JP3132940B2 - Air conditioner with humidification function - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a heat pump type air conditioner (hereinafter referred to as "air conditioner") in addition to a cooling / heating / dehumidifying function and a means for humidifying dry indoor air in winter without supplying water. Also, the present invention relates to an air conditioner with a humidifying function.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, heat pump type air conditioners have functions such as cooling, heating and dehumidification. However, as a means for humidifying dry indoor air in winter, it is difficult for heat pump type air conditioners to humidify. The mainstream is to use a single type of humidifier such as ultrasonic humidification or vaporization humidification to humidify dry indoor air in winter. Further, although there are some models in which a humidifying function is added to a heat pump type air conditioner, a water tank is required like a single type humidifier, and the humidifying method is a vaporization type or an ultrasonic type. As a non-water supply type humidifier, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 4-4374.
Although there is a single-type humidification-dedicated device known in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-64, there is no maintenance-free device provided with an air conditioning control function such as cooling, heating, dehumidification, or humidification because it is a humidification-only device.

[0003]

The above-mentioned single type humidifying device and the conventional air conditioner with a humidifying function all need to supply water to a tank provided exclusively for humidifying. The water supply operation is a troublesome operation, and it is often purchased but used several times and is no longer used.

[0004] In addition, a single type non-water supply type humidifier is a dedicated humidifier and requires a relatively large installation space, and furthermore, it is necessary to open a dedicated through-hole for connecting indoors and outdoors to a wall. In addition, troublesome work was necessary.

[0005] In view of the above problems, the present invention adsorbs and accumulates a small amount of water contained in the outside air with an adsorbent, and discharges the accumulated water as humidified air into a dry room in winter to provide comfortable humidity control. It is intended to do so.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner with a humidifying function that improves the humidity of dry indoor air in winter without troublesome water supply work in addition to the cooling, heating and dehumidifying functions. is there.

Another object of the present invention is to simplify the workability by integrating a waterless humidifier with an indoor unit of an air conditioner. Another object of the present invention is to integrate a non-water supply type humidifier with an outdoor unit of an air conditioner to improve performance and reduce noise.

[0008]

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides an indoor unit having an indoor blower, an indoor heat exchanger, and an outdoor unit.
Cooling / heating / removal units equipped with outdoor blowers and outdoor heat exchangers
Heat pump type air conditioners with functions such as humidity
Equipped with non-water supply humidification means that uses air moisture as humidification water
The humidifier without water supply is installed in the indoor unit of the air conditioner.
And the non-water humidifier is provided with the indoor blower.
Has a configuration provided in a separate ventilation circuit .

Further , the present invention provides an indoor unit having an indoor blower and a room.
Equipped with outdoor blower and outdoor heat exchanger for indoor heat exchanger and outdoor unit
Heat pump type with functions such as cooling, heating and dehumidification
The air conditioner does not use moisture in the outside air as humidifying water.
A non-water supply humidifier equipped with water supply humidifier,
The waterless humidifier is provided integrally with an outdoor unit of a Japanese machine.
The outdoor blower is provided in a separate blower circuit . Further, according to the present invention, in the above-mentioned configuration,
The above-mentioned non-water supply humidification unit comprises two non-water supply humidification units.
To alternate between the moisture absorption mode and the humidification mode of the knit
And the configuration.

[0011]

[0012]

The operation of the above configuration is as follows. The present invention provides an air conditioner by providing a moisture-absorbing and non-humidifying waterless humidifier that eliminates the need for water supply work, which is a troublesome operation.
A maintenance-free humidification function is added in addition to the conventional cooling, heating, and dehumidification functions, so that both temperature and humidity can be controlled, and a comfortable indoor environment space can be realized.

Further, according to the present invention, by integrating the non-water supply humidifier into the indoor unit of the air conditioner, the indoor and outdoor through-holes for the air conditioner can be shared, so that the construction of the through-hole dedicated to the humidifier becomes unnecessary. Construction can be simplified.

The present invention is also integrated with an outdoor unit of an air conditioner having a sufficient space for installing two waterless humidification units, and alternately operates the two waterless humidification units in a moisture absorption mode and a humidification mode. The continuous humidification as described above can be performed, so that the performance can be improved and the noise on the indoor side can be reduced.

[0015]

[0016]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiment 1 First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 (a), 1 (b) and 1 (c).

FIGS. 1A and 1B are a cross-sectional view and a plan view of one component showing the principle of operation of a waterless humidifier according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 (a) and 1 (b), reference numeral 1 denotes a non-water supply type humidifying unit, and
A honeycomb-shaped moisture absorbing and releasing molded body 2 is provided therein, and a heater is provided on the downstream side. A two-way solenoid valve 5a, 5b is provided on each of the inflow side and the outflow side of the closed container 4, and the two-way solenoid valves 5a, 5b have a pump 6a,
The pump 6b is connected. The honeycomb-shaped moisture absorbing / desorbing molded body is formed by processing and forming a moisture absorbing and releasing material having a function of adsorbing moisture such as silica gel and an action of releasing and regenerating the absorbed moisture so as to have a honeycomb shape in cross section. The heater 3 serves as a heating source for promoting the desorption of the moisture adsorbed by the honeycomb-shaped moisture absorbing and releasing molded body 2 to obtain humid air and to regenerate it. The two-way solenoid valves 5a and 5b are for switching between a flow path for introducing and discharging outside air into the closed container 4 and a flow path for introducing indoor air and sending humidified air to the indoor side.

The operation principle of the waterless humidifier constructed as described above will be described below. In winter, the air is dry both indoors and outdoors, but the operation of adsorbing and accumulating a small amount of moisture contained in the outside air and regenerating the accumulated moisture and releasing it as humidified air indoors is repeated by the non-water supply humidification unit. This humidifies the room.

First, FIG. 1A shows a state in an adsorption mode in which moisture in the outside air is adsorbed on the honeycomb-shaped moisture absorbing and releasing molded body 2, and the two-way solenoid valves 5a and 5b are used for the outside air introduction and outdoor discharge. In the channel state, the outside air containing moisture is introduced into the honeycomb-shaped moisture-absorbing / desorbing molded body 2 by driving the pump 6a, and the honeycomb-shaped moisture-absorbing / desorbing molded body 2 adsorbs and accumulates moisture of the outside air, Outside air that is almost dry is released outside. When the honeycomb-shaped moisture-absorbing / absorbing adsorbent 2 is saturated with water at a certain level or more, the two-way solenoid valves 5a and 5b are set in a humidifying mode as shown in FIG. Then, the pump 6a is stopped, the heater 3 is energized, the inside of the sealed container 4 is heated, moisture accumulated in the honeycomb-shaped moisture absorbing and releasing molded body 2 is desorbed, and the room introduced by driving the pump 6b is introduced. The air is humidified in the closed container 4 and sent into the room to humidify the room. By installing two sets of non-water supply humidifying units 1 having such an operation principle as a set and alternately repeating water adsorption and water separation / desorption, humidification in winter without water supply becomes possible.

FIG. 1 (c) is a plan view of the honeycomb-shaped moisture-absorbing and desorbing molded body 2 as viewed from above, and outside air is introduced into a myriad of honeycomb-shaped openings, and the outside air is introduced in the process of passing through. The moisture therein is adsorbed and accumulated on the honeycomb-shaped moisture-absorbing and desorbing molded body 2, and moisture for humidification is obtained.

(Embodiment 2) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 shows an external view and an apparatus state of an air conditioner 100 provided with the non-water humidification unit 1.

A side of the air conditioner body 100 is a heat exchanger,
An air conditioner indoor unit 101 configured with a blower fan or the like (not shown) and having a cooling, heating, dehumidifying function, etc., and a non-water supply humidifier having a non-water supply humidifier unit 1 on the B side. 51.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the non-water supply humidifier 51 integrated with the air conditioner indoor unit 101. In the non-water supply humidification inner device 51, the non-water supply humidification unit 1 is housed in an empty room composed of the underframe 10 and the outer casing 11 of the air conditioner,
The indoor air is introduced into the closed container 4 of the non-water supply humidifier 51 by the blower fan 7 corresponding to the suction port 8 on the front surface of the outer casing 11, and is discharged from the outlet 9 below the front part of the tube 11. The outside air is introduced by the pump 6 and discharged outside. The wall has a through hole 12 through which the ventilation pipe passes.
Is formed.

The waterless humidification unit 1 drives the pump 6 with the two-way solenoid valves 5a and 5b in the form of a flow path for introducing and discharging outside air, introducing outside air into the closed container 4, and removing moisture in the outside air. When the honeycomb-shaped moisture-absorbing / desorbing molded body 2 is operated in the adsorption mode in which it is adsorbed and accumulated on the honeycomb-shaped moisture-absorbing / desorbing molded body 2 and reaches a certain level of water saturation or more, the pump 6 is operated.
Stops, the two-way solenoid valves 5a and 5b are switched to the indoor air introduction / indoor discharge flow path form, the heater 3 is energized, and the blower fan 7 is driven, so that the indoor air dried from the suction port 8 is removed. The heater 3 is introduced into the closed container 4 and
Is discharged into the room through the outlet 9 as air humidified by the moisture released from the honeycomb-shaped moisture-absorbing and desorbing molded body 2, and the room can be humidified without water supply. At this time, the outside air introduction / outdoor discharge pipe is drawn out of the room to the outside by being integrated with the air conditioner indoor unit 101, so that the refrigerant pipe of the air conditioner main body 100 and drain water (not shown) are provided. Since the through-hole provided as can be used in common, it is not necessary to newly provide a through-hole dedicated to the non-water-supplying and humidifying unit 1, and piping work can be performed, and the construction can be simplified.

As described above, by integrating the air conditioner indoor unit 101 and the non-water supply humidifier 51, the construction can be simplified, and the humidification function is added to the cooling, heating, and dehumidification functions, and the temperature is reduced. Both humidity and humidity can be controlled by one unit, and a comfortable indoor environment can be realized.

(Embodiment 3) Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, the same components as those in the previous embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of an outdoor unit 102 of an air conditioner provided with an outdoor non-water supply humidifying device 52 comprising first and second non-water supply humidification units 1a and 1b. In addition, 13 in the figure is an outdoor blower fan, 14 is a compressor, and 15 is an outdoor heat exchanger.

The outdoor non-water supply humidifier 52 has a first non-water supply humidification unit 1a and a second non-water supply humidification unit 1b, and has a four-way solenoid valve 20, two-way solenoid valves 5a and 5b, and pumps 6a and 6b. , The first non-water supply humidification unit 1a and the second non-water supply humidification unit 1b are alternately switched between an adsorption mode in which moisture in the outside air is adsorbed and a humidification mode in which humidified air is sent into the room. ing. For example, when the first non-water supply humidifying unit 1a is in an adsorption mode in which moisture in the outside air introduced from the pump 6a into the closed container 4 is adsorbed and accumulated, the two-way solenoid valve 5a removes the introduced outside air. It becomes a flow path for releasing to the outside air after moisture adsorption. At this time, indoor air is introduced into the closed container 4 by the pump 6b into the second non-water-supplying and humidifying unit 1b, and the air humidified by the moisture heated and released from the honeycomb-shaped moisture absorbing and releasing molded body 2 is It is a flow path sent into the room through the directional solenoid valve 5b. As described above, when the first non-water supply humidifying unit 1a is in the adsorption mode, the second non-water supply humidification unit 1b is in the humidification mode, and when the first non-water supply humidification unit 1a is switched to the humidification mode, the second non-water supply humidification unit 1a is switched to the humidification mode. The humidifying unit 1b is configured to perform batch processing for switching to the adsorption mode, so that humidified air is always sent into the room and constant humidity control can be performed. In addition, since the pumps 6a and 6b for conveying air are installed outside the room, it is difficult for the operation sounds of the pumps 6a and 6b to be transmitted to the room, and the noise can be reduced. The first and second non-water-supply / humidification units 1a and 1b are switched when the honeycomb-shaped moisture absorption / desorption molding 2 is in a moisture saturated state at a certain level or more in the adsorption mode or at a certain level or less in the humidification mode. The four-way solenoid valve 20, the two-way solenoid valves 5a and 5b, and the pumps 6a and 6b are automatically switched according to whether or not the water is dried.
The heater 3 is controlled to be turned on / off.

FIG. 5 shows the non-water supply humidifier 5 shown in FIG.
2 shows an attached state of the air conditioner attached to the outdoor unit 102. A non-water supply humidifier is provided in the upper part (D side) of the outdoor unit 102, and the indoor and the non-water supply humidifier 52 are provided by using a pipe of an air conditioner and a through hole 12 for drain water (not shown). Can be connected.

(Embodiment 4) Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Here, the same components as those in the previous embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the non-water supply humidifying unit 1 is installed in a ventilation circuit of the outdoor unit 102 of the air conditioner. The non-water supply humidification unit 1 has a heat exchanger 15 so that the outside air inlet is located on the heat exchanger 15 side of the outdoor unit 102.
It is provided in a blower circuit between the blower and the blower fan 13.

In the winter season when humidification is required, the air conditioner is operated by heating, so that the outdoor heat exchanger 15 of the outdoor unit 102 is operated.
Frost adheres to the surface. In order to effectively use the frost adhering to the outdoor heat exchanger 15 and the water forcibly melting the frost, the outside air inlet of the non-water supply humidifying unit 1 is connected to the heat exchanger 15.
It is provided on the side. The blower fan 13 of the outdoor unit 102
Is shared for the outside air introduction of the non-water humidifier, the pump 6a for introducing the outside air into the non-water humidifier unit 1 becomes unnecessary, and the size of the non-water humidifier can be reduced.

[0033]

As is apparent from the above description of the embodiment, the present invention introduces outside air, adsorbs and accumulates a small amount of water contained in the outside air with a moisture absorbing / releasing molded body, and uses the accumulated moisture as a heater. By installing a non-water supply humidifier in the air conditioner that sends it as humidified air into the room by heating at the same time, humidification in winter is possible without water supply, and cooling, heating, and dehumidification in conjunction with the air conditioner The humidification can be controlled by one air conditioner, and a maintenance-free comfortable indoor environment can be created throughout the year.

Further, in the present invention, by integrating the non-water supply humidifier with the indoor unit of the air conditioner, the through hole for piping required for introducing and discharging outside air can be shared with the through hole of the air conditioner. Construction can be simplified.

Further, according to the present invention, by integrating the non-water supply humidifier with the outdoor unit of the air conditioner, the sound of the air conveying pump and the blower fan is not transmitted to the room, and the noise on the indoor side can be reduced. The space required to provide two non-water supply humidifying units in parallel can be secured, and both units can be continuously humidified by alternate operation of the humidification mode and the humidification mode, enabling high-performance temperature and humidity control. it can.

[0036]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a longitudinal sectional view of a non-water-supplying and humidifying unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1B is a longitudinal sectional view of the same non-water-supplying and humidifying unit. Top view of body

FIG. 2A is a front view of an air conditioner equipped with a non-water-supplying humidifier in one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2B is a side view of the air conditioner;

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the air conditioner indoor unit.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of an air conditioner outdoor unit having a non-water supply humidifying device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an external view of an installation state of an indoor unit and an outdoor unit of the air conditioner.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of an outdoor unit of an air conditioner provided with a non-water supply humidifier in a blower circuit according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Non-water supply humidification unit 2 Honeycomb-shaped moisture absorption / desorption molded object 3 Heater 4 Airtight container 5a / 5b Two-way solenoid valve 6a / 6b Pump 7 Ventilation fan 8 Inlet 9 Outlet 10 Underframe 11 Outer casing 12 Through hole

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) F24F 6/00 331 F24F 6/08

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. An indoor blower, an indoor heat exchanger, and a room
Cooling, heating, and air conditioning with an outdoor blower and outdoor heat exchanger in the outdoor unit
Heat pump air conditioners with functions such as dehumidification,
A non-supplying water humidifier equipped with a non- supplying water humidifier that uses moisture in the outside air as humidifying water is used as an indoor unit of the air conditioner.
The non-water supply humidifier is provided integrally with the indoor blower.
An air conditioner with a humidifying function, which is provided in a separate ventilation circuit . 2. The indoor unit includes an indoor blower, an indoor heat exchanger, and a room.
Cooling, heating, and air conditioning with an outdoor blower and outdoor heat exchanger in the outdoor unit
Heat pump air conditioners with functions such as dehumidification,
Non-water supply humidification means that uses moisture in the outside air as humidification water
The equipped non-water supply humidifier is installed in the outdoor unit of the air conditioner.
The waterless humidifier is provided integrally with the outdoor blower.
An air conditioner with a humidifying function, which is provided in a separate ventilation circuit . 3. The non-water supply humidifying means comprises two non-water supply humidification units.
Moisture absorption mode of the waterless humidification unit,
The humidification mode is switched alternately or in claim 1 or
The air conditioner with a humidifying function according to claim 2 .