CN116772288A

CN116772288A - Air conditioner and control method thereof

Info

Publication number: CN116772288A
Application number: CN202310564817.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 王明; 宋书华; 刘忠; 鹿术超
Original assignee: Qingdao Hisense Hitachi Air Conditioning System Co Ltd
Current assignee: Qingdao Hisense Hitachi Air Conditioning System Co Ltd
Priority date: 2023-05-18
Filing date: 2023-05-18
Publication date: 2023-09-19

Abstract

The embodiment of the application discloses an air conditioner and a control method thereof, relates to the technical field of air conditioners, and is used for controlling an outdoor heat exchanger to defrost a partial area and shortening defrosting time. The air conditioner includes: an outdoor unit; at least one indoor unit; a refrigerant circulation circuit; an outdoor heat exchanger and an indoor heat exchanger; a four-way valve; a controller configured to: acquiring an operation mode, a continuous operation duration and sub rated capacities of all indoor units in at least one indoor unit of the air conditioner; the operation modes include a heating operation mode and a cooling operation mode; under the condition that the operation mode is a heating operation mode and the continuous operation time length reaches a first preset time length, determining one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting; determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, which needs to be subjected to concentrated defrosting, according to the total rated capacity of one or more target indoor units and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit; and controlling the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area.

Description

Air conditioner and control method thereof

Technical Field

The application relates to the technical field of air conditioners, in particular to an air conditioner and a control method thereof.

Background

With the increasing of life quality, the air conditioner becomes a stock household appliance of a family, and a user keeps indoor temperature and humidity in a comfortable range of the user through the functions of refrigerating, heating, humidifying, dehumidifying and the like of the air conditioner.

However, in winter, when the outdoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner frosts, the braking capacity of the outdoor unit is greatly reduced, and the indoor heating requirement cannot be met. The indoor unit is required to operate in a heating operation mode, and the outdoor heat exchanger needs to be defrosted. Defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger is to melt off frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger, which is equivalent to refrigerating of the indoor unit, and at the moment, the indoor user temperature will be reduced, so that the user experience is poor.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides an air conditioner and a control method thereof, which are used for controlling an outdoor heat exchanger to defrost a partial area and shortening defrosting time.

In order to achieve the above purpose, the present application adopts the following technical scheme.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an air conditioner, including: an outdoor unit; at least one indoor unit; a refrigerant circulation loop for circulating the refrigerant in a loop formed by the compressor, the condenser, the expansion valve, the evaporator, the four-way valve and the pressure reducer; an outdoor heat exchanger and an indoor heat exchanger, wherein one of the two heat exchangers works as a condenser and the other works as an evaporator; the four-way valve is used for controlling the flow direction of the refrigerant in the refrigerant circulation loop; a controller configured to: acquiring an operation mode, a continuous operation duration and sub rated capacities of all indoor units in at least one indoor unit of the air conditioner; the operation modes include a heating operation mode and a cooling operation mode; under the condition that the operation mode is a heating operation mode and the continuous operation time length reaches a first preset time length, determining one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting; determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, which needs to be subjected to concentrated defrosting, according to the total rated capacity of one or more target indoor units and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit; and controlling the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area.

The technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the application at least has the following beneficial effects: the technical scheme of the application provides an intelligent defrosting method for an air conditioner in a heating operation mode, and a target area which needs to be defrosted in an outdoor heat exchanger is determined according to the ratio of the total rated capacity of one or more indoor units in the heating operation mode to the rated capacity of the outdoor unit, so that the air conditioner only defrost the target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, and the defrosting time of the outdoor heat exchanger is shortened. Meanwhile, the problem of low user temperature sensitivity caused by overlong operation refrigeration mode time of the indoor unit during defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger is avoided. The indoor unit can be ensured to operate according to the instruction of the user, and the user experience is optimized.

In some embodiments, the air conditioner further comprises: the human body induction sensor is used for detecting human body detection results in rooms corresponding to all indoor units in the plurality of indoor units; the controller is configured to determine one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting under the condition that the operation mode is a heating operation mode and the continuous operation duration reaches a first preset duration, and is specifically configured to: acquiring human body detection results in rooms corresponding to all indoor units in the plurality of indoor units through a human body induction sensor; the human body detection result includes the presence of a human body in the room or the absence of a human body in the room; and determining one or more target indoor units which need to be subjected to centralized defrosting according to the human body detection result.

In some embodiments, the controller is configured to determine, according to the human body detection result, one or more target indoor units that need to perform centralized defrosting, and specifically configured to: if the human body detection result is that at least one room contains human bodies, determining the indoor units in the room without human bodies as one or more target indoor units; and under the condition that the human body detection result shows that no human body exists in all rooms, the outdoor heat exchanger is determined not to need concentrated defrosting.

In some embodiments, the controller is configured to determine a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger in need of concentrated defrosting according to the total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit, and specifically configured to: calculating the ratio between the total rated capacity and the capacity of the outdoor unit; and determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, which needs to be subjected to concentrated defrosting, according to the heat exchange area and the ratio of the outdoor heat exchanger.

In some embodiments, the controller is configured to control the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area, and is specifically configured to: controlling one or more target indoor units to operate in a refrigerating operation mode and a target area to operate in a heating operation mode so as to intensively defrost the target area; and ending the concentrated defrosting after the continuous operation time of the concentrated defrosting reaches the second preset time.

