JPH10238912A - Air conditioner and multizone air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To notify a user of the effect if ability becomes insufficient due to fault of a solenoid vale for controlling refrigerant amount by monitoring a state of a refrigerant flow control means based on a tube temperature detected by a tube temperature detecting means, and displaying an alarm if a fault of the control means is detected. SOLUTION: In the multizone air conditioner comprising indoor heat exchangers 8, 13, indoor temperature sensors 9, 14 and tube temperature sensors 10, 15 in indoor units 7, 12 of A and B chambers, an indoor temperature is detected at the time of starting a cooling operation. A difference between a tube temperature after a predetermined time is elapsed and the indoor temperature at the time of starting an operation is indicated by ▵T. Then, operating ability of a compressor 2 is judged according to a set temperature and the indoor temperature. A target value of the ▵T after a predetermined time is elapsed is corrected by the judged ability of the compressor 2. If the ▵T is lowered to the target value, solenoid valves 5, 6 are judged to be normal. If the ▵T is not lowered to the target value, the valves 5, 6 are judged to be abnormal, and an alarm is displayed to notify a user.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more particularly to a control for notifying a user of a malfunction of a solenoid valve for controlling a refrigerant amount.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional air conditioner, when a target refrigerant amount cannot be controlled due to a malfunction of a solenoid valve for controlling a refrigerant amount and the capacity is insufficient, complaints such as not cooling and not warming are generated. I was

In a multi-type air conditioner, if one of the indoor units is stopped and a solenoid valve connected to the indoor unit fails, the performance of the other indoor units during operation is insufficient. Sometimes.

A multi-type air conditioner constructed by connecting a plurality of indoor units to one outdoor unit is disclosed in, for example,
JP-A-97848 can be mentioned.
This is to improve the workability of the confirmation work of checking the correspondence between the operating state of the outside and the inside of each room while performing the test operation for each room.

[0005]

The conventional air conditioner is
If the target refrigerant amount cannot be controlled due to a malfunction of the solenoid valve for controlling the refrigerant amount and the capacity becomes insufficient, there is a problem that complaints such as not cooling or not warming are generated.

[0006] In the multi-type air conditioner, if one of the indoor units is stopped and the solenoid valve connected to the indoor unit breaks down, the performance of the other indoor units during operation is insufficient. There was a problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and when the target refrigerant amount cannot be controlled due to a malfunction of a solenoid valve for controlling the refrigerant amount and the capacity becomes insufficient, The purpose is to notify the user. Another object of the present invention is to notify a user of a multi-type air conditioner when a solenoid valve of a stopped indoor unit breaks down and the capacity of another operating indoor unit becomes insufficient.

[0008]

An air conditioner according to a first aspect of the present invention is connected to an outdoor unit having a compressor or the like via refrigerant flow control means for controlling the flow rate of refrigerant to the outdoor unit. An indoor unit having an indoor heat exchanger that performs heat exchange with the
A pipe temperature detecting means for detecting a pipe temperature of the indoor heat exchanger; a refrigerant flow control monitoring means for monitoring a state of the refrigerant flow control means based on the pipe temperature detected by the pipe temperature detecting means after the start of the cooling operation; When the flow rate control monitoring means detects an abnormality of the refrigerant flow rate control means, a warning display means for displaying a warning is provided.

[0009] An air conditioner according to a second aspect of the present invention is the air conditioner according to the first aspect, based on an inverter device for driving the compressor, an indoor set temperature set by a user, and an actual indoor temperature. And a compensating means for judging the capacity of the compressor from the setting of the inverter device and compensating the data relating to the pipe temperature used by the refrigerant flow control monitoring means.

The air conditioner according to a third aspect of the present invention is the air conditioner according to the first aspect, wherein the indoor unit includes an indoor temperature detecting means for detecting an indoor temperature, and the refrigerant flow control and monitoring means comprises a cooling operation. The state of the refrigerant flow control means is monitored based on the temperature difference ΔT between the indoor temperature detected by the indoor temperature detecting means at the start and the pipe temperature detected by the pipe temperature detecting means after a lapse of a predetermined time from the start of the cooling operation. Is what you do.

The air conditioner according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the air conditioner according to the first aspect, wherein the refrigerant flow control and monitoring means includes a pipe temperature TH1 detected by the pipe temperature detecting means at the start of the cooling operation, and a cooling operation. The state of the refrigerant flow control means is monitored based on a temperature difference ΔT from the pipe temperature TH2 detected by the pipe temperature detection means after a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the process.

