JP6865556B2 - Indoor unit of air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an indoor unit of an air conditioner.

Patent Document 1 describes a light emitting means that irradiates light toward the case holder, and a part of the light emitted by the light emitting means is movable by being emitted from the peripheral edge of the holder window after being incident on the case holder. An indoor unit of an air conditioner equipped with both an infrared sensor and a display means for displaying the operating status of the air conditioner is described.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2011-027378

Patent Document 1 describes an infrared sensor as a sensor. However, the case where a plurality of different sensors, sensor auxiliary parts, etc. are arranged has not been studied. When arranging a plurality of different sensors, sensor auxiliary units, etc. in the indoor unit, it is necessary to study a display method indicating the operating status of the sensors. That is, in order not to give a sense of discomfort to the user, it is necessary to use a unified display method when displaying the driving status, and it is necessary to obtain an indoor unit having excellent design.

The present invention is an invention for solving the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an indoor unit of an air conditioner having excellent design when displaying an operating status.

In order to achieve the above object, the indoor unit of the air conditioner of the present invention includes an indoor unit main body having an open front portion, a front panel installed on the front portion so as to be openable and closable, and a second unit arranged below the front panel. An indoor unit of an air conditioner including a sensor unit and a second sensor unit, wherein the first sensor unit is a first substrate (for example, a light emitting means 113) having a first light emitting means (for example, a light emitting means 113) for emitting light. , Substrate 112) and a first cover (for example, cover 114) that covers the first light emitting means, and the second sensor unit emits light having a light emitting color different from that of the first light emitting means. light emitting means (e.g., light-emitting means 123) and a second substrate having a (e.g., substrate 122), a second cover covering the second light emitting means (e.g., cover 124) includes a, a, first cover and the second cover Is the same color, and the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are characterized in that the current values for emitting light from the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are different when a current is passed to emit light. And. Other aspects of the present invention will be described in embodiments described below.

According to the present invention, the design is excellent when the driving situation is displayed, and the user can raise the awareness of the driving situation.

It is a figure which shows the appearance structure of the air conditioner which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows the side sectional structure of the indoor unit of the air conditioner which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows the schematic structure of the image pickup part. It is a figure which shows the appearance composition of the indoor unit of the air conditioner which removed the front panel. It is a figure which shows the arrangement structure of the near-infrared light source part, the image pickup part, and the temperature detection part. It is a figure which shows the side cross-sectional structure of the near-infrared light source part. It is a figure which shows the side cross-sectional structure of the image pickup part. It is a figure which shows the side cross-sectional structure of a temperature detection part. It is a figure which shows typically the relationship between the substrate, the light emitting means, and a cover in each sensor, (a) shows the arrangement composition of a near-infrared light source part, an image pickup part, and a temperature detection part, and shows the arrangement relation of three sensors. , (B) indicate the emission color that appears on the appearance through the cover. It is a figure which shows the test result for making a light emitting means emit light.

Embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an external configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment. The air conditioner AC is a device that performs indoor air conditioning such as cooling and heating by using, for example, heat pump technology. The air conditioner AC is roughly divided into an indoor unit 100 installed on an indoor wall, ceiling, floor, etc., an outdoor unit 200 installed outdoors, etc., and communicates with the indoor unit by infrared rays, radio waves, communication lines, or the like. It has a remote control 40 (air conditioning control terminal) for the user to operate the air conditioner AC, and a sensor unit for obtaining information used for controlling or displaying the air conditioner AC such as room temperature and outside temperature. Become. Further, the indoor unit 100 and the outdoor unit 200 are connected to the refrigerant pipe by a communication cable. The remote control transmission / reception unit Q is arranged at a position near the lower front part of the indoor unit 100 where it is easy to receive a remote control signal.

The indoor unit 100 has an image pickup unit 110 for photographing the room and a temperature detection unit 130 for detecting the temperature inside the room as sensor units. Further, the indoor unit 100 has a near-infrared light source unit 120 as a sensor auxiliary unit. The near-infrared light source unit 120 lights up at the time of shooting, and by irradiating the room with near-infrared rays, the image pickup unit 110 can clearly image the reflected light of the near-infrared rays. Further, in the embodiment, a display unit 140 such as an operation lamp and a preheating / defrosting lamp is arranged next to the near-infrared light source unit 120.

