JP3511223B2 - Air conditioning unit - 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 conditioning unit used in an air conditioner for a vehicle, and more particularly to a unit case in which a heater core is arranged and an opening for blowing air is formed, and a pipe of the heater core is formed in the unit case. The present invention relates to an air conditioning unit of the type that is piped along an outer surface.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an air conditioning unit mounted on a recent vehicle, one having a heater core and an evaporator arranged in the traveling direction of the vehicle to reduce the width direction (hereinafter referred to as a vertical air conditioning unit) is being used. is there. With such an air conditioning unit, there is an advantage of being able to secure a sufficient space for arranging other equipment in the width direction of the vehicle, but the pipe for circulating the engine cooling water in the heater core is extended to the engine room side for a long time. There must be. If the pipe is short, synthetic resin may be used, but in the case of such a long pipe, it is more advantageous to use metal for processing the pipe, and if the pipe is metal, for parts near the pipe There is a risk of burns if the occupant touches them because of the adverse thermal effects,
It is also extremely dangerous that hot water may leak due to corrosion of the pipe.

Further, as an air conditioning unit, a heater core is erected approximately in the center of an air passage in parallel with the ventilation direction, and dampers are provided on both sides of the heater core, and the air paths are made into three modes by operating the dampers. A switchable type (hereinafter referred to as a three-layer flow type air conditioning unit) is known. In this type of air conditioning unit, the pipe of the heater core must be pulled out to the engine room from below or above the unit case, and especially when it is pulled out from below, it is easy to contact the occupant.

Therefore, in order to cope with such contact with the pipe, a separate cover for covering the pipe of the heater core may be attached to the unit case as shown in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 165545/1993. desirable.

[0005]

In addition to the request of the air conditioning unit, in addition to the request of setting the blowing direction finely, the air conditioning unit has a blowing duct (particularly a foot duct) formed by another piece for blowing the unit case. It is designed to be attached to the opening. As described above, in the conventional case, the above-mentioned cover for pipe protection and the blowing duct are composed of separate members, and since they are separately attached to the air conditioning case, the number of parts increases,
There was a problem that it was difficult to improve the efficiency of the assembly work.

In view of this, it is an object of the present invention to provide an air conditioning unit in which the blowing duct has a function of protecting the pipe of the heater core to reduce the number of parts and the working time. Further, as another problem, since the portion where the heater core is arranged is close to the foot outlet, this positional relationship is emphasized and the heat radiated from the pipe is used for auxiliary heating of the air blown from the foot outlet. It is to provide an air conditioning unit that can.

[0007]

An air conditioning unit according to the present invention has a heater core and a unit case for accommodating the heater core, and an air outlet duct provided in the unit case for blowing out air. is attached, the pipe drawn from the heater core are pipe along the outer surface of the unit case, the air duct, and the duct main body for covering the opening, before
It is characterized in that the cover portion for covering the pipe and the insertion portion for inserting the heater core are integrally formed (Claim 1).

In other words, the heater core is housed in the unit case, the opening for blowing air is formed in the unit case, and the pipe for circulating the heat exchange medium is laid along the outer surface of the unit case. and, said heat to air duct attached to the opening
A step of integrally mounting a cover part covering the insertion part for inserting the data core and a pipe arranged along the outer surface, and attaching the blowout duct to the opening part of the unit case, and the cover part of the unit case. It is characterized in that the steps of attaching to the outer surface can be performed at the same time (Claim 2).

Therefore, the blowing duct inserts the heater core.
Since also serves as a cover portion covering the insertion portion and the heater core of the pipe to enter, it is not necessary to mold the protective cover of the pipe separately, the mounting of the attachment at the same time the cover portion of the duct can also be completed.

In the above-mentioned structure, the blow-out duct integrally formed with the cover portion may be a foot duct that blows air to the feet (claim 3), but the heater core pipe is of the unit case. When it is pulled out to the side and piped along the outer surface, the cover is erected from one end of the duct body of the foot duct along the outer surface of the unit case, and the pipe is installed from below the unit case. In the case where the duct main body portion and the cover portion are drawn out and piped along the lower surface, it is conceivable that the duct main body portion and the cover portion are integrally formed on the same plane without a boundary.

Further, when a foot duct is assumed as the blowing duct, it is desirable that the duct main body portion and the cover portion of the blowing duct have internal spaces communicating with each other in a state where they are attached to the unit case. 4). In such a configuration, the heat radiated from the pipe of the heater core can be supplementarily used for further heating of the air blown from the foot opening.

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 and 2, a vertical air conditioning unit is shown. A partition plate for partitioning the engine room and the vehicle compartment is provided on the left side of the air conditioning unit 1 in the figure. The air conditioning unit 1 is arranged closer to the vehicle compartment than the partition plate, and a blower unit (not shown) is installed in the unit case 2 It is adapted to be used by being connected to the opening portion 3 in the vehicle width direction, and the inside air or the outside air selectively introduced by the blower unit is pressure-fed into the unit case through the opening portion 3. There is.

In the unit case 2, as shown in FIG. 4, an evaporator 4 and a heater core 5 are arranged downstream of the opening 3 in this order in the traveling direction of the vehicle, and the evaporator 4 and the heater core 5 are connected to each other. An air mix door 6 for adjusting the ratio of the air passing through the heater core 5 and the air bypassing the heater core 5 is arranged between them. Furthermore, the heater core 5
A vent opening 7, a defrost opening 8, and a foot opening 9 that blow out temperature-controlled air are provided on the further downstream side, and the vent opening 7 and the defrost opening 8 are located above the heater core 5. 2, and the foot opening 9 opens on the lower surface of the unit case 2. A blowout damper (a vent damper 10 for opening / closing the vent opening 7, a defrost damper 11 for opening / closing the defrost opening 8 and a foot damper 12 for opening / closing the foot opening 9) is rotatably arranged in front of each opening. Has been done.

Therefore, the air sent from the blower is cooled by the evaporator 4 while the cooling cycle is operating, and the heater core 5 is opened according to the opening degree of the air mix door 6.
It is heated by and is discharged from the opening opened by the blow-off dampers 10, 11, 12.

The above-mentioned heater core 5 is inserted in the width direction of the air passage through the insertion portion 13 opened on the side surface of the unit case 2, and pipes 14 and 15 for circulating hot water (engine cooling water) through the heater core 5. Is drawn out from the insertion portion 13, and immediately after being drawn out, it is piped to the engine room side along the outer surface of the unit case 2.

On the outer surface of the unit case 2, two ridges 16 and 17 are provided, one end of which extends to a ridge line intersecting with the end face on the engine room side and the other end of which extends to a ridge line intersecting with a lower surface having the foot opening 9. And these ridges 16,
Pipe 1 drawn out from the heater core 5 between 17
4 and 15 have been crawled. Further, in the vicinity of the outer sides of the ridges 16 and 17 of the unit case 2, a plurality of convex portions 18 having screw holes are formed at appropriate places.

The foot opening 9 is formed, for example, in a rectangular shape, and the opening 9 has first and second guide pieces 19 and 20 extending downward from two sides perpendicular to the side surface of the unit case 2. Is provided, and a third guide piece 21 forming a stopper is provided on the side of the pipes 14 and 15 that is located on the side opposite to the pull-out side while suppressing the amount of projection below the first and second guide pieces. The third guide piece 21 is formed with an engagement protrusion 22 that protrudes inside the foot opening.

The foot duct 23 has a duct main body 24 formed in a box shape with an open upper surface. The duct main body 24 has first and second guide pieces 19 having a width in the vehicle traveling direction. The width is substantially equal to the width between 20 and the width orthogonal to that is formed such that one end is in contact with the third guide piece 21 and the other end projects laterally from the side surface of the unit case 2. Has been done. If the surfaces facing each other in the vehicle traveling direction are first and second surfaces 25 and 26, and the facing surfaces orthogonal to this are the third and fourth surfaces 27 and 28,
The fourth surface 27, 28 is formed with an outlet 29 for blowing out the warm air whose temperature is adjusted in the unit case to the feet. Particularly, the outlet 29 of the third surface 27 serves as the third guide piece 21. It is formed so as not to interfere. Further, an engaging hole 30 into which the engaging protrusion 22 formed on the third guide piece 21 is inserted is formed above the outlet of the third surface 27.

The unit case 2 of the duct body 24
A fourth surface 28 and a part of the first and second surfaces 25, 26 are integrally formed with the cover portion 31 at the end portion protruding laterally. The cover portion 31 is used for the heater core 5
As shown in FIG. 3 (a) , the insertion portion 13 into which the ridges are inserted is attached, and as shown in FIG. 3A, the ridges 16 and 17 are formed to cover the gaps between the ridges and are joined to the unit case 2. A fitting groove 33 that fits with the protrusions 16 and 17 is formed on the joint side, and a screw stopper 34 having a through hole is formed on the side surface of the cover at a position aligned with the protrusion 18. There is. Further, as shown in FIG. 3 (b), a U-shaped groove 35 for inserting the pipes 14 and 15 is formed in a portion where the pipes 14 and 15 are pulled out from the cover portion 31, and the groove 35 is filled with air. A seal member 36 for suppressing leakage is lined.

This foot duct 23 is used as the unit case 2
To attach the first and second surfaces 25, 26 to the first
And the second guide piece 19 and 20, and slides along the guide piece, so that the engaging projection 22 is formed on the third surface 27.
It may be inserted into the engaging hole 30 and pushed in until the third surface 27 comes into contact with the third guide side 21. At the same time, the fitting groove 33 of the cover portion 31 and the ridge 1 of the unit case 2
By fitting 6 and 17 together and fixing the screw stop portion 34 to the convex portion 18 with a screw, the duct main body portion 24 and the cover portion 31 are simultaneously attached to the unit case 2 in a state where their inner spaces are in communication with each other.

Therefore, since the cover portion 31 for covering the insertion portion 13 and the pipes 14 and 15 can be attached at the same time for the work of attaching the duct body portion 24, the assembling time can be shortened and the cover portion 31 can be separated. Since it is not necessary to construct the body, the number of parts can be reduced. In addition, since the duct body 24 and the cover 31 communicate with each other in their inner spaces, the warm air blown out from the foot duct 23 is supplied to the pipe 1.
It is also possible to supplementarily heat by heat radiation from Nos. 4 and 15, and it is possible to improve the heating efficiency of the air conditioning unit itself. Further, since the drawn-out portions of the pipes 14 and 15 from the cover portion 31 are held by the seal member 36,
15 can be fixed at the same time.

5 to 7, a three-phase flow type air conditioning unit 1 is shown as another embodiment of the present invention. This air conditioning unit is used by connecting a blower unit and an evaporator unit (not shown),
In the air passage 40 facing the opening 3 in the unit case, a heater core 5 is erected at substantially the center thereof along the ventilation direction, and air sent from a blower can pass through both sides of the heater core 5. In one side passage (first passage 41) of the heater core 5, an air mix door 4 for adjusting a ratio of air passing through the heater core 5 and air not passing therethrough.
2 is arranged, and the other side passage (second passage 43) has a submix door 44 for adjusting the amount of air flowing through the side passage.
Are arranged.

The sub-mix door 44 is normally in a position to close the second passage 43. In this state, if the air-mix door 42 is in a position to close the end face of the heater core 5, the air sent from the upstream side will not flow. Only the first passage 41 is passed to the blow-out portion, and the air mix door 42 is
If it is in a position that closes the passage 41, the air sent from the upstream passes through the heater core 5 and is sent to the blowing portion, and if it is in the intermediate position, the air that passes only the first passage 41 and the heater core 5 are separated. The air that has passed through is mixed downstream and sent to the outlet. Further, when the submix door 44 rotates toward the heater core while the air is passing through the heater core 5, the air passing through the heater core 5 and the air passing through the second passage 43 are mixed and sent to the blowing portion. It is designed to be used.

On the downstream side of the heater core 5, a vent opening 7 and a defrost opening 8 for blowing out temperature-controlled air are opened in the upper part of the unit case 2, and a foot opening 9 is opened in the lower surface of the unit case 2. ing. A blowout damper (a vent damper 10 for opening / closing the vent opening 7, a defrost damper 11 for opening / closing the defrost opening 8 and a foot damper 12 for opening / closing the foot opening 9) is rotatably arranged in front of each opening. The blowout mode is switched by a command from a drive control circuit (not shown).

Therefore, the air sent from the blower passes through the evaporator 5, is then temperature-controlled according to the opening of the air mix door 42 and the submix door 44, and is opened by the blow-out dampers 10, 11, 12. It is delivered from the opening.

The above-mentioned heater core 5 is inserted in the vertical direction of the air passage through the insertion portion 13 opened on the lower surface of the unit case 2, and pipes 14 and 15 for circulating hot water (engine cooling water) through the heater core 5. Is drawn out from the insertion portion 13, bent immediately after being drawn out, and is piped to the engine room side along the lower surface of the unit case 2.

On the lower surface of the unit case 2, there is provided a ridge 45 having one end extending to a ridge line intersecting with the end surface on the engine room side and the other end surrounding the periphery of the foot opening. 14 and 15 are these protrusions 45
Crawled in the area surrounded by. In addition, the ridge 45
In the vicinity of the outer side of the, convex portions 18 having screw holes are formed at appropriate intervals.

The foot duct 23 is provided with a duct main body 24 having an open upper surface and facing each other so as to cover the foot opening 9, and a side surface having an air outlet 29.
Insert the lower surface of the unit case 2 into the insertion portion 13 or the pipe 1.
A cover portion 31 provided so as to cover 4 and 15 is formed continuously and seamlessly. These duct body 24
The cover portion 31 and the cover portion 31 are formed with a fitting groove 33 for fitting with the protrusion 45 on the joint side where the unit case 2 is joined, and are aligned with the convex portion 18 on the side surface of the cover portion. A screw stop portion 34 having a through hole formed at a position is formed to project. Further, in the portion where the pipes 14 and 15 are pulled out from the cover portion 31, the pipe 1
A U-shaped groove 35 for holding 4 and 15 is formed, and a sealing member 36 for suppressing air leakage is lined in the groove 35.

In order to attach the foot duct 23 to the foot opening 9, the pipes 14 and 15 are fitted in the groove 35, the fitting groove 33 is fitted in the ridge 45 of the unit case 2, and screwed in that state. The convex portion 1 is formed by screwing the portion 34.
If it is fixed to 8, the duct main body 24 and the cover 31 are simultaneously attached to the unit case 2 in a state where the inner spaces of the duct main body 24 and the cover 31 communicate with each other.

Even in such a structure, the insertion portion 13 and the pipes 14, 1 are also used for the work of attaching the duct main body portion 24.
Since the cover portion 31 that covers 5 can be attached at the same time, the assembling time can be shortened, and the number of parts can be reduced because the cover portion 31 does not need to be formed separately. Moreover, also in this case, the duct body 24 and the cover 31
Since the inner spaces communicate with each other, the warm air blown out from the foot opening 9 can be supplementarily heated by the heat radiated from the pipes 14 and 15, and the heating efficiency of the air conditioning unit itself can be improved. it can. Further, since the drawn-out portions of the pipes 14 and 15 of the cover portion 31 are held by the seal member 36 as in the above-described aspect, the pipes 14 and 15 can be fixed at the same time.

[0031]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Wherein the air duct attached to the opening portion of the unit case
Since the cover part that covers the insertion part for inserting the heater core and the pipe of the heater core that is laid along the outer surface of the unit case is integrally provided, the step of attaching the blowout duct to the opening part of the unit case and the cover part are performed. You can perform the process of attaching to the outer surface of the unit case at the same time,
Working time can be shortened. Moreover, since it is not necessary to form a protective cover for protecting the pipe as a separate member, the number of parts can be reduced.

In particular, if the outlet duct integrally provided with the cover portion is used as the foot duct, it becomes easy to cope with the case where the pipe is pulled out from the side of the unit case or the case where the pipe is pulled out from the bottom, and the foot duct is attached to the unit case. When the inner space of the cover is in communication with the opening for blowing air in the mounted state, the heat radiated from the pipe of the heater core can be supplementarily used for heating the air blown from the blowing duct. . For this reason, it is possible to effectively use the heat radiation of the pipes, and it is particularly advantageous in temperature control such that there is a temperature difference above and below the air-conditioned space as in the bilevel mode.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a first form of an air conditioning unit according to the present invention, and is an exploded perspective view showing a state in which a foot duct is removed from a unit case.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the air conditioning unit of FIG. 1 with a foot duct attached to a unit case.

FIG. 3 (a) is a cross-sectional view showing a pipe arranged along a unit case and a cover portion covering the pipe, and FIG. 3 (b) shows a portion where the pipe is pulled out from the cover portion. FIG.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating an internal structure of the air conditioning unit according to FIG.

FIG. 5 shows a second form of the air conditioning unit according to the present invention, and is an exploded perspective view showing a state in which the foot duct is removed from the unit case.

FIG. 6 is a view of the air conditioning unit and the foot duct of FIG. 5 viewed from below.

7 (a) is a cross-sectional view of the air conditioning unit of FIG. 5 cut in the horizontal direction and seen from above, and FIG. 7 (b) is
It is sectional drawing cut | disconnected by the 7B-7B line of FIG. 7 (a).

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Air conditioning unit 2 unit case 5 heater core 7, 8, 9 openings 14 and 15 pipes 23 foot duct 24 Duct body 31 Cover

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inoue Mutsuhiro Onodera 39 Toyo, Konan-cho, Osa-gun, Saitama-gun, Chiyohara, XXEL Co., Ltd. in the Konan factory (72) Inventor Hiroki Ozaki Chiyo-ji, Konan-cho, Oza-gun, Saitama 39 East Higashihara Co., Ltd. in the XXEL Gangnam Plant (72) Inventor Tatsuya Kitajima Oita-gun, Konan-cho, Saitama Prefecture Chiyoji 39 Easthara XXEL Co., Ltd. in the Konan Plant (72) Inventor Keiichi Kita, Konan-cho, Oza-gun, Saitama Prefecture Large 39 Chiyoji Higashihara 39 XXEL Co., Ltd. in the Konan Factory (72) Inventor Hirofumi Tamura 39 Minami Toyo, Oza-gun, Saitama Large HIZUHARA Co., Ltd. in the Konan Factory (56) Reference JP-A-4-146811 (JP, A) Actual Kaihei 3-1813 (JP, U) Actual Kaihei 3-34912 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60H 1/00-3/06 F25B 27/02

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A heater core and a unit case for accommodating the heater core, wherein a blowout duct is attached to an opening for blowing air provided in the unit case, and a pipe pulled out from the heater core is the unit case. In an air conditioning unit that is piped along an outer surface, in the blowout duct, a duct body portion that covers the opening ,
An air-conditioning unit, characterized in that it is integrally formed with a cover part that covers the pipe and the insertion part into which the heater core is inserted . 2. A heater core is housed in a unit case, an opening for blowing air is formed in the unit case, and a pipe for circulating a heat exchange medium through the heater core is arranged along an outer surface of the unit case. In the air conditioning unit, the heater core is attached to the blowout duct attached to the opening.
A cover part that integrally covers the insertion part to be inserted and covers the pipe is integrally provided, and the step of attaching the blowout duct to the opening of the unit case and the step of attaching the cover part to the outer surface of the unit case can be performed simultaneously. An air conditioning unit characterized by 3. The air conditioning unit according to claim 1, wherein the blowout duct integrally provided with the cover is a foot duct that blows air to the feet. 4. The inside of the cover portion communicates with an opening of the unit case where the outlet duct is attached, in a state where the outlet duct is attached to the unit case. Air conditioning unit.