JP2014055739A - Communication adaptor for air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a component exerting an additional insulation function from being improperly decomposed, in a case when additional insulation is further secured in addition to basic insulation inside of an air conditioner.SOLUTION: A communication adaptor for an air conditioner of an embodiment, includes an air conditioner-side connecting portion, an external apparatus-side connecting portion, a communication control unit, a base portion, a cover portion, and a mounting state releasing portion. An air conditioner-side signal line extended from a basic insulation portion inside of the air conditioner, is connected to the air conditioner-side connecting portion. An external apparatus-side signal line extended from the external apparatus excluding the air conditioner, is connected to the external apparatus-side connecting portion. A communication control unit includes the air conditioner-side connecting portion and the external apparatus-side connecting portion. The base portion supports the communication control unit. The cover portion covers the entire communication control unit by being mounted on the base portion. The mounting state releasing portion releases a state that the cover portion is mounted on the base portion, by being operated by a tool.

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to a communication adapter for an air conditioner.

  Conventionally, for example, a configuration in which an electric device such as an air conditioner and an external device other than the air conditioner are connected via a communication adapter has been considered. For this type of communication adapter, in addition to basic insulation, ensure further electrical insulation so that electrical safety against external equipment can be ensured even if the basic insulation inside the air conditioner breaks. That is, it is required to secure additional insulation.

JP 2005-223541 A

  The present embodiment provides a communication adapter for an air conditioner that prevents the structure that performs the additional insulation function from being inadvertently disassembled when additional insulation is secured in addition to the basic insulation inside the air conditioner. There is.

  The communication adapter for an air conditioner according to the present embodiment includes an air conditioner side connection part, an external device side connection part, a communication control unit, a base part, a cover part, and an attachment state release part. The air conditioner side signal line extending from the basic insulating part inside the air conditioner is connected to the air conditioner side connection part. An external device side signal line extending from an external device other than the air conditioner is connected to the external device side connection section. The communication control unit includes an air conditioner side connection part and an external device side connection part. The base part supports the communication control unit. The cover part covers the entire communication control unit by being attached to the base part. The attachment state release portion is operated using a tool to release the state where the cover portion is attached to the base portion.

The figure which shows an example of the connection relation between the communication adapter for air conditioners which concerns on 1st Embodiment, the indoor unit of an air conditioner, and an external device. The perspective view which shows an example of the communication adapter for air conditioners (the 1) The perspective view which shows an example of the communication adapter for air conditioners (the 2) The figure which shows an example of the structure which realizes an additional insulation function on a communication line The figure which shows an example of the structure which implement | achieves an additional insulation function on an electric circuit FIG. 1 equivalent view according to the second embodiment

Hereinafter, a plurality of embodiments of a communication adapter for an air conditioner will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the substantially same element in each embodiment, and description is abbreviate | omitted.
(First embodiment)
As shown in FIG. 1, an indoor unit 10 of an air conditioner and an external device 20 other than the air conditioner are connected via a communication adapter 100 so that they can communicate with each other. The indoor unit 10 can also supply power obtained from a commercial power source (not shown) to the external device 20 via the communication adapter 100. As the external device 20, various devices such as home appliances such as a refrigerator and a television, an information terminal such as a personal computer, and a communication device are conceivable.

  The indoor unit 10 includes a control unit 12, a basic insulating unit 13, and the like inside a housing 11 that forms an outline of the indoor unit 10. The control unit 12 is configured to include a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like (not shown), and based on setting contents set via a remote controller (not shown), the overall operation of the indoor unit 10 and further air including an outdoor unit (not shown) Controls the overall operation of the harmony machine. The basic insulating part 13 is configured to include, for example, a transformer.

  A power supply system for supplying power to the indoor unit 10 from a commercial power source (not shown) is connected to the primary circuit of the basic insulating unit 13. The air conditioner side signal line 14 is connected to the secondary circuit of the basic insulating unit 13. The air conditioner side signal line 14 is configured by a wired communication cable such as a LAN cable (LAN: Local Area Network). This air conditioner side signal line 14 extends from the basic insulating part 13 inside the indoor unit 10 of the air conditioner and is connected to the air conditioner side connection part 101 provided in the communication adapter 100. The air conditioner side connection unit 101 is constituted by, for example, a modular jack for a communication cable.

  On the other hand, the external device side signal line 15 configured by a wired communication cable such as a LAN cable (LAN: Local Area Network) is connected to the external device 20. The external device side signal line 15 extending from the external device 20 is connected to the external device side connection unit 102 provided in the communication adapter 100. The external device side connection unit 102 is configured by, for example, a modular jack for a communication cable.

  The communication adapter 100 includes a communication control unit 103 configured by, for example, a LAN control board or a LAN control module. The air conditioner side connection unit 101 and the external device side connection unit 102 described above are provided in the communication control unit 103. The communication control unit 103 is entirely covered with an outer portion 110 made of an insulating material such as a plastic material. By covering the entire communication control unit 103 with the outer shell 110, the communication control unit 103 is electrically insulated by the communication adapter 100, thereby ensuring so-called additional insulation. Therefore, a so-called double insulation structure is secured for the external device 20 by the basic insulation by the basic insulation part 13 in the indoor unit 10 and the additional insulation by the outer part 110 in the communication adapter 100.

  Next, the configuration of the outer portion 110 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the outer portion 110 includes a base portion 111 and a cover portion 112 made of an insulating material such as a plastic material. The base portion 111 has a substantially flat shape, and has a support portion 113 on the inner surface thereof. The support portion 113 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape, and supports a communication control unit 103A configured with a LAN control board therein. Further, the base portion 111 has a screw hole portion 114 outside the support portion 113.

  The cover portion 112 has a dome shape whose inner surface is open, and has a screwing portion 115 extending toward the base portion 111 at a portion of the inner surface facing the screw hole portion 114 of the base portion 111. As indicated by an arrow A in FIG. 2, the cover portion 112 is attached to a base portion 111 that supports the communication control unit 103A. The cover portion 112 is fixed to the base portion 111 by a user screwing a screw (not shown) to the screwing portion 115 through the screw hole portion 114 using a screwdriver as a tool. That is, the outer portion 110 in which the cover portion 112 is firmly fixed to the base portion 111 is configured by the user consciously performing the attachment operation using a tool.

  The outer portion 110 configured as described above has a structure in which the cover portion 112 cannot be removed from the base portion 111 unless a user removes a screw (not shown) from the screwing portion 115 using a screwdriver as a tool. That is, the outer portion 110 has a structure that cannot be inadvertently disassembled into the base portion 111 and the cover portion 112 unless the user consciously performs a removal operation using a tool.

  In this case, the screw hole portion 114 and the screwing portion 115 are in a state in which the cover portion 112 is firmly attached to the base portion 111, that is, the outer portion unless the user consciously performs a removal operation using a tool. The attachment state maintenance part which maintains the state in which 110 was formed is comprised. That is, unless the user consciously performs the removal operation using a tool, the state in which the cover portion 112 is firmly attached to the base portion 111 is maintained, whereby the outer portion 110 is connected to the base portion 111 and the cover portion 112. And can be maintained in an indegradable state.

  Further, the screw hole portion 114 and the screwing portion 115 are formed in a state in which the cover portion 112 is firmly attached to the base portion 111 when the user consciously performs a removal operation using a tool, that is, the outer portion 110 is formed. An attachment state release unit 116 that releases the released state is also configured. That is, when the user consciously performs the removal operation using a tool, the state in which the cover portion 112 is firmly attached to the base portion 111 is released, and thus the outer portion 110 is removed from the base portion 111 and the cover portion 112. It can be in a state that can be disassembled.

Note that the example shown in FIG. 3 shows a case where the communication control unit 103B configured by the LAN control module is supported by the support unit 113. Also in this case, the outer part 110 in which the cover part 112 is firmly fixed to the base part 111 is configured by the user consciously performing the attaching operation using the tool, while the user performs the detaching operation using the tool. By consciously performing the above, the state where the cover portion 112 is firmly attached to the base portion 111 is released. In this case, the support unit 113 is configured as a common support unit that can support both the communication control unit 103A configured with a LAN control board and the communication control unit 103B configured with a LAN control module.
Although not shown, the communication control unit 103 may be provided with so-called functional insulation. That is, the communication control unit 103 may be provided with a protection circuit or a protection mechanism (not shown) for preventing ignition and the like so as to maintain a state in which the function of the communication control unit 103 can be properly exhibited without being impaired.

  Further, the so-called additional insulation may be applied to the communication control unit 103 in addition to the above-described additional insulation by the outer portion 110, and for example, additional insulation may be performed by the following configuration. That is, for example, in the example shown in FIG. 4, the communication control unit 103 includes a pulse transformer unit 121 and a coupling capacitor 122 for LAN communication on the communication line 120 between the indoor unit 10 and the communication control unit 103. Yes. The communication control unit 103 can further exhibit an additional insulation function by ensuring the withstand voltage and the insulation distance (spatial distance, creepage distance) with the pulse transformer unit 121 and the coupling capacitor 122. The communication line 120 includes the air conditioner side signal line 14 or is configured separately from the air conditioner side signal line 14.

  According to the embodiment described above, in the communication adapter 100 that connects the air conditioner including the indoor unit 10 and the external device 20 that is a device other than the air conditioner, the base portions 111 that are firmly fixed to each other. Additional insulation can be ensured by the outer portion 110 including the cover portion 112. The outer portion 110 cannot be disassembled into the base portion 111 and the cover portion 112 unless the user intentionally performs a removal operation (disassembly operation) using a tool. As a result, the outer portion 110 that performs the additional insulation function is not inadvertently disassembled, and thus a strong double insulation structure can be secured together with the basic insulation structure by the basic insulation portion 13 of the indoor unit 10. Even if the basic insulating part 13 inside the indoor unit 10 of the air conditioner is destroyed, electrical safety with respect to the external device 20 can be ensured.

Moreover, according to this embodiment, by providing functional insulation to the communication control unit 103, even if the basic insulation part 13 inside the indoor unit 10 of the air conditioner is destroyed, the functional insulation of the communication adapter 100 is ensured. And can be appropriately exhibited without impairing the function of the communication adapter 100.
Further, according to this embodiment, in addition to the additional insulation by the outer shell 110, the communication control unit 103 is further subjected to additional insulation by, for example, the pulse transformer 121 or the coupling capacitor 122, thereby further strengthening the double insulation. A structure can be secured. Thereby, even if the basic insulation part 13 inside the indoor unit 10 of the air conditioner is destroyed, the electrical safety with respect to the external device 20 can be further improved.

  The communication control unit 103 includes a photocoupler 141 in an electric circuit 140 for power supply provided between the indoor unit 10 and the communication control unit 103, for example, as shown in FIG. The additional insulation function may be exhibited by securing a dielectric breakdown voltage and an insulation distance (spatial distance, creepage distance) at 141. Further, the communication control unit 103 may be configured to include a photocoupler 141 instead of the pulse transformer unit 121 and the coupling capacitor 122 described above, or may include the pulse transformer unit 121 and the coupling capacitor 122 and the photocoupler 141. It is good also as a structure.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, in this embodiment, the communication adapter 100 including the air conditioner side signal line 14 and a communication control unit (not shown) is built in the indoor unit 10 of the air conditioner. In this case, the casing 11 constituting the outer shell of the indoor unit 10 functions as an outer shell portion including a base portion and a cover portion. That is, the casing cover made of an insulating material such as a plastic material that constitutes the casing 11 is normally configured so that it cannot be removed unless the user consciously performs a detaching operation using a tool. In this embodiment, paying attention to such points of the casing 11, additional insulation is secured by the casing 11 made of an insulating material.

  According to the embodiment described above, since the air conditioner side connection portion 14 and the communication control unit 103 are built in the indoor unit 10 of the air conditioner, the configuration corresponding to the outer portion including the base portion and the cover portion described above. Can be configured by the housing 11 of the indoor unit 10. Therefore, it is not necessary to newly provide parts as the base part and the cover part, and an increase in the number of parts can be suppressed. In addition, since the communication control unit 103 is built in the indoor unit 10 of the air conditioner in advance, the work for connecting the communication control unit 103 to the air conditioner becomes unnecessary, and the installation work can be easily performed.

  The air conditioner communication adapter according to the plurality of embodiments described above includes an air conditioner side connection portion, an external device side connection portion, a communication control unit, a base portion, a cover portion, and an attachment state release portion. And comprising. The air conditioner side signal line extending from the basic insulating part inside the air conditioner is connected to the air conditioner side connection part. An external device side signal line extending from an external device other than the air conditioner is connected to the external device side connection section. The communication control unit includes an air conditioner side connection part and an external device side connection part. The base part supports the communication control unit. The cover part covers the entire communication control unit by being attached to the base part. The attachment state release portion is operated using a tool to release the state where the cover portion is attached to the base portion.

  According to this configuration, in the communication adapter that connects the air conditioner and an external device other than the air conditioner, additional insulation can be ensured by the base portion and the cover portion that are firmly fixed to each other. These base and cover portions cannot be disassembled without being released from a state in which they are firmly fixed to each other unless the user consciously performs a removal operation using a tool. As a result, the base part and the cover part that perform the additional insulation function are not inadvertently disassembled, and therefore a strong double insulation structure can be secured, and the basic insulation part inside the air conditioner is temporarily Even if it is destroyed, it is possible to ensure electrical safety against external equipment.

  Note that the attachment state release portion may be configured to release the state where the cover portion is attached to the base portion by being operated using a tool. Various joining structures such as a so-called snap-fit structure that is fixed by being fitted and used, and a so-called press-fit structure that is fixed by using a frictional force between a pin hole and a pin press-fitted into the pin hole can be adopted.

Moreover, you may provide multiple attachment state cancellation | release parts. In this case, for example, the base part and the cover part can be more firmly fixed by providing the attachment state releasing part on the diagonal line with the communication control unit interposed therebetween.
Moreover, when selling an air conditioner, the communication adapter for air conditioners may be sold separately or as an accessory.
The above-described embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. This embodiment and its modifications are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

  In the drawing, 11 is a housing, 13 is a basic insulating part, 14 is an air conditioner side signal line, 15 is an external device side signal line, 20 is an external device, 100 is a communication adapter (communication adapter for air conditioner), and 101 is An air conditioner side connection unit, 102 is an external device side connection unit, 103 (103A, 103B) is a communication control unit, 111 is a base unit, 112 is a cover unit, and 116 is an attachment state release unit.

Claims (4)

An air conditioner side connection part to which an air conditioner side signal line extending from a basic insulating part inside the air conditioner is connected;
An external device side connection part to which an external device side signal line extending from an external device other than the air conditioner is connected;
A communication control unit including the air conditioner side connection unit and the external device side connection unit;
A base for supporting the communication control unit;
A cover portion that covers the entire communication control unit by being attached to the base portion;
An attachment state releasing part that releases the state where the cover part is attached to the base part by being operated using a tool;
A communication adapter for an air conditioner.   The communication adapter for an air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein functional insulation is applied to the communication control unit.   The communication adapter for an air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, wherein additional insulation is applied to the communication control unit. The air conditioner side signal line and the communication control unit are built in the air conditioner,
The communication adapter for an air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the base part and the cover part are configured by a housing of the air conditioner.

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