JP6420531B2 - Air conditioner for vehicles - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditioner that is mounted on a vehicle and that adjusts the temperature of the vehicle interior by blowing air that has been temperature-adjusted by a heat exchanger into the vehicle interior.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a vehicle air conditioner mounted on a vehicle takes air inside and outside by an air blower into an air conditioning case in which an air passage is formed, and is cooled by an evaporator that is a cooling means and a heater core that is a heating means. After the heated air is mixed with a desired mixing ratio in the air conditioning case by driving the air mix door, for example, the air is blown from the plurality of openings provided in the air conditioning case into the vehicle interior through the air duct. The temperature and humidity are adjusted at.

  For example, in the vehicle air conditioner as described above, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, a vehicle having a full center structure in which a blower is disposed at a substantially central portion of an air conditioning case is known. In the air conditioner for air conditioning, the blower is disposed above the unit case, and the cooling heat exchanger is disposed below the air blower. For example, when blowing cool air to the vicinity of the occupant's face, the air sent from the blower flows downward along the air passage and passes through the cooling heat exchanger, and then upwards again. It is distributed and blown from the vent outlet into the passenger compartment.

JP 2001-105830 A

  However, in the vehicle air conditioner described above, when the air that has passed through the cooling heat exchanger in the unit case flows to the vent air vent, the flow path meanders from the cooling heat exchanger to the vent air outlet. In addition, since the dampers such as an air mix door and a foot door are provided in the middle of the flow path, the flow path is narrow and complicated. As a result, during cooling operation in which the cool air that has passed through the cooling heat exchanger is blown from the vent outlet to the vicinity of the occupant's face, the flow resistance of the air flowing through the flow path is large and the pressure loss (energy loss) increases. As a result, the air flow rate is reduced.

  In addition, when a high-power blower is used to compensate for the above-described decrease in the air flow rate, the device becomes larger with an increase in the size of the air blower, and when a large cross-sectional area of the flow path is to be secured. Similarly, there arises a problem that the unit case is enlarged.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described problems, and provides a vehicle air conditioner that can be reduced in size while reducing air flow resistance and preventing a reduction in air flow. Objective.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an air conditioning case having a flow path through which air flows and a blower opening for blowing air into the vehicle interior, and air is provided to the vehicle interior approximately at the center in the width direction of the air conditioning case. In a vehicle air conditioner having an air blower, an evaporator provided inside an air conditioning case for cooling air, and a heater core for heating air,
The evaporator is provided so as to incline in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, the blower is disposed above the upper end of the evaporator, the heater core is disposed above the lower end, and a substantially central portion between the upper end and the lower end. A blower opening is provided above,
An air mix damper that slides and moves in a substantially horizontal direction is provided between the evaporator and the heater core.
The air conditioning case has a blower passage through which the air from the blower circulates on the outer peripheral side of the blower, and has a nose portion protruding from the outer periphery of the blower passage at the end of the blower passage. The upper end of the evaporator is stored in the space between the outer periphery,
The blower is disposed within a range between an extension line connecting the lower end portion and the upper end portion of the evaporator and another extension line connecting the lower end portion and the upper end portion of the heater core, and the drive shaft of the blower is connected to the evaporator. Arranged in the vertical direction of the upper end portion and disposed in the vehicle rear side of the blower port and below the blower port, so that the steering stay provided in the vehicle is disposed. It characterized that you form a space upward.

According to the present invention, in the air conditioning case, the blower is disposed above the upper end portion of the evaporator, the heater core is disposed above the lower end portion, and the air outlet is located above the substantially central portion between the upper end portion and the lower end portion. It is possible to avoid the arrangement of a blower or a heater core on the air flow path that circulates to the air outlet, and to effectively reduce the flow resistance when air circulates to the air outlet. It becomes. In addition, the air conditioning case has a blower passage through which air from the blower circulates on the outer peripheral side of the blower, and has a nose portion protruding from the outer periphery of the blower passage at the end of the blower passage, By storing the upper end portion of the evaporator in the space between the outer periphery of the blower, the dead space in the air conditioning case can be used effectively, so that the vehicle air conditioner can be further miniaturized.

Furthermore, the air conditioner for vehicles is provided by arranging the blower in a range between an extension line connecting the lower end portion and the upper end portion of the evaporator and another extension line connecting the lower end portion and the upper end portion of the heater core. The heavy air blower and the evaporator are not arranged at the same position in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, and the resonance caused by the vibration generated during the operation of the blower can be suppressed.

