KR100218942B1 - Refrigerator having air distribution apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a refrigerator having a cooling chamber, provided on a side wall of the cooling chamber to guide the flow of cold air, and having a cold air outlet on one side; A duct cover having a plurality of cold air outlets which form a connection duct in which cold air from the cold air outlets flows, and which is open toward the cooling chamber in at least two up and down directions; A cold air distribution wing having horizontal axes at each of the cold air discharge ports; It includes a drive unit for rotating the cold air distribution wing in the vertical direction within a predetermined range. As a result, the cool air is discharged through the cold air discharge port provided adjacent to the corner region in the cooling chamber, so that the blind area in the cooling chamber can be removed, and if necessary, the opened cold air discharge opening can be closed, so that the relative The high temperature is blocked from entering the cold duct.

Description

Refrigerator with cold air distributor

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator having a cold air distribution device which distributes evenly the cold air discharged into the cooling chamber to maintain the inside of the cooling chamber at a uniform temperature distribution.

Refrigerators having a cold air distribution device have been previously applied to those having various configurations, in addition to those shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 filed by the present applicant. As can be seen in the drawing, a refrigerator 101 having a conventional cold air distribution device includes a pair of cooling chambers divided into a freezing chamber 2 and a refrigerating chamber 3 by an intermediate partition 5 in a substantially rectangular main body. The opening and closing doors 6 and 7 are provided in the opening front of each cooling chamber 2 and 3, respectively.

In the main body, a refrigeration system including a compressor 11, a condenser and a freezer compartment evaporator 12a and a refrigerator compartment evaporator 12b (not shown) is installed. The cold air generated in each of the evaporators 12a and 12b is supplied to each cooling chamber by the freezing chamber fan 13a or the refrigerating chamber fan 13b. In the rear wall of the refrigerating chamber 3, there is provided a cold air duct 15 through which cold air from the refrigerating chamber evaporator 12b is blown and flowed by the refrigerating chamber fan 13b, and within the cold air duct 15, cold air distribution is provided. The device 110 is installed in the vertical direction. On the rear wall surface of the refrigerating chamber 3, a cold air discharge port 16 through which cold air from the cold air duct 15 is discharged to the refrigerating room 3 is formed, and the cold air distribution device 110 guides the supplied cold air to the cold air discharge port. It supplies to the refrigerating compartment 3 through 16. At the rear of the cold air duct 15, a circulation duct 17 connecting the refrigerating chamber 3 and the refrigerator compartment evaporator 12b is formed to be isolated from the cold air duct 15. The cold air which cooled the refrigerator compartment 3 returns to the refrigerator compartment evaporator 12b via this circulation duct 17. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 9, the conventional cold air distribution device 110 includes a rotation shaft 121, a plurality of cold air distribution blades 111, and a drive motor 131 for rotating and driving the rotation shaft 121. . The rotating shaft 121 is rotatably installed on the rear side of the refrigerating chamber 3, and the rotating shaft 121 of the driving motor 131 is coupled to the upper portion of the rotating shaft 121. The cold air distribution blades 111 are formed in a plate-shaped body curved in a wave shape with respect to the plane including the axis of the rotation shaft 121, and are spaced apart from each other to correspond to each of the cold air discharge ports 16 along the rotation shaft 121. It is. At the upper and lower ends of each cold air distributing wing 111, a pair of end plates 113 formed of an upper plate 113a and a lower plate 113b is formed, and an intermediate plate is formed between the upper plate 113a and the lower plate 113b. 115 is provided to divide the cold air distribution blade 111 into the first blade portion 117 and the second blade portion 119. Each wing portion 117, 119 is bent to form an S-shaped cross section, and each wing portion 117, 119 of each cold air distribution wing 111 is bent in the opposite direction to each other.

In the refrigerator 101 having the conventional cold air distribution device 110 having such a configuration, when the driving motor 131 rotates the rotary shaft 121 at a low speed, the cold air supplied along the cold air duct 15 is cold air distribution wing. The direction of the flow path is changed by the curved plate surface of the 111, spreading left and right in the refrigerating chamber and discharged. On the other hand, when intensive cooling is necessary for a specific site, the rotating shaft 121 is stopped in accordance with the direction of the cold air distribution blade 111 so that cold air is concentrated and discharged toward the site. By such a cold air distribution device 110, it becomes possible to realize uniform cooling and concentrated cooling in the refrigerating chamber 3.

