KR102117577B1 - Refrigerator and control method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a refrigerator and a control method thereof. The refrigerator of the present invention includes a refrigerator main body in which a storage compartment is formed; A vegetable compartment provided with a drawer and formed inside the storage compartment; A vacuum pump that sucks and discharges air inside the vegetable compartment; A pressure switch for sensing the pressure inside the vegetable compartment; A drawer switch that senses the withdrawal or storage of the drawer; And a control unit for checking whether the vegetable room is closed or not and operating a control algorithm of the vacuum pump based on a result of the detection of the drawer switch. Thereby, a simple operation for storing the drawer of the vegetable room can determine whether the inside of the vegetable room is sealed or not and control the vacuum pump control algorithm.

Description

Refrigerator and its control method{REFRIGERATOR AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF}

The present invention relates to a refrigerator and a control method thereof, and more specifically, a refrigerator and a control method for determining whether or not the inside of the vegetable room is sealed and a vacuum pump control algorithm are operated based on a result of opening and closing detection of a drawer in the vegetable room. It is about.

In general, a refrigerator is a device that stores food at a low temperature to keep food fresh longer.

The refrigerator includes a refrigerator body forming a storage space therein and a refrigeration cycle provided in the refrigerator body to generate cold air.

Typically, the refrigerator body 1 is configured to include a refrigerator compartment 11 and a freezer compartment 21, as shown in FIG.

The refrigerator main body 1 includes a refrigerator compartment door 15 that opens and closes the refrigerator compartment 11 and a freezer compartment door 25 that opens and closes the freezer compartment 21.

Inside the refrigerating chamber 11, a vegetable chamber 50 is provided for storing vegetables and fruits (hereinafter collectively referred to as "vegetables" or "vegetables") more freshly.

The vegetable room 50 is usually provided below the refrigerator compartment 11.

2, the vegetable room 50 includes a case 55 and a drawer 60 accommodated in the case 55 in a drawer type.

The case 50 is formed of both side plates 56, an upper plate 57, and a lower plate 58, the back side is a closed structure and the front has an open (opening) structure.

The drawer 60 is withdrawn or received through the front opening of the case 55.

On the other hand, when storing vegetables in the refrigerator, it is important to keep the space (vegetable compartment) in which the vegetables are stored in optimal conditions.

To this end, some refrigerators are configured to have a so-called "vacuum vegetable compartment" that allows the inside of the vegetable compartment to be sealed to the outside, so that the internal pressure is kept below the external pressure.

The vacuum vegetable chamber is provided with a vacuum pump 70 to suck the air inside and discharge it to the outside to lower the pressure inside.

Between the vacuum pump 70 and the vegetable compartment 50, a connection pipe 75 for connecting the inside of the case 55 and the vacuum pump 70 is provided. Thereby, the air inside the vegetable chamber 50 can be sucked and discharged to the outside.

The case (vegetable box, 55) and the drawer 60 are closed so that a gasket (not shown) is provided in the mutual contact area so that the inside can be sealed to the outside.

However, in such a conventional refrigerator, it may be difficult to maintain the sealed state of the interior of the vegetable chamber 50 due to the excitation of the gasket, aging, and the like.

In addition, when the vegetable room 50 is not sufficiently sealed, freshness of vegetables and/or fruits inside the vegetable room 50 may be easily deteriorated.

In addition, when the vacuum pump 70 is driven while the vegetable compartment 50 is not sufficiently sealed, the vacuum pump 70 may be excessively operated. Due to this, not only waste of power is generated, but also forced deterioration of the vacuum pump 70 is promoted, and the life of the vacuum pump 70 can be shortened.

KR 20-0206607 Y1 (2000.12.01.) JP 2009-036447 A (2009.02.19.) JP 2001-012837 A (2001.01.19.) JP 2009-036440 A (2009.02.19.)

The present invention is to solve such a conventional problem, based on the result of the opening and closing detection result of the drawer of the vegetable room, and provides a refrigerator and a control method for determining whether the interior of the vegetable room is sealed and a vacuum pump control algorithm can be operated. That's the purpose.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator equipped with a vegetable compartment and a control method thereof that can stop unnecessary driving of the vacuum pump and suppress a reduction in the life of the vacuum pump due to unnecessary driving.

In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator equipped with a vegetable compartment and a control method thereof, which allows a user to stop the malfunction in a timely manner by displaying a malfunction of the vacuum pump on the outside.

