JP6825328B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a refrigerator.

Refrigerators include a main body with a heat-insulated storage chamber, the storage chamber has a plurality of compartments inside, and at least one of the plurality of compartments is provided with an LED as a light source having a wavelength in the ultraviolet region. Is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2007-003174

However, in a refrigerator as shown in Patent Document 1, the timing of irradiating the inside of the storage chamber with ultraviolet light is not sufficiently considered. For this reason, microorganisms such as fungi that have entered the inside of the storage chamber may temporarily proliferate before being irradiated with ultraviolet light and adhere to the food inside the storage chamber. On the contrary, unnecessary irradiation with ultraviolet light may cause extra energy consumption.

The present invention has been made to solve such a problem. The purpose is to irradiate ultraviolet light at an appropriate timing, suppress unnecessary ultraviolet light irradiation, reduce energy consumption, and effectively grow microorganisms such as fungi inside the storage chamber. To get a refrigerator that can be suppressed.

The refrigerator according to the present invention includes a storage chamber for storing food, a storage case detachably provided inside the storage chamber for storing food, a door for opening and closing the storage chamber, and opening and closing of the door. An opening / closing detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a stored object stored inside the storage chamber , an ultraviolet light source for irradiating the inside of the storage chamber with light including a wavelength in the ultraviolet light region, The ultraviolet light source includes a storage case detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the storage case inside the storage chamber, and the ultraviolet light source emits light while the open / close detecting means detects that the door is open. After the irradiation is stopped and the open / close detection means detects that the door is closed , if the stored item detecting means detects that there is an stored item, light is irradiated for the first duration and the stored item is stored. When the stored object detecting means detects that there is no storage case and the storage case detecting means detects that the storage case is present, the light is irradiated for a second duration shorter than the first duration. When the storage case detecting means detects that the storage case does not exist, the light irradiation is continuously stopped .
Alternatively, the refrigerator according to the present invention includes a storage chamber for storing food, a storage case detachably provided inside the storage chamber for storing food, a photocatalyst unit provided in the storage case, and the above. A door that can open and close the storage chamber, an open / close detection means that detects the opening and closing of the door, an excitation light source that irradiates the inside of the storage chamber with light containing a wavelength that can excite the photocatalyst unit, and the inside of the storage chamber. The excitation light source includes a stored object detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a stored object stored in the storage chamber and a storage case detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the storage case inside the storage chamber, and the excitation light source has the door opened. The light irradiation is stopped while the opening / closing detecting means detects that the door is closed, and after the opening / closing detecting means detects that the door is closed, the stored item detecting means detects that there is an stored item. If this is the case, the light is irradiated for only the first duration, and if the stored object detecting means detects that there is no stored object and the storage case detecting means detects that there is the stored case, the first Light is irradiated for a second duration shorter than the duration of 1, and when the storage case detecting means detects that the storage case is absent, the light irradiation is continuously stopped.

The refrigerator according to the present invention irradiates ultraviolet light at an appropriate timing, suppresses unnecessary irradiation of ultraviolet light, reduces energy consumption, and promotes the growth of microorganisms such as fungi inside the storage chamber. It has the effect of being able to be effectively suppressed.

It is a front view of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a vertical sectional view of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the vegetable compartment part of FIG. 2 in an enlarged manner. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control system of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a time chart of the light irradiation control of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flow chart which shows the flow of the light irradiation control of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the relationship between the irradiation time of ultraviolet light (wavelength 360 nm), and the change in the number of bacteria. FIG. 5 is an enlarged vertical sectional view showing a vegetable compartment portion of the refrigerator according to the second embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the light emitting part provided in the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control system of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control device provided in the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a time chart of the light irradiation control of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a flow chart which shows the flow of the light irradiation control of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. FIG. 5 is an enlarged vertical sectional view showing a portion of a refrigerator compartment according to a third embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control system of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control device provided in the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a time chart of the light irradiation control of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a flow chart which shows the flow of the light irradiation control of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention. FIG. 5 is an enlarged vertical sectional view showing a refrigerator compartment portion according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control system of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control device provided in the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a flow chart which shows the flow of the light irradiation control of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 4 of this invention.

A mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In each figure, the same or corresponding parts are designated by the same reference numerals, and duplicate description will be appropriately simplified or omitted. The present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Embodiment 1.
1 to 7 relate to the first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is a front view of the refrigerator, FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the refrigerator, and FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the vegetable compartment portion of FIG. FIG. 4, FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the refrigerator, FIG. 5 is a time chart of light irradiation control of the refrigerator, FIG. 6 is a flow diagram showing the flow of light irradiation control of the refrigerator, and FIG. 7 is ultraviolet light (wavelength). It is a figure which shows an example of the relationship between the irradiation time of 360 nm) and the change in the number of bacteria.

In each drawing, the dimensional relationship and shape of each component may differ from the actual ones. In addition, the positional relationship between the constituent members (for example, the vertical relationship, etc.) is, in principle, the one when the refrigerator is installed in a usable state.

(Composition of refrigerator)
The refrigerator 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention has a heat insulating box 90 as shown in FIG. The front surface (front surface) of the heat insulating box body 90 is opened to form a storage space inside. The heat insulating box body 90 has an outer box, an inner box, and a heat insulating material. The outer box is made of steel. The inner box is made of resin. The inner box is placed inside the outer box. The heat insulating material is, for example, urethane foam or the like, and is filled in the space between the outer box and the inner box. The storage space formed inside the heat insulating box 90 is divided into a plurality of storage chambers for storing and storing food by one or a plurality of partition members.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, here, the refrigerator 1 includes, for example, a refrigerating room 100, a switching room 200, an ice making room 300, a freezing room 400, and a vegetable room 500 as a plurality of storage rooms. These storage chambers are arranged in a heat insulating box 90 in a four-stage structure in the vertical direction.

The refrigerating chamber 100 is arranged at the uppermost stage of the heat insulating box body 90. The switching chamber 200 is arranged on one side below the refrigerating chamber 100 on the left and right sides. The cold insulation temperature zone of the switching chamber 200 can be switched by selecting any one of a plurality of temperature zones. The plurality of temperature zones that can be selected as the cold storage temperature zone of the switching chamber 200 include, for example, a freezing temperature zone (for example, about -18 ° C.), a refrigerating temperature zone (for example, about 3 ° C.), a chilled temperature zone (for example, about 0 ° C.), and the like. It is in a soft freezing temperature range (for example, about -7 ° C.). The ice making chamber 300 is arranged adjacent to the side of the switching chamber 200 and in parallel with the switching chamber 200, that is, on the left and right other sides below the refrigerating chamber 100.

The freezing chamber 400 is arranged below the switching chamber 200 and the ice making chamber 300. The freezing chamber 400 is mainly for use when the storage object is frozen and stored for a relatively long period of time. The vegetable compartment 500 is arranged at the lowermost stage below the freezer compartment 400. The vegetable compartment 500 is mainly for storing vegetables and large PET bottles having a large capacity (for example, 2 L or the like).

A rotary refrigerating room door 7 for opening and closing the opening is provided in the opening formed on the front surface of the refrigerating room 100. Here, the refrigerator compartment door 7 is a double door type (double door type), and is composed of a right door 7a and a left door 7b. An operation panel 6 is provided on the outer surface of the refrigerator compartment door 7 (for example, the left door 7b) on the front surface of the refrigerator 1. The operation panel 6 includes an operation unit 6a and a display unit 6b. The operation unit 6a is an operation switch for setting the cold storage temperature of each storage room and the operation mode (thawing mode, etc.) of the refrigerator 1. The display unit 6b is a liquid crystal display that displays various information such as the temperature of each storage chamber. The operation panel 6 may include a touch panel that also serves as an operation unit 6a and a display unit 6b.

Each storage room (switching room 200, ice making room 300, freezing room 400, and vegetable room 500) other than the refrigerating room 100 is opened and closed by a drawer-type door. These pull-out doors have a frame fixed to the door and slid with respect to rails formed horizontally on the left and right inner wall surfaces of each storage chamber, thereby causing the refrigerator 1 to be in the depth direction (front-back direction). It can be opened and closed.

Further, inside the switching chamber 200 and inside the freezing chamber 400, a switching chamber storage case 201 and a freezing chamber storage case 401 that can store foods and the like are stored in a drawer-free manner. Similarly, in the vegetable compartment 500, an upper storage case 11 and a lower storage case 10 capable of storing food and the like are stored in a drawer-free manner.

(Cooling mechanism)
The refrigerator 1 includes a refrigeration cycle circuit that cools the air supplied to each storage chamber. The refrigeration cycle circuit is composed of a compressor 2, a condenser (not shown), a drawing device (not shown), a cooler 3, and the like. The compressor 2 compresses and discharges the refrigerant in the refrigeration cycle circuit. The condenser condenses the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 2. The drawing device expands the refrigerant flowing out of the condenser. The cooler 3 cools the air supplied to each storage chamber by the refrigerant expanded by the throttle device. The compressor 2 is arranged, for example, in the lower part on the back side of the refrigerator 1.

The refrigerator 1 is formed with an air passage 5 for supplying air cooled by the refrigeration cycle circuit to each storage chamber. The air passage 5 is mainly arranged on the back side in the refrigerator 1. The cooler 3 of the refrigeration cycle circuit is installed in the air passage 5. Further, in the air passage 5, a blower fan 4 for sending the air cooled by the cooler 3 to each storage chamber is also installed.

When the blower fan 4 operates, the air (cold air) cooled by the cooler 3 is sent through the air passage 5 to the freezing chamber 400, the switching chamber 200, the ice making chamber 300, and the refrigerating chamber 100, and these storage chambers are moved. Cooling. The vegetable compartment 500 is cooled by introducing the return cold air from the refrigerator compartment 100 into the vegetable compartment 500 via the return air passage for the refrigerator compartment. The cold air that has cooled the vegetable compartment 500 is returned to the air passage 5 where the cooler 3 is located through the return air passage for the vegetable chamber (these return air passages are not shown). Then, it is cooled again by the cooler 3, and cold air is circulated in the refrigerator 1.

A damper (not shown) is provided in the middle of the passage from the air passage 5 to each storage chamber. Each damper opens and closes a portion leading to each storage chamber of the air passage 5. By changing the open / closed state of the damper, the amount of cold air supplied to each storage chamber can be adjusted. Further, the temperature of the cold air can be adjusted by controlling the operation of the compressor 2.

The refrigeration cycle circuit including the compressor 2 and the cooler 3 provided as described above, the blower fan 4, the air passage 5, and the damper constitute a cooling means for cooling the inside of the storage chamber.

The control device 8 is housed in the upper part of the refrigerator 1 on the back side, for example. The control device 8 is provided with a control circuit and the like for performing various controls necessary for the operation of the refrigerator 1. As a control circuit included in the control device 8, for example, a circuit for controlling the operation of the compressor 2 and the blower fan 4 and the opening degree of the damper based on the temperature in each storage chamber and the information input to the operation panel 6 is provided. Can be mentioned. That is, the control device 8 controls the cooling means and the like described above to control the operation of the refrigerator 1. The temperature in each storage chamber can be detected by a thermistor or the like installed in each storage chamber.

(Composition of vegetable room)
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a vegetable compartment 500 portion included in the refrigerator 1. The vegetable compartment 500 is a storage chamber for storing foods, particularly vegetables. The vegetable room door 9 is a door that can open and close the vegetable room 500, which is a storage room. The lower storage case 10 is supported by a frame (not shown) of the vegetable compartment door 9. The upper storage case 11 is placed on the upper side of the lower storage case 10. When the vegetable compartment door 9 is pulled forward, the lower storage case 10 and the upper storage case 11 are pulled forward together with the vegetable compartment door 9. When only the upper storage case 11 is slid backward with the vegetable compartment door 9 pulled out, only the lower storage case 10 is pulled out. When only the lower storage case 10 is pulled out, food can be taken in and out of the lower storage case 10.

The refrigerator 1 includes a door open / close detection switch 20. The door open / close detection switch 20 is for detecting the open / closed state of the vegetable compartment door 9. The door open / close detection switch 20 is provided at a position facing the vegetable compartment door 9 at the edge of the front opening of the vegetable compartment 500. The door open / close detection switch 20 is, for example, a general magnet type switch. That is, for example, the proximity of the magnet embedded in the vegetable compartment door 9 is detected by a pair of reed switches installed in the heat insulating box 90 on the main body side of the refrigerator 1. The door open / close detection switch 20 according to the first embodiment of the present invention constitutes an open / close detection means for detecting the open / close of the vegetable compartment door 9.

A thermistor 13 and a light emitting unit 14 are attached to the back surface of the vegetable compartment 500. The thermistor 13 detects the temperature inside the vegetable compartment 500. The light emitting unit 14 can irradiate the inside of the vegetable compartment 500, which is a storage chamber, with light. In the first embodiment, the light emitted by the light emitting unit 14 is light including a wavelength in the ultraviolet light region. Specifically, the light emitting unit 14 irradiates light having a wavelength of 315 nm or more and 380 nm or less. In particular, it is preferable that the spectrum of the light emitted by the light emitting unit 14 has a peak in the wavelength range of 315 nm or more and 380 nm or less. In this way, the light emitting unit 14 in the first embodiment of the present invention constitutes an ultraviolet light source that irradiates the inside of the vegetable compartment 500, which is a storage chamber, with light including a wavelength in the ultraviolet light region.

Here, an opening 15 is formed in a portion of the back surface of the lower storage case 10 facing the light emitting portion 14. Then, the light emitting unit 14 can irradiate the inside of the lower storage case 10 with ultraviolet light through the opening 15. It should be noted that a material having a property of transmitting ultraviolet light emitted from the light emitting portion 14 to at least a portion corresponding to the opening 15 of the lower storage case 10 may be used.

(Refrigerator control system)
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the control system of the refrigerator 1. The control device 8 includes, for example, a microcomputer, and includes a processor 8a and a memory 8b. The control device 8 controls the refrigerator 1 by executing a preset process by the processor 8a executing the program stored in the memory 8b.

A detection signal of the temperature inside the vegetable compartment 500 is input from the thermistor 13 to the control device 8. Further, an operation signal from the operation unit 6a of the operation panel 6 is also input to the control device 8. Further, a detection signal from the door open / close detection switch 20 is also input to the control device 8.

Based on the input signal, the control device 8 executes a process of controlling the operation of the compressor 2 and the blower fan 4 so that the inside of the vegetable compartment 500 is maintained at a set temperature. The control device 8 also outputs a control signal to the light emitting unit 14 to control the light emitting operation of the light emitting unit 14. Further, the control device 8 outputs a display signal to the display unit 6b of the operation panel 6 to control the display operation of the display unit 6b.

(Light irradiation control)
Next, the light emitting operation control of the light emitting unit 14 by the control device 8 will be described with reference to FIG. The control device 8 stops the irradiation of ultraviolet light from the light emitting unit 14 while the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is open. That is, under the control of the control device 8, the light emitting unit 14 stops the irradiation of light while the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is open.

Then, the control device 8 starts irradiating the ultraviolet light from the light emitting unit 14 after the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed. That is, under the control of the control device 8, the light emitting unit 14 starts irradiating light after the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed. In addition, "the vegetable room door 9 is closed" here means that the vegetable room door 9 has changed from the open state to the closed state.

Further, the control device 8 continuously irradiates the light emitting unit 14 with ultraviolet light until a preset duration ΔT elapses after the start of the ultraviolet light irradiation of the light emitting unit 14. When the duration ΔT elapses from the start of irradiation, the control device 8 stops the irradiation of ultraviolet light from the light emitting unit 14. That is, under the control of the control device 8, the light emitting unit 14 irradiates light for a preset duration ΔT after the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed. The duration ΔT is specifically, for example, 2 hours.

Next, a series of flows related to the control of the light emitting unit 14 included in the refrigerator 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to the flow chart of FIG. First, in step S101, the control device 8 confirms whether or not the door open / close detection switch 20 has detected that the vegetable compartment door 9 has been opened. If the door open / close detection switch 20 does not detect that the vegetable room door 9 has opened, the confirmation process of step S101 is repeated until the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable room door 9 has opened. Then, when the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable room door 9 has been opened, the process proceeds to step S102.

In step S102, the control device 8 confirms whether or not the door open / close detection switch 20 has detected that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed. If the door open / close detection switch 20 does not detect that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed, the confirmation process of step S102 is repeated until the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed. Then, when the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed, the process proceeds to step S103.

In step S103, the control device 8 sets the value of the timer variable t to 0. The variable t of this timer is for counting the elapsed time. The timer function is built in, for example, the control device 8. After step S103, the process proceeds to step S104.

In step S104, the control device 8 turns on the light emitting unit 14. That is, the control device 8 lights the light emitting unit 14, and the light emitting unit 14 starts irradiation with ultraviolet light. After step S104, the process proceeds to step S105.

In step S105, the control device 8 confirms whether or not the value of the timer variable t has reached the preset duration ΔT. If the variable t has not yet reached the duration ΔT, the confirmation process in step S105 is repeated until the variable t reaches the duration ΔT. Then, when the duration ΔT elapses from step S103 and the variable t becomes the duration ΔT, the process proceeds to step S106.

In step S106, the control device 8 turns off the light emitting unit 14. That is, the control device 8 turns off the light emitting unit 14, and the light emitting unit 14 stops the irradiation of ultraviolet light. After step S106, the process returns to step S101.

(Action by UV irradiation)
Next, the expected action of the ultraviolet light irradiation from the light emitting unit 14 as described above will be described. Ultraviolet light has the effect of suppressing the growth of bacteria. Therefore, by irradiating the object with light including ultraviolet light from the light emitting unit 14, the growth of bacteria in the object can be suppressed. When the vegetable compartment door 9 is opened, it is conceivable that bacteria and the like floating outside the vegetable compartment 500 flow into the inside of the vegetable compartment 500. At this time, if bacteria adhere to the lower storage case 10 or the food to be stored, the food may be spoiled.

According to the refrigerator 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention, by irradiating the inside of the vegetable compartment 500 with light including ultraviolet light for a certain period of time after opening and closing the vegetable compartment door 9, bacteria are generated inside the vegetable compartment 500. Even when it flows in, the growth of bacteria can be suppressed. Therefore, the inside of the vegetable compartment 500 can be kept hygienic, spoilage of the stored food can be suppressed, and the food can be made to last for a long time.

Here, as described above, the light emitting unit 14 irradiates light containing a wavelength of 315 nm or more and 380 nm or less. FIG. 7 shows the change over time in the number of bacteria when irradiated with light having a wavelength of 360 nm. The wavelength of 360 nm is a relatively long wavelength in ultraviolet light. As shown in the figure, even with ultraviolet light having a relatively long wavelength, the viable cell count can be reduced by two orders of magnitude (99% reduction) by irradiating with ultraviolet light for about 2 hours.

Therefore, by setting the duration ΔT to 2 hours as described above, the growth of the bacterium can be sufficiently suppressed, and then the irradiation of light can be stopped to suppress wasteful energy consumption. Further, by using light having a relatively long wavelength even in the ultraviolet light region of 315 nm or more and 380 nm or less, deterioration of resin parts, food packaging materials, etc. in the vegetable compartment 500 can be prevented from occurring. That is, it is possible to sufficiently suppress the growth of bacteria while suppressing the deterioration of the plastic resin and the like used for the refrigerator 1 and the packaging material of the stored items.

Further, by starting the irradiation of ultraviolet light after the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable room door 9 is closed, the ultraviolet light is not irradiated in the state where the vegetable room door 9 is open. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ultraviolet light from directly or reflecting and hitting the user.

The refrigerator configured as described above includes, for example, a vegetable compartment 500 which is a storage chamber for storing food, a door 9 for which the storage chamber can be opened and closed, and an open / close detecting means for detecting the opening / closing of the door. A door open / close detection switch 20 and a light emitting unit 14 which is an ultraviolet light source that irradiates the inside of the storage chamber with light including a wavelength in the ultraviolet light region are provided. Then, the ultraviolet light source stops the irradiation of light while the opening / closing detecting means detects that the door is open, and starts the irradiation of light after the opening / closing detecting means detects that the door is closed.

Therefore, while the door of the storage room is open, the ultraviolet light source can be turned off to suppress unnecessary energy consumption. Then, by turning on the ultraviolet light source after the door of the storage room is closed, it is possible to suppress the growth of microorganisms such as fungi that may have invaded the inside of the storage room by opening and closing the door of the storage room. Is. Therefore, it is possible to irradiate ultraviolet light at an appropriate timing, suppress unnecessary irradiation of ultraviolet light, reduce energy consumption, and effectively suppress the growth of microorganisms such as fungi inside the storage chamber. be able to. Then, it is possible to keep the inside of the refrigerator hygienic and improve the storage stability of food.

Embodiment 2.
8 to 13 are related to the second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 8 is a vertical sectional view showing an enlarged vegetable compartment portion of the refrigerator, and FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration of a light emitting portion included in the refrigerator. 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the refrigerator, FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control device included in the refrigerator, FIG. 12 is a time chart of light irradiation control of the refrigerator, and FIG. 13 is a light irradiation control of the refrigerator. It is a flow diagram which shows the flow.

