JP6709347B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a refrigerator that cools and stores foods and the like in a storage chamber, and particularly relates to a refrigerator that has a function of rapidly freezing foods and the like in a freezing chamber.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a refrigerator, there is known a refrigerator provided with a blower for rapidly freezing foods and the like in a freezing chamber, in addition to a main blower that circulates cool air throughout the refrigerator. This type of refrigerator is described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, for example.

Further, Patent Document 3 describes a refrigerator capable of quick-freezing foods and the like without impairing the storage performance of the freezer. FIG. 9 shows a refrigerator 100 described in Patent Document 3. In the refrigerator 100 shown in this figure, a refrigerating chamber 101, an upper freezing chamber 103, and a lower freezing chamber 102 are formed from the upper stage. The upper portion of the upper freezing chamber 103 is partitioned by a partition body 112, and the partition body 112 is provided with a blower 111 for blowing cold air during quick freezing operation. An air passage 108 for blowing cool air is formed behind the upper freezing chamber 103, and a cooling chamber 107 accommodating a cooler (not shown) is formed further behind it. A blower 109 for blowing cool air is provided on a partition wall that divides the cooling chamber 107 and the air passage 108. Further, the partition body 112 is formed with an outlet 113 for supplying cold air to the upper freezing chamber 103.

The normal cooling operation in the refrigerator 100 having the above-described configuration is as follows. First, the air inside the cooling chamber 107 cooled by a cooler (not shown) is blown to the blower path 108 by rotating the blower 109 based on an instruction from the control means (not shown). The cool air blown to the air blowing passage 108 is supplied to the refrigerating compartment 101, the upper freezing compartment 103, and the lower freezing compartment 102 via an air blowing passage (not shown). Further, the cold air supplied to the upper freezing chamber 103 passes through the air outlet 110 and the air outlet 113 formed in the partition body 112. Here, in the normal cooling operation, the blower 111 arranged in the upper freezing compartment 103 is not operated.

The operation of the refrigerator 100 having the above-described configuration when quick-freezing is as follows. The cool air blown to the air blow passage 108 is supplied to the upper portion of the partition 112 via the air outlet 110 and then blown toward the frozen object 114 by the rotating blower 111. As a result, the frozen object 114 is rapidly frozen, and the frozen object 114 is frozen while maintaining its freshness. Further, since the blower 111 that blows cold air to the frozen object 114 is arranged above the upper freezing chamber 103, a large depth dimension of the upper freezing chamber 103 is ensured.

JP-A-63-46362 JP, 2002-267318, A JP, 2005-1331, A

However, the refrigerator described in Patent Document 3 described above has room for improvement from the viewpoint of improving the cooling efficiency. Specifically, for example, in order to freeze while maintaining the freshness of the frozen object 114 which is a food, it is necessary to shorten the passage time of the maximum ice crystal production zone. Here, the maximum ice crystal formation zone is a temperature zone in which the temperature of the frozen object 114 is from -1°C to -5°C. On the other hand, referring to FIG. 9, the cool air blown to the upper freezing compartment 103 is blown through the outlet 113 during normal freezing, and is blown by the blower 111 during quick freezing operation. However, in any case, the cold air was supplied from the same outlet 110, and the configuration was not optimized for quick freezing, so the wind speed was improved during the quick freezing operation, and the maximum ice crystal formation zone was passed. It was not easy to shorten the time.

Further, in the refrigerator described in Patent Document 3 described above, since the blower 111, which is an axial fan, is arranged above the upper freezing chamber 103, the presence of the blower 111 is a vertical dimension of the upper freezing chamber 103. There is also a problem in that it is not easy to increase the volume of the upper stage freezing chamber 103 because it is compressed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to efficiently blow cool air to an object to be frozen, thereby reducing the passage time of the maximum ice crystal production zone in a refrigerator. To provide.

The refrigerator of the present invention includes a storage room for storing a frozen object, a cooler for cooling air supplied to the storage room, a cooling room for storing the cooler, and the cooler cooled by the cooler. Air from the cooling chamber, a supply air passage for flowing to the storage chamber, and arranged near the upper surface of the storage chamber, during normal refrigeration operation, the cold air supplied to the storage chamber from the supply air passage passes through 1 supply air duct and near the upper surface of the storage chamber, independent of the first supply air duct, and supplied from the supply air duct and blown onto the object to be frozen from the outlet during the quick freezing operation A second supply air passage through which cool air is passed, a blower for quick refrigeration arranged behind the second supply air passage and blowing toward the second supply air passage, and around the bottom surface portion and the bottom surface portion. A partition member having an upright side surface portion, in which the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage are formed, and the partition member forming the second supply air passage. The bottom surface portion of the member is inclined upward toward the air outlet, and the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage are partition walls erected from the bottom surface portion of the partition member. And the width of the second supply air passage is narrower than the width of the first supply air passage .

