WO2017039295A1

WO2017039295A1 - Refrigerator

Info

Publication number: WO2017039295A1
Application number: PCT/KR2016/009684
Authority: WO
Inventors: 서용범; 구건표; 신춘엽; 유우열; 이정현
Original assignee: 삼성전자주식회사
Priority date: 2015-09-01
Filing date: 2016-08-31
Publication date: 2017-03-09

Abstract

A refrigerator comprises: a body having an opening and having a storage chamber disposed therein; a door for opening or closing the opening; a camera unit which is disposed at the door so as to photograph the storage chamber, and is configured to be selectively opposite to the storage chamber in connection with the opening or closing operation of the door. Accordingly, it is possible to see the inside of the storage chamber without the opening or closing of the door and minimize the exposure of the camera unit to the outside.

Description

Refrigerator

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly to a refrigerator equipped with a camera unit.

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a refrigerator is a home appliance that is provided with a storage compartment for storing food and a cold air supply device for supplying cold air to the storage compartment.

In the case of the conventional refrigerator, it could simply perform a function for storing food at a low temperature. However, in recent years, the need for additional functions in addition to the food storage function is increasing.

The refrigerator is a device for storing and storing certain objects. The refrigerator has only to be opened by checking the refrigerator door. In addition, when a user tries to buy a product at a market or a mart, when the user does not know the quantity and type of food stored in the refrigerator, there is an inconvenience of not buying the same food repeatedly or buying the necessary food.

One aspect of the present invention provides a refrigerator having a camera unit capable of photographing a storage compartment.

One aspect of the present invention provides a refrigerator having a camera unit capable of selectively photographing a storage compartment.

One aspect of the present invention provides a refrigerator having a structure for protecting a camera unit capable of photographing a storage compartment.

The refrigerator according to the spirit of the present invention has an opening and has a storage compartment provided therein; A door for opening and closing the opening; And a camera unit provided on the door and configured to photograph the storage compartment and selectively face the storage compartment in association with an opening / closing operation of the door.

The door may include a first door that opens and closes a part of the opening; A second door for opening and closing the remaining part of the opening; And a rotation bar rotatably coupled to the first door to seal the gap between the first and second doors, wherein the camera unit may be disposed on the rotation bar.

The rotation bar may include a closed position for sealing between the first and second doors when the door closes the opening; An open position that rotates from the closed position when the door opens the opening; and the camera unit faces the storage compartment when the rotation bar is in the closed position, and the rotation bar is positioned in the open position. When present, it may be configured to face the first door.

The first door may include a door shelf formed at a rear surface of the first door to accommodate the object to be cooled, and the camera unit may be provided to face the door shelf when the rotation bar is in the closed position.

The door shelf includes a shelf support part protruding from the first door to support left and right ends of the door shelf, wherein the camera unit is configured to face the shelf support part when the rotation bar is in the closed position. Can be.

The rotating bar may include an opposite surface facing the storage compartment when in the closed position, and the camera unit may be exposed to the outside through the opposite surface.

The camera unit may include a camera provided to photograph the storage compartment; The light emitting unit may be disposed adjacent to the camera and disposed to face the storage compartment.

The camera may be provided to change the photographing angle up, down, left and right.

The camera may be capable of photographing by zooming in or out of the object to be cooled in the storage compartment.

The camera unit may further include a heating unit disposed along at least a portion of the camera.

The rotating bar is provided to extend in the vertical direction to correspond to the length of the height direction of the first door, the camera unit may be arranged in a plurality of spaced apart from each other in the vertical direction in the rotation bar.

And a display unit provided at the front of the door, and information photographed by the camera unit may be output to the display unit.

Information photographed by the camera unit may be output to an external communication device.

The refrigerator according to the spirit of the present invention has an opening and has a storage compartment provided therein; A door having a first door for opening and closing a part of the opening and a second door for opening and closing a part of the opening; A rotary bar rotatably coupled to the first door to seal a gap between the first and second doors; A camera unit disposed on the rotation bar and configured to selectively photograph the storage compartment according to the position of the rotation bar.

The refrigerator according to the spirit of the present invention has an opening and has a storage compartment provided therein; A door for opening and closing the opening; A rotation bar rotatably coupled to the first door to seal the gap between the first and second doors, the closed position sealing the first and second doors and the open position rotating from the closed position Moving rotating bar; A camera unit disposed on the rotating bar and configured to be photographed, wherein the camera unit faces the storage compartment when the rotating bar is in a closed position, and faces the first door when the rotating bar is in an open position. It is configured to.

