JP6444608B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to an air conditioner.

  An air conditioner has been proposed in which an indoor unit having an indoor blower is provided with an air cleaning device that cleans air and a dirt detection sensor such as a gas sensor that detects air dirt (see Patent Document 1). In this case, the area where the dirt detection sensor can detect dirt is limited to the vicinity of the upper part of the room where the indoor unit is installed. For this reason, for example, even if the air in the vicinity of the lower part of the room where there are many people is dirty, the dirt detection sensor installed in the indoor unit cannot detect the dirt well. In order to solve this problem, there has been proposed an air conditioner remote controller provided with a dirt detection sensor in order to detect dirt in the lower part of a room where a person is present (see Patent Document 2). However, various components such as a gas lighter than air and a gas heavier than air are mixed in the dirt component of air floating in the room. For this reason, if the dirt detection sensor of the air conditioner is used to detect dirt, the detection accuracy of gas heavier than air cannot be obtained sufficiently, and if dirt near the remote control where people are present is detected, There is a problem that detection accuracy of lighter gas cannot be sufficiently obtained, and dirt in the entire room cannot be accurately detected.

JP 2009-74788 A JP 2007-187326 A

  Therefore, it is possible to improve the air pollution state of the entire room from both the detection value of the dirt component consisting of a gas lighter than the air near the upper part of the room and the detection value of the dirt component of the air near the lower part of the room consisting of a gas heavier than air. Provide an air conditioner that can be detected.

The air conditioner according to the present embodiment includes an indoor unit having an indoor fan and an air purifier, and a remote control for operating the air conditioner including the indoor unit, and detects a dirt of the air. Are provided in each of the indoor unit and the remote controller, and a control device is provided for determining the dirty state of the room air by inputting the detection values of both the dirt detection sensors and controlling the operation of the air conditioner. Includes a vertical louver that controls the direction of the wind blown from the indoor unit in the vertical direction, and the control device has a detection value of the contamination detection sensor on the indoor unit side that is less than a reference value, and contamination on the remote control side. If the detected value of the detection sensor is equal to or greater than the reference value, by a downward around the wind direction by the vertical louver, the air blown out from the indoor unit, after flowing along the floor, the wall, on the interior Through circulates as sucked into the indoor unit.

Schematic functional block diagram of the air conditioner in the present embodiment Longitudinal side view showing an example of internal structure of indoor unit Flow chart showing basic control contents of air cleaning operation (A)-(d) is a figure explaining the flow of the wind which blows off from an indoor unit (A)-(d) is a figure explaining the detection direction by a human sensitive sensor, and the wind direction by a left-hand side right louver and a right-hand side left-hand louver

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of an air conditioner will be described with reference to the drawings. First, in FIG. 1, an air conditioner 1 according to this embodiment includes an indoor unit 2, an outdoor unit 3, and a remote controller 4. Among these, the indoor unit 2 is installed in the upper part of the indoor side in the room wall 6 of the room 5, as shown to Fig.4 (a). The indoor unit housing 7 of the indoor unit 2 has a box shape that is long in the left-right direction when viewed from the front. As shown in FIG. 2, an indoor heat exchanger 8, an indoor blower 9 including a cross flow fan, and the like are disposed inside the indoor unit housing 7. The indoor heat exchanger 8 constitutes a part of the refrigeration cycle together with a compressor and an outdoor heat exchanger (not shown) installed in the outdoor unit 3.

  An air inlet 10 for sucking indoor air into the indoor unit housing 7 is provided on the upper portion of the indoor unit housing 7 over almost the entire top surface thereof. In addition, an air outlet 11 for blowing out the air sucked into the indoor unit housing 7 into the room is provided at the lower part of the indoor unit housing 7. Inside the indoor unit housing 7, a ventilation path 12 is formed from the air inlet 10 to the air outlet 11. The indoor heat exchanger 8 and the indoor blower 9 are disposed in the ventilation path 12.

