JP2983869B2 - Air conditioner, cooling operation method thereof, and method of separating outdoor unit and indoor unit - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner capable of performing a cooling / heating operation, and more particularly to an air conditioner having a refrigerant heating means used in a heating operation.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As this type of air conditioner, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, a refrigerant compressed and discharged by a compressor 1 circulates in the direction of a solid line arrow, and a four-way switching valve 2, a service valve SV2, The refrigerant circuit for heating returns to the compressor 1 through the indoor heat exchanger 6, the service valve SV1, the on-off valve 8, and the refrigerant heater 10a, or the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 1 circulates in the direction of the dashed arrow, and is switched four-way. Valve 2, outdoor heat exchanger 3, check valve 5a
・ Decompressor 4a ・ Service valve SV1 ・ Indoor heat exchanger 6
One of the cooling refrigerant circuit returning to the compressor 1 through the service valve SV2, the four-way switching valve 2, the check valve 7a,
There is a configuration in which the selection can be made by a flow path switching operation of the four-way switching valve 2 or the like.

[0003]

However, in the air conditioner of the above construction, the four-way switching valve 2 is switched so that the on-off valve 8 is closed and the cooling refrigerant circuit in which the refrigerant flows in the direction of the dashed arrow is selected. By operating the compressor 1, the service valves are closed at appropriate intervals in the order of SV1 and SV2 while operating the compressor 1 to transfer most of the refrigerant in the unit to the outdoor unit U1, and the outdoor unit U1 and the indoor unit U2 are serviced. Valve SV1 ・ SV
When the liquid refrigerant is sealed off in the thin pipe between the check valve 5a and the service valve SV1 when the liquid refrigerant is moved or stored separately from the pipe 2, the pressure suddenly rises due to a rise in temperature and the pipe bursts. There is a problem that there is
The solution of this point has been an issue.

[0004]

According to the present invention, as a specific means for solving the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, a refrigerant pipe of an outdoor unit and an indoor unit is attached to both ends of the refrigerant pipe of the outdoor unit. And a second service valve and a pipe are connected so that the refrigerant can circulate through the pipe, and the refrigerant discharged from the compressor of the outdoor unit is supplied with a flow path switching valve mechanism, an outdoor heat exchanger,
Cooling refrigerant that returns to the compressor via the check valve, the first service valve, the indoor unit, the second service valve, the flow path switching valve mechanism, the second check valve, and the like. Circuit or the flow path switching valve mechanism / the second service valve / the indoor unit / the first service valve / open / close valve /
In an outdoor unit of an air conditioner including a flow path switching valve mechanism or the like, which can select any one of a heating refrigerant circuit that returns to the compressor via a refrigerant heating heat exchanger or the like including a heating unit,

[0005] A refrigerant pipe between the first check valve or the on-off valve and the first service valve and a capillary tube between the second service valve and the suction port of the compressor are connected. Air conditioner connected via a second on-off valve to an air conditioner connected via a second opening / closing valve, and an outdoor unit side refrigerant pipe facing the second service valve and a refrigerant pipe at a suction port of the compressor. When,

A refrigerant tube between the first check valve or the on-off valve and the first service valve, and a capillary tube between the second service valve and the suction port of the compressor are connected. And a refrigerant pipe facing the second service valve and a suction side refrigerant pipe of the compressor are communicably connected via a second opening / closing valve, and further, the flow path switching valve mechanism and the like are connected. Operating the compressor circuit by selecting the cooling refrigerant circuit, and operating the compressor by opening the second on-off valve;

[0007] A refrigerant pipe between the first check valve or the on-off valve and the first service valve, and a capillary tube between the second service valve and the suction port of the compressor. Connected via the air conditioner, operating the flow path switching valve mechanism and the like to select the cooling refrigerant circuit, and further, operating the compressor for a predetermined time while the first service valve is closed to perform the second operation. And a method for separating an outdoor unit and an indoor unit in an air conditioner in which the second service valve is closed, and then the pipes are removed from the first and second service valves. Is to solve.

[0008]

The refrigerant pipe between the first check valve or the on-off valve and the first service valve communicates with the refrigerant pipe between the second service valve and the suction port of the compressor via a capillary tube. Therefore, the refrigerant sealed in the thin refrigerant pipe (thin because the liquid refrigerant flows) between the first check valve and the first service valve is supplied to the thick refrigerant pipe facing the second service valve ( The gaseous refrigerant flows through the capillary tube to the thick side because it flows. Therefore, the outdoor unit and the indoor unit are separated in a state where most of the refrigerant in the unit is moved to the outdoor unit side for relocation or the like, and even if the temperature may rise in this state, the thin refrigerant piping portion may be used. An abnormal rise in pressure at the point is avoided and pipes and the like have never been ruptured.

