JP6221678B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more particularly to an air conditioner mounted on a vehicle.

  In general, air conditioner outlets include a defroster outlet that opens toward the passenger compartment side of the windshield, a vent outlet that opens toward the driver's seat and front passenger seat, and a driver's seat and front passenger seat. There are foot outlets opened toward the feet of seated occupants, and the amount of conditioned air blown from each outlet is adjusted according to the operation of the control panel.

  Among the air outlets of these air conditioners, the vent air outlet is provided with a closing body such as a louver that can be manually operated by an occupant. Here, in a state where the conditioned air is adjusted so as to be blown out only from the vent outlet, the conditioned air is not blown out from the air conditioner when the vent outlet is closed by the closing body. For this reason, until a passenger | crew operates a control panel or a closed body, the air conditioner cannot exhibit the effect of an air conditioning and will be in the state which is operating wastefully.

  In order to eliminate such a state, Patent Document 1 includes a temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the air flowing through the vent outlet, and when the temperature change state detected by the temperature sensor is abnormal. Has been proposed to turn off the air conditioner.

JP 2011-25898 A

  However, the problem proposed in Patent Document 1 is that when it is detected that the air conditioner is operating in vain, the air conditioner is turned off, so that the effect of air conditioning cannot be exhibited reliably. was there.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner that can reliably exhibit the effect of air conditioning as compared with the conventional one.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a first air outlet provided with a closing body that can be manually operated by an occupant and a second air outlet provided without a closing body are formed, and the conditioned air is supplied only from the first air outlet. An air conditioning apparatus for a vehicle capable of selecting an air conditioning mode between a first air conditioning mode for blowing air and a second air conditioning mode for blowing conditioned air from at least a second outlet, wherein the first air conditioning mode is selected. An air-conditioning mode selection unit that selects the second air-conditioning mode on the condition that the efficiency of the air-conditioning apparatus is lower than a predetermined efficiency, and a secondary battery that is charged by electric power supplied from an external power source. , air conditioning mode selection unit, a further condition that the pre-air conditioning to operate is running the air conditioner when the secondary battery is being charged, and is characterized in that selecting a second air conditioning mode

Thus, in the above aspect , when it is determined that the first outlet is closed based on the efficiency of the air conditioner, the conditioned air is blown from the second outlet that is not closed. Therefore, the effect of the air conditioning can be surely exhibited as compared with the conventional one.

In the above-described aspect , the pre-air conditioning can be reliably executed.

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a main part of a vehicle equipped with an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing a drive current map referred to by the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the air-conditioning mode switching operation by the air-conditioning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle 1 equipped with an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention constitutes an electric vehicle that uses the power of a secondary battery charged by power supplied from an external power supply as a driving force. . The vehicle 1 includes a charging connector 2, a charging circuit 3, a secondary battery 4, a drive circuit 5, a drive motor 6, an air conditioning unit 7, and an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 8.

The charging connector 2 is supplied with power from an external power source. The charging circuit 3 is connected to the charging connector 2 and includes a converter that converts AC power supplied to the charging connector 2 into DC power and a booster circuit that boosts DC power.
The secondary battery 4 is connected in parallel with the charging circuit 3. The secondary battery 4 is charged by the power supplied from the charging circuit 3 while supplying power to the drive circuit 5 and the air conditioning unit 7.

The drive circuit 5 is connected in parallel with the charging circuit 3 and the secondary battery 4. The drive circuit 5 has an inverter controlled by the ECU 8. The drive circuit 5 is configured to mutually convert DC power and three-phase AC power based on control by the ECU 8. As a result, the drive circuit 5 exchanges power between the secondary battery 4 and the drive motor 6 to charge / discharge the secondary battery 4.
The drive motor 6 includes a stator that forms a rotating magnetic field, and a rotor that is disposed inside the stator and in which a plurality of permanent magnets are embedded. The stator includes a stator core and a three-phase coil wound around the stator core.

