JP2001105832A - Vehicular air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicular air conditioner in which the swing of a damper is not disturbed by the thermal expansion of a partition plate. SOLUTION: In a vehicular air conditioner provided with a case in which an inner air or outer air is introduced, a damper for distributing the introduced air and a partition plate 60' for partitioning the case, the side surface of the damper is arranged facing to the partition plate and a sheet having flexibility (flexible part) 70 is provided on the partition plate 60' while facing to at least the swing area of the damper.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner for a vehicle capable of independently performing air conditioning of a passenger seat and a driver seat.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A vehicle air conditioner capable of providing a comfortable cabin environment for an occupant by air conditioning the interior of a vehicle such as an automobile is a vehicle including a blower fan, an evaporator, a heater core, and various dampers. An air conditioning unit, a refrigerant system for supplying low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant to an evaporator in the vehicle air conditioning unit, a heating source system for introducing high-temperature engine cooling water to a heater core in the vehicle air conditioning unit, And a control unit that controls the operation of the air conditioner for a vehicle in accordance with various conditions such as humidity, solar radiation, and passenger preferences.

[0003] Among them, an air conditioning unit 1A for a vehicle shown in Fig. 8 includes an inside / outside air box 10, a blower section 20, and a cooler section 3.
0, the heater unit 40 is integrated. In the case of a general sedan type passenger car, this vehicle air conditioning unit is disposed below the dashboard on the passenger side.
Hereinafter, the configuration of the vehicle air conditioning unit 1A will be briefly described in the order of air flow.

The first inside / outside air box 10 is a part having a function of selecting either the outside air (air outside the vehicle compartment) a or the inside air (air inside the vehicle compartment) b, and includes an outside air inlet 11a and an inside air inlet. 11b is provided. Both inlets 11
For a and 11b, one of them is closed by operating an inside / outside air switching damper (not shown) provided therein, and air to be introduced (hereinafter referred to as introduced air) is selected. A blower unit 20 is connected and provided downstream of the inside / outside air box 10, and has a function of sucking outside air a or inside air b by the operation of the blower fan 21 and sending the air to a cooler unit 30 described later.

[0005] The cooler section 30 and the heater section 40 are both disposed in a case 41. Left and right chambers (driver-side chamber 41R, passenger-side chamber 4) are provided in case 41.
1L) is fixed, and the air exiting the cooler 30 is distributed to the left and right and sent to the heater. The cooler unit 30 has a function of cooling and dehumidifying the introduced air blown from the blower unit 20 by the evaporator 31. This evaporator 31
During the cooling operation, a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant is supplied from the refrigerant system and exchanges heat with the passing introduced air to cool and dehumidify.
The heater section 40 has a function of selectively heating the introduced air sent from the cooler section 30 and blowing out conditioned air from an outlet corresponding to the operation mode.
The heater unit 40 includes a heater core 42 that receives supply of engine cooling water as a heat source from a heating source system and includes left and right chambers 41.
R, 41L. Heater core 4
The flow rate of the introduced air passing through the two chambers 41
R, air mix damper 43R provided in 41L,
The temperature of the conditioned air is controlled by adjusting the opening degree of 43L. As shown in FIG. 9, the case 41 has defrost air outlets 44R, 44L and face air outlets 45R, 45L in the left and right chambers 41L, 41R, respectively.
And foot outlets 46R, 45L are provided, and a defroster damper 44Ra, 44La, a face damper 45Ra, 45La, and a foot damper (not shown) are attached to each outlet. In addition, as sub assists for the air mix dampers 43R and 43L,
7L are provided.

The air mix dampers 43R, 43L,
Sub dampers 47R, 47L, defroster dampers 44R
The a, 44La, the face dampers 45Ra, 45La, and the foot damper swing their axes in the left-right direction. Each of the dampers is independently controlled left and right.

The above-described vehicle air conditioner can select the following operation modes by opening and closing various dampers installed in the heater section 40 of the vehicle air conditioner unit 1. In the following, only the chamber 41R on the driver's seat side will be described, but the same applies to the chamber 41L on the passenger seat side. The "defrost blowing mode" is a defrost blow-out port that removes hot air and dehumidified air so as to directly hit the inner surface of the windshield, etc., in order to remove defrost on the windshield before running in winter and remove fogging of the windshield during rainy weather. It blows out from 44R. The “face blowout mode” is mainly used during the summer cooling operation to face the upper body of the occupant.
The cool air is blown from R. "Foot outlet mode" is mainly used during the heating operation in winter.
The warm air is blown out from the R to the feet of the occupant, but at the same time, a part of the warm air is blown out from the defrost outlet 44R in order to remove fogging of the windshield and the like. In a general distribution ratio, 70 to 80% of the total blown air amount is blown from the foot outlet 46R.

