JP7191715B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to refrigerators.

Background art of this technical field includes, for example, International Publication No. 2018/131157 (Patent Document 1).

In Patent Document 1, a storage chamber is provided that is set to a temperature higher than that of other surrounding chambers to store items, and the storage chamber has a vacuum insulation material on each wall portion that partitions the storage chamber. discloses a refrigerator that maximizes the coverage of the storage compartment by vacuum insulation.

International Publication No. 2018/131157

By adopting the configuration described in Patent Literature 1, it is possible to prevent cold heat from flowing into the storage compartment, which is set to a higher temperature than other surrounding compartments. On the other hand, heat radiation to the surroundings of the refrigerator, which is the outside, can also be prevented, and the set temperature can be maintained with good thermal efficiency. However, Patent Document 1 discloses a refrigerator having a configuration in which a storage compartment set to a refrigerating temperature is adjacent to a storage compartment set to a freezing temperature, and is also adjacent to an evaporator compartment having an evaporator for cooling the inside of the refrigerator. If the configuration described in 1 is adopted, as the refrigerator is used for a long period of time, the inside of the storage compartment set to the refrigerating temperature becomes too cold, or condensation or frost occurs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems. To provide a highly reliable refrigerator in which trouble such as frost formation is unlikely to occur.

In order to solve the above problems, for example, the configurations described in the claims are adopted.
The present application includes multiple means for solving the above problems, but if one example is given,
A refrigerating cycle to which compression means, heat radiation means, decompression means, and cooling means are connected, a heat insulating box body, a first storage chamber set to a refrigerating temperature, and an upper portion of the first storage chamber A second storage chamber set to a freezing temperature adjacent to the first storage chamber across the first partition wall, and a second storage chamber set to the freezing temperature adjacent to the lower portion of the first storage chamber across the second partition wall A refrigerator comprising three storage compartments and an evaporator compartment in which the cooling means is mounted and which is adjacent to the rear of the first storage compartment with a third partition wall therebetween, wherein the first to third partition walls At least one of is a partition wall provided with a vacuum insulation material and a first heating means for heating the first storage chamber arranged so as to be adjacent to the vacuum insulation material, and At least one other of the first to third partition walls is not provided with a vacuum insulation material, and is a partition wall provided with a second heating means for heating the first storage chamber, and the first heating means is set smaller than the heat generation density of the second heating means .

It is possible to provide a highly reliable refrigerator in which troubles such as overcooling of a storage chamber set to a refrigerating temperature or dew condensation or frost formation on the wall surface of the storage chamber do not easily occur even after a long period of use. .

Front view of the refrigerator according to the embodiment AA sectional view of FIG. FIG. 2 is a front view showing the configuration inside the refrigerator according to the embodiment; Sectional drawing which expanded the principal part of the refrigerator which concerns on an Example Schematic diagram showing the air duct configuration of the refrigerator according to the embodiment Schematic diagram showing the refrigeration cycle configuration of the refrigerator according to the embodiment A diagram showing the arrangement of wall heat radiation piping and dew condensation prevention piping of the refrigerator according to the embodiment. Sectional view showing the structure of the heat insulating box body of the refrigerator according to the embodiment The figure showing the structure of the vacuum insulation material of the refrigerator which concerns on an Example. Enlarged cross-sectional view of the vicinity of the fitting portion of the partition wall of the refrigerator according to the embodiment FIG. 2 is a front view of the refrigerator according to the embodiment with the door and the container of the first switching compartment removed. FIG. 10 is a front view of the refrigerator according to the embodiment with the door and the container of the second switching compartment removed. 4 is a flow chart representing cooling operation control of the refrigerator according to the embodiment. An example of a time chart representing a stable operating state of the refrigerator according to the embodiment An example of a time chart representing the defrosting operation state of the refrigerator according to the embodiment

An embodiment of a refrigerator relating to the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the heat-insulating box body 10 of the refrigerator 1 includes storage compartments in order from the top: the refrigerating compartment 2; have.

The refrigerator 1 has doors for opening and closing the openings of the respective storage compartments. These doors are divided left and right rotating refrigerating chamber doors 2a and 2b for opening and closing the opening of the refrigerating chamber 2, ice making chamber 3, freezing chamber 4, first switching chamber 5 and second switching chamber 6. They are a drawer-type icemaker door 3a, a freezer compartment door 4a, a first switchable compartment door 5a, and a second switchable compartment door 6a that open and close the respective openings. The interior material of these multiple doors is primarily polyurethane foam, which is foam insulation.

The external dimensions of the refrigerator 1 are 685 mm in width, 738 mm in depth, and 1833 mm in height. The switching chamber 5 is 104L, and the second switching chamber 6 is 100L. The height of the upper end of the first switchable chamber door 5a is 780 mm, and the height of the upper end of the second switchable chamber door 6a is 400 mm.

In this way, the height position of the upper end of the door is included in 500 mm to 1200 mm from the floor, and there is a storage room where the burden of putting in and taking out food is small, and the height position of the upper end of the door is 500 mm or less from the floor. By using switchable compartments for both of the storage compartments where the burden of putting in and taking out food is somewhat large, the user can choose a layout that is easy to use according to their lifestyle, resulting in an easy-to-use refrigerator. In addition, the internal volume of the switchable chamber (first switchable chamber 5) whose height position of the upper end of the refrigeration door is included in 500 mm to 1200 mm from the floor is changed to the switchable chamber whose height position of the upper end of the door is 500 mm or less from the floor surface. By making the internal volume the same as that of the second switching compartment 6), it is possible to switch the setting between the storage room where the burden of taking food in and out is small and the storage room where the load of taking food in and out is slightly larger according to the lifestyle. Therefore, it becomes a convenient refrigerator. If the difference in rated internal volume between the first switchable chamber and the second switchable chamber is 10% or less, the two can be regarded as equivalent.

An operation part 26 for setting the temperature inside the refrigerator is provided on the outer surface of the door 2a. The height position (height from the floor surface) of the operation unit 26 is 1200 mm at the lower end and 1300 mm at the upper end. By providing the operation part 26 in the range of 900 mm to 1500 mm in this way, it is possible to operate the temperature setting etc. without bending down or looking up, making the refrigerator easy to use. In addition, by providing an operation unit on the outer side of the door, the user can perform operations such as setting the temperature without opening the door.

The refrigerator compartment 2 is separated from the freezer compartment 4 and the ice making compartment 3 by a heat insulating partition wall 28 . The freezer compartment 4 and the ice making compartment 3 are separated from the first switchable compartment 5 by the heat insulating partition 29 , and the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 are separated by the heat insulating partition 30 .

Door hinges (not shown) for fixing the refrigerator 1 and the doors 2a and 2b are provided at the front of the outer side of the top panel of the heat insulating box 10 and at the front edge of the heat insulating partition wall 28, and the upper door hinge is covered with a door hinge cover 16.

The ice making compartment 3 and the freezing compartment 4 are basically storage compartments whose insides are kept at a freezing temperature (less than 0°C), for example, about -18°C on average. above), for example, the storage room is set to about 4°C on average. The first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 are storage compartments that can be set to the freezing temperature or the refrigerating temperature by the operation unit 26. (maintained at about −18° C. on average) or frozen temperature (maintained at about −18° C. on average) can be selected. Specifically, the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 are both set to the freezing temperature in the "FF" mode, and the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 are set to the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature, respectively. "RF" mode in which the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 are set to the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature respectively, and "FR" mode in which the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 are set to the refrigerating temperature. You can choose among the "RR" modes that are available.

As shown in FIG. 2, the refrigerator 1 includes an outer case 91 made of steel plate and an inner case 92 made of synthetic resin (ABS resin in this embodiment).
The outside and the inside are separated from each other by a heat insulating box body 10 formed by filling a foamed heat insulating material 93 (polyurethane foam in this embodiment) between them. In addition to the foamed heat insulating material in the heat insulating box 10, a plurality of vacuum heat insulating materials having a lower thermal conductivity (higher heat insulation performance) than the foamed heat insulating material are mounted between the outer box 91 and the inner box 92. It suppresses the reduction of the product and enhances the heat insulation performance. The refrigerator of this embodiment has a vacuum insulation material 25a on the rear surface of the insulation box body 10, a vacuum insulation material 25b on the bottom surface (bottom surface), a vacuum insulation material 25c on the left side surface (see FIG. 3), and a vacuum insulation material 25d (see FIG. 3) on the right side surface. 3) is mounted to suppress heat from entering from outside, which has a higher temperature than the storage compartment, and improve the insulation performance of the refrigerator 1 . Similarly, in the refrigerator of this embodiment, the heat insulating performance of the refrigerator 1 is enhanced by mounting the vacuum heat insulating material 25e on the first switchable compartment door 5a and the vacuum heat insulating material 25f on the second switchable compartment door 6a.

Refrigerating compartment doors 2a, 2b are equipped with a plurality of door pockets 33a, 33b, 33c inside the compartments. The interior of the refrigerator compartment 2 is divided into a plurality of storage spaces by shelves 34a, 34b, 34c, and 34d. The ice making compartment door 3a, the freezing compartment door 4a, the first switching compartment door 5a, and the second switching compartment door 6a are integrated with the ice making compartment container 3b, the freezing compartment container 4b, the first switching compartment container 5b, and the second switching compartment door 6a. A chamber container 6b is provided.

At the back of the refrigerating chamber 2, there is provided a first evaporator chamber 8a in which a first evaporator 14a, which is cooling means for cooling the refrigerating chamber 2, is mounted. A second evaporator 14b, which is cooling means for cooling the ice making chamber 3, the freezer chamber 4, the first switchable chamber 5, and the second switchable chamber 6, is provided substantially behind the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6. is mounted, the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6, the second evaporator chamber 8b, the second fan discharge air passage 12 described later, the freezer compartment air passage 130 , the first switching chamber air passage 140 and the second switching chamber air passage 150 (see FIG. 3) are separated by the heat insulating partition wall 27 .

The heat insulating partition wall 27 is separate from the heat insulating box body 10, the heat insulating partition wall 29 and the heat insulating partition wall 30. It is fixed so as to be in contact with the wall 29 and the heat insulating partition wall 30 and is detachable. Thus, by forming the heat insulating partition wall 27 separately and making it detachable, the second evaporator 14b accommodated in the second evaporator chamber 8b, the second fan 9b described later, and the first switching chamber damper 101 , the second switching chamber damper 102, which is covered by the heat insulating partition wall 27, the heat insulating partition wall 27 can be removed for easy maintenance.

Further, inside the heat insulating partition walls 27 and 28, polystyrene foam, which is a foamed heat insulating material, is mounted as a main heat insulating member without mounting a vacuum heat insulating material. On the other hand, vacuum heat insulating materials 25g and 25h are mounted inside the heat insulating partition walls 29 and 30 together with polystyrene foam, which is a foam heat insulating material, to improve the heat insulating performance. Since the vacuum heat insulating material 25 has a lower thermal conductivity (higher heat insulating performance) than the foam heat insulating material, the main heat insulating member of the heat insulating partition walls 29 and 30 is the vacuum heat insulating material 25 . Polyurethane foam or polyethylene foam may be used as the foamed heat insulating material used inside the heat insulating partition walls 27, 28, 29, and 30. FIG.