  Further, the air conditioning case is provided with a heat damper that is rotatable on the downstream side of the heater core, and the air that has passed through the heater core is located downstream of the upper end of the heater core by arranging the rotation axis of the heat damper in the vertical direction. Since the rotating shaft of the heat damper is not arranged on the flow path when flowing into the flow path, the rotating shaft does not become a flow path resistance, and the downstream side can be smoothly downstream without reducing the air flow rate of the heated air. Can be distributed.

  According to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

  That is, in the vehicle air conditioner provided with a blower at the substantially center in the width direction of the air conditioning case, the flow path on the downstream side of the evaporator extends in a substantially straight line toward the blower opening, for example, during cooling operation Since the flow resistance when the air cooled by the evaporator circulates to the air blowing port is reduced and the air can be smoothly circulated toward the air blowing port, the amount of air blown to the air blowing port is reduced. Therefore, the air can be blown into the passenger compartment at a desired flow rate. Further, since the evaporator and the heater core are inclined and arranged substantially in parallel, they can be efficiently stored in the air conditioning case, so that the vehicle air conditioner can be miniaturized as the air conditioning case becomes smaller. it can.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of a vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 indicates a vehicle air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the following description, the left side (arrow A direction) of the vehicle air conditioner 10 shown in FIG. 1 is described as the front side of the vehicle, and the right side (arrow B direction) is described as the rear side of the vehicle.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle air conditioner 10 includes an air conditioning case 12 that constitutes each passage of air, a blower 14 disposed in the air conditioning case 12, and an evaporator 16 that cools the air. The heater core 18 that heats the air and the damper mechanism 20 that switches the flow of the air flowing through the passages are included.

  When the vehicle air conditioner 10 is mounted on a vehicle, a steering stay S for supporting a steering (not shown) is arranged on the rear side (arrow B direction) and above (arrow C1 direction) of the air conditioning case 12. The steering stay S extends along the width direction of the vehicle.

  The air-conditioning case 12 includes, for example, first and second divided cases 22 and 24 having a substantially symmetrical shape, and a lower case 26 attached to the lower part of the first and second divided cases 22 and 24. The second split cases 22, 24 are provided so as to be split in the width direction orthogonal to the vehicle front-rear direction (arrow A, B direction), while the lower case 26 is changed from the first split case 22 to the second split case 24. It is provided to straddle.

  In addition, above the air conditioning case 12 (in the direction of arrow C1), a vent air vent 28 that blows air near the passenger's face, and a defroster air vent that blows air near the front vent window adjacent to the vent air vent 28. 30 is open. In addition, it forms adjacently so that the vent ventilation port 28 may become the vehicle rear side (arrow B direction) and the defroster ventilation port 30 may become the vehicle front side (arrow A direction).

  On the other hand, the blower 14 is housed in the air conditioning case 12 at a position above and behind the vehicle (in the direction of arrow B) so that the axial direction of the blower 14 is substantially parallel to the width direction of the air conditioning case 12. Placed in. In other words, the blower 14 is provided at the substantially center in the width direction so as to straddle between the first divided case 22 and the second divided case 24 constituting the air conditioning case 12. The blower 14 includes, for example, a drive source 32 that is rotationally driven under an energization action of a motor or the like, and a fan 34 that has a plurality of fins on the peripheral surface and is connected to the drive shaft of the drive source 32.

  The air conditioning case 12 is formed with a spiral air passage 36 so as to surround the outer peripheral side of the blower 14, and the air passage 36 is clockwise from the lower side of the air blower 14 when viewed from the first divided case 22 side. It is formed and extends toward the front side of the vehicle (in the direction of arrow A) while the passage cross-sectional area gradually increases. A nose portion 38 is formed at an end portion opened downward of the air passage 36, and the nose portion 38 projects downward from the outer peripheral surface of the air passage 36 having a substantially circular cross section.

  A first passage 40 is formed in the lower case 26 below the air passage 36, and the first passage 40 is gradually inclined downward (arrow C2 direction) toward the vehicle front side (arrow A direction). And is formed on the upstream side of the evaporator 16. And after the air taken in from the outside under the drive effect | action of the air blower 14 distribute | circulated spirally along the ventilation path 36, it goes to the 1st channel | path 40 formed in the downward side (arrow C2 direction) of the air-conditioning case 12. It is distributed and supplied to the evaporator 16.

  For example, the evaporator 16 is inclined by a predetermined angle with respect to the height direction of the air conditioning case 12 so that the upper end portion 16a is on the vehicle rear side (arrow B direction) and the lower end portion 16b is on the vehicle front side (arrow A direction). And the upper end portion 16a is disposed below the blower 14 (in the direction of arrow C2) and in a space 42 between the nose portion 38 and the outer peripheral side of the blower passage 36.

  A refrigerant is circulated through the evaporator 16 through a plurality of tubes (not shown), and the air from the first passage 40 passes through fins provided between the tubes, so that the air and the refrigerant Heat exchange is performed, and the cooled air is supplied to the downstream side of the evaporator 16. A part of the lower end portion 16 b of the evaporator 16 is accommodated in the lower case 26.

  A second passage 44 is provided downstream of the evaporator 16 in the air conditioning case 12, an air mix damper 46 constituting the damper mechanism 20 is provided in the second passage 44, and downstream of the second passage 44. The heater core 18 is provided on the vehicle front side (arrow A direction), and communicates with the third passage 48 extending to the vent air vent 28 on the vehicle rear side (arrow B direction). That is, the second passage 44 is formed so that approximately half of the second passage 44 faces the heater core 18 and the other half communicates with the third passage 48, and the second passage 44 is connected to the heater core 18 or the third passage 48. The communication state is switched by the air mix damper 46.

  The third passage 48 is formed at a position on the front side of the vehicle (in the direction of arrow A) with respect to the blower 14, and extends substantially straight upward (in the direction of arrow C1) toward the vent air blowing port 28. For example, during the cooling operation, the damper mechanism 20 is not disposed between the second passage 44 and the vent air outlet 28. For this reason, there is nothing that becomes the flow resistance of the air flowing from the second passage 44 to the third passage 48.

  The heater core 18 is provided on the vehicle front side in the air conditioning case 12, and, like the evaporator 16, the upper end portion 18a is on the vehicle rear side (arrow B direction) and the lower end portion 18b is on the vehicle front side (arrow A direction). Are inclined at a predetermined angle. The heater core 18 is provided substantially parallel to the evaporator 16 with the second passage 44 interposed therebetween.

  In the heater core 18, hot water is circulated through a plurality of tubes (not shown). When air passes through fins provided between the tubes, heat exchange between the air and the hot water is performed. The conducted air flows to the fourth passage 50 formed on the downstream side of the heater core 18.

  In addition, a foot blower opening 52 that communicates with the fourth passage 50 and opens on the side surface of the air conditioning case 12 is formed above the heater core 18, and air is blown through the foot blower opening 52 to the vicinity of the passenger's feet in the passenger compartment. .

  The damper mechanism 20 includes an air mix damper 46 provided between the evaporator 16 and the heater core 18, a first switching damper 54 that switches the ventilation state of the vent blower port 28 and the defroster blower port 30, a third passage 48, and a fourth passage. It has the 2nd switching damper (heat damper) 56 provided between the channel | paths 50 and switching the ventilation state of the defroster ventilation port 30 and the foot ventilation port 52. FIG.

  The air mix damper 46 is formed in, for example, a curved plate shape and is provided along the width direction of the air conditioning case 12, and guide means (not shown) provided on both inner sides of the air conditioning case 12. Will be guided along. A rack gear 58 is provided on the inner wall surface of the air mix damper 46 along the sliding direction of the air mix damper 46, and the pinion gear 62 of the shaft 60 supported by the air conditioning case 12 is engaged.

  The shaft 60 rotates under the drive action of an actuator (not shown), so that the air mix damper 46 slides in a substantially horizontal direction along the guide means and faces the heater core 18 in the second passage 44 (see FIG. 1). ) To a position facing the third passage 48. When the air mix damper 46 moves, the mixing ratio between the air cooled by the evaporator 16 (cold air) and the air heated by the heater core 18 (warm air) is adjusted and blown downstream.

  Specifically, since the air mix damper 46 moves to a position facing the heater core 18, the second passage 44 and the third passage 48 communicate with each other, and the flow of air to the heater core 18 side is blocked. The air cooled by the evaporator 16 flows from the second passage 44 to the third passage 48, and on the other hand, the air mix damper 46 moves to a position facing the third passage 48. The communication is cut off, and the cooled air flows from the second passage 44 to the heater core 18 so that it is heated to a predetermined temperature and flows to the fourth passage 50.

  The first switching damper 54 is a butterfly damper pivotally supported between the vent air blowing port 28 and the defroster air blowing port 30, and is rotated by a predetermined angle around the shaft portion 64 under the driving action of an actuator (not shown). By doing so, the communication state of the 3rd channel | path 48, the vent ventilation port 28, and the defroster ventilation port 30 is switched.

