U.S. patent application number 13/133161 was filed with the patent office on 2011-11-24 for refrigerator.
This patent application is currently assigned to BSH BOSCH UND SIEMENS HAUSGERATE GMBH. Invention is credited to Yufa Bai, Liang Gao, Songtao Lu, Qiwu Zhu.
Application Number | 20110283733 13/133161 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42243120 |
Filed Date | 2011-11-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110283733 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Bai; Yufa ; et al. |
November 24, 2011 |
REFRIGERATOR
Abstract
A refrigerator includes a dispenser provided in a door and
having a dispenser casing, which is provided with a first region
and a second region located close to the first region. The first
region and the second region are adjacent to a heat insulating
layer of the door. A first heater is arranged in the first region
for supplying heat to the dispenser casing and a second heater is
arranged in the second region for supplying heat to the dispenser
casing, with the first heater and the second heater being
controlled independently.
Inventors: |
Bai; Yufa; (Anhui, CN)
; Gao; Liang; (Chuzhou, CN) ; Lu; Songtao;
(Chuzhou, CN) ; Zhu; Qiwu; (Anhui Province,
CN) |
Assignee: |
BSH BOSCH UND SIEMENS HAUSGERATE
GMBH
Munich
DE
|
Family ID: |
42243120 |
Appl. No.: |
13/133161 |
Filed: |
December 18, 2009 |
PCT Filed: |
December 18, 2009 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/EP2009/066638 |
371 Date: |
August 10, 2011 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
62/389 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25C 2400/10 20130101;
F25B 2700/02 20130101; F25D 2700/14 20130101; F25D 21/08 20130101;
F25D 21/04 20130101; F25C 5/22 20180101; F25D 23/126 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
62/389 |
International
Class: |
F25D 3/00 20060101
F25D003/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Dec 8, 2008 |
CN |
200810244095.6 |
Claims
1-12. (canceled)
13. A refrigerator, comprising: a refrigerator body defining at
least one storage space; a door connected to the refrigerator body
for closing at least a part of the storage space, said door being
provided with a heat insulating layer; a dispenser provided in the
door and comprising a dispenser casing, said dispenser casing
comprising a first region and a second region located close to the
first region, said first and second regions being arranged adjacent
to the heat insulating layer; a first heater arranged in the first
region for supplying heat to the dispenser casing; and a second
heater arranged in the second region for supplying heat to the
dispenser casing, wherein the first heater and the second heater
are controlled independently.
14. The refrigerator of claim 13, wherein the second region is
surrounded by the first region.
15. The refrigerator of claim 13, wherein the first heater
comprises two heating segments spaced at a predetermined distance,
at least a part of the second heater being located between the two
heating segments.
16. The refrigerator of claim 13, further comprising an ice
transfer passage for transferring ice, at least one of the first
and second heaters being arranged at least partly around the ice
transfer passage.
17. The refrigerator of claim 13, wherein the first heater operates
at a power which is different than a power of the second
heater.
18. The refrigerator of claim 13, further comprising a control unit
and a sensing unit for detecting at least one ambient parameter,
said first heater being controlled automatically by the control
unit in response to the detected ambient parameter.
19. The refrigerator of claim 13, wherein the second heater is
configured to operate in an auxiliary heating mode which is
activated manually, so as to supply additional heat to the
dispenser casing.
20. The refrigerator of claim 18, wherein the second heater is
controlled by the control unit automatically.
21. The refrigerator of claim 20, wherein the second heater is
turned on only when an ambient temperature is higher than a
predetermined value and/or ambient relative humidity is higher than
a predetermined value.
22. The refrigerator of claim 13, further comprising a heat
conducting element which covers at least a part of an inner surface
of the dispenser casing, said heat conducting element being
arranged at least close to at least one member selected from the
group consisting of the first heater and the second heater for
transmitting the heat generated by the member to the dispenser
casing.
23. The refrigerator of claim 22, wherein the dispenser casing
defines a dispensing cavity for receiving at least a part of an
external container, said dispensing cavity comprising a dispensing
cavity wall extending in a longitudinal direction, with the heat
conducting element covering at least a major portion of the
dispensing cavity wall.
