JP2019031148A - Vehicle air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a vehicle air conditioner which can improve operation efficiency in a heating mode.SOLUTION: A vehicle air conditioner 11 is a heat pump type vehicle air conditioner which includes a cooling refrigerant circuit and a heating refrigerant circuit, and the cooling refrigerant circuit and the heating refrigerant circuit share a compressor 41 and an outdoor heat exchanger 47. A cooling refrigerant pipe 37 connected to the compressor 41 through a cooling pressure reducing valve 53 and an evaporator 25, and a heating refrigerant pipe 39 connected to the compressor 41 by bypassing the cooling pressure reducing valve 53 and the evaporator 25 are connected to a refrigerant outlet of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 so as to be switched selectively. An inner diameter of the heating refrigerant pipe 39 connected to the refrigerant outlet 48b of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 is set to have a dimension larger than an inner diameter of the cooling refrigerant pipe 37 connected to the refrigerant outlet 48a.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditioner that cools and heats a passenger compartment using a heat pump cycle.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a vehicle air conditioner that performs cooling and heating in a vehicle interior using a heat pump cycle is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
The vehicle air conditioner according to Patent Document 1 includes a heating refrigerant circuit and a cooling refrigerant circuit, and a compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, and the like are shared between both refrigerant circuits.
In the vehicle air conditioner according to Patent Document 1, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor is radiated by the outdoor heat exchanger during the cooling mode operation, and then the low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant is decompressed and expanded by the cooling pressure reducing valve. Is exchanged with the conditioned air by an indoor heat exchanger for cooling. At this time, the conditioned air is cooled by passing through the cooling indoor heat exchanger, and is supplied to the passenger compartment as cooling.
On the other hand, during the heating mode operation, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor exchanges heat with the heating indoor heat exchanger, and then the low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant decompressed and expanded by the heating pressure reducing valve becomes the outdoor heat exchanger. Absorbs atmospheric heat. At this time, the conditioned air is heated by passing through the indoor heat exchanger for heating, and is supplied to the vehicle interior as heating.

JP 2016-49915 A

  However, since the vehicle air conditioner according to Patent Document 1 shares the refrigerant pipe provided on the downstream side of the outdoor heat exchanger during the cooling mode operation and the heating mode operation, the refrigerant pipe is used during the heating mode operation. There was a problem that the pressure loss was large and the operation efficiency was impaired. This is because high-pressure refrigerant flows through the refrigerant pipe during the cooling mode operation, while low-pressure refrigerant flows through the heating mode operation, so that the high-pressure refrigerant during the cooling mode operation does not leak into the refrigerant pipe without fail. This is based on the fact that the specifications including the inner diameter of the refrigerant pipe are set in consideration of distribution.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle air conditioner that can improve the operation efficiency in the heating mode.

The present invention exchanges heat between the refrigerant compressed by the compressor and the outside air using an outdoor heat exchanger, decompresses the refrigerant after the heat exchange using a cooling pressure reducing valve, and air-conditions the refrigerant after the decompression using a cooling indoor heat exchanger. A refrigerant circuit for cooling that exchanges heat with air and returns the refrigerant after the heat exchange to the compressor, and a refrigerant that is compressed by the compressor exchanges heat with conditioned air in an indoor heat exchanger for heating, and the refrigerant after the heat exchange And a heating refrigerant circuit for exchanging heat with the outside air in the outdoor heat exchanger and returning the refrigerant after the heat exchange to the compressor. The refrigerant circuit and the heating refrigerant circuit are heat pump type vehicle air conditioners that share the compressor and the outdoor heat exchanger.
At the refrigerant outlet of the outdoor heat exchanger, a cooling refrigerant pipe connected to the compressor via the cooling pressure reducing valve and the cooling indoor heat exchanger, the cooling pressure reducing valve and the cooling room A heating refrigerant pipe that bypasses the heat exchanger and is connected to the compressor is selectively connected. The most important feature is that an inner diameter of the heating refrigerant pipe connected to the refrigerant outlet is set to be larger than an inner diameter of the cooling refrigerant pipe connected to the refrigerant outlet.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the vehicle air conditioner which can improve the driving | operation efficiency in heating mode can be provided.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is explanatory drawing showing the flow of the refrigerant | coolant at the time of driving the vehicle air conditioner which concerns on embodiment of this invention in air_conditioning | cooling mode. It is explanatory drawing showing the flow of the refrigerant | coolant at the time of driving the vehicle air conditioner which concerns on embodiment of this invention in heating mode. It is explanatory drawing showing the flow of the refrigerant | coolant in the outdoor heat exchanger at the time of driving the vehicle air conditioner which concerns on embodiment of this invention in air_conditioning | cooling mode. It is explanatory drawing showing the flow of the refrigerant | coolant in the outdoor heat exchanger at the time of driving the vehicle air conditioner which concerns on embodiment of this invention in heating mode.

