JPH10110964A - Housing structure of air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce heat loss and enable occurrence of condensation to be restricted by a method wherein a panel of light weight and having a high rigidity can be realized, a strength of housing comprising a plurality of panels can be improved and both an airtightness and a thermal insulating characteristic of an air conditioner can be improved. SOLUTION: A side face panel 14b (and an upper face panel 14d) is (are) comprised of a steel outer wall plate 32 and a steel inner wall plate 34. Each of outer end edges of the outer wall plate 32 and the inner all plate 34 is formed with each of bent sections 32a and 34. Thermal insulating material 36 such as soft foamed urethane sheet is inserted into and fitted between the bent section 32a and the bent section 34a. Then, foamed thermal insulating material 40 such as hard urethane resin, for example, is filled in a space 38 enclosed by the outer all plate 32 and the inner wall plate 34. Such a side surface panel 14b and an upper surface panel 14d as above are connected by a connector 42 through a gasket 44.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a housing structure of an air conditioner, and more particularly to, for example, an air conditioner including a humidifier that humidifies air by ejecting steam to a predetermined air flow path. And a housing structure of the air conditioner.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An example of this type of conventional housing structure of an air conditioner is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 1-94841 published on Jun. 22, 1999. In this prior art, as shown in FIG. 7, a frame 1 having an L-shaped cross section and a metal outer plate 3 provided with a heat insulating material 2 on the inner surface side are formed by bolts 4.
A packing 5 having a heat insulating property is provided at a portion where the frame 1 and the outer plate 3 are in contact with each other and at an exposed portion of the frame 1 to improve heat insulating property and air tightness of the air conditioner.

In the prior art disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 6-37987, as shown in FIG. 8, a heat insulating material 7 having a thickness smaller than its bending thickness is arranged on the inner surface of an exterior plate 6.
After connecting the exterior plates 6 with bolts 8, the exterior plates 6
The packing 9 is inserted into the inside of the box.

[0004]

In the former prior art shown in FIG. 7, since the outer plate 3 (and the heat insulating material 2) is supported by the frame 1 serving as a skeleton, the weight of the entire air conditioner is reduced. There is a problem that it is bulky and therefore the workability of the assembly is extremely poor, and it is not easy to inspect the inside of the air conditioner and to update parts such as a humidifier. Further, there is also a disadvantage that dew condensation easily occurs due to poor heat insulating properties in a portion where the frame 1 is exposed and in the vicinity of a boss portion where the bolt 4 is inserted.

[0005] On the other hand, in the latter conventional technique, although the air conditioner can be reduced in weight because there is no frame, there is a concern that the strength of the housing itself is insufficient. Further, similarly to the former, there is a problem that the heat insulating property at the joint portion of the exterior plate 6 is poor and dew condensation easily occurs. Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to provide a housing structure of an air conditioner that is lightweight, has high rigidity, and is excellent in heat insulation and airtightness.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a housing structure of an air conditioner in which a plurality of heat insulating panels are arranged on a gantry, each of which is a metal plate and is bent to the outer edge in the same direction. Including an outer wall plate and an inner wall plate having a bent portion, a panel main body formed in a box shape so that each bent portion overlaps, and a foam heat insulating material filled inside the panel main body; Is a housing structure of an air conditioner, which is connected to a panel main body or a base via a gasket.

[0007]

A box-shaped panel body is filled with a foamed heat insulating material such as a hard urethane resin. As a result, the outer wall plate and the inner wall plate may be made of a steel plate having a thickness of 0.4 to 0.6 mm, and a panel that is lightweight and has high strength can be realized. Also, since the inner wall plate is made of thin steel, heat transfer is originally small, but if a thermal insulating material such as a soft urethane foam sheet is inserted between the bent portions of the outer wall plate and the inner wall plate, for example. In addition, the heat transfer coefficient between the outer wall plate and the inner wall plate can be reduced, so that the heat loss of the air conditioner can be reduced and the occurrence of dew condensation can be prevented. Furthermore, since the high-rigidity panels or the panel and the gantry are connected via a gasket, the airtightness in the air conditioner is reliably maintained, and the strength of the entire housing is eliminated without providing a frame. Is enhanced.

