Refrigerator

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11060769-B2
Application number	US-201816199950-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 26, 2018
Priority date	Nov 29, 2017
Publication date	Jul 13, 2021
Grant date	Jul 13, 2021

Abstract

A refrigerator includes a main body that has a storage chamber and a drying chamber; a thermoelectric module that includes a heat absorber and a heat dissipater; a cooling fan that circulates air in the storage chamber to the heat absorber and the storage chamber; a heat-dissipating fan that blows air to the heat dissipater; an air guide that has a passage for guiding air heated by the heat dissipater to the drying chamber; a heater that is disposed in the passage; and a damper that controls a flow of air in the passage between the heat-dissipating fan and the heater. Heat of the heat dissipater transfers to the drying chamber through the passage of the air guide and the damper, thereby being able to dry an object to be dried.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A refrigerator comprising:
a main body including a storage chamber and a drying chamber;
a thermoelectric module including a heat absorber, a heat dissipater, and a thermoelectric element disposed between the heat absorber and the heat dissipater;
a cooling fan to circulate air in the storage chamber to the heat absorber and the storage chamber;
a heat-dissipating fan to blow air to the heat dissipater;
an air guide including a passage for guiding the air blown by the heat-dissipating fan to the drying chamber;
a heater disposed in the passage; and
a damper to control a flow of the air blown by the heat-dissipating fan in the passage between the heat-dissipating fan and the heater,
wherein the damper divides an inside of the air guide into a heat-dissipating fan space accommodating the heat-dissipating fan and a heater space accommodating the heater.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1 , further comprising at least one heat dissipation hole formed at the air guide to discharge at least a portion of the air blown by the heat-dissipating fan and heated by the heat dissipater to the outside of the air guide.

3. The refrigerator of claim 1 , wherein the air guide is disposed on top of the main body.

4. The refrigerator of claim 1 , wherein the main body includes:
a drying chamber top plate having at least one intake hole through which the air blown by the heat dissipating fan that has passed through the heat dissipater and the heater flows into the drying chamber; and
a drying chamber bottom plate having at least one exhaust hole through which the air flown into the drying chamber is discharged out of the drying chamber.

5. The refrigerator of claim 1 , wherein the damper includes;
a flow path body having a plurality of first through-holes and second through-holes through which the air blown by the heat dissipating fan flows; and
a damper body interacting with the flow path body to open/close the first through-holes among the plurality of first through holes and second through-holes.

6. The refrigerator of claim 5 , wherein the plurality of first through-holes and second through-holes face the heater.

7. The refrigerator of claim 5 , wherein an elongated length of the damper body is shorter than an elongated length of the heater.

8. The refrigerator of claim 5 , wherein a handle protrudes from the damper body, and
a handle hole through which the handle movably penetrates is formed at the air guide.

9. The refrigerator of claim 5 , wherein the flow path body divides the heat-dissipating fan space and the heater space, and
the air guide includes at least one external air suction hole through which external air is suctioned into the heat-dissipating fan space and at least one heat dissipation hole through which the air in the heat-dissipating fan space is discharged out of the air guide.

10. The refrigerator of claim 9 , wherein the damper body closes the at least one heat dissipation hole when opening the first through-holes among the plurality of first through-holes and second through-holes, and opens the at least one heat dissipation hole when closing the first through-holes among the plurality of first through-holes and second through-holes.

11. The refrigerator of claim 1 , further comprising:
a storage chamber temperature sensor to sense the temperature of the storage chamber; and
a controller to control the thermoelectric element, the cooling fan, the heat-dissipating fan, and the heater.

12. A refrigerator comprising:
a main body including a storage chamber and a drying chamber;
a thermoelectric module including a heat absorber, a heat dissipater, and a thermoelectric element disposed between the heat absorber and the heat dissipater;
a cooling fan to circulate air in the storage chamber to the heat absorber and the storage chamber;
a heat-dissipating fan to blow air to the heat dissipater;
an air guide including a passage for guiding the air blown by the heat-dissipating fan to the drying chamber;
a heater disposed in the passage;
a damper to control a flow of the air blown by the heat-dissipating fan in the passage between the heat-dissipating fan and the heater,
a storage chamber temperature sensor to sense a temperature of the storage chamber; and
a controller to control the thermoelectric element, the cooling fan, the heat-dissipating fan, and the heater,
wherein when the temperature sensed by the storage chamber temperature sensor is in a range that does not satisfy a target temperature and a drying mode is executed, the controller performs a simultaneous operation, in which a cooling mode and the drying mode are performed, that turns on the thermoelectric element, the cooling fan, and the heat-dissipating fan, and keeps the heater turned off.

13. The refrigerator of claim 11 , wherein when the temperature sensed by the storage chamber temperature sensor is in a range that satisfies a target temperature and a drying mode is executed, the controller performs an exclusive drying operation that turns on the thermoelectric element and the heat-dissipating fan, and turns on the heater.

14. A refrigerator comprising:
a main body including a storage chamber and a drying chamber;
a thermoelectric module including a heat absorber, a heat dissipater, and a thermoelectric element disposed between the heat absorber and the heat dissipater;
a cooling fan to circulate air in the storage chamber to the heat absorber and the storage chamber;
a heat-dissipating fan to blow air to the heat dissipater;
an air guide including a passage for guiding the air blown by the heat-dissipating fan to the drying chamber;
a heater disposed in the passage;
a damper to control a flow of the air blown by the heat-dissipating fan in the passage between the heat-dissipating fan and the heater,
a storage chamber temperature sensor to sense a temperature of the storage chamber; and
a controller to control the thermoelectric element, the cooling fan, the heat-dissipating fan, and the heater,
when a turning-on time of the thermoelectric element is a set time or more and a drying mode is executed, the controller performs a defrosting-drying operation that keeps the thermoelectric element off and turns on the cooling fan, the heat-dissipating fan, and the heater.

15. The refrigerator of claim 5 , wherein the damper further includes a damper body actuator that moves the damper body to a first position where the damper body opens the first through-holes among the plurality of first through-holes and second through-holes or to a second position where the damper body closes the first through-holes among the plurality of first through-holes and second through-holes.

16. The refrigerator of claim 15 , further comprising:
a storage chamber temperature sensor to sense a temperature of the storage chamber; and
a controller to control the thermoelectric element, the cooling fan, the heat-dissipating fan, the heater, and the damper.

17. A refrigerator comprising:
a main body including a storage chamber and a drying chamber;
a thermoelectric module including a heat absorber, a heat dissipater, and a thermoelectric element disposed between the heat absorber and the heat dissipater;
a cooling fan to circulate air in the storage chamber to the heat absorber and the storage chamber;
a heat-dissipating fan to blow air to the heat dissipater;
an air guide including a passage for guiding the air blown by the heat-dissipating fan to the drying chamber;
a heater disposed in the passage; and
a damper to control a flow of the air blown by the heat-dis

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Oh Minkyu

Classifications

• F25D2700/12

  Sensors measuring the inside temperature · CPC title

• F25D2400/02

  Refrigerators including a heater · CPC title

• F25D31/005

  Combined cooling and heating devices · CPC title

• F25D29/00

  Arrangement or mounting of control or safety devices · CPC title

• F25D17/045 Primary

  Air flow control arrangements · CPC title