In some embodiments, the controller is configured to control the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area, and is specifically configured to: when the target area is determined to need to be subjected to the concentrated defrosting, controlling a target indoor unit to be subjected to the concentrated defrosting to operate in a refrigerating operation mode; and after the continuous operation time length of the target indoor unit in the operation refrigeration operation mode reaches the second preset time length, ending the centralized defrosting.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for controlling an air conditioner, including: acquiring an operation mode, a continuous operation duration and sub rated capacities of all indoor units in at least one indoor unit of the air conditioner; the operation modes include a heating operation mode and a cooling operation mode; under the condition that the operation mode is a heating operation mode and the continuous operation time length reaches a first preset time length, determining one or more indoor units in the heating operation mode; determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger to be subjected to concentrated defrosting according to the total rated capacity of one or more indoor units in the running heating running mode and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit; and controlling the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a controller, including: one or more processors; one or more memories; wherein the one or more memories are configured to store computer program code comprising computer instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the controller to perform any of the methods of controlling an air conditioner provided in the second aspect.

In a fourth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer-readable storage medium comprising computer instructions which, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method provided in the second aspect and in a possible implementation.

In a fifth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer program product directly loadable into a memory and comprising software code, the computer program product being capable of performing the method as provided in the second aspect and in a possible implementation after being loaded and executed via a computer.

It should be noted that the above-mentioned computer instructions may be stored in whole or in part on a computer-readable storage medium. The computer readable storage medium may be packaged together with the processor of the controller or may be packaged separately from the processor of the controller, which is not limited in the present application.

The advantageous effects described in the second to fifth aspects of the present application may be referred to for the advantageous effect analysis of the first aspect, and will not be described here again.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the application and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate and do not limit the application.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a throttling device according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of another throttling device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4 is a schematic circuit diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of an indoor unit according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of a refrigerant flowing direction of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a sensor arrangement according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a block diagram of a hardware configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of an operation mode of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of an operation mode of another air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is a schematic flow chart of a control method of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 12 is a schematic view of a target area for defrosting according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of another target area for defrosting according to an embodiment of the application;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view of another target area for defrosting according to an embodiment of the application;

Fig. 15 is a flowchart of another control method of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 16 is a flowchart illustrating another control method of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The following description of the embodiments of the present application will be made clearly and completely with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which it is apparent that the embodiments described are only some embodiments of the present application, but not all embodiments. All other embodiments, which can be made by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the application without making any inventive effort, are intended to be within the scope of the application.

It should be noted that all directional indicators (such as up, down, left, right, front, and rear … …) in the embodiments of the present application are merely used to explain the relative positional relationship, movement, etc. between the components in a particular posture (as shown in the drawings), and if the particular posture is changed, the directional indicator is changed accordingly.

The terms "first," "second," and the like, are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defining "a first" or "a second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more such feature. In the description of the present application, unless otherwise indicated, the meaning of "a plurality" is two or more.

In the description of the present application, it should be noted that, unless explicitly stated and limited otherwise, the terms "connected," "connected," and "connected" are to be construed broadly, and may be, for example, fixedly connected, detachably connected, or integrally connected. The specific meaning of the above terms in the present application will be understood in specific cases by those of ordinary skill in the art. In addition, when describing a pipeline, the terms "connected" and "connected" as used herein have the meaning of conducting. The specific meaning is to be understood in conjunction with the context.

In embodiments of the application, words such as "exemplary" or "such as" are used to mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any embodiment or design described herein as "exemplary" or "e.g." in an embodiment should not be taken as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "such as" is intended to present related concepts in a concrete fashion.

As described above, the problem of frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger occurs when the air conditioner is operated in the heating operation mode in winter, but the total rated capacity of the indoor unit in the heating operation mode may be smaller than the rated capacity of the outdoor unit, which may result in longer defrosting time of the outdoor heat exchanger and affect the user experience.

Based on this, an embodiment of the present application provides an air conditioner, including: an outdoor unit; at least one indoor unit; a refrigerant circulation loop for circulating the refrigerant in a loop formed by the compressor, the condenser, the expansion valve, the evaporator, the four-way valve and the pressure reducer; an outdoor heat exchanger and an indoor heat exchanger, wherein one of the two heat exchangers works as a condenser and the other works as an evaporator; the four-way valve is used for controlling the flow direction of the refrigerant in the refrigerant circulation loop; a controller configured to: acquiring an operation mode, a continuous operation duration and sub rated capacities of all indoor units in at least one indoor unit of the air conditioner; the operation modes include a heating operation mode and a cooling operation mode; under the condition that the operation mode is a heating operation mode and the continuous operation time length reaches a first preset time length, determining one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting; determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, which needs to be subjected to concentrated defrosting, according to the total rated capacity of one or more target indoor units and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit; and controlling the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area.

Therefore, the defrosting time of the outdoor heat exchanger is shortened, the indoor unit can be ensured to operate according to the instruction of a user, and the user experience is optimized.

The embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings attached to the specification.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an air conditioner according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 1, the air conditioner 1 includes an outdoor unit 10, an indoor unit 20, and a controller 1000 (not shown in fig. 1). Wherein, each indoor unit in at least one indoor unit is connected with the outdoor unit through a refrigerant connecting pipeline respectively.

In fig. 1, only one outdoor unit is connected to two indoor units, and the present application provides a multi-split air conditioner in which one outdoor unit is connected to a plurality of indoor units, and the composition of the multi-split air conditioner in fig. 1 is not limited to the multi-split air conditioner.

