CN113646592B

CN113646592B - Indoor unit of air conditioner and method for installing indoor unit of air conditioner

Info

Publication number: CN113646592B
Application number: CN202080025401.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 长泽敦氏
Original assignee: Toshiba Carrier Corp
Current assignee: Toshiba Carrier Corp
Priority date: 2019-04-03
Filing date: 2020-03-26
Publication date: 2022-06-24
Anticipated expiration: 2040-03-26
Also published as: EP3951281A4; WO2020203623A1; CN113646592A; JP7096427B2; EP3951281A1; JPWO2020203623A1

Abstract

An indoor unit (1) of an air conditioner is provided with: a frame (5) having a suction port (22) on a side surface and a blow-out port (25) on a bottom surface, and capable of being suspended from a structure in an installation site; a heat exchanger (6) that is disposed in an annular shape in a bottom view of the frame (5) and faces the suction port (22); a propeller fan (9) having a rotating shaft (7) extending in the vertical direction of the frame (5) and surrounded by the heat exchanger (6) in a bottom view of the frame (5); and a fan cover (13) provided to the air outlet (25). When the area of the projection region of the movement range of the blade (8) is set as a first projection area and the projection area of the opening portion of the fan cover (13) is set as a second projection area, the opening ratio obtained by dividing the second projection area by the first projection area is at least one half. The propeller fan (9) has an appearance with low brightness.

Description

Indoor unit of air conditioner and method for installing indoor unit of air conditioner

Technical Field

Embodiments of the present invention relate to an indoor unit of an air conditioner and an installation method of the indoor unit of the air conditioner.

Background

An indoor unit of an air conditioner for adjusting air in a ceiling space and supplying the air to a room is known. The outdoor unit includes a casing, a fan, and a heat exchanger.

The casing has a suction port provided in a side surface and a discharge port provided in a bottom surface. The fan is provided in the casing and generates an air flow from the suction port toward the discharge port. The heat exchanger is disposed in the housing between the fan and the suction port.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 2010-164294

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

Conventional indoor units are installed in a ceiling space. That is, the conventional indoor unit is embedded in a ceiling which is a place sufficiently distant from the floor of the installation place in the height direction.

Further, a conventional indoor unit includes a so-called pneumatic starter having a plurality of air outlets of circular, tapered blades. Such an air outlet blocks a line of sight from directly below. Therefore, in the conventional indoor unit, it is difficult to directly view the fan in the casing from below the air outlet.

However, an indoor unit suspended from a ceiling of an installation place is closer to the ground than an indoor unit embedded in the ceiling like a conventional indoor unit.

In addition, when the suction port is provided with a fan cover having a better see-through property than a so-called pneumatic starter, the fan rotating in the casing can be easily seen through.

If the installation place of the indoor unit through which the fan rotating in the casing can be easily seen is close to the ground, the rotating fan may cause unnecessary fear, and the commercial value of the indoor unit may be reduced.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an indoor unit of an air conditioner which can be installed in a state suspended from a ceiling, which includes a fan cover capable of easily seeing through a fan rotating in a casing, and which can create a sense of security without causing unnecessary fear due to the rotating fan, and an installation method of the indoor unit of the air conditioner.

Means for solving the problems

An indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a frame body having a suction port on a side surface and an air outlet on a bottom surface, and being capable of being suspended from a structure in an installation place; a heat exchanger disposed inside the housing, facing the suction port, and arranged in a ring shape in a bottom view of the housing; a propeller fan having a rotating shaft extending in a vertical direction of the housing and a plurality of blades arranged radially in a circumferential direction of the rotating shaft, and surrounded by the heat exchanger in a bottom view of the housing, sucking air from the suction port, and blowing out air heat-exchanged by the heat exchanger from the discharge port toward a lower side of the housing; and a fan cover provided at the outlet, wherein when an area of a projection area of a moving range of the plurality of blades in accordance with rotation of the propeller fan is set as a first projection area and a projection area of an opening portion of the fan cover is set as a second projection area on an inner side of the projection area in the virtual plane, the second projection area is divided by the first projection area, an opening ratio obtained by dividing the second projection area by the first projection area is one half or more, and the fan cover is substantially uniform in a rotation direction of the propeller fan, and the propeller fan has an appearance with low brightness.