The refrigerator of the present invention includes a camera unit so that the storage compartment inside the refrigerator can be seen without opening the door.

The refrigerator of the present invention includes a camera unit for photographing the storage compartment in association with opening and closing of the door, thereby preventing the camera unit from unnecessary operation.

In the refrigerator of the present invention, the camera unit photographing the storage compartment may be interlocked with the opening and closing of the door, thereby minimizing the exposure of the camera unit to the outside, thereby preventing failure or malfunction.

1 is a view of a refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a perspective view of a rotating bar and a camera unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view of the rotating bar and the camera unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is an enlarged view of A of FIG. 3.

6 is a cross-sectional view of the rotating bar and the camera unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

7, 8, 9, 10 is a view of the operation of the rotation bar and the camera unit according to the opening and closing of the door according to an embodiment of the present invention.

11 and 12 are views of a shooting angle change operation according to the rotation of the camera according to an embodiment of the present invention.

13 is an enlarged view of a rotation bar and a camera unit according to another embodiment of the present invention.

14 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present invention.

15 is a cross-sectional view of a refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present invention.

16 is an exploded perspective view of the rotating bar and the camera unit according to another embodiment of the present invention.

17 is a flowchart of a control operation of a camera unit according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Configurations shown in the embodiments and drawings described herein are only exemplary embodiments of the disclosed invention, there may be various modifications that can replace the embodiments and drawings of the present specification at the time of filing of the present application.

In addition, the same reference numerals or signs given in each drawing of the present specification represent parts or components that perform substantially the same function.

Also, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting and / or limiting the disclosed invention. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. As used herein, the terms "comprise" or "have" are intended to indicate that there is a feature, number, step, action, component, part, or combination thereof described on the specification, and one or more other features. It does not preclude the existence or addition of numbers or steps, operations, components, parts or combinations thereof.

In addition, terms including ordinal numbers such as “first” and “second” as used herein may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited by the terms. It is used only to distinguish one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the first component may be referred to as the second component, and similarly, the second component may also be referred to as the first component. The term “and / or” includes any combination of a plurality of related items or any of a plurality of related items.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings an embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail.

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a refrigerator is a home appliance that is provided with a storage compartment for storing food and a cold air supply device for supplying cold air to the storage compartment. Types of refrigerators may be classified according to types of storage compartments and doors.

A top-mounted freezer (TMP) type refrigerator, in which a storage compartment is partitioned up and down by horizontal partitions, and a freezer compartment is formed on the upper side and a cold compartment is formed on the lower side, and a bottom mounted freezer (BMF), in which a refrigerator compartment is formed on the upper side and a freezer compartment is formed on the lower side. There is a mold refrigerator.

In addition, there is a side by side (SBS) type refrigerator in which the storage compartment is partitioned from side to side by a vertical bulkhead, a freezing compartment is formed at one side, and a refrigerating chamber is formed at the other side, and the storage compartment is divided up and down by a horizontal bulkhead, and a refrigerator compartment is formed at the upper side. And a freezer compartment is formed on the lower side, the upper side of the refrigerator has a FDR (French Door Refrigerator) type refrigerator that is opened and closed by a pair of doors.

On the other hand, the door of the refrigerator is provided with a gasket to seal the gap between the door and the main body when the door is closed.

However, in the FDR-type refrigerator, the upper refrigerating compartment is opened and closed by a pair of doors, but since vertical partitions are not provided in the refrigerating compartment, the spaced gap between the pair of doors cannot be sealed by a gasket. Swivel bars have been proposed to be rotatably installed in any one of the pair of doors to seal the spaced gaps between the pair of doors.

The refrigerator in this embodiment will be described with respect to an FDR refrigerator. However, for convenience of description, the FDR-type refrigerator will be described, but is not limited thereto.

1 is a view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The refrigerator 1 has a main body 10, a storage compartment 20 partitioned up and down inside the body 10, a door for opening and closing the storage compartment 20, and a cold air supply for supplying cold air to the storage compartment 20. Device (not shown).

The main body 10 may include an inner wound forming the storage compartment 20, an outer wound coupled to the outside of the inner wound to form an exterior, and a heat insulating material foamed between the inner wound and the outer wound to insulate the storage compartment 20. .

