Refrigeration device

p0001The present invention relates to a refrigeration apparatus which is particularly suitable for cooling foodstuffs whose quality is critically dependent on the climatic conditions of their storage, in particular wine. The long-term storage of wines usually takes place in cellars, the temperature of which is generally different from the optimal drinking temperature of the wines. For many white wines and sparkling wine the optimal drinking temperature is usually lower than the cellar temperature, while it can be higher for red wines. To bring the wines to drinking temperature, they are often put into a refrigerator for cooling, where they are abruptly cooled down to their internal temperature, or they are placed in an inhabited room where they can be heated to its temperature. Such abrupt temperature changes are exactly what one tries to avoid in the long-term storage of wines in cellars, and they can adversely affect their quality.

p0002document <patcit id="pcit0001" dnum="US5343712A1"><text>US 5,343,712 A1</text></patcit> Discloses a refrigerator with a regulating device for the stepwise regulation of the temperature of an interior space up to the target temperature.

p0003It is an object of the present invention to provide a cooling device with which the wines can be brought to their optimum enjoyable temperature without compromising quality.

p0004The object of the invention is achieved by means of a cooling device with the features of claim 1. While refrigerators are conventionally only designed to maintain a temperature preselectable by a user in their interior space, the cooling device according to the invention is capable, with the aid of its control element, To produce a temperature which is chronologically variable with a predetermined course, which allows gentle heating or cooling of the wines.

p0005Preferably, the course is defined as controlling a temperature change with an average constant speed until a final temperature is reached, the final temperature corresponding to the optimum enjoyable temperature of the wines.

p0006The predetermined course can be subdivided into a plurality of stages which are successively traversed, the level of the setpoint signal and thus the setpoint temperature represented thereby remaining constant in the course of a stage.

p0007The end setpoint temperature reached at the end of the course is expediently adjustable by a user, so that the latter is able to set it according to the particular wine location or according to his personal preferences.

p0008It is also expedient to specify an average rate of change of the desired temperature during the course of the process by a user, so that the latter can set a possibly gentle course of the temperature control within an available time span. Specifying the average change speed can be made directly by inputting a numerical value for the rate of change; It is also conceivable that the user specifies a time period available for the temperature control process, the cooling device then automatically calculating the required average rate of change.

p0009The rate of change can be between 0.5 and 3 K / h.

p0010Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of an exemplary embodiment with reference to the appended figures. Show it:<ul><li><figref idrefs="f0001">FIG</figref> 3 is a block diagram of a refrigerator according to the invention; and</li><li><figref idrefs="f0001">FIG</figref> An example of the time profile of the desired temperature and the resulting actual temperature of the interior of the refrigerator.</li></ul>

p0011The schematic in Fig <figref idrefs="f0001">FIG</figref> , A cooling machine 3 with an evaporator 4 for cooling the interior 2, which is attached to an inner wall of the housing 1, and a thermostat control device 5 for controlling the operation of the refrigerating machine 3 by means of one of a temperature sensor 6 in the interior 2. A controller 7, on which a user can set a desired temperature of the interior space 2, is connected to the control device 5. This design of a cooling apparatus is generally known so that its mode of operation need not be explained further here.

p0012A control element 8 has a signal input, which is connected to the temperature sensor 6. A setpoint signal output 9 of the control element 8 can be connected to the desired value signal input 11 of the control device 5 instead of the regulator 7 via a switch 10. In the illustrated position of the switch 10, the latter connects the desired value signal input 11 to the regulator 7; This corresponds to an operating state of the refrigerator, in which the latter maintains a constant setpoint temperature in the interior 2 in a conventional manner by the user at the regulator 7.

p0013The control element 8 is connected to a user interface 12, at which a user can, for example, enter a command for switching from the operation with constant internal temperature to temperature control mode. When such an instruction is input, the control element 8 switches the switch 10, so that the setpoint signal input 11 of the control device is connected to the desired value signal output 9 of the control element 8. The control element 8 now begins to output a desired value signal with a time profile which corresponds to a predetermined rate of change of the internal temperature and a predetermined end temperature. The rate of change can be, for example, 1 K / h. First, the control element 8 supplies a set-point signal which corresponds to a setpoint temperature which is a predetermined step size of, for example, 0.1 K below the internal temperature detected by the temperature sensor 6, and the regulating device 5 drives the cooling machine 3 to reach this setpoint temperature. After a time period of 6 minutes determined by the step width and the temperature change speed, the control element 8 reduces the setpoint signal again by 0.1 K. The course of the setpoint signal is shown in FIG<figref idrefs="f0001">FIG</figref> As a solid line 15; The resulting interior temperature corresponds to the dashed curve 16.

p0014The stepwise reduction of the temperature is continued until a predetermined end temperature is reached; On which the interior space 2 is held constant until a user, in particular after removal of the tempered wine from the interior space, inputs a command to return to the operating state with the temperature set at the controller 7.

p0015The temperature set on the regulator 7 suitably corresponds to the temperature of the cellar, from which the wine bottles to be tempered in the refrigerator are fetched. This temperature can be measured by the user in the basement and can be manually adjusted on the controller 7; But it is also conceivable to replace the regulator 7 with a temperature sensor arranged directly in the cellar. Since the refrigeration appliance is generally not accommodated in the same cellar in which the wine is stored, it is expedient to provide, for example, a radio path for transmitting the measured temperature value.

p0016In the above functional example, it was assumed that a temperature change rate and a final temperature at the control element 8 are predetermined. This presetting can be carried out at the factory; However, in particular in the case of the final temperature, this can be entered by the user at the interface 12 and can preferably be stored on the control member 8 in order to be able to carry out repeated temperature control processes with the same temperature profile without repeating the adjustment process.

p0017The rate of change of the temperature can also be specified by a user at the interface 12, for example by directly inputting a numerical value for the rate of change, or by entering a time available for the temperature control operation from which the control member 8 automatically calculates the required rate of change.

p0018A display element (not shown in the figure), in particular a luminous display element, can be provided to indicate to a user that the predetermined temperature profile has been worked through and the final temperature has been reached. Such a display element has, on the one hand, the function of making the user aware that the wine stored in the refrigerator has reached the optimum temperature of enjoyment and can be removed. On the other hand, after the wine has been removed, he can remind him that he has received an order to Return to the constant temperature mode, in which the refrigeration unit adjusts the interior space to the basement temperature so that it can be recharged again.

p0019It is obvious that the refrigerator according to the invention can also have a plurality of interior spaces which can be controlled independently of one another in their temperature so as to be able to adequately control different types of wine in one appliance.

p0020Instead of for gentle cooling, as in <figref idrefs="f0001">FIG</figref> The cooling device can, of course, also be used for gentle heating, in which case it may be expedient to equip the interior with a heating device, since otherwise the tempering process, especially in its final phase, Temperature difference between the internal temperature and the ambient temperature of the cooling device, can take very long.