JPH1178476A - Air conditioner for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce water from being sprinkled on an electric element, in a car air conditioner partitioned into two passages in its air-conditioning case. SOLUTION: A controlling electric element 50 is installed so as to be set up in a second passage 5b. Concretely, this controlling electric element 50 is attached to an outer wall of a case member by a clamping means of screws and suchlike through its mounting base plate, after being inserted into an inner part of the second passage 5b toward the upper part from the downside. With this constitution, the controlling electric element is set up in a lowermost part in the second passage 5b to be situated lower than a first passage 5a. Therefore, in a two layer mode, since it is hard to get into the second passage 5b, water is also hard to be sprinkled on this electric element 50, and this its safety is kept up and thereby trouble can be avoided. Moreover, in a total outside air mode, any water to be infiltrated from a fresh air inlet port 22 is sucked into a fan 6a, and then it is blown out to the first passage 5a as shown in an arrow (a), a similar effect is securable even in the total fresh air mode.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention divides the interior of a vehicle air conditioner into two air passages. In particular, one of the passages takes in outside air and the other takes in inside air.
The present invention is suitable for a vehicle air conditioner (hereinafter, a two-layer unit) that achieves both improvement in heating capacity and improvement in anti-fog properties.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as the two-layer unit, there is a unit described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-318727.
As shown in FIG. 5, the inside / outside air unit, which is the most upstream portion of the air conditioner for a vehicle, has a first passage 101 for outside air and a second passage 100 for inside air. Then, as shown in FIG.
A first fan 111 and a second fan 110 that are driven by one blower motor 103 are provided for one.

In the inside / outside air unit, a first inside air introduction port 102 and an outside air introduction port 104 are formed at one end side in the rotation axis direction of the blower motor 103 in the upper part of the figure. The first inside air introduction port 102 and the outside air introduction port 104 are opened and closed by a first inside / outside air switching door 106. In the inside / outside air unit, a second inside air inlet 105 is formed at the other end in the rotation axis direction of the blower motor 103 below in the figure. The second inside air inlet 105 is opened and closed by a second inside / outside air switching door 107.

Further, a communication passage 108 is formed in the inside / outside air unit so as to communicate the respective suction ports of the first fan 111 and the second fan 110.
8 is opened and closed by the second inside / outside air switching door 107.
To switch the inside / outside air mode to the two-layer mode, the first
The inside / outside air switching door 106 closes the first inside air introduction port 104 and opens the outside air introduction port 102. On the other hand, the communication passage 108 is closed by the first inside / outside air switching door 107 and the second inside air introduction port 105 is opened. Thus, inside air is taken into the second passage 100 from the second inside air inlet 105, and outside air is taken into the first passage 101 from the outside air inlet 105.

Also, for example, the second passage 100 and the first
When the outside air is introduced into both of the passages 101, the first inside air introduction port 104 is closed and the outside air introduction port 104 is opened by the first inside / outside air switching door 106. Further, the communication path 108 is opened by the second inside / outside air switching door 107, and the second inside air introduction port 105 is closed. As a result, the outside air from the outside air inlet 104 is drawn into the first fan 111 as shown by the arrow A in the figure, and the arrow B in the figure.
The second fan 110 through the communication passage 108 as shown by
Sucked into.

[0006]

In a conventional vehicle air conditioner (in which the interior of an air conditioning case is not partitioned into two air passages), the rotation speed of a blower motor is switched, that is, the amount of air-conditioned air is changed. This is performed by controlling the amount of energization by a speed control electric element such as a power transistor.

[0007] Since the speed controlling electric element generates heat when energized and deteriorates its durability, it is installed in an air-conditioning case through which air-conditioned air flows, and is cooled. The inventors of the present invention have studied the arrangement of the speed control electric element in the air conditioning case in the two-layer unit. It has been found that a problem arises in that the water tends to be sprayed on the motor and the speed control electric element is likely to break down.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to reduce water splashes on electric elements in a vehicle air conditioner in which the inside of an air conditioner case is partitioned into two passages.

[0009]

That is, the inventor of the present invention has established a first passage 5a for outside air in the two-layer unit shown in FIG.
And the second passage 5b for inside air are arranged side by side in the vertical direction (the first passage 5a is arranged above the second passage 5b). Then, the electric element for speed control was arranged in the upper first passage 5a. Then, the following phenomenon was confirmed.

The water that has entered through the outside air inlet 22 is sucked into a fan 6a (centrifugal fan) arranged in the first passage 5a and is blown out in a horizontal direction. For this reason, the intruded water rides on the force of the air blown by the fan 6a,
A phenomenon such as blowing off toward the downstream side of the first passage 5a was confirmed. Therefore, when the speed control electric element is disposed in the first passage 5a, water is sprayed on the speed control electric element, which causes a problem that the speed control electric element is easily broken.

In view of the above, the present invention has found the above problem.
The second passages (5a, 5b) are arranged so as to be vertically arranged by the partition member (4), and the second passage (5b) is arranged at a position lower than the first passage (5a), The outside air is introduced into the first passageway (5a) from the upper portion by the blower fans (6a, 6b), and furthermore, a speed control electric element (for controlling the rotation speed of the electric motor (7)). 50) an electric element for speed control (51)
Are characterized by being disposed in the second passage (5b).

[0012] Thus, the speed control electric element is disposed in the second passage, and it is difficult for water to enter the second passage, so that the speed control electric element is not easily splashed with water.
It is possible to reduce the splash of water on the speed control electric element, and to maintain the safety of the control electric element and avoid failure. Also, in the invention according to claim 5, the speed control electric element (50)
Is installed at the lowest part of the second passage (5b), and the speed control electric element is detachable from the vehicle interior.

Thus, the speed control electric element is connected to the second
Since it is installed at the lowest part of the passage and is detachable from the vehicle interior, maintenance and replacement of the speed control electric element can be easily performed.

[0014]

FIG. 1 is a mounting diagram of an inside / outside air unit 1 of a vehicle air conditioner according to this embodiment. 2 to FIG.
FIG. 3 shows a top view of the inside / outside air unit 1 as viewed from the middle upper side to the lower side. The vehicle air conditioner of this example is for a right-hand drive vehicle. The inside and outside air unit 1 constitutes the most upstream air portion of the vehicle air conditioner as shown in FIG. The inside / outside air unit 1 is disposed on the vehicle front side of the instrument panel P which forms a design surface on the vehicle front side in the vehicle interior. The inside / outside air unit 1 is disposed on the vehicle rear side of a partition wall 2 made of an iron plate that partitions an engine room (E / G) from a vehicle interior.

That is, the inside / outside air unit 1 includes the partition plate 2
And the instrument panel P.
In addition, a container-like storage member (hereinafter referred to as a glow box 20) that is disposed opposite to the inside / outside air unit 1 and stores articles is provided on the passenger seat side of the instrument panel P and on the vehicle rear side of the inside / outside air unit 1. ) Is provided. The glow box 20 is configured to rotate in a direction indicated by an arrow C in FIG. 1 on a rotation shaft 20b rotatably supported by the instrument panel P. Thus, the glow box 20 can be opened and closed.

The inside / outside air unit 1 has an air-conditioning case 3 forming an air flow path into the vehicle interior. The inside of the air-conditioning case 3 is separated by a horizontally extending partition plate 4 (partition member).
It is divided into two passages. Specifically, the air conditioning case 3
Is a scroll case portion 3a in which the flow path is in a scroll shape.
And the inside of the scroll case portion 3a is
The first and second passages 5a and 5b are formed so as to be partitioned in the up and down (top and bottom) direction and arranged in the up and down direction.

A temperature control unit 10 for adjusting the temperature of the conditioned air is disposed downstream of the first and second passages 5a and 5b (see FIG. 3). The temperature control unit 10 is actually arranged in the vehicle width direction with the inside / outside air unit 1 and is disposed at a central portion in the vehicle width direction, and is schematically shown in FIG. The temperature control unit 10 will be described with reference to FIG.
The inside of the temperature control unit 10 is partitioned by a partition plate 11 into two passages (a first passage 5a and a second passage 5b). In the temperature control unit 10, a well-known evaporator 12, which is a cooling heat exchanger, is arranged. In the temperature control unit 10, a temperature adjustment unit 13 including a well-known heater core or the like is provided downstream of the evaporator 12 in the air (rear side of the vehicle). The temperature adjusting unit 13 adjusts the temperature of the conditioned air by adjusting the heating amount of the air that has passed through the evaporator 12.

The temperature adjusting unit 13 includes, for example, a heater core using the engine cooling water of the vehicle as a heat source, and the evaporator 1.
2 comprises a well-known air mix door or the like for adjusting the flow rate of the cool air passing through the heater core. And
The air blown out from the inside / outside air unit 1 flows from the front side to the back side in FIG.
b, flows in the vehicle width direction as shown by an arrow A in FIG. The air introduced into the temperature control unit 10 changes its direction so as to flow from the front side of the vehicle to the rear side of the vehicle, and the evaporator 1
2 and the heater core.

On the downstream side of the air from the temperature control unit 13, a face air passage 14 serving as an upper body air passage for blowing conditioned air toward the upper body of the occupant, and a vehicle windshield 15 (see FIG. 1). A defroster air passage 16 for blowing the conditioned air and a foot air passage 17 serving as a lower body air passage for blowing the conditioned air toward the lower body of the occupant are formed.

The air passages 14, 16, 17 are opened and closed by air outlet switching doors 18, 19, which are opening and closing members. As a result, the following outlet modes can be switched. (Defroster mode) The blower outlet switching door 18 opens the defroster air passage 16, closes the face air blow passage 14, and further closes the foot air blow passage 17 with the blower outlet switching door 19. As a result, the conditioned air is blown only to the defroster air passage 16.

(Face mode) The air outlet switching door 18 closes the defroster air passage 16, opens the face air passage 14, and further opens the air outlet switching door 19.
The foot air passage 17 is closed with. As a result, the conditioned air is sent only to the face air passage 14. (Bi-level mode) The air outlet path switching door 18 closes the defroster air path 16, opens the face air path 14, and opens the foot air path 17 with the air outlet switching door 19. Thereby, the conditioned air is sent to both the face air passage 14 and the foot air passage 17.

(Foot mode) The air outlet switching door 18 opens the defroster air passage 16, closes the face air passage 14, and further opens the air outlet switching door 19.
To open the air passage 17 for the foot. Thus, the conditioned air is sent to both the defroster air passage 16 and the foot air passage 17.

Continuing the description of the inside / outside air unit 1 described above, the first passage 5a and the second passage 5b are provided in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, fans 6a and 6b for generating airflow into the vehicle interior are arranged. The fans 6a and 6b
In this example, it is a centrifugal multi-blade fan (sirocco fan),
It is integrally formed of resin. These fans 6a, 6b
Are arranged such that the direction of the axis of rotation points in the vertical direction. In other words, the fans 6a and 6b are both suction-type fans that draw in from both sides in the axial direction (vertical direction). The fan 6a sucks air from above to below, and the fan 6b sucks air from below to above.

In this embodiment, the above-mentioned temperature control unit 1
In the case of 0, since it is necessary to introduce air from the front side of the vehicle, the air blowing portion 3c of the scroll case portion 3a is arranged in front of the vehicle (see FIGS. 1 and 2). In other words, the fans 6a and 6b are arranged so as to blow air in the vehicle width direction to the temperature control unit 10 at the front part of the inside and outside air unit 1 in the vehicle, and the temperature control unit 10 The blown air flows from the vehicle front side toward the vehicle rear side.

As shown in FIG. 1, the fans 6a and 6b
Are driven by two electric motors 7,
The fan 6a is inserted and arranged from below through the suction port 28 of the fan 6a. Therefore, the suction resistance of the fan 6a is
The size is increased by the electric motor 7, and the amount of air-conditioning air is difficult to be generated. Therefore, in this example, the diameter of the fan is made larger than that of the fan 6a in order to increase the blowing capacity of the fan 6a in anticipation of the increase in the suction resistance of the electric motor 7. The electric motor 7 is mounted on the scroll case 3 by the mounting stay 8.
a.

The rotation speed of the electric motor 7 is controlled by a control electric element 50, which is a speed control electric element, whereby the amount of air blown by the fans 6a and 6b is variably controlled. Specifically, the control electric element 50 is a MO (not shown).
An S transistor is provided, and the amount of air supplied to the electric motor 7 is controlled by the transistor, whereby the amount of air blown from the fans 6a and 6b is controlled.

A target value of the amount of current supplied to the electric motor 7 is calculated by a control device (not shown) from the air-conditioning environment information such as the inside air temperature and the outside air temperature, the set temperature in the passenger compartment, and the like. Is controlled so that The control electric element 50 is disposed on a mounting substrate (not shown) formed of resin or the like. Further, the mounting electric substrate is provided on the mounting substrate for varying a gate voltage to the MOS transistor. An electrical wiring section is provided.

Above the inside / outside air unit 1, a first inside air inlet 26 for introducing inside air into the second passage 5b,
An outside air inlet 22 for introducing outside air into the first passage 5a and the second passage 5b is formed. Outside air inlet 22
1 communicates with an outside air intake 23 opened at a position above the partition wall 2 by a duct 24 as shown in FIG. First
The inside air inlet 26 is open at an upper part in the instrument panel P.

The outside air inlet 22 and the first
The inside air inlet 26 is formed above the fan 6a, and can be selectively switched by a first inside / outside air switching door 25 which is an opening / closing member. In the inside / outside air unit 1, between the first inside air inlet 26 and the fan 6a,
A filter member 40 for removing dust is provided.
The filter member 40 is easily detachable and detachable from the inside / outside air unit 1 of the filter member 40 as follows.

First, the glow box 20 is removed from the instrument panel P. Then, the filter member 4
The lid 41 for taking out the 0 is exposed in the vehicle interior. When the lid 41 is further removed, the end of the filter member 40 is exposed to the vehicle interior, and the filter member 40 is pulled out to the rear side of the vehicle using the exposed portion as a handle. Thereby, the filter member 40 can be removed from the inside / outside air unit 1. When the filter member 40 is installed in the inside / outside air unit 1, the above procedure is performed in reverse.

The fan 6 is located below the inside / outside air unit 1.
A second inside air inlet 26 for introducing inside air into the second passage 5b is formed in a lower part of the second passage 5b. The second inside air inlet 26 is provided with a second inside / outside air switching door 27 which is an opening / closing member.
Is opened and closed. Further, inside the inside / outside air unit 1, the outside air introduction port 22 is provided so as to extend in the vertical direction toward the rear side of the vehicle.
A communication passage 29 is provided for communicating the fan with the suction port 28 of the fan 6b. The communication passage 29 is opened and closed by the second inside / outside air switching door 27. That is, the second inside / outside air switching door 27 selectively opens and closes the communication passage 29 with the second inside air introduction port 21.

The communication passage 29 is provided to achieve a full outside air mode in which outside air is introduced into both the first passage 5a and the second passage 5b. In the all outside air mode, the first inside / outside air switching door 25
However, the first inside air inlet 26 is closed, the outside air inlet 22 is opened, and the second inside / outside air switching door 27 closes the second inside air inlet 21 to open the communication passage 29. Thereby, outside air is introduced into the first passage 5a from the outside air inlet 22 as shown by an arrow E in FIG. 1, and outside air is introduced into the second passage 5b from the outside air inlet 22 through the communication passage 29. .

In this embodiment, in addition to the above-described all-outside air mode, the inside-outside air mode can be switched between the all-inside-air mode and the two-layer mode. In the all inside air mode, the first inside / outside air switching door 25 opens the first inside air introduction port 26 and closes the outside air introduction port 22, and the second inside / outside air switching door 27 opens the second inside air introduction port 21. , The communication passage 29 is closed. As a result, the inside air is introduced into the first passage 5a from the first inside air inlet 26, and the second air is introduced into the second passage 5b.
Inside air is introduced from the inside air inlet 21.

In the two-layer mode, the first inside / outside air switching door 25
However, the first inside air introduction port 26 is closed and the outside air introduction port 22 is opened, and the second inside / outside air switching door 27 opens the second inside air introduction port 21 and closes the communication passage 29. As a result, inside air is introduced into the first passage 5a from the outside air introduction port 22, and inside air is introduced into the second passage 5b from the second inside air introduction port 21.

As a result, in the foot mode,
Since relatively low humidity outside air is introduced into the first passage 5a, the anti-fog property of the windshield 15 can be improved, and further, relatively high temperature inside air is introduced into the second passage 5b, thereby increasing the heating capacity. Can be improved. Next, a case division structure of the inside and outside air unit 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The inside / outside air unit 1 in this example is configured by assembling five case members 1a to 1e formed of a resin material such as polypropylene. The case member 1a is formed in a triangular roof shape as shown in FIG.
And the 1st inside air introduction port 26 is formed.

The case members 1b to 1d constitute the above-mentioned scroll case portion 3a.
And 1d are formed in a spiral (cochlea) bowl shape. In the case member 1b, an air inlet 81 is formed above the suction port of the fan 6a, and is formed to open to the first passage 5a. A part of the communication passage 29 is formed integrally with the case member 1b.

The case member 1c constitutes the partition plate 4 and is formed in a shape corresponding to the scroll shape. Further, an insertion hole 88 for inserting the fan 6a is formed in the case member 1c. The case member 1d has an air inlet 82 (circular shape) that is located below the suction port of the fan 6b and that opens into the second passage 5b. In the case member 1d, the communication passage 29 is provided.
Are integrally formed.

The case member 1e is formed in a bowl shape, and has the second inside air inlet 21 formed therein. The case members 1a to 1e are assembled by, for example, fastening with a claw fitting, a tapping screw, a screw, or the like as a fastening member so as to be overlapped in the vertical direction on the paper surface of FIG.

In the case member 1d, a mounting hole 51 for mounting the control electric element 50 is provided on the bottom surface 53 at the lowermost portion in FIG. Are formed. Then, as shown in FIG. 1, the control electric element 51 is mounted via the mounting hole 51 so as to be disposed in the second passage 5b. More specifically, the control electric element 50 is shown in FIG.
After being inserted into the second passage 5b from the lower middle to the upper part,
The mounting board is mounted on the outer wall of the case member 1d by fastening means such as screws.

As a result, the control electric element 50 is
It is arranged at the lowest position in the second passage 5b located below the passage 5a. Therefore, in the present example, in the two-layer mode, it is difficult to enter the second passage 5b, and it is difficult for the control electric element 50 to be exposed to water. For this reason, it is possible to reduce the splash of water on the control electric element 50, and to control the control electric element 5.
0 can be maintained and a failure can be avoided. Further, in the all outside air mode, water entering from the outside air inlet 22 is sucked into the fan 6a and blown out to the first passage 5a as shown by an arrow a in FIG. Effects can be obtained.

In this embodiment, the control electric element 51 is
It is installed at the lowest part of the second passage 5b, and if the screw is removed from the mounting board, it can be easily removed from the vehicle compartment in the direction of arrow b in FIG. Therefore, for example, maintenance and replacement of the control electric element 50 can be easily performed. (Other Examples) In the above embodiment, the fans 6a and 6b are arranged so that their rotation axes are oriented in the vertical direction. There may be.

In each of the above embodiments, the inside air may be introduced into the first passage 5a located above and the outside air may be introduced into the second passage 5b to achieve the two-layer mode. In each of the above embodiments, the control electric element 50 is set to M
Although an OS transistor is used, any type of power transistor may be used. For example, the electric motor 7 may be switched by switching the number of resistance elements used.
The switching speed may be controlled stepwise.

The present invention is not limited to the layout of each air conditioner described in each of the above embodiments.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vehicle mounting diagram of an inside / outside air unit according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the inside / outside air unit in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a temperature control unit in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the inside / outside air unit in the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a conventional inside / outside air unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

3 ... air-conditioning case, 4 ... partition member, 5a ... first passage, 5
b: second passage, 6a, 6b: fan, 7: electric motor,
50: Control electric element.

Claims (5)

[Claims] An air-conditioning case (3) forming an air passage into a vehicle interior, and two first and second air-conditioning cases (3) in the air-conditioning case (3).
A partition member (4) for partitioning into passages (5a, 5b); and a blower provided in the air-conditioning case (3) to generate an airflow toward the vehicle compartment in the first and second passages (5a, 5b). An air conditioner for a vehicle including an inside / outside air unit (1) having a fan (6a, 6b) and an electric motor (7) for driving the fan, wherein the first and second passages (5a, 5b) are The second passage (5b) is disposed below the first passage (5a) by the partition member (4), and the first passage (5a) is disposed below the first passage (5a). ) Includes the blowing fan (6a,
6b), the outside air is introduced from an upper portion, and further includes a speed control electric element (50) for controlling a rotation speed of the electric motor (7), and the speed control electric element (50). ) Is the second passage (5).
An air conditioner for a vehicle, which is disposed in b). 2. The first fan (6a) disposed in the first passage (5a), wherein the blower fan (6a, 6b) is arranged in the first passage (5a).
And a second fan (6) disposed in the second passage (5b).
b), and the first and second fans (6a, 6b) are arranged so that their rotation axes are directed vertically, and are integrally rotated by the electric motor (7). The first fan (6a) is a centrifugal fan that sucks air downward from above, and the second fan (6a)
b) is a centrifugal fan that sucks air upward from below, and a first passage (5) is provided above the first fan (6a).
The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein an outside air inlet (22) for introducing outside air is formed in a) and the second passage (5b). 3. External air is introduced into the first passage (5a).
The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the outside air is blown to the feet of the occupant, the inside air is introduced into the second passage (5b), and the inside air can be blown toward the vehicle window glass. 4. One end communicates with the outside air inlet (22), a flow path is formed to extend downward from above, and the other end communicates with a suction port (28) of the second fan (6b). A communication path (29), wherein the first and second paths (5
a, 5b), the outside air is introduced into the second passageway (5b) from the outside air introduction port (22) through the communication passageway (29) in the entire outside air mode in which outside air is introduced into both the outside airflow path and the outside airflow mode. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein: 5. The speed control electric element (50) is provided at a lowermost part of the second passage (5b),
The vehicle air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the electric element is detachable from a vehicle interior.