JP3883252B2 - Air conditioner for automobile - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an automotive air conditioner designed to improve the heating performance of a passenger compartment.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An automobile air conditioner operates in various modes such as a foot mode, a differential mode, a differential foot mode, and a vent mode. Here, “foot mode” refers to a mode in which temperature-controlled air is blown near the passenger's feet when heating the passenger compartment, and “def mode” refers to the inner surface of the window glass to remove fogging of the window. The “def foot mode” is a mode that blows out temperature-controlled air near the feet of the occupant and also blows out temperature-controlled air to the inner surface of the window glass. “Bent mode” is the upper body of the occupant. This is a mode in which temperature-controlled air is blown out and cooled.
[0003]
When the vehicle interior is cooled, the air is cooled by an evaporator provided in the automotive air conditioner in a state where the vent mode is set.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In such an air conditioner, conventionally, in the foot mode for heating the passenger compartment, temperature-controlled air is blown out toward the passenger's feet, but not only the feet but also the passenger's knees. Attempts have been made to blow out temperature-controlled air in these areas. In this way, when warm air is blown not only to the feet but also to the knee portion, a more comfortable heating feeling is obtained and a good foot mode state is obtained.
[0005]
In order to achieve such a state, the temperature control air is supplied to the foot duct for blowing the temperature-controlled air into the passenger compartment, the foot outlet for blowing the temperature-controlled air toward the feet of the passenger, and the knee of the passenger. This is done by providing a knee outlet for blowing out.
[0006]
However, at the development stage so far, the foot outlet formed in the side part of the unit body of the automotive air conditioner and the foot duct formed so as to extend up and down are simply different from the foot outlet and the knee so that the vertical position is different. The air blown out from the knee blower outlet does not go to the knee, but toward the feet, due to the structure of the unit and the wind flow characteristics. Has not been blown out, and a comfortable heating feeling is still obtained, and an automobile air conditioner that is in a good foot mode state has not been achieved.
[0007]
That is, a conventional automotive air conditioner uses a heater core to which engine cooling water is circulated and supplied as a heat source during heating, and the temperature control is performed by the opening of the mix door provided in front of the heater core. The ratio of the air flowing to the side (hot air) and the air flowing by bypassing the heater core (cold air) is adjusted, and the cold air and the hot air are mixed in the downstream passage provided downstream of the heater core. ing. The temperature-controlled air is distributed from the foot duct into the passenger compartment, and the air inflow side of the foot duct is established so as to communicate with the downstream passage, and is vertically connected to the side of the unit body. It is formed so as to extend.
[0008]
Therefore, when a foot outlet is opened at the bottom of the foot duct and a knee outlet is provided above the foot duct, the air blown out from the knee outlet does not face the knee, There is a problem that knee heating is not performed well.
[0009]
In a state other than full hot, that is, when the mix door is at an intermediate position to some extent, the air (cold air) that does not flow into the heater core and flows by bypassing the heater core mainly enters the knee blowout port and travels from the knee blowout port. The temperature may be different between the air blown into the room and the air blown into the vehicle compartment from the foot outlet. Thus, when temperature variation occurs in the temperature-controlled air blown out from both the air outlets, comfortable heating cannot be obtained.
[0010]
The present invention has been made in order to eliminate the disadvantages of the prior art as described above, and it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an automotive air conditioner that can provide a more comfortable and good feeling of heating.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention for achieving the above object, in the unit case, the downstream and the heater core for heating air supplied to the passenger compartment, without air inflows flowing downstream passage after flowing into the heater core And a mixing door that adjusts a ratio of the air flowing in the side passage, wherein the foot opening provided on the side portion of the unit case so as to extend vertically and opened and closed by the foot door is the downstream side. A foot outlet that blows temperature-controlled air toward the foot of the occupant in the foot duct that communicates with the side passage, and a knee that blows temperature-controlled air toward the occupant's knee located above the foot outlet provided an outlet, the foot opening of the foot duct, the inflow air from the guided downward, characterized in that a partition wall Wrapping the knee air outlet.
[0012]
In the present invention, since the partition wall is provided on the inlet side of the foot duct, when the air blown out from the knee outlet flows into the foot duct, the partition wall firstly lowers the foot duct. After being guided, it will rise along the opposite side of the partition wall. Therefore, the air blown out from the knee outlet surely moves toward the knee, and knee heating is performed well.
[0013]
Also, in a state other than full hot, the air (cold air) that does not flow into the heater core and bypasses the heater core does not enter the knee outlet directly because it is blocked by the partition wall. After that, the temperature-controlled air having an upward tendency is blown into the vehicle interior from the knee outlet, so the warm air temperature-controlled from the knee outlet is reliably blown toward the passenger's knees, The warm air blown from the foot outlet and the knee outlet is uniform, and comfortable foot heating is possible.
[0014]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a heater unit of an automotive air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view showing a main part of FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, a fan 2 that is driven by a motor (not shown) is provided in the upper part of the unit case 1, and a heater core 3 that heats air from the fan 2 is incorporated in the lower part of the unit case 1. . The heater core 3 is circulated and supplied with engine cooling water, and serves as a heat source for heating the air that has passed through the upstream passage 4 from the fan 2.
[0015]
On the inflow side of the heater core 3, a mix door 5 that adjusts a ratio between air supplied to the heater core 3 and heated thereby and air that is bypassed without being supplied to the heater core 3 and directly blown into the vehicle interior. Is provided to be freely opened and closed.
[0016]
The air heated by the heater core 3 and the air that bypasses the heater core 3 are mixed in the downstream passage 6 to become temperature-controlled air at a predetermined temperature. In the downstream-side passage 6 that guides and flows the temperature-controlled air, The foot port 7a and the passage 8 are communicated with each other.
[0017]
A vent port 9 and a differential port 10 are provided at the downstream end of the passage 8 to guide the temperature-controlled air that has passed through the downstream side passage 6 to a vent duct or a differential duct (both not shown). The differential port 10 is selectively opened and closed by a switching door 11.
[0018]
The vent port 9 is opened at the time of cooling, and the temperature-controlled air (cold air) that has passed through the downstream passage 6 is blown out from the vent outlet provided in the instrument panel into the vehicle interior. Is opened when the window glass is clouded, and the temperature-controlled air that has passed through the downstream passage 6 is blown out from the defrost outlet provided in the instrument panel toward the inner surface of the window glass. .
[0019]
A foot duct 7 formed so as to extend vertically to the side portion of the unit case 1 is communicated with the foot opening 7a. The foot opening 7a and the passage 8 are selectively connected by a foot door 12. It is designed to be opened and closed.
[0020]
That is, during heating, the foot door 12 is set at a position indicated by a solid line in the drawing, and the foot opening 7a is opened. As a result, temperature-controlled air (hot air) from the downstream passage 6 passes through the foot duct 7. And blown into the passenger compartment.
[0021]
At the time of cooling (in the vent mode), the foot door 12 is set at a position indicated by a two-dot chain line in the figure, and the foot opening 7a is closed. As a result, the temperature-controlled air (cold air) from the downstream side passage 6 is The air is blown into the passenger compartment through the passage 8, the vent port 9, and the vent duct.
[0022]
In the differential mode, the foot opening 7a is closed by the foot door 12, and the temperature-controlled air (warm air) from the downstream side passage 6 is blown out into the vehicle interior through the passage 8, the differential opening 10 and the differential duct. However, in the differential-foot mode in which the feet are heated while clearing the cloudiness of the windows, both the switching door 11 and the foot door 12 are set at the solid line position.
[0023]
The foot duct 7 has a foot outlet 13 for blowing temperature-controlled air toward the feet of the occupant, and is located above the foot outlet 13 so that the temperature-controlled air is directed toward the occupant's knees. A knee outlet 14 for blowing out is provided.
[0024]
In particular, in the present embodiment, the air that has flowed into the foot opening 7a is not directly guided to the knee air outlet 14, but the air is guided to the foot air outlet 13 and then the knee air outlet. A partition wall 16 that wraps around 14 is suspended into the foot duct 7.
[0025]
If the partition wall 16 is provided in this way, as shown by an arrow in FIG. 2, the air blown out from the knee outlet 14 into the vehicle interior once flows downward and then flows into the knee outlet 14. Therefore, the air blown out from the knee outlet 14 has a characteristic of moving upward, and is surely blown to the occupant's knee.
[0026]
Further, when the air (cold air) in the upstream passage 4 flows bypassing the heater core 3, the cold air hits the partition wall 16 and does not directly flow out from the knee outlet 14. Moreover, the air (hot air) heated by the heater core 3 and the cold air are reliably mixed by the presence of the partition wall 16, and the temperature of the air blown out from the foot outlet 13 into the vehicle compartment and the knee A temperature difference with the temperature of the air blown out from the blower outlet 14 is eliminated, and the temperature control characteristics during heating can be improved.
[0027]
In the air conditioner of the type shown in FIG. 1, an evaporator that cools the air is not necessarily required. However, when the passenger compartment is actively cooled, an evaporator is provided on the air blowing side of the fan 2. Will be provided.
[0028]
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an automotive air conditioner according to another embodiment of the present invention, and members that are the same as those in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals.
[0029]
In this automobile air conditioner, an evaporator 21 is incorporated in an upstream passage 4 formed between the fan 2 and the heater core 3 in the unit case 1, and further on the upstream side of the evaporator 21. The filter 22 is incorporated. In this case, the heater core 3 is incorporated below the evaporator 21, the inlet is on the lower side, and the mix door 5 is provided below the heater core 3.
[0030]
The foot duct 7 connected to the downstream side passage 6 of the unit case 1 is provided with a foot outlet 13 and a knee outlet 14 above the foot duct 7, as in the above embodiment. A partition wall 16 is provided in the foot opening 7a. Even in this type of automotive air conditioner, the presence of the partition wall 16 as in the above embodiment improves the air distribution of the air blown out from the knee outlet and improves knee heating. Moreover, even in a state other than full hot, the warm air blown out from the foot outlet and the knee outlet becomes uniform, and comfortable foot heating becomes possible.
[0031]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, in the present invention, the temperature-controlled air blown out from the knee outlet provided in the foot duct has a characteristic of being directed upward by being guided by the partition wall. Heating performance is improved by reliably supplying air from the temperature-controlled air. In addition, since the air that has flowed into the foot duct is guided by the partition wall and flows downward and then travels upward, warm air and cold air are mixed during this time, so air in cases other than full hot is mixed. Mixability becomes good, temperature variation between the air blown out from the knee blowout port and the air blown out from the foot blowout port is eliminated, temperature control characteristics are improved, and heating performance is improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of FIG.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
3. Heater core,
4 ... Upstream passage,
5 ... Mixed door,
6 ... downstream passage,
7 ... Foot duct,
13 ... Air outlet for the feet,
14 ... Knee outlet
16: Partition wall.

Claims (2)

The unit case (1) in a heater core (3) for heating air supplied into the passenger compartment, from said flow into the heater core (3) without air inlet flow flowing to the downstream passage (6) In a vehicle air conditioner having a mix door (5) that adjusts the ratio of air flowing to the downstream side passage (6),
A foot port (7a) provided to extend vertically on the side of the unit case (1) and opened and closed by a foot door (12 ) is connected to the foot duct (7) communicated with the downstream passage (6). A foot outlet (13) for blowing out temperature-controlled air toward the feet of the occupant, and a knee outlet (13) that is located above the foot outlet (13) and blows out the temperature-controlled air toward the occupant's knees ( 14) are provided on a substrate, the said foot outlet in the foot duct (7) (7a), provided with a partition wall Wrapping inflowing air from said guided downward knee air outlet (14) (16) An automotive air conditioner characterized by the above.   The partition wall (16) guides the air flowing in from the foot port (7a) downward once, guides it to the foot outlet (13), and guides it upward to the knee outlet (14). The door mechanism of the air conditioner for automobiles according to claim 1, wherein the door mechanism is suspended from the foot opening (7a) into the foot duct (7).

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