Air conditioning system for a motor vehicle

Abstract

Air conditioning system for a motor vehicle, wherein the air conditioning system comprises, in addition to an air humidification device, an air temperature control device, which has a refrigerant circuit with a compressor, a condenser, an expansion element and an evaporator designed as an air / refrigerant heat exchanger through which an airflow directed into a passenger compartment of the motor vehicle flows, wherein the air humidification device and the air temperature control device are mutually dependent on each other by means of a control unit and the control unit is configured to reduce the cooling capacity of the evaporator when the air humidification device is put into operation. characterized by that the air humidification device is arranged in the passenger compartment and has a tank for storing a humidification liquid that can be held securely in a bottle or cup holder in the passenger compartment, as well as an atomization and / or evaporation unit connected to the tank via a flexible hose and which can be positioned at different locations in the passenger compartment for atomizing and / or evaporating the humidification liquid, wherein, on the one hand, the tank and, on the other hand, the bottle or cup holder each contain an element of a data and energy interface between the humidification device and the control unit, and are shaped to fit each other in such a way that when the tank is inserted into the bottle or cup holder, said interface elements are forcibly contacted.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to an air conditioning device for a motor vehicle, wherein the air conditioning device, in addition to an air humidification device, also comprises an air tempering device which has a refrigerant circuit with a compressor, a condenser, an expansion element and an evaporator designed as an air / refrigerant heat exchanger through which an air flow which can be directed into a passenger compartment of the motor vehicle flows, wherein the air humidification device and the air tempering device can be controlled in mutual dependence on one another by means of a control unit and the control unit is designed to reduce the cooling capacity of the evaporator when the air humidification device is started up.

[0002] Such air conditioning systems are known from JP S56-53 910 A.

[0003] Temperature control devices for motor vehicles, which primarily serve to control the temperature of the air in the passenger compartment of the motor vehicle, have long been known to those skilled in the art. Such temperature control devices typically comprise a refrigerant circuit in which at least one compressor, one condenser, one expansion device, and one evaporator are interconnected in a known manner. In particular, refrigerant is compressed in the compressor and then liquefied in the condenser (or cooled in the case of purely gaseous refrigerants). The condenser is designed as an air / refrigerant heat exchanger and is typically permeated by an outside air stream, to which the heat generated during the condensation of the refrigerant is transferred. After the condensed refrigerant has been expanded, it is evaporated in the evaporator.The evaporator is also typically designed as an air / refrigerant heat exchanger and is permeated by an air stream from which the heat required to evaporate the refrigerant is extracted. The cooled air stream is then directed into the passenger compartment, possibly after counterheating by a heating / heat exchanger. As a side effect, the cooling of the air stream in the evaporator leads to the condensation of at least some of the moisture contained in the air stream, so that the cooling simultaneously dries the air.

[0004] This can prevent unwanted fogging of the passenger compartment windows, particularly in recirculation mode.

[0005] Such dehumidification can, under certain circumstances, conflict with the goal of creating a comfortable climate in the passenger compartment. Very dry air, in particular, is often perceived as unpleasant by vehicle occupants, as it can dry out mucous membranes and irritate the eyes and respiratory tract. Accordingly, humidifiers are increasingly being used in the passenger compartments of motor vehicles. Their technology is essentially similar to that used for humidifying residential and office buildings. They typically comprise a tank and an atomization and / or evaporation unit, which atomizes or evaporates the humidification fluid stored in the tank into the room air.The simultaneous use of the above-described dehumidification using the air temperature control device on the one hand and the air humidification using the latter device on the other hand leads to an inefficient cancellation of the mutual effects and an increase in energy consumption. The latter is particularly undesirable with regard to optimizing the range of electrified vehicles.

[0006] CN 202 088 845 U discloses a system in which the temperature control device, in particular its air conditioning compressor, and the air humidification device are connected to a common control device and controlled by this device in such a way that operation of the humidifier is only possible after the air conditioning compressor has been started, or that operation of the humidifier alone is prevented. This is intended to counteract excessive air humidification. However, this approach has the disadvantage that in cooling mode, both systems—i.e., the air humidifier and the temperature control device, which also dehumidifies the air during cooling mode—work against each other, which is energetically inefficient.

