JP3287291B2 - Vehicle air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner for a vehicle in which an air filter is installed in front of a heat exchanger in an air conditioning case. The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditioner including a cooling unit having an air filter installed therebetween.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional technique, as shown in FIG. 4, foreign substances such as dust, dust and tobacco smoke sucked into an air conditioning duct 101 adhere to fins of an evaporator 102 or blow out into a vehicle cabin. 2. Description of the Related Art There is known a vehicle air conditioner including an air conditioning unit in which an air filter 103 for preventing the air filter 103 from being removed is mounted in a unit case 104 of a cooling unit.

[0003] The unit case 104 is composed of an upper case 105 provided on the upper end side with respect to the height direction of the evaporator 102 and a lower case 106 provided on the lower end side.
Many are divided. On the bottom wall of the lower case 106, the air filter 103 is attached to the unit case 104.
An insertion port (not shown) for insertion into the inside is formed. As shown in FIG. 5, guides for guiding the air filter 103 from the insertion opening so as to be in parallel with the front surface of the evaporator 102 are provided on the inner wall surfaces of both side walls in the width direction of the upper case 105 and the lower case 106. Grooves 107, 108
Are formed respectively. The upper case 105 and the lower case 106 are integrally formed by a resin molding die 109 as shown by hatching in FIG.

[0004]

However, in the conventional air-conditioning unit, the inlet pipe and the outlet pipe of the evaporator are connected to one end side in the width direction of the evaporator (for example, the inside of the vehicle compartment).
In the case of a model in which an air filter is installed on the front of the evaporator and the air filter is inserted from an insertion hole formed in the bottom wall of the unit case, the air filter is installed so as to be taken out from the upper end and the lower end of the end of the unit. It has been difficult to mount an air filter between the pipe outlets of the evaporator due to sealing problems and the like.

For example, in order to make airtightness (seal) between the inner wall surface of one side wall of the unit case and the side surface of the air filter, a protruding portion directly contacting the side surface of the air filter from the inner wall surface of the unit case side wall. (Seal surface) may be protruded, but a notch must be formed in the protrusion to prevent interference with the pipe take-out part. The problem that it becomes very difficult arises. Also, if the projections protrude from the inner wall surface of the side wall of the unit case, the pipe outlet will interfere with the projections when assembling the evaporator to the unit case, so it is necessary to insert the evaporator obliquely. There is also a problem that the assembling workability is poor.

[0006] When there is no seal between the inner wall surface of one side wall of the unit case and the side surface of the air filter, the amount of air passing through the air filter is reduced due to the ventilation resistance of the air filter. This causes a problem that the efficiency of air purification by the air filter deteriorates. Also, when the air filter is inserted into the front surface of the evaporator in parallel from the insertion opening formed in the bottom wall of the unit case, a guide groove for guiding and positioning the air filter is provided on one side of both side walls of the unit case. You can only use it for minutes. For this reason, since it is difficult to position the air filter, there arises a problem that the workability of assembling the air filter in the unit case is poor.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle air conditioner capable of improving the workability of mounting an evaporator and an air filter in an air conditioning case. Another object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle air conditioner that can easily remove a molding die for molding an air conditioning case. A vehicle that can prevent deterioration of the air purification efficiency of the air filter by making the space between the inner wall surface of the side wall at the other end in the width direction of the air conditioning case and the other end of the air filter substantially airtight. It is an object of the present invention to provide an air conditioner for air conditioning.

[0008]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the air filter is mounted in the air-conditioning case,
By fitting one end of the air filter to the first guide and fitting the other end of the air filter to the second guide, the air filter can be easily positioned in the air conditioning case. Therefore, by inserting the air filter along the first guide and the second guide, the air filter can be easily mounted in the air conditioning case.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, at least two pipes taken out from one end in the width direction of the heat exchanger and from both ends in the height direction of the heat exchanger. An air filter is mounted between the unit and the front face of the air of the heat exchanger substantially in parallel with the front face of the heat exchanger. Even in such a mode (model), when the air filter is mounted in the air-conditioning case, one end of the air filter is fitted to the first guide, and the other end of the air filter is fitted to the second guide. By doing so, the air filter can be easily positioned in the air conditioning case.

