[0001] The present invention relates to a cool air supplying device for refrigerator; and,
more particularly, to a cool air supplying device for uniformly supplying cool air
to the refrigerating compartment of an air circulation type refrigerator.
[0002] A conventional refrigerator comprises a cabinet having a freezing compartment and
a refrigerating compartment, and a refrigerating system for providing cool air. The
refrigerating system includes a compressor, a condenser, a pressure reducing device
and an evaporator. A refrigerant circulates in the refrigerating system to thereby
provide cool air.
[0003] The refrigerating system is configured to supply cool air to the freezing compartment
and the refrigerating compartment via a cool air supplying device and an example of
such a cool air supplying device is shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Typically, an air-circulation
type refrigerator comprises a cabinet 1 which includes a freezing compartment 3 and
a refrigerating compartment 5. Further, a compressor (not shown) is arranged in the
lower portion of the cabinet 1 and an evaporator 7 is installed in the upper portion
of the cabinet 1 and behind the freezing compartment 3.
[0004] The cool air supplying device includes a fan 10 installed above the evaporator 7
and a duct 20 disposed in front of the fan 10. Cool air generated by the evaporator
7 is blown by the fan 10 into the freezing compartment 3 and also into the refrigerating
compartment 5 through the duct 20. As shown in Fig. 2, the duct 20 has an opening
22 through which the cool air enters into the duct 20, an intermediate chamber 24
for temporarily storing the cool air and a passage 25 through which the intermediate
chamber 24 communicates with the refrigerating compartment 5. The intermediate chamber
24 directly communicates with the freezing compartment 3 via a louver 9 such that
the cool air entered through the opening 22 can be directly supplied into the freezing
compartment 3. The passage 25 has a main passage 25a and two branch passages 25b divided
from the main passage 25a. The cool air is delivered to the refrigerating compartment
5 through the branch passages 25b along both sides of the refrigerating compartment
5.
[0005] A damper 30 is provided for controlling the amount of the cool air flowing through
the main passage 25a. The damper 30 has a sliding plate 31 movable in a direction
traverse to the main passage 25a, a baffle 32 formed on the sliding plate 31 and a
knob 33. The baffle 32 is configured to be arranged in the main passage 25a such that
a cross-sectional area of the main passage 25a can be changed by moving the sliding
plate 31. The movement of the sliding plate 31 is controlled by using the knob 33
protruded into the freezing compartment 3. In such a configuration, one can determine
the amount of the cool air, which flows through the main passage 25a to be supplied
into the refrigerating compartment, by changing the cross-sectional area of the main
passage 25a.
[0006] Cool air generated by the evaporator 7 is delivered into the intermediate chamber
24 by the fan 10. Then, partial amount of the cool air is supplied into the freezing
compartment 3 through a louver 9 and the remaining part of the cool air is supplied
into the refrigerating compartment 5 through the main passage 25a and the branch passages
25b. The amount of the cool air supplied to the refrigerating compartment 5 through
the main passage 25a is controlled by the damper 30.
[0007] However, in such a conventional cool air supplying device, the supplement of the
cool air to the refrigerating compartment 5 is not performed uniformly. Since the
baffle 32 of the damper 30 is extended from a side of the main passage 25a towards
the other side thereof, the flow of the cool air is biased from the center of the
main passage 25a, thereby resulting in an unbalanced flow of the cool air such that
the amount of the cool air flowing through one of the branch passage 25b becomes greater
than that flowing through the other. Subsequently, the supplement of the cool air
into the refrigerating compartment 5 is not performed uniformly. This results in a
non-uniformity in local temperature in the refrigerating compartment 5 and the foods
stored therein can be over-chilled or under-chilled. This phenomenon becomes more
severe when the volume of the refrigerating compartment 5 is large.
[0008] Further, since the amount and the flow direction of the cool air passing through
the main passage 25a is rather considerably changed by small movement of the baffle
32, the supplement of the cool air to the refrigerating compartment 5 is not controlled
accurately.
[0009] USP-5,209,073 discloses a cooling device having a refrigeration chamber and a freezer
chamber wherein the freezer chamber and the refrigeration chamber are connected with
refrigerated pressurised air by air flow passageways. The air flow is controlled by
motorised valves which are operated by temperature sensors. JP 2000 205733 A discloses
a multi compartment refrigerator, wherein the refrigerating compartments are interconnected
through a chill passage wherein the distribution of the chilled air is controlled
by means of an air volume regulator disposed in one chill passage.
[0010] It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a simple cool air
supplying device for refrigerator wherein the supplement of cool air to the refrigerating
compartment is performed uniformly to thereby substantially remove the non-uniformity
in the local temperature therein.
[0011] It is another object of the present invention to provide a cool air supplying device
for refrigerator wherein the supplement of cool air to the refrigerating compartment
is controlled accurately.
[0012] In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cool
air supplying device for refrigerator which comprises an evaporator, a fan, a duct
system including a first passage and a second passage, the first passage and the second
passage being separated from each other, and a damper arranged in the first passage
and the second passage for controlling the amount of the cold air flowing through
the passages, wherein the damper is arranged slidably in a direction traverse to the
passages and includes a first set of baffles and a second set of baffles for controlling
cross-sectional areas of the first passage and the second passage, respectively.
[0013] The above and other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent
from the following description given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,
wherein:
Figure 1 is a cross-sectional side view of an upper portion of a conventional refrigerator
showing the configuration of a cool air supplying device of prior art;
Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view along the line II-II of Fig. 1;
Figure 3 illustrates a cool air supplying device in accordance with an embodiment
of the present invention;
Figure 4 presents a cross-sectional view along the line IV-IV of Fig. 3.
[0014] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail
with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0015] Fig. 3 illustrates a cool air supplying device in accordance with an embodiment of
the present invention and Fig. 4 presents a cross-sectional view along the line IV-IV
of Fig. 3. The refrigerator shown in Fig. 3 comprises a cabinet 1 which has a freezing
compartment 3 and a refrigerating compartment. A compressor (not shown) is arranged
below the cabinet 1 and an evaporator 7 is installed above the cabinet 1 and behind
the freezing compartment 3.
[0016] The cool air supplying device shown in Fig. 3 includes a fan 10 installed above the
evaporator 7 and a duct 20 disposed in front of the fan 10. Cool air generated by
the evaporator 7 is blown by the fan 10 into the freezing compartment 3 and the refrigerating
compartment 5 through the duct 20. The duct 20 has an opening 22 through which the
cool air enters into the duct 20, an intermediate chamber 24 for temporarily storing
the cool air and a first passage 27a and a second passage 27b through which the intermediate
chamber 24 communicates with the refrigerating compartment 5. The intermediate chamber
24 directly communicates with the freezing compartment 3 such that the cool air entered
through the opening 22 can be directly supplied into the freezing compartment 3. Each
side of the intermediate chamber 24 and the refrigerating compartment 5 communicates
through the first passage 27a and the second passage 27b, respectively. Preferably,
these passages 27a, 27b are arranged substantially symmetrically with respect to the
vertical center line of the intermediate chamber 24 to thereby uniformly supply the
cool air from the intermediate chamber 24 to both sides of the refrigerating compartment
5.
[0017] A damper 30 is provided in the passages 27a, 27b for controlling the amount of the
cool air flowing therethrough. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the damper 30 has a sliding
plate 35 movable in a direction traverse to the passages 27a, 27b, a first set of
baffles 36, a second set of baffles 37, both sets being formed on one side of the
sliding plate 35 and a knob 38 formed on the other side thereof.
[0018] The first set of baffles 36 has a main baffle 36a and an auxiliary baffle 36b and
is disposed in the first passage 27a. The second set of baffles 37 has a main baffle
37a and an auxiliary baffle 37b and is disposed in the second passage 27b. Main baffles
36a, 37a have widths as large as those of respective passages 27a, 27b to thereby
almost completely block the cool air flowing through the respective passages. On the
other hand, auxiliary baffles 36b, 37b have widths smaller than those of the passages
to thereby partially block the cool air flowing through the respective passages. Each
of the passages 27a, 27b can have a various cross-sectional area by using the main
baffles 36a, 37a and the auxiliary baffles 36b, 37b in combination. That is, the cross-sectional
area of the passage can be adjusted by moving the sliding plate 35, thereby allowing
a desired amount of cool air to pass through the passage.
[0019] The knob 38 is configured to protrude through the louver 9 into the freezing compartment
3 such that one can have access from the freezing compartment 3 to the knob 38 to
move the sliding plate 35. The knob 38 may be designed to have three operating positions
such as "half" A, "strong" B and "very weak" C, as shown in Fig. 4. Further, the knob
may have another operating position such as "weak" located between the positions B
and C. Subsequently, the amount of the cool air flowing through the passage can be
controlled more accurately.
[0020] The first set of baffles 36 and the second set of baffles may have a configuration
substantially identical to each other and thereby the amount of cool air passing through
one passage may substantially be same with that passing through the other. Otherwise,
they may have a configuration different from each other and thereby the amount of
cool air passing through one passage may be different from that passing through the
other.
[0021] The function and effect of the above cool air supplying device will be described
hereinafter.
[0022] First, cool air is generated by the evaporator 7 and blown into the intermediate
chamber 24 of the duct 20 by the fan 10. Partial amount of the cool air which enters
into the intermediate chamber 24 is supplied into the freezing compartment 3 through
the louver 9 and remaining part of the cool air is supplied into the refrigerating
compartment 5 through passages 27a, 27b. The amount of cool air passing through each
of the passages 27a, 27b is controlled independently by the damper 30. Also, the supplement
of the cool air to the refrigerating compartment 5 is performed uniformly.
[0023] In the above embodiment of the present invention, the supplement of the cool air
into the refrigerating compartment can be performed uniformly by using two separated
passages extending from the intermediate chamber to the refrigerating compartment.
The amount of the cool air supplied into the refrigerating compartment can be accurately
controlled by adjusting the cross-sectional area of each passage by a set of baffles.
[0024] Although 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.
1. A cool air supplying device for a refrigerator (1), comprising:
an evaporator (7) for generating cool air;
a fan (10) for blowing the cool air into a freezing compartment (3) and a refrigerating
compartment (5) of the refrigerator (1);
a duct (20) for delivering the cool air into the freezing compartment (3) and the
refrigerating compartment (5), the duct includes a first passage (27a) and a second
passage (27b) for delivering the cool air into the refrigeration compartment (5) which
are separated from each other; and
a damper (30) arranged in the first passage (27a) and the second passage (27b) for
controlling an amount of the cool air flowing through each passage, characterised in that
the damper (30) is arranged slidably in a direction traverse to the passages (27a,
27b) and includes a first set of baffles (36) and a second set of baffles (37) for
controlling respective cross-sectional areas of the first passage (27a) and the second
passage (27b), respectively.
2. The device of claim 1, wherein each of the first set of baffles (36) and the second
set of baffles (37) has a main baffle (36a, 37a) and an auxiliary baffle (36b, 37b),
the main baffle (36a, 37a) having a width substantially identical to that of a corresponding
passage (27a, 27b) and the auxiliary baffle (36b, 37b) having a width smaller than
that of a corresponding passage (27a, 27b).
3. The device of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first set of baffles (36) and the second set
(37) of baffles have the same configuration to each other, whereby the amount of the
cool air flowing through the first passage (27a) is substantially identical to that
flowing through the second passage (27b).
4. The device of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first set of baffles (36) and the second set
of baffles (37) have different configuration from each other, whereby the amount of
the cool air flowing through the first passage (27a) is different from that flowing
through the second passage (27b).
1. Kühlluftzufuhrvorrichtung für einen Kühlschrank (1), aufweisend:
einen Verdampfer (7) zum Erzeugen von Kühlluft;
einen Ventilator (10) zum Einblasen der Kühlluft in ein Gefrierfach (3) und ein Kühlfach
(5) eines Kühlschranks (1);
einen Kanal (20) zum Leiten der Kühlluft in das Tiefkühlfach (3) und das Kühlfach
(5), wobei der Kanal zum Führen der Kühlluft in das Kühlfach (5) einen ersten und
zweiten Abschnitt (27a, 27b) aufweist, die getrennt voneinander angeordnet sind; und
einen Schieber (30), der im ersten Abschnitt (27a) und im zweiten Abschnitt (27b)
angeordnet ist, um die durch jeden Abschnitt fließende Luftmenge zu steuern, dadurch gekennzeichnet, daß
der Schieber (30) quer zu den Abschnitten (27a, 27b) verschiebbar angeordnet ist und
einen ersten Satz Drosselscheiben (36) und einen zweiten Satz Drosselscheiben (37)
zum Einstellen der jeweiligen Querschnittsfläche des ersten und zweiten Abschnitts
(27a, 27b) aufweist.
2. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1, bei welcher jeder Satz Drosselscheiben (36, 37), eine
Hauptdrosselscheibe (36a, 37a) und eine Hilfsdrosselscheibe (36b, 37b) aufweist, wobei
die Hauptdrosselscheibe (36a, 37a) in ihrer Breite im wesentlich identisch mit der
des entsprechenden Abschnitts (27a, 27b) ist, und die Hilfsdrosselscheibe (36b, 37b)
eine Breite aufweist, die kleiner ist als die des entsprechenden Abschnitts (27a,
27b).
3. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1 oder 2, bei welcher der erste Satz Drosselscheiben (36)
und der zweite Satz (37) Drosselscheiben gleich zueinander angeordnet sind, wobei
die Kühlluftmenge, welche durch den ersten Abschnitt (27a) fließt, im wesentlichen
identisch mit der durch den zweiten Abschnitt (27b) fließenden Menge ist.
4. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1 oder 2, bei welcher der erste Satz Drosselscheiben (36)
und der zweite Satz Drosselscheiben (37) unterschiedlich konfiguriert sind, wobei
die durch den ersten Abschnitt (27a) fließende Kühlluftmenge von der durch den zweiten
Abschnitt (27b) fließenden Menge abweicht.
1. Dispositif d'alimentation en air frais pour un réfrigérateur (1), comprenant :
◆ un évaporateur (7) pour générer de l'air frais ;
◆ un ventilateur (10) pour souffler l'air frais dans un compartiment de congélation
(3) et dans un compartiment de réfrigération (5) du réfrigérateur (1) ;
◆ un conduit (20) pour délivrer l'air frais dans le compartiment de congélation (3)
et dans le compartiment de réfrigération (5), le conduit comprend un premier passage
(27a) et un second passage (27b) pour délivrer l'air frais dans le compartiment de
réfrigération (5), qui sont séparés l'un de l'autre ; et
◆ un registre (30) agencé dans le premier passage (27a) et dans le second passage
(27b) pour contrôler une quantité d'air frais qui s'écoule dans chaque passage, caractérisé en ce que :
◆ le registre (30) est agencé de manière coulissante dans une direction transversale
par rapport aux passages (27a, 27b) et comprend un premier ensemble de déflecteurs
(36) et un second ensemble de déflecteurs (37) pour contrôler respectivement les surfaces
transversales respectives du premier passage (27a) et du second passage (27b).
2. Dispositif selon la revendication 1, dans lequel chacun parmi le premier ensemble
de déflecteurs (36) et le second ensemble de déflecteurs (37) comporte un déflecteur
principal (36a, 37a) et un déflecteur auxiliaire (36b, 37b), le déflecteur principal
(36a, 37a) ayant une largeur sensiblement identique à celle d'un passage correspondant
(27a, 27b) et le déflecteur auxiliaire (36b, 37b) ayant une largeur inférieure à celle
d'un passage correspondant (27a, 27b).
3. Dispositif selon la revendication 1 ou 2, dans lequel le premier ensemble de déflecteurs
(36) et le second ensemble de déflecteurs (37) ont la même configuration l'un par
rapport à l'autre, moyennant quoi la quantité d'air frais qui s'écoule dans le premier
passage (27a) est sensiblement identique à celle qui s'écoule dans le second passage
(27b).
4. Dispositif selon la revendication 1 ou 2, dans lequel le premier ensemble de déflecteurs
(36) et le second ensemble de déflecteurs (37) ont des configurations différentes
l'un de l'autre, moyennant quoi la quantité d'air frais qui s'écoule dans le premier
passage (27a) est différente de celle qui s'écoule dans le second passage (27b).