CN111386431B

CN111386431B - Air conditioner

Info

Publication number: CN111386431B
Application number: CN201880005854.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 加藤智大; 能登谷义明
Original assignee: Hitachi Johnson Controls Air Conditioning Inc
Current assignee: Hitachi Johnson Controls Air Conditioning Inc
Priority date: 2018-10-12
Filing date: 2018-10-12
Publication date: 2021-08-20
Anticipated expiration: 2038-10-12
Also published as: WO2020075298A1; JP6847212B2; CN111386431A; JPWO2020075298A1

Abstract

Provided is an air conditioner with high reliability, which considers the possibility of failure of a fan cleaning part. The method comprises the following steps: a heat exchanger (100); an indoor fan (16); a fan cleaning unit (24) for cleaning the indoor fan (16); a control unit (30) that controls at least the indoor fan (16) and the fan cleaning unit (24); and a limit switch (25) which is pressed by the fan cleaning part (24), wherein the control part (30) rotates the indoor fan (24) in the same direction as the moving direction of the fan cleaning part (24) under the condition that the fan cleaning part (24) moves towards the limit switch (25) and the limit switch (25) is not pressed.

Description

Air conditioner

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an air conditioner.

Background

As a technique for cleaning an indoor fan of an air conditioner, for example,

patent documents

1 and 2 describe a technique including "a fan cleaning device for removing dust of a fan".

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent No. 4046755

Patent document 2: japanese patent No. 6354004

Disclosure of Invention

As described above,

patent documents

1 and 2 describe a structure for cleaning an indoor fan, but do not describe a structure in which reliability of a fan cleaning device in the event of a failure is taken into consideration.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner with high reliability in consideration of the possibility of failure of a fan cleaning unit.

In order to solve the above problem, an air conditioner according to the present invention includes: a heat exchanger (e.g., an indoor heat exchanger 15); a fan (e.g., indoor fan 16); a fan cleaning part for cleaning the fan; a control part for controlling at least the fan and the fan cleaning part; and a limit switch pressed by the fan cleaning part, wherein the control part rotates the fan in the same direction as the moving direction of the fan cleaning part when the fan cleaning part moves towards the limit switch and the limit switch is not pressed. Other embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following embodiments.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an air conditioner with high reliability in consideration of the possibility of failure of the fan cleaning unit.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a refrigerant circuit of an air conditioner according to a first embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of an indoor unit provided in the air conditioner according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 3 is a structural diagram of a fan cleaning unit and a limit switch provided in the air conditioner according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 4 is a functional block diagram of the air conditioner according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart of a process executed by the control unit of the air conditioner according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the indoor fan is being cleaned in the air conditioner of the first embodiment.

Fig. 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the processing in steps S206 and S207 in fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of an indoor unit provided in an air conditioner according to a second embodiment.

Fig. 9 is a vertical sectional view of an indoor unit provided in an air conditioner according to a third embodiment.

Fig. 10 is a structural diagram of a fan cleaning unit and an angle sensor provided in an air conditioner according to a modification.

Detailed Description

[ first embodiment ]

< construction of air conditioner >

Fig. 1 is a configuration diagram of a refrigerant circuit Q of an air conditioner 100 according to a first embodiment. The solid arrows in fig. 1 indicate the flow of the refrigerant during the heating operation. In addition, the dashed arrows in fig. 1 indicate the flow of the refrigerant during the cooling operation. The air conditioner 100 is a device that performs air conditioning such as a heating operation or a cooling operation. As shown in fig. 1, the air conditioner 100 includes a compressor 11, an outdoor heat exchanger 12, an outdoor fan 13, and an expansion valve 14. In addition to the above configuration, the air conditioner 100 includes an indoor heat exchanger 15 (heat exchanger), an indoor fan 16 (fan), and a four-way valve 17.

The compressor 11 is a device that compresses a low-temperature low-pressure gas refrigerant and discharges the refrigerant as a high-temperature high-pressure gas refrigerant, and includes a compressor motor 11a as a drive source. The outdoor heat exchanger 12 is a heat exchanger that exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing through a heat transfer pipe (not shown) thereof and the outside air sent in from the outdoor fan 13.

The outdoor fan 13 is a fan that sends outside air to the outdoor heat exchanger 12. The outdoor fan 13 has an outdoor fan motor 13a as a drive source, and is disposed in the vicinity of the outdoor heat exchanger 12. The expansion valve 14 is a valve that reduces the pressure of the refrigerant condensed in the "condenser" (one of the outdoor heat exchanger 12 and the indoor heat exchanger 15). The refrigerant decompressed by the expansion valve 14 is introduced into the "evaporator" (the other of the outdoor heat exchanger 12 and the indoor heat exchanger 15).

