JP2008082566A - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realistically adequately judge the amount of dust accumulated in a dust box and to notify the start of a maintenance period of the dust box at a proper timing. <P>SOLUTION: This air conditioner comprises a judging means for judging the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 and outputting a maintenance signal when the amount reaches a predetermined maintenance reference amount, and a notifying means for notifying the maintenance of the dust box 20 by receiving the maintenance signal from the judging means. According to this constitution, as the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 is judged, and the notification of maintenance is performed on the basis of the judgement, inadequate judgement based on cleaning frequency of a filter found when the amount of dust accumulated on the filter is estimated on the basis of the total time of air-conditioning operation, and notifying the maintenance of the dust box on the basis of the estimation, can be prevented, and the notification of maintenance of the dust box 20 and the maintenance based on the notification can be performed at a proper timing. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner in which a filter cleaning mechanism is added to an air conditioning mechanism.

  Conventionally, an air conditioner including a cleaning mechanism that automatically cleans a filter is known (see Patent Document 1). In this air conditioner, the filter cleaning mechanism allows a plate-like filter arranged reciprocally along the inner surface of the air suction port to pass through a dust box arranged in the movement path of the filter, and the dust box The function of the filter is regenerated by removing dust adhering to the surface of the filter with brushes arranged on both sides of the filter. When the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box increases, after the dust box is removed and the dust is thrown away, maintenance work for attaching the dust box again becomes necessary.

  In this case, the best way to determine the necessity of maintenance work is to directly detect the amount of dust that accumulates in the dust box, but this method requires a special sensor due to the characteristics of the dust. It is difficult to realize from the viewpoint of cost.

  For this reason, as the next best measure, the air conditioner disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 estimates the amount of dust accumulated in the filter based on the integrated operation time of the air conditioning operation (that is, the integrated ventilation time in the filter). Based on the basic idea, a method has been proposed in which when a cumulative operation time exceeds a predetermined value, a predetermined amount or more of dust is accumulated in the dust box and maintenance is required.

JP2004-101101A.

  However, the amount of dust accumulated in the filter does not necessarily correlate with the accumulated operation time of the air conditioning operation, and varies greatly depending on, for example, the frequency of cleaning the filter.

  That is, if the frequency of cleaning the filter is high, the filter is less clogged with dust, the filter always exhibits a filter function close to the design performance, and dust that is finer than planned is not collected. On the other hand, if the frequency of cleaning the filter is low, the filter is clogged with dust, and as a result, the filter collects even finer dust than originally planned, and the amount of dust collected in the filter. The amount of increases.

  Therefore, simply determining the maintenance timing of the dust box based on the accumulated operation time of the air conditioning operation cannot determine the appropriateness according to the actual situation.For example, although the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box is small, maintenance is performed. Notifying the arrival of the time, or conversely, notifying the arrival of the maintenance time even though a large amount of garbage has accumulated in the dust box, and in some cases, the dust will scatter from the dust box to the room, causing the indoor environment to deteriorate It is also conceivable to do.

  Therefore, the present invention is a function of an air conditioner having a filter cleaning function by appropriately determining the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box and notifying the arrival of the maintenance time of the dust box at an appropriate timing. It was made for the purpose of maintenance.

  In the present invention, the following configuration is adopted as a specific means for solving such a problem.

In 1st invention of this application, in the ventilation path from the inlet 3 formed in the casing 1 to the blower outlet 4, the air-conditioning mechanism X which has arrange | positioned the heat exchanger 7 and the fan 8, and the inner surface of the said inlet 3 In an air conditioner including a cleaning mechanism Y configured to collect dust attached to the surface of the filter 13 having a plate-like shape disposed along the dust box 20 based on the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y. Determining the amount of dust in the dust box 20 and outputting a maintenance signal when the amount reaches a preset maintenance reference amount, and receiving the maintenance signal from the determining means, It features a notification means for notifying maintenance.

