JP2001091037A - Controller for air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a controller which can equally continuously operate an air conditioner for air conditioning, even when a hot water supplying source becomes abnormal. SOLUTION: A refrigerating cycle and a hot water circuit, through which hot water is circulated between a hot water supplying source 3 and a hot water heat exchanger 13a are provided and a single unit through which the air in a room to be air-conditioned is circulated, is constituted in a dehumidifying operation-possible state by arranging an evaporator and the heat exchanger 13a in this order, in the unit from the windward side. Then a blower 29, which circulates air to the unit is provided, and a control section which periodically increases and decreases the air blowing quantity of the blower 29 when the abnormality of the hot water supplying source 3 is discriminated is provided.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a compressor, a heat source side heat exchanger,
Equipped with a decompression device, a refrigeration cycle in which the use-side heat exchanger is circularly connected by refrigerant pipes, and a hot water circuit in which a hot water supply source and a hot water heat exchanger are circularly connected by hot water pipes, and supply conditioned air to the conditioned room The present invention relates to a countermeasure against abnormalities in a dehumidifying operation performed by simultaneously providing a cooling operation using a refrigeration cycle and a heating operation using a hot water circuit at least including a use side unit and a hot water heat exchanger in an indoor unit. .

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An example of such an air conditioner is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-121803. In this publication, a heat exchanger for refrigerant supplied with refrigerant from a compressor and a heat exchanger for hot water supplied with hot water by a circulation pump are arranged in the same unit. A temperature detector is provided in the exchanger, and when the temperature detected by the detector during cooling operation is equal to or lower than a predetermined value, the circulation pump is operated to prevent the freezing of the hot water heat exchanger.

[0003]

In the conventional air conditioner configured as described above, during the dehumidifying operation, the circulation pump is operated to cope with the temperature decrease of the hot water heat exchanger due to the abnormality of the refrigeration cycle. However, when the hot water circuit (hot water supply source) is abnormal, there is no countermeasure. For example, when the hot water supply source stops abnormally, the hot water supply stops and the hot water heat exchanger is replaced by the refrigerant heat exchanger (evaporator). After the cooling, the above-described protection operation is activated to substantially stop the operation of the air conditioner.

[0004] In order to solve such a problem, the present invention provides a control device that can continue the dehumidifying effect by controlling the air volume of the blower without stopping the operation of the air conditioner even when the hot water heat source is stopped. is there.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a refrigeration cycle having a compressor, a condenser, a decompression device, and an evaporator, and a hot water circuit in which hot water circulates between a hot water supply source and a hot water heat exchanger. The evaporator and the hot water heat exchanger are arranged in order from the windward in a single unit in which the air in the conditioned room circulates, so that the dehumidifying operation is enabled, and the unit is provided with a blower for circulating the air. And a control unit for periodically increasing or decreasing the amount of air blown by the blower when it is determined that the hot water supply source is abnormal.

According to the present invention, the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined at least by stopping the hot water supply or lowering the hot water temperature.

Further, in the present invention, the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined by a decrease in the temperature of the air discharged from the unit to the conditioned room.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined by a decrease in the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger.

Further, in the present invention, the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined by a decrease in the temperature of the air discharged from the unit to the conditioned room and a decrease in the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a hot water circuit and a refrigeration cycle of the present invention. In this figure, 5a and 5b are indoor units provided in the conditioned room, 8 is an outdoor unit provided outdoors, 3 is a heat source side unit composed of a boiler or the like for supplying hot water, A general-purpose device having a function of circulating hot water for hot water heating in response can be used.

Hot water from the heat source side unit 3 is supplied to a hot water pipe 12.
And the return pipe 11 constitute a circulation circuit of hot water.
A variable flow rate valve 14a and a hot water heat exchanger (radiator) 13a are connected in series in the indoor unit 5a between the second unit 2 and the return pipe 11, and the variable flow rate valve 14b and the hot water heat exchanger 13b are connected indoors. They are connected in series in the unit 5b.

