JPWO2020255245A1 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

The refrigerator includes a door and an operation panel provided on the door to display an operation icon. The operation panel is provided on the transparent plate member and the back side of the transparent plate member, and when the operation icon is operated. A sheet that detects the changing capacitance, a substrate that is provided on the back side of the sheet and has a light emitting source that irradiates the sheet, and the capacitance detected by the sheet are received as operation signals. It has a control unit that controls the lighting and extinguishing of the light emitting source, and the sheet has a transparent conductive member that detects the capacitance and a pattern wiring that transmits the capacitance detected by the transparent conductive member to the control unit. A pattern on the sheet, which has a light-shielding layer having a display pattern for displaying the shape of the operation icon, and a light-diffusing layer provided on the light-emitting source side of the light-shielding layer and diffusing the light emitted from the light-emitting source. The area where the wiring is provided is the first light-shielding layer abolished area where the light-shielding layer is not provided.

Description

The present invention relates to a refrigerator having an operation panel on the door surface.

Some refrigerators in recent years have a door surface made of a glass material. In such refrigerators, the door is often provided with an operation panel by a touch sensor method.

Operation switches, characters, and symbols are displayed on the operation panel. In order to improve visibility, the operation panel turns on the light emitting source when the user operates it, and irradiates the operation switch, the character, and the design with the light of the light emitting source. As a result, the operation switch, characters, and patterns are clearly displayed, and the visibility of the operation panel is enhanced.

The operation panel also has a power saving function that automatically turns off the light emitting source when there is no operation input from the user for a certain period of time. While the light emitting source is off, the operation switch, characters, and symbols are not displayed and are invisible to the user.

However, even when the light emitting source is turned off, if the light-shielding property of the glass material constituting the door is low, the operation switch, characters, and the design can be seen through by the light from the lighting equipment of the room where the refrigerator is installed. It may be visible.

Further, when the operation panel is composed of a capacitance type touch panel, it is necessary to detect the change in capacitance due to the user touching and transmit the detection result to the control device. Therefore, the operation panel is provided with conductive wiring for transmitting the change in capacitance to the control device.

If the conductive wiring is broken, the user's operation cannot be transmitted to the control device. Therefore, it is desirable to inspect all the conductive wiring to confirm the presence or absence of the break.

For example, in the pattern detection method described in Patent Document 1, a substrate having light diffusivity is irradiated with laser light, the reflected light is detected by a photodetector, and a conductive pattern formed on the substrate is used. Defects are detected. At this time, if the contrast between the conductive pattern and the substrate surface around the conductive pattern is low, the inspection accuracy is low. That is, since the reflected light is detected and inspected, when the contrast is low, the difference in the intensity of the reflected light becomes small, and the defect of the conductive pattern is overlooked.

Therefore, in the pattern detection method described in Patent Document 1, an illumination spot having a dark field at least in the center so as to cause a remarkable difference between the light diffusivity of the substrate portion and the light diffusivity of the conductive pattern portion. Is being inspected using.

That is, when an illumination spot having a dark field in the center is irradiated on a substrate on which a conductive pattern is not formed, the light is diffused to brighten the center, and the reflected light is transmitted to the photodetector. Entered. On the other hand, when the illumination spot is irradiated on the conductive pattern portion, the light diffusion is small, so that the reflected light from the central portion is not detected. As described above, in Patent Document 1, defects in the conductive pattern are detected by utilizing the difference in light diffusivity between the substrate portion and the conductive pattern portion.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 61-169708

As described above, in Patent Document 1, the inspection is performed using an illumination spot having a dark field at least in the center. However, in order to form such a lighting spot, a dedicated inspection device is required. The dedicated inspection device has a problem that the configuration is complicated and the cost is high.

The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to obtain a refrigerator capable of easily inspecting a disconnection of conductive wiring of an operation panel.

The refrigerator according to the present invention includes a door and an operation panel provided on the door and displaying an operation icon, and the operation panel is provided on a transparent plate member and a back surface side of the transparent plate member. It is detected by a sheet that detects the capacitance that changes when the operation icon is operated, a substrate that is provided on the back surface side of the sheet and has a light emitting source that irradiates the sheet with light, and the sheet. It has a control unit that receives the capacitance as an operation signal and controls turning on and off of the light emitting source, and the sheet has a transparent conductive member that detects the capacitance and the transparent transparent member. A pattern wiring for transmitting the capacitance detected by the conductive member to the control unit, a light-shielding layer having a display pattern for displaying the shape of the operation icon, and a light-shielding layer provided on the light-emitting source side of the light-shielding layer. The region having the light diffusing layer for diffusing the light emitted from the light emitting source and having the pattern wiring in the sheet is the first light-shielding layer abolished region in which the light-shielding layer is not provided.

According to the refrigerator of the present invention, it is possible to easily inspect the conductive wiring of the operation panel for disconnection.

