JP6860468B2 - Temperature controller - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a temperature control cabinet such as a dough conditioner that freezes, matures, ferments, and the like in a state where the bread dough is temperature-controlled before baking the bread dough.

Patent Document 1 discloses a dough conditioner that controls fermentation before baking bread dough. This dough conditioner has a storage for storing bread dough, a cooling means for cooling the storage, a heating means for heating the storage, a humidity control means for controlling the humidity of the storage room, and air in the storage. It is equipped with a ventilation means that circulates to make the temperature and humidity uniform. In this dough conditioner, the air in the refrigerator is circulated by the circulation means while the temperature is controlled by the cooling means or the heating means and the humidity is controlled by the humidity controlling means, and the bread dough stored in the storage chamber is frozen. Each step of the step, the refrigerating step, the preheating step and the fermentation step is executed in order.

JP-A-2009-254306

The dough conditioner of Patent Document 1 described above is used in stores such as bakeries, and the fermentation control program is used in the freezing process, refrigerating process, preheating process and fermentation process from the evening or night of the previous day so that the fermentation of bread dough is completed in the morning. It is controlled so that each process of is executed in order. When completing the fermentation of bread dough in the morning after a holiday in a store such as a bakery, the fermentation management program executes the freezing process from the evening of the day before or from the night to the night of the previous day, and from the night of the previous day to the refrigerating process and preheating process. And the fermentation process is controlled to be executed. In this type of dough conditioner, if the refrigeration process takes a long time, frost adheres to the evaporator of the cooling device, so it is necessary to perform a defrosting operation to remove the frost by heating the evaporator with a heater at regular intervals. .. However, when the defrosting operation is controlled to be performed at regular intervals, the defrosting operation may be executed immediately before the transition to the refrigerating process due to the short remaining time of the freezing process, resulting in a wasteful defrosting operation. There was a risk that it could not be cooled sufficiently in the freezing process after the defrosting operation. An object of the present invention is to prevent unnecessary defrosting operation during cooling operation of the temperature control chamber.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention presents a storage chamber for storing stored items, a circulation fan for circulating air in the storage cabinet, a cooling device having an evaporator for cooling the inside of the storage cabinet, and an evaporator. It is equipped with a heater that heats and defrosts the refrigerator and a control device that controls the operation of the cooling device and the heater. The control device cools the refrigerator to a set temperature lower than 0 degrees until the set time is reached. Control to execute the refrigerating process in which the cooling operation is performed by the device and the refrigerating process in which the cooling operation is performed by the cooling device so that the temperature inside the storage is set to 0 ° C. or higher until the set time is reached after the refrigerating process. It is a temperature control cabinet that is controlled to execute the defrosting operation that defrosts the evaporator by the heater when the cooling operation time during the execution of the refrigeration process reaches the defrosting standby time that waits for the defrosting operation. Therefore, the control device removes even if the cooling operation time becomes the defrosting standby time when the remaining time until the set time in the refrigerating process reaches the set time in the refrigerating process is shorter than the defrosting operation canceling time. It provides a temperature control cabinet characterized in that it is controlled so as not to perform frost operation.

In the temperature control cabinet configured as described above, if the defrosting operation is executed when the remaining time of the cooling operation in the refrigeration process is short, even if the storage cabinet is cooled to the set temperature again after the defrosting operation, it is immediately frozen. The cooling operation in the process may end. In this case, even if the defrosting operation is not performed, the frost adhering to the evaporator naturally melts after the cooling operation in the refrigeration step is completed, so that the defrosting operation may be wasted. Further, even if the storage is cooled to the set temperature in the freezing process again after the defrosting operation, the cooling operation in the freezing process is immediately completed, so that the cooling efficiency in the storage may be deteriorated. On the other hand, in the temperature control chamber of the present invention, the control device performs the cooling operation when the remaining time until the set time in the refrigeration process is shorter than the defrosting operation canceling time for canceling the defrosting operation. The defrosting operation was controlled so as not to be executed even if the defrosting standby time was reached. Thus, when a short remaining time of the time set in the cooling operation in the freezing step, it is possible to avoid useless defrosting operation, when a short remaining time of the time set in the cooling operation in the freezing step It was possible to prevent a decrease in cooling efficiency due to the temporary defrosting operation.

