A refrigerator and a control method for an ultrasonic processing device thereof

Abstract

The present invention provides a method for controlling a refrigerator and an ultrasonic processing device thereof. The ultrasonic processing device is disposed in a storage compartment of the refrigerator and includes a container for holding food and at least two ultrasonic transducers disposed on the periphery of the container and located in different directions relative to the container. The control method comprises: upon receiving a user-selected activation command, alternately activating the at least two ultrasonic transducers; obtaining the surface temperature of the food in the container; determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to a first temperature threshold; and if so, continuing to alternately activate the at least two ultrasonic transducers. The present invention has the advantage that by controlling the at least two ultrasonic transducers to alternately activate, the at least two ultrasonic transducers can apply ultrasonic effects to the food from different directions, thereby improving the pickling speed and effect of the food. The alternating activation method also prevents the ultrasonic transducers from applying ultrasonic effects in a direction opposite to each other, preventing the ultrasonic effects from canceling each other out and causing a deterioration in the pickling effect of the food.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of refrigeration and freezing, and in particular to a refrigerator and a control method of an ultrasonic processing device thereof. Background Art

[0002] In recent years, with the changes in people's dietary structure, pickling has become a key link in the meat processing process. The existing ultrasonic pickling method usually only arranges a single or multiple transducers at the bottom of the container, and controls the start and stop of multiple transducers at the same time during operation. This method has two defects: First, the transducer is only set at the bottom of the container, so that the ultrasonic action direction generated by the transducer acts on the food from only one direction, resulting in poor pickling speed and pickling effect of the food. Second, when multiple ultrasonic transducers are started and stopped at the same time, the temperature is difficult to control, which easily causes the surface of the food to be cooked, and the shutdown cooling time is long, which seriously affects the pickling efficiency of the food. Summary of the Invention

[0003] One purpose of the first aspect of the present invention is to alternately start and stop each transducer so that each ultrasonic transducer applies ultrasonic action to food from different directions, thereby improving the pickling speed and pickling effect of the food.

[0004] A further object of the first aspect of the present invention is to control each ultrasonic transducer to stop and cool down when the temperature of the food is high, and then restart alternately until the temperature of the food meets the requirements.

[0005] A second aspect of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator.

[0006] In particular, according to a first aspect of the present invention, the present invention provides a control method for an ultrasonic processing device, wherein the ultrasonic processing device is disposed in a storage compartment of a refrigerator, and comprises a container for holding food and at least two ultrasonic transducers disposed on the periphery of the container and located in different directions of the container. The control method comprises:

[0007] upon receiving a start instruction selected by a user, alternately starting at least two ultrasonic transducers;

[0008] Get the surface temperature of food in the container;

[0009] Determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to a first temperature threshold;

[0010] If so, continue to alternately activate at least two ultrasonic transducers.

[0011] Optionally, after the step of determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to the first temperature threshold, the method further includes:

[0012] If the surface temperature of the food is greater than the first temperature threshold, determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to a second temperature threshold, wherein the second temperature threshold is greater than the first temperature threshold;

[0013] If yes, continue to alternately activate at least two ultrasonic transducers;

[0014] If not, at least two ultrasonic transducers are controlled to stop and cool down until the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to the first temperature threshold.

[0015] Optionally, the first temperature threshold is 1°C to 30°C;

[0016] The second temperature threshold is 15°C~35°C; and

[0017] The difference between the second temperature threshold and the first temperature threshold is ≥4°C.

[0018] Optionally, the step of controlling at least two ultrasonic transducers to stop and cool down further includes:

[0019] The refrigerator is controlled to supply refrigerated airflow to the storage room where the ultrasonic processing device is located.

[0020] Optionally, the number of the at least two ultrasonic transducers is two, and the two ultrasonic transducers are arranged opposite to each other on the periphery of the container.

[0021] Optionally, the container comprises a container body and an upper cover placed in the container body; and

[0022] Two ultrasonic transducers are oppositely arranged on the outside of the front and rear side walls of the container body; or

[0023] Two ultrasonic transducers are oppositely arranged on the outside of the left and right side walls of the container body; or

[0024] One of the ultrasonic transducers is arranged on the outer side of the top of the upper cover, and the other ultrasonic transducer is arranged on the outer side of the bottom of the container body, and the two ultrasonic transducers are opposite to each other up and down.

