JPWO2020035913A1 - Air conditioner, control device, air conditioning method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

In an air conditioner, an air conditioner (110) includes a compressor that compresses a refrigerant to circulate a refrigerant pipe, a heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between air in an air-conditioned space and a refrigerant that circulates in the refrigerant pipe, and an air conditioner. And an air blower that sends the air in the space to the heat exchanger, and air-conditions the air-conditioned space. An acquisition unit (510) acquires load information regarding a sensible heat load and a latent heat load of the air-conditioned space caused by the difference between the environment of the air-conditioned space and the environment of the external space outside the air-conditioned space. The air conditioning control unit (540) has a cooling mode in which the air conditioning unit (110) cools the air conditioning space, and a dehumidification that causes the air conditioning unit (110) to dehumidify the air conditioning space according to the load information acquired by the acquisition unit (510). The operation mode is switched between the mode and the blower mode in which the compressor is stopped without stopping the blower.

Description

The present invention relates to an air conditioning device, a control device, an air conditioning method, and a program.

There is known a technique for automatically switching the operation mode of air conditioning. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an air conditioner that corrects the set temperature according to the calendar and the outside temperature, and changes the operation modes of heating, dehumidification, and cooling according to the difference between the set temperature and the indoor temperature. There is. Further, Patent Document 2 discloses an air conditioner that switches between a first dehumidifying operation and a second dehumidifying operation in accordance with the difference between the humidity in the air-conditioned space and the target humidity.

Patent No. 5194696 Japanese Patent No. 5799932.

Even if the temperature or humidity of the air-conditioned space is close to the set temperature or humidity, the temperature or humidity of the air-conditioned space is mainly due to the difference in environment between the inside and outside of the air-conditioned space. A constant heat load is generated to maintain the set temperature or set humidity. Therefore, when switching the operation mode of the air conditioner only according to the difference between the temperature of the air-conditioned space and the set temperature, or the difference between the humidity of the air-conditioned space and the set humidity as described above, due to the influence of such a steady heat load. The air-conditioned space cannot be properly air-conditioned, which may reduce the comfort of the air-conditioned space.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner and the like capable of improving comfort in an air-conditioned space.

In order to achieve the above object, the air conditioner according to the present invention,
A compressor that circulates a refrigerant pipe by compressing a refrigerant, a heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between the air in the air-conditioned space and the refrigerant that circulates in the refrigerant pipe, and the air in the air-conditioned space as the heat exchanger. And an air-conditioning unit for air-conditioning the air-conditioned space,
An acquisition unit that acquires load information about a sensible heat load and a latent heat load of the air-conditioned space caused by a difference between the environment of the air-conditioned space and the environment of an external space that is outside the air-conditioned space,
According to the load information acquired by the acquisition means, a cooling mode for cooling the air-conditioned space by the air-conditioning means, a dehumidification mode for dehumidifying the air-conditioned space by the air-conditioning means, and a ventilation by the blower are not stopped. And an air-conditioning control unit that switches the operation mode between the blower mode for stopping the compressor.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the load information regarding the sensible heat load and latent heat load of the air-conditioned space produced by the difference between the environment of the air-conditioned space and the environment of the external space is acquired, and the air-conditioned space is cooled according to the acquired load information. The operation mode is switched between the cooling mode, the dehumidifying mode for dehumidifying the air-conditioned space, and the air blowing mode for stopping the compressor without stopping the air blowing by the air blower. Therefore, the comfort in the air-conditioned space can be improved.

The figure which shows the structure of the air conditioning apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an outdoor unit controller according to the first embodiment. The figure which shows the relationship between the air conditioning capacity and the operation mode which are performed by the air conditioner which concerns on Embodiment 1. The flowchart which shows the flow of the control processing in the ventilation mode performed by the air conditioner which concerns on Embodiment 1. 1 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of an outdoor unit controller according to Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the relationship between the heat load and the operation mode in the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, (a) amount of solar radiation under high humidity conditions, (b) outside air temperature To, (c) outside air humidity RHo, (d) steady sensible heat load Qs, (e) steady latent heat load Ql, and (F) Diagram showing changes in operating mode FIG. 3 is a diagram showing changes in (g) sensible heat capacity, (h) latent heat capacity, (i) room temperature Ti, and (j) indoor humidity RHi under high humidity conditions in the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, (a) solar radiation amount under low humidity conditions, (b) outside air temperature To, (c) outside air humidity RHo, (d) steady sensible heat load Qs, (e) steady latent heat load Ql, and ( f) Diagram showing changes in operating mode FIG. 4 is a diagram showing changes in (g) sensible heat capacity, (h) latent heat capacity, (i) room temperature Ti, and (j) indoor humidity RHi in the low humidity condition in the first embodiment. The figure which shows the 1st example of the alert screen of the driving mode in Embodiment 1. The figure which shows the 2nd example of the notification screen of the driving mode in Embodiment 1. The figure which shows the 3rd example of the alerting|reporting screen of the driving mode in Embodiment 1. The flowchart which shows the flow of the control processing in the automatic mode performed by the air conditioner which concerns on Embodiment 1. The figure which shows the relationship between temperature, humidity, and operation mode in Embodiment 2 of this invention. Block diagram showing a functional configuration of an outdoor unit control unit in Embodiment 4 of the present invention The figure which shows an example of the history information in Embodiment 4. The figure which shows the outline of the heat transfer of the indoor space in Embodiment 4. (A) to (c) are, respectively, in the fourth embodiment, an approximate straight line showing the relationship between the temperature difference between the room temperature and the outside air temperature and the air conditioning capacity, an approximate straight line for each adiabatic performance, and an approximate straight line for each internal heat generation amount. Showing Explanatory drawing of the method of calculating|requiring an approximate straight line using a representative data point in Embodiment 4. Block diagram showing a functional configuration of an outdoor unit control unit in Embodiment 5 of the present invention FIG. 16 is a diagram showing the relationship between the temperature difference between room temperature and the outside air temperature and the first and second sensible heat threshold values in the fifth embodiment. The figure which shows the whole structure of the air conditioning system which concerns on the modification of this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following drawings, the size relationship of each component may differ from the actual one. Further, in the following drawings, the same or corresponding parts are designated by the same reference numerals.

The forms of the constituent elements shown in the specification are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these descriptions. Further, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments and the drawings. It goes without saying that changes can be made to the embodiments and the drawings without changing the gist of the present invention.

The steps of writing a program that performs the operations of the embodiments of the present invention are processes that are performed in chronological order in the order described, but even if they are not necessarily chronologically performed, they are executed in parallel or individually. The processing to be performed may also be included.

The embodiments of the present invention may be implemented alone or in combination. In any case, the advantageous effects described below will be obtained. Further, various specific settings and flags described in the embodiments are merely examples, and are not particularly limited thereto.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the system refers to the entire apparatus including a plurality of apparatuses or the entire function including a plurality of functions.

(Embodiment 1)
<Configuration of air conditioner 1>
FIG. 1 shows an air conditioner 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The air conditioner 1 is a facility that air-conditions an indoor space 71 that is an air-conditioned space. Air conditioning refers to adjusting the temperature, humidity, cleanliness, airflow, etc. of the air in the conditioned space, and specifically includes heating, cooling, dehumidifying, humidifying, air cleaning, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioner 1 is installed in the house 3. The house 3 is, for example, a so-called general detached house building. The air conditioner 1 is a heat pump type air conditioner using, for example, CO ₂ (carbon dioxide), HFC (hydrofluorocarbon) or the like as a refrigerant. The air conditioner 1 is equipped with a vapor compression refrigeration cycle, and operates by obtaining electric power from a commercial power source, a power generation facility, a power storage facility and the like (not shown).

As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioner 1 includes an outdoor unit 11 provided outside the house 3, an indoor unit 13 provided inside the house 3, and a remote controller 55 operated by a user. The outdoor unit 11 and the indoor unit 13 are connected via a refrigerant pipe 61 through which a refrigerant flows and a communication line 63 to which various signals are transferred. The air conditioner 1 cools the indoor space 71 by blowing out conditioned air, for example, cold air from the indoor unit 13, and heats the indoor space 71 by blowing out hot air.

The outdoor unit 11 includes a compressor 21, a four-way valve 22, an outdoor heat exchanger 23, an expansion valve 24, an outdoor blower 31, and an outdoor unit controller 51. The indoor unit 13 includes an indoor heat exchanger 25, indoor blowers 33a and 33b, and an indoor unit controller 53. The refrigerant pipe 61 connects the compressor 21, the four-way valve 22, the outdoor heat exchanger 23, the expansion valve 24, and the indoor heat exchanger 25 in an annular shape. This constitutes a refrigeration cycle.

The compressor 21 compresses the refrigerant and circulates through the refrigerant pipe 61. More specifically, the compressor 21 compresses a low temperature and low pressure refrigerant and discharges the high pressure and high temperature refrigerant to the four-way valve 22. The compressor 21 includes an inverter circuit that can change the operating capacity according to the drive frequency. The operating capacity is the amount that the compressor 21 sends out the refrigerant per unit. The compressor 21 changes the operating capacity according to an instruction from the outdoor unit controller 51.

The four-way valve 22 is installed on the discharge side of the compressor 21. The four-way valve 22 switches the flowing direction of the refrigerant in the refrigerant pipe 61 depending on whether the operation of the air conditioner 1 is the cooling or dehumidifying operation or the heating operation.

The outdoor heat exchanger 23 performs heat exchange between the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant pipe 61 and the air in the outdoor space 72 (external space) that is outside the air-conditioned space. The outdoor blower 31 is provided near the outdoor heat exchanger 23 and sends the air in the outdoor space 72 to the outdoor heat exchanger 23. The outdoor blower 31 sucks in the air in the outdoor space 72, the sucked air is supplied to the outdoor heat exchanger 23, and after the heat exchange with the cold heat supplied by the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant pipe 61, the outdoor air It is blown out into the space 72.

The expansion valve 24 is installed between the outdoor heat exchanger 23 and the indoor heat exchanger 25, and decompresses and expands the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant pipe 61. The expansion valve 24 is an electronic expansion valve whose opening can be variably controlled. The expansion valve 24 adjusts the pressure of the refrigerant by changing the opening degree according to an instruction from the outdoor unit control unit 51.

The indoor heat exchanger 25 exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant pipe 61 and the air in the indoor space 71. The indoor blowers 33a and 33b are provided near the indoor heat exchanger 25, respectively, and send the air in the indoor space 71 to the indoor heat exchanger 25. The indoor blowers 33a and 33b suck in the air in the indoor space 71, and the sucked air is supplied to the indoor heat exchanger 25 and exchanged heat with the cold heat supplied from the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant pipe 61. After that, it is blown into the indoor space 71. The air that has undergone heat exchange in the indoor heat exchanger 25 is supplied to the indoor space 71 as conditioned air. Thereby, the indoor space 71 is air-conditioned.

The indoor heat exchanger 25 includes two heat exchangers 25a and 25b and an expansion valve 26. The first heat exchanger 25a is installed on the upstream side of the refrigerant in the refrigerating cycle during cooling, and performs heat exchange between the air blown by the indoor blower 33a, which is the first blower, and the refrigerant. The second heat exchanger 25b is installed on the downstream side of the refrigerant in the refrigeration cycle during cooling, and performs heat exchange between the air blown by the indoor blower 33b, which is the second blower, and the refrigerant. The expansion valve 26 is installed between the two heat exchangers 25a and 25b, and adjusts the pressure of the refrigerant flowing between the two heat exchangers 25a and 25b.

The indoor unit 13 further includes a temperature sensor 41, a humidity sensor 42, and an infrared sensor 43. The temperature sensor 41 is a sensor such as a resistance temperature detector, a thermistor, or a thermocouple, and detects the room temperature Ti which is the air temperature of the indoor space 71. The humidity sensor 42 is an electric resistance type sensor, a capacitance type sensor, or the like, and detects the indoor humidity RHi, which is the air humidity of the indoor space 71.

The temperature sensor 41 and the humidity sensor 42 are installed at the suction port of the second heat exchanger 25b in the indoor heat exchanger 25, and the temperature of the air sucked into the second heat exchanger 25b by the second indoor blower 33b is increased. Detects temperature and humidity. The temperature sensor 41 and the humidity sensor 42 are able to detect the temperature and humidity of the air in the indoor space 71 with high accuracy by being installed at the air suction port of the second indoor blower 33b.

The infrared sensor 43 is a pyroelectric type sensor, a thermopile type sensor, or the like, and detects infrared rays emitted from the detection target. The infrared sensor 43 is installed in the vicinity of the window 75, which is a place where the indoor space 71 receives solar radiation, and detects infrared rays emitted from the window 75 to detect the window temperature Tw, which is the surface temperature of the window 75. To do. Since the window 75 is illuminated by sunlight during the daytime sun, the surface temperature of the window 75 can be used as an index of the amount of solar radiation.

Further, the infrared sensor 43 also functions as a so-called human sensor, and by detecting infrared rays emitted from a target such as a person or an object existing in the indoor space 71, the presence and position of the target can be specified. ..

Although not shown, the air conditioner 1 includes an outside air temperature sensor that detects the outside air temperature, an outside air humidity sensor that detects the outside air humidity, and an evaporation temperature sensor that detects the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant pipe 61. Is further provided. The outside air temperature sensor and the outside air humidity sensor are respectively installed in the outdoor space 72, and detect the outside air temperature To which is the air temperature of the outdoor space 72 and the outside air humidity RHo which is the air humidity of the outdoor space 72.

The humidity sensor 42 and the outside air humidity sensor will be described below as detecting humidity in units of relative humidity, but may be detected in units of absolute humidity. The relative humidity and the absolute humidity can be appropriately converted using the air temperature at that time.

The evaporation temperature sensor is installed in the refrigerant pipe 61 on the upstream side of the indoor heat exchanger 25 during cooling and dehumidification, for example, and detects the temperature of the refrigerant pipe 61. Thereby, the evaporation temperature sensor detects the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger 25. The evaporation temperature sensor may be installed, for example, between the first heat exchanger 25a and the second heat exchanger 25b, and may detect the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant in the indoor heat exchanger 25.

The detection result of each sensor is supplied to the indoor unit controller 53. The indoor unit control unit 53 supplies the supplied detection result to the outdoor unit control unit 51 via the communication line 63.

The outdoor unit controller 51 controls the operation of the outdoor unit 11. As shown in FIG. 2, the outdoor unit control unit 51 includes a control unit 101, a storage unit 102, a clock unit 103, and a communication unit 104. These units are connected via a bus.

The control unit 101 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory). The CPU is also called a central processing unit, a central processing unit, a processor, a microprocessor, a microcomputer, a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), and the like. In the control unit 101, the CPU reads out the programs and data stored in the ROM, and uses the RAM as a work area to integrally control the outdoor unit control unit 51.

The storage unit 102 is a nonvolatile semiconductor memory such as a flash memory, an EPROM (Erasable Programmable ROM), or an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM), and plays a role as a so-called secondary storage device or an auxiliary storage device. The storage unit 102 stores programs and data used by the control unit 101 to perform various processes, and data generated or acquired by the control unit 101 performing various processes.

The time counting unit 103 is a time counting device that includes an RTC (Real Time Clock) and continues time counting even when the power supply of the air conditioner 1 is off.

The communication unit 104 is an interface for communicating with the indoor unit control unit 53 and the remote controller 55 via the communication line 63. The communication unit 104 receives the operation information received from the user from the remote controller 55, and transmits notification information for notifying the user to the remote controller 55. The communication unit 104 also transmits an operation command for the indoor unit 13 to the indoor unit control unit 53, and receives state information indicating the state of the indoor unit 13 from the indoor unit control unit 53.

The indoor unit control unit 53 includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, a communication interface, and a readable/writable nonvolatile semiconductor memory, which are not shown. In the indoor unit controller 53, the CPU controls the operation of the indoor unit 13 by executing the control program stored in the ROM while using the RAM as the work memory.

The outdoor unit controller 51 is connected to the indoor unit controller 53 by a communication line 63 which is a wired, wireless or other communication medium. The outdoor unit controller 51 cooperates by transmitting and receiving various signals to and from the indoor unit controller 53 via the communication line 63, and controls the entire air conditioner 1. In this way, the outdoor unit controller 51 functions as a controller that controls the air conditioner 1.

The outdoor unit controller 51 and the indoor unit controller 53 control the operation of the air conditioner 1 based on the detection result of each sensor and the setting information of the air conditioner 1 set by the user. More specifically, the outdoor unit controller 51 controls the drive frequency of the compressor 21, the switching of the four-way valve 22, the rotation speed of the outdoor blower 31, and the opening degree of the expansion valve 24. Further, the indoor unit control unit 53 controls the rotation speed of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b. The outdoor unit controller 51 may control the number of rotations of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b, and the indoor unit controller 53 may drive the compressor 21, the switching frequency of the four-way valve 22, the number of rotations of the outdoor blower 31, Alternatively, the opening degree of the expansion valve 24 may be controlled. In this way, the outdoor unit control unit 51 and the indoor unit control unit 53 output various operation commands to various devices according to the operation command given to the air conditioner 1.

A remote controller 55 is arranged in the indoor space 71. The remote controller 55 transmits/receives various signals to/from the indoor unit controller 53 included in the indoor unit 13. The remote controller 55 includes a push button, a touch screen, a liquid crystal display, an LED (Light Emitting Diode), and the like, and functions as a command receiving unit that receives various commands from the user and a display unit that displays various information to the user. To do. The user inputs a command to the air conditioner 1 by operating the remote controller 55. The command is, for example, a command for switching between running and stopping, or a command for switching between the operating mode, the set temperature, the set humidity, the air volume, the wind direction, the timer, and the like. The air conditioner 1 operates according to the input command. As such a user interface, an information device such as a smartphone or a tablet may be provided instead of the remote controller 55.

<Operation mode>
The air conditioner 1 has at least "(A) cooling", "(B) heating", "(C) dehumidifying", "(D) blowing", and "(E) automatic" operation modes. The indoor space 71 is air-conditioned in any one of the operation modes.

(A) Cooling Mode The “cooling” operation mode is a mode for cooling the air in the indoor space 71 to lower its temperature. Upon receiving the "cooling" operation command, the control unit 101 switches the flow path of the four-way valve 22 so that the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 21 flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 23, and sets the expansion valves 24 and 26 to appropriate levels. Open to. Then, the control unit 101 drives the compressor 21, the outdoor blower 31, and the indoor blowers 33a and 33b.

When the compressor 21 is driven, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 21 passes through the four-way valve 22 and flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 23. The refrigerant flowing into the outdoor heat exchanger 23 exchanges heat with the outdoor air sucked from the outdoor space 72 to be condensed and liquefied, and then flows into the expansion valve 24. The refrigerant flowing into the expansion valve 24 is decompressed by the expansion valve 24 and then flows into the indoor heat exchanger 25. The refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger 25 exchanges heat with the indoor air sucked from the indoor space 71 to evaporate, then passes through the four-way valve 22, and is again sucked into the compressor 21. By the refrigerant flowing in this manner, the indoor air sucked from the indoor space 71 is cooled by the indoor heat exchanger 25.

(B) Heating Mode The operation mode of “heating” is a mode for warming the air in the indoor space 71 and raising its temperature. Upon receiving the "heating" operation command, the control unit 101 switches the flow path of the four-way valve 22 so that the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 21 flows into the indoor heat exchanger 25, and sets the expansion valves 24 and 26 appropriately. Open to. Then, the control unit 101 drives the compressor 21, the outdoor blower 31, and the indoor blowers 33a and 33b.

When the compressor 21 is driven, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 21 passes through the four-way valve 22 and flows into the indoor heat exchanger 25. The refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger 25 exchanges heat with the indoor air sucked from the indoor space 71 to be condensed and liquefied, and then flows into the expansion valve 24. The refrigerant flowing into the expansion valve 24 is decompressed by the expansion valve 24 and then flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 23. The refrigerant flowing into the outdoor heat exchanger 23 exchanges heat with the outdoor air sucked from the outdoor space 72 to evaporate, then passes through the four-way valve 22, and is again sucked into the compressor 21. In this way, the refrigerant flows in the opposite direction to “cooling” and “dehumidifying”, so that the indoor air sucked from the indoor space 71 is heated by the indoor heat exchanger 25.

<Starting and stopping the compressor>
In the cooling mode, the control unit 101 stops the operation of the compressor 21 in order to prevent overcooling when the room temperature Ti drops to the thermo-off temperature during the operation of the compressor 21. Then, when the room temperature Ti rises to the thermo-on temperature while the compressor 21 is stopped, the operation of the compressor 21 is restarted in order to prevent overheating. Similarly, in the heating mode, when the room temperature Ti rises to the thermo-off temperature during the operation of the compressor 21, the control unit 101 stops the operation of the compressor 21 in order to prevent overheating. Then, when the room temperature Ti drops to the thermo-on temperature while the compressor 21 is stopped, the control unit 101 restarts the operation of the compressor 21 in order to prevent excessive cooling. The thermo-off temperature and the thermo-on temperature are preset to a temperature within a specified range with respect to the set temperature Tm that is the target temperature. In this way, the control unit 101 maintains the room temperature Ti at the set temperature Tm by repeatedly operating and stopping the compressor 21.

(C) Dehumidification Mode The “dehumidification” operation mode is a mode for lowering the humidity of the indoor space 71. When receiving the operation command of "dehumidification", the control unit 101 switches the flow path of the four-way valve 22 so that the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 21 flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 23, as in "cooling". The expansion valves 24 and 26 are opened appropriately. Then, the control unit 101 drives the compressor 21, the outdoor blower 31, and the indoor blowers 33a and 33b. As a result, the refrigerant circulates in the refrigerant pipe 61 in the same direction as that of “cooling”.

More specifically, the operation modes of "dehumidification" are "(C1) weak cooling dehumidification", "(C2) double fan dehumidification", "(C3) dew point temperature dehumidification", "(C4) partial cooling dehumidification", " It is divided into six operation modes: (C5) extended dehumidification" and "(C6) reheat dehumidification". These are collectively referred to as a dehumidification mode. In the actual product, the dehumidification mode may be described as a part of the cooling mode, but if it is an operation mode in which a relatively low sensible heat ratio SHF is obtained as compared with the cooling mode, the dehumidification described below is performed. Included in the mode.

FIG. 3 shows the relationship between each operation mode and the air conditioning capacity. Here, the air conditioning capacity is an index indicating the strength of air conditioning by the air conditioner 1, and corresponds to the amount of heat exchange between the refrigerant and the indoor air in the indoor heat exchanger 25. The larger the heat exchange amount between the refrigerant and the air in the indoor heat exchanger 25, the higher the air conditioning capacity of the air conditioner 1. The air conditioning capacity during cooling is called the cooling capacity, and the air conditioning capacity during heating is called the heating capacity.

In FIG. 3, the horizontal axis represents the sensible heat capacity, and the vertical axis represents the latent heat capacity. The sensible heat capacity corresponds to the capacity related to the temperature change of the air in the air conditioning capacity. On the other hand, the latent heat capacity corresponds to the capacity related to the change of the state of water in the air, that is, the capacity related to dehumidification/humidification. The total of the sensible heat capacity and the latent heat capacity is called the total heat capacity, and the ratio of the sensible heat capacity to the total heat capacity is called the sensible heat factor (SHF). The sensible heat ratio is represented by the following equation (1).
Sensible heat ratio (SHF)=sensible heat capacity/total heat capacity (1)

In the description below, the sensible heat capacity when cooling the air is positive and the latent heat capacity when dehumidifying the air is positive. More specifically, in each operation mode of "dehumidification", the dehumidifying capacity is higher than that of "cooling", so the latent heat capacity is higher, but the cooling capacity is lower, so the sensible heat capacity is lower. Hereinafter, each operation mode of "dehumidification" will be described in detail.

(C1) Weak cooling/dehumidifying mode The operation mode of "weak cooling/dehumidifying" is a dehumidifying mode having a lower cooling capacity and a higher dehumidifying capacity than "cooling". When the control unit 101 receives the operation command of "weak cooling dehumidification", the control unit 101 circulates the refrigerant in the same direction as "cooling". After that, the control unit 101 reduces the number of rotations of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b as compared with the case of "cooling". In other words, the control unit 101 reduces the amount of air blown to the indoor heat exchanger 25 by the indoor blowers 33a and 33b in "weak cooling dehumidification" as compared with "cooling".

Generally, the larger the amount of air blown from the indoor blowers 33a and 33b, the higher the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant in the indoor heat exchanger 25, and the higher the efficiency of the refrigeration cycle. Therefore, in the "cooling", the air conditioner 1 is operated with a large air flow so as not to make noise, which leads to energy saving. On the other hand, in “weak cooling dehumidification”, the control unit 101 lowers the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant by reducing the amount of air blown by the indoor blowers 33a and 33b as compared with “cooling”. As a result, the sensible heat capacity of the indoor heat exchanger 25 decreases and the latent heat capacity increases. Therefore, the sensible heat ratio decreases. As a result, the room temperature Ti is less likely to decrease and the room humidity RHi is more likely to be decreased in the “weak cooling dehumidification” than in the “cooling”.

(C2) Double fan dehumidification mode The "double fan dehumidification" operation mode is a dehumidification mode in which the two indoor blowers 33a and 33b are driven at different rotation speeds to dehumidify the indoor space 71. When the control unit 101 receives the operation command of "double fan dehumidification", it circulates the refrigerant in the same direction as "cooling". Then, the control unit 101 makes the rotation speed of the first indoor blower 33a smaller than the rotation speed of the second indoor blower 33b.

More specifically, the control unit 101 drives both of the two indoor fans 33a and 33b at the specified rotation speed W0 in the "weak cooling dehumidification", while the temperature sensor 41 in the "double fan dehumidification". And the first indoor blower 33a far from the humidity sensor 42 is driven at the first rotation speed W1 smaller than the specified rotation speed W0. On the other hand, in the “double fan dehumidification”, the control unit 101 drives the second indoor blower 33b, which is close to the temperature sensor 41 and the humidity sensor 42, at the second rotation speed W2 that is higher than the first rotation speed W1. .. The second rotation speed W2 is set to a rotation speed comparable to the specified rotation speed W0. As a result, the control unit 101 calculates the sum of the blown air amounts by the first indoor blower 33a and the second indoor blower 33b in the "double fan dehumidification" as the first indoor blower 33a and the second indoor blower 33a in the "weak cooling dehumidification". The total amount of air blown by the indoor blower 33b is reduced.

When the number of rotations of the second indoor blower 33b close to the temperature sensor 41 and the humidity sensor 42 is decreased, the amount of intake air decreases, so that it becomes difficult to accurately obtain the temperature of the intake air, and the air conditioning space is air-conditioned. Is difficult to control properly. However, in the "double fan dehumidification", the temperature of the air sent to the indoor heat exchanger 25 by the second indoor blower 33b is kept by keeping the rotation speed of the second indoor blower 33b at the same level as in the "weak cooling dehumidification". And humidity can be detected with high accuracy.

On the other hand, by lowering the rotation speed of the first indoor blower 33a farther from the temperature sensor 41 and the humidity sensor 42 than "weak cooling dehumidification", the amount of air blown by the indoor blowers 33a, 33b is lower than "weak cooling dehumidification". Reduce the sum. As a result, the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant in the indoor heat exchanger 25 decreases, and the latent heat capacity increases. On the other hand, since the sensible heat capacity is reduced, the sensible heat ratio is reduced. As a result, the "double fan dehumidification" is less likely to lower the room temperature Ti and the indoor humidity RHi is likely to be lower than the "weak cooling dehumidification".

As described above, in the "double fan dehumidification", the temperature of the indoor space 71 and the humidity of the indoor space 71 are accurately detected and the air is sent to the indoor heat exchanger 25 by differentiating the rotation speeds of the two indoor fans 33a and 33b. The air volume can be reduced. Therefore, the indoor space 71 can be dehumidified with a dehumidification capacity higher than that of "weak cooling dehumidification".

(C3) Dew-point temperature dehumidification mode The "dew-point temperature dehumidification" operation mode is a dehumidification mode in which the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant is lowered below the dew-point temperature of air in order to enhance the dehumidification capacity. When the control unit 101 receives the operation command of "dew point temperature dehumidification", it circulates the refrigerant in the same direction as "cooling". Then, the control unit 101 controls the rotation speed of the compressor 21 to a rotation speed at which the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant detected by the evaporation temperature sensor becomes lower than the dew point temperature of air.

In “cooling”, “weak cooling dehumidification” and “double fan dehumidification”, the control unit 101 controls the rotation speed of the compressor 21 according to the temperature difference ΔT between the room temperature Ti and the set temperature Tm. The rotation speed of the compressor 21 is decreased as the rotation speed decreases. When the rotation speed of the compressor 21 decreases, the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant in the indoor heat exchanger 25 rises in a gradual manner, and both the sensible heat capacity and the latent heat capacity decrease. Therefore, although the room temperature Ti is stable at the set temperature Tm, the indoor humidity RHi may not be reduced and the comfort may be reduced.

Therefore, in the “dew point temperature dehumidification”, the control unit 101 determines that the evaporation temperature is higher than the dew point temperature according to the difference between the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant in the indoor heat exchanger 25 and the dew point temperature of the air sucked into the indoor heat exchanger 25. The rotation speed of the compressor 21 is controlled so that it also decreases. As a result, the latent heat capacity can be maintained so as not to decrease. The "humidity temperature dehumidification" is more likely to reduce the indoor humidity RHi than the "weak cooling dehumidification".

(C4) Partial cooling dehumidification mode In the operation mode of "partial cooling dehumidification", the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant at the inlet side of the indoor heat exchanger 25 is made lower than the dew point temperature of air, and the outlet side of the indoor heat exchanger 25 is set. This is a dehumidification mode in which the degree of superheat of the refrigerant is increased. When the control unit 101 receives the operation command of "partial cooling/dehumidification", it circulates the refrigerant in the same direction as "cooling". Then, the control unit 101 controls the opening degree of the expansion valve 24 such that the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant at the inflow port where the refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger 25 becomes lower than the dew point temperature of air.

In “cooling”, “weak cooling dehumidification” and “double fan dehumidification”, the control unit 101 sets the opening degree of the expansion valve 24 to such an extent that the refrigerant becomes saturated gas at the refrigerant outlet of the indoor heat exchanger 25. The superheat degree near the outlet of the refrigerant in the indoor heat exchanger 25 is controlled so as to be close to zero. As a result, the total heat capacity of the air conditioner 1 is efficiently output. On the other hand, in the “partial cooling dehumidification”, the control unit 101 controls the opening degree of the expansion valve 24 so that the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant near the inlet of the refrigerant of the indoor heat exchanger 25 is the air sucked into the indoor heat exchanger 25. Control so that it is lower than the dew point temperature of.

More specifically, the control unit 101 narrows the opening degree of the expansion valve 24 in the "partial cooling dehumidification" as compared with the "cooling" and the "weak cooling dehumidification". As a result, the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant near the inlet of the indoor heat exchanger 25 decreases, and most of the refrigerant evaporates near the inlet of the indoor heat exchanger 25, so the degree of superheat near the outlet of the indoor heat exchanger 25 increases. growing. As a result, the air can be dehumidified at a low temperature on the inlet side of the indoor heat exchanger 25, and the air is not overcooled on the outlet side. The "partial cooling dehumidification" is less likely to lower the room temperature Ti and the indoor humidity RHi is more likely to be lower than the "weak cooling dehumidification" and the "dew point temperature dehumidification".

(C5) Extended dehumidification mode The operation mode of the "extended dehumidification" is two or three of the above-mentioned "(C2) double fan dehumidification", "(C3) dew point temperature dehumidification" and "(C4) partial cooling dehumidification". It is a mode that combines the two. By combining two or three of these three operation modes, it is possible to continuously and widely adjust the sensible heat capacity and the latent heat capacity. Therefore, it is possible to provide comfortable air conditioning with little fluctuation in room temperature and humidity under various weather conditions, building conditions, and living conditions. Also, "extended dehumidification" saves more energy than "reheat dehumidification" described below.

(C6) Reheat dehumidification mode The operation mode of "reheat dehumidification" is a dehumidification mode in which the humidity is reduced while suppressing the temperature decrease in the indoor space 71. When the control unit 101 receives the operation command of "reheat dehumidification", it circulates the refrigerant in the same direction as "cooling". Then, the control unit 101 appropriately closes the expansion valve 26 between the two heat exchangers 25a and 25b in the indoor heat exchanger 25.

By narrowing the opening of the expansion valve 26, the first heat exchanger 25a located upstream of the expansion valve 26 functions as a condenser for condensing the refrigerant and is supplied by the second indoor blower 33b. Warm the air. On the other hand, the second heat exchanger 25b located on the downstream side of the expansion valve 26 functions as an evaporator that evaporates the refrigerant, and reduces the humidity of the air supplied by the second indoor blower 33b. Since the humidity is lowered while warming the air, the "reheat dehumidification" is less likely to lower the room temperature Ti and the indoor humidity RHi is likely to be lower than in the other dehumidifying modes.

(D) Blower Mode The operation mode of the “blower mode” will be described. The blower mode is a mode in which the compressor 21 is stopped and the air is blown by the indoor blowers 33a and 33b. If the outside air temperature To is lower than the room temperature Ti during the cooling time, it is not necessary to cool the room temperature Ti. Therefore, by setting the air blowing mode, the indoor space 71 can be stirred without consuming a large amount of electric power. Even if the compressor 21 is not moving, it is possible to obtain a cool feeling by hitting the wind. Note that if the compressor 21 is stopped without stopping the air blow by the indoor blowers 33a and 33b, for example, it is considered that the blower mode is also partly at the time of turning off the thermostat for stopping the compressor 21 to prevent overcooling. explain. In the following, a “hybrid mode”, which is a mode in which cooling and ventilation are combined, will be described as an example of the “blower mode”.

The flow of processing in the air blowing mode will be described specifically with reference to FIG. First, while the compressor 21 is operating, the control unit 101 determines whether the room temperature Ti has dropped to the thermo-off temperature or lower (step S11). When the room temperature Ti is higher than the thermo-on temperature (step S11; NO), the control unit 101 keeps the compressor 21 operating. On the other hand, when the room temperature Ti drops below the thermo-off temperature (step S11; YES), the control unit 101 stops the operation of the compressor 21 (step S12). Then, when the operation of the compressor 21 is stopped, the control unit 101 increases the rotation speed of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b above the rotation speed immediately before the operation of the compressor 21 is stopped (step S13).

More specifically, in an operation mode other than “blower”, when the compressor 21 stops operating, the control unit 101 reduces the rotation speed of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b, or the indoor blowers 33a and 33b. Therefore, the driving speed of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b is not increased. On the other hand, in the "blower" mode, when the compressor 21 stops operating, the control unit 101 increases the number of rotations of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b. As a result, the person in the indoor space 71 can obtain an appropriate cooling sensation without suddenly feeling the heat.

Further, after stopping the operation of the compressor 21, the control unit 101 adjusts the rotation speed of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b according to the change in the room temperature Ti (step S14). For example, when the room temperature Ti rises while the compressor 21 is stopped, the control unit 101 gradually increases the rotation speeds of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b. This reduces the sensible temperature in the indoor space 71.

While the compressor 21 is stopped, the control unit 101 adjusts the wind direction of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b (step S15). More specifically, although not shown in the drawings, the indoor unit 13 includes left and right wind direction plates that can change the wind direction of the airflow blown from the indoor unit 13 to the left and right, and up and down wind directions that can change the wind direction to up and down. And a plate. When the compressor 21 is stopped, the control unit 101 swings at least one of the left and right airflow direction vanes and the vertical airflow direction vanes to swing the direction of the air blow by the indoor air blowers 33a and 33b. As a result, the entire indoor space 71 is air-conditioned uniformly.

Further, in step S15, when the infrared sensor 43 detects an object such as a person or an object existing in the indoor space 71, the control unit 101 controls the left and right wind direction plates and the up-and-down air direction plate to rotate, and the indoor blower 33a. , 33b are directed to the detected position of the target. As a result, the coolness can be enhanced and the comfort can be improved.

Secondly, in the state where the compressor 21 is stopped, the control unit 101 determines whether the room temperature Ti has risen above the thermo-on temperature (step S16). When the room temperature Ti is lower than the thermo-on temperature (step S16; NO), the control unit 101 keeps the compressor 21 stopped. On the other hand, when the room temperature Ti rises above the thermo-on temperature (step S16; YES), the control unit 101 determines that comfort cannot be maintained unless in the cooling mode, and starts the operation of the compressor 21 (step S17). .. Then, when starting the operation of the compressor 21, the control unit 101 reduces the number of rotations of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b below the number of rotations immediately before the start of the operation of the compressor 21 (step S18). Here, the thermo-on temperature is set to, for example, a set temperature Tm, or a temperature obtained by adding a decrease in the sensible temperature due to the blowing of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b to the set temperature Tm.

More specifically, in an operation mode other than “blower”, the control unit 101 increases the number of rotations of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b when the compressor 21 starts to operate, so that the indoor blowers 33a and 33b are rotated. Does not reduce the rotation speed. On the other hand, in the "blower" mode, the control unit 101 reduces the rotation speeds of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b when the compressor 21 starts operating. As a result, the person in the indoor space 71 can obtain an appropriate cooling sensation without suddenly feeling the cold.

Furthermore, after starting the operation of the compressor 21, the control unit 101 adjusts the rotation speed of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b according to the change in the room temperature Ti (step S19). For example, when the room temperature Ti decreases during the operation of the compressor 21, the control unit 101 gradually decreases the rotation speeds of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b. This raises the sensible temperature in the indoor space 71.

After that, the control unit 101 returns the processing to step 11, and repeats the processing from step S11 to step S19. In addition, when increasing or decreasing the rotation speeds of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b, the control unit 101 may gradually change the rotation speeds of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b without rapidly changing the rotation speeds to the target rotation speeds. ..

As described above, in the “blower” operation mode, the control unit 101 increases or decreases the number of rotations of the indoor blowers 33a and 33b when switching the compressor 21 between operation and stop. Since the amount of air blown by the indoor blowers 33a and 33b increases while the compressor 21 is stopped, the sensible temperature of the user is lowered by the air flow, so comfort is ensured even when the compressor 21 is stopped. As a result, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the user lowers the set temperature and causes an increase in power consumption while the compressor 21 is stopped. As a result, the operating time of the compressor 21 can be reduced and both comfort and energy saving can be achieved. In particular, the "blow" operation mode is suitable when the temperature or humidity of the outdoor space 72 is not high and air conditioning can be performed by both the air conditioner and the fan, as in early summer or late summer. Moreover, since it is not necessary to separately install a fan, the design of the indoor space 71 is improved.

(E) Automatic mode The operation mode of "automatic" is the above-mentioned "(A) Cooling", "(C1) Weak cooling dehumidification", "(C2) Double fan dehumidification", "(C3) Dew point temperature dehumidification", " This is a mode in which the operation mode is automatically switched from among (C4) partial cooling dehumidification, "(C5) extended dehumidification", "(C6) reheat dehumidification", and "(D) blowing". The user can change the operation mode to the “(E) automatic mode” by pressing a single button on the user interface. The notation of “(E) automatic mode” in the user interface may be a comprehensive name such as “automatic”, “automatic”, or “AI”. Hereinafter, a case where the air conditioner 1 air-conditions the indoor space 71 in the “(E) automatic” operation mode will be described.

<Function of air conditioner 1>
Next, the functional configuration of the air conditioner 1 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the air conditioner 1 functionally includes an acquisition unit 510, an estimation unit 520, a determination unit 530, an air conditioning control unit 540, and an informing unit 550. Each of these functions is realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. The software and the firmware are described as a program and stored in the ROM or the storage unit 102. Then, in the control unit 101, the CPU executes the programs stored in the ROM or the storage unit 102 to realize each function shown in FIG.

The acquisition unit 510 acquires load information regarding the heat load of the indoor space 71. The heat load is the amount of heat required for the air conditioner 1 to change and maintain the environment such as the temperature and humidity of the indoor space 71 as a target environment. The acquisition unit 510 acquires, as load information, information such as temperature and humidity detected by each sensor including the temperature sensor 41, the humidity sensor 42, and the infrared sensor 43.

Specifically, the acquisition unit 510 acquires the room temperature Ti detected by the temperature sensor 41 from the temperature sensor 41, acquires the indoor humidity RHi detected by the humidity sensor 42 from the humidity sensor 42, and uses the infrared sensor 43. The detected window temperature Tw and the positional information of the object in the indoor space 71 are acquired from the infrared sensor 43. Further, the acquisition unit 510 acquires the outside air temperature To and the outside air humidity RHo detected by the outside air temperature sensor and the outside air humidity sensor, and the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant detected by the evaporation temperature sensor from these sensors.

Each sensor periodically transmits the detected information to the outdoor unit controller 51 at a predetermined cycle. Alternatively, the acquisition unit 510 may transmit a request to each sensor as necessary, and each sensor may transmit the detected information in a system that responds to this request. In this way, the acquisition unit 510 acquires information such as temperature and humidity detected by each sensor via the indoor unit control unit 53 and the communication line 63. The acquisition unit 510 is realized by the control unit 101 cooperating with the communication unit 104. The acquisition unit 510 functions as an acquisition unit.

The estimation unit 520 estimates the heat load of the indoor space 71 based on the information such as temperature and humidity acquired by the acquisition unit 510. Here, the heat load includes a sensible heat load caused by sensible heat and a latent heat load caused by latent heat.

<Relationship between heat load and air conditioning capacity and definition>
The sensible heat load is classified into an unsteady sensible heat load Ps represented by the following formula (2) and a steady sensible heat load Qs represented by the following formula (3). The sum of the unsteady sensible heat load Ps and the steady sensible heat load Qs is the sensible heat capacity for the air conditioner 1 to change and maintain the room temperature Ti to the set temperature Tm as represented by the following equation (4). Equivalent to.
Unsteady sensible heat load Ps=sensible heat capacity/unit time×(room temperature Ti−set temperature Tm) (2)
Steady-state heat load Qs=α (outside air temperature To-room temperature Ti)+β (window temperature Tw-room temperature Ti)+internal heat generation amount Qn (3)
Sensible heat capacity=unsteady sensible heat load Ps+steady sensible heat load Qs (4)

In the above formula (2), the sensible heat capacity is the heat capacity relating to the sensible heat of the wall of the indoor space 71, the floor, the furniture, and the like. Further, in the above formula (3), α is a coefficient indicating the heat insulation performance of the indoor space 71, β is a coefficient indicating the ease with which solar radiation enters, and the internal heat generation amount Qn exists in the indoor space 71. It is the amount of heat generated by lighting, home appliances, people, etc. These values are preset to appropriate values and stored in the storage unit 102.

The unsteady sensible heat load Ps is determined by the temperature difference ΔT between the room temperature Ti and the set temperature Tm, as shown in the equation (2). The unsteady sensible heat load Ps corresponds to the amount of heat for changing the room temperature Ti to the set temperature Tm, and is the first sensible heat load that becomes dominant when the room temperature Ti is far from the set temperature Tm.

On the other hand, the steady sensible heat load Qs is, as shown in the above equation (3), the difference between the outside air temperature To and the room temperature Ti and the window temperature Tw and the room temperature which are parameters depending on the amount of solar radiation in the outdoor space 72. It is determined by the difference from Ti and the internal heating value Qn. The steady sensible heat load Qs is a sensible heat load mainly caused by the difference between the environment of the indoor space 71 and the environment of the outdoor space 72, and maintains the room temperature Ti at the set temperature Tm when the room temperature Ti is equal to the set temperature Tm. Therefore, it corresponds to the amount of heat required steadily. The steady sensible heat load Qs is the second sensible heat load that becomes dominant when the room temperature Ti is close to the set temperature Tm.

The latent heat load is classified into an unsteady latent heat load Pl represented by the following equation (5) and a steady latent heat load Ql represented by the following equation (6). The sum of the non-steady-state latent heat load Pl and the steady-state latent heat load Ql is the latent heat for the air conditioner 1 to change and maintain the humidity RHi of the indoor space 71 to the set humidity RHm as represented by the following equation (7). Equivalent to ability.
Unsteady latent heat load Pl = latent heat capacity/unit time x (indoor absolute humidity-target absolute humidity) (5)
Steady latent heat load Ql=α' (outdoor absolute humidity-indoor absolute humidity) + internal evaporation amount (6)
Latent heat capacity=unsteady latent heat load Pl+steady latent heat load Q1 (7)

In the above formula (5), the latent heat capacity is the heat capacity relating to the latent heat of the wall, floor, furniture, etc. of the indoor space 71. Further, in the above equation (6), α′ is a coefficient indicating the ease with which water flows from the outdoor space 72 to the indoor space 71. That is, the first term of the above equation (6) represents the amount of water that enters the indoor space 71 from the outdoor space 72 by ventilation. The internal evaporation amount is the amount of water evaporated in the indoor space 71 due to the human body, cooking, or the like. These values are set in advance and stored in the storage unit 102.

The unsteady latent heat load Pl is determined by the difference between the indoor absolute humidity and the target absolute humidity as shown in the above equation (5). The target absolute humidity is the absolute humidity when the room temperature Ti is equal to the set temperature Tm and the indoor humidity RHi which is the relative humidity of the indoor space 71 is equal to the set humidity RHm which is the target humidity. That is, the unsteady latent heat load Pl corresponds to the amount of heat for changing the indoor humidity RHi to the set humidity RHm when the room temperature Ti is equal to the set temperature Tm. The unsteady latent heat load Pl is the first latent heat load that becomes dominant when the indoor absolute humidity is far from the target absolute humidity.

On the other hand, the steady-state latent heat load Ql is determined by the difference between the outdoor absolute humidity and the indoor absolute humidity and the internal evaporation amount, as shown in the equation (6). The stationary latent heat load Ql is a latent heat load mainly caused by the difference between the environment of the indoor space 71 and the environment of the outdoor space 72, and maintains the indoor humidity RHi at the set humidity RHm when the indoor absolute humidity is equal to the target absolute humidity. Is equivalent to the amount of heat for. The steady-state latent heat load Ql is the second latent heat load that becomes dominant when the indoor absolute humidity is close to the target absolute humidity.

The estimation unit 520 uses the values of temperature, humidity, and the like acquired by the acquisition unit 510 according to the above equations (2) to (7) to determine the unsteady sensible heat load Ps, the steady sensible heat load Qs, the sensible heat capacity, and the unsteady state. The latent heat load Pl, the steady-state latent heat load Ql, and the latent heat capacity are calculated. Thereby, the estimation unit 520 estimates the heat load of the indoor space 71. The estimation unit 520 is realized by the control unit 101 cooperating with the storage unit 102. The estimation unit 520 functions as an estimation unit.

The determination unit 530 determines the operation mode of air conditioning based on the heat load estimated by the estimation unit 520. FIG. 6 shows the relationship between the heat load and the operation mode. As shown in FIG. 6, when the air conditioner 1 air-conditions the indoor space 71 in the “(E) automatic” operation mode, the air conditioner operates according to the magnitude of the steady sensible heat load Qs and the magnitude of the steady latent heat load Ql. The operation mode which 1 should perform is defined. The determination unit 530 determines the operation mode according to the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql estimated by the estimation unit 520.

Here, there are some problems in switching the operation mode at an appropriate timing. For example, if the air-conditioning mode is switched to the air-blowing mode too early, the temperature or the humidity is returned in a short time, and the comfort is deteriorated. If the cooling mode is switched to the dehumidification mode too early, the efficiency of lowering the room temperature Ti is deteriorated and the power consumption is increased. On the other hand, if it is too late to switch from the cooling mode to the air blowing mode, power consumption will increase and cooling will be excessive. If the cooling mode is switched to the dehumidifying mode too late, it causes excessive cooling and an increase in humidity. In order to avoid such a problem, the determination unit 530 determines the operation mode so that the cooling, dehumidifying, and blowing modes can be automatically switched at appropriate timings.

<Example of operating mode determination>
First, the determination unit 530 determines the magnitude relationship between the steady latent heat load Ql estimated by the estimation unit 520 and the latent heat thresholds Ql1, Ql2. The case where the steady-state latent heat load Ql is larger than the first latent heat threshold value Ql1 corresponds to a case where a “high humidity condition” in which the outside air humidity RHo is relatively high is established, such as on a rainy or cloudy day. On the other hand, when the steady-state latent heat load Ql is smaller than the second latent heat threshold value Ql2, it corresponds to a case where "a low humidity condition" in which the outside air humidity RHo is relatively low is established, for example, on a dry day. To do.

When the steady latent heat load Ql is larger than the first latent heat threshold value Ql1, that is, when the high humidity condition is satisfied, the determination unit 530 secondly determines the magnitude relationship between the steady sensible heat load Qs and the sensible heat threshold values Qs1 to Qs3. To judge. The three sensible heat thresholds Qs1 to Qs3 are set in advance so that Qs1>Qs2>Qs3.

(High humidity condition 1)
When the steady sensible heat load Qs is larger than the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 under high humidity conditions, it corresponds to the case where the outside air temperature To or the window temperature Tw is relatively high, and therefore the room temperature Ti is likely to rise. I can say. In this case, in order to maintain the room temperature Ti at the set temperature Tm, the cooling capacity is mainly required as compared with the dehumidifying capacity. Therefore, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(A) cooling”.

(High humidity condition 2)
In the high humidity condition, when the steady sensible heat load Qs is smaller than the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 and larger than the second sensible heat threshold Qs2, the cooling capacity is not required as in the high humidity condition 1. Therefore, in this case, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(A) weak cooling dehumidification” which is the first dehumidification mode. As a result, the determination unit 530 increases the dehumidifying capacity instead of lowering the cooling capacity as compared with the high humidity condition 1.

(High humidity condition 3)
In the high humidity condition, when the steady sensible heat load Qs is smaller than the second sensible heat threshold Qs2 and larger than the third sensible heat threshold Qs3, the cooling capacity is not required further than the high humidity condition 2. Therefore, in this case, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode that the air conditioner 1 should execute is the second dehumidification mode. Here, the second dehumidification mode is "(C2) double fan dehumidification", "(C3) dew point temperature dehumidification", "(C4) partial cooling dehumidification" or "(C5) extended dehumidification". As a result, the determination unit 530 further lowers the cooling capacity and further increases the dehumidification capacity as compared with the high humidity condition 2.

More specifically, in the high humidity condition 3, when the steady latent heat load Ql is relatively low, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(C2) double fan dehumidification”. To determine. When the steady latent heat load Ql is relatively high and the steady sensible heat load Qs is relatively high in the high humidity condition 3, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(C3 ) Dew point temperature dehumidification". When the steady latent heat load Ql is relatively high and the steady sensible heat load Qs is relatively low in the high humidity condition 3, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode that the air conditioner 1 should execute is “(C4 ) Partial cooling dehumidification". In addition, in the vicinity of the boundary among these three operation modes, the determination unit 530 performs the operation in which the air conditioner 1 should perform “(C5) extended dehumidification” that is a combination of at least two of these three operation modes. Judge as the mode. As described above, under the high humidity condition 3, the operation modes are continuously switched according to the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql.

(High humidity condition 4)
When the steady sensible heat load Qs is smaller than the third sensible heat threshold value Qs3 under the high humidity condition, the indoor space 71 is cooled too much and the comfort is reduced. Therefore, in this case, the determination unit 530 determines that the compressor 21 should be stopped and the air conditioning should be stopped.

When the steady latent heat load Ql is smaller than the second latent heat threshold value Ql2, that is, when the low humidity condition is satisfied, the determination unit 530 secondly determines the magnitude relationship between the steady sensible heat load Qs and the fourth sensible heat threshold value Qs4. To judge. The fourth sensible heat threshold value Qs4 is set to 0 kW or a value obtained by adding 0 kW to the value obtained by converting the amount of decrease in the sensible temperature obtained in the air blowing mode into the amount of heat.

(Low humidity condition 1)
When the steady sensible heat load Qs is larger than the fourth sensible heat threshold value Qs4 under the low humidity condition, the room temperature Ti is likely to rise. In this case, in order to maintain the room temperature Ti at the set temperature Tm, the cooling capacity is mainly required as compared with the dehumidifying capacity. Therefore, similarly to the high humidity condition 1, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(A) cooling”.

(Low humidity condition 2)
In the low humidity condition, when the steady sensible heat load Qs is smaller than the fourth sensible heat threshold value Qs4, the cooling capacity is not required and the large dehumidifying capacity is not required as in the low humidity condition 1. In this case, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(D) ventilation” in order to reduce power consumption.

In this way, the determination unit 530 determines the operation mode of air conditioning based on the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql estimated by the estimation unit 520. The latent heat thresholds Q11 and Q12 and the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 to Qs4 are preset to appropriate values and stored in the storage unit 102. The determination unit 530 is realized by the control unit 101 cooperating with the storage unit 102. The determination unit 530 functions as a determination unit.

The first latent heat threshold value Ql1 is set to a value of 0 kW or more and larger than the second latent heat threshold value Ql2. Thus, when the humidity is high, the dehumidification mode is used to firmly reduce the humidity, and when the humidity is relatively low, the cooling mode is utilized to enhance the energy saving performance. Also, from the viewpoint of preventing the operating modes from being frequently switched, it is preferable that the first latent heat threshold value Ql1 be slightly larger than the second latent heat threshold value Ql2. However, for simplification, the first latent heat threshold value Ql1 may be set to 0 kW when energy saving is obtained even in the dehumidification mode. The second latent heat threshold value Ql2 may be a value larger than 0 kW by the amount of the reduced amount of the sensible temperature obtained in the air blowing mode converted to humidity, but may be 0 kW. Further, both the first latent heat threshold value Ql1 and the second latent heat threshold value Ql2 may be set to 0 kW.

Returning to FIG. 5, the air conditioning control unit 540 controls the air conditioning unit 110 to cause the air conditioning unit 110 to air condition the indoor space 71. The air conditioning unit 110 includes a compressor 21, a four-way valve 22, an outdoor heat exchanger 23, an expansion valve 24 and an outdoor blower 31 in the outdoor unit 11, and an indoor heat exchanger 25 and indoor blowers 33a and 33b in the indoor unit 13. It has and functions as an air-conditioning unit that air-conditions the indoor space 71.

The air conditioning control unit 540 communicates with the indoor unit control unit 53 via the communication unit 104 and cooperates with the indoor unit control unit 53 to cause the air conditioning unit 110 to air-condition the indoor space 71. Specifically, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the flow path of the four-way valve 22 according to the instructed operation mode, adjusts the opening degree of the expansion valve 24, and compresses the compressor 21, the outdoor blower 31, and the indoor blower 33a. , 33b are driven. As a result, the air conditioning control unit 540 causes the "(A) cooling", "(B) heating", "(C1) weak cooling dehumidification", "(C2) double fan dehumidification", " The processing of (C3) dew point temperature dehumidification", "(C4) partial cooling dehumidification", "(C5) extended dehumidification", "(C6) reheat dehumidification" or "(D) blowing" is executed. The air conditioning control unit 540 is realized by the control unit 101 cooperating with the communication unit 104. The air conditioning control unit 540 functions as an air conditioning control means.

When the “(E) automatic” operation mode is instructed, the air conditioning control unit 540 causes the air conditioning unit 110 to air-condition the indoor space 71 in the operation mode determined by the determination unit 530. More specifically, when any of the high humidity conditions 1, 2, 3 and the low humidity conditions 1, 2 described above is satisfied, the air conditioning control unit 540 responds to “(A) "Cooling", "(C1) Weak cooling dehumidification", "(C2) Double fan dehumidification", "(C3) Dew point dehumidification", "(C4) Partial cooling dehumidification", "(C5) Extended dehumidification" or "(D The air-conditioning unit 110 is caused to air-condition the indoor space 71 in the operation mode of ") blowing". When the high humidity condition 4 is satisfied, the air conditioning control unit 540 stops the operation of the compressor 21.

In addition, when the determination unit 530 newly determines an operation mode different from the current operation mode according to the load information such as the temperature and humidity acquired by the acquisition unit 510, the air conditioning control unit 540 restarts from the current operation mode. By switching to the operation mode determined by the above, the indoor space 71 is air-conditioned.

Specifically, when the high humidity condition is satisfied, the air conditioning control unit 540 determines that the steady sensible heat load Qs is smaller than the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1 when the air conditioning unit 110 is performing air conditioning in the cooling mode. Then, the operation mode is switched to the first dehumidification mode. Further, when the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes smaller than the second sensible heat threshold Qs2 while the air conditioning unit 110 is performing the air conditioning in the first dehumidification mode, the air conditioning control unit 540 sets the operation mode to the second dehumidification mode. When the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes smaller than the third threshold sensible heat Qs3 while the air conditioning unit 110 is performing the air conditioning in the second dehumidifying mode, the compressor 21 is stopped. On the contrary, when the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes larger than the respective sensible heat thresholds Qs1 to Qs3, the air conditioning controller 540 switches the operation mode to the opposite of the above.

On the other hand, when the low humidity condition is satisfied, the air conditioning control unit 540 sets the operation mode when the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes smaller than the fourth sensible heat threshold Qs4 while the air conditioning unit 110 is performing air conditioning in the cooling mode. Switch to blower mode. On the contrary, when the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes larger than the fourth sensible heat threshold Qs4 while the air conditioning unit 110 is performing the air conditioning in the blow mode, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode to the cooling mode.

In addition, when the low humidity condition is satisfied, the air conditioning control unit 540 sets the operation mode to that when the steady latent heat load Ql becomes larger than the first latent heat threshold value Ql1 while the air conditioning unit 110 is performing air conditioning in the air blowing mode. The mode is switched to one of the high humidity conditions 1 to 4 according to the steady sensible heat load Qs. On the contrary, when the high humidity condition is satisfied, when the steady latent heat load Ql is smaller than the second latent heat threshold Ql2 and the steady sensible heat load Qs is smaller than the fourth sensible heat threshold Qs4, the operation mode is set. Switch to blower mode.

Hereinafter, a process in which the air conditioning control unit 540 air-conditions the indoor space 71 while switching the operation mode will be described by taking the case where the high humidity condition is satisfied and the case where the low humidity condition is satisfied as an example.

<High humidity conditions>
As a first example, FIGS. 7A to 7F and FIGS. 8G to 8J show changes in various parameters on a cloudy day when the high humidity condition is satisfied. As shown in FIG. 7A, the amount of solar radiation varies depending on the amount of cloud, but increases from approximately 6 to 12 o'clock and decreases from 12 o'clock to 18 o'clock. Although not shown, the window temperature Tw changes similarly to the increase/decrease in the amount of solar radiation. Since the outside air temperature To shown in FIG. 7B is warmed by solar radiation, it changes later than the amount of solar radiation and reaches a peak around 13:00. The outside air humidity RHo shown in FIG. 7C is relatively high under high humidity conditions. Further, if it is assumed that there is no rain and the absolute humidity of the outside air hardly changes, the outside air humidity RHo decreases as the outside temperature To becomes higher during the daytime.

FIG. 7D shows changes in the steady sensible heat load Qs when the room temperature Ti is constant at the set temperature Tm. When the room temperature Ti is constant at the set temperature Tm, the steady sensible heat load Qs is estimated by the estimation unit 520 according to the above equation (3). As shown in FIG. 7D, the steady sensible heat load Qs gradually increases from 6 o'clock with the increase of the solar radiation amount and the outside air temperature To, reaches a peak around noon, and then gradually decreases.

FIG. 7E shows the steady-state latent heat load Ql when the room temperature Ti and the indoor humidity RHi are constant. The stationary latent heat load Ql is estimated by the estimation unit 520 according to the above equation (6). When the outdoor absolute humidity and the ventilation rate are constant and the internal evaporation rate is also constant, the steady latent heat load Ql is constant as shown in FIG. 7(e).

7(f) and 8(g) to 8(j), the operation mode, the sensible heat capacity, the latent heat capacity, and the room temperature Ti when the air conditioning in the "automatic" mode by the air conditioner 1 starts at 16:00, respectively. And changes in indoor humidity RHi. The determination unit 530 determines the operation mode based on the steady sensible heat load Qs shown in FIG. 7D and the steady latent heat load Ql shown in FIG. 7E. The air conditioning control unit 540 executes air conditioning in the air conditioning mode determined by the determination unit 530.

Specifically, at the start of air conditioning at 16:00, the steady latent heat load Ql is larger than the first latent heat threshold value Ql1, and the steady sensible heat load Qs is larger than the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1. Therefore, the air conditioning controller 540 starts air conditioning in the "cooling" operation mode as shown in FIG. 7(f). After that, when time passes and the outside air temperature To decreases, the steady sensible heat load Qs decreases. For example, when the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes lower than the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 at 17:00, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode from “cooling” to “weak cooling dehumidification” which is the first dehumidification mode. Further, when the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes lower than the second sensible heat threshold value Qs2 at 23:00, for example, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches from "weak cooling dehumidification" to "double fan dehumidification", which is the second dehumidification mode. The operation mode is switched to "dew point temperature dehumidification", "partial cooling dehumidification" or "extended dehumidification".

The sensible heat capacity shown in FIG. 8(g) becomes large at the time when air conditioning is started in the “cooling” mode at 16:00, because the room temperature Ti shown in FIG. 8(i) is higher than the set temperature Tm. Thereafter, the sensible heat capacity decreases as the room temperature Ti approaches the set temperature Tm, and is controlled by the air conditioning controller 540 so that the room temperature Ti stabilizes at the set temperature Tm. After the room temperature Ti stabilizes at the set temperature Tm, the outside air temperature To decreases at night, so the steady sensible heat load Qs shown in FIG. 7D gradually decreases. Along with this, the sensible heat capacity shown in FIG. 8(g) becomes about the same as the steady sensible heat load Qs, and as a result, the room temperature Ti becomes stable at about the set temperature Tm as shown in FIG. 8(i). ..

The latent heat capacity shown in FIG. 8(h) changes over time because the sensible heat capacity is controlled so that the room temperature Ti becomes the set temperature Tm in the "cooling" mode. For a while after the start of air conditioning, the latent heat capacity changes greatly with the large sensible heat capacity, so that the indoor humidity RHi shown in FIG. 8(j) decreases. However, when operating in the "cooling" mode, the latent heat capacity decreases as the sensible heat capacity decreases as indicated by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 8(h). Therefore, the dehumidification amount decreases, and the indoor humidity RHi turns to increase as shown by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 8(j).

In order to prevent the indoor humidity RHi from increasing in this way, the air conditioning controller 540 sequentially switches from the "cooling" mode to the "weak cooling dehumidification" mode, and from the "weak cooling dehumidification" mode to the "extended dehumidification" mode. Switch. By switching the operation mode in this way, the latent heat capacity changes at the same level as the steady latent heat load Ql, so that the indoor humidity RHi stabilizes at the same level as the set humidity RHm, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 8(j). ..

<Low humidity conditions>
As a second example, FIGS. 9A to 9F and FIGS. 10G to 10J show changes in various parameters on a sunny day when low humidity conditions are satisfied. As shown in FIG. 9A, the amount of solar radiation varies depending on the amount of cloud, but increases from approximately 6 o'clock to 12 o'clock and decreases from 12 o'clock to 18 o'clock. Although not shown, the window temperature Tw changes similarly to the increase/decrease in the amount of solar radiation. Since the outside air temperature To shown in FIG. 9B is warmed by solar radiation, it changes later than the amount of solar radiation, and reaches a peak around 13:00. The outside air humidity RHo shown in FIG. 9C is relatively low under the low humidity condition as compared with the high humidity condition shown in FIG. 7C.

FIG. 9D shows changes in the steady sensible heat load Qs when the room temperature Ti is constant at the set temperature Tm. As shown in FIG. 9D, the steady sensible heat load Qs gradually increases from 6 o'clock with the increase of the solar radiation amount and the outside air temperature To, reaches a peak around noon, and then gradually decreases.

FIG. 9E shows the steady-state latent heat load Ql when the room temperature Ti and the indoor humidity RHi are constant. When the outdoor absolute humidity and the ventilation rate are constant and the internal evaporation rate is also constant, the steady latent heat load Ql is constant as shown in FIG. 9(e). Further, under the low humidity condition, the steady latent heat load Ql becomes smaller than that under the high humidity condition shown in FIG.

9(f) and 10(g) to 10(j), the operation mode, the sensible heat capacity, the latent heat capacity, and the room temperature Ti when the air conditioning in the "automatic" mode by the air conditioner 1 starts at 16:00, respectively. And changes in indoor humidity RHi.

At the start of air conditioning at 16:00, the steady latent heat load Ql is smaller than the second latent heat threshold Ql2, and the steady sensible heat load Qs is larger than the fourth sensible heat threshold Qs4. Therefore, the air conditioning control unit 540 starts air conditioning in the "cooling" operation mode as shown in FIG. 9(f). After that, when time passes and the outside air temperature To decreases, the steady sensible heat load Qs decreases. For example, when the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes lower than the fourth sensible heat threshold Qs4 at 17:00, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode from "cooling" to "blowing".

The sensible heat capacity shown in FIG. 10(g) becomes large at the time when air conditioning is started in the “cooling” mode at 16:00, because the room temperature Ti shown in FIG. 10(i) is higher than the set temperature Tm. Thereafter, the sensible heat capacity decreases as the room temperature Ti approaches the set temperature Tm, and is controlled by the air conditioning controller 540 so that the room temperature Ti stabilizes at the set temperature Tm. After the room temperature Ti stabilizes at the set temperature Tm, the outside air temperature To decreases at night, so that the steady sensible heat load Qs shown in FIG. 9D gradually decreases. Along with this, the sensible heat capacity shown in FIG. 10(g) becomes approximately the same as the steady sensible heat load Qs, and as a result, the room temperature Ti is maintained at the set temperature Tm as shown in FIG. 10(i).

In the "cooling" mode, the latent heat capacity shown in FIG. 10(h) changes over time because the sensible heat capacity is controlled so that the room temperature Ti reaches the set temperature Tm. For a while after the start of the air conditioning, the latent heat capacity changes largely as the sensible heat capacity increases, so that the indoor humidity RHi shown in FIG. 10(j) decreases. When operating in the "cooling" mode, the latent heat capacity decreases as the sensible heat capacity decreases. However, under low humidity conditions, the indoor humidity RHi is likely to decrease, so even if the latent heat capacity is small, the effect on comfort is small. Therefore, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode from "cooling" to "blowing" according to the decrease in the sensible heat capacity.

Since "cooling" is switched to "air blowing" on condition that the steady sensible heat load Qs is smaller than the fourth sensible heat threshold Qs4, even if the sensible heat capacity is insufficient after switching to "air blowing", room temperature It is unlikely that Ti will rise above the set temperature Tm. Further, since the humidity condition is low, it is unlikely that the indoor humidity RHi rises due to re-evaporation of water adhering to the indoor heat exchanger 25 after switching to “blowing”. Therefore, by switching to "blower", both comfort and energy saving can be achieved.

Although illustration is omitted, when the high-humidity condition and the low-humidity condition are switched in one day such as when the outside air humidity RHo changes due to sudden rain, various parameters are set as shown in FIG. 9 shows a transition in which the change under the high humidity condition shown in FIG. 8 and the change under the low humidity condition shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 are mixed.

For example, in the low humidity condition, when the outside air humidity RHo rises during air conditioning by “blowing” and the high humidity condition is satisfied, the air conditioning control unit 540 sets the operation mode to “double fan dehumidification”, “dew point temperature dehumidification”, Switch to "cooling dehumidification" or "extended dehumidification". On the contrary, in the high humidity condition, when the low humidity condition is satisfied by reducing the outside air humidity RHo during dehumidification by "double fan dehumidification", "dew point temperature dehumidification", "partial cooling dehumidification" or "extended dehumidification", the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode to “blowing”. As a result, under high-humidity conditions, when the comfort of the indoor space 71 can be secured without switching to the "dehumidification" operation mode to improve the comfort of the indoor space 71, the "blasting" operation mode It becomes possible to reduce the power consumption by switching to.

<Notification function>
The notification unit 550 notifies the user of the first notification information regarding the environment of the indoor space 71 and the second notification information regarding the control of the air conditioning unit 110 by the air conditioning control unit 540 by display or voice. The notification unit 550 displays the notification screens shown in, for example, FIGS. 11 to 13 on the display unit 130 such as the remote controller 55, the smartphone, or the tablet when the air conditioning operation mode is switched by the air conditioning control unit 540. The notification unit 550 is realized by the control unit 101 cooperating with the communication unit 104. The notification unit 550 functions as a notification unit.

As shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, the notification unit 550 notifies the trend information 131 indicating the temperature or humidity tendency of the indoor space 71 as the first notification information, and the operation mode as the second notification information. The operation mode information 132 shown is notified. The tendency information 131 is first image information indicating whether the room temperature Ti or the room humidity RHi acquired by the acquisition unit 510 has a rising tendency, a falling tendency, or a maintaining tendency.

For example, as shown in FIG. 11, when the indoor humidity RHi has a rising tendency, the notification unit 550 displays, as the tendency information 131, an upward arrow together with a picture of a water drop indicating the humidity. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 12, when both the room temperature Ti and the room humidity RHi tend to be maintained, the notification unit 550 uses the horizontal arrow with the picture of the water drop and the picture of the thermometer indicating the temperature as the tendency information 131. Is displayed. Further, as shown in FIG. 13, when the room temperature Ti tends to increase, the notification unit 550 displays an upward arrow with the picture of the thermometer as the tendency information 131. Such a tendency of the room temperature Ti or the room humidity RHi is such that the room temperature Ti or the room humidity RHi is rising or falling in the latest predetermined period, or the fluctuation range is within the error range. It is determined by whether

When the operation mode is switched by the air conditioning controller 540, the notification unit 550 notifies, as the tendency information 131, information indicating the tendency of the room temperature Ti or the indoor humidity RHi immediately before the operation mode is switched. By notifying the information immediately before the operation mode is switched, the user can recognize the reason why the operation mode is switched, for example, when the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the dehumidification mode. There is an effect that is easy to do.

On the other hand, when the notification unit 550 receives a request from the user, the notification unit 550 notifies the trend information 131 of information indicating the current trend of the room temperature Ti or the indoor humidity RHi. By notifying the current information when the request is received from the user, the user can grasp the future tendency of temperature and humidity.

The operation mode information 132 is second image information indicating which mode the operation mode is switched to when the operation mode is switched by the air conditioning controller 540. When the operation mode is switched from the first mode to the second mode by the air conditioning control unit 540, the notification unit 550 uses, as the operation mode information 132, the first mode, which is the operation mode before the switching, and the after-switching operation mode. Information indicating both the second mode, which is the operation mode, is notified.

For example, as shown in FIG. 11, when the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the dehumidification mode, the notification unit 550 sets the dehumidification mode, which is the operation mode after the switching, as the operation mode before the switching, as the operation mode information 132. It is displayed in a large size so that it stands out compared to a certain cooling mode. Similarly, as illustrated in FIG. 12, when the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the air blowing mode, the notification unit 550 sets the air blowing mode, which is the operation mode after the switching, as the operation mode information 132 before the operation before switching. It is displayed in a larger size so as to stand out than the cooling mode, which is the mode.

It should be noted that the notification unit 550 is not limited to notifying both the operation modes before and after the switching as the operation mode information 132, and may notify only the operation mode after the switching for simplification. However, by notifying both of the operation modes before and after the switching, the user can easily recognize that the operation mode has been automatically switched.

By displaying the tendency information 131 and the operation mode information 132 in this way, the user can easily recognize the current air conditioning status. At this time, the image in which the picture and the character are mixed is clearly displayed through the full-dot type display unit 130, and the trend information 131 and the driving mode information 132 are displayed adjacent to each other, so that the driving mode is switched. And the reason therefor are more easily recognized by the user.

Further, in addition to such tendency information 131 and driving mode information 132, the notification unit 550 notifies the determination information 133 indicating the determination content of the driving mode as the first notification information, and as the second notification information, The control information 134 indicating the control content by the air conditioning control unit 540 is notified. The determination information 133 is first character information indicating the determination content of the operation mode determined by the determination unit 530. As described above, the determination unit 530 determines whether or not the criterion for switching the operation mode is satisfied based on the room temperature Ti, the indoor humidity RHi, the steady sensible heat load Qs, the steady latent heat load Ql, and the like acquired by the acquisition unit 510. , And the operation mode to be switched is determined. The determination information 133 is information on the operation mode determined by the determination unit 530. On the other hand, the control information 134 is the second character information indicating the control content when the air conditioning is performed by the air conditioning control unit 540 and when the operation mode is switched.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the notification unit 550 displays, as the determination information 133, character information “The temperature seems to reach the target, but the humidity is still high.” and the control information 134 “ It has switched to the dehumidification mode." is displayed. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 12, the notification unit 550 displays, as the determination information 133, character information such as “Predict that the temperature and the humidity will not rise even if the air is changed to the air flow.”, and the control information 134 is displayed as the control information 134. Display the character information such as "Switched to blast". Further, as shown in FIG. 13, the notification unit 550 displays, as the determination information 133, character information such as “It is likely to be hot due to outside air/solar radiation.” As the control information 134, “The heating is loosened early. It displays the character information of ". By such notification, the user can grasp the control content automatically performed. In addition, for example, when the cooling mode is switched to the dehumidification mode, the user can easily recognize the reason why the operation mode is switched.

The notification unit 550 links these pieces of character information and displays them in one sentence. This makes it easier for the user to read the determination information 133 and the control information 134 and more easily recognize them. Also, the display space can be saved.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, the notification unit 550 displays the tendency information 131 and the operation mode information 132 at the upper part of the screen, and the determination information 133 and the control information 134 at the lower part of the screen. By thus displaying each information at the same time, the user's recognizability is further improved. The arrangement of each information on the screen is not limited to this.

With such a function of the notification unit 550, the user can easily recognize the current status of air conditioning. That is, in the automatic mode, the user can easily enjoy each of the cooling mode, the dehumidifying mode, and the air blowing mode without operating the user himself/herself. On the other hand, although the automatic mode is convenient, since it is difficult to grasp the control content, there is a possibility that the user may not feel secure or reliable, or may feel uncomfortable. In particular, while automation is advancing due to the spread of AI (Artificial Intelligence) functions in recent years, it is desired to improve the quality of user's content recognition and the dialogue between the user and the machine. In the first embodiment, the function of notification unit 550 allows the user to easily recognize the current status of air conditioning, so that the user can more conveniently and comfortably use air conditioning in the automatic mode.

Next, the flow of control processing in the automatic mode executed by the air conditioner 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

When the operation in the automatic mode is instructed, the control unit 101 functions as the acquisition unit 510, and sensors such as the room temperature Ti, the outside air temperature To, the window temperature Tw, the indoor humidity RHi, and the outside air humidity RHo detected by the sensors. Information is acquired (step S101). And the control part 101 functions as the estimation part 520, and estimates the heat load of the indoor space 71 (step S102). More specifically, the control unit 101 uses the acquired sensor information to obtain the unsteady sensible heat load Ps, the steady sensible heat load Qs, the sensible heat capacity, and the unsteady latent heat load Pl according to the equations (2) to (7). , Steady-state latent heat load Ql, and latent heat capacity are calculated.

When the heat load is estimated, the control unit 101 functions as the determination unit 530, and determines the operation mode of air conditioning based on the estimated heat load (step S103). Then, the control unit 101 functions as the air conditioning control unit 540 and performs air conditioning in the determined operation mode (step S104). Specifically, the control unit 101 compares the magnitude relationship between the steady sensible heat load Qs and the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 to Qs4, and the magnitude relationship between the steady latent heat load Ql and the latent heat thresholds Ql1, Ql2. Then, the control unit 101 selects an operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 from among the plurality of operation modes based on the determination criteria shown in FIG. 6, and the indoor space 71 in the air conditioning unit 110 is selected in the selected operation mode. Air conditioning.

Furthermore, the control unit 101, as necessary, for example, as shown in FIG. 11 or FIG. 12, notifies the operation mode switching information or the information on the operating mode being executed (step S105). For example, the control unit 101 functions as the notification unit 550 to display the notification screen illustrated in FIGS. 11 to 13 on the display unit 130. After that, the control unit 101 returns the process to step S101. Then, the control unit 101 repeats the processing from step S101 to step S105 while the operation in the automatic mode is instructed.

As described above, the air conditioner 1 according to the first embodiment is required to maintain the steady sensible heat load Qs required to maintain the room temperature Ti at the set temperature Tm and the indoor humidity RHi at the set humidity RHm. The operation mode is switched according to the constant latent heat load Ql and the indoor space 71 is air-conditioned. Thereby, compared to the case where the operation mode is switched only in accordance with the unsteady heat load caused by the temperature difference ΔT between the room temperature Ti and the set temperature Tm or the humidity difference ΔRH between the indoor humidity RHi and the set humidity RHm, It becomes possible to switch the operation mode by predicting changes in the room temperature Ti and the indoor humidity RHi. Therefore, deterioration of comfort due to overcooling of the indoor space 71 is suppressed, which leads to improvement of comfort. In addition, it is possible to suppress an increase in power consumption.

Only by determining the temperature difference ΔT between the room temperature Ti and the set temperature Tm, if the required sensible heat load is insufficient after the switching from the cooling mode to the dehumidification mode, the sensible heat load can be satisfied by the temperature return. The temperature will fluctuate significantly and you must return to the cooling mode again. The same applies to the case of switching from the first dehumidifying mode having a higher sensible heat capacity to the second dehumidifying mode having a lower sensible heat capacity in the plurality of dehumidifying modes, and the case of switching from the cooling mode to the blowing mode. Similarly, when the operation mode is switched to the air blowing mode using only the determination of the humidity difference ΔRH, humidity return will occur if the steady latent heat load Ql remains even if the current humidity is low. The air conditioner 1 according to the first embodiment switches the operation mode according to the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql to determine whether the temperature and the humidity increase after the operation mode is switched. Can be estimated before switching. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the operating modes from being frequently switched, and as a result, it is possible to accurately switch the three operating modes of the cooling mode, the dehumidifying mode, and the air blowing mode without the user pressing a button to select them.

Further, the air conditioner 1 according to the first embodiment is provided with the operation modes of "double fan dehumidification", "dew point temperature dehumidification", and "partial cooling dehumidification" that can dehumidify with a latent heat capacity higher than that of "weak cooling dehumidification". Then, the air conditioner 1 according to the first embodiment switches the plurality of dehumidifying modes in accordance with the steady sensible heat load Qs in the “automatic” operation mode to dehumidify the indoor space 71. As a result, the sensible heat capacity related to temperature control and the latent heat capacity related to humidity control can be output continuously, so when switching between operation modes according to various situations such as weather conditions, building conditions, and living conditions. It is possible to provide comfortable air conditioning with little fluctuation in temperature and humidity. In addition, under conditions where the sensible heat capacity or latent heat capacity of a plurality of operation modes overlap, power consumption can be reduced by selecting a more energy-saving operation mode.

Further, the air conditioner 1 according to the first embodiment has an operation mode of "air blowing" that combines cooling and air blowing. Then, in the air conditioner 1 according to Embodiment 1, in the "automatic" operation mode, when the low humidity condition is satisfied and the steady sensible heat load Qs is relatively small, the operation mode is changed to "blower". It switches and air-conditions the indoor space 71. As a result, energy saving can be enhanced while ensuring the comfort of the indoor space 71.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment, the determination unit 530 determines the air conditioning operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 according to the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, the determination unit 530 sets the operation mode according to the temperature difference ΔT between the room temperature Ti and the set temperature Tm and the humidity difference ΔRH between the indoor humidity RHi and the set humidity RHm. judge.

In the second embodiment, the estimation unit 520 calculates the temperature difference ΔT between the room temperature Ti and the set temperature Tm based on the room temperature Ti acquired by the acquisition unit 510. Further, the estimation unit 520 calculates the humidity difference ΔRH between the indoor humidity RHi and the set humidity RHm based on the indoor humidity RHi acquired by the acquisition unit 510. The temperature difference ΔT is an index of the unsteady sensible heat load Ps, as shown in the equation (2). Further, the humidity difference ΔRH uses the difference between the outdoor absolute humidity and the indoor absolute humidity in the above formula (5), but it can be approximately said to be an index of the unsteady latent heat load Pl.

FIG. 15 shows the relationship among temperature, humidity and operation mode. As shown in FIG. 15, when the air conditioner 1 air-conditions the indoor space 71 in the “(E) automatic” operation mode, the operation mode that the air conditioner 1 should execute according to the temperature difference ΔT and the humidity difference ΔRH. Has been defined. The determination unit 530 determines the operation mode according to the temperature difference ΔT and the humidity difference ΔRH calculated by the estimation unit 520.

The operation mode determination processing by the determination unit 530 in the second embodiment is performed by replacing the unsteady sensible heat load Qs in the first embodiment with the temperature difference ΔT and the steady latent heat load Ql with the humidity difference ΔRH. It can be described in the same manner as in the first form.

Specifically, first, the determination unit 530 determines the magnitude relationship between the humidity difference ΔRH calculated by the estimation unit 520 and the humidity thresholds ΔRH1 and ΔRH2. The case where the humidity difference ΔRH is larger than the first humidity threshold value ΔRH1 corresponds to the case where the high humidity condition is satisfied. On the other hand, when the humidity difference ΔRH is smaller than the second humidity threshold value ΔRH2, it corresponds to the case where the low humidity condition is satisfied.

When the high humidity condition is satisfied, the determination unit 530 determines the magnitude relationship between the temperature difference ΔT and the first to third temperature thresholds ΔT1 to ΔT3. When the temperature difference ΔT is larger than the first temperature threshold ΔT1, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(A) cooling”. When the temperature difference ΔT is smaller than the first temperature threshold ΔT1 and larger than the second temperature threshold ΔT2, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(C1) weak cooling dehumidification”. It is determined that When the temperature difference ΔT is smaller than the second temperature threshold ΔT2 and larger than the third temperature threshold ΔT3, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(C2) double fan dehumidification”. , "(C3) dew point temperature dehumidification" or "(C4) partial cooling dehumidification". When the temperature difference ΔT is smaller than the third temperature threshold ΔT3, the determination unit 530 determines that the compressor 21 should be stopped.

When the low humidity condition is satisfied, the determination unit 530 determines the magnitude relationship between the temperature difference ΔT and the fourth temperature threshold ΔT4. When the temperature difference ΔT is larger than the fourth temperature threshold ΔT4, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(A) cooling”. When the temperature difference ΔT is smaller than the fourth temperature threshold ΔT4, the determination unit 530 determines that the operation mode to be executed by the air conditioner 1 is “(D) ventilation”. The fourth temperature threshold value ΔT4 is set to 0° C. or a value obtained by adding about 1 to 2° C., which is a reduction amount of the sensible temperature obtained in the blowing mode, to 0° C.

The air-conditioning control unit 540 causes the air-conditioning unit 110 to air-condition the indoor space 71 in the operation mode determined by the determination unit 530, as in the first embodiment. In addition, when the determination unit 530 newly determines an operation mode different from the current operation mode according to the load information such as the temperature and humidity acquired by the acquisition unit 510, the air conditioning control unit 540 restarts from the current operation mode. By switching to the operation mode determined by the above, the indoor space 71 is air-conditioned.

More specifically, the air conditioning control unit 540 operates when the high humidity condition is satisfied and the temperature difference ΔT becomes smaller than the first temperature threshold ΔT1 while the air conditioning unit 110 is performing air conditioning in the cooling mode. The mode is switched to the first dehumidification mode. Further, the air conditioning controller 540 switches the operation mode to the second dehumidifying mode when the temperature difference ΔT becomes smaller than the second temperature threshold ΔT2 while the air conditioner 110 is performing the air conditioning in the first dehumidifying mode, When the temperature difference ΔT becomes smaller than the third temperature threshold value ΔT3 while the air conditioning unit 110 is air conditioning in the second dehumidification mode, the compressor 21 is stopped. On the contrary, when the temperature difference ΔT becomes larger than each of the temperature thresholds ΔT1 to ΔT3, the air conditioning controller 540 switches the operation mode to the opposite of the above.

On the other hand, when the low humidity condition is satisfied, the air conditioning control unit 540 sets the operation mode to the blowing mode when the temperature difference ΔT becomes smaller than the fourth temperature threshold ΔT4 while the air conditioning unit 110 is air conditioning in the cooling mode. Switch. Conversely, if the temperature difference ΔT becomes larger than the fourth temperature threshold ΔT4 while the air conditioning unit 110 is performing air conditioning in the air blowing mode, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode to the cooling mode.

Further, when the low humidity condition is satisfied, the air conditioning control unit 540 sets the operation mode to the operating mode when the humidity difference ΔRH becomes larger than the first humidity threshold value ΔRH1 while the air conditioning unit 110 is performing air conditioning in the air blowing mode. The mode is switched to one of the high humidity conditions 1 to 4 according to the steady sensible heat load Qs. On the contrary, when the high humidity condition is satisfied, if the humidity difference ΔRH is smaller than the second humidity threshold ΔRH2 and the temperature difference ΔT is smaller than the fourth temperature threshold ΔT4, the operation mode is changed to the blowing mode. Switch.

