Refrigerator

Abstract

The invention provides a refrigerator which comprises a freezing inner container located on the lower portion and a variable-temperature inner container located above the freezing inner container, a cooling chamber located at the bottom and a freezing chamber located above the cooling chamber are defined in the freezing inner container, and a variable-temperature chamber is defined in the variable-temperature inner container; at least one front return air inlet communicated with the freezing chamber is formed in the front side of the cooling chamber, so that return air flow of the freezing chamber enters the cooling chamber through the at least one front return air inlet to be cooled, and a side return air inlet is formed in at least one of the two transverse side walls of the cooling chamber; the refrigerator further comprises a variable-temperature chamber air return duct enabling the inner space of the variable-temperature inner container to communicate with the side air return inlet so that air return airflow of the variable-temperature chamber can be conveyed into the cooling chamber to be cooled. According to the refrigerator, the return air flow enters the cooling chamber from the front side and the transverse side part of the cooling chamber, so that the heat exchange efficiency of the return air flow and the evaporator is improved, and the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator can be ensured.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the Chinese patent application with application number 201910143316.9, application date February 26, 2019, and application name “Refrigerator with variable temperature chamber and return air on the side wall of the cooling chamber”. Technical Field

[0002] The present invention relates to the technical field of household appliances, in particular to a refrigerator. Background Art

[0003] In existing refrigerators, the freezer compartment is generally located at the bottom of the refrigerator, the cooling compartment is located at the rear of the outer side of the freezer compartment, and the compressor compartment is located at the rear of the freezer compartment. The freezer compartment needs to make way for the compressor compartment, which makes the freezer compartment irregular in shape and limits the depth of the freezer compartment. Summary of the invention

[0004] In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator that overcomes the above problems or at least partially solves the above problems.

[0005] A further object of the present invention is to improve the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator.

[0006] The present invention provides a refrigerator, comprising:

[0007] The box body includes a freezing liner located at the bottom and a variable temperature liner located above the freezing liner, the freezing liner defines a cooling chamber located at the bottom and a freezing chamber located above the cooling chamber, and the variable temperature liner defines a variable temperature chamber;

[0008] an evaporator disposed in the cooling chamber and configured to cool an airflow entering the cooling chamber;

[0009] The front side of the cooling chamber is formed with at least one front return air inlet communicating with the freezing chamber, so that the return air flow of the freezing chamber enters the cooling chamber through the at least one front return air inlet for cooling;

[0010] At least one of the two lateral side walls of the cooling chamber is formed with a side return air inlet, and the refrigerator also includes a variable temperature chamber return air duct connecting the internal space of the variable temperature inner tank with the side return air inlet to transport the return air flow of the variable temperature chamber to the cooling chamber for cooling.

[0011] Optionally, the side return air inlet is adjacent to the front end of the side wall where it is located.

[0012] Optionally, there are two temperature-variable inner containers, and the two temperature-variable inner containers are distributed in the transverse direction;

[0013] There are two return air ducts for the variable temperature chamber, and the two return air ducts for the variable temperature chamber correspond to the two variable temperature inner tanks one by one;

[0014] There are two side return air inlets, which are respectively formed on the two lateral side walls of the cooling chamber, and the two side return air inlets correspond one to one with the two temperature-changing room return air ducts;

[0015] The two variable temperature inner tanks respectively convey their return air flows through the corresponding variable temperature chamber return air ducts and through the corresponding side return air inlets to the cooling chamber.

[0016] Optionally, the refrigerator further comprises:

[0017] The top cover is located above the evaporator;

[0018] At least one front cover group, each front cover group having at least one front return air inlet formed on its front side;

[0019] The top cover, at least one front cover assembly, and the rear wall, bottom wall, and two lateral side walls of the freezing container together define a cooling chamber;

[0020] The transverse side walls of the freezing inner container constitute the transverse side walls of the cooling chamber.

[0021] Optionally, two front return air inlets are formed on the front side of each front cover group, and the two front return air inlets are respectively recorded as a first front return air inlet and a second front return air inlet;

[0022] Front cover set includes:

[0023] A front decorative cover, the front end of which is located in front of the front end of the evaporator and is spaced from the front end of the evaporator, the front wall of the front end of the evaporator is formed with a first opening, and the rear side of the front end of the evaporator is open;

[0024] The front air duct cover has a front end portion located at the front end of the evaporator, and the front end portion is inserted forward into the front decorative cover from the rear side opening of the front end portion of the front decorative cover to separate the first opening into a first front return air inlet located below and a second front return air inlet located above.

[0025] Optionally, the bottom wall of the front end portion of the front air duct cover and the bottom wall of the front end portion of the front decorative cover define a first return air channel that passes through the first front return air inlet, and the first return air channel is located in front of the evaporator, so that at least part of the return air flow entering the first return air channel through the first front return air inlet enters the evaporator from the front of the evaporator and is cooled by the evaporator.

[0026] Optionally, a second opening communicating with the second front return air inlet is formed in an upper section of the front end portion of the front air duct cover, and the second opening is located above and in front of the evaporator;

[0027] The lower surface of the top cover is spaced apart from the upper surface of the evaporator, the front end of the top cover is located above and behind the front end of the evaporator, and a windshield material is filled between the lower surface of the top cover and the upper surface of the evaporator;

[0028] The front air duct cover includes a first shielding portion located above and behind the second opening, and the rear end of the first shielding portion abuts against the front end of the top cover to form a second return air channel that passes through the second opening between the first shielding portion and the upper surface of the evaporator, so that at least part of the return air flow that enters the second return air channel through the second front return air inlet enters the evaporator from above the evaporator and is cooled by the evaporator.

[0029] Optionally, there are two front cover groups, and the two front cover groups are distributed along the transverse direction.

