Damper drive circuit, multi-damper device, and refrigerator

Abstract

The disclosure provides a door driving circuit, a multi-damper device and a refrigerator. Wherein the first output pin and the second output pin of the first driving chip are electrically connected with the third damper, and the first complementary output pin and the second complementary output pin of the second driving chip are electrically connected with the third damper. In the disclosure, the output pins of the first driving chip and the second driving chip are coordinated by the main chip, so that the first damper and the second damper are independently controlled by a single driving chip, and the third damper is commonly controlled by the specific output pins of the two driving chips, realizing the sharing and efficient scheduling of the driving chip resources, avoiding the problem of long-term idling of the output pins in the traditional one-to-one architecture, and having the advantages of effectively reducing the number of driving chips, improving the utilization rate of hardware resources, saving the layout space of the circuit board, reducing the system complexity and production cost.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of damper control technology, and in particular to a damper drive circuit, a multi-damper device, and a refrigerator. Background Technology

[0002] In related technologies, damper control circuits typically employ a one-to-one driver chip control method, where each damper group is controlled by an independent driver chip to control its opening and closing angles. While this method offers simple control logic, it suffers from wasted hardware resources, large circuit board space requirements, and high costs. Especially in multi-damper devices, this control method necessitates multiple driver chips, increasing overall system complexity and control costs. Furthermore, for refrigerators, since the dampers typically do not operate simultaneously, traditional independent control methods fail to fully utilize the output port resources of the driver chips, resulting in idle resources. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a solution that can effectively control multiple damper groups without increasing the number of driver chips. Utility Model Content

[0003] In view of this, in order to solve the technical problems of waste of hardware resources, large circuit board space occupation and high cost of the existing damper control circuit, this disclosure provides a damper drive circuit, a multi-damper device and a refrigerator.

[0004] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a damper drive circuit is provided, the damper drive circuit including a main chip, a first drive chip, a second drive chip, a first damper, a second damper, and a third damper; The main chip is electrically connected to the first driver chip and the second driver chip respectively, and is used to transmit control signals to the first driver chip and the second driver chip. The first output pin, the first complementary output pin, the second output pin, and the second complementary output pin of the first driver chip are all electrically connected to the first damper to control the first damper; The first output pin, the first complementary output pin, the second output pin, and the second complementary output pin of the second driver chip are all electrically connected to the second damper to control the second damper; The first output pin and the second output pin of the first driver chip are both electrically connected to the third damper, and the first complementary output pin and the second complementary output pin of the second driver chip are both electrically connected to the third damper to control the third damper.

[0005] In one alternative implementation, The damper drive circuit includes a fourth damper. The first complementary output pin and the second complementary output pin of the first drive chip are both electrically connected to the fourth damper, and the first output pin and the second output pin of the second drive chip are both electrically connected to the fourth damper to control the fourth damper.

[0006] In one alternative implementation, The fourth damper has the same specifications as the third damper.

[0007] In one alternative implementation, The first damper, the second damper, and / or the third damper have the same specifications.

[0008] In one alternative implementation, The first driver chip and the second driver chip have the same specifications.

[0009] In one alternative implementation, The damper drive circuit includes a first coil and a second coil. The first coil is used to control the rotation angle of the damper from closed to open, and the second coil is used to control the rotation angle of the damper from open to closed.

[0010] In one alternative implementation, The main chip includes a first set of interfaces and a second set of interfaces. The first set of interfaces is electrically connected to the first driver chip, and the second set of interfaces is electrically connected to the second driver chip.

[0011] In one alternative implementation, The main chip is configured to control a single damper simultaneously via the first driver chip and / or the second driver chip.

[0012] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a multi-damper device is provided, the multi-damper device including a damper drive circuit as described in any of the first aspects.

[0013] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, a refrigerator is provided, the refrigerator including a damper drive circuit as described in any of the first aspects.

