JP2001317760A - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the leakage of water from a drain pan. SOLUTION: This air conditioner has such a constitution that a heat exchanger 5 is disposed in a box 1 having an air suction port 12 and a blowing port 13 at the front surface thereof, that a synthetic resin drain pan 6 disposed under the heat exchanger 5 is provided with a drain pan body 6a which extends to substantially the entire length of the heat exchanger 5, and a pair of left and right water collectors 6b, 6c which are integrated into the body 6a at both ends thereof, that a drain pipe 8 is connected to a drain port 7 formed at one water collector 6b, and that a water stopper 10 is connected to a drain port 9 formed at the other water collector 6c. A conduit 16 is formed in a bottom surface 15 of the body 6a so as to extend towards the water collectors 6b, 6c.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner in which water does not leak from a drain pan.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional air conditioner of this type is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. Sho 55-41746. One example of the technology will be described with reference to FIGS. An indoor unit of a machine having a housing 1 in which an engagement hole 1a provided at a rear portion is engaged with an engagement piece 3a of an installation plate 3 fixed to a building frame 2, and air is blown into the housing 1. A fan 4 and a heat exchanger 5 are arranged, and a synthetic resin drain pan 6 provided below the heat exchanger 5 includes a drain pan main body 6a extending over substantially the entire length of the heat exchanger 5, and a drain pan main body 6a.
a, a drain pipe 8 is connected to a drain port 7 formed in one of the water collecting portions 6b, and the other water collecting portion 6c is formed.
A water stopcock 10 is connected to a drain port 9 formed at the bottom. Reference numeral 12 denotes an air inlet formed on the front panel of the housing 1;
Is an air outlet formed below the drain pan main body 6a.

The procedure for installing the casing 1 will be described. When the drain pipe 8 is connected to the drain port 7 of one of the water collecting portions 6b, the building plate 3 is slightly inclined to the right in accordance with the connection. After being fixed to the frame 2, the engaging hole 1a of the housing 1 is engaged with the engaging piece 3a of the mounting plate 3, so that the housing 1 is slightly inclined from the horizontal line A as shown in FIG. It is installed in the building frame 2 so as to be inclined at α (about 5 °) and one of the water collecting portions 6b is on the lower side. As a result, the drain water W can be collected on the right side of the drain pan 6, and can be smoothly drained from one of the water collecting portions 6b via the drain pipe 8.

[0004]

In the above-mentioned conventional configuration,
Since the mounting plate 3 is slightly inclined rightward or leftward in accordance with the connection position of the drain pipe 8, it is easy to mistake the direction of the inclination. Therefore, as shown in FIG.
When the housing 1 is tilted from the horizontal line A at a slight tilt angle β and the other water collecting part 6c is erroneously installed on the building frame 2 so that the other water collecting part 6c is on the lower side, the drain water W may collect on the left side of the drain pan 6 become.

[0005] When the installation of the casing 1 is erroneous as described above, the water is collected on the drain pan main body 6a from the other water collecting part 6c due to the surface tension of the drain water W and the water release of the synthetic resin drain pan 6. The tip Wa of the drain water W rises, and the water surface W. L may rise and exceed the top of the side wall of the other water collecting part 6c, and as a result, as shown by arrow a, there is a possibility that water leaks due to overflow.

[0006] In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner in which water does not leak from a drain pan.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a heat exchanger is arranged in a housing having an intake port and a blow port formed on a front surface thereof, and a heat exchanger is provided below the heat exchanger. The drain pan made of synthetic resin has a drain pan main body extending over substantially the entire length of the heat exchanger, and a pair of left and right water collecting portions integrally formed at both ends of the drain pan main body, and is formed in one of the water collecting portions. In an air conditioner in which a drain pipe is connected to a drain port and a water stopcock is connected to a drain port formed in the other water collecting section, on the bottom surface of the drain pan main body, toward each of the water collecting sections. It is characterized in that an extended headrace is formed.

According to the above construction, the drain water collected on the drain pan main body is sent to the water collecting portion by the water guide channel formed on the bottom surface of the drain pan main body, thereby eliminating the swelling of the front end of the drain water, thereby reducing the drain water. Since the water level of the water is lowered, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of water leakage due to overflow from the drain pan even when the housing is erroneously installed.

The invention according to a second aspect is characterized in that, in the invention according to the first aspect, a pair of left and right water conduits are formed at both ends of the bottom surface of the drain pan main body.

[0010] According to the above configuration, even when the housing is tilted in either the left or right direction, the tip of the drain water collected on the drain pan main body contacts one of the water conduits formed at both ends of the bottom surface of the drain pan main body. Thus, the swelling of the tip of the drain water can be eliminated.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the water conduit is formed on a bottom surface of the drain pan main body over substantially the entire length of the drain pan main body.

According to the above configuration, the drain water recovered in the drain pan main body can be immediately sent to the downstream water collecting portion along the water guide channel formed over substantially the entire length of the drain pan main body.

The invention according to claim 4 is the invention according to claim 2 or 3.
The invention described in the above description is characterized in that the headrace channel is formed substantially at the center of the bottom surface in the width direction.

According to the above construction, the drain water can be smoothly fed into the water collecting portion along the water guide channel formed substantially at the center of the bottom surface in the width direction.

The invention according to claim 5 is the invention according to claim 2 or 3.
The invention described in the above description is characterized in that the headrace channel is formed over substantially the entire width of the bottom surface.

According to the above configuration, even when the amount of drain water is large, the drain water can be positively sent to the water collecting portion along the water guide channel formed over almost the entire width of the drain pan main body.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the plurality of ridges are provided at predetermined pitches along the width direction of the bottom surface. Alternatively, it is characterized by comprising a concave groove.

According to the above configuration, a water passage composed of a plurality of ridges or grooves can be formed on the bottom surface of the drain pan body by only slightly processing the mold for forming the drain pan, and the manufacturing cost is low. Get on.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the sixth aspect, the pitch is set to 0.1 mm to 5 mm, preferably 1 mm to 3 mm.

According to the above configuration, the pitch is 0.1 mm to
Drain water can be reliably fed to the water collecting portion by capillary action occurring in the ridge or groove set to 5 mm, preferably 1 mm to 3 mm.

[0021]

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to a first embodiment of the present invention, in which both ends of a bottom surface 15 of a drain pan main body 6a are arranged in a width direction. A water conduit 16 is formed over the range of the interval h substantially at the center between b and c. A faucet 10 is connected. Since the configuration other than the above is substantially the same as the conventional example shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

In the above structure, as shown in FIG. 3A, the water conduit 16 has a plurality of substantially triangular cross sections cut at a predetermined pitch P along the width directions b and c of the bottom surface 15. The pitch P is 0.1 mm or more.
It is set to 5 mm, preferably 1 mm to 3 mm.

When the pitch P is less than 0.1 mm, it is practically difficult to cut the protrusion 16A on the bottom surface 15 of the drain pan main body 6a. Capillary phenomena hardly occur in the narrow groove 16a between 16A. When the pitch P is 1 mm to 3 mm, it is easy to carve the ridge 16A, and the narrow groove 16a is formed.
Can effectively cause a capillary phenomenon.

According to the above configuration, as shown in FIG. 4, the housing 1 is inclined leftward from the horizontal line A at a slight inclination angle β so that the other water collecting portion 6c is on the lower side. Even if the water is mistakenly installed, the tip end Wa of the drain water W collected on the left side of the drain pan 6 comes into contact with the right water conduit 16, so that the drain water W is formed by the capillary phenomenon generated in the narrow groove 16 a of the water conduit 16. The water is sucked and sent to one of the water collecting portions 6b.
To eliminate the swelling of the water surface W. Since L is lowered, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of water leakage due to overflow from the drain pan 6 of the housing 1 erroneously installed.

Contrary to the above configuration, the drain pipe 8 is connected to the drain 9
When the water stopcock 10 is connected to the drain port 7 and the casing 1 is inclined to the right side and the water collecting part 6b is incorrectly installed on the building frame 2 so that one water collecting portion 6b is on the lower side. , The tip W of the drain water W collected on the right side of the drain pan 6
a contacts the left water conduit 16 to perform the same operation as described above.

In the above configuration, the water conduit 16 is formed by a plurality of substantially triangular ridges 16A in cross section. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and as shown in FIG.
May be formed by a plurality of ridges 16B having a substantially rectangular cross section, or the water conduit 16 may be formed by a plurality of ridges 16C having a substantially circular cross section as shown in FIG. Also,
Instead of the ridges 16A, 16B, 16C, a plurality of grooves (not shown) may be formed at predetermined pitches P along the width direction b, c of the bottom surface 15.

FIG. 5 shows a main part of an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The water conduit 16 is provided at both ends of a bottom surface 15 of a drain pan main body 6a over substantially the entire width thereof. Are formed. Since the configuration other than the above is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

According to the above configuration, even when the amount of the drain water W is large, the drain water W travels along the water conduit 16 formed over substantially the entire width of the drain pan main body 6a, and the water collecting portion 6b
(Or 6c).

FIG. 6 shows a main part of an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The water conduit 16 is formed over a range of the interval h substantially at the center. Since the configuration other than the above is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

According to the above configuration, the drain water W collected in the drain pan main body 6a is immediately passed through the water conduit 16 formed substantially at the entire length of the drain pan main body 6a and substantially at the center in the width direction b, c. The downstream water collecting section 6b (or 6
c) can be smoothly fed.

FIG. 7 shows a main part of an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. A water conduit 16 is formed on substantially the entire bottom surface 15 of the drain pan main body 6a. I have. Since the configuration other than the above is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

According to the above configuration, even when the amount of the drain water W is large, the drain water W is positively transmitted to the water collecting portion 6b (or 6c) through the water conduit 16 formed on almost the entire surface of the drain pan main body 6a. Can be sent to

[0033]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the drain water collected on the drain pan main body is sent to the water collecting portion by the water guide channel formed on the bottom surface of the drain pan main body, and thereby the tip of the drain water rises. Since the water level of the drain water is reduced and the housing is erroneously installed, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of water leakage from the drain pan due to overflow from the drain pan.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the tip of the drain water accumulated on the drain pan main body is formed at either end of the bottom surface of the drain pan main body, regardless of whether the housing is tilted in the left or right direction. By contacting the water channel, the swelling of the tip of the drain water can be eliminated.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the drain water collected in the drain pan main body can be immediately sent to the downstream water collecting portion along the water conduit formed substantially over the entire length of the drain pan main body.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the drain water can be smoothly fed into the water collecting portion along the headrace formed substantially at the center in the width direction of the bottom surface.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, even when the amount of drain water is large, the drain water can be positively sent to the water collecting portion along the water channel formed substantially over the entire width of the drain pan main body. .

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, a water passage composed of a plurality of ridges or grooves can be formed on the bottom surface of the drain pan body by only slightly processing the mold for forming the drain pan. Production costs are low.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the drain water is surely transferred to the water collecting portion by a capillary phenomenon generated in a ridge or a groove set at a pitch of 0.1 mm to 5 mm, preferably 1 mm to 3 mm. Can be sent.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a plan view of the main part, and FIG. 2B is a longitudinal sectional view of the main part.

FIGS. 3A to 3C are enlarged cross-sectional views of the headrace channel.

FIG. 4 is a schematic vertical sectional view showing the same drainage state.

FIG. 5A is a plan view showing a main part of an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5B is a longitudinal sectional view of the main part.

FIG. 6A is a plan view showing a main part of an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to a third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6B is a longitudinal sectional view of the main part.

FIG. 7A is a plan view showing a main part of an indoor unit of an air conditioner according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7B is a longitudinal sectional view of the main part.

FIG. 8 is a partially cutaway side view showing a conventional example.

9A is a plan view of the main part, and FIG. 9B is a longitudinal sectional view of the main part.

FIG. 10 is a schematic vertical sectional view showing the same drainage state.

FIG. 11 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view showing the water leakage state.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Housing 5 Heat exchanger 6 Drain pan 6a Drain pan main body 6b One water collecting part 6c The other water collecting part 7 Drain port 8 Drain pipe 9 Drain port 10 Water stopcock 12 Intake port 13 Vent port 15 Bottom of drain pan body 16 Conduction Channel 16A-16C Ridge P Pitch between ridges

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A heat exchanger is disposed in a housing having an intake port and a ventilation port formed on a front surface thereof, and a drain pan made of synthetic resin provided below the heat exchanger extends over substantially the entire length of the heat exchanger. And a pair of left and right water collecting portions integrally formed at both ends of the drain pan main body, and a drain pipe is connected to a drain port formed in one of the water collecting portions, and formed in the other water collecting portion. An air conditioner in which a water stopcock is connected to a drain port of the air conditioner, wherein a water conduit extending toward each of the water collecting portions is formed on a bottom surface of the drain pan main body. 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein a pair of left and right water passages are formed at both ends of a bottom surface of the drain pan main body. 3. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the water conduit is formed on a bottom surface of the drain pan main body over substantially the entire length of the drain pan main body. 4. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the water conduit is formed substantially at the center of the bottom surface in the width direction. 5. The water channel is formed over substantially the entire width of the bottom surface.
The air conditioner as described. 6. The water channel according to claim 1, wherein the water channel comprises a plurality of ridges or grooves formed at a predetermined pitch along a width direction of the bottom surface. Air conditioner. 7. The air conditioner according to claim 6, wherein the pitch is set to 0.1 mm to 5 mm, preferably 1 mm to 3 mm.