JP3918805B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an air conditioner that automatically cleans an air filter .

In a conventional air conditioner, an air filter for preventing dust from entering the inside of the air conditioner main body is provided on the front surface of the heat exchanger, and this air filter can clean the attached dust by hand. It was attached so as to be detachable.

These air filters not only require frequent maintenance, but the air filters gradually become clogged until maintenance is performed, resulting in a reduction in the amount of air passing through the heat exchanger and air conditioning capacity. Decreases, leading to an increase in power consumption.

Therefore, in order to reduce the maintenance work of the filter, a belt-like air filter stretched around the drive shaft and a rotating brush in contact with the surface of the air filter are provided, and the air filter is moved by rotating the drive shaft. There is also an air conditioner in which dust accumulated on the surface is scraped by rotating a rotating brush (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP-A-6-74521

However, in the above prior art, the brush and the air filter are rubbed against each other, so that there is a problem that dust is entangled with the brush, or the function of removing the dust attached to the air filter due to wear or deformation of the brush is significantly lowered.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described conventional problems, and to provide an easy-to-maintain air conditioner that automatically sucks dust adhering to the air filter without removing the air filter from the air conditioner body. To do.

In order to solve the conventional problems, an air conditioner of the present invention includes a heat exchanger, a substantially L-shaped air filter that collects dust of air flowing into the heat exchanger, and the air filter. A filter piece for supporting and fixing, a suction nozzle movable to the left and right along the upstream surface of the air filter , and a suction device connected to the suction nozzle and sucking and discharging dust sucked by the suction nozzle . In the air conditioner, the suction nozzle has a longitudinal direction in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the suction nozzle and has a substantially L shape facing the air filter, and is provided at an upper end of the filter wax. A first guide rail and a shaft provided at the lower end of the filter casing and arranged along the longitudinal direction of the air conditioner are supported by the lower end of the filter casing. In the vicinity of the shaft, there is provided a second guide rail formed in a horizontal direction and having two surfaces spaced apart from each other, and a rib is provided in the vicinity of the portion of the suction nozzle through which the shaft passes. one obtained by meshed to the two surfaces contact, the air filter remains attached to the air conditioner, operating the suction device while moving the suction nozzle horizontally along the upstream surface of the air filter just to together to be able to easily remove dust adhered over the entire surface of the air filter, since the suction device is incorporated, there is no need to use an external vacuum cleaner for dust suction.

The air conditioner of the present invention can automatically and satisfactorily clean the dust attached to it without removing the air filter .

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a heat exchanger, a substantially L-shaped air filter that collects dust of air flowing into the heat exchanger, a filter wax that supports and fixes the air filter, and an upstream of the air filter An air conditioner comprising: a suction nozzle that can move left and right along a side surface; and a suction device that is connected to the suction nozzle and sucks and discharges the dust sucked by the suction nozzle. It has a longitudinal direction in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the suction nozzle and has a substantially L-shape facing the air filter, and a first guide rail provided at the upper end of the filter cloth and a lower end of the filter cloth. It is supported by a shaft arranged along the longitudinal direction of the air conditioner, and is formed in the horizontal direction near the shaft at the lower end of the filter wax. A second guide rail having two surfaces that are spaced apart from each other, and a rib is provided in the vicinity of the portion of the suction nozzle through which the shaft passes, and the rib is engaged so as to abut against the two surfaces. as hereinbefore, the air filter remains attached to the body in an air conditioner, the suction nozzle only operating the suction device while moving right and left along the upstream surface of the air filter, the entire surface of the air filter to together the dust adhered over can be easily removed, since the suction device is incorporated, there is no need to use an external vacuum cleaner for suction.

In the second invention, in particular, a pulley is provided at a portion that slides along the guide rail of the suction nozzle according to the first invention, whereby friction is reduced and the suction nozzle can be moved smoothly.

In the third aspect of the invention, in particular, the shaft of the first or second aspect of the invention has a hollow structure, and the shaft becomes lighter and can be bent by its own weight, so that it is supported by this shaft. The suction nozzle can be moved with stable operation.

In the fourth invention, the central portion of the shaft of the first invention is made of a metal material and the male screw portion is made of a resin material, respectively. The shaft becomes lighter and the bending due to the weight of the shaft is reduced. The nozzle can be moved smoothly, and the male screw part can be obtained by resin molding, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

In particular, the fifth aspect of the present invention is such that the exhaust side of the suction device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects communicates with the outdoor side, and the dust that has been sucked in the outdoor unit every time the air filter is cleaned by the suction nozzle. Therefore, it is possible to provide an air conditioner that is extremely easy to use and saves time and labor for dust treatment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
1 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an air filter mounting portion of an air conditioner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a suction nozzle of the air conditioner (cross section AA in FIG. 1). ).