  The indoor unit 2 sucks indoor air from the air suction port 10 by a blowing action by the indoor blower 9. The air sucked from the air suction port 10 is heat-exchanged by the indoor heat exchanger 8 in the process of flowing through the ventilation path 12, and blown into the room from the air blowing port 11 as hot air or cold air. Yes. An air filter 13 is detachably attached to the ventilation path 12 on the air suction port 10 side. The air filter 13 is curved in a side view, and is disposed from the upper side to the front side on the upstream side of the ventilation path 12 of the indoor heat exchanger 8. When the air sucked from the air suction port 10 passes through the air filter 13, relatively large dust contained in the air is captured by the air filter 13.

  The air outlet 11 includes an upper and lower louver 14 that controls the direction of wind blown from the air outlet 11 in the vertical direction, and a left and right louver that controls the direction of wind blown from the air outlet 11 in the left and right direction. 15 and a right and left louver 16 are provided. Among these, for example, there are two upper and lower louvers 14, and each extends long along the width direction of the air outlet 11 in the left-right direction. The base ends of the upper and lower louvers 14 are rotatably supported by the indoor unit housing 7, and the tip ends are swung in the vertical direction with the base end as a fulcrum. The upper and lower louvers 14 are swung with a motor (not shown) as a drive source.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of left side left and right louvers 15 and a right side left and right louvers 16 are provided on the left side and the right side of the air outlet 11 along the left and right width direction, respectively. Thus, it is swung left and right about the shaft. The left and right louvers 15 are swung in conjunction with a motor (not shown) as a drive source, and the right and left louvers 16 are swung in conjunction with a motor (not shown) as a drive source. Therefore, the left and right louvers 15 and the right and left louvers 16 are independently swung in the left and right directions by separate motors. Note that the left and right louvers 15 and the right and left louvers 16 may be collectively referred to as left and right louvers 15 and 16.

  An air cleaning device 18 is provided inside the indoor unit housing 7. The air cleaning device 18 is disposed on the downstream side of the air filter 13 in the ventilation path 12 of the indoor unit housing 7, and minus air charges fine dust contained in the air that has passed through the air filter 13 to a negative charge. It comprises an ion generator 19 and an indoor heat exchanger 8 that functions as a dust collecting plate for dust charged to this negative charge. The negative ion generator 19 is arranged at a predetermined interval in the vicinity of the upstream side of the indoor heat exchanger 8, in this case, in the vicinity of the front portion of the indoor heat exchanger 8, and is shown in detail. There is no negative ion electrode.

  The air cleaning device 18 will be further described. A negative potential high voltage (for example, −6 kV) is applied to the negative ion electrode of the negative ion generator 19 from a high voltage application device (not shown). On the other hand, the fin 8a of the indoor heat exchanger 8 located in the vicinity of the negative ion generator 19 is made of a conductive material such as aluminum having conductivity. The indoor heat exchanger 8 functions as a counter electrode with respect to the negative ion electrode of the negative ion generator 19 to which a high voltage of a negative potential is applied by applying a ground potential.

  As described above, in the air cleaning device 18, a negative high voltage is applied to the negative ion electrode of the negative ion generator 19, and the indoor heat exchanger 8 is maintained at the ground potential and functions as a counter electrode. Then, negative ions are generated from the negative ion generator 19. The generated negative ions charge the dust contained in the air flowing through the ventilation path 12 to a negative potential. The dust charged to a negative potential is attracted to the indoor heat exchanger 8 that is maintained at a potential higher than the negative potential, in this case, the ground potential. As a result, the dust charged to a negative potential is captured by the indoor heat exchanger 8. Dust also contains fine particulate matter (PM2.5), and therefore the air cleaning device 18 of the present embodiment can also capture the fine particulate matter.

  The indoor unit 2 is further provided with a temperature sensor 20, a human sensor 21 and a dirt detection sensor 22, as shown in FIG. The temperature sensor 20 detects the indoor air temperature. The human sensor 21 is composed of, for example, a pyroelectric infrared sensor that detects the presence or absence of a person by detecting infrared rays radiated from a human body. As shown in FIG. It is the structure which can detect the position where a person exists by dividing into these four areas. The dirt detection sensor 22 is an oxide semiconductor type gas sensor, for example, and detects a dirt component of room air.

  The indoor unit 2 is further provided with a control device 23. The control device 23 is configured mainly with a microcomputer, has a function of controlling the overall operation of the air conditioner 1, and functions as a control means. A communication unit 24 is connected to the control device 23, and mutual communication is possible with the remote controller 4 via the communication unit 24. The remote controller 4 is for operating the air conditioner 1, and includes an operation unit 25, a display unit 26, and a communication unit (not shown). In this embodiment, the remote controller 4 is also provided with a dirt detection sensor 27 having the same configuration as the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side.

  Here, the control device 23 receives the operation signal of the operation unit 25 in the remote controller 4 and the contamination detection signal of the contamination detection sensor 27, the temperature detection signal of the temperature sensor 20 in the indoor unit 2, and the human sensor 21. A human detection signal, a contamination detection signal of the contamination detection sensor 22, and the like are input. Based on these signals and a control program prepared in advance, the control device 23 is a compressor for the refrigeration cycle, the indoor blower 9, the negative ion generator 19 (air purifier 18), the drive motor for the upper and lower louvers 14, and the left and right left and right louvers 15. And a function of controlling the right and left louver 16 drive motors.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the basic control contents of the control device 23 in the air cleaning operation. In the air cleaning operation, the negative ion generator 19 and the indoor blower 9 are energized, the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side and the dirt detection sensor 27 on the remote control 4 side are also energized, and the dirt detection sensors 22 and 27 are Dirt detection is possible.

  Here, for example, an oxide semiconductor type gas sensor used for the dirt detection sensors 22 and 27 detects a plurality of kinds of gases at a time, and therefore has a characteristic that individual gas components cannot be detected separately. is there. The gas component includes a gas lighter than air and a gas heavier than air. Examples of lighter and heavier gases than air include the following. The parenthesis after the gas name indicates the weight ratio to air. That is, examples of the gas lighter than air include methane (0.5544), isobutane (0.6), ammonia (0.597), carbon monoxide (0.9671), and hydrogen (0.06952). Examples of gases heavier than air include ethanol (1.6), butane (2.0), carbon dioxide (1.53), and freon (3.7).

  The dirt detection sensor 22 mounted on the indoor unit 2 has a high detection accuracy of gas lighter than air because the indoor unit 2 is installed in the upper part of the room, but tends to decrease detection accuracy of gas heavier than air. is there. On the other hand, since the remote controller 4 is generally placed near a person, it is often placed at the lower part of the room below the indoor unit 2. For this reason, the dirt detection sensor 27 mounted on the remote controller 4 has a low detection accuracy of gas lighter than air, but tends to increase detection accuracy of gas heavier than air.

  In FIG. 3, when the air cleaning operation is started, the control device 23 first determines whether or not the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side is equal to or greater than a preset reference value (step S1). If it is determined that the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 22 is equal to or greater than the reference value (when it is determined that the air in the upper part of the room is dirty), the process proceeds to step S2 according to “YES”, and the remote control 4 side It is determined whether or not the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 27 is greater than or equal to a preset reference value. When it is determined that the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 27 is equal to or greater than the reference value (when it is determined that the air in the lower part of the room is dirty), the process proceeds to step S3 according to “YES”, Judge that the entire lower air is dirty.

  Then, the control device 23 determines whether the current operation is cooling, heating, or other dehumidification (steps S4 and S5). If it is determined that the air conditioner is being cooled, the process proceeds to step S6 according to “YES” in step S4, and the upper and lower louvers 14 are turned upward. By causing the upper and lower louvers 14 to face upward, as shown in FIG. 4A, the upper and lower louvers 14 become substantially horizontal, and the wind (cold air) blown out from the air outlet 11 of the indoor unit 2 is As shown by the arrows in the figure, it is blown out in a substantially horizontal direction along the upper and lower louvers 14 and reaches far. And after the cold air flows along a wall surface and a floor surface, it circulates so that it may be sucked in from the air inlet 10 of the upper part of indoor unit 2. At this time, when the circulating air passes through the ventilation path 12 of the indoor unit 2, fine dust contained in the air is removed by the air cleaning device 18. Thereby, it becomes possible to clean the air of almost the whole area in the room. Thereafter, the control device 23 returns to the main routine.

  When it is determined that heating is being performed in steps S4 and S5, the control device 23 proceeds to step S7 in accordance with “YES” in step S5 and turns the upper and lower louvers 14 downward. By causing the upper and lower louvers 14 to face downward, the upper and lower louvers 14 face downward as shown in FIG. 4B, and the wind (warm air) blown from the air outlet 11 of the indoor unit 2 is indicated by an arrow in FIG. As shown by, the air is blown out downward along the upper and lower louvers 14. Then, the warm air flows along the floor surface, passes through the wall surface and the upper part of the room, and circulates so as to be sucked from the air inlet 10 at the upper part of the indoor unit 2. Also at this time, when the circulating air passes through the ventilation path 12 of the indoor unit 2, fine dust contained in the air is removed by the air cleaning device 18. Thereby, it becomes possible to clean the air of almost the whole area in the room. Thereafter, the control device 23 returns to the main routine.

  If the controller 23 determines in steps S4 and S5 that it is neither cooling nor heating, it proceeds to step S8 according to “NO” in step S5, and because it is dehumidifying, the upper and lower louvers 14 face upward. By causing the upper and lower louvers 14 to face upward, as shown in FIG. 4A, the upper and lower louvers 14 are directed substantially in the horizontal direction as in the case of cooling described above, and the air outlet 11 of the indoor unit 2 As shown by the arrows in the figure, the wind blown from the wind blows in the horizontal direction along the upper and lower louvers 14 and reaches far. And after the air flows along a floor surface, it circulates so that it may be sucked from the air inlet 10 of the upper part of indoor unit 2. At this time, when the circulating air passes through the ventilation path 12 of the indoor unit 2, fine dust contained in the air is removed by the air cleaning device 18. Thereby, it becomes possible to clean the air of almost the whole area in the room. Thereafter, the control device 23 returns to the main routine.

  On the other hand, in step S2, the control device 23 determines whether or not the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 27 on the remote controller 4 side is greater than or equal to a preset reference value, and the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 27 is less than the reference value. If it is determined that the air in the lower part of the room is not dirty, the process proceeds to step S9 according to “NO”, and the air in the upper part of the room is dirty, but the air in the lower part is dirty. Judge that it is not. In this case, the control device 23 proceeds to step S10, and swings the upper and lower louvers 14 within the upper half of the vertical swing width (see FIG. 4C). Therefore, the wind direction by the upper and lower louvers 14 is set as the center in the upward direction. Thereby, mainly the air in the upper part of the room is stirred and circulated through the indoor unit 2. Thereby, it becomes possible to preferentially and quickly clean the dirty upper air in the room. Thereafter, the control device 23 returns to the main routine.

  In step S1, the control device 23 determines whether the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side is equal to or greater than a preset reference value, and the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 22 is less than the reference value. If it is determined that the air in the upper part of the room is not dirty, the process proceeds to step S11 according to “NO”. In step S11, it is determined whether or not the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 27 on the remote controller 4 side is greater than or equal to a preset reference value, and it is determined that the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 27 is greater than or equal to the reference value ( If it is determined that the air in the lower part of the room is dirty), the process proceeds to step S12 according to “YES” and the air in the upper part of the room is not dirty, but the air in the lower part is determined to be dirty, Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S13.

  In step S13, the vertical louver 14 is swung in the vertical direction within the range of the lower half of the vertical swing width (see FIG. 4D). Therefore, the wind direction by the upper and lower louvers 14 is set as the center of the downward direction. As a result, the air in the lower part of the room is mainly stirred and circulated through the indoor unit 2. Thereby, it becomes possible to preferentially and quickly clean the dirty lower air in the room. Thereafter, the control device 23 returns to the main routine.

