KR20050014524A - An apparatus and method for temperature control of refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A temperature control device and a method of a refrigerator are provided to set variously a cavity temperature band of a magic room and to keep optimal storage temperature by heating or cooling the cavity temperature of the magic room. CONSTITUTION: A temperature control device of a refrigerator is composed of a key input unit for selecting an operation function of a magic room(180); a magic room damper(160) disposed between a freezer compartment(185) and the magic room to control the flow of cold air to supply the cold air of the freezer compartment into the magic room; a magic room fan motor(150) for driving to insert quickly the cold air through the magic room damper to the magic room; a magic room temperature sensor(120) for detecting the cavity temperature of the magic room; a magic room heater(140) for generating heat; and a microcontroller for controlling driving of the magic room damper, the magic room fan motor, and the magic room heater by the operation function input through the key input unit based on a temperature value detected by the magic room temperature sensor.

Description

An apparatus and method for temperature control of refrigerator

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a temperature control apparatus and method for a refrigerator for controlling the temperature range of the magic room in the refrigerator.

Hereinafter, the temperature control method of the refrigerator according to the prior art will be described.

Generally, a refrigerator is divided into a freezer compartment and a refrigerating compartment, and the refrigerating compartment is a chamber for storing general foods and a vegetable compartment for storing vegetables / meat and the like according to temperature control conditions. It is divided into meat storage room.

In order to store general foods in the refrigerating compartment, the temperature is generally maintained at a temperature of about 3 ° C. to 4 ° C., and the vegetable is kept at a temperature of −3 ° C. to −4 ° C. in order to refrigerate meat, fish, and the like. shall. In particular, in order to store vegetables, meat, fish and the like, a limited space (hereinafter referred to as a “magic room”) that satisfies the conditions of low temperature (about minus −1 ° C. to −4 ° C.) is configured under the refrigerating chamber.

The magic room is controlled to be controlled by temperature by receiving cold air into the refrigerating chamber through a damper connected to the freezing chamber. The magic room is usually located at the lower end of the refrigerating compartment, and is controlled separately from the control state of the refrigerating compartment, and is maintained higher than the temperature of the freezing compartment but lower than the temperature of the refrigerating compartment.

1 is a state diagram of a control configuration for adjusting the room temperature inside the magic room of the refrigerator according to the prior art.

Conventionally, the refrigerator compartment 60 and the freezer compartment 50 of the refrigerator is configured, although not shown, a cooling cycle is configured at the rear of the freezer compartment 50 to compress and condense the refrigerant and perform heat exchange to supply cold air to the inside of the refrigerator. Configuration is included.

And the magic room 40 is located at the bottom of the refrigerating chamber 60, as shown in Figure 1, the cold air supplied to the magic room 40 is opened and closed of the damper 20 is connected to the freezer compartment 50 It is adjusted by the control. The control of the magic room 50 is based on a value detected by the magic room temperature sensor 10 provided in the magic room 50.

That is, when the value detected through the magic room temperature sensor 10 mounted in the magic room 40 is transmitted to the microcontroller (not shown), the microcontroller determines the magic room high temperature according to the detected value. .

According to the determination of the microcontroller, if it is determined that the magic room high temperature is an appropriate temperature, the microcontroller closes and controls the magic room damper 20 so that cold air does not flow into the magic room 40 from the freezing compartment 50. As a result, the flow of cold air introduced into the magic room 40 from the freezer compartment 50 is completely blocked.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the temperature inside the magic room high temperature is not the proper temperature according to the determination of the microcontroller, the microcontroller opens the magic room damper 20 to allow cold air to flow from the freezing chamber 50 to the magic room 40. To control. As a result, cold air flows from the freezer compartment 50 into the magic room 40, thereby lowering the internal temperature of the magic room.

As such, in order to control the temperature of the magic room, the damper 20 is opened and closed by driving control based on a temperature value detected through the magic room temperature sensor 10 mounted in the magic room 40. The inflow of cold air supplied to the magic room 40 was adjusted.

