decolorization rates in the vegetable compartment 108 and the refrigerator compartment 104 exceeded the numerical values in FIG. 11, and the decoloration rate in the refrigerator compartment 104 was higher than the decoloration ratio in the vegetable compartment 108.

  That is, the mist concentration in the refrigerator compartment 104 is higher than the mist concentration in the vegetable compartment 108.

  In addition, the inside environment of the vegetable compartment 108 in which the mist spraying device 131 is installed is about 5 ° C., and the relative humidity is about 70% to 90%, which is 4.77 to 6.14 g / m 3 when converted to absolute humidity. The internal environment of the refrigerator compartment 104 is about 5 ° C., and the relative humidity is about 10% to 20%, which is 0.68 to 1.36 g / m 3 when converted to absolute humidity.

  The absolute humidity of the vegetable compartment 108 is higher than the absolute humidity of the refrigerator compartment 104 due to the transpiration of the vegetables stored in the vegetable compartment 108. The refrigerator compartment 104 stores generally packaged food. Therefore, the absolute humidity in the cabinet is hardly as high as the vegetable room 108.

  From the above experiments, it was found that in order to develop the sterilization effect, it was necessary to make the concentration higher than the mist concentration that exerts the effect of increasing nutrients and the effect of suppressing low-temperature injury, which are effects on vegetables.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the refrigerated room 104, which is a storage room in which the sterilization effect is mainly desired to be developed, has a higher concentration than the vegetable room 108, which is a storage room in which the effect is primarily desired for the vegetables. A mist supply path is formed.

  Specifically, after the sprayed mist fills the mist dedicated section, the mist supply path changes depending on whether forced convection occurs in the mist dedicated section or natural convection, and is supplied to the vegetable compartment 108. Or is supplied to another storage room.

  In the present embodiment, the cooling fan 203 is provided in the mist supply path, and the mist supply path for supplying mist is switched depending on whether the cooling fan 203 is activated.

Specifically, when the cooling fan 203 is stopped, that is, when the inside of the mist dedicated section is natural convection and there is no forced cooling air flow, the mist filled in the mist dedicated section is not opened. Is fed into the vegetable compartment 108. In addition, when the cooling fan 203 is in operation, a flow of cold air is generated by forced convection in the mist exclusive section, and the outer case 127 is connected to the suction port 126. Therefore, the suction port 126 and the air passage 141 are connected. The mist is conveyed to the cooling chamber 110 through the cooling chamber 110, and is supplied to the refrigerating chamber 104 through the flow of cool air flowing through the discharge air passage 141 a through the cooling chamber.

  Thereby, the mist density | concentration of the refrigerator compartment 104 to which mist is supplied with the flow of the cold air by forced convection can be made deep.

  Further, the suction port cover 126a is connected to the suction port 126 so that the cool air of the vegetable compartment 108 is taken in from the opening 147 and is conveyed to the cooling chamber 110 through the suction port 126 and the suction air passage 141b.

  Here, in the present embodiment, the outer case 127 and the suction port cover 126a communicate with each other and are further connected. Note that the outer case 127 may also serve as the suction port cover 126a. In this case, the humidity supply port 138 can also serve as the opening 147.

  The mist supply path is determined by the size of the opening 147 that connects the vegetable room 108, that is, a storage room that mainly increases the nutrients of vegetables or suppresses the low-temperature damage of vegetables, and the opening 147 that communicates with the mist dedicated section. Can be adjusted.

  The experimental verification revealed that the larger the area of the humidity supply port 138, the larger the amount of mist supplied to the vegetable room 108. Therefore, the amount of mist supplied to the vegetable room is adjusted by adjusting the area of the humidity supply port 138.

  In this embodiment, in order to increase the amount of mist supplied to the refrigerator compartment 104, the area of the humidity supply port 138, which is also the mist supply port to the vegetable compartment 108, is designed to be small, and the amount of mist supplied to the vegetable compartment 108 is reduced. Yes.

  In addition, since the temperature in the vegetable compartment 108 is usually 10 ° C. or more higher than that in the freezer compartment 107, even when the cooling fan 203 does not operate, a gentle convection is generated in the direction from the outer case 127 to the inlet 126 due to the temperature difference. As a result, a part of the mist flows along the flow to the suction port 126, so that it is not necessary to reduce the humidity supply port 138 even if the mist supply to the vegetable compartment 108 is suppressed. Thereby, it becomes possible to ensure the size of the humidity supply port 138 that can sufficiently supply the high-humidity air in the vegetable compartment 108.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the area of the opening 147 that communicates the vegetable compartment 108 and the mist dedicated section as the mist supply path is the air path of the mist dedicated section communicating with the refrigerator compartment 104 (to the refrigerator compartment 104). Since it is smaller than the cross-sectional area of the discharge air passage 141a), the concentration is reduced by decreasing the amount of mist supplied to the vegetable compartment 108, and the concentration is increased by increasing the amount of mist supplied to the refrigerator compartment 104. doing.

