JPH10132360A - Method for operating air conditioning system, and air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for operating an air conditioning system and an air conditioner which can contribute to the realization of an ideal temperature environment without deteriorating the features of one inlet and two outlet type indoor machine. SOLUTION: An air conditioner comprises an indoor machine which is used and disposed in the vicinity of a floor surface and includes an air inlet port 4, an upper air outlet port 6, a lower air outlet port 11, an upper heat exchanger 17, an upper fan 15, a lower heat exchanger 18 and a lower fan 16. The air conditioner is provided with an auxiliary throttle mechanism 19 through which the upper heat exchanger 17 is connected in series to the lower heat exchanger 18 so as to supply a refrigerant in a path from the upper heat exchanger 17 to the lower heat exchanger 18 during a cooling operation, supply a refrigerant in a path from the lower heat exchanger 18 to the upper heat exchanger 17 during a heating operation and a control means 32 for controlling either the auxiliary throttle mechanism 19 or a main throttle mechanism 26 so as to supply from the upper air outlet port 6 air at the temperature lower than that of air supplied from the lower air outlet port 11 at least during the cooling operation and heating operation.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner operating method and an air conditioner having an indoor unit which has upper and lower outlets and is used near the floor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known, in the domestic air conditioner, a heat pump type which can perform both heating and cooling is becoming the mainstream. In such an air conditioner, the indoor unit is often of a so-called wall-mounted type, which is mounted on a wall close to a ceiling due to a problem of installation space. This type of indoor unit has a suction port for sucking indoor air in the front part, and the indoor air sucked from this suction port is directed obliquely downward and forward from an outlet formed at the lower part after contacting the indoor air with the heat exchanger. It is configured to blow out.

[0003] However, the following problems have been encountered in an indoor unit of a wall-mounted type having a front suction and oblique downward blowing configuration. In other words, in this type of indoor unit, the cool air falls downward during the cooling operation, so that the entire room can be uniformly cooled and the feeling of comfort can be almost satisfied. And the floor of the feet is hard to warm because of the difficulty in reaching, and there is a problem of lack of comfort during heating.

[0004] In order to improve comfort during heating, a system in which an indoor unit is installed on the floor surface or near the floor surface to allow warm air to crawl on the floor surface has been considered. Since the cool air is supplied to the vicinity of the floor surface during operation, it is difficult to cool the entire room to a uniform temperature, so that not only the comfort during cooling is lost but also the efficiency is lowered.

Therefore, recently, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an upper outlet passage for discharging a part of the room air sucked from an upper outlet through an inlet provided on a front surface, An air conditioner having an indoor unit that has a lower air outlet that blows out the remainder of the indoor air sucked through the lower air outlet from the lower air outlet and is used near the floor surface has appeared. I have.

[0006] In the indoor unit that is used near the floor by using the one suction and two blowing method, the airflow can be blown out toward the floor and the middle of the room in the height direction. The temperature of the entire room can be made substantially uniform not only at the time but also at the time of heating.

However, from the viewpoint of comfort, making the temperature of the entire room substantially uniform does not always satisfy the feeling of comfort. In other words, a temperature-friendly environment for a person living in a room is a temperature condition under which the perceived temperature received by each part allows each organ to work well. In a conventional air conditioner equipped with an indoor unit that is placed near the floor and used in a one-suction / two-out system, a focus is placed on making the temperature of the entire room substantially uniform, so that the occupants can be genuine. There was still room for improvement, taking into account the comfort that one wanted.

[0008]

As described above, in a conventional air conditioner having an indoor unit which is disposed near the floor and used in a one-suction / two-suction system, the comfort that a resident truly desires is provided. Considering the feeling, there was room for improvement.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner operating method and an air conditioner capable of creating an ideal temperature environment for a person living in a room.

