U.S. patent application number 11/482039 was filed with the patent office on 2007-07-19 for refrigerator and method for producing supercooled liquid.
This patent application is currently assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Joo Young Ha, Kyung Hee Hahm, Jeong Han Kim, Yong Han Kim, Hye Ran Lee, Jae Seung Lee, Chang Hak Lim, Jung Soo Lim, Young Shik Shin, Won Jae Yoon.
Application Number | 20070163289 11/482039 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37963569 |
Filed Date | 2007-07-19 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070163289 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hahm; Kyung Hee ; et
al. |
July 19, 2007 |
Refrigerator and method for producing supercooled liquid
Abstract
A refrigerator for supercooling beverage into supercooled liquid
and a method of producing the supercooled liquid using the same.
The refrigerator includes a mixing room provided in a main body to
mix chilled air from a freezer compartment and a refrigerator
compartment with each other and having a first suction port for
suctioning the freezer compartment chilled air and a second suction
port for suction the refrigerator compartment chilled air, and a
supercooling compartment provided in the main body to be directly
or indirectly refrigerated by the chilled air mixed in the mixing
room. The mixing room and the supercooling compartment may be
provided either in the refrigerator compartment or in the freezer
compartment, or in an independent refrigerator compartment to form
an independent refrigerating room separated from the freezer
compartment.
Inventors: |
Hahm; Kyung Hee; (Seoul,
KR) ; Lee; Jae Seung; (Hwaseong-Gun, KR) ;
Lee; Hye Ran; (Goonpo-Si, KR) ; Kim; Jeong Han;
(Suwon-si, KR) ; Lim; Chang Hak; (Hwasung-si,
KR) ; Lim; Jung Soo; (Seoul, KR) ; Ha; Joo
Young; (Seoul, KR) ; Kim; Yong Han;
(Cheonan-Si, KR) ; Yoon; Won Jae; (Seoul, KR)
; Shin; Young Shik; (Seongnam-Si, KR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
STAAS & HALSEY LLP
SUITE 700
1201 NEW YORK AVENUE, N.W.
WASHINGTON
DC
20005
US
|
Assignee: |
Samsung Electronics Co.,
Ltd.
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
37963569 |
Appl. No.: |
11/482039 |
Filed: |
July 7, 2006 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
62/408 ; 62/414;
62/441 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25D 2317/0682 20130101;
F25D 17/065 20130101; F25D 29/00 20130101; F25D 2317/0665 20130101;
F25D 2317/061 20130101; F25D 2700/121 20130101; F25D 31/007
20130101; F25D 2400/28 20130101; F25D 17/045 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
062/408 ;
062/441; 062/414 |
International
Class: |
F25D 17/04 20060101
F25D017/04; F25D 17/06 20060101 F25D017/06; F25D 11/02 20060101
F25D011/02 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jan 14, 2006 |
KR |
2006-4207 |
Claims
1. A refrigerator comprising: a main body having a freezer
compartment and a refrigerator compartment; a mixing room provided
in the main body to suction and mix chilled air from the freezer
compartment and the refrigerator compartment with each other; a
supercooling compartment provided in the main body to be
refrigerated by the chilled air mixed in the mixing room; and a
controller for controlling a quantity of a freezer compartment
chilled air and a refrigerator compartment chilled air suctioned
into the mixing room.
2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the mixing room
comprises: a first suction port communicated with the freezer
compartment to suction the freezer compartment chilled air; a
second suction port communicated with the refrigerator compartment
to suction the refrigerator compartment chilled air; and a chilled
air supply port through which the chilled air mixed in the mixing
room is supplied into the supercooling compartment.
3. The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein in the first
suction port and the second suction port, blower fans are installed
to suction the chilled air.
4. The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein the mixing room
further comprises a mixing device by which the chilled air
suctioned through the first suction port and the second suction
port is mixed with each other when traveling to the chilled air
supply port and attains an equilibrium state.
5. The refrigerator according to claim 4, wherein the mixing device
comprises a mixing passage formed between the suction ports and the
chilled air supply port.
6. The refrigerator according to claim 5, wherein the mixing
passage is formed in a serpentine shape by at least one passage
forming plate.
7. The refrigerator according to claim 4, wherein the mixing device
further includes a fan rotated in the mixing room to accelerate the
mixing of the chilled air.
8. The refrigerator according to claim 3, wherein the supercooling
compartment includes a temperature sensor installed therein, and
the controller compares a temperature measured by the temperature
sensor with a set temperature of the supercooling compartment to
control the blower fans such that a suction quantity of the freezer
compartment chilled air and a suction quantity of the refrigerator
compartment chilled air are adjusted.
9. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the mixing room
and the supercooling compartment are provided in the freezer
compartment or in the refrigerator compartment.
10. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the main body
further comprises an independent refrigerator compartment separated
from the freezer compartment and the refrigerator compartment and
having a separate refrigerating room, and the mixing room and the
supercooling compartment are provided in the independent
refrigerator compartment.
11. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the mixing room
and the supercooling compartment are disposed adjacent to each
other.
12. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the mixing room
is spaced apart from the supercooling compartment and further
comprises a connector duct provided between the mixing room and the
supercooling compartment to connect the mixing room to the
supercooling compartment.
13. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the supercooling
compartment is disposed in the mixing room.
14. The refrigerator according to claim 13, wherein the
supercooling compartment further comprises a chilled air
introducing port communicated with the mixing room to receive the
chilled air mixed in the mixing room, and the chilled air
introducing port is installed with a damper for opening and closing
the chilled air introducing port.
15. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising a
casing for separating the mixing room from the supercooling
compartment, wherein the casing is made of material of a high heat
capacity.
16. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the mixing room
and the supercooling compartment further comprise insulators for
preventing affect due to temperature of the refrigerator
compartment and of the freezer compartment.
17. A refrigerator comprising: a main body having a refrigerator
compartment and an evaporator for generating chilled air; a mixing
room provided in the main body to suction and mix the chilled air
from the refrigerator compartment and the evaporator with each
other; a supercooling compartment provided in the main body to be
refrigerated by the chilled air mixed in the mixing room; and a
controller for controlling suction quantities of a refrigerator
compartment chilled air and an evaporator chilled air suctioned
into the mixing room.
18. A method of producing a supercooled liquid utilizing a
refrigerator comprising a refrigerator compartment and a freezer
compartment, the method comprising: suctioning chilled air from the
freezer compartment and the refrigerator compartment and mixing the
chilled air in a mixing room; and blowing the chilled air mixed in
the mixing room into a supercooling compartment.
19. The method of producing a supercooled liquid according to claim
18, further comprising adjusting a suction quantity of a freezer
compartment chilled air and a suction quantity of a refrigerator
compartment chilled air suctioned into the mixing room such that a
temperature of the supercooling compartment is maintained at a set
temperature.
20. The method of producing a supercooled liquid according to claim
18, wherein the supercooling compartment comprises: a chilled air
supply port through which the chilled air mixed in the mixing room
is supplied; and a damper for opening and closing the chilled air
supply port.
21. The method of producing a supercooled liquid according to claim
20, further comprising closing the damper and indirectly
refrigerating the supercooling compartment using the chilled air in
the mixing room.
22. A method of producing a supercooled liquid utilizing a
refrigerator comprising a refrigerator compartment and an
evaporator for generating chilled air, the method comprising:
suctioning the chilled air from the refrigerator compartment and
the evaporator and mixing the chilled air with each other in a
mixing room; and blowing the chilled air mixed in the mixing room
into a supercooling compartment.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent
Application No. 2006-4207, filed on Jan. 14, 2006, in the Korean
Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is
incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more
particularly, to a refrigerator for supercooling beverage and a
method of producing a supercooled liquid using the same.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] Although a beverage is generally changed to a solid phase
when its temperature is under its freezing point temperature at
standard atmospheric pressure, occasionally, the beverage is not
changed into the solid phase but is maintained in the supercooled
state. As such, if liquid is not frozen even when it is below the
freezing point and remains in the supercooled state it is in what
is known in thermodynamics as a metastable state. Since the
supercooled liquid in the metastable state is neither unstable nor
stable, when there is ambient perturbation, the supercooled
beverage undergoes a phase transition to the solid state. Thus,
when either a supercooled beverage is poured into a cool cup or a
shock or vibration is applied to the supercooled beverage, the
beverage that is not completely frozen and not completely melted
can be provided to a consumer. Hereinafter, the beverage whose
phase is changed into the solid phase by applying an external force
to the supercooled beverage is referred to slush.
[0006] In connection with this, Japanese Laid-Open Patent
Publication No. 2003-214753 discloses a supercooling apparatus
installed in a main body of a refrigerator such that temperature of
a compartment for accommodating food is uniform and food is
refrigerated. The conventional supercooling apparatus includes a
chilled air supply duct and a chilled air suction duct,
respectively installed to sidewalls of the compartment, and a
connection duct installed to an upper wall of the compartment to
connect the chilled air supply duct to the chilled air suction
duct. In the conventional supercooling apparatus, since the chilled
air is continuously circulated through a path formed by the chilled
air supply duct, the compartment, the chilled air suction duct, and
the connection duct, temperature distribution of the compartment is
uniformly maintained.
