JP2001246921A - Air conditioning unit and air conditioner for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air conditioning unit and an air conditioner for a vehicle capable of reducing pressure loss and decreasing operating noise and consumption power by reducing passage resistance of introduced air. SOLUTION: This air conditioning unit is provided with an evaporator 31 and a heater core 42 mounted in a passage for air-conditioning introduced air and blowing off the same into the inside of the vehicle. The heater core 42 is movably mounted to vary the projection area for covering the passage.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioning unit mounted on a vehicle such as a passenger car for performing air conditioning in a passenger compartment and an air conditioning apparatus for a vehicle.

[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 an air conditioner including a blower fan, an evaporator, a heater core, and various dampers. A conditioning system, a refrigerant system for supplying low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant to an evaporator in the air-conditioning unit, a heating source system for introducing high-temperature engine cooling water to a heater core in the air-conditioning unit, and a 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.

[0003] The air conditioning unit 1 shown in Fig. 14 is one in which an inside / outside air box 10, a blower section 20, a cooler section 30, a heater section 40, and a conditioned air blowing section 50 are integrated. In the case of a general sedan type passenger car, the air conditioning unit 1 is arranged below the dashboard on the passenger seat side. Hereinafter, the configuration of the air conditioning unit 1 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
One of a and 11b is configured to close one of them by operating the inside / outside air switching damper 12 and select air to be introduced (hereinafter referred to as introduced air). A blower unit 20 is provided downstream of the inside / outside air box 10 and connected thereto.
1 has a function of sucking the outside air a or the inside air b and sending the air to the cooler 30 described later. Cooler part 3
Numeral 0 has a function of cooling and dehumidifying the introduced air blown from the blower unit 20 by the evaporator 31. The evaporator 31 receives the supply of the low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant from the refrigerant system during the cooling operation and exchanges heat with the passing introduced air to cool and dehumidify.

[0005] 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. A heater core 42 that receives supply of engine cooling water as a heat source from a heating source system is provided in a case 41 of the heater unit 40. The flow rate of the introduced air passing through the heater core 42 is adjusted by the opening degree of the air mix damper 42a, whereby the temperature of the conditioned air is controlled. The case 41 of the heater unit 40 is connected to the case 51 of the air-conditioned air outlet unit 50. The case 51 is provided with a defrost outlet 52, a face outlet 53, and a foot outlet 54. Is equipped with a defrost damper 52a, a face damper 53a and a foot damper 54a.

In the above-described vehicle air conditioner, the "defrost blow mode" and the "face blow mode" are performed by opening and closing various dampers provided in the heater section 40 and the conditioned air blowing section 50 of the air conditioning unit 1. The desired blow mode can be selected and set from "foot blow mode", "bi-level blow mode", and "blend (foot / defrost) blow mode".

[0007]

However, since recent vehicles are required to have low noise and low fuel consumption, target values for noise reduction and energy saving in air-conditioning operation are strict even for air conditioners for vehicles. It is becoming.
In order to achieve such a target value, HVAC (Heat
ing, Ventilation, and Air-Conditioning) unit, it is effective to reduce the flow resistance of the introduced air flowing through the air-conditioning unit to reduce the pressure loss. It is desired to reduce the load.

However, in the conventional air conditioning unit 1 described above, the inlet of the heater core 42 is fully closed by the air mix damper 43 to form a flow path of the cool air cooled and dehumidified by the evaporator 31, so that the heater core The projected area of 42 becomes a dead space that cannot be used as a flow path for cold air. For this reason, the flow area of the cold air could not be increased, resulting in a large pressure loss.