Preferably, the brightness of the propeller fan of the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention is not more than 5.

Preferably, the chromaticity of the propeller fan of the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention is not more than 4.

Preferably, a color of a portion of the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention, which portion is visible from below, is substantially the same as a color of the propeller fan.

Preferably, the heat exchanger of the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention has a black-based or blue-based appearance.

Preferably, the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a heat insulating material that is provided on at least one of the top surface of the frame and the opening edge of the air outlet and has a black-based or gray-based appearance.

Preferably, the brightness of the appearance of the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention is higher than the brightness of the propeller fan.

In addition, the method for installing the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention is to install the indoor unit of the air conditioner at a position above the lighting device at the installation place.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an indoor unit of an air conditioner which can be installed in a state of being suspended from a ceiling, and which is provided with a fan cover that allows a user to easily see through a fan rotating in a casing, and which can create a sense of security without causing unnecessary fear due to the rotating fan, and a method of installing the indoor unit of the air conditioner.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an installation place where an indoor unit according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed.

Fig. 2 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of an indoor unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an indoor unit of an embodiment of the present invention at the line III-III of fig. 2.

Detailed Description

An embodiment of an indoor unit of an air conditioner and an installation method of the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 1 to 3. In the drawings, the same or corresponding components are denoted by the same reference numerals.

As shown in fig. 1, the air conditioner of the present embodiment includes an outdoor unit (not shown) installed outdoors and an indoor unit 1 installed indoors. The outdoor unit and the indoor unit 1 are connected via a refrigerant pipe RP for circulating a refrigerant. The refrigeration cycle of the air conditioner circulates a refrigerant between the outdoor unit and the indoor unit 1.

The indoor unit 1 regulates air in a room, that is, an installation place. The installation site is surrounded by floor FL, wall WA, and ceiling SE. The indoor unit 1 is suspended from a structure, specifically, a ceiling SE or a beam (not shown) at an installation site. A metal bar-shaped suspension member HB extending in the floor surface direction is provided on the ceiling SE of the installation site. The indoor unit 1 is suspended from a ceiling SE via a suspension member HB. That is, the indoor unit 1 is disposed at a position lower than the ceiling SE.

In this way, the indoor unit 1 is an exposed unit in which the housing 5 is disposed in an exposed state in the room, separated from the ceiling SE without being embedded in the ceiling SE.

When a ceiling SE of an installation place is provided with a suspended type lighting device, so-called ceiling lamp PL, the indoor unit 1 is preferably installed above the ceiling lamp PL of the installation place. More specifically, the indoor unit 1 is disposed such that the lower surface of the indoor unit 1, that is, the surface of the air outlet 25 of the indoor unit 1 described below, is positioned above the light source of the pendant lamp PL. In this case, the fixing portion of the suspension member HB to the indoor unit 1 may be moved up and down to set the indoor unit 1 above the pendant lamp PL, or the setting height of the indoor unit 1 may be determined in advance and then the setting height of the pendant lamp PL, that is, the suspension position may be adjusted.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the indoor unit 1 of the present embodiment includes, in addition to fig. 1: a cylindrical or disc-shaped frame body 5 having a circular top surface and a circular bottom surface; a heat exchanger 6 disposed inside the frame 5 and arranged in a ring shape in a bottom view of the frame 5; a fan motor 11 having a rotating shaft 7 extending in the vertical direction at substantially the center of the housing 5; a propeller fan 9 having a plurality of blades 8 radially arranged in the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft 7 and surrounded by the heat exchanger 6 in a bottom view of the frame 5; a drain pan 12 provided below the heat exchanger 6 and receiving dew condensation water generated on the surface of the heat exchanger 6; and a fan cover 13 that protects the propeller fan 9.

