To keep an optimum stored object preservation temperature regardless of a difference in storage state inside a refrigerator, to improve a performance of keeping freshness of food products, and to suppress power consumption by preventing stored objects from getting "too cold".
A refrigerator includes top surface LEDs 20a, 20b installed inside a cold room 12, and a main photosensor 21a which is a photosensor for detecting irradiation light, and by providing the main photosensor 21a inside a recess provided on a side face of the cold room 12 and providing a cover 53 with a shield wall, the main photosensor 21a does not receive direct light from the top surfaces LEDs 20a, 20b, thereby detecting only indirect irradiation light including reflected light at stored objects. By estimating the storage state of the stored objects on the basis of an illuminance attenuation amount inside the cold room 12, the entire storage state inside the cold room 12 can be estimated.
UENO OSAMU
Daisuke Nagano
Kentaro Fujii
Next Patent: REFRIGERATOR