[0014] The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this disclosure can include the following beneficial effects: In this disclosure, the output pins of the first driver chip and the second driver chip are coordinated by the main chip, so that the first damper and the second damper are independently controlled by a single driver chip, while the third damper is jointly controlled by specific output pins of the two driver chips. This realizes the sharing and efficient scheduling of driver chip resources, avoids the problem of long-term idle output pins in the traditional one-to-one architecture, and has the advantages of effectively reducing the number of driver chips used, improving hardware resource utilization, saving circuit board layout space, and reducing system complexity and production costs.

[0015] It should be understood that the above general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only, and are not intended to limit this disclosure. Attached Figure Description

[0016] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present invention.

[0017] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this utility model or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, for those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0018] One or more embodiments are illustrated by way of example with reference numerals in the accompanying drawings. These illustrations do not constitute a limitation on the embodiments. Elements with the same reference numerals in the drawings are denoted as similar elements. Unless otherwise stated, the figures in the drawings are not to be limited by scale.

[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a damper drive circuit according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0020] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a damper drive circuit driving a first damper according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0021] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a damper drive circuit driving a second damper according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0022] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a damper drive circuit driving a third damper according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0023] in: 1. Main chip; 21. First driver chip; 22. Second driver chip; 31. First air damper; 32. Second air damper; 33. Third air damper. Detailed Implementation

[0024] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0025] The following disclosure provides numerous different embodiments or examples for implementing various aspects of the present invention. To simplify the disclosure, specific examples of components and arrangements are described below. These are merely examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Furthermore, reference numerals and / or letters may be repeated in different examples. Such repetition is for simplification and clarity and does not in itself indicate a relationship between the various embodiments and / or arrangements discussed.

[0026] For ease of description, spatial relative terms may be used in the text to describe the relative position or movement of one element or feature relative to another element or feature, as shown in the figure. These relative terms include, for example, "inside," "outside," "middle," "outer," "below," "below," "above," "front," "back," etc. Such spatial relative terms are intended to include different orientations of the device in use or operation, other than those depicted in the figure. For example, if the device in the figure undergoes a positional flip, orientation change, or change of motion, these directional indications will change accordingly. For instance, an element described as "below other elements or features" or "below other elements or features" will subsequently be oriented "above other elements or features" or "above other elements or features." Therefore, the example term "below" can include both upper and lower orientations. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or in other directions), and the spatial relative descriptors used in the text will be interpreted accordingly.

[0027] It should be noted that the illustrations provided in the following embodiments are only schematic representations of the basic concept of this application. Therefore, the drawings only show the components related to this application and are not drawn according to the actual number, shape and size of the components in the actual implementation. In the actual implementation, the form, quantity and proportion of each component can be arbitrarily changed, and the layout of the components may also be more complex.

[0028] The embodiments of this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and preferred embodiments. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of this application from the content disclosed in this specification. This application can also be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and various details in this specification can also be modified or changed based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of this application. It should be understood that the preferred embodiments are only for illustrating this application and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application.

[0029] To address the technical problems of existing damper control circuits, such as wasted hardware resources, large circuit board space occupation, and high cost, this disclosure provides a damper drive circuit, a multi-damper device, and a refrigerator.

[0030] In this disclosure, the output pins of the first and second driver chips are coordinated by the main chip, so that the first and second air dampers are independently controlled by a single driver chip, while the third air damper is jointly controlled by specific output pins of the two driver chips. This realizes the sharing and efficient scheduling of driver chip resources, avoids the problem of long-term idle output pins in the traditional one-to-one architecture, and has the advantages of effectively reducing the number of driver chips used, improving hardware resource utilization, saving circuit board layout space, and reducing system complexity and production costs.

[0031] In one exemplary embodiment, reference Figures 1 to 4 As shown, a damper drive circuit and a multi-damper device equipped with the damper drive circuit are provided. The multi-damper device can be a refrigerator or other devices, and is not limited thereto.