Therefore, by inserting the air filter along the first guide and the second guide, the air filter is mounted in the air-conditioning case from the height direction of the heat exchanger so as to be along the front surface of the heat exchanger. Thereby, an air filter can be installed between the two pipe outlets and the front surface of the heat exchanger substantially in parallel with the front surface of the heat exchanger. For this reason, the assembling workability when mounting the air filter in the air conditioning case can be improved. In addition, since the protrusion and the sealing surface that directly contact the side surface of the air filter do not protrude from the inner wall surface of the air conditioning case, it is only necessary to provide the first guide and the guide holder in the air conditioning case. It becomes very easy to remove the molding die.
Then, when assembling the heat exchanger into the air-conditioning case, there are no parts that interfere with the heat exchanger, so that the assembling workability when assembling the heat exchanger into the air-conditioning case can be improved.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the second guide, which is fitted to the two pipe outlets and held detachably, is provided between the air-conditioning case and the other end of the air filter. It also functions as a sealing material for sealing the part. Therefore, the amount of air going to the heat exchanger without passing through the air filter can be reduced, and the decrease in the amount of air passing through the air filter can be suppressed. Can be. According to the third aspect of the present invention, the two end surfaces of the other end of the second guide are sandwiched between the bifurcated protrusion integrally formed with the air-conditioning case with elastic force, thereby providing the second guide. The guide can be assembled to the guide holder with one touch.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [Structure of Embodiment] FIGS. 1 to 3 show an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 shows an air conditioning unit of a vehicle air conditioner.

The vehicle air conditioner of this embodiment includes an air conditioning unit 1 for cooling and heating the interior of the vehicle.
The air conditioning unit 1 is mounted on the front side of the vehicle cabin of the vehicle, and is configured by combining an intake unit, a cooling unit, and a heater unit.

The intake unit is provided on the most upstream side of the air-conditioning unit 1 and includes an inside / outside air switching means and a centrifugal blower. The inside / outside air switching means includes an inside / outside air switching box 13 in which an inside air suction port 11 and an outside air suction port 12 are formed, and an inside / outside air switching door 14 rotatably mounted in the inside / outside air switching box 13. ing. The centrifugal blower includes a centrifugal fan 15 that generates an airflow toward the passenger compartment in the air conditioning unit 1, a scroll case 16 integrally connected to the downstream side of the inside / outside air switching box 13 with air, and a centrifugal fan 15. And a blower motor 17 for rotationally driving the motor.

The heater unit is provided at the most downstream side of the air of the air conditioning unit 1 and is composed of an outlet temperature adjusting means and an outlet switching means. The blowout temperature adjusting means uses a cooling water of an internal combustion engine mounted on the vehicle as a heat source, and a heater core 18 which is a heating heat exchanger for reheating cold air blown from an evaporator described later. Air mix door 1 rotatably mounted
9.

The outlet switching means includes a defroster opening 2
0, a heater case (air outlet switching box) 23 in which a face opening 21 and a foot opening 22 are formed, and mode switching doors 24 to 26 for switching an outlet mode. A defroster duct 27 is connected to the defroster opening 20, and a defroster outlet 28 is formed at the tip of the defroster duct 27. A face duct 29 is connected to the face opening 21, and a face outlet 30 is formed at the tip of the face duct 29. Further, the foot opening 22
Is connected to a foot duct 31 and the foot duct 3
A foot outlet 32 is formed at the distal end of 1.

Next, a cooling unit according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, FIG. 2 is a view showing the overall configuration of the cooling unit, and FIG.
(A), (b) is a figure which showed the main structure of the cooling unit.

The cooling unit according to the present embodiment includes a unit case 2 which constitutes a part of an air conditioning duct of an air conditioning unit 1, an evaporator 3 of a refrigeration cycle arranged in the unit case 2, and a cooling unit arranged in front of the evaporator 3. And a guide 5 for positioning the air filter 4 in the unit case 2.

