EP1921389A2

EP1921389A2 - Air conditioner having ventilation system

Info

Publication number: EP1921389A2
Application number: EP07100284A
Authority: EP
Inventors: In Chul Yun; Kook Jeong Seo
Original assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2006-11-10
Filing date: 2007-01-09
Publication date: 2008-05-14
Also published as: JP2008122057A; EP1921389A3; KR20080042608A; CN101178197A

Abstract

Disclosed is an air conditioner having a ventilation system, capable of supplying and exhausting air using an existing through-hole bored through a wall. The air conditioner includes an indoor unit installed indoors, and exchanging heat with indoor air; a supply air duct connected to the indoor unit, and drawing outdoor air; a shared pipe connected to the indoor unit, and discharging both condensed water generated from the indoor unit and the indoor air; and a separator separating the condensed water from the condensed water-containing air discharged through the shared pipe. Thereby, the efficiency of ventilating the indoor air is increased in the air conditioner having the ventilation system.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the invention

The present invention relates generally to an air conditioner having a ventilation system, and more particularly to an air conditioner having a ventilation system, capable of supplying and exhausting air using an existing through-hole bored through a wall.

2. Description of the Prior Art

In general, air conditioners function to condition air using a refrigeration cycle. The air conditioner includes a fan and a heat exchanger in a main body making an external appearance, draws indoor air into the main body using the fan, and allows the air passing through the heat exchanger to be cooled or heated, so that it can cool or heat the indoor space.
Recently, an attempt has been made to hermetically close a building in order to save energy by preventing indoor heat from being smoothly exchanged with outdoor heat. However, this hermetically closed building prevents the indoor air from being smoothly ventilated, so that the indoor air is deteriorated.
In order to solve this problem, there is emerged an air conditioner having a ventilation system, in which indoor air is of forcibly ventilated to make the indoor air healthy in addition to the cooling or heating function.
An example of this air conditioner having a ventilation system is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-173985 .
The disclosed air conditioner includes a ventilation duct for ventilating indoor air in addition to refrigerant pipes through which a refrigerant flows, thereby ventilating the indoor air. The ventilation duct is installed through a through-hole formed in a wall such that the refrigerant pipes and a drain hose pass through the through-hole. However, the through-hole formed to allow the refrigerant pipes and the drain hose to pass through is restricted in size, so that it runs short of a space capable of installing both a supply air duct and an exhaust air duct. Thus, the ventilation duct is designed to function only as one of the supply air duct and the exhaust air duct. However, when only one of the air supply function and air exhaust function is performed through the ventilation duct, there is a limit in improving the indoor air.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve above-mentioned problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner having a ventilation system, capable of supplying and exhausting air using an existing through-hole formed in a wall such that refrigerant pipes and a drain hose used in an existing air conditioner pass through the through-hole.
In order to accomplish these objects, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an air conditioner, which includes: an indoor unit installed indoors, and exchanging heat with indoor air; a supply air duct connected to the indoor unit, and drawing outdoor air; a shared pipe connected to the indoor unit, and discharging both condensed water generated from the indoor unit and the indoor air; and a separator separating the condensed water from the condensed water-containing air discharged through the shared pipe.
Here, the separator may be coupled with an exhaust air duct exhausting the separated air on one side thereof, and with a drain hose discharging the separated condensed water on a lower side thereof.
Further, the supply air duct and the exhaust air duct may be provided with a total heat exchanger that exchanges heat with the air drawn to the supply air duct and the air exhausted to the exhaust air duct.
Meanwhile, the separator may include a case that has an upper cylindrical part and a lower conical part extending from the upper cylindrical part, and a partition that is formed in the case and blocks a flow path of the condensed water-containing air discharged from the shared pipe to thereby separating the condensed water.
Further, the separator may include a case that has the same diameter as the shared pipe and is provided with an internal space, and a partition that partitions the internal space of the case so as to have a U shape.
In addition, the separator may include a cyclone that separates the condensed water from the condensed water-containing air exhausted to the shared pipe using centrifugal force.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an air conditioner, which includes: an outdoor unit having a compressor and a condenser, and installed outdoors; an indoor unit having an heat exchanger, installed indoors, and exchanging heat with indoor air; refrigerant pipes connecting the indoor unit and the outdoor unit so as to allow a refrigerant to flow; a drain hose discharging condensed water generated from the indoor unit; and an exhaust air duct shared with the drain hose and exhausting the indoor air to an outdoor space.
Here, the air conditioner may further include a separator that separates the condensed water from the condensed water-containing air exhausted to the drain hose.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an air conditioner having a ventilation system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a layout view illustrating the air conditioner of FIG. 1
FIG. 3 illustrates the separator of FIG. 2 according to a first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 4 illustrates the separator of FIG. 2 according to a second embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 5 illustrates the separator of FIG. 2 according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an air conditioner having a ventilation system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a layout view illustrating the air conditioner of FIG. 1.
As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the air conditioner having a ventilation system includes an indoor unit 10 installed indoors, an outdoor unit 20 installed outdoors, and two refrigerant pipes 11 and 12 that are installed to the indoor unit 10 and the outdoor unit 20 respectively, and connect the indoor and outdoor units 10 and 20 through the through-hole 31 a of a pipe 31 inserted into an external wall 30 of a building. One of the refrigerant pipes 11 and 12 is a liquid refrigerant pipe 11 through which a liquid refrigerant condensed by a condenser flows, and the other is a gaseous refrigerant pipe 12 through which a gaseous refrigerant evaporated by an evaporator flows.
Although not illustrated, the outdoor unit 20 includes a compressor compressing the refrigerant in a high-temperature, high-pressure state, and a condenser converting the high-temperature, high-pressure refrigerant compressed by the compressor into a room-temperature, high-pressure liquid refrigerant. The indoor unit 10 includes an expansion device expanding the room-temperature, high-pressure liquid refrigerant discharged from the condenser, a heat exchanger exchanging heat with the indoor air while the refrigerant expanded by the expansion device is evaporated, and a fan drawing the indoor air toward the heat exchanger such that the indoor air is heat-exchanged by the heat exchanger.