[0030] Optionally, the refrigerator further comprises:

[0031] The air supply fan is arranged in the cooling chamber and is configured to draw the return air flow into the cooling chamber to be cooled by the evaporator, and to cause the cooled air flow to flow to the freezing chamber and the temperature-changing chamber;

[0032] The freezer compartment air supply duct is connected to the air outlet of the air supply fan and is configured to deliver part of the air flow cooled by the evaporator to the freezer compartment;

[0033] The variable temperature chamber air supply duct is configured to be controllably connected to the freezer chamber air supply duct so as to transport part of the air flow in the freezer chamber air supply duct to the variable temperature chamber.

[0034] Optionally, the refrigerator further comprises:

[0035] The refrigeration inner tank is located above the temperature-variable inner tank and defines a refrigeration chamber therein.

[0036] The refrigerator of the present invention defines a cooling chamber in the bottom space of the freezing liner and defines a freezing chamber above the cooling chamber, so that the cooling chamber occupies the lower space in the freezing liner, raises the freezing chamber, reduces the degree of bending when the user takes out and puts items in the freezing chamber, and improves the user's experience. In addition, the front side and the lateral side of the cooling chamber both have return airflow entering the cooling chamber, which increases the heat exchange efficiency between the return airflow and the evaporator, thereby ensuring the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator.

[0037] Furthermore, in the refrigerator of the present invention, by specially designing the structures of the top cover, the front decorative cover and the front air duct cover, the heat exchange efficiency between the return air flow in the freezer and the evaporator is ensured, thereby improving the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator. In addition, when the front end surface of the evaporator is frosted, it can still be ensured that the return air flow can enter the evaporator and be cooled by the evaporator, thereby solving the problem of reduced refrigeration effect due to frosting of the evaporator in existing refrigerators and improving the overall performance of the refrigerator.

[0038] Based on the following detailed description of specific embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art will become more aware of the above and other objects, advantages and features of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0039] Hereinafter, some specific embodiments 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 numerals in the accompanying drawings indicate the same or similar components or parts. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that these drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. In the accompanying drawings:

[0040] Figure 1 is a front view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein a refrigerating chamber door, a variable temperature chamber door, and a freezing chamber door are hidden;

[0041] Figure 2 is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein a refrigerating chamber door body, a variable temperature chamber door body, a freezing chamber door body and a part of a cover plate are hidden;

[0042] Figure 3 is a first partial exploded view of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 4 is a second partial schematic diagram of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 Exploded diagram of

[0045] Figure 6 is a third partial exploded schematic diagram of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

[0046] Figure 7 is a fourth partial schematic diagram of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0047] This embodiment provides a refrigerator 10. Figures 1 to 7 In the following description, the directions or positional relationships indicated by "front", "rear", "up", "down", "left", "right", etc. are directions or positional relationships based on the refrigerator 10 itself as a reference. Figure 6 and Figure 7 The direction indicated, such as Figure 1 As shown, “horizontal” refers to a direction parallel to the width direction of the refrigerator 10 , “left” refers to the horizontal left side of the refrigerator with reference to the refrigerator 10 , and “right” refers to the horizontal right side of the refrigerator with reference to the refrigerator 10 .

[0048] Figure 1 is a front view of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 1 is a perspective schematic diagram of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 , Figure 2The refrigerating chamber door, the temperature-changing chamber door and the freezing chamber door are hidden in the figure to show the internal structure of the refrigerator 10.

[0049] The refrigerator 10 may generally include a box body 100, which includes an outer shell 110 and a storage liner disposed inside the outer shell 110. The space between the outer shell 110 and the storage liner is filled with a heat-insulating material (forming a foaming layer). A storage compartment is defined in the storage liner. The storage liner may generally include a freezing liner 130, a refrigerating liner 120, etc. The storage compartment includes a freezing chamber 132 defined in the freezing liner 130 and a refrigerating chamber 121 defined in the refrigerating liner 120. A door body is also provided on the front side of the storage liner to open or close the storage compartment. Figure 1 , Figure 2 The door body is hidden in the figure to show the internal structure of the refrigerator 10.

[0050] As those skilled in the art can appreciate, the refrigerator 10 of this embodiment may further include an evaporator 101, an air supply fan (not shown), a compressor 104, a condenser 105, and a throttling element (not shown), etc. The evaporator 101 is connected to the compressor 104, the condenser 105, and the throttling element via a refrigerant pipeline to form a refrigeration cycle, and the temperature is reduced when the compressor 104 is started to cool the air flowing through it.

[0051] In particular, in this embodiment, if Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown, the freezing liner 130 is located at the lower part of the cabinet 100, and defines a cooling chamber at the bottom thereof. The evaporator 101 is arranged in the cooling chamber to cool the air flow entering the cooling chamber, and the freezing chamber 132 defined by the freezing liner 130 is located above the cooling chamber, so that the cooling chamber is at the lowest part of the cabinet 100.

[0052] The evaporator 101 as a whole can be placed horizontally in the cooling chamber in a flat cubic shape, that is, the length and width of the evaporator 101 are parallel to the horizontal plane, the thickness surface is placed perpendicular to the horizontal plane, and the thickness dimension is significantly smaller than the length dimension of the evaporator 101. By placing the evaporator 101 horizontally in the cooling chamber, the evaporator 101 is prevented from occupying more space, and the storage volume of the freezing chamber 132 above the cooling chamber is guaranteed.

[0053] At least one front return air inlet connected to the freezer chamber 132 is formed on the front side of the cooling chamber, so that the return air flow of the freezer chamber 132 enters the cooling chamber through the at least one front return air inlet and is cooled by the evaporator 101, thereby forming an air flow circulation between the cooling chamber and the freezer chamber 132.

[0054] In a conventional refrigerator 10, the freezer compartment 132 is located at the bottom of the refrigerator 10, and the compressor compartment is located at the rear of the freezer compartment 132. The freezer compartment 132 inevitably has to be made into an irregular space to make room for the compressor compartment, which reduces the storage capacity of the freezer compartment 132 and also brings about the following problems. On the one hand, the freezer compartment 132 is located at a relatively low position, and the user needs to bend over or squat significantly to take and put items in the freezer compartment 132, which is inconvenient for users, especially for the elderly. On the other hand, since the depth of the freezer compartment 132 is reduced, in order to ensure the storage volume of the freezer compartment 132, the space in the height direction of the freezer compartment 132 needs to be increased. When the user stores items in the freezer compartment 132, the items need to be stacked in the height direction, which is inconvenient for the user to find items. In addition, the items at the bottom of the freezer compartment 132 are easily blocked, making it difficult for the user to find them and forget them, resulting in deterioration and waste of the items. Furthermore, since the freezer compartment 132 is of an irregular shape and not a rectangular space, it is inconvenient to place some large and difficult to divide items in the freezer compartment 132.

[0055] The refrigerator 10 of this embodiment defines a cooling chamber in the bottom space of the freezing liner 130, and defines a freezing chamber 132 above the cooling chamber, so that the cooling chamber occupies the lower space in the freezing liner 130, raising the freezing chamber 132, reducing the degree of bending when the user takes and places items in the freezing chamber 132, and improving the user's experience. At the same time, the press cabin can be located at the rear and lower part of the cooling chamber, and the freezing chamber 132 no longer needs to make way for the press cabin, so that the freezing chamber 132 is a rectangular space, so that the items can be stored in a flat-laying manner instead of in a stacked manner, which is convenient for users to find items and saves users' time and energy; at the same time, it is also convenient to place large items that are not easy to divide, solving the pain point that large items cannot be placed in the freezing chamber 132.

[0056] Figure 3 is a first partial exploded view of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0057] In particular, if Figures 1 to 3 As shown, the refrigerator 10 of this embodiment further includes a variable temperature inner liner 131 located above the freezing inner liner 130, and a variable temperature chamber 1311 is defined in the variable temperature inner liner 131. A side return air inlet 130a is formed on at least one of the two lateral side walls of the cooling chamber, and the refrigerator 10 further includes a variable temperature chamber return air duct 1312 that connects the inner space of the variable temperature inner liner 131 with the side return air inlet 130a, so as to transport the return air flow of the variable temperature chamber 1311 to the cooling chamber for cooling by the evaporator 101, thereby forming an air flow circulation between the variable temperature chamber 1311 and the cooling chamber.

[0058] In the refrigerator 10 of this embodiment, the variable temperature inner tank 131 is located above the freezing inner tank 130 and is independently arranged with the freezing inner tank 130, so that the variable temperature chamber 1311 no longer occupies the space of the freezing inner tank 130, thereby increasing the storage volume of the freezing chamber 132; in addition, at least one front return air inlet connected to the freezing chamber 132 is formed on the front side of the cooling chamber, and the lateral side wall of the cooling chamber is formed with a side return air inlet 130a for the return air flow of the variable temperature chamber 1311 to enter the cooling chamber, so that the return air flow enters the cooling chamber from the front side and the lateral side of the cooling chamber, thereby increasing the heat exchange efficiency between the return air flow and the evaporator 101, thereby improving the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator 10.

[0059] In some embodiments, Figure 3 As shown, the side return air inlet 130a is adjacent to the front end of the side wall of the cooling chamber where it is located, so as to introduce the return air flow of the temperature changing chamber 1311 into the cooling chamber from the front side of the cooling chamber, thereby extending the path of the return air flow entering the cooling chamber in the process of flowing through the evaporator 101, ensuring that the evaporator 101 can fully cool the return air flow and ensure the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator 10.

[0060] like Figure 3 As shown, at least one of the two lateral side walls of the variable temperature inner tank 131 is formed with a side return air outlet (unnumbered), and the variable temperature chamber return air duct is configured to connect the side return air outlet with the side return air inlet 130a to transport the return air flow of the variable temperature chamber 1311 to the cooling chamber for cooling.

[0061] The side return air outlet and the side return air inlet 130a should correspond to each other one by one. To facilitate the arrangement of the variable temperature room return air duct 1312, the side return air outlet and the corresponding side return air inlet 130a should be located on the same horizontal side. For example, the side return air outlet and the side return air inlet 130a are both one. If the side return air outlet is formed on the horizontal left wall of the variable temperature inner tank 131, correspondingly, the side return air inlet 130a should be formed on the horizontal left wall of the cooling chamber, and the variable temperature room return air duct 1312 should be located on the horizontal left outside of the freezing inner tank 130.

[0062] In some embodiments, the air supply fan in the refrigerator 10 is arranged in the cooling chamber, and is configured to suck the return air flow into the cooling chamber for cooling by the evaporator 101, and promote the cooled air flow to flow to the freezing chamber 132 and the variable temperature chamber 1311. The refrigerator 10 of this embodiment also includes a freezing chamber air supply duct 141 and a variable temperature chamber air supply duct (not shown). The freezing chamber air supply duct 141 is connected to the air outlet end of the air supply fan, and is configured to transport part of the air flow cooled by the evaporator 101 to the freezing chamber 132, such as Figure 1 As shown, the freezer compartment air supply duct 141 is disposed on the inner side of the rear wall of the freezer liner 130 , and has a plurality of air supply outlets 141 a connected to the freezer compartment 132 .

[0063] The variable temperature room air supply duct is configured to be controllably connected to the freezer compartment air supply duct 141, so as to convey part of the airflow in the freezer compartment air supply duct 141 to the variable temperature room 1311. The variable temperature room air supply duct is located above the freezing liner 130 and in the foaming layer behind the variable temperature room liner 131. The rear wall of the variable temperature room liner 131 is formed with an air supply inlet 131a connected to the air outlet end of the variable temperature room air supply duct. The air inlet end of the variable temperature room air supply duct is connected to the freezer compartment air supply duct 141 through a through hole 130b formed on the top wall of the freezing liner 130. An electric-controlled damper (not shown) may be provided at the through hole 130b. The electric-controlled damper is controlled to connect the air inlet end of the variable temperature room air supply duct with the freezer compartment air supply duct 141, so as to convey part of the airflow in the freezer compartment air supply duct 141 to the variable temperature room 1311 through the variable temperature room air supply duct.