The unit case 2 corresponds to the air-conditioning case of the present invention, and is integrally formed of, for example, polypropylene (PP) resin, and is divided into an upper case 33 and a lower case 34 having a U-shaped cross section. I have. Upper case 3
A concave guide groove (first guide portion) is formed on the inner wall surface of the side wall on one end side (engine room side) in the width direction of the lower case 3 and the lower case 34 over substantially the entire height of the ventilation passage formed in the unit case 2. 6) is integrally formed.

The guide groove 6 corresponds to a first guide of the present invention, and one end in the width direction of the air filter 4 is slidable so that the air filter 4 can be detachably inserted or pulled out. To position the air filter 4 in the unit case 2. Also, the guide groove 6
When the air filter 4 is mounted in the unit case 2, the air filter 4 can be guided in substantially the same direction as the height direction of the evaporator 3 (the vertical direction in the drawing, the attaching / detaching direction). In this embodiment, the guide groove 6 is constituted by two rows of ridges (rails) 36 projecting slightly inside (for example, about 5 mm) from the inner wall surface.
Of the unit case 2 in the front-rear direction (the air flow direction).

An outlet hole 40 for taking out the high-pressure refrigerant pipe 38 and the low-pressure refrigerant pipe 39 from the inside of the unit case 2 to the engine room is formed in the fitting portion between the upper case 33 and the lower case 34. ing. The air filter 4 is attached to the bottom side wall of the lower case 34.
4 is formed with a one-character insertion opening 41 for insertion into the unit case 2 from the lower side in the figure. After the air filter 4 is mounted in the unit case 2, the insertion port 41 is closed by a filter cover 43 that is fastened and fixed by using a fastener 42 of the lower case 34.

A guide holder is provided on the inner wall surface of the upper case 33 and the lower case 34 on the other end side (vehicle side) in the width direction, that is, on the inner wall surface facing the location where the guide groove 6 is formed. 7 are integrally formed. This guide holder 7
Consists of a bifurcated protruding portion (for example, about 5 mm) 44 sandwiching both end surfaces of the other end of the guide 5 in the width direction, and extends along the inner wall surface of the side wall on the other end side of the unit case 2. It is formed continuously over almost the entire height.

It should be noted that the bifurcated protruding portion 44 is
As shown in (b), the tapered inner portion protrudes inward from the inner wall surface so as to be elastically deformable and is inclined so as to expand from the inner wall surface. It has a tapered intermediate portion inclined so as to narrow the gap, and a reverse tapered opening inclined so as to expand from the end of the intermediate portion.

The evaporator 3 is equivalent to the heat exchanger of the present invention, and is disposed so as to close the front of the ventilation passage formed in the unit case 2 and exchanges heat between the passing air and the flowing refrigerant. Thus, a cooling heat exchanger and a refrigerant evaporator that cool air and evaporate the refrigerant. The evaporator 3 is provided with a box-shaped expansion valve device 45 on the front side of the front side.
It has.

The box-type expansion valve device 45 includes a high-pressure refrigerant pipe 38 for allowing a refrigerant condensed and liquefied by a condenser (refrigerant condenser) disposed in an engine room to flow into an expansion valve (not shown), and an evaporator. A low-pressure refrigerant pipe 39 for flowing the refrigerant evaporated and vaporized in 3 to a compressor (refrigerant compressor) arranged in an engine room is connected. The high-pressure refrigerant pipe 38 and the low-pressure refrigerant pipe 3
9 is taken out of the unit case 2 through the extraction hole 40 (see FIG. 2) as shown in FIG.
It is taken out to the engine room side through a pipe through hole 47 formed in a partition wall 46 that partitions the vehicle room and the engine room.

The evaporator 3 has a plurality of tubes and a plurality of corrugated fins between an inlet tank provided on the lower side in the figure and an outlet tank provided on the upper side in the figure. An inlet pipe 8 is connected between the inlet-side tank and the box-type expansion valve device 45.