The indoor unit 1 includes an electric expansion valve (not shown) serving as an expansion device of the refrigeration cycle.

As shown in fig. 2, the frame 5 includes an upper panel 21 that closes the top surface. The upper panel 21 is fixed to a suspension member HB, and the suspension member HB is embedded in and fixed to a ceiling SE.

A side panel 23 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the housing 5, that is, on the side surface of the housing 5, and the side panel 23 has an intake port 22 for taking in air K from the periphery of the indoor unit 1. The suction ports 22 are provided in plural numbers and are arranged substantially uniformly over the entire outer peripheral surface of the housing 5. Each suction port 22 is a curved rectangular window opening.

A substantially circular lower surface plate 26 is provided on the bottom surface of the housing 5, and the lower surface plate 26 has an outlet 25 for blowing the air K downward. The air outlet 25 is disposed in the center of the bottom surface of the housing 5. The air outlet 25 has a circular shape in a bottom view of the frame 5. The air outlet 25 is provided with a fan cover 13.

The upper panel 21 of the housing 5 and the lower panel 26 of the housing 5 are integrally fixed to the side panel 23 of the housing serving as the suction port 22 by fastening members, such as screws (not shown).

The boundary portion between the top surface and the side surface of the frame body 5 and the boundary portion between the bottom surface and the side surface of the frame body 5 have circular arc shapes without corners. In other words, the boundary portion between the top surface and the side surface of the frame 5 and the boundary portion between the bottom surface and the side surface of the frame 5 have a so-called corner R (rounded corner).

That is, the indoor unit 1 has a cylindrical frame body 5 having an angle R or a disc-shaped frame body having an angle R. Therefore, the indoor unit 1 can have a higher appearance than a conventional ceiling-embedded indoor unit including a rectangular frame body. Further, since the indoor unit 1 has no corner portion in the housing 5, even in a state of being exposed to the inside, a feeling of pressure is not given to a person under the indoor unit 1.

The frame 5 may be a polygonal prism or a polygonal disk. For example, the top and bottom surfaces of the housing 5 may have a polygonal shape of at least a pentagon. From the viewpoint of improving the air blowing efficiency of the propeller fan 9, the frame 5 may be in the shape of a regular polygon prism or a regular polygon disk. That is, the top and bottom surfaces of the frame 5 may have regular polygonal shapes.

The indoor unit 1 sucks in indoor air K from the suction port 22 on the side surface of the housing 5 and blows it out from the blow-out port 25 on the bottom surface of the housing 5. That is, the indoor unit 1 can cause the air K flowing along the vicinity of the ceiling SE to flow toward the floor FL. The air K reaching the floor FL from the indoor unit 1 flows along the wall WA, returns to the vicinity of the ceiling SE again, and circulates through the indoor unit 1. Therefore, the indoor unit 1 can efficiently circulate the indoor air K. The indoor unit 1 is preferably installed in the center of an installation place to be air-conditioned.

The indoor unit 1 may be installed at an installation site with the top surface of the housing 5, that is, the upper panel 21, being close to the ceiling SE. For example, when the ceiling SE is low and the habitability is impaired if the indoor unit 1 is suspended from the ceiling SE, it is preferable to provide the indoor unit 1 close to the ceiling SE.

A mounting base 28 of the fan motor 11 is provided on the lower surface of the upper panel 21 inside the frame 5. The mounting base 28 has, for example, a frustum shape that is farther away from the upper panel 21, in other words, the narrower the tendency. The mounting base 28 has a side surface 28a concavely curved toward the center side of the circle cone in side view. The end surface of the attachment base 28 on the projecting side, that is, the bottom surface with the smaller diameter is located substantially at the center of the frame 5. The fan motor 11 is fixed to the lower surface of the smaller bottom surface of the mounting base 28.

