JP2020101356A - refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a refrigerator that is prevented from consuming excessive power when a switching room is set to a refrigerating temperature, in a refrigerator including a switching room that can set a temperature thereof from a freezing temperature to the refrigerating temperature.SOLUTION: A refrigerator includes: a refrigerating room; a freezing room; a switching room capable of selecting and setting either a refrigerating temperature range or a freezing temperature range; a switching room heater disposed in the switching room; a refrigeration cycle including a compressor, a condenser, a decompression unit and an evaporator and supplying cold air to the switching room; and a switching room damper for adjusting an amount of the cold air to be supplied to the switching room. The refrigerator has less power consumption when the switching room is set to the refrigerating temperature range than the power consumption when the switching room is set to the freezing temperature range.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a refrigerator.

As background art of this technical field, for example, there is JP-A-2016-223752 (Patent Document 1).

The refrigerator described in Patent Document 1 includes a cooling system including a compressor, a condenser, a pressure reducing means, and an evaporator, and a refrigerating room in which a front opening is closed by an openable door, a first switching room, a second The evaporator is equipped with a switching chamber and a third switching chamber, and the evaporator is housed in the cooling chamber that is thermally insulated from the second switching chamber by the heat insulating wall on the back side of the second switching chamber. Is a refrigerator that circulates the inside of the refrigerator with a cooling fan above the evaporator, and cool air circulated by the cooling fan is stored in each of the refrigerating room, the first switching chamber, the second switching chamber, and the third switching chamber. It is equipped with a refrigerator compartment damper, a first switching damper, a second switching damper, and a third switching damper that are introduced into the storage room and shut off, and a bottom surface is equipped with a first heater, a second heater, and a third heater. It employs a configuration that heats the switching chamber, the second switching chamber, and the third switching chamber.

In addition, in order to control the temperature of each storage room, each storage room is equipped with a refrigerating room thermistor, a first thermistor, a second thermistor and a third thermistor. The cooled air is circulated in the refrigerator by the cooling fan, and each storage chamber is maintained at a predetermined temperature. At this time, the first switching chamber, the second switching chamber, and the third switching chamber have the first switching damper, the second switching chamber, and the second switching chamber. By opening and closing the switching damper and the third switching damper, it is possible to maintain the freezing temperature range around -20°C to the refrigeration temperature range around 5°C.

Further, when the set temperature of the first switching chamber is switched to a temperature higher than the current temperature, the control unit first closes the first switching damper and energizes the first heater to heat the first switching chamber. When the temperature detected by the first thermistor exceeds a certain value, the power supply to the first heater is cut off. This makes it possible to quickly raise the temperature of the first switching chamber to the target temperature by the first heater, and by closing the first switching damper, warm warm air in the first switching chamber can be stored in other storage. It does not flow into the room, which prevents the heat load on the refrigerator from increasing. (See FIG. 1 of Patent Document 1, paragraphs [0024] to [0030] and [0033] to [0035]).

JP, 2016-223752, A

By adopting the configuration described in Patent Document 1, the first switching chamber, the second switching chamber and the third switching chamber are maintained from the freezing temperature to the desired temperature in the refrigeration temperature zone, and the temperature of the switching chamber is set from the low temperature side. When switching to the high temperature side, it is possible to quickly raise the temperature without heating the other storage chambers with the heat of the heating means (heater) for raising the temperature of the switching chamber. However, when the user sets the switching room in the refrigerating temperature range, the difference between the maintenance temperature of the switching room and the ambient temperature is smaller than that in the case of setting the freezing temperature range, and the heat load is reduced, but the consumption is reduced. The amount of electric power sometimes becomes excessively large, which was a problem.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and in a refrigerator provided with a switching chamber that can be set from the freezing temperature zone to the refrigeration temperature zone, when the refrigeration temperature zone is set, the power consumption becomes excessively large. The purpose is to provide a refrigerator that never happens.

In order to solve the above problems, for example, the configurations described in the claims are adopted.

The present application includes a plurality of means for solving the above problems.
A cold room,
A freezer,
Switching room that can be set by selecting refrigerating temperature zone and freezing temperature zone,
A switching chamber heater disposed in the switching chamber,
A refrigeration cycle that includes a compressor, a condenser, a decompression unit, and an evaporator, and supplies cold air to the switching chamber;
A switching chamber damper for adjusting the amount of cold air supplied to the switching chamber,
A refrigerator in which power consumption when the switching chamber is set to a refrigerating temperature zone is smaller than power consumption when the switching chamber is set to a freezing temperature zone.
Also,
A cold room,
A freezer,
Two switching chambers that can be set by selecting the refrigerating temperature zone and the freezing temperature zone,
Switching chamber heaters arranged in each of the switching chambers,
One or more refrigeration cycles including a compressor, a condenser, a decompression unit, and an evaporator, and supplying cold air to each of the switching chambers;
One or more switching chamber dampers for adjusting the amount of cold air supplied to each of the switching chambers,
FF mode in which both of the two switching chambers are in the freezing temperature range,
It is possible to execute an RR mode in which both of the two switching chambers are in a refrigeration temperature zone,
Refrigerator whose power consumption satisfies the following relational expression.
FF mode> RR mode... Relational expression

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the refrigerator provided with the switching chamber which can be set from refrigeration temperature to refrigerating temperature can provide a refrigerator which does not excessively increase power consumption when it sets to refrigerating temperature.

Front view of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment AA sectional view of FIG. The front view which shows the structure inside the refrigerator which concerns on Example 1. The schematic diagram showing the air duct structure of the refrigerator which concerns on Example 1. Schematic showing the refrigerating cycle structure of the refrigerator which concerns on Example 1. The flowchart showing the control of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. Table showing the control state of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment Example of time chart showing control of refrigerator according to Embodiment 1 The second example of the time chart showing the control of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. Table showing the control state of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment Front view of a refrigerator according to a second embodiment 11 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. The schematic diagram showing the air duct structure of the refrigerator which concerns on Example 2. The flowchart showing the control of the refrigerator according to the second embodiment.

The following are embodiments of the present invention.

A first embodiment (embodiment 1) of the refrigerator according to the present invention will be described. 1 is a front view of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the heat insulating box 10 of the refrigerator 1 includes a refrigerating room 2, a left and right ice making room 3 and a freezing room 4, a first switching room 5, and a second switching room 6 in this order from a storage room. have.

The refrigerator 1 is provided with a door that opens and closes the opening of each storage room. These doors are the left and right rotary type refrigerating compartment doors 2a and 2b, which open and close the opening of the refrigerating compartment 2, and the ice making compartment 3, the freezing compartment 4, the first switching compartment 5, and the second switching compartment 6. These are a drawer-type ice making chamber door 3a, a freezing chamber door 4a, a first switching chamber door 5a, and a second switching chamber door 6a that open and close each opening. The inner material of the plurality of doors is mainly composed of urethane foam.

The external dimensions of the refrigerator 1 are width 685 mm, depth 738 mm, and height 1833 mm, and the rated internal volume based on JISC9801-3:2015 is 308 L for the refrigerating compartment 2, 23 L for the ice making compartment 3, 32 L for the freezing compartment 4, and first. The switching chamber 5 is 104L and the second switching chamber 6 is 100L. The height position of the upper end of the first switching chamber door 5a is 780 mm, and the height position of the upper end of the second switching chamber door 6a is 400 mm.

In this way, the height position of the upper end of the door is within 500 mm to 1200 mm from the floor surface, and the storage room where the burden of putting foods in and out is small because the work can be performed without bending, and the height position of the upper end of the door is 500 mm or less from the floor surface. By using both storage rooms where the load of loading and unloading foods is a little heavy as switching rooms, users can choose a layout that is easy to use according to their lifestyles, making it a refrigerator with good usability. In addition, the internal volume of the switching chamber (first switching chamber 5) whose height position at the upper end of the refrigeration door is 500 mm to 1200 mm from the floor surface is the same as that of the switching chamber at which the height position of the door upper end is 500 mm or less from the floor surface ( By making the inner volume of the second switching chamber 6) equal, it is possible to switch between the settings of the storage room where the loading and unloading of food items is smaller and the storage room where the loading and unloading of food items is slightly larger according to your lifestyle. Therefore, the refrigerator is easy to use. If the difference between the rated internal volumes of the first switching chamber and the second switching chamber is 10% or less, they can be regarded as equal.

An operation unit 26 for setting the temperature inside the refrigerator is provided on the outer surface of the door 2a. The height position (height from the floor) of the operation portion 26 is 1200 mm at the lower end and 1300 mm at the upper end. By thus providing the operation unit 26 in the range of 900 mm to 1500 mm, it is possible to perform operations such as temperature setting without bending or looking up, and the refrigerator is easy to use. In addition, by providing an operation unit on the outside of the door, the user can perform operations such as temperature setting without opening the door.

The refrigerating compartment 2, the freezing compartment 4, and the ice making compartment 3 are separated by a heat insulating partition wall 28. The freezing compartment 4 and the ice making compartment 3 are separated from the first switching compartment 5 by a heat insulating partition wall 29, and the first switching compartment 5 and the second switching compartment 6 are separated by a heat insulating partition wall 30.

Door hinges (not shown) for fixing the refrigerator 1 and the doors 2a and 2b are arranged at the front of the heat insulating box 10 outside the top cabinet and at the front edge of the heat insulating partition wall 28. The door hinge is covered with a door hinge cover 16.

The ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 are basically storage chambers in which the inside of the refrigerator is kept at a freezing temperature (less than 0° C.), for example, about −18° C. on average, and the refrigerating chamber 2 stores the inside of the refrigerator at the refrigerating temperature (0° C.). Above) is, for example, a storage room that is kept at an average temperature of about 4°C. The first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are storage chambers that can be set to a freezing temperature or a refrigerating temperature by the operating unit 26, and in the refrigerator of the present embodiment, the refrigerating temperature (on average about 4° C.). It is possible to select either (maintaining) or freezing temperature (maintaining about -18°C on average). Specifically, the "FF" mode in which both the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the freezing temperature, and the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature, respectively. "RF" mode in which the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature, respectively, and the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are both set to the refrigerating temperature It is possible to select from among the “RR” modes performed.

As shown in FIG. 2, the refrigerator 1 has a heat insulation formed by filling a foam insulation material (for example, urethane foam) between an outer box 10a made of a steel plate and an inner box 10b made of a synthetic resin (for example, ABS resin). The box body 10 separates the inside and the outside of the refrigerator. In addition to the foam insulation material, the heat insulation box body 10 is equipped with a vacuum insulation material 25 having a lower thermal conductivity than the foam insulation material between the outer box 10a and the inner box 10b, thereby suppressing a decrease in the internal volume. Improves heat insulation performance. In this embodiment, the vacuum heat insulating material 25 is mounted on the back surface, the lower surface and both side surfaces of the heat insulating box 10 to enhance the heat insulating performance of the refrigerator 1. Similarly, in the refrigerator of this embodiment, the heat insulation performance of the refrigerator 1 is enhanced by mounting the vacuum heat insulating material 25 on the first switching chamber door 5a and the second switching chamber door 6a.

The refrigerator compartment doors 2a, 2b are provided with a plurality of door pockets 33a, 33b, 33c inside the refrigerator. The refrigerating compartment 2 is divided into a plurality of storage spaces by shelves 34a, 34b, 34c, 34d. The ice making chamber door 3a, the freezing chamber door 4a, the first switching chamber door 5a, and the second switching chamber door 6a are respectively integrally drawn out, the ice making chamber container 3b, the freezing chamber container 4b, the first switching chamber container 5b, and the second switching chamber. The chamber container 6b is provided.

A first evaporator chamber 8a in which the first evaporator 14a is mounted is provided at the back of the refrigerator compartment 2. A second evaporator chamber 8b in which a second evaporator 14b is mounted is provided substantially at the back of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6, and the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber are provided. 6, second evaporator chamber 8, second fan discharge air passage 12 described later, freezer air passage 130, first switching chamber first air passage 140a, first switching chamber second air passage 140b, second switching chamber The first air passage 150a and the second switching chamber second air passage 150b (see FIG. 3) are separated by the heat insulating partition wall 27.

The heat insulating partition wall 27 is a separate body from the heat insulating box body 10, the heat insulating partition wall 29, and the heat insulating partition wall 30, and the heat insulating box body 10 and the heat insulating partition wall are provided via a seal member (soft urethane foam as an example) not shown. It is fixed so as to come into contact with the wall 29 and the heat insulation partition wall 30, and is removable. In this way, by forming the heat insulating partition wall 27 as a separate body and making it detachable, the second evaporator 14b housed in the second evaporator chamber 8b, the second fan 9b described later, and the first switching chamber first When a problem occurs in a component covered by the heat insulating partition wall 27 such as the damper 101a, the first switching chamber second damper 101b, and the second switching chamber second damper 102b, the heat insulating partition wall 27 can be removed for easy maintenance. become.

Further, expanded polystyrene is mounted as a heat insulating member inside the heat insulating partition walls 27, 28, 29 and 30. Moreover, the heat insulating performance is improved by mounting the vacuum heat insulating material 25 inside the heat insulating partition walls 27, 29, 30.

The surface of the heat insulating partition walls 27, 28, 29, 30 that is in contact with the storage chamber (refrigerating chamber 2, ice making chamber 3, freezing chamber 4, first switching chamber 5, second switching chamber 6) has a thickness of 0.5 mm or more. Of synthetic resin (for example, polypropylene having a thickness of 1.5 mm). As a result, deterioration and damage caused by touching a heat insulating member (foam polystyrene or vacuum heat insulating material 25) mounted inside the heat insulating partition walls 27, 28, 29, 30 is prevented.

