KR101596680B1 - Air-conditioner and method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an air conditioner and a control method thereof. An outdoor unit comprises: a power connection unit to which three-phase alternating current power is inputted; a noise filter which filters the alternating current power supplied through the power connection unit; an inverter which converts and supplies the alternating current power to a compressor; a phase control unit which is connected to the noise filter and controls any one phase power of three-phase power; a power supply unit (SMPS) which is connected to the phase control unit and generates direct current power from the alternating current power; and a control unit which is operated by the direct current power of the power supply unit and controls driving of the outdoor unit, wherein the phase control unit is configured to block the power supplied to the power supply unit and the control unit when the outdoor unit enters a standby mode. Accordingly, standby power is blocked through a simple circuit configuration in a control circuit in the outdoor unit, a standby power reduction effect according thereto is high, and there is an effect of improving energy efficiency of a product.

Description

[0001] Air conditioner and method [0002]

The present invention relates to an air conditioner and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to an air conditioner and a control method thereof for improving energy efficiency by reducing standby power consumed when an air conditioner is stopped.

The air conditioner is installed to provide a comfortable indoor environment for humans by discharging cold air to the room to adjust the room temperature and purify the room air to create a pleasant indoor environment. Generally, the air conditioner includes an indoor unit which is constituted by a heat exchanger and installed in a room, and an outdoor unit which is constituted by a compressor, a heat exchanger and the like and supplies the refrigerant to the indoor unit.

Such an air conditioner is controlled by being separated and controlled by an indoor unit constituted by a heat exchanger, an outdoor unit constituted by a compressor, a heat exchanger and the like, and operated by controlling a power source supplied to a compressor or a heat exchanger. Also, at least one indoor unit may be connected to the outdoor unit, and the air conditioner is operated in the cooling or heating mode by supplying the refrigerant to the indoor unit according to the requested operation state.

When the liquid refrigerant of high temperature and high pressure is supplied from the compressor of the outdoor unit to the indoor unit through the heat exchanger of the outdoor unit during the cooling operation, the refrigerant expands and vaporizes in the heat exchanger of the indoor unit, When the temperature of the air is lowered and the indoor fan is rotated, the cool air is discharged into the room. When the gas refrigerant of high temperature and high pressure is supplied from the compressor of the outdoor unit to the indoor unit during the heating operation, the gas refrigerant of high temperature and high pressure is liquefied in the heat exchanger of the indoor unit The air warmed by the released energy is discharged to the room according to the operation of the indoor fan.

Such an air conditioner consumes a large amount of power, which is consumed in an indoor unit and an outdoor unit, and a method for reducing power consumption is being sought. As part of that, the air conditioner includes a configuration for reducing the standby power consumed while the operation is stopped.

In order to reduce the standby power, the conventional air conditioner includes a magnet switch in the outdoor unit to which the power is supplied to control the switch in the standby power state to reduce the standby power by shutting off the supply of some power.

However, such a magnet switch has many defects, and the demand for AS service is increasing due to frequent failure. Therefore, there is a problem that the standby power reduction effect of the air conditioner is small, but the service cost increases and the user dissatisfaction rises.

Also, even in the case of an air conditioner equipped with a magnet switch, the measured standby power level does not reach the recent standby power regulation level, so a new method for reducing standby power must be sought.

An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner that detects when the air conditioner is in the standby mode and controls one of the phase power sources through phase control connected to the noise filter to shut off the power of the outdoor unit, The present invention relates to an air conditioner and a control method thereof.

An air conditioner according to the present invention includes at least one indoor unit and an outdoor unit connected to the indoor unit, and discharges cold air into the indoor space. The outdoor unit includes a power connection unit to which three-phase AC power is input; An indoor unit connection unit connected to the power connection unit to supply power to the indoor unit; A noise filter for filtering the AC power supplied through the power connection unit; An inverter for converting the AC power and supplying the AC power to the compressor; A top control unit connected to the noise filter and controlling one of the three phase power sources; A power supply unit (SMPS) connected to the phase control unit and generating a DC power from an AC power source; And a main controller for controlling the operation of the outdoor unit, the control unit receiving the control signal from the indoor unit through the indoor unit connection unit when the outdoor unit enters the standby mode, The power supply unit and the main control unit are shut off and when the control signal is received from the indoor unit through the indoor unit connection unit in a state where the main control unit stops operating during standby mode, Is supplied.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control method of an air conditioner including at least one indoor unit and an outdoor unit connected to the indoor unit, wherein when the air conditioner enters a standby mode, Transmitting a control signal according to entrance to an indoor unit connection unit of the outdoor unit; Receiving a control signal from a top control unit connected to the indoor unit connection unit; Turning off the switch of the phase control unit in response to the control signal to shut off the power supplied to the power supply unit and the main control unit of the outdoor unit; Maintaining the outdoor unit in a standby mode by shutting off power; A step in which when the control signal for starting operation from the indoor unit to the upper control unit is input, the upper control unit turns on the switch to supply power to the power supply unit and the main control unit; And the main control unit operates to start the operation of the outdoor unit.

