Patent Description:
During the freezing process of food, the quality of food is maintained, but frozen food needs to be thawed before processing or consumption. In order to facilitate a user thawing food, electromagnetic wave heating units are usually used to thaw the food.

Thawing food with the electromagnetic wave heating units is not only fast and efficient, but also reduces the loss of nutrients in the food. However, in the prior art, thawing is generally performed based on heating parameters input by a user, or heating parameters are automatically confirmed for thawing according to the food parameters (weight, temperature, size, etc.) detected by a detection device, which either places too high requirements on the user, or increases the production cost of a heating unit, cannot realize precise thawing of food, and leads to the poor quality of the thawed food and even the need of multiple thawing. Considering comprehensively, it is necessary in design to provide a heating method that can achieve precise heating of an object to be processed and prevents same from being overheated, and a refrigerating and freezing apparatus having a heating unit.

<CIT> and <CIT> disclose respectively a heating method and a refrigerating apparatus according to the prior art.

An object of a first aspect of the present invention is to provide a heating method to overcome at least one of technical defects in the prior art.

A further object of the first aspect of the present invention is to prevent an object to be processed from being overheated.

Another further object of the first aspect of the present invention is to reduce energy consumption.

An object of a second aspect of the present invention to provide a refrigerating and freezing apparatus having a heating unit.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, provided is a heating method including the features of claim <NUM>.

Optionally, the heating unit includes the electromagnetic wave generation module for generating the electromagnetic wave signal, and the cavity capacitor which is electrically connected to the electromagnetic wave generation module and used for accommodating the object to be processed; prior to the step of controlling the heating unit to operate, the heating method further includes:.

Optionally, the heating unit is arranged in a storage compartment of a refrigerating and freezing apparatus,.

Optionally, the heating method further includes:
if the door body of the heating unit opens or closes after the heating unit suspends heating, controlling the heating unit to terminate the heating procedure.

Optionally, the heating unit is arranged in the storage compartment of the refrigerating and freezing apparatus, and a door of the refrigerating and freezing apparatus is provided with an interactive unit; prior to the step of controlling the heating unit to operate, the heating method further includes:
if the door body of the heating unit opens or closes during an opening and closing process of the door corresponding to the storage compartment, activating the interactive unit after the door corresponding to the storage compartment is closed, so as to receive a heating command.

Optionally, the heating unit is arranged in the storage compartment of the refrigerating and freezing apparatus, and prior to the step of controlling the heating unit to operate, the heating method further includes:.

Optionally, prior to the step of controlling the heating unit to operate, the heating method further includes:.

Optionally, if the door body of the heating unit is opened, determining that the object to be processed is taken out; and/or
after a preset interval time passes since the heating completion condition is met, executing the step of if the object to be processed is taken out, receiving another heating command again.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, provided is a refrigerating and freezing apparatus, including:.

The inventors of the present application creatively realize that during the heating process of food, food parameters such as temperature difference between the inside and outside of the food, shape and size of the food, and dielectric properties of the food will all change. If the heating parameters are re-determined by the same method as the initial heating after heating is stopped, a great error may be caused, resulting in excessive heating of the food. According to the present invention, by recording the most recent heating parameter before the heating unit stops heating, and continuing to perform heating according to the recorded heating parameter after heating is resumed, a control process is simplified, and the phenomenon that the object to be processed is overheated according to the re-determined heating parameters is avoided, so that the heating time is shortened, and unnecessary energy consumption is reduced.

Further, the present invention determines the initial heating parameter of the heating unit based on the configuration of the impedance matching module or the frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal. Compared with directly measuring the food parameters of the object to be processed, the present invention saves the cost of additional arrangement of a measuring device, tolerates the errors of the measurement device, obtains feature parameters with higher accuracy, and thus achieves excellent heating effects.

Further, by determining the opening and closing of the door of the refrigerating and freezing apparatus and/or the door body of the heating unit, the present invention supplies power to the heating unit, activates the interactive unit, and suspends or terminates the thawing procedure; thus, not only does it not require additional arrangement of a sensing device, which reduces the production cost and energy consumption of the refrigerating and freezing apparatus on the whole, but electromagnetic wave leakage can also be effectively reduced or even avoided, thereby eliminating adverse effects on user health, and improving user experience.

According to the detailed description of specific examples of the present invention below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art will more clearly understand the foregoing and other objects, advantages, and features of the present invention.

Hereinafter, some specific examples of the present invention will be described in detail in an exemplary and non-limiting manner with reference to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numbers in the drawings indicate the same or similar components or parts. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that these drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. In the drawings:.

<FIG> is a schematic structural diagram of a heating unit <NUM> according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to <FIG>, the heating unit <NUM> may include a cavity capacitor <NUM>, an electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM>, and a controller <NUM>.

Specifically, the cavity capacitor <NUM> may include a cavity <NUM> for accommodating an object <NUM> to be processed, and a radiation electrode plate disposed in the cavity <NUM>. In some embodiments, a receiving electrode plate may also be disposed in the cavity <NUM> to form a capacitor with the radiation electrode plate. In some other embodiments, the cavity <NUM> may be made of metal to serve as a receiving electrode plate for formation of a capacitor together with the radiation electrode plate.

The cavity capacitor <NUM> may further include a door body <NUM> for closing an access opening of the cavity <NUM> to reduce leakage of electromagnetic waves.

The electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> may be configured to generate an electromagnetic wave signal and be electrically connected to the radiation electrode plate of the cavity capacitor <NUM>, so as to generate the electromagnetic waves within the cavity capacitor <NUM>, thereby heating the object <NUM> to be processed in the cavity capacitor <NUM>.

The controller <NUM> may include a processing unit and a storage unit, where the storage unit stores a computer program, and the computer program is configured to implement a control method of the embodiment of the present invention when being executed by the processing unit.

In particular, the processing unit may be configured to control the heating unit <NUM> to operate to heat the object <NUM> to be processed; when a heating suspension condition is met, a current heating parameter of the heating unit <NUM> is recorded, and the heating unit <NUM> is controlled to stop operating; and when a heating continuation condition is met, the heating unit <NUM> is controlled to continue operating according to the recorded heating parameter.

The inventors of the present application creatively realize that during the heating process of food, food parameters such as temperature difference between the inside and outside of the food, shape and size of the food, and dielectric properties of the food will all change. If the heating parameters are re-determined by the same method as the initial heating after heating is stopped, a great error may be caused, resulting in excessive heating of the food. According to the present invention, the heating unit <NUM> records the most recent heating parameter before the heating unit <NUM> stops heating, and heating is continued according to the recorded heating parameter after heating is resumed, which not only simplifies a control process, but also avoids the phenomenon that the object <NUM> to be processed is overheated according to the re-determined heating parameters, so that the heating time is shortened, and unnecessary energy consumption is reduced.

The initial heating parameter includes at least one of heating power, and a termination threshold for terminating a heating procedure.

The termination threshold may be a total heating time, a change threshold of a dielectric coefficient, and the like. When the heating time of the object <NUM> to be processed reaches the total heating time and the change rate of the dielectric coefficient of the object <NUM> to be processed decreases to less than or equal to the change threshold, it is determined that the heating of the object <NUM> to be processed is completed.

The heating unit <NUM> further includes an impedance matching module <NUM>. The impedance matching module <NUM> may be connected in series between the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> and the cavity capacitor <NUM> or connected in parallel at both ends of the cavity capacitor <NUM>, and is configured to adjust a load impedance of the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> by adjusting its own impedance, so as to achieve load matching and improve heating efficiency.

The processing unit is further configured to determine an initial heating parameter according to the configuration of the impedance matching module <NUM> prior to the step of controlling the heating unit <NUM> to operate. That is, by adjusting the configuration of the impedance matching module <NUM>, a reflected wave power returning to the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> is reduced; and the initial heating parameter of the heating unit <NUM> is determined according to the configuration of the impedance matching module <NUM>, so as to reduce sensing devices, and realize precise heating of the object <NUM> to be processed.

Specifically, after receiving a heating command, the processing unit controls the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> to generate an electromagnetic wave signal with a preset initial power, adjust the configuration of the impedance matching module <NUM>, determine the configuration of the impedance matching module <NUM> that achieves a minimum reflected wave power returning to the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM>, and determine the initial heating parameter according to the configuration of the impedance matching module <NUM> with the minimum reflected wave power.

In the present invention, the preset initial power may be <NUM>-20W, for example, 10W, 15W or 20W, so as to reduce the impact on the object <NUM> to be processed, and save energy.

The heating unit <NUM> may also include a directional coupler connected in series between the cavity capacitor <NUM> and the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> for monitoring the reflected wave power returning to the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> in real time.

In some further embodiments, the impedance matching module <NUM> may include multiple matching branches that can be switched on and off independently. The processing unit may be further configured to determine the initial heating parameter according to the on-off combination numbers of the multiple matching branches, so as to shorten the time for determining the initial heating parameter.

The storage unit may store a preset comparison table, which records a corresponding relation between the on-off combination numbers and the initial heating parameters. The processing unit may be configured to match, according to the preset comparison table, the corresponding initial heating parameter based on the on-off combination number that realizes the minimum reflected wave power.

<FIG> is a schematic circuit diagram of the impedance matching module <NUM> in <FIG>. Referring to <FIG>, the impedance matching module <NUM> may include a first matching unit <NUM> connected in series between the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> and the cavity capacitor <NUM>, and a second matching unit <NUM>, one end of which is electrically connected between the first matching unit <NUM> and the cavity capacitor <NUM>, and the other end thereof is grounded.

The first matching unit <NUM> and the second matching unit <NUM> may respectively include a plurality of matching branches connected in parallel, and each of the matching branches includes a fixed capacitor and a switch, so as to improve the reliability and adjustable range of the impedance matching module <NUM> while simplifying a circuit. The capacitance values of the plurality of fixed capacitors of the first matching unit <NUM> and the second matching unit <NUM> may not be equal.

In other embodiments, the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> may include a frequency source, a power amplifier, and a voltage-controlled oscillator for adjusting an output frequency of the frequency source (a frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal).

The processing unit may be further configured to determine the initial heating parameter according to the frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal prior to the step of controlling the heating unit <NUM> to operate. That is, by adjusting the frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal, the reflected wave power returning to the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> is reduced; and the initial heating parameter of the heating unit <NUM> is determined according to the frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal, so as to reduce the sensing devices, and realize precise heating of the object <NUM> to be processed.

Specifically, after receiving a heating command, the processing unit may control the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> to generate an electromagnetic wave signal with a preset initial power, adjust the frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal, determine the frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal that achieves the minimum reflected wave power returning to the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM>, and determine the initial heating parameter according to the frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal with the minimum reflected wave power.

<FIG> is a schematic cross-sectional view of a refrigerating and freezing apparatus <NUM> according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to <FIG>, the present invention also provides a refrigerating and freezing apparatus <NUM>. The refrigerating and freezing apparatus <NUM> may include a box body <NUM>, in which at least one storage compartment is defined, a door configured to open and close the at least one storage compartment, a refrigeration system that provides cooling capacity to the at least one storage compartment, and a controller <NUM>. In this embodiment, the cavity capacitor <NUM> of the heating unit <NUM> may be arranged in a storage compartment; and a part of the controller <NUM> may be located within the cavity capacitor <NUM>, and is mainly configured to control the operation of the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM>, the impedance matching module <NUM>, and other devices, and the other part of the controller is located in a compressor compartment or top of the box body <NUM>, and is mainly configured to control the operation of the refrigeration system.

In the illustrated embodiment, the at least one storage compartment may include a refrigerating compartment <NUM> and a freezing compartment <NUM> arranged below the refrigerating compartment <NUM>. At least one door may include a refrigerator door <NUM> for opening and closing the refrigerating compartment <NUM>, and a freezer door <NUM> for opening and closing the freezing compartment <NUM>. The cavity capacitor <NUM> may be arranged in the freezing compartment <NUM> to facilitate a user picking and placing the object <NUM> to be processed.

The refrigerating and freezing apparatus <NUM> of the present invention will be described in detail below by taking the arrangement of the cavity capacitor <NUM> in the freezing compartment <NUM> as an example.

In some embodiments, the heating suspension condition may include that the freezer door <NUM> is opened. The heating continuation condition may include that the freezer door <NUM> is closed, and the door body <NUM> does not open or close during the opening and closing of the freezer door <NUM>. That is, in a heating process, if the freezer door <NUM> is opened, the processing unit controls the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> to stop working, so as to reduce or even eliminate the impact of electromagnetic waves on a user; and if the freezer door <NUM> is closed and the door body <NUM> does not open or close in this process, the processing unit controls the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> to continue working according to the recorded heating parameter, so as to prevent the object <NUM> to be processed from being overheated.

The processing unit may be further configured to control the heating unit <NUM> to terminate the heating procedure if the door body <NUM> of the heating unit <NUM> opens or closes after the heating unit <NUM> suspends heating, that is, to control the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> to stop working, so as to avoid the phenomenon that the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> is damaged due to heating of a cavity when a user takes out the object <NUM> to be processed.

In some embodiments, the refrigerating and freezing apparatus <NUM> may also include an interactive unit <NUM> for receiving a heating command. The interactive unit <NUM> may be located at one of the doors, e.g., the refrigerator door <NUM> located on the upper side.

The processing unit may be configured to activate the interactive unit <NUM> after the freezer door <NUM> is closed if the door body <NUM> opens or closes during the opening and closing process of the freezer door <NUM>, and then to receive the heating command, so as to save electric energy and reduce the waiting time of the user.

In some embodiments, in the case where the heating unit <NUM> is not in a working state, the processing unit may be configured to supply power to the heating unit <NUM> when the freezer door <NUM> is opened, so as to save electric energy and quickly start heating.

The heating unit <NUM> may further include a power supply module configured to receive mains power and supply power to the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> and the electrical devices in the cavity capacitor <NUM>. In the present invention, the supplying power to the heating unit <NUM> refers to providing electric energy to the power supply module.

The processing unit is further configured to stop supplying power to the heating unit <NUM> in the case that no heating command is received within a preset standby time from the time when the freezer door <NUM> is closed, so as to save electric energy.

In some embodiments, during the heating process, the processing unit may be configured to control the heating unit <NUM> to terminate the heating procedure when a heating completion condition is satisfied, and to receive a heating command again when the object <NUM> to be processed is taken out, so as to prevent the object <NUM> to be processed from being repeatedly heated. The heating completion condition may be that the corresponding parameters reach termination thresholds, for example, the heating time of the object <NUM> to be processed reaches the total heating time, and the change rate of the dielectric coefficient of the object <NUM> to be processed decreases to less than or equal to the change threshold.

In some further embodiments, the processing unit may be configured to determine that the object <NUM> to be processed is taken out when the door body <NUM> is opened, so as to reduce detection devices.

In some further embodiments, the processing unit may be configured to receive a heating command again after a preset interval time passes since the heating completion condition is satisfied, so as to prevent the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> from overheating for a long time and extend the service life of the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM>.

<FIG> is a schematic flow chart of a heating method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to <FIG>, the heating method performed by the controller <NUM> of any of the above-mentioned embodiments of the present invention may include the following steps:.

According to heating method provided by the present invention, by recording the most recent heating parameter before the heating unit <NUM> stops heating, and continuing to perform heating according to the recorded heating parameter after heating is resumed, a control process is simplified, and the phenomenon that the object <NUM> to be processed is overheated according to re-determined heating parameter is avoided, so that the heating time is shortened, and unnecessary energy consumption is reduced.

In some embodiments, the heating suspension condition may include that a door corresponding to a cavity capacitor <NUM> is opened. The heating continuation condition may include that the door corresponding to the cavity capacitor <NUM> is closed, and a door body <NUM> does not open or close during the opening and closing of the door. That is, in a heating process, if the door corresponding to the cavity capacitor <NUM> is opened, the processing unit controls an electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> to stop working, so as to reduce or even eliminate the influence of electromagnetic waves on a user; and if the door corresponding to the cavity capacitor <NUM> is closed and the door body <NUM> does not open or close during this process, the processing unit controls the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> to continue working according to the recorded heating parameter, so as to avoid the object <NUM> to be processed being excessively heated.

In some further embodiments, the heating method may also include the following steps:
if the door body <NUM> opens or closes after the heating unit <NUM> suspends heating, controlling the heating unit <NUM> to terminate the heating procedure, so as to avoid the phenomenon that the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> is damaged due to heating of a cavity when a user takes out the object <NUM> to be processed.

In some embodiments, prior to step S402, the heating method may also include:
if the door body <NUM> opens and closes during the opening and closing process of the door corresponding to the cavity capacitor <NUM>, activating an interactive unit <NUM> after the door corresponding to the cavity capacitor <NUM> is closed, and further receiving a heating command, so as to save electric energy and reduce the waiting time of the user.

In some embodiments, prior to step S402, the heating method may also include:.

In some embodiments, after step S402, the heating method may also include:.

In some further embodiments, the door body <NUM> of the heating unit <NUM> is opened, it is determined that the object <NUM> to be processed is taken out, so as to reduce detection devices.

In some further embodiments, after a preset interval time passes since the heating completion condition is satisfied, the step of if the object <NUM> to be processed is taken out, receiving a heating command again is performed, so as to prevent the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM> from overheating for a long time and extend the service life of the electromagnetic wave generation module <NUM>.

A refrigerating and freezing apparatus <NUM> provided by the present invention will be described in detail below by taking an example in which the cavity capacitor <NUM> is arranged in the freezing compartment <NUM> of the refrigerating and freezing apparatus <NUM> and the initial heating parameter includes heating power and total heating time.

<FIG> is a part of a schematic detailed flow diagram of a heating method according to an embodiment of the present invention; and <FIG> is another part of a schematic detailed flow diagram of a heating method according to an embodiment of the present invention (where "Y" represents "yes", and "N" represents "no"). In <FIG> and <FIG>, "A" represents a continuation point. Because the method is relatively complicated, and there is difficulty in illustration by a single figure, it is represented in <FIG> and <FIG>, connected by a continuation mark, which can be understood by those skilled in the art. Referring to <FIG> and <FIG>, the heating method provided by the present invention may include following detailed steps:.

<FIG> is a schematic flow chart of determining an initial heating parameter based on the configuration of the impedance matching module <NUM>. Referring to <FIG>, determining the initial heating parameter based on the configuration of the impedance matching module <NUM> may specifically include the following steps:.

<FIG> is a schematic flow chart of determining an initial heating parameter based on the frequency of an electromagnetic wave signal. Referring to <FIG>, determining the initial heating parameter based on the frequency of the electromagnetic wave signal may specifically include the following steps:.

Thus, those skilled in the art should appreciate that, although a number of exemplary examples of the present invention have been shown and described in detail herein, many other variations or modifications consistent with the principles of the present invention can still be directly determined or deduced according to the contents disclosed in the present invention without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined in the claims.

Claim 1:
A heating method, comprising:
controlling (S402) a heating unit (<NUM>) to operate to heat an object to be processed (<NUM>);
if a heating suspension condition is met, recording (S404) a current heating parameter of the heating unit (<NUM>), and controlling the heating unit (<NUM>) to stop operating; and
if a heating continuation condition is met, controlling (S406) the heating unit (<NUM>) to continue operating according to the recorded heating parameter; characterized in that
the heating unit (<NUM>) comprises an electromagnetic wave generation module (<NUM>) for generating an electromagnetic wave signal, a cavity capacitor for accommodating the object to be processed (<NUM>), and an impedance matching module (<NUM>) connected in series between the electromagnetic wave generation module (<NUM>) and the cavity capacitor or in parallel at both ends of the cavity capacitor; prior to the step of controlling (S402) the heating unit (<NUM>) to operate, the heating method further comprises:
adjusting the configuration of the impedance matching module (<NUM>) to reduce a reflected wave power returning to the electromagnetic wave generation module (<NUM>); and
determining an initial heating parameter of the heating unit (<NUM>) based on the configuration of the impedance matching module (<NUM>), wherein
the initial heating parameter comprises at least one of heating power, and a termination threshold for terminating a heating procedure;
the determining an initial heating parameter of the heating unit (<NUM>) based on the configuration of the impedance matching module (<NUM>) includes:
controlling (S702) the electromagnetic wave generation module (<NUM>) to generate an electromagnetic wave signal with a preset initial power;
adjusting (S704) the configuration of the matching module (<NUM>), and determining the configuration of the impedance matching module (<NUM>) that achieves a minimum reflected wave power;
determining (S706), according to the configuration of the impedance matching module (<NUM>) that achieves the minimum reflected wave power, the initial heating parameter.