  The second switching damper 56 is formed in a fan shape in cross section, and the shaft portion 66 is pivotally supported with respect to the first and second divided cases 22 and 24, respectively, and the shaft portion 66 is centered under the driving action of an actuator (not shown). The communication state between the fourth passage 50, the third passage 48, and the foot blower opening 52 is switched by rotating by a predetermined angle.

  The vehicle air conditioner 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is basically configured as described above. Next, its operation and effects will be described.

  First, the case where the cooling operation for lowering the room temperature in the passenger compartment is performed will be described. When a passenger (not shown) operates the operation lever in the passenger compartment to select the cooling operation, an actuator (not shown) is driven according to the operation of the operation lever, and the air mix damper 46 is guided forward by the guide means. Slide a predetermined distance to the side (arrow A direction). As a result, as shown in FIG. 1, the second passage 44 and the third passage 48 communicate with each other in the air conditioning case 12.

  At the same time, based on a control signal from a controller (not shown), the drive source 32 of the blower 14 is rotationally driven and the fan 34 rotates, so that air is sucked into the air conditioning case 12 through an inlet (not shown). Circulates downward along the air passage 36 and then passes through the evaporator 16 via the first passage 40 to exchange heat and cool to a predetermined temperature.

  The cooled air circulates upward (in the direction of the arrow C1) from the second passage 44 to the third passage 48, and then is opened under the switching action of the first switching damper 54. Is supplied to the passenger compartment. Under the present circumstances, the 2nd and 3rd channel | paths (flow path) 44 and 48 which are a flow path from the downstream side of the evaporator 16 to the vent ventilation port 28 are substantially along the vertical direction (arrow C direction) in the air-conditioning case 12. Since it extends in a straight line, there is no flow resistance when the cooled air flows, and the air is smoothly blown to the vent blow port 28 at a predetermined flow rate.

  Next, when performing the heating operation for raising the room temperature in the passenger compartment, the air mix damper 46 is moved to the vehicle rear side (in the direction of arrow B) by operating the operation lever (not shown) to select the heating operation. By sliding the distance, the communication between the second passage 44 and the third passage 48 is cut off. Then, the air that has been blown from the blower 14 and cooled by passing through the evaporator 16 is heated to a predetermined temperature by passing through the heater core 18 from the second passage 44, and the foot blower opening 52 or the defroster blows through the fourth passage 50. It is supplied from the mouth 30 into the passenger compartment.

  When the second switching damper 56 is located away from the foot air vent 52 and closes the middle of the third passage 48, heated air is supplied to the foot air vent 52, When the second switching damper 56 is pivoted toward the foot blower opening 52, warm air flows from the fourth passage 50 to the third passage 48, and then the front window of the vehicle through the defroster blower 30. Air is blown to the vicinity.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, in the full-center type vehicle air conditioner 10 in which the blower 14 is provided at the substantially center in the width direction of the air conditioning case 12, the blower 14 is arranged on the vehicle rear side (arrow) in the air conditioning case 12. (B direction) and above (arrow C1 direction), and the evaporator 16 and the heater core 18 are inclined at a predetermined angle and provided substantially parallel to each other, so that they are formed on the downstream side of the evaporator 16 and extend to the vent air vent 28. The second and third passages 44 and 48 to be formed can be formed substantially linearly along the vertical direction (arrow C direction).

  Therefore, for example, at the time of cooling operation, the flow resistance when the air cooled through the evaporator 16 flows to the vent air blowing port 28 can be reduced, and can be smoothly distributed upward. Become. As a result, it is possible to blow cool air into the vehicle interior at a desired flow rate without reducing the amount of air flowing to the vent air blowing port 28 during the cooling operation.

  In other words, it is possible to smoothly circulate air to the downstream side by making the flow path shape to the vent blower port 28 on the downstream side of the evaporator 16 substantially straight with a predetermined width without complicating the shape. .

  Further, in the air conditioning case 12, the evaporator 16 and the heater core 18 are inclined at a predetermined angle and arranged substantially parallel to each other, so that the air conditioning case 12 can be efficiently accommodated. Accordingly, the size of the air conditioning case 12 can be avoided, so that the size of the vehicle air conditioner 10 can be reduced. Therefore, the degree of freedom of layout when mounting the vehicle air conditioner 10 on the vehicle can be increased.

