Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24F—AIR-CONDITIONING; AIR-HUMIDIFICATION; VENTILATION; USE OF AIR CURRENTS FOR SCREENING
  • F24F13/00—Details common to, or for air-conditioning, air-humidification, ventilation or use of air currents for screening
  • F24F13/22—Means for preventing condensation or evacuating condensate
  • F24F13/222—Means for preventing condensation or evacuating condensate for evacuating condensate
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24F—AIR-CONDITIONING; AIR-HUMIDIFICATION; VENTILATION; USE OF AIR CURRENTS FOR SCREENING
  • F24F1/00—Room units for air-conditioning, e.g. separate or self-contained units or units receiving primary air from a central station
  • F24F1/0007—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units
  • F24F1/0059—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units characterised by heat exchangers
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24F—AIR-CONDITIONING; AIR-HUMIDIFICATION; VENTILATION; USE OF AIR CURRENTS FOR SCREENING
  • F24F1/00—Room units for air-conditioning, e.g. separate or self-contained units or units receiving primary air from a central station
  • F24F1/0007—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units
  • F24F1/0043—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units characterised by mounting arrangements
  • F24F1/0047—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units characterised by mounting arrangements mounted in the ceiling or at the ceiling
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24F—AIR-CONDITIONING; AIR-HUMIDIFICATION; VENTILATION; USE OF AIR CURRENTS FOR SCREENING
  • F24F1/00—Room units for air-conditioning, e.g. separate or self-contained units or units receiving primary air from a central station
  • F24F1/0007—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units
  • F24F1/0043—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units characterised by mounting arrangements
  • F24F1/0057—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units characterised by mounting arrangements mounted in or on a wall
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24F—AIR-CONDITIONING; AIR-HUMIDIFICATION; VENTILATION; USE OF AIR CURRENTS FOR SCREENING
  • F24F13/00—Details common to, or for air-conditioning, air-humidification, ventilation or use of air currents for screening
  • F24F13/32—Supports for air-conditioning, air-humidification or ventilation units
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24F—AIR-CONDITIONING; AIR-HUMIDIFICATION; VENTILATION; USE OF AIR CURRENTS FOR SCREENING
  • F24F1/00—Room units for air-conditioning, e.g. separate or self-contained units or units receiving primary air from a central station
  • F24F1/0007—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units
  • F24F1/0018—Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units characterised by fans
  • F24F1/0025—Cross-flow or tangential fans

