TWI832845B - refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a refrigerator door structure that can achieve high sound quality of a speaker and maintain the heat insulation performance of the door. Furthermore, in a refrigerator equipped with a speaker, a refrigerator structure capable of improving the appearance of the refrigerator and improving the sound quality of the speaker is provided. The refrigerator 1 is provided with the refrigerator compartment door 11. The refrigerator compartment door 11 is provided with a speaker 70 . The speaker 70 is arranged on the side portion (for example, the lower end portion 11c) of the refrigerator compartment door 11. Moreover, the refrigerator 1 of an example has the opposing surface (for example, the upper surface 81 of the refrigerating compartment door 13) which faces the arrangement surface of the speaker 70 of the refrigerating compartment door (door body part) 11.

Description

refrigerator

The present invention relates to a refrigerator door and a refrigerator.

In recent years, as electronic components have been miniaturized, it has become technically possible to install electronic components including a circuit board such as a display panel and an operation panel in a refrigerator. In addition, with the advancement of information and communication technology, there is an increasing expectation to use household appliances such as refrigerators and network connections as information terminal equipment.

In response to this trend, attempts have been made to install electronic components such as a display panel, an operation panel, and a camera on the refrigerator door. Furthermore, it is proposed that a refrigerator equipped with a display panel on the door be further equipped with a speaker capable of emitting sound (for example, see Patent Document 1).

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-81852.

As disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is assumed that a speaker is provided on the front part of the door. However, when a speaker is installed on the front of a door, the heat insulation performance of the door decreases depending on the depth of the speaker. In particular, many high-quality loudspeakers have a large depth, and there is a problem that the heat insulation performance of the door decreases as the high-quality loudspeakers become higher. In addition, in recent years, attempts have been made to improve the design of the refrigerator by making the surface of the refrigerator door a glass panel. However, when a speaker is installed on the front part of the door of such a refrigerator, a part of the glass panel attached to the surface of the door becomes necessary to open for installing the speaker, which may impair the design of the refrigerator. Also, when setting up the back side of the glass panel When installing a speaker, the sound emitted from the speaker is trapped in the space between the glass panel and the door body, resulting in a reduction in sound quality and volume.

Therefore, an object of one aspect of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator door structure that can achieve high sound quality of a speaker and maintain heat insulation performance.

One aspect of the present invention relates to a door provided in a refrigerator. The door includes a door main body and a speaker arranged on a side surface of the door main body.

In the door according to one aspect of the present invention described above, a space is formed inside the door body at the installation position of the speaker, and the space may be further away from the sound-emitting part than the side closer to the sound-emitting part of the speaker. There is a narrow part on the side.

In the above-mentioned door of one aspect of the present invention, the door body part has a sealing member for enhancing the airtightness of the room when the door is closed. The space may also be formed from the side part of the door body part to at least the Location of sealing components.

Moreover, another aspect of this invention relates to the refrigerator provided with any one of the above-mentioned doors. The refrigerator may have an opposing surface facing the placement surface of the speaker in the door body part.

In the refrigerator according to one aspect of the present invention described above, the facing surface is inclined with respect to the arrangement surface of the speaker, or the facing surface may have a curved surface shape.

In the above-mentioned refrigerator according to one aspect of the present invention, the speaker may be disposed at the lower part of the door.

In the above-described refrigerator according to one aspect of the present invention, the door body part has a display part on the front, and two speakers are provided. The two speakers may also sandwich the center position of the display part in the width direction. And are respectively arranged on both sides.

As described above, according to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a refrigerator door that can achieve higher sound quality of the speaker and maintain the heat insulation performance of the door. Furthermore, according to another aspect of the present invention, in a refrigerator equipped with a speaker, it is possible to improve the appearance of the refrigerator and improve the sound quality of the speaker.

1: Refrigerator

11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 111, 213, 311: Refrigerator door (door)

11a, 111a, 311a: front face

11b, 111b, 311b: upper end

11c, 111c, 311c: lower end

11d, 111d, 311d: left end

11e, 111e, 311e: right end

18, 282: handle

21: Seals (sealing components)

21a: ditch

22:Hinge part

25: Insulation layer (door body)

27:Hinge cover

31: Door back (door body part)

32:Protruding wall (protruding portion)

41: Front member (door body part)

50: Display panel (display part)

51:Glass panel

70, 170, 370: Speaker

71, 71a, 71b, 371, 371a, 371b: Speaker body (speaker)

72, 172, 372: Pronunciation part (speaker placement surface)

73, 173, 373: concave part

75, 175, 375: space

81, 181, 281: Top (opposite side)

90:Touch sensor

170a: Inclined surface (speaker placement surface)

AA, BB: line segments

W1, W2, W3: internal dimensions

Fig. 1 is a front view showing the appearance of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing the structure of the right refrigerator door included in the refrigerator shown in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the structure of the right refrigerator door included in the refrigerator shown in FIG. 1 .

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of the A-A line portion of the refrigerator door shown in Fig. 2 .

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of the boundary portion between the upper refrigerator door and the middle refrigerator door of the refrigerator shown in FIG. 1 .

(a) is a front view showing the boundary portion between the upper refrigerator door and the middle refrigerator door of the refrigerator according to the second embodiment, and (b) is the structure of the B-B line portion of the refrigerator door shown in (a). floor plan.

