Refrigerator having a temperature controlled compartment

Abstract

A refrigerator including a temperature controlled compartment partitioned from the freezer compartment and the refrigerator compartment, a door for the temperature controlled compartment, a cooling unit installed in the temperature controlled compartment for supplying cold air to the temperature controlled compartment, a duct for defining a flow passage of the cold air to circulate the cold air supplied from the cooling unit within the temperature controlled compartment, a blower fan for blowing the cold air supplied from the cooling unit through the duct, and a control unit for generating control signals to drive the cooling unit and the blower fan so as to maintain a temperature in the temperature controlled compartment at a set temperature.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a refrigerator having a temperature controlled compartment capable of changing a temperature from refrigerating to freezing or vice versa; and, more particularly, to a refrigerator having a temperature controlled compartment partitioned from a refrigerator compartment and a refrigerator compartment, capable of improving cooling efficiency of the refrigerator.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In general, the refrigerator includes a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve and an evaporator, and keeps the freshness of food items for a long period of time by generating cold air using such components. In such a refrigerator, a freezer compartment for storing the food items in a frozen state and a refrigerator compartment for storing the food items in a refrigerated state are partitioned inside a main body which forms external appearance thereof so that the food items can be stored in either the refrigerator compartment or the freezer compartment according to the storage temperature of the food items.

However, the refrigerator is configured to have only two storage spaces of the refrigerator compartment and the freezer compartment, whose temperatures are fixed in order to store the food items at desired predetermined temperatures. Therefore, in case of storing various food items, it is difficult to store the food items whose preserving temperatures are different from each other.

In recent years, in order to solve the above problem, by way of installing a separate storage space inside the refrigerator compartment of the refrigerator and controlling the amount of cold air introduced from the refrigerator compartment, the food items having a different preserving temperature can be preserved separately.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show a configuration of a conventional refrigerator having such a temperature controlled compartment. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the conventional refrigerator 10 is partitioned into a freezer compartment 20 and a refrigerator compartment 30, wherein the refrigerator compartment 30 has a separate storage space, i.e. a temperature controlled compartment 40, at a lower part thereof. The temperature controlled compartment 40 is configured to have a storage drawer or a separate door installed therein.

In the refrigerator 10, cold air generated from an evaporator 50 is supplied into the freezer compartment 20 by a blower fan 60 for the freezer compartment; and a part of the cold air supplied into the freezer compartment 20 is flown into the refrigerator compartment 30 through a cold air inlet 70. Further, the cold air introduced into the refrigerator compartment 30 is circulated by a blower fan 61 for the refrigerator compartment to cool the refrigerator compartment 30. Then, a part of the cold air in the refrigerator compartment 30 is flowed into the temperature controlled compartment 40 through a cold air inlet 71 formed at a lower part of the refrigerator compartment 30.

However, as for the conventional refrigerator 10 having the above-described temperature controlled compartment 40, in order to take out the food items preserved in the temperature controlled compartment 40 or store the food items therein, a door 32 of the refrigerator compartment 30 must be opened first to reach the temperature controlled compartment 40, which is very inconvenient.

In addition, since the refrigerator compartment 30 must be opened in order to use the temperature controlled compartment 40, there occurs a loss of cold air in the refrigerator compartment, which results in an increase of the total power consumption of the refrigerator due to cooling the refrigerator compartment.

Further, after using the temperature controlled compartment 40, an entire cooling cycle of the refrigerator must be performed in order to control the temperature of the temperature controlled compartment 40 to a set temperature, resulting in a decrease of the total efficiency of the refrigerator.

Moreover, since the set temperature of the temperature controlled compartment 40 is depend on the amount of the cold air provided from the freezer compartment 20 or the refrigerator compartment 30, it is difficult to precisely maintain the set temperature of the temperature controlled compartment 40.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator having a temperature controlled compartment capable of changing a preserving temperature so as to refrigerate or freeze food items having a different preserving temperature by forming a separate storage space partitioned from a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment of the refrigerator.