[0025] Optionally, the step of alternately activating at least two ultrasonic transducers includes:

[0026] Start any one of the ultrasonic transducers first;

[0027] Determine whether its running time reaches the single startup time;

[0028] If yes, turn off the ultrasonic transducer;

[0029] Then start another ultrasonic transducer;

[0030] Determine whether its running time reaches the single startup time;

[0031] If yes, turn off the ultrasonic transducer;

[0032] After the preset waiting time, the ultrasonic transducer that was started first is restarted.

[0033] Optionally, the single startup duration is 5s~25s;

[0034] The default waiting time is 5s~15s.

[0035] Optionally, a temperature detection device is provided in the container, and the step of obtaining the surface temperature of the food in the container includes:

[0036] Obtain the detection value of the temperature detection device and use the detection value as the surface temperature of the food.

[0037] According to a second aspect of the present invention, the present invention provides a refrigerator comprising:

[0038] a box body defining a storage compartment therein;

[0039] An ultrasonic processing device is arranged in the storage room;

[0040] The controller includes a memory and a processor. The memory stores a control program, and the control program is used for any one of the above control methods when executed by the processor.

[0041] The control method for an ultrasonic processing device of the present invention, upon receiving a user-selected activation command, alternately activates at least two ultrasonic transducers, utilizing the at least two ultrasonic waves to apply ultrasonic effects to food from different directions, thereby improving the pickling speed and effectiveness of the food. During the pickling process, the surface temperature of the food is measured and compared with a first temperature threshold. If the surface temperature falls below the first temperature threshold, indicating that the food is currently too cold to be cooked, the at least two ultrasonic transducers can be alternately activated and deactivated, ensuring smooth pickling.

[0042] Furthermore, the control method of the ultrasonic processing device of the present invention compares the surface temperature of the food with a second temperature threshold when the surface temperature of the food is higher than the first temperature threshold. If the surface temperature is higher than the second temperature threshold, it means that the current temperature of the food is high and there is a risk of its surface being cooked. At this time, each ultrasonic transducer is controlled to stop and cool until the surface temperature of the food is lower than the first temperature threshold, and then the ultrasonic transducers are controlled to start alternately again. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0043] Various other advantages and benefits will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the detailed description of the preferred embodiment below. The accompanying drawings are for illustration purposes only and are not to be considered as limiting the present invention. The same reference symbols are used throughout the drawings to represent the same components. In the drawings:

[0044] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0045] Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of an ultrasonic processing device according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0046] Figure 3 is a schematic structural diagram of an ultrasonic processing device according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0047] Figure 4 is a structural block diagram of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0048] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a control method for an ultrasonic processing device according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0049] Figure 6 is a flowchart of a method for controlling an ultrasonic processing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0050] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms and should not be limited by the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided to enable a more thorough understanding of the present disclosure and to fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0051] The present invention first provides a refrigerator 10, Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to Figure 1 The refrigerator 10 generally includes a housing 100, and one or more storage compartments 110 are formed in the housing 100. The storage compartments 110 can be configured as a refrigerated storage compartment 110, a frozen storage compartment 110, and a variable temperature storage compartment 110 according to the refrigeration temperature. Specifically, the number, function, layout, etc. of the storage compartments 110 can be configured according to actual needs.

[0052] An ultrasonic processing device 200 is provided in the storage compartment 110. The ultrasonic processing device 200 is mainly used for auxiliary pickling of food ingredients to improve the pickling speed and pickling effect of the food ingredients. The storage compartment 110 in which the ultrasonic processing device 200 is located can be the refrigerated storage compartment 110 of the refrigerator 10. The temperature of the refrigerated storage compartment 110 is configured to be 0°C~10°C, providing a low temperature environment for pickling food ingredients, thereby inhibiting the growth and reproduction of bacteria and preventing the food ingredients from spoiling during the pickling process.

[0053] The ultrasonic processing device 200 may include a container 210 and at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 arranged on the periphery of the container 210 and located in different directions of the container 210. The container 210 is used to hold food to be pickled, and the at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 are used to apply ultrasonic effects to the food from different directions to improve the pickling speed and pickling effect of the food.

