TWI558348B - Open freezer and control method thereof - Google Patents

Description

Open refrigerator and control method thereof

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly to an open refrigerator and a control method therefor.

The freezer is for the store to display fresh food, etc., in order to keep the freshness of the food for sale. The refrigerated cabinet can be divided into a closed refrigerated cabinet and an open refrigerated cabinet. The enclosed refrigerated cabinet has a glass door that can be opened. When not in use, the glass door is in a normally closed state to prevent the cold air inside the cabinet from overflowing, so the closed type The refrigerator has a better cooling effect. However, consumers need to open the glass door manually, so it is inconvenient to take the food displayed in the cabinet.

On the other hand, the open refrigerator has an open display surface, and the open display surface can conveniently take the food displayed in the cabinet, so that the displayed food has the convenience of taking. However, the cold storage effect of the open refrigerated cabinet is relatively poor, that is, the cold air inside the cabinet is easily spilled outward by its open display.

Moreover, the conventional open refrigerator has an open display surface that is often open. When the store is at the peak of the business or when no consumers come to the store, the air-conditioning inside the cabinet is still flowing continuously from its often open and open display. Spilling, causing waste of energy, and causing poor cooling effect of open refrigerators.

In order to solve the above problems of the open refrigerator, the related fields do not bother to find a solution, but the method that has not been applied for a long time has been developed. Therefore, how to avoid the waste of energy and improve the cooling effect is one of the current important research and development topics, and it has become the goal of improvement in the relevant fields.

One aspect of the present invention is to provide an open refrigerator and a control method thereof to solve the problems of the prior art.

The open refrigerator provided by the invention comprises a cabinet, a roller blind device, a motor, an inductor and a controller. The cabinet body has an open display surface, the roller blind device has a transparent roller blind, the roller blind device is disposed on the cabinet body, the motor is electrically connected to the roller blind device, and the controller is electrically connected to the inductor and the motor. The sensor is used to sense whether at least one human body is located in front of the open display of the cabinet. When the human body is located in front of the open display of the cabinet, the controller is used to drive the motor to control the roller blind device to maintain the transparent roller blind in the rewinding state. , making the open display surface open.

In one embodiment, the controller determines the maintenance time of the transparent roller blind in the retracted state based on a customer average purchase time.

In one embodiment, the controller extends the hold time of the transparent roller blind in the retracted state based on the dwell time of the human body in front of the open display of the cabinet.

In one embodiment, the controller sets the maintenance time of the transparent roller blind in the retracted state to not exceed a maximum duration.

In one embodiment, after the end of the maintenance time, if the sensor does not sense the human body, the controller drives the motor to control the roller blind device to roll out the transparent roller blind so that the open display surface is shielded by the transparent roller blind.

In one embodiment, the sensor is a discrete type of detector, and the discrete detector detects the presence of a human body in an open display surface of the cabinet at intervals of one reaction time.

In one embodiment, the discrete detector is an infrared sensor.

In another aspect, the control method of the open refrigerator according to the present invention comprises the following steps: (a) sensing whether at least one human body is located in front of the open display of the cabinet; (b) when the human body is located in the open display of the cabinet In front of the drive motor to control the roller blind device to maintain the transparent roller blind in a retracted state, so that the open display surface is open.

In an embodiment, the step (b) comprises: determining the maintenance time of the transparent roller blind in the rewinding state based on an average purchase time of the customer.

In an embodiment, the step (b) further comprises: extending the holding time of the transparent roller blind in the rewinding state based on the dwell time of the human body in front of the open display of the cabinet.

In an embodiment, the step (b) further comprises: setting the maintenance time of the transparent roller blind in the rewinding state to not exceed a maximum duration.

In an embodiment, the step (b) further comprises: after the end of the maintenance time, if the human body is not sensed, the control roller blind device rolls the transparent roller blind so that the open display surface is covered by the transparent roller blind.

In an embodiment, the step (a) comprises: detecting, by a discrete detector, a reaction time interval between the human body and the open display surface of the cabinet.

In summary, the present invention is a starting point for avoiding waste of energy and improving the cooling effect, and focuses on the automatic opening and closing of the roller blind of the open refrigerator. Thereby, in the peak period of sales, the invention can automatically extend the opening time of the roller blind to avoid the closing of the roller blind and affect the consumption of the customer; when encountering the peak period, the invention can automatically shorten the opening time of the roller blind, Achieve energy savings.

The above description will be described in detail in the following embodiments, and further explanation of the technical solutions of the present invention will be provided.

The above and other objects, features, advantages and embodiments of the present invention will become more apparent and understood.

