WO2000016015A1

WO2000016015A1 - Single unit-type air conditioner capable of cooling refrigerant by water and air in indoor unit

Info

Publication number: WO2000016015A1
Application number: PCT/KR1998/000289
Authority: WO
Inventors: Pil Ha Jeong
Original assignee: Pil Ha Jeong
Priority date: 1998-09-12
Filing date: 1998-09-23
Publication date: 2000-03-23
Also published as: KR20000019673A; KR100306266B1; AU9189198A

Abstract

A single unit-type air conditioner (1) free from any outdoor unit is disclosed. The air conditioner, having a single unit or the indoor unit, effectively cools refrigerant using water and air, reduces the manufacturing and management cost, and is easily and movably installed. The elements, such as an evaporator (2), a compressor, and a condenser (5), of the air conditioner are completely encased by the single unit or the indoor unit. A water spraying panel (20) sprays pressurized water onto the condenser, thus cooling refrigerant. The pressurized water is supplied from a water tank (30) set in the indoor unit. A condensing case (10), encasing the condenser, has air inlet slits (11) on its side walls and an air exhaust fan on its top wall, thus allowing air to forcibly pass through while cooling the refrigerant.

Description

SINGLE UNIT-TYPE AIR CONDITIONER CAPABLE OF COOLING REFRIGERANT BY WATER AND AIR IN INDOOR UNIT

Technical Field __

The present invention relates, in general, to air conditioners and, more particularly, to a single unit-type air conditioner with all elements, such as a compressor, a condenser and an evaporator, being set in an indoor unit, thus being free from any outdoor unit, the air conditioner also effectively performing a condensing process for refrigerant using water and air in such an indoor unit.

Background Art

As well known to those skilled in the art, air conditioners individually comprise two units: an indoor unit installed inside a room and an outdoor unit installed out-of-doors. That is, typical air conditioners have a dual unit system. The indoor unit of a typical air conditioner encases an evaporator, an evaporation fan and etc., which are used for cooling a room. Meanwhile, a condenser, a compressor, a condenser fan and etc., used for performing a heat exchanging process for refrigerant, are encased in the outdoor unit. In the operation of such an air conditioner, low temperature refrigerant from the condenser of the outdoor unit is introduced into the evaporator of the indoor unit so as to reduce the temperature of room air. In such a case, the room air is continuously introduced into the indoor unit by the suction force of the evaporation fan prior to being cooled by the evaporator. The cooled air is, thereafter, discharged from the indoor unit into the room through a grille of said unit.

However, such an air conditioner is problematic in that since the indoor and outdoor units are separately installed indoors and outdoors with a refrigerant pipe extending between the two units, it is difficult to install the air conditioner or to move the indoor unit. Due to such a dual unit system of the typical air conditioners, the manufacturing cost of the air conditioners is increased and this forces users to pay excessive money for the air conditioners.

In an effort to overcome the problems experienced in such dual unit-type air conditioners, a single unit-type air conditioner free from any outdoor unit has been proposed. However, such a known single unit-type air conditioner regrettably fails to achieve a desired refrigerant cooling efficiency as expected from typical dual unit-type air conditioners. Therefore, the known single unit-type air conditioners are rarely used practically.

Disclosure of the Invention

Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a single unit-type air conditioner, which has only one unit or an indoor unit, effectively cools refrigerant, reduces the manufacturing and management cost of air conditioners, and is easily installed while allowing the indoor unit to be easily movable. In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention provides a single unit-type air conditioner, comprising: an indoor unit interiorly provided with: an evaporator and a compressor; a condenser case encasing both a condenser and a water spraying panel, the water spraying panel being used for spraying water onto the condenser, thus cooling refrigerant passing through the condenser, the condenser case having both an air inlet slit on a side wall thereof and an air exhaust fan on a top wall thereof, thus allowing air to forcibly pass through while cooling the refrigerant passing through the condenser; a water tank filled with water used for spraying from the water spraying panel onto the condenser; a refrigerant supply pipe extending from the compressor to the condenser; a water supply pipe extending from the water tank to the water spraying panel; and a water pump mounted to the water supply pipe, thus selectively pumping water from the water tank to the water spraying panel.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a view showing the flowing of water and refrigerant in the single unit-type air conditioner in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the air conditioner of this invention;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a condenser case included in the air conditioner of this invention; Fig. 4 is a perspective view of water spraying panels included in the air conditioner of this invention; Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a water tank included in the air conditioner of this invention;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view showing the position of the water tank of Fig. 5 in the indoor unit; __ Fig. 7 is a sectional view showing the positional relation between a second drain pipe and a pipe holding groove taken along the line A-A' of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 8 is an exploded perspective view of a bottom plate assembly of the air conditioner according to this invention.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

Fig. 1 is a view showing the flowing of water and refrigerant in the single unit-type air conditioner in accordance with the preferred embodiment of this invention. Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the above air conditioner. As shown in the drawings, the air conditioner of this invention comprises a plurality of elements encased in the housing of an indoor unit 1. That is, the housing of the indoor unit 1 encases an evaporator 2, a compressor 3, a condenser case 10, a water tank 30, and a water pump 4. Encased in the condenser case 10 are two condensers 5 and two water spraying panels 20.

The above elements of the air conditioner are connected to each other so as to allow refrigerant under pressure to flow from the compressor 3 to the two condensers 5 of the case 10 through a refrigerant supply pipe 6. After completely passing through the two condensers 5, the refrigerant passes through a capillary tube 7 so as to be introduced into the evaporator 2. The refrigerant, thereafter, returns from the evaporator 2 to the compressor 3 through a refrigerant return pipe 6'. On the other hand, water from the water tank 30 is pumped by the water pump 4, thus flowing through a water supply pipe 8 while being pressurized. The pressurized water thus reaches the two water spraying panels 20 where water is sprayed onto associated condensers 5 prior to flowing down on the external surfaces of the condensers 5. Thereafter, the water returns to the water tank 30 through a water return pipe 8 ' . A water tray 9 is positioned under the evaporator 2, thus gathering condensed water dropped from the evaporator 2. In order to drain the condensed water from the water tray 9 to the water tank 30, a first drain pipe 9a extends from the tray 9 to the tank 30.

In order to selectively supply new water to the water tank 30 when the level of the water in the tank 30 is lower than a reference level, a solenoid valve 31 is installed on the tank 30 and is connected to a city water pipe (not shown). A second drain pipe 32 extends from the bottom wall of the water tank 30 so as to selectively empty the tank 30 when necessary.

In a detailed description, a partition wall 50 is installed in back of the evaporator 2, thus isolating the area of the evaporator 2 from other areas in the indoor unit 1 as best seen in Fig. 2. The condenser case 10 is installed in the area behind the partition wall 50, while an air exhaust fan 51 is positioned above the case 10. In addition, the water tank 30, water pump 4 and compressor 3 are installed in an area under the evaporator 2 and the condenser case 10. As shown in Fig. 3, a plurality of air inlet slits 11 are formed on opposite side walls of the condenser case 10, thus forming grilles. The above slits 11 are formed through a pressing process and individually have a downwardly inclined blade at their upper edges. A drain port 12 is formed on the bottom wall of the case 10 and is connected to the water tank 30 through the water return pipe 8'. The two water spraying panels 20, respectively positioned above the two condensers 5, are individually provided with a plurality of nozzles 21 on their bottom surfaces as best seen in Fig. 4. The water supply pipe 8, extending from the pump 4, passes through the center of the case 10 and is branched into two pipes prior to being connected to the two water spraying panels 20.

An air exhaust port 52 is formed on the partition wall 50 at a position above the condenser case 10, while a housing for an air exhaust fan 51 is installed at a position above said port 52. An air exhaust pipe 53 extends from the housing of the fan 51 until it projects from the housing of the indoor unit 1 to a length. Connected to the outside end of the exhaust pipe 53 is an extension pipe 54, which extends to the outdoors, thus exhausting hot air from the condenser case 10 into the atmosphere.

Figs. 5 and 6 show the construction of the water tank 30. As shown in the drawings, a connection port 33 is formed at the top wall of the tank 30 so that the port 33 is connected to the condenser case 10 through the water return pipe 8¹. A rectangular opening 34 is formed on the top wall of the tank 30 at a position beside the connection port 33. The above opening 34 is normally closed by a lid 35, but is selectively opened. Both the solenoid valve 31 and the level sensor 36 are mounted to the lid 35.

The second drain pipe 32, provided on the bottom wall of the tank 30, is made of a transparent and flexible material and extends along the bottom wall of the indoor unit 1 to a side wall of said unit 1. The second drain pipe 32 is normally positioned in the housing of the indoor unit 1, but selectively extends to the outside of the unit 1 when necessary. In order to selectively hold the pipe 32 inside the unit 1, a pipe holding groove 37, having a rectangular channel-type cross section, is interiorly formed on the side wall of the unit 1 as best seen in Fig. 7.

Fig. 8 is an exploded perspective view of a bottom plate assembly 60 of the indoor unit 1. The bottom plate assembly 60 comprises two plates: upper and lower plates 61 and 62 . A soundproofing material 63, such as sponge, is laid on the top surface of the lower plate 62, while a plurality of holes 64 and 64' are formed on both the top and side surfaces of the thick upper plate 61. The above holes 64 and 64' communicate with each other, thus allowing room air to be introduced from a room into the unit 1 through the communicating holes 64 and 64'.

A rectangular depression 65 is formed on a corner of the top surface of the upper plate 61 so as to allow a perforated mount panel 66 to be seated in the depression 65 with a slight gap defined between the panel 66 and the bottom of the depression 65. The mount panel 66, having a plurality of holes 66', is for mounting the compressor 3 on the bottom plate assembly 60.

In the drawings, the reference numeral 70 denotes a cover for the exhaust fan 51, numeral 71 denotes an inlet for condensed water, and numeral 72 denotes a port through which water flows to the water pump 4. The operational effect of the above air conditioner will be described hereinbelow.

In the operation of the above air conditioner, refrigerant under pressure flows from the compressor 3 to the two condensers 5 of the case 10 through the refrigerant supply pipe 6. After completely passing through the two condensers 5, the refrigerant passes through the capillary tube 7 so as to be introduced into the evaporator 2. In order to accomplish a desired air conditioning effect during the above-mentioned flowing of the refrigerant, it is necessary for the refrigerant to be effectively cooled to a desired low temperature while the refrigerant passes through the condensers 5. In the air conditioner of this invention, the refrigerant is cooled by water and air.

That is, water of the tank 30 is pressurized by the pump 4 so as to be supplied to the two water spraying panels 20. Since the bottom surfaces of the above panels 20 are provided with a plurality of nozzles 21, the panels 20 spray pressurized water onto the two condensers 5, respectively. The water thus flows down on the external surfaces of the condensers 5 while reducing the temperature of the condensers 5. The water, thereafter, returns from the condenser case 10 to the water tank 30 through the water return pipe 8' extending from the bottom wall of the condenser case 10 to the tank 30. On the other hand, condensed water, formed on the external surface of the evaporator 2 due to a difference of temperature between the evaporator 2 and air around the evaporator 2, is gathered by the water tray 9 positioned under the evaporator 2. The condensed water is, thereafter, drained from the water tray 9 to the water tank 30 through the first drain pipe 9a. In the air conditioner of this invention, the refrigerant is also cooled by air at the same time it is being cooled by water. That is, the air exhaust fan 51, installed on the top wall of the condenser case 10, exhausts air from the condenser case 10 into the atmosphere through the exhaust pipe 53. The above exhaust fan 51 also forces room air to be forcibly introduced into the condenser case 10 through the air inlet slits __11 formed on both side walls of the case 10. In such a case, the air cools the condensers 5 while passing by the condensers 5. In addition, vapor, formed by vaporization at the external surfaces of the condensers 5, is also exhausted into the atmosphere along with the air. Therefore, even when condensed water returns to the water tank 30, it is possible to prevent water from overflowing the tank 30 or from being overheated.

Both the water level sensor 36 and the solenoid valve 31 are installed on the water tank 30 as described above. When the sensor 36 senses a water level of the tank 30 lower than a reference level, the sensor 36 outputs a signal to the solenoid valve 31, thus opening the valve 31. In such a case, city water is newly filled in the tank 30 until the water level of the tank 30 reaches the reference level. When the water level of the tank 30 reaches the reference level, the valve 31 is automatically closed under the control of the sensor 36. The second drain pipe 32, provided on the bottom wall of the tank 30, is made of a transparent and flexible material and extends along the bottom wall of the indoor unit 1 to a side wall of said unit 1 as described above. In addition, the second drain pipe 32 is normally set along the pipe holding groove 37 upwardly, having a rectangular channel- type cross section. Therefore, it is possible to check the water level of the tank 30 from the outside of the indoor unit 1 or check the operation of both the solenoid valve 31 and the water level sensor 36 of the tank 30. When it is necessary to fully empty the tank 30, the drain pipe 32 is removed from the groove 37 prior to extending to the outside of the unit 1.