A multi-type air conditioner according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is connected to an outdoor unit having a compressor or the like via refrigerant flow control means for controlling a refrigerant flow to the outdoor unit to exchange heat with indoor air. A plurality of indoor units having an indoor heat exchanger to be performed, and a pipe temperature detecting means for detecting a pipe temperature of the indoor heat exchanger,
If some of the indoor units stop cooling operation,
Based on the piping temperature of the indoor unit after the cooling operation is stopped detected by the piping temperature detecting unit, the operating state monitoring unit that monitors the operating state of the other indoor unit that is operating, and the operating state monitoring unit detects an abnormality. Is provided with warning display means for displaying a warning.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a multi-type air conditioner according to the fifth aspect, wherein the operating state monitoring means comprises a pipe temperature at the time of stopping the cooling operation of the indoor unit having stopped the cooling operation. Piping temperature TH1 detected by the detecting means
And monitoring the operating state of the other indoor units during operation based on the temperature difference ΔT from the pipe temperature TH2 detected by the pipe temperature detecting means after a lapse of a predetermined time after the cooling operation is stopped.

The multi-type air conditioner according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is the multi-type air conditioner according to the fifth aspect, wherein the indoor unit includes an indoor temperature detecting means for detecting an indoor temperature, and the operating state monitoring means comprises: After the cooling operation is stopped, the operation state of the other indoor units during operation is monitored based on the temperature difference ΔT between the indoor temperature detected by the indoor temperature detecting means and the pipe temperature detected by the pipe temperature detecting means. .

[0015]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Embodiment 1 FIG. Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. For convenience of explanation, the description will be made using a multi-type air conditioner, but the present invention can be similarly applied to a normal separation type air conditioner. FIG. 1 is a refrigerant system diagram of a multi-type air conditioner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an outdoor unit of an air conditioner, a compressor 2 for compressing a refrigerant, a switching valve 3 for changing a flow of the refrigerant to switch between a cooling operation and a heating operation, and a heat of the refrigerant in the outdoor unit 1. A heat exchanger 4 for performing the exchange; a solenoid valve 5 which is a refrigerant flow rate control means for stopping the flow of the refrigerant to the room A; and a refrigerant flow rate control means for stopping the flow of the refrigerant to the room B room. It is composed of a solenoid valve 6.

Reference numeral 7 denotes an indoor unit in the room A, an indoor heat exchanger 8 for exchanging heat of the refrigerant in the room A, an indoor temperature sensor 9 for detecting the room temperature in the room A, and a piping temperature in the room A. Is configured with a pipe temperature sensor 10 for detecting the temperature.

Reference numeral 12 denotes an indoor unit in the room B, an indoor heat exchanger 13 for exchanging heat of the refrigerant in the room B, an indoor temperature sensor 14 for detecting the room temperature in the room B, and a piping temperature in the room B. Is configured by a pipe temperature sensor 15 for detecting the temperature.

Next, the operation will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a change in pipe temperature depending on the amount of refrigerant determined by the degree of opening and closing of an electromagnetic valve at the start of cooling operation, and FIG.
5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of FIG. In the multi-type air conditioner configured as shown in FIG. 1, at the start of the cooling operation, the indoor temperature is detected and set as TS1 (step S3).
1). The indoor pipe temperature changes after the start of the operation as shown in FIG. 2, but the difference between the pipe temperature after elapse of the time t and the indoor temperature TS1 at the start of the operation is ΔT (step S3).
2). In step S33, the operation capability of the compressor 2 driven by the inverter is determined based on the set temperature and the room temperature set by the user.

In step S34, the target value of ΔT after the elapse of the time t is corrected based on the determined operation capability of the compressor 2, and whether or not ΔT has decreased to the corrected target value for normal operation. Then, it is determined whether or not the solenoid valve is normal. ΔT, that is, if the pipe temperature has dropped to the target value, the solenoid valve is determined to be normal, and if not, the solenoid valve is determined to be abnormal if it has not dropped to the target value, and a warning is displayed to notify the user. (Step S35).

As described above, according to the first embodiment, in the multi-type air conditioner, by detecting an abnormality of the solenoid valve at the start of operation, it is possible to warn the user of the inefficient operation and to warn the user. When the degree of failure of the solenoid valve places a burden on the compressor 2, the compressor 2 can be protected. Further, the indoor temperature sensor and the pipe temperature sensor required for the detection are essentially required for the air conditioner and are not specially provided for this control, so that there is an effect that the cost can be reduced.

Embodiment 2 FIG. In the first embodiment described above,
Although the indoor temperature at the start of the cooling operation is detected, the pipe temperature at the start of the cooling operation may be detected and compared with the pipe temperature after elapse of the time t. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention. In the multi-type air conditioner configured as shown in FIG. 1, at the start of the cooling operation, the pipe temperature is detected and set to TH1 (step S4).
1). Pipe temperature TH after elapse of time t after starting operation
The difference between 2 and the pipe temperature TH1 at the start of operation is set to ΔT (step S42). The operation capability of the compressor 2 driven by the inverter is determined based on the set temperature and the room temperature set by the user.

In step S44, the target value of ΔT after the elapse of the time t is corrected based on the determined operating capacity of the compressor 2, and whether or not ΔT has decreased to the corrected target value at which normal operation can be performed. Then, it is determined whether or not the solenoid valve is normal. ΔT, that is, if the pipe temperature has dropped to the target value, the solenoid valve is determined to be normal, and if not, the solenoid valve is determined to be abnormal if it has not dropped to the target value, and a warning is displayed to notify the user. (Step S45).

As described above, according to the second embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, in the multi-type air conditioner, the abnormality of the solenoid valve is detected at the start of the operation, resulting in poor efficiency. In addition to being able to warn the user of the failed operation, when the degree of failure of the solenoid valve places a burden on the compressor 2, the compressor 2 can be protected. Further, the indoor temperature sensor and the pipe temperature sensor required for the detection are essentially required for the air conditioner and are not specially provided for this control, so that there is an effect that the cost can be reduced.

Embodiment 3 FIG. In the above-described embodiment, in the multi-type air conditioner, the abnormality of the solenoid valve is detected at the start of the operation to warn the user of the inefficient operation. However, in the third embodiment, In a multi-type air conditioner, when one unit is operating, the status of the operating indoor unit is indirectly detected by detecting the abnormality of the other stopped solenoid valve, resulting in inefficient operation. Warn the user of the operating state of the indoor unit.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a change in the pipe temperature depending on the refrigerant amount when the cooling operation is performed in the room A and the room B and the cooling operation is stopped in the indoor unit in the room A in the multi-type air conditioner. Is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the third embodiment of the present invention. When the room A and the room B perform the cooling operation and the indoor unit 7 in the room A stops the cooling operation, the pipe temperature of the room A is detected and the TH is detected.
1 (step S61). The difference between the pipe temperature after the elapse of the time t from the stop of the operation and the pipe temperature TH1 at the time of the stop of the operation is ΔT (step S62).

In step S63, it is determined whether or not the solenoid valve 5 in the room A is normal based on whether or not ΔT after the elapse of the time t has exceeded a target value for normal operation (step S63). If the temperature is higher than the target value, there is no leakage of the refrigerant, and the solenoid valve 5 is determined to be normal. If it has not risen to the target value, it is determined that the solenoid valve 5 has failed and the refrigerant is flowing, and a warning is displayed to notify the user (step S64).

As described above, according to the third embodiment, in the multi-type air conditioner, when one of the units is in operation, the abnormality of the other stopped solenoid valve is detected, so that the indoor unit during operation is detected. This has the effect of alerting the user of the inefficient driving condition. In addition, the only detector required for the detection is the pipe temperature sensor, and the pipe temperature sensor is essentially required for the air conditioner and is not specially provided for this control, so that it is possible to reduce the cost.

Embodiment 4 In Embodiment 4 described above,
Although the abnormality of the solenoid valve of the stopped indoor unit is detected by a change in the pipe temperature, it may be detected by comparing the indoor temperature with the pipe temperature. FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the fourth embodiment of the present invention. When the room A and the room B perform the cooling operation and the indoor unit 7 in the room A stops the cooling operation, the pipe temperature and the room temperature TH that change after the cooling operation of the room A is stopped.
1 is detected, and the difference is set to ΔT (step S71).
It is determined whether the electromagnetic valve 5 is normal based on whether ΔT after the lapse of the time t has reached the target value (step S72). When the difference ΔT between the pipe temperature and the room temperature TH1 falls within a specified value, the refrigerant stops, the solenoid valve 5 is determined to be normal, and if the difference ΔT between the pipe temperature and the room temperature TH1 does not fall within the specified value, the electromagnetic valve is turned off. It is determined that the valve 5 has failed and the refrigerant is flowing, and a warning is displayed to notify the user (step S73).

As described above, according to the fourth embodiment, in the multi-type air conditioner, when one of the units is in operation, the abnormality of the other stopped solenoid valve is detected, so that the operating indoor unit is operated. It is possible to warn the user of the inefficient operating state of the vehicle and to always detect the operating state instead of immediately after stopping. Further, the indoor temperature sensor and the pipe temperature sensor required for detection are essentially required for the air conditioner and are not specially provided for this control, so that there is an effect that the cost can be reduced.

[0030]

As described above, according to the present invention, in the air conditioner, by detecting an abnormality in the refrigerant flow control means at the start of operation, it is possible to warn the user of the inefficient operation and to provide the refrigerant with the refrigerant. When the degree of failure of the flow control means places a burden on the compressor, there is an effect that the compressor can be protected. Further, the pipe temperature detecting means and the indoor temperature detecting means necessary for the detection are essentially required for the air conditioner and are not specially provided for this control, so that there is an effect that the cost can be reduced.

Further, in the multi-type air conditioner, when one of the units is in operation, an abnormality of the other stopped refrigerant flow control means is detected, so that the operating state in which the efficiency of the operating indoor unit has deteriorated can be determined by the user. Has the effect of being able to warn. Also,
There is an effect that the operation state in which the efficiency of the indoor unit during operation is deteriorated is not detected immediately after the operation is stopped, but is always detected.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration and a refrigerant system diagram of Embodiments 1 to 4 of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a change in a pipe temperature depending on a refrigerant amount at the start of a cooling operation.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the air conditioner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the air conditioner according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a change in a pipe temperature depending on a refrigerant amount when a cooling operation is stopped.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the multi-type air conditioner according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the multi-type air conditioner according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 1 outdoor unit, 2 compressor, 3 switching valve, 4 outdoor heat exchanger, 5 and 6 solenoid valve, 7, 12 indoor unit, 8, 13 indoor heat exchanger, 9, 14 indoor temperature sensor, 10, 15
Pipe temperature sensor.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Shigenobu Mochizuki 2-6-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Within Mitsui Electric Engineering Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Kazuhiro Kazama 2-6-Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo No. 2 Mitsubishi Electric Engineering Co., Ltd.

Claims (7)

[Claims] An outdoor unit having a compressor and the like, an indoor unit having an indoor heat exchanger connected to the outdoor unit via refrigerant flow control means for controlling a refrigerant flow rate and exchanging heat with indoor air, A pipe temperature detecting means for detecting a pipe temperature of the indoor heat exchanger; and a refrigerant flow control monitor for monitoring a state of the refrigerant flow control means based on the pipe temperature detected by the pipe temperature detecting means after a cooling operation is started. Means, when the refrigerant flow rate control monitoring means detects an abnormality of the refrigerant flow rate control means, a warning display means for performing a warning display,
An air conditioner comprising: 2. An inverter device for driving the compressor, and a capacity of the compressor is determined from a setting of the inverter device based on an indoor set temperature set by a user and an actual indoor temperature. The air conditioner according to claim 1, further comprising: a correction unit configured to correct data on the pipe temperature used by the control monitoring unit. 3. The indoor unit is provided with an indoor temperature detecting means for detecting an indoor temperature, wherein the refrigerant flow control monitoring means starts the cooling operation with the indoor temperature detected by the indoor temperature detecting means at the start of the cooling operation. 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein a state of the refrigerant flow control means is monitored based on a temperature difference ΔT from a pipe temperature detected by the pipe temperature detection means after a lapse of a predetermined time. 4. The refrigerant flow rate control and monitoring means detects a pipe temperature TH detected by the pipe temperature detecting means at the start of cooling operation.
1 and a pipe temperature TH2 detected by the pipe temperature detecting means after a lapse of a predetermined time from the start of the cooling operation.
The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the state of the refrigerant flow control means is monitored based on T. 5. A plurality of indoor units having an outdoor unit having a compressor and the like, and an indoor heat exchanger connected to the outdoor unit via a refrigerant flow control means for controlling a refrigerant flow and performing heat exchange with indoor air. And a pipe temperature detecting means for detecting a pipe temperature of the indoor heat exchanger, and when the indoor unit includes one for stopping a cooling operation, after the cooling operation is stopped detected by the pipe temperature detecting means. Based on the pipe temperature of the indoor unit, an operating state monitoring unit that monitors the operating state of the other indoor unit that is operating, and a warning display unit that displays a warning when the operating state monitoring unit detects an abnormality. A multi-type air conditioner comprising: 6. The operating state monitoring means includes: a pipe temperature TH1 of the indoor unit having stopped the cooling operation detected by the pipe temperature detecting means at the time of stopping the cooling operation; and a predetermined time after stopping the cooling operation. 6. The operation state of another indoor unit during operation is monitored based on a temperature difference ΔT from the pipe temperature TH2 detected by the pipe temperature detection means.
The multi-type air conditioner as described. 7. The indoor unit further includes an indoor temperature detecting unit for detecting an indoor temperature, wherein the operating state monitoring unit detects the indoor temperature detected by the indoor temperature detecting unit after the cooling operation is stopped, and detects the pipe temperature. The multi-type air conditioner according to claim 5, wherein the operation state of the other indoor unit during operation is monitored based on the temperature difference ΔT from the pipe temperature detected by the means.