MX2008005571A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

A refrigerator is disclosed. The refrigerator includes a main body which has a cooling chamber and a freezing chamber, a storage chamber (12) which is provided in the cooling chamber to store foodstuffs, an irradiation device (30) which irradiates light within a visible light region corre-spondingly to color of the foodstuffs stored in the storage chamber (12), an optical deodorization module (40) which includes an ultraviolet light irradiation device (41) which is mounted to the storage chamber (12) to irradiate ultraviolet light and a photocatalyst filter (43) which receives the ultraviolet from the ultraviolet light irradiation device (41 ) and is coated with a photocatalyst agent, and a control unit which controls the irradiation device (30) and the ultraviolet light irradiation device (41).

Description

FRIDGE FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator which can store vegetables and fruits or meat and fish in a cooler state.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Generally, a refrigerator comprises a freezing chamber and a cooling chamber. A storage chamber is provided separately at a specific location in the cooling chamber in such a way as to store the vegetables and fruits (hereinafter, which will be commonly referred to as "vegetables") or meat and fish in a state Cooler in the cooling chamber can be an example of a storage container for food products. A conventional refrigerator having a storage container for food products will now be described with reference to Figure 1. The conventional refrigerator illustrated in Figure 1 is a refrigerator described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 9-28363. As shown in the drawing, a storage container for food products 2 is provided in a top-mounted refrigerator in which a freezing chamber is placed in the upper position and a cooling chamber is placed in a lower portion. Many factors, such as temperature, humidity, environmental gas, microbes, light and etc., influence the freshness of vegetables. Because vegetables continuously carry out respiration and transpiration processes, it is necessary to limit inhalations and perspiration in order to maintain the freshness of vegetables. Most vegetables, except some types of vegetables that have low temperature problems, limit inhalations at low temperatures and transmigration at high humidity. For this reason, a general domestic refrigerator is provided with a storage container for food products to exclusively store vegetables as a space independent of the cooling chamber, such that it stores vegetables in a fresh state for a long period of time . The food storage container is kept at a suitably low temperature and humidity as high as possible by moisture transpired from the vegetables. Accordingly, the vegetables can be stored in the storage container for food products in a fresh state for a long period.

Meanwhile, the investigation of a method to maintain the freshness of vegetables using light (another factor of influence that corresponds to the freshness of vegetables) is being persecuted. Relatively strong light has a bad influence on the promotion of color change and transpiration of vegetables, and relatively weak light has an effect to improve the maintenance of vegetable freshness. Also, weak light limits the chlorophyll degradation of green leafy and stemmed vegetables, and has an effect in maintaining vitamin C. A refrigerator 1 illustrated in Figure 1 is provided with a radiation device 6, which irradiates weak light inside the container for storage of food products 2, in such a way that avoids the decrease of concentration of chlorophyll in green leaves and stem vegetables, and as a result avoids the deterioration of the quality of leaf and stem vegetables . A lighting lamp 8 is provided on the drawer-type food storage container 2. When the drawer-like food storage container 2 is opened, the lighting lamp 8 emits light to allow the user to easily see the food products. in the storage chamber 4. When the drawer-type food storage container 2 is closed, the irradiation device 6, irradiates weak light to avoid deterioration of the quality of the green leaf and stem vegetables.

Japanese Explanatory Patent Publication No. 11/159953 discloses a refrigerator provided with the irradiation device which is represented by a light emitting diode (LED) which emits light within a region of visible light. Accordingly, the generation of heat from the irradiation device is minimized, the temperature in the storage device is raised, and the irradiation efficiency is increased compared to other irradiation devices. Also Japanese Explanatory Patent Publication No. 2005-49093 descrambles a refrigerator provided with a red LED, which emits light of a wavelength of about 660 nm to green leafy and stem vegetables. And, Japanese Explanatory Patent Publication No. 2005-65622 discloses a refrigerator provided with a storage container for food products, which is divided into various storage chambers and irradiation devices, which irradiate light of suitable wavelengths for the kinds of vegetables stored in storage chambers. More particularly, three-color LEDs (red, blue and green) are used in the storage chambers. More particularly, the LEDs of three colors (red, blue and green) are used as a light source, and the colors that are emitted from the LEDs of the three colors can be combined selectively according to the types of light. vegetables.

However, the above conventional refrigerator has the storage container of food products has the following problems. The colors of light that are emitted from the three colored LEDs (red, blue, green) can be combined in a selective way, although it is not known with precision which of the red LED, the green LED and the blue LED respectively, are effective for which food products. Therefore, said irradiation device is not effective for maintaining the freshness of the stored food products and the prevention of chlorophyll degradation. Although the storage container for food products is divided into several storage chambers, due to a reference, by which the user classifies the food products and places separately the classified food products in the storage chambers, it is not clear, there is effectiveness in the division of the storage container for food products in several storage chambers. Also, the means is provided for selecting the emission colors of the light from the three-color LEDs in the conventional irradiation device, although the selection means is not practical due to the lack of precise information of which color of emission It is more suitable for which of the food products. Although it has been discovered which emission of color is the most effective for which foodstuffs through experiments, it is very difficult for the user to remember this information, one by one to select the emission color, or it is very problematic for the user to look for this information before to select the emission color. Additionally, with respect to food products, the relation of which emission color has not been discovered experimentally, the user can not determine which emission of color is suitable for food products and may not be certain if the color emitted selected by the user is suitable for food products or it is not. Therefore, the user begins to distrust the irradiation devices. In order to keep the food products in a cooler state for a long period of time, the humidity in the cooling chamber is set as high as possible. However, the higher the humidity, the more diverse germs that propagate in the cooling chamber. Also, the air in the cooling chamber is impregnated with a bad smell.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Technical problem Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a refrigerator that substantially obviates one or more problems due to the limitations and disadvantages of the related art. An object of the present invention is to solve the problem that resides in a refrigerator, which can keep the food products in a cooler state for a long period of time by irradiating visible light of a specific wavelength inside a storage chamber. Another object of the present invention designed to solve resides in a refrigerator which can detect a value that indicates the freshness of food products stored in a storage chamber, and transmits a warning message to a user or freezes the products automatically food when the detected value is a previously determined limit value or more. Still another object of the present invention is conceived to solve the problem that resides in a refrigerator, which can keep the meat and fish in a fresh state by repeatedly irradiating the ultraviolet light inside the storage chamber with a period of time previously determined.

Technical solution The object of the present invention can be achieved by providing a refrigerator comprising: a main body, which has a cooling chamber and a freezing chamber; a storage chamber, which is provided in the cooling chamber for storing food products; an irradiation device which radiates light within a region of visible light corresponding to the color of the food products stored in the storage chamber; an optical deodorization module, which includes an ultraviolet light irradiation device, which is mounted to the storage chamber for irradiating ultraviolet light and a photocatalyst filter, which receives ultraviolet light from the ultraviolet light irradiation device and is coated with a photocatalyst agent; and a control unit, which controls the irradiation device and the ultraviolet light irradiation device. The ultraviolet light irradiation device may include ultraviolet light emitting diodes. The photocatalyst filter can be mounted to the storage chamber. The photocatalyst filter can be formed into a type of mesh, which is coated with a photpcatalyst solution of titanium dioxide; or it can be formed in a type of plate, which is coated with a photocatalytic solution of titanium dioxide and formed with a plurality of through holes. The irradiation device can be a light-emitting diode.

