JP7758461B2 - Air conditioner indoor unit - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an indoor unit for an air conditioner, and in particular to the structure of an indoor unit that is attached to the wall of a room.

As an indoor unit of an air conditioner, for example, as shown in Patent Document 1, there is known an indoor unit having a housing, a heat exchanger and a blower fan installed within the housing, the housing having a top surface, a rear surface, a bottom surface, a front surface and sides, the top surface of the housing having an intake port for drawing in indoor air and the bottom surface of the housing having an outlet port for blowing out conditioned air, the heat exchanger having a front portion and a rear portion of the heat exchanger, and a front drain pan arranged in the front portion of the heat exchanger and a rear drain pan arranged in the rear portion of the heat exchanger.
The end face of the front drain receiver is provided with a drain drainage channel that extends toward the rear side of the indoor unit, and drain drainage outlets on the rear side of both sides of the drain drainage channel.In addition, below the front drain receiver, a front air duct wall is arranged approximately parallel to the bottom surface of the front drain receiver, and a motor box equipped with a motor for changing the angle of the air deflector arranged at the air outlet abuts against the end of the front air duct wall and is fixed with bolts or the like.

JP 2012-83092 A

In the indoor unit shown in Patent Document 1, if the left-right direction of the indoor unit when viewed from the front is defined as the longitudinal direction, and the side facing the center of the indoor unit in the longitudinal direction when viewed from the front is defined as the inner side, and the side not facing the center is defined as the outer side, the motor box fixed to the end of the front wall of the air passage is located on the bottom side of the front drain receiver, but the outer surface of the motor box is located more inward in the longitudinal direction than the outer surface of the front drain receiver. In other words, because the outer side of the front drain receiver is located more inward in the longitudinal direction of the indoor unit than the outer surface of the motor box, the front drain receiver cannot be made larger (longer), and there is a possibility that the longitudinal width of the heat exchanger will not be sufficient. Furthermore, the positional relationship between the fan motor that drives the blower fan and the drain drainage channel is not clear in the indoor unit shown in Patent Document 1, but in order to ensure sufficient longitudinal width between the front drain receiver and the heat exchanger, the fan motor must be positioned above the drain drainage channel so that it does not interfere with the fan motor, which results in the problem of the vertical dimension of the indoor unit body becoming larger.
In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an indoor unit for an air conditioner that can reduce the vertical dimension of the indoor unit body.

One aspect of the present invention is an indoor unit for an air conditioner, comprising: a main body having a front panel disposed at the front, side panels disposed at the left and right ends of the front panel in the left-right direction, an air intake, an air outlet, and an air deflector rotatably provided at the air outlet, the main body having a longitudinal direction in the left-right direction; an indoor heat exchanger disposed inside the main body; a drain pan disposed below the indoor heat exchanger with the longitudinal direction in the left-right direction and for collecting condensation water generated on the indoor heat exchanger; a blower fan that draws air through the air intake and blows it to the air outlet; a fan motor that drives the blower fan; and a motor box in which a motor that rotatably drives the air deflector is disposed , The drain pan has a drain drainage channel located on at least one of the left or right sides of the drain pan in the left-right direction to guide condensation water to a drain drain outlet provided on the back of the main body, and a motor bracket located on at least one of the left or right bottom surfaces of the drain pan and on the left and right bottom surfaces of the drain pan for attaching the motor box, the motor box attached to the outer surface of the motor bracket is longitudinally inward from the left and right end surfaces of the drain pan, and the fan motor is an indoor unit for an air conditioning device located longitudinally inward from the drain drainage channel.

According to the present invention, there is no need to position the fan motor above the drain drainage channel to prevent interference between the fan motor and the drain drainage channel, thereby reducing the vertical dimension of the indoor unit.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the indoor unit of the indoor conditioning device. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the entire indoor unit shown in FIG. 1 . FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the indoor unit of the indoor conditioning device. FIG. 2 is a top view showing the arrangement of components inside the indoor unit of the indoor conditioning device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the arrangement of a drain pan and a fan motor. FIG. 4 is a front view showing a state before the motor box is attached to the drain pan. FIG. 4 is a front view showing a state in which the motor box is attached to the drain pan.

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the front of the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioning device of this embodiment, diagonally from the bottom right; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the indoor unit 1 in an exploded state; Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the indoor unit 1; Figure 4 is a top view showing the arrangement of the main components inside the indoor unit; Figure 5 is a perspective view showing the arrangement of the drain pan and fan motor; Figure 6A is a front view showing the state before the motor box is attached to the drain pan; and Figure 6B is a front view showing the state after the motor box has been attached to the drain pan.