The "bi-level blowing mode" is mainly used in the middle period of spring or autumn, and blows conditioned air from both the face outlet 45R and the foot outlet 46R. In general, the wind blown out from the outlet 45R is head cold foot heat at a lower temperature than the foot outlet 46R. In this case, the distribution ratio is generally set to 50%. The “blending (foot / defrost) blowing mode” blows out conditioned air from both the defrost outlet 44R and the foot outlet 46R used in winter. In this case, the distribution ratio is generally set to 50%.
In this way, conditioned air at a temperature according to the preference of the driver and the passenger in the passenger seat is blown out.

[0009]

When the warm air passes through the chambers 41R and 41L as described above, the partition plate 60 expands due to thermal expansion. However, the partition plate 60
Since the periphery is fixed to the case, the partitioning plate 60 is curved by the force which is about to expand. In particular, for example, when the driver's seat side is heated and the passenger seat side is cooled, the temperature difference between the left and right chambers 41R and 41L becomes large, and the partition plate 60 is largely curved in one direction. In such a case, the dampers 44Ra, 44La, 45Ra, 45La, 47
The swinging of R and 47L causes the partition plate 6 located on its side to rotate.
0, and dampers 44Ra, 44La, 45R
a, 45La, 47R, and 47L have a problem that swinging becomes impossible.

In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner for a vehicle in which the swing of a damper is not hindered by thermal expansion of a partition plate.

[0011]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, in the present invention, the partition plate is made of a material which does not hinder the swing of the damper, and the partition plate is not completely fixed. It is characterized by preventing bending due to thermal expansion. That is, a flexible portion having flexibility is provided on at least a part of the partition plate that partitions the case of the vehicle air conditioner unit left and right. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, a frame is provided with a flexible film, more specifically, a sheet formed by knitting a resin such as rubber or Teflon. Since the flexible portion has flexibility, it does not hinder swing of the damper. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the flexible portion may be provided only in a portion facing a region where the damper swings. Further, a partition plate for partitioning the case of the vehicle air conditioning unit to the left and right may be attached to the case so as to be movable on a plane of the partition plate. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, a protrusion is formed on one of the case and the partition plate, and a hole is formed on the other, and the protrusion is loosely fitted into the hole. In this case, even if the partition plate thermally expands, the amount of expansion is absorbed by the allowance between the projection and the hole, and the partition plate expands on the plane of the partition plate, so that the partition plate is prevented from being curved. Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the side surface of the partition plate may be supported from both sides by a case 41. In this case, even if the partition plate expands, since the partition plate is supported on its side surface, its bending is prevented.

[0012]

1 to 9 show the structure of a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention. The vehicle air conditioner includes a blower fan, an evaporator, a heater core, and various dampers. Air conditioning unit for
A refrigerant system for supplying a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant to an evaporator in the vehicle air-conditioning unit, a heating source system for introducing high-temperature engine cooling water to a heater core in the vehicle air-conditioning unit, and temperature, humidity, solar radiation and The control unit controls the operation of the air conditioner for a vehicle in accordance with various conditions such as occupant preferences. In the following, the same components as those in the related art will be described using the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 8, the air conditioning unit 1A for a vehicle includes an inside / outside air box 10, a blower section 20, and a cooler section 3.
0, the heater unit 40 is integrated. In the case of a general sedan type passenger car, the vehicle air conditioning unit 1A is disposed on the left side (passenger seat side) when viewed from the passenger compartment and below the dashboard 5. Hereinafter, the vehicle air conditioning unit 1A will be described in the order of air flow.

The first inside / outside air box 10 has a function of selectively switching the air introduced into the vehicle air conditioning unit 1A to either the outside air a or the inside air b.
Here, an outside air introduction port 11a communicating with the outside of the vehicle compartment and an inside air introduction port 11b communicating with the inside of the vehicle compartment are provided, and one of the introduction ports 11a and 11b is closed by the inside / outside air switching damper 12, and the introduction is performed. To be introduced (hereinafter referred to as introduction air).