Refrigerator compartment temperature sensor 41, freezer compartment temperature sensor 42, first switchable compartment temperature sensor 43, second A switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is provided, a first evaporator temperature sensor 40a is provided above the first evaporator 14a, and a second evaporator temperature sensor 40b is provided above the second evaporator 14b. With these sensors, the refrigerator compartment 2, the freezer compartment 4, the first switching compartment 5, the second switching compartment 6, the first evaporator compartment 8a, the first evaporator 14a, the second evaporator compartment 8b, and the second evaporation The temperature of the container 14b is detected. An outside air temperature sensor 37 and an outside air humidity sensor 38 are provided inside the door hinge cover 16 on the ceiling of the refrigerator 1 to detect the temperature and humidity of the outside air (outside air). In addition, door sensors (not shown) are provided to detect the open/closed states of the doors 2a, 2b, 3a, 4a, 5a, and 6a.

Next, the configuration of air passages in the refrigerator will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5 and optionally FIG. FIG. 3(a) is a front view of FIG. 1 with the door, container, and discharge port forming member described later removed, and FIG. 3(b) is a front view of FIG. 1 with the door and container removed. . FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the main part of the BB cross section shown in FIG. 3(b). FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the cooling air passage structure of the ice making compartment 3, the freezing compartment 4, the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 of the refrigerator according to the embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 3(a), a first fan 9a is provided above the first evaporator 14a. The cooling air sent out by the first fan 9 a is blown into the refrigerator compartment 2 through the refrigerator compartment air passage 110 and the refrigerator compartment outlet 110 a to cool the inside of the refrigerator compartment 2 . Here, the form of the first fan 9a is a centrifugal turbo fan (backward fan), and the rotation speed can be controlled between high speed (1600 min ^-1 ) and low speed (1000 min ^-1 ). The air blown into the refrigerator compartment 2 returns to the first evaporator compartment 8a through the refrigerator compartment return port 110b (see FIG. 2) and the refrigerator compartment return port 110c, and exchanges heat with the first evaporator 14a again. A slit (not shown) with a gap smaller than the minimum diameter of the first drain pipe described later is provided at the refrigerator compartment return ports 110b and 110c to prevent clogging of the drain port (not shown) and the first drain pipe. are preventing.

A refrigerating chamber discharge port 110a of the refrigerating chamber 2 is provided in the upper portion of the refrigerating chamber 2, and in this embodiment, is provided so that air is discharged above the uppermost shelf 34a and the second shelf 34b. The refrigerator compartment return port 110c is provided at the back of the space formed between the shelf 34c and the shelf 34d of the refrigerator compartment 2, and the refrigerator compartment return port 110b is formed between the shelf 34d of the refrigerator compartment 2 and the heat insulating partition wall 28. It is provided almost at the back of the space where the

As shown in FIG. 3(b), a container 35 is provided above the shelf 34d in the refrigerator compartment 2, and the inside of the container 35 is an indirect cooling space to which cooling air is not directly blown. As a result, drying of food is suppressed, and the storage space becomes suitable for storing food such as vegetables that are susceptible to drying.

A gap of about 8 mm is provided between the container 35 and other wall surfaces such as between the inner box 92 and the left wall of the container 35 and between the partition wall 35b and the right wall of the container 35 so that the container 35 can be put in and taken out. making it easier. Similarly, the container 35 is provided with a handle 35a to facilitate taking it in and out.

As shown in FIG. 3(b), a container 36 whose interior is maintained at about -1° C. is provided above the heat-insulating partition wall 28 in the refrigerating chamber 2, and a lid is provided in front of the container 36. It can be opened and closed by 36a. A packing (not shown) is provided on the outer circumference of the lid 36a, and when the lid 36a is closed, the lid 36a and the container 36 come into contact with each other without gaps due to the packing, forming an airtight structure. there is A pump (not shown) for sucking the air in the container 36 is provided at the back of the container 36. By driving the pump with the lid 36a closed, the pressure inside the container 36 is reduced. is decompressed to about 0.8 atm. As a result, the inside of the container 36 is prevented from being directly blown with cooling air by the lid 36a, and becomes a reduced-pressure environment, thereby providing a storage space that suppresses drying and oxidation of the food.

As shown in FIG. 3( a ), the refrigerator of this embodiment includes a first switchable compartment damper 101 and a second switchable compartment damper 102 as means for blocking airflow to the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 . there is The first switching chamber damper 101 is mounted behind the first switching chamber 5 , and the second switching chamber damper 102 is mounted behind the second switching chamber 6 . Here, the opening area of the first switching chamber damper 101 is 6300 mm ² (width 180 mm×height 35 mm), and the opening area of the second switching chamber damper 102 is 5200 mm ² (width 80 mm×height 65 mm).

As shown in FIG. 2, the second evaporator 14b is provided in the second evaporator chamber 8b substantially behind the first switchable chamber 5, the second switchable chamber 6, and the heat insulating partition wall 30. As shown in FIG. A second fan 9b is provided above the second evaporator 14b. The second fan 9b is a centrifugal turbo fan (backward fan) whose rotational speed can be controlled between high speed (1800 min ^-1 ) and low speed (1200 min ^-1 ). The air that has cooled the ice making chamber 3 and the freezer compartment 4 returns to the second evaporator chamber 8b from the freezer compartment return port 120c (see FIG. 3) through the freezer compartment return air passage 120d (see FIG. 3), and then returns to the second evaporator compartment 8b. It exchanges heat with the second evaporator 14b.

As shown in FIG. 4, the second switching chamber 6 has a second switching chamber return port 112b on the upper back surface. The air that has flowed in from the second switchable chamber return port 112b flows through the second switchable chamber return air passage 112c that extends downward from the second switchable chamber return port 112b, and is formed at a lower height than the second switchable chamber return port 112b. It reaches the second evaporator chamber inlet 112d, and flows into the second evaporator chamber 8b. By providing the downwardly extending air passage (second switching chamber return air passage 112c) between the second switching chamber return port 112b and the second evaporator chamber inlet 112d in this manner, the second fan 9b can be When stopped, the low-temperature air in the second evaporator chamber 8b is less likely to flow back into the second switching chamber 6. - 特許庁As a result, it is possible to provide a refrigerator in which a situation in which the second switchable compartment 6 is overcooled is unlikely to occur, particularly when the second switchable compartment 6 is set to the refrigerating temperature. In addition, since it is sufficient if there is an air path extending downward between the second switching chamber return port 112b and the second evaporator chamber inlet 112d, the air flowing in from the second switching chamber return port 112b is directed upward. It can also be configured such that after flowing toward it, it flows through an air path that extends downward.

As shown in FIG. 5, the low-temperature air that has been heat-exchanged with the second evaporator 14b drives the second fan 9b, thereby opening and closing the first switchable chamber damper 101 and the second switchable chamber damper 102. It is sent to the ice making compartment 3 and the freezing compartment 4 via the second fan discharge air passage 12, the freezer compartment air passage 130, and the freezer compartment outlets 120a and 120b, and the water in the ice tray of the ice making compartment 3, the container 3b The ice inside the freezer compartment 4 and the food stored in the container 4b inside the freezer compartment 4 are cooled. The air that has cooled the ice making compartment 3 and the freezing compartment 4 returns to the second evaporator compartment 8b from the freezing compartment return port 120c via the freezing compartment return air passage 120d, and exchanges heat with the second evaporator 14b again.

Next, when the first switching chamber damper 101 is controlled to be in an open state, the air pressurized by the second fan 9b flows through the second fan discharge air passage 12, the first switching chamber air passage 140, and the first switching chamber air passage 140. It is sent into the first switchable chamber container 5b provided in the first switchable chamber 5 through the first switchable chamber outlet 111a provided in the chamber damper 101 and the outlet forming member 111 (see FIG. 3). The food in the one-switchable chamber container 5b is cooled. The air that has cooled the first switchable compartment 5 flows through the first switchable compartment return port 111b and the freezer compartment return air path 120d, returns to the second evaporator compartment 8b, and exchanges heat with the second evaporator 14b again.

Further, when the second switchable chamber damper 102 is controlled to be in an open state, the air pressurized by the second fan 9b flows through the second fan discharge air passage 12, the second switchable chamber air passage 150, and the second switchable chamber. It is sent into the second switchable chamber container 6b provided in the second switchable chamber 6 via the damper 102 and the second switchable chamber outlet 112a provided in the outlet forming member 112 (see FIG. 3), and the second The food in the switchable chamber container 6b is cooled. The air that has cooled the second switchable chamber 6 flows through the second switchable chamber return port 112b and the second switchable chamber return air passage 112c, returns to the second evaporator chamber 8b, and again heat-exchanges with the second evaporator 14b. . In addition, an evaporator chamber (second evaporator chamber 8b in this embodiment) in which a low-temperature evaporator is housed, and an air passage (second fan discharge air path 12, freezer compartment air path 130, first switchable compartment air path 140, second switchable compartment air path 150), storage compartments maintained at freezing temperature (in this embodiment, ice making compartment 3, freezer compartment 4, The first switchable chamber 5 when set to the freezing temperature, the second switchable chamber 6 when set to the freezing temperature), the return air path from the storage compartment maintained at the freezing temperature (in this embodiment, the freezer compartment Since the return air path 120d and the second switching chamber return air path 112c when set to the freezing temperature are spaces that reach the freezing temperature, they are hereinafter referred to as freezing temperature spaces.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the configuration of the refrigerating cycle of the refrigerator according to the embodiment. In the refrigerator of this embodiment, the compressor 24, the outside heat radiator 50a as heat dissipation means for heat dissipation of the refrigerant, the wall heat dissipation pipe 50b (arranged on the inner surface of the outer case 91 in the region between the outer case 91 and the inner case 92) ), dew condensation prevention piping 50c (arranged on the inner surface of the heat insulating partition walls 28, 29, 30) for suppressing condensation near the front portions of the heat insulating partition walls 28, 29, 30 and the front edge portion of the heat insulating box body 10, and the refrigerant Equipped with a first capillary tube 53a and a second capillary tube 53b, which are decompression means for reducing pressure, and a first evaporator 14a and a second evaporator 14b that absorb heat in the chamber by exchanging heat between the refrigerant and the air in the chamber. ing. Also, a dryer 51 for removing moisture in the refrigerating cycle, gas-liquid separators 54a and 54b for suppressing the inflow of liquid refrigerant into the compressor 24, a refrigerant control valve 52 for controlling the refrigerant flow path, a check valve 56, A refrigerant junction 55 for connecting refrigerant flows is provided, and these are connected by refrigerant pipes to form a refrigeration cycle. The refrigerant is isobutane, a flammable refrigerant.