Further, in the refrigerator according to the present invention, the blower for quick-freezing blows air from the cooling chamber to the second supply air passage, and causes air existing in the storage chamber to pass through the first supply air passage. It is characterized by circulating it.

Further, the refrigerator according to the present invention is characterized in that the inside of the storage chamber is provided with an indoor blower that blows cold air blown onto the frozen object via the second supply air passage.

Further, the refrigerator of the present invention is characterized in that the supply air passage extends toward the first supply air passage side in the vicinity of the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage.

The refrigerator of the present invention includes a storage room for storing a frozen object, a cooler for cooling air supplied to the storage room, a cooling room for storing the cooler, and the cooler cooled by the cooler. Air from the cooling chamber, a supply air passage for flowing to the storage chamber, and arranged near the upper surface of the storage chamber, during normal refrigeration operation, the cold air supplied to the storage chamber from the supply air passage passes through 1 supply air duct and near the upper surface of the storage chamber, independent of the first supply air duct, and supplied from the supply air duct and blown onto the object to be frozen from the outlet during the quick freezing operation A second supply air passage through which cool air is passed, a blower for quick refrigeration arranged behind the second supply air passage and blowing toward the second supply air passage, and around the bottom surface portion and the bottom surface portion. A partition member having an upright side surface portion, in which the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage are formed, and the partition member forming the second supply air passage. The bottom surface portion of the member is inclined upward toward the air outlet, and the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage are partition walls erected from the bottom surface portion of the partition member. And the width of the second supply air passage is narrower than the width of the first supply air passage .
Therefore, when the object to be frozen is rapidly frozen, by supplying the cool air to the storage chamber via the second supply air passage formed separately from the first supply air passage through which the cool air passes during the normal freezing operation. , The wind speed of cold air exceeds a certain level. Therefore, for example, the time required for the food to be frozen to pass through the maximum ice crystal formation temperature zone is shortened, and the food can be frozen while maintaining its freshness.

Further, in the refrigerator according to the present invention, the blower for quick-freezing blows air from the cooling chamber to the second supply air passage, and causes air existing in the storage chamber to pass through the first supply air passage. It is characterized by circulating it. Therefore, in addition to the cool air supplied from the cooling chamber, the cool air in the storage chamber can be blown to the frozen object, so that more cool air can be concentrated on the frozen object.

Further, the refrigerator of the present invention is characterized in that the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage are partitioned by a partition wall extending in a vertical direction at an upper portion of the storage chamber. Therefore, by the partition wall extending in the vertical direction, the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage can be arranged side by side in the left-right direction in the upper part of the storage chamber, and the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage can be arranged. By providing the passage, it is possible to prevent the storage chamber from being compressed.

Further, in the refrigerator of the present invention, a damper is disposed between the first supply air passage and the supply air passage, and the damper is closed during the quick freezing operation so that air supplied from the supply air passage is removed. Supplying to the second supply air passage. Therefore, by closing the damper and not supplying the cool air to the first supply air passage, it is possible to blow a large amount of cool air to the frozen object via the second supply air passage.

Further, the refrigerator of the present invention is characterized in that the supply air passage extends toward the first supply air passage side in the vicinity of the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage. Therefore, during normal refrigeration operation, air is preferentially supplied toward the first supply air passage, and the amount of air supplied to the second supply air passage decreases, so that a specific portion in the storage chamber becomes too cold. Is suppressed.

It is a front external view of the refrigerator which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a side sectional view showing a schematic structure of a refrigerator concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side sectional view showing the structure of the upper freezer compartment of the refrigerator concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the air supply path to the upper stage freezer compartment of the refrigerator which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure which looked at the air duct in the refrigerator which concerns on embodiment of this invention from the back. It is a figure which shows the structure of the upper stage freezer compartment of the refrigerator which concerns on other embodiment of this invention, (A) is a side sectional drawing, (B) is a perspective view which shows the air supply path to an upper stage freezer compartment. is there. It is a figure which shows the structure of the upper stage freezer compartment of the refrigerator which concerns on other embodiment of this invention, (A) is a side sectional drawing, (B) is a perspective view which shows the air supply path to an upper stage freezer compartment. Yes, (C) is a diagram showing a structure of the air passage as viewed from the rear. It is a side sectional view showing the structure of the upper part freezer compartment of the refrigerator concerning other embodiments of the present invention. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a quick freezing compartment showing an example of a refrigerator of the background art.

Hereinafter, a refrigerator 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the up, down, front, back, left, and right directions will be used as appropriate, but the left and right are the left and right when the refrigerator 1 is viewed from the front.