The cold air supply device may generate cold air by using a cooling cycle that compresses, condenses, expands, and evaporates the refrigerant.

The storage compartment 20 is provided so that the front surface is open, and may be divided into an upper refrigerating compartment 22 and a lower freezing compartment 24 by a horizontal partition wall. The refrigerating chamber 22 may be opened and closed by a pair of

doors

31 and 32 rotatably coupled to the main body 10, and the freezer compartment 24 also includes a pair of doors rotatably coupled to the main body 10. Can be opened and closed by. The shape of the door is not limited, and a sliding door for sliding and opening and closing may be applied.

The pair of

doors

31 and 32 for opening and closing the refrigerating chamber 22 may be arranged left and right. In the following description, the left door is referred to as a first door 31 and the right door is referred to as a second door 32 in the drawings. In the relationship between the door of the refrigerating compartment 22 and the door of the freezing compartment 24, for convenience of description, the door of the refrigerating compartment 22 is called the upper door 33, and the door of the freezing compartment 24 is called the lower door 34. .

The first door 31 can open and close a part of the left side of the open front opening 10a of the refrigerating compartment 22, and the second door 32 is the remaining part of the open front opening 10a of the refrigerating compartment 22. Can open and close the On the back of the first door 31 and the second door 32, a door shelf 35 for storing food may be provided.

The door shelf 35 may include a shelf support part 35a extending vertically from the first door 31 to support the door shelf 35 on both left and right sides of the door shelf 35. The shelf support part 35a may be detachably provided to the

doors

31 and 32 in a separate configuration, and is provided to extend from the

doors

31 and 32 in this embodiment.

In addition, a gasket 36 is formed on the rear edge of the first door 31 and the second door 32 to seal a gap between the first door 31 and the main body 10 in a state where the second door 32 is closed. ) May be provided.

The gasket 36 may be installed in a loop shape along the rim of the first door 31 and the second door 32, and a magnet (not shown) may be included therein.

Meanwhile, while the first door 31 and the second door 32 are closed, spaced apart gaps between the first door 31 and the second door 32 occur and the first door 31 is sealed. ), The rotation bar 100 is rotatably mounted. In this embodiment, the rotary bar 100 is rotatably provided in the first door 31, but may be applied to the second door 32.

The rotation bar 100 is provided in a bar shape along the height direction of the first door 31 and may be rotated by the guide part 50 provided in the main body 10. The guide part 50 of the main body 10 may include a guide body 52 coupled to the main body 10 and a guide groove 54 formed in the guide body 52.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a rotating bar and the camera unit according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view of the rotating bar and the camera unit according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 5 is an enlarged view of A of Figure 3, Figure 6 Is a cross-sectional view of the rotating bar and the camera unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Rotating bar 100 has a receiving space (110a) has a case 110 is opened on one side, the cover 120 is coupled to the open one surface of the case 110, the metal coupled to the outside of the cover 120 Plate 130 may be included.

The case 110 is formed as an appearance of the rotation bar 100, the receiving space 110a is formed therein and one surface is open, the open one surface may be covered by the cover 120. The case 110 may be provided with a hinge bracket coupling portion 114 to which the hinge bracket 140 is coupled. In addition, the case 110 may be formed along a length direction thereof, and may include an opposing surface 112 facing the storage compartment 20. The opposing surface 112 may be provided to expose the camera unit 160 described later.

Although not shown in this embodiment, the rotary bar 100 may further include a heat insulating member 111. The heat insulating member 111 may be disposed in the accommodation space 110a of the case 110. The heat insulating member 111 is to insulate the refrigerating chamber 22, and the material of the heat insulating member 111 is not limited. As an example of the insulation member 111 material, excellent insulation performance and light EPS (Expanded PolyStyrene) may be applied.

The hinge bracket 140 connects the fixing part 142 and the rotating bar 100 to the fixing part 142 fixed to the rear surface of the first door 31 and the rotating bar 100 to be rotatable about a rotating shaft. It may include a hinge bar (144). The fixing part 142 may be coupled to the rear surface of the first door 31 by a fastening member such as a screw.

The upper portion of the case 110 may be provided with a passage 116 so that the insertion protrusion 154 inserted into the guide groove of the guide portion 50 may protrude out of the case 110. The passage part 116 may be formed as a hole having the same shape as the insertion protrusion 154. The insertion protrusion 154 is elastically supported by the elastic member 155, and is provided to elastically pass through the passage 116 according to the position of the rotation bar 100.