In this way, the air conditioner 1 according to the second embodiment switches the operation mode according to the temperature difference ΔT between the room temperature Ti and the set temperature Tm and the humidity difference ΔRH between the indoor humidity RHi and the set humidity RHm. Although it is possible to determine switching between the cooling mode and the dehumidifying mode only by determining the temperature difference ΔT, it is not possible to determine whether the cooling mode is changed to the dehumidifying mode or the blowing mode. On the other hand, in the air conditioner 1 according to the second embodiment, whether the cooling mode is changed to the dehumidification mode or the ventilation mode is set by adding the determination of the humidity difference ΔRH in addition to the determination of the temperature difference ΔT. Can be determined. As a result, after the temperature has dropped due to the cooling mode, it is possible to suppress deterioration of comfort by switching to the ventilation mode despite the high humidity, and to switch to the dehumidification mode despite the low humidity. Therefore, it is possible to suppress unnecessary power consumption. As a result, comfort of both room temperature Ti and room humidity RHi can be easily obtained.

Further, due to the recent improvement in the heat insulation performance and ventilation performance of a building, a room temperature Ti immediately decreases, but a humidity gauze that the indoor humidity RHi does not easily decrease easily occurs. However, the air conditioner 1 according to the second embodiment is By switching the operation mode according to both the temperature difference ΔT and the humidity difference ΔRH, it is possible to suppress such a humidity stagnation.

Further, by using the temperature difference ΔT and the humidity difference ΔRH, it is not necessary to acquire the information of the outside air temperature To, the window temperature Tw, and the outside air humidity RHo in order to determine and switch the operation mode. Therefore, it is possible to air-condition the indoor space 71 by switching the operation mode with a simpler configuration. In particular, when the unsteady sensible heat load Ps and the unsteady latent heat load Pl are more dominant than the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql, the operation mode is determined according to the temperature difference ΔT and the humidity difference ΔRH. Thus, it becomes possible to perform air conditioning by appropriately switching the operation mode.

The determination unit 530 performs the determination process based on the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql shown in FIG. 6 and the determination process based on the temperature difference ΔT and the humidity difference ΔRH shown in FIG. 15 under an AND condition or an OR condition. May be combined. In this case, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode between the cooling mode and the dehumidifying mode and between the cooling mode and the air blowing mode according to both the temperature difference ΔT and the steady sensible heat load Qs. The operation mode is switched between the dehumidification mode and the air blowing mode according to both the humidity difference ΔRH and the steady latent heat load Ql. Alternatively, the determination unit 530 determines, according to the sensible heat capacity that is the sum of the unsteady sensible heat load Ps and the steady sensible heat load Qs, or the latent heat capacity that is the sum of the unsteady latent heat load Pl and the steady sensible heat load Ql. The operation mode may be determined. By switching the operation mode by appropriately combining the determination processing based on the temperature difference ΔT and the humidity difference ΔRH and the determination processing based on the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql, frequent switching of the operation mode, fluctuation of the room temperature Ti, and It is possible to suppress the fluctuation of the indoor humidity RHi. Therefore, it is possible to achieve both comfort and energy saving.

(Embodiment 3)
Next, a third embodiment of the invention will be described. In the first embodiment, the estimation unit 520 estimates the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql based on the current temperature, humidity and the like acquired by the acquisition unit 510. On the other hand, in the third embodiment, the estimation unit 520 determines, for each of the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql, a change tendency in a period of a predetermined length before the present time. , Estimate the heat load after the specified time from the present time.

Specifically, the estimation unit 520 calculates the estimated sensible heat load Qs′ according to the following equation (8) after the room temperature Ti approaches the set temperature Tm. In addition, the estimation unit 520 calculates the estimated latent heat load Ql′ according to the following equation (9) after the indoor humidity RHi approaches the set humidity RHm.
Estimated sensible heat load Qs′=steady sensible heat load Qs+predicted variation ΔQs (8)
Estimated latent heat load Ql'=steady latent heat load Ql+predicted variation ΔQl (9)

In the above equation (8), the predicted fluctuation amount ΔQs is the fluctuation amount of the steady sensible heat load Qs in the latest predetermined time. For example, when the current time is 18:00, the estimation unit 520 estimates that the steady sensible heat load Qs will continue to decrease over a long period of time, and thus the steady sensible heat load Qs will continue to decrease. To do. In this way, when the environment of the outdoor space 72 changes from the present time even after the specified time as before, the steady sensible heat load Qs is pre-read by extending the changing tendency of the steady sensible heat load Qs in the immediately preceding period. Is possible.

Specifically, the estimation unit 520 estimates the predicted variation amount ΔQs by calculating the difference between the steady sensible heat load Qs at the present time point and the steady sensible heat load Qs at a predetermined time point before the present time point. For example, when the steady sensible heat load Qs increases by 10% for 1 hour before the present time, the estimation unit 520 estimates that the predicted variation ΔQs 1 hour after the present time is also 10%. Then, the estimation unit 520 calculates the estimated sensible heat load Qs′ by adding the predicted fluctuation amount ΔQs to the current steady sensible heat load Qs. The same applies to the estimated latent heat load Ql' shown in the equation (9).

The determination unit 530 replaces the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql in the first embodiment with the estimated sensible heat load Qs′ and the estimated latent heat load Ql′ estimated by the estimation unit 520 after a specified time from the present time. According to, the operation mode is determined. The air conditioning control unit 540 air-conditions the indoor space 71 in the operation mode determined by the determination unit 530.

As described above, the air conditioner 1 according to the third embodiment estimates the future value from the latest change tendency for each of the steady sensible heat load Qs and the steady latent heat load Ql, and sets the operation mode according to the estimated value. Switch. As a result, it is possible to more accurately predict the previous situation of the heat load in the indoor space 71 while suppressing the influence of the variation in the sensor information in a short time, as compared to using only the sensor information at the present time.

Is it possible to maintain the temperature by obtaining the estimated sensible heat load Qs' even after the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the dehumidification mode, even in the dehumidification mode in which the maximum sensible heat capacity is lower than in the cooling mode? Whether the maximum sensible heat capacity is insufficient and the temperature rises can be determined in advance from before switching. Further, after the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the air blowing mode, whether the temperature can be maintained or the temperature rises even in the air blowing mode can be determined in advance from before the switching.

By determining the estimated latent heat load Ql′, whether the operating mode cannot be switched from the cooling mode or the air blowing mode to the dehumidifying mode, whether the latent heat capacity is insufficient and the humidity increases will be determined in advance from before the switching. be able to. Further, after the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the air blowing mode, it is possible to pre-read before the switching to determine whether the humidity can be maintained or the humidity will increase even in the air blowing mode.

By obtaining the estimated sensible heat load Qs' and the estimated latent heat load Ql' in this way, the heat load for maintaining the room temperature Ti and the room humidity RHi before approaching the set temperature Tm after approaching the set temperature Tm is obtained. Desired. By comparing the calculated heat load with the sensible heat capacity and latent heat capacity that can be exhibited in the current operation mode, it is possible to determine whether or not the operation mode should be switched. As a result, the room temperature Ti and the room humidity RHi can be accurately maintained by the set temperature Tm and the set humidity RHm, which leads to improvement in comfort.

(Embodiment 4)
Next, a fourth embodiment of the invention will be described. In the first embodiment, when the estimating unit 520 calculates the steady sensible heat load Qs according to the above equation (3), α indicating the adiabatic performance, β indicating the ease of insolation, and the internal heat generation amount Qn are known. Met. On the other hand, the air conditioner 1 according to the fourth embodiment learns the values of α, β, and Qn based on the past information detected by each sensor.

FIG. 16 shows a functional configuration of the outdoor unit controller 51a provided in the air conditioner 1 according to the fourth embodiment. The outdoor unit controller 51a has the same hardware configuration as that of the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof is omitted.

As illustrated in FIG. 16, the outdoor unit control unit 51a functionally includes the acquisition unit 510, the estimation unit 520, the determination unit 530, the air conditioning control unit 540, the notification unit 550, and the information update unit 560. And a learning unit 570. The functions of the acquisition unit 510, the estimation unit 520, the determination unit 530, the air conditioning control unit 540, and the notification unit 550 are the same as those in the first embodiment, so description thereof will be omitted.

The information updating unit 560 updates the history information 150 stored in the storage unit 102 with the detection information of each sensor acquired by the acquisition unit 510. The history information 150 is information indicating a history of the room temperature Ti, the window temperature Tw, the outside air temperature To, the air conditioning capacity, and the like.

FIG. 17 shows a specific example of the history information 150. As shown in FIG. 17, the history information 150 is a sensor including the room temperature Ti detected by the temperature sensor 41, the window temperature Tw detected by the infrared sensor 43, and the outside air temperature To detected by the outside air temperature sensor. The information detected by is stored in chronological order. Further, the history information 150 stores a value indicating the air conditioning capacity controlled by the air conditioning control unit 540 in chronological order. Further, the history information 150 stores the operation modes controlled by the air conditioning control unit 540 in chronological order.

The information updating unit 560 stores the information newly detected by each sensor and the air conditioning capacity in the history information 150 in association with each other at a predetermined time. As a result, the information updating unit 560 updates the history information 150. The information updating unit 560 is realized by the control unit 101 cooperating with the storage unit 102. The information updating unit 560 functions as an information updating unit.

The learning unit 570 learns the thermal characteristics of the indoor space 71. The thermal characteristic of the indoor space 71 is a property related to the heat of the indoor space 71, and specifically, the thermal insulation performance of the indoor space 71, the ease with which the solar radiation enters the indoor space 71, and the like. The learning unit 570 learns the thermal characteristics of the indoor space 71 based on the past room temperature Ti, window temperature Tw, outside air temperature To, and air conditioning capacity recorded in the history information 150. The learning unit 570 is realized by the control unit 101. The learning unit 570 functions as a learning unit.

<Learning function>
Hereinafter, the learning function of the learning unit 570 will be described in more detail. As shown in FIG. 18, between the indoor space 71 and the outdoor space 72, heat moves through the walls of the house 3, windows, gaps, ventilation equipment, and the like. Therefore, the steady sensible heat load Qs, which is the amount of heat required for the air conditioner 1 to maintain the room temperature Ti at the set temperature Tm, depends on the characteristics of the house 3 such as the wall thickness and the window size.

More specifically, the steady sensible heat load Qs includes a flow-through load, a ventilation load, an internal heating value, and a solar radiation load. The once-through load is a heat load transmitted through the outer skin according to the temperature difference ΔTio between the outside air temperature To and the room temperature Ti. The outer skin is a wall that separates the indoor space 71 from the outdoor space 72. The ventilation load is a heat load due to inflow of ventilation or draft air. The ventilation load is proportional to the temperature difference ΔTio. The internal heat generation amount Qn is a heat load of lighting, home appliances, and people existing in the indoor space 71. The solar radiation load is divided into a first solar radiation load that is a thermal load that heats the room through the window glass and a second solar radiation load that is a thermal load that heats the outer skin and is transmitted from the outer skin to the interior space 71. Be divided.

The learning unit 570 learns the thermal characteristics of the indoor space 71 based on the load information regarding the thermal load of the indoor space 71 acquired by the acquisition unit 510. Specifically, the learning unit 570 learns the relationship among the steady sensible heat load Qs, the room temperature Ti, the outside air temperature To, and the window temperature Tw as the thermal characteristics of the indoor space 71, and the above equation (3) is used. Estimate the values of α, β and Qn in. The estimation unit 520 estimates the steady sensible heat load Qs by the above equation (3) using the values of α, β and Qn learned by the learning unit 570. In order to facilitate understanding, it is assumed that the room temperature Ti matches the set temperature Tm and the steady sensible heat load Qs matches the air conditioning capacity of the air conditioner 1.

In the above formula (3), α is a coefficient α indicating the heat insulation performance of the house 3 and is related to the flow-through load and ventilation load, which are heat loads required in proportion to the temperature difference ΔTio between the outside air temperature To and the room temperature Ti. It is a proportional coefficient. However, since the second solar radiation load is also a heat load transmitted through the outer skin, it is preferable to handle it in the same manner as the once-through load. Therefore, the learning unit 570 regards the increase ΔTo of the outside air temperature To as a parameter corresponding to the second solar radiation load, and uses the apparent outside air temperature To2 (=To+ΔTo) instead of the outside air temperature To to determine the heat load Q. estimate.

In addition, when the ventilation load is not taken into consideration, α is theoretically estimated by the following equation (10) using the average skin heat transfer coefficient UA and the surface area A of the outer skin. In the equation (10), the unit of α is W (Watt)/K (Kelvin), the unit of the average skin heat transfer coefficient UA is W/(m ² ·K), and the unit of the surface area A of the outer coat is m. It is ² . Further, 1.000 is a coefficient corresponding to the once-through load, and 0.034 is a coefficient corresponding to the second solar radiation load. However, it is often impossible to obtain information about the average skin heat transfer coefficient UA and the surface area A of the outer skin, and in many cases, α cannot be accurately obtained by the following equation (10) due to the influence of ventilation load. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the learning unit 570 obtains the value of α from the actual values of various values using the above equation (3).
_{α = U A × A × (} 1.000 + 0.034) ... (10)

In the above equation (3), the coefficient β indicating the ease with which the solar radiation enters the indoor space 71 is a proportional coefficient relating to the first solar radiation load, which is a heat load required in proportion to the amount of solar radiation. The value of β depends on the size of the window 75, the type of glass forming the window 75, and the like.

The learning unit 570 analyzes the relationship between the room temperature Ti, the window temperature Tw, the outside air temperature To, and the air conditioning capacity with reference to the history information 150 stored in the storage unit 102. Then, the learning unit 570 estimates α, β and Qn based on the analysis result.

First, a method of learning the coefficient α indicating the heat insulation performance of the indoor space 71 will be described. The learning unit 570 learns the coefficient α based on the data of the room temperature Ti, the outside air temperature To, and the air conditioning capacity acquired when the amount of solar radiation is sufficiently small. More specifically, when the amount of solar radiation is sufficiently small, the first solar radiation load and the second solar radiation load can be ignored compared to the once-through load and the ventilation load. In this case, in equation (3) above, it can be approximated that β=0, and further that ΔTo=0, that is, To=To2. Therefore, the above equation (3) can be approximated to the following equation (11). The learning unit 570 learns the coefficient α based on the relationship between the air conditioning capacity and the temperature difference ΔTio between the room temperature Ti and the outside air temperature To represented by the following equation (11).
Qs=α(To-Ti)+Qn (11)

FIG. 19A shows the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTio between the room temperature Ti and the outside air temperature To and the air conditioning capacity. FIG. 19A shows the actual value of the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioner on a coordinate plane having a horizontal axis that is the coordinate axis that represents the temperature difference ΔTio between the room temperature Ti and the outside air temperature To and a vertical axis that is the coordinate axis that represents the air conditioning capacity. An example of a case where a plurality of data points corresponding to the actual performance value is plotted is shown. Since the cross-flow load and the ventilation load are proportional to the temperature difference ΔTio, the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity can be expressed by a linear approximation formula. The learning unit 570 obtains an approximate straight line L0 indicating the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity by applying an appropriate regression method such as the least squares method to the plurality of data points plotted on the coordinate plane. From the correspondence between the approximate straight line L0 and the equation (11), the slope of the approximate straight line L0 corresponds to the coefficient α indicating the adiabatic performance, and the intercept of the approximate straight line L0 corresponds to the internal heat generation amount Qn.

Here, the better the performance of the heat insulating material used for the outer skin of the house 3 and the smaller the area of the outer skin, the smaller the flow-through load. Further, the smaller the gap between the outer walls that partition the indoor space 71 and the outdoor space 72, the smaller the ventilation load. Therefore, the smaller the cross-flow load and the smaller the ventilation load, the smaller the slope of the approximate straight line. Specifically, FIG. 19B shows a state in which the slope of the approximate straight line varies depending on the heat insulation performance of the house 3. As shown in FIG. 19B, the slope of the approximate straight line L11 obtained for the house 3 having poor heat insulation performance is larger than the slope of the approximate straight line L12 obtained for the house 3 having good heat insulation performance. Therefore, the learning unit 570 acquires the heat insulation performance of the indoor space 71 from the slope of the approximate straight line.

Further, the smaller the internal heating value Qn, the smaller the intercept of the approximate straight line. Specifically, FIG. 19C shows that the intercept of the approximate straight line varies depending on the internal heat generation amount Qn. As shown in FIG. 19C, the intercept of the approximate straight line L21 obtained for the house 3 having a large internal heat generation amount Qn is larger than the intercept of the approximate straight line L22 obtained for the house 3 having a small internal heat generation amount Qn. Therefore, the learning unit 570 acquires the internal heat generation amount Qn of the indoor space 71 from the intercept of the approximate straight line. As described above, the learning unit 570 refers to the history information 150 stored in the storage unit 102, and based on the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTio between the room temperature Ti and the outside air temperature To and the air conditioning capacity, the coefficient indicating the heat insulation performance. The α and the internal heating value Qn are obtained.

Here, in order to improve the accuracy and speed of learning, it is necessary to collect a large amount of history information 150 in a short period of time. Therefore, if the temperature difference ΔTio is the same even when the outside air temperature To and the room temperature Ti are different, the learning unit 570 considers that the required air conditioning capacities are the same, and determines the same temperature difference ΔTio. Plot as data points on the coordinate plane. With such a configuration, it is not necessary to obtain a thermal characteristic formula for each of the outside air temperature To or the room temperature Ti, so that the accuracy and speed of learning can be improved. By repeating the update of the history information 150 and the learning during the air conditioning operation, it is possible to grasp the change in the thermal characteristics of the indoor space 71 and improve the control accuracy. The change in the thermal characteristics occurs, for example, when the internal heating value Qn increases when the electric carpet is started to be used in winter, or when the partition between the rooms reduces the flow-through load.

Secondly, a method of learning the coefficient β indicating the degree of sunshine coming into the indoor space 71 will be described. The learning unit 570 learns the coefficient β based on the data of the room temperature Ti, the window temperature Tw, and the air conditioning capacity acquired when the temperature difference ΔTio between the room temperature Ti and the outside air temperature To is the same.

When the temperature difference ΔTio is the same, the term α(To2-Ti) in the above equation (11) can be treated as a constant. In this case, the learning unit 570 can estimate the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTiw between the room temperature Ti and the window temperature Tw and the air conditioning capacity based on the term β(Tw−Ti) in the above equation (11). Specifically, the actual value of the temperature difference ΔTiw and the air-conditioning capacity are shown on a coordinate plane having a horizontal axis that is a coordinate axis that represents the temperature difference ΔTiw between the room temperature Ti and the window temperature Tw and a vertical axis that is a coordinate axis that represents the air-conditioning capacity. When a plurality of data points corresponding to the actual values are plotted, the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTiw and the air conditioning capacity can be expressed by a linear approximation formula, as in FIG. 19A.

Here, the inclination of the approximate straight line becomes larger as the solar radiation enters the indoor space 71, and the inclination of the approximate straight line becomes smaller as the solar radiation hardly enters the indoor space 71. Therefore, in FIG. 19B, by replacing “a house with poor heat insulation performance” with “a house with easy sunlight exposure” and replacing “house with good heat insulation performance” with “a house with less sunlight exposure” Can be explained. The learning unit 570 obtains an approximate straight line indicating the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTiw and the air conditioning capacity by applying an appropriate regression method such as the least squares method to the plurality of data points plotted on the coordinate plane. Then, the learning unit 570 learns the coefficient β that indicates the ease with which solar radiation enters the indoor space 71 from the slope of the approximate straight line.

Hereinafter, a method for improving learning accuracy will be described. The learning unit 570 learns the heat insulation performance based on the room temperature Ti, the outside air temperature To, and the air conditioning capacity when the amount of solar radiation is equal to or less than the threshold value. More specifically, a plurality of data points plotted on a coordinate plane having a horizontal axis that is a coordinate axis that represents the temperature difference ΔTio and a vertical axis that is a coordinate axis that represents the air conditioning capacity are used when the amount of solar radiation is equal to or less than a threshold value. Limited to acquired data points. The learning unit 570, before plotting the data points corresponding to the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity on the coordinate plane, has a predetermined amount of solar radiation in the data of the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity corresponding to the plotted data points. When it is less than or equal to the threshold value, it is determined whether the data is acquired. Then, when the learning unit 570 determines that the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity data corresponding to the plotted data point are acquired when the amount of solar radiation is equal to or less than the threshold value, the learning unit 570 plots the data point on the coordinate plane. On the other hand, when the learning unit 570 determines that the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity data corresponding to the plotted data point are acquired when the amount of solar radiation is greater than the threshold value, the learning unit 570 does not plot this data point on the coordinate plane.

That is, the learning unit 570 plots, on the coordinate plane, the data point acquired when the amount of solar radiation is equal to or less than the threshold value among the plurality of data points corresponding to the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity. For example, the learning unit 570 determines that the amount of solar radiation is below the threshold when the window temperature Tw is lower than the room temperature Ti, and determines that the amount of solar radiation is greater than the threshold when the window temperature Tw is higher than the room temperature Ti.

In this way, when learning the correlation between the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity, it is preferable to obtain the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity from the data acquired when the influence of solar radiation is small. According to this configuration, variation in data due to the influence of the solar radiation load is suppressed. Therefore, it is possible to accurately obtain the coefficient α indicating the heat insulation performance represented by the slope and the internal heat generation amount Qn represented by the intercept. That is, when the data acquired when the amount of solar radiation is equal to or less than the threshold value is used, α can be easily calculated using the equation (11) instead of the equation (3). Note that the learning unit 570 only needs to be able to acquire the slope and intercept of the approximate straight line from the data of the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity, and of course it is not necessary to actually plot the data points on any coordinate plane. Is.

The learning unit 570 may also learn the heat insulation performance based on the room temperature Ti, the outside air temperature To, and the air conditioning capacity when the amount of change in the room temperature Ti is equal to or less than the reference value. In addition, the learning unit 570 may learn the ease of insolation based on the room temperature Ti, the window temperature Tw, and the air conditioning capacity when the change amount of the room temperature Ti is equal to or less than the reference value.

More specifically, in a transient state in which the room temperature Ti is not stable, the air conditioning capacity to be exerted is generally not stable. For example, while the room temperature Ti is greatly changed immediately after the activation of the air conditioning, the apparent air conditioning capacity becomes large because the air conditioning capacity includes the amount of heat capacity of the room to be processed. Therefore, the learning unit 570 may limit the plurality of data points plotted on the coordinate plane to the data points acquired when the change amount of the room temperature Ti during the specified time is equal to or less than the reference value. Accordingly, the learning unit 570 can obtain the approximate straight line by using the data acquired when the room temperature Ti is stable. Therefore, it is possible to accurately determine the heat insulation performance or the ease with which solar radiation enters, which is represented by the slope of the approximate straight line, and the internal heat generation amount Qn, which is represented by the intercept.

The learning unit 570 calculates the air conditioning capacity of the sensible heat by, for example, the ε-NTU (Number of Transfer Unit) method. The total heat capacity, sensible heat capacity, and latent heat capacity are represented by the following equations (12) to (14).
Total heat capacity=enthalpy efficiency/air density/air volume/(enthalpy of intake air of indoor unit 13−saturated air enthalpy of piping temperature of indoor heat exchanger 25) (12)
Sensible heat capacity=temperature efficiency/air density/air specific heat/air volume/(intake air temperature of indoor unit 13-pipe temperature of indoor heat exchanger 25) (13)
Latent heat capacity = total heat capacity-sensible heat capacity (14)

Next, with reference to FIG. 20, a data processing method for improving learning accuracy will be described. When the learning unit 570 actually learns based on the history information 150, the data points are not always uniformly plotted on the coordinate plane. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 20, the data points are unevenly distributed in the region where the temperature difference ΔTio is large, specifically, the region where the temperature difference ΔTio is between T3 and T4. All plotted data points are represented by black circles. Here, if the approximate straight line is obtained using all the data points, the influence of a region having a large number of data points is strongly influenced, and the inclination and intercept of the approximate straight line may not be obtained accurately. FIG. 20 shows an example in which the slope of the approximate straight line L31 obtained using all the data points is small and the intercept is large. That is, in this case, it is considered that the house 3 has good heat insulation performance and a large internal heating value Qn, and the error becomes large.

Therefore, the learning unit 570 preferably uses the representative data points represented by white circles instead of all the data points represented by black circles to find the approximate straight line. FIG. 20 shows an example in which the area of the temperature difference ΔTio is classified into a plurality of sections with a predetermined temperature width and one representative data point is obtained for each classified temperature width. The representative data point is, for example, a data point representing an average value of all data points belonging to one section. The average value is obtained for each of the temperature difference ΔTio and the air conditioning capacity. In other words, the learning unit 570 averages the actual value of the temperature difference Δ and the actual value of the air-conditioning capacity in one of the plurality of sections on the coordinate plane so that the learning section 570 includes the result in the one section. The plurality of data points to be combined are integrated into one representative data point. Then, the learning unit 570 obtains an approximate straight line from the representative data points after integration.

In the example of FIG. 20, the slope of the approximate straight line L32 obtained using the representative data points is larger than the slope of the approximate straight line L31 obtained using all the data points. The intercept of the approximate straight line L32 is smaller than the intercept of the approximate straight line L31. By using the representative data points obtained for each section in this way, the slope and intercept of the approximate straight line can be obtained more accurately than when using all the data points. Further, according to such a method, even when the number of data is small or the conditions are biased, for example, when the air conditioner 1 is first used, it is possible to perform accurate learning.

In this way, the air conditioner 1 according to the fourth embodiment learns the thermal characteristics of the indoor space 71 and estimates the steady sensible heat load Qs based on the learning result. As a result, the steady sensible heat load Qs for maintaining the room temperature Ti at the set temperature Tm can be accurately estimated. For example, when the room temperature Ti is 27° C., air conditioning is generally performed in the cooling mode. However, in a situation where the steady sensible heat load Qs is small, such as in a house with high heat insulation performance, the refrigerant in the indoor heat exchanger 25 is in the cooling mode. The evaporating temperature of will become high and it will not be sufficiently dehumidified. In such a case, it is more comfortable to switch to the dehumidification mode. Since the air conditioner 1 according to the fourth embodiment estimates the thermal characteristics of the indoor space 71 by learning, there is little room temperature fluctuation when switching between various operating modes under various weather conditions, building conditions and living conditions, and it is comfortable. It is possible to provide various air conditioning.

(Embodiment 5)
Next, a fifth embodiment of the invention will be described. In the above embodiment, the sensible heat threshold values Qs1 to Qs4 or the temperature threshold values ΔT1 to ΔT4 are fixed to predetermined values. On the other hand, in the fifth embodiment, the air conditioner 1 corrects the first and second sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 depending on the situation.

FIG. 21 shows a functional configuration of the outdoor unit controller 51b provided in the air conditioner 1 according to the fifth embodiment. The outdoor unit control unit 51b has the same hardware configuration as that of the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 21, the outdoor unit control unit 51b is functionally provided with an acquisition unit 510, an estimation unit 520, a determination unit 530, an air conditioning control unit 540, an informing unit 550, and an information updating unit 560, And a learning unit 570. Functions of the acquisition unit 510, the estimation unit 520, the determination unit 530, the air conditioning control unit 540, and the notification unit 550 are the same as those in the first embodiment.

Specifically, the acquisition unit 510 acquires load information such as the room temperature Ti, the outside air temperature To, and the window temperature Tw. The air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode according to the steady sensible heat load Qs, which is an index value based on the room temperature Ti, the outside air temperature To, the window temperature Tw, and the like acquired by the acquisition unit 510, and the air conditioning unit 110 has an indoor space. Air-condition 71. More specifically, the air conditioning controller 540 sets the operation mode to the first mode when the steady sensible heat load Qs becomes smaller than the threshold value while the air conditioner 110 is air conditioning the indoor space 71 in the first mode. It switches to the second mode in which the maximum sensible heat capacity of the air conditioning unit 110 is lower than that. Here, the first mode and the second mode correspond to the cooling mode and the first dehumidifying mode, respectively, when the threshold value is the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1, and the threshold value is the second sensible heat threshold value Qs2. In this case, they correspond to the first dehumidification mode and the second dehumidification mode, respectively.

The correction unit 580 corrects the first and second sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 according to the room temperature Ti acquired by the acquisition unit 510. Specifically, the correction unit 580 corrects the first and second sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 according to the change in the room temperature Ti after the operation mode is switched by the air conditioning control unit 540. The correction unit 580 is realized by the control unit 101. The correction unit 580 functions as a correction unit.

When the room temperature Ti rises after the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the first dehumidification mode, the room temperature Ti cannot be maintained because the sensible heat capacity in the first dehumidification mode is smaller than the sensible heat load. Corresponds to the case. In this case, the correction unit 580 reduces the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1 so that the sensible heat capacity in the first dehumidification mode does not fall below the sensible heat load. Similarly, when the room temperature Ti rises after the operation mode is switched from the first dehumidification mode to the second dehumidification mode, the correction unit 580 decreases the second sensible heat threshold value Qs2.

On the other hand, when the room temperature Ti does not rise even though the outside air temperature To rises after the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the first dehumidification mode, sensible heat in the first dehumidification mode This is equivalent to the case where the room temperature Ti can be maintained because the capacity is larger than the sensible heat load. In this case, the correction unit 580 increases the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 to widen the cover range in the first dehumidification mode. Similarly, when the room temperature Ti does not rise even though the outside air temperature To rises after the operation mode has been switched from the first dehumidification mode to the second dehumidification mode, the correction unit 580 causes the second manifestation to occur. Increase the thermal threshold Qs2.

Here, the initial value of the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 is set to, for example, the maximum sensible heat capacity Qs1max that the air conditioning unit 110 can exhibit in the first dehumidification mode. The initial value of the second sensible heat threshold Qs2 is set to, for example, the maximum sensible heat capacity Qs2max that the air conditioning unit 110 can exhibit in the second dehumidification mode. In this way, the maximum sensible heat capacity is set to the initial value of the threshold value so that the air conditioning unit 110 can exhibit the sensible heat capacity necessary for maintaining the room temperature Ti after switching the operation mode. is there. When the room temperature Ti rises after the operation mode is switched, the correction unit 580 reduces the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 to correct the maximum sensible heat capacity in the decreasing direction. On the other hand, when the room temperature Ti does not rise even though the outside air temperature To has risen after the operation mode has been switched, the correction unit 580 increases the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 to increase the maximum temperature. Correct the heat capacity in the increasing direction.

More specifically, the correction unit 580 determines whether the room temperature Ti rises after the operation mode is switched from the cooling mode to the first dehumidification mode, or the room temperature Ti rises even if the outside air temperature To rises. When the temperature does not rise, the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 is corrected according to the difference between the sensible heat capacity of the air conditioning unit 110 and the first sensible heat threshold Qs1. When the room temperature Ti rises in the first dehumidifying mode after switching, it is highly possible that the sensible heat capacity is smaller than the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1. In this case, the correction unit 580 further decreases the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 as the difference between the sensible heat capacity and the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 increases.

On the other hand, in the first dehumidifying mode after the switching, when the room temperature Ti does not rise even though the outside air temperature To rises, there is a margin in the sensible heat capacity, so the sensible heat capacity is the There is a high possibility that it is larger than the sensible heat threshold value Qs1 of. In this case, the correction unit 580 increases the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 to a greater extent as the difference between the sensible heat capacity and the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 increases.

Further, the correction unit 580 corrects the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 in accordance with the number of times the sensible heat capacity and the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 deviate. The number of times the deviation has occurred means that the sensible heat capacity and the first value are obtained when the room temperature Ti increases after the operation mode is switched or when the room temperature Ti does not increase despite the increase of the outside air temperature To. This is the number of times that the maximum value of the degree of deviation from the sensible heat threshold Qs1 becomes larger than a predetermined value. The correction unit 580 stores the number of times the deviation has occurred in the storage unit 102, and corrects the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 to a greater extent as the number of times the deviation occurs increases.

In this way, the correction unit 580 corrects the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 according to the degree of deviation between the sensible heat capacity and the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 and the number of times the deviation occurs. The same applies to the second sensible heat threshold value Qs2. After the correction unit 580 corrects the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 or the second sensible heat threshold Qs2, the air conditioning control unit 540 sets the corrected first sensible heat threshold Qs1 or the second sensible heat threshold Qs2. Use to control air conditioning. More specifically, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode according to whether the room temperature Ti is larger than the corrected first sensible heat threshold Qs1 or the second sensible heat threshold Qs2, and the air conditioning unit Air conditioning the indoor space 71 at 110.

By correcting the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 according to the situation in this way, it is possible to obtain the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 more suitable for the thermal characteristics of the house 3 and the surrounding environment. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the switching of the operation mode at the timing when the comfort level is deteriorated, such as the timing that is too early or the timing that the temperature returns. As a result, the operation mode can be switched at an appropriate timing to air-condition the indoor space 71, and the comfort can be improved. In addition, since air conditioning can be performed in an appropriate operation mode, energy saving can be improved.

<Sensible heat threshold learning>
Further, in the fifth embodiment, the learning unit 570 uses the temperature difference ΔTi® between the room temperature Ti and the outside air temperature To acquired by the acquisition unit 510 and the first and second sensible heat thresholds Qs1 corrected by the correction unit 580. , Qs2, and learn the relationship. More specifically, when the correction unit 580 corrects the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1 or the second sensible heat threshold value Qs2, the information updating unit 560 sets the corrected sensible heat threshold values Qs1 and Qs2 at that time. The history information 150 is stored in association with the temperature difference ΔTi®. The history information 150 stores, as a past history, the correspondence between the first and second sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 corrected by the correction unit 580 and the temperature difference ΔTio at that time. The learning unit 570 refers to the history information 150 and learns the relationship between the temperature difference ΔTi® and the first and second sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2. If the maximum frequency of the compressor 21 differs for each environmental condition, the history information 150 stores the maximum frequency and the first and second sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 in association with each other instead of the temperature difference ΔTio. May be.

