JP3101546B2 - Control device for air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate a sense of incongruity in operation and to improve the handling operability by inhibiting to set a second operation mode which cannot coexist with a first operation mode due to sharing one refrigerant route for an indoor unit except specific indoor unit. SOLUTION: A multizone air conditioner system 100 has an outdoor unit 1, two indoor units 2A, 2B, and a tube 3 between units for connecting the unit 1 to the units 2A, 2B. Since a heating (cooling) operation mode which cannot coexist with a cooling (heating) operation mode in the constitution of the system 100 cannot be set to the indoor unit except the indoor unit set with priority operation mode when the cooling (heating) operation mode is set to at least one of the plurality of the units 2A, 2B as the priority operation mode, user's sense of incongruity is not introduced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device for an air conditioner, and more particularly to a control for an air conditioner used in a multi-air conditioner system in which one or more outdoor units are connected to a plurality of indoor units. Related to the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a multi-air conditioning system is used for an air conditioning system (hereinafter, referred to as an air conditioning system) of a building or the like.

In this multi-air-conditioning system, a plurality of indoor units are connected in parallel to one or more outdoor units incorporating a compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, and the like by piping. Can be easily achieved.

The operating conditions of each indoor unit, such as the indoor set temperature and the amount of air blow, can be individually set by a remote controller (hereinafter, referred to as a remote controller) provided for each indoor unit. Since the path is shared, the indoor units cannot be operated in different operation modes, for example, in a state where the indoor units in the heating operation mode and the indoor units in the cooling operation mode are mixed.

Therefore, in the above conventional multi air conditioning system, the operation mode actually set is first set for one of the plurality of indoor units or the group of indoor units which controls a plurality of the indoor units as a group. Even if an operation mode different from the priority operation mode is specified for another indoor unit via the remote controller later, the operation mode of the other indoor unit does not match (priority mode). Control is performed such that the operation in the specified operation mode is not forcibly performed.

By designating an operation mode different from the priority operation mode, a symbol indicating the designated operation mode is displayed on the display unit of the remote controller in order to notify the user that the vehicle cannot be operated in the designated operation mode. It was displayed by blinking.

[0007]

However, it is difficult for the user to understand the meaning of the display, and he has been skeptical or dissatisfied with the fact that driving in the specified driving mode is not performed.

That is, although the operation mode is selectable by the remote controller, the indoor unit cannot be actually started in the specified operation mode.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a control device for an air conditioner, which can eliminate operational discomfort and improve usability.

[0010]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control apparatus for an air conditioner having at least one outdoor unit sharing a refrigerant path and a plurality of indoor units. In the above, the operation mode of the indoor unit is set.
Operating mode setting means for determining
Is set as the priority operation mode.
In this case, due to sharing the one refrigerant path,
The second operation mode that cannot coexist with the first operation mode
Mode other than the indoor unit in which the priority operation mode is set.
Setting prohibition means to prohibit setting
The operation mode setting means includes a table for displaying various information.
Indicating means and a first operation mode for the one indoor unit.
When set as the priority operation mode,
The first operation mode is caused by sharing the refrigerant path.
Before the second operation mode that cannot coexist with the operation mode
Display prohibition means for prohibiting display on the display means .

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the setting prohibiting means is configured to perform one of the plurality of indoor units when the first operation mode is set as the priority operation mode for at least one of the indoor units. It is prohibited to set the second operation mode that cannot coexist with the first operation mode due to sharing of the refrigerant path for indoor units other than the indoor unit for which the priority operation mode is set.

[0012]

[0013]

[0014]

[0015] The display prohibiting means of the operation mode setting means may be arranged so that, when the first operation mode is set as the priority operation mode for at least one of the plurality of indoor units, one refrigerant path is provided. Is prohibited from being displayed on the display means corresponding to the second operation mode which cannot coexist with the first operation mode due to the sharing of the first operation mode.

[0016]

[0017]

[0018]

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration diagram of a multi air conditioning system. For simplification of the description, a case will be described in which a multi-air-conditioning system is configured by one outdoor unit and two indoor units.

The multi-air-conditioning system 100 is roughly divided into an outdoor unit 1, two indoor units 2A and 2B, and an outdoor unit 1
And an inter-unit pipe 3 connected between the air conditioner and the indoor units 2A and 2B.

The outdoor unit 1 includes an accumulator 5, a compressor (compressor) 6, an oil separator 7, a four-way valve 8, an outdoor heat exchanger 9, an outdoor electric expansion valve 10, and an outdoor unit controller 11. , Is provided.

The indoor unit 2A includes an indoor heat exchanger 15A, an indoor electric expansion valve 16A, and an indoor unit controller 17A.
, A blower fan 18A, and a remote controller 19A for performing an operation mode setting operation and various settings.

The indoor unit 2B includes an indoor heat exchanger 15B, an indoor electric expansion valve 16B, and an indoor unit controller 17B.
, A blower fan 18B, and a remote controller 19B for performing an operation mode setting operation and various settings.

The inter-unit pipe 3 is provided with a gas pipe 25 and a liquid pipe 26.

Further, the outdoor unit controller 11 and the indoor unit controllers 17A and 17B are connected by a control line 27, and between the indoor unit controller 17A and the remote controller 19A and between the indoor unit controller 17B and the remote controller 19B. , And a control line (or an infrared communication line) 28.

Here, referring to FIG.
(19B) will be described.

The remote controller 19A is roughly divided into the display unit 3
0 and an operation unit 31.

The display section 30 includes an operation mode display section 35 for displaying a currently set operation mode or a settable operation mode; a temperature display section 36 for displaying temperature-related information such as a set temperature; A timer display unit 37 for displaying time information such as a timer set time, and an operation status display unit 38 for displaying an operation status such as a limit of a settable operation mode, an outlet, a wind direction, and a wind speed. Have been.

An operation unit 31 includes an operation / stop switch 40 for instructing operation / stop, an operation mode changeover switch 41 for switching operation modes, a temperature setting switch 42 for setting temperature, and a wind speed. A wind speed changeover switch 43 for switching, an on timer, an off timer,
A timer changeover switch 44 for switching a timer mode such as a good night timer, a unit changeover switch 45 for specifying an indoor unit to be controlled when there are a plurality of indoor units to be controlled, and a plurality of indoor units to be controlled. An outlet selection switch 46 for selecting an outlet to be used when there is an outlet, a wind direction setting switch 47 for setting an air direction, and a swing for switching between swing / non-swing when a swing flap is provided. Changeover switch 4
8 and a time setting switch 49 for performing various time settings
And a room temperature sensor 50 for detecting a room temperature.

Next, the operation will be described with reference to FIGS. In this case, the operation mode of the indoor unit 2A is set first, and the set operation mode is set as the priority operation mode, and the priority operation mode is not set in the initial state. explain.

I) Operation on the Indoor Unit 2A First, the controller (not shown) of the remote controller 19A determines whether or not operation has been instructed by operating the operation / stop switch 40 (step S1).

If it is determined in step S1 that the operation has not been instructed, that is, if the operation is stopped, a suspension process such as monitoring the time when a timer is set is performed (step S1).
11), end the process.

When the operation is instructed by the determination in step S1, it is determined whether or not the cooling priority operation mode is set.

In this case, since the priority operation mode has not been set yet, the processing shifts to step S3.

Next, it is determined whether or not the current operation mode is set to the heating priority operation mode (step S).
3).

In this case, since the priority operation mode has not yet been set and the operation mode can be freely set, the operation mode switch 41 is operated to set the "cooling operation mode" as the currently settable operation mode. → heating operation mode → dry operation mode → blowing operation mode → cooling operation mode →... ”(Step S4).

Further, control is performed so that the display of "cooling / heating switching management in progress" for limiting the switching of the cooling / heating operation mode is not displayed on the operation status display section 38 (step S5).

Then, the operation instruction data and the operation mode data corresponding to the set operation mode are transmitted to the outdoor unit controller 11 via the indoor unit controller 17A of the indoor unit 2A, and the processing is terminated (step S1). S
6).

Ii) Operation on the outdoor unit 1 side When the operation instruction data and the operation mode data corresponding to the set operation mode are transmitted to the outdoor unit controller 11 via the indoor unit controller 17A, the outdoor unit The controller 11 determines whether any of the connected indoor units is operating (step S12).

In this case, since there is no other indoor unit (19B) in operation, each priority flag is cleared (step S16), and to that effect, the indoor units 19A and 19B are notified.
(Step S17), and the process ends.

