TW201803784A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

A refrigerator (1) is provided with: a vegetable compartment (15), a vegetable storage case (4) provided to the vegetable compartment (15); and a light emitting device (5) provided to the vegetable compartment (15). The light emitting device (5) is provided with LEDs (51a-53b) serving as a light emitting section having an optical axis (Ax) tilted downward relative to a horizontal plane, and the LEDs (51a-53b) emit light toward the inside of the vegetable storage case (4).

Description

refrigerator

The present invention relates to a refrigerator such as a household refrigerator, and more particularly to a refrigerator having a light-emitting device that irradiates light to the contents of a vegetable room.

In the past, a refrigerator (for example, Patent Document 1) has been developed in which LEDs (light emitting diodes) are arranged on the back surface of a vegetable room to irradiate light to vegetables stored in the vegetable room. By irradiating the vegetables with light, effects described below can be obtained: for example, chlorophyll of green leafy vegetables is activated to produce vitamin C, and the increase of polyphenols is promoted.

Advance technical literature

Patent Literature:

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent No. 4433958 (see paragraph 0027 and FIG. 2)

Here, since the back surface of the vegetable room is generally a vertical surface, the optical axis direction of the light emitted from the LED is horizontal. Therefore, if the LED is arranged on the upper part of the back surface of the vegetable room, it may not be able to receive sufficient light irradiation unless it is a vegetable such as spinach or cabbage (not yet cut) stored upright in the vegetable room.

In the case where an LED is arranged on the lower part of the back of the vegetable room Under such circumstances, light may be irradiated to a part such as a root or a stem of a vegetable that is not to be irradiated with light, or a vegetable such as a potato that is not expected to be irradiated with light.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, an object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator capable of efficiently irradiating light to vegetables stored in a vegetable room.

The refrigerator of the present invention includes: a vegetable room; a vegetable storage box provided in the vegetable room; and a light-emitting device provided in the vegetable room. The light-emitting device has a light-emitting portion having an optical axis inclined downward with respect to a horizontal plane, and emits light from the light-emitting portion to the inside of the vegetable storage box.

According to the refrigerator of the present invention, the light is emitted from the light-emitting portion having the inclined optical axis toward the inside of the vegetable storage box, so that the vegetables having a shorter height can also be irradiated with sufficient light.

1‧‧‧ refrigerator

4‧‧‧ Vegetable Storage Box

5‧‧‧light-emitting device

6‧‧‧Motor (Driver)

7‧‧‧ camera (shooting device)

11‧‧‧ Refrigerator

12‧‧‧ Switch Room

13‧‧‧ Ice making room

14‧‧‧Freezer

15‧‧‧ Vegetable Room

16‧‧‧shell

17‧‧‧compressor

18‧‧‧ cooler

19‧‧‧ blower

20‧‧‧Control Department

21‧‧‧ operation panel (operation input section)

25‧‧‧Door opening and closing sensor

41‧‧‧Lower Box (Lower Box)

42‧‧‧upper box (upper box)

51‧‧‧LED group (first light emitting unit)

51a, 51b‧‧‧LED (light emitting element)

52‧‧‧LED group (second light emitting unit)

52a, 52b‧‧‧LED (light emitting element)

53‧‧‧LED group (3rd light emitting unit)

53a, 53b‧‧‧LED (light emitting element)

54‧‧‧ cover element

55‧‧‧Mounting base

56‧‧‧Screw

57‧‧‧sealing material

58‧‧‧Wire

59‧‧‧Support substrate

61‧‧‧Shake the frame

62‧‧‧Shake

101, 102, 103‧‧‧ microcomputer

Fig. 1 is a side cross-sectional view of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a front view of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of a vegetable compartment and its surroundings of the refrigerator according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a vegetable storage box according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of a light emitting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing the arrangement of LEDs of the light emitting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing another configuration example of the light emitting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing another configuration example of the light emitting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a diagram showing a driving circuit of the light emitting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the light emitting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 11 is a timing chart showing the operation of the light emitting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of a vegetable compartment and its surroundings of a refrigerator according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 13 is a block diagram showing a control system of a refrigerator according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 14 is a schematic diagram (A) and (B) for explaining an operation example of the light emitting device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Embodiment 1.

A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 11. 1 and 2 are a side sectional view and a front view of a refrigerator according to the first embodiment. In addition, FIG. 1 corresponds to a cross-sectional view in the sagittal direction in the line segment I-I shown in FIG. 2. The refrigerator 1 is, for example, a household refrigerator. As shown in FIG. 1, the refrigerator 1 includes a plurality of storage compartments, that is, a refrigerating compartment 11, a switching compartment 12, an ice making compartment 13 (FIG. 2), a freezing compartment 14, and a vegetable compartment 15.

Here, the refrigerating compartment 11 is arranged at the uppermost stage, and the switching compartment 12 and the ice-making chamber 13 are arranged side by side below it, the freezing compartment 14 is arranged below it, and the vegetable compartment 15 is arranged at the lowest stage. However, it is not limited to this configuration.