[0010]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an operation method, comprising: a suction port for sucking room air; and a part of the room air sucked through the suction port. From the upper outlet, an upper heat exchanger and an upper fan arranged in the upper outlet, and the remaining indoor air sucked through the inlet through the lower outlet. An air conditioning system including an indoor unit used to be disposed near the floor surface and including a lower blowout path to be blown out, a lower heat exchanger and a lower fan disposed in the lower blowout path In operating, at least during the cooling operation and the heating operation, the upper and lower temperature difference operation of blowing air having a lower temperature than the temperature of the air blown from the lower outlet from the upper outlet is performed. I have.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an air conditioner comprising: a suction port for sucking room air; and a part of the room air sucked through the suction port being blown upward. An upper outlet passage that blows out from the outlet, an upper heat exchanger and an upper fan that are disposed in the upper outlet passage, and a lower outlet that blows the remainder of the room air sucked in through the inlet from the lower outlet. An air conditioner including an indoor unit that includes a side outlet passage, a lower heat exchanger and a lower fan disposed in the lower outlet passage, and is disposed near a floor surface and used. A series circuit in which the upper heat exchanger and the lower heat exchanger are connected in series via a sub-throttle mechanism,
A refrigeration cycle element group that includes a main throttle mechanism and forms a refrigeration cycle of at least a cooling operation and a heating operation with the series circuit, and a refrigerant that passes through the lower heat exchanger from the upper heat exchanger during the cooling operation. Flowing, a refrigerant flow direction switching means for flowing a refrigerant through a path passing from the lower heat exchanger to the upper heat exchanger during the heating operation, and air blown out from the lower outlet at least during the cooling operation and the heating operation. And an upper and lower temperature difference forming means for controlling one of the sub-throttle mechanism and the main throttle mechanism so as to blow out air having a temperature lower than the temperature from the upper air outlet.

[0012] In the air conditioner according to the second aspect, the upper and lower temperature difference forming means is configured so that a difference between an upstream temperature and a downstream temperature of the upper heat exchanger becomes a predetermined value during a cooling operation. The temperature difference may be formed by adjusting the throttle amount of the throttle mechanism.

Further, the vertical temperature difference forming means may form a temperature difference by adjusting the throttle amount of the sub-throttle mechanism during the heating operation. Further, a control system for controlling the lower fan may be further provided so as to cause fluctuation in an air flow blown out from the lower blow path at least during a cooling operation.

In the operation method according to the first aspect and the apparatus according to the second aspect, at least during the cooling operation and the heating operation, air having a temperature lower than the temperature of the air blown out from the lower outlet is blown out from the upper outlet. Since the upper and lower temperature difference operation is performed, it is possible to create a temperature environment for realizing so-called head and foot heat, which contributes to further improvement in comfort.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a configuration diagram including a refrigeration cycle of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an indoor unit.
The indoor unit 1 includes a housing 2 having a trapezoidal cross-sectional shape, for example, and elongated in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface. A suction port 4 for sucking room air as indicated by a thick arrow 3 in the figure is formed on a front wall of the housing 2. A part of the room air sucked through the suction port 4 is blown obliquely upward and forward as shown by a thick arrow 5 on the front wall located above the suction port 4 as a boundary. An outlet 6 is formed. The upper outlet 6 communicates with the inlet 4 through an upper outlet 9 formed by a fan nose 7 and a rear casing 8. On the front wall located below the suction port 4, the rest of the room air sucked through the suction port 4 is directed obliquely downward and forward as indicated by a thick arrow 10 in the figure. A lower air outlet 11 for blowing air is formed. The lower outlet 11 has a fan nose 12 and a rear casing 13.
And communicates with the suction port 4 via the lower outlet passage 14 formed by the above.

In the upper outlet passage 9 and the lower outlet passage 14, a cross flow type for giving a suction force in a direction indicated by a thick arrow 3 in the drawing and a blowing output in a direction indicated by thick arrows 5 and 10 in the drawing. An upper fan 15 and a lower fan 16 are arranged,
These upper fan 15 and lower fan 16 and suction port 4
An upper heat exchanger 17 and a lower heat exchanger 18 are arranged between the two. Upper heat exchanger 17 and lower heat exchanger 1
Numeral 8 is formed by meandering a finned refrigerant pipe in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface. An electrically controlled or electronically controlled sub-throttle mechanism 19 is provided between the lower end of the refrigerant pipe constituting the upper heat exchanger 17 and the upper end of the refrigerant pipe constituting the lower heat exchanger 18. Is provided. That is, the upper heat exchanger 17 and the lower heat exchanger 18 constitute a series circuit connected in series via the sub-throttle mechanism 19.

The indoor unit 1 configured as described above has the structure shown in FIG.
As shown in the figure, the space 21 is attached to the inner surface of the wall 21 partitioning the room 21 with a space of several tens of cm between the inner surface of the wall 21 and the floor surface 23.

The upper end of the refrigerant pipe constituting the upper heat exchanger 17 is connected via a pipe 25, an electrically controlled or electronically controlled main throttle mechanism 26, an outdoor heat exchanger 27, and an electrically switched four-way valve 28. Connected to the suction port of the compressor 29. A discharge port of the compressor 29 is connected to a lower end of a refrigerant pipe constituting the lower heat exchanger 18 via a four-way valve 28 and a pipe 30. That is, the upper heat exchanger 17 and the lower heat exchanger 18 connected in series via the sub-throttle mechanism 19 constitute a refrigeration cycle. The outdoor heat exchanger 27 is provided with a fan 31.

The above-described control for stopping the operation of the compressor 29, the control for switching the four-way valve 28, the upper fan 15 and the lower fan 1
6, the stop amount control of the sub-throttle mechanism 19, the stop amount control of the main throttle mechanism 26, and the stop control of the fan 31 are performed based on commands from the control device 32.

That is, the control device 32 controls the room temperature T ₀ detected by the temperature sensors disposed at various points in each section, and the evaporation temperature T ₁ in the upper end portion of the refrigerant pipe constituting the upper heat exchanger 17 of the indoor unit _1. Similarly, the evaporation temperature T ₂ in the lower end portion of the refrigerant pipe constituting the upper heat exchanger 17, and the evaporation temperature T in the intermediate portion of the refrigerant pipe constituting the lower heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 1.
₃ , the suction gas temperature T _{4 of} the compressor 29, the discharge gas temperature T ₅ of the compressor 29, the refrigerant pipe temperature T of the outdoor heat exchanger 27
₆ , the outdoor temperature T ₇ is introduced, and the cooling operation command S ₁ , the heating operation command S ₂ , and the warm dehumidification operation command S which are given from outside are given.
_In accordance with ₃ , the respective components constituting the refrigeration cycle described above are configured to be controlled in a relationship described later. Note that the control of the indoor temperature T ₀ is performed by turning on / off the compressor 29 or controlling the number of revolutions of the compressor 29.

Next, an operation mode of the air conditioner configured as described above, that is, the air conditioner, will be described. When (cooling operation) gives the cooling operation command S _1, the controller 3
2, the connection configuration of the four-way valve 28 is the reverse of that shown in the drawing; The mechanism 19 is switched to flow through the path of the lower heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 1, the four-way valve 28, and the suction port of the compressor 29.

Next, the sub-throttle mechanism 19 is controlled to be fully opened, the upper fan 15 and the lower fan 16 are started to rotate at a predetermined speed, the compressor 29 is started to rotate, and the fan 31 is started to rotate.

The high-temperature, high-pressure refrigerant gas discharged from the compressor 29 passes through the four-way valve 28, exchanges heat with outdoor air in the outdoor heat exchanger 27, condenses, and is then throttled by the main throttle mechanism 26. It becomes a low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase state. After that, the air exchanges with the indoor air in the upper heat exchanger 17 of the indoor unit 1 to evaporate, becomes a low-temperature, low-pressure gas, passes through the lower heat exchanger 18, and is compressed again by the compressor 29 to obtain a high-temperature gas. It becomes high pressure gas.

At this time, the control device 32 controls the difference between the evaporation temperature T ₁ in the upper end portion and the evaporation temperature T ₂ in the lower end portion of the refrigerant pipe constituting the upper heat exchanger 17 of the indoor unit 1 so as to be a predetermined value. The amount of aperture of the main aperture mechanism 26 is adjusted. That is, as shown in the Mollier diagram at this time, the throttle amount of the main throttle mechanism 26 is adjusted so that the upper heat exchanger 17 is in the evaporating region and the lower heat exchanger 18 is in the overheating region.

In the case of this operation mode, since the upper fan 15 and the lower fan 16 are each in the operation state, FIG.
As shown in (1), cool air A corresponding to the evaporation temperature is blown out from the upper outlet 6 and air B at a temperature close to room temperature is blown out from the lower outlet 11. After a lapse of a certain period of time, the control device 32 controls the lower fan 16 so that the airflow blown out from the lower blow path 11 fluctuates.
Control for irregularly increasing or decreasing the rotation speed of the motor.

In such a cooling operation mode, for example, the temperature of the air sucked in from the suction port 4 is 27 ° C., the temperature of the air blown out from the lower outlet 11 is 25 ° C., and the upper outlet 6
Assuming that the air temperature blown out from the room is 15 ° C, the cold air hitting the occupants is in the upward direction, and the isothermal air close to the indoor temperature is in the downward direction. Properties can be further improved.

The lower outlet 1 with irregular fluctuations
Since the air blown out from 1 is close to that of a fan, it has the effect of combined use of a fan and has the effect of raising the set temperature during cooling compared to a general top blower indoor unit located near the floor. The average living space temperature is, for example, 27 ° C.
To 28 ° C., a large energy saving effect can be expected.

[0029] When (heating operation) gives the heating operation command S _2, the control unit 32, topology illustrating a four-way valve 28 in the figure,
That is, the gas discharged from the compressor 29 is supplied to the four-way valve 28, the lower heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 1, the sub-throttle mechanism 19, the upper heat exchanger 17 of the indoor unit 1, the main throttle mechanism 26, the outdoor heat exchanger 27, and the four directions. The flow is switched so as to flow through the path from the valve 28 to the suction port of the compressor 29.

Next, the sub-aperture mechanism 19 and the main aperture mechanism 2
6 is controlled to a predetermined throttle amount, and the upper fan 15 and the lower fan 16 are started to rotate at a predetermined rotation speed.
9 and the fan 31 is started to rotate.

The high-temperature, high-pressure refrigerant gas discharged from the compressor 29 passes through the four-way valve 28, exchanges heat with room air in the lower exchanger 18, condenses, and is throttled by the sub-throttle mechanism 19,
With the condensing temperature lowered, the upper heat exchanger 17 further exchanges heat with room air. This refrigerant is throttled by the main throttle mechanism 26 to be in a low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase state, and then exchanges heat with outdoor air in the outdoor heat exchanger 27 to evaporate, and becomes a low-temperature, low-pressure gas to form the compressor 29. And becomes high temperature, high pressure gas again.

At this time, the control device 32 constitutes the evaporation temperature T ₁ in the upper end portion of the refrigerant pipe constituting the upper heat exchanger 17 of the indoor unit 1 and the lower heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 1. The throttle amount of the sub-throttle mechanism 19 is adjusted so that the difference from the evaporating temperature T ₃ in the intermediate portion of the refrigerant pipe becomes predetermined. That is, as shown in the Mollier diagram at this time, in order to realize two condensation temperatures, the lower heat exchanger 18 is located in the first condensation zone, and the upper heat exchanger 17 is located in the first condensation zone. The throttle of the sub-throttle mechanism 19 is adjusted so as to be in the low-temperature second condensation region.

In such a heating operation mode, as shown in FIG. 6, for example, the blow-out temperature from the upper outlet 6 is set to 30.degree. C., and the blow-out temperature from the lower outlet 11 is set to 40.degree. As a result, a so-called cold head thermal environment in which the feet are warm and the area near the head is cold can be realized, and the comfort during heating can be improved. In addition, since the effect that the upper cold warm air suppresses the lower warm warm air can be obtained, the set temperature of heating can be lowered, and the average living space temperature can be shifted from, for example, 24 ° C to 23 ° C. can get.

(Warm Dehumidification Operation) Warm Dehumidification Operation Command S
_{When 3} is given, the control device 32 connects the four-way valve 28 to the connection configuration shown in the drawing, that is, the discharge gas of the compressor 29
In the route of the lower heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 1, the auxiliary throttle mechanism 19, the upper heat exchanger 17 of the indoor unit 1, the main throttle mechanism 26, the outdoor heat exchanger 27, the four-way valve 28, and the suction port of the compressor 29. Switch to flow.

Next, the main throttle mechanism 26 is controlled to fully open, the upper fan 15 and the lower fan 16 are started to rotate at a predetermined number of revolutions, and the compressor 29 is further started to rotate. In this case, the fan 31 is not rotated.

The high-temperature, high-pressure refrigerant gas discharged from the compressor 29 passes through the four-way valve 28, exchanges heat with the room air in the lower exchanger 18, condenses, and is throttled by the sub-throttle mechanism 19 to reduce the pressure. In a gas-liquid two-phase state. This refrigerant exchanges heat with the indoor air in the upper heat exchanger 17 and evaporates to become a low-temperature, low-pressure gas. After passing through the outdoor heat exchanger 27, the refrigerant is compressed again by the compressor 29 and becomes a high-temperature, high-pressure gas. Becomes

At this time, the control device 32 determines that the difference between the evaporation temperature T ₁ in the intermediate portion of the refrigerant pipe constituting the upper heat exchanger 17 of the indoor unit ₁ and the suction gas temperature T ₄ of the compressor 29 is a predetermined value. The aperture amount of the sub-aperture mechanism 19 is adjusted so as to be as follows. That is, as shown in the Mollier diagram at this time, the throttle amount of the sub-throttle mechanism 19 is adjusted so that the lower heat exchanger 18 becomes a condenser and the upper heat exchanger 17 becomes an evaporator.

In this mode of operation, as shown in FIG. 8, for example, cool air flows from the upper outlet 6 and warm air flows from the lower outlet 11 into the room, so that the feet are warm and the area near the head is cold. A so-called head-and-foot thermal environment can be realized, and comfort during dehumidifying operation can be improved. Furthermore, since the warm dehumidifying operation is performed by the heating cycle, the temperature of the room can be increased while dehumidifying at low outside air temperature and high humidity.

[0039]

As described above, according to the present invention, the air-conditioning system having the indoor unit which is disposed near the floor and used in the one-suction / two-blow system can be used without impairing the characteristics. It can contribute to the realization of a comfortable indoor temperature environment.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view for explaining an installation mode of an indoor unit in the apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a Mollier chart during a cooling operation of the apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a view for explaining a blowing mode from an indoor unit during a cooling operation of the apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a Mollier chart during a heating operation of the device.

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining a blowing mode from an indoor unit during a cooling operation of the apparatus.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a Mollier chart during the warm dehumidifying operation of the device.

FIG. 8 is a view for explaining a blowing mode from an indoor unit during a warm dehumidifying operation of the apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Indoor unit 4 ... Inlet 6 ... Upper outlet 7 ... Upper outlet 11 ... Lower outlet 14 ... Lower outlet 15 ... Upper fan 16 ... Lower fan 17 ... Upper heat exchanger 18 ... Lower heat Exchanger 19 ... Sub-throttle mechanism 21 ... Room 22 ... Wall 23 ... Floor surface 26 ... Main throttling mechanism 27 ... Outdoor heat exchanger 28 ... Four-way valve 29 ... Compressor 32 ... Control device

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continuing from the front page (72) Inventor Ai Arai Inside 8 of Shinsugita-cho, Isogo-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Pref.

Claims (5)

[Claims] An air inlet for sucking room air, an upper air outlet for blowing a portion of the room air sucked through the air inlet from an upper air outlet, and an upper air outlet disposed in the upper air outlet. An upper heat exchanger, an upper fan, a lower outlet passage for blowing out the remaining indoor air from the lower outlet through the inlet, and a lower heat disposed in the lower outlet passage. When operating an air conditioning system including an indoor unit including a heat exchanger and a lower fan, which is disposed near the floor and used, at least during the cooling operation and the heating operation, the lower air outlet is used. A method for operating an air conditioning system, comprising performing a vertical temperature difference operation in which air having a temperature lower than the temperature of the blown air is blown out from the upper outlet. 2. An air inlet for sucking indoor air, an upper air outlet for blowing a part of the room air sucked through the air inlet from an upper air outlet, and an upper air outlet disposed in the upper air outlet. An upper heat exchanger, an upper fan, a lower outlet passage for blowing out the remaining indoor air from the lower outlet through the inlet, and a lower heat disposed in the lower outlet passage. An air conditioner comprising an indoor unit including a heat exchanger and a lower fan, which is disposed near the floor and used, wherein the upper heat exchanger and the lower heat exchanger are connected via a sub-throttle mechanism. A refrigeration cycle element group including a series circuit connected in series, a main throttle mechanism, and a refrigeration cycle of at least a cooling operation and a heating operation with the series circuit; and Refrigerant through the side heat exchanger A refrigerant flow direction switching means for flowing a refrigerant through a path passing from the lower heat exchanger to the upper heat exchanger during the heating operation; and air blown from the lower outlet at least during the cooling operation and the heating operation. Air conditioning characterized by comprising an upper and lower temperature difference forming means for controlling one of the sub-throttle mechanism and the main throttle mechanism to blow out air having a temperature lower than the temperature of the upper air outlet. apparatus. 3. The upper and lower temperature difference forming means adjusts a throttle amount of the main throttle mechanism so that a difference between an upstream temperature and a downstream temperature of the upper heat exchanger becomes predetermined during a cooling operation. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein a difference is formed. 4. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the vertical temperature difference forming means adjusts the throttle amount of the sub-throttle mechanism during the heating operation to form a temperature difference. 5. The control system according to claim 2, further comprising a control system for controlling said lower fan so as to generate a fluctuation in an air flow blown out from said lower blow path at least during a cooling operation. The air conditioner according to any one of the preceding claims.