24. The refrigerator of claim 23, wherein the first and second
heaters are arranged distal to the dispensing cavity wall.
25. The refrigerator of claim 23, wherein the first and second
heaters are arranged in a marginal region of the dispensing cavity
wall.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The invention relates to a refrigerator, especially to a
household or commercial refrigerator provided with a dispenser.
BACKGROUND ART
[0002] The freezing compartment of a refrigerator can usually reach
a temperature of lower than minus ten degrees Celsius. Although the
refrigerator body and the door of the refrigerator are provided
with heat insulating layers to avoid losing of cold energy by
reducing heat exchange between the cold air within the refrigerator
and the surrounding environment, with the increasing in the
capacity of the refrigerator and in the number of the components
(for example, a dispenser for dispensing water or ice) provided on
the refrigerator door, some portions of the refrigerator door which
are exposed to the atmosphere may have a relatively low temperature
under the influence of the storage compartment. When the difference
between the temperature of the surfaces exposed to the atmosphere
and the temperature of the atmosphere reaches a dew point,
condensed water will appear on these surfaces.
[0003] It is known in prior art that the temperature of the
specific surfaces of a refrigerator can be increased by providing a
heating element so as to prevent condensate dew from being
generated. U.S. Pat. No. 6,862,891 B1 discloses a refrigerator
having a heating element located near an ice dispensing apparatus
and a control unit connected with the heating element. The control
unit is configured such that the voltage supplied to the heating
element is variable, thereby the heating element may be operated at
different non-zero voltages for reducing energy consumption. The
background part of the patent further discloses that manufacturers
can install two anti-condensation heaters, wherein one heater is
served as a standby heater and only used after a failure of the
other heater.
[0004] For various reasons such as the door generally has an
irregular shape at a location which is corresponded to a dispenser
casing, various portions of the dispenser casing have different
distances from an ice transfer passage which passes through the
door, the heat insulating layer has different thicknesses at
different portions of the dispenser casing, etc., different areas
of the dispenser casing may have different dewing possibilities.
Thus, in a dew prevention/removing process, some areas of the door
may be overheated while other areas may have a temperature that is
too low to prevent the generation of condensate dew.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] The object of the invention is therefore to overcome at
least one of the above technical problems in the prior art, so that
it is possible to prevent condensate dew from being generated on
the dispenser casing more effectively with a higher efficiency.
[0006] The invention in one aspect relates to a refrigerator
comprising: a refrigerator body defining at least one storage
space; a door connected to the refrigerator body for closing at
least a part of the storage space, a heat insulating layer is
provided in the door; a dispenser provided in the door, the
dispenser comprises a dispenser casing, the dispenser casing
comprises a first region and a second region located close to the
first region, the first region and the second region are adjacent
to the heat insulating layer; and a first heater arranged in the
first region for supplying heat to the dispenser casing,
characterized in that it further comprises a second heater arranged
in the second region for supplying heat to the dispenser casing,
wherein the first heater and the second heater are controlled
independently.
[0007] Therefore, different heaters may be properly disposed
according to the condensate generation characteristics in different
areas of the dispenser casing, and it may prevent the occurring of
condensation or removing the condensate dew already generated more
effectively with a higher efficiency by individually controlling
these different heaters.
[0008] Other features being regarded as the characteristics of the
invention individually or in combination with other features are
defined in attached claims.
[0009] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
second region is surrounded by the first region, thereby even if
one heater does not work, the heat generated by the other heater
can also cover the area which is corresponded to the heater that
does not work.
[0010] According to a particularly preferred embodiment of the
invention, the first heater comprises two heating segments spaced
at a predetermined distance, at least a part of the second heater
is located between the two heating segments.
[0011] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
refrigerator further comprises an ice transfer passage for
transferring ice, the first heater and/or the second heater are
arranged at least partly around the ice transfer passage.
[0012] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
powers of the first heater and the second heater are different.
[0013] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
refrigerator comprises a control unit and a sensing unit for
detecting at least one ambient parameter, the first heater is
controlled automatically by the control unit based on the detected
ambient parameter(s).
