JP2008265700A - Vehicular air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicular air conditioner minimizing space occupation, saving on cost by simple structure and performing auxiliary heating and auxiliary cooling inside a cabin by effectively using latent heat after supply of a heat exchange medium to heat exchangers is stopped. <P>SOLUTION: In an air conditioning unit A, conditioned air which is at least one of warm air for heating and cold air for cooling is generated by the heat exchangers 3, 4, and is blown out to inside of the cabin via conditioned air flow passages 7, 8, 21, 28. Thermal storage blocks 16, 17 constituted by collecting latent heat storage materials for performing thermal storage by latent heat emitted or absorbed along with phase change in solid phase and liquid phase so as to form a block shape, are set in passage positions of the conditioned air flow passages 7, 8, 21, 28 which the conditioned air abuts on to change the flow direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditioner that generates at least one conditioned air among a warm air for heating and a cold air for cooling by a heat exchanger and blows it out through a conditioned air passage into a vehicle interior.

  Conventionally, an evaporator (cooling heat exchanger), an air mix door, and a heater core (heating heat exchanger) are arranged in order from the upstream blower side to the downstream outlet side in the air conditioning case, and the evaporator There is known a vehicle air conditioner in which a hot air passage that passes through the heater core, a cold air bypass passage that passes through the evaporator and bypasses the heater core, and an air mix chamber in which the hot air and the cold air merge are formed. (For example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

Conventionally, in order to store heat after the engine coolant has enough heat to store and store heat, it is in the middle of the engine coolant circuit that connects the heater core disposed inside the air conditioning case and the cooling water channel of the water-cooled engine. 2. Description of the Related Art There is known a vehicle air conditioner provided with a heat storage device in which a heat storage material is set at a position and provided with a bypass cooling water channel that bypasses the heat storage device (see, for example, Patent Document 3).
JP 2003-237344 A JP 2000-108636 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-86645

  However, in the conventional vehicle air conditioners described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the cool air that has passed through the evaporator is warmed by the heater core to be warm air, and passes through the hot air passage and blows out from the outlet. For example, when the engine is stopped due to idling stop or the like when full hot, the heater core is cooled by the cold air that has passed through the evaporator, and the blowing temperature is reduced in a short time. There was a problem that would decrease.

  Further, in the conventional vehicle air conditioner described in Patent Document 3, a heat storage circuit and a heat storage device are provided separately from the engine cooling water circuit (warm water circuit), and the pump and the electromagnetic valve are stopped when the engine is stopped. The heat storage device's hot water is sent to the heater core to dissipate heat, so the structure is complex, requires a large space, increases costs, and part of the latent heat stored by the piping path is lost. There was a problem that.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above-mentioned problems, and minimizes the space occupation and achieves cost reduction with a simple structure, while the latent heat is reduced after the supply of the heat exchange medium to the heat exchanger is stopped. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle air conditioner that can be effectively used to perform auxiliary heating and cooling in a vehicle cabin.

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, for the vehicle, at least one of the warm air for heating and the cool air for cooling is generated by the heat exchanger and blows out into the vehicle interior through the air conditioning air passage. In the air conditioner,
Latent heat storage materials that store heat by latent heat released or absorbed with a solid phase / liquid phase change are gathered in a lump at the position of the air conditioning wind passage that changes the flow direction when the air conditioning wind hits it. A heat storage block is set.

Therefore, in the vehicle air conditioner of the present invention, for example, when the heat storage block is a heat storage block, the latent heat storage material constituting the heat storage block is in the phase from the solid phase to the liquid phase when storing heat. Absorbs heat energy (latent heat) with changes. And in the case of heat radiation, the absorbed heat energy is released with a phase change from the liquid phase to the solid phase, thereby giving heat to the wind passing through the heat storage block, and auxiliary heating of the vehicle interior.
For example, when the heat storage block is a cold heat storage block, during the heat storage, the latent heat storage material constituting the heat storage block releases thermal energy (latent heat) with a phase change from the liquid phase to the solid phase. Then, when heat is released, the released heat energy is absorbed with a phase change from the solid phase to the liquid phase, so that heat is taken away from the wind passing through the heat storage block, and the vehicle interior is auxiliary cooled.
This heat storage block is set in the air conditioning air passage formed by the air conditioning case inner surface and the duct inner surface, and unlike the conventional technology, it does not have a heat storage circuit and a heat storage device, so the space occupation is minimized. In addition, the cost can be reduced by a simple structure.
The heat storage block is a collection of latent heat storage materials that store heat by latent heat in a lump shape.For example, compared to the case where a heat storage sheet or a heat storage filter containing a latent heat storage material is used, the amount of heat energy absorbed The amount of heat energy released increases, and the duration of auxiliary heating and cooling can be extended by increasing the amount of heat energy.
Furthermore, since the heat storage block is set at a passage position that changes the direction of the flow when the air-conditioning wind hits the air-conditioning wind passage, a flow of wind that enters the inside of the heat storage block is created during heat storage and heat dissipation, It is possible to efficiently absorb and release heat energy from the wind passing through the heat storage block.
As a result, space occupancy is minimized and the cost is reduced by a simple structure, and after the supply of heat exchange media to the heat exchanger is stopped, the latent heat is effectively used to provide auxiliary heating and assistance in the passenger compartment. Cooling can be performed.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for realizing a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention will be described based on Example 1 shown in the drawings.

First, the configuration will be described.
FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an air conditioning unit A (an example of a vehicle air conditioner) that adjusts the temperature of front and rear seats according to the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioning unit A in the first embodiment includes an air conditioning case 1, a clean filter 2, an evaporator 3 (cooling heat exchanger), a heater core 4 (heating heat exchanger), and an air mix door. 5, a foot door 6, a cold air bypass passage 7 (air conditioning air passage), a hot air passage 8 (air conditioning air passage), a foot outlet 9, a blower 10, a vent door 11, a vent outlet 12, and a rear foot. A blowout port 13, a differential door 14, a differential blowout port 15, a vent duct 18 (cold air duct), a mixed air passage 21 (air conditioning air passage), a vent grill 22, a differential duct 23, an instrument panel 24, It has.

  In the air conditioning unit A in the first embodiment, the evaporator 3, the air mix door 5, and the heater core 4 are arranged in the air conditioning case 1 in order from the upstream blower 10 side to the downstream outlets 9, 12, 13, and 15 side. is doing.

  The evaporator 3 is a heat exchanger that cools the inside air or the outside air that passes through the blower 10 and the clean filter 2, and has a refrigerant inlet and a refrigerant outlet.

  The air mix door 5 is arranged at the downstream position of the evaporator 3 and controls the mixing ratio of the cool air that has passed through the evaporator 3 and the warm air that has passed through the heater core 4 by the door opening. As this air mix door 5, from the full hot position (the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 1) where the cold air bypass passage 7 is closed to the position where the upstream side of the heater core 4 is closed (the full cool position shown by the phantom line in FIG. 1). The sliding door is slidable in the stroke range.

  The heater core 4 is a heat exchanger that is arranged at a downstream position of the evaporator 3 and the air mix door 5 and warms the passing wind, and has an engine cooling water inlet and an engine cooling water outlet.

  In the air conditioning case 1, as shown in FIG. 1, a hot air passage 8 that passes through the evaporator 3 and the heater core 4, a cold air bypass passage 7 that passes through the evaporator 3 and bypasses the heater core 4, as shown in FIG. A mixed air passage 21 is formed in which hot air from the hot air passage 8 and cold air from the cold air bypass passage 7 merge.

  On the downstream side of the mixed air passage 21, a vent door 11 that opens in a vent mode or the like is disposed at the vent outlet 12. The vent outlet 12 is connected to a vent duct 18 and a vent grill 22 that guide cold air or the like into the vehicle interior. A differential door 14 that opens in a differential mode or the like is disposed at the position of the differential outlet 15 on the downstream side of the mixed air passage 21. A differential duct 23 that guides warm air or the like to the inner surface of a front window (not shown) is connected to the differential outlet 15. In addition, the vehicle interior outlet from the vent grill 22 and the differential duct 23 is opened at the position of the instrument panel 24.

  On the downstream side of the warm air passage 8, a foot door 6 that opens in a foot mode or the like is disposed upstream of the foot outlets 9, 9 extending in the vehicle width direction. The foot outlets 9 and 9 are connected to a pair of foot ducts (not shown) facing the feet of the driver and passenger on the left and right of the front seat, and the rear foot outlet 13 disposed in the center of the vehicle. Is connected to a rear foot duct (not shown) heading toward the rear seat.

  FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a vent grill in which a cold heat storage block is set in the air conditioning unit A of the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a case recess of an air conditioning case in which a thermal storage block is set in the air conditioning unit A of the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a heat storage block used in the air conditioning unit A of Example 1, (a) shows a perspective view of the heat storage block, and (b) shows a pellet-type latent heat storage material constituting the heat storage block.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the auxiliary heating / cooling device for the air conditioning unit A according to the first embodiment includes a thermal storage block 16 (thermal storage block), a thermal storage block 17 (thermal storage block), and a cooling switching door. 19 (switching door, air conditioning air path switching means), thermal switching door 20 (switching door, air conditioning air path switching means), cooling door actuator 25 (door actuator, air conditioning air path switching means), and thermal door An actuator 26 (door actuator, air conditioning air path switching means), a pellet-type latent heat storage material 27 (latent heat storage material), and a vent duct passage 28 (air conditioning air passage, cold air passage) are provided.

  In the air conditioning unit A according to the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioning air is discharged or absorbed with a phase change between the solid phase and the liquid phase at a passage position where the air conditioning wind strikes and changes the flow direction. The heat storage blocks 16 and 17 are set in which latent heat storage materials that store heat by latent heat are collected in a lump.

As shown in FIG. 4 (b), the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 are configured by assembling a cylindrical pellet-shaped latent heat storage material 27 into a lump through an overlapped gap and packaging it.
As the pellet-type latent heat storage material 27, a paraffin-based material is used. The reason is that when setting the phase change temperature depending on the melting point (melting temperature) or freezing point (freezing temperature), it can cover a wide temperature range (-50 ° C to 80 ° C) corresponding to the number of carbon chains. The amount of stored heat (melting latent heat) is about 130 to 250 kJ / kg, which is higher than other materials.

  The pellet-type latent heat storage material 27 constituting the thermal storage block 16 has a liquid phase / solid phase change temperature of 50 ° C to 70 ° C. The reason for this is that the engine cooling water temperature may be less than 80 ° C in winter, etc., and the blowing temperature felt to be warm is 30 ° C. Therefore, the phase change temperature required to obtain the blowing temperature of 30 ° C or higher is As described above, the temperature is about 50 ° C. to 60 ° C. or higher (50 ° C. to 70 ° C.).

  The pellet-type latent heat storage material 27 constituting the cold storage block 17 has a liquid phase / solid phase change temperature set to 2 ° C to 7 ° C. The reason is that the blowing temperature that is felt cool in summer etc. is about 10 ° C., so the phase change temperature required to obtain the blowing temperature of about 10 ° C. is 2 ° C. including 4 ° C. to 5 ° C. and the surrounding temperature. By reaching a temperature of ~ 7 ° C.

  The conditioned air flows so that the flow of conditioned air passing through the conditioned air passage is mainstream when storing heat by the heat storage blocks 16 and 17, and the flow of conditioned air passing through the heat storage block is mainstream when radiating heat from the heat storage blocks 16 and 17. Switching doors 19 and 20 are provided as air conditioning air path switching means for switching the path. That is, the auxiliary heating device is configured to include the warm air passage 8, the thermal storage block 16, and the thermal switching door 20. The auxiliary cooling device includes a vent duct passage 28, a cold storage block 17, and a cooling switching door 19.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the warm air passage 8 of the auxiliary heating device passes through the heater core 4 disposed in the air conditioning case 1, hits the inner wall surface of the case, and then changes the wind direction in a direction along the inner wall surface of the case. It is.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the heat storage block 16 for heat of the auxiliary heating device forms a case recess 1 a at a position facing the heat exchange surface of the air conditioning case 1 that receives the warm air that has passed through the heater core 4 as it is. It is the heat storage block arrange | positioned so that the recessed part 1a may be filled.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the temperature switching door 20 of the auxiliary heating device has a rotation shaft at the surface position of the heat storage block 16, and a part of the surface of the heat storage block 16 (upper half). ) Is set to the door closed position, and enters the heat storage block 16 from the open portion (lower half) not closed by the door, passes through the heat storage block 16, and passes along the opened door. This is a switching door whose door opening position is the position where the flow of wind is created.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vent duct passage 28 of the auxiliary cooling device passes through the evaporator 3 disposed in the air conditioning case 1 and hits the inner wall surface of the vent duct 18 connected to the air conditioning case 1. A cold air passage that changes the air direction in a direction along the inner wall surface of the duct.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the heat storage block 17 for cooling in the auxiliary cooling device forms a duct recess 18 a at a curved position of the vent duct 18 that receives the cold air that has passed through the evaporator 3, and fills the duct recess 18 a. It is the heat storage block arranged so.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the cooling air switching door 19 of the auxiliary cooling device has a rotation shaft at a duct inner wall position facing the cooling heat storage block 17, and a position along the vent duct 18 (FIG. 1). , 2 broken line position) is the door closed position, the flow path at the downstream side of the cold heat storage block 17 is narrowed, and the flow of the cold air passing through the cold heat storage block 17 is created (solid line position in FIGS. 1 and 2). Is a switching door with the door open position.

FIG. 5 is a control block diagram illustrating a switching door opening / closing control system in the air conditioning unit A according to the first embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 5, the switching door opening / closing control system of the auxiliary heating device and the auxiliary cooling device of the first embodiment includes an air conditioning controller 30 (door switching control means), a cooling door actuator 25, and a heating door actuator 26. It is equipped with.

The air-conditioning controller 30 uses the idle stop signal acquired from the engine controller (not shown) through CAN communication or the like as input information, and drives and controls the cold door actuator 25 and the hot door actuator 26.
Specifically, when the idle stop signal for temporarily stopping the engine is not output, the air conditioning controller 30 sets the door closed position along the inner wall of the warm air passage 8 or the vent duct passage 28 and temporarily stops the engine. When the idle stop signal is output, a door opening / closing control command for making the door open position that creates a flow of hot air or cold air passing through the heat storage blocks 16, 17 is output to both door actuators 25, 26.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of the switching door opening / closing control process executed by the air conditioning controller 30 according to the first embodiment. Each step will be described below.

  Step S1 is a step of determining whether an idle stop signal that is input information is ON or OFF.

Step S2 is a step of determining whether or not the switching doors 19 and 20 are in the open position following the determination that the idle stop signal is ON in step S1.
This determination may be made by measuring in advance the time required from the door closing position to the door opening position, and by determining whether or not the required time has elapsed, or by determining a limit switch or the like at the door opening position. And may be determined by a change in the switch signal.
When NO is determined in this step S2 (door closed position or door closed to halfway opening position), the process proceeds to step S3, and when YES (final target door opening position) is determined. The process proceeds to step S4.

  Step S3 is a step of outputting a drive command in the door opening direction to both door actuators 25 and 26, following the determination that the door is in the door closing position or in the middle of the door closing to door opening position in Step S2. is there.

  Step S4 is a step of canceling the drive command in the door opening direction that has been output to the door actuators 25 and 26, following the determination that it is the final target door opening position in step S2.

Step S5 is a step of determining whether or not the switching doors 19 and 20 are in the closed position following the determination that the idle stop signal is OFF in step S1.
This determination may be made by measuring in advance the time required from the door open position to the door close position, and by determining whether or not the required time has elapsed, or by determining a limit switch or the like at the door close position. And may be determined by a change in the switch signal.
If it is determined NO in this step S5 (the door open position or the door open to halfway opening position), the process proceeds to step S6, and if it is determined YES (the final target door close position), the process proceeds to step S6. The process proceeds to S7.

  Step S6 is a step of outputting a drive command in the door closing direction to both door actuators 25 and 26 following the determination that the door is in the door open position or the door opening to door closing position in step S5. is there.

  Step S7 is a step of canceling the drive command in the door closing direction output to the door actuators 25 and 26 following the determination that the door closing position is the final target in Step S5.

Next, the background to the present invention will be described.
The demand for fuel efficiency and environmental performance for automobiles is increasing, and fuel efficiency and hybridization are progressing. That is, in the engine vehicle, the engine is stopped during the primary stop by the idle stop control. Further, in a hybrid vehicle, regenerative energy is recovered during braking or deceleration, and the traveling frequency in the electric vehicle mode with the engine stopped is increased as much as possible.

  On the other hand, the on-vehicle air conditioning unit performs heating using engine cooling water as a heat source, and performs cooling using a compressor driven by the engine. Therefore, nowadays, the control for stopping the engine is actively promoted, and when the engine is stopped, the heating is insufficient or the cooling is insufficient. For example, in an idling stop vehicle, the temperature in the passenger compartment decreases in a short time after stopping the engine when traveling in the heating state in winter, and the vehicle interior in a short time after stopping in the cooling state in summer or after stopping the engine. The temperature will rise. That is, even when the engine is stopped, an auxiliary heating function and an auxiliary cooling function are required to maintain the vehicle interior temperature at a heating state temperature or a cooling state temperature for a while.

  On the other hand, what was disclosed by Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 10-86645 is known as what performs auxiliary heating using a latent heat. However, this conventional device is provided with a heat storage circuit and a heat storage device outside, and when the engine is stopped, the hot water of the heat storage device is sent to the heater core to radiate heat using a pump and a solenoid valve. For this reason, the structure is complicated and a large occupation space is required, which increases the cost, and part of the latent heat stored by the piping path is lost.

  Then, this inventor proposed what sets the heat storage sheet, the heat storage filter, etc. which contain a latent heat storage material in an air-conditioning unit. In this case, it is an effective means in that the structure is simple and the occupied space is small. However, the amount of latent heat storage material to be contained in the heat storage sheet and heat storage filter is limited, and although it can supplement heating and cooling for a short time after the engine stops, it is sufficient for auxiliary heating and auxiliary cooling. The problem to be solved was that the heat energy of the level could not be stored.

  The present inventor makes the latent heat storage material set on the inner wall of an air conditioning case or the like as a lump, and merely increasing the amount of heat storage can only absorb and release latent heat at the surface portion of the latent heat storage material due to the lump. Therefore, paying attention to the point that sufficient heat energy cannot be stored, a configuration is adopted in which a heat storage block in which latent heat storage materials are gathered in a lump is set at the passage position where the flow is changed by the conditioned air. With this configuration, it is possible to meet the demand for storing sufficient thermal energy while maintaining the internal setting structure of the latent heat storage material in the air conditioning unit.

Next, the operation will be described.
The operation of the air conditioning unit A according to the first embodiment will be described by dividing it into “cost reduction operation”, “vehicle compartment auxiliary heating operation at idle stop”, and “vehicle compartment auxiliary cooling operation at idle stop”.

[Low cost action]
For example, a conventional vehicle air conditioner described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-86645 pays attention to the fact that a heat exchange medium circulated through a heater core is heated by latent heat, and an engine cooling water circuit (hot water circuit) and Separately, a heat storage circuit and a heat storage device are provided, and when starting in a cold region or when the engine is stopped, the hot water of the heat storage device is sent to the heater core to radiate heat using a pump and a solenoid valve. For this reason, it is necessary to additionally set a heat storage circuit and a heat storage device in the engine coolant circuit, the structure becomes complicated, and a large occupied space is required, resulting in an increase in cost. Moreover, a part of latent heat stored in the heat storage device is lost through the piping path.

  On the other hand, in the air conditioning unit A of the first embodiment, paying attention to the point that the conditioned air (hot air or cold air) is directly heated / cooled by latent heat, the latent heat is placed on the inner wall position of the air conditioning case 1 or the vent duct 18. The structure which sets the heat storage block 16 and 17 which aggregated the heat storage material in the lump shape was employ | adopted. As described above, the object to be heated / cooled by latent heat is not the heat exchange medium but the conditioned air itself in the passage from the air conditioning case 1 to the vehicle interior, so there is no need to provide a heat storage circuit and a heat storage device as in the prior art. .

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1, a vent connected to the inner wall of the air-conditioning case 1 or the air-conditioning case 1 without changing the configuration of the air-conditioning case 1 using the existing evaporator 3 and the heater core 4 in the existing air-conditioning case 1. As the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 can be set in the duct 18, the space occupation can be minimized, and the cost can be reduced by a simple structure.

[Auxiliary heating in the passenger compartment during idle stop]
Assuming an air conditioning unit in which the heat storage block 16 for warm heat is not set, the circulation of the engine cooling water in the heater core is stopped by the stop of the circulation pump at the time of idling stop for temporarily stopping the engine. Therefore, the heat energy (sensible heat) that is stored in the engine coolant in the heater core is the residual heat energy when the engine is stopped, but the engine core is deprived of the residual heat of the heater core by the cold air that has passed through the evaporator. The heat energy for sensible heat is consumed within a short time from the time of the stop, and the blowing temperature rapidly decreases immediately after the engine stops. For example, in the case of no heat storage block for warm heat, the blowing temperature rapidly decreases immediately after the engine is stopped, and the blowing temperature that is 70 ° C. in about 30 seconds decreases to 30 ° C.

  On the other hand, in the case of the air conditioning unit A of the first embodiment, the thermal storage block 16 is set at the position of the case recess 1 a of the air conditioning case 1. In addition, the temperature switching door 20 repeats the flow from step S1 to step S2 to step S3 in the flowchart of FIG. 6 during idle stop for temporarily stopping the engine. It is driven to. Then, when the thermal switching door 20 reaches the door open position, in the flowchart of FIG. 6, the flow from step S1 to step S2 to step S4 is repeated, and the thermal switching door 20 is held at the door open position. . Next, when the engine is started, in the flowchart of FIG. 6, the flow of going from step S1 to step S5 to step S6 is repeated and driven from the door open position to the door closed position. When the thermal switching door 20 reaches the door closed position, the flow of steps S1 → S5 → step S7 is repeated in the flowchart of FIG. 6, and the thermal switching door 20 is held at the door closed position. .

  That is, when the engine cooling water is supplied to the heater core 4, the warm air from the heater core 4 is heated from the open portion not closed by the thermal switching door 20 in the closed position indicated by the broken line in FIG. It enters the inside of the pellet-type latent heat storage material 27 constituting the heat storage block 16 and absorbs heat energy (latent heat) with a phase change from the solid phase to the liquid phase. When the engine cooling water supply to the heater core 4 is stopped at idle stop, the thermal switching door 20 opened after passing through the pellet-shaped latent heat storage material 27 by the thermal switching door 20 in the open position shown by the solid line in FIG. A flow of warm air exiting along the door 20 is created, and the pellet-shaped latent heat storage material 27 releases latent heat with a phase change from the liquid phase to the solid phase, so that the wind passing through the warm air passage 8 is heated. give. For this reason, the heating of the vehicle interior can be assisted for a predetermined time after the idle stop when the supply of engine cooling water is stopped. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, when the foot mode in which the foot door 6 is opened is selected, it is possible to continue sending warm air to the foot positions of the left and right front passengers and the rear passengers.

  Here, “sensible heat” is the thermal energy stored in a normal solid or liquid without phase change, while “latent heat” is the phase between the liquid and solid that causes water to become ice. It refers to the thermal energy released or absorbed with changes. In general, by using latent heat, it is possible to store an amount of heat that is orders of magnitude greater than in the case of sensible heat. For example, in the case of water, the sensible heat at 1 ° C. is 4.18 J / g, whereas the latent heat when 0 ° C. water freezes to 0 ° C. ice reaches 334 J / g.

  Therefore, in the case of Example 1 in which the thermal storage block 16 is set, the blowout temperature slightly decreases from immediately after the engine is stopped to the phase change temperature, but after reaching the phase change temperature (freezing point), the pellet type latent heat storage is performed. Due to the latent heat stored in the material 27, it is possible to suppress the decrease in the blowing temperature over several minutes.

  Incidentally, since the heat storage block 16 for warm heat is a collection of pellet-shaped latent heat storage materials 27 that store heat by latent heat in a lump, for example, compared to the case of using a heat storage sheet or a heat storage filter containing the latent heat storage material. The amount of heat energy absorbed from the warm air passing through the heat storage block 16 and the amount of heat energy released to the wind passing through the heat storage block 16 increase. The increase in the amount of heat energy can extend the duration of auxiliary heating.

  Furthermore, since the warm heat storage block 16 is set at a passage position in the warm air passage 8 where the warm air hits and changes the flow direction, the wind passing through the warm heat storage block 16 during heat storage and heat dissipation. It is possible to efficiently absorb and release heat energy from the. In addition, since the thermal switching door 20 is set, a flow of warm air that flows along the thermal switching door 20 opened after passing through the pellet-shaped latent heat storage material 27 is created, particularly at the time of idling stop. Heat can be effectively applied to the wind passing through the hot air passage 8.

[Auxiliary cooling in the passenger compartment during idle stop]
Assuming an air conditioning unit in which the cold heat storage block 17 is not set, the refrigerant flow in the evaporator is also stopped due to the stop of the compressor at the time of idling stop for temporarily stopping the engine. Therefore, only the thermal energy (sensible heat) stored in the refrigerant in the evaporator is the residual heat energy when the engine is stopped, but the engine's residual heat is taken away in a short time by the wind from the blower. The heat energy corresponding to the sensible heat is consumed within a short time after the stop, and the blowing temperature rapidly increases immediately after the engine stops. For example, when there is no heat storage block for cold heat, the blowing temperature rapidly increases immediately after the engine is stopped, and rises to a blowing temperature that is felt hot in about 30 seconds.

  On the other hand, in the case of the air conditioning unit A of the first embodiment, the cold heat storage block 17 is set at the position of the case recess 18 a of the vent duct 18. In addition, the cooling / switching door 19 repeats the flow from step S1 to step S3 to step S3 in the flowchart of FIG. 6 during idle stop for temporarily stopping the engine. It is driven to. When the cooling door 19 reaches the door open position, the flow of steps S1 → S2 → S4 is repeated in the flowchart of FIG. 6, and the cooling door 19 is held at the door open position. . Next, when the engine is started, in the flowchart of FIG. 6, the flow of going from step S1 to step S5 to step S6 is repeated and driven from the door open position to the door closed position. When the cooling door 19 reaches the door closed position, the flow of steps S1 → S5 → S7 is repeated in the flowchart of FIG. 6, and the cooling door 19 is held at the door closed position. .

  That is, when the engine is supplied with the refrigerant to the evaporator 3, the cold air from the evaporator 3 does not give flow resistance to the vent duct 18 by the cold switching door 19 in the closed position indicated by the broken line in FIG. It enters the pellet-type latent heat storage material 27 constituting the cold heat storage block 17 and releases thermal energy (latent heat) with a phase change from the liquid phase to the solid phase. When the refrigerant supply to the evaporator 3 is stopped at an idle stop, the pellet-shaped latent heat storage material 27 is passed through the open / closed cooling door 19 at the open position shown by the solid line in FIG. A flow of cold air coming out from the end of the gas is created, and the pellet-shaped latent heat storage material 27 absorbs the latent heat with a phase change from the solid phase to the liquid phase, thereby taking heat away from the wind passing through the vent duct passage 28. . For this reason, the cooling of the vehicle interior can be assisted for a predetermined time after the idle stop when the supply of the refrigerant is stopped. For example, when the vent mode in which the vent door 11 is opened is selected, the cold air can be continuously sent toward the upper body of the passengers on the left and right of the front seat.

  Therefore, in the case of Example 1 in which the cold heat storage block 17 is set, the blowout temperature slightly increases from immediately after the engine stops to the phase change temperature, but after reaching the phase change temperature (freezing point), the pellet type latent heat storage The rise in blowing temperature can be suppressed over several minutes by the latent heat stored in the material 27.

  Incidentally, since the cold heat storage block 17 is a collection of pellet-shaped latent heat storage materials 27 that store heat by latent heat in a lump shape, for example, compared to the case of using a heat storage sheet or a heat storage filter containing the latent heat storage material. The amount of heat energy released to the cold wind passing through the cold heat storage block 17 and the amount of heat energy absorbed from the wind passing through the cold heat storage block 17 are increased. The increase in the amount of heat energy can extend the duration of auxiliary cooling.

  Furthermore, since the cold heat storage block 17 is set at a passage position in the vent duct passage 28 that changes the flow direction when the cold air hits it, the cold heat storage block 17 passes when the cold heat is stored or radiated. It is possible to efficiently absorb and release heat energy from the wind. In addition, since the cooler switching door 19 is set, particularly during idle stop, most of the wind has passed through the pellet-shaped latent heat storage material 27, and the cool wind that exits from the end of the opened cooler switch door 19 is opened. A flow is created and heat can be effectively removed from the wind passing through the vent duct passage 28.

Next, the effect will be described.
In the air conditioning unit A of the first embodiment, the effects listed below can be obtained.

  (1) At least one of the warm air for heating and the cool air for cooling is generated by the heat exchangers 3 and 4 and blown out into the vehicle interior after passing through the air-conditioning air passages 7, 8, 21, and 28. In the air conditioning unit A, of the conditioned air passages 7, 8, 21, and 28, the passage heat changes the direction of the flow when the conditioned air strikes, due to the latent heat released or absorbed with the solid phase / liquid phase change. Since the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 in which the latent heat storage materials for storing heat are gathered in a lump are set, the space occupation is minimized, the cost is reduced by a simple structure, and the heat exchange medium to the heat exchanger is reduced. After the supply is stopped, auxiliary heating and auxiliary cooling in the passenger compartment can be performed by effectively using latent heat.

  (2) Since the heat storage block is configured by collecting and packaging the columnar pellet-shaped latent heat storage material 27 in a lump shape through overlapping gaps, the wind passes so as to sew the overlapping gaps. Heat release and heat absorption by the pellet-type latent heat storage material 27 can be performed well.

  (3) The mainstream is the flow of conditioned air passing through the conditioned air passage when storing heat by the heat storage blocks 16 and 17, and the mainstream is the flow of conditioned air passing through the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 when radiating heat from the heat storage blocks 16 and 17. The air conditioning air path switching means for switching the air conditioning air path is provided so that the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 can efficiently dissipate heat and cold heat during heat dissipation without increasing the airflow resistance of the air conditioning air path during heat storage. It can be carried out.

  (4) The air-conditioning air path switching means is in the door closed position along the inner wall of the air-conditioning air passage when heat is stored by the heat storage blocks 16, 17, and is opened to the air-conditioning air passage side when heat is released from the heat storage blocks 16, 17. Since it has the switching doors 19 and 20 which are the door open positions that create the flow of air-conditioning air that passes 16 and 17, the air-conditioning air flow that is optimal for heat storage and heat dissipation while the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 remain set at fixed positions. Can be made.

  (5) The conditioned air passage is a hot air passage 8 that passes through the heater core 4 disposed in the air conditioning case 1 and hits the inner wall surface of the case, and then changes the wind direction in a direction along the inner wall surface of the case. Since the block is a heat storage block 16 for heating that is arranged so as to fill the case recess 1a by forming a case recess 1a at a position opposite to the heat exchange surface of the air conditioning case 1 that receives the warm air that has passed through the heater core 4 as it is, When the mode or the like is selected, after the supply of the heat exchange medium to the heater core 4 is stopped, the auxiliary heating of the vehicle interior can be performed by effectively using the latent heat.

  (6) The switching door has a rotating shaft at the surface position of the thermal storage block 16, and a position at which a part of the surface of the thermal storage block 16 is blocked is a door closed position, and is closed by the door. Since it is the switching door 20 for heat which makes the position which makes the flow of the warm air which enters into the heat storage block 16 from the open part which passes through the door opened after passing through the heat storage block 16 for a heat open door position. When the foot mode or the like is selected, after the supply of the heat exchange medium to the heater core 4 is stopped, by controlling the flow of air from the heater core 4, the latent heat stored in the heat storage block 16 is effectively used to perform auxiliary heating in the vehicle interior. It can be performed.

  (7) The air-conditioning air passage passes through the evaporator 3 disposed in the air-conditioning case 1 and hits the inner wall surface of the vent duct 18 connected to the air-conditioning case 1 and then directs the air direction in the direction along the inner wall surface of the duct. This is a vent duct passage 28 to be changed, and the heat storage block is formed by forming a duct recess 18a at a curved position of the vent duct 18 that receives the cold air that has passed through the evaporator 3, and is arranged so as to fill the duct recess 18a. Therefore, when the vent mode or the like is selected, after the supply of the heat exchange medium to the evaporator 3 is stopped, the auxiliary cooling of the vehicle interior can be performed by effectively using the latent heat.

  (8) The switching door has a rotating shaft at a duct inner wall position facing the cold heat storage block 17, a position along the vent duct 18 is a door closed position, and a downstream position of the cold heat storage block 17. This is the cooling / heating switching door 19 having the door opening position where the flow of the cold air passing through the cooling heat storage block 17 is opened, so that when the vent mode or the like is selected, the heat exchange medium to the evaporator 3 is selected. After the supply is stopped, auxiliary cooling of the passenger compartment can be performed by effectively using latent heat by controlling the flow of wind from the evaporator 3.

  (9) When the idle stop signal for temporarily stopping the engine is not output, the switching doors 19 and 20 are set to the door closed position along the inner wall of the air conditioning air passage, and the idle stop signal for temporarily stopping the engine. Since the air conditioning controller 30 that outputs the door opening / closing control command to the door actuators 25 and 26 to make the door open position that creates the flow of the conditioned air that passes through the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 is output. , Heat release control and heat absorption control by the pellet-type latent heat storage material 27 constituting the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 can be automatically performed.

  As mentioned above, although the air conditioning apparatus for vehicles of this invention has been demonstrated based on Example 1, it is not restricted to this Example 1 about a concrete structure, The invention which concerns on each claim of a claim Design changes and additions are permitted without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  In Example 1, the example which sets the thermal storage block for heat in the inner wall surface of an air conditioning case was shown, and the example which sets the thermal storage block for cold in the inner wall surface of a vent duct was shown, but as a setting position of a thermal storage block, these It is not restricted to the position of. Moreover, in Example 1, in order to absorb and discharge | release heat energy in a thermal storage block efficiently, the example which provides an air-conditioning air path switching means (switching door) was shown. However, when the heat energy can be efficiently absorbed and released by the heat storage block, the air conditioning air path switching means may not necessarily be provided. In short, latent heat storage materials that store heat by latent heat released or absorbed with the change of the solid / liquid phase are collected in a lump at the position of the conditioned air passage that changes the flow direction when conditioned air hits it. Any heat storage block set is included in the present invention.

  In Example 1, although the example which uses a switching door as an air-conditioning air path switching means was shown, the position of the heat storage block itself was made movable without using the switching door, and the heat storage block was retracted from the air-conditioning air passage during heat storage. It is also possible to adopt a switching structure in which the conditioned air passage is projected to a position where it is blocked by the heat storage blocks 16 and 17 during heat dissipation.

  In Example 1, an example in which a paraffinic material is used as a latent heat storage material that stores heat by latent heat released or absorbed with a solid phase / liquid phase change is shown. However, the latent heat storage material is not limited to paraffinic materials. For example, polyethylene glycol (for thermal storage), inorganic salt / hydrate / aqueous solution (thermal storage, cold storage), hydrate slurry (cold storage) (Heat storage limited) can also be used.

  In Example 1, the example of the heat storage block comprised by gathering a cylindrical pellet-shaped latent heat storage material in a lump through an overlapped gap and packaging it was shown. However, the shape of the pellet-type latent heat storage material is not limited to a cylindrical shape, and in short, any shape that can form a gap in an overlapping portion when assembled in a lump shape will be shown in Example 1. Various shapes other than those may be used.

  In the first embodiment, an example of application to an air conditioning unit that adjusts the temperature of the front and rear seats (cooling / heating) has been shown. However, the air conditioning unit that adjusts the temperature only to the front seat or the front seat side and the rear seat side independently. The present invention can also be applied to an air conditioning unit that performs adjustment. Furthermore, the present invention can be applied to an air conditioning unit that performs only cooling or heating only. In short, at least one of the warm air for heating and the cool air for cooling can be produced by a heat exchanger and applied to a vehicle air conditioner that passes through the air conditioning air passage and blows into the vehicle interior. .

It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the air conditioning unit A (an example of a vehicle air conditioner) which adjusts the temperature of the front and rear seats of Example 1. FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the vent grille in which the heat storage block for cold heat was set in the air conditioning unit A of Example 1. FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the case recessed part of the air-conditioning case in which the thermal storage block for heat was set in the air-conditioning unit A of Example 1. FIG. It is a heat storage block used for the air-conditioning unit A of Example 1, (a) shows the perspective view of a heat storage block, (b) shows the pellet-type latent heat storage material which comprises a heat storage block. It is a control block diagram which shows the switching door opening / closing control system in the air conditioning unit A of Example 1. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the switching door opening / closing control process performed in the air-conditioning controller 30 of Example 1. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

A Air conditioning unit 1 Air conditioning case 2 Clean filter 3 Evaporator (cooling heat exchanger)
4 Heater core (heat exchanger for heating)
5 Air mix door 6 Foot door 7 Cold air bypass passage (air conditioning air passage)
8 Hot air passage (air conditioning air passage)
9 Foot outlet 10 Blower 11 Vent door 12 Vent outlet 13 Rear foot outlet 14 Differential door 15 Differential outlet 16 Heat storage block (heat storage block)
17 Cold storage block (heat storage block)
18 Vent duct (cold air duct)
19 Cold switching door (switching door, air-conditioning air path switching means)
20 Thermal switching door (switching door, air-conditioning air path switching means)
21 Mixed air passage (air conditioning air passage)
22 vent grill 23 differential duct 24 instrument panel 25 cold door actuator (door actuator, air-conditioning air path switching means)
26 Door actuator for heating (door actuator, air-conditioning air path switching means)
27 Pellet-type latent heat storage material (latent heat storage material)
28 Vent duct passage (air-conditioning air passage, cold air passage)
30 Air conditioning controller (door switching control means)

Claims (9)

In a vehicle air conditioner that produces at least one conditioned air of warm air for heating and cold air for cooling by a heat exchanger and blows out the air conditioned air passage into the vehicle interior,
Latent heat storage materials that store heat by latent heat released or absorbed with a solid phase / liquid phase change are gathered in a lump at the position of the air conditioning wind passage that changes the flow direction when the air conditioning wind hits it. A vehicle air conditioner characterized in that a heat storage block is set. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1,
The vehicle air conditioner is characterized in that the heat storage block is configured by collecting and packaging columnar pellet-shaped latent heat storage materials in a lump shape through overlapping gaps. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2,
Air conditioning that switches the air-conditioning air path so that the flow of air-conditioning air that passes through the air-conditioning air passage is the mainstream during heat storage by the heat storage block, and the flow of air-conditioning air that passes through the heat-storage block is the main current when heat is released from the heat storage block. An air conditioner for a vehicle, characterized in that an air path switching means is provided. In the vehicle air conditioner according to claim 3,
The air-conditioning air path switching means is set to a door closed position along the inner wall of the air-conditioning air passage during heat storage by the heat storage block, and opens to the air-conditioning air passage side when radiating heat from the heat storage block to create a flow of air-conditioning air passing through the heat storage block. An air conditioner for a vehicle having a switching door that is a door open position. The vehicle air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The air-conditioning air passage is a hot air passage that passes through a heating heat exchanger disposed in the air-conditioning case, hits the inner wall surface of the case, and then changes the air direction in a direction along the inner wall surface of the case.
The heat storage block is a heat storage block for heat that is arranged so as to fill a case recess by forming a case recess at a position facing the heat exchange surface of an air conditioning case that receives the warm air that has passed through the heat exchanger for heating as it is. A vehicle air conditioner. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 5,
The switching door has a rotating shaft at the surface position of the thermal storage block, the position where a part of the surface of the thermal storage block is blocked is the door closed position, and the heating is performed from the open portion not blocked by the door. The vehicle air conditioner is characterized in that it is a thermal switching door having a door opening position where a flow of warm air that enters the heat storage block and passes along the door that is opened after passing through the thermal storage block apparatus. The vehicle air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The air-conditioning air passage passes through a cooling heat exchanger disposed in the air-conditioning case, hits the inner wall surface of the air-cooling duct connected to the air-conditioning case, and then changes the air direction in the direction along the inner wall surface of the duct. And
The heat storage block is a cooling heat storage block in which a duct recessed portion is formed at a duct bending position of a cold air duct that receives cold air that has passed through a cooling heat exchanger, and is disposed so as to fill the duct recessed portion. Air conditioning equipment. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 7,
The switching door has a rotation shaft at a duct inner wall position facing the cold heat storage block, a position along the cold air duct is a door closed position, and a flow path at a downstream position of the cold heat storage block is throttled, A vehicular air conditioner, characterized in that the vehicular air conditioner is a cooling / heating switching door having a door opening position at which a flow of cold air passing through the cold energy storage block passes. The vehicle air conditioner according to any one of claims 4 to 8,
When the idle stop signal for temporarily stopping the engine is not output, the switching door is set to the door closed position along the inner wall of the conditioned air passage, and when the idle stop signal for temporarily stopping the engine is output. An air conditioner for a vehicle comprising door switching control means for outputting a door opening / closing control command to the door actuator to make the door open position that creates a flow of conditioned air passing through the heat storage block.

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