Patent Application
20080016898
With initial reference to
As will be described more fully below, refrigerator 2 is preferably designed with main components of a refrigeration system positioned in an upper machine compartment 31 located behind an access panel 32. As shown, access panel 32 is provided with a plurality of vent slots 34 that enable air to flow into and out from machine compartment 31. The overall construction of refrigerator cabinet 4 does not form part of the present invention and thus will not be described more fully. For additional details of the overall construction of cabinet 4, reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 6,997,530 entitled “Fastening System for Appliance Cabinet Assembly” incorporated herein by reference.
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In accordance with the embodiment shown, components of the refrigeration system employed for maintaining selected temperatures in refrigerator 2 are positioned in machine compartment 31. Components of the refrigeration system include a compressor 49 which is operatively connected to both an evaporator 52 through conduit 55, and a condenser 61 through conduit 63. Arranged adjacent to evaporator 52 is an evaporator fan 70 adapted to provide an airflow to evaporator 52. Similarly, arranged adjacent to condenser 61 is a condenser fan 75 which is adapted to provide an airflow across condenser 61.
In addition to the aforementioned components, refrigerator 2 includes an air manifold 90 for use in directing a cooling airflow from freezer compartment 9 into fresh food compartment 12. Air manifold 90 includes a first recirculation duct 94 having an inlet 95 exposed in a lower portion of fresh food compartment 12, a second recirculation duct 96 having an inlet 99 exposed at an upper portion of fresh food compartment 12, and an intake duct 100 establishing an air path for a flow of fresh cooling air from freezer compartment 9 into manifold 90. Arranged in fluid communication with air manifold 90 is a fresh food stirring fan 110. Stirring fan 110 is adapted to receive a combined flow of air from recirculation ducts 94 and 96, as well as intake duct 100, and to disperse the combined flow of air into the fresh food compartment 12.
Stirring fan 110 draws in a flow of air, which is generally indicated by arrows A, through inlets 95 and 99 of ducts 94 and 96, and intake duct 100, while subsequently exhausting the combined flow of cooling air, represented by arrow B, through outlet 125. Most preferably, outlet 125 directs the air flow in various directions in order to generate a desired flow pattern based on the particular configuration of fresh food compartment 12 and any additional structure provided therein. The exact positioning of inlets 95 and 97 also depend on the particular structure provided. In one preferred embodiment, inlet 95 of duct 94 is located at a point behind at least one food storage bin 126 arranged in a bottom portion of fresh food compartment 12. The air flow past storage bin 126 is provided to aid in maintaining freshness levels of food contained therein. For this purpose, an additional passage 128 leading from freezer compartment 9 into fresh food compartment 12 can also be provided.
In order to regulate the amount of cooling air drawn in from freezer compartment 9, a damper 130 is provided either at an entrance to or within intake duct 100. When the cooling demand within fresh food compartment 12 rises, damper 130 opens to allow cooling air to flow from freezer compartment 9 to fresh food compartment 12 and, more specifically, into intake duct 100 to manifold 90 and stirring fan 110. A flow of air to be further cooled at evaporator 52 is lead into an intake 135 of a return duct 137. In the embodiment shown, return duct 137 is preferably located in the upper portion of fresh food compartment 12. At this point it should be understood that the overall temperature control system does not form part of the present invention. Instead, a more detailed discussion of the overall operation and arrangement of the temperature control system of refrigerator 2, can be found in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 6,772,601 entitled “Temperature Control System For a Refrigerated Compartment,” which is incorporated herein by reference.
In accordance with the invention, refrigerator 2 includes an air filter system 140 having an air filter 145 provided with a filtering media 146. Air filter 145 is preferably positioned directly adjacent to an outlet portion 150 of condenser 61. Of course, it should be readily understood that air filter 145 could be positioned in various locations within machine compartment 31. In any event, air filter 145 is held in place by a pair of L-shaped retainer members 147 and 148 that readily enable replacement of air filter 145 as necessary. That is, L-shaped retainer members 147 and 148 enable air filter 145 to be shifted upward and removed from adjacent condenser 61 and a new air filter 145 arranged in its place. With this arrangement, an airflow passing from condenser 61 must also pass through air filter 145, with filtering media 146 substantially removing any impurities, particles and the like from the airflow. The filtered airflow is then passed from machine compartment 31 into the surrounding room.
In further accordance with the invention, air filter system 140 includes at least one sensor positioned adjacent air filter 145. Preferably, air filter system 140 includes two sensors, a first or up-stream sensor 155 and a second or downstream sensor 156 that measure changes in a parameter of the airflow passing through air filter 145. Each sensor 155, 156 sends a signal representative of a parameter of the airflow to a controller or CPU 160. More specifically, CPU 160 includes an air filter analyzer 164 which determines a difference (if any) between the parameter measured by sensor 155 and the parameter measured by sensor 156. In accordance with one aspect of the invention, sensors 155 and 156 measure a temperature of the airflow. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, sensors 155 and 156 measure a pressure of the airflow. In any event, if the difference in parameters exceeds a predetermined value, CPU 160 sends a signal to an interface 165 mounted to fresh food compartment door 10 indicating that air filter 145 should be replaced.
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In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, in addition to removing impurities, air filter system 140 also preferably adds a pleasant fragrance to the airflow. That is, filtering media 146 of air filter 145 constitutes a scented media such that the airflow passing from machine compartment 31 provides a pleasant fragrance to surrounding areas. In any event, it should be readily understood that the present invention provides air filtration in spaces, preferably kitchen spaces, without requiring dedicated appliances or wasting valuable counter space. Moreover, by incorporating the air filtration system into a refrigerator, surrounding spaces can be substantially, continuously filtered and/or scented without the need for dedicated or additional energy consuming devices.
Although described with reference to preferred embodiments of the invention, it should be readily understood that various changes and/or modifications can be made to the invention without departing from the spirit thereof. For instance, as indicated above, while shown positioned adjacent the condenser, the air filter could be positioned elsewhere in the machine compartment and need not be associated with any particular refrigeration component. That is, the air filter could simply be mounted in cover 32 adjacent all the refrigeration components. It should be further understood that, while two sensors are described, a single sensor detecting a rise/drop in temperature or pressure could also be employed. In general, the invention is only intended to be limited by the scope of the following claims.