[0014] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
second heater is turned on in an auxiliary heating mode which is
activated manually, so as to supply additional heat to the
dispenser casing. By means of the combination of intelligent mode
and manual mode, the construction of the control unit can be
relatively simple, thereby it is possible to realize the dew
prevention/removing function of the refrigerator used in different
climate environment and/or in different degrees of use with a lower
cost. Additionally, in the condition that there is no condensate
dew generated, the second heater can be turn off directly by the
user or maintain the turn off state, so unnecessary energy
consumption can be reduced and thus the efficiency of dew
prevention/removing can be improved.
[0015] In an alternative embodiment, the second heater is
controlled by the control unit automatically.
[0016] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
second heater is turned on only when ambient temperature is higher
than a predetermined value and/or ambient relative humidity is
higher than a predetermined value.
[0017] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
refrigerator comprises a heat conducting element which covers at
least a part of the inner surface of the dispenser casing, the heat
conducting element is at least close to the first heater and/or the
second heater for transmitting the heat generated by the first
heater and/or the second heater to the dispenser casing. In this
way, the heat generated by the heater can be transmitted to the
dispenser casing rapidly and evenly. On one hand, this
configuration can prevent the portions of the dispenser casing
which are closer to the heater from being overheated and the
portions of the dispenser casing which are farther from the heater
from being underheated and thus generating condensate dew, so that
it can be expected that condensation on the dispenser casing can be
avoided with a reasonable energy consumption. On the other hand, by
means of the heat conducting function of the heat conducting
element, the reaching area of the heat generated by the heater can
be enlarged by the heat conducting element. That is to say, the
heat generated by the heater may form a heat source for the heat
conducting element and will be transmitted quickly by the heat
conducting element, so that the area covered by the heater can be
advantageously reduced. For example, it is possible that only the
portions of the dispenser casing which are likely to occur
condensation can be provided with a heater while other portions of
the dispenser casing which are not likely to occur condensation are
only covered and supplied with heat by the heat conducting
element.
[0018] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
dispenser casing defines a dispensing cavity for receiving at least
a part of an external container, the dispensing cavity comprises a
dispensing cavity wall extending in a longitudinal direction, and
the heat conducting element covers at least a major portion of the
dispensing cavity wall.
[0019] In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the
first heater and the second heater are not arranged on the
dispensing cavity wall, or only distributed in the marginal region
of the dispensing cavity wall, thereby the possibility that the
temperature of the dispensing cavity wall, which is prone to be
touched by the user, is notably higher than ambient temperature is
greatly reduced.
[0020] The structure as well as other objects and advantages of the
invention will be apparent from the description to the preferred
embodiments with reference to the drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0021] As a part of the description and for further understanding
of the invention, the following drawings illustrate some preferred
embodiments of the invention and are used to illuminate the
principle of the invention together with the following detailed
description. In the drawings,
[0022] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a refrigerator
according to a preferred embodiment of the invention.
[0023] FIG. 2 is a schematic partial sectional view taken along a
direction indicated by line I-I of FIG. 1.
[0024] FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a partly assembled door of the
according to the preferred embodiment of the invention.
[0025] FIG. 4 is a schematic layout of a heating unit of a
dispenser casing according to a preferred embodiment of the
invention.
[0026] FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram of the refrigerator
according to a preferred embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0027] Please refer to the drawings, in particular FIGS. 1 and 2. A
refrigerator 1 comprises a refrigerator body 2 and two doors 3
connected to the refrigerator body 2, as shown in FIGS. 1 and
2.
[0028] The refrigerator body 2 comprises an outer shell 11, an
inner shell 12 and a heat insulating layer 6 located between the
outer shell 11 and the inner shell 12. In this embodiment, the heat
insulating layer 6 is a foam-based insulating layer and is formed
by foaming a heat insulating foam material. The refrigerator body 2
defines at least one storage space for storing food. In this
embodiment, the storage space comprises a freezing compartment 7
and a refrigerating compartment (not shown) which are juxtaposed
with each other.
[0029] Each door 3 is pivotably connected to the refrigerator body
2 by a hinge 4, and is rotatable about a corresponding rotation
axis parallel to a longitudinal axis. As shown in FIG. 2, it is
also provided with a foam-based insulating layer 6 in the door 3.