Hereinafter, a vehicle air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings as appropriate.
[Whole structure of vehicle air conditioner 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention]
First, the whole structure of the vehicle air conditioner 11 which concerns on embodiment of this invention is demonstrated with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle air conditioner 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle air conditioner 11 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes an air conditioning unit 13, a heat pump cycle 15 capable of circulating a refrigerant, and a control device 17 that performs air conditioning control using the refrigerant. It is prepared for. Although the vehicle air conditioner 11 is not specifically limited, For example, it is mounted in electric vehicles, such as an electric vehicle which is not provided with the internal combustion engine as a drive source.

As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioning unit 13 includes a duct 21 in which conditioned air circulates in a cylindrical internal space, an air intake door 22, a blower 23 provided on the upstream side of the duct 21, an evaporator 25, an air A mix door 27 and a capacitor 29 are provided.
As shown in FIG. 1, the duct 21 has an air intake 31 and an air outlet 33. The air intake door 22, the blower 23, the evaporator 25, the air mix door 27, and the condenser 29 described above are arranged in the flow direction of the conditioned air in the duct 21 from the upstream side (air intake port 31 side) to the downstream side (air outlet port). 33 side) in this order.

  The blower 23 is driven according to the drive voltage based on the control command of the control device 17. The blower 23 sends the conditioned air taken into the duct 21 from the air intake 31 toward the evaporator 25 and the condenser 29 on the downstream side.

  The evaporator 25 performs heat exchange between the low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant flowing through the evaporator 25 and the conditioned air in the duct 21. Thereby, the conditioned air passing through the evaporator 25 is cooled by heat absorption when the refrigerant evaporates. The evaporator 25 corresponds to the “cooling indoor heat exchanger” of the present invention.

  The condenser 29 exchanges heat between the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant flowing through the condenser 29 and the conditioned air in the duct 21. Thereby, the temperature of the conditioned air passing through the condenser 29 is increased by the heat radiation of the refrigerant. The condenser 29 corresponds to the “heating indoor heat exchanger” of the present invention.

  The air mix door 27 is rotated and adjusted based on a control command from the control device 17. The air mix door 27 has a cooling position (see FIG. 2) that opens a ventilation path that bypasses the condenser 29 from the downstream of the evaporator 25 in the duct 21 and a heating position that opens a ventilation path toward the condenser 29 (see FIG. 3). And rotate between. By this rotation adjustment, the ratio between the air volume introduced into the condenser 29 and the air volume bypassing the condenser 29 and discharged into the vehicle interior of the conditioned air that has passed through the evaporator 25 is adjusted.

  In addition to the evaporator 25 and the condenser 29, the heat pump cycle 15 includes a compressor 41, a cooling first electromagnetic valve 43, a heating pressure reducing valve 45, an outdoor heat exchanger 47, and a cooling second electromagnetic valve 49. And a heating electromagnetic valve 51, a cooling pressure reducing valve 53, and a gas-liquid separator 55 are connected via a refrigerant flow passage 35.

  The compressor 41 is connected between the gas-liquid separator 55 and the condenser 29 in the refrigerant flow passage 35. The compressor 41 is driven based on a control command from the control device 17. For example, during the heating mode operation, the compressor 41 sucks and compresses the gas-phase refrigerant (refrigerant gas) from the gas-liquid separator 55 and discharges the compressed high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant to the condenser 29.

  A first electromagnetic valve 43 for cooling and a series circuit of a condenser 29 and a pressure reducing valve 45 for heating are arranged in parallel on the downstream side of the compressor 41 in the refrigerant flow passage 35.

  The first electromagnetic valve for cooling 43 sends the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant compressed by the compressor 41 to the outdoor heat exchanger 47 by bypassing the series circuit of the condenser 29 and the heating pressure reducing valve 45 during the cooling mode operation. It has a function. The cooling first electromagnetic valve 43 is driven to open and close based on a control command from the control device 17. The cooling first electromagnetic valve 43 is opened during the cooling mode operation, and is closed during the heating mode operation.

Thereby, for example, during the cooling mode operation, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant compressed by the compressor 41 flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 47 through the first cooling solenoid valve 43 in a high-temperature and high-pressure state.
On the other hand, during the heating mode operation, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant compressed by the compressor 41 flows into the condenser 29. Next, the refrigerant discharged from the condenser 29 is depressurized by the heating pressure reducing valve 45. The low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant after decompression flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 47.

  The heating pressure reducing valve 45 is a so-called throttle valve. The heating pressure reducing valve 45 decompresses and expands the refrigerant discharged from the condenser 29, and then discharges it to the outdoor heat exchanger 47 as a low-temperature low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase (liquid phase rich) mist refrigerant.

  The outdoor heat exchanger 47 is provided in the front part of the vehicle outside the passenger compartment and performs heat exchange between the refrigerant flowing into the interior of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 and the atmosphere outside the passenger compartment. As the outdoor heat exchanger 47, a horizontal heat exchanger in which the flow direction of the main refrigerant is a horizontal direction or a vertical heat exchanger in which the flow direction of the main refrigerant is a vertical direction can be suitably used. In the present embodiment, an example in which a horizontal heat exchanger is adopted as the outdoor heat exchanger 47 will be described.

In the cooling mode operation, the outdoor heat exchanger 47 radiates heat to the outdoor atmosphere so as to cool the high-temperature refrigerant flowing into the outdoor heat exchanger 47. The outdoor heat exchanger 47 cools the high-temperature refrigerant by radiating heat to the vehicle exterior atmosphere and blowing air from a fan (not shown).
On the other hand, during the heating mode operation, the outdoor heat exchanger 47 absorbs heat from the outdoor atmosphere so as to warm the low-temperature refrigerant flowing into the interior. The outdoor heat exchanger 47 raises the temperature of the low-temperature refrigerant by absorbing heat from the atmosphere outside the passenger compartment.

  The cooling second electromagnetic valve 49 has a function of sending the high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the outdoor heat exchanger 47 to the cooling pressure reducing valve 53 during the cooling mode operation. The cooling second electromagnetic valve 49 is provided at the refrigerant outlet 48 a of the outdoor heat exchanger 47. The second electromagnetic valve 49 for cooling is driven to open and close based on a control command from the control device 17. The second electromagnetic valve 49 for cooling is opened during the cooling mode operation, and is closed during the heating mode operation.

  During the cooling mode operation, the high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the outdoor heat exchanger 47 flows through the cooling refrigerant pipe 37 connecting the second cooling electromagnetic valve 49 and the cooling pressure reducing valve 53. Therefore, in order to ensure that the high-pressure refrigerant flows without leakage, the inner diameter of the cooling refrigerant pipe 37 is appropriately determined in consideration of being able to withstand the pressure and heat of the refrigerant flowing through the inside and suppressing the pressure loss. The dimensions are set. As the cooling refrigerant pipe 37, for example, a high-pressure hose having appropriate pressure resistance and heat resistance can be suitably employed.

  The heating solenoid valve 51 has a function of sending the low-pressure refrigerant discharged from the outdoor heat exchanger 47 to the gas-liquid separator 55 during the heating mode operation. The heating solenoid valve 51 is provided at the refrigerant outlet 48 b of the outdoor heat exchanger 47, similarly to the cooling second solenoid valve 49. The heating solenoid valve 51 is driven to open and close based on a control command from the control device 17. The heating solenoid valve 51 is opened during the heating mode operation, and is closed during the cooling mode operation.

  The low-pressure refrigerant discharged from the outdoor heat exchanger 47 circulates through the heating refrigerant pipe 39 that connects between the heating electromagnetic valve 51 and the gas-liquid separator 55 during the heating mode operation. Therefore, in order to ensure that the low-pressure refrigerant flows without leakage, the inside diameter of the heating refrigerant pipe 39 is appropriately determined in consideration of being able to withstand the pressure and heat of the refrigerant flowing through the inside and suppressing pressure loss. The dimensions are set. As the refrigerant pipe 39 for heating, for example, a low-pressure loss low-pressure hose having appropriate pressure resistance / heat resistance characteristics can be suitably employed.

Here, the pressure of the (low pressure) refrigerant acting on the inner wall of the heating refrigerant pipe 39 is lower than the pressure of the (high pressure) refrigerant acting on the inner wall of the cooling refrigerant pipe 37.
Therefore, in the vehicle air conditioner 11 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the inner diameter of the heating refrigerant pipe 39 connected to the refrigerant outlet 48b of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 is compared with the inner diameter of the cooling refrigerant pipe 37 connected to the refrigerant outlet 48a. Are set to large dimensions.
Thereby, the pressure loss in the heating refrigerant pipe 39 during the heating mode operation is suppressed, and the operation efficiency in the heating mode is improved.

  The cooling pressure reducing valve 53 is a throttle valve similar to the heating pressure reducing valve 45. The cooling pressure reducing valve 53 decompresses the refrigerant discharged from the outdoor heat exchanger 47 and expands it, and then discharges it to the evaporator 25 as a low-temperature and low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase (vapor phase rich) mist refrigerant.

  The gas-liquid separator 55 separates the gas-liquid refrigerant discharged from the outdoor heat exchanger 47 or the evaporator 25 and causes the compressor 41 to suck in the gas-phase refrigerant (refrigerant gas).

  The control device 17 controls the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on an air conditioning request set by an operator via an air conditioner switch (not shown) disposed on a dash panel or the like in the vehicle interior. The control device 17 is configured to be able to switch and control the operation mode of the vehicle air conditioner 11 to a heating mode, a cooling mode, a defrosting mode, and the like. The control device 17 includes a microcomputer capable of executing various arithmetic processes.

Next, the operation | movement for each operation mode of the vehicle air conditioner 11 mentioned above is demonstrated. However, since the defrosting mode is not directly related to the present invention, the description thereof is omitted.
[Operation of the vehicle air conditioner 11 during cooling mode operation]
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of the refrigerant when the vehicle air conditioner 11 according to the embodiment of the present invention is operated in the cooling mode.
When the vehicle air conditioner 11 is operated in the cooling mode, the control device 17 cools the air mix door 27 shown in FIG. 2 so that the conditioned air that has passed through the evaporator 25 bypasses (does not circulate) the condenser 29. Position to position. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the control device 17 performs control to open the cooling first electromagnetic valve 43, open the cooling second electromagnetic valve 49, and close the heating electromagnetic valve 51. Do.

  In the heat pump cycle 15, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 41 flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 47 through the cooling first electromagnetic valve 43. The outdoor heat exchanger 47 dissipates heat to the outside atmosphere so as to cool the high-temperature refrigerant that has flowed into the outdoor heat exchanger 47. This cools the high-temperature refrigerant.

  The refrigerant cooled by the outdoor heat exchanger 47 flows into the cooling pressure reducing valve 53 through the opened second cooling electromagnetic valve 49 and the cooling refrigerant pipe 37. The cooling pressure reducing valve 53 decompresses the expanded refrigerant and expands it, and then discharges it to the evaporator 25 as a low-temperature and low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase (gas phase rich) mist refrigerant.

  The evaporator 25 performs heat exchange between the low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant flowing through the evaporator 25 and the conditioned air in the duct 21. Thereby, the conditioned air passing through the evaporator 25 is cooled by heat absorption when the refrigerant evaporates.

  The gas-phase rich refrigerant that has passed through the evaporator 25 flows into the gas-liquid separator 55. The gas / liquid separator 55 separates the gas / liquid of the refrigerant discharged from the evaporator 25 and causes the compressor 41 to suck the gas-phase refrigerant (refrigerant gas).

  As described above, when the blower 23 of the air conditioning unit 13 is driven in a situation where the refrigerant flows through the refrigerant flow passage 35 while changing the gas-liquid state, the conditioned air flows in the duct 21 of the air conditioning unit 13, When the conditioned air passes through the evaporator 25, heat exchange is performed with the evaporator 25. The conditioned air cooled by this heat exchange bypasses the condenser 29 by the action of the air mix door 27 and is then supplied as cooling to the vehicle interior.

[Operation of vehicle air conditioner 11 during heating mode operation]
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of the refrigerant when the vehicle air conditioner 11 according to the embodiment of the present invention is operated in the heating mode.
When the vehicle air conditioner 11 is operated in the heating mode, the controller 17 heats the air mix door 27 shown in FIG. 3 so that the conditioned air that has passed through the evaporator 25 passes through the condenser 29 (does not bypass). Position to position. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the control device 17 controls the first electromagnetic valve 43 for cooling to be closed, the second electromagnetic valve 49 for cooling to be closed, and the electromagnetic valve 51 for heating to be opened. Do.

  In the heat pump cycle 15, the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 41 flows into the condenser 29. The condenser 29 exchanges heat between the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant flowing through the condenser 29 and the conditioned air in the duct 21. Thereby, the temperature of the conditioned air passing through the condenser 29 is increased.

  The refrigerant heat-exchanged by the condenser 29 flows into the heating pressure reducing valve 45. The heating pressure reducing valve 45 decompresses and expands the refrigerant discharged from the condenser 29, and then discharges it to the outdoor heat exchanger 47 as a low-temperature low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase (liquid phase rich) mist refrigerant. The outdoor heat exchanger 47 absorbs heat from the outside atmosphere so as to warm the low-temperature refrigerant flowing into the outdoor heat exchanger 47. Thereby, the temperature of the low-temperature refrigerant is increased.

  The refrigerant whose temperature has been raised by the outdoor heat exchanger 47 flows into the gas-liquid separator 55 through the heating solenoid valve 51 and the heating refrigerant pipe 39 in the open state. The gas-liquid separator 55 separates the gas-liquid refrigerant discharged from the outdoor heat exchanger 47 and causes the compressor 41 to suck the gas-phase refrigerant (refrigerant gas).

  As described above, when the blower 23 of the air conditioning unit 13 is driven in a situation where the refrigerant flows through the refrigerant flow passage 35 while changing the gas-liquid state, the conditioned air flows in the duct 21 of the air conditioning unit 13, When the conditioned air passes through the condenser 29, heat exchange is performed with the condenser 29. The conditioned air heated by this heat exchange is supplied to the passenger compartment as heating.

[Effects of the vehicle air conditioner 11 according to the embodiment of the present invention]
Next, the effect of the vehicle air conditioner 11 which concerns on embodiment of this invention is demonstrated.
The vehicle air conditioner 11 according to the first aspect exchanges heat between the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 41 and the outside air using the outdoor heat exchanger 47, and decompresses the refrigerant after the heat exchange using the cooling pressure reducing valve 53. The subsequent refrigerant exchanges heat with the conditioned air by an evaporator (cooling indoor heat exchanger) 25, and returns the refrigerant after the heat exchange to the compressor 41. The refrigerant compressed by the compressor 41 is a condenser (for heating). The indoor heat exchanger) 29 exchanges heat with the conditioned air, the refrigerant after the heat exchange is decompressed by the heating pressure reducing valve 45, the refrigerant after the decompression is heat-exchanged with the outside air by the outdoor heat exchanger 47, and the heat A heating refrigerant circuit for returning the refrigerant after replacement to the compressor 41, and a heat pump vehicle air conditioner in which the cooling refrigerant circuit and the heating refrigerant circuit share the compressor 41 and the outdoor heat exchanger 47 There is a premise.
The refrigerant outlet 48 of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 bypasses the cooling refrigerant pipe 37 connected to the compressor 41 via the cooling pressure reducing valve 53 and the evaporator 25, and bypasses the cooling pressure reducing valve 53 and the evaporator 25. A heating refrigerant pipe 39 connected to 41 is connected to be selectively switchable.

In the heat pump vehicle air conditioner 11, the pressure of the refrigerant acting on the inner wall of the heating refrigerant pipe 39 is lower than the pressure of the refrigerant acting on the inner wall of the cooling refrigerant pipe 37.
Therefore, in the vehicle air conditioner 11 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the inner diameter of the heating refrigerant pipe 39 connected to the refrigerant outlet 48b of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 is compared with the inner diameter of the cooling refrigerant pipe 37 connected to the refrigerant outlet 48a. Are set to large dimensions.
Thereby, the pressure loss in the heating refrigerant pipe 39 during the heating mode operation is suppressed, and the operation efficiency in the heating mode is improved.

  According to the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on a 1st viewpoint, the driving | operation efficiency in heating mode can be improved.

  Moreover, the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on a 2nd viewpoint is the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on a 1st viewpoint, Comprising: The refrigerant | coolant exit 48 of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 is as shown in FIG. 4, FIG. It is located on the upper side in the vertical direction as compared with the refrigerant inlet 46 of the outdoor heat exchanger 47. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the refrigerant outlet 48 includes a cooling refrigerant outlet 48 a connected to the cooling refrigerant pipe 37 and a heating refrigerant outlet 48 b connected to the heating refrigerant pipe 39. The heating refrigerant outlet 48b is located on the upper side in the vertical direction as compared with the cooling refrigerant outlet 48a.

In the heat pump vehicle air conditioner 11, the high-temperature and high-pressure (liquid phase rich) refrigerant discharged from the compressor 41 flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 47 through the refrigerant inlet 46 during the cooling mode operation.
At this time, it is assumed that the cooling refrigerant outlet 48a is provided at the position of the heating refrigerant outlet 48b shown in FIG. 4 (position on the upper side in the vertical direction apart from the refrigerant inlet 46) (Comparative Example 1). In Comparative Example 1, there is a problem that liquid refrigerant accumulates in the vicinity of the shaded area shown in FIG. 4 and hinders smooth circulation of the refrigerant. It was considered that this was mainly due to the separation between the refrigerant inlet 46 and the cooling refrigerant outlet 48a.
Therefore, in the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on the second aspect, as shown in FIG. 4, a cooling refrigerant outlet 48 a is provided at a position on the upper side in the vertical direction close to the refrigerant inlet 46.

On the other hand, in the heat pump type vehicle air conditioner 11, during the heating mode operation, the outdoor heat exchanger 47 has a low-temperature low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase (liquid-rich) mist discharged from the heating pressure reducing valve 45. Of the refrigerant flows through the refrigerant inlet 46.
At this time, it is assumed that the heating refrigerant outlet 48b is provided at the position of the cooling refrigerant outlet 48a shown in FIG. 5 (the position on the upper side in the vertical direction adjacent to the refrigerant inlet 46) (Comparative Example 2). In Comparative Example 2, there is a problem in that a portion in which the gas refrigerant does not flow easily is generated in the vicinity of the shaded area shown in FIG. 5 and the smooth circulation of the refrigerant is hindered. It was considered that this was mainly due to the close distance between the refrigerant inlet 46 and the heating refrigerant outlet 48b.
Therefore, in the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on the second aspect, as shown in FIG. 5, the heating refrigerant outlet 48 b is provided at a position on the upper side in the vertical direction separated from the refrigerant inlet 46.

  In short, in the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on the second aspect, the refrigerant outlet 48 of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 is positioned above the refrigerant inlet 46 of the outdoor heat exchanger 47 in the vertical direction, and the heating refrigerant A configuration is adopted in which the outlet 48b is positioned on the upper side in the vertical direction compared to the cooling refrigerant outlet 48a.

  According to the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on the second aspect, as a result of smooth circulation of the refrigerant in the outdoor heat exchanger 47 during the cooling mode operation and the heating mode operation, in the cooling mode and the heating mode. The driving efficiency can be improved.

The vehicle air conditioner 11 based on the third aspect is the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on the first or second aspect, and is provided with a cooling refrigerant pipe 37 at the refrigerant outlet 48 of the outdoor heat exchanger 47. And a cooling second electromagnetic valve 49 and a heating electromagnetic valve (switching valve) 51 are provided for selectively switching one of the refrigerant pipes 39 for heating and the refrigerant pipe 39 for heating.
In the cooling mode, the second cooling solenoid valve (switching valve) 49 is selectively switched to open the cooling refrigerant pipe 37, while in the heating mode, the heating electromagnetic valve (switching valve) 49 is opened to open the heating refrigerant pipe 39. The switching valve) 51 is selectively switched.

  According to the vehicle air conditioner 11 based on the third aspect, a specific operation when the second cooling solenoid valve 49 and the heating solenoid valve (switching valve) 51 are provided to the refrigerant outlet 48 of the outdoor heat exchanger 47. Therefore, it is possible to lower the barrier when the present invention is suitably implemented.

[Other Embodiments]
The plurality of embodiments described above show examples of realization of the present invention. Therefore, the technical scope of the present invention should not be limitedly interpreted by these. This is because the present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist or main features thereof.

For example, in the description of the embodiment according to the present invention, the first electromagnetic valve 43 for cooling is provided on the downstream side of the compressor 41, and the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant compressed by the compressor 41 is replaced with the condenser 29 and the heating during the cooling mode operation. The configuration in which the series circuit of the pressure reducing valve 45 is bypassed and sent to the outdoor heat exchanger 47 is described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this example.
The first electromagnetic valve 43 for cooling can be omitted. In this case, the flow of the refrigerant is as follows: compressor 41 → condenser 29 → heating pressure reducing valve 45 → outdoor heat exchanger 47 (hereinafter omitted). In this case, the pressure difference between the upstream side and the downstream side of the heating pressure reducing valve 45 is substantially set by setting the valve opening degree of the heating pressure reducing valve 45 to be larger than the valve opening degree during the heating mode operation. What is necessary is just to comprise so that it may not arise.

11 Vehicle air conditioner 25 Evaporator (Indoor heat exchanger for cooling)
29 Condenser (Indoor heat exchanger for heating)
37 Refrigerant piping for cooling 39 Refrigerant piping for heating 41 Compressor 45 Pressure reducing valve for heating 47 Outdoor heat exchanger 53 Pressure reducing valve for cooling

Claims (3)

The refrigerant compressed by the compressor exchanges heat with the outside air in the outdoor heat exchanger, the refrigerant after the heat exchange is decompressed by the cooling pressure reducing valve, and the refrigerant after the decompression is heat exchanged with the conditioned air by the cooling indoor heat exchanger. A cooling refrigerant circuit for returning the refrigerant after the heat exchange to the compressor,
The refrigerant compressed by the compressor exchanges heat with the conditioned air in the heating indoor heat exchanger, the refrigerant after the heat exchange is depressurized by the heating pressure reducing valve, and the refrigerant after the depressurization is exchanged with the outside air by the outdoor heat exchanger. A heating refrigerant circuit for exchanging heat and returning the refrigerant after the heat exchange to the compressor,
The cooling refrigerant circuit and the heating refrigerant circuit are heat pump type vehicle air conditioners that share the compressor and the outdoor heat exchanger,
At the refrigerant outlet of the outdoor heat exchanger, a cooling refrigerant pipe connected to the compressor via the cooling pressure reducing valve and the cooling indoor heat exchanger, the cooling pressure reducing valve and the cooling room A refrigerant pipe for heating that bypasses the heat exchanger and is connected to the compressor is connected to be selectively switchable,
The vehicle air conditioner characterized in that an inner diameter of the heating refrigerant pipe connected to the refrigerant outlet is set larger than an inner diameter of the cooling refrigerant pipe connected to the refrigerant outlet. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1,
The refrigerant outlet of the outdoor heat exchanger is located vertically above the refrigerant inlet of the outdoor heat exchanger,
The refrigerant outlet includes a cooling refrigerant outlet in which the cooling refrigerant pipe is continuous, and a heating refrigerant outlet in which the heating refrigerant pipe is continuous,
The heating refrigerant outlet is positioned on the upper side in the vertical direction as compared with the cooling refrigerant outlet. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2,
At the refrigerant outlet of the outdoor heat exchanger, a switching valve that selectively switches to open one of the cooling refrigerant pipe and the heating refrigerant pipe is provided,
In the cooling mode, the switching valve is selectively switched to open the cooling refrigerant pipe, while in the heating mode, the switching valve is selectively switched to open the heating refrigerant pipe. A vehicle air conditioner.

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