FIG. 1 is a front external view showing a schematic structure of a refrigerator 1 according to the present embodiment. With reference to this figure, a refrigerator 1 includes a heat insulating box 2 as a main body, and forms a storage chamber for storing food and the like inside the heat insulating box 2. As the storage room, the uppermost refrigerating room 3, the lower left ice making room 4, the upper freezing room 5 on the right side of the ice making room 4, the lower lower freezing room 6 and the lowermost vegetable room 7 are provided. There is. Here, the ice making chamber 4, the upper freezing chamber 5, and the lower freezing chamber 6 are small freezing chambers formed by dividing one freezing chamber, and these may be simply referred to as freezing chambers.

The front surface of the heat insulating box 2 is open, and heat insulating doors 8 to 12 are provided at the opening of the heat insulating box 2 so as to be openable and closable. Specifically, the opening of the refrigerating chamber 3 is closed by a heat insulating door 8, the ice making chamber 4 is closed by a heat insulating door 9, the upper freezing chamber 5 is closed by a heat insulating door 10, and the lower freezing chamber 6 is by a heat insulating door 11. And the vegetable compartment 7 is closed by a heat insulating door 12. Here, the heat insulating door 8 is rotatably supported by the heat insulating box body 2 at the upper and lower right sides. Further, the heat insulation doors 9 to 12 are supported by the heat insulation box body 2 so as to be freely drawn out to the front of the refrigerator 1.

As shown in FIG. 2, the heat insulating box 2 which is the main body of the refrigerator 1 is provided with an outer box 2a made of a steel plate having an opening at the front and a space inside the outer box 2a with a gap, And an inner box 2b made of synthetic resin having an opening. A heat insulating material 2c made of foamed polyurethane is filled in the gap between the outer case 2a and the inner case 2b. The heat insulating doors 8 to 12 described above also have the same heat insulating structure as the heat insulating box 2.

The refrigerating chamber 3 and the ice making chamber 4 and the upper freezing chamber 5 located below it are partitioned by a heat insulating partition wall 36.

Further, the ice making chamber 4 and the upper stage freezing chamber 5 are partitioned by a partition wall not shown in the drawing. Note that the ice making chamber 4 and the upper freezing chamber 5 and the lower freezing chamber 6 provided at the lower stage thereof are in communication so that cold air can freely flow therethrough. The lower freezing compartment 6 and the vegetable compartment 7 are separated by a heat insulating partition wall 37.

In addition, a supply air passage 15 for flowing cooled air to the refrigerating compartment 3 is formed on the inner surface and the top surface of the refrigerating compartment 3 inside the inner box 2b. Similarly, on the back side of the ice making chamber 4 and the upper freezing chamber 5, a supply air passage 14 partitioned by a partition member 38 made of synthetic resin is formed.

A damper 41 as an air passage switching means is provided in the middle of the supply air passage 14. The damper 41 is open during the normal freezing operation and closed during the quick freezing operation. When the damper 41 is in the open state, the cool air blown by the blower 32 is supplied to both the upper stage freezing chamber 5 and the lower stage freezing chamber 6. On the other hand, when the damper 41 is in the closed state, the cool air blown by the blower 32 is intensively supplied only to the upper freezing chamber 5, and quick freezing in the upper freezing chamber 5 is promoted.

Here, instead of the damper 41, a blower cover that closes the blower 23 from the front may be arranged. In this case, the blower cover does not close the blower 32 during the normal refrigeration operation, and the cool air blown by the blower 32 is supplied to both the upper freezing chamber 5 and the lower freezing chamber 6. On the other hand, during the quick freezing operation, the blower cover closes the blower 32, and the cool air blown by the blower 32 is intensively supplied only to the upper stage freezer compartment 5.

A second supply air passage 25, which is partitioned by the partition member 20 made of synthetic resin and communicates with the supply air passage 14, is formed above the upper freezing chamber 5 independently of the first supply air passage 24 described later. ing. Further, behind the second supply air duct 25, a blower 23 is arranged for blowing the cool air to the upper stage freezer compartment 5 via the second supply air duct 25. The blower 23 is a blower for quick freezing used in the case of quick freezing operation, and such matters will be described later with reference to FIG. 3 and the like.

A cooling chamber 13 formed by being divided by a partition member 39 is provided further inside the supply air passage 14 inside the inner box 2b. The partition member 39 in the upper part of the cooling chamber 13 is formed with a blower port 13a that connects the cooling chamber 13 and the supply air passage 14, and the blower port 13a is provided with a blower 32 for circulating air. There is. Below the cooling chamber 13, an opening 13b for sucking the return cool air from the storage chamber into the cooling chamber 13 is formed.

