JPH0241915A - Inner and outer air take-in device for automobile air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To realize miniaturization and a high wind quantity, by arranging respectively an inner and outer air changeover mechanism on the upper wall surface of a scroll casing and a centrifugal fan motor at the bottom wall surface, and forming an auxiliary inner air take-in opening at a motor-fitting surface. CONSTITUTION:The drive motor 9 of a centrifugal fan 10 is provided at the bottom wall surface 7b of a scroll casing 7 and at the same time, an auxiliary inner air take-in opening 12 is formed at the bottom wall surface 7b. As a result, when inner and outer air changeover doors 5, 6 are in an inner air suction state, the auxiliary inner air take-in opening 12 is opened through the linkage of the 2nd door 13 provided on the motor-fitting side of the casing 7 and the take-in of an auxiliary wind (inner air) is done. Accordingly, making up for the lowering of the quantity of air can be realized, and also, an suction wind quantity allotment per one opening on an air take-in side against the quantity of discharge wind can be lowered, and the resistance of suction is decreased, and the efficiency of suction is improved. Thus, miniaturization and a high wind quantity are realized.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an inside/outside air intake device for an automobile air conditioner that takes in inside air and outside air in a switchable manner according to a mode.

[Conventional technology]

Conventional air-intake devices for automobile air conditioners have a centrifugal fan mounted on the top wall of a scroll casing.
An internal/external air switching mechanism is installed, and a motor for rotating a centrifugal fan is attached to the bottom wall. Among these devices, there are various types of internal/external air switching mechanisms. For example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 56-39912, etc., a hollow rectangular parallelepiped internal/external air switching box has an internal air intake, an external air intake, and a switching mechanism. Those with built-in doors, those with a roughly triangular prism-shaped damper rotatably arranged on a scroll casing instead of a hollow rectangular parallelepiped as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 54-95757, etc., and other folding types. Various types of dampers have been proposed, including those equipped with type dampers.

The reason why various types of internal and external air intake devices have been proposed is to meet the need for higher air volume in air conditioners for the purpose of improving cabin comfort, and in particular to increase cooling air volume. The main focus is to increase the internal air intake area. -For example, the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 56-39912
The device disclosed in the publication has two inside air intakes,
By opening and closing this with two doors, we aim to expand the area for indoor air intake.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

By the way, in the automobile field, in recent years, the pursuit of energy conservation has led to a trend toward lower vehicle heights, especially front noses, and as a result, the height of the internal and external air intake devices in the instrument panel inside the vehicle interior has also been reduced. It's coming. As a result, the air intake area of the internal and external air intake devices is also becoming smaller in proportion.

This demand for smaller internal and external air intake devices conflicts with the above-mentioned need for high air volume to improve cabin comfort.
As a result, in order to meet the demand for miniaturization of internal and external air intake devices, it is technically extremely difficult to achieve even higher airflow rates using conventional internal and external air intake devices.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and its purpose is to provide an interior and exterior air intake device that can meet the demands for both miniaturization and high airflow of the interior and exterior air intake device with an easy-to-use mechanism. The purpose of the present invention is to provide an intake device.

[Means to solve the problem]

The above purpose is achieved by arranging an inside/outside air switching mechanism for switching between inside and outside air on the top wall of a scroll casing housing a centrifugal fan, and installing a motor for rotating the centrifugal fan on the bottom wall. This is achieved by providing an auxiliary internal air intake port for introducing internal air into the scroll casing in the internal/external air intake device on the side where the motor is attached.

Here, the auxiliary air intake port may be provided directly on the bottom wall surface of the scroll casing, or may be provided on the holder surface to which the motor is attached.

[Effect]

According to the present invention having the above configuration, the auxiliary air intake port is formed by utilizing the space on the motor mounting surface (for example, the bottom wall surface of the scroll casing on the side where the motor is mounted), which has been unused in the past. And 1 inside the scroll casing
By rotating the centrifugal fans, air is introduced through the openings of both the inside and outside air switching box provided on the top wall of the scroll casing and the auxiliary inside air intake port provided on the bottom wall.

