JP2003252032A - Air conditioner for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To dissolve a problem that a blower unit and an air conditioning unit 2 are situated side by side in the horizontal direction of a vehicle and, when air flowing in through an air introduction port 7 positioned in a side surface on the blower unit side of an air conditioning case flows in a lower chamber 11 of an evaporator from the front side of a vehicle of an evaporator 9, it is difficult that air flows to the side near the blower unit of the lower part 11 of the evaporator. <P>SOLUTION: A second air introduction port 8 opened to a portion below the under surface of the evaporator 9 in a range in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle of the evaporator 9 is formed in the air conditioning case 6. A part of air fed from the blower unit is caused to flow in the lower chamber 11 of the evaporator through a second air introduction port 8. <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 a vehicle air conditioner in which air flows from a vehicle front side of a cooling heat exchanger to a lower surface side of the cooling heat exchanger.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional vehicle air conditioner of this type,
There is one described in JP-A-11-32279. In the air conditioner described in this publication, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, an evaporator 9 for cooling air is housed in an air conditioning case 6, and a position on the vehicle front side of the side surface of the air conditioning case 6 on the blower 4 side. The air inlet 7 into which the blown air flows
Is provided, the evaporator 9 is arranged substantially horizontally at a position rearward of the vehicle with respect to the air introduction port 7, and the air flowing in from the air introduction port 7 is disposed below the evaporator 9 from the vehicle front side of the evaporator 9. It is designed to flow into the evaporator lower chamber 11.

The two-dot chain line in FIG. 7 indicates the air conditioning case 6
Inside, an air passage from the air inlet 7 to the evaporator 9 is shown, and the arrow in FIG. 7 shows the flow of air.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional air conditioner, the air sent from the blower 4 to the air introduction port 7 at a high flow rate has an air conditioning case 6 as shown by an arrow.
Inside the air introduction chamber 10 bends about 90 ° and the evaporator lower chamber 1
1, the blower 4 in the lower chamber 11 of the evaporator
It is difficult for air to flow to the side close to, and there is a large difference in wind speed between the right side and the left side of the vehicle in the evaporator 9. As a result, there is a problem that the temperature variation of the blown air between the blowout ports becomes large and the temperature controllability deteriorates.

Here, it is conceivable that a guide is provided in the air introduction chamber 10 at a position near the air introduction port 7 and the wind direction is changed by the guide to reduce the difference in wind speed.
In this case, since the air passage is narrowed by the guide, a new problem arises that the air resistance increases.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and it is an object of the present invention to ensure temperature controllability without increasing air resistance.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, in the invention described in claim 1, a blower unit (1) accommodating a blower (4) for blowing air and a cooling unit for cooling the air are provided. An air conditioning case (6) accommodating a heat exchanger (9) is provided, and the air blower unit (1) and the air conditioning case (6) are arranged side by side in the vehicle left-right direction. An air inlet (7) into which air blown from the blower unit (1) flows is provided at a position on the vehicle front side of the side surface on the side 1), and the cooling heat exchanger (9) has an air inlet. The air, which is arranged substantially horizontally behind the vehicle (7) and flows in from the air inlet (7), cools the heat exchanger (9) from the vehicle front side of the cooling heat exchanger (9). In the air conditioning system for the vehicle that flows into the lower side of the Auxiliary passages (14, 32, for guiding the air blown from (1) to the side of the lower surface of the cooling heat exchanger (9) close to the blower unit (1) without passing through the air inlet (7). 61) is provided.

According to this, since it is possible to surely flow the air through the auxiliary passage to the portion where the air was difficult to flow in the past, that is, the side of the lower surface of the cooling heat exchanger that is close to the blower unit, the cooling heat is cooled. Air can be made to flow substantially uniformly throughout the exchanger, and temperature controllability can be ensured.

Further, the air passing through the auxiliary passage does not bend sharply, the air flows substantially uniformly throughout the cooling heat exchanger, and the air passage area corresponding to the auxiliary passage is increased to reduce the wind speed. In addition, air resistance is reduced.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the cooling heat exchanger (9) is provided on the side surface of the air conditioning case (6) on the side of the blower unit (1) in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle and for cooling. A second air introduction port (8) opening at a site below the lower surface of the heat exchanger (9) is provided, and the auxiliary passages (14, 32,
By connecting 61) to the second air inlet (8), the invention described in claim 1 can be easily implemented.

The reference numerals in the parentheses above indicate the correspondence with the concrete means described in the embodiments described later.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS (First Embodiment) FIGS. 1 and 2
1 shows a first embodiment of a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an air conditioning unit 2, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a blower unit 1 and an intermediate duct 5. The two-dot chain line in FIG. 2 indicates the air passage from the air introduction ports 7 and 8 to the evaporator 9 in the air conditioning case 6, that is, the air introduction chamber 10 and the evaporator lower chamber 11, and in FIG. The arrow indicates the flow of air.

The air conditioner is roughly divided into a blower unit 1 and an air conditioner unit 2. The blower unit 1 and the air conditioner unit 2 are arranged side by side in the lateral direction of the vehicle and are mounted below the instrument panel in the vehicle compartment. Specifically, the air conditioning unit 2 is arranged at a substantially central portion in the vehicle left-right direction, and the blower unit 1 is mounted offset on the passenger seat side located on the left side of the vehicle.

The blower unit 1 is provided with an inside / outside air switching box 3 and a blower 4. The inside / outside air switching box 3 is disposed above the blower 4, and the inside air (inside the vehicle) is introduced from the inside air inlet 3a and the outside air inlet 3b. The inside air) and the outside air (outside air) are switched and introduced. Inside the inside / outside air switching box 3 is provided with an inside / outside air switching door (not shown) that opens and closes both of the inlets 3a and 3b.

The blower 4 is arranged below the inside / outside air switching box 3 and has a centrifugal fan 4a for blowing the air introduced into the inside / outside air switching box 3. The centrifugal fan 4a is rotationally driven by a driving motor 4b and is housed in a resin-molded scroll-shaped fan casing 4c.

An air outlet 4d, which serves as an outlet for air, is formed at a position on the frontmost side of the vehicle in the fan casing 4c, and the air outlet 4d has a rectangular shape elongated in the vertical direction. Further, the intermediate duct 5 extending from the air outlet 4d to the air conditioning unit 2 side is provided with the fan casing 4
It is molded integrally with c.

The air conditioning unit 2 is provided with an air conditioning case 6 made of resin, and the side of the air conditioning case 6 on the side of the blower unit 1, that is, the side of the air conditioning case 6 on the left side of the vehicle, has a first air inlet that serves as an air inlet. A port 7 and a second air introduction port 8 are formed.

In this example, both air inlets 7 and 8 are one continuous opening, but the portion located on the vehicle front side of the evaporator 9 described later corresponds to the first air inlet 7. Within the vehicle front-rear direction range of the evaporator 9 and the evaporator 9
The portion that is open below the lower surface 9a corresponds to the second air introduction port 8. The first air inlet 7 has substantially the same shape and size as the air outlet 4d.

An air introducing chamber 10 extending in the vehicle left-right direction is formed on the vehicle front side of the evaporator 9 in the air conditioning case 6, and the lower surface 9a of the evaporator 9 is formed in the air conditioning case 6.
An evaporator lower chamber 11 is formed below the.

The intermediate duct 5 has both air inlets 7,
Air which is connected to the fan 8 and is blown by the fan 4a is guided into the air conditioning case 6 through the intermediate duct 5. The intermediate duct 5 directly connects the main passage 13 that blows air from the first air introduction port 7 to the air introduction chamber 10 and the second air introduction port 8 to the evaporator lower chamber 11 without passing the first air introduction port 7. And an auxiliary passage 14 for blowing air. The cross-sectional shape of the main passage 13 in the air flow direction is substantially the same as the air outlet 4d and the air outlet 4d, and has substantially the same dimensions. The air passage area of the auxiliary passage 14 gradually increases along the air flow direction.

The evaporator 9 corresponding to the cooling heat exchanger is installed substantially horizontally, and more specifically, is installed with a slight inclination so that the front side in the vehicle front-rear direction becomes higher. Also,
The evaporator 9 has a heat exchange core portion (not shown) including a large number of flat tubes forming the refrigerant passage and corrugated fins joined between the tubes. Then, the blown air flows from the lower side to the upper side through the heat exchange core portion, and the refrigerant absorbs latent heat of vaporization from the blown air to evaporate, whereby the blown air is cooled.

On the upper side of the evaporator 9, a heater core 15 for heating blown air using hot water (cooling water) from a vehicle engine (not shown) as a heat source is installed substantially horizontally, and the evaporator 9 is installed.
The blast air from is heated and discharged upward. The heater core 15 is located on the vehicle front side in the air conditioning case 6, and a bypass passage 16 that bypasses the heater core 15 and allows air to flow is formed on the vehicle rear side of the heater core 15.

An air mix door 17 is arranged in the vicinity of the heater core 15, and by the air mix door 17,
By adjusting the air volume ratio between the air (warm air) passing through the heater core 15 and the air (cool air) passing through the bypass passage 16,
The temperature of the air blown into the passenger compartment is adjusted.

A face opening 18 for blowing air toward the head of an occupant in the passenger compartment is formed in a portion of the upper surface of the air conditioning case 6 on the rear side of the vehicle. In addition, the air conditioning case 6
A defroster opening 19 for blowing air toward the inner surface of the windshield is opened at a portion of the upper surface of the vehicle front side of the face opening 18. A foot opening 20 for blowing air toward the feet of an occupant in the vehicle compartment is opened at a portion of the air conditioning case 6 on the vehicle front side. Then, two rotatable plate-shaped doors 2 for switching the blowing modes
1, 22 open and close the openings 18 to 20,
The blowout mode is set.

Next, the operation of this embodiment having the above structure will be described. When the operation switch (not shown) of the air conditioner is turned on and the fan 4a of the blower 4 rotates, the air taken in from the inside / outside air switching box 3 passes through the intermediate duct 5 and the air inside the air conditioning case 6 is blown. It is introduced into the introduction chamber 10 and the evaporator lower chamber 11.

The blown air passes through the evaporator 9 from the lower side to the upper side, during which the air is dehumidified and cooled by the latent heat of vaporization of the refrigerant flowing in the tube of the core portion of the heat exchange core of the evaporator 9. The cooling air further flows upward and is distributed to the air introduced into the heater core 15 and the air passing through the bypass passage 16 according to the rotating position of the air mix door 17.

The hot air heated by the heater core 15 and the cold air passing through the bypass passage 16 are mixed to become air of a predetermined temperature, and the air of the predetermined temperature is opened by the two blowing mode switching doors 21 and 22. A portion, that is, the face opening 18, the defroster opening 19, and the foot opening 20 are passed through and blown into the vehicle interior to air-condition the vehicle interior.

Among the air guided from the fan 4a into the air conditioning case 6 via the intermediate duct 5, the air introduced from the first air introduction port 7 through the main passage 13 of the intermediate duct 5 is the air. It bends at about 90 ° in the introduction chamber 10 and flows into the evaporator lower chamber 11 on the side far from the blower unit 1.

On the other hand, of the air introduced into the air conditioning case 6 from the fan 4a through the intermediate duct 5, the intermediate duct 5
The air introduced from the second air introduction port 8 through the auxiliary passage 14 of the blower unit 1 in the evaporator lower chamber 11
Flows into the side close to.

As described above, the air can be surely flowed through the auxiliary passage 14 to the portion where the air is difficult to flow in the past, that is, to the side of the evaporator lower chamber 11 close to the blower unit 1, so that the evaporator 9 can be surely flown. Air can be made to flow substantially uniformly over the entire area, and temperature controllability can be ensured.

Further, the air passing through the auxiliary passage 14 does not bend sharply, the air flows substantially uniformly over the entire area of the evaporator 9, the air passage area increases by the amount of the auxiliary passage 14, and the wind speed decreases. Further, the air resistance is reduced due to the fact that the air passage area of the auxiliary passage 14 is gradually increased.

(Second Embodiment) FIGS. 3 and 4 show a second embodiment of a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of an air conditioning unit 2, and FIG. 4 is a blower 4 and an intermediate unit. It is a perspective view of the duct 30. The two-dot chain line in FIG. 4 indicates the air introduction chamber 10 and the evaporator lower chamber 11 in the air conditioning case 6, and the arrow in FIG. 4 indicates the flow of air. Further, the same parts as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

In the first embodiment, both air inlets 7 and 8 are one continuous opening, but in the present embodiment, the first air inlet 41 and the second air inlet of the air conditioning case 6 are provided. 42 is formed independently.

In the intermediate duct 30, the main passage 3 connected to the first air inlet 41 to blow air to the air inlet chamber 10.
1 and an evaporator lower chamber 1 connected to the second air inlet 42.
The auxiliary passage 32 that directly blows air to the unit 1 is formed independently.

The air introduced from the first air inlet 41 through the main passage 31 of the intermediate duct 30 flows into the evaporator lower chamber 11 on the side farther from the blower unit 1, while the air in the intermediate duct 30 is removed. Second through the auxiliary passage 32
The air introduced from the air inlet 32 is the lower chamber 1 of the evaporator.
1 flows into the side closer to the blower unit 1. Therefore, as in the first embodiment, the air can be flown substantially uniformly over the entire area of the evaporator 9, and the temperature controllability can be ensured.

Further, the air passing through the auxiliary passage 32 does not bend sharply, the air flows substantially uniformly over the entire area of the evaporator 9, and the air passage area increases by the amount of the auxiliary passage 32, so that the wind speed decreases. Together, the air resistance is reduced.

(Third Embodiment) FIG. 5 shows a third embodiment of a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention. In the second embodiment, an intermediate duct 30 having a main passage 31 and an auxiliary passage 32 is provided. Although it is formed integrally with the fan casing 4c, in the present embodiment, the intermediate duct 50 having the main passage 51 is formed integrally with the fan casing 4c, and the bellows-shaped resin tube 60 forming the auxiliary passage 61 allows The intermediate portion of the intermediate duct 50 and the second air introduction port 42 of the air conditioning case 6 are connected.

The other structure is common to the second embodiment, and like the second embodiment, the air can be flown substantially uniformly over the entire area of the evaporator 9 and the temperature controllability can be secured. At the same time, the air resistance is reduced.

(Other Embodiments) In each of the above embodiments, the intermediate ducts 5, 30, 50 are integrally formed with the fan casing 4c, but the intermediate ducts 5, 30, 50 are formed in the air conditioning case 6.
May be integrally molded with the intermediate ducts 5, 3 or
0, 50 to the fan casing 4c and the air conditioning case 6
It may be formed separately from.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an air conditioning unit 2 according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a blower unit 1 and an intermediate duct 5 according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of an air conditioning unit 2 in a second embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a blower 4 and an intermediate duct 30 according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a blower 4 and an intermediate duct 50 according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional air conditioning unit 2.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a conventional blower 4 and an intermediate duct.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Blower unit, 4 ... Blower, 6 ... Air conditioning case, 7
... Air inlet, 9 ... Evaporator (cooling heat exchanger), 14,
32, 61 ... Auxiliary passage.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A blower unit (1) containing a blower (4) for blowing air, and an air-conditioning case (6) containing a heat exchanger (9) for cooling the air, The blower unit (1) and the air-conditioning case (6) are arranged side by side in the vehicle left-right direction, and at the position on the vehicle front side of the side surface of the air-conditioning case (6) on the blower unit (1) side, An air inlet (7) into which the air blown from the blower unit (1) flows is provided, and the cooling heat exchanger (9) is substantially located at a position rearward of the vehicle with respect to the air inlet (7). A vehicle air conditioner that is horizontally arranged and that the air that has flowed in from the air inlet (7) flows from the vehicle front side of the cooling heat exchanger (9) to the lower surface side of the cooling heat exchanger (9). In the device, the blower unit (1) Auxiliary passages (14, 32, 61) for guiding the generated air to the side closer to the blower unit (1) on the lower surface side of the cooling heat exchanger (9) without passing through the air inlet (7). An air conditioner for a vehicle, comprising: 2. The side surface of the air conditioning case (6) on the side of the blower unit (1) is within the vehicle front-rear direction of the cooling heat exchanger (9) and the cooling heat exchanger (9). ) Has a second air inlet opening (8) below the lower surface, and the auxiliary passages (14, 32, 61) are connected to the second air inlet (8). Claim 1 characterized by
The vehicle air conditioner described in.