In this embodiment, the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioning apparatus is an indoor unit of a type in which the rear surface of the indoor unit 1 is fixed to a wall (not shown) in the room in which the indoor unit 1 is installed. In this embodiment, the left-right direction of the indoor unit 1 when viewed from the front is defined as the longitudinal direction, with the side facing the center of the indoor unit 1 in the left-right direction (longitudinal direction) when viewed from the front defined as the inside, and the side not facing the center (opposite the inside) defined as the outside. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 , the indoor unit 1 has a horizontally elongated rectangular parallelepiped shape and includes a main body 7 equipped with a front panel 2 disposed on the front side, a top panel 3 disposed on the top side, side panels 4L and 4R disposed on the left and right ends 7L and 7R of the main body 7 in the left-right direction when viewed from the front, and a bottom panel 6 disposed on the bottom side, and an installation plate 8 attached to the rear of the main body 7 and attached to the wall surface in the room.

The top panel 3 is provided with an intake port 9 for drawing in indoor air, and an opening 10 is provided between the bottom panel 6 and the front panel 2, sloping from the front panel 2 toward the bottom panel 6, with the opening 10 opening across the entire length (left-right direction) of the indoor unit 1. The bottom cover portions 31R and 31L of the motor boxes 30R and 30L (described below) are located on both ends of the opening 10, and an outlet 11 for blowing out conditioned air is formed between the right-side bottom cover portion 31R and the left-side bottom cover portion 31L.

The upper and lower air deflectors 12 that cover the air outlet 11 are rotatably attached to the main body 7, and are horizontally long rectangles that are approximately the same width as the opening 10. The upper and lower air deflectors 12 open the air outlet 11 when the indoor unit 1 is operating, and by adjusting their angle as desired, they change the vertical direction of the conditioned airflow that has passed through the indoor heat exchanger 20 (described below). They also function as lids that close the air outlet 11 when the indoor unit 1 is not operating, and when the air outlet 11 is closed, they also cover the bottom covers 31R and 31L.

In addition, a left and right airflow direction vane 13 is attached to the air outlet 11 so as to be rotatable relative to the main body 7, and when the indoor unit 1 is in operation, the left and right airflow direction vane 13 changes the left and right direction of the conditioned air flow that has passed through the indoor heat exchanger 20 by arbitrarily changing its angle.
Inside the main body 7, there are arranged an indoor heat exchanger 20 into which refrigerant sent from the outdoor unit of the air conditioning system (not shown) flows and exchanges heat with the indoor air, a blower fan 21 that ventilates the indoor heat exchanger 20, a fan motor 22 that drives the blower fan 21, and a drain pan 23 that is located below the indoor heat exchanger 20 and collects condensation water generated in the indoor heat exchanger 20.

The drain pan 23 has a generally U-shaped configuration in top view, consisting of a front drain pan 24, whose longitudinal direction is approximately the same width as the indoor heat exchanger 20, and drain drainage channels 25R and 25L located on the left and right sides of the front drain pan 24 and extending from the front side to the rear side of the main body 7. The drain drainage channels 25R and 25L are provided with drain drainage outlets 26R and 26L on the rear side, and a condensation water drain hose (not shown) is connected to one of the drain drainage outlets 26R and 26L. Condensation generated in the indoor heat exchanger 20 is collected by the front drain pan 24, and the collected condensation water flows through the drain drainage channel 25 and drain drainage outlet 26 on the side to which the condensation water drainage hose is connected, and then flows out of the indoor unit 1 via the condensation water drainage hose. Additionally, a drain pan insulation member 27 for preventing condensation is attached to the right end face of the right drain channel 25R. In the present invention, the longitudinal (left-right) width of the drain pan 24 refers to the distance from the outer end face of the left drain channel 25L to the outer end face of the drain pan insulation member 27 attached to the outer end face of the right drain channel 25R when viewed from the front. Furthermore, in the present invention, the drain pan insulation member 27 is not necessarily required, and in the absence of the drain pan insulation member 27, the longitudinal (left-right) width of the drain pan 24 refers to the distance from the outer end face of the left drain channel 25L to the outer end face of the right drain channel 25R when viewed from the front.

Figure 4 is a top view of the arrangement of the blower fan 21, fan motor 22, indoor heat exchanger 20, and drain pan 23, with the bottom of Figure 4 showing the front side. The fan motor 22 is connected to the right end face of the blower fan 21, and the indoor heat exchanger 20, blower fan 21, and fan motor 22 are arranged between the drain drainage channel 25R located on the right side of the drain pan 23 and the drain drainage channel 25L located on the left side when viewed from above. As a result, there is no vertical interference between the fan motor 22 and the drain drainage channel 25R located on the right side of the drain pan 23, thereby reducing the height of the indoor unit 1.

As shown in Figures 6(A) and 6(B), on the right side of the bottom surface of the front drain pan 24, there is provided a motor bracket 33R to which a motor box 30R is attached, which is equipped with an upper and lower air deflector motor 35 that drives the upper and lower air deflectors 12 and a left and right air deflector motor 36 that drives the left and right air deflectors 13.Similarly, on the left side of the bottom surface of the front drain pan 23A, there is provided a motor bracket 33L to which a motor box 30L is attached, which is equipped with an upper and lower air deflector motor 35 that drives the upper and lower air deflectors 12.
The motor box 30R has a bottom cover portion 31R arranged on the bottom side and a mounting bracket 32R arranged at the end of the bottom cover portion 31R and attached to the motor bracket 33R.Similarly, the motor box 30L has a bottom cover portion 31L arranged on the bottom side and a mounting bracket 32L arranged at the end of the bottom cover portion 31L and attached to the motor bracket 33L.

