The present invention relates to a refrigerator wherein the opening distance of the door is measured in order to achieve an effective imaging and the image of the shelves on the door and the body is captured at the correct angle and time based on the measurement.

The accessibility of the consumption status and the stock management of the food stored in refrigerators by the user remotely is a necessity in today’s advanced technology. When the users are away from the refrigerator, it is important for them to monitor which products are in the refrigerator, which products are running low or which products are close to their expiration dates without opening the refrigerator door. To this end, the image of the shelves in the refrigerator is captured by imaging devices such as cameras, wherein at least one is placed onto the door and at least one is placed onto the body, and the user is enabled to access to the interior of the refrigerator via a mobile application or device. Receiving proper images from the imaging device is critical in enabling the user to monitor the food in the refrigerator properly and manage said information such as food consumption. Capturing a clear image of all the shelves in the body with a camera placed onto the door and all the food on the shelves on the door with a camera placed onto the body is difficult. In order to capture a clear image, several solutions are provided, such as using a plurality of cameras, placing cameras at different angles and using wide-angle cameras.

When the image of the shelves on the door is desired to be captured by means of a camera placed onto the body, it is very difficult to capture the image of the top and bottom edges of the door and all the shelves in between when the door is closed. Similarly, when the door is closed, capturing a clear image of the shelves on the body by means of a camera placed on the door is difficult. Therefore, the imaging has to be performed by means of the camera on the body and/or the camera on the door when the door is at a certain angle and about to be closed after the food items are placed into or taken out of the refrigerator by the user. In order to capture the best image, methods are provided, wherein the camera takes a plurality of pictures randomly and these images are stored. However, actions such as storing several images captured by the camera, uploading these images to the cloud and a server system to be managed by the manufacturer make the procedure difficult and require the processing of high volumes of data. Therefore, determining the most effective door opening angle (the opening distance of the door while the user is closing the door) and offering the user the correct photograph with a single image are important in terms of both user satisfaction and the volume of data to be processed by the manufacturer.

In the state of the art Japanese Patent Application No. JP2003004366A, a refrigerator is disclosed, wherein the camera captures the image by means of angle adjustment when the refrigerator door is opened and moved to a predetermined angle.

In the state of the art Japanese Patent Application No. JP2004183987A, a refrigerator is disclosed, wherein photographs are taken based on the angle of the door.

In the state of the art European Patent Application No. EP3325902B1, a refrigerator is disclosed, wherein the cameras are calibrated upon the opening of the door and a triggering signal is generated for the cameras when the door is moved to a predetermined angle.

In the state of the United States of America Patent Document No. US9951989B2, a refrigerator is disclosed, wherein the angle of opening of the door is detected by means of the magnetic members placed onto the hinge and the door.

In the state of the refrigerators, several opening detection solutions are proposed in order to detect if the door is left open or to determine the opening angle of the door in refrigerators comprising cameras.

An example of these is the use of a magnetic sensor. The opening of the door is detected by using a magnet and a magnetic sensor (reed, hall etc.) on the door and the body so as to be aligned with each other. The opening detection in said method is effective only in a narrow distance range and functions as an all-or-nothing relay. Thus, the magnetic sensor-magnet pair is generally used when it is desired to detect if the door is left open in any refrigerator, independently of the presence or absence of a camera.

Another state of the art door opening detection method is the usage of an infrared sensor. Said sensors can be placed onto the body or the door as a transmitter receiver or onto the door-body so as to correspond to each other as a receiver and a transmitter. Infrared sensors are affected by the sunlight and other light sources. Consequently, their sensitivities are low.

Another solution proposed is the use of a sensor on the door hinge, such as a potentiometer. The measurement obtained by means of this method is relatively more precise compared to others but said sensor is difficult to be adapted to the hinge and the economic life of such sensors is short.

The aim of the present invention is the realization of a refrigerator with camera wherein the suitable imaging angle is determined by detecting the position of the door relative to the body continuously (uninterruptedly).

Another aim of the present invention is the detection of the opening angle of the refrigerator by means of a detection unit such as a sensor which is placed onto the top wall without experiencing difficulty in the mounting process so that the best imaging is achieved by a camera which is on the body and/or the door and the image of the shelves on the body and/or the door is captured by the camera.

The refrigerator of the present invention comprises an optical sensor which is placed onto the top wall of the body and which faces the top face wall of the door. The optical sensor is placed so as to be at an angle of 30 to 60 degrees with the long edge of the top face wall of the door which contacts the top wall when the door is in the closed position. Thus, when the user is closing the door after opening the door and taking food items from the shelves on the body or the door or placing food items, when the door is open with an angle in said range, the optical sensor and the door are brought to a parallel position. It is known that 30-60 degree angle between the door and the body is the most effective door opening angle to achieve the optimal imaging of the food items on the shelves on the inner panel of the door by means of at least one camera placed onto the body and the food items on the shelves on the body by means of at least one camera placed onto the door by the manufacturer.

Optimal imaging conditions are the conditions wherein the image is not blurry, the food items on the door shelves are seen clearly and distinguishably and all the shelves from the bottom shelf to the top shelf can be viewed.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator calculates the time spent by the door to reach the position determined by the control unit when the door is being closed by the user, wherein the camera captures the most effective image. The camera is activated based on the calculated time when the door is being closed.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator confirms whether the door reaches the required position in the calculated period of time by means of the optical sensor. After this confirmation, if the door is detected to be at a different angle relative to the body, the camera on the body or the door is prevented from capturing images. Then, an error message related to the situation is sent to the user via a mobile device, monitoring screen, etc. At the end of the calculated duration, an error message can be generated, which indicates that the door must be closed slower if the door is closer to the body than the desired position or the door must be closed faster if the door is further away from the body than the desired position.

By means of the present invention, a refrigerator with camera is realized, wherein the opening distance of the door relative to the body can be measured during the entire movement of the body without the need for modifications on the body and the door of the refrigerator, without using a receiver and a transmitter on opposite sides and without being affected by external light sources.

The model embodiments related to the refrigerator realized in order to attain the aim of the present invention are shown in the attached figures, where:

Figure 1 - is the perspective view of the refrigerator in an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 - is the view of the top wall of the body whereon the optical sensor is placed in the refrigerator in an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 - is the exploded view of the optical sensor, the control unit and the casing placed into the refrigerator of the present invention.

The elements illustrated in the figures are numbered as follows:

1. Refrigerator

2. Body

3. Top wall

4. Door

5. Door top face wall

6. Camera

7. Optical sensor

8. Cover

9. Control unit a. Angle

The refrigerator (1) comprises a body (2) having side walls, a rear wall and a top wall (3) which form the cooling volume, wherein the food items to be cooled are placed; a door (4) which provides access into the body (2) and which is in connection with the body (2); a door top face wall (5) at least a part of which can be seen from the top wall (3) when the door (4) is in the closed position; at least one shelf attached onto the body (2) and/or the inner panel of the door (4), whereon the food items are placed; at least one camera (6) placed in a position on the body (2) so as to capture the image of the shelves on the door (4) and at least one camera (6) placed in a position on the door (4) so as to capture the shelves in the body (2); and a control unit (9).

The refrigerator (1) of the present invention comprises an optical sensor (7) which is placed onto the top wall (3) so that there is an angle of 30°-60° between the same and the door top face wall (5) when the door (4) is in the closed position and which measures the distance between the door top face wall (5) and the body (2) and the control unit (9) which triggers the activation of at least one camera (6) to capture images when the door (4) is in the open position at an angle (a) which is between the predetermined angle of 30°-60°, i.e. at an angle which enables the cameras (6) to capture images in optimal conditions.

By means of the optical sensor (7) provided on the top wall (3) of the refrigerator (1) of the present invention, the distance between the door top face wall (5) and the body (2) at a moment when the door (4) is open can be measured. In the refrigerator (1) of the present invention, the opening distance of the door (4) is the distance between the body (2) and the door (4) while the user is closing the door (4) after taking food items from the shelves or placing newly purchased food items to the shelves. Said distance which forms an angle (a) between the door (4) and the body (2) can be detected by means of the light sent by the optical sensor (7). The optical sensor (7) is placed onto the top wall (3) at angle between 30° and 60° which is predetermined by the manufacturer. Thus, after the door (4) is opened, the sensor (7) and the door (4) reach a position between these angles, wherein they are in corresponding positions so as to be parallel with each other. Consequently, while the door (4) is being closed, the image of the shelves in the body (2) can be captured by means of at least one camera (6) placed onto the door (4) and/or the image of the shelves on the door (4) can be captured by means of at least one camera (6) placed in the body (2). Similarly, the camera (6) is prevented from capturing images when the door (4) is open at an angle relative to the body (2) which is for example 15 degrees or 85 degrees and the imaging of the camera (6) is insufficient.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator (1) comprises the control unit (9) which triggers at least one camera (6) to capture at least one image when the door top face wall (5) and the optical sensor (7) move to a position so as to be parallel with each other while the door (4) is being closed after the user places food items to the shelves in the body (2) or the door (4) or takes food items from the shelves. In this embodiment, for example, if the optimal imaging predetermined by the manufacturer is provided when the door (4) is open at an angle of 40 degrees, the optical sensor (7) is placed so as to be at an angle of 40 degrees with the door top face wall (5) when the door (4) is closed. When the user starts closing the door (4), the angle at which the optical sensor (7) and the door (4) is perfectly parallel with each other is detected by the control unit (9 and at this moment, at least one camera (6) is enabled to capture an image.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator (1) comprises the control unit (9) which calculates the opening and closing speed of the door (4) based on the time spent between a first position wherein the door (4) is closed and a second position wherein the door (4) is open, and calculates the time required for the door (4) to reach a position where the optimal imaging predetermined by the manufacturer can be performed based on the calculated speed and activates the camera (4) while the door (4) is being closed based on the calculated time. In this embodiment, for example, the time (At) required for the door (4) to reach the opening distance of the door (4) which is equal to Ax between the door (4) and the body (2) which corresponds to, for example, 40 degrees based on the calculated speed of the door (4) without detecting the point where the door (4) and the optical sensor (7) are parallel with each other. Based on this duration, the control unit (9) activates and enables at least one camera (6) to capture images while the door (4) is being closed.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator (1) comprises the optical sensor (7) which sends a signal to confirm the position of the door (4) which is calculated based on the speed of the door (4), and the control unit (9) which terminates the image capturing of the at least one camera (6) if the door (4) is not in the calculated position based on the data received from the optical sensor (7). In this embodiment, before the camera (6) captures images, it is controlled whether the door (4) is in the correct position by means of the signal sent by the optical sensor (7). If the door (4) is not in the calculated door (4) opening distance of Ax, the control unit (9) prevents the at least one camera (6) from capturing images. Thus, capturing imperfect images and storing unnecessary data by capturing more than one image can be prevented.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator (1) comprises the control unit (9) which generates an audio or written error message to be delivered to the user by means of an imaging unit, indicating that the image cannot be generated since the door (4) is not in the calculated position.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator (1) comprises the optical sensor (7) which is a time of flight (TOF) sensor. In an embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator (1) comprises a cover (8) which covers the optical sensor (7) and the control unit (9). Thus, the optical sensor (7) and the control unit (9) are protected against external factors such as dust and humidity, and have a longer economic life.

By means of the present invention, a refrigerator (1) with camera (6) is realized, wherein at least one camera (6) on the body (2) and/or the door (4) is activated at the correct time when the door (4) reaches a position where a correct image can be captured and the user is provided with clear food images without storing unnecessary amounts of data.