JP7520156B2 - Air conditioning system, air conditioner control device, and air conditioner control method - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to an air conditioning system that conditions a space to be air-conditioned, an air conditioner control device, and an air conditioner control method.

Conventionally, air conditioners that condition large spaces used by multiple people, such as office buildings or offices, are known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The air conditioner disclosed in Patent Document 1 divides the space to be air-conditioned into multiple control areas, distinguishes the multiple control areas into occupied control areas where people are present and unoccupied control areas where no people are present, and controls the amount of refrigerant flowing to the indoor units corresponding to each control area. As a specific example, Patent Document 1 describes that when performing cooling operation, the air conditioner sets the indoor target temperature of the unoccupied control area to a temperature higher than the indoor target temperature of the occupied control area.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-311437

When the number of people in a present-controlled area increases, or the amount of activity of people in the present-controlled area increases, the environmental load in the present-controlled area increases. In this case, for example, the air conditioning device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is considered to increase the air volume to increase the cooling capacity of the indoor unit in the present-controlled area while maintaining a suppressed cooling capacity of the indoor unit in the absent-controlled area. This increases the amount of air convection between the present-controlled area and the absent-controlled area, and indirectly air-conditions the absent-controlled area. As a result, the power consumption of the air conditioning device increases.

The present disclosure has been made to solve the problems described above, and provides an air conditioning system, an air conditioner control device, and an air conditioner control method that can reduce the power consumption of an air conditioner.

The air conditioning system of the present disclosure comprises an air conditioner equipped with a plurality of indoor units for conditioning a space to be air-conditioned, a plurality of temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of each of a plurality of zones partitioned in the space to be air-conditioned corresponding to the positions of the plurality of indoor units, a human detection means for detecting for each of the plurality of zones whether the zone is an occupied zone where a person is present or an unoccupied zone where no people are present, and a control device for causing the indoor units of the occupied zone to operate in cooling or heating mode so that the temperature detected by the temperature detection means in the occupied zone detected by the human detection means becomes a set temperature, wherein the control device causes the indoor units of the unoccupied zone detected by the human detection means among the plurality of zones to operate in fan mode and determines the airflow of the indoor units of the unoccupied zone based on the airflow of the indoor units of the occupied zone, and if there are a plurality of unoccupied zones, sets the airflow of the indoor units of each of the unoccupied zones to be greater than the airflow of the indoor units of the occupied zones closest to each of the unoccupied zones .

The air conditioner control device of the present disclosure is an air conditioner control device connected to an air conditioner having a plurality of indoor units that condition a space to be air-conditioned, a plurality of zones into which the space to be air-conditioned is divided corresponding to the positions of the plurality of indoor units, a plurality of temperature detection means that detects the temperature of each zone, and a human detection means that detects whether a person is present in each of the plurality of zones, and the control device operates indoor units of attended zones in cooling or heating mode so that the temperature detected by the temperature detection means in the attended zones, which are zones among the plurality of zones where the human detection means detects the presence of a human, becomes a set temperature, operates indoor units of unattended zones, which are zones among the plurality of zones where the human detection means detects that no human is present, operates in fan mode, determines the airflow of the indoor units of the unattended zones based on the airflow of the indoor units of the attended zones, and if there are a plurality of unattended zones, sets the airflow of the indoor units of each of the unattended zones to be greater than the airflow of the indoor units of the attended zones that are closest to each of the unattended zones .

The method of controlling an air conditioner according to the present disclosure is a method of controlling an air conditioner by a control device connected to an air conditioner having a plurality of indoor units that condition a space to be air-conditioned, a plurality of temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of each of a plurality of zones into which the space to be air-conditioned is divided corresponding to the positions of the plurality of indoor units, and a human detection means for detecting whether or not a person is present in each of the plurality of zones, and a control device for controlling an air conditioner by a control device connected to a human detection means for detecting whether or not a person is present in each of the plurality of zones, the control device ... such that the temperature detected by the temperature detection means in a human presence zone, which is a zone among the plurality of zones where the human detection means detects the presence of a person, becomes a set temperature. The method includes a step of operating the indoor units in cooling or heating mode, and a step of operating the indoor units in unoccupied zones, which are zones among the plurality of zones where the human detection means has detected that no human is present, in fan operation and determining the airflow of the indoor units in the unoccupied zone based on the airflow of the indoor units in the occupied zones, and when there are a plurality of unoccupied zones, in the step of determining the airflow of the indoor units in the unoccupied zones based on the airflow of the indoor units in the occupied zones, the airflow of each of the indoor units in the unoccupied zones is made greater than the airflow of the indoor units in the occupied zones closest to each of the unoccupied zones .

According to the present disclosure, cooling or heating operation is performed in the occupied zone, and fan operation is performed in the unoccupied zone, and the air volume of the fan operation in the unoccupied zone is determined based on the air volume of the cooling or heating operation in the occupied zone. This suppresses air convection between the occupied zone and the unoccupied zone, and suppresses indirect air conditioning of the unoccupied zone. As a result, the efficiency of air conditioning in the occupied zone is improved, and the power consumption of the air conditioner can be suppressed.

1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an air conditioning system according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic external view showing a configuration example of the indoor unit shown in FIG. 1 . FIG. 3 is an enlarged schematic view of the exterior of the wind direction vane shown in FIG. 2 . FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing an example of an arrangement of the plurality of indoor units shown in FIG. 1 in the first embodiment. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration example of a control device shown in FIG. 1; 6 is a hardware configuration diagram showing an example of the configuration of the control device shown in FIG. 5 . 6 is a hardware configuration diagram showing another example of the configuration of the control device shown in FIG. 5 . 4 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation procedure of the air conditioning system according to the first embodiment. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a specific operation procedure of the process of step S110 shown in FIG. 8 in the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the air volume of each indoor unit when one of the four indoor units shown in FIG. 4 performs cooling operation. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the air flows generated by indoor units installed in two adjacent zones in the room shown in FIG. 4 . FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing another example of arrangement of the indoor units shown in FIG. 1 in the first embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of control of each indoor unit when four of the twelve indoor units shown in FIG. 12 are performing cooling operation. 5 is a diagram showing an example of control when the air volume adjustment functions of the four indoor units shown in FIG. 4 are different from one another. FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view showing an example of an arrangement of the indoor units shown in FIG. 1 in a second embodiment. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a specific operation procedure of the process of step S110 shown in FIG. 8 in the second embodiment. FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view showing another example of arrangement of the indoor units shown in FIG. 1 in the second embodiment.

The embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Various specific setting examples described in the present embodiment are merely examples, and are not limited to the described setting examples. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, communication means either one or both of wireless communication and wired communication. In the present embodiment, communication may be a communication method in which wireless communication and wired communication are mixed. The communication method may be, for example, wireless communication in one space and wired communication in another space. In addition, communication from one device to another device may be performed by wired communication, and communication from another device to one device may be performed by wireless communication. In addition, in order to make it easier to understand the contents of the embodiment, arrows of three axes (X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis) that define directions are added to some of the drawings among the entire drawings.