The indoor heat exchanger 15 is a heat exchanger that exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing through the heat transfer pipe g (see fig. 2) and the indoor air (air of the space to be air-conditioned) sent in from the indoor fan 16. The indoor heat exchanger 15 includes a plurality of fins f and a plurality of heat transfer tubes g penetrating the fins f. From another point of view, the indoor heat exchanger 15 includes a front indoor heat exchanger 15a disposed in front of the indoor fan 16 and a rear indoor heat exchanger 15b disposed behind the indoor fan 16. The upper end of the front indoor heat exchanger 15a and the upper end of the rear indoor heat exchanger 15b are connected in an inverted V shape.

The indoor fan 16 is a fan that sends indoor air to the indoor heat exchanger 15. The indoor fan 16 includes an indoor fan motor 16c (see fig. 4) as a drive source, and is disposed in the vicinity of the indoor heat exchanger 15.

The four-way valve 17 is a valve for switching the flow path of the refrigerant according to the operation mode of the air conditioner 100. For example, during a cooling operation (see a dotted arrow in fig. 1), a refrigerant circulates through a refrigeration cycle in a refrigerant circuit Q in which a compressor 11, an outdoor heat exchanger 12 (condenser), an expansion valve 14, and an indoor heat exchanger 15 (evaporator) are connected in this order via a four-way valve 17.

On the other hand, during the heating operation (see the solid arrow in fig. 1), the refrigerant circulates through the refrigeration cycle in the refrigerant circuit Q in which the compressor 11, the indoor heat exchanger 15 (condenser), the expansion valve 14, and the outdoor heat exchanger 12 (evaporator) are connected in this order via the four-way valve 17.

That is, in the refrigerant circuit Q in which the refrigerant circulates through the compressor 11, the "condenser", the expansion valve 14, and the "evaporator" in this order, one of the "condenser" and the "evaporator" is the outdoor heat exchanger 12, and the other is the indoor heat exchanger 15.

In the example shown in fig. 1, the compressor 11, the outdoor heat exchanger 12, the outdoor fan 13, the expansion valve 14, and the four-way valve 17 are provided in the outdoor unit Uo. On the other hand, an indoor heat exchanger 15 and an indoor fan 16 are provided in the indoor unit Ui.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of an indoor unit Ui provided in the air conditioner 100 according to the first embodiment. Fig. 2 illustrates a state in which fan cleaning unit 24 is retracted from indoor fan 16. The indoor unit Ui includes, in addition to the indoor heat exchanger 15 and the indoor fan 16, a drain pan 18, a casing base 19,

filters

20a and 20b, and a front panel 21. The indoor unit Ui includes a horizontal air vane 22, a vertical air vane 23, a fan cleaning unit 24, and a limit switch 25 (failure detection unit). Here, the limit switch 25 has a sensing portion on one side and a non-sensing portion on the other side. In the case of fig. 2, the fan cleaning unit 24 is sensed when it is rotated from the lower side (clockwise rotation), and is not sensed when it is rotated from the upper side (counterclockwise rotation).

The catch pan 18 is for receiving the condensed water of the indoor heat exchanger 15, and is disposed below the indoor heat exchanger 15. The indoor fan 16 is, for example, a cylindrical cross flow fan, and is disposed in the vicinity of the indoor heat exchanger 15. The indoor fan 16 includes: a plurality of fan blades 16 a; a partition plate 16b provided with these fan blades 16 a; and an indoor fan motor 16c (see fig. 4) as a driving source.

The housing base 19 is a housing on which the indoor heat exchanger 15, the indoor fan 16, and the like are installed. The

filters

20a and 20b collect dust from the air flowing through the indoor heat exchanger 15. One filter 20a is disposed on the front side of the indoor heat exchanger 15, and the other filter 20b is disposed on the upper side of the indoor heat exchanger 15.

The front panel 21 is a panel provided to cover the front filter 20a, and is rotatable with the lower end thereof being the axial direction and the front side. The front panel 21 may not rotate.

The horizontal air vanes 22 are plate-like members that adjust the horizontal direction of the air blown into the room. The horizontal air vanes 22 are disposed in the outlet air passage h3 and are rotated in the horizontal direction by the horizontal air vane motor 26 (see fig. 4).

The up-down airflow direction plate 23 is a plate-like member that adjusts the vertical airflow direction of the air blown into the room. The up-down wind direction plate 23 is disposed near the air outlet h4, and is rotated in the up-down direction by a motor 27 for the up-down wind direction plate (see fig. 4).