In other words, one fan can take in air from above and below the scroll casing, increasing the amount of air. Even if this auxiliary air intake is provided, the auxiliary air intake uses the motor mounting surface of the scroll casing, which was previously unused, so the air intake device becomes larger (especially in the height direction). ) There's nothing to do. In addition, even if the height of the inside/outside air switching mechanism (for example, inside/outside air switching box) is reduced due to the demand for downsizing of equipment, the reduction in the area of the air intake opening on the side of the inside/outside air switching mechanism caused by the reduction will be avoided. Since the added auxiliary air intake on the motor mounting side compensates, there is no decrease in the air intake amount.In fact, due to the vertical suction structure, the intake air volume per air intake side opening is reduced compared to the discharge air volume. As a result, the suction resistance of air intake decreases, resulting in an improvement in suction efficiency. Therefore, even if the overall height of the inside and outside air intake device is reduced, the air volume will not decrease, and when considered based on the same size (height) of the inside and outside air intake device, the actual The invention enables higher air volume than conventional devices.

Also, regarding the vertical direction (motor axial direction) wind pressure distribution on the fan discharge side inside the scroll casing, in the case of conventional unidirectional suction only, is the pressure distribution higher on the motor mounting surface side than on the casing suction side? By using vertical suction, the pressure distribution can be made equal for the reasons mentioned above.

Here, the vertical wind pressure distribution on the fan discharge side will be explained with reference to FIGS. 7(a) and 7(b).

FIG. 7(a) is a schematic diagram of a scroll casing used in a conventional air intake device, and FIG. 7(b) is a schematic diagram of a scroll casing used in an air intake device of the present invention. In the figure, 7 is a scroll casing;
-1 is a bell mouth (air suction port) provided on the scroll casing top wall surface 7a, 7-2 is a bell mouth provided on the scroll casing bottom wall surface 7b, 8 is a motor mounting surface, 9 is a motor, 10 is a centrifugal fan, 10a , 10b are upper and lower blades constituting the centrifugal fan. The upper wall surface 7a of the scroll casing has an internal/external air switching mechanism (Fig. 7(a),
(b) (not shown) is arranged.

Conventionally, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 7(a), air is exclusively sucked in from the inside/outside air switching mechanism through the bell mouth 7-1 on the scroll casing upper wall surface 7a side, and is discharged to the fan outlet side. In this case, suction and discharge are performed only by the upper blade 10a, and the lower blade 10b plays the role of scraping out air that has gone around to the bottom side of the scroll casing.

In the case of this conventional example, the discharge air is 1 Ga (rn'/5
ec) is the suction side area 5t (rrf) and the wind speed vo (
m/5ee), it is expressed as Ga=81° vO. As is clear from this equation, the wind speed VQ increases as the discharge air volume increases (St is constant)
As the wind speed increases, the airflow passing through the centrifugal fan 10 tends to be directed diagonally downward as shown by the arrow.

Therefore, in the case of conventional one-way suction, the vertical wind pressure distribution on the fan discharge side is smaller on the motor mounting surface 7b side than on the casing suction lower 1 side, as shown by symbol I. It gets expensive.

On the other hand, in the case of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 7(b), since the auxiliary air intake port 12 is provided on the motor mounting surface 8 side, the scroll casing bottom wall surface 7
Air is also sucked in from the suction lower 2 of b. Therefore, the air sucked in from both the suction lowers 1.7-2 on the upper and lower surfaces of the scroll casing is discharged to the fan outlet side. In this case.

Air from the suction lower 1 is sucked in by the upper blade 10a, and air from the suction lower 2 is sucked in by the lower blade 10b.

The discharge air volume Ga in the case of the present invention is determined by the upper suction area S1. Wind side Vl, lower suction area S2. When the wind speed is V2, it is expressed as Ga=Stvt+5zvz.

