JP4864130B2 - Air conditioner indoor unit - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an indoor unit of an air conditioner, and more particularly to a display method for clearly displaying an operating state of the indoor unit.

  As a display method for displaying the operating state of the air conditioner, generally, a display window for irradiating light from a display element such as an LED, and characters, symbols, etc. representing display contents are displayed at appropriate positions (for example, In the lower part of the front surface, display is performed. Conventionally, various ideas have been made for the design of the display unit and the overall design balance, and for the visibility of display and prevention of light leakage.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses that the printed circuit board is inclined with respect to the display panel in order to suppress variation in mounting height from the printed circuit board on which the display element is mounted and to reduce the distance between the display element and the display window. A method of installing at an angle is disclosed.
Patent Document 2 discloses a configuration in which an electrical component is locked to the open panel side by a hook from the back side in order to stabilize the positional relationship between the display port window and the display port and prevent light leakage.
In Patent Document 3, a side plate facing the lamp mounting portion of the exterior plate is provided on the operation panel, and a pressing member that presses the lamp against the exterior plate is provided between the lamp mounting portion of the exterior plate and the side plate of the operation panel. A lamp support device for a machine is disclosed.

JP 2001-75507 A (page 2-3, FIG. 5) JP 2002-89876 A (page 3-4, FIGS. 1 and 3) Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 2-89708 (page 2-6, Fig. 1)

However, in the configuration in which the printed circuit board on which the display element is mounted is tilted with respect to the display panel as in Patent Document 1, since the arrangement is restricted by the mounting height of the display element, the degree of freedom in display design There is a problem that is limited. In addition, when an illustration or the like is displayed, the outline is blurred, and it is difficult to display finely.
Moreover, in the structure which attaches an electrical component to the open panel side like patent document 2, it is necessary to open a display porthole etc. in an open panel, and there exists a problem in design nature. In addition, if a variety of displays are to be made, the mounting area of the display portion increases, which is not suitable for a variety of displays.
Moreover, in patent document 3, it is the structure which presses the base of a lamp | ramp to the fixed exterior board with pressing members, such as a panel cushion material, It is not with respect to the panel which can be opened and closed. When displaying on a panel that can be opened and closed, it is necessary to keep the distance between the display panel and the display element constant, and if there is variation in the distance due to display panel warpage or display device assembly errors, Becomes ambiguous.

In view of the above-described problems, the present invention intends to display the operating state of an air conditioner directly on a design panel that can be opened and closed, and a first object of the present invention is to display visibility. The object is to provide an indoor unit of an air conditioner that has good design characteristics.
A second object of the present invention is to provide an indoor unit of an air conditioner that can improve the appearance design at the time of operation stop by eliminating the shape of the display part on the design surface.

An indoor unit of an air conditioner according to the present invention includes a unit main body having an open front surface, a design panel provided on the front surface so as to be openable and detachable, and a display device disposed on the front side of the unit main body. An air conditioner indoor unit equipped with
The display device includes a printed sheet having a contour of a projected display, a substrate holder having the printed sheet attached to the front surface, a substrate fixed to the substrate holder, and a light emitting unit mounted on the substrate. A base member that movably holds the substrate holder, and a spring that biases the substrate holder forward,
The design panel is formed of a transparent resin material, and the back surface thereof is painted or printed so that light can pass through,
In a state where the front face of the design panel is closed, the printed sheet affixed to the substrate holder is pressed against the back face of the design panel by the spring, and nothing is applied to the design panel when the light emitting means is turned off. On the other hand, when the light emitting means is lit or blinking, a display with an outline on the printed sheet is displayed on the design panel.

  Since the present invention is configured as described above, the operating state of the air conditioner can be directly displayed on the design panel that can be opened and closed, and the visibility of the display is good, and the design can be improved. An excellent air conditioner indoor unit can be obtained.

