JP2010286129A - Refrigerant flow passage switching device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a refrigerant flow passage switching device capable of filling a foam material in an entire space in a casing having a plurality of refrigerant piping assemblies arranged therein without forming a cavity. <P>SOLUTION: The refrigerant flow passage switching device 30 is provided in a refrigerant circuit R including a heat source side heat exchanger 12 and a plurality of use side heat exchangers 21. The refrigerant flow passage switching device 30 includes the casing 31 and the refrigerant piping assemblies 30a-30d which are arranged in the casing 31, and have refrigerant piping and control valves for controlling refrigerant flows. The foam material is filled within the casing 31. Partitions 34a-34d partitioning the space within the casing 31 with respect to each refrigerant piping assembly to fill the foam material independently with respect to the space storing each refrigerant piping assembly are arranged in the casing 31. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerant flow switching device. More specifically, the present invention relates to a refrigerant flow switching device used for switching a refrigerant flow in accordance with an operation mode in an air conditioner capable of simultaneously operating cooling and heating.

  Conventionally, as an air conditioner for a building, a multi-type air conditioner having a plurality of indoor units for one outdoor unit is known. In order to save energy and to save energy, a cooling / heating-free multi-type air conditioner has been proposed in which some indoor units can perform cooling operation while the remaining indoor units can perform heating operation. (For example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

  In such a cooling / heating free type multi-type air conditioner, a refrigerant flow switching device is disposed in the refrigerant circuit between the outdoor unit and the indoor unit in order to switch the flow of the refrigerant to the indoor unit according to the operation mode. Has been.

  The refrigerant flow switching device includes a refrigerant pipe and a plurality of control valves such as electromagnetic valves provided on the refrigerant pipe, and these are arranged in a box-shaped casing. Then, by control (switching) of the control valve, the refrigerant evaporated in the indoor unit flows in and flows out toward the compressor of the outdoor unit (cooling state), and the refrigerant discharged from the compressor of the outdoor unit flows in And it is comprised so that the state (heating state) which flows out toward an indoor unit may switch.

  The refrigerant flow switching device is often disposed in a space such as the back of the ceiling, but prevents the water droplets from falling from the casing due to condensation on the surface of the refrigerant pipe and the like, and the refrigerant caused by the pulsation of the refrigerant In order to suppress vibration of the piping, the refrigerant piping, the control valve, and the like are covered with a heat insulating material such as urethane foam (see, for example, Patent Document 3). This heat insulating material is formed by supplying a liquid foam material into the casing from an inlet formed in advance on the wall surface of the casing and heating the foam material from the outside with a heater or the like to foam and solidify the foam material. .

  By the way, in the conventional cooling / heating free type multi-type air conditioner, one refrigerant flow path switching device is usually arranged for one indoor unit, and this refrigerant flow path switching device corresponds to the corresponding indoor unit. It is arranged near the machine. That is, in a conventional cooling / heating free type multi-type air conditioner, a plurality of refrigerant flow switching devices are arranged in a distributed manner.

  On the other hand, for ease of maintenance, etc., it is possible to divide a plurality of refrigerant flow switching devices into one or more groups and arrange the refrigerant flow switching devices constituting each group together in one place. Conceivable. In this case, from the viewpoints of space saving, labor saving and cost saving, the refrigerant flow switching devices are not simply arranged close to each other, but are arranged in the common casing from the refrigerant piping and the control valve. It is preferable to arrange a plurality of refrigerant assemblies. That is, when a plurality of refrigerant assemblies are arranged in a common casing, the heat insulating material between adjacent refrigerant assemblies can be shared, and accordingly, the size of the common casing is made smaller than the sum of the sizes of the individual casings. Can do. The refrigerant flow switching device has three types of piping (low pressure gas piping, high pressure gas piping and liquid piping) connected to the outdoor unit side, and two types of piping (gas piping and liquid piping) connected to the indoor unit side. However, since the three types of piping on the outdoor unit side can be branched into each refrigerant assembly within the common casing, only three locations need be connected to the common casing, and piping connection work on the site is greatly increased. Can be reduced. Furthermore, in the refrigerant flow switching device, a soundproof sheet may be affixed to the inner wall of the casing in order to reduce the operating noise of the control valve, etc., but the use amount of the soundproof sheet is reduced by using a common casing. (Cost saving).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-1862 JP 2005-337659 A JP 2008-39276 A

  However, if the casing is shared, the internal space becomes large. Therefore, even if an attempt is made to inject a liquid foam material into the casing to form a heat insulating material as in the case of an individual casing, before the foam material spreads throughout the casing, There is a risk that it will harden, creating a cavity in the casing. If a cavity is formed in the casing, it is also conceivable that condensation occurs on the surface of the pipe in that portion and water drops fall from the casing.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the refrigerant flow path switching is capable of filling the entire casing in which a plurality of refrigerant pipe assemblies are disposed with a foam material without forming a cavity. The object is to provide a device.