The inlet pipe 8 is equivalent to a pipe outlet of the present invention, and is one side (vehicle side) of the evaporator 3 in the width direction.
At the end of the evaporator 3 and from the lower end in the height direction of the evaporator 3 to the upstream side in the air flow direction. It is extended so as to cross in the width direction and is connected to the box-type expansion valve device 45. An outlet pipe 9 is connected between the outlet-side tank and the box-type expansion valve device 45.

The outlet pipe 9 is equivalent to the pipe outlet of the present invention, and is one side in the width direction of the evaporator 3 (the cabin side).
At the end of the evaporator 3 and an outlet pipe extraction portion 49 taken out from the upper end in the height direction of the evaporator 3 toward the upstream side in the air flow direction. It is extended so as to cross in the width direction and is connected to the box-type expansion valve device 45.

The air filter 4 is arranged in parallel with the front surface of the evaporator 3 so as to block almost the front surface of the ventilation passage formed in the unit case 2 in front of the evaporator 3 to prevent odor and prevent dust, dust and tobacco. This prevents foreign substances such as smoke or unburned fuel particles from adhering to the evaporator 3 and blowing out into the vehicle interior. This air filter 4
Comprises an element 51 made of activated carbon fiber, nonwoven fabric, filter paper or the like, a frame 52 for holding the element 51, and the like. The frame 52 has a plate thickness of, for example, about 20 mm, and is made of, for example, polypropylene (PP) resin.

A portion of the frame 52 located at one end in the width direction of the air filter 4 (an end on the engine room side) is fitted into a guide groove 6 integrally formed on the inner wall surface of the side wall of the unit case 2. The mating portion 53 is formed. Also, the frame 5
2, the other end in the width direction of the air filter 4 (the end on the passenger compartment side)
Is formed with a fitting groove 54 that fits into one end of the guide 5 in the width direction. Here, the fitting portion 53
The fitting groove 54 is provided continuously in the height direction of the air filter 4.

The guide 5 is made of, for example, polypropylene (P
P) By being molded integrally with the resin into a substantially flat plate shape and being sandwiched between the inlet pipe outlet 48 and the outlet pipe outlet 49 so as to cover almost the entire height of the ventilation path formed in the unit case 2, It also serves as a sealing material for partially closing (sealing) the gap between the side surface of the air filter 4 and the inner wall surface of the unit case 2.

One end of the guide 5 in the width direction is a convex fitting portion (second guide portion: hereinafter referred to as a convex portion) which is slidably fitted in the fitting groove 54 of the air filter 4. ) 55
Function as The convex portion 55 positions the air filter 4 in the unit case 2 so that the air filter 4 can be detachably inserted or pulled out. When the air filter 4 is mounted in the unit case 2, the convex portion 55 can guide the air filter 4 in substantially the same direction as the height direction of the evaporator 3 (the vertical direction in the drawing, the attaching / detaching direction). It is.

At the other end of the guide 5 in the width direction, a convex fitting portion (hereinafter referred to as a convex portion) 56 detachably mounted in the guide holder 7 extends over the entire height of the guide 5. And are integrally molded. As shown in FIG. 3, the convex portion 56 has a hexagonal cross-sectional shape corresponding to the gap shape formed between the bifurcated protrusions 44. The convex portion 56 is slidable in the height direction within the guide holder 7, and the movement of the unit case 2 in the front-back direction (the direction of air flow) is restricted.

An engaging groove 57 is formed at the lower end of the guide 5 in the height direction so as to be removably engaged with the inlet pipe outlet 48 of the inlet pipe 8. Further, at the upper end side of the guide 5 in the height direction, an outlet pipe outlet 49 of the outlet pipe 9 is provided.
An engagement groove 58 is formed so as to be freely engaged with and disengaged from. As a result, the guide 5 is sandwiched between the inlet pipe outlet 48 and the outlet pipe outlet 49, so that the guide 5 is detachably held between the inlet pipe outlet 48 and the outlet pipe outlet 49.

Next, a method of assembling the cooling unit according to the present embodiment will be briefly described with reference to FIGS.