1 and 2, 2, the heat exchanger in an air filter for removing dust from air is disposed in the upstream side flows into the heat exchanger (not shown), fixedly supported on the filter vaccinia 1, the air A suction nozzle 3 that can be driven right and left is provided along the upstream surface of the filter 2.

The suction nozzle 3 is supported by a shaft 4 installed at the lower end of the filter bag 1 and a guide rail 5 installed at the upper end with a very narrow gap from the surface of the air filter 2 so as to be slidable. Further, a wire 10 is connected to the suction nozzle 3, and the wire 10 is supported by rollers 9 provided at the left and right ends of the filter cloth 1, and a drive motor 11 is connected to one of the rollers 9. Yes. On the back surface of the suction nozzle 3, as shown in FIG. 3, there is provided a slit-like suction hole 12 that opens to face the surface of the air filter 2.

  A suction duct 6 has one end connected to the suction nozzle 3 and the other end connected to the suction device 7. The suction duct 6 is formed of a flexible bellows hose that can be bent so that the suction nozzle 3 can be moved. The suction device 7 incorporates an electric blower (not shown), and the exhaust of the electric blower is exhausted to the outside through an exhaust duct 8 connected to the rear part.

  The operation and action of the air conditioner thus configured will be described. In addition, since the cooling / heating operation of this air conditioner is the same as the conventional one, its description is omitted.

When the operation of the suction device 7 is started after the operation of the air conditioner main body is stopped, air is sucked from the suction hole 12 provided on the back surface of the suction nozzle 3 to which the suction duct 6 is connected. Then, the suction nozzle 3 which is located at the right end of the air filter 2, by operating the driving motor 11, the wire 10 connected thereto, moves to the left along the air filter 2. At this time, dust adhering to the surface of the air filter 2 is sucked from the suction hole 12 provided in the suction nozzle 3, and the dust is discharged to the outside through the suction duct 6, the suction device 7, and the exhaust duct 8, The dust attached to the entire surface of the air filter can be sucked and cleaned. Further, when the drive motor 11 is rotated in the reverse direction, the suction nozzle 3 can move to the right and return to the original position (the right end of the air filter 2).

In order to perform the above-described suction cleaning satisfactorily, it is important to keep the gap between the air filter 2 and the suction nozzle 3 constant. In this embodiment, the suction nozzle 3 is the filter Since the shaft 4 provided at the lower end and the guide rail 5 provided at the upper end of the filter casing 1 are firmly supported and slidable, a stable operation can be obtained while keeping the gap between the air filter 2 constant and good. It becomes possible to perform simple suction cleaning.

  The automatic suction cleaning operation of the filter 2 may be performed while the air conditioner is in operation.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the air filter attachment portion of the air conditioner according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The same parts as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted.

  A pin 13 is fixed to the upper end portion of the suction nozzle 3, a pulley 14 is rotatably provided on the pin 13, and a concave groove 14 a is formed on the outer periphery of the pulley 14. On the other hand, the filter rail 1 is provided with a guide rail 5 at a position facing the groove 14 a of the pulley 14, and the pulley 14 is engaged with the guide rail 5 to support the suction nozzle 3.

According to this embodiment, when the suction nozzle 3 moves along the air filter 2, the pulley 14 provided at the upper end of the suction nozzle 3 rotates along the guide rail 5 provided in the filter cloth 1. The sliding resistance between the rail 5 and the suction nozzle 3 is reduced, and the suction nozzle 3 can move more smoothly.

  A plurality of pulleys 14 may be provided in the moving direction of the suction nozzle 3.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, if the shaft 4 provided in the filter case 1 has a hollow structure, the bending due to the weight of the shaft 4 is reduced, so that the suction nozzle 3 that is supported by the shaft 4 moves, It is possible to move while keeping the gap with the air filter 2 more constant.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a rib 16 is formed in the vicinity of the portion where the shaft 4 of the suction nozzle 3 penetrates, and a second guide rail 5 a is provided at a portion facing the rib 16 of the filter wax 1, If the rib 16 is supported by the second guide rail 5a and slidably meshed, the weight of the suction nozzle 3 is handled by the second guide rail 5a. The deflection of the shaft 4 is reduced as in the above example, and the suction nozzle 3 can move while keeping the gap with the air filter 2 more constant.

  The same effect can be obtained by providing the rib 16 on the filter body 1 and the second guide rail 5a on the suction nozzle 3 side.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the filter device according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. The same parts as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted.