The air sucked through the air suction ports h1 and h2 exchanges heat with the refrigerant flowing through the heat transfer tubes g of the indoor heat exchanger 15, and the air after the heat exchange is introduced into the outlet air passage h 3. The air flowing through the outlet air duct h3 is guided in a predetermined direction by the horizontal wind direction plate 22 and the vertical wind direction plate 23, and is blown out into the room through the air outlet h 4.

Most of the dust directed toward the air inlets h1, h2 along with the air flow is collected by the

filters

20a, 20 b. However, fine dust may pass through the

filters

20a and 20b and adhere to the indoor fan 16. Therefore, it is preferable to periodically clean the indoor fan 16. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the fan cleaning unit 24 described below cleans the indoor fan 16.

The fan cleaning unit 24 shown in fig. 2 is used for cleaning the indoor fan 16, and is disposed between the indoor heat exchanger 15 and the indoor fan 16. More specifically, the fan cleaning unit 24 is disposed in a recessed portion of the front indoor heat exchanger 15a having a cross-sectional shape like a letter < i >.

Fig. 3 is a configuration diagram of the fan cleaning unit 24 and the limit switch 25 included in the air conditioner 100 according to the first embodiment. As shown in fig. 3, the fan cleaning unit 24 includes a shaft portion 24a, a brush 24b, a fan cleaning motor 24c, gears 24d and 24e, and a contact portion 24 f. The shaft portion 24a is a rod-shaped member parallel to the axial direction of the indoor fan 16 (see fig. 2), and the vicinity of both ends thereof is pivotally supported.

The brush 24b is provided on the shaft portion 24a for scraping off dust attached to the indoor fan 16 (see fig. 2). The fan cleaning motor 24c is, for example, a stepping motor, and is a drive source for rotating (moving) the brush 24 b. The stepping motor has an advantage that it can be positioned accurately at a predetermined rotation angle.

The

gears

24d and 24e transmit the torque of the fan cleaning motor 24c to the shaft portion 24a at a predetermined gear ratio (reduction ratio). One gear 24d is connected to a rotor (not shown) of the fan cleaning motor 24 c. The other gear 24e is provided on one end side (left side in the drawing sheet of fig. 3) of the shaft portion 24 a. In fig. 3, the

gears

24d and 24e are shown in a state slightly separated from each other, but actually, the

gears

24d and 24e are meshed with each other.

The contact portion 24f is a member that comes into contact with the limit switch 25 (i.e., presses the limit switch 25) when the fan cleaning portion 24 is retracted from the indoor fan 16, and is provided on one end side of the shaft portion 24 a.

When cleaning indoor fan 16, shaft portion 24a is rotated so that brush 24b contacts indoor fan 16, and then indoor fan 16 is rotated in reverse (see fig. 6). When cleaning of indoor fan 16 is completed, shaft 24a rotates again, and brush 24b is separated from indoor fan 16 (see fig. 2). Thus, when the fan cleaning unit 24 is retracted, the contact portion 24f presses the limit switch 25.

Since the fan cleaning motor 24c (e.g., a stepping motor) is driven by open-loop control, the rotation angle cannot be grasped on the side of the control unit 30 (see fig. 4). Therefore, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the fan cleaning unit 24 is appropriately retracted based on whether or not the on/off of the limit switch 25 is switched after the indoor fan 16 is cleaned by the fan cleaning unit 24.

Limit switch 25 is a switch for determining whether or not fan cleaning unit 24 is appropriately retracted from indoor fan 16 (detection of a failure of fan cleaning unit 24). That is, the limit switch 25 is pressed by the fan cleaning unit 24, and is located near the retreat position of the fan cleaning unit 24 (near the indoor heat exchanger 15: see fig. 2). As shown in fig. 3, the limit switch 25 includes a housing 25a, an actuator 25b, and a movable piece 25 c.

The housing 25a is provided at a predetermined position of the housing base 19 (see fig. 2) for accommodating components such as a microswitch (not shown). The actuator 25b is a member that rotates toward the movable piece 25c against the elastic force of a spring (not shown) by the urging force from the abutting portion 24 f. The movable piece 25c is a member that brings a movable contact of a microswitch (not shown) into contact with a fixed contact by a pressing force from the actuator 25 b.

When the movable contact of the microswitch (not shown) is in contact with the fixed contact, the signal output from the limit switch 25 is switched from off to on, for example.

The limit switch 25 is preferably waterproof. For example, the limit switch 25 may be sealed by a predetermined sealing member (not shown). Therefore, even in a situation where the humidity inside the indoor unit Ui is high, moisture is less likely to enter the inside of the limit switch 25, and the limit switch 25 is less likely to malfunction.

Fig. 4 is a functional block diagram of the air conditioner 100 according to the first embodiment. The indoor unit Ui shown in fig. 4 includes, in addition to the above configuration, a remote controller transmitting/receiving unit 28, a display lamp 29a, a sound generating unit 29b, and an indoor control circuit 31. The remote controller transceiver 28 exchanges predetermined information with the remote controller 40.

