CN114811720A - Indoor unit of air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides an indoor unit of an air conditioner, comprising: a housing provided with a discharge port; a front panel disposed on a front surface of the housing; and a blade module disposed in front of the discharge port, the blade module converting a direction of the airflow discharged through the discharge port, the blade module being disposed inside the front panel. The housing may include a front panel disposed at the front, and the blade module may be configured to be coupled to an inner side of the front panel. The blade module may include a cover bracket, a blade driving part, and a mounting case.

Description

Indoor unit of air conditioner

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an indoor unit of an air conditioner, and more particularly, to an indoor unit of a floor air conditioner.

Background

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

Generally, an air conditioner is a device that cools/heats or purifies air in a room by using a refrigeration cycle of a refrigerant including a compressor, a condenser, an expansion mechanism, and an evaporator in order to provide a more comfortable indoor environment to a user.

An indoor unit of an air conditioner is disposed in an indoor space where a user mainly stays, and blows air into the room through the indoor unit. Therefore, it is important to control the changes of the wind direction, speed, and airflow of the air blown from the indoor unit so that the user can feel comfortable.

In korean laid-open patent No. 10-2017-0010293 (prior art 1), there is disclosed a door unit comprising: a door blade for opening and closing the opening; a door operation part which makes the door blade move forwards or backwards; and a control unit for controlling the air discharged from the opening to move straight ahead of the opening or to be discharged radially from the opening by adjusting the distance between the door blade and the opening.

In korean laid-open patent No. 10-2019-0106716 (prior art 2), there is disclosed an indoor unit of an air conditioner, which includes: a proximity sensor for measuring a distance of a user located in front of the door panel; and a rear cover having a proximity sensor hole formed at one end thereof for disposing the proximity sensor, and disposed between the front glass and the display while maintaining a space for disposing the proximity sensor.

However, prior art 1 and prior art 2 do not disclose a configuration for controlling changes in the direction, speed, and flow of air discharged from the side surface of an indoor unit of an air conditioner and blown toward the front of the indoor unit.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention aims to provide an indoor unit of an air conditioner having a structure capable of changing the direction of a forward directional airflow.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an indoor unit of an air conditioner having a structure capable of forming a plurality of forms of air flow directions in a room.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an indoor unit of an air conditioner having a structure capable of suppressing a blade forming a flow direction of air from being tilted (tilt) during operation.

Objects of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned objects, and other objects and advantages of the present invention, which are not mentioned, can be understood by the following description and can be further clearly understood by embodiments of the present invention. In addition, it can be easily understood that the objects and advantages of the present invention can be realized by the means given in the claims and the combinations thereof.

An embodiment of an indoor unit of an air conditioner may be provided with a pair of vane modules. The vane module may be disposed in front of the discharge opening and may switch the direction of the air flow discharged through the discharge opening. The housing may include a front panel disposed at the front, and the blade module may be configured to be coupled to an inner side of the front panel.

The blade module may include a cover bracket, a blade driving part, and a mounting case.

The cover bracket may be coupled to the housing. The cover bracket may be coupled to an inner surface of the front panel by, for example, bolts, and the vane may be attached to the cover bracket so as to move relative to the cover bracket.

The blade is mounted to the cover bracket and may be arranged to be movable laterally of the cover bracket. The vanes are disposed in front of the discharge port, and depending on the position of the vanes moving in the lateral direction of the cover bracket, the vanes and the discharge port may partially overlap in the front-rear direction of the housing, and the overlapping area of the vanes and the discharge port may be changed.

The blade driving part may be mounted to the cover bracket, and may move the blade toward a lateral direction of the cover bracket. The mounting housing may accommodate at least a portion of the blade driving portion, and may be mounted to the cover bracket.

The vanes may be provided in plural, and the movement of each vane may be independently controlled. Since the blade module is provided with a pair on both sides of the casing, the blades may be arranged on the left and right sides of the casing, respectively.

Therefore, in the case where the blades are provided two in the up-down direction of the casing, the blades may be provided four in total.

At this time, the respective blades may be configured to operate independently of each other. For example, the four vanes may be different from each other in the lateral movement position of the casing, and therefore, the overlapping areas of the vanes and the discharge port in the front-rear direction of the casing may be different from each other.

The vane driving part may include a vane motor, an extension rotation shaft, and a first pinion gear.

The vane motor may be mounted to the mounting case and operate by receiving power from a power source, thereby being capable of providing a rotational force. The operation of the vane motor may be controlled by the control portion.

The extension rotation shaft extends from a rotation shaft of the vane motor and is rotatable when the motor is operated. The first pinion gear engaged with the vanes may be provided in plural in the longitudinal direction of the vanes so that the vanes extending long in the vertical direction smoothly operate.

The first pinion gear is fixedly mounted to the extension rotation shaft and is rotatable together with the extension rotation shaft when the motor is operated. The first pinion gear may be provided in plural. In this case, the first pinions may be spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction extending the rotation shaft.

The vane may include an airflow adjustment portion and a gear engagement portion.

The air flow regulating part may be disposed along the vertical direction of the casing, and the air flow regulating part may move toward the lateral direction of the casing with the operation of the blade driving part, so as to switch the direction of the air flow discharged from the discharge port.

The air flow regulator may be disposed in a longitudinal direction of the air flow regulator in parallel with the discharge port, and the air flow regulator may be disposed in front of the discharge port.

The gear engagement portion may be formed with a first rack protruding from the air flow regulation portion and engaged with the first pinion gear. At this time, the gear engagement portion may be formed integrally with the airflow adjustment portion.

A plurality of gear engagement portions may be provided at one blade, for example, two gear engagement portions may be provided, and the first pinion gear may be provided with the same number as the number of gear engagement portions. At this time, the plurality of first racks may be disposed to be spaced apart from each other in a length direction of the air flow regulating part.

In this case, the plurality of first pinions may be disposed at intervals in a longitudinal direction of the extended rotation shaft to correspond to the arrangement structure of the plurality of first racks.

The plurality of gear engagement portions may be respectively arranged to be symmetrical to each other at a central portion of the air flow regulating portion. For example, the two gear engagement portions may be provided symmetrically with each other with respect to the midpoint in the longitudinal direction of the airflow adjustment portion.

The mounting case may be provided with a first mounting hole for mounting the coupling mechanism to be coupled to the cover bracket by the coupling mechanism.

A mounting housing may be provided with a plurality of first mounting holes to securely couple the mounting housing. At this time, the respective first mounting holes may be disposed at intervals from each other along the length direction of the mounting case.

The blade may include a first bent portion formed to connect the air flow regulating portion and the gear engagement portion to each other and bent with respect to the air flow regulating portion and the gear engagement portion.

The lid bracket may further include a stop. The stopper is disposed inside the cover bracket, faces the first bent portion, and contacts the first bent portion to guide a moving range of the first bent portion.

The indoor unit of an air conditioner of an embodiment may further include an air guide. The air guide may be disposed at a position facing a side end of the front panel and shielding at least a portion of the side door module when viewed from the front-rear direction.

A guide hole for guiding a flow direction of the air discharged from the discharge port may be formed between a side end of the air guide and a side end of the front panel.

The side door may be disposed in contact with the air guide to close at least a portion of the discharge opening. In addition, the vane may be disposed to contact the air guide to close at least a portion of the guide hole.

According to the indoor unit of an air conditioner of the present invention, the flow direction of air is changed as the position of the vane moves, so that air discharged from the discharge port of the indoor unit flows in various directions, and various comfort can be provided to a user in the room.

In addition, according to the indoor unit of an air conditioner of the present invention, since the plurality of vanes are individually controlled to make the lateral movement positions of the respective vanes with respect to the casing different from each other, it is possible to form various forms of air flow directions in the room.

In addition, according to the indoor unit of an air conditioner of the present invention, even if the vane moves in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the vane, the vane can be stably supported by the plurality of first pinions and the first racks, and the inclination (tilt) of the vane, which is caused by twisting or inclination, in which the moving positions of the upper portion and the lower portion are different, can be effectively suppressed.

In addition, according to the indoor unit of an air conditioner of the present invention, the lower half portion and the upper half portion of the airflow adjusting part may be uniformly forced and moved from the plurality of first racks. Therefore, it is possible to effectively suppress the inclination of the upper portion and the lower portion of the blade, which becomes different in the moving position thereof due to the inclination of the blade caused by the imbalance of the forces transmitted to the lower half portion and the upper half portion of the airflow adjusting portion, respectively.

In addition to the effects described above, specific effects of the present invention will be described together with the description of specific matters for carrying out the invention below.

Drawings

Fig. 1A is a perspective view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment.

Fig. 1B is a perspective view showing a state in which the side door is opened in fig. 1A.

Fig. 1C is a perspective view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to another embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which some components are omitted in the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment.

Fig. 3 is an exploded view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a pair of side door modules of an embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating one side door module in fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a plan view seen from the AA direction in fig. 4.

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view seen from the BB direction in fig. 4.

Fig. 8 is a sectional view showing a state in which the side door moves in fig. 7.

FIG. 9 is an exploded view illustrating a side door module of an embodiment.

FIG. 10 is an exploded view showing a side door of an embodiment.