The refrigerant control valve 52 has outflow ports 52a and 52b, and can be in “state 1” in which the outflow port 52a is open and the outflow port 52b is closed, and in “state 2” in which the outflow port 52a is closed and the outflow port 52b is open. , "state 3" in which both the outlets 52a and 52b are closed, and "state 4" in which both the outlets 52a and 52b are open. The rotational speed of the compressor 24 can be controlled in three stages, high speed (2500 min ^-1 ), medium speed (1500 min ^-1 ) and low speed (1000 min ^-1 ).

Next, the flow of refrigerant in the refrigerator of this embodiment will be described. The high-temperature, high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 24 flows through the outside radiator 50 a , the wall heat radiation pipe 50 b , the dew condensation prevention pipe 50 c , the dryer 51 in this order, and reaches the refrigerant control valve 52 . The outflow port 52a of the refrigerant control valve 52 is connected to the first capillary tube 53a via a refrigerant pipe, and the outflow port 52b is connected to the second capillary tube 53b via a refrigerant pipe.

When the refrigerator compartment 2 is cooled by the first evaporator 14a, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 1" in which the refrigerant flows to the outflow port 52a side. The refrigerant flowing out from the outflow port 52a is decompressed by the first capillary tube 53a, becomes low temperature and low pressure, enters the first evaporator 14a, exchanges heat with the air in the warehouse, and then flows into the gas-liquid separator 54a and the first capillary tube 53a. The refrigerant flows through the heat exchange portion 57 a that exchanges heat with the refrigerant, the refrigerant junction portion 55 , and returns to the compressor 24 .

When the ice making chamber 3, the freezing chamber 4, the first switching chamber 5, and the second switching chamber 6 are cooled by the second evaporator 14b, the refrigerant control valve 52 is set to "state 2" in which the refrigerant flows to the outflow port 52b side. Control. The refrigerant flowing out from the outflow port 52b is decompressed by the second capillary tube 53b, becomes low temperature and low pressure, enters the second evaporator 14b, exchanges heat with the air in the warehouse, and then flows into the gas-liquid separator 54b and the second capillary tube 53b. , the check valve 56 , and the refrigerant junction 55 , and returns to the compressor 24 . The check valve 56 is arranged so as to block the flow from the refrigerant junction 55 toward the second evaporator 14b.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the arrangement of the wall heat radiation pipe 50b and the dew condensation prevention pipe 50c of the refrigerator according to the embodiment. An outside radiator 50a (see FIG. 6) is installed in the machine room 39 provided on the lower back side of the heat insulating box 10, and the outlet pipe of the outside radiator 50a is connected to the wall surface heat radiating pipe 50b. (the configuration inside the machine room 39 is not shown in FIG. 7). As shown in FIG. 7, wall surface radiation pipes 50b (pipes from point A to point B shown in FIG. 7) are arranged on the left wall, the ceiling wall, and the right wall of the heat insulating box 10 . In addition, on the front side of the heat insulating box 10, dew condensation prevention pipes 50c (D A pipe from point to point E) is installed.

The refrigerant enters the wall heat radiation pipe 50b from point A on the rear lower part of the left wall of the heat insulating box 10, flows through the left wall, the ceiling wall, and the right wall of the heat insulating box 10 in order, and reaches the right side of the heat insulating box 10 at point B. Enter the machine room 39 through the wall. Then, from point C, it enters the heat insulating box 10 again and reaches point D, which is the starting point of the dew condensation prevention pipe 50c (from point C to point D is the connecting pipe). From the point D, it flows through the front edge of the heat insulating box 10, the heat insulating partition wall 30, the heat insulating partition wall 29, and the heat insulating partition wall 28, and reaches the point E. Further, it flows under the right wall, enters the machine room 39 again at point F, and reaches the dryer 51 (see FIG. 6) installed in the machine room.

FIG. 8 is a horizontal cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the left wall of the heat insulating box body 10 of the refrigerator according to the embodiment. The heat insulating box body 10 includes an outer box 91 (steel plate with a thickness of 0.45 mm), an inner box 92 (ABS resin with a thickness of 0.9 mm), a polyurethane foam 93 filled between them, and the outer box 91 side. It is composed of the installed vacuum heat insulating material 25c. A groove 250 is formed in the vacuum heat insulating material 25c, and a wall surface heat radiation pipe 50b is arranged vertically in a region formed between the groove 250 and the outer case 91. As shown in FIG. The wall heat radiation pipe 50b is fixed to the outer case 91 with a metal tape (aluminum tape) not shown, and the vacuum heat insulating material 25c is fixed to the outer case 91 with an adhesive not shown. Since the outer case 91 is made of metal (steel plate), it has a high thermal conductivity. It is also well conducted to the surface of the vacuum heat insulating material 25c fixed to. That is, the wall surface heat radiation pipe 50b is in a state of being substantially in thermal contact with the vacuum heat insulating material 25c. In addition, if there is no sufficient gap or heat insulating material (specifically, a gap of 10 mm or more, or a heat insulating material with a thickness of 10 mm or more) between the wall heat radiation pipe and the vacuum insulation material, the wall surface It can be considered that the heat radiation piping and the vacuum insulation material are in a state of being thermally substantially in contact with each other. Hereinafter, the state of being in thermal contact may be referred to as proximity. Incidentally, the right wall of the heat insulating box 10 is also substantially bilaterally symmetrical with the left wall described above, and the wall heat radiating pipe 50b is in substantially thermal contact with the vacuum heat insulating material 25d.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the basic configuration of the vacuum heat insulating material 25 (25a to 25h) of the refrigerator according to the embodiment. The vacuum heat insulating material 25 includes an outer wrapping material 72 having a gas barrier property, and a core material 70 and an adsorbent 71 enclosed in the outer wrapping material 72. The gas inside the outer wrapping material 72 is discharged, and the end portion 72a is heated. It is a heat insulating member formed by welding. The end portion 72a of the outer wrapping material 72 is folded back as shown in FIG. The outer wrapping material 72 is a laminate film having at least one gas barrier layer containing metal (a metal foil layer or a metal deposition layer). As an example of a specific configuration, the outer wrapping material 72 is a four-layer laminate film, the outermost first layer is a surface protective layer made of a resin film such as polypropylene, polyamide, polyethylene terephthalate, and the second layer is a 4-layer laminate film. A polyethylene terephthalate film with vapor deposition of aluminum as the first gas barrier layer, an ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer resin film with vapor deposition of aluminum or a biaxially stretched polyvinyl alcohol resin film with vapor deposition of aluminum as the second gas barrier layer in the third layer, Alternatively, an aluminum foil can be used, and the innermost fourth layer can be a resin film such as unstretched polyethylene or polypropylene as a heat-sealable layer.

FIG. 10 is a front view of the first switchable chamber 5 with the first switchable chamber door 5a and container 5b removed. Inside the heat insulating partition wall 29 and the heat insulating partition wall 30, a vacuum heat insulating material 25g and a vacuum heat insulating material 25h are mounted as indicated by dotted lines in FIG. The width dimension×depth dimension) are 272000 mm ² and 266700 mm ² respectively. 10, the refrigerator of this embodiment has a bottom surface of the first switchable compartment 5, i.e., an upper surface 30a of the heat insulating partition wall 30, which is provided with heating means from below the first switchable compartment 5. The first switchable chamber first heater 301 is provided on the rear surface of the first switchable chamber 5 , that is, on the front surface 27 a of the heat insulating partition wall 27 . A second heater 302 is provided. Further, on the left and right surfaces of the first switchable chamber 5, that is, on the left surface 92a and the right surface 92b of the inner box 92, a first switchable chamber third heater 303 serving as a heating means from the left side of the first switchable chamber 5, A first switchable chamber fourth heater 304 is provided as heating means from the right side of the first switchable chamber 5 . The first switchable chamber first heater 301, the first switchable chamber second heater 302, the first switchable chamber third heater 303, and the first switchable chamber fourth heater 304 are electric heaters connected in parallel with each other by wiring (not shown). Yes, all energized at the same time. In the following, the heaters (the first heater 301 for the first switchable chamber, the second heater 302 for the first switchable chamber, the third heater 303 for the first switchable chamber, the fourth heater 304 for the first switchable chamber, and ) is collectively referred to as the first switching chamber heater 300 .

The first switching chamber heater 300 is an aluminum foil heater in which a heating wire (a silicon cord heater as an example) and an aluminum foil (not shown) are fixed with a double-sided adhesive tape, and the other side of the double-sided adhesive tape can be attached to the heating surface. . The effective heating area (aluminum foil area) of the first switchable chamber first heater 301, the first switchable chamber second heater 302, the first switchable chamber third heater 303, and the first switchable chamber fourth heater 304 is 255,200 mm ² , respectively. 107800 mm ² , 11750 mm ² and 11750 mm ² . The first switching chamber first heater 301 is arranged so as to cover the majority of the upper surface (area 266700 mm ² ) of the vacuum heat insulating material 25h in the heat insulating partition wall 30, and the heat insulating performance of the vacuum heat insulating material 25h deteriorates. Thus, even if the heat insulation performance of the heat insulating partition wall 30 is lowered, the upper surface of the heat insulating partition wall 30 can be heated well (details will be described later).

The capacities of the first switchable chamber first heater 301, the first switchable chamber second heater 302, the first switchable chamber third heater 303, and the first switchable chamber fourth heater 304 are 11.3 W, 8.6 W, and 3.6 W, respectively. They are 1 W and 3.1 W, and the heat generation densities (calorific value per unit area) are 44.3 W/m ^{2 , 79.8 W/m 2 , 263.8 W/m 2 and 263.8 W/m 2 , respectively .} Since the temperature tends to rise when the heat generation density is high, the heat generation density of the heating means (the first heater 301 of the first switching chamber) mounted on the heat insulating partition wall 30 having the vacuum heat insulating material 25h is 100 W/m ² . By suppressing it to the following 44.3 W/m ² , deterioration of the vacuum heat insulating material 25h due to temperature rise is less likely to be accelerated (details will be described later). In addition, the heat generation density of the heating means (second heater 302 in the first switching chamber) mounted on the heat insulating partition wall 27 not provided with the vacuum heat insulating material, as in the refrigerator of this embodiment, was reduced to By making it smaller than the heating means (first heater 302 of the first switchable chamber) mounted on the heat insulating partition 30, deterioration of the heat insulating partition provided with the vacuum heat insulating material 25h is accelerated, and the first switchable chamber 5 cools down. The refrigerator is designed so that it is difficult for a situation such as overheating to occur.

