AU2019476785B2

AU2019476785B2 - Outdoor unit for air-conditioning apparatus

Info

Publication number: AU2019476785B2
Application number: AU2019476785A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Yuya HATA; Hirokazu Murakami
Original assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corp
Current assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corp
Priority date: 2019-12-06
Filing date: 2019-12-06
Publication date: 2023-08-31
Anticipated expiration: 2039-12-06
Also published as: AU2019476785A1; US20220333795A1; GB2605275A8; GB2605275A; JP7321291B2; CN114746702A; JPWO2021111618A1; DE112019007948T5; GB202203529D0; WO2021111618A1; GB2605275B

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide an outdoor unit that is for air conditioners and that can ensure, when a fan guard is attached to a casing, design and durability of a cut section of a part having an extension removed therefrom while enabling a coating process of the fan guard. This outdoor unit for air conditioners is provided with: a casing that has an opening of an air path formed in a front panel; and a fan guard that is configured by combing a plurality of vertical bars and a plurality of transverse bars and that covers the opening. The fan guard has a coating formed on the surface, and one of the transverse bars of the fan guard is an engaging transverse bar provided with temporary fixing engagement parts at both ends in the transverse direction. The temporary fixing engagement parts are formed at positions projecting toward the position of the casing from the end faces of both ends, in the transverse direction, of the transverse bars other than the engaging transverse bar. A front panel is provided with engaging holes corresponding to the temporary fixing engagement parts, and the tips of the temporary fixing engagement parts have metal exposed therefrom and are inserted into the engaging holes.

Description

Technical Field

[0001]

The present disclosure relates to an outdoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus, and in particular to a structure fixing a fan guard provided on a blowout opening port of an air-sending passage. Background

[0002]

An outdoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus including a fan guard that

covers a blowout opening port of an air-sending passage has heretofore been disclosed (for example, see Patent Literature 1). The outdoor unit for the air

conditioning apparatus includes the fan guard to prevent, for example, a user from touching a rotating fan through the blowout opening port.

[0003] According to Patent Literature 1, in the outdoor unit for the air-conditioning

apparatus, the fan guard is fixed in such a manner that a screw is inserted into a screw insertion hole provided in the fan guard and is tightened to a front panel.

Patent Literature

[0004]

Patent Literature 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.

2010-101592

[0005]

In the outdoor unit for the air-conditioning apparatus disclosed in Patent

Literature 1, the fan guard is made of metal wires. A coating treatment is performed

on a surface of the fan guard, thereby securing durability and design property. Some of a plurality of horizontal bars of the fan guard each have ends that are formed to be hung from a jig, for the coating treatment. In other words, the ends of the

horizontal bar are formed long as compared with a state where the fan guard is attached to a housing of the outdoor unit for the air-conditioning apparatus, and extended portions formed long are held by the jig. The coating treatment is performed on the fan guard while the extended portions are held by the jig. After the coating treatment is completed, the extended portions are removed. After the extended portions are removed, the ends of the horizontal bar are in a state where the metal wires inside are exposed. In the case where the metal wires are exposed, the exposed portions are rusted, which impairs durability and design property.

[0006] It is desired to address or ameliorate one or more disadvantages or limitations associated with the prior art, or to at least provide a useful alternative. Summary

[0007] An outdoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a housing including a front panel and an opening port of an air passage formed in the front panel, and a fan guard configured by combining a plurality of vertical bars and a plurality of horizontal bars, and configured to cover the opening port. The fan guard includes a coating on a surface. One of the plurality of horizontal bars of the fan guard is an engagement horizontal bar including, at both ends in a right-left direction, temporary fixing engagement portions to be inserted into the housing. The temporary fixing engagement portions are provided at positions protruding in a direction in which the housing is positioned, more than end surfaces at the both ends in the right-left direction of the plurality of horizontal bars other than the engagement horizontal bar. The front panel includes engagement holes corresponding to the respective temporary fixing engagement portions. A metal is exposed at front ends of the temporary fixing engagement portions, and the front ends of the temporary fixing engagement portions are inserted into the respective engagement holes.

[0008] In the outdoor unit for the air-conditioning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present disclosure having the above-described configuration, the metal wires used as hanging positions for hanging from a jig in a coating treatment are also used as the metal wires used for temporarily fixing to the front panel of the housing. This makes it possible to use the metal wires for temporary fixing when the fan guard is attached to the front panel, and to house the exposed metal wires in the engagement holes. Accordingly, rust of the portions of the fan guard where the metal wires are exposed is suppressed, and durability and design property of the outdoor unit for the air-conditioning apparatus are improved. Brief Description of Drawings

[0009] An embodiment of the present disclosure is hereinafter described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :

[Fig. 1] Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an outdoor unit 1 for an air

conditioning apparatus according to Embodiment 1.