In some embodiments, the outdoor unit 10 is typically disposed outdoors for heat exchange in an indoor environment. In fig. 1, the outdoor unit 10 is shown by a broken line because the outdoor unit 10 is located outdoors on the opposite side of the indoor unit 20 across the wall surface.

In some embodiments, the indoor unit 20, for example, an indoor unit, is typically mounted on an indoor wall surface or the like. For another example, an indoor unit (not shown in fig. 1) is also an indoor unit mode of an indoor unit. The multi-split air conditioner can comprise an outdoor unit and more than 2 indoor cabinet units.

In the illustrated embodiment of the present application, the controller 1000 refers to a device that can generate an operation control signal instructing the air conditioner 1 to execute a control instruction according to an instruction operation code and a timing signal. By way of example, the controller 1000 may be a central processing unit (central processing unit, CPU), a general purpose processor network processor (network processor, NP), a digital signal processor (digital signal processing, DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a programmable logic device (programmable logic device, PLD), or any combination thereof. The controller 1000 may also be any other device having a processing function, such as a circuit, a device, or a software module, which is not limited in this regard by the embodiment of the present application.

Further, the controller 1000 may be used to control various components in the inside of the air conditioner 1 such that the various components operate to achieve various predetermined functions of the air conditioner 1.

In some embodiments, each of the indoor units 20 may also be equipped with a remote control, having a function of communicating with the controller 1000, for example, using infrared or other communication means. The remote controller is used for various controls of each indoor unit in the indoor unit 20 by a user, and interaction between the user and the air conditioner 1 is achieved.

Fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a throttling device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 2, the throttle device 21 includes an expansion valve 211. There is a pipe connection between the outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20, and an expansion valve 211 is provided on the pipe between the indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10. The pipeline, namely a gas-liquid pipe, comprises: the gas pipe is used for conveying gaseous refrigerants and the liquid pipe is used for conveying two-phase refrigerants.

In some embodiments, the throttling device 21 is used for adjusting the flow rate of fluid in the air-conditioning gas-liquid pipe and adjusting the flow rate of refrigerant. The expansion valve 211 is used for adjusting the supply amount of the refrigerant in the pipeline. The expansion valve 211 may be independent of the outdoor unit 10.

In some embodiments, the expansion valve 211 may also be attached to a portion of the outdoor unit 10 (as shown in fig. 3), and fig. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of another throttling device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application.

Further, the outdoor unit 10, the throttle device 21, and the indoor unit 20 are all communicatively connected to the controller 1000 (not shown in fig. 1), and perform related operations according to instructions of the controller 1000.

Taking a part of the expansion valve 211 belonging to the outdoor unit 10 as an example, fig. 4 is a schematic circuit diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 4, the air conditioner 1 further includes: a refrigerant circulation circuit 30.

In some embodiments, the vapor compression refrigeration cycle can be performed by the refrigerant circulation in the refrigerant circulation circuit 30. The indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 are connected to each other using a connection pipe to form a refrigerant circulation circuit 30 through which a refrigerant circulates.

In some embodiments, the refrigerant circulation circuit 30 includes a compressor 11, an outdoor heat exchanger 13, an expansion valve 211, a receiver 14, and an indoor heat exchanger group 15. Wherein the indoor heat exchanger group 15 and the outdoor heat exchanger 13 function as a condenser or an evaporator. The compressor 11 sucks in refrigerant from the suction port, and discharges the refrigerant compressed therein from the discharge port to the indoor heat exchanger group 15.

In some embodiments, the outdoor heat exchanger 13 has a first inlet and outlet for circulating the refrigerant between the compressor 11 and the suction port via the accumulator 14, and has a second inlet and outlet for circulating the refrigerant between the expansion valve 211. The outdoor heat exchanger 13 exchanges heat between the outdoor air and a refrigerant flowing through a heat transfer pipe (not shown in fig. 4) connected between the second inlet and the first inlet of the outdoor heat exchanger 13.

In some embodiments, the expansion valve 211 is disposed between the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the indoor heat exchanger group 15. The expansion valve 211 has a function of expanding and decompressing the refrigerant flowing between the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the indoor heat exchanger group 15. The expansion valve 211 is configured to be capable of changing the opening degree, and the opening degree is reduced to increase the flow resistance of the refrigerant passing through the expansion valve 211, and the opening degree is increased to decrease the flow resistance of the refrigerant passing through the expansion valve 211. The expansion valve 211 expands and decompresses the refrigerant flowing from the indoor heat exchanger group 15 to the outdoor heat exchanger 13 during the heating operation. In addition, even if the state of other devices mounted in the refrigerant circulation circuit 30 is not changed, when the opening degree of the expansion valve 211 is changed, the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing in the refrigerant circulation circuit 30 is changed.

In some embodiments, the indoor heat exchanger group 15 has a second inlet and outlet for flowing the liquid refrigerant between the expansion valve 211 and a first inlet and outlet for flowing the gas refrigerant between the discharge port of the compressor 11. The indoor heat exchanger group 15 exchanges heat between the indoor air and a refrigerant flowing through a heat transfer pipe (not shown in fig. 4) connected between the second inlet and the first inlet of the indoor heat exchanger group 15.

In some embodiments, a reservoir 14 is disposed between the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the suction inlet of the compressor 11. In the accumulator 14, the refrigerant flowing from the outdoor heat exchanger 13 to the compressor 11 is separated into a gas refrigerant and a liquid refrigerant. The gas refrigerant is mainly supplied from the accumulator 14 to the suction port of the compressor 11.