The rear surface of the first switching chamber 5 (the inside of the synthetic resin that covers the surface of the heat insulating partition wall 27 on the first switching chamber 5 side) and the bottom surface of the first switching chamber 5 (the surface of the heat insulating partition wall 30 on the first switching chamber 5 side). A first switching chamber heater 121, which serves as a heating means for the first switching chamber 5, is provided on the inner side of the covering synthetic resin). Further, the upper portions of both side surfaces of the first switching chamber 5 (the inner box 10a side surface in the region between the outer box 10a and the inner box 10b) are also provided with first switching chamber heaters (not shown) as heating means. Further, the upper surface of the second switching chamber 6 (the inner surface side of the synthetic resin covering the surface of the heat insulating partition wall 30 on the second switching chamber 6 side) and the lower rear surface of the second switching chamber 6 (between the outer box 10a and the inner box 10b). A second switching chamber heater 122, which serves as a heating means for the second switching chamber 6, is provided on the inner box 10a side surface of the region (2). In this way, by disposing the first switching chamber heater 121 and the second switching chamber heater 122 so as not to be exposed in the storage chamber, it is possible to provide a highly reliable refrigerator in which the heater is not damaged when the user touches the heater. Become.

The cold storage room temperature sensor 41, the freezing room temperature sensor 42, the first switching room temperature sensor 43, and the second freezing room 4, the first switching room 5, and the second switching room 6 are provided on the inner rear side of the refrigerator, respectively. A switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is provided, a first evaporator temperature sensor 40a is provided above the first evaporator 14a, and a second evaporator temperature sensor 40b is provided above the second evaporator 14b. With these sensors, the refrigerator compartment 2, the freezer compartment 4, the first switching compartment 5, the second switching compartment 6, the first evaporator compartment 8a, the first evaporator 14a, the second evaporator compartment 8b, and the second evaporation compartment The temperature of the container 14b is detected. In addition, an outside air temperature sensor 37 and an outside air humidity sensor 38 are provided inside the door hinge cover 16 on the ceiling of the refrigerator 1 to detect the temperature and humidity of the outside air (outside air). In addition, a door sensor (not shown) is provided to detect the open/closed state of each of the doors 2a, 2b, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a.

FIG. 3A is a front view of the state in which the door, the container, and the discharge port forming member described later are removed from FIG. 1. The air passage in the refrigerating chamber 2 and the flow of cold air will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3A.

As shown by the arrows in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3A, the air that has become low in temperature by exchanging heat with the first evaporator 14a is cooled by the first fan 9a provided above the first evaporator 14a. Air is blown into the refrigerating compartment 2 through the air passage 110 and the refrigerating compartment discharge port 110a to cool the interior of the refrigerating compartment 2. Here, the form of the first fan 9a is a turbofan is a centrifugal fan (backward fan), the rotational speed of which can be controlled fast (1600Min ^-1) and low speed (1000min ^-1). The air blown into the refrigerating compartment 2 returns from the refrigerating compartment return port 110b (see FIG. 2) and the refrigerating compartment return port 110c (see FIG. 3(a)) to the first evaporator chamber 8a, and again the first evaporator 14a. Heat exchange with. The refrigerating compartment return ports 110b and 110c are provided with slits (not shown) having a gap smaller than the minimum diameter of the first drain pipe, which will be described later, to prevent food from clogging the drain port (not shown) and the first drain pipe. To prevent.

The refrigerating compartment discharge port 110a of the refrigerating compartment 2 is provided in the upper part of the refrigerating compartment 2, and in the present embodiment, it is provided so as to discharge air above the uppermost shelf 34a and the second shelf 34b. The refrigerating compartment return port 110c is provided at the back of the space formed between the shelves 34c and 34d of the refrigerating compartment 2, and the refrigerating compartment return port 110b is formed between the shelf 34d of the refrigerating compartment 2 and the heat insulating partition wall 28. It is provided almost at the back of the space.

FIG. 3B is a front view with the door and the container of FIG. 1 removed. As shown in FIG. 3( b ), a container 35 is provided above the shelf 34 d in the refrigerating compartment 2, and the inside of the container 35 is an indirect cooling space in which cool air is not directly blown. As a result, the drying of food is suppressed, and the storage space is suitable for storing food such as vegetables that is weak in drying.

A space of about 8 mm is provided between the inner box 10b and the left wall of the container 35, between the partition wall 35b and the right wall of the container 35, and other wall surfaces. It is easy to enter. Similarly, by providing the container 35 with a handle 35a, it is easy to take in and out.

As shown in FIG. 3( b ), a container 36 whose inside is maintained at approximately −1° C. is provided in the upper part of the heat insulation partition wall 28 in the refrigerating chamber 2, and the front of the container 36 is a lid. It can be opened and closed by 36a. A packing (not shown) is provided on the outer periphery of the lid body 36a, and when the lid body 36a is in a closed state, the packing body brings the lid body 36a and the container 36 into contact with each other without leaving a gap, so that the container 36 is hermetically sealed. There is. A pump (not shown) for sucking air in the container 36 is provided at the back of the container 36, and by driving the pump with the lid 36a closed, the air pressure in the container 36 is reduced. Is reduced to about 0.8 atm. As a result, cold air is not blown directly by the lid 36a in the container 36, and a decompressed environment is created, which serves as a storage space that suppresses the drying and oxidation of food.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of an air passage structure showing a flow of cold air in the ice making chamber 3, the freezing chamber 4, the first switching chamber 5, and the second switching chamber 6 according to the embodiment. The configuration of the air passages inside the refrigerator other than the refrigerating compartment 2 and the flow of cold air will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 4.

As shown in FIG. 4, the refrigerator 1 of the present embodiment uses a first switching chamber first damper 101a and a first switching chamber second damper as dampers that control the air blown to the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6. 101b, the 2nd switching chamber 1st damper 102a, and the 2nd switching chamber 2nd damper 102b are provided (blowing interruption|blocking means). The first switching chamber first damper 101a, the first switching chamber second damper 101b, and the second switching chamber second damper 102b are mounted on the back of the first switching chamber 5, and the second switching chamber first damper 102a is the second switching chamber. It is mounted on the back of the chamber 6.

Here, the opening area of the first switching chamber first damper 101a is 6300 mm ² (width 180 mm x height 35 mm), the opening area of the first switching chamber second damper 101b is 900 mm ² (width 30 mm x height 30 mm), The opening area of the second switching chamber first damper 102a is 5200 mm ² (width 80 mm x height 65 mm), and the opening area of the second switching chamber second damper 102b is 900 mm ² (width 30 mm x height 30 mm). The first switching chamber second damper 101b and the second switching chamber second damper 102b are opened and closed by the same motor (not shown). Like the refrigerator 1 of the present embodiment, a plurality of dampers (first switching chamber first damper 101a, first switching chamber second damper 101b, second switching chamber first) are provided at the back of the switching chamber (first switching chamber 5). When the second damper 102b) is mounted, by opening and closing a plurality of dampers with one motor, compact mounting is possible and cost can be reduced.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 4, the second evaporator 14b is provided in the first switching chamber 5, the second switching chamber 6, and the second evaporator chamber 8b substantially at the back of the heat insulating partition wall 30. The air that has become low in temperature by exchanging heat with the second evaporator 14b drives the second fan 9b provided above the second evaporator 14b, so that the first switching chamber 101a and the first switching chamber 101a Regardless of the open/close state of the second damper 101b, the second switching chamber first damper 102a, and the second switching chamber second damper 102b, the second fan discharge air passage 12, the freezing compartment air passage 130, and the freezing compartment discharge ports 120a and 120b are provided. It is sent to the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 via the water, and cools the water in the ice making tray 3c (see FIG. 4) of the ice making chamber 3, the ice in the container 3b, the food stored in the container 4b in the freezing chamber 4, etc. To do. Here, the second fan 9b is a turbo fan (rearward facing fan) that is a centrifugal fan, and the rotation speed can be controlled to a high speed (1800 min ^-1 ) and a low speed (1200 min ^-1 ). The air that has cooled the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 returns to the second evaporator chamber 8b from the freezing chamber return port 120c via the freezing chamber return air passage 120d, and exchanges heat with the second evaporator 14b again.

In the open state of the first switching chamber first damper 101a and the closed state of the first switching chamber second damper 101b, the air pressurized by the second fan 9b receives the second fan discharge air passage 12 and the first switching chamber first. Through the air passage 140a, the first switching chamber first damper 101a, and the first switching chamber discharge port 111a which is a direct cooling discharge port of the first switching chamber 5 provided in the discharge port forming member 111 (see FIG. 3). , Is sent into the first switching chamber container 5b provided in the first switching chamber 5 to cool the food in the first switching chamber container 5b. In this blown state, the cooling air directly acts on the food in the first switching chamber container 5b, so that the food in the first switching chamber container 5b can be cooled in a relatively short time.

When the first switching chamber first damper 101a is in the closed state and the first switching chamber second damper 101b is in the open state, the air pressurized by the second fan 9b is the second fan discharge air passage 12 and the first switching chamber first. To the outside (outer periphery) of the first switching chamber container 5b via the two air passages 140b, the first switching chamber second damper 101b, and the first switching chamber discharge port 111b which is the indirect cooling discharge port of the first switching chamber 5. Sent. In this blown state, it is difficult for the cooling air to directly reach the food in the first switching chamber container 5b, and the food is indirectly cooled via the first switching chamber container 5b, so it is possible to cool the food while suppressing its drying. ..

When both the first switching chamber first damper 101a and the first switching chamber second damper 101b are in the open state, the air boosted by the second fan 9b receives the second fan discharge air passage 12 and the first switching chamber first. A first switching chamber container provided in the first switching chamber 5 via the air passage 140a, the first switching chamber first damper 101a, and the first switching chamber discharge port 111a that is the direct cooling discharge port of the first switching chamber 5. 5b, while being sent to the first switching chamber second air passage 140b, the first switching chamber second damper 101b, and the first switching chamber discharge port 111b which is a discharge port for indirect cooling of the first switching chamber 5, It is also sent to the outside (outer periphery) of the first switching chamber container 5b. In this blown state, the food in the first switching chamber container 5b is directly acted upon and also indirectly cooled via the first switching chamber container 5b, so that the first switching chamber container 5b can be processed in a shorter time. The food inside can be cooled.
The air that has cooled the first switching chamber 5 flows through the first switching chamber return port 111c and the freezing chamber return air passage 120d, returns to the second evaporator chamber 8b, and exchanges heat with the second evaporator 14b again.

When the second switching chamber first damper 102a is in the open state and the second switching chamber second damper 102b is in the closed state, the air whose pressure has been increased by the second fan 9b is the second fan discharge air passage 12 and the second switching chamber first. Through the air passage 150a, the second switching chamber first damper 102a, and the second switching chamber discharge port 112a which is a direct cooling discharge port of the second switching chamber 6 provided in the discharge port forming member 112 (see FIG. 3). Is sent to the second switching chamber container 6b provided in the second switching chamber 6 to cool the food in the second switching chamber container 6b. In this blown state, the cooling air directly acts on the food in the second switching chamber container 6b, so that the food in the second switching chamber container 6b can be cooled in a relatively short time.

When the second switching chamber first damper 102a is in the closed state and the second switching chamber second damper 102b is in the open state, the air pressurized by the second fan 9b is the second fan discharge air passage 12 and the second switching chamber first. To the outside (outer circumference) of the second switching chamber container 6b via the two air passages 150b, the second switching chamber second damper 102b, and the second switching chamber discharge port 112b which is the discharge port for indirect cooling of the second switching chamber 6. Sent. In this blown state, it is difficult for the cooling air to directly reach the food in the second switching chamber container 6b, and the food is indirectly cooled via the second switching chamber container 6b, so that it is possible to cool the food while suppressing the drying of the food. ..

When both the second switching chamber first damper 102a and the second switching chamber second damper 102b are in the open state, the air whose pressure is increased by the second fan 9b is the second fan discharge air passage 12 and the second switching chamber first. A second switching chamber container provided in the second switching chamber 6 via the air passage 150a, the second switching chamber first damper 102a, and the second switching chamber discharge port 112a that is the direct cooling discharge port of the second switching chamber 6. 6b, the second switching chamber second air passage 150b, the second switching chamber second damper 102b, the second switching chamber discharge port 112b which is a discharge port for indirect cooling of the second switching chamber 6, It is also sent to the outside (outer periphery) of the second switching chamber container 6b. In this blown state, the food in the second switching chamber container 6b is directly acted upon and also indirectly cooled via the second switching chamber container 6b, so that the second switching chamber container 6b is shortened in a shorter time. The food inside can be cooled.

The air that has cooled the second switching chamber 6 flows through the second switching chamber return port 112c and the second switching chamber return air passage 112d, returns to the second evaporator chamber 8b, and exchanges heat with the second evaporator 14b again. .. It should be noted that an evaporator chamber (a second evaporator chamber 8b in this embodiment) in which a low-temperature evaporator is housed, an air passage (in this embodiment, a second evaporator chamber 8b) through which air that has become low in temperature by exchanging heat with the evaporator flows Fan discharge air passage 12, freezer compartment air passage 130, first switching chamber first air passage 140a, first switching chamber second air passage 140b, second switching chamber first air passage 150a, second switching chamber second air passage 150b), a storage chamber maintained at a freezing temperature (in the present embodiment, the ice making chamber 3, the freezing chamber 4, the first switching chamber 5 when the freezing temperature is set, the second switching chamber when the freezing temperature is set) 6), the return air passage from the storage chamber maintained at the freezing temperature (in this embodiment, the freezing compartment return air passage 120d, the second switching chamber return air passage 112d when the freezing temperature is set) is the freezing temperature Therefore, the space is referred to as a freezing temperature space below.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of the refrigeration cycle of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment. In the refrigerator 1 of the present embodiment, the compressor 24, the outside radiator 50a as a heat radiating means for radiating the refrigerant, the wall surface heat radiating pipe 50b (on the inner surface of the outer box 10a in the region between the outer box 10a and the inner box 10b). (Arrangement), a dew condensation prevention pipe 50c for suppressing dew condensation on the front surface of the partition walls 28, 29, 30 (arranged on the inner surface of the partition walls 28, 29, 30), and a first capillary tube 53a as a pressure reducing means for depressurizing the refrigerant. And a second capillary tube 53b, and a first evaporator 14a and a second evaporator 14b that absorb heat inside the storage by exchanging heat between the refrigerant and the air inside the storage. Further, a dryer 51 for removing water in the refrigeration cycle, gas-liquid separators 54a, 54b for suppressing the inflow of liquid refrigerant into the compressor 24, a refrigerant control valve 52 for controlling a refrigerant flow path, a check valve 56, A refrigerating cycle is configured by including a refrigerant merging section 55 for connecting a refrigerant flow, and connecting these by a refrigerant pipe.