  As shown in FIG. 3, when the cooling fan 203 is operated, the mist generated in the outer case 127 passes through the cooling chamber 110 and the damper device 241 by forced convection and rides on the flow of the cold air in the discharge air passage so that the refrigeration chamber 104 and the vegetables It diffuses into the chamber 108.

  Here, the air volume of the cold air flowing through the discharge air passage 141a to the refrigerator compartment 104 and the vegetable compartment 108 depends on the cross-sectional area of the discharge air passage 141a. In this embodiment, the air flow of the discharge air passage 141a to the refrigerator compartment 104 is determined. Since the cross-sectional area is larger than the cross-sectional area of the discharge air passage 141 a to the vegetable compartment 108, the cold air passing through the damper device 241 flows more into the refrigerator compartment 104 than the vegetable compartment 108.

  Therefore, even when the cooling fan 203 is operating, it is possible to increase the amount of mist supplied to the refrigerating room 104 rather than the vegetable room 108.

  Here, in the present embodiment, the outer case 127 and the suction port cover 126a communicate with each other and are further connected. Note that the outer case 127 may also serve as the suction port cover 126a. In this case, the humidity supply port 138 can also serve as the opening 147.

  Thus, the fine mist generated in the atomization electrode 135 is shunted in the outer case 127 which is a mist-dedicated section and is also supplied to the refrigerator compartment 104. The effect of deodorizing the odor caused by the internal food is expressed.

  Further, since the fine mist is generated by high-pressure discharge, it has a negative charge. On the other hand, vegetables and fruits stored in the vegetable compartment 108 have a positive charge. Therefore, the atomized mist tends to gather on the surface of vegetables even if the concentration is lower than that of the mist supplied to the refrigerator compartment 104, thereby improving the useful effect of the mist.

  In addition, nano-level fine mist adhering to the vegetable surface contains a lot of OH radicals and a small amount of ozone, etc., and is effective for sterilization, antibacterial, sterilization, etc. Encourages vegetables to increase nutrients such as vitamin C.

  As described above, in the first embodiment, a plurality of storage compartments (such as the vegetable compartment 108) that are thermally insulated, the cooler 112, and the cooling fan 203 are accommodated, and each storage compartment and the air passage 141 are interposed. It has a cooling chamber 110 connected to it and a mist spraying device 131 for spraying mist. The mist spraying device 131 is housed in an outer case 127 provided in the vegetable compartment 108 and is generated from the mist spraying device 131. A mist supply path for diverting the mist in the outer case 127 is provided, and the mist is diffused by natural convection to the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying device 131, and a storage chamber (not provided with the mist spraying device 131). The mist is diffused by forced convection into the refrigerator compartment 104 and the freezer compartment 107).

  The mist generated from the mist spraying device 131 is first diffused in the outer case 127 that forms a mist-dedicated section, and the mist in the outer case has a high concentration of 10 to 20 times that in the vegetable compartment 108. This high-concentration mist is supplied to the vegetable compartment 108 by natural convection, but the entire amount is not supplied directly, and the mist concentration in the vegetable compartment is 1/10 or less in the dedicated compartment.

  When forced convection occurs in the mist stored in the outer case 127, the mist is distributed to each storage room (the refrigeration room 104 and the freezing room 107) through the mist supply path that is divided in the outer case 127, and is actively generated by forced convection. Since mist supply is performed, the mist concentration is higher than that in the vegetable compartment 108, and the sterilization effect can be expressed by the mist having a high concentration.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the outer case 127 is provided with an opening communicating with the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying device 131 and a storage room (the refrigerator compartment 104, the freezer) in which the mist spraying device 131 is not provided. An opening leading to the chamber 107) is also provided.

  As a result, since the mist passes through the respective openings, the mist can be divided and diffused in the outer case 127, so that the mist can be distributed to each storage room (the refrigerator compartment 104 and the freezer compartment 107). It becomes possible.

In the present embodiment, the mist spraying device 131 is housed in an outer case 127 provided in the vegetable compartment 108, and the outer case 127 returns the indoor cold air from the vegetable compartment 108 to the cooling chamber 110. And a humidity supply port 138 which is an opening is provided on the surface of the outer case 127 with respect to the vegetable compartment 108, and at least when the cooling fan 203 is operated, the mist is stored in another storage compartment such as the refrigerator compartment 104. A mist supply path capable of diffusing to the outside is formed, and since the mist is sprayed when the cooling fan 203 is operated, the mist is actively supplied to other storage rooms using forced convection by the cooling fan 203. The structure to be realized can be realized in the refrigerator 100.