It is a front view of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a side sectional view of the refrigerator shown in FIG. It is an exploded perspective view of the operation panel. It is a figure which showed the transparent electrode sheet and the support member of the operation panel of FIG. It is a figure which showed the support member of the operation panel of FIG. 3 and an electronic board. It is a front view which showed the appearance of a transparent electrode sheet. It is a figure which shows the layer structure of the operation icon part of a transparent electrode sheet. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. It is a front view which showed the appearance of a transparent electrode sheet. It is a front view which shows the state which projected the operation display transmission part on the transparent electrode sheet of FIG. It is a front view which showed the modification of FIG. It is an enlarged view which shows the band-shaped connection part shown in FIG. It is an enlarged view which showed the pattern wiring and the light diffusion printing layer which concerns on Embodiment 2. It is a figure which showed the room display part which concerns on Embodiment 2. It is a figure which showed the room display part which concerns on Embodiment 2.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the refrigerator according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and can be variously modified without departing from the gist of the present invention. In addition, the present invention includes all combinations of configurations that can be combined among the configurations shown in the following embodiments. Further, in each figure, those having the same reference numerals are the same or equivalent thereof, which are common to the whole text of the specification. In each drawing, the relative dimensional relationship or shape of each component may differ from the actual one.

Embodiment 1.
FIG. 1 is a front view of the refrigerator 1 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the refrigerator 1 includes a refrigerating room 100, a switching room 200, an ice making room 300, a freezing room 400, and a vegetable room 500. The refrigerating room 100 is provided with an opening / closing door and is arranged at the top of the refrigerator 1. The switching chamber 200 is provided with a drawer door and is arranged below the refrigerating chamber 100. The switching chamber 200 switches the internal temperature to each temperature zone such as a freezing temperature zone (-18 ° C.), a refrigerator (3 ° C.), a chilled (0 ° C.), and a soft freezing (-7 ° C.) by the user's operation. be able to. The ice making chamber 300 is provided with a drawer door and is arranged in parallel with the switching chamber 200. The ice making room 300 manufactures ice. The freezing chamber 400 is provided with a drawer door and is arranged below the switching chamber 200 and the ice making chamber 300. The vegetable compartment 500 is provided with a drawer door and is located at the bottom of the refrigerator 1.

However, the form of the refrigerator 1 is not limited to the example of FIG. For example, the switching chamber 200 or the ice making chamber 300 may not be present, or the position of the freezing chamber 400 and the position of the vegetable compartment 500 may be reversed. As described above, the form of the refrigerator 1 is not particularly limited.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, an operation panel 6 is provided on the surface of the door of the refrigerator compartment 100. On the operation panel 6, an operation switch for adjusting the temperature and setting of each room, and characters or symbols indicating the temperature of each room and the like are displayed. The operation switch includes a start button 16 and an operation icon 17, which will be described later.

The operation panel 6 has an operation display transmission unit 7 composed of a transparent plate member. The operation display transmission unit 7 is made of glass or resin. A plate-shaped transparent member 11 is provided on the entire surface of the opening / closing door of the refrigerating chamber 100 of the refrigerator 1. The operation display transparent unit 7 may be formed of a part of the transparent member 11 or may be formed separately from the transparent member 11. In the first embodiment, a case where the operation display transparent unit 7 is composed of a part of the transparent member 11 will be described as an example.

The operation panel 6 is composed of a capacitive touch panel. Therefore, the operation panel 6 is provided with a pattern wiring 19 for transmitting the change in capacitance to the control unit 40, which will be described later. The pattern wiring 19 is composed of a plurality of conductive wirings.

When the pattern wiring 19 is visible to the user, the design is deteriorated. Therefore, the operation panel 6 is provided with the operation display transmission unit 7 described above. The operation display transparent unit 7 serves as a window for displaying only parts necessary for the user, such as operation switches, characters, and patterns. That is, only the area where the operation display transparent unit 7 is provided is visible to the user. A blind film or the like is provided in a portion of the transparent member 11 other than the operation display transparent portion 7, and the pattern wiring 19 arranged outside the operation display transparent portion 7 is invisible to the user. ..

Further, the operation panel 6 has a light emitting source 25 described later in order to improve visibility. While the user is operating the operation panel 6, the light emitting source 25 is lit. The operation icon 17, the character, and the design are displayed on the operation panel 6 by being irradiated with the light from the light emitting source 25. While the light emitting source 25 is lit, the user can see the operation icon 17, the character, and the design through the operation display transparent unit 7. On the other hand, if the user does not operate the operation panel 6 for a certain period of time, the light emitting source 25 is automatically turned off. While the light emitting source 25 is off, only the start button 16 is displayed on the operation panel 6.

