KR20090043714A - Air conditioner and method for controlling of it - Google Patents

Abstract

The air conditioner according to the present invention includes a housing, a front panel movably installed on the front of the housing, a panel moving device for moving the front panel, and an airflow guide part provided on the side of the front panel. An air discharge port for discharging air is exposed between the housing and the front panel when advancing, and guides the air discharged from the airflow guide to the front of the front panel. The air conditioner according to the present invention can adjust the discharge angle of the discharge air by adjusting the open position of the front panel without the air inlet and the air discharge port is exposed to the front.

Air conditioner, front panel, panel moving device, air outlet, airflow guide part

Description

Air conditioner and method for controlling it

The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more particularly, to an air conditioner in which a front panel is retractably installed on a front surface of a housing and a control method thereof.

In general, an air conditioner is a device that harmonizes indoor air by inhaling indoor air and cooling or heating or purifying the sucked air and then discharging the air back into the room. The air conditioner is provided with an air inlet for sucking air and an air discharge port for discharging the air in a housing forming the exterior. A heat exchanger and / or a filtering device for conditioning air and a blower for blowing air are provided inside the housing.

Such an air conditioner is classified into a wall-hung type fixed to a wall surface, a ceiling type installed on an indoor ceiling, a stand type standing on an indoor floor, and the like according to an installation position thereof. And, each air conditioner is provided with an air inlet and an air outlet at an appropriate position according to its shape and installation position.

In recent years, air conditioners have been greatly influenced not only by air conditioning performance but also by exterior design, and manufacturers are making various efforts to improve exterior design while maintaining air conditioning performance. In order to improve the appearance design luxuriously and beautifully, it is necessary to make the air inlet and the air outlet less visible. This is because if the air inlet and the air outlet are well exposed to the outside, the mechanical image is highlighted and the aesthetics of the product are inferior.

Korean Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2007-44294 (published on April 27, 2007) discloses a stand type air conditioner in which the air inlet and the air outlet are not easily exposed from the front of the housing.

In the stand type air conditioner disclosed in the above publication, air inlets are provided at both lower sides of the housing, and the air discharge ports are provided at both the upper front side and the upper both sides of the housing. Since the air inlet and the air outlet are installed at both sides of the housing, the air inlet and the air outlet are hardly visible from the front of the housing. In addition, the upper front of the housing is provided with a sliding door that can open and close the air outlet of the front side when the air conditioner does not operate the air outlet of the front is covered with the sliding door does not appear to the outside.

In the conventional air conditioner, the air discharge port of the front surface is exposed to the front while the sliding door is lowered during the operation of the air conditioner, and the discharge blade installed at the side air discharge port to guide the discharge air forward is exposed to the outside. do. Therefore, there is a problem in that the appearance change when the air conditioner is not operated and when it is operated is large, and the mechanical image is highlighted to reduce design quality.

In addition, a conventional air conditioner requires a blade motor for rotating the discharge blade because the discharge blade needs to rotate within a certain angle range to guide the discharge air. Therefore, there is a problem that it is difficult to guide the discharged air when the manufacturing cost rises and the blade motor malfunctions or breaks.

The present invention is to solve the above problems, there is almost no change in appearance when the air conditioner is not in operation and when operating and the air inlet and air outlet is not well exposed to the outside while improving the design quality, the discharge blade It is an object of the present invention to provide an air conditioner and a method of controlling the same, which can easily control the discharge angle of air without using the same.

An air conditioner according to the present invention for achieving the above object is a housing, a front panel movably installed on the front surface of the housing, a panel moving device for moving the front panel, and airflow provided on the side of the front panel And a guide part, wherein an air discharge port for discharging air is exposed between the housing and the front panel when the front panel is advanced, and guides the air discharged from the airflow guide part to the front of the front panel. .

In the air conditioner according to the present invention, the discharge direction of air through the air discharge port may be adjusted according to the open position of the front panel.

And, the open position of the front panel can be controlled in multiple stages.

In addition, the airflow guide portion may be formed in a shape inclined toward the front side of the front panel from the rear center side of the front panel.

In addition, the airflow guide portion may be made in a streamlined form.

In addition, an inner side wall of the housing adjacent to the airflow guide part may be provided to guide the discharged air toward the front of the housing.

In addition, the inner wall may be formed in a plane parallel to the flow direction of the air flowing toward the air discharge port in the interior of the housing.

On the other hand, the control method of the air conditioner according to the present invention for achieving the above object is installed on the front of the housing so that the front panel is movable and discharges air between the housing and the front panel when the front panel is advanced. A control method of an air conditioner in which an air discharge port is revealed, characterized in that for controlling the opening position of the front panel to control the discharge direction of the air discharged through the air discharge port.

Here, the open position of the front panel can be controlled in multiple stages.