If the conditions of Ga in FIGS. 7(a) and (b) are the same, the suction area of the present invention is increased by S2 compared to the conventional one, and the relationship VO>V11V2 is established, so in the case of the present invention The wind speed passing through each suction lower 1.7-2 is V1.
V2 can be made much smaller than before. As a result, according to the present invention, the direction of the airflow passing through the fan 10 is smoothly changed (changed from the fan axial direction to the fan radial direction) by the amount that the wind speeds Vl and V2 are reduced, and the fan discharge The vertical (axial) direction wind pressure distribution on the side can be made almost equal, as shown by the symbol ■ in FIG. 7(b), without being biased as in the conventional case.

FIG. 8 shows how the air passes through the cooling unit based on the wind pressure distribution shown in FIGS. 7(a) and 7(b), and 30 is a cooling unit (evaporator) arranged downstream of the scroll casing 7. As shown by symbol I in Figure 8, the vertical wind pressure distribution on the fan discharge side is on the lower side (motor installation side).
In the case of the conventional example where the air is biased, the air passing through the cooling unit 30 is also biased, as shown by the symbol B, and the heat exchange rate is reduced accordingly. On the other hand, in the case of the present invention in which the vertical wind pressure distribution on the fan discharge side is almost uniform as shown by the symbol H in FIG. 8, the cooling unit 3
The air passing through the cooling unit 30 also passes over almost the entire area of the cooling unit 30, thereby increasing the heat exchange efficiency.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the first embodiment.

In Figs. 1 and 2, reference numeral 1 denotes an inside/outside air switching box, in which inside air intake ports 2.3 are opened on the left and right opposing side walls (total of 2 sides), and an outside air intake port 4 is formed on the top wall. .

Reference numeral 5.6 denotes a switching door that is rotatably installed inside the inside/outside air switching box 1. These switching doors 5 and 6 are operatively connected by a link mechanism for driving the door, which will be described later, and in the inside air mode, With the switching doors 5 and 6 in the positions shown in Figure 1, the inside air intakes 2 and 3 are open.

The outside air intake port 4 is in a closed state. Further, in the outside air mode, the switching doors 5 and 6 are set in positions where the inside air intake ports 2 and 3 are closed and the outside air intake port 4 is opened.

In the inside/outside air mode, the switching doors 5, 6 are set to positions where both inside air and outside air can be taken in, depending on the position of the operating lever (not shown).

7 is a scroll casing, a bell mouth 7-1 is formed on its upper wall surface 7a, and a bell mouth 7-2 is formed on its bottom wall surface 7b.
is formed. On the upper wall surface 7a of the casing, an internal/external air switching box 1 is arranged in alignment with a bell mouth 7-1, and on the bottom wall surface 7b, in alignment with a bell mouth 7-2, a flange-shaped motor holder 8 is arranged. Motor 9 is attached. The motor 9 passes through the bell mouth 7-2. The upper and lower bell mouths 7-1, 7-2 have diameters that are approximately equal to the outer diameter of the centrifugal fan 10.

A centrifugal fan 10 is housed in the scroll casing 7, and the centrifugal fan 1o is driven by a motor 9. This centrifugal fan 10 is composed of an upper plate 10a and a lower blade 10b, and the blade 10a and the lob are partitioned. For example, the blades 10a and 10b are 8:
Although the size is set at a ratio of 2, this ratio may be set arbitrarily.

The holder 8 that holds the motor 9 has a flange shape that extends around the motor 9, and a side wall 8a is formed at the periphery of the holder 8. An annular groove 8b is formed in the circumferential direction in this side wall 8a, and an annular protrusion 11 provided on the scroll bottom wall 7b side is fitted into this annular groove 8b, and the holder 8 is attached to the scroll bottom wall 7b.
It is fixedly arranged on the lower surface so as to cover the bell mouth 7-2.

This holder 8 is molded of plastic together with the scroll casing 7 and the inside/outside air switching box 1, and these elements 1
, 7.8 are integrally assembled to form an internal/external air intake device. The holder 8 is attached to the bottom wall surface 7 of the scroll casing 7.
It becomes part of b.

Reference numeral 12 designates an auxiliary air intake port which is the key point of this embodiment, and at least one is disposed at an appropriate position on the flange 8 facing the bell mouth 7-2. The auxiliary air intake port 12 of this embodiment is
As shown in Figure 2, it has a rectangular shape with a holder 8 on the - side.
A door 13 that opens and closes inward is rotatably supported.