Embodiment 1.
The configuration of the air conditioning system of the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the air conditioning system according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioning system 1 has an air conditioner 3 that conditions the air of a space to be air-conditioned, and a control device 30 that controls the air conditioner 3. The air conditioner 3 has an outdoor unit 10 and a plurality of indoor units 20-1 to 20-n. n is the number of indoor units and is an integer of 2 or more. Each of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-n air-conditions the space to be air-conditioned according to an operation mode such as cooling operation, heating operation, dehumidification operation, and fan operation. Each indoor unit may have a humidifying function or a moisturizing function.

The outdoor unit 10 has a compressor 11, a four-way valve 12, a heat source side heat exchanger 13, and an outdoor fan 14. Each of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-n has a load side heat exchanger 21, an expansion valve 22, an indoor fan 23, and a temperature detection means 24. In addition to the load side heat exchanger 21, the expansion valve 22, the indoor fan 23, and the temperature detection means 24, the indoor unit 20-2 is provided with a human detection means 25. The compressor 11 and the heat source side heat exchanger 13 are connected to the expansion valves 22 and the load side heat exchangers 21 of each indoor unit by refrigerant piping 15 to form a refrigerant circuit 40 in which the refrigerant circulates.

The compressor 11 compresses the refrigerant it draws in and discharges it. The compressor 11 is, for example, an inverter compressor whose capacity can be changed. The four-way valve 12 changes the flow direction of the refrigerant circulating through the refrigerant circuit 40. The expansion valve 22 reduces the pressure of the refrigerant and expands it. The expansion valve 22 is, for example, an electronic expansion valve. The heat source side heat exchanger 13 is a heat exchanger that exchanges heat between the refrigerant and outside air. The load side heat exchanger 21 is a heat exchanger that exchanges heat between the refrigerant and the air in the space to be air-conditioned. The heat source side heat exchanger 13 and the load side heat exchanger 21 are, for example, fin tube type heat exchangers. The outdoor fan 14 is, for example, a propeller fan. The outdoor fan 14 changes the air volume in response to the operating frequency. The indoor fan 23 is, for example, a crossflow fan.

The control device 30 is connected to the temperature detection means 24 and the human detection means 25 provided in each of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-n via signal lines (not shown), but may be connected for communication wirelessly. The control device 30 is also connected to the compressor 11, the four-way valve 12, and the outdoor fan 14 via signal lines (not shown), but may be connected for communication wirelessly. The control device 30 is connected to the expansion valve 22 and the indoor fan 23 provided in each of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-n via signal lines (not shown), but may be connected for communication wirelessly.

Figure 2 is a schematic external view showing one configuration example of the indoor unit shown in Figure 1. In this embodiment 1, the indoor units 20-1 to 20-n are described as four-way ceiling cassette type indoor units, but the indoor units are not limited to four-way ceiling cassette type indoor units. Figure 2 shows the external appearance of indoor unit 20-2 mounted on the ceiling as viewed diagonally from below. Since the external configuration of each indoor unit is similar, the external configuration of indoor unit 20-2 will be described here with reference to Figure 2.

As shown in Figure 2, the underside 29 of the indoor unit 20-2 is rectangular in shape. The underside 29 is provided with four air outlets 27a to 27d and an air inlet 26. The air inlet 26 is provided in the centre of the underside 29. The air inlet 26 is provided with a lattice-shaped frame, but the frame is not shown in the figure. The air outlets 27a to 27d are arranged around the air inlet 26 along the four sides of the air inlet 26.

Air outlets 27a to 27d are provided with air deflectors 28a to 28d that control the direction of airflow. In the configuration example shown in Figure 2, each of air deflectors 28a to 28d is composed of two rectangular flaps. Specifically, air outlet 27a is provided with air deflector 28a, and air outlet 27b is provided with air deflector 28b. Air outlet 27c is provided with air deflector 28c, and air outlet 27d is provided with air deflector 28d.

Figure 3 is an enlarged schematic view of the exterior of the air direction vane shown in Figure 2. Figure 3 is an enlarged view of the air direction vane 28a of indoor unit 20-2. In Figure 3, the plane in which the air direction vane 28a is parallel to the ceiling surface is used as the reference plane, and the angle of the two flaps of the air direction vane 28a is represented as a depression angle θ. A rotating shaft 45 is provided on each of the two flaps of the air direction vane 28a, and the rotating shaft 45 is connected to a drive unit not shown in the figure. The drive unit (not shown) rotates the rotating shaft 45 to adjust the depression angle θ of the air direction vane 28a.

Figure 4 is a schematic plan view showing an example of the arrangement of the multiple indoor units shown in Figure 1 in embodiment 1. Figure 4 shows the case where the number n of indoor units is 4. Figure 4 shows the layout of indoor units 20-1 to 20-4 when looking down on room RM1, which is the space to be air-conditioned, from above the ceiling of room RM1.

The space of room RM1 is divided into multiple zones Z11 to Z23 corresponding to the positions of indoor units 20-1 to 20-4. Figure 4 shows the case where zones Z21 and Z23 are divided, assuming that indoor units are installed even in areas of the ceiling where indoor units are not installed. The planar shape of each of zones Z11 to Z23 is assumed to be a square.

The temperature detection means 24 detects the temperature of each of the four zones defined according to the positions of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-4. The temperature detection means 24 provided in each of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-4 outputs the detection results to the control device 30. The temperature detection means 24 is, for example, a temperature sensor such as a thermistor.

The human detection means 25 detects for each of the multiple zones whether it is an occupied zone where people are present, or an unoccupied zone where people are not present. The human detection means 25 is, for example, an infrared sensor. The human detection means 25 outputs infrared image data, which is data obtained by infrared scanning the air-conditioned space, to the control device 30 as the detection result. While FIG. 1 shows a case where the human detection means 25 is provided in the indoor unit 20-2, the human detection means 25 may be provided in a location other than the indoor unit 20-2. In other words, the human detection means 25 only needs to be provided in a position where it can determine the presence or absence of people throughout the entire air-conditioned space.

Figure 5 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the control device shown in Figure 1. The control device 30 is, for example, a microcomputer. The control device 30 is connected to a remote controller (not shown) for a user to input setting information such as an operation mode and a set temperature to the air conditioner 3. The user may input setting information to the control device 30 via an information processing terminal including a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) such as a smartphone or tablet, and a personal computer. As shown in Figure 5, the control device 30 has a refrigeration cycle control means 31, a zone determination means 32, an air volume control means 33, and an air direction control means 34.

The zone determination means 32 holds a management table including information on the layout of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-4 and the positions of the multiple zones Z11 to Z23 shown in FIG. 4. The management table records information on the position coordinates of each indoor unit of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-4, information on the zone partition corresponding to the position of each indoor unit, and zone information indicating whether each zone is an occupied zone or an unoccupied zone. For example, if the indoor unit 20-1 is the reference position, the management table records the distance Ly1 between the indoor units 20-1 and 20-2 in the Y-axis arrow direction shown in FIG. 4. The management table records the distance Lx1 between the indoor units 20-2 and 20-3 in the X-axis arrow direction shown in FIG. 4, and records the distance Ly1 between the indoor units 20-2 and 20-4 in the Y-axis arrow direction shown in FIG. 4.