100‧‧‧Open refrigerator

110‧‧‧ cabinet

112‧‧‧Open display surface

120‧‧‧Rolling device

122‧‧‧Transparent roller blinds

130‧‧‧Motor

140‧‧‧ sensor

150‧‧‧ Controller

300‧‧‧Control method

310, 320‧‧‧ steps

410‧‧‧some state

420‧‧‧ Delay status

430‧‧‧End status

440‧‧‧Nobody status

Tmc‧‧‧Maximum duration

Toc‧‧‧Customer average purchase time

The above and other objects, features, advantages and embodiments of the present invention will become more <RTIgt; </ RTI> <RTIgt; </ RTI> <RTIgt; </ RTI> <RTIgt; 2 is a perspective view of an open refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing a control method of an open refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 4 is a diagram according to the present invention. A timing diagram of a method of controlling an open refrigerator according to an embodiment.

In order to make the description of the present invention more complete and complete, reference is made to the accompanying drawings and the accompanying drawings. On the other hand, well-known elements and steps are not described in the embodiments to avoid unnecessarily limiting the invention.

In the scope of the embodiments and patent applications, unless the context specifically dictates the articles, "a" and "the" may mean a single or plural.

As used herein, "about" is used to modify the amount of any slight change, but such slight changes do not change its nature. In the embodiment, unless otherwise stated, the error range representing the value modified by "about" is generally allowed to be within 20%, preferably within 10%, and more preferably, Within five percent.

1 is a block diagram of an open refrigerator 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an open refrigerator 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the open refrigerator 100 includes a cabinet 110, a roller blind assembly 120, a motor 130, an inductor 140, and a controller 150 (eg, a microcontroller). Structurally, the cabinet 110 has an open display surface 112, the roller blind device 120 has a transparent roller blind 122, the roller blind device 120 is disposed on the cabinet 110, the motor 130 is electrically connected to the roller blind device 120, and the controller 150 is electrically The sensor 140 is connected to the motor 130. In use, the sensor 140 is configured to sense whether at least one human body is located in front of the open display surface 112 of the cabinet 110. When the human body is located in front of the open display 112 of the cabinet 110, the controller 150 is used to drive the motor 130. Controlling the roller blind device 120 maintains its transparent roller blind 122 in a retracted state, making it open The display surface 112 is in an open state so that the consumer can take the food displayed in the cabinet.

In one embodiment, the controller 150 determines the maintenance time of the transparent roller blind 122 in the retracted state based on a customer average purchase time. For example, the aforementioned average customer purchase time represents the average time that a single user purchases in front of the cabinet 110, and the range is about 10 to 400 seconds, and the preset value may be about 40 seconds.

In one embodiment, the controller 150 extends the hold time of the transparent roller blind 122 in the retracted state based on the dwell time of the human body in front of the open display of the cabinet 110, thereby, during the peak period of sale The controller 150 can automatically extend the opening time of the roller blind to prevent the roller blind from closing and affecting customer consumption. In practice, the longer the customer stays, the longer the maintenance time will be.

In one embodiment, the controller 150 sets the hold time of the transparent roller shade 122 in the retracted state for no more than a maximum duration to avoid an unrestricted increase in the maintenance time. For example, the aforementioned maximum duration represents the maximum sustainable opening time of the transparent roller blind 122, which ranges from about 30 to 1000 seconds, with a preset value of about 300 seconds.

In an embodiment, after the end of the above-mentioned maintenance time, if the sensor 140 does not sense the human body, the controller 150 drives the motor 130 to control the roller blind device 120 to roll out the transparent roller blind 122, so that the open display surface 112 is Transparent roller blinds. Thereby, when encountering the peak period, the controller 150 can automatically shorten the opening time of the roller blind to achieve the energy saving effect.

In an embodiment, the sensor 140 is a discrete detector, away from The scattered type detector detects the presence of the human body in the open display surface 112 of the cabinet 110 every interval of reaction time. For example, the aforementioned reaction time represents the shortest interval time of the discrete detectors for two consecutive detections, and the range is about 1 to 50 seconds, and the preset value can be about 8 seconds. In practice, the discrete detector can be an infrared sensor or other sensing device.

3 is a flow chart of a control method 300 for an open refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a timing chart of a control method 300 for an open refrigerator according to an embodiment of the invention. The open refrigerated cabinet comprises a cabinet and a roller blind device, the cabinet has an open display surface, and the roller blind device has a transparent roller blind. As shown in FIG. 3, the control method 300 includes steps 310 and 320. It should be understood that the steps mentioned in the embodiment can be adjusted according to actual needs, except for the order in which the sequence is specifically described. It can even be executed simultaneously or partially). As for the hardware device for carrying out these steps, since the previous embodiment has been specifically disclosed, the description thereof will not be repeated.

In step 310, it is sensed whether at least one human body is located in front of the open display of the cabinet. Step 320, when the human body is located in front of the open display of the cabinet (as in the human state 410 of FIG. 4), the drive motor controls the roller blind device to maintain the transparent roller blind in the rewinding state, so that the open display surface is open. The state, so that consumers can take the food displayed in the cabinet.