Figure 6 (A) shows the state before the motor box 30R is attached to the motor bracket 33R on the bottom surface of the front drain pan 24, as viewed from the front. The motor box 30R is fixed to the motor bracket 33R from the right side with screws 40. The motor box 30R can be attached to the motor bracket 33R from the right end face of the indoor unit 1, which simplifies the installation process. Similarly, the motor box 30L can be attached to the motor bracket 33L from the left end face of the indoor unit 1, which simplifies the installation process.

Figure 6 (B) shows the front view of motor boxes 30R and 30L attached to motor brackets 33R and 33L, respectively, on the bottom surface of the front drain pan 24. When motor boxes 30R and 30L are attached to motor brackets 32R and 32R, respectively, on the bottom surface of the front drain pan 24, the right end face 30RE of motor box 30R is located inside the right end face 23R of the drain pan 23. Similarly, the left end face 30LE of motor box 30L is located inside the left end face 23L of the drain pan 23. Note that the right end face 30RE of motor box 30R and the left end face 30LE of motor box 30L may be located on the same plane as the right end face 23R and left side 23L of the drain pan 23.

As shown in Figure 6 (B), the end faces 30RE, 30LE of the motor boxes 30R, 30L are positioned inside or flush with the right end face 23R and left end face 23L of the drain pan 23, so the longitudinal width of the drain pan 23 can be made approximately the same as the width from the inner surface of the left side panel 4L of the main body 7 to the inner surface of the right side panel 4R. This allows the longitudinal width of the indoor heat exchanger 20 to be increased, thereby reducing the height of the indoor unit.

Furthermore, when the motor box 30R is attached to the motor bracket 33R, the bottom cover portion 31R is exposed on the bottom side of the main body 7 and functions as a decorative cover for the main body 7. Similarly, the bottom cover portion 31L is also exposed on the bottom side of the main body 7 and functions as a decorative cover. When the indoor unit 1 is not operating, and the vertical air direction flare 12 closes the air outlet 11, the bottom cover portions 31R, 31L are covered by the vertical air direction flare 12.
Although the present invention has been described above with reference to a limited number of embodiments, the scope of the invention is not limited thereto, and modifications of the embodiments based on the above disclosure will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

1...Air conditioner indoor unit, 2...Front panel, 4R, 4L...Side panels, 6...Bottom panel, 7...Main body, 9...Intake port, 10...Opening, 11...Outlet, 12...Up and down air direction vanes, 13...Left and right air direction vanes, 20...Indoor heat exchanger, 21...Blower fan, 22...Fan motor, 23...Drain pan, 23R...Right end face of drain pan, 23L...Left end face of drain pan, 24...Front drain pan, 25R, 25L... Drain drain channel, 26R, 26L...Drain outlet, 27...Drain pan insulation, 30R, 30L...Motor box, 30RE...Right end face of the right motor box, 30LE...Left end face of the left motor box, 31R, 31L...Bottom cover, 32R, 32L...Mounting bracket, 33R, 33L...Motor bracket, 35...Up/down air deflector motor, 36...Left/right air deflector motor, 40...Screw

Claims (3)

a main body having a front panel disposed at the front, side panels disposed at the left and right ends of the front panel in the left-right direction, an air inlet, an air outlet, and an air direction plate rotatably provided at the air outlet, with the main body having a longitudinal direction in the left-right direction;
an indoor heat exchanger disposed inside the main body; a drain pan disposed below the indoor heat exchanger with the left-right direction as the longitudinal direction and configured to collect condensation water generated on the indoor heat exchanger; a blower fan that draws air through the air inlet and blows it to the air outlet; a fan motor that drives the blower fan; and a motor box in which a motor that rotatably drives the air direction plate is disposed.
An indoor unit for an air conditioner comprising:
The drain pan has a drain drainage channel arranged on at least one of the left and right sides of the drain pan in the left-right direction to guide condensed water to a drain drain outlet provided on the back surface of the main body, and a motor bracket arranged on at least one of the left and right bottom surfaces of the drain pan and arranged on the left and right bottom surfaces of the drain pan to attach the motor box,
The motor box attached to the outer surface of the motor bracket is located inside in the longitudinal direction of the left end surface and the right end surface of the drain pan,
The indoor unit for an air conditioner, wherein the fan motor is disposed inside the drain pan in the longitudinal direction of the drain pan relative to the drain discharge channel. the motor box has a bottom cover exposed on the bottom side of the main body,
The air conditioner indoor unit according to claim 1, wherein the bottom cover portion is covered by the air direction plate when the air direction plate closes the air outlet. 3. The air conditioner indoor unit according to claim 1 , wherein the drainage channel is disposed at both left and right ends of the drain pan.