The control unit can control the irradiation device to irradiate light having different emission colors within the storage chamber. The irradiation device can be configured to irradiate light having the combination color of white and a selected color of red and green. Also, the control unit can control the irradiation device to irradiate light within the region of visible light corresponding to the color of the food products stored in the storage chamber. The refrigerator may additionally comprise an input portion for entering color information of the food products stored in the storage chamber. The control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate light within the region of visible light corresponding to the color of the food products according to the information entered into the input part. Preferably, when the color information of the food products entered into the input part is red, the control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate red light. When the color information of the food products entered into the input part is green, the control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate green light.

The refrigerator may additionally comprise a color recognition device, which recognizes the color of the food products stored in the storage chamber. The control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate light within the region of visible light corresponding to the color of the food products in response to a signal from the color recognition device. In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a refrigerator comprising: a main body, which is provided in the cooling chamber and coated with antibacterial material to prevent bacterial spread; a visible light irradiation device, which radiates visible light into the meat / fish storage chamber; and a control unit, which controls the irradiation device. The visible light irradiation device may include at least one light emitting diode. The visible light irradiation device can irradiate light of any emission color selected from the group consisting of blue, combined color of red-blue and combined yellow-white color in the meat / fish storage chamber. The visible light irradiation device can irradiate combined yellow-white light in the meat / fish storage chamber. The antibacterial material can be titanium dioxide.

The refrigerator may further comprise: a device for measuring freshness, which detects a value indicating the freshness of the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber; a part of deployment, which displays the freshness of the meats and fish measured by the device for measuring freshness; and an ultraviolet light irradiation device, which irradiates ultraviolet light within the meat / fish storage chamber. The control unit controls the deployment part and the ultraviolet light irradiation device. The device for freshness measurement can be a volatile basic nitrogen sensor (VBN) or an infrared sensor. The control unit can control the ultraviolet light irradiation device to irradiate the ultraviolet light within the meat / fish storage chamber with a predetermined period. The control unit can be connected to the device for freshness measurement, and when the value detected by the device for freshness measurement is a specific limit value or more, even if an operating state of the ultraviolet light irradiation device does not correspond to a light emitting mode, the control unit can control the ultraviolet light irradiation device to irradiate ultraviolet light. The refrigerator may additionally comprise a cooling device which cools the meat / fish storage chamber. The control unit can control the cooling device. The control unit can control the cooling device to maintain the meat / fish storage chamber at a temperature of -1.5 ° C to -2.5 ° C, preferably -2.0 ° C. The cooling device may include a first heat sink, which is mounted in the freezer chamber, and a second heat sink, which is mounted in the cooling chamber and is connected to the first heat sink, the second heat sink being kept below of a temperature previously determined by the cold air transferred from the first heat sink and supplying the cold air to the interior of the meat / fish storage chamber. The first heat sink and the second heat sink can be formed into a plate type or a pin type. Also, the second heat sink can be placed above the meat / fish storage chamber. When the value detected by the device for freshness measurement is a previously determined limit value or more, the control unit can control the display part to display a warning message.

Also, the refrigerator may additionally comprise a cooling device, which cools the meat / fish storage chamber. When the value detected by the device for measuring freshness is a previously determined limit value or more, the control unit can control the cooling device to freeze the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber. Also, the refrigerator may additionally comprise a cooling device, which cools the meat / fish storage chamber. When the value detected by the device for freshness measurement is a first predetermined limit value or more, the control unit can control the display part to display a warning message, and when the value detected by the device for measuring freshness is a second predetermined limit value or more, the control unit can control the cooling device to freeze the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber.

Beneficial effects The refrigerator according to the present invention has the following effects. The refrigerator according to the present invention is configured to separately store the food products classified by colors and irradiate the light most suitable for the color of the stored food products, thereby maximizing the effects of maintaining the freshness of the products. food and avoid the decrease in the concentration of chlorophyll. Also, the refrigerator presents the user with a clear reference by which the food products are classified and stored in the respective storage chambers. Accordingly, the effect of dividing the storage container for food products into a plurality of storage chambers can be increased. Also, because the user can enter the color information of the stored food products, the color of emission of the irradiated light to the stored food products is selected in a manner suitable for the color of the food products. Also, because the clear and intuitive reference is provided to select the emission color of the irradiated light to the stored food products, the user can easily select the color of emission of the light and entrust the effects by the irradiation device. Also, because the optical deodorization module sterilizes and deodorizes the air in the food storage chambers, the effects of maintaining the freshness of the food products can be increased. Also, because visible light is irradiated in the meat / fish storage chamber and the meat / fish storage chamber is controlled to maintain a predetermined temperature, the meat and fish can be stored in a cooler state in the meat / fish storage chamber for a long period. Also, when the detected value indicating the freshness of the meats and fish is the first limit value or more, the control unit transmits the warning message to the user, and when the detected value is the second limit value or more, the unit Control controls the cooling device to freeze the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber, thus avoiding additional deterioration of freshness. Also, by irradiating the ultraviolet light inside the meat / fish storage chamber with a previously determined period, the deterioration of the freshness of the meats and fish can be further avoided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the present invention, illustrate the embodiments of the present invention and together with the description serve to explain the principle of the invention. In the drawings: Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a conventional refrigerator; Figure 2 is a front view showing a refrigerator having a storage chamber for food products according to a first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 is an enlarged perspective view showing a storage chamber for food products in Figure 2; Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in Figure 3; Figure 5 is a partial sectional view showing an ultraviolet light irradiation device in Figure 4; Figure 6 is a perspective view showing a plate-type photocatalytic filter of Figure 5; Figure 7 is a perspective view showing a mesh type photocatalytic filter of Figure 5; Figure 8 is a schematic view showing an input part; Figure 9 is a perspective view of the bottom showing schematically a top panel of Figure 4; Figure 10 is a perspective view of the background showing an example modification of a top panel of Figure 4; Figure 11 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV in Figure 3, which shows an example modification of a food storage container; Figure 12 is a perspective view showing a top mount type refrigerator having a storage container for food products according to a first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 13 is a perspective view showing a storage container for food products of Figure 12; Figure 14 is a sectional view taken along line XIV-XIV of Figure 13; Figure 15 is a front view showing an external appearance of a refrigerator having a meat / fish storage chamber according to a second embodiment of the present invention; Figure 16 is a front view showing an interior structure of a refrigerator of Figure 15; Figure 17 is an enlarged perspective view showing a meat / fish storage chamber of a refrigerator of Figure 16; Figure 18 is a sectional view taken along the line XVIII-XVIII in Figure 17; Figure 19 is a graph showing the variations in freshness when radiating visible light having different emission colors for meats; Figure 20 is a graph showing the variations in freshness when radiating visible light having different emission colors for fish; Figure 21 is a graph showing the variations in freshness when meats and fish are stored at different temperatures; and Figure 22 is an enlarged sectional view showing an ultraviolet light irradiation device of Figure 18.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Whenever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or similar parts. Figure 2 is a front view showing a refrigerator having a storage chamber for food products according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 3 is an enlarged perspective view showing a storage chamber for food products in Figure 2. Referring to Figures 2 and 3, a refrigerator 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention comprises a main body 10 having a cooling chamber, and a storage container for food products 12. , which is provided in the main body 10 and executes an optical deodorization by selectively irradiating the light within a region of visible light according to a color of the food products stored in the storage container of food products 12. This mode illustrates by way of example that the food storage container of the present invention The invention applies to a side-by-side type refrigerator, in which a cooling chamber and a freezing chamber are divided into right and left directions. In particular, the cooling chamber is formed in a right portion of the main body, the freezing chamber is formed in a left portion of the main body, and the food storage container is provided in a lower portion of the cooling chamber . The storage container for food products according to the present invention includes a plurality of storage chambers 20, 22 and 24, and irradiation devices and ultraviolet light irradiation devices, which are mounted to the respective storage chambers. . The plurality of storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 provide a storage space for food products, and are defined by a bottom wall and right and left side walls. In this embodiment, the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 are opened or closed by a type of sliding, in such a way that the user easily pulls or pushes the food products in / out of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. However, the type of opening / closing of storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 is not limited to the type of sliding, and can be modified in various ways within other types similar to a door coupled in a hinged manner to an upper portion. of storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. In order to prevent moisture from seeping in, it is preferable to form the storage container 12 for food products to remain in an airtight state. By means of the hermetic structure of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24, the humidity in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 can be adequately maintained by moisture transpired from the food products. In this embodiment, a plurality of storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 are provided. In particular, the food storage container 12 is constituted by three storage chambers 20, 22 and 24, which are divided in a vertical direction . At least one of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 is provided with a temperature adjusting device 80 for adjusting the temperature in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24, so that the stored temperatures are selectively stored. meats and vegetables. Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in Figure 3, which shows the irradiation devices and the ultraviolet light irradiation devices mounted in the respective storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. Referring to Figure 4, the irradiation devices 30 irradiate light within the region of visible light within the respective storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. As a reference, the visible light means, which have a range of of wavelength, from about 380 to 770 nm, which is commonly visible to a person's eyes. The change in the nature of the visible light according to the wavelength is represented by a color. That is, as it progresses from red to violet, the wavelength becomes shorter. For example, the wavelength of the red light is within the range of 700-610 nm, the wavelength of the orange light is from 610 to 590 nm, the wavelength of the yellow light is from 590 to 570 nm , the wavelength of the green light is from 570 to 500 nm, the wavelength of the blue light is from 500 to 450 nm, and the wavelength of the violet light is from 450 to 400 nm. When the infrared light, which has a wavelength greater than 770 nm, is irradiated, the temperature in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 and the surface temperature of the stored food products increases. Therefore, the surface of the food products becomes discolored and the food products deteriorate rapidly. For this reason, it is preferred that the irradiation device 30 be designed to emit light within the region of visible light. Because the region of visible light is not discriminated precisely from the region of infrared light and the region of violet visible light is not discriminated precisely from the region of ultraviolet light, the region of visible light defined in the present invention includes a region of partial infrared light, which has the wavelength range close to the wavelength of the visible red light region and a partial ultraviolet light region, which has the range of the wavelength close at the wavelength of the visible violet light region. Each of the irradiation devices 30 includes a substrate 34, a light emitting element 32 mounted to the substrate 34 and a protective cover 36 to prevent moisture permeation within the light emitting element 32 and damage to the light emitting element. 32. Any light source can be used as a light emitting element 32. However, it is preferable that the light emitting element 32 is represented by a light emitting diode (LED) which has a relatively low heat generation and a relatively high light emission efficiency. By using the LED as the light emitting element 32, the heat generated from the irradiation device 30 is reduced to a minimum, and the elevation of the temperature by the light emitting element 32 is decreased. Accordingly, the irradiation device 30 can be energized with a relatively low energy consumption. Meanwhile, a control unit (not shown) can control the irradiation devices 30 to irradiate the light having different emission colors within the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 in accordance with the colors of the food products stored therein. storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. Through experiments, the applicant of the present invention discovered that when the emission color of the irradiation device matches the color of the stored food products, it is more effective in maintaining the freshness of the products. food products and the elements of nutrition. For example, red light is irradiated for red food products, and green light is irradiated for green food products. Based on the above facts, this modality is structured so that many types of food products are classified by the colors and the color of emission light irradiated to the food products is changed according to the color of the food products. More particularly, when the color of the stored food products is red, the irradiation device 30 is configured to irradiate the red light to the stored food products, and when the color of the stored food products is green, the irradiation device 30 is configured to irradiate combined green-white light to stored food products. Especially, the applicant of the present invention has discovered by experiments that this is more effective for the maintenance of freshness and avoids the decrease of the chlorophyll concentration of the food products to irradiate the combined green-white light to the green food products, instead of radiating only green light. The food products stored in the storage container of food products 12, can be classified mainly in vegetables and fruits. Additionally, the vegetables can be classified into leaf and stem vegetables, leaves and / or stems of which are used, root vegetables, roots and / or underground stems of which are used, and vegetable fruits, fruits of which they use. In the present invention, the various types of vegetables and fruits mentioned above are classified by red and green, and the irradiation device is configured to irradiate light of different emission colors for the classified food products. For example, strawberries, tomatoes, plums or the like, belong to red food products, and spinach, Chinese cabbage, cabbage or the like belong to green food products. The applicant of the present invention has performed an experiment to classify the food products in red and green, irradiating red light to the red food products by using the red LED, irradiating green-white combined light to the green food products by using the Green LED and white LED, and measuring the freshness variation of stored food products after a previously determined period. According to the experimental results, the discoloration and dryness phenomenon were considerably reduced in the green food products, and the phenomenon of mold and softness was almost not generated in the red food products, in comparison with the case of irradiating in a indiscriminate visible light through the white LED. Figure 4 shows an example for classifying the food products by colors and storing the food products separately in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. More particularly, the Chinese cabbage and the green onion that belong to the classification of the products green foodstuffs are stored in the first storage chamber 20, which is located in a higher position of the storage chambers, tomatoes and strawberries belonging to the classification of red food products are stored in the second storage chamber 22 , which is located in an average position, and the cabbage that belongs to the classification of the green food products is stored in the third storage chamber 24, which is located in a lower portion. The mounting positions of the irradiation devices 30 have no limitation. The irradiation devices 30 can be mounted selectively to the upper portions and the lower portions of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. In this embodiment, it was illustrated in Figure 4, that the irradiation devices 30 are mounted to the upper portions of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24, however, are not restricted thereto. The optical deodorization modules 40 are mounted to the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24, while opposing the interior of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. Each of the optical deodorization modules 40 includes radiation irradiation devices. ultraviolet light 41 (see Figure 5) which are mounted to the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 to irradiate ultraviolet light, and a photocatalyst filter 43 (see Figure 5), which is mounted to the front of the ultraviolet devices. irradiation of ultraviolet light 41 and coated with a photocatalyst agent. The ultraviolet light irradiating devices 41 are for emitting ultraviolet light within the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. As shown in Figure 4, it is preferable that the ultraviolet light irradiation devices 41 be mounted in an inserted manner in the the upper panels 70, 72 and 74, in such a way that it does not interfere with the food products stored in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24, however, the present invention is not restricted thereto. The ultraviolet light irradiating devices 41 can also be selectively mounted to other positions to easily irradiate the ultraviolet light within the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. For example, the ultraviolet light irradiation devices 41 can be mounted on the inner left surfaces or the inner right surfaces of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. Figure 5 illustrates in detail the constitution of the optical deodorization module 40 in Figure 4. With reference to Figure 5, the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 are respectively formed with an insertion portion. 44, into which the ultraviolet light irradiating devices 41 are inserted. A sealing element 45 is mounted to the insertion portion 44 in order to prevent moisture in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 from leaking inside. of the ultraviolet light irradiation devices 41. The sealing element 45 includes a first sealing part 47, which is disposed in the insertion portion 44 and allows ultraviolet light to penetrate through it, and a second part sealing 49, which is mounted around the first sealing part 47 to seal a hole between the insertion portion 44 and the first sealing part 47. Preferably, the first sealing part Do 47 is made of a glass material, through which ultraviolet light can penetrate enough. Also, the second sealing part 49 is made of rubber material in a manner that prevents moisture filtration. The photocatalyst filter 43 is mounted under the sealing element 45. A reference number 42 refers to a substrate to which the ultraviolet light irradiation devices 41 are installed.