It is another object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator having a temperature controlled compartment capable of precisely controlling the preserving temperature and improving cooling efficiency of the refrigerator.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a refrigerator having a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment for preserving food items, the refrigerator comprising:

a temperature controlled compartment partitioned from the freezer compartment and the refrigerator compartment;

a door for the temperature controlled compartment;

a cooling unit installed in the temperature controlled compartment for supplying cold air to the temperature controlled compartment;

a duct, formed in the temperature controlled compartment, for defining a flow passage of the cold air to circulate the cold air supplied from the cooling unit within the temperature controlled compartment;

a blower fan for blowing the cold air supplied from the cooling unit through the duct; and

a control unit for generating control signals to drive the cooling unit and the blower fan so as to maintain a temperature in the temperature controlled compartment at a set temperature.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional refrigerator having a temperature controlled compartment;

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of schematically showing the refrigerator of FIG. 1, which is taken along a line A-A;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a refrigerator having a temperature controlled compartment in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of schematically showing the refrigerator of FIG. 3, which is taken along a line B-B;

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of schematically illustrating the refrigerator of FIG. 3, which is taken along a line C-C;

FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view of a configuration of another modified example of the temperature controlled compartment in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view of a configuration of further another modified example of the temperature controlled compartment in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a cross sectional view of the temperature controlled compartment of FIG. 7 for showing an operation status thereof; and

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a configuration for controlling the temperature controlled compartment of a refrigerator in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that they can be readily implemented by those skilled in the art.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a refrigerator having a temperature controlled compartment in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of schematically showing the refrigerator of FIG. 3, which is taken along a line B-B.

As shown FIGS. 3 and 4, the refrigerator of the present invention includes a body 100, a freezer compartment 200 and a refrigerator compartment 300 partitioned in an upper portion of the body 100 for preserving food items therein, and a temperature controlled compartment 400 partitioned in a lower portion of the body 100 for preserving food items therein, an evaporator 220 for supplying cold air into the refrigerator and an operation panel 110 for allowing a user to select desired temperatures of the freezer compartment 200, the refrigerator compartment 300 and the temperature controlled compartment 400.

The freezer compartment 200 has a door 210 for the freezer compartment installed in one side, e.g., a right side of the upper portion of the body 100, and a blower fan 230 for blowing and circulating the cold air provided by the evaporator 220 in the freezer compartment 200.

The refrigerator compartment 300 is partitioned from the freezer compartment 200 by a vertical partition wall 130 and has a door 310 for the refrigerator compartment installed in one side, e.g., a left side of the upper portion of the body 100. The refrigerator compartment 300 further has a blower fan 320 for blowing and circulating a part of the cold air produced by the evaporator 220 in the refrigerator compartment 300, where the cold air is supplied through a cold air inlet 120 formed at the vertical partition wall 130.

Meanwhile, the temperature controlled compartment 400 is partitioned from the freezer compartment 200 and the refrigerator compartment 300 at a lower part of the body 100 by a horizontal partition wall 140 and is provided with a door 410 for the temperature controlled compartment installed at the front thereof. Although it is not specifically shown in the drawings, it should be understood that the temperature controlled compartment 400 is a drawer type compartment designed to pull and push horizontally using the door 410 so that the temperature controlled compartment 400 is open and closed.

In addition, the temperature controlled compartment 400 includes a main cooling unit 420 and a sub-cooling unit 430 for supplying cold air, which are separate units from the evaporator 220.

The temperature controlled compartment 400 further includes a blower fan 440 for blowing and circulating the cold air in the temperature controlled compartment 400, and a control unit 500 (see FIG. 8) for controlling the temperature inside the temperature controlled compartment 400 based on a set temperature selected by the operation panel 110.

The temperature controlled compartment 400 configured as set forth above may be utilized as a separate freezer or refrigerator compartment according to the user selection; and thus the food items having different preserving temperatures may be stored at temperatures selected by the user for a long period of time, which gives a convenience to a use.

The main cooling unit 420 is installed at a rear portion in the temperature controlled compartment 400 and supplies the cold air generated by evaporation heat of a refrigerant into the temperature controlled compartment 400 in the same manner as the evaporator 220. On the other hand, the sub-cooling unit 320 is disposed close to the main cooling unit 420 to play an auxiliary role of the main cooling unit 420. To be more specific, in the event that a temperature difference between a current temperature inside the temperature controlled compartment 400 and the set temperature selected by the user is large, for example, in case that the door 410 is open so outside warm air is flowed into the temperature controlled compartment 400, the main cooling unit 420 is operated so that the temperature controlled compartment 400 can be quickly cooled to the set temperature.

In contrast, the sub-cooling unit 430 is operated to constantly maintain the set temperature in the event that the temperature difference is small or if there is a slight temperature displacement naturally generated in the temperature controlled compartment 400 after the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment 400 reaches the set temperature.

The sub-cooling unit 430 includes a thermoelectric element. The thermoelectric element is a peltier device which utilizes the peltier effect in which a heat absorption (or generation) is caused by electric current. The peltier effect is a phenomenon where when two kinds of metal are connected in their ends and electric current flows therethrough, one end performs an endothermic reaction and the other performs an exothermic reaction, according to a direction of the electric current. Such a thermoelectric element can control the amount of the heat absorption and the heat generation and the direction thereof based on the direction and the amount of the electric current. Further, the thermoelectric element is not mechanically operated so the installation location or direction thereof has no effect on its operation. Furthermore, it is possible to improve power efficiency because a compressor to compress a refrigerant does not need to be operated.

The blower fan 440 is installed at in front of the main cooling unit 420 and the sub-cooling unit 430, and supplies the cold air generated by the main cooling unit 420 and the sub-cooling unit 430 to the temperature controlled compartment 400 by blowing it. As the blower fan 440, a sirocco fan or a cross flow fan may be preferably employed.

Referring to FIG. 5, there is shown a cross sectional view of the refrigerator having the temperature controlled compartment in accordance with the present invention, which is taken along a line C-C.

In the refrigerator, the cold air generated by the evaporator 220 is flowed into the refrigerator compartment 200 by the blower fan 320 through a cold air discharge opening 331 formed at a louver 330 and circulated therein. Further, after the cold air is circulated in the refrigerator compartment 300 by the blower fan 320, it is passed to the evaporator 220 by a suction hole 332 formed at a lower portion of the louver 330, thereby being cooled again. Such a cooling cycle of the refrigerator is performed repeatedly.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 5, the temperature controlled compartment 400 further includes a duct 450, a temperature sensor 460 and a door opening/closing detector 470.

The duct 450 defines a flow passage of the cold air from the main cooling unit 420 and the sub-cooling unit 430 in the temperature controlled compartment 400. The duct 450 is formed of a first flat plate portion 454 spaced apart from a bottom surface of an upper wall, i.e. the horizontal partition wall 140, of the temperature controlled compartment 400, which is extended in a horizontal direction from the rear portion of the temperature controlled compartment 400 toward the door 410, thereby leaving a slit 457 between the door 410 and the front end of the first flat plate portion 454, and a second flat plate portion 455 spaced apart from a rear wall of the temperature controlled compartment 400, which is bent and extended in a downward direction from a rear end of the first flat plate portion 454. The first flat plate portion 454 and the second flat plate portion 455 may be made of plastic materials and may be formed as one body.

The cold air produced from the main cooling unit 420 and the sub-cooling unit 430 passes through the flow passage defined by the duct 450 and then discharged into the temperature controlled compartment 400 through the slit 457 in a vertical direction. This cold air discharged into the temperature controlled compartment 400 in a vertical direction makes an air curtain to prevent the cold air in the temperature controlled compartment 400 from leaking out or being mixed with the outside warm air at the front portion of the temperature controlled compartment 400.

Thereafter, the cold air introduced into the temperature controlled compartment 400 circulates inside the temperature controlled compartment 400 and then is discharged to the main cooling unit 420 and the sub-cooling unit 430 through a cold air outlet 452 at the rear part of the temperature controlled compartment 400, thereby being cooled again.

In this connection, it is preferred that the blower fan 440 is installed at a location close to the door 410, i.e., at a location near the slit 457 to force the cold air to discharge toward the door 410.

The temperature sensor 460 is installed in the vicinity of the cold air outlet 452 and thus detects a current temperature inside the temperature controlled compartment 400 from the cold air discharged through the cold air outlet 452.

The door opening/closing detector 470 is installed in the vicinity of the door 410, for example, in a bottom portion of the temperature controlled compartment 400, to detect an opening/closing of the door 410. Door opening/closing signals indicating the opening/closing of the door 410 are provided to the control unit 500 shown in FIG. 8.

Referring to FIG. 6, there is illustrated a cross sectional view of a second modified example of the temperature controlled compartment in accordance with the present invention.

The second modified example of the temperature controlled compartment 400 as shown in FIG. 6 has the same configuration as that shown in FIG. 5, except that the duct 450 has a plurality of cold air holes formed in the first horizontal plate portion 454; and therefore, a detailed description for the same components will be omitted for the sake of simplicity.

In the second example of the temperature controlled compartment 400, a plurality of cold air holes 451 are formed at a front end region in the first flat plate portion 454.

The cold air supplied through the duct 450 is flowed into the temperature controlled compartment 400 through the cold air holes 451 from the above so as to provide the cold air to the food items preserved in the temperature controlled compartment 400.

Further, a part of the cold air passing through the duct 450 is discharged into the temperature controlled compartment 400 through the slit 457 in a vertical direction. This cold air discharged into the temperature controlled compartment makes an air curtain to prevent the cold air in the temperature controlled compartment 400 from leaking out or being mixed with the outside warm air at the front portion of the temperature controlled compartment 400.

Thereafter, the cold air introduced into the temperature controlled compartment 400 circulates inside the temperature controlled compartment 400 and then is flowed to the main cooling unit 420 and the sub-cooling unit 430 through the cold air outlet 452, thereby being cooled again.

In this connection, it is preferable that the blower fan 440 is installed at in front of the main and the sub cooling units 420 and 430, to force the cold air to pass through the duct 450. Alternatively, it may be possible to install the blower fan 440 above the cold air holes 451.

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, there are illustrated cross sectional views of a third modified example of the temperature controlled compartment 400 in accordance with the present invention.

The third example of the temperature controlled compartment as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 has the substantially same configuration as that of the second example as in FIG. 6, except that the duct 450 has one or more air slots instead of the air holes as shown in FIG. 5 and a damper is further provided therewith; and therefore, a detailed description for the same components will be omitted for the sake of simplicity.

In the third example of the temperature controlled compartment, one or more air slots 461 are formed at a front end region of the first flat plate portion 454. And, a damper 453 is installed at an upstream region of the air slots 461.

The damper 453 controls the cold air passing through the duct 450 so that a part of the cold air is discharged toward the front of the door in a vertical direction. More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the damper 453 is normally closed to block the cold air passing through the duct 450 at the upstream region of the air slots 461 so that none of the cold air can not be discharged through the slit 457 but the cold air is flowed into the temperature controlled compartment 400 through the slots 461. If, however, the damper 453 is open, a part of the cold air passing through the duct 450 is discharged toward the front of the door 410 through the slit 461, whereby an air curtain is made to prevent leakage of the cold air of the temperature controlled compartment 400.

Thereafter, the cold air introduced into the temperature controlled compartment 400 circulates inside the temperature controlled compartment 400 and then is discharged to the main cooling unit 420 and the sub-cooling unit 430 through the cold air outlet 452 of the duct 450 at the rear part of the temperature controlled compartment 400, thereby being cooled again.

In this connection, it is preferred that the blower fan 440 is installed above the cold air holes 451. Alternatively, it may be possible to install the blower fan 440 at in front of the main and the sub cooling unit 420 and 430, to force the cold air to pass through the duct 450.

Referring to FIG. 9, there is shown a block diagram of the control unit 500 for controlling the temperature of the temperature controlled compartment 400 in accordance with the present invention.

The control unit 500 compares the set temperature selected through the operation panel 110 with the current temperature detected by the temperature sensor 460. As a result of the comparison, if the current temperature is higher than the set temperature, then the control unit 500 generates control signals to operate the main cooling unit 420 and the blower fan 440 until the current temperature reaches the set temperature.

Thereafter, if it is determined that the current temperature in the temperature controlled compartment 400 reaches the set temperature, the control unit 500 generates control signals to stop the operation of the main cooling unit 420 and the blower fan 440.

Further, after the current temperature in the temperature controlled compartment 400 reaches the set temperature, if there is a small temperature displacement between the current temperature and the set temperature, then the control unit 500 generates control signals to operate the sub-cooling unit 430 and the blower fan 440, thereby constantly maintaining the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment 400 at the set temperature.

On the other hand, if the control unit 500 receives a signal indicating an opening of the door 410 detected by and provided from the door opening/closing detector 470, the control unit 500 generates a control signal to open the damper 453 so that the air curtain can be formed at a front of the temperature controlled compartment 400.

Hereafter, if the control unit 50 receives a closing of the door 410 detected by and provided from the door opening/closing detector 470, the control unit 500 generates a control signal to restore damper 454 to its original location, i.e. a closed location.

After that, as described above, the control unit 500 will generate control signals to drive the main cooling unit 420 and the blower fan 440 until the current temperature reaches the set temperature.

And then, if the temperature of the temperature controlled compartment 400 reaches the set temperature, the operation of the main cooling unit 420 is stopped; and the sub-cooling unit 420 and the blower fan 440 starts operating, whereby the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment 400 can be constantly maintained at the set temperature. Therefore, it is possible to effectively improve the power consumption.

As described above, the present invention has advantages in that the food items can be refrigerated or frozen according to the user selection by using a separate storage space partitioned from the conventional freezing and refrigerator compartments.

In addition, the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment can be accurately controlled through the use of a main cooling unit and a sub-cooling unit.

Moreover, by separating the cooling units based on the amount of the displacement between the present temperature and the set temperature, the power consumption for providing the cold air can be efficiently improved.

While the invention has been shown and described with respect to the preferred embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

Claims

1. A refrigerator having a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment for preserving food items, the refrigerator comprising:

a temperature controlled compartment partitioned from the freezer compartment and the refrigerator compartment;

a door for the temperature controlled compartment;

a cooling unit installed in the temperature controlled compartment for supplying cold air to the temperature controlled compartment;

a duct, formed in the temperature controlled compartment, for defining a flow passage of the cold air to circulate the cold air supplied from the cooling unit within the temperature controlled compartment;

a blower fan for blowing the cold air supplied from the cooling unit through the duct; and

a control unit for generating control signals to drive the cooling unit and the blower fan so as to maintain a temperature in the temperature controlled compartment at a set temperature.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the duct includes:

a first flat plate portion spaced apart from an upper wall of the temperature controlled compartment while extending in a horizontal direction to leave a slit between the door and the front end of the first flat plate portion; and

a second flat plate portion bent and extended from a rear end of the first flat plate portion in a downward direction while being spaced apart from a rear wall of the temperature controlled compartment, so that the cold air is flowed passing through the flow passage and then is discharged into the temperature controlled compartment in a vertical direction.

3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the first flat plate portion has a plurality of cold air holes formed at a front end thereof so that the cold air supplied from the cooling unit can be discharged from the above into temperature controlled compartment.

4. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the duct has a damper installed at an upstream region of the cold air holes for controlling the flow passage of the cold air, so that a part of the cold air can be discharged into the temperature compartment through the cold air holes in a vertical direction.

5. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the blower fan is installed to force a part of the cold air passing through the duct to discharge into the temperature controlled compartment through the slit in a vertical direction.

6. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the first flat plate portion has one or more cold air slots formed at a front end thereof so that the cold air supplied from the cooling unit can be discharged into temperature controlled compartment through the cold air slots.

7. The refrigerator of claim 6, wherein the duct has a damper installed at an upstream region of the cold air slots for controlling the flow passage of the cold air, so that a part of the cold air can be discharged into the temperature compartment in a vertical direction.

8. The refrigerator of claim 6, wherein the blower fan is installed to force a part of the cold air passing through the duct to discharge into the temperature controlled compartment through the slit in a vertical direction.

9. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the cooling unit includes a main cooling unit for generating the cold air to make the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment reach the set temperature; and a sub-cooling unit for constantly maintaining the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment after the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment reaches the set temperature.

10. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein the main cooling unit is formed of an evaporator using a refrigerant; and the sub-cooling unit is formed of a thermoelectric element.

11. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein the control unit generates control signals to operate the main cooling unit and the blower fan until the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment reaches the set temperature if it is determined that a current temperature detected by the temperature sensor is higher than the set temperature; and the control unit generates control signals to operate the sub-cooling unit and the blower fan while stopping the operation of the main cooling unit and the blower fan so that the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment is maintained at the set temperature if it is determined that the current temperature reaches the set temperature.

12. The refrigerator of claim 4, further comprising an opening/closing detector for detecting an opening/closing of the door,

wherein the control unit generates a control signal to open the damper if the control unit receives a signal indicative of the opening of the door from the opening/closing detector.

13. The refrigerator of claim 12, wherein the control unit generates control signals to operate the main cooling unit and the blower fan until the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment reaches the set temperature if it receives a signal indicative of the closing of the door from the opening/closing detector.

14. The refrigerator of claim 7, further comprising an opening/closing detector for detecting an opening/closing of the door,

wherein the control unit generates a control signal to open the damper if the control unit receives a signal indicative of the opening of the door from the opening/closing detector.

15. The refrigerator of claim 14, wherein the control unit generates control signals to operate the main cooling unit and the blower fan until the temperature in the temperature controlled compartment reaches the set temperature if it receives a signal indicative of the closing of the door from the opening/closing detector.