In the second embodiment described here, in the configuration of the first embodiment described above, the duration of irradiation of ultraviolet light when there is no stored object inside the storage chamber is set, and when there is a stored object inside the storage chamber. It is designed to be shorter than the irradiation duration of ultraviolet light. Hereinafter, the refrigerator according to the second embodiment will be described focusing on the differences from the first embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 8, the refrigerator 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes an in-compartment camera 16. The camera 16 in the refrigerator is a camera that photographs the inside of the storage room of the refrigerator 1, here the vegetable room 500, and outputs an image of the storage room. The camera 16 in the refrigerator is arranged side by side with the light emitting unit 14 on the back surface of the vegetable compartment 500, for example. Here, an opening 15 is formed in a portion of the back surface of the lower storage case 10 facing the light emitting portion 14. Then, the camera 16 in the refrigerator can take a picture of the inside of the lower storage case 10 through the opening 15.

The installation location of the camera 16 in the refrigerator is not limited to the back portion inside the vegetable compartment 500. The camera 16 in the refrigerator may be installed anywhere as long as it can photograph stored items such as food inside the vegetable compartment 500. Further, the number of cameras 16 installed in the refrigerator is not limited to one, and a plurality of cameras 16 in the refrigerator may be installed. By installing a plurality of cameras 16 in the refrigerator, it is possible to prevent the field of view from being obstructed by food or the like stored in the vegetable compartment 500 and the occurrence of blind spots.

(Structure of light emitting part)
As shown in FIG. 9, the light emitting unit 14 according to the second embodiment includes a first light source 17a and a second light source 17b. The first light source 17a can irradiate visible light. Here, it is assumed that the first light source 17a is, for example, a white LED provided with three types of light emitting elements. The three types of light emitting elements included in the first light source 17a emit, for example, the three primary colors of light, that is, red, green, and blue light, respectively. The first light source 17a is configured to emit white light when all of these three primary color light emitting elements are simultaneously lit at the rated output.

The second light source 17b can irradiate the inside of the vegetable compartment 500, which is a storage chamber, with light. The light emitted by the second light source 17b is light including wavelengths in the ultraviolet light region. Specifically, the second light source 17b irradiates light having a wavelength of 315 nm or more and 380 nm or less. In particular, it is preferable that the spectrum of the light emitted by the second light source 17b has a peak in the wavelength range of 315 nm or more and 380 nm or less. In this way, the second light source 17b in the second embodiment of the present invention constitutes an ultraviolet light source that irradiates the inside of the vegetable compartment 500, which is a storage chamber, with light including a wavelength in the ultraviolet light region. The first light source 17a and the second light source 17b included in the light emitting unit 14 are configured to be independently turned on and off.

(Refrigerator control system)
FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the control system of the refrigerator 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In addition to the signals from the thermistor 13, the operation unit 6a, and the door open / close detection switch 20, the storage room image output from the internal camera 16 is input to the control device 8. Further, the control device 8 outputs a control signal to the internal camera 16 in addition to the compressor 2, the blower fan 4, the light emitting unit 14 and the display unit 6b, and controls the photographing operation of the internal camera 16.

The control device 8 causes the camera 16 in the refrigerator to take a picture of the inside of the vegetable compartment 500 when the vegetable compartment door 9 is opened and closed. This is because when the vegetable compartment door 9 is opened and closed, the food in the vegetable compartment 500 is taken in and out, and the storage state in the vegetable compartment 500 may change. For example, when the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the opened vegetable compartment door 9 has been closed, the control device 8 turns on the first light source 17a of the light emitting unit 14. Then, the control device 8 causes the camera 16 in the refrigerator to take a picture while the inside of the vegetable compartment 500 is illuminated by the first light source 17a.

(Control device configuration)
Next, the configuration of the control device 8 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, the control device 8 includes a light emission control unit 31 and a stored object detection unit 32. The light emitting control unit 31 is particularly responsible for controlling the light emitting operation of the light emitting unit 14 among the various controls by the control device 8 described above. The light emission control unit 31 can individually control the lighting and extinguishing of the first light source 17a and the second light source 17b included in the light emitting unit 14 for each light source.

The stored object detection unit 32 detects the presence or absence of stored items such as food stored in the vegetable compartment 500 based on the storage chamber image taken by the internal camera 16. The control device 8 stores in advance a storage room image (hereinafter, referred to as an “initial image”) taken by the internal camera 16 in a state where there is no stored object in the lower storage case 10. Then, the stored object detection unit 32 determines the presence or absence of the stored object in the lower storage case 10 by taking the difference between the storage room image taken by the internal camera 16 and the initial image.

Specifically, for example, the stored object detection unit 32 first divides each of the storage chamber image and the initial image into pixel units, and each pixel can be designated by the pixel coordinates (x, y) representing the position of the pixel. To do. Then, for example, the brightness L (x, y) of the pixels having the same pixel coordinates in the storage chamber image and the initial image is compared. There are pixel coordinates (x, y) in which the difference between the brightness L (x, y) of the storage chamber image and the brightness L (x, y) of the initial image at the same pixel coordinates is equal to or greater than a preset reference value. When doing so, the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is a stored item in the lower storage case 10. On the other hand, the pixel coordinates (x, y) in which the difference between the brightness L (x, y) of the storage chamber image and the brightness L (x, y) of the initial image at the same pixel coordinates is equal to or larger than a preset reference value. Is present, that is, when the difference in brightness L (x, y) is less than the reference value in all pixel coordinates (x, y), the stored object detection unit 32 is stored in the lower storage case 10. Detects that there is no.

In this way, the in-compartment camera 16 and the stored object detecting unit 32 according to the second embodiment of the present invention constitute a stored object detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of stored items stored inside the storage chamber. .. The configuration of the stored object detecting means is not limited to the example described here. In addition, for example, it is conceivable to configure a stored object detecting means by using a weight sensor that detects the weight of the stored items in the storage room or an illuminance sensor that detects the illuminance in the storage room.

(Light irradiation control)
Next, the light emitting operation control of the light emitting unit 14 by the control device 8 will be described with reference to FIG. The light emission control unit 31 of the control device 8 emits light from both the first light source 17a and the second light source 17b while the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is open. Stop the irradiation.

Then, when the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed, the light emission control unit 31 starts irradiating visible light from the first light source 17a of the light emitting unit 14. Next, the control device 8 causes the camera 16 in the refrigerator to take an image of the storage room. After that, the light emission control unit 31 stops the irradiation of visible light from the first light source 17a of the light emission unit 14. In this way, the control device 8 causes the in-compartment camera 16 to take a picture of the state of the bright storage room illuminated by the visible light from the first light source 17a. Then, the stored object detection unit 32 of the control device 8 detects the presence or absence of stored items in the storage room based on the storage room image taken by the in-house camera 16.

Subsequently, the light emission control unit 31 starts irradiation of ultraviolet light from the second light source 17b of the light emission unit 14. That is, under the control of the control device 8, the second light source 17b starts irradiating ultraviolet light after the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed.

The light emission control unit 31 continuously irradiates the second light source 17b with ultraviolet light until a preset duration ΔT elapses after the start of the ultraviolet light irradiation of the second light source 17b. Here, when the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is a stored item, the duration ΔT is set to the first duration ΔT1. That is, when the stored object detecting unit 32 detects that the stored object is present, the second light source 17b of the light emitting unit 14 irradiates the light for a preset first duration ΔT1.

On the other hand, when the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is no stored item, the duration ΔT is set to the second duration ΔT2. That is, when the stored object detecting unit 32 detects that there is no stored object, the second light source 17b of the light emitting unit 14 irradiates the light for a preset second duration ΔT2.

The second duration ΔT2 is shorter than the first duration ΔT1. That is, the duration ΔT when the stored item detecting means detects that there is no stored item is shorter than the duration ΔT when the stored item detecting means detects that there is a stored item. The first duration ΔT1 is specifically set to, for example, 4 hours. The second duration ΔT2 is specifically set to, for example, 2 hours. Then, when the duration ΔT (= ΔT1 or ΔT2) elapses from the start of irradiation, the light emission control unit 31 stops the irradiation of ultraviolet light from the second light source 17b.
The other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted here.

Next, a series of flows related to the control of the light emitting unit 14 and the internal camera 16 included in the refrigerator 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to the flow chart of FIG. First, in step S201, the control device 8 confirms whether or not the door open / close detection switch 20 has detected that the vegetable compartment door 9 has been opened. If the door open / close detection switch 20 does not detect that the vegetable room door 9 has opened, the confirmation process of step S201 is repeated until the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable room door 9 has opened. Then, when the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable room door 9 has been opened, the process proceeds to step S202.

In step S202, the control device 8 confirms whether or not the door open / close detection switch 20 has detected that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed. If the door open / close detection switch 20 does not detect that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed, the confirmation process of step S202 is repeated until the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed. Then, when the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is closed, the process proceeds to step S203.

In step S203, the light emission control unit 31 turns on the first light source 17a and starts irradiating visible light from the first light source 17a. After step S203, the process proceeds to step S204.

In step S204, the control device 8 turns on the power of the internal camera 16 and starts the operation of the internal camera 16. Then, the control device 8 causes the camera 16 in the refrigerator to take an image of the storage room. After step S204, the process proceeds to step S205.

In step S205, the control device 8 turns off the power of the internal camera 16 and stops the operation of the internal camera 16. After step S205, the process proceeds to step S206.

In step S206, the light emission control unit 31 turns off the first light source 17a and stops the irradiation of visible light from the first light source 17a. After step S206, the process proceeds to step S207.

In step S207, the stored object detection unit 32 executes an image calculation process for comparing the storage room image taken by the internal camera 16 in step S204 with the initial image. Then, the stored item detection unit 32 detects the presence or absence of stored items in the storage chamber based on the comparison result. After step S207, the process proceeds to step S208.

In step S208, the control device 8 sets the value of the timer variable t to 0. After step S208, the process proceeds to step S209. In step S209, the light emission control unit 31 turns on the second light source 17b. That is, the light emission control unit 31 turns on the second light source 17b, and the second light source 17b starts irradiating ultraviolet light. After step S209, the process proceeds to step S210.

In step S210, the light emission control unit 31 confirms whether or not the stored item detection unit 32 has detected that there is a stored item in the storage chamber in step S207. When the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is a stored item, the process proceeds to step S211. In this case, the duration ΔT for the second light source 17b to irradiate the ultraviolet light is set to the first duration ΔT1. Therefore, in step S211 the light emission control unit 31 confirms whether or not the value of the timer variable t has reached the first duration ΔT1. If the variable t has not yet reached the first duration ΔT1, the confirmation process in step S211 is repeated until the variable t reaches the first duration ΔT1. Then, when the first duration ΔT1 elapses from step S208 and the variable t becomes the first duration ΔT1, the process proceeds to step S212.

In step S212, the light emission control unit 31 turns off the second light source 17b. That is, the light emission control unit 31 turns off the second light source 17b, and the second light source 17b stops the irradiation of ultraviolet light. After step S212, the process returns to step S201.

On the other hand, in step S210, when the stored item detection unit 32 does not detect that there is a stored item, that is, when the stored item detecting unit 32 detects that there is no stored item, the process proceeds to step S213. In this case, the duration ΔT for the second light source 17b to irradiate the ultraviolet light is set to the second duration ΔT2. Therefore, in step S213, the light emission control unit 31 confirms whether or not the value of the variable t of the timer has reached the second duration ΔT2. If the variable t has not yet reached the second duration ΔT2, the confirmation process of step S213 is repeated until the variable t reaches the second duration ΔT2. Then, when the second duration ΔT2 elapses from step S208 and the variable t becomes the second duration ΔT2, the process proceeds to step S212 and the irradiation of ultraviolet light from the second light source 17b is stopped. After that, the process returns to step S201.

The refrigerator according to the second embodiment configured as described above changes the time for irradiating ultraviolet light depending on the presence or absence of stored items in the storage room. Therefore, in addition to being able to achieve the same effect as in the first embodiment, if there is a stored item, the bacteria are attached to the stored item by taking a sufficient time to irradiate the stored item with ultraviolet light. In some cases, the growth can be suppressed to prolong the life of the food. In addition, even when there are no stored items, after opening and closing the door, the irradiation of ultraviolet light is not stopped immediately, but by irradiating the ultraviolet light for a shorter period of time than when there are stored items, the energy consumption is reduced. While reducing the amount, it is possible to suppress the growth of bacteria adhering to the storage case and keep the inside of the refrigerator hygienic.

Embodiment 3.
14 to 18 relate to the third embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 14 is a vertical sectional view showing an enlarged refrigerator compartment portion of the refrigerator, and FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system of the refrigerator. FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control device included in the refrigerator, FIG. 17 is a time chart of light irradiation control of the refrigerator, and FIG. 18 is a flow diagram showing a flow of light irradiation control of the refrigerator.

In the configuration of the first or second embodiment described above, the third embodiment described here is stored inside the storage chamber without irradiating ultraviolet light when there is no storage case inside the storage chamber. When there is a case, it is designed to irradiate ultraviolet light. Hereinafter, the refrigerator according to the third embodiment will be described mainly on the differences from the first embodiment by taking a case based on the first embodiment as an example.

In the first embodiment and the second embodiment, the vegetable compartment 500 has been described as an example as a storage chamber for storing food. On the other hand, in the third embodiment described here, the refrigerating room 100 is taken as an example as the storage room. As shown in FIG. 14, a part of the inside of the refrigerating chamber 100, which is a storage chamber, is partitioned to form a low temperature chamber 18. Here, the low temperature chamber 18 is provided at the bottom of the refrigerating chamber 100. The low temperature room 18 is a part of the refrigerator compartment 100.

The low greenhouse 18 is a storage space that is cooler than the portion of the refrigerating chamber 100 other than the low temperature chamber 18 and is maintained at 0 ° C. or higher. Inside the low greenhouse 18, a low temperature chamber storage case 19 capable of storing food and the like is retractably stored. When the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is housed inside the low temperature chamber 18, the low temperature chamber 18 is substantially sealed. When the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is completely pulled out from the inside of the low temperature chamber 18, the low temperature chamber storage case 19 can be removed from the low temperature chamber 18 and the refrigerating chamber 100. That is, the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is detachably provided inside the refrigerating chamber 100.

In the third embodiment, the door open / close detection switch 20 is for detecting the open / closed state of the refrigerator compartment door 7. The door open / close detection switch 20 is provided at a position facing the refrigerator compartment door 7 at the edge of the front opening of the refrigerator compartment 100. The door open / close detection switch 20 according to the third embodiment of the present invention constitutes an open / close detection means for detecting the open / close of the refrigerator compartment door 7.

A light emitting unit 14 is attached to the back surface of the low temperature greenhouse 18. The light emitting unit 14 can irradiate the inside of the refrigerating chamber 100, which is a storage chamber, particularly the low temperature chamber 18. The light emitting unit 14 in the third embodiment of the present invention constitutes an ultraviolet light source that irradiates light including a wavelength in the ultraviolet light region into the inside of a particularly low temperature chamber 18 of the refrigerating chamber 100 which is a storage chamber.

A weight sensor 21 is provided on the bottom surface of the low temperature chamber 18. The weight sensor 21 detects the weight of an object inside the low temperature chamber 18. Specifically, when the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is inside the low temperature chamber 18, the weight sensor 21 detects the weight of the low temperature chamber storage case 19. At this time, if there is a stored item such as food inside the low temperature chamber storage case 19, the weight sensor 21 detects the total of the weight of the low temperature chamber storage case 19 and the weight of the low temperature chamber storage case 19. The weight sensor 21 outputs the weight detection result as a weight detection signal.

(Refrigerator control system)
FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the control system of the refrigerator 1 according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In addition to the signals from the thermistor 13, the operation unit 6a, and the door open / close detection switch 20, the weight detection signal output from the weight sensor 21 is input to the control device 8.

(Control device configuration)
Next, the configuration of the control device 8 according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, the control device 8 includes a light emission control unit 31, a stored object detection unit 32, and a storage case detection unit 33. The light emitting control unit 31 is particularly responsible for controlling the light emitting operation of the light emitting unit 14 among the various controls by the control device 8 described above.

Based on the weight detection signal output from the weight sensor 21, the stored object detection unit 32 detects the presence or absence of stored items such as food stored inside the refrigerating chamber 100, particularly the low temperature chamber 18. The storage case detection unit 33 detects the presence or absence of the low temperature chamber storage case 19 inside the refrigerating chamber 100, particularly the low temperature chamber 18, based on the weight detection signal output from the weight sensor 21.

The control device 8 stores in advance the output value of the weight sensor 21 in a state where there is nothing in the low temperature chamber 18, that is, there is no low temperature chamber storage case 19 and there is no stored object in the low temperature chamber storage case 19. Has been done. Here, the control device 8 is pre-calibrated so that the output value from the weight sensor 21 becomes "0" when there is nothing in the low temperature chamber 18. Further, the control device 8 has only the low temperature chamber storage case 19 in the low temperature chamber 18, and the output value W0 of the weight sensor 21 in a state where there is no stored object in the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is also stored in advance.

When the output value from the weight sensor 21 is larger than W0, the stored object detection unit 32 detects that there is a stored object inside the refrigerating chamber 100, particularly the low temperature chamber 18. On the other hand, when the output value from the weight sensor 21 is W0 or less, the stored object detection unit 32 detects that there is no stored object inside the refrigerating chamber 100, particularly the low temperature chamber 18.

Further, the storage case detection unit 33 detects that the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is inside the refrigerating chamber 100, particularly the low temperature chamber 18, when the output value from the weight sensor 21 is W0 or more. On the other hand, when the output value from the weight sensor 21 is 0, the storage case detection unit 33 detects that the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is not inside the refrigerating chamber 100, particularly the low temperature chamber 18.

In this way, the weight sensor 21 and the stored item detecting unit 32 according to the third embodiment of the present invention constitute a stored item detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the stored item stored inside the storage chamber. Further, the weight sensor 21 and the storage case detection unit 33 according to the third embodiment of the present invention constitute a storage case detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the storage case inside the storage chamber. The configurations of the stored object detecting means and the storage case detecting means are not limited to the examples described here. Alternatively, for example, the stored object detecting means and the storage case detecting means may be configured by using the in-compartment camera that captures the storage room image described in the second embodiment.

(Light irradiation control)
Next, the light emitting operation control of the light emitting unit 14 by the control device 8 will be described with reference to FIG. The light emitting control unit 31 of the control device 8 stops the irradiation of light from the light emitting unit 14 while the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the refrigerator compartment door 7 is open.

When it is detected by the door open / close detection switch 20 that the refrigerator compartment door 7 is closed, when the storage case detection unit 33 detects that the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is not inside the low temperature chamber 18, the light emission control unit The 31 keeps the irradiation of the ultraviolet light from the light emitting unit 14 stopped.

On the other hand, if it is detected by the door open / close detection switch 20 that the refrigerating room door 7 is closed, if the storage case detection unit 33 detects that the low temperature room storage case 19 is inside the low temperature room 18. The light emission control unit 31 starts irradiation of ultraviolet light from the light emission unit 14. That is, under the control of the control device 8, after the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the refrigerating room door 7 is closed, the storage case detecting unit 33 moves the cold room storage case 19 inside the low temperature room 18. When it is detected that there is, the irradiation of ultraviolet light is started.

The light emission control unit 31 continuously irradiates the light emitting unit 14 with ultraviolet light until a preset duration ΔT elapses after the start of ultraviolet light irradiation of the light emitting unit 14. Here, when the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is a stored item, the duration ΔT is set to the first duration ΔT1. That is, when the weight detected by the weight sensor 21 is greater than W0, the light emitting unit 14 irradiates light for a preset first duration ΔT1.

On the other hand, when the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is no stored item, the duration ΔT is set to the second duration ΔT2. That is, when the weight detected by the weight sensor 21 is W0, the light emitting unit 14 irradiates light for a second duration ΔT2 set in advance.

The second duration ΔT2 is shorter than the first duration ΔT1. The first duration ΔT1 is specifically set to, for example, 4 hours. The second duration ΔT2 is specifically set to, for example, 2 hours. Then, when the duration ΔT (= ΔT1 or ΔT2) elapses from the start of irradiation, the light emission control unit 31 stops the irradiation of ultraviolet light from the light emitting unit 14.
The other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted here.

Next, a series of flows related to the control of the light emitting unit 14 included in the refrigerator 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to the flow chart of FIG. First, in step S301, the control device 8 confirms whether or not the door open / close detection switch 20 has detected that the refrigerator compartment door 7 has been opened. If the door open / close detection switch 20 does not detect that the refrigerator compartment door 7 has opened, the confirmation process of step S301 is repeated until the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the refrigerator compartment door 7 has opened. Then, when the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the refrigerator compartment door 7 has been opened, the process proceeds to step S302.

In step S302, the control device 8 confirms whether or not the door open / close detection switch 20 has detected that the refrigerator compartment door 7 is closed. If the door open / close detection switch 20 does not detect that the refrigerator compartment door 7 is closed, the confirmation process in step S302 is repeated until the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the refrigerator compartment door 7 is closed. Then, when the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the refrigerator compartment door 7 is closed, the process proceeds to step S303.

In step S303, the control device 8 determines the state of the low temperature chamber storage case 19 based on the detection result of the weight sensor 21. That is, based on the weight detection signal output from the weight sensor 21, the stored object detection unit 32 detects the presence or absence of stored items inside the low temperature chamber 18, and the storage case detecting unit 33 stores the stored items inside the low temperature chamber 18. The presence or absence of case 19 is detected. After step S303, the process proceeds to step S304.