By the way, in the conventional refrigerator 101 having the cold air distribution device 110, the cold air discharged into the cooling chamber is evenly distributed by the cold air distribution device 110, but the cold air discharge port 16 is the rear center area in the cooling chamber. It is provided in the back side edge area | region of the cooling chambers 2 and 3, compared with other area | region, it is difficult to reach cold air relatively. As a result, a temperature deviation occurs in the cooling chamber, and in some cases, food cannot be stored satisfactorily. On the other hand, the refrigerating system is operated and controlled in accordance with the temperature in the cooling chamber and the temperature set by the user. In the refrigerator 101, since the cold air discharge port 16 is always opened, the cooling chambers 2 and 3 are relatively controlled. There is a problem that the high temperature is introduced into the cold air duct (15) to cause the implantation of the evaporator (12a, 12b). The implantation of the evaporators 12a and 12b not only lowers the efficiency of the refrigeration system, but also lowers the overall performance of the refrigerator 101.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention, in consideration of these problems in the prior art, by allowing the cold air is supplied to the corner region relatively difficult to reach the cold air, it is possible to remove the blind area in the cooling chamber to uniform temperature inside the cooling chamber It is to provide a refrigerator having a cold air distribution device that can be maintained in a distributed state.

Another object of the present invention, by opening and closing the cold air discharge port in accordance with the operation of the refrigeration system, it is possible to block the relatively high temperature in the cooling chamber to be introduced into the cold air duct, thereby providing a cold air distribution device to improve the efficiency of the refrigeration system It is to provide a refrigerator.

1 is a front view of a door open state of a refrigerator having a cold air distribution device according to the present invention;

2 is a side cross-sectional view of FIG.

3 is an exploded perspective view of a cold air distribution device according to the present invention;

Figure 4 is an assembled rear perspective view of Figure 3,

5 and 6 is a schematic view showing an operating state of the cold air distribution device according to the present invention,

7 is a side cross-sectional view of a refrigerator having a conventional cold air distribution device,

8 is a partially enlarged side cross-sectional view of FIG.

9 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional cold air distribution device.

* Explanation of symbols for main parts of the drawings

2, 3: Cooling chamber 5: Intermediate bulkhead

6, 7: door 12a, 12b: evaporator

13a, 13b: blower fan 15: cold air duct

16a, 16b, 16c: cold air outlet 20: duct housing

21: duct member 27: duct cover

30: cold air distribution device 34: rotating shaft ball

36: connection duct 40: cold air inlet

41: cold air distribution wing 43: rotating shaft

45: hinge pin 51a, 51b: interlocking member

53: hinge ring 55: connecting member

57: action protrusion 61: drive motor

63: drive cam 71: cover member

73: communication hole

According to the present invention, a refrigerator having a cooling chamber, comprising: a cold air duct provided on the side wall of the cooling chamber to guide the flow of cold air and having a cold air outlet on one side; A duct cover having a plurality of cold air outlets which form a connection duct in which cold air from the cold air outlets flows, and which is open toward the cooling chamber in at least two up and down directions; A cold air distribution wing having horizontal axes at each of the cold air discharge ports; It is achieved by a refrigerator, characterized in that it comprises a drive unit for rotating the cold air distribution wing in a predetermined range in the vertical direction.

Here, the drive unit, the drive motor; A drive cam coupled to the drive motor coaxially and integrally rotating; Arranged in parallel with each other in the vertical direction at the rear of the duct cover, and can be elevated, and hinged with the corresponding cold air distribution wings along the axial direction to interact with the drive cam, thereby rotating each cold air distribution wings integrally. It can be configured simply by including a plurality of interlocking member to.

At this time, the drive cam, the cam body of the cylindrical shape; A cam groove having a camping profile that continuously descends on the circumferential surface of the cam body; Each of the interlocking members may be configured to include an operation part engaged with the cam groove, wherein the action part comprises: a connection member interconnecting the plurality of interlocking members; It may be configured to include a working protrusion extending from the connecting member toward the drive cam is accommodated in the cam groove end.

Preferably, the cold air distributing wing and the hinge engaging portion of the interlocking member are provided at a predetermined rear side with respect to the axial direction of the cold air distributing blade. In this case, the hinge engaging portion is predetermined along the axial direction of the interlocking member. A hinge protrusion formed at intervals of the hinge protrusion; It may be simply configured to include a hinge pin is provided on the rear edge of the cold air distribution wing to engage the hinge projection.

