KR20070045483A - Refrigerator and method for keeping food - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a refrigerator and a food storage method, comprising a refrigerator main body having a refrigerating compartment, a storage compartment partitioned and mounted in a refrigerating compartment for storing food, and irradiating light in a visible light region to the storage compartment, the food being stored in the storage compartment. Irradiation device is set to the emission color of the light to be irradiated corresponding to the color of different, and far-infrared light emitting device mounted to selectively irradiate the light of the far infrared region to the storage room.

Refrigerator, Far Infrared, Visible, Freshness

Description

Refrigerator and Method for keeping food

1 is a perspective view of a refrigerator provided with a conventional food container.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the food storage container according to the present invention is applied to the side by side of the refrigerator.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the food container of Figure 2;

4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II of the first embodiment of the food container of FIG.

5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the far-infrared light emitting device of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 schematically illustrates a selection device for selectively controlling the far-infrared light emitting device and the irradiation device of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a bottom perspective view schematically showing the top panel of FIG. 4; FIG.

8 is a bottom perspective view showing an upper panel according to a second embodiment of the food container.

9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II of the third embodiment of the food container of FIG.

10 is a perspective view showing a state in which a food storage container according to the present invention is applied to a top mount refrigerator.

11 is a perspective view showing a food container of FIG.

12 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of a fourth embodiment of the food container of FIG.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

20: refrigerator 200: food container

210a, 210b, 210c: Storage compartments 230a, 230b, 230c: Irradiation device

231a, 231b, and 231c: light emitting element 231aR: red light emitting diode

231aG: Green Light Emitting Diode 231aW: White Light Emitting Diode

233a, 233b, 233c: substrate 237a, 237b, 237c: protective cover

240: far infrared light emitting device 247: reflector

250a, 250b, 250c: Input device 230a, 230b, 230c: Irradiation device

270a, 270b, 270c: top panel 280: temperature controller

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator and a food storage method for improving freshness of a food stored using a far-infrared and visible light irradiation device stored in the refrigerator.

Generally, a refrigerator includes a freezer compartment and a refrigerating compartment, and either side of the refrigerating compartment is separately provided with a vegetable compartment for adjusting humidity to store vegetables and fruits (hereinafter collectively referred to as "vegetables") more freshly. . Therefore, the vegetable compartment in the refrigerating compartment may be an example of a food storage container.

Hereinafter, referring to FIG. 1, a refrigerator equipped with a conventional food storage container will be described.

FIG. 1 illustrates a case in which the food storage container 20 is applied to a top-mounted refrigerator in which a freezing compartment is located at an upper portion of the refrigerators of various types and a refrigerating compartment is located at the lower portion of the freezing compartment.

Factors affecting the freshness of vegetables are known as temperature, humidity, environmental gases, microorganisms, light, and the like. Since vegetables continue to breathe and transpire, the inhibition of breathing and transpiration is essential to maintain the freshness of vegetables. Specifically, most vegetables except for some of the vegetables that cause the disturbance at low temperatures can be suppressed breathing at low temperatures, can be prevented from evaporating at high humidity.

For this reason, in order to keep vegetables fresh for a long time, a typical home refrigerator is provided with a food storage container which is a space for storing vegetables as a space independent of the refrigerator compartment of the refrigerator. The food storage container is controlled to maintain the humidity by the moisture that is evaporated from the vegetables, while maintaining the appropriate low temperature state of vegetables. Therefore, by the food container it is possible to maintain vegetables fresh for a long time.

On the other hand, while maintaining the freshness of vegetables for a long time by properly maintaining the temperature and humidity as described above, in recent years, methods for maintaining the freshness of vegetables using light, which is another influence factor of freshness, have been proposed.

While strong light has a negative effect on promoting food color change and transpiration, relatively weak light is known to improve freshness of vegetables and the like. In addition, such weak light is known to inhibit the decomposition of chlorophyll (chlorophyll), especially in green leafy vegetables, and is known to be effective in the maintenance of vitamin C.

The refrigerator shown in FIG. 1 is as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-28363, and includes an irradiation device 23 for irradiating weak light to a food storage container 20 provided below the refrigerator 10, in particular, The concentration of chlorophyll in the green leafy vegetables is prevented from being lowered, and consequently, the quality of the leafy vegetables is prevented.

Particularly, when the drawer type food container is open, the refrigerator 10 operates an illumination lamp 29 for allowing a user to visually recognize an object inside the storage room 21, and the drawer type food container is closed. In this state, the irradiation apparatus 23 was operated to prevent the degradation of the quality of the green leafy vegetables caused by the light as described above.

On the other hand, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-159953 configures the irradiation apparatus 23 as a light emitting diode (LED) in the visible light region, thereby minimizing the heat generated by the irradiation apparatus 23, thereby reducing the temperature in the storage chamber 21. Is prevented from rising and can be driven with higher efficiency than other irradiation devices.

In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-49093 discloses a form in which a red light emitting diode having a wavelength of about 660 nm is applied to green leafy vegetables.

In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-65622 proposes an irradiation apparatus for classifying food storage containers into a plurality of storage rooms and irradiating light of an appropriate wavelength according to the type of vegetables. More specifically, the light emitting diode device is configured to be selected by using a combination of light emitting colors according to the type of vegetables, etc. using a three-color light emitting diode device of red, blue, green.

However, the food storage container according to the prior art had the following problems.

First, the conventional irradiation apparatus can be selected by combining the light emission color in the three-color light emitting diode element, but it is not clear which foods are particularly effective for red, blue, and green light emitting diodes, The effect of reducing freshness or chlorophyll was minimal.

Second, even if the food storage container is divided into a plurality of storage rooms, the standard of which classification criteria should be separately stored is not clear, and thus the effectiveness of the storage container is divided into a plurality of storage rooms.

Third, although the conventional irradiation apparatus is provided with a selection means for selecting the emission color by the three-color light emitting diode element, as described above, the selection means for selecting the emission color because the emission color of light suitable for any food is not known. This had no high effectiveness.

Even though the experiment shows that the light emission color of light is effective according to the type of food, it is very cumbersome for the user to select the emission color by remembering this information one by one, or to select the emission color of the irradiated light by searching for related information. There was this.

Fourth, it is not possible to determine which emission color to be irradiated for foods that have not been experimentally identified, and the user may not know whether the emission color selected by the user is suitable for the stored food, thereby giving confidence in the irradiation device. There was a problem that could not be.

The present invention has been made to solve the problems as described above, to provide a refrigerator that can maintain the freshness and nutritional content of food for a long time.

The present invention for achieving the above object, a refrigerator body having a refrigerating chamber; A storage compartment compartment mounted in the refrigerating compartment and storing food; An irradiation device which irradiates light in a visible light region to the storage room and sets the emission color of light that is irradiated corresponding to the color of food stored in the storage room; And a far-infrared light emitting device mounted to the storage chamber to selectively irradiate light in a far-infrared region.

In the present invention, the far-infrared light emitting device is characterized by including a far-infrared lamp.

In the present invention, the irradiation device is characterized in that it comprises a light emitting diode (LED).

In the present invention, it is characterized in that it further comprises a selection device for selecting the color of the food stored in the storage chamber, corresponding to the color of the selected food to switch the emission color of the light irradiated by the irradiation apparatus.

In the present invention, the selection device further comprises a far infrared control unit for controlling the far-infrared irradiation device.

In the present invention, the light irradiated by the irradiating device is characterized by being made of a combination of light including red, green, and white.

In the present invention, when the color of the food is a red series, the irradiation device is characterized in that for irradiating red light.

In the present invention, the irradiation apparatus is characterized in that the irradiation of green light when the color of the food is a green series.

In the present invention, the irradiation device is characterized in that the irradiation further comprises a white light.

The refrigerator of the present invention is characterized in that it comprises a refrigerating chamber having the food container.

The present invention for achieving the above object, the storage step of storing the food to separate according to the color of the food; Irradiating the food in the visible light region to the separated and stored food, and setting an emission color of light to be irradiated corresponding to the color of the stored food; And a far infrared ray irradiation step mounted to the storage room to selectively irradiate light in a far infrared ray region.

In the present invention, the irradiation step, characterized in that made by a combination of light including red, green and white.

In the present invention, the irradiating step, characterized in that to irradiate red light when the color of the food is a red series.

In the present invention, the irradiating step is characterized in that the green light is irradiated when the color of the food is green.

In the present invention, the irradiation step is characterized in that the irradiation further comprises a white light.

Hereinafter, a refrigerator and a food storage method according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but will be implemented in various forms, and only the present embodiments are intended to complete the disclosure of the present invention and to those skilled in the art to fully understand the scope of the invention. It is provided to inform you.

Referring to Figures 2 to 4, the basic configuration of the first embodiment of the food storage container according to the present invention will be described.

As shown, the refrigerator 100 of the present invention, a refrigerator main body 110 having a refrigerating chamber, and a food storage container installed in the main body 110 to irradiate food and light of the visible region and far infrared rays ( 200). The food storage container 200 is mounted in the refrigerating chamber and the storage chamber (210a, b, c) for storing food, and the storage chamber (210a, b, c) irradiated with light in the visible region and the storage chamber (210a, b, c) Is irradiated in response to the color of the food stored in the light emitting device 230a, b, c is set to be different and the storage chamber (210a, b, c) is mounted to selectively irradiate light in the far infrared region The far-infrared light emitting device 240 is provided.

This embodiment illustrates a form in which the food storage container according to the present invention is applied to a side by side type refrigerator in which a refrigerator compartment and a freezer compartment are divided into right and left sides among various types of refrigerators. Accordingly, the refrigerator compartment and the freezer compartment are provided on the right and left sides of the refrigerator, respectively, and a food storage container is provided below the refrigerator compartment.

The storage chambers 210a, b, and c are storage spaces for storing food, and are formed by a bottom surface and left and right side walls. The storage compartments 210a, b, and c may be divided into a plurality of refrigerator compartments. In the present embodiment, the storage compartments 210a, b, and c are configured to be opened and closed in a sliding manner so that the user can easily put or take out food.

However, the opening and closing method of the storage compartments 210a, b, and c are not limited to the present exemplary embodiment, and the doors having a hinge structure may be opened and closed at the top of the storage compartments 210a, b, and c. It can be configured to be, and can be modified in various other forms.

And the food container 200 is preferably designed in a sealed structure in order to prevent the humidity from leaking to the outside. By configuring the storage compartments 210a, b, and c in a sealed structure, humidity in the storage compartments 210a, b, and c may be maintained for a long time due to moisture evaporated from food.

On the other hand, the storage chamber (210a, b, c) is composed of a plurality of compartments. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 4, the food container 200 illustrates a form consisting of a total of three storage compartments (210a, b, c) partitioned in the vertical direction.

And one or more of the storage compartment (210a, b, c) may be further provided with a temperature control device 280 that can adjust the temperature in the storage compartment (210a, b, c) to serve as a storage function of meat or vegetables. .

The irradiation apparatuses 230a, b, and c serve to irradiate light in a visible light region to each of the plurality of compartments 210a, b, and c which are divided into a plurality of compartments.

For reference, visible light refers to light having a wavelength in the visible range of the human eye. Although it varies slightly depending on the human, the wavelength range is generally 380 to 770 nm. In visible light, the change of properties according to the wavelength appears in each color, and the wavelength becomes shorter from red to purple. For example, in the case of monochromatic light, 700 to 610 nm is red, 610 to 590 nm is orange, 590 to 570 nm is yellow, 570 to 500 nm is green, 500 to 450 nm is blue, and 450 to 400 nm is purple. .

When irradiating light in the infrared region with a wavelength longer than 770 nm, the temperature in the storage chambers 210a, b, and c is raised, and the surface temperature of the food being stored is increased and the food surface is discolored to maintain the freshness of the food. Adversely affects. Therefore, it is preferable that the irradiation apparatus 230a, b, c irradiate light in the visible light region.

However, since the visible light region and the infrared region of the red series and the visible region and the ultraviolet region of the purple series are not precisely distinguished, the visible light region according to the present invention is a part of the infrared region and the ultraviolet region in the wavelength range adjacent to the visible region. Also includes.

On the other hand, the irradiation apparatus (230a, b, c) is a substrate (233a, b, c), the light emitting elements (231a, b, c) provided on the substrate (233a, b, c), the light emitting element (231a) and protective covers 237a, b, and c for preventing moisture from penetrating into b, c, and preventing damage to the light emitting devices 231a, b, and c.

There is no limitation on the kind of the light emitting elements 231a, b, and c, but it is preferable to include a plurality of light emitting diodes (LEDs). Since the light emitting diodes generate less heat and have relatively higher efficiency than other light emitting devices 231a, b, and c, the light emitting diodes are suitable for the food container 200.

In this embodiment, since the light emitting devices 231a, b, and c are formed of light emitting diodes, the temperature generated by the light emitting devices 231a, b, and c is minimized by minimizing heat generated by the irradiation devices 230a, b, and c. Minimize, and can be driven at a lower power than the other irradiation apparatus (230a, b, c).

On the other hand, the irradiation apparatus 230a, b, c according to the invention corresponding to the color of the food stored in the storage chamber (210a, b, c), the light emission color of the irradiated light is set differently.

The present inventors determine the light emission color of the most effective light to the food stored by the experiment according to the color of the food stored, if the color of the food stored is red-based, irradiated with red-based light, Irradiation of green light was found to be most effective in maintaining the freshness and impact of food.

With this in mind, the present embodiment is configured to classify various types of food according to the color of the food, and to set the emission color of light to be irradiated accordingly. More specifically, when the food color is a red series, the irradiation apparatuses 230a, b, and c are set to irradiate the stored food with red, and when the food color is green, the irradiation apparatus 230a, b, c) was set to investigate the combination of green and white in the food stored.

In particular, the inventors of the present invention are more effective in maintaining freshness and preventing chlorophyll concentration from irradiating a combination of green and white light as in the present embodiment, rather than irradiating green light alone. It was found through experiments.

For reference, the food stored in the food container 200 may be mainly classified into vegetables and fruits. In addition, the vegetables can be classified into leaf vegetables (莖葉 菜類) using leaves or stems, root vegetables (roots) using roots or stems, and fruit vegetables (果菜類) using fruits, according to the use portion.

According to the present invention, various types of vegetables and fruits are classified into a red series and a green series according to colors, and light emission colors of light irradiated to each other are set differently.

Examples of red foods include strawberries, tomatoes, plums, etc. Examples of green foods include spinach, bok choy, cabbage, and the like.

The present inventors classify foods into a red series and a green series as described above, and irradiate foods classified as a red series with a red light emitting diode, respectively, and combine green and white light emitting diodes with a food classified as a green series. After that, the change in freshness of the stored food was measured.

As a result, it was confirmed that discoloration of food is significantly reduced and drying phenomenon is remarkably reduced in foods of green type than those irradiated with visible white light emitting diodes uniformly. It was confirmed that the phenomenon hardly occurred.

4 is categorized according to the color of the food stored as described above, the first storage room (210a) located at the top of the storage room (210a, b, c) to store the bok chokchae and green corresponding to the green series, The second storage room (210b) located in the middle stores the tomato and strawberry corresponding to the red series, and the third storage room (210c) located at the bottom exemplifies the use state storing the cabbage corresponding to the green series and have.

On the other hand, the position of the irradiation apparatus (230a, b, c) is not limited. That is, it may be provided above or below the storage chambers 210a, b, and c. As shown in FIG. 4, the irradiation apparatuses 230a, b, and c are provided on the upper sides of the storage chambers 210a, b, and c as shown in FIG. 4.

Meanwhile, the far-infrared light emitting device 240 is mounted in the storage chambers 210a, b, and c in the storage chamber interior direction.

As shown in FIG. 5, the far-infrared light emitting device 240 includes a far-infrared lamp 241 mounted on the storage rooms 210a, b, and c to irradiate far-infrared light, and the far-infrared light emitted by the far-infrared lamp 241. Reflecting plate 247 to reflect to (210a, b, c), and the airtight member 242 to prevent the penetration of moisture in the storage chamber in the far-infrared lamp 241.

The airtight member 242 includes a first sealing member 243 mounted to seal a position at which the far-infrared lamp 240 is inserted and a second sealing member mounted to and sealed outside the first sealing member 243. 245 is provided. The first sealing member 243 is made of a material that can transmit light such as glass to facilitate the transmission of far infrared rays. The second sealing member 245 is preferably provided with a rubber material to prevent the penetration of moisture.

The operation of the far-infrared lamp 240 is selectively enabled by the control of the selection devices 250a, b, and c to be described later. That is, it is possible to operate together with the irradiation apparatuses 230a, b, and c through the operation of the selection devices 250a, b, and c, and to operate individually, and periodically with the irradiation apparatuses 230a, b, and c. Alternate operation is also possible.

m 이상의 파장을 가진 빛을 말한다. 이러한 원적외선은 인체에 무해하며, 생체활동을 촉진하는 광선으로 숙성, 온열, 자정, 건조, 연수등 다양한 작용을 한다. 전술한 원적외선이 식품에 적용되면, 선도유지, 숙성효과 및 맛과 영양의 보존 작용이 이루어진다. 또한, 식품이 보관되는 보관실내의 냄새제거와 습도유지의 효과를 갖도록 한다. Through the irradiation of the far infrared lamp 240 achieves the improvement of the freshness of the food stored in the storage chamber (210a, b, c). More specifically, the far infrared is a strong thermal action is generated as compared to visible or ultraviolet rays, 25

A light with a wavelength of m or more. These far infrared rays are harmless to the human body and have various functions such as ripening, heating, midnight, drying, and soft water as rays that promote biological activities. When the above-described far infrared rays are applied to foods, freshness maintenance, ripening effect and preservation of taste and nutrition are achieved. In addition, it has an effect of removing the smell and maintaining humidity in the storage room where the food is stored.

The selection devices 250a, b, and c are provided in front of each of the upper panels 270a, b, and c. The selection device (250a, b, c) is composed of a total of four buttons are provided with a button (253, 255) corresponding to the case where the food is stored in the red series and the green series, respectively, the irradiation apparatus (230a, b, It illustrates a form provided with a button 251 for turning off the operation of c) and a button for the selective operation of the far-infrared light emitting device 240. Accordingly, the selection devices 250a, b, and c selectively enable the simultaneous operation of the far-infrared light emitting device 240 and the irradiation devices 230a, b, and c, or any one selective operation. In addition, according to the user's selection, the operation of the far-infrared light emitting device 240 and the irradiation devices 230a, b, c may be periodically alternated at regular intervals through the selection devices 250a, b, and c.

On the other hand, the selection device (250a, b, c) serves to switch the emission color of the light irradiated by the irradiation device in response to the color of the selected food. For example, the switching device converts the green light emitting diodes 231aR from the red light emitting diodes 231aR in the first storage chamber 211a to be irradiated in combination, or conversely, the green and white light emitting diodes ( In the combination of 231aG and 231aW, the red light emitting diode 231aR is switched to be irradiated. In addition, the selection devices 250a, b, and c enable simultaneous operation or alternating periodic selection operation and independent selection operation of the irradiation device and the far infrared light emitting device.

By providing the selection device (250a, b, c) as described above, the user selects through the button whether the color of the food is stored in the red series or green series, by the selection apparatus corresponding to the color of the selected food In the red light emitting diode, the green and white light emitting diodes may be converted to be irradiated in combination, or in the combination of the green and white light emitting diodes, the red light emitting diode may be converted to be irradiated. In addition, it is possible to selectively irradiate the far infrared through the far infrared light emitting device through the selection device.

Referring to FIG. 7, the light emitting device arrangement in the first embodiment of the food container will be described.

The location and arrangement of the light emitting devices 231a, b, and c may be implemented in various forms, but it is preferable to arrange the light emitting devices 231a, b, and c so that light is evenly applied to the food. FIG. 7 illustrates an example of the position and arrangement of the light emitting devices 231a, b, and c, and shows a configuration of an irradiation apparatus for the first storage chamber 230a among the three storage compartments 210a, b, and c. . As illustrated in FIG. 7, a red light emitting diode 231aR, a green light emitting diode 231aG, and a white light emitting diode 231aW are disposed at the center of the upper panel 270a provided above the storage chamber 210a. . In addition, the far-infrared light emitting device 240 is mounted at a proximal position where the red light emitting diode 231aR, the green light emitting diode 231aG, and the white light emitting diode 231aW are disposed to selectively irradiate far infrared rays on food.

More specifically, the circle formed by the center is partitioned at the same angle, and the red, green, and white light emitting diodes 231aR, 231aG, and 231aW are disposed in each of the partitioned fan-shaped spaces, and the far-infrared ray is positioned near the center. The light emitting device 240 is mounted.

Here, the green and white light emitting diodes 231aG and 231aW are configured to be irradiated together with the green food, and are disposed adjacent to each other in the partitioned fan-shaped space.

In addition, the light emitting device is preferably to increase the irradiation angle of the light so as to evenly irradiate the food stored in the light.

On the other hand, although not shown, the food storage container 200 preferably includes an opening and closing detection sensor for detecting whether the storage chamber (210a, b, c) opening and closing. In addition, it is preferable to configure whether the storage chambers 210a, b, c are opened or closed through the open / close detection sensor, and when the storage chamber is closed, the light is irradiated by the irradiation devices 230a, b, c.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the irradiation apparatus has been exemplified as including red, green, and white light emitting devices, but it is of course possible to configure other light emitting devices of indigo blue or yellow color.

Referring to Figure 8, the second embodiment of the food storage container according to the present invention will be described.

For convenience, the upper panel 370a for the first storage chamber 210a positioned at the top will be described.

The basic configuration of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment described above. However, in the present embodiment, the irradiation apparatus 230a is not centrally disposed at the center of the upper panel 370a and is disposed at a predetermined interval on the upper panel 370a. In addition, the far-infrared light emitting device 240 may be arranged on the upper panel 370a at a plurality of equal intervals so that the far-infrared light may be easily irradiated to food.

That is, in the present invention, as a method for evenly radiating light to food, the red light emitting diode 331aR and the green and white light emitting diodes 331aG and 331aW throughout the upper panel 370a provided on the upper side of the storage compartment 210a. ) Are arranged at regular intervals in the horizontal and vertical directions.

On the other hand, as described above, the green and white light emitting diodes 331aG and 331aW are irradiated in combination with each other in a green food, and are arranged adjacent to each other in each partitioned fan-shaped space. .

9, the third embodiment of the food storage container according to the present invention will be described as follows.

In the present embodiment, unlike the first and second embodiments described above, the irradiation apparatuses 430a, b, and c are provided on the outer rear side of the storage chambers 210a, b, and c, not on the upper side.

That is, the irradiation apparatuses 430a, b, and c are integrally formed with the refrigerator main body at the outer rear of the storage compartment. Accordingly, the light irradiated from the irradiation apparatuses 430a, b, and c passes through sidewalls forming the storage chambers 210a, b, and c, and is irradiated into the storage chambers 210a, b, and c.

Accordingly, in the present embodiment, the sidewalls forming the storage chambers 210a, b, and c are preferably made of a material that transmits light.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the irradiation apparatus is similar to the first embodiment described above, the substrates 433a, b, c, the substrates 433a, Protection to prevent damage to the light emitting elements 431a, b, c by preventing moisture from penetrating into the light emitting elements 431a, b, c provided on the b and c and the light emitting elements 431a, b, c. The cover 437a, b, and c is comprised.

In the present exemplary embodiment, the irradiation apparatuses 430a, b, and c exemplify a form in which the light emitting elements 431a, b, and c are concentrated on one side of the outer rear, but in the outer rear as in the above-described second embodiment. It can be installed at regular intervals in the horizontal and vertical directions over a wide range.

10 to 12, the fourth embodiment of the food storage container according to the present invention will be described.

As shown in FIG. 10, the present embodiment applies a food storage container 500 to a top mount refrigerator 30 having a freezer compartment at the top and a refrigerator compartment at the bottom.

The food storage container 500 is located in the lower part of the refrigerating chamber, and the storage chambers 510a and b are divided into two sides by partitioning the left side and the right side.

FIG. 12 illustrates a state in which the green groceries and green onions are stored in the first storage room 510a, and the tomatoes and strawberries are stored in the red storage foods in the second storage room 510b.

That is, in the present embodiment, the plurality of storage compartments 510a and b partitioned to the left and the right side, and the irradiation apparatuses 530a and b for irradiating light in the visible light region to each of the left and right storage compartments 510a and b, the food stored And selecting devices 550a and b for selecting the color of the light source and switching the emission color of the irradiating device accordingly.

As shown in FIG. 12, the irradiation apparatus illustrates a form located at the center of the upper panels 570a and b provided above the storage chambers 510a and b as in the first embodiment. As shown in the second embodiment, the shape is arranged at a predetermined interval in the horizontal and vertical directions, or is provided at the outer rear side of the storage chambers 510a and b as in the third embodiment, and is irradiated through the storage chambers 510a and b. It is also possible to configure.

Referring to the operating principle of the refrigerator according to the present invention.

First, the user stores food by separating it according to the color of the food. The light of visible light is irradiated to each of the storage compartments classified according to colors, and the emission color of the irradiated light is set corresponding to the color of the food stored in the storage compartment as described above.

And, the smell and bacteria floating in the storage room is to be sterilized and deodorized through the optical deodorization module.

On the other hand, the user can select the color of the food stored by the selection device as described above, the color of the stored food can be selected by the selection device to switch the emission color corresponding to the color of the selected food. Further, the selective device facilitates the selective switching operation of the far-infrared light emitting device and the irradiation device.

Up to now, mainly for vegetables, but described an example in which the food storage container is applied to the refrigerator, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and targets various types of food, such as meat, grains, kimchi, liquor, In addition to the refrigerator, it can be applied to various products such as kimchi refrigerator, rice barrel, and wine cellar.

Refrigerator and food storage method used according to the present invention as described above has the following effects.

First, by separating and storing according to the color of the food, and configured to irradiate the emission color of the light most suitable for the color of the food, maximizing the effect of maintaining the freshness of the food by the irradiation device and the decrease in chlorophyll concentration.

Second, the classification criteria of foods stored in a plurality of storage rooms are clarified to improve the effect of partitioning into a plurality of storage rooms.

Third, the user can select the color of the food is stored, it is possible to set the light emission color suitable for the food stored as needed.

Fourth, by providing a clear and intuitive criteria for selecting the emission color of the light to be irradiated, the user can easily select the emission color, improving the user confidence in the irradiation apparatus.

Fifth, the far-infrared ray is irradiated to the storage room where the food is stored, thereby maintaining the freshness of the food, removing the smell in the storage room, and maintaining humidity.

The present invention has been described above with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications or other embodiments falling within the scope equivalent to the present invention are possible by those skilled in the art. Therefore, the true scope of protection of the present invention should be defined by the following claims.

Claims (14)

A refrigerator body having a refrigerator compartment; A storage compartment compartment mounted in the refrigerating compartment and storing food; An irradiation device which irradiates light in a visible light region to the storage room and sets the emission color of light that is irradiated corresponding to the color of food stored in the storage room; And And a far-infrared light emitting device mounted to the storage room to selectively irradiate light in a far-infrared region. The method of claim 1, The far infrared light emitting device is a refrigerator, characterized in that it comprises a far infrared lamp. The method of claim 1, The irradiation apparatus is a refrigerator comprising a light emitting diode (LED). The method of claim 1, And selecting a color of the food stored in the storage room and switching the emission color of the light irradiated by the irradiating device to correspond to the color of the selected food. The method of claim 4, wherein The selection device, And a far infrared ray control unit for controlling the far infrared ray irradiation device. The method of claim 1, The light irradiated by the irradiation device, A refrigerator characterized by the combination of light including red, green and white. The method of claim 6, When the color of the food is a red series, the irradiating apparatus is characterized in that the irradiation of red light. The method of claim 6, And the irradiator irradiates green light when the color of the food is green. The method of claim 8, The irradiating apparatus further comprises irradiating white light. A storage step of separating the food according to the color of the food and storing the food; Irradiating the food in the visible light region to the separated and stored food, and setting an emission color of light to be irradiated corresponding to the color of the stored food; And And a far-infrared ray irradiating step mounted to the storage room to selectively irradiate light in a far-infrared region. The method of claim 10, The investigation step, A food storage method, comprising a combination of light including red, green and white. The method of claim 11, The investigation step, If the food color is a red-based food storage method characterized in that the red light irradiation. The method of claim 11, The investigation step, If the food color is a green-based food storage method characterized in that the irradiation of green light. The method of claim 13, The irradiation step is a food storage method, characterized in that further comprising a white light irradiation.

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