The flow rate of the hot water flowing through the hot water heat exchangers 13a and 13b can be adjusted by adjusting the openings of the variable flow rate valves 14a and 14b. That is, the heating (heating) capacity can be controlled based on the load.

The conditioned air heated by the hot water heat exchangers 13a and 13b is supplied to the conditioned room by a blower (not shown) as indicated by solid arrows.

The outdoor unit 8 includes a compressor 17 (variable operating capacity compressor capable of arbitrarily setting an operating capacity between a first set value and a second set value smaller than the set value). , Four-way valve 18, outdoor heat exchanger 19, electric expansion valve 2
0, a strainer 21, and an accumulator 23 are mounted, and an indoor heat exchanger 22 is disposed in the indoor unit 5a so as to be located on the windward side of the hot water heat exchanger 13b.

These devices are connected in a ring by a refrigerant pipe so as to form a refrigeration cycle in which the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 17 circulates. Switching the four-way valve 18 allows the indoor heat exchanger 22 to function as an evaporator (during cooling operation) or as a condenser (during heating operation).

Therefore, when performing the cooling operation in the indoor unit 5a, the variable flow valve 14a is closed, the compressor 17 is operated, and the four-way valve 18 is brought into the state shown by the solid line in FIG. The refrigerant evaporates, and the cooling operation of the conditioned room becomes possible.

During the heating operation, the heating operation is performed by opening the variable flow rate valve 14a and supplying hot water to the hot water heat exchanger 13a. At this time, if the compressor 17 is operated and the four-way valve 18 is switched to the state shown by the dotted line in FIG. 1, the refrigerant is condensed in the indoor heat exchanger 22 and the heating capacity can be increased.

By operating the refrigerant heat exchanger 22 as an evaporator and at the same time supplying hot water to the hot water heat exchanger 13a, the dehumidification operation of the conditioned room becomes possible. That is, dehumidified air is obtained by reheating the air cooled by the evaporator and the water from which the water is condensed and removed by the hot water heat exchanger 13a.

At this time, if the flow rate of the hot water is adjusted by adjusting the opening of the variable flow rate valve 16, the amount of heating at the time of reheating can be adjusted.
The temperature of the conditioned air blown into the conditioned room during the dehumidifying operation can be adjusted.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control circuit of the indoor unit 5a. In this figure, reference numeral 25 denotes a plug, which is connected to the indoor wiring and is connected to commercial AC power (for example, 100 AC).
V). This AC power is supplied to the inside of the control circuit via the switch 26, and is supplied to the outdoor unit 8 via the normally open contact 27 a of the power relay 27 and the terminal 28. Normally open contact piece 27
a closes during operation of the air conditioner to enable operation of the outdoor unit.

Reference numeral 29 denotes a DC fan for blowing air, which circulates air in the room (the room to be conditioned) to the hot water heat exchanger 15a and the indoor heat exchanger 22. This DC fan 29
This is a brushless motor in which a DC constant voltage output from a motor power supply 30 is switched by a drive circuit 31 in accordance with the rotation angle of the rotor and a predetermined stator winding is energized to continuously rotate the rotor.

The switching in the drive circuit 31 is controlled by the microcomputer 32 (control unit), and the number of rotations of the DC fan 29 can be changed by changing the constant voltage output from the motor power supply 30. This voltage may be controlled by the microcomputer 32.

Reference numeral 33 denotes a control circuit power supply,
It supplies power to drive elements (microcomputers, relays, various sensors, etc.) other than 9, and is connected in series with a motor power supply 30 together with a fuse 34.

Reference numerals 35 and 36 denote a serial power supply and a serial circuit, respectively, which enable transmission and reception of signals to and from the microcomputer of the outdoor unit 8 via a terminal 28 and a signal line (the terminal is a common line with the power supply). A signal from the microcomputer 32 is superimposed on the constant voltage generated by the serial power supply 35 by the serial circuit 36 and output from the terminal;
It also outputs the received signal to the microcomputer 32. As a signal system for transmission and reception, a general-purpose PCM system or the like can be used, but it is not limited to this.