As one of the solutions to such a problem,
An air conditioning unit 1A having a configuration as shown in FIG. 15 has been proposed. This air conditioning unit 1A is the same as the above-described prior art in that the heater core 42 is disposed downstream of the evaporator 31. However, in this case, the heater core 42 is installed vertically in the flow path of the introduced air, and its projected area is substantially the same as that of the evaporator 31 so as to obtain a large heating capacity. A hot water pipe 7 for supplying engine cooling water (hot water) to the heater core 42
A hot water valve 8 is provided, and during cooling operation, the supply of hot water is shut off by closing the hot water valve 8, and the heater core 42 is also used as a cool air passage. Such a configuration is effective in that the flow path area is increased and the flow path resistance is reduced, but, for example, in the cooling operation, the operating mode is switched because a cool air feeling cannot be obtained until the hot water in the heater core 42 cools down. There is a problem in responsiveness in the case. Also, compared to simply passing through the duct,
Passing through the heater core 42 configured to enhance the heat exchange efficiency itself becomes the flow path resistance.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and has been made in view of the above circumstances, whereby air pressure is further reduced by reducing the flow path resistance of introduced air, thereby enabling reduction of operation noise and power consumption. It is an object of the present invention to provide a conditioning unit and a vehicle air conditioner.

[0011]

The present invention employs the following means in order to solve the above-mentioned problems. The air conditioning unit according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioning unit includes an evaporator and a heater core installed in a flow path that air-conditions the introduced air and blows the air into a room, and a projected area that covers the flow path. Wherein the heater core is movably installed so that is variable.

According to such an air conditioning unit, since the heater core is configured to be movable, the effective area of the heater core can be increased by making full use of the flow path area. In some cases, the heater core can be moved to a position where the projected area of the heater core covering the flow path is maximized, and in the maximum cooling operation, it can be moved to a position where the projected area of the heater core covering the flow path is minimized.

[0013] In this case, the air conditioning unit is preferably provided with the heater core rotatably movable, whereby the movement of the heater core can be realized in a relatively small unit. In addition, it is preferable to provide a first damper on the downstream side of the heater core using a space in which the heater core that selectively switches a flow path of the introduced air that has passed through the heater core has moved, thereby reducing the rotation range of the heater core. You can switch the hot air flow path by making it smaller,
This is effective for downsizing the unit. One end of the heater core is rotatably supported by a rotating shaft portion, and a second damper for controlling a flow rate of introduced air passing through the heater core is provided near the other end of the rotating shaft portion. Preferably, the rotation range of the heater core can be reduced. In this case, a shield plate fixed to the rotation shaft side and rotating integrally with the heater core is provided, and the shield plate and the second damper cooperate to control the flow rate of the introduced air passing through the heater core. Therefore, the size of the second damper can be reduced, so that the size of the unit can be further reduced.

Further, in the above air conditioning unit, it is preferable that the rotating shaft has a double pipe structure including an inner pipe and an outer pipe. In this case, the rotating shaft is connected to a hot water pipe, and It is preferable that the overlap of the openings provided on the peripheral surfaces of the inner tube and the outer tube be changed in accordance with the rotation angle of the heater core. Thereby, the warm water flowing into the heater core can be adjusted according to the rotation angle of the heater core.

In the above-mentioned air conditioning unit, the heater core may be installed so as to be movable in parallel.
This also allows the effective area of the heater core to be increased by maximizing the use of the flow path area, and furthermore, during the maximum heating operation, the heater core is moved to a position where the projected area of the heater core covering the flow path is maximized. In addition, during the maximum cooling operation, the heater core that covers the flow path can be moved to a position where the projected area is minimized.

A vehicle air conditioner according to claim 9 is
An evaporator installed in a flow path of air to be air-conditioned, and a heater core arranged on a downstream side of the evaporator,
An air conditioning unit having a heater core movably installed so that the projected area covering the flow path is variable, a compressor that compresses a low-temperature low-pressure gas refrigerant, and heat exchange of the high-pressure gas refrigerant with outside air. A condenser for condensing, and a throttle mechanism for decompressing the high-temperature and high-pressure liquid refrigerant into a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant, a refrigerant system for supplying the low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant to the evaporator, and engine cooling water to the heater core A heating source system to be introduced, the air conditioning unit,
And a controller for controlling the operation of the refrigerant system and the heating source system.

