KR20110045909A - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An air-conditioner is provided to easily control humidity in a local space and to perform dehumidification without using a refrigerant and a compressor. CONSTITUTION: An air-conditioner(1) comprises a housing(10), thermoelectric elements(20), a water storage unit(40), a vibrator(30), and a controller. The housing has an air inlet(11), an air outlet(12), and an air passage for connecting the air inlet and the air outlet. The thermoelectric elements are arranged on the air passage and dehumidify inhaled air. The water storage unit is arranged inside the housing. The vibrator is installed inside the water storage unit and generates ultrasonic waves. The controller converts humidification and dehumidification operations.

Description

Air Conditioner

The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more particularly, to a humidification and dehumidification combined air conditioner.

The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more specifically, it is easy to control humidity of a local space such as a user's breathing space, and can be manufactured in a small size without using a refrigerant and a compressor for dehumidification, and consumes unnecessary power. It can be prevented, can be applied to a specific shape, such as a character can provide an interesting appearance to the user, and can be used by changing the dehumidification and humidification function according to the standing state.

In general, the air conditioner controls the temperature, humidity, air flow, and air cleanliness of the air to suit the purpose of using the air in a specific area.

In relation to the humidity in the air, high humidity causes decay, corrosion, condensation, and odors and bacteria. Therefore, it is a device to remove such moisture in hospitals, moisture-sensitive electricity, telecommunications, and various electronic equipment. Is required.

On the contrary, if the humidity is too low and the room is dried, it may cause harmful symptoms. Especially, when the weather is dry or the cold and dry air in winter reduces the body's immunity, it plays a decisive role in infiltrating the cold virus. A device to supply is required.

Here, the air conditioner for controlling the humidity of the indoor space is roughly divided into a dehumidifier and a humidifier, the dehumidifier removes the moisture contained in the sucked air to discharge the dry air into the indoor space, the humidifier is sucked air It supplies water to discharge moist air into the indoor space.

The dehumidifier forms a suction port and a discharge port in the housing forming the exterior, and forms a refrigeration cycle in the housing to discharge the air dehumidified by the blowing fan, thereby controlling the humidity in the room.

However, the conventional dehumidifier is mainly used for removing moisture in a relatively large space such as a living room and a room, not a local space, and mainly composed of a refrigeration cycle using refrigerant gas, which has a large power consumption and takes up a lot of installation space. .

On the other hand, the humidifier is an air conditioner used for humidity control to provide moisture in a dry place to keep the room comfortable.

These humidifiers are ultrasonic, which vibrates water into ultrasonic particles and sprays fine particles according to a method of producing water vapor, and a heater type that sprays water by vaporizing water by heating, and a hybrid type that combines ultrasonic type and heater type. There is.

However, in the case of a heated humidifier, the power consumption is large, and there is a problem in that water vapor to be sprayed is not easily seen, and recently, many humidifiers using ultrasonic type have been used.

Meanwhile, the ultrasonic humidifier is composed of a water tank for storing water, a water tank connected to the water tank to maintain a constant water level, and a vibrator installed at the bottom of the water tank to vibrate water molecules in the water tank to make fine water particles. have.

When indoor air such as home or office is polluted and wet or dry, it is harmful to the human body of people living or working. Therefore, the dehumidifier and the humidifier are installed as described above.

However, when each of these dehumidifiers and humidifiers are installed separately, the installation space is increased, thus increasing the installation space and incurring a separate purchase cost.

In addition, the conventional dehumidifiers and humidifiers are used for removing moisture in a relatively large space such as a living room or an office rather than a local space such as a precision device requiring a user's breathing space or humidity control, and thus, there was a lot of unnecessary power consumption.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a dehumidification and humidification combined air conditioning device that is easy to control the humidity of the local space, such as the user's breathing space.

In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner that can be manufactured in a small size without using a refrigerant and a compressor for dehumidification, and can prevent unnecessary power consumption.

In addition, another object of the present invention can be applied to a specific shape, such as a character to provide an interesting appearance to the user, and to provide an air conditioner that can be used by changing the dehumidification and humidification function according to the standing state.

The present invention is to achieve the above object,

According to an aspect of the present invention, a housing having an air inlet and an air outlet, and formed with an air flow path connecting the air inlet and the air outlet; A thermoelectric element disposed on the air passage in the housing and dehumidifying the sucked air; A water reservoir disposed in the housing; A vibrator installed in the water storage unit to generate ultrasonic waves and to humidify the ultrasonic wave; And a controller for switching the dehumidification and humidification operations.

In this case, the thermoelectric element may include a heat absorbing portion and a heat generating portion, and the heat absorbing portion may contact the housing.

In addition, the heat generating portion of the thermoelectric element may be disposed close to the water storage.

In addition, the control unit may switch the dehumidification and humidification operation according to the standing state of the housing.

The air conditioner according to an aspect of the present invention may further include an angle sensor for detecting an arrangement angle of the housing with respect to an arrangement surface on which the housing is disposed.

In addition, the air conditioner according to an aspect of the present invention may further include a humidity sensor for sensing the humidity of the peripheral region in which the housing is disposed.

Here, the standing state of the housing may include an upright state, a lying down state, an inclined state, and an inverted state.

In addition, the housing may be provided with a first guide portion for guiding the condensed water condensed in the thermoelectric element to the water storage.

In addition, the housing may be provided with a second guide portion for guiding the fine moisture particles generated by the vibrator to the air outlet.

In addition, the air conditioner according to an aspect of the present invention may further include a filter module mounted on the air intake side.

In addition, the air conditioner according to an aspect of the present invention may further include a blowing fan for discharging the dehumidified or humidified air to the outside.

As described above, the air conditioner according to the present invention is easy to control the humidity of the local space, such as the user's breathing space.

In addition, the air conditioner according to the present invention can be manufactured in a small size without using a refrigerant and a compressor for dehumidification, it is possible to prevent unnecessary power consumption.

In addition, the air conditioner according to the present invention can be applied to a specific shape, such as a character can provide an interesting appearance to the user, and can be used by changing the dehumidification and humidification function according to the standing state.

Hereinafter, an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings show exemplary forms of the present invention, which are provided to explain the present invention in more detail, and the technical scope of the present invention is not limited thereto.

In addition, irrespective of the reference numerals, the same or corresponding components will be given the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof will be omitted. For convenience of description, the size and shape of each component may be exaggerated or reduced. have.

On the other hand, terms including ordinal numbers such as first or second may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited by the terms, and the terms are defined by one component from another component. It is used only for the purpose of distinguishing.

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

An air conditioner 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention forms an appearance, has an air inlet 11 and an air outlet 12, and connects the air inlet 11 and the air outlet 12 to each other. And a housing 10 in which a flow path (not shown) is formed.

In addition, the air conditioner 1 is disposed on the air flow path in the housing 10, and includes a thermoelectric element 20 for removing moisture of the sucked air and performing dehumidification.

In addition, it is disposed in the housing, and includes a water storage unit 40 for storing the condensed water condensed by the thermoelectric element.

In addition, the oscillator 30 is installed in the water storage unit 40 and vibrates the water molecules with ultrasonic waves to generate fine moisture particles to perform humidification.

In addition, a control unit (not shown) for switching the dehumidification and humidification operation is included.

The housing 10 has an appearance, and as described above, the thermoelectric element 20, the vibrator 30, the water storage part 40, and the like are disposed along the air flow path, the humidification flow path, or the dehumidification flow path, respectively. Since each component for dehumidification or humidification may be mounted in a simple structure, the air inlet 11 and the air outlet 12 may have various shapes as long as they can be formed.

In particular, the housing 10 may have a specific shape such as an animal, a plant, or various characters, and thus may provide an interesting appearance to the user.

For example, when the housing 10 has the shape of an elephant, an air inlet may be formed to allow air to be sucked into the inside of the nose of the elephant, and an air outlet may be formed in the elephant's eyes or hips. .

The water reservoir 40 may be formed as a separate water tank or the like detachable from the housing 10, or may be integrally formed in a portion of the housing 10.

When the water storage unit 40 is configured as a separate water tank, an opening (not shown) for receiving the water tank may be formed at one side of the housing 10, as shown in FIG. 1, When the partial region of the housing 10 is used as a water storage unit, one or more holes (not shown) for supplying water into the water storage unit or discharging water contained in the water storage unit to the outside may be formed.

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

The controller 60 switches dehumidification and humidification operations. The controller 60 may switch dehumidification and humidification according to a user input or a temperature and / or humidity condition of an indoor space, and may be selectively connected to the thermoelectric element 20 or the vibrator 30 by being connected to the power supply 61. The above switching operation can be performed by supplying power.

The air conditioner 1 according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention may further include a temperature sensor (not shown) and / or a humidity sensor 62 to detect the temperature and humidity conditions of the indoor space.

In particular, the dehumidification and humidification operations may be switched according to the standing state of the housing 10, and the standing state of the housing 10 may include an upright state, a lying state, an inclined state, and an inverted state.