The front view at the time of the driving | operation of the air conditioner in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The perspective view of the air conditioner which shows the state which removed the design panel of FIG. Sectional drawing of the air conditioner of FIG. Sectional drawing of the principal part containing a display apparatus. The front view of a display apparatus. The disassembled perspective view of the right side display body of a display apparatus. The enlarged front view of the right side display body of a display apparatus. The rear view of the right side display body of a display apparatus. Sectional drawing of the spring attachment part of a display apparatus. FIG. 6 is an operation explanatory diagram of the display device. Sectional drawing of the display apparatus of the air conditioner in Embodiment 2 of this invention. AA sectional drawing of FIG.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 is a front view of an air conditioner in operation according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the air conditioner with a design panel removed, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the air conditioner. 4 is a sectional view of the main part including the display device, FIG. 5 is a front view of the display device, FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the right display body of the display device, and FIG. 7 is an enlarged front view of the right display body of the display device. 8 is a rear view of the right display body of the display device, FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a spring mounting portion of the display device, and FIG. 10 is an operation explanatory view of the display device.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the indoor unit of this air conditioner includes a design panel 2 provided on the front surface (fixed panel portion or frame portion) of the unit body 1 so as to be openable and detachable. The design panel 2 is formed of a transparent resin material (for example, ABS, polyethylene, polycarbonate, etc.), and a design layer 3 colored with a color capable of transmitting light by coating or printing is formed on the back surface. Yes. Therefore, the design layer 3 is visible from the surface of the design panel 2. During the operation of the air conditioner, the required display 4 appears on the design panel 2 in a state where the required display 4 is lit or blinking so as to convey the operating state to the user. When the operation is stopped, the display 4 is turned off and nothing is displayed on the design panel 2.
In FIG. 1, a dotted line surrounding the display 4 is shown as a display unit for the sake of understanding, and this dotted line is not displayed even during operation of the air conditioner. In addition, a sensor 5 for controlling the operating state is disposed at the front center lower portion of the unit body 1. The design panel 2 is formed with a window portion 6 having a U-shaped notch or the like in order to expose the sensor 5 portion.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, this air conditioner sucks room air from an upper suction port 31 by a blower fan 30 provided in the unit body 1, passes through a filter 32, and exchanges heat by a heat exchanger 33. Thus, the cool air or the warm air is used, and the cool air or the warm air is blown into the room through the lower outlet 35 provided with the flap 34. In FIG. 3, 36 is a drain pan.

  And the display apparatus 7 for performing the said display 4 is arrange | positioned at the lower part of the front side of the unit main body 1, as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the display device 7 is an integrated display unit in which the sensor 5 portion is arranged at the center and display bodies 8 and 9 representing the operation state of the air conditioner are arranged on the left and right sides thereof. ing. In this example, the left display body 8 is configured to display a clean sign 8a and an ECO sign 8b mainly by illustration, and the right display body 9 has an operation lamp / area line 9a and a room temperature 9b geometrically. It is displayed with figures, numbers and symbols. In FIG. 5, 10 is a remote control receiver disposed in the vicinity of the sensor 5, and 11 is a sensor drive motor for moving the sensor 5 left and right.

Here, the structure and attachment of the display device 7 will be described in more detail. Since the left and right display bodies 8 and 9 have the same configuration, the right display body 9 will be described here.
First, as shown in the exploded view of FIG. 6, the right-side display body 9 is mainly composed of a printing sheet 12, a substrate holder 13, a display substrate 14, and a base member 15.

  The printed sheet 12 is printed with the outline, numbers, symbols, illustrations, and the like projected on the design layer 3 on the back surface of the design panel 2 as the display 4, and is attached to the front end surface of the substrate holder 13 with an adhesive. It is attached. In particular, the numbers indicating the room temperature are printed with large numbers for easy viewing. The print sheet 12 has the clean sign 8a, the ECO sign 8b, the operation lamp / area line 9a, the room temperature so that the user can check the function description in the instruction manual when the design panel 2 is opened. The name 9b is written in the vicinity of these displays. These display names are not displayed on the design panel 2.

  The substrate holder 13 is formed in a box shape from a resin material such as ABS, and a light projection window 17 into which the LED 16 as a display element is inserted and a mounting window 19 for the number display unit 18 are defined. One or more LEDs 16 are inserted into the light projection window 17 in accordance with the size of the opening area. The LED 16 changes the color light according to the display content. In addition, since the inner surface of the projection window 17 also serves as a reflection wall of the LED light, the substrate holder 13 reflects the resin color with visible light to display (project) the widest possible range with a small number of LEDs. A white system with a high rate, the numbers and the like are displayed with a narrow interval between the LEDs, and the partition walls 17a between the adjacent light projection windows (segments) 17 are thin as shown in FIG. In order to prevent light from leaking to (segment) and blurring the numbers, the number display unit 18 as a separate part uses a dark color system such as gray or black of a different resin color.

The display board 14 is a printed board on which the LEDs 16 are mounted, and is fixed in the board holder 13 with screws as shown in FIG.
The base member 15 is integrally formed of a resin material such as ABS on the left and right sides, and the substrate holder 13 to which the print sheet 12 and the display substrate 14 are attached is attached to a spring 20 and a hook 21 (see FIG. 9). Hold through. In the display device 7, the base member 15 is attached to the drain pan 36 via a support member 37 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

  The substrate holder 13 is provided with a flange portion 22 formed integrally with the rear end of the side wall. On the other hand, the base member 15 is provided with a plurality of integrally formed hooks 21, and springs 20 are disposed on the left and right sides inside the substrate holder 13 and the base member 15. The stroke of the spring 20 is long enough to absorb the warp of the design panel 2 and the assembly variation of the display device 7. Therefore, when the design panel 2 is opened, the substrate holder 13 is urged forward by the spring 20 in a state of slightly protruding from the front surface of the unit body 1, and when the design panel 2 is closed, the substrate holder 13 is spring-loaded. 20 is pressed against the back surface of the design panel 2 via the printing sheet 12.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the spring 20 is mounted between a cylindrical spring receiving portion 23 provided on the substrate holder 13 and a guide protrusion 24 provided on the base member 15. Two protrusions 25 are provided on the inner wall of the spring receiving portion 23 so as to face each other, and these protrusions 25 are high by about 0.5 pitch, 1.5 pitch or 2.5 pitch of the winding of the spring 20. It is provided with a different size. Thereby, by rotating the spring 20 about one rotation, one end portion of the spring 20 can be engaged with and attached to the protrusion 25 in the spring receiving portion 23. Further, the guide protrusion 24 of the base member 15 is inserted into the spring 20 so that the substrate holder 13 can move in the direction of the central axis of the spring 20 and the direction inclined several degrees from the central axis. For this reason, the substrate holder 13 can be tilted in the left-right and up-down directions in addition to the movement in the front-rear direction by the spring 20.

Next, a display method by the display device 7 configured as described above will be described.
In a state in which the design panel 2 provided in the unit main body 1 in a normal use state is closed, the substrate holder 13 is pushed down against the force of the spring 20 on the back surface of the design panel 2, and the front end surface of the substrate holder 13 The printing sheet 12 adhered to the design panel 2 is in close contact with the design layer 3 on the back surface of the design panel 2. When the operation of the air conditioner is started by remote control operation, a predetermined LED 16 is turned on according to the operation state such as the set temperature and the wind direction, and a display 4 such as numbers, symbols, and illustrations printed on the printing sheet 12 is displayed on the design layer. 3 is projected.
Therefore, the user can confirm the operation state of the air conditioner by looking at the display 4 displayed on the design panel 2. Since the display 4 is printed on the print sheet 12, not only a fine display is possible but also a large display that is clear and easy to see. For this reason, the visibility of the display is extremely good. Since the display 4 can be displayed on the left and right with respect to the center sensor 5, the design is well balanced and the degree of freedom in display design is high. Furthermore, when the operation of the air conditioner is stopped, the display 4 on the design panel 2 disappears and nothing is displayed. Therefore, the appearance design properties of the design panel 2 are improved.

