KR20110003770A - Air conditioner and method for detecting error of air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An air conditioner and a method for detecting the malfunction thereof are provided to reduce time and labor by automating the malfunction determination of an indoor expansion valve. CONSTITUTION: A method for detecting the malfunction of an air conditioner is as follows. An indoor expansion valve of an indoor unit is opened, and the piping temperature of the indoor unit is measured(S220). When the piping temperature is approached to target temperature, the opened indoor expansion valve is closed, and the piping temperature of the indoor unit is measured(S230). The piping temperature of the opened expansion valve is compared with the piping temperature of the closed expansion valve(S270).

Description

Air conditioner and method for detecting error of air conditioner

The present invention relates to an air conditioner and a failure determination method of an air conditioner, and more particularly, to an air conditioner and a failure determination method of an air conditioner for automatically determining a failure.

An air conditioner refers to an air conditioner that keeps air in a certain space in a comfortable state for human life. Such an air conditioner performs a function of absorbing heat in a predetermined space or releasing heat into the space to maintain the temperature and humidity of the space at an appropriate level. Such an air conditioner is essentially required for an indoor unit that absorbs heat or discharges heat into a space.

Various devices are constructed in the indoor unit, and in particular, an indoor expansion valve for throttling a refrigerant. In the related art, in order to determine a failure state of an indoor expansion valve, an expert monitors an operation state of an indoor unit to determine whether a valve is abnormal.

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an air conditioner and a method of determining the failure of the air conditioner automated automation of the failure detection of the indoor expansion valve relied only on experts.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner and a method for determining a failure of an air conditioner having high accuracy in determining a failure of an indoor expansion valve.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner and a method for determining a failure of an air conditioner that can automatically determine a failure of an indoor expansion valve during a heating and cooling operation.

The objects of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned objects, and other objects that are not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

In order to achieve the above object, the failure determination method of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, (a) the step of starting the operation by opening the indoor expansion valve of the indoor unit and measuring the pipe temperature of the indoor unit, the user (B) closing the open indoor expansion valve and measuring the pipe temperature of the indoor unit when the set target temperature is reached, and comparing the pipe temperature at the time of opening the expansion valve with the pipe temperature at the time of closing. Steps.

In order to achieve the above object, the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, an indoor heat exchanger, the refrigerant is heat-exchanged with the indoor air, an indoor expansion valve for connecting the indoor heat exchanger and throttling the refrigerant, An indoor temperature sensor for measuring a temperature, a pipe temperature sensor for measuring a temperature of a pipe connected to the indoor heat exchanger, and a temperature of the indoor air measured by the indoor temperature sensor after opening the indoor expansion valve to start operation And a control unit for closing the expansion valve when the user reaches a target temperature set by the user, wherein the control unit compares the temperature of the pipe at the time of opening of the expansion valve measured by the pipe temperature sensor with the temperature of the pipe at the time of closing.

Specific details of other embodiments are included in the detailed description and the drawings.

According to the air conditioner and the failure determination method of the air conditioner of the present invention has one or more of the following effects.

First, there is an advantage of reducing the waste of time and manpower by automating the determination of the failure of the indoor expansion valve of the air conditioner, which was relying only on experts.

Second, there is an advantage of improving the accuracy of the determination of the failure of the indoor expansion valve of the air conditioner, depending on the skill of the expert.

Third, there is an advantage that can automatically determine the failure of the indoor expansion valve during normal air conditioning operation of the air conditioner.

The effects of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned effects, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description of the claims.

Advantages and features of the present invention and methods for achieving them will be apparent with reference to the embodiments described below in detail with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but can be implemented in various different forms, and only the embodiments make the disclosure of the present invention complete, and the general knowledge in the art to which the present invention belongs. It is provided to fully inform the person having the scope of the invention, which is defined only by the scope of the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings for explaining an air conditioner and a method for determining a failure of the air conditioner according to embodiments of the present invention.

1 is a block diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

An air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an outdoor unit (OU) and an indoor unit (IU).

The outdoor unit OU includes a compressor 110, an outdoor heat exchanger 140, an outdoor expansion valve 132, and a supercooler 180. The air conditioner may include one or a plurality of outdoor units (OUs).

The compressor 110 compresses the low temperature low pressure refrigerant into the high temperature high pressure refrigerant. The compressor 110 may be applied in various structures, and an inverter type compressor or a constant speed compressor may be adopted. The discharge temperature sensor 171 and the discharge pressure sensor 151 are installed on the discharge pipe 161 of the compressor 110. In addition, a suction temperature sensor 175 and a suction pressure sensor 154 are installed on the suction pipe 162 of the compressor 110.

The outdoor unit OU includes one compressor 110, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The outdoor unit OU may include a plurality of compressors, and may include an inverter type compressor and a constant speed compressor.

An accumulator 187 may be installed in the suction pipe 162 of the compressor 110 to prevent the liquid refrigerant from flowing into the compressor 110. An oil separator 113 may be installed in the discharge pipe 161 of the compressor 110 to recover oil from the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110.

The four-way valve 160 is a flow path switching valve for cooling and heating switching, and guides the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 110 to the outdoor heat exchanger 140 during the cooling operation and to the indoor heat exchanger 120 during the heating operation. The four-way valve 160 is in the A state during the cooling operation and in the B state during the heating operation.

The outdoor heat exchanger 140 is disposed in an outdoor space, and the refrigerant passing through the outdoor heat exchanger 140 exchanges heat with outdoor air. The outdoor heat exchanger 140 acts as a condenser during the cooling operation and acts as an evaporator during the heating operation.

The outdoor expansion valve 132 throttles the refrigerant introduced during the heating operation, and is installed on the inlet pipe 166 connecting the liquid pipe 165 and the outdoor heat exchanger 140. In addition, a first bypass pipe 167 is installed on the inlet pipe 166 to allow the refrigerant to bypass the outdoor expansion valve 132, and a check valve 133 is installed on the first bypass pipe 167. do.

The check valve 133 flows the refrigerant from the outdoor heat exchanger 140 to the indoor unit IU during the cooling operation, but blocks the flow of the refrigerant during the heating operation.

The subcooler 180 includes a subcooled heat exchanger 184, a second bypass pipe 181, a subcooled expansion valve 182, and a discharge pipe 185. The subcooling heat exchanger 184 is disposed on the inlet pipe 166. During the cooling operation, the second bypass pipe 181 bypasses the refrigerant discharged from the subcooling heat exchanger 184 and performs a function of introducing the subcooled expansion valve 182 into the subcooling expansion valve 182.

 The subcooled expansion valve 182 is disposed on the second bypass pipe 181 to throttle the liquid refrigerant flowing into the second bypass pipe 181 to lower the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant, and then the heat exchanger for subcooling. (184). Various types of subcooled expansion valves 182 may be used, and linear expansion valves may be used for ease of use. The subcooled temperature sensor 183 is installed on the second bypass pipe 181 to measure the temperature of the refrigerant throttled by the subcooled expansion valve 182.

During the cooling operation, the condensed refrigerant passing through the outdoor heat exchanger 140 exchanges heat with the low temperature refrigerant introduced through the second bypass pipe 181 and the subcooled heat exchanger 184, and then flows to the indoor unit IU. do.

The refrigerant passing through the second bypass pipe 181 is introduced into the accumulator 187 through the discharge pipe 185 after heat exchange in the subcooled heat exchanger 184. The discharge pipe temperature sensor 178 which measures the temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the accumulator 187 is installed on the discharge pipe 185.

The liquid pipe temperature sensor 174 and the liquid pipe pressure sensor 156 are installed on the liquid pipe 165 connecting the subcooler 180 and the indoor unit IU.

In the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention, the indoor unit IU includes an indoor heat exchanger 120, an indoor blower 125, and an indoor expansion valve 131. The air conditioner may include one or a plurality of indoor units (IU).

The indoor heat exchanger 120 is disposed in an indoor space, and the refrigerant passing through the indoor heat exchanger 120 exchanges heat with indoor air. The indoor heat exchanger 120 acts as an evaporator during the cooling operation, and acts as a condenser during the heating operation. The indoor heat exchanger 120 is provided with an indoor temperature sensor 176 for measuring the indoor temperature.

The indoor expansion valve 131 is a device for condensing the refrigerant introduced during the cooling operation. The indoor expansion valve 131 is installed in the indoor inlet pipe 163 of the indoor unit IU. Various types of indoor expansion valves 131 may be used, and a linear expansion valve may be used for ease of use.

The indoor expansion valve 131 is opened at the set opening degree during the cooling operation, and is fully opened during the heating operation. The indoor expansion valve 131 may be closed during the blowing operation, in which the closing means not the physical full closure but the opening degree through which the refrigerant does not flow. The indoor expansion valve 131 may be closed or opened to determine whether the failure.

The indoor inlet pipe temperature sensor 173 is installed on the indoor inlet pipe 163. The indoor inlet pipe temperature sensor 173 may be installed between the indoor heat exchanger 120 and the indoor expansion valve 131. In addition, the indoor outlet pipe temperature sensor 172 is provided on the indoor outlet pipe 164.

The flow of the refrigerant during the cooling operation of the air conditioner described above is as follows.

The high temperature and high pressure gaseous refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 140 via the four-way valve 160. In the outdoor heat exchanger 140, the refrigerant is condensed by heat exchange with the outdoor air. The refrigerant flowing out of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 is introduced into the subcooler 180 through the fully open outdoor expansion valve 132 and the bypass pipe 133. The introduced refrigerant is subcooled in the subcooling heat exchanger 184 and then introduced into the indoor unit IU.

A portion of the subcooled refrigerant in the subcooled heat exchanger 184 is throttled in the subcooled expansion valve 182 to subcool the refrigerant passing through the subcooled heat exchanger 184. The subcooled heat exchanger 184 is introduced into the accumulator 187.

The refrigerant introduced into the indoor unit IU is throttled by the indoor expansion valve 131 opened at the set opening degree, and then heat exchanges with the indoor air in the indoor heat exchanger 120 to evaporate. The evaporated refrigerant is introduced into the compressor 110 through the four-way valve 160 and the accumulator 187.

The flow of the refrigerant during the heating operation of the air conditioner described above is as follows.

The high temperature and high pressure gaseous refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 flows into the indoor unit IU via the four-way valve 160. The indoor expansion valves 131 of the indoor unit IU are fully open. Therefore, the refrigerant flowing from the indoor unit IU is throttled by the outdoor expansion valve 132, and then heat exchanges with the outdoor air in the outdoor heat exchanger 140 to evaporate. The evaporated refrigerant is introduced into the suction pipe 162 of the compressor 110 through the four-way valve 160 and the accumulator 187.

2 is a block diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The indoor outlet pipe temperature sensor 172 measures the temperature of the refrigerant flowing out of the indoor heat exchanger 120. The indoor outlet pipe temperature sensor 172 is installed on the indoor outlet pipe 164.

The indoor inlet pipe temperature sensor 173 measures the temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger 120. The indoor inlet pipe temperature sensor 173 is installed on the indoor inlet pipe 163 connecting the indoor heat exchanger 120 and the indoor expansion valve 131.

The room temperature sensor 176 measures the temperature of the room air. The room temperature sensor 176 is installed in the indoor unit IU.

The controller 190 opens the indoor expansion valve 131 and starts operation, and closes the expansion valve when the temperature of the indoor air measured by the indoor temperature sensor 176 reaches a target temperature set by the user.

The controller 190 determines whether the indoor expansion valve 131 is broken based on the measured indoor unit piping temperature while opening and closing the indoor expansion valve 131. The indoor unit piping temperature is the temperature measured by the indoor outlet piping temperature sensor 172 or the indoor inlet piping temperature sensor 173. The indoor unit pipe temperature may be an average value of temperatures measured by the indoor outlet pipe temperature sensor 172 and the indoor inlet pipe temperature sensor 173.

The controller 190 determines whether the change in the indoor unit piping temperature is abnormal when the indoor expansion valve 131 is opened or closed. The controller 190 tracks the change in the indoor unit piping temperature from the open state to the closed state of the indoor expansion valve 131, and determines whether the indoor expansion valve 131 is broken by comparing with the normal state.

The controller 190 may determine whether the difference between the indoor unit piping temperature and the indoor air temperature difference is abnormal when the indoor expansion valve 131 is opened or closed. The controller 190 tracks the change in the difference between the indoor unit piping temperature and the indoor air temperature from the open state to the closed state and determines whether the indoor expansion valve 131 is broken by comparing with the normal state. do.

If the change in the indoor unit piping temperature is abnormal, the controller 190 preferably stores the data that the indoor expansion valve 131 is broken or warns the outside through the notification unit 193.

When the control unit 190 determines that the indoor expansion valve 131 is a failure, the notification unit 193 may visually display it externally or transmit it to another system.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a failure determination method of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The target temperature is set (S210), and the air conditioner starts the cooling operation (S220). The target temperature may be set by the user, or may be automatically set by the controller 190 according to the room temperature. In addition, when the target temperature is set in advance, step S210 may be omitted, and after the air conditioner starts operation (S220), the temperature may be set (S210).

The cooling operation is a general operation for cooling to the set target temperature. In the present embodiment, the cooling operation is started, but the heating operation may be started according to the embodiment. The cooling operation or the heating operation may be selected by the user, but the controller 190 may automatically select the target temperature by comparing with the room temperature.

When the cooling operation is started, the four-way valve 160 is in the A state, and the indoor expansion valve 131 is opened at the set opening degree. In the heating operation, the four-way valve 160 is in a B state, and the indoor expansion valve 131 is fully opened.

The controller 190 determines whether the room temperature reaches the set target temperature (S230). The indoor temperature sensor 176 determines whether the temperature of the indoor air reaches the set target temperature.

If the room temperature does not reach the set target temperature, the cooling operation is continued (S220). If the heating operation is started, the heating operation continues.

When the indoor temperature reaches the set target temperature, the controller 190 blows and drives the indoor unit IU (S240). When the indoor temperature reaches the set target temperature, the controller 190 closes the indoor expansion valve 131 and operates the indoor blower 125 to perform the blowing operation. In this case, the closing means not the physical full closing but the opening degree through which the refrigerant does not flow.