[0054] In this embodiment, the container 210 may be in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped and include a container body 211 and an upper cover 212. The upper cover 212 is removably placed within the container body 211. During actual use, the upper cover 212 is first removed, then the pickling liquid and the food to be pickled are placed within the container body 211, and finally the upper cover 212 is placed within the container body 211 and pressed against the surface of the food.

[0055] Figure 2 FIG is a schematic structural diagram of an ultrasonic processing device 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the shaded portion within the main body of the container 210 represents food. Figure 2 The number of at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 is two, and the two ultrasonic transducers 220 can be relatively arranged on the outside of the front and rear side walls of the container body 211. Alternatively, the two ultrasonic transducers 220 can also be relatively arranged on the outside of the left and right side walls of the container body 211. Alternatively, one of the ultrasonic transducers 220 can be arranged on the outside of the top of the upper cover 212, and the other ultrasonic transducer 220 can be arranged on the outside of the bottom of the container body 211, and the two ultrasonic transducers 220 can be opposite to each other. During the pickling process, by controlling the two ultrasonic transducers 220 to start alternately, ultrasonic action can be applied to the food from both sides, thereby improving the pickling speed and pickling effect of the food. In addition, the alternating start-up method can also prevent the two ultrasonic transducers 220 from weakening the effect due to the ultrasonic action generated by the two ultrasonic transducers 220 being transmitted relative to each other, effectively ensuring the working efficiency of the ultrasonic transducers 220.

[0056] Figure 3 is a schematic structural diagram of an ultrasonic processing device 200 according to another embodiment of the present invention, referring to Figure 3The at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 may also be six. These six ultrasonic transducers 220 are respectively disposed on the outer sides of the front sidewall, rear sidewall, left sidewall, right sidewall, and bottom of the container body 211, as well as on the outer top of the upper cover 212. The ultrasonic transducers 220 on the front and rear sidewalls are not shown. By rotating the six ultrasonic transducers 220, ultrasonic waves can be applied to the food in all directions, significantly improving the pickling speed and quality.

[0057] Figure 4 is a block diagram of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to Figure 4 The refrigerator 10 having the ultrasonic processing device 200 may also be provided with a controller 300 and a temperature detection device 400 .

[0058] The controller 300 includes a memory 320 and a processor 310. The memory 320 stores a control program 321. When the control program 321 is executed by the processor 310, it is used to implement the control method of the ultrasonic processing device 200 of this embodiment. The controller 300 is connected to the ultrasonic transducers 220 for signal communication and is used to control the start and stop of each ultrasonic transducer 220. The controller 300 can be integrated into the main control board of the refrigerator 10 or can be separately provided near the ultrasonic transducers 220. The controller 300 can further be connected to the main control device for signal communication, providing the main control device with the operating status of the ultrasonic transducers 220 and receiving control instructions from the main control device.

[0059] The controller 300 may be implemented by various devices with certain data processing capabilities. In a typical configuration, the controller 300 may include a processor 310 , a memory 320 , an input / output interface, and the like.

[0060] The temperature detection device 400 may be a temperature sensor, the detection end of which extends into the container 210 to detect the surface temperature of the food.

[0061] Figure 5 is a flow chart of a control method of an ultrasonic processing device 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to Figure 5 , the control method at least includes the following steps S102 to S108.

[0062] Step S102 : upon receiving the start instruction selected by the user, alternately start at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 .

[0063] Step S104 , obtaining the surface temperature of the food in the container 210 .

[0064] Step S106: determine whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to a first temperature threshold.

[0065] Step S108: If yes, continue to alternately start at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 .

[0066] The control method of the ultrasonic processing device 200 of the present invention, upon receiving a user-selected activation command, alternately activates at least two ultrasonic transducers 220, utilizing at least two ultrasonic waves to apply ultrasonic effects to food from different directions, thereby improving the pickling speed and effectiveness of the food. During the pickling process, the surface temperature of the food is measured and compared with a first temperature threshold. If the surface temperature is below the first temperature threshold, indicating that the food is currently too cold to be cooked, the at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 can be alternately activated and deactivated, ensuring smooth pickling.

