JPH0442697Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (a) Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a temperature control device for a refrigerator in which cold air cooled by a cooler is supplied into the refrigerator from a cold air supply port by a fan.

(b) Conventional technology In the conventional technology described in Utility Model Publication No. 12288/1988, which precedes the present invention, the temperature inside the refrigerator is transmitted to the main body of the actuating part by means of a temperature-sensing capillary tube, and the main body of the actuating part transfers cold air. Although the valve body of the air outlet is operated, there is a drawback that the opening/closing operation of the valve body is slow in response to changes in the temperature inside the refrigerator because the heat transfer rate of the temperature-sensing capillary tube is slow.

(c) Problems to be solved by the invention The present invention solves the above-mentioned drawbacks, speeds up the response of the valve body to temperature changes in the refrigerator, and provides a temperature control device for a refrigerator with excellent temperature control characteristics. It is something.

(d) Means for Solving the Problems The present invention provides a refrigerator in which cold air cooled by a cooler is supplied into the refrigerator from a cold air supply port by a fan. An opening/closing part that controls the flow of cold air by opening and closing a valve body, a temperature sensing part that senses the temperature inside the refrigerator, and adjusting the degree of opening and closing of the valve body in response to the temperature sensing action of the temperature sensing part. and a mechanism section having a responsive body, the temperature sensing section being installed inside the warehouse and filled with a hydrogen storage alloy, and communicating with the mechanism section through a hydrogen conduit.

(E) Effect According to the present invention, when the temperature inside the refrigerator changes, the equilibrium hydrogen pressure of the hydrogen storage alloy also changes, and this pressure change is quickly transmitted to the reaction body via the hydrogen conduit.
Therefore, the response speed of the valve element to temperature changes within the refrigerator is increased.

(f) Examples Next, one embodiment of the present invention will be described.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a refrigerator body, which has an outer box 2 and an inner box 4 in which a heat insulating material 3 is foamed and filled between the outer box 2 and the outer box 2. Reference numeral 5 designates a partition portion that divides the interior 6 into an upper freezer compartment 7 and a lower refrigerator compartment 8, and 9 and 10 designate rotating doors that close the freezer compartment 7 and the refrigerator compartment 8, respectively. Reference numeral 11 denotes a cooler installed inside the partition 5, which is connected in series with a compressor 12, a condenser 13, a pressure reducer (not shown), etc., and forms part of a refrigeration cycle. Reference numeral 14 denotes a cold air circulation fan disposed opposite to the rear opening 15 of the partition 5, which discharges cold air sucked in from the rear opening 15 upward and downward, and discharges the upper cold air to the ventilation hole 16.
At the same time, cold air discharged from below is supplied to the refrigerator compartment 8 through a cold air supply port 17 and a ventilation hole 18 (described later). Further, the cold air in the freezer compartment 7 and the refrigerator compartment 8 is sucked in through the vents 19 and 20 at the front of the partition 5, respectively, and is drawn into the cooler 11.
The cold air circulates between the cooler 11 by exchanging heat with the cooler 11 and reaching the cold air circulation fan 14.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 21 denotes an opening/closing portion of the cold air supply port 17, which specifically comprises a valve body 22 and a rod 23 vertically disposed on the valve body. 24 is a temperature sensing part that senses the temperature inside the refrigerator 6; 25 is a temperature sensing part 24
This is a mechanism section having a responsive body 26 that adjusts the degree of opening and closing of the valve body 22 in response to the temperature sensing action of the valve body 22.

The temperature sensing section 24 includes an airtight container 27 provided inside the refrigerator 6, a hydrogen storage alloy 28 filled in the airtight container 27, and a hydrogen conduit 29 connecting the airtight container 27 and the mechanism section 25. Connected and configured. A sintered filter 30 is interposed between the hydrogen storage alloy 28 and the hydrogen conduit 29. Specifically, the hydrogen storage alloy 28 is a LaNi5 alloy, a FeTi alloy,
A device made of MmNi4/7Al0/8 alloy, MmNi5 alloy, etc., whose equilibrium hydrogen pressure changes in response to the sensing temperature, and absorbs or discharges hydrogen so that the equilibrium hydrogen pressure matches the pressure in the system. It is.
For example, when MmNi5 alloy is used as the hydrogen storage alloy 28, the hydrogen pressure changes around 8 atm in the temperature range of 0 to 5°C, and as the sensing temperature increases, the hydrogen pressure also increases and the sensing temperature decreases. At times, hydrogen pressure also decreases.

The mechanism section 25 includes a cylinder 31 in which a piston section 26 as a response body is installed, a spring 32 attached to the cylinder and pulling the piston section 26, and a spring 32 that accommodates the spring 32 and connects to the hydrogen conduit 29. The pressure chamber 33 is in communication with the pressure chamber 33.
Further, an O-ring 34 is fitted on the outer periphery of the piston portion 26. The cylinder 31 and the hydrogen storage alloy 28 are attached to a frame 35 on the rear side thereof with an appropriate attachment structure.

In the temperature control device described above, when the temperature inside the refrigerator 6 changes, the equilibrium hydrogen pressure of the hydrogen storage alloy 28 changes in response to the sensed temperature, and this pressure change is instantaneously transmitted to the mechanism section 25 via the hydrogen conduit 29. pressure chamber 33
The piston portion 26 and further the valve body 22 operate in conjunction with the pressure change in the pressure chamber 33, and the flow rate of cold air is therefore quickly adjusted in accordance with the temperature change inside the refrigerator 6.

(g) Effects of the invention Since the present invention is constructed as described above, temperature changes inside the refrigerator are converted into pressure changes by the hydrogen storage alloy, and are promptly transmitted to the response body of the mechanism section and further to the valve body. Therefore, the response speed of the valve body to the temperature change inside the refrigerator can be increased compared to the conventional example in which the temperature change inside the refrigerator is directly transmitted in the form of heat to the actuating part main body.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a refrigerator, and FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the circle line A in FIG. 11...Cooler, 14...Fan, 17...Cold air supply port, 21...Opening/closing part, 22...Valve body, 24
...Temperature sensing part, 25...Mechanism part, 26...Response body,
27...Airtight container, 28...Hydrogen storage alloy, 29
...Hydrogen conduit.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] In a refrigerator in which cold air cooled by a cooler is supplied into the refrigerator from a cold air supply port by a fan, the cooling air is supplied to the refrigerator by opening and closing a valve body disposed at the cold air supply port. A mechanism section having an opening/closing section that limits the flow of cold air, a temperature sensing section that senses the temperature inside the refrigerator, and a response body that adjusts the degree of opening and closing of the valve body in response to the temperature sensing action of the temperature sensing section. A temperature control device for a refrigerator, characterized in that the temperature sensing section is filled with a hydrogen storage alloy temporarily installed in the refrigerator and is communicated with the mechanism section through a hydrogen conduit.