The refrigerator 1 according to the first embodiment has a configuration that facilitates a disconnection inspection of the pattern wiring 19 provided on the operation panel 6. The disconnection inspection is performed by the manufacturing company before the refrigerator 1 is shipped. In the first embodiment, the region where the pattern wiring 19 is provided is the light-shielding layer abolished region 26 where the black or dark-colored light-shielding layer is not provided. The details of the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 and the light-shielding layer will be described later. By not providing the light-shielding layer, the contrast between the pattern wiring 19 and the substrate surface around the pattern wiring 19 is increased, and the disconnection inspection of the pattern wiring 19 is facilitated.

Before giving a detailed description of the configuration of the operation panel 6, first, the configuration of the refrigerator 1 will be described.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the refrigerator 1 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the refrigerator 1 includes a compressor 2, a cooler 3, and a blower fan 4. The blower fan 4 blows the cold air cooled by the cooler 3 to the rooms 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 in the refrigerator 1 through the air passage 5. That is, the cold air cooled by the cooler 3 passes through the air passage 5 and is blown to the freezing room 400, the switching room 200, the ice making room 300, and the refrigerating room 100 to cool each of these rooms. The vegetable compartment 500 is cooled by circulating the return cold air of the refrigerating chamber 100 through a return air passage for the refrigerating chamber (not shown). Then, the return cold air of the vegetable compartment 500 is returned to the cooler 3 from the return air passage for the vegetable compartment (not shown). The temperature of each room is detected by a thermistor (not shown) installed in each room. The control unit 40, which will be described later, has an opening degree of a damper (not shown) installed in the air passage 5 and a capacity of the compressor 2 based on the detected temperature so that the temperature of each room becomes a preset temperature. The temperature of each room is controlled by adjusting the amount of air blown by the blower fan 4.

Inside the refrigerating room 100, a plurality of shelves 101, a door pocket 102, and a sub-zero stocker 103 are installed, and food can be stored. A storage case 201 is also installed in the switching chamber 200, and food can be stored. A storage case 401 is installed in the freezing chamber 400 and can store food. A storage case 501 is also installed in the vegetable compartment 500 to store food. The number of storage cases in each room may be one, but is not limited to this. For example, in order to improve the organization and the like according to the capacity of the entire refrigerator 1, two or more storage cases may be provided in at least one room as needed.

Next, the configuration of the operation panel 6 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the operation panel 6. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the transparent electrode sheet 12 and the support member 13 of the operation panel 6 of FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a support member 13 and an electronic substrate 14 of the operation panel 6 of FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the operation panel 6 is provided on the transparent member 11, the transparent electrode sheet 12 provided on the back surface side of the transparent member 11, and the transparent electrode sheet 12 provided on the back surface side of the transparent electrode sheet 12. It is composed of a support member 13 that supports the support member 13, an electronic substrate 14 provided on the back surface side of the support member 13, and a holding component 15 that holds them. Therefore, the operation panel 6 is roughly divided into five elements. Here, in each element, the surface located on the left side of FIG. 3 is referred to as "front surface", and the surface located on the right side of FIG. 3 is referred to as "back surface". The transparent electrode sheet 12 has a layer structure composed of a plurality of layers having each function, and is a sheet for detecting a capacitance that changes when the operation icon 17 is operated. The electronic board 14 is a board on which the light emitting source 25 is mounted. The electronic board 14 also has a control unit 40. However, the light emitting source 25 and the control unit 40 may be mounted on the same substrate, or may be mounted on different substrates. Since the light emitting source 25 is not shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, refer to FIG. 8. Also, refer to FIG. 12 for the control unit 40. The light emitting source 25 irradiates the transparent electrode sheet 12 with light via the support member 13. As the light emitting source 25, for example, an inexpensive light emitting diode may be used, but another light emitting source may be used. One light emitting source 25 is provided for each of the operation icons 17. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the support member 13 has a plurality of light-shielding walls 13a installed for each operation icon 17 so that the light from the light emitting source 25 does not irradiate other adjacent operation icons 17. Have. The transparent member 11 is not particularly limited as long as it is a transparent material such as glass or resin that transmits light. The transparent member 11 may have a function as a design part decorated by printing or the like. Further, the decoration of the transparent member 11 is not particularly limited as long as the light emitted by the light emitting source 25 can be transmitted.

The control unit 40 receives the signal detected by the transparent electrode sheet 12 as an operation signal. Further, the control unit 40 controls lighting and extinguishing of the plurality of light emitting sources 25.

In the above description, the operation panel 6 is provided on the opening / closing door of the refrigerating room 100, but it is attached to any one of the drawer doors of the switching room 200, the ice making room 300, the freezing room 400, and the vegetable room 500. It may be provided. That is, the operation panel 6 may be provided on any door as long as it is the door of the refrigerator 1.

Next, the transparent electrode sheet 12 will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. FIG. 6 is a front view showing the appearance of the transparent electrode sheet 12, and FIG. 7 is a view showing the layer structure of the operation icon 17 portion of the transparent electrode sheet 12.

As shown in FIG. 6, the start button 16, the operation icon 17, the character 38, the design 39, the room display unit 32, and the pattern wiring 19 are printed on the transparent electrode sheet 12, respectively. The room display unit 32 displays the status of each room 100, 200, 300, 400, 500 of the refrigerator 1.

As shown in FIG. 7, the transparent electrode sheet 12 is provided with a film base material 18 at a central portion thereof. The film base material 18 is composed of a transparent plate-shaped member. As shown in FIG. 7, the transparent conductive ink layer 20 and the insulating ink layer 21 are printed on the surface side of the film base material 18. The insulating ink layer 21 is arranged at a position closer to the transparent member 11 than the transparent conductive ink layer 20. The insulating ink layer 21 is provided on the entire surface of the film base material 18. On the other hand, the transparent conductive ink layer 20 is provided only in the area where the operation icon 17 is provided. Further, although FIG. 7 shows the operation icon 17 portion, which is not shown in FIG. 7, the pattern wiring 19 is also printed on the surface side of the film base material 18. The surface side of the film base material 18 is the operation side operated by the user. On the other hand, the back surface side of the film base material 18 is the electronic substrate 14 side. As shown in FIG. 7, the icon printing layer 22 and the light diffusion printing layer 23 are printed on the back surface side of the film substrate 18. The light diffusion printing layer 23 is arranged at a position closer to the support member 13 than the icon printing layer 22. The icon printing layer 22 is provided on the entire back surface of the film base material 18. On the other hand, the light diffusion printing layer 23 is provided only in the area where the operation icon 17 is provided. As shown in FIG. 7, a glue printing layer 24 is further printed on the back surface side of the film base material 18. The glue printing layer 24 is arranged at a position closest to the support member 13. As shown in FIG. 7, the glue printing layer 24 is provided for an area other than the area where the operation icon 17 is provided. By attaching the transparent electrode sheet 12 to the support member 13 using the glue printed on the glue printing layer 24, the transparent electrode sheet 12 is supported by the support member 13.

As described above, the operation icon 17 portion is provided with the insulating ink layer 21, the transparent conductive ink layer 20, the icon printing layer 22, and the light diffusion printing layer 23. Further, although it has been described that the glue printing layer 24 is not provided in the operation icon 17, the glue printing layer 24 may be provided. On the other hand, the start button 16 is provided with an insulating ink layer 21 and a transparent conductive ink layer 20. The icon print layer 22 and the light diffusion print layer 23 are not provided in the start button 16 portion. Further, the insulating ink layer 21 and the glue printing layer 24 may be provided in the start button 16 portion, but may not be provided in particular. Further, an insulating ink layer 21, an icon printing layer 22, and a light diffusion printing layer 23 are provided on the characters 38, the design 39, and the room display unit 32. Since the characters 38, the design 39, and the room display unit 32 are not operation switches, the transparent conductive ink layer 20 is unnecessary and is not provided. Further, the glue printing layer 24 may be provided in the character 38, the design 39, and the room display unit 32, but it may not be provided in particular.

Further, in the above description, it has been explained that the icon print layer 22 is provided on the entire back surface of the film base material 18, but in the first embodiment, the icon print layer 22 is provided on the pattern wiring 19 portion. Is not provided. This is to increase the contrast between the pattern wiring 19 and the periphery of the pattern wiring 19 by not providing the icon printing layer 22 that functions as a black or dark light-shielding layer.

The functions of each layer will be described below.

The insulating ink layer 21 is provided on the transparent member 11 side of the film base material 18 as shown in FIG. 3, and insulates between the transparent electrode sheet 12 and the transparent member 11.

The transparent conductive ink layer 20 is provided on the transparent member 11 side of the film base material 18. The transparent conductive ink layer 20 is a conductive member that detects a capacitance that changes when the user touches the operation panel 6. When the user touches the surface of the operation panel 6 with a finger, a weak current is generated and the capacitance changes. The transparent conductive ink layer 20 detects this change in capacitance. The transparent conductive ink layer 20 is provided corresponding to each of the operation icons 17. Therefore, the control unit 40 can determine which operation icon 17 has been operated based on the position of the transparent conductive ink layer 20 that has detected the change in capacitance.

The pattern wiring 19 is provided on the transparent member 11 side of the film base material 18. The pattern wiring 19 electrically connects the transparent conductive ink layer 20 and the control unit 40 of the electronic substrate 14. The pattern wiring 19 transmits the capacitance detected by the transparent conductive ink layer 20 to the control unit 40 of the electronic substrate 14. Each of the conductive wirings constituting the pattern wiring 19 is provided corresponding to each operation icon 17.

The icon printing layer 22 is provided on the electronic substrate 14 side of the film substrate 18. The icon printing layer 22 is printed with an operation icon 17, characters 38, a design 39, and a display pattern for displaying the shape of the room display unit 32. The icon print layer 22 is black or dark and functions as a light-shielding layer. The icon printing layer 22 changes the light emitted by the light emitting source 25 into the shapes of the operation icon 17, the character 38, the design 39, and the room display unit 32 according to the display pattern.