The heat exchanger 6 is fixed to the upper panel 21 of the housing 5 via a fixing member 31. The heat exchanger 6 is arranged in a ring shape in a bottom view of the frame 5. The heat exchanger 6 has a rectangular shape elongated in the vertical direction of the frame 5 in a longitudinal cross-sectional view. The outer peripheral surface of the heat exchanger 6 faces the suction port 22. The inner peripheral surface of the heat exchanger 6 faces the curved side surface 28a of the attachment base 28 of the fan motor 11. The shortest distance connecting the circumference drawn by the rotation locus of the blades 8 of the propeller fan 9 and the heat exchanger 6 is set to be substantially the same over the entire circumference of the propeller fan 9. In other words, the propeller fan 9 is disposed such that the air blowing by the propeller fan 9 is uniform over the entire heat exchanger 6. The heat exchanger 6 is a molded product obtained by annularly bending a flat-plate-shaped heat exchanger having a plurality of aluminum fins arranged to penetrate refrigerant tubes. As shown in fig. 3, the gap between both end portions of the heat exchanger 6 bent into a ring shape is closed by a blocking plate 40 for blocking the flow of air between before and after heat exchange.

The propeller fan 9 is rotationally driven by a fan motor 11. The rotating propeller fan 9 sucks air K around the housing 5 from the suction port 22, and blows out the air K heat-exchanged by the heat exchanger 6 from the blow-out port 25 toward the lower side of the housing 5.

In a bottom view of the frame 5, the center of the annular heat exchanger 6 coincides with the rotation center of the propeller fan 9 and the center of the circular air outlet 25. The diameter D of the propeller fan 9 is slightly smaller than the diameter of the air outlet 25.

The propeller fan 9 includes a boss 32 fixed to the rotating shaft 7, and a plurality of blades 8 integrated with the boss 32. In a state where the indoor unit 1 is installed as shown in fig. 1, the rotation shaft 7 extends in the vertical direction.

The flow of air K sucked from suction port 22 and directed toward the center of housing 5 by the rotational drive of propeller fan 9 is smoothly guided to the lower side of housing 5 by curved side surface 28a of attachment base 28 and directed toward air outlet 25. The mounting base 28 improves the blowing characteristics of the propeller fan 9 and the strength of the structure supporting the fan motor 11.

The drain pan 12 is a heat insulating material having a water containing portion. The drain pan 12 is placed on the lower panel 26 of the housing 5 and is integrated with the lower panel 26. That is, the number of components of the indoor unit 1 can be reduced and the manufacturing cost can be reduced as compared with a case where the drain pan 12 is held by a different member.

The drain pan 12 is disposed immediately below the heat exchanger 6. During a cooling operation in which the heat exchanger 6 functions as an evaporator, moisture contained in the air K passing through the heat exchanger 6, that is, indoor moisture condenses on the surface of the heat exchanger 6, adheres to the heat exchanger 6 as dew condensation water, and drops from the heat exchanger 6. The drain pan 12 receives dew condensation water falling from the heat exchanger 6.

The drain pan 12 has a substantially U-shape or a substantially C-shape in a longitudinal sectional view. A ring-shaped drain pan 12 surrounds the propeller fan 9 in a bottom view of the frame 5. The drain pan 12 extends from directly below the heat exchanger 6 to an edge portion of the air outlet 25. That is, the drain pan 12 extends to the edge of the air outlet 25 near the outer edge of the propeller fan 9. Since the gap between the outer edge of propeller fan 9 and the edge of air outlet 25 is narrow, drain pan 12 can prevent dew condensation water from falling or dripping through the gap. The dew condensation water stored in the drain pan 12 is pumped by a drain pump (not shown) provided in the housing 5 and is discharged to the outside of the indoor unit 1 through a drain pipe (not shown).

The fan cover 13 is provided at the air outlet 25. The fan cover 13 is disposed on the leeward side of the propeller fan 9. The fan housing 13 is provided for safety so as not to catch a person or thing against the propeller fan 9. The fan cover 13 is a grid formed by densely arranging polygons or a grid uniformly arranged in the rotation direction, that is, the circumferential direction of the propeller fan 9. Specifically, the fan cover 13 is a lattice in which small openings of regular polygons such as regular triangles, squares, and regular pentagons are aligned, or a lattice in which small openings of fan shapes are aligned.

