JP7488686B2 - refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a refrigerator.

For example, as described in Patent Document 1, refrigerators are known that are equipped with a voice input device such as a microphone and a voice output device such as a speaker. In such refrigerators, voice uttered by the user is input from the voice input device, and voice in response to the input is output from the voice output device.

Conventionally, in such refrigerators, the audio input device and audio output device have been installed in the same location, typically inside the hinge cover as described in Patent Document 1.

JP 2016-183786 A

However, if the audio input device and audio output device are installed in the same location, the audio output from the audio output device may be input to the audio input device, resulting in an incorrect response being output from the audio output device.

Therefore, the objective of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator in which the sound output from the sound output device is less likely to be input to the sound input device.

A refrigerator according to an embodiment includes an audio input device for inputting audio, an audio output device for outputting audio, a housing in which a storage compartment is formed, and a door for opening and closing an opening at the front of the storage compartment, the audio input device and the audio output device are provided in different locations, the audio input device is provided above the opening in the housing, a connection line connected to the audio input device is wired along the left-right direction at the front of the housing , a rotation shaft that serves as an axis for rotating the door and a cover member that covers the rotation shaft are provided, the audio input device is provided in the center of the refrigerator in a width direction when viewed from the front, a control means for controlling the refrigerator is provided inside the cover member on one side of the refrigerator in the width direction, and the connection line connected to the audio input device is connected to the control means .

FIG. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the refrigerator according to the embodiment. FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the refrigerator according to the embodiment with the door open. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the door of the refrigerator according to the embodiment; 1 is an exploded perspective view of a hinge unit according to an embodiment of the present invention; 6 is a cross-sectional view of the hinge unit according to the embodiment taken along the line CC in FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a refrigerator according to an embodiment. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the refrigerator according to the embodiment taken along line B-B of FIG. FIG. FIG. 11 is a front view of a refrigerator according to another modified example.

The following embodiments are described with reference to the drawings. Note that the following embodiments are merely examples, and the scope of the invention is not limited thereto. The following embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. The following embodiments and their variations are within the scope of the invention and its equivalents as set forth in the claims.

In the following explanation, the side where the refrigerator user (hereafter simply referred to as "user") stands is referred to as the front, and the opposite side is referred to as the back. Additionally, up, down, left, right and up are those seen from the perspective of a user standing in front of the refrigerator. Additionally, a plan view is when the refrigerator is viewed from above.

1 and 2 show a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment. A housing 11 of the refrigerator 10 is formed by combining an outer box 12 that forms the outer shell of the refrigerator 10 with an inner box 13 in which a storage compartment is formed, and filling a space between the outer box 12 and the inner box 13 with a thermal insulating material 14.

The inside of the housing 11 is divided into upper and lower parts by an insulating partition wall 15. The upper side of the insulating partition wall 15 is a refrigerated space. The refrigerated space is maintained at a refrigeration temperature that is suitable for refrigerated storage. The lower side of the insulating partition wall 15 is a freezer space. The freezer space is maintained at a freezer temperature that is suitable for frozen storage.

The refrigerator space and freezer space each have multiple storage compartments for storing food. Each storage compartment has an opening at the front, through which users can put food in and take it out. The opening refers to the front end of a storage compartment that opens to the front, and can also be called the open end. The opening is on a plane that extends in the vertical and horizontal directions.

The refrigeration space is provided with a refrigerator compartment 20 and a vegetable compartment 22 as storage compartments from top to bottom. The interior of the refrigerator compartment 20 is maintained within the refrigeration temperature range, for example, at 2 to 5°C, and the interior of the vegetable compartment 22 is maintained within the refrigeration temperature range, for example, at 4 to 7°C. The refrigerator compartment 20 is provided with a number of storage shelves 24. The vegetable compartment 22 also contains a pull-out vegetable container 25.

The front opening 39 (see Figure 4) of the refrigerator compartment 20 is opened and closed by a pair of left and right refrigerator compartment doors 50, 51 in a French style (double door style). The right refrigerator compartment door 51 is longer in the left-right direction than the left refrigerator compartment door 50, and is larger when viewed from the front (front).

An operation panel 19 is provided on the left refrigerator compartment door 50. The operation panel 19 is also a liquid crystal display device, and has a well-known structure in which a rectangular array substrate, a liquid crystal layer, an opposing substrate, a light guide plate, etc., each of which is stacked in the front-to-back direction when viewed from the front. The operation panel 19 displays a temperature setting button for setting the temperature inside the refrigerator, an ice making button for making ice, etc. A user of the refrigerator 10 can operate the refrigerator 10 by touching these buttons. The operation panel 19 also displays the operating status of the refrigerator 10, etc.

