Abstract:
A control method for a refrigerator is provided. In the method, operating conditions of a compressor are determined through a defrost sensor mounted to an evaporator to reduce power consumption. Because the operating conditions of the compressor are determined according to the temperature of the evaporator, cooling efficiency of the refrigerator can be improved, and power consumption can be reduced.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 and 35 U.S.C. 365 to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2007-0084391 (filed on Aug. 22, 2007), which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    The present disclosure relates to a control method for a refrigerator that measures the temperature of an evaporator through a defrost sensor mounted to the evaporator, and controls the operating capacity of a compressor according to the temperature of the evaporator, in order to improve the efficiency of the compressor. 
         [0003]    In general, a refrigerator is an apparatus for storing foods at low temperature, and is configured to store foods according to type in frozen or refrigerated states. 
         [0004]    Refrigerators can be categorized into top mounted refrigerators with a freezer compartment provided above a refrigeration compartment, bottom freezer refrigerators with a freezer compartment provided below a refrigeration compartment, and side-by-side refrigerators with a freezer compartment and a refrigeration compartment partitioned to the left and right of one another. 
         [0005]    Due to a modern trend of enlarging and providing multifunctional refrigerators, brought about by diversifying user preferences and changing eating habits, a wide range of products with different configurations is being marketed. 
         [0006]    The inside of a refrigerator is cooled by continually supplied cold air generated through heat exchange of refrigerant in a repeating compression-condensation-expansion-evaporation cycle. 
         [0007]    Evaporation of refrigerant is performed by an evaporator provided within the refrigerator, and cold air formed with the evaporator is uniformly circulated throughout the inside of the refrigerant by means of convection currents, to enable food to be stored in the refrigerator at a desired temperature. 
         [0008]    That is, temperatures within a refrigerator are maintained through performing or deactivating a cooling cycle according to temperatures sensed by temperature sensors provided in the freezer compartment and refrigeration compartment. 
         [0009]    Also, a defrost sensor is mounted at a side of the evaporator, and it is determined from the temperature of the evaporator sensed by the defrost sensor whether or not to implement defrosting. 
         [0010]    However, in a refrigerator according to the related art configured as described above, the following limitations are inherent. 
         [0011]    Because operation of a related art refrigerator is controlled based primarily on data from the temperature sensors provided in the freezer compartment and refrigeration compartment, and a compressor that compresses refrigerant is always driven at full capacity while the refrigerator operates, the efficiency of the refrigerator is compromised. 
         [0012]    Additionally, because the compressor is driven at full capacity, power consumption of the refrigerator is unfavorable. 
         [0013]    Furthermore, because a related art defrost sensor is used only for defrosting operation, its utility is restricted. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0014]    Embodiments provide a control method of a refrigerator that controls operating conditions of a compressor through a defrost sensor mounted to an evaporator, instead of through temperature sensors in a freezer compartment and a refrigeration compartment. 
         [0015]    Embodiments also provide a control method of a refrigerator that uses a defrost sensor mounted to an evaporator to adjust the operating capacity (or operating conditions) of a compressor, to reduce power consumption of the refrigerator. 
         [0016]    In one embodiment, a control method of a refrigerator includes: measuring a temperature of an evaporator with a temperature sensor provided at a side of the evaporator; comparing the measured temperature of the evaporator to a reference temperature; and determining operating condition of a compressor according to results of the comparison of the temperatures. 
         [0017]    According to a control method for a refrigerator according to the present disclosure, because the operating capacity of the compressor can be controlled according to the temperature of the evaporator, cooling efficiency of the refrigerator can be increased. 
         [0018]    Also, because the compressor is not always operated at full capacity, power consumption of the refrigerator can be reduced. In other words, even if the cooling cycle is being performed due to the temperatures in the freezer compartment and the refrigeration compartment being higher than set temperatures, the operating conditions of the compressor are determined based on the temperature of the evaporator sensed by the defrost sensor, so that the compressor does not always have to be operated at maximum capacity. Accordingly, power consumption of the refrigerator can be reduced to economically benefit the consumer of the refrigerator and increase product satisfaction. 
         [0019]    Moreover, operating noise of the compressor can be reduced, thus providing the added advantage of reducing dissatisfaction arising from excessive noise. 