First, assembling the cooling unit,
An inlet pipe 8 and an outlet pipe 9 are connected to the evaporator 3, a box-type expansion valve device 45 is connected to the inlet pipe 8 and the outlet pipe 9, and a high-pressure refrigerant pipe 38 and a low-pressure refrigerant are connected to the box-type expansion valve apparatus 45. By connecting the pipe 39, the evaporator unit of the refrigeration cycle is assembled.
Next, the engaging groove 57 of the guide 5 is inserted into the inlet pipe outlet 48 taken out from the lower end of the other end of the evaporator 3 in the width direction.
And the engagement groove 58 of the guide 5 is engaged with the outlet pipe outlet 49 taken out from the upper end thereof, so that the inlet pipe outlet 48 and the outlet pipe outlet 49 arranged vertically.
The guide 5 is attached between them. After that, the evaporator 3 is inserted along a guide groove (not shown) formed in the inner wall surface on both side walls of the upper case 33 or the lower case 34.

Next, the convex portion 56 provided at the other end in the width direction of the guide 5 is pressed against the inner wall surface of the other end in the width direction of the upper case 33 or the lower case 34 to form a bifurcated shape. The convex portion 56 of the guide 5 is fixed to the guide holder 7 with one touch by using the bending of the projection portion 44. Next, a projection or a depression formed at the opening end of the lower case 34 or the upper case 33 is fitted to a depression or a projection formed at the opening end of the upper case 33 or the lower case 34. Case 2 is configured. The upper case 33 and the lower case 34 are fixed by tightening and fixing using fasteners (not shown) such as screws.

Next, the air filter 4 is inserted into the inside of the unit case 2 from the insertion opening 41 formed in the bottom side wall of the lower case 34 so as to be parallel to the surface direction of the evaporator 3. At this time, the fitting portion 53 provided at one end in the width direction of the frame 52 of the air filter 4 is fitted into the guide groove 6 formed integrally with the inner wall surface of one side wall in the width direction of the unit case 2. Let it. On the other hand, the fitting groove 54 provided at the other end of the frame 52 of the air filter 4 in the width direction is formed integrally with the inner wall surface of the other side wall in the width direction of the unit case 2 in the previous assembling step. The guide 5 fixed to the holder 7 is fitted to a convex portion 55 provided at the other end in the width direction.

Thus, the air filter 4 can be positioned in the air flow direction (front-rear direction) of the unit case 2 in the ventilation path formed in the unit case 2, and the air filter 4 is positioned in the guide groove 6. Along the guide 5 and the upper side of the unit case 2 in the height direction (insertion direction) in the drawing, so that the air filter 4
Is mounted at a predetermined installation location surrounded by the front surface of the evaporator 3, the inlet pipe 8, the outlet pipe 9, and the rear face of the box-type expansion valve device 45.

[Effects of the Embodiment] As described above, the cooling unit of this embodiment has the inlet pipe 8 and the outlet pipe 9 of the evaporator 3 attached to the sides,
When the air filter 4 is inserted into the front of the unit case 2 from below the unit case 2 in the drawing, the both ends in the width direction of the air filter 4 can be positioned by the guide grooves 6 and the guides 5. It is possible to improve the assembling workability when mounting.

Further, a protrusion (seal surface) that directly contacts the side surface of the air filter 4 does not protrude from the inner wall surface of the side wall on the other end side in the width direction of the unit case 2. Since only the guide groove 6 and the guide holder 7 need to be formed, the structure of the resin mold for integrally molding the upper case 33 and the lower case 34 can be simplified, and the resin mold can be easily removed. Becomes
When the evaporator 3 is assembled into the unit case 2, there is no protrusion that interferes with the evaporator 3, so that the assembling workability when assembling the evaporator 3 into the unit case 2 can be improved.

Further, the guide 5 is a seal for partially sealing the space between the inner wall surface of the other side wall in the width direction of the unit case 2 and the other side surface in the width direction of the air filter 4. By functioning as a material, it is possible to reduce the amount of air that passes directly (without purification) to the evaporator 3 without passing through the air filter 4.
Therefore, a decrease in the amount of air passing through the air filter 4 can be suppressed, so that a decrease in air purification efficiency by the air filter 4 can be suppressed. Even if the guide 5 is mounted, if a gap is formed between the air filter 4 and the unit case 2, a complete seal can be obtained by attaching a sealing material that closes the gap.

[Other Embodiments] In this embodiment, the evaporator 3 which is a cooling heat exchanger for cooling air flowing through the unit case 2 is used as a heat exchanger. A heater core which is a heat exchanger for heating the air flowing in the inside 2 may be used.

In this embodiment, the air filter 4 is mounted between the front surface of the evaporator 3, the inlet pipe 8, the outlet pipe 9, and the rear face of the box-type expansion valve device 45. An air filter may be mounted on a cooling unit or an intake unit in which a gap is formed between the cooling unit and the intake unit. Further, the air filter 4 may be mounted so as to be inclined with respect to the surface direction of the front surface of the heat exchanger such as the evaporator 3.

In the present embodiment, the insertion opening 41 for inserting the air filter 4 into the unit case 2 is formed in the bottom side wall of the lower case 34. However, in order to insert the air filter 4 into the unit case 2, Insert the upper case 3
3 may be formed on the ceiling wall. Further, the air filter 4 may be mounted so as to be sandwiched between the upper case 33 and the lower case 34. Furthermore, the air conditioning unit 1 may be assembled to the vehicle after the intake unit, the cooling unit, and the heater unit are assembled, or may be assembled after the intake unit and the cooling unit are assembled, or may be assembled for each unit. good.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an air conditioning unit of a vehicle air conditioner (embodiment).

FIG. 2 is an exploded view showing an overall configuration of a cooling unit (embodiment).

3A is a cross-sectional view illustrating a main configuration of a cooling unit, and FIG. 3B is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of the cooling unit (embodiment).

FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing an air conditioning unit (prior art).

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing a resin mold for molding a unit case (prior art).

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Air-conditioning unit 2 Unit case (air-conditioning case) 3 Evaporator (heat exchanger) 4 Air filter 5 Guide (2nd guide) 6 Guide groove (1st guide) 7 Guide holder 8 Inlet piping (Piping extraction part) 9 Outlet piping ( Piping outlet section) 44 Bifurcated projection 45 Box-type expansion valve device 48 Inlet pipe outlet section 49 Outlet pipe outlet section

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] (A) an air conditioning case for sending air into a vehicle interior; (b) a heat exchanger installed inside the air conditioning case; and (c) an air upstream of the heat exchanger. (D) a first guide provided in the air-conditioning case, and one end of the air filter is slidably fitted to the air filter; and (e) the other end of the air filter is slidable. An air conditioner for a vehicle, comprising: a second guide to be fitted; and (f) a guide holder provided at a position facing the first guide in the air conditioning case and holding the second guide. (A) an air-conditioning case for sending air into the passenger compartment; (b) a heat exchanger for heat exchange installed inside the air-conditioning case; and (c) a heat exchanger for the heat exchanger. A front surface that is taken out from one end in the width direction and from both ends in the height direction of the heat exchanger toward the upstream side in the air flow direction and becomes the air upstream side of the heat exchanger At least two pipe outlets extending beyond the heat exchanger in the width direction of the heat exchanger; and (d) the height direction of the heat exchanger along the front surface of the heat exchanger. An air filter that is inserted into the air conditioning case from above and is installed substantially parallel to the front surface of the heat exchanger between the front surface of the heat exchanger and the two pipe outlets; One end of the air filter is slidably fitted on the case. A first guide, and (f) a second guide, which is attached between the two pipe outlets, and the other end of the air filter is slidably fitted.
An air conditioner for a vehicle, comprising: a guide; and (g) a guide holder provided in the air conditioning case at a position facing the first guide and holding the second guide. 3. The air conditioner for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the second guide is a sealing material for making the space between the air conditioning case and the other end of the air filter substantially airtight. An air conditioner for a vehicle, which also serves as an air conditioner. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein:
In the vehicle air conditioner according to any one of the first to third aspects, the guide holder is a bifurcated projection that sandwiches both end surfaces of the other end of the second guide with elasticity. An air conditioner for a vehicle, wherein the air conditioner extends in a height direction along an inner wall surface of the air conditioning case.