The present invention will be implemented by an embodiment having the following configuration as a preferred aspect to achieve the above-described object. The present invention provides the following technical configuration to solve the above problems.

The present invention, in order to achieve the above object, the refrigerator body is formed storage chamber; A vegetable compartment provided with a drawer and formed inside the storage compartment; A vacuum pump that sucks and discharges air inside the vegetable compartment; A pressure switch for sensing the pressure inside the vegetable compartment; A drawer switch that senses the withdrawal or storage of the drawer; And a control unit for checking whether the vegetable room is closed or not and operating a control algorithm of the vacuum pump based on the detection result of the drawer switch.

Here, the control unit, a drawer opening and closing input port receiving a detection signal from the drawer switch; A first input port to which the detection signal of the pressure switch is input; And a first output port through which the control signal of the vacuum pump is output.

The preset pressure inside the preset vegetable compartment detected by the pressure switch may be 0.85 atm.

A user input switch is further provided to turn on/off the sealing of the vegetable room and whether or not the control algorithm of the vacuum pump is activated, and the control unit checks the sealing of the vegetable room and controls the vacuum pump from the user input switch. It may be configured to include a second input port for receiving whether the operation of.

In addition, the control unit may be configured to further include a second output port that transmits a signal indicating whether or not the inside of the vegetable room is closed to the LED display unit.

On the other hand, according to another field of the present invention, as a control method of a refrigerator having a refrigerator body having a storage compartment, a vegetable compartment provided in the storage compartment, and a vacuum pump that sucks and discharges air inside the vegetable compartment, the drawer of the vegetable compartment Closing the drawer switch on and operating the control algorithm of the vegetable room; Detecting the pressure inside the vegetable room through the pressure switch and checking whether the internal pressure has reached a preset pressure set; Stopping the vacuum pump when the pressure sensed by the pressure switch reaches the set pressure; If the pressure sensed by the pressure switch does not reach the set pressure, operating the vacuum pump for a preset maximum operating time; And determining if an error occurs when the pressure of the vegetable room does not reach the set pressure after the vacuum pump is operated for the maximum operating time.

Here, the refrigerator main body is further provided with an LED (LED) display unit, and after the step of determining the occurrence of the error, the LED (LED) display unit to inform the user that the interior of the vegetable room is not sealed Flashing (ON, OFF alternating); may further include.

The refrigerator main body is further provided with an LED (LED) display, the step of operating the control algorithm of the vegetable room, the step of driving the vacuum pump; And turning on the LED display after the vacuum pump is driven.

The step of operating the control algorithm of the vegetable room may further include a step of turning off the LED display unit after the vacuum pump is stopped.

As described above, according to an embodiment of the present invention, a simple operation of detecting opening/closing of a drawer of a vegetable room may check whether or not the inside of the vegetable room is sealed and operate a control algorithm of a vacuum pump.

In addition, by making it possible to confirm whether or not the vegetable room is closed by an algorithm for checking whether the vegetable room is sealed, it is possible to stop the vacuum pump from being idle and suppress the occurrence of energy loss due to the idle operation.

Further, by stopping the vacuum pump from being in operation, it is possible to suppress the shortening of the life of the vacuum pump due to the operation, thereby extending the life of the vacuum pump.

In addition, by providing an LED (LED) display unit for displaying whether or not the vegetable room is sealed to the outside, the user can recognize the idle operation state when the vegetable room is incompletely closed, and stop the idle operation of the vacuum pump in a timely manner.

1 is a perspective view showing a refrigerator equipped with a conventional vacuum vegetable room.
Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the vacuum vegetable chamber of Figure 1;
3 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention,
Figure 4 is a perspective view of the vegetable room of Figure 3,
Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of the vegetable room of Figure 4,
Figure 6 is a block diagram of a vacuum vegetable room that can be checked whether the sealing by the current monitoring of the vacuum pump of Figure 4;
7 is a flowchart illustrating a control algorithm of a vacuum pump according to an embodiment of the present invention to check whether the inside of the vegetable room is sealed, and accordingly,
8 is a flowchart for explaining interrupt control of the control unit of FIG. 6.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, a preferred embodiment of a refrigerator vegetable room in which an algorithm for checking whether or not airtightness is implemented by a drawer switch according to the present invention is implemented will be described in detail.

Prior to this, the terms or words used in the specification and claims should not be limited to ordinary or dictionary meanings, and the inventor may appropriately define the concept of terms in order to best describe his or her invention. Based on the principle of being able to be interpreted as meanings and concepts consistent with the technical spirit of the present invention.

Therefore, the embodiments shown in the embodiments and the drawings described in this specification are only the most preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical spirit of the present invention, and various equivalents can be substituted at the time of this application. It should be understood that there may be water and variations.

3, the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator body 110, the storage chamber 120 is formed; A vegetable compartment 130 provided with a drawer 150 and formed inside the storage compartment 120; A vacuum pump 140 that sucks and discharges air inside the vegetable compartment 130; A pressure switch 600 for sensing the pressure inside the vegetable compartment 130; A drawer switch 350 for sensing withdrawal or storage of the drawer 150; And a control unit 300 for checking whether the vegetable compartment 130 is closed or not and operating a control algorithm of the vacuum pump 140 based on the detection result of the drawer switch 350.

A storage chamber 120 may be formed inside the refrigerator body 110.

The storage compartment 120 may include, for example, a freezer compartment 121 and a refrigerator compartment 122.

A freezer compartment door 125 may be provided in the freezer compartment 121.

The refrigerator compartment 122 may be provided with a refrigerator compartment door 126.

Meanwhile, the refrigerating compartment 122 may be provided with a vegetable compartment 130 that forms a closed interior space.

The vegetable room 130 may include a case 131 forming an accommodation space therein and a drawer 150 slidably received in the case 131 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. have.

The case 131 may include, for example, both side plates 132, an upper plate 133, and a lower plate 134, so that an opening is formed at the front side and blocked at the rear side.

A flange 135 may be formed in the front opening of the case 131.

The drawer 150 includes a front part 151 for opening and closing the front opening of the case 131 and a storage part 155 provided on the rear surface of the front part 151 to receive vegetables and/or fruits. can do.

A gasket 161 may be provided between the drawer 150 and the case 131.

The gasket 161 may be provided on, for example, the front portion 151 and/or the flange 135.

The case 131 may be provided with a vacuum pump 140 to suck the air inside and discharge it to the outside.

The vacuum pump 140 may be implemented as, for example, a turbo fan.

One end of the case 131 may have one end connected to the other end of the connector 145 connected to the vacuum pump 140.

A pressure switch 600 for sensing the pressure inside may be provided inside the case 131.

On the other hand, the refrigerator of this embodiment, for example, may be provided with a drawer switch 350 for sensing the storage of the drawer 150.

The refrigerator of the present embodiment may be configured such that when the storage of the drawer 150 is sensed by the drawer switch 350, the sealing algorithm of the vegetable room and the control algorithm of the vacuum pump are operated.

The drawer switch 350 may be provided in, for example, a mutual contact area between the case 131 and the drawer 150.

The drawer switch 350 may be provided on the front surface of the case 131.

The drawer switch 350 may include, for example, a drawer switch body 351 and a button 355 protruding and retracting from the drawer switch body 351.

The drawer switch 350 may be configured such that the button 355 is pressed by the drawer 150 when the drawer 150 is received, for example.

More specifically, when the drawer 150 is normally received inside the case 131, the gasket 161 on the rear surface of the front portion 151 of the drawer 150 has a flange 135 of the case 131. The inside of the vegetable chamber 130 may be sealed to the outside while being in contact with and compressed.

When the gasket 161 is compressed and sealed, the drawer switch 350 is in contact with the rear surface of the front portion 151 of the drawer 150 to be pressed and operated, whereby the drawer switch body 351 is the drawer. The storage detection signal of 150 may be output.

The drawer switch main body 351, for example, may be configured to output a detection signal when the button 355 is pressed.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 6 to 8, the drawer switch 350 of the present invention confirms the sealing of the vegetable room and controls the vacuum pump control algorithm (hereinafter, referred to as “control algorithm of the vacuum pump” or “algorithm”). The implemented refrigerator will be described in detail.

As shown in Figure 6, the refrigerator of this embodiment, based on the drawer 150 storage detection signal of the drawer switch 350 to check the sealing of the vegetable room 130 and to operate the control algorithm of the vacuum pump 140 It may be provided with a control unit 300.

A drawer opening/closing input port 330 to which the drawer switch 350 is connected may be provided in the control unit 300.

The control unit 300 may be configured to turn the vacuum pump 140 on or off, for example, based on the internal pressure of the vegetable room 130.

