JP2011047600A - Heat exchanger and air conditioner mounted with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a structure of a side flow system parallel flow type heat exchanger suitable for connecting and using the plurality of heat exchangers. <P>SOLUTION: The heat exchanger 1 includes: two vertical header pipes 2, 3 arranged in parallel at an interval; a plurality of horizontal flat tubes 4 arranged between the header pipes 2, 3 and each having a refrigerant passage 5 provided therein and communicated with inside of the header pipes 2, 3; corrugated fins 6 arranged between the flat tubes 4; outermost side corrugated fins 6a arranged on outward flat faces of the flat tubes 4 positioned on the outermost sides; and side plates 10 arranged on the outer sides of the outermost side corrugated fins 6a. The heat exchangers 1 are paired and interconnected. The pair of heat exchangers 1 are interconnected by pairing the side plates 10 of the respective heat exchangers 1 with each other one by one and engaging the side plates 10 with each other. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a side flow parallel flow heat exchanger and an air conditioner equipped with the heat exchanger.

  A parallel flow type in which a plurality of flat tubes are arranged between two header pipes, and a plurality of refrigerant passages in the flat tubes communicate with the inside of the header pipe, and fins such as corrugated fins are arranged between the flat tubes. Heat exchangers are widely used in car air conditioners and building air conditioners. An example of this type of heat exchanger can be seen in US Pat. The heat exchanger described in Patent Document 1 is a so-called side flow type parallel flow heat exchanger in which header pipes are arranged vertically and flat tubes are arranged horizontally.

  In general, in the indoor unit of a separate type air conditioner, a plurality of heat exchangers incorporated in the air conditioner are usually connected and used so as to surround the cross flow fan. The heat exchanger described in Patent Document 2 is also like that. The heat exchanger described in Patent Document 2 is not a parallel flow type but a fin-and-tube type, and has a locking structure between the support plates at the end of the fin row. These heat exchangers can be combined at a predetermined angle.

JP 2007-139376 A Japanese Patent No. 4214456

  An object of the present invention is to provide a structure suitable for connecting and using a plurality of side flow parallel flow heat exchangers.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides two header pipes arranged in parallel at a distance from each other, and a plurality of refrigerant pipes arranged between the two header pipes and provided inside the header pipe. A flat tube connected to the inside of the flat tube, a corrugated fin disposed between the flat tubes, and a flat tube located on the outermost side of the plurality of flat tubes, disposed on a flat surface facing outward. A parallel flow type heat exchanger of a side flow system including a side plate disposed outside the outermost corrugated fin and connected to a pair of heat exchangers. The pair of heat exchangers are connected by engaging one of the side plates as a pair.

  According to this configuration, the side flow type parallel flow heat exchanger can be firmly connected without using a specially prepared connecting device by using the side plate originally provided therein.

  In the heat exchanger configured as described above, it is preferable that when the pair of side plates is engaged, the pair of heat exchangers form a predetermined angle.

  With such a configuration, a pair of heat exchangers can be connected to a predetermined angle without using a jig, and the assembly work can be speeded up.

  In the heat exchanger configured as described above, it is preferable that the pair of side plates are separably engaged.

  With such a configuration, the heat exchanger can be easily repaired or replaced.

  In the heat exchanger configured as described above, a hook is formed on one side of the pair of side plates, and on the other side, a passage hole that allows the hook to pass in a normal direction, and the hook that passes through the passage hole are slid horizontally. It is preferable that a slit to be engaged is formed.

  With this configuration, the side plates can be easily connected and separated.

  In the heat exchanger configured as described above, it is preferable that the pair of side plates generate a wind-shielding action when engaged.

  According to this configuration, the air flow that flows through the heat exchanger coupling body flows exclusively through the corrugated fins, and the heat exchange efficiency is improved because it passes only through the heat exchanger. Occurrence can be prevented.

  Further, the present invention is an air conditioner in which the heat exchanger configured as described above is mounted in an indoor unit.

  According to this configuration, the number of steps required to form the heat exchanger assembly of the indoor unit can be reduced, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  According to the present invention, the operation of connecting a plurality of side flow parallel flow heat exchangers at a predetermined angle can be easily performed without using a specially prepared connecting device. The manufacturing cost of an air conditioner indoor unit equipped with an exchanger can be reduced.

It is a typical vertical sectional view of the heat exchanger explaining embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic vertical sectional view of a heat exchanger cut at right angles to FIG. 1, showing two heat exchangers connected to each other. It is a side view of two heat exchangers and a fan made into a connection state. It is a perspective view of two heat exchangers made into a connection state, and a fan. It is a fragmentary perspective view of a pair of side plate. It is a schematic block diagram of the air conditioner which mounted the heat exchanger which concerns on this invention in the indoor unit, and shows the state at the time of heating operation. It is a schematic block diagram of the air conditioner which mounted the heat exchanger which concerns on this invention in the indoor unit, and shows the state at the time of air_conditionaing | cooling operation.

  The structure of a side flow parallel flow type heat exchanger will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, the upper side of the paper is the upper side in the vertical direction, and the lower side of the paper is the lower side in the vertical direction. Further, the left side of the paper is the left side in the left-right direction, and the right side of the paper is the right side in the left-right direction. The heat exchanger 1 arranges two vertical header pipes 2 and 3 in parallel with a horizontal interval, and a plurality of horizontal flat tubes 4 between the header pipes 2 and 3 at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction. It is arranged with. The flat tube 4 is an elongated molded product obtained by extruding a metal, and a refrigerant passage 5 through which a refrigerant flows is formed. Since the flat tube 4 is disposed so that the extrusion direction, which is the longitudinal direction, is horizontal, the refrigerant flow direction of the refrigerant passage 5 is also horizontal. A plurality of refrigerant passages 5 having the same cross-sectional shape and the same cross-sectional area are arranged in the depth direction of FIG. 1, so that the vertical cross section of the flat tube 4 has a harmonica shape as shown in FIG. Each refrigerant passage 5 communicates with the inside of the header pipes 2 and 3. Corrugated fins 6 are arranged between the adjacent flat tubes 4.

  The outermost corrugated fins 6a are arranged on the outer flat surfaces of the outermost flat tubes 4 among the flat tubes 4 in which a plurality of tubes are arranged in a line. A side plate 10 is disposed outside the outermost corrugated fin 6a.

  The header pipes 2 and 3, the flat tube 4, the corrugated fin 6, the outermost corrugated fin 6 a, and the side plate 10 are all made of a metal having good heat conductivity such as aluminum, and the flat tube 4 is The corrugated fin 6 and the outermost corrugated fin 6a are fixed to the flat tube 4 and the side plate 10 is fixed to the outermost corrugated fin 6a by brazing or welding.

  The heat exchanger 1 is a side flow system, and the refrigerant inlets 7 and 8 are provided only on the header pipe 3 side. That is, the header pipe 3 is a header pipe on the refrigerant pipe connection side. Two partition plates 9a and 9c are provided in the header pipe 3 at intervals in the vertical direction. Inside the header pipe 2, the partition plates are located at a height intermediate between the partition plates 9a and 9c. 9b is provided.

  When the heat exchanger 1 is used as an evaporator, the refrigerant flows from the lower refrigerant inlet / outlet 7 as indicated by solid arrows in FIG. The refrigerant entering from the refrigerant inlet / outlet 7 is blocked by the partition plate 9 a and travels toward the header pipe 2 via the flat tube 4. This refrigerant flow is represented by a left-pointing block arrow. The refrigerant that has entered the header pipe 2 is blocked by the partition plate 9 b and travels to the header pipe 3 via another flat tube 4. This refrigerant flow is represented by a right-pointing block arrow. The refrigerant that has entered the header pipe 3 is blocked by the partition plate 9c, and further travels toward the header pipe 2 via another flat tube 4. This refrigerant flow is represented by a left-pointing block arrow. The refrigerant that has entered the header pipe 2 is folded back and travels again to the header pipe 3 via another flat tube 4. This refrigerant flow is represented by a right-pointing block arrow. The refrigerant finally flows out from the refrigerant inlet / outlet 8. In this way, the refrigerant follows the zigzag path and flows from the bottom to the top. Although the case where the number of partition plates is 3 is shown here, this is only an example, and the number of partition plates and the number of times the resulting refrigerant flow may be folded may be set as desired. it can.

  In the configuration of FIG. 1, the flat tube 4 positioned in the height region between the refrigerant inlet / outlet 7 and the partition plate 9a constitutes one path, and the flat tube 4 positioned in the height region between the partition plate 9a and the partition plate 9b. The tube 4 constitutes another path, and the flat tube 4 positioned in the height region between the partition plate 9b and the partition plate 9c forms another path, and the height between the partition plate 9c and the refrigerant inlet / outlet 8 The flat tube 4 located in the region constitutes yet another path. These paths will be referred to as “first path”, “second path”, “third path”, and “fourth path” in the order described.

  When the heat exchanger 1 is used as a condenser, the refrigerant flow is reversed. That is, the refrigerant enters the header pipe 3 from the refrigerant inlet / outlet 8 as shown by a dotted arrow in FIG. 1, is dammed by the partition plate 9c and goes to the header pipe 2 via the fourth path, and is dammed by the partition plate 9b in the header pipe 2. Then, the header pipe 3 passes through the third path, and the header pipe 3 is dammed up by the partition plate 9a, goes through the second path again to the header pipe 2, turns back at the header pipe 2, and then passes through the first path again. And flows out from the refrigerant inlet / outlet 7 as indicated by a dotted line arrow.

  The heat exchanger 1 has a structure suitable for connecting and using a plurality of things. The minimum unit of concatenation is “one pair”. Hereinafter, a mechanism for connecting the pair of heat exchangers 1 will be described.

  FIG. 2 shows a pair of heat exchangers 1. For identification, the sign of one heat exchanger is “1A” and the sign of the other heat exchanger is “1B”. The heat exchanger 1B is depicted as a small size in the height direction than the heat exchanger 1A. The dimensions in the left-right direction are the same for both heat exchanger 1A and heat exchanger 1B.

  The heat exchanger 1 </ b> A and the heat exchanger 1 </ b> B are connected by engaging the upper one of the two upper and lower side plates 10 as a pair. For identification, the upper side plate of the heat exchanger 1A is denoted by “10A”, and the upper side plate of the heat exchanger 1B is denoted by “10B”.

  The side plate 10A and the side plate 10B have an extension 10Ae and an extension 10Be that are used for mutual engagement. The extension portion 10Ae extends at a right angle to the main body portion of the side plate 10A, in other words, parallel to the header pipes 2 and 3. The extension 10Be has an angle slightly deviated from the parallel to the main body of the side plate 10B. The angle formed between the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B when the extension portion 10Ae and the extension portion 10Be are fit together is the angle at which the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B are to be connected. The angle is a little smaller than 90 ° in the case of the embodiment.

  The heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B of the embodiment are used for an indoor unit of an air conditioner, and are combined with the cross flow fan 20 at a predetermined angle as shown in FIG. 3 or FIG. It is done. Reference numeral 21 denotes a motor for rotating the cross flow fan 20.

  The hook 11 protrudes from the extension 10Be of the side plate 10B. The hook 11 is cut and raised at the extension 10Be, and a plurality of hooks 11 are arranged in the horizontal direction. A hook engagement hole 12 (see FIG. 5) is formed in the extension portion 10Ae of the side plate 10B corresponding to the hook 11. The hook engagement hole 12 includes a passage hole 12a that allows the hook 11 to pass in the normal direction of the extension 10Ae, and a slit 12b that the hook 11 that passes through the passage hole 12a slides and engages sideways. The

  When the positions of the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B are shifted while the hook 11 is passed through the passage hole 12a and the hook 11 is engaged with the slit 12b, the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B are firmly connected. It will be in the state. The extension 10Ae and the extension 10Be are in close contact with each other or close to each other, and the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B form a predetermined angle with each other. As described above, the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B can be firmly connected to each other at a predetermined angle without using a specially prepared connection structure using the side plates originally provided in the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B. .

  In the case of the embodiment, in the state where the hook 11 is engaged with the slit 12b, the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B are in a state in which ends are aligned in the left-right direction as shown in FIG. Yes. By doing in this way, the connection body of heat exchanger 1A, 1B can be made into the compact thing by which the dimension in the left-right direction was suppressed to the minimum.

  When the side plates 10A and 10B are put in the engaged state, a wind shielding action is generated at the location, and it becomes difficult for air to flow into the space between the upper part of the heat exchanger 1A and the upper part of the heat exchanger 1B. For this reason, the air flow that flows through the coupling body of the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B flows exclusively through the corrugated fins 6, that is, only through the heat exchangers 1A and 1B, thereby improving the heat exchange efficiency. To do. Moreover, it is difficult for air that is not heat-exchanged to reach the cross flow fan 20, and it is possible to prevent condensation on the surface of the cross flow fan 20.

  Generally, during cooling operation, it is desirable that air that does not pass through the heat exchanger does not contact the fan. This is due to the following reason. During the cooling operation, the air cooled by the heat exchanger passes through the fan, and the fan is cooled. Here, when air that has not been cooled by the heat exchanger contacts the fan, moisture in the air condenses on the surface of the fan. The water condensed on the surface of the fan is scattered by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the fan and jumps out of the outlet. When the water that has come from such a “water splash” phenomenon hits people or things, it is not only unpleasant, but it can even cause water damage. In order to prevent this situation, it is necessary to eliminate as much as possible the air flow that does not pass through the heat exchanger. According to the configuration of the present invention, such an effect can be obtained.

  If the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B are shifted in the opposite directions and the hook 11 is aligned with the passage hole 12a, the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B can be separated. Accordingly, when the heat exchanger 1A or the heat exchanger 1B needs to be repaired or replaced, the work can be easily performed.

  The connection body of the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B can be mounted on an indoor unit of a separate air conditioner. A separate type air conditioner is composed of an outdoor unit and an indoor unit. The outdoor unit includes a compressor, a four-way valve, an expansion valve, an outdoor heat exchanger, an outdoor fan, and the like. The indoor unit is an indoor heat exchanger, a room Includes an internal blower. The outdoor heat exchanger functions as an evaporator during heating operation and functions as a condenser during cooling operation. The indoor heat exchanger functions as a condenser during heating operation and functions as an evaporator during cooling operation.

  FIG. 6 shows a basic configuration of a separate type air conditioner that uses a heat pump cycle as a refrigeration cycle. The heat pump cycle 101 includes a compressor 102, a four-way valve 103, an outdoor heat exchanger 104, a decompression / expansion device 105, and an indoor heat exchanger 106 connected in a loop. The indoor-side heat exchanger 106 is constituted by a connected body of the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B.

  The compressor 102, the four-way valve 103, the heat exchanger 104, and the decompression / expansion device 105 are accommodated in the casing of the outdoor unit, and the heat exchanger 106 is accommodated in the casing of the indoor unit. An outdoor fan 107 is combined with the heat exchanger 104, and an indoor fan 108 is combined with the heat exchanger 106. The blower 107 includes a propeller fan, and the blower 108 includes a cross flow fan 20.

  FIG. 6 shows a state during heating operation. At this time, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 102 enters the indoor heat exchanger 106 where it dissipates heat and condenses. The refrigerant exiting the heat exchanger 106 enters the outdoor heat exchanger 104 from the decompression / expansion device 105 and expands there, takes heat from the outdoor air, and returns to the compressor 102. The airflow generated by the indoor fan 108 promotes heat dissipation from the heat exchanger 106, and the airflow generated by the outdoor fan 107 accelerates heat absorption of the heat exchanger 104.

  FIG. 7 shows a state during cooling operation or defrosting operation. At this time, the four-way valve 103 is switched so that the refrigerant flow is reversed from that during the heating operation. That is, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 102 enters the outdoor heat exchanger 104, where it dissipates heat and condenses. The refrigerant exiting the heat exchanger 104 enters the heat exchanger 106 on the indoor side from the decompression / expansion device 105 and expands there, takes heat from the indoor air, and returns to the compressor 102. The airflow generated by the outdoor fan 107 promotes heat dissipation from the heat exchanger 104, and the airflow generated by the indoor fan 108 promotes heat absorption of the heat exchanger 106.

  As described above, by using the connection body of the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B as the heat exchanger 106 of the indoor unit, the number of steps required to form the heat exchanger 106 can be reduced, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. it can.

  The above embodiment shows the simplest example of connecting two heat exchangers 1A and 1B, but using the side plate 10 that is not currently used for connection, A fourth or even more heat exchangers 1 can be connected. In addition, a configuration in which two or more heat exchangers 1 stacked are connected to each other.

  In the embodiment, the angle formed between the heat exchanger 1A and the heat exchanger 1B is slightly smaller than 90 °, but this angle can be 90 ° or more. In this way, it is possible to easily realize a configuration in which the cross flow fan 20 is surrounded by three or more connected heat exchangers.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

  The present invention is widely applicable to side flow parallel flow heat exchangers.

1, 1A, 1B Heat exchanger 2, 3 Header pipe 4 Flat tube 5 Refrigerant passage 6 Corrugated fin 6a Outermost corrugated fin 9a, 9b, 9c Partition plate 10, 10A, 10B Side plate 10Ae, 10Be Extension part 11 Hook 12 Hook Engagement hole 12a Passing hole 12b Slit 20 Cross flow fan 21 Motor

Claims (6)

Two header pipes arranged parallel to each other at intervals, a plurality of flat tubes arranged between the two header pipes and having a refrigerant passage provided therein communicating with the inside of the header pipe; A corrugated fin disposed between the flat tubes, an outermost corrugated fin disposed on a flat surface facing outward of a flat tube located on the outermost side among the plurality of flat tubes, and the outermost corrugated tube A side flow parallel flow type heat exchanger having a side plate disposed outside the fins,
A pair of heat exchangers are connected, and the pair of heat exchangers are connected by engaging one of the side plates as a pair. vessel.   The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein when the pair of side plates are engaged, the pair of heat exchangers form a predetermined angle.   The heat exchanger according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pair of side plates are separably engaged.   One of the pair of side plates is formed with a hook, and the other is formed with a passage hole that allows the hook to pass in the normal direction and a slit that engages the hook that has passed through the passage hole by a lateral slide. The heat exchanger according to claim 3, wherein the heat exchanger is provided.   The heat exchanger according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the pair of side plates generates a wind shielding action when engaged.   An air conditioner in which the heat exchanger according to any one of claims 1 to 5 is mounted on an indoor unit.

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