JP3443291B2 - Air conditioner - 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 for air conditioning in an air-conditioned room provided with an indoor unit.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Air conditioners (hereinafter referred to as "air conditioners")
Blows out the air whose temperature has been adjusted by passing through the heat exchanger of the indoor unit (indoor unit) provided in the air-conditioned room, to achieve air conditioning in the air-conditioned room. ing.

In such an air conditioner, a temperature sensor is provided in a remote control switch for operating the air conditioner, and this temperature sensor is mainly used (the temperature sensor provided in the remote control sensor).
Air-conditioning control is performed so that the temperature detected by the temperature control device reaches the set temperature, so that the temperature around the person in the room to be air-conditioned becomes the set temperature. That is, the remote control switch is operated by a person who is in the air-conditioned room, and the temperature of the remote control switch is close to the sensible temperature of the person who is in the air-conditioned room. Therefore, by setting the temperature detected by the temperature sensor of the remote control switch as the set temperature, it is possible to feel that the air-conditioned room is in a comfortable air-conditioning state.

By the way, it is preferable that the indoor unit of the air conditioner is installed at a position where the conditioned air can be blown out toward the entire inside of the air-conditioned room, whereby the entire inside of the room can be in a comfortable air-conditioned state.

In recent years, the air-conditioned room to be air-conditioned by an air conditioner has become wider, and the shape thereof has been diversified, such as being formed into an L shape. On the other hand, the mounting position of the indoor unit is often restricted because it is necessary to avoid windows, doors, beams, and the like. Therefore, in order to uniformly air-condition the entire area of a large room with one indoor unit, an air conditioner with high air-conditioning capacity is required.

However, from the viewpoint of energy saving, it is not preferable to uniformly air-condition the whole area of the air-conditioned room. In other words, even if the air-conditioned room is large, the space in which people are present is often limited, and air-conditioning the entire area of a large air-conditioned room allows the temperature-controlled air to reach even spaces without people. Therefore, the air conditioning capacity needs to be increased accordingly.

Considering such energy saving during air conditioning,
It is preferable to focus the air conditioning on the space where people are.
For this reason, the indoor unit is installed so as to air-condition the area where the person is present for the longest time.

By the way, when the indoor unit is attached so as to mainly air-condition an area where a person is present in a large room for a long time, the indoor unit is not located at a position (for example, a central portion) overlooking the entire area of the large room, It will be attached to an area where people are long (or where people are always).

On the other hand, even when the indoor unit is installed in this way, it is sometimes necessary to air-condition the entire large room by the indoor unit or to air-condition the area other than the area to which the indoor unit is directed. At this time, even if the air-conditioning operation is performed in the same way as when air-conditioning only the area where people are often present, the installation location of the indoor unit is offset,
It may not be possible to bring a comfortable temperature to an area other than the area mainly conditioned by the indoor unit, as well as the entire large room.

That is, as the room temperature during air conditioning, a temperature sensor provided in the indoor unit or a temperature sensor provided in the remote control switch is used. In addition, because the indoor unit is installed in an area where people are long,
Although the air-conditioning efficiency in this area is high, the air-conditioning efficiency outside this area is low, so even if air conditioning is performed using the temperature detected only by the temperature sensor of the remote control switch, it is not possible to uniformly air-condition the desired area. difficult.

For this purpose, it is conceivable to arrange a plurality of temperature sensors in the air-conditioned room and control the air conditioning capacity based on the temperatures detected by the respective temperature sensors.

However, even if the air conditioning is performed while measuring the temperatures of two regions having different air conditioning efficiencies, it is difficult to make the air conditioning uniform if the air conditioning efficiencies are different. Discomfort may be caused by insufficient areas or excessive heating.

[0013]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above facts, and when a plurality of temperature sensors are arranged in an air-conditioned room, an area where each temperature sensor is arranged by efficiently performing air conditioning. The purpose of the present invention is to propose an air conditioner that makes the air conditioning comfortable.

[0014]

The invention according to claim 1 is
An air conditioner for air-conditioning an air-conditioned room, in which an indoor unit is installed, based on operating conditions including a set temperature and room temperature, wherein a main temperature detection means provided in the air-conditioned room and a sub-device provided in the air-conditioned room. Temperature detecting means, correcting means for correcting the set temperature based on a temperature difference between the main room temperature detected by the main temperature detecting means and the sub room temperature detected by the sub temperature sensor, and a constant preset in the temperature difference.
By multiplying the
Correction limiting means for limiting the correction amount of the constant temperature within a predetermined range,
Air conditioning control means for limiting the air conditioning capacity based on the set temperature corrected by the correction means.

[0015] with, according to the present invention, to correct the set temperature based on the temperature difference between the secondary temperature detected by the main temperature and auxiliary temperature detection means for detecting the primary temperature sensing means, pre
Amount of correction when the temperature is corrected using the set constant
The air conditioning capacity is controlled based on the corrected set temperature and the main room temperature or the sub room temperature.

Thus, the air conditioning capacity can be controlled using the corrected set temperature and either one of the room temperatures, so that a conventionally known control method can be used. Also,
It is possible to control so that one of the main room temperature and the sub room temperature approaches the set temperature while the other gradually approaches the set temperature.

[0017]

Here, in the present invention , the correction amount when correcting the set temperature is limited. For example, if the temperature difference between the main room temperature and the sub room temperature is large and the correction amount of the set temperature becomes large, the temperature of the other side will greatly exceed the set temperature or the temperature difference will spread even if one does not reach the set temperature. It may happen.

On the other hand, by limiting the correction amount of the set temperature by the correction limiting means, it is possible to prevent a large temperature difference from occurring between the main room temperature and the sub room temperature, and to set the main room temperature relative to the set temperature. One of the sub-room temperatures can be prevented from becoming too high or too low, and efficient air conditioning can be achieved. In addition, in the present invention, the temperature difference between the main room temperature and the sub room temperature is estimated.
The set temperature is compensated by multiplying the set constant for
Since the positive amount is limited, the rate of change in temperature difference and correction amount
Can be correlated, and fine-grained adjustment is possible.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the correction means includes storage means for storing a change history of the sub room temperature, and prediction means for predicting the sub room temperature based on the change history stored by the storage means. The means corrects the set temperature based on the sub room temperature predicted by the predicting means and the main room temperature detected by the main temperature detecting means.

According to the present invention, the history of the sub room temperature detected by the sub temperature detecting means is stored, and the set temperature is corrected by predicting the change in the sub room temperature from the stored history. In general, the timings at which the plurality of temperature detection means individually detect temperatures are often different. If the timing is different, the temperature difference will be different from the actual temperature difference. Therefore, by predicting the sub-room temperature when the main room temperature is detected from the history of the sub-room temperature stored in the storage means, it is possible to prevent a large difference from the actual difference between the main room temperature and the sub-room temperature, and to set the set temperature appropriately. Can be corrected.

The invention according to claim 3 is characterized in that the main temperature detecting means is provided in a remote control switch for setting the operating conditions.

Generally, the remote control switch is operated by a person who is in an air-conditioned room. Therefore, by setting the temperature detecting means provided in the remote control switch to the main room temperature, a comfortable air-conditioning state can be felt and it is effective. Air conditioning is possible.

[0024]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 2 shows a refrigeration cycle of an air conditioner (hereinafter referred to as "air conditioner 10") to which the present invention is applied. The air conditioner 10 is composed of an indoor unit 12 installed in an air-conditioned room and an outdoor unit 14 installed outdoors. The indoor unit 12 and the outdoor unit 14 are thick pipe refrigerant pipes 16A for circulating a refrigerant.
And the refrigerant pipe 16B which is a thin pipe.

A heat exchanger 18 is provided in the indoor unit 12, and one end of each of the refrigerant pipes 16A and 16B is connected to the heat exchanger 18. The other end of the refrigerant pipe 16A is connected to the valve 20A of the outdoor unit 14. This valve 20A is a muffler 22A
Is connected to the four-way valve 24 via. This four-way valve 24
Are connected to the compressor 26 via the accumulator 28 and the muffler 22B.

Further, the outdoor unit 14 is provided with a heat exchanger 30. This heat exchanger 30 has one end connected to the four-way valve 24 and the other end connected to a capillary tube 32,
Valve 20 via strainer 34 and modulator 38
Connected to B. An electric expansion valve 36 is provided between the strainer 34 and the modulator 38, and the other end of the refrigerant pipe 16B is connected to the valve 20B.
As a result, a closed refrigerant circulation path forming a refrigeration cycle is formed between the indoor unit 12 and the outdoor unit 14.

The air conditioner 10 can be cooled or heated by operating the compressor 26 to circulate a refrigerant in the refrigeration cycle.

That is, in the cooling mode, the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 26 is supplied to the heat exchanger 30 to be liquefied, and the liquefied refrigerant is vaporized in the heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 12, The air passing through the heat exchanger 18 is cooled. Further, in the heating mode, conversely, the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 26 radiates heat by being condensed in the heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 12, and the heat radiated by this refrigerant causes air to pass through the heat exchanger 18. Is heated.

In FIG. 1, during the heating operation (heating mode) and during the cooling operation (cooling mode or dry mode) indicated by arrows.
The operation mode is switched between the cooling mode (including the dry mode) and the heating mode by switching the four-way valve 24, and the valve opening of the electric expansion valve 36 is controlled to evaporate the refrigerant. The temperature is adjusted. The present invention can be applied to an air conditioner of any configuration, and the air conditioner 10 shows an example thereof.

As shown in FIG. 3, the indoor unit 12
The heat exchanger 18 is provided in the casing 42 in which the inlet 48 and the outlet 50 are formed. The casing 42 is fixed to the wall surface in the room by the base plate 40.

Inside the casing 42, the heat exchanger 18
The cross flow fan 44 and the filter 46 are arranged between the suction port 48 and the suction port 48, and the air in the room is sucked into the casing 42 by the operation of the cross flow fan 44.
After passing through the filter 46 and the heat exchanger 18, it is blown out into the room from the blowout port 50. At this time, the air blown into the room passes through the heat exchanger 18 so that heat is exchanged with the refrigerant circulated in the heat exchanger 18 to become temperature-controlled air for air conditioning the room. .

The outlet 50 of the indoor unit 12 is provided with upper and lower flaps 54 together with the left and right flaps 52. The left and right flaps 52 and the upper and lower flaps 54 allow
The direction of the conditioned air (temperature-controlled air) blown out from the outlet 50 can be changed. That is,
The air blown into the room from the outlet 50 is changed in direction by the upper and lower flaps 54 in the vertical direction.
The left and right flaps 52 are adapted to change the direction of the air blown from the outlet 50 along the left-right direction (horizontal direction). The air conditioner 10 can change the wind direction of the air blown from the outlet 50 by the upper and lower flaps 54 and the left and right flaps 52.

As shown in FIG. 4, the indoor unit 12
A power supply board 56, a control board 58, and a power relay board 60 are provided in the. A motor power supply 62, a control circuit power supply 64, a serial power supply 66, and a drive circuit 68 are provided on the power supply board 56 to which electric power for operating the air conditioner 10 is supplied. Further, the control board 58 is provided with a serial circuit 70, a drive circuit 72, and a microcomputer 74.

A fan motor 76 (for example, a DC brushless motor) for driving the cross flow fan 44 is connected to the drive circuit 68 of the power supply board 56, and a control signal from the microcomputer 74 provided on the control board 58 is supplied. In response, drive power is supplied from the motor power source 62. At this time, the microcomputer 74 controls the output voltage from the drive circuit 68 so as to be changed in 256 steps in the range of 12V to 36V. As a result, the air volume of the conditioned air blown from the outlet 50 of the indoor unit 12 is adjusted.

The drive circuit 72 of the control board 58 is connected to a power relay board 60, a left and right flap motor 77 for operating the left and right flaps 52, and an up and down flap motor 78 for operating the up and down flaps 54. The power relay board 60 is provided with a power relay 80 and a temperature fuse, and operates the power relay 80 by a signal from the microcomputer 74 to open / close a contact 80A for supplying electric power to the outdoor unit 14. Air conditioner 1
When 0, the contact 80 </ b> A is closed, so that power can be supplied to the outdoor unit 14.

The left and right flap motors 77 and the upper and lower flap motors 78 are controlled according to control signals from the microcomputer 74 to operate the left and right flaps 52 and the upper and lower flaps 54, respectively. When the left and right flaps 52 are swung in the left and right direction, the blowing direction of the air (air conditioning air) blown out from the outlet 50 is changed to the left and right direction, and the upper and lower flaps 54 are swung in the up and down direction, so that the indoor unit The blowing direction of the air (air conditioning air) blown from the 12 outlets 50 is changed to the vertical direction. The operation of the left and right flaps 52 and the upper and lower flaps 54 can be fixed so that the blowing air can be directed in any direction, and can also be set so that the wind direction changes randomly.

In the indoor unit 12 of the air conditioner 10, the rotation of the cross flow fan 44 and the operations of the left and right flaps 52 and the upper and lower flaps 54 are controlled to control the desired air volume and wind direction or to make the room comfortable. The air conditioned by the volume and direction of the air is blown out into the room.

As shown in FIG. 9, the left and right flaps 52 are controlled so as to change the wind direction within the range of the angle θ ₀ (generally, the angle 2θ ₀ ) centering on the front of the indoor unit 12. It The angle 2θ ₀ is, for example, 100 °
It is set to be as wide as 120 °.

As shown in FIG. 4, the serial circuit 70 connected to the microcomputer 74 and the serial power supply 66 of the power supply circuit 56 is connected to the outdoor unit 14,
The microcomputer 74 performs serial communication with the outdoor unit 14 via the serial circuit 70 to control the operation of the outdoor unit 14.

Further, the indoor unit 12 is provided with a display board 82 having a receiving circuit for receiving an operation signal from the remote control switch 120 (see FIG. 1) and a display LED for operation display. The board 82 is the microcomputer 7
4 is connected. As shown in FIG. 1, the display portion 82A of the display substrate 82 is arranged on the front surface of the casing 42, and the remote control switch 120 is provided on the display portion 82A.
A receiver is provided for receiving the operation signal sent from the device. As a result, the remote controller switch 120 is turned on by the display unit 8.
Remote control switch 1 by operating toward 2A
An operation signal from 20 is input to the microcomputer 74.

As shown in FIG. 4, the microcomputer 74 includes a room temperature sensor 84 for detecting the room temperature and the heat exchanger 1.
The heat exchange temperature sensor 86 for detecting the coil temperature of No. 8 is connected, and further, the service LED and the operation changeover switch 88 provided on the control board 58 are connected. The operation changeover switch 88 is switched between "normal operation" and "test operation" performed at the time of maintenance, etc., and is also changed to "stop" in which the contact of the power switch 88A is opened to cut off the supply of operating power to the air conditioner 10. To be Normally, the operation changeover switch 88 is set to "normal operation" and the contact of the power switch 88A is closed. The service LED can be turned on during maintenance,
The service person is notified of the self-diagnosis result.

The indoor unit 12 includes an outdoor unit 14
There is provided a terminal block 90 to which the wiring between and is connected. The terminals 90A, 90B, 90 of this terminal block 90
Wiring for power supply supplied from the indoor unit 12 to the outdoor unit 14 and wiring for serial communication between the indoor unit 12 and the outdoor unit 14 are connected to C.

As shown in FIG. 5, the outdoor unit 14
Is provided with a terminal block 92, and the terminals 92A, 92B, 92C of the terminal block 92 are respectively terminals 90A, 90B, 9 of the terminal block 90 of the indoor unit 12.
0C is connected.

The outdoor unit 14 includes a rectifying board 9
4. A control board 96 is provided. The control board 96 includes a microcomputer 98 and a noise filter 10.
0A, 100B, 100C, the serial circuit 102, the switching power supply 104, etc. are provided.

A noise filter 100 is provided on the rectifying board 94.
The power supplied via A is double-voltage rectified, and the smoothed DC power is output to the switching power supply 104 via the noise filters 100B and 100C. The switching power supply 104 is connected to the inverter circuit 106 together with the microcomputer 98, and the inverter circuit 106 is connected to the compressor motor 108. Inverter circuit 1
Reference numeral 06 outputs electric power having a frequency corresponding to the control signal output from the microcomputer 98 to the compressor motor 108, and rotationally drives the compressor 26.

The microcomputer 98 uses the inverter circuit 1
The frequency of the power output from 06 is off or 14Hz
The compressor motor 1 is controlled so as to be in the above range (the upper limit depends on the upper limit of the operating current).
08, that is, the rotation speed of the compressor 26 is changed,
The operating capacity of the compressor 26 (cooling / heating capacity of the air conditioner 10) is controlled.

The control board 96 includes a four-way valve 2
4 and a fan motor 110 for driving a blower fan (not shown) for cooling the heat exchanger 30 and a fan motor condenser 110A are connected. Further, the outdoor unit 14 includes an outdoor air temperature sensor 11 for detecting the outdoor air temperature.
2. A coil temperature sensor 114 for detecting the temperature of the refrigerant coil of the heat exchanger 30 and a compressor temperature sensor 116 for detecting the temperature of the compressor 26 are provided, and these are connected to the microcomputer 98.

The microcomputer 98 switches the four-way valve 24 in accordance with the operation mode and controls signals from the indoor unit 12, the outside air temperature sensor 112, and the coil temperature sensor 11.
4 and the detection result of the compressor temperature sensor 116, the on / off of the fan motor 110, the operating frequency of the compressor motor 108 (the capacity of the compressor 26) and the like are controlled.

Further, the control board 96 is connected with a motor 118 for opening and closing the electric expansion valve 36. The microcomputer 98 controls the opening degree of the electric expansion valve 36 by the motor 118.

6A and 6B, a remote control switch 120 for operating the air conditioner 10 is shown.
(Hereinafter referred to as "main remote controller") is shown. A display unit 122 is provided on the main remote controller 120. The display unit 122 is configured to display operating conditions such as an operating mode, a set temperature, an indoor temperature (room temperature), a time, and a wind direction and an air volume when the air conditioner 10 is operated.

Further, the main remote controller 120 has
Stop button 124, temperature setting buttons 126A, 126B
In addition, a sensation button 128 and a wind direction button 130 are provided. The air conditioner 10 has a start / stop button 124
It is operated / stopped by the operation of. Further, the set temperature (target temperature for air conditioning) displayed on the display unit 122 can be changed by the temperature setting buttons 126A and 126B.

A temperature sensor (not shown) is provided inside the main remote controller 120, and the room temperature around the main remote controller 120 is measured by the main remote controller 120 and sent to the indoor unit 12. . Further, a temperature sensor is also provided in the sub remote controller 140, which will be described later, so that the room temperature around the sub remote controller 140 can be measured and sent to the indoor unit 12. The microcomputer 74 of the indoor unit 12 includes a room temperature sensor 84 and a main remote controller 12 provided in the indoor unit 12.
0 and the sub remote controller 140 can detect the temperature in the room.

The sensation button 128 is for switching the temperature sensor for measuring the room temperature.
By operating the room temperature sensor 84 of the indoor unit 12 in the normal mode, and in addition to the room temperature sensor 84, the main remote controller 120 (normal sensation mode) or the main remote controller 120 and the sub remote controller 140.
It can be switched to a sensation mode in which the room temperature is measured using (multi-sensation mode).

By operating the wind direction button 130,
An automatic mode in which the left and right flaps 52 are automatically swung within a preset range is selected. Further, the left and right flaps 52 can be fixed in any direction by the wind direction button 130 (non-automatic mode).

In the present embodiment, the left and right flaps 52 are fixed in an arbitrary direction in the non-automatic mode, but the swing range is arbitrarily selected and the swing is performed within the selected swing range. You can

The main remote controller 120 is provided with a slide cover 130, and this slide cover 134 is provided.
The operation panel 132 having various operation buttons is exposed by the slide operation.

As shown in FIG. 6A, the operation mode button of the operation panel 132 hidden in the slide cover 134 allows the operation modes of the air conditioner 10 to be automatic, heating, dry, cooling, and air cleaning. The order is switched to drying. Further, by operating a switch in the operation panel 132, it is possible to switch the amount of air blown from the outlet 50 and the wind direction (vertical direction), and it is possible to select the air conditioning capacity such as high power and capacity saving. . Further, by operating switches on the operation panel 132, it is possible to set timers such as operation start time and operation stop time.

The main remote controller 120 sends an operation signal corresponding to the operation content to the display section 82A of the indoor unit 12 and sends the room temperature detected by the temperature sensor each time the operation button is operated. To do.
Further, the main remote controller 120 sends out the room temperature at a constant time interval regardless of the operation of the operation button.

The air conditioner 10 can perform the air conditioning operation based on the room temperature detected and sent by the main remote controller 120. That is, the main remote controller 120
Is operated in the main area of the room that is air-conditioned by the air conditioner 10 to detect the air-conditioning state (mainly the temperature) of this main area, and the air-conditioning operation is performed so that the temperature detected by the main remote controller 120 reaches the set temperature. Is done.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 1, the display portion 82A of the air conditioner 10 also receives a signal from a remote controller sensor switch (hereinafter referred to as "sub remote controller 140") provided separately from the main remote controller 120. It is like this.

An outline of the sub remote controller 140 is shown in FIGS. 7, 8A and 8B. As shown in FIG. 7, the sub remote controller 140 is
The temperature detection unit 142 that detects the ambient temperature of the device and outputs a signal (for example, voltage) corresponding to the detected temperature is provided with a human detection unit 144 and a position setting switch 146, each of which is a conversion unit 148. It is connected to the. The conversion unit 148 is also connected to the communication unit 150.

The person detecting section 144 is provided with a person detecting sensor 152 having a pyroelectric element for detecting far infrared rays condensed by a Fresnel lens. 8 (A) and 8
As shown in (B), this human detection sensor 152 is
It is arranged in a hemispherical dome cover 154 provided in the central portion of the sub remote controller 140, and detects far infrared rays around the dome cover 154 that have passed through.

As shown in FIG. 7, the human detection sensor 152 is connected to the detection circuit 156. The human detection unit 144 determines whether or not there is a change in far infrared rays detected by the human detection sensor 152 by the detection circuit 156.
It has a general human detection configuration that detects the presence or absence of people around 0.

The detection circuit 156 includes a sensitivity adjuster 1
58 is connected. As shown in FIG. 8 (B),
The sub remote controller 140 is provided with an adjustment knob 158A of the sensitivity adjuster 158. This adjustment knob 158A
The sensitivity of the human detection sensor 152, that is, the detection distance can be adjusted.

As shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the slide cover 140A of the sub remote controller 140 is slid downward to operate the position setting switch 1
46 is opened.

As shown in FIG. 8B, the position setting switch 146 sets the operation knob 146 A to “right” according to the position of the indoor unit 12 with respect to the sub remote controller 140.
It is designed to be slid to three display positions of "middle" and "left". The adjustment knob 158 described above
A is also usually hidden by the slide cover 140A.

The conversion section 148 converts the input signals from the temperature detection section 142, the human detection section 144 and the position setting switch 146 based on the respective preset codes and outputs them to the communication section 150. .

The communication section 150 sends the signal output from the conversion section 148 to the indoor unit 12. Also,
As shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the sub remote controller 140 is provided with a power switch 160 for turning on / off the sub remote controller 140. Communication unit 150
When the power switch 160 is turned on,
The ON signal is transmitted, and at the same time, the signal is transmitted according to inputs from the temperature detection unit 142, the human detection unit 144, and the position setting switch 146.

The sub remote controller 140 has a power switch 16
When 0 is turned on, the temperature detecting unit 142 measures the room temperature and the human detecting unit 144 detects the presence / absence of a person, and the human detecting unit 144 detects a person at regular time intervals. Position setting switch 14 with measured room temperature
The position signal set by 6 is transmitted.

On the other hand, the microcomputer 74 of the indoor unit 12
Determines the position of the sub remote controller 140 based on the position setting signal from the sub remote controller 140, and the left and right flaps 5 are arranged so that the conditioned air is blown from the outlet 50 to this position.
Swing 2. Further, when the signal indicating that the person is detected is stopped from the sub remote controller 140, the microcomputer 74 of the indoor unit 12 stops the swing of the left and right flaps 52, and the signal for detecting the person is input again. Thus, the swing of the left and right flaps 52 is started. At this time, the microcomputer 74 controls the temperature and the air volume of the conditioned air using the room temperature sent from the sub remote controller 140 when the sensation button 128 of the main remote controller 120 is operated and the sensation mode is set.

As shown in FIG. 10, the indoor unit 12 of the air conditioner 10 is usually an air-conditioned room 162 to be air-conditioned.
It is attached so as to blow out the conditioned air toward the main area 162A inside. That is, the indoor unit 12 is mounted with its front surface facing the main area in the air-conditioned room, and is normally operated so that the main area is in a comfortable air-conditioned state.

The sub remote controller 140 is attached to an area (hereinafter, referred to as "sub area 162B") in which the air conditioning is desired to be performed at a position different from the main area 162A in the air-conditioned room 162.

As shown in FIG. 9, the air conditioner 10 is
The direction of the conditioned air blown out by the left and right flaps 52 is normally the front position of the indoor unit 12 at the initial position (hereinafter referred to as the initial position C), and the left and right flaps 52 have an angle around the initial position C. θ
Swing left and right in the range of ₀ (eg 50 ° to the left and right)
Swing range). When the position setting switch 146 of the sub remote controller 140 is set to “middle”, the left and right flaps 52 are similarly swung around the initial position C.

On the other hand, when the position setting switch 146 of the sub remote controller 140 is set to "left" or "right", the initial positions R and L of the indoor unit 12 are respectively set to the angle θ.
_It is changed to _R and θ _L , and is swung right and left in the range of an angle θ ₁ (for example, about 30 °). That is, the swing of the left and right flaps 52 is biased rightward or leftward by the position setting switch 146 of the sub remote controller 140.

When the left and right flaps 52 are swung in response to a signal from the sub remote controller 140, the amount of air blown from the air outlet 50 is increased.
The air-conditioning air surely reaches the sub area 162B indicated by the sub remote controller 140.

On the other hand, the microcomputer 74 provided in the indoor unit 12 uses the experience button 128 of the main remote controller 120.
Is operated, the air conditioning capacity is controlled based on the room temperature detected by the main remote controller 120, the room temperature detected by the sub remote controller 140, and the set temperature to control the air-conditioned room 16
Air-condition inside 2. At this time, the room temperature detected and sent by the sub remote controller 140 is stored in a memory (not shown), and every time the room temperature detected by the main remote controller 120 is read, the room temperature around the sub remote controller 140 is predicted, and the main remote controller 120 predicts the room temperature. The set temperature is corrected based on the detected difference from the room temperature.

At this time, in order to prevent the correction amount of the set temperature from increasing, the correction amount of the set temperature is limited to a predetermined value (for example, several degrees Celsius, 1 degree Celsius in this embodiment). ing.

The microcomputer 74 controls the air conditioning capacity on the basis of the corrected set temperature and the room temperature detected by the main remote controller 120, so that the sensible temperature (room temperature) of the main area 162A and the sub area 162B becomes substantially equal. It is designed to control abilities.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below. In the air conditioner 10, when a start / stop operation is performed in a state set to any one of cooling operation, dry operation, heating operation, etc. by a switch operation of the main remote controller 120, operation in the set operation mode is started.

When the air conditioner 10 is operated and the air conditioning operation is started, the set temperature and the room temperature are measured, and the operating frequency of the compressor 26, the air volume (the number of rotations of the crossflow fan), etc. are measured based on the measurement results. The air conditioning operation is performed based on the setting result.

Further, in the outdoor unit 14, the four-way valve 24 is switched according to the set operation mode. For example, when the cooling or dry mode is set, the compressor 2
The refrigerant compressed by 6 is supplied to the heat exchanger 30 of the outdoor unit 14. As a result, the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 26 is liquefied by passing through the heat exchanger 30, and the liquefied refrigerant is supplied to the heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 12. The refrigerant supplied to the heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 12 is vaporized when passing through the heat exchanger 18, and cools the air passing through the heat exchanger 18.

On the other hand, during the heating operation, the compressor 26
The four-way valve 24 is switched so that the high-pressure refrigerant compressed by is supplied to the heat exchanger 18 of the indoor unit 12. As a result, when the high-pressure refrigerant compressed by the compressor 26 is liquefied by the heat exchanger 18, it heats the air passing through the heat exchanger 18. The air heated by the heat exchanger 18 is blown into the room through the air outlet 50 to heat the room.

In the air conditioner 10, the room temperature is usually measured by the room temperature sensor 84 of the indoor unit 12, but the sensation button 128 of the main remote controller 120 is used.
When is operated, in addition to the room temperature measured by the room temperature sensor 84, the operation is performed in the sensible mode using the room temperature measured by the main remote controller 120. At this time, the sub remote controller 14
0 is turned on, and the temperature detector 142 of the sub remote controller 140
When receiving the room temperature measured in, the room temperature sensor 8
4, the main remote controller 120 and the sub remote controller 140 are operated in a multi-experience mode in which the air conditioning operation is performed based on the room temperatures detected. It should be noted that the sensation mode can be executed during an automatic operation in which the wind direction and air volume such as cooling, heating, and dry are automatically set.

FIG. 11 shows an outline of the operation of the sub remote controller 140. In the sub remote controller 140, when the power switch 160 is turned on, the temperature detection unit 142 starts measuring the room temperature around the sub remote controller 140, and the human detection sensor 152 detects the presence or absence of a person.

The presence / absence of a person is set to be unattended unless the person detecting sensor 152 is turned on for a predetermined time (for example, 15 minutes).
If the person continues to detect people, it will be set as manned.

On the other hand, as shown in the flow chart of FIG. 11, when the power switch 160 is turned on, the sub remote controller 140 sets the position setting switch 146 in the first step 200 together with the temperature detecting section 14.
The room temperature measured in 2 is delivered. Along with this, in the next step 202, a timer for measuring an interval for transmitting a signal is reset / started.

At the next step 204, it is confirmed whether the time measured by the timer has reached a predetermined time,
When the predetermined time has been reached (affirmative determination in step 204), the process proceeds to step 206, and it is confirmed whether or not the human detection unit 144 determines (sets as manned) to be manned.

When it is determined that the person is present, an affirmative determination is made in step 206 and the process proceeds to step 200. By this, a predetermined interval (for example, time t
The room temperature around the sub remote controller 140 is sent from the sub remote controller 140 every ₂ minutes (about 10 minutes).

Further, when unmanned is set (negative determination in step 206), the human detection unit 144 waits until it detects a person around the sub remote controller 140. A positive determination is made in step 200, and the execution of this flowchart is restarted.

On the other hand, the air conditioner 10 includes the main remote controller 1
When the signal for shifting to the sensible mode from 20 is input, the sensible mode (multi-sensible mode) using the room temperature detected by the main remote controller 120 and the sub remote controller 140 is executed. At this time, the set temperature is corrected based on the room temperature detected by the main remote controller 120 and the room temperature detected by the sub remote controller 140, and the air-conditioned room 162 is conditioned based on the corrected set temperature. Also,
When the position setting signal (a signal corresponding to the operation state of the position setting switch 146) is input from the sub remote controller 140, the indoor unit 12 sets the initial positions of the left and right flaps 52 and makes a swing corresponding to the initial position. To do. It should be noted that when the sensation mode ends or when the operation of the sub remote controller 140 stops (when the sending of the temperature signal is stopped, etc.), the initial positions of the left and right flaps 52 are returned, and the air conditioning of the main area 162A is performed. It is supposed to be done.

The main remote controller 120 is the sub remote controller 1
The microcomputer 74 of the indoor unit 12 sequentially stores the room temperature sent from the sub remote controller 140, and reads the room temperature _Trtp sent from the main remote controller 120. , The present room temperature T _rts is predicted from the stored room temperature.

The interval at which the sub remote controller 140 sends out room temperature is time t ₂ (for example, about 10 minutes or less), and the interval at which the main remote controller 120 sends room temperature is time t ₁ (for example, about 5 minutes or more). ). Further, the correction of the set temperature is completed when the sending of the room temperature from the sub remote controller 140 is stopped.
At this time, the initial positions of the left and right flaps 52 are returned, and the conditioned air is blown toward the main area 162A.

FIG. 12 shows an outline of the correction of the set temperature based on the room temperature detected by the main remote controller 120 and the sub remote controller 140. This flow chart is executed when the sensible mode is set and the room temperature is sent from the main remote controller 120 and the sub remote controller 140.

In the first step 210 of the flowchart of FIG. 12, it is confirmed whether or not the room temperature signal sent from the main remote controller 120 has been received, and the main remote controller 1
The room temperature signal transmitted from 20 is received (step 21).
If the answer is 0, the process proceeds to step 212, and the room temperature _Trtp is read from the received room temperature signal.

At the same time, in step 214, the room temperature detected by the sub remote controller 140 is predicted.

FIG. 13 shows an example of room temperature prediction detected by the sub remote controller 140. Every time the room temperature signal is sent from the sub remote controller 140, the sub remote controller 1
The room temperature T _rts sent from 40 is read, the latest two room temperatures T _rts1 and T _rts1 are stored, and the current room temperature T _rtt is predicted from the elapsed time when the room temperature was finally read. In this flowchart, the first step 220
Then, it is confirmed whether or not the room temperature signal sent from the sub remote controller 140 is received, and when an affirmative decision is made, the _{routine proceeds} to step 222, where the room temperature T _rts sent is read.
After that, the room temperatures T _rts1 and T _rts2 are respectively updated to store the latest _two room temperatures (step 224).

Next, in step 226, the timer is reset / started to start measuring the elapsed time, and in step 228, it is confirmed whether or not the reading request of the room temperature detected by the sub remote controller 140 is made.

Here, when the room temperature measured by the sub remote controller 140 is requested (affirmative determination in step 228), the _{process proceeds} to step 230 and the present room temperature _Trtt.
Predict. In this prediction of the room temperature, the elapsed time t ₀ measured by the timer is read, and then the read elapsed time t ₀ and the stored room temperatures T _rts1 and T _rts2 and the interval at which the sub remote controller 140 measures the room temperature ( The time t ₂ ) is used (see the following equation).

T _rtt = T _rts1 + (T _rts1 −T _rts2 ) × t ₀ / t _{2 In} this embodiment, the room temperature T _rtt is predicted from the slope of the change in the room temperature T _rts detected by the sub remote controller 140. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any method such as predicting the room temperature T _rtt by fuzzy calculation can be used.

In the flowchart shown in FIG. 12, when the room temperature T _{rt t} predicted in step 214 is read, the process proceeds to step 216 and the set temperature is corrected. Correction of the set temperature, and calculates a difference between room temperature T _rtp detected by the main remote controller 120, the correction amount of the set temperature T _SET [Delta] T
Calculate _SET . At this time, the corrected set temperature T _s is obtained by multiplying the preset constant α so that the correction amount ΔT _SET does not exceed the predetermined value (see the following equation).

ΔT _SET = (T _rtp −T _rtt ) × α (−1 ° C ≦ ΔT _SET ≦ 1 ° C) T _s = T _SET + ΔT _{SET The} microcomputer 74 corrects the set temperature T _s in this way. The air conditioning operation is performed based on the corrected set temperature T _s (step 218). Note that various conventionally known methods can be applied to the air conditioning operation based on the set temperature, and detailed description thereof will be omitted in the present embodiment. As the air-conditioning control based on the set temperature, a method using fuzzy control can be applied, and air conditioning can be performed more efficiently, which is preferable.

By correcting the set temperature T _SET in this way, as shown in FIG. 14, the room temperature T _rtp detected by the main remote controller 120 is gradually changed to the set temperature T set.
_The room temperature T _rts detected by the sub remote controller 140 gradually approaches the set temperature T _SET as the temperature approaches _SET , and the inside of the air-conditioned room 162, particularly the main area 162A and the sub area 162B, becomes a comfortable sensible temperature.
When the deviation between the room temperature T _rtp and the set temperature T _SET is within a predetermined temperature (for example, 1 ° C), the set temperature T
Finish _SET correction.

On the other hand, in the sub remote controller 140, the human detection sensor 152 detects the presence / absence of a person in the sub area 162B at regular intervals, and when the sub remote controller 140 no longer detects a person, the air conditioner 10 detects the presence of the person. 14
Set temperature T _SET using room temperature T _{rt s} detected by 0
Since the correction of No. is completed, there is no sub-area 162B with no people.
It is possible to prevent unnecessary air conditioning.

As described above, by air-conditioning the inside of the air-conditioned room 162 using the air conditioner 10, it is possible to efficiently perform air conditioning so that only a desired area becomes comfortable.
This makes it possible to save energy when air conditioning the inside of the air-conditioned room 162.

In the present embodiment, description has been made using the main remote controller 120 and the sub remote controller 140 for each indoor unit 12, but the sub remote controller 1
A plurality of 40 may be provided. As a result, a large room can be divided into a large number of areas, and only a specific area of each can be efficiently air-conditioned.

The embodiment described above does not limit the structure of the present invention. INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be applied to an air conditioner having any configuration for air conditioning a room to be air-conditioned in which an indoor unit is provided.

[0108]

As described above, according to the present invention, since air conditioning is performed based on the set temperature corrected based on the temperature difference between the main room temperature and the sub room temperature, each of the main room temperature and the sub room temperature is set to the set temperature. The control for approaching becomes easy. In addition, it is possible to effectively air-condition the area in which the room temperature is detected by the main temperature detecting means and the sub-temperature detecting means, and it is possible to obtain an excellent effect that energy saving can be achieved during air conditioning.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an indoor unit and a remote control switch applied to the present embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a refrigeration cycle of an air conditioner applied to the present embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the inside of an indoor unit.

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram showing a configuration of a substrate in the indoor unit.

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram showing a configuration of a ban of the outdoor unit.

6A and 6B are schematic plan views showing a main remote controller, FIG. 6A showing a state in which a slide cover is opened, and FIG. 6B showing a state in which the slide cover is closed. .

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a sub remote controller according to the present invention.

8A and 8B are schematic plan views showing a sub remote controller according to the present invention, FIG. 8A showing a state in which a slide cover is opened, and FIG. 8B in a state in which the slide cover is closed. Is shown.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing swing areas of the left and right flaps of the indoor unit with respect to the position designated by the sub remote controller.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a region in which conditioned air is blown out from the indoor unit, and shows a state in which both the main area and the sub area are air-conditioned.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the sub remote controller.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of correction of a set temperature.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of room temperature prediction detected by the sub remote controller.

FIG. 14 is a diagram schematically showing changes in room temperature detected by the main remote controller and room temperature detected by the sub remote controller with respect to time during heating.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Air Conditioner (Air Conditioner) 12 Indoor Unit 14 Outdoor Unit 18 Heat Exchanger 26 Compressor 50 Outlet 52 Left and Right Flap 74 Microcomputer (Air Conditioning Control Means, Correction Means, Correction Limiting Means, Prediction Means, Storage Means) 77 Left and Right Flap Motors 82 Display board 84 Room temperature sensor (internal temperature detection means) 120 Main remote control (main temperature detection means) 128 Feeling button 140 Sub remote control (sub temperature detection means) 142 Temperature detection section (sub temperature detection means) 144 Human detection section (human detection means) ) 146 Position setting switch 150 Communication section 152 Human detection sensor 160 Power switch 162 Air-conditioned room 162A Main area 162B Sub area

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Hiroshi Kanai 2-5-5 Keihan Hondori, Moriguchi City, Osaka Prefecture Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (56) Reference JP-A-1-70631 (JP, A) JP Sho 63-183333 (JP, A) JP 6-42765 (JP, A) JP 6-26693 (JP, A) JP 8-282242 (JP, A) JP 8-338665 (JP , A) JP-A-3-158643 (JP, A) JP-A-4-48142 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) F24F 11/02

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. An air conditioner for air-conditioning an air-conditioned room in which an indoor unit is installed, based on operating conditions including a set temperature and room temperature, the main temperature detecting means being provided in the air-conditioned room, and the air conditioner. An auxiliary temperature detecting means provided in the room, a correcting means for correcting the set temperature based on a temperature difference between the main room temperature detected by the main temperature detecting means and the sub room temperature detected by the auxiliary temperature sensor, and the temperature difference. Foresight
By multiplying the set constant for
Compensation for limiting the correction amount of the set temperature by the step within a predetermined range
An air conditioner comprising: a positive limiter; and an air conditioner controller that limits the air conditioning capacity based on the set temperature corrected by the corrector. 2. A memorizer for storing the change history of the sub-room temperature.
And the change history stored by the storage means.
And a correction means for predicting the sub-room temperature.
The sub-room temperature predicted by the predicting means and the main temperature
Setting based on the main room temperature detected by the temperature detection means
The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the temperature is corrected . 3. The main temperature detecting means determines the operating condition.
It is equipped with a remote control switch to set
The air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2.