In 2nd invention of this application, in the ventilation path from the suction inlet 3 formed in the casing 1 to the blower outlet 4, the air conditioning mechanism X which has arrange | positioned the heat exchanger 7 and the fan 8, and the inner surface of the said suction inlet 3 In the air conditioner having a cleaning mechanism (Y) configured to collect dust adhering to the surface of the filter 13 having a plate-like shape disposed along the dust box 20, the operation interval of the cleaning mechanism Y is as follows. The amount of dust in the dust box 20 is determined in consideration of the above, and a determination unit that outputs a maintenance signal when the amount reaches a preset maintenance reference amount, and a maintenance signal from the determination unit receives the maintenance signal. It is characterized by providing a notification means for notifying the maintenance of the dust box 20.

According to a third invention of the present application, in the air conditioner according to the first or second invention, the maintenance reference amount is defined by the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y.

In the fourth invention of the present application, in the air conditioner according to the second or third invention , when a plurality of operation intervals of the cleaning mechanism Y are set, the maintenance is performed corresponding to each of the plurality of operation intervals. It is characterized by setting a plurality of reference amounts.

In the fifth invention of the present application, in the air conditioner according to the first, second, third or fourth invention , the maintenance reference amount, the operation of the cleaning mechanism Y, and the operation of the cleaning mechanism Y are automatically received upon receiving the notification. It is characterized in that the amount is set to be different between the automatic operation to be performed and the manual operation to be performed manually in response to the notification.

  In the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

(A) In the air conditioner according to the first invention of the present application, a determination unit that determines the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 and outputs a maintenance signal when the amount reaches a preset maintenance reference amount; Notification means for notifying maintenance of the dust box 20 in response to a maintenance signal from the determination means is provided.

  Therefore, according to the air conditioner of the present invention, the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 is determined by the determination unit, and the notification unit notifies the maintenance based on this determination. Because the amount of dust accumulated in the filter is estimated from the accumulated operating time of the air conditioning operation and the dust box maintenance is notified based on this, there is no inappropriate judgment due to the frequency of cleaning the filter. The maintenance of the dust box 20 can be notified at a more appropriate timing. As a result, the comfort of the indoor air conditioning is reduced due to the suspension of the air conditioning operation due to the unnecessary maintenance, or the dust box 20 is littered. This prevents the indoor environment from deteriorating due to excessive accumulation of trash and indoors. Improvement of the performance characteristics of the gas-conditioner can be expected.

Further , according to the air conditioner according to the present invention, the determination unit is configured to determine the amount of dust in the dust box 20 based on the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y. Notification of maintenance is made by determining the amount of dust in the dust box 20 from the correlation between the amount of dust collected on the dust box 20 side by one operation of Y and the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y. For example, as compared with the conventional case where the amount of dust accumulated in the filter is estimated from the accumulated operation time of the air conditioning operation and the maintenance of the dust box is notified based on this, the dust box The determination logic of the amount of dust in 20 is further simplified, and as a result, cost reduction of the cleaning mechanism Y is promoted.

(B) In the air conditioner according to the second invention of the present application, a determination unit that determines the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 and outputs a maintenance signal when the amount reaches a preset maintenance reference amount; Notification means for notifying maintenance of the dust box 20 in response to a maintenance signal from the determination means is provided.

  Therefore, according to the air conditioner of the present invention, the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 is determined by the determination unit, and the notification unit notifies the maintenance based on this determination. Because the amount of dust accumulated in the filter is estimated from the accumulated operating time of the air conditioning operation and the dust box maintenance is notified based on this, there is no inappropriate judgment due to the frequency of cleaning the filter. The maintenance of the dust box 20 can be notified at a more appropriate timing. As a result, the comfort of the indoor air conditioning is reduced due to the suspension of the air conditioning operation due to the unnecessary maintenance, or the dust box 20 is littered. This prevents the indoor environment from deteriorating due to excessive accumulation of trash and indoors. Improvement of the performance characteristics of the gas-conditioner can be expected.

Moreover, according to the air conditioner according to the present invention, the determination means is configured to determine the amount of dust in the dust box 20 in consideration of the operation interval of the cleaning mechanism Y. Between the operation interval and the amount of dust collected from the filter 13 side to the dust box 20 side by one operation of the cleaning mechanism Y, the dust box 20 is used when the operation interval of the cleaning mechanism Y is short. Because the amount of dust collected on the side is small and the amount of dust increases when the operation interval is long, the influence of the length of the operation interval of the cleaning mechanism Y is eliminated as much as possible. Thus, the amount of dust actually accumulated in the dust box 20 can be detected with higher accuracy.

(C) According to the air conditioner pertaining to the third invention of the present application, since the maintenance reference amount is defined by the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y, determination of the amount of dust in the dust box 20 and maintenance The correspondence with the determination of the maintenance notification based on the reference amount is clear, and as a result, the maintenance can be accurately notified with a more simplified determination logic, and the effect described in (a) or (b) above can be achieved. It is even more certain.

(D) According to the air conditioner pertaining to the fourth invention of the present application, when a plurality of operation intervals of the cleaning mechanism Y are set, a plurality of the maintenance reference amounts are also set corresponding to each of the plurality of operation intervals. For example, the user of the air conditioner sets, as the operation interval of the cleaning mechanism Y, a cleaning operation once a day and a cleaning operation once a week, respectively. If the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y corresponding to the former is set to a number larger than the number of operations corresponding to the latter, the maintenance reference amount is high in accuracy corresponding to the user's request. Notification of maintenance is realized, and the effect described in (b) or (c) is further promoted.

(E) According to the air conditioner pertaining to the fifth invention of the present application, in addition to the effects described in (a), (b), (c) or (d) above, there are the following specific effects. can get. That is, in the air conditioner according to the fifth aspect of the invention , the maintenance reference amount is captured on the dust box 20 side during an automatic operation performed automatically upon receipt of the notification (that is, the cleaning mechanism Y is operated once). When the amount of collected dust is stable) and during manual operation performed in response to the above notification (that is, when the cleaning mechanism Y performs one operation of the cleaning mechanism Y) Since the amount is likely to change depending on the frequency of manual cleaning based on the above notification, etc., a different amount is set, so that the maintenance notification adapted to the operation mode of the cleaning mechanism Y is realized. .

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically described based on preferred embodiments.

  1 and 2 show an air conditioner Z according to an embodiment of the present invention. This air conditioner Z is an indoor unit of a separate type air conditioner, and includes a horizontally long box-shaped casing 1 attached to an indoor wall surface. The front wall 1A and the top wall 1B of the casing 1 are provided with a front suction port 3A and a top suction port 3B, respectively. A front panel 2 is provided on the front side of the front suction port 3A.

  The front panel 2 is shown in a solid line in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively, and a closed position where the front suction port 3A is approached and blinds the front suction port 3A, and a broken line is shown in each drawing. The front suction port 3 </ b> A is opened at the open position, which can be opened and closed between the open positions in the forward tilted state in which the upper end side is pushed forward while moving downward from the closed position. .

  In addition, a horizontally elongated air outlet 4 is provided at the middle position in the front-rear direction of the bottom wall 1C of the casing 1, and the air outlet 4 is provided with a horizontal flap 44 and a vertical flap 45.

  Further, a brush mechanism Q provided with a dust box 20 described later is detachable in a storage portion 30 provided in front of the outlet 4 of the casing 1 and close to the lower end of the front wall 1A. It is attached to.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a heat exchanger 7 and a fan 8 are accommodated in the ventilation path from the suction port 3 to the blowout port 4 in the casing 1, and an air conditioning mechanism X is configured by these. . The heat exchanger 7 is connected to the first heat exchanger 7A extending in the vertical direction so as to be opposed to the suction port 3 and the upper end of the first heat exchanger 7A, and from here to the rear wall 1E side. It has a substantially chevron-shaped bent shape composed of the second heat exchanger 7B that is inclined downward.

  On the other hand, the front side space between the front suction port 3A of the casing 1 and the front surface of the first heat exchanger 7A, the upper portions of the first heat exchanger 7A and the second heat exchanger 7B, and the upper surface suction. In the space on the upper surface side between the mouth 3B, a cleaning mechanism Y described below is disposed across these spaces.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the cleaning mechanism Y is configured by connecting and integrating a pair of left and right casing bodies 14 </ b> A and 14 </ b> B that are formed in the opposite direction in the width direction. In the closed state, the casing 1 has a side view shape curved from the front suction port 3A to the inner surface of the upper suction port 3B. That is, each of the casing bodies 14A and 14B has a pair of left and right side wall portions 15 and 16 each having a curved side view shape, and a frame in which the side wall portions 15 and 16 are connected and integrated by a lattice material. The cleaning unit casing 14 is configured by having a shape and connecting the side wall portion 16 of the first casing body 14A and the side wall portions 16 of the second casing body 14B in an abutted state.

  In addition, guide grooves 15a and 16a are provided in portions of the inner edges of the side wall portions 15 and 16 of the casing bodies 14A and 14B corresponding to the upper surface suction port 3B of the casing 1, respectively. . On the other hand, among the casing bodies 14A and 14B, each of the front surface portions corresponding to the front suction port 3A of the casing 1 is covered with the frame-shaped filter holder 43 so as to cover it from the outside (front surface side). However, it is attached so that it can rotate in the front-rear direction with the upper edge side as the center of rotation.

  A plate-like shape is formed by stretching the filter 1 material 13b on the front side of the casing bodies 14A and 14B of the cleaning unit casing 14 so as to cover the casing bodies 14A and 14B. The filter 13 (see FIG. 6) is arranged. In this case, on the upper surface side of each casing body 14A, 14B, the filter 13 is inserted into the guide groove 15a of the one side wall portion 15 and the guide groove 16a of the other side wall portion 16 on the left and right edges. It is guided by the guide grooves 15a and 16a and is movable along the bending direction of the casing bodies 14A and 14B. Further, the filter 13 is prevented from being lifted by the filter press 43 in front portions of the casing bodies 14A and 14B.

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 4 and 5, the filter 13 has a front pulley 13 c and a first pulley 11 arranged in parallel in the front surface portion of each casing body 14 </ b> A, 14 </ b> B so as to be spaced apart in the vertical direction. The belt 10 is engaged between the second pulleys 12 and is moved integrally with the belt 10 as the belt 10 travels.

  That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the filter 13 is disposed such that its rear end 13 a is located at the rear end of the cleaning unit casing 14 and its front end is located in the vicinity of the first pulley 11. Based on state. This arrangement state is a position during normal air conditioning operation, and is hereinafter referred to as “first filter position”.

  On the other hand, during the cleaning operation for cleaning the filter 13, the first pulley 11 rotates forward, the belt 10 travels in the direction of arrow a, and the filter 13 is shown by a chain line in FIG. The belt 10 is drawn from the “first filter position” to the second pulley 12 side, bypassing the outside of the first pulley 11. The position of the filter 13 at this time is referred to as a “second filter position”. Further, when the first pulley 11 rotates in the reverse direction and the belt 10 travels in the direction of the arrow b, the filter 13 is returned from the “second filter position” to the “first filter position” together with the belt 10.

  As described above, when the filter 13 reciprocates between the “first filter position” and the “second filter position”, dust collected on the surface of the filter 13 by the brush mechanism Q described below is collected. It is scraped off and the dust collecting function of the filter 13 is regenerated.

  Here, the drive mechanism of the filter 13 will be described in more detail. As shown in FIG. 5, the drive mechanism includes a belt unit U in which a toothed belt 10 is wound between a toothed first pulley 11 and a second pulley 12 spaced apart in the vertical direction. 11 and 12 are opposed to each other with a predetermined interval (specifically, the substantially width dimension of the casing bodies 14A and 14B) in the axial direction, and the first pulley 11 of one belt unit U and the first pulley unit 11 of the other belt unit U The first pulley 11 is connected by a roller 33 and integrated, and the second pulley 12 of one belt unit U and the second pulley 12 of the other belt unit U are connected by a connecting shaft 38. It can be integrated and configured. The first pulley 11 of one belt unit U is selectively rotated by the filter drive motor 31 in the forward rotation method and the reverse rotation direction, so that each belt 10 provided in each belt unit U, U is provided. , 10 run synchronously.