A link element 18 is fixed to one end of the shaft 14 of the door 13, as shown in FIG.
5, 16 and a link element 17, it is operatively connected to the shaft of the inside/outside air switching door 5.6 on the casing upper wall surface 7a side. When the inside/outside air switching doors 5, 6 are in the outside air mode, the door 13 closes the auxiliary inside air intake 12, and when in the inside air mode, the door 13 opens the auxiliary inside air intake 2. 20.21 is motor housing 9
These are motor cooling holes arranged above and below a. 25 in Figure 2
is the motor fixing bolt.

In the internal/external air intake device configured in this manner, a mounting piece 7C extending from one end of the scroll bottom wall surface 7b is fixed to the vehicle wall 24 below the instrument panel 23 via a bolt 22.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained.

In this embodiment, in the outside air mode, the switching doors 5 and 6 of the inside/outside air switching box 1 close the inside air intakes 2 and 3, and in conjunction with this, the auxiliary inside air intake 12 on the motor mounting surface 8 side is closed by the door 13. Closed. When the centrifugal fan 1o is operating in this state, outside air is introduced from the outside air intake port 4 which is in the open state, passes through the casing 7, and reaches the discharge lower d on the side wall of the casing.
, a cooling unit (indicated by reference numeral 3o in FIG. 8),
Outside air is blown to the heater unit side.

Furthermore, when switching to the inside air mode, the switching door 5.6 moves to the home air mode position and opens the inside air intake port 2.3, and the outside air intake port 4 is closed. 6, the auxiliary internal air intake port 12 is opened. Therefore,
In this case, by driving the centrifugal fan 10, inside air is introduced from above and below the casing through the inside air intakes 2 and 3 and the auxiliary inside air intake 12, and then the inside air is introduced into the casing 7 and the discharge lower d as described above. cooling unit,
Air is blown toward the heater unit.

Further, as will be described in detail later, a part of the air flow generated by the centrifugal fan 10 passes through the motor housing 9a through the cooling holes 20 and 21, and then merges with the air flow inside the fan. Note that during operation of the air intake device, the space between the scroll casing 7 and the motor holder 8 is sealed by the convex-concave fitting between the annular projection 11 and the annular groove 8b provided on both.
Wind leakage is prevented.

According to this embodiment, however, the following effects occur.

be effective.

(1) The internal and external air intake device of this embodiment is fixed under the instrument panel 23 via a mounting piece 7d extending from the casing low wall surface 7b. At this time, as mentioned above, if the height of the vehicle (front nose) is to be lowered, the total height H of the internal/external air intake device is subject to constraints as a vehicle installation dimension, and the intake area Ax, Ax on the internal/external air switching box 1 side is reduced. At the same time, the intake resistance at the opening increases due to the vehicle wall 24, other harnesses, vehicle attachment parts (accessory compartments), etc. that are close to the inside air intake. Therefore, if no consideration is given, the amount of air drawn into the casing 7 by the fan 10 from the inside air intake ports 2 and 3 will be significantly reduced due to these factors.

However, in this embodiment, when the inside/outside air switching door 5.6 is in the inside air intake state, the second door 13 provided on the side of the casing 7 is interlocked with the motor mounting of the casing 7, and the second auxiliary inside air intake section 12 is opened. Since it is open, auxiliary wind (inside air) comes from here.
This compensates for the previous drop in air volume. Moreover, if the scroll casing is structured to take in air from above and below as in this embodiment, the share of the intake air volume per air intake side opening in relation to the discharge air volume decreases, so the suction resistance of air intake decreases. and improves inhalation efficiency.

(2) Also, FIG. 3 shows the wind pressure distribution in the vertical direction of the fan on the discharge side of the air taken into the casing 7 in this embodiment, when the internal air is taken in without the conventional device, that is, without the auxiliary intake port 12. (This is a comparison between only the inlets 2 and 3. The conventional wind pressure distribution is shown by a broken line, and that of this example is shown by a solid line). In contrast to the distribution in which the pressure is unevenly increased toward the motor mounting side 8, in this embodiment, the pressure is distributed toward the fan 10.
Since the suction is performed in two directions from above and below, the pressure is equalized.