Reference numeral 37 denotes an interface circuit for transmitting and receiving signals to and from the heat source side unit (water heater) 3 via the signal line 7, and enables transmission and reception of signals between the microcomputer 32 and the heat source side unit 3. .

Numeral 40 denotes a storage unit which stores initial constants of the microcomputer and reads these constants when the microcomputer 32 is initialized.

Reference numeral 42 denotes a speaker which outputs a signal reception sound, an alarm sound, and the like as necessary, and is controlled by an output from the microcomputer 32.

Reference numerals 44 and 45 denote flap motors and step motors for driving the variable flow rate valve 16, which are controlled by a signal from the microcomputer 32 via a drive circuit 43. By driving the flap motor (step motor) 44, the angle of the conditioned air discharged from the indoor unit 5 to the conditioned room can be changed. Further, by driving the step motor 45, the opening degree of the flow rate variable valve 16 changes, and the flow rate of the hot water can be changed.

Reference numeral 46 denotes a display unit, which is a receiving circuit including an LED whose lighting is controlled by a signal from the microcomputer 32 and a receiving IC for receiving a wireless signal (infrared signal) from a remote controller. The signal is output to the microcomputer 32 after demodulation.

Reference numeral 47 denotes a room temperature sensor,
The sensor a is provided on the air suction side and detects the temperature of the indoor air. The output of this sensor is used for controlling the intake temperature after the microcomputer 32 performs A / D conversion.

A sensor for the room temperature may be provided in a remote controller, and the temperature detected by the sensor may be received by a receiving circuit of the display unit 46 and used for operation control.

Numeral 48 denotes a refrigerant heat exchanger temperature sensor attached to the indoor heat exchanger 22, which detects the temperature of the indoor heat exchanger 22, and the microcomputer 32 controls the overload state or abnormal temperature based on this temperature. Is what you do.

Reference numeral 49 denotes a hot water heat exchanger temperature sensor, which detects the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger 15, and the microcomputer 32 performs control for an overload state or abnormal temperature (freezing) based on this temperature. .

Reference numeral 50 denotes a discharge temperature sensor which detects the temperature of conditioned air discharged from the air conditioner to the conditioned room and performs control for abnormal temperature.

Reference numeral 51 denotes a switch board, which is a switch for switching a mode during operation such as test operation / normal operation / stop, and a plurality of display LEDs for identifying a cause at the time of occurrence of an abnormality are provided nearby.

The indoor unit 5a thus configured
Receives the signal based on the operation of the remote controller (not shown), performs the air-conditioning operation, and sets the operating capacity of the compressor to the first set value and the second set value so that the optimal air-conditioning operation can be performed. It is controlled automatically between and. Such control of the driving capability is performed by a driving capability control unit configured by a program in the microcomputer 32.

The opening of the variable flow rate valve 14a is also determined by the heating operation /
In the dehumidifying operation or the like, control is performed so that an optimal air-conditioning operation can be performed according to the indoor load. At the same time, a signal for controlling the heat source unit 3 (start of hot water supply, change of tap water temperature, etc.) is transmitted via the interface circuit 37.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing a control circuit mounted in the outdoor unit. The control circuit is connected to the terminal plate 28 shown in FIG.

In this figure, 62 is a power supply circuit,
The AC power of 100 V from the indoor unit obtained through the first and second terminals of the terminal plate 61 is double-voltage rectified and smoothed. The DC power output from the power supply circuit 62 is output to an inverter circuit 63 in which switching elements are connected in a three-phase bridge shape, and the three-phase AC (compressor 1)
7 uses an induction motor), or after being converted into a waveform (when the compressor 17 uses a DC brushless motor) that can energize the stator winding corresponding to the rotational position of the rotor, the compressor 17 Supplied to

Reference numeral 64 denotes a microcomputer which receives a control signal from the microcomputer 32 of the indoor unit via the third terminal of the terminal plate 61 and the serial circuit 65 and mainly controls the rotation speed of the compressor 17, switching of the four-way switching valve 18, and the like. The operation of the fan motor 66 is controlled.

Therefore, the outdoor unit 8 is connected to the indoor unit 5a.
Operating the compressor 17 between a first set value and a second set value (<first set value) with an operation capacity corresponding to a signal indicating the operation capacity sent from the When an abnormality occurs in the outdoor unit 8, the indoor unit 5a automatically performs a protection operation.

The air conditioner constructed as described above has a blower when an abnormality occurs in the hot water circuit (hot water supply source) during the dehumidifying operation in which the refrigeration cycle and the hot water cycle are operated simultaneously and the supply of hot water is stopped. The operation of the dehumidification effect is continued by changing the air flow rate of No. 29 to the dry mode, which switches between low and low levels (30% and 10% of the maximum flow rate, or 20% of the maximum flow rate and stops) at intervals of 30 seconds. Can be maintained.

The abnormality of the hot water circuit is usually 50
When the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger 13a supplied at a temperature of not less than 30 degrees drops to 30 degrees or less in several minutes, it is determined when the temperature of the conditioned air discharged to the conditioned room drops to 18 degrees or less. Things.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing such an operation, which is a subroutine showing the operation when the dehumidifying operation is selected, and returns to the main routine at "R" in the figure.

In step S1, an operation start signal is output to the hot water supply source 3 to start circulation of the hot water. Next, in step S2, a fuzzy calculation (a general-purpose method can be used) is performed based on the difference between the room temperature (the temperature detected by the room temperature sensor) and the set temperature, and the time deviation of the difference, to match the current air conditioning load capacity. The correction value of the operating capacity of the compressor 17 is corrected as described above, and a signal indicating the operating capacity of the compressor 17 is transmitted to the outdoor unit 8. Therefore, the compressor 17 is operated with an operation capacity corresponding to the air conditioning load.

Next, in step S3, the temperature of the air discharged into the conditioned room (the temperature detected by the discharge temperature sensor 50).
The opening degree of the flow control valve 14a is adjusted so that the temperature becomes + room temperature (α may be a negative value). The opening degree of the flow control valve 14a can be obtained by a procedure similar to the procedure for obtaining the operating capacity of the compressor 17.

When α is a positive value, a dehumidifying operation with a warming (while heating) is performed, and when a value of α is a negative value, a dehumidifying with a cooling (while cooling) is performed. is there.

Next, in step S4, setting and determination of a mask time are performed. That is, if the timer reset at the start of the dehumidifying operation is within a predetermined time (for example, about 30 minutes), the following steps are not performed, the air flow rate is set in step S9, and then the process proceeds to “R” and this subroutine is performed. Through
It returns to the main routine.

The air flow rate is set so that the air flow rate is set manually or automatically (set based on the difference between the room temperature and the set value).
Is to control the number of rotations.

If it is determined in step S4 that the time exceeds the mask time, the process proceeds to step S5 where the timer time UP (for example, 6
Minutes) and if the time is not up,
This exits the subroutine via "R".

In steps S6 and S7, it is determined that the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger (the temperature detected by the hot water heat exchanger temperature sensor 49) is 30 degrees or less and 50 degrees or less. S11, step S
Proceeding to 12, in step S11, an operation signal is output to the hot water supply source 3 as in step S1, and in step S12, the timer used in step S5 is reset (time measurement is started).

Normally, the timer in step S5 is a timer UP
State (time U during the mask time of step S4).
P), and if normal, the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger is stable in a normal state of 50 degrees or more during the mask time. In this state, first, in steps S6 and S7, it is determined whether the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger is 50 degrees or lower or 30 degrees or lower.

When the hot water supply source 3 stops due to some abnormality and the hot water supply stops, the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger through which the cooling air cooled by the evaporator passes starts to decrease. When the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger first becomes 50 ° C. or lower with this temperature decrease, an operation start signal is sent to the hot water supply source 3 again in step S11, and the hot water supply source 3 is restarted. At the same time, the timer starts counting in step S12.

Then, the operation is continued as it is until the time in step S5 is up. During this time, when the operation of the hot water supply source 3 is restarted, the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger rises and returns to a normal state. When the time UP is determined in step S5, it is determined in step S6 whether the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger is equal to or lower than 30 degrees, and when this condition is satisfied, the process proceeds to step S8 and subsequent steps.

If the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger is stagnant between 30 and 50 degrees C., step S11 and step S1
2 is repeated again.

In step S6, the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger
If it is determined that the temperature is equal to or less than the temperature, the process proceeds to step S8, where the temperature of the evaporator (the temperature detected by the refrigerant heat exchanger sensor 47) is 10
It judges whether it is less than degree. That is, when the temperature of the evaporator is high, the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger does not become lower than that temperature, so that the process proceeds to step S9 and the operation is continued as it is. In this case, since the hot water is not supplied, the cooling operation is performed. However, since the evaporation temperature is high, the cold air having an extremely low temperature is not discharged.

When step S8 is satisfied, step S1 is executed.
The process proceeds to 0, and the operation of switching the blowing amount of the blowing device 29 between weak and weak (30% and 10% of the maximum blowing amount, or 20% of the maximum blowing amount and stopping) at an interval of 30 seconds is performed. By performing such an operation, a dehumidifying effect can be obtained.

Therefore, the effect of the dehumidifying operation is continued, instead of the dehumidifying operation by the combination of the hot water heat exchanger and the evaporator to the operation of obtaining the dehumidifying effect of the intermittent operation of the evaporator and the blower.

If the supply of hot water from the hot water supply source 3 is restarted and the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger 13a rises, the operation returns to normal operation.

The operation of the control unit described above is performed by the microcomputer 32
According to the present invention, when an abnormality occurs in the hot water supply source and the supply of the hot water is stopped, the operation of the refrigeration cycle is continued, and the operation for obtaining the dehumidifying effect by the intermittent operation of the blower is continued. The same air conditioning operation is continued regardless of the abnormality of the hot water supply source 3.

[0061]

As described above, the control device for an air conditioner according to the present invention is provided with a control unit for periodically increasing or decreasing the amount of air blown by the blower when the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined. Even if an abnormality occurs, the air-conditioning operation is continued with the same effect.

[0062]

[Brief description of the drawings]

[0063]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a refrigeration cycle and a hot water circuit of the present invention.

[0064]

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing control of the indoor unit shown in FIG.

[0065]

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing control of the outdoor unit shown in FIG.

[0066]

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the present invention.

[0067]

[Explanation of symbols]

 5a Indoor unit 8 Outdoor unit 13a Hot water heat exchanger 22 Indoor heat exchanger 32 Microcomputer

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Yoshiya Yamagami 2-5-5 Keihanhondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 3L060 AA02 CC01 DD08 EE05 3L061 BE04 BF03 BF08

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A refrigeration cycle having a compressor, a condenser, a decompression device, and an evaporator; and a hot water circuit in which hot water circulates between a hot water supply source and a hot water heat exchanger. The evaporator and the hot water heat exchanger are arranged in order from the windward in a circulating single unit to enable a dehumidifying operation, and a blower for circulating air is provided in the unit, and the hot water supply source is provided. An air conditioner control device, comprising: a control unit that periodically increases and decreases the amount of air blown by the blower when an abnormality is determined. 2. The air conditioner control device according to claim 1, wherein the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined at least by stopping the hot water supply or lowering the hot water temperature. 3. The control device for an air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined based on a decrease in a temperature of air discharged from the unit to the conditioned room. 4. The control device for an air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined by a decrease in the temperature of the hot water heat exchanger. 5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the abnormality of the hot water supply source is determined based on a decrease in a temperature of air discharged from the unit to the conditioned room and a decrease in a temperature of the hot water heat exchanger. The control device for an air conditioner as described in the above.