[0007] Although it is important to maintain a uniform temperature
distribution of the compartment for the supercooling of the
beverage, like the conventional supercooling apparatus, it is more
important that, in order to maintain a beverage in a supercooled
state and to provide a good slush to customers, temperature
distribution with respect to time of the compartment for
accommodating the beverage must be maintained as uniform as
possible. In other words, if, although average temperature of the
compartment is uniformly maintained, the temperature of the
compartment varies over a large range as time passes, when the
temperature of the compartment is at the lowest point, since the
beverage in the supercooled state is frozen, the slush cannot be
made.
[0008] As a method of controlling a range of temperature variation
with respect to time of the compartment using the conventional
supercooling apparatus, there is a method of adjusting temperature
of the chilled air generated by an evaporator. In other words, when
a temperature required to supercool the beverage is - (minus) 5
degrees centigrade, the temperature of the chilled air generated by
the evaporator is slightly lower.
[0009] However, the method of refrigerating the compartment by
generating the chilled air for supercooling the beverage is not
effective for the following reason. A conventional refrigerator
includes a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment. When
providing a compartment for supercooling to the conventional
refrigerator, the installation of the additional evaporator for
supercooling the beverage is not effective in view of structure and
costs.
[0010] Thus, a solution is required that is capable of generating
and supplying chilled air suitable for supercooling a beverage
utilizing the structure and features of the conventional
refrigerator as they are.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The present invention has been made in view of the
above-mentioned problems, and an aspect of the invention is to
provide a refrigerator for properly mixing chilled air supplied
from a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment to
generate chilled air suitable for supercooling a beverage and a
method of producing a supercooled liquid using the
refrigerator.
[0012] In accordance with the aspect, the present invention
provides a refrigerator including a main body having a freezer
compartment and a refrigerator compartment, a mixing room provided
in the main body to suction and mix chilled air from the freezer
compartment and the refrigerator compartment with each other, a
supercooling compartment provided in the main body to be
refrigerated by the chilled air mixed in the mixing room, and a
controller for controlling suction quantities of freezer
compartment chilled air and refrigerator compartment chilled air
suctioned into the mixing room.
[0013] The mixing room may include a first suction port
communicating with the freezer compartment to suction the freezer
compartment chilled air, a second suction port communicating with
the refrigerator compartment to suction the refrigerator
compartment chilled air, and a chilled air supply port through
which the chilled air mixed in the mixing room is supplied into the
supercooling compartment.
[0014] In the first suction port and the second suction port,
blower fans are installed to suction the chilled air.
[0015] The mixing room further includes a mixing device by which
the chilled air suctioned through the first suction port and the
second suction port is mixed with each other when traveling to the
chilled air supply port and attains an equilibrium state.
[0016] The mixing device includes a mixing passage formed between
the suction ports and the chilled air supply port, and the mixing
passage is formed in the serpentine shape by at least one passage
forming plate.
[0017] The mixing device may further include a fan rotated in the
mixing room to accelerate the mixing of the chilled air.
[0018] The supercooling compartment includes a temperature sensor
installed therein, and the controller compares a temperature
measured by the temperature sensor with a set temperature of the
supercooling compartment to control the blower fans such that a
suction quantity of the freezer compartment chilled air and a
suction quantity of the refrigerator compartment chilled air are
adjusted.
[0019] The mixing room and the supercooling compartment may be
provided in the freezer compartment or in the refrigerator
compartment.
[0020] Moreover, the main body further includes an independent
refrigerator compartment separated from the freezer compartment and
the refrigerator compartment and having a separate refrigerating
room, and the mixing room and the supercooling compartment are
provided in the independent refrigerator compartment.
[0021] The mixing room and the supercooling compartment may be
disposed adjacent to each other. Moreover, the mixing room is
spaced apart from the supercooling compartment and further includes
a connector duct provided between the mixing room and the
supercooling compartment to connect the mixing room to the
supercooling compartment.
[0022] The supercooling compartment is disposed in the mixing room.
In this case, the supercooling compartment further includes a
chilled air introducing port communicating with the mixing room to
receive the chilled air mixed in the mixing room, and the chilled
air introducing port is installed with a damper for opening and
closing the chilled air introducing port.
[0023] The refrigerator further includes a casing for separating
the mixing room from the supercooling compartment, wherein the
casing is made of material of a high heat capacity.
[0024] The mixing room and the supercooling compartment may further
include insulators for preventing temperature variation affects due
to the temperature of the refrigerator compartment and of the
freezer compartment.
[0025] In accordance with another aspect, the present invention
provides a refrigerator including a main body having a refrigerator
compartment and an evaporator for generating chilled air, a mixing
room provided in the main body to suction and mix the chilled air
from the refrigerator compartment and the evaporator with each
other, a supercooling compartment provided in the main body to be
refrigerated by the chilled air mixed in the mixing room, and a
controller for controlling suction quantities of refrigerator
compartment chilled air and evaporator chilled air suctioned into
the mixing room.
