JP2010048493A - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air conditioner capable of significantly contributing on promotion of energy-saving by properly giving energy-saving information relating to an operation to a user from an indoor unit to make the user be so aware of energy-saving. <P>SOLUTION: Power consumption W of the air conditioner and integral power consumption relating to the power consumption W, electricity costs, and integral carbon-dioxide emission are operated and displayed on a display unit 20. The display is shown to the user through a permeable display section 6a of a movable panel 6. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an air conditioner that considers making a user aware of energy saving.

In an indoor unit of an air conditioner, for example, a plurality of light emitting diodes are provided in the lower part of the front surface or the like as means for notifying the user of the operation state (for example, Patent Document 1). These light emitting diodes notify the operation mode such as operation / stop / cooling / dehumidification / heating.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-159846

  In recent years, the promotion of energy conservation has been screamed, and technological innovation related to energy conservation is also remarkable in the field of air conditioning. Under such circumstances, promotion of energy saving is a major concern for users, and how to make users aware of energy saving is an important issue.

  Such awareness of energy saving is difficult by simply turning on and off the light emitting diode as described above.

  The present invention takes the above circumstances into consideration, and its purpose is to accurately inform the user of energy-saving information related to driving from the indoor unit, thereby making the user strongly aware of energy-saving. It is to provide an air conditioner that can greatly contribute to the promotion.

  An air conditioner according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises: display means provided on the front surface of an indoor unit; and control means for displaying power consumption of the air conditioner and information related to the power consumption on the display means. Prepare.

  According to the air conditioner of the present invention, energy saving information related to operation can be accurately notified to the user from the indoor unit. As a result, the user can be strongly aware of energy conservation and can greatly contribute to the promotion of energy conservation.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the appearance of the indoor unit, and FIG. 2 shows a cross section of the interior of the indoor unit.
Reference numeral 1 denotes an indoor unit, which includes a front panel 1A that has a front surface curved in side view and forms an outer shell, and a rear main body on which components housed inside are arranged. A top suction port 2 is provided on the upper surface of the front panel 1A, a front suction port 3 is provided on the front surface of the front panel 1A, leaving a lower portion, and a blower outlet 4 is opened at the lower front surface of the front panel 1A.

  A grill 5 is fitted into the upper surface suction port 2, and the upper surface suction port 2 is always open. The front portion of the front panel 1A is rotatably opened and closed supported on the upper front end of the rear main body via a hinge portion (not shown) at the upper end here. Therefore, the lower end portion of the front panel 1A can be opened and closed with respect to the rear body.

  The front suction port 3 provided on the front surface of the front panel 1A is opened and closed by a movable panel 6 attached via a panel opening / closing mechanism K. That is, the movable panel 6 is opened by a forward protrusion based on the operation of the panel opening / closing mechanism K to form an indoor air suction passage, and the suction passage is closed by returning from the protrusion position.

  In addition, the movable panel 6 includes a transmissive display portion 6a at a portion corresponding to a display unit 20 described later. The transmissive display unit 6 a constitutes display means together with the display unit 20, and is formed of a light transmitting member. The transmissive display unit 6 a displays the display of the display unit 20 on the front side of the indoor unit 1 in a transparent manner.

  Inside the indoor unit 1, an indoor heat exchanger 9 formed by bending the front heat exchanger portion 9 </ b> A and the rear heat exchanger portion 9 </ b> B into a substantially inverted V shape is disposed. The front heat exchanger section 9A is formed in a curved shape at a position corresponding to the front panel 1A and the movable panel 6. The rear heat exchanger portion 9B is provided at an inclination at a position corresponding to the upper surface suction port 2.

  The electrostatic precipitator 10 is attached to the front side of the front heat exchanger section 9A. The electric dust collector 10 operates as an ozone generator in addition to the original dust collecting operation. A filter 11 is interposed between the indoor heat exchanger 9 and the front suction port 3 and the upper suction port 2. If the front panel 1 </ b> A is opened together with the movable panel 6, the filter 11 can be easily inserted into and removed from the indoor unit 1. Although not shown, a cleaning unit that automatically cleans dust adhering to the filter 11 is provided.

  An indoor fan 12 is disposed between the front and rear indoor heat exchangers 9A and 9B of the indoor heat exchanger 9 and facing the air outlet 7. The indoor fan 12 is a so-called cross-flow fan and has an axial dimension substantially the same as the width dimension of the indoor heat exchanger 9.

  The lower end portion of the front heat exchanger 9A is placed on the front drain pan 13a, and the lower end portion of the rear heat exchanger portion 9B is placed on the rear drain pan 13b, receiving drain water dripping from each heat exchanger, Can be drained. The outer surfaces of the side walls of the front and rear drain pans 13a and 13b are provided at positions close to the indoor fan 12, and constitute a nose n for the indoor fan 12.

  A partition wall member 14 connects the side wall portions of the front and rear drain pans 13a and 13b constituting the nose n and each side portion of the outlet 4. A space surrounded by the partition wall member 14 becomes a blowout air passage 15 that communicates the nose n and the blowout port 4.

  An upper and lower louver 7 </ b> A and a left and right louver 7 </ b> B are provided at the outlet 4 that opens at the end of the blowout air passage 15. Here, a plurality of left and right louvers 7B connected to each other via an operating mechanism are supported on one upper and lower louvers 7A. The upper and lower louvers 7A and the left and right louvers 7B are also mechanically connected to each other via a drive mechanism and a drive source (not shown).

FIG. 3 shows the indoor unit in operation, and FIG. 4 partially shows an internal configuration of the indoor unit.
The movable panel 6 has a cross-sectional shape curved along the vertical direction. In FIG. 3, the panel opening / closing mechanism K is provided only on one side (right side) of the front panel 1A in the left-right width direction and supports the movable panel 6 from the back side. Panel opening / closing mechanisms K are provided on both sides in the direction, and support both sides of the movable panel 6.

  The panel opening / closing mechanism K includes a drive shaft connected to the drive motor via a speed reduction mechanism, and a link mechanism body. The link mechanism is a parallel link mechanism including a fixed arm, a drive arm and a driven arm, and an auxiliary arm rotatably connected to the drive arm and the driven arm. Is provided with an auxiliary link mechanism.

The opening posture of the movable panel 6 differs depending on the operation mode selected by the operation of the remote controller 100 described later.
For example, when the dehumidifying operation mode is selected, the panel opening / closing mechanism K slightly protrudes the movable panel 6 from the front panel 1A, and the front suction port 3 is in a half-open state. When the indoor fan 12 operates in this state, a so-called short circuit is formed in which the blown air circulates through the shortest path from the blower outlet 4 to the upper surface suction port 2.

  When the cooling operation mode or the heating operation mode is selected, the panel opening / closing mechanism K causes the movable panel 6 to protrude from the front panel 1A to the maximum, and the front suction port 3 is fully opened. At this time, the lower end and the upper end of the movable panel 6 are higher than the lower end and the upper end of the front suction port 3, and the movable panel 6 is inclined with the upper end protruding forward from the lower end.

  In addition, when the cooling operation mode is selected, the upper and lower louvers 7A are inclined so as to face almost in the horizontal direction. When the heating operation mode is selected, the upper and lower louvers 7A are directed almost directly downward. In both the cooling and heating operations, the plurality of left and right louvers 7B are rotationally driven while being parallel to each other.

  A display unit 20 including a liquid crystal panel (or an organic EL panel) and a light emitting diode (LED) is attached to the inner surface side of the movable panel 6 and inside one (right side) panel opening / closing mechanism K. The display unit 20 displays the power consumption of the air conditioner and various information related to the power consumption, and displays the current time, the room temperature, the outside temperature, and the like as necessary. The display screen of the display unit 20 is transmitted through the transmissive display portion 6a of the movable panel 6 and presented to the user in the room.

  FIG. 5 shows the display unit 20 and its holding mechanism. The lead wire protection structural component H includes a lower case 22 connected to the display unit 20 via a first bent portion 21, an upper case 23 that forms an internal space with the lower case 22 and is slidably fitted. A lead wire guide accommodated in the lower case 22 and the upper case 23 is provided.

  Further, the lead wire protection structural component H is connected to the upper case 23 via the second bent portion 25, and is connected and fixed integrally with the guide member 26 so as to be rotatable on the front panel 1A. The hinge member 27 is supported.

  The refrigeration cycle shown in FIG. 6 is mounted on the indoor unit 1 and the outdoor unit (not shown) having such a configuration. A compressor 40 has two cylinders 41 and 42. During cooling, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 40 flows to the indoor heat exchanger 9 through the four-way valve 43, and the refrigerant passing through the indoor heat exchanger 9 passes through an electronic expansion valve (pulse motor valve; PMV) 44. To the outdoor heat exchanger 45. The refrigerant that has passed through the outdoor heat exchanger 45 is sucked into the cylinder 41 via the four-way valve 43 and the accumulator 47, and part of the refrigerant that has passed through the accumulator 47 is sucked into the cylinder 42 via the switching valve 48 and the buffer tank 49. Be turned. An outdoor fan 46 is provided in the vicinity of the outdoor heat exchanger 45.

  During heating, the four-way valve 43 is reversed so that the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 40 flows through the four-way valve 43 to the outdoor heat exchanger 45 as indicated by the broken arrow, and the outdoor heat exchanger 45 The refrigerant that has passed through flows through the electronic expansion valve 44 to the indoor heat exchanger 9. The refrigerant that has passed through the indoor heat exchanger 9 is sucked into the cylinder 41 via the four-way valve 43 and the accumulator 47, and part of the refrigerant that has passed through the accumulator 47 is sucked into the cylinder 42 via the switching valve 48 and the buffer tank 49. Be turned.

  The switching valve 48 forms a refrigerant flow path connecting the accumulator 47 and the buffer tank 49 as shown in the figure when the compressor 40 is operated in two cylinders, and when the cylinder 42 of the compressor 40 is in the idling state, As shown in FIG. 7, a refrigerant flow path is formed in which part of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 40 returns to the cylinder 42 while blocking the refrigerant flow path connecting the accumulator 47 and the buffer tank 49.

  On the other hand, one side portion of the indoor heat exchanger 9 is arranged with a gap from the side plate of the indoor unit 1, and the electric component box 16 is arranged in this gap. The electric component box 16 accommodates the indoor substrate 50, the light transmitting / receiving substrate 70, and the display substrate 80 shown in FIG.

  The indoor board 50 is connected to the commercial AC power supply AC, takes in the AC voltage of the commercial AC power supply AC into the power supply circuit 52 through the power switch 51, and supplies the AC voltage of the commercial AC power supply AC through the power relay 53. It sends out to the outdoor substrate 200 of the outdoor unit. The power supply circuit 52 steps down and rectifies the AC voltage taken in, and outputs it as operating voltages for the indoor substrate 50, the light transmitting / receiving substrate 70 and the display substrate 80.

  An indoor control unit (MCU) 60, drive circuits 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, and a serial circuit 66 are mounted on the indoor substrate 50. The indoor control unit 60 controls the entire air conditioner together with an outdoor control unit 203 (described later) on the outdoor substrate 200 by transmitting and receiving data to and from the outdoor substrate 200 via the serial circuit 66. The drive circuit 61 drives the upper and lower louvers 7A, the left and right louvers 7B, and the movable panel 6. The drive circuit 62 drives the electric dust collector 10 and the filter 11. The drive circuit 63 drives the light transmission / reception unit 71 on the light transmission / reception substrate 70. The drive circuit 64 drives the display unit 20 on the display substrate 80. The drive circuit 65 drives the fan motor 12M of the indoor fan 12 at a variable speed, and includes a rotation speed detection circuit that detects the rotation speed Nif of the fan motor 12M.

  In addition, a sensor group 67, a panel detector 68, and a filter detector 69 are connected to the indoor control unit 60. The sensor group 67 includes an indoor temperature sensor that detects the indoor temperature TA, a heat exchanger temperature sensor that detects the temperature TC of the indoor heat exchanger 9, and a refrigerant temperature sensor that detects the temperature TCJ of the refrigerant flowing out of the indoor heat exchanger 9. And an indoor humidity sensor for detecting indoor humidity. The panel detector 68 detects opening / closing of the movable panel 6. The filter detector 69 detects insertion / removal of the filter 11.

  The light transmission / reception unit 71 receives infrared light for operation emitted from a remote controller (also referred to as a remote controller) 100 and emits infrared light for data transmission to the remote controller 100.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the remote controller 100 includes a liquid crystal display unit 101, a temperature adjustment button 102, an automatic button 103, a cooling button 104, a stop button 105, a dehumidifying button 106, a heating button 107, an airflow button 108, and an open / close cover 109. Have

  The liquid crystal display unit 101 is for displaying various operating conditions and various information relating to driving, and in particular, has a dot pattern screen 101a for displaying dot patterns of various images. The temperature adjustment button 102 is for setting a target value of the room temperature. The automatic button 103 is for setting an automatic operation mode in which operation modes such as cooling, heating, and dehumidification are automatically selected and executed. The cooling button 104 is for setting the cooling operation, the stop button 105 is for stopping the operation, the dehumidifying button 106 is for setting the dehumidifying operation, and the heating button 107 is for setting the heating operation. The airflow button 108 is for setting the airflow direction of the blown air, and for each operation, various airflow patterns are switched and displayed on the dot pattern screen 101a as shown in FIG.

  When the opening / closing cover 109 of the remote controller 100 is opened, the operation surface shown in FIG. 10 appears. On the operation surface, there are a timer button 111 for setting the time until operation stop, an “information” button 112 for information guidance, a wind direction button 113 for switching the up / down wind direction and the left / right wind direction, and operation of the electric dust collector 10. An air clean button 114 for setting, an air volume button 115 for setting the blown air volume, a swing button 116 for setting the swing of the upper and lower louvers 7A, a preheat button 117 for setting a preheating operation for heating, an operation A timer off button 118 for setting a reservation time for stopping, a button with a timer 119 for setting a reservation time for starting operation, a reservation button 120 for determining these reservation times, a menu button 121, and a cancel button 122 are provided. Is provided.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11, a power supply circuit 201, an outdoor control unit (MCU) 203, and drive circuits 204, 205, 206, 207, 208 are mounted on the outdoor board 200 of the outdoor unit. The power supply circuit 201 converts the AC voltage supplied from the indoor board 50 into an operating voltage for the outdoor board 200 and outputs the converted voltage. The drive circuit 204 drives the electronic expansion valve 44. The drive circuit 205 drives the switching valve 48. The drive circuit 206 drives the compressor motor 40M of the compressor 40 at a variable speed, and includes a detection circuit that detects a voltage Vc applied to the drive circuit and a current Ic flowing through the drive circuit. The drive circuit 207 drives the four-way valve 43. The drive circuit 208 drives the fan motor 46M of the outdoor fan 46 at a variable speed, and includes a detection circuit that detects a voltage Vf applied to the fan motor 46M and a current If flowing through the fan motor 46M.

  A sensor group 209 is connected to the outdoor control unit 203. The sensor group 209 detects the temperature of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 40, the temperature of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 40, the temperature of the refrigerant sucked into the compressor 40, and the temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger 45. A heat exchanger temperature sensor that detects the outside air temperature, and an outside air temperature sensor that detects the outside air temperature.

And the indoor control part 60 and the outdoor control part 203 have the following means (1) and (2) as main functions regarding energy saving.
(1) Power consumption of the air conditioner and various information related to the power consumption (for example, integrated power consumption, electricity rate, integrated carbon dioxide emission, etc.) are calculated and displayed on the display unit 20 and the remote controller 100. Control means.
(2) Control means for switching between the 2-cylinder operation and the 1-cylinder operation of the compressor 40 in accordance with temperature conditions, heat exchanger temperature, and the like.

Next, the operation will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
During operation (step 301), at least the power consumption Wif of the indoor fan 12, the power consumption Wc of the compressor 40, and the power consumption Wf of the outdoor fan 46 are calculated, and the sum of these power consumptions is the total of the air conditioner. Power consumption W (= Wif + Wc + Wf) (step 302).

  In this case, the power consumption Wif of the indoor fan 12 is obtained by fitting the rotational speed Nif detected by the rotational speed detection circuit of the drive circuit 65 to a predetermined rotational speed-power consumption conversion formula (or conversion table). Is calculated. The power consumption Wc of the compressor 40 is calculated by the product of the voltage Vc detected by the detection circuit of the drive circuit 206 and the current Ic. The power consumption Wf of the outdoor fan 46 is calculated by the product of the voltage Vf detected by the detection circuit of the drive circuit 208 and the current If.

Then, the accumulated power consumption is obtained by integrating the obtained power consumption W (step 303), and the electricity bill to be paid to the power company is calculated from the accumulated power consumption and a preset electricity bill unit price. (Step 304). Further, an integrated carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ) emission amount is calculated from the integrated power consumption amount and a preset carbon dioxide emission coefficient (step 305).

  Electricity unit price and carbon dioxide emission coefficient can be set by operating the menu button 121 of the remote controller 100 to set the unit price / coefficient input mode, and operating the temperature control button 102 in this state, for example. A value suitable for the company can be set. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the carbon dioxide emission coefficient is sequentially switched and displayed on the dot pattern screen 101a of the remote controller 100 each time the temperature adjustment button 102 is operated, and the unit price / coefficient input is performed by operating the menu button 121. When the mode is released, the carbon dioxide emission coefficient displayed at that time is determined.

  When the “Tell” button 112 of the remote controller 100 is pressed by the user (YES in step 306) or when the operation is stopped (YES in step 307), the power consumption W, the accumulated power consumption obtained by the above calculation, Any one of the electricity bill and the accumulated carbon dioxide emission is displayed on the display unit 20 (step 310). This display screen is presented to the user in the room through the transmissive display part 6a of the movable panel 6 in the indoor unit 1.

  Then, when the menu button 121 of the remote controller 100 is operated to set the display switching mode, for example, every time the temperature adjustment button 102 is operated (YES in step 311), as shown by an arrow in FIG. The display content of the display unit 20 is from the power consumption W (for example, 60 W) to the accumulated power consumption (for example, 100 Wh), from the accumulated power consumption to the electric charge (for example, 100 yen), 0.0 kg), the accumulated carbon dioxide emission is switched to the power consumption W in order (step 312).

  The same content as that displayed on the display unit 20 is also displayed on the dot pattern screen 101 a of the remote controller 100.

  In this way, the power consumption W of the air conditioner and the integrated power consumption, the electricity charge, and the integrated carbon dioxide emission related to the power consumption W are calculated and obtained and displayed on the display unit 20, and this display is displayed on the movable panel. The energy saving information related to driving can be accurately notified from the indoor unit 1 to the user by showing it to the user via the six transparent display portions 6a. Therefore, it is possible to make the user strongly aware of energy saving and, together with the development efforts of the manufacturer, can greatly contribute to the promotion of energy saving.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 14, while the filter 11 is being cleaned by the cleaning unit (YES in step 308), “cleaning” and “remaining cleaning time” are displayed on the display unit 20 and the dot pattern screen 101a. (Step 313). When the compressor 40 is operated in two cylinders (YES in step 309), “two cylinder operation” is displayed on the display unit 20 and the dot pattern screen 101a (step 314). When the compressor 40 is operated by one cylinder (NO in step 309), “one cylinder operation” and “eco” indicating energy saving operation are displayed on the display unit 20 and the dot pattern screen 101a (step 315).

  In other words, it is possible to accurately inform the user of the operation status such as “cleaning”, “remaining cleaning time”, “2-cylinder operation”, “1-cylinder operation”, etc. Reliability as a harmony machine is improved.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above-described embodiments.

In addition, the display device provided on the front surface of the indoor unit is a wall-mounted indoor unit according to the embodiment of the present invention, which is disposed on the front decorative panel. In this case, when the air conditioner is viewed from the user, the front side is the front side. Thereby, when a user looks at an indoor unit, the content of a display means can be confirmed easily.

The external appearance perspective view of the indoor unit in one Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the internal structure of the indoor unit in one Embodiment in cross section. The perspective view which shows the state which the movable panel of the indoor unit in one Embodiment protruded. The perspective view which shows the structure of the display unit of the indoor unit in one Embodiment, and its peripheral part. The perspective view which shows the structure of the holding mechanism of the display unit in one Embodiment. The figure which shows the structure of the refrigerating cycle in one Embodiment, and 2 cylinder operation | movement of a compressor. The figure which shows 1 cylinder operation | movement of the compressor in one Embodiment. The block diagram which shows the control circuit of the indoor unit in one Embodiment. The figure which shows the external appearance of the remote controller in one Embodiment. The figure which shows the state which opened the opening / closing cover of the remote controller in one Embodiment. The block diagram which shows the control circuit of the outdoor unit in one Embodiment. The flowchart for demonstrating the effect | action of one Embodiment. The figure which shows switching of the display content of the display unit in one Embodiment. The figure which shows the other example of a display of the display unit in one Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Indoor unit, 2 ... Upper surface inlet, 3 ... Front inlet, 4 ... Air outlet, 6 ... Movable panel, 6a ... Transmission display part, 9 ... Indoor heat exchanger, 12 ... Indoor fan, 20 ... Display unit, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 40 ... Compressor, 45 ... Outdoor heat exchanger, 46 ... Outdoor fan, 48 ... Switching valve, 60 ... Indoor control part, 65 ... Drive circuit, 100 ... Remote controller, 101 ... Liquid crystal display part, 101a ... Dot pattern screen, 102 ... Temperature control button, 112 ... "Tell me" button, 121 ... Menu button, 203 ... Outdoor control unit, 206, 208 ... Drive circuit

Claims (8)

In air conditioners consisting of indoor units and outdoor units,
Display means provided on the front surface of the indoor unit;
Control means for displaying power consumption of the air conditioner and information related to the power consumption on the display means;
An air conditioner comprising:   The display unit includes a display unit provided inside a front surface of the indoor unit, and a transmissive display unit provided on a front surface of the indoor unit and transmitting a display of the display unit. The air conditioner described.   The power consumption is at least a sum of power consumption of an indoor fan in the indoor unit, power consumption of a compressor in the outdoor unit, and power consumption of an outdoor fan in the outdoor unit. The air conditioner described.   The information related to the power consumption includes an integrated power consumption calculated based on the power consumption, an electricity charge calculated based on the integrated power consumption, and an integrated carbon dioxide calculated based on the integrated power consumption. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioner is a discharge amount. A remote controller for operation,
2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the control unit sequentially switches and displays the power consumption and information related to the power consumption in the display unit according to an operation of the remote controller.
2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioners are switched and displayed in order. A remote controller for operation,
The air conditioning according to claim 1, wherein the control means switches and displays the power consumption and information related to the power consumption in order according to the operation of the remote controller in the display means and the remote controller. Machine.   The said remote controller has the setting function of the electricity unit price used for calculation of the said electricity bill, and the setting function of the carbon dioxide emission coefficient used for calculation of the said integrated carbon dioxide emission amount, The claim 5 or Claim characterized by the above-mentioned. Item 6. An air conditioner according to item 6.   2. The air according to claim 1, wherein the front surface of the indoor unit is a movable panel that forms a suction passage for indoor air by protruding forward, and closes the suction passage by returning from the protruding position. Harmony machine.

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