Since this design panel 2 is formed of a transparent resin material, warping may occur to some extent. In addition, variations may occur in the assembly of the display device 7 and the attachment to the unit body 1. If the gap between the design panel 2 and the print sheet 12 is about 1 mm or more due to such warpage of the design panel or variations in the assembly of the display device 7, the display 4 becomes blurred. Therefore, the warp and variations that cause the above are absorbed by the spring 20. That is, the tip end surface of the substrate holder 13 is protruded from the front surface of the unit body 1 by the spring 20 and the substrate holder 13 can be tilted in the left and right and up and down directions. As a locking means, the substrate holder 13 is provided with a flange 22 and the base member 15 is provided with a hook 21 so that the substrate holder 13 is held by the base member 15.
The effect | action by this structure is as follows. For example, as shown in FIG. 10 (however, the warping of the design panel is not shown), when the design panel 2 is warped in the upper left direction, the substrate holder 13 is inclined with the left side protruding as shown by 13a. When the design panel 2 is warped in the upper right direction, the substrate holder 13 is inclined with the right side protruding as shown by 13b. As described above, the substrate holder 13 can be freely tilted in accordance with the warp of the design panel 2 by the difference in expansion and contraction between the left and right springs 20. Therefore, the design panel 2 and the printed sheet 12 at the tip of the substrate holder 13 can be brought into a substantially intimate state even if the design panel 2 is warped or the display device 7 is assembled. Therefore, a fine and clear display is possible as described above.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
One spring 20 for urging the substrate holder 13 forward may be arranged on the left and right as described above, or four springs 20 may be arranged on the four corners of the base member 15. However, as the number of the springs 20 increases, the number of parts also increases, and as a result, the cost increases. In this embodiment, the number of the springs 20 is one.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the display device 7 of the air conditioner in the present embodiment, and FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.
The warp of the design panel 2 is generally large at the center in the longitudinal direction and small at the end. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 11, one spring 20 is arranged on the left side (center side of the display device 7) as in the first embodiment, and the right side (end side) is a base for rotating the substrate holder 13. The member 15 and the shaft 26 are coupled. As shown in FIG. 12, the shaft 26 preferably has a hinge structure in which a long hole 28 is provided in a mounting plate 27 provided in the substrate holder 13 and is loosely fitted in the long hole 28. Further, it is preferable that the leaf spring 29 is formed on the lower surface of the flange near the hinge portion of the substrate holder 13 and is urged forward by the leaf spring 29 so as to lift the hinge portion of the substrate holder 13.

  By configuring as described above, the one where the warp of the design panel 2 is large is tilted by a spring 20 at a large angle such as 13 a by the spring 20, and the one where the warp of the design panel 2 is small is the shaft 26 of the hinge part. By the play (backlash) with the long hole 28, it is inclined at a small angle as in 13b. For this reason, the design panel 2 and the printed sheet 12 at the tip of the substrate holder 13 can be brought into a substantially intimate state according to the warpage of the design panel 2, and the cost can be reduced.

1 unit body, 2 design panel, 3 design layer, 4 display, 5 sensor, 6 window, 7 display device, 8 left display body, 9 right display body, 10 remote control receiver, 11 sensor drive motor, 12 print sheet , 13 Substrate holder, 14 Display substrate, 15 Base member, 16 LED, 17 Projection window, 18 Number display unit, 19 Mounting window, 20 Spring, 21 Hook, 22 Flange part, 23 Spring receiving part, 24 Guide protrusion, 25 Projection, 26 shafts, 27 mounting plate, 28 elongated hole, 29 leaf spring, 30 blower fan, 31 upper suction port, 32 filter, 33 heat exchanger, 34 flap, 35 lower blowout port, 36 drain pan, 37 support member.

Claims (5)

An air conditioner indoor unit comprising: a unit main body with an open front; a design panel that can be opened and closed or removable on the front; and a display device disposed on the front of the unit main body. And
The display device includes a printed sheet having a contour of a projected display, a substrate holder having the printed sheet attached to the front surface, a substrate fixed to the substrate holder, and a light emitting unit mounted on the substrate. A base member that movably holds the substrate holder, and a spring that biases the substrate holder forward,
The design panel is formed of a transparent resin material, and the back surface thereof is painted or printed so that light can pass through,
In a state where the front face of the design panel is closed, the printed sheet affixed to the substrate holder is pressed against the back face of the design panel by the spring, and nothing is applied to the design panel when the light emitting means is turned off. On the other hand, when the light emitting means is turned on or blinks, an indoor unit of an air conditioner is characterized in that a display with an outline on the printed sheet is displayed on the design panel.   The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein a light projection window is formed in the substrate holder, and the light emitting means is inserted into the light projection window.   The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein an inner surface of the projection window is white.   4. The air according to claim 1, wherein in a state where the design panel is opened, the substrate holder is urged forward by the spring in a state of protruding from the front surface of the unit body. The indoor unit of the harmony machine. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the springs are respectively disposed at four corners of the base member.

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