The right-side refrigerator compartment door 51 is also provided with an interior sensor 16. The interior sensor 16 measures the temperature and humidity of the refrigerator compartment 20.

As shown in FIG. 5, the right-side refrigerator door 51 is generally constructed with insulating material 47 filled between the front (outside) surface panel 41 and the rear (inside) back panel 45. The left-side refrigerator door 50 and each door described below also have insulating material filled between the front and back panels. The left-side refrigerator door 50 has a rectangular opening (not shown) formed in the surface panel 41, and the operation panel 19 is fitted into the opening.

The front opening of the vegetable compartment 22 is opened and closed by a pull-out vegetable compartment door 23. The vegetable container 25 is fixed to the interior surface of the vegetable compartment door 23.

An ice-making compartment and storage compartment 26 are provided at the top of the freezer space, and a freezer compartment 28 is provided at the bottom of the freezer space. The insides of the ice-making compartment and freezer compartment 28 are maintained within the freezing temperature range, for example, at -20 to -18°C. The inside of the storage compartment 26 is also maintained within the freezing temperature range, for example, at -18 to -16°C. Drawer-type storage containers 43, 44 are housed in the storage compartment 26 and the freezer compartment 28, respectively.

The front opening of the storage compartment 26 is opened and closed by a drawer-type storage compartment door 27. The above-mentioned storage container 43 is fixed to the inside surface of the storage compartment door 27. The front opening of the freezer compartment 28 is opened and closed by a drawer-type freezer compartment door 29, and the front opening of the ice-making compartment is opened and closed by a drawer-type ice-making compartment door 33. The above-mentioned storage container 44 is fixed to the inside surface of the freezer compartment door 29.

A first cooler 30 that generates cold air and a first fan 32 that circulates the generated cold air are provided behind the refrigerated space. The cold air generated by the first cooler 30 passes through a duct 34 that extends upward from the first cooler 30 and is blown out from multiple air outlets 36 into the refrigerated space. The cold air that has circulated in the refrigerated space is sucked in from an intake port 38 toward the first cooler 30.

In addition, a second cooler 40 that generates cold air and a second fan 42 that circulates the generated cold air are provided behind the freezer space. The cold air generated by the second cooler 40 is blown out into the freezer space from an air outlet 46 formed on the rear surface of the freezer space, circulates through the freezer space, and is then sucked into the second cooler 40 from an air inlet 48 formed on the rear surface of the freezer space.

A machine room 21 is provided at the lower rear of the refrigerator 10. The machine room 21 houses the compressor 17, a condenser (not shown), etc.

The compressor 17, condenser, first cooler 30, second cooler 40, etc. constitute a well-known refrigeration cycle device. The refrigerant compressed by the compressor 17 flows alternately through the first cooler 30 and the second cooler 40, and cold air is generated in each cooler as the refrigerant flows.

As shown in FIG. 2, a recess 35 is formed at the rear of the upper part of the housing 11, which is recessed into the upper surface of the housing 11. A power supply board 60 is provided within the recess 35. The power supply board 60 is provided with a power supply IC for supplying stable voltage and current to each device that constitutes the refrigerator 10. The recess 35 is closed by a metal power supply cover 37.

The refrigerator 10 is a roughly rectangular parallelepiped having front, rear, left, right, top and bottom faces. The rear, left, right, top and bottom faces of the refrigerator 10 are the rear, left, right, top and bottom faces of the housing 11. The front face of the refrigerator 10 is formed by the refrigerator compartment doors 50, 51, vegetable compartment door 23, storage compartment door 27, freezer compartment door 29 and ice-making compartment door 33.

2. Configuration of the Hinge Unit As shown in Fig. 3, a left-side hinge unit 52 is provided straddling the front left part of the housing 11 and the upper left part of the left refrigerator compartment door 50. The left refrigerator compartment door 50 is rotatably supported by the housing 11 by this hinge unit 52. In addition, a right-side hinge unit 53 is provided straddling the front right part of the housing 11 and the upper right part of the right refrigerator compartment door 51. The right refrigerator compartment door 51 is rotatably supported by the housing 11 by this hinge unit 53.

As shown in FIG. 6, the right hinge unit 53 has a hinge base 54 that spans the top of the refrigerator compartment door 51 and the top surface of the housing 11, a hinge shaft 55 that extends downward from the front portion of the hinge base 54, and a hinge cover 56 that covers the hinge base 54.