The refrigerating compartment 11 has, on the front side, a swinging door piece 11 a facing left and right (or opened on one side). The interior of the refrigerator compartment 11 is divided into a plurality of spaces by a food shelf 11b. A cooling chamber is provided below the lowermost food shelf 11b, and a drawable cooling box 11c is arranged in front.

The switching chamber 12 is a storage chamber that can be switched to two temperatures of a freezing temperature zone (for example, -18 ° C) and a weak freezing temperature zone (for example, -7 ° C). The switching chamber 12 has a drawer door 12a on the front and a food storage box 12b inside. The ice making chamber 13 and the switching chamber 12 are arranged side by side at the same height, and a drawer door 13a is provided on the front surface thereof, and an ice cube storage box (not shown) is provided inside the same.

The freezer compartment 14 has a drawer door 14a on the front side and a food storage box 14b on the inside. The vegetable room 15 has a drawer door 15a in the front thereof and a vegetable storage box 4 in the inside. The storage rooms of the refrigerator 1 are not limited to these examples.

The refrigerator 1 includes a refrigeration cycle device for cooling each storage compartment. The refrigeration cycle apparatus includes a lower compressor 17 provided on the rear side (rear) of the refrigerator 1, a condenser (not shown) for condensing the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 17, and a reduction in expansion of the refrigerant flowing out of the condenser. Pressing device (not shown). The refrigeration cycle device includes a cooler 18 that cools the air by exchanging heat with the refrigerant that has been expanded in the decompression device, a blower (blow fan) 19 that sends the cooled air to each storage room, The air supply passage 22 as an air passage. A defrosting device 23 is disposed below the blower 19.

The air cooled by the cooler 18 is sent to the storage compartments (the refrigerating compartment 11, the switching compartment 12, the ice-making compartment 13, the freezing compartment 14, and the vegetable compartment 15) by the blower 19, and the interior of each storage compartment is cooled. The contents stored in each storage room are cooled, and the heated air is returned to the surroundings of the cooler 18 from a suction port provided in each storage room via a return air path. The air that has been cooled by the cooler 18 is blown again to the storage compartments.

An operation panel 21 as an operation input section is provided on the front of the refrigerator 1. The operation panel 21 is a part where the user inputs the temperature and the like of each storage compartment. In addition, although the operation panel 21 is arrange | positioned on the rotating door piece 11a of the refrigerator compartment 11, here, if it is a position which a user can operate easily.

The refrigerator 1 is provided with a control unit 20 (control board) that controls the entire refrigerator 1. The control unit 20 controls the compressor 17, the blower 19, and the air connected to each storage room based on the output signal of the temperature detection sensor (for example, thermistor) installed in each storage room and the setting information of the operation panel 21. Brake (not shown). The control unit 20 communicates with an external device. For example, it receives an instruction to change the set temperature from a smartphone or an instruction to confirm the condition in the refrigerator, and transmits a response to these instructions.

The temperature inside each storage chamber is detected by a temperature detection sensor (for example, a thermistor) (not shown). The control unit 20 adjusts the opening degree of the airlock (not shown), the capacity of the compressor 17, and the air supply amount of the blower 19 so that the temperature detected by the temperature detection sensor reaches a preset temperature.

The refrigerator 1 is covered with a case 16 having a heat insulating member such as a foamed polyurethane or a vacuum heat insulating material. In addition, a heat-insulating member having foamed polyurethane, a vacuum heat-insulating material, or the like is also provided between each storage room of the refrigerator 1 Interval.

The refrigerator 1 according to the first embodiment includes a light emitting device 5 in a vegetable room 15 and irradiates light to vegetables stored in a vegetable storage box 4. The configurations of the vegetable compartment 15 and the light-emitting device 5 will be described below.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the vegetable room 15 and its surroundings. The vegetable room 15 is provided with a vegetable storage box 4 for storing vegetables and a large (for example, 2 liter) poly bottle 201. The vegetable storage box 4 is configured to be integrated with the drawer door piece 15 a described above, and is movable in the front-rear direction (the direction indicated by an arrow B in the first figure). A door opening / closing sensor 25 that detects opening and closing of the drawer door 15a is provided on the front upper portion of the vegetable room 15.

The door opening / closing sensor 25 outputs an ON signal when it detects the open state of the drawer door 15a, and outputs an OFF signal when it detects the closed state. The ON signal and OFF signal of the door opening / closing sensor 25 are collectively referred to as a door opening / closing signal. The control unit 20 measures the time during which the drawer door 15a is open (door opening time), and uses it as various control parameters, or issues a warning sound to alert the user when the door opening time exceeds the set time. In addition, the same door opening / closing sensor is provided in the storage room other than the vegetable room 15.

The vegetable storage box 4 has a structure divided into two sections. More specifically, the vegetable storage box 4 includes a lower box 41 and an upper box 42. The lower box 41 has an opening in a part of the back surface (that is, a portion located in front of the light emitting device 5), and is configured such that when the door is closed, light from the light emitting device 5 is radiated into the lower box 41. In addition, both the lower case 41 and the upper case 42 are partially or entirely formed of transparent plastic or the like, and transmit light from the light emitting device 5.

The lower box 41 (large vegetable box) contains relatively large vegetables. For example, leafy vegetables (leafy vegetables) 202 such as spinach, komatsu, cabbage and cabbage, and heavy root vegetables 203 such as potatoes and daikon. The upper box 42 (small vegetable box) contains relatively small vegetables, such as unused vegetables, cucumbers, and tomatoes.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the shape of the vegetable storage box 4. The lower case 41 has a front surface portion 41a, a rear surface portion 41b, a left surface portion 41c, a right surface portion 41d, and a bottom surface portion 41e, and the upper portions are open. The upper case 42 has a front portion 42a, a rear portion 42b, a left side surface portion 42c, a right side surface portion 42d, and a bottom surface portion 42e, and the upper portions are open.

The upper case 42 is maintained on the left and right side portions 41 c and 41 d of the lower case 41. The front portions (the portions close to the front portion 41 a) of the side portions 41 c and 41 d of the lower case 41 are formed so as to be higher in height than other regions, and restrict the front end position of the upper case 42. Therefore, an area that is not covered by the upper case 42 is formed forward in the lower case 41. In this area, for example, a large-sized bottle 201 (FIG. 3) is stored.

Returning to FIG. 3, the vegetable room 15 includes a bottom portion 31 opposed to the bottom surface of the vegetable storage box 4, a top portion 32 opposed to the upper surface of the vegetable storage box 4, a back wall 33 opposed to the rear surface of the vegetable storage box 4, and vegetables The side walls 34, 35 of the storage box 4 facing the left and right sides (Fig. 2).

The light-emitting device 5 is arranged on the back wall 33 of the vegetable compartment 15 so as to face the back of the vegetable storage box 4. The light-emitting device 5 is disposed above the center of the vegetable storage box 4 in the vertical direction. Here, the light emitting device 5 is disposed at a position facing the back surface portion 41 b of the lower case 41 of the vegetable storage box 4. That is, the light emitting device 5 is disposed at a position lower than the upper case 42. Light emitting device 5 It is arrange | positioned in the center part of the left-right direction of the refrigerator 1, for example, is shown with the symbol A1 of FIG.

The back wall 33 of the vegetable compartment 15 is composed of the above-mentioned heat insulating member, and has high strength. Therefore, by disposing the light-emitting device 5 on the back wall 33, it is possible to suppress vibration of LEDs (described later) applied to the light-emitting device 5 and improve reliability. In addition, since driving elements such as a blower 19 and an air brake are also arranged on the rear side of the refrigerator 1, there is also an advantage that wiring to the light-emitting device 5 is facilitated.

The arrangement of the light-emitting device 5 is not limited to the example described above. For example, as shown by the symbol A2 in FIG. 3, the light-emitting device 5 may be arranged at a corner above the rear side of the vegetable compartment 15, or, as shown by the symbol A3 in FIG. 2, the light-emitting device 5 may be arranged on a vegetable The upper right corner or the upper left corner of the back side of the chamber 15 may be used. Few vegetables have an angular shape like a cuboid, so there are often no vegetables above the back side of the vegetable storage box 4 (the light is rarely blocked). Therefore, by disposing the light emitting device 5 at these positions, it is possible to irradiate light in a relatively wide range in the vegetable storage box 4.

The light-emitting device 5 may be disposed on the side wall 34 or the side wall 35 of the vegetable compartment 15 as indicated by a symbol A4 in FIG. 2. In this case, there is an advantage that the user can easily confirm the lighting state of the LED of the light emitting device 5.

In addition, as shown by a symbol A5 in FIG. 2, the light emitting device 5 may be provided on the top portion 32 of the vegetable room 15. The top portion 32 is a space between the vegetable compartment 15 and the freezer compartment 14 and can be removed from the case 16 of the refrigerator 1. Therefore, when the light-emitting device 5 is mounted on the top portion 32, there is an advantage that it is easy to attach and detach it at the time of a failure.

The light-emitting device 5 is arranged in the vertical direction in the vegetable storage box 4 The center is further above, and is arranged such that the outgoing optical axis Ax is inclined downward with respect to the horizontal plane H. With such an arrangement, it is possible to efficiently irradiate light to the vegetables stored in the lower box 41 of the vegetable storage box 4. The specific structure of the light emitting device 5 will be described below.

5 and 6 are a cross-sectional view and a front view showing a configuration example of the light-emitting device 5. The light emitting device 5 includes a plurality of semiconductor light emitting elements having different wavelengths. Specifically, the light-emitting device 5 includes LEDs 51a and 51b that emit red light (light having a wavelength of 600 to 780 nm) as the first light-emitting portion, and emits green light (light having a wavelength of 500-550 nm) as the second light-emitting portion. LEDs 52a and 52b, and LEDs 53a and 53b that emit blue light (light having a wavelength of 430 to 500 nm) as the third light emitting section.

As shown in FIG. 6, the red LEDs 51 a and 51 b are arranged side by side to form an LED group 51. Under the red LEDs 51a and 51b, the blue LEDs 53a and 53b are arranged side by side to form an LED group 53. Under the blue LEDs 53a and 53b, the green LEDs 52a and 52b are arranged side by side to form the LED group 52. Here, two LEDs of each color are arranged, but one LED may be arranged, and three or more LEDs may be arranged.

Returning to FIG. 5, the light emitting device 5 includes a mounting substrate 55 on which the LEDs 51a, 51b, 52a, 52b, 53a, and 53b (hereinafter referred to as LEDs 51a to 53b) are fixed by solder, and a cover element 54 covering the emitting sides of the LEDs 51a to 53b. . The cover element 54 is formed of a member that transmits light emitted from the LEDs 51a to 53b.

The cover element 54 includes an emission surface portion 54a disposed on the emission side of the LEDs 51a to 53b, a peripheral wall portion 54b surrounding the periphery of the LEDs 51a to 53b and the mounting substrate 55, and a base portion 54c formed at an end of the peripheral wall portion 54b. Base of the cover element 54 The portion 54c is fixed to the back wall 33.

The mounting substrate 55 to which the LEDs 51 a to 53 b are fixed is fixed to the emission surface portion 54 a of the cover element 54 by screws 56 so that the irradiation angle thereof does not change due to the vibration of the refrigerator 1. In addition, in order to prevent a short circuit of the mounting substrate 55, the back surface of the cover element 54 is covered with a sealing material 57.

The light-emitting device 5 is mounted on the upper part of the back wall 33 of the vegetable compartment 15 with the light axis Ax of the optical axes of the LEDs 51a to 53b as the angle of inclination θ downward with respect to the horizontal plane H. The upper part of the center). As described later, the angle θ is in a range of 5 to 85 °, and preferably in a range of 10 to 45 °.

In the configuration example shown in FIG. 5, in order to incline the output optical axes Ax of the LEDs 51 a to 53 b with respect to the horizontal plane H, an inclined mounting surface 33 a is formed on the rear wall 33, and the light-emitting device 5 is mounted on the mounting surface 33 a.

However, the configuration is not limited to that shown in FIG. 5, and the output optical axes Ax of the LEDs 51 a to 53 b may be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane H. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the LEDs 51 a to 53 b may be configured by cannonball-shaped LEDs having long lead wires (pins) 58, and each lead wire 58 may be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane H by an angle θ.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 8, the mounting substrate 55 a for fixing the LEDs 51 a and 51 b, the mounting substrate 55 b for fixing the LEDs 52 a and 52 b, and the mounting substrate 55 c for fixing the LEDs 53 a and 53 b are formed by individual members, and are mounted on the support substrate 59 Inclined surface.

According to the configurations of FIGS. 7 and 8, it is not necessary to tilt the light-emitting device 5 as a whole. Therefore, there is the advantage that the wall of the back wall 33 of the vegetable compartment 15 does not need to be thinned (to reduce heat insulation), and the vegetable storage box 4 does not need to be stored. Space becomes smaller.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a circuit configuration of the light emitting device 5. As shown in Fig. 9, the LEDs 51a to 53b are connected in parallel to a voltage source of DC (direct current) 2V to 15V. In addition, each LED group 51, 52, 53 is connected to a microcomputer 101, 102, 103, respectively. That is, the microcomputer 101 allows the LEDs 51a and 51b to emit light by passing a current of 10 to 50 mA. The microcomputer 102 allows the LEDs 52a and 52b to emit light by passing a current of 10 to 50 mA. The microcomputer 103 passes a current of 10 to 50 mA to cause the LEDs 53a and 53b to emit light.

The control unit 20 memorizes in advance the combination of the amount of light and the irradiation time effective for the function activation of the vegetables for each color light of the LED (that is, for red, blue, and green, respectively). The control unit 20 drives the microcomputers 101, 102, and 103 based on the combination of the stored light amount and irradiation time.

In addition, the current flowing to each LED is 10 to 50 mA, and the current is small, so the safety is high. In addition, since the LEDs 51a to 53b are controlled for each group (each LED group 51, 52, 53), the number of communication ports of the microcomputer can be reduced, and the control section 20 can be simplified.

Next, the light irradiation effect of the light emitting device 5 will be described. First, a photosynthesis reaction will be described. When the photo-synthesis reaction is represented by a chemical formula, the following formula (1) can be expressed.

6CO ₂ + 12H ₂ O + 688kcal → C ₆ H ₁₂ O ₆ + 6H ₂ O + 6O ₂ . ． ． (1)

In formula (1), CO ₂ is carbon dioxide, H ₂ O is water, 688 kcal is light energy, and C ₆ H ₁₂ O ₆ is glucose. This reaction is divided into a bright reaction using light energy and a dark reaction using no light energy.

Ming reaction is a reaction that converts light energy into chemical energy, here In this stage, carbon dioxide is not used, and pigments such as chlorophyll use light energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, and store chemical energy by the action of enzyme proteins. On the other hand, in the dark reaction, glucose is synthesized using hydrogen produced by the light reaction and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Vegetables with increased glucose have better storage properties and produce vitamin C.

In the first embodiment, red light, green light, and blue light are used, which have individual effects. Red light is a wavelength at which the absorption rate of chlorophyll of vegetables is high. It is absorbed on the leaf surface and used for light synthesis. Green light has a low absorption rate of chlorophyll, so it penetrates into the inside of the leaf, is absorbed after repeated reflection, and is then used for light synthesis. Blue light is a signal that conveys the fact that the light has been irradiated to the vegetables, and is used to open the stomata to absorb carbon dioxide. These effects effectively promote the photosynthesis reaction represented by the formula (1).

Among the vegetables stored in the lower box 41, the vegetables to be irradiated with light are leafy vegetables such as spinach, komatsu, and cabbage. On the other hand, vegetables that do not want to be irradiated with light are, for example, potatoes. Although leafy vegetables and potatoes are placed on the bottom surface 41e of the lower box 41, the height of the potatoes is lower than that of the leafy vegetables.

Therefore, by setting the angle θ of the optical axis Ax of the light-emitting device 5 to 5 to 85 ° (preferably 10 to 45 °), the light is irradiated to the vegetables (leafy vegetables) that are desired to be irradiated, and the light is not irradiated To vegetables (potatoes) that you don't want to be exposed to light.

In addition, an area for storing a large-sized bottle 201 or the like is provided in front of the lower case 41. However, since the contents stored in this area are not affected by light irradiation, the setting of the angle θ is not affected.

The light emitting device 5 is preferably arranged at a position higher than the center of the bottom surface portion 41 e of the lower case 41 to the bottom surface portion 42 e of the upper case 42. If the light-emitting device 5 is arranged in this way, it can also be used when a long leafy vegetable such as spinach is placed upright against the back surface portion 41b of the lower case 41 or placed horizontally on the center of the bottom surface portion 41e of the lower case 41 Light irradiates the leafy vegetables.

Here, the small object vegetable box upper box 42 is provided on the large object vegetable box lower box 41, but the large object vegetable box may be provided upside down. In this way, no small vegetable stored in the small vegetable box will fall into the large vegetable box, and it will rot when it is not noticed. In addition, the large vegetable box has a function as a lid of the small vegetable box, and therefore, it is possible to suppress drying of unused vegetables. In this way, the quality of the vegetables stored in the vegetable compartment 15 can be improved as a whole.

Next, the light irradiation control of the light-emitting device 5 in the refrigerator 1 comprised as mentioned above is demonstrated. First, the concept of functional activation of vegetables will be explained. Most organisms live in a normal state with a general rhythm (that is, there is day and night), and plants are no exception. Vegetables are still alive even during preservation, so it is better to provide an environment where the time zone with light irradiation and the time zone without light irradiation alternately (ie, day and night) as before the harvest.

Therefore, the light-emitting device 5 repeats turning on and off the LED at a certain rhythm. The turn-on time and turn-off time of the LED are more than 5 hours, preferably 5-15 hours. This is because if the light is repeatedly turned on and off at too short a period, the light will be darkened before the synthesis function of the light guide is activated, as in the case of no light.

Irradiating blue light on plants is a signal to inform plants that light irradiation has begun. Plants (here vegetables) open stomata and inhale carbon dioxide necessary for biosynthesis from the air. When it is irradiated with blue light, it is irradiated with red light and green light to promote the chlorophyll activation of vegetables, the production of glucose for biosynthesis, and the synthesis of vitamin C and the like.

In addition, the amount of blue light is weaker than that of red and green light. Therefore, the light amount of blue light is preferably 1/4 or less of the light amount of each of red light and green light, and more preferably 1/5 to 1/10. In addition, after opening the stomata of the vegetables, it is better to turn off the blue light. After the light is irradiated for a certain period of time in this manner, the LED of the light emitting device 5 is turned off.

Based on the above description, the operation (light irradiation control) of the light emitting device 5 will be described. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of the light emitting device 5. After the power is input to the refrigerator 1, the control unit 20 starts the light irradiation control in accordance with the operation of the operation panel 21 by the user in accordance with the circadian rhythm of vegetables (step S1). First, it is determined whether or not it is a time zone (daytime zone) where light irradiation should be performed (step S2).

A 24-hour timer provided in the control unit 20 is used to determine whether it is a daytime zone or a nighttime zone. For example, the daytime zone is set at 6 to 18 o'clock in advance, and the nighttime zone is set otherwise. The time points of this daytime zone and nighttime zone can change according to the season. For example, it can be set to have the longest daytime zone during the summer solstice period and the shortest daytime zone during the winter solstice period. Here, the total of the daytime zone and the nighttime zone is 24 hours, but the length can be appropriately changed.

When it is determined in step S2 that it is the daytime zone, the control unit 20 starts light irradiation in the daytime mode. That is, the red light irradiation of the LEDs 51a, 51b, the green light irradiation of the LEDs 52a, 52b, and the LED 53a, 53b are started simultaneously. Blue light is irradiated (step S3). As described above, the red light and green light are light suitable for activating the functions of vegetables, and the blue light is light that triggers the opening of the stomata of the vegetables. Then, the control unit 20 measures the time to start the daytime mode using, for example, a timer (step S4).

The time required for the blue light irradiation by the LEDs 53a and 53b to open the stomata of the vegetable, for example, more than 10 minutes, after which the LEDs 53a and 53b are turned off (step S5). After that, the elapsed time after the start of the day mode is obtained (step S6), and when the elapsed time reaches the preset upper limit time of the day mode (step S7), it moves to the night mode and turns off the LEDs 51a, 51b, 52a, 52b (step S8) ). As a result, all the LEDs 51a to 53b are turned off and the night mode is started.

The control unit 20 starts the time measurement in the night mode using, for example, a timer at the same time as the night mode is started (step S9). After that, the elapsed time after the start of the night mode is obtained (step S10), and when the elapsed time reaches the preset upper limit time of the night mode (step S11), the process returns to step S3 described above to start the light irradiation of the day mode.

FIG. 11 is a timing chart showing the operation of the light emitting device 5. As shown in FIG. 11, simultaneously with the start of the daytime zone, red light irradiation of LEDs 51 a and 51 b, green light irradiation of LEDs 52 a and 52 b, and blue light irradiation of LEDs 53 a and 53 b are simultaneously started.

When the necessary time for the stomata of the vegetables to open has passed, only the blue light of the LEDs 53a and 53b is stopped. Thereby, the vegetables in the vegetable storage box 4 are irradiated with red light and green light used for light synthesis. Then, at the same time as the end of the daytime zone, the red light irradiation of the LEDs 51a and 51b and the LEDs 52a and 52b are stopped. Green light shines. Thereby, it becomes an environment where the vegetables in the vegetable storage box 4 are not irradiated with light.

In addition, here, a 24-hour timer is used to judge the daytime zone and the nighttime zone, but a method without a timer may be used. For example, based on the output of the door opening / closing sensor 25 of the vegetable room 15, it can be determined that the minimum opening and closing time of the drawer door 15a is late at night, that is, 0 o'clock.

According to the operation of the light-emitting device 5 described here, even in the daytime zone (for example, the time zone from 6 to 18 o'clock), even if the drawer door 15a is opened and closed, external light is incident into the vegetable compartment 15, because the vegetables have been illuminated. The light emitted by the device 5 is irradiated, so that the vegetables are less stressed.

In addition, in the night zone (for example, the time zone from 18:00 to 6:00 the next morning), the vegetables in the vegetable storage box 4 are not illuminated by the light of the light-emitting device 5, but because the opening and closing frequency of the drawer door 15a is low at night, Vegetables are less stressed.

Here, the light emitting device 5 includes LEDs 51a to 53b that emit red light, green light, and blue light. However, the light emitting device 5 is not limited to these wavelength regions, and may be light related to the activation of the functions of vegetables. In addition, depending on the purpose, for example, a light-emitting element (LED, etc.) for irradiating ultraviolet rays may be added in order to increase polyphenols.

In addition, a yellow phosphor can be combined with the blue LEDs 53a and 53b to add white light to blue light. Thereby, vegetables can be irradiated with blue light and white light, and visibility can be improved.

As described above, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the light-emitting device 5 disposed in the vegetable room 15 includes LEDs 51a to 53b, and has an output optical axis Ax inclined downward with respect to the horizontal plane H, and receives the vegetables from the LEDs 51a to 53b. The inside of the nano box 4 emits light. Therefore, it is possible to sufficiently irradiate the vegetables with low height.

In addition, the light-emitting device 5 is disposed higher than the vertical center of the vegetable storage box 4 and faces the back portion 41b of the vegetable storage box 4. Therefore, even if the leafy vegetables are vertically placed against the back portion 41b of the vegetable storage box 4, It is also possible to irradiate light on leafy vegetables when placed upright or placed on the center of the bottom surface portion 41e of the vegetable storage box 4.

In addition, the vegetable storage box 4 includes a lower box 41 and an upper box 42 and directs the light emitted from the light-emitting device 5 toward the lower box 41. Therefore, the leafy vegetables stored mainly in the lower box 41 can be efficiently irradiated with light.

In addition, the included angle between the emitted optical axis Ax and the horizontal plane H is in the range of 5 degrees to 85 degrees (10 degrees to 45 degrees is particularly preferred). Therefore, it is possible to irradiate leafy vegetables with desired light irradiation without irradiating light and light. Onto potatoes that you do n’t want to irradiate.

In addition, the light-emitting device 5 includes an LED group 51 that emits red light, an LED group 52 that emits green light, and an LED group 53 that emits blue light. After emitting light from the LED groups 51 to 53 simultaneously, the LED group 53 is turned off first. After the stomata of the vegetables are opened by the irradiation of blue light, only the light (red light and green light) necessary for light synthesis is irradiated, which can reduce energy consumption.

Embodiment 2.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 12 is a diagram showing the structure of the vegetable compartment 15 and its surroundings in the second embodiment. In this second embodiment, the light-emitting device 5 can be shaken about the swing axis 62 in the horizontal direction (more specifically, the left-right direction) as the center, and its emission optical axis with respect to the light-emitting device 5 can be changed. The inclination of the horizontal plane H of Ax.

Specifically, the light-emitting device 5 is supported by a swing frame 61 that can swing about the swing shaft 62 as a center. The swing frame 61 is shaken by a motor 6 as a driving device. The motor 6 is, for example, a stepping motor. The motor 6 and the swing frame 61 constitute a moving mechanism that moves the light emitting device 5 (even if it swings about the swing shaft 62 as a center).

The structure of the light-emitting device 5 is as described in the first embodiment. For example, when the light-emitting device 5 has a configuration as shown in FIG. 5, a cover member 54 (FIG. 5) of the light-emitting device 5 is attached to the swing frame 61 to have a swingable configuration.

In the second embodiment, a camera 7 as an imaging device is arranged on the back side of the vegetable room 15. The camera 7 is configured to capture the inside of the vegetable storage box 4 (here, the inside of the lower box 41).

Fig. 13 is a block diagram showing a control system of a refrigerator in a second embodiment. An operation input from the operation panel 21, a door opening / closing signal from the door opening / closing sensor 25, and image data from the camera 7 are input to the control unit 20 of the refrigerator 1. The control unit 20 controls the compressor 17, the cooler 18, the blower 19, the motor 6, and the light-emitting device 5 (LEDs 51a to 53b) based on these inputs.

In the second embodiment, the control unit 20 processes the image data captured by the camera 7 and detects the position of the leafy vegetables by, for example, capturing a green image. Then, the motor 6 is driven according to the detected position of the leafy vegetables, and the inclination of the light emission axis Ax of the light emitting device 5 is changed, so that the light can be most efficiently irradiated to the leafy vegetables.

Fig. 14 is a diagram showing emission of the light emitting device 5 in the second embodiment; An example of a change in the tilt of the optical axis Ax. As shown in FIG. 13 (A), when the leafy vegetables 200 are in a higher position in the vegetable storage box 4, the inclination angle θ1 of the light emission axis Ax of the light-emitting device 5 with respect to the horizontal plane H is reduced, thereby, Light is irradiated to a relatively high position in the vegetable storage box 4.

In contrast, as shown in FIG. 13 (B), when the leafy vegetables 200 are in a lower position in the vegetable storage box 4, the inclination angle θ 2 of the emission optical axis Ax of the light-emitting device 5 with respect to the horizontal plane H becomes larger. Thereby, a relatively low position in the vegetable storage box 4 is irradiated with light. With this configuration, the leafy vegetables 200 stored in the vegetable storage box 4 can be efficiently irradiated with light.

Here, the position of the vegetables in the vegetable storage box 4 is detected based on the image captured by the camera 7, but the position of the vegetables in the vegetable storage box 4 may be detected by other methods. For example, the operation panel 21 (FIG. 1) or another input terminal may be used to allow the user to input the position of the vegetables. In this case, the internal space of the vegetable storage box 4 can be divided into a plurality of areas, and the user can select the area. In this case, the internal space of the vegetable storage box 4 can be divided into, for example, 3 in the front-back direction (front, middle, and rear), 2 in the left-right direction (right, left), and 2 in the up-down direction (up, down). ).

Although the tilt of the entire light emitting device 5 is changed here, only the tilt of a specific LED group among the LED groups 51 to 53 described in the first embodiment may be changed. In addition, the light emitting devices 5 may be arranged at a plurality of positions respectively, and the inclination of each light emitting device 5 may be changed according to the necessity of light irradiation (for example, the position of leafy vegetables).

As described above, in Embodiment 2 of the present invention, the light emitted from the light emitting device 5 is changed in accordance with the position (height) of the vegetables in the vegetable storage box 4. The inclination angle of the axis Ax with respect to the horizontal plane H makes it possible to efficiently irradiate light in accordance with the storage condition of the vegetables in the vegetable storage box 4.

In addition, if the position of the vegetables in the vegetable storage box 4 is determined based on the image captured by the camera 7, the convenience for the user can be further improved.

In Embodiments 1 and 2 described above, the light-emitting device 5 has LED groups 51, 52, and 53 respectively composed of two LEDs, and controls light emission for each group (each of the LED groups 51, 52, and 53). However, one LED may be provided for each wavelength region, and light emission may be controlled for each LED (each light emitting element). The light-emitting element is not limited to an LED, and other light-emitting elements may be used.

In addition, in Embodiments 1 and 2, the vegetable storage box 4 is divided into the lower box 41 and the upper box 42, and the vegetable storage box 4 is not necessarily divided.

In addition, in the above-mentioned Embodiments 1 and 2, the entire vegetable storage box 4 (the lower box 41 and the upper box 42) may be made transparent, or only the light-transmitting portion of the light-emitting device 5 may be made transparent, or The light-transmitting portion of the light-emitting device 5 may be an opening portion.

As mentioned above, although the preferred embodiment of this invention was demonstrated concretely, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, Various improvement or deformation | transformation can be performed within the range which does not deviate from the meaning of this invention.

Claims (21)

A refrigerator includes: a vegetable room; a vegetable storage box provided in the preface vegetable room; and a light emitting device provided in the preface vegetable room; the preface light emitting device has a light emitting section having an optical axis inclined downward with respect to a horizontal plane, The light emitting section emits light into the interior of the vegetable storage box. In the refrigerator described in item 1 of the scope of patent application, the pre-lighting device is disposed above the center in the vertical direction of the pre-vegetable storage box. In the refrigerator described in item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, the pre-light emitting device is disposed to face the back of the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box. In the refrigerator described in item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box has an upper box and a lower box, and the pre-emission light emitting device is configured so that light emitted from the pre-emission light emitting portion is directed toward the inside of the pre-equivalent lower box. In the refrigerator described in claim 3 of the scope of patent application, the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box includes an upper box and a lower box, and the pre-emission light emitting device is configured so that light emitted from the pre-emission light-emitting portion is directed toward the inside of the pre-echo lower box. For the refrigerator described in item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, the angle between the optical axis and the horizontal plane in the previous description is in the range of 5 degrees to 85 degrees. As in the refrigerator described in item 3 of the scope of patent application, the angle between the optical axis and the horizontal plane in the previous description is in the range of 5 degrees to 85 degrees. As described in item 6 of the scope of the patent application, the angle between the optical axis and the horizontal plane in the previous description is in the range of 10 degrees to 45 degrees. As described in item 7 of the scope of patent application, the angle between the optical axis and the horizontal plane in the previous note is in the range of 10 degrees to 45 degrees. As in the refrigerator described in item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, the pre-light emitting device has a plurality of light-emitting portions that emit light having different wavelengths from each other; and the light is emitted from the selected light-emitting portion among the plurality of pre-light portions. According to the refrigerator described in the third item of the patent application, the pre-light emitting device has a plurality of light-emitting portions that emit light having different wavelengths from each other; and the light is emitted from the selected light-emitting portion among the pre-multiple light-emitting portions. As in the refrigerator described in item 10 of the scope of patent application, the plurality of light emitting sections in the preamble are a plurality of light emitting elements or a plurality of groups of light emitting elements. As in the refrigerator described in claim 11 of the scope of patent application, the plurality of light-emitting sections in the preamble are a plurality of light-emitting elements or a plurality of groups of light-emitting elements. According to the refrigerator described in item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, the pre-light emitting device includes a first light-emitting portion that emits red light, a second light-emitting portion that emits green light, and a third light-emitting portion that emits blue light; After the light emitting part, the second light emitting part of the preamble and the third light emitting part of the preamble emit light at the same time, the third light emitting part of the preface is turned off first. Refrigerator as described in item 3 of the scope of patent application, The preface light-emitting device includes a first light-emitting portion that emits red light, a second light-emitting portion that emits green light, and a third light-emitting portion that emits blue light; the pre-first light-emitting portion, pre-second light-emitting portion, and pre-third light-emitting portion After emitting light at the same time, the third light-emitting part of the preface was turned off first. In the refrigerator described in item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, the pre-light emitting device emits light in the daytime zone, and the pre-light emitting device turns off in the night zone. In the refrigerator described in item 3 of the scope of patent application, the pre-light-emitting device emits light during the daytime zone, and the pre-light-emitting device turns off during the nighttime zone. The refrigerator described in item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, further includes: a moving mechanism that moves the pre-lighting device to change the inclination of the pre-light axis with respect to the horizontal plane; and a control unit corresponding to the vegetables in the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box Position control pre-movement mechanism. The refrigerator described in item 3 of the patent application scope further includes: a moving mechanism that moves the pre-lighting device to change the inclination of the pre-optical axis with respect to the horizontal plane; and a control unit corresponding to the position of the vegetables in the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box Control pre-movement mechanism. The refrigerator described in item 18 of the scope of patent application, further includes: a photographing device that captures an image in the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box; the pre-note control unit detects the vegetables in the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box based on the image captured by the pre-shooting device. position. The refrigerator described in item 19 of the scope of patent application, further includes: a photographing device that captures an image in the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box; the pre-note control unit detects the vegetables in the pre-vegetable vegetable storage box based on the image captured by the pre-photographing device. position.