In the drive motor 6 configured as described above, when three-phase AC power is supplied to the three-phase coil of the stator, a rotating magnetic field is formed by the stator, and a permanent magnet embedded in the rotor is drawn to the rotating magnetic field. Thus, the rotor is rotationally driven. Thus, the drive motor 6 functions as an electric motor, that is, as a drive source of the vehicle 1.
Further, when the permanent magnet embedded in the rotor rotates, a rotating magnetic field is formed, and an induced current flows through the three-phase coil of the stator due to the rotating magnetic field, thereby generating electric power at both ends of the three-phase coil. Thus, the drive motor 6 functions as a generator.

The air conditioning unit 7 is connected in parallel with the charging circuit 3, the secondary battery 4, and the drive circuit 5. That is, the air conditioning unit 7 is driven by electric power supplied from the charging circuit 3, the secondary battery 4, and the driving circuit 5. The air conditioning unit 7 constitutes an air conditioner 9 integrally with the ECU 8.
As shown in FIG. 2, the air conditioning unit 7 has an outside air introduction port 10 a that communicates the inside of the air conditioning unit 7 to the outside of the vehicle interior, and an interior of the air conditioning unit 7 that communicates with the interior of the vehicle interior. The inside air inlet 10b is formed.
The outside air introduction port 10 a is an introduction port that introduces air outside the passenger compartment into the air conditioning unit 7. The inside air introduction port 10b is an introduction port for introducing the air in the vehicle interior into the air conditioning unit 7, that is, the introduction port for introducing the air circulating in the vehicle interior.

  In the air conditioning unit 7, there is provided an introduction port switching door 11 for switching the introduction port of the air blown into the vehicle interior between the outside air introduction port 10a and the inside air introduction port 10b. The introduction port switching door 11 moves between a position where the outside air introduction port 10a is completely closed and the inside air introduction port 10b is completely opened, and a position where the inside air introduction port 10b is completely closed and the outside air introduction port 10a is completely opened. It is rotatably mounted in the air conditioning unit 7 so that it can.

  The introduction port switching door 11 is provided with an actuator 12 for driving the introduction port switching door 11. The actuator 12 controls the position of the introduction port switching door 11 in accordance with control by the ECU 8.

  Further, the air conditioning unit 7 includes a defroster discharge port 14a communicated with a defroster blowout port 13a opened toward the vehicle interior side of the front window glass as a discharge port for air blown into the vehicle interior, a driver seat, A vent outlet 14b communicated with the vent outlet 13b opened toward the passenger seat, and a foot outlet vent communicated with the foot outlet 13c opened toward the feet of the passenger seated in the driver seat and the passenger seat 14c.

The vent outlet 13b is provided with a louver 15 constituting a closing body capable of closing the vent outlet 13b. For example, the louver 15 changes the open state of the vent air outlet 13b between a state in which the vent air outlet 13b is opened and a state in which the vent air outlet 13b is closed in accordance with the position of an operation lever that can be operated by the occupant.
That is, in the present embodiment, the vent outlet 13b corresponds to the first outlet provided with the louver 15 that can be manually operated by the occupant, and the defroster outlet 13a and the foot outlet 14c are provided with the louver 15. It corresponds to the 2nd outlet which is not.

In the air conditioning unit 7, an outlet switching door 16a for opening / closing the defroster outlet 14a and an outlet switching door 16b for opening / closing the vent outlet 14b and the foot outlet 14c are provided.
The outlet switching door 16a is rotatably mounted in the air conditioning unit 7 so that it can move between a position where the defroster discharge port 14a is completely opened and a position where the defroster discharge port 14a is completely closed.
The blower outlet switching door 16a is provided with an actuator 17a for driving the blower outlet switching door 16a. The actuator 17a controls the position of the outlet switching door 16a according to control by the ECU 8.

The outlet switching door 16b moves between a position where the vent outlet 14b is completely closed and the foot outlet 14c is fully opened, and a position where the foot outlet 14c is completely closed and the vent outlet 14b is fully opened. It is rotatably mounted in the air conditioning unit 7 so that it can.
The blower outlet switching door 16b is provided with an actuator 17b for driving the blower outlet switching door 16b. The actuator 17b is configured to control the position of the outlet switching door 16b in accordance with control by the ECU 8.

