JPH063029A - Temperature control device for refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a temperature control device which ensures an effective volume in a chamber through reduction of the thickness of a duct panel, reduces the occurrence of air duct resistance, and has excellent freezing resistance, in a temperature control device to control temperature in a chamber through control of an airflow of cold air in a refrigerator. CONSTITUTION:A temperature control device for a refrigerator comprises a duct cover 36 having an cold air flow inlet 33, a flap 34 to open and close the cold air inflow port 33, a load lever 39 which supports the flap 34 and is rotatably supported to a housing 38, a load spring 50 to energize the load lever 39 in a closing direction, and a drive source 45 to drive the load lever 39 through an eccentric cam 47 according to temperature in a chamber. Since thickness can be set regardless of the opening size of the flop 34 by arranging a constituting part in one direction of the duct cover 36, the thickness of a duct panel can be decreased, and the effective volume in a chamber of a refrigerator can be increased.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a temperature control device for a refrigerator or the like which controls the temperature inside the refrigerator by opening and closing a cold air intake of the refrigerator or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, refrigerators have become larger and larger, and a temperature control device for controlling the temperature inside the refrigerator by controlling the amount of cold air has been required to control a larger amount of cold air.

A conventional temperature control device for a refrigerator will be described below. For example, in a refrigerator having a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment, cold air in the freezer compartment is introduced into the refrigerator compartment through a duct. For example, a refrigerator temperature control device (hereinafter referred to as a damper thermostat) disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 61-23673 is attached to the inlet of the duct, and if the temperature inside the refrigerator rises, the damper thermo opening operation is performed. Thus, the cold air is made to flow in, and when it is lowered, the cold air is stopped by the closing operation.

A conventional technique will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. Reference numeral 1 denotes a rectangular duct through which cold air flows, and the cold air is produced by a refrigerator evaporator (not shown) and sent into the duct 1 by a fan (not shown). Reference numeral 2 is an opening for discharging cool air from the duct 1, and a damper thermostat 3 is attached thereto. The cool air discharged from the damper thermostat 3 is a duct panel 4 forming a flow path of the cool air.
It is discharged into the refrigerator through the air passage 5 formed inside.

Further, the damper thermo 3 has the opening 2
The frame 6 and the opening 7 in the frame, and the opening 8 are opened and closed by a flap 8 rotatably provided. The flap 8 is biased by a spring 9 in the flap closing direction, and a drive unit (motor) 10 opens and closes the flap 8.

[0006]

However, in the above structure, the flap 8 of the damper thermostat 3 rotationally moves in the cool air blowing direction to open and close the opening 7.
It is necessary to secure a movement allowance of the flap 8 in the cold air blowing direction, and the thickness of the duct panel 4 forming the flow path of the cold air becomes large, and the duct panel 4 protrudes into the refrigerator to reduce the effective use volume in the refrigerator. Had.

As for the flow of cold air, the cold air flowing in through the opening changes its flow in the left and right directions after colliding with the flaps, so that the pressure drop of the cool air occurs and the discharge air volume decreases, that is, the air passage resistance increases. It also has the drawback. This is a big problem especially in the case of a large refrigerator because it is necessary to increase the amount of cold air supplied.

Further, since the drive source is located on the cold air supply side of the frame, even if the damper thermostat is closed, cold air easily enters the drive source, and there is a risk of freeze-incapability due to dew condensation or the like. . Further, since the cold airflow inlet is formed by the frame, the frame becomes large and expensive.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object thereof is to provide a damper thermostat capable of reducing the thickness of the duct panel.

[0010]

Therefore, according to the present invention, there is provided a duct cover having a cold air inlet, a flap for opening and closing the cold air inlet, and a substantially L-shaped rotatably supported housing that supports the flap. A load lever having a V-shape, a load spring for urging the load lever in the direction of closing the cold airflow inlet, and a drive source for driving the load lever through a cam provided on the output shaft according to the temperature inside the refrigerator, The components are provided in one direction of the duct cover.

Further, the flap is rotatably supported by the load lever, and a spring for urging the flap in the opening direction is provided.

Further, a cover portion for covering the drive source and the load spring is provided on the cold air flow inlet side of the housing.

Further, the duct cover is abolished, and the cold air inlet is formed by the duct panel of the refrigerator.

[0014]

The temperature control device of the refrigerator according to the present invention is performed by the reciprocating rotation operation of the load lever supported by the housing by the drive source and the flap supported by the tip of the load lever.

Further, since the flap is rotatably supported by the load lever and is further urged in the opening direction by the urging spring, the flap after the rotation of the load lever is further rotated independently and a large opening size can be secured.

Further, due to the cover portion of the housing, the cold air from the cold airflow inlet does not directly hit the drive source and the load spring.

Further, by constructing the cold air flow inlet of the duct cover by the duct panel of the refrigerator, the duct cover of the temperature control device can be eliminated and the cost can be reduced.

[0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First, FIG. 4 shows a state in which the damper thermostat of the present invention is attached to a refrigerator. Reference numeral 30 denotes a duct panel in which a duct 31 for flowing cool air and a damper thermostat 32 of the present invention are incorporated. The cold airflow inlet 33 is opened perpendicularly to the duct 31, and the cold air flows through the flap 34 to the duct 35 formed on the side of the slide.

In FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, reference numeral 36 denotes a duct cover having a cold air flow inlet 33 and a duct panel 3 of a refrigerator.
It is attached to the cold air outlet 37 of 0. A housing 38 has a U-shaped groove 41 that rotatably supports a shaft 40 of the load lever 39.

The duct cover 36 is provided with a protrusion 42 for supporting the shaft 40 of the load lever 39, and is fixed to the housing 38 with a mounting screw 43. The load lever 39 is substantially L-shaped, has a rib 34 for fixing the flap 34 at one end, and has a foot A48 that is in contact with an eccentric cam 47 fixed to an output shaft 46 of a drive source 45 fixed to the housing 38 at the other end. And a foot portion B51 that holds the other end of the load spring 50, one end of which is held by the protrusion 49 of the housing 38.

The drive source 45 is composed of a motor 52 and a reduction gear portion 53. Inside the reduction gear portion 53, the contact point between the eccentric cam 47 and the foot portion A48 of the load lever 39 is the maximum diameter and the maximum diameter of the eccentric cam 47. A detection unit that outputs a signal to the external control circuit when the diameter becomes small is provided. A polyethylene foam 54 is attached to the flap 33 to improve the sealing property.

The damper thermo 3 constructed as described above
The operation of No. 2 will be described. When the temperature inside the refrigerating compartment is lower than a predetermined temperature, the damper thermostat 32 is closed, that is, the cold airflow inlet 33 of the duct cover 31 is closed by the flap 34, and no cold air is supplied to the refrigerating compartment.

At this time, the diameter of the eccentric cam 47 at the contact position between the foot portion A48 of the load lever 39 and the eccentric cam 47 is the minimum diameter, and the load lever 39 has the load spring 50.
Since the cold air flow inlet 33 is biased in the direction to be closed, the flap 3 fixed to the tip of the load lever 39
4 and the cold airflow inlet 33 of the duct cover 36 contact each other, and the load lever 39 does not rotate beyond that position. When the temperature in the refrigerating chamber reaches a predetermined temperature by a sensor (not shown), a drive signal is input to the motor 52, which is the drive source 45, and the motor 52 causes the eccentric cam 47 provided on the output shaft 46 via the reduction gear 53. Load lever 3 that rotates and contacts it
Rotate 9 against load spring 50 and flap 3
4 is separated from the cold airflow inlet 33 of the duct cover 36.

When the diameter of the eccentric cam 47 at the contact position between the foot A48 of the load lever 39 and the eccentric cam 47 is maximized, the opening size of the duct cover 36 and the flap 34 is maximized, and cold air is supplied to the refrigerating chamber. , Reduction gear 53
A signal is sent from an internal detection unit to the external control circuit, and the drive source 45
The drive signal to is stopped. When the temperature inside the refrigerating chamber becomes lower than a predetermined temperature, a drive signal is sent again to the motor 52, the load lever 39 rotates, and the flap 34 closes the cold airflow inlet 33 of the duct cover 36.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the duct cover 36 having the cold air flow inlet 33 and the cold air flow inlet 3 are provided.
6, a flap 34 that opens and closes 6, a substantially L-shaped load lever 39 that supports the flap 34 and is rotatably supported by a housing 38, and a load spring that biases the load lever 39 in a direction to close the cold airflow inlet 33. 50 and a drive source 45 that drives the load lever 39 through an eccentric cam 47 provided on the output shaft 46 according to the internal temperature of the refrigerator, and the component is provided in one direction of the duct cover 36, so that a damper is provided. The thickness of the thermo 32 is the flap 34
Since it can be set regardless of the open dimension of the duct panel 30
Can be made thinner.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the flap 34 is provided with a cylindrical projection 55, the load lever 39 is provided with a hole 56 larger than the cylindrical projection 55 of the flap 34, and the flap 34 is always provided with the flap 34. By providing the leaf spring 57 that urges in the opening direction, the flap 34 rotates in the opening direction until the tip of the load lever 39 and the flap 34 come into contact with each other by the leaf spring 57 after the load lever 39 reaches the fully open position.

As a result, a large opening size can be secured and the air duct resistance of the damper thermostat 32 is reduced.

Further, since the cover portion 58 is provided on the cold air flow inlet 33 side of the housing 38 so that the drive source 45 and the load spring 50 are not directly exposed to the cool air even when the flap 34 is in the open state, the drive source 45 Supercooling can be prevented, and the possibility of freeze-inoperability due to condensation can be reduced.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the duct cover 36 is eliminated, the cover 59 is provided on the upper part of the housing 38, and the cold airflow inlet 60 is formed in the duct panel 30 of the refrigerator, so that the damper thermostat 31 can be provided at a low cost.

[0031]

As described above, according to the present invention, a duct cover having a cold air inlet, a flap for opening and closing the cold air inlet, and a substantially L-shape that supports the flap and is rotatably supported by the housing. Of the load lever, a load spring for urging the load lever in the direction of closing the cold airflow inlet, and a drive source for driving the load lever through a cam provided on the output shaft according to the temperature inside the refrigerator. By providing the parts in one direction of the duct cover, the thickness of the damper thermo can be set regardless of the opening size of the flap, so the thickness of the duct panel can be reduced and the effective internal volume of the refrigerator can be increased. It is practically effective.

Further, by providing a projection on the flap, forming a hole larger than the projection of the flap on the load lever, and further providing a leaf spring on the flap for constantly urging the flap in the opening direction, the load lever is in the fully open position. After
The flap rotates in the opening direction by the leaf spring until the tip of the load lever and the flap come into contact with each other. As a result, a large opening size can be secured, a damper thermo having a small air passage resistance can be provided, and it is possible to cope with the recent enlargement of the refrigerator.

Further, an inexpensive damper thermostat can be provided by eliminating the duct cover, providing the cover on the upper part of the housing, and forming the cold air flow inlet on the duct panel of the refrigerator.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional structural view of a refrigerator temperature control device in a closed state according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional structural view in an open state corresponding to FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a temperature control device for a refrigerator according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which the temperature control device for a refrigerator of the present invention is incorporated in a duct panel of a refrigerator.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional structural view of a refrigerator temperature control device in a closed state according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a sectional structural view in an open state corresponding to FIG.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state in which a temperature control device for a refrigerator according to a third embodiment of the present invention is incorporated in a duct panel.

FIG. 8 is a front view of a conventional refrigerator temperature control device.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a state in which a conventional temperature control device for a refrigerator is installed in a duct panel of the refrigerator.

[Explanation of symbols]

 32 Refrigerator Temperature Control Device (Damper Thermo) 33 Cold Air Flow Inlet 34 Flap 38 Housing 39 Load Lever 45 Drive Source 46 Output Shaft 47 Eccentric Cam 50 Load Spring 57 Leaf Spring 58 Cover Part

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A duct cover having a cold air flow inlet, a flap for opening and closing the cold air flow inlet, a substantially L-shaped load lever supporting the flap at one end, and a rotatably supporting the load lever. A housing, a load spring for urging the load lever in the direction of closing the cold air flow inlet, a drive source provided in the housing, and one end of the output shaft of the drive source opposite to the flap of the load lever. A temperature control device for a refrigerator, which comprises a contacting cam and all the components are provided on one side of the duct cover. 2. The temperature control device for a refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the flap is provided with a spring that is rotatably supported by the load lever and that always urges the flap in the opening direction. 3. The temperature control device for a refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the housing is provided with a cover portion that covers the drive source and the load spring. 4. The temperature control device for a refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the duct cover is eliminated and the refrigerator is constructed on the duct panel side.