The zone determination means 32 periodically determines whether each zone is an occupied zone or an unoccupied zone from the infrared image data received from the human detection means 25. If the determination result differs from the zone information recorded in the management table, the zone determination means 32 updates the zone information in the management table to the contents of the latest determination result. When the zone determination means 32 updates the management table, it transmits the updated management table information to the refrigeration cycle control means 31 and the air volume control means 33.

When the refrigeration cycle control means 31 receives management table information from the zone determination means 32, it controls the operation of the indoor units located in the occupied zone so that the temperature value detected by the temperature detection means 24 in the occupied zone falls within a certain temperature range based on the set temperature.

When the temperature detected by the temperature detection means 24 of the attended zone is lower than the set temperature, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 controls the four-way valve 12 so that the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 flows through the load side heat exchanger 21 in order to perform heating operation of the indoor unit in the attended zone. When the temperature detected by the temperature detection means 24 of the attended zone is higher than the set temperature, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 controls the four-way valve 12 so that the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 flows through the heat source side heat exchanger 13 in order to perform cooling operation of the indoor unit in the attended zone. The operation modes such as heating operation and cooling operation may be set by the user.

The refrigeration cycle control means 31 sets the expansion valve 22 of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone to a closed state. The refrigeration cycle control means 31 controls the operating frequency of the compressor 11, the operating frequency of the outdoor fan 14, and the opening degree of the expansion valve 22 of the indoor unit 20-2 so that the temperature value detected by the temperature detection means 24 in the attended zone falls within a certain temperature range based on the set temperature. The refrigeration cycle control means 31 transmits air volume control information, including information on the set air volume set by the user and information that a fan operation will be performed for the indoor units in the unmanned zone, to the air volume control means 33 and the air direction control means 34.

The airflow control means 33 controls the operating frequency of the indoor fan 23 of the indoor unit in the occupied zone in response to the set airflow set by the user. In this embodiment 1, the indoor fan 23 provided in each of the indoor units 20-1 to 20-n is configured to be able to change the airflow to a plurality of levels in response to the operating frequency. There are four airflow levels, for example, fL1 to fL4, with the relationship fL1<fL2<fL3<fL4.

The air volume control means 33 operates the indoor unit in the unmanned zone to blow air, and determines the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone based on the air volume of the indoor unit in the attended zone. For example, the air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone to be greater than the air volume of the indoor unit in the attended zone. When there are multiple attended zones, the air volume control means 33 determines the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone based on the air volume of the indoor unit in the attended zone that is closest to the unmanned zone among the multiple attended zones. The air volume control means 33 may increase the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone in accordance with the distance between the indoor unit in the unmanned zone and the indoor unit in the attended zone.

The airflow direction control means 34 determines the depression angle θ of the airflow direction vanes 28a to 28d of the air outlets 27a to 27d of the indoor units in the unmanned zone based on the depression angle θ of the airflow direction vanes 28a to 28d of the air outlets 27a to 27d of the indoor units in the occupied zone. For example, the airflow direction control means 34 sets the depression angle θ of the airflow direction vanes 28a to 28d of the air outlets 27a to 27d of the indoor units in the unmanned zone to the same angle as the depression angle θ of the airflow direction vanes 28a to 28d of the air outlets 27a to 27d of the indoor units in the occupied zone.

Here, an example of the hardware of the control device 30 shown in Figure 5 will be described. Figure 6 is a hardware configuration diagram showing an example of the configuration of the control device shown in Figure 5. When the various functions of the control device 30 are executed by hardware, the control device 30 shown in Figure 5 is configured by a processing circuit 80 as shown in Figure 6. Each function of the refrigeration cycle control means 31, zone determination means 32, air volume control means 33 and air direction control means 34 shown in Figure 5 is realized by the processing circuit 80.

When each function is executed by hardware, the processing circuit 80 corresponds to, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a combination of these. Each of the functions of the refrigeration cycle control means 31, the zone determination means 32, the air volume control means 33, and the air direction control means 34 may be realized by the processing circuit 80. Also, the functions of the refrigeration cycle control means 31, the zone determination means 32, the air volume control means 33, and the air direction control means 34 may be realized by a single processing circuit 80.

Also, another example of the hardware of the control device 30 shown in FIG. 5 will be described. FIG. 7 is a hardware configuration diagram showing another configuration example of the control device shown in FIG. 5. When the various functions of the control device 30 are executed by software, the control device 30 shown in FIG. 5 is composed of a processor 81 such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a memory 82 as shown in FIG. 7. The functions of the refrigeration cycle control means 31, the zone determination means 32, the air volume control means 33, and the air direction control means 34 are realized by the processor 81 and the memory 82. FIG. 7 shows that the processor 81 and the memory 82 are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other via a bus 83. When the hardware of the control device 30 has the configuration shown in FIG. 7, the memory 82 stores a management table. Also, the memory 82 stores a program corresponding to a flowchart described later.

When each function is executed by software, the functions of the refrigeration cycle control means 31, zone determination means 32, air volume control means 33 and air direction control means 34 are realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. The software and firmware are written as programs and stored in memory 82. The processor 81 realizes the function of each means by reading and executing the programs stored in memory 82.

As the memory 82, for example, a non-volatile semiconductor memory such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, an EPROM (Erasable and Programmable ROM), and an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable ROM) is used. Also, as the memory 82, a volatile semiconductor memory such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) may be used. Furthermore, as the memory 82, a removable recording medium such as a magnetic disk, a flexible disk, an optical disk, a CD (Compact Disc), an MD (Mini Disc), and a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) may be used.

Next, the operation of the control device 30 of the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation procedure of the air conditioning system according to the first embodiment. The control device 30 executes the flow shown in FIG. 8 at regular intervals. For ease of explanation, any zone in which an indoor unit is installed among the multiple zones in the air-conditioned space is represented as Zij. i and j are integers equal to or greater than 1, and the maximum value of i is Nx, and the maximum value of j is Ny.

The zone determination means 32 acquires infrared image data from the human detection means 25 (step S101). The zone determination means 32 determines whether or not it is necessary to update the management table it holds (step S102). For example, when a user starts the air conditioner 3 after the operation of the air conditioner 3 is stopped, the zone determination means 32 determines that it is necessary to update the management table it holds. In addition, in step S102, the zone determination means 32 determines whether or not the position of the manned zone determined by the acquired infrared image data matches the position of the manned zone recorded in the management table it holds. If the manned zone has changed as a result of the determination, the zone determination means 32 determines that it is necessary to update the management table and proceeds to the processing of step S103. On the other hand, if the manned zone has not changed, the zone determination means 32 determines that it is unnecessary to update the management table and proceeds to the processing of step S111.

In step S103, the refrigeration cycle control means acquires temperature information from the temperature detection means 24 of each indoor unit 20-1 to 20-n, and records it in the management table held by the zone determination means 32. The zone determination means 32 sets i to 1 and j to 1 for zone Zij (step S104). If the combination of i and j is expressed as (i,j), then in the case of room RM1 shown in Figure 4, (i,j) = (1,1), (1,2), (2,2) and (1,3).

The zone determination means 32 determines whether or not the zone Zij is an occupied zone based on the infrared image data from the human detection means 25 (step S105). Here, Zij = Z11. The zone determination means 32 then transmits the determination result to the refrigeration cycle control means 31 and the air volume control means 33. If the zone determination means 32 determines that the zone Zij is an occupied zone, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 causes the indoor units installed in the zone Zij to perform cooling or heating operation (step S106). The refrigeration cycle control means 31 controls the air conditioner 3 so that the temperature value detected by the temperature detection means 24 in the occupied zone approaches the set temperature.