The controller 190 determines whether the indoor expansion valve 131 is broken (S250). The controller 190 determines whether the change in the indoor unit piping temperature is abnormal when the indoor expansion valve 131 is opened or closed. The controller 190 tracks the change in the indoor unit piping temperature from the open state to the closed state of the indoor expansion valve 131, and determines whether the indoor expansion valve 131 is broken by comparing with the normal state.

The controller 190 tracks the change in the difference between the indoor indoor pipe temperature and the indoor air temperature from the open state to the closed state, and determines whether the indoor expansion valve 131 is broken in comparison with the normal state. You can also judge.

If the indoor expansion valve 131 is a failure, the notification unit 193 informs it to the outside (S260). The notification unit 193 may visually or soundly indicate that the indoor expansion valve 131 is broken or transmit the same to another system.

If the indoor expansion valve 131 is not a failure, it is determined whether the set target temperature is lower than the room temperature (S270). If the set target temperature is lower than the room temperature, the blowing operation is continued (S240). If the set target temperature is higher than the room temperature, the cooling operation is started again (S220).

When the heating operation has been started, it is determined whether the set target temperature is higher than the room temperature (S270), and if the set target temperature is higher than the room temperature, the air blowing operation is continued (S240), and if the set target temperature is lower than the room temperature, the heating is performed again. Operation starts (S220).

4 is a view showing the temperature change according to the opening and closing of the indoor expansion valve in the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4A illustrates a change in the indoor unit piping temperature from the open state to the closed state when the indoor expansion valve 131 is opened during the cooling operation. The controller 190 determines whether the indoor expansion valve 131 operates normally by using the difference between the indoor unit pipe temperatures of the T1 and T2 sections.

4B illustrates a change in the indoor unit piping temperature from the open state to the closed state when the indoor expansion valve 131 is opened during the heating operation. The controller 190 determines whether the indoor expansion valve 131 operates normally by using the difference between the indoor unit pipe temperatures of the T1 and T2 sections.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be embodied in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the scope of the following claims rather than the detailed description, and all changes or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and the equivalent concept are included in the scope of the present invention. Should be interpreted.

1 is a block diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a block diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a failure determination method of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a view showing the temperature change according to the opening and closing of the indoor expansion valve in the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (10)

(A) opening the indoor expansion valve of the indoor unit to start operation and measuring a pipe temperature of the indoor unit; (B) closing the open indoor expansion valve and measuring a pipe temperature of the indoor unit when the target temperature set by the user is reached; (C) comparing the pipe temperature when the expansion valve is opened with the pipe temperature when the expansion valve is closed. The method of claim 1, The pipe temperature of the indoor unit is a failure determination method of the air conditioner is the outlet pipe temperature of the indoor unit. The method of claim 1, The pipe temperature of the indoor unit is a failure determination method of the air conditioner is the inlet pipe temperature of the indoor unit. The method of claim 1, And (d) informing the outside that the indoor expansion valve is out of order when the change in the pipe temperature is abnormal. The method of claim 1, In the step (a), the indoor expansion valve of the indoor unit is opened to perform a cooling operation, Step (b) is to close the indoor expansion valve of the indoor unit to perform a blowing operation, The step (c) is a failure determination method of the air conditioner for determining whether the pipe temperature when the expansion is increased by the normal value than the pipe temperature when opening the expansion valve. The method of claim 1, The step (a) is to open the indoor expansion valve of the indoor unit to perform a heating operation, Step (b) is to close the indoor expansion valve of the indoor unit to perform a blowing operation, The step (c) is a failure determination method of the air conditioner for determining whether the pipe temperature is lowered by the normal value when closing than the pipe temperature when opening the expansion valve. An indoor heat exchanger in which the refrigerant heat exchanges with the indoor air; An indoor expansion valve connected to the indoor heat exchanger to throttle the refrigerant; An indoor temperature sensor measuring a temperature of the indoor air; A pipe temperature sensor measuring a temperature of a pipe connected to the indoor heat exchanger; And And a controller configured to close the expansion valve when the indoor air temperature measured by the indoor temperature sensor reaches a target temperature set by a user after opening the indoor expansion valve to start operation. The controller is an air conditioner for comparing the temperature of the pipe at the time of opening and the closing of the expansion valve measured by the pipe temperature sensor. The method of claim 7, wherein The pipe temperature sensor is an air conditioner for measuring the temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger. The method of claim 7, wherein The pipe temperature sensor is an air conditioner for measuring the temperature of the refrigerant flowing out of the indoor heat exchanger. The method of claim 7, wherein The air conditioner further comprises a notification unit to inform the outside that the indoor expansion valve failure when the change in the pipe temperature is abnormal.

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