         [0020]    The details of one or more embodiments are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0021]      FIG. 1  is a frontal perspective view showing the inside of a refrigerator, to which the control method for a refrigerator according to embodiments of the present disclosure is applied. 
           [0022]      FIG. 2  is a side sectional view of the refrigerator in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0023]      FIG. 3  is a graph showing a process for controlling pressure of a compressor according to the temperature of an evaporator in a refrigerator according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
           [0024]      FIG. 4  is a flowchart showing a control method for a refrigerator according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       [0025]    Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of the present disclosure, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. While a side-by-side refrigerator is described as an example of a refrigerator for the sake of descriptive convenience, it should be noted that the present disclosure may be applied to all types of refrigerators. 
         [0026]      FIG. 1  is a frontal perspective view showing the inside of a refrigerator, to which the control method for a refrigerator according to embodiments of the present disclosure is applied, and  FIG. 2  is a side sectional view of the refrigerator in  FIG. 1 . 
         [0027]    Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , a refrigerator  10  according to embodiments of the present disclosure includes a main body  100  partitioned into a freezer compartment  300  and a refrigeration compartment  200  by a barrier  120 , a freezer compartment door  320  pivotably provided at the front of the freezer compartment  300 , and a refrigeration compartment door  220  pivotably provided at the front of the refrigeration compartment  200 . 
         [0028]    According to the type of product, the refrigeration compartment door  220  may be provided with a home bar  240 , and the freezer compartment door  320  may be provided with a dispenser  340 . 
         [0029]    In addition, a plurality of door baskets  160  may be provided on the rear surfaces of the refrigeration compartment door  220  and the freezer compartment door  320  to store a wide range of foods by type. 
         [0030]    The freezer compartment  300  and the refrigeration compartment  200  may be divided into a plurality of levels by means of a plurality of shelves  140 , and a plurality of storage containers  150  for storing food by type may be provided on the divided levels. 
         [0031]    The storage containers  150  may be divided into a vegetable box for storing vegetables, and drawers defining multipurpose storage spaces, and the vegetable box and drawers may be mounted within the freezer compartment  300  and/or refrigeration compartment  200 , configured to be withdrawn by being slid forward. 
         [0032]    An evaporation chamber  400  is defined at the rear of the freezer compartment  300 . The evaporation chamber  400  is defined between the main body  100  and the rear wall  410  of the freezer compartment  300 . In detail, a plurality of cold air discharge holes  412  is defined in the rear wall  410  of the freezer compartment, to discharge cold air generated in the evaporation chamber  400  into the freezer compartment  300 . 
         [0033]    An evaporator  420  for generating cold air through heat exchanging of refrigerant is provided in the evaporation chamber  400 . In detail, the cold air generated by the evaporator  420  is forcefully circulated by a cooling fan  402  provided above the evaporator  420 , to be discharged through the cold air discharging holes  412  into the freezer compartment  300 . 
         [0034]    The cold air circulating inside the freezer compartment  300  returns to the evaporation chamber  400  through a cold air return duct  414  defined at the lower portion of the main body  100 . 
         [0035]    The cold air that returns through the cold air return duct  414  exchanges heat again in the evaporation chamber  400 , and is discharged again by the cooling fan  402  into the freezer compartment  300 . This circulation process is performed repeatedly to cool the freezer compartment  300  to a predetermined temperature. The cold air supplied into the freezer compartment  300  is also supplied to the refrigeration compartment  200  through a connecting passage (not shown) defined in the barrier  120 . In another method, the evaporation chamber  400  extends to behind the rear wall of the refrigeration compartment  200 , and cold air discharge holes are also defined in the rear wall of the refrigeration compartment  200 , so that cold air can be directly supplied from the evaporation chamber  400  to the refrigeration compartment  200 . 
         [0036]    A defrost heater  440  for removing frost forming on the evaporator  420  is provided below the evaporator  420 . The defrost heater  440  radiates heat at predetermined intervals to remove frost, and is configured with a defrost sensor  460  provided at the top of the evaporator  420  to selectively shut off power to the defrost heater  440 . 
         [0037]    The defrost sensor  460  is fixed firmly against the surface of the evaporator  420  to measure the temperature at the surface of the evaporator  420 , in order to determine whether or not to perform defrosting according to the surface temperature of the evaporator  420 . Also, in the present disclosure, the operating conditions (capacity) of the compressor  120  are determined according to the temperature of the evaporator  420  measured by the defrost sensor  460 . 
         [0038]    The compressor  120  for compressing refrigerant to a high temperature and pressure is disposed at the lower portion to the outside of the freezer compartment  300  (as shown in  FIG. 2 ), that is, at the rear surface and the bottom of the main body  100 . The compressor  120  provided may be a linear compressor or an inverter compressor, whose operating conditions are controlled by input power. 
         [0039]    The compressor  120  is connected through a pipe to the evaporator  420 , has its operating conditions controlled according to the temperature sensed by the defrost sensor  460  provided at the top, side surface of the evaporator  420 , and is switched ON/OFF by means of a temperature sensor (not shown) provided in the freezer compartment  300 . 
         [0040]    Below, a detailed description will be given of a control method for a refrigerator configured as above according to the present disclosure, with reference to  FIGS. 3 and 4 . 
         [0041]      FIG. 3  is a graph showing a process for controlling pressure of a compressor according to the temperature of an evaporator in a refrigerator according to embodiments of the present disclosure, and  FIG. 4  is a flowchart showing a control method for a refrigerator according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         [0042]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , when the refrigerator operates, the defrost sensor temperature (or, the temperature of the evaporator) gradually falls, and the inside of the refrigerator is cooled correspondingly to the temperature of the defrost sensor. Here, the operating conditions of the compressor are controlled through controlling the input power to the compressor in a plurality of levels according to the temperature of the evaporator. 
         [0043]    Specifically, when the temperature at the defrost sensor exceeds a temperature T 1 , the input power to the compressor may be 100% to drive the compressor at full capacity. When the temperature at the defrost sensor is less than a temperature T 2 , the input power to the compressor may be 60% to drive the compressor at minimum capacity. When the temperature at the defrost sensor is between temperatures T 1  and T 2 , the input power to the compressor may be 80% to drive the compressor at medium capacity. 
         [0044]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , after the refrigerator is operated, the defrost sensor is used to perform a measurement of the evaporator temperature in operation S 100 . Then, in operation S 200 , a comparison is performed of the evaporator temperature measured in operation S 100  with reference temperatures T 1  and T 2 . 
         [0045]    Operation S 200  is performed a plurality of times, and a compressor controlling operation S 300  is performed many times to control the operating conditions of the compressor according to the results of the temperature comparison in operation S 200 . 
         [0046]    In detail, when it is determined in operation S 210  that the evaporator temperature exceeds T 1 , an input power of 100% is applied to the compressor to drive it at full capacity in a first mode in operation S 310  to quickly cool the inside of the refrigerator. 
         [0047]    When it is determined in operation S 220  that the evaporator temperature is greater than T 2  and less than T 1 , an input power of 80% that is less than that applied in operation S 310  is applied to the compressor to drive it in a second mode in operation S 320 . Then, when it is determined in operation S 230  that the evaporator temperature is less than T 2 , an input power of 60% that is less than that applied in operation S 320  is applied to the compressor to drive it at minimum capacity in a third mode in operation S 330 . When it is determined through the temperature sensors mounted in the freezer compartment and the refrigeration compartment that the temperatures inside the refrigerator have reached adequate levels, the compressor is turned off. When it is determined that the temperatures within the refrigerator are not within a set temperature range, the compressor is reactivated, and operations S 100  to S 300  are performed again. 
         [0048]    Any reference in this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” “exemplary embodiment,” etc., means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the disclosure. The appearances of such phrases in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with any embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the purview of one skilled in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with others of the embodiments. 
         [0049]    Although embodiments have been described with reference to a number of illustrative embodiments thereof, it should be understood that numerous other modifications and embodiments can be devised by those skilled in the art that will fall within the spirit and scope of the principles of this disclosure. More particularly, various variations and modifications are possible in the component parts and/or arrangements of the subject combination arrangement within the scope of the disclosure, the drawings and the appended claims. In addition to variations and modifications in the component parts and/or arrangements, alternative uses will also be apparent to those skilled in the art.