JP2001355996A - Cleaning equipment of heat exchanger, and air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problems of conventional cleaning equipment having a cleaning spray disposed apart upward from a heat exchanger that the equipment is large in size and that a cleaning liquid is apt to be scattered and a drip-proof cover is needed. SOLUTION: A cleaning pipe 13 piercing fins 11 of the heat exchanger 5 is provided. Nozzles jetting the cleaning liquid are provided in the peripheral surface of the cleaning pipe 13. The cleaning liquid L is sucked from a tank T by a pump P and sent with pressure into the cleaning pipe 13 through a path 16. The cleaning liquid in the cleaning pipe 13 is jetted from the nozzles and sprayed on each of the fins 11. The cleaning pipe 13 is constituted by using some of cooling pipes 12.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a heat exchanger cleaning apparatus for removing dust and pollen adhering to a heat exchanger and for suppressing the generation of bacteria, mold, etc., and an air conditioner including the same. About the machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, maintenance work for cleaning a heat exchanger built in an air conditioner is very troublesome. Therefore, an attempt has been made to incorporate a heat exchanger cleaning device into the air conditioner to reduce maintenance (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-337105). In the cleaning apparatus described in this publication, a cleaning spray for spraying a cleaning liquid onto a heat exchanger is arranged at a position above and away from the heat exchanger.

[0003]

Therefore, a dedicated support mechanism for supporting the cleaning spray is required. In addition, since the spray is sprayed from a position away from the heat exchanger, the cleaning liquid is easily scattered. For this reason, a drip-proof cover for preventing scattering of the cleaning liquid is also required. Since a dedicated support mechanism and a drip-proof cover are required as described above, the number of parts is increased, and as a result, the whole becomes large and the manufacturing cost is increased.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide a small and inexpensive heat exchanger cleaning device and an air conditioner.

[0005]

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 comprises a tank for storing a cleaning liquid, a cleaning liquid guided from the tank flowing inside, and a heat exchanger. A heat exchanger cleaning device comprising: a spraying means for spraying a cleaning liquid by a cleaning pipe penetrating a fin. In this configuration, since the washing pipe is laid out so as to penetrate each fin of the heat exchanger, the size can be reduced as compared with the related art. Further, since the cleaning liquid is sprayed from a position close to each fin, the cleaning liquid is not unnecessarily scattered. Therefore, as a result of eliminating the conventional drip-proof cover, the number of parts can be reduced and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the spraying means includes a plurality of holes formed in a peripheral surface of the washing pipe. In this case, the spraying means can be simply and inexpensively constructed simply by providing holes on the peripheral surface of the washing tube. According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the spraying means includes a nozzle provided on a peripheral surface of the washing pipe. In this case, the spray pressure and directionality of the cleaning liquid can be increased by the nozzle.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first, second, or third aspect, the washing pipe is constituted by using a part of a cooling pipe of a heat exchanger. In this case, the structure can be simplified and the manufacturing cost can be reduced as compared with the case where the washing pipe is formed separately from the cooling pipe. The invention according to claim 5 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The washing pipe is disposed at least above the fins of the heat exchanger. In this case, the cleaning liquid sprayed on the upper part of the fin moves to the lower part of the fin by gravity, so that the cleaning liquid can be used efficiently.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to fifth aspects, a plurality of the washing tubes are arranged at substantially equal positions on the fins of the heat exchanger. in this case,
The cleaning liquid can be evenly sprayed on the entire fin. According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to sixth aspects, the cleaning liquid contains an antibacterial agent. In this case, the generation of bacteria, mold and the like can be effectively suppressed. In particular, it is effective in cleaning drainage paths such as drain pans and drain hoses to suppress generation of odor and slime.

An eighth aspect of the present invention provides an air conditioner including a heat exchanger and the heat exchanger cleaning device according to any one of the first to seventh aspects. In this case, by incorporating a small and inexpensive heat exchanger cleaning device into the air conditioner, it is possible to provide a small, inexpensive and excellent maintainability air conditioner.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view showing an internal configuration of an air conditioner in which a heat exchanger cleaning device according to one embodiment of the present invention is incorporated. In this embodiment, the heat exchange cleaning device is a ceiling embedded type (cassette type) as an indoor unit.
The description will be made in accordance with an example incorporated in the air conditioner 1 of
It is not limited to this.

Referring to FIG. 1, an air conditioner 1 comprises, for example, a ceiling-mounted (cassette type) indoor unit, and a casing 2 serving as a box-shaped air conditioner main body and a lower surface of the casing 2. A decorative panel 3 connected to cover the opening 22 of the ceiling surface 21, a centrifugal blower 4 arranged in the center of the casing 2, and a fin-coil heat exchanger 5 arranged downstream around the blower 4 A drain pan 6 disposed below the heat exchanger 5 for receiving liquid falling from the heat exchanger 5, and a cleaning device A for cleaning the heat exchanger 5. 2a is a heat insulating material covering the surface of the casing 2.

A substantially rectangular suction port 7 is provided at the center of the decorative panel 3, and air outlets 8 are formed around the suction port 7 in four directions.
Is provided. An air passage 10 is formed in the casing 3 from the suction port 7 to the air outlet 8 via the air filter 9, the blower 4 and the heat exchanger 5. That is, when the blower 4 is driven, the air sucked into the casing 2 from the suction port 7 through the air filter 9 is blown out in the centrifugal direction of the blower 4 and flows between the fins 11 of the heat exchanger 5 to be heated. Alternatively, it is cooled and blown out into the room through the outlet 8. Blower 4
Has a fan 4a and a motor 4b for driving the fan 4a.

Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, a heat exchanger 5 has a number of fins 11 arranged in parallel with a predetermined interval between each other, and a heat exchange through these fins 11 for heat exchange. A large number of cooling pipes 12 are provided. The cleaning device A includes a cleaning pipe 13 that is arranged so as to penetrate each fin 11 of the heat exchanger 5. As shown in FIGS. A number of nozzles 15 are formed as spraying means for spraying the cleaning liquid flowing through the pipe 13 onto each fin 11 of the heat exchanger 5.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning device A is provided in the above-mentioned cleaning pipe 13, a tank T for storing the cleaning liquid L, and a path 16 from the tank T to the cleaning pipe 13, A pump P for pumping L and pumping it into the washing pipe 13 is provided with a control unit 17 for controlling the operation of a motor M for driving the pump P. The washing pipe 13 is the cooling pipe 1
2 is configured as a dead-end tube with a part closed. Since the cleaning pipe 13 is configured by using a part of the cooling pipe 12, the structure can be simplified and the manufacturing cost can be reduced as compared with the case where the cleaning pipe 13 is configured separately from the cooling pipe 12. . One end of the washing pipe 13 is connected to the pump P and the tank T via the above-mentioned path 16.

The above spraying means may be a simple hole 18 as shown in FIG. In the case of a simple hole 18, the spraying means can be configured at very low cost. Also, the nozzle 15 shown in FIG. 4 can be easily formed by cutting and raising a part around a hole formed in the peripheral surface 14 of the cleaning pipe 13. In the case of the nozzle 15, the direction of the injection is given,
In addition, the cleaning liquid can be strongly sprayed on the fins 11, and the cleaning ability can be increased.

The washing pipe 13 is provided with the fin 1 of the heat exchanger 5.
Preferably, it is arranged at least on the upper part of the first.
This is because, when the cleaning liquid is sprayed on the upper portion of the fin 11, the cleaning liquid sprayed on the upper portion of the fin 11 reaches the lower portion through the fin 11, and the sprayed cleaning liquid tends to spread downward. This is because the cleaning liquid can be distributed all over. That is, the cleaning liquid can be used efficiently. Further, the cleaning liquid may contain an antibacterial agent. In this case, it is preferable because the generation of bacteria and mold can be effectively prevented. In particular, it is effective for cleaning drain passages such as drain pans and drain hoses, and can prevent generation of odors and slime in the drain passages.

The control unit 17 receives the trigger signal, drives the motor M of the pump P, sends the cleaning liquid L to the cleaning pipe 13 under pressure, and causes the heat exchanger 5 to perform cleaning. The trigger signal may be a signal from a manual switch of a remote controller operated by a user. In this case, cleaning is performed according to a manual operation. On the other hand, cleaning may be automatically performed. For example, the trigger signal may be a timer signal. Further, the signal may be a signal related to the heat exchange capacity of the heat exchanger 5. This is based on the finding that when the fins 11 of the heat exchanger 5 become dirty, the heat exchange capacity is reduced.

The heat exchange capacity can be determined, for example, based on the state quantity of the refrigerant flowing in the refrigerant circuit including the heat exchanger 5. The state quantity of the refrigerant includes at least one of the temperature and the pressure of the refrigerant, and the temperature of the refrigerant includes at least one of the condensation temperature and the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant. Specifically, the cleaning may be performed when the condensing temperature is lower than the corresponding threshold and the evaporating temperature is lower than the corresponding threshold. In this case, means for detecting the temperature of the air before and after passing through the heat exchanger 5 is provided, and based on the detected temperature of the air before and after passing through the heat exchanger 5,
The above threshold may be adjusted.

The washing may be performed only in response to a manual operation, or may be performed only automatically. Moreover, you may implement by both manual and automatic. According to the present embodiment, since the cleaning pipe 13 is laid out so as to penetrate each fin 11 of the heat exchanger 5, the size can be reduced as compared with the conventional case. Further, the washing pipe 13 can be supported by the common supporting means together with the other cooling pipes 13 penetrating the fins 11, and there is no need to provide a structure for exclusively supporting the washing pipe 13. As a result, the number of parts can be reduced and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Further, by incorporating the small and inexpensive cleaning device A into the air conditioner 1, it is possible to provide the air conditioner 1 which is small, inexpensive and excellent in maintenance. Conventionally, a structure for supplying rinsing water for rinsing out the cleaning liquid is used. However, in this embodiment, a structure for supplying rinsing water is not particularly provided. In the cooling season, contaminants on the fins 11 of the heat exchanger 5 can be used as rinsing water. It is based on the idea that a mechanism for supplying rinsing water is unnecessary. However, the present invention is not intended to prevent adding a structure for supplying rinsing water.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, a plurality of washing tubes 13 may be provided and arranged at substantially equal positions as shown in FIG.
In this case, the cleaning liquid can be evenly sprayed on the entire fin 11 by the plurality of cleaning tubes 13 arranged evenly. In addition, various changes can be made within the scope of the present invention.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of an air conditioner including a heat exchanger cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a heat exchanger and a cleaning device.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a part of the main part of the cleaning device, in which the cleaning device is partially omitted.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a heat exchanger and a washing pipe.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a washing tube according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a layout of a washing tube according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 air conditioner 2 casing (air conditioner body) 3 decorative panel 5 heat exchanger 6 drain pan 10 air path 11 fin 12 cooling pipe 13 washing pipe 14 peripheral surface 15 nozzle (spraying means) 16 path 17 control unit 18 hole ( Spraying means) A Cleaning device L Cleaning liquid T Tank P Pump M Motor

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 3B201 AA46 AB53 BB22 BB33 BB92 CB01 3L051 BF10

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A tank (16) containing a cleaning liquid (L) and a cleaning liquid (L) guided from the tank (16) are flowed into the tank, and a heat exchanger is provided.
Washing liquid (L) by washing pipe (13) penetrating each fin (11) of (5)
And a spray means (15, 20) for spraying water. 2. A heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein said spraying means includes a plurality of holes formed in a peripheral surface of said washing pipe. Dishwasher. 3. The heat exchanger cleaning system according to claim 1, wherein said spraying means includes a nozzle provided on a peripheral surface of said cleaning pipe. apparatus. 4. The cooling pipe (1) of the heat exchanger (5) is provided with the washing pipe (13).
The heat exchanger cleaning device according to claim 1, 2, or 3, wherein the heat exchanger cleaning device is configured by using a part of (2). 5. The washing pipe (13) is provided with fins (1) of a heat exchanger (5).
The heat exchanger cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the heat exchanger cleaning device is arranged at least in an upper part of (1). 6. The washing pipe (13) is provided with fins (1) of a heat exchanger (5).
The heat exchanger cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a plurality of the heat exchanger cleaning devices are arranged at substantially equal positions in (1). 7. The heat exchanger cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning liquid (L) contains an antibacterial agent. 8. An air conditioner comprising a heat exchanger (5) and the heat exchanger cleaning device (A) according to any one of claims 1 to 7.