  When the control device 23 determines in step S11 that the detection value of the contamination detection sensor 27 on the remote controller 4 side is less than a preset reference value (when it is determined that the air in the lower part of the room is not dirty). Determines that neither the upper air in the room nor the lower air is dirty, and returns to the main routine according to “NO”.

  Further, the control device 23 of the present embodiment also performs the following control. As described above, the human sensor 21 mounted in the indoor unit 2 is configured to be able to detect a position where a person is present by dividing the area 1 into the area 4 in FIG. 5A. ing.

  In the above-described air cleaning operation, the control device 23 uses the left and right side left and right louvers 15 and 16 when the human sensor 21 detects that the person M is in the area 1 as shown in FIG. The wind direction is directed to the area 1 where the person M is present. Thereby, it becomes possible to preferentially and quickly clean the air around the area 1 where the person M is present.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5C, the control device 23 detects the presence of the person M in two different areas, for example, the area 1 and the area 4, respectively, by the human sensor 21. The wind direction by the louver 15 is directed in the area 1 direction, and the wind direction by the right and left louver 16 is directed in the area 4 direction. Thereby, the air of the two different areas 1 and 4 in which the person M exists can be preferentially cleaned quickly.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5 (d), the control device 23 detects the person M in three different areas 1, 2, and 4 by the human sensor 21, and the left and right louvers 15, 16 Is swung left and right in the direction in which the person M is present. Thereby, the air near each area 1, 2, 4 where the person M is present can be cleaned as quickly as possible.

According to the above-described embodiment, the following operational effects can be obtained.
Dirt detection sensors 22 and 27 are provided in each of the indoor unit 2 and the remote controller 4. The dirt detection sensor 22 provided in the indoor unit 2 mainly detects the dirt of the air in the upper part of the room, and the dirt detection sensor 27 provided in the remote controller 4 mainly detects the dirt of the air in the lower part of the room. Thereby, not only the air near the upper part of the room, but also the dirt of the air near the lower part of the room can be detected well.

  When the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side is less than the reference value and the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 27 on the remote control 4 side is greater than or equal to the reference value, the air in the upper part of the room is not dirty, The upper and lower louvers 14 are swung in the vertical direction within the range of the lower half of the vertical swing width, and the wind direction by the upper and lower louvers 14 is centered downward (step in FIG. 3). (See S12 and S13). Thereby, it becomes possible to preferentially and quickly clean the dirty lower air in the room.

  When the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 27 on the remote controller 4 side is less than the reference value and the detection value of the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side is greater than the reference value, the air in the lower part of the room is not dirty, The upper and lower louvers 14 are swung up and down within the upper half of the swing width in the up and down direction, and the wind direction by the upper and lower louvers 14 is centered upward (step in FIG. 3). (See S9 and S10). Thereby, it becomes possible to preferentially and quickly clean the dirty upper air in the room.

  The detection value of at least one of the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side and the dirt detection sensor 27 on the remote control 4 side detects a reference value or more, and the human sensor 21 determines the position where the person M is present. When detected, the configuration is such that the wind direction by the left and right louvers 15 and 16 is directed to the direction of the person M detected by the human sensor 21 (see FIG. 5B). Thereby, it becomes possible to preferentially and quickly clean the surrounding air where the person M is present.

  The detection value of at least one of the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side and the dirt detection sensor 27 on the remote control 4 side detects a reference value or more, and the human sensor 21 determines the position where the person M is present. When the person M is detected in two of the areas 1 to 4 that can be detected by the human sensor 21, the wind directions of the left and right louvers 15 and the right and left louvers 16 are respectively determined in the direction of the area where the person M is present. (See FIG. 5C). Thereby, the air of two different areas where the person M exists can be preferentially cleaned quickly.

