Air conditioning units and their control methods
By using a single compressor and multi-system structure and waste heat recovery, the problem of low energy efficiency of air conditioning units is solved, enabling air conditioning units to cool and heat simultaneously, thus significantly improving energy efficiency.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202411292282.7
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Patents(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2024-09-14
- Publication Date
- 2025-10-31
- Estimated Expiration
- 2044-09-14
AI Technical Summary
Existing air conditioning units have low energy efficiency when simultaneously providing cooling and heating, and cannot effectively utilize the waste heat generated in cooling mode.
It adopts a single compressor and multiple system structure, including first and second refrigerant circulation systems, and connects the first and second evaporators through a third throttling device to form a third refrigerant circulation system, so as to realize the first evaporator for cooling, the second evaporator for heating, and waste heat recovery and utilization.
Significantly improves the energy efficiency of air conditioning units, enabling them to simultaneously cool and heat, recover and utilize waste heat, and improve energy efficiency.
Smart Images

Figure CN119063289B_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This invention relates to the field of air conditioning technology, and more specifically, to an air conditioning unit and its control method. Background Technology
[0002] With the development of technology, air conditioners have evolved from simple heating or cooling modes to capable of both heating and cooling on the same unit. However, they cannot simultaneously operate in different modes for multiple living environments or scenarios, i.e., simultaneous cooling and heating, with a single unit. Furthermore, for most current air source heat pumps, the generation of a large amount of waste heat in cooling mode is unavoidable. Better utilization of this waste heat could significantly improve the unit's energy efficiency.
[0003] The market solution for simultaneous cooling and heating is to add an electric heater inside the unit. However, this method cannot recover and utilize the waste heat generated in cooling mode. Instead, it increases the unit's power consumption and reduces energy efficiency.
[0004] There is currently no effective solution to the problem of low energy efficiency in air conditioning units that can simultaneously provide cooling and heating. Summary of the Invention
[0005] This invention provides an air conditioning unit and its control method to at least solve the problem of low energy efficiency in existing air conditioning units that can simultaneously provide cooling and heating.
[0006] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, according to one aspect of the present invention, an air conditioning unit is provided, the air conditioning unit being a single compressor multi-system, comprising: a compressor; a first four-way valve, a first condenser, a first throttling device, and a first evaporator connected in sequence to form a first refrigerant circulation system; a second four-way valve, a second condenser, a second throttling device, and a second evaporator connected in sequence to form a second refrigerant circulation system; a first end of the first evaporator being connected to a second end of the second evaporator, a third throttling device being further provided on the pipeline between the first end of the first evaporator and the second end of the second evaporator, and the first end of the second evaporator being connected to a first connection point located on the pipeline between the second evaporator and the second four-way valve; wherein, the first end of the first evaporator is the end of the first evaporator connected to the first throttling device, and the second end of the second evaporator is the end of the second evaporator connected to the second four-way valve; the compressor, the first four-way valve, the first evaporator, the third throttling device, the second evaporator, and the second four-way valve constitute a third refrigerant circulation system, in which the first evaporator and the second evaporator respectively perform cooling and heating in the third refrigerant circulation system.
[0007] Furthermore, it also includes: a control valve located at the first connection point, used to control the connection of the second four-way valve to the second end of the second evaporator when closed, and to control the connection of the second four-way valve to the first end of the second evaporator when open.
[0008] Furthermore, the first evaporator and the second evaporator are located in different usage environments, and the terminal equipment in the usage environment includes at least one of the following: fan coil unit, radiant radiator, underfloor heating pipe, and water heater.
[0009] Furthermore, the first condenser and the second condenser are arranged side by side, and the air conditioning unit also includes a condenser fan. The air outlet direction of the condenser fan is adjustable, and the air outlet direction of the condenser fan includes at least blowing from the first condenser to the second condenser and blowing from the second condenser to the first condenser.
[0010] According to another aspect of the present invention, an air conditioning unit control method is provided, applied to the air conditioning unit as described above. The method includes: detecting the operating mode of the air conditioning unit, wherein the operating mode includes at least: dual cooling mode, dual heating mode, and dual cooling / heating mode; determining the systems that need to be turned on by the air conditioning unit according to the operating mode; and controlling the operation of the systems that need to be turned on according to the operating mode.
[0011] Furthermore, determining the systems that the air conditioning unit needs to activate based on the operating mode includes: when the operating mode is the dual cooling mode or the dual heating mode, the systems that need to be activated are the first refrigerant circulation system and the second refrigerant circulation system; when the operating mode is the dual cooling and heating mode, the systems that need to be activated are the third refrigerant circulation system.
[0012] Further, controlling the operation of the system to be activated according to the operating mode includes: when the operating mode is the dual cooling mode, controlling the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve to be de-energized, and the first throttling device and the second throttling device to be throttled; when the operating mode is the dual heating mode, controlling the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve to be energized, and the first throttling device and the second throttling device to be throttled; when the operating mode is the dual cooling and heating mode, controlling the first four-way valve to be de-energized, the second four-way valve to be energized, the third throttling device to be throttled, the control valve to be open, the first evaporator to heat, and the second evaporator to cool; or, controlling the first four-way valve to be energized, the second four-way valve to be de-energized, the third throttling device to be throttled, the control valve to be open, the first evaporator to cool, and the second evaporator to heat.
[0013] Furthermore, controlling the operation of the system to be turned on according to the operating mode further includes: when the operating mode is the dual-mode of cooling and heating, further detecting the load of the first evaporator and the second evaporator; when the load of the second evaporator decreases, controlling the opening degree of the third throttling device to decrease, and controlling the first throttling device to turn on; when the load of the first evaporator increases, controlling the compressor frequency to increase, and controlling the opening degree of the third throttling device to decrease, and the first throttling device to turn on, wherein when the first throttling device is already turned on, controlling the opening degree of the first throttling device to increase.
[0014] Furthermore, controlling the operation of the system to be turned on according to the operating mode also includes: when the operating mode is the dual heating mode, detecting whether the air conditioning unit meets the defrosting conditions; when the air conditioning unit meets the defrosting conditions, controlling the second four-way valve to be in a de-energized state, the first throttling device to be closed, the third throttling device to be opened, and the control valve to be opened; detecting whether the second condenser has completed defrosting, and when the second condenser has completed defrosting, controlling the air outlet direction of the condenser fan to be adjusted so that it blows from the second condenser to the first condenser until the first condenser has completed defrosting.
[0015] According to another aspect of the present invention, a storage medium containing computer-executable instructions is provided, which, when executed by a computer processor, are used to perform the air conditioning unit control method as described above.
[0016] This invention provides an air conditioning unit capable of simultaneously cooling and heating. The unit is a single-compressor multi-system system, comprising a first refrigerant circulation system and a second refrigerant circulation system. A first evaporator is connected to a second evaporator, and a third throttling device is installed on the pipeline between them. Refrigerant flowing from the first evaporator to the second evaporator flows to the compressor through an auxiliary pipeline, forming a complete refrigerant circulation. This allows the first evaporator to cool while the second evaporator heats, or vice versa, enabling simultaneous cooling and heating. This simple and reliable method achieves simultaneous cooling and heating. When both cooling and heating modes are activated simultaneously, heat exchange occurs between the environments surrounding the two evaporators. Compared to traditional cooling modes, waste heat can be recovered and reused, significantly improving the energy efficiency of the air conditioning unit and effectively solving the problem of low energy efficiency in existing air conditioning units capable of simultaneously providing cooling and heating. Attached Figure Description
[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an optional structure of an air conditioning unit according to an embodiment of the present invention;
[0018] Figure 2This is an optional flowchart of an air conditioning unit control method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0019] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:
[0020] 1. First refrigerant flow path; 2. Second refrigerant flow path; 3. Third refrigerant flow path; 4. Compressor; 5. First four-way valve; 6. First condenser; 7. First throttling device; 8. First evaporator; 9. Second four-way valve; 10. Second condenser; 11. Second throttling device; 12. Second evaporator; 13. Third throttling device; 14. Control valve; 15. Condenser fan. Detailed Implementation
[0021] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this invention clearer, the invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this invention, and not all of them. Based on the embodiments of this invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this invention.
[0022] The terminology used in the embodiments of this invention is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the invention. The singular forms “a,” “the,” and “the” as used in the embodiments of this invention and the appended claims are also intended to include the plural forms, and “multiple” generally includes at least two unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
[0023] It should be understood that the term "and / or" used in this article is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A existing alone, A and B existing simultaneously, and B existing alone. Additionally, the character " / " in this article generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects have an "or" relationship.
[0024] It should be understood that although the terms first, second, third, etc., may be used to describe controllers in embodiments of the present invention, these controllers should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish controllers connected to different devices. For example, without departing from the scope of embodiments of the present invention, a first controller may also be referred to as a second controller, and similarly, a second controller may also be referred to as a first controller.
[0025] Depending on the context, the words “if” or “suppose” as used here can be interpreted as “when” or “in response to determination” or “in response to detection.” Similarly, depending on the context, the phrases “if determination” or “if detection (of the stated condition or event)” can be interpreted as “when determination” or “in response to determination” or “when detection (of the stated condition or event)” or “in response to detection (of the stated condition or event).”
[0026] It should also be noted that the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that an article or device that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such an article or device. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the article or device that includes said element.
[0027] The optional embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0028] Example 1
[0029] In a preferred embodiment 1 of the present invention, an air conditioning unit is provided, specifically... Figure 1 This diagram illustrates one possible structural design of the air conditioning unit, such as... Figure 1 As shown, the air conditioning unit is a single-compressor multi-system unit, which includes:
[0030] Compressor 4;
[0031] The first four-way valve 5, the first condenser 6, the first throttling device 7, and the first evaporator 8, connected in sequence, constitute the first refrigerant circulation system;
[0032] The second four-way valve 9, the second condenser 10, the second throttling device 11, and the second evaporator 12, connected in sequence, constitute the second refrigerant circulation system;
[0033] The first end of the first evaporator 8 is connected to the second end of the second evaporator 12. A third throttling device 13 is also provided on the pipeline between the first end of the first evaporator 8 and the second end of the second evaporator 12. The first end of the second evaporator 12 is also connected to a first connection point on the pipeline between the second evaporator 12 and the second four-way valve 9. The first end of the first evaporator 8 is the end of the first evaporator 8 connected to the first throttling device 7, and the second end of the second evaporator 12 is the end of the second evaporator 12 connected to the second four-way valve 9.
[0034] The compressor 4, the first four-way valve 5, the first evaporator 8, the third throttling device 13, the second evaporator 12, and the second four-way valve 9 constitute the third refrigerant circulation system. In the third refrigerant circulation system, the first evaporator 8 and the second evaporator 12 respectively perform refrigeration and heating.
[0035] In the above embodiments, an air conditioning unit capable of simultaneously cooling and heating is provided. This air conditioning unit is a single-compressor multi-system unit, including a first refrigerant circulation system and a second refrigerant circulation system. A first evaporator and a second evaporator are connected, and a third throttling device is installed on the pipeline between the first and second evaporators. Simultaneously, refrigerant flowing from the first evaporator to the second evaporator flows to the compressor through an auxiliary pipeline, forming a complete refrigerant circulation. This allows the first evaporator to cool while the second evaporator heats, or vice versa, enabling the air conditioning unit to simultaneously cool and heat. This simple and reliable method achieves simultaneous cooling and heating. When both cooling and heating modes are activated simultaneously, heat exchange occurs between the environments where the two evaporators are located. Compared to traditional cooling modes, waste heat can be recovered and reused, thus significantly improving the energy efficiency of the air conditioning unit and effectively solving the problem of low energy efficiency in existing air conditioning units capable of simultaneously providing cooling and heating.
[0036] like Figure 1 As shown, the air conditioning unit also includes: a control valve 14, located at the first connection point, used to control the connection of the second four-way valve 9 to the second end of the second evaporator 12 when closed, and to control the connection of the second four-way valve 9 to the first end of the second evaporator 12 when open. Figure 1 As shown, the refrigerant flow path between the control valve and the second four-way valve is the first refrigerant flow path 1. The control valve is connected to the second connection point located between the second evaporator and the second throttling device, which is the second refrigerant flow path 2. The refrigerant flow path between the control valve and the first connection point is the third refrigerant flow path 3. The control valve can be an electrically operated two-way valve. Under normal conditions, i.e., when the second refrigerant circulation system is running, it restricts the flow of refrigerant between the first refrigerant flow path 1 and the third refrigerant flow path 3. When the air conditioning unit is simultaneously cooling and heating, i.e., when the third refrigerant circulation system is running, the control valve restricts the flow of refrigerant between the first refrigerant flow path 1 and the second refrigerant flow path 2. Through the control valve, the flow of refrigerant under different operating modes is realized, and the switching of the air conditioning unit's operating mode is achieved simply and effectively.
[0037] The first and second evaporators are located in different operating environments, and each evaporator regulates the temperature of its respective environment. The terminal equipment in each operating environment includes at least one of the following: a fan coil unit, a radiant radiator, underfloor heating pipes, or a water heater. Because the first and second evaporators are located in different operating environments, heat can be mutually utilized between these environments when simultaneously cooling or heating. Therefore, it eliminates the need for additional electric heating as in existing technologies, achieving waste heat recovery and improving the energy efficiency of the air conditioning unit.
[0038] Preferably, the first condenser and the second condenser are arranged side by side. The air conditioning unit also includes a condenser fan 15, the air outlet direction of which is adjustable. The air outlet direction of the condenser fan includes at least two directions: from the first condenser 6 to the second condenser 10 and from the second condenser 10 to the first condenser 6. The condenser fan can achieve two air outlet directions. If, after one condenser has finished defrosting, the air outlet direction of the condenser fan is changed to blow from the defrosted condenser to the undefrosted condenser, defrosting of both condensers can be achieved without changing the refrigerant circulation path, thus ensuring the heating effect of the air conditioning unit.
[0039] When the environment served by the first evaporator needs heating and the environment served by the second evaporator needs cooling, the first four-way valve opens, the first and second throttling devices close, the third throttling device opens, and the electric two-way valve opens. The refrigerant passes from the compressor through the first four-way valve to the first evaporator for heat exchange, releasing heat to heat the environment served by the first evaporator. After being throttled by the third throttling device, it passes through the second evaporator to absorb heat and cool the environment served by the second evaporator. Then, it flows through the first and second refrigerant paths back to the second four-way valve and is drawn into the compressor, forming a cycle that simultaneously cools and heats the different environments served by the first and second evaporators.
[0040] Under the aforementioned simultaneous cooling and heating conditions, after the unit has been running for a period of time, the heat load of the environment served by the first evaporator remains unchanged, while the cooling load of the environment served by the second evaporator decreases. Therefore, the opening of the third throttling device decreases, reducing the refrigerant flow to the second evaporator. The first throttling device opens, drawing some refrigerant to the first evaporator to absorb heat from the air, thus bearing part of the cooling load of the second evaporator and maintaining a stable temperature in the environments served by both condensers. When the heat load of the first evaporator increases while the cooling load of the second evaporator remains unchanged, the compressor frequency needs to be increased to enhance the unit's capacity. The third throttling device is appropriately closed, while the first throttling device continues to open, ensuring sufficient heat load for the first evaporator while maintaining the cooling load of the second evaporator.
[0041] When the environment served by the first evaporator needs cooling and the environment served by the second evaporator needs heating, the second four-way valve opens, the first and second throttling devices close, the third throttling device opens, and the electric two-way valve opens. The refrigerant flows from the compressor through the second four-way valve, then through the first and second refrigerant flow paths to the second evaporator for heat exchange and release of heat, providing heating to the environment served by the second evaporator. After being throttled by the third throttling device, it passes through the first evaporator to absorb heat and provide cooling to the environment served by the first evaporator. After absorbing heat, it passes through the first four-way valve and is then drawn into the compressor to form a cycle, simultaneously providing cooling and heating to the different environments served by the first and second evaporators.
[0042] When the environments served by the first evaporator and the second evaporator simultaneously require heating, the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve open, the first throttling device and the second throttling device open, the third throttling device closes, and the electric two-way valve closes. The refrigerant can only flow through the first refrigerant flow path and the third refrigerant flow path. After passing through the compressor, the refrigerant is divided equally before the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve. After passing through their respective condensers, throttling devices, and evaporators, the refrigerant flows together and returns to the compressor to form a cycle. The two condensers share the heat load of the first evaporator and the second evaporator.
[0043] When the unit is in heating mode, after the first and second evaporators are completely frosted, the defrosting conditions are met. The first throttling device closes, and the electric two-way valve opens. The first and second refrigerant flow paths are open, and the third throttling device is activated. The refrigerant, after leaving the compressor, passes through two four-way valves to reach the second evaporator for defrosting, and the first and second evaporators provide heat to the indoor environment. The corresponding terminals of the first and second evaporators can be adjusted to reduce excessive fluctuations in the indoor environment. The refrigerant, after passing through the second evaporator, the second throttling device, the first evaporator, and the second evaporator, converges into the second refrigerant flow path, and then returns to the compressor through the electric two-way valve, the first refrigerant flow path, and the second four-way valve, forming a cycle.
[0044] When the system detects that the frost layer on the second evaporator has completely melted and the exit condition has been met, the evaporator fan starts to reverse and carries the heat from the second evaporator to the first evaporator to defrost it. Once the first evaporator meets the defrosting exit condition, the evaporator fan stops reversing and starts in the forward direction. The electric two-way valve closes, the third throttling device closes, the first throttling device opens, the second four-way valve reverses, and the unit enters the normal heating operation mode.
[0045] This invention improves and optimizes existing single-system air source heat pump units on the market, providing an air conditioning unit that can heat while cooling. When the unit is running, it can cool or heat different rooms. When two rooms require different operating modes, the cooling and heating modes can be activated simultaneously, and heat exchange between the two rooms can be carried out through the outdoor unit, reducing the heat demand on the environment and improving the unit's energy efficiency.
[0046] Example 2
[0047] In a preferred embodiment 2 of the present invention, an air conditioning unit control method is provided, which is applied to the air conditioning unit in embodiment 1 described above. Specifically, Figure 2 An optional flowchart of the method is shown, such as Figure 2 As shown, the method includes the following steps S202-S206:
[0048] S202: Detect the operating mode of the air conditioning unit, wherein the operating mode includes at least: dual cooling mode, dual heating mode and dual cooling / heating mode;
[0049] S204: Determine the systems that the air conditioning unit needs to start based on the operating mode;
[0050] S206: Control the operation of the system that needs to be started according to the operating mode.
[0051] In the above embodiments, an air conditioning unit capable of simultaneously cooling and heating is provided. This air conditioning unit is a single-compressor multi-system unit, including a first refrigerant circulation system and a second refrigerant circulation system. A first evaporator and a second evaporator are connected, and a third throttling device is installed on the pipeline between the first and second evaporators. Simultaneously, refrigerant flowing from the first evaporator to the second evaporator flows to the compressor through an auxiliary pipeline, forming a complete refrigerant circulation. This allows the first evaporator to cool while the second evaporator heats, or vice versa, enabling the air conditioning unit to simultaneously cool and heat. This simple and reliable method achieves simultaneous cooling and heating. When both cooling and heating modes are activated simultaneously, heat exchange occurs between the environments where the two evaporators are located. Compared to traditional cooling modes, waste heat can be recovered and reused, thus significantly improving the energy efficiency of the air conditioning unit and effectively solving the problem of low energy efficiency in existing air conditioning units capable of simultaneously providing cooling and heating.
[0052] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the system that needs to be activated by the air conditioning unit is determined according to the operating mode, including: when the operating mode is a dual cooling mode or a dual heating mode, the systems that need to be activated are the first refrigerant circulation system and the second refrigerant circulation system; when the operating mode is a dual cooling and heating mode, the system that needs to be activated is the third refrigerant circulation system. In addition to the traditional cooling and heating modes, the air conditioning unit of the present invention can also achieve a simultaneous cooling and heating mode, that is, by using the third refrigerant circulation system, heat exchange occurs between the environments where the two evaporators are located. Compared with the traditional cooling mode, waste heat can be recovered and reused, thus significantly improving the energy efficiency of the air conditioning unit.
[0053] When the environments served by the first evaporator and the second evaporator simultaneously require heating, the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve open, the first throttling device and the second throttling device open, the third throttling device closes, and the electric two-way valve closes. The refrigerant can only flow through the first refrigerant flow path and the third refrigerant flow path. After passing through the compressor, the refrigerant is divided equally before the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve. After passing through their respective condensers, throttling devices, and evaporators, the refrigerant flows together and returns to the compressor to form a cycle. The two condensers share the heat load of the first evaporator and the second evaporator.
[0054] Specifically, the operation of the system to be activated is controlled according to the operating mode, including: when the operating mode is dual cooling mode, the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve are de-energized, and the first throttling device and the second throttling device are throttling; when the operating mode is dual heating mode, the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve are energized, and the first throttling device and the second throttling device are throttling; when the operating mode is dual cooling and heating mode, the first four-way valve is de-energized, the second four-way valve is energized, the third throttling device is throttling, and the control valve is open, with the first evaporator heating and the second evaporator cooling; or, the first four-way valve is energized, the second four-way valve is de-energized, the third throttling device is throttling, and the control valve is open, with the first evaporator cooling and the second evaporator heating.
[0055] When the environment served by the first evaporator needs heating and the environment served by the second evaporator needs cooling, the first four-way valve opens, the first and second throttling devices close, the third throttling device opens, and the electric two-way valve opens. The refrigerant passes from the compressor through the first four-way valve to the first evaporator for heat exchange, releasing heat to heat the environment served by the first evaporator. After being throttled by the third throttling device, it passes through the second evaporator to absorb heat and cool the environment served by the second evaporator. Then, it flows through the first and second refrigerant paths back to the second four-way valve and is drawn into the compressor, forming a cycle that simultaneously cools and heats the different environments served by the first and second evaporators.
[0056] When the environment served by the first evaporator needs cooling and the environment served by the second evaporator needs heating, the second four-way valve opens, the first and second throttling devices close, the third throttling device opens, and the electric two-way valve opens. The refrigerant flows from the compressor through the second four-way valve, then through the first and second refrigerant flow paths to the second evaporator for heat exchange and release of heat, providing heating to the environment served by the second evaporator. After being throttled by the third throttling device, it passes through the first evaporator to absorb heat and provide cooling to the environment served by the first evaporator. After absorbing heat, it passes through the first four-way valve and is then drawn into the compressor to form a cycle, simultaneously providing cooling and heating to the different environments served by the first and second evaporators.
[0057] Preferably, controlling the operation of the system that needs to be turned on according to the operating mode further includes: when the operating mode is a dual-mode of cooling and heating, further detecting the load of the first evaporator and the second evaporator; when the load of the second evaporator decreases, controlling the opening degree of the third throttling device to decrease and controlling the opening degree of the first throttling device to turn on; when the load of the first evaporator increases, controlling the compressor frequency to increase and controlling the opening degree of the third throttling device to decrease and the opening degree of the first throttling device to turn on, wherein when the first throttling device is already turned on, controlling the opening degree of the first throttling device to increase. Under the aforementioned simultaneous cooling and heating conditions, after the unit has been running for a period of time, the heat load of the environment served by the first evaporator remains unchanged, while the cooling load of the environment served by the second evaporator decreases. Therefore, the opening of the third throttling device decreases, reducing the refrigerant flow to the second evaporator. The first throttling device opens, drawing some refrigerant to the first evaporator to absorb heat from the air, thus bearing part of the cooling load of the second evaporator and maintaining a stable temperature in the environments served by both condensers. When the heat load of the first evaporator increases while the cooling load of the second evaporator remains unchanged, the compressor frequency needs to be increased to enhance the unit's capacity. The third throttling device is appropriately closed, while the first throttling device continues to open, ensuring sufficient heat load for the first evaporator while maintaining the cooling load of the second evaporator.
[0058] In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, controlling the operation of the system that needs to be turned on according to the operating mode further includes: when the operating mode is dual heating mode, detecting whether the air conditioning unit meets the defrosting conditions; when the air conditioning unit meets the defrosting conditions, controlling the second four-way valve to be in a de-energized state, the first throttling device to be closed, the third throttling device to be opened, and the control valve to be opened; detecting whether the second condenser has completed defrosting, and when the second condenser has completed defrosting, controlling the air outlet direction of the condenser fan to be adjusted so that it blows from the second condenser to the first condenser until the first condenser has completed defrosting. When the unit is in heating operation, after the first evaporator and the second evaporator are completely frosted, the unit's defrosting conditions are met, the first throttling device is closed, and the electric two-way valve is opened. The first refrigerant flow path and the second refrigerant flow path are open, the third throttling device is opened, and the refrigerant, after leaving the compressor, reaches the second evaporator through the two four-way valves to play a defrosting role, and the first evaporator and the second evaporator provide heat to the indoor environment. The terminals corresponding to the first evaporator and the second evaporator can be mutually adjusted to reduce excessive fluctuations in the indoor environment. The refrigerant flows through the second evaporator and the second throttling device, then through the first evaporator and the second evaporator, before converging into the second refrigerant flow path. It then passes through the electric two-way valve, the first refrigerant flow path, and the second four-way valve back to the compressor, forming a cycle. When the system detects that the frost layer on the second evaporator has completely melted and the defrosting condition has been met, the evaporator fan starts reversing, carrying the heat from the second evaporator to the first evaporator for defrosting. Once the first evaporator meets the defrosting exit condition, the evaporator fan stops reversing and starts reversing, the electric two-way valve closes, the third throttling device closes, the first throttling device opens, the second four-way valve reverses, and the unit enters normal heating operation mode. This setup reduces temperature fluctuations on the user side during defrosting, improving user comfort.
[0059] Example 3
[0060] Based on the air conditioning unit control method provided in Embodiment 2 above, in a preferred embodiment 3 of the present invention, a storage medium containing computer-executable instructions is also provided, wherein the computer-executable instructions are used to execute the air conditioning unit control method as described above when executed by a computer processor.
[0061] In the above embodiments, an air conditioning unit capable of simultaneously cooling and heating is provided. This air conditioning unit is a single-compressor multi-system unit, including a first refrigerant circulation system and a second refrigerant circulation system. A first evaporator and a second evaporator are connected, and a third throttling device is installed on the pipeline between the first and second evaporators. Simultaneously, refrigerant flowing from the first evaporator to the second evaporator flows to the compressor through an auxiliary pipeline, forming a complete refrigerant circulation. This allows the first evaporator to cool while the second evaporator heats, or vice versa, enabling the air conditioning unit to simultaneously cool and heat. This simple and reliable method achieves simultaneous cooling and heating. When both cooling and heating modes are activated simultaneously, heat exchange occurs between the environments where the two evaporators are located. Compared to traditional cooling modes, waste heat can be recovered and reused, thus significantly improving the energy efficiency of the air conditioning unit and effectively solving the problem of low energy efficiency in existing air conditioning units capable of simultaneously providing cooling and heating.
[0062] The sequence numbers of the above embodiments of the present invention are for descriptive purposes only and do not represent the superiority or inferiority of the embodiments.
[0063] In the above embodiments of the present invention, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments.
[0064] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed technical content can be implemented in other ways. The device embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for example, the division of units can be a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For instance, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the displayed or discussed mutual coupling, direct coupling, or communication connection may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between units or modules may be electrical or other forms.
[0065] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.
[0066] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present invention can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.
[0067] If the integrated unit is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present invention, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present invention. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), portable hard drives, magnetic disks, or optical disks.
[0068] Other embodiments of the invention will readily occur to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. This application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the invention that follow the general principles of the invention and include common knowledge or customary techniques in the art not invented by the invention. The specification and examples are to be considered exemplary only, and the true scope and spirit of the invention are indicated by the following claims.
[0069] It should be understood that the present invention is not limited to the precise structure described above and shown in the accompanying drawings, and various modifications and changes can be made without departing from its scope. The scope of the invention is limited only by the appended claims.
Claims
1. An air conditioning unit, characterized in that, The air conditioning unit is a single-compressor multi-system unit, including: compressor; The first four-way valve, the first condenser, the first throttling device, and the first evaporator, connected in sequence, constitute the first refrigerant circulation system; The second four-way valve, the second condenser, the second throttling device, and the second evaporator, connected in sequence, constitute the second refrigerant circulation system; A first end of the first evaporator is connected to a second end of the second evaporator, and a third throttling device is also provided on the pipeline between the first end of the first evaporator and the second end of the second evaporator; wherein, the first end of the first evaporator is the end connected to the first throttling device, the first end of the second evaporator is the end connected to the second throttling device, and the second end of the second evaporator is the end connected to the second four-way valve; a first connection point is provided on the pipeline connecting the second evaporator and the second four-way valve, and the first connection point is connected to the first end of the second evaporator; a control valve is provided on the first connection point; The compressor, the first four-way valve, the first evaporator, the third throttling device, the second evaporator, and the second four-way valve constitute a third refrigerant circulation system. In the third refrigerant circulation system, the first evaporator and the second evaporator respectively perform cooling and heating.
2. The air conditioning unit according to claim 1, characterized in that, The control valve is used to control the connection between the second four-way valve and the second end of the second evaporator when closed, and to control the connection between the second four-way valve and the first end of the second evaporator when open.
3. The air conditioning unit according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first evaporator and the second evaporator are located in different usage environments, and the terminal equipment in the usage environment includes at least one of the following: fan coil unit, radiant radiator, underfloor heating pipe, and water heater.
4. The air conditioning unit according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first condenser and the second condenser are arranged side by side. The air conditioning unit also includes a condenser fan. The air outlet direction of the condenser fan is adjustable. The air outlet direction of the condenser fan includes at least blowing from the first condenser to the second condenser and blowing from the second condenser to the first condenser.
5. An air conditioning unit control method, applied to an air conditioning unit as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The method includes: The operating mode of the air conditioning unit is detected, wherein the operating mode includes at least: dual cooling mode, dual heating mode, and dual cooling and heating mode; The system that the air conditioning unit needs to turn on is determined based on the operating mode; Control the operation of the system that needs to be started according to the operating mode.
6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The systems that need to be turned on by the air conditioning unit according to the operating mode include: When the operating mode is the dual cooling mode or the dual heating mode, the systems that need to be turned on are the first refrigerant circulation system and the second refrigerant circulation system. When the operating mode is the dual-mode of cooling and heating, the system that needs to be turned on is the third refrigerant circulation system.
7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, Controlling the operation of the system to be started according to the operating mode includes: When the operating mode is the dual cooling mode, the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve are de-energized, and the first throttling device and the second throttling device are in a throttling state. When the operating mode is the dual heating mode, the first four-way valve and the second four-way valve are energized, and the first throttling device and the second throttling device are in a throttling state. When the operating mode is the dual-mode cooling and heating mode, the first four-way valve is de-energized, the second four-way valve is energized, the third throttling device is throttling, and the control valve is open, so the first evaporator heats and the second evaporator cools; or, the first four-way valve is energized, the second four-way valve is de-energized, the third throttling device is throttling, and the control valve is open, so the first evaporator cools and the second evaporator heats.
8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that, Controlling the operation of the system to be started according to the operating mode also includes: When the operating mode is the dual-mode cooling and heating mode, the load of the first evaporator and the second evaporator is further detected; When the load on the second evaporator decreases, the opening of the third throttling device is reduced, and the first throttling device is opened. When the load on the first evaporator increases, the compressor frequency is controlled to increase, and the opening of the third throttling device is controlled to decrease. The first throttling device is opened, and when the first throttling device is already opened, the opening of the first throttling device is controlled to increase.
9. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that, Controlling the operation of the system to be started according to the operating mode also includes: When the operating mode is the dual heating mode, it is detected whether the air conditioning unit meets the defrosting conditions; When the air conditioning unit meets the defrosting conditions, the second four-way valve is de-energized, the first throttling device is closed, the third throttling device is opened, and the control valve is opened. The system detects whether the second condenser has completed defrosting. When the second condenser has completed defrosting, the system controls the airflow direction of the condenser fan to be adjusted so that it blows from the second condenser to the first condenser until the first condenser has completed defrosting.
10. A storage medium containing computer-executable instructions, characterized in that, The computer-executable instructions, when executed by a computer processor, are used to perform the air conditioning unit control method as described in any one of claims 5 to 9.
Citation Information
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