JP4486367B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner using a solar cell.

  As an air conditioner using solar cells, a commercial power supply is rectified by a rectifier circuit, a DC power supply circuit that smoothes the obtained pulsating flow with a smoothing capacitor, and an output of this DC power supply circuit is converted to alternating current. An inverter circuit to be driven and a solar cell that supplies DC power to both ends of a smoothing capacitor via a backflow prevention diode are disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 1).

In addition, a reactor is provided between the smoothing capacitor and the solar cell in order to prevent the phenomenon that the current of the solar cell becomes intermittent due to the ripple of the DC voltage generated in the DC power supply circuit and the operating rate of the solar cell is lowered. Are also disclosed (see, for example, Patent Document 2).
JP-A-61-143667 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 06-307733

  In general, in a variable capacity type air conditioner that receives power from a commercial power supply of 100 V, a direct current power supply circuit that supplies direct current power to an inverter circuit for driving a compressor housed in an outdoor unit, A full-wave rectifier circuit that full-wave rectifies an AC power supply voltage is used as a DC power supply circuit that drives an indoor fan or the like housed in an indoor unit using a voltage doubler rectifier circuit that outputs a double voltage. Therefore, the DC voltage for driving the outdoor unit is about 280V, and the DC voltage for driving the indoor unit is about 140V.

  As described in Patent Document 1 described above, in order to drive a compressor, a solar cell that outputs a DC voltage of 280 V can drive only an outdoor unit. A circuit is required. Moreover, the thing of patent document 2 had a problem that the output of a solar cell may become large too much with sunlight conditions or temperature conditions, and the component with a big proof pressure had to be used in order to cope with this.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide an air conditioner capable of simultaneously or switchingly driving both an outdoor unit and an indoor unit with a solar battery with a simple configuration. It is in.

The invention according to claim 1
An indoor unit that drives indoor equipment including an indoor fan by the output of the first rectifier that rectifies the alternating current of the commercial power supply, and a voltage that is approximately double the output of the first rectifier by rectifying the alternating current of the commercial power supply In an air conditioner comprising an outdoor unit that drives outdoor equipment including a compressor by the output of the second rectifier that outputs
A plurality of solar cell modules are connected in series so as to generate a voltage higher than the output voltage of the second rectifier, and have output terminals at both ends and an intermediate portion thereof, and the output terminals at both ends are the first A solar cell array connected to the output side of the rectifier of No. 2, and the output terminal of the intermediate part and one end part connected to the output side of the first rectifier;
A switch capable of opening and closing an output path to the output side of the first rectifier of the solar cell array;
When both the outdoor unit and the indoor unit operate, the switch is opened to cut off the power supply path to the indoor unit, and the switch is operated to supply power only to the outdoor unit. Opening and closing operation means;
It is characterized by having.

  By configuring the present invention as described above, an air conditioner capable of simultaneously or switchingly driving both an outdoor unit and an indoor unit with a simple configuration using a solar cell is provided.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on preferred embodiments shown in the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an air conditioner according to the present invention and a solar cell used therefor. In the figure, a solar cell array 2, collectively referred to as a solar cell, is installed on the sunshine surface of the roof of a building 1. The solar cell array 2 has a total of three output terminals at both ends and an intermediate portion, the distribution line 3c from the output terminal at one end on the negative electrode side, and the distribution line 3a from the output terminal at the other end on the positive electrode side. The distribution lines 3b are respectively led out from the output terminals of the intermediate part, and among these, the distribution line 3c is branched into two, one of the distribution lines 3c and the distribution line 3a is connected to the outdoor unit 4, and the other The distribution line 3 c and the distribution line 3 b are connected to the indoor unit 5.

  FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram illustrating a configuration of each control unit of the indoor unit 5 and the outdoor unit 4. In the figure, an indoor unit 5 is connected to an indoor AC power source 6. An input terminal of a full-wave rectifier circuit 12 is connected to the AC power supply 6 via a fuse 11. A smoothing capacitor 13 is connected between the output terminals of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12. The primary winding of the transformer 14 and the switching element 15 are connected in series to both ends of the smoothing capacitor 13. A diode 16 and a smoothing capacitor 17 are connected in series to the secondary winding of the transformer 14, and a control circuit 18 is connected to the smoothing capacitor 17 in parallel. A fan motor 19 is connected to both ends of the smoothing capacitor 13.

  As will be described later, the solar cell array 2 has four solar cell modules connected in series, the distribution line 3a is derived from the output terminal on the positive electrode side, and the distribution line 3c is derived from the output terminal on the negative electrode side. The distribution line 3b is led out from the output terminal of the intermediate portion of the solar cell module. Among these, the distribution line 3 b is connected to the output path on the positive side of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12 via the backflow prevention diode 21, and one of the distribution lines 3 c is connected to the output path on the negative side of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12. It is connected.

  On the other hand, the outdoor unit 4 includes a noise filter 24, one end on the input side thereof is connected to one end of the AC power source 6 via the switch 22 and the fuse 23, and the other end on the input side of the noise filter 24 is connected to the AC power source. 6 is connected to the other end. A voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 is connected between the output side terminals of the noise filter 24. The voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 is formed by connecting a series connection circuit of diodes and a series connection circuit of capacitors in parallel, and an interconnection point of the diodes is connected to one end on the output side of the noise filter 24 via the reactor 25. Then, the interconnection point of the capacitors is connected to the other end on the output side of the noise filter 24. The output terminal of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 is connected to the DC input terminal of the inverter circuit 27. This inverter circuit 27 is a circuit in which six switching elements each having a reflux diode connected in reverse parallel are connected in a three-phase bridge. And each interconnection point of three sets of switching elements connected in series is an alternating current output end, and the compressor 29 is connected to this.

  Then, the distribution line 3a derived from the output terminal on the positive electrode side of the solar cell array 2 is connected to the output path on the positive electrode side of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 via the backflow prevention diode 28, and the solar cell array 2 The other of the distribution lines 3 c led out from the negative output terminal is connected to the negative output path of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26.

  The indoor unit 5 includes a microcomputer 100 that controls the air conditioner. The microcomputer 100 has various processing functions. Here, the switch 22 is used when the operation of the outdoor unit 4 is stopped. It also has an opening / closing operation function that opens the door.

  The operation of the first embodiment configured as described above will be described below. The voltage of the 100V AC power supply 6 disposed in the building 1 is rectified by the full-wave rectifier circuit 12, and the obtained pulsating current is smoothed by the smoothing capacitor 13, and the DC voltage with a small amount of ripple is passed through the switching element 15. And applied to the primary side of the transformer 14. This DC voltage is also supplied to the fan motor 19. Here, the switching element 15 is turned on and off at about several kHz, thereby generating an AC voltage of about 10 V on the secondary side. This AC voltage is rectified and smoothed by the diode 16 and the smoothing capacitor 17, and a DC drive voltage is supplied to the control circuit 18. The microcomputer 100 operates using a DC voltage applied to the control circuit 18 or a DC voltage obtained via a separate step-down circuit as a drive source, and opens the switch 22 when stopping the operation of the outdoor unit 4. To do.

  On the other hand, when the switch 22 is closed, the voltage of the AC power supply 6 is supplied to the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 via the noise filter 24 and the reactor 25, where it is voltage doubled rectified and applied to the inverter circuit 27. . In the inverter circuit 27, the switching elements are turned on and off in a predetermined order by a control circuit (not shown), and a three-phase AC voltage is output and applied to the compressor 29.

  Thus, although general air conditioning control is performed, the output voltage of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12 in the indoor unit 5 is approximately 140V, and the output voltage of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 in the outdoor unit 4 is approximately 280V. . The solar cell array 2 suppresses the consumption of AC power when used in combination with the AC power source 6, and generates a voltage exceeding 280V, for example, 290V to 300V, by connecting four solar cell modules in series. The voltage is supplied between the output terminals of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 by the distribution lines 3a and 3c. In addition, a voltage exceeding 140 V, for example, 145 V to 150 V is applied between the output terminals of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12 by the distribution line 3 b and the distribution line 3 c derived from the intermediate connection point of the four solar cell modules. Is done.

  As a result, both the outdoor unit 4 and the indoor unit 5 can be driven by the solar cell array 2, or only the indoor unit 5 can be driven.

  FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of a second embodiment of the air conditioner according to the present invention. In the figure, the same elements as those in FIG. Is omitted. In this embodiment, a contact a is provided at the rear stage of the backflow preventing diode 21 in the middle of connection of the distribution line 3b derived from the intermediate output terminal of the solar cell array 2 to the positive side of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12, and the solar cell array. 2 is connected to the negative electrode side of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12 and is connected to the negative electrode side of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12. Further, the distribution line is derived from the positive electrode side output terminal of the solar cell array 2. The contact c is led out from the output terminal on the negative side of the solar cell array 2 at the rear stage of the backflow prevention diode 28 in the middle of the connection of the positive voltage side of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 to the negative side of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26. 2 is different from the configuration in FIG. 2 in that the contacts d are provided in the middle of the connection, and the other configurations are the same as those in FIG. The contacts a and b are relay contacts that are excited and de-energized by the control circuit 18, and the contacts c and d are relays that are excited and de-energized by the control circuit (not shown) of the outdoor unit. It is a contact point.

  The operation of the second embodiment configured as described above will be described below, in particular, with respect to the parts different from the first embodiment. In recent years, air conditioners have an air purifying function, and while the operation of the outdoor unit 4 is stopped, only the blower of the indoor unit 5 is operated, or the operation of the outdoor unit 4 is stopped for the purpose of ventilation only. Opportunities to drive only the blower 5 are increasing. In the past, air conditioners were mostly used in air conditioning operations in which indoor units and outdoor units are operated at the same time. However, taking into account recent usage patterns, solar air conditioners can be used only for indoor units. If the power of the battery is supplied to the indoor unit, the energy saving effect is also increased. On the other hand, when both the indoor unit and the outdoor unit are operated, if solar cell power is supplied to both, if the load on the indoor unit is large, the intermediate output terminal voltage will drop and power will be supplied to the outdoor unit. Accordingly, the voltage between both ends also decreases accordingly, and there is a possibility that power cannot be supplied to the outdoor unit. Therefore, when both the indoor unit and the outdoor unit operate, priority is given to the output supply of the solar cell to the outdoor unit side, and the supply to the indoor unit side is prohibited.

  The present embodiment has been made based on such an idea. When only the indoor unit 5 is operated among the outdoor unit 4 and the indoor unit 5, both the indoor unit 5 and the outdoor unit 4 are moved to the indoor unit 5 side. Is operated, the energy of the solar cell array 2 is supplied to the outdoor unit side. When the indoor unit 5 is operated at the beginning of operation, the contacts a and b are turned on and the contacts c and d are turned on. Is turned off to supply solar cell energy only to the indoor unit 5. Thereafter, when the outdoor unit 4 is also operated, the contact points a and b are turned off and the contact points c and d are turned on to supply solar cell energy only to the outdoor unit 4.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure of the control circuit 18 corresponding to the above control. The control circuit 18 receives from the microcomputer 100 signals for operating and stopping the air conditioner and signals for turning on and off the switch 22 and confirms the operations of the indoor unit 5 and the outdoor unit 4 based on these signals. The process is executed. That is, if the operation of the air conditioner is started in step 101, the relay of the indoor unit 5 is excited in step 102, and the relay of the outdoor unit 4 is de-energized. Subsequently, in step 103, it is determined whether or not the outdoor unit 4 needs to be operated. If no operation is required, the processes in steps 102 and 103 are repeated. If the operation is necessary, the relay of the indoor unit 5 is repeated in step 104. Is de-energized and the relay of the indoor unit 5 is excited. Then, the processes in steps 103 and 104 are repeated until it is determined in step 103 that the operation of the outdoor unit 4 is not necessary.

  Thus, according to the second embodiment, the solar cell array 2 can switch and supply solar energy to the side of the outdoor unit 4 and the indoor unit 5 that require electric power as needed.

  FIG. 5 is a configuration example in which solar energy is supplied by changing the connection state of the solar battery for an air conditioner according to the present invention, and (a) is applied to both the outdoor unit 4 and the indoor unit 5 as shown in FIG. The case where solar energy is supplied is shown, and (b) shows the case where solar energy is supplied only to the indoor unit 5 by changing its connection state. That is, in the solar cell array 2 shown in (a), the solar cell modules 201 to 204 are connected in series, and the positive electrode side of the solar cell module 201 with the highest voltage and the negative electrode side of the solar cell module 204 with the lowest voltage. The solar cell modules 202 and 203 are each provided with an output terminal at an intermediate portion thereof, and the distribution lines 3a, 3c and 3b are led out from these output terminals, respectively, as shown in FIG. Solar energy can be supplied to both machines 5. Moreover, the solar cell array 2 shown in (b) has the solar cell modules 201 and 202 connected in series, the solar cell modules 203 and 204 connected in series, and the output terminal on the positive electrode side of the solar cell module 201 is connected to the solar cell module 203. The distribution line 3b is derived by connecting to the positive-side output terminal, and the distribution line 3c is derived by connecting the negative-side output terminal of the solar cell module 202 to the negative-side output terminal of the solar cell module 204. is there. 6 (a) and 6 (b) are equivalent circuits of the solar cell array 2 shown in the connection state in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b).