A cooler 16, which is an evaporator for cooling the circulating air, is arranged inside the cooling chamber 13. The cooler 16 is connected to the compressor 42, a radiator (not shown), and a capillary tube (not shown) via a refrigerant pipe, and constitutes a vapor compression refrigeration cycle circuit.

Further, the refrigerator 1 includes a control unit (not shown), the room temperature in each storage chamber is measured by a thermometer (not shown), and an electric signal indicating the room temperature is input to the control unit. Further, the control unit controls the compressor 42, the blower 32, the blower 23, the damper 41, a defrost heater (not shown), and the like based on an electric signal or the like input from the thermometer.

Next, a basic cooling operation of the refrigerator 1 having the above configuration will be described.

First, the air in the cooling chamber 13 is cooled by the cooler 16 of the vapor compression type refrigeration cycle circuit based on the instruction of the control means. Then, the control means rotates the blower 32, and the air cooled by the cooler 16 is discharged from the blower port 13a of the cooling chamber 13 to the supply air passage 14.

A part of the cooling air discharged to the supply air passage 14 is adjusted to an appropriate flow rate by the damper 18 controlled by the control means, flows into the supply air passage 15, and is supplied to the refrigerating compartment 3. Thereby, the food or the like stored in the refrigerating compartment 3 can be cooled and stored at an appropriate temperature.

The cold air supplied to the inside of the refrigerating compartment 3 is supplied to the vegetable compartment 7 via a connection air passage (not shown). Then, the cold air that has circulated in the vegetable compartment 7 returns to the inside of the cooling compartment 13 via the return air passage 17 and the opening 13 b of the cooling compartment 13. Then, it is cooled by the cooler 16 again.

Further, a part of the cooling air discharged to the supply air passage 14 is supplied to the ice making chamber 4 and the lower freezing chamber 6 as well as to the upper freezing chamber 5. Then, the air inside the ice making chamber 4 and the upper freezing chamber 5 flows to the communicating lower freezing chamber 6, and the air inside the lower freezing chamber 6 flows at the lower part of the lower freezing chamber 6 and passes through the opening 13b of the cooling chamber 13. Through the inside of the cooling chamber 13. At this time, the control means keeps the damper 41 open, and the cool air is supplied to the lower freezing chamber 6 via the damper 41.

As described above, the air cooled by the cooler 16 circulates in the storage chamber to freeze or store food or the like.

Next, with reference to FIG. 3 to FIG. 8, a configuration for rapidly freezing the object to be frozen 19 housed in the upper freezing compartment 5 will be described.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA shown in FIG. 1, and is a side cross-sectional view showing the structure around the upper stage freezer compartment 5. 4 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the partition member 20 and the like, FIG. 5 is a view of the partition member 20 from the rear, and FIGS. 6 to 8 show other forms of the second supply air passage 25. There is.

With reference to FIG. 3, a second supply air passage 25 that is partitioned from the upper stage freezing chamber 5 by a partition member 20 made of synthetic resin is arranged above the upper stage freezing chamber 5. That is, the second supply air passage 25 is a space formed between the partition member 20 and the heat insulating partition wall 36, and is a path through which cold air passes during the quick freezing operation.

A front end portion of the second supply air passage 25 extends to a position above the mounting plate 22 on which the frozen object 19 is mounted, and has a blowout port 28 that opens downward. Further, the rear end portion of the second supply air passage 25 extends to the rear end of the upper freezer compartment 5, and the blower 23 is arranged at the boundary between the rear end of the second supply air passage 25 and the supply air passage 14. There is.

The blower 23 has a function of rotating and blowing cool air during the quick freezing operation, and is preferably arranged rearward of the rear end of the upper freezing chamber 5, that is, on the cooling chamber 13 side. By arranging the blower 23 in such a place, the space of the upper freezer compartment 5 is not pressed by the blower 23, so that a large volume of the upper freezer compartment 5 can be secured.

The upper freezer compartment 5 is provided with a storage container 29 for storing the frozen material 19 such as food. The storage container 29 is a substantially box-shaped synthetic resin container having an open top. The storage container 29 is incorporated in a frame body (not shown) fixed to the heat insulating door 10, and is configured to be able to be pulled out forward together with the heat insulating door 10.

A mounting plate 22 for mounting the frozen object 19 is disposed on the bottom surface of the storage container 29. The mounting plate 22 is a metal plate made of aluminum or the like having a rectangular shape when viewed from above. By disposing such a mounting plate 22 on the bottom surface of the storage container 29 and disposing the frozen object 19 on the upper surface of the mounting plate 22, heat of the frozen object 19 is transferred via the mounting plate 22. Since it will be robbed, the frozen object 19 can be cooled at an early stage. Further, on the bottom surface of the storage container 29, the place where the frozen object 19 should be placed can be shown to the user.