[0067] In step S106 above, when the surface temperature of the food is greater than the first temperature threshold, it can also be determined whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to a second temperature threshold, where the second temperature threshold is greater than the first temperature threshold. If the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to the second temperature threshold, it means that the current temperature of the food is relatively low, and the ultrasonic transducers 220 can continue to be alternately activated, and the ultrasonic transducers 220 can be used to apply ultrasonic effects to the food to assist in marinating. If the surface temperature of the food is greater than the second temperature threshold, it means that the current temperature of the food is relatively high, and all ultrasonic transducers 220 should be controlled to stop and cool until the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to the first temperature threshold, and then the alternating activation of each transducer can be restarted to avoid controlling the ultrasonic transducers 220 to operate when the surface temperature of the food is relatively high, thereby preventing the surface of the food from being cooked.

[0068] In this embodiment, the first temperature threshold can be 1°C to 30°C, for example, 5°C, 10°C, 20°C, 28°C, etc. The second temperature threshold is 15°C to 35°C, for example, 16°C, 20°C, 30°C, 32°C, etc. It should be noted that the difference between the second temperature threshold and the first temperature threshold should be ≥ 4°C. In a typical embodiment, the first temperature threshold is 28°C and the second temperature threshold is 32°C.

[0069] In the step of controlling at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 to stop and cool down, the refrigerator 10 can also be controlled to supply refrigeration airflow to the storage room where the ultrasonic processing device 200 is located, thereby accelerating the cooling speed of each ultrasonic transducer 220 and shortening the total time required for marinating the food to the greatest extent.

[0070] In the case where there are two ultrasonic transducers 220, the steps for alternately starting the two ultrasonic transducers 220 may be to first start any one of the ultrasonic transducers 220, then determine whether its operating time has reached the single start-up time, and if so, shut down the ultrasonic transducer 220, then start the other ultrasonic transducer 220, and then determine whether its operating time has reached the single start-up time. If so, shut down the ultrasonic transducer 220, and after a preset waiting time, restart the ultrasonic transducer 220 that was started first. In this way, the shutdown cooling time of each ultrasonic transducer 220 is equivalent to the sum of the single start-up time and the preset waiting time, so that the ultrasonic transducer 220 has sufficient time to cool down.

[0071] In this embodiment, the single start time may be 5s to 25s, such as 10s, 15s, 20s, etc. The preset waiting time may be 5s to 15s, such as 5s, 10s, 15s, etc.

[0072] In the above step S102 , the step of obtaining the surface temperature of the food in the container 210 may be to obtain the detection value of the temperature detection device 400 and use the detection value as the surface temperature of the food.

[0073] Figure 6 Flowchart of a control method of an ultrasonic treatment device 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention, for the case where the ultrasonic transducer 220 is provided only on the top outer side of the upper cover 212 of the container 210 and the bottom outer side of the container 210 body, refer to Figure 6 , the control method at least includes the following steps S202 to S222.

[0074] Step S202 , starting the bottom ultrasonic transducer 220 .

[0075] Step S204 , determining whether the operating time of the bottom ultrasonic transducer 220 reaches the single start time, if so, executing step S206 .

[0076] Step S206 , turning off the bottom ultrasonic transducer 220 .

[0077] Step S208 , starting the top ultrasonic transducer 220 .

[0078] Step S210 , determining whether the operating time of the top ultrasonic transducer 220 reaches the single start-up time, if so, executing step S212 .

[0079] Step S212: Turn off the top ultrasonic transducer 220.

[0080] Step S214, determining whether a preset waiting time has passed after the top ultrasonic transducer 220 is turned off, and if so, executing step S216.

[0081] Step S216 , obtaining the surface temperature of the food in the container 210 .

[0082] Step S218, determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to the first temperature threshold, if so, returning to step S202, if not, executing step S220.

[0083] Step S220, determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to the second temperature threshold, if so, returning to step S202, if not, executing step S222.

[0084] In step S222 , the top ultrasonic transducer 220 and the bottom ultrasonic transducer 220 are controlled to stop and cool down, and then the process returns to step S216 .

[0085] By adopting the control method of the embodiment of the present invention, alternately starting the bottom ultrasonic transducer 220 and the top ultrasonic transducer 220 on a macro scale can significantly improve the pickling speed and pickling effect, and shorten the total time required for pickling food.

[0086] According to any one or more of the above optional embodiments, the embodiments of the present invention can achieve the following beneficial effects:

[0087] The control method of the ultrasonic processing device 200 of the present invention, upon receiving a user-selected activation command, alternately activates at least two ultrasonic transducers 220, utilizing at least two ultrasonic waves to apply ultrasonic effects to food from different directions, thereby improving the pickling speed and effectiveness of the food. During the pickling process, the surface temperature of the food is measured and compared with a first temperature threshold. If the surface temperature is below the first temperature threshold, indicating that the food is currently too cold to be cooked, the at least two ultrasonic transducers 220 can be alternately activated and deactivated, ensuring smooth pickling.

[0088] Furthermore, the control method of the ultrasonic processing device 200 of the present invention compares the surface temperature of the food with a second temperature threshold when the surface temperature of the food is higher than the first temperature threshold. If the surface temperature is higher than the second temperature threshold, it means that the current temperature of the food is high and there is a risk of its surface being cooked. At this time, each ultrasonic transducer 220 is controlled to stop and cool until the surface temperature of the food is lower than the first temperature threshold, and then the ultrasonic transducers 220 are controlled to start alternately again.

[0089] At this point, those skilled in the art will recognize that, although a number of exemplary embodiments 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 may be directly determined or derived from the disclosure of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should be understood and deemed to cover all such other variations or modifications.

Claims

1. A method for controlling an ultrasonic processing device, wherein the ultrasonic processing device is disposed in a storage compartment of a refrigerator and comprises a container for holding food and at least two ultrasonic transducers disposed on the periphery of the container and located in different directions of the container, the method comprising: upon receiving a start instruction selected by a user, alternately starting the at least two ultrasonic transducers; Obtaining the surface temperature of the food in the container; Determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to a first temperature threshold; If so, continue to alternately activate the at least two ultrasonic transducers.

2. The control method according to claim 1, wherein: After the step of determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to the first temperature threshold, the method further includes: If the surface temperature of the food is greater than the first temperature threshold, determining whether the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to a second temperature threshold, wherein the second temperature threshold is greater than the first temperature threshold; If yes, continue to alternately activate the at least two ultrasonic transducers; If not, the at least two ultrasonic transducers are controlled to stop and cool down until the surface temperature of the food is less than or equal to a first temperature threshold.

3. The control method according to claim 2, wherein The first temperature threshold is 1°C to 30°C; The second temperature threshold is 15°C to 35°C; and The difference between the second temperature threshold and the first temperature threshold is ≥4°C.

4. The control method according to claim 2, wherein: The step of controlling the at least two ultrasonic transducers to stop and cool down further includes: The refrigerator is controlled to supply refrigeration airflow to the storage room where the ultrasonic processing device is located.

5. The control method according to claim 1, wherein: The number of the at least two ultrasonic transducers is two, and the two ultrasonic transducers are arranged opposite to each other on the outer circumference of the container.

6. The control method according to claim 5, wherein: The container comprises a container body and an upper cover placed in the container body; and The two ultrasonic transducers are oppositely arranged on the outside of the front and rear side walls of the container body; or The two ultrasonic transducers are oppositely arranged on the outside of the left and right side walls of the container body; or One of the ultrasonic transducers is arranged on the outer side of the top of the upper cover, and the other ultrasonic transducer is arranged on the outer side of the bottom of the container body, and the two ultrasonic transducers are opposite to each other up and down.

7. The control method according to claim 5, wherein: The step of alternately starting the at least two ultrasonic transducers comprises: First, start any one of the ultrasonic transducers; Determine whether its running time reaches the single startup time; If yes, turning off the ultrasonic transducer; Then starting another ultrasonic transducer; Determine whether its running time reaches the single startup time; If yes, turning off the ultrasonic transducer; After a preset waiting time, the ultrasonic transducer that was started first is restarted.

8. The control method according to claim 7, wherein The single start time is 5s to 25s; The preset waiting time is 5s to 15s.

9. The control method according to claim 1, wherein: A temperature detection device is provided in the container, and the step of obtaining the surface temperature of the food in the container includes: The detection value of the temperature detection device is obtained, and the detection value is used as the surface temperature of the food.

10. A refrigerator comprising: a box body defining a storage compartment therein; An ultrasonic processing device is arranged in the storage room; A controller comprising a memory and a processor, wherein a control program is stored in the memory, and when the control program is executed by the processor, it is used to implement the control method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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