Fig. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of the A-A line portion of the refrigerator shown in Fig. 6(a) .

8 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of the boundary portion between the upper refrigerator door and the middle refrigerator door of the refrigerator according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a front view showing the structure of the right refrigerator door provided in the refrigerator of the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing the structure of the cover side of the refrigerator door shown in FIG. 9 .

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of the A-A line portion of the refrigerator door shown in FIG. 10 .

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same components are given the same symbols. The names and functions of these components are also the same. Therefore, detailed description of these components will not be repeated.

[First Embodiment]

In this embodiment, a refrigerator equipped with a display panel in a refrigerator door (for example, a door of a refrigerator compartment) will be demonstrated as an example of the refrigerator which is one aspect of this invention.

(The overall composition of the refrigerator)

FIG. 1 shows the structure of the front side of the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment. The refrigerator 1 is provided with the 1st refrigerator compartment in an upper stage, the 2nd refrigerator compartment (vegetable compartment) in a middle stage, and the 1st freezing chamber in a lower stage. Furthermore, the refrigerator 1 is provided with an ice making chamber and a second freezing chamber in the middle section.

In addition, the structure and arrangement of each storage compartment in the refrigerator 1 are not limited to the above. It can be changed appropriately according to the structure and arrangement of each storage room, the capacity, use, etc. of the refrigerator.

Moreover, the refrigerating compartment doors 11 (the right refrigerating compartment door) and 12 (the left refrigerating compartment door) which are divided into left and right (french door) type are provided in the upper first refrigerating compartment. The pull-out refrigerating compartment door 13 is provided in the second refrigerating compartment (vegetable compartment) in the middle section. The pull-out freezing chamber door 14 is provided in the lower first freezing chamber. In addition, the pull-out ice making compartment door 15 or the freezing compartment door 16 is provided in the middle ice making compartment and the second freezing compartment, respectively.

In addition, the structure of each door in the refrigerator 1 is not limited to the above. The door of each storage room may be appropriately adapted to the structure, purpose, position, etc. of each storage room. For example, the door can be opened in half, opened and closed from either left or right end, opened and closed from both left and right sides, and pulled out.

In this embodiment, the surface on which the door is installed is the front (front) of the refrigerator. Then, with the front surface as a reference, each surface of the refrigerator 1 is defined as an upper surface, a side surface, a back surface, and a bottom surface based on the position existing when the refrigerator 1 is installed in a normal state. Therefore, in this specification, when "front side" or "back side" is defined, it refers to the side on which the front or back is located based on an arbitrary position, or a direction toward the front or back from an arbitrary position. In addition, in this specification, the direction from the front to the back of the refrigerator 1 and the direction from the back to the front of the refrigerator 1 are called the front-back direction. In addition, in this specification, the direction from one side surface of the refrigerator 1 to the other side surface is called a left-right direction. Furthermore, in this specification, as a principle, the "right side" of a refrigerator or a refrigerator door refers to the right side when viewed from the front of the refrigerator, and the "left side" of a refrigerator or refrigerator door refers to the front side of the refrigerator. Look at the side equivalent to the left side.

The display panel 50 (display unit) is provided on the right side of the refrigerator compartment door 11 (door). The display panel 50 (display unit) is attached to the back surface of the glass panel 51 provided on the outermost surface of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . The display panel 50 can be configured by a display panel member including, for example, a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, and the like.

The display panel 50 can display refrigerator operation information, refrigerator control information, box inventory information, calendar information, recipe information, message information, etc. For example, when the refrigerator 1 is equipped with a small camera (not shown), the display panel 50 can display an image of the inside of the refrigerator captured by the small camera. Furthermore, when the refrigerator 1 is connected to the Internet, it is possible to display information on various homepages obtained via the Internet. Furthermore, by providing an input device such as a touch sensor on the display surface and surrounding portion of the display panel, input operations can be performed in accordance with the content displayed on the display panel 50 .

Touch sensors 90 (contact sensing units) are provided on the refrigerating compartment door 11 and the refrigerating compartment door 12 respectively. The touch sensor 90 is arranged on the open end side of each of the refrigerator compartment doors 11 and 12 . The touch sensor 90 senses contact of a human body or the like. Then, for example, when the user's hand touches the touch sensor 90 of the right refrigerating compartment door 11, the refrigerating compartment door 11 is controlled to open. Similarly, when the user's hand touches the touch sensor 90 of the left refrigerating compartment door 11, the refrigerating compartment door 12 is controlled to open.

The speaker 70 is provided in the lower part of the refrigerator compartment door 11 (refer to FIG. 2). Next, the sound emitting unit 72 of the speaker 70 is provided on the lower surface (bottom surface) of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . Since the refrigerator 1 is equipped with the speaker 70, it can emit various notification sounds or notification messages to the user. In addition, the image displayed on the display unit and the accompanying sound can be output.