With reference to the perspective view of FIG. 4, the structure of the partition member 20 that divides the air passage in the upper portion of the upper freezing chamber 5 will be described. The partition member 20 has a bottom surface portion 26 having a substantially rectangular shape when viewed from above, a side surface portion 27 a extending upward from a left side edge of the bottom surface portion 26, and a right side edge of the bottom surface portion 26 extending upward. It has a side surface portion 27b extending upward, a side surface portion 27c extending upward from a front side edge of the bottom surface portion 26, and a side surface portion 27d extending upward from a rear side edge of the bottom surface portion 26.

The opening portions 30 and 35 are formed by opening the rear side surface portion 27d. The opening 30 is provided with a blower 23 including a fan 23a and a casing 23b supporting the fan 23a. Further, the opening 35 communicates with the supply air passage 14 described above.

The rear portion of the bottom surface portion 26 is an inclined surface that inclines downward toward the rear in order to take the cool air into the air passage. In addition, a slender air outlet 21 is opened in the front portion of the bottom surface portion 26 along the left-right direction, and during normal refrigeration operation, cool air is blown to the upper stage freezer compartment 5 via the air outlet 21. ..

In the present embodiment, the inner space of the partition member 20 is partitioned by the partition wall 31 to form the first supply air passage 24 and the second supply air passage 25.

The partition wall 31 is a wall-shaped member arranged so as to partition the right rear portion of the internal space of the partition member 20 into a rectangular shape, the rear end portion thereof is continuous with the side surface portion 27d, and the front end portion thereof is with the side surface portion 27b. It is continuous. In addition, the air outlet 28 is formed by opening the bottom surface portion 26 in the area surrounded by the partition wall 31.

The first supply air passage 24 is an air passage formed on the left side of the partition wall 31, and is an air passage extending from the opening 35 to the outlet 21 in the internal space of the partition member 20. On the other hand, the second supply air passage 25 is an air passage formed to the right of the partition wall 31, and is an air passage extending from the opening 30 to the outlet 28 in the internal space of the partition member 20. .. The width of the second supply air passage 25 in the left-right direction is narrower than that of the first supply air passage 24, whereby the wind speed of the cool air passing through the second supply air passage 25 is increased to accelerate the frozen object 19 at an early stage. It can be frozen. The operation of blowing cool air through the first supply air passage 24 and the second supply air passage 25 will be described later.

Referring to FIG. 5, when the partition member 20 having the above-described configuration is viewed from the rear, the opening 35 connected to the first supply air passage 24 is formed on the left side of the partition member 20, and the second supply air passage 25 is formed. An opening 30 connected to the partition member 20 is formed on the right side of the partition member 20. Under the use condition, the cool air is supplied to the first supply air passage 24 and the second supply air passage 25 via the supply air passage 14, but the first supply air passage 24 and the second supply air passage 25 are cooled. In the vicinity, the supply air passage 14 extends toward the first supply air passage 24. Here, the supply air passage 14 extends toward the upper left.

By doing so, it is possible to prevent the quenching corner where the mounting plate 22 shown in FIG. 3 is arranged from being too cold during the normal freezing operation. Specifically, during the normal freezing operation, the blower 23 arranged on the second supply air duct 25 side is in a stopped state, and the cool air blown by the blower 32 shown in FIG. Then, the gas is supplied to the first supply air passage 24 and then supplied to the upper stage freezing chamber 5 through the air outlet 21 shown in FIG. In FIG. 5, the path of the cool air supplied to the first supply air passage 24 is indicated by a solid arrow. In the present embodiment, since the supply air passage 14 extends toward the first supply air passage 24, most of the cool air blown via the supply air passage 14 is supplied to the first supply air passage 24, The amount of cool air supplied to the second supply air passage 25 is small. Therefore, referring to FIG. 3, during the normal freezing operation, a large amount of cool air is not blown into the upper freezing chamber 5 from the outlet 28 of the second supply air passage 25, so that the vicinity of the mounting plate 22 is excessive. It is suppressed to be cooled.

On the other hand, during the quick freezing operation, the control means rotates the blower 23 on the side of the second supply air passage 25, so that most of the cool air supplied via the supply air passage 14 flows to the side of the second supply air passage 25. Blown. In this figure, the flow of the cool air blown toward the second supply air passage 25 is indicated by a dotted arrow.

Next, with reference to the above-mentioned drawings, the operation in the normal freezing operation and the operation in the quick freezing operation in the upper stage freezing compartment 5 will be described.

Referring to FIG. 3, during the normal refrigerating operation, the control unit operates the blower 32, so that part of the cool air sent from the cooling chamber 13 to the supply air passage 14 passes through the opening 35 shown in FIG. It passes through and flows into the first supply air passage 24. As described above, during the normal freezing operation, a part of the cool air in the supply air passage 14 is supplied to the ice making chamber 4 and the lower freezing compartment 6 shown in FIG. And is supplied to the refrigerator compartment 3.

The cool air flowing from the supply air passage 14 into the first supply air passage 24 passes through the air outlet 21 formed in the partition member 20 and flows into the upper stage freezer compartment 5. Further, a part of the cool air supplied from the supply air passage 14 is supplied to the upper stage freezing chamber 5 via the opening 30, the second supply air passage 25, and the air outlet 28.

The cool air supplied to the upper freezing chamber 5 flows to the outside beyond the upper edge of the peripheral wall of the storage container 29. Then, the cold air passes between the peripheral wall and the inner wall of the upper freezing chamber 5, and flows to the lower freezing chamber 6 below. At this time, since the damper 41 shown in FIG. 1 is in the open state, cold air is also supplied to the lower freezing compartment 6 via the supply air passage 14.

Next, the flow of cold air in the quick freezing operation will be described.

Referring to FIG. 4, during the quick freezing operation, the control unit operates blower 23. As a result, most of the cool air in the supply air passage 14 is sucked by the blower 23 and flows into the second supply air passage 25. As a result, the cool air flowing from the supply air passage 14 into the first supply air passage 24 is greatly reduced.

At this time, the control means closes the damper 41 shown in FIG. 1, so that the cool air is not supplied to the lower freezing chamber 6 but is concentratedly supplied only to the upper freezing chamber 5. Further, at this time, in order to further concentrate the cool air in the upper freezing compartment 5, the control means may close the damper 18 connected to the refrigerating compartment 3.

Then, the cool air in the second supply air passage 25 is blown into the upper freezing chamber 5 by the blower 23. Here, since the cool air in the second supply air passage 25 is forcibly discharged by the blower 23, substantially all the cool air supplied from the supply air passage 14 concentrates and flows through the air outlet 28. With reference to FIG. 3, the cold air blown out from the outlet 28 is blown onto the frozen object 19 arranged on the upper surface of the mounting plate 22. Therefore, the sensible heat and latent heat of solidification of the object to be frozen 19 are taken away by blowing the cold air, and the passage time of the maximum ice crystal formation temperature zone can be shortened to, for example, about 25 minutes. Therefore, it becomes possible to freeze while maintaining the freshness of the to-be-frozen object 19 which is a food, for example.

As described above, the control unit operates the blower 23, so that more cool air can be supplied to the upper freezing chamber 5, and the refrigerating capacity in the upper freezing chamber 5 can be increased. In particular, in this embodiment, since the cool air is supplied through the second supply air passage 25 for quick freezing, the wind speed of the cool air supplied from the outlet 28 to the upper freezing chamber 5 is improved to improve the refrigerating capacity. It's getting bigger.

Further, referring to FIG. 4, in the present embodiment, in addition to the cold air supplied from the supply air passage 14, the cold air in the upper freezing compartment 5 is also circulated. In this figure, the path through which the cool air circulates is indicated by the dashed-dotted arrow. That is, when the control means rotates the blower 23, the cool air in the upper freezing chamber 5 flows back through the first supply air passage 24 via the air outlet 21. After that, the cold air that has flowed backward through the first supply air passage 24 passes through the opening 35, the supply air passage 14, the opening 30, and the second supply air passage 25, and is blown from the outlet 28 to the upper freezing chamber 5. .. From this, a larger amount of cold air can be supplied to the upper freezing compartment 5 to further improve the cooling capacity.

Next, the control operation of the quick freezing operation will be described. In this embodiment, the quick freezing operation is started according to an instruction from the user. Instructions from the user are given by input means such as operation buttons (not shown).

When the quick freezing operation is started, the control means operates the blower 23 as described above. At this time, the control means operates the blower 32 and the compressor 42 in the same manner as the normal cooling operation. Here, control may be performed to increase the refrigerating capacity of the cooler 16 during the quick freezing operation. Specifically, the control unit may perform controls such as increasing the operating frequency of the compressor 42, increasing the rotational speed of the radiator fan, and increasing the opening of the expansion valve. Thereby, the refrigerating capacity during the quick freezing operation can be further increased.

Then, after a lapse of a predetermined time from the start of the quick freezing operation, the control means stops the second blower 23 to end the quick freezing operation, and returns to the normal cooling operation. Here, the predetermined time is a time set in advance as a time required until the freezing of the frozen object 19 is completed. The control means may determine whether to stop the quick freezing operation based on the temperature inside the upper freezing chamber 5 or the temperature of the object to be frozen 19 detected by the temperature detecting means (not shown).