In addition, it is preferable to further comprise a cold air guide member attached to the rear surface of the duct cover between the cold air outlets on both sides to guide cold air distributed to both sides by the left and right distribution wings to the cold air outlets on both sides. .

On the other hand, the cooling chamber is partitioned into a plurality of storage zones arranged in the upper and lower layers; Each of the plurality of storage zones can be configured such that the cold air outlets on both sides are attached.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a front view of a door open state of a refrigerator having a cold air distribution device according to the present invention, Figure 2 is a side cross-sectional view of FIG. As described with reference to FIG. 7 of the related art, the refrigerator 1 having the present cold air distribution device is a pair of the refrigerator compartment 2 and the refrigerating compartment 3 separated by the intermediate partition 5 in a substantially rectangular body. Cooling chambers are provided, and opening / closing doors 6 and 7 are provided on the opening fronts of the respective cooling chambers 2 and 3, respectively. The refrigerator compartment 3 is provided with a plurality of shelves 8 for placing food, and partitioned into a plurality of food storage zones parallel to each other. The special refrigeration chamber 18 used for storing the food suitable for a specific temperature range is formed in the upper side of the refrigerating chamber 3, and the vegetable chamber 19 for storing vegetables is formed in the lower side of the refrigerating chamber 3. As shown in FIG.

In the main body 4, a compressor 11, a condenser, a freezer compartment evaporator 12a, and a refrigerator compartment evaporator 12b, which are not shown, are installed to perform a refrigeration cycle, and cold air is generated in each of the evaporators 12a and 12b. A freezer compartment fan 13a and a refrigerating compartment fan 13b are installed above the evaporators 12a and 12b to forcibly blow cold air generated in each of the evaporators 12a and 12b to the freezer compartment 2 or the refrigerator compartment 3.

On the rear wall surface of the refrigerating chamber 3, a duct housing 20 is provided which forms a cold air duct 15 that provides a flow path of cold air from the evaporator 12b. The duct housing 20 includes a duct member 21 having a cold air outlet port that thermally guides cold air and opens toward the front, a seal plate 25 bonded to the rear surface of the duct member 21, and a duct member. And a duct cover 27 having a plurality of cold air discharge ports for guiding cold air from the cold air outlet port and discharging the cold air from the cold air outlet port 21 to the refrigerating chamber 3. The duct member 21 has a substantially rectangular cylindrical shape, the seal plate 25 surrounds the duct member 21 as a whole and both sides are coupled to the rear wall surface of the refrigerating chamber 3. The duct cover 27 also has a substantially rectangular cylindrical shape, and the front surface of the duct cover 27 protrudes from the rear wall surface of the refrigerating chamber 3. As a result, a predetermined duct flow path is formed between the duct member 21, that is, a connecting duct for guiding the cold air from the cold air outlet of the duct member 21. A duct is connected between the duct member 21 and the duct cover 27, that is, between the cold air outlet of the duct member 21 and the cold air inlet of the duct cover 27, and connects the cold air from the cold air duct 15. The cover member is guided to the interposition.

On the other hand, the circulation duct 17 connecting the refrigerating chamber 3 and the refrigerating chamber evaporator 12b is separated from the cold air duct 15 by the duct member at the rear of the cold air duct 15. The cold air blown into the cold air duct 15 by the refrigerating chamber fan 13b is supplied into the refrigerating chamber 3 through the cold air discharge port 16 through the connection duct, and thus the cold air discharged to cool the refrigerating chamber 3 is circulated. The duct 17 returns to the refrigerating chamber evaporator 12b.

3 is an exploded perspective view of the cold air distribution device according to the present invention, Figure 4 is an assembled rear perspective view of FIG. As can be seen from these figures, the rectangular duct cover 27 formed of the main body 35 and the upper and lower plates 37 and 39 is provided with a cold air inlet 40 in the up and down direction on the back surface, The cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c are formed at predetermined intervals along both vertical directions. A connection duct 36 is formed between the front plate and the back plate, and the cold air introduced into the cold air inlet 40 flows along the connection duct 36 and is discharged through the plurality of cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c. . These cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, 16c are formed so as to correspond to the partitioned storage zones in the refrigerating chamber. In this embodiment, the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, 16c are respectively attached to the three storage zones.