(Construction of the refrigerator door)

Next, the specific structure of the refrigerator compartment door 11 provided in the refrigerator 1 will be described with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 2 , the front side of the refrigerating compartment door 11 is shown in an enlarged manner. In FIG. 2 , the hinge cover 27 arranged on the upper surface of the refrigerator 1 is shown. In FIG. 3 , the refrigerator 1 is shown from the lower surface side and the hinge side (right side). The state viewed from the side end 11e side). Each part of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is called a front part 11a as a front, an upper end part 11b as a top surface, a lower end part 11c as a bottom surface, and a left side respectively, based on the state attached to the main body of the refrigerator 1. The left end portion 11d of the surface, and the right end portion 11e of the right surface. In addition, in the refrigerator compartment door 11 of this embodiment, the hinge part 22 is provided in the right end part 11e, and the left end part 11d is opened. Therefore, the right end portion 11e is also called a hinge-side end portion. In addition, the left end portion 11d is also called an open end portion.

The refrigerator compartment door 11 is mainly composed of a door back 31 (see FIG. 4 ), a front member 41 , a glass panel 51 , a display panel 50 , a heat insulation layer 25 (see FIG. 4 ), and the like.

The back side of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is formed by the door back 31 . The front member 41 is located on the front side of the door back 31 and is arranged to face the door back 31 to constitute the front side of the main body of the refrigerator compartment door 11 .

The front member 41 is located on the front side of the refrigerating compartment door 11 and constitutes the front surface of the main body of the refrigerating compartment door 11 . The door back 31 is arranged to face the front member 41 and constitutes the back side of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . By fitting the door back into the back surface of the front member 41, the outer shape of the body portion of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is formed. The heat insulation layer 25 is arranged between the front member 41 and the door back 31 .

The glass panel 51 is arranged at the front of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . That is, the glass panel 51 constitutes the front surface part 11a of the refrigerating compartment door 11. In this embodiment, the glass panel 51 is detachable from the main body part of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . The outer surface of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is composed of a single glass panel 51 . Furthermore, in this embodiment, the glass panel 51 is configured to cover substantially the entire front surface of the main body portion of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . Thereby, the entire surface of the refrigerator compartment door 11 can be formed flatly, and the appearance of the refrigerator 1 can be improved.

The display panel 50 is composed of a touch panel type display panel or the like. The display panel 50 is mounted on the back side of the glass panel. For example, the display panel 50 is attached close to the back surface of the glass panel 51 using an adhesive. Since the display panel 50 is mounted on the back of the glass panel 51, even if the body part of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is deformed due to heat, vibration, etc., it can be less susceptible to damage. to the deformation effect. Furthermore, for example, in the case of a touch panel type display panel 50 , the display panel 50 is separated from the glass panel 51 by being attached in a state where the detection portion for detecting a touch operation is in contact with or close to the back surface of the glass panel 51 , and the sensitivity of the touch panel decreases. By reducing the touch panel, it is possible to suppress the decrease in operability of the touch panel.

The door back 31 is formed of, for example, a resin plate-shaped member. In the door back 31, the back surface of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is arranged so as to extend in the left-right direction, and a plurality of storage openings (not shown) are provided. Moreover, on the back side of the refrigerating compartment 11, a protruding wall (protruding portion) 32 is formed along the outer periphery of the door. The protruding wall 32 is called a bank, flange or the like.

The seal (sealing member) 21 is attached to the outer periphery of the protruding wall 32 (see FIGS. 4 and 10 ). When the refrigerating compartment door 11 and the refrigerating compartment door 12 are in a closed state, the sealing member 21 is provided to improve the sealing performance inside the box (refrigerating compartment).

The heat insulation layer 25 is made of, for example, a vacuum heat insulation material, a foam heat insulation material, or the like. Vacuum insulation materials are sheet or plate-shaped insulation materials. Foamed heat insulating materials include, for example, foamed polyurethane (also called rigid foamed polyurethane) and the like.

The vacuum insulation material is preferably placed in a position in the refrigerator where particularly high insulation performance is required. For example, in the refrigerator 1, it is preferable that the vacuum insulation material is arranged at a position facing the display panel 50 in the refrigerator compartment door 11. Thereby, the heat generated from the display panel 50 is reliably blocked, and the heat insulation performance of the refrigerator compartment door 11 can be improved.

The refrigerating compartment door 11 is opened and closed from the open end portion (that is, the left end portion 11d) side. Moreover, the side cover is attached to the right end part 11e of the refrigerator compartment door 11. The hinge part 22 is provided inside the side cover.

The speaker 70 is provided in the lower part of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . The speaker 70 is provided in the recessed portion 73 adjacent to the handle 18 of the refrigerating compartment door 11 that is recessed in the bottom surface of the front member 41 (that is, the lower end portion 11 c of the refrigerating compartment door 11 ) (see FIG. 4 ). This allows the refrigerator compartment door to be covered without disturbing the The almost integral glass panel on the front of the main body part of 11 is equipped with a large-diameter speaker. Therefore, the appearance of the front part of the refrigerator compartment door 11 can be maintained.

(About the speakers)

Next, the specific structure of the speaker 70 will be described. FIG. 4 illustrates the internal structure of a portion of the refrigerator compartment door 11 where the speaker 70 is installed. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional structural diagram showing the A-A line portion of the refrigerating compartment door 11 shown in FIG. 2 . FIG. 5 schematically shows the cross-sectional structure of the boundary portion between the upper refrigerating compartment door 11 and the middle refrigerating compartment door 13 .

As mentioned above, the speaker 70 is arrange|positioned in the lower end part (lower side part) 11c which becomes the bottom surface of the refrigerator compartment door 11. The speaker 70 is mainly composed of a speaker body part 71 (71a and 71b), a sound emitting part 72, a recessed part 73, and a space 75.