The refrigerant control valve 52 includes the outlets 52a and 52b, and the outlet 52a is opened and the outlet 52b is closed "state 1", and the outlet 52a is closed and the outlet 52b is opened "state 2". It is a valve that can be switched to four states, "state 3" in which both the outlet 52a and the outlet 52b are closed, and "state 4" in which both the outlet 52a and the outlet 52b are opened. The rotation speed of the compressor 24 can be controlled in three stages: high speed (2500 min-1), medium speed (1500 min-1), and low speed (1000 min-1).

Next, the flow of the refrigerant in the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment will be described. The refrigerant discharged from the compressor 24 flows through the outside heat radiator 50a, the wall surface heat radiation pipe 50b, the dew condensation preventing pipe 50c, and the dryer 51 in this order, and reaches the refrigerant control valve 52. The outlet 52a of the refrigerant control valve 52 is connected to the first capillary tube 53a via a refrigerant pipe, and the outlet 52b is connected to the second capillary tube 53b via a refrigerant pipe.

When the refrigerating chamber 2 is cooled by the first evaporator 14a, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 1" in which the refrigerant flows to the outlet 52a side. The refrigerant flowing out from the outflow port 52a is decompressed by the first capillary tube 53a to have a low temperature and low pressure, enters the first evaporator 14a, and exchanges heat with the in-compartment air, and then the gas-liquid separator 54a and the first capillary tube 53a. Flows through the heat exchanging portion 57a and the refrigerant merging portion 55 for exchanging heat with the refrigerant, and returns to the compressor 24.

When the ice making chamber 3, the freezing chamber 4, the first switching chamber 5, and the second switching chamber 6 are cooled by the second evaporator 14b, the refrigerant control valve 52 is set to "state 2" in which the refrigerant flows to the outlet 52b side. Control. The refrigerant flowing out from the outlet 52b is decompressed by the second capillary tube 53b to a low temperature and low pressure, enters the second evaporator 14b and exchanges heat with the air in the warehouse, and then the gas-liquid separator 54b and the inside of the second capillary tube 53b. The heat exchange section 57b for exchanging heat with the refrigerant, the check valve 56, and the refrigerant merging section 55 flow in this order, and then return to the compressor 24. The check valve 56 is arranged so as to prevent the flow from the refrigerant merging portion 55 toward the second evaporator 14b side.

Next, the defrosting method of the refrigerator 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. With respect to the first evaporator 14a, by controlling the refrigerant control valve 52 to the "state 2" in which the refrigerant control valve 52 flows to the outlet 52b while the compressor 24 is driven, or by controlling the compressor 24 to a stopped state. With the refrigerant not flowing through the first evaporator 14a, the first fan 9a is driven to heat the first evaporator 14a by the return air from the refrigerating chamber 2 to perform defrosting. Defrosting water generated during defrosting of the first evaporator 14a is provided in the machine room 39 via a first drain pipe (not shown) from a gutter 23a (see FIG. 2) provided in a lower portion of the first evaporator room 8a. It is discharged to a first evaporation tray (not shown) and evaporated by heat radiation from the compressor 24 or ventilation by a machine room fan (not shown) installed in the machine room 39. As described above, the defrosting of the first evaporator 14a is performed by driving the first fan 9a without using a heater, so that the refrigerator has high energy saving performance. Moreover, since a part of the water content of the frost is returned to the refrigerating compartment 2 by defrosting, the refrigerating compartment 2 can be kept at a higher humidity.

On the other hand, with respect to the second evaporator 14b, defrosting is performed by energizing the defrost heater 21 (see FIG. 2) provided under the second evaporator 14b with the compressor 24 stopped. As the defrost heater 21, for example, an electric heater of 50 W to 200 W may be adopted, and in this embodiment, it is a radiant heater of 150 W. The defrost water generated during defrosting of the second evaporator 14b is discharged from the gutter 23b (see FIG. 2) in the lower part of the second evaporator chamber 8b to the upper part of the compressor 24 via the second drain pipe 26 (see FIG. 2). It is discharged to the second evaporation tray 32 (see FIG. 2) provided in the above, and is evaporated by the action of heat radiation from the compressor 24 or ventilation by a machine room fan (not shown).

A control board 31 having a CPU, a memory such as ROM and RAM, an interface circuit, and the like, which is a part of the control device, is arranged above the refrigerator 1. The control board 31 includes an outside air temperature sensor 37, an outside air humidity sensor 38, a refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 41, a freezing compartment temperature sensor 42, a first switching chamber temperature sensor 43, a second switching chamber temperature sensor 44, and a first evaporator temperature. It is connected to the sensor 40a, the second evaporator temperature sensor 40b, etc. by electric wiring (not shown). In the control board 31, ON/OFF and rotation of the compressor 24, the first fan 9a, and the second fan 9b, which will be described later, are performed based on the output value of each sensor, the setting of the operation unit 26, the program previously recorded in the ROM, and the like. Speed control, first switching chamber first damper 101a, first switching chamber second damper 101b, second switching chamber first damper 102a, second switching chamber second damper 102b opening and closing control, refrigerant control valve 52 flow path switching It is in control.

The refrigerator 1 of this embodiment uses a flammable refrigerant isobutane as the refrigerant.

The configuration of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment has been described above. Next, control of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 10. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the control of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment, FIG. 7 is a table showing the state at the time of starting the cooling operation by the second evaporator of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment, FIGS. 10 is a time chart showing the control of the refrigerator according to the embodiment, and FIG. 10 is a table showing the control state of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment.

First, the basic control of the refrigerator of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. As shown in FIG. 6, in the refrigerator of this embodiment, the cooling operation is started (start) when the power is turned on. The control of the pull-down operation from when the power is turned on to when the storage room in the refrigerator reaches a predetermined temperature level is omitted, and the first evaporator operation is started when the stable operation state is reached (step S101). explain. Note that the stable operation state is a state in which the refrigerator door is not opened and closed and a stable periodic cooling operation is performed (for example, stipulated in JIS C9801-3:2015).

In the first evaporator operation, the refrigerant control valve is controlled to "state 1", the compressor 24 is driven and the first fan 9a is driven, and the low temperature refrigerant supplied to the first evaporator 14a is used for the refrigerating chamber. It is the operation of cooling the No. 2. In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, by the step S101, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to the state of the "state 1", driving the compressor 24 at low speed (1000min ^-1), the first fan 9a is fast (1600min ^-1 ), the refrigerating compartment 2 is cooled (first evaporator operation).

The first evaporator operation started in step S101 is continued until the first evaporator operation end condition (step S102) is satisfied. In step S102, when the refrigerating compartment temperature detected by the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 41 is equal to or lower than the first evaporator operation end temperature (2° C. in the refrigerator of this embodiment), or the elapsed time from the start of the first evaporator operation. Is satisfied when a predetermined time (50 minutes in the refrigerator of this embodiment) is reached.

When step S102 is established (Yes in step S102), the refrigerant recovery operation is subsequently performed (step S103). In the refrigerant recovery operation, the driving state of the compressor 24 is continued, the refrigerant control valve 52 is set to “state 3 (fully closed)”, and the refrigerant in the first evaporator 14a is dissipated by a heat dissipating means (external radiator 50a, wall surface). The operation is to collect on the side of the heat radiation pipe 50b and the dew condensation prevention pipe 50c), which continues for 2 minutes in the refrigerator of this embodiment (step S103). At this time, the driving state of the first fan 9a also continues, and the refrigerating chamber 2 is cooled even during the refrigerant recovery operation. Thus, the refrigerant remaining in the first evaporator 14a at the end of the first evaporator operation can be used for cooling, so that the refrigerator has high cooling efficiency.

When the refrigerant recovery operation of step S103 is completed, the first evaporator defrosting is subsequently started (step S104). The first evaporator defrosting is to perform defrosting by heating with the return air from the refrigerating compartment 2 by driving the first fan 9a in a state where the refrigerant does not flow into the first evaporator 14a. .. In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, the rotation speed of the first fan 9a at the time of defrosting the first evaporator is low (1000 min ^-1 ) and lower than the rotation speed of the first fan 9a at the time of operation of the first evaporator. There is. As a result, it is possible to perform efficient defrosting while further reducing the power consumption of the fan.

Then, the setting of the switching chamber is read (step S105), and the second evaporator operation according to the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 is started (step S106). In step S106, the rotation speed of the compressor 24, the rotation speed of the second fan 9b, the first switching chamber first damper 101a, the first switching chamber second damper based on the setting of the switching chamber and the ambient temperature (outside temperature). The states of 101b, the second switching chamber first damper 102a, the second switching chamber second damper 102b, the first switching chamber heater 121, and the second switching chamber heater 122 are determined.

FIG. 7 is a table showing the start state of the second evaporator operation selected in step S106. In the refrigerator of this embodiment, the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the freezing temperature and the freezing temperature (“FF” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is high (20° C. in the refrigerator of this embodiment). Higher), the compressor 24 is at high speed (2500 min ⁻¹ ), the second fan is at high speed (1800 min ⁻¹ ), the first switching chamber first damper 101a is open, and the first switching chamber second damper 101b is open. The second switching chamber first damper 102a is opened, the second switching chamber second damper 102b is opened, the first switching chamber heater 121 is OFF, and the second switching chamber heater 122 is OFF. Air volume supplied to the storage compartment in this state, the ice compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4 is 0.45 m ³ / min (total of both chambers), the first switching chamber 5 0.27 m ³ / min, the second switch The chamber 6 is 0.33 m ³ /min.

When the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to a freezing temperature and a freezing temperature (“FF” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is low (in the refrigerator of this embodiment, 20° C. or less), compression Machine 24 is at medium speed (1500 min ^-1 ), second fan is low speed (1200 min ^-1 ), first switching chamber first damper 101a is open, first switching chamber second damper 101b is open, second switching chamber The first damper 102a is opened, the second switching chamber second damper 102b is opened, the first switching chamber heater 121 is off, and the second switching chamber heater 122 is off. The amount of air supplied to each storage chamber in this state is 0.30 m ³ /min (total of both chambers) in the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4, 0.18 m ³ /min in the first switching chamber 5, and the second switching chamber. The chamber 6 is 0.22 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature (“RF” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is high, the compressor 24 operates at the medium speed (1500 min ⁻¹ ) The fan is at high speed (1800 min ⁻¹ ), the first switching chamber first damper 101a is closed, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is open, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is open, the second switching chamber first. The open state of the second damper 102b, the OFF state of the first switching chamber heater 121, and the OFF state of the second switching chamber heater 122 are selected. Air volume supplied to the storage compartment in this state, the ice compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4 is 0.36 m ³ / min (total of both chambers), the first switching chamber 5 0.06 m ³ / min, the second switch The chamber 6 is 0.39 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature ((“RF” mode)), respectively, and the ambient temperature is low, the compressor 24 operates at a low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ), Two fans at low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), first switching chamber first damper 101a is closed, first switching chamber second damper 101b is closed, second switching chamber first damper 102a is open, second switching chamber The open state of the second damper 102b, the ON state of the first switching chamber heater 121, and the OFF state of the second switching chamber heater 122 are selected. The amount of air supplied to each storage chamber in this state is 0.24 m ³ /min (the total of both chambers) in the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4, 0.04 m ³ /min in the first switching chamber 5, and the second switching chamber. Chamber 6 is 0.26 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature (“FR” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is high, the compressor 24 operates at the medium speed (1500 min ⁻¹ ) The fan is at high speed (1800 min ⁻¹ ), the first switching chamber first damper 101a is open, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is open, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is closed, the second switching chamber first. The open state of the second damper 102b, the OFF state of the first switching chamber heater 121, and the OFF state of the second switching chamber heater 122 are selected. Air volume supplied to the storage compartment in this state, the ice compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4 is 0.38 m ³ / min (total of both chambers), the first switching chamber 5 0.33 m ³ / min, the second switch Chamber 6 is 0.08 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature (“FR” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is low, the compressor 24 operates at a low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ), and the second fan operates. Is low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the first switching chamber first damper 101a is open, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is open, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is closed, the second switching chamber second The damper 102b is closed, the first switching chamber heater 121 is OFF, and the second switching chamber heater 122 is ON. The amount of air supplied to each storage chamber in this state is 0.27 m ³ /min in the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 (total of both chambers), 0.22 m ³ /min in the first switching chamber 5, and the second switching chamber. Chamber 6 is 0.05 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are refrigerating temperature and refrigerating temperature (“RR” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is high, the compressor 24 operates at a medium speed (1500 min ⁻¹ ) The fan is at high speed (1800 min ^-1 ), the first switching chamber first damper 101a is closed, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is open, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is closed, and the second switching chamber first The open state of the second damper 102b, the OFF state of the first switching chamber heater 121, and the OFF state of the second switching chamber heater 122 are selected. The amount of air supplied to each storage chamber in this state is 0.45 m ³ /min (total of both chambers) in the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4, 0.07 m ³ /min in the first switching chamber 5, and the second switching chamber. Chamber 6 is 0.09 m ³ /min.