Also, the capacity of the first switchable chamber heater 300 (the total capacity of the first switchable chamber first heater 301, the first switchable chamber second heater 302, the first switchable chamber third heater 303, and the first switchable chamber fourth heater 304) is set to 26.1 W, which is 20 W or more. Thereby, in particular, the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6 are set to the "RF" mode in which the refrigerator temperature and the freezer temperature are respectively set, and the three surfaces of the first switchable chamber 5 are set to the first switchable chamber 5 When the storage compartment becomes adjacent to a freezing temperature space with a lower temperature and the temperature tends to drop, the vacuum insulation material mounted on the insulating partition separating the first switching compartment 5 and the freezing temperature space is removed. Even if an unexpected situation such as breakage occurs, the first switching chamber 5 can be heated well, and the inside of the storage chamber becomes too cold to maintain the desired temperature, or condensation or frost forms on the wall surface of the storage chamber. It becomes a refrigerator in which it is difficult to cause such a problem as

Furthermore, the capacity (11.3 W) of the heating means (first heater 301 for the first switchable chamber) for heating the first switchable chamber 5 from below is adjusted to heat the first switchable chamber 5 from the back (rear) or the left and right sides. than any capacity (8.6 W, 3.1 W, 3.1 W) of the heating means (first switching chamber second heater 302, first switching chamber second heater 303, first switching chamber second heater 304) making it bigger. Since the air heated and raised in temperature rises in the storage chamber, by increasing the capacity (11.3 W) of the heating means (first switchable chamber first heater 301) from below in this way, the air can be efficiently heated. The inside of the first switching chamber 5 can be heated, and the energy saving performance is improved.

The heat insulating partition wall 30 and the heat insulating partition wall 27 are covered with a resin member (polypropylene in this embodiment) having a thickness of 1.5 mm (not shown) on their surfaces, and the first heater 301 in the first switching chamber and the first heater 301 in the first switching chamber. The chamber second heater 302 is attached to the inside (inner surface) of the resin members of the heat insulating partition wall 30 and the heat insulating partition wall 27, respectively. Therefore, although the first heater 301 for the first switching chamber is not directly attached to the vacuum heat insulating material 25h inside the heat insulating partition wall 30, there is a sufficient space between them or a heat insulating member (specifically, 10 mm Since there is no intervening gap, or a heat insulating member having a thickness of 10 mm or more, they are in a substantially thermal contact state.

Also, the first switchable chamber third heater 303 and the first switchable chamber fourth heater 304 are both attached to the inner surface (outside surface) of the inner box 92 (ABS resin). As shown in FIG. 10, the position where the first switchable chamber heater 300 that heats the first switchable chamber 5 is disposed can be accessed by the user without dismantling by removing the first switchable chamber door 5a and the container 5b. It becomes the inner wall surface of the storage room that can be used. Therefore, as described above, the resin member (the surface resin member of the heat insulating partition wall 27 and the heat insulating partition wall 30 or the inner box 92) is arranged between the first switchable chamber heater 300 and the first switchable chamber 5. Therefore, even if the user removes the first switching chamber door 5a and the container 5b for cleaning or the like and touches the inner wall surface (the heat insulating partition wall 27, the heat insulating partition wall 30, the surface of the inner box 92), the heater will not be damaged. It is a highly reliable refrigerator that does not cause such a situation.

FIG. 11 is a front view of the second switchable chamber 6 with the second switchable chamber door 6a and the container 6b removed. As indicated by the dashed line in FIG. 11 , the refrigerator of this embodiment has a second switchable chamber serving as a heating means from the rear of the second switchable chamber 6 in an inner box 92 c forming the back surface of the second switchable chamber 6 . A first heater 401 is provided. In addition, the lower surface 30b of the heat insulating partition wall 30 is provided with a second switchable chamber second heater 402 that serves as heating means for heating the second switchable chamber 6 from above. The second switchable chamber first heater 401 and the second switchable chamber second heater 402 are connected in parallel to each other by wiring (not shown) and are energized simultaneously. Hereinafter, the heaters (second switchable chamber first heater 401 and second switchable chamber second heater 402 ) that serve as heating means for the second switchable chamber 6 are collectively referred to as a second switchable chamber heater 400 .

The second switching chamber heater 400 is an aluminum foil heater in which a heating wire (a silicon cord heater as an example) and an aluminum foil (not shown) are fixed with a double-sided adhesive tape, and the other side of the double-sided adhesive tape can be attached to the heating surface. be. The effective heating area (aluminum foil area) of the second switchable chamber first heater 401 and the second switchable chamber second heater 402 is 40,710 mm ² and 255,200 mm ² respectively, and the heater capacity and heat generation density are 4.0 W and 98 W, respectively. .3 W/m ² , 10.9 W and 42.7 W/m ² . The second switchable chamber first heater 401 is attached to the inner surface (outside surface) of the inner box 92 (ABS resin), and the second switchable chamber second heater 402 is attached to the inside of the resin member of the heat insulating partition wall 30 ( inner surface).

FIG. 12 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the fitting portion near the rear end of the heat insulating partition wall 30 in FIG. As shown in FIG. 12, a vacuum heat insulating material 25 is mounted inside the heat insulating partition wall 30 . A first heater 301 for the first switching chamber is provided on the inner surface of the resin member forming the upper surface 30a of the heat insulating partition wall 30, and a second heater 301 for the second switching chamber is provided on the inner surface of the resin member forming the lower surface 30b of the heat insulating partition wall 30. 402 are attached respectively. When the heating means (heater) is mounted inside the heat-insulating partition wall together with the vacuum heat insulating material, the heating means (heater) is not adhered to the vacuum heat insulating material, but is adhered to the outer circumference forming member. Deterioration due to expansion during heating is less likely to occur, and the refrigerator has high reliability. The rear portion of the heat insulating partition wall 30 is fixed by being fitted into the recessed portion 27 a of the heat insulating partition wall 27 , and the rear end of the vacuum heat insulating material 25 mounted on the heat insulating partition wall 30 is fixed to the recess portion of the heat insulating partition wall 27 . It is mounted so as to be located behind the front edge 27b of 27a by a dimension L (L=30 mm in this embodiment).

In the upper part of the refrigerator 1, a control board 31 is arranged, which is a part of the control device and has a CPU, a memory such as a ROM and a RAM, an interface circuit, and the like. The control board 31 also includes an outside air temperature sensor 37, an outside air humidity sensor 38, a refrigerator compartment temperature sensor 41, a freezer compartment temperature sensor 42, a first switching compartment temperature sensor 43, a second switching compartment temperature sensor 44, and a first evaporator temperature sensor. It is connected to the sensor 40a, the second evaporator temperature sensor 40b, etc. by electrical wiring (not shown). In the control board 31, based on the output values of each sensor, the setting of the operation unit 26, the programs pre-recorded in the ROM, etc., the compressor 24, the first fan 9a, and the second fan 9b, which will be described later, can be turned on/off and rotated. speed control, opening/closing control of the first switching chamber damper 101 and the second switching chamber damper 102, first switching chamber heater 300, second switching chamber heater 400, energization control of the defrosting heater 21 described later, flow of the refrigerant control valve 52 It performs road switching control.

Next, the defrosting operation of the first evaporator 14a and the second evaporator 14b of the refrigerator of this embodiment will be described. For the first evaporator 14a, the state where the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to the "state 2" in which the refrigerant flows to the outflow port 52b while the compressor 24 is driven, or the state where the compressor 24 is stopped. The first evaporator 14a is in a state in which no refrigerant flows, and the first fan 9a is driven to defrost by the heating action of the return air from the refrigerating compartment 2. FIG. Defrosted water generated during defrosting of the first evaporator 14a is supplied to the machine room 39 from a gutter 23a (see FIG. 2) provided at the bottom of the first evaporator chamber 8a through a first drain pipe (not shown). It is then discharged to a first evaporating dish (not shown) and evaporated by heat radiation from the compressor 24 and ventilation by a machine room fan (not shown) installed in the machine room 39 . Thus, the defrosting of the first evaporator 14a is performed by driving the first fan 9a without using a heater, so that the refrigerator has high energy saving performance. In addition, since part of the frost moisture is returned to the refrigerating compartment 2 by defrosting, the refrigerating compartment 2 can be kept at a higher humidity.

On the other hand, the second evaporator 14b is defrosted by energizing the defrosting heater 21 (see FIG. 2), which is a heating means provided in the lower part of the second evaporator 14b, while the compressor 24 is stopped. do. The defrosting heater 21 may be, for example, an electric heater of 50 W to 200 W. In this embodiment, a radiant heater of 150 W is used. Defrosted water generated during defrosting of the second evaporator 14b flows from the gutter 23b (see FIG. 2) at the bottom of the second evaporator chamber 8b to the upper part of the compressor 24 via the second drain pipe 26 (see FIG. 2). It is discharged to a second evaporating dish 32 (see FIG. 2) provided in the inner wall, and evaporates due to heat radiation from the compressor 24 and ventilation by a machine room fan (not shown).

The configuration of the refrigerator according to this embodiment has been described above. Next, control of the refrigerator according to this embodiment will be described. FIG. 13 is a flow chart showing cooling operation control of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 13, the refrigerator of this embodiment starts the cooling operation (start) when the power is turned on. Control of the pull-down operation from power-on until the storage chamber in the refrigerator reaches a predetermined temperature level is omitted. explain. The stable operation state is a state in which the refrigerator door is not opened and closed, and the cooling operation is performed stably and periodically (for example, defined in JISC9801-3:2015).

In the first evaporator operation, the refrigerant control valve is controlled to "state 1", the compressor 24 is driven, the first fan 9a is driven, and the low-temperature refrigerant supplied to the first evaporator 14a is used to cool the refrigerator compartment. 2 is cooled. In the refrigerator of this embodiment, in step S101, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 1", the compressor 24 is driven at low speed (1000 min ^-1 ), and the first fan 9a is driven at high speed (1600 min ^-1 ). to cool the refrigerator compartment 2 (first evaporator operation).

The first evaporator operation started in step S101 is continued until the first evaporator operation end condition (step S102) is satisfied. In step S102, if the refrigerating chamber temperature detected by the refrigerating chamber temperature sensor 41 is equal to or lower than the first evaporator operation end temperature (2° C. in the refrigerator of this embodiment), or the elapsed time from the start of the first evaporator operation reaches a predetermined time (50 minutes in the refrigerator of this embodiment).

If step S102 is satisfied (step S102 is Yes), then refrigerant recovery operation is performed (step S103). Refrigerant recovery operation means that the compressor 24 continues to be driven, the refrigerant control valve 52 is set to "state 3 (fully closed)", and the refrigerant in the first evaporator 14a is released by the heat dissipation means (external radiator 50a, wall surface This is an operation for recovering to the heat radiation pipe 50b and dew condensation prevention pipe 50c) side, and continues for 2 minutes in the refrigerator of the present embodiment (step S103). At this time, the driving state of the first fan 9a is continued to cool the refrigerator compartment 2 even during the refrigerant recovery operation. As a result, the refrigerant remaining in the first evaporator 14a when the operation of the first evaporator is finished can be used for cooling, so that the refrigerator has a high cooling efficiency.

After the refrigerant recovery operation in step S103 is finished, defrosting of the first evaporator is started (step S104). Defrosting of the first evaporator means that defrosting is performed by heating with return air from the refrigerator compartment 2 by driving the first fan 9a while the refrigerant is not flowing to the first evaporator 14a. . In the refrigerator of this embodiment, the rotational speed of the first fan 9a during defrosting of the first evaporator is low (1000 min ^-1 ), which is lower than the rotational speed of the first fan 9a during operation of the first evaporator. there is As a result, efficient defrosting can be performed while reducing the power consumption of the fan.

Subsequently, the setting of the switchable chamber is read (step S105), and the second evaporator operation corresponding to the setting of the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6 is started (step S106). The second evaporator operation is a state in which the inside of the refrigerator is cooled by supplying refrigerant to the second evaporator 14b while the compressor 24 is in a driving state.

In step S106, the rotation speed of the compressor 24 at the start of operation of the second evaporator, the rotation speed of the second fan 9b, the first switchable chamber damper 101, the first switchable chamber damper 101, The states of the second switching chamber damper 102, the first switching chamber heater 300, and the second switching chamber heater 400 are determined.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, when the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 are set to the freezing temperature and the freezing temperature (“FF” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is high (20° C. in the refrigerator of this embodiment) higher), "the compressor 24 is at high speed (2500 min ^-1 ), the second fan 9b is at high speed (1800 min ^-1 ), the first switchable chamber damper 101 is open, the second switchable chamber damper 102 is open, the second The first switching chamber heater 300 is in the OFF state and the second switching chamber heater 400 is in the OFF state” is selected. In this state, the air volume supplied to each storage compartment is 0.45 m ³ /min (total of both compartments) for the ice making compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4, 0.27 m 3 /min for the first switching compartment 5, and 0.27 m ³ /min for the second switching compartment. Chamber 6 is 0.33 m ³ /min.

When the first switchable compartment 5 and the second switchable compartment 6 are set to the freezing temperature and the freezing temperature ("FF" mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is low (20°C or less in the refrigerator of this embodiment), " The compressor 24 is at medium speed (1500 min ^-1 ), the second fan 9b is at low speed (1200 min ^-1 ), the first switching chamber damper 101 is in the open state, the second switching chamber damper 102 is in the open state, the first switching "The chamber heater 300 is in the OFF state, and the second switching chamber heater 400 is in the OFF state" is selected. In this state, the air volume supplied to each storage compartment is 0.30 m ³ /min (total of both compartments) for the ice making compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4, 0.18 m 3 /min for the first switching compartment 5, and 0.18 m ³ /min for the second switching compartment. Chamber 6 is 0.22 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6 are the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature (“RF” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is high, “compressor 24 is at medium speed (1500 min ⁻¹ ), The second fan 9b is at high speed (1800 min ^-1 ), the first switching chamber damper 101 is open, the second switching chamber damper 102 is open, the first switching chamber heater 300 is OFF, and the second switching chamber heater 400 is OFF. ” is selected. In this state, the air volume supplied to each storage compartment is 0.45 m ³ /min (total of both compartments) for the ice making compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4, 0.27 m 3 /min for the first switching compartment 5, and 0.27 m ³ /min for the second switching compartment. Chamber 6 is 0.33 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6 are the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature ((“RF” mode)), respectively, and the ambient temperature is low, “compressor 24 is at low speed (1000 min ^-1 ), The second fan 9b is at low speed (1200 min ^-1 ), the first switching chamber damper 101 is closed, the second switching chamber damper 102 is open, the first switching chamber heater 300 is ON, and the second switching chamber heater 400 is OFF. state is selected. In this state, the air volume supplied to each storage compartment is 0.24 m ³ /min (total of both compartments) for the ice making compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4, 0 m 3 /min for the first switching compartment 5, and 0 m ³ /min for the second switching compartment. 6 is 0.26 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6 are the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature ("FR" mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is high, "compressor 24 is at medium speed (1500 min ^-1 ), The second fan 9b is at high speed (1800 min ^-1 ), the first switching chamber damper 101 is open, the second switching chamber damper 102 is open, the first switching chamber heater 300 is OFF, and the second switching chamber heater 400 is OFF. ” is selected. In this state, the air volume supplied to each storage compartment is 0.45 m ³ /min (total of both compartments) for the ice making compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4, 0.27 m 3 /min for the first switching compartment 5, and 0.27 m ³ /min for the second switching compartment. Chamber 6 is 0.33 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6 are the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature ("FR" mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is low, "compressor 24 is at low speed (1000 min ^-1 ), second The fan 9b is at low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the first switching chamber damper 101 is open, the second switching chamber damper 102 is closed, the first switching chamber heater 300 is OFF, and the second switching chamber heater 400 is ON.” is selected. In this state, the air volume supplied to each storage compartment is 0.27 m ³ /min (total of both compartments) for the ice making compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4, 0.22 m 3 /min for the first switching compartment 5, and 0.22 m ³ /min for the second switching compartment. Chamber 6 is 0 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6 are the refrigerating temperature and the refrigerating temperature (“RR” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is high, “compressor 24 is at medium speed (1500 min ⁻¹ ), second The second fan 9b is at high speed (1800 min ^-1 ), the first switching chamber damper 101 is open, the second switching chamber damper 102 is open, the first switching chamber heater 300 is OFF, and the second switching chamber heater 400 is OFF. ” is selected. In this state, the air volume supplied to each storage compartment is 0.45 m ³ /min (total of both compartments) for the ice making compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4, 0.27 m 3 /min for the first switching compartment 5, and 0.27 m ³ /min for the second switching compartment. Chamber 6 is 0.33 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switchable chamber 5 and the second switchable chamber 6 are the refrigerating temperature and the refrigerating temperature (“RR” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is low, “compressor 24 is at low speed (1000 min ^-1 ), second The fan 9b is at low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the first switchable chamber damper 101 is open, the second switchable chamber damper 102 is open, the first switchable chamber heater 300 is OFF, and the second switchable chamber heater 400 is OFF.” is selected. In this state, the air volume supplied to each storage compartment is 0.30 m ³ /min (total of both compartments) for the ice making compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4, 0.18 m 3 /min for the first switching compartment 5, and 0.18 m ³ /min for the second switching compartment. Chamber 6 is 0.22 m ³ /min.

In step S106 shown in FIG. 13, the compressor 24, the second fan 9b, the first switchable chamber damper 101, the second switchable chamber damper 102, the first switchable chamber heater 300, and the second switchable chamber heater 400 are brought into the state described above. is controlled, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 2", and the second evaporator operation is started. Subsequently, in step S107, it is determined whether or not the condition for closing the first switching chamber damper is satisfied. Step S107 is established when the first switchable chamber damper 101 is in the open state and the temperature of the first switchable chamber 5 detected by the first switchable chamber temperature sensor 43 is equal to or lower than the first switchable chamber damper closing temperature. (Yes in step S107), and the first switching chamber damper 101 is closed (step S201). The closing temperature of the first switchable compartment damper in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 2° C. when the first switchable compartment 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature, and -20° C. when it is set to the freezing temperature.

In step S108, it is determined whether or not the condition for closing the second switching chamber damper is satisfied. Step S108 is established when the second switchable chamber damper 102 is in the open state and the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 detected by the second switchable chamber temperature sensor 44 is equal to or lower than the second switchable chamber damper closing temperature. (Yes in step S108), and the second switching chamber damper 102 is closed (step S202). The closing temperature of the second switchable compartment damper in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 1.5° C. when the setting of the second switchable compartment 6 is the refrigerating temperature, and -21° C. when the setting is the freezing temperature.

In step S109, it is determined whether or not the first switching chamber heater OFF condition is satisfied. In step S109, the first switchable chamber heater 300 is in an energized state (ON state), and the temperature of the first switchable chamber 5 detected by the first switchable chamber temperature sensor 43 is equal to or higher than the first switchable chamber heater OFF temperature. (Yes in step S109), and the first switchable chamber heater 121 is turned off (step S203). The OFF temperature of the first switchable compartment heater in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 5°C.

In step S110, it is determined whether or not the second switching chamber heater OFF condition is satisfied. In step S110, the second switchable chamber heater 400 is in an energized state (ON state), and the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 detected by the second switchable chamber temperature sensor 44 becomes equal to or higher than the second switchable chamber heater OFF temperature. (Yes in step S111), and the second switching chamber heater 400 is turned off (step S204). The second switchable compartment heater OFF temperature in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 5°C.

In step S111, it is determined whether or not the first evaporator defrosting end condition is satisfied. Step S111 is established when the temperature of the first evaporator 14a detected by the first evaporator temperature sensor 40a becomes equal to or higher than the first evaporator defrosting end temperature while the first fan 9a is in the driving state (step If S111 is Yes), the first fan 9a is turned OFF (stopped), and the defrosting of the first evaporator ends (step S205). The defrosting end temperature of the first evaporator in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 3°C.

In step S112, it is determined whether or not the conditions for ending the operation of the second evaporator are satisfied. Step S112 is established when the first switchable compartment damper 101 is in the closed state, the second switchable compartment damper 102 is in the closed state, and the temperature detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 is equal to or lower than the second evaporator operation end temperature. (Yes in step S112). In the refrigerator of this embodiment, step S112 is established when the temperature of the freezer compartment 4 detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 is -21° C. or lower. If step S112 is not satisfied (step S112 is No), the process returns to the determination of step S107.

If the second evaporator operation termination condition is satisfied in step S112 (Yes in step S112), then refrigerant recovery operation is performed (step S113). The refrigerant recovery operation in step S113 is an operation in which the rotation speed of the compressor 24 is maintained, the refrigerant control valve 52 is set to "state 3 (fully closed)", and the refrigerant in the second evaporator 14b is recovered to the heat radiation means side. Yes, and it continues for 3 minutes in the refrigerator of this embodiment. At this time, the second fan 9b continues to be driven to cool the freezer compartment 4 and the like even during the refrigerant recovery operation, and stops the second fan 9b when the refrigerant recovery operation ends. As a result, the refrigerant remaining in the second evaporator 14b can be used for cooling when the operation of the second evaporator is finished, so that the refrigerator has high cooling efficiency.

Subsequently, in step S114, it is determined whether or not the conditions for starting the operation of the first evaporator are satisfied. Step S114 is established when the temperature of the refrigerator compartment 2 detected by the refrigerator compartment temperature sensor 41 is equal to or higher than the first evaporator operation start temperature (Yes in step S114), and the process returns to step S101 to start the first evaporator operation. be started. The operation start temperature of the first evaporator in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 6°C. When step S114 is not established (step S114 is No), the compressor 24 is stopped (OFF) (step S115).

Next, in step S116, it is determined whether or not the first evaporator defrosting end condition is satisfied. The condition for establishing step S116 is the same as the condition for establishing step S111. When step S116 is satisfied (step S111 is Yes), the first fan 9a is stopped (turned off), and the defrosting of the first evaporator ends (step S206).

In step S117, it is determined whether or not the conditions for starting the operation of the first evaporator are satisfied. The condition for establishing step S117 is the same as the condition for establishing step S114. When step S117 is satisfied (step S117 is Yes), the process returns to step S101 and the first evaporator operation is started.

In step S118, it is determined whether or not the conditions for starting the operation of the second evaporator are satisfied. Step S118 is established when at least one of the temperatures detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42, the first switchable compartment temperature sensor 43, and the second switchable compartment temperature sensor 44 is equal to or higher than the second evaporator operation start temperature. (Yes in step S118). In the refrigerator of this embodiment, the temperature of the freezer compartment 4 detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 is is -12°C or higher, the temperature of the first switchable chamber 5 detected by the first switchable chamber temperature sensor 43 is -12°C or higher, and the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 detected by the second switchable chamber temperature sensor 44 is -12°C. Step S118 is established when at least one of the above conditions is satisfied.

When the first switchable compartment 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switchable compartment 6 is set to the freezing temperature ("RF" mode), the temperature of the freezer compartment 4 detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 is -12°C. At least one temperature of the first switchable chamber 5 detected by the first switchable chamber temperature sensor 43 is 8°C or higher and the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 detected by the second switchable chamber temperature sensor 44 is -12°C or higher. is satisfied, step S118 is established.

When the first switchable compartment 5 is set to the freezing temperature and the second switchable compartment 6 is set to the refrigerator temperature (“FR” mode), the temperature of the freezer compartment 4 detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 is −12° C. or higher. The temperature of the first switchable chamber 5 detected by the first switchable chamber temperature sensor 43 is -12°C or higher, and the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 detected by the second switchable chamber temperature sensor 44 is 8°C or higher. If so, step S118 is established.

When the first switchable compartment 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switchable compartment 6 is set to the refrigerating temperature (“RR” mode), the temperature of the freezer compartment 4 detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 is −12° C. or higher. Satisfying at least one condition that the temperature of the first switchable chamber 5 detected by the first switchable chamber temperature sensor 43 is 8°C or higher and the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 detected by the second switchable chamber temperature sensor 44 is 8°C or higher In this case, step S118 is established.
If step S118 is established (step S118 is Yes), the process proceeds to step S105, and if step S118 is not established (step S118 is No), the process returns to the determination of step S116.

FIG. 14 shows that the refrigerator according to this example is installed in an environment of 16 ° C. and 55% relative humidity in accordance with JISC9801-3:2015, and the first switchable compartment 5 is at the refrigerating temperature and the second switchable compartment 6 is at the freezing temperature. 4 is a time chart showing a stable operating state when set to (“RF” mode). In the following, description of the cooling state of the ice making chamber 3 that is cooled simultaneously with the freezing chamber 4 will be omitted.

Time _t0 is the time when the operation of the first evaporator for cooling the refrigerator compartment 2 is started (step S101 in FIG. 13). In the first evaporator operation, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 1", the compressor 24 is driven at a low speed (1000 min ^-1 ), and the first fan 9a is driven at a high speed (1600 min ^-1 ) for refrigeration. Chamber 2 is cooled. Here, the time-average temperature of the first evaporator 14a during operation of the first evaporator is −8° C., which is higher than the time-average temperature of the second evaporator 14b during operation of the second evaporator, which will be described later. . As a result, the refrigerating chamber 2, which maintains a relatively high temperature, can be efficiently cooled with respect to the freezing chamber 4, the first switchable chamber 5, and the second switchable chamber 6 set to the freezing temperature, and the refrigerator has high energy saving performance. Become.

Since the operation of the first evaporator is started, the refrigerator compartment 2 is cooled, and the temperature of the wall surface heat radiation pipe 50b (see FIGS. 3 and 8) provided close to the vacuum heat insulating materials 25c and 25d is Due to the flow of the refrigerant sent out by the unit 24, it rises after the operation of the first evaporator starts, and then stabilizes.

At time t1, the temperature of the refrigerating chamber ₂ detected by the refrigerating chamber temperature sensor 42 becomes equal to or lower than the first evaporator operation end temperature T _{R_off} (=2°C), and the refrigerating operation is shifted to the refrigerant recovery operation (Fig. Steps S102, S103). In the refrigerant recovery operation, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to “state 3 (fully closed)”, the compressor 24 is driven at a low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ), and the refrigerant in the first evaporator 14a is reduced to 2. Collect in minutes. As a result, it is possible to suppress a decrease in cooling efficiency due to insufficient refrigerant in the next operation of the second evaporator. At this time, by driving the first fan 9a, the residual refrigerant in the first evaporator 14a is utilized for cooling the refrigerator compartment 2, and the return air from the refrigerator compartment 2 heats the first evaporator 14a. The pressure drop inside is alleviated. As a result, an increase in the specific volume of the refrigerant sucked by the compressor 24 is suppressed, a large amount of refrigerant can be recovered in a relatively short period of time, and the cooling efficiency can be improved.

When the refrigerant recovery operation ends (time t ₂ ), the first fan 9a is turned to low speed (1000 min ^-1 ), and defrosting of the first evaporator is being performed. By making the rotation speed of the first fan 9a lower than that during the operation of the first evaporator in this way, it is possible to defrost the first evaporator 14a while suppressing the power consumption required for driving the fan, thereby saving energy. Refrigerator with excellent performance. At this time, the temperature of the first evaporator 14a is heated by the return air from the refrigerating chamber 2 and rises, and the rise in the temperature of the refrigerating chamber 2 is moderated by the cooling effect of frost and cold heat stored in the first evaporator 14a. be done.

Further, from time t2, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state ₂ ", and the second evaporator operation based on the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 is started (Fig. 13 steps S105 and S106). Here, the first switchable chamber 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switchable chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“RF” mode), ^and the ambient temperature is 20° C. or less. ¹ ), second fan 9b at low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), first switchable chamber damper 101 in closed state, second switchable chamber damper 102 in open state, first switchable chamber heater 300 in ON state, second switchable chamber heater 400 is OFF” is selected.

When the second evaporator operation is started, the first switchable compartment damper 101 is closed, the second switchable compartment damper 102 is opened, and the second fan 9b is driven, so that the temperature of the freezer compartment 4 changes to the first As the temperature of the switchable chamber 5 and the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 decrease, heating by the first switchable chamber heater 300 is performed. temperature is rising.

At time t3 _, the first switchable chamber temperature detected by the first switchable chamber temperature sensor 43 becomes equal to or higher than the OFF temperature T _{S1_H_off} (=5°C) of the first switchable chamber heater 300, and energization of the first switchable chamber heater 300 ends. (steps S109 and S203 in FIG. 13). As a result, the temperature of the first switchable chamber _first heater 301 is lowered after time t3.

At time t4, the _second switchable chamber temperature detected by the second switchable chamber temperature sensor 44 became equal to or lower than the second switchable chamber damper closing temperature T _{S2_off} (=-21°C), and the second switchable chamber damper 102, which had been open, It is closed (steps S108 and S202 in FIG. 13), the cooling of the second switchable compartment 6 is completed, and only the freezer compartment 4 is cooled.

At time t5, the temperature of the freezer compartment ₄ detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 reaches the second evaporator operation end temperature T _{F_off} (=−21° C.) or less, so that the second evaporator operation is terminated, The refrigerant recovery operation is started (steps S112 and S113 in FIG. 13). The hourly _average temperature of the second evaporator 14b during the operation of the _second evaporator carried out from time t2 to t5 is -29°C.

In the refrigerant recovery operation, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to “state 3 (fully closed)” and the compressor 24 is driven at a low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ) to continue to reduce the refrigerant in the second evaporator 14b to 3. minutes (step S113 in FIG. 13). As a result, it is possible to suppress a decrease in cooling efficiency due to insufficient refrigerant in the next operation of the first evaporator. At this time, by driving the second fan 9b, the residual refrigerant in the second evaporator 14b is utilized for cooling the freezer compartment 4, and the return air from the freezer compartment 4 heats the second evaporator 14b. The pressure drop inside is alleviated. As a result, an increase in the specific volume of the refrigerant sucked by the compressor 24 is suppressed, a large amount of refrigerant can be recovered in a relatively short period of time, and the cooling efficiency can be improved.

When the refrigerant recovery operation ends at time _t6 , it is determined whether the conditions for starting the operation of the first evaporator are satisfied (step S114 in FIG. 13), and the temperature of the refrigerator compartment 2 detected by the refrigerator compartment temperature sensor 41 reaches the first temperature. Since the temperature has not reached the evaporator operation start temperature T _{R_on} (=6° C.) or more, the compressor 24 and the second fan 9b are stopped and turned off.

At time _t7 , the temperature of the first evaporator 14a detected by the first evaporator temperature sensor 40a reaches the first evaporator defrosting end temperature _{TRD_off} (=3°C) or higher, and the first fan 9a stops. (Steps S116 and S206 in FIG. 13).

At time _{t8, the temperature of the refrigerator compartment 2 detected by the refrigerator compartment temperature sensor 41 becomes equal to or higher than the first evaporator operation start temperature TR_on (} =6°C), and the first evaporator operation start condition is established (step S117), and the operation of the first evaporator is started again (step S101 in FIG. 13). By repeating the above states of t0 to t8, the temperature of each part is controlled to a predetermined temperature. At this time, the time-average temperature of the wall heat radiation pipe 50b (see FIGS. 3 and 8) provided close to the vacuum heat insulating materials 25c and 25d was 18.0° C. The hourly average temperature of the first heater 301 for one switching chamber is 5.0°C. As described above, the refrigerator of this embodiment is configured such that the time average temperature of the first switchable compartment first heater 301 is lower than the time average temperature of the wall surface heat radiation pipe 50b. It controls the second fan 9b and the first heater 300 in the first switching chamber. Furthermore, the maximum temperature of the wall heat radiation pipe 50b (see FIGS. 3 and 8) provided close to the vacuum heat insulating materials 25c and 25d is 18.5° C. The maximum temperature reached by the first heater 301 in the switching chamber is 13.0°C, and the maximum temperature reached by the first heater 301 in the first switching chamber is controlled to be lower than the maximum temperature reached by the wall heat radiation pipe 50b. there is

The evaporators (first evaporator 14a and second evaporator 14b) are housed in evaporator chambers (first evaporator chamber 8a and second evaporator chamber 8b), and the temperature of the evaporator chambers is equal to the evaporator temperature. Varies depending on. Therefore, the evaporator temperatures (first evaporator temperature T _evp1 , second evaporator temperature T _evp2 ) shown in FIGS. ).