This pressure imbalance and equalization mechanism is the invention's [
Since it has been explained in detail in the section ``Function'', the explanation here will be omitted.

By equalizing the wind pressure distribution on the fan discharge side as in this embodiment, even air can pass through almost the entire area of the cooling unit located downstream of the fan.
It is possible to increase the heat exchange rate and improve cooling performance.

(3) Also, a motor housing 9a that includes the motor 9
Cooling holes 20 and 21 are provided at the upper and lower positions of the
Since the cooling hole 20 side is in a sealed space surrounded by the motor flange 8 and the casing bottom wall surface 7b, a part of the air flow generated by the rotation of the fan 10 flows into the motor through the cooling hole 20, and the inside of the motor is Cooling 21
A cooling cycle is formed in which the motor 9 passes through the casing 7 and returns to the inside of the casing 7, and the motor 9 continues to be cooled at all times during operation.

(4) Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the auxiliary internal air intake port 12 and its door 13 are located within the total height H of the internal and external air intake device, and are located on the existing scroll casing surface (motor motor Since it is located on the mounting surface (mounting surface), the overall height H does not have to be increased even when increasing the air volume, resulting in a configuration that can be made smaller. Further, in this embodiment, the scroll casing 7, the inside/outside air switching box 1. The flange 8 is made of plastic,
Moreover, since the auxiliary air intake port 12 provided in the flange 8 and the door 13 for opening and closing the auxiliary air intake port 12 are simple parts and the number of parts is small, the weight can be reduced.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be explained based on FIG.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the second embodiment. In the figure, the same reference numerals as in the first embodiment indicate the same or common elements (the same applies to the other embodiments shown in FIGS. 5 and 6). ).

This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the door 13 of the auxiliary internal air intake port 12 provided on the flange 8 is replaced by a rod 16 which is linked to the internal/external air switching door as in the first exemplary embodiment. Bearing part 2 that does not have a link 18 and is provided inside the motor holder 8
6, it is a small door that rotates freely. According to such a mounting structure of the door 13, the door 13 is opened not only in the inside air mode but also in the outside air mode by the negative pressure based on the suction of the centrifugal fan 1°.

For example, when the switching doors 5 and 6 are in the outside air mode as shown in FIG. A state occurs in which the intake port 12 is opened and a portion of the inside air is sucked in from the motor mounting side.

In this way, when the air flow in the automobile air conditioner is in the heat exchange mode through the heater core,
Since the outside air and the inside air, which has a higher temperature than the outside air, are mixed and sent to the heater core, the heat exchange temperature is increased by about 20% compared to when only outside air is introduced, which helps the heater core's performance. This has the advantage of realizing an instant heat type air conditioner.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

This embodiment differs from each of the embodiments described above in the mounting positions of the auxiliary internal air intake 12 and the door 13, and the other features are the same. Then, another bottom wall 7b' is provided in a part other than the motor holder 8, and this bottom wall 7b' is connected to the motor holder 8.
A space 27 communicating with the internal space on the motor holder 8 side is provided inside the
form. An auxiliary internal air intake 12 and a door 13 are provided in this bottom wall 71)'. With such a configuration, it is possible to increase the air volume and downsize the device with the same effect as in the first and second embodiments.

FIG. 6 is a bottom view showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment has almost the same configuration as the first embodiment, and the difference is that the opening area of the auxiliary air intake port 12 is further enlarged.

That is, in this embodiment, a housing 9a having a flat portion 28 on at least the side wall facing the auxiliary air intake port 12 is used as the motor 9, and the width in the thickness direction of the housing 9a is also a cylindrical housing. Make it narrower. By using such a motor, it is possible to secure a wider space on the surface of the motor holder 8, and the opening area of the auxiliary air intake port 12 can be expanded accordingly.
It is possible to achieve even higher air volume. Conventional motor housing shapes are generally circular, but in the case of motors for opening and closing power windows and sunroofs for automobiles, the installation space is limited, so the housing shape has a flat part 28 as shown in FIG. The one with the following is used. This embodiment utilizes this shape characteristic to obtain a new function of increasing air volume.