[0032] The damper drive circuit includes a main chip 1, a first drive chip 21, a second drive chip 22, a first damper 31, a second damper 32, and a third damper 33. The main chip 1 is electrically connected to the first drive chip 21 and the second drive chip 22, respectively, and is used to transmit control signals to the first drive chip 21 and the second drive chip 22. The control signals are used to control the opening and closing angles of the corresponding dampers driven by the corresponding drive chips.

[0033] The first output pin, the first complementary output pin, the second output pin, and the second complementary output pin of the first driver chip 21 are all electrically connected to the first damper 31 to control the first damper 31.

[0034] For example, the first damper 31 includes a first coil and a second coil. The first output pin and the first complementary output pin of the first driver chip 21 are used to control the energizing state of the first coil of the first damper 31, and the second output pin and the second complementary pin of the first driver chip 21 are used to control the energizing state of the second coil of the first damper 31.

[0035] It should be noted that the first output pin, the first complementary output pin, the second output pin, and the second complementary output pin of the first driver chip 21 can be referred to as 1A, 1A-, 1B, and 1B-, respectively, or they can be referred to as 1A-, 1A, 1B-, and 1B, respectively. There is no limitation on this.

[0036] The first output pin, the first complementary output pin, the second output pin, and the second complementary output pin of the second driver chip 22 are all electrically connected to the second damper 32 to control the second damper 32.

[0037] For example, the second damper 32 includes a first coil and a second coil. The first output pin and the first complementary output pin of the second driver chip 22 are used to control the energizing state of the first coil of the second damper 32, and the second output pin and the second complementary pin of the second driver chip 22 are used to control the energizing state of the second coil of the second damper 32.

[0038] It should be noted that the first output pin, the first complementary output pin, the second output pin, and the second complementary output pin of the second driver chip 22 can be referred to as 2A, 2A-, 2B, and 2B-, respectively, or they can be referred to as 2A-, 2A, 2B-, and 2B, respectively. There is no limitation on this.

[0039] The first output pin and the second output pin of the first driving chip 21 are both electrically connected to the third damper 33, and the first complementary output pin and the second complementary output pin of the second driving chip 22 are both electrically connected to the third damper 33 to control the third damper 33.

[0040] For example, the first output pin of the first driver chip 21 and the first complementary output pin of the second driver chip 22 are used to control the energizing state of the first coil of the third damper 33, and the second output pin of the first driver chip 21 and the second complementary pin of the second driver chip 22 are used to control the energizing state of the second coil of the third damper 33.

[0041] The overall structure of this damper drive circuit includes a main chip 1, a first drive chip 21, a second drive chip 22, a first damper 31, a second damper 32, and a third damper 33. The main chip 1 is electrically connected to both the first drive chip 21 and the second drive chip 22 to transmit control signals to coordinate damper operation. All four output pins of the first drive chip 21 (e.g., 1A, 1A-, 1B, and 1B-) are electrically connected to the first damper 31, enabling independent control of that damper. Similarly, all four output pins of the second drive chip 22 (e.g., 2A, 2A-, 2B, and 2B-) are electrically connected to the second damper 32, controlling the second damper 32. Two output pins of the first drive chip 21 (e.g., 1A and 1B) and two pins of the second drive chip 22 (e.g., 2A- and 2B-) are electrically connected to the third damper 33, forming a cross-control path to control the third damper 33.

[0042] In actual operation, the main chip 1 can ensure that only one damper is in working state at any given time, based on the working timing characteristics of the damper. Thus, when the third damper 33 needs to be opened or closed, the main chip 1 outputs a drive signal in coordination through the two output pins of the first driver chip 21 and the two output pins of the second driver chip 22. At this time, both the first damper 31 and the second damper 32 are in non-working state, thereby avoiding control conflicts and realizing dynamic reuse of pin resources.