The light diffusion printing layer 23 is provided on the electronic substrate 14 side of the icon printing layer 22. The light diffusion printing layer 23 is a light diffusion layer that diffuses the light emitted by the light emitting source 25 and changes it into surface emission.

As described above, as shown in FIG. 7, the transparent electrode sheet 12 includes the insulating ink layer 21, the transparent conductive ink layer 20, the pattern wiring 19, the icon printing layer 22, the light diffusion printing layer 23, and the glue printing layer 24. It has a layered structure in which one film substrate 18 is aggregated and printed.

Next, the support member 13 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. However, in FIG. 8, the transparent member 11 and the electronic substrate 14 are also shown in order to make the positional relationship easy to understand. Further, in FIG. 8, only one operation icon 17 portion is shown.

As shown in FIG. 8, the electronic board 14 is provided with a plurality of light emitting sources 25 according to the positions of the operation icon 17, the character 38, the symbol 39, the room display unit 32, and the like. The light emitted from the light emitting source 25 irradiates the irradiation range 33 as shown in FIG.

When the operation icon 17 is displayed, the light emitting source 25 is lit. The light emitted from the light emitting source 25 reaches the transparent member 11 via the light diffusion printing layer 23, the icon printing layer 22, and the transparent conductive ink layer 20, and is visually recognized by the user. As a result, the operation icon 17, the character 38, the design 39, and the room display unit 32 are displayed and become visible to the user. Further, when the user touches the operation icon 17 with the finger 800, the capacitance of the operation icon 17 portion is converted.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the support member 13 is provided with a plurality of light-shielding walls 13a according to the positions of the operation icons 17 and the like. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the light-shielding wall 13a is formed in the shape of a rectangular tube. The space inside the light-shielding wall 13a penetrates the support member 13 in the thickness direction. Therefore, both ends of the light-shielding wall 13a are open. Hereinafter, both ends of the light-shielding wall 13a are referred to as open ends. Further, the inner wall of the light-shielding wall 13a has a tapered surface 35 as shown in FIG. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, the inner diameter of the space inside the light-shielding wall 13a gradually increases from the opening end on the light emitting source 25 side toward the opening end on the transparent electrode sheet 12 side. Further, as shown in FIG. 8, a light emitting source 25 is arranged inside the opening end on the transparent electrode sheet 12 side.

By providing the light-shielding wall 13a in this way, the light emitted from the light-emitting source 25 passes through the space inside the light-shielding wall 13a without being shielded by obstacles, and the icon printing layer 22 of the transparent electrode sheet 12 is printed. Can reach up to. Further, since the light-shielding wall 13a is provided for each of the operation icons 17, it is possible to prevent the light emitted from the light emitting source 25 from irradiating the other adjacent operation icons 17.

It is desirable that the angle of the tapered surface 35 is larger than the angle of the irradiation range 33 of the light emitting source 25, but due to structural restrictions, the visibility of the operation icon 17 and the like is improved even if the angle is not necessarily such an angle. Can be made to.

Further, since the transparent electrode sheet 12 has the light diffusion printing layer 23, the light emitted by the light emitting source 25 is diffused, and surface light emission becomes possible. As a result, a large-sized operation icon 17 or a large-sized character 38 can be displayed without unevenness of light without using a member such as a light guide plate.

Further, if the color of the support member 13 is white or a color equivalent thereto, the reflected light of the light emitting source 25 can be effectively used for the operation icon 17, and the visibility of the operation icon 17 is further enhanced.

Next, the pattern wiring 19 provided on the transparent electrode sheet 12 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a front view showing the appearance of the transparent electrode sheet 12. As shown in FIG. 9, a pattern wiring 19 is provided in a part of the lower side of the transparent electrode sheet 12. Further, as shown by the broken line in FIG. 9, a light-shielding layer abolished region 26 is provided along one side of the lower side of the transparent electrode sheet 12. The icon printing layer 22 that functions as a light-shielding layer is not provided in the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 portion. As described above, the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 is the first light-shielding layer abolished area in which the light-shielding layer is not provided.

There are many methods for routing each pattern wiring 19, but there is a method for collecting a plurality of pattern wirings 19 into one side, for example, as in the case of the composite wiring 28. The composite wiring 28 has a larger parasitic capacitance than the single wiring 27. As a result, the sensitivity of the composite wiring 28 portion can be blunted, so that an erroneous reaction when the composite wiring 28 portion is touched can be suppressed.