Fig. 11 is an enlarged view showing a part of fig. 10.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of a side door module of an embodiment viewed from a different angle than the front view.

Fig. 13 is an enlarged view of a portion a of fig. 12.

Fig. 14 is a view showing a section of a part in fig. 13.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view illustrating a pair of blade modules of an embodiment.

FIG. 16 is an exploded view showing one of the pair of blade modules shown in FIG. 15.

Fig. 17 is a perspective view showing a blade driving portion of an embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view illustrating a blade of an embodiment.

Fig. 19 is a perspective view showing a mounting case of an embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a cutaway perspective view of a blade module of an embodiment.

FIG. 21A is a plan cross-sectional view of a blade module of an embodiment.

Fig. 21B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the blade in fig. 21A moves.

FIG. 22 is a front view of another embodiment of a blade.

Fig. 23A is a diagram illustrating a state in which a part of the blade in fig. 1B is laterally projected toward the front panel.

Fig. 23B is a diagram for explaining a blade of another embodiment.

Fig. 24A is a sectional view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment.

Fig. 24B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the side door in fig. 24A moves.

Fig. 24C is a diagram showing a state in which the blade in fig. 24B moves.

Fig. 25A is a sectional view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to another embodiment.

Fig. 25B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the side door in fig. 25A moves.

Fig. 26A is a sectional view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to still another embodiment.

Fig. 26B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the side doors and the vanes in fig. 26A move.

Fig. 26C is a diagram showing a state in which the blade in fig. 26B moves to form a forward-directed airflow of air.

Description of the reference numerals

A housing: i front panel: 14

A front discharge port: 141 front door module: 21

A side door module: 22 side door: 221

Cover plate: 2211 first sandwiching portion: 2211a

A reinforcing plate: 2212 second sandwiching portion: 2212a

An attachment member: 2213 first driving unit: 222

A gear motor: 2221 pinion gear: 2222

Rack: 2223 engaging part: 2223a

A connecting part: 2223b support frame: 223

Guide rail: 2231 supporting the base: 2231a

An outlet: 224 side blades: 225

A guiding connector: 226 first component: 2261

A second component: 2262 third part: 2263

Guide rail guide groove: 2263a avoidance groove: 2264

A blade module: 23 blades: 231

An airflow adjusting part: 2311 gear meshing: 2312

A first rack: 2312a first bending part: 2313

A cover bracket: 232 blade driving part: 233

A vane motor: 2331 extend the rotation axis: 2332

A first pinion gear: 2333 mounting the housing: 234

First mounting hole: 2341

Detailed Description

The above objects, features and advantages will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, so that those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains can easily carry out the technical idea of the present invention. In the description of the present invention, if it is determined that detailed description of known technologies related to the present invention may obscure the gist of the present invention, the detailed description thereof will be omitted. Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numerals are used for the same or similar constituent elements.

Although the terms first, second, etc. are used to describe various constituent elements, these constituent elements are not limited by these terms. The terms are only used to distinguish one constituent element from other constituent elements, and unless otherwise specified, a first constituent element may be a second constituent element.

Throughout the specification, unless specifically stated to the contrary, each structural element may be singular or plural.

As used in this specification, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In the present application, terms such as "constituted by …" or "including" should not be construed as necessarily including each structural element or each step described in the specification, but may not include a part of the structural elements or a part of the steps, or may include additional structural elements or steps.

Throughout the specification, when describing "a and/or B", it means A, B or a and B unless specifically stated to the contrary, and when describing "C to D", it means C or more and D or less unless specifically stated to the contrary.

Fig. 1A is a perspective view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment. Fig. 1B is a perspective view illustrating a state in which the side door 221A is opened in fig. 1A. The side door module 22 provided in the indoor unit of the air conditioner can be operated by a control operation of the air conditioner. At this time, the side door 221a provided in the side door module 22 is movable in the front-rear direction of the indoor unit of the air conditioner.

Therefore, when the side door 221A is in the forward state, as shown in fig. 1A, the discharge opening 224a can be closed, and in the case where the side door 221A is located rearward, as shown in fig. 1B, the discharge opening 224a can be opened.

Fig. 1C is a perspective view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to another embodiment. The indoor unit shown in fig. 1C is provided with a plurality of front door modules 21, and may be arranged at intervals in the vertical direction of the indoor unit.

This may reduce the area of the discharge ports 224a formed on both side surfaces of the indoor unit. In the indoor unit shown in fig. 1C, the forward-directed airflow of air may be stronger and the side-directed airflow may be weaker than in the indoor units shown in fig. 1A and 1B.

Next, the structure of the indoor unit of an air conditioner shown in fig. 1A and 1B will be described in more detail.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which some components of the indoor unit of the air conditioner according to the embodiment are omitted. Fig. 3 is an exploded view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment.

The present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings for describing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, with reference to fig. 1A to 3, the entire structure of the components constituting the indoor unit according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in a schematic manner, and then the structure of each component will be described in a schematic manner.

< overall Structure >

An indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: the shell I is formed into an appearance and is provided with a discharge port; a door assembly II for opening and closing a front discharge port formed in the front of the housing I and discharge ports formed in both side surfaces or for switching the direction of the air flow; the air supply fan assembly III is arranged on the inner side of the shell I and forms air flow; the heat exchange assembly IV is used for enabling the air flowing through the air supply fan assembly III to exchange heat with the refrigerant; a filter assembly VI for filtering air flowing into the inside of the housing I; the filter cleaning assembly VII is used for removing foreign matters attached to the filter assembly VI; and a humidifying assembly V for humidifying the air discharged to the outside of the casing I.

< housing >

The housing i of an embodiment of the present invention may include: a rear upper case 11 having a suction port 111 formed at the rear thereof and a space for disposing the heat exchanger 41 formed at the inner side thereof; a base part 12 disposed below the rear upper case 11 and forming a space for disposing a part of the structure of the humidifying module v; a rear lower case 13 covering the rear and side of the base 12; and a front panel 14 disposed on the front surfaces of the rear upper case 11 and the rear lower case 13, which are open. The front panel 14 may be disposed on the front of the housing i.

The rear upper case 11 is formed in an open shape on the front and upper surfaces as a whole, and is disposed on the upper sides of the rear lower case 13 and the pedestal portion 12. A front panel 14, which will be described later, is disposed on the front surface of the opening of the rear upper case 11, and a top cover 15 is disposed on the upper surface of the opening of the rear upper case 11.

Heat exchanger 41, front air blowing module 31, and side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c may be disposed in rear upper case 11. As means for supporting these structures, a heat exchanger mounting member (not shown) for mounting heat exchanger 41, a front air blowing module mounting member (not shown) for mounting front air blowing module 31, and a side air blowing module mounting member (not shown) for mounting side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c may be disposed inside rear upper case 11.

A suction port 111 is formed at the rear of the rear upper case 11, and a filter assembly vi may be disposed at the suction port 111 side. The filter assembly vi may include a plurality of filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d arranged along the left and right behind the rear upper case 11.

Further, a guide rail type movement guide 71 for guiding the vertical (U-D direction) movement of the filter cleaner 72 is disposed between the plurality of filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62D disposed along the left and right behind the rear upper case 11.

The moving guide 71 may be disposed behind the rear upper case 11, project rearward from the centers of the plurality of filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62D disposed left and right, and extend in the vertical direction (U-D direction).

On the other hand, an ionization section (not shown) may be additionally disposed at a portion of the rear upper case 11 on which the rail-shaped movement guide 71 is mounted. The ionization part may serve to receive a high voltage and discharge, thereby ionizing air flowing to the suction port 111.

Further, refrigerant tube holes 132 through which the refrigerant tubes 42 of the heat exchange module iv pass may be formed in the rear lower surface of the rear lower case 13. Further, a power line hole 133 through which a power line supplied from an external power source passes may be formed on a rear lower surface of the rear lower case 13.

On the other hand, the base portion 12 may be disposed under the rear upper case 11, and a space for disposing components of the humidifying module v, that is, the water tank 51, the heating unit (not shown), and the like may be formed inside the base portion 12. Further, a power supply device (not shown) for winding a power cord connected to the filter cleaning assembly vii may be disposed inside the base portion 12.

As shown in fig. 3, the base portion 12 may have a box shape with an open front face. At the outer periphery of the pedestal portion 12, a rear lower case 13 and a part of the side door module 22 of the door assembly ii may be disposed.

The base portion 12 may be formed with a power supply line through hole (not shown) through which a power supply line connected to the filter cleaning module vii passes and a humidification flow path tube through hole (not shown) through which a humidification flow path tube (not shown) of the humidification module v passes and extends.

In addition, a rear upper case 11 may be installed on an upper side of the base part 12, and an additional support member for supporting other structures including the rear upper case 11 may be additionally installed.

In a state where the base portion 12 and the rear upper case 11 arranged in the upper and lower directions are coupled to each other, a front panel 14 is arranged on the front surfaces of the base portion 12 and the rear upper case 11.

The front panel 14 forms the front surface of the indoor unit, and as shown in the drawing, a front discharge port 141 is formed at a position above the front panel 14, that is, at a position corresponding to the front air blowing module 31, and the air subjected to heat exchange by the heat exchange unit iv is pressurized by the front air blowing module 31 and discharged from the front discharge port 141.