[0043] Therefore, by grouping and multiplexing the output pins of the first driver chip 21 and the second driver chip 22, and implementing a cross-control strategy based on the non-simultaneous operation of the dampers, this scheme effectively avoids the idle phenomenon of the driver chip output ports in the traditional one-to-one drive method. Specifically, only two driver chips are needed to complete the independent control of three dampers, significantly reducing the number of hardware components, thereby reducing the space occupation requirement of the circuit board and the overall material cost. At the same time, the timing scheduling mechanism of the main chip 1 for the drive signals ensures the electrical safety and operational reliability in the multi-damper control process, thus achieving efficient utilization of damper drive resources without increasing system complexity.

[0044] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the electrical connection between the drive chip and the damper refers to the electrical connection between the drive chip and the motor of the damper. The drive chip controls the opening and closing angle of the corresponding damper by driving the motor.

[0045] This embodiment coordinates the output pins of the first driver chip 21 and the second driver chip 22 through the main chip 1, so that the first damper 31 and the second damper 32 are independently controlled by a single driver chip, while the third damper 33 is jointly controlled by specific output pins of the two driver chips. This realizes the sharing and efficient scheduling of driver chip resources, avoids the problem of long-term idle output pins in the traditional one-to-one architecture, and has the advantages of effectively reducing the number of driver chips used, improving hardware resource utilization, saving circuit board layout space, and reducing system complexity and production costs.

[0046] In one exemplary embodiment, reference Figures 1 to 4 As shown, a damper drive circuit and a multi-damper device incorporating the damper drive circuit are provided. The multi-damper device can be a refrigerator or other devices, and is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, the damper drive circuit may further include a fourth damper (not shown in the figure). The first complementary output pin and the second complementary output pin of the first drive chip 21 are both electrically connected to the fourth damper, and the first output pin and the second output pin of the second drive chip 22 are both electrically connected to the fourth damper to control the fourth damper.

[0047] For example, the first complementary output pin of the first driving chip 21 and the first output pin of the second driving chip 22 are used to control the energizing state of the first coil of the fourth damper, and the second complementary output pin of the first driving chip 21 and the second pin of the second driving chip 22 are used to control the energizing state of the second coil of the fourth damper.

[0048] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the output pins of the two driver chips used to control the fourth damper do not overlap with the output pins used to control the third damper 33, so as to avoid control interference between the third damper 33 and the fourth damper.

[0049] For example, pins 1A and 1B of the first driving chip 21, and pins 2A- and 2B- of the second driving chip 22 are electrically connected to the third damper 33 for controlling the third damper 33. Pins 1A- and 1B- of the first driving chip 21, and pins 2A and 2B of the second driving chip 22 are electrically connected to the fourth damper for controlling the fourth damper.

[0050] For example, pins 1A- and 1B- of the first driving chip 21, and pins 2A and 2B of the second driving chip 22 are electrically connected to the third damper 33 for controlling the third damper 33. Pins 1A and 1B of the first driving chip 21, and pins 2A- and 2B- of the second driving chip 22 are electrically connected to the fourth damper for controlling the fourth damper.

[0051] Through the above solution, this embodiment can control more dampers (i.e., four dampers) through two sets of driver chips, effectively reducing the idle time of the driver chip output port, reducing the space occupied by the circuit board and the system cost, and improving the integration efficiency and resource utilization of the multi-damper device.

[0052] In one exemplary embodiment, a damper drive circuit and a multi-damper device equipped with the damper drive circuit are provided. The multi-damper device can be a refrigerator or other devices, and is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, it should be noted that because the specifications of the fourth damper and the third damper 33 may differ, the drive signal parameters may be mismatched, making it impossible to directly reuse the control logic. This results in low utilization of the drive chip output port resources, requiring the system to add an additional signal adaptation circuit, increasing design complexity and cost.

[0053] Based on this, this embodiment proposes that the fourth damper and the third damper 33 have the same specifications. Same specifications mean that the fourth damper and the third damper 33 are consistent in terms of electrical characteristics, mechanical dimensions, and drive requirements. They can be implemented using the same model of DC motor drive unit and the same structure of blade assembly. The purpose is to ensure that the output port of the drive chip does not need to adjust signal parameters when switching controlled objects, avoiding the risk of signal mismatch caused by specification differences, thereby directly reusing existing control logic.