In the present embodiment, the near-infrared light source unit 120 which is a sensor auxiliary unit, the image pickup unit 110 which is a sensor unit, and the temperature detection unit 130 are mounted. Hereinafter, when the near-infrared light source unit 120, the image pickup unit 110, and the temperature detection unit 130 are collectively referred to, they are all referred to as sensors. That is, there are three sensors on the front surface of the indoor unit of the present embodiment, and as shown in FIG. 1, the user can visually recognize the sensors. The design is improved by performing highly unified lighting (irradiation indicating that the sensor is in the operating state) when the three sensors are in the operating state. However, since the three sensors have different mounting forms, there is a problem that even if the same light emitting means (LED (Light Emitting Diode) light emitting element) is mounted, the same lighting cannot be performed. The solution to this problem will be described below.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a side cross-sectional configuration of the indoor unit according to the embodiment. Refer to FIG. 1 as appropriate. The indoor unit 100 houses the indoor heat exchanger 102, the indoor fan 103, the left and right wind direction plates 104, the vertical wind direction plates 105, the front panel 106, the electrical components, various sensors, and the like in the housing base 101. The indoor heat exchanger 102 has a plurality of heat transfer tubes 102a, and the indoor air taken into the indoor unit by the indoor fan 103 is heat-exchanged with the refrigerant flowing through the heat transfer tube 102a to cool and heat the air. It is configured to do so. The heat transfer tube 102a is connected to the refrigerant pipe and constitutes a part of a known refrigerant cycle. Further, the indoor fan 103 can adjust the wind speed.

The left and right wind direction plates 104 are rotated in the forward and reverse directions by the motor for the left and right wind direction plates 104 with the rotation shaft provided at the lower part of the indoor unit 100 as a fulcrum on the base end side thereof. Then, the tip side of the left and right wind direction plate 104 faces the indoor side, so that the tip side of the left and right wind direction plate 104 can operate so as to swing in the horizontal direction. The vertical wind direction plate 105 is rotated in the forward and reverse directions by the motor for the vertical wind direction plate 105 with the rotation shafts provided at both ends of the indoor unit 100 in the longitudinal direction as fulcrums. As a result, the tip side of the vertical wind direction plate 105 can be operated so as to swing in the vertical direction. The front panel 106 is installed so as to cover the front surface of the indoor unit 100, and can be rotated forward and reverse by the motor for the front panel 106 with the rotation axis at the lower end as a fulcrum. Incidentally, the front panel 106 may be fixed to the lower end of the indoor unit without rotating.

The indoor unit 100 takes in indoor air into the indoor unit through the air suction port 107 and the filter 108 by rotating the indoor fan 103, and heat exchanges this air with the indoor heat exchanger 102. As a result, the air after the heat exchange is cooled or heated by the indoor heat exchanger 102. The air after this heat exchange is guided to the blowout air passage 109a. Further, the air guided to the air outlet 109a is sent out from the air outlet 109b to the outside of the indoor unit to harmonize the air in the room. When the air after the heat exchange is blown into the room from the outlet, the horizontal wind direction is adjusted by the left and right wind direction plates 104, and the vertical wind direction is adjusted by the vertical wind direction plate 105.

The image pickup unit 110, the near-infrared light source unit 120, and the temperature detection unit 130, that is, the three sensors are arranged at the lower part of the front panel 106. Of these, the imaging unit 110 will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an imaging unit. The imaging unit 110 includes a substrate 112 having an imaging unit 111 and a light emitting means 113, a cover 114 covering the imaging unit 111 and the light emitting means 113, and a reflector 117 which is a resin case.

The substrate 112 having the image pickup unit 111 is installed so that the optical axis of the lens 115 of the image pickup unit 111 faces downward by a predetermined angle with respect to the horizon, and can appropriately image the room in which the indoor unit 100 is installed. It has become like.