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a universally installable air conditioning unit, particularly designed for residential, commercial or industrial buildings.
• the invention relates to independent installa-- ble air conditioning units, also known as independent stationary air conditioning units, consisting of one or more inner units, which are installed inside the building, and a "motocondensing" outer unit, which is installed outside the building.
• Said structure split up into one or more units is known in the field as "split system" .
• the inner unit basically comprises a first battery for a coolant fluid, a fan and an electric and/or electronic control card for the air conditioning unit, all of which are housed within a housing framework.
• the outer unit houses within a second housing framework a second battery for the coolant fluid and a fan generating a forced ventilation through the second battery.
• the first battery acts as evaporator of the coolant fluid during room cooling, whereas it acts as condenser while operating as heat pump and therefore during room heating.
• the second battery always works in the opposite mode with respect to the first battery.
• the outer unit and the inner unit are connected one to the other by means of a double tube conveying the coolant fluid and of a multiple electric connection. The arrangement of the inner unit in the room to be conditioned differs depending on specific contingent needs.
• a first known solution suggests an inner unit that can be installed in two operating positions (low wall or high wall) rotated of 180°. Said units are equipped with two condensate tanks arranged above and below the first battery. Said solution increases application possibilities for the unit, but is not yet fully satisfying in terms of flexibility.
• a second known solution envisages the arrangement of at least three condensate tanks around the first battery on three sides of the framework, so as to install the unit in three operating positions (low wall, high wall and ceiling) rotated of 90° one with respect to the others.
• Said solution however, has a high structural complexity, a high cost, a non-optimal arrangement of air flows in the three positions and a large overall size also due to the presence of said three tanks, which further interfere with air flow.
• the technical task underlying the present invention is to provide a universally installable air conditioning unit that can basically obviate the aforesaid drawbacks.
• a technical aim of the present invention is to provide a univer- sally installable air conditioning unit that has an extremely high flexibility of use, enabling to meet with only one appliance almost all known applications, with an optimal air flow arrangement.
• Another aim of the present invention is to conceive a universally installable air conditioning unit to which no changes have to be made in case of installation in different positions.
• a further aim of the present invention is to conceive a universally installable air conditioning unit that is simple and cheap to be carried out and installed.
• FIG. 1 schematically shows an air conditioning unit according to the present invention
• FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an inner unit of the air conditioner of Figure 1 with first fastening means to be applied to the unit;
• FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an inner unit of the air conditioner of Figure 1 with second fastening means to be applied to the unit;
• Figure 4 shows the inner unit of Figure 2 in exploded view
• FIG. 5 shows a cross section of an inner unit in a first operating position
• FIG. 6 shows a cross section of an inner unit in a second operating position
• FIG. 7 shows a cross section of an inner unit in a third operating position
• FIG. 8 shows a cross section of an inner unit in a fourth operating position
• FIG. 9 shows a cross section of an inner unit in a variant of the third operating position, the unit being close both to the wall and to the ceiling and secured to one of them;
• FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a room to be conditioned with four inner units installed in the four different operating positions shown in detail in Figures 5 to 9;
• Figure 11 is similar to Figure 10 and shows an execution variant of the invention.
• the univer- sally installable air conditioning unit is globally referred to with the numeral 1.
• the air conditioner 1 basically comprises an inner unit 2 and an outer unit 3, installed in a building 4.
• the inner unit 2 is mounted onto a wall 5 or a ceiling 6 of the building 4 in an inner room 7 to be conditioned, by means of suitable fastening means 8, whereas the outer unit 3 is installed outside the building 4.
• the outer unit 3 comprises a housing framework 9, housing inside at least a second battery for the coolant fluid, a compressor for the coolant fluid operatively connected to the second battery, and a fan generating a forced air flow through the second battery (said elements are not shown in the figures since they are of conventional type) .
• the second battery basically consists of a radiator equipped with a plurality of cooling fins helping heat exchange between the primary fluid, i.e. the coolant fluid, and the secondary fluid, i.e. air blown by the fan.
• the outer unit 3 further comprises other conventional elements, such as the electric motor of the fan, an electronic control system of said unit and a plurality of inner ducts.
• the outer unit 3 is connected to the inner unit 2 by means of conventional connecting lines 10, which comprise an intake conveying tube for the coolant fluid from the inner unit 2 to the outer unit 3 , a return conveying tube from the outer unit 3 to the inner unit 2 and a multiple electric connection for operatively connecting the two units.
• the inner unit 2 comprises at least a first battery 11 for a coolant fluid and an electric fan 12, preferably a tangential one, generating a forced air 'flow through the first battery 11.
• the inner unit 2 further comprises two tanks 13 and 14 for collecting condensation water, operatively arranged on two ends of the first battery 11.
• the inner unit 2 further comprises an outer frame 15 housing the various components of said unit 2.
• the frame 15 (see Figures 2 to 4) is provided with an air inlet opening 16, equipped with gratings 16a and intake filters 16b, with an air outlet opening 17, with a first installation surface 15a and with a second installation surface 15b.
• the first installation surface 15a and the second installation surface 15b are close to one another.
• the frame 15 is substantially parallelepiped-shaped with a basically square section on a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal development of said unit.
• the inner unit 2 is further equipped with first fastening means 8a to be operatively associated with the first installation surface 15a so as to apply the inner unit 2 to a wall 5 in a given operating position.
• the in- ner unit 2 is further equipped with second fastening means 8b to be operatively associated with the second installation surface 15b of the frame 15 so as to apply the inner unit 2 to the wall 5 or to a ceiling 6 in another operating position.
• Said fastening means 8 can be for instance supporting brackets or any other type of known fastening elements that are suitable for application to the surfaces of the frame 15 so as to enable its installation onto a peripheral and/or inner wall.
• the inner unit 2 eventually comprises some conventional elements, such as for instance electric and/or electronic control means 19, a water pump 20, etc.
• arrows with letter A refer to inlet air flows getting into the inner unit and with letter B to outlet flows.
• the inner unit 2 can be associated with the wall 5 through first fastening means 8a in at least a first "low wall” operating position ( Figure 5) , in which air gets out of the inner unit 2 from above, and in a second "high wall” operating position ( Figure 6) , in which air gets out from below and the inner unit 2 is rotated of 180°.