[0054] Specifically, by standardizing the specifications of the fourth and third air doors 33, the first drive chip 21 and the second drive chip 22 can directly transmit control signals based on the same electrical and mechanical response characteristics when switching control of the fourth or third air door 33, without the need to introduce additional signal conversion circuits.

[0055] In addition, when this damper drive circuit is applied to a refrigerator, since the refrigerator's dampers usually do not work simultaneously, the dampers with the same specifications allow the output ports of the drive chip to be efficiently reused in the time dimension. The main chip 1 only needs to maintain a single set of signal parameters to complete the independent control of the two dampers, thereby simplifying the control strategy and improving the utilization of port resources.

[0056] As a preferred embodiment, the solution of this application is implemented as follows: both the fourth damper and the third damper 33 adopt a DC-12V stepper motor driven damper structure, and their blade assemblies are made of the same material and have completely identical geometric shapes. This allows the control signals output by the main chip 1 through the first drive chip 21 and the second drive chip 22 to directly adapt to the driving requirements of the two dampers when the damper drive circuit is working, without the need to calibrate the signal parameters or add adapter components for different dampers.

[0057] Through the above solution, this embodiment can eliminate the signal adaptation requirements caused by the difference in damper specifications, significantly reduce the complexity of system design, avoid the introduction of additional circuits, effectively control manufacturing costs, and improve the resource utilization efficiency of the driver chip output port.

[0058] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the first damper 31, the second damper 32, and / or the third damper 33 are of the same specifications. For example, the first damper 31, the second damper 32, and the third damper 33 are all of the same specifications, and are also the same as the fourth damper. That is, the specifications of all four dampers in this embodiment are the same. This better solves the problem of mismatched output signals of the drive chip caused by differences in damper specifications, improves the accuracy and reliability of damper control, avoids signal conflicts, and reduces the additional hardware resources required for calibrating dampers of different specifications, thereby reducing circuit complexity and cost.

[0059] In one exemplary embodiment, reference Figures 1 to 4 As shown, a damper drive circuit and a multi-damper device equipped with the damper drive circuit are provided. The multi-damper device can be a refrigerator or other equipment, and is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, it should be noted that if the two drive chips have different specifications, it will lead to an increase in the types of components, an increase in procurement costs, and inconsistencies in circuit design, thereby causing problems such as complicated inventory management and reduced system reliability.

[0060] Based on this, this embodiment proposes that the first driver chip 21 and the second driver chip 22 have the same specifications. The same specifications for the first driver chip 21 and the second driver chip 22 mean that the two chips are completely identical in electrical characteristics, interface parameters, and packaging. They can be implemented using the same model of driver chip, such as the LV8548M driver chip. The purpose is to ensure the uniformity of circuit design and the interchangeability of components, thereby simplifying procurement channels and inventory classification management.

[0061] Specifically, the solution of this application adopts a first driver chip 21 and a second driver chip 22 with the same specifications, so that the control signal transmitted by the main chip 1 does not need to be adapted or converted, and can directly drive the control operation of the damper. Since the chip specifications are consistent, the circuit board layout can be standardized, which significantly reduces the debugging cycle and verification complexity in the design stage. At the same time, in the scenario where multiple dampers share drive resources, the collaborative utilization efficiency of output pin resources is improved, avoiding compatibility obstacles caused by chip differences, thereby enhancing the stability of system response.

[0062] As a specific implementation method, the solution of this application is implemented as follows: the first driver chip 21 and the second driver chip 22 are both LV8548M driver chips, which are installed on the circuit board in a symmetrical layout. The main chip 1 is electrically connected to them through a standard interface to ensure that the electrical characteristics of the two chips are fully matched with the interface parameters.