Each cold air discharge port 16a, 16b, 16c is provided with the cold air | distribution blade 41 which has an horizontal axis line so that up-and-down rotation is possible. They are formed in a substantially rectangular plate-like body, and the rotation shafts 43 protrude from the central portions on both sides to the sides, and correspondingly, the rotation shafts 43 are rotatable on both side edges of the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c. The rotating shaft hole 34 which accommodates is formed. Each of the cold air distribution blades 41 is further provided with a hinge pin 45 hinged to the interlocking members 51a and 51b to be described later in the center region of the rear edge thereof.

On the other hand, in the connection duct, a pair of interlocking members 51a and 51b are disposed in parallel in the subic direction to the rear of the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c provided along the vertical direction on both sides of the duct cover 27. have. They have a circular rod shape and are capable of lifting up and down along the axial direction, and hinge protrusions 53 are formed at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal direction thereof. The hinge protrusions 53 of the interlocking members 51a and 51b are hinged to the hinge pins 45 of the cold air distribution wings 41 rotatably installed at the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b and 16c. As a result, when the interlocking members 51a and 51b move in the vertical direction, the respective cold air distribution blades 41 hinged thereto are rotated integrally within a predetermined range.

And the interlocking members 51a and 51b of the both sides arrange | positioned in parallel are respectively connected to the both ends of the connecting member 55 arrange | positioned horizontally in the axial direction of the interlocking members 51a and 51b. The connection member 55 has a working protrusion 57 protruded upwardly and bent, and the working protrusion 57 penetrates the upper plate 37 of the duct cover 27 to be fixed to the upper side in detail. Will interact with (63). When the driving cam 63 rotates, the action protrusion 57 is lifted, and at this time, the interlocking members 51a and 51b are also moved together, and each cold air distribution installed in the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c is performed. The blade 41 is rotated up and down.

On the other hand, a motor bracket (not shown) is provided on the upstream side of the cold air duct, and the driving motor 61 is accommodated in and fixed to the motor bracket. The drive motor 61 is composed of a stepping motor capable of controlling the forward and reverse direction and the stop angle position, and the drive cam 63 is coupled to the drive shaft so as to be integrally rotatable. The drive cam 63 has a cam groove 67 having a cylindrical cam body 65 which is coaxially coupled to the drive shaft of the drive motor 61 and a camping profile that continuously lifts up and down the cylindrical surface of the cam body 65. Has) The cam groove 67 is engaged with the actuating protrusion 57 protruding from the connecting member 55, and is elevated along the camp profile of the cam groove 67 when the driving cam 63 is rotated.

Inside the duct cover is attached a cold air guide member 75 for guiding the cold air flowing into the cold air inlet 40 to both connecting ducts (36). The cold air guide member 75 is fixedly attached between the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c formed on both sides of the front plate in the duct cover, and protrudes in an arc toward the rear to form a curved surface. By this curved surface, the flow cold air from the cold air outlet 40 flows smoothly toward both cold air outlets 16a, 16b, and 16c. The cover member 71 is attached to the cold air inlet 40 as described above. The cover member 71 is provided with a communication port 73 communicating the cold air inlet 40 with the cold air outlet of the duct member 21.

5 and 6 are diagrams schematically showing an operating state of the cold air distribution device according to the present invention. In this cold air distribution device 30, the drive motor 61 is operated in accordance with a control signal from a control unit (not shown) to rotate the drive cam 63 by 360 degrees or stop at a predetermined rotation angle position. When the driving cam 63 rotates 360 °, the working projection 57 of the connecting member 55 moves up and down along the cam groove 63 to move the interlocking members 51a and 51b integrally. Then, the cold air distribution blades 41 hinged to the interlocking members 51a and 51b are rotated up and down at the front surface of the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b and 16c. 5 shows a cold air distribution blade 41 in a downwardly rotated state, and FIG. 6 shows a cold air distribution blade 41 in an upwardly rotated state.

On the other hand, while the cold air distribution wing 41 is continuously rotated, the cold air formed around the evaporator 12b by the operation of the refrigeration system is blown by the blower fan 13b and flows along the cold air duct 15 to provide a cold air outlet. Spills through. At this time, the outflowing cold air is introduced through the cold air inlet 40 formed on the rear surface of the duct cover 27, guided to both sides by the cold air guide member 75 to flow in the connection duct. The cold air flowing in this way is distributed and discharged in the up and down direction in the refrigerating chamber according to the rotation angle position of the cold air distributing wing 41 which rotates in front of the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c. In the refrigerator 1 having the cold air distribution device 30, since the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c are formed adjacent to both corner regions on the rear surface of the refrigerating chamber 3, the refrigerating chamber of the conventional refrigerator 101 is provided. The cold air is easily supplied to a region where the cold air formed therein is hard to reach. As a result, a uniform temperature distribution can be maintained in the refrigerating chamber.

