JP6995536B2 - Cooling equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cooling device having a plurality of cooling compartments.

Cooling equipment such as a refrigerator generally has a plurality of cooling compartments. For example, Patent Document 1 below discloses a refrigerator having five cooling compartments: a refrigerator compartment, an upper freezer compartment, a lower freezer compartment, an ice making chamber, and a vegetable compartment.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-61086 (published on April 4, 2013)

In the conventional technology as described above, there is room for energy saving by efficiently utilizing the generated cold air. For example, in the refrigerator of Patent Document 1, the supply of cold air to the ice making chamber is performed in conjunction with the supply of cold air to the freezing chamber. Therefore, the ice making chamber is kept at a low temperature like the freezing chamber even in a situation where the ice is not made and it is not necessary to keep the temperature as low as that at the time of ice making. That is, in the prior art, even in a situation where it is not necessary to lower the temperature of the ice making chamber so much, a large amount of cold air is supplied to the ice making chamber, and it cannot be said that the cold air can be used efficiently.

One aspect of the present invention is to realize a cooling device or the like capable of efficiently utilizing the generated cold air to save energy.

In order to solve the above problems, the cooling device according to the present invention is a cooling device that sends cold air generated by the cooler to each of a plurality of cooling sections to cool the inside of each cooling section, and is a plurality of cooling devices. The cooling section includes an ice making chamber provided with an ice tray that rotates and removes ice, and the cold air flow path connecting the ice making chamber and the cooler is linked to the rotation of the ice tray. Then, a closing member that moves to a position that at least partially blocks the flow path is provided, and when it is determined that the ice making situation in the ice making chamber does not require ice making, the ice tray It is provided with a cold air supply control unit that controls rotation and at least partially blocks the flow path by the closing member . In the situation related to ice making, it is not necessary to make ice, but ice is stored in the ice making chamber. The first situation is included and the second situation is that there is no need to make ice and ice is not stored in the ice making chamber, and either the first situation or the second situation is described. The cold air supply control unit is provided with a determination unit for determining whether or not the above is applicable, and the cold air supply control unit is described so that the area of the blocked portion of the flow path is larger in the second situation than in the first situation. The structure is such that the ice tray is rotated .

In order to solve the above problems, the cooling device according to the present invention is a cooling device that sends the cold air generated by the cooler to each of a plurality of cooling sections to cool the inside of each cooling section. The cooling section of the above includes an ice making chamber provided with an ice tray that rotates and removes ice, and the flow path of cold air connecting the ice making chamber and the cooler is used to rotate the ice tray. In conjunction with this, a closing member is provided that moves to a position that at least partially blocks the flow path, and the ice tray is rotated in the direction opposite to that at the time of ice removal to at least partially block the flow path. The configuration is such that the closing member is moved to a closing position .

In order to solve the above problems, the ice making unit according to the present invention is an ice making unit that is arranged in an ice making chamber and makes ice with an ice tray, and the ice tray is used when ice is removed from the ice tray. It rotates, and is configured to include a closing member that moves to a position that closes at least a part of the opening for introducing cold air into the ice making chamber in conjunction with the rotation of the ice tray.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is an effect that the generated cold air can be efficiently used to save energy.

It is a block diagram which shows an example of the main part structure of the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the structural example of the ice making unit and the cold air duct provided in the refrigerator. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the said ice making unit. It is a figure which shows the example of the internal structure of the said ice making unit. It is a figure which shows the example of the position of the closing member in the said ice making unit. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process which the said refrigerator transitions an operation mode. It is a figure explaining the structure of the ice making unit and the cold air duct in the refrigerator which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention.

[Embodiment 1]
An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.

[Main parts of the refrigerator]
First, the configuration of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a main part configuration of the refrigerator 1. As shown in the figure, the refrigerator 1 includes a control unit 10, a storage unit 11, a cooler 12, an ice making unit 13, and an ice making chamber door switch 20. In FIG. 1, the blocks having a low relationship with the functions described in the present embodiment are not shown.

The refrigerator 1 is a cooling device that sends the cold air generated by the cooler 12 to each of the plurality of cooling compartments to cool the inside of each cooling compartment. The plurality of cooling compartments include an ice making chamber for making ice. In addition to this, the plurality of cooling compartments may include a freezing chamber, a refrigerating chamber, a vegetable compartment, and the like. Further, a plurality of freezing rooms, refrigerating rooms and the like may be included.

The control unit 10 controls each unit of the refrigerator 1 in an integrated manner, and the storage unit 11 stores various data used by the control unit 10. As shown in the figure, the control unit 10 includes an ice making control unit (cold air supply control unit) 101, a condition determination unit (determination unit) 102, and an ice storage amount detection unit 103.

The ice making control unit 101 controls the automatic ice making. Specifically, the ice making control unit 101 controls to supply water to the ice tray 132 from a water supply tank (not shown), controls the ice tray 132 to rotate after ice is formed, and controls to remove ice from the ice tray 132. I do.

Further, the ice making control unit 101 controls to block at least a part of the cold air supply port of the ice making chamber according to the usage condition of the ice making chamber. In the present embodiment, the usage status of the ice making chamber is classified into three, and the ice making control unit 101 performs the above control according to which of the situations corresponds. Details will be described later, but by this control, the cold air generated by the cooler 12 can be efficiently used to save energy in the refrigerator 1. It should be noted that such a process related to the control of the cold air supply may be performed by a process block different from the ice making control unit 101.

The condition determination unit 102 determines which of the plurality of predetermined usage conditions the usage status of the ice making chamber corresponds to. As described above, there are three usage situations in this embodiment. These three usage situations are the situation where ice making is necessary, the situation where ice is stored in the ice making room (first situation), and the situation where ice making is not necessary and the ice making room is filled with ice. Is not stored (second situation). The situation to be determined is not limited to the above example, as long as the amount of cold air to be supplied to the ice making chamber is different.

The ice storage amount detection unit 103 detects the amount of ice storage in the ice storage case (not shown) in the ice making chamber by using the detection lever 137. The method of detecting the amount of ice storage will be described later together with the details of the detection lever 137.

The ice making unit 13 is a unit made of a member related to ice making, and includes an ice making dish 132 and a driving unit 131 thereof. When the drive unit 131 is driven and rotated until the water receiving surface of the ice tray 132 faces diagonally downward, the ice tray 132 comes into contact with a stopper provided on the rotation path thereof. By continuing to drive the drive unit 131 even after the contact with the stopper, the ice tray 132 is twisted, whereby ice is detached (ice off) from the ice tray 132. The detached ice is stored in an ice storage case.

Further, the ice making unit 13 includes a closing member 133 that moves in conjunction with the rotation of the ice making dish 132. The details will be described later based on FIG. 5 and the like, but the position of the moving destination of the closing member 133 is a position that at least partially closes the cold air supply port to the ice making chamber.

Further, the ice making unit 13 also includes a detection lever 137. The detection lever 137 is a lever for detecting the amount of ice in the ice storage case. The detection lever 137 is a rod-shaped member rotatably arranged above the ice storage case. The detection lever 137 rotates downward under the control of the ice storage amount detection unit 103, and stops when it comes into contact with the ice or the bottom of the ice storage case. Then, the ice storage amount detection unit 103 detects the ice storage amount based on the rotation angle from the rotation start to the rotation stop of the detection lever 137. The method for detecting the amount of ice storage is not limited to this example, and for example, a weight sensor or an infrared sensor may be provided in the ice storage case, and the amount of ice storage may be detected based on the detected value. The amount of ice storage is detected at a predetermined timing, for example, immediately before the ice removal operation.

The ice making chamber door switch 20 is a switch for detecting the opening / closing of the door of the ice making chamber. The condition determination unit 102 determines that the door of the ice making chamber has been opened based on the output of the ice making chamber door switch 20.

[Structure for supplying cold air to the ice making room]
The configuration for supplying cold air to the ice making chamber will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a configuration example of the ice making unit 13 and the cold air duct 15. The cold air duct 15 is for sending the cold air generated by the cooler 12 to each cooling section of the refrigerator 1, and the inside of the cold air duct 15 is a flow path for cold air. Although not shown, the cold air in the cold air duct 15 is also supplied to the freezing chamber. Further, although not shown, a cold air duct for supplying cold air to the refrigerating chamber may be connected above the cold air duct 15, and cold air is supplied to the vegetable compartment below the cold air duct 15. A cold air duct for the purpose may be connected.

As shown in the figure, the ice making unit 13 is connected to the cold air duct 15. Since the ice making unit 13 is housed in the ice making chamber of the refrigerator 1, the cold air in the cold air duct 15 enters the ice making chamber through the cold air supply port of the ice making unit 13 (described later in FIGS. 3 and later). The cold air supply port of the ice making unit 13 is also a cold air supply port of the ice making chamber. In this way, a part of the cold air generated by the cooler 12 is sent to the ice making chamber through the cold air supply port of the cold air duct 15 and the ice making unit 13.

[Structure of ice making unit]
The configuration of the ice making unit 13 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an example of the ice making unit 13. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of the ice making unit 13.

