JP2001315525A - Drain structure of air conditioner for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a drain structure of an air conditioner for a vehicle capable of preventing the leakage of the drain water with an inexpensive simple structure with small man-hour. SOLUTION: A drain port 31 for discharging the drain water DW is mounted on a lower part of an evaporator 14 of a rear cooler unit, and the drain water DW flowing from the evaporator 14 is discharged to an external cabin from a drain pipe 4. A leaked water receiving part 33 is mounted on a lower part of a bottom part 15b of a unit case to receive the drain water DW leaked from an engagement part of a blow duct 16 engaged with a duct mounting part 17 of the unit case through a seal packing 27, and the drain water DW is discharged to the drain port 31 from a water collecting part 34 and a drain passage 35. Whereby the drain water does not flow out from the rear cooler unit even when it is leaked.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a drain structure of a vehicle air conditioner which has a simple structure and does not leak drain water.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a vehicle such as a wagon vehicle having a plurality of rows of seats and having a large cabin volume, a second seat or a second seat is provided only by a front cooler installed in an instrument panel arranged in front of the front seat. In particular, it was difficult to sufficiently send cold air to the third sheet. Therefore, some vehicles have a rear cooler for a third seat to assist the front cooler. The rear cooler is
A rear cooler unit including a blower, which is a blower housed in a unit case, and an evaporator, which is a refrigerant evaporator, sucks air from inside the vehicle, cools the air, and blows it to the third seat through a blow duct. .
At this time, the evaporator cools the air passing therethrough, and condenses water vapor contained in the air to generate condensed water (drain water). Therefore, a drain port for discharging the drain water is provided below the evaporator of the unit case, and the drain water is discharged to the outside of the vehicle through a discharge pipe. In addition, since the rear cooler unit is disposed on the right or left side of the third seat, it is required that the rear cooler unit be compact in order to secure a seat space for the occupant. Because of this compactness, the unit case of the rear cooler unit does not have a water receiving case extending behind the evaporator unlike the conventional case.
Immediately after the evaporator, a blow duct for introducing cool air was fitted and communicated. In a compact rear cooler unit having no case for receiving water immediately after such an evaporator, as shown in FIG. 8, water blows from the evaporator 114 to the blow duct 116 due to blowing by a blower (FIG. 6). ), A part of the drain water DW may not be discharged from the drain port 131 but may accumulate in a fitting portion between the unit case 102 of the rear cooler unit and the blow duct 116, which may cause water leakage. . Conventionally, in order to prevent such water leakage, a seal packing 127 is provided at the fitting portion to prevent water leakage.

[0003]

However, even if the seal packing 127 is provided in the fitting portion between the unit case 102 and the blow duct 116, the seal packing 127 is not provided.
It is difficult to completely prevent water leakage from the fitting portion due to aging deterioration of 27, distortion of the unit case 102 or the blow duct 116, improper installation, and the like. In case, drain water D
There is a problem in that W is emitted and causes deterioration of the vehicle. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, providing the exclusive drain port 229 for discharging the drain water DW that has flown from the evaporator 214 to the blow duct 216 side makes the shape of the blow duct 216 complicated and makes the air smooth. In addition to blocking the flow, this blow duct 216
Drain pipe 2 that guides the drain water out of the vehicle from the drain port 229 on the side
04 and the drain port 23 below the rear cooler unit
A three-way (three-way joint) 206 is required separately to collect a drain pipe 205 for guiding drain water out of the vehicle from 1.
As the number of parts increases, the production cost increases and the number of steps for mounting the parts increases.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to a rear cooler unit or the like in which a blow duct is attached immediately after an evaporator to a vehicle having a simple structure with low cost and a small number of man-hours, but which does not leak drain water. An object of the present invention is to provide a drain structure of an air conditioner.

[0005]

In order to achieve this object, in a drain structure of a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention, drain water provided below the evaporator of a unit case accommodating the evaporator is discharged. A drain port that is provided below a junction between the unit case and a blow duct that introduces air discharged from the unit case, and receives a leak from the junction. The part is provided with a drainage passage for receiving water leakage from the joint part and flowing the water leakage into the drain port.