  In the air conditioning unit 7, a blower fan 20, an evaporator core 21, an air mix door 22, and a PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) heater 23 are provided from the air inlet to the outlet. .

  The blower fan 20 blows air that is blown into the passenger compartment. The blower fan 20 is provided with a blower fan motor 24 that rotates the blower fan 20. The blower fan 20 is rotated by a blower fan motor 24 to blow air introduced from the introduction port toward the discharge port. The rotational force of the blower fan motor 24 is changed in accordance with control by the ECU 8 to change the air flow rate of the blower fan 20.

  The evaporator core 21 cools and dehumidifies the air passing through the evaporator core 21 by performing heat exchange between the air passing through the evaporator core 21 and the refrigerant passing through the evaporator core 21. Yes. The evaporator core 21 is provided with an electric compressor 25 and an outdoor condenser 26, and the air conditioning unit 7 constitutes a cooling device.

The air mix door 22 adjusts the flow rate of air passing through the PTC heater 23. Specifically, the air mix door 22 can move between a position where air passing through the evaporator core 21 passes through the PTC heater 23 and a position where air passing through the evaporator core 21 does not pass through the PTC heater 23. The air conditioning unit 7 is rotatably mounted.
The air mix door 22 is provided with an actuator 27 for driving the air mix door 22. The actuator 27 controls the position of the air mix door 22 in accordance with control by the ECU 8.

  The PTC heater 23 functions as a heat source that warms the air blown into the passenger compartment. Therefore, the air-conditioning unit 7 constitutes a heating device by controlling the position of the air mix door 22 so that the blower fan 20 is rotated and the air blown into the passenger compartment passes through the PTC heater 23.

The ECU 8 is configured by a computer unit including a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, an input port, and an output port.
The ROM of the ECU 8 stores a program for causing the computer unit to function as the ECU 8 along with various constants, various maps, and the like. That is, in the ECU 8, the computer unit functions as the ECU 8 when the CPU executes a program stored in the ROM.

  In the present embodiment, the input port of the ECU 8 detects the interior temperature sensor 51 that detects the temperature in the interior of the vehicle, the outside temperature sensor 52 that detects the temperature of the outside air, and the discharge current value of the secondary battery 4. Various sensors including the current sensor 53 and various controllers including the control panel 54 are connected.

  The control panel 54 has an air conditioning switch for switching on / off of the air conditioning unit 7 and an air introduction mode selection in which an inlet for air to be blown into the vehicle interior is selected between the outside air inlet 10a and the inside air inlet 10b. An air-conditioning mode selection switch for selecting an air-conditioning mode consisting of a switch, a ratio of the flow rate of the air-conditioning air blown from the defroster outlet 13a, the vent outlet 13b, and the foot outlet 13c, and the outlets Various switches are provided, including an air volume adjustment switch for setting the flow rate of the conditioned air (hereinafter, also simply referred to as “blowing amount”) and a temperature setting switch for setting the set temperature.

For the air conditioning mode selection switch, one air conditioning mode is selected from, for example, a vent mode, a foot mode, a B / L (bilevel) mode, and a D / F (def / foot) mode.
The vent mode is a mode in which conditioned air is blown from the vent outlet 13b. The foot mode is a mode in which conditioned air is blown from the foot outlet 13c. The B / L mode is a mode in which conditioned air is blown from the vent outlet 13b and the foot outlet 13c. The D / F mode is a mode in which conditioned air is blown from the defroster outlet 13a and the foot outlet 13c.
In the present embodiment, the vent mode corresponds to a first air conditioning mode in which conditioned air is blown out only from the first outlet, and the B / L mode is at least a second air conditioning mode in which conditioned air is blown out from the second outlet. It corresponds to. The foot mode or D / F mode may correspond to the second air conditioning mode.

Various control objects such as actuators 12, 17a, 17b and 27, a PTC heater 23, a blower fan motor 24, and an electric compressor 25 are connected to the output port of the ECU 8. The ECU 8 is configured to control various control objects based on information obtained from various sensors, various controllers, and various switches.
For example, when the air conditioning unit 7 is turned on by the air conditioning switch of the ECU 8 and the control panel 54, the temperature in the vehicle interior detected by the vehicle interior temperature sensor 51 and the temperature set by the temperature setting switch of the control panel 54 The actuator 27, the PTC heater 23, and the electric compressor 25 are appropriately controlled so that they are equal.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the drive current value (hereinafter simply referred to as “basic current value”) of the blower fan motor 24 is associated with the air conditioning mode and the blowout amount in the ROM of the ECU 8. A drive current map is stored in advance.
The ECU 8 sets the drive current of the blower fan motor 24 based on the air conditioning mode selected on the control panel 54 and the blowout amount selected by the air volume adjustment switch.
Here, the air volume adjustment switch is configured such that, for example, the blowout amount is selected from among 11 steps from 0 to 100 every 100. That is, the ECU 8 determines the rotational speed of the blower fan motor 24 (hereinafter simply referred to as “target speed”) according to the air conditioning mode selected on the control panel 54 and the blowout amount selected by the air volume adjustment switch. It is like that.

In FIG. 1, the ECU 8 calculates the drive current value Ic of the blower fan motor 24 according to the following formula 1.
Ic = discharge current value of secondary battery 4−drive current value of each electric load (excluding blower fan motor 24) (Equation 1)
Here, the discharge current value of the secondary battery 4 is a detection value of the current sensor 53. Moreover, the drive current value of each electric load is acquired from various controllers.
When the blower fan motor 24 is constituted by a brushless motor, the ECU 8 sets the drive current of the blower fan motor 24 based on the drive current map, and then the rotation speed detected by the motor rotation speed sensor. When the target speed is different from the target speed (hereinafter simply referred to as “detected speed”), the drive current of the blower fan motor 24 may be adjusted so that the detected speed becomes the target speed. The adjusted drive current value of the blower fan motor 24 becomes the drive current value Ic of the blower fan motor 24.

The ECU 8 configures the air conditioning mode selection unit 70 that selects the second air conditioning mode on condition that the efficiency η of the air conditioning unit 7 is lower than the predetermined efficiency THη in a state where the first air conditioning mode is selected. That is, the ECU 8 selects the B / L mode on condition that the efficiency η of the air conditioning unit 7 is lower than the predetermined efficiency THη in a state where the vent mode is selected.
Specifically, the ECU 8 has a timer, and the drive current value (hereinafter simply referred to as “actual drive current value”) Ic of the blower fan motor 24 adjusted so that the detected speed becomes the target speed is the basic current value. When the time T exceeding Ir is longer than the predetermined time THt, it is determined that the efficiency η of the air conditioning unit 7 is lower than the predetermined efficiency THη.

Here, when the air-conditioning mode is the vent mode and the efficiency η of the air-conditioning unit 7 is lower than the predetermined efficiency THη, a load is applied to the blower fan motor 24 because the vent outlet 13b is closed by the louver 15. Can be determined.
Therefore, the ECU 8 switches the actuator 17b so as to switch the air conditioning mode from the vent mode to the B / L mode on condition that the efficiency η of the air conditioning unit 7 is lower than the predetermined efficiency THη in a state where the air conditioning mode is the vent mode. It comes to control.

  The air-conditioning mode switching operation by the air-conditioning apparatus 9 according to the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. The air conditioning mode switching operation described below is repeatedly executed when the air conditioning unit 7 is in the on state. Further, the ECU 8 resets the measurement time of the timer to 0 when the air conditioning unit 7 is turned on.

