JPH07103546A - Air-conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To effectively conduct a still sound operation by so setting an operating frequency of an outdoor unit required for the sill sound operation that noise of the outdoor unit at the time of the sill operation falls within a specific noise value corresponding to number of indoor units. CONSTITUTION:At a specific time of a sill sound operation such as at 23 o'clock, an infrared ray is emitted from an emitting unit of a remote controller 14 to a microcomputer 8 of an indoor unit 10. The microcomputer 8 receives the ray, and an indoor unit 12 sends a still sound operation signal to a microcomputer 26. When the microcomputer 26 of the unit 12 receives it, it operates still sound operations of a compressor 40, and outdoor fans 28, 30. That is, it is forcibly so switched to a still sound operating frequency from a state operated in a normal operating frequency as to become a specific noise value or less.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner for cooling and heating.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known, air conditioners are often operated day and night, especially in summer and winter.

The outdoor fan of the outdoor unit of the air conditioner, the compressor, or the indoor fan emits a considerable amount of noise during operation.

When the air conditioner is operated in the daytime, such operating noise does not become a problem.

However, when operating the air conditioner at night, the operating noise may become a problem regardless of the summer or winter, and the operation is performed as quietly as possible, for example, with low noise of about 40 dB. There is a need.

Conventionally, in an air conditioner, one indoor unit is connected to one outdoor unit, a so-called single type air conditioner and a plurality of indoor units are connected to one outdoor unit. There is a so-called multi-type air conditioner.

[0007]

However, as described above, there are a case where one indoor unit is connected to one outdoor unit and a case where a plurality of indoor units are connected to one outdoor unit. Assuming that the indoor unit is commonly used for the single type outdoor unit and the multi-type outdoor unit, the required operating frequencies for communicating with and requesting the outdoor unit are the same.

As described above, although the required operating frequencies are the same, as described above, when operating the air conditioner at night, there is a problem that it is necessary to operate with low noise of, for example, about 40 dB. is there.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, and an air conditioner capable of surely performing silent operation within a predetermined noise value corresponding to the number of indoor units to be connected. The purpose is to provide a machine.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an air conditioner that includes an indoor unit and an outdoor unit, and can perform normal operation and silent operation of the indoor unit and the outdoor unit. , Means for setting the operating frequency of the outdoor unit required for the silent operation such that the noise of the outdoor unit during the silent operation is within a predetermined noise value according to the number of the indoor units Is an air conditioner equipped with.

[0011]

According to the number of indoor units, the noise of the outdoor units is controlled within a predetermined value, so that silent operation can be performed at night, for example.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the air conditioner of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the air conditioner is a so-called inverter type air conditioner, and the air conditioner is
One indoor unit 10 and one outdoor unit 12
And a remote controller (hereinafter, referred to as a remote controller) 14 for the indoor unit 10.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1, one outdoor unit 1
One indoor unit 10 is connected to the second indoor unit 10. That is, the outdoor unit 12 and the indoor unit 10 are
There is a one-to-one connection relationship.

The indoor unit 10 shown in FIG.
6 and a microcomputer 18 and the like. The outdoor unit 12 includes, for example, an outdoor heat exchanger 20 for cooling,
It has a hot water heat exchanger 22 for gas heating for heating.

This air conditioner can preferably perform heating, cooling, and dry operation.

During heating, the hot water heat exchanger 22 is heated by gas.
The cooling water outdoor heat exchanger 20 is used during cooling, and the hot water heat exchanger 22 and the outdoor heat exchanger 20 are used in combination in order to perform the dry operation without lowering the temperature during the dry operation. It is like this.

A refrigerant pipe 24 is arranged between the outdoor heat exchanger 20 for cooling and the indoor unit 10. Also,
Hot water pipe 25 is provided between the hot water heat exchanger 22 and the indoor unit.
Are arranged. The outdoor unit 12 includes, for example, a microcomputer 26, outdoor fans 28 and 30, and a compressor 40.

The microcomputer 26 and the microcomputer 18 of the indoor unit 10 are connected to the signal line 31.
Connected by.

When the operator operates the buttons of the remote controller 14, the microcomputer 32 of the remote controller 14 wirelessly communicates with the microcomputer 18 of the indoor unit 10 by using infrared rays emitted from the light emitting section 34, for example. , Various commands can be sent.

Further, the microcomputer 32 of the remote controller 14 instructs the light receiving section of the microcomputer 18 of the indoor unit 10 to give a normal operation instruction for a predetermined time and a silent sound for a predetermined time different from the predetermined time for the normal operation. Can give driving instructions.

The normal operation means that the indoor fan 16 of the indoor unit 10 serving as a noise source, the outdoor fans 28 and 30 of the outdoor unit 12, and the motors of the compressor 40 are operated at normal rotation speeds and normal operating frequencies. This is the case when driving in.

On the other hand, the silent operation for a predetermined period of time means that the indoor fan 16 of the indoor unit 10, the outdoor fans 28 and 30 of the outdoor unit 12, and the motors of the compressor 40 are rotated at normal speeds or normal speeds. This is the case when operating at a rotational speed or operating frequency that is lower than the operating frequency of
Quiet operation is performed so that the noise is 0 dB or less, and the operating noise is reduced.

The predetermined time for the silent operation is, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, 7 hours from 23:00 midnight to 6:00 the next morning every day. This 7 shown by the diagonal lines in FIG.
In time, silent driving is forced to prevent noise.
Normal operation is allowed for the rest of the time.

Next, FIG. 2 shows another preferred embodiment of the air conditioner of the present invention.

In FIG. 2, the air conditioner includes two indoor units 10, one outdoor unit 12, and two remote controllers (hereinafter referred to as remote controllers) 14 for the two indoor units 10.

In the embodiment of FIG. 2, one outdoor unit 1
For 2, two indoor units 10 are connected. That is, the outdoor unit 12 and the indoor unit 10 are
There is a one-to-two connection relationship. These indoor units 10,
10 are set in different rooms and have the same ability or different ability.

Since the outdoor unit 12 shown in FIG. 2, each indoor unit 10, and each remote controller 14 have the same structure and function, their description will be omitted.

Next, an automatic night silent operation by the air conditioner of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1, as shown in FIG. 4, the microcomputer 18 of the indoor unit 10 receives the serial signal from the microcomputer 26 of the outdoor unit 12, and as shown in FIG. Recognize that the unit is connected.

In FIG. 1, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, at time 23, the infrared rays emitted from the light emitting section 34 of the remote controller 14 are received by the light receiving section of the microcomputer 18 of the indoor unit 10.

As a result, a signal for silent operation is given from the microcomputer 18 of the indoor unit 10 of FIG. 1 to the microcomputer 26 of the outdoor unit 12 via the signal line 31.

On the other hand, the microcomputer 26 of the outdoor unit 12 executes silent operation for the compressor 40 and the motors of the outdoor fans 28, 30.

As a result, the indoor fan 16 of the indoor unit 10, the outdoor fans 28 and 30 of the outdoor unit 12, and the motors of the compressor 40 are operated at a normal rotation speed or a normal operating frequency. It is driven quietly by force. This silent operation, as shown in FIG.
It lasts 7 hours.

In this silent operation, as shown in FIG. 4, the outdoor unit 12 is set to preferably 40 dB or less.
Is driven. That is, the microcomputer 26 of the outdoor unit 12 considers the operating load of one indoor unit 10 and uses the required frequency from the indoor unit 10 that is set to enable silent operation, so that the outdoor unit 12
The upper limits of the rotational frequencies of the outdoor fans 28 and 30 and the operating frequency required for the motor of the compressor 40 are set.

In this way, as shown in FIG. 1, when only one indoor unit 10 is connected, the operating noise value of the outdoor unit 12 at night is kept within a predetermined noise value.

On the other hand, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, as shown in FIG. 4, the microcomputer 18 of each indoor unit 10 is connected to the multi-type outdoor unit by the serial signal from the outdoor unit 12. Recognize that

In FIG. 2, for example, at a time of 23 o'clock, infrared rays emitted from both the remote controllers 14 and the light emitting sections 34 are simultaneously emitted from the microcomputer 18 of each indoor unit 10.
The light is received by the light receiving section of. As a result, the microcomputer 18 of the indoor unit 10 shown in FIG.
A signal for silent operation is given to the second microcomputer 26 via the signal line 31.

On the other hand, the microcomputer 26 of the outdoor unit 12 executes silent operation for the compressor 40 and the motors of the outdoor fans 28, 30.

As a result, the indoor fan 16 of the indoor unit 10, the outdoor fans 28 and 30 of the outdoor unit 12, and the motors of the compressor 40 are forcibly operated from a state in which they are operating at a normal rotational speed operating frequency. It is driven by silent driving. This silent operation lasts for 7 hours, as shown in FIG.

In this silent operation, as shown in FIG. 4, the outdoor unit 12 is adjusted to preferably 40 dB or less.
Is driven. That is, the microcomputer 26 of the outdoor unit 12 considers the operating loads of the two indoor units 10, 10 and sets the frequency of the outdoor unit 12 at the required frequency from the indoor units 10, 10 set to enable silent operation. The rotation speeds of the outdoor fans 28 and 30 and the upper limit of the operating frequency required for each motor of the compressor 40 are set.

In this way, as shown in FIG. 2, when the two indoor units 10, 10 are connected, the operating noise value of the outdoor unit 12 at night is kept within a predetermined value.

As described above, the instruction operating frequency instructing the outdoor unit 12 side in the case of so-called single connection in FIG. 1 and the instruction operating frequency instructing the outdoor unit 12 side in the case of so-called multiple connection in FIG. By changing it, it is possible to perform the silent operation within a predetermined noise value, for example, the silent operation within 40 dB, regardless of the single connection or the multi-connection.

By the way, the present invention can be variously modified without departing from the scope of the claims.

For example, the time zone of silent operation at night is not limited to 7 hours from 23:00 to 6:00 of the next day. Further, the remote controller is not limited to the infrared type, but other types can be used.

Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to an air conditioner in which two indoor units are combined with one outdoor unit, and an air conditioner in which three or more indoor units are combined with one outdoor unit. It can also be applied to a harmony machine. That is, even in this case, the operating frequency of each motor of the outdoor unit is lowered in consideration of the operating loads of the three or more indoor units to, for example, 40 dB.
It operates quietly with the following noise values.

Further, a CPU can be used instead of each microcomputer.

[0048]

As described above, regardless of the number of indoor units connected to the outdoor unit, the silent operation can be reliably performed within a predetermined noise value.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a preferred embodiment of an air conditioner of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing another preferred embodiment of the air conditioner of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a silent operation time period in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining silent operation in each embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Indoor Unit 12 Outdoor Unit 14 Remote Controller (Remote Controller) 16 Indoor Fan 28 Outdoor Fan 30 Outdoor Fan

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An air conditioner comprising an indoor unit and an outdoor unit, capable of operating the indoor unit and the outdoor unit in a normal operation and a silent operation, wherein the quiet operation is performed in accordance with the number of the indoor units. An air conditioner comprising means for setting the operating frequency of the outdoor unit required for the silent operation so that the noise of the outdoor unit falls within a predetermined noise value.