If it is determined in step S105 that zone Zij is an unoccupied zone, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 closes the expansion valve 22 of the indoor unit installed in zone Zij to perform fan operation (step S107). The air volume control means 33 operates the indoor fan 23 of the indoor unit installed in zone Zij.

The zone determination means 32 determines whether the conditions i = Nx and j = Ny are satisfied (step S108). If the conditions i = Nx and j = Ny are not satisfied, the zone determination means 32 changes the value of i or j, determines the next zone Zij (step S109), and returns to the processing of step S105.

If the result of the judgment in step S108 is that the conditions i = Nx and j = Ny are met and the operation mode is determined for all zones Zij in which indoor units are installed, the air volume control means 33 proceeds to the processing of step S110. If an arbitrary unmanned zone is represented as Zhk, in step S110, the air volume control means 33 controls the air volume of the indoor units of the unmanned zone Zhk based on the air volume of the indoor units of the manned zone. A specific example of the processing of step S110 will be described later.

When the processing of step S110 by the air volume control means 33 is completed, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 determines whether the set temperature of the attended zone has been changed by the user (step S111). If the set temperature of the attended zone has been changed by the user, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 returns to the processing of step S103. The refrigeration cycle control means 31 changes the control content of the air conditioner 3 in response to the changed set temperature. On the other hand, if the result of the determination in step S111 is that the set temperature of the attended zone has not been changed, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 ends the processing.

Next, the detailed operation of the process of step S110 shown in Figure 8, which is executed by the air volume control means 33, will be described. Figure 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a specific operation procedure for the process of step S110 shown in Figure 8 in embodiment 1.

The zone determination means 32 refers to the management table and calculates the distance L between the indoor unit of the unmanned zone and the indoor unit of the attended zone for each indoor unit of the unmanned zone Zhk (step S201). If there are multiple attended zones, the zone determination means 32 calculates the distance L for each indoor unit of the unmanned zone Zhk for each of the multiple attended zones. The zone determination means 32 records the calculated distance L for each indoor unit of the unmanned zone Zhk in the management table.

The air volume control means 33 refers to the management table and determines whether there are multiple manned zones (step S202). If there is only one manned zone, the air volume control means 33 determines whether the distance L of each unmanned zone Zhk is the same (step S203). If the distance L of each unmanned zone Zhk is the same, the air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of the indoor unit of each unmanned zone Zhk to a value greater than the air volume of the indoor unit of the manned zone (step S204). On the other hand, if the distance L of each unmanned zone Zhk is not the same, the air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of the indoor unit of each unmanned zone Zhk to a value greater than the air volume of the indoor unit of the manned zone and greater in accordance with the distance L (step S205).

On the other hand, if the result of the determination in step S202 is that there are multiple occupied zones, the air volume control means 33 identifies, for each unmanned zone Zhk, the indoor unit with the smallest minimum distance Lmin among the distances L to each of the indoor units of the multiple occupied zones (step S206). Then, the air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of the indoor unit of each unmanned zone Zhk to a value greater than the air volume of the indoor unit with the minimum distance Lmin and greater in accordance with the minimum distance Lmin (step S207). In steps S205 and S207, the air volume control means 33 increases the air volume by increasing the operating frequency of the indoor fan 23 of the indoor unit of each unmanned zone Zhk.

In this way, the airflow rate of each indoor unit in multiple unoccupied zones is set based on the current airflow rate of the indoor unit in the occupied zone during cooling or heating operation and the distance L from the indoor unit in the occupied zone.

Next, as a specific example of the control executed by the control device 30 according to the flow shown in Figures 8 and 9, the case where the air-conditioned space is room RM1 shown in Figure 4 will be described. Of zones Z11 to Z23 shown in Figure 4, zone Z12 is an occupied zone, and zones Z11, Z21, Z22, Z13 and Z23 are unoccupied zones. Here, the case where indoor unit 20-2 in zone Z12, which is an occupied zone, is performing cooling operation will be described, but it may also be performing heating operation.

Figure 10 is a diagram showing an example of the airflow of each indoor unit when one of the four indoor units shown in Figure 4 is performing cooling operation. In this embodiment 1, indoor units 20-1 to 20-4 can be changed to four airflow levels fL1 to fL4, as shown in Figure 10. The airflow levels fL1 to fL4 have the relationship fL1<fL2<fL3<fL4.

In the case of room RM1 shown in FIG. 4, in steps S105 to S107 shown in FIG. 8, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 causes the indoor unit 20-2 to perform cooling operation, and the air volume control means 33 causes the indoor units 20-1, 20-3, and 20-4 to perform fan operation. In the processing of step S201 shown in FIG. 9, the zone determination means 32 refers to the management table and calculates the distance L between the indoor unit of the unmanned zone Zhk and the indoor unit 20-2 of zone Z12 for each unmanned zone Zhk. In the case shown in FIG. 4, the combinations of (h, k) are (1, 1), (2, 2), and (1, 3). The distance L between the indoor unit 20-1 and the indoor unit 20-2 is distance Ly1, the distance L between the indoor unit 20-2 and the indoor unit 20-3 is distance Lx1, and the distance L between the indoor unit 20-2 and the indoor unit 20-4 is distance Ly1. Lx1=Ly1.

In the determination in step S202, zone Z12 is the only zone with an attendant, so in step S203, the air volume control means 33 determines whether the distance L for each unattended zone Zhk is the same. Since the distance L for each unattended zone Zhk is the same, in the processing of step S204, the air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of the indoor unit of each unattended zone Zhk to a value greater than the air volume of indoor unit 20-2 in the attended zone. The example shown in Figure 10 shows a case where the air volume of indoor unit 20-2 in zone Z12 is air volume level fL1, so the air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of each indoor unit in each unattended zone Zhk to air volume level fL2, which is greater than the air volume level fL1 of indoor unit 20-2.

Figure 11 is a schematic diagram showing the air flows generated by indoor units installed in two adjacent zones in the room shown in Figure 4. Figure 11 is a schematic side view of the space of zones Z12 and Z22 shown in Figure 4 as viewed in the direction of the Y-axis arrow.

As shown in FIG. 11, air blown out from outlets 27b and 27d of indoor unit 20-2 in zone Z12, which is an occupied zone, flows through the space of zone Z12 and is then sucked into inlet 26 of indoor unit 20-2. Air blown out from outlets 27b and 27d of indoor unit 20-3 in zone Z22, which is an unoccupied zone, flows through the space of zone Z22 and is then sucked into inlet 26 of indoor unit 20-3. The volume of air blown out from outlet 27b of indoor unit 20-3 in zone Z22 is greater than the volume of air blown out from outlet 27d of indoor unit 20-2 in zone Z12. This prevents the cooling airflow from the occupied zone from leaking into the unoccupied zone, and prevents air convection from occurring between adjacent occupied and unoccupied zones.