However, in the related art, by simply closing or opening the driving of the damper 20 according to whether the internal temperature of the magic room 40 is satisfactory or unsatisfactory, maintaining the storage temperature of the magic room according to the internal temperature of the freezer compartment and the refrigerating compartment. There was a limit to. In addition, in storing the storage in the magic room, when the high temperature in the magic room according to the inflow of the storage is increased, it is difficult to actively respond to the magic room temperature deviation by simply performing the open / close control of the damper.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a temperature control apparatus and a method of a refrigerator for varying a temperature range of a magic room so that the magic room responds to its own load.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a temperature control apparatus and method for a refrigerator in which a temperature range of a magic room is diversified and thawing and rapid cooling functions are implemented.

1 is a state diagram of a control configuration for adjusting the temperature inside the magic room high temperature of the refrigerator according to the prior art.

Figure 2 is a control configuration for adjusting the temperature in the magic room high temperature of the refrigerator according to the present invention.

Figure 3 is a state diagram of a control configuration for adjusting the temperature inside the magic room high temperature of the refrigerator according to the present invention.

Figure 4 is an operation control flow chart for adjusting the temperature in the magic room high temperature of the refrigerator according to the present invention.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

100: signal input unit 110: display unit

120: magic room temperature sensor 130: microcontroller

140: Magic Room Heater 150: Magic Room Fan Motor

160: magic room damper 170: power supply

The temperature control apparatus of the refrigerator according to the present invention for achieving the above object comprises a key input unit for selecting the operation function of the magic room; A magic room damper provided between the freezer compartment and the magic room to control the flow of cold air such that cold air of the freezer compartment is supplied to the magic room; A magic room fan motor configured to drive cold air rapidly into the magic room through the magic room damper; A magic room temperature sensor for detecting a high temperature inside the magic room; A magic room heater generating heater heat; Based on the temperature value detected by the magic room temperature sensor, the operation function input through the key input unit comprises a micro-controller for controlling the operation of the magic room damper, magic room fan motor, magic room heater do.

The temperature control apparatus of the refrigerator according to the present invention further includes a display unit in which a lamp corresponding to a driving function input through the key input unit is turned on.

In addition, the temperature control method of the refrigerator according to the present invention for achieving the above object, in the refrigerator having a magic room, and controls the cold air of the freezer compartment to be supplied to the magic room, the appropriate temperature in the refrigerator according to various operation functions of the magic room High temperature setting step of setting; A driving function input step of selecting a driving function of the magic room; A magic room temperature detection step of detecting a temperature of the magic room; A magic room temperature determination step of determining whether the magic room temperature detected in the temperature detection step is an appropriate temperature corresponding to a driving function input from the driving function input step; And a cold air inflow control step of controlling whether cold air is supplied depending on whether the magic room temperature is appropriate.

In addition, the temperature control method of the refrigerator according to the present invention is characterized in that, when the rapid cooling function is selected in the operation function input step, the magic room fan motor is driven so that cold air flows into the magic room.

In addition, the temperature control method of the refrigerator according to the present invention is characterized in that if the thawing function is selected in the operation function input step, the magic room heater is driven.

Hereinafter, the temperature control device and method of the refrigerator according to the present invention will be described in detail.

Figure 2 is a control configuration for adjusting the temperature in the magic room high temperature of the refrigerator according to the present invention.

As shown in the drawing, the present invention provides a power supply unit 170 for supplying power to a refrigerator, a signal input unit 100 for inputting an operation signal (temperature, operation state, etc.) of the refrigerator, and an input operation signal. Display unit 110 to display, the magic room heater 140 is mounted in the magic room to generate a heater heat, the magic room temperature sensor 120 is mounted in the magic room to detect the high temperature inside the magic room, and The Magic Room Damper 160 is mounted between the freezer compartments to control the flow of cold air flowing into the Magic Room, the Magic Room Fan Motor 150 for blowing cold air into the Magic Room smoothly, and the internal temperature of the refrigerator. It is configured to include a microcontroller 130 to maintain the control, so that the high temperature inside the magic room is adjusted according to the user's settings.