The refrigerant flow switching device of the present invention is a refrigerant flow switching device provided in a refrigerant circuit having a heat source side heat exchanger and a plurality of usage side heat exchangers,
A casing and a plurality of refrigerant pipe assemblies each provided with a control valve for controlling the refrigerant pipe and the refrigerant flow.
The casing is filled with foam material, and
A partition wall is provided in the casing for partitioning a space in the casing for each refrigerant pipe assembly and filling the foam material independently into a space for accommodating each refrigerant pipe assembly. Yes.

  In the refrigerant flow switching device of the present invention, a partition wall is disposed in a space in the casing in which a plurality of refrigerant pipe assemblies are disposed, and the partition wall divides the space in the casing for each refrigerant pipe assembly. It is divided into. Thereby, when filling a liquid foam material in a casing, a foam material can be filled independently with respect to the space which accommodates each refrigerant | coolant piping assembly. Since the space for accommodating each refrigerant pipe assembly is a small space as compared with the entire inside of the casing, the foam material can be spread to every corner, and no cavity is formed. For this reason, it is possible to prevent condensation from occurring on the surface of the refrigerant pipe due to the cavity and leakage of water droplets outside the casing.

  The partition wall may be formed by connecting a plurality of partition wall units having the same shape. In this case, since the partition wall can be formed by connecting a plurality of partition wall units having the same shape to each other, it is possible to easily cope with a change in the number of refrigerant pipe assemblies disposed in the common casing. it can. Moreover, since the partition wall unit is the same shape, it is excellent in mass productivity, can reduce cost, and is easy to store and transport.

  The partition wall unit may be made of a plate material having a U-shaped horizontal cross section, and a plurality of partition wall units may be connected so that the opening side of the U-shaped plate material faces the same direction on the same line. In this case, a partition wall that partitions the space in the casing for each refrigerant pipe assembly is formed by connecting a plurality of partition wall units so that the opening side of the U-shaped plate material faces the same direction on the same line. Can do. And each board | plate material and the board | plate material adjacent to the opening side of each said board | plate material, or in the case of the board | plate material located in an end, the said board | plate material and the wall of a casing define the space which accommodates each refrigerant | coolant piping assembly. can do.

  The partition wall unit is made of a plate material having an L-shaped horizontal cross section, and a plurality of partition wall units are connected so that a single wall is formed by connecting short sides of the L-shaped plate material. Good. In this case, a partition wall that divides the space in the casing for each refrigerant pipe assembly is connected by connecting a plurality of partition wall units so that a single wall is formed by connecting the short sides of the L-shaped plate material. Can be formed. And each board | plate material and the wall of a casing can demarcate the space which accommodates each refrigerant | coolant piping assembly.

  The U-shaped plate material comprises a central rectangular central plate portion and a pair of opposed plate portions extending in the same direction from the opposite sides of the central plate portion, and the sides of the opposed plate portions And the bending part extended in the direction which goes to the opposing board part which opposes the edge on the opposite side to the edge | side of the said center board part side may be formed. In this case, the foam injected into the space defined by the U-shaped plate material is formed from the space by forming a bent portion at the edge of the pair of opposing plate portions in the U-shaped plate material. It is possible to prevent leakage to the outside.

  Reinforcing ribs may be formed on the plate material. By forming reinforcing ribs on the plate material constituting the partition wall unit, it is possible to suppress deformation of the plate material due to foaming pressure when the foam material is filled into the space defined by the partition wall unit. Thereby, it is possible to prevent a cavity from being formed in the space even though a necessary amount of foam material is filled.

  According to the refrigerant flow switching device of the present invention, the entire inside of the casing in which the plurality of refrigerant pipe assemblies are disposed can be filled with the foam material without forming a cavity.

It is a figure which shows the refrigerant circuit part of the air conditioning apparatus containing the refrigerant | coolant flow path switching apparatus which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is a plane explanatory view of the partition wall in the refrigerant channel switching device shown in FIG. It is plane explanatory drawing of the other example of the partition wall in this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the refrigerant flow switching device of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[Overall configuration of air conditioner]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a refrigerant circuit portion of an air conditioner AC including a refrigerant flow switching device according to an embodiment of the present invention. This air conditioner AC is a cooling / heating-free multi-type air conditioner that is installed mainly in medium-sized or large-scale buildings and can perform individual air conditioning simultaneously with cooling and heating according to the needs of the rooms in the building. is there. The air conditioner AC includes one outdoor unit 10, four indoor units 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d, and one refrigerant flow switching device 30. The outdoor unit 10, the indoor units 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d and the refrigerant flow switching device 30 are connected by a refrigerant pipe to constitute a refrigerant circuit R. In the refrigerant circuit R, the refrigerant circulates to perform a vapor compression refrigeration cycle.

  The outdoor unit 10 constitutes a unit on the heat source side, and includes a compressor 11, an outdoor heat exchanger 12 that is a heat source side heat exchanger, an outdoor thermal expansion valve 13, and two electromagnetic valves 14a and 14b. . The outdoor unit 10 includes a main pipe 1a, a first branch pipe 1b, and a second branch pipe 1c, which are refrigerant pipes.

  One end of the main pipe 1a is connected to the liquid pipe 4 disposed outside the outdoor unit 10, and the other end is connected to the first branch pipe 1b and the second branch pipe via the outdoor expansion valve 13 and the outdoor heat exchanger 12. It is connected to one end of 1c. The other end of the first branch pipe 1b is connected to a low-pressure gas pipe 2 disposed outside the outdoor unit 10, and the other end of the second branch pipe 1c is a high-pressure disposed outside the outdoor unit 10. Connected to the gas pipe 3.

  The compressor 11 is a fluid machine for compressing a low-pressure gaseous refrigerant into a high-pressure gaseous refrigerant. As the compressor 11, for example, a high-pressure dome type scroll compressor can be adopted. . The discharge pipe 1d of the compressor 11 is connected in the middle of the second branch pipe 1c, and the suction pipe 1e is connected in the middle of the first branch pipe 1b. In addition, an accumulator 15 for separating the refrigerant liquid that could not be evaporated by the heat exchanger as an evaporator is disposed in the suction cup 1e.

  The outdoor heat exchanger 12 is disposed in the middle of the main pipe 1a. As the outdoor heat exchanger 12, for example, a cross fin type fin-and-tube heat exchanger can be adopted. An outdoor fan 17 that is rotationally driven by a motor 16 is disposed in the vicinity of the outdoor heat exchanger 12, and the outside air taken in by the outdoor fan 17 and the refrigerant flowing in the tube of the outdoor heat exchanger 12 are heated. Configured to replace.

The outdoor expansion valve 13 is disposed in the main pipe 1a closer to the liquid pipe 4 than the outdoor heat exchanger 12, and for example, an electronic expansion valve can be adopted as the outdoor expansion valve 13.
One of the two solenoid valves 14a and 14b is disposed closer to the outdoor heat exchanger 12 than the connection point of the first branch pipe 1b with the suction rod 1e. The other electromagnetic valve 14b is disposed closer to the outdoor heat exchanger 12 than the connection point between the second branch pipe 1c and the discharge pipe 1d. These electromagnetic valves 14a and 14b function as control valves that allow or block the flow of the refrigerant.

  Each indoor unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d constitutes a use side unit, and includes an indoor heat exchanger 21 and an indoor expansion valve 22 which are use side heat exchangers. The indoor heat exchanger 21 and the indoor expansion valve 22 are connected to each other by a refrigerant pipe.

  Each indoor unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d includes four refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, which are disposed in a refrigerant flow switching device 30 described later by the first intermediate pipe 5 and the second intermediate pipe 6. 30d. That is, the indoor unit 20a and the refrigerant pipe assembly 30a, the indoor unit 20b and the refrigerant pipe assembly 30b, the indoor unit 20c and the refrigerant pipe assembly 30c, the indoor unit 20d, and the refrigerant pipe assembly 30d are connected in pairs.

  The indoor expansion valve 22 of each indoor unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d is connected to the liquid pipe 4 via the second intermediate pipe 6 and a second main pipe 7d of the refrigerant pipe assembly described later. For example, an electronic expansion valve can be employed. As the indoor heat exchanger 21, for example, a cross fin type fin-and-tube heat exchanger can be employed. An indoor fan (not shown) that is rotated by a motor is disposed in the vicinity of the indoor heat exchanger 21, and air that is taken in by the indoor fan and refrigerant that flows through the tube of the indoor heat exchanger 21. Are configured to exchange heat. The living room is cooled or heated by the heat-exchanged air.

[Refrigerant channel switching device]
The refrigerant flow switching device 30 includes a casing 31 and a plurality of refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, and 30d disposed in the casing 31.

The casing 31 is made of a stainless steel plate or the like and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. FIG. 1 schematically shows the casing 31 as viewed from above, and four refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d are provided along the longitudinal direction of the casing 31 (left-right direction in FIG. 1). Are arranged in a straight line. One short side plate 31a (the short side plate on the left side in FIG. 1) of the casing 31 is a refrigerant pipe connected to the low-pressure gas pipe 2, the high-pressure gas pipe 3 and the liquid pipe 4 by brazing or the like, Three holes (not shown) are formed through which refrigerant pipes extending from the casing 31 are inserted. The refrigerant pipe extending from the casing 31 and the low-pressure gas pipe 2, the high-pressure gas pipe 3, and the liquid pipe 4 described above are connected to each other by brazing or the like outside the casing 31.
Also, one long side plate 31b (the lower long side plate in FIG. 1) of the casing 31 is a refrigerant pipe connected to the first intermediate pipe 5 and the second intermediate pipe 6 described above by brazing. Eight holes (not shown) are formed through which refrigerant pipes extending from the casing 31 are inserted. The refrigerant pipe extending from the casing 31 is connected to the first intermediate pipe 5 and the second intermediate pipe 6 described above by brazing or the like outside the casing 31.

  The top plate 31c of the casing 31 corresponds to each refrigerant pipe assembly 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d, that is, a liquid foam material such as urethane for each of the four refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d. An injection port 32 for injecting the gas into the casing 31 is formed. The top plate 31c further includes two notes corresponding to the space in which the in-casing refrigerant pipes 2a, 3a, 4a connected to the low pressure gas pipe 2, the high pressure gas pipe 3, and the liquid pipe 4, respectively. An inlet 32 is formed. These injection ports 32 are closed with a plug, a cap or the like after injecting a liquid foam material into the casing 31 and foaming and solidifying it to form a heat insulating material. The number and positions of the injection ports 32 are not particularly limited in the present invention, and can be appropriately selected according to the type and amount of the foam material to be injected.

  Each refrigerant pipe assembly 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d includes a first branch pipe 7a, a second branch pipe 7b, a first main pipe 7c, and a second main pipe 7d, which are refrigerant pipes, and two electromagnetic valves 33a, 33b. It has.

  One end of the first main pipe 7c is connected to the first intermediate pipe 5, and the other end is connected to one end of the first branch pipe 7a and the second branch pipe 7b. The other end of the first branch pipe 7 a is connected to the high pressure gas pipe 3, and the other end of the second branch pipe 7 b is connected to the low pressure gas pipe 2. One end of the second main pipe 7 d is connected to the second intermediate pipe 6 and the other end is connected to the liquid pipe 4.

  The electromagnetic valve 33a is disposed in the first branch pipe 7a, and the electromagnetic valve 33b is disposed in the second branch pipe 7b. These electromagnetic valves 33 a and 33 b function as control valves that allow or block the flow of the refrigerant in each refrigerant pipe assembly of the refrigerant flow switching device 30. The refrigerant flow is switched by opening / closing switching of the electromagnetic valves 33a, 33b, and the cooling / heating operation in each of the indoor units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d can be switched individually.

(Partition wall)
In the casing 31, a partition wall 34 that divides the space in the casing 31 into the refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, and 30d is disposed. The partition wall 34 in the present embodiment is formed by connecting four partition wall units 34a, 34b, 34c, 34d made of a plate material having a U-shaped horizontal cross section. More specifically, the four partition wall units 34a, 34b, 34c, and 34d are connected so that the opening side of the U-shaped plate material faces the same direction (the right side in the example of FIGS. 1 and 2) on the same line. . In FIG. 1, gaps are formed between adjacent partition wall units and between the partition wall units and the inner wall of the casing 31 for the sake of clarity, but in reality, as shown in FIG. The unit is disposed so as to be in contact with the adjacent partition wall unit and the inner wall of the casing 31.

  The U-shaped plate material includes a central rectangular central plate portion 35 and a pair of opposing plate portions 36a and 36b extending in the same direction from opposite sides of the central plate portion 35. . Bending extending in the direction toward the opposing counter plate portions 36a, 36b on the side of each counter plate portion 36a, 36b opposite to the side on the central plate portion 35 side (right side in FIG. 2) Portions 37a and 37b are formed. The bent portions 37a and 37b in the present embodiment are bent in a direction perpendicular to the opposing plate portions 36a and 36b.

  Ribs 38 are formed on the central plate portion 35 for reinforcement. The rib 38 is formed integrally with the central plate portion 35 by press working or the like. The ribs 38 may be formed on the pair of opposed plate portions 36a and 36b, or separate ribs may be fixed to the central plate portion 35 and / or the pair of opposed plate portions 36a and 36b.

  FIG. 3 shows another example of the partition wall. The partition wall 44 is formed by connecting four partition wall units 44a, 44b, 44c, and 44d made of a plate material having an L-shaped horizontal cross section. More specifically, the four partition wall units 44a, so that one wall W is formed by connecting the short side portions 45 of the L-shaped plate material composed of the short side portions 45 and the long side portions 46, 44b, 44c, and 44d are connected. Also in the partition wall unit made of this L-shaped plate material, the long side portion is located on the side of the short side portion 45 opposite to the side on the long side portion 46 side (the left side in FIG. 3). A bent portion 45 a extending in parallel with 46 is formed. Further, a bent portion 46 a extending in parallel with the short side portion 45 is formed on the side of the long side portion 46 and on the side opposite to the side on the short side portion 45 side (the lower side in FIG. 3). ing. A reinforcing rib 47 is formed on the long side portion 46.

  In the refrigerant flow switching device 30 shown in FIG. 1, since the space in the casing 31 is partitioned by the partition wall 34 for each refrigerant piping assembly 30 a, 30 b, 30 c, 30 d, a liquid foam material is placed in the casing 31. At the time of filling, the foaming material can be filled independently with respect to the space accommodating each refrigerant pipe assembly 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d. Since the space for accommodating each refrigerant pipe assembly 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d is a small space as compared with the entire inside of the casing 31, the foam material can be spread all over. Therefore, a cavity due to unfilled foam material is not formed. For this reason, it is possible to prevent condensation from occurring on the surface of the refrigerant pipe due to the cavity and water droplets from leaking out of the casing 31.

  In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, no partition wall is formed in the horizontally long space in which the in-casing refrigerant pipes 2a, 3a, and 4a are disposed. This is because the refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, and 30d in which the branch pipes and valves are present have a complicated structure, and it is difficult to fill the foam material to every corner unless the space is partitioned by the partition wall. However, since the horizontally long space in which the refrigerant pipes 2a, 3a, 4a in the casing are arranged is not so complicated, the foam can be filled to every corner without providing a partition wall. It is possible. However, in order to ensure the filling of the foam material, the size of the horizontally long space (if the number of refrigerant pipe assemblies arranged in the casing increases, the horizontally long space increases) Depending on the type and amount of the foaming material, a partition wall may be provided in the horizontally long space.

  Further, since the partition walls 34 and 44 can be formed by connecting partition wall units having the same shape, it is possible to easily cope with a change in the number of refrigerant pipe assemblies disposed in the casing 31. it can. Moreover, since the partition wall unit is the same shape, it is excellent in mass productivity, can reduce cost, and is easy to store and transport.

  Moreover, in the partition walls 34 and 44 shown by FIGS. 2-3, since the bending parts 37, 45a, and 46a are formed in the edge of the board | plate material which comprises the said partition walls 34 and 44, the partition walls 34 and 44 are used. The foam material injected into the space of each refrigerant piping assembly to be partitioned leaks to the outside from the space, and further, the casing 31 from the gap between the inner edge of the refrigerant pipe insertion hole formed in the casing 31 and the refrigerant piping. It can prevent leaking outside.

When the foam material is filled in the space of each refrigerant pipe assembly partitioned by the partition walls 34 and 44, foaming pressure acts on the plate material constituting the partition wall 34 and 44. The reinforcing rib 38 is applied to the plate material. , 47 can prevent the plate material from being deformed by the foaming pressure. The space for each refrigerant pipe assembly is filled with foam material in an amount necessary to fill the interior of the space. However, if the plate material is deformed, the space expands and the amount of foam material is insufficient. There is a fear. However, by suppressing the deformation of the plate material by the reinforcing ribs 38 and 47, it is possible to prevent the formation of a cavity due to the unfilled foam material.
In order to prevent deformation of the plate material due to excessive foaming pressure, an escape hole (not shown) may be formed in the plate material.

[Operation of air conditioner]
Next, the operation of the above-described air conditioner AC will be briefly described.
[Cooling operation]
First, the case where all the indoor units 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d perform the cooling operation will be described. In the case of such a full cooling operation, in the outdoor unit 10, the electromagnetic valve 14a is set to the closed state, the electromagnetic valve 14b is set to the open state, and the outdoor expansion valve 13 is set to the fully open state. In each refrigerant piping assembly 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d of the refrigerant flow switching device 30, the electromagnetic valve 33a is set to the closed state and the electromagnetic valve 33b is set to the open state. Moreover, in each indoor unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, the indoor expansion valve 22 is set to an appropriate opening according to the set temperature of the living room or the like.

  When the compressor 11 is driven in this state, the high-pressure refrigerant gas discharged from the compressor 11 flows to the outdoor heat exchanger 12 through the second branch pipe 1c. In the outdoor heat exchanger 12, the refrigerant exchanges heat with the outside air taken in by the outdoor fan 17 and condenses, and the condensed refrigerant flows into the liquid pipe 4 via the main pipe 1a. The refrigerant flowing through the liquid pipe 4 passes through the refrigerant pipes (liquid pipes) 4a in the casing, the second main pipes 7d of the refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, and 30d, and the second intermediate pipes 6, and then the indoor units 20a and 20b. , 20c, 20d.

  The refrigerant flowing into each indoor unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d is decompressed by the indoor expansion valve 22, and then flows to the indoor heat exchanger 21. In the indoor heat exchanger 21, the refrigerant evaporates by exchanging heat with air taken in by an indoor fan (not shown). Thereby, air is cooled and cooling of the living room etc. in which the indoor unit is arrange | positioned is performed. The gas refrigerant evaporated in the indoor heat exchanger 21 passes through the first intermediate pipe 5 and flows into the refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, and 30d.

  In the refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, and 30d, the gas refrigerant passes through the first main pipe 7c and the second branch pipe 7b and flows into the low-pressure gas pipe 2 via the refrigerant pipe (low-pressure gas pipe) 2a in the casing. . The gas refrigerant in the low-pressure gas pipe 2 flows into the outdoor unit 10, returns to the compressor 11 through the suction rod 1e, and is compressed again. The cooling operation is performed by repeating the above operation.

[Heating operation]
Next, the case where all the indoor units 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d perform the heating operation will be described. In such a heating operation, in the outdoor unit 10, the electromagnetic valve 14a is set to the open state, the electromagnetic valve 14b is set to the closed state, and the outdoor expansion valve 13 is set to an appropriate opening degree. In each refrigerant piping assembly 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d of the refrigerant flow switching device 30, the electromagnetic valve 33a is set to the open state and the electromagnetic valve 33b is set to the closed state. Moreover, in each indoor unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, the indoor expansion valve 22 is set to a fully open state.

  When the compressor 11 is driven in this state, the high-pressure refrigerant gas discharged from the compressor 11 flows into the high-pressure gas pipe 3. The refrigerant flowing through the high-pressure gas pipe 3 passes through the refrigerant pipe (high-pressure gas pipe) 3a in the casing, the first branch pipe 7a, the first main pipe 7c, and the first intermediate pipe 5 of each refrigerant pipe assembly 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d. And flows into each indoor unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d.

  The refrigerant flowing into each indoor unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d flows to the indoor heat exchanger 21. In the indoor heat exchanger 21, the refrigerant exchanges heat with air taken in by an indoor fan (not shown) and condenses. Thereby, air is heated and heating of the living room etc. in which the indoor unit is arrange | positioned is performed. The refrigerant condensed in the indoor heat exchanger 21 flows into the refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, and 30d through the second intermediate pipe 6.

  In the refrigerant pipe assemblies 30a, 30b, 30c, and 30d, the refrigerant flows into the in-casing refrigerant pipe 4a through the second main pipe 7d. The refrigerant flows into the liquid pipe 4 via the in-casing refrigerant pipe 4a. The refrigerant in the liquid pipe 4 flows into the outdoor unit 10 and flows through the main pipe 1a. The refrigerant in the main pipe 1 a is decompressed by the outdoor expansion valve 13, then flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 12, and evaporates by exchanging heat with the outside air in the outdoor heat exchanger 12. The evaporated gas refrigerant returns to the compressor 11 through the first branch pipe 14a and the suction pipe 1e and is compressed again. The heating operation is performed by repeating the above operation.

[Air conditioning operation]
Next, a description will be given of a case where cooling is performed in some indoor units and heating is performed in the remaining indoor units. First, the case where only the indoor unit 20a is switched to the heating operation during the above-described cooling operation will be described. Here, differences from the above-described cooling operation will be described.

  When the cooling operation is performed by switching only the indoor unit 20a to the heating operation during the cooling operation, the electromagnetic valve 33a of the refrigerant pipe assembly 30a corresponding to the indoor unit 20a is changed from the closed state to the open state, and the electromagnetic valve 33b is changed from the open state to the closed state. Respectively. Moreover, the indoor expansion valve 22 of the indoor unit 20a is set to a fully open state. Then, a part of the high-pressure gas refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 flows to the high-pressure gas pipe 3 and the rest flows to the second branch pipe 1. The high-pressure gas refrigerant that has flowed to the high-pressure gas pipe 3 passes through the in-casing refrigerant pipe 3a, the first branch pipe 7a, the first main pipe 7c, and the first intermediate pipe 5 of the refrigerant pipe assembly 30a, and the indoor unit 20a. It flows to the heat exchanger 21.

  In the indoor heat exchanger 21, the refrigerant exchanges heat with air taken in by an indoor fan (not shown) and condenses. Thereby, air is heated and heating of the living room etc. in which the indoor unit 20a is arrange | positioned is performed. The refrigerant condensed in the indoor heat exchanger 21 flows into the liquid pipe 4 through the second intermediate pipe 6, the second main pipe 7 d of the refrigerant pipe assembly 30 a, the refrigerant pipe 4 a in the casing, and the refrigerant from the outdoor unit 10. Join. The merged refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger 21 of the other indoor units 20b, 20c, and 20d, and evaporates due to heat exchange with air. Thereby, air is cooled and cooling of the living room etc. in which the indoor unit is arrange | positioned is performed.

Next, a case where only the indoor unit 20a is switched to the cooling operation during the heating operation described above will be described. Here, differences from the heating operation described above will be described.
When the air conditioning operation is performed by switching only the indoor unit 20a to the cooling operation during the heating operation, the electromagnetic valve 33a of the refrigerant pipe assembly 30a corresponding to the indoor unit 20a is changed from the open state to the closed state, and the electromagnetic valve 33b is changed from the closed state to the open state. Respectively. Moreover, the indoor expansion valve 22 of the indoor unit 20a is set to an appropriate opening according to the set temperature of the living room or the like. Then, the high-pressure gas refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 flows into the other refrigerant pipe assemblies 30b, 30c, and 30d, and further flows into the indoor heat exchangers 21 of the corresponding indoor units 20b, 20c, and 20d to be condensed. To do. Thereby, heating is performed by the indoor units 20b, 20c, and 20d.

  The refrigerant condensed in the indoor heat exchangers 21 of the indoor units 20b, 20c, and 20d flows to the liquid pipe 4 through the second intermediate pipe 6, the second main pipe 7, and the in-casing refrigerant pipe 4a. A part of the refrigerant flowing through the liquid pipe 4 flows into the indoor unit 20a through the refrigerant pipe assembly 30a second main pipe 7, and the rest flows into the outdoor unit 10. In the indoor unit 20a, the refrigerant is depressurized by the indoor expansion valve 22 and then evaporated by the indoor heat exchanger 21. Thereby, cooling is performed by the indoor unit 20a. The gas refrigerant evaporated in the indoor heat exchanger 21 of the indoor unit 20a flows through the first intermediate pipe 5 into the refrigerant pipe assembly 30a. The gas refrigerant that has flowed into the refrigerant pipe assembly 30a passes through the first main pipe 7c and the second branch pipe 7b, and then flows into the low-pressure gas pipe 2 via the refrigerant pipe 2a in the casing. The refrigerant in the low-pressure gas pipe 2 flows into the first branch pipe 1b of the outdoor unit 10 and merges with the refrigerant from the outdoor heat exchanger 12. The merged refrigerant returns to the compressor 11 again through the suction rod 1e.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be appropriately changed in design. For example, in the above-described embodiment, four refrigerant pipe assemblies are arranged in the casing. However, the number of refrigerant pipe assemblies may be two to three, or five or more. There may be. One indoor unit is arranged corresponding to one refrigerant piping assembly, but two or more indoor units can be connected to one refrigerant piping assembly.

In the above-described embodiment, the refrigerant in each refrigerant pipe assembly is supplied from the refrigerant pipe in the casing (low pressure gas pipe in the casing, high pressure gas pipe and liquid pipe) connected to the low pressure gas pipe, high pressure gas pipe and liquid pipe, respectively. Although the piping is branched, the low-pressure gas header, the high-pressure gas header, and the liquid header may be provided in the casing, and the refrigerant piping of the refrigerant piping assembly may be branched from each header. In this case, the low-pressure gas pipe, the high-pressure gas pipe, and the liquid pipe are respectively connected to the connection pipe that extends from the low-pressure gas header, the high-pressure gas header, and the liquid header in the casing to the outside of the casing.
Further, if desired, the refrigerant pipe assembly may be provided with equipment and pipes such as a supercooling heat exchanger and a supercooling pipe constituting the supercooling circuit.

1a main pipe 1b first branch pipe 1c second branch pipe 1d discharge pipe 1e suction pipe 2 low pressure gas pipe 3 high pressure gas pipe 4 liquid pipe 5 first intermediate pipe 6 second intermediate pipe 10 outdoor unit 11 compressor 12 outdoor heat exchanger (Heat source side heat exchanger)
13 Outdoor expansion valve 14a Solenoid valve 14b Solenoid valve 15 Accumulator 17 Outdoor fan 20 Indoor unit 21 Indoor heat exchanger (use side heat exchanger)
22 Indoor expansion valve 30 Refrigerant flow switching device 30a Refrigerant pipe assembly 30b Refrigerant pipe assembly 30c Refrigerant pipe assembly 30d Refrigerant pipe assembly 31 Casing 34 Partition wall 34a Partition wall unit 34b Partition wall unit 34c Partition wall unit 34d Partition wall unit 35 Central plate Part 36 opposing plate part 37 bent part 38 rib 44 partition wall 44a partition wall unit 44b partition wall unit 44c partition wall unit 44d partition wall unit 45 short side part 46 long side part 47 rib AC air conditioner R refrigerant circuit

Claims (6)

A refrigerant flow switching device (30) provided in a refrigerant circuit (R) having a heat source side heat exchanger (12) and a plurality of usage side heat exchangers (21),
A plurality of casings (31) and a plurality of refrigerant valves (33a, 33b) disposed in the casing (31), each of which is provided with a refrigerant pipe (7a, 7b, 7c, 7d) and a refrigerant flow control. Refrigerant pipe assembly (30a, 30b, 30c, 30d),
The casing (31) is filled with a foam material, and
The space in the casing (31) is partitioned for each refrigerant pipe assembly (30a, 30b, 30c, 30d), and the foam material is independent of the space for accommodating each refrigerant pipe assembly (30a, 30b, 30c, 30d). A refrigerant flow path switching device (30), characterized in that partition walls (34, 44) for charging are disposed in the casing (31).   The partition wall (34, 44) is formed by connecting a plurality of partition wall units (34a, 34b, 34c, 34d, 44a, 44b, 44c, 44d) having the same shape. Refrigerant flow path switching device (30).   The partition wall unit (34a, 34b, 34c, 34d) is made of a plate material having a U-shaped horizontal cross section, and a plurality of partition walls so that the opening sides of the U-shaped plate material face the same direction on the same line. The refrigerant flow switching device (30) according to claim 2, wherein the units (34a, 34b, 34c, 34d) are connected.   The partition wall units (44a, 44b, 44c, 44d) are made of a plate material having an L-shaped horizontal cross section, and a single wall (W) is formed by connecting the short sides (45) of the L-shaped plate material. The refrigerant flow path switching device (30) according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of partition wall units (44a, 44b, 44c, 44d) are connected to each other.   The U-shaped plate material includes a central rectangular central plate portion (35) and a pair of opposing plate portions (36) extending in the same direction from opposing sides of the central plate portion (35). And a bent portion (37) extending in a direction toward the opposing counter plate portion (36) on the side of each counter plate portion (36) opposite to the side on the central plate portion (35) side. The refrigerant flow path switching device (30) according to claim 3, wherein:   The refrigerant flow switching device (30) according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein a reinforcing rib (38, 47) is formed on the plate member.

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