When the air conditioner is operated to perform a cooling operation, a compressor of the outdoor unit discharges a high-temperature, high-pressure gas refrigerant and sends the refrigerant to a heat exchanger on the outdoor side, that is, a condenser. The outdoor heat exchanger exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing through the outdoor heat exchanger and outdoor air, and condenses the refrigerant. The condensed liquid refrigerant is sent to the indoor unit 1 through the refrigerant pipe RP. The indoor unit 1 expands the liquid refrigerant flowing in from the refrigerant pipe RP by the motor-operated expansion valve, and sends the low-temperature gas-liquid mixed refrigerant to the heat exchanger 6, that is, the evaporator. The heat exchanger 6 exchanges heat between the low-temperature refrigerant flowing through the inside thereof and the indoor air, and vaporizes the refrigerant. At this time, the room is cooled by the low-temperature air K blown out from the indoor unit 1.

When the air conditioner is operated to perform a heating operation, the compressor of the outdoor unit discharges a high-temperature and high-pressure gas refrigerant, and the gas refrigerant is sent to the heat exchanger 6 of the indoor unit 1, that is, to the condenser. The heat exchanger 6 exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing through the inside thereof and the indoor air K, and condenses the refrigerant. At this time, the room is heated by the high-temperature air K blown out from the indoor unit 1.

Here, a virtual plane VP (fig. 2) orthogonal to the extending direction of the rotation shaft 7, that is, the axial direction of the rotation shaft 7, that is, the vertical direction in the installation state of the indoor unit 1 is set.

In the virtual plane VP, the area of the projection area a of the movement range of the plurality of blades 8 in accordance with the rotation of the propeller fan 9 is set as a first projection area S1 (fig. 3). The projection area a has an annular shape in which the root of each blade 8, that is, the boundary between the boss 32 and the blade 8 is the inner circumference, and the tip of each blade 8 is the outer circumference. The projection area a is an annular area obtained by projecting the trajectory of the movement of each blade 8 with respect to the virtual plane VP. The first projected area S1 is the area of the annular projection region a. Here, in the characteristics of the propeller fan 9, the projection area of the boss 32 portion, that is, the area inside the inner periphery of the projection area a is excluded from the first projection area S1 because the boss 32 portion does not contribute to the blowing operation of the propeller fan 9. That is, even if the outlet 25 is closed, the blowing performance of the propeller fan 9 is not affected in the portion corresponding to the boss 32 that is inside the inner circumference of the projection area a.

Further, the projected area of the opening portion of the fan cover 13 on the virtual plane VP and inside the projection area a is set to the second projected area S2. The lattice-shaped fan cover 13 has a plurality of small openings. The second projected area S2 corresponds to the total opening area of the plurality of small openings in the projection region a when viewed in the axial direction of the rotary shaft 7. In other words, the second projected area S2 is equal to the area obtained by subtracting the projected area of the grid in the projection area a from the area of the projection area a when viewed in the axial direction of the rotation shaft 7.

The opening ratio AR of the fan cover 13 obtained by dividing the second projected area S2 by the first projected area S1 is at least one-half. That is, the second projected area S2, the first projected area S1, and the aperture ratio AR have the following relationship [ equation 1 ]. This means that the blowing performance of the propeller fan 9 is improved as much as possible. The larger the projected area of the grid in the projection area a, the larger the ventilation resistance of the propeller fan 9, and the lower the air blowing amount. Therefore, the aperture ratio AR is preferably as large as possible. However, the fan cover 13 is required to protect the propeller fan 9.