A refrigerator 1 according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6A is a side cross-sectional view showing the configuration in the vicinity of the upper stage freezer compartment 5 of the refrigerator 1 according to another embodiment, and FIG. 6B is a perspective view showing the partition member 20. The configuration and operation of the refrigerator 1 shown in this figure are substantially the same as those described above, except that a blower 43, which is an indoor blower for quick freezing, is arranged above the upper freezing chamber 5.

Referring to FIG. 6(A), here, a blower 43 is arranged above the upper stage freezing chamber 5. In each of the above-described embodiments, for example, referring to FIG. 3, the blower 23 is arranged behind the second supply air passage 25, but here, the blower 43 is arranged in the middle of the second supply air passage 25. There is. By disposing the blower 43 in the upper portion of the upper freezing chamber 5 in this way, the distance between the object to be frozen 19 and the fan 43 is shortened, so that the wind speed of the cool air blown to the object to be frozen 19 can be increased. I can. Here, the blower 43 is, for example, a blower fan incorporated in the partition member 20, and by adopting a thin blower fan as the blower 43, it is possible to secure a large vertical dimension of the upper freezing chamber 5.

Here, the second supply air passage 25 through which cold air passes during the quick freezing operation is formed as a space surrounded by the partition member 20. An opening 44 for taking in cool air is formed on the upper rear surface of the second supply air passage 25, and an outlet 28 for blowing out cool air is formed on the lower front surface of the second supply air passage 25.

The operation during the quick freezing operation will be described with reference to FIGS. 6(A) and 6(B). When the quick freezing operation is started, the control unit (not shown) rotates the blower 43, so that the cool air supplied from the supply air passage 14 passes through the openings 35 and 44 shown in FIG. 6(A). The air is blown to the second supply air passage 25 via the air. Thereafter, the cool air blown forward through the second supply air passage 25 is blown from the blowout port 28 onto the frozen object 19 stored in the upper freezing chamber 5. On the other hand, during the normal refrigeration operation, the blower 43 is not operated, and the cool air supplied through the supply air passage 14 passes through the first supply air passage 24 and flows from the outlet 21 to the upper freezing chamber 5. Is supplied to.

Still another form of the refrigerator 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 7. 7(A) is a side sectional view showing a refrigerator 1 according to another embodiment, FIG. 7(B) is a perspective view showing the partition member 20, and FIG. 7(C) is a rear view of the partition member 20. It is a figure. The basic configuration and operation of the refrigerator 1 shown here are the same as those described above, and the difference is that the damper 34 is provided.

7(A) and 7(B), here, the blower 23 for rapid freezing as shown in FIG. 4 is not arranged, and is provided in the opening 35 on the first supply air passage 24 side. , The damper 34 is arranged. That is, the damper 34 is arranged at the boundary between the supply air passage 14 and the first supply air passage 24, and is arranged rearward of the rear end of the upper freezing compartment 5 in order to secure a large volume of the upper freezing compartment 5. Has been done. On the other hand, no damper is arranged in the opening 30 on the side of the second supply air passage 25.

The operation when the damper 34 described above is provided is as follows. First, during the normal refrigerating operation, the control means keeps the damper 34 open, and the cool air supplied from the supply air passage 14 passes through the damper 34, the second supply air passage 25, and the outlet 21. And is blown to the upper freezing room 5. Further, as shown in FIG. 7C, since the supply air passage 14 is formed toward the opening 35 side, that is, the damper 34 side, when the damper 34 is open, the supply air passage 14 is formed. Most of the cool air supplied along is supplied to the first supply air passage 24 via the damper 34. In this figure, the cool air traveling toward the damper 34 is indicated by a solid arrow.

On the other hand, in the quick freezing operation, the control means closes the damper 34. Therefore, with reference to FIG. 7(C), the cool air supplied from the supply air passage 14 is not supplied to the first supply air passage 24, but is directed toward the opening 30 side as indicated by the dotted arrow. proceed. Then, with reference to FIG. 7(B), the cool air is blown to the frozen object 19 stored in the upper freezing chamber 5 via the second supply air passage 25 and the blowout port 28.

In the case of the refrigerator 1 described above, since the cool air can be concentrated in the second supply air passage 25 without using a blower for quick freezing, the refrigerating capacity can be improved with a simple configuration.

Still another mode of the refrigerator 1 will be described with reference to the side sectional view of FIG. The structure and operation of the refrigerator 1 shown in this figure are the same as those described above, and the difference is that the upper freezing chamber 5 is replaced by a variable greenhouse 5A. That is, the partition member 20 shown in FIG. 4 and the like is arranged in an upper portion of the variable temperature chamber 5A. Here, the variable greenhouse 5A is a storage room capable of changing the indoor temperature from the refrigerating temperature range to the freezing temperature range in accordance with the intended use.