FIG. 22 shows an example in which the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1 is plotted for each temperature difference ΔTi®. In FIG. 22, the black circles represent the initial value of the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1, and the white circles represent the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1 corrected by the correction unit 580 from the initial value. The learning unit 570 uses a method such as the least-squares method for such a plot to show the correspondence between the first sensible heat threshold Qs1 and the temperature difference ΔTio by using a correlation line indicated by a broken line in FIG. 22, for example. To approximate. At this time, the learning unit 570 uses a linear expression as the correlation line to simplify the calculation.

When the correction unit 580 corrects the first sensible heat threshold Qs1, the learning unit 570 updates the plot in association with the temperature difference ΔTio at that time. Then, the learning unit 570 updates the learning result by approximating the updated plot with a new correlation line. In this way, the learning unit 570 learns the correspondence relationship between the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1 corrected by the correction unit 580 and the temperature difference ΔTio. Further, the learning unit 570 also learns the second sensible heat threshold Qs2 as well as the corresponding relationship with the temperature difference ΔTio similarly to the first sensible heat threshold Qs1.

When the acquisition unit 510 newly acquires the room temperature Ti and the outside air temperature To, the correction unit 580 obtains the temperature difference ΔTi® between the newly acquired room temperature Ti and the outside air temperature To, and the relationship learned by the learning unit 570. And sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 are corrected based on The air conditioning control unit 540 switches the operation mode of air conditioning using the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 corrected by the correction unit 580. In this way, by learning the correspondence between the temperature difference ΔTi® and the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2, and correcting the sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 according to the current temperature difference ΔTio, it is possible to achieve higher accuracy according to the situation. The sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2 can be corrected. In particular, when the second dehumidifying mode is the reheat dehumidifying mode, the sensible heat threshold value tends to largely change when the temperature difference ΔTi® changes as compared with the other dehumidifying modes, which is more effective.

Note that, as in the second embodiment, the air conditioning control unit 540 may switch the operation mode according to the temperature difference ΔT between the room temperature Ti and the set temperature Tm. In that case, the correction unit 580 corrects the first and second temperature thresholds ΔT1 and ΔT2 instead of correcting the first and second sensible heat thresholds Qs1 and Qs2.

The first sensible heat threshold value Qs1 when transitioning from the cooling mode to the first dehumidification mode is made smaller by about 1γ to 2γ than the first sensible heat threshold value Qs1 when returning from the first dehumidification mode to the cooling mode. May be. The same applies to the second to fourth sensible heat thresholds Qs2 to Qs4. By providing the hysteresis for switching the operation modes in this way, it is possible to prevent frequent switching of the operation modes in a short time. Here, the value of γ is, for example, the amount of heat required to raise the room temperature Ti by 1°C. Further, the value of γ may be obtained by learning. As a result, precise operation such as 1 to 2° C. is possible, and it is possible to switch the operation mode at an appropriate timing while preventing frequent switching.

(Modification)
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, various modifications and applications can be made in carrying out the present invention.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the air conditioner 1 uses the "weak cooling dehumidification", "double fan dehumidification", "dew point temperature dehumidification", "partial cooling dehumidification", "extended dehumidification", "reheat dehumidification", and "blowing". The indoor space 71 was air-conditioned in each operation mode. However, in the present invention, the air conditioner 1 may not have the function of air conditioning in any of these operation modes. When the air conditioner 1 does not have the "reheat dehumidification" function, the indoor unit 13 does not have to include the two heat exchangers 25a and 25b and the expansion valve 26, and the air and the refrigerant in the indoor space 71 It suffices to have one indoor heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between them. When the air conditioner 1 does not have the "double fan dehumidification" function, the indoor unit 13 does not have to have the two indoor fans 33a and 33b, and only one indoor fan that blows air to the indoor heat exchanger 25 is provided. All you have to do is prepare.

In the above-described embodiment, the first dehumidification mode is “weak cooling dehumidification”, and the second dehumidification mode is “double fan dehumidification”, “dew point temperature dehumidification”, “partial cooling dehumidification” or “extended dehumidification”. As explained. However, if the first dehumidification mode has a higher maximum sensible heat capacity than the second dehumidification mode, the first dehumidification mode and the second dehumidification mode may be any operation mode. For example, the first dehumidification mode is "weak cooling dehumidification", "double fan dehumidification", "dew point temperature dehumidification", "partial cooling dehumidification" or "extended dehumidification", and the second dehumidification mode is "reheat dehumidification". It may be. Further, the controllable dehumidification mode may be only one of the first dehumidification mode and the second dehumidification mode.

The automatic mode may include a heating mode. The heating mode and the cooling mode can be switched based on the outside air temperature To or the set temperature Tm. For example, the air conditioning control unit 540 switches to the heating mode if the outside air temperature To or the set temperature Tm is lower than a predetermined value, and switches to the cooling mode if it is higher than the predetermined value.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, acquisition part 510 acquired window temperature Tw detected by infrared sensor 43 as an index showing the amount of solar radiation. However, in the present invention, the acquisition unit 510 is not limited to the window temperature Tw as an index indicating the amount of solar radiation, and may acquire any information as long as it is information that directly or indirectly indicates the amount of solar radiation. For example, the acquisition unit 510 acquires the illuminance of the indoor space 71 detected by the illuminance sensor or an image of the indoor space 71 captured by a camera, and estimates the amount of solar radiation to be inserted into the indoor space 71 from the illuminance or the image. Is also good. Further, the acquisition unit 510 may acquire information on the amount of power generated by the photovoltaic power generation facility via an external communication network, or may acquire information indicating weather data including information on the amount of solar radiation via an external communication network. You may get it.

In the above-described embodiment, the outdoor unit control unit 51 has the functions of the units shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 16 or FIG. 21, and functions as a control device that controls the air conditioner 1. However, in the present invention, some or all of these functions may be included in the indoor unit controller 53, or may be included in a device outside the air conditioner 1.

For example, as shown in FIG. 23, in the air conditioning system S including the air conditioning device 1 and the control device 100, the control device 100 connected to the air conditioning device 1 via the communication network N is shown in FIG. It may have the function of each part shown in. For example, the communication network N may be a home network conforming to ECHONET Lite, and the control device 100 may be a controller of a HEMS (Home Energy Management System) that manages electric power in the house 3. Alternatively, the communication network N may be a wide area network such as the Internet, and the control device 100 may be a server that controls the air conditioning device 1 from outside the house 3.

When the control device 100 has the above-described functions, the air conditioning system S may include a plurality of air conditioning devices 1 as control targets of the control device 100. In this case, the number of air conditioners 1 is not limited. The control target of the control device 100 may be a device including a refrigeration cycle, such as the air conditioner 1, and the detailed configuration thereof is not limited.

In the above embodiment, the house 3 is taken as an example of the target to which the air conditioner 1 is installed. However, in the present invention, the target to which the air conditioner 1 is installed may be an apartment house, an office building, a facility, a factory, or the like. The air-conditioned space is not limited to the room in the house 3, and may be any space as long as it is a space to be air-conditioned by the air conditioner 1. The air conditioner 1 is not limited to including one outdoor unit 11 and one indoor unit 13, and may include one outdoor unit 11 and a plurality of indoor units 13. The indoor unit 13 for cooling and the indoor unit 13 for heating may be mixed and operated in the plurality of indoor units 13.

In the above embodiment, the user operates the remote controller 55 to input the numerical values of the set temperature Tm and the set humidity RHm. However, the user may specify the strength/medium/weakness of cooling or dehumidification with the remote controller 55, so that the corresponding set temperature Tm or set humidity RHm may be determined. In addition, a user interface other than the remote controller 55 may be used to receive user input, or the notification unit 550 may output notification information.

In the above-described embodiment, the CPU of the control unit 101 executes the programs stored in the ROM or the storage unit 102 to function as the units illustrated in FIG. 5, FIG. 16 or FIG. However, in the present invention, the control unit 101 may be dedicated hardware. The dedicated hardware is, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a combination thereof. When the control unit 101 is dedicated hardware, each function of each unit may be realized by individual hardware, or the functions of each unit may be collectively realized by single hardware.

In addition, a part of the functions of each unit may be realized by dedicated hardware and the other part may be realized by software or firmware. In this way, the control unit 101 can realize each function described above by hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof.

By applying the program that defines the operation of the control unit 101 according to the present invention to an existing computer such as a personal computer or an information terminal device, the computer is caused to function as the air conditioner 1 or the control device 100 according to the present invention. It is also possible.

A method of distributing such a program is arbitrary, and for example, a computer-readable record such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disk ROM), a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), an MO (Magneto Optical Disk), or a memory card. It may be stored in a medium and distributed, or may be distributed via a communication network such as the Internet.

The present invention allows various embodiments and modifications without departing from the broad spirit and scope of the present invention. Further, the above-described embodiments are for explaining the present invention and do not limit the scope of the present invention. That is, the scope of the present invention is shown not by the embodiments but by the claims. Various modifications made within the scope of the claims and within the scope of the meaning of the invention equivalent thereto are regarded as within the scope of the present invention.

The present invention can be applied to an air conditioner.

1 air conditioner, 3 house, 11 outdoor unit, 13 indoor unit, 21 compressor, 22 four-way valve, 23 outdoor heat exchanger, 24, 26 expansion valve, 25 indoor heat exchanger, 25a, 25b heat exchanger, 31 outdoor Blower, 33a, 33b Indoor blower, 41 Temperature sensor, 42 Humidity sensor, 43 Infrared sensor, 51, 51a, 51b Outdoor unit control unit, 53 Indoor unit control unit, 55 Remote controller, 61 Refrigerant piping, 63 Communication line, 71 Indoor Space, 72 outdoor space, 75 windows, 100 control device, 101 control unit, 102 storage unit, 103 timing unit, 104 communication unit, 110 air conditioning unit, 130 display unit, 131 tendency information, 132 operation mode information, 133 determination information, 134 control information, 150 history information, 510 acquisition unit, 520 estimation unit, 530 determination unit, 540 air conditioning control unit, 550 notification unit, 560 information updating unit, 570 learning unit, 580 correction unit, N communication network, S air conditioning system

In order to achieve the above object, the air conditioner according to the present invention,
And the air conditioning means for air conditioning the air conditioning space,
An acquisition unit that acquires load information about a sensible heat load and a latent heat load of the air-conditioned space caused by a difference between the environment of the air-conditioned space and the environment of an external space that is outside the air-conditioned space,
In accordance with the load information acquired by the acquisition means, a cooling mode in which the air conditioning means cools the air-conditioned space, a first dehumidification mode in which the air conditioning means dehumidifies the air-conditioned space, and the first dehumidification A second dehumidifying mode in which the air conditioning means dehumidifies the air-conditioned space with a sensible heat capacity smaller than the mode; and an air conditioning control means for switching the operation mode between the second dehumidifying mode ,
The air conditioning control means,
In the case where the latent heat load is larger than a first latent heat threshold value, when the sensible heat load becomes smaller than a first sensible heat threshold value while the air conditioning unit is air-conditioning the air-conditioned space in the cooling mode, Switching the operation mode to the first dehumidification mode,
In the case where the latent heat load is larger than the first latent heat threshold value, the sensible heat load is greater than the first sensible heat threshold value when the air conditioning unit is conditioning the air-conditioned space in the first dehumidifying mode. When it becomes smaller than the second sensible heat threshold that is also smaller, the operation mode is switched to the second dehumidification mode .

According to the present invention, it obtains the load information about the sensible heat load and latent heat load of the conditioned space resulting from the difference between the environment of the environment and the external space of the conditioned space, switching the OPERATION mode according to the acquired load information. Therefore, the comfort in the air-conditioned space can be improved.

Claims (11)

A compressor that circulates a refrigerant pipe by compressing a refrigerant, a heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between the air in the air-conditioned space and the refrigerant that circulates in the refrigerant pipe, and the air in the air-conditioned space as the heat exchanger. And an air-conditioning unit for air-conditioning the air-conditioned space,
An acquisition unit that acquires load information about a sensible heat load and a latent heat load of the air-conditioned space caused by a difference between the environment of the air-conditioned space and the environment of an external space that is outside the air-conditioned space,
According to the load information acquired by the acquisition means, a cooling mode for cooling the air-conditioned space by the air-conditioning means, a dehumidification mode for dehumidifying the air-conditioned space by the air-conditioning means, and a ventilation by the blower are not stopped. A ventilation mode for stopping the compressor, and an air-conditioning control means for switching the operation mode between
Air conditioner. In the case where the latent heat load is larger than a first latent heat threshold value, the air conditioning control means may set the sensible heat load to a first sensible heat threshold value while the air conditioning means is air-conditioning the air-conditioned space in the cooling mode. When it is smaller than the above, the operation mode is switched to the dehumidification mode,
The air conditioner according to claim 1. In the case where the latent heat load is larger than the first latent heat threshold value, the air conditioning control means is configured such that the sensible heat load is the first sensible heat load when the air conditioning means is air conditioning the air conditioned space in the dehumidifying mode. When it becomes smaller than the second sensible heat threshold smaller than the heat threshold, the operation mode is switched to the second dehumidification mode having a smaller sensible heat capacity than the dehumidification mode,
The air conditioner according to claim 2. In the case where the latent heat load is larger than the first latent heat threshold value, the air conditioning control means may determine that the sensible heat load is equal to the sensible heat load when the air conditioning means is air conditioning the air conditioned space in the second dehumidification mode. When it becomes smaller than the third sensible heat threshold smaller than the second sensible heat threshold of 2, the compressor is stopped,
The air conditioner according to claim 3. In the case where the latent heat load is smaller than a second latent heat threshold value, the air conditioning control means sets the sensible heat load to a fourth sensible heat threshold value while the air conditioning means is air-conditioning the air-conditioned space in the cooling mode. When it becomes smaller than the above, the operation mode is switched to the blower mode,
The air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 4. In the case where the sensible heat load is smaller than the fourth sensible heat threshold value, the air conditioning control means causes the latent heat load to be the first latent heat when the air conditioning means is air-conditioning the air-conditioned space in the air blowing mode. When it becomes larger than a threshold value, the operation mode is switched to the dehumidification mode,
The air conditioner according to claim 5. Further comprising an estimation means for estimating the sensible heat load and the latent heat load based on the load information acquired by the acquisition means,
The air conditioning control unit switches the operation mode according to the sensible heat load and the latent heat load estimated by the estimation unit,
The air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 6. The estimating means estimates the sensible heat load and the latent heat load after a specified time from the present time, based on a change tendency of the heat load in a period before the present time,
The air conditioning control means switches the operation mode according to the sensible heat load and the latent heat load after a predetermined time from the present time, which is estimated by the estimating means.
The air conditioner according to claim 7. A compressor that circulates a refrigerant pipe by compressing a refrigerant, a heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between the air in the air-conditioned space and the refrigerant that circulates in the refrigerant pipe, and the air in the air-conditioned space as the heat exchanger. And a blower for sending to the air conditioner, which is a control device for controlling an air conditioner for air conditioning the air-conditioned space,
An acquisition unit that acquires load information about a sensible heat load and a latent heat load of the air-conditioned space caused by a difference between the environment of the air-conditioned space and the environment of an external space that is outside the air-conditioned space,
According to the load information acquired by the acquisition means, a cooling mode in which the air conditioner cools the air-conditioned space, a dehumidification mode in which the air conditioner dehumidifies the air-conditioned space, and the air blow by the blower is not stopped. A ventilation mode for stopping the compressor, and an air-conditioning control means for switching the operation mode between
Control device. A compressor that circulates a refrigerant pipe by compressing a refrigerant, a heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between the air in the air-conditioned space and the refrigerant that circulates in the refrigerant pipe, and the air in the air-conditioned space as the heat exchanger. And an air blower for sending air to the air-conditioned space,
Obtaining load information regarding the sensible heat load and latent heat load of the air-conditioned space caused by the difference between the environment of the air-conditioned space and the environment of the external space that is outside the air-conditioned space,
According to the acquired load information, between a cooling mode for cooling the air-conditioned space, a dehumidification mode for dehumidifying the air-conditioned space, and a blowing mode for stopping the compressor without stopping blowing by the blower. To switch the operation mode,
Air conditioning method. A compressor that circulates a refrigerant pipe by compressing a refrigerant, a heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between the air in the air-conditioned space and the refrigerant that circulates in the refrigerant pipe, and the air in the air-conditioned space as the heat exchanger. And a computer for controlling an air conditioner for air-conditioning the air-conditioned space,
An acquisition unit that acquires load information about a sensible heat load and a latent heat load of the air-conditioned space caused by a difference between the environment of the air-conditioned space and the environment of an external space outside the air-conditioned space,
According to the load information acquired by the acquisition means, a cooling mode in which the air conditioner cools the air-conditioned space, a dehumidification mode in which the air conditioner dehumidifies the air-conditioned space, and the air blow by the blower is not stopped. A blower mode for stopping the compressor, and an air conditioning control means for switching the operation mode between,
program.

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