Domestic refrigeration appliance and method for operating a domestic refrigeration appliance

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016313055-A1
Application number	US-201615131480-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 18, 2016
Priority date	Apr 22, 2015
Publication date	Oct 27, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A domestic refrigeration appliance has a heat-insulated carcass which has an inner container with a coolable interior space for storing food, a refrigeration device for cooling the coolable interior space, an assisting device, and a door leaf mounted pivotable relative to the carcass for opening and closing the interior space or a drawer which in the closed state is pushed into the coolable interior space in order to close it, and in the open state is at least partially withdrawn from the coolable interior space. The assisting device has an air pressure sensor configured to determine a change of the air pressure within the interior space due to a pushing and/or pulling on the closed door leaf or the closed drawer. The assisting device is configured to open the closed door leaf or the closed drawer automatically at least partially depending on the determined change in the air pressure.

First claim

1 . A domestic refrigeration appliance, comprising:
a heat-insulated carcass having an inner container with a coolable interior space for storing food; a refrigeration device for cooling said coolable interior space; an assisting device; a drawer; a door leaf mounted pivotable relative to said carcass for opening and closing said coolable interior space or said drawer which in a closed state is pushed into said coolable interior space in order to close it, and in an open state is at least partially withdrawn from said coolable interior space; said assisting device having an air pressure sensor configured to determine a change of air pressure within said coolable interior space resulting due to a pushing and/or pulling on said closed door leaf or on said closed drawer, said assisting device configured to open said closed door leaf or said closed drawer automatically at least partially depending on a determined change in the air pressure; and said air pressure sensor having a pressure chamber coupled to said coolable interior space, an electric component disposed within said pressure chamber and an evaluating device configured to evaluate at least one electrical variable of said electric component associated with the change in the air pressure, so that said assisting device opens said closed door leaf or said closed drawer at least partially, dependent upon an evaluated electrical variable, said electric component having an areal component and an electrically conductive film spaced at a distance from said areal component.

2 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 1 , wherein said electric component is an inductive component, said areal component is configured as an areal electric coil and, said at least one electrical variable is an inductance, a resistance and/or a reactance of the inductive component.

3 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 1 , wherein:
said electric component is a capacitor; said areal component is an areal first electrode; said electrically conductive film is a second electrode of said capacitor; and the at least one electrical variable is a capacitance of said capacitor.

4 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 1 , wherein said air pressure sensor has a spacing ring which is disposed between said areal component and said electrically conductive film.

5 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 1 , wherein said air pressure sensor has a circuit board with a surface and said areal component is disposed on said surface.

6 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 5 , wherein only said areal component is disposed on said circuit board.

7 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 1 , wherein said assisting device has a housing within which substantially all components of said assisting device are disposed and in which said pressure chamber is provided.

8 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 7 , wherein said housing of said assisting device has an entry which is directly linked to said pressure chamber and is coupled with said coolable interior space.

9 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 5 , wherein:
said air pressure sensor has a housing which delimits said pressure chamber and contains an entry to said pressure chamber, said entry being coupled to said coolable interior space; said housing of said air pressure sensor has an opening formed therein which is closed by said circuit board such that said surface of said circuit board faces toward said pressure chamber and said areal component is disposed in a region of said opening within said pressure chamber; and said circuit board contains a peripherally circumferential edge which overlaps an edge of said opening at least partially.

10 . The domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 1 , wherein said air pressure sensor contains a circuit board having a surface with a depression formed therein, said areal component is disposed in said depression of said surface.

11 . A method for operating a domestic refrigeration appliance according to claim 1 , which comprises the steps of:
determining a value or a change in the at least one electrical variable of the electric component by means of the evaluating device, so that the at least one electrical variable is changed due to an at least partially changing distance between the electrically conductive film and the areal component, caused by a change in the air pressure resulting from pulling or pushing on the closed door leaf or on the closed drawer; evaluating a determined value or a determined change in the at least one electrical variable by means of the evaluating device; and activating the assisting device, so that the assisting device opens the closed door leaf or the closed drawer, based at least partially in dependence upon the evaluating step.

Assignees

• Bsh Hausgeraete Gmbh

Inventors

• Heydel Adolf

Classifications

• F25D11/00 Primary

  Self-contained movable devices, e.g. domestic refrigerators · CPC title

• E05F15/71

  responsive to temperature changes, rain, wind or noise · CPC title

• F25D25/025

  Drawers · CPC title

• F25D17/047 Primary

  Pressure equalising devices · CPC title

• F25D29/003 Primary

  for movable devices · CPC title