When a temperature deviation occurs in the refrigerating chamber, the controller may send a control signal to the drive motor 61 to stop the drive cam 63 at a predetermined stop angle position. That is, by stopping the rotation of the drive cam 63 so that the cold air discharged through the cold air distribution wing 41 is concentrated in a region of low temperature, by rotating the drive cam 63 again when the temperature deviation is removed, Can maintain a uniform cooling state.

On the other hand, the operation of the present cold air distribution device 30 is controlled in relation to the operation of the refrigeration system. That is, the refrigerating system is on-off controlled according to the temperature in the refrigerating chamber and the temperature set by the user. When the refrigerating system is stopped because the temperature of the refrigerating chamber 3 becomes lower than the set temperature, It will also stop working. At this time, the control unit sends a control signal to the drive motor 61, and rotates the drive cam 63 at a position where the cold air distribution blade 41 can block the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, 16c. As a result, the relatively high temperature in the refrigerating chamber that gradually rises is prevented from flowing into the cold air duct, and the idea generated in the evaporator 12b is reduced. Accordingly, the operating efficiency of the refrigeration system can be improved.

On the other hand, in this embodiment, the cold air distribution blade 41 has a structure in which the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, 16c cannot be completely blocked by the hinge coupling with the interlocking members 51a, 51b. Therefore, although the relative high temperature in the refrigerating chamber cannot be completely blocked from entering the cold air duct 15, the hinge pin 45 is formed on the rear side of the cold air distribution wing 41 or the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c. By installing the airtight flanges at the upper and lower edges of the upper and lower sides, respectively, the cold air discharge ports 16a, 16b, and 16c can be effectively blocked.

As described above, in the refrigerator having the cold air distribution device according to the present invention, since the cold air outlet is provided in the cooling chamber adjacent to the corner region, the blind area in the cooling chamber where cold air cannot easily reach is removed, It can maintain a uniform temperature distribution. In addition, the cold air outlet may be opened and closed according to the operation of the refrigeration system, thereby preventing the relative high temperature of the cooling chamber from being introduced into the cold air duct, thereby improving the efficiency of the refrigeration system.

Claims (8)

In the refrigerator having a cooling chamber, A cold air duct provided on a side wall of the cooling chamber to guide the flow of cold air and having a cold air outlet at one side; A duct cover having a plurality of cold air outlets which form a connection duct in which cold air from the cold air outlets flows, and which is open toward the cooling chamber in at least two up and down directions; A cold air distribution wing having horizontal axes at each of the cold air discharge ports; And a drive unit for rotating the cold air distribution vane in a vertical direction within a predetermined range. The method of claim 1, The driving unit, A drive motor; A drive cam coupled to the drive motor coaxially and integrally rotating; Arranged in parallel with each other in the vertical direction at the rear of the duct cover, and can be elevated, and hinged with the corresponding cold air distribution wings along the axial direction to interact with the drive cam, thereby rotating each cold air distribution wings integrally. Refrigerator comprising a plurality of interlocking member to make. The method of claim 2, The drive cam is A cylindrical cam body; A cam groove having a camping profile that continuously descends on the circumferential surface of the cam body; And each of the interlocking members has an action portion engaged with the cam groove. The method of claim 3, The action part, A connection member interconnecting the plurality of interlocking members; And a working protrusion extending from the connecting member toward the driving cam, the end of which is received in the cam groove. The method of claim 2, And a hinge coupling portion of the cold air distribution blade and the interlocking member is provided at a predetermined rear side with respect to the axial direction of the cold air distribution blade. The method of claim 5, The hinge coupling portion, Hinge protrusions formed at predetermined intervals along the axial direction of the interlocking member; And a hinge pin provided at a rear edge of the cold air distribution blade and engaged with the hinge protrusion. The method of claim 1, And a cold air guide member attached to the rear surface of the duct cover between the cold air discharge ports on both sides to guide cold air distributed to both sides by the left and right distribution wings to the cold air discharge ports on both sides. The method of claim 1, The cooling chamber is partitioned into a plurality of storage zones arranged in upper and lower layers; And a plurality of cold air outlets on both sides of the plurality of storage zones, respectively.

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