The light emitting means 113 is attached to the same substrate 112 as the image pickup unit 111. Here, if the light emitting means 113 is attached to the front side of the substrate 112 in the same manner as the imaging unit 111, the light emitted directly from the light emitting means 113 enters the imaging unit 111, which reduces the sensitivity of the imaging unit 111. , The image pickup unit 111 cannot properly image the room.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the light emitting means 113 is attached to the back surface side of the substrate 112. The image pickup unit 111 is attached to the front side of the substrate 112 and the opposite side of the light emitting means 113. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the substrate 112 serves as a wall, and the light emitted from the light emitting means 113 does not directly enter the image pickup unit 111.

However, in the first place, the light emitting means 113 plays a role of emitting light from the indoor unit 1 so that the user can grasp that the imaging unit 111 is in operation, and when the light emitting means 113 is installed on the opposite side of the substrate 112, The light emitting means 113 cannot emit light toward the room.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, a reflector 117 that reflects the light emitted from the light emitting means 113 is provided on the back surface side of the substrate 112.

According to this embodiment, since it is not necessary to provide the substrate 112 on the light emitting means 113 separately from the image pickup unit 111, the cost of the image pickup unit 110 can be reduced. Further, since the size of the imaging unit 110 can be reduced, the imaging unit 110 can be arranged in a limited space on the front side of the dew tray. That is, it is not necessary to secure a space for the image pickup unit 110, and the indoor heat exchanger 102 (see FIG. 2) can be enlarged accordingly, which can contribute to energy saving of the air conditioner.

Further, according to the present embodiment, since it is possible to prevent the image pickup unit 111 from erroneously detecting the illuminance with the light of the light emitting means 113, it is not necessary to stop the light emitting of the light emitting means 113 every time the illuminance is detected. The image pickup unit 111 generally changes the gain and the shutter speed depending on the illuminance. Since the present embodiment has a structure in which the light of the light emitting means 113 does not enter the image pickup unit 111, the gain and the shutter speed can be changed depending on the brightness of the indoor space to be imaged, so that a correct image is acquired. be able to.

Further, in the present embodiment, the pedestal 117B has a reflector 117. Specifically, the pedestal 117B is made of a light-impermeable material or a light-impermeable material. Therefore, it is not necessary to arrange the pedestal 117B and the reflector 117 in the image pickup unit 110, respectively, so that the image pickup unit 110 can be further miniaturized.

As shown in FIG. 3, in addition to providing the reflector 117 on the back surface side of the substrate 112, the reflector may be provided on a surface (upper surface, lower surface and side surface) other than the front surface side of the substrate 112. The light reflected from the reflector located on the back side can be further reflected by the reflector located on the upper surface side to emit light toward the room, so that the amount of light radiation can be increased. ..

In the present embodiment, the light emitting means 113 is positioned above the image pickup unit 111. In the present embodiment, as described above, the substrate 112 is installed so that the optical axis of the lens of the image pickup unit 111 faces downward by a predetermined angle with respect to the horizon. Therefore, the light emitted by the light emitting means 113 is mainly reflected by the reflector 117 located on the back surface, further reflected by the reflector 117 located on the upper surface, and radiated toward the room. At this time, by moving the image pickup unit 111 away from the light radiation path, the amount of light emitted from the light emitting means 113 entering the image pickup unit 111 can be further reduced.

The imaging unit 110 of the present embodiment has a configuration that can be rotated in the left-right direction by a stepping motor, the cover 114 covers the substrate 112 having the imaging unit 111 and the light emitting means 113, and the cover 114 is supported by the pedestal 117B. In this way, in order to integrate the imaging unit 110, it is preferable to cover the substrate 112 with the cover 114.

In such an embodiment, the light emitted from the light emitting means 113 enters the reflector 117 through the cover 114, and the light reflected by the reflector 117 is emitted toward the room through the cover 114. Be done. That is, the light emitted from the light emitting means 113 passes through the cover 114 a plurality of times. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the cover 114 is made of a light transmitting material.