In the air conditioner of this invention, both the compressor 2 and the water pump 4 are installed in the indoor unit 1 so that the unit 1 may generate somewhat loud noises in comparison with a typical indoor unit. In order to eliminate such a noise problem, the bottom wall assembly 60 of the indoor unit 1 of this invention is specifically designed to effectively and remarkably reduce noises. That is, in the operation of the air conditioner of this invention, noises from both the compressor 2 and the pump 4 are dissipated to the soundproofing material 63 of the lower plate 62 through the holes 64' of the upper plate 61. The soundproofing material 63 thus effectively absorbs noises from both the compressor 2 and the pump 4.

In addition, the indoor unit 1 is designed to allow relatively low temperature air to be introduced from a room into the condenser case 10. That is, low temperature air at the lower area of a room is introduced into the condenser case 10 through the holes 64, formed on the side wall of the upper plate 61, and the holes 64' formed on the top surface of the plate 61. Therefore, it is possible to improve the refrigerant cooling efficiency of the condensers 5 of the case 10. The compressor 3 is installed on the mount panel 66, fixed to the upper plate 61 while being spaced apart from the top surface of said plate 61. Therefore, the compressor 3 is effectively cooled by air around the compressor 3, so that it is possible to lengthen the expected life span of the compressor 3. Such a mount panel 66 also improves the refrigerant cooling efficiency of the compressor 3. Industrial Application

As described above, the present invention provides a single unit-type air conditioner. The air conditioner has only one unit or an indoor unit, which effectively cools refrigerant, reduces the manufacturing and management cost of air conditioners, and is easily and movably installed. The air conditioner of this invention thus almost completely eliminates the problems experienced in typical air conditioners. Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.

Claims

Claims :

1. A single unit-type air conditioner, comprising: an indoor unit interiorly provided with: __ an evaporator and a compressor; a condenser case encasing both a condenser and a water spraying panel, said water spraying panel being used for spraying water onto said condenser, thus cooling refrigerant passing through the condenser, said condenser case having both an air inlet slit on a side wall thereof and an air exhaust fan on a top wall thereof, thus allowing air to forcibly pass through while cooling the refrigerant passing through the condenser; a water tank filled with water used for being sprayed from said water spraying panel onto the condenser; a refrigerant supply pipe extending from said compressor to said condenser; a water supply pipe extending from said water tank to said water spraying panel; and a water pump mounted to said water supply pipe, thus selectively pumping water from the water tank to the water spraying panel.

2. The single unit-type air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein a partition wall is arranged in back of said evaporator, thus isolating an area of the evaporator from other areas in said indoor unit, with the condenser case being installed in an area behind said partition wall, said partition wall having an air exhaust port at a position above the condenser case with the air exhaust fan being exteriorly mounted on said partition wall at a position around said air exhaust port; said water tank is installed at a position under both the evaporator and the condenser case and is connected to said condenser case through a water return pipe; and said water pump is mounted to said water supply pipe at a position beside the water tank.

3. The single unit-type air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein said condenser case has two or more air inlet slits on the side wall thereof and a drain port on a bottom wall thereof, said drain port being connected to said water tank through said water return pipe.

4. The single unit-type air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said water spraying panel is positioned above said condenser and is provided with a plurality of spraying nozzles on a bottom surface thereof.

5. The single unit-type air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein said water tank comprises: a connection port formed on a top wall of said water tank, thus being connected to the condenser case through the water return pipe; a opening formed on said top wall of the water tank at a position beside said connection port; a lid normally closing said opening, said lid being provided with both a solenoid valve and a water level sensor; and a drain pipe extending from a bottom wall of said water tank, said drain pipe being made of a transparent and flexible material and being normally held in a pipe holding groove of said indoor unit, said pipe holding groove being formed on a side wall of said indoor unit so as to allow a user to check a water level of the water tank .

6. The single unit-type air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein a bottom wall of said indoor unit comprises : an upper plate provided with both a plurality of holes on both top and side surfaces thereof, said upper plate also having a depression on a corner of said top surface; a lower plates assembled with said upper plate into a dual plate, with a soundproofing material being laid on a top surface of said lower plate; a mount panel installed in said depression of the upper plate with a gap defined between the mount panel and the depression, said mount panel being used for mounting the compressor on the upper plate,