  Thus, according to this embodiment, when high power is required in the indoor unit 5, the output voltage rises when it is used as it is connected in series as it is, and it is necessary to change the used component to one having a high withstand voltage. However, there is also an advantage that a large amount of power can be supplied to the indoor unit 5 without changing the voltage by connecting in parallel using the intermediate output terminal.

  Here, for example, a procedure for connecting the solar cell array 2 as shown in FIG. 6A to the air conditioner will be briefly described. In this case, first, a plurality of solar cell modules 201 to 204 are connected in series so that a DC voltage slightly higher than that of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26 is output, and then the solar cell modules 201 to 204 connected in series are connected. Both ends are connected in parallel to the 26 output terminals of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit, and then, among the solar cell modules 201 to 204 connected in series, an output terminal that is a DC voltage slightly higher than the output voltage of the full-wave rectifier circuit 12 The output terminal of the full wave rectifier circuit 12 is connected in parallel.

  Generally, a configuration in which four solar cell modules are connected in series for an outdoor unit, and a configuration in which two solar cell modules are connected in series for an indoor unit is also conceivable. By adopting the procedure, it becomes possible to drive both the outdoor unit and the indoor unit simultaneously or with a simple configuration that eliminates the need for a step-up circuit and a step-down circuit and with a small number of solar cell modules.

  In addition, although the Example mentioned above demonstrated the case where four solar cell modules were connected in series or connected in series and parallel, by using what changed the number of element arrays of a solar cell module, two sheets Even if the solar cell module is an even number such as six or eight, both the outdoor unit and the indoor unit can be driven as described above.

  Further, even when an odd number of solar cell modules having a different number of element arrays are connected in series, the full-wave rectifier circuit 12 has a voltage at both ends that is 20 to 30 V higher than the output voltage of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 26, for example. By providing the output terminal at the intermediate portion that can divide the voltage by 10 to 15 V higher than the both-end voltage, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

The schematic block diagram of 1st Example of the air conditioner which concerns on this invention, and the solar cell for air conditioners. The circuit diagram which shows the structure of each control part of the indoor unit and outdoor unit which comprise 1st Example. The schematic block diagram of 2nd Example of the air conditioner which concerns on this invention, and the solar cell for air conditioners. The flowchart which shows an example of the process sequence of the control circuit corresponding to control of 2nd Example. The structural example which changes the connection state of the solar cell for air conditioners which concerns on this invention, and supplies energy. The equivalent circuit of the solar cell array corresponding to the connection state shown in FIG.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Building 2 Solar cell array 3a-3d Distribution line 4 Outdoor unit 5 Indoor unit 6 AC power supply 12 Full wave rectifier circuit 13 Smoothing capacitor 19 Fan motor 21, 28 Backflow prevention diode 22 Switch 26 Voltage doubler rectifier circuit 27 Inverter circuit 29 Compressor 100 Microcomputer

Claims (1)

An indoor unit that drives indoor equipment including an indoor fan by the output of the first rectifier that rectifies the alternating current of the commercial power supply, and a voltage that is approximately double the output of the first rectifier by rectifying the alternating current of the commercial power supply In an air conditioner comprising an outdoor unit that drives outdoor equipment including a compressor by the output of the second rectifier that outputs
A plurality of solar cell modules are connected in series so as to generate a voltage higher than the output voltage of the second rectifier, and have output terminals at both ends and an intermediate portion thereof, and the output terminals at both ends are the first A solar cell array connected to the output side of the rectifier of No. 2, and the output terminal of the intermediate part and one end part connected to the output side of the first rectifier ;
A switch capable of opening and closing an output path to the output side of the first rectifier of the solar cell array;
When both the outdoor unit and the indoor unit operate, the switch is opened to shut off the power supply path to the indoor unit, and the switch is operated to supply power only to the outdoor unit. Opening and closing operation means;
An air conditioner characterized by comprising:

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