The described technology relates to a flow controlling assembly and method, such as for a refrigerator.
In a known refrigerator, air in a freezer compartment is cooled by a cooling system. Such a cooling system is well known. This cooled air is directed to a fresh food compartment of the refrigerator, through the use of a damper disposed between the freezer and fresh food compartments. By this arrangement, a single cooling system can be used to cool both the freezer and fresh food compartments. The damper is associated with an electromechanical system that either fully opens or fully closes the damper. For example, when the cooling system is deenergized, the damper is fully closed so that the temperature in the freezer compartment is maintained below a predetermined minimum temperature. When the cooling system is energized, the damper is fully opened so that the cooled air flows from the freezer compartment to the fresh food compartment.
The known refrigerator suffers from numerous disadvantages. For example, a separate control system and numerous electrical and mechanical components are required to control the opening and closing of the damper. Thus, control of the damper is relatively complicated, and installation and service of the control system increase the initial and maintenance costs of the refrigerator. Further, because the damper is either fully opened or fully closed, the flow of the cooled air from the freezer compartment to the fresh food compartment cannot be precisely controlled. As a result, the electrical efficiency of the refrigerator is decreased.