With reference to Figure 11, the case of indoor unit 20-3 in zone Z22 shown in Figure 4 has been described, but the same is true for indoor unit 20-3 in the other unoccupied zones, indoor units 20-1 and 20-4. Therefore, in the layout shown in Figure 4, leakage of the cooling airflow from zone Z12, which is an occupied zone, into unoccupied zones Z11, Z22, and Z13 is suppressed. As a result, the cooling airflow can be trapped in the occupied zones.

11, _the depression angles _θ12 and _θ22 are θ12 = _θ22 . By setting _θ12 = _θ22 , the cooling airflow blown out from the air outlet 27d of the indoor unit 20-2 and the airflow blown out from the air outlet 27b of the indoor unit 20-3 collide and flow parallel to each other toward the floor surface. As a result, an air curtain _is formed at the boundary between the occupied zone and the unoccupied zone by the airflow from the unoccupied _zone in the vertical direction (Z-axis arrow direction) to the floor surface, and the cooling airflow from the occupied zone is further prevented from leaking into the unoccupied zone.

In addition, the airflow direction control means 34 may control the depression angle θ corresponding to the airflow direction of the indoor unit in the occupied zone and the depression angle θ corresponding to the airflow direction of the indoor unit in the unoccupied zone in accordance with the operation mode of the indoor unit in the occupied zone. For example, when the operation mode of the indoor unit 20-2 is heating operation, the airflow direction control means 34 controls the airflow direction plates 28a to 28d of the indoor unit 20-2 so that the depression angle θ ₁₂ is close to 90°. In other words, the airflow direction control means 34 controls the indoor unit 20-2 so that the warm air is blown out vertically downward from the indoor unit 20-2. In this case, the airflow direction control means 34 controls the airflow direction plates 28a to 28d of the indoor unit 20-3 so that the depression angle θ ₂₂ is also close to 90°. On the other hand, when the operation mode of the indoor unit 20-2 is cooling operation, the airflow direction control means 34 controls the airflow direction plates 28a to 28d of the indoor unit 20-2 so that the depression angle θ ₁₂ is close to 0°. That is, the airflow direction control means 34 controls the indoor unit 20-2 so that cool air is blown out horizontally from the indoor unit 20-2. In this case, the airflow direction control means 34 controls the airflow direction plates 28a to 28d of the indoor unit 20-3 so that the depression angle θ ₂₂ is also close to 0°. In either case of the operating mode being heating operation or cooling operation, an air curtain is formed on the floor surface perpendicular to the boundary between the attended zone and the unattended zone by the airflow from the unattended zone, which further prevents the airflow from the attended zone from leaking into the unattended zone.

The airflow direction control means 34 may also determine the depression angle θ corresponding to the airflow direction of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone in accordance with the distance L from the indoor unit in the unmanned zone to the nearest indoor unit in the occupied zone. For example, the airflow direction control means 34 reduces the depression angle θ corresponding to the airflow direction of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone as the distance L increases. This makes it easier for the airflow generated by the fan operation in the unmanned zone to reach the occupied zone even if the distance L is large.

Next, as another specific example, the control performed by the control device 30 on the indoor units in room RM2 shown in Figure 12 will be described. Figure 12 is a plan schematic diagram showing another example of the arrangement of the multiple indoor units shown in Figure 1 in embodiment 1. Figure 12 shows the case where the number n of indoor units is 12. Figure 12 shows the layout of indoor units 20-1 to 20-12 when looking down on room RM2, which is the space to be air-conditioned, from the ceiling of the room. Of zones Z11 to Z34, zones Z11, Z12, Z23 and Z14 are occupied zones, and the other eight zones are unoccupied zones.

It is assumed that the planar shape of each zone shown in Fig. 12 is a square. As shown in Fig. 12, if the distance L between the devices of two zones Z11 and Z12 adjacent to each other in the Y-axis arrow direction is Ly1, and the distance L between the devices of two zones Z11 and Z21 adjacent to each other in the X-axis arrow direction is Lx1, then the relationship is Lx1 = Ly1. In Fig. 12, the distance Lx1 in the X-axis arrow direction and the distance Ly1 in the Y-axis arrow direction between other devices are omitted. In addition, if the diagonal distance L between zone Z11 and zone Z22 located on the extension of the diagonal line of zone Z11 is Lxy, then the relationship is Lxy ² = Lx1 ² + Ly1 ^2. In other words, the relationship is Lxy = Lx1 x √2 = Ly1 x √2.

In the case of room RM2 shown in FIG. 12, in steps S105 to S107 shown in FIG. 8, the refrigeration cycle control means 31 causes indoor units 20-1, 20-4, 20-8 and 20-10 to perform cooling operation. In addition, the air volume control means 33 causes the other eight indoor units, including indoor unit 20-2, to perform fan operation. In the processing of step S201 shown in FIG. 9, the zone determination means 32 refers to the management table and calculates, for each indoor unit in the unmanned zone Zhk, the distance L between the indoor unit in the unmanned zone Zhk and the indoor unit in the manned zone. In the case shown in FIG. 12, the combinations of (h,k) are (2,1), (3,1), (2,2), (3,2), (1,3), (3,3), (2,4) and (3,4).

In the judgment in step S202, since there are multiple occupied zones, in step S206, the air volume control means 33 identifies the indoor unit with the minimum distance Lmin, which is the shortest distance L from the occupied zone, for each unmanned zone Zhk. For example, a case will be described where the unmanned zone Zhk to be controlled is zone Z21. As a result of the judgment in step S206, the indoor unit with the minimum distance Lmin is indoor unit 20-1, with Lmin = Lx1. If the unmanned zone Zhk to be controlled is zone Z21, in step S207, the air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of indoor unit 20-2 to a value greater than the air volume of indoor unit 20-1 and greater in accordance with the minimum distance Lmin. If the airflow of the indoor unit 20-1 is set to airflow level fL2, then the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1 is the smallest value for the distance between the devices, so the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of the indoor unit 20-2 to airflow level fL3, which is one level higher than the airflow level fL2.

Figure 13 is a diagram showing an example of the control of each indoor unit when four of the twelve indoor units shown in Figure 12 are operating in cooling mode. The airflow of indoor units in unoccupied zones other than zone Z21 will be explained. Here, as shown in Figure 13, the airflow of indoor units 20-1 and 20-4 is set to airflow level fL2, and the airflow of indoor units 20-8 and 20-10 is set to airflow level fL1.

In the case of zone Z31, the indoor unit with the minimum distance Lmin is indoor unit 20-1, but the minimum distance Lmin = 2 x Lx1. Since the minimum distance Lmin > Lx1, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of indoor unit 20-3 to an airflow level fL4 that is one level higher than the airflow level fL3 when the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1.

In the case of zone Z22, the indoor units with the minimum distance Lmin are indoor units 20-4 and 20-8, and the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1 = Ly1. However, the airflow of indoor unit 20-4 is at airflow level fL2, which is greater than the airflow level fL1 of indoor unit 20-8. Therefore, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of indoor unit 20-5 to airflow level fL3, which is one level greater than the airflow level fL2 of indoor unit 20-4.

In the case of zone Z32, the indoor unit with the minimum distance Lmin is indoor unit 20-8, but the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1 x √2. Although the minimum distance Lmin > Lx1, the airflow of indoor unit 20-8 is airflow level fL1, so the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of indoor unit 20-6 to airflow level fL3.

In the case of zone Z13, the indoor units with the minimum distance Lmin are indoor units 20-4, 20-8, and 20-10, and the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1 = Ly1. However, the airflow of indoor unit 20-4 is at airflow level fL2, which is higher than the airflow level fL1 of indoor units 20-8 and 20-10. Therefore, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of indoor unit 20-7 to airflow level fL3, which is one level higher than the airflow level fL2 of indoor unit 20-4.

In the case of zone Z33, the indoor unit with the minimum distance Lmin is indoor unit 20-8, and the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1. Since the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1 and the airflow of indoor unit 20-8 is airflow level fL1, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of indoor unit 20-9 to airflow level fL2, which is one level higher than the airflow level fL1 of indoor unit 20-8.

In the case of zone Z24, the indoor units with the minimum distance Lmin are indoor units 20-8 and 20-10, and the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1 = Ly1. The minimum distance Lmin = Lx1 = Ly1, and the airflow of indoor units 20-8 and 20-10 is both at airflow level fL1. Therefore, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of indoor unit 20-11 to airflow level fL2, which is one level higher than the airflow level fL1 of indoor units 20-8 and 20-10.

In the case of zone Z34, the indoor unit with the minimum distance Lmin is indoor unit 20-8, and the minimum distance Lmin = Lx1 x √2. The airflow of indoor unit 20-8 is airflow level fL1, but since the minimum distance Lmin > Lx1, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of indoor unit 20-12 to airflow level fL3.

For example, if the airflow level of the indoor unit in an occupied zone is fL1, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow of the indoor unit in an unoccupied zone adjacent to the occupied zone to airflow level fL2. If there is an unoccupied zone diagonally from the occupied zone, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow level of the indoor unit in the unoccupied zone to fL3. If there is no occupied zone in the adjacent zones around the unoccupied zone, the airflow control means 33 sets the airflow level of the unoccupied zone to fL4.

The air volume control means 33 determines the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone based on the distance between the indoor unit in the unmanned zone and the indoor unit in the attended zone. Also, as described with reference to FIG. 13, when there are multiple attended zones and the indoor units in the attended zones have different air volumes, the air volume control means 33 determines the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone based on the air volume of the indoor unit in the attended zone that is closest to the unmanned zone.

In air conditioning system 1, indoor units in unoccupied zones surrounding an occupied zone perform fan operation, preventing temperature-controlled air from flowing out into the space of the unoccupied zone through cooling/heating or heating operation of the indoor units in the occupied zone. This allows efficient air conditioning of zones where people are present within a large indoor space. Even if there are multiple occupied zones as shown in Figure 12, air can be confined for each of the multiple occupied zones.

Note that, although the case has been described with reference to Figure 10 where indoor units 20-1 to 20-4 have the same air volume adjustment function, the air volume adjustment functions of indoor units 20-1 to 20-4 may differ between the devices. Figure 14 is a diagram showing an example of control when the air volume adjustment functions of the four indoor units shown in Figure 4 are different from one another. Zone Z12 is an attended zone, and zones Z11, Z22 and Z13 are unattended zones.

As shown in FIG. 14, the air volume of the indoor units in each zone has three levels, fL1 to fL3, but even if the air volume levels are the same, the air volume differs for each indoor unit. In the case shown in FIG. 14, the air volume of the indoor unit 20-2 in cooling operation is air volume level fL1. The indoor unit 20-1 in zone Z11 and the indoor unit 20-3 in zone Z22 can be set to air volume level fL2 to obtain an air volume greater than the air volume of the indoor unit 20-2 at air volume level fL1. On the other hand, the indoor unit 20-4 in zone Z13 can be set to air volume level fL1 to obtain an air volume greater than the air volume of the indoor unit 20-2 at air volume level fL1. In this way, even if the air volume adjustment functions of the multiple indoor units are different, the air volume control means 33 can control the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone to be greater than the air volume of the indoor unit in the manned zone.

In addition, the indoor units 20-1 to 20-n may have a ventilation mode as an operating mode in which the indoor air is discharged to the outside and the outside air is taken in. For example, in the ventilation mode, the air volume control means 33 switches the ventilation port (not shown) provided in the indoor unit from a closed state to an open state. During cooling or heating operation of the indoor unit in the occupied zone, the indoor units in the unoccupied zone surrounding the occupied zone perform ventilation operation for a predetermined time at regular intervals. This makes it possible to indirectly replace the air in the occupied zone with outside air. Compared to directly ventilating the occupied zone, there is less change in the temperature of the air in the occupied zone, and the air environment in the occupied zone can be made cleaner.

In addition, when directly ventilating the occupied zone, the air volume control means 33 switches the ventilation port (not shown) of the indoor unit of the occupied zone from a closed state to an open state, but may stop the rotation of the indoor fan 23 of the indoor unit of the unoccupied zone. This makes it possible to prevent high-temperature outside air from flowing into the unoccupied zone when cooling the occupied zone, thereby suppressing an increase in the air temperature of the unoccupied zone. In addition, when heating the occupied zone, it is possible to prevent low-temperature outside air from flowing into the unoccupied zone, thereby suppressing a decrease in the air temperature of the unoccupied zone. In this way, by suppressing the increase or decrease in the air temperature of the unoccupied zone, an increase in the air conditioning load of the occupied zone can be suppressed even if air flows from the unoccupied zone into the occupied zone. As a result, the effect of reducing power consumption of the air conditioner 3 can be further improved.

The air conditioning system 1 of the first embodiment includes an air conditioner 3 equipped with a plurality of indoor units 20-1 to 20-n, a plurality of temperature detection means 24 for detecting the temperature of each of a plurality of zones partitioned according to the positions of the plurality of indoor units 20-1 to 20-n, a human detection means 25, and a control device 30. The human detection means 25 detects whether each of the plurality of zones is an occupied zone where a person is present or an unoccupied zone where a person is not present. The control device 30 operates the indoor units of the occupied zone in cooling or heating mode so that the temperature detected by the temperature detection means 24 in the occupied zone detected by the human detection means 25 becomes the set temperature. The control device 30 operates the indoor units of the unoccupied zone detected by the human detection means 25 among the plurality of zones in fan operation, and determines the air volume of the indoor units of the unoccupied zone based on the air volume of the indoor units of the occupied zone.

According to the first embodiment, cooling or heating operation is performed in the manned zone, and fan operation is performed in the unmanned zone, and the air volume of the fan operation in the unmanned zone is determined based on the air volume of the cooling or heating operation in the manned zone. In the first embodiment, as an example of control, a case where the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone is made larger than the air volume of the indoor unit in the manned zone has been described, but it is also possible to make the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone equal to the air volume of the indoor unit in the manned zone. By making the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone correspond to the air volume of the indoor unit in the manned zone, air convection between the manned zone and the unmanned zone is suppressed, and indirect air conditioning of the unmanned zone is suppressed. As a result, the efficiency of air conditioning in the manned zone is improved, and the power consumption of the air conditioner 3 can be suppressed.

In the first embodiment, the air volume control means 33 may set the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone to be greater than the air volume of the indoor unit in the attended zone. In this case, the airflow from the attended zone is prevented from leaking into the unmanned zone, and the occurrence of air convection between adjacent attended and unmanned zones is prevented. The attended zone space and the unmanned zone space are zoned, improving the effect of confining the air conditioned by heating or cooling in the attended zone space.