[0063] Through the above solution, this embodiment effectively reduces the types of components, lowers procurement costs, improves the consistency of circuit design, simplifies inventory management, and enhances system reliability.

[0064] In one exemplary embodiment, reference Figures 1 to 4 As shown, a damper drive circuit and a multi-damper device equipped with the damper drive circuit are provided. The multi-damper device can be a refrigerator or other devices, and is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, the main chip 1 includes a first set of interfaces and a second set of interfaces. The first set of interfaces is electrically connected to a first driver chip 21, and the second set of interfaces is electrically connected to a second driver chip 22. That is to say, in this embodiment, the main chip 1 only needs to be provided with two sets of interfaces for electrical connection with the driver chips, which can effectively control the cost of the main chip 1, make more reasonable use of the interfaces of the main chip 1, realize the control of multiple dampers, and effectively solve the problem of the driver chip not matching the actual number of dampers controlled due to limited PCB board space or insufficient number of chip I / O ports in circuit design.

[0065] Furthermore, in this embodiment, dedicated communication connections with the first driver chip 21 and the second driver chip 22 are achieved by configuring independent first and second sets of interfaces for the main chip 1. Since the first set of interfaces is dedicated to the first driver chip 21, the control signals are not affected by the state of the second set of interfaces during transmission, thus avoiding instruction crosstalk. Similarly, the independent design of the second set of interfaces ensures that the instruction receiving path of the second driver chip 22 remains isolated. This physically isolated signal channel architecture enables the main chip 1 to precisely control the opening and closing sequence of each damper, especially adapting to the non-simultaneous operation characteristics of refrigerator dampers, effectively ensuring the reliability of instruction execution in the multi-damper system under complex operating conditions.

[0066] Through the above solution, this application effectively eliminates the risk of interference in control signal transmission, ensures the synchronization of damper opening and closing operations and the accuracy of command execution, thereby improving the overall stability and response accuracy of the multi-damper system. Moreover, it significantly reduces the number of hardware components, thereby reducing the space requirements of the circuit board and the overall material cost. Without increasing the system complexity, it achieves efficient utilization of damper drive resources.

[0067] In practical applications, the main chip 1 may control multiple dampers simultaneously, which may cause signal conflicts and idle hardware resources at the output port of the driver chip. Since refrigerator dampers usually do not work at the same time, if multiple dampers share the output pin of the driver chip, concurrent control requests will cause output signal interference, increase the risk of system instability and waste port resources.

[0068] In this regard, the embodiment further proposes that in the above-mentioned damper drive circuit, the main chip 1 is configured to control a single damper at the same time through the first drive chip 21 and / or the second drive chip 22.

[0069] In this context, "configured main chip 1" means that the control logic of main chip 1 is set to execute a specific control strategy, which can be implemented by firmware programming or hardware configuration registers, with the aim of ensuring that the control behavior strictly follows the predetermined rules; "at the same moment" can be understood as a unique constraint at a point in time, which can be implemented by real-time clock synchronization or time slice polling mechanism, with the aim of avoiding resource contention caused by multi-task concurrency; "controlling the opening and closing of a single damper" means that each operation is only for one damper, which can be implemented by state machine or priority arbitration logic, with the aim of simplifying the control process and improving system robustness.

[0070] Specifically, this embodiment implements a time-serialized control mechanism through the main chip 1, forcing only one damper to be activated at any given time. The main chip 1 selects to output control signals to the target damper via either the first driver chip 21 or the second driver chip 22 based on the priority or preset timing of the damper's operating request. Since refrigerator dampers typically operate independently and not simultaneously, this mechanism ensures that when a damper sharing a output pin (such as the third damper 33) is operating, the corresponding output pin of the other driver chip is in a high-impedance state or an inactive state, thereby eliminating the risk of level conflicts. Simultaneously, the output port resources of the driver chips are time-division multiplexed, avoiding port idleness and effectively improving the utilization efficiency of hardware resources.

[0071] As a specific implementation method, the solution of this application is implemented as follows: The main chip 1 can periodically poll the status of each damper and activate only one damper in each time slice. For example, when the third damper 33 needs to be opened, the main chip 1 sends an opening signal through the first set of output pins of the first driver chip 21, while ensuring that the second set of output pins of the second driver chip 22 is inactive; when switching to other damper operations, the main chip 1 first completes the control cycle of the current damper, and then starts the control process of the next damper, thereby maintaining the stability of signal transmission.

[0072] This embodiment effectively prevents signal interference at the output port of the driver chip through the above technical solution, ensuring the reliability of the damper control process. At the same time, it optimizes the resource allocation efficiency of the output pins of the driver chip and reduces the problem of idle hardware resources.

[0073] In one exemplary embodiment, reference Figures 1 to 4 As shown, a damper drive circuit is provided, as well as a multi-damper device equipped with the damper drive circuit, which may be a refrigerator.

[0074] It should be noted that, in order to simplify the complexity of the refrigerator controller design, improve the resource utilization of the drive chip, and effectively avoid resource idleness, this embodiment has been further optimized based on the damper drive circuit in the refrigerator of related technologies. A circuit using two sets of drive chips to drive three sets of dampers is proposed to address the problem of the limited PCB (printed circuit board) space or insufficient number of I / O ports (input / output ports) of the main chip 1 causing the drive chip to be inconsistent with the actual number of dampers controlled, thereby solving the problem of limited drive resources of the control circuit.

[0075] In this embodiment, the two sets of driving chips can be referred to as the first driving chip 21 and the second driving chip 22, respectively. Both sets of driving chips can be LV8548M specification driving chips. By connecting the appropriate output ports of the two sets of driving chips in parallel, the control signal of the third damper 33 can be driven by the output terminals of the two driving chips together, thereby realizing independent control of the three dampers by using only two sets of driving chips.

[0076] The first set of output pins of the first driving chip 21 is electrically connected to the first coil of the first damper 31. By energizing this coil, the duty cycle of the high and low levels is adjusted to control the rotation angle of the first damper 31 from closed to open. The second set of output pins of the first driving chip 21 is electrically connected to the second coil of the first damper 31. By energizing this coil, the duty cycle of the high and low levels is adjusted to control the rotation angle of the first damper 31 from open to closed.

[0077] The first set of output pins of the second driving chip 22 is electrically connected to the first coil of the second damper 32. By energizing this set of coils, the duty cycle of the high and low levels is adjusted to control the rotation angle of the second damper 32 from closed to open. The second set of output pins of the second driving chip 22 is electrically connected to the second coil of the second damper 32. By energizing this set of coils, the duty cycle of the high and low levels is adjusted to control the rotation angle of the second damper 32 from open to closed.

[0078] The first set of output pins of the first driving chip 21 is electrically connected to the first coil of the third damper 33. By energizing this set of coils, the duty cycle of the high and low levels is adjusted to control the rotation angle of the third damper 33 from closed to open. The second set of output pins of the second driving chip 22 is electrically connected to the second coil of the third damper 33. By energizing this set of coils, the duty cycle of the high and low levels is adjusted to control the rotation angle of the third damper 33 from open to closed.

[0079] In this embodiment, when the first damper 31 needs to be activated, the main chip 1 transmits the corresponding control signal to the four input pins of the first driver chip 21 through its I / O port. After receiving the above signal, the first driver chip 21 transmits the signal to the first damper 31 through its first set of output pins (e.g., 1A and 1A-) and second set of output pins (e.g., 1B and 1B-), thereby controlling the operation of the first damper 31.

[0080] When the second damper 32 needs to be activated, the main chip 1 also transmits the corresponding control signals to the input pins of the second driver chip 22 through the other four I / O ports. After receiving the signals, the second driver chip 22 transmits the signals to the second damper 32 through its first set of output pins (e.g., 2A and 2A-) and second set of output pins (e.g., 2B and 2B-), thereby controlling the operation of the second damper 32.

[0081] When the third damper 33 needs to be activated, the main chip 1 transmits the corresponding control signal to the first driver chip 21 and the second driver chip 22 through the I / O port. After receiving the signal, the two driver chips transmit the signal to the third damper 33 through the corresponding output pins (e.g., 1A, 1B, 2A-, 2B- or 1A-, 1B-, 2A, 2B), thereby controlling the operation of the third damper 33.

[0082] In summary, this invention, based on existing damper drive circuits, optimizes the circuitry to control three dampers using only two sets of drive chips, ensuring that all three dampers can operate independently without affecting their opening and closing angle accuracy. From an overall circuit design perspective, it effectively reduces the overall circuit design complexity, fully utilizes chip output port resources, avoids resource idleness, and improves system availability.

[0083] Those skilled in the art will further recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate the interchangeability of hardware and software, the components and steps of the various examples have been generally described in terms of functionality in the foregoing description. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0084] It should be noted that the terms "one implementation," "embodiment," "exemplary embodiment," and "some embodiments" used in the specification indicate that the described embodiment may include a specific feature, structure, or characteristic, but not every embodiment necessarily includes that specific feature, structure, or characteristic. Furthermore, such phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Moreover, when a specific feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, implementing such a feature, structure, or characteristic in conjunction with other embodiments, whether explicitly described or not, is within the knowledge scope of those skilled in the art.

[0085] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used merely to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or air conditioning apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or air conditioning apparatus. Unless otherwise specified, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or air conditioning apparatus that includes said element.

[0086] The above embodiments are merely preferred embodiments provided to fully illustrate this application, and the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Equivalent substitutions or modifications made by those skilled in the art based on this application are all within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A damper drive circuit, characterized in that, The damper drive circuit includes a main chip, a first drive chip, a second drive chip, a first damper, a second damper, and a third damper; The main chip is electrically connected to the first driver chip and the second driver chip respectively, and is used to transmit control signals to the first driver chip and the second driver chip. The first output pin, the first complementary output pin, the second output pin, and the second complementary output pin of the first driver chip are all electrically connected to the first damper to control the first damper; The first output pin, the first complementary output pin, the second output pin, and the second complementary output pin of the second driver chip are all electrically connected to the second damper to control the second damper; The first output pin and the second output pin of the first driver chip are both electrically connected to the third damper, and the first complementary output pin and the second complementary output pin of the second driver chip are both electrically connected to the third damper to control the third damper.

2. The damper drive circuit according to claim 1, characterized in that, The damper drive circuit includes a fourth damper. The first complementary output pin and the second complementary output pin of the first drive chip are both electrically connected to the fourth damper, and the first output pin and the second output pin of the second drive chip are both electrically connected to the fourth damper to control the fourth damper.

3. The damper drive circuit according to claim 2, characterized in that, The fourth damper has the same specifications as the third damper.

4. The damper drive circuit according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first damper, the second damper, and / or the third damper have the same specifications.

5. The damper drive circuit according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first driver chip and the second driver chip have the same specifications.

6. The damper drive circuit according to claim 1, characterized in that, The damper drive circuit includes a first coil and a second coil. The first coil is used to control the rotation angle of the damper from closed to open, and the second coil is used to control the rotation angle of the damper from open to closed.

7. The damper drive circuit according to claim 1, characterized in that, The main chip includes a first set of interfaces and a second set of interfaces. The first set of interfaces is electrically connected to the first driver chip, and the second set of interfaces is electrically connected to the second driver chip.

8. The damper drive circuit according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The main chip is configured to control a single damper simultaneously via the first driver chip and / or the second driver chip.

9. A multi-damper device, characterized in that, The multi-damper device includes the damper drive circuit as described in any one of claims 1-8.

10. A refrigerator, characterized in that, The refrigerator includes the damper drive circuit as described in any one of claims 1-8.

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