However, in this embodiment, the guide portion 50 is formed on the upper portion of the main body 10 and the insertion protrusion 154 protrudes to the upper side of the rotation bar 100, the guide portion 50 of the main body 10 It is formed at the bottom, it is also possible that the insertion protrusion 154 protrudes to the lower side of the rotation bar (100). Therefore, the passage 116 of the case 110 may also be formed on the bottom surface of the case 110. The case 110 may be injection molded from a plastic material. However, the material of the case 110 is not limited.

The cover 120 may cover the open side of the case 110, and may be coupled to the open side of the case 110 after the heat insulating member 111 is inserted into the accommodation space 110a of the case 110. have.

The cover 120 has a cross section bent several times, and forms part of the side and part of the rear side of the rotation bar 100. Here, the back of the rotation bar 100 means a surface facing the gasket 36 of the door.

In detail, the cover 120 is configured to be in parallel with the first member 124 and the metal plate 130 to which the heat insulating member contact part 121 and the metal plate 130 to be described later are coupled to the heat insulating member 111. And a heat conduction blocking unit 126 for preventing heat conduction to the rotating bar, and a side forming unit 128 forming at least a part of the side surface of the rotating bar 100. The cover 120 may be integrally injection molded from a plastic material having a low thermal conductivity.

The outer side of the cover 120 is coupled to the gasket 36 by the magnetic force of the magnet included in the gasket 36 and the metal plate 130 is formed of a metal material to provide rigidity to the rotating bar 100 is to be coupled Can be.

The metal plate 130 may include a second coupling part 134 coupled to the second coupling part 134 of the cover 120, and a gasket adhesion part 136 contacting the gasket 36. . The first coupling part 124 of the cover 120 and the second coupling part 134 of the metal plate 130 may be coupled to each other by a fastening member such as a screw or an adhesive member.

In the space formed by the second coupling part 134 of the metal plate 130 and the gasket contact part 136 of the metal plate 130, the frost-forming phase of the metal plate 130 according to the temperature difference between the inside and outside of the refrigerating chamber 22 is formed. Heat generating member 138 for dissipating heat may be disposed to prevent.

In order to prevent the heat generated from the heat generating member 138 from being excessively transferred to the metal plate 130, a heating cable in which an insulating material such as silicon or FEP is coated on the heating wire is used as the heat generating member 138. Do.

The heat generating member 138 may be disposed to be in line contact with the metal plate 130 rather than in surface contact with the metal plate 130 so as to transfer only a minimum amount of heat to prevent the implantation on the metal plate.

On the other hand, the heat conduction blocking portion 126 of the cover 120 and the gasket contact portion 136 of the metal plate together to form the back of the rotary bar (100). The central portion of the rear surface of the rotary bar 100 is formed by the gasket contact portion 136 of the metal plate, and the peripheral portion of both sides of the rear surface of the rotary bar 100 is formed by the heat conduction blocking portion 126 of the cover 120.

With the above configuration, the rotary bar 100 is in close contact with the gasket 36 of the first door 31 and the second door 32 while the first door 31 and the second door 32 are closed. While sealing the gap between the first door 31 and the second door 32, the heat generated from the heat generating member 138 of the rotating bar 100 can be minimized to penetrate into the refrigerating chamber 22.

Therefore, the heat insulating performance of the rotating bar 100 is improved, as well as the heat loss of the heat generating member 138 is minimized, thereby saving energy for preventing the implantation on the rotating bar 100.

On the other hand, the upper and lower ends of the rotary bar 100 may be provided with a sealing member 146 for sealing the spaced gap between the rotary bar 100 and the main body 10 in a state in which the

doors

31 and 32 are closed. have.

The upper sealing member 146 and the lower sealing member 146 may be provided to seal a gap between the guide part 50 of the main body 10 and the rotation bar 100 in a state where the door is closed. When the guide part 50 is provided on the upper portion of the main body 10, the sealing member 146 may seal a gap between the guide part 50 and the rotation bar 100.

The sealing member 146 is formed of a flexible material such as rubber with the main body 10 to smoothly seal the gap between the main body 10 and the rotary bar 100 without being damaged by a collision.

The refrigerator 1 may include a camera unit 160. The camera unit 160 is provided so that the internal state of the storage compartment 20 can be seen from the outside without opening the door. Information captured by the camera unit 160 of the storage compartment 20 may be provided to be transmitted to a display unit or an external communication device (not shown).