[0007] The aforementioned generic document JP S56-53 910 A discloses an air conditioning system with a switchable bypass path for the evaporator, wherein a humidifier is arranged in the bypass path. This device is controlled in such a way that whenever the intermittently operated humidifier is active, said bypass path is open, or closed when the humidifier is inactive.

[0008] US 2015 / 0 343 881A1 discloses a similar system, in which, however, the cooling capacity is controlled by regulating the refrigerant flow and thus regulating the working temperature of the evaporator.

[0009] US 4 500 479 A discloses the arrangement of an air conditioning system in the front of a motor vehicle and a humidifier in the rear of the vehicle.

[0010] JP 2008-254 639 A discloses a system in which the air humidification device and the air temperature control device are also controlled by a common control unit. However, the joint operation of both subsystems is explicitly permitted here, although the direction of injection of the tempered (and dehumidified) air into the passenger compartment is made dependent on the operating state of the air humidification device. In particular, the aim is to prevent humidified and dehumidified air flow components from colliding in the head area of ​​vehicle occupants. The document presents such a system as an improvement over a system in which the atomization and / or evaporation unit of the air humidification device is connected to its tank by means of a flexible hose and can be manually positioned in the passenger compartment as needed.

[0011] CN 107 933 253 A discloses a mobile humidifier for use in a motor vehicle. The humidifier comprises a plug that can be indirectly connected to a water bottle via an electric steam generator ring to form a rigid unit, which, as such, can be plugged into the cigarette lighter socket to be supplied with electrical power.

[0012] KR 10 2014 0 092 026 A discloses a combined cup holder and humidifier. Its main body is in the form of a double-walled hollow cylinder closed on one side. Its open end facing upwards can be inserted into a conventional recess for holding beverage containers in the center console of a vehicle. The hollow interior of the main body can be used to hold (particularly slim) beverage containers. Its double wall serves as a reservoir for water, which can be atomized in the passenger compartment by means of an integrated ultrasonic evaporator.

[0013] It is the object of the present invention to further develop a generic air conditioning device in such a way that improved climate comfort is achieved.

[0014] This object is achieved in conjunction with the features of the preamble of claim 1 in that the air humidification device is arranged in the passenger compartment and has a tank for storing a humidification liquid, which can be held in a form-fitting manner in a bottle or cup holder in the passenger compartment, and an atomization and / or evaporation unit for atomizing and / or evaporating the humidification liquid, which is connected to the tank via a flexible hose line and can be positioned at different positions in the passenger compartment, wherein the tank on the one hand and the bottle or cup holder on the other hand each contain an element of a data and energy interface between the air humidification device and the control unit, and are shaped to one another in such a way that when the tank is inserted into the bottle or cup holder, a forced contact is made between said interface elements.

[0015] The invention takes up the fundamentally known idea of ​​controlling the air humidification device, on the one hand, and the air temperature control device, on the other hand, jointly and interdependently. The aim of the control is to avoid mutually neutralizing operating situations wherever possible. In particular, if operation of the air humidification device is detected, the operation of the air temperature control device is modified. Specifically, this is not achieved by switching off the air conditioning compressor, i.e., by essentially completely switching off the temperature control device. Rather, the operation of the evaporator is modified. In particular, its cooling capacity is reduced. The reduction in cooling capacity also results in a reduction in the dehumidification effect.Consequently, the measure according to the invention specifically reduces only that effect of the air temperature control device that counteracts the effect of the air humidification device. However, this does not involve a complete shutdown of the air temperature control device.

[0016] It is even possible, and in a preferred embodiment of the invention also provided, that the modification of the temperature control effect associated with the reduction in cooling capacity is completely or largely compensated. Typically, in conventional refrigerant circuits, the evaporator is operated at significantly lower temperatures than would be necessary for the desired temperature setting in the passenger compartment. The air flow that is (too) deeply cooled in the evaporator is usually passed through a heating heat exchanger for counterheating before being led into the passenger compartment. This makes it possible to achieve the same overall temperature control result with the reduction in the cooling capacity of the evaporator according to the invention by correspondingly reducing the counterheating capacity of the heating heat exchanger, while avoiding the momentarily undesirable air dehumidification (as evidenced by the explicit operation of the air humidification device).

[0017] On this basis, improved climate comfort in the passenger compartment is achieved with significantly increased energy efficiency.

[0018] Reducing the evaporator's cooling capacity can be achieved in various ways. In a preferred embodiment, it is possible to increase the evaporator's operating temperature. This reduces the amount of moisture condensing from the air flow passing through the evaporator.

[0019] Alternatively or additionally, it is possible to reduce the effective cooling capacity of the evaporator by directing a portion of the airflow past it rather than through it. This can be achieved by opening an evaporator bypass. The portion of air that continues to pass through the evaporator is dehumidified essentially unchanged. However, this portion is reduced according to the invention. The portion that bypasses the evaporator, on the other hand, undergoes no dehumidification (or cooling), so that after the portions are recombined, a significantly smaller dehumidified and cooled total airflow results, which is introduced into the passenger compartment (possibly after counterheating in the heating heat exchanger).

[0020] According to the invention, the air humidification device is designed as a mobile unit with a corresponding data and energy interface to the central control unit. Such an air humidification device has a tank for storing the humidification liquid and an atomization and / or evaporation unit for atomizing and / or evaporating the humidification liquid. Both units are connected to one another via a flexible hose line, so that the atomization and / or evaporation unit can be positioned at different positions in the passenger compartment as required. Via the said data and energy interface, comprising a device-side and a vehicle-side interface element, when said interface elements are in contact, the information about the operation and, if applicable,via a special operating mode to the central control unit, which then initiates the reduction of the evaporator cooling capacity according to the invention or cancels it again after the air humidification device has been switched off.

[0021] According to the invention, the tank of the air humidification device can be mounted in a bottle or cup holder in the passenger compartment. Such features are widely common in today's motor vehicles. A form-adapted design of the tank results in a secure and space-optimized mount. The aforementioned device-side interface element is integrated into the tank, and the aforementioned vehicle-side interface element is integrated into the bottle or cup holder, so that when the mobile air humidification device is used as intended, no separate handling step is required for connection to the control unit. Rather, a form adaptation of the tank and mount is provided such that when the tank is inserted into the mount, a forced contact between said interface elements takes place, thus establishing a data connection to the control unit.

Claims

[1] An air conditioning device for a motor vehicle, wherein the air conditioning device comprises, in addition to an air humidification device, an air tempering device, which has a refrigerant circuit with a compressor, a condenser, an expansion element and an evaporator designed as an air / refrigerant heat exchanger, through which an air flow that can be directed into a passenger compartment of the motor vehicle flows, wherein the air humidification device and the air tempering device are controllable by means of a control unit in mutual dependence on one another, and the control unit is designed to reduce the cooling capacity of the evaporator when the air humidification device is put into operation, characterized by , that the air humidification device is arranged in the passenger compartment and has a tank for storing a humidifying liquid, which can be held in a form-fitting manner in a bottle or cup holder in the passenger compartment, and an atomisation and / or evaporation unit for atomising and / or evaporating the humidifying liquid, which is connected to the tank via a flexible hose line and can be positioned at different positions in the passenger compartment, wherein, on the one hand, the tank and, on the other hand, the bottle or cup holder each contain an element of a data and energy interface between the air humidification device and the control unit, and are adapted to one another in such a way that when the tank is inserted into the bottle or cup holder, a forced contact of said interface elements takes place. [2] Air conditioning device according to claim 1, characterized bythat the control unit is designed to reduce the cooling capacity of the evaporator by increasing the working temperature of the evaporator. [3] Air conditioning device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the control unit is arranged to reduce the cooling capacity of the evaporator by opening an evaporator bypass path for a portion of the air flow.