It is a front view of the temperature and humidity control cabinet. It is a vertical sectional view of the front part of FIG. 1 along the left-right direction. It is a cross-sectional view of AA. It is a schematic diagram of the cooling device, the heating device and the humidifier of the greenhouse degree control cabinet. It is a block diagram which shows the control device.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the temperature / humidity control cabinet, which is an embodiment of the temperature control cabinet of the present invention, will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The temperature / humidity control cabinet (temperature control cabinet) 10 of the present invention is called a dough conditioner, and before baking the bread dough, each step of freezing (freezing), retard (refrigerating), preheating and proofing (fermentation) is performed in order. Is what you want to do. In the temperature / humidity control cabinet 10, the temperature is controlled according to each step when each of the above steps is executed, and the humidity is controlled in addition to the temperature control in the preheating and proofing steps.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the temperature / humidity control cabinet 10 has a storage cabinet 12 for storing bread dough (stored items) in a portion of the housing 11 excluding the right side portion, and a machine room in the right portion of the housing 11. It is equipped with 13. As shown in FIG. 3, a front opening 12a for putting in and taking out a tray on which bread dough is placed is provided in the front part of the storage 12, and a door 14 for opening and closing the door 14 can be opened and closed in the front opening 12a. It is provided.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, partition plates 15 are provided on the right side and the bottom of the storage 12, and the right side and the bottom partitioned by the partition 15 of the storage 12 control the temperature and humidity. The duct passage 16 is used to send the adjusted air to the storage 12. The duct passage 16 includes a vertical duct passage 16a arranged on the right side of the storage 12 and a horizontal duct passage 16b arranged on the bottom of the storage 12. Further, the upper part of the vertical duct passage 16a protrudes toward the machine room 13, and this part accommodates the evaporator 25 of the cooling device 20 and the heater 31 of the heating device 30, which will be described later, to cool the air. It is a temperature control space 16c for heating.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a circulation fan 17 is attached to the upper part of the partition plate 15 arranged on the right side of the storage 12 and as shown by the arrow of the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. The air in the storage 12 is guided to the duct passage 16 by the circulation fan 17. The air guided to the duct passage 16 is cooled or heated in the temperature control space 16c to adjust the temperature, and is sent to the left side portion of the storage 12 through the vertical duct passage 16a and the horizontal duct passage 16b. There is.

As shown in FIG. 4, a temperature sensor 18 and a humidity sensor 19 are arranged in the temperature control space 16c, the temperature sensor 18 detects the temperature in the storage 12 and the humidity sensor 19 stores the temperature. It detects the humidity in the refrigerator 12.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, an evaporator 25 of a cooling device 20 for cooling the inside of the storage 12 is arranged in the temperature control space 16c. The cooling device 20 cools the air in the storage 12 passing through the temperature control space 16c to cool the inside of the storage 12. The cooling device 20 uses a well-known refrigerant circuit, and includes a compressor 21 for compressing the refrigerant, a condenser 22 for cooling the compressed refrigerant gas, a dryer 23 for removing water contained in the liquefied refrigerant, and liquefaction. A capillary tube (expansion means) 24 for expanding the refrigerant and an evaporator 25 for vaporizing the expanded liquefied refrigerant to cool the inside of the storage 12 are provided. The evaporator 25 is arranged in the temperature control space 16c of the duct passage 16, and other parts are arranged in the machine room 13. In this cooling device 20, the refrigerant gas compressed by the compressor 21 is cooled by the condenser 22 to become a liquefied refrigerant, and the liquefied refrigerant is expanded by the capillary tube 24 through the dryer 23 and sent to the evaporator 25. , The air in the temperature control space 16c is cooled when vaporized by the evaporator 25. Further, the evaporator 25 is provided with a defrosting temperature sensor 25a, and the defrosting temperature sensor 25a detects the temperature of the evaporator 25 when removing the frost adhering to the evaporator 25.

