JP2010190541A - Air conditioning device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air conditioning device suppressing drift among a plurality of refrigerant paths, in an air conditioning device including an indoor heat exchanger provided with the plurality of refrigerant paths upstream and downstream of an expansion valve. <P>SOLUTION: In this air conditioning device 1, the refrigerants passing through the first path 61a, a second path 61b, a third path 61c and a forth path 61d of a first indoor heat exchanging part 31 are joined together at a second header 52, and then divided to a first expansion valve 33a and a second expansion valve 33b. The drift of the refrigerant generated among the paths is eliminated by joining the refrigerant of the paths at the second header 52. As a result, the drift upstream of the second header 52 is not taken over to the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b downstream of the second header 52. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner.

  Conventionally, as an air conditioner capable of dehumidifying a room without cooling, an air conditioner including an indoor heat exchanger in which a plurality of refrigerant paths are formed on the upstream side and the downstream side of the expansion valve is disclosed in Patent Document 1. (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-82661) and Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-254555). However, such an air conditioner has a problem that the pressure loss at the expansion valve is large.

  Therefore, in order to reduce the pressure loss in the expansion valve, in the air conditioner disclosed in Patent Document 3 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-273923), an expansion valve corresponding to each upstream refrigerant path is arranged. ing.

  However, in the air conditioner disclosed in Patent Document 3, when a refrigerant flow path with a large flow rate and a refrigerant path with a low flow rate occur on the upstream side of the expansion valve (hereinafter referred to as drift), the refrigerant passes through the expansion valve. Since the drift is maintained even after passing, the heat exchange performance of the indoor heat exchanger decreases.

  Furthermore, in recent years, the diameter of the heat transfer tubes constituting the refrigerant path has been reduced, and the refrigerant path tends to increase in order to suppress the increase in pressure loss that accompanies this, and drifting tends to occur.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner including an indoor heat exchanger in which a plurality of refrigerant paths are formed on the upstream side and the downstream side of an expansion valve, and an air conditioner that suppresses drift between the plurality of refrigerant paths. Is to provide.

  An air conditioner according to a first aspect of the present invention includes an indoor heat exchanger that is divided into a first heat exchange unit functioning as a condenser and a second heat exchange unit functioning as an evaporator by a pressure reducing mechanism during a dehumidifying operation. Air conditioning equipment. The pressure reducing mechanism has a plurality of expansion valves. Each of the first heat exchange unit and the second heat exchange unit has a plurality of paths through which the refrigerant branches and flows. During the dehumidifying operation, the refrigerants that have exited the plurality of paths on the first heat exchange unit side merge into one, and then branch to the plurality of expansion valves.

  In this air conditioner, the refrigerant that has passed through a plurality of upstream paths merges into one, and then diverts to each expansion valve. The drift of the refrigerant that occurs between the plurality of upstream paths is eliminated by the merge of the refrigerant in each path. The merged refrigerant is diverted to each expansion valve. Therefore, since the drift of the refrigerant between the passes is not inherited to the downstream side, the drift of the indoor heat exchanger as a whole is suppressed, and the deterioration of the heat exchange performance of the indoor heat exchanger is suppressed.

  An air conditioner according to a second aspect of the present invention is the air conditioner according to the first aspect of the present invention, and has a plurality of paths on the upstream side and the downstream side of one expansion valve.

  In the conventional air conditioner, the refrigerant drifts between a plurality of paths on the upstream side of the expansion valve, and the refrigerant whose amount is reduced by the drift also drifts between the plurality of paths on the downstream side of the expansion valve. No path may appear. However, in this air conditioner, the drift of the refrigerant that has occurred between the plurality of upstream paths is eliminated by the merge of the refrigerant in each path. Even when there is a drift between the paths, the degree is smaller than that of a conventional air conditioner.

  An air conditioner according to a third aspect of the present invention is the air conditioner according to the second aspect of the present invention, wherein the refrigerant that has passed through the plurality of expansion valves once merges and then splits into the plurality of paths on the second heat exchange unit side. .

  In this air conditioner, the refrigerant drift between the expansion valves is eliminated by the refrigerant joining after passing through the expansion valve, so even if it drifts between multiple paths downstream of the junction, The degree is smaller than that of a conventional air conditioner.

  An air conditioner according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the air conditioner according to any one of the first to third aspects of the present invention, further comprising a header. The header collects a plurality of paths through which the refrigerant flows and guides the merged refrigerant to a predetermined circulation port, or diverts the refrigerant flowing in from the predetermined circulation port to the collected plurality of paths.

  In this air conditioner, pipe connection is easy even if the number of passes is large, and the installation position is stable, so that the finish after pipe connection is good, and as a result, an increase in installation space is suppressed.

  In the air conditioner according to the first aspect of the present invention, the drift of the refrigerant between the paths is suppressed, and a decrease in the heat exchange performance of the indoor heat exchanger is suppressed.

  In the air conditioner according to the second invention or the third invention, even when the refrigerant drifts between a plurality of passes, the degree is smaller than that of the conventional air conditioner.

  In the air conditioner according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, pipe connection is easy even if the number of passes is large, and the installation position is stable, so that the finish after the pipe connection is good, and an increase in installation space is suppressed as a result.

The refrigerant circuit figure of the air conditioning apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. Explanatory drawing of the path | pass formed in the indoor heat exchanger of an air conditioning apparatus. The perspective view of a 1st header. Explanatory drawing of the path | pass formed in the indoor heat exchanger of the air conditioning apparatus which concerns on a 1st modification. Explanatory drawing of the path | pass formed in the indoor heat exchanger of the air conditioning apparatus which concerns on a 2nd modification.

  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.

<Configuration of air conditioner 1>
FIG. 1 is a refrigerant circuit diagram of an air-conditioning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the air conditioner 1 includes an outdoor unit 2 and an indoor unit 3. Note that a plurality of indoor units 3 may be provided.

  The air conditioner 1 includes a refrigerant circuit 10 filled with a refrigerant. The refrigerant circuit 10 includes an outdoor circuit accommodated in the outdoor unit 2 and an indoor circuit accommodated in the indoor unit 3. The outdoor circuit and the indoor circuit are connected by a gas side communication pipe 17a and a liquid side communication pipe 17b.

<Outdoor unit 2>
A compressor 11, a four-way switching valve 12, an outdoor heat exchanger 13, and an outdoor expansion valve 14 are connected to the outdoor circuit in the outdoor unit 2. At one end of the outdoor circuit, a liquid side closing valve 19 to which the liquid side communication pipe 17b is connected is provided. At the other end of the outdoor circuit, a gas side shut-off valve 18 to which a gas side communication pipe 17a is connected is provided.

  The discharge side of the compressor 11 is connected to the first port P1 of the four-way switching valve 12. The suction side of the compressor 11 is connected to the third port P3 of the four-way switching valve 12 with the accumulator 20 interposed therebetween. The accumulator 20 separates the liquid refrigerant and the gas refrigerant.

  The outdoor heat exchanger 13 is a cross-fin type fin-and-tube heat exchanger. An outdoor fan 23 for sending outdoor air is provided in the vicinity of the outdoor heat exchanger 13. One end of the outdoor heat exchanger 13 is connected to the fourth port P4 of the four-way switching valve 12. The other end of the outdoor heat exchanger 13 is connected to an outdoor expansion valve 14 that is a decompression unit.

  The outdoor expansion valve 14 is an electronic expansion valve with a variable opening, and is connected to a liquid side closing valve 19. The second port P <b> 2 of the four-way switching valve 12 is connected to the gas side closing valve 18.

  The four-way switching valve 12 includes a first state (state indicated by a solid line in FIG. 1) in which the first port P1 and the fourth port P4 communicate with each other and the second port P2 and the third port P3 communicate with each other, The second state (state indicated by the dotted line in FIG. 1) in which the port P1 and the second port P2 communicate with each other and the third port P3 and the fourth port P4 communicate with each other can be switched.

<Indoor unit 3>
The indoor heat exchanger 30 is connected to the indoor circuit. The indoor heat exchanger 30 is a cross fin type fin-and-tube heat exchanger, and includes a first indoor heat exchange unit 31, a second indoor heat exchange unit 32, and a decompression mechanism 33. In the vicinity of the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 and the second indoor heat exchange unit 32, an indoor fan 43 for sending indoor air is arranged.

  The decompression mechanism 33 has a first expansion valve 33a and a second expansion valve 33b. Both the first expansion valve 33 a and the second expansion valve 33 b are connected between the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 and the second indoor heat exchange unit 32.

  The second indoor heat exchange unit 32 is divided into a lower heat exchange unit 32a and an upper heat exchange unit 32b. The first expansion valve 33a is connected to the lower heat exchange part 32a, and the second expansion valve 33b is connected to the upper heat exchange part 32b. Therefore, the refrigerant that has exited from the first indoor heat exchange section 31 is divided into a refrigerant that enters the lower heat exchange section 32a through the first expansion valve 33a, and a refrigerant that enters the upper heat exchange section 32b through the second expansion valve 33b. Divided.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of paths formed in the indoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner. In FIG. 2, during the dehumidifying operation, the refrigerant flows from the first indoor heat exchange section 31 to the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b. The refrigerant directed to the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 flows into the four paths formed in the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 after entering the first header 51. These four paths are a first path 61a, a second path 61b, a third path 61c, and a fourth path 61d, respectively.

  The first path 61a, the second path 61b, the third path 61c, and the fourth path 61d are gathered in the second header 52 on the downstream side of the first indoor heat exchange section 31, and the refrigerant flowing through each path is the second. Merge at the header 52. The refrigerant discharged from the second header 52 is divided into a refrigerant directed to the first expansion valve 33a and a refrigerant directed to the second expansion valve 33b via the first flow divider 71.

  The refrigerant that has passed through the first expansion valve 33a flows into the four paths formed in the lower heat exchange part 32a of the second indoor heat exchange part 32 after entering the lower first header 53. These four paths are a lower first path 63a, a lower second path 63b, a lower third path 63c, and a lower fourth path 63d.

  The lower first path 63a, the lower second path 63b, the lower third path 63c, and the lower fourth path 63d are gathered in the lower second header 54 on the downstream side of the lower heat exchange section 32a. The refrigerant flowing through each path joins at the lower second header 54.

  The refrigerant that has passed through the second expansion valve 33 b enters the upper first header 55 and then flows in four paths formed in the upper heat exchange part 32 b of the second indoor heat exchange part 32. These four paths are an upper first path 65a, an upper second path 65b, an upper third path 65c, and an upper fourth path 65d.

  The upper first path 65a, the upper second path 65b, the upper third path 65c, and the upper fourth path 65d are gathered in the upper second header 56 on the downstream side of the upper heat exchange section 32b, and the refrigerant flowing through each path Merge at the upper second header 56.

  The refrigerant that has come out of the lower second header 54 and the upper second header 56 joins via the second flow divider 72.

For reference, FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the first header. In FIG. 3, the first header 51 has a quadrangular prism-shaped main body formed with a first connection port 51a, a second connection port 51b, a third connection port 51c, and a fourth connection port 51d. (For example, the first path 61a, the second path 61b, the third path 61c, and the fourth path 61d) are connected. Further, the first header 51 is formed with a circulation port 51e, through which the refrigerant flowing in and joining from the connection ports passes. Further, the refrigerant flowing in from the circulation port 51e can be divided into each connection port and flow out. Note that the first header 51 may have a cylindrical shape. There may be any number of connection ports and distribution ports.

  The basic specifications of the second header 52, the lower first header 53, the lower second header 54, the upper first header 55, and the upper second header 56 are the same as those of the first header 51. By using such a header, pipe connection is easy and the installation position is stable even if the number of paths is large, so that the finish after pipe connection is good, and consequently an increase in installation space is suppressed.

<Operation of the air conditioner 1>
In the air conditioner 1, the four-way switching valve 12 can be switched to one of the cooling operation and the heating operation.

(Cooling operation)
In the cooling operation, the four-way switching valve 12 is set to the first state (solid line in FIG. 1), and the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b of the indoor unit 3 are set to the fully open state. When the compressor 11 is operated in this state, in the refrigerant circuit 10, the outdoor heat exchanger 13 becomes a condenser, and the first indoor heat exchanger 31 and the second indoor heat exchanger 32 of the indoor heat exchanger 30 are evaporators. Thus, a vapor compression refrigeration cycle is performed.

  The high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 is condensed by exchanging heat with outdoor air in the outdoor heat exchanger 13. The refrigerant that has passed through the outdoor heat exchanger 13 is depressurized when it passes through the outdoor expansion valve 14, and then evaporates by exchanging heat with air in the first indoor heat exchanger 31 and the second indoor heat exchanger 32. The air whose temperature has decreased due to the heat exchange is blown into the room to cool the room. The refrigerant that has passed through the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 and the second indoor heat exchange unit 32 is sucked into the compressor 11 and compressed.

(Heating operation)
In the heating operation, the four-way switching valve 12 is set to the second state (dotted line in FIG. 1), and the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b of the indoor unit 3 are set to the fully open state. When the compressor 11 is operated in this state, in the refrigerant circuit 10, the outdoor heat exchanger 13 serves as an evaporator, the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 and the second indoor heat exchange unit 32 serve as a condenser, and steam A compression refrigeration cycle is performed.

  The high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 is condensed by exchanging heat with air in the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 and the second indoor heat exchange unit 32. The air whose temperature has increased due to the heat exchange is blown into the room and warms the room. The condensed refrigerant is decompressed when passing through the outdoor expansion valve 14, and then evaporates by exchanging heat with outdoor air in the outdoor heat exchanger 13. The refrigerant that has passed through the outdoor heat exchanger 13 is sucked into the compressor 11 and compressed.

(Dehumidifying operation)
In the dehumidifying operation, the four-way switching valve 12 is set to the first state (solid line in FIG. 1), the outdoor expansion valve 14 is set to the fully open state, and the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b of the indoor unit 3 are set. It is throttled to a predetermined opening. When the compressor 11 is operated in this state, in the refrigerant circuit 10, the outdoor heat exchanger 13 and the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 serve as a condenser, and the second indoor heat exchange unit 32 serves as an evaporator. A compression refrigeration cycle is performed.

  The high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 is condensed by exchanging heat with outdoor air in the outdoor heat exchanger 13, and the refrigerant that could not be condensed in the outdoor heat exchanger 13 is condensed in the first indoor heat exchanger 31. To do. As shown in FIG. 2, in the 1st indoor heat exchange part 31, since a refrigerant | coolant is divided and flows into the 1st path 61a, the 2nd path 61b, the 3rd path 61c, and the 4th path 61d, there is little pressure loss. Further, even when a drift occurs between the paths, the refrigerant flowing through each path joins in the second header 52 on the downstream side of the first indoor heat exchanging section 31, so that the drift is not maintained. The refrigerant discharged from the second header 52 is divided into a refrigerant directed to the first expansion valve 33a and a refrigerant directed to the second expansion valve 33b via the first flow divider 71.

  The refrigerant that has entered the first expansion valve 33 a is then reduced to a predetermined pressure and enters the lower first header 53. The refrigerant discharged from the lower first header 53 evaporates by exchanging heat with air in the lower heat exchange section 32a of the second indoor heat exchange section 32. In the lower heat exchange section 32a, the refrigerant flows in a divided manner in the lower first path 63a, the lower second path 63b, the lower third path 63c, and the lower fourth path 63d, so that there is little pressure loss. In addition, since the refrigerant flowing through each of the lower first path 63a, the lower second path 63b, the lower third path 63c, and the lower fourth path 63d does not inherit the upstream drift, Even when a drift occurs, the degree of the drift is small.

  The refrigerant that has entered the second expansion valve 33 b is then reduced to a predetermined pressure and enters the upper first header 55. The refrigerant discharged from the upper first header 55 evaporates by exchanging heat with air in the upper heat exchange part 32b of the second indoor heat exchange part 32. In the upper heat exchange section 32b, the refrigerant flows separately in the upper first path 65a, the upper second path 65b, the upper third path 65c, and the upper fourth path 65d, so that there is little pressure loss. Further, since the refrigerant flowing through each of the upper first path 65a, the upper second path 65b, the upper third path 65c, and the upper fourth path 65d has not inherited the upstream drift, a drift has occurred between the paths. Even in that case, the degree of drift is small.

  The refrigerant that has passed through the lower heat exchange unit 32a and the upper heat exchange unit 32b joins in the second flow divider 72, and is sucked into the compressor 11 and compressed.

  In this dehumidifying operation, the air whose temperature has increased in the first indoor heat exchanger 31 and the air whose temperature has been dehumidified and decreased in the second indoor heat exchanger 32 are mixed, so compared to dehumidification by normal cooling operation, A decrease in room temperature is suppressed.

<Features>
In the air conditioner 1, after the refrigerant that has passed through the first path 61a, the second path 61b, the third path 61c, and the fourth path 61d of the first indoor heat exchange unit 31 merges into one in the second header 52, The current is diverted to the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b. The drift of the refrigerant generated between the paths is eliminated by the refrigerant of each path joining the second header 52. As a result, the drift on the upstream side of the second header 52 is not inherited by the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b on the downstream side of the second header 52.

  Even if a drift occurs between the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b, the drift between the first path 61a, the second path 61b, the third path 61c, and the fourth path 61d is not inherited. Therefore, the degree of drift is small.

<First Modification>
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of paths formed in the indoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner according to the first modification. In FIG. 4, the refrigerant flowing through the first path 61a, the second path 61b, the third path 61c, and the fourth path 61d enters the second header 52 and merges, and then is divided into two from the second header 52, one of which is It faces the first expansion valve 33a and the other faces the second expansion valve 33b.

  In the first modification, the second header 52 is divided into the refrigerant directed to the first expansion valve 33a and the refrigerant directed to the second expansion valve 33b, so that the first flow divider 71 as shown in FIG. 2 is not required. Accordingly, the pressure loss is also reduced.

  Since the flow of the refrigerant after the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve 33b is the same as that in the above embodiment, the description thereof is omitted.

<Second Modification>
FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of paths formed in the indoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner according to the second modification. In FIG. 5, the refrigerant that has passed through the first expansion valve 33 a and the second expansion valve 33 b is the small header 150 so that the drift generated between the first expansion valve 33 a and the second expansion valve 33 b is eliminated. It merges and again divides into two and goes to the lower heat exchange part 32a and the upper heat exchange part 32b.

  As a result, when the refrigerant flows separately in the lower first path 63a, the lower second path 63b, the lower third path 63c, and the lower fourth path 63d of the lower heat exchange section 32a, the first expansion valve Since the drift generated between 33a and the second expansion valve 33b is not inherited, even when a drift occurs between the paths, the degree of the drift is small.

  Similarly, when the refrigerant flows separately in the upper first path 65a, the upper second path 65b, the upper third path 65c, and the upper fourth path 65d of the upper heat exchange section 32b, the first expansion valve 33a and the second expansion valve Since the drift generated between the valve 33b and the valve 33b is not inherited, even if a drift occurs between the paths, the degree of the drift is small.

  As described above, according to the present invention, drift between a plurality of paths is suppressed, which is useful for an indoor heat exchanger in which a plurality of paths are formed on the upstream side and the downstream side of the expansion valve.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Air conditioning apparatus 30 Indoor heat exchanger 31 1st heat exchange part 32 2nd heat exchange part 32a Lower heat exchange part 32b Upper heat exchange part 33 Pressure reduction mechanism 33a 1st expansion valve 33b 2nd expansion valve 51 1st header 52 Second header 53 Lower first header 54 Lower second header 55 Upper first header 56 Upper second header 61a First path 61b Second path 61c Third path 61d Fourth path 63a Lower first path 63b Lower side Second path 63c Lower third path 63d Lower fourth path 65a Upper first path 65b Upper second path 65c Upper third path 65d Upper fourth path

JP 2001-82761 A JP 2003-254555 A JP 2005-273923 A

Claims (4)

During the dehumidifying operation, the indoor heat exchanger (30) is divided into a first heat exchange section (31) functioning as a condenser and a second heat exchange section (32) functioning as an evaporator by the decompression mechanism (33). An air conditioner comprising:
The pressure reducing mechanism (33) has a plurality of expansion valves (33a, 33b),
Each of the first heat exchange part (31) and the second heat exchange part (32) has a plurality of paths (61a to 61d, 63a to 63d, 65a to 65d) through which the refrigerant branches and flows,
During the dehumidifying operation, the refrigerant that has exited the plurality of paths on the first heat exchange section (31) side merges into one, and then splits into the plurality of expansion valves (33a, 33b).
Air conditioner (1). There are a plurality of the paths on the upstream side and the downstream side of the one expansion valve (33a, 33b),
The air conditioner (1) according to claim 1. The refrigerant that has passed through the plurality of expansion valves (33a, 33b) once merges and then diverts to the plurality of paths on the second heat exchange section (32) side,
The air conditioner (1) according to claim 2. A header (51) that aggregates the plurality of paths through which the refrigerant flows and guides the merged refrigerant to a predetermined circulation port, or diverts the refrigerant flowing from the predetermined circulation port to the aggregated plurality of paths. To 56),
The air conditioner (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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