The doors 3 are normally closed to avoid escape of cold air from
the freezing compartment 7 and the refrigerating compartment. When
desired, the user may open a corresponding door 3 to perform an
operation, such as taking out food from the freezing compartment or
refrigerating compartment, or putting food into a corresponding
storage compartment. The user can open or close the doors 3 by
means of handles 5.
[0030] In this embodiment, each door 3 is configured to completely
open or completely close a corresponding storage compartment. It
should be appreciated that the invention is not limited to this,
and other embodiments are also possible. For example, in an
alternative embodiment, one of the storage compartments may be
opened or closed by two doors 3. That is to say, each door 3 may
only open or close a part of such a storage compartment.
[0031] The door 3 which is corresponded to the freezing compartment
7 (hereinafter referred to freezing compartment door) is provided
with a dispenser 8 to allow a user to take out ice and/or beverage
(for example water), such as ice stored in the freezing compartment
and water stored in a water tank arranged in the refrigerating
compartment, without opening the door 3. Although in this
embodiment the dispenser 8 is arranged in the door 3 which is
corresponded to the freezing compartment, it should be appreciated
that it is also possible to arrange the dispenser 8 in a suitable
way in the door 3 which is corresponded to the refrigerating
compartment.
[0032] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the freezing compartment door 3
comprises a door panel 13 forming its front surface and a lining 23
facing towards the freezing compartment 7 when the freezing
compartment door 3 is in its closed position. In this embodiment,
the door panel 13 is made of a sheet metal, and both sides of the
door panel 13 are bent backwardly and extend to form first and
second longitudinal sidewalls 48 and 49 respectively. The heat
insulating layer 6 is in tight contact with the door panel 13 and
the first and second longitudinal sidewalls 48 and 49.
[0033] The door panel 13 has an opening 9 which is corresponded to
the dispenser 8, the opening 9 has a substantially square or
rectangular shape. The dispenser 8 comprises a dispenser casing 10
received between the door panel 13 and the lining 23. The dispenser
casing 10 forms a cavity 14, which is inwardly recessed and has an
open front end. The shape and dimension of the front end of the
cavity 14 substantially correspond to that of the opening 9. The
lining 23 protrudes toward the freezing compartment 7 at a location
which is corresponded to the dispenser casing 10, with a
predetermined distance between the protruding portion of the lining
23 and the dispenser casing 10 for disposing the heat insulating
layer 6.
[0034] The dispenser 8 comprises a partition plate 15 within the
cavity 14. The partition plate 15 is parallel to a horizontal plane
and separates the cavity 14 into an upper portion and a lower
portion. The portion of the cavity 14 located below the partition
plate 15 forms a dispensing cavity 16 whose front end is kept open.
The dispensing cavity 16 is configured to accept at least a part of
an external container such as a cup. In this embodiment, the
dispensing cavity 16 is recessed backwardly from the front surface
of the door 3 at a certain curvature to a predetermined depth.
[0035] The dispensing cavity 16 has a substantially flat support
wall 17 for stably putting the external container thereon. The
support wall 17 has a plurality of thin through holes (not shown),
through which any liquid that is splashed out or overflows
accidentally during an ice or water dispensing process flows into a
water gathering slot 19 arranged below the support wall 17.
[0036] The refrigerator 1 comprises a control panel 20 arranged on
the freezing compartment door 3. The control panel 20 comprises a
display screen 21 and a plurality of buttons or touch areas 22 for
controlling the refrigerator 1. The display screen 21 can display
the state of the refrigerator 1 and/or selectable parameters,
etc.
[0037] In this embodiment, the control panel 20 is arranged along
the upper end of the opening 9, closely adjacent to the dispensing
cavity 16. The portion of the opening 9 located above the partition
plate 15 is adapted to be conformed to the outer profile of the
control panel 20, such that the control panel 20 can be engaged to
the corresponding edge of the opening 9. The portion of the cavity
14 located above the partition plate 15 is shielded by the control
panel 20.