The cooling device 20 not only cools the inside of the storage 12 but also has a function as a dehumidifying device for dehumidifying the inside of the storage 12. When the cooling device 20 is used as a dehumidifying device, it is preferable to exert the dehumidifying function while suppressing the cooling function as much as possible. In order to correspond to this, the compressor 21 employs an inverter type motor and can control the rotation speed. Further, the condenser 22 is provided with a cooling fan 22a for cooling the refrigerant, and the cooling fan 22a employs an inverter type motor so that the rotation speed can be controlled. When the cooling device 20 is dehumidified as a dehumidifying device, the compressor 21 is operated in a state where the rotation speed of the compressor 21 is controlled to be the minimum rotation speed (half or less of the maximum rotation speed), and the compressor 21 is circulated to the evaporator 25. By reducing the amount of the supplied refrigerant, the compressor 25 can dehumidify while suppressing cooling. In addition, when the cooling device 20 is dehumidified to perform the dehumidifying operation, the compressor 21 is operated in a state where the rotation speed of the cooling fan 22a of the condenser 22 is rotated at a higher rotation speed than that during the cooling operation. , A large amount of refrigerant stays in the condenser 22, the pressure difference between the high pressure side and the low pressure side of the compressor 21 decreases, and the amount of refrigerant circulated and supplied to the evaporator 25 decreases, so that the compressor 25 cools. It can be dehumidified in a suppressed state.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a heating device 30 for heating the inside of the storage 12 is provided in the temperature control space 16c. The heating device 30 heats the air in the storage 12 passing through the temperature control space 16c to heat the inside of the storage 12. The heating device 30 includes a heater 31 that heats the air in the temperature control space 16c, and a bracket 32 that attaches the heater 31 to the temperature control space 16c. The heater 31 is attached to the lower side of the evaporator 25 of the cooling device 20 by the bracket 32. The heater 31 uses a glass tube heater, and not only can efficiently heat the air in the temperature control space 16c by radiant heat, but also has a function as a heater for defrosting the evaporator 25 arranged on the upper side. doing.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a humidifier 40 is arranged in the vertical duct passage 16a of the duct passage 16, and the humidifier 40 humidifies the inside of the storage 12. The humidifier 40 includes a spray nozzle 41 that sprays water in a mist form, a water supply pipe 42 that supplies water from a water supply source such as a water supply to the spray nozzle 41, and an air supply pipe 43 that supplies air to the spray nozzle 41. It is provided with an air compressor 44 that sends air to a spray nozzle in a pressurized state via a trachea 43. The water supply pipe 42 is connected to a water supply source such as water supply, and the water supply pipe 42 is interposed with a pressure reducing valve 42a and a water supply valve 42b. Further, a drainage pipe 45 is connected to the water supply pipe 42 downstream of the water supply valve 42b, and a drainage valve 45a is interposed in the drainage pipe 45.

The spray nozzle 41 is arranged at the rear portion of the vertical duct passage 16a at the same height as the lower portion of the temperature control space 16c. The spraying direction from the tip of the spray nozzle 41 is directed from the rear part of the vertical duct passage 16a to the front, and is in a direction intersecting (orthogonal) with the air descending the vertical duct passage 16a by the circulation fan 17. When the water supply valve 42b is opened and the air compressor 44 is operated, water from the water supply pipe 42 and air from the air supply pipe 43 flow into the spray nozzle 41, and the water is sprayed from the spray nozzle 41 in the form of mist. Further, when the water is not sprayed from the spray nozzle 41 in the form of mist, the water remaining in the water supply pipe 42 is discharged from the drain pipe 45 by opening the drain valve 45a so that the water does not remain in the water supply pipe 42. It is designed to do.

As shown in FIG. 5, the temperature / humidity control cabinet 10 includes a control device 50, and the control device 50 includes a circulation fan 17, a temperature sensor 18, a humidity sensor 19, and a cooling device 20 (compressor 21, condenser 22). It is connected to the cooling fan 22a, the defrosting temperature sensor 25a of the evaporator 25), the heating device 30 (heater 31), and the humidifier 40 (water supply valve 42b, air compressor 44, and drain valve 45a). The control device 50 includes a microcomputer (not shown), and the microcomputer includes a CPU, RAM, ROM, and a timer (all of which are not shown) connected via a bus. The control device 50 includes a fermentation control program (temperature control program) in which the bread dough in the storage 12 is sequentially executed in the ROM by each step of freezing (freezing), retarding (refrigerating), preheating and proofing (fermentation). The temperature / humidity control cabinet 10 can selectively execute at least one of each step of freezing (freezing), retarding (refrigerating), preheating and proofing (fermentation).

This fermentation management program is mainly started in the evening or at night after the business hours from the end of the business hours of the previous day at a store such as a bakery so that the proof process is completed mainly in the morning (for example, 5 am). In the freeze process, the inside of the storage 12 is maintained at -5 ° C for 3 hours, in the retard process, the inside of the storage 12 is maintained at 0 ° C to 2 ° C, and in the preheating process, the inside of the storage 12 is maintained at 15 ° C. The humidity of 75 to 80% is maintained at -18 ° C for 2 hours, and the humidity of 75 to 85% is maintained at 28 ° C to 35 ° C for 1 hour in the proof (fermentation) step. In this fermentation control program, the freeze (freezing) process, preheating process and proofing (fermentation) are performed from the time required from the start time of the freeze (freezing) process to the preset end time (for example, 5 am) in the proof (fermentation) process. The time required for the process is reduced and the remaining time is controlled so that the retard (refrigerating) process is executed. The temperature, humidity and time are just examples and can be changed depending on the type of bread dough used for fermentation.

In addition, in the fermentation management program that manages fermentation so as to sandwich holidays at stores such as bakeries, fermentation is performed from the end of business hours before holidays to after business hours so that fermentation ends after holidays at stores such as bakeries. Start the management program and add the number of holidays x 24 hours (24 hours if the holiday is 1 day, 48 hours if the holiday is 2 days) to the management time in the above freeze process. ing.

The control when the fermentation control program is executed will be described below. In the freeze step of the fermentation control program, the control device 50 controls the operation of the cooling device 20 based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 18 to control the temperature inside the storage 12 so as to be −5 ° C. (Performing cooling operation). Cooling when the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 detects a set upper limit temperature higher than the set temperature of the storage 12 of -5 ° C (the set upper limit temperature is set, for example, 1 ° C higher than the set temperature, and the same applies hereinafter). When the device 20 is operated, the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 is set to be lower than the set temperature of the storage 12 of −5 ° C. (the set lower limit temperature is set, for example, 1 ° C lower than the set temperature, and the same applies hereinafter. ) Is detected, the operation of the cooling device 20 is stopped. When the cooling device 20 is operating, the air sent from the inside of the storage 12 to the temperature control space 16c of the duct passage 16 by the circulation fan 17 is cooled by exchanging heat with the evaporator 25. As shown by the two-dot chain line arrow in FIG. 4, the cooled air is sent to the storage 12 again through the vertical duct passage 16a and the horizontal duct passage 16b, and the inside of the storage 12 is cooled by the cooled air. Will be done.

Further, when the freezing step is being executed, when the cooling operation time by the cooling device 20 becomes 6 hours as the defrosting standby time for waiting for the defrosting operation, the heater 31 causes the evaporator 25. It is controlled to execute the defrosting operation. When a fermentation management program that starts in the evening or at night and ends in the morning of the next day without a holiday is executed, the cooling operation time by the freeze process is 3 hours, so the defrosting operation is not executed. On the other hand, in a fermentation management program that sandwiches a holiday, the cooling operation time in the freeze process is, for example, 27 hours. The evaporator 25 is controlled to perform a defrosting operation for defrosting. In the defrosting operation, the frost adhering to the evaporator 25 is melted by energizing the heater 31 while the operation of the cooling device 20 is stopped. When the detection temperature of the defrosting temperature sensor 25a provided in the evaporator 25 becomes 5 ° C. or higher, the defrosting operation of defrosting the evaporator 25 by the heater 31 is completed, and the cooling device is based on the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18. By controlling the operation of 20 and restarting the cooling operation, the temperature inside the storage 12 is controlled to be −5 ° C.

Further, if the defrosting operation is executed when the remaining time of the cooling operation in the freeze process is short, even if the storage 12 is cooled to the set temperature of −5 ° C. again after the defrosting operation, the storage 12 may be cooled again. The cooling operation in the freeze process may be completed immediately. In this case, the defrosting operation is not performed by heating the inside of the storage 12 to 2 ° C. by the heater 31 at the start of the retard (refrigerating) process executed after the cooling operation in the freeze (freezing) process is completed. However, since the frost attached to the evaporator 25 melts, the defrosting operation may be wasted. Further, even if the storage 12 is cooled to the set temperature again after the defrosting operation, the cooling operation in the freeze (freezing) process is immediately completed and the storage 12 is shifted to the retard (refrigerating) process. Cooling efficiency may deteriorate.

In order to cope with this, when executing a fermentation management program that sandwiches a holiday, the control device 50 sets the cooling operation time in the freeze process to the defrosting standby time waiting for the defrosting operation. After a certain 6 hours, when the heater 31 is controlled to execute the defrosting operation for defrosting the evaporator 25, the remaining time until the set time of the cooling operation in the freeze process is reached. Canceling the defrosting operation When the defrosting operation canceling time is shorter than 2 hours, the defrosting operation is controlled so as not to be executed even if the cooling operation time becomes the defrosting standby time. As a result, when the remaining time of the cooling operation setting time in the freeze (freezing) process is short, it is possible to prevent unnecessary defrosting operation and the setting time of the cooling operation in the freeze (freezing) process. It was possible to prevent a decrease in cooling efficiency due to temporary defrosting operation when the remaining time was short.

When 3 hours (adding the number of holidays × 24 when including holidays) elapses from the start of the freeze (freezing) process, the control device 50 executes the retard (refrigerating) process. In the retard (refrigerating) step, the control device 50 heats the storage 12 to the set temperature of 2 ° C. by the heater 31 based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 18, and then cools the storage 12 based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 18. By controlling the operation of the device 20, the temperature inside the refrigerator 12 is controlled so as to be 2 ° C. When the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 detects a set upper limit temperature higher than the set temperature of the storage 12 by 2 ° C, the cooling device 20 is operated, and the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 is 2 ° C, which is the set temperature of the storage 12. When a lower set lower limit temperature is detected, the operation of the cooling device 20 is stopped. When the cooling device 20 is operating, the air sent from the inside of the storage 12 to the temperature control space 16c of the duct passage 16 by the circulation fan 17 is cooled by exchanging heat with the evaporator 25. As shown by the two-dot chain line arrow in FIG. 4, the cooled air is sent to the storage 12 again through the vertical duct passage 16a and the horizontal duct passage 16b, and the inside of the storage 12 is cooled by the cooled air. Will be done.

At a predetermined time after starting the retard (refrigerating) process, the control device 50 executes the preheating process. In the preheating step, the control device 50 heats the storage 12 to 18 ° C., which is a set temperature, by the heater 31 based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 18, and then cools the cooling device 20 or the cooling device 20 based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 18. By controlling the operation of the heater 31, the temperature inside the storage 12 is controlled to be 18 ° C., and by controlling the operation of the humidifier 40 based on the detected humidity of the humidity sensor 19, the storage 12 The humidity inside is controlled so that it becomes 85%. In an environment where the room temperature is higher than the set temperature of 18 ° C, the cooling device 20 is operated when the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 detects a set upper limit temperature higher than the set temperature of the storage 12 of 18 ° C. It is controlled so that the operation of the cooling device 20 is stopped when the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 detects a set lower limit temperature lower than the set temperature of the storage 12 of 18 ° C. When the cooling device 20 is operating, the air sent from the inside of the storage 12 to the temperature control space 16c of the duct passage 16 by the circulation fan 17 is cooled by exchanging heat with the evaporator 25. As shown by the two-dot chain line arrow in FIG. 4, the cooled air is sent to the storage 12 again through the vertical duct passage 16a and the horizontal duct passage 16b, and the inside of the storage 12 is cooled by the cooled air. Will be done.

On the other hand, in an environment where the room temperature is lower than the set temperature of 18 ° C., the heater 31 is operated when the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 detects a set lower limit temperature lower than the set temperature of the storage 12 of 18 ° C. When the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 detects a set upper limit temperature higher than the set temperature of the storage 12 of 18 ° C., the operation of the heater 31 is stopped. When the heater 31 is operating, the air sent from the inside of the storage 12 to the temperature control space 16c of the duct passage 16 by the circulation fan 17 is heated by the heater 31. As shown by the arrow of the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 4, the heated air is sent to the storage 12 again through the vertical duct passage 16a and the horizontal duct passage 16b, and the inside of the storage 12 is warmed by the heated air. Be done.

Further, in the preheating step, the control device 50 not only controls the temperature described above, but also controls the humidity in the storage 12 so as to be 75%. When the control device 50 detects a set lower limit humidity whose detection humidity by the humidity sensor 19 is lower than 75% (the set lower limit humidity is set, for example, 5% lower than the set humidity, and the same applies hereinafter), it is humidified by the humidifier 40. When the humidity sensor 19 detects a set upper limit humidity higher than 75% (the set upper limit humidity is set, for example, 5% higher than the set humidity, and the same applies hereinafter), humidification by the humidifier 40 is performed. It is controlled to stop. When water is sprayed from the spray nozzle 41 in the form of mist, the air sent from the storage 12 to the duct passage 16 by the circulation fan 17 is the water sprayed from the spray nozzle 41 in the form of mist in the vertical duct passage 16a. It is vaporized and humidified, and as shown by the arrow of the two-point chain line in FIG. 4, the humidified air is sent to the storage 12 again through the vertical duct passage 16a and the horizontal duct passage 16b, and the inside of the storage 12 is inside. Humidified by humidified air. When the detection humidity of the humidity sensor 19 becomes higher than the dehumidification operation switching humidity set higher than the set upper limit humidity, the cooling device 20 is controlled to perform the dehumidification operation.

Two hours after the start of the preheating step, the control device 50 executes the fermentation (proofing) step. In the proof (fermentation) step, the control device 50 controls the operation of the heater 31 based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 18, so that the temperature inside the storage 12 is controlled to 35 ° C., and the humidity sensor By controlling the operation of the humidifier 40 based on the detected humidity of 19, the humidity inside the storage 12 is controlled to be 85%.

When the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 detects a set lower limit temperature lower than 35 ° C., which is the set temperature of the storage 12, the heater 31 is controlled to operate, and the detection temperature of the temperature sensor 18 is the set temperature of the storage 12. When a set upper limit temperature higher than a certain 35 ° C. is detected, the operation of the heater 31 is controlled to be stopped. When the heater 31 is operating, the air sent from the inside of the storage 12 to the temperature control space 16c of the duct passage 16 by the circulation fan 17 is heated by the heater 31. As shown by the arrow of the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 4, the heated air is sent to the storage 12 again through the vertical duct passage 16a and the horizontal duct passage 16b, and the inside of the storage 12 is warmed by the heated air. Be done.