FIG. 15 shows that the refrigerator according to the example is installed in an environment of 16 ° C. and 55% relative humidity in accordance with JISC9801-3:2015, the first switchable compartment 5 is the refrigerating temperature, and the second switchable compartment 6 is the freezing temperature (" RF" mode) is a time chart showing the defrosting operation of the second evaporator 14b. In the following description, description of the states of the refrigerator compartment 2, the ice making compartment 3, and the freezer compartment 4 will be omitted.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, it is determined that frost has grown on the second evaporator 14b when the cumulative driving time of the compressor 24 reaches a predetermined time (24 hours in the refrigerator of this embodiment). It will be in the defrosting standby state of 14b. In FIG. 15, at _t0 , the cumulative driving time of the compressor 24 reaches a predetermined time (24 hours), and the second evaporator 14b is shifted to the defrosting standby state. The control state at _t0 is as follows: the compressor 24 is driven at low speed (ON), the refrigerant control valve 52 is in state 2, the second fan 9b is driven at low speed (ON), the first switching chamber damper 101 is open, the second switching With the room damper 102 closed, the first switchable room heater 300 energized (ON), the second switchable room heater 400 de-energized (OFF), and the defrost heater 21 de-energized (OFF), the second evaporator 14b The cooling air heat-exchanged with is supplied to the second switching chamber 6 for cooling. In this state, the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 set to the freezing temperature is lowered.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, after the second evaporator 14b shifts to the defrosting standby state, the operation of the second evaporator continues for a predetermined time (15 minutes in the refrigerator of this embodiment). After the second evaporator operation has been performed for a predetermined period of time, the second evaporator defrosting operation is started in which the defrosting heater 21 is energized. In FIG. ₁₅ , at t1, the compressor 24 is stopped (OFF), the refrigerant control valve 52 is in state 3, the second fan 9b is stopped (OFF), the first switching chamber damper 101 is closed, and the second switching chamber damper 102 is closed. is closed, the first switching chamber heater 300 is de-energized (OFF), the second switching chamber heater 400 is de-energized (OFF), the defrosting heater 21 is de-energized (ON), and the second evaporator defrosting operation starts. doing. When the second evaporator defrosting operation starts, the heating action of the defrosting heater 21 increases the temperature of the second evaporator 14b. At this time, the evaporator-chamber-side surface temperature of the heat-insulating partition wall 27 separating the first switching chamber 5 and the second evaporator chamber 8b (heat-insulating partition wall 27 temperature) also rises due to the heating action of the defrosting heater 21 . Also, the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 rises because the cooling is stopped. In addition, when the accumulated driving time of the compressor 24 reaches a predetermined time for shifting to the defrosting standby state, the refrigerant is supplied to the first evaporator 14a to cool the inside (first evaporation evaporator operation), or in the state where refrigerant is not supplied to either the first evaporator 14a or the second evaporator 14b (cooling stop), the next second evaporator operation It shifts to a defrosting standby state from the time of starting.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, when the temperature detected by the second evaporator temperature sensor 40b reaches a predetermined temperature (0.5° C. in the refrigerator of this embodiment) after the second evaporator defrosting operation is started, the refrigerant control valve 52 is switched from state 3 to state 2. In FIG. 15, the refrigerant control valve 52 is switched to state ₂ at t2. As a result, the refrigerant control valve 52 is in state 3, and the refrigerant remaining on the side of the heat dissipation means (external heat radiator 50a, wall heat dissipation pipe 50b, dew condensation prevention pipe 50c) flows into the second evaporator 14b. . At this time, the second evaporator 14b is heated (the temperature rise is accelerated), so more reliable defrosting can be performed.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, when the temperature detected by the second evaporator temperature sensor 40b reaches the defrosting end temperature higher than 0°C (8°C in the refrigerator of this embodiment), the electricity to the defrosting heater 21 is turned off. is stopped and the second evaporator defrosting operation is terminated. After that, the operation of the second evaporator is started after a cooling start delay state (off time) for a predetermined time (5 minutes in the refrigerator of this embodiment). In FIG. 15, at t3 _, the temperature detected by the second evaporator temperature sensor 40b reaches the defrosting end temperature (8° C.), power supply to the defrosting heater 21 is stopped (OFF), and the defrosting operation ends. ing. Subsequently, after the off time until t4, the compressor 24 is driven at medium speed ₍ ON), the refrigerant control valve 52 is in state 2, the second fan 9b is driven at high speed (ON), and the first switching chamber damper 101 is turned on. Closed, second switching chamber damper 102 opened, first switching chamber heater 300 energized (ON), second switching chamber heater 400 not energized (OFF), defrosting with defrosting heater 21 not energized (OFF) The second evaporator operation is started to quickly restore the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 whose temperature has risen during operation. As a result, the temperatures of the second switching chamber 6, the second evaporator 14b, and the heat insulating partition wall 27 are lowered. At this time, the temperature of the heat insulating partition wall 27 rises from the freezing temperature lower than 0°C to the refrigerating temperature higher than 0°C. Also, the maximum temperature reached by the heat insulating partition wall 27 is higher than the maximum temperature reached by the second evaporator temperature 14b.

The temperature of the first switchable chamber 5 is the surface temperature of the first switchable chamber temperature sensor 43 or the temperature inside the container 5b of the first switchable chamber 5, and the temperature of the second switchable chamber 6 is the temperature of the second switchable chamber temperature sensor. 44, or the temperature inside the container 6b of the second switching chamber 5, or the temperature of the second evaporator 14b is the surface temperature of the second evaporator temperature sensor 40b, or the vicinity of the top of the second evaporator 14b. The temperature of the heat-insulating partition wall 27 is the surface temperature of the front projection plane of the evaporator 14b on the side of the second evaporator chamber 8b of the heat-insulating partition wall 27. The surface temperature of the outer casing 91 near the location and the temperature of the first heater 301 of the first switchable chamber are measured by measuring the surface temperature of the heat insulating partition wall 30 at the location where the first heater 301 of the first switchable chamber is arranged. It can be confirmed that the operations described with reference to FIGS. 13 to 15 are performed correctly.

The configuration and the control method of the refrigerator of this embodiment have been described above. Next, the effects of the refrigerator of this embodiment will be described.

The refrigerator of this embodiment includes vacuum heat insulating materials (vacuum heat insulating materials 25b and 25c) mounted inside the heat insulating box 10, heat radiation means (wall heat radiation piping 50b) adjacent to the vacuum heat insulating materials, and a refrigerating temperature. A first storage compartment (first switchable compartment 5 set to a refrigerating temperature) and a freezing temperature adjacent to the upper part of the first storage compartment with a first partition wall (insulating partition wall 29) in between A second storage compartment (ice making compartment 3, freezing compartment 4) set to A third storage chamber (second switching chamber 6 set to a freezing temperature) and an evaporator adjacent to the rear of the first storage chamber with a third partition (insulating partition wall 27) interposed therebetween. A chamber (second evaporator chamber 8b) is provided, the second partition wall is provided with a vacuum heat insulating material (vacuum heat insulating material 25h), and a heating means (first switching chamber The first heater 301) is arranged so as to be close to the majority region of the upper surface of the vacuum heat insulating material 25h, and the time average temperature during stable operation of the heat radiation means (wall heat radiation pipe 50b) is equal to that of the heating means (first switching chamber Heating is performed so as to be lower than the time average temperature of the first heater 301) during stable operation. That is, among the walls that partition the first storage chamber, the vacuum insulation mounted on the wall (insulation box 10) separating the space (outside) having a higher temperature than the first storage chamber and the first storage chamber A space (freezing temperature space) whose temperature is lower than that of the first storage compartment than the time average temperature during stable operation of the heat dissipation means (wall heat dissipation pipe 50b) adjacent to the material (vacuum heat insulating material 25b, 25c) and the first storage Heating means (first heater 301 in the first switching chamber) disposed close to the vacuum heat insulating material (vacuum heat insulating material 25h) mounted on the second partition wall (heat insulating partition wall 30) separating the chambers. Heating is performed so that the time-average temperature during stable operation is lower. This makes the refrigerator highly reliable. The reason is explained below.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, when the first switchable compartment 5 is set to the refrigeration setting and the second switchable compartment 6 is set to the freezing setting, the first switchable compartment 5 is a freezing temperature space whose three surfaces are lower than the first switchable compartment 5. By adjoining the storage room, it becomes a storage room where the temperature is particularly easy to drop. If the storage chamber becomes too cold due to the cooling action from the freezing temperature space, problems may occur such as the interior of the storage chamber being unable to be maintained at a desired temperature, or condensation or frost forming on the walls of the storage chamber. Therefore, suppression of overcooling becomes a problem. The refrigerator of this embodiment is equipped with a plurality of vacuum insulation materials (vacuum insulation materials 25a to 25h) in order to improve the insulation performance. Since it is a heat-insulating member that enhances heat-insulating performance by depressurization, gas penetration (gas permeation) occurs through the gas-barrier outer wrapping material in the long term, resulting in a decrease (deterioration) of heat-insulating performance. For this reason, it is necessary to consider the deterioration of the vacuum heat insulating material in order to prevent problems caused by overcooling in the long term.

Since gas permeation through the gas-barrier outer wrapping material has a characteristic of being accelerated as the temperature rises, deterioration of the vacuum heat insulating material progresses as it is exposed to higher temperatures. In the refrigerator of this embodiment, a vacuum insulation material (vacuum Heat insulating materials 25c, 25d) and a vacuum insulating material mounted on the wall (insulating partition wall 30) separating the first switching chamber 5 from a space (freezing temperature space) having a temperature lower than that of the first switching chamber 5 for refrigeration setting. (Vacuum heat insulating material 25h), but the effect on the first switching chamber 5 when deterioration progresses is different. Specifically, a vacuum insulation material (vacuum insulation material 25c, 25d), the heat transfer from the outside increases, and the first switching chamber 5 is less likely to be overcooled. On the other hand, the vacuum insulation material (vacuum insulation material 25 h ) deteriorates, heat transfer to the refrigerating temperature space increases (the amount of cooling from the refrigerating temperature space increases), and problems due to overcooling tend to occur. Therefore, in the refrigerator of this embodiment, by adopting the above-described configuration, the vacuum insulation material mounted on the wall (insulation box body 10) between the space (outside) where the temperature is higher than that of the first switchable chamber 5 (Vacuum insulation material 25c, 25d) of the vacuum insulation material (vacuum insulation material 25h) mounted on the wall (heat insulation partition wall 30) between the space (freezing temperature space) with a lower temperature than the first switching chamber 5 By delaying the deterioration, the refrigerator is highly reliable, in which troubles such as the inside of the storage compartment becoming too cold to maintain a desired temperature or condensation or frost forming on the wall surface of the storage compartment are unlikely to occur for a long period of time.

The refrigerator of this embodiment includes vacuum heat insulating materials (vacuum heat insulating materials 25b and 25c) mounted inside the heat insulating box 10, heat radiation means (wall heat radiation piping 50b) adjacent to the vacuum heat insulating materials, and a refrigerating temperature. A first storage compartment (first switchable compartment 5 set to a refrigerating temperature) and a freezing temperature adjacent to the upper part of the first storage compartment with a first partition wall (insulating partition wall 29) in between A second storage compartment (ice making compartment 3, freezing compartment 4) set to A third storage chamber (second switching chamber 6 set to a freezing temperature) and an evaporator adjacent to the rear of the first storage chamber with a third partition (insulating partition wall 27) interposed therebetween. A chamber (second evaporator chamber 8b) is provided, the second partition wall is provided with a vacuum heat insulating material (vacuum heat insulating material 25h), and a heating means (first switching chamber The first heater 301) is arranged so as to be close to the majority region of the upper surface of the vacuum heat insulating material 25h, and the maximum temperature reached during stable operation of the heat radiation means (wall heat radiation pipe 50b) is the same as the heating means (first switching chamber The first heater 301) is heated so as to be lower than the maximum temperature reached during stable operation. As a result, problems such as the inside of the storage chamber becoming too cold to maintain a desired temperature, or condensation or frost forming on the wall surface of the storage chamber can be prevented more reliably, thereby improving reliability. The reason is explained below.