A pressure switch 600 configured to sense the pressure inside the vegetable compartment 130 and detect the pressure inside the vegetable compartment 130 when the internal pressure value of the vegetable compartment 130 reaches a predetermined pressure value enables communication with the controller 300. Can be connected.

The pressure switch 600 may be configured to be ON when, for example, the pressure value inside the vegetable compartment 130 reaches a predetermined pressure value (upper limit value).

The pressure switch 600 may be configured to maintain an OFF state below the preset pressure value (upper limit value).

The control unit 300 includes, for example, a first input port 311 through which the on/off signal of the pressure switch 600 is input (in this embodiment, only the "on" signal is input). Can be.

The control unit 300, the pressure switch 600 is maintained in the OFF (OFF) state, if the signal of the pressure switch 600 is not input, the internal pressure of the vegetable chamber 130 does not reach the set value When it is determined that the pressure switch 600 is turned on and outputs a signal, it may be configured to determine that the internal pressure of the vegetable compartment 130 has reached a set value.

The control unit 300 may be configured to control the vacuum pump 140 to stop (off) when, for example, the pressure switch 600 reaches the preset pressure value and is turned on. have.

Then, when the pressure sensed by the pressure switch 600 does not reach a predetermined pressure value, the pressure switch 600 maintains the off state, the control unit 300 is the vacuum pump 140 The pressure switch 600 can be controlled to be continuously driven until it is turned on.

Here, the preset pressure value sensed by the pressure switch 600 may be set to a pressure suitable for maintaining freshness of, for example, vegetables and fruits stored.

The interior of the vegetable chamber 130, for example, it is preferable to maintain the so-called "weak vacuum".

For example, the weak vacuum may mean that the internal pressure of the vegetable chamber 130 is 0.75 atm to 0.95 atm. Thereby, vegetables and/or fruits stored in the vegetable compartment 130 may be stored fresh.

The predetermined pressure value of the vegetable compartment 130 may be 0.85 atm. According to this, vegetables and/or fruits inside the vegetable compartment 130 can be stored more freshly.

When the pressure switch 600 is turned on, the vacuum pump 140 may be operated for a set maximum operating time tmax. Here, the maximum operating time is set to a time when the vegetable chamber 130 is sufficiently sealed and the vacuum pump 140 is operated to reach a predetermined pressure value of the vegetable chamber 130, or reaches a preset pressure value. The time to be set may mean a time set by slightly or exceeding a predetermined time (for example, several seconds to tens (hundreds) seconds).

More specifically, when the pressure switch 600 is maintained in an off state, the pressure inside the vegetable compartment 130 may not reach a predetermined pressure value (atmospheric pressure lower than atmospheric pressure, for example, 0.85 atm). Therefore, the vacuum pump 140 may be continuously driven for a predetermined period of time (maximum operating time = tmax).

Here, the maximum operating time tmax of the vacuum pump 140 may be set to, for example, about 6 minutes (min). Here, when the vacuum pump 140 is driven for about 4 minutes in a state where the vegetable compartment 130 is sufficiently sealed, the internal pressure of the vegetable compartment 130 is provided with a capacity to reach a set value (0.85 atm). Can be configured. More specifically, the maximum driving time may be set to 6 minutes, which is the time at which the internal pressure of the vegetable chamber 130 reaches a set pressure value (0.85 atm), that is, 1.5 times of 4 minutes.

On the other hand, despite the fact that the vacuum pump 140 was operated for a maximum operating time tmax, the pressure inside the vegetable chamber 130 may not reach a predetermined pressure value (0.85 atm).

For example, when the inside of the vegetable chamber 130 is not sealed due to the lifting of the gasket 161, the inside of the vegetable chamber 130 may not reach a predetermined pressure value even if the vacuum pump 140 is continuously operated. You can. As a result, waste operation of the vacuum pump 140 may occur, resulting in unnecessary energy consumption and reduced life of the vacuum pump 140. This can be confirmed in the case that the internal pressure of the vegetable chamber 130 does not reach the preset pressure despite the fact that the vacuum pump 140 operates the preset maximum driving time through the algorithm of the present invention.

Accordingly, the controller 300 may be configured to determine that an error has occurred and to display an error message externally after a certain period of time (the maximum driving time) has elapsed after the vacuum pump 140 is driven.

The control unit 300 is configured to stop the vacuum pump 140 when the error message is displayed externally, or the user can manually drive the vacuum pump 140 while the vacuum pump 140 continues to be driven. It may be configured to stop. Hereinafter, in the present exemplary embodiment, the case where the error occurs when the vacuum pump 140 is continuously driven and configured to display an error will be described as an example.

The control unit 300, for example, as shown in Figure 6, the drawer switch 350 is connected to the drawer opening and closing input port 330 to receive the detection signal of the drawer 150; A first input port 311 through which the on/off signal of the pressure switch 600 is input; And a first output port 321 transmitting a start/stop command of the vacuum pump 140 to the driving unit 210 according to the current value of the vacuum pump 140 and the on/off input of the pressure switch 600. It may be configured to include.

The control unit 300 may stop driving of the vacuum pump 140 through the first output port 321 when the pressure inside the vegetable chamber 130 reaches a predetermined pressure.

A driving unit 210 driving the vacuum pump 140 may be connected to the first output port 321.

A relay 220 connected to the vacuum pump 140 may be connected to the driving unit 210.

The relay 220 may open and close the driving power of the vacuum pump 140 according to the signal of the driving unit 210.

The control unit 300, when the signal that the internal pressure of the vegetable chamber 130 reaches the set pressure is input through the first input port 311, the driving unit 210 through the first output port 321 Control to stop the vacuum pump 140.

As described above, the pressure inside the preset vegetable compartment 130 sensed by the pressure switch 600 may be set to 0.85 atm.

Referring to FIG. 6, the refrigerator of the present embodiment is further configured to further include a user input switch 700 that turns on/off whether the vegetable room 130 is closed and whether the vacuum pump 140 control algorithm is activated. Can be.

The user input switch 700 may be configured as, for example, a push switch that is turned ON when pressed once, and turned OFF when pressed again.

The control unit 300 may include a signal storage unit 305 that stores a logical switch state (ON, OFF) of a signal when the user input switch 700 is pressed.

The signal storage unit 305 stores the logical switch state on the first press of the user input switch 700 (on signal input), and stores the logical switch state on (ON) and the logical switch state on subsequent press of the user input switch 700. Change (ON ↔ OFF) and save. For example, when the previous logical switch state stored in the signal storage unit 305 is ON, when the signal of the user input switch 700 is additionally input, the signal storage unit 305 is a logical switch The state is changed to OFF and stored, and when the previous logical switch state stored in the signal storage unit 305 is OFF, the logical switch state is changed to ON to store.

The control unit 300 may include a timer 315 for counting time.

The controller 300 may be configured to control the driving of the vacuum pump 140 to be driven (ON) after a preset delay time (eg, a switch input determination time (tdelay)).

Here, the switch input determination time (tdelay) is, for example, when the user operates a separate user input switch 700 (signal input) or the drawer switch 350 is pressed and operated by the drawer 150 If it is, it means the time (elapsed time) flowing from each time point.

The switch input determination time tdelay may be set to, for example, 5 seconds. Here, the switch input determination time (tdelay) can be appropriately adjusted.

The control unit 300 performs an interrupt control (parallel) to determine whether the vegetable room 130 is closed and implement a vacuum pump control algorithm at regular time intervals (for example, 1 second intervals). Can be configured.

The control unit 300 may include a second input port 312 to which the user input switch 700 is connected.

The control unit 300 may receive the operation of the control algorithm from the user input switch 700.

The user input switch 700 may be provided outside the refrigerator body 110, for example. For example, it may be provided on the outer surface of the freezer compartment door 125 or the refrigerator compartment door 126. Thereby, the operation of the vacuum pump 140 can be controlled without opening the refrigerator compartment door 126.

The user input switch 700 may be provided outside the vegetable compartment 130, that is, inside the refrigerating compartment 122.

Thereby, the user can manually operate (on/off) whether to operate the control algorithm of the present invention manually or manually by the user outside the refrigerator body 110 or outside the vegetable room 130.

Accordingly, when the user operates (on) the user input switch 700, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the algorithm of the present invention is implemented, and when the user stops (off), the algorithm of the present invention is not operated. Is done.

In addition, as shown in Figure 6, the present invention is an LED (LED) display unit 800 for displaying whether or not the inside of the vegetable chamber 130 confirmed through the algorithm for checking whether the interior of the vegetable chamber 130 is sealed or not. It may be further provided.

The LED display unit 800 may be configured to be turned ON when the vacuum pump 140 is driven (ON).

The LED display unit 800 may be configured to turn off (OFF) when the vacuum pump 140 is stopped (OFF).

For example, the user input switch 700 is provided on an operation panel (not shown) for setting the operating conditions of the freezer compartment 121 and the refrigerator compartment 122, and the LED display unit 800 includes the user input switch ( 700) may be provided on one side.

The control unit 300 may include a second output port 322 that transmits a signal indicating whether or not the vegetable room 130 is closed to the LED display unit 800.

As described above, the LED display unit 800 blinks the LED display unit 800 so that the user can recognize it from the outside when it is determined that the inside of the vegetable room 130 is not closed (in the event of an error). ).

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 7, a description will be made of a control algorithm of a vacuum pump 140 and whether or not the inside of the vegetable compartment 130 is operated based on the storage detection signal of the drawer switch 350 of this embodiment.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, when a signal is input from the user input switch 700 (S110), the control unit 300 controls the LED display unit 800 so that the LED display unit 800 causes an error (ERROR). If it is displayed, the error indication is canceled (LED OFF) (S120), the maximum driving time (tmax) of the vacuum pump 140 is initialized (tmax=0) (S130), and a previously input value (eg For example, a user switch input determination time (tdelay) (5 seconds) is set to the same value as 5 seconds (S140).

When the input signal is a signal for turning on the logical switch state (ON), and changing the previous logical switch state (OFF) (OFF=>ON change) (S150), the switch input determination time ( tdelay) is checked (tdelay=0) (S160).

When the switch input determination time tdelay (5 seconds) has elapsed, the controller 300 sets the maximum driving time tmax of the vacuum pump 140 to a preset value (for example, 6 minutes) (S170). ).

The control unit 300 checks whether the drawer 150 is opened through the drawer switch 350 (S180), and when the opening of the drawer 150 is detected, the maximum operating time of the vacuum pump 140 ( tmax) is initialized (tmax=0) (S190).

Next, the control unit 300 sets the input determination time tdelay of the drawer switch 350 to a preset value (for example, 5 seconds) (S200), and controls the signal storage unit 305 to logically switch The state is changed (OFF) and stored (S210).

The control unit 300 checks the maximum operating time tmax of the vacuum pump 140 (S220), and when the maximum driving time tmax is greater than 0, the sensed internal pressure of the vegetable room 130 is set. Check whether the pressure has been reached (S230). Here, when the maximum driving time tmax is not greater than 0 (S220), the control unit 300 controls the vacuum pump 140 to be stopped (S310), and controls the LED display unit 800. It is controlled to be OFF (S320).

The control unit 300 controls the vacuum pump 140 to be driven (ON) when the internal pressure of the vegetable room 130 does not reach the set pressure (S230) (S240), and the LED display unit 800 ) Is controlled to light (ON) (S250).

In addition, the controller 300 checks whether the vacuum pump 140 has been operated for the maximum operating time tmax (S260).

The control unit 300 determines that an error occurs when the vacuum pump 140 is operated for a maximum operating time tmax (S270), and the LED display unit 800 allows an error to be displayed externally. Is controlled to blink (ON, OFF alternating) (S280).

On the other hand, when the internal pressure of the vegetable room 130 reaches the set pressure (S230), the control unit 300 controls the signal storage unit 305 to change the logical switch state (OFF) to be stored. (S290).

In addition, the controller 300 initializes the maximum driving time tmax of the vacuum pump 140 (tmax=0) (S300), stops (OFF) the operation of the vacuum pump 140 (S310). , The LED display unit 800 is controlled to be turned off (S320).

Meanwhile, the control unit 300 is configured to simultaneously perform (parallel) interrupt control when the operation signal of the control algorithm of the vacuum pump and the vacuum pump control algorithm are input by the user input switch 700. Can be.

The interrupt control of the present invention, for example, as shown in Figure 8, may be performed in a 1 second period.

More specifically, the control unit 300 checks whether the maximum driving time tmax (for example, 6 minutes) has elapsed every time the interrupt control is performed every 1 second (S410), and Each time interrupt control is performed, the maximum driving time tmax may be reduced by 1 second (S420).

In addition, the control unit 300 checks whether the switch input determination time (tdelay) has elapsed during the interrupt control (S430), and whenever the interrupt control is performed every 1 second, the switch input determination time (tdelay) May be decreased by 1 second (S440).