  In the above embodiment, the wire 10 that is moved by the roller 9 that is rotationally driven by the drive motor 11 is used as the means for moving the suction nozzle 3 in the left-right direction. However, in this embodiment, the belt 17 is used. is there. The belt 17 is looped around rollers 9 provided at the left and right ends of the filter cloth 1, and a part of the belt 17 is connected to the suction nozzle 3.

  According to this embodiment, since the contact amount (contact area) between the belt 17 and the roller 9 can be increased as compared with the case of the wire 10, the suction nozzle 3 does not slip the driving force from the driving motor 11. The suction nozzle 3 can be moved stably.

(Embodiment 4)
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of an air filter attachment part of an air conditioner according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention.

  The same parts as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted.

  In the first, second and third embodiments, the roller 9 is interposed as means for moving the suction nozzle 3, but in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. The end portion of the suction nozzle 3 is connected to the drive motor 11, and a female screw that is screw-fitted to the male screw is formed in a portion of the suction nozzle 3 through which the shaft 4 passes, and the suction nozzle 3 is supported by fitting with the shaft 4. It is what.

According to the above configuration, since the shaft 4 and the suction nozzle 3 are screw-fitted, the suction nozzle 3 can be moved along the air filter 2 by rotating the shaft 4 with the drive motor 11. According to the present embodiment, the wire 10 and the belt 17 described in the above embodiment, the roller 9 that holds them, and the like can be eliminated, and there is no loss at that portion, so transmission from the drive motor 11 You can improve your power further.

Further, as shown in FIG. 9, if the central portion of the shaft 4 in the fourth embodiment is formed of a metal material and a male screw is formed on the surface thereof with a resin material, the entire shaft 4 is made of metal. Thus, the weight can be reduced as compared with the case of forming the shaft 4, so that the deflection due to the weight of the shaft 4 can be reduced, and a good driving operation of the suction nozzle 3 can be obtained. In addition, since the male thread on the surface of the shaft 4 can be formed by resin molding, the manufacturing time can be shortened and the shaft 4 can be formed at low cost.

As described above, the air conditioner according to the present invention, without removing the air filter, it is possible to perform suction cleaning of dust adhered to the air filter automatically and favorably, various air-conditioning equipment, blown equipment, It can be widely applied to air cleaners and the like.

The perspective view of the filter attachment part of the air conditioner in Embodiment 1 of this invention AA sectional view of FIG. (A) Side view of the suction nozzle of the air conditioner, (b) Back view of the suction nozzle Sectional drawing (AA cross section of FIG. 1) of the filter attachment part of the air conditioner in Embodiment 2 of this invention Sectional drawing of the filter attachment part of the air conditioner which shows another example (AA cross section of FIG. 1) Sectional drawing of the filter attachment part of the air conditioner which shows another example (AA cross section of FIG. 1) Sectional drawing (AA cross section of FIG. 1) of the filter attachment part of the air conditioner in Embodiment 3 of this invention Sectional drawing of the principal part of the filter attachment part of the air conditioner in Embodiment 4 of this invention (BB cross section of FIG. 3). Sectional drawing of the principal part of the filter attachment part which shows another example (BB cross section of FIG. 3)

Explanation of symbols

1 Filter Waku 2 Air Filter 3 Suction Nozzle 4 Shaft 5 Guide Rail 5a Second Guide Rail 6 Suction Duct 7 Suction Device 8 Exhaust Duct 9 Roller 10 Wire 11 Drive Motor 12 Suction Hole 14 Pulley 16 Rib 17 Belt

Claims (5)

A heat exchanger, a substantially L-shaped air filter that collects dust of air flowing into the heat exchanger, a filter wax that supports and fixes the air filter , and a left and right side along the upstream surface of the air filter A suction nozzle that is movable to the suction nozzle, and a suction device that is connected to the suction nozzle and sucks and discharges the dust sucked by the suction nozzle, wherein the suction nozzle moves in the moving direction of the suction nozzle A first guide rail provided at the upper end of the filter wax and a lower end of the filter wax, and having a longitudinal direction in a direction perpendicular to the air filter and facing the air filter. It is supported by a shaft arranged along the longitudinal direction, and is formed in the horizontal direction in the vicinity of the shaft at the lower end of the filter wax and separated from each other. One of comprising a second guide rail having a face, a rib in the vicinity of the portion where the shaft of the suction nozzle penetrates provided, the rib is characterized by meshing so as to abut with the two surfaces Air conditioner. The air conditioner according to claim 1, characterized in that a pulley at a portion which slides along the suction nozzle guide rails. The air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the shaft has a hollow structure. The central portion of the shaft of a metallic material, an air conditioner according to claim 1, characterized by forming respectively an external thread portion of a resin material. The air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein an exhaust side of the suction device is communicated with an outdoor side.

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