According to such a vehicle air conditioner,
In the air-conditioning unit, the effective area of the heater core can be increased by maximizing the use of the flow path area, and in the maximum heating operation, the heater core moves to the position where the projected area of the heater core covering the flow path becomes the maximum In addition, during the maximum cooling operation, the heater core that covers the flow path can be moved to a position where the projected area is minimized.
For this reason, the maximum heating capacity is improved, and further, the flow path resistance is reduced, so that the operation noise and the power consumption can be reduced.

[0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of a vehicle air conditioner and a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The first embodiment shown in FIG.
A heater core 42 provided in an air conditioning unit provided with an evaporator 31 and a heater core 42 like an HVAC unit, and formed in an air conditioning unit that air-conditions the introduced air and blows the air toward the interior of the vehicle, that is, the heater core 42 installed in the air conditioning duct AD. Is made rotatable. In this case, the heater core 42 has a size as close as possible to the cross-sectional area of the air-conditioning duct AD, and a maximum heating position (indicated by a solid line) standing upright or almost upright, and a maximum cooling position (imaginary line) laid horizontally or almost horizontally. ) Can be rotated by a drive unit (not shown) including, for example, an electric motor and a speed reduction mechanism. In other words, it is configured to be rotatable between a maximum heating position where the projected area covering the air conditioning duct AD of the flow path is the maximum and a maximum cooling position where the projected area is the minimum. It is preferable that the heater core 42 is supported by the rotating shaft 43, and a hot water pipe for introducing a part of engine cooling water (hot water) is connected to the rotating shaft 43.

With such a configuration, when the greatest heating capacity is required, heating can be performed by making maximum use of the cross-sectional area of the air conditioning duct AD. For this reason,
If the heating capacity per unit area is the same, the heating capacity can be improved by an increase in the passage area of the introduced air. Further, if the flow rate of the introduced air is the same, the larger the area of the heater core 42 passing therethrough, the smaller the pressure loss is. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the flow path resistance and reduce the pressure loss. Further, when the greatest cooling capacity is required, the heater core 42 is not required at all. Therefore, the projection area is minimized by allowing the heater core 42 not to pass the introduced air. For this reason, the presence of the heater core 42 can reduce the effective area of the air conditioning duct AD to increase the pressure loss, or minimize the occurrence of pressure loss by passing through the heater core 42. It is possible to reduce the flow path resistance and reduce the pressure loss. Note that the inclination angle θ of the heater core 42 is
The maximum and minimum intermediate positions can be selected as appropriate,
Temperature adjustment is also possible.

As described above, when the flow path resistance is reduced, the operating speed of the blower fan that blows in the introduced air can be reduced to a lower speed than before, or a smaller blower fan can be used. . For this reason, it becomes possible to reduce the operating noise during the air-conditioning operation to reduce the noise, or to reduce the power consumed by the drive source of the blower fan to save power. In addition, since the heater core 42 is configured to rotate, the size of the air conditioning unit does not increase. In the illustrated example, the lower end of the heater core 42 is supported by the rotating shaft 43, but the upper end or the center of the heater core 42 may be rotatably supported.

FIG. 2 shows a modification of the first embodiment described above, wherein the projection area is changed by moving the heater core 42 in parallel. In this case, around the air conditioning duct AD, an evacuation section S that can accommodate the heater core 42 that has moved in parallel during maximum cooling is required. Even with such a configuration, it is possible to improve the heating capacity at the time of maximum heating, and also to reduce noise and power by reducing the flow path resistance.