In the cooling operation of the air conditioner in which the refrigerant pipe on the outdoor unit facing the second service valve and the refrigerant pipe at the suction port of the compressor communicate with each other through the second on-off valve, indoor heat exchange is performed. A part of the refrigerant evaporated by cooling the relatively high-temperature room air in the compressor directly returns to the compressor through the second on-off valve, and a part of the refrigerant returns to the flow path switching valve mechanism and the second reverse valve. Since the refrigerant flows back to the compressor through the stop valve, the size of the check valve can be reduced.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to FIG. The refrigerant circuit of the outdoor unit U1 and the indoor unit U2 is
First service valve SV1 attached to the open ends of refrigerant pipes P1 and P2 at the refrigerant inlet / outlet of outdoor unit U1.
In addition, the air conditioner of the present invention, which is separably connected to the second service valve SV2 via the circulation pipes P3 and P4, has an appropriate function such as Freon compressed and discharged by the compressor 1 of the outdoor unit U1. When the refrigerant switches the four-way switching valve 2, the outdoor heat exchanger 3, the capillary tube 4, which is a pressure reducing means, the first check valve 5, the service valve S
V1, indoor heat exchanger 6 of indoor unit U2, service valve S
V2, a refrigerant circuit for cooling operation, which is recirculated to the compressor 1 via the second check valve 7, indicated by a broken line arrow, or a service valve SV2, an indoor heat exchanger 6, a service valve SV1, and a first opening / closing operation. Refrigerant heating heat exchanger 1 provided in valve 8 and heating means 9
The refrigerant pipe P1 has a configuration in which any one of the refrigerant circuits for the heating operation indicated by a solid line arrow flowing back to the compressor 1 via the refrigerant pipe 0 can be selectively formed, and the refrigerant pipe P1 having a small diameter through which the condensed liquid refrigerant flows. And the refrigerant pipe P2 having a large diameter through which the gaseous refrigerant flows is connected by a capillary tube 11, and the refrigerant pipe P2 is connected to the refrigerant suction port side of the compressor 1
Are connected to each other via an on-off valve 12 and an orifice 13.

The capillary tube 11 has an inner diameter of about 0.5 mm and a length of about 0.5 mm so that the refrigerant in the refrigerant pipes P1 and P2 slightly flows from the high-pressure pipe to the low-pressure pipe. Is about 1 to 1.5 m.

Reference numeral 14 denotes an accumulator installed in a refrigerant circuit in front of the compressor 1. Reference numeral 15 denotes a fuel supply pipe connected to the heating means 9 and supplied to the heating means 9.
For example, a flow control valve 16 for controlling the flow rate of the gas is an on-off valve 16 connected to the fuel supply pipe for safety.

In the cooling operation of the air conditioner having the above structure, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 1 is a refrigerant circuit for the cooling operation indicated by a broken line arrow, that is, the outdoor heat exchanger 3, the capillary tube 4, the check valve 5, the check valve 5, and the like. Refrigerant piping P1, service valve SV1, pipe P3, indoor heat exchanger 6, pipe P4
The operation is performed by switching the four-way switching valve 2 so as to return to the compressor 1 via the service valve SV2, the refrigerant pipe P2, and the check valve 7.

The on-off valve 8 is closed so that the refrigerant that has passed through the check valve 5 does not flow into the refrigerant heat exchanger 10. Also, the on-off valve 12 is provided so that almost half of the refrigerant returned from the indoor heat exchanger 6 via the service valve SV2 can be returned to the compressor 1 via the on-off valve 12 and the orifice 13 indicated by the dashed line arrow. Is opened and driven.

For this reason, the refrigerant having increased pressure and temperature discharged from the compressor 1 enters the outdoor heat exchanger 3 via the four-way switching valve 2, where the relative temperature supplied by the fan (not shown) is relatively high. Exchanges heat with low ambient air to condense.

The liquid refrigerant that has radiated heat to the low-temperature outside air and condensed in the outdoor heat exchanger 3 is depressurized in the capillary tube 4 and almost all of the liquid refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger 6 of the indoor unit U2 via the service valve SV1. Then, heat is taken from room air having a relatively high temperature supplied by a fan (not shown) to cool the room air and evaporate.

The refrigerant evaporated by cooling the indoor air in the indoor heat exchanger 6 flows into the outdoor unit U1 via the service valve SV2, and then opens and closes the on-off valve 12 and the orifice 1.
The return flow to the compressor 1 is divided into two paths, that is, the path 3 and the path of the four-way switching valve 2 and the check valve 7, so that the check valve 7 can be downsized.