[ numerical formula 1]

(aperture ratio AR) ((second projection area S2) ÷ (first projection area S1) ≥ 0.5)

The aperture ratio AR is substantially uniform in the rotation direction of the propeller fan 9. By setting the opening ratio AR substantially uniformly in the rotation direction of the propeller fan 9, it is possible to prevent the local variation in the amount of air blown out from the air outlet 25. That is, when the projection area a is divided into a plurality of areas in the rotation direction of the propeller fan 9, the aperture ratio AR of each divided area is substantially one-half or more. For example, when the projected area is divided into 6 parts at 60 degrees of the center angle, the aperture ratio AR of each divided area is substantially one half or more.

On the other hand, when the aperture ratio AR is one-half or more, since there are many space portions, the rotation state of each blade 8 of the propeller fan 9 can be easily visually confirmed from below, that is, from the position of the user through the fan cover 13. For example, when the propeller fan 9 is driven at a rotation speed of 10 revolutions per second or more (10 rps) in order to obtain sufficient blowing performance, the plurality of rotating blades 8 may cause unnecessary fear to a user who looks up the indoor unit 1 from below.

To cope with this, the propeller fan 9 has an appearance with low brightness. For example, a black appearance. The brightness of the propeller fan 9 is preferably 5 munsell brightness or less. The chromaticity of the propeller fan 9 is preferably 4 or less.

The top surface of the frame 5 is closed by the upper panel 21. The side surface of the housing 5 has a suction port 22, but light entering the housing 5 from the suction port 22 is almost blocked by the heat exchanger 6 in the housing 5. Therefore, the inside of the housing 5 is less likely to be dark by the illumination light at the installation site. Further, in order to prevent dust from adhering to the heat exchanger 6, when a filter is provided in the suction port 22, the light incident into the housing 5 is further blocked, and the inside of the housing 5 is in a state of a dark box. Therefore, by reducing the brightness of the propeller fan 9, the visibility of the propeller fan 9 in the housing 5 is greatly reduced. Accordingly, a user looking up the indoor unit 1 from below cannot visually confirm the plurality of rotating blades 8, and does not feel unnecessary fear.

In the indoor unit 1, a portion that penetrates from below is preferably substantially the same color as the propeller fan 9. The portion that penetrates from below includes, for example, the fan cover 13, the outer surface of the lower panel 26 (drain pan 12) of the housing 5, the outer surface of the side panel 23 of the housing 5, the inner surface of the upper panel 21 of the housing 5, and the attachment base 28. By making these portions substantially the same color as the propeller fan 9, for example, black, the difference in brightness between the propeller fan 9 and the other portions is extremely small. This further reduces the visibility of the propeller fan 9 in the housing 5.

The heat exchanger 6 preferably has a black-based or blue-based appearance. This prevents the light incident into the housing 5 from the inlet 22 from being reflected by the heat exchanger 6 and entering a position inside the heat exchanger 6. This further reduces the visibility of the propeller fan 9 in the housing 5.

The indoor unit 1 includes a heat insulating material 33 provided on at least one of the top surface of the frame 5, that is, the upper surface (outer surface) of the upper panel 21 and the opening edge of the air outlet 25. The heat insulator 33 preferably has a black or gray appearance. This further reduces the visibility of the propeller fan 9 in the housing 5.

In addition, in order to reduce the visibility of the propeller fan 9 in the housing 5, a method using an illusion may be applied. In this case, the brightness of the appearance of the indoor unit 1 as viewed from below, i.e., the so-called design surface, is higher than the brightness of the propeller fan 9. The difference in luminance between both is preferably 4 or more on a munsell luminance scale. The design surface viewed from below includes, for example, the lower surface (outer surface) of the fan cover 13, the lower surface (outer surface) of the lower panel 26 of the housing 5, and the outer surface of the side panel 23 of the housing 5. When the brightness of these portions is made higher than the brightness of the propeller fan 9, for example, it is made milky white, and the difference between the appearance of the indoor unit 1 and the brightness of the propeller fan 9 in the housing 5 is enlarged. Then, the propeller fan 9 located in the housing 5 and dark is confused with the bright appearance of the indoor unit 1. That is, the visibility of the propeller fan 9 is reduced.