When the variable temperature chamber 5A is provided, the heat insulating partition wall 40 is formed between the variable temperature chamber 5A and the lower freezer compartment 6. Further, a heat insulating partition wall (not shown) is also formed between the ice making chamber 4 and the variable temperature room 5A shown in FIG.

The partition member 20 is arranged in the upper portion of the variable temperature chamber 5A, and the space between the partition member 20 and the heat insulating partition wall 36 has the first supply air passage 24 and the second supply air passage 24 as shown in FIG. A supply air passage 25 is formed. A blower 23 is arranged between the second supply air passage 25 and the supply air passage 14 through which cold air passes during the quick freezing operation. Further, a damper 45, which is an air passage adjusting means for adjusting the indoor temperature of the variable greenhouse 5A, is provided in the middle of the supply air passage 14 connected to the blower 23. Here, a shutter or the like may be adopted instead of the damper 45. The damper 45 is opened during the quick freezing operation.

When the variable greenhouse 5A is used as a freezing room, by supplying cold air to the frozen object 19 via the second supply air passage 25, the frozen object 19 can be frozen at an early stage, and the frozen object 19 can be frozen. The object 19 can be frozen while maintaining its freshness.

On the other hand, when the variable greenhouse 5A is used as a refrigerating room, the cool air blown by the blower 23 is supplied to the inside of the variable greenhouse 5A via the second supply air passage 25, so that the inside of the variable greenhouse 5A Can be cooled early.

The refrigerator 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

1 Refrigerator 2 Insulation box 2a Outer box 2b Inner box 2c Insulation material 3 Refrigerating room 4 Ice making room 5 Upper freezing room 5A Variable greenhouse 6 Lower freezing room 7 Vegetable room 8 Insulating door 9 Insulating door 10 Insulating door 11 Insulating door 12 Insulating door 13 Cooling Chamber 13a Blower Port 13b Opening 14 Supply Airway 15 Supply Airway 16 Cooler 17 Return Airway 18 Damper 19 Refrigerator 20 Partition Member 21 Outlet 22 Placement Plate 23 Blower 23a Fan 23b Casing 24 First Supply Air Channel 25 Second supply air channel 26 Bottom surface 27a, 27b, 27c, 27d Side surface 28 Air outlet 29 Storage container 30 Opening 31 Partition wall 32 Blower 33 Blower 34 Damper 35 Opening 36 Insulation partition wall 37 Insulation partition wall 38 Partition Member 39 Partition member 40 Insulation partition wall 41 Damper 42 Compressor 43 Blower 44 Opening 45 Damper 100 Refrigerator 101 Refrigerator 102 Lower freezer compartment 103 Upper freezer compartment 104 Door 105 Door 106 Door 107 Cooling room 108 Blower 109 Blower 110 Blower outlet 111 blower 112 partition 113 blow-off port 114 frozen object

Claims (5)

A storage room for storing frozen objects,
A cooler for cooling the air supplied to the storage chamber,
A cooling chamber in which the cooler is housed,
Air from the cooling chamber cooled by the cooler, a supply air passage for flowing to the storage chamber,
A first supply air passage which is arranged near the upper surface of the storage chamber and through which cold air supplied to the storage chamber from the supply air passage passes during normal freezing operation;
A first air flow passage, which is arranged near the upper surface of the storage chamber, independent of the first air supply passage, through which cold air supplied from the air supply passage and blown from the air outlet to the object to be frozen passes during the quick freezing operation. 2 supply airways,
A blower for quick refrigeration, which is disposed behind the second supply air passage and blows air toward the second supply air passage,
A partition member having a bottom surface portion and a side surface portion provided upright around the bottom surface portion, and having the first supply air passage and the second supply air passage formed therein ;
The bottom surface portion of the partition member forming the second supply air passage is inclined upward toward the outlet,
The first supply air passage and the second supply air passage are partitioned by a partition wall erected from the bottom surface of the partition member,
The width of the second supply air passage is narrower than the width of the first supply air passage . The blower for quick freezing,
While blowing air from the cooling chamber to the second supply air passage,
The refrigerator according to claim 1, the air present in the storage chamber, and wherein the circulating via the first supply air passage. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising an indoor blower that blows cold air blown to the object to be frozen through the second supply air passage inside the storage chamber. A damper is arranged between the first supply air passage and the supply air passage,
The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein during the quick freezing operation, the damper is closed and air supplied from the supply air passage is supplied to the second supply air passage. The supply air path, the in the vicinity of the first supply air passage and the second supply air duct, according to any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that extending toward the first supply air path side Refrigerator.

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