The key input unit 100 constitutes a function key capable of selecting not only the normal operation of the refrigerator but also the thawing and rapid refrigeration functions of the magic room.

The display unit 110 is provided with a plurality of lamps to grasp the state of the refrigerator at a glance. For example, whether the rapid freezing function or the defrosting operation is being performed, the corresponding lamp is turned on to immediately check.

The magic room temperature sensor 120 is mounted on one side of the magic room. Then, the sensed internal temperature value of the magic room is transmitted to the microcontroller 130.

The magic room heater 140 is driven during the thawing function and is based on a temperature value detected by the magic room temperature sensor 120. When the thawing is started, the state of the heater is turned on to reach the predetermined temperature for a predetermined time, and the state of the magic room heater 140 is turned off when the predetermined temperature reaches the predetermined temperature. At this time, the driving time and the driving temperature of the magic room heater 140 for thawing are based on experimental values detected through experiments.

On the other hand, the microcontroller 130 recognizes the temperature value transmitted by the magic room temperature sensor 120, and grasps the internal temperature of the current magic room. As a result of the determination, when it is determined that the internal temperature of the magic room 180 maintains the proper temperature, the magic room damper 160 and the magic room fan motor 150 are blocked so that the flow of cold air from the freezer compartment into the magic room is blocked. Stop the drive.

However, when the microcontroller 130 determines that the internal temperature of the magic room is not maintaining a proper temperature, the microcontroller 130 opens and operates the magic room damper 160 so that cold air flows from the freezing chamber 185 into the magic room 180. Controls the magic room fan motor 150 to be driven. As a result, cold air quickly flows into the magic room 180 to lower the internal temperature. As such, in storing the storage in the magic room 180, the temperature in the refrigerator is controlled to maintain a low state.

The microcontroller 130 controls the driving of the magic room heater 140 mounted in the magic room 180 when the microcontroller 130 is to thaw the storage stored in the magic room 180. As a result, the heater heat is supplied to the magic room 180, the internal temperature of the magic room 180 is increased, and the stored food is thawed.

As described above, the present invention, the magic room damper 160 and the fan to preset the use of the magic room or the storage temperature of the magic room through the signal input unit 100, and to maintain the internal temperature of the set magic room 180 The driving of the motor 150 and the heater 140 is controlled. That is, when the set storage temperature is satisfied, the damper 160 of the magic room is closed and the fan motor 150 is stopped so that cold air is no longer supplied to the inside of the refrigerator. However, if the set storage temperature is unsatisfactory, the damper 160 of the magic room is opened and cold air is supplied to drive the fan motor 150 to reach the storage temperature. When the thawing function is selected, the heater 140 of the magic room is driven until the predetermined time or the predetermined temperature is reached.

3 is a state diagram of a control configuration for adjusting the internal temperature of the refrigerator according to the present invention.

The refrigerator according to the present invention includes a freezing compartment 185, a refrigerating compartment 190, and a magic room 180 provided at a lower end of the refrigerating compartment. In the general temperature state of each chamber, the freezer compartment 185 is the lowest state, followed by the magic room 180, the temperature of the refrigerating compartment 185 is the highest. On the other hand, when the magic room performs the thawing function, the magic room temperature is relatively higher than the refrigerator compartment temperature. The temperature control in each chamber is performed based on the detected temperature of the temperature sensor provided in each chamber.

The magic room 180 is located at the bottom of the refrigerating compartment, and as shown in FIG. 3, the cold air supplied to the magic room 180 is connected between the freezing compartment 185 and the magic room 180. Is controlled by the opening and closing control of). In addition, when the damper 160 performs an opening operation at the same time, the freezing chamber fan motor 150 is driven to allow the inflow of cold air smoothly. At this time, the high-temperature state of the magic room 180 is detected through the magic room temperature sensor 120 provided in the magic room 180. On the other hand, the magic room 180 is mounted at the bottom of the magic room heater 140 for generating a heater heat in order to increase the magic room high temperature in a short time.

The cold air to be supplied to the freezing chamber 185, the refrigerating chamber 190, and the magic room 180 is generated through a cooling cycle (not shown) although not shown. The cooling cycle is composed of a compressor, an evaporator, a condenser, etc., and generates refrigerant by heat exchanged in the evaporator with the refrigerant compressed in the compressor. As a result, cold air flows into the freezer compartment 185, and cold air is supplied from the freezer compartment 185 to the refrigerating compartment 190 and the magic room 185. That is, the cold air of the freezing compartment 185 flows into the refrigerating compartment due to the opening operation of the refrigerating compartment damper (not shown). In addition, the cold air of the freezer compartment flows into the magic room due to the opening operation of the magic room damper. Thus, the dampers installed in the refrigerator compartment and the magic room are separate.

In the present invention, the magic room damper 160 is opened so that cold air is supplied to the magic room 180. At the same time, the magic room fan motor 150 is driven so that cold air can be quickly supplied to the magic room 180. As a result, an airflow is formed through which the cold air heat-exchanged in the evaporator can quickly flow into the magic room 180 through the freezing chamber 185.

As shown in FIG. 2, when a signal for using the magic room 180 is input through the signal input unit 100, the signal is transmitted to the microcontroller 130. Accordingly, the microcontroller 130 drives the magic room damper 160, the magic room fan motor 150, the magic room heater 140, etc. to adjust the internal temperature of the magic room 180 to an appropriate storage temperature. To control. At the same time, the operation signal of the magic room 180 selected by the user is displayed through the display 110. As a result, the corresponding lamp of the Magic Room is turned on, and the user can check the temperature control state of the Magic Room at a glance.

Therefore, in the present invention, when controlling the temperature of the magic room for the rapid refrigerating function, through the magic room temperature sensor 120 configured in the magic room detects the magic room high temperature, the detected value is the microcontroller 130 Is passed on. As a result, the microcontroller 130 determines the state of the magic room, and controls the magic room to maintain a proper internal temperature. At the same time, the rapid cooling status of the Magic Room is displayed.

For example, when the magic room high temperature detected by the magic room temperature sensor 120 mounted in the magic room is + 4 ° C. or more, the magic room damper 160 is opened to control cold air. At the same time by driving the magic room fan motor 150, to form an air flow so that the cold air in the freezer compartment quickly enters the magic room (180). As described above, the opening operation of the magic room damper 160 and the driving of the magic room fan motor 150 are continued until the temperature becomes -3 ° C. After reaching -3 ° C, the magic room temperature sensor 120 detects this, and the microcontroller 130 recognizes the detected temperature value -3 ° C so that cold air is no longer supplied so that the temperature of the magic room does not fall. Closes the Magic Room Damper. At the same time, the drive of the magic room fan motor 150 is stopped. This enables the storage stored in the Magic Room to be rapidly refrigerated to -3 at the initial 4 ° C.

On the other hand, in the present invention, when controlling the temperature of the magic room for the thawing function, the microcontroller 130, the damper 160 is closed so that cold air is not supplied to the magic room 180, the magic room fan motor 150 is Control to stop. Then, the heater 140 mounted at the bottom of the magic room generates heat to control the heater. At the same time, the thawed state of the magic room 180 is displayed. At this time, the time the magic room heater 140 is driven is enough to reach the appropriate temperature for thawing.

For example, when the internal temperature detected by the magic room temperature sensor 120 is -4 ° C. or less, the magic room heater 140 is turned on to generate a heater heat. Then, the heater heat is generated as described above, and the magic room high temperature is increased, and the operation of the magic room heater 140 is stopped when the magic room high temperature is 3.5 ° C. or more.

Hereinafter, an operation process of controlling the magic room temperature of the refrigerator according to the present invention will be described with reference to the control configuration and state.

4 is an operation control flow chart for adjusting the temperature inside the magic room refrigerator of the refrigerator according to the present invention.

First, although not shown, a brief look at the internal temperature control method of the refrigerator compartment is as follows.

When power is applied to the refrigerator, the refrigerant compressed at high temperature / high pressure in the compressor is supplied to the evaporator through the condenser, and the evaporator performs heat exchange with the air in circulation in the high temperature to generate cold air to be supplied to the high temperature.

The cold air generated in this way is supplied to the freezing compartment and provides cold air to the refrigerating compartment side connected to the refrigerating compartment and the cold air supply passage. In this way, the cold air supplied to the refrigerating compartment takes heat contained in the food stored in the refrigerating compartment, raises the temperature, and is fed back to the chamber side provided with the evaporator through the feedback passage.

As described above, power is applied to the refrigerator, and in the process of supplying cold air, the supply of cold air is controlled according to the temperature state in the refrigerator compartment. That is, a temperature sensor for detecting a temperature state of the refrigerating compartment is mounted in the refrigerating compartment, and the temperature value detected through the temperature sensor is transmitted to the microcontroller. As a result, if it is determined that the internal temperature of the refrigerating compartment is not a proper temperature state, the refrigerating compartment damper is controlled to open so that cold air is supplied from the freezing compartment to the refrigerating compartment. As a result, cold air flows into the refrigerating compartment, thereby lowering the temperature of the refrigerating compartment.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the inside of the refrigerator compartment is in an appropriate state, the microcontroller controls the refrigerator compartment damper to be closed. As a result, the inflow of cold air into the refrigerating compartment is blocked, and the cold air is no longer supplied to the refrigerating compartment.

According to the temperature value detected by the temperature sensor mounted in the refrigerating compartment, the microcontroller controls the opening / closing operation of the refrigerating compartment damper to control the flow of cold air supplied to the refrigerating compartment.

On the other hand, the magic room located at the bottom of the refrigerator compartment is controlled in the temperature in the following way.

The magic room temperature sensor 120 is provided on one side of the magic room and controls the supply of cold air to the magic room 180 based on the temperature value detected by the magic room temperature sensor 120. At this time, in order to control the temperature of the magic room 180, it is first determined whether the function of the magic room 180 is a rapid cooling function or a thawing function.

In other words, the user selects the rapid cooling function or the thawing function through the key input unit 100 (step 200). If the user selects the rapid refrigeration function for the use of the magic room 180 in step 200, it is determined whether the current internal temperature of the magic room 180 is an appropriate temperature state for the rapid refrigeration function (210). step).

To this end, the magic room temperature sensor 120 mounted in the magic room 180 detects a temperature inside the refrigerator and transmits the detected temperature value to the microcontroller 130. When the microcontroller 130 determines that the transferred internal temperature value is an appropriate internal temperature for the rapid refrigerating function, the microcontroller 130 determines that supply of cold air is not required. Accordingly, the microcontroller 130 controls the magic room damper 160 to be in a closed state so that cold air no longer flows into the magic room 180. At the same time, the magic room fan motor 150 controls to maintain a stop state (step 230).

However, if it is determined that the high temperature state of the magic room 180 transmitted to the microcontroller 130 in step 210 is not an appropriate temperature for the rapid refrigerating function, the microcontroller 130 cools the air in the magic room 180. To be supplied. That is, the microcontroller 130 controls the magic room damper 160 to be opened. At the same time, the magic room fan motor 150 is driven so that the cold air of the freezer compartment 185 is quickly introduced into the magic room 180 (step 220).

After selecting the rapid cooling function as described above, the driving of the magic room damper 160 and the magic room fan motor 150 is controlled according to the state of the internal temperature of the magic room 180. When the rapid refrigeration function is selected in step 200, the quick refrigeration function lamp selected through the display 110 is turned on.

On the other hand, if you want to perform the use of the magic room as the thawing function, in step 200 the user selects the thawing function through the key input unit (100). The signal input by the user is transmitted to the microcontroller 130, and the microcontroller 130 confirms the selection of the thawing function (step 240).

If the thawing function is selected in step 240, the microcontroller 130 first closes the magic room damper 160 so that cold air is not supplied to the magic room 180. At the same time, the magic room fan motor 150 is controlled to not be driven (250).

After the 250th step, the high temperature resistance value is detected through the magic room temperature sensor 120. The detected temperature value is transmitted to the microcontroller 130, and the microcontroller 130 determines whether the detected temperature value is an appropriate temperature for the thawing function (step 260).

As a result of the determination in step 260, if it is determined that the temperature is not appropriate for the thawing heating, the magic room heater 140 is driven to thaw (step 270). As a result, the heater heat is generated in the magic room 180, and the storage stored in the magic room is thawed. At this time, the heater heat is output at a preset time and temperature. In addition, when the thawing function is selected in step 200, a lamp corresponding to the thawing function is turned on in the display 110.

As described above, the present invention senses the temperature inside the magic room, and opens the damper and drives the fan motor or closes the damper and stops the fan motor, or drives the magic room's heater according to the detected temperature range. It is a basic technical idea to control to raise the temperature of.

The rights of the present invention are not limited to the embodiments described above, but are defined by the claims, and those skilled in the art can make various modifications and adaptations within the scope of the claims. It is self-evident.

Therefore, the following effects can be expected due to the temperature control device and method of the refrigerator according to the present invention. According to the present invention, it is possible to variously set the high temperature range of the magic room and to control the temperature of the magic room storage at the set temperature. In other words, when the temperature in the magic room is unsatisfactory, it is possible to control the heating and cooling of the magic room in a high temperature at any time to maintain a desired storage temperature.

In addition, the present invention is provided with a heater and a fan motor, and additionally equipped with a thawing function and a rapid cooling function in the magic room, it is possible to perform a special operation function rather than the normal operation of the refrigerator. Therefore, it is possible to respond to its own load by the provision of the fan motor and heater, so that if there is a sudden temperature change in the interior, it can respond faster than before.

Claims (5)

A key input unit for selecting a driving function of the magic room; A magic room damper provided between the freezer compartment and the magic room to control the flow of cold air such that cold air of the freezer compartment is supplied to the magic room; A magic room fan motor configured to drive cold air rapidly into the magic room through the magic room damper; A magic room temperature sensor for detecting a high temperature inside the magic room; A magic room heater generating heater heat; Based on the temperature value detected by the magic room temperature sensor, the operation function input through the key input unit comprises a micro-controller for controlling the operation of the magic room damper, magic room fan motor, magic room heater Temperature control device of the refrigerator. The method of claim 1, And a display unit which lights a lamp corresponding to an operation function input through the key input unit. A refrigerator having a magic room and controlling cold air of a freezer compartment to be supplied to the magic room, A high temperature setting step for setting an appropriate temperature in the high temperature according to the operation function of the magic room; A driving function input step of selecting various driving functions of the magic room; A magic room temperature detection step of detecting a temperature of the magic room; A magic room temperature determination step of determining whether the magic room temperature detected in the temperature detection step is an appropriate temperature corresponding to a driving function input from the driving function input step; And a cold air inflow control step of controlling whether cold air is supplied depending on whether the magic room temperature is in an appropriate state. The method of claim 1, If the rapid cooling function is selected at the operation function input step, A method of controlling the temperature of a refrigerator, characterized by controlling a magic room fan motor so that cold air flows into the magic room. The method of claim 1, If the defrost function is selected at the operation function input step, A temperature control method of a refrigerator, characterized by driving a magic room heater.