Furthermore, by using this type of shape, one side of the auxiliary air intake port 12 comes closer to the center of the fan 10, so the air sucked in from the lower side of the fan is drawn in effortlessly and effectively, increasing suction efficiency. It is effective.

Although the auxiliary air intake port 12 in each of the above embodiments is provided in the motor holder 8, it is structurally possible to provide it directly in the bottom wall of the scroll casing instead.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, in addition to the conventional air intake port on the side of the internal/external air switching mechanism, an auxiliary internal air intake port is provided on the motor mounting surface on the opposite side. It can meet the demands for both smaller dimensions (lower height) and higher air volume.

Moreover, by equalizing the vertical wind pressure distribution on the fan discharge side, it is possible to increase the heat exchange rate of the air flow in the cooling unit and improve the refrigerant performance.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a bottom view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a comparison showing the vertical wind pressure distribution on the fan discharge side between the present invention and a conventional air intake device. 4 is a vertical sectional view showing the second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the third embodiment of the invention, and FIG. 6 is a bottom view showing the fourth embodiment of the invention. 7(a) and 7(b) are explanatory diagrams showing the mechanism of vertical wind pressure on the fan discharge side of the conventional air intake device and the product of the present invention, and FIG. 8 is FIG. 7(a),
It is an explanatory view showing the influence of wind pressure distribution on a cooling unit of (b). 1.2, 3, 4, 5.6...Internal and external air switching mechanism (internal and external air switching tube, internal air intake, external air intake, internal and external air switching door),
7...Scroll casing, 7-1.7-2...
Suction port, 7a...Casing top wall surface, 7b...Casing bottom wall surface, 8...Motor holder, 9...Motor, 9a, 9a'...Motor housing, 1o...Centrifugal fan, 12 ... Auxiliary air intake, 13... Opening/closing door, 20.21... Ventilation hole. 1st Figure 7Δ Kyo 2 Diagram b −゛ Casing bottom jl! t1 8 ...-Jin-ta holder q "° (-ta tea 3 tea 4 times tea 80 5th Kuotsu No. 4 Z8... 1000-year-old procedural amendment (method) % formula % Name of invention Automotive air conditioner Relationship between the internal and external air intake device 3 and the case of the person making the amendment

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An inside/outside air switching mechanism for switching between inside and outside air is placed on the top wall of a scroll casing housing a centrifugal fan, and a motor for rotating the centrifugal fan is installed on the bottom wall of the scroll casing. An internal/external air intake device for an air conditioner for an automobile, characterized in that an auxiliary internal air intake port for introducing internal air into the scroll casing is provided on the mounting surface of the motor. 2. The internal and external air intake device for an air conditioner for an automobile according to claim 1, wherein the motor is held on the bottom wall surface of the scroll casing via a flange-shaped holder, and the auxiliary internal air intake is provided in the holder. 3. 2. The internal and external air intake device for an automobile air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the flange-shaped holder and the scroll casing are molded from a plastic material and assembled together. 4. In any one of claims 1 to 3, the auxiliary inside air intake port is provided with a door that selectively opens and closes depending on an inside air mode, an outside air mode, etc. Intake device. 5. In any one of claims 1 to 3, the auxiliary inside air intake port is provided with a door that opens by the suction force of the centrifugal fan regardless of the inside air mode, outside air mode, etc. Internal and external air intake devices for air conditioners. 6. In any one of claims 1 to 5, the motor is configured to provide an air conditioner for air conditioning the inside and outside of an automobile air conditioner, in which at least one of the side walls of the motor housing facing the auxiliary inside air intake port is a flat surface. Intake device. 7. According to any one of claims 1 to 6, the housing of the motor is provided with a ventilation hole for cooling the motor through which a part of the air blown by the centrifugal fan is guided into and passed through the motor. Internal and external air intake devices for air conditioners.