[Fig. 2] Fig. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an internal structure of a housing

10 of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus illustrated in Fig. 1.

[Fig. 3] Fig. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a front panel 3 of the housing 10

of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus according to Embodiment 1.

[Fig. 4] Fig. 4 is an enlarged view illustrating a portion A in Fig. 1 as viewed

from the inside of the housing 10.

[Fig. 5] Fig. 5 is an enlarged view illustrating a portion B in Fig. 1 as viewed

from the inside of the housing 10.

[Fig. 6] Fig. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a periphery of a temporary fixing engagement portion 31 of a fan guard 16 according to Embodiment 1.

[Fig. 7] Fig. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a periphery of a

temporary fixing engagement portion 32 of the fan guard 16 according to Embodiment

1.

Detailed Description

[0010]

Embodiment 1

An embodiment of an outdoor unit 1 for an air-conditioning apparatus according to the present disclosure is described below. Note that modes illustrated in drawings are illustrative and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. Further, in the drawings, components denoted by the same reference numerals are the same or equivalent components, and this applies to the entire description of the specification. Furthermore, in the following drawings, dimensional relationship of the components may be different from dimensional relationship of actual components.

[0011]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning

apparatus according to Embodiment 1. The outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning

apparatus includes a housing 10 formed in, for example, a substantially cuboid shape. More specifically, as illustrated in Fig. 1, the outdoor unit 1 for the air

conditioning apparatus includes a bottom plate 2 forming a bottom portion of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus, a front panel 3 configuring a front

surface of the housing 10 of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus, a service panel 4 configuring a side surface of the housing 10, a front lower panel 5 disposed below the service panel 4, a rear upper panel 6 covering a right side surface and a rear surface, a rear lower panel 7, a left side panel 8 provided on a surface on a left side of the front panel 3 of the housing 10, and a top panel 9 configuring a top surface of the housing 10.

[0012]

As illustrated in Fig. 1, the front panel 3 includes two opening ports 20 arranged

in a vertical direction. A fan 14 is installed in each of the opening ports 20. The

opening ports 20 are covered with respective fan guards 16. The outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus is configured such that a user cannot touch the fans 14. Each of the rear upper panel 6, the rear lower panel 7, and the left side panel 8 includes an air inlet through which air is sucked into the outdoor unit 1 for the air

conditioning apparatus. The air sucked through the air inlets is discharged from the opening ports 20.

[0013]

The configuration of the housing 10 of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning

apparatus is not limited to the above-described configuration, and can be suitably modified. The panels such as the front panel 3 configuring the housing 10 of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus may be combined so that they are integrally formed. Further, each of the panels may include a plurality of separated panels. In the following description, a side on which the front panel 3 of the housing

10 is disposed is referred to as "front side", a side close to the rear upper panel 6 opposing to the front panel 3 in the housing 10 is referred to as "rear side", and sides in a right-left direction of the front panel 3 of the housing 10 are referred to as "right

side" and "left side". In addition, a side close to the top panel 9 of the housing 10 is referred to as "upper side", and a side on which the bottom plate 2 opposing to the top panel 9 of the housing 10 is positioned is referred to as "lower side".

[0014]

Fig. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an internal structure of the housing 10 of

the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus illustrated in Fig. 1. The inside

of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus is divided into a fan chamber

S1 and a machine chamber S2 by a partition plate 17 and a heat exchanger 15.

[0015]

In the fan chamber S1, the heat exchanger 15 having an L-shaped planar

shape, the fans 14 sending air to the heat exchanger 15, fan motors (not illustrated)

driving the fans 14, and motor supports 13 fixing the fan motors (not illustrated) are

installed on the bottom plate 2.

[0016]

In the machine chamber S2, an electric component (not illustrated), for

example, supplying power to each of the components, an electric component box (not illustrated) housing the electric component, a compressor 11 compressing refrigerant and sending the compressed refrigerant to a refrigerant pipe, and a refrigerant container 12 are provided. The refrigerant flowing into the outdoor unit 1 for the air

conditioning apparatus from an indoor unit including an indoor heat exchanger (not

illustrated) and the like is compressed by the compressor 11, and the compressed refrigerant is sent to the heat exchanger 15 disposed in the fan chamber S1 through

the refrigerant pipe. The refrigerant circulating through the outdoor unit 1 and the indoor unit realizes a cooling function and a heating function.