The speaker body 71 includes a diaphragm, a diaphragm drive unit, and the like. As for the structure of the speaker body part 71, a conventionally known structure of a general speaker can be applied. In addition, the speaker body part 71 may use a speaker unit in which a case, an amplifier, a power supply, etc. are combined appropriately, in addition to the above-mentioned components.

As shown by the dotted line in FIG. 2 , the speaker 70 of this embodiment has two speaker body portions 71 . The speaker body part 71a is located on the left side of the refrigerating compartment door 11 when viewed from the front, and the speaker body part 71b is located on the right side of the refrigerating compartment door 11 when viewed from the front.

The sound generating unit 72 is provided on the surface of the lower end portion 11c of the refrigerator compartment door 11 (the surface on which the speaker is arranged). The sound generating portion 72 is composed of, for example, a plurality of holes formed in a plate-shaped member fitted into the lower end frame portion of the front member 41 . The sound generating portions 72 are respectively provided at positions corresponding to the respective speaker body portions 71a and 71b.

As shown in FIG. 4 etc., the recessed part 73 is formed in the lower end part 11c of the refrigerating compartment door 11 so that it may be embedded in the lower part of the heat insulation layer 25 which forms the refrigerating compartment door 11.

A space 75 is formed inside the recess 73 . The lower end portion 11 c of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is located in the lower portion of the space 75 . Next, the speaker body part 71 (71a and 71b) is arranged on the lower end part 11c in the space 75. Moreover, the sound-producing part 72 is located in the lower end part 11c of the space 75. In the space 75 , the sound wave generated from the back side of the speaker body 71 reverberates. That is, the space 75 becomes the acoustic space of the speaker 70 . Therefore, by changing the shape of the space 75, the sound quality characteristics of the speaker 70 can be changed. In particular, by increasing the distance in the back side direction (the upward direction in FIG. 4 ) of the speaker body 71 , it is possible to suppress sound waves reflected from the back side of the speaker body 71 and interfering with the diaphragm of the speaker body 71 .

In the speaker 70 of this embodiment, since the speaker body part 71 and the sound emitting part 72 are arranged on the side part of the refrigerator compartment door 11, even if the space 75 is formed so that the distance in the back side direction of the speaker body part 71 may be increased, The space 75 expands in the direction along the front portion 11 a of the refrigerating compartment door 11 and does not expand in the front-rear direction of the refrigerating compartment door 11 . Therefore, the space 75 does not extend in the front-rear direction of the refrigerator compartment door 11 which requires high thermal insulation, and the sound quality of the speaker 70 can be improved.

Furthermore, in the speaker 70 of this embodiment, the width of the space 75 is narrower on the side away from the speaker body 71 and the sound generating section 72 than on the side close to the speaker body 71 and the sound generating section 72 . That is, the inner dimension W1 of the space 75 on the side closer to the speaker body 71 and the sound generating unit 72 is larger than the inner dimension W2 of the space 75 on the side farther from the speaker body 71 and the sound generating unit 72 (see FIG. 4 ).

In addition, in the speaker 70 of this embodiment, the space 75 is configured in a shape in which the internal size of the space 75 becomes smaller as the distance from the self-emitting part 72 increases. Thereby, by gradually changing the internal size of the space 75 in accordance with the distance from the self-sounding part 72, the internal size of the space 75 on the center side of the refrigerating compartment door 11 can be changed because the temperature difference between the inside and outside of the refrigerating compartment door 11 becomes larger. Small, it is possible to improve the sound quality of the speaker 70 while suppressing a decrease in the heat insulation of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . At this time, as shown in FIG. 4 , it is preferable that the wall surface on the rear side is closer to the refrigerator compartment door 11 than the wall surface on the front side where the recessed portion 73 is formed. The front is greatly sloping. Thereby, the distance between the space 75 on the center side of the refrigerating compartment door 11 and the door back 31 can be made larger, and it is possible to suppress a decrease in the heat insulation properties of the refrigerating compartment door 11 .

In addition, since the cross-sectional area of the space 75 gradually changes in the depth direction (the upward direction in FIG. 4 ), standing waves are less likely to be generated, and the sound waves generated from the speaker body 71 can be suppressed from resonating at a specific frequency. Therefore, the sound quality of the speaker 70 can be improved.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 4 , a seal (sealing member) 21 for improving the airtightness inside the refrigerator compartment when the door is closed is provided on the back surface of the refrigerator compartment door 11 (that is, the door back 31 ). The seal 21 is provided around the protruding wall 32 formed on the door back 31 (see FIGS. 4 and 10 ). The seal 21 is fitted into the sealing groove 21a (see FIG. 5).

The interior of the refrigerator compartment is sealed by a seal 21 . Accordingly, as the boundary of the arrangement position of the seal 21, the inside of the arrangement position of the seal 21 is the box inside, and the outside of the arrangement position of the seal 21 is the box outside. Next, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , the upper end of the space 75 of the speaker 70 of the present embodiment reaches substantially the same height as the arrangement position of the seal 21 .

By providing the space 75 between the sound emitting part 72 and the arrangement position of the sealing member 21 , the space distance from the speaker body part 71 can be ensured to a certain extent. Thereby, the sound of the speaker 70 can be improved.