The camera unit 160 is provided in the door to photograph the storage room 20, and transmits the photographed information to the display unit 38 outside the refrigerator 1 or to a communication device outside the refrigerator 1. The user may view the photographed information through the display unit or through an external communication device.

The camera unit 160 may be provided on the rotation bar 100. In detail, the camera unit 160 is provided to be exposed to the opposing surface 112 of the rotation bar 100. The rotating bar 100 is provided to rotate in conjunction with the opening and closing operations of the

doors

31 and 32, and thus the opposite surface 112 of the rotating bar 100 is also linked with the opening and closing operations of the

doors

31 and 32 to store the storage compartment. It is arranged to face (20). In addition, the camera unit 160 exposed to the opposite surface 112 is also provided to selectively face the storage compartment 20 in conjunction with the opening and closing operation of the door. In detail, since the rotation bar 100 is rotatably provided with respect to the first door 31, the camera unit 160 is selectively configured to face the storage compartment 20 in association with the opening / closing operation of the door.

Since the rotation bar 100 is provided in the shape of a bar extending vertically along the height direction of the first door 31, the camera units 160 may have a plurality of mutually spaced up and down along the height direction of the first door 31. Can be placed and placed. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and one camera unit 160 may be provided on the rotation bar 100 to photograph the storage compartment 20.

The camera unit 160 may include a camera 162 and a light emitter 164.

The camera 162 is provided to photograph the storage room 20. The camera 162 is provided to be exposed to the outside of the rotation bar 100 through the first through hole 118 formed on the opposing surface 112. In order to prevent moisture from flowing between the camera 162 and the first through hole 118, a sealing member (not shown) may be provided between the camera 162 and the through hole 118. 11 and 12, the camera 162 may switch a certain angle direction up, down, left, and right, and may zoom in or zoom out to enlarge or reduce a specific to-be-cooled object.

The light emitter 164 is disposed adjacent to the camera 162, so that a bright image is obtained by irradiating light to a portion photographed by the camera 162. The light emitting unit 164 is provided to be exposed to the outside of the rotation bar 100 through the second through hole 119 formed on the opposite surface 112. The light emitting unit 164 is installed on the rotation bar 100 together with the camera 162 and is provided to be exposed to the outside through the opposing surface 112. The number and arrangement of the light emitting units 164 are not limited, but in the present embodiment, one light emitting unit 164 is provided under the camera 162. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the light emitter 164 may include at least one light emitter 164 along the circumference of the camera 162. The light emitter 164 may include an LED.

The camera unit 160 may include a data transmission device (not shown). The data transmission device is electrically connected to the camera 162 and is provided to transmit an image photographed by the camera 162 to a display unit 38 of the refrigerator 1 or a communication device outside the refrigerator 1. The data transmission device may be directly connected to a control unit (not shown) by a wire, or a separate wireless device may be provided to wirelessly transmit image information.

Referring to FIG. 5, the camera unit 160 may include a heating unit 150. The heating unit 150 may be disposed along at least a portion of the camera 162 to apply heat to the camera 162. The heating unit 150 is provided to be adjacent to the camera 162 to prevent frost from occurring in the camera 162. When the rotary bar 100 is in the closed position 100a, the cold bar of the storage compartment 20 is exposed. When the

doors

31 and 32 are opened after this state continues, the camera unit 160 of the rotation bar 100 may come into contact with relatively warm air from outside and may cause frost. The heating unit 150 is provided to transfer heat to the camera unit 160 to prevent the frost of the camera unit 160.

Embodiment of the heating unit 150 may be applied in various ways. For example, in the present embodiment, the heating unit 150 may include a hot wire formed along the circumference of the camera unit 160. The heating unit 150 may be provided in the case 110 of the rotation bar 100 to be adjacent to the camera 162. The heating unit 150 may be installed along the circumference of the camera 162 to transmit heat to the camera 162 so that frost does not occur in the camera 162.

Hereinafter, the operation of the refrigerator 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

7, 8, 9, 10 are views of the operation of the rotation bar and the camera unit according to the opening and closing of the door according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 11, 12 is a view of the rotation of the camera according to an embodiment of the present invention It is a figure which concerns on a photographing angle change operation.

The rotating bar 100 may be rotatably mounted to the first door 31. In detail, the rotation bar 100 may be rotatably mounted to the closed position 100a and the open position 100b at the first door 31. The closed position 100a of the rotation bar 100 is a position that seals between the first and

second doors

31 and 32 when the first and

second doors

31 and 32 close the opening 10a. The open position 100b of the rotation bar 100 is a position where the rotation bar 100 rotates from the closed position 100a. When the rotation bar 100 is in the open position 100b, the rotation bar 100 is positioned perpendicular to the first door 31 so as not to interfere with the second door 32. The camera 162 is disposed to face the storage compartment 20 when the rotation bar 100 is in the closed position 100a, and the first door 31 and the rotation bar 100 when the rotation bar 100 is in the open position 100b. Can face. The rear surface of the first door 31 may include a door shelf 35 for receiving the object to be cooled. When the rotation bar 100 is in the open position 100b, the camera 162 is provided to face the door shelf 35 of the first door 31. In detail, when the rotation bar 100 is in the open position 100b, the camera 162 may be provided to face the shelf support part 35a.

Through this operation, the camera 162 may photograph the storage compartment 20 when the rotation bar 100 is located at the closed position 100a, so that the user may know the state of the storage compartment 20 without opening the door. . In addition, when the user opens the door, since the rotation bar 100 moves to the open position 100b, the camera 162 faces the shelf support part 35a protruding from the first door 31 to the outside. Minimize your exposure. This can prevent malfunction or damage of the camera 162 due to external influences.

The camera 162 may be provided to operate only when the rotation bar 100 is in the closed position 100a. In addition, when the rotation bar 100 is in the closed position 100a, the camera 162 may change the shooting range by rotating the predetermined angle up, down, left, and right as described above, and zoom-in and zoom-out out) to enlarge and photograph the object to be cooled, or photograph the plurality of objects to be cooled together.

The controller (not shown) determines whether the rotary bar 100 is in the closed position 100a or the open position 100b, so that the storage bar 20 only when the rotary bar 100 is in the closed position 100a. ) Can be arranged to shoot.

Hereinafter, a refrigerator 1 according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described. A description of a configuration that overlaps with the above-described configuration will be omitted.

13 is an enlarged view of a rotating bar and a camera unit according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The camera unit 260 may include a camera 262 and a plurality of light emitters 264.

The plurality of light emitters 264 may be spaced apart from each other along the circumference of the camera 262. The plurality of light emitters 264 irradiates light to a portion photographed by the camera 262 to obtain a bright image. The plurality of light emitters 264 may include LEDs.

The plurality of light emitting units 264 may prevent the frost of the camera 262 from being implanted by heat generated while irradiating light. That is, the plurality of light emitters 264 may function as a heat source to remove frost of the camera 262. The number and arrangement of the plurality of light emitters 264 is not limited, but may be disposed at a predetermined interval along the periphery of the camera 262 to provide a uniform heat as a whole to the camera 262.

Hereinafter, a refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described. A description of a configuration that overlaps with the above-described configuration will be omitted.

14 is a perspective view of a refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 15 is a sectional view of a refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 16 is an exploded view of a rotating bar and a camera unit according to another embodiment of the present invention. Perspective view.

The refrigerating compartment 23 may be partitioned by at least one shelf 25. In addition, the refrigerating compartment 23 may further include a refrigerating compartment 23d formed in a drawer type. In the present embodiment, the refrigerating compartment 23 may include a pair of shelves 25 and one refrigerating compartment 23d. The refrigerating compartment 23 may be partitioned into first to

third refrigerating spaces

23a, 23b and 23c by a pair of shelves 25. An ice making unit 28 may be provided in the first refrigerating space 23a. Ice generated in the ice making unit 28 may be provided to be discharged to the front of the door 31 through the dispenser assembly 29.

The camera unit 360 may include a camera 362 and a heating unit 364. The camera 362 is provided to photograph the refrigerating chamber 23.

The heating unit 364 may be formed as a module with the camera 362. The heating unit 364 is formed as a module together with the camera 362, thereby preventing frost from occurring in the camera 362 by applying heat to the camera 362. The heating unit 364 may be turned on or off with the camera 362, or may be turned on and off with a separate power source from the camera 362.

The plurality of camera units 360 may be disposed at a distance from each other in the vertical direction along the height direction of the first door 31. In this embodiment, a pair of camera units 360 may be provided. The arrangement of the camera unit 360 is not limited. In this embodiment, as an example, the first camera unit 360a is arranged to photograph the first refrigerated space 23a, and the second camera unit 360b is photographed to capture the second and third

refrigerated spaces

23b and 23c. Is placed.