As shown in FIG. 3, a cold air supply port 135 is provided on one side surface of the ice making unit 13. By connecting the cold air supply port 135 to the cold air duct 15, cold air is sent to the inside of the ice making unit 13. Further, a rotary shaft 136 projects from the side surface, and the closing member 133 is connected to the rotary shaft 136. In the illustrated example, the closing member 133 is directly connected to the rotating shaft 136, but the closing member 133 may rotate in conjunction with the rotation of the rotating shaft 136. For example, the closing member 133 may be connected to the rotating shaft 136 via a member such as a gear.

The rotation shaft 136 is a rotation shaft for rotating the ice tray 132 arranged inside the ice making unit 13. As shown in FIG. 4, one end of the rotating shaft 136 is connected to the drive unit 131, and the other end is connected to the closing member 133. The central portion of the rotating shaft 136 is connected to the ice tray 132. Therefore, by rotating the rotation shaft 136, the ice tray 132 is rotated and the closing member 133 is also rotated.

As shown in FIG. 4, the closing member 133 is arranged outside the end of the cold air supply port 135 (on the cold air duct 15 side). The connection portion of the cold air duct 15 connected to the ice making unit 13 forms a space in the region through which the closing member 133 passes so as not to hinder the rotation of the closing member 133. As a result, the cold air supply port 135 can be closed from the outside by the closing member 133.

[Operation mode and position of blocking member]
Refrigerator 1 has three modes of operation related to ice making. One is a normal mode for making ice, the other is a first power saving mode in which the power consumption of the refrigerator 1 is lower than that in the normal mode, and the other one is a power saving mode in which the power consumption of the refrigerator 1 is lower than that of the first mode. This is the second power saving mode in which the power consumption of the refrigerator 1 is low. The refrigerator 1 switches between these modes by changing the position of the closing member 133. This will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the position of the closing member 133.

In the example of FIG. 5A, the water receiving surface of the ice tray 132 faces upward, and the closing member 133 is located at a position where it does not touch the cold air supply port 135. In this state, the cold air in the cold air duct 15 is supplied to the ice making chamber from the cold air supply port 135 without being blocked by the closing member 133, whereby the ice making chamber is sufficient to freeze the water in the ice tray 132. It becomes a temperature environment. This state is the normal mode. The temperature in the ice making chamber in the normal mode may be, for example, about −15 ° C.

On the other hand, in the example of FIG. 5B, the water receiving surface of the ice tray 132 faces diagonally downward, and the position of the closing member 133 fixed to the rotating shaft 136 of the ice tray 132 is also shown in FIG. It is moving from the position shown in. In this state, the closing member 133 closes a part of the cold air supply port 135 (about 1/3 of the opening area in this example). Therefore, compared to the state (normal mode) shown in (a) of the figure, the amount of cold air supplied from the cold air supply port 135 to the ice making chamber is reduced, and the reduced amount of cold air is used in another cooling compartment (for example, a freezing chamber). Etc.). As a result, the power consumption of the refrigerator 1 is lower than that in the normal mode. This state is the first power saving mode. The temperature in the ice making chamber in the first power saving mode may be less than 0 ° C., for example, about −5 ° C.

The first power saving mode is an operation mode applied in a situation where ice is stored in the ice making chamber, although ice making is not performed. Therefore, when the ice making control unit 101 switches to the first power saving mode, the position of the closing member 133 supplies the ice making chamber with an amount of cold air so that the ice stored in the ice making chamber does not melt. The ice tray 132 is rotated so as to be in a predetermined position adjusted so as to be.

Further, in the example of FIG. 5 (c), the water receiving surface of the ice tray 132 faces downward, and the position of the closing member 133 fixed to the rotating shaft 136 of the ice tray 132 is also the position shown in FIG. 5 (b). It is moving further from. In this state, the closing member 133 closes the entire cold air supply port 135. Therefore, the amount of cold air supplied from the cold air supply port 135 into the ice making chamber is further reduced as compared with the example of (b) in the figure, and the reduced amount of cold air is supplied to other cooling compartments. As a result, the power consumption of the refrigerator 1 is lower than that of the first power saving mode. This state is the second power saving mode. The temperature in the ice making chamber in the second power saving mode may be 0 ° C. or higher.

The second power saving mode is an operation mode applied in a situation where it is not necessary to cool the ice making chamber, specifically, a situation where ice making is not performed and ice is not stored in the ice making chamber. When the ice making control unit 101 switches to the second power saving mode, the position of the closing member 133 is adjusted so that the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber is further smaller than that of the first power saving mode. The ice tray 132 is rotated so as to be in the position of. The above position may be any position as long as the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber is smaller than that in the first power saving mode, and is not limited to the position where the entire cold air supply port 135 is blocked.

