Method and apparatus for predicting power consumption of refrigerator having defrosting heater

摘要

A power consumption prediction method and apparatus for a refrigerator having a defrosting heater is provided. In the power consumption prediction method, a defrosting timer cycle expressed as a cumulative value of an operation time of a compressor is set. The defrosting heater is activated to perform forced defrosting. The compressor is activated so that cooling cycles are completed several times. A defrosting time, a pause time and an operation time of the compressor and the energy consumed during each time are respectively detected. Based on the detected results, a unit run cycle of the refrigerator corresponding to the defrosting timer cycle is estimated. The energy consumption for a predetermined interval of time is estimated. Accordingly, the test time for power consumption prediction for the refrigerator can be shortened.