By emitting the light emitted from the light emitting means 113 on the back surface side of the substrate 112 into the room through the cover 114 which is a light transmitting material, the light becomes indirect lighting, and the design can be improved.

Further, the lens 115 is provided on the portion of the cover 114 located on the front surface side of the image pickup unit 111. Although the lens 15 uses a material different from that of the cover 114, the same material as the cover 114 may be used.

When the imaging unit 111 and the substrate 112 having the light emitting means 113 are separate and only the imaging unit 111 rotates, the light emitted by the light emitting means 113 enters the imaging unit 111 depending on the rotation angle. There is a possibility that it will end up. In the present embodiment, since the image pickup unit 111 and the light emitting means 113 are installed on one substrate 112, the positions of the light emitting means 113 and the reflector 117 do not shift depending on the angle of the image pickup unit 111 in the left-right direction. It prevents the amount of light emitted from the light emitting means 113 toward the room from changing depending on the angle of the unit 111 in the left-right direction.

The viewing angle of the imaging unit 111 in this embodiment is approximately 60 °. The image pickup unit 111 can be rotated by 45 ° in the left-right direction with the front as the center, and a total viewing angle of 150 ° is realized. The image pickup unit 111 is rotated by a stepping motor in the order of left, middle, and right. When the right is detected, the image pickup unit 111 returns to the left via the inside. The stepping motor used for rotating the image pickup unit 111 is provided independently of other detection means. The image pickup unit 111 and the stepping motor may be connected by a gear or an arm, or may be directly connected to the image pickup unit 111. Although the image pickup unit 110 has been described in FIG. 3, the temperature detection unit 130 also has the same arrangement configuration.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an external configuration of an indoor unit of an air conditioner with the front panel removed. A near-infrared light source unit 120, an image pickup unit 110, and a temperature detection unit 130, which are three sensors, are arranged below the front panel 106 (not shown).

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an arrangement configuration of a near-infrared light source unit, an imaging unit, and a temperature detection unit. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the three sensors in FIG. The design can be improved by making the emission colors appearing on the appearance through the covers 124, 114, and 134 substantially the same when each part is in operation.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a side cross-sectional configuration of the near-infrared light source unit. A near-infrared irradiation unit 121 and a light emitting means 123 are arranged on the front surface of the substrate 122 of the near-infrared light source unit 120. The near-infrared light source unit 120 covers the substrate 122 having the near-infrared irradiation unit 121 and the light emitting means 123 with the cover 124.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a side cross-sectional configuration of the imaging unit. As described above, the image pickup unit 111 is arranged on the front surface of the substrate 112 of the image pickup unit 110, and the light emitting means 113 is arranged on the back surface. The image pickup unit 110 covers the substrate 112 having the image pickup unit 111 and the light emitting means 113 with the cover 114.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a side cross-sectional configuration of the temperature detection unit. A temperature detection unit 131 is arranged on the front surface of the substrate 132 of the temperature detection unit 130, and a light emitting means 133 is arranged on the back surface. The temperature detection unit 130 covers the substrate 132 having the temperature detection unit 131 and the light emitting means 133 with the cover 134.

FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically showing the relationship between the substrate, the light emitting means, and the cover in each sensor, and FIG. 9A shows the arrangement configuration of the near-infrared light source unit, the image pickup unit, and the temperature detection unit, and shows the arrangement configuration of the three sensors. The arrangement relationship is shown, and (b) shows the emission color that appears on the appearance through the cover. As shown in FIG. 9A, the near-infrared light source unit 120 has light emitting means 123 and a cover 124 at two locations on the left and right sides of the front surface of the substrate 122. The imaging unit 110 has a light emitting means 113 and a cover 114 on the back surface of the substrate 112. The temperature detection unit 130 has a light emitting means 133 and a cover 134 on the back surface of the substrate 132.

In the present embodiment, for example, in order to clearly indicate that the air conditioner is in the operating state of the heating operation, the emission colors appearing from the near-infrared light source unit 120, the image pickup unit 110, and the temperature detection unit 130 are the same color (for example,). Amber color). Specifically, the light emitting colors of the light emitting means 123 and 123 of the near-infrared light source unit 120 are amber, and the light emitting means 113 of the imaging unit 110 and the light emitting means 133 of the temperature detection unit 130 are white. If the covers 124, 114, and 134 are all amber, the emission color that appears in the appearance through the cover 124 and the emission color that appears in the appearance through the covers 114, 134 are the same color.

That is, the light emitting means 123 (for example, LED) of the near-infrared light source unit 120 is mounted with a colored (amber color) LED, and the light emitting means 113 and 133 of the imaging unit 110 and the temperature detecting unit 130 are mounted with white LEDs. By changing the light emission color (changing to amber color) with the color of the cover, it is possible to perform highly unified lighting (irradiation indicating that the vehicle is in an operating state).

As a comparative example, when a plurality of LEDs are turned on, (1) the emission color of the plurality of LEDs may be white, and the emission color may be changed depending on the color of the cover. Further, (2) the emission color of the plurality of LEDs may be colored, and the color of the cover may be white. In any case, the plurality of emission colors in which the emission colors from the plurality of LEDs appear on the appearance through the cover are not the same color. On the other hand, (3) the present embodiment is characterized in that a plurality of emission colors appearing on the appearance through the cover are the same color even though the emission colors of the LEDs are different.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing test results for emitting light from the light emitting means. FIG. 10 shows the adjustment result of the current value when a current is passed to emit light from the light emitting means (LED). The parts A, B, C, and D correspond to A, B, C, and D in FIG. 9 (b). Initially, the current flowing through the LED was set to 10 mA, but the brightness of the emitted color appearing on the exterior through the cover was not good. Therefore, as a result of the experiment, the current value was adjusted. Since the direct light from the LED is applied to the parts A and B through the cover, the current value is reduced to 3 mA. On the other hand, since the distance from the LED to the reflector to the resin case is long in the portion C, the current value is left at 10 mA. Since the distance from the LED to the resin case to the reflector is shorter in the part D than in the part C, the current value is set to 8 mA. As a result, the brightness of the luminescent color that appears on the exterior through the cover has become tentative.

The above embodiments can be summarized as follows.
The indoor unit of the air conditioner of the present embodiment is different from the first substrate (for example, substrates 112 and 132) having the first light emitting means (for example, a white LED) that emits light and the emission color of the first light emitting means. A second substrate (for example, substrate 122) having a second light emitting means (for example, an amber-colored LED) that emits light of an emission color, and a first cover (for example, both amber-colored covers 114) that cover the first light emitting means. It has a second cover (for example, an amber-colored cover 124) that covers the second light emitting means. The first cover and the second cover are the same color. In this case, when the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are lit, the light emitting color appearing in the appearance through the first cover and the light emitting color appearing in the appearance through the second cover are the same color. As a result, even if the mounting states of the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are different, the light emitting colors emitted in the appearance are the same, and high designability can be obtained. Even when the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are not lit, the first cover and the second cover have the same color, so that high designability can be obtained.

As shown in FIG. 9B, it is preferable that the emission color of the first light emitting means is white and the emission color of the second light emitting means is a color other than white.

It has a reflecting plate (for example, a reflecting plate 117) that reflects the light emitted from the first light emitting means, and the emission color that appears in the appearance through the first cover is formed based on the reflected light by the reflecting plate and appears through the second cover. The emission color appearing in is formed based on the direct light of the second light emitting means. In addition, at least a part of the first cover may be a reflector.

When a current is passed through the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means, the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are adjusted so that the current values for emitting light from the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are different. As a result, the brightness of the luminescent color that appears on the exterior through the cover can be tentatively adjusted.

Specifically, the LED of the light emitting light source, which is the near-infrared light source unit 120 of the present embodiment, is mounted with a colored LED, and the LEDs of the imaging unit 110 and the temperature detection unit 130 are mounted with white, and emit light with the color of the cover. By changing the color, it is possible to perform highly unified lighting. By setting the current value differently for each, it is possible to further improve the design.