When the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are the refrigerating temperature and the refrigerating temperature (“RR” mode), respectively, and the ambient temperature is low, the compressor 24 operates at a low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ), and the second fan operates. Is low (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the first switching chamber first damper 101a is closed, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is open, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is closed, the second switching chamber second The damper 102b is opened, the first switching chamber heater 121 is turned off, and the second switching chamber heater 122 is turned off. Air volume supplied to the storage compartment in this state, the ice compartment 3 and the freezer compartment 4 is 0.30 m ³ / min (total of both chambers), the first switching chamber 5 0.05 m ³ / min, the second switch Chamber 6 is 0.06 m ³ /min.

In step S106 shown in FIG. 6, the compressor 24, the second fan, the first switching chamber first damper 101a, the first switching chamber second damper 101b, the second switching chamber first damper 102a, and the second switching chamber first damper 102a, in the state described above. The second switching chamber second damper 102b, the first switching chamber heater 121, and the second switching chamber heater 122 are controlled, and the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 2" to start the second evaporator operation. Succeedingly, in a step S107, it is determined whether or not the first switching chamber damper closing condition is satisfied. In step S107, at least one of the first switching chamber first damper 101a and the first switching chamber second damper 101b is in an open state, and the temperature of the first switching chamber 5 detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 is One of the dampers (one of the first switching chamber first damper 101a and the first switching chamber second damper 101b), which is established when the switching chamber first damper closing temperature is lower than or equal to the closing temperature (Yes in step S107). Or both) are closed (step S201), and both the first switching chamber first damper 101a and the first switching chamber second damper 101b are closed. The first switching chamber damper closing temperature in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 2°C when the setting of the first switching chamber 5 is the refrigerating temperature, and is -20°C when the setting is the freezing temperature.

In step S108, it is determined whether the second switching chamber damper closing condition is satisfied. In step S108, at least one of the second switching chamber first damper 102a and the second switching chamber second damper 102b is in the open state, and the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is It is established when the temperature becomes equal to or lower than the second switching chamber damper closing temperature (Yes in step S108), and the damper (one of the second switching chamber first damper 102a and the second switching chamber second damper 102b) which is in the open state or Both) are closed (step S202), and both the second switching chamber first damper 102a and the second switching chamber second damper 102b are closed. The second switching chamber damper closing temperature in the refrigerator of the present embodiment is 1.5°C when the setting of the second switching chamber 6 is the refrigerating temperature, and is -21°C when the setting is the freezing temperature.

In step S109, it is determined whether or not the first switching chamber heater OFF condition is satisfied. In step S109, the first switching chamber heater 121 is in the energized state (ON state), and the temperature of the first switching chamber 5 detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 is equal to or higher than the first switching chamber heater OFF temperature. If it is true (Yes in step S109), the first switching chamber heater 121 is in the non-energized state (OFF state) (step S203). The OFF temperature of the first switching chamber heater in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 5°C.

In step S110, it is determined whether the second switching chamber heater OFF condition is satisfied. In step S110, the second switching chamber heater 122 is in the energized state (ON state), and the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is equal to or higher than the second switching chamber heater OFF temperature. If it is true (Yes in step S111), the second switching chamber heater 122 is in the non-energized state (OFF state) (step S204). The OFF temperature of the second switching chamber heater in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 5°C.

In step S111, it is determined whether the first evaporator defrosting termination condition is satisfied. Step S111 is established when the first fan 9a is driven and the temperature of the first evaporator 14a detected by the first evaporator temperature sensor 40a is equal to or higher than the first evaporator defrosting end temperature (step S111). (S111 is Yes), the first fan 9a is turned off (stopped), and the first evaporator defrosting ends (step S205). The first evaporator defrosting end temperature in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 3°C.

In step S112, it is determined whether or not the second evaporator operation end condition is satisfied. In step S112, the first switching chamber first damper 101a, the first switching chamber second damper 101b, the second switching chamber first damper 102a, and the second switching chamber second damper 102b are all closed, and the freezing chamber temperature sensor is set. It is established when the temperature detected by 42 is equal to or lower than the second evaporator operation end temperature (Yes in step S112). In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, step S112 is established when the temperature of the freezer compartment 4 detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 is -21°C or lower. When step S112 is not materialized (step S112 is No), it returns to the determination of step S107 again.

If the second evaporator operation end condition is satisfied in step S112 (Yes in step S112), then the refrigerant recovery operation is performed (step S113). The refrigerant recovery operation in step S113 is an operation in which the rotation speed of the compressor 24 is maintained, the refrigerant control valve 52 is set to “state 3 (fully closed)”, and the refrigerant in the second evaporator 14b is recovered to the heat radiation means side. Yes, for 3 minutes in the refrigerator of this embodiment. At this time, the second fan 9b continues to be driven, cools the freezer compartment 4 and the like during the refrigerant recovery operation, and stops the second fan 9b at the end of the refrigerant recovery operation. As a result, the refrigerant remaining in the second evaporator 14b at the end of the second evaporator operation can be used for cooling, so that the refrigerator has high cooling efficiency.

Succeedingly, in a step S114, it is determined whether or not the first evaporator operation start condition is satisfied. Step S114 is established when the temperature of the refrigerating compartment 2 detected by the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 41 is equal to or higher than the first evaporator operation start temperature (Yes in step S114), the process returns to step S101, and the first evaporator operation is performed. Be started. The first evaporator operation start temperature in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 6°C. When step S114 is not satisfied (step S114 is No), the compressor 24 is stopped (OFF) (step S115).

Next, in step S116, it is determined whether the first evaporator defrosting termination condition is satisfied. The condition that step S116 is satisfied is the same as the condition that step S111 is satisfied. When step S116 is satisfied (Yes in step S111), the first fan 9a is stopped (OFF), and the first evaporator defrosting is completed (step S206).

In step S117, it is determined whether or not the first evaporator operation start condition is satisfied. The condition that step S117 is satisfied is the same as the condition that step S114 is satisfied. When step S117 is materialized (step S117 is Yes), it returns to step S101 and a 1st evaporator driving|operation is started.

In step S118, it is determined whether or not the second evaporator operation start condition is satisfied. Step S118 is established when at least one of the temperatures detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42, the first switching compartment temperature sensor 43, and the second switching compartment temperature sensor 44 is equal to or higher than the second evaporator operation start temperature. (Yes in step S118). In the refrigerator of this embodiment, when the first switching chamber 5 is set to the freezing temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“FF” mode), the temperature of the freezing chamber 4 detected by the freezing chamber temperature sensor 42. Is -12°C or higher, the temperature of the first switching chamber 5 detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 is -12°C or higher, and the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is -12°C. When at least one of the above is satisfied, step S118 is established.

If the first switching chamber 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“RF” mode), the temperature of the freezing chamber 4 detected by the freezing chamber temperature sensor 42 is −12° C. As described above, the temperature of the first switching chamber 5 detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 is 8° C. or higher, and the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is −12° C. or higher. If S is satisfied, step S118 is established.

When the first switching chamber 5 is set to the freezing temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the refrigerating temperature (“FR” mode), the temperature of the freezing chamber 4 detected by the freezing chamber temperature sensor 42 is −12° C. or higher, The temperature of the first switching chamber 5 detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 is -12°C or higher, and the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is 8°C or higher. When it does, step S118 is materialized.

When the first switching chamber 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the refrigerating temperature (“RR” mode), the temperature of the freezing chamber 4 detected by the freezing chamber temperature sensor 42 is −12° C. or higher, The temperature of the first switching chamber 5 detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 satisfied 8°C or higher, and the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 satisfied 8°C or higher. In that case, step S118 is established.

If step S118 is satisfied (Yes in step S118), the process proceeds to step S105, and if step S118 is not satisfied (step S118 is No), the process returns to the determination in step S116.

FIG. 8 shows that the refrigerator according to the present embodiment is installed in an environment of 16° C. and a relative humidity of 55% according to JIS C9801-3:2015. It is a time chart showing a stable operation state when it is set to (“FF” mode). In the following, description of the cooling state of the ice making chamber 3, which is cooled at the same time as the freezing chamber 4, is omitted.

Time t ₀ is the time when the first evaporator operation for cooling the refrigerator compartment 2 is started (step S101 in FIG. 6). In the first evaporator operation, and controls the refrigerant control valve 52 in the "state 1", driving the compressor 24 at low speed (1000min ^-1), refrigerated by driving the first fan 9a fast (1600min ^-1) Cool the chamber 2. Here, the time average temperature of the first evaporator 14a during the first evaporator operation is −8° C., which is higher than the time average temperature of the second evaporator 14b during the second evaporator operation described later. .. This makes it possible to efficiently cool the refrigerating compartment 2 having a relatively high temperature to be maintained with respect to the freezing compartment 4 and the first switching compartment 5 and the second switching compartment 6 set to the refrigeration temperature, and to provide a refrigerator with high energy saving performance. Become.

The refrigerating compartment 2 is cooled by the first evaporator operation, and the refrigerating compartment temperature (T _R ) detected by the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 42 at the time t ₁ becomes the first evaporator operation end temperature ( _{TR_off} = 2° C.) or less, The operation has shifted from the refrigeration operation to the refrigerant recovery operation (steps S102 and S103 in FIG. 6). In the refrigerant recovery operation, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to “state 3 (fully closed)”, and the state in which the compressor 24 is driven at a low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ) is continued to reduce the refrigerant in the first evaporator 14a to 2 It collects for a minute (step S103 of FIG. 6). As a result, it is possible to suppress a decrease in cooling efficiency due to a shortage of the refrigerant in the next second evaporator operation. At this time, by driving the first fan 9a, the residual refrigerant in the first evaporator 14a is utilized for cooling the refrigerating compartment 2 and the first evaporator 14a is heated by the return air from the refrigerating compartment 2. The pressure drop inside is alleviated. As a result, an increase in the specific volume of the refrigerant sucked by the compressor 24 is suppressed, a large amount of the refrigerant can be recovered in a relatively short time, and the cooling efficiency can be improved.

When the refrigerant recovery operation ends (time t ₂ ), the first fan 9a becomes low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ) and the first evaporator defrosting is performed. In this way, by lowering the rotation speed of the first fan 9a than during the operation of the first evaporator, it is possible to defrost the first evaporator while suppressing the amount of power consumption required to drive the fan, which leads to energy saving performance. It becomes an excellent refrigerator. At this time, the temperature (T _evp1 ) of the first evaporator 14a is heated by the return air from the refrigerating compartment 2 to increase the temperature, and the temperature (T _R ) of the refrigerating compartment 2 becomes frost or the temperature of the first evaporator 14a. Due to the cooling effect of the stored heat, the temperature rise is moderated.

Next, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 2", and the second evaporator operation based on the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 has started (steps S105 and S106 in FIG. 6). .. Here, the first switching chamber 5 is set to the freezing temperature, the second switching chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“FF” mode), and the ambient temperature is 20° C. or lower, so that the compressor 24 operates at the medium speed (1500 min ^{− 1} ), the second fan is at low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the first switching chamber first damper 101a is open, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is open, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is open, The open state of the second switching chamber second damper 102b, the first switching chamber heater 121 in the OFF state, and the second switching chamber heater 122 in the OFF state are selected.

When the second evaporator operation is started, the first switching chamber first damper 101a is opened, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is opened, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is opened, and the second switching chamber first damper 102a is opened. the fan 9b is driven, the temperature of the freezing chamber 4 _(T F), the temperature of the first switching chamber 5 _{(T S1),} the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 _{(T S2)} is reduced. The first switching chamber temperature (T _S1 ) detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 at time t ₃ becomes equal to or lower than the first switching chamber damper _closing temperature (T _{S1_off} = −20° C.), and the first switching chamber has been opened. The first damper 101a and the first switching chamber second damper 101b are closed (steps S107 and S201 in FIG. 6), the cooling of the first switching chamber 5 is completed, and the freezing chamber 4 and the second switching chamber 6 are cooled. It becomes a state.

At time t ₄ , the temperature (T _evp1 ) of the first evaporator 14a detected by the first evaporator temperature sensor 40a reaches or _exceeds the first evaporator defrosting end temperature (T _{RD_off} = 3°C), and the first fan 9a is stopped. Subsequently, at time t ₅ , the second switching chamber temperature (T _S2 ) detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 becomes equal to or lower than the second switching chamber damper _closing temperature (T _{S2_off} =-21°C), and the second switching chamber temperature is opened. The switching chamber first damper 102a and the second switching chamber second damper 102b are closed (steps S108 and S202 in FIG. 6), the cooling of the second switching chamber 6 is completed, and only the freezing chamber 4 is cooled. ..

Freezing compartment temperature freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 at time t ₆ detects (T _F) is, that has reached the following second evaporator operating end temperature (T _{F_off} = -21 ℃), ends the second evaporator operating Then, the refrigerant recovery operation is started (steps S112 and S113 in FIG. 6). Time average temperature of the second evaporator 14b of the second evaporator during operation which is performed at time t ₂ ~t ₆ is -29 ° C..

In the refrigerant recovery operation, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 3 (fully closed)", and the state in which the compressor 24 is driven at medium speed (1500 min ^-1 ) is continued to remove the refrigerant in the second evaporator 14b. It collects for 3 minutes (step S113 of FIG. 6). As a result, it is possible to suppress a decrease in cooling efficiency due to a shortage of refrigerant in the next operation of the first evaporator. At this time, by driving the second fan 9b, the residual refrigerant in the second evaporator 14b is utilized for cooling the freezer compartment 4, and the second evaporator 14b is heated by the return air from the freezer compartment 4. The pressure drop inside is alleviated. As a result, an increase in the specific volume of the refrigerant sucked by the compressor 24 is suppressed, a large amount of the refrigerant can be recovered in a relatively short time, and the cooling efficiency can be improved.

When the refrigerant recovering operation ends at time t _7, (step S114 of FIG. 6) first evaporator operation start conditions are determined whether is satisfied, the refrigerating compartment temperature of the refrigerating compartment 2 in which the temperature sensor 41 detects (T _R ) Is _{equal to} or higher than the first evaporator operation start temperature ( _{TR_on} =6° C.), the first evaporator operation is _restarted (step S101 in FIG. 6).

FIG. 9 shows that the refrigerator according to the present embodiment is installed in an environment of 16° C. and a relative humidity of 55% according to JIS C9801-3:2015, and the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the “RF” mode. It is a time chart showing a stable operation state when set. Time t ₀ is the time when the first evaporator operation for cooling the refrigerator compartment 2 is started (step S101 in FIG. 6). In the first evaporator operation, and controls the refrigerant control valve 52 in the "state 1", driving the compressor 24 at low speed (1000min ^-1), refrigerated by driving the first fan 9a fast (1600min ^-1) Cool the chamber 2. Here, the time average temperature of the first evaporator 14a during the first evaporator operation is −8° C., which is higher than the time average temperature of the second evaporator 14b during the second evaporator operation described later. ..

The refrigerating compartment 2 is cooled by the first evaporator operation, and the refrigerating compartment temperature (T _R ) detected by the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 41 at time t ₁ becomes the first evaporator operation end temperature ( _{TR_off} = 2° C.) or less, The operation has shifted from the refrigeration operation to the refrigerant recovery operation (steps S102 and S103 in FIG. 6). In the refrigerant recovery operation, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 3 (fully closed)", and the state in which the compressor 24 is driven at a low speed (1000 min ^-1 ) is continued to reduce the refrigerant in the first evaporator 14a to 2 It collects for a minute (step S103 of FIG. 6). When the refrigerant recovery operation ends (time t ₂ ), the first fan 9a becomes low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ) and the first evaporator defrosting is performed.

Next, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to "state 2", and the second evaporator operation based on the settings of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 has started (steps S105 and S106 in FIG. 6). .. Here, the first switching chamber 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature, the second switching chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“RF” mode), and the ambient temperature is 20° C. or lower, so that the compressor 24 operates at a low speed (1000 min ^−1). ), the second fan is at a low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the first switching chamber first damper 101a is closed, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is closed, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is open, The second switching chamber second damper 102b is opened, the first switching chamber heater 121 is turned on, and the second switching chamber heater 122 is turned off.

When the second evaporator operation is started, the first switching chamber first damper 101a is closed, the first switching chamber second damper 101b is closed, the second switching chamber first damper 102a is open, Since the fan 9b is driven, the temperature (T _F ) of the freezing compartment 4 and the temperature (T _S2 ) of the second switching compartment 6 decrease, and the first switching compartment heater 121 is turned on. The temperature of 5 (T _s1 ) is increasing.

First switching compartment temperature first switching compartment temperature sensor 43 detects (T _S1) is a first switching compartment heater OFF temperature (T _{S1_H_off} = 5 ℃) above at time t _3, the first switching compartment heater 121 is turned OFF (Steps S109 and S203 in FIG. 6), the heating of the first switching chamber 5 is completed, and the freezing chamber 4 and the second switching chamber 6 are cooled.

The second switching chamber temperature (T _S2 ) detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 at time t ₄ becomes equal to or lower than the second switching chamber damper _closing temperature (T _{S2_off} =-21°C), and the second switching chamber has been opened. The first damper 102a and the second switching chamber second damper 102b are closed (steps S108 and S202 in FIG. 6), the cooling of the second switching chamber 6 is completed, and only the freezing chamber 4 is cooled.

At time t ₅ , the freezing room temperature ( _TF ) detected by the freezing room temperature sensor 42 reaches the second evaporator operation end temperature ( _{TF_off} = -21°C) or less, and thus the second evaporator operation ends. Then, the refrigerant recovery operation is started (steps S112 and S113 in FIG. 6). Time average temperature of the second evaporator 14b of the second evaporator during operation which is performed at time t ₂ ~t ₅ is -24 ° C..

In the refrigerant recovery operation, the refrigerant control valve 52 is controlled to “state 3 (fully closed)”, and the state in which the compressor 24 is driven at a low speed (1000 min ⁻¹ ) is continued to keep the refrigerant in the second evaporator 14b at 3 degrees. It collects for a minute (step S113 of FIG. 6).

When the refrigerant recovering operation ends at time t _6, (step S114 of FIG. 6) first evaporator operation start conditions are determined whether is satisfied, the refrigerating compartment temperature of the refrigerating compartment 2 in which the temperature sensor 41 detects (T _R ) _Has not reached the first evaporator operation start temperature T _{R — on} (=6° C.) or higher, the compressor 24 and the second fan 9b are stopped and turned off.

Temperature first evaporator temperature sensor 40a detects _{(T evp1)} reaches the first evaporator defrost ending temperature T _{RD_off} (= 3 ℃) above at time t _7, the first fan 9a is stopped.

Temperature T _R of the refrigerating compartment 2 to the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 41 at time t ₈ detects becomes the first evaporator operation start temperature T _{R_on} (= 6 ℃) above, first evaporator operation starting condition is satisfied (FIG. 6 step S114), the first evaporator operation is started again (step S101 in FIG. 6).

The evaporators (first evaporator 14a and second evaporator 14b) are housed in the evaporator chambers (first evaporator chamber 8a and second evaporator chamber 8b), and the temperature of the evaporator chamber becomes the evaporator temperature. Change depending. Therefore, the evaporator temperatures (first evaporator temperature T _evp1 and second evaporator temperature T _evp2 ) shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 are set to the representative temperatures (first evaporator chamber temperature, second evaporator chamber temperature) of the evaporator chamber. ) Can be considered.

Here, the time average value in the stable operation state of the second evaporator chamber temperature (second evaporator temperature T _evp2 ) shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 is −27° C. when the “FF” mode is set (FIG. 8), the temperature is -22°C (Fig. 9) when the "RF" mode is set, and is higher when the "RF" mode is set than when the "FF" mode is set. ..

Further, the time average value of the rotational speed of the second fan 9b in the stable operation state, if it is set to "FF" mode 860Min ^-1, if it is set to "RF" mode is 485min ^-1 (Stop The state is calculated as a rotational speed of 0 min ⁻¹ ), and is lower in the “RF” mode than in the “FF” mode.

The temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b can be adjusted by the rotation speed of the compressor 24 and the rotation speed of the second fan 9b when the refrigerant is supplied to the second evaporator 14b. Specifically, the temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b (second evaporator 14b) can be increased by decreasing the rotation speed of the compressor 24 or increasing the rotation speed of the second fan 9b. Further, when the rotation speed of the compressor 24 and the rotation speed of the second fan 9b are changed, the cooling capacity (the amount of heat exchanged in the second evaporator 14b) is changed, so that the time ratio of the state in which the refrigerant is not supplied to the second evaporator 14b is changed. Changes. In the state where the refrigerant is not supplied to the second evaporator 14b, the temperature rises due to the invasion of heat from the outside of the refrigerator. Therefore, if the time ratio of the state where the refrigerant is not supplied to the second evaporator 14b is increased, the second evaporator 14b The time-averaged temperature becomes higher. From these relationships, the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b can be adjusted by the rotation speeds of the compressor 24 and the second fan 9b, so these are referred to as evaporator chamber temperature control means.

FIG. 10 shows the first switching chamber 5 during stable operation when the refrigerator according to the present embodiment is installed in an environment of 16° C., relative humidity 55% and 32° C. relative humidity 70% according to JIS C9801-3:2015. 3 is a table showing the relationship between the setting state of the second switching chamber 6 and the time average value of the internal cold storage temperature.

When the first switching chamber 5 is set to the freezing temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“FF” mode), when the ambient temperature is 32° C., the time average temperature of the freezing chamber 4 is −18° C. The time average temperature of one switching chamber 5 is controlled at -18°C, the time average temperature of the second switching chamber 6 is controlled at -18°C, the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b is controlled at -26°C, and the ambient temperature is 16°C. Then, the time average temperature of the freezing room 4 is -18°C, the time average temperature of the first switching chamber 5 is -18°C, the time average temperature of the second switching chamber 6 is -18°C, the time of the second evaporator chamber 8b. The average temperature is controlled at -27°C. The annual power consumption measured according to JIS C9801-3:2015 when the first switching chamber 5 is set to the freezing temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“FF” mode) is 340 kWh/year. Is.

When the first switching chamber 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“RF” mode), when the ambient temperature is 32° C., the time average temperature of the freezing chamber 4 is −18° C. When the time average temperature of the one switching chamber 5 is 4° C., the time average temperature of the second switching chamber 6 is −18° C., the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b is −21° C., and the ambient temperature is 16° C. 4, the time average temperature of the first switching chamber 5 is 4°C, the time average temperature of the second switching chamber 6 is -18°C, and the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b is -22. ℃. Further, the annual power consumption measured according to JIS C9801-3:2015 when the first switching chamber 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the freezing temperature (“RF” mode) is 320 kWh/year. Is.

When the first switching chamber 5 is set to the freezing temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the refrigerating temperature (“FR” mode), when the ambient temperature is 32° C., the time average temperature of the freezing chamber 4 is −18° C. When the time average temperature of one switching chamber 5 is -18°C, the time average temperature of the second switching chamber 6 is 4°C, the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b is -20°C, and the ambient temperature is 16°C, the freezing chamber is 4, the time average temperature of the first switching chamber 5 is -18°C, the time average temperature of the second switching chamber 6 is 4°C, and the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b is -21°C. ℃. Further, the annual power consumption measured according to JIS C9801-3:2015 when the first switching chamber 5 is set to the freezing temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the refrigerating temperature (“FR” mode) is 310 kWh/year. Is.

When the first switching chamber 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the refrigerating temperature (“RR” mode), when the ambient temperature is 32° C., the time average temperature of the freezing chamber 4 is −18° C. When the time average temperature of one switching chamber 5 is 4° C., the time average temperature of the second switching chamber 6 is 4° C., the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b is −18° C., and the ambient temperature is 16° C. Is -18°C, the time average temperature of the first switching chamber 5 is 4°C, the time average temperature of the second switching chamber 6 is 4°C, and the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b is -16°C. is there. The annual power consumption measured according to JIS C9801-3:2015 when the first switching chamber 5 is set to the refrigerating temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is set to the refrigerating temperature (“RR” mode) is 280 kWh/year. Is.

The configuration of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment and the control method have been described above. Next, the effect of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment will be described.

The refrigerator according to the present embodiment is provided with a switching chamber (first switching chamber 5 or second switching chamber 6) which is adjacent to the evaporator chamber (second evaporator chamber 8b) and can be set to a refrigerating temperature and a freezing temperature. A heater (first switching chamber heater 121 or second switching chamber heater 122) for heating the chamber is provided, and the time average temperature during stable operation is the switching chamber when the ambient environment (external environment) is the same. When the temperature is set to the refrigerating temperature, the temperature is set to be higher than when the temperature is set to the freezing temperature. As a result, when the switching chamber is set to the refrigerating temperature, it is possible to reduce the influence of cooling the switching chamber due to the cold heat of the evaporator chamber that is housed in the evaporator, which cools the inside of the chamber. In that case, the heater energization amount required for heating can be suppressed, and the refrigerator does not have an excessive increase in power consumption as compared with the case where the freezing temperature is set.

It should be noted that the temperature of the evaporator chamber is not uniform but also fluctuates, but since it depends on the evaporator temperature, the evaporator temperature may be set as the representative temperature of the evaporator chamber. In particular, in order to stably measure the temperature of the evaporator, it is advisable to measure the temperature in the vicinity of the inlet portion (the most upstream portion of the refrigerant flow) of the refrigerant pipe flowing through the evaporator.

The refrigerator of the present embodiment includes a switching chamber (first switching chamber 5) adjacent to the front of the second evaporator chamber 8b (first freezing temperature space), which can be set to the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature, and the switching chamber (first switching chamber 5). One freezing chamber 4 and an ice making chamber 5 (second freezing temperature space) adjacent to the upper part of the switching chamber 5), and a second switching capable of setting a freezing temperature adjacent to the lower part of the switching chamber (first switching chamber 5) When the chamber 6 (third freezing temperature space) is provided and the surrounding environment (outside the storage environment) is the same, the time average temperature during stable operation of the second evaporator chamber 8b sets the switching chamber to the freezing temperature. The temperature is set higher when the refrigerating temperature is set than the case. This reduces the effect of cooling the switching chamber when the switching chamber is set to the refrigeration temperature because three of the six switching chambers of the substantially rectangular parallelepiped are adjacent to the freezing temperature space and the temperature tends to be particularly low. Since the heater energization amount required for heating can be suppressed, the refrigerator does not have an excessive increase in power consumption as compared with the case where the freezing temperature is set.

The refrigerator according to the present embodiment includes a rotation speed control unit that changes the rotation speed of the compressor 24 as a unit (evaporator chamber temperature control unit) that adjusts the temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b. As a result, since the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b can be adjusted without depending on the heater, it is possible to suppress an increase in power consumption required to control the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b, and to save energy. It becomes a high refrigerator.

The refrigerator of the present embodiment includes a rotation speed control unit that changes the rotation speed of the second fan 9b as a unit (evaporator chamber temperature control unit) that adjusts the temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b. As a result, since the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b can be adjusted without depending on the heater, it is possible to suppress an increase in power consumption required to control the time average temperature of the second evaporator chamber 8b, and to save energy. It becomes a high refrigerator.