[0064] In some embodiments, Figure 3 As shown, the side return air outlet can be near the front end of the side wall where it is located. Since the air supply inlet 131a of the variable temperature liner 131 is formed on the rear wall of the variable temperature liner 131, the cooling airflow transported by the variable temperature chamber air supply duct enters the variable temperature chamber 1311 from the air supply inlet 131a. By forming the side return air outlet of the variable temperature liner 131 at a position near the front end of its side wall, the flow path of the cooling airflow in the variable temperature chamber 1311 can be extended to ensure that the variable temperature chamber 1311 is fully cooled.

[0065] In some embodiments, Figures 1 to 3 As shown, there are two variable temperature inner liners 131, and the two variable temperature inner liners 131 are distributed in the transverse direction. Accordingly, there are two variable temperature chamber return air ducts 1312, and the two variable temperature chamber return air ducts 1312 correspond one-to-one to the two variable temperature inner liners 131. There are two side return air inlets 130a, and the two side return air inlets 130a are respectively formed on the two transverse side walls of the cooling chamber. The two side return air inlets 130a correspond one-to-one to the two variable temperature chamber return air ducts 1312. The two variable temperature inner liners 131 respectively convey their return air flow through the corresponding variable temperature chamber return air ducts 1312 and the corresponding side return air inlets 130a to the cooling chamber.

[0066] One of the two lateral side walls of each variable temperature inner tank 131 is formed with a side return air outlet, such as Figure 3 As shown, a side return air outlet is formed on the left lateral side wall of the variable temperature inner tank 131 located on the left lateral side, and a side return air outlet is formed on the right lateral side wall of the variable temperature inner tank 131 located on the right lateral side.

[0067] One of the variable temperature temperature return air ducts 1312 is located on the outside of the lateral left side of the freezing inner liner 130, and the other variable temperature temperature return air duct 1312 is located on the outside of the lateral right side of the freezing inner liner 130. The variable temperature temperature return air duct 1312 located on the lateral left side connects and communicates the side return air outlet located on the lateral left side with the side return air inlet 130a located on the lateral left side, and the variable temperature temperature return air duct 1312 located on the lateral right side connects and communicates the side return air outlet located on the lateral right side with the side return air inlet 130a located on the lateral right side.

[0068] In some embodiments, the refrigerator 10 also includes a cover plate 102, which includes a top cover 1021 located above the evaporator and at least one front cover group, and the front side of each front cover group is formed with the aforementioned at least one front return air inlet, and the top cover 1021, the at least one front cover group and the rear wall, bottom wall and two lateral side walls of the freezing liner 130 together define a cooling chamber, and accordingly, the lateral side walls of the freezing liner 130 constitute the lateral side walls of the cooling chamber.

[0069] like Figure 1 As shown, in this embodiment, there are two front cover groups, and the two front cover groups are distributed in the transverse direction. Figures 2 to 5 Only one front cover group located on the right side in the horizontal direction is shown, and the front side of each front cover group is formed with at least one front return air inlet as mentioned above.

[0070] In this embodiment, the refrigerator 10 further includes a vertical partition plate (not shown), which extends downward from the top wall of the freezing liner 130 to the upper surface of the top cover 1021 to divide the freezing chamber 132 into two horizontally distributed freezing spaces. Figure 1 As shown, the front cover plate of the freezer compartment air supply duct 141 is formed with a mounting groove 141c that cooperates with the vertical partition plate.

[0071] In this embodiment, the two front cover groups are spaced apart in the transverse direction, and the vertical partition plate includes a front shielding portion extending between the two front cover groups and located in front of the evaporator 101 to block the gap between the two front cover groups, thereby completely isolating the airflow in the two freezing spaces of the freezer chamber 132, so that the return air of the freezing space located on the transverse right side enters the cooling chamber through the front return air inlet of the front cover group located on the transverse right side, and the return air of the freezing space located on the transverse left side enters the cooling chamber through the front return air inlet of the front cover group located on the transverse left side.

[0072] Figure 4 is a second partial schematic diagram of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 5 yes Figure 4 Exploded diagram of .

[0073] In some embodiments, Figures 2 to 5As shown, two front return air inlets are formed on the front side of each front cover group, and the two front return air inlets are respectively marked as a first front return air inlet 102a and a second front return air inlet 102b.

[0074] like Figure 5 As shown, each front cover group includes a front decorative cover 1022 and a front air duct cover 1023, the front end portion 10221 of the front decorative cover 1022 is located in front of the front end of the evaporator 101, the front end portion 10221 is spaced from the front end of the evaporator 101, the front wall of the front end portion 10221 of the front decorative cover 1022 is formed with a first opening 1022a, and the rear side of the front end portion 10221 of the front decorative cover 1022 is open; the front end portion 10231 of the front air duct cover 1023 is located at the front end of the evaporator 101, and the front end portion 10231 of the front air duct cover 1023 is inserted forwardly into the front decorative cover 1022 from the rear opening of the front end portion 10221 of the front decorative cover 1022, so as to separate the first opening 1022a into a first front return air inlet 102a located below and a second front return air inlet 102b located above.

[0075] Two front return air inlets are formed on the front side of the front cover group, which are not only visually pleasing, but also can effectively prevent children's fingers or foreign objects from entering the cooling chamber; moreover, the two return air areas distributed up and down can make the return air flow through the evaporator 101 more evenly after entering the cooling chamber, which can avoid the problem of frosting on the front end surface of the evaporator 101 to a certain extent, which can not only improve the heat exchange efficiency, but also extend the defrosting cycle, saving energy and being efficient.

[0076] Specifically, the bottom wall of the front end portion 10231 of the front air duct cover 1023 and the bottom wall of the front end portion 10221 of the front decorative cover 1022 define a first return air channel that is connected to the first front return air inlet 102a, and the first return air channel is located in front of the evaporator 101. That is to say, the front end portion 10231 of the front air duct cover 1023 is inserted forward into the front decorative cover 1022 from the rear side opening of the front end portion 10221 of the front decorative cover 1022 so that the bottom wall of the front end portion 10231 of the front air duct cover 1023 and the bottom wall of the front end portion 10221 of the front decorative cover 1022 are spaced apart to form a first return air channel that is connected to the first front return air inlet 102a, so that at least part of the return air flow entering the first return air channel through the first front return air inlet 102a enters the evaporator 101 from the front of the evaporator 101 and is cooled by the evaporator 101.