FIGS. 3 to 5 are views showing a second embodiment of an air conditioner and an air conditioner for a vehicle according to the present invention. The air conditioner for a vehicle is mainly used for air conditioning such as cooling and heating. Air conditioning unit 1B that performs
A refrigerant system 2 that supplies a refrigerant to the air conditioning unit 1B during a cooling operation, a heating source system 3 that supplies engine cooling water as a heat source to the air conditioning unit 1B during a heating operation, and a control unit 4 that controls the operation of the entire apparatus. It is composed of

As shown in FIG. 3, the air-conditioning unit 1B includes an air-conditioning air blow-out unit 50 in addition to the inside / outside air box 10, the blower unit 20, the cooler unit 30, and the heater unit 40. This air conditioning unit 1B is disposed on the left side (passenger seat side) when viewed from the vehicle interior and below the dashboard 5 in the case of a general sedan type passenger car as shown in FIGS. . Hereinafter, the air conditioning unit 1B 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 air conditioning unit 1B to either the outside air a or the inside air b. Here, an outside air inlet 11a communicating with the outside of the cabin and an inside air inlet 11b communicating with the cabin are provided.
One of 1a and 11b is closed by the inside / outside air switching damper 12, and the air to be introduced (hereinafter referred to as introduced air) is selected.

The blower unit 20 is provided downstream of the inside / outside air box 10 and is provided with 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 traveling, the outside air a, which is the traveling wind, can flow to the downstream cooler 30 even when the blower fan 21 is stopped.

The cooler unit 30 has a function of cooling the introduced air blown from the blower unit 20 to dehumidify the air. The cooler unit 30 includes an evaporator 31 that is a heat exchanger for cooling, and a case 32 that houses the evaporator 31. Evaporator 31
During the cooling operation, a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant is supplied from a refrigerant system 2 to be described later, and heat is exchanged between the introduced air blown from the blower unit 20 and passing 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.
It is led to 0. The case 32 is a resin molded part forming a part of the air conditioning duct AD serving as a flow path of the introduced air. On the lower surface of the case 32, condensed water generated on the surface of the evaporator 31 is collected. Drain pan 33 to be discharged
Are formed.

The heater section 40 selectively heats the introduced air sent from the cooler section 30 and, in accordance with a set operation mode, each outlet provided in an air-conditioned air blow section 50 described later. It has the function of sending out the air-conditioned air toward. The heater section 40 includes a heater core 42 installed inside a case 41 and the heater core 42.
A rotary shaft 43 rotatably supporting the lower end of the heater core 42, a flow path switching damper 44 provided on the downstream side of the heater core 42 as a first damper, and a heater core 42 as a second damper.
A flow rate control damper 45 provided near the rotation side end of
And a shielding plate 46 provided on the front side of the heater core 42. The case 41 of the heater section 40 is a resin molded part integrally connected to the case 31 of the cooler section 30 described above, and has an air conditioning duct A serving as a flow path of the introduced air.
And a part of D.

The air-conditioned air outlet 50 has a case 51 in which a plurality of openings are provided, and an opening / closing damper is attached to each of the openings. The case 51 includes the heater unit 4 described above.
And a part of the air-conditioning duct AD which is integrally connected to the case 41 and serves as a flow path for the introduced air. In addition, the air conditioning duct AD is generally a molded part made of resin. The case 51 is provided with a defrost outlet 52, a face outlet 53, and a foot outlet 54, and a defrost / foot damper 52a and a face damper 53a are attached to each outlet.

The above-mentioned defrost outlet 52 is used to remove hot wind and dehumidified wind that directly hits the inner surface of the windshield or the like in order to remove defrost on the windshield before running in winter and 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 52 in this way is called a “defrost air-blow mode”. In addition, face outlet 5
The air-conditioning operation mode 3 blows cold air toward the upper body of the occupant mainly during the cooling operation in summer. And
The foot outlet 54 blows warm air to the feet of the occupant mainly during a heating operation in winter, and is referred to as a “foot outlet mode”. In this air-conditioning operation mode, a part of the conditioned air (warm air) is blown out simultaneously from the defrost outlet 52 at a small amount, usually about 20%, to remove the fogging of the windshield and the like.

