JP2008256285A - Air conditioning device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air conditioning device capable of reducing user's load by automatically cleaning a filter, in the air conditioning device where the dew condensate is cleaned by the filter to be utilized in indoor humidification. <P>SOLUTION: In this air conditioning device 1, the dew condensate collected by a dew condensation heat exchanger 117 is cleaned by a water filter 323, and conveyed to a humidification unit 21 by a pump 25. A three-way valve 36 is disposed on the way of a pipe connecting the humidification unit 21 and the pump 25. The three-way valve 36 and a second tank 322 in downstream of the water filter 323 are connected by a return pipe 22c. The control portion 4 controls the three-way valve 36 to return the water directing to the humidification unit 21, to flow to the return pipe 22c, when the cleaning of the water filter 323 is necessary. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more particularly to an air conditioner that can humidify a room during heating operation.

In recent years, an air conditioner that uses dew condensation water generated by an outdoor heat exchanger during heating operation for indoor humidification has been widely used (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The air conditioner described in Patent Document 1 is a refrigerant circuit in which refrigerant circulates in the order of a compressor, an indoor heat exchanger, a first expansion valve, a first outdoor heat exchanger, a second expansion valve, and a second outdoor heat exchanger. It has. When the refrigerant is depressurized by the first expansion valve and then depressurized by the second expansion valve, the temperature of the second outdoor heat exchanger is always below the freezing point and condensed water is generated. When the dew point temperature of the outside air is high, the first outdoor heat exchanger also condenses. Condensed water generated in the first outdoor heat exchanger and the second outdoor heat exchanger is stored as humidifying water, purified, and then transported to the humidifying means by a pump.
JP 2002-213780 A

  However, since the water for humidification is collected by condensing moisture from the outside air, suspended matter in the air such as dust is mixed in, and the filter for purifying the water is easily contaminated. For this reason, it is necessary to frequently clean the filter, which imposes extra effort on the user.

  The subject of this invention is providing the air conditioning apparatus which can wash | clean a filter automatically and can reduce a user's load.

  The air conditioner according to the first aspect of the present invention includes dew condensation means, humidification means, and purification means. The dew condensation means condenses moisture contained in the outside air. The humidifying means humidifies the room using the water collected by the dew condensation means. The purification means purifies the water with a filter when transporting the water to the humidification means. When the filter needs to be cleaned, the purifying unit returns the water conveyed to the humidifying unit to the downstream side of the filter.

  In this air conditioner, the purifying means causes the water to flow backward from the downstream side to the upstream side of the filter, so that the impurities adhering to the filter are dissociated and the filter is washed.

  An air conditioner according to a second aspect is the air conditioner according to the first aspect, wherein the purification means includes a pump, a three-way valve, a return pipe, and a control unit. The pump conveys the purified water purified by the filter to the humidifying means. A three-way valve is provided in the middle of piping which connects a humidification means and a pump. The return pipe connects the three-way valve and the downstream side of the filter. The control unit controls the three-way valve to allow purified water to flow into the return pipe side.

  In this air conditioner, since the water pressure when water passes through the filter is secured by the pump, impurities are dissociated from the filter, the filter is clogged, and the performance is regenerated.

  An air conditioner according to a third aspect is the air conditioner according to the second aspect, wherein the purification means further includes a first on-off valve and a second on-off valve. The first on-off valve discharges water on the upstream side of the filter. The second on-off valve allows water on the downstream side of the filter to flow to the pump side. The control unit opens the first on-off valve and closes the second on-off valve when cleaning the filter.

  In this air conditioner, dirty water is discharged by opening the first on-off valve, the water level on the upstream side is lowered, and purified water does not flow out by closing the second on-off valve, and the water level on the downstream side is reduced. To rise. As a result, even if the pressure of the pump is weak, the impurities attached to the filter are returned to the upstream side due to the water level difference, so that the impurities are easily dissociated from the filter. Furthermore, since the impurities dissociated from the filter pass through the first on-off valve and are discharged, they do not remain and the filter is maintained in a clean state.

  An air conditioner according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the air conditioner according to the second aspect of the present invention, wherein the control unit has a time measuring unit, a calculation unit, and a storage unit. The timer unit counts the operation time of the pump. The computing unit calculates the integrated value by integrating the operating time. The storage unit stores the integrated value. The control unit performs control to return the purified water to the downstream side of the filter when the integrated value reaches a predetermined time.

  In this air conditioner, the degree of dirt on the filter is approximately proportional to the amount of water that has passed through the filter, and the amount of water can be estimated from the operating time of the pump. When the integrated value of the pump operating time reaches a predetermined time, it can be estimated that the filter is cleaned, so that a device for detecting filter contamination is not required, and an increase in cost is suppressed.

  In the air conditioner according to the first aspect of the invention, the purifying means causes the water to flow backward from the downstream side to the upstream side of the filter, so that the impurities adhering to the filter are dissociated and the filter is washed.

  In the air conditioner according to the second aspect of the invention, the water pressure when the water passes through the filter is secured by the pump, so that the impurities are dissociated from the filter, the filter is clogged, and the performance is regenerated.

  In the air conditioner according to the third aspect of the invention, the impurities adhering to the filter are dissociated due to the difference in water level, and the dissociated impurities are discharged through the first on-off valve, so that the filter is maintained in a clean state.

  In the air conditioner according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when the integrated value of the operating time of the pump reaches a predetermined time can be estimated as the time for cleaning the filter, a device for detecting filter contamination becomes unnecessary. , Cost increase is suppressed.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The following embodiments are specific examples of the present invention and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

<Schematic configuration of air conditioner>
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an air-conditioning apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the air conditioning apparatus 1 includes a refrigerant circuit 10 through which a refrigerant flows. The refrigerant circuit 10 is formed by connecting a compressor 11, a four-way switching valve 12, an outdoor heat exchanger 13, a first expansion valve 14a, an indoor heat exchanger 15, an accumulator 20, and the like. The refrigerant leaving the compressor 11 flows to either the outdoor heat exchanger 13 or the indoor heat exchanger 15 by the four-way switching valve 12.

  For example, during the heating operation, the control unit 4 causes the four-way switching valve 12 to select the flow path indicated by the solid line in FIG. 1 and causes the refrigerant to flow to the indoor heat exchanger 15. On the other hand, during the cooling operation, the control unit 4 causes the four-way switching valve 12 to select the flow path indicated by the dotted line in FIG. 1 and causes the refrigerant to flow to the outdoor heat exchanger 13. The first expansion valve 14a depressurizes the refrigerant by narrowing the refrigerant flow path. The accumulator 20 accumulates excess liquid refrigerant and returns only the gas refrigerant to the compressor 11.

  The refrigerant circuit 10 further includes an adsorption heat exchanger 116 and a dew condensation heat exchanger 117. The adsorption heat exchanger 116 is connected between the indoor heat exchanger 15 and the first expansion valve 14a. The dew condensation heat exchanger 117 is connected in parallel with the outdoor heat exchanger 13. Both the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 function as an evaporator, and in particular, the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 is intended to dew moisture in the outside air.

  An adsorption agent mainly composed of zeolite is supported on the surface of the adsorption heat exchanger 116. The adsorbent is not limited to zeolite, but silica gel, activated carbon, organic polymer polymer material having hydrophilicity or water absorption, ion exchange resin material having carboxylic acid group or sulfonic acid group, high temperature sensitivity. It is selected from functional polymer materials such as molecules.

  The refrigerant circuit 10 further includes a second expansion valve 14b and a third expansion valve 14c. The second expansion valve 14b is connected upstream of the refrigerant flow of the condensation heat exchanger 117. Since the second expansion valve 14b further depressurizes the refrigerant decompressed by the first expansion valve 14a, the refrigerant evaporating temperature in the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 is lower than the refrigerant evaporating temperature in the outdoor heat exchanger 13. The temperature of the condensation heat exchanger 117 is lower than the temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger 13. The third expansion valve 14 c is connected between the indoor heat exchanger 15 and the adsorption heat exchanger 116. The third expansion valve 14c serves to depressurize the refrigerant flowing from the indoor heat exchanger 15 to the adsorption heat exchanger 116, but is normally open.

  A humidifying unit 21 is disposed in the vicinity of the indoor heat exchanger 15. The humidification unit 21 gives moderate moisture to the air that passes through the indoor heat exchanger 15 and is blown into the room. Water supplied to the humidifying unit 21 is stored in the tank 23. The water in the tank 23 is water obtained by purifying the dew condensation water generated in the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the dew condensation heat exchanger 117, and the water is pumped up by the pump 25 and conveyed to the humidification unit 21 through the pipe 22b. . The humidification unit 21 is selected from an ultrasonic humidifier, a heating humidifier, and a spray humidifier.

  In this embodiment, the indoor heat exchanger 15 and the humidification unit 21 are on the indoor unit 3 side, and the others are on the outdoor unit 2 side. The control unit 4 includes a CPU 41, a memory 42, and a timer 43, and controls each device of the air conditioning apparatus 1.

<Outdoor unit and water catching unit>
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing structures of an outdoor unit and a water collecting unit of the air conditioner. In FIG. 2, a water collecting unit 7 that collects moisture from the outside air by condensation is disposed above the outdoor unit 2. The water capturing unit 7 includes an adsorption heat exchanger 116, a dew condensation heat exchanger 117, a drain pan 31 b and a fan 118. The drain pan 31b is positioned below the dew condensation heat exchanger 117, and causes the dew condensation water generated by the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 to flow further downward.

  A vent hole 102 is provided on the wall surface of the water catching unit 7, and an outlet 119 is provided at a position away from the vent hole 102 by a predetermined distance. The fan 118 is a sirocco fan having a high static pressure. When the fan 118 rotates, the outside air is sucked from the vent 102, and the outside air becomes an air flow A, and the adsorption heat exchanger 116 and the condensation heat exchanger 117. And blown out from the air outlet 119. By providing the fan 118, the amount of air passing through the adsorption heat exchanger 116 and the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 can be freely adjusted, and the amount of dew condensation water can be easily controlled.

  In the outdoor unit 2, the compressor 11, the four-way switching valve 12, the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the drain pan 31a shown in FIG. 1 are arranged. In addition, an outdoor fan 81 is also arranged, and sucks outside air by rotating and applies outside air to the outdoor heat exchanger 13 to actively exchange heat with the refrigerant. An air outlet 105 is provided on the wall surface of the outdoor unit 2, and the air exchanged by the outdoor heat exchanger 13 is blown out.

  A purification unit 29 is disposed below the outdoor unit 2. The purification unit 29 includes a return pipe 22c, a tank 23, a pump 25, a water purification tank 32, a first electromagnetic on-off valve 33, a second electromagnetic on-off valve 34, a third electromagnetic on-off valve 35, and a three-way valve 36.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the tank. In FIG. 3, condensed water flows into the inside of the water purification tank 32 from the inlet 32a. A first electromagnetic on-off valve 33 and a second electromagnetic on-off valve 34 are connected below the water purification tank 32. The water that has passed through the first electromagnetic opening / closing valve 33 is discharged from the drain outlet 51. Water that has passed through the second electromagnetic switching valve 34 enters the tank 23. A third electromagnetic opening / closing valve 35 is connected to the bottom surface side of the tank 23, and water that has passed through the third electromagnetic opening / closing valve 35 is discharged from the drain outlet 51. The pump 25 draws water from the bottom surface side of the tank 23 and sends it to the three-way valve 36, and an appropriate amount of water is supplied from the three-way valve 36 to the humidifying unit 21.

  The water in the tank 23 is irradiated with ultraviolet rays from an ultraviolet lamp 37 for sterilization. Although the ultraviolet lamp 37 is attached to the upper part of the tank 23, since the installation is easy, workability | operativity is good. The sterilizing means is not limited to the ultraviolet lamp 37, and may be, for example, an ozone generator.

  Further, when the air conditioner 1 is installed in a cold region, a heater is disposed in the vicinity of the tank 23 or in the tank 23 in order to prevent the water in the tank 23 from freezing. The heater does not need to be operating at all times, but only when the outside temperature reaches below freezing point.

  The heater may be any heating means that can prevent the water in the tank 23 from freezing. For example, in the case of an electric heater, it is selected from nichrome wire, sheathed heater, carbon heater, ceramic heater, seat heater and the like. It is also possible to select a heat pump type in which piping on the high pressure side (compressor outlet, condenser outlet, etc.) in the refrigeration cycle is heated by being drawn to the lower part of the tank 23 or in the vicinity thereof. Furthermore, two compressors can be connected in parallel, and one compressor can be arranged in the vicinity of the tank 23 to heat the water in the tank 23 by the heat radiation of the compressor.

<Water circulation path>
FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing a water circulation path. As shown in FIG. 4, the inside of the water purification tank 32 is partitioned into a first tank 321 and a second tank 322 by a water purification filter 323. The water is stored in the first tank 321, and then passes through the water purification filter 323 and is stored in the second tank 322. When water passes through the water purification filter 323, impurities such as dust contained in the water are removed by the water purification filter 323.

  When the inside of the first tank 321 is full, the first electromagnetic on-off valve 33 opens the flow path and drains water. The water in the second tank 322 flows into the tank 23 when the second electromagnetic open / close valve 34 opens the flow path. When the tank 23 is full, the second electromagnetic opening / closing valve 34 closes the flow path. When the water in the tank 23 becomes unnecessary, the third electromagnetic opening / closing valve 35 opens the flow path and drains it.

  Water in the tank 23 is pumped up by the pump 25 and sent to the three-way valve 36 through the pipe 22a. The three-way valve 36 supplies the water sent from the pump 25 to the humidification unit 21 by flowing it through the pipe 22b. However, when it is necessary to clean the water purification filter 323 as determined by the control unit 4, the water sent from the pump 25 flows through the return pipe 22 c and is returned to the second tank 322 of the water purification tank 32.

  By returning water to the 2nd tank 322, since the water after purified water is forced to flow through the purified water filter 323 to the water side before purified water, the purified water filter 323 is cleaned. That is, water flows backward from the second tank 322 to the first tank 321, and impurities accumulated on the surface of the water purification filter 323 are returned to the first tank 321. At this time, when the first electromagnetic opening / closing valve 33 opens the flow path, the water in the first tank 321 can be discharged while removing impurities accumulated on the water purification filter 323.

  In the present embodiment, when control for returning water to the second tank 322 is performed, the control unit 4 opens the first electromagnetic on-off valve 33 and closes the second electromagnetic on-off valve 34. At this time, the water in the 1st tank 321 is discharged, a water level falls, and the water level of the 2nd tank 322 rises. Impurities adhering to the water purification filter 323 are vigorously returned to the first tank 321 due to the water level difference between the first tank 321 and the second tank 322. As a result, the cleaning effect of the water purification filter 323 is improved. The impurities dissociated from the water purification filter 323 pass through the first electromagnetic on-off valve 33 and are discharged, so that they do not remain in the first tank 321.

  The control unit 4 performs control to return water to the second tank 322 when the integrated value of the operation time of the pump 25 reaches a predetermined time. Since the degree of contamination of the water purification filter 323 is substantially proportional to the amount of water that has passed through the water purification filter 323, it is necessary to wash the water purification filter 323 when a predetermined amount of water has passed. If the operation time of the pump 25 necessary for transporting the predetermined amount of water is a predetermined time, the time when the water purification filter 323 is cleaned is when the integrated value of the operating time of the pump 25 reaches the predetermined time. According to this control, a device for detecting dirt on the water purification filter 323 becomes unnecessary.

  In addition, the method of estimating the stain | pollution | contamination of the water purification filter 323 is not limited to the method of estimating from the operating time of the pump 25, There also exists the method of estimating from the suction pressure of the pump 25. As the clogging of the water purification filter 323 progresses, the suction pressure of the pump 25 decreases, so a pressure sensor is provided on the suction side of the pump 25, and when the pressure sensor detects a suction pressure equal to or lower than a predetermined pressure, the water purification filter 323 is detected. It can be estimated that this is the time of cleaning.

  Alternatively, when the clogging of the water purification filter 323 progresses, the discharge pressure of the pump 25 also decreases. Therefore, when a pressure sensor is provided on the discharge side of the pump 25 and the pressure sensor detects a discharge pressure equal to or lower than a predetermined pressure, It can also be estimated that it is time to clean the filter 323.

  Further, when the clogging of the water purification filter 323 progresses, the load of the pump 25 increases and the motor current of the pump 25 increases, so it is estimated that the time when the water purification filter 323 is cleaned is when the motor current exceeds a predetermined value. You can also

<Operation of air conditioner>
The air conditioner 1 can switch between the cooling operation and the heating operation by changing the flow path of the refrigerant with the four-way switching valve 12. This embodiment demonstrates the case where the refrigerant circuit 10 is a circuit for heating operation.

  During the heating operation, the control unit 4 controls the four-way switching valve 12 to select the flow path indicated by the solid line in FIG. 1 and causes the compressor 11 and the indoor heat exchanger 15 to communicate with each other. Since the third expansion valve 14c is normally open, the indoor heat exchanger 15 and the adsorption heat exchanger 116 function as a condenser. The outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 function as an evaporator. That is, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 is introduced into the indoor heat exchanger 15, and the refrigerant in the indoor heat exchanger 15 is introduced into the adsorption heat exchanger 116 after exchanging heat with indoor air. The refrigerant in the adsorption heat exchanger 116 exchanges heat with the outside air. As a result, the temperature of the refrigerant decreases, and the medium temperature / high pressure state is reached.

  The refrigerant that has exited the adsorption heat exchanger 116 is decompressed by the first expansion valve 14a, part of it is introduced into the outdoor heat exchanger 13, and the rest of the refrigerant is further decompressed by the second expansion valve 14b to the condensation heat exchanger 117. be introduced. Since the control unit 4 controls the second expansion valve 14b to set the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant in the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 to be equal to or lower than the dew point temperature of the outside air, the temperature of the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 is set to the outdoor heat exchanger. The temperature is lower than 13. As a result, even when the dew point temperature of the outside air is low and no dew condensation occurs in the outdoor heat exchanger 13, dew condensation always occurs in the dew condensation heat exchanger 117.

  Further, in the adsorption heat exchanger 116, the refrigerant heats the adsorbent to desorb moisture contained in the adsorbent into the air, so that the air passing through the adsorption heat exchanger 116 is desorbed from the adsorbent. Contains released moisture. Since the moisture also condenses when passing through the condensation heat exchanger 117, the condensation water generated in the condensation heat exchanger 117 is larger than that without the adsorption heat exchanger 116. The refrigerant that has exited the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the refrigerant that has exited the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 are drawn into the compressor 11 again.

  Since the moisture adsorbed by the adsorbent of the adsorption heat exchanger 116 decreases as the heating time increases, it is preferable to adsorb moisture regularly. In the present embodiment, the refrigerant flow is squeezed periodically by the third expansion valve 14c to depressurize the refrigerant, the refrigerant is evaporated by the adsorption heat exchanger 116, and the adsorbent is cooled. As a result, moisture in the air is adsorbed by the adsorbent.

<Features>
(1)
In the air conditioner 1, the dew condensation water collected by the dew condensation heat exchanger 117 is purified by the water purification filter 323 and conveyed to the humidification unit 21 by the pump 25. A three-way valve 36 is provided in the middle of the piping connecting the humidifying unit 21 and the pump 25. The three-way valve 36 and the second tank 322 on the downstream side of the water purification filter 323 are connected by a return pipe 22c. When the cleaning of the water purification filter 323 is necessary, the control unit 4 controls the three-way valve 36 to flow water toward the humidifying unit 21 to the return pipe 22c. At this time, water passes through the water purification filter 323 from the second tank 322 and flows back to the first tank 321 on the upstream side, so that impurities are dissociated from the water purification filter 323 and clogging of the water purification filter 323 is eliminated, and the performance is regenerated. The

(2)
A first electromagnetic on-off valve 33 is connected below the first tank 321, and a second electromagnetic on-off valve 34 is connected below the second tank 322. When the water purification filter 323 is washed, the control unit 4 opens the first electromagnetic on-off valve 33 to discharge dirty water, and causes the second electromagnetic on-off valve 34 to close to raise the water level of the second tank 322. . As a result, the impurities attached to the water purification filter 323 due to the water level difference are returned to the first tank 321, so that the impurities are easily dissociated from the water purification filter 323. Since the impurities dissociated from the water purification filter 323 pass through the first electromagnetic on-off valve 33 and are discharged, the water purification filter 323 is maintained in a clean state.

(3)
In the control unit 4, the timer 43 counts the operation time of the pump 25, the CPU 41 integrates the operation time to obtain an integrated value, and the memory 42 stores the integrated value. When the integrated value reaches a predetermined time, the control unit 4 performs control to return water toward the humidifying unit 21 to the second tank 322. Since the control part 4 can estimate the washing | cleaning time of the water purification filter 323 from the operation time of the pump 25, the apparatus for detecting the stain | pollution | contamination of the water purification filter 323 becomes unnecessary, and cost increase is suppressed.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the dew condensation water is purified and stored as humidifying water, so that the present invention is useful for an air conditioner equipped with a non-supply water humidifying means that does not require water supply by the user.

The block diagram of the air conditioning apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the structure of the outdoor unit and water collection unit of an air conditioning apparatus. The perspective view of a tank. The circuit diagram which shows the circulation path of water.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Air conditioning apparatus 4 Control part 13 Outdoor heat exchanger (condensation means)
21 Humidification means 22c Return pipe 25 Pump 29 Purification unit (purification means)
33 1st electromagnetic on-off valve 34 2nd electromagnetic on-off valve 36 Three-way valve 41 CPU (calculation part)
42 Memory (storage unit)
43 Timer (timer)
117 Condensation heat exchanger (condensation means)
323 Water purification filter

Claims (4)

Condensation means (117) for condensing moisture contained in outside air;
A humidifying means (21) for humidifying the room using water collected by the dew condensation means (117);
A purification means (29) for purifying the water with a filter (323) when transporting the water to the humidification means (21);
With
The purification means (29) returns the water conveyed to the humidification means (21) to the downstream side of the filter (323) when the filter (323) needs to be cleaned.
Air conditioner (1). The purification means (29)
A pump (25) for transporting purified water purified by the filter (323) to the humidifying means (21);
A three-way valve (36) provided in the middle of a pipe connecting the humidifying means (21) and the pump (25);
A return pipe (22c) connecting the three-way valve (36) and the downstream side of the filter (323);
A control unit (4) for controlling the three-way valve (36) to flow the purified water into the return pipe (22c);
including,
The air conditioner (1) according to claim 1. The purification means (29)
A first on-off valve (33) for discharging water upstream of the filter (323);
A second on-off valve (34) for flowing water downstream of the filter (323) to the pump (25) side;
Further including
The controller (4) opens the first on-off valve (33) and closes the second on-off valve (34) when cleaning the filter (323).
The air conditioner (1) according to claim 2. The control unit (4)
A timer (43) for counting the operating time of the pump (25);
A calculation unit (41) for calculating the integrated value by integrating the operating time;
A storage unit (42) for storing the integrated value;
Have
When the integrated value reaches a predetermined time, control is performed to return the purified water to the downstream side of the filter (323).
The air conditioner (1) according to claim 2.

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