  Further, in the air conditioning case 12, the vent air vent 28 is arranged at a position above the substantially central portion of the evaporator 16 provided in the air conditioner case 12, whereby the air flow path (the first air flow) to the vent air vent 28 is 2 and the third passages 44, 48) can prevent the blower 14, the heater core 18, and the like from being disposed, so that the flow resistance when the air flows can be effectively reduced.

  Furthermore, by storing the upper end portion 16a of the evaporator 16 in the space 42 formed between the outer peripheral side and the end portion of the air passage 36, the space 42 that is a dead space can be used effectively. Therefore, the vehicle air conditioner 10 can be further downsized.

  Furthermore, the shaft portion 66 of the second switching damper 56 is arranged in a straight line along the vertical direction (arrow C direction) with the upper end portion 18a of the heater core 18, so that the air passing through the heater core 18 is on the downstream side. Since the shaft portion 66 of the second switching damper 56 is not disposed on the flow path when flowing into the flow path, the shaft portion 66 does not become flow path resistance, and the amount of heated air blown is reduced. And can be smoothly circulated downstream.

  Further, the blower 14 includes a first extension line L1 extending upward from the upper end portion 16a of the evaporator 16 at an inclination angle of the evaporator 16 in the air conditioning case 12, and an inclination of the heater core 18 from the upper end portion 18a of the heater core 18. By being arranged between the second extension line L2 extending upward at an angle, the blower 14 and the evaporator 16 which are heavy objects in the vehicle air conditioner 10 are arranged at the same position in the vehicle front-rear direction. There is nothing to do. As a result, it is possible to suppress resonance due to vibrations that occur during operation of the blower 14.

  Further, in the vehicle air conditioner 10, an upper portion formed by disposing the blower 14 on the rear side of the vehicle (in the direction of arrow B) and below the vent air blowing port 28 and the defroster air blowing port 30 (in the direction of arrow C <b> 2). By arranging a steering stay S, which is often arranged near the upper part of the rear part of the vehicle air conditioner 10, in the space, the air passage is complicated from the third passage 48 to the vent air outlet 28. Therefore, the steering stay S can be avoided (see FIG. 1). That is, since an air passage is formed on the vehicle front side of the steering stay S, it is possible to form a passage shape that does not depend on the position of the steering stay S, and the vehicle front side (in the direction of arrow A) with respect to the blower 14. ) Formed in a straight line along the vertical direction.

  In addition, the vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that various configurations can be adopted without departing from the gist of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle air conditioner 12 ... Air conditioning case 14 ... Air blower 16 ... Evaporator 16a, 18a ... Upper end part 16b, 18b ... Lower end part 18 ... Heater core 20 ... Damper mechanism 22 ... 1st division | segmentation case 24 ... 2nd division | segmentation case 26 ... Lower case 28 ... vent air outlet 30 ... defroster air outlet 36 ... air passage 40 ... first passage 44 ... second passage 46 ... air mix damper 48 ... third passage 50 ... fourth passage 52 ... foot air outlet

Claims (2)

An air conditioning case having a flow path for air and a blower opening for blowing air into the vehicle interior, a blower that is provided at substantially the center in the width direction of the air conditioning case and that blows the air into the vehicle interior, and the interior of the air conditioning case In a vehicle air conditioner having an evaporator that is provided to cool the air and a heater core that heats the air,
The evaporator is provided so as to incline in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, the blower is disposed above the upper end portion of the evaporator, the heater core is disposed above the lower end portion, and between the upper end portion and the lower end portion. The blower opening is provided above the substantially central portion,
An air mix damper that slides and moves in a substantially horizontal direction between the evaporator and the heater core,
The air-conditioning case has a blower passage through which the air from the blower circulates on the outer peripheral side of the blower, and has a nose portion protruding from the outer periphery of the blower passage at the end of the blower passage The upper end of the evaporator is housed in the space between the nose and the outer periphery of the blower.
The blower is disposed within a range between an extension line connecting the lower end portion and the upper end portion of the evaporator and another extension line connecting the lower end portion and the upper end portion of the heater core, and driving the blower The blower is disposed behind the air outlet and below the air outlet so that the shaft is disposed in the vertical direction of the upper end of the evaporator and a steering stay provided in the vehicle is disposed. air conditioning system, characterized that you form a space above the fan by. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1,
The vehicle air conditioner is characterized in that a heat damper is rotatably provided in the air conditioning case on the downstream side of the heater core, and a rotating shaft of the heat damper is arranged in a vertical direction with respect to an upper end portion of the heater core. .

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