As described above, the indoor unit 1 of the present embodiment includes: a fan cover 13 having an aperture ratio AR that is substantially uniform and at least one-half in the rotational direction of the propeller fan 9; and a propeller fan 9 having an appearance of low brightness. Therefore, the indoor unit 1 includes the fan cover 13 having a better see-through property than a conventional pneumatic starter provided at a discharge port of the indoor unit, and can reduce the visibility of the propeller fan 9 rotating in the housing 5. That is, the indoor unit 1 does not cause unnecessary fear due to the rotating propeller fan 9, and can provide a feeling of security.

In the installation method of the indoor unit 1 according to the present embodiment, the indoor unit 1 is installed above the lighting device in the installation location. That is, the surface of the air outlet 25 of the indoor unit 1 is disposed above the light source of the lighting device. Therefore, in the indoor unit 1, light emitted by illumination is less likely to enter the housing 5, and the housing 5 itself becomes a shadow, so that the visibility of the propeller fan 9 rotating in the housing 5 can be reduced. Further, when a user located below the indoor unit 1 looks out above, the light source having high brightness enters the eyes, and the inner surface of the outlet port 25 of the indoor unit 1 is difficult to see due to the brightness difference, and the visibility of the propeller fan 9 rotating in the housing 5 is further reduced.

Therefore, according to the indoor unit 1 and the installation method of the indoor unit 1 of the present embodiment, it is possible to install the indoor unit in a state of being suspended from the ceiling, and to provide the fan cover 13 that enables the propeller fan 9 rotating in the housing 5 to be easily seen therethrough and maintains high air blowing performance, while it is possible to create a sense of security without causing unnecessary fear by the rotating propeller fan 9.

Several embodiments of the present invention have been described, but these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These new embodiments can be implemented in other various ways, and various omissions, substitutions, and changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the inventions described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

Description of the symbols:

1: an indoor unit; 5: a frame body; 6: a heat exchanger; 7: a rotating shaft; 8: a blade; 9: a propeller fan; 11: a fan motor; 12: a drain pan; 13: a fan housing; 21: an upper panel; 22: a suction inlet; 23: a side panel; 25: an air outlet; 26: a lower panel; 28: a mounting base; 28 a: a side surface; 31: a fixing member; 32: a boss; 33: a heat insulating material.

Claims

1. An indoor unit of an air conditioner is provided with:

a frame body having a suction port on a side surface and an air outlet on a bottom surface, and being capable of being suspended from a structure in an installation place;

a heat exchanger disposed inside the housing, facing the suction port, and arranged in a ring shape in a bottom view of the housing;

a propeller fan having a rotating shaft extending in a vertical direction of the housing and a plurality of blades arranged radially in a circumferential direction of the rotating shaft, and surrounded by the heat exchanger in a bottom view of the housing, sucking air from the suction port, and blowing out air heat-exchanged by the heat exchanger from the discharge port toward a lower side of the housing; and

a fan cover provided at the air outlet,

when the area of the projection region of the moving range of the plurality of blades in accordance with the rotation of the propeller fan is set as a first projection area in a virtual plane orthogonal to the axial direction of the rotating shaft,

when the projected area of the opening portion of the fan cover is set to be a second projected area on the virtual plane and inside the projected area,

the aperture ratio obtained by dividing the second projected area by the first projected area is one half or more, and is substantially uniform in the rotating direction of the propeller fan,

the propeller fan described above has an appearance with low brightness.

2. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 1,

the brightness of the propeller fan is less than 5 of Munsell brightness.

3. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 2,

the color of the propeller fan is below 4.

4. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 3,

the color of the portion that can be seen through from below is substantially the same as the color of the propeller fan.

5. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 4,

the heat exchanger has a black or blue appearance.

6. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 5,

the indoor unit of the air conditioner includes a heat insulating material that is provided on at least one of the top surface of the frame and the opening edge of the air outlet and has a black or gray appearance.

7. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 3,

the brightness of the appearance is higher than that of the propeller fan.

8. A method of setting an indoor unit of an air conditioner, wherein,

an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 7 is installed above a lighting device in an installation location.