[0038] The dispenser casing 10 comprises a cavity wall delimiting
the cavity 14. The cavity wall comprises a first portion 24 located
below the partition plate 15. The first portion 24 comprises a
longitudinal wall 30 forming a longitudinal boundary of the
dispensing cavity 16. The longitudinal wall 30 is perpendicular to
the horizontal plane and has a substantially arc-shaped
cross-section. The longitudinal wall 30 has a rear surface closely
adjacent to the heat insulating layer 6 and an outer surface
exposed to the atmosphere.
[0039] The first portion 24 further comprises a bottom wall 31
which is connected to the lower end of the longitudinal wall 30 and
extends forwardly. The bottom wall 31 is located below the support
wall 17 and spaced from the support wall 17 by a certain distance
so as to form the above-mentioned water gathering slot 19.
[0040] The cavity wall of the dispenser casing 10 comprises a
second portion 25 which is connected to the upper end of the first
portion 24 and is located above the partition plate 15. The second
portion 25 comprises an inclined wall 26 which extends from the
longitudinal wall 30 and is inclined forwardly. The inclined wall
26 comprises a through hole 27 which allows ice to pass
therethrough. The through hole 27 is configured as a part of an ice
transfer passage 29. The ice transfer passage 29 is used for
transferring ice from an ice storage unit 28 located within the
freezing compartment 7 to the dispensing cavity 16. The second
portion 25 further comprises a top wall 32 which forms the upper
boundary of the cavity 14. The second portion 25 has a hole 33
through which a water supply pipe (not shown) passes, which water
supply pipe transfers drinkable water to the dispensing cavity
16.
[0041] An ice discharge pipe 34 forming a major part of the ice
transfer passage 29 is embedded in the freezing compartment door 3.
One end of the ice discharge pipe 34 is connected to the second
portion 25 and is in communication with the through hole 27. The
other end of the ice discharge pipe is oriented towards a discharge
outlet of the ice storage unit 28 within the freezing compartment 7
when the freezing compartment door 3 is closed. Thereby, the ice
discharged from the ice storage unit 28 enters into the ice
discharge pipe 34, and then is guided to the dispensing cavity 16
by means of an ice outlet 18 provided in the partition plate
15.
[0042] As shown in FIG. 2, the portion of the cavity 14 which lies
above the partition plate 15 is shielded by the control panel 20,
however, the second portion 25 of the dispenser casing 10 is still
in communication with the atmosphere, that is, the second portion
25 is still exposed to the atmosphere, because the partition plate
15 is provided with the ice outlet 18 which is in communication
with the portion of the cavity 14 which lies above the partition
plate 15.
[0043] To prevent air within the freezing compartment 7 from
escaping from the freezing compartment 7 through the ice transfer
passage 29 or prevent outside air from entering into the freezing
compartment 7 through the ice transfer passage 29, the dispenser 8
is equipped with a closure element 36 for opening or closing the
ice transfer passage 29. Usually, the ice transfer passage 29 is
closed by the closure element 36. When there is a need for
dispensing ice, the ice transfer passage 29 is opened by means of
the closure element 36 to allow the transfer of ice. The shape and
dimension of the closure element 36 are substantially corresponded
to that of the through hole 27, such that in the closed position,
the closure element 36 closes the through hole 27 and thus closes
the ice transfer passage 29. In this embodiment, the closure
element 36 is connected to the second portion 25 of the dispenser
casing 10 and is received in the cavity 14.
[0044] Under the influence of the freezing compartment 7, the
temperature of the dispenser casing 10 is usually lower than room
temperature/ambient temperature. When the difference between
ambient temperature and the temperature of the dispenser casing 10
reaches a dew point temperature, condensed water will be generated
on the dispenser casing 10. The condensation possibility of the
second portion 25 of the dispenser casing 10 is relatively high due
to the fact that it is close to the ice discharge pipe 34 and forms
a part of the ice transfer passage 29. Therefore, the refrigerator
1 is provided with a heating unit 37 for increasing the surface
temperature of the dispenser casing 10. As shown in FIG. 2, the
heating unit 37 is arranged between the dispenser casing 10 and the
heat insulating layer 6.
[0045] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the heating unit 37
according to a preferred embodiment of the invention. As shown in
FIG. 4, the heating unit 37 comprises a first heater 38 for
supplying heat to the dispenser casing 10 and a second heater 39
close to the first heater 38. The first heater 38 and the second
heater 39 are preferably resistance heaters, i.e. performing
heating by resistors.
[0046] In order to evenly transmit the heat generated by the first
heater 38 and the second heater 39 to the dispenser casing 10, the
heating unit 37 comprises a first heat conducting element 40 for
transmitting the heat generated by the first heater 38 and the
second heater 39 to the dispenser casing 10. In this embodiment,
the first heat conducting element 40 is an aluminum foil, which has
a good heat conductivity.
[0047] The first heat conducting element 40 has a hole (not shown)
which is corresponded to the through hole 27. The first heater 38
and the second heater 39 can be arranged according to the
distribution characteristics of condensate dew on the dispenser
casing 10. In this embodiment, the first heater 38 comprises a
plurality of arc-shaped heating segments 35 arranged around the
hole. The second heater 39 is arranged close to the first heater 38
and preferably comprises a portion located between the heating
segments 35 of the first heater 38. Preferably, this portion has a
shape that corresponds to the heating segment 35.
[0048] After the first heater 38 and the second heater 39 are
arranged in a predetermined pattern on one side of the first heat
conducting element 40, the other side of the first heat conducting
element 40 is closely attached to the inner side of the dispenser
casing 10.
[0049] The heating unit 37 is adhered to the inner side of the
dispenser casing 10 by means of adhesive means (not shown), with
the hole of the first heat conducting element 40 being aligned with
the through hole 27. The first heat conducting element 40, the
first heater 38 and the second heater 39 are flexible and
deformable, such that the portion of the heating unit 37 located
between line A and line B is arranged on the inclined wall 26, the
portion thereof located above line A is bent and then is adhered to
the top wall 32 of the dispenser casing, and the portion thereof
located below line B is bent and then is connected to the upper end
of the longitudinal wall 30. Thereby, in this embodiment, the first
heater 38 is mainly distributed on the inclined wall 26 and the top
wall 32 of the dispenser casing 10. The lower end portion of the
first heater 38 extends to the upper end of the longitudinal wall
30. The heating segment 35 closest to the through hole 27 is
arranged around the through hole 27. The major portion of the
second heater 39 is arranged on the inclined wall 26. The portion
located below line B of the second heater extends to the upper end
of the longitudinal wall 30 together with the first heater 38.
[0050] In this embodiment, the first heater 38 and the second
heater 39 are distributed on a first region 51 and a second region
52 of the dispenser casing 10 respectively. The first region 51 and
the second region 52 are close to each other, but they do not
overlap each other. The first region 51 covers the majorities of
the inclined wall 26 and the top wall 32 as well as the upper end
portion of the longitudinal wall 30 which is close to the inclined
wall 26. The second region 52 has an area smaller than the first
region 51 and is surrounded by the first region 51.
[0051] Preferably, the power of the second heater 39 is lower than
that of the first heater 38. Preferably, the power density of the
second heater 39 is configured in such a way that the dispenser
casing 10 is not subjected to overheating even if the second heater
39 is turned on for a long time or always turned on.
[0052] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
side of the longitudinal wall 30 which faces the heat insulating
layer 6 is provided with a second heat conducting element 50. The
upper end of the second heat conducting element 50 is connected to
the first heater 38 and the second heater 39 or connected to the
first heat conducting element 40. Thereby, the first and second
heaters 38 and 39 and/or the first heat conducting element 40 serve
as a heat source for the second heat conducting element 50.
[0053] Since the second heat conducting element 50 has a good heat
conductivity, the heat generated by the first and second heaters 38
and 39 is also transmitted to other portions of the longitudinal
wall 30 that are not equipped with any heating element, such that
the temperature of the whole longitudinal wall 30 can be increased
so as to avoid the generation of condensate dew. Since the
longitudinal wall 30 is located relatively far from the ice
transfer passage 29, such a configuration allows to avoid the
generation of condensate dew on the longitudinal wall 30 without
arranging any heater on the longitudinal wall 30 or merely by
arranging a heater on the marginal region of the longitudinal wall
30 where it is not prone to be touched by the user. Thus, energy
consumption can be lowered. In addition, the situation that the
user touches the high temperature region of the longitudinal wall
30 can be avoided.
[0054] Preferably, the second heat conducting element 50 comprises
a metal foil having a good heat conductivity, such as aluminum
foil. In a particularly preferable embodiment, the second heat
conducting element 50 covers at least substantially most of the
longitudinal wall 30. For example, the longitudinal wall 30 is
entirely covered by the second heat conducting element 50. The
second heat conduction element 50 is preferably adhered to the
inner side of the longitudinal wall 30 by means of adhesive means,
such as an adhesive tape.
[0055] In order to prevent the portions of the longitudinal wall 30
which are prone to be touched by the user from reaching a
temperature which is notably higher than ambient temperature, it is
preferably that only an edge area of the second heat conducting
element 50 contacts the first and second heater 38 and 39.
Particularly preferably, the upper end of the second heat
conducting element 50 contacts the first and second heater 38 and
39.
[0056] In the above embodiments, the first and second heater 38 and
39 extend to the upper end of longitudinal wall 30. However, the
invention is not limited to this. For example, in an alternative
embodiment, the first and second heater 38 and 39 do not extend to
the longitudinal wall 30; rather, the heat conducting element 50
may extend to a extend that is beyond the longitudinal wall 30 (for
example, extend to the inclined wall 26) so as to be contacted with
the first and second heater 38 and 39 which lie outside the
longitudinal wall 30.
[0057] The first longitudinal sidewall 48 of the freezing
compartment door 3 is close to the rotation axis of the freezing
compartment door 3, while the second longitudinal sidewall 49
opposite to the first longitudinal sidewall 48 is far away from the
rotation axis of the freezing compartment door 3 and close to the
door of the refrigerating compartment. According to a preferred
embodiment of the invention, the freezing compartment door 3 is
provided with a third heater 47 for supplying heat to the second
longitudinal sidewall 49, so as to avoid the generation of
condensate dew on the second longitudinal sidewall 49 due to the
difference between the surface temperature and ambient temperature.
In this embodiment, the third heater 47 is attached to the inner
side of the second longitudinal sidewall 49.
[0058] The second longitudinal sidewall 49 is provided with a third
heat conducting element 54 attached to the inner side thereof. The
third heat conducting element 54 is located between the third
heater 47 and the inner surface of the second longitudinal sidewall
49 to evenly transmit the heat generated by the third heater 47 to
the second longitudinal sidewall 49. Preferably, the third heat
conducting element 54 is attached to the inner surface of the
second longitudinal sidewall 49 by adhesive means (for example, an
adhesive tape).
[0059] It is most preferably to arrange the third heater 47 and/or
the third heat conducting element 54 on a region of the second
longitudinal sidewall 49 which is corresponded to the dispenser 8
in the longitudinal direction. Preferably, the third heater 47 at
least partially overlaps the dispenser 8 in a transverse
direction.
[0060] FIG. 5 shows a structural schematic diagram of the
refrigerator according to a preferred embodiment of the invention.
Now a control method of the first heater 38 and the second heater
39 will be described with reference to FIG. 5.
[0061] The refrigerator 1 comprises a control unit 41, and an input
unit 43 and a display unit 44 coupled to the control unit 41
respectively, wherein the input unit 43 comprises the buttons or
touch areas 22 located on the control panel 20, and the display
unit 44 comprises the display screen 21 located on the control
panel 20. The control unit 41 comprises a microprocessor and a
memory unit, such that some components of the refrigerator 1 such
as the first heater 38 can be automatically controlled by means of
a program stored in the memory unit.
[0062] The refrigerator 1 further comprises a sensing unit 42 for
detecting at least one ambient parameter. The sensing unit 42 is
coupled to the control unit 41 and feeds back the detected
parameter(s) to the control unit 41. In this embodiment, the
sensing unit 42 comprises a temperature sensor for detecting
ambient temperature. The sensing unit 42 controls the operation of
the first heater 38, including turning on and turning off the first
heater 38, based on the detected ambient temperature.
[0063] In a preferred embodiment, when the detected ambient
temperature is lower than zero degree Celsius, the first heater 38
is turned off. When the detected ambient temperature is between
0.degree. C. and 10.degree. C., the first heater 38 operates at a
first output power and/or operates at a duty cycle of lower than
0.3. When the detected ambient temperature is higher than
10.degree. C. and lower than 15.degree. C., the first heater 38 is
turned on at a second output power, or the first heater 38 is
turned on and off in an alternative manner at a second duty cycle
(for example, 0.4). When the detected ambient temperature is higher
than 15.degree. C. and lower than 25.degree. C., the first heater
38 is turned on at a third output power and/or operates at a
predetermined third duty cycle (for example, 0.5).
[0064] In an alternative embodiment, the sensing unit 42 further
comprises a humidity sensor for detecting ambient relative
humidity. The control unit 41 controls the operations of the first
heater 38 based on the detected ambient temperature, ambient
relative humidity and other factors.
[0065] The second heater 39 is controlled independently of the
first heater 38. According to the invention, the second heater 39
is turned on only in an auxiliary heating mode, which is only
manually activated by the user. Thus, the user can, according to
the dewing phenomenon on the refrigerator 1, make an active
decision freely on whether the second heater 39 should be activated
to increase heat for dew prevention/removing.
[0066] In a preferred embodiment, the auxiliary heating mode is
activated by means of switching means 45 arranged on the freezing
compartment door 3. The switching means 45 is preferably arranged
on the dispenser 8 or near the dispenser 8. Particularly
preferably, the switching means 45 is arranged on the partition
plate 15.
[0067] In an embodiment, the switching means 45 is electrically
connected to the second heater 39, and the turning on and off
states of the second heater 39 are determined by the switching on
and off states of the switching means 45. Preferably, when the
switching means 45 is in a switching off state, the refrigerator 1
operates in a normal mode, the first heater 38 is turned on or off
based on an instruction from the control unit 41, and the second
heater 39 is turned off. When the user operates the switching means
45 to switch on it, the refrigerator 1 activates the auxiliary
heating mode, the second heater 39 is turned on to supply
additional heat to the dispenser casing 10, and at the same time
the first heater 38 is turned on or off based on an instruction
from the control unit 41.
[0068] The switching means 45 can be provided independently of the
control unit 41, for example, there is no coupling between the
switching means 45 and the microprocessor of the control unit 41.
In an alternative embodiment, the switching means 45 is connected
to the control unit 41, for example, the display unit 44 can
display whether the refrigerator 1 is under the normal heating mode
or the auxiliary heating mode, or the user can select the
parameters displayed on the display unit 44 by means of the
switching means 45 in order to activate the auxiliary heating
mode.
[0069] The second heater 39 can be turned off by manually switching
off the switching means 45, so that the auxiliary heating mode is
ended. However, in an alternative embodiment, the second heater 39
can also be automatically turned off. For example, the control unit
41 is configured in such a manner of automatically turning off the
second heater 39 after the second heater 39 has been turned on for
a predetermined time, such as 15 minutes. This can be achieved by
virtue of timing means connected to the control unit 41. The timing
means is configured in such a way that it generates a signal when
the second heater 39 has been turned on for a predetermined time,
and then the second heater 39 is turned off based on this signal.
Under the condition that the switching means 45 is not coupled to
the microprocessor of the control unit 41, this can be achieved by
timing means connected to the switching means 45 or timing means
embedded in the switching means 45.
[0070] In an alternative embodiment, the second heater 39 is also
automatically controlled by the control unit 41. For example, the
second heater 39 is turned on only when ambient temperature is
higher than a predetermined value (for example, 30.degree. C.)
and/or ambient relative humidity is higher than a predetermined
value (for example, 80%).
[0071] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the control manner of the
third heater 47 is the same as that of the first heater 38, that
is, being automatically controlled by the control unit 41 based on
the detected parameters. In a preferred embodiment, the parameters
comprise ambient temperature, ambient relative humidity and/or the
temperature of the sidewall 49, such that the control unit 41 can
control the third heater 47 based on ambient temperature, ambient
relative humidity and/or the temperature of the sidewall 49, so as
to for example determine whether or not the third heater 47 should
be turned on, or determine the frequency of turning on and off or
the duty cycle of the third heater 47.
* * * * *