In addition, a camera sensor 142 for detecting the condition of the indoor space may be provided at the front panel 14. As shown by way of example, the camera sensor 142 may be disposed at an upper end of the front panel 14.

The condition of the indoor space may include, among other things, the size of the indoor space, the number of people in the indoor space, the location of the indoor people, etc.

< door Assembly >

Door subassembly II includes: a front door module 21 that opens and closes a front discharge port 141 formed in the front panel 14 and switches the direction of the air flow discharged through the front discharge port 141; a side door module 22 that opens and closes discharge ports 224a and 224b formed on both side surfaces thereof; and a vane module 23 that switches the direction of the airflow discharged through the discharge ports 224a, 224 b. The vane module 23 may be arranged in front of the discharge ports 224a, 224 b. The blade module 23 may be disposed inside the front panel 14.

The front door module 21 is provided to reciprocate in the front-rear direction between a rearmost position where a flow path of air discharged through the front discharge port 141 is closed and a frontmost position where a forward-directed airflow is formed.

The operation mode in which the forward-directed airflow is generated in a state in which the front door module 21 is projected to the most forward position may be defined as a direct wind operation mode to be distinguished from an indirect wind operation mode described later.

Further, the front door module 21 may stop at the coplanar position corresponding to the intermediate position between the rearmost position and the frontmost position. The coplanar position corresponds to a position where the front surfaces of the front panel 14 and the outer panel 211 disposed on the foremost side of the front door module 21 are substantially parallel to each other.

When the front door module 21 stops at the coplanar position, the air discharged to the front discharge port 141 forms a side directional air flow discharged radially outward from the front discharge port 141 due to the shape of the outer surface of the front door module 21, rather than being discharged forward. This mode of operation may be defined as an indirect wind mode of operation.

On the other hand, the outer panel 211 disposed at the foremost side of the door module 21 may be formed of a translucent material, and light generated by a display unit (not shown) disposed inside the outer panel 211 may be irradiated to the outside through the outer panel 211. Therefore, the outer panel 211 according to an embodiment of the present invention functions as a display for providing information to a user about the operation state of the indoor unit, the air quality state around the indoor unit, and the like.

The side door module 22 opens and closes the discharge ports 224a and 224b formed on both side surfaces of the casing i.

That is, the side door module 22 functions to close the outlets 224a and 224b in a state in which the operation of the entire indoor unit is interrupted and in a state in which only the front air blower module 31 of the indoor unit is operated and the side air blower modules 32a, 32b, and 32c are not operated.

As described above, since the discharge ports 224a and 224b are closed by the side door module 22 in a state where the side air blower modules 32a, 32b, and 32c are not operated, it is possible to effectively prevent the inflow of fine dust and the like through the discharge ports 224a and 224b into the interior and the fixation thereof, or the inflow of foreign matter and the like which may cause a failure.

The side door module 22 may include: a pair of side doors 221a and 221b that open and close the discharge ports 224a and 224b while moving in the front-rear direction (F-R direction); first driving portions 222a and 222b for supplying driving force to the side doors 221a and 221 b; and a pair of support frames 223a, 223b supporting the respective side doors 221a, 221b and the first driving parts 222a, 222 b.

The side doors 221a and 221b are supported so as to be movable from a foremost position at which the discharge ports 224a and 224b are completely closed to a rearmost position at which the discharge ports 224a and 224b are completely opened. As shown in fig. 1A to 3, the side doors 221A and 221b extend from the upper end to the lower end of the outer case i so as to cover the entire outer case with a predetermined width, thereby giving a user an aesthetic feeling, and the side doors 221A and 221b are integrated with the front panel 14 and the rear upper case 11, and the outer surfaces of the side doors 221A and 221b may have a material and a shape that can form the same texture as the rear upper case 11 and the front panel 14.

In order to movably support the side doors 221a, 221b, guide connectors may be further provided, one end of which is attached to the side doors 221a, 221b and the other end of which is slidably supported to the support frames 223a, 223 b.

For example, the first driving portions 222a and 222b may include: a gear motor; a pinion gear connected to an output shaft of the gear motor; and a rack gear converting a rotational force of the pinion gear into a linear reciprocating motion, thereby being capable of electrically driving the side doors 221a and 221 b.

The gear motor may be firmly fixed to the support frames 223a, 223b corresponding to the fixing members, and the rack gear engaged with the pinion gear may be firmly fixed to the inner side surfaces of the side doors 221a, 221 b.

On the other hand, as described above, the side doors 221a and 221b are provided so as to extend from the upper end to the lower end of the casing i. Therefore, the height of the side doors 221a, 221b is formed very large with respect to the width thereof, so that it is difficult to efficiently drive each side door 221a, 221b with only a single driving portion.

Therefore, two first driving portions 222a, 222b are provided for each side door 221a, 221b, respectively, and are preferably disposed at positions adjacent to the upper and lower ends of each side door 221a, 221b, respectively, as shown in the drawing.

The support frames 223a, 223b form a part of both side surfaces of the housing i together with the rear upper case 11 and the rear lower case 13 while rotatably supporting the side doors 221a, 221 b. In more detail, the support frames 223a and 223b may be disposed between the rear upper case 11 and the front panel 14.

The support frames 223a and 223b have discharge ports 224a and 224b extending in the vertical direction (U-D direction).

As shown in the drawing, a plurality of side blades 225a and 225b for guiding the flow direction of the discharged air may be disposed at the discharge ports 224a and 224 b.

The plurality of side blades 225a, 225b may be integrally formed with the support frames 223a, 223 b. The plurality of side blades 225a and 225b according to an embodiment of the present invention are disposed and fixed to be inclined forward, so that air discharged to the outside of the housing can be guided forward. Therefore, in a state where the blade module 23 described later does not function, the air discharged through the discharge ports 224a and 224b forms a forward-directed airflow by the plurality of side blades 225a and 225 b.

On the other hand, the blades that perform the same function as the side blades 225a and 225b provided on the support frames 223a and 223b may be formed on other members, instead of the support frames 223a and 223 b. For example, the side blades may be formed integrally with the side surfaces of the discharge guides 326 of the side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c, which will be described later.

Of course, as shown in fig. 3, the side blades 225a and 225b may be provided on the support frames 223a and 223b, and the side blade 3261 may be provided on the discharge guide 326.

The blade module 23 functions to convert the forward-directed airflow discharged through the discharge ports 224a and 224b into a side-directed airflow.

As described above, the air discharged to the discharge ports 224a and 224b forms the forward-directed airflow by the side blades 225a and 225b of the support frames 223a and 223b or the side blade 3261 of the discharge guide 326.

As described above, the blade module 23 functions as a blade for switching the direction of the forward directed airflow. As shown in fig. 3, the direction of the forward directional airflow is switched by plate-shaped blades 231a and 231b disposed adjacent to the front sides of the discharge ports 224a and 224 b.

More specifically, when the side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c are operated in the direct air mode in which the forward-pointing air flow is formed, the blades 231a and 231b of the blade module 23 are kept hidden at the storage positions on the back surface side of the front panel 14. Therefore, the blades 231a, 231b do not affect the air flow of the air discharged through the discharge ports 224a, 224b, and the discharged air keeps the forward-directed air flow.

When the blade driving unit (not shown) is operated to switch from the direct wind mode to the indirect wind mode, the blades 231a and 231b start to move horizontally from the above-described storage positions in a direction to be exposed to the outside.

After the horizontal movement starts, the blades 231a, 231b stop after moving to the final deployment position.

When the blades 231a, 231b move to the final deployment position, the air discharged through the discharge ports 224a, 224b is subjected to the resistance of the blades 231a, 231b, and particularly, the air passing through the front end sides of the discharge ports 224a, 224b directly collides with the blades 231a, 231b and switches the movement direction.

At this time, the air discharged through the discharge ports 224a and 224b has the fastest flow velocity of the air passing through the front end portion side, and therefore, the air collides with the blades 231a and 231b and the moving direction of the air is switched, thereby affecting the moving direction of the air discharged from the rear side. Under such an influence, the air passing through the discharge ports 224a and 224b switches the moving direction as a whole, thereby forming a side-directed airflow.

Fig. 3 shows an embodiment in which the left blade 231a and the right blade 231b are provided in correspondence with the left discharge port 224a and the right discharge port 224b, respectively. The present invention is not limited to this, and a modification in which the left blade 231a and the right blade 231b are divided into a plurality of pieces may be realized. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, an embodiment in which one blade 231a and 231b are provided on the left and right sides, respectively, will be described with reference to fig. 4, and the specific configuration of the blades 231a and 231b will be described later.

The blade driving part (not shown) may include: a gear motor; a pinion gear (not shown) connected to an output shaft of the gear motor; the rack (not shown) converts the rotational force of the pinion gear into a linear reciprocating motion, thereby electrically driving the blades 231a and 231 b.

The gear motor is firmly supported by an additional bracket (not shown), and a rack gear engaged with the pinion gear may be formed integrally with the vanes 231a, 231b or separately formed and attached to the vanes 231a, 231 b. As described later, a plurality of fastening holes 231h may be formed at the blades 231a, 231b so that the rack gear can be attached to the blades 231a, 231b using a fastening mechanism such as a bolt.

< blower fan Assembly >

The blower fan assembly iii includes: a front air blowing module 31 for blowing air to a front discharge port 141 of the indoor unit; the side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c discharge air to the discharge ports 224a and 224b on both sides of the indoor unit.

For example, the blower fan assembly iii according to an embodiment of the present invention may include one front blower module 31 and three side blower modules 32a, 32b, and 32 c. The front air blowing module 31 and the side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c are disposed in front of the heat exchange module iv.

The front air blowing module 31 is disposed above the side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32 c. The front air blower module 31 discharges air to a front discharge port 141 formed in the front panel 14.

The front blowing module 31 may include a front blowing fan 311, a front blowing motor 312, and a fan housing 313. The front air blowing module 31 according to an embodiment of the present invention may be operated in a direct air mode in which the discharged air is discharged forward by a long distance by selecting the front air blowing housing 313, the structural shape of the front door module 21, and the position of the front door module 21, or in an indirect air mode in which the air is discharged radially outward from the front discharge port 141.

Side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c are disposed below front air blowing module 31. In an embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of side blower modules 32a, 32b, and 32c may be arranged in the vertical direction. The side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c can discharge the discharged air through the discharge ports 224a and 224b, respectively.

Each of the side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c may include a side air blowing fan 321a, 321b, and 321c, a side air blowing motor 322a, 322b, and 322c, a side air blowing fan case 323a, 323b, and 323c, an intake guide 325a, 325b, and 325c, and an ejection guide 326.

The side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c may be disposed in front of the heat exchanger 41, and may suck the heat-exchanged air through the side suction guides 324 and discharge the air to the discharge ports 224a and 224b through the discharge guides 326.

The direction of the discharge airflow can be determined by the side blades 225a, 225b of the discharge ports 224a, 224b or the side blade 3261 of the discharge guide 326 by the air flowing through the side blower modules 32a, 32b, 32 c. As described above, the air flows defined by the side blades 225a and 225b of the discharge ports 224a and 224b or the side blade 3261 of the discharge guide 326 are set in advance to the forward-direction air flows.

< Heat exchange Assembly >

The heat exchange module iv performs a heat exchange between the indoor air sucked into the rear upper case 11 and the refrigerant.

The heat exchange assembly iv may comprise: a heat exchanger 41 through which a refrigerant for heat exchange with indoor air flows; and a refrigerant pipe (not shown) forming a refrigerant flow path so that the refrigerant can flow into the heat exchanger 41 or be discharged from the heat exchanger 41.

The refrigerant pipe may include: a refrigerant inflow pipe 42 through which the refrigerant flowing into the heat exchanger 41 flows; and a refrigerant discharge pipe (not shown) through which the refrigerant discharged from the heat exchanger 41 flows.

The heat exchanger 41 is disposed behind the blower fan assembly iii. The heat exchanger 41 may be disposed between the suction port 111 and the discharge ports 22 and 141, and may exchange heat with air flowing inside the indoor unit. The heat exchanger 41 is disposed between the filter unit vi and the blower fan unit iii.

As shown in fig. 3, heat exchanger 41 may have a length corresponding to the height at which the plurality of side air blowing modules 32a, 32b, and 32c and front air blowing module 31 are arranged vertically.

The heat exchanger 41 may be disposed inside the rear upper case 11. The heat exchanger 41 may be fastened and supported to a heat exchanger fastening portion (not shown) formed inside the rear upper case 11.

< humidifying Assembly >

The humidifying unit V can discharge the humidified air to the outside of the indoor unit. The humidifying assembly v may include: a water tank 51 for storing water; a heating unit (not shown) that receives and heats water in the water tank 51; a humidification discharge nozzle (not shown) having a humidification discharge port (not shown) for discharging the heated humidification air; and a humidification flow path pipe (not shown) for guiding the humidified air heated in the heating unit to the humidification discharge nozzle.

< Filter Assembly >

The filter assembly vi functions to remove foreign substances contained in the air flowing into the suction port 111.

The filter assembly vi is movably disposed rearward of the rear upper case 11. The filter unit vi is disposed at the suction port 111 formed at the rear of the rear upper case 11, and can filter the indoor air flowing into the suction port 111. The filter assembly vi is movably disposed in the rear upper case 11.

Referring to fig. 2, a filter assembly vi according to an embodiment of the present invention includes filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, and 62d for removing foreign substances from air drawn into the suction port 111. The filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, and 62d of the filter unit vi may be disposed at the suction port 111 or may be disposed outside the side surfaces of the rear upper case 11.

A filter assembly vi according to an embodiment of the invention includes: filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d for removing foreign substances in the flowing air; filter mounting members (not shown) for mounting the filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62 d; and a moving member (not shown) for changing the position of the filter mounting member.

The filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d may be of the following construction: when the filter module is disposed at the suction port, the filter module may be introduced into or withdrawn from the filter mounting member along the width direction of the filter module formed on the left and right.

The filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d of an embodiment of the present invention may include: first filter modules 62a, 62b for covering the left side of the suction port 111 of the rear upper case 11; and second filter modules 62c, 62d for covering the right side of the suction port 111 of the rear upper case 11.

The first filter modules 62a and 62b may be disposed to cover the left side of the suction port 111, or may be disposed to the left side of the left side surface of the rear upper case 11. The second filter modules 62c and 62d may be disposed to cover the right side of the suction port 111, or may be disposed to the right side of the right side surface of the rear upper case 11.

When the first filter modules 62a and 62b and the second filter modules 62c and 62d are both disposed in the suction port 111, a surface on which the filter cleaner 72 can move is formed.

The filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d are detachably disposed on the filter mounting member. The filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d can filter foreign substances in the air flowing toward the suction port 111.

The filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d of an embodiment of the present invention may include: a pre-filter 621 that filters large dust in the air flowing to the suction port 111; a dust collection filter unit (not shown) for collecting dust from the air particles ionized by the ionization unit and filtering the air; and a deodorizing filter unit (not shown) for removing odor in the air.

The filter module 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a filter housing 622, the pre-filter 621 being mounted to the filter housing 622, the filter housing 622 being mounted to the filter mounting member. The filter housing 622 has a plurality of suction holes formed along the direction in which the pre-filter 621 is mounted. The face of the filter housing 622 on which the pre-filter 621 is mounted may include vertical ribs 6221 and horizontal ribs 6222.

The vertical ribs 6221 and the horizontal ribs 6222 are formed in a lattice shape with each other, and can reinforce the rigidity of the filter case 622. The pre-filter 621 is formed in a mesh shape, and can filter large foreign substances in the air flowing into the filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, and 62 d.

The lower end portion 60a of the filter assembly vi may be disposed on the upper side of the rear lower case 13. When the filter cleaner 72 of the filter cleaning module vii to be described later is disposed at the lowermost end in the movable range movable along the movement guide 71, the lower end portion 60a of the filter module vi is disposed above the upper end of the filter cleaner 72.

< Filter cleaning Assembly >

The filter cleaning assembly VII can move along the vertical direction at the rear side of the filter assembly VI, and can remove foreign matters outside the filter assembly VI. The filter cleaning assembly vii is capable of removing foreign matter trapped in the pre-filters 621 of the filter modules 62a, 62b, 62c, 62 d.

The filter cleaning assembly VII comprises: a filter cleaner 72 moving in an up-and-down direction (U-D direction) behind the filter assembly vi to remove foreign substances trapped in the filter assembly vi; a movement guide 71 for guiding movement of the filter cleaner 72; and a power supply device 73 for supplying power to the filter cleaner 72.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a pair of side door modules 22 of an embodiment. Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating one side door module 22 in fig. 4.

The side door modules 22 may be provided in pairs and one on each side of the indoor unit. In the foregoing drawings, the components of the pair of side door modules 22 are distinguished by the reference numerals "a", "b", and the like, but in the following description, the components having the same name may be given the same reference numerals for clarity.

Fig. 6 is a plan view seen from the AA direction in fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view seen from the BB direction in fig. 4. Fig. 8 is a sectional view showing a state in which the side door 221 moves in fig. 7.

An indoor unit of an air conditioner of an embodiment may include: a shell I forming the appearance; a front door module 21 for opening and closing a front discharge port 141 formed in the front surface of the housing i or switching the direction of the air flow; and a side door module 22 for opening and closing a discharge port 224 formed in a side surface of the housing i or switching the direction of the air flow.

In this case, the side door module 22 may be coupled to the casing i by a coupling mechanism such as a bolt, and may have a discharge port 224. As described above, the discharge port 224 may be formed with a plurality of side blades 225 for guiding the flow direction of the discharged air. At this time, the side blades 225 may be formed integrally with the support frame 223.

The side door module 22 may include a side door 221, a first driving part 222, and a support frame 223. The side door 221 can open and close the discharge port 224 while moving in the front-rear direction of the casing i of the indoor unit.

The side door 221 may be disposed to move in a front-rear direction with respect to the support frame 223. Therefore, as shown in fig. 6, when the side door 221 moves forward of the casing i with respect to the support frame 223, the discharge port 224 can be closed. As shown in fig. 7, when the side door 221 moves rearward of the housing i with respect to the support frame 223, the discharge port 224 can be opened.

The first driving part 222 may be mounted to a support frame 223, connected to the side door 221, and provide a driving force to the side door 221.

The support frame 223 is coupled to the housing i, forms the discharge port 224, and can support the side door 221 and the first driving unit 222. The support frame 223 may be coupled to the housing i by a coupling mechanism such as a bolt, and may be configured not to move by itself.

Therefore, the side door 221 can open and close the discharge port 224 formed in the support frame 223 by moving in the front-rear direction of the housing i with respect to the support frame 223. Referring to fig. 12, the discharge port 224 may be formed in the support frame 223 such that the longitudinal direction thereof is aligned along the longitudinal direction of the support frame 223, i.e., the vertical direction of the housing i.

The discharge port 224 may be formed along the vertical direction of the support frame 223 in all or a part of the support frame 223, and the position and length of the discharge port 224 in the support frame 223 may be appropriately selected in consideration of the performance and operational characteristics of the indoor unit.

The number of side vanes 225 provided in the discharge port 224, the angle of inclination with respect to the front of the casing i, and the like may be appropriately selected in consideration of the performance and operational characteristics of the indoor unit.

The first driving part 222 may include a gear motor 2221, a pinion gear 2222, and a rack gear 2223.

The first driving part 222 may include a case coupled to the support frame 223. The gear motor 2221 is mounted inside the housing, receives power from the power source and rotates the output shaft, whereby a rotational force can be provided to the pinion gear 2222. At this time, the rotation and stop operations of the gear motor 2221 may be controlled by a control unit provided in the air conditioner.

The pinion 2222 is connected to an output shaft of the gear motor 2221, and is rotatable together with the rotation of the output shaft of the gear motor 2221.

The rack 2223 is engaged with the pinion 2222 and can convert the rotational force of the pinion 2222 into a linear reciprocating motion, and the rack 2223 can include an engaging portion 2223a and a connecting portion 2223 b.

The engagement portion 2223a may be coupled with the pinion gear 2222. Referring to fig. 7 and 8, the pinion 2222 is radially arranged in the front-rear direction of the housing i and has a linear shape, and gear teeth engaged with the pinion 2222 may be linearly arranged along the length direction thereof. Therefore, the meshing portion 2223a can linearly reciprocate in the front-rear direction with the rotation of the pinion 2222.

One end of the connecting portion 2223b is connected to the engagement portion 2223a, and the other end thereof may be combined with the side door 221. At this time, the connection portion 2223b may be integrally manufactured with the engagement portion 2223 a.

The connection portion 2223b may be formed to be bent from one end portion of the engagement portion 2223 a. The longitudinal direction of the connection portion 2223b may be arranged in the front-rear direction of the module. Therefore, the connection portion 2223b may linearly reciprocate in the front-rear direction as the pinion 2222 rotates.

The other end of the connection portion 2223b may be combined with the side door 221. For example, the connection portion 2223b may be connected to the first sandwiching portion 2211a, which is a thick portion of the cover plate 2211 constituting the side door 221, and the second sandwiching portion 2212a, which is a thick portion of the reinforcement plate 2212, by a connection mechanism such as a bolt.

Therefore, as shown in fig. 7 and 8, the side door 221 coupled to the connection portion 2223b may linearly reciprocate in the front-rear direction of the housing i together with the engagement portion 2223a and the connection portion 2223b according to the rotation of the motor and pinion 2222, so that the discharge port 224 may be opened and closed.

The first driving unit 222 may be provided in plural to smoothly move the side door 221 in the front-rear direction. Since the side door 221 is disposed very long in the vertical direction of the indoor unit, it may be difficult to smoothly move the side door 221 in the front-rear direction using one first driving part 222.

Therefore, a plurality of first driving parts 222 are provided, and the first driving parts 222 may be arranged at intervals in the vertical direction of the housing i along the longitudinal direction of the side door 221.

Referring to fig. 5, in the embodiment, two first driving portions 222 are provided, which are respectively disposed at the upper end portion and the lower end portion of the side door module 22. However, the number of the first driving portions 222 is not limited thereto, and three or more may be provided.

In the embodiment, the first driving unit 222 is provided to move the side door 221 in the front-rear direction by operating the gear motor 2221, so that the side door 221 can effectively control the direction and the change in the air flow of the air discharged from the discharge port 224 by opening and closing the discharge port 224 provided in the support frame 223.

Fig. 9 is an exploded view showing a side door module 22 of an embodiment. Fig. 10 is an exploded view showing a side door 221 of an embodiment. Fig. 11 is an enlarged view showing a part of fig. 10.

The side door 221 moves in the front and rear direction with respect to the support frame 223 as the first driving part 222 operates, so that the discharge port 224 formed in the support frame 223 can be closed, and the side door 221 may include a cover plate 2211 and a reinforcement plate 2212.

The cover 2211 may extend from the upper end to the lower end of the housing i by a prescribed width, and may be formed in one body. The cover plate 2211 may be formed in a length corresponding to that of the support frame 223.

For example, the cover 2211 may be manufactured by extrusion processing that enables a long plate to be easily formed. The cover 2211 may be formed to have a small thickness to reduce manufacturing costs, manufacturing time, weight, and the like.

A first sandwiching portion 2211a for interference fit or shape fit with the reinforcing plate 2212 may be formed at one end of the cover plate 2211. A depression for coupling with the second sandwiching portion 2212a formed in the reinforcing plate 2212 may be formed in the first sandwiching portion 2211a, and the first sandwiching portion 2211a may have a thick shape as a whole due to the depression.

The cover 2211 is movable in the front-rear direction of the housing i by the operation of the first driving unit 222, and can open and close the discharge port 224 formed in the support frame 223.

The reinforcing plate 2212 may be attached to one surface of the cover plate 2211, may be provided in plural, and may reinforce the rigidity of the cover plate 2211. For example, the reinforcing plate 2212 may be manufactured by injection molding.

The reinforcing plate 2212 is attached to the cover plate 2211 and suppresses the bending (bending) of the cover plate 2211, thereby reinforcing the rigidity of the cover plate 2211, allowing the side door 221 to operate smoothly, and improving the durability of the side door 221.

A second sandwiching portion 2212a for interference fit or form fit with the cover 2211 may be formed at one end of the reinforcing plate 2212. The second sandwiching portion 2212a may be formed in a shape corresponding to the first sandwiching portion 2211a to be attached to the first sandwiching portion 2211a of the cover plate 2211 in a recess portion thereof, and the second sandwiching portion 2212a may have a thick shape as a whole.

It is preferable that the weight of the entire side door 221 is light so that the side door 221 can smoothly operate and the manufacturing cost of the side door 221 can be reduced. Therefore, as described above, the cover plate 2211 in the side door 221 can be made thin in thickness as a whole.

However, if the cover 2211 is made thin, the cover 2211 may be bent or curved during operation of the side door 221, making it difficult to operate the side door 221 and reducing durability.

Therefore, by forming the side door 221 in a structure in which the reinforcing plate 2212 is attached to the cover plate 2211, the reinforcing plate 2212 can improve the rigidity of the entire side door 221, and the side door 221 can operate smoothly and have improved durability.

The side door 221 may also include an attachment member 2213. An attachment member 2213 is disposed between the cover plate 2211 and the reinforcing plate 2212, and the reinforcing plate 2212 can be attached to the cover plate 2211. The attaching member 2213 may be provided in plural, and the attaching member 2213 may be a double-sided tape, for example.

Note that the attachment member 2213 is not an essential structure of the side door 221. In another embodiment, the cover plate 2211 and the reinforcement plate 2212 may also be joined by interference fit, form fit, or the reinforcement plate 2212 may be attached to the cover plate 2211 by an adhesive without the need for an attachment member 2213.

A plurality of the reinforcement plates 2212 may be arranged along the length direction thereof, and the total length thereof has a length corresponding to the cover plate 2211. At this time, the total number of the reinforcing plates 2212, the length of each may be appropriately selected.

When the reinforcing plate 2212 is integrally formed in a length corresponding to the cover plate 2211, the reinforcing plate 2212 may be deformed during the manufacturing process and the cost may be increased.

Therefore, in the embodiment, the reinforcing plate 2212 is formed in plural, and the reinforcing plate 2212 is attached to the cover plate 2211 in such a manner that the total length of the reinforcing plate 2212 corresponds to the length of the cover plate 2211, whereby the side door 221 can be made to have sufficient rigidity while the cost of the side door 221 is reduced.

A reinforcing plate 2212 may be attached to the surface of the cover plate 2211 facing the discharge opening 224. Under such a structure, the reinforcement plate 2212 may have a structure attached to the inner side surface of the side door 221.

Therefore, the reinforcing plate 2212 is not easily found when the user views the outside of the indoor unit, and the clean outer side surface of the cover plate 2211 can be mainly found when the user views the side door 221. When observing the indoor unit, the user can see the clean side door 221 by the structure, thereby improving the aesthetic feeling.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of the side door module 22 of the embodiment viewed from a different angle than the front view. Fig. 13 is an enlarged view of a portion a of fig. 12. Fig. 14 is a view showing a section of a part in fig. 13.

The side door module 22 may further include a guide connector 226, the guide connector 226 being coupled to the side door 221 and slidably supported by the support frame 223.

Correspondingly, a guide rail 2231 may be formed on the support frame 223, and the guide rail 2231 may be disposed along the front-rear direction in a longitudinal direction thereof and at a position corresponding to the guide connector 226.

The guide connector 226 coupled to the side door 221 can smoothly move in the front-rear direction of the support frame 223 along the guide rail 2231 provided in the support frame 223, and can open and close the discharge port 224 formed in the support frame 223.

The guide connector 226 may include a first component 2261, a second component 2262, and a third component 2263. The guide connector 226 is fixedly coupled to the side door 221 and is movable together with the side door 221 in the front-rear direction of the housing i.

The first component 2261 may be coupled to the side door 221. The first member 2261 may be fixedly coupled to the side door 221 by a coupling mechanism such as a bolt. The first component 2261, the second component 2262 and the third component 2263 may be formed as one piece.

The second component 2262 is formed to extend in the front-rear direction from the first component 2261, and may be provided with a bent portion. The third member 2263 may be formed to be bent from an end of the second member 2262, the length direction of the third member 2263 may be arranged in the front-rear direction, and a guide rail guide groove 2263a for installing the guide rail 2231 may be formed.

The second component 2262 is provided with a bent portion, and thus, the second component 2262 and the third component 2263 may form an avoidance groove 2264 such that interference with the side of the support frame 223 may be avoided when moving in the front and rear direction. The guide connector 226 can avoid interference with the support frame 223 through the avoidance grooves 2264, and thus can smoothly move in the front and rear directions.

On the other hand, a portion of the guide rail 2231 may be formed to protrude from a side surface of the support frame 223, and a support base 2231a supporting a lower side of the guide connector 226 may be formed at the protruding portion of the guide rail 2231. The support base 2231a may be formed integrally with the guide rail 2231.

The support base 2231a may function to support the side door 221 together with the guide rail 2231 so that the side door 221 smoothly moves in the front-rear direction with respect to the support frame 223.

The guide rail guide grooves 2263a may be arranged in the longitudinal direction of the housing i.

Therefore, the guide rail guide grooves 2263a are slidably attached to the guide rails 2231 arranged in the longitudinal direction along the front-rear direction of the housing i, and the third member 2263 is guided by the guide rails 2231 and can move smoothly in the front-rear direction. Therefore, the side door 221 can also move smoothly in the front-rear direction of the casing i.

A plurality of guide connectors 226 may be provided, and the guide connectors 226 may be arranged to be spaced apart from each other in the vertical direction of the housing i along the longitudinal direction of the side door 221.

Thus, a plurality of guide rails 2231 may be provided, and each of the guide rails 2231 may be disposed at a position corresponding to each of the guide connectors 226 along the longitudinal direction of the support frame 223.

Since the guide connector 226 and the guide rail 2231 are disposed in plural numbers along the longitudinal direction of the side door module 22, the side door 221 can be moved more smoothly in the front-rear direction of the side assembly. The number of the guide connectors 226 and the guide rails 2231 may be appropriately selected.

Referring to fig. 14, the guide rail guide grooves 2263a are provided in a pair, and each of the guide rail guide grooves 2263a may be disposed to be symmetrical to each other in an up-down direction. In this configuration, the guide connector 226 can be manufactured and used without being distinguished from the left and right.

Therefore, as shown in fig. 4, the guide connector 226 may be installed in a pair of side door modules 22 provided on the left and right sides of the indoor unit, respectively, without distinguishing the left and right sides.

In this configuration, since the guide connector 226 can be manufactured and used without distinguishing between the left side and the right side, the manufacturing time and cost of the guide connector 226 can be saved, and the work time for mounting the guide connector 226 in the indoor unit can be reduced.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view illustrating a pair of blade modules 23 of an embodiment. Fig. 16 is an exploded view showing one of the pair of blade modules 23 shown in fig. 15.

The vane module 23 may be disposed in front of the discharge opening 224 and may switch the direction of the air flow discharged through the discharge opening 224. The housing i includes a front panel 14 disposed on the front surface, and the blade module 23 may be configured to be coupled to an inner side surface of the front panel 14.

At this time, the blade module 23 may be provided in a pair and coupled to the left and right ends of the front panel 14, respectively. As shown in fig. 15, since the pair of blade modules 23 have the same structure except that they are arranged symmetrically to each other, in the following description, one blade module 23 is illustrated and explained.

The vane module 23 may be arranged in front of the discharge opening 224 and may switch the direction of the air flow discharged through the discharge opening 224. The air discharged from the discharge opening 224 may form a forward-directed airflow.

At this time, the blades 231 provided in the blade module 23 block a part of the forward-pointing airflow discharged from the discharge port 224 while moving in the lateral direction of the casing i, and at least a part of the air blocked by the blades 231 can change the flow direction.

Therefore, as the position of the vane 231 is moved, the flow direction of the air is changed, and the air discharged from the discharge port 224 of the indoor unit flows in various directions, so that various comfort can be provided to the user in the room.

Referring to fig. 16, the blade module 23 may include a cover bracket 232, a blade 231, a blade driving part 233, and a mounting case 234.

A cover bracket 232 may be coupled to the housing i. The cover bracket 232 may be coupled to the inner surface of the front panel 14 by, for example, bolts, and the vane 231 may be mounted to the cover bracket 232 so as to move relative to the cover bracket 232.

The vane 231 is mounted to the cover bracket 232, and may be provided to be movable toward a lateral direction of the cover bracket 232. The vane 231 is disposed in front of the discharge port 224, and depending on the position of the vane 231 moving toward the cover bracket 232, the vane 231 and the discharge port 224 may partially overlap in the front-rear direction of the housing i, and the overlapping area of the vanes and the discharge port 224 may be changed.

Therefore, the flow direction of the air discharged from the discharge port 224 and directed forward toward the air flow can be changed to various directions as the overlapping area between the discharge port 224 and the blade 231 changes.

The blade driving part 233 may be mounted to the cover bracket 232 and may move the blade 231 toward a lateral direction of the cover bracket 232. The mounting housing 234 may house at least a portion of the blade driving part 233 and may be mounted to the cover bracket 232.

The vane 231 may be provided in plural, and the movement of each of the vanes 231 may be independently controlled. As shown in fig. 16, a plurality of blades 231 may be provided along the vertical direction of the housing i.

For example, two blades 231 may be provided along the up-down direction of the housing i. However, the number of the blades 231 is not limited to this, and three or more blades may be provided. At this time, the blade driving part 233 and the mounting case 234 may be provided with the same number as the number of the blades 231.

Since the blade module 23 is provided with a pair on both sides of the housing i, the blades 231 may be disposed on the left and right sides of the housing i, respectively. Therefore, in the case where the blades 231 are provided two in the up-down direction of the casing i, the blades 231 may be provided four in total.

At this time, the respective blades 231 may be configured to operate independently of each other. The operation of each blade 231 may be independently controlled by a control unit provided in the air conditioner.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 16, a total of four vanes 231 are operated independently of each other, for example, the four vanes 231 may be different from each other in the laterally displaced position of the casing i, and therefore, the overlapping areas of the vanes 231 and the discharge port 224 in the front-rear direction of the casing i may be different from each other.

In this configuration, in the indoor unit of the air conditioner, the plurality of vanes 231 are individually controlled to be arranged at different positions in the lateral direction of the casing i, so that various air flow directions can be formed in the indoor space.

Fig. 17 is a perspective view illustrating the blade driving part 233 of an embodiment. Fig. 18 is a perspective view showing a blade 231 of an embodiment. Fig. 19 is a perspective view illustrating the mounting housing 234 of an embodiment.

As shown in fig. 17, the blade driving part 233 may include a blade motor 2331, an extension rotation shaft 2332, and a first pinion 2333.

The vane motor 2331 may be mounted to the mounting housing 234 and operate to receive power from a power source to provide a rotational force. The operation of the vane motor 2331 may be controlled by a control section.

An extension rotation shaft 2332 extends from the rotation shaft of the vane motor 2331 and can rotate when the motor is operated. The first pinion 2333 engaged with the vane 231 may be provided in plural in the longitudinal direction of the vane 231 so that the vane 231 extending long in the vertical direction can smoothly operate.

Therefore, in order to attach the plurality of first pinions 2333, which are arranged at intervals in the longitudinal direction of the vane 231, to the rotation shaft of the vane motor 2331, an extension rotation shaft 2332 may be provided, the longitudinal direction of which is arranged long in a direction parallel to the longitudinal direction of the vane 231 and is connected to the rotation shaft of the vane motor 2331.

The first pinion 2333 is fixedly mounted to the extension rotation shaft 2332 and is rotatable together with the extension rotation shaft 2332 when the motor is operated. As shown in fig. 17, the first pinion 2333 may be provided in plural numbers. In this case, the first pinions 2333 may be spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the extension rotation shaft 2332.

Referring to fig. 18, the vane 231 may include an air flow regulation part 2311 and a gear engagement part 2312.

The air flow adjusting portion 2311 may be disposed along the vertical direction of the casing i, and the air flow adjusting portion 2311 may be moved toward the lateral direction of the casing i as the vane driving portion 233 operates, thereby switching the direction of the air flow discharged from the discharge port 224.