Further, when the icon print layer 22 is provided, the icon print layer 22 is black or dark, so that the contrast between the pattern wiring 19 and the periphery of the pattern wiring 19 is low. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9, by providing the pattern wiring 19 in the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 in which the icon printing layer 22 is not provided, the contrast between the pattern wiring 19 and the periphery of the pattern wiring 19 can be enhanced. .. As a result, even for the composite wiring 28 in which the pattern wiring 19 is concentrated on one side, the complicated and long time of the disconnection inspection process is eliminated, and it can be confirmed by visual inspection in a short time.

FIG. 10 is a front view showing a state in which the operation display transmission unit 7 is projected onto the transparent electrode sheet 12 of FIG. The broken line in FIG. 10 indicates the operation display transparent portion 7. In FIG. 10, the boundary 29 between the icon print layer 22 and the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 is included in the range of the operation display transparent portion 7. In this case, even when the light emitting source 25 is turned off, the boundary 29 may be seen through the operation display transmission unit 7. In that case, the design is impaired.

Therefore, FIG. 11 shows a modified example of FIG. 10. FIG. 11 is a front view showing a modified example of FIG. 10. In FIG. 11, the pattern wiring 19 is bypassed to the outside of the operation display transparent portion 7. As a result, the boundary 29 between the icon print layer 22 and the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 is arranged outside the range of the operation display transparent portion 7.

As described above, in the modified example of FIG. 11, by arranging the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 outside the range of the operation display transparent portion 7, the boundary 29 between the icon printing layer 22 and the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 can be seen through. The occurrence of the phenomenon can be suppressed.

The merit of FIG. 11 is that the design is improved. On the other hand, the merit of FIG. 10 is that the transparent electrode sheet 12 can be miniaturized. Therefore, whether to use the configuration shown in FIG. 10 or the configuration shown in FIG. 11 may be appropriately set according to the intended use.

Next, a band-shaped connecting portion 30 for connecting the pattern wiring 19 of the transparent electrode sheet 12 and the control unit 40 of the electronic substrate 14 will be described with reference to FIG. 12. FIG. 12 is an enlarged view showing the band-shaped connection portion 30 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, the transparent electrode sheet 12 is printed with a strip-shaped connecting portion 30 that connects the pattern wiring 19 and the control unit 40. Similar to the pattern wiring 19, the connection portion 30 is composed of a plurality of conductive wirings.

In the transparent electrode sheet 12, not only the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 but also the area where the band-shaped connecting portion 30 is provided may not be provided with the icon printing layer 22 that functions as the light-shielding layer. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, the area where the band-shaped connecting portion 30 is provided may be the second light-shielding layer abolished area 36 where the icon printing layer 22 is not provided.

As described above, by eliminating the icon printing layer 22 even in the area where the band-shaped connecting portion 30 is provided, the contrast between the conductive wiring constituting the connecting portion 30 and the surroundings can be enhanced. The band-shaped connection portion 30 tends to have the closest distance between the conductive wirings. Therefore, the icon printing layer 22 is eliminated, and the contrast between the conductive wiring constituting the band-shaped connecting portion 30 and its surroundings is enhanced. As a result, even in the strip-shaped connection portion 30, the inspection for disconnection of the conductive wiring can be simplified and shortened, which leads to cost reduction in the inspection process.

As described above, in the first embodiment, in the transparent electrode sheet 12, the region where the pattern wiring 19 is provided is the light-shielding layer abolished region 26 where the icon printing layer 22 which is a light-shielding layer is not provided. As a result, the contrast between the pattern wiring 19 and the surroundings becomes high, and each conductive wiring constituting the pattern wiring 19 becomes easy to see. As a result, the disconnection inspection of the pattern wiring 19 of the operation panel 6 can be easily performed without using a dedicated inspection device.

Further, in the first embodiment, in the transparent electrode sheet 12, the area where the band-shaped connecting portion 30 is provided may be the second light-shielding layer abolished area 36 where the icon printing layer 22 which is a light-shielding layer is not provided. In that case, the contrast between the band-shaped connection portion 30 and the surroundings becomes high, and each conductive wiring constituting the band-shaped connection portion 30 becomes easy to see. As a result, it is possible to easily inspect the disconnection of the strip-shaped connection portion 30 of the operation panel 6 without using a dedicated inspection device.

Further, in the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the light-shielding layer abolished region 26 may be arranged outside the operation display transmission unit 7. In that case, the boundary 29 between the icon print layer 22 and the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 is not visible to the user, so that the design can be improved.

Further, in the first embodiment, the wiring spacing of the conductive wiring constituting the pattern wiring 19 and the band-shaped connection portion 30 may be wider than in the conventional case. In that case, each of the conductive wirings becomes easier to see, and the disconnection inspection becomes easier. Further, by widening the wiring interval, the parasitic capacitance of the operation icon 17 becomes small, and it becomes possible to greatly capture the change in the capacitance when the user touches the operation icon 17. As a result, the touch sensitivity of the operation icon 17 can be increased.