Iii) Operation on the indoor unit 2B side The operation on the indoor unit 2B side below will be described assuming that the cooling operation mode or the heating operation mode is set as the operation mode in the operation on the indoor unit 2A side described above. .

First, the controller (not shown) of the remote controller 19B determines whether or not operation has been instructed by operating the operation / stop switch 40 (step S).
1).

If it is determined in step S1 that the operation has not been instructed, that is, if the operation is stopped, a suspension process such as time monitoring when a timer is set is performed (step S1).
11), end the process.

When the operation is instructed by the determination in step S1, it is determined whether or not the cooling priority operation mode is set (step S2).

If it is determined in step S2 that the cooling priority operation mode is set, only the cooling operation mode, the dry operation mode, and the ventilation operation mode are permitted. Along with the operation of 41, the currently settable operation modes are sequentially displayed on the operation mode display section 35 as "cooling operation mode → dry operation mode → blowing operation mode → cooling operation mode →...” (Step S9). .

Further, the display of "cooling / heating switching management in progress" for restricting the switching of the cooling / heating operation mode is displayed in the operating status display section 38.
(Step S10).

Then, the operation instruction data and the operation mode data corresponding to the set operation mode are transmitted to the outdoor unit controller 11 via the indoor unit controller 17A of the indoor unit 2A, and the process is terminated (step S1). S
6).

If it is determined in step S2 that the cooling priority operation mode is not set, it is determined whether the heating priority operation mode is set (step S2).
3).

If it is determined in step S3 that the heating priority operation mode is set, only the heating operation mode and the blowing operation mode are permitted (step S). 41
With the operation, the operation mode display section 35 sequentially displays the operation modes that can be set, such as “heating operation mode → blowing operation mode → heating operation mode → blowing operation mode →...”.
(Step S9).

Further, the display of "Cooling / heating switching management in progress" for limiting the switching of the cooling / heating operation mode is displayed in the operating status display section 38.
(Step S10).

Then, the operation instruction data and the operation mode data corresponding to the set operation mode are transmitted to the outdoor unit controller 11 via the indoor unit controller 17A of the indoor unit 2A, and the processing is terminated (step S1). S
6).

Iv) Operation on the Outdoor Unit 1 When the operation instruction data and the operation mode data corresponding to the set operation mode are transmitted to the outdoor unit controller 11 via the indoor unit controller 17B, the outdoor unit 1 The controller 11 determines whether any of the connected indoor units is operating (step S12).

In this case, since there is another indoor unit (19A) in operation, the number of individually controllable indoor units and the parent unit when a plurality of indoor units are collectively controlled in a group are controlled. The sum of the number of indoor units that are the
It is determined whether or not the number is equal to or greater than the number (Step S13).

In this case, the indoor unit 2A and the indoor unit 2
Since B is an individually controllable indoor unit, the sum of the number of individually controllable indoor units is 2. Therefore, the process proceeds to step S14.

The outdoor unit controller 11 determines whether or not the operation mode of the other indoor unit that has been operated first, that is, the indoor unit 2A is the cooling operation mode (step S1).
4).

In the determination of step S14, the indoor unit 2
When the operation mode of A is the cooling operation mode, the refrigerant system is set to the cooling operation side (step S21), the cooling priority flag is set (step S22), and the fact is transmitted to the indoor units 19A and 19B. Then (step S23), the process ends.

In the determination in step S14, the indoor unit 2
If the operation mode of A is not the cooling operation mode, it is determined whether the operation mode of the indoor unit 2A is the heating operation mode (step S15).

In the determination of step S15, the indoor unit 2
When the operation mode of A is the heating operation mode, the refrigerant system is set to the heating operation side (step S18), the heating priority flag is set (step S19), and the fact is transmitted to the indoor units 19A and 19B. Then (step S20), the process ends.

V) Operation on the indoor unit 2A and the indoor unit 2B side When the cooling priority flag or the heating priority flag is set on the outdoor unit 1 side and the fact is transmitted to the indoor units 2A and 2B, the indoor unit controller 17A and 17B transmit the effect to the corresponding remote controllers 19A and 19B (step S24).

Thus, the controller (not shown) of the remote controllers 19A and 19B can know that the cooling priority operation mode or the heating operation mode has been set.

In the above description, only selectable operation modes are displayed on the display unit of the remote controller, and display of the non-selectable operation modes on the display unit is prohibited.
The display is performed as usual, and it is also possible to configure so that the selection by the selection switch (the operation changeover switch 41) cannot be performed (disabled or prohibited).

As described above, according to this embodiment, 1) When the cooling (heating) operation mode is set as the priority operation mode for at least one of the plurality of indoor units In addition, due to the configuration of the multi-air conditioning system, the heating (cooling) cannot coexist with the cooling (heating) operation mode in operation.
The operation mode cannot be set for an indoor unit other than the indoor unit for which the priority operation mode is set, so that the user does not feel uncomfortable.

2) When the cooling (heating) operation mode is set as the priority operation mode for at least one of the other indoor units, the cooling (heating) operation mode is set due to the configuration of the multi air conditioning system. When the setting operation corresponding to the heating (cooling) operation mode that cannot coexist with the operation is performed through the operation mode setting means, the operation mode of the indoor unit is forcibly set to the cooling (heating) operation mode.
The operation is not unnecessarily stopped, and the user does not feel uncomfortable.

3) When the cooling (heating) operation mode is set as the priority operation mode for at least one indoor unit among the plurality of indoor units, the remote controller has a function of a remote controller. Since the display on the display unit corresponding to the heating (cooling) operation mode that cannot coexist with the operation of the cooling (heating) operation mode is prohibited, the user does not perform the selection operation excessively, and the usability is improved.

4) When the cooling (heating) operation mode is set as the priority operation mode for at least one of the plurality of indoor units, the remote controller has the cooling ( Since the setting operation corresponding to the heating (cooling) operation mode that cannot coexist with the operation of the (heating) operation mode is invalidated, the user does not perform the selection operation by mistake and the usability is improved. The effect is obtained.

[0066]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the driving mode
The forced compulsory setting means includes at least one of the other indoor units.
The first operation mode is the priority operation mode for the internal unit
When set, sharing one refrigerant path
The second operation mode cannot coexist with the first operation mode due to the operation.
The setting operation corresponding to the operation mode activates the operation mode setting means.
The operation mode of the indoor unit in question
In the first operation mode, there is no contradiction in the operation.
It does not occur, so there is no unnecessary shutdown,
There is no inconsistency in the operation of the user.

[0067]

[0068] The display prohibiting means of the operation mode setting means, when at least one of the plurality of indoor units has the first operation mode set as the priority operation mode, sets one refrigerant path. Is prohibited from being displayed on the display means corresponding to the second operation mode, which cannot coexist with the first operation mode due to the sharing of the first operation mode, so that the user does not perform the selection operation unnecessarily, Usability is improved.

[0069]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a multi-air conditioning system.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of the appearance of a remote controller.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an operation process of a remote controller.

FIG. 4 is an operation processing flowchart of the outdoor unit.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an operation process of the indoor unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 100 Multi air conditioning system 1 Outdoor unit 2A, 2B Indoor unit 3 Unit piping 5 Accumulator 6 Compressor (compressor) 7 Oil separator 8 Four-way valve 9 Outdoor heat exchanger 10 Outdoor electric expansion valve 11 Outdoor unit controller 15A, 15B Indoor heat Exchanger 16A, 16B Indoor electric expansion valve 17A, 17B Indoor unit controller 18A, 18B Blower fan 19A, 19B Remote controller 25 Gas pipe 26 Liquid pipe 27 Control line 28 Control line (or infrared communication line)

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) F24F 11/02

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. An operation mode setting means for setting an operation mode of an indoor unit in a control device of an air conditioner having at least one outdoor unit sharing one refrigerant path and a plurality of indoor units.
And the first operation mode is the priority operation mode for one indoor unit.
Share the one refrigerant path when set as
Operationally coexist with the first operation mode due to
The priority operation mode sets the second operation mode that cannot be performed
Setting for indoor units other than the specified indoor unit is prohibited
Operating mode setting means , wherein the operating mode setting means includes a displaying means for displaying various information, and a priority operating mode in which the first operating mode is set to the one indoor unit.
When the one refrigerant path is set as
The first operation mode and the operation due to sharing
The display means corresponding to the second operation mode that cannot coexist
And a display prohibiting means for prohibiting display on the air conditioner.