The air conditioner and the control method according to the present invention configured as described above are capable of interrupting the standby power through a simple circuit configuration in the control circuit in the outdoor unit and thus increasing the standby power reduction effect, It is effective.

1 is a view showing a configuration of an air conditioner according to the present invention.
2 is a block diagram illustrating an outdoor unit configuration of an air conditioner according to the present invention.
3 is a view illustrating a configuration for interrupting the standby power of the air conditioner according to the present invention.
4 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration according to power connection of the air conditioner according to the present invention.
5 is a flowchart showing a control method for interrupting the standby power of the air conditioner according to the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The advantages and features of the present invention, and the manner of achieving them, will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. To fully disclose the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art, and the invention is only defined by the scope of the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout the specification.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 is a view showing a configuration of an air conditioner according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the air conditioner includes at least one indoor unit 20 and an outdoor unit 10 connected to the indoor unit.

And a remote controller (not shown) connected to the indoor unit 20 for transmitting data and displaying information on the operation state. The air conditioner may further include a remote controller (not shown) for collectively controlling a plurality of indoor units at a time when a plurality of indoor units 20 are provided.

The air conditioner may include a plurality of outdoor units, and may be classified into a ceiling type, a stand type, a wall type, and the like depending on the installation type. The air conditioner may further include units such as a ventilating unit, an air purifying unit, a humidifying unit, a dehumidifying unit, and a heater as well as an outdoor unit and an indoor unit, but a description thereof will be omitted below.

The indoor unit 20 includes an expansion valve (not shown) for expanding the refrigerant supplied from the connected outdoor unit 10, an indoor heat exchanger (not shown) for exchanging the refrigerant, indoor air introduced into the indoor heat exchanger, (Not shown) for exposing the indoor unit, a plurality of sensors (not shown), and control means (not shown) for controlling the operation of the indoor unit. The indoor unit 20 includes a discharge port (not shown) for discharging the heat-exchanged air, and the discharge port is provided with a wind direction adjusting unit (not shown) for closing the discharge port and controlling the direction of the discharged air. The indoor unit controls the intake air and the air to be discharged by controlling the rotation speed of the indoor fan, and adjusts the air flow rate. The indoor unit may further include human body sensing means for sensing a human body present in the indoor space as the case may be. The indoor unit 20 may further include an output unit for displaying an operation status and setting information of the indoor unit, and an input unit for inputting setting data.

The outdoor unit 10 operates in a cooling mode or a heating mode in response to a request of the connected indoor unit 20 or a control command of the remote controller, and supplies the refrigerant to a plurality of indoor units.

The outdoor unit 10 includes at least one compressor (not shown) for compressing the refrigerant introduced therein and discharging the gas refrigerant at a high pressure, a gas cooler for separating the gas refrigerant and the liquid refrigerant from the refrigerant, An oil separator (not shown) for recovering oil from the refrigerant discharged from the compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger (not shown) for condensing or evaporating the refrigerant by heat exchange with the outside air, an outdoor heat exchanger An outdoor fan (not shown) for introducing air into the outdoor heat exchanger and discharging the heat-exchanged air to the outside, a four-way valve (not shown) for changing the flow path of the refrigerant according to the operation mode of the outdoor unit, At least one pressure sensor (not shown), at least one temperature sensor (not shown) for measuring the temperature, a controller for controlling the operation of the outdoor unit, And a control configuration to be performed. The outdoor unit further includes a plurality of sensors, valves, supercooling units and the like, and a description thereof will be omitted below.

2 is a block diagram illustrating an outdoor unit configuration of an air conditioner according to the present invention.

2, the outdoor unit 10 includes a power connection unit 161 to which operation power is supplied from the outside, a noise filter 120 to filter the supplied power, a compressor 140, an operation power source for driving the compressor, An indoor unit connection unit 162 for supplying power to the indoor unit, an SMPS 180, a phase control unit 170, and a main control unit 150. [

The outdoor unit 10 further includes an inverter, an inverter control circuit, and the like for driving the outdoor fan, and includes a plurality of valves, switches, and a plurality of sensors. The description of the other components will be omitted.

The power connection unit 161 receives the commercial power supplied through the connector (not shown) and the three-phase AC power. In this case, the input AC power is the power of each phase of R, S, T, N, and each phase power is transmitted to each configuration as operating power of the air conditioner.

The power connection unit 161 is connected to the indoor unit connection unit 162 and the noise filter 120.

The indoor unit connector 162 is a connector for supplying the supplied power to the indoor unit. The indoor unit 20 is connected to the indoor unit connection unit 162 of the outdoor unit 10 and receives power from the indoor unit connection unit 162. In this case, depending on the type of the indoor unit 20, the power connection mode may be changed and may be directly connected to a commercial power source in some cases.

The noise filter 120 may include a configuration for filtering the supplied power source and preventing damage to the air conditioner due to an overcurrent or a low voltage exceeding a predetermined level.

The phase control unit 170 is connected to the noise filter 120 to control any one of the three phases. The phase control unit 170 is connected to the indoor unit connection unit 162 and operates according to a control signal received from the indoor unit 20 to control any one of the three phases of the noise filter 120 accordingly.

At this time, the phase controller 170 may detect whether there is a mis-connection with respect to any phase of the three phase power supplies supplied to the inverter 130 through the noise filter 120. In addition, a separate false-wire detection configuration may be further included.

The inverter 130 includes an inverter driving circuit. The inverter 130 receives power supplied through the noise filter 120, generates a compressor operation power for driving the motor of the compressor 140 under the control of the inverter drive circuit, and drives the compressor 140.

The compressor (140) controls the refrigerant circulating through the outdoor unit and the indoor unit. When the low temperature gas refrigerant flows into the indoor unit, the compressor 140 compresses the refrigerant and discharges the high temperature gas refrigerant. The refrigerant discharged from the compressor 140 flows into the indoor unit, and the indoor unit operates according to the cooling or heating operation setting to discharge the cold or warm air to the room. The refrigerant discharged from the indoor unit flows into the compressor (140) of the outdoor unit (10) and circulates.

A Switching Mode Power Supply (SMPS) 180 converts AC power of three phases into DC power of a predetermined magnitude. The SMPS 180 rectifies and smoothes the three-phase AC power to generate a stable DC voltage of a constant voltage. The DC power is supplied to the main controller 150.

The main control unit 150 receives the DC power from the SMPS 180 and controls the overall operation of the outdoor unit 10. [ The main control unit 150 communicates with the indoor unit 162 and controls the inverter 130 and the compressor 140 according to the setting and controls the outdoor fan (not shown) and the valve so that the outdoor unit is operated in the cooling or heating mode do.

At this time, when the outdoor unit is switched to the standby mode, the main control unit 150 senses this, and the power is supplied or cut off by the upper control unit 170, and the operation is stopped in the standby mode.

The operation of the SMPS or the like including the main control unit stops in the standby mode, thereby reducing the consumption of the standby power.

3 is a view illustrating a configuration for interrupting the standby power of the air conditioner according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the phase control unit 170 for the standby power cut-off includes a relay 171 connected to one of the noise filters. Other types of switches other than the relay 171 may be used.

The phase control unit 170 is connected to the T phase of the three phases of the noise filter 120. The phase control unit 170 is connected to the T phase and the N phase and operates to interrupt standby power.

The upper controller 170 is connected to the SMPS 180 and the main controller 150 and the power supplied to the SMPS 180 and the main controller 150 is cut off when the upper controller 170 is switched.

The phase control unit 170 is connected to the indoor unit connection unit 162 through a connection line of the N phase, and the relay 171 is switched in accordance with a control signal input from the indoor unit 162, so that the T phase is connected or short-circuited.

When the standby mode is canceled and the operation is started while the phase control unit 170 is turned off and the power supply to the SMPS 180 and the main control unit 150 is shut off, The SMPS 180 operates when the switch is turned on and the main control unit 150 receives the control signal of the indoor unit 20 via the indoor unit connection unit 162 instead of the main control unit 150, DC power is supplied to the main control unit 150 so that the main control unit 150 operates normally.

4 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration according to power connection of the air conditioner according to the present invention. 4, the phase control unit 170 is connected to the Tt phase and the N phase of the three phases of the noise filter 120, and the branched T phase is coupled to the SMPS 180 and the main And is connected to the control unit 150.

The relay 171 of the phase control unit 170 has a first terminal connected to the N phase of the noise filter 120, a second terminal connected to the T phase of the noise filter, a first terminal connected to the coil of the relay And the third terminal, which is the other end, is connected to the indoor unit connecting portion 162. The second terminal is connected to the switch of the relay 171 and the other terminal is connected to the SMPS 180 and the main control unit 150. At this time, the SMPS 180 and the main control unit 150 are connected to the N phase and the T phase through the fourth terminal.

As described above, power is supplied or cut off by the switching of the topology control unit 170 as the SMPS 180 and the main control unit 150 are connected to the branched T via the topology control unit 170. At this time, the inverter 130 is configured to receive three-phase AC power regardless of the phase controller 170.

The SMPS 180 is connected to the T phase and the N phase to generate a DC voltage of 5 V and 15 V and supplies the generated DC voltage to the main control unit 150. When the T phase is interrupted by the phase control unit 170, The DC power supplied to the main control unit 150 is also shut off.

The main control unit 150 is supplied with power and controls the operation of the outdoor unit while the outdoor unit 10 is operating. At this time, since the main control unit 150 is connected to the indoor unit 20 through the indoor unit connection unit 162, the main control unit 150 receives operation stop data or data for entering the standby mode in response to the data received from the indoor unit 20. [

In this case, when the outdoor unit is switched to the standby mode, the power supplied to the main control unit 150 is cut off and the main control unit 150 stops operating as described above. Thus, in the standby mode, Can not be controlled. Therefore, the main controller 170 operates in accordance with the control signal of the indoor unit 20 in the standby mode to switch the main controller I50.

5 is a flowchart showing a control method for interrupting the standby power of the air conditioner according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the operation of the air conditioner is stopped and there is no further operation, the indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 enter the standby mode (S310).

For example, when a new operation command is not input for a predetermined time or more after the operation is stopped, or when a new operation based on a schedule or the like is not set, the apparatus can enter the standby mode.

At this time, when a new operation is inputted before the lapse of time, or when there is a schedule set to start before the lapse of time, the indoor unit and the outdoor units 10 and 20 do not enter the standby mode, (S320).

On the other hand, when the indoor unit 20 does not operate for a predetermined time or longer and enters the standby mode, the indoor unit 20 transmits a signal according to the entering of the standby mode to the outdoor unit 10.

The outdoor unit 10 receives the control signal of the indoor unit 20 through the indoor unit connection unit 162 (S330). The phase control unit 170 turns off the relay as a switch in response to the control signal.

The main control unit 150 stops all operations of the outdoor unit upon receiving the control signal in accordance with the entering of the standby mode, and stores data such as operation data before entering the standby mode. Although the outdoor unit is in a stopped state, a predetermined preparation operation can be performed for the next operation, so that the main control unit controls all operations to be stopped.

Also, since the indoor unit connection unit 162 is connected to the upper control unit 170 and the main control unit 150, the main control unit 150 receives the control signal according to the transition to the standby mode of the indoor unit and confirms that the outdoor unit is switched to the standby mode .

The phase control unit 170 turns off the relay 171 according to the control signal of the indoor unit.

The supply of power to the SMPS 180 connected to the phase control unit 170 and the main control unit 150 is interrupted. As the main control unit 150 stops operating, the outdoor unit 10 stops operating and the power is shut off (S350).

When the outdoor unit enters the standby mode (S360), the standby power is consumed. Since the power to the SMPS 180 and the main control unit 150 are cut off, the SMPS 180 and the main control unit 150 consume The standby power is not consumed.

For example, when the standby power consumed in the conventional outdoor unit is about 6.21 WH, there is a standby power consumption of about 3.49 WH in the conventional erroneous wiring portion. Since the present invention does not have a separate erroneous wiring portion, The power is reduced. Further, by controlling the standby power by setting the phase control unit, standby power of 0.96 WH of the main control unit and 0.93 WH of the SMPS is reduced as well as 3.39 WH of the miswiring circuit unit.

On the other hand, when the operation setting is inputted to the indoor unit 20 and the air conditioner starts to operate again, the indoor unit 20 applies the control signal according to the start of operation through the indoor unit connection unit 162.

Accordingly, the phase control unit 170 operates the relay 171. As the relay is switched, power is supplied to the SMPS 180 and the main control unit 150, and the main control unit 150 receives the data, and the outdoor unit starts operating.

Therefore, the present invention has the effect of cutting off standby power through a simple topology configuration and thus saving energy.

The present invention is not necessarily limited to these embodiments, as all the constituent elements constituting the embodiment of the present invention are described as being combined and operated in one. Within the scope of the present invention, depending on the embodiment, all of the components may operate selectively in combination with one or more.

All of the components may be implemented as one independent hardware, but a part or all of the components may be selectively combined to provide a computer having a program module that performs some or all of the functions combined in one or a plurality of hardware May be implemented as a program.

The foregoing description is merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present invention and various changes and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention.

10: outdoor unit 20: indoor unit
120: Noise filter 130: Inverter
140: compressor 150: main controller
161: power connection part 162: indoor unit connection part
170: Phase control unit 171: Relay
180: SMPS

Claims (15)

1. An air conditioner comprising: at least one indoor unit; and an outdoor unit connected to the indoor unit,
Wherein the outdoor unit includes: a power connection unit to which three-phase AC power is input;
An indoor unit connection unit connected to the power connection unit to supply power to the indoor unit;
A noise filter for filtering the AC power supplied through the power connection unit;
An inverter for converting the AC power and supplying the AC power to the compressor;
A top control unit connected to the noise filter and controlling one of the three phase power sources;
A power supply unit (SMPS) connected to the phase control unit and generating a DC power from an AC power source; And
And a main control unit operating with the DC power source of the power supply unit and controlling the operation of the outdoor unit,
Wherein the control unit receives a control signal from the indoor unit through the indoor unit connection unit to shut off the power supplied to the power supply unit and the main control unit when the outdoor unit enters the standby mode,
Wherein power is supplied to the power supply unit and the main control unit when a control signal is received from the indoor unit through the indoor unit connection unit in a state where the main control unit stops operating during a standby mode. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the phase control unit includes at least one switch for switching supply of any one of the three phase AC power supplies. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the switch is a relay. 3. The method of claim 2,
And the phase control unit is connected to the T phase of the three-phase AC power source. The method of claim 3,
The phase control unit has a first terminal connected to the N-phase of the noise filter and connected to the coil of the relay, the other terminal of the first terminal connected to the indoor unit,
Wherein the second terminal is connected to the switch of the relay and the fourth terminal of the second terminal is connected to the power supply unit and the main control unit. 5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the power supply unit (SMPS) generates at least two DC power sources having a different magnitude from the T phase power supplied through the topology control unit and supplies the DC power to the main control unit. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the main control unit receives data from the indoor unit through the indoor unit connection unit. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein when the control signal is received from the indoor unit, the top control unit turns on the switch to supply power to the power supply unit and the main control unit. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the main control unit is operated by a power source supplied from the power supply unit and controls the outdoor unit to start operation according to data received through the indoor unit connection unit. A control method for an air conditioner including at least one indoor unit and an outdoor unit connected to the indoor unit,
When the air conditioner enters the standby mode, transmitting the control signal according to the entry of the indoor unit into the standby mode to the indoor unit connection unit of the outdoor unit
Receiving a control signal from a top control unit connected to the indoor unit connection unit;
Turning off the switch of the phase control unit in response to the control signal to shut off the power supplied to the power supply unit and the main control unit of the outdoor unit;
Maintaining the outdoor unit in a standby mode by shutting off power;
A step in which when the control signal for starting operation from the indoor unit to the upper control unit is input, the upper control unit turns on the switch to supply power to the power supply unit and the main control unit; And
And the main control unit operates to start the outdoor unit. 11. The method of claim 10,
Wherein the main control unit is turned off when the upper control unit is switched off. 11. The method of claim 10,
And when the control signal is received from the indoor unit, the main control unit stores data corresponding to the control signal and causes the outdoor unit to stop all operations. 11. The method of claim 10,
Wherein the phase control unit is connected to a T phase power supply among three phases of AC power to supply or cut off the T phase power supplied to the power supply unit and the main control unit. delete 11. The method of claim 10,
Further comprising the step of, when the operation setting is input to the indoor unit and the operation is restarted, a control signal for starting the operation is applied from the indoor unit to the upper control unit through the indoor unit connection unit.

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