For example, in the case where one surface of the housing 10 is in contact with the installation surface in an upright state, the lying state is a state where adjacent surfaces of one surface of the housing 10 are in contact with the installation surface. In the inclined state, one surface of the housing is inclined at a predetermined angle, and the inclined state is not in contact with the adjacent surface. The inverted state is a surface opposite to one surface of the housing 10 in contact with the installation surface. Indicates the state.

As described above, the housing 10 may have a specific shape such as an animal, a plant, or various characters, and may change dehumidification and humidification operations according to a standing state, thereby providing various operational feelings and enjoyment to a user. As a result, the dehumidification and humidification operations as well as the interior space can be harmonized.

The air conditioner 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include various types of sensors for detecting a standing state of the housing 10, for example, an arrangement in which the housing 10 is disposed. It may further include an angle sensor 63 for detecting the placement angle of the housing 10 relative to the surface.

In addition, the air conditioner 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is mounted on the air inlet 11 side of the housing 10, and may further include a filter module 50 for purifying the sucked air. have.

The filter module 20 is a filter case (not shown) that can be detachably mounted on the air inlet 11 side of the housing 10 and a filter unit (not shown) accommodated in the filter case to purify the air. Not).

In addition, the filter case may be provided with an inlet for intake of indoor air, a filter inlet for taking in and out of the filter unit, and an outlet for discharging the purified air from the filter unit.

Meanwhile, the filter unit accommodated in the filter case may include at least one filter.

The filter may be a hepa filter, an antibacterial filter, a deodorizing filter, an allergen filter, a prefilter, or the like, and the filter unit may be formed in a structure in which one or two or more of these filters are stacked.

The prefilter may be installed at the front side of the air inflow direction, and performs an antibacterial action and a copper anti-mildew treatment as well as a function of filtering out a relatively large dust in the air.

The plasma filter charges the applied current to (-) and (+) to remove large particulate contaminants and to collect a mite carcass, pollen, tobacco smoke, and fungus.

The antimicrobial filter is a photocatalyst antimicrobial filter, and has a secondary antimicrobial function following a large particle of dirt or odor molecules and the prefilter, and also removes allergic particles or fungi.

The allergen filter is a filter that adsorbs and decomposes an allergen causing allergy.

The HEPA filter is an air filter, and serves to remove fine particles such as dust, dust of mites, pollen, tobacco smoke (particles), airborne fungi, and animal hair as well as fine dust in the air.

The deodorization filter is a comprehensive deodorization filter that can be installed on the rear side of the HEPA filter, and is a kind of carbon filter that removes various odors such as tobacco smoke (odor), household odor, food odor, and toilet odor in the air. .

As described above, the filter unit may include all kinds of various types of filters, may be composed of a plurality of filters forming a layered structure, and may be configured in various arrangement order.

In addition, the air conditioner 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a blowing fan (not shown) for discharging the dehumidified or humidified air to the outside (indoor space).

The blowing fan may be a variety of fans, such as a sirocco fan, an axial flow fan, a turbo fan, or a crossflow fan, and a suitable fan may be used according to the shape of the housing 10 and the air flow path.

Hereinafter, the thermoelectric element 20 performing the dehumidifying operation will be described in detail.

The thermoelectric element is a thermistor, which is a device using a temperature change of electrical resistance, a device using Seebeck Effect, a phenomenon in which electromotive force is generated by a temperature difference, and a phenomenon in which heat is absorbed (or generated) by current. Devices using the Peltier Effect.

Among them, Peltier effect is the most commonly used thermoelectric element, which connects two kinds of metal tips and sends current to it, one terminal absorbs heat and the other terminal generates heat. Use

At this time, if a semiconductor such as bismuth (Bi) or tellurium (Te) having different electric conduction methods is used instead of the two kinds of metals, a Peltier device having an efficient endothermic and exothermic effect can be obtained.

The above-described two kinds of metals of the thermoelectric element 40 perform the functions of the heat absorbing portion 21 and the heat generating portion 22, respectively, and the heat generating portion 22 from the heat absorbing portion 21 supplied with power to the thermoelectric element. The flow of furnace thermal energy is generated, thereby cooling the endothermic portion 21 to a predetermined temperature or less, thereby condensing moisture in the housing 10 to the endothermic portion 21.

In this case, the thermoelectric element 20 constituting the air conditioner 1 according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention may be disposed in a state in which the heat absorbing portion 21 is in contact with the housing 10.

Therefore, moisture in the air condenses on the heat absorbing portion 21 of the thermoelectric element 20 in the dehumidification process, and the condensed water is collected and stored in the water storage unit 40.

That is, referring to FIG. 1, the condensed water generated as described above is collected in the water storage unit 40 by falling downward along the outer circumferential surface of the heat absorbing unit 21.

In addition, since the heat absorbing portion 21 is in contact with the housing 10, the condensed water flows along the housing 10, and thus the condensed water may flow along the outer and outer circumferential surfaces of the housing 10, and thus, the housing 10. ) Can produce a visual effect such as sweating when the animal has an animal or various character shapes.

An air conditioner 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided in the housing 10, and the first guide part 13 to guide the condensed water condensed in the thermoelectric element 20 to the water storage part 40. ) May be further included.

The first guide part 13 may have various structures, and as an embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the first guide part 13 may be a drainage hole formed in a member (not shown) in which the thermoelectric element 20 is installed.

In addition, the heat generating unit 22 of the thermoelectric element 20 may be disposed close to the water storage unit 40.

As described above, when power is supplied to the thermoelectric element 20, a flow of thermal energy is generated from the heat absorbing portion 21 to the heat generating portion 22, and the heat absorbing portion 21 condenses for dehumidification. The heat generation unit 22 is the release of the transferred heat energy.

The heat energy released as described above may evaporate the condensed water collected and stored, thereby increasing the replacement period of the water storage unit 40.

On the other hand, as shown in Figure 1, the inner space of the housing 10 can be divided into a plurality of areas on the basis of the member (unsigned) for installing the thermoelectric element 40, and thus the upper region of the member An air flow path may be formed in the air storage unit, and the water storage unit 40 may be formed in the lower region of the member. Accordingly, the upper region and the lower region may be configured not to cause mutual interference during the dehumidification process.

Hereinafter, the thermoelectric element 20 performing the humidification operation will be described in detail.

Since the human body is made up of more than 70% of its constituents, lack of water in everyday life causes many health problems. For example, after prolonged exposure to a dry environment, the skin easily ages and cracks, and the respiratory tract dries easily. In particular, the importance of humidification is increasing in office space exposed to electromagnetic waves all day long.

Therefore, an appropriate amount of water must be contained in the air for a healthy body and efficient performance of work. However, in recent years, even in summer, the air conditioner is often used for a long time, so that moisture contained in the air is dehumidified, and even in winter, the heating device is used for a long time, so the moisture in the air is insufficient. For the same reason, a humidifier for supplying moisture for controlling humidity in a dry environment is used.

A humidifier is a device that sprays humidifying water into water in order to maintain indoor humidity at a beneficial humidity to the human body. The humidifier can be classified into a method using a heater, an ultrasonic method, and a heater and an ultrasound in parallel.

A humidifier using a heater uses an electric heater to heat the humidifying water to a predetermined temperature to generate steam, and discharges the steam into a room using a blowing fan to perform humidification. The humidifier is steamed using a vibrator and discharged to the room to perform humidification.

A humidifier using a heater has the advantage of sterilizing the humidifying water in the tank, but there is also a problem of an increase in electric charges due to heating, so the portable or local space humidifier is configured in an ultrasonic method.

The ultrasonic vibrator 30 is disposed below the water storage unit 40 storing the humidified water, vaporizes the stored water, and discharges the generated fine moisture particles to the outside (indoor space) through the blowing fan. do.

In addition, the air conditioner 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is formed in the housing 10, the second guide for guiding the fine water particles generated by the vibrator 30 to the air outlet 12 It may further comprise a portion (14).

The second guide portion 14 may have a variety of structures, as shown in Figure 1 may be formed of a pipe with a water flow path formed therein, the second guide portion 14 is the inlet side of the water May be formed of a nozzle whose cross-sectional area is larger than the cross-sectional area of the discharge port side.

3 is a conceptual diagram showing a dehumidifying operation state of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, the air conditioner 100 includes a housing 110, a thermoelectric element 120, a vibrator 130, and a water storage unit 140.

As described above, the housing 100 may have a specific shape such as various animals, plants, or characters, and FIG. 3 illustrates a case in which the housing 100 has an elephant shape for convenience of description.

The housing 100 has an air inlet 111 and an air outlet 112, and as described above, has an air flow path connecting the air inlet 111 and the air outlet 112.

The thermoelectric element 120 may be disposed on the air flow path, and the heat absorbing portion of the thermoelectric element may be disposed to contact the housing 110.

