JPH04372423A - Air conditioning device for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide an air conditioning device for a vehicle having a function of purifying air in a vehicle chamber at a low cost. CONSTITUTION:A branch duct 17 is connected with a duct to introduce air conditioning air into a vehicle chamber, and an air purifier 19 is contained in the branch duct 17. A damper 20 for opening/closing the branch duct 17 is provided at an aperture part at an upstream end of the branch duct, and a downstream end of the branch duct 17 is connected with a blow port 18 for air purifying opening in the vehicle chamber. Actuation of the air purifier 19 and the damper 20 is controlled through a controller for controlling an air conditioner.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditioner having a function of purifying air.

0002

[Prior Art] Conventionally, many vehicles have been equipped with an air conditioner that cools and heats the interior of the vehicle, but the air inside the vehicle can be unexpectedly affected by cigarette smoke, dust entering from outside, etc. It is dirty. Therefore, in recent years, there has been a trend to include an air purifier to purify the air inside the vehicle cabin in addition to the air conditioner.

0003

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, with the installation of an air purifier, a blower for blowing air is required separately from the blower of the air conditioner, and it is operated in conjunction with the air conditioning control of the air conditioner. This poses the problem of increased costs due to the inability to do so.

The present invention has been made based on the above-mentioned circumstances, and its object is to provide a vehicle air conditioner having a function of purifying the air inside a vehicle at a low cost.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a duct that communicates an air intake port with an air outlet opening into a vehicle interior, and a duct that allows air to flow into the vehicle interior within this duct. a blower that generates a flow, and a downstream end of the blower that is branched from the duct and communicates with an air purifying outlet that is opened in the vehicle interior separately from the outlet, or communicates with the outlet; A branch duct provided, a damper that opens and closes the branch duct, a purifying means disposed within the branch duct to purify the air passing therethrough, and a control device that controls the operation of the blower and the damper. technical means.

[0006]

[Operation] In the vehicle air conditioner of the present invention having the above structure, the damper opens the branch duct, so that blown air is introduced into the branch duct as the blower operates. The air introduced into the branch duct is purified by passing through a purifying means disposed within the branch duct, and is blown into the vehicle interior from the outlet or the air cleaning outlet. Then, when the damper closes the branch duct, all the air blown by the blower is blown out through the duct and into the vehicle interior from the outlet.

[0007] At this time, the damper may be controlled to close the duct side when the branch duct is opened, so that all the blown air is guided to the branch duct. Alternatively, the damper stop position may be controlled so that both the branch duct and the duct side are opened and a portion of the blown air flows through the duct as it is.

[0008]

[Embodiment] Next, an embodiment of the vehicle air conditioner according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle air conditioner according to this embodiment.

The vehicle air conditioner 1 of this embodiment includes a refrigeration cycle refrigerant evaporator 3 and a heater core 4 whose heat source is engine cooling water, in a duct 2 that guides conditioned air into the vehicle interior. It is a reheat type that adjusts the amount of hot water (cooling water) that enters the tank by adjusting the valve opening.

A blower 5 (the blower of the present invention) is provided on the upstream side of the duct 2 to generate an air flow within the duct 2, and an inside/outside air switching box is provided on the suction side of the blower 5, which serves as an air intake port. 6 is provided. The inside/outside air switching box 6 includes an inside air inlet 7 for circulating inside air and an outside air inlet 8 for taking in outside air.
Either the inside air inlet 7 or the outside air inlet 8 is closed by an inside/outside air switching damper 9.

[0011] The downstream side of the duct 2 is a defroster duct 1.
0, a defroster outlet 13, a ventilation outlet 14, and a heater outlet 1 which are branched into a ventilation duct 11 and a heater duct 12, each opening into the vehicle.
5. Each of the air outlets 13, 14, and 15 is switched by an air outlet switching damper 16 that operates according to the selected air outlet mode.

The air conditioner 1 includes a branch duct 17 connected to the duct 2, and the downstream end of the branch duct 17 opens into the vehicle interior separately from the air outlets 13, 14, and 15. It communicates with the air cleaning outlet 18. The branch duct 17 is provided with an opening in the side wall of the duct 2 at a position downstream from the heater core 4, and an air purifier 19 (purifying means of the present invention) for purifying the air passing therethrough is accommodated in the branch duct 17. There is.

The air purifier 19 is composed of an ionizer (ionization section), a corrugate collector (electrostatic precipitator), a honeycomb activated carbon filter, and the like. In the air passing through this air purifier 19, fine particles (floating dust) in the air are negatively charged by an ionizer and collected at the positive electrode of a corrugated collector, and the air passing through this is deodorized by a honeycomb activated carbon filter. .

A damper 20 for opening and closing the branch duct 17 is provided at the upstream opening of the branch duct 17. This damper 20 is driven by a servo motor 21 (see FIG. 3, block diagram related to the operation of this embodiment), and is in a first position (solid line in FIG. 1) which opens the branch duct 17 and closes the ventilation passage on the duct 2 side. ) and the second position (position shown by the dashed line in FIG. 1) where the branch duct 17 is closed and the ventilation passage on the duct 2 side is opened. Adjust the ratio of the amount of air flowing through the side ventilation passages.

In the air conditioner 1 of this embodiment, the compressor (not shown) is started by turning on the air conditioner switch 23 provided on the control panel 22 (see FIG. 2), and the control device 24 (see FIG. 3) is activated. Through the blower 5
air volume control, switching control of each outlet 13, 14, 15 and air inlet 7, 8, on/off control of the compressor, etc.

As shown in FIG. 2, the control panel 22 includes, in addition to the air conditioner switch 23, a fan switch 25 that switches the air volume when the blower 5 is activated, and an air outlet switch that selects the air outlets 13, 14, and 15. switch 2
6. An inside/outside air changeover switch 27 for switching between inside air circulation and outside air introduction, a temperature setting switch 28 for setting the room temperature, an auto switch 29 for automatic control, and an air puri switch 30 (described later) are provided.

[0017] In automatic control, when the occupant sets the desired indoor temperature using the temperature setting switch 28, the indoor air temperature,
The required air outlet temperature (TAO) is calculated based on information such as outside air temperature, solar radiation amount, and cooling water temperature, and air volume control, air outlet control, and intake port control are performed according to the air outlet temperature, so that the inside of the vehicle is always maintained. It is controlled to maintain the set temperature. Note that the air volume control, the outlet control, and the inlet control can be manually operated using the fan switch 25, the outlet changeover switch 26, and the inside/outside air changeover switch 27, respectively.

The control device 24 includes an air puri switch 30
When turned on, the ionizer is activated in conjunction with the air conditioner control based on signals from the fan switch 25, the air outlet selector switch 26, the internal/external air selector switch 27, and the smoke sensor 31 that detects dirt and dust inside the vehicle. energization control and damper control (see Figure 3).

Next, the operation of the control device 24 when the air puri switch 30 is turned on will be explained based on the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. First, when the air puri switch 30 is turned on (step S1) while the air conditioner is being controlled, it is determined whether the air outlet mode is the defroster mode (step S2). this is,
This is to give priority to the defrost function, and in the case of the defroster mode, the air purifier 19 is controlled not to operate.

When the mode is not in the defroster mode, the damper 20 is driven to the first position by controlling the energization to the servo motor 21 to open the branch duct 17, and the ionizer is energized in the internal air circulation state (steps S3 and S4). (Step S5 and Step S6).

Thereafter, it is determined whether or not there is a reaction from the smoke sensor 31 (step S7), and if there is a reaction, it is subsequently determined whether or not the air volume control is automatic control (step S8). In the case of automatic control, the optimal air volume ratio between the amount of air flowing through the branch duct 17 and the amount of air flowing through the ventilation path on the duct 2 side is determined, and the position of the damper 20 and the fan rotation speed of the blower 5 are determined to achieve this air volume ratio. optimization control is performed (step S9 and step S10). Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the air puri switch 30 is turned off (step S11). If it is turned off, the control is ended, and if it is not turned off, the control from step S7 onwards is repeated.

If the air volume control is manual control in step S8, the damper 20 is driven to the first position (step S12), and then the determination in step S11 is made.

If there is no response from the smoke sensor 31 in step S7, the damper 20 is driven to the second position to open the ventilation passage on the duct 2 side, and the power supply to the ionizer is stopped (step S13 and step S14
). Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the air puri switch 30 is turned off (step S15). If it is turned off, the control ends; if it is not turned off, the process returns to step S2 and the following control is repeated.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained. When the air puri switch 30 provided on the control panel 22 is turned on while the air conditioner is in operation, if the outlet mode is other than the defroster mode, the damper 20 is driven to the first position under internal air circulation and the branch duct 17 is turned on. the ionizer is energized.

At this time, if the air inside the vehicle is clean (
If there is no response from the smoke sensor 31), the damper 2
0 closes the branch duct 17 and opens the ventilation path on the duct 2 side, power supply to the ionizer is stopped, and normal air conditioner control returns. When the air inside the vehicle is dirty (when there is a reaction from the smoke sensor 31), the amount of air flowing through the branch duct 17 and the amount of air flowing through the ventilation passage on the duct 2 side are optimized depending on the degree of pollution. The position of the damper 20 and the fan rotation speed of the blower 5 are optimized to achieve a suitable air volume ratio (in the case of automatic control).

As a result, the air flowing through the ventilation passage on the duct 2 side is blown out into the vehicle interior from the selected outlet 14 or 15, and the air introduced into the branch duct 17 passes through the air purifier 19. After the air is purified, it is blown out into the vehicle interior from the air cleaning outlet 18.

Note that when the blower 5 is manually controlled, the damper 20 is driven to the first position to guide all the air to the branch duct 17, and the passenger selects the fan switch 25 to control the air volume as desired. It can be carried out.

In the above operation, the air puri switch 3
By activating the air purifier 19 without waiting for the smoke sensor 31 to react after 0 is turned on, the air inside the vehicle can be purified more effectively than when the air purifier 19 is activated after the smoke sensor 31 has reacted. It is possible to quickly obtain a more comfortable interior space.

As described above, in this embodiment, the branch duct 17 is connected to the air conditioning duct 2, and the air purifier 19 is disposed within the branch duct 17, so that the air conditioning blower 5 can be used as an air purifier. It can also be used as a blowing means for blowing air to 19. In addition, the control device 24 that controls the air conditioner can control energization to the ionizer and control the damper.
9 can be performed in conjunction with the operation.

In this embodiment, the reheat type air conditioner 1 is shown, but the temperature of the blown air is adjusted by mixing the air heated by passing through the heater core 4 and the air bypassing the heater core 4. An air mix method may also be used.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 6 is an overall configuration diagram of an air conditioner 1 showing a second embodiment of the present invention, in which a branch duct 17 is connected to the duct 2 at a position upstream from the refrigerant evaporator 3. Therefore, when the damper 20 is driven to the first position, it closes the ventilation path on the duct 2 side upstream of the refrigerant evaporator 3, and the damper 20 closes the ventilation path on the duct 2 side.
The air introduced into the refrigerant evaporator 3 and heater core 4
The air sucked in by the blower 5 flows as it is without undergoing heat exchange.

FIG. 7 is an overall configuration diagram of an air conditioner 1 showing a third embodiment of the present invention, in which the air conditioner 1 does not have an air cleaning outlet 18, and the downstream end of the branch duct 17 is connected to the duct 2 again. It communicates with each air outlet 13, 14, and 15. Therefore, the air that has passed through the air purifier 19 and been purified is
Ventilation outlet 14 or heater outlet 15
This will cause more air to be blown into the vehicle interior. In FIG. 7, the branch duct 17 is connected to the duct 2 at a position downstream from the heater core 4, as in the first embodiment, but is connected to the duct 2 at a position upstream from the refrigerant evaporator 3, as in the second embodiment. It may be connected to duct 2.

[0033]

[Effects of the Invention] The vehicle air conditioner of the present invention can use the blower that sends conditioned air into the vehicle interior as a means of blowing air to the purifying means, which is better than when an air purifier is installed independently. Cost reduction can be achieved. Furthermore, since only one air blowing means is required, weight reduction can also be achieved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle air conditioner.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the control panel.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram related to the operation of this embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the control device.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the control device.

FIG. 6 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle air conditioner showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle air conditioner showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1　Vehicle air conditioner 2 Duct 5 Blower (air blower) 7 Internal air introduction port (intake port) 8 Outside air inlet (intake) 13 Defroster outlet 14 Ventilation outlet 15 Heater outlet 17 Branch duct 18 Air cleaning outlet 19 Air purifier (purification means) 20 Damper 24 Control device

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claim 1: a) a duct that communicates an air intake port with an air outlet opening into the vehicle interior; b) a blower that generates an air flow toward the vehicle interior within the duct; and c) from the duct. d) a branch duct which is branched and whose downstream end communicates with an air cleaning outlet opened in the vehicle interior separately from the outlet, or is provided so as to communicate with the outlet; A vehicle air system comprising: a damper that opens and closes a branch duct; e) a purifying means disposed within the branch duct to purify the air passing therethrough; and f) a control device that controls the operation of the blower and the damper. harmonization device.