In some embodiments, the outdoor unit 10 is further provided with an outdoor fan 22, and the outdoor fan 22 generates an airflow of the outdoor air passing through the outdoor heat exchanger 13 to promote heat exchange between the refrigerant flowing in the heat transfer pipe (not shown in fig. 4) and the outdoor air. The outdoor fan 22 is driven by an outdoor fan motor 22A capable of changing the rotational speed.

In some embodiments, taking a first indoor unit 20A of the at least one indoor unit as an example, the first indoor unit 20A is provided with an indoor fan 31, and the indoor fan 31 generates an airflow of indoor air passing through the indoor heat exchanger group 15 to promote heat exchange between a refrigerant flowing in a heat transfer pipe (not shown in fig. 4) and the indoor air. The indoor fan 31 is driven by an indoor fan motor 31A capable of changing the rotational speed.

Fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of an indoor unit according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 5, taking a first indoor unit 20A of at least one indoor unit as an example, the first indoor unit 20A includes a casing 32, an air filter 33, a horizontal baffle 34, a horizontal baffle 35, and a vertical baffle 36.

In some embodiments, the housing 32 is in the shape of a box extending elongated in a length direction (hereinafter also referred to as a left-right direction) and having a plurality of openings. A suction port 37 is provided in the top surface of the housing 32. By driving the indoor fan 31, the indoor air in the vicinity of the suction port 37 is taken into the casing 32 from the suction port 37. The indoor air taken in from the intake port 37 passes through the air filter 33 provided on the top surface portion of the casing 32, and is further sent to the indoor fan 31 through the first indoor heat exchanger 201 of the first indoor unit 20A.

In some embodiments, a blowout port 38 is formed in a bottom surface portion of the housing 32. The blow-out port 38 is connected to the inside of the casing 32 through a scroll flow path 38B continuous from the indoor fan 31. The indoor air sucked through the suction port 37 is subjected to heat exchange by the first indoor heat exchanger 201 of the first indoor unit 20A, and then is blown out from the blowout port 38 to the indoor RS through the swirl flow path 38B. A flow path lower surface 38A is provided on the rear side of the scroll flow path 38B. The cross-sectional shape of the flow path lower surface 38A depicts a curve that moves away from the rotation center of the indoor fan 31 with revolution.

In some embodiments, the air outlet 38 is provided with a horizontal baffle 34 and a horizontal baffle 35 extending long in the left-right direction. The horizontal barrier 34 and the horizontal barrier 35 are rotatably mounted on the housing 32. The horizontal barrier 34 and the horizontal barrier 35 are configured to be rotatable independently about respective rotation centers extending in the left-right direction by a horizontal barrier driving motor provided for each horizontal barrier. The horizontal baffle 34 and the horizontal baffle 35 adjust the vertical direction of the air blown out from the air outlet 38, individually or in cooperation with each other.

In some embodiments, a plurality of vertical baffles 36 having a plane intersecting the left-right direction are provided deep in the blowout port 38. The vertical barrier 36 can be rotated by a vertical barrier driving motor about a rotation center extending in the up-down direction (a direction intersecting the left-right direction). These vertical flaps 36 adjust the wind direction of the air blown out from the air outlet 38.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of a refrigerant flowing direction of an air conditioner according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 6.

In some embodiments, taking the first indoor unit 20A as an example, when the air conditioner is in the cooling mode, the d-terminal and the c-terminal of the four-way valve 114 are connected, and the e-terminal and the s-terminal are connected, at this time, the outdoor heat exchanger 13 serves as a condenser, and the first indoor heat exchanger 201 of the first indoor unit 20A serves as an evaporator. The refrigerant in the compressor 11 flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 13 through the d-end and the c-end of the four-way valve 114, releases heat in the outdoor heat exchanger 13, flows out of the outdoor unit through the expansion valve 211, and flows into the indoor unit. The refrigerant flowing into the indoor unit passes through the first indoor heat exchanger 201 of the first indoor unit 20A, and the first indoor heat exchanger 201 serves as an evaporator. The refrigerant absorbs heat at the first indoor heat exchanger 201, reducing the water side temperature. Then, the refrigerant in the first indoor unit 20A flows into the gas-liquid separator 113 through the e-terminal and s-terminal of the four-way valve 114, and flows back to the compressor 11, thereby forming a refrigeration cycle.

In some embodiments, when the air conditioner is in the heating operation mode, the d-side and e-side of the four-way valve 114 are connected, and the c-side and s-side are connected, and the outdoor heat exchanger 13 serves as an evaporator and the first indoor heat exchanger 201 serves as a condenser. The refrigerant in the compressor 11 flows into the first indoor unit 20A through the d-end and the e-end of the four-way valve 114, passes through the first indoor heat exchanger 201, the first indoor heat exchanger 201 serves as a condenser, the refrigerant radiates heat in the first indoor heat exchanger 201, and the flowing water at the water side passes through the first indoor heat exchanger 201, and as the refrigerant radiates heat in this process, the flowing water exchanges heat at the first indoor heat exchanger 201, so that the water temperature rises accordingly. After the refrigerant flows out of the first indoor heat exchanger 201, the refrigerant enters the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and absorbs heat, and then the refrigerant flows into the gas-liquid separator 113 through the c end and the s end of the four-way valve 114, and flows back to the compressor 11 to form a heating cycle.

