JPH078019U - Air conditioner for electric vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide an air conditioner for an electric vehicle capable of relatively easily establishing a temperature difference between air blown from the vent side and air blown from the foot side. [Structure] A first opening / closing door (26) for selectively opening and closing an inside air intake port (22) and an outside air intake port (23) of an indoor unit (20) in a heat pump type air conditioner for an electric vehicle
A fan (11), a vent duct (24) and a foot duct (25), an outside air introducing duct (31), and the outside air introducing duct
It is composed of a second opening / closing door (32) for opening and closing (31).

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

[Industrial applications]

 The present invention relates to a heat pump type air conditioner for an electric vehicle capable of separately adjusting the temperature of air blown to the vent side and the temperature of air blown to the foot side.

[0002]

[Prior art]

 Recently, an electric vehicle has been drawing attention in view of its influence on the global environment and the like. In this electric vehicle, a battery-driven electric motor is used as a driving source.

When air conditioning of the passenger compartment of this electric vehicle is performed, unlike the case of using heat of an engine as in a general gasoline vehicle, heat of an electric motor whose heat capacity is extremely small must be used. Heating, it is difficult to get the desired capacity. However, cooling performed by driving a compressor with an electric motor can relatively easily obtain a predetermined capacity.

Therefore, it is conceivable that the air conditioning in the passenger compartment of the electric vehicle is performed using a so-called heat pump type air conditioning apparatus that does not use the heat of the driving source. When heating the passenger compartment by this method, the heat of the motor is not used as the heat source, but the heat obtained by circulating the refrigerant is used, so a high-temperature heat source can be obtained relatively easily. Practical heating becomes possible, and cooling can be performed relatively easily.

An example of an electric vehicle equipped with a heat pump type air conditioner will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. The electric vehicle illustrated in FIG. 6 has front wheels 4, 4 and / or rear wheels 5, 5 which are steered by a steering wheel 2 and driven by an electric motor 3 mounted on a vehicle body 1. The heat pump type air conditioner 6 mounted on this electric vehicle has a vehicle exterior heat exchanger 8 and a compressor 9 on the vehicle exterior side of a dash panel 7 that divides the vehicle body 1 from the vehicle interior side to the vehicle interior side. The heat exchanger 10 and the fan 11 are arranged on the inside of the vehicle, and the heat exchangers 8 and 10 on the inside and the outside of the vehicle are connected to the circuit switching valve 12 and the expansion valve 13, respectively. A cooling cycle is formed by connecting it to the compressor 9 through a conduit. The compressor 9 is driven by the electric motor 3 via a belt (not shown) or the like.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the indoor unit 20 of the heat pump type air conditioner 8 has a case 21 for housing the vehicle interior side heat exchanger 10, and the case 21 has the heat An inside air intake port 22 and an outside air intake port 23 are opened upstream of the exchanger 10, and a vent duct 24 that blows air to the occupant's face and a foot duct 25 that blows air to the occupant's feet are provided on the downstream side. It is provided.

The inside air intake port 22 and the outside air intake port 23 are selectively opened and closed by a door 26 provided between the intake ports 22 and 23. A fan 11 is provided near the inside air intake 22 and the outside air intake 23 of the case 21, and the fan 11 draws air from the intake 22 or 23 to the indoor heat exchanger 10. Be blown to.

When performing the cooling operation by this air conditioner, the high-temperature and high-pressure vaporized refrigerant discharged from the compressor 9 is condensed by the outdoor heat exchanger 8 which functions as a condenser, and this liquid refrigerant is expanded by the expansion valve 13 Is supplied to the indoor heat exchanger 10 that functions as an evaporator through the inside of the vehicle, where it is heat-exchanged with the air inside the vehicle that has been taken into the case 21 through the inside air inlet 22 from the inside of the vehicle and cools this air. To do. The air cooled by the indoor heat exchanger 10 is blown by the fan 11 from the vent duct 24 or the like toward the passenger compartment, particularly toward the occupant's face.

On the other hand, in the heating operation, the high-temperature and high-pressure vaporized refrigerant discharged from the compressor 9 is guided by the circuit switching valve 12 to the indoor heat exchanger 10 functioning as a condenser, where the outside air inlet 23 The heat is exchanged with the air taken into the case 21 through the. The air heated by the indoor heat exchanger 10 is blown by the fan 11 from the foot duct 25 and the like toward the passenger compartment, particularly toward the feet of the occupant.

[0010]

[Problems to be solved by the device]

 However, the heat pump type electric vehicle air conditioner 6 using the indoor unit 20 as described above blows air from the vent duct 24 and the foot duct 25 like a combined mode, that is, a bi-level mode of head cold foot heat. In this case, the air contacted with the indoor heat exchanger 10, which is the only heating source or cooling source, is simply divided and distributed, so that the air blown from the vent duct 24 and the foot duct 25 is blown. There is no temperature difference between them, and they are almost the same, and it is difficult to make the air blown out from the vent duct 24 toward the occupant's face low temperature and the air blown out from the foot duct 25 toward the occupant's feet high temperature. is there.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the problems associated with the above-described conventional technology, and it is possible to relatively easily establish a temperature difference between the air blown from the vent side and the air blown from the foot side. It is an object of the present invention to provide an air conditioner for an electric vehicle that can perform the above.

[0012]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 In order to achieve such an object, the present invention has an outdoor heat exchanger arranged outside the vehicle compartment and an indoor heat exchanger arranged inside the vehicle compartment, and collects the refrigerant discharged from the compressor. An air conditioner for automobiles in which a circuit switching valve guides the air to the indoor heat exchanger through or without an expansion valve and operates a fan to distribute the air after heat exchange into the vehicle interior. In the apparatus, the indoor unit in which the indoor heat exchanger is housed has an inside air intake port and an outside air intake port provided upstream of the indoor side heat exchanger in the air flow direction, and the inside air intake port and the outside air intake port. A first opening / closing door that selectively opens and closes an intake port, a fan that takes air into the indoor unit from the inside air intake port or the outside air intake port, and a vent duct that is provided downstream of the indoor heat exchanger. and A duct and an outside air introduction duct provided so that outside air can flow into the vent duct, and at least the outside air introduction duct and the vent duct are in communication with each other and each is closed. An air conditioner for an electric vehicle, characterized by comprising a second opening / closing door capable of forming

[0013]

[Action]

 In the present invention configured as above, when the second opening / closing door is operated and the vent duct and the outside air introducing duct are communicated with each other, low temperature outside air can flow from the outside air introducing duct to the vent duct during heating, In addition, hot air can be blown to the foot duct, cool air can be blown from the vent duct, and hot air can be blown from the foot duct, so that the bi-level mode can be set.

[0014]

【Example】

 An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an indoor unit of an air conditioner for an electric vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 to 4 are enlarged cross-sectional views of main parts for explaining the operation thereof. The same members as those shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are designated by the same reference numerals.

In the heat pump type air conditioner of the present embodiment, the indoor unit 20 is attached to the dash panel 7 or the vehicle body 1 that divides the vehicle interior and the vehicle exterior.

As shown in FIG. 1, the indoor unit 20 has a case 21 for housing the vehicle interior side heat exchanger 10, and the inside air is provided upstream of the heat exchanger 10 in the case 21. An intake port 22 and an outside air intake port 23 are opened, and a vent duct 24 and a foot duct 25 are provided on the downstream side.

The inside air intake port 22 and the outside air intake port 23 are selectively opened and closed by a first opening / closing door 26 pivotally supported so that the fan 11 is operated so that the inside air intake port 22 and the outside air intake port 23 are separated from the intake port 22 or 23. Air is sucked and blown toward the indoor heat exchanger 10.

Further, in this embodiment, an outside air introduction duct 31 whose axis is substantially perpendicular to the vent duct 24 is provided near the vent duct 24. In this way, the door can be mounted coaxially and the structure is simplified. That is, the second opening / closing door 32 for opening / closing the vent duct 24 and the outside air introducing duct 31, that is, the door 32g for opening / closing the outside air introducing duct 31, and the door 32v for opening / closing the vent duct 24 can be supported by one shaft. , Both can be pivotally supported. Accordingly, the second opening / closing door 32 can form a state in which the outside air introducing duct 31 and the vent duct 24 are in communication with each other and a state in which they are closed.

Next, the operation will be described. When the cooling operation is performed, the outside air intake port 23 is closed by the first opening / closing door 26 and the inside air intake port 22 is opened, and the second opening / closing door 32 is brought into the state shown in FIG. That is, the door 32g is in the vertical position, the door 32v is in the horizontal position, and the outside air introduction duct 31 is closed. As a result, the inside air is in a circulating state in which the passenger compartment air is blown from the inside air inlet 22 through the inside heat exchanger 10 to the vent duct 24 and the foot duct 25 into the passenger compartment.

During this cooling, the high-temperature and high-pressure vaporized refrigerant discharged from the compressor 9 is guided via the circuit switching valve 12 to the outdoor heat exchanger 8 functioning as a condenser, where it is condensed and expanded by the expansion valve 13 Is supplied to the indoor heat exchanger 10 that functions as an evaporator. Therefore, the air passing through the indoor heat exchanger 10 exchanges heat with the low temperature refrigerant and is cooled.

When performing the heating operation, the outside air intake port 23 is opened by the first opening / closing door 26, the inside air intake port 22 is closed, and the second opening / closing door 32 is brought into the state shown in FIG. That is, the door 32g is in the horizontal position to close the outside air introduction duct 31, and the door 32v is in the inclined position to close the vent duct 24. As a result, only the foot duct 25 is opened.

During this heating, the high-temperature and high-pressure vaporized refrigerant discharged from the compressor 9 is guided to the indoor heat exchanger 10 functioning as a condenser via the circuit switching valve 12. The air outside the passenger compartment is guided to the indoor heat exchanger 10 through the outside air suction port 23. Therefore, the air and the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant exchange heat with each other, so that the high-temperature air in the passenger compartment is increased. Are blown out through the foot duct 25 to heat the interior of the vehicle.

When the occupant feels a sore feeling on the head during the heating, the occupant switches to the bi-level mode. This switching operation brings the second opening / closing door 32 into the state shown in FIG. That is, the door 32g is in the vertical position to open the outside air introduction duct 31, and the door 32v is in the inclined position to connect the vent duct 24 and the outside air introduction duct 31. As a result, cold outside air is introduced from the vent duct 24, and the heated air is blown out from the foot duct 25, and a bi-level mode of head cold foot heat is set.

When the air conditioner side such as the compressor 9 and the fan 11 is not operated or only the fan 11 is operated, the state as shown in FIG. 4, that is, the door 32g is set to the vertical position and the outside air is set. If the introduction duct 31 is opened, the door 32v is in the inclined position, and the vent duct 24 and the outside air introduction duct 31 are in communication with each other, the outside air can be directly introduced into the vehicle interior to ventilate the vehicle interior.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be variously modified within the scope of the utility model registration claim. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the second opening / closing door 32 is composed of the door 32g for opening / closing the outside air introducing duct 31 and the door 32v for opening / closing the vent duct 24, but as shown in FIG. In the middle of the flow path of the vent duct 24, an outside air introducing duct 31 whose axis is substantially perpendicular to the vent duct 24 is provided, and the outside air introducing duct 31 is opened / closed by an outside air door 32g, and the vent duct 24 has a vent door 32v and a foot. A foot door 32 f may be provided in the duct 25, and the second opening / closing door 32 may be configured by these three doors. In this way, the indoor unit 20 can be brought into the various modes described above by operating the three doors 32g, 32v, 32f independently.

In addition, although various doors are opened and closed by the occupant's operation in the above-described embodiment, various sensors sense the outside air temperature or room temperature, and the operation of the air conditioner is controlled by signals from these various sensors. The doors may be automatically controlled, or in some cases, the openings of various doors may be appropriately adjusted. In particular, when the air conditioner is turned on and off according to the outside temperature, if the start of the heating operation is set to an outside temperature of about 15 ° C as a guide, it does not consume power unnecessarily and the passengers are relatively comfortable. In this state, the temperature inside the passenger compartment can be adjusted, which is advantageous for an electric vehicle because the mileage per charge can be extended further.

[0027]

[Effect of device]

 As described above, according to the present invention, the vent duct is connected to the outside air introducing duct, and the second opening / closing door for opening / closing the outside air introducing duct and the vent duct is provided, and the door is opened / closed appropriately. Since the outside air is introduced directly into the vehicle compartment from the outside air introduction duct, it is possible to set the bi-level mode even for electric vehicles.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of an indoor unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional explanatory view of a main part for explaining an operating state of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory cross-sectional view of a main part for explaining an operating state of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory cross-sectional view of a main part for explaining an operating state of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view of an electric vehicle equipped with a heat pump type air conditioner.

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a conventional indoor unit of a heat pump type air conditioner.

[Explanation of symbols]

8 ... Outdoor heat exchanger, 9 ... Compressor, 10 ... Indoor heat exchanger, 11 ... Fan, 12 ... Circuit switching valve, 13 ... Expansion valve, 20 ... Indoor unit, 22 ... Inside air intake port, 23 ... Outside air Intake port, 24 ... Vent duct, 25 ... Foot duct, 26 ...
First opening / closing door, 31 ... Outside air introducing duct, 3
2 ... Second opening / closing door.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. An outdoor heat exchanger (8) arranged outside a vehicle compartment
And an indoor heat exchanger (10) arranged in the vehicle interior,
The refrigerant discharged from the compressor (9) is connected to the circuit switching valve (12).
To guide the air to the indoor heat exchanger (10) with or without the expansion valve (13), and to operate the fan (11) to distribute the air after heat exchange to the passenger compartment. In the automotive air conditioner, the indoor unit (2) in which the indoor heat exchanger (10) is housed.
0) is an inside air intake port (22) and an outside air intake port (23) provided upstream of the indoor heat exchanger (10) in the direction of air flow,
A first opening / closing door (26) for selectively opening and closing the inside air intake port (22) and the outside air intake port (23), and air from the inside air intake port (22) or the outside air intake port (23) into the indoor unit. A fan (11) for taking in air, and a vent duct (24) and a foot duct (25) provided on the downstream side of the indoor heat exchanger (10)
And an outside air introduction duct (31) provided so that outside air can flow into the vent duct (24), and at least the outside air introduction duct (31) and the vent duct (24) communicate with each other. An air conditioner for an electric vehicle, comprising a second opening / closing door (32) capable of forming a closed state and a closed state.