Further, the control device 50 not only controls the temperature but also controls the humidity in the storage 12 so as to be 85%. The control device 50 controls the humidifier 40 to humidify when the humidity sensor 19 detects a set lower limit humidity lower than 85%, and detects a set upper limit humidity where the humidity detected by the humidity sensor 19 is higher than 85%. It is controlled so as to stop the humidification by the humidifier 40. When water is sprayed from the spray nozzle 41 in the form of mist, the air sent from the storage 12 to the duct passage 16 by the circulation fan 17 is the water sprayed from the spray nozzle 41 in the form of mist in the vertical duct passage 16a. It is vaporized and humidified, and as shown by the arrow of the two-point chain line in FIG. 4, the humidified air is sent to the storage 12 again through the vertical duct passage 16a and the horizontal duct passage 16b, and the inside of the storage 12 is inside. Humidified by humidified air. When the humidity sensor 19 detects the dehumidification operation switching humidity in which the humidity in the storage 12 is set higher than the set upper limit humidity, the cooling device 20 is controlled to perform the dehumidification operation. One hour after starting the proofing (fermentation) process, the control device 50 ends the fermentation control program.

In the temperature / humidity control cabinet (temperature control cabinet) 10 configured as described above, the control device 50 keeps the storage cabinet 12 at the set temperature of −5 ° C. until the set time is reached in the freeze process. During the cooling operation of cooling by the cooling device 20, when the cooling operation time reaches 6 hours, which is the defrosting standby time of waiting for the defrosting operation, the defrosting operation of defrosting the evaporator 25 by the heater 31 is executed. It is controlled like this. However, if the defrosting operation is executed when the remaining time of the cooling operation is short, even if the storage 12 is cooled to the set temperature of -5 ° C again after the defrosting operation, the freezing process is immediately performed. Cooling operation may end. In this case, since the inside of the storage 12 is heated to 2 ° C. by the heater 31 at the start of the retard (refrigerating) process executed after the cooling operation in the freeze (freezing) process is completed, the defrosting operation is not performed. However, since the frost attached to the evaporator 25 melts, the defrosting operation may be wasted. Further, even if the storage 12 is cooled to the set temperature of −5 ° C. again after the defrosting operation, the cooling operation in the freeze (freezing) process is immediately completed and the process shifts to the retard (refrigerating) process. Therefore, the cooling efficiency in the storage 12 may deteriorate.

On the other hand, in the temperature control chamber 10, the control device 50 has a remaining time until the set time of the cooling operation in the freeze (freezing) step is reached, which is 2 hours, which is the defrosting operation canceling time for canceling the defrosting operation. When it was shortened, the defrosting operation was controlled so as not to be executed even if the cooling operation time became the defrosting standby time of 6 hours. As a result, when the remaining time of the cooling operation setting time in the freeze (freezing) process is short, it is possible to prevent unnecessary defrosting operation and the setting time of the cooling operation in the freeze (freezing) process. It was possible to prevent a decrease in cooling efficiency due to temporary defrosting operation when the remaining time was short.

10 ... Temperature control cabinet (temperature / humidity control cabinet), 12 ... Cooking cabinet, 17 ... Circulation fan, 20 ... Cooling device, 31 ... Heater, 50 ... Control device.

Claims (1)

A storage for storing things and
A circulation fan that circulates the air in the storage,
A cooling device having an evaporator that cools the inside of the storage, and
A heater that heats and defrosts the evaporator and
A control device for controlling the operation of the cooling device and the heater is provided.
The control device has a refrigerating step in which the refrigerator is cooled by the cooling device so that the temperature of the refrigerator is set to a temperature lower than 0 degrees until the set time is reached, and the refrigerating step is performed until the set time is reached. It is controlled to execute the refrigerating step in which the cooling operation is performed by the cooling device so that the temperature inside the storage is set to 0 ° C. or higher, and the cooling operation time during the execution of the refrigerating step is the defrosting operation. It is a temperature control cabinet controlled to execute a defrosting operation for defrosting the evaporator by the heater when the standby defrosting standby time is reached.
In the control device, when the remaining time until the set time in the refrigeration process is reached is shorter than the defrosting operation canceling time for canceling the defrosting operation, the cooling operation time becomes the defrosting standby time. A temperature control cabinet characterized in that the defrosting operation is not executed.

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