In some embodiments, a human body induction sensor may be further provided in each indoor unit of the indoor units 20, taking the first indoor unit 20A as an example, fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of a setting position of a sensor according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 7, the first indoor unit 20A is provided with a human body induction sensor 20B.

The human body induction sensor 20B is configured to detect a human body detection result in a room corresponding to each of the plurality of indoor units.

Fig. 8 is a block diagram of a hardware configuration of an air conditioner according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 8, the air conditioner 1 may further include two items: a communicator 1002 and a memory 1003.

In some embodiments, the communicator 1002 is configured to establish a communication connection with other network entities, such as with a terminal device. The communicator 1002 may include a Radio Frequency (RF) module, a cellular module, a wireless fidelity (wireless fidelity, WIFI) module, a GPS module, and the like. Taking an RF module as an example, the RF module may be used for receiving and transmitting signals, in particular, transmitting received information to the controller 1000 for processing; in addition, the signal generated by the controller 1000 is transmitted. Typically, the RF circuitry may include, but is not limited to, an antenna, at least one amplifier, a transceiver, a coupler, a low noise amplifier (low noise amplifier, LNA), a duplexer, and the like.

In some embodiments, memory 1003 may be used to store software programs and data. The controller 1000 executes various functions and data processing of the air conditioner 1 by running software programs or data stored in the memory 1003. Memory 1003 may include high-speed random access memory, and may also include non-volatile memory, such as at least one magnetic disk storage device, flash memory device, or other volatile solid-state storage device. The memory 1003 stores an operating system that enables the air conditioner 1 to operate. The memory 1003 in the present application may store an operating system and various application programs, and may also store codes for executing the control method of the air conditioner 1 provided in the embodiment of the present application.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the hardware configuration shown in fig. 8 is not limiting of the present air conditioner 1, and that the air conditioner 1 may include more or less components than illustrated, or certain components may be combined, or different arrangements of components.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 9, a first indoor unit of the at least one indoor unit is taken as an example, and when the first indoor unit is operated in the cooling operation mode, the first indoor heat exchanger of the first indoor unit operates as an evaporator, and the outdoor heat exchanger of the outdoor unit operates as a condenser.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 10, a first indoor unit of at least one indoor unit is taken as an example, and when the first indoor unit is operated in a heating operation mode, a first indoor heat exchanger of the first indoor unit operates as a condenser, and an outdoor heat exchanger of the outdoor unit operates as an evaporator.

In an actual use scenario, when a user uses the heating operation mode in winter, the outdoor temperature is low, and the outdoor heat exchanger is evaporated and radiated when working as an evaporator, so that the phenomenon of frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger may occur. When the outdoor unit frosts, the heat exchange capacity of the outdoor unit may be reduced, so that the outdoor unit cannot meet the heating requirement of the indoor unit. At this time, defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger is required.

Further, when the outdoor heat exchanger is defrosted, the defrosting area is an integral heat exchanger, but when the total rated capacity of the indoor unit in operation is smaller than the rated capacity of the outdoor heat exchanger, the heat exchange time is prolonged. Meanwhile, when the outdoor heat exchanger is used for defrosting, namely, the outdoor heat exchanger is used for heating and the indoor machine is used for refrigerating, the indoor user feel is lower, and therefore the use comfort is reduced.

Fig. 11 is a schematic flow chart of a control method of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application, as shown in fig. 11, the method includes:

s101, a controller acquires an operation mode, a continuous operation duration and sub rated capacities of all indoor units in at least one indoor unit of the air conditioner.

The operation modes of the air conditioner comprise a heating operation mode and a refrigerating operation mode.

In some embodiments, each of the outdoor unit and the at least one indoor unit of the air conditioner has its own rated capacity. The rated capacity is used to identify the amount of cooling or heating of the air conditioner.

Rated capacity, also known as rated match, or input power. Because of the specific system and electric control design difference of different air conditioner factories, the output refrigerating capacity or heating capacity is different, so the refrigerating capacity or heating capacity is calculated by output power.

For example, the air conditioner includes an indoor unit and an outdoor unit, and the indoor unit and the outdoor unit have the same rated capacity. The output electric power of the rated capacity of 1HP (i.e., 1 p) was 735W. For example, if the energy efficiency ratio is 3, the cooling capacity of the air conditioner with a rated capacity of 1HP is 735wx3=2205w.

In some embodiments, taking an example in which the air conditioner includes one outdoor unit and at least one indoor unit, the rated capacity of the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is a sum of sub-rated capacities of respective indoor units of the at least one indoor unit.

For example, if the air conditioner includes four indoor units, the sub rated capacities of the four indoor units are respectively: 1HP, 1.5HP, 2HP and 1HP, the rated capacity of the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is 5.5HP.

For another example, if the air conditioner includes five indoor units, the sub rated capacities of the four indoor units are respectively: 1HP, 1HP and 1HP, the rated capacity of the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is 5HP.

In some embodiments, the controller may determine whether the outdoor heat exchanger needs to be defrosted according to an operation mode of the air conditioner. The controller may determine whether the air conditioner reaches a condition for entering defrosting according to a continuous operation time period of the air conditioner. The controller can divide the outdoor heat exchanger into a plurality of subarea outdoor heat exchangers according to the sub rated capacity of each indoor unit in at least one indoor unit, and defrost the corresponding heat exchange area, so as to reduce the defrosting time of the air conditioner.

S102, under the condition that the operation mode is a heating operation mode and the continuous operation time length reaches a first preset time length, the controller determines one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting.

In some embodiments, when the operation mode of the air conditioner is a heating operation mode, and the duration of the operation of the air conditioner reaches the first preset duration, the outdoor heat exchanger of the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is in evaporative heat dissipation for a long time, and a problem of frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger may occur. At this time, defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger is required.

It should be noted that the first preset duration is preset by the air conditioner manufacturer and stored in the memory, and the first preset durations of different air conditioner manufacturers may be different, which is not limited in the present application.

In some embodiments, when the outdoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner needs to be defrosted, the controller may determine one or more indoor units of a heating operation mode being operated as one or more target indoor units that need to be intensively defrosted, and intensively defrost the outdoor heat exchanger in a partition according to a relationship between a total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units and a capacity of the outdoor unit.

It should be understood that, after the outdoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner is frosted, assuming that the total rated capacity of the indoor units in the operation heating operation mode is smaller than the rated capacity of the outdoor unit, if all the indoor units are determined to be the target indoor units requiring concentrated defrosting at this time, the air conditioner needs to perform concentrated defrosting on the whole outdoor heat exchanger, and the defrosting area is large and the defrosting time is long.

Further, if one or more indoor units in the heating operation mode are determined to be one or more target indoor units requiring concentrated defrosting, the controller may control the air conditioner to perform concentrated defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger in a partition according to a relationship between a total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units and a capacity of the outdoor unit. Thus, the defrosting area is smiled and the defrosting time is shortened.

And S103, the controller determines a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, which needs to be subjected to concentrated defrosting, according to the total rated capacity of one or more target indoor units and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit.

Wherein the total rated capacity is the sum of sub-rated capacities of one or more target indoor units that need to be subjected to concentrated defrosting.

In some embodiments, when the outdoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner needs to defrost, the controller may acquire a total rated capacity of one or more target indoor units in a heating operation mode being operated, and determine a target area in which the outdoor heat exchanger needs to intensively defrost according to a ratio between the total rated capacity and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit.

In some embodiments, the controller may determine a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger where concentrated defrosting is required by calculating a ratio between a total rated capacity of one or more target indoor units and an outdoor unit capacity of the heating operation mode being operated.

Optionally, a ratio between the heat exchange area of the target area and the heat exchange area of the outdoor heat exchanger is determined based on a ratio between a total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units and a rated capacity of the outdoor unit.

In some embodiments, the air conditioner includes one outdoor unit and four indoor units. If the sub-rated capacity of the first indoor unit is 1HP, the sub-rated capacity of the second indoor unit is 2HP, the sub-rated capacity of the third indoor unit is 1HP, and the sub-rated capacity of the fourth indoor unit is 2HP, the outdoor unit rated capacity of the air conditioner is 6HP.

Further, as shown in fig. 12, if the target indoor units in the heating operation mode are the first indoor unit and the third indoor unit, the total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units in the heating operation mode is 3HP, and the ratio between the total rated capacity and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit is ₃ ¹ I.e. the heat exchange area of the target zone is that of the outdoor heat exchanger ₃ ¹ 。

For example, as shown in fig. 12, the target area may be the target area 1, the target area 2, or the target area 3.

In fig. 12, only three heat exchanging areas of the outdoor heat exchanger are shown ₃ ¹ In a specific implementation, the heat exchange area of the outdoor heat exchanger ₃ ¹ Other regions are also possible, as the application is not limited in this regard.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 13, if the heating mode of operation is being targetedThe indoor units are a second indoor unit and a fourth indoor unit, the total rated capacity of one or more indoor units in the running heating operation mode is 3HP, and the ratio between the total rated capacity and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit is ₃ ² I.e. the heat exchange area of the target zone is that of the outdoor heat exchanger ₃ ² 。

For example, as shown in fig. 13, the target area may be the target area 1 or the target area 2.

In fig. 13, only two heat exchanging areas of the outdoor heat exchanger are shown ₃ ² In a specific implementation, the heat exchange area of the outdoor heat exchanger ₃ ² Other regions are also possible, as the application is not limited in this regard.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 14, if the indoor unit in the heating operation mode is the first indoor unit, the total rated capacity of the one or more indoor units in the heating operation mode is 1HP, and the ratio between the total rated capacity and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit is ¹ ₆ I.e. the heat exchange area of the target zone is that of the outdoor heat exchanger ¹ ₆ 。

For example, as shown in fig. 14, the target area may be the target area 1, the target area 2, the target area 3, the target area 4, the target area 5, or the target area 6.

In fig. 14, only two heat exchanging areas of the outdoor heat exchanger are shown ¹ ₆ In a specific implementation, the heat exchange area of the outdoor heat exchanger ¹ ₆ Other regions are also possible, as the application is not limited in this regard.

In some embodiments, the air conditioner may further include a human body sensing sensor for detecting a human body detection result in a room corresponding to each of the plurality of indoor units, and the controller may determine one or more target indoor units that need to perform concentrated defrosting through the human body detection result of the human body sensing sensor.

The human body induction sensor is a component in the intelligent home, and the basic functions of the human body induction sensor are induction of movement of a human body, change of body induction temperature of the human body, respiratory frequency of the human body and the like. Different types of human body induction sensors can realize different functions, for example, the radar human body induction sensor can realize detection of moving, static or sleeping human body sign information. The developer can select different types of human body induction sensors according to own requirements, and the application is not limited to the human body induction sensors.