In step S304, whether or not the storage case detection unit 33 has detected that the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is inside the low temperature chamber 18 in the status determination of the low temperature chamber storage case 19 in step S303. To confirm. If the storage case detection unit 33 does not detect the presence of the low temperature room storage case 19, that is, if the storage case detection unit 33 detects that the low temperature room storage case 19 is not present, the process returns to step S301. On the other hand, when the storage case detection unit 33 detects that the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is present, the process proceeds to step S305.

In step S305, the control device 8 sets the value of the timer variable t to 0. After step S305, the process proceeds to step S306. In step S306, the light emitting control unit 31 turns on the light emitting unit. That is, the light emitting control unit 31 lights the light emitting unit 14, and the light emitting unit 14 starts irradiation with ultraviolet light. After step S306, the process proceeds to step S307.

In step S307, did the light emitting control unit 31 detect that the low temperature chamber storage case 19 of the low temperature chamber 18 had stored items in the status determination of the low temperature chamber storage case 19 in step S303? Check if it is not. When the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is a stored item, the process proceeds to step S308. In this case, the duration ΔT for the light emitting unit 14 to irradiate the ultraviolet light is set to the first duration ΔT1. Therefore, in step S308, the light emission control unit 31 confirms whether or not the value of the timer variable t has reached the first duration ΔT1. If the variable t has not yet reached the first duration ΔT1, the confirmation process of step S308 is repeated until the variable t reaches the first duration ΔT1. Then, when the first duration ΔT1 elapses from step S305 and the variable t becomes the first duration ΔT1, the process proceeds to step S309.

In step S309, the light emitting control unit 31 turns off the light emitting unit 14. That is, the light emitting control unit 31 turns off the light emitting unit 14, and the light emitting unit 14 stops the irradiation of ultraviolet light. After step S309, the process returns to step S301.

On the other hand, if the stored item detection unit 32 does not detect that there is a stored item in step S307, that is, if the stored item detecting unit 32 detects that there is no stored item, the process proceeds to step S310. In this case, the duration ΔT for the light emitting unit 14 to irradiate the ultraviolet light is set to the second duration ΔT2. Therefore, in step S310, the light emission control unit 31 confirms whether or not the value of the timer variable t has reached the second duration ΔT2. If the variable t has not yet reached the second duration ΔT2, the confirmation process of step S310 is repeated until the variable t reaches the second duration ΔT2. Then, when the second duration ΔT2 elapses from step S305 and the variable t becomes the second duration ΔT2, the process proceeds to step S309 and the irradiation of ultraviolet light from the light emitting unit 14 is stopped. After that, the process returns to step S301.

The refrigerator according to the third embodiment configured as described above determines whether or not to irradiate ultraviolet light depending on the presence or absence of a storage case in the storage chamber. That is, when the door of the storage room is closed with the storage case removed from the storage room and there is no storage case in the storage room, ultraviolet light is not irradiated. Therefore, in addition to being able to achieve the same effect as in the first embodiment, it is possible to further reduce the energy consumption by preventing unnecessary irradiation of ultraviolet light. Further, when there is a storage case in the storage room, the same effect as that of the above-described second embodiment can be obtained by changing the time of irradiating the ultraviolet light according to the presence or absence of the stored items in the storage room. it can.

In addition, the low temperature chamber storage case 19 forms a substantially enclosed space in the low temperature chamber 18, so that the moisturizing performance in the low temperature chamber 18 can be improved. Therefore, the food contained in the low temperature chamber storage case 19 in the low temperature chamber 18 can be stored in high quality without being dried without packaging. On the other hand, it is known that if the moisturizing performance is high, dew condensation occurs and the situation becomes prone to putrefaction. Regarding this point, by irradiating the low temperature chamber 18 with ultraviolet light from the light emitting unit 14 to suppress the growth of bacteria, it is possible to achieve both moisturizing property and suppression of putrefaction.

Further, by making the low temperature chamber storage case 19 removable, the low temperature chamber storage case 19 in which food is contained can be carried to a cooking work place such as a kitchen or a dining table, and the convenience is improved. On the other hand, by making the low temperature chamber storage case 19 removable, the possibility of bacteria adhering to the low temperature chamber storage case 19 increases. Regarding this point, by irradiating the low temperature chamber storage case 19 with ultraviolet light, the growth of bacteria can be suppressed, and both convenience and spoilage can be suppressed. At this time, when the refrigerating chamber door 7 is closed and the low-temperature chamber storage case 19 is inside the low-temperature chamber 18, ultraviolet light is irradiated so that the user can touch the light emitting unit 14 and the ultraviolet light is emitted. It is possible to prevent being irradiated with light.

Embodiment 4.
19 to 22 relate to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 19 is a vertical sectional view showing an enlarged portion of the refrigerator compartment of the refrigerator, and FIG. 20 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the refrigerator. FIG. 21 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control device included in the refrigerator, and FIG. 22 is a flow diagram showing a flow of light irradiation control of the refrigerator.

In the configuration of any one of the above-described first to third embodiments, the fourth embodiment described here is excited and activated when irradiated with light of a specific wavelength to suppress the growth of bacteria. The photocatalyst unit that exerts its function is provided in one or both of the storage chamber and the storage case, and an excitation light source that irradiates light for exciting the photocatalyst unit is provided. Hereinafter, the refrigerator according to the fourth embodiment will be described focusing on the differences from the third embodiment, taking as an example the case based on the configuration of the third embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 19, the refrigerator 1 according to the fourth embodiment includes a photocatalyst member 22. The example shown in the figure is based on the configuration of the third embodiment as described above, and the refrigerating chamber 100 is provided with a low temperature chamber 18 and a low temperature chamber storage case 19. A photocatalyst member 22 is attached to the inner surface of the low temperature chamber storage case 19 on the back surface side. The photocatalyst member 22 is excited and activated when irradiated with light having a specific wavelength. Then, the activated photocatalyst member 22 exerts an action of decomposing and removing bacteria and odorous substances floating in the low temperature chamber 18.

In the fourth embodiment, the light emitting unit 14 irradiates the photocatalyst member 22 with light containing light having the specific wavelength capable of exciting the photocatalyst member 22. The light emitting unit 14 according to the fourth embodiment constitutes an excitation light source that irradiates the inside of the storage chamber with light having a wavelength capable of exciting the photocatalyst member 22.

The portion of the low greenhouse storage case 19 facing the light emitting portion 14 on the back side is made of a material having a property of transmitting the light of the specific wavelength irradiated by the light emitting portion 14. Therefore, with the low temperature chamber storage case 19 housed in the low temperature chamber 18, the light emitted from the light emitting unit 14 sufficiently hits the photocatalyst member 22. Further, as in the third embodiment described above, the weight sensor 21 is provided on the bottom surface of the low temperature chamber 18. The weight sensor 21 detects the weight of an object inside the low temperature chamber 18.