When this air conditioner is operated, the heat exchanger of the indoor unit 10 exchanges heat with the indoor air, thereby generating condensed water. In order to drain the condensed water to an outdoor space, the indoor unit 10 is provided on one side thereof with a drain hose 13, which extends to the outdoor space through the through-hole 31 a.
The air conditioner of the present invention cools or heats the indoor space, and has a ventilation system of discharging indoor air to the outdoor space, and drawing outdoor air into an indoor space, and ventilating the indoor air.
The ventilation system according to the present invention includes a supply air duct 14 for drawing the outdoor air into the indoor space, and an exhaust air duct 15 for exhausting the indoor air to the outdoor space.
The supply air duct 14 is provided with a supply air hood 14a at one end thereof, and the supply air hood 14a is provided with a supply air fan 14b for drawing the outdoor air. The exhaust air duct 15 is provided with an exhaust air hood 15a at one end thereof, and the exhaust air hood 15a is provided with an exhaust air fan 15b for drawing the outdoor air. The supply air fan 14b and the exhaust air fan 15b are driven by respective driving motors (not shown).
Further, in order to prevent cold or hot air from flowing into the indoor space unexpectedly when the indoor air is ventilated, a total heat exchanger 35 that exchanges heat with air flowing from the outdoor space to the indoor space and air flow from the indoor space to the outdoor space is preferably installed. The total heat exchanger 35 includes a total heat exchanging element 36, and exchanges heat with the air drawn through the supply air duct 14 and the air exhausted through the exhaust air duct 15.
However, when the exhaust air duct 15 is separately installed with a diameter different from, particularly, greater than that of the conventional one, the exhaust air duct 15 does not pass through the through-hole 31 a, which has been formed in the external wall of the building. Hence, a shared pipe 16 that serves as both the drain hose 13 and the exhaust air duct 15 is used.
When the shared pipe 16 serving as the drain hose 13 and the exhaust air duct 15 is used, the condensed water generated from the indoor unit 10 and the indoor air drawn through the indoor unit 10 are simultaneously discharged through the shared pipe 16. In this manner, when the condensed water is discharged toward the exhaust air duct 15, the condensed water enters the total heat exchanging element 36 used in the total heat exchanger 35 and the driving motor (not shown) installed to the exhaust air hood 15a and driving the exhaust air fan 15b, so that the total heat exchanging element 36 or the driving motor can get out of order.
In order to solve this problem, a separator 40 for separating the condensed water from the air containing the condensed water discharged through the shared pipe 16 is installed.
FIG. 3 illustrates a separator according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The separator 40 according to a first embodiment of the present invention includes a case 41 that has an upper cylindrical part 41 a and a lower conical part 41 b extending from the upper cylindrical part 41 a, and a partition 42 that is formed in the case 41 and blocks a flow path of the air containing the condensed water discharged from the shared pipe 16 to thereby separating the condensed water.
The case 41 is coupled with the shared pipe 16 on one side thereof on the basis of the partition 42, and with the exhaust air duct 15 on the other side thereof, i.e. on the opposite side of the shared pipe 16. The case 41 is coupled with the drain hose 13 on a lower side thereof. Of the air and condensed water discharged from the shared pipe 16, the condensed water collides against the partition 42, and is guided to the drain hose 13 through the conical part 41 b. Thus, the air, from which the condensed water is separated, rides over the partition 42, and is exhausted through the exhaust air duct 15.
Thus, in spite of using the shared pipe 16 serving as both the drain hose 13 and the exhaust air duct 15, there is no fear that the condensed water intrudes into the total heat exchanging element 36 or the driving motor driving the exhaust air fan 15b.
FIG. 4 illustrates a separator according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
The separator 50 according to a second embodiment of the present invention includes a case 51 having the same diameter as the shared pipe 16 on one side thereof and having an internal space 51 a, and a partition 52 partitioning the internal space 51 a of the case 51 so as to have a U shape.
Meanwhile, the case 51 is coupled with the shared pipe 16 on one side thereof on the basis of the partition 52, and with the exhaust air duct 15 on the other side thereof. Further, the case 51 is coupled with the drain hose 13, through which the condensed water separated from the air is discharged, on a lower side thereof.
Thus, the condensed water contained in the air discharged from the shared pipe 16 collides against the partition 52 to falls down, so that only the air is exhausted through the exhaust air duct 15 without escaping through the exhaust air duct 15. Consequently, there is no fear that the condensed water intrudes into the total heat exchanging element 36 or the driving motor driving the exhaust air fan 15b.
FIG. 5 illustrates a separator according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
The separator 60 according to a third embodiment of the present invention is formed as a cyclone separating the condensed water using the centrifugal force.
The cyclone includes a case 61 that has an upper cylindrical part 61 a and a lower conical part 61 b extending from the upper cylindrical part 61 a and is provided therein with a separating space 62, and a discharge pipe 63 that is formed at the center of the case 61 and through which the air from which the condensed water is separated by flowing into and gyrating in the case 61 is discharged. Meanwhile, the shared pipe 16 is fitted into an inlet pipe 64 that is formed on one side of the case 61 such that the air flowing into the case 61 is revolved about the discharge pipe 62 in the separation space 62.
The case 61 is coupled with the drain hose 13, through which the condensed water separated from the air is discharged, on a lower side thereof. The discharge pipe 63 is coupled with the exhaust air duct 15 through which the air from which the condensed water is separated is discharged.
Thus, when the air discharged through the shared pipe 16 flows into the case 61, it is revolved in the separation space 62. During the revolution, the condensed water contained in the air is separated by the centrifugal force, and then discharged to the drain hose 13. Meanwhile, only the air from which the condensed water is separated is discharged to the exhaust air duct, so that there is no fear that the condensed water intrudes into the total heat exchanging element 36 or the driving motor driving the exhaust air fan 15b, and the use of the shared pipe 16 does not matter.
As described in detail above, in the air conditioner having a ventilation system according to the present invention, the shared pipe serving as both the drain hose and the exhaust air duct is used, so that both the supply air duct and the exhaust air duct for ventilating the indoor air can be formed using the through-hole formed in the external wall in order to use a conventional air conditioner. Thus, the ventilation performance can be increased.
Further, the condensed water, which is discharged from the shared pipe together with the air, can be separated using the separator, so that the total heat exchanging element and the driving motor can be prevented from getting out of order by the intrusion of the condensed water.
Although exemplary embodiments of the present invention has been described for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.