First, the ECU 8 determines whether or not the air conditioning mode is the vent mode (step S1). If it is determined that the air conditioning mode is not the vent mode, the ECU 8 resets the timer measurement time to 0 (step S2) and ends the air conditioning mode switching operation.
On the other hand, when determining that the air conditioning mode is the vent mode, the ECU 8 determines whether or not the actual drive current value Ic exceeds the basic current value Ir of the blower fan motor 24 based on the drive current map ( Step S3).

If it is determined that the actual drive current value Ic does not exceed the basic current value Ir, the ECU 8 resets the timer measurement time to 0 (step S2), and ends the air conditioning mode switching operation.
On the other hand, when it is determined that the actual drive current value Ic exceeds the basic current value Ir, it is determined whether or not the measured time of the timer is longer than the predetermined time THt (step S4). If the ECU 8 determines that the measured time of the timer is not longer than the predetermined time THt, the ECU 8 ends the air conditioning mode switching operation.
On the other hand, when determining that the measured time of the timer is longer than the predetermined time THt, the ECU 8 controls the actuator 17b to switch the air conditioning mode from the vent mode to the B / L mode (step S5), and the air conditioning mode switching operation. Exit.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when it is determined that the vent outlet 13b is closed by the louver 15 based on the efficiency η of the air conditioner 9 while the air conditioning mode is the vent mode, Since the conditioned air is also blown from the foot outlet 13c that is not closed, the effect of the air conditioning can be surely exhibited as compared with the conventional one.

  In the present embodiment, the example in which the air conditioner according to the present invention is mounted on an electric vehicle has been described. However, the air conditioner according to the present invention can be mounted on various vehicles such as a vehicle using an internal combustion engine as a drive source, a hybrid vehicle, a plug-in hybrid vehicle, and a fuel cell vehicle.

In particular, the air conditioner according to the present invention is an air conditioner that uses the power of the external power source before the occupant gets in the state where the secondary battery is charged by the external power source, such as an electric vehicle or a plug-in hybrid vehicle. It is effective when installed in a vehicle equipped with a function called pre-air conditioning that keeps operating.
That is, when pre-air conditioning is being executed, there is usually no passenger in the passenger compartment. For this reason, when the air conditioning mode is the vent mode and the louver 15 is completely closed, switching of the air conditioning mode or opening of the louver 15 cannot be expected by the passenger, and pre-air conditioning is effective. Does not work. For this reason, by mounting the air conditioner according to the present invention on a vehicle capable of performing pre-air conditioning, the air conditioner according to the present invention can reliably execute the pre-air conditioning.

  Conversely, when the pre-air conditioning is not executed, it can be expected that the air conditioning mode is switched or the louver 15 is opened by the occupant. Therefore, when the pre-air conditioning is not performed, the above-described air conditioning mode switching is performed. The operation may not be executed. That is, the air conditioning mode selection unit 70 may select the second air conditioning mode on the condition that pre-air conditioning is being executed.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed above, it is obvious that those skilled in the art can make modifications without departing from the scope of the present invention. All such modifications and equivalents are intended to be included in the claims recited in the claims.

1 Vehicle 4 Secondary Battery 8 ECU (Air Conditioning Mode Selection Unit)
9 Air conditioner 13a Defroster outlet (second outlet)
13b Vent outlet (first outlet)
13c Foot outlet (second outlet)
15 louvers (closed body)
70 Air-conditioning mode selection section

Claims (1)

A first outlet provided with a closing body that can be manually operated by an occupant;
A second outlet that is not provided with the closing body is formed,
An air conditioner for a vehicle capable of selecting an air conditioning mode between a first air conditioning mode for blowing conditioned air from only the first outlet and a second air conditioning mode for blowing the conditioned air from at least a second outlet. Because
An air conditioning mode selection unit that selects the second air conditioning mode on the condition that the efficiency of the air conditioning device is lower than a predetermined efficiency in a state where the first air conditioning mode is selected ;
A secondary battery charged by power supplied from an external power source, and
The air-conditioning mode selection unit selects the second air-conditioning mode on the condition that pre-air-conditioning that activates the air-conditioning device is performed when the secondary battery is charged. Air conditioner.

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