Embodiment 2.
FIG. 13 is an enlarged view showing the pattern wiring 19 and the light diffusion printing layer 23 according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, the pattern wiring 19 and the light diffusion printing layer 23 are arranged so as to overlap each other. Since the light diffusion printing layer 23 is white, the contrast with the pattern wiring 19 is high. By arranging the pattern wiring 19 on the light diffusion printing layer 23 in this way, the contrast between the pattern wiring 19 and its surroundings can be further enhanced.

The pattern wiring 19 may be arranged so as to vertically traverse the area where the light diffusion printing layer 23 is provided, but as shown in FIG. 13, the pattern wiring 19 is provided with the light diffusion printing layer 23. It may be arranged so as to overlap the boundary line 23a of the region. That is, in FIG. 13, a rectangular light diffusion printing layer 23 is provided, and each of the four sides of the light diffusion printing layer 23 is a boundary line 23a of a region where the light diffusion printing layer 23 is provided. .. At this time, the pattern wiring 19 is arranged so as to overlap at least one of the boundary lines 23a of the region where the light diffusion printing layer 23 is provided. When arranged in this way, it is possible to prevent the region of the light diffusion printing layer 23 from being divided into two or more regions by the pattern wiring 19 when the light emitting source 25 is lit. As a result, the deterioration of the design can be further suppressed.

For example, as shown in FIG. 10, when the boundary 29 between the icon print layer 22 and the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 is in the operation display transparent portion 7, all of the pattern wiring 19 is covered with the light-shielding layer abolished area 26. Difficult to route inside. In that case, as described above, as shown in FIG. 11, the light-shielding layer abolished area 26 is arranged outside the operation display transmission unit 7. Even in that case, further, only a part of the pattern wiring 19 may not be arranged in the light-shielding layer abolished area 26. In such a case, as shown in FIG. 13, by arranging a part of the pattern wiring 19 and the boundary line 23a of the light diffusion printing layer 23 so as to overlap each other, high contrast can be achieved while maintaining the design. The effect can be obtained.

14 and 15 are views showing the room display unit 32 according to the second embodiment. FIG. 14 shows the room display unit 32 when the light emitting source 25 is lit, and FIG. 15 shows the room display unit 32 when the light emitting source 25 is turned off. As described above, the room display unit 32 displays the states of each of the rooms 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 of the refrigerator 1 by characters such as "refrigerate" and "below freezing point".

As shown in FIG. 14, in the area 31 where the room display unit 32 is provided, a pattern for displaying each character such as “refrigerate” and “below freezing point” is printed on the icon print layer 22. Further, in the region 31, the light diffusion printing layer 23 and the transparent conductive ink layer 20 are printed on top of each other. The transparent conductive ink layer 20 has an effect of suppressing the transmission of light. In the area 31 where the room display unit 32 is provided, the light diffusion printing layer 23 and the transparent conductive ink layer 20 are printed on top of each other. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 15, when the light emitting source 25 is turned off, the area is formed. Nothing is displayed in the 31st part. As a result, it is possible to suppress the phenomenon that each character of the room display unit 32 is slightly transparent.

Since each character of the room display unit 32 is not an operation icon 17, the transparent conductive ink layer 20 is originally unnecessary in the area 31. Therefore, in the first embodiment, it has been explained that the transparent conductive ink layer 20 is not provided on the room display portion 32 portion. However, in the second embodiment, the transparent conductive ink layer 20 is intentionally provided in the region 31 in anticipation of the effect of suppressing light transmission. As a result, when the light emitting source 25 is turned off, only the start button 16 can be seen on the surface of the transparent member 11 as shown in FIG. 15, and a neat design can be realized.

In FIGS. 14 and 15, the region where the light diffusion printing layer 23 and the transparent conductive ink layer 20 are overlapped is defined as the region 31 where the room display unit 32 is provided, but the region is not limited to this case. That is, by providing the transparent conductive ink layer 20 in any of the regions, it is possible to obtain the effect of alleviating the phenomenon that the operation icon 17, the character 38, and the like can be seen through.

Since the other configurations and operations in the second embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment, the description thereof will be omitted here.

As described above, also in the second embodiment, high contrast is realized by changing the region where the pattern wiring 19 is provided to the light-shielding layer abolished region 26, as in the first embodiment.

Further, in the second embodiment, at least one of the plurality of conductive wirings constituting the pattern wiring 19 is arranged so as to overlap the light diffusion printing layer 23 in the transparent electrode sheet 12. As a result, the contrast between the pattern wiring 19 and its surroundings can be further enhanced.

Further, as described above, at least one of the plurality of conductive wirings constituting the pattern wiring 19 may be arranged so as to overlap the boundary line 23a of the region of the light diffusion printing layer 23. In that case, it is possible to prevent the region of the light diffusion printing layer 23 from being divided into two or more regions by the pattern wiring 19 when the light emitting source 25 is lit.