• the inner unit 2 can be further applied to the ceiling 6 of the room 7 through the second installation surface 15b and the second fastening means 8b at least in a third operating position ( Figure 7) wholly similar to the second "high wall” operating position in which air gets out from below.
• the same intake grilles 16a placed on the air inlet opening 16 can be applied onto the first installation surface 15a to aesthetical purposes.
• the inner unit 2 can be associated with the wall 5 through the first fastening means 8a in a first "low wall” operating position, in which air gets out of the inner unit 2 from above, and can be associated with the wall 5 through the second fastening means in a second "high wall” operating position, in which air gets out on one side and the inner unit 2 is rotated of 90°.
• the battery is arranged in an inclined position with respect to the walls of the frame 15, and the two basins are suitably shaped for collecting condensate basically whatever the position of the frame 15.
• the inner unit 2 can be further applied to a ceiling 6 through the second fastening means in a fourth operating position, rotated of 180° with respect to the first "low wall” operating position, in which air gets out from below.
• the inner unit 2 can be applied to the ceiling 6 through the first fastening means 8a in a third operating posi- tion wholly similar to the second "high wall” operating position in which air gets out on one side.
• the inner unit 2 further comprises means 18 for directing the air flow getting out of the inner unit 2, arranged on the outlet opening 17.
• said means 18 for directing the air flow comprise at least a first deflector 18a and a second deflector 18b, which can be shifted at least between a first operating position in which the outlet air flow B is directed in only one direction, and a second operating position in which the outlet air flow B is split up into at least two directions Bl and B2.
• Said technical solution can be advantageously applied to any type of inner unit 2, also with only one tank 13 and with specific installation, for instance onto the ceiling.
• the inner unit 2 can be mounted onto the ceiling 6 in at least a lateral operating position ( Figure 7) in which it is arranged close to a vertical wall 5 and in which the deflectors 18a, 18b direct the air flow B only in an opposite direction with respect to the wall 5, and a central operating position ( Figure 8) with respect to the ceiling 6, in which the deflectors 18a, 18b direct the air flow B in two opposite directions Bl, B2 towards two different walls 5.
• a lateral operating position Figure 7
• Figure 8 with respect to the ceiling 6, in which the deflectors 18a, 18b direct the air flow B in two opposite directions Bl, B2 towards two different walls 5.
• At least one of said deflectors 18a can be mounted in at least a first installation position in which it can rotate in a first direction ( Figure 7) , and in a second installation position in which it can rotate in a second position ( Figure 8) .
• This can be obtained for instance by envisaging on the frame 15 a double mounting hinge in the two operating positions and by mounting the rotation axis of the deflector on one of the two hinges, .
• the deflectors 18a, 18b are equipped with a motor, for instance an electric motor, and can therefore be actuated automatically, also by remote control .
• the invention also enables to install the inner unit 2 onto the ceiling in a "box" -shaped configuration, partially hidden in the false ceiling. This can be easily obtained by simply embedding the inner unit 2 described above into the false ceiling in the same position as on the ceiling 6, the inner unit 2 sucking the air flow in a suitable position for said application. This is helped by the advantageous arrangement of inlet and outlet air flows, since the air inlet opening 16 and the air outlet opening 17 of the inner unit 2 are positioned at 90° one with respect to the other in the frame 15. Also the advantageous arrangement of the first battery and of the tangential fan enables to optimize the working of the unit in all operating positions .
• the inner unit is highly modular and it is possible to carry out units with different refrigerating powers keeping the cross section unchanged and simply using longer components such as for instance the first battery, the tanks, the fan and the longitudinal walls of the frame.
• An air conditioning unit according to the present invention described above from a mainly structural point of view, works as follows.
• the installer mounts the deflectors 18a, 18b so as to obtain a monodirectional air flow B towards the middle of the room 7, whereas when the unit is placed far from the lateral walls, the deflectors 18a, 18b are mounted so as to obtain an air jet split up into at least two opposite directions Bl, B2. If the inner unit is installed in a "box" -shaped configuration, the installer partially embeds it into the false ceiling of the room 7.
• the deflectors 18a, 18b are further adjusted by the corresponding electric motor.
• the remaining parts of the air conditioner are installed in quite a conventional way.
• the air conditioner according to the present invention can also be integrated into a centralized system as air conditioning terminal unit .
• the primary fluid conveying heat (which therefore circulates in the tubes of the heat exchanger) can be the same coolant fluid used in the refrigerating cycle (direct expansion multisplit systems) or an intermediate fluid such as water (hot or refrigerated water system) .
• the inner unit is carried out and used in the same way as described above for the solution applied to an independent air conditioner, and also its positioning flexibility remains the same.
• the invention has important advantages.
• a universally installable air conditioning unit has an extremely high flexibility of use and allows to meet almost all possible known applica- tions, both in sight and partially hidden, with only one inner unit.
• the invention further enables to obtain an arrangement of outlet air flows that is always optimal for every type of installation.
• the invention enables to obtain an inner unit that does not require any change so as to be installed in different positions and therefore ensures a simple and fast installation.
• the invention enables to carry out an air conditioning unit with a simple structure and easy to be carried out, which thanks to the possibility of having one inner unit for all applications, allows to reduce dramatically manufacturing and storage costs.
• the invention thus conceived can undergo several changes and variants, all of which fall within the inventive idea characterizing it. Furthermore, all details can be replaced by technically equivalent elements and any size can be used, depending on contingent needs.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Thermal Sciences (AREA)
• Air-Flow Control Members (AREA)
• Battery Mounting, Suspending (AREA)
• Air Filters, Heat-Exchange Apparatuses, And Housings Of Air-Conditioning Units (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=30130767

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

Cited By (1)

Families Citing this family (10)

Family Cites Families (3)

• 2002
  • 2002-07-29 IT IT2002BS000067A patent/ITBS20020067A1/it unknown
• 2003
  • 2003-07-24 AU AU2003253268A patent/AU2003253268A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2003-07-24 CN CNA038180987A patent/CN1671997A/zh active Pending
  • 2003-07-24 WO PCT/IT2003/000456 patent/WO2004011854A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2003-07-24 EP EP03771246A patent/EP1540255A1/de not_active Withdrawn

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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