  In this case, a locking hole 47 having a long axis in the belt length direction is formed in the belt 10 at a predetermined pitch. Further, locking protrusions 48 are provided at the same pitch as the locking holes 47 on the belt 10 side on the lower surfaces of the left and right sides of the frame 13a of the filter 13, and the locking on the filter 13 side. By engaging the protrusion 48 in the locking hole 47 on the belt 10 side, the filter 13 is integrated with the belt 10, and the “first filter position” and the above as the belt 10 reciprocates. It is reciprocated between “second filter positions”.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the brush mechanism Q is detachably attached to a storage portion 30 provided at the front end portion of the bottom wall 1 </ b> C of the casing 1. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 7, the brush mechanism Q includes a first box body 21 and a second box body 22, and has a horizontally long surface with an upper surface portion facing the outer peripheral surface of the first pulley 11 being an opening 20a. A cleaning brush 17 is arranged along the opening 20a in a dust box 20 having a box-like shape.

  The cleaning brush 17 is configured by attaching brushes 19 at four positions in the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface of the brush shaft 18 so as to extend in the axial direction of the brush shaft 18. In this case, in this embodiment, the axial length of the cleaning brush 17 is set to approximately half the longitudinal dimension of the dust box 20, and the two cleaning brushes 17 and 17 are connected coaxially for use. I have to.

  As shown in FIG. 7, a pair of cleaning brushes 17 and 17 configured in this manner are arranged in the dust box 20, and a brush drive gear 24 provided at one of the shaft ends is provided by a brush drive motor (not shown). It is designed to rotate. In FIG. 7, the push button 23 is illustrated on one end side of the dust box 20, but the push button 23 is attached to the storage unit 30 side, and here, the positional relationship with the brush mechanism Q is clearly shown. For the sake of convenience, it is shown for convenience.

  FIG. 4 shows a state in which the brush mechanism Q is mounted in the storage unit 30 on the casing 1 side. In this state, the opening 20a of the dust box 20 faces the belt 10 wound around the first pulley 11, and the rotation locus of the cleaning brush 17 extends upward through the opening 20a. These relative positions are set so that the highest position of the belt and the lowest position of the outer surface of the belt 10 substantially coincide with each other.

  Therefore, in the cleaning operation, the filter 13 and the belt 10 wound around the first pulley 11 bypass the outer peripheral side of the first pulley 11 and are set to “first filter position” and “second filter position”. When the cleaning brush 17 is rotated, the surface of the filter 13 is scratched by the brush 19 of the cleaning brush 17 so that dust attached to the surface of the filter 13 is removed from the surface. And is collected in the dust box 20. As a result, the surface of the filter 13 is cleaned and its dust collecting function is regenerated.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 4, the rotation locus of the cleaning brush 17 overlaps with the tip end portion of the extending rib 20 b provided in the dust box 20. The tip portion of the brush 19 comes into contact with the extending rib 20b, and dust adhering to the brush 19 side is scraped off. As a result, the scraping function of the brush 19 is regenerated. For example, dust scraped by the brush 19 from the filter 13 side remains on the brush 19 side and reattaches to the already cleaned portion of the filter 13. The inconvenience of doing is avoided.

  By the way, in the brush mechanism Q, the dust scraped off from the filter 13 side by the brush 19 of the cleaning brush 17 is collected in the dust box 20, and the amount of dust collected in the dust box 20 is reduced. If the amount increases, there is a risk that the dust will scatter into the room from the gap between the casing 1 and the dust box 20 to deteriorate the indoor environment. In this case, the dust box 20 is taken out from the storage unit 30 side to remove the dust. It is necessary to perform a maintenance work of discarding and remounting the storage unit 30 again.

  However, the execution timing of this maintenance work is important. For example, if the maintenance work is frequently performed in a state where the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 is small, the air conditioning operation is stopped during the work. The comfort of air conditioning will be impaired. On the other hand, as described above, if maintenance work is not performed even though a large amount of dust is accumulated in the dust box 20, the indoor environment is deteriorated due to dust scattering. .

  Therefore, in this embodiment, the present invention is applied to appropriately detect the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20, and when the amount reaches a preset maintenance reference amount, this is notified, It encourages the execution of maintenance work.

Here, although it is a basic idea of notification control of maintenance of the dust box 20, in this embodiment,
(1) In order to simplify the determination logic of the amount of dust in the dust box 20, the amount of dust in the dust box 20 is determined based on the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y (that is, the number of times of cleaning operation).
(2) In order to clarify the correspondence between the determination of the amount of dust in the dust box 20 and the determination of the maintenance notification based on the maintenance reference amount, and to perform the maintenance notification accurately with a simplified determination logic, The amount is also defined by the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y.
(3) Paying attention to the correlation between the operation interval of the cleaning mechanism Y and the amount of dust collected on the dust box 20 side by one operation of the cleaning mechanism Y, In order to detect the amount more accurately, the operation interval of the cleaning mechanism Y (that is, the frequency of the cleaning operation) is taken into consideration when determining the amount of dust in the dust box 20.
(4) When a plurality of operation intervals of the cleaning mechanism Y are set in order to accurately respond to the user's request for the cleaning operation and realize an accurate maintenance notification, corresponding to each of these operation intervals. Set multiple maintenance reference amounts.
(5) In order to realize the maintenance notice corresponding to the operation mode of the cleaning mechanism Y, the maintenance reference amount is different depending on whether the cleaning operation is automatically performed periodically or manually performed irregularly. Set to value,
This is the basic idea of maintenance notification control.

  Hereinafter, the actual control under these basic ideas will be described. Prior to that, first, the configuration of the control system of the air conditioner Z will be described with reference to FIG.

  In this air conditioner Z, as the control unit, an indoor unit control unit 151, an outdoor unit control unit 152, an air conditioning mechanism control unit 153 that controls the air conditioning mechanism X, a cleaning mechanism control unit 154 that controls the cleaning mechanism Y, and humidification / ventilation. A control unit 155 is provided.

  The indoor unit control unit 151 includes an air conditioning operation control unit 151a, a cleaning mechanism abnormality determination unit 151b, a cleaning mechanism initialization processing unit 151c, a filter cleaning time determination unit 151d, a cleaning mechanism control unit 151e, and a dust box maintenance determination unit 151f. It has been.

  The air conditioning mechanism control unit 153 includes a front panel drive unit 153a, a horizontal flap drive unit 153b, a vertical flap drive unit 153c, and a fan drive unit 153d.

  The cleaning mechanism control unit 154 includes a brush drive unit 154a, a filter drive unit 154b, a filter position detection unit 154c, a dust box detection unit 154d, and a cleaning mechanism operation detection unit 154e.

  The indoor unit control unit 151 is operated by a remote controller 156 and a main body operation switch 157, and a display unit 158, a buzzer 159, and a remote operation mounting 60 are attached.

  Here, the control of the dust box 20 is problematic in relation to the maintenance of the dust box 20. The cleaning mechanism operation detection unit 154e, the display unit 158, the buzzer 159 and the remote control unit 151 and the cleaning mechanism control unit 154 are remote. This is the operating device 160, and only these will be described here, and description of other control units will be omitted.

  In this embodiment, the cleaning mechanism operation detector 154e detects the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y. The dust box maintenance determination unit 151f of the indoor unit control unit 151 receives the operation frequency signal from the cleaning mechanism operation detection unit 154e, determines the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 from the operation frequency, The amount of dust and the amount of dust corresponding to the maintenance reference amount are compared, and it is determined whether or not the time when maintenance of the dust box 20 is necessary has been reached. That is, in this embodiment, the dust box maintenance determination unit 151f corresponds to “determination means” in the claims.

  Here, if it is determined that the time for maintenance has already been reached, this is based on the display on the display unit 158, the alarm sound on the buzzer 159, the display on the remote control device 160, and the like. , Each will be announced. That is, in this embodiment, the display unit 158, the buzzer 159, and the remote control device 160 correspond to “notification means” in the claims. As the notification means, in addition to the display unit 158, the buzzer 159, and the remote control device 160, for example, a wireless remote controller or a wired remote controller capable of two-way communication is used to display, light, etc. It is also possible to announce at.

  The operator who has received the maintenance notice performs the maintenance of the dust box 20, that is, the operation of removing the dust box 20 from the air conditioner Z side, throwing away the accumulated dust, and attaching it to the air conditioner Z again. To do.

  The above control will be described more specifically with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  After the start of control, first, in step S1, the cumulative number of operations “Nt” of the cleaning mechanism Y up to the present time is read. Next, in step S2, it is determined whether the current operation mode of the cleaning mechanism Y (that is, the operation mode of the cleaning operation) is an automatic operation or a manual operation.

  Here, the automatic operation is an operation mode set so that the cleaning operation of the cleaning mechanism Y is automatically performed periodically. The manual operation is an operation mode that is set so that the cleaning operation of the cleaning mechanism Y is performed irregularly by the manual operation of the operator. In other words, in the case of manual operation, the operator is regularly informed of the encouragement of cleaning, but the operator who recognizes the notification performs cleaning by remote control operation based on his / her own judgment. For this reason, it cannot always be said that cleaning is performed regularly.

  In the case of automatic operation, the amount of dust collected on the dust box 20 side by a single operation of the cleaning mechanism Y is relatively stable, but in the case of manual operation, the cleaning mechanism The amount of dust collected on the dust box 20 side by one operation of Y is not stable and easily fluctuates. Therefore, in consideration of the difference in the amount of dust between automatic operation and manual operation, the criteria for determining maintenance notification in the case of automatic operation are different from the criteria for determining maintenance notification in the case of manual operation. ing.

  In step S2, it is determined that the current operation is automatic. In this case, first, in step S3, the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y serving as a reference for performing maintenance (ie, a maintenance reference amount). Is selected from two preset values “Na1” and “Na2”.

  Here, the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism Y serving as a reference for performing this maintenance, that is, the two operations “Na1” and “Na2” of the cleaning mechanism Y serving as a maintenance reference amount are, for example, the operation intervals of the cleaning mechanism Y. For example, the number of operations “Na1” when the cleaning mechanism Y is operated once a day and the number of operations “Na2” when the cleaning mechanism Y is operated once a week. Is set. In this case, the former “Na1” is the number of operations when the frequency of the cleaning operation is high and the amount of dust collected by one operation of the cleaning mechanism Y is small, and the latter “Na2” is the cleaning operation. Is the number of operations when the amount of dust collected by one operation of the cleaning mechanism Y is large. Therefore, there is a relationship of “Na1> Na2” between the two. Note that the number of operations “Nb1” and “Nb2” in the manual operation described later are also set based on the maintenance notification interval in the same manner as the number of operations “Na1” and “Na2” in the case of the automatic operation.

  Next, in step S4, the selected operation number “Na1” or “Na2” is compared with the accumulated operation number “Nt”. When “Na1” or “Na2” reaches the cumulative operation count “Nt”, it is determined that the necessity for maintenance has occurred, and the necessity for maintenance is notified (step S11), and the cumulative operation count After “Nt” is reset (step S12), the process returns to prepare for the next operation.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S4 that “Na1” or “Na2” has not reached the cumulative number of operations “Nt”, the collection of dust in the dust box 20 is allowed. Then, in step S5, it is then determined whether or not the cleaning operation of the cleaning mechanism Y has been executed. If the cleaning operation has been executed, the cumulative number of operations “Nt” is set to “Nt + 1” in step S6. And the process returns to step S4. The control is repeated until “Na1” or “Na2” reaches the cumulative operation number “Nt” (steps S4 to S6), and “Na1” or “Na2” reaches the cumulative operation number “Nt”. At the time, the necessity of maintenance is notified (step S11), and the cumulative operation count “Nt” is reset (step S12) and the process returns to prepare for the next operation.

  Here, when it is determined in step S2 that the operation is a manual operation, the value of the operation number “Nb1” or “Nb2” in step S7 is the operation number “Na1” or “Na2” in the case of the automatic operation described above. Since the control itself is the same except for the above, the description in the case of automatic operation is used, and the description here is omitted.

  Even when the operation interval for automatic operation (that is, the interval for maintenance notification) and the interval for maintenance notification for manual operation are set to be the same, the operation count “Na1” during automatic operation and the manual operation The number of operations “Nb1”, the number of operations “Na2” during the automatic operation, and the number of operations “Nb2” during the manual operation are set to satisfy “Na1> Nb1” and “Na2> Nb2”. This is because, in the case of automatic operation, the cleaning operation is regularly performed every time the maintenance operation is performed, so the amount of dust per cleaning operation is small. However, in the case of manual operation, as described above, the maintenance operation is not always performed. This is because the cleaning operation is not performed, and therefore the amount of dust per cleaning operation is considered to be larger than in the case of automatic operation.

As described above, according to the maintenance control of this embodiment, the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box 20 is determined, and when the amount reaches a preset maintenance reference amount, a maintenance signal is output, and the maintenance signal In response, the maintenance of the dust box 20 is notified, and the operator performs maintenance.
For example, as in the conventional configuration, the amount of dust accumulated in the filter is estimated from the accumulated operation time of the air conditioning operation, and the maintenance of the dust box is notified based on the estimated amount of dust. It is possible to notify the maintenance of the dust box 20 at a more appropriate timing without any judgment, and as a result, the comfort of the indoor air conditioning is reduced due to the air conditioning operation being stopped due to the execution of unnecessary maintenance, It is possible to prevent the indoor environment from deteriorating due to excessive accumulation of dust in the dust box 20 and scattering of the dust into the room, and the improvement of the performance characteristics of the air conditioner can be expected.

  In the above embodiment, a wall-mounted air conditioner (indoor unit) has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, an air conditioner such as a ceiling-embedded type or a floor-mounted type Needless to say, this can also be applied.

1 is an external perspective view of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is the II-II expanded sectional view of FIG. It is an external appearance perspective view of the state which removed the casing in the air conditioner shown in FIG. It is an expanded sectional view of the IV part of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the drive mechanism of a filter. It is a perspective view of a filter. It is an external appearance perspective view of the brush mechanism shown in FIG. It is a functional block diagram of the air conditioner shown in FIG. It is a control flowchart regarding the maintenance of a dust box.

Explanation of symbols

1 ·· Casing 2 ·· Front panel 3 · · Suction port 4 · · Air outlet 7 · · Heat exchanger 8 · · Fan 10 · · Belt 11 · · First pulley 12 · · Second pulley 13 · · Filter 14 .. Cleaning unit casing 15 .. Side wall part 16 .. Side wall part 17 .. Cleaning brush 18 .. Brush shaft 19 .. Brush 20 .. Dust box 21 .. First box body 22 .. Second box body 23 Push button 24 ·· Brush drive gear 25 ·· Drip-proof cover 28 ·· Panel opening / closing drive motor 29 ·· Gear 31 ·· Filter drive motor 33 ·· Roller 38 ·· Connecting shaft 43 ·· Filter presser 44 ·· Horizontal flap 45・ ・ Vertical flap 47 ・ ・ Locking hole 48 ・ ・ Locking protrusion Q ・ ・ Brush mechanism X ・ ・ Air conditioning mechanism Y ・ ・ Cleaning mechanism Z ・ ・ Air conditioner

Claims (6)

An air-conditioning mechanism (X) in which a heat exchanger (7) and a fan (8) are disposed in a ventilation path extending from the suction port (3) formed in the casing (1) to the blowout port (4), and the suction port. An air conditioner provided with a cleaning mechanism (Y) configured to collect dust adhering to the surface of the filter (13) having a plate-like shape disposed along the inner surface of (3) in the dust box (20). Machine,
Determining means for determining the amount of dust accumulated in the dust box (20) and outputting a maintenance signal when the amount reaches a preset maintenance reference amount;
An air conditioner comprising notification means for receiving a maintenance signal from the determination means and notifying maintenance of the dust box (20). In claim 1,
The air conditioner characterized in that the determination means is configured to determine the amount of dust in the dust box (20) based on the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism (Y). In claim 1,
The air conditioner characterized in that the maintenance reference amount is defined by the number of operations of the cleaning mechanism (Y). In claim 1, 2 or 3,
The air conditioner characterized in that the determination means determines the amount of dust in the dust box (20) in consideration of the operation interval of the cleaning mechanism (Y). In claim 4,
An air conditioner characterized in that when a plurality of operation intervals of the cleaning mechanism (Y) are set, a plurality of maintenance reference amounts are also set corresponding to each of the plurality of operation intervals. In claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5,
The maintenance reference amount is set to a different amount between an automatic operation in which the operation of the cleaning mechanism (Y) is automatically performed upon receiving the notification and a manual operation in which the operation is performed manually upon receiving the notification. Air conditioner.

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