[0077] The front end portion 10231 of the front air duct cover 1023 is formed with a second opening 1023a that is connected to the second front return air inlet 102b, and the second opening 1023a is located in the front and upper part of the evaporator 101. The lower surface of the top cover 1021 is spaced apart from the upper surface of the evaporator 101, and the front end of the top cover 1021 is located in the upper and rear part of the front end of the evaporator 101, that is, the top cover 1021 does not completely cover the upper part of the upper surface of the evaporator 101. In addition, a windshield material (not shown) is filled between the lower surface of the top cover 1021 and the upper surface of the evaporator 101, such as Figure 5 As shown, the top cover 1021 and the upper surface of the evaporator 101 are spaced apart to form a space 102c, and the space 102c is filled with a windshield material ( Figure 2 The filled windshield material is hidden in the figure), and the windshield material may be windshield foam.

[0078] In addition, the front air duct cover 1023 includes a first shielding portion 10232 located above and behind the second opening 1023a, and the rear end of the first shielding portion 10232 abuts against the front end of the top cover 1021 to close the portion above the upper surface of the evaporator 101 that is not shielded by the top cover 1021, thereby forming a second return air channel that passes through the second opening 1023a and the second front return air inlet 102b between the first shielding portion 10232 and the upper surface of the evaporator 101, so that at least part of the return air flow that enters the second return air channel through the second front return air inlet 102b enters the evaporator 101 from above the evaporator 101 and is cooled by the evaporator.

[0079] Since the space 102c between the top cover 1021 and the upper surface of the evaporator 101 is filled with wind-blocking material, the return air flow entering the second return air channel is prevented from flowing directly backwards without passing through the evaporator 101, so that the return air flow entering the second return air channel flows downward and enters the evaporator 101 from the upper surface of the evaporator 101.

[0080] like Figure 5 , and combined with Figure 4 As shown, the front decorative cover 1022 includes a second shielding portion 10222 that is bent and extended rearward and upward from the upper rear edge of the front end portion 10221 thereof, and the second shielding portion 10222 is located above the first shielding portion 10232 and extends to overlap with the upper surface of the top cover 1021 to completely shield the upper part of the first shielding portion 10232, and the shape of the second shielding portion 10222 is adapted to the shape of the first shielding portion 10232 so that the second shielding portion 10222 and the first shielding portion 10232 fit closely to avoid air leakage.

[0081] Since the temperature around the front end surface of the evaporator 101 is significantly different from the temperature of the return air flow, frost is easily formed on the front end surface of the evaporator 101 .

[0082] If the front end surface of the evaporator 101 is not frosted or the amount of frost is small so that the front end surface of the evaporator 101 can still pass air flow, then a part of the return air flow of the freezer chamber 132 enters the first return air channel through the first front return air inlet 102a, and a part of the return air flow of the freezer chamber enters the second return air channel through the second front return air inlet 102b. Part of the airflow entering the first return air channel enters the evaporator 101 from the front of the evaporator 101 (that is, from the front end surface of the evaporator 101), and is cooled by the evaporator 101. Another part of the airflow entering the first return air channel flows upward to the second return air channel, and then flows downward from the second return air channel into the evaporator 101, so that part of the return air flow enters the evaporator 101 from the front of the evaporator 101, and part of the return air flow enters the evaporator 101 from above the evaporator 101, thereby ensuring sufficient heat exchange between the return air flow and the evaporator 101, thereby improving the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator 10.

[0083] If the front end surface of the evaporator 101 is frosted thickly and the air flow cannot enter the evaporator 101, the return air flow of the freezer chamber 132 can enter the second return air channel through the second front return air inlet 102b located above, and flow downward from the second return air channel to the upper surface of the evaporator 101 and enter the evaporator 101 for cooling, thereby still ensuring the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator 10.

[0084] The refrigerator 10 of this embodiment ensures the heat exchange efficiency between the return air flow of the freezer chamber 132 and the evaporator 101 by specially designing the structures of the top cover 1021, the front decorative cover 1022 and the front air duct cover 1023, thereby improving the refrigeration effect of the refrigerator 10. In addition, when the front end surface of the evaporator 101 is frosted, it can still be ensured that the return air flow can enter the evaporator 101 and be cooled by the evaporator 101, thereby solving the problem of reduced refrigeration effect of the existing refrigerator 10 due to frosting of the evaporator 101 and improving the overall performance of the refrigerator 10.

[0085] In the refrigerator 10 of the present embodiment, the refrigeration liner 120 is located above the temperature-variable liner 131, and a refrigeration chamber 121 is defined in the refrigeration liner 120. The refrigerator 10 of the present embodiment further includes a refrigeration evaporator (not shown), a refrigeration fan (not shown), and a refrigeration air supply duct (not shown). A refrigeration evaporator chamber is defined at the lower inner side of the rear wall of the refrigeration liner 120, and the refrigeration evaporator and the refrigeration fan are arranged in the refrigeration evaporator chamber. The refrigeration air supply duct is arranged at the inner side of the rear wall of the refrigeration liner 120, and has a refrigeration air supply inlet connected to the air outlet end of the refrigeration fan and a refrigeration air supply outlet connected to the refrigeration chamber 121. The refrigeration fan is configured to cause the air flow cooled by the refrigeration evaporator to flow into the refrigeration chamber 121 through the refrigeration air supply duct to adjust the temperature of the refrigeration chamber 121.

[0086] At least one refrigerated return air inlet is formed on the front side of the refrigerated evaporator chamber to guide the return air flow of the refrigerated chamber 121 to the refrigerated evaporator chamber through the refrigerated return air inlet to be cooled by the refrigerated evaporator, thereby forming an air flow circulation between the refrigerated chamber 121 and the refrigerated evaporator chamber.