The light emitted by the light emitting unit 14 is not limited to ultraviolet light as long as it excites the photocatalyst member 22, and may be visible light or infrared light. Further, the photocatalyst member 22 may have a structure in which the air in the low temperature chamber 18 and the photocatalyst are in contact with each other. Specifically, for example, the photocatalyst member 22 may be configured by supporting the photocatalyst on a filter or applying the photocatalyst to the low temperature chamber storage case 19.

(Refrigerator control system, control device configuration)
FIG. 20 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system of the refrigerator 1 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 21 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control device 8 in FIG. 20. As shown in these figures, the configuration of the control system and the control device 8 of the refrigerator 1 according to the fourth embodiment is the same as that of the third embodiment described above. That is, in addition to the signals from the thermistor 13, the operation unit 6a, and the door open / close detection switch 20, the weight detection signal output from the weight sensor 21 is input to the control device 8.

Further, the control device 8 includes a light emission control unit 31, a stored object detection unit 32, and a storage case detection unit 33. The light emitting control unit 31 is responsible for controlling the light emitting operation of the light emitting unit 14. Based on the weight detection signal output from the weight sensor 21, the stored object detection unit 32 detects the presence or absence of stored items such as food stored inside the refrigerating chamber 100, particularly the low temperature chamber 18. The storage case detection unit 33 detects the presence or absence of the low temperature chamber storage case 19 inside the refrigerating chamber 100, particularly the low temperature chamber 18, based on the weight detection signal output from the weight sensor 21.

Similar to the third embodiment described above, the weight sensor 21 and the stored object detecting unit 32 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention constitute a stored object detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the stored object stored inside the storage chamber. doing. Further, the weight sensor 21 and the storage case detection unit 33 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention constitute a storage case detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the storage case inside the storage chamber.
The other configurations are the same as those in the third embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted here.

(Light irradiation control)
Further, the light emitting operation control of the light emitting unit 14 by the control device 8 is the same as that in the third embodiment. That is, the light emitting control unit 31 of the control device 8 stops the irradiation of light from the light emitting unit 14 while the door open / close detection switch 20 detects that the vegetable compartment door 9 is open.

Further, when it is detected by the door open / close detection switch 20 that the refrigerator compartment door 7 is closed, when the storage case detection unit 33 detects that the low temperature chamber storage case 19 is not inside the low temperature chamber 18, it emits light. The control unit 31 keeps the irradiation of the excitation light from the light emitting unit 14 stopped.

On the other hand, if it is detected by the door open / close detection switch 20 that the refrigerating room door 7 is closed, if the storage case detecting unit 33 detects that the low temperature room storage case 19 is inside the low temperature room 18. The light emission control unit 31 starts irradiation of the excitation light from the light emission unit 14.

Then, the light emission control unit 31 continuously irradiates the light emitting unit 14 with the excitation light until the preset duration ΔT elapses after the start of the excitation light irradiation of the light emitting unit 14. Here, when the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is a stored item, the duration ΔT is set to the first duration ΔT1. On the other hand, when the stored item detection unit 32 detects that there is no stored item, the duration ΔT is set to the second duration ΔT2. The second duration ΔT2 is shorter than the first duration ΔT1. Then, when the duration ΔT (= ΔT1 or ΔT2) elapses from the start of irradiation, the light emission control unit 31 stops the irradiation of the excitation light from the light emitting unit 14.

Next, a series of flows related to the control of the light emitting unit 14 included in the refrigerator 1 configured as described above are as shown in the flow chart of FIG. 22. Since steps S401 to S410 in the figure are the same as steps S301 to S310 in FIG. 18 described in the third embodiment, detailed description thereof will be omitted here. However, in step S406, the light emitting unit 14 starts irradiating the excitation light instead of the ultraviolet light. Then, the photocatalyst member 22 irradiated with the excitation light is activated, and the activated photocatalyst member 22 exerts a sterilizing and deodorizing action. Further, in step S409, the irradiation of the excitation light from the light emitting unit 14 is stopped.

Even in the refrigerator configured as described above, the same effects as those described above can be obtained in the first to third embodiments. Further, the photocatalyst member 22 excited by the light from the light emitting unit 14 can decompose and remove bacteria and odorous substances floating in the low temperature chamber 18 to keep the low temperature chamber 18 hygienic.

1 Refrigerator 2 Compressor 3 Cooler 4 Blower fan 5 Air passage 6 Operation panel 6a Operation unit 6b Display unit 7 Refrigerator room door 7a Right door 7b Left door 8 Control device 9 Vegetable room door 10 Lower storage case 11 Upper storage case 13 Thermista 14 Light emitting unit 15 Opening 16 Internal camera 17a First light source 17b Second light source 18 Low temperature room 19 Low temperature room storage case 20 Door open / close detection switch 21 Weight sensor 22 Photocatalyst member 31 Light emission control unit 32 Stored object detection unit 33 Storage Case detector 90 Insulated box body 100 Refrigerator room 200 Switching room 300 Ice making room 400 Freezing room 500 Vegetable room 201 Switching room storage case 401 Freezer room storage case

Claims (4)

A storage room for storing food and
A storage case that is detachably provided inside the storage room and can store food,
A door that can open and close the storage room,
An opening / closing detecting means for detecting the opening / closing of the door,
An ultraviolet light source that irradiates the inside of the storage chamber with light including wavelengths in the ultraviolet region, and
A stored item detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a stored item stored inside the storage chamber, and
A storage case detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the storage case inside the storage chamber is provided.
The ultraviolet light source is
While the opening / closing detecting means detects that the door is open, the irradiation of light is stopped.
After the opening / closing detecting means detects that the door is closed, when the stored item detecting means detects that there is an stored item, the light is irradiated for only the first duration, and the absence of the stored item is described. When the stored object detecting means detects and the storage case detecting means detects that the storage case is present, the storage case detects the presence of the storage case by irradiating the light for a second duration shorter than the first duration. A refrigerator that continues to stop light irradiation when the storage case detecting means detects that there is no such thing . The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the ultraviolet light source irradiates light having a wavelength of 315 nm or more and 380 nm or less. A storage room for storing food and
A storage case that is detachably provided inside the storage room and can store food,
The photocatalyst unit provided in the storage case and
A door that can open and close the storage room,
An opening / closing detecting means for detecting the opening / closing of the door,
An excitation light source that irradiates the inside of the storage chamber with light having a wavelength that can excite the photocatalyst unit.
A stored item detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a stored item stored inside the storage chamber, and
A storage case detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the storage case inside the storage chamber is provided.
The excitation light source is
While the opening / closing detecting means detects that the door is open, the irradiation of light is stopped.
After the opening / closing detecting means detects that the door is closed, when the stored item detecting means detects that there is an stored item, the light is irradiated for only the first duration, and the absence of the stored item is described. When the stored object detecting means detects and the storage case detecting means detects that the storage case is present, the storage case detects the presence of the storage case by irradiating the light for a second duration shorter than the first duration. A refrigerator that continues to stop light irradiation when the storage case detecting means detects that there is no such thing . A weight sensor for detecting the weight of an object inside the storage chamber is provided.
The stored item detecting means detects that there is a stored item when the detection result of the weight sensor is larger than a preset reference value, and when the detection result of the weight sensor is equal to or less than the reference value, the stored item is Detects no and
The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the storage case detecting means detects the presence of the storage case when the detection result of the weight sensor is equal to or higher than the reference value.

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