The reason why the LED (first light emitting means) that lights the image pickup unit 110 is white is that any color can be expressed by changing the color of the cover, and the influence of the color on the image sensor. This is because it is difficult for the color to appear and it is possible to detect the correct color.

That is, the indoor unit of the air conditioner of the present embodiment is a substrate (for example, a light emitting means 113) having an image pickup element (for example, an image pickup unit 111) for photographing the room and a light emitting means (for example, a light emitting means 113) for illuminating the periphery of the image pickup element. For example, a substrate 112) and a cover (for example, a cover 114) for covering the light emitting means are provided, and the light emitting color of the light emitting means is white, and when the light emitting means is lit, the light emitting color that appears through the cover is displayed. , It is good to change by changing the color of the cover.

In addition, the temperature detection unit can also express any color by changing the color of the cover in the same way, and by using a wavelength far from the infrared wavelength, the adverse effect on temperature detection can be suppressed. Is possible.

That is, the indoor unit of the air conditioner of the present embodiment includes an infrared detection element (for example, temperature detection unit 131) for measuring the indoor temperature and a light emitting means (for example, light emitting means 133) that illuminates the surroundings of the infrared detection element. (For example, substrate 132) and a cover (for example, cover 134) for covering the light emitting means are provided, and when the light emitting means is white in color and the light emitting means is lit, the appearance is seen through the cover. The emitted emission color that appears may be changed by changing the color of the cover.

Conventionally, when a colored LED is mounted on a divided substrate, the versatility is low, and it is necessary to develop many substrates having different LED colors. Further, there is a demerit that the color tone changes depending on the mounting method and direction, and there is a problem that the detection performance of the sensor is affected by the color of the LED. Therefore, it is possible to provide an air conditioner having both a function and a design by arranging suitable LEDs for each substrate and adjusting the color and the amount of current of the cover. In the present embodiment, by arranging suitable LEDs for each substrate and adjusting the color of the cover and the amount of current, it is possible to realize uniform lighting and suppress the deterioration of the detection performance due to the color of the LEDs. Can be done.

40 Remote control 100 Indoor unit 106 Front panel 110 Imaging unit 111 Imaging unit 112 Substrate (first substrate)
113 Light emitting means (first light emitting means)
114 cover (first cover)
115 Lens 117 Reflector 117B Pedestal 120 Near-infrared light source 121 Near-infrared irradiation unit 122 Substrate (second substrate)
123 Light emitting means (second light emitting means)
124 cover (second cover)
130 Temperature detection unit 131 Temperature detection unit 132 Board (first board)
133 Light emitting means (first light emitting means)
134 cover (first cover)
140 Display unit 200 Outdoor unit AC air conditioner

Claims (6)

An air conditioner including an indoor unit body having an open front portion, a front panel installed on the front portion so as to be openable and closable, and a first sensor unit and a second sensor unit arranged below the front panel. It is an indoor unit of
The first sensor unit includes a first substrate having a first light emitting means for emitting light, and a first cover for covering the first light emitting means.
The second sensor unit, and a second substrate having a second light emitting means for emitting an emission color of light different from the emission color of the first light emitting means, and a second cover covering the front Stories second light emitting means, the ,
The first cover and the second cover have the same color,
The first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are characterized in that, when a current is passed to emit light, the current values for emitting light between the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are different. Indoor unit of air conditioner. The emission color of the first light emitting means is white,
The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the emission color of the second light emitting means is a color other than white. It has a reflector that reflects the light emitted from the first light emitting means.
The emission color appearing on the appearance through the first cover is formed based on the reflected light from the reflector, and the emission color appearing on the appearance through the second cover is formed based on the direct light of the second light emitting means. The indoor unit of the air conditioner according to claim 1. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to claim 3, wherein at least a part of the first cover is the reflector. The indoor unit of an air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes). When the first light emitting means and the second light emitting means are lit, the light emitting color appearing in the appearance through the first cover and the light emitting color appearing in the appearance through the second cover are the same color. The indoor unit of the air conditioner according to claim 1.

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