Further, in the second embodiment, the transparent conductive ink layer 20, which is a transparent conductive member, is superposed on at least a part of the light diffusion printing layer 23 in anticipation of the effect of suppressing light transmission. Therefore, the effect of alleviating the phenomenon that the operation icon 17, the character 38, and the like can be seen through can be obtained. As described above, by providing the transparent conductive ink layer 20 in the region other than the operation icon 17, the effect of suppressing the transmission of light can be obtained, and the designability is further improved.

Here, the hardware configuration of the control unit 40 in the first and second embodiments described above will be described.

Each function in the control unit 40 according to the first and second embodiments described above is realized by the processing circuit. The processing circuit that realizes each function may be dedicated hardware or a processor that executes a program stored in the memory.

When the processing circuit is dedicated hardware, the processing circuit may be, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). , Or a combination of these. The functions of the control unit 40 may be realized by individual processing circuits, or the functions of each unit may be collectively realized by one processing circuit.

On the other hand, when the processing circuit is a processor, the function of the control unit 40 is realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. Software and firmware are written as programs and stored in memory. The processor realizes the function of the control unit 40 by reading and executing the program stored in the memory. The control unit 40 includes a memory for storing a program.

1 Refrigerator, 2 Compressor, 3 Cooler, 4 Blower fan, 5 Air passage, 6 Operation panel, 7 Operation display transmission part, 11 Transparent member, 12 Transparent electrode sheet, 13 Support member, 13a light-shielding wall, 14 Electronic board, 15 Retaining parts, 16 Start button, 17 Operation icon, 18 Film substrate, 19 Pattern wiring, 20 Transparent conductive ink layer, 21 Insulation ink layer, 22 Icon printing layer, 23 Light diffusion printing layer, 23a boundary line, 24 Glue printing Layer, 25 light source, 26 light-shielding layer abolished area, 27 single wiring, 28 composite wiring, 29 boundary, 30 connection part, 31 area, 32 room display part, 33 irradiation range, 35 tapered surface, 36 second light-shielding layer abolished Area, 38 characters, 39 designs, 40 controls, 100 refrigerating room, 101 shelves, 102 door pockets, 103 sub-freezing stocker, 200 switching room, 201 storage case, 300 ice making room, 400 freezer room, 401 storage case, 500 vegetable room , 501 storage case, 800 fingers.

The refrigerator according to the present invention includes a door and an operation panel provided on the door and displaying an operation icon, and the operation panel is provided on a transparent plate member and a back surface side of the transparent plate member. It is detected by a sheet that detects the electrostatic capacity that changes when the operation icon is operated, a substrate that is provided on the back surface side of the sheet and has a light emitting source that irradiates the sheet with light, and the sheet. The sheet has a control unit that receives the capacitance as an operation signal and controls lighting and extinguishing of the light emitting source, and the sheet has a transparent conductive member that detects the capacitance and the transparent transparent member. a pattern wiring for transmitting the capacitance conductive member detected to the control unit, to have a display pattern for displaying the shape of the operation icon, a light shielding layer only part of the display pattern is transmitted through the light The light-diffusing layer has a light-diffusing layer provided on the light-emitting source side of the light-shielding layer and diffuses light emitted from the light-emitting source, and the light-diffusing layer is a region provided with the display pattern of the light-shielding layer. provided for a region where the pattern wirings of the sheet is provided, Ri first light-shielding layer abolition region der not provided the light shielding layer, at least a portion of the pattern wiring on the light-diffusing layer They are arranged one on top of the other .

Claims (5)

With the door
It is provided with an operation panel provided on the door and displays an operation icon.
The operation panel is
With a transparent board member,
A sheet provided on the back surface side of the transparent plate member and detecting a capacitance that changes when the operation icon is operated, and a sheet.
A substrate provided on the back surface side of the sheet and on which a light emitting source for irradiating the sheet with light is mounted.
A control unit that receives the capacitance detected by the sheet as an operation signal and controls lighting and extinguishing of the light emitting source.
Have,
The sheet is
A transparent conductive member that detects the capacitance and
A pattern wiring that transmits the capacitance detected by the transparent conductive member to the control unit, and
A light-shielding layer having a display pattern for displaying the shape of the operation icon,
It has a light diffusing layer provided on the light emitting source side of the light shielding layer and diffusing the light emitted from the light emitting source.
The area of the sheet where the pattern wiring is provided is a first light-shielding layer abolished area in which the light-shielding layer is not provided.
refrigerator. The sheet is
It has a connection part that connects the pattern wiring and the control part, and has a connection part.
The area where the connection portion is provided is a second light-shielding layer abolished area where the light-shielding layer is not provided.
The refrigerator according to claim 1. The first light-shielding layer abolished area is arranged outside the transparent plate member.
The refrigerator according to claim 1 or 2. At least a part of the pattern wiring is arranged so as to overlap the light diffusion layer.
The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The transparent conductive member is superposed on at least a part of the light diffusion layer.
The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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