JP2003185190A - Outdoor unit for air conditioning apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an outdoor unit for an air conditioning apparatus dispensing with complex control of the amount of water while preventing wasting of water, and enhancing the operating rate of a water supply device. <P>SOLUTION: The outdoor unit has the water supply device 20 comprising a water ejecting means 21, a drain pan 15, and a pump 22. Water in the drain pan is fed by the pump to the water ejecting means and ejected toward an outdoor heat exchanger 11 to wet its surface to thereby evaporate the water, with extra water made to drop into the drain pan from the bottom of the outdoor heat exchanger for recovery. Also a heater 31 is installed in the drain pan to enable defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger when the air conditioning apparatus is used for heating during the winter. Further, the drain pan is provided with a primary supply means for using drain, rainwater, and river water, and a secondary supply means for using city water. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an outdoor unit for an air conditioner that is also used for cooling and heating.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a device for assisting the heat radiation of an outdoor heat exchanger of an air conditioner, water is injected into the outdoor heat exchanger,
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-351701, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-
Auxiliary cooling device (water supply device) according to Japanese Patent No. 18770
It has been known. According to this water injection method, in order to spray water to the fin-shaped outdoor heat exchanger installed in the vertical direction in as wide a range as possible, a diffusion spraying means such as a nozzle is used, which is common. is there.

In this case, it is necessary to change the injection amount of water according to the cooling load of the air conditioner. For example, when the cooling load is high, such as when the outdoor temperature is high, a dry region is formed below the outdoor heat exchanger. The amount of injection is increased so that it does not occur, and conversely, when the cooling load is low, the amount of injection is reduced so that excess water is not wastefully discarded from the lower part of the outdoor heat exchanger. This conventional technology can improve the performance of the air conditioner and, in turn, reduce the power consumption of the compressor, so it is economical for the user and can also contribute to the prevention of global warming. There was a point.

[0004]

The first problem is that
It is difficult to control the amount of water injected into the outdoor heat exchanger. The conventional technology needs to control the injection amount according to the cooling load as described above, but it is difficult to adjust the injection amount so that all the water is completely evaporated at the lower end of the outdoor heat exchanger, In addition, since the injection is not completely uniform, even if the injection amount is controlled, excess water falls into the drain pan near the center of the lower part of the outdoor heat exchanger and is discarded, and a dry region occurs near both ends of the outdoor heat exchanger. However, there was a problem that sufficient cooling was not performed. The second problem is the low operating rate of the auxiliary cooling device (water supply device) for the outdoor heat exchanger. During heating in winter, the outdoor heat exchanger functions as an evaporator, so there is no need to cool it. Therefore, in the prior art, the auxiliary cooling device is in the idle state except during summer.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to eliminate the need for complicated injection amount control (water amount control), at the same time prevent water from being wasted, and operate the water supply device at an operating rate. It is an object of the present invention to provide an outdoor unit for an air conditioner that can improve the air conditioner.

[0006]

The present invention provides an outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to each of the claims as a means for solving the above-mentioned problems. The outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to claim 1, at least a water injection unit,
It is equipped with a water supply device consisting of a drain pan and a pump, and pumps water from the drain pan to the water injection means, injects water to the outdoor heat exchanger to evaporate it, and at the same time excess water from the lower part of the outdoor heat exchanger to the drain pan. It is designed to be collected so that waste of water can be prevented. In addition, if the cooling water load is set to the highest level, the wide range of the outdoor heat exchanger (condenser) can be kept wet regardless of the load, resulting in excess drain pan. Since the water that has fallen to the water will be repeatedly used by the pump, it is not necessary to control the complicated injection amount (water amount).

In the outdoor unit according to claim 2, a heater is further installed in the drain pan, so that even when the outdoor heat exchanger is frosted during heating in winter, the heater can be operated by the heater. By sending hot water warmed in the drain pan to the water injection means by the pump, the frost adhering to the outdoor heat exchanger can be efficiently melted in a short time, and the heating performance can be restored. Moreover, the operating rate of the water supply device can be increased. In the outdoor unit of the third aspect, the drain pan has a heat insulating structure, and makes it difficult to cool the hot water heated by the heater.

In the outdoor unit according to claim 4, the drain pan is provided with a primary supply means for drain water, rain water, river water and the like from the indoor heat exchanger, and a secondary supply means for supplying a necessary amount of city water.
It is further provided with an overflow circuit and a drainage circuit, which allows the introduction of free water such as drain water, rain water, river water from the indoor heat exchanger, and minimizes the use of paid tap water. It is possible to provide a very economical water supply device that can be suppressed. In addition, it is possible to prevent a problem in which various control parts of the outdoor unit are damaged by being flooded with water overflowing from the drain pan. Further, when the cooling is stopped in the summer, the drain pan can be emptied of water to prevent problems such as water deterioration, corrosion at various places, and Legionella bacterium propagation.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The outdoor unit 10 includes an outdoor heat exchanger 11 having a tube 12 inserted through a fin 13, a blower fan 14,
An ordinary one composed of a compressor and a control device (not shown) is provided with a water supply device 20 which is a feature of the present invention.

The water supply device 20 is a water injection means 21 for injecting water into the outdoor heat exchanger 11, a drain pan 15 installed under the outdoor heat exchanger 11 so that a predetermined amount of water is always stored, and this drain pan. A water supply pipe 23 and a pump 22 for supplying the water of 15 to the water injection means 21, and a drain pan 15 of city water.
And a float valve (water level adjusting valve) 24 provided in the pipe 28 for controlling the supply of city water to the drain pan 15. Drain pan 1
5 is provided with a pipe 30 which is a primary supply means for introducing drain water generated in an indoor heat exchanger (not shown), rain water, river water and the like into the drain pan 15. Further, a pipe 28 as a secondary supply means for supplying city water (tap water) to the drain pan 15, an opening / closing valve 26, and a float valve 24 are provided, and the city water passes from the pipe 28 through the opening / closing valve 26, and a float valve. It is supplied to the drain pan 15 via 24.

In the drain pan 15, all the water in the drain pan is compulsorily used as a drain circuit, and the water distribution pipe 27 and the on-off valve 2 are provided.
5 are provided. Further, an overflow pipe 29 serving as an overflow circuit for preventing the inside of the drain pan from exceeding a predetermined water level is connected to the discharge pipe 27 to prevent drain water, rainwater, etc. from overflowing from the drain pan 15.

The operation of the outdoor unit for an air conditioner of the present invention having the above-described structure during cooling will be described. During the cooling operation, the opening / closing valve 25 is closed and the opening / closing valve 26 is opened so that the drain pan 15 can always store a predetermined amount of water by the action of the float valve 24. By driving the pump 22 in this state, the water in the drain pan 15 is pumped up, supplied to the water injection means 21, and injected into the outdoor heat exchanger 11. In this case, the water injection means 21 is a general nozzle that injects water toward the outdoor heat exchanger 11, and it is preferable to use a nozzle having good diffusivity so as to wet a wide area of the heat exchanger.

In the prior art, when the cooling load (outside temperature, etc.) changed, it was necessary to control the amount of water sent by the pump.
It may remain constant in the present invention. That is, since the evaporation of water is maximum under the condition that the cooling load is maximum, such as when the outdoor temperature is high in the summer, the pump 22 should be driven with the amount of water supplied such that the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger 11 gets wet under this condition. Good.
On the other hand, even when the cooling load is reduced, the pump 22 is supplied with the above water supply amount.
If the water is driven, the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger 11 gets wet, and the excess water that has dropped into the drain pan 15 is repeatedly used by the pump 22. As a result, the amount of water supplied by the pump 22 cannot be controlled. It becomes unnecessary and the outdoor heat exchanger 11 can be operated in a wet state in the entire load range.

However, if the pump 22 is operated with an excessively large amount of water supply when the cooling load is low and the load is low, the water film on the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger 11 may become thick and the evaporation rate of water may decrease. Since there is, and the pump power is consumed to a small extent, the water supply amount of the pump 22 may be controlled to be lowered. Here, in the present invention, since the water dropped on the drain pan 15 is reused as described above, the water supply amount control of the pump 22 may be very rough.
If the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger 11 is wet, there will be no problem in dropping excess water. Therefore, in the present invention, even if the cooling load changes, the heat radiating surface of the outdoor heat exchanger 11 can be wetted almost entirely, and the cooling effect due to the latent heat of vaporization of water can be maximized, and the surplus is Since the water is never discarded, the waste of city water (tap water) can be eliminated.

Further, in the present invention, since free water such as drain water, rain water or river water generated in the indoor heat exchanger is introduced through the pipe 30 which is the primary supply means, city water (tap water)
Consumption can be further reduced and a very economical water supply device can be provided. On the other hand, for example, the cooling target (for example, indoors)
In the case where the humidity is high and a large amount of drain water is generated, excess water is discarded from the overflow pipe 29 so that the water does not overflow from the drain pan 15, so various control parts of the outdoor unit 10 are exposed to water. It is possible to prevent problems such as breakage. Further, when the cooling is stopped in the summer, the opening / closing valve 25 of the drainage circuit is opened and the opening / closing valve 26 of the secondary supply means is closed to empty the water in the drain pan 15, thereby deteriorating the water and corroding the various places. , To prevent problems such as the reproduction of Legionella bacteria.

Next, two uses for heating the outdoor unit for an air conditioner of the present invention will be described. First, in the first usage, the water supply device 20 of the present invention is basically not operated. That is, during heating, since the outdoor heat exchanger 11 during cooling operates as an evaporator, the drain valve on-off valve 25 is opened in order to collect and dispose of the drain water in which the humidity of the outside air is condensed by the drain pan 15. Just keep it.
However, this does not increase the operating rate of the water supply device 20 in the winter season, as in the prior art.

Therefore, in the second method, as is well known, water continuously obtained such as natural river water is used as the heat source of the heat pump. As described above, the river water is introduced from the pipe 30, which is the primary means for supplying water, and the pump 22 is driven with both the on-off valves 25 and 26 closed. By doing so, the outdoor heat exchanger 11 is constantly wetted with river water, so even under conditions where the outside air temperature is far below zero, the heat pump performance is greatly enhanced by the heat of the river water near zero. Be improved. In this case, the water whose temperature has dropped after use overflows from the overflow pipe 29 and is discarded. In this way, the blower fan can be stopped, so that the effect of power saving can be obtained. As described above, the water supply device 20 during heating
In the second usage, the water supply means operates even in heating, and a system with a feeling of utilization can be provided.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of an outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, the heater 31 is installed in the drain pan 15, and the container of the drain pan 15 itself is formed of a heat insulating structure. Other configurations are similar to those of the first embodiment. The second embodiment is suitable for heating, especially when the outdoor heat exchanger (evaporator) 11 is often frosted. That is, when frost is formed on the outdoor heat exchanger (evaporator) during heating, the hot water warmed by the heater 31 is pumped into the pump 2
By sending water to the water injection means 21 in 2, the frost adhering to the outdoor heat exchanger 11 can be efficiently melted in a short time, and the heating performance can be restored. Further, since the drain pan 15 has a heat insulating structure, it is difficult to cool warmed warm water.

Conventionally, when frost was formed, the heating operation was often stopped to perform defrosting. However, in the second embodiment, since it is possible to perform defrosting while continuing the heating operation,
It is possible to prevent the temperature of the heating target (such as the room) from decreasing. Also,
When hot water is sprayed by the conventional technique, warm water may still be discarded from the drain pan, and high-efficiency defrosting is difficult. However, in the present invention, the water dropped on the drain pan 15 is reheated and used. Therefore, the problem as in the past can be solved.

FIG. 3 shows one embodiment of the drain pan 15 according to the present invention. The drain pan 15 is provided with a lid 32 that is inclined toward the opening 34 while leaving a part of the opening 34. The lid 32 serves to receive the water falling from the outdoor heat exchanger 11 and guide it through the opening 34 into the drain pan 15. A filter 33 for filtering dust contained in water is provided above the lid 32. The drain pan 15 and the lid 32 are formed by using a heat insulating member for defrosting operation during heating, and the filter 33 also indirectly has a function as a heat insulating member.

[0021]

As described above, it has been conventionally practiced to supply water to the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger and to assist the heat radiation of the outdoor heat exchanger by the latent heat of vaporization of the water. By adopting the configuration as described above, it becomes possible to effectively wet the outdoor heat exchanger with the minimum necessary amount of water without using complicated control. In addition, the cooling performance can be greatly improved, and as a result, the power consumption of the compressor can be reduced, and on the other hand, energy can be saved even during heating that has not been used conventionally, so it is economical throughout the summer and winter. As a result, it can contribute to the prevention of global warming.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of an outdoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing one embodiment of a drain pan according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 ... Outdoor unit 11 ... Outdoor heat exchanger 15 ... Drain pan 20 ... Water supply device 21 ... Water injection means 22 ... Pump 24 ... Float valve (water level adjustment valve) 25, 28 ... on-off valve 29 ... Overflow piping 31 ... Heater 32 ... Lid 33 ... Filter

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. At least a water injection means for injecting water into the outdoor heat exchanger, a drain pan installed in the lower part of the outdoor heat exchanger, and a pump for sending water stored in the drain pan to the water injection means. And a water supply device consisting of, injecting water in the drain pan to the outdoor heat exchanger,
An outdoor unit for an air conditioner, characterized in that water is evaporated by wetting the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger, and excess water is dropped and collected again from a lower portion of the outdoor heat exchanger to the drain pan. 2. A heater is installed in the drain pan,
The outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the water in the drain pan is warmed and used during heating in winter. 3. The outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the drain pan has a heat insulating structure. 4. The primary supply means for supplying water such as drain water, rainwater, or river water of the indoor heat exchanger by the drain pan, and the secondary supply means for supplying only necessary amount of city water by a water level adjusting valve installed in the drain pan. A supply means, an overflow circuit for preventing the inside of the drain pan from exceeding a predetermined water level, and a drainage circuit for forcibly draining all the water in the drain pan. 2 or 3
The outdoor unit for an air conditioner according to.