The ultraviolet light irradiation devices 41 can be represented by an ultraviolet light LED (UV-LED). You can use both the UV-LED low pressure and a UV-LED high pressure. In this mode, it is preferable to use the UV-LED low pressure. More particularly, low-pressure UV-LED means a UV-LED, which has high energy efficiency and more effectively generates ultraviolet light near the 57.7 mm wavelength having a strong sterilization force. Said low pressure UV-LED has an advantage that a contaminant is not adhered to a UV-LED surface because the surface temperature of I UV-LED of low pressure is low. It is preferred to provide a plurality of UV-LEDs to increase the ultraviolet light emission force. Of course, the low pressure UV-LED can be replaced by the high-pressure UV-LED which has a wider ultraviolet light emission range. The photocatalyst filter 43 mounted to the insertion portion 44 under the sealing element 47 is illustrated in detail in Figure 6. With reference to Figure 6, the photocatalyst filter 43 is formed into a plate shape, which is coated with a photocatalyst solution of titanium dioxide (Ti02) 46 and formed with a plurality of through holes 48. The air in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 can flow into the insertion portion 44 through the plurality of weight holes 48 of the photocatalyst filter 43. When the ultraviolet light irradiating devices 41 irradiate ultraviolet light to the photocatalyst filter 43, the photocatalyst filter 43 executes an optical deodorization performance, thus sterilizing and deodorizing the air in the chambers of storage 20, 22 and 24. The description in detail, when ultraviolet light is irradiated to the photocatalytic solution of titanium dioxide (Ti02 ) 46, the titanium dioxide (Ti02) is divided into electrons (e ") and orifices (e +) and active species (O2", OH) are thus generated, sterilizing and deodorizing the air inside the storage chambers 20 , 22 and 24 with a strong oxidation force. At this point, the electron generated in the titanium dioxide (T02) means that the super oxide anions (O2") are generated by the reaction of the absorbed oxygen on the surface of the photocatalyst filter 43. And, the orifice generated in titanium dioxide (Ti02) means that the hydroxy (OH) radicals are generated by the reaction for water absorbed on the surface of the photocatalyst filter 43. Figure 7 shows an example modification (mesh type) of the photocatalyst filter. A photocatalyst filter 143 shown in Figure 7 is formed in a mesh type, which is mounted to the insertion portion 44 under the sealing element 47 and coated with the photocatalytic titanium dioxide (Ti02) 46 solution. The mesh size of the photocatalyst filter 143 is suitably determined, such that the air in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 can flow freely within the inser portion. 44. Through the aforementioned optical deodorization performance of the 143 mesh photocatalyst filter, the air within the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 is safely sterilized and deodorized. The optical deodorization modules described above 40 are optionally operated by the data entry parts 50, 52 and 54 (see Figure 3). The input 50, 52 and 54 shown in the Figure 3, are mounted to the front portions of the top panels 70, 72 and 74, respectively. Figure 8 is a front view showing an example constitution of the data entry parts 50, 52 and 54. As shown in Figure 8, each of the data entry parts 50, 52 and 54 have four buttons, more particularly, a red button 57 (which is subject to being selected when the red food products are stored in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24), a green button 58 (which is subject to being selected when the products green foodstuffs are stored in the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24), an on / off button 56 for turning on / off the irradiation devices 30, and an optical deodorization button 59 for optional operation of the optical deodorization modules 40. Accordingly, the data entry parts 50, 52 and 54 allow the user to simultaneously operate the optical deodorization modules 40 and the irradiation devices 30 or operate selectively the optical deodorization modules 40 and the irradiation devices. 30 or operate selectively either the optical deodorization modules 40 or the irradiation devices 30. Also, according to with the selection of the user, by using the data entry parts 50, 52 and 54, the optical deodorization modules 40 and the irradiation devices 40 can be operated alternatively with a previously determined period. Meanwhile, when the user selectively presses the red button 57 or the green button 58 of the data entry parts 50, 52 and 54, the control unit controls the irradiation devices 30 to change the emission color of the light emitted from the radiation devices in correspondence with the color selected by the user of the food products, which will be described later in greater detail. By the data entry parts described above 50, 52 and 54, when the user selects the button to enter the information if the color of the stored food products is red or green, the control unit controls the irradiation devices to change the color of the combined emission light of green-white from the red or change the color of emission light to red from the combined green-white color. Figure 9 is a perspective view of the bottom, showing schematically the upper panel in Figure 4.

Referring to Figure 9, the arrangement of the light emitting elements of the food storage container according to the first embodiment will now be described. The light emitting elements 32 can be placed and arranged in very different ways, however, it is more preferred to arrange and arrange the light emitting elements 32 so as to radiate light uniformly to the stored food products. Figure 9 shows an example arrangement of the light emitting elements 32 of the irradiation device mounted to the first storage chamber 20. As shown in Figure 9, the red LEDs 32R, the green LEDs 32G and the white LEDs 32W are disposed in a central portion of the upper panel 70 provided in an upper portion of the first storage chamber 20. Also, the plurality of optical deodorization modules 40 are mounted to the upper panel 70 around the irradiation device, in this way , execute the optical deodorization performance safely. Describing in detail, the central portion of the upper panel 70 to which the LEDs are mounted is formed in a circular manner, and the circular shaped central portion of the upper panel 70 is separated in an equiangular manner. The red, green and white LEDs 32R, 32G and 32W are arranged in the respective separate fan-shaped regions. At this point, because the green LED 32G and the white LED 32W are lit together to irradiate light to the green food products, the green LED 32G and the white LED 32W are arranged adjacent to each other in the regions in the form of respective fan. Also, it is preferable to increase an irradiation angle of the light emitting elements, such that they irradiate light uniformly to all stored food products. When the user presses the red button 57 or the green button 58 of the input part 50 (see Figure 8), the control unit controls the irradiation device to change the color of emission light emitted from the LEDS. For example, when the user presses the green button 58 of the input part 50, the control unit turns off the red LEDs 32R and turns on the green LEDs 32G and the white LEDs 32W to irradiate the combined green-white light. On the other hand, when the user presses the red button 57 of the entered part 50, the control unit turns on the green LEDs 32G and the white LEDs 32W and turns on the red LEDs 32R to irradiate the red light. It is preferred that the food storage container 12 be provided with an open / close sensor (not shown) to determine if the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 are opened or closed. Only when the sensor for opening / closing determines that the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 are closed, the irradiation devices 30 are turned on to irradiate light.

Preferably, the refrigerator according to the present invention can additionally include a color recognition device (not shown) similar to a compact camera with the ability to recognize the color of food products stored in the storage container of food products. In response to a signal from the color recognition device, which detects the color of the stored food products, the control unit (not shown) controls the irradiation devices 30 to irradiate the visible light having the color corresponding to the color. color of food products. In the above description, it has been explained that the irradiation device of the present invention has the red, green and white LEDs. However, the irradiation device can be configured to have blue and yellow LEDs. Figure 10 is a perspective view of the background showing an example modification of the upper panel. For convenience for the description, the upper panel of the first storage chamber 20, which is arranged in the uppermost position, will be described as an example. Referring to Figure 10, the basic constitution of the upper panel 170 of this embodiment is the same as that of the upper panel 70 of the previous embodiment (see Figure 9) except that the light emitting elements of the irradiating device 30 are not placed in a concentrated form in the central portion of the upper panel 170, but are arranged scattered with a predetermined distance between them on the upper panel 170. A plurality of optical deodorization modules 40 are mounted to the upper panel 170. In this embodiment, in order to uniformly irradiate the stored food products, the red LEDs 132R, and the green and white LEDs 132G and 132W are arranged in a scattered form with a predetermined distance between them in the directions of width and length on the panel 170, which is provided in the upper portion of the storage chamber 20. As described before Subsequently, because the green LED 132G and the white LED 132W are lit together to irradiate light to the green food products, the green LED 132G and the white LED 132W are disposed adjacent to each other in the respective rectangular regions. Figure 11 is a sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in Figure 3, which shows an example modification of the storage container for food products, where the irradiation devices 130 are not mounted to the upper panels 170. As shown in Figure 11, this embodiment is configured in such a way that the irradiation devices 130 are disposed in the outer rear portions of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. In other words, the devices of irradiation 130 are grounded in the rear partition wall of the main body of the refrigerator. Therefore, the light emitted from the irradiation devices 130 is irradiated within the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24 by penetrating through the side walls of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. The side walls of the chambers of storage 20, 22 and 24 are made of light-permeable material. Similar to the previous modality illustrated in the Figure 4, the irradiation devices 130 of this embodiment for irradiating light within the respective storage chambers 20, 22 and 24, include substrates 134, the light emitting elements 132 mounted to the substrates 134, and the protective covers 136 to prevent the permeation of moisture within the light emitting elements 132 and damage of the light emitting elements 132. In the above description, it has been explained that the light emitting elements 132 of the irradiation devices 130 of this embodiment are arranged in a concentrated in the outer rear portions of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. However, the light-emitting elements 132 of the irradiation devices 130 can be arranged in a scattered manner with a predetermined distance between them in the width directions and length on the outer rear portions of the storage chambers 20, 22 and 24. Figure 12 is a view in perspective that neutralises a top-mounted refrigerator that has a storage container for food products, and Figure 13 is an enlarged perspective view showing the storage container for food products in Figure 12. As shown in Figures 12 and 13, this embodiment refers to a mounting type cooler 200 in which, a freezing chamber is placed in an upper portion in an upper portion, a cooling chamber is placed in a lower portion, and a storage container for products food 220 is provided in a portion of the bottom of a cooling chamber. The storage container for food products provided in a portion of the bottom of the cooling chamber. The food storage container 220 includes two storage chambers 210 and 212, which are divided in the right and left directions. Figure 14 is a sectional view taken along line XIV-XIV in Figure 13. Referring to Figure 14, Chinese cabbage and green onion belong to green food products stored in the first chamber of storage 210, and the tomatoes and strawberries belonging to the red food products are stored in the second storage chamber 212. The irradiation devices 30 for irradiating the light within the region of visible light within the storage chambers 210 and 212 and the data entry parts 250 and 252 (see Figure 13) to enter the color information of the stored food products and changing the color of emission light emitted from the irradiation devices 30 corresponding to the color of the products stored food are mounted to the respective storage chambers 210 and 212. As shown in Figure 14, it is similar to the embodiment illustrated. In Figure 9, the irradiation devices 30 are disposed in the central portions of the upper panels 270 and 272, which are provided in the upper portions of the storage chambers 210 and 212. However, the irradiation devices 30 they can be arranged in a scattered manner with a predetermined distance between them in the directions of width and length on the upper panels 270 and 272 (refer to Figure 10). Also, the irradiation devices 30 can be mounted to the outer rear portions of the storage chambers 210 and 212, and the light is irradiated within the storage chambers 210 and 212 by penetration through the side walls of the chambers. storage 210 and 212 (refer to Figure 11). In the following, the effect of operation of the refrigerator with the above structure having the storage container of the food products according to the present invention will be described. The user classifies the food products by colors, and place the classified food products in the respective storage chambers. The light within the region of visible light is irradiated within the respective storage chambers in which the food products classified by colors are stored respectively. At that time, the emission color of the irradiated light inside the storage chambers is decided in correspondence with the color of the food products stored in the storage chambers. Also, the optical deodorization modules execute the operations of deodorization and sterilization of the air in the storage chambers. Also, using the data entry parts, the user can enter the color information of the stored food products and change the color of light emission in correspondence with the color of the stored food products. Additionally, the user optionally can easily operate the optical deodorization modules and the irradiation devices by using the data entry parts. Figure 15 is a front view showing an external appearance of a refrigerator having a meat / fish storage chamber according to a second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 15, a cooler 300 of this embodiment includes a pair of doors 312 and 314, which are hingedly coupled to two opposite front sides of a main body. The door 312 is a door of the freezing chamber, and the other door 314 is a door of the cooling chamber. A deployment portion 316 for displaying the operation state of the refrigerator 300 is mounted to the exterior surface of the freezing chamber door 312. Although it is illustrated in the drawing that the deployment portion 316 is mounted to the door of the chamber 306. Freeze 312, this is not restricted in this way. The deployment part 316 can be mounted to the door of the cooling chamber 314. The deployment part 316 has the function of informing the user of the operation information of the freezing chamber 320 (see Figure 16) and cooling chamber 322 (see Figure 16), for example, temperature, humidity and the like in chamber 320 and 322.

Additionally, the refrigerator 300 of this embodiment may display the information on a meat / fish storage chamber 330 through the display portion 316, which will be described in detail later. Figure 16 is a front view showing an interior structure of the refrigerator 300 in Figure 15, when both the door of the freezer chamber 312 and the door of the cooling chamber 314 are open, and Figure 17 is a view in enlarged perspective showing the meat / fish storage chamber 330 of the refrigerator in the Figure 16 The refrigerator 300 according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes a main body 310, which has the cooling chamber 322 and the freezing chamber 320, the meat / fish storage chamber 330, which is provided in the cooling chamber 322, a visible light irradiation device 340 (see Figure 18), which is mounted on the main body 310 and radiates light within the region of visible light within the meat / fish storage chamber 330, and a control unit (not shown) which controls the visible light irradiation device 340. This example embodiment illustrates that the meat / fish storage chamber of the present invention is applied to the side-by-side type refrigerator wherein, the cooling chamber and the freezing chamber are divided in the left and right directions, however, the present invention is not restricted thereto. The meat / fish storage chamber of the present invention can also be applied to other types of refrigerator. Referring to Figures 16 and 17, the freezing chamber 320 is formed in an inner left portion of the refrigerator 300, and the cooling chamber 322 is formed in an inner right portion of the refrigerator 300. And the meat storage chamber / fish 330 is provided in a middle portion of cooling chamber 322. Although it is illustrated in the drawing that the meat / fish storage chamber 330 is positioned in the middle portion of freezing chamber 322, the present invention is not restricted to this. The meat / fish storage chamber 330 can be provided in other suitable positions in the cooling chamber 322. In this embodiment, the meat / fish storage chamber 330 is opened and closed by a type of sliding, in such a way that the user places or extracts the meats and fish in / out of the meat / fish storage chamber 330. However, the opening / closing type of the meat / fish storage chamber 330 is not limited to the type of sliding, and can be modified in various ways in other types similar to a hinged door in a form coupled to an upper portion of the meat / fish storage chamber 330. In order to prevent moisture from leaking, it is preferable to form the chamber meat / fish storage 330 to maintain an airtight state. By the hermetic structure of the meat / fish storage chamber 330, the humidity in the meat / fish storage chamber 330 can be adequately maintained for a long period. An upper panel 332 is provided in an upper portion of the meat / fish storage chamber 330, and a visible light irradiation device 340 is mounted to the upper panel 332 to radiate visible light within the meat / fish storage chamber. 330. In this embodiment, although the drawing shows that the visible light irradiation device 340 is mounted to the upper panel 332 provided in the upper portion of the meat / fish storage chamber 330., it is not restricted to this. The visible light irradiation device 340 can be arranged in a side wall or other positions of the meat / fish storage chamber 330. Figure 18 is a sectional view taken along the line XVIII-XVIII in the Figure 17, which illustrates in detail the meat / fish storage chamber 330 and the visible light irradiation device 340 mounted to the upper panel 332. As shown in Figure 18, the visible light irradiation device 340 is mounted to a lower surface of a central portion of the upper panel 332, and a control unit controls the visible light irradiation device 340 to irradiate visible light within the meat / fish storage chamber 330. The light irradiation device visible 340 includes a substrate 342, the light emitting elements 344 mounted to the substrate 342, and a protective cover 346 for preventing moisture permeation within the light emitting elements 344 and damaging the light emitting elements 344.

Because the structure of the visible light irradiation device 340 of this embodiment is similar to that of the irradiation device 30 of the previous embodiment (refer to Figure 4), a detailed description thereof will be omitted. The visible light irradiation device 340 according to the present invention is configured to irradiate light of any color of light emission (preferably, combined color of yellow-white) selected from the group consisting of blue, red-blue combined chlorine and combined yellow-white color to the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber 330. Through experiments, the applicant of the present invention has discovered that the visible light of any emission color selected from the group consisting of blue , combined color of red-blue and the combined color of yellow-white is effective for maintaining the freshness of meat and fish. Said experimental result is illustrated in Figures 19 and 20. Figures 19 and 20 are graphs showing the freshness variations of the meats and fish with the change of days when they irradiate the visible light of blue, combined color of red-blue and combined yellow-white color to meats and fish. At this point, the freshness is represented by a VBN (volatile basic nitrogen) value of the meat and fish. The VBN value means a value indicating a quantity of volatile basic nitrogen such as ammonium, amine or the like, which are generated when the protein foodstuffs rot. The higher VBN value means less freshness of meat and fish. From Figures 19 and 20, it can be seen that the VBN value when it does not irradiate visible light is increased to more than the VBN values when irradiating the visible light of blue, combined color of red-blue and combined color of white-yellow they are more effective in decreasing the VBN value than irradiating the visible light of blue and combined color of blue red.

Accordingly, in this embodiment, the visible light of any emission color selected from the group consisting of blue, combined color of red-blue and combined color of yellow-white (more preferably, visible light of combined color of yellow-white) ) is irradiated to maintain the freshness of the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber 330. Referring again to Figure 16, the refrigerator 300 of this embodiment may additionally have a cooling device 370 for cooling the meat / fish storage chamber 330. The cooling device 370 may be provided separately from the main body 310. The cooling device 370 for cooling the storage chamber of meat / fish 330 includes a first heat sink 372, which is mounted in the freezing chamber 320, and a second heat sink 376, which is mounted in the cooling chamber 322 and is connected to the first heat sink 372. The first heat sink 372 and the second color sink 376 are connected in communication with each other by a heat pipe 374, which penetrates through a partition wall between the freezing chamber 320 and the cooling chamber 322. The cold air in the first heat sink 372 is transferred to the second heat sink 376 through the heat pipe374. In other words, because the temperature in the freezing chamber 320 is normally kept lower than the temperature in the cooling chamber 322, and the cold air in the first heat sink 372 mounted in the freezing chamber 320 is transferred inside the first heat sink 376 mounted in the cooling chamber 322 through the heating tube 374. The second heat sink 376 is placed adjacent to the meat / fish storage chamber 330., and maintains the meat / fish storage chamber 330 at a desired temperature by the cold air transferred from the first heat sink 372. It is preferable to arrange the second heat sink 376 abthe meat / fish storage chamber 330. so that the heat sink 376 supplies cold air downwards. When the second heat sink 376 is placed abthe meat / fish storage chamber 330, ie, abthe upper panel 332, it is preferable that the upper panel 332 has a structure that allows the cold air of the second. 376 heat sink pass through it. For example, a plurality of through holes may be formed in the upper panel 332, through which cold air may pass from the second heat sink 376. The second heat sink 376 may be mounted to a side wall of the chamber meat / fish storage 330 to supply cold air through the side wall. The second heat sink 376 is placed abthe fish meat storage chamber 330 which can be formed into a plate type having a predetermined thickness or in a pin type having a plurality of pins, so as to facilitate the heat transfer to the meat / fish storage chamber 330. On the other hand, the control unit controls the cooling device 370 to maintain the meat / fish storage chamber 330 at a temperature of -1.5 ° C to -2.5 ° C, preferably -2.0 ° C. When the meat / fish storage chamber 330 is maintained at a temperature of -1.5 ° C to 2.5 ° C (preferably, -2.0 ° C), the meats and fish can be kept in a cooler state for a longer period, while it prevents them from being completely frozen. Figure 21 is a graph showing a result of an experiment measuring VBN values when meats and fish are stored at different temperatures a long period. As shown in Figure 21, the lower the temperature, the lower the VBN values. Therefore, the lower temperature in the meat / fish storage chamber is more effective in keeping the meat and fish in a cooler state for a long period. However, if the temperature remains excessively low, it becomes inconvenient and it takes too long to thaw the frozen meats and fish. Accordingly, in this embodiment, the control unit controls the cooling device 370 to maintain the meat / fish storage chamber 330 at a temperature of -2.0 ° C, such that it maintains the VBN value appropriately while it prevents the meat and fish from freezing completely. Referring again to Figure 18, in addition to the visible light irradiation device 340, an ultraviolet light irradiating device 350 for irradiating ultraviolet light within the meat / fish storage chamber 330 and a device for measuring the freshness 360 for measuring the freshness of the meats and fish are mounted to the upper panel 332. The antibacterial material is coated on an interior surface of the meat / fish storage chamber 330 to prevent the spread of microbes. The ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 was illustrated in detail in Figure 22. As shown in Figure 22, the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 of this embodiment has a difference from the optical deodorization module 40 shown in Figure 5. , in which the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 does not include a photocatalyst filter. The ultraviolet light irradiating device 350 includes UV352 LEDs, which are mounted on an insertion portion 351 of the upper panel 332 and a sealing element 355 which prevents moisture from seeping into the insertion portion 351. Due to that the components of the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 are the same as the components of the optical deodorization module 40 shown in Figure 5, the detailed description of it will be omitted.

Meanwhile, the control unit controls the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 to irradiate ultraviolet light in a predetermined period. The irradiation period of ultraviolet light can be adjusted appropriately. For example, the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 can be controlled to irradiate ultraviolet light for 1 minute at 120 minute intervals. The antibacterial material (not shown) coated on the inner surface of the meat / fish storage chamber 330 prevents the propagation of the microbes generated in the meats and fish, thus keeping the meat and fish in a fresher state. Preferably, the antibacterial coating material is titanium dioxide (TiO2), identical to the photocatalyst filter described above 43 shown in Figure 6. Because the performances of sterilization and deodorization of titanium dioxide (Ti02) are described above, it will be omitted the detailed description of them. When the ultraviolet light irradiating device 350 irradiates ultraviolet light from titanium dioxide (TiO2) coating material, the optical deodorization performance is executed, thereby sterilizing and deodorizing the air in the meat / fish storage chamber 330 Referring again to Figure 18, the freshness measuring device 360 for measuring the freshness of the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber 330 is mounted to the upper panel 332.

Various devices for measuring the freshness of meat and fish are already well known. In this embodiment, the VBN sensor is used as the device for freshness measurement 360 to detect the VBN value or an infrared sensor. The VBN sensor measures the freshness of meat and fish by detecting the VBN value, and the infrared sensor measures the freshness of meat and fish using infrared light. Hereinafter, the VBN sensor will be described as the freshness measurement device 360. The freshness measuring device 360 using the VBN sensor detects the VBN value in the meat / fish storage chamber 330, and the detection that The result of the freshness measurement device 360 is displayed on the display portion 316 (see Figure 15) by the control unit (not shown). Based on the VBN value displayed in the display portion 316, the user can easily know the freshness of the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber 330. When the control unit determines that the detected VBN value at from the freshness measurement device 360 reaches a first limit value, the control unit controls the display part 316 to display a warning message. When the control unit determines that the detected VBN value reaches a second limit value, the control unit automatically controls the cooling device 370 to freeze the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber 330.

Describing in detail, when the freshness of the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber 330 is deteriorated to a range in which the VBN value is increased to a first predetermined limit value or more, the control unit transmits the warning message to the user through the display part 316, in such a way that the user can select whether to consume or freeze the meat or fish. Despite the warning message, when the user leaves meat and fish as they are and the freshness of meat and fish deteriorates further to the point where the value VBN is increased to a second limit value previously determined or more , the control unit controls the cooling device 370 to freeze the meats and fish in the meat / fish storage chamber 330 to avoid further deterioration of the freshness. The first and second limit values may be previously established by a refrigerator manufacturer. In this mode equipped with the VBN sensor, the first limit value corresponds to the VBN value of 15mg%, and the second limit value corresponds to the VBN value of 20mg%. However, the first and second limit values are not restricted to the previous VBN values, and can be assigned with other suitable VBN values. As described above, when the detected VBN value is the second limit value or more, the control unit controls the cooling device 370 to freeze the inside of the meat / fish storage chamber 330. When the interior of the meat / fish storage chamber 330, the control unit controls the cooling device 370 so that the temperature in the meat / fish storage chamber 330 is kept below a temperature of -2.5 ° C. Because meats and fish are generally frozen below a temperature of -2.5 ° C, further deterioration of the freshness of meats and fish is avoided. On the other hand, when the VBN value detected by the freshness measuring device 360 is a specific limit value or more, although the operating state of the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 does not correspond to the light emission mode, the unit of control controls the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 to irradiate ultraviolet light. In other words, when measuring the freshness of the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber 330 by using the VBM sensor, if the control unit determines that the VBN value is the specific limit value or more, the control unit controls the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 to irradiate the ultraviolet light although the operating state of the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 does not correspond to the light emission mode. The specific limit value can be previously established by a refrigerator manufacturer. For example, the specific limit value can be either the first limit value mentioned above or the second limit value, or it can be a value different from the first and second value limits.

In the following, a method for storing meat and fish in the structured refrigerator in the above manner will be described. If the user places the meat and fish inside the meat / fish storage chamber 330 of the refrigerator 300, the control unit controls the visible light irradiation device 340 to irradiate the visible light inside the meat storage chamber. fish 330, and controls the cooling device 370 to cool the meat / fish storage chamber 330 to a desired temperature. The visible light irradiation device 340 is controlled to irradiate light of any emission color (preferably, combined yellow-white color) selected from the group consisting of blue, combined red-blue color and combined yellow-white color within the chamber meat / fish storage 330. The cooling device 370 is controlled to maintain the meat / fish storage chamber 330 at a temperature of -1.5 ° C to -2.5 ° C (preferably, -2.0 ° C). Also, the control unit controls the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 to irradiate the ultraviolet light within the meat / fish storage chamber 330 within a predetermined period. Preferably, the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 is controlled to irradiate the ultraviolet light for 1 minute at 120 minute intervals.

Although the ultraviolet light irradiating device 350 irradiates the ultraviolet light within the meat / fish storage chamber 330 within the previously determined period, the control unit controls the display part 316 to display the result detected by the device for measurement of freshness 360 mounted to the meat / fish storage chamber 330. When the detected value is the first limit value or more, the control unit transmits the warning message to the user through the display part. When the detected value is the second limit value or more, the control unit controls the cooling device 370 to freeze the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber 330 to avoid further deterioration of the freshness. When the detected value is the specific limit value or more, although the operating state of the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 does not correspond to the light emission mode, the control unit can control the ultraviolet light irradiation device 350 to irradiate ultraviolet light. The above specific limit value can be either the first limit value mentioned above or the second limit value, or it can be a different value from the first and second limit values.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION As is evident from the above description, the refrigerator according to the present invention is configured to separately store the food products classified by colors and irradiate the light most suitable for the color of the stored food products, maximizing in this way the effects of maintaining the freshness of food products and avoiding the reduction of chlorophyll concentration. Also, the refrigerator according to the present invention presents the user with a clear reference by which the food products can be classified and stored in the respective storage chambers. Therefore, the effect of dividing the storage container for food products into a plurality of storage chambers can be increased. Also, because the user can enter the color information of the stored food products, the color of emission of the irradiated light to the stored food products is selected in a manner suitable for the color of the food products. Also, due to the clear and intuitive reference to select the emission color of irradiated light for stored food products is provided, the user can easily select the color of light emission and the reliable effects of the irradiation device. Also, because the optical deodorization module sterilizes and deodorizes the air in the storage chambers of food products, the effect of maintaining the freshness of the food products can be increased.

Also, because visible light is irradiated in the meat / fish storage chamber and the meat / fish storage chamber is controlled to maintain a predetermined temperature, the meat and fish can be stored in a fresher state in the meat / fish storage chamber for a long period. Also, when the detected value indicates the freshness of the meats and fish is the first limit value or more, the control unit transmits the warning message to the user, and when the detected value is the second limit value or more, the unit of control controls the cooling device to freeze the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber, thus avoiding further deterioration of freshness. Also, by irradiating the ultraviolet light inside the meat / fish storage chamber during a previously determined period, the deterioration of the freshness of the meats and fish can be avoided in an additional way. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Therefore, it is intended that the present invention encompass the modifications and variations of the present invention provided they fall within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims (32)

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION CLAIMS

1. - A refrigerator comprising: a main body, which has a cooling chamber and a freezing chamber; a storage chamber, which is provided in the cooling chamber for storing food products; an irradiation device which radiates light within a region of visible light corresponding to the color of the food products stored in the storage chamber; an optical deodorization module, which includes an ultraviolet light irradiation device, which is mounted to the storage chamber for irradiating ultraviolet light and a photocatalyst filter, which receives ultraviolet light from the ultraviolet light irradiation device and is coated with a photocatalyst agent; and a control unit, which controls the irradiation device and the ultraviolet light irradiation device.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further characterized in that ultraviolet light irradiation device includes ultraviolet light emitting diodes.

3. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further characterized in that the photocatalyst filter is mounted to the storage chamber and formed in a type of mesh, which is coated with a photocatalyst solution of titanium dioxide.

4. - The refrigerator according to claim 1, further characterized in that the photocatalyst filter is mounted to the storage chamber and is formed in a type of plate, which is coated with a photocatalytic solution of titanium dioxide and formed with a plurality of through holes.

5. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further characterized in that the irradiation device is a light-emitting diode.

6. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further characterized in that the control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate the light having different emission colors within the storage chamber.

7. The refrigerator according to claim 6, further characterized in that the irradiation device is configured to irradiate light having the combination color of white and a selected color of red and green.

8. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further characterized in that the control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate light within the region of visible light in correspondence with the color of food products stored in the storage chamber.

9. The refrigerator according to claim 8, further characterized in that it additionally comprises: a data entry part for entering color information of the food products stored in the storage chamber, wherein the control unit controls the storage device. irradiation to irradiate light within the region of visible light corresponding to the color of the food products according to the information entered into the data entry part.

10. The refrigerator according to claim 9, further characterized in that when the color information of the food products entered into the data entry part is red, the control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate red light.

11. The refrigerator according to claim 9, further characterized in that when the color information of the food products is input to the data entry part is green, the control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate green light.

12. The refrigerator according to claim 8, further characterized in that it additionally comprises: a color recognition device, which recognizes the color of the food products stored in the storage chamber; wherein the control unit controls the irradiation device to irradiate light within the region of visible light corresponding to the color of the food products in response to a signal from the color recognition device.

13. - A refrigerator, comprising: a main body, which has a cooling chamber and a freezing chamber; a meat / fish storage chamber, which is provided in the cooling chamber and covered with antibacterial material to prevent bacterial propagation; a visible light irradiation device, which radiates visible light into the meat / fish storage chamber; and a control unit, which controls the irradiation device.

14. The refrigerator according to claim 13, further characterized in that the visible light irradiation device includes at least one light emitting diode.

15. The refrigerator according to claim 13, further characterized in that the visible light irradiation device radiates light of any emission color selected from the group consisting of blue, combined color of red-blue and combined color of yellow-white in the meat / fish storage chamber.

16. The refrigerator according to claim 13, further characterized in that the visible light irradiation device radiates combined yellow-white light within the meat / fish storage chamber.

17. The refrigerator according to claim 13, further characterized in that the antibacterial material is titanium dioxide.

18. - The refrigerator according to claim 13, further characterized in that it additionally comprises: a device for measuring freshness, which detects a value indicating the freshness of the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber; a part of deployment, which displays the freshness of the meats and fish measured by the device for measuring freshness; and an ultraviolet light irradiation device, which irradiates ultraviolet light within the meat / fish storage chamber, wherein the control unit controls the display part and the ultraviolet light irradiation device.

19. The refrigerator according to claim 18, further characterized in that the device for measuring freshness is a volatile basic nitrogen sensor (VBN).

20. The refrigerator according to claim 18, further characterized in that the device for measuring freshness is an infrared sensor.

21. The refrigerator according to claim 18, further characterized in that the control unit controls the ultraviolet light irradiation device for irradiating the ultraviolet light within the meat / fish storage chamber within a predetermined period.

22. The refrigerator according to claim 21, further characterized in that the control unit is connected to the device for measuring freshness, and wherein when the value detected by the device for measuring freshness is a specific limit value or more, although an operating state of the ultraviolet light irradiation device does not correspond to a light emission mode, the control unit can control the ultraviolet light irradiation device to irradiate ultraviolet light.

23. The refrigerator according to claim 18, further characterized by additionally comprising: a cooling device which cools the meat / fish storage chamber. The control unit can control the cooling device, wherein the control unit controls the cooling device

24. The refrigerator according to claim 23, further characterized in that the control unit controls the cooling device to maintain the chamber of meat / fish storage at a temperature of -1.5 ° C to -2.5 ° C.

25. The refrigerator according to claim 23, further characterized in that the control unit controls the cooling device to maintain the meat / fish storage chamber at a temperature of -2.0C.

26. The refrigerator according to claim 23, further characterized in that the cooling device includes a first heat sink, which is mounted in the freezer chamber, and a second heat sink, which is mounted in the cooling chamber and is connected to the first heat sink, the second heat sink thermally held below a previously determined temperature by the cold air transferred from the first heat sink and supplying cold air to the interior of the meat / fish storage chamber.

27. The refrigerator according to claim 26, further characterized in that the first heat sink and the second heat sink can be formed in a plate type

28. The refrigerator according to claim 26, further characterized in that the first Heat sink and second heat sink can be formed into a pin type.

29. The refrigerator according to claim 26, further characterized in that the second heat sink is placed above the meat / fish storage chamber.

30. The refrigerator according to claim 18, further characterized in that the value detected by the device for freshness measurement is a predetermined limit value or more, the control unit can control the deployment part to display a warning message .

31. The refrigerator according to claim 18, further characterized by additionally comprising: a cooling device, which cools the meat / fish storage chamber, where when the value detected by the device for measuring freshness is a limit value previously determined or more, the control unit controls the cooling device to freeze the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber.

32. The refrigerator according to claim 18, further characterized by additionally comprising: a cooling device, which cools the meat / fish storage chamber, where when the value detected by the device for measuring freshness is a first predetermined limit value or more, the control unit controls the display part to display a warning message, and when the value detected by the device for freshness measurement is a second predetermined limit value or more, the control unit You can control the cooling device to freeze the meats and fish stored in the meat / fish storage chamber.