Next, in this embodiment, since the upper end of the space 75 is approximately the same position as the placement position of the seal 21, the very thick heat insulating layer 25 can be placed inside the refrigerator compartment door 11 located inside the box. On the other hand, the back surface of the refrigerating compartment door 11 located outside the arrangement position of the seal 21 is exposed to the air outside the refrigerator, and has a small temperature difference with the front surface of the refrigerating compartment door 11 . Therefore, even if this part of the heat insulation layer 25 becomes thinner according to the space 75, it will not seriously affect the heat insulation of the refrigerator compartment. Thereby, even when the space 75 for the speaker 70 is provided by cutting off part of the heat insulating layer 25, the reduction in the heat insulating performance inside the box can be suppressed to a relatively small level.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 5 , in a state where the refrigerating compartment door 11 and the refrigerating compartment door 11 are closed at the same time, the sounding unit 72 is provided to face the upper surface 81 of the refrigerating compartment door 13 of the vegetable compartment in the lower section of the refrigerating compartment. Towards. That is, the upper surface 81 of the refrigerating compartment door 13 is a surface facing the arrangement surface of the speaker 70 .

Next, in the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, the upper surface 81 of the refrigerator compartment door 13 is inclined forward (see FIG. 5 ). In other words, the arrangement surface of the speaker 70 (specifically, the arrangement surface of the sound emitting part 72) is not parallel to the upper surface 81 of the refrigerator compartment door 13 facing it. Thereby, the sound wave emitted from the sound generating part 72 can be prevented from being reflected by the upper surface 81 and returned to the sound generating part 72 .

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 5 , the upper surface of the refrigerator compartment door 13 is preferably inclined downward toward the front of the refrigerator 1 . Thereby, since the sound wave emitted from the sound emitting part 72 is reflected by the upper surface 81 and moves toward the front of the refrigerator compartment door 11 , the sound emitted from the speaker 70 can be transmitted more easily to the user located in the front of the refrigerator 1 .

Next, the installation position of the speaker 70 will be described in detail. In this embodiment, the speaker 70 is installed in the refrigerator compartment door 11 . However, in another embodiment of the present invention, a speaker can be provided on a door other than the refrigerating compartment door 11 of the refrigerator 1 . In addition, in the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, the display panel 50 is provided in the refrigerator compartment door 11 . In the case of such a structure, it is preferable that the speaker 70 is provided in the same refrigerator compartment door 11 as the door in which the display panel 50 is provided.

In the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, the speaker 70 is arrange|positioned in the lower part of the refrigerator compartment door 11 (specifically, the lower end part 11c). This reduces the possibility that liquids such as dew condensation water generated in the refrigerator 1 or moisture contained in food stored in the refrigerator 1 may enter the components within the speaker 70 . Thereby, the possibility of failure of the speaker 70 due to being wetted with water can be reduced.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1 , other doors are disposed adjacently below the refrigerating compartment door 11 , and when the speaker 70 is disposed under the refrigerating compartment door 11 , the refrigerator 1 has a speaker 72 facing the sound emitting part 72 . surface (for example, the upper surface 81 of the refrigerator compartment door 13). Since the speaker 70 has such an opposing surface, the sound output from the sound emitting part 72 of the speaker 70 which is provided to face downward passes through the opposing surface (for example, For example, the upper surface 81) can be reflected toward the front of the refrigerator compartment door 11 (see the arrow in Fig. 5). Thereby, sound can be outputted toward the front of the refrigerator 1 more effectively.

In addition, even in the case of a refrigerator having only one door or a refrigerator having a lowermost door, by arranging the speaker at the lower part of the door, the speaker is arranged on the bottom plate (base grille) of the bottom of the refrigerator 1 ) etc. can function as the opposing surface of the sound-producing part.

Moreover, as a modification of this embodiment, the speaker 70 can be provided in the open end part (ie, the left end part 11d) of the right side refrigerator compartment door 11. In this case, the open end (that is, the right end) of the left refrigerating compartment door 12 becomes the surface facing the sounding part.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the speaker 70 is preferably disposed on the hinge portion 22 side of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . Thereby, the rigidity of the speaker 70 can be improved.

Furthermore, when the speaker 70 is installed on the same door as the display panel 50, it is preferable that the speaker 70 is located at the center position across the left-right direction (width direction) of the display panel 50 (the position shown by the dotted line in FIG. 2). configuration. Thereby, the sound of the speaker 70 can be effectively output to the user located in front of the display panel 50 .

In addition, as in the speaker 70 of this embodiment, when two speaker body parts 71 are provided for stereo output, it is preferable that the speaker body parts 71 a and 71 b sandwich the center position of the display panel 50 in the left-right direction. between them and are respectively arranged on both sides. Thereby, the sounds emitted from the left and right speaker body portions 71 a and 71 can be transmitted without any sense of inconsistency to the user located in front of the display panel 50 .

[Summary]

As mentioned above, in the refrigerator compartment door 11 of the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, the speaker 70 is arrange|positioned at the lower end part 11c. The speaker 70 includes at least one speaker body 71 . In this embodiment, the speaker 70 includes two speaker body parts 71a and 71b.

According to the above-mentioned configuration, even in the case of a configuration in which the front surface of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is covered with one panel such as the glass panel 51 , the sound generating unit 72 of the speaker 70 is not covered by the panel. Thereby, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the sound quality and volume of the sound generated from the speaker 70 while maintaining the appearance of the refrigerator 1 .