For example, in the case where the air conditioner is provided with a human body induction sensor, as shown in fig. 15, the process of determining the target indoor unit by the controller may be embodied as the following steps S11 to S12:

s11, the controller obtains human body detection results in rooms corresponding to all the indoor units in the plurality of indoor units.

The human body detection result comprises the presence of a human body in a room or the absence of a human body in a room.

Optionally, the controller may obtain a human body detection result in a room corresponding to each indoor unit of the plurality of indoor units through a human body induction sensor.

In some embodiments, if the human body induction sensor detects that a human body exists in a room corresponding to one or more indoor units of the plurality of indoor units, if the outdoor heat exchanger is subjected to centralized defrosting at this time, the one or more indoor units start to operate in a refrigeration operation mode, so that the temperature in the room is reduced, and the temperature sensing degree of a user is also reduced, thereby affecting user experience.

Further, when the human body sensing sensor detects that a human body exists in a room corresponding to one or more indoor units of the plurality of indoor units, the controller may control the air conditioner to determine the indoor unit in the room where the human body does not exist as one or more target indoor units. Thus, even if the indoor unit in the room is operated in the cooling operation mode, the temperature sensing by the user is not affected.

And S12, the controller determines one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting according to the human body detection result.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 16, the process of determining the target indoor unit by the controller may be specifically implemented as the following steps S121 to S122:

s121, when the human body detection result is that at least one room contains human bodies, determining the indoor units in the room without human bodies as one or more target indoor units.

In some embodiments, when the human body detection result indicates that a human body exists in at least one room, the outdoor heat exchanger may generate frosting if the operation mode of the air conditioner is a heating operation mode. At this time, the controller determines that concentrated defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger is required. In order to avoid the problem of low indoor temperature caused when the outdoor heat exchanger is defrosted, the controller may use an indoor unit of a room where a human body does not exist as a target indoor unit that needs to perform concentrated defrosting.

Further, the controller may acquire a total rated capacity of at least one indoor unit in a room where a human body does not exist, and determine a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger where concentrated defrosting is required according to a ratio between the total rated capacity and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit.

And S122, under the condition that the human body detection result shows that no human body exists in all rooms, the controller determines that the external heat exchanger does not need to perform concentrated defrosting. In some embodiments, if the human body induction sensor detects that no human body exists in all rooms, the indoor unit in the room may be in a closed state, and the outdoor heat exchanger is less likely to frost. At this time, the controller determines that the external heat exchanger does not need to perform concentrated defrosting.

In some embodiments, if the operation mode of the air conditioner is a cooling operation mode, the indoor unit extracts heat from the indoor space and releases the heat to the outdoor space, and the outdoor heat exchanger of the outdoor unit operates as a condenser, and the outdoor heat exchanger is less likely to frost. At this time, the controller determines that the external heat exchanger does not need to perform concentrated defrosting.

In some embodiments, the controller determines that the target indoor unit requiring concentrated defrosting is an operating indoor unit in the case that the air conditioner is not configured with a human body induction sensor.

For example, when the air conditioner is not configured with the human body induction sensor, the controller cannot acquire the indoor user state, and at this time, the controller may use the indoor unit that is running as the target indoor unit that needs to perform centralized defrosting.

Further, the controller may determine a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger where concentrated defrosting is required according to a ratio between the total rated capacity of the indoor units and the rated capacity of the outdoor units that are being operated.

S104, the controller controls the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area.

In some embodiments, after the controller determines that the outdoor heat exchanger needs to perform the concentrated defrosting of the target area, the controller controls the air conditioner to perform the concentrated defrosting of the target area.

Exemplary, if the controller determines that the target area of the outdoor heat exchanger for which concentrated defrosting is desired is an outdoor heat exchanger ₃ ¹ When the air conditioner is used, the controller controls the air conditioner to perform heat exchange on the outdoor heat exchanger ₃ ¹ And the heat exchange area is subjected to concentrated defrosting.

For another example, if the controller determines that the target area of the outdoor heat exchanger for which concentrated defrosting is desired is the outdoor heat exchanger ¹ ₂ When the air conditioner is used, the controller controls the air conditioner to perform heat exchange on the outdoor heat exchanger ¹ ₂ And the heat exchange area is subjected to concentrated defrosting.

In some embodiments, when the controller controls the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area, the controller controls one or more target indoor units to operate the cooling operation mode and the target area to operate the heating operation mode to intensively defrost the target area.

Further, after the continuous operation time of the centralized defrosting reaches the second preset time, the centralized defrosting is ended.

It should be noted that the second preset duration is preset by the air conditioner manufacturer and stored in the memory, and the second preset durations of different air conditioner manufacturers may be different, which is not limited in the present application.

The technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the application at least has the following beneficial effects: the technical scheme of the application provides an intelligent defrosting method for an air conditioner in a heating operation mode, and a target area which needs to be defrosted in an outdoor heat exchanger is determined according to the ratio of the total rated capacity of one or more indoor units in the heating operation mode to the rated capacity of an outdoor unit, so that the defrosting time of the outdoor heat exchanger is shortened. Meanwhile, the problem of low user temperature sensitivity caused by overlong operation refrigeration mode time of the indoor unit during defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger is avoided. The indoor unit can be ensured to operate according to the instruction of the user, and the user experience is optimized.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a computer-readable storage medium including computer-executable instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform a method as provided in the above embodiments.

The embodiment of the present invention also provides a computer program product, which can be directly loaded into a memory and contains software codes, and the computer program product can implement the method provided by the above embodiment after being loaded and executed by a computer.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that in one or more of the examples described above, the functions described in the present invention may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, these functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer.

From the foregoing description of the embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that, for convenience and brevity of description, only the above-described division of functional modules is illustrated, and in practical application, the above-described functional allocation may be implemented by different functional modules according to needs, i.e. the internal structure of the apparatus is divided into different functional modules to implement all or part of the functions described above.

In the several embodiments provided by the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and method may be implemented in other manners. For example, the above-described apparatus embodiments are merely exemplary, and for example, the division of modules or units is merely a logical function division, and other manners of division may be implemented in practice. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or may be integrated into another device, or some features may be omitted, or not performed. Alternatively, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed with each other may be an indirect coupling or communication connection via some interfaces, devices or units, which may be in electrical, mechanical or other form. The units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and the parts shown as units may be one physical unit or a plurality of physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed in a plurality of different places. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

In addition, each functional unit in the embodiments of the present application may be integrated in one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units may be integrated in one unit. The integrated units may be implemented in hardware or in software functional units. The integrated units, if implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as stand-alone products, may be stored in a readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solution of the embodiments of the present application may be essentially or a part contributing to the prior art or all or part of the technical solution may be embodied in the form of a software product stored in a storage medium, including several instructions for causing a device (may be a single-chip microcomputer, a chip or the like) or a processor (processor) to perform all or part of the steps of the methods of the embodiments of the present application. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: a usb disk, a removable hard disk, a ROM, a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk, etc.

The present application is not limited to the above embodiments, and any changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present application should be covered by the scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An air conditioner, comprising:

an outdoor unit;

at least one indoor unit;

a refrigerant circulation loop for circulating the refrigerant in a loop formed by the compressor, the condenser, the expansion valve, the evaporator, the four-way valve and the pressure reducer;

an outdoor heat exchanger and an indoor heat exchanger, wherein one of the two heat exchangers works as a condenser and the other works as an evaporator;

the four-way valve is used for controlling the flow direction of the refrigerant in the refrigerant circulation loop;

a controller configured to:

acquiring the running mode, the continuous running time length and the sub rated capacity of each indoor unit in the at least one indoor unit of the air conditioner; the operation modes comprise a heating operation mode and a refrigerating operation mode;

determining one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting under the condition that the operation mode is a heating operation mode and the continuous operation time length reaches a first preset time length;

Determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, which needs to be subjected to concentrated defrosting, according to the total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit; the total rated capacity is the sum of sub rated capacities of the one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting;

and controlling the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area.

2. The air conditioner of claim 1, further comprising:

the human body induction sensor is used for detecting human body detection results in rooms corresponding to all indoor units in the plurality of indoor units;

the controller is configured to determine one or more target indoor units needing to perform centralized defrosting when the operation mode is a heating operation mode and the continuous operation duration reaches a first preset duration, and specifically configured to:

acquiring human body detection results in rooms corresponding to all indoor units in the plurality of indoor units through the human body induction sensor; the human body detection result comprises the presence of a human body in a room or the absence of a human body in a room;

and determining one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting according to the human body detection result.

3. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to determine, according to the human body detection result, one or more target indoor units that need to be subjected to centralized defrosting, and specifically configured to:

if the human body detection result is that a human body exists in at least one room, determining the indoor units in the room without the human body as the one or more target indoor units;

and under the condition that the human body detection result shows that no human body exists in all rooms, determining that the outdoor heat exchanger does not need to perform concentrated defrosting.

4. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to determine a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger in which concentrated defrosting is required according to a total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units and a rated capacity of the outdoor unit, and is specifically configured to:

calculating the ratio between the total rated capacity and the capacity of the outdoor unit;

and determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, which needs to be subjected to concentrated defrosting, according to the heat exchange area of the outdoor heat exchanger and the ratio.

5. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to control the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area, and is specifically configured to:

Controlling the one or more target indoor units to operate in the cooling operation mode and the target area to operate in the heating operation mode so as to intensively defrost the target area;

and ending the centralized defrosting after the continuous operation time of the centralized defrosting reaches a second preset time.

6. A control method of an air conditioner, the method comprising:

determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger, which needs to be subjected to concentrated defrosting, according to the total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units and the rated capacity of the outdoor unit;

and controlling the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein determining one or more target indoor units that require concentrated defrosting if the operating mode is a heating operating mode and the duration of operation reaches a first preset duration comprises:

Acquiring human body detection results in rooms corresponding to all indoor units in the plurality of indoor units; the human body detection result comprises the presence of a human body in a room or the absence of a human body in a room;

and determining one or more target indoor units needing to be subjected to centralized defrosting according to the human body detection result and the operation mode of the air conditioner.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the determining one or more target indoor units that need to perform concentrated defrosting according to the human body detection result and the operation mode of the air conditioner comprises:

when the operation mode of the air conditioner is a heating operation mode and the human body detection result is that a human body exists in at least one room, determining an indoor unit in the room without the human body as the one or more target indoor units;

9. The method of claim 7, wherein determining a target area of the outdoor heat exchanger to be subjected to concentrated defrosting based on a total rated capacity of the one or more target indoor units and an outdoor unit rated capacity comprises:

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the controlling the air conditioner to intensively defrost the target area comprises: