JPH08303923A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To save power by efficiently cooling a refrigerator chamber alone when the cooling of the refrigerator chamber is required, and improve a temperature distribution in the refrigerator chamber, and at the same time, reduce a frosting on an evaporator. CONSTITUTION: A refrigerator is equipped with a refrigerator chamber cool air circulating means 8 which circulates cool air being cooled by an evaporator 5 to a refrigerator chamber 1 when the cooling of the refrigerator chamber 1 is required, and a freezer chamber cool air circulating means 9 which circulates cool air to a freezer chamber 2 when the cooling of the freezer chamber 2 is required.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly to control of a flow of cold air to a refrigerating room and a freezing room in a refrigerator of a cold air circulating system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional refrigerator of a cold air circulation system,
For example, there is one as shown in FIGS. The refrigerator shown in the figure is a mid-freezer type and is roughly divided into four compartments. From the top, a refrigerator compartment 1 and a first freezer compartment 2 are provided.
a, the second freezer compartment 2b, and the vegetable compartment 3. P /
C is a partial chilled chamber and constitutes a part of the refrigerator compartment 1. Hereinafter, the first freezing room 2a and the second freezing room 2b are collectively referred to as the freezing room 2. 4, 5 are compressors (compressors) and evaporators (evaporators) in the refrigeration cycle, 6 is a fan for circulating the cold air cooled by the evaporator 5, and 7 is the flow of cold air to the refrigerator compartment 1 and the vegetable compartment 3. Is a motor damper for controlling the. Cold air is distributed to the refrigerating compartment 1 by a duct, and the flow of the cool air is controlled by controlling the opening / closing of the motor damper 7 in the duct according to the detected value of the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor. When the temperature detected by the temperature sensor in the freezer reaches the upper limit set value, the refrigeration cycle operates and the fan 6 that circulates the cool air inside the refrigerator also rotates in conjunction with it. When cooling of the refrigerating compartment 1 is also required, the motor damper 7 is opened, and cold air is distributed and introduced into the refrigerating compartment 1. When the temperature detected by the temperature sensor in the freezer compartment 2 reaches the lower limit set value, the refrigeration cycle and the fan 6
Also stop. The motor damper 7 that controls the flow of cold air to the refrigerating compartment 1 closes when the refrigeration cycle stops or when the temperature detected by the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor reaches the lower limit set value. This time,
The refrigeration cycle is stopped even if the temperature detected by the refrigerator compartment temperature sensor has not reached the lower limit set value. Since the flow of cold air to the refrigerating compartment 1 depends on the flow of cold air to the freezing compartment 2, the cooling of the refrigerating compartment 1 is set to be completed in a shorter time than the cooling of the freezing compartment 2.

However, when the load of the refrigerating compartment 1 is larger than that of the refrigerating compartment 2, for example, when the temperature setting of the refrigerating compartment 2 is high, the doors of the refrigerating compartment 1 are opened / closed frequently, food is put in, etc. There is a possibility that the refrigeration cycle will stop before 1 has not cooled completely. Further, since the cool air for cooling the freezing compartment 2 is distributed to the refrigerating compartment 1, cold air having a temperature lower than the temperature of the refrigerating compartment 1 is blown to the refrigerating compartment 1. Therefore, the food near the outlet of the refrigerating compartment 1 may be frozen, and a small amount of low-temperature cold air is blown out, which tends to deteriorate the temperature distribution in the refrigerating compartment 1. In the evaporator 5, in order to produce cold air at a temperature lower than necessary for cooling the refrigerating chamber 1, the refrigerant evaporation temperature and pressure in the evaporator 5 are low, and it is necessary to operate the refrigeration cycle at a point in which the efficiency is low. Further, since the humidified air returning from the refrigerating compartment 1 to the evaporator 5 is cooled to a low temperature by the evaporator 5, a large amount of frost is formed on the evaporator 5, and it is necessary to regularly perform defrosting.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION As described above, the conventional refrigerator has the following problems.
Even if the temperature of the refrigerating room rises, the refrigerating cycle does not operate unless the temperature of the freezing room rises, so the temperature fluctuates greatly. Since low-temperature cold air that cools the freezing compartment is used for cooling the refrigerating compartment, the refrigerating cycle is operated at a low operating efficiency in order to cool the refrigerating compartment. Since the temperature of the cold air for cooling the refrigerating room is low, the food freezes near the outlet. Since the refrigerating compartment is cooled with a small amount of cold air having a low temperature, the temperature distribution in the refrigerating compartment is poor.

The present invention has been made in view of the above,
When it is necessary to cool the refrigerating compartment, only the refrigerating compartment can be efficiently cooled with an appropriate evaporation temperature and refrigerating capacity to save power, and the temperature distribution in the refrigerating compartment can be improved and frost can be formed on the evaporator. It is an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator that can reduce

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 1 is a refrigerator in which cold air cooled by an evaporator in a refrigerating cycle is circulated in a refrigerating room and a freezing room for cooling. A refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means for circulating the cold air to the refrigerating compartment when cooling of the refrigerating compartment and a freezing compartment cold air circulating means for circulating the cold air to the freezing compartment when cooling of the freezing compartment is required. Use as a summary.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to the first aspect, one of the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment is operated by operating one of the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means and the freezing compartment cold air circulating means. At the time of cooling the room, when the room temperature of the other one becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined set temperature, it has a control means for switching the refrigerating room cold air circulating means or the freezing room cold air circulating means to only the other operation. And

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to the first aspect, either the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means or the freezing compartment cold air circulating means is operated to operate either the refrigerating compartment or the freezing compartment. When cooling the room, when the room temperature of the other one becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined set temperature, it is a gist to have a control means for operating either the refrigerating room cold air circulating means or the freezing room cold air circulating means. .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to the first aspect, either the refrigerating room or the freezing room is stopped by stopping the operation of either the refrigerating room cold air circulating means or the freezing room cold air circulating means. When the cooling of one of the chambers is stopped and the room temperature of the other one is equal to or lower than the upper limit set temperature but equal to or higher than a predetermined intermediate set temperature of the lower limit set temperature or higher, the refrigerating chamber is not stopped without stopping the operation of the refrigeration cycle. The gist of the present invention is to have a control means for switching to either operation of the cold air circulation means or the freezing room cold air circulation means.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to the first aspect, the refrigerating capacity of the refrigerating cycle is varied according to a required cooling amount when the refrigerating room is cooled by operating the refrigerating room cold air circulation means. The gist is to have a control means for

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the refrigerator according to the first aspect, there is provided control means for operating the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means in a stopped state of the refrigerating cycle after stopping the cooling of the freezing compartment. Use as a summary.

[0012]

According to the present invention, when cooling of the refrigerating compartment is required, the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means is not operated and the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means is operated so that only the refrigerating compartment has an appropriate evaporation temperature and refrigerating capacity. It becomes possible to cool efficiently. That is, the refrigerating room temperature (about 3 to 5 ° C) is equal to the freezing room temperature (-
Since it is higher than 18 to -20 ° C), it is possible to operate the refrigerant evaporation temperature in the evaporator at a high temperature range of (-5 to + 1 ° C) when the refrigerating chamber is cooled. The higher evaporation temperature improves the efficiency of the cycle. Generally, when the refrigeration cycle is operated at a high evaporation temperature, the refrigerant circulation amount increases and the refrigerating capacity increases. Therefore, the refrigeration capacity of the refrigeration cycle can be reduced. As a means for reducing the refrigerating capacity, there is a method such as reducing the rotation speed of the compressor motor. Therefore, it is possible to save power, improve the temperature distribution in the refrigerator compartment, and reduce frost formation on the evaporator.

In the invention according to claim 2, when the room temperature of one of the refrigerating room and the freezing room becomes higher than a predetermined set temperature during cooling of the other room, the cold air flow is switched to the other one. By cooling only the chamber of (1), it is possible to efficiently cool each chamber by a dedicated operation and save electric power while minimizing the temperature rise in the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the temperature of both the refrigerating room and the freezing room is high at the time of starting the operation, and in many cases, the operating mode is not stable because the temperature exceeds a predetermined set temperature in both rooms.
In such a case, when cooling either one of the refrigerating room and the freezing room, if the room temperature of the other one reaches a predetermined set temperature or higher, cool air is also circulated in the other room to cool it. . In this case, since the temperature of the cold air to the refrigerating compartment becomes lower than that during the exclusive cooling of the refrigerating compartment, a control method is adopted to appropriately reduce the flow rate of the cool air to the refrigerating compartment. As a result, it is possible to stabilize the temperature inside both the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber while keeping the temperature inside the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber to a minimum. After the temperatures in both rooms have stabilized, the operation mode is switched to the exclusive operation mode for each room.

In the invention according to claim 4, when the cooling of one of the refrigerating room and the freezing room is stopped, even if the room temperature of the other room is below the upper limit set temperature, but above the predetermined intermediate set temperature, By continuing to shift to the cooling mode of the other chamber without stopping the refrigeration cycle, it is possible to prevent a large power loss due to restart of the refrigeration cycle.

In the fifth aspect of the invention, at the time of cooling the refrigerating chamber, power saving operation can be performed by performing control such as reducing the refrigerating capacity of the compressor according to the required cooling amount.

In the invention of claim 6, after the cooling of the freezing compartment is stopped, the refrigerating compartment is cooled using the remaining cooling of the evaporator while the refrigeration cycle is stopped, so that the air returning from the refrigerating compartment to the evaporator is Since the temperature becomes positive, it is possible to defrost the evaporator.

[0018]

【Example】

First Embodiment A first embodiment will be described based on FIGS. 1 to 6. In addition, FIG. 1 for explaining the configuration of the refrigerator and the flow of cold air.
In FIG. 3, parts that are the same as or equivalent to the devices, parts, and the like in FIG. 12 are designated by the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations are omitted. First, the configuration of the refrigerator will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. In the present embodiment, a cooling chamber cooling fan (hereinafter, R as a cooling chamber cooling air circulation unit for circulating the cold air cooled by the evaporator 5 to the cooling chamber 1). A fan) 8 and a freezing room cooling fan (hereinafter also referred to as an F fan) 9 as a freezing room cold air circulation means for circulating cold air to the freezing room 2 are separately provided. As shown in FIG. 3, a common fan 11 and an R damper 12 may be used as the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means, and a common fan 11 and F damper 13 may be used as the freezing compartment cold air circulating means. Hereinafter, the case where the R fan 8 is used as the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means and the F fan 9 is used as the freezing compartment cold air circulating means will be described. FIG. 4 shows the configuration of the control system, which serves as control means based on the respective detection information of the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 14 for measuring the temperature of the refrigerating compartment 1 and the freezing compartment temperature sensor 15 for measuring the temperature of the freezing compartment 2. The controller 10 controls the operation of the compressor 4, the R fan 8 and the F fan 9.

Next, the operation will be described with reference to the control flowchart of FIG. After turning on the power and starting operation, the freezer compartment 2
Is above the upper limit reference temperature (upper limit set temperature) T _FH (YES in step 101), the compressor 4 is started and the F fan 9 is operated (step 102). The F fan 9 is operated until the freezer compartment 2 is cooled and becomes lower than the lower limit reference temperature (lower limit set temperature) T _{FL, and when} it becomes lower than the lower limit reference temperature T _FL (step 103), the F fan 9 is stopped (step 104). At this time, when the refrigerating chamber 1 is at the upper limit reference temperature T _RH or higher (step 105), the R fan 8 is operated (step 106). The compressor 4 continues to operate.
R until the refrigerating compartment 1 is cooled to below the lower limit reference temperature T _RL
The fan is operated, and when the temperature becomes lower than the lower limit reference temperature T _RL (step 107), the R fan 8 is stopped (step 10).
8) Return to the beginning. When the freezing compartment 2 is below the upper limit reference temperature T _FH (NO in step 101), the temperature of the refrigerating compartment 1 is measured. If the refrigerator compartment 1 is at or above the upper limit reference temperature T _RH (YES in step 109), the compressor 4 is started and the R fan 8 is operated (step 110). The R fan is operated until the refrigerating compartment 1 is cooled and becomes lower than the lower limit reference temperature T _RL ,
When the temperature becomes lower than the lower limit reference temperature T _RL (step 111),
The R fan 8 is stopped (step 112). At this time, if the freezer compartment 2 is at or above the upper limit reference temperature T _FH (step 11
3), the F fan 9 is operated (step 114). The compressor 4 continues to operate. The F fan is operated until the freezer compartment 2 is cooled and becomes lower than the lower limit reference temperature T _{FL, and when} it becomes lower than the lower limit reference temperature T _FL (step 115), the F fan 9 is stopped (step 116) and the process returns to the beginning. . If both the freezing compartment 2 and the refrigerating compartment 1 are at or below the upper limit reference temperature (NO in steps 101 and 109), the compressor 4 is stopped (step 117).

As described above, in the present embodiment, when only the refrigerating compartment 1 is cooled, the temperature of the cool air returning from the refrigerating compartment 1 to the evaporator 5 is a positive temperature, the temperature difference with the evaporator 5 is large, and the amount of heat exchange is large. Since it is large, the evaporation temperature in the evaporator 5 becomes high within the automatic adjustment range of the capillary. For example, the evaporation temperature when the conventional freezer compartment is also cooled -2
The case where the evaporation temperature increases from 5 ° C to -10 ° C will be compared. FIG. 6 shows the operation of the refrigeration cycle on the Mollier chart. At about -10 ° C, the compression ratio of the compressor decreases (Fig. 6 (a)) as compared with the case of cooling at -25 ° C (Fig. 6 (b)), so the COP of the refrigeration cycle and the operating efficiency of the compressor 4 Is improved and power can be saved. In addition, since the evaporator is not cooled to a low temperature, the absolute humidity at the evaporator outlet increases, and the frost formation on the evaporator 5 decreases.

Second Embodiment A second embodiment will be described with reference to the control flowchart of FIG. The configurations of the refrigerator and the control system are those shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4.

FIG. 7 shows a flow chart of the control when the refrigerating compartment becomes higher than the upper limit warning temperature T _RW during cooling of the freezing compartment. After the start of operation, if the freezing compartment is at or above the upper limit reference temperature T _FH (YES in step 201), the compressor is started and the F fan is operated to cool the freezing compartment (step 202). When the temperature of the refrigerating compartment reaches the upper limit warning temperature T _RW during cooling of the freezing compartment (YE in step 203)
S), the cooling operation mode is switched to the refrigerating compartment cooling mode (steps 204 and 205), and the refrigerating compartment is continuously cooled until the refrigerating compartment temperature reaches the upper limit reference temperature T _RH (step 20).
6). The control may be such that the refrigerating compartment is cooled until the refrigerating compartment temperature reaches the lower limit reference temperature. However, when switching to the refrigerating compartment cooling mode, it is necessary to monitor whether the temperature of the freezing compartment does not reach the upper limit warning temperature, and when the upper limit warning temperature is exceeded, the original freezing compartment cooling mode is returned to. The same control is used when the temperature of the freezing compartment becomes higher than the upper limit warning temperature during cooling of the refrigerating compartment. The temperature setting for switching the mode should be changed according to the allowable temperature rise range. Returning to the explanation of the flowchart in FIG. 7, when the refrigerating compartment temperature becomes equal to or lower than the upper limit reference temperature T _RH (YES in step 206), the R fan is stopped (step 207) and the F fan is operated (step 20).
8). Until freezer compartment is below the cooled lower reference temperature T _FL operating the F fan, when it is below the lower reference temperature T _FL (step 209), stops the F fan (Step 2
10). At this time, if the refrigerating room is at or above the upper limit reference temperature T _RH (step 211), the R fan is operated (step 212). After step 212, the same control as the control of steps 107 and 108 in FIG. 5 is performed, but it is omitted in the control flowchart of FIG. 7.
When the freezer compartment is below the upper limit reference temperature T _FH (step 201
No.) also in steps 109 to 117 in FIG.
The control is almost the same as the control described above, but it is omitted in the control flowchart of FIG.

In the above-mentioned control, at the start of cooling, both the refrigerating room and the freezing room have high temperatures, and both exceed the upper limit warning temperature, so that the operation mode is not stable. Until it stabilizes, it is necessary to use the control of the next embodiment or prevent the mode from switching for a certain period of time.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to save power by performing the dedicated operation for each room while suppressing the temperature rise in the refrigerating room and the freezing room to a minimum.

Third Embodiment A third embodiment will be described with reference to the control flowchart of FIG. The configurations of the refrigerator and the control system are those shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4.

FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of another control example in the case where the refrigerating compartment becomes higher than the upper limit warning temperature T _RW during cooling of the freezing compartment. After the start of operation, the freezing room has an upper reference temperature T
If it is equal to or higher than _FH (YES in step 301), the compressor is started and the F fan is operated to cool the freezer compartment (step 302). When the temperature of the refrigerating room reaches the upper limit warning temperature T _RW during cooling of the freezing room (YE in step 303)
S), the R fan is also rotated (step 304), and cooling of the refrigerating compartment is also continued until the refrigerating compartment temperature reaches the upper limit reference temperature T _RH (step 305). The same control is used when the temperature of the freezing compartment becomes higher than the upper limit warning temperature during cooling of the refrigerating compartment.
Since the temperature of the cold air to the refrigerating compartment is lower than that in the case of cooling only the refrigerating compartment, it is preferable to reduce the air volume to the refrigerating compartment than to cool only the refrigerating compartment. When the refrigerating room temperature becomes lower than the upper limit reference temperature T _RH (YES in step 305),
The R fan is stopped (step 306) to return to cooling only the freezer compartment. The control after the temperature in the freezer compartment in step 307 becomes equal to or lower than the lower limit reference temperature T _FL is as shown in FIG.
The embodiment is similar to the control after step 209. Even when the freezer compartment is below the upper limit reference temperature T _FH (NO in step 301), N in step 201 in FIG.
This is similar to the control after O.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to stabilize the temperature inside both the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber to the required temperature while suppressing the temperature rise in the both chambers to the minimum. After the temperature is stabilized, it is possible to shift to the operation mode dedicated to each room as in the second embodiment.

In this embodiment, the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment may be cooled at the same time, which is less efficient than the previous embodiment.
Therefore, in order to obtain the power saving effect, the control method of the operation mode dedicated to each room in the previous embodiment is used after the temperature is stabilized. When it is desired to reduce the temperature fluctuation, the control method of this embodiment is used.

Fourth Embodiment A fourth embodiment will be described with reference to the control flowchart of FIG. The configurations of the refrigerator and the control system are those shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4.

In the control flow chart of FIG. 9, when the lower limit reference temperature T _FL becomes lower than the lower limit temperature T _FL during cooling of the freezing room (step 403), the F fan is stopped to end the cooling of the freezing room (step 404). If the temperature is lower than the upper limit reference temperature T _RH but higher than the intermediate temperature T _RM (step 405), the R fan is operated to enter the refrigerating compartment cooling mode (step 40).
6). Similarly, after the cooling of the refrigerating compartment is finished, if the temperature of the freezing compartment is higher than the intermediate reference temperature T _FM even if it is lower than the upper limit reference temperature T _FH , the freezing compartment cooling mode is entered. Other controls are almost the same as those in FIG. 5 (first embodiment).

For example, after the cooling of the refrigerating chamber is completed and the refrigerating cycle and the R fan are stopped, the temperature of the refrigerating chamber reaches the upper limit reference value in a short time, and the refrigerating cycle and the F fan are restarted by the demand of cooling. It may start. A large power loss is involved in starting the refrigeration cycle. Therefore, when it is expected that the refrigeration cycle will be restarted after a short time, it is desirable to continue the operation of the refrigeration cycle. Therefore, in this embodiment, if the temperature is equal to or lower than the upper limit reference temperature but equal to or higher than the intermediate temperature, the cooling mode is entered. Even if only the freezing compartment is cooled and only the refrigerating compartment is cooled, the other compartments are unconditionally cooled, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

Fifth Embodiment A fifth embodiment will be described with reference to the configuration of the control system of FIG. 10 and the control flowchart of FIG. The refrigerator has the structure shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

In the configuration of the control system of FIG. 10, a control unit (inverter) 16 for controlling the refrigerating capacity of the compressor 4 is provided in this embodiment.

FIG. 11 shows this control unit (inverter) 16
3 shows a control flowchart for controlling the compressor 4 by. The signal from the main controller 10 (step 5
01), in the freezer compartment operation mode (YES in step 502), the refrigerating capacity is large (step 503), in the refrigerating compartment operation mode (NO in step 502), the refrigerating capacity is small (step 504). drive.

By the above control, when only the refrigerating chamber is cooled, the evaporation temperature of the evaporator can be raised. There is a limit to the controllability of capillaries. When cooling only the refrigerating compartment, the refrigerating capacity of the compressor is reduced to raise the evaporation temperature. In order to reduce the refrigerating capacity of the compressor, it is conceivable to perform variable frequency operation with an inverter and reduce the amount of refrigerant sucked into the compressor. There is also a method of changing the evaporation temperature by using an expansion valve and changing the throttle.

Sixth Embodiment In this embodiment, after the cooling is completed, the refrigeration cycle is stopped, then the R fan is operated, and air is supplied to the refrigerating compartment. After the refrigeration cycle is stopped, if the temperature of the evaporator is sufficiently lower than the temperature of the refrigerating compartment, the refrigerating compartment cooling fan is operated to flow air into the refrigerating compartment. (When the specific numerical value is 5 to 10 ° C. or lower) The refrigerating chamber can be cooled by operating the R fan only and using the remaining cooling of the evaporator. The air returning from the refrigerating compartment has a positive temperature, and this air can defrost the evaporator and reduce the amount of frost formation. The power consumption can be reduced by cooling the refrigerating room and reducing the amount of frost.

[0037]

As described above, according to the invention described in claim 1, refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means for circulating the cold air cooled by the evaporator to the refrigerating compartment when it is necessary to cool the refrigerating compartment,
Since a freezing room cold air circulating means for circulating the cold air to the freezing room when the freezing room needs to be cooled is provided, when the cooling room needs to be cooled, only the refrigerating room is efficiently cooled with an appropriate evaporation temperature and freezing capacity to save energy. Power can be obtained. Further, it is possible to improve the temperature distribution in the refrigerating chamber and increase the evaporation temperature, so that it is possible to reduce frost formation on the evaporator.