[0087] As is well known to those skilled in the art, the temperature in the refrigerator 121 is generally between 2°C and 10°C, preferably between 4°C and 7°C. The temperature in the freezer 132 is generally between -22°C and -14°C. The temperature of the variable temperature chamber 1311 can be adjusted to -18°C to 8°C at will. Different types of items have different optimal storage temperatures and different suitable storage locations. For example, fruit and vegetable foods are suitable for storage in the refrigerator 121, while meat foods are suitable for storage in the freezer 132.

[0088] Figure 6 1 is a third partial exploded view of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 7 is a fourth partial schematic diagram of a refrigerator 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0089] A press cabin is defined at the bottom of the box body 100, and the press cabin is located at the rear and lower part of the cooling chamber. As mentioned above, the freezer chamber 132 does not need to make way for the press cabin, thereby ensuring the depth of the freezer chamber 132, making it convenient to place larger items that are not easy to divide.

[0090] like Figure 6 As shown, the refrigerator 10 further includes a heat dissipation fan 106, which may be an axial flow fan. The compressor 104, the heat dissipation fan 106 and the condenser 105 are arranged in the compressor compartment in a sequentially spaced manner along the lateral direction.

[0091] In some embodiments, at least one rear air outlet hole 1162 a is formed in a section 1162 of the rear wall of the compressor cabin corresponding to the compressor 104 .

[0092] In fact, before the present invention, the general design idea of ​​those skilled in the art is to open a rear air inlet facing the condenser 105 and a rear air outlet 1162a facing the compressor 104 on the rear wall of the compressor cabin, so as to complete the circulation of the heat dissipation airflow at the rear of the compressor cabin; or to form ventilation holes on the front wall and the rear wall of the compressor cabin respectively, so as to form a heat dissipation circulation air path in the front-to-back direction. When faced with the problem of improving the heat dissipation effect of the compressor cabin, those skilled in the art usually increase the number of rear air inlet holes and rear air outlet holes 1162a on the rear wall of the compressor cabin to expand the ventilation area, or increase the heat exchange area of ​​the condenser 105, such as using a U-shaped condenser with a larger heat exchange area.

[0093] The applicant of the present invention creatively realized that the larger the heat exchange area of ​​the condenser 105 and the ventilation area of ​​the compressor compartment, the better. In the conventional design scheme of increasing the heat exchange area of ​​the condenser 105 and the ventilation area of ​​the compressor compartment, the problem of uneven heat dissipation of the condenser 105 will be brought about, which will have an adverse effect on the refrigeration system of the refrigerator 10. Therefore, the applicant of the present invention breaks away from the conventional design ideas and creatively proposes a new scheme different from the conventional design, such as Figure 7 As shown, the bottom wall of the box body is defined with a bottom air inlet 110a adjacent to the condenser 105 and a bottom air outlet 110b adjacent to the compressor 104 which are arranged horizontally. The refrigerator 10 completes the circulation of the heat dissipation airflow at its bottom, making full use of the space between the refrigerator 10 and the supporting surface. There is no need to increase the distance between the back wall of the refrigerator 10 and the cabinet, which reduces the space occupied by the refrigerator 10 while ensuring good heat dissipation of the compressor cabin, fundamentally solving the pain point of the inability to balance the heat dissipation of the compressor cabin and the space occupation of the built-in refrigerator 10, which is of particular importance.

[0094] The heat dissipation fan 106 is configured to force the ambient air around the bottom air inlet 110a to enter the compressor compartment from the bottom air inlet 110a, pass through the condenser 105 and the compressor 104 in sequence, and then flow to the external environment from the bottom air outlet 110b to dissipate heat for the compressor 104 and the condenser 105.

[0095] In the vapor compression refrigeration cycle, the surface temperature of the condenser 105 is generally lower than the surface temperature of the compressor 104 . Therefore, in the above process, the external air first cools the condenser 105 and then cools the compressor 104 .

[0096] Further in particular, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the plate section 1161 of the back panel 116 (the rear wall of the compressor chamber) facing the condenser 105 is a continuous plate surface, that is, there are no heat dissipation holes on the plate section 1161 of the back panel 116 facing the condenser 105.

[0097] The applicant of the present invention creatively realized that even without increasing the heat exchange area of ​​the condenser 105, reducing the ventilation area of ​​the compressor cabin in an abnormal manner can form a better heat dissipation airflow path and still achieve a better heat dissipation effect.

[0098] In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the applicant breaks through the conventional design ideas and designs the rear wall (back panel 116) of the compressor cabin and the plate section 1161 corresponding to the condenser 105 as a continuous plate surface, so that the heat dissipation airflow entering the compressor cabin is sealed at the condenser 105, so that the ambient air entering from the bottom air inlet 110a is more concentrated at the condenser 105, thereby ensuring the uniformity of heat exchange of each condensation section of the condenser 105, and facilitating the formation of a better heat dissipation airflow path, which can also achieve better heat dissipation effect.

[0099] Furthermore, since the plate section 1161 of the back plate 116 facing the condenser 105 is a continuous plate surface without air inlet holes, it avoids the situation in the conventional design where both the air outlet and the air inlet are concentrated at the rear of the compressor cabin, resulting in the hot air blown out from the compressor cabin not being cooled by the ambient air in time and re-entering the compressor cabin, which has an adverse effect on the heat exchange of the condenser 105, thereby ensuring the heat exchange efficiency of the condenser 105.

[0100] In some embodiments, the two lateral side walls of the compressor cabin are each formed with a side vent 119a, which may be covered with a vent cover 108, which is formed with grille-type vent holes; the outer shell of the refrigerator 10 includes two lateral box side panels 111, which extend vertically to form two side walls of the refrigerator 10, and the two box side panels 111 are respectively formed with a side opening 111a connected to the corresponding side vent 119a, so that the heat dissipation airflow flows to the outside of the refrigerator 10. This further increases the heat dissipation path and ensures the heat dissipation effect of the compressor cabin.

[0101] More specifically, the condenser 105 includes a first straight section 1051 extending transversely, a second straight section 1052 extending forward and backward, and a transition curved section (not numbered) connecting the first straight section 1051 and the second straight section 1052, thereby forming an L-shaped condenser 105 with a suitable heat exchange area. The plate section 1161 corresponding to the rear wall (back plate 116) of the compressor cabin and the condenser 105 is also the plate section 1161 of the back plate 116 facing the first straight section 1051.

[0102] The ambient air flow entering through the side vent 119a directly exchanges heat with the second straight section 1052, and the ambient air entering through the bottom air inlet 110a directly exchanges heat with the first straight section 1051, thereby further concentrating more ambient air entering the compressor cabin at the condenser 105, ensuring the uniformity of the overall heat dissipation of the condenser 105.

[0103] In particular, if Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, the box body 100 includes a bottom plate, a support plate 112, two side plates 119 and a vertically extending back plate 116. The support plate 112 constitutes the bottom wall of the compressor cabin, which is used to support the compressor 104, the cooling fan 106 and the condenser 105. The two side plates 119 respectively constitute the two lateral side walls of the compressor cabin, and the vertically extending back plate 116 constitutes the rear wall of the compressor cabin.

[0104] Further in particular, the bottom plate includes a bottom horizontal section 113 located on the front side of the bottom and a bending section extending backward and upward from the rear end of the bottom horizontal section 113, the bending section extends to the top of the support plate 112, the compressor 104, the heat dissipation fan 106 and the condenser 105 are arranged on the support plate 112 in sequence along the horizontal direction, and are located in the space defined by the support plate 112, the two side panels, the back panel 116 and the bending section.

[0105] The support plate 112 and the bottom horizontal section 113 together constitute the bottom wall of the box body 100, and the support plate 112 and the bottom horizontal section 113 are spaced apart so as to define a bottom opening by using the rear end of the bottom horizontal section 113 and the front end of the support plate 112, wherein the bending section has an inclined section 114 located above the bottom air inlet 110a and the bottom air outlet 110b. The two side panels extend upward from the two lateral sides of the support plate 112 to the two lateral sides of the bending section respectively to close the two lateral sides of the compressor cabin; the back panel 116 extends upward from the rear end of the support plate 112 to the rear end of the bending section.

[0106] Specifically, the bending section may include a vertical section 1131, the aforementioned inclined section 114 and a top horizontal section 115, the vertical section 1131 extends upward from the rear end of the bottom horizontal section 113, the inclined section 114 extends rearward and upward from the upper end of the vertical section 1131 to the top of the support plate 112, and the top horizontal section 115 extends rearward from the rear end of the inclined section 114 to the back plate to shield the compressor 104, the cooling fan 106 and the top of the condenser 105.

[0107] The box body 100 also includes a partition 117, which is arranged behind the bending section, with its front portion connected to the rear end of the bottom horizontal section 113, and its rear portion connected to the front end of the support plate 112, and is configured to divide the bottom opening into a bottom air inlet 110a and a bottom air outlet 110b arranged laterally.

[0108] As can be seen from the foregoing, the bottom air inlet 110a and the bottom air outlet 110b of the present embodiment are defined by a partition 117, a support plate 112, and a bottom horizontal section 113, thereby forming a groove-shaped bottom air inlet 110a and a bottom air outlet 110b with a larger opening size, thereby increasing the air inlet and outlet area, reducing the air inlet resistance, making the air flow smoother, and making the manufacturing process simpler, thereby making the overall stability of the compressor cabin stronger.

[0109] In particular, the applicant of the present invention creatively realized that the slope structure of the inclined section 114 can guide and rectify the incoming air flow, so that the air flow entering from the bottom air inlet 110a can flow to the condenser 105 more concentratedly, avoiding the air flow being too dispersed and unable to pass more through the condenser 105, thereby further ensuring the heat dissipation effect of the condenser 105; at the same time, the slope of the inclined section 114 guides the outlet air of the bottom air outlet 110b to the front side of the ground air outlet, so that the outlet air flow can flow out of the compressor cabin more smoothly, thereby further improving the smoothness of the air flow.

[0110] Further particularly, in a preferred embodiment, the angle between the inclined section 114 and the horizontal plane is less than 45°. In this embodiment, the inclined section 114 has a better guiding and rectifying effect on the airflow.

[0111] Furthermore, surprisingly, the inventors of the present application creatively realized that the slope of the inclined section 114 has a better suppressing effect on airflow noise. In prototype tests, the noise of the compressor cabin having the aforementioned specially designed inclined section 114 can be reduced by more than 0.65 decibels.

[0112] In addition, in the conventional refrigerator 10, the bottom of the box 100 generally has a bearing plate of a substantially flat structure, and the compressor 104 is arranged on the inner side of the bearing plate. The vibration generated by the operation of the compressor 104 has a greater impact on the bottom of the box 100. In this embodiment, as mentioned above, the bottom of the box 100 is constructed into a three-dimensional structure by a bottom plate and a support plate 112 of a special structure, providing an independent three-dimensional space for the arrangement of the compressor 104, and the support plate 112 is used to carry the compressor 104, thereby reducing the impact of the vibration of the compressor 104 on other components at the bottom of the box 100. In addition, by designing the box 100 as the above-mentioned ingenious special structure, the structure of the bottom of the refrigerator 10 is compact and the layout is reasonable, which reduces the overall volume of the refrigerator 10, and at the same time fully utilizes the space at the bottom of the refrigerator 10, ensuring the heat dissipation efficiency of the compressor 104 and the condenser 105.

[0113] More specifically, a wind shield 1056 is provided at the upper end of the condenser 105. The wind shield 1056 may be a wind shield sponge, filling the space between the upper end of the condenser 105 and the bending section. That is to say, the wind shield 1056 covers the upper ends of the first straight section 1051, the second straight section 1052 and the transition curved section, and the upper end of the wind shield 1056 should abut against the bending section to seal the upper end of the condenser 105, so as to prevent part of the air entering the compressor cabin from passing through the space between the upper end of the condenser 105 and the bending section instead of passing through the condenser 105, thereby allowing as much air as possible entering the compressor cabin to exchange heat through the condenser 105, thereby further improving the heat dissipation effect of the condenser 105.

[0114] In some embodiments, the refrigerator 10 further includes a windshield strip 107 extending forward and backward, the windshield strip 107 being located between the bottom air inlet 110a and the bottom air outlet 110b, extending from the lower surface of the bottom horizontal section 113 to the lower surface of the support plate 112, and connected to the lower end of the partition 117, so that the bottom air inlet 110a and the bottom air outlet 110b are completely isolated by the windshield strip 107 and the partition 117, so that when the refrigerator 10 is placed on a supporting surface, the space between the bottom wall of the box body 100 and the supporting surface is horizontally separated. , so as to allow external air to enter the compressor cabin through the bottom air inlet 110a located on one lateral side of the wind shield 107 under the action of the heat dissipation fan 106, and flow through the condenser 105 and the compressor 104 in sequence, and finally flow out from the bottom air outlet 110b located on the other lateral side of the wind shield 107, thereby completely isolating the bottom air inlet 110a and the bottom air outlet 110b, ensuring that the external air entering the condenser 105 and the heat dissipation air discharged from the compressor 104 will not flow in parallel, further ensuring the heat dissipation efficiency.

[0115] At this point, those skilled in the art should recognize that, although multiple exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described in detail herein, many other variations or modifications that conform to the principles of the present invention can still be directly determined or derived based on the content disclosed in 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 recognized as covering all these other variations or modifications.

Claims

1. A refrigerator, comprising: The box body includes a freezing liner located at the bottom and a variable temperature liner located above the freezing liner, wherein the freezing liner defines a cooling chamber located at the bottom and a freezing chamber located above the cooling chamber, and the variable temperature liner defines a variable temperature chamber; an evaporator disposed in the cooling chamber and configured to cool an airflow entering the cooling chamber; The front side of the cooling chamber is formed with at least one front return air inlet communicating with the freezing chamber, so that the return air flow of the freezing chamber enters the cooling chamber through the at least one front return air inlet for cooling; A top cover is located above the evaporator; a lower surface of the top cover is spaced apart from an upper surface of the evaporator, a front end of the top cover is located above and behind the front end of the evaporator, and a spacing space is formed between the top cover and the upper surface of the evaporator, wherein the spacing space is filled with a windshield material.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein: At least one of the two lateral side walls of the cooling chamber is formed with a side return air inlet, and the refrigerator also includes a variable temperature chamber return air duct connecting the internal space of the variable temperature liner with the side return air inlet to transport the return air flow of the variable temperature chamber to the cooling chamber for cooling.

3. The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein The side return air inlet is adjacent to the front end of the side wall where the side return air inlet is located.

4. The refrigerator according to claim 2, wherein There are two variable temperature inner containers, and the two variable temperature inner containers are distributed in the transverse direction; There are two return air ducts for the variable temperature chamber, and the two return air ducts for the variable temperature chamber correspond one to one with the two variable temperature inner tanks; There are two side return air inlets, which are respectively formed on two lateral side walls of the cooling chamber, and the two side return air inlets correspond one to one with the two temperature-changing room return air ducts; The two variable temperature inner tanks respectively convey their return air flows through the corresponding variable temperature room return air ducts and through the corresponding side return air inlets to the cooling chamber.

5. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising: At least one front cover group, each of the front cover groups having at least one front return air inlet formed on the front side; The top cover, the at least one front cover assembly, the rear wall, the bottom wall and the two lateral side walls of the freezing container together define the cooling chamber; The transverse side walls of the freezing inner container constitute the transverse side walls of the cooling chamber.

6. The refrigerator according to claim 5, wherein Two front return air inlets are formed on the front side of each front cover group, and the two front return air inlets are respectively recorded as a first front return air inlet and a second front return air inlet; The front cover assembly comprises: A front decorative cover, the front end of which is located in front of the front end of the evaporator and is spaced from the front end of the evaporator, the front wall of the front end of the front decorative cover is formed with a first opening, and the rear side of the front end of the front decorative cover is open; The front air duct cover has a front end portion located at the front end of the evaporator, and divides the first opening into the first front return air inlet located below and the second front return air inlet located above.

7. The refrigerator according to claim 6, wherein The bottom wall of the front end portion of the front air duct cover and the bottom wall of the front end portion of the front decorative cover define a first return air channel that communicates with the first front return air inlet. The first return air channel is located in front of the evaporator, so that at least part of the return air flow entering the first return air channel through the first front return air inlet enters the evaporator from the front of the evaporator to be cooled by the evaporator.

8. The refrigerator according to claim 7, wherein A second opening communicating with the second front return air inlet is formed in the upper section of the front end of the front air duct cover, and the second opening is located above the front of the evaporator; The front air duct cover includes a first shielding portion located above and behind the second opening, and the rear end of the first shielding portion abuts against the front end of the top cover to form a second return air channel that passes through the second opening between the first shielding portion and the upper surface of the evaporator, so that at least part of the return air flow entering the second return air channel through the second front return air inlet enters the evaporator from above the evaporator and is cooled by the evaporator.

9. The refrigerator according to claim 5, wherein There are two front cover groups, and the two front cover groups are distributed along the transverse direction.

10. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising: an air supply fan, disposed in the cooling chamber, configured to draw the return air flow into the cooling chamber for cooling by the evaporator, and to cause the cooled air flow to flow toward the freezing chamber and the temperature-changing chamber; a freezer compartment air supply duct, connected to an air outlet end of the air supply fan, configured to deliver part of the air flow cooled by the evaporator to the freezer compartment; as well as The variable temperature chamber air supply duct is configured to be controllably connected to the freezer chamber air supply duct so as to transport part of the air flow in the freezer chamber air supply duct to the variable temperature chamber.

11. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further comprising: The refrigeration liner is located above the temperature-variable liner and defines a refrigeration chamber therein.

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