| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立臺北科技大學 === 冷凍與低溫科技研究所 === 89 === Abstract
With the rise of the national per capital income and the standard of living, the market penetration rate of family-style refrigerator in Taiwan has reached 99.04%. Although refrigerators are not the appliances that consume the most electricity, they still account up to 17% of the total electricity used by households because they are used around the clock. The primary objective of this research is to develop the “Best Refrigerator for Family Use in Taiwan” that is environmental friendly, energy efficient, and matches the local culinary culture and habit.
In this thesis we first investigated the characteristics of refrigerators the U.S. and Japan from the factors of geographic and climate conditions, and family living style. We then used our observation to analyze the requirements and constraints of refrigerators in Taiwan, and to propose a design best suited for the Taiwanese family usage and energy conservation.
Due to the dry continental climate, there is not much condensation in the refrigerator in the U.S. Thus, anti-condensing measures are usually not essential. The spaciousness of the average houses makes noise emission not a primary a concern. The readily available frozen food reduces the need of the pull-down (time of cooling) demand for household refrigerators, while the sporadic trips to the supermarket require larger capacity. Consequently, an American refrigerator is typically “bulky, practical, and lack of fanfare”.
Japan is small and densely populated. Since the eating habit emphasizes on the freshness of the food, the refrigerators tend to be small and compartmentalized to serve different functions such as cooling and freezing. Noise reduction is usually a factor, while condensing prevention is not needed due to the dry weather.
Taiwan’s refrigerators are often used “leftover storage” due the hot and humid weather and the readily available traditional markets. The need for rapid cooling function making it harder to increase the EF. Heat insulation, noise reduction, and condensing prevention are all important issues.
Our research plans for the design of world-class refrigerators that suit the Taiwanese market and also increase the EF value in energy saving. The primary concerns for the most optimized refrigerator design include heat insulation material for anti-condensing purposes, noise reduction, user-friendly design, and the adherence to the environmental regulations. Equally important are factors such as ergonomic design according to constraints such as height and the arm reach of Taiwanese female, effective management of freshness, sanitary issues, as well as careful exterior design in accordance to local esthetic taste. We believe only a refrigerator designed with these factors in mind can meet the high standards of the Taiwanese market and be a successful consumer product of the new millennium.
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