According to the second aspect of the invention, either one of the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means and the freezing compartment cold air circulating means is operated to cool one of the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment. When the room temperature of the other becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined set temperature, the temperature of the refrigerating room and the freezing room is controlled because the refrigerating room cold air circulating means or the freezing room cold air circulating means is provided with a control means for switching to only the other operation. While keeping the rise to a minimum, operating efficiency can be improved and power saving can be achieved by dedicated operation in each room.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, any one of the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means and the freezing compartment cold air circulating means is operated to cool one of the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment. When the other room temperature becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined set temperature, a control means for operating either the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means or the freezing compartment cold air circulating means is provided. When the temperature in both chambers is high, the temperature in both chambers can be cooled to a required temperature and stabilized while minimizing the temperature rise in both chambers. It is possible to save power by shifting to a dedicated operation mode for each room after the temperatures in both rooms have stabilized.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the operation of either the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means or the freezing compartment cold air circulating means is stopped to cool either the refrigerating compartment or the freezing compartment. When stopped, if the other room temperature is equal to or lower than the upper limit set temperature but equal to or higher than a predetermined intermediate set temperature equal to or higher than the lower limit set temperature, the refrigerating compartment cold air circulation means or the freezing compartment cold air is not stopped without stopping the operation of the refrigeration cycle. Since the control means for switching to the other operation of the circulation means is provided, it is possible to prevent a large power loss due to the restart of the refrigeration cycle.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when the refrigerating compartment cool air circulating means is operated to cool the refrigerating compartment, a control means for varying the refrigerating capacity of the refrigerating cycle according to the required cooling amount is provided. Therefore, power saving operation can be performed.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, after the cooling of the freezer compartment is stopped, the control means for operating the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means in the stopped state of the refrigerating cycle is provided. By cooling the refrigerating chamber using the air, the temperature of the air returning to the evaporator becomes a positive temperature, so that the evaporator can be defrosted. Power consumption can be reduced by cooling and defrosting the refrigerating compartment using this residual cooling.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an internal configuration of a first embodiment of a refrigerator according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the flow of cold air in the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the second modification.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system in the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a control flow chart for explaining the operation of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a Mollier chart for explaining the operation of the refrigeration cycle in the first embodiment together with a comparative example.

FIG. 7 is a control flowchart for explaining the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a control flow chart for explaining the operation of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a control flowchart for explaining the operation of the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system in a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a control flow chart for explaining the operation of the fifth embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional refrigerator and a diagram for explaining a flow of cold air.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Refrigerator 2 Refrigerator 4 Compressor 5 Evaporator 8 Refrigerator cooling fan (refrigerator cold air circulation means) 9 Refrigerator cooling fan (refrigerator cold air circulation means) 10 Control unit (control means)

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Kosaku Adachi 8 Shinsita-cho, Isogo-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Kanagawa Prefecture, Ltd. Inside the Institute for Living Space Systems Technology (72) Inventor Yuko Hongo 8 Shinsugita-cho, Isogo-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Address Incorporated company Toshiba Living Space Systems Engineering Laboratory (72) Inventor Atsushi Kusunoki 8 Shinsita-cho, Isogo-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Incorporated Toshiba Living Space Systems Engineering Laboratory (72) Incorporator Hiroaki Asakura Shimbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 3-3-9 Toshiba Abu E Co., Ltd.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A refrigerator in which cold air cooled by an evaporator in a refrigeration cycle is circulated in a refrigerating compartment and a freezing compartment to cool the refrigerating compartment, and the cold air is circulated to the refrigerating compartment when cooling of the refrigerating compartment is required. A refrigerator comprising: a circulation means; and a freezer compartment cold air circulation means for circulating the cold air to the freezer compartment when cooling of the freezer compartment is required. 2. When one of the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means and the freezing compartment cold air circulating means operates to cool either one of the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment, the other room temperature is set to a predetermined set temperature. When it becomes the above, it has the control means which switches the said refrigerating room cold air circulation means or the freezing room cold air circulation means only to the other operation | movement.
Refrigerator described. 3. When cooling either one of the refrigerating compartment and the freezing compartment by operating one of the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means and the freezing compartment cold air circulating means, the other room temperature is set to a predetermined set temperature. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising control means for operating either the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means or the freezing compartment cold air circulating means when the other becomes the above. 4. When the operation of either the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means or the freezing compartment cold air circulating means is stopped to stop the cooling of either the refrigerating compartment or the freezing compartment, the other one is stopped. When the room temperature of the above is higher than a predetermined intermediate set temperature above the lower limit set temperature even below the upper limit set temperature, the other operation of either the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means or the freezing compartment cold air circulating means without stopping the operation of the refrigeration cycle. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising control means for switching to. 5. The control means for varying the refrigerating capacity of the refrigerating cycle in accordance with a required cooling amount when the refrigerating compartment is cooled by operating the refrigerating compartment cold air circulating means. Refrigerator. 6. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising control means for operating the refrigerating compartment cold air circulation means in a stopped state of the refrigerating cycle after the cooling of the freezing compartment is stopped.