Assuming that the gas constant is R, the activation energy of gas permeation is E, and the absolute temperature is T, the deterioration rate K of the insulation performance of the vacuum insulation material is expressed by the following (Equation 1).

K∝exp (-E/RT) (Formula 1)
From (Equation 1), it can be seen that the rate of deterioration increases as the temperature of the vacuum insulation material rises, and the deterioration is accelerated even for a relatively short period of time. Therefore, in the refrigerator of this embodiment, the maximum temperature reached during stable operation of the heat radiation means (wall heat radiation pipe 50b) is lower than the maximum temperature reached during stable operation of the heating means (first heater 301 for the first switchable compartment). By doing so, the temperature is lower than the first switchable compartment 5 with the refrigeration setting due to the deterioration of the insulation performance of the wall separating the space (outside) with a higher temperature than the first switchable compartment 5 and the first storage compartment. The insulation performance of the wall separating the space (freezing temperature space) and the first switching chamber 5 quickly deteriorates, the inside of the storage chamber becomes too cold to maintain the desired temperature, or condensation or frost forms on the wall surface of the storage chamber. It is designed to more reliably prevent such problems as the occurrence of

The refrigerator of this embodiment has a first storage compartment set to a refrigerating temperature (first switchable compartment 5 set to a refrigerating temperature) and a first partition wall (insulating partition A second storage compartment (ice making compartment 3, freezer compartment 4) set to a freezing temperature adjacent to the wall 29) and a second partition wall (insulating partition wall 30 ) adjacent to each other across a third storage chamber set to a freezing temperature (second switching chamber 6 set to a freezing temperature), and behind the first storage chamber, a third partition wall (insulating partition An evaporator chamber (second evaporator chamber 8b) adjacent to the wall 27) is provided, and vacuum heat insulating materials (25 g of vacuum heat insulating material, 25 g of vacuum heat insulating material, 25h) is implemented, and a foamed heat insulator is implemented as the main heat insulating means of the third partition wall without implementing a vacuum heat insulator. This makes the refrigerator highly reliable. The reason is explained below.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, when the first switchable compartment 5 is set to the refrigeration setting and the second switchable compartment 6 is set to the freezing setting, the first switchable compartment 5 has three surfaces adjacent to the freezing temperature space, so that the temperature is particularly low. It becomes a storage room that is easy to become. If the storage chamber becomes too cold due to the cooling action from the freezing temperature space, problems may occur such as the interior of the storage chamber being unable to be maintained at a desired temperature, or condensation or frost forming on the walls of the storage chamber. Therefore, in order to prevent overcooling, it is effective to install a vacuum insulation material to improve the insulation performance of the partition wall separating the storage compartment set at the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature space. The vacuum insulation material is a heat insulation member that enhances the insulation performance by discharging the gas inside the gas barrier outer packaging material containing resin material, that is, by reducing the pressure. When the gas barrier property of the outer wrapping material deteriorates, the differential pressure tends to disappear due to gas infiltration, and the heat insulation performance decreases (degrades). In general, deterioration of resin materials is accelerated by thermal cycles in which high temperature and low temperature conditions are repeated. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 15, a partition wall separating the evaporator chamber where the high temperature state due to the defrosting operation and the low temperature state due to the cooling operation are periodically repeated from the refrigerating temperature storage chamber is formed by reducing the pressure inside the partition wall. When a vacuum insulation material is installed, the insulation performance of the partition wall tends to deteriorate in the long term due to temperature fluctuations in the evaporator chamber. On the other hand, the partition walls between the storage compartments are relatively temperature stable because they are maintained at the desired temperature relative to each other.

Therefore, in the refrigerator of this embodiment, the storage compartment (the first switchable compartment 5 set to the refrigerating temperature) that is particularly prone to low temperatures because three surfaces are adjacent to the freezing temperature space and the partition wall that separates the freezing temperature space. Of these, the partition wall (partition wall 29 and partition wall 30) between the freezing temperature storage compartment maintained at the desired temperature is equipped with a vacuum insulation material ( Vacuum insulation materials 25g, 25h) are mounted, and the partition wall (partition wall 27) separating the evaporator chamber (second evaporator chamber 8b) in which the defrosting operation and the cooling operation are repeated is mounted with the vacuum insulation material. However, by installing foam insulation, which is a heat insulation method that does not rely on decompression, the storage room set to the refrigeration temperature will be too cold even after a long period of use, or dew condensation will occur on the walls of the storage room. It is a highly reliable refrigerator that is unlikely to cause problems such as frost formation.

Further, in the refrigerator of this embodiment, the lowermost front edge of the partition wall 27 is arranged forward of the rear edge of the vacuum heat insulating material 25h mounted on the partition wall 30. As shown in FIG. The periphery of the vacuum heat insulating material easily conducts heat by heat transfer via the gas barrier layer containing metal, resulting in low heat insulating performance. Therefore, by adopting the above configuration, heat transfer through the gas barrier layer containing metal in the vicinity of the trailing edge of the vacuum heat insulating material 25h is reduced by the heat insulating effect of the heat insulating partition wall 27, so that the refrigerating temperature is set. Due to heat transfer between the storage compartment (the first switching compartment 5 set to the refrigerating temperature) and the storage compartment set to the freezing temperature, the storage compartment set to the refrigerating temperature is too cold, or the wall surface of the storage room This refrigerator is less prone to problems such as condensation and frost formation.

The refrigerator of this embodiment has a partition without a vacuum insulation material between the storage compartment set to the refrigerating temperature (the first switchable compartment 5 set to the refrigerating temperature) and the evaporator compartment (evaporator compartment 8b). A wall (partition wall 27) is provided with a heating means (first switching chamber second heater 302). As a result, the heat transfer from the evaporator chamber, which is particularly cold, may cause the temperature of the storage compartment set at the refrigerating temperature to drop excessively, or cause problems such as condensation or frost on the walls of the storage compartment. Since heating can be appropriately performed when it is judged to be high, the refrigerator has high reliability.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, two adjacent storage compartments are switchable compartments (first switchable compartment 5 and second switchable compartment 6) that can be set to a freezing temperature and a refrigerating temperature, and a partition separating the two switchable compartments is provided. A vacuum heat insulating material 25h is mounted on the wall (heat insulating partition wall 30), and both sides of the vacuum heat insulating material 25h are provided with heating means (first heater 301 for the first switching chamber and second heater 402 for the second switching chamber). This makes the refrigerator highly reliable. The reason is explained below.

When the user sets one switchable compartment to the refrigeration temperature and the other storage compartment to the freezer temperature, the switchable compartment set to the refrigeration temperature is cooled by heat conduction from the switchable compartment set to the freezer temperature. In order to suppress the overheating, it is effective to mount a vacuum heat insulating material on the partition wall separating the two switching chambers. On the other hand, of the surfaces of the partition wall that separates the two switchable compartments, the surface on the switchable compartment side that is set to the refrigerating temperature becomes low temperature, which may cause dew condensation or frost formation. Since the partition wall with vacuum insulation material has high heat insulation performance, even if one side is heated, it is difficult to transfer heat to the other side, which may lead to a situation where the amount of heat is insufficient. A vacuum insulation material 25h is mounted on the partition wall (insulation partition wall 30) separating the space, and heating means (first heater 301 for the first switching chamber and second heater 402 for the second switching chamber) With the provision of, regardless of which setting the user selects, when it is determined that there is a high risk of condensation or frost formation on the surface of the partition wall, both surfaces can be properly heated. This makes the refrigerator highly reliable.

Although the embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and includes various modifications. For example, in the refrigerator of this embodiment, the control parameters are set in advance so that the temperature of the heat radiation means (wall heat radiation pipe 50b) and the heating means (first switchable compartment first heater 301) is controlled within a desired temperature range. However, it is also possible to provide temperature detection means for the heat radiation means 50b and the first heater 301 for the first switching chamber and to maintain the temperature within a desired range by feedback control. In addition, the refrigerator of this embodiment includes the first evaporator 14a as cooling means for the refrigerating compartment, and the second evaporator 14b as cooling means for the ice making compartment 3, freezer compartment 4, first switchable compartment 5, and second switchable compartment 6. However, the configuration of the present invention may be applied to a refrigerator that cools all the storage compartments with a single cooling means (evaporator). Furthermore, a part of the piping of the heat radiation means may be utilized as the heating means. That is, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail in order to explain the present invention in an easy-to-understand manner, and are not necessarily limited to those having all the described configurations. Moreover, it is possible to add, delete, or replace a part of the configuration of the embodiment with another configuration.

1 refrigerator 2 refrigerating chamber 3 ice making chamber 4 freezing chamber 5 first switching chamber 6 second switching chamber 8a first evaporator chamber 8b second evaporator chamber 9a first fan 9b second fan 10 heat insulation box 14a first evaporator (cooling means)
14b second evaporator (cooling means)
16 hinge cover 21 defrosting heater (heating means)
23a, 23b Gutter 24 Compressor 25 Vacuum insulation material 27, 28, 29, 30 Heat insulation partition wall 31 Control board 39 Machine room 40a First evaporator temperature sensor 40b Second evaporator temperature sensor 41 Cold storage temperature sensor 42 Freezer temperature Sensor 43 Second switchable compartment temperature sensor 44 Second switchable compartment temperature sensor 50a Outside radiator (radiating means)
50b wall heat radiation pipe (heat radiation means)
50c Condensation prevention pipe (heat dissipation means)
52 refrigerant control valve (refrigerant control means)
53a first capillary tube (decompression means)
53b Second capillary tube (decompression means)
54a, 54b Gas-liquid separator 56 Check valves 57a, 57b Heat exchange unit 91 Outer case 92 Inner case 101 First switching chamber damper (blowing shutoff means)
102 Second switching chamber damper (blowing blocking means)
300 First switching chamber heater (heating means)
400 second switching chamber heater (heating means)

Claims (1)

A refrigerating cycle to which compression means, heat dissipation means, decompression means, and cooling means are connected, a heat insulating box body, a first storage chamber set to a refrigerating temperature, and above the first storage chamber A second storage chamber set to a freezing temperature adjacent across a first partition wall, and a third storage chamber set to a freezing temperature adjacent to a lower portion of the first storage chamber across a second partition wall. and an evaporator chamber in which the cooling means is mounted and which is adjacent to the rear of the first storage chamber across a third partition wall, wherein the first to third partition walls At least one partition wall includes a vacuum heat insulating material and a first heating means for heating the first storage chamber disposed adjacent to the vacuum heat insulating material; At least one other of the first to third partition walls is not provided with a vacuum insulation material and is provided with a second heating means for heating the first storage chamber. A refrigerator having a heat generation density lower than that of the second heating means.

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