In the first embodiment, when there are multiple occupied zones, the air volume control means 33 determines the air volume of the indoor unit of the unoccupied zone based on the air volume of the indoor unit of the occupied zone that is closest to the unoccupied zone among the multiple occupied zones. This is because the air curtain formed at the boundary between the occupied zone and the unoccupied zone is significantly affected by the air volume of the indoor unit of the unoccupied zone that is closest to the occupied zone.

In the first embodiment, the air volume control means 33 may increase the air volume of the indoor unit of the unmanned zone in response to the distance between the indoor unit of the unmanned zone and the indoor unit of the manned zone. For example, when the planar shape of each zone is a square and the air volume of the indoor unit of the manned zone is air volume level fL1, the air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of the indoor unit of the unmanned zone adjacent to the manned zone to air volume level fL2. The air volume control means 33 sets the air volume of the indoor unit of the unmanned zone located on the extension of the diagonal of the manned zone to air volume level fL3. By suppressing the air volume of the indoor unit of the unmanned zone adjacent to the manned zone from becoming excessive, the air of the unmanned zone is suppressed from flowing into the manned zone, and the air flow of the unmanned zone can function as an air curtain. By increasing the air volume of the air curtain around the manned zone as it moves away from the manned zone, it functions as a multi-layer curtain.

In the present embodiment 1, the wind direction control means 34 may determine the depression angle θ of the wind direction vanes 28a to 28d of the air outlet of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone based on the depression angle θ of the wind direction vanes 28a to 28d of the air outlet of the indoor unit in the manned zone adjacent to the unmanned zone. For example, the depression angle θ of the wind direction vanes 28a to 28d of the air outlet of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone is set to be the same as the depression angle θ of the wind direction vanes 28a to 28d of the air outlet of the indoor unit in the manned zone. The airflow blown out from the air outlet of the indoor unit in the manned zone and the airflow blown out from the air outlet of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone collide and flow parallel to each other. As a result, an air curtain is formed by the airflow of the unmanned zone at the boundary between the manned zone and the unmanned zone, and the airflow of the manned zone is further prevented from leaking into the unmanned zone.

Embodiment 2.
The air conditioning system of the second embodiment is one in which an indoor unit installed in an unmanned zone efficiently increases the volume of air blown out toward a manned zone. In the second embodiment, the same components as those described in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted. In the second embodiment, detailed descriptions of operations similar to those described in the first embodiment will be omitted, and operations different from the first embodiment will be described in detail.

The configuration of the air conditioning system 1 of the second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 3, 5 and 15. Figure 15 is a plan schematic diagram showing an example of the arrangement of multiple indoor units shown in Figure 1 in the second embodiment. Figure 15 shows the case where the number n of indoor units is 4. Figure 15 shows the layout of indoor units 20-1 to 20-4 when looking down on room RM3, which is the space to be air-conditioned, from the ceiling of the room. It is assumed that the planar shape of each zone shown in Figure 15 is a square. Of zones Z11 to Z22, zone Z12 is an occupied zone and the other three zones are unoccupied zones.

The air volume control means 33, as in the first embodiment, causes the indoor units in the unmanned zone to perform air blowing operation. The air direction control means 34 in this second embodiment receives the management table updated by the zone determination means 32 from the refrigeration cycle control means 31. Then, the air direction control means 34 refers to the management table and closes one or more of the air outlets 27a to 27d of the indoor units in the unmanned zone that are relatively far from the indoor units in the manned zone. For example, in the case of zone Z11 shown in FIG. 15, the air direction control means 34 closes the air outlets 27a, 27b, and 27d by controlling the depression angle θ of the air direction plates 28a, 28b, and 27d shown in FIG. 2 of the indoor unit 20-1 to be zero. As a result, even if the operating frequency of the indoor fan 23 of the indoor unit 20-1 does not change, the air volume of the air blown out from the air outlet 27c on the manned zone side increases.

Next, the operation of the air conditioning system 1 of the second embodiment will be described. The control of the second embodiment differs only in the content of the processing of step S110 in the flow shown in FIG. 8 described in the first embodiment, and therefore detailed description of the processing other than step S110 will be omitted. FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing an example of a specific operational procedure for the processing of step S110 shown in FIG. 8 in the second embodiment.

The zone determination means 32 refers to the management table and calculates the distance L between the indoor unit of the unmanned zone and the indoor unit of the attended zone for each indoor unit of the unmanned zone Zhk (step S301). If there are multiple attended zones, the zone determination means 32 calculates the distance L for each indoor unit of the unmanned zone Zhk for each of the multiple attended zones. The zone determination means 32 records the calculated distance L for each indoor unit of the unmanned zone Zhk in the management table.

The airflow direction control means 34 refers to the management table and determines whether there are multiple occupied zones (step S302). If there is only one occupied zone, the airflow direction control means 34 proceeds to processing of step S304. If the result of the determination in step S302 is that there are multiple occupied zones, the airflow direction control means 34 identifies, for each unmanned zone Zhk, an indoor unit that has the minimum distance Lmin with respect to the distance L from each indoor unit of the multiple occupied zones (step S303). The airflow direction control means 34 sets the identified indoor unit as the indoor unit of the occupied zone. In step S304, the airflow direction control means 34 closes one or more of the multiple air outlets that are relatively far from the indoor unit of the occupied zone for the indoor unit of each unmanned zone Zhk (step S304).

When the unmanned zone Zhk is zone Z11 of room RM3 shown in Figure 15, in step S304 shown in Figure 16, the air direction control means 34 closes the air outlets 27a, 27b, and 27d of the indoor unit 20-1. This increases the volume of air blown out from the air outlet 27c on the occupied zone side, even if the air volume control means 33 does not change the operating frequency of the indoor fan 23 of the indoor unit 20-1.

When the unmanned zone Zhk is zone Z21 shown in Fig. 15, in step S304 shown in Fig. 16, the air direction control means 34 closes the air outlets 27a and 27d of the indoor unit 20-2. As a result, the volume of air blown out from the air outlets 27b and 27c on the manned zone side increases, even if the air volume control means 33 does not change the operating frequency of the indoor fan 23 of the indoor unit 20-2.

When the unmanned zone Zhk is zone Z22 shown in Fig. 15, in step S304 shown in Fig. 16, the air direction control means 34 closes the air outlets 27a, 27c, and 27d of the indoor unit 20-4. As a result, the volume of air blown out from the air outlet 27b on the manned zone side increases, even if the air volume control means 33 does not change the operating frequency of the indoor fan 23 of the indoor unit 20-4.

Figure 17 is a plan schematic diagram showing another example of the arrangement of the multiple indoor units shown in Figure 1 in embodiment 2. Figure 17 shows the case where the number n of indoor units is 9. Figure 17 shows the layout of indoor units 20-1 to 20-9 when looking down on room RM4, which is the space to be air-conditioned, from the ceiling of the room. It is assumed that the planar shape of each zone shown in Figure 17 is a square. Of zones Z11 to Z33, zone Z22 is an occupied zone and the other eight zones are unoccupied zones.

The control performed by the airflow direction control means 34 on the indoor units in the unmanned zone among the indoor units 20-1 to 20-9 shown in Figure 17 will be explained. The airflow direction control means 34 closes two of the four air outlets 27a to 27d that are relatively far from the manned zone for the indoor units 20-1, 20-3, 20-7 and 20-9 in the four unmanned zones located on the diagonal extension of the manned zone. The airflow direction control means 34 also closes one of the four air outlets 27a to 27d that is relatively far from the manned zone for the indoor units 20-2, 20-4, 20-6 and 20-8 in the four unmanned zones adjacent to the manned zone.

In this embodiment 2, as described with reference to Figures 15 and 17, the conditioned airflow in the occupied zone is prevented from leaking into the unoccupied zone, air convection between zones is suppressed, and the efficiency of air conditioning in the occupied zone is improved.

Note that the control described in embodiment 1 may also be applied to embodiment 2. For example, the air volume control means 33 may increase the air volume of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone in accordance with the distance between the indoor unit in the unmanned zone and the indoor unit in the attended zone. Of the multiple zones shown in Figures 15 and 17, the number of attended zones is not limited to one. Furthermore, the number n of indoor units is not limited to four as shown in Figure 15 and nine as shown in Figure 17.

In the air conditioning system 1 of this embodiment 2, the indoor unit in the unoccupied zone has multiple air outlets, and the control device 30 closes one or more of the multiple air outlets that are located relatively far from the indoor unit in the occupied zone.

According to the second embodiment, the volume of air blown out to the occupied zone from the indoor unit of the unoccupied zone can be increased without changing the operating frequency of the indoor fan of the indoor unit of the unoccupied zone. This reduces power consumption associated with an increase in the operating frequency of the indoor fan, improving the efficiency of air conditioning in the occupied zone. As a result, the effect of reducing power consumption of the air conditioner 3 is improved compared to the first embodiment.

In the above-mentioned first and second embodiments, the planar shape of each zone is described as a square, but the planar shape of each zone is not limited to a square. The planar shape of each zone may be rectangular. The planar shape may differ for each of the multiple zones. Each indoor unit is not limited to a four-way ceiling cassette type indoor unit, but may be, for example, a two-way ceiling cassette type indoor unit. The indoor unit on the wall side of the room in the air-conditioned space may be a wall-mounted indoor unit. The air conditioner 3 may have multiple outdoor units 10.

1 air conditioning system, 3 air conditioner, 10 outdoor unit, 11 compressor, 12 four-way valve, 13 heat source side heat exchanger, 14 outdoor fan, 15 refrigerant piping, 20-1 to 20-n indoor units, 21 load side heat exchanger, 22 expansion valve, 23 indoor fan, 24 temperature detection means, 25 person detection means, 26 intake port, 27a to 27d exhaust port, 28a to 28d air deflector, 29 underside, 30 control device, 31 refrigeration cycle control means, 32 zone determination means, 33 air volume control means, 34 air direction control means, 40 refrigerant circuit, 45 rotating shaft, 80 processing circuit, 81 processor, 82 memory, 83 bus, RM1 to RM4 rooms, Z11 to Z34 zones.

Claims (8)

an air conditioner including a plurality of indoor units for conditioning a space to be air-conditioned;
A plurality of temperature detection means for detecting temperatures of each of a plurality of zones defined in the space to be air-conditioned in accordance with the positions of the indoor units;
a human detection means for detecting whether each of the plurality of zones is a manned zone where a person is present or an unmanned zone where a person is not present;
a control device that performs cooling or heating operation on an indoor unit of the occupied zone detected by the human detection means so that the temperature detected by the temperature detection means becomes a set temperature in the occupied zone,
The control device includes:
among the plurality of zones, an indoor unit in the unoccupied zone detected by the human detection means is operated to blow air, and the air volume of the indoor unit in the unoccupied zone is determined based on the air volume of the indoor unit in the occupied zone;
When there are a plurality of unoccupied zones, the air volume of the indoor unit of each of the unoccupied zones is set to be larger than the air volume of the indoor unit of the occupied zone closest to each of the unoccupied zones .
Air conditioning system. The human detection means includes an infrared sensor.
The air conditioning system of claim 1 . An air conditioner control device comprising: an air conditioner having a plurality of indoor units for conditioning a space to be air-conditioned; a plurality of zones into which the space to be air-conditioned is divided corresponding to the positions of the plurality of indoor units; a plurality of temperature detection means for detecting a temperature in each of the zones; and a human detection means for detecting whether or not a human is present in each of the plurality of zones,
The control device includes:
performing cooling or heating operation of an indoor unit in a zone where a person is detected to be present by the person detection means among the plurality of zones, such that a temperature detected by the temperature detection means in the zone where a person is present becomes a set temperature;
performing fan operation on an indoor unit in an unoccupied zone, which is a zone among the plurality of zones where no human is detected by the human detection means, and determining the air volume of the indoor unit in the unoccupied zone based on the air volume of the indoor unit in the occupied zone;
When there are a plurality of unoccupied zones, the air volume of the indoor unit of each of the unoccupied zones is set to be larger than the air volume of the indoor unit of the occupied zone closest to each of the unoccupied zones .
Air conditioner control device. The control device includes:
increasing the airflow of the indoor unit in the unmanned zone in accordance with the distance between the indoor unit in the unmanned zone and the indoor unit in the attended zone;
The control device for an air conditioner according to claim 3 . The indoor unit in the unoccupied zone has a plurality of air outlets,
The control device includes:
Among the plurality of air outlets, at least one air outlet that is located relatively far from the indoor unit of the occupied zone is closed.
The control device for an air conditioner according to claim 3 or 4 . The control device includes:
determining a depression angle of an airflow direction flap of an air outlet of an indoor unit in the unmanned zone based on a depression angle of an airflow direction flap of an indoor unit in the occupied zone adjacent to the unmanned zone;
The control device for an air conditioner according to any one of claims 3 to 5 . The control device includes:
controlling the operating frequencies of a compressor and an outdoor fan provided in the air conditioner so that the temperature value detected by the temperature detection means in the occupied zone falls within a certain range based on a set temperature;
The control device for an air conditioner according to any one of claims 3 to 6 . A method for controlling an air conditioner comprising: an air conditioner having a plurality of indoor units for conditioning a space to be air-conditioned; a control device connected to a plurality of temperature detection means for detecting a temperature in each of a plurality of zones into which the space to be air-conditioned is divided corresponding to the positions of the plurality of indoor units; and a human detection means for detecting whether or not a human is present in each of the plurality of zones, the control device comprising:
a step of performing cooling or heating operation of an indoor unit in an occupied zone, which is a zone in which the presence of a person is detected by the human detection means among the plurality of zones, so that a temperature detected by the temperature detection means in the occupied zone becomes a set temperature;
a step of operating an indoor unit in an unoccupied zone, which is a zone among the plurality of zones where no person is detected by the person detection means, to blow air, and determining the air volume of the indoor unit in the unoccupied zone based on the air volume of the indoor unit in the occupied zone;
having
When there are a plurality of unmanned zones, in the step of determining the air volume of the indoor unit of the unmanned zone based on the air volume of the indoor unit of the occupied zone, the air volume of each of the indoor units of the unmanned zone is set to be larger than the air volume of the indoor unit of the occupied zone closest to each of the unmanned zones .
A method for controlling an air conditioner.

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