The blower unit 20 is provided downstream of the inside / outside air box 10 and is connected to the outside air a by the operation of the blower fan 21.
Alternatively, a cooler unit 30 to be described later is selectively sucked in the inside air b.
It has a function to blow air to This blower fan 21
The electric motor 22 is used as a drive source, and generally, a plurality of air flow rates can be switched in addition to a stop position. When the outside air a is introduced while the vehicle is running, the outside air a, which is the running wind, can flow to the cooler 30 even when the blower fan 21 is stopped.

The cooler section 30 and the heater section 40 are both arranged in a case 41. Left and right chambers (driver-side chamber 41R, passenger-side chamber 4) are provided in case 41.
1L) as the partition plate 6 shown in FIG.
0 ′ is provided so that the air exiting the cooler unit 30 is distributed to the left and right and sent to the heater unit 40. The cooler unit 30 has a function of cooling and dehumidifying the introduced air blown from the blower unit 20. The cooler unit 30 includes an evaporator 3 that is a heat exchanger for cooling.
1 is provided. The evaporator 31 receives supply of a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant from a refrigerant system 2 described later during cooling operation, and exchanges heat between the introduced air that is blown from the blower unit 20 and passes through the evaporator 31 and the liquid refrigerant. As a result, the introduced air is deprived of heat by the refrigerant and becomes cooled and dehumidified cold air, which is distributed to the left and right by the partition plate 60 'and guided to the heater unit 40 described later.

The heater section 40 has a function of selectively heating the introduced air sent from the cooler section 30 and blowing out conditioned air from an outlet corresponding to each operation mode. The heater unit 40 includes a heater core 4 installed in a case 41 so as to extend over left and right chambers.
2 and air mix dampers 43R and 43L for adjusting the flow rate of the introduced air passing through the heater core 42.

The case 41 is provided with defroster outlets 44R, 44L, face outlets 45R, 45L and foot outlets 46R, 46L in left and right chambers, respectively, and each outlet has a defroster damper 44R.
a, 44La, face dampers 45Ra, 45La, and a foot damper (not shown). Further, sub-dampers 47R and 47L are provided as assists for the air mix dampers 43R and 43L. These defroster dampers 44Ra, 44La and face damper 45R
a, 45La, and the sub dampers 47R, 47L are configured to swing their axes in the left-right direction, and the following blow mode is executed by adjusting the opening degree of each of the blow-out ports by using these dampers. Can be. The air mix dampers 43R and 43L, the sub damper 47R,
The left and right 47L, the defroster dampers 44Ra, 44La, the face dampers 45Ra, 45La, and the foot dampers are controlled independently of each other. In the following, the chamber 41R on the driver's seat side will be described.
The same applies to 1L.

The above-described defrost outlet 44R is provided with hot air and dehumidified air to directly hit the inner surface of the windshield or the like in order to remove defrost on the windshield before running in winter and to remove fogging of the windshield during rainy weather. It blows out. The air-conditioning operation mode in which the entire amount of the conditioned air is blown out from the defrost air outlet 44R in this manner is called a “defroster air-blow mode”. The face outlet 45R blows cold air toward the upper body of the occupant mainly during the cooling operation in summer, and such an air-conditioning operation mode is referred to as a “face outlet mode”. The foot outlet 46R blows warm air to the feet of the occupant during the heating operation in winter, and is referred to as a “foot outlet mode”. In this air-conditioning operation mode, a small amount of normally 20% of the conditioned air (warm air) is blown out simultaneously from the defrost blowout port 44R to remove the fogging of the windshield and the like.

There is also an air-conditioning operation mode called a "bi-level blowing mode" which is mainly used in the middle period of spring or autumn and blows conditioned air from both the face outlet 45R and the foot outlet 46R. Is to blow the wind from the face outlet 45R to the foot outlet 4
In general, the temperature is lower than 6R and the temperature is head cold.
There is also an air-conditioning operation mode called a “blend blowing mode” that blows air-conditioned air from both the defroster outlet 44R and the foot outlet 46R used in winter.

The heater core 42 is a heat exchanger that receives a supply of high-temperature engine cooling water during a heating operation and heats the introduced air blown from the cooler 30. Heater part 4
Introduced air sent to the air mix damper 43R,
According to the degree of opening of 43L, it is classified into those that pass through heater core 42 and those that do not pass through heater core 42.

Next, the structure of the refrigerant system 2 will be described with reference to FIG. The refrigerant system 2 supplies a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant to the evaporator 31, and includes a compressor 51, a condenser 52, and an expansion valve 53. When the cooling / dehumidifying function is not required, installation of the refrigerant system 2 is omitted together with the evaporator 31 described above. The compressor 51 compresses the vaporized low-temperature and low-pressure gas refrigerant by removing heat in the vehicle interior by the evaporator 31 and sends it to the condenser 52 as a high-temperature and high-pressure gas refrigerant. In the case of an air conditioner for an automobile, the compressor 51 receives driving force from the normal engine 54 via a belt and a clutch. The condenser 52 is disposed in front of the engine room 6 and cools the high-temperature and high-pressure gas refrigerant supplied from the compressor 51 with the outside air to condense and liquefy the gaseous refrigerant. The liquefied refrigerant is sent to a receiver (not shown) to separate gas and liquid, and then sent to the expansion valve 53 as a high-temperature and high-pressure liquid refrigerant. The expansion valve 53 decompresses and expands the high-temperature and high-pressure liquid refrigerant into a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid (mist-like) refrigerant.
Supply to 1. The expansion valve 53 is generally installed at an appropriate position in the cooler 30 together with the evaporator 31.

Next, the configuration of the heating source system 3 will be briefly described with reference to FIG. The heating source system 3 includes a heater core 42
A high-temperature engine cooling water serving as a heat source is supplied to the engine (see FIG. 8). A part of the engine cooling water is circulated between the engine 54 and the radiator 55 and introduced into the air conditioner.

Finally, the configuration of the control unit 4 will be briefly described with reference to FIG. The control unit 4 controls the operation of the air conditioning unit 1A, the refrigerant system 2, and the heating source system 3 which constitute the air conditioning apparatus. Usually, a control circuit is provided on an operation panel on which the occupant performs various settings. It is installed and installed in the center of the instrument panel. The control unit 4 can perform switching operation of the inside / outside air switching damper 12, selection switching of various operation modes by opening / closing operation of dampers, switching of the air volume of the blower fan 21, desired temperature setting operation, and the like.

In the vehicle air conditioner thus configured, by driving the blower fan 21, the outside air a
Alternatively, the inside air b is introduced from the outside air inlet 11a or the inside air inlet 11b of the inside / outside air box 10, and the introduced air is sent to the cooler 30 through the blower 20. Cooler part 3
In the cooling operation in which the low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant is supplied from the refrigerant system 2, the introduced air flowing through the inside of the evaporator 31 is cooled and dehumidified by exchanging heat with the refrigerant. Flows to

The introduced air which has been cooled and dehumidified and sent to the heater section 40 is distributed to the left and right chambers 41R and 41L by the partition plate 60 ', and then passed through the heater core by the respective air mix dampers 43R and 43L. Controlled. That is, when the air mix damper 43R completely covers the passage on the heater core 42 side, the whole amount of the introduced air does not pass through the heater core 42 and the air outlets 44R, 45
R, 46R, cool air is blown into the vehicle compartment from the outlet with the damper opened. When the air mix damper 43R fully opens the passage on the heater core 42 side, all of the introduced air passes through the heater core 42 and is heated, so that warm air is blown into the vehicle compartment from the outlet with the damper open. . Furthermore, when the air mix damper 43R is at the intermediate position, the cool air that has not passed through the heater core 42 and the warm air that has passed through the heater core 42 are mixed on the downstream side of the air mix damper 43R in accordance with the degree of opening. The air conditioned to the temperature is blown into the vehicle compartment from the outlet with the damper open according to the operation mode. In addition,
Similarly, the passage of the introduced air is controlled on the passenger seat side by the air mix damper 43L. As described above,
Air-conditioned air is blown out at a temperature according to the preference of the driver's seat and the passenger's seat.

Since the insides of the chambers 41R and 41L are exposed to a large temperature difference during cooling and heating, the insides of the chambers 41R and 41L expand greatly during heating as compared with during cooling. Furthermore, the left and right chambers 41R and 41R are used, for example, when the driver's seat side is set to cooling (face blowing mode) and the passenger side is set to foot blowing mode (heating).
L increases the temperature difference. In this case, the conventional partition plate may be curved to one side and hinder the swing of the damper. In the present embodiment, the partition plate has the following configuration to prevent the damper from swinging.

FIG. 1 shows a partition plate 6 used in this embodiment.
0 'and the dampers 44Ra, 44La, 45Ra, 4
5La, 47R, and 47L have the side surfaces of this partition plate 60 '.
It is provided for. More specifically, the rotation axis of the damper is provided in a direction orthogonal to the partition plate 60 ', and its side surface is in contact with or close to the partition plate 60'. In the figure, reference numeral 61 denotes a frame attached to the case, and reference numeral 70 denotes a sheet (flexible portion) attached to the frame. The sheet 70 is a resin film formed by knitting Teflon yarn and has flexibility. The sheet 70 does not bend to one side due to temperature, and does not hinder the swing of the damper by bending the sheet 70 even if the side surface of the damper contacts. The material of the sheet 70 is not limited to the above, and rubber or the like may be used as long as it is a flexible material having flexibility. The material is selected based on heat resistance, elasticity, and the like in addition to flexibility.
In addition, the range in which the sheet 70 is provided is substantially the whole in the above description. However, as in the partition plate 62 according to another embodiment shown in FIG. Only a flexible portion such as rubber 71 may be provided.

Further, the partition plate may be constituted as follows. FIG. 3 shows a partition plate according to another embodiment. In the figure, a frame 75 is attached to the case, and a partition plate 63 is attached to the frame 75. Frame 75
, Hook members 74 projecting in the vertical direction are attached to the four corners, and the partition plate 63 is provided with holes 73 into which the hook members 74 are loosely fitted. The hook member 74 is inserted into the hole 73 with a margin. In this partition plate 63, the thermal expansion of the partition plate 63 is controlled by holes 73.
And the hook member 74 absorbs it. That is, even if the partition plate 63 expands, the partition plate 63 is not completely fixed to the frame 75, so that deformation such as bending is prevented. In the above example, the frame 75 is separate from the case 41, but may be integrated. In this case, case 41
A member corresponding to the hook member 74 may be provided directly.

FIG. 4 shows a partition plate according to still another embodiment. In this example, the partition plate 64 made of aluminum is used.
Is provided with a rubber frame (elastic body) 76 at the end of. As shown in FIG. 5, the partition plate 64 is pressed and supported from both sides by a projection 77 provided on the case 41 side via a frame 76. Although the partition plate 64 is pressed by the case 41 as described above, it is not completely fixed. Therefore, even if the partition plate 64 undergoes thermal expansion, the partition plate 64 is positioned between the frame 76 and the projection 77.
Sliding inward and outward prevents the partition plate 64 from bending due to thermal expansion. The material of the partition plate 64 is not limited to aluminum, and may be another material, but aluminum has a characteristic of high thermal conductivity.

[0031]

As described above, according to the present invention, by providing a flexible portion on the partition plate, the partition plate is prevented from bending, and has flexibility even when the damper contacts. Therefore, the swing of the damper is not hindered. In addition, since the partition plate is movably mounted on a plane along the partition plate, even if the partition plate expands, its bending is prevented. Therefore, the swing of the damper is not hindered.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a partition plate used in an air conditioner shown as one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a partition plate shown as another embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state in which a partition plate shown as another embodiment is attached to a frame.

FIG. 4 is a front view of a partition plate shown as another embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the partition plate is attached to a case.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an engine room of an automobile showing an outline of a configuration and an arrangement of the air conditioner.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an installation example of the air conditioning unit when viewed from the passenger compartment side.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of an air conditioning unit.

FIG. 9 is a side sectional view showing a cooler unit and a heater unit of the air conditioning unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 41 Case 60 ', 62, 63, 64 Partition plate 70 Sheet (flexible part) 71 Flexible part 76 Frame (elastic body)

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Tomohiko Shibata 3-1-1 Asahi-cho, Nishibiwajima-cho, Nishi-Kasugai-gun, Aichi Prefecture F-term in Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. Air Conditioning Works 3L011 BA01

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A case where inside air or outside air is introduced,
A vehicle air conditioner comprising: a damper for distributing the introduced air; and a partition plate for partitioning the case, wherein the damper is disposed with its side face facing the partition plate, and the partition plate has An air conditioner for a vehicle, wherein a flexible portion having flexibility is provided at least facing a swing region of the damper. 2. A case where inside air or outside air is introduced,
A vehicle air conditioner comprising a damper for distributing the introduced air, and a partition plate for partitioning the case, wherein the partition plate is movably attached to the case on a plane along the partition plate. An air conditioner for a vehicle, comprising: 3. The air conditioner for a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein one of the case and the partition plate has a hole, and the other has a projection that is loosely fitted in the hole. An air conditioner for a vehicle, comprising: 4. The air conditioner for a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the partition plate is supported by both sides of the case. 5. The air conditioner for a vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the partition plate is supported by the case via an elastic body.