Meanwhile, the control unit 300 may check whether the error occurs at 1 second intervals during the interrupt control (S450). Here, the error (ERROR), as described above with reference to Figure 7, the internal pressure of the vegetable chamber 130 does not reach the set pressure (S230), the vacuum pump 140 is the maximum operating time (tmax ), as in the case of all operations (S260 ), it means that the controller 300 determines that an error (ERROR) has occurred (S270 ).

When the error ERROR occurs (S450), the control unit 300 may control the LED display unit 800 to be converted or flashed (ON, OFF alternating) (S460). In this case, the LEDs (LEDs) of the LED display unit 800 may blink at intervals of 1 second.

In the embodiment described above, a person having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention pertains (hereinafter referred to as'the person') is a refrigerator in which a drawer switch according to the present invention checks the sealing of a vegetable room and implements a vacuum pump control algorithm It is only a preferred embodiment to facilitate the implementation, and is not limited to the above-described embodiment and the accompanying drawings, and thus the scope of the present invention is not limited. Therefore, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various substitutions, modifications, and changes are possible without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention, and it is obvious that a part easily changeable by a person skilled in the art is included in the scope of the present invention. .

110: refrigerator body 120: storage room
121: freezer 122: refrigerator
125: freezer door 126: refrigerator compartment door
130: vegetable room 131: case
132: side plate 133: top plate
134: bottom plate 135: flange
140: vacuum pump 145: connector
150: drawer 151: front part
155: storage unit 161: gasket
300: control unit 311: first input port
312: second input port 321: first output port
322: 2nd output port 330: Drawer switch input port
350: drawer switch 351: drawer switch body
355: button 600: pressure switch
700: User input switch 800: LED display

Claims (19)

A refrigerator main body in which a storage compartment is formed;
A vegetable compartment provided with a drawer and formed inside the storage compartment;
A vacuum pump that sucks and discharges air inside the vegetable compartment;
A pressure switch for sensing the pressure inside the vegetable compartment;
A drawer switch that senses the withdrawal or storage of the drawer;
A user input switch for inputting a control signal for checking the sealing of the vegetable compartment and driving the vacuum pump or a control signal for stopping the vacuum pump; And
A control unit for checking whether the vegetable room is closed or not and controlling the vacuum pump to be driven based on a detection result of the drawer switch when checking the sealing of the vegetable room and inputting a control signal for driving the vacuum pump by the user input switch; Refrigerator included. According to claim 1,
The control unit,
A drawer opening/closing input port receiving a detection signal from the drawer switch;
A first input port to which the detection signal of the pressure switch is input; And
And a first output port through which the control signal of the vacuum pump is output. According to claim 2,
Refrigerator, characterized in that the pressure inside the preset vegetable room is detected by the pressure switch is 0.85atm. According to claim 2,
The user input switch is configured to be turned ON when pressed once based on the current OFF state, and turned OFF when pressed at a subsequent press,
The control unit may include: a second input port for receiving the control signal of the vacuum pump and checking the sealing of the vegetable room from the user input switch; And
And a signal storage unit for storing a state of ON or OFF when the user input switch is pressed. The method of claim 4,
An LED (LED) display unit for displaying whether or not the inside of the vegetable room is sealed is additionally provided,
The control unit includes a second output port for transmitting a signal indicating whether or not the inside of the vegetable room is closed to the LED display unit,
The control unit is a refrigerator characterized in that the LED display unit is turned on (ON) after the vacuum pump is driven. The method of claim 5,
When the internal pressure of the vegetable chamber reaches a set pressure as a result of the detection of the pressure switch, the control unit controls the signal storage unit to store it off, stops driving the vacuum pump, and turns off the LED display unit. A refrigerator characterized by (OFF). The method of claim 6,
When the opening of the drawer is sensed as a result of the detection of the drawer switch, the control unit controls the signal storage unit to store it off, and controls the LED display unit so that the LED display unit blinks. The method of claim 6,
The control unit, as a result of the detection of the pressure switch, when the internal pressure of the vegetable room does not reach the set pressure, operates the vacuum pump for a preset maximum operating time, and after the vacuum pump is operated for the maximum operating time If the pressure of the vegetable room does not reach the set pressure, it is determined that an error occurs, and the refrigerator characterized in that the LED display is controlled to blink. The method of claim 8,
The control unit checks whether the vegetable room is closed or not and controls the vacuum pump to be driven based on the detection result of the drawer switch when checking the sealing of the vegetable room and inputting a control signal for driving the vacuum pump by the user input switch. and,
The control unit is a refrigerator characterized in that it determines whether the maximum operating time of the vacuum pump has elapsed and determines the occurrence of the error at a preset cycle. The method of claim 5,
The control unit, when the control signal input to stop the operation of the vacuum pump by the user input switch, stops the vacuum pump, the refrigerator characterized in that off (OFF) the LED display. A refrigerator body having a storage compartment, a vegetable compartment provided in the storage compartment, a vacuum pump that sucks and discharges air inside the vegetable compartment, and checks the sealing of the vegetable compartment and controls a control signal for driving the vacuum pump or stops the operation of the vacuum pump As a control method of a refrigerator having a user input switch for inputting a control signal,
Checking the signal input of the user input switch;
The user input switch confirms the sealing of the vegetable room and a control signal for driving the vacuum pump, and the drawer switch is turned ON while closing the drawer of the vegetable room, confirming the sealing of the vegetable room, and Control is performed;
Detecting the pressure inside the vegetable room through the pressure switch and checking whether the internal pressure has reached a preset pressure set;
Stopping the vacuum pump when the pressure sensed by the pressure switch reaches the set pressure;
If the pressure sensed by the pressure switch does not reach the set pressure, operating the vacuum pump for a preset maximum operating time; And
And determining that an error occurs when the pressure in the vegetable room does not reach the set pressure after the vacuum pump is operated for the maximum operating time. The method of claim 11,
An LED (LED) display is further provided in the refrigerator body,
After the step of determining the occurrence of the error,
And blinking (alternating ON and OFF) the LED display unit to inform the user that the inside of the vegetable room is not sealed. The method of claim 12,
The user input switch confirms the sealing of the vegetable room and a control signal for driving the vacuum pump, and the drawer switch is turned on while closing the drawer of the vegetable room, and checks the sealing of the vegetable room and controls the vacuum pump. Being a step;before,
And controlling the LED display unit to release the LED display unit from blinking. The method of claim 12,
Detecting the opening of the drawer when a control signal for stopping the vacuum pump is confirmed by the user input switch; Checking the maximum driving time of the vacuum pump; Turning off the vacuum pump; And turning off the LED display unit. The method of claim 12,
An LED (LED) display is further provided in the refrigerator body,
Checking the sealing of the vegetable room and the control of the vacuum pump are performed include: driving the vacuum pump; And
And after the vacuum pump is driven, turning on the LED display unit (ON). The method of claim 15,
The step of checking the sealing of the vegetable room and controlling the vacuum pump may include, after stopping the vacuum pump, turning off the LED display unit (OFF). . The method of claim 12,
When the sealing signal of the vegetable room is checked and the control signal for driving the vacuum pump is input by the user input switch,
And checking whether or not the maximum driving time of the vacuum pump has elapsed at a preset period and checking whether the error has occurred. Refrigerator body in which a storage compartment is formed, a vegetable compartment provided in the storage compartment, a vacuum pump that sucks and discharges air inside the vegetable compartment, and checks the sealing of the vegetable compartment and stops the control signal or the driving of the vacuum pump driving the vacuum pump As a control method of a refrigerator having a user input switch for inputting a control signal,
Checking the signal input of the user input switch;
The user input switch confirms the sealing of the vegetable room and a control signal for driving the vacuum pump, and the drawer switch is turned ON while closing the drawer of the vegetable room, confirming the sealing of the vegetable room and of the vacuum pump. Control is performed;
Detecting the pressure inside the vegetable room through the pressure switch and checking whether the internal pressure has reached a preset pressure set;
Stopping the vacuum pump when the pressure sensed by the pressure switch reaches the set pressure;
If the pressure sensed by the pressure switch does not reach the set pressure, operating the vacuum pump for a preset maximum operating time;
Determining that an error occurs when the pressure in the vegetable room does not reach the set pressure after the vacuum pump is operated for the maximum operating time; And
After the operation of the vacuum pump, a step of checking whether the maximum operating time of the vacuum pump has elapsed and checking whether an error has occurred in a predetermined cycle. The method of claim 18,
In the step of checking whether the maximum operating time of the vacuum pump has elapsed and whether the error has occurred in a predetermined cycle after the vacuum pump is operated; In the preset cycle, the preset cycle is 1 second.

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