[0026] In accordance with another aspect, the present invention
provides a method of producing a supercooled liquid utilizing a
refrigerator including a refrigerator compartment and a freezer
compartment, including suctioning chilled air from the freezer
compartment and the refrigerator compartment and mixing the chilled
air in a mixing room, and blowing the chilled air mixed in the
mixing room into a supercooling compartment.
[0027] The method further includes adjusting a suction quantity of
freezer compartment chilled air and a suction quantity of
refrigerator compartment chilled air suctioned into the mixing room
such that a temperature of the supercooling compartment is
maintained at a set temperature.
[0028] The supercooling compartment may include a chilled air
supply port through which the chilled air mixed in the mixing room
is supplied and a damper for opening and closing the chilled air
supply port, and the method may further include closing the damper
and indirectly refrigerating the supercooling compartment using the
chilled air in the mixing room.
[0029] In accordance with another aspect, the present invention
provides a method of producing a supercooled liquid utilizing a
refrigerator including a refrigerator compartment and a freezer
compartment, including suctioning the chilled air from the
refrigerator compartment and the evaporator and mixing the chilled
air with each other in a mixing room, and blowing the chilled air
mixed in the mixing room into a supercooling compartment.
[0030] Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will
be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part,
will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by
practice of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0031] These and/or other aspects and advantages of the invention
will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the
following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with
the accompanying drawings in which:
[0032] FIG. 1 is a front view illustrating a refrigerator according
a first embodiment of the present invention;
[0033] FIG. 2 is a front sectional view of the refrigerator in FIG.
1;
[0034] FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line I-I in FIG.
1;
[0035] FIGS. 4A and 4B are views illustrating a mixing device
provided in a mixing room as shown in FIG. 3;
[0036] FIG. 5 is a side sectional view illustrating a part of a
refrigerator according to a second embodiment of the present
invention;
[0037] FIG. 6 is a side sectional view illustrating a part of a
refrigerator according to a third embodiment of the present
invention;
[0038] FIG. 7 is a side sectional view illustrating a part of a
refrigerator according to a fourth embodiment of the present
invention; and
[0039] FIG. 8 is a side sectional view illustrating a part of a
refrigerator according to a fifth embodiment of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0040] Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of
the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view illustrating a
refrigerator according a first preferred embodiment of the present
invention, FIG. 2 is a front sectional view of the refrigerator in
FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line I-I in
FIG. 1.
[0041] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the refrigerator according to the
first embodiment of the present invention includes a main body 10
having an open front side. The main body 10 includes an outer shell
11 for forming an outer appearance and an inner shell 12 spaced
apart from the outer shell 11 to form a compartment for
accommodating food. Between the outer and the inner shells 11 and
12, an insulator 13 is formed to prevent chilled air from being
dissipated.
[0042] The compartment 20 is divided into right and left sides by
an intermediate partition 14, wherein the right side serves as a
refrigerator compartment 21 for refrigerating food and the left
side serves as a freezer compartment 22 for freezing food. In the
rear side of the compartment 20, a chilled air generating room 15
is provided to generate chilled air to be supplied to the
compartment 20. The chilled air generating room 15 includes an
evaporator (not shown) for performing heat-exchange between the
evaporator and ambient air to generate the chilled air. In the
vicinity of the evaporator, a circulation fan (not shown) is
installed to supply the chilled air into the compartment 20.
[0043] In the front sides of the refrigerator compartment 21 and
the freezer compartment 22, a refrigerator compartment door 21a and
a freezer compartment door 22a are hinged to open and close the
refrigerator compartment 21 and the freezer compartment 22,
respectively. Each of the doors 21a and 22a is provided with
shelves 16 for accommodating food.
[0044] The refrigerator according to the first embodiment of the
present invention includes a supercooling compartment 30 provided
in the refrigerator compartment 21 to refrigerate a beverage below
a freezing point and to produce a supercooled liquid.
[0045] The lowest temperature in which the beverage can be
supercooled (hereinafter referred to a `limit supercooling
temperature`) is determined by various variables such as type of
the beverage, material or a size of a container for containing the
beverage, and the like. However, when the types of the containers
usually used are restricted to only a few, then material, size and
other variables with minimal effect (for example, refrigerating
speed) are neglected, experimental data are statistically processed
so that supercooling temperatures suitable for the types of the
beverages can be determined. For example, as a result of repetitive
experiments with 200 ml of water contained in a glass container, if
an average limit supercooling temperature is - (minus) 9 degrees
centigrade, it is possible to define a temperature equal to or
slightly higher than the same as a set temperature of the
supercooling compartment 30. The experiments are performed while
changing the types of the beverages as described above, the set
temperature T of the supercooling compartment 30 is about - (minus)
5 degrees centigrade to - (minus) 12 degrees centigrade. Since the
temperature range is between the temperature (- (minus) 18 degrees
centigrade to - (minus) 21 degrees centigrade) of the freezer
compartment 22 and temperature (3 degrees centigrade to 5 degrees
centigrade) of the refrigerator compartment 21, chilled air in the
freezer compartment and chilled air in the refrigerator compartment
are properly mixed with each other to make chilled air used to
supercool the beverage.
[0046] Thus, the refrigerator according to the first embodiment of
the present invention includes a mixing room 40 provided in the
refrigerator compartment 21 to suction chilled air respectively
from the freezer compartment 22 and the refrigerator compartment 21
and to mix the same to make chilled air to be supplied into the
supercooling compartment 30, and a controller 50 for controlling
the suction quantity of the chilled air suctioned from the freezer
compartment and the refrigerator compartment into the mixing room
40 to maintain the temperature of the supercooling compartment 30
at the set temperature.
[0047] The mixing room 40 includes first and second suction ports
41 and 42 for suctioning the freezer compartment chilled air and
the refrigerator compartment chilled air from the freezer
compartment 22 and the refrigerator compartment 21, respectively.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in a case of providing the mixing room
40 and the supercooling compartment 30 in the refrigerator
compartment 21, the first suction port 41 penetrates the
intermediate partition 14 to communicate with the freezer
compartment 22, and the second suction port 42 penetrates a side of
a partition 43 for separating the mixing room 40 from the
refrigerator compartment 21 to communicate with the refrigerator
compartment 21. In the first and the second suction ports 41 and
42, are installed blower fans 44a and 44b for supplying suction
force necessary for suctioning the freezer compartment chilled air
and the refrigerator compartment chilled air, and flaps 45 for
opening and closing the first and the second suction ports 41 and
42 according to whether the blower fans 44a and 44b are driven or
not.
[0048] The mixing room 40 is disposed adjacent to the supercooling
compartment 30 and is separated by a partition 46a. The chilled air
mixed in the mixing room 40 is directly blown into the supercooling
compartment 30. To this end, the mixing room 40 includes a chilled
air supply port 46 formed in the partition 46a.
[0049] The mixing room 40 may include a mixing device 47 for mixing
the chilled air suctioned through the first and the second suction
ports 41 and 42 while traveling in an equilibrium state. The mixing
device 47, as shown in FIG. 4A, may include the first suction port
41 and a mixing passage 47a formed between the second suction port
42 and the chilled air supply port 46. FIG. 4A is a plan view
illustrating the mixing passage formed in the mixing room as shown
in FIG. 3. The mixing passage 47a is formed in a serpentine shape
by at least one passage forming plate 47b. Moreover, the mixing
device, as shown in FIG. 4B, may include a fan 47c installed to
rotate in the mixing room 40 to accelerate the mixing of the
chilled air. The fan 47c is installed in the mixing room 40 without
a driving device such as a motor and is rotated by receiving a
force from a stream of the chilled air suctioned into the mixing
room 40, causing the acceleration of the mixing of the chilled
air.
[0050] The supercooling compartment 30 includes a supercooling
temperature sensor 31 installed to measure temperature of the
supercooling compartment 30, and the controller 50 compares the
temperature measured by the supercooling temperature sensor 31 with
the set temperature of the supercooling compartment 30 and controls
the blower fans 44a and 44b according to the compared result to
adjust the suctioning quantity of the freezer compartment chilled
air and the refrigerator compartment chilled air. For example, if
the set temperature of the supercooling compartment 30 is - (minus)
7 degrees centigrade and the measured temperature of the
supercooling temperature sensor 31 is - (minus) 5 degrees
centigrade, the controller 50 controls the blower fans 44a and 44b
to increase a suction ratio of the freezer compartment chilled air
such that temperature of the mixture of the chilled air lowers to -
(minus) 7 degrees centigrade. As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, a mixing
temperature sensor 48 may be installed in the mixing room 40, and
in this case, the mixing temperature sensor 48 is installed around
the chilled air supply port 46 to measure the temperature of the
mixture of the chilled air being supplied into the supercooling
compartment 30.
[0051] Meanwhile, the mixing room 40 and the supercooling
compartment 30 include insulators 49 and 32 for separating the
refrigerator compartment 21 from the mixing room 40 and the
supercooling compartment 30 to prevent heat transfer therebetween
and the internal temperature of the freezer compartment 22 from
being affected by the temperature of the refrigerator compartment
21.
[0052] In relation to the aspect of the present invention,
operation of the refrigerator according to the first preferred
embodiment of the present invention will be described as follows.
When a set temperature of the supercooling compartment 30 is
determined according to types of food to be supercooled, the blower
fans 44a and 44b are driven such that the freezer compartment
chilled air is introduced into the mixing room 40 through the first
suction port 41 from the freezer compartment 22 and the
refrigerator compartment chilled air is introduced into the mixing
room 40 through the second suction port 42 from the refrigerator
compartment 21. The freezer compartment chilled air and the
refrigerator compartment chilled air suctioned into the mixing room
40 undergo heat exchange while passing through the mixing passage
47a to be in the equilibrium state, and are supplied into the
supercooling compartment 30 through the chilled air supply port 46
to supercool the beverage in the supercooling compartment 30.
[0053] At that time, the supercooling temperature sensor 31
installed in the supercooling compartment 30 measures the
temperature of the supercooling compartment 30. Data on the
measured temperature are transmitted to the controller 50, and the
controller 50 compares the temperature measured by the supercooling
temperature sensor 31 with the set temperature of the supercooling
compartment 30 and controls the blower fans 44a and 44b according
to the result of the comparison. Then, the suction quantities of
the freezer compartment chilled air and the refrigerator
compartment chilled air are adjusted so that temperature of the
chilled air mixed in the mixing room 40 approaches the set
temperature, and as a result the supercooling compartment 30 can be
maintained at the set temperature.
[0054] Although FIG. 3 shows an example that the mixing room 40 and
the supercooling compartment 30 are installed in the refrigerator
compartment 21, the mixing room 40 and the supercooling compartment
30 may be disposed in the freezer compartment 22. However, in this
case, the second suction port for suctioning the refrigerator
compartment chilled air penetrates the intermediate partition and
communicates with the refrigerator compartment.
[0055] FIG. 5 is a side sectional view illustrating a part of a
refrigerator according to a second embodiment of the present
invention. Although in the embodiment of FIG. 3 the supercooling
compartment 30 is disposed adjacent to the mixing room 40, in this
embodiment, a supercooling compartment 60 is disposed in a mixing
room 70. Hereinafter, a case of disposing the supercooling
compartment 60 and the mixing room 70 in the freezer compartment 22
will be described.
[0056] As shown in FIG. 5, the refrigerator according to the second
embodiment of the present invention includes the mixing room 70,
disposed in the freezer compartment 22, to suction the chilled air
from the freezer compartment 22 and the refrigerator compartment 21
respectively and to mix them, and the supercooling compartment 60
disposed in the mixing room 70 and separated from the mixing room
70 by a casing 61.
[0057] Like the embodiment of FIG. 3, the mixing room 70 includes a
first and a second suction ports 71 and 72 communicated with the
freezer compartment 22 and the refrigerator compartment 21, wherein
blower fans 73a and 73b and flaps are installed in the first and
the second suction ports 71 and 72, respectively.
[0058] The supercooling compartment 60 includes a chilled air
introducing port 63 communicating with the mixing room 70 to
directly receive the chilled air from the mixing room 70, and a
damper 64 for opening and closing the chilled air introducing port
63. When opening the damper 64, the chilled air is directly
supplied into the supercooling compartment 60 from the mixing room
70, and when closing the damper 64, the chilled air in the mixing
room 70 around the supercooling compartment 60 refrigerates the
supercooling compartment 60 via indirect heat transfer such as
conduction, radiation, or the like. When refrigerating the
supercooling compartment 60 through the indirect heat transfer, it
is possible to prevent local or rapid temperature change of the
supercooling compartment 60 that would occur when the chilled air
is directly supplied into the supercooling compartment 60.
Moreover, since the chilled air in the mixing room 70 surrounding
the supercooling compartment 60 mitigates the supercooling
compartment 70 being affected from the freezer compartment 22 with
low temperature, the supercooling compartment 60 can maintain a
stable temperature more precisely. At that time, since when the
casing 61 of the supercooling compartment 60 is made of material of
large heat capacity the casing 61 serves a buffer against the
temperature change, the rapid temperature change of the
supercooling compartment 60, from the effect of ambient temperature
around the supercooling compartment 60, is further mitigated.
[0059] A supercooling temperature sensor 62 is installed in the
supercooling compartment 60. When the damper 64 is closed, the
controller 50 may adjust the suction quantities of the freezer
compartment and the refrigerator compartment such that the
temperature t measured by the supercooling temperature sensor 62
satisfies the following formula with respect to the set temperature
T of the supercooling compartment 60. T-2.ltoreq.t.ltoreq.T+2
[0060] When the damper 64 is closed and the supercooling
compartment 60 is indirectly refrigerated, it is difficult to
maintain the temperature t of the supercooling compartment 60 at
the set temperature T However, when the temperature measured in the
supercooling compartment 60 is too low in comparison to the set
temperature, the beverage in the supercooling compartment 60 may
possibly be frozen, and to the contrary, when the temperature
measured in the supercooling compartment 60 is too high, the
supercooling of the beverage is hard to achieve so that it is also
difficult to change the supercooled beverage into slush when a user
makes slush from the supercooled beverage. Thus, by taking this
point into consideration, the controller 50 controls the blower
fans 73a and 73b and adjusts a mixing ratio of the chilled air such
that difference between the temperature t measured in the
supercooling compartment 60 and the set temperature T is maintained
within 2 degrees centigrade. For example, when the temperature of
the supercooling compartment 60 measured by the supercooling
temperature sensor 62 is - (minus) 4 degrees centigrade and the set
temperature is - (minus) 7 degrees centigrade, the controller 50
increases the suction quantity of the freezer compartment chilled
air to further refrigerate the supercooling compartment 60.
[0061] Meanwhile, in order to prevent the mixing room 70 from being
affected from the temperature of the freezer compartment 22, the
mixing room 70 includes an insulator 75 for separating the mixing
room 70 from the freezer compartment 22 to preventing heat transfer
between the freezer compartment 22 and the mixing room 70. The
mixing room 70 further includes a chilled air discharge port 76 for
circulating the chilled air therein toward the chilled air
generating room 15. The chilled air discharge port 76 may be
installed with a damper 77 for opening and closing the chilled air
discharge port 76.
[0062] Operation of the refrigerator according to the second
embodiment of the present invention will be described as follows.
When the set temperature T is determined according to types of
beverage to be supercooled, the blower fans 73a and 73b are driven
so that the freezer compartment chilled air is introduced into the
mixing room 70 through the first suction port 71 from the freezer
compartment 22, and the refrigerator compartment chilled air is
introduced into the mixing room 70 through the second suction port
42 from the refrigerator compartment 21. The freezer compartment
chilled air and the refrigerator compartment chilled air suctioned
into the mixing room 70 undergo heat exchange in the mixing room 70
to be in the equilibrium state, and are supplied into the
supercooling compartment 60 through the chilled air supply port 63.
The temperature control when the damper 64 is opened is identical
to that of the embodiment as shown in FIG. 2. In other words, the
controller 50 controls the blower fans 73a and 73b such that the
temperature of the supercooling compartment 60 measured by the
supercooling temperature sensor 62 can be maintained at the set
temperature T.
[0063] After supply of the mixture of the chilled air to the
supercooling compartment 60 for a predetermined time, the damper 64
is closed to indirectly refrigerate the supercooling compartment
60. At that time, the supercooling temperature sensor 62 installed
in the supercooling compartment 60 measures the temperature of the
supercooling compartment 60. Data on the measured temperature is
transmitted to the controller 50, and the controller 50 compares
the temperature measured by the supercooling temperature sensor 62
with the set temperature of the supercooling compartment 60 and
controls the blower fans 44a and 44b, when the difference between
the supercooling compartment temperature t and the set temperature
T is greater than 2 degrees centigrade, such that the mixing ratio
of the chilled air can be changed. Then, the temperature of the
mixing room 70 is changed so that the temperature of the
supercooling compartment 60 can be maintained at a temperature
required to maintain the beverage in the supercooled state.
[0064] Although FIG. 5 shows an example that the mixing room 70 and
the supercooling compartment 60 are installed in the freezer
compartment 22, the mixing room 70 and the supercooling compartment
60 may be disposed in the refrigerator compartment 21.
[0065] FIG. 6 is a side sectional view illustrating a part of a
refrigerator according to a third embodiment of the present
invention. The embodiment in FIG. 6 is basically similar to the
embodiment in FIG. 3, but it is different from the embodiment in
FIG. 3 in that the mixing room 40 is spaced apart from the
supercooling compartment 30. Hereinafter, the same reference
numerals are assigned to the same components and only aspects
peculiar to this embodiment will be described.
[0066] As shown in FIG. 6, the mixing room 40 having the first
suction port 41 and the second suction port 42 is spaced apart from
the supercooling compartment 30 and is disposed in the rear side
21b of the refrigerator compartment. The mixing room 40 may be
disposed higher than the supercooling compartment 30 such that the
chilled air mixed in the mixing room 40 can be smoothly supplied
into the supercooling compartment 30.
[0067] The mixing room 40 and the supercooling compartment 30 are
connected to each other by a connector duct 80 provided
therebetween such that the chilled air in the mixing room 40 can be
supplied into the supercooling compartment 30. An end of the
connector duct 80 communicates with the mixing room 40 via a
chilled air discharge port 81 formed in the lower side of the
mixing room 40 and the opposite end thereof communicates with the
supercooling compartment 30 via a chilled air introducing port 82
formed in the upper side of the supercooling compartment 30. The
connector duct 80 may be disposed along the sidewall 21c (See FIG.
1) of the refrigerator compartment 21 oriented toward the
intermediate partition 14.
[0068] Since operation of the refrigerator according to this
preferred embodiment is similar to that of the refrigerator as
shown in FIG. 2, its description is omitted.
[0069] FIG. 7 is a side sectional view illustrating a part of a
refrigerator according to a fourth embodiment of the present
invention. In this embodiment, the supercooling compartment 30 and
the mixing room 40 are provided not in the freezer compartment 22
or the refrigerator compartment 21, but independently provided in
an independent refrigerator compartment 90. Hereinafter, similar
components to those in the embodiment as shown in FIG. 3 will not
be described. The same components as those of the embodiment in
FIG. 3 are assigned with the same reference numerals and only
aspects peculiar to this embodiment will be described.
[0070] As shown in FIG. 7, the refrigerator according to this
embodiment of the present invention includes the independent
refrigerator compartment 90 separated from the freezer compartment
22 (See FIG. 2) and the refrigerator compartment 21 and having a
separate accommodating room. The independent refrigerator
compartment 90 is provided in the lower refrigerator compartment 21
and includes a door 90a for opening and closing the independent
refrigerator compartment 90.
[0071] The independent refrigerator compartment 90 is partitioned
into an upper side and a lower side by a horizontal partition 91
and is independent from the refrigerator compartment 21. The
independent refrigerator compartment 90 is partitioned into a left
side and a right side by the intermediate partition 14 (See FIG. 2)
and is separated from the freezer compartment 22. Although FIG. 7
does not illustrate the freezer compartment and the intermediate
partition, the position of the independent refrigerator compartment
90 can be understood by referring FIGS. 1 and 2.
[0072] The independent refrigerator compartment 90 includes the
mixing room 40 having the first suction port 41 penetrating the
intermediate partition 14 and communicating with the freezer
compartment 22 and the second suction port 42 penetrating the
horizontal partition 91 and communicating with the refrigerator
compartment 21, and the supercooling compartment 30 for directly
receiving the chilled air from the mixing room 40 to supercool the
beverage.
[0073] Since the above structure and operation are identical to
those of the refrigerator in FIG. 3, its description is omitted. In
this embodiment, although the independent refrigerator compartment
90 disposed in the lower side of the refrigerator compartment 21
has been described, the independent refrigerator compartment 90 can
be disposed in the lower side of the freezer compartment 22.
[0074] As such, when the mixing room 40 and the supercooling
compartment are provided in the independent refrigerator
compartment 90, since the mixing room 40 and the supercooling
compartment 30 are less affected from the temperature of the
freezer compartment 22 or the refrigerator compartment 21, the
temperature of the supercooling compartment 30 is more easily
controlled.
[0075] FIG. 8 is a side sectional view illustrating a part of a
refrigerator according to a fifth embodiment of the present
invention. In this embodiment, a refrigerator for mixing the
refrigerator compartment chilled air with the chilled air from the
chilled air generating room 15 is described, not the refrigerator
compartment chilled air with the freezer compartment chilled air.
Hereinafter, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 3 are
assigned to the same components, and only aspects peculiar to of
this preferred embodiment will be described.
[0076] As shown in FIG. 8, a mixing room 40' is provided in the
main body 10 to suction and mix the chilled air from the
refrigerator compartment 21 and an evaporator 15a in the chilled
air generating room 15 with each other. The mixing room 40'
includes a first suction port 41' provided in the rear side 21b of
the refrigerator compartment to suction the chilled air generated
by the evaporator 15a and to communicate with the chilled air
generating room 15, and a second suction port 42' communicated with
the refrigerator compartment 21 to suction the chilled air from the
refrigerator compartment 21. The first suction port 41' may be
disposed in the upper side of the evaporator 15a. The first and the
second suction ports 41' and 42' are installed with blower fans
44a' and 44b' for supplying suction force required to suction the
chilled air from the chilled air generating room 15 and the
refrigerator compartment 21.
[0077] Since operation of the refrigerator according to this
embodiment is similar to that of the refrigerator as shown in FIG.
2 except for using the chilled air from the evaporator instead of
the freezer compartment chilled air, its description is
omitted.
[0078] Meanwhile, the aspects as shown in FIGS. 3 to 7 (for
example, the mixing passage, positions of the mixing room and the
supercooling compartment, the relation between the mixing room and
the supercooling compartment, and the damper) can all be applied to
this embodiment.
[0079] As described above, the refrigerator according to the
present invention generates suitable chilled air for supercooling
beverage by properly mixing freezer compartment chilled air with
the refrigerator chilled air so that the supercooling compartment
can be implemented without seriously changing the structure of the
conventional refrigerator.
[0080] Moreover, since the supercooling compartment is refrigerated
by the chilled air having temperature approximately the same as the
set temperature of the supercooling compartment, the temperature of
the supercooling compartment does not change rapidly and the
beverage can be stably supercooled.
[0081] Although a few embodiments of the present invention have
been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled
in the art that changes may be made in this embodiment without
departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the
scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.
* * * * *