  The supply of mist to the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying device 131 is performed by natural convection mainly through the opening provided in the outer case 127 when the cooling fan 203 does not operate.

  Further, in the present embodiment, it is possible to optimize the shape and size of the outer case 127 and the main body and the opening of the suction port cover 126a in order to adjust the mist supply amount and pursue each function.

  Note that the supply of mist to the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying device 131 is mainly through the humidity supply port 138 provided in the outer case 127 and the opening 147 provided in the suction port cover 126a, and the damper device 241. This is done by natural convection when closed.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of the refrigerator according to the second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing the positional relationship between the air passage and each storage room in the refrigerator according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows arrangement | positioning of the suction cover and outer case in the refrigerator of Embodiment 2.

  In addition, although description is abbreviate | omitted about the part which can apply the structure similar to Embodiment 1, and the same technical idea, unless there is a malfunction by combining this Embodiment with the structure of Embodiment 1, and implementing it. It is possible to apply in combination.

As shown in the figure, in the present embodiment, a damper device 241 is provided at the suction port 126 for returning the cold air from the vegetable compartment 108 to the cooling compartment 110. Here, the damper device can be opened and closed. When the damper device is open, not only the cold air in the vegetable compartment is sent to the cooling chamber, but also the mist generated in the mist spraying device 131 is sent to the cooling chamber by forced convection, and the air path Mist diffuses through the refrigerator compartment 104 and the like.

  On the other hand, when the damper device 241 is closed, the cold air in the vegetable chamber 108 and the mist generated in the mist spraying device 131 cannot pass through the suction port 126 and diffuse into the vegetable chamber 108 by natural convection. It will be.

As described above, in the second embodiment, since the damper device 241 is provided in the suction port 126 for returning the indoor cold air of the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying device 131 to the cooling chamber 110, the generated mist is generated. The distribution to each storage room can be controlled more accurately. In particular, it is easy to adjust the amount of mist spraying in the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying device 131, and the operation can be performed by a simple operation of opening and closing the damper device 241 depending on the amount of mist spraying.

  At present, refrigerants in the refrigeration cycle that use isobutane, which is a flammable refrigerant with a low global warming potential, are mainly used from the viewpoint of global environmental conservation.

This isobutane, which is a hydrocarbon, has a specific gravity approximately twice that of cold air at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. If isobutane, which is a flammable refrigerant, leaks from the refrigeration system when the compressor 109 is stopped, it is more than cold air. Because it is heavy, it will stay downward. Therefore, even if isobutane leaks from the cooler 112 to the vegetable compartment 108, since the mist spraying device 131 is installed on the upper surface of the vegetable compartment 108, the possibility that the vicinity of the mist spraying device 131 becomes a flammable concentration is extremely low. Therefore, even when a high voltage is applied to the mist spraying device 131, safety can be ensured.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the positional relationship between the air passage and each storage room in the refrigerator according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

  Note that the description of the portions to which the same configuration and the same technical idea as those of the first embodiment or the second embodiment can be applied is omitted, but the present embodiment is applied to the configuration of the first embodiment or the second embodiment. By implementing in combination, it is possible to apply in combination as long as there is no problem.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, a mist exclusive air passage 300 is provided, and a fan capable of forced convection is provided in the mist exclusive air passage 300 or the refrigerator compartment 104.

  The mist exclusive air passage 300 is directly connected to the refrigerating chamber 104 without passing through the cooling chamber 110 separately from the air passage 141 connected to the cooling chamber 110 from the suction port 126.

  Therefore, the mist generated in the mist spraying device 131 and diverted in the outer case 127 diffuses to the vegetable compartment 108 and is also diffused directly to the refrigerator compartment 104 through the mist exclusive air passage 300 without passing through the cooling compartment 110 by forced convection. The

  As described above, in the third embodiment, a plurality of storage rooms (vegetable room 108, etc.), which are thermally insulated, a cooler 112, and a cooling fan 203 are housed and each storage room and the air passage 141 are interposed. It has a cooling chamber 110 connected to it and a mist spraying device 131 for spraying mist. The mist spraying device 131 is housed in an outer case 127 provided in the vegetable compartment 108 and is generated from the mist spraying device 131. The mist is divided in the outer case 127 to diffuse the mist to the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying device 131 and to the storage room (the refrigeration chamber 104, the freezing compartment 107) where the mist spraying device 131 is not provided. The refrigerator 100 diffuses mist.