In the air conditioner according to the present invention, the front panel is advanced toward the front of the housing, and the air inlet and the air outlet are exposed on the side, and the air flow guide part is provided on the side of the front panel to guide the airflow. The discharge angle of air can be adjusted. Therefore, the air conditioner according to the present invention is elegant in appearance and can control the discharge angle of air without a discharge blade.

Hereinafter, an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a housing 11 having an open front face, a blower 21 installed in a lower space inside the housing 11, and a housing. (11) A pair of heat exchangers (25) installed in the upper space therein, a front panel (31) installed on the front of the housing (11) so as to be movable back and forth, and a front panel (31) for moving. A panel moving device (41) (45).

The inner space of the housing 11 is partitioned into the lower blower installation chamber 12 and the upper heat exchanger installation chamber 13. The blower installation chamber 12 is provided with a blower 21 for sucking outside air into the blower installation chamber 12 and blowing the sucked air to the heat exchanger installation chamber 13. The blower 21 surrounds the blower fan 22, the fan motor 23 for rotating the blower fan 22, the fan motor 23, and the air sucked into the blower installation chamber 12 to exchange heat. And a fan housing 24 for guiding with (13). The rear side of the housing 11 is provided with a rear air inlet 14 for sucking outside air.

The front panel 31 is movably installed on the front surface of the housing 11, and the air discharge port 35 for discharging air between the housing 11 and the front panel 31 by moving the front panel 31 forward. Is revealed to the outside. The front panel 31 is moved in the front-rear direction by the first and second panel moving devices 41 and 45.

The first panel moving device 41 is installed in the blower installation chamber 12 to support the lower part of the front panel 31, and the second panel moving device 45 is installed in the heat exchanger installation chamber 13 and the front panel. Support the upper part of (31). The first panel shifting device 41 includes a first rack gear 42 coupled to a lower inner side of the front panel 31, a first pinion gear 43 geared to the first rack gear 42, and And a first motor 44 for rotating the first pinion gear 43. The first pinion gear 43 and the first motor 44 are installed in the installation block 15 installed in the blower installation chamber 12, and the first rack gear 42 is provided in the installation block 15. It is inserted into the slide groove 16 so as to be movable.

In addition, the second panel shifting device 45 includes a second rack gear 46 coupled to the upper side of the inner surface of the front panel 31, and a second pinion gear 47 geared to the second rack gear 46. And a second motor 48 for rotating the second pinion gear 47. The second pinion gear 47 and the second motor 48 are installed in the installation panel 17 provided in the heat exchanger installation chamber 13, and the second rack gear 46 is provided in the installation panel 17. It is inserted into the second slide groove 18 so as to be movable.

The first and second panel moving devices 41 and 45 are simultaneously operated by a control device (not shown) to move the front panel 31 at the same speed and at the same distance. The first and second panel shifters 41 and 45 are opened in a maximum position such that the front panel 31 is spaced apart from the housing 11 at maximum in a closed position in which the front panel 31 completely covers the front surface of the housing 11. Control the opening position of the front panel 31 to multiple positions. When the opening position of the front panel 31 is adjusted in multiple stages, it is possible to control the discharge direction of the air discharged from the heat exchanger installation chamber 13, which will be described in detail later.

In the present invention, the panel moving apparatuses 41 and 45 are not limited to the rack-pinion structure as described above, and various driving apparatuses capable of moving the front panel 31 in multiple stages within a predetermined distance are used. Can be.

Both lower sides of the front panel 31 are provided with side air suction holes 32 which are exposed to the outside when the front panel 31 is advanced to the front of the housing 11. The side air intake 32 enters the inside of the housing 11 when the front panel 31 moves to the closed position, and is exposed to the outside only when the front panel 31 moves to the open position. When the blower 21 is operated while the front panel 31 is moved to the open position, outside air passes through the rear air inlet 14 of the housing 11 and the side air inlet 32 of the front panel 31. Flow into the blower installation chamber (12).

Air flow guides 33 are provided at both upper sides of the front panel 31 to guide the heat-exchanged air to the front of the housing 11 while passing through the heat exchanger 25. The airflow guide portion 33 enters the housing 11 when the front panel 31 moves to the closed position, and is exposed to the side of the air conditioner when the front panel 31 moves to the open position. Therefore, in the front of the air conditioner, whether the front panel 31 is in the closed position or the open position, the airflow guide 33 is not exposed to the outside.

3 and 4, the airflow guide portion 33 has a shape inclined toward the front side of the front panel 31 from the rear center side of the front panel 31. The airflow guide part 33 having such a structure replaces a conventional discharge blade and may guide discharge air discharged from the heat exchanger installation chamber 13 to the front and side surfaces of the housing 11. These airflow guides 33 have a streamlined shape that is gently bent to guide the discharged air more smoothly.

An inner wall 19 extending in the front-rear direction inside both sides of the housing 11 adjacent to the airflow guide 33 to guide the discharged air together with the airflow guide 33 when the front panel 31 is opened. These are each provided. The inner wall 19 has a plane shape parallel to the discharge direction of air, unlike the airflow guide 33.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described the operation of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the air conditioner is not operated and the front panel 31 is in the closed position, the side air intake port 32 and the air discharge port 35 are not exposed to the outside, and the front panel 31 is Both airflow guides 33 are also located inside the housing 11.

On the other hand, when an operation command is applied to the air conditioner, the first and second panel moving devices 41 and 45 operate to move the front panel 31 to the front of the housing 11, and the heat exchanger 25 and Blower 21 is activated. When the front panel 31 is advanced to the front of the housing 11, as shown in Figure 5a, the air discharge port 35 is exposed to the outside on both sides between the housing 11 and the front panel 31. In addition, both side air inlets 32 of the front panel 31 are also exposed to the outside.

At this time, the outside air flows into the blower installation chamber 12 through the rear air inlet 14 (see FIG. 2) of the housing 11 and the air inlets 32 on both sides of the front panel 31. Then, the air introduced into the blower installation chamber 12 flows along the fan housing 24 to the heat exchanger installation chamber 13, and the air introduced into the heat exchanger installation chamber 13 passes through the heat exchanger 25. After the heat exchange while flowing toward the front panel (31). When the air in the heat exchanger installation chamber 13 flows through the heat exchanger 25, the airflow guide part 33 of the front panel 31 and the inner wall 19 of the housing 11 adjacent thereto discharge air. Guide it. Therefore, the air discharged through the air discharge port 35 between the housing 11 and the front panel 31 is discharged in the front direction inclined toward the front side and the side of the front panel 31.

On the other hand, Figure 5b shows a state in which the front panel 31 is moved to the maximum open position. At this time, the air passing through the heat exchanger 25 is guided by the airflow guide portion 33 of the front panel 31 and the inner wall 19 of the housing 11 adjacent thereto. When the front panel 31 is positioned at the maximum open position and the front panel 31 is positioned at the middle open position (FIG. 5A), the discharge air is affected by the airflow guide part 33 in the former case. You will receive more. Therefore, when the front panel 31 is positioned at the maximum open position, the discharged air is discharged more along the streamlined airflow guide portion 33 in the front direction inclined toward the side rather than in the front direction.

As described above, the air conditioner according to the present invention guides the air discharged from the airflow guide portions 33 provided on both side surfaces of the front panel 31, thereby controlling the opening position of the front panel 31 in multiple stages. The discharge direction of the discharge air can be variously adjusted without the discharge blade.

In addition, the air conditioner according to the present invention does not expose the air inlet 32 and the air outlet 35 to the outside in the front, and because the change in appearance when the air conditioner does not operate and when the operation is small, mechanical to the user It can give less image and give high quality image.

The air conditioner according to the present invention has been described above by taking a stand type air conditioner as an example, but the features of the present invention may be applied to a wall-mounted air conditioner or a ceiling type air conditioner.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a side cross-sectional view schematically showing an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a cross-sectional perspective view showing a part of a side of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 4 is a plan sectional view showing an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5A and 5B are cross-sectional views for explaining the operation of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

<Description of Signs of Major Parts of Drawings>

11 ... housing 12 ... blower installation room

13 ... heat exchanger compartment 14 ... rear air intake

15.Mounting block 17 ... Mounting panel

19 ... Inner wall 21 ... Blower

25 Heat exchanger 31 Front panel

32 Side air intake 33 Air flow guide

35.Air discharging outlet 41,45 ...

42,46 ... 1,2 rack gear 43,47 ... 1,2 pinion gear

44,48 ... 1,2 motors

Claims (9)

Housings, A front panel movably installed on the front of the housing; A panel moving device for moving the front panel; Including a airflow guide portion provided on the side of the front panel, And an air outlet for discharging air between the housing and the front panel when the front panel is advanced, and guides the air discharged from the airflow guide to the front of the front panel. The method of claim 1, The air conditioner characterized in that the discharge direction of the air through the air discharge port is adjusted according to the open position of the front panel. The method of claim 1, The open position of the front panel is characterized in that the air conditioner is controlled in multiple stages. The method of claim 1, The airflow guide unit is inclined toward the front side of the front panel from the rear center side of the front panel. The method of claim 4, wherein The airflow guide unit is characterized in that the air conditioner made of a streamline. The method of claim 1, And an inner wall at a side of the housing adjacent to the airflow guide part to guide the discharged air toward the front of the housing. The method of claim 6, And the inner wall has a plane parallel to a flow direction of air flowing toward the air discharge port in the housing. In the control method of the air conditioner is installed on the front of the housing so that the front panel is movable and the air outlet for discharging air between the housing and the front panel when the front panel is advanced, The control method of the air conditioner, characterized in that for controlling the opening direction of the air discharged through the air discharge port by controlling the open position of the front panel. The method of claim 8, Control method of the air conditioner, characterized in that for controlling the opening position of the front panel in multiple stages.

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