As described above, the ice making unit 13 is provided with a stopper (not shown) for causing the ice making tray 132 to be twisted at the time of ice removal. Depending on the installation position of this stopper, the ice tray 132 may not be able to be rotated to the state of (c) in FIG. 5, or the ice tray 132 may be in a twisted state when it is rotated to this state. It is possible.

In such a case, the ice making control unit 101 rotates the ice tray 132 in the direction opposite to that during the ice removal operation, so that the ice tray 132 reaches the state of FIG. 5 (c) without being hindered by the stopper. It may be configured to rotate. In this case, as a stopper, when rotating in the forward direction (rotation direction at the time of ice removal), the rotation of the ice tray 132 is hindered, and rotation in the reverse direction (rotation direction at the time of transition of the operation mode). In this case, the one that does not interfere with the rotation of the ice tray 132 is adopted. If the state of (b) in FIG. 5 can be achieved by rotating the ice tray 132 within a range in which the ice tray 132 is not twisted by the stopper, the ice tray 132 is rotated in the positive direction in this state. You may let me. That is, the rotation direction in the first power saving mode and the rotation direction in the second power saving mode may be different. Of course, the ice tray 132 may be rotated in the opposite direction even in the state of FIG. 5B.

[Transition of operation mode]
The transition of the above-mentioned three operation modes will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the process in which the refrigerator 1 changes the operation mode. In this example, the operation is started in the normal mode, but the operation may be started in another mode. Further, the user's desired operation mode may be specified by the user operation or the like.

In S1, the ice making control unit 101 sets the operation mode of the refrigerator 1 to the normal mode. Specifically, the ice making control unit 101 controls the driving unit 131 so that the water receiving surface of the ice tray 132 faces upward. As a result, as shown in FIG. 5A, the closing member 133 does not block the cold air supply port 135, that is, the cold air supply port 135 is open.

In S2, the condition determination unit 102 determines the necessity of ice making. Specifically, the condition determination unit 102 determines whether or not the state in which the ice making chamber door is not opened continues for a predetermined period (for example, 48 hours) based on the output from the ice making chamber door switch 20. do.

If the state in which the door of the ice making chamber is not opened continues for a predetermined period, it can be considered that ice making is unnecessary, so that the condition determination unit 102 sets the determination result of S2 to NO. In this case, the process proceeds to S3.

On the other hand, if a predetermined period has not elapsed since the door of the ice making chamber was last opened, it can be considered that ice making is necessary, so that the condition determination unit 102 sets the determination result of S2 to YES. In this case, the process returns to S1. If the refrigerator 1 is already in the normal mode before returning to S1, the ice making control unit 101 does not perform any particular processing when returning to S1, and performs an ice making operation at a predetermined timing. On the other hand, if the refrigerator 1 is in another mode before returning to S1, the ice making control unit 101 controls the driving unit 131 so that the water receiving surface of the ice tray 132 faces upward when returning to S1. After that, the ice making control unit 101 performs an ice making operation at a predetermined timing.

In S3, the ice making control unit 101 sets the operation mode of the refrigerator 1 as the first power saving mode. Specifically, the ice making control unit 101 controls the driving unit 131 so that the water receiving surface of the ice tray 132 faces diagonally downward. As a result, as shown in FIG. 5B, the closing member 133 closes a part of the cold air supply port 135, that is, the cold air supply port 135 is in a half-open state.

In S4, the condition determination unit 102 determines the presence or absence of ice storage based on the detection result of the ice storage amount detection unit 103. When the condition determination unit 102 determines that there is no ice storage (NO in S4), the process proceeds to S5. On the other hand, when the condition determination unit 102 determines that there is ice storage (YES in S4), the process returns to S2.

In S5, the ice making control unit 101 sets the operation mode of the refrigerator 1 as the second power saving mode. Specifically, the ice making control unit 101 controls the driving unit 131 so that the water receiving surface of the ice tray 132 faces downward. As a result, as shown in FIG. 5 (c), the closing member 133 closes the entire cold air supply port 135, that is, the cold air supply port 135 is closed. After this, the process returns to S2.

The determination results of S2 and S4 from the second time onward are different from the previous determination results only when the door of the ice making chamber is opened. Therefore, after the processing of S5 is completed and after the determination of YES in S4, a signal indicating that the ice making chamber door has been opened is output from the ice making chamber door switch 20 until the ice making chamber door is opened. (Until it is output), the determination of S2 may not be performed.

Further, the determination content of S2 is not limited to the above example. In S2, the situation where the normal mode should be set (the situation where sufficient cold air needs to be supplied to the ice making chamber) and the situation where the first or second power saving mode should be set (the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber should be reduced). , Or a situation where there is no problem even if the supply is stopped).

For example, the condition determination unit 102 may determine in S2 whether or not water is contained in the water supply tank that supplies water to the ice tray 132. If the water tank is filled with water, the user is likely to want to make ice and can be considered a situation that should be in normal mode.

Whether or not water is contained in the water supply tank can be determined, for example, by providing a sensor (such as a weight sensor of the water supply tank or an optical sensor for detecting water in the water supply tank) in the refrigerator 1 and determining from the detection value of the sensor. can. Further, when the ice making control unit 101 performs the water supply operation to the ice making dish 132, when the output value of the detector (for example, thermistor) for detecting the temperature in the ice making dish 132 does not change, water is supplied to the water supply tank. It may be determined that is not included. This is because if water is contained in the water supply tank, water is supplied to the ice tray 132 by the water supply operation, and the temperature inside the ice tray 132 rises.

In addition to this, for example, it may be determined whether or not the period in which the water supply tank is not inserted or removed continues for a predetermined period or longer. Further, for example, it may be determined whether or not the period in which none of the doors of the refrigerator 1 is opened or closed continues for a predetermined period (for example, 144 hours) or more. This is because the need for ice making is low when the refrigerator 1 has not been used for a long period of time because the user is out on a trip or the like. The method of detecting that the refrigerator 1 is not used is not limited to the above method based on the opening and closing of the door. For example, when the refrigerator 1 is provided with a motion sensor, it may be determined whether or not the period during which the motion sensor does not detect a person continues for a predetermined period or longer.

Further, the determination content of S4 is not limited to the above example. In S4, the situation where the first power saving mode should be set (the situation where it is necessary to supply a certain amount of cold air to the ice making room) and the situation where the second power saving mode should be set (the situation where the supply of cold air to the ice making room is unnecessary). ) And the judgment should be made.

For example, the condition determination unit 102 determines whether or not the ice storage amount detection unit 103 continuously has zero ice storage amount (for example, 10 times) or more (whether the detection lever 137 has rotated until it hits the bottom of the ice storage case). You may. Since the detection of the amount of ice storage by the detection lever 137 is performed at a predetermined timing (for example, before the ice removal operation), when this determination is made, the refrigerator 1 is in a state where the amount of ice storage is zero for a certain period of time. Can be transitioned to the second power saving mode. The presence or absence of ice storage may be detected by a weight sensor or an optical sensor.

Further, when the operation mode changes, the user may be notified to that effect. For example, when the refrigerator 1 is provided with a display unit, the ice making control unit 101 may display on the display unit information indicating that the operation mode has changed and the operation mode after the change. Further, for example, when the refrigerator 1 is provided with a voice output unit, the ice making control unit 101 changes the operation mode by a voice such as "Since ice making is not performed, the ice making room is set to the power saving mode". The user may be notified of the fact that the operation mode has been changed and the operation mode after the change.

Even in the case of ice making, if there is an interval between ice making operations, that is, if the next ice making operation is performed after a predetermined period after the ice is removed in one ice making operation, the ice making control unit 101 The predetermined period may be set to the first power saving mode.

[Embodiment 2]
Other embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the ice making unit 13 and the cold air duct 15 in the refrigerator 1 of the present embodiment. For convenience of explanation, the same reference numerals are given to the members having the same functions as the members described in the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof will not be repeated. The same applies to the third and subsequent embodiments.

The refrigerator 1 of the present embodiment is different from the refrigerator 1 of the above embodiment in that an adjusting member 19 for preventing the inflow of cold air into the ice making chamber is arranged in the flow path of the cold air connecting the ice making chamber and the cooler 12. is doing. Further, the arrangement of the closing member 133 is also different from that of the refrigerator 1 of the above embodiment. The closing member 133 of the present embodiment is provided on the inner side of the ice making unit 13 with respect to the cold air supply port 135, and closes the cold air supply port 135 from the inner side of the ice making unit 13. As described above, the arrangement of the closing member 133 may be such that the supply of cold air to the ice making chamber can be adjusted.

As shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, an adjusting member 19 is arranged in the vicinity of the connection portion of the cold air duct 15 with the ice making unit 13 so as to close the cold air supply port 135. FIG. 7C shows a perspective view of the adjusting member 19. As shown in the figure, the adjusting member 19 has a rectangular shape as a whole like the cold air supply port 135 (see FIGS. 3, 5, etc.). The width and height of the adjusting member 19 may be such that at least a part of the cold air supply port 135 can be closed, and the width and height of the adjusting member 19 may be one round of the ventilation passage in the cold air duct 15 provided with the adjusting member 19. It is preferable to make it smaller. As a result, it is possible to prevent the problem that the adjusting member 19 is stuck in the ventilation passage and does not move due to the generation of frost, for example.

One end of the adjusting member 19 is a rotating shaft portion 191, and the adjusting member 19 is rotatably fixed to the inner wall of the ventilation passage of the cold air duct 15 by the rotating shaft portion 191. Further, the other end of the adjusting member 19 is a wind receiving portion 192 that receives the cold air generated by the blower fan 17.

The adjusting member 19 is in a substantially upright state due to its own weight unless an external force equal to or higher than the threshold value is applied (state (a) in FIG. 7). In this state, since the adjusting member 19 hinders the inflow of cold air into the ice making chamber, the cold air in the cold air duct 15 is mainly diverted to cooling other cooling compartments (for example, a freezing chamber) (not shown). Become. By providing the adjusting member 19 in this way, it is possible to effectively utilize the cold air without unnecessarily cooling the ice making chamber when there is no need for ice making. As a result, the power consumption of the refrigerator 1 can be suppressed.

On the other hand, when the air volume in the flow path provided with the adjusting member 19 exceeds a predetermined threshold value, the adjusting member 19 has a cold air supply port as shown in FIG. 7 (b) due to the wind pressure received by the wind receiving unit 192. It rotates in a direction away from 135. As a result, the flow path of the cold air connected to the cold air supply port 135 is wider than that of the state (a) in the figure, so that more cold air is supplied to the ice making chamber than in the state. The weight, size, shape, etc. of the adjusting member 19 are as shown in FIG. 7 (b) when the air volume of the blower fan 17 is such that the cold air required for ice making is supplied. Adjust so that the flow path of cold air is secured. As a result, even when the adjusting member 19 is provided, sufficient cold air can be supplied to the ice making chamber when ice making is required.

As described above, in the refrigerator 1 of the present embodiment, when the air volume of cold air in the flow path is less than a predetermined threshold value, at least a portion of the cold air supply port 135 is provided in the flow path connecting the ice making chamber and the cooler 12. An adjusting member 19 that moves to a position where the object is closed is arranged. Therefore, when ice making is not performed, the ice making control unit 101 controls the blower fan 17 so that the air volume of the cold air in the flow path is less than the threshold value, and the adjusting member 19 at least partially controls the cold air supply port 135. It may be closed. Such control is also an example of control that at least partially closes the cold air supply port 135. Further, in this case, the ice making control unit 101 controls the air volume of the blower fan 17 so that the air volume in the flow path becomes equal to or higher than the threshold value when ice making is performed. This ensures that sufficient cold air is supplied to the ice making chamber during ice making, while preventing unnecessary cold air from being supplied to the ice making chamber during non-ice making to reduce the power consumption of the refrigerator 1. It has the effect of being able to. Whether or not to make ice can be determined in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

Further, in the example of FIG. 7, the adjusting member 19 and the closing member 133 are used in combination, but the above effect can be obtained even if the adjusting member 19 is provided alone. Further, the adjusting member 19 is not limited to the position immediately before the cold air supply port 135, and can be provided at any position on the cold air supply path. The adjusting member 19 has a wind receiving portion 192 having a shape corresponding to the flow direction of cold air at the position where the adjusting member 19 is provided, and the position changes depending on the wind pressure. Anything that can change the amount of cold air supplied to) is sufficient. For example, the adjusting member 19 may be provided inside the cold air supply port 135. In this case, the rotating shaft portion 191 is attached to the upper surface of the cold air supply port 135. Since the cold air flows in the cold air supply port 135 toward the left in FIG. 7, the adjusting member 19 may have a flat plate shape. In this case, almost the entire surface of the adjusting member 19 becomes the wind receiving portion.

[Embodiment 3]
In each of the above embodiments, an example of adjusting the supply of cold air to the ice making chamber by the closing member 133 and the adjusting member 19 has been described. However, the cooling section to be adjusted for the supply of cold air may be a section that can reduce the power consumption of the refrigerator 1 as a whole by suppressing the supply of cold air to the cooling section, and is an ice making chamber. Not limited to.

For example, the supply of cold air to the chilled chamber may be adjusted by the same configuration as in each of the above embodiments. In this case, when the chilled chamber is not in use, the amount of cold air supplied to the chilled chamber may be reduced or stopped. For example, when there is no article housed in the chilled chamber by a weight sensor, an optical sensor, or the like, it may be considered that the chilled chamber is not used, and the supply amount of cold air to the chilled chamber may be reduced or stopped. Further, for example, when a lid or the like is provided in the chilled chamber, when the lid or the like is open, it is considered that the chilled chamber is not used, and the supply amount of cold air to the chilled chamber is reduced or stopped. You may.

[Modification example]
In the above embodiment, an example of adjusting the supply of cold air to the ice making chamber independent of the freezing chamber has been shown, but the cooling section for ice making may be provided in the freezing chamber. In this case as well, the effect of power saving can be obtained. Further, in each of the above embodiments, the refrigerator 1 having the automatic ice making function has been described as an example, but the present invention can also be applied to a cooling device in which a user performs an operation of supplying water to an ice tray to make ice.

Further, in the above embodiment, the refrigerator 1 provided with the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber has been described as an example, but the present invention can also be applied to a cooling device having only a refrigerating function or only a refrigerating function. Further, in the above embodiment, an example in which the position of the closing member 133 is changed in three stages (each stage in which the cold air supply port 135 is opened, half-opened, and closed) is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this example. For example, it may be changed in two stages of open and half-open, or in two stages of open and closed. Further, it may be changed in four or more steps.

In addition to this, for example, a configuration may be adopted in which the rotation angle of the ice tray is controlled according to the temperature of the ice making chamber without providing the steps as described above. For example, a temperature range may be set for each usage condition of the ice making chamber, and the rotation angle of the ice tray may be controlled so that the temperature of the ice making chamber is within the range. In this case, when the temperature of the ice making chamber is lower than the above range, the ice making control unit 101 increases the rotation angle of the ice tray to reduce the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber. On the other hand, when the temperature of the ice making chamber is higher than the above range, the rotation angle of the ice making tray is reduced to increase the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber.

[Example of implementation by software]
The control block of the refrigerator 1 (particularly, the ice making control unit 101, the condition determination unit 102, and the ice storage amount detection unit 103) may be realized by a logic circuit (hardware) formed in an integrated circuit (IC chip) or the like. , May be realized by software.

In the latter case, the refrigerator 1 includes a computer that executes instructions of a program that is software that realizes each function. This computer includes, for example, at least one processor (control device) and at least one computer-readable recording medium in which the program is stored. Then, in the computer, the processor reads the program from the recording medium and executes the program, thereby achieving the object of the present invention. As the processor, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) can be used. As the recording medium, a "non-temporary tangible medium", for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory) or the like, a tape, a disk, a card, a semiconductor memory, a programmable logic circuit, or the like can be used. Further, a RAM (Random Access Memory) for expanding the above program may be further provided. Further, the program may be supplied to the computer via any transmission medium (communication network, broadcast wave, etc.) capable of transmitting the program. It should be noted that one aspect of the present invention can also be realized in the form of a data signal embedded in a carrier wave, in which the above program is embodied by electronic transmission.

〔summary〕
The cooling device according to the first aspect of the present invention is a cooling device that sends out the cold air generated by the cooler to each of the plurality of cooling compartments to cool the inside of each cooling compartment, and the plurality of cooling compartments include the cooling equipment. An ice making chamber provided with an ice tray that rotates to remove ice is included, and the flow path of cold air connecting the ice making chamber and the cooler is linked to the rotation of the ice tray. It is configured to be provided with a closing member that moves to a position where the ice is at least partially closed.

According to the above configuration, when the ice making chamber is used in a situation where it is not necessary to supply cold air or a situation where it is sufficient to supply a small amount of cold air, the ice tray can be rotated to the ice making chamber. The amount of cold air supplied can be reduced. Then, since the reduced amount of cold air is used for cooling other cooling sections, the generated cold air can be efficiently used to save energy. Further, according to the above configuration, the ice making chamber can be provided by using the configuration for rotating the ice tray provided for ice removal without newly providing a drive mechanism for the closing member. The amount of cold air supplied can be adjusted.

The cooling device according to the second aspect of the present invention controls the rotation of the ice tray according to which of the plurality of predetermined situations the ice making situation in the ice making chamber corresponds to in the first aspect. The configuration may include a cold air supply control unit that at least partially blocks the flow path with the closing member.

According to the above configuration, the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber can be controlled according to the situation regarding ice making. This makes it possible, for example, to reduce the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber and use that amount of cold air for cooling other cooling compartments when it is not necessary to make ice.

In the second aspect of the present invention, the cooling device according to the third aspect of the present invention does not need to make ice in the plurality of predetermined situations, but the first situation in which ice is stored in the ice making chamber and the ice making. A second situation in which ice is not stored in the ice making chamber is included, and a determination unit for determining whether the first situation or the second situation is applicable. The cold air supply control unit may rotate the ice tray so that the area of the blocked portion of the flow path becomes wider in the second situation than in the first situation. good.

According to the above configuration, in a situation where there is no need to make ice and no ice is stored in the ice making chamber, that is, there is no need to cool the ice making chamber, many parts of the cold air flow path are blocked. , It is possible to prevent unnecessary cold air from being supplied to the ice making chamber. Further, although it is not necessary to make ice, in a situation where ice is stored in the ice making chamber, a certain amount of cold air can be supplied to the ice making chamber to cool the ice making chamber to the extent that the ice does not melt. ..

In the cooling device according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in the second or third aspect, the cold air supply control unit may be configured to control the rotation angle of the ice tray according to the temperature of the ice making chamber.

As described above, in the cooling device, the closing member moves in conjunction with the rotation of the ice tray, whereby the degree of blocking changes and the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber also changes. Therefore, according to the above configuration in which the rotation angle of the ice tray is controlled according to the temperature of the ice making chamber, the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber can be adjusted according to the temperature of the ice making chamber. For example, if the temperature of the ice making chamber is lower than necessary, the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber may be reduced, or if the temperature of the ice making chamber is too high, the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber may be increased. It will also be possible.

In any one of the above aspects 2 to 4, the cooling device according to the fifth aspect of the present invention has the cold air supply control unit rotating the ice tray in the direction opposite to that at the time of ice removal, and at least the flow path is rotated. The closing member may be moved to a position where it is partially closed.

According to the above configuration, the closing member can be moved to a predetermined position without being hindered by the stopper provided for ice removal.

The cooling device according to the sixth aspect of the present invention is a cooling device that sends the cold air generated by the cooler to each of the plurality of cooling compartments to cool the inside of each cooling compartment, and is one of the plurality of cooling compartments. Adjustment to move the cool air flow path connecting the target section and the cooler to a position where the flow path is at least partially blocked when the air volume of the cold air in the flow path is less than a predetermined threshold value. It is a configuration in which members are arranged.

According to the above configuration, when the usage status of the target section is such that it is not necessary to supply cold air or a situation where it is sufficient to supply a small amount of cold air, the cold air is supplied to the target section by reducing the air volume. The amount can be reduced. Then, since the reduced amount of cold air is used for cooling other cooling sections, the generated cold air can be efficiently used to save energy. Further, according to the above configuration, the supply amount of cold air to the ice making chamber can be adjusted by using the configuration for air volume control without newly providing a drive mechanism for the adjusting member.

The ice making unit according to aspect 7 of the present invention is an ice making unit that is arranged in an ice making chamber and makes ice with an ice tray, and the ice tray rotates when ice is removed from the ice tray. The configuration is provided with a closing member that moves to a position that closes at least a part of the opening for introducing cold air into the ice making chamber in conjunction with the rotation of the ice tray.

According to the above configuration, the amount of cold air supplied to the ice making chamber can be reduced by rotating the ice making dish in a situation where ice making is not necessary. In addition, the reduced amount of cold air is used for cooling other cooling compartments. Therefore, by mounting the ice making unit on the cooling device, the cold air generated by the cooling device can be efficiently used to save energy in the cooling device.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the claims, and the embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in the different embodiments. Is also included in the technical scope of the present invention. Further, by combining the technical means disclosed in each embodiment, new technical features can be formed.

1 Refrigerator (cooling equipment)
12 Cooler 13 Ice making unit 19 Adjusting member 101 Ice making control unit (cold air supply control unit)
102 Condition judgment unit (judgment unit)
132 Ice tray 133 Closure member

Claims (3)

It is a cooling device that sends the cold air generated by the cooler to each of a plurality of cooling compartments to cool the inside of each cooling compartment.
The plurality of cooling compartments include an ice making chamber provided with an ice tray for rotating and removing ice.
The cold air flow path connecting the ice making chamber and the cooler is provided with a closing member that moves to a position where the flow path is at least partially blocked in conjunction with the rotation of the ice tray.
When it is determined that it is not necessary to make ice in the ice making chamber, the cold air supply control unit that controls the rotation of the ice tray and at least partially blocks the flow path by the closing member. Equipped with
In the above-mentioned ice-making situation, it is not necessary to make ice, but the first situation in which ice is stored in the ice-making chamber and the first situation in which ice-making is not necessary and ice is not stored in the ice-making chamber. 2 situations are included,
A determination unit for determining which of the first situation and the second situation is applicable is provided.
The cooling air supply control unit is characterized in that the ice tray is rotated so that the area of the blocked portion of the flow path is larger in the second situation than in the first situation. machine. The cooling device according to claim 1, wherein the cold air supply control unit controls the rotation angle of the ice tray according to the temperature of the ice making chamber. The cold air supply control unit is characterized in that the ice tray is rotated in a direction opposite to that at the time of ice removal, and the closing member is moved to a position where the flow path is at least partially blocked. Or the cooling device according to 2 .

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