Refrigerator and control method for the same

• US 9,920,979 B2
• Filed: 04/22/2014
• Issued: 03/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kang, Hyungjoo, Choi, Haemin, Sung, Myoungho, Lee, Ikkyu, Lee, Myoungju, Kim, Jeonghwan
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Thai
• Assistant Examiner(s): Braniff, Christopher T
• Application Number:
  US14/888,300
• Publication Number:
  US 20160223250A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,428 Days
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 21/04 Preventing the formation of frost or condensate
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 23/00 General constructional features F25D21/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2321/1413 using heat from electric elements or using an electric field for enhancing removal
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2500/02 Geometry problems
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2700/02 Sensors detecting door opening
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 29/00 Arrangement or mounting of control or safety devices
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 29/005 Mounting of control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/651 for reducing power consumption by affecting camera operations, e.g. sleep mode, hibernation mode or power off of selective parts of the camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

A refrigerator and a control method for the same are disclosed. A refrigerator includes a storage compartment, a drawer movably provided in the storage compartment and provided with a marker, a camera that photographs inside the drawer from outside the drawer, and a controller that senses a position of the marker in photographs taken through the camera at time intervals, and that determines state information about the drawer based on a change in position of the marker in the photographs. A method includes recognizing closing of the drawer by sensing a start of opening of the drawer; acquiring an image of the drawer interior using the camera; processing the image to recognize the marker from the image; tracing a movement of the marker; acquiring a final image of the drawer interior using the camera when closing of the drawer begins; and displaying the final image.

Claims

1. A refrigerator comprising:

a storage compartment formed in a cabinet of the refrigerator by a fixed insulation wall, the storage compartment being provided with an access opening;

a door rotatably provided to the cabinet and arranged to open and close the access opening;

a camera fixedly provided to a ceiling of the storage compartment and arranged to photograph an interior of the storage compartment to update information about food in the storage compartment;

a door switch arranged to sense an opening or a closing of the door;

a door sensor arranged to sense an angle of opening of the door; and

a controller configured to;

switch the camera between a standby mode and a drive mode for beginning a photographing operation based on sensing by the door switch; and

select a photograph, from among a plurality of taken photographs, based on sensing by the door sensor.

2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the fixed insulation wall comprises the ceiling, a lower wall, two side walls, and a rear wall, and wherein the access opening is provided in a front surface of the storage compartment.

3. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the camera is positioned at a lateral center position of the storage compartment.

4. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the sensing by the door switch comprises sensing an opening of the door, and

wherein the controller is further arranged to switch the camera from the drive mode to the standby mode based on a closing of the door being sensed by the door switch.

5. The refrigerator according to claim 4, wherein the controller is arranged to increase a value of current applied to the camera based on the camera being switched to the drive mode.

6. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the door sensor is configured to sense at least one of:

the door being at a predetermined opening angle after the door begins to be opened, or

the door being at a predetermined closing angle after the door begins to be closed.

7. The refrigerator according to claim 6, wherein the plurality of taken photographs does not include photographs taken before a time at which the door sensor senses the door being at the predetermined opening angle after the door begins to be opened.

8. The refrigerator according to claim 7, further arranged to:

store, in a storage unit, photographs captured by the camera; and

delete photographs taken before the time at which the door sensor senses the door being at the predetermined opening angle after the door begins to be opened.

9. The refrigerator according to claim 6, wherein the plurality of taken photographs does not include photographs taken after a time at which the door sensor senses the door being at the predetermined closing angle after the door begins to be closed.

10. The refrigerator according to claim 6, wherein the controller is configured to select the selected photograph from among photographs taken at or after the time at which the door sensor senses the door being at the predetermined opening angle and photographs taken at or before the time at which the door sensor senses the door being at the predetermined closing angle.

11. The refrigerator according to claim 10, wherein the camera is configured to be controlled to continuously perform the photographing operation during the drive mode.

12. The refrigerator according claim 1, wherein a drawer is provided in the storage compartment,

wherein the camera is arranged to photograph both a region for storing of food arranged in an external space of the drawer in the storage compartment and a region for storing of food arranged in an internal space of the drawer in the storage compartment.

13. The refrigerator according to claim 11, wherein the controller is further arranged to select a second photograph from among the plurality of taken photographs based on state information about the drawer,

wherein the selected second photograph provides an update of the region for storing of food arranged in an internal space of the drawer in the storage compartment.

14. The refrigerator according to claim 11, wherein the controller is arranged to select the photograph based on sensing the predetermined closing angle by the door sensor, wherein the selected photograph provides an update of the region for storing of food arranged in an external space of the drawer in the storage compartment.

15. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the controller is arranged to:

supply power to the door sensor based on opening of the door being sensed by the door switch; and

withhold the power to the door sensor based on closing of the door being sensed by the door switch.

16. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the door sensor is arranged on a hinge of the door.

17. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the door sensor comprises:

a light emitting unit arranged to radiate light; and

a light receiving unit arranged to receive light radiated from the light emitting unit which has been reflected on an upper surface of the door,

wherein the upper surface of the door is formed of a material having a reflectivity that is greater than a threshold reflectivity.

18. The refrigerator according to claim 16, wherein the door sensor is disposed on the hinge in an area between the access opening and a rotation center of the hinge.

19. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the door sensor is arranged to radiate light downwards and receive light that has been reflected upwards,

wherein the vertical distance between the door sensor and the door is less than or equal to 20 mm.

20. The refrigerator according to claim 1, further arranged to:

delete, from a storage unit, a previously captured photograph; and

store a currently captured photograph in the storage unit.