[0017]

Fig. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the front panel 3 of the housing 10 of the

outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus. The front panel 3 is a panel

covering a front side of the fan chamber S1. The outdoor unit 1 for the air

conditioning apparatus includes the fans 14 in the fan chamber S1. The front panel

3 includes the opening ports 20 on the front side of the fans 14. The fan guards 16 made of metal wires are disposed to cover the opening ports 20 of the front panel 3. This enables the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus to avoid contact of a finger and the like with the fan 14. Each of the fan guards 16 is configured by

combining a plurality of vertical bars 50 extending in the vertical direction and a

plurality of horizontal bars 51 extending in the right-left direction. The plurality of

vertical bars 50 and the plurality of horizontal bars 51 are each made of a metal wire.

[0018]

As illustrated in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3, the fan guards 16 disposed on the front

surface of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus are coated with a resin or the like, to secure durability and design property. In other words, it is necessary for the fan guards 16 to have durability against corrosion, rust, and the like because the fan guards 16 configure an appearance of the outdoor unit 1 for the air conditioning apparatus. Further, the fan guards 16 cover a most part of the front

panel 3 of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus. Therefore, the fan

guards 16 largely influence on design property of the outdoor unit 1 for the air conditioning apparatus. The surfaces of the fan guards 16 are coated with a resin or the like to prevent the metal wires inside from contacting with external air and

moisture.

[0019]

Fig. 4 is an enlarged view illustrating a portion A in Fig. 1 as viewed from the

inside of the housing 10. Fig. 5 is an enlarged view illustrating a portion B in Fig. 1

as viewed from the inside of the housing 10. Each of the fan guards 16 includes an engagement horizontal bar 30. The engagement horizontal bar 30 includes temporary fixing engagement portions 31 and 32 at both ends in the right-left direction. As illustrated in Fig. 4, the temporary fixing engagement portion 31 that is one of the temporary fixing engagement portions 31 and 32 of the engagement horizontal bar 30 linearly extends from each of the fan guards 16 in a direction toward the front panel 3. Note that a direction from the fan guards 16 to the front panel 3 is referred to as a first direction. In other words, the first direction is a direction perpendicular to the front panel 3. As illustrated in Fig. 5, the temporary fixing engagement portion 32 that is the other of the two temporary fixing engagement portions 31 and 32 has a front end portion bent to intersect with the first direction. In

Embodiment 1, the temporary fixing engagement portion 32 is bent downward.

[0020]

As illustrated in Fig. 5, since the front end portion of the temporary fixing

engagement portion 32 is bent downward, the front end is hooked to a corresponding engagement hole 21 of the front panel 3. Further, as illustrated in Fig. 4, the

temporary fixing engagement portion 31 is inserted into a corresponding engagement

hole 21 and linearly extends. Each of the engagement holes 21 includes a lower

edge 22 positioned on the lower side, and an upper edge 23 positioned above the lower edge 22. The lower edge 22 is positioned on a side close to the fan guards 16, relative to the upper edge 23. In other words, the lower edge 22 is positioned on the front side of the upper edge 23. Accordingly, each of the engagement holes 21 opens upward, and penetrates through the front panel 3 in a front-rear direction as viewed from the front side. Each of the fan guards 16 can be temporarily fixed to the

front panel 3 when the temporary fixing engagement portion 32 is hooked to the

corresponding engagement hole 21. After each of the fan guards 16 is temporarily fixed to the front panel 3, screws are inserted into respective screw insertion portions

41 provided at four corners of each of the fan guards 16, and each of the fan guards 16 is accordingly fixed to the front panel 3.

[0021]

The screw insertion portions 41 are provided on right and left ends of a fixing

horizontal bar 40 that is arranged on the uppermost position among the plurality of horizontal bars 51 of each of the fan guards 16. In addition, the screw insertion portions 41 are also provided on right and left ends of the fixing horizontal bar 40 that is arranged on the lowermost position among the plurality of horizontal bars 51 of each of the fan guards 16.

[0022]

Fig. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a periphery of the temporary fixing engagement portion 31 of each of the fan guards 16 according to Embodiment 1. Fig. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a periphery of

the temporary fixing engagement portion 32 of each of the fan guards 16 according to Embodiment 1. The fan guards 16 are coated with a resin to secure durability and design property. The fan guards 16 are coated with a coating material such as polypropylene as the resin. In the coating treatment, each of the fan guards 16 is held to a jig by using the temporary fixing engagement portion 31 provided at the end of the engagement horizontal bar 30 among the plurality of horizontal bars 51

configuring each of the fan guards 16. More specifically, as illustrated in Fig. 6, in

the coating treatment, the temporary fixing engagement portion 31 includes a held

portion 35 to be held by the jig. The held portion 35 is provided ahead of a front end surface 34. The held portion 35 is formed to obliquely extend from the front end

surface 34 of the temporary fixing engagement portion 31 and to be parallel to the temporary fixing engagement portion 31 on a front end side. Each of the fan guards 16 is subjected to the coating treatment while being hung from the jig at a bent part of the held portion 35.

[0023]

After the coating treatment is completed, the held portion 35 is cut and

removed. Therefore, the front end surface 34 is not coated, and the metal wire is

exposed. The front end surface 34 protrudes toward the front panel 3 more than the screw insertion portions 41 and the front end surfaces of ends of the other horizontal

bars. As illustrated in Fig. 6, in the state where each of the fan guards 16 is attached to the front panel 3, the front end surface 34 is positioned inside the housing 10.

Therefore, the front end surface 34 hardly contacts with moisture, and is accordingly prevented from being rusted. Even if the front end surface 34 is rusted, the front end surface 34 cannot be viewed from outside of the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus. This enables the outdoor unit 1 for the air-conditioning apparatus to maintain design property.

[0024]

Each of the fan guards 16 has a simple shape less in the number of times of bending as illustrated in Fig. 6 before the coating treatment, and the hanging position

for the coating treatment can be formed in the held portion 35, with the simple

structure. Therefore, the fan guards 16 are easily manufactured.

[0024a]

Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless the context

requires otherwise, the word "comprise", and variations such as "comprises" and "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or step or group of integers or steps but not the exclusion of any other integer or step or group of integers or steps.

[0024b]

The reference in this specification to any prior publication (or information

derived from it), or to any matter which is known, is not, and should not be taken as

an acknowledgment or admission or any form of suggestion that that prior publication

(or information derived from it) or known matter forms part of the common general

knowledge in the field of endeavour to which this specification relates.

Reference Signs List

[0025]

1: outdoor unit, 2: bottom plate, 3: front panel, 4: service panel, 5: front lower

panel, 6: rear upper panel, 7: rear lower panel, 8: left side panel, 9: top panel, 10: housing, 11: compressor, 12: refrigerant container, 13: motor support, 14: fan, 15:

heat exchanger, 16: fan guard, 17: partition plate, 20: opening port, 21: engagement

hole, 30: engagement horizontal bar, 31: temporary fixing engagement portion, 32:

temporary fixing engagement portion, 34: front end surface, 35: held portion, 40:

fixing horizontal bar, 41: screw insertion portion, 50: plurality of vertical bars, 51: plurality of horizontal bars, L: planar view, Si: fan chamber, S2: machine chamber

Claims

THE CLAIMS DEFINING THE INVENTION ARE AS FOLLOWS:

[Claim 1] An outdoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus, comprising:

a housing including a front panel and an opening port of an air passage formed in the front panel; and

a fan guard configured by combining a plurality of vertical bars and a plurality of horizontal bars, and configured to cover the opening port, wherein

the fan guard includes a coating on a surface, one of the plurality of horizontal bars of the fan guard is an engagement

horizontal bar including, at both ends in a right-left direction, temporary fixing

engagement portions to be inserted into the housing, the temporary fixing engagement portions are provided at positions protruding in a direction in which the housing is positioned, more than end surfaces at the both

ends in the right-left direction of the plurality of horizontal bars other than the

engagement horizontal bar,

the front panel includes engagement holes corresponding to the respective temporary fixing engagement portions, and

a metal is exposed at front ends of the temporary fixing engagement portions, and the front ends of the temporary fixing engagement portions are inserted into the

respective engagement holes.
[Claim 2]

The outdoor unit for the air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein

one of the two temporary fixing engagement portions has a front end portion

linearly extending in a first direction toward the front panel, and

an other of the two temporary fixing engagement portions has a front end

portion bent to intersect with the first direction.
[Claim 3]

The outdoor unit for the air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1 or 2, wherein

the engagement holes open upward, and an other of the two temporary fixing engagement portions has a front end portion bent downward and abutting on a lower edge positioned on a lower side of the corresponding engagement hole.
[Claim 4]

The outdoor unit for the air-conditioning apparatus of claim 3, wherein, in the

front panel, the lower edge of each of the engagement holes is positioned on a side close to the fan guard, relative to an upper edge positioned above the lower edge.
[Claim 5]

The outdoor unit for the air-conditioning apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 4,

wherein

the fan guard includes a fixing horizontal bar positioned on an end in a vertical

direction, among the plurality of horizontal bars, and

the fixing horizontal bar includes, at both ends, screw insertion portions into

which screws are inserted.