Hereinafter, a method of controlling the camera unit 360 according to the above configuration will be described.

17 is a flowchart illustrating a control operation of a camera unit according to another embodiment of the present invention.

When the

doors

31 and 32 are opened (S110), the heating unit 364 operates (S120). The heating unit 364 may prevent frost from occurring in the camera 362.

When the door is opened to close the refrigerator in the state in which the refrigerating chamber 23 is opened to close the refrigerating chamber 23 (YES in S130), power is supplied to the camera 362 (S140). If the door is not closed while the refrigerating chamber 23 is open (NO in S130), power is not supplied to the camera 362 until the door is closed.

After the power is turned on to the camera 362, the state is maintained for a predetermined time (S150). The predetermined time means a time when the heating unit 364 sufficiently heats the camera 362 to maintain a state in which no frost occurs in the camera 362. The constant time may be approximately 150 seconds.

After waiting for a predetermined time, the interior lamp is turned on in the refrigerating chamber 23 (S160). The interior lamp is provided to irradiate light into the refrigerating chamber 23 so that the camera 362 can photograph the inside of the refrigerating chamber 23. Arrangement and the number of interior lamps are not limited.

After the interior lamp is turned on, the camera 362 is operated to be able to photograph the interior of the refrigerating chamber 23 (S170). That is, the camera 362 is in a state capable of capturing the interior of the refrigerating chamber 23 in accordance with the illuminance of the refrigerating chamber 23 that changes as the interior lamp is turned on.

After the camera 362 is manipulated, the camera 362 takes a picture of the inside of the refrigerating chamber 23 (S180).

The image captured by the camera 362 may be stored in a system storage unit (not shown) inside the refrigerator. In addition, the captured image is transferred to the display unit 38 or an external communication device (not shown) so that the user can view it. The stored image is stored along with the previously photographed image, so that the user can compare the previously photographed image with the currently photographed image. [0049] The specific embodiments have been illustrated and described above. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and those skilled in the art may make various changes without departing from the spirit of the technical idea of the invention as set forth in the claims below. .

Claims

A main body having an opening and provided with a storage compartment therein;

A door for opening and closing the opening;

And a camera unit provided on the door and configured to photograph the storage compartment and selectively face the storage compartment in association with an opening / closing operation of the door.
The method of claim 1,

The door is

A first door that opens and closes a portion of the opening;

A second door for opening and closing the remaining part of the opening;

And a rotation bar rotatably coupled to the first door to seal the gap between the first and second doors.

The camera unit,

A refrigerator disposed on the rotating bar.
The method of claim 2,

The rotating bar,

A closed position for sealing between the first and second doors when the door closes the opening;

Moving the door from the closed position when the door opens the opening;

The camera unit,

When the rotating bar is in the closed position, facing the storage compartment,

A refrigerator configured to face the first door when the rotating bar is in the open position.
The method of claim 3, wherein

The first door,

A door shelf formed on the rear surface to accommodate the object to be cooled;

The camera unit,

And the rotating bar is provided to face the door shelf when the rotating bar is in the closed position.
The method of claim 4, wherein

The door shelf,

And shelf support parts protruding from the first door to support left and right ends of the door shelf.

The camera unit is configured to face the shelf support when the rotary bar is in the closed position.
The method of claim 2,

The rotating bar,

A counter surface facing the storage compartment when in the closed position;

The camera unit,

A refrigerator exposed to the outside through the opposite surface.
The method of claim 1,

The camera unit,

A camera provided to photograph the storage room;

And a light emitting part disposed adjacent to the camera and disposed to face the storage compartment.
The method of claim 7, wherein

The camera,

Refrigerator is provided to change the shooting angle up, down, left and right.
The method of claim 7, wherein

The camera,

A refrigerator capable of photographing by zooming in or out of an object to be cooled in the storage compartment.
The method of claim 7, wherein

The camera unit,

And a heating unit disposed along at least a portion of the camera.
The method of claim 2,

The rotating bar,

It is provided long in the vertical direction to correspond to the length of the height direction of the first door,

The camera unit,

A refrigerator in which a plurality of spaced apart from each other along the vertical direction in the rotation bar.
The method of claim 1,

And a display unit provided at the front of the door.

The information taken by the camera unit,

A refrigerator output to the display unit.
The method of claim 1,

The information taken by the camera unit,

Refrigerator output to external communication device.