  As a result, the mist generated from the mist spraying device 131 is first diffused into the outer case 127, so that the entire amount is not supplied directly to the vegetable compartment 108, and the mist that diffuses into the outer case 127 is not directly supplied to the outer case 127. Therefore, the mist is supplied to the refrigerating compartment 104 through the air passage 141 and the refrigeration compartment 107 through the air passage 141, so that a useful effect of the mist can be expressed in each storage room of the refrigerator.

  In the present embodiment, the outer case 127 is provided with an opening 138 that communicates with the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying device 131 and a storage room (the refrigeration chamber 104, which is not provided with the mist spraying device 131). An opening 126 leading to the freezing chamber 107) is also provided, and the mist passes through the opening 126 and the opening 138. Therefore, the mist is divided in the outer case 127, which is a mist-dedicated section, to the mist supply path. Since it can supply, it becomes possible to distribute mist to each storage room (refrigeration room 104, freezing room 107).

Moreover, in this Embodiment, the mist density | concentration in the refrigerator compartment 104 which is storage rooms other than the vegetable compartment 108 in which the mist spraying apparatus 131 was provided is larger than the mist density | concentration in the vegetable compartment 108 which installed the mist spraying apparatus 131, Since the mist is directly sprayed in the vegetable room 108 in which the mist spraying device 131 is installed, the mist concentration is generally higher than that in the refrigeration room 104 as the other storage room, but the refrigeration room in which the mist is sprayed indirectly. Since the mist density | concentration of 104 is high, the mist effect (sanitization effect) in the refrigerator compartment 104 can be expressed.

  Moreover, in this Embodiment, the absolute humidity in the refrigerator compartment 104 which is storage rooms other than the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying apparatus 131 is smaller than the absolute humidity in the vegetable compartment 108 provided with the mist spraying apparatus 131. The mist spraying device 131 is provided in the vegetable compartment 108 in which the mist concentration in the refrigeration room 104 which is a storage room other than the storage room provided with the spraying device 131 is larger than the mist concentration in the vegetable compartment 108 and has a relatively high absolute humidity. As a result, the atomization unit 139 of the mist spraying device 131 is in a state where condensation is likely to occur, so that it is possible to spray the mist stably.

  Since the refrigeration room 104, which is a storage room having a low absolute humidity where the mist spraying device 131 is not installed, is sprayed only indirectly, the mist concentration is generally lower than that of the vegetable compartment 108 in which the mist spraying device 131 is installed. Although it is easy to become, since the mist density | concentration of the refrigerator compartment 104 sprayed mist indirectly is high, the mist effect (sanitization effect) in the refrigerator compartment 104 can be expressed.

  Moreover, in this Embodiment, the storage chamber in which the mist spraying device 131 was provided is the vegetable compartment 108 which accommodates vegetables, and the absolute humidity in the vegetable compartment 108 increases by transpiration of vegetables, and the mist spraying apparatus 131 is atomized. Since the dew condensation is likely to occur in the portion 139, the mist can be stably sprayed.

  As described above, the refrigerator according to the present invention can stably supply mist to each storage room stably with a simple configuration. Can do.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Refrigerator 104 Refrigeration room 105 Switching room 106 Ice making room 107 Freezing room 108 Vegetable room 110 Cooling room 112 Cooler 126 Suction port (opening)
126a Suction port cover 127 Outer case 131 Mist spraying device 134 Cooling pin (heat transfer cooling member)
138 Humidity supply port (opening)
139 Atomization part 141 Air path 141a Discharge air path 141b Suction air path 147 Opening 203 Cooling fan 241 Damper device

Claims (2)

A plurality of storage chambers that are thermally insulated; a cooling chamber that houses a cooler and connected to the plurality of storage chambers via an air passage; and a mist spraying device that sprays mist, wherein the plurality of storage chambers are: It has at least a refrigerated room maintained in a refrigerated temperature zone and a vegetable room set to a temperature equal to or higher than the refrigerated temperature zone, and has a mist-dedicated section for storing the mist independently of a storage part in the storage chamber In addition, the mist supply from the mist dedicated section to the refrigerator compartment is a forced convection using a blower fan, and the mist supply from the mist dedicated section to the vegetable room has a mist supply path for natural convection. In the refrigerator, the mist-dedicated section has an opening communicating with the vegetable compartment and an opening communicating with the vegetable compartment suction air passage. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein a mist concentration in a storage chamber other than the storage chamber provided with the mist spraying device is higher than a mist concentration in a storage chamber provided with the mist spraying device.