In addition, in the refrigerating compartment door of the refrigerator 1, the position where the speaker is installed is not particularly limited as long as it is the side surface of the door (also called a frame portion). As in the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, it is preferable to arrange the speaker 70 at a position where there is an opposing surface (for example, the upper surface 81 of the refrigerator compartment door 13 ) that faces the sound emitting part 72 of the speaker 70 . Thereby, the sound wave outputted from the sound-producing part 72 toward the opposing surface can be reflected by the opposing surface and directed toward the front side of the refrigerator compartment door. As an arrangement position of the sound generating part 72 which has an opposing surface, the lower end part 11c of the refrigerator compartment door 11 is mentioned, for example.

Furthermore, if the refrigerator 1 has a split-type refrigerating compartment door, the sounding unit may be disposed at the open end of either left or right door (for example, the left end 11d of the refrigerating compartment door 11).

Furthermore, as in the refrigerator 1, a hinge cover 27 covering at least a part of the upper side of the door and a top plate are provided, and a speaker may be provided on the upper end 11b of the refrigerator compartment door 11. In this case, the hinge cover 27 and the top plate become the surfaces facing the sound generating part of the speaker.

Moreover, like the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment, it is more preferable that the speaker 70 is arrange|positioned at the lower end part 11c of the refrigerator compartment door 11. According to this configuration, since the sound-producing part 72 of the speaker 70 is directed downward, liquid such as water can be suppressed from intruding into the sound-producing part 72 .

[Second Embodiment]

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the second embodiment, the structure of the speaker arranged in the refrigerator compartment door and its surroundings are different from those of the first embodiment. Regarding other structures, basically the same structure as that of the first embodiment can be applied. Here, below, the structure around the speaker will be mainly described.

FIG. 6( a ) shows the appearance structure of the boundary portion between the upper refrigerating compartment door 11 and the middle refrigerating compartment door 13 of the refrigerator 1 according to the second embodiment. Moreover, FIG. 6(a) shows the structure of the bottom surface part (that is, the lower end part 111c) of the refrigerator compartment door 111. As shown in FIG. In addition, FIG. 7 schematically shows the cross-sectional structure of the boundary portion between the upper refrigerating compartment door 111 and the middle refrigerating compartment door 13 .

The refrigerator 1 of the second embodiment includes a refrigerator compartment door 111 . Each part of the refrigerator compartment door 111 is called a front part 111a, an upper end part (not shown), a lower end part 111c, a left end part 111d, and a right end based on the state attached to the main body of the refrigerator 1, respectively. Section 111e. In addition, in the refrigerator compartment door 111 of this embodiment, the hinge part 22 is provided in the right end part 111e, and the left end part 111d is opened.

The basic structure of the refrigerating compartment door 111 is the same as that of the refrigerating compartment door 11 of the first embodiment. However, the refrigerating compartment door 111 is provided with a speaker 170 having a different structure from the first embodiment.

Like the first embodiment, the speaker 170 is arranged at the lower end portion (lower side portion) 111c of the refrigerator compartment door 111 . The speaker 170 is mainly composed of a speaker body part (not shown), a sound emitting part 172, a recessed part 173, and a space 175.

In FIG. 7 , although the speaker body is not shown in the figure, the same structure as the speaker body 71 (71a and 71b) of the first embodiment can be applied to the structure of the speaker body. In the speaker 170, the shape of the space 175 formed by the recessed portion 173 and the sound generating portion 172 is different from that of the first embodiment.

In the first embodiment, the sound generating portion 72 of the speaker 70 is provided on a surface substantially flush with the lower surface of the front member 41 constituting the lower end portion 11 c of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . That is, the sound generating unit 72 of the speaker 70 is arranged on a substantially horizontal plane.

On the other hand, in the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7 , the sound generating unit 172 is arranged on the inclined surface 170 a that is inclined with respect to the horizontal surface. The inclined surface 170 a provided with the sound generating part 172 is inclined upward toward the front of the refrigerator 1 .

Furthermore, in a state where the refrigerating compartment door 111 and the refrigerating compartment door 13 are closed at the same time, the sound emitting unit 172 is arranged to face the upper surface 181 of the refrigerating compartment door 13 of the vegetable compartment arranged in the lower stage of the refrigerating compartment. That is, the upper surface 181 of the refrigerating compartment door 13 is a surface facing the arrangement surface of the speaker 170 . In the first embodiment, the upper surface 81 of the refrigerating compartment door 13 is an inclined surface. However, in the second embodiment, the upper surface 181 of the refrigerating compartment door 111 is a substantially horizontal surface. However, like the first embodiment, the upper surface 181 may be an inclined surface.

Therefore, in the second embodiment, the arrangement surface of the speaker 170 (that is, the inclined surface 170a) is not parallel to the upper surface 181 of the refrigerator compartment door 13 facing the arrangement surface. Thereby, the sound wave emitted from the sound generating part 172 can be prevented from being reflected by the upper surface 181 and returned to the sound generating part 172 .

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7 , the inclined surface 170 a provided in the sound generating part 172 is more preferably inclined upward toward the front of the refrigerator 1 . Thereby, the sound emitted from the speaker 170 can be conveyed more easily to the user located in front of the refrigerator 1 . In addition, since the inclined surface 170a provided with the sound generating part 172 forms a recessed portion that is recessed relative to the front portion 111a of the refrigerating compartment door 111, this recessed portion can serve as a handle of the refrigerating compartment door 111.

[Third embodiment]

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the third embodiment, the structure around the speaker arranged in the refrigerating compartment door (more specifically, the structure of the upper portion of the refrigerating compartment door in the middle section facing the speaker) is different from the first embodiment. Regarding other structures, basically the same structure as that of the first embodiment can be applied. Here, below, the structure around the speaker will be mainly described.

FIG. 8 schematically shows the cross-sectional structure of the boundary portion of the upper refrigerating compartment door 11 and the middle refrigerating compartment door 213 of the refrigerator 1 according to the third embodiment. Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the refrigerating compartment door 11 and the refrigerating compartment door 213 at a position corresponding to the A-A line shown in Fig. 6(a).

The refrigerating compartment 11 of the third embodiment has the same structure as the refrigerating compartment door 11 of the first embodiment. Therefore, detailed explanation is omitted.

The refrigerating compartment door 213 is a door of the second refrigerating compartment (vegetable compartment) located in the middle section of the refrigerator 1 . Like the refrigerating compartment door 13 of the first embodiment, the refrigerating compartment door 213 is of a pull-out type.

As shown in FIG. 8 , in a state where the refrigerating compartment door 11 and the refrigerating compartment door 213 are closed at the same time, the sound emitting part 72 of the speaker 70 is arranged to face the upper surface 281 of the refrigerating compartment door 213 . That is, the upper surface 281 of the refrigerating compartment door 213 faces the surface where the speaker 70 is arranged.

In the refrigerator 1 of the first embodiment, the upper surface 81 of the refrigerator compartment door 13 is an inclined plane. On the other hand, in the third embodiment, the upper surface 281 of the refrigerator compartment door 213 has a curved surface shape. Specifically, the upper surface 281 has a concave curved surface shape that descends from the rear side of the refrigerator compartment door 213 toward the front and further ascends toward the front. Next, with the upper surface 281 having such a shape, the handle 282 of the pull-out refrigerating compartment door 213 is formed on the upper front side of the refrigerating compartment door 213 . When opening the refrigerator compartment door 213, by holding the handle 282, the user can more easily pull out the door.

When the upper surface 281 of the refrigerating compartment door 213 is configured as described above, the sound output from the sound emitting part 72 of the speaker 70 which is provided to face downward is reflected by the concave surface formed by the handle 282 of the refrigerating compartment door 213 and is gathered in the refrigerating compartment. A narrow area near the front of the door 11 (see the arrow in FIG. 8 ). Therefore, the speaker 70 provided in the refrigerator compartment door 11 can provide high-quality sound only to the user facing the front of the refrigerator 1 . In addition, since the reflected sound is concentrated in a narrow area near the front of the refrigerator compartment door 11, even if the output of the speaker 70 is not large, clear sound can be conveyed to the user in front, and the sound from the speaker 70 is not easily reached. Other users who are far away from the refrigerator 1 can prevent other users from feeling uncomfortable due to the sound from the speaker 70 .

In addition, the upper surface 281 of the refrigerating compartment door 213 is such that the front end is located below the rear end. Thereby, sound can be efficiently outputted toward the front of the refrigerator 1 .

[Fourth Embodiment]

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the fourth embodiment, the installation position of the speaker in the refrigerator compartment door is different from the first embodiment. Regarding other structures, basically the same structure as that of the first embodiment can be applied. Here, below, the structure around the speaker will be mainly described.

FIG. 9 shows the appearance structure of the refrigerator compartment door 311 provided in the refrigerator 1 of the fourth embodiment. The refrigerating compartment door 311 is a door corresponding to the refrigerating compartment door 11 in the first embodiment. In FIG. 10, the structure of the back side of the refrigerator compartment door 311 is shown. In FIG. 11, the internal structure of the part where the speaker 370 of the refrigerator compartment door 311 is installed is shown. FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the A-A line portion of the refrigerating compartment door 311 shown in FIG. 10 .

In the refrigerator 1 of the first embodiment, the speaker 70 is arranged at the lower end portion 11 c of the refrigerator compartment door 11 . On the other hand, in the refrigerator 1 of the fourth embodiment, the speaker 370 is arranged at the right end portion (right side surface) 311e of the refrigerator compartment door 311.

Each part of the refrigerator compartment door 311 is called a front part 311a, an upper end part 311b, a lower end part 311c, a left end part 311d, and a right end part 311e based on the state attached to the refrigerator 1, respectively. In addition, in the refrigerator compartment door 311 of this embodiment, the hinge part 22 is provided in the right end part 311e, and the left end part 311d is opened. By this, the right end 311e is also called a hinge end. In addition, the left end portion 311d is also called an open end portion.

Like the first embodiment, the display panel (display unit) 50 and the touch sensor 90 are provided in the refrigerator compartment door 311 . Speaker 370 is provided on the right side (hinge side end) of refrigerator compartment door 311 (see FIG. 9 ). Next, the sound emitting part 372 of the speaker 370 is provided at the right end part 311e of the refrigerating compartment door 311.

The refrigerator compartment door 311 is mainly composed of a door back 31 (see FIG. 10 ), a front member 41 , a glass panel 51 , a display panel 50 , a heat insulation layer 25 (see FIG. 11 ), and the like.

The speaker 370 is mainly composed of a speaker body part 371 (371a and 371b), a sound emitting part 372, a recessed part 373, and a space 375. The same configuration as that of the speaker 70 of the first embodiment can be applied to the configuration of each component included in the speaker 370 . However, the shapes of the recessed portion 373 and the space 375 are different from those in the first embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 11 , the recess 373 forms the outer shape of the speaker 370 . The recess 373 is provided so as to be embedded in the side portion of the heat insulating layer 25 constituting the refrigerator compartment door 311 .

A space 375 is formed inside the recess 373 . The right end portion 311e of the refrigerator compartment door 311 is located at one end of the space 375. Next, the speaker body part 371 (371a and 371b) is arranged at one end of this space 375. In addition, the sound generating unit 372 is located at one end of this space 375 . The sound waves emitted from the speaker body 371 are reflected in the space 375 .

In the speaker 370 of this embodiment, the space 375 is once narrower on the side away from the speaker body 371 and the sound generating section 372 than on the side close to the speaker body 371 and the sound generating section 372 . Specifically, the inner dimension W2 of the space 375 corresponding to the arrangement position of the seal 21 is smaller than the inner dimension W1 of the space 375 of the speaker body 371 and the sound emitting part 372 .

Next, the space 375 becomes larger further inside than the arrangement position of the seal 21 . Specifically, the internal size of the space 375 becomes the maximum value W3 at the position where the protruding wall 32 of the door back 31 is formed.

In this way, by changing the internal dimensions in the space 375 relative to the distance from the sound emitting part 372, the resonance of the sound wave emitted from the speaker body part 371 is suppressed. Therefore, the sound quality of speaker 370 can be improved.

As for the shape of the space, as in the speaker 70 of the first embodiment, the internal size of the space 75 can be configured to become smaller as the distance from the sound emitting part 72 increases. In addition, as in the present embodiment, the internal size of the space 375 of the speaker 370 becomes narrow at the position where the seal 21 is arranged. At the position where the protruding wall 32 of the door back 31 is arranged, the internal size can also be maximized. That is, the internal dimension W of the space 375 may have the relationship W2<W1<W3.

In addition, in both the first and fourth embodiments, in the space of the speaker, there is a narrower width portion on the side farther from the sound generating unit than on the side closer to the sound generating unit of the speaker.

In addition, one end of the space 375 is preferably located near the position where the protruding wall 32 is formed. This is because the thickness of the heat insulating layer 25 becomes relatively large at the position where the protruding wall 32 is formed. Thereby, since the distance from the door back 31 to the space 375 can be ensured to a certain extent, the provision of the space 375 can suppress a relatively small decrease in the thermal insulation performance.

[Fifth embodiment]

In another aspect of the present invention, the refrigerator compartment door may be provided with only a speaker and not with a display panel. Here, in the fifth embodiment, a refrigerator without a display panel will be described.

The refrigerator 1 of the fifth embodiment differs from the refrigerator 1 of the first embodiment only in that a display panel is not provided. Regarding other structures, basically the same structure as that of the first embodiment can be applied.

The embodiments disclosed this time are illustrative in all points and should be considered non-limiting. The scope of the present invention is expressed not by the above description but by the claimed scope, and is intended to include all changes within the meaning and scope that are equivalent to the claimed scope. In addition, structures obtained by combining structures in different embodiments described in this specification are also included in the scope of the present invention.

11, 13: Refrigerator door (door)

11a: Front face

21a: ditch

25: Insulation layer (door body)

31: Door back (door body part)

32:Protruding wall (protruding portion)

51:Glass panel

70: Speaker

72: Pronunciation Department

73: concave part

81: Top (opposite side)

Claims (7)

A refrigerator includes a storage chamber that opens to the front and a door that opens and closes the opening of the storage chamber. The door is provided with: a first door having a front portion facing forward, a rear portion facing rearward, and connecting the front portion and the rear portion. A side portion connected to the outer edge of the face; a second door having a front portion facing forward, a back portion facing rearward, and a side portion connecting the front portion and the outer edge of the rear portion, one of the side portions The part is adjacent to one of the side parts of the first door in an opposite manner; and a speaker is arranged on the one side part of the first door, and the one side part of the first door is connected to the side part of the first door. A gap that is narrow on the rear side and wide on the front side is formed between the side portions of the second door. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the one side portion of the second door has an opposing surface inclined toward the front and away from the one side portion of the first door. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the one side portion of the second door has an opposing surface that is curved into a concave curved surface shape, and the curved surface-shaped opposing surface includes a side facing forward and away from the first door. A surface inclined toward the one side portion, and a surface located in front of the surface and inclined toward the front and close to the one side portion of the first door. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein a space is formed inside the first door at the installation position of the speaker; and in the space, a side farther from the sound-producing part than a side close to the sound-producing part of the speaker exists. Narrow width part. The refrigerator as described in claim 4, wherein, The first door has a sealing member for enhancing air tightness in the room when the door is closed; the space is formed from the one side portion of the first door to at least the disposition position of the sealing member. The refrigerator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the speaker is arranged at the lower part of the door. The refrigerator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first door has a display portion on the front; and two speakers are provided; and the two speakers sandwich the center position of the display portion in the width direction. Disposed on both sides respectively.