Claims

An air conditioner comprising:
an indoor unit installed indoors, and exchanging heat with indoor air;

a supply air duct connected to the indoor unit, and drawing outdoor air;

a shared pipe connected to the indoor unit, and discharging both condensed water generated from the indoor unit and the indoor air; and

a separator separating the condensed water from the condensed water-containing air discharged through the shared pipe.
The air conditioner as claimed in claim 1, wherein the separator is coupled with an exhaust air duct exhausting the separated air on one side thereof, and with a drain hose discharging the separated condensed water on a lower side thereof.
The air conditioner as claimed in claim 2, wherein the supply air duct and the exhaust air duct are provided with a total heat exchanger that exchanges heat with the air drawn to the supply air duct and the air exhausted to the exhaust air duct.
The air conditioner as claimed in claim 1, wherein the separator includes a case that has an upper cylindrical part and a lower conical part extending from the upper cylindrical part, and a partition that is formed in the case and blocks a flow path of the condensed water-containing air discharged from the shared pipe to thereby separating the condensed water.
The air conditioner as claimed in claim 1, wherein the separator includes a case that has the same diameter as the shared pipe and is provided with an internal space, and a partition that partitions the internal space of the case so as to have a U shape.
The air conditioner as claimed in claim 1, wherein the separator includes a cyclone that separates the condensed water from the condensed water-containing air exhausted to the shared pipe using centrifugal force.
An air conditioner comprising:
an outdoor unit having a compressor and a condenser, and installed outdoors;

an indoor unit having an heat exchanger, installed indoors, and exchanging heat with indoor air;

refrigerant pipes connecting the indoor unit and the outdoor unit so as to allow a refrigerant to flow;

a drain hose discharging condensed water generated from the indoor unit; and

an exhaust air duct shared with the drain hose and exhausting the indoor air to an outdoor space.
The air conditioner as claimed in claim 7, further comprising a separator that separates the condensed water from the condensed water-containing air exhausted to the drain hose.