In one embodiment, step 320 includes determining a maintenance time of the transparent roller blind in the retracted state based on a customer average purchase time Toc (shown in FIG. 4). For example, the aforementioned average customer purchase time Toc represents the average time that a single user purchases in front of the cabinet, and the range is about The preset value can be about 40 seconds between 10 and 400 seconds.

In an embodiment, step 320 further includes: extending the holding time of the transparent roller blind in the rewinding state based on the dwell time of the human body in front of the open display of the cabinet, thereby, during the peak period of sales, In step 320, the opening time of the roller blind can be automatically extended to prevent the roller blind from closing and affecting customer consumption. In practice, the longer the customer's dwell time, the longer the hold time will be (as in the delay state 420 of Figure 4).

In an embodiment, the step 320 further includes: setting the maintenance time of the transparent roller blind in the rewinding state to not exceed a maximum duration Tmc (shown in FIG. 4), that is, the maximum duration Tmc is taken as the maintenance time. The upper limit is used to avoid an unrestricted extension of the maintenance time. For example, the aforementioned maximum duration Tmc represents the maximum sustainable opening time of the transparent roller blind, and the range is about 30 to 1000 seconds, and the preset value may be about 300 seconds.

In one embodiment, step 320 further includes: when the customer leaves without the human body in front of the open display of the cabinet (such as the unmanned state 440 of FIG. 4), the controller 150 begins to perform the countdown of the maintenance time. When the end of the maintenance time is over (as in the end state 430 of Figure 4), if the human body is not sensed, the control roller blind device rolls the transparent roller blind so that the open display surface is obscured by the transparent roller blind. Thereby, when the peak period is encountered, the time of opening the curtain can be automatically shortened in step 320 to achieve the energy saving effect.

In one embodiment, step 310 includes detecting, by a discrete detector, a reaction time interval between the human body and the open display surface of the cabinet. For example, the aforementioned reaction time represents the shortest interval time of the discrete detectors for two consecutive detections, and the range is about 1 to 50 seconds. The value can be approximately 8 seconds. In practice, the discrete detector can be an infrared sensor or other sensing device.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in the above embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention, and the present invention can be modified and modified without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The scope is subject to the definition of the scope of the patent application attached.

100‧‧‧Open refrigerator

110‧‧‧ cabinet

120‧‧‧Rolling device

130‧‧‧Motor

140‧‧‧ sensor

150‧‧‧ Controller

Claims (7)

An open refrigerated cabinet comprising: a cabinet having an open display surface; a roller blind device disposed on the cabinet, the roller blind device having a transparent roller blind; and a motor electrically connected to the roller blind device And a sensor for sensing whether at least one human body is located in front of the open display of the cabinet; and a controller electrically connecting the inductor and the motor for when the human body is located in the cabinet When the open display is in front of the display, the motor is driven to control the roller blind device to maintain the transparent roller blind in a retracted state, so that the open display surface is in an open state, wherein the controller is based on a customer average The purchase time of the front of the cabinet determines a maintenance time of the transparent roller blind in the rewinding state, wherein the controller further sets an upper limit value of the maintenance time, the controller is based on the human body located in the cabinet body The hold time in front of the open display is extended to extend the hold time, wherein the extended hold time does not exceed the upper limit of the hold time. The open refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein after the end of the maintenance time, if the sensor does not sense the human body, the controller drives the motor to control the roller blind device to roll out the transparent roller blind. The open display surface is shielded by the transparent roller blind. An open refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the sensor is A discrete type detector detects the presence of the human body in the open display surface of the cabinet at intervals of one reaction time. The open refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the discrete detector is an infrared sensor. A method for controlling an open refrigerator, the open refrigerator comprising a cabinet and a roller blind device, the cabinet having an open display surface, the roller blind device having a transparent roller blind, the control method comprising: (a Sensing whether at least one human body is in front of the open display of the cabinet; and (b) driving the motor to control the roller blind device when the human body is in front of the open display of the cabinet The curtain is maintained in a retracted state, so that the open display surface is in an open state, wherein a maintenance time is determined based on a customer average in front of the cabinet to determine a maintenance time of the transparent roller blind in the retracted state. Further, the maintenance time is extended based on the parking time of the human body in front of the open display of the cabinet, wherein an upper limit value of the maintenance time is further set, and the extended maintenance time does not exceed the maintenance time. The upper limit value. The control method of claim 5, wherein the step (b) further comprises: if the human body is not sensed after the end of the maintenance time is over, controlling the roller blind device to roll out the transparent roller blind, so that the open display The face is covered by the transparent roller blind. The control method of claim 5, wherein the step (a) comprises: detecting, by a discrete type of detector, a reaction time interval to detect whether the human body is located on the open display surface of the cabinet.