Although not shown in FIG. 3, the condensed water condensed in the thermoelectric element 120 may be guided to the water storage unit 40 by forming a drainage hole in the vicinity of the member in which the thermoelectric element 120 is installed, and generating heat of the thermoelectric element. The part may be disposed to be close to the water storage part 40.

In addition, in the air conditioner 1 shown in FIG. 3, the water storage unit 40 is not configured as a separate water tank, and the water storage unit 40 is formed using the shape of the bottom surface of the housing 110. It is formed integrally.

When the dehumidification operation is performed according to the user input or the temperature and / or humidity conditions of the indoor space, the air introduced into the air inlet 111 passes through the thermoelectric element 120 along the air flow path inside the housing 110.

In the process of passing through the thermoelectric element 120, the air is taken away by the moisture absorbing portion of the thermoelectric element 120, so that the air becomes relatively dry air and is discharged to the outside through the air outlet 112.

Here, the condensate may be guided to the water storage unit 140, collected and stored, and some condensate may be evaporated by the heat generating unit of the thermoelectric element 120.

4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a humidifying operation state of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As described above, the controller may switch the humidification and dehumidification operation of the air conditioner 1 according to the user input or the temperature and humidity of the ambient air, and in particular, the air conditioner according to the standing state of the housing 110. The humidification and dehumidification operation of (1) can be switched.

The air conditioner 100 illustrated in FIG. 4 represents an inverted state of the air conditioner 100 illustrated in FIG. 3, and as described above, after sensing a standing state of the housing through an angle sensor, It shows the state switched to the humidification operation.

Referring to FIG. 4, the upper region of the housing 110 shown in FIG. 3 performs the function of the water storage unit 141, and the water storage unit 141 is configured as a separate water tank as described above. It may be possible, or may be configured using the shape of the housing directly.

When power is supplied to the vibrator 130 disposed in the water storage unit 141, the vibrator 130 converts electrical energy into mechanical energy and generates ultrasonic waves to generate fine moisture particles. Thereafter, the fine moisture particles are guided to the air discharge port 111 by the second guide 114 and discharged to the outside.

Meanwhile, in the air conditioner 1 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, the air inlets 111 and the air outlets 112 may be used as the inlets and the outlets, respectively.

Thus, the air conditioner 1 for performing the humidification and dehumidification operation has a simple structure, low power consumption, easy to control the humidity of the user's active area, that is, local area, and high portability.

As described so far, the air conditioner according to the present invention is easy to control the humidity of the local space, such as the user's breathing space, in particular, without using a refrigerant and a compressor for dehumidification, can be manufactured in a compact, unnecessary Power consumption can be prevented.

In addition, the air conditioner according to the present invention can be applied to a specific shape, such as a character can provide an interesting appearance to the user, and can be used by changing the dehumidification and humidification function according to the standing state.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention described above are disclosed for purposes of illustration, and those skilled in the art having various ordinary knowledge of the present invention may make various modifications, changes, and additions within the spirit and scope of the present invention. And additions should be considered to be within the scope of the following claims.

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

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

3 is a conceptual diagram showing a dehumidification operation state of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a conceptual diagram showing a humidifying operation state of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (11)

A housing having an air intake port and an air discharge port, and formed with an air flow path connecting the air intake port and the air discharge port; A thermoelectric element disposed on the air passage in the housing and dehumidifying the sucked air; A water reservoir disposed in the housing; A vibrator installed in the water storage unit to generate ultrasonic waves and to humidify the ultrasonic wave; And An air conditioner comprising a control unit for switching the dehumidification and humidification operation. The method of claim 1, The thermoelectric element includes a heat absorbing portion and a heat generating portion, wherein the heat absorbing portion is in contact with the housing. The method of claim 2, Heat generating unit of the thermoelectric element, characterized in that disposed in the water storage unit. The method of claim 1, The control unit is an air conditioner, characterized in that for switching the dehumidification and humidification operation according to the standing state of the housing. The method of claim 1, And an angle sensor for detecting an arrangement angle of the housing with respect to the placement surface on which the housing is disposed. The method of claim 1, And a humidity sensor for sensing the humidity of the surrounding area in which the housing is disposed. The method of claim 4, wherein The standing state of the housing includes an upright state, a lying state, an inclined state and an inverted state. The method of claim 1, The housing is an air conditioner, characterized in that the first guide portion for guiding the condensed water condensed in the thermoelectric element to the water storage unit. The method of claim 1, And a second guide part for guiding fine water particles generated by the vibrator to an air outlet. The method of claim 1, And a filter module mounted at an air intake side of the housing. The method of claim 1, And a blowing fan for discharging the dehumidified or humidified air to the outside.

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