[0008]

According to the present invention, a light-weight and highly rigid housing structure can be realized, and the heat insulation and airtightness can be greatly improved. Therefore, heat loss can be reduced, and dew condensation hardly occurs. Further, since the housing is composed of a plurality of lightweight panels, loading and unloading of components (panels and the like), installation of an air conditioner, inspection and updating of components, etc. can be easily performed, and assembly workability can be improved.

The above objects, other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments with reference to the drawings.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An air conditioner 10 of this embodiment shown in FIGS.
2b and the fan unit 12c, and the housing 14 is configured to be dividable corresponding to each unit 12a, 12b and 12c.

The filter unit 12a includes a pre-filter 16a and a main filter 16b having different dust-removing abilities, and air taken in from a return air port 18 formed on the upper surface of the filter unit 12a (housing 14) is supplied to both the filters 16a and 16a. 16b removes dust. The coil unit 12b includes a heat exchange coil 20 including a cooling coil and a heating coil (not shown) and the humidifier 2.
2 are arranged in this order from the filter unit 12a side. The fan unit 12c includes a blower 24 and an electric motor 26 for driving the blower 24.
Is connected to an air supply port 28 formed on the upper surface of the fan unit 12c (housing 14).

When command information for starting operation in such an air conditioner 10 is given, the blower 24 is driven by the electric motor 26 at a predetermined rotation speed so as to satisfy the required air flow. Unit 12a
Return air to be air-conditioned is taken into the (housing 14). Then, the air is removed by the pre-filter 16a and the main filter 16b,
After being cooled or heated to a predetermined temperature at, the humidifier 22 humidifies as needed. Then, the air (return air) subjected to the predetermined air-conditioning process is sucked by the blower 24,
The air is discharged from the air supply port 28.

As can be seen from FIG. 1, the housing 14 that unitizes the air conditioner 10 is configured to be divided by a plurality of panels. That is, in this embodiment, the housing 14 includes three front panels 14a, 2a.
It comprises three side panels 14b, three rear panels 14c, and three upper panels 14d. Panels 14a to 14
d includes an outer wall plate 32 and an inner wall plate 34 having substantially L-shaped bent portions 32a and 34a at the outer edge of a steel plate having a thickness of about 0.5 mm as shown in FIG. The outer wall plate 32 is positioned such that the curved portions 32a and 34a overlap.
The inner wall plate 34 (or the outer wall plate 32 is engaged with the inner wall plate 34). That is, the outer wall plate 3 surrounded by the bent portion 32a
The opening area of No. 2 is formed to be slightly larger than the opening area of the inner wall plate 34. Then, a thermal insulating material 36 such as a soft urethane foam sheet is interposed between the bent portion 32a and the bent portion 34a.

The box body (panel main body) is formed by combining (engaging) the outer wall plate 32 and the inner wall plate 34 having the bent portions 32a and 34a with each other. Is
A gap portion 38 surrounded by the inner surfaces of the outer wall plate 32 and the inner wall plate 34 (and the bent portions 32a and 34a) is formed. The foam insulation 40 is injected into the gap 38 from an injection port (not shown).

As the foam heat insulating material 40, a urethane resin which is hard and has excellent adhesion to a steel plate is used. Therefore, the panels 14a to 14a which are lightweight but have high rigidity
d can be realized. Injection and foaming of the foamed heat insulating material 40 are performed by a known foam molding method, that is, by mixing each raw material component in a foaming machine (or foaming equipment) in accordance with a predetermined mixing ratio, and then, in a predetermined container, that is, the outer wall plate 32 and the inner wall plate 34
Injected into the gap 38 formed by
A so-called cast foam molding method is used.

Panels 14a to 14d having foam insulation 40 injected and foamed by such a foam molding method.
However, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG.
2 to other panels or panels 14a-1
It is connected to a gantry 30 supporting 4d. That is, FIG.
Is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the side panel 14b and the top panel 14d are connected, and a gasket 44 is arranged between the side panel 14b and the top panel 14d. The gasket 44 is formed of a material capable of maintaining sufficient elasticity and flexibility with respect to the tightening pressure and temperature. And
The connecting members 42 are tightened so as to compress the gasket 44 in the thickness direction to connect the panels (the side panel 14b and the upper panel 14d).

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the side panel 14b is connected to the gantry 30. As in the case where the side panel 14b and the top panel 14d are connected, the gantry 30 and the side panel 14b are It is connected via 44. Although not shown in the drawings, the other panels are similarly connected to each other or between the panel and the base 30.
The connecting members 42 are connected via a gasket 44. In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the gantry 30 is configured to be able to be divided (divided into three), and is formed by bending a steel plate having a thickness of about 1.6 mm into a box shape. In the same manner as in the panels 14a to 14d described above, the foamed heat insulating material 40 is injected and foamed.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, two panels at both ends of the three front panels 14a are hinged.
The panel 5 can be opened and closed so that the panel can be opened and the inside of the air conditioner 10 can be inspected. Then, a sealing member 47 is provided corresponding to the panel that opens and closes so that the airtightness and the heat insulating property in the air conditioner 10 are not lost.

The outer wall plate 32 and the inner wall plate 34 include
A bolt insertion hole (not shown) is provided, and at the time of connection, the connection member 42 is inserted into the bolt insertion hole so as to break through the thermal insulating material 36, the foamed heat insulating material 40, and the gasket 44 by the connection member 42. . When the foam insulation 40 is injected, the bolt insertion hole is closed. The air conditioner 10 according to the other embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 differs from the above-described embodiment in the following points.
6 and FIG. 6, the same or similar portions as those in FIGS. 1 to 4 are denoted by the same or similar reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. That is, one side surface of the housing 14 is composed of two side panels 48a and 48b, and the panels 48a and 48b are planarly connected by the connecting tool 50 shown in FIG. In other words, the panels can be planarly connected to each other by using the connecting tool 50 formed by laminating metal plates bent in an L-shape.

As described above, the box (panel main body) is formed by the two steel plates (the outer wall plate 32 and the inner wall plate 34), and the foam heat insulating material 4 such as a hard urethane resin is formed therein.
By filling 0, a lightweight and highly rigid panel can be realized. Further, since the panels or the panel and the gantry 30 are firmly connected via the gasket 44, the strength of the entire housing 14 can be increased without providing a frame as in the prior art shown in FIG. In addition, the airtightness and heat insulation of the air conditioner 10 can be dramatically improved. Furthermore, by inserting the thermal insulating material 36 between the bent portions 32a and 34a, the heat loss of the air conditioner can be reduced, and the occurrence of dew can be suppressed. Further, the housing 14 is made of a lightweight and highly rigid panel 14a.
-14d, it is easy to carry in and carry out, so that workability such as installation or renewal is excellent.

In the above embodiment, the foam insulation 40
Although hard urethane resin was used as the material, use of other materials such as styrene resin and phenol resin may be considered. Further, the thermal insulating material 36 is not limited to the above-mentioned soft urethane foam sheet.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention and showing a state where a housing is disassembled.

FIG. 2 is an illustrative view showing an internal configuration of the air conditioner of the embodiment in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a joint portion between the side panel and the top panel of the embodiment in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a joint portion between the gantry and the side panel of the embodiment in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing another embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing a state where the side panels of the embodiment of FIG. 5 are connected to each other.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing a conventional technique having a frame.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing a conventional technique without a frame.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Air conditioner 14 ... Housing 14a ... Front panel 14b ... Side panel 14c ... Back panel 14d ... Top panel 30 ... Stand 32 ... Outer wall plate 34 ... Inner wall plate 36 ... Thermal insulating material 38 ... Gap part 40 ... Foam insulation 42,50… Connector 44… Gasket

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Masaaki Shinohara 28 Kubota Lane, Tochigi Prefecture Utsunomiya City Industrial Park 28 Kubota Lane Co., Ltd. In Tochigi factory

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A housing structure of an air conditioner comprising a plurality of heat insulating panels arranged on a gantry, wherein each of the outer wall plates is a metal plate and has an outer edge having a bent portion bent in the same direction. A panel body including an inner wall plate, formed in a box shape so that each of the bent portions overlaps,
And a foam heat insulating material filled inside the panel main body, wherein the panel main body is connected to another panel main body or the gantry via a gasket. 2. The air conditioner housing structure according to claim 1, wherein a thermal insulating material is further interposed between said bent portion of said outer wall plate and said bent portion of said inner wall plate.