  The detection value of at least one of the dirt detection sensor 22 on the indoor unit 2 side and the dirt detection sensor 27 on the remote control 4 side detects a reference value or more, and the human sensor 21 determines the position where the person M is present. When the person M is detected in two or more areas out of areas 1 to 4 that can be detected by the human sensor 21, the left and right side louvers 15 and 16 are moved left and right within the direction in which the person M is present. It was set as the structure made to swing. Thereby, the air near each area where the person M exists can be cleaned as quickly as possible.

(Other embodiments)
The air cleaning means is not limited to the one constituted by the negative ion generator 19 and the indoor heat exchanger 8, and may be constituted alone such as an electric dust collector.

The dirt detection sensors 22 and 27 are not limited to oxide semiconductor gas sensors, and may be optical sensors, for example.
The remote controller 4 may include a mobile terminal such as a smart phone as long as it can operate the air conditioner 1.

  As described above, according to the air conditioner of the present embodiment, the dirt detection sensor is provided in each of the indoor unit and the remote controller, so that not only the air near the upper part of the room but also the air near the lower part of the room. It becomes possible to detect dirt well.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

  In the drawings, 1 is an air conditioner, 2 is an indoor unit, 3 is an outdoor unit, 4 is a remote control, 5 is a room, 7 is an indoor unit housing, 9 is an indoor fan, 14 is an upper and lower louver, 15 is a left and right louver (left and right) Louver), 16 is a right / left louver (left / right louver), 18 is an air cleaning device (air cleaning means), 19 is a negative ion generator, 21 is a human sensor, 22 is a dirt detection sensor, and 23 is a control device (control means). ) And 27 are dirt detection sensors.

Claims (5)

An indoor unit having an indoor blower and air cleaning means;
A remote controller for operating the operation of the air conditioner including the indoor unit, and an air conditioner comprising:
A dirt detection sensor for detecting dirt on the air is provided in each of the indoor unit and the remote controller,
It is provided with a control device that inputs the detection values of both the dirt detection sensors to judge the dirt state of the room air and controls the operation of the air conditioner,
The indoor unit includes an upper and lower louver that controls the direction of wind blown from the indoor unit in the vertical direction,
When the detection value of the dirt detection sensor on the indoor unit side is less than a reference value and the detection value of the dirt detection sensor on the remote control side is greater than or equal to a reference value, the control device sets the wind direction by the upper and lower louvers as a downward center. Thus, after the air blown from the indoor unit flows along the floor, the air conditioner is circulated so as to be sucked into the indoor unit through the wall surface and the upper part of the room .   When the detection value of the dirt detection sensor on the remote control side is less than a reference value and the detection value of the dirt detection sensor on the indoor unit side is greater than or equal to a reference value, the control device sets the wind direction by the upper and lower louvers as an upward center. The air conditioner according to claim 1. The indoor unit includes a human sensor and a left and right louver that controls the direction of the wind blown from the indoor unit in the left and right direction,
The control device detects a detection value of at least one of the dirt detection sensor on the indoor unit side and the dirt detection sensor on the remote control side equal to or higher than a reference value, and the human sensor is used to detect a person. 3. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein, when the position is detected, the direction of the wind by the left and right louvers is directed to the direction in which the person detected by the human sensor is present. The indoor unit includes a human sensor, a left and right louver and a right and left louver that can be driven independently while controlling the direction of the wind blown from the indoor unit in the left and right direction,
The control device detects a detection value of at least one of the dirt detection sensor on the indoor unit side and the dirt detection sensor on the remote control side equal to or higher than a reference value, and the human sensor is used to detect a person. When the position is detected and a person is detected in two of the areas that can be detected by the human sensor, the wind direction by the left and right louvers and the right and left louvers should be directed toward the area where the person is present. The air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The indoor unit includes a human sensor and a left and right louver that controls the direction of the wind blown from the indoor unit in the left and right direction,
The control device detects a detection value of at least one of the dirt detection sensor on the indoor unit side and the dirt detection sensor on the remote control side equal to or higher than a reference value, and the human sensor is used to detect a person. When the position is detected and a person is detected in two or more of the areas that can be detected by the human sensor, the left and right louvers are swung in the left and right direction within the direction in which the person is present. The air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2.

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