In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, when the surrounding environment (outside environment) is the same, the second switching chamber 6 is set to be frozen, and the first switching chamber 5 has three surfaces and is adjacent to the chamber at the freezing temperature. In that case, the second evaporator chamber temperature control means and the first switching chamber heating means are controlled so that the power consumption becomes smaller when the first switching chamber 5 is set to be frozen than when it is set to frozen. doing.

It is known that in a refrigerator, generally, the lower the temperature to be maintained, the greater the temperature difference from the outside air (outside air) and the greater the heat load, and the greater the power consumption for cooling. Therefore, a user who uses a refrigerator having a switching chamber capable of setting the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature expects a power saving effect when switching the setting of the switching chamber from the freezing temperature to the refrigerating temperature. In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, even when the second switching chamber 6 is set to be frozen and the first switching chamber 5 is adjacent to the freezing temperature chamber on three sides, the temperature is likely to be particularly low. By controlling the evaporator chamber temperature control means and the switching chamber heating means so that the power consumption becomes smaller when the first switching chamber 5 is set to the freezing temperature than when it is set to the refrigerating temperature, power saving is achieved. The refrigerator is effective.

In the refrigerator of this embodiment, the first switching chamber 5 is set to refrigerating and the second switching chamber 6 is set to freezing when the ambient environment (outside storage environment) is the same (“RF” mode), the first switching is performed. When the chamber 5 is set to freezing and the second switching chamber 6 is set to refrigerating (“FR” mode), the second evaporator chamber temperature control means and the first switching chamber heating means are set so that the power consumption becomes smaller. Are in control. In the "RF" mode, the first switching chamber 5 has a freezing temperature and the second switching chamber 6 has a refrigerating temperature. Therefore, the second switching chamber 6 includes the upper first switching chamber 5 and the back second evaporator chamber 8b. However, the temperature is lower than that in the "FR" mode (the first switching chamber 5 is the refrigerating temperature and the second switching chamber 6 is the freezing temperature) in which the storage chamber at the refrigerating temperature is cooled from three sides. Easy to suppress. Therefore, compared to the case where the first switching chamber 5 is set to refrigerating and the second switching chamber 6 is set to refrigerating, the power consumption is smaller when the first switching chamber 5 is set to freezing and the second switching chamber 6 is set to refrigerating. The refrigerator in which the power saving effect is obtained by controlling the second evaporator chamber temperature control means and the first switching chamber heating means so as to be small.

The refrigerator according to the present embodiment includes an evaporator (second evaporator 14b), a fan (second fan 9b) that allows air to flow through the evaporator, and an evaporator chamber (second evaporator chamber 8b) that houses the evaporator. And a first storage chamber (first switching chamber 5) that can be set to the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature, and a second storage chamber (the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 that are maintained at the freezing temperature or the freezing temperature). The set second switching chamber 6), the first air passage for circulating the air from the evaporator chamber to the first storage chamber, and the second air passage for circulating the air from the evaporator chamber to the second storage chamber. And a blower cut-off means (first switching chamber first damper 101a, first switching chamber second damper 101b) for shutting off the blowing air of the first air passage, and the first storage chamber has a door body around the periphery. It is partitioned by the (first switching chamber door 5a) and the wall body (the heat insulating box body 10, the heat insulating partition wall 27, the heat insulating partition wall 29, the heat insulating partition wall 30), and the first storage chamber, the evaporator chamber, and the second wind. A part of the road is a part of the wall body and is formed separately from other wall bodies, and is adjacent to the partition wall with a partition wall (heat insulating partition wall 27) that is removable, and is adjacent to the surrounding environment (outside the refrigerator). When the environment is the same, the time average value of the fan speed is lower when the first storage room is set to the refrigeration temperature than when the first storage room is set to the freezing temperature. Are controlled.

Generally, when an air passage or an evaporator chamber through which cool air flows is partitioned by a partition wall that is detachably attached to the surrounding wall body, when a fan is driven to ventilate the evaporator chamber or the air passage, the surrounding wall Compared to the case where the body and the partition wall are integrally formed, or the case where the body and the partition wall are adhered or welded to the surrounding wall body, the leakage flow due to the minute gap is more likely to occur. Since the cold air that circulates in the storage chamber maintained at the freezing temperature is low in temperature, if a leak flow acts on the first storage chamber when the first storage chamber is set to the refrigeration temperature, It may be necessary to excessively increase the heater energization amount, or frost or dew may form on an unintended portion. The leakage flow is caused by the pressure difference between the air passage or the evaporator chamber and the storage chamber set at the refrigeration temperature, and increases as the pressure difference increases. Since the pressure difference is generated by driving the fan and increases as the fan rotation speed increases, in order to suppress the leakage flow when the first storage chamber is set to the refrigeration temperature, the time average of the fan rotation speed is used. Lowering the value is effective.

On the other hand, when the first storage chamber is set to the freezing temperature, cold air having a low freezing temperature flows into the storage chamber having a low freezing temperature even if a leak flow occurs, and cooling is promoted. Therefore, when the first storage chamber is set to the freezing temperature, the time average value of the rotation speed of the fan may be increased to operate. That is, by controlling so that the rotation speed of the fan becomes lower when the first storage chamber is set to the refrigeration temperature than when the first storage chamber is set to the refrigeration temperature, When the temperature is set, it is necessary to excessively increase the heater energization amount for raising the temperature, and the refrigerator is less likely to cause frost or dew condensation on an unintended portion.

In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, when the surrounding environment (outside of the refrigerator) is the same, the setting state of each of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 and the magnitude relationship of the power consumption are “FF” mode> The second evaporator chamber temperature control means and the first switching chamber heating means are controlled so that the “RF” mode>“FR” mode>“RR” mode. The lower the temperature to be maintained, the larger the temperature difference from the outside air (outside air) and the larger the heat load. The middle stage where the first switching chamber 5 is arranged and the second switching chamber 6 are arranged. As a characteristic of the lower storage room installed, the heat load can be suppressed smaller by using the freezing temperature chamber in the middle stage, which has less surface separating the inside and outside, than the lower temperature chamber, which has more surfaces separating the inside and the outside It is generally known to be a configuration. Therefore, the magnitude relationship between the setting states and the power consumptions of the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 is such that "FF" mode> "RF" mode> "FR" mode> "RR" mode. By controlling the second evaporator chamber temperature control means and the first switching chamber heating means, it is possible to obtain a refrigerator that matches the user's knowledge and can reasonably obtain the power saving effect.

In addition, in this example, although the case where it measured according to JISC9801-3:2015 as an evaluation method of the power consumption which assumed the use of the refrigerator in Japan was demonstrated, the refrigerator in the said country except Japan. The power consumption may be measured in accordance with a standard power consumption measuring method (for example, IEC 62552:2015) that assumes the use of the power consumption, and the relationship between the setting state of the switching room and the power consumption may be evaluated.

The first embodiment (embodiment 1) has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are included. For example, as the evaporator chamber temperature control means, the rotation speed of the compressor and the rotation speed of the fan that blows air to the evaporator are mentioned, but in addition, an expansion valve is used in the refrigeration cycle to control the refrigerant flow rate, The temperature of the evaporator chamber may be controlled by controlling the rotation speed of a fan that blows air into the air cooler, or by controlling the opening and closing of a damper to control the amount of air blown by the fan. Furthermore, a heater for controlling the temperature of the evaporator chamber may be provided and controlled. In addition, the refrigerator of the present embodiment includes a first evaporator for cooling the refrigerating compartment, and an ice making chamber, a freezing compartment, a first switching compartment, and a second evaporator for cooling the second switching compartment, The configuration of the present invention may be applied to a refrigerator in which all storage rooms are cooled by a single evaporator. That is, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail in order to explain the present invention in an easy-to-understand manner, and are not necessarily limited to those having all the configurations described. Further, it is possible to add/delete/replace other configurations with respect to a part of the configurations of the embodiment.

A second embodiment (second embodiment) of the refrigerator according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 11 is a front view of the refrigerator according to the second embodiment, FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 11, and FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an air passage structure of the refrigerator according to the second embodiment. Note that the description of the same configuration as that of the first embodiment is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 11, the heat insulating box 10 of the refrigerator 1 includes a refrigerating room 2, a first switching room 5, an ice making room 3 and a freezing room 4 provided on the left and right, and a second switching room 6 in this order from the top to the storage room. have.

The refrigerator 1 is provided with a door that opens and closes the opening of each storage room. These doors are divided into left and right rotary type refrigerating compartment doors 2a and 2b for opening and closing the opening of the refrigerating compartment 2 and a first switching chamber 5, an ice making chamber 3, a freezing chamber 4 and a second switching chamber 6. These are a drawer-type first switching chamber door 5a, an ice making chamber door 3a, a freezing chamber door 4a, and a second switching chamber door 6a that open and close each opening. The inner material of the plurality of doors is mainly made of urethane.

The external dimensions of the refrigerator 1 are width 685 mm, depth 738 mm, and height 1833 mm, and the rated internal volume based on JISC9801-3:2015 is 308 L for the refrigerating compartment 2, 120 L for the first switching compartment 5, 20 L for the ice making compartment 3, The freezing chamber 4 is 30 L and the second switching chamber 6 is 100 L. The height position of the upper end of the first switching chamber door 5a is 980 mm, and the height position of the upper end of the second switching chamber door 6a is 400 mm.

In this way, the height position of the upper end of the door is within 500 mm to 1200 mm from the floor surface, and the storage room where the burden of putting foods in and out is small because the work can be performed without bending, and the height position of the upper end of the door is 500 mm or less from the floor surface. Next, the internal volume of the switching chamber (first switching chamber 5) whose height position at the upper end of the refrigerating door is 500 mm to 1200 mm from the floor is defined as both switching chambers where the load of putting in and out of food is a little large. By making the height of the upper end of the door higher than the inner volume of the switching chamber (second switching chamber 6) at which the height of the door is 500 mm or less from the floor surface, the refrigerator is easy to use. That is, when the user stores a lot of refrigerated food such as vegetables according to the lifestyle, the height of the upper end of the door is set to the refrigerating temperature, and the height of the upper end of the door is set to the floor. When setting the freezing temperature of the storage room included in 500 mm or less from the surface and storing a large amount of frozen food, the height of the upper end of the door is set to the freezing temperature and the height of the upper end of the door is set to 500 mm to 1200 mm. A storage room whose position is 500 mm or less from the floor surface can be set at the refrigerating temperature for use, and a layout giving priority to usability can be achieved.

The ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 are basically storage chambers in which the inside of the refrigerator is kept at a freezing temperature (less than 0° C.), for example, about −18° C. on average, and the refrigerating chamber 2 stores the inside of the refrigerator at the refrigerating temperature (0° C.). Above) is, for example, a storage room that is kept at an average temperature of about 4°C. The first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are storage chambers that can be set to a freezing temperature or a refrigerating temperature by the operation unit 26, and the refrigerator of the present embodiment has a refrigerating temperature of about 4° C. on average. It is possible to select any one of the freezing temperatures that averages about -18°C. Specifically, the "FF" mode in which both the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the freezing temperature, and the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature, respectively. "RF" mode in which the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature, respectively, and the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are both set to the refrigerating temperature It is possible to select from among the “RR” modes performed.

As shown in FIG. 12, the refrigerating compartment 2 and the first switching compartment 5 are separated by a heat insulating partition wall 28. The first switching chamber 5, the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 are separated by a heat insulating partition wall 29, and the ice making chamber 3, the freezing chamber 4 and the second switching chamber 6 are separated by a heat insulating partition wall 30.

The ice making chamber door 3a, the freezing chamber door 4a, the first switching chamber door 5a, and the second switching chamber door 6a are integrally drawn-out ice making chamber containers 3b, freezing chamber containers 4b, first switching chamber containers 5b, and second switching chambers. The container 6b is provided.

The back of the refrigerating compartment 2 is provided with a first evaporator compartment 8a in which a first evaporator 14a is mounted. Further, a second evaporator chamber 8b in which a second evaporator 14b is mounted is provided substantially at the back of the freezing chamber 4 and the second switching chamber 6, and the ice making chamber 3, the freezing chamber 4, and the second switching chamber 6 are provided. The second evaporator chamber 8 and a part of a freezer compartment air passage 12 described later are separated by a heat insulating partition wall 27. The heat insulating partition wall 27 is a separate body from the heat insulating box body 10, the heat insulating partition wall 29, and the heat insulating partition wall 30, and the heat insulating box body 10 and the heat insulating partition wall are provided via a seal member (soft urethane foam as an example) not shown. It is fixed so as to come into contact with the wall 29 and the heat insulation partition wall 30, and is removable. In this way, by forming the heat insulating partition wall 27 as a separate body and making it detachable, the second evaporator 14b housed in the second evaporator chamber 8b, the second fan 9b described later, and the second switching chamber damper 102 are formed. When a problem occurs in a component covered by the heat insulating partition wall 27, the heat insulating partition wall 27 can be removed to easily perform maintenance.

The first switching chamber 5 is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped storage chamber having a height H1 of 340 mm, a width W1 (see FIG. 11) of 620 mm, and a depth D1 of 600 mm. The second switching chamber 6 has a height H2 of 340 mm and a width W2 ( 11) is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped storage chamber having a depth of 620 mm and a depth D2 of 520 mm.

The upper surface (area W1×D1=372000 mm ² ) of the first switching chamber 5 is refrigerated through the heat insulating partition wall 28, and the lower surface (area W1×D1=372000 mm ² ) is through the heat insulating partition wall 29 and the ice making chamber 3 is formed. The freezer compartment 4 and the front surface (area H1×W1=210800 mm ² ) are outside the compartment via the first switching chamber door 5a, and the rear surface (area H1×W1=210800 mm ² ) are outside the compartment via the heat insulating box 10. The left and right side surfaces (each area H1×D1=204000 mm ² ) are in contact with the outside of the refrigerator via the heat insulating box 10. Since the outside of the refrigerator is at the refrigeration temperature or higher, the total area AR1 of the surface adjacent to the space at the refrigeration temperature or higher is AR1=1201600 mm ² (top surface, front surface, back surface, left and right side surfaces). The total area AF1 of the surface adjacent to the freezing temperature space is AF1=372000 mm ² (lower surface).

Further, the upper surface (area W2×D2=260400 mm ² ) of the second switching chamber 6 is connected to the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 via the heat insulating partition wall 30, and the lower surface (area W2×D2=260400 mm ² ) is heat insulating box 10. and outer compartment via a front (area H2 × W2 = 210800mm ²⁾ compartment outside the rear of the upper via the second switching compartment door 6a is (area H2a (see Figure 12) × W1 = 84320mm ²⁾ adiabatic The second evaporator chamber 8b via the partition wall 27, and the lower part of the rear surface (area H2b (see FIG. 12)×W2=126480 mm ² ) are outside the storage via the heat insulating box 10, and both left and right side surfaces (area H2 respectively). ×D2=204000 mm ² ) is in contact with the outside of the refrigerator via the heat insulating box 10. Therefore, the total area AR2 of the surface adjacent to the space at the refrigeration temperature or higher is AR2=951280 mm ² (front surface, lower surface, both side surfaces, part of the back surface (lower part)). The total area AF2 of the surface adjacent to the freezing temperature space is AF2=344720 mm ² (upper surface and part of the back surface (upper part)).

Further, by providing the vacuum heat insulating material 25 inside the heat insulating partition walls 27, 28, 29, 30, the heat insulating performance is improved.

Refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 41, first switching compartment temperature sensor 43, freezing compartment temperature sensor 42, and second compartment are provided on the interior rear side of refrigerating compartment 2, first switching compartment 5, freezing compartment 4, and second switching compartment 6, respectively. A switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is provided, a first evaporator temperature sensor 40a is provided above the first evaporator 14a, and a second evaporator temperature sensor 40b is provided above the second evaporator 14b. With these sensors, the refrigerating chamber 2, the first switching chamber 5, the freezing chamber 4, the second switching chamber 6, the first evaporator chamber 8a, the first evaporator 14a, the second evaporator chamber 8b, and the second evaporation chamber The temperature of the container 14b is detected. In addition, an outside air temperature sensor 37 and an outside air humidity sensor 38 are provided inside the door hinge cover 16 on the ceiling of the refrigerator 1 to detect the temperature and humidity of the outside air (outside air). In addition, a door sensor (not shown) is provided to detect the open/closed state of each of the doors 2a, 2b, 3a, 5a, 6a, 7a.

The bottom surface of the first switching chamber 5 (the inside of the synthetic resin covering the surface of the heat insulating partition wall 29 on the first switching chamber 5 side) is provided with a first switching chamber heater 121 serving as a heating means of the first switching chamber 5. There is. Further, between the upper surface of the second switching chamber 6 (the inside of the synthetic resin that covers the surface of the heat insulating partition wall 30 on the side of the second switching chamber 6) and the lower rear surface of the second switching chamber 6 (between the outer box 10a and the inner box 10b). A second switching chamber heater 122, which serves as a heating means for the second switching chamber 6, is provided on the inner surface of the inner box 10a side).

The 1st evaporator 14a and the 2nd evaporator 14b are equipped with the 1st evaporator defrosting heater 21a and the 2nd evaporator defrosting heater 21b, respectively at the lower part, and the compressor 24 stopped the defrosting. In this state, the first evaporator defrost heater 21a and the second evaporator defrost heater 21b are energized. As the first evaporator defrosting heater 21a and the second evaporator defrosting heater 21b, for example, an electric heater of 50W to 200W may be adopted. In this embodiment, the first evaporator defrosting heater 21a is a 120W radiant heater. As the second evaporator defrosting heater 21b, a 150 W radiant heater is used. The defrost heaters (first evaporator defrost heater 21a, second evaporator defrost heater 21b) are respectively provided in the evaporators (first evaporator 14a, second evaporator 14b) that cool the switching chamber in this way. By disposing, the defrosting can be surely performed regardless of the setting of the switching chamber.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of an air duct structure showing the flow of cold air in the refrigerator 1 according to the second embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 12 and 13, the configuration of the air passage in the refrigerator 1 and the flow of cold air will be described.

As shown in FIG. 12, the first evaporator 14 a is installed in the first evaporator chamber 8 a at the lower rear part of the refrigerating chamber 2. As shown in FIG. 13, the air that has become low in temperature by exchanging heat with the first evaporator 14a is pressurized by the first fan 9a and is sent to the first fan discharge air passage 11. The first fan discharge air passage 11 branches into a refrigerating compartment air passage 110 and a first switching chamber air passage 140, and the refrigerating compartment air passage 110 and the first switching chamber air passage 140 respectively go to the refrigerating compartment 2. A refrigerating compartment damper 100 that controls the ventilation of the air by switching between an open state and a closed state, and a first switching chamber damper 101 that controls the ventilation of the air to the first switching chamber 5 by switching between an open state and a closed state are provided. ing.

When the refrigerating compartment damper 100 is controlled to be in the open state, the air pressurized by the first fan 9a enters the refrigerating compartment 2 through the first fan discharge air passage 11, the refrigerating compartment air passage 110, and the refrigerating compartment discharge port 110a. The food or the like in the refrigerating room 2 is sent and cooled. The air that has cooled the refrigerating chamber 2 returns to the first evaporator chamber 8a via the refrigerating chamber return port 110b and exchanges heat with the first evaporator 14a again.

Further, when the first switching chamber damper 101 is controlled to be in the open state, the air pressurized by the first fan 9a has the first fan discharge air passage 11, the first switching chamber air passage 140, and the first switching chamber discharge port. It is sent to the first switching chamber 5 via 111a to cool the food and the like in the first switching chamber 5. The air that has cooled the first switching chamber 5 returns to the first evaporator chamber 8b via the first switching chamber return port 111c and the first switching chamber return air passage 111d.

The second evaporator 14b is installed in the freezer compartment 4, the second switching compartment 6 and the second evaporator compartment 8b substantially at the back of the heat insulating partition 30 (see FIG. 12). The air whose temperature has been lowered by exchanging heat with the second evaporator 14b is boosted by the second fan 9b and sent to the second fan discharge air passage 12. The second fan discharge air passage 12 branches into a freezer compartment air passage 130 and a second switching chamber air passage 150, and the second switching chamber air passage 150 is set so that the air blown to the second switching chamber 6 is opened. A second switching chamber damper 102 that controls by switching to a closed state is provided.

The air sent to the second fan discharge air passage 12 enters the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 via the freezing compartment air passage 130, the ice making compartment discharge opening 120a and the freezing compartment discharge opening 120b, and the water in the ice making tray 3c, The ice in the container 3b, the food in the freezer compartment 4, etc. are cooled. The air that has cooled the ice making chamber 3 and the freezing chamber 4 returns to the second evaporator chamber 8b via the freezing chamber return port 120c and the freezing chamber return air passage 120d, and exchanges heat with the second evaporator 14b again.

When the second switching chamber damper 102 is controlled to be in the open state, the air pressurized by the second fan 9b has the second fan discharge air passage 12, the second switching chamber air passage 150, and the second switching chamber discharge outlet 112a. And enters the second switching chamber 6 to cool food and the like in the second switching chamber 6. The air that has cooled the second switching chamber 6 returns to the second evaporator chamber 8b via the second switching chamber return port 112c and the second switching chamber return air passage 112d, and is cooled by the second evaporator 14b again.

Here, the opening area of the refrigerating chamber damper 100 is 900 mm ² (width 30 mm×height 30 mm), the opening area of the first switching chamber damper 101 is 6300 mm ² (width 180 mm×height 35 mm), and the second switching chamber damper 102 is The opening area is 5200 mm ² (width 80 mm×height 65 mm).

Next, control of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 and 15. FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing control of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 15 is a table showing control states of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 14, the refrigerator of the present embodiment starts the cooling operation (start) when the power is turned on. The control of the pull-down operation from when the power is turned on to when the storage chamber in the refrigerator reaches a predetermined temperature level is omitted, and the description will be given from the stage where the first evaporator operation is started when the stable operation state is reached.

At the start of the first evaporator operation, the setting of the switching chamber is read (step S301). The switching chamber is set in the "FF" mode in which both the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the freezing temperature, and the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature. "RF" mode, the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are set to the freezing temperature and the refrigerating temperature "FR" mode, the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are both set to the refrigerating temperature One of the “RR” modes is selected.

Subsequently, the first evaporator operation is started in step S302. In the first evaporator operation, the refrigerant control valve is controlled to "state 1", the compressor 24 is driven and the first fan 9a is driven, and the low temperature refrigerant supplied to the first evaporator 14a is used for the refrigerating chamber. In this operation, at least one of the storage chambers 2 and 5 is cooled. The state at the start of the first evaporator operation depends on the setting of the switching chamber and is selected as follows.

When the setting of the first switching chamber 5 is the freezing temperature (“FF” mode or “FR” mode) and the ambient temperature is high (the refrigerator of the present embodiment is higher than 20° C.), the compressor 24 is High speed (2500 min-1), first fan 9a is high speed (1800 min-1), refrigerating compartment damper 100 is open, first switching compartment damper 101 is open, and first switching compartment heater 121 is off. ..

When the setting of the first switching chamber 5 is the freezing temperature (“FF” mode or “FR” mode) and the ambient temperature is low (20° C. or less in the refrigerator of this embodiment), the compressor 24 is medium speed (1500 min ⁻¹ ), the first fan 9a is low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the refrigerator compartment damper 100 is open, the first switching chamber damper 101 is open, and the first switching chamber heater 121 is off. Selected.

When the setting of the first switching chamber 5 is the refrigerating temperature (“RF” mode or “RR” mode) and the ambient temperature is high (the refrigerator of the present embodiment is higher than 20° C.), the compressor 24 is slow (1000min ^-1), the first fan 9a is slow (1200min ^-1), the refrigerator compartment damper 100 is opened, the first switching compartment damper 101 is opened, the first switching compartment heater 121 is OFF state selection ..

When the setting of the first switching chamber 5 is the refrigerating temperature (“RF” mode or “RR” mode) and the ambient temperature is low (20° C. or lower in the refrigerator of the present embodiment), the compressor 24 is slow (1000min ^-1), the first fan 9a is slow (1200min ^-1), the refrigerator compartment damper 100 is opened, the first switching compartment damper 101 is closed, the first switching compartment heater 121 is ON selection ..

Next, it is determined whether or not the refrigerator compartment damper closing condition is satisfied (step S303). Step S303 is established when the refrigerator compartment damper 100 is open and the refrigerator compartment temperature detected by the refrigerator compartment temperature sensor 41 is equal to or lower than the refrigerator compartment damper close temperature (Yes in step S303), and the refrigerator compartment damper 100. Is closed (step S401). The refrigerator compartment damper closing temperature in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 1°C.

Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the first switching chamber damper closing condition is satisfied (step S304). Step S304 is established when the first switching chamber damper 101 is open and the refrigerating chamber temperature detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 is equal to or lower than the first switching chamber damper closing temperature (Yes in step S304). ), the first switching chamber damper 101 is closed (step S402). The first switching chamber damper closing temperature in the refrigerator of the present embodiment is -20°C when the setting of the first switching chamber 5 is the freezing temperature, and is 2°C when it is the refrigerating temperature.

Furthermore, in step S305, it is determined whether the first switching chamber heater OFF condition is satisfied. Step S305 is a case where the temperature of the first switching chamber 5 detected by the first switching chamber temperature sensor 43 is equal to or higher than the first switching chamber heater OFF temperature when the first switching chamber heater 121 is in the energized state (ON state). Is satisfied (Yes in step S305), the first switching chamber heater 121 is turned off (OFF state) (step S403). The OFF temperature of the first switching chamber heater in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 5°C.

In step S306, it is determined whether or not the first evaporator operation end condition is satisfied. Step S306 is established when both the refrigerating compartment damper 100 and the first switching compartment damper 101 are closed (Yes in step S306), the first evaporator operation ends, and the refrigerant recovery operation is performed (step S306). S307). When step S306 is not satisfied (step S306 is No), the process returns to the determination of step S303. In the refrigerant recovery operation in step S307, the rotation speed of the compressor 24 is maintained, the first fan 9a continues to be driven, the refrigerant control valve 52 is set to "state 3 (fully closed)", and the refrigerant in the first evaporator 14a is set. Is an operation for collecting the heat on the side of the heat dissipation means. In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, the refrigerant recovery operation is continued for 3 minutes and the first fan 9a is stopped.

Next, in step S308, the second evaporator operation is started. In the second evaporator operation, the refrigerant control valve is controlled to "state 2", the compressor 24 is driven and the second fan 9b is driven, and the low temperature refrigerant supplied to the second evaporator 14b is used to cool the ice making chamber. 3, the freezing compartment 4 and the second switching compartment 6 or the ice making compartment 3 and the freezing compartment 4 are cooled. The state at the start of the second evaporator operation depends on the setting of the switching chamber and is selected as follows.

When the setting of the second switching chamber 6 is the freezing temperature (“FF” mode or “RF” mode) and the ambient temperature is high (the refrigerator of the present embodiment is higher than 20° C.), the compressor 24 is The high speed (2500 min ⁻¹ ), the second fan 9b at high speed (1800 min ⁻¹ ), the second switching chamber damper 102 in the open state, and the second switching chamber heater 122 in the OFF state are selected.

Further, when the setting of the second switching chamber 6 is the freezing temperature (“FF” mode or “RF” mode) and the ambient temperature is low (when the refrigerator of the present embodiment has a temperature of 20° C. or lower), the compressor. 24 is selected as a medium speed (1500 min ⁻¹ ), the second fan 9b is low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the second switching chamber damper 102 is open, and the second switching chamber heater 122 is OFF.

When the setting of the second switching chamber 6 is the refrigerating temperature (“FR” mode or “RR” mode) and the ambient temperature is high (the refrigerator of the present embodiment is higher than 20° C.), the compressor 24 is The medium speed (1500 min ⁻¹ ), the second fan 9 b is low speed (1200 min ⁻¹ ), the second switching chamber damper 102 is open, and the second switching chamber heater 122 is OFF.

When the setting of the second switching chamber 6 is the refrigerating temperature (“FR” mode or “RR” mode) and the ambient temperature is low (20° C. or lower in the refrigerator of the present embodiment), the compressor 24 is slow (1000min ^-1), the second fan 9b is slow (1200min ^-1), the second switching compartment damper 102 is closed, the second switch chamber heater 122 is ON is selected.

Next, it is determined whether or not the second switching chamber damper closing condition is satisfied (step S309). Step S309 is established when the second switching chamber damper 102 is open and the second switching chamber temperature detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is equal to or lower than the second switching chamber damper closing temperature (step S309). Yes), the second switching chamber damper 102 is closed (step S404). The second switching chamber damper closing temperature in the refrigerator of the present embodiment is -20°C when the setting of the second switching chamber 6 is the freezing temperature, and 2°C when it is the refrigerating temperature.

Subsequently, in step S310, it is determined whether or not the second switching chamber heater OFF condition is satisfied. In step S310, when the temperature of the second switching chamber 6 detected by the second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 is equal to or higher than the second switching chamber heater OFF temperature when the second switching chamber heater 122 is in the energized state (ON state). (Yes in step S310), the second switching chamber heater 122 is in a non-energized state (OFF state) (step S405). The OFF temperature of the second switching chamber heater in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 5°C.

In step S311, it is determined whether or not the second evaporator operation end condition is satisfied. Step S311 is established when the second switching chamber damper 102 is closed and the temperature of the freezing compartment 4 detected by the freezing compartment temperature sensor 42 is equal to or lower than the second evaporator operation end temperature (Yes in step S311). ). In the refrigerator of the present embodiment, step S311 is established when the temperature of the freezer compartment 4 detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 is -21°C or lower, the second cooler operation ends, and the refrigerant recovery operation is performed ( Step S312). When step S311 is not materialized (step S311 is No), it returns to the determination of step S309. In the refrigerant recovery operation in step S312, the rotation speed of the compressor 24 is maintained, the second fan 9b is continuously driven, the refrigerant control valve 52 is set to "state 3 (fully closed)", and the refrigerant in the second evaporator 14b is set. Is an operation for collecting the heat to the heat radiation means side. In the refrigerator of this embodiment, the refrigerant recovery operation is continued for 3 minutes and the second fan 9b is stopped.

Succeedingly, in a step S313, it is determined whether or not the first evaporator operation start condition is satisfied. In step S313, at least one of the temperature of the refrigerating compartment 2 detected by the refrigerating compartment temperature sensor 41 and the temperature of the first switching compartment 5 detected by the first switching compartment temperature sensor 43 is equal to or higher than the first evaporator operation start temperature. If so (Yes in step S313), the process returns to step S101. The first evaporator operation start temperature in the refrigerator of this embodiment is 6° C. for the refrigerating compartment 2, and -14° C. for the first switching compartment 5 when the setting is the freezing temperature, and 6° C. for the refrigerating temperature. is there.

When step S313 is not materialized (step S313 is No), the compressor 24 is stopped (OFF) (step S314).

In step S315, it is determined whether the first evaporator operation start condition is satisfied. The condition that step S315 is satisfied is the same as the condition that step S313 is satisfied. When step S313 is materialized (step S313 is Yes), it returns to step S101.

In step S316, it is determined whether the second evaporator operation start condition is satisfied. Step S316 is established when at least one of the temperatures detected by the freezer compartment temperature sensor 42 or the second switching compartment temperature sensor 44 is equal to or higher than the second evaporator operation start temperature (Yes in step S316). The evaporator operation start temperature in the refrigerator of this embodiment is -12°C for the freezing compartment 4, -14°C for the second switching compartment 6 when the setting is the freezing temperature, and 6°C for the refrigerating temperature. ..

If step S316 is satisfied (step S316 is Yes), the process proceeds to step S308, and if step S316 is not satisfied (step S316 is No), the process returns to the determination of step S315.

The configuration of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment and the control method have been described above. Next, the effect of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment will be described.

The refrigerator of the present embodiment is provided with a plurality of switching chambers (first switching chamber 5 and second switching chamber 6) capable of setting refrigerating temperature and freezing temperature, and which switching chamber is set to the refrigerating temperature. Also, among the surfaces that partition the switching chamber set to the refrigerating temperature, the total area of the surfaces adjacent to the space above the refrigerating temperature is larger than the total area of the surfaces adjacent to the freezing temperature space. Are arranged. Specifically, in the "RF" mode, the first switching chamber 5 has the refrigerating temperature. The first switching chamber 5 has an upper surface, a front surface, a back surface, and left and right side surfaces adjacent to a space having a refrigeration temperature or higher, and a total area AR thereof is 1201600 mm ² . On the other hand, the lower surface (372000 mm ² ) is adjacent to the freezing temperature space, and the area AF is 372000 mm ² , which satisfies AR>AF. Further, in the “FR” mode, the second switching chamber 6 becomes the refrigerating temperature. The second switching chamber 6 has a front surface, a lower surface, both side surfaces, and a part (lower portion) of the back surface adjacent to a space having a refrigeration temperature or higher, and its total area AR is 951280 mm ² . On the other hand, the upper surface and a part of the back surface (upper part) are adjacent to the freezing temperature space, and the total area AF is 344720 mm 2, which satisfies AR>AF. Furthermore, in the "RR" mode, the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6 are at the refrigerating temperature. The first switching chamber 5 has an upper surface, a front surface, a back surface, and left and right side surfaces adjacent to a space having a refrigeration temperature or higher, and a total area AR thereof is 1201600 mm ² . On the other hand, the lower surface (372000 mm ² ) is adjacent to the freezing temperature space, and the area AF is 372000 mm ² , which satisfies AR>AF. Further, the second switching chamber 6 has a front surface, a lower surface, both side surfaces, and a part (lower portion) of the back surface adjacent to a space having a refrigeration temperature or higher, and its total area AR is 951280 mm ² . On the other hand, the upper surface and a part of the back surface (upper part) are adjacent to the freezing temperature space, the total area AF is 344720 mm ² , and AR>AF is satisfied.

As described above, irrespective of the setting state of the plurality of switching chambers, the switching chamber set to the refrigerating temperature has the area of the surface separating the space having the refrigerating temperature or higher (the refrigerating temperature storage chamber or the outside). Arrange the storage rooms so that the total area AF of the surface that separates the freezing temperature space (freezing temperature storage room or evaporator room including the air passage) is smaller than total AR (AR>AF) By doing so, when the switching chamber is set to the refrigerating temperature, it becomes difficult for the switching chamber set to the refrigerating temperature to be excessively cooled from the surrounding freezing temperature space, and the heater energization for temperature compensation, dew condensation, and freezing prevention is applied. The refrigerator can suppress an excessive increase in power consumption.

The refrigerator 1 according to the present embodiment includes two switching chambers, that is, the first switching chamber 5 and the second switching chamber 6. However, in a refrigerator including three or more switching chambers, which switching chamber is refrigerated. Even when the temperature is set, the sum of the areas of the surfaces adjacent to the space having the refrigeration temperature or higher among the surfaces partitioning the switching chamber set to the refrigeration temperature is equal to the area of the surfaces adjacent to the freezing temperature space. The storage chamber may be arranged to be larger than the total sum. Further, the refrigerator 1 of the present embodiment is provided with a substantially rectangular parallelepiped switching chamber (first switching chamber 5 and second switching chamber 6), but even if it has another shape, a surface (inner surface) that partitions the switching chamber It suffices that the area of the above satisfies the above relationship. In addition, when a part of the surface defining the switching chamber is adjacent to the freezing temperature space, the area where the freezing temperature space is projected on the surface defining the switching chamber may be the surface adjacent to the freezing temperature space. Further, the surface area may be calculated by ignoring the irregularities having a height (depth) of 1/10 or less of the maximum value of the representative dimension that defines the inner dimension of the discharge chamber and the switching chamber.

The refrigerator according to the present embodiment has a first switching chamber 5 and a second switching chamber 6 that can be set to a refrigerating temperature and a freezing temperature, a first evaporator 7a and a second evaporator 7b as a cooling unit, and a first blowing unit as a blowing unit. The fan 9a and the second fan 9b are provided, and the first switching chamber 5 is cooled by sending air that has exchanged heat with the first evaporator 7a by the first fan 9a, and the second switching chamber 6 is the second evaporator. The air that has exchanged heat with 7b is blown by the second fan 9b to cool it. That is, a plurality of switching chambers capable of setting the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature and a plurality of evaporators are provided, and the respective switching chambers are cooled by independent cooling means and blower means. When the user sets the switching chamber to the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature, the absolute humidity inside the refrigerator tends to be higher when the refrigerating temperature is set, so frost is likely to grow on the evaporator. Become. Like the refrigerator of the present embodiment, it is provided with a plurality of switching chambers and a plurality of evaporators that can be set to the refrigerating temperature and the freezing temperature, and each switching chamber is cooled by independent cooling means and blowing means. By doing so, when a plurality of switching chambers are set to the refrigerating temperature, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the cooling performance is deteriorated due to the growth of frost on a specific evaporator and the power consumption is excessively increased. ..

The above is the embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications are included. For example, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail for the purpose of explaining the present invention in an easy-to-understand manner, and are not necessarily limited to those having all the configurations described. Further, it is possible to add/delete/replace other configurations with respect to a part of the configurations of the embodiment.

1 Refrigerator 2 Refrigerator 3 Ice-making chamber 4 Freezer 5 First switching chamber 6 Second switching chamber 8a First evaporator chamber 8b Second evaporator chamber 9a First fan 9b Second fan 10 Insulation box 10a Outer box 10b Box 14a First evaporator 14b Second evaporator 16 Hinge cover 21 Radiant heaters 23a, 23b Gutter 24 Compressor 25 Vacuum heat insulating material 27, 28, 29, 30 Heat insulating partition wall 31 Control board 39 Machine room 40a First evaporator temperature Sensor 40b Second evaporator temperature sensor 41 Refrigerating chamber temperature sensor 42 Freezing chamber temperature sensor 43 Second switching chamber temperature sensor 44 Second switching chamber temperature sensor 50a Outside radiator (heat radiating means)
50b Wall heat dissipation pipe (heat dissipation means)
51 Dew condensation prevention piping (heat dissipation means)
52 Refrigerant control valve (refrigerant control means)
53a First capillary tube (pressure reducing means)
53b Second capillary tube (pressure reducing means)
54a, 54b Gas-liquid separator 56 Check valves 57a, 557b Heat exchange section 101a First switching chamber first damper (blast shutoff means)
101b 1st switching chamber 1st damper (blast cutoff means)
102a 2nd switching chamber 1st damper (blast cutoff means)
102b 2nd switching chamber 2nd damper (blowing interception means)
121 First switching chamber heater (heating means)
122 Second switching chamber heater (heating means)

Claims (5)

A cold room,
A freezer,
Switching room that can be set by selecting refrigerating temperature zone and freezing temperature zone,
A switching chamber heater disposed in the switching chamber,
A refrigeration cycle that includes a compressor, a condenser, a decompression unit, and an evaporator, and supplies cold air to the switching chamber;
A switching chamber damper for adjusting the amount of cold air supplied to the switching chamber,
A refrigerator in which power consumption when the switching chamber is set to a refrigerating temperature zone is smaller than power consumption when the switching chamber is set to a freezing temperature zone. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the switching chamber has a total area of surfaces adjacent to a space having a refrigerating temperature or more higher than a total area of surfaces adjacent to a freezing temperature space. The switching chamber is adjacent to an evaporator chamber that houses the evaporator,
When the environment around the refrigerator is the same, the time average temperature during stable operation of the evaporator chamber when the switching chamber is set in the refrigerating temperature range is set to be higher than that in the refrigerating temperature range. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerator is higher. A cold room,
A freezer,
Two switching chambers that can be set by selecting the refrigerating temperature zone and the freezing temperature zone,
Switching chamber heaters arranged in each of the switching chambers,
One or more refrigeration cycles including a compressor, a condenser, a decompression unit, and an evaporator, and supplying cold air to each of the switching chambers;
One or more switching chamber dampers for adjusting the amount of cold air supplied to each of the switching chambers,
FF mode in which both of the two switching chambers are in the freezing temperature range,
It is possible to execute an RR mode in which both of the two switching chambers are in a refrigeration temperature zone,
Refrigerator whose power consumption satisfies the following relational expression.
FF mode> RR mode... Relational expression At least the switching chamber heater is controlled so that the switching chamber maintains the refrigeration temperature zone when the switching chamber is set to the refrigeration temperature zone,
At least the switching chamber heater is controlled so that the switching chamber maintains the freezing temperature zone when the switching chamber is set to the freezing temperature zone,
A power consumption amount when the switching chamber is set to a refrigerating temperature zone is made smaller than a power consumption amount when the switching chamber is set to a freezing temperature zone by controlling at least the switching chamber heater. The refrigerator according to any one of 1 to 4.

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