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 53 and the foot outlet 54.
There is also an air-conditioning operation mode called, and in this case, the air blown out from the face outlet 53 is generally head cold foot heat in which the temperature is lower than the foot outlet 54. In addition, there is also an air-conditioning operation mode called “blend (foot / defrost) blowing mode” that blows conditioned air from both the defrost outlet 52 and the foot outlet 54 used in winter.

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 61, a condenser 62, a receiver 63, and an expansion valve (not shown). 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 61 includes the evaporator 3
In step 1, the low-temperature low-pressure gas refrigerant vaporized by depriving the vehicle interior of heat is compressed and sent to the condenser 62 as a high-temperature high-pressure gas refrigerant. In the case of an air conditioner for a vehicle, the compressor 61 receives driving force from the normal engine 64 via a belt and a clutch. The condenser 62 is disposed in front of the engine room 6 and cools a high-temperature and high-pressure gas refrigerant supplied from the compressor 61 with outside air to condense and liquefy the gaseous refrigerant. The refrigerant liquefied in this way is sent to the receiver 63 to separate gas and liquid, and then sent to the expansion valve as a high-temperature and high-pressure liquid refrigerant. The expansion valve decompresses and expands the high-temperature and high-pressure liquid refrigerant into a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid (mist-like) refrigerant and supplies the refrigerant to the evaporator 31. The expansion valve is generally installed at an appropriate position in the cooler unit 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
To supply high-temperature engine cooling water as a heat source to
A part of the engine cooling water system circulating between the engine 64 and the radiator 65 is 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 1B, the refrigerant system 2, and the heating source system 3 that 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.

As described above, the heater core 42 is a heat exchanger that receives the supply of high-temperature engine cooling water from the heating source system 3 described later during the heating operation and heats the introduced air blown from the cooler 30. . The introduced air sent to the heater section 40 is variably controlled so that the flow rate passing through the heater core 42 ranges from zero at the maximum cooling to the entire quantity at the maximum heating in accordance with the rotational position of the heater core 42 and the open / close position of the passage flow control damper 45. Is done. Further, the introduced air that has passed through the heater core 42 is guided to different outlets according to the opening / closing position of the flow path switching damper 44 that changes depending on the blowing mode.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the heater core 4
2, a rotation shaft 43 is provided at the lower end thereof.
Is rotated (oscillated) between the maximum heating position indicated by the solid line and the maximum cooling position indicated by the imaginary line as indicated by the arrow 47 with the rotation center as the rotation center. The heater core 42 is connected to a hot water pipe (not shown) of the heating source system 3 by the rotating shaft 43,
The hot water supplied into the heater core 42 through one of the rotating shafts 3 circulates through the inside of the heater core,
From the heating source system 3 to the hot water piping. Further, the flow path switching damper 44 is located within a movement range in which the heater core 42 rotates, and is installed so as to open and close in a range indicated by an arrow 48.

In the vehicle air conditioner thus configured, by driving the blower fan 21, the outside air a
Alternatively, the inside air b is introduced into the air conditioning duct AD from the outside air introduction port 11a or the inside air introduction port 11b of the inside / outside air box 10, and the introduced air passes through the blower unit 20 and passes through the air conditioning duct AD to the downstream cooler unit 30. Sent. The introduced air flowing through the cooler 30 passes through the evaporator 31. Here, during the cooling operation in which the low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant is supplied from the refrigerant system 2, the refrigerant exchanges heat with the refrigerant and is cooled and dehumidified. To the heater section 40. When the compressor 51 is not operated, no refrigerant is supplied to the evaporator 31, and thus the introduced air is simply supplied to the evaporator 31.
Only pass through.

The introduced air sent to the heater section 40 follows the path described below according to the set operation mode and is guided to each outlet. The air conditioning unit 1B shown in FIG. 6 shows a state of the maximum heating operation set to the foot blowing mode. In this case, the inclination angle θ of the heater core 42 is the largest value close to a right angle in the rotatable range, and therefore, the projected area in the flow path of the introduced air is also the largest in the rotatable range. On the other hand, the passage flow control damper 45 is located at the position of the maximum opening that guides the entire amount of the introduced air to the heater core 42, and the flow path switching damper 44 transfers the entire amount of the introduced air that has been heated through the heater core 42 to the foot outlet. It is in a position leading to 54.

In the illustrated example, the inside of the conditioned air blow-out section 50 is divided into a main flow path 55 and a foot bypass flow path 56 communicating with the foot air outlet 54. One main flow path 55 is provided with a flow path switching damper 44 and a flow path switching damper 44. The passage flow control damper 45 is in a fully closed state, and the foot bypass flow path 56 is fully opened because the flow path switching damper 44 is at a position to close the main flow path 55 side. Therefore, the entire amount of the introduced air heated by the heater core 42 is directly guided to the foot outlet 54 through the foot bypass channel 56, and the warm air is blown out from the foot outlet 54 into the vehicle interior.

The air conditioner unit 1B shown in FIG. 7 shows a state of the heating operation set to the blend (foot / defrost) blowing mode. In this case, what differs from the above-described foot blowing mode is basically the position of the flow path switching damper 44 and the open / closed state of the defrost damper 52a. In this blend blowing mode, the flow path switching damper 44
Is located at an intermediate position, so that the hot air that has passed through the heater core 42 and is heated is distributed to both the main flow path 55 and the foot bypass flow path 56. Therefore, the defrost damper 52a is in the open state, and the defrost
Warm air can be blown out from both the 2 and the foot outlet 54.

The air conditioning unit 1B shown in FIG. 8 shows a state of the heating operation set to the defrost blowing mode. In this case, what is different from the above-described blend blowing mode is basically the position of the flow path switching damper 44.
In the defrost blowing mode, the flow path switching damper 44 is located at a position where the foot bypass flow path 56 is closed, and the entire amount of warm air that has passed through the heater core 42 and is heated is guided to the main flow path 55 to flow. Therefore, warm air can be blown out from the defrost outlet 52 where the defrost damper 52a is in the open state.

The air conditioner unit 1B shown in FIG. 9 shows an operation state in which the air conditioning unit 1B is set to the bi-level blowing mode. In this case, what is different from the above-described defrost blowing mode is the inclination angle θ of the heater core 42, the opening degree of the passage flow control damper 45, the open / close state of the defrost damper 52a, and the open / close state of the face damper 53a. In this bi-level blowing mode, the inclination angle θ of the heater core 42 is reduced and changed to the intermediate position, and at the same time, the passing flow control damper 45 is also set to the intermediate position, and
To form a flow path that is guided to the main flow path 55 with the cool air without passing through. A part of the introduced air is supplied to the heater core 42.
, And the warm air heated by the heater core 42 is also guided to the main flow path 55. Therefore,
In the defrost blowing mode, the cool air flowing in the upper layer is blown out from the face outlet 53, and at the same time, the warm air flowing in the lower layer is blown out from the foot outlet 54.

The air conditioning unit 1B shown in FIG.
The state of the maximum cooling operation set to the face blowing mode is shown. In this case, the difference from the above-described bi-level blowing mode is basically the inclination angle θ of the heater core 42 and the open / closed state of the passage flow control damper 45. In the face blowing mode, the heater core 42 is set in a state where the inclination angle θ of the heater core 42 is minimized, and at the same time, the passage flow control damper 45 is also set to the fully closed position.
Is completely shut off. As a result, the entire amount of the introduced air is guided to the main flow path 55 as cool air without passing through the heater core 42, and the cool air can be blown into the vehicle interior from the face outlet 53 in which the face damper 53a is in the open state.

FIG. 11 shows an example of the configuration of a heater core 42 which is rotatably supported. In this case, headers 42a are provided upright at both ends of the heater core 42, and each of the headers 42a is provided with a rotating shaft 43. Then, the hot water is supplied from one rotating shaft 43 and circulates through the heater core 42, and is returned from the other rotating shaft 43 to the engine cooling water system. The rotating shaft 43 is
As shown in FIG. 12, the inner pipe 42b and the outer pipe 43a have a double pipe structure, and an elastic rubber 43b and an O-ring 43c are provided between the outer peripheral face of the inner pipe 42b and the inner peripheral face of the outer pipe 43a.
Is interposed. Here, the inner tube 42b is connected to the heater core 4
Connecting pipe and outer pipe 4 integrally fixed to the header 42a
Reference numeral 3a denotes a hot water pipe of the heating source system 2. However, a configuration in which the inner and outer pipes are reversed and the connecting pipe is used as an outer pipe is also possible.

If both the rotary shafts 43 are configured as described above, the inner tube 42b can be rotated with respect to the outer tube 43a, and hot water is supplied from the connecting portion by the elastic rubber 43b and the O-ring 43c. Sealed to prevent leakage.
Accordingly, the heater core 42 is fixed to the outer tube 43a on the fixed side.
The hot water supplied to the inner pipe 42b is kept in a sealed state.
Further, the heater core 42 integrated with the heater core 42 can be rotated. Regarding the elastic rubber 43b and the O-ring 43c, commercially available products generally used can sufficiently cope with the temperature and pressure in the engine cooling water system. The connection between the heater core 42 and the hot water pipe may be, for example, a flexible tube other than the above-described rotary shaft 43. Such a flexible tube is particularly suitable for a configuration in which the heater core 42 is translated (see FIG. 2).

As shown in FIG. 13, in the rotating shaft 43 having the double-tube structure, the movable-side tube is disposed outside and the fixed-side tube is disposed inside, as shown in FIG. Openings R1, R serving as hot water flow paths on the pipe peripheral surface
By providing 2, the function of a flow control valve for controlling the supply of hot water in accordance with the turning position of the heater core 42 can be provided. In the illustrated example, the inner tube 42b and the outer tube 43a are arranged in reverse to FIG. 12, that is, the movable inner tube 42b that rotates integrally with the heater core 42 is arranged outside, and the fixed inner tube 43a Is arranged inside.

Then, at the maximum heating position of the heater core 42, the openings R1 and R2 are set so as to completely coincide with each other, so that the heater core 42 is fully opened and hot water can flow smoothly to the heater core 42. In addition, at the maximum cooling position, the positions of the openings R1 and R2 are set to be completely displaced, so that the hot water flow path is closed. For this reason,
Heater core 42 whose inclination angle θ changes according to the heating load
At the same time, the position of R2 also moves in the range from the fully open position (maximum heating position) to the fully closed position (maximum cooling position), and the overlap with R1 at the fixed position, that is, the overlap area changes. For this reason, the flow rate of hot water can be adjusted according to the overlap area, and therefore, it is possible to omit the flow control valve for hot water.

In the above-described embodiment, an example is shown in which the present invention is applied to an air conditioning unit in which the evaporator 31 and the heater core 42 are arranged in a horizontal direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this. However, the present invention is also applicable to, for example, those in which an evaporator and a heater core are vertically arranged.

[0048]

According to the air conditioning unit and the vehicle air conditioning apparatus of the present invention described above, during the maximum cooling operation, unnecessary pressure can be reduced by moving unnecessary heater cores from the flow path of the introduced air. Becomes In addition, even during the maximum heating operation, the area of the heater core can be made larger than before, so that the heating capacity can be improved and the pressure loss can be reduced. For this reason, the blower fan operation (rotation) speed at the time of the maximum air volume can be reduced, or it can be operated with a smaller drive source than before, and both low noise and power saving by reducing the operation noise are realized. This makes it possible to greatly improve the marketability of the air conditioner unit and the vehicle air conditioner.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of a first embodiment of an air-conditioning unit according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a modification of the first embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a second embodiment of the air-conditioning unit according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an engine room of a vehicle showing an outline of a configuration and an arrangement of an air conditioner for a vehicle.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an installation example of a vehicle air conditioning unit as viewed from a passenger compartment side.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the air-conditioning unit shown in the second embodiment (FIG. 3) is in a foot blowing mode.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state where the air-conditioning unit according to the second embodiment (FIG. 3) is in a blend blowing mode.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the air-conditioning unit shown in the second embodiment (FIG. 3) is in a defrost blowing mode.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the air-conditioning unit shown in the second embodiment (FIG. 3) is in a bi-level blowing mode.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the air-conditioning unit shown in the second embodiment (FIG. 3) is in a face blowing mode.

FIG. 11 is a front view showing a configuration example of a heater core rotatably supported on a shaft.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a configuration of a rotating shaft part.

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a configuration example in which a rotary shaft part having a double pipe structure has a function of a flow rate adjusting valve.

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a conventional air conditioning unit.

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing another conventional example of an air conditioning unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

1B Air conditioning unit 2 Refrigerant system 3 Heat source system 4 Control unit 10 Inner / outer air box 20 Blower unit 30 Cooler unit 40 Heater unit 41 Case 42 Heater core 43 Rotating shaft unit 44 Flow path switching damper (first damper) 45 Passing flow rate control Damper (second damper) 46 Shield plate 50 Air-conditioned air outlet 52 Defrost outlet 52a Defrost damper 53 Face outlet 53a Face damper 54 Foot outlet 55 Main flow path 56 Foot bypass flow path

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. An air conditioner unit comprising an evaporator and a heater core installed in a flow path for air-conditioning an introduced air and blowing the air into a room, wherein the projection area covering the flow path is variable. An air-conditioning unit wherein a heater core is movably installed. 2. The air conditioning unit according to claim 1, wherein the heater core is installed so as to be rotatable. 3. A first damper using a space in which a heater core for selecting and switching a flow path of the introduced air passing through the heater core is provided on a downstream side of the heater core. The air conditioning unit as described. 4. An end of the heater core is rotatably supported by a rotating shaft portion, and near the other end of the rotating shaft portion.
A second controlling the flow rate of the introduced air passing through the heater core;
The air conditioning unit according to claim 2, wherein the damper is provided. 5. A flow rate of introduced air passing through the heater core in cooperation with the shield plate, the shield plate being fixed to the rotation shaft side and rotating integrally with the heater core. The air conditioning unit according to claim 4, wherein the air conditioning unit is configured to control the air conditioning. 6. The air conditioning unit according to claim 2, wherein the rotating shaft has a double-pipe structure including an inner pipe and an outer pipe. 7. A configuration in which the rotating shaft portion is connected to a hot water pipe, and an overlap of openings provided on the peripheral surfaces of the inner pipe and the outer pipe changes in accordance with a rotation angle of the heater core. The air conditioning unit according to claim 6, characterized in that: 8. The air conditioning unit according to claim 1, wherein the heater core is installed so as to be movable in parallel. 9. An evaporator provided in a flow path of air to be air-conditioned and a heater core disposed on a downstream side of the evaporator, wherein the heater core is moved so that a projection area covering the flow path becomes variable. An air-conditioning unit that is installed as possible, a compressor that compresses low-temperature and low-pressure gas refrigerant, and a condenser that condenses heat-exchange of high-pressure gas refrigerant with outside air.
A refrigerant system for supplying a low-temperature and low-pressure liquid refrigerant to the evaporator; and a heating source system for introducing engine cooling water to the heater core. And a control unit for controlling the operation of the air conditioning unit, the refrigerant system, and the heating source system. An air conditioner for a vehicle, comprising: