Abstrict A refrigerator for selectively discharging vertical stream of cool
air to the front of the freezer and freshfood compartments is disclosed.
The refrigerator comprises: a cabinet formed with a freezing compartment
and a fresh food compartment, which are partitioned by a partitioning
wall; an evaporator for generating cool air; a fan for transferring
the cool air to the freezing compartment and the fresh food compartment;
an air curtain duct installed at the partitioning wall, for transferring
the cool air generated by the evaporator to doors for the freezing
compartment and the fresh food compartment; an upper and lower air
curtain ports formed at the front end portion of the air curtain
duct, for discharging the cool air towards the freezing compartment
and fresh food compartment; a cross flow fan installed in air curtain
duct, for supplying the cool air to the air curtain duct; and a
changing damper for selectively closing the upper or lower air curtain
port to selectively directing the cool air supplied through air
curtain duct to the freezing compartment or the fresh food compartment.
Thus, leakage of the cool air through the openings of the freezing
compartment and the fresh food compartment can be effectively prevented,
and the temperatures in the both compartments are maintained constant,
thus enhancing the cooling efficiency.
Claims What is claimed is:
1. A refrigerator comprising:
a cabinet formed with a freezing compartment and a fresh food compartment,
which are partitioned by a partitioning wall;
an evaporator for generating cool air;
a fan transferring the cool air to said freezing compartment and
said fresh food compartment;
an air curtain duct installed at said partitioning wall, for transferring
the cool air generated by said evaporator to doors for said freezing
compartment and said fresh food compartment;
upper and lower air curtain ports formed at the front end portion
of said air curtain duct, for discharging the cool air toward said
freezing compartment and said fresh food compartment;
a first air curtain suction port installed at an upper wall of
said freezing compartment, adjacent to said freezing compartment
door, for inhaling the cool air discharged from said upper air curtain
port to generate an air curtain at the opening part of said freezing
compartment;
a second air curtain suction port installed at a lower wall of
said fresh food compartment, adjacent to said fresh food compartment
door, for inhaling the the cool air discharged from said lower air
curtain port to generate an air curtain at the opening part of said
fresh food compartment;
an air curtain circulation duct for connecting said first air curtain
suction port, said second air curtain suction port and said air
curtain duct;
a cross flow fan installed in said air curtain duct, for supplying
the cool air to said air curtain duct; and
a changing damper for selectively closing said upper or lower air
curtain port to selectively directing the cool air supplied through
said air curtain duct toward said freezing compartment or said fresh
food compartment.
2. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, wherein said changing
damper is of a bar having a cross-sectional shape of a fan or gingko
leaf shape.
3. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a
stepping motor for driving said changing damper.
4. The refrigerator as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a
stepping motor for driving said changing member. Description BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly
to a refrigerator with an air curtain generating device in which
cool air is selectively discharged to a fresh food compartment or
a freezing compartment to generate an air curtain.
2. Prior Art
FIG. 1 shows a section of a conventional refrigerator. The refrigerator
has, as shown in FIG. 1, a cabinet 100 formed with a freezing compartment
101 and a fresh food compartment 102 which are partitioned from
each other by a wall (not shown), and a freezing compartment door
103 and a fresh food compartment door 104 for opening and closing
the freezing compartment 101 and the fresh food compartment 102,
respectively, The doors 103 and 104 are mounted on the cabinet 100
by a hinge.
A plurality of shelves 105 are mounted inside the freezing compartment
101 and the fresh food compartment 102. A compressor (not shown)
is installed at the back of a rear wall 112 of the fresh food compartment
102 formed at the lower part compartment 100, and an evaporator
106 is installed at the back of a rear wall 111 of the freezing
compartment 101 formed at the upper part of the cabinet 100 for
evaporating a refrigerant supplied from the compressor by absorbing
heat from the surroungings to generate cool air.
A first fan 107 for blowing the cool air generated by the evaporator
106 to a freezing compartment 101, and a second fan (not shown)
for blowing the cool air generated by the evaporator 106 to the
fresh food compartment 102 through a multi-duct structure 108, are
installed above the evaporator 106.
A first cool air circulation duct 109 is installed above the wall
partitioning the freezing compartment and the fresh food compartment,
in parallel with the wall, and second cool air curculation duct
110 is installed below the wall in parallel with the wall, so that
the cool air is circulated inside the freezing compartment 101 and
the fresh food compartment 102.
Cool air discharging ports 111a and 112a are formed on the rear
wall 111 of the freezing compartment 101 and the rear wall 112 of
the fresh food compartment 102, so that the cool air generated by
the evaporator 106 is blown into the freezing compartment 101 and
the fresh food compartment 102 by the first fan 107 and the second
fan.
Hereinbelow, the operation of a conventional refrigerator will
be described.
When power is supplied to the refrigerator, a compressor is operated
and the refrigerant is circulated through the refrigeration cycle
of the refrigerator. At this point, the evaporator 106 generates
the cool air by absorbing the heat from the surrounding air.
In this state, the first fan 107 is operated, so that part of the
the cool air generated by the evaporator 106 is directly blown into
the freezing compartment 101 through the cool air discharging port
111a of the rear wall 111 of the freezing compartment 101. At the
same time, the second fan is operated, so that the remaining part
of the cool air is blown toward the fresh food compartment 102 through
the multi-duct 108, and then supplied into the fresh food compartment
102 through the cool air discharging port 112a of the rear wall
112 of the fresh food compartment 102.
At this time, the cool air is blown horizontally from the rear
side of the freezing compartment 101 and the fresh food compartment
102 to the front side thereof.
The cool air blown to the freezing compartment 101 and the fresh
food compartment 102 returns to the evaporator 106 through the first
cool air circulation duct 109 and the second cool air circulation
duct 110. The cool air re-supplied to the freezing compartment 101
and the fresh food compartment 102 by the first fan 107 and the
second fan forms a cool air circulation in the refrigerator.
Through the process described above, the temperature of the freezing
compartment 101 is maintained at -18.degree. C., and the temperature
of the fresh food compartment 102 is maintained at 0.degree.-9.degree.
C.
Two push button switches (not shown) installed on the front walls
(not shown) of the freezing compartment 101 and the fresh food compartment
102, adjacent to the freezing compartment door 103 and the fresh
food compartment door 104, respectively, to operate the first fan
107 and the second fan.
When the freezing compartment 101 and the fresh food compartment
102 are closed, each push button switch is pressed by a hinge side
of each door, so that the first fan 107 and the second fan are operated
according to a predertermined control signal from a microprocessor
(not shown).
On the contrary, when the freezing compartment 101 or the fresh
food compartment 102 is opened, each push button switch is released,
so that the first fan 107 and the second fan are not operated.
The conventional refrigerator has the following problem.
When the freezing compartment door 103 and the fresh food compartment
104 are opened, an external warm air flows into the compartments
without a resistance, thereby causing the leakage of the cool air,
making the refrigerator energy inefficient.
To solve the above problem, a refrigerator having devices for generating
an air curtain for shuttng off opening of a freezing compartment
and a fresh food compartment has been disclosed by the arts. However,
the refrigerators have a complicated structure in that air curtain
generating divices are installed on the freezing compartment and
the fresh food compartment, separately.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator
with an air curtain generating device for selectively generating
an air curtain in a freezing compartment and a fresh food compartment,
when a freezing compartment door or a fresh food compartment door
is opened.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator
being capable of maintaining a constant temperature in a freezing
compartment and a fresh food compartment, to enhance a cooling efficiency
of the refrigerator by effectively preventing the leakage of cool
air from the freezing and fresh food compartments.
To achieve the above objects, the present invention provides a
refrigerator comprising a cabinet formed with a freezing compartment
and a fresh food compartment, which are partitioned by a partitioning
wall; an evaporator for generating cool air; a fan transferring
the cool air to the freezing compartment and the fresh food compartment;
an air curtain duct installed at the partitioning wall, for transferring
the cool air generated by the evaporator to doors for said freezing
compartment and said fresh food compartment; upper and lower air
curtain ports formed at the front end portion of the air curtain
duct, for discharging the cool air toward the freezing compartment
and the fresh food compartment; a first air curtain suction port
installed at an upper wall of said freezing compartment, adjacent
to said freezing compartment door, for inhaling the cool air discharged
from the upper air curtain port to generate an air curtain at the
opening part of the freezing compartment; a second air curtain suction
port installed at a lower wall of the fresh food compartment, adjacent
to the fresh food compartment door, for inhaling the the cool air
discharged from the lower air curtain port to generate an air curtain
at the opening part of the fresh food compartment; an air curtain
circulation duct for connecting the first air curtain suction port,
the second air curtain suction port and the air curtain duct; a
cross flow fan installed in the air curtain duct, for supplying
the cool air to the air curtain duct; and a changing damper for
selectively closing said upper or lower air curtain port to selectively
directing the cool air supplied through the air curtain duct toward
the freezing compartment or said fresh food compartment.
Here, it is preferable that changing damper is of a bar having
a cross-sectional shape of a fan or gingko leaf shape.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention will be better understood and its various
objects and advantages will be more fully appreciated from the following
description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,
in which:
FIG. 1 shows a conventional refrigerator;
FIG. 2 shows an air flow inside of the conventional refrigerator;
FIGS. 3, 4 shows a refrigerator according to the present invention;
FIG. 5 shows an air curtain generated when a fresh food compartment
door of the refrigerator of FIG. 4 is opened;
FIGS. 6 and 7 show operations of a changing damper bar installed
at a partioning wall in the refrigerator of FIG. 4; and
FIG. 8 shows an enlarged diagram of main parts of the refrigerator
according to the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Reference will now be made in detail to the present invention,
examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout
the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.
A refrigerator according to the present invention has, as shown
in FIGS. 3 and 4, a cabinet 100 formed with a freezing compartment
1 and a fresh food compartment 2, which are partitioned from each
other by a partiton wall 13, and a freezing compartment door 3 and
a fresh food compartment door 4 for opening and closing the freezing
compartment 1 and the fresh food compartment 2, respectively. The
door3 and 4 are hingedly mounted on the cabinet 100.
A plularity of shelves 5 are mounted inside the freezing compartment
1 and the fresh food compartment 2.
A compressor (not shown) is installed at the back of a rear wall
12 of the fresh food compartment 2 formed at the lower part of the
cabinet 100, and an evaporator 6 is installed installed at the back
of a rear wall 11 of the freezing compartment 1 formed at the upper
part of the cabinet 100 for evaporating a refrigerant supplied from
the compressor by absorbing the heat from the surroundings to generate
cool air.
A first fan 7 for blowing the cool air generated by the evaporator
6 to the freezing compartment 1, and a second fan (not shown) for
blowing the cool air generated by the evaporator 6 to the fresh
food compartment 2 through a multi-duct structure 8, are installed
above the evaporator 6.
A first cool air circulation duct 9 is installed above the partitioning
wall, in parallel with the wall 13, and a second cool air circulation
duct 10 is installed below the wall 13 in parallel therewith, so
that the cool air is circulated inside the freezing compartment
1 and the fresh food compartment 2.
Cool air discharging ports 11a and 12a are formed in the rear walls
11 and 12 of the freezing compartment 1 and the fresh food compartment
2, respectively, so that the cool air generated by the evaporator
6 is blown into the freezing compartment 1 and the fresh food compartment
2 by the first fan 7 and the second fan, respectively.
An air curtain duct 13a is installed at the wall 13 between the
first cool air circulation duct 9 and the second cool air circulation
duct 10, to guide the cool air generated by the evaporator 6 toward
the freezing compartment 1 and the fresh food compartment 2. Curtain
ports, 14a and 14b are formed at a front end portion of the air
curtain duct 13a, so that the cool air in the air curtain duct 13a
is discharged to the freezing compartment 1 and the fresh food compartment
2, through the air curtain port 14a and 14b, respectively (see FIG.
8). At an upper wall 15 of the freezing compartment 1, a first air
curtain suction port 15a is formed adjacent to the freezing compartment
door 3, to inhale the cool air from the upper air curtain port 14a,
thereby generating a vertical stream of cool air forming an air
curtain at the opening part of the freezing compartment 1. Also,
at a lower wall 16 of the fresh compartment 2, a second air curtain
suction port 16a is formed adjacent to the fresh food compartment
door 4 to inhale the cool air from the lower air curtain port 14b,
thereby generating a vertical stream of cool air forming an air
curtain at the opening part of the fresh food compartment 2.
The first air curtain suction port 15a, the second air curtain
suction port 16a and the air curtain duct 13a are interconnected
one another by an air curtain circulation duct 17.
In the air curtain duct 13a, a cross flow fan 18 circulates the
cool air from the air curtain circulation duct 17 supplying the
cool air toward the air curtain ports 14a and 14b. The cross flow
fan 18 is driven by a driving motor 21.
A changing damper bar 19 having a cross-sectional shape of a fan
or gingko leaf is installed horizontally in a lengthwise direction
of the air curtain ports 14a and 14b to rotate within a predetermined
angle, thereby selectively closing the air curtain ports 14a and
14b. Therefore, the cool air flowing toward the air curtain ports
14a and 14b through the air curtain duct 13a is selectively discharged
to the freezing compartment 1 or to the fresh food compartment 2.
The changing damper bar 19 is rotated by a stepping motor 22 for
driving the changing damper bar 19, by a predertermined angle.
Two push button switches are installed on the front part of the
freezing compartment 1 and the fresh food compartment 2, adjacent
to the freezing compartment door 3 and the fresh food compartment
door 4, respectively. When the freezing compartment 1 and the fresh
food compartment 2 are closed, each push button switch is pressed
by the side of each door. On the contrary, when the freezing compartment
1 and the fresh food compartment 2 are opened, each push button
switch is released.
A controller such as a microprocessor (not shown) recognizes that
each door is opened, when each push button is released.
When each door is opened, and the push button switch is released,
the microprocessor stops the operation of the first and second fans,
and drives the stepping motor to rotate the changing damper bar
19, for generating the air curtain at the opening part of the compartment
of which the door is opened.
Hereinbelow the operation and its effect of the refrigerator according
to the present invention will be described.
When the freezing compartment 1 and the fresh food compartment
2 are closed, each push button switch is pressed by the side of
each door, so that the microprocessor operates the first fan 7 and
the second fan. Accordingly, the cool air is discharged from the
rear part of the refrigerator to the freezing compartment 1 and
the fresh food compartment 2. Then, the cool air goes out of the
freezing compartment 1 and the fresh food compartment 2 to be circulated
through the cool air circulation duct 9 and 10.
When the fresh food compartment 4 is opened, the push button switch
is released, as shown in FIGS. 5, 6 and 8. At this time, the micro
processor senses that the door is opened and stops the operation
of the second fan to prevent the cool air from flowing into the
fresh food compartment 2. Also, the microprocessor drives the stepping
motor 22 to rotate the changing damper bar 19, thereby closing the
upper air curtain port 14a.
Accordingly, the cool air generated by the evaporator 6 and transferred
through the air curtain duct 13a is discharged only toward the fresh
food compartment 2 through the air curtain port 14. The cool air
discharged toward the fresh food compartment 2 flows into the second
air curtain suction port 16a to generate the air curtain at the
opening part of the fresh food compartment 2, therby preventing
the external warm air from flowing into the fresh food compartment
2.
The cool air for generting the air curtain passes through the second
air curtain suction porta and is circulated through the air curtain
circulation duct 17. The cool air flowing inside the air curtain
circulation duct 17 is transferred into the air curtain duct 13a
to be re-discharged to the lower air curtaion port 14b. At this
time, the cross flow fan 18 in the air curtain duct 13a operated
by the microprocessor, directs the cool air flowing inside the air
curtain circulation duct 17 to the air curtain duct 13a with ease.
When the freezing compartment door 3 is opened, as shown in FIG.
7, the changing damper bar 19 is reversely rotated by the stepping
motor to close the lower air curtain port 14b. Accordingly, the
cool air transferred through the upper air curtain port 14a to the
first air curtain suction port 15a to form the air curtain at the
opening part of the freezing compartment 1.
As described above, according to the present invention, the air
curtain is generated at the opening part of the compartment of which
the door is opened by controlling the changing damper bar. Accordingly,
leakage of the cool air through the opening of the freezing compartment
and the fresh food compartment is effectively prevented, so that
temperatures in the freezing compartment and the fresh food compartment
are maintained constant, thus the cooling dfficiency of the refrigerator
is enhanced.
Although the present invention has been described and illustrated
in detail, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration
and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation wherein
the spirit and scope of the present invention is limited only by
the terms of the appended claims. |