In the drain structure of a vehicle air conditioner according to this configuration, even if water leaks from the joint between the unit case and the blow duct, the leak is received by the water leak receiving portion and the drain port is drained by the drain passage. The drain water does not flow into the vehicle interior. Further, since there is no need to provide a dedicated drain port in a blow duct or the like, the configuration is simplified, the production cost can be reduced, and the number of assembly steps can be reduced.

In the drain structure of a vehicle air conditioner according to a second aspect, in addition to the configuration of the drain structure of the vehicle air conditioner according to the first aspect, the water leakage receiving portion is integrated with a lower surface of the unit case. Characterized by being molded into

In the drain structure of the air conditioner for a vehicle according to this configuration, the water leakage receiving portion is integrally formed on the lower surface of the unit case, so that the number of parts is reduced, the structure is simplified, and the number of assembling steps is reduced. Water leaks can be prevented by eliminating the joints that occur.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the drain structure of the vehicle air conditioner according to the first or second aspect, the drain structure is provided in the water leakage receiving portion. The drain passage is configured such that drain water in the drain passage is sucked to the drain port side by a negative pressure generated by air passing through the drain port.

[0010] In the drain structure of the vehicle air conditioner according to this configuration, the drain water in the drain passage is effectively sucked out by the negative pressure due to the Venturi effect generated by the air passing through the drain port. Drain water is smoothly discharged to the drain port.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The drain structure of a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings by using a rear cooler unit 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Rear cooler unit 1
It is arranged on the right side of the third seat of the vehicle (not shown). In the following description, the front of the vehicle will be described as the front of the rear cooler unit 1. In the figure, the upper part is represented by UP, the rear part is represented by REAR, and the left part is represented by LEFT. Here, FIG. 1 is a view of the rear cooler unit 1 as viewed from the left side.

As shown in FIG. 1, a rear cooler unit 1
Has a unit case 2 which is made of a hollow PP resin and covers the entire rear cooler unit 1. The unit case 2 includes a blower case 13 that houses the motor 11 and the blower 12, and an evaporator case 15 that houses an evaporator 14. The blower case 13 generally has a flat cylindrical shape with the rotation axis directed to the left and right and a height of about half the radius.
5 is connected. The evaporator case 15 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole, a height slightly higher than the height of the blower case 13, a width approximately twice the width of the blower case 13, and a length equal to the length of the blower case 13. About half.
The air outlet 20 is formed by opening substantially the entire back surface. The entire unit case 2 has a structure that can be divided into two parts, and each part is formed by integral molding with PP resin.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing how the blow duct 16 is attached to the rear cooler unit 1. Air outlet 2 provided on the back of unit case 2
A substantially rectangular duct mounting portion 17 is provided on the peripheral edge of 0 so as to protrude rearward. A seal packing 27, which is a waterproof rubber member, is externally fitted to the duct mounting portion 17, and the blow duct 16 is externally fitted thereon.

As shown in FIG. 2, the evaporator core 21 of the evaporator 14 (see FIG. 1) is provided so as to cover the air outlet 20 of the evaporator case 15.
Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the evaporator core 21 is disposed near the rear of the evaporator case 15. The evaporator core 21 is piped such that a cooling pipe made of a metal having a high thermal conductivity such as copper (not shown) is folded,
Further, in order to improve the heat absorption of the cooling pipe, the cooling pipe is provided with a large number of fins, which are horizontal metal thin plates made of an aluminum thin plate or the like, at predetermined intervals.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the flow of the air AR in the evaporator case 15 and the flow of the drain water DW. In FIG. 6, white arrows indicate the flow of the air AR, and other arrows indicate the flow of the drain water. The air AR delivered by the blower 12 is supplied to the evaporator core 2 as described above.
When the air AR is cooled by passing through the gap between the cooling pipe and the fin, the water vapor contained in the air AR is condensed and adheres to the surface of the cooling pipe and the fin of the evaporator core 21 as water droplets. Therefore, when the rear cooler is operated continuously, water droplets attached to the evaporator core 21 become large and flow downward as drain water DW. The drain water DW flowing down from the evaporator core 21 flows down and is stored in the bottom 15 b of the evaporator case 15. In addition, a gap through which the drain water DW passes is provided between the evaporator core 21 and the evaporator case 15. Even if the water flows toward the blow duct 16, the drain water DW flows down to the evaporator case 15 side. Therefore, a drain 3 having a drain structure for discharging the drain water DW is formed on the bottom 15b of the evaporator case 15.

FIG. 3 shows an evaporator case 15.
FIG. 4 is a view showing a structure of a drain 3 provided on a bottom portion 15b of FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the bottom portion 15b of the evaporator case 15 has a shape such that a central portion protrudes downward. In FIG. 3, the shape is deformed for explanation. Since the evaporator case 15 is formed by being divided into two parts, a seal packing 28, which is a rubber waterproof seal member, is disposed at the joint of the bottom part 15b of the evaporator case 15, and the evaporator case 15 is assembled. In this case, the drain water DW is prevented from leaking from the evaporator case 15 by being tightened by screws (see FIG. 1) arranged around the periphery.

FIG. 4 shows an evaporator case 15.
It is sectional drawing of the part of the drain port 31 of the bottom part 15b. The bottom portion 15b of the evaporator case 15 is formed of a continuous bottom plate 38 whose central portion is slightly lowered.
Then, the drain water D flowing down from the evaporator core 21
W is stored on the bottom plate 38 of the bottom 15b. Then, as shown in FIG.
Is formed at a position deviated slightly to the right of the evaporator case 15. The drain port 31 communicates the bottom 15b with the outside of the evaporator case 15, and drains the drain water DW stored on the bottom plate 38 of the bottom 15b.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, below the bottom plate 38 on the rear side of the bottom portion 15b, a water leakage receiving portion 33 is provided.
5b is provided in parallel with the bottom plate 38. The rear end of the water leakage receiving portion 33 projects rearward from the duct mounting portion 17 provided on the back side of the evaporator case 15, and the front end is bent upward to form a flange portion. Therefore, even if there is water leakage from the fitting portion with the blow duct 16 fitted to the duct mounting portion 17 via the seal packing 27, the water is reliably received by the water leakage receiving portion 33 having the flange. , So as not to leak outside the evaporator case 15. Then, as shown in FIG. 3, the bottom plate 38 of the bottom portion 15b and the peripheral edge portion except for the rear end portion of the water leakage receiving portion 33 are formed continuously, and
A gap is provided between b and the water leak receiving portion 33 to form water collecting portions 34a and 34b so that water received from the rear end of the water leak receiving portion 33 does not leak to the surroundings. The water collecting portion 34 shown in FIG. 4 has a narrow width from the rear end side of the water leakage receiving portion 33 toward the front like 34a and 34b shown in FIG. 3, and the evaporator case 15 near the central portion.
Is about half the width of And the water collecting part 34
The drain water DW that has flowed down into the bottom portion 15b flows below the central portion of the bottom portion 15b due to the inclination of the water leakage receiving portion 33. Here, as shown in FIG. 4, a drain passage 35 is provided below the drain port 31. The drain passage 35 is provided in the water collecting section 34.
From the outside of the evaporator case 15. Therefore, the drain water DW of the water collecting part 34 is discharged from the drain passage 35 to the outside of the evaporator case 15.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the drain port 31 taken along the line CC in FIG. The drain port 31 is shown in FIG.
And a circular pipe portion, and is divided into an upper drain hole 32 and a lower drain passage 35 by an arc-shaped partition portion 36. The drain hole 32 penetrates the bottom plate 38 and communicates with the inside of the evaporator case 15, but is completely isolated from the water collecting part 34. For this reason, as shown in FIG.
The drain water DW flowing out of the drain pipe 2 does not flow into the drain passage 35 and the water collecting part 34 but is discharged from the drain pipe 4 to the outside of the vehicle compartment.

As shown in FIG. 6, evaporator case 1
5, the air AR of 200 m ³ / h is sent out from the blower 12, and most of the air AR is discharged from the air discharge port 20 opened at the rear of the evaporator case 15 to the blow duct 16 fitted thereto. . Part of the air AR sent from the blower is discharged from the drain port 31 to the outside of the vehicle through the drain pipe 4. The air volume at this time is approximately 5 m ³ / h. Here, the drain hole 32 of the drain port 31 has an air volume of about 5 m ³ / h, and a sufficient flow velocity of air is generated at the distal end of the drain port 31 at the distal end of the drain port 31, so that the Venturi effect occurs. The drain water DW in the drain passage 35 is drawn out to the drain pipe 4. For this reason, the drain water D in the drain passage 35 and the water collecting section 34
W does not flow backward and overflow from the water leakage receiving portion 33.

Of course, if the amount of air passing through the drain port 31 is small, the leaked drain water itself may flow into the drain pipe 4 by its own weight without aiming at the venturi effect. Including such a case, the cross-sectional area, shape, gradient, etc. of the water collecting part 34 and the drain passage 35
Needless to say, it can be appropriately selected and carried out depending on the shapes of the unit case 2 and the blow duct 16, the capabilities of the blower 12 and the evaporator 14, and other conditions.

In the rear cooler unit 1 of the present embodiment, the air AR blown from the blower 12 flows out of the drain passage 35 because the air AR blows from the drain port 31 at about 5 m ³ / h and has a sufficient venturi effect. Although no particular restriction shape is formed in the portion of the drain port 31 to be formed, the restriction shape may be appropriately formed depending on the amount of the air AR passing through the drain port 31. Here, FIG. 7 shows a sectional view of a drain 303 which is a modification of the drain structure of the rear cooler unit 1 of the present embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a diagram of the rear cooler unit 301 at a position corresponding to FIG. Further, the rear cooler unit 301 is different from the rear cooler unit 1 only in the configuration of the drain 303, and the description of the other parts is omitted.

The drain 303 of the rear cooler unit 301
Is provided with a drain port 331 provided vertically downward from the bottom of the evaporator case 315. The drain port 331 has a cylindrical shape, and is not provided with a drain passage or the like as in the drain port 31 (see FIG. 5). Further, the water leakage receiving portion 333 has the same overall configuration, and the water collecting portion 334 has the same configuration as the water leakage receiving portion 33. However, the drain passage 335 is provided with an opening inside the drain port 331. And this drainage passage 3
In a portion where 35 is open to the drain port 331, a venturi portion 337 having an aperture shape is formed such that the cross-sectional area inside the drain port 331 is reduced.
By forming the throttle shape such that the cross-sectional area inside the drain port 331 is reduced, the flow velocity of the air passing through the venturi section 337 can be increased even with the same amount of air passing. By increasing the flow velocity, the Venturi effect can be increased, and the drain port 331
A negative pressure is applied to the drain passage 335 that is open at the bottom, and the drain water DW from the drain passage 335 can be effectively sucked out.

The rear cooler unit 1 of the present embodiment is
The following effects are obtained. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the drain water DW is supplied from the evaporator core 21 of the evaporator 14 (see FIG. 1) incorporated in the rear cooler unit 1.
However, when the water is blown toward the blow duct 16, the fitting portion between the rear cooler unit 1 and the blow duct 16 is sealed by a waterproof seal packing 27 (see FIG. 4). Although there is no water leakage from the portion, it is also conceivable that water leaks due to the deterioration of the seal packing 27 over time or incomplete mounting. Also, when the drain water DW accumulates at the fitting portion with the blow duct 16 due to the suction of dust or the like, the amount of the drain water DW that leaks particularly increases. In this case, the drain water DW leaked from this portion flows out into the vehicle body panel in which the rear cooler unit 1 is provided, which causes rust on the vehicle body. Therefore, in the rear cooler unit 1 of the present embodiment, even if the drain water DW leaks from the fitting portion between the rear cooler unit 1 and the blow duct 16, this leak is received by the leak receiving portion 33. Then, the water can be discharged from the drain passage 35 to the drain pipe 4 connected to the drain port 31. Therefore, there is an effect that the drain water DW can be effectively prevented from flowing into the vehicle body panel.

Particularly, since the water leakage receiving portion 33 is manufactured by resin molding integrally with the evaporator case 15 of the rear cooler unit 1, the unit case 2 is divided into two parts.
After assembling, the drain structure of the fitting part of the blow duct 16 is completed only by fitting the blow duct 16. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a dedicated drain port in the blow duct 16 and the blow duct 1
A three-way connecting the drain pipe of the drain port 6 and the drain port 31 of the unit case 2 is not required (see FIG. 9). Therefore, there is an effect that the production cost can be suppressed without increasing the number of parts and the production can be performed without increasing the number of steps for assembly. In addition, since there is no need to provide a dedicated drain port in the blow duct 16, there is also an effect that the flow of air in the blow duct 16 is made smooth so that the efficiency of air blowing is not reduced.

In the drain port 31, the blower 12
Using the air flow from the Venturi effect,
In order to apply a negative pressure to the drain passage 35 and suck it out, the drain passage 3
5 is prevented, and the drainage passage 35 is prevented from being clogged, so that the drainage water DW can be discharged from the drainage passage 35 smoothly.

Further, in a rear cooler unit 301 as a modification of the present embodiment, a venturi section 337 is further provided.
The drain port 331 provided with the
Even if the amount of air passing through 1 is small, the flow velocity of the air passing therethrough can be increased by the venturi section 337, and the negative pressure can be effectively applied to the drain passage 335.

The drain structure of the vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention has been described with reference to the rear cooler unit 1 according to one embodiment and the rear cooler unit 301 as a modified example thereof, but the present invention is not limited to these. It goes without saying that it will not be done. For example, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to a rear cooler unit, but can be applied to a cooler unit housed in an instrument panel, a cooler unit provided on a roof portion, and the like. Further, it can be carried out by variously changing the shape, size, material, etc. of the unit case, blower, evaporator, drain port, blow duct and the like. That is, without departing from the scope of the claims,
Various modifications and improvements can be made by those skilled in the art.

[0029]

As is apparent from the above description, claim 1
In the drain structure of the air conditioner for a vehicle according to the invention,
Even if water leaks at the junction between the unit case and the blow duct, this water leak can be received by the water leak receiver and flow down to the drain port through the drain passage,
There is an effect that drain water does not flow into the vehicle interior. Further, since it is not necessary to provide a dedicated drain port in a blow duct or the like, the configuration is simplified, the production cost is reduced, and the number of assembly steps can be reduced.

In the drain structure of the vehicle air conditioner according to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the drain structure of the vehicle air conditioner according to the first aspect, a water leakage receiving portion is integrally formed on the lower surface of the unit case. By molding, the number of parts is reduced, the structure is simplified, the number of assembling steps is reduced, and there is an effect that water leakage can be prevented by eliminating a joint that causes water leakage.

In the drain structure of the vehicle air conditioner according to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the drain structure of the vehicle air conditioner according to the first or second aspect, the drain structure is generated by air passing through the drain port. Since the venturi effect is enhanced and the drain water in the drain passage is effectively sucked out by the negative pressure, there is an effect that drain water is smoothly discharged from the drain passage.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view of a rear cooler unit 1 viewed from a left side surface.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a blow duct 16 is attached to the rear cooler unit 1.

FIG. 3 is a view showing a structure of a drain 3 provided on a bottom portion 15b of the evaporator case 15.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a bottom portion 15b of the evaporator case 15 at a drain port 31 portion.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the drain port 31 taken along the line CC in FIG. 7;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the flow of air AR in the evaporator case 15 and drain water DW.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a drain 303 which is a modified example of the drain structure of the rear cooler unit 1 of the present embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a drain structure of a conventional vehicle air conditioner.

FIG. 9 is a view showing another example of the drain structure of the conventional vehicle air conditioner.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Rear cooler unit, 2 ... Unit case, 3 ... Drain, 4 ... Drain pipe, 12 ... Blower, 14 ... Evaporator, 15 ... Evaporator case, 16 ... Blow duct,
17 duct attachment part, 20 air outlet, 21 evaporator core, 25 cooling pipe, 26 fin, 27 seal packing, 31 drain port, 32 drain hole, 3
3. Leakage receiving part, 34 ... Water collecting part, 35 ... Drainage passage, DW
… Drain water (condensed water), AR… Air

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A junction between a drain port provided below the evaporator of a unit case accommodating an evaporator for discharging drain water, and a blow duct for introducing air discharged from the unit case. And a water leakage receiving portion that receives water from the joining portion.The water receiving portion receives water from the joining portion and has a drain passage that allows the water to flow down into the drain port. A drain structure for a vehicle air conditioner, comprising: 2. The drain structure of a vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said water leakage receiving portion is formed integrally with a lower surface of said unit case. 3. The drain passage provided in the water leakage receiving portion is configured such that drain water in the drain passage is sucked to the drain port side by a negative pressure generated by air passing through the drain port. The drain structure of a vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the drain structure is provided.