The indicator lamp 29a is a lamp for reporting a failure or the like of the fan cleaning unit 24 (see fig. 2). Sound generating unit 29b generates a predetermined alarm sound when fan cleaning unit 24 fails or the like.

Although not shown, the indoor control circuit 31 includes electronic circuits such as a CPU (central processing unit), a ROM (read only memory), a RAM (random access memory), various interfaces, and the like. Then, the program stored in the ROM is read out and developed in the RAM, and the CPU executes various processes.

As shown in fig. 4, the indoor control circuit 31 includes a storage unit 31a and an indoor control unit 31 b. The storage unit 31a stores, in addition to a predetermined program, signals from the limit switch 25, data received via the remote controller transmission/reception unit 28, and detection values of various sensors (not shown).

The indoor control unit 31b controls the indoor fan motor 16c, the fan cleaning motor 24c, the horizontal air vane motor 26, the vertical air vane motor 27, and the like based on the data stored in the storage unit 31 a. When determining that the fan cleaning unit 24 is malfunctioning, the indoor control unit 31b turns on the indicator lamp 29a or generates a predetermined notification sound by the sound generation unit 29 b.

The outdoor unit Uo has an outdoor control circuit 32 in addition to the above configuration. Although not shown, the outdoor control circuit 32 is configured to include electronic circuits such as a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and various interfaces, and is connected to the indoor control circuit 31 via a communication line.

As shown in fig. 4, the outdoor control circuit 32 includes a storage unit 32a and an outdoor control unit 32 b. The storage unit 32a stores data and the like received from the indoor control circuit 31 in addition to a predetermined program. The outdoor control unit 32b controls the compressor motor 11a, the outdoor fan motor 13a, the expansion valve 14, and the like based on the data stored in the storage unit 32 a. Hereinafter, the indoor control circuit 31 and the outdoor control circuit 32 are collectively referred to as "the control unit 30".

Fig. 5 is a flowchart of processing executed by the control unit 30 of the air conditioner according to the first embodiment (see fig. 2 and 4 as appropriate). At "START" in fig. 5, the air conditioning operation is not performed, and fan cleaning unit 24 is in a state of being retracted from indoor fan 16 (see fig. 2).

In step S101, the control unit 30 cleans the indoor fan 16 by the fan cleaning unit 24. The trigger for starting cleaning of the indoor fan 16 may be, for example, a condition that the cumulative time of the air conditioning operation since the previous cleaning reaches a predetermined time.

Fig. 6 is an explanatory view (corresponding to the vertical sectional view of fig. 2) showing a state during cleaning of the indoor fan 16 in the air conditioner 100 according to the first embodiment. When cleaning indoor fan 16, controller 30 (see fig. 4) rotates brush 24b about shaft 24a so that the tip end surface of brush 24b faces indoor fan 16. Thereby, the brush 24b comes into contact with the fan blades 16a of the indoor fan 16. Then, the control unit 30 rotates the indoor fan 16 in the direction opposite to the normal air-conditioning operation.

As described above, when indoor fan 16 rotates in the reverse direction, brush 24b flexes with the movement of fan blade 16a, and brush 24b is pressed so as to touch the back surface of fan blade 16 a. The dust attached to the fan blade 16a is scraped off by the brush 24 b.

As shown in fig. 6, dust j scraped off from the indoor fan 16 is guided to the catch pan 18 through a gap between the front indoor heat exchanger 15a and the indoor fan 16. This can prevent the dust j from being blown out into the room in the next air conditioning operation.

Returning to fig. 5, in step S102, control unit 30 outputs a retraction command to fan cleaning unit 24. That is, the control unit 30 outputs a predetermined retraction command for retracting the fan cleaning unit 24 from the indoor fan 16 to the fan cleaning motor 24c (see fig. 4).

In step S103, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the signal from the limit switch 25 is switched (on/off) within a predetermined time Δ T from the output of the retraction command. The predetermined time Δ T is a predetermined threshold value that is longer than the time from the output of the evacuation command to the switching of the limit switch 25 when the fan cleaning motor 24c is normal, and is set in advance.

In step S103, if the signal from the limit switch 25 is switched for the predetermined time Δ T (yes in S103), the control unit 30 ends the series of processing (end). In this case, the control unit 30 is omitted in fig. 5, determines that the fan cleaning unit 24 is appropriately retracted from the indoor fan 16, and performs a predetermined air-conditioning operation based on a command from the remote controller 40 (see fig. 4).

In this way, when the fan cleaning unit 24 is retracted from the indoor fan 16 (S102), the control unit 30 performs the subsequent air conditioning operation (not shown in fig. 5) when the limit switch 25 is pressed by the fan cleaning unit 24 (S103: yes).

If the signal from the limit switch 25 is not switched within the predetermined time Δ T in step S103 (no in S103), the control unit 30 determines that the normal operation is not performed, and tries one or more retreating retries of the fan cleaning unit 24 (step S200). The details of step S200 will be described below. The upper limit N of the number of backoff retries is initially set in the storage unit 31 a.

The reason why the signal from the limit switch 25 is not switched is that, in addition to a failure of the fan cleaning motor 24c, when the rotational force is reduced and the indoor fan 16 cannot be detached, the vicinity of the tip end of the brush 24b is caught in the gap of the indoor fan 16, and the rotation of the fan cleaning unit 24 is restricted.

In step S201, the control unit 30 sets the retry number L to 1 and instructs a backoff retry. In step S202, the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved toward the indoor fan 16, and in step S203, the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved toward the retreat side. That is, the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved toward the limit switch 25.

In step S204, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the signal (on/off) from the limit switch 25 is switched for a predetermined time Δ T from the output of the backoff retry command. If the signal from the limit switch 25 is switched within the predetermined time Δ T in step S204 (yes in S204), the control unit 30 ends the series of processes (end).

If the signal from the limit switch 25 is not switched within the predetermined time Δ T in step S204 (no in S204), the control unit 30 adds 1 to the retry count L and instructs the backoff retry in step S205.

In step S206, control unit 30 moves fan cleaning unit 24 toward indoor fan 16 and rotates it in the same direction as the direction in which fan cleaning unit 24 moves (see S206 in fig. 7). Accordingly, for example, when the vicinity of the tip of the brush 24b is caught in the gap of the indoor fan 16 and the rotation of the fan cleaning unit 24 is restricted, it is considered that the catching may be disengaged.

In step S207, the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved to the retreat side. That is, the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved toward the limit switch 25 and rotated in the same direction as the moving direction of the fan cleaning unit 24 (see S207 in fig. 7). Accordingly, for example, when the vicinity of the tip of the brush 24b is caught in the gap of the indoor fan 16 and the rotation of the fan cleaning unit 24 is restricted, it is considered that the catching may be disengaged.

Fig. 7 is an explanatory diagram (corresponding to a vertical sectional view of fig. 2) illustrating the processing of steps S206 and S207 of fig. 5. In step S206, fan cleaning unit 24 is rotated counterclockwise, and indoor fan 16 is rotated clockwise. That is, indoor fan 16 rotates in the same direction as the direction in which fan cleaning unit 24 moves.

In step S207, fan cleaning unit 24 is rotated clockwise, and indoor fan 16 is rotated counterclockwise. That is, indoor fan 16 rotates in the same direction as the direction in which fan cleaning unit 24 moves. Thereafter, the brush 24b is separated from the indoor fan 16 and moved in the direction of the limit switch 25.

Returning to fig. 5, in step S208, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the signal (on/off) from the limit switch 25 is switched within a predetermined time Δ T from the output of the backoff retry instruction. If the signal from the limit switch 25 is switched within the predetermined time Δ T in step S208 (yes in S208), the control unit 30 ends the series of processes (end).

If the signal from the limit switch 25 is not switched within the predetermined time Δ T in step S208 (no in S208), the control unit 30 determines whether the retry number L exceeds the upper limit N of the retry number in step S209.

In step S209, if the retry number L does not exceed the retry number upper limit N (no in S209), the control unit 30 returns to step S205 to repeat the backoff retry.

If the retry number L exceeds the upper limit N of the retry number in step S209 (yes in S209), that is, if the control unit 30 determines that the fan cleaning unit 24 is not appropriately retracted from the indoor fan 16 (if there is a defect in the fan cleaning unit 24), the control unit 30 reports a failure of the fan cleaning unit 24 in step S104.

Specifically describing step S104, the control unit 30 lights (or blinks) the indicator lamp 29a (see fig. 4) and causes the sound generation unit 29b (see fig. 4) to generate a predetermined notification sound. The notification sound may be a buzzer or a predetermined message sound. This makes it possible to notify the user of the occurrence of a failure in fan cleaning unit 24. Further, a predetermined trouble display may be performed in the remote controller 40 or a user's mobile terminal (not shown).

In this way, after the control unit 30 performs the process of step S104, the control unit 30 ends the series of processes (end).

< effects >

According to the first embodiment, when the limit switch 25 is not switched (no in S103) even if the retraction command is output to the fan cleaning unit 24 (S102 in fig. 5), the control unit 30 tries a plurality of retraction retries of the fan cleaning unit 24 (S200). Thus, for example, even if the brush 24b is caught in the gap of the indoor fan 16, the brush 24b can be pulled away from the indoor fan 16.

As described above, the air conditioner 100 includes: a heat exchanger (indoor heat exchanger 15); a fan (indoor fan 16); a fan cleaning part 24 for cleaning the fan; a control unit 30 for controlling at least the fan and the fan cleaning unit 24; and a limit switch 25 that is pressed by the fan cleaning unit 24, and when the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved toward the limit switch 25 (clockwise in fig. 7) and the limit switch 25 is not pressed, the control unit 30 rotates the fan in the same direction as the moving direction of the fan cleaning unit 24 (e.g., S206 and S207). Thus, the operation of the fan cleaning unit 24 is assisted by the rotating fan, and the fan cleaning unit 24 can be reliably retracted to the standard position (the position in contact with the limit switch 25).

When the limit switch 25 is not pressed while the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved toward the limit switch 25 (clockwise in fig. 7), the control unit 30 moves the fan cleaning unit 24 in a direction opposite to the moving direction (counterclockwise in fig. 7) before the fan is operated (for example, S202). This enables the fan cleaning unit 24 to be reliably retracted to the standard position even if there is a problem with the fan cleaning unit 24.

When the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved toward the limit switch 25 (clockwise in fig. 7) and the limit switch 25 is not pressed, the control unit 30 moves the fan cleaning unit 24 in the direction opposite to the moving direction (counterclockwise in fig. 7) at the time of the first process of moving toward the limit switch 25 (for example, when the retry count L is the 1 st time), and then moves the fan cleaning unit 24 in the moving direction (for example, S202 and S203). This enables the fan cleaning unit 24 to be reliably retracted to the standard position even if there is a problem with the fan cleaning unit 24.

When the process of moving the fan cleaning unit 24 toward the limit switch 25 (e.g., the retreat retry) is repeated a plurality of times, the fan is rotated (e.g., S206 and S207) except for the first process (e.g., the number of retries L is 2 nd and 3 rd). Thus, the operation of the fan cleaning unit 24 is assisted by the rotating fan, and the fan cleaning unit 24 can be reliably retracted to the standard position.

In step S200 of fig. 5, the case of the multiple evacuation retries has been described, but when N is 1, that is, when the process of moving the fan cleaning unit 24 to the limit switch 25 is performed once, the fan may be rotated during the process. Specifically, step S202 may be the same as step S206, and step S203 may be the same as step S207. Thus, the operation of the fan cleaning unit 24 is assisted by the rotating fan, and the fan cleaning unit 24 can be reliably retracted to the standard position.

In the case of the flowchart shown in fig. 5, the processing in steps S201 to S203 is shown only once for the first time, but is not limited thereto. For example, if the signal from the limit switch is not switched even if a plurality of retries are performed, the processing of steps S205 to S209 can be executed. This can omit rotating the fan.

In the case of the flowchart shown in fig. 5, the case where step S206 and step S207 are executed as a group is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, only one may be executed. That is, after step S206 is executed, the fan cleaning unit 24 may be moved to the retracted side in step S207A (not shown), and the process of step S207 may be executed after the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved to the indoor fan side in step S206A (not shown). This can omit rotating the fan.

[ second embodiment ]

In the first embodiment, in steps S203 and S207, the brush 24b is retracted to the standard position by rotating the fan cleaning unit 24 clockwise as shown in fig. 7, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the brush 24b may be retracted to the standard position by rotating the standard position counterclockwise.

Fig. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of an indoor unit Ui provided in the air conditioner 100 according to the second embodiment. In fig. 8, the same components as those shown in fig. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. Reference is made to fig. 4 and 5 as appropriate. Here, the limit switch 25 has a sensing portion on one side and a non-sensing portion on the other side. In the case of fig. 8, the sensing is performed when the fan cleaning unit 24 is rotated from the upper side (counterclockwise rotation). The case of rotation from the lower side (the case of clockwise rotation) is non-inductive. Further, since the stopper 50 is provided, the fan cleaning portion 24 cannot be in contact with the non-induction portion.

The fan cleaning unit 24 shown in fig. 8 is configured to rotate between the limit switch 25 and the stopper 50. When cleaning indoor fan 16, fan cleaning unit 24 rotates clockwise from the position in contact with limit switch 25 to stop 50, and then rotates counterclockwise to the cleaning position of indoor fan 16 to clean indoor fan 16. When the control unit 30 issues a retraction command to the fan cleaning unit 24 after the indoor fan 16 is cleaned, the fan cleaning unit 24 normally rotates clockwise up to the stopper 50 and then rotates counterclockwise toward the limit switch 25.

As a state where a failure occurs, there is a state where a failure occurs

(1) When the fan cleaning part 24 rotates to the stopper 50

(2) The fan cleaning portion 24 rotates from the stopper 50 to the limit switch 25. In short, the control unit 30 performs the retraction operation of the fan cleaning unit 24 when the retraction command is issued to the fan cleaning unit 24.

In step S103 (see fig. 5), the control unit 30 determines whether or not the signal (on/off) from the limit switch 25 is switched within a predetermined time Δ T from the output of the retraction command. If the signal from limit switch 25 is not switched within predetermined time Δ T in step S103 (no in S103), control unit 30 determines that normal operation is not performed and tries one or more retreating retries of fan cleaning unit 24 (step S200).

According to the second embodiment, when the limit switch 25 is not switched (no in S103) even if the retraction command is output to the fan cleaning unit 24 (S102 in fig. 5), the control unit 30 tries a plurality of retraction retries of the fan cleaning unit 24 (S200). Thus, for example, even if the brush 24b is caught in the gap of the indoor fan 16, the brush 24b can be pulled away from the indoor fan 16.

[ third embodiment ]

In the case of the first and second embodiments, as shown in fig. 2 and 7, the fan cleaning portion 24 is disposed in the recess of the front side indoor heat exchanger 15a having a letter < shape in a longitudinal sectional view. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the process shown in fig. 5 can be applied to a case where the fan cleaning unit 24 is disposed other than between the indoor heat exchanger 15 and the indoor fan 16.

Fig. 9 is a vertical sectional view of an indoor unit Ui provided in the air conditioner 100 according to the third embodiment. In fig. 9, the same components as those shown in fig. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. Reference is made to fig. 4 and 5 as appropriate.

The fan cleaner 24 shown in fig. 9 is disposed in the outlet air passage h3, and is configured to be rotated between the indoor fans 16 from the limit switch 25, as in fig. 2. When cleaning indoor fan 16, fan cleaning unit 24 rotates clockwise from a position in contact with limit switch 25. Here, the limit switch 25 has a sensing portion on one side and a non-sensing portion on the other side. In the case of fig. 9, the sensing is performed when the fan cleaning unit 24 is rotated from the front side (counterclockwise rotation).

According to the third embodiment, when the limit switch 25 is not switched (no in S103) even when the retraction command is output to the fan cleaning unit 24 (S102 in fig. 5), the control unit 30 tries a plurality of retraction retries of the fan cleaning unit 24 (S200). Thus, for example, even if the brush 24b is caught in the gap of the indoor fan 16, the brush 24b can be pulled away from the indoor fan 16.

In other words, in the first and second embodiments, the description has been given of the example in which the fan cleaning unit 24 is disposed upstream of the indoor fan 16 in the air flow direction, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as in the third embodiment, the fan cleaning unit 24 may be disposed downstream of the indoor fan 16.

In the case of fig. 9, in step S206, control unit 30 moves fan cleaning unit 24 toward indoor fan 16 and rotates it in the same direction as the direction in which fan cleaning unit 24 moves (unlike S206 of fig. 7, indoor fan 16 is reversed). Accordingly, for example, when the vicinity of the tip of the brush 24b is caught in the gap of the indoor fan 16 and the rotation of the fan cleaning unit 24 is restricted, it is considered that the catching may be disengaged.

In step S207, the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved to the retreat side. That is, the fan cleaning unit 24 is moved counterclockwise toward the limit switch 25, and the indoor fan 16 is rotated clockwise in the same direction as the movement direction of the fan cleaning unit 24 (the indoor fan 16 is rotated forward unlike S207 in fig. 7). Accordingly, for example, when the vicinity of the tip of the brush 24b is caught in the gap of the indoor fan 16 and the rotation of the fan cleaning unit 24 is restricted, it is considered that the catching may be disengaged.

Modification example

The air conditioner 100 and the like according to the present invention have been described above in the embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to these descriptions, and various modifications are possible. For example, instead of the limit switch 25 described in the first embodiment, the air conditioner may be configured to include an angle sensor 70 (failure detection unit: see fig. 10) that detects the inclination angle of the brush 24b in the extending direction.

Fig. 10 is a structural diagram of a fan cleaning unit 24 and an angle sensor 70 provided in an air conditioner according to a modification. The angle sensor 70 shown in fig. 15 is a sensor for detecting a failure of the fan cleaning unit 24 by detecting a rotation angle of the fan cleaning unit 24 (an inclination angle of the brush 24b in the extending direction). As such an angle sensor 70, for example, an acceleration sensor can be used. Then, control unit 30 reports a failure of fan cleaning unit 24 based on the detection value of angle sensor 70. For example, when the detection value of angle sensor 70 does not reach a predetermined value within a predetermined time after the instruction to retract fan cleaning unit 24, control unit 30 determines that a failure has occurred in fan cleaning unit 24 and reports the failure.

Further, when the elapsed time from the time of installation of the air conditioner 100 or the time of the previous maintenance reaches a predetermined time, the control unit 30 may notify that maintenance of the fan cleaning unit 24 is necessary. Further, when the number of air conditioning operations started from the time of installation of the air conditioner 100 or the time of previous maintenance reaches a predetermined number of times, the control unit 30 may notify that maintenance of the fan cleaning unit 24 is necessary. This makes it possible to notify the user that maintenance is necessary even if the fan cleaning unit 24 is not malfunctioning.

When the fan-cleaning motor 24c is not excited, the tip end of the brush 24b may be directed downward by the weight of the brush 24 b. Thus, even when the fan cleaning motor 24c fails and is not excited, the brush 24b is not in contact with the indoor fan 16, and the air conditioning operation can be performed thereafter. Further, if the fan-cleaning motor 24c is a gearless stepping motor, since no gear is provided, the brush 24b is easily affected by its own weight when not excited, and therefore the tip of the brush 24b is easily directed downward.

In each embodiment, the air conditioning operation may be prohibited after the control unit 30 reports a failure of the fan cleaning unit 24. That is, even if there is an air conditioning operation start command from the remote controller 40 after the failure of the fan cleaning unit 24, the control unit 30 may prohibit the air conditioning operation until the fan cleaning unit 24 returns to the normal state. Accordingly, in a state where the fan cleaning unit 24 is malfunctioning, the indoor fan 16 can be prevented from being driven at high speed, and the fan blades 16a can be prevented from being damaged.

In the embodiments, the structure in which the brush 24b rotates around the shaft portion 24a of the fan cleaning portion 24 is described, but the invention is not limited thereto. For example, the fan cleaning unit 24 may be configured to move in parallel.

In the embodiments, the description has been given of the structure in which the fan cleaning unit 24 includes the brush 24b, but the invention is not limited thereto. That is, a sponge or the like may be used instead of the brush 24b as long as it can clean the indoor fan 16.

In each embodiment, a description has been given of a configuration in which one indoor unit Ui (see fig. 1) and one outdoor unit Uo (see the same drawing) are provided, but the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, a plurality of indoor units connected in parallel may be provided, or a plurality of outdoor units connected in parallel may be provided.

In addition, each embodiment can be applied to various types of air conditioners in addition to the indoor air conditioner.

The embodiments are described in detail to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and are not limited to having all the configurations described. Further, a part of the configuration of each embodiment can be added, deleted, or replaced with another configuration. The above-described mechanisms and structures are illustrative of structures deemed necessary for the description, and not necessarily all of the mechanisms and structures are shown in the product.

[ notation ] to show

100 air conditioner

11 compressor

12 outdoor heat exchanger

13 outdoor fan

14 expansion valve

15 indoor heat exchanger (Heat exchanger, limiting parts)

16 indoor fan (Fan)

24 Fan cleaning part

24a shaft part

24b brush

Motor for cleaning 24c fan

25 limit switch (failure detection part)

30 control part

40 remote controller

50 stop

70 Angle sensor (failure detection part)

Claims

1. An air conditioner comprising:

a heat exchanger;

a fan;

a fan cleaning unit for cleaning the fan;

a control unit for controlling at least the fan and the fan cleaning unit; and

a limit switch pressed by the fan cleaning part when the fan cleaning part moves in a direction of retreating from the fan,

the control unit rotates the fan in the same direction as the direction in which the fan cleaning unit moves when the fan cleaning unit is moved toward the limit switch and the limit switch is not pressed.

2. The air conditioner according to claim 1,

the control unit moves the fan cleaning unit in a direction opposite to the moving direction before the fan is operated when the fan cleaning unit is moved toward the limit switch and the limit switch is not pressed.

3. The air conditioner according to claim 1,

the control unit moves the fan cleaning unit in a direction opposite to a moving direction and then moves the fan cleaning unit in the moving direction at the first process of moving the fan cleaning unit toward the limit switch when the limit switch is not pressed while the fan cleaning unit is moved toward the limit switch.

4. The air conditioner according to claim 1,

the control unit rotates the fan when the process of moving the fan cleaning unit toward the limit switch is repeated a plurality of times, except for the first process, in a case where the fan cleaning unit is moved toward the limit switch without the limit switch being pressed.

5. The air conditioner according to claim 1,

the control unit rotates the fan during a process of moving the fan cleaning unit toward the limit switch once when the limit switch is not pressed while the fan cleaning unit is moved toward the limit switch.