Control system for a refrigerator with two evaporating temperatures
AssigneeWorkSmart Energy Enterprises, Inc.
InventorWilliam Leslie Kopko
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An improved refrigerator that combines means for directing cooling to a fresh-food compartment and a freezer compartment with a variable-capacity compressor. During fresh-food cooling the compressor volumetric capacity is reduced to match capacity of the expansion device. The means for directing cooling may be a multiple evaporators. Another option is a single evaporator with a reversing fan and flaps that respond to the direction of air flow to direct air flow between the evaporator and each compartment. Another embodiment comprises a natural-convection evaporator with dampers for directing air flow. This last embodiment also allows automatic defrost with a natural-convection evaporator.
Claims15
A refrigerator with a freezer compartment cooling mode and a fresh-food compartment cooling mode, comprising:
- a) a compressor for pumping refrigerant vapor;
- b) a condenser that receives compressed vapor from said compressor and cools it to produce refrigerant liquid;
- c) a first evaporator that evaporates said refrigerant liquid to produce refrigerant vapor and provides said refrigerant vapor to said compressor;
- d) a flow path between said condenser and said first evaporator that provides an approximately constant flow area during both the fresh-food and freezer cooling modes and that receives refrigerant liquid from said condenser and reduces the pressure of the refrigerant flowing into said first evaporator;
- e) means for controllably directing cooling produced by the evaporating refrigerant to said fresh-food compartment and said freezer compartment;
- and
- f) control means for reducing the volumetric capacity of said compressor during cooling of said fresh-food compartment relative to its volumetric capacity during cooling of said freezer compartment so as to match the refrigerant flow capacity of said flow path.
A method for controlling a refrigerator that includes a refrigerant circuit with a variable-capacity compressor that receives refrigerant vapor and pumps it into a condenser, which cools the refrigerant to form a liquid that flows through a flow path with an approximately constant flow area to an-evaporator and that includes means for controllably directing cooling to a fresh-food compartment and a freezer compartment, said method comprising the steps of:
- operating the compressor at a higher volumetric capacity and at the same time directing cooling toward said freezer compartment during freezer cooling, and
- operating the compressor at a lower volumetric capacity and at the same time directing cooling toward said fresh-food compartment during fresh-food cooling.
A refrigerator with a freezer compartment and a fresh-food compartment comprising:
- a compressor for pumping refrigerant vapor,
- a condenser that receives compressed vapor from said compressor and cools it to produce refrigerant liquid,
- a flow path from said condenser that provides an approximately constant flow area during both the fresh-food and freezer cooling modes and that receives refrigerant liquid from said condenser and reduces the pressure of the liquid,
- an evaporator that receives lower-pressure liquid from said flow path and evaporates said liquid to produce cooling and provides said refrigerant vapor to said compressor, and
- an air valve directing air flow between said evaporator and said fresh-food compartment and said freezer compartment,
- control means for reducing the volumetric capacity of said compressor during cooling of said fresh-food compartment relative to its volumetric capacity during cooling of said freezer compartment so as to match the refrigerant flow capacity of said flow path.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.