The longitudinal direction of the air flow regulator 2311 may be arranged in parallel with the discharge port 224, and the air flow regulator 2311 may be arranged in front of the discharge port 224. When the vane 231 is operated, the air flow regulating portion 2311 may overlap with all or a part of the discharge port 224 in the front-rear direction of the casing i.

The gear engagement portion 2312 may be formed with a first rack 2312a protruding from the air flow adjustment portion 2311 and engaged with the first pinion 2333. At this time, the gear engagement portion 2312 may be integrally formed with the air flow adjustment portion 2311.

Since the first rack 2312a needs to be formed to have a predetermined length in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the blade 231, that is, in the left-right direction of the housing i, the gear engagement portion 2312 may have a structure in which a portion thereof extends in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the blade 231 in order to secure the length of the first rack 2312 a.

A plurality of the gear engagement portions 2312 may be provided to one blade 231, for example, two gear engagement portions 2312 may be provided, and the number of the first pinions 2333 may be the same as the number of the gear engagement portions 2312. At this time, the plurality of first racks 2312a may be disposed to be spaced apart from each other in a length direction of the air flow regulating portion 2311.

At this time, the plurality of first pinions 2333 may be disposed to be spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the extension rotation shaft 2332 to correspond to the arrangement structure of the plurality of first racks 2312 a. With this configuration, even if the blade 231, which is disposed long in the vertical direction of the housing i, moves in the lateral direction of the housing i, it can be stably supported by the first pinion 2333 and the first rack 2312 a.

Therefore, even if the vane 231 moves in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the vane 231, it is stably supported by the plurality of first pinions 2333 and the first racks 2312a, and thus it is possible to effectively suppress the inclination (tilt) of the vane 231 in which the upper and lower movement positions become different due to twisting or inclination.

Referring to fig. 18, a plurality of the gear engagement portions 2312 may be respectively disposed to be symmetrical to each other with respect to a central portion of the air flow adjustment portion 2311. For example, the two gear engagement portions 2312 may be provided symmetrically to each other at the lengthwise midpoint of the air flow regulating portion 2311.

With this structure, the lower and upper halves of the air flow regulating part 2311 may be uniformly forced and moved from the plurality of first racks 2312 a. Therefore, it is possible to effectively suppress the inclination of the upper and lower portions of the vane 231, which is caused by the inclination of the vane 231 due to the imbalance of the forces transmitted to the lower half portion and the upper half portion of the airflow regulating portion 2311, respectively, from becoming different in the moving position of the upper and lower portions of the vane 231.

The mounting housing 234 may be coupled to the cover bracket 232 itself to mount the blade driving part 233 to the cover bracket 232. Therefore, the mounting case 234 may be coupled to the cover bracket 232 such that the longitudinal direction thereof is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the blade 231.

Referring to fig. 19, the mounting case 234 may be provided with a first mounting hole 2341 to which the coupling mechanism 5000 is mounted to be coupled to the cover bracket 232 by the coupling mechanism 5000.

One mounting housing 234 may be provided with a plurality of first mounting holes 2341 to securely couple the mounting housing 234. In this case, the first mounting holes 2341 may be spaced apart from each other along the longitudinal direction of the mounting case 234.

In this configuration, when the coupling mechanism 5000 is inserted into the plurality of first mounting holes 2341 spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the mounting case 234 and the mounting case 234 is coupled to the cover bracket 232, the blade driving part 233 arranged to have a predetermined length in the longitudinal direction of the blade 231 can be stably mounted to the blade module 23.

FIG. 20 is a cutaway perspective view of an embodiment of a blade module 23. FIG. 21A is a plan cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a blade module 23. Fig. 21B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the blade 231 in fig. 21A moves.

The blade 231 may include a first bending portion 2313, and the first bending portion 2313 is formed to connect the air flow regulating portion 2311 and the gear engagement portion 2312 to each other and is bent with respect to the air flow regulating portion 2311 and the gear engagement portion 2312.

Referring to fig. 21A and 21B, as the blade driving section 233 operates, the blade 231 can move to the right in the drawing from the state shown in fig. 21A and be disposed at the position shown in fig. 21B.

The cover bracket 232 may also include a stop 232 a. The stopper 232a is disposed inside the cover bracket 232 to face the first bending portion 2313, and contacts the first bending portion 2313 to guide a moving range of the first bending portion 2313. At this time, the right-side-direction maximum movement position of the blade 231 may be determined by a position at which the first bending portion 2313 contacts the stopper 232a provided inside the cover bracket 232.

Fig. 22 is a front view of another embodiment of a blade 231. A slit hole (slit hole)2311a may be formed at the air flow regulating portion 2311 of the vane 231. The plurality of slit holes 2311a may be provided along the vertical direction of the blade 231, and the slit holes 2311a may be disposed at regular intervals in the vertical direction of the blade 231. The slit holes 2311a may be provided in plural numbers in the left-right direction of the blade 231.

A part of the air flow flowing to the vane 231 may pass through the slit hole 2311 a. Since a part of the gas flow passes through the slit hole 2311a, a temperature difference between the front surface portion and the back surface portion of the blade 231 can be reduced.

Therefore, by forming the slit hole 2311a in the blade 231, condensation of water vapor on the surface of the blade 231 due to a temperature difference between the front surface portion and the rear surface portion caused by the cooled airflow passing through the blade 231 can be suppressed.

Fig. 23A is a diagram illustrating a state in which a part of the blade 231 in fig. 1B is laterally projected toward the front panel 14. The both-side direction arrows shown in fig. 23A and 23B indicate the moving direction of the blade 231.

The plurality of vanes 231 is provided, the plurality of vanes 231 are arranged at intervals along the vertical direction of the housing i, and the vanes 231 can be arranged to operate independently of each other.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 23A, a structure in which two blades 231 are installed in the up-down direction of the casing i is disclosed. Fig. 23B is a diagram for explaining a blade 231 of another embodiment. In the embodiment shown in fig. 23B, a structure in which three blades 231 are installed in the up-down direction of the casing i is disclosed.

By independently controlling the blades 231 arranged in the vertical direction of the casing i, and controlling, for example, a forward-directed airflow to be formed on the upper side of the indoor unit and a side-directed airflow to be formed on the lower side of the indoor unit, it is possible to flow air in various directions in a room in which the indoor unit is disposed, and it is possible to provide convenience to a user.

Fig. 24A is a sectional view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to an embodiment. Arrows shown in fig. 24A to 26B indicate the flow direction of the air discharged from the discharge ports 224A and 224B.

Fig. 24A shows a state in which the side doors 221a and 221b close the discharge ports 224A and 224 b. Fig. 24B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the side doors 221a and 221B in fig. 24A move. Fig. 24C is a diagram illustrating a state in which the blades 231a, 231B in fig. 24B are moved.

Referring to fig. 24B, the side doors 221a and 221B move rearward, and the discharge ports 224a and 224B are opened. In a state where the blades 231a and 231b are housed in the housing positions on the back surface of the front panel 14, the blades 231a and 231b do not affect the flow of air passing through the discharge ports 224a and 224 b.

When the side doors 221a and 221b move rearward and the discharge ports 224a and 224b are opened, the air flow Fm of the air that is heat-exchanged by the heat exchanger 41 and is discharged by being pressurized by the side air supply motor 322a and the side air supply fan 321a may form a forward-directed air flow facing forward by the side blades 225a and 225 b. That is, the state shown in fig. 24B may be a state in which the direct wind mode operation is performed.

When it is necessary to switch the air flow from the direct wind mode to the side directional air flow as described above, the blades 231a and 231b can be horizontally moved from the above-described storage position to the deployed position.

That is, the left blade 231a may be horizontally moved to the deployed position in the left direction (Le direction), and the right blade 231b may be horizontally moved in the right direction (Ri direction).

As described above, when the left blade 231a and the right blade 231b are moved to the respective deployed positions, as shown in fig. 24C, the airflow direction of the airflow Fm of the air discharged from the left discharge opening 224a can be switched to the left by the left blade 231a, and the airflow direction of the airflow Fm of the air discharged from the right discharge opening 224b can be switched to the right by the right blade 231 b.

That is, the air discharged through the discharge ports 224a and 224b is subjected to the resistance of the blades 231a and 231b, and particularly, the air on the front end side of the discharge ports 224a and 224b directly collides with the blades 231a and 231b and changes the moving direction, whereby the flow of the discharged air is changed as a whole, and the operation state of the indoor unit can be changed from the direct air mode to the indirect air mode.

In fig. 24C, both the left blade 231a and the right blade 231b are horizontally moved to the deployed position, but in contrast to this, only one of the left blade 231a and the right blade 231b may be moved to the deployed position. That is, by independently driving the left blade 231a and the right blade 231b, respectively, it is possible to control that either side forms the front directional airflow and the other side forms the side directional airflow.

Fig. 25A is a sectional view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to another embodiment. Fig. 25B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the side doors 221a and 221B in fig. 25A are moved.

In the indoor unit of the embodiment, the front panel 14 may be formed in a shape extending from both sides thereof so as to shield the entire side doors 221a and 221b when viewed from the front-rear direction of the indoor unit. In this case, since the front panel 14 may replace the blade, the blade may not be provided in the embodiment shown in fig. 25A and 25B.

As shown in fig. 25A, when the side doors 221a and 221b are completely moved rearward and the discharge ports 224a and 224b are completely opened, the air discharged from the discharge ports 224a and 224b is changed in movement direction while colliding with the front panel 14 in front, and the entire flow of discharged air is changed to a side directional flow, so that the indoor unit can be operated in the indirect air mode.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 25B, when the side doors 221a and 221B slightly move forward from the state of fig. 25A and block part of the discharge ports 224a and 224B, part of the air discharged from the discharge ports 224a and 224B collides with the side doors 221a and 221B and the moving direction is switched, so that the air flow can be relatively formed as a forward-directed air flow as a whole, as compared with the case shown in fig. 25A.

Fig. 26A is a sectional view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to still another embodiment. Fig. 26B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the side doors 221a, 221B and the vanes 231a, 231B in fig. 26A move.

The indoor unit of an air conditioner of the embodiment shown in fig. 26A and 26B may further include an air guide 14 a. The air guide 14a may be disposed at a position facing a side end of the front panel 14 and may shield at least a part of the side doors 221a and 221b when viewed from the front-rear direction. The air guides 14a may be disposed at both sides of the front panel 14 at positions spaced apart from both ends of the front panel 14.

A guide hole 14b for guiding the flow direction of the air discharged from the discharge ports 224a and 224b may be formed between the side end of the air guide 14a and the side end of the front panel 14. The guide hole 14b may be formed at a position corresponding to the discharge ports 224a and 224b, and may eject the air discharged from the discharge ports 224a and 224b forward.

For example, the air guide 14a may be formed integrally with the front panel 14, and the guide hole 14b may be formed on an integrated structure of the air guide 14a and the front panel 14. It should be noted that, without being limited thereto, the air guide 14a and the front panel 14 may be separately manufactured and coupled to each other.

The side doors 221a, 221b may be disposed in contact with the air guide 14a and close at least a portion of the discharge ports 224a, 224 b. In addition, the vanes 231a, 231b may be disposed to contact the air guide 14a and close at least a portion of the guide hole 14 b.

In the state shown in fig. 26A, the side doors 221a and 221b move forward and the front ends thereof contact the air guide 14a, so that the discharge ports 224a and 224b are closed, and the vanes 231a and 231b are hidden at the storage positions on the back side of the front panel 14, thereby not affecting the air passing through the guide holes 14 b.

Therefore, in the state shown in fig. 26A, the air discharged from the discharge ports 224a and 224b moves to the front of the indoor unit through the guide hole 14b, and can be formed into a forward directional airflow as a whole. That is, in the state shown in fig. 26A, the indoor unit can be operated in the direct air mode.

In the state shown in fig. 26B, the side doors 221a and 221B move rearward, so that the discharge ports 224a and 224B are opened, and the vanes 231a and 231B can move horizontally from the storage position to the deployed position. When the vanes 231a, 231b are in the deployed position, the vanes 231a, 231b may contact the air guide 14a, whereby the guide hole 14b is closed by the vanes 231a, 231 b.

Therefore, in the state shown in fig. 26B, the air discharged from the discharge ports 224a and 224B can collide with the vanes 231a and 231B to change the air flow, and does not pass through the closed guide hole 14B. As a result, the entire air flow of the air discharged from the discharge ports 224a and 224b is converted into the side-directional air flow, and the indoor unit can be operated in the indirect air mode.

Fig. 26C is a diagram showing a state in which the blades 231a, 231B in fig. 26B move to form a forward-directed air flow of air. Fig. 26C shows a state in which the blades 231a and 231B are horizontally moved from the state of fig. 26B to the storage position. In the state of fig. 26C, the airflow Fm of air discharged from the indoor unit can form both a front directional airflow and a side directional airflow.

Since the side directional airflow needs to collide with the air guide 14a and change the flow path, the discharge amount of the side directional airflow may be smaller than that of the front directional airflow. Therefore, in the state of fig. 26C, the front-directed airflow may be more dominant than the side-directed airflow.

As described above, the present invention is explained with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the embodiments and drawings disclosed in the present specification, and it is apparent that various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. In addition, even when the embodiments of the present invention are described above, the operational effects of the configuration according to the present invention are not explicitly described, and the effects that can be predicted by the corresponding configuration should be recognized.

Claims (20)

1. An indoor unit of an air conditioner, comprising:

a housing provided with a discharge port;

a front panel disposed on a front surface of the housing; and

a blade module disposed in front of the discharge port, for converting a direction of the air flow discharged through the discharge port,

the blade module is disposed inside the front panel.

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

the blade module includes:

a cover bracket coupled to the housing;

a blade mounted to the cover bracket and provided to be movable toward a lateral direction of the cover bracket; and

a blade driving part mounted on the cover bracket and used for moving the blade towards the lateral direction of the cover bracket,

the vanes are provided in plural numbers and are arranged such that movement of each of the vanes is independently controlled.

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

the blade module is arranged to be combined on the inner side surface of the front panel.

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

the blade module further includes a mounting housing that houses at least a portion of the blade drive portion and mounts the blade drive portion to the cover bracket.

5. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 4, wherein,

the blade driving part includes:

a vane motor mounted to the mounting case and providing a rotational force;

an extension rotation shaft extending from a rotation shaft of the vane motor and rotating; and

and a first pinion gear attached to the extension rotation shaft.

6. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 5,

the blade includes:

an airflow adjusting section which is disposed along a vertical direction of the housing in a longitudinal direction thereof, moves in a lateral direction of the housing as the blade driving section operates, and switches a direction of the airflow discharged from the discharge port; and

and a gear engagement portion formed with a first rack protruding from the air flow adjustment portion and engaged with the first pinion.

7. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 6,

a plurality of the gear engagement portions are provided at one blade, the number of the first pinion gears is the same as the number of the gear engagement portions,

the first pinions are disposed at intervals in a longitudinal direction of the extended rotary shaft.

8. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 7,

the plurality of gear engagement portions are respectively arranged to be symmetrical to each other with respect to a central portion of the air flow regulating portion.

9. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 6,

the blade includes a first bent portion formed to connect the air flow regulating portion and the gear meshing portion to each other and bent with respect to the air flow regulating portion and the gear meshing portion.

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

the blades are respectively arranged on the left side and the right side of the shell and are arranged in a plurality along the up-down direction of the shell,

each of the blades is configured to operate independently of the other.

11. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 4, wherein,

the mounting case is provided with a first mounting hole for mounting a coupling mechanism to be coupled to the cover bracket through the coupling mechanism.

12. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 11,

the mounting case is coupled to the cover bracket such that a longitudinal direction thereof is parallel to a longitudinal direction of the blade,

the first mounting holes are provided in plural numbers and are arranged at intervals along a longitudinal direction of the mounting case, respectively.

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

the plurality of blades are arranged at intervals along the vertical direction of the shell, and each blade is set to work independently.

14. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 9,

the cover bracket further includes a stopper disposed to face the first bent portion and contacting the first bent portion to guide a moving range of the first bent portion.

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

the blade module comprises a side door for opening and closing the discharge port,

the indoor unit of an air conditioner further includes an air guide member disposed to face a side end of the front panel and to shield at least a portion of the side door when viewed from a front-rear direction.

16. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 15, wherein,

a guide hole that guides a flow direction of the air discharged from the discharge port is formed between a side end of the air guide and a side end of the front panel.

17. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 16, wherein,

the side door is disposed in contact with the air guide to close at least a portion of the discharge port,

the vane is disposed in contact with the air guide to close at least a portion of the guide hole.

18. An indoor unit of an air conditioner, comprising:

a housing provided with a discharge port;

a front door module for opening and closing a front discharge port formed in the front surface of the housing or converting the direction of the air flow;

a side door module for opening and closing the discharge port formed in the side surface of the housing or converting the direction of the air flow; and

a blade module disposed in front of the discharge port and configured to switch a direction of the air flow discharged through the discharge port,

the housing includes a front panel disposed at a front surface,

the blade module is arranged to be combined on the inner side surface of the front panel.

19. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 18,

the blade module includes:

a cover bracket coupled to the housing;

a blade mounted to the cover bracket and provided to be movable toward a lateral direction of the cover bracket;

a blade driving unit attached to the cover bracket and configured to move the blade in a lateral direction of the cover bracket; and

a mounting case accommodating at least a portion of the blade driving part and mounting the blade driving part to the cover bracket,

the vanes are provided in plural numbers and are arranged such that movement of each of the vanes is independently controlled.

20. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 19,

the blade driving part includes:

a vane motor mounted to the mounting case and providing a rotational force;

an extension rotation shaft extending from a rotation shaft of the vane motor and rotating; and

a first pinion gear mounted to the extended rotary shaft,

the blade includes:

an airflow adjusting section which is disposed along a vertical direction of the housing in a longitudinal direction thereof, moves in a lateral direction of the housing as the blade driving section operates, and switches a direction of the airflow discharged from the discharge port; and

and a gear engagement portion formed with a first rack protruding from the air flow adjustment portion and engaged with the first pinion.

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