The hinge base 54 is a generally plate-shaped metal member. The hinge base 54 is fixed to the top of the refrigerator compartment door 51 and the top surface of the housing 11 with fasteners such as screws (not shown). A wiring hole 49 for wiring is provided in the part of the hinge base 54 above the housing 11.

As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the hinge shaft 55 is a cylindrical member that is long in the vertical direction. The hinge shaft 55 extends in the vertical direction inside the refrigerator compartment door 51 near the right end portion. The refrigerator compartment door 51 rotates about this hinge shaft 55.

The hinge cover 56 is a member made of synthetic resin. The hinge cover 56 is a member consisting of an upper wall 57 having approximately the same shape as the hinge base 54 in a plan view, and a number of side walls 58 provided downward from the edge of the upper wall 57. The upper wall 57 is provided with a hole 59 penetrating from top to bottom. The lower end of the side wall 58 is in contact with the hinge base 54. The hinge cover 56 and the hinge base 54 are integrated to form a box. This box functions as a storage section that stores the speaker 63 described later. The hinge cover 56 also functions as a covering member that covers the speaker 63 described later from above.

Although not shown, like the right-side hinge unit 53, the left-side hinge unit 52 also has a hinge base, a hinge shaft, and a hinge cover. A connection wire electrically connecting the main control device 73 of the control board 61 and the operation panel 19 passes through the inside of the left-side hinge unit 52 and the inside of the cylindrical hinge shaft.

6 and 7, in the right hinge unit 53, a control board 61, a wireless communication device 62, and a speaker 63 are fixed to the back surface (the surface facing the hinge base 54) of the hinge cover 56 by fasteners such as screws (not shown). These three are arranged such that the speaker 63 is at the front, the wireless communication device 62 is at the rear, and the control board 61 is between the speaker 63 and the wireless communication device 62. The speaker 63 is provided below a hole 59 in the upper wall 57 of the hinge cover 56.

As shown in FIG. 8, the control board 61 is provided with a main control device 73 consisting of a microcomputer, etc. The main control device 73 is connected to each device that constitutes the refrigerator 10, such as the compressor 17, the first fan 32, the second fan 42, the operation panel 19, and the interior sensor 16. As shown in FIG. 8, the connection line 74 that electrically connects the main control device 73 of the control board 61 to the interior sensor 16 extends from the control board 61 toward the hinge shaft 55 as shown in FIG. 7, passes through the inside of the cylindrical hinge shaft 55, passes through the inside of the refrigerator compartment door 51 as shown in FIG. 1, and reaches the interior sensor 16. The main control device 73 controls the connected devices based on instructions from the various buttons on the operation panel 19 and measurements from the interior sensor 16, etc., to maintain each storage compartment at an appropriate temperature while controlling ice making, etc.

As shown in FIG. 3, the control board 61 in the hinge unit 53 is electrically connected to the power supply board 60 at the rear of the housing 11 by a connection wire 69. The connection wire 69 extended from the power supply board 60 passes between the outer box 12 and the heat insulating material 14 that constitute the housing 11 as shown in FIG. 7, and reaches a location below the right hinge unit 53. A wiring hole 18 is provided in the outer box 12 below the wiring hole 49 of the hinge base 54. The connection wire 69 that reaches the location below the right hinge unit 53 passes through the wiring holes 18 and 49, exits inside the hinge unit 53, and is connected to the control board 61.

As shown in FIG. 8, a wireless communication device 62 is electrically connected to the main control device 73 of the control board 61 via a connection line 64. The wireless communication device 62 is capable of wireless communication with a router 65 that is grounded in the home. The router 65 is connected to an external server 67 (cloud, which is AI) via the Internet 66.

As shown in FIG. 8, the control board 61 is provided with an audio control unit 75. The audio control unit 75 is electrically connected to the main control device 73. Furthermore, the audio control unit 75 is electrically connected to the speaker 63 via a connection line 68, and to the microphone 70 via a connection line 71.

The speaker 63 is an audio output device that emits (outputs) sound. Sound includes music, buzzer sounds, and the like. Since the speaker 63 is fixed below the hole 59, the sound emitted by the speaker 63 is transmitted to the outside of the refrigerator 10 through the hole 59.

The microphone 70 is a voice input device that converts voice received (input) from outside the refrigerator 10 into an electrical signal. As shown in Figures 1 and 4, the microphone 70 is provided above the front opening 39 of the refrigerator compartment 20, at the center in the left-right direction of the refrigerator 10. The microphone 70 is fixed to the top surface of the outer box 12 of the housing 11 with a fastener (not shown) such as a screw.

Here, examples of the configuration in which the microphone 70 is above the opening 39 of the refrigerator compartment 20 include a configuration in which any part of the microphone 70 (excluding the connection line 71 connected to the microphone 70) is above the front opening 39 of the refrigerator compartment 20 (i.e., a configuration in which the microphone 70 and the opening 39 overlap in the vertical direction) as shown in FIG. 9. However, even if the position of the front end of the microphone 70 is slightly behind the opening 39 (for example, a distance within 1/10 of the length of the refrigerator 10 in the front-to-rear direction), it can still be said that the microphone 70 is above the opening 39.

In addition, a connection line 71 (see Figures 3 and 9, omitted in Figure 7) extending from the control board 61 passes through the wiring hole 49 in the hinge base 54 into the housing 11, passes between the outer box 12 and the insulating material 14 that constitute the housing 11, and reaches a location near the microphone 70. A wiring hole 72 is provided in the outer box 12 near the microphone 70. Having reached the location near the microphone 70, the connection line 71 passes through the wiring hole 72 to exit the housing 11 and connects to the microphone 70.

The voice signal input to the microphone 70 undergoes voice recognition processing by the voice control unit 75 and is converted into text data. The wireless communication device 62 transmits the converted text data to the server 67 via the router 65 and the Internet 66. The server 67 (cloud, which is AI) performs natural language processing on the received text data to understand the meaning and find the optimal answer to the understood question. For example, when the voice "What's the weather today?" is input to the microphone 70, the server 67 finds today's weather as the optimal answer.

The server 67 converts the found optimal solution into text data and transmits it to the wireless communication device 62 via the Internet 66 and the router 65. The voice control unit 75 performs voice synthesis processing on the text data received by the wireless communication device 62 and converts it into a voice signal. The speaker 63 outputs the voice signal. For example, the speaker 63 emits a voice saying, "It's sunny today." In this way, the speaker 63 outputs voice as a response to the input to the microphone 70.

4. Effects of the Present Invention In the present invention, the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 are provided in different locations, so that the sound output from the speaker 63 is unlikely to be input to the microphone 70. Therefore, an erroneous response to an input to the microphone 70 is unlikely to be output from the speaker 63.

When a user speaks to the refrigerator 10, the user often stands near the center of the refrigerator 10 in the left-right direction. In this embodiment, the microphone 70 is closer to the center of the refrigerator 10 in the left-right direction than the speaker 63, so the voice uttered by the user is accurately input to the microphone 70.

Fridge 10 has front, back, left, right and top and bottom surfaces, and microphone 70 and speaker 63 are provided on one of these surfaces (the top surface). Therefore, when a user speaks in approximately the same direction as the sound from speaker 63 can be heard, the sound of the speech is reliably input to microphone 70. However, because microphone 70 and speaker 63 are provided in different locations, it is difficult for the sound output from speaker 63 to be input to microphone 70.

In addition, the microphone 70 is located above the opening 39 of the refrigerator compartment 20, close to the user and in a position where the user's voice can be easily heard directly, so the user's voice is reliably input to the microphone 70.

In addition, because the microphone 70 is installed on the housing 11 rather than on the door of the refrigerator 10, voice input to the microphone 70 is not adversely affected even if the door is opened and closed and moves.

In addition, the control board 61, wireless communication device 62, and speaker 63 are fixed to a single member, the hinge cover 56, so the wiring can be short. Here, the control board 61, to which the wireless communication device 62 and speaker 63 are respectively connected, is located between the wireless communication device 62 and the speaker 63, so the wiring can be particularly short. In addition, of the control board 61, wireless communication device 62, and speaker 63, the speaker 63 is positioned at the forefront, so the user's voice is accurately input to the speaker 63.

5. Modifications Modifications of the above embodiment will be described. Any one of the multiple modifications described below may be applied to the above embodiment, or any two or more of the modifications described below may be applied in combination. In the following description of the modifications, the same reference numerals are used for the same parts as in the above embodiment.

(1) Modification Example 1
The microphone 70 and the speaker 63 may be provided at different locations, and are not limited to the locations in the above embodiment.

Examples of the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 being located in different positions include (a) a case in which the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 are fixed to different members (for example, a case in which the microphone 70 is fixed to the outer box 12 and the speaker 63 is fixed to the hinge cover 56 as in the above embodiment), (b) a case in which the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 are provided on different surfaces among the front/rear, left/right, and top/bottom surfaces of the refrigerator 10 (for example, a case in which the speaker 63 is provided on the top surface of the refrigerator 10 and the microphone 70 is provided on the front, left, or right surface of the refrigerator 10), and (c) a case in which a different member is provided between the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 (for example, a case in which the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 are provided on the refrigerator compartment door 50, the speaker 63 is located above the operation panel 19, and the microphone 70 is located below the operation panel 19; this example will also be described in Modification Example 4).

(2) Modification Example 2
When the microphone 70 is provided on the top surface of the housing 11, the position of the microphone 70 in the left-right direction may be away from the center of the refrigerator 10 in the left-right direction. However, it is preferable that the microphone 70 is closer to the center of the refrigerator 10 in the left-right direction than the speaker 63.

(3) Modification Example 3
The microphone 70 may be provided at a location other than the top surface of the housing 11 .

For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the microphone 70 may be provided on the refrigerator compartment door 50, and the speaker 63 may be provided on the hinge unit 53 as in the above embodiment. In this case, the microphone 70 may be provided as a component constituting the operation panel 19 (i.e., as part of the operation panel 19) as shown in FIG. 10, or may be provided above, below, to the left or right of the operation panel 19. When the microphone 70 is provided above, below, to the left or right of the operation panel 19, it is fixed to the surface panel of the refrigerator compartment door 50.

In this way, when the microphone 70 is provided on the refrigerator compartment door 50 and the speaker 63 is provided on the hinge unit 53, the microphone 70 is closer to the left-right center of the refrigerator 10 than the speaker 63. In this case, the microphone 70 is closer to the up-down center of the refrigerator compartment 20 than the speaker 63. Therefore, the microphone 70 is closer to the user standing in front of the refrigerator 10 than the speaker 63.

(4) Modification Example 4
The speaker 63 may be provided at a location other than the hinge unit 53 .

For example, the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 may be provided on the refrigerator compartment door 50 (or on the refrigerator compartment door 51). When the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 are provided on the refrigerator compartment door 50, it is preferable that they are arranged in at least one of the following first to third configurations.

The first arrangement is one in which the speaker 63 is located above the microphone 70. Figure 11 shows an example of the first arrangement, in which the speaker 63 is located above the operation panel 19 and the microphone 70 is located below the operation panel 19. In this arrangement, the speaker 63 and the microphone 70 are each fixed to the front panel of the refrigerator compartment door 50.

In addition, one of the speaker 63 and the microphone 70 may be provided as a component constituting the operation panel 19 (i.e., as part of the operation panel 19), and the other may be provided above or below the operation panel 19.

Since the user's ears are located at the top of the head and the mouth at the bottom, if the speaker 63 is located at the top and the microphone 70 is located at the bottom, the user's voice can easily reach the microphone 70, and the voice from the speaker 63 can easily reach the user's ears.

In the second arrangement, the microphone 70 is closer to the vertical center of the refrigerator compartment 20 than the speaker 63. The arrangement in FIG. 11 is both the first arrangement and the second arrangement. With this arrangement, the mouth of the user who is speaking is closer to the microphone 70 than the speaker 63, making it easier for the user's voice to be accurately input to the microphone 70.

The third arrangement is one in which the microphone 70 is closer to the left-right center of the refrigerator 10 than the speaker 63. With this arrangement, the mouth of the speaking user is closer to the microphone 70 than the speaker 63, making it easier for the user's voice to be accurately input to the microphone 70.

When the microphone 70 and speaker 63 are provided on one refrigerator compartment door 50 as in this modified example, the microphone 70 and speaker 63 are provided on the same surface (on the front). Therefore, when the user speaks in approximately the same direction as the sound from the speaker 63 can be heard, the spoken voice is reliably input to the microphone 70.

(5) Modification Example 5
The microphone 70 and the speaker 63 may be provided on different doors of the refrigerator 10.

For example, the microphone 70 may be provided on the larger of the left and right refrigerator compartment doors 50, 51, and the speaker 63 may be provided on the smaller refrigerator compartment door 50.

Alternatively, the microphone 70 may be provided on the refrigerator compartment door 50, and the speaker 63 may be provided on the vegetable compartment door 23.

Since the doors of the refrigerator 10 collectively form one surface, if the microphone 70 is provided on one of the doors and the speaker 63 is provided on another of the doors, the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 will be provided on the same surface.

(6) Modification Example 6
The wireless communication device 62 may be provided at a location other than the hinge unit 53, for example, inside either the left or right refrigerator compartment door 50, 51.

Regardless of where the wireless communication device 62 is installed, it is preferable that the microphone 70 or the speaker 63 is fixed to the same member (e.g., the same board) as the wireless communication device 62. This brings the two components that require electricity together in one place, simplifying the wiring.

For example, if the wireless communication device 62 is provided on either the left or right refrigerator door 50, 51, it is preferable that at least one of the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 is also provided on the refrigerator door 50, 51, and that the wireless communication device 62 is fixed to the same member as the microphone 70 or the speaker 63.

(7) Modification Example 7
In the above embodiment, an example of using the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 is presented in which a user asks about the weather into the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 responds with the weather, but the use of the microphone 70 and the speaker 63 is not limited to this.

For example, there are various usage methods in which the user speaks into the microphone 70 (i.e., voice is input into the microphone 70), and the speaker 63 outputs voice in response to the speech (input). A specific example is when a streaming playback player is connected to the main control device 73 and the streaming playback player plays music. That is, when a user inputs a speech such as "Play some music" into the microphone 70, the streaming playback player is connected to the server 67 via the wireless communication device 62, the router 65, and the Internet 66, and the streaming playback player receives the music data from the server 67 and plays it from the speaker 63.

Another use is sending messages. That is, when a user activates the recording function and speaks a message into the speaker 63, the voice data is recorded on the server 67. Then, when another user activates the playback function, the message is played back from the speaker 63 based on the voice data recorded on the server 67.

The microphone 70 and speaker 63 can also be used for the user to operate the refrigerator 10 by voice command and for inventory management inside the refrigerator 10.

(8) Modification Example 8
A communication terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal and server 67 are capable of communicating with each other via the Internet, and the communication terminal device may be used to operate refrigerator 10 and to check the status of refrigerator 10.

10...refrigerator, 11...casing, 12...outer box, 13...inner box, 14...insulation material, 15...insulation partition wall, 16...interior sensor, 17...compressor, 18...wiring hole, 19...operation panel, 20...refrigerating compartment, 21...machine compartment, 22...vegetable compartment, 23...vegetable compartment door, 24...mounting shelf, 25...vegetable container, 26...storage compartment, 27...storage compartment door, 28...freezer compartment, 29...freezer compartment door, 30...first cooler, 32...first fan, 33...ice maker door, 34...duct, 35...recess, 36...air outlet, 37...power supply cover, 38...intake port, 39...opening, 40...second cooler, 41...surface panel, 42...second fan, 43...storage container, 4 4...storage container, 45...back panel, 46...air outlet, 47...insulating material, 48...air inlet, 49...wiring hole, 50...refrigerator door, 51...refrigerator door, 52...hinge unit, 53...hinge unit, 54...hinge base, 55...hinge shaft, 56...hinge cover, 57...upper wall, 58...side wall, 59...hole, 60...power supply board, 61...control board, 62...wireless communication device, 63...speaker, 64...connection line, 65...router, 66...internet, 67...server, 68...connection line, 69...connection line, 70...microphone, 71...connection line, 72...wiring hole, 73...main control device, 74...connection line, 75...audio control unit

Claims (5)

A refrigerator including a voice input device for inputting voice, a voice output device for outputting voice, a housing in which a storage compartment is formed, and a door for opening and closing an opening at a front of the storage compartment,
The audio input device and the audio output device are provided in different locations,
the voice input device is provided above the opening in the housing,
A connection line connected to the voice input device is routed along the left-right direction in the front of the housing ,
A rotation shaft that is an axis for rotating the door and a cover member that covers the rotation shaft are provided,
When the refrigerator is viewed from the front, the voice input device is provided at a center in a width direction of the refrigerator, and a control means that controls the refrigerator is provided inside the cover member on one side in the width direction of the refrigerator,
The connection line connected to the voice input device is connected to the control means . 2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the cover member covers at least a part of a connection line connected to at least one of the voice input device and the control means. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the audio output device is surrounded by the covering member. The voice output device, the control means, and a communication device that communicates with the outside of the storage unit are surrounded by the covering member,
2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the audio output device is disposed in front of the control means, and the communication device is disposed behind the control means. The rotation shaft is cylindrical,
a wiring for an audio output device that connects the audio output device and the control means , and a wiring passing through the inside of the rotary shaft are provided, the wiring for the audio output device being disposed above the wiring passing through the rotary shaft ,
2. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein said audio output device and said control means are fixed to the inside of an upper wall of said cover member .

Images