When it is necessary to relocate the air conditioner or the like, the service valve SV1 is closed while operating in the cooling mode, and the compressor 1 is operated for a predetermined time, for example, about one minute to operate the pipe P3. After transferring most of the refrigerant in P4 and the indoor unit U2 to the outdoor unit U1, the service valve SV2 is closed, and the operation of the compressor 1 is stopped.

In this state, the service valves SV1 and SV2
When the outdoor unit U1 and the indoor unit U2 are separated by removing the pipes P3 and P4 from the air conditioner, the air conditioner can be moved to a desired place without dissipating the refrigerant in the unit to the atmosphere.

In the outdoor unit U1 from which the indoor unit U2 is separated as described above, the pressure of the refrigerant sealed in the refrigerant pipe P1 connecting the check valve 5 and the service valve SV1 is equal to the temperature of the air. Even if it rises along with the rise, since the refrigerant flows through the capillary tube 11 to the side of the large-diameter refrigerant pipe P2, the pressure in the small-diameter refrigerant pipe P1 abnormally rises and ruptures. Inconveniences are avoided.

In the heating operation by the air conditioner having the above-described structure, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 1 is a refrigerant circuit for the heating operation indicated by a solid line arrow, that is, a refrigerant pipe P2, a service valve SV2, a pipe P4, an indoor heat source. This is performed by switching the four-way switching valve 2 and the like so as to return to the compressor 1 via the exchanger 6, the pipe P3, the service valve SV1, the refrigerant pipe P1, the on-off valve 8, and the refrigerant heating heat exchanger 10.

Prior to the normal heating operation, the refrigerant accumulated in the outdoor heat exchanger 3 is collected by the on-off valves 8.1.
This is performed by closing the compressor 2 and starting the compressor 1.

After the refrigerant is recovered, the on-off valve 8 is opened to flow the refrigerant to the refrigerant heating heat exchanger 10, and the heating means 9 such as a gas burner whose calorific value is controlled by the flow control valve 15.
Thereby, the refrigerant is heated to a predetermined temperature.

That is, the liquid refrigerant condensed by warming indoor air having a low temperature in the indoor heat exchanger 6 is heated by the heating means 9 when passing through the refrigerant heating heat exchanger 10,
The air is again supplied to the indoor heat exchanger 6 by the compressor 1 and used for heating.

For this reason, even when the outside air temperature is low such that the outdoor heat exchanger 3 cannot pump up sufficient heat in the heat pump system, the necessary amount of heat can be given to the indoor air for heating, so that the present invention is applicable. In this air conditioner, comfortable heating can be performed.

When the heating operation is stably continued, part of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 1 is not supplied to the indoor heat exchanger 6 but passes through the on-off valve 12
When the on-off valve 12 is opened so as to recirculate, the power consumption of the motor (not shown) driving the compressor 1 can be significantly reduced.

Since the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the appended claims.

For example, instead of the four-way switching valve 2, a flow path switching valve mechanism combining a plurality of on-off valves and the like may be used so that the direction in which the refrigerant flows can be appropriately switched as described above.

If an on-off valve 12 having an appropriate size can be obtained, the installation of the orifice 13 can be omitted.

The check valve 5 and the capillary tube 4
The position of the capillary tube 1 may be reversed.
1 has a check valve 5 or an on-off valve 8 and a service valve S at one end.
It is only necessary that the other end be connected to any of the refrigerant pipes between the service valve SV2 and the suction port of the compressor 1 while the other end is connected to any of the refrigerant pipes between the service pipe SV1 and the compressor 1.

[0031]

As described above, the refrigerant pipe between the first check valve or the on-off valve and the first service valve is
Since it communicates with the refrigerant pipe between the second service valve and the suction port of the compressor via a capillary tube,
The refrigerant sealed in the thin refrigerant pipe between the first check valve and the first service valve can flow via the capillary tube to the side of the thick refrigerant pipe facing the second service valve.

Therefore, even if the outdoor unit and the indoor unit are separated in a state where most of the refrigerant in the unit is sealed in the outdoor unit for relocation or the like, and the temperature may rise in this state,
An abnormal increase in pressure in the thin refrigerant pipe portion is avoided, and the pipe or the like has never been ruptured.

Further, in the cooling operation of the air conditioner in which the refrigerant pipe at the outdoor unit facing the second service valve and the refrigerant pipe at the suction port of the compressor communicate with each other through the second on-off valve, indoor heat exchange is performed. A part of the refrigerant evaporated by cooling the room air having a relatively high temperature in the compressor directly returns to the compressor through the second on-off valve, and a part of the refrigerant returns to the flow path switching valve mechanism and the second reverse valve. Since the refrigerant flows back to the compressor through the stop valve, the size of the check valve can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of one embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional technique.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Compressor 2 Four-way switching valve 3 Outdoor heat exchanger 4 Capillary tube 5 (1st) check valve 6 Indoor heat exchanger 7 (2nd) check valve 8 (1st) on-off valve 9 Heating means 10 Refrigerant heating heat exchanger 11 Capillary tube 12 (Second) on-off valve 13 Orifice 14 Accumulator 15 Flow control valve 16 On-off valve P1, P2 Refrigerant piping P3, P4 Pipe SV1 (First) Service valve SV2 (Second) Service valve U1 Outdoor unit U2 Indoor unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Kazuya Sugiyama 2-5-5 Keihanhondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-6-207761 (JP, A) ( 58) Fields surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) F25B 13/00

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] The refrigerant pipes of the outdoor unit and the indoor unit are connected via first and second service valves and pipes attached to both ends of the refrigerant pipe of the outdoor unit so that the refrigerant can be circulated. The refrigerant discharged from the compressor of the outdoor unit has a flow path switching valve mechanism, an outdoor heat exchanger, a first check valve, the first service valve, the indoor unit, the second service valve,
The cooling circuit for cooling to return to the compressor via the flow path switching valve mechanism / second check valve or the like, or the flow path switching valve mechanism / the second service valve / the indoor unit / the second 1
Air conditioning equipped with a flow path switching valve mechanism and the like that can select any one of a heating refrigerant circuit that returns to the compressor via a refrigerant heating heat exchanger including a service valve, an on-off valve, and a heating means. In the outdoor unit of the machine, a refrigerant pipe between the first check valve or the on-off valve and the first service valve is connected to a refrigerant pipe between the second service valve and the suction port of the compressor. An air conditioner characterized by being connected via a capillary tube. 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the outdoor unit-side refrigerant pipe facing the second service valve and the refrigerant pipe at the suction port of the compressor are communicably connected via a second on-off valve. 3. The refrigerant pipes of the outdoor unit and the indoor unit are connected to each other via first and second service valves and pipes attached to both ends of the refrigerant pipe of the outdoor unit so that the refrigerant can be circulated. The refrigerant discharged from the compressor of the outdoor unit has a flow path switching valve mechanism, an outdoor heat exchanger, a first check valve, the first service valve, the indoor unit, the second service valve,
The cooling circuit for cooling to return to the compressor via the flow path switching valve mechanism / second check valve or the like, or the flow path switching valve mechanism / the second service valve / the indoor unit / the second 1
Air conditioning equipped with a flow path switching valve mechanism and the like that can select any one of a heating refrigerant circuit that returns to the compressor via a refrigerant heating heat exchanger including a service valve, an on-off valve, and a heating means. In the outdoor unit of the machine, a refrigerant pipe between the first check valve or the on-off valve and the first service valve is connected to a refrigerant pipe between the second service valve and the suction port of the compressor. A refrigerant pipe connected to the second service valve and a suction-side refrigerant pipe of the compressor connected via a second on-off valve, and further connected to the second service valve via a second on-off valve; A cooling operation method for an air conditioner, comprising operating the mechanism and the like to select the cooling refrigerant circuit, and operating the compressor by opening the second on-off valve. 4. The refrigerant pipes of the outdoor unit and the indoor unit are connected via first and second service valves and pipes attached to both ends of the refrigerant pipe of the outdoor unit so that the refrigerant can be circulated therein. The refrigerant discharged from the compressor of the outdoor unit has a flow path switching valve mechanism, an outdoor heat exchanger, a first check valve, the first service valve, the indoor unit, the second service valve,
The cooling circuit for cooling to return to the compressor via the flow path switching valve mechanism / second check valve or the like, or the flow path switching valve mechanism / the second service valve / the indoor unit / the second 1
Air conditioning equipped with a flow path switching valve mechanism and the like that can select any one of a heating refrigerant circuit that returns to the compressor via a refrigerant heating heat exchanger including a service valve, an on-off valve, and a heating means. In the outdoor unit of the machine, a refrigerant pipe between the first check valve or the on-off valve and the first service valve is connected to a refrigerant pipe between the second service valve and the suction port of the compressor. While connected via a capillary tube, operating the flow path switching valve mechanism and the like to select the cooling refrigerant circuit, and further operating the compressor for a predetermined time with